Moonstones

A Stone of Gold?

Derward had shrunk after reaching the small cavern of utter darkness. He felt imprisoned as his antlers scraped against the low ceiling, as if the cave was telling him to turn back while he could. Derward didn't stop but rather crawled on his stomach to continue. It wasn't very comfortable with jagged rocks biting into his sides and piles of dirt smudging his pristine hide. Still, he dragged on. He cared for the princess deeply and would never forgive himself if he lost her to this world. Not to mention what the king and queen would feel. Since Derward was part of the moon, he couldn't be banished nor killed but he could be shunned forever if he failed to protect Princess Lunette. He didn't care about reputation, only that Lunette was almost like a daughter, having watched her grow up and continue to do so. He wanted to see that through, to the very end of her days. Derward wanted to be one of the last, safe, loving and familiar face she laid eyes on before she died. It was that image ingrained in his mind that was a main drive in protecting his princess.

"How could Lunette fit through here?" Derward deliberated aloud, as if to lessen the pressure of utter silence. "She is so much fatter than I am."

A weak light shone ahead, like a dim, dying light bulb but it was a dreary blue instead of a rotting yellow. As Derward advanced, the cave grew more spacious and he was able to stand and walk the rest of the way.

When Derward reached the small cave, all he could see were dying crystals, some of their light completely out. A lot of the crystals were chipped, the fallen pieces scattered on the rocky floor. "What glory this must have been," Derward remarked, his eyes scanning upwards at the dome, examining every inch.

A small groan snapped him out of his stupor and he turned to find Lunette collapsed on the floor. He trotted over and nudged her with his nose. She moaned once more. "Curse these hooves," Derward stomped. If only he could change shape like Sherwood. It hadn't bothered him so much before hand as he could easily adapt to his surroundings but he couldn't stoop and carry Lunette out of the cave. Perhaps if he could change into a mortal human's skin, he could fit through the crawl space better to drag the princess out. He considered using his tail but he wasn't a monkey, though it was long, almost as long as Lunette was tall.

Derward searched the room for anything that could help him but froze when he laid eyes on a rocky outcropping of dead, grey crystals. On the small, raised platform, almost touching the wall, lay a small, glittering, gold moonstone. It sparkled like the radiant, royal attire of the Sun Kingdom. Such a strong, bright color was not common on the moon with its softer tones. Derward wondered, if he touched it, would gold glitter stick to his hoof? He'd never been compelled to reach out and touch something, usually being the one to admonish Lunette and others from such impulses. However, his curiosity outweighed his judgement, something that was not in his character at all.

Derward lifted his left foreleg out and tapped it, quickly withdrawing but was shocked at how such quick contact soon affected him. Not only did gold rub off on him but it crawled up his leg like hungry vines until it encased his entire being. His stomach burned like fire which then spread across his body. Derward felt like he was being flayed alive, in ceaseless agony as he could not die by normal means. As quickly as it happened, it was over.

Derward fell on his hands and knees...his hands and knees? He sat up so fast that he lost his balance. Derward looked down at his human hands, flexing his fingers. His eyes roamed up his body at the defined muscles of his light blue skin that was dotted with random glitter as if it were freckles. Derward felt the top of his head only to realize he was bald, no bumps where his antlers would be. He was normally covered with thin, soft fur. Quickly, he dropped his gaze to his chest, the moon still glowed. He hadn't lost it and the moonstones were still within him, despite Derward changing shape. He stared at the ground, fingertips touching the soft dirt, the rest of his hand raised as if he still had hooves. What could that gold rock be?

"The Former Forming Stone," Derward spoke in shock and amazement, slowly raising his head. The stone was meant to transform the queen-or the possessor- into any living creature they wished but only after the queen had touched the creature with intent to become that specific being. Only queens at the end of their lives could switch form without the need of touching first. "The last thing I touched was Lunette and I've taken on a human form." Derward turned and scooched forward towards Lunette, not trusting that his balance would be the same if he tried to stand on two legs.

He lifted the princess's head to examine it. There was no bumps, scrapes or bruises. He moved to her hands which had small imprints of rocks but weren't bleeding. Her clothes had holes but that was from her running through thorn bushes. The reckless girl.

Satisfied that he'd properly looked over Lunette for any serious injuries, he sat befuddled. "How do I change back?" Derward knew that changing back wasn't so easy and had to be vocalized but what he should say escaped him. He tried a couple phrases, "Turn back. Change back. Reverse."

Derward sat in irritation, not feeling his long tail slide back and forth or slapping the ground, common habits when he was frustrated. "Please let me transform back into my former self." Derward shimmered gold once more before regaining his hooves, tail, antlers and fur. He'd felt so naked as a human-even though he had been- especially since he was bald. Derward changed his focus from being grateful to be in his own skin to considering his words that allowed him to be his true form once more.

"Of course! The Forming Stone would use the word Former." He saw the gold once more and was found himself sitting as a human. "Curses. Transform to true form." He then found himself sitting like a dog as a deer. "I must watch my words since I am uncertain how long these effects will last."

Just then Lunette stirred. Derward stood in excitement and worry. Hopefully, the wisdom stone's effects would be gone and Lunette would no longer be seeing visions.