Sioggard - The Moon Flower Luna

1.

A breath of wind. A soft caress scented with grass and ferrous roots. The faint fragrance tinged with gray caressed her skin with a light touch penetrating her consciousness.

She was dreaming, lost in a dark and hollow limb, wrapped in a long bulky cloak that itched and scratched irritably.

She was running.

Through gloomy puddles in whose darkness the red sun was reflected as it was setting down towards the horizon.

She was close, could feel it in the soft throbbing of her heart.

Grave and restless her heartbeat drove fear, anxiety, desire adrift on whose wings she flew to meet her destiny, an involuntary witness of her own fate.

She was close but the streets were elusive and so fragile they seemed unreal like a dull haze in the sky streaked with purple roses. Flame tongues at times dull, that exploded in bloody flashes of colored passion towards the apex of the sacred fire.

They called to her, stared at her, she could feel their gazes on her hitting her skin with searing intensity.

Felt the weight of their judgments and those scrutinizing eyes that denied her acquittal.

But she kept running. She wanted, no she had to know, however unreal that feeling seemed to be.

A breath of wind that had the taste of hope and pain accompanied her, rhythmizing her footsteps hindered by the heavy cloak of raw wool.

The sun continued its run towards the east and she went panting towards him to reach the ultimate goal of her own journey while the sky changed his clothes, cloaking itself in soft darkness.

Isadore wanted to shout at him, ask him to wait.

A weight, however, oppressed her heart stunning her voice, making her fell silent.

The more she ran, the more she moved away from safety and like the fiery sunset setting toward the horizon, that course of her fate would never be diverted.

Isadore tried to escape it, hiding from her hunting memories steeped in pain and suffering, hindered the noisy trail of overlapping memories in her subconscious but there was no more place to hide.

And there she was, no matter how much she kept running she was back there once again, the beginning and end of her damn destiny.

And once again, Isadore could just watch her child old self while the old memories brought back the pain deep buried in her heart.

"Mom…?" Isadore looked frightened over the barrier, reaching out her hands pleading to her mother.

The monsters were running towards her and there was no time left but even though she was afraid of them she tried not to cry.

Big girls didn't cry, Dad told her when she fell and hurt her knee the week before and Mom didn't like it when she cried.

It wasn't dignified she had told her, Isadore wasn't sure what it meant but she didn't want her mother to scold her again, she didn't like it when she scolded her.

Striving to be brave tried not to let the tears that burned her eyes fall as she turned back to her mother.

"Mom .." she called her again, very scared when she realized that the monsters were behind her.

Isadore wanted to move, she tried to move, to run away from them but her chest hurt just too much.

With terror in her eyes wide open, she reached back to her mother, begging her to be taken away from there.

Isadore did not liked that place, she was afraid of it and felt so cold she thought, continuing to hold back her tears, but her mother did not move.

Clinging Rhys and Kellan to her chest, her mother looked coldly in her direction and then walked away, leaving her alone behind.

She was going to call dad, Isadore thought, but when found herself alone she could no longer hold back the tears that fell copiously on her haggard face.

She was so afraid when the monsters approached her, staring at her with big, evil eyes.

They were huge, darkened the sky and made the earth tremble under her feet, she had never seen anything more frightening.

Where was daddy? Isadore bit her lips, choking on her sobs, and as the monsters surrounded her she promised the Moon that she would be a good girl if it let her father come to save her.

But as she prayed, promising the Moon not to make her mother angry anymore, the biggest monster of the three growled and that sound crawled her skin, making her burst into more tears.

Frightened as never before in her life, Isadore cried out for help, but her voice came out weak and shrill, the echo quickly dispersed through the dome of the trees.

And the monsters were about to attack her, they came up with their ugly eyes and huge paws ready to crush her and tear her to shreds. Mom had told her what would happen if she didn't obey her, she had told her about the evil wolves who would come for her.

"Please .." trembling like a leaf, Isadore begged the moon to send her father to save her, she was so afraid, so afraid and they had reached her.

One more step and then another and then...

