Casino Infernale by Simon R. Green

I,” I said. “I thought you could See anything with your witchy Sight?”
    Molly frowned, thought for a moment, and then carefully pronounced a very old and powerful Word, not meant for human vocal chords. And just like that, the White Horse was there. Impossibly huge, bigger than Monkton Manse, running not on the beach itself, but several feet above it. Dazzlingly white, brighter than the moon, running wild in the night, its unnatural brilliance reflected across the dark waters of the heaving sea. Running for the sheer joy of running; beauty and grace blazing in its every movement. Just to look at such a thing seized my heart. A living idea, too pure and too perfect for this small and grubby world.
    “All right,” said Molly. “Now we can see it. What are we going to do?”
    I armoured up, covering myself from head to toe in gleaming gold. “We go down to the beach,” I said.
    I led the way down the steps cut into the cliff face. Molly stuck close behind me, stray magics sputtering on the air around her. When we reached the bottom and moved off along the pebbled beach, the White Horse was still cantering along, ignoring us. It looked even bigger, up close. Wild and majestic, and utterly untamed.
    “I have to wonder what it’s still doing here,” said Molly. “I mean, with Hadrian dead, all those who might have bound the Horse again are gone. If it’s so keen to trample the world, like you said, what’s it still doing here?”
    “I don’t know,” I said. “Maybe it’s just doing a lap of triumph round the Island. It doesn’t matter. The White Horse is a threat to all Humanity, and I have to stop it here, while I still can.”
    “How the hell are you going to stop something as big as that?” said Molly. “Walk up and punch it in the ankle?”
    “Drood armour isn’t just about strength and protection,” I said. “Watch, and learn. And keep your magics handy, just in case this all goes horribly wrong.”
    I concentrated on the strange matter of my armour, and a long golden line fell from my right hand, more and more of it falling in coils, until finally I had a long gold lariat in my hand. I formed a noose, and threw it high up into the air and right over the head of the massive White Horse. The golden lariat fell into place before the Horse even knew what was happening. The noose tightened around its great white neck, and the glowing golden line snapped taut.
    Immediately, I was pulled forward by the sheer impetus of the Horse; but I dug my golden heels deep into the pebbled beach. The Horse dragged me on, so that I left two deep channels behind me in the beach; but the strength and power of my armour was more than a match for any living god. The White Horse slowed, shrinking all the time, until finally it was just a horse; and then it came to a sudden halt—shaking and shuddering, and tossing its head. I walked steadily forward, keeping a steady pressure on the golden line. Just a man and a horse now, and the bridle I’d made to break its spirit.
    I called the golden line back into my glove, a few feet at a time, as I came to stand beside the horse. It stood very still. The long white face turned to look at me, with old, dark, very wise eyes. We looked at each other for a while. I heard Molly hurrying up to join me, but I couldn’t look away. I reached slowly out, took hold of the golden noose around the horse’s neck, loosened it, and pulled it over the horse’s head. The golden lariat snapped back into my glove, and was gone. I armoured down, and nodded to the horse, as Molly came to stand beside me.
    “You were never a threat to the world, were you?” I said to the horse. “Just to those few poor fools who were so scared of you, that they tried to break you to their will. The one thing a creature of the wild like you could never stand. That’s why your old priests put you under the mound; because you didn’t give a damn about being worshipped. You just wanted to run free. So, go. Run