Sanctum, his salvation

After his curse...

Lucas looked at the image in the crystaline waters. It was a horse he saw in place of his reflection. He wanted to shed tears but there was none. It seemed his new body could not shed tears instead his newly acquired wings shook like his emotions. He screamed but all he could hear was bleating. He had to shut up. Deep in thought, he tried to figure out what just happened to him. He had the face of a horse and wings not to speak of the odd purple fur. The only word that kept echoing in his dumb skull was the words the woman said to him after she kissed him, " Give the curse to another, you find deserving."

What had he done to deserve this? Sure, he was selfish. No! He was an egocentric fool. He believed he was better than anyone and this was the reward. He wanted everything before but now, he had lost everything. He couldn't even see his family, the ones he had so despised.

This was definitely his life now.

Years after...

Darkness slowly enveloped the universe and it began to drizzle.

Isabelle watched raindrops platter against her carriage window forming beautiful patterns as it slid down. Her mother kept on ranting on how she should act when she met Frederick. He was only a Noble for all she knew. Her family was on the brink of bankruptcy and the only way they could stop sinking was to marry a wealthy family. This was where Frederick fit the picture. What he lacked in mannerism and a handsome face was replaced by his bags of gold.

"Are you listening?" Her mother demanded, venom in her words.

She was not. Her mind was preoccupied with how she was being sold out for money.

Her mother's countenance changed to a pleasant one. She was surely about to give one of her motherly advice.

"You don't have to love him Isabelle. Your father just needs to strike a deal with him and to do this, you have to marry him."

Isabelle rolled her eyes. She highly doubted that the deal would save her family from bankruptcy. Her father was a heavy gambler. He was 70% of the reason she was getting engaged to a boy she barely knew.

The horses were stopped through a succession of inhumane whippings, They were there. Isabelle could see Frederick's mansion from the dew covered windows. The carriage doors opened and immediately Isabelle got out, cold winds hit her. She had forgotten how Novembers were very cold in Astoria. She still remembered playing in the rain with her best friend, Lucia before they both moved to Ravenswood. Lucia had become a professional tailor and was very happy to have a blacksmith for a husband. Compared to Lucia, Isabelle knew her life sucked.

Sir Frederick got out of his mansion with a horde of servants. Isabelle got a good look at him as he approached them. He was bald despite being twenty two. He was fairly huge and Isabelle had to painfully admit that his body was amazing. He? had beef everywhere which he showed off by exposing half of his chest. His dressing was appropriate and his shoes on point, always reminding her he was wealthy.

" Hello Mrs Blackwell." He addressed Isabelle's mother who reached out her arm for a kiss to be planted on them.

"You too Isabelle."

With her mother's probing, Isabelle bowed and sent him a plastic smile.

All curtsey's observed. They moved into his house. Amazing could not daescribe it, the floors were covered in enamel and ivory. His parlour was the size of her whole house. Looking up, she could see different Chambers which if she took the time was twenty in number. What did he plan to do with all those rooms? Isabelle was taken to her Chambers by a maid who refused to speak to her. Her room was spacious enough for her to call her new home. The bed was a masterpiece. It was huge enough for a sleepover making Isabelle regret she had not been the most friendly girl. It would have been nice to show this off. The maid quietly left her bags in the wardrobe and left her to herself. Isabelle settled in to make herself at home. She could hear Frederick and her mom discussing about politics. It was definitely not a conversation for her to join in. She would use the opportunity to visit the river for a bath. Isabelle collapsed on the bed and stared at the white cemented ceiling. It had drawings of several mythical creatures. The one that fascinated her was the drawing of the Pegasus. Her thoughts wandered to an ordeal she faced as a child.

Three years ago...

Isabelle sat at the river bed putting her legs in the river to feel the water running through her legs and inhaling the smell of grass and flowers when She suddenly heard a noise. It started as a low growl then turned into a frightening roar.