A breath of wind. A faint fragrance of ruby roots and flowers touched her face, awakening her self-preservation instinct. A strong breeze enveloped her in an icy embrace that froze her breath, bringing her back to consciousness.

A moment and the path dissolved into an illusory dream behind her lowered pupils.

With a muffled cry in her throat, Isadore opened her eyes in the darkness of the night with her heart beating madly and her breath heavy as the memory of her old nightmares lightened in her consciousness.

Trembling convulsively, she sat up on the bed wiping the tears that wet her cold cheeks and closed her eyes, trying to calm down.

It was just a dream, she told herself, but the fear that still crept in her chest prevented her from regaining control of her own emotions. It had been just a dream but the memory of it was still so vivid and real that it upset her even after so many years.

Shivering, Isadore turned and covered her face with her hands as the sounds and colors of the sunset awakened her consciousness.

They were back, the cursed nightmares after she had fought so hard to defeat them and give her own life a semblance of normality. She had known it wouldn't last forever, that respite, the truce that was given to her had been just temporary, but it had lasted more than a year and she had hoped that maybe, maybe ..

Shaking her head, Isadore shook away her thoughts and stood up with a sense of urgency that was painfully familiar to her. The moon would go out in a few days, consuming her breath, stopping her heart one beat at a time.

Her soul trembled at the memory of the pain but Isadore did not allow the weakness to take control of her.

She had lived with fear for years, learning to shape it as she had learned to moderate her rebellious and impulsive character. She hadn't always succeeded, as she had never managed to escape her pain and memories but had never allowed fear to overcome her.

Aileen.

She would help her, Isadore thought grabbing a cloak and hurrying out of her room but then she remembered. Aileen was away for weeks now and she did not know when the woman would be back.

Unkle Viktor, Isadore immediately thought then as the urgency pushed her to hurry down the stairs but then she felt the silence and knew it before calling him out.

He also was not around and Isadore had no time to wait for him.

Rushing to the kitchen, she descended frantically in the pantry to check on her herbs and stocks but could not find anything that would be helpful for the next eclipse.

Isadore had no other choice, grabbing a wooden basket wore her clock and rushed outside.

The evening descended gray over the valley and the cold air challenged intrepid souls to venture out into the open but she did not hesitate. Even though she was trembling intensely didn't stop to think.

Could only blame herself for her stupid inaction because the truth was that she had given in to hope, allowing herself to let her guard down.

Only once Isadore said herself, she was tired because fighting was exhausting and time was not her friend, although she continued to delude herself that one day she would be free.

A vain and illusory hope, she knew, was sadly aware of it but at the same time could not accept it.

Isadore had been dancing on the edge of death for years, even though she had lost a piece of herself each time was still alive.

Year after year, at each eclipse, she had fought the monsters in her head that set her heart on fire, stealing her strength and breath and each time had come out deeply scarred.

She was still alive though and by now it was too late to give up, didn't have the strength to resist the damned self-preservation instinct that kept her alive despite the excruciating and exhausting pain. She could only hope and delude herself that one day she would be free but until then she still had a battle to win.

The breathless run into the woods stiffened her muscles, taking her breath away, but Isadore continued to advance into its heart, heedless of the darkness that enveloped her, gloomy and oppressive.

She had never been afraid of the darkness, it had always served her well, protecting her from probing and penetrating looks.

Nor did the echoing silence frighten her, Isadore had walked in those woods for years, she knew its every root and shattered with disturbing clarity.

Holding back a sigh, Isadore called her thoughts to order and tried to concentrate on the surroundings, ignoring the chill that had penetrated the fluttering folds of her cloak. Glancing up at the dark sky above the dense dome of intertwined branches, she found herself shivering. Winter was coming already and promised an inclement season, in a few weeks the borders would become impassable.

Isadore could almost smell the first snow in the air, dancing on her skin with icy anticipation. It was going to be a long and harsh winter but it didn't really matter to her, it was never the dry robe of winter that imprisoned her but her own curse.

A veil of sadness enveloped her thoughts, darkening her expression, because Isadore had always hated what she was, but despite that she had never had the strength to deny herself.

