Failure, Eternally Retold, Part Three: Morality

Kai flew over the trees, scanning for any sign of the group. He'd picked up some of the remnants from their destroyed cart and tucked them into his cloak. He was moderately sure that his companions could manage going cross-country on their own, but anything he could do to help them would be a welcome boon.

As he was flying through the morning air, he saw something strange, something he had hoped wouldn't happen yet. A white light flashed in a clearing in front of him, widened out, and then retracted. As it pulled away, he saw the clearing replaced by water. Whether it was from an ocean, a lake, or just a very large river, it was a vast departure from the grasses and flowers that had been there a moment prior. He'd seen a family of deer just narrowly avoid being consumed by the light. If he didn't hurry, portals like this would start cropping up all over Equestria and beyond.

He nodded and continued westward. If this was the first, more would follow in its wake. If it wasn't they'd been very lucky not to run into any thus far. As they were, they would keep cropping up, slowly ripping holes in the world until one managed to open under Nik's feet. If he were swallowed up by one, they'd stop opening, but they wouldn't go away. What's worse, Fluttershy was probably still with him, and she'd likely be swallowed, as well.

With a shudder, he looked to the ground. He saw some flattened out grass next to a rock, and decided that it would be a good idea to investigate. After all, if they had camped here, it would tell him that they were headed the right direction. Sure enough, there was a fresh collection of wild edible grasses nearby, and three spots where something slept. Two were pony-sized, one longer and thinner. This had been them. More importantly, some spots were still warm, meaning they weren't far off.

After a long drink from the nearby stream, he took to the skies once again. He flew slowly, scanning widely. He knew they were close. It was the middle of the morning, and he'd just found their camp. He knew he was less than three hours behind them, and he could guess that they were following the fresh water west.

That's when he saw them, making their way downriver. It wasn't quite the path he would take, but it wasn't a bad choice, especially if they didn't know where they were going. Just as he was about to rush toward them, however, he felt a tingling on the back of his neck. He was being watched.

He turned and flew north, keeping his neck on a swivel. He could feel the eyes on him, but could not place them. If somepony wanted to follow him, they could follow him the wrong way. It was better than the alternative.

He flew for several kilometres, and the feeling of being watched only grew stronger. Finally, he landed on the Belican side of the river, took a drink, and turned to face the direction from whence he had come. It didn't take long for the four ponies in black cloaks to make their way across the river.

A stallion in a trimmed robe stepped forward, removing his hood and mask. "We aren't looking for trouble, priest," he spat. "Your goal and mine are the same. We know you saw the destruction of that patch of grass. We have come to stop it."

Kai glared into his eyes. "We do have the same goal. I want to protect Equestria, as do you. To a high degree, I also want that human to be removed from my life as soon as possible. On those points, I believe we can agree."

"If you lead us to the human, we can destroy it for you. We have no interest in harming your... other companions."

Kai reached up and rubbed his chin. "That does sound beneficial to me. After all, I gain what I want, and lose nothing in return."

The stallion smirked. "I knew you would make the right choice. You're smart."

"I'd certainly like to think so," chuckled Kai. "And in the way that studious smart ponies are, I cannot resist but question things. Things such as where my companions might be. I know their general path, but not their exact location. How were you able to find us multiple times?"

The stallion let out a laugh. "We have informants everywhere. It's a huge network that covers the globe. We also have local teams that go out to do the deeds. We're very efficient." He cleared his throat as the smile ran away from his face. "It's actually really embarrassing that we haven't been able to catch you yet. We've tried almost every trick in the book at this point, which is the only reason you and I are talking."

"How does that work?" asked Kai. "We've done well to stay away from towns and cities. Your informants must have been baffled."

"Like you wouldn't believe. So just tell me where they're headed, and we'll take you right to them."

Kai looked over his shoulders, to the left and right, then waved the stallion over. When they were close enough to touch, Kai leaned in and quickly stabbed into the other stallion's chest the blade Seafoam had extracted from his own. "I would rather die than let you hurt my beloved."

As the stallion fell to the ground, the remaining ponies drew their weapons. Kai threw the knife at one of them, just grazing them as he picked up his bardiche, leaping into the air as lightning collected in his horn.

Kai tore several strips from the trimmed black cloak, tying them around the bandage covering his thigh. He'd managed to end the fight as the victor, though he hadn't been unscathed in the encounter. He'd been hit with a crossbow bolt, and his left side had been burnt under his wing. He'd checked the remaining crossbow bolts, and had found them to not be envenomated. That meant that it was unlikely that he was dying of poison.

He took off to the north, leaving hoofprints behind in case anypony came upon the scene and decided to follow him. He then turned in midair and lowered himself gently into the river. The water was very cold, perfect for helping with his burn. He would have to let it recover as he floated down the river. Thankfully, it was headed the direction he meant to go, meaning he didn't have to try very hard. He just had to push his wings into the water to let it carry him where he wanted to go.

Late into the evening, he climbed out of the water, his burn now as treated as it could be. The bandage was soaked, but that wasn't really a problem. It was just gauze, and the cold water would have slowed the rate of his blood loss. He was about to lie down for the night when he heard voices right above him. He poked his head up over the rocks, and in the dim light of the crescent moon, he could just make out the silhouettes of his travelling companions.

"Apparently, everypony in the spire has gone mad," said Twilight with a sigh.

"I'd call them lunatics," Kai called out, his voice still a bit hoarse, "but that would be wrong. They're just crazy and awful." He stepped forward and illuminated his face. "It's good to see you all again."