14th August. Maybury Hill, Woking
My wife and maid made it to Leatherhead without any trouble, though I wonder now if it was such a prudent decision. Night had set in by the time I started back to return the innkeeper's horse and cart, though I cannot deny that I had also an urge to find out what kind of creature was lurking in that great hall. I cannot fathom how something like that could be observed if it can snatch up anything without even having to touch it. Anyhow the weather had taken a turn for the worse as I made my way along Effingham Road and, upon reaching Ripley, thunder and lightning filled the sky to such an extent that I struggled to keep the horse under control. I was just about to make the turn towards Pyrford when one massive flash and bang made it start and break along a track towards the village of Send. I held on as tightly as I could, narrowly coming short of being slung off a few times before the track came to an end at the main road between Woking and East Clandon. I heard a crack at this point and the cart rolled into a ditch, sending me end-over-end as I clutched at the packet where I've been keeping this diary.
Covered in dirt and having picked up a few bruises I lifted myself up when I heard a very strange noise ringing out across the fields, one that I could only describe as a horse's whinny magnified many times but twisted into a multitude of syllables like some exotic language that might be found in the Orient or Deepest Africa, followed by another whinny that was much more in keeping with an ordinary horse. Before I could climb out of the ditch I looked up to see the innkeeper's horse floating in mid-air, surrounded by the same magenta-type glow that had taken Professor Godfrey and his entourage. I gasped momentarily before clamping my mouth shut for fear of drawing unwanted attention, watching as the horse floated northwards, some more of those mighty horse-like syllables periodically punctuating the thunderclaps. When the alien signs seemed to abate I took a glance towards where the horse had floated towards, seeing some great mass that filled the space between me at the golf course at Hoebridge. The night was dark enough not to see much except that it was very large and seemed to be suspended on a couple of heavy columns, though the magenta glow still emanated from the horse that was now high in the sky, looking like a squirming beetle next to this mass from which I could now see protruded a growth above the luminous purple eyes glowing with the same magenta aura. I had considered attempting to slink through the ditch that was already leaving my shoes completely encased in mud, slipping past whatever this was, when a flash of lightning made my gape in shock. The thunder that came later did little to shake me from my shock.
In the seconds that the lightning illuminated the landscape I could now see what this thing was that had snatched up the innkeeper's horse. The shape was quite clearly that of a rather squat horse but one that was covered in a coat of short hairs that were, unbelievably, lavender-coloured! The protrusion that produced the frightening magenta glow was clearly a solitary horn in the centre of its forehead, spiralling from the base to the tip like a narwhal's tusk. After the thunderclap I heard more of those horsey sounds and watched the glimmer that marked where the innkeeper's horse was move further away from me; I felt unpleasant in the face of this situation, dreading how to explain this to the innkeeper himself. The next flash of lightning gave me more information as to this massive creature's appearance; I saw a saddlebag on its side that momentarily glowed with that magenta aura as it opened up, a clasp shaped like a six-pointed star in a striking pink, and watched the glow holding the horse lower inside before vanishing. Though it was brief I also saw that this creature had hair on its head like a horse's mane but groomed in such a way that a young woman might have her own locks done, though I did find it rather unbecoming of a good woman with its straight edges stopping at the shoulders, it was a very deep purple going on indigo but with two shockingly stark streaks running through like a factory woman who had an accident with a vat of coat dye.
I could still be in that ditch now, possibly glued in place by the boggy ground under the heavy rain, had this beast not then turned and walked away from me, the impacts of those legs reverberating enough to punctuate the thunder but not enough to make the ground shake under me with how wet it was getting. Once I was certain it wasn't there I scrambled out of the ditch and hurried up the road back to Woking, worried about what to say to the innkeeper, however by the time I reached the inn the door was locked and all the lights were out. For a moment I thought I had a chance to get back home to change out of my muddied clothes until I then took a moment to look round the town; a great many houses were reduced to rubble, several with a couple of walls still standing but in many cases the roofs were completely gone, not even fallen into the rubble itself. As I walked back home, trying to take it all in, I saw that many of the roofs had been piled up in a farmyard with many of the animals milling round loose. I was dreading to find my own home had been ripped apart, though it seems providence has been favourable on that front for the time being, as it seems to have been untouched. I staggered through my front door just as the clock in the hall struck four; I had been going all night! Indeed so tired was I that I just pulled my muddy clothes off and flopped onto my own bed, not caring about the residual mud on my arms and legs.