A salty tear ran down her cheek and Isadore furiously wiped it away but she couldn't deny in her heart that this was a battle she was destined to lose.

She could shape fear, suppress pain and lie to herself and the world but could never overcome the hatred that consumed her soul.

One day, maybe one day she had always said to herself, but the days had passed slowly, becoming weeks and then months that had turned into years. Yet nothing had changed because as much as she loathed who she was, she could not suppress the cursed instinct forged in her blood.

It was really tiresome she thought with a sigh, but at that moment she barely had the strength to worry about surviving the days to come.

Shaking her head silently nodded to herself, nothing was more important.

With renewed vigor, Isadore returned to pay attention to the forest pulsing alive around her in the dark night.

In the meantime, in fact another hour has passed and lost in her dark thoughts, Isadore did not realized that she had strayed so far from home. She must have been quite close to the borders by now which was not only blatantly forbidden but also quite dangerous especially for her and at that late hour.

A glint of concern veiled her gaze as she looked around wondering if she should go back but then her instincts prevailed.

By now she had gone too far and then she knew the forest so well to be able to find the paths even without a thread of light.

She however had never pushed so far as to the border limits and knew she was not careful, but once again ignored the caution and went straight on.

Isadore would have gone back had it not been for the fear that shook her heart. There was only a few days left until the next eclipse and she needed time to work the herbs she had gone so far to find.

Isadore therefore continued to go into the woods until she found the spontaneous and venomous hellebore.

With a sigh of weariness and relief at the same time Isadore finally allowed herself to take a moment to catch her breath before knelling on the cold ground to carefully pluck the precious roots.

Over the years, despite everything, she had become sadly expert at handling herbs, preparing decoctions, serums and infusions. With time, however, had also grown fond of it and now spent most of her days devoting herself to it, despite her uncle's quiet disapproval, who did not look favorably on her original hobby.

Had it not been that, that hobby had wrenched her from death at every eclipse since she could remember, Uncle Viktor would probably have forbidden her to pursue her interest. He was already dissatisfied with her relationship with Aileen although he was usually quite inclined to give in to her whims.

If he had known her in the heart of the woods at that late hour he would have scolded her harshly, because if there was anything he didn't compromise on, it was her safety and wellbeing.

Repressing a grimace, Isadore chased away her thoughts and the familiar sense of guilt that made her sigh, she loved Uncle Viktor and hated displeasing him but this time had no choice, she told herself to calm her conscience.

Shaking her head again, Isadore hurried to gather her roots, with a bit of luck she would be back before anyone could noticed her absence.

She worked hard trying to ignore the bitter cold, the harsh breath of wind playing with the hood of her cloak, and the discomfort that at one point assailed her for no apparent reason.

Sensing the danger on the edge of her skin, Isadore froze promptly ignoring the shivers that ran down her shoulder blades and peered into the darkness that enveloped her deeply. Everything was silent in the surroundings and in the gloomy silence the rhythm of her heart in pain rang out intensely.

Her breath got caught in her throat and with her heart in a grip she tried to dispel her restlessness. The forest was still but she could feel it vibrating with life and danger even though she could see only indistinct shadows around.

But her instincts screamed loudly in her head, warning her to be on guard because something undefined loomed threatening nearby. And yet not a sound broke the apparent harmony, intensifying the shivers that shook her.

For a few moments Isadore stood still, perfectly motionless to scan the dark, preparing to sell her skin dearly, but then she decided it was more prudent to go away.

Getting so close to the borders hadn't been wise and she didn't want to pay the consequences.

Striving to move in silence, Isadore picked up the wooden basket filled with hellebore, covered her head with the hood of her cloak, and then, continuing to fathom the surroundings, began to walk back to the edge of the path she had followed.

Even when, however, she was far enough away to be able to breathe again, the uneasiness that had pervaded her continued to oppress her heart and she was still too far from the valley.

Panic snaking through her chest, Isadore walked slowly flinching at every rustle and breath of wind, trying to keep her agitated emotions in check.

She really shouldn't have gone that far but now just had to hope she could get back unharmed.

