My name is Amethyst, once I was a nymph and followed Artemis, the Great Goddess of Wild Nature and the Moon. I was given immortality by Artemis, now I spend my days as the gemstone Amethyst and am one of the most valued gemstones in the world. I'm sure you've seen me once or twice, a transparent to translucent purple stone. How I got to be a gemstone is a long story, so let me start at the beginning.
"Amethyst!" I was awakened by Aeglia's voice, her warm voice pulled me out of a trance that had lead me to the Olympus. I slowly opened my eyes and gazed into her eyes. I opened my mouth to answer her, but no sound emerged from my throat. It almost seemed like I had left my voice behind on they Olympus. It didn't seem to matter to Aeglia, she spoke to me, but the words couldn't get a grasp on me. "Amethyst!" she repeated herself, and it seemed that she was waiting for an answer. I slowly nodded my head. "What is wrong with you?" The concern in her voice was clearly audible. I shrugged and slowly started to speak. "I don't know Aeglia," I had found my voice again. Aeglia shook her head, irritated, her dark curls moved along and stroked the base of her neck. "It is your turn to prepare the temple of the Goddess for our next celebration." Aeglia's voice had an irritated undertone in it and I jumped up. I had completely forgotten! When I glanced over my shoulder while I ran away towards the temple of Artemis, I noticed that Aeglia still shook her head. Just when I had made sure that she couldn't see me, I slowed down and continued my way calmly.
The Calm Before the Storm
My walk to the temple of Artemis calmed me down, I had returned to my own environment and the memory of the Olympus had ebbed away slowly but gradually. I fully enjoyed the nature that surrounded me, and every now and again I stopped to watch the deer that played between the trees or to admire and smell a flower. The wonders of Mother Earth touched me in the depth of my soul. The sweet scent of the flowers that mixed itself with the fresh scent of the leaves of the trees was the most luxurious perfume I could imagine. The calm that surrounded me and entered my soul each time I walked through nature made me realise that I was one of the happiest nymphs on earth. And the fact that I was one of Artemis' followers filled me with an immense sense of pride. My walk today didn't differ much from the walk on other days, here and there I stopped to pick a flower and pretty soon I had gathered a beautiful bouquet for Artemis' altar. However I did not feel at ease today, there was something that did not make sense, the animals that I usually saw on my path weren't there and it was really quiet and very calm. A calm that you would normally expect before Zeus cleaved the skies with his lightning bolts and the rain would shower Gaia with all their intensity and love.
A Coincidental Meeting
I continued my path cautiously, although I was aware of the surreal silence I can't say it frightened me. But when I got to a three fork in the road the blood in my veins turned cold and a column of ice formed itself around my spinal cord. Not more than three feet away from me were two wild animals that intended to jump me! Behind them I noticed a beardless young man who wore a wreath of ivy on his head. I recognised the man as the half brother of the Goddess Artemis, Dionysos, the God of Wine. His face wrung into a mask of aversion and discontent. It almost seemed like he was encouraging the animals to jump me. "Artemis!" my voice got stuck in my throat, and the screeching sound that came out of my mouth was barely audible. I scraped my throat carefully while the column of ice spread throughout the rest of my body. "Artemis!" I called out again, more clearly now, but terrified. The animals kept staring at me with their yellow eyes and were ready to attack. I couldn't move and it felt like my body had turned to stone because the ice kept spreading through my arms and legs. I opened my mouth again to call on the Goddess again, but at that exact moment I was hit by the sharp claws of one of these wild beasts. After that, everything turned to black in front of me and I was sucked into some kind of abyss.
Transformation
I really can't remember what happened after that, but others have told me the following. The Goddess Artemis was convinced I'd made a date with Dionysos, but that wasn't the case, honestly! When she saw that Dionysos' wild beast attacked me she panicked and came to help me. She tried to revive me, but unfortunately that wasn't among her powers and she could only change me into a natural object. Artemis told me later she had thought long and hard about which form she had to choose for me. And I could feel by the sorrow in her voice that she put a lot of effort into it. "Amethyst," she whispered to me, "I've always loved you, my sister… Your short life made an impression on me, and at first I had no idea which natural form would do you justice." Her voice broke and she swallowed down her tears. I could tell she was in a lot of pain and it hurt her more than she could say, her tears slowly dripped from her face onto my new body. "You've always done everything I wanted you to do, Amethyst," she continued to speak. "You never married and while you were alive your beauty was so pure… that is why I finally decided to use the pure crystal form for you…"
The Gemstone Amethyst
When I regained consciousness and became aware of my surroundings my body still felt as icy and stiff as right before the attack by Dionysos' wild beasts. The first person I saw appear before me was the Goddess Artemis, her eyes red and swollen from all the tears she had shed. Dionysos stood behind her, hidden away and his eyes conveyed a timid look. I could read their minds, which struck me as odd, because it was something I hadn't been able to do before. I realised Artemis felt sadness for I had died, and Dionysos felt guilty because he hadn't stopped the animals before they attacked. Dionysos mumbled some words under his breath and it kind of sounded like an apology to me. Then he poured a goblet of wine over my ice cold, petrified body. I had no other way of telling him that I accepted his apology, so absorbed the wine into my new body which caused it to turn to the colour purple.
Now you know how I, the gemstone Amethyst, came into existence. And why the priests and priestesses of Artemis wear me on their bodies…
This story is based on a Greek Legend.
Branwynn is also the Gemstone Diva. Her beautiful photography is displayed on her site Life Through a Lens, while her E-bay store can be found here.