I awoke to the sound of more heavy thuds, slumping off my bed wearily and uneasily. Still feeling dirty from the night before I concluded that I would have to wash-up while I could before grabbing what clothes I had left when I heard the front door open slowly. I crept slowly towards the balustrade for fear of what I would find creeping about downstairs when I heard a faint voice call out.
"Hello? Anybody home?" I looked to see a soldier in a ragged state and made a reply as I made my way downstairs. I guided him to my own armchair and poured a glass of brandy for him.
"What happened?" I asked, vaguely recalling the enormous 'unicorn', for want of a better word, snatching the innkeeper's horse but leaving the cart.
"They wiped us out." He took a long pause with another sip of brandy before continuing. "We had surrounded the building, we could see something large move behind the curtains, a platoon advanced against the doorway. They... they were swept up by an enormous wing!" I gasped in shock, though I did worry that he thought I considered him mad and offered some solace before he continued. "I'm an artilleryman, though only a driver. I was driving a limber into position when they stepped outside; first came a huge... I can only call it a horse's hoof. Sky-blue it was! Then another and a head emerged. Its eyes were enormous, even if it was massive enough already. The next thing I knew... panic; discipline seemed to go completely to pot."
"Was there any firing?" I asked him, he affirmed that there was.
"Not that it made any difference. There were noises like a disgruntled neigh and the men who fired, they... they floated in the air! They went hurtling into the building right past its head, whether they wished it or no." I nodded, recalling the people who'd been dragged in the first time. "So, how did you remain with the attack going on?" At this I offered him a brief recollection of my journey the previous evening, recalling what happened with the innkeeper's horse and what I could recall specifically about the unicorn. "It was the same on the common." He affirmed. "All our horses were just plucked out of their harnesses and carried off by an unseen force. I only escaped by crouching in the remains of a badger sett. I must've dozed off but I do recall a particularly loud bang coming from the East." I then recalled the same thing before the horse bolted and I remembered that it was the same kind of bang on the first night. After some conversation we both concluded that another of these enormous structures had appeared in the vicinity of Pyrford, which then made my stomach drop like a stone as I realised that the best route back to Leatherhead was effectively barred.
We are both weary, whether through our arduous trials the previous night or pure lack of sleep. I shall have to get some rest before we can try to make our way out of here, for surely Woking is now completely under the hooves of these bizarre horse-like giants.
My wife and maid made it to Leatherhead without any trouble, though I wonder now if it was such a prudent decision. Night had set in by the time I started back to return the innkeeper's horse and cart, though I cannot deny that I had also an urge to find out what kind of creature was lurking in that great hall. I cannot fathom how something like that could be observed if it can snatch up anything without even having to touch it. Anyhow the weather had taken a turn for the worse as I made my way along Effingham Road and, upon reaching Ripley, thunder and lightning filled the sky to such an extent that I struggled to keep the horse under control. I was just about to make the turn towards Pyrford when one massive flash and bang made it start and break along a track towards the village of Send. I held on as tightly as I could, narrowly coming short of being slung off a few times before the track came to an end at the main road between Woking and East Clandon. I heard a crack at this point and the cart rolled into a ditch, sending me end-over-end as I clutched at the packet where I've been keeping this diary.
Covered in dirt and having picked up a few bruises I lifted myself up when I heard a very strange noise ringing out across the fields, one that I could only describe as a horse's whinny magnified many times but twisted into a multitude of syllables like some exotic language that might be found in the Orient or Deepest Africa, followed by another whinny that was much more in keeping with an ordinary horse. Before I could climb out of the ditch I looked up to see the innkeeper's horse floating in mid-air, surrounded by the same magenta-type glow that had taken Professor Godfrey and his entourage. I gasped momentarily before clamping my mouth shut for fear of drawing unwanted attention, watching as the horse floated northwards, some more of those mighty horse-like syllables periodically punctuating the thunderclaps. When the alien signs seemed to abate I took a glance towards where the horse had floated towards, seeing some great mass that filled the space between me at the golf course at Hoebridge. The night was dark enough not to see much except that it was very large and seemed to be suspended on a couple of heavy columns, though the magenta glow still emanated from the horse that was now high in the sky, looking like a squirming beetle next to this mass from which I could now see protruded a growth above the luminous purple eyes glowing with the same magenta aura. I had considered attempting to slink through the ditch that was already leaving my shoes completely encased in mud, slipping past whatever this was, when a flash of lightning made my gape in shock. The thunder that came later did little to shake me from my shock.
