Pestle
Legacy Name: Pestle

"Duckling?"

Your hoarse voice barely makes a sound to your own ears as you strain to watch the shape in the darkness, just out of arms reach.

Propping yourself up onto an elbow hurts, and with much effort you manage to lift your head.

"Duck," you say again, a little louder, the pain that had once incapacitated you now fading like sunlight in the evening. To your profound relief, the figure shifts, and you collapse again onto the ground, moisture wetting your eyes for the first time in your long existence.

"We made it," you whisper into the dirt, savouring the warmth of your tears. "We made it, my duckling."

Hysterics bubble within you, tumbling out in the sound of your own, ragged laughter, a sound that had felt so alien not so long ago, but now flowed from you naturally and easily. "We made it," you whisper again.

Just then, you hear a sound like a bubble popping. A childlike gurgle follows. The sounds stop you in the middle of your joy, and as you struggle with your bemusement you hear a giggle, and another snap of a bubble pop.

Fear falls like a curtain as your relief evaporates. You pull yourself up again as six tendrils unravel from the pile of fur and twist together towards one side, causing the pile to topple and roll over towards you.

In the low light, you can make out an alien face and an all-too-familiar set of amethyest-coloured eyes. As they lock onto yours, a wide, unrestrained smile cracks over her lips, through which out flops a small purple tongue.

"Duckling?" You say, feeling numb. "What ..."

At your voice, she grins wider and began to wave her tendrils towards you. You stare at them, horrified at their wrongness.

"Star shine," she gurgles, then cackles. "You have star shine!"

Numb, you look down towards your hands. They were blackened, the fingers too long, and seemed to smear at the edges into the shadows around you. Unfamiliar hands. Unnatural hands.

No ...

You touch your face; it was short, jagged, scarred, your head too large, the shape distorted.

No!

Panic begins to rise in your throat as you glance down towards your body. It was blackened, deformed like your hands, fading into the darkness where your legs once were as if your form was becoming a part of the shadow, was part of the shadow.

You stifle the urge to scream, and a whimper escapes your lips. The dirt-filled room around you, so welcome before, feels hostile and far, far too cold.

Something smooth and warm touches your face and you flinch, almost losing your balance. You catch yourself and look up only to be greeted by those eyes, her eyes, once so full of wit and wisdom now staring at you with the wonder of a newborn.

She caresses your cheek with a gentle tendril.

"Boop! I booped the star shine. Hee hee hee."

She bobs up and down on bendy limbs, looking exceptionally pleased with herself as you stand there, frozen, the tears now flowing in earnest.

"Oh, duckling ..." you murmur, a different kind of pain now piercing your heart. "What have I done?"