Trial and Error: Second Edition

Chapter the Tenth: Found

Kai and Fluttershy peered over the crenelations that adorned the top of the wall. While neither of them saw anything out of the ordinary, only Kai was expecting something to be there. He thought back to when he arrived home. He had been chased into the woods. He was sure nopony had followed him. Was the guard presence in Ponyville so massive that they could spare enough ponies to comb the entire forest?

Fluttershy was about to dismiss him as being paranoid when she spotted movement across the ravine. A lone stallion was approaching the bridge that needed to be crossed to reach the castle. She pointed to him, giving Kai time to examine him.

He was a light brown unicorn with a dark brown mane. Even from this distance, his emerald eyes shone in the moonlight. Around his waist was a belt, and from it a short sabre hung loosely. As he reached the other end of the bridge, the stallion made a beeline for the castle.

"Stay silent and keep low," instructed Kai. "I'll try to scare him off."

Fluttershy nodded. She was now less afraid of Kai than she had been, but she was still afraid of him. Whoever this pony was, he certainly wasn't a guard. Even if Kai wasn't quite a monster to her anymore, his behaviour was showing improvement. At the very least, she believed that he would let her go home as he had promised when they were done. 'Better to deal with the devil you know,' she thought to herself.

Kai climbed back down the tower into the courtyard, hiding behind debris. His first plan was to use an illusory spell to frighten the trespasser. His horn glowed black, and he planted the idea into the stallion's head that there was a massive dragon in the courtyard, spewing smoke from its nostrils. This did not deter the stallion, who walked right through it, confident that nothing was there.

Kai's next illusion was to cast the idea that chunks of the ground were falling before him, as if the castle had become a giant sinkhole. This also failed to deter the stallion, who walked across the ground like it was nothing. Kai pulled out his most powerful illusion, making the stallion think he had been impaled by a booby trap.

"I'm not falling for your cheap parlour tricks. I know you're here, you may as well come out into the open."

Kai stood up and gripped the handle of his knife. "Who are you, what do you want and why are you here?"

The unicorn looked Kai over. "Blue Unicorn, blue eyes, black and white mane. Body covered in tattered cloak. You're certainly a difficult stallion to find."

"I'm not the pony you're looking for. Find somepony else to gawk at."

"You misunderstand. I'm not here to gawk at you." The stallion drew his blade and pointed it at Kai. "I'm here to dispose of you."

Fluttershy was shaking. She hadn't been overly fond of Kai when she first arrived, but she certainly didn't want him dead. If he passed and the unicorn that had stepped in either couldn't or wouldn't remove the collar, she would be stranded in that castle for the rest of her life, slowly starving to death. With that thought in her mind, she would gladly eat those bitter apples growing underground rather than suffer at the hooves of this stranger.

Kai had not yet drawn his blade. "I'm giving you another chance, whoever you are. Leave now, tell nopony about this exchange. I don't want to fight you if I don't have to."

The stallion responded by throwing a ball of fire at Kai. At the last instant, Kai ducked to the side, narrowly evading the projectile. "I'd rather not fight you, either. So just lie down and die. The sooner you croak, the sooner I can leave."

Kai ran to the nearest hallway. His reasoning for doing so was twofold. First, he would put a stone barrier between the invader and Fluttershy. He had promised not to harm her, and he couldn't forgive himself if she were struck by an errant spell. Second, he knew that in this hallway, he had left a halberd. A knife was good for self-defense, but a halberd was a weapon of war. When it came down to life or death, Kai would be better suited protecting himself with a dedicated weapon such as this.

Another fireball came after him. Kai was ready for this one, cutting the ball in half, sending the two flaming hemispheres into the tapestries behind him, illuminating the room. His own horn sparked and crackled, culminating in a bolt of lightning, which managed to knock the stallion back. He had conjured a shield, and had only been subjected to the impact force. Kai charged, halberd in front of him. The stallion parried the tip, sliding inside the polearm's minimum distance. As he pulled back to slice at Kai, he was met with a blast of freezing air from Kai's horn coming right at his face.

The stallion staggered back, coughing and sputtering. Kai struck at the stallion with the head of his halberd, only for the stallion to block it with his crossguard. The blow knocked the blade to the ground, and Kai swung again. The stallion ducked, diving behind a pillar. When he emerged on the other side, he had picked up a flanged mace and buckler from a nearby suit of armor.

Once again on the offensive, the stallion ran at Kai. He was able to deflect Kai's spear with the buckler, then bring his mace down on the shaft. With a loud crack, the wooden handle splintered, leaving Kai without a weapon. All of his effort went into ducking and dodging the mace as it swung through the air with ease. As he retreated, he eventually came to a wall. With nowhere to go, he ducked a horizontal swing. The mace collided with the wall and the shock rippled down the stallion's leg, causing him to drop the mace.

Kai managed to grab the dropped bludgeon, and began swinging at the stallion wildly. The blows glanced off the shield one by one until finally, the mace connected to the buckler directly, cracking it into two pieces. One more swift blow broke the stallion's leg. A third hit connected with his gut, and the stallion was on the ground, unmoving.

Kai was out of breath. He was used to fighting off wild animals. If they didn't run away from his illusions, they were usually intent on surviving the fight and retreated before there were any serious injuries. He had never fought an opponent with this mindset before today. Especially not one this well-armed. He raised the mace over his head to be rid of this assassin forever.

"Wait!" Shouted Fluttershy from down the hall. "You don't have to kill him!"

Kai lowered the mace. "He tried to kill me. I wanted him to leave, but he didn't. If I let him live, he'll just try to kill me again. Or worse, he'll gather up his friends, and they'll all band together to kill me." Once more, he raised the mace. "I can't take that risk."

"I understand that you're only looking out for your own safety, but it doesn't have to be this way. I've only just started to believe that you can be a better pony. I want to believe you're not the monster I originally perceived, but taking his life will only confirm that you're just as terrible as he is."

Kai closed his eyes. She believed that he could be better? He didn't even believe that he could be better. What could she see in him that he couldn't? He dropped the mace. It bounced across the floor, coming to rest next to the shattered buckler. "I can't just let him go. If I leave him here as he is, I won't be alive tomorrow morning to regret this decision."

"So don't leave him here. Take him inside and lock him in the cell you locked me in. When you leave, you can find some way to let him out in a way that he can't follow you, or I can turn him over to the guards for assault. Even somepony like him deserves to live, though."

Without another word, Kai picked up the stallion and slung him over his shoulder. He knew that he wouldn't forgive himself for ending the life of another pony. In the adrenaline, he had reasoned that it was to safeguard himself, but now that his mind was clearing up, he was appalled that he had even considered the option.