Looking into the river, she could see the unmistakable reflection of orange and black fur. It was a tiger. Isabelle was frozen in place. She dared not move from fear of being eaten alive. The water that she once enjoyed was becoming trouble for her as she felt the urge to remove her feets from them as the soothing effect had turned chilly. The animal watched for a few minutes before retreating into the forest and out of sight. Isabelle quickly got her feets out of the water and ran for her life. Her mistake. The beast raced out of the shadows with speed unmatched. In split seconds, it pounced on Isabelle and bit into her thighs. She screamed for help as unimaginable pain coursed through her.

In a flash, another animal emerged from the woods and lunged for the tiger. The tiger was sent tumbling and stopped only when it hit a tree. Isabelle turned to see her saviour. It was a purple horse with wings. She had to be hallucinating. The horse nuzzled her hands. She wasn't hallucinating, it was real. The last thing she saw before she fell unconscious was her flying.

***

No one knew how Isabelle survived the tiger's attack. She was found near Lucia's home. Her claims of seeing a Pegasus were dismissed as post trauma. It was one of the reasons her family had left Astoria.

A whiff reminded Isabelle how she desperately needed to shower and off she went.

Going down the elaborate stairs, Isabelle quietly avoided her suitor and mother. She highly suspected they would allow her to go alone. She successfully sneaked out without notice and sprinted to the river.

***

Lucas landed gracefully near Astoria's river. His shift was about to begin and he had to prepare. The moon came fully into view and Lucas could already feel his wings retract into his body. He let out a pained whimper as this happened. His bones ached painfully as he watched his human arms return. After a series of painful and mentally agonizing shifting, Lucas felt human. Years with the curse, he understood that the curse only had effect in the day. At night, he regained his human form and could do as he so pleased. He dug into the sand to retrieve clothes that he had stolen from unsuspecting smugglers who swung by the forest to escape the security. Covering his nakedness, Lucas went to town. He was starved. Despite being an animal for greater parts of the day, he had refused to turn himself to a lowly animal. Astoria was the same as all night. The street was filled with beggers, robbers and ne'er-do-wells. The ale House was always the only part of Astoria that was awake at night. With his last gold coins, he walked in for a drink.

Ladies swarmed him like mosquitoes. From their look, he could tell they desired him. He silently wished he could relay his curse to them but no! The witch who cursed him and explained to him the second time he visited and gruesomely killed her was that only the woman that had stolen his heart could be given the curse. She apparently believed he was in love. That was a year ago though. Now, he had gotten used to his daily routine and he apparently did not care less. The grandfather clock in the alehouse struck twelve and Lucas predicted he had minutes before he was going to shift. He hurriedly pushed the prostitutes away and paid the bartender. Rushing out, he ran to the river. He would have gone to a particular tree to bury his clothes lest he ripped them off while shifting but he stopped in his tracks. There was woman bathing in the river. She was start naked and with help from the moonlight, he had a view. She was redhead and had a very petite face. She apparently had no idea, she was being watched but she was, by him. The tinkling sensation Lucas always had before a shift had began and he could already see part of his wings tear out of his back. He bit his lips to cope with the pain. The woman suddenly stopped bathing. She turned around suspecting an uncanny presence watching her.

"Is anybody there?" She? demanded, cross-examining her surronding.

No one could see him like this! Lucas made an attempt to leave before the woman got too suspicious. The second wing burst out, flapping clumsily on a shrine and making what he tried to avoid, Noise.

The woman got out panicking and began to get dressed. By then, Lucas had halfly transformed. The woman was getting closer, he could smell her perfume. She had almost reached Lucas when he fully shifted. In his Pegasus form, Lucas fanned his wings and charged forward slowly achieving flight, he could see the woman now. She looked very farmiliar but this was hardly the time for sane reasoning. Midair, he held out his forelegs and hindlegs before expertly backwinging to achieve flight. He narrowly missed hitting the woman? as he took to the skies.

He picked something from what the lady said, "Pegasus."

And very soon, he was gone.

