The swim lasted longer than Arnie though it would. Each time he stopped and looked up they seemed to be in more or less the same place, the beach not far away and yet still as distant as it was when they started. After discovering this for the fifth time he called out to Isabelle to stop too. She was still next to him, now tredding water instead of swimming.

"It doesn't look like we are getting any nearer to the beach." he said to Flimgog and Isabelle.

"You are right Arnold, we seem to be staying in exactly the same spot." Flimgog replied. As was customary for Flimgog he didn't sound at all worried or flustered. He simply stated what was in a matter of fact way.

Arnie looked around, still tredding water and he was amazed at his own lack of tiredness. Isabelle was also looking around.

"I can't see any explanation for not moving though." she said. She sounded confused, like Arnie felt.

They fell silent. The only sound was the gentle swishing of the ocean and the distant lapping noise as it washed onto the unreachable beach. A sudden thought came into Arnie's mind.

"Stop swimming and float." he said to Isabelle. "Flimgog, come round onto my front and I'll float on my back."

Flimgog moved himself round to the front as Arnie lay on his back. Isballe was also floating on her back. She turned her head slightly and looked at him. "Why?" she said.

Before he could answer he felt himself moving and saw her moving. They were being carried towards the pink beach.

"That's why." he said, excitedly. "We're moving now. I suddenly remembered what Magnus said back at the paintbrush village. 'From there you must allow yourself to be carried.' "

"That's right!" she exclaimed.

Arnie looked up again over at the beach. It was closer now. "We're getting there."

"Well done Arnold, I had forgotten those words of advice." Flimgog said. He had stood up on Arnie's chest and was looking ahead towards the beach they were heading for. He stood steady despite the motion.

"We are going to arrive there soon."

The water carried them right to the beach and straight onto the pink sand. Arnie was not surprised to find that they were dry. He had been deposited lightly on the sand and the waves splashed against him where he lay on his back. He looked up and saw Isabelle was also lying there. She started to scramble up and Arnie followed suit. He felt the sand beneath him and in his hands as he pushed himself up.

Flimgog jumped off and landed smoothly on the ground. They faced inland. The sky looked normal - the same whispy clouds floating by and the orange sun blazing down at them. Oddly, despite the sun, it didn't feel too hot. In fact, if you'd asked him, Arnie wouldn't have been able to describe the temperature. It wasn't hot and it wasn't cold, it was sort of no temperature at all. He shook thoughts of the temperature off and looked ahead.

Up ahead was what appeared to be a forest. It was a normal looking forest. Tree trunks of various thicknesses, with extending brownish branches and green leaves. Swaying slightly despite no wind. Before the trees, the pink sands were lined with something. Arnie thought they looked like bottles, green and white bottles. But he couldn't be sure.

"Are those bottles?" Isabelle asked before he could get the question out himself. There were a number of them lined up in two straight lines acting almost like a fence on either side of a path.

"It looks like it." he said simply. "Let's go up and check."

They stepped forward towards the objects.

As they approached it became clear that these were indeed bottles. Corked wine bottle by the looks of them. But they were also big bottles. Arnie thought they were as tall as him and much taller than Flimgog. He saw that they each had something within. No sooner had he noticed that then he heard the sound. It was faint, but getting louder with each step forward they took. It sounded like music.

"Do you hear that?" he whispered to the others.

"Aye, sounds like singing." Isabelle replied.

They stopped and listened closely. It was singing voices and it seemed to be coming from the bottles up ahead.

"Are they moving?" Flimgog asked. Sure enough, when he looked closely the bottles were swaying in time to the singing.

"Let's get over and see what it's all about. That's the map route anyway." Arnie said decidedly, though quietly.

They started forward again. It didn't take long to reach the first bottles. The singing was definitely coming from the bottles and they were moving in an extremely life-like way, but Arnie couldn't see a mouth or any obvious indication of where the sound was coming from. They listened closely.

"SOS and all the rest

"Sent forth into the ocean.

"SOS and all the rest

"Messages into motion!

"Handwritten letters

"Cast out to sea

"Handwritten letters

"Floating free

"Letters and stories

"Drift without throttle

"Letters and Stories

"Secure in a bottle!"

And so it continued, over and over, the voices singing in unison were pleasant. Arnie noticed some were deep and some were high, but all were in tune. Like a church choir well rehearsed.

"I think we should continue." Arnie said after pulling his attention off the bottles and back onto the task at hand. He stepped forward into designated path. The designation being the space between the two lines of bottles, leading up to the dense forest ahead.

They started up through the singing bottles. The voices continued with their hauntingly beautiful song. Each bottle represented a secret message lost in the waters of the world that had found its way to this odd world.

"And you are Arnold?" Arnie jumped and stopped as the high deep, loud voice addressed him. Isabelle and Flimgog also stopped. They all looked around but there was no one there.

"Who's there?" Arnie asked. He heard a slight shake in his voice.

"Well, are you are Arnold?" the voice said again. It sounded close. The voice was clear and deep, but Arnie saw nothing.

"Yes, that's me." he said. "Who are you?"

"I am the guardian of the sacred messages. I am the watcher, the correspondent, the penpal of all penpals. I receive the lost messages and send forth new ones in reply."

Flimgog spoke now. "Where are you guardian of the messages?" He sounded friendly and calm.

"I am the guardian. I am here and I am there." The voice was all around them. Arnie couldn't pinpoint a source.

Then the sand rumbled in front of them and a handful rose into the air in front of their face. It changed shape several times. It started round, like a football and then became square. From there is became triangular and then round again. It settled in the shape of a human face. This time when it spoke, the sand moved in simulation of a mouth.

"You have come to visit the queen. I am the guardian of the bottles and the gatekeeper of the queen's lands. Messages come for her sometimes. State your intentions."

Arnie was scared. The deep voice was full of power and force. Arnie knew that although the pink face of sand that was talking to them didn't look like much, it held power. He could feel that.

Before he got the chance to speak Isabelle had stepped forward.

"Guardian of the bottles, of the beach and of the queen.

"We have come for an audience -

"By her to be seen.

"For the time is ripe for us to go home

"Back to our world of computers and phone.

"We mean no harm, we come to ask

"For we've completed our task."

"Isabelle" the constantly moving face said. "Your words are smooth and filled with truth. You have your map. Walk forward and enter the forest ahead. Walk straight in and continue until you see the everblue tree. Wait by him until they come. The Papilio Filios shall carry you to the queen. Do not venture beyond the everblue. You must wait with him."

"Thank you guardian. We shall go now." Isabelle bowed slightly as she thanked him. Arnie and Flimgog copied her. The pink, sand-face collapsed back into the ground without a trace.

"Let's go!" Isabelle said and they began walking towards the trees ahead.

Please remember to vote if you like it! Let me know your thoughts so far by commenting too!