The Golden Winged Horse

Chapter 12

The food Calico ordered for me was absolutely delicious, by far the most tantalising thing I'd ever tasted. I had the flame grilled Quagga with bunyip sauce and crocotta bread. The Quagga was apparently a type of fish abundant in the waters of Saleno, which would be our next land to cross.

It fell apart in my mouth, so tender and soft, and the sauce, apparently another plant derived food, was so creamy I could have drunk a pint of it quite happily. The side of crocotta bread was like bruschetta bread, except it had been browned in some sort of red sauce, giving it a lovely tang.

Calico kept the illusion up, in case Isidora came back. How he planned to keep us out of her way I didn't know. If she could feel the presence of the dress then surely she would be hot on our heels.

As I drank the last of my energy drink, it suddenly dawned on me that I had no problems understanding anyone I'd met.

"How come everyone here talks in English? And then you sometimes speak some strange words?"

Calico finished the remainder of his meal, which looked just as tasty as what mine had been, wiped his mouth on the white napkin, and then said, "They don't speak English. It's just that the longer you spend in the fairy realm, the more you become accustomed to our world, and that includes the language. My strange words, as you call them, are an ancient language known only to the royals. It is used for specific tasks such as magic and speaking to our horses."

"What's the next move then?" I asked, waking the dogs with a click of my tongue. I needed their presence as a reassurance. "Surely she'll follow us?"

"We need to make it to Saleno. She won't follow us there, but she will be waiting for us after."

"Why won't she follow us there?"

"Mage's have no influence over water or anything that resides in it."

I frowned, confused. "Are you telling me the whole land is made of water?"

He nodded. "Think of it like an ocean, separating Adonara from Pucaria, that's the next land after Saleno."

"Please tell me how exactly we're going to survive an ocean?" I said, absolutely baffled.

"Have you forgotten the horse's special talent?"

"They can't turn into fish, surely?" I said, almost choking on the words.

"Don't be ridiculous," he said, snorting in disdain. "They just develop gills." Just develop gills. Of course they do. I don't know what the expression on my face must have said, but he then said, "Think of them as a fairy twist on a sea horse."

Thinking of it like that actually made sense. Sea horses existed, albeit not literally an equine that could breath under water, but Earth rules didn't apply here. Why couldn't their horses, that turn into the forest and grass, also have the ability to breathe under water?

Smiling to myself at this amazing turn of never-ending talent, I asked, "What about the dogs?"

"They can breathe under water."

"I can't."

He grinned at me. "Today you will."

I felt another panic attack coming on. An ocean. On a horse with gills. Breathing under water. What was this? I thought I'd started coming to terms with the weirdness of this place, but it looked like my expectations were being blown out of the water, literally.

"You'll be fine," Calico said, reaching across the table and taking my hand. "I'm not going to put you in any danger. The horses will camouflage to the colour of the ocean remember so we'll be virtually invisible."