Isabelle reimagined her whole saga with the Pegasus. Was she crazy? Or was something seriously twisted going on. It was late and she wasn't at her suitor's house yet. She suspected they would have found out her little escapade. Of course! It was twelve midnight and she had missed dinner. She was definitely in trouble. Her mother would freak out believing she ran away. The whole thought brought a smile to her face. At last, she got to the doorsteps of Frederick's mansion. The front door was surprisingly opened.

Like a foolish character from every movie ever made, she crept in walking on her toes. They were there. Her mother and Frederick.

"Where did you go?" Frederick demanded. Who the hell was he to monitor her movement? Isbelle fumed. Her mother's concern was heard of but his. For all she knew, he was nothing to her until they got wedded.

"I went for a swim." She retorted, twice the venom.

The air was tense. Isabelle's mother could not bear to see their only source of luxury mad even if it was at the expense of her daughter's self-respect. She slapped Isabelle. It was so unexpected that Isabelle lost her footing. Pointing her perfectly manicured finger in Isabelle's face, her mother spoke senses to her.

"Don't you dare argue with your husband."

Isabelle did not deserve this. Her family was broke but she could not bear the life she was about to be forced into. She ran to her room. She clumsily slipped and fell multiple times in a bid to cover her shame. Reaching her room, she banged the doors shut violently just to hold on to her anger. Immediately the doors were locked securely, Isabelle lay on the floor weeping. She had no desire to live anymore. Life had lost it's purpose. She stole one look at the drawings on the ceiling. The Pegasus once again caught her attention.

Was she going insane? It could not be a coincidence that she had encountered it twice. She however knew no one would believe her. They had done it before and they would do it again. The only person who understood her was Lucia so she made up her mind to write to her, it would take a lot off her chest.

"Dear Lucia, " she wrote.

"I've met with the douchebag I'm getting married to and I have to tell you, he is very controlling. He already thinks we're married. I think I saw the Pegasus again. I swear to you, it's the same one that saved me three years ago. I wish I could see it one more time to thank it. I know it's just an animal but you know..."

The letter was perfect. She could hardly wait for Lucia's reply. She would mail it first thing in the morning then visit the river with high hopes that? the creature would come for a drink. Isabelle was exhausted and retired on the lonely bed. It was boring and lonely here. Despite the house' largeness, there was no adventure.

"Isabelle!" Her mother called. Isabelle resolved not to answer still remembering her perpetual disgrace downstairs. The knocks and calls got louder and more irritating. Isabelle knew this was just like her mother. She could go any length to get what she wanted. Isabelle sometimes wished she was a little like her. She would have had the guts to refuse the arrangement. Isabelle opened the door and her mother pushed her way inside.

"You were awake the whole time?" Her mother asked. Isabelle refused to talk. She did this when she was mad at someone. Her mother however was not interested in her mood.

"I'll be leaving tomorrow by Dawn." She stated.

And leave her alone here. Isabelle could not believe her luck. She was going to be alone with that repulsive man without her mother to keep him in check.

"Great." Isabelle sarcastically said. Her mother moved closer to her, an epitome of motherly love, "Isabelle, " she began.

"You don't have to love him. Think about your father, if he gets this deal and is successful. You can divorce him if you still haven't fallen in love with him."

"What do you mean if I haven't fallen in love with him?" Isabelle queried.

Her mother held her chin and made Isabelle look directly into her eyes, "When I met your father, I did not love him. I married him to leave my pathetic life. But I learnt to love him you will too."

What was her mom saying? Isabelle qondered. That she would ever have a pinch of emotion for Frederick? Maybe when she was blue and cold.

Isabelle's mother kissed her and made her chant the mantra she had been repeating since they got to Astoria, "For the deal, Nothing else."

Before leaving. Isabelle knew she would never set eyes on her again until the deal was set. She? wept a bit more. Her mother might have married her father to leave a pathetic life, she had a feeling she was about to go into one. One she could not turn back on.