The silence resounded oppressively in the thin air, still in the heart of the woods Isadore walked with all the haste that her trembling emotions allowed her but it was not enough.

She would not be able to get away in time, she knew it, she felt it, the danger had gripped her heart in a painful storm of rage and her hope could do nothing against the terror that enveloped her.

Because he was there, hidden in the dark, waiting for the right moment to attack her, she could feel his presence with the same intensity of the wind that whipped her conscience.

It was too late now to escape.

With a pale face and terror in her eyes, Isadore stopped again because she could no longer continue, a desperate cry in her head encouraged her to run away, towards home, towards safety. But that cry gradually died away covered by the tumultuous beat of her heart in pain that stopped her in the woods waiting for something, what exactly she didn't know about.

The forest was dark and silent around her and for a tremendous moment, as long as a lifetime it seemed to her that everything stopped, even the air became still.

Groping in fear, Isadore released the breath she had been holding and then, drawing on fear to find the strength she forced herself to move again and run away.

One step, then another and another one again, but despite herself it was really too late.

He came from east, pitch black, massive, wild and determined to end her tormented existence.

The sunken red eyes, the straight fur and the canines uncovered in a snarl that made her tremble to the depths of her soul, but Isadore did not move. She couldn't, pinned down by terror could only watch death come by counting the moments she had left to breathe for one last time.

Wanted to close her eyes, say a prayer to the Moon asking it to spare her uncle the torment she knew would devastate him. She didn't have the time however, because as Isadore regretted in anguish wasting her miserable existence somewhere in her subconscious a new thrill of fear stirred her heart.

And it had nothing to do with the terror that held her prisoner of the red eyes now a sigh away from her.

The snarl that followed shook the woods with such force that the earth trembled under her feet, and Isadore could not stifle a sigh in spice of herself.

Rhys.

Awareness penetrated even the curtain of terror that chained her thoughts and despite the hatred that it awakened mixing with fear in her blood Isadore allowed herself to hope.

Too soon, however, she realized that she had been deceived because in the moments that she was lost in her thoughts the Rogue had covered the distance that separated them and fear returned to shake her heart, clouding her sight.

Isadore didn't pray, didn't plead, didn't move. She stood still and pale, waiting for her end and even silenced the terror that screamed inside her.

Because she had been waiting for that very day since she was born, had lived with fear for years waiting for the moment to be free. She would have preferred to feel less frightened because had struggled with herself for years to stifle the hope that had germinated in her heart.

It was okay however she told herself trying to reassure her heart, she had no regrets except the awareness of the emptiness she knew she would be leaving behind.

Isadore nodded in her subconscious and raised her gaze resigned to stare into the red eyes with calm acceptance, the eyes of the monster that stopped in front of her.

The monster that she herself would not become because that evening her suffering would end and at least she would be grateful to him for that.

Meeting his gaze however, it was not the fear she was trying to control, to shake her but pain, the poignant suffering of the monster in front of her that hit her with ugly force, leaving her petrified. Because she understood it, she had no idea how or why but she felt with every fiber of her being the pain that was burning alive the Rogue.

Isadore could not explain it to herself nor did she try but she could almost see the flames gripping his heart and maybe she was crazy but she thought she was the one causing him that torment.

It made no sense, it was absurd and ridiculous and yet instead of attacking her the Rogue remained perfectly motionless, his paws nailed to the ground, his body prostrated rigidly at her feet staring at her helplessly, in his eyes the reflection of the pain that held him prisoner.

He was dying in front of her. She could see life fade in his eyes and the terror that was reflected in them was the same as hers.

"Please ..." Isadore pleaded in a barely audible breath but didn’t really knew what was she begging for, she just wanted it to end. "Please.." she added desperately but it was the cold silence that answered her because in the red eyes of the monster in front of her there was only a breath of life left now. "Go." Isadore pleaded again unable to bear that torment anymore and when the oppressive silence was filled with howls, the desperation joined the anguish in her heart. "Go.." she begged again, her voice trembling, aware that the rogue did not have much time, he could be a monster but she did not want to be, she could not remain impassive to see him perish because of her. "I beg you.. ”she pleaded silently crying and as the wood vibrated with ferocious howls the wolf finally rose on its paws and after a last glance in her direction ran away just before the herd of Rhys came to surround her, growling wildly.

