Chapter 109 - Mystical Horse
Are you ready to leave, princess?" Elvin asked softly as he glanced at Meredith.
Meredith swallowed and nodded. This was it, the start of a new chapter in her life.
"Do you know how to ride a horse?" Elvin questioned.
"No." She replied.She hasn't even seen one before in real life, let alone ride one.
"Wellyou will be riding with memore like flying with me. But don't worry Elfy won't hurt you. Just hold on to me tight."
Meredith scrunched her face in confusion. Just as she was about to ask what he meant, he removed a whistle from his pouch and blew on it.
A gust of wind blew them and Meredith squeezed her eyes shut as her hair flew behind her head and her clothes billowed.
.
She opened her eyes and saw a white horse in front of them.
The horse had oval-shaped hooves, long tail, short hair, long slender legs, muscular and deep torso build, long thick neck, and large elongated head. The mane region had white coarse hairs, which extended along the dorsal side of the neck. But the most surprising feature of the horse was the wings attached to it.
Meredith's eyes widened in shock, "A flying horse?"
Elvin chuckled and nodded, "Yeahthey're not really common nowadays. We lost most of them during the war but your father's own is there. He is just aggressive now and doesn't let anyone near it. Maybe you can tame him."
Meredith watched in amazement as the horse
trustingly placed her long face against Elvin's chest.
Meredith couldn't help but move closer to her. She was beyond beautiful.
She crept closer to her face, studying her. Her ears were elongated and two horns decorated her forehead in a beautiful curl against her scalp.
"She's beautiful,"Meredith murmured, her eyes wide with surprise.
The horse's nostrils thinned when she inhaled, and flared when he exhaled, a constant, fluid motion.
A branch suddenly snapped beneath her foot and the horse glanced at her. Meredith stared, wide eyed,into the purple eyes of the horse. Her pupils dilated as she stared at Meredith and blinked.
Meredith swallowed. She was standing a foot away from a mystical horse for the first time. She couldn't help but be afraid. She held her breath, her eyes refusing to blink, as they stared at each other.
She didn't know what to say. Will she even hear her? Meredith bit her lips.
"Uhhello.." She murmured timidly.
She stumbled back as the horse let out a loud neigh. The horse lowered her head and those thick horns moved towards her.
She let out a startled gasp and closed her eyes but And just as she thought the horse was about to hurt her, something entirely different happened.
Her long, forked tongue slid out of her open mouth
and she licked Meredith!
Meredith let out a startled scream as her wet tongue dragged all over her face.
"Ew!!"She shrieked, wiping desperately at her
drenched face.
The horse pulled her head back and snorted, cocking her head at her.
The horse's urple eyes glinted with wicked amusement and she nestled her head into Meredith's chest.
Meredith patted her head and chuckled.
"She likes you." Elvin said, a smile laced in his voice.
"Yeah." Meredith said, not taking her eyes from the horse. Her hand ran over her neck to find her coat was like silk beneath her fingers.
"Let's go then."
Elvin mounted the horse and grabbed Meredith and helped her on the horse.
Meredith wrapped her arms around Elvin and took a deep breath.
"A-lright.I'm ready. Let's go." She said shakily
But nothing could've prepared her for the feeling of flying on a horse for the first time. She clinged to Elvin like a leech, gasping in a lungful of air.
And the shrill, terrified scream that left her lips was
nothing compared to the anxiety in her heart.
Meredith never thought she would ever fly in the sky like this. It felt too good to be true. After calming down, she began to enjoy the ride.
The absence of worry, stress and thought was pure
bliss. She wanted to be in this moment forever without any worries or fear. Elfy ascended higher
gliding them through the clear, blue sky just
above the white, puffy tufts of the clouds.
The first four hours of flight had been easy.
But as they were now approaching eight hours of
being in the air, aside from brief trips to the ground
for bathroom breaks, She wasn't sure how much
longer she could last.
She had fought to stay awake for hours, terrified that if she fell asleep and lost her grip, she could slip from the horse and plummet through the empty sky toward certain death.
Meredith had no idea when she had fallen asleep but she woke up.
The aching weight of consciousness flooded her muscles, and she groaned.
Whatever her cheek was pressed against smelled different from her pillow. Muzzily, She touched the black fabric and remembered where she was.
Elvin had secured her tightly around him with a special rope as she leaned on his back.
There was a cramp in her neck, and she slowly pulled away from Elvin, rolling the neck from side to side to loosen the kinks
"Enjoy the nape?" Elvin asked.
"Not really..um," Meredith said, the lag in her brain making her words clumsy.
She paused, collecting herself. Her mouth tasted bitter and her heart was beating uncomfortably under her ribs as her stomach churned.
"I don't feel so well" Meredith complained.
"Here" Elvin turned and gave her what looked like a gummy bear.
Meredith raised her brows. "What is this?"
"An elixir. It will help boost your energy and make you feel better. Try it."
Meredith took it, stared at it for a few seconds before placing it in her mouth.
The thing melted on her tongue and she immediately felt better.
"How is it?" Elvin asked.
"Good, I feel so much better. Thank you."
Elvin chuckled and nodded, "Welcome."
"Haven't we reached yet?" Meredith whined.
"Oh but we have, princess. Look." Elvin said, pointing ahead.
Meredith frowned she could not see anything
but white mist for what felt like ages. And when
they finally broke through the mist and she finally laid eyes on the land below, she gasped in astonishment.