***

Lucas freely soared the skies watching the city of Astoria from a distance. The strong wind blowing against him reminded him of the girl at the river. He remembered her expression when she saw him. It wasn't fear or surprise. It was fascination. He wondered? if she had seen him before. Little had seen him in his pegasus form but when they told their tale, they were mocked for either being drunk or hallucinating. A little flying was enough to clear his head. He descended to the red earth as the sun rose. Soon even the forest would be threading with hunters, smugglers and women. He had to lay low. Keeping from humans had been considerably easy. Hunters never ventured deep into the forest out of fear of the unknown. He occasionally scared poke-nosing women away with weird noises. Sitting down idle in the grass, he tried to remember the girl from the night before. She looked farmiliar. The flaming red hair, her round green eyes. Their was an allure to her he could hardly resist. He could surely not get her. She looked like a Noble.

"Shut up Lucas!" He sang to his inappropriate thoughts. He did suspect they had met before, he just couldn't remember if he was still human then.

Alone in the forest, time passed and it began to get dark. Lucas spread his gigantic wings and took flight. He was heading to river before his transformation began.

A sudden rainstorm sent? Lucas descending. His wings was soaked and he knew he had to gallop to the stream. Luckily, every villager would have gone home to a avoid the storm.

***

Isabelle had gone to mail her letter when the rain began to pour. She was halfway to the carriage when she noticed the coach rider was missing. The horses were also gone.

"Hello?" She called out. The whole scenario seemed odd. Did the rider go for a drink? She was about to call out to him again when a cold metal pierced her skin. It was a knife. Two men came into view. Both looked dangerous and had a weapon on them. She didn't need a seer to tell her what was happening, it was definitely bad.

The three men, one holding her firm to his grip and the other two watching out for Intruders explained why they were taking her. From what they said, she learnt that Frederick had betrayed the prince and he was going to pay. To make it clear, they planned to rape her and dispose of her.

What could Frederick had done against the prince? Isabelle didn't even have minutes to ponder on that before her defenses activated. Spending years in Astoria, her father had taught her how to protect herself for harm. She stopped struggling with the man holding her and when he loosened his grip, she elbowed him right in the groin. He released her from his hold and she ran for it before the three could regain her composure. One of her assaulter gifted her with a deep cut to the shoulder. It bled but she did not let it slow her down. She ran into the forest not looking back once. The downpour got heavier drowning all sound from Isabelle's ear. The only audible thing she could make was the male grunts. They were still in pursuit. Isabelle knew if she dared stop, they would do worse to her than they had originally planned so she picked up her pace despite her growing fatigue. When Isabelle noticed the men had still not given up but they were catching up to her and quick. She could only do the sane thought her mind proposed.

"Help!!!" She screamed.

What was the use? She was deep in the forest and the heavy downpour would make it almost impossible for anyone to hear her cries for help. She was doomed.

***

As Lucas waited patiently for the transformation. He heard something. It was a call for help. Ordinarily, he would ignore it but the woman's voice was very convincing. She had to be really in trouble. He could not fly as his feathers were dripping with water but damn he could run. He followed the voice and got there even before the word flash could be said. It was the same redhead. She was being cornered by three miscreant. It was the perfect moment for a romantic rescue. Years of being a Pegasus, Lucas had learnt how to protect himself. Hidden in his wings were talons sharper than knives and deadlier than venom. He charged at one, stabbing him right in the chest and ripping his skin clean. The man fell to the ground screaming and in seconds he was dead. The other two witnessed the evil perpetuated by the purple winged horse and tried to run. Lucas did not grant them the fair chance. He wanted them dead or perhaps it was the adrenaline talking. He charged for another that he quickly got up to. Knocking him down with his muscle filled right wing, he trampled him to death. Suddenly one of Lucas's wings retracted and he lost his balance falling down to the mud. The last miscreant saw this happen and saw it as an opportunity to kill the psychotic Pegasus. Holding a dagger, he stabbed the animal right in the stomach. Lucas let out a wail as his human hands returned. He reached out for the dagger embedded in his stomach and stabbed the man in retaliation. Within seconds, the man fell to the ground. A human Lucas stood up despite the sick feeling he had in his stomach and watched his one-man-slaughter. The girl he had saved looked at him like she had seen a ghost before fainting.

