Failure, Eternally Retold, Part Three: Morality

Kai pulled his cloak on over his bandages. All ten of the crystal spheres were together now, they needed only to go to the final destination. Luckily, Spike knew where that was. Twilight had come in earlier to brag about being right to have him look into the event for relevant information. Even more good news came alongside that, as Princess Luna was already there, and was preparing for their arrival. It was all planned out exceedingly well from this point on.

Against medical advice, Kai was leaving along with the guards. They were to protect Nik going to the Hill of the Ancient Senate, as well as sticking around after he arrived to make sure things went right. Twilight and Spike were also coming to make sure everything was organized properly and set up right. Rainbow and Applejack were going for her protection. Kai was going to make sure the world was safe for his offspring. He wanted them to live in a happy world, not be ripped to shreds as the world fell apart. He wanted them to at least survive to the age of five.

Fluttershy came in with a big smile on her face. "Glad to see you can stand," she beamed. "Does that mean you're ready to go?"

Kai picked up his wings, which had been packed up and rolled tightly. Grabbing his bardiche, which had now been fully repaired, he nodded. "I have my walking stick right here."

"You won't be needing that, you'll be riding in the back of a wagon. I arranged the whole thing. The guard that'll be taking you back to Ponyville is even an academician. You should have plenty to talk about."

Kai's smile quickly faded, but was replaced with a calm, rested face. "I'm not ready to go back to Ponyville yet. I need to be there to make sure everything goes according to plan. You should return without me; I'll be along shortly."

"I'm not going back to Ponyville, yet," she answered. "I'm responsible for Nik's well-being; I have to stay with him until he can manage on his own. Who's going to care for him if I don't?"

"I have it well in hoof," answered Kai. "And I can focus on his protection more if I know that you and our kid are safe at home. That thought alone will keep me fighting at peak performance."

"You're not going to be doing any fighting," scowled Fluttershy. "Especially not in your condition. You haven't recovered from your last fight!"

"This wasn't from a fight. I was tied to a cage wall. I couldn't protect myself if I wanted to."

"Regardless, you can't fight in your condition!" Her eyes welled up with tears as she fell to her haunches and lowered her head. "I can't stand the thought of losing you again," she sobbed. "Twice in the last week, I've been presented with your death. I can't face it a third time."

Kai dropped his head. Now he felt like crap. He sat down next to her, wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and lowered his voice to a whisper. "When I was locked in that cage, do you know what kept me from giving up? I thought about you smiling at me. With every crack of the whip, I imagined you hugging me, telling me that everything would be alright. I heard your voice in my head, and I trusted it. I don't want to lose you, either. If you go, so does our child."

She rested her head against his shoulder. "If you go, and I'm left alone to raise it, I can't guarantee that I won't grow to hate it. The child that cost me my love. I don't want to feel sad and angry every day for the rest of my life."

Gently, Kai began to rock them back and forth, humming a soft, somber tune. He kept this up for a few minutes to let her breathing calm down. "Some parents we're going to be. If we can't handle a decision like this, how in Equestria can we think it's a good idea to bring a foal into this equation?"

"Why don't you both come?" They turned around to see Celestia standing in the door. "Or you can both go back to Ponyville. In either scenario, the two of you need to stick together. Separating will just cause more strife."

Kai and Fluttershy looked at each other, then turned back to Celestia. "Which one would you suggest?" asked Kai.

"I can't make your decision for you, but it seems you both want to go, and you both want the other to go back to Ponyville. Whichever you decide, do so quickly, as we are about to leave. You have less than fifteen minutes to decide and find your places in line if you're coming. Any longer, and you will be going back to Ponyville."

As she turned and left the room, ultimatum delivered, Kai turned to Fluttershy. "We stay together, then?"

"By your side until the end," she nodded.

"I can't leave the world to be destroyed."

"I can't let Nik come to harm."

They took in a deep breath, and then released it. They were going to battle.

"Don't you dare let yourself be hurt."

"Look who's talking."

They shared a chuckle and stood up. The shuffling caused Kai's signet ring to be caught on a chain and it fell to the floor. He picked it up and dusted it off. Suddenly, an idea occurred to him. "What say we make it official?" He presented the ring to her. "If we survive this, I want to be your husband. By your side until we die of old age together. It's one more reason to come back alive."

Fluttershy looked from the ring to Kai's face, then back to the ring. She'd had the dream of every little filly to have a solid gold ring with a fancy diamond. In secondary school, she'd heard the other young mares talking about how the diamond needed to be big and shiny, and the ring polished so that she could see her face in it. This was a tarnished steel ring, clean but not polished. There was no stone to speak of, merely a pattern on one face. And here Kai was, kneeling in front of her, presenting it as if it were gold and diamond.

She reached forward and closed his hoof. "I don't want the ring." She stepped forward, picked him up, and kissed him full on the mouth. "I want the stallion who carries it."

With a smile from each of them, they stepped outside, loaded up into their wagon, and began the penultimate leg of their journey. The next time they changed course, they would be going home.