In the seconds that the lightning illuminated the landscape I could now see what this thing was that had snatched up the innkeeper's horse. The shape was quite clearly that of a rather squat horse but one that was covered in a coat of short hairs that were, unbelievably, lavender-coloured! The protrusion that produced the frightening magenta glow was clearly a solitary horn in the centre of its forehead, spiralling from the base to the tip like a narwhal's tusk. After the thunderclap I heard more of those horsey sounds and watched the glimmer that marked where the innkeeper's horse was move further away from me; I felt unpleasant in the face of this situation, dreading how to explain this to the innkeeper himself. The next flash of lightning gave me more information as to this massive creature's appearance; I saw a saddlebag on its side that momentarily glowed with that magenta aura as it opened up, a clasp shaped like a six-pointed star in a striking pink, and watched the glow holding the horse lower inside before vanishing. Though it was brief I also saw that this creature had hair on its head like a horse's mane but groomed in such a way that a young woman might have her own locks done, though I did find it rather unbecoming of a good woman with its straight edges stopping at the shoulders, it was a very deep purple going on indigo but with two shockingly stark streaks running through like a factory woman who had an accident with a vat of coat dye.
I could still be in that ditch now, possibly glued in place by the boggy ground under the heavy rain, had this beast not then turned and walked away from me, the impacts of those legs reverberating enough to punctuate the thunder but not enough to make the ground shake under me with how wet it was getting. Once I was certain it wasn't there I scrambled out of the ditch and hurried up the road back to Woking, worried about what to say to the innkeeper, however by the time I reached the inn the door was locked and all the lights were out. For a moment I thought I had a chance to get back home to change out of my muddied clothes until I then took a moment to look round the town; a great many houses were reduced to rubble, several with a couple of walls still standing but in many cases the roofs were completely gone, not even fallen into the rubble itself. As I walked back home, trying to take it all in, I saw that many of the roofs had been piled up in a farmyard with many of the animals milling round loose. I was dreading to find my own home had been ripped apart, though it seems providence has been favourable on that front for the time being, as it seems to have been untouched. I staggered through my front door just as the clock in the hall struck four; I had been going all night! Indeed so tired was I that I just pulled my muddy clothes off and flopped onto my own bed, not caring about the residual mud on my arms and legs.
I awoke to the sound of more heavy thuds, slumping off my bed wearily and uneasily. Still feeling dirty from the night before I concluded that I would have to wash-up while I could before grabbing what clothes I had left when I heard the front door open slowly. I crept slowly towards the balustrade for fear of what I would find creeping about downstairs when I heard a faint voice call out.
"Hello? Anybody home?" I looked to see a soldier in a ragged state and made a reply as I made my way downstairs. I guided him to my own armchair and poured a glass of brandy for him.
"What happened?" I asked, vaguely recalling the enormous 'unicorn', for want of a better word, snatching the innkeeper's horse but leaving the cart.
"They wiped us out." He took a long pause with another sip of brandy before continuing. "We had surrounded the building, we could see something large move behind the curtains, a platoon advanced against the doorway. They... they were swept up by an enormous wing!" I gasped in shock, though I did worry that he thought I considered him mad and offered some solace before he continued. "I'm an artilleryman, though only a driver. I was driving a limber into position when they stepped outside; first came a huge... I can only call it a horse's hoof. Sky-blue it was! Then another and a head emerged. Its eyes were enormous, even if it was massive enough already. The next thing I knew... panic; discipline seemed to go completely to pot."
"Was there any firing?" I asked him, he affirmed that there was.
"Not that it made any difference. There were noises like a disgruntled neigh and the men who fired, they... they floated in the air! They went hurtling into the building right past its head, whether they wished it or no." I nodded, recalling the people who'd been dragged in the first time. "So, how did you remain with the attack going on?" At this I offered him a brief recollection of my journey the previous evening, recalling what happened with the innkeeper's horse and what I could recall specifically about the unicorn. "It was the same on the common." He affirmed. "All our horses were just plucked out of their harnesses and carried off by an unseen force. I only escaped by crouching in the remains of a badger sett. I must've dozed off but I do recall a particularly loud bang coming from the East." I then recalled the same thing before the horse bolted and I remembered that it was the same kind of bang on the first night. After some conversation we both concluded that another of these enormous structures had appeared in the vicinity of Pyrford, which then made my stomach drop like a stone as I realised that the best route back to Leatherhead was effectively barred.
We are both weary, whether through our arduous trials the previous night or pure lack of sleep. I shall have to get some rest before we can try to make our way out of here, for surely Woking is now completely under the hooves of these bizarre horse-like giants.
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April 19
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