Naked, Lucas carried Isabelle to the river. She was cold and must have fainted from shock. Seeing the girl up close, he remembered her. She was the girl he saved from a hungry tiger three years ago. That explained her fascination. He carried her to the cabin she had asked him to carry her to three years ago. He was still naked but he hardly cared. He had to make sure the beautiful stranger was safe. He dropped her gently on the veranda and took his leave.

At the Alehouse, news had spread about a wild animal attack that left three of the prince's men dead. An eyewitness revealed the gruesome details of the state of the men when he found them.

"If only they knew." Lucas whispered to himself.

"It's the Pegasus." A fat bearded man said. The whole building burst out in laughter immediately this was heard.

"You're way over your head." A female sex worker commented.

The man refused to be fazed. He continued, "I once had an encounter with the cunning creature..."

The man continued speaking as Lucas tried to remember when he had met the man.

"The Pegasus came at me, slapping accross the face with it's wings. There seemed to be a hidden sharp object in it's wing. when it hit me, My face tore. I was bleeding as I ran for my life."

Everyone seemed to slightly believe the man's tale as they wondered why witches existed if pegasus' do not. The discussions suddenly changed to the coming eclipse that the kingdom's scribes had predicted. This news particularly interested Lucas. The people talked about everyone was instructed to stay at home to avoid a bad omen which the eclipse signified. Not for Lucas though. He was going to remain human for a whole day. He needed to celebrate. Another news was picked to be discussed upon.

" I heard the Blackwood's matriarch died."

The news made Lucas spit out his celebration drink. His father was dead? He had only last seen them since he was afflicted with the curse. He hadn't bothered to visit them considering they all thought he had abscond and out of fear of what they would do if they learnt of his curse. The news quite upset him as he thought of how his brother and mother would cope.

"It's so sad. Despite their affluence, their first son ran away. Their second is horribly sick and can barely managed their family's Manor."

"They deserve it though. They were pretty tight fisted for a rich family."

The speaker of such vile words was Tony. Lucas did not waste time in dealing him a blow. The man tumbled over his stool, hitting the ground with a loud this and vomitting the fermented beverage he had just consumed. No one had the right to say that to his family. The man looked up at him drunk, "What's your problem? Do you know them?"

The squabble was beginning to attract people. Lucas did not want that. When people ask too much questions, they usually got their answers. He left the bar.

***

Frederick fumed. Looking at the empty chair near him with the food untouched enraged him more. His maids knew better than to attend to him now but that did not spare them from his wrath. He stood up angrily from the dining and pushed a maid out of his way. The Isabelle of a girl annoyed him a lot. She would not respect him or listen to whatever he said. He was beginning to suspect she had a man outside. The mere thought of that enraged him. He paced around the parlor like a bull. He needed to be drown his emotions. Now, Frederick didn't drink. There were a lot more intoxicating things to wine.

"You?" He called to an indentured servant that had caught his eye recently.

"Follow me.", He ordered. The indentured knew more than to defy her master. In minutes, echoes of what was transpiring? filled the mansion as Frederick did wicked things to the maid.

Resting on his bed and satisfied, Frederick instructed the maid to dress up and leave lest his soon to be bride caught him in a compromising position. Immediately those words crossed his mind, the doors of his Chambers flung open. Isabelle was there, wet and all, a shocked expression written on her face.

"You womanizer! She accused, her wet hair bothering her sight.

Frederick looked the least concerned as he spoke back.

"Where were you?"

Isabelle paused for brief moment then talked, "I get it now. You must have messed with the Prince' woman and that's why he sent men to rape and kill me." She whined.