Some of them set off in pursuit of the Rogue and in her heart Isadore could only pray to the moon to protect their prey, only for an instant however because shortly after she realized that she herself was not yet safe at all.

She had lived isolated all her life, silently enduring her own torment, hidden from the world to avoid the pain of seeing the pity in the looks that followed her. Isadore had always been grateful for this to Uncle Viktor because she loathed the kingdom and the monsters that inhabited it with the same intensity of the hatred she felt for the cruel curse she had been given.

Unfortunately, what neither she nor her uncle had considered was that her enforced isolation would one day expose her to more danger than her own frailty would.

Of the five huge wolves that ferociously surrounded her with gaping jaws ready to tear her to pieces, she knew none and it was evident they didn't know her either, her feeble smell masked by the hellebore roots was probably the only reason they still had not attacked her.

Not for long however because as soon as Isadore started to move one of them rushed towards her and if she hadn't already been terrified her heart would probably have collapsed in fear, at that very moment.

She would dye, that time she would surely dye Isadore thought terrified and her breath stopped in her throat.

The wolf that was about to attack her however, was brought down brutally and with such a lightning-fast movement that it terrified her even more, as impossible as it seemed.

The Heart about to stop in her chest, Isadore watched in horror as Rhys's echoing growl made his warriors back up as they bowed to the uncontrollable fury that shone in the eyes of their future Alpha.

Isadore wished she could do the same and escape the violent anger that was still shaking the ground under her feet preventing her from moving.

She was even afraid to breathe and for a moment closed her eyes and hoped it was a dream, but that moment lasted only the space of a second.

She could close her eyes but still managed to feel his presence with the same damn intensity and eagerness that every time in his presence gripped her without being able to control herself.

She hated him, she told herself at the margins of her thoughts, but she could not deny his authority, even if she had never allowed him to subject her to his will, Isadore was not crazy, she knew her limits.

And he certainly wouldn't allow her to forget them and challenge him.

And yet the thought that she had to bend over to him badly pissed her, piercing through her body and her resentment started burning her soul, replacing her long-forgotten fear.

Rhys always managed to upset her and if she too, just moments ago, had feared for her own life at that moment was just thinking about how to escape his claws.

"Lack of fresh air…princess?"

Leaping in her heart, Isadore turned abruptly, scanning the thick shadows until she could see Kellan coming towards her.

Repressing the surge of irritation that set her heart on fire she forced herself to remain impassive, even though she hated him as much as his bastard brother, but his unexpected arrival served to ease somehow the atmosphere. "Isn't it a little late for one of your moonlit walks?" Kallen asked and even if he smiled the coldness in his dark eyes made her shiver deeply. "Does Beta Viktor know what you are doing?"added he with one of his eyebrows furrowed.

Isadore tensed immediately and bit her lips to keep from answering him in anger, damn him, he knew exactly which fibers to touch to torment her.

After all, he knew her more than she would have liked to admit, even to herself.

"Gamma?"

Isadore turned at the same time Kallen did and sighed in relief seeing two other warriors approaching because their approach gave her a little bit of time to try and recover.

She would feign nonchalance Isadore decided, she was pretty good at pretending now and couldn't do anything else, anyway it didn't really matter.

They would inform uncle Viktor, she did not doubt it in the least so she should better conserve the few strengths that were left in her body for the discussion that would follow later on that night.

Isadore hadn't realized, however, how much in fact that night with all the aftermath had destabilized her.

She felt the blood rush to her face as her strength failed her and the sound of the voices mingled in her head.

Her vision blurred and she heard more than feeling the cold lashing her face as her hood uncovered her face turned toward the sky.

The impact with the earth hurt her, but the pain quickly dispersed into the familiar gray tunnel that welcomed her with eagerness. Maybe she would be able to avoid confrontation that night after all was her last coherent thought before surrendering to the darkness.