Failure, Eternally Retold, Part Three: Morality

Back on the road again, the group in their respective places in line made their way to the Hill of the Ancient Senate. Twilight, Spike, Applejack and Rainbow were up near the front going over the final details with Celestia. Nik was in the middle, where he was most protected. Kai and Fluttershy were bringing up the rear, perhaps the most well-rested of all of them.

This wasn't a small group, but nor was it a massive force. Just shy of two hundred guards marched along the road, making sure no harm came to their charges. One would need to be exceptionally stupid to lash out at them.

And yet, they'd been held up by two separate groups of highwaymen thus far. These oafs had been detained for further punishment at a later date. They were placed in a wagon similar to Nik's, with a few guards inside to make sure they behaved themselves.

They'd just come out of the trees into an open field when the real danger set in. From across the clearing, dozens of ponies in black cloaks and cloth masks charged, their blades seeming to glow in the midday light. Seeing them approach, Kai let out a whistle to alert everypony, grabbed his bardiche, and charged forward with the other spearponies to form an impromptu defensive wall.

A volley of arrows was loosed behind him, raining down on the cloaked ponies. Unfortunately, most of the arrows were ineffective, having jagged heads. That was a good match for flesh, but when used on cloth, it just snagged. It was only effective as a tool for bludgeoning at that point.

However, some of the archers on the Equestrian side had tipped their arrows with a puncturing arrowhead, and had pierced right through the cloth. Shortly before they hit the wall of spears, Kai took note that those who were pierced dissolved into dust mere seconds after being hit.

He didn't have time to consider the implications as he was already beset by the swordsponies. He wasn't in a formation like the other guards, and his strikes could be wider as a result. While the others were piercing cloth and flesh, he was cutting, primarily shallow wounds, but long ones. His style of defense varied as the assailants changed their direction of attack, sometimes resulting in him needing to use magic where his weapon couldn't reach. Often, that meant that they were too close, or flying over him.

It wasn't a large attack force, and the guards' quick response meant that the whole thing was over in less than ten minutes. Eight guards lay dead from the assault, but considering their armour and superior numbers, it was very likely that they would have been fine, even without Kai's help. Still, he'd claimed a defensive role, and that's what mattered to him. He quickly wiped down his blade and returned to Fluttershy, carrying an injured spearpony with him to provide her a place to sit while bandaging her leg.

"I was afraid of this," said Fluttershy, assisting the medic that was riding with them. "I don't like the idea of seeing ponies hurt like this."

"It's all going to be over soon," promised Kai, keeping an eye on their surroundings. If another group attacked them, he wanted to be the first to know. "We'll fix this, and we can go back to Ponyville to live out the rest of our lives in peace."

"Unless your tour is extended," added the spearmare. "I was supposed to be out a month ago, but my captain said I couldn't leave due to the crisis. Don't be surprised if we end up being signed up for an extra campaign."

Kai shook his head. "I'm not a guard. I'm just a civilian."

"You're already out of the service?"

"I was never in the service."

The guard scowled. "Then where did you attend weapons training?"

Kai reached into a pocket of his cloak and pulled out the manual he'd been given along with his bardiche. "I only know what I read, and from personal experience."

The guard shook her head. "I don't believe that. You fight too well to be self-taught."

Kai shrugged. "The best techniques are passed on by the survivors. I'm alive, so whatever techniques I've been using are effective. Perhaps not the most effective, but at least effective enough to..." He trailed off as something seemed to be wrong. "We were one hundred and ninety-seven strong an hour ago."

"What's your point?"

"We lost eight guards."

"I know. I was there."

"So why are our numbers now at two hundred and seventy-six?"

Fluttershy and the mare looked over the edge of the wagon and noticed that they were in a larger group than they had been when they started out that morning. They weren't going to sit there and count them all, but the group was definitely larger.

"I can answer that," called one of the two stallions pulling the wagon. "Look up there."

They looked to the direction indicated. They were making their way up a massive hill, with several ponies surrounding it. They were armed and armoured, with palisade walls, archery towers and two encampments with infrastructure to repair if necessary. This place was very much fortified and ready for battle. At the very top of the hill, Princess Luna stood, wearing the rarely-seen royal armour. She also carried with her the Crescent Moon battleaxe, a weapon that had not seen use in over a thousand years, but had been kept in good condition.

Before long, the train was wrapped twice around the base of the hill, with the front, back, and middle right next to each other. Kai, Fluttershy, Nik, Twilight, Spike, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash joined up and made their way up the hill. Princess Luna was there still, waiting with a second axe, the Break of Dawn. Likewise, it had also been preserved since its last use. There was also a suit of armour for Celestia.

"Dear sister, We did not know when to expect you. We did not think you would be here so soon, especially given your last letter."

Celestia cocked her head to the side. "My last letter said we were on our way. Yesterday morning."

"I have not received a message in nigh on a week. The last thing you said was that you couldn't figure out how to open the door to the hidden haven."

Celestia scowled. "It would seem my messages have not reached you of late. Somepony has been intercepting them."

Luna joined Celestia in her scowl. "That would certainly explain why we are constantly under attack. They know where we are. The good news is, we have been able to repel them effectively. The bad news is, they just keep coming. We barely slept last night due to the relentless attack."

Celestia placed her hoof on Luna's shoulder. "The good news is, we have escorted the human here, and we have the keystones. We just need to hold on a bit longer." She brought over her helmet and placed it atop her head, placing her tiara in its place. "For Equestria, and all of her ponies, let's finish this."