"Prince Alexander?", Frederick asked to be sure. He asked a question to be sure but that question confirmed Isabelle's suspicion, he was a womanizer.

She burst out of the room as Frederick chased after her unable to meet up to her, not after his recent exercise. He let her run but reminded her something, "You can run Isabelle but you can't leave. You need me, your whole family needs me."

Isabelle knew he was right, she hated that he was right. She sat on the lonely bed that had been accustomed to her. This was her life now. She was going to get married to a chronic womanizer who had no respect for harm as a person and as a woman. Her life after thier marriage was definitely not going to be a bed of roses. She however had a choice. Either live with a rope tied securely to her neck or a rope tied for her to escape. The latter seemed promising and for the first time in her life, Isabelle felt selfish. She was tired of always fufilling everyone's goals and neglecting her's. That Isabelle was dead.

The cock had refused to crow on the morning. The sun was gone and it was confused. It was pitch black all over Astoria and no one could leave thier houses. It was all superstition. They believed this was the very day that the demons were free to roam the earth. Packing a few of her things and throwing them down the three story building, Isabelle prepared to abscond. She had handcrafted a makeshift rope out of her bedsheets which she shredded. Knitting lessons finally paid off. She tied the rope to one of her bedstand made of pure marble. It was heavy enough and would carry her weight. She climbed down successfully despite her initial paranoia that it would loosened and she would plummet to her death. She picked up her loads and took to her feets.

***

The eclipse had come and apparently Lucas was still human. He had the opportunity to walk around for a whole day. He planned to use the whole day like a free spirited Sprite but the news about his father death had killed all those dreams. He was just going to sit down at the stream wondering why he had looked into the eyes that dangerous witch. He still cursed that day. The cracking sound of a broken twig alerted Lucas of an unwanted presence.

"Who's there?" He boomed.

A lady came into view. It was the same redhead that had a knack for being? in trouble. Call it coincidence but this was fate.

"Who are you?" The lady demanded.

"What's a lady doing out so early? You almost look like you're running away."

Lucas read Isabelle like a book. It was quite what she had done or was still doing. She couldn't go back to her womanizing suitor or her parent's house. She was trapped then out of the blues came a handsome stranger. Dark haired, slightly unshavened but cute all the same. His rich brown eyes looked like mirrors that could trap any woman's soul.

What are odds? Isabelle? knew it was unwise to converse with strangers but desperate times call for desperate measures.

"Please Mr?" She asked hoping he could get her question and tell her his name.

"Lucas." He replied, his voice was soothing. What she even doing? Isabelle wondered. She was meant to be thinking her present predicament not how nice a stranger's voice was.

"Can I get a place to stay?" She asked, more like begging.

"I have money. I'll pay." She added.

Lucas did have a shack, he made for himself when he was still coming in terms with his curse and more he was broke and couldn't get food or Ale. He didn't want to get close to the girl but he really needed the money.

"Sure. But it's below your standard." He said.

Isabelle hardly cared how bad a state his house was, she just wanted to lay her head down and eat something.

"Whatever." She declared and he led the way.

Along the way to his house, Lucas tried to question the lady. This was his first real social contact with the human world and he wanted to make the most of it.

"Are you running away from something?" He inquired. The look in her eyes was exhausted. She was surely going to tell him.

"Yes." She admitted." It's just everything about my life. My family and my husband to be. You'll never understand."

Oh Lucas knew. Infact, he understood. He grew up hating his life and family. He feel in love with a cursed witch who used him and now he felt alone and trapped.

"What about you?" Isabelle asked.

" No backstory." He replied and she didn't press on.

" You know, you never told me your name?" Lucas asked trying to change the subject.

Isabelle smiled and replied, "I don't give my names to strangers."

She was probably retaliating on him after he refused to tell her his story. It's wasn't like he didn't know her name. He remembered it like it was yesterday. Three years ago, she had revealed her name in a trance like state and since that day the name Isabelle never left his mind.