He almost reached the castle, but there was another issue and he dropped the sloppy travois not even made for him.
He lifted the boltcaster with seven shots left and crouched low, taking aim and bracing himself, preparing to become the fastest shooter Equestria would never know.
"Extraordinary people survive under the most terrible circumstances and they become more extraordinary because of it." - Robertson Davies
A black bear was approaching him, lights of overloaded unicorn behind the beast, “god fuckin’ help me,” the massive creature had to sniff him out and he had taken too long of course.
He took aim at the bear, lining sights up and knowing that while it blew apart timberwolves, it act far more like a large bullet against actual flesh and bone, the deer just fell over when they were shot.
It could be that timberwolves aren’t held together by a strong force.
The bear had charged at him, shaking with all its shaggy fur. Kacie had a good idea of where his strike would land, but he wasn’t certain for sure.
Fwoo-aaaaah
He missed and cycled the expended magic out. The bear was charging him and he breathed out and inhaled again, holding that breath. Resolve lived inside us all, but you needed to know how to dig for it. A cream colored coat and raspberry mane came to his mind, so did his dad, and the grass.
The green green grass, Kacie would see it. There was no contestation that would stand against that.
He fired again and cycled immediately without moving the sights of the gun. A sudden dexterity popped into his hands and he fired a third and exhumed magic a third time.
Both shots hits, but he didn’t stop until his had finished the cartirdge and he quickly popped the button and slapped a new one in, it was only when he looked down the sights again that he saw the bear was unmoving, its face was a sight he would remember. Only a few feet away.
He put the boltcaster back and skinned the entire bear in the next hour, exhausted. Adrenaline had popped his veins out in his hands as they shook in the bitter winter wind again. Kacie didn’t bother to take any meat from the bear, save his stomach from even the slightest chance of any parasites. The human plopped the bear skin onto the makeshift travois and slid it into the castle where Roseluck stared at him with wide open eyes.
“You...you..that’s,” she eyed the sled behind him and Kacie had already started getting to work, hanging skins up and even putting weights on them this time to make them a little more pliable when he would go to make new clothing, “Kacie.”
“Yeah, yeah, I’m some kind of rabid animal. I have no intention of ever hurting anypony, most of all you,” he assured the mare.”
“Wh-why aren’t you going to eat the bear?” She questioned.
“Because if I do, there’s a chance I get some nasty critters in my stomach and there’s not a hospital that could solve that anymore.”
Kacie took the meat up to his room, lighting another fire and using the reclaimed wood from countless broken furniture to fuel it why the somewhat sitll fresh venison roasted away. He started cleaning up himself and his hands, pouring boiled water over them and soaping as best he could without wasting too much of it.
Water.
Water has fish. Kacie resolved it was time to find the hardware store in town when he next could, see if he couldn’t find something to make ice fishing a possibility, “hey, K?” Roseluck called from his bedroom door.
“What’s up? Something wrong?”
“When do you think this’ll end?” Roseluck asked the obvious question.
“I know it’s rough and probably lonely, but I have no idea when this snow will melt and the sun will properly warm us again.”
A silence broken only by the sizzle of meat and the crackle of fire filled in.
“We should go.”
“Go where?” Kacie asked, flipping food over.
“Canterlot. We have to, we can find the princesses and see if they’re wroking on something to fix this. Equestria’s never been in a disaster this long without the Elements saving the day,” she plead. Roseluck didn’t know why her tone came out that way, but she was begging him.
“We can go there, but I have some conditions,” Kacie dropped his hopeful tone, “you have to wait until I can make some proper gear, some real clothing for me so I can go all the way there with you.”
“How long will that take?”
Kacie looked to his hands, moving them around in the air before molding them over his legs and then his body, “give me a month, then I’ll be ready for anything.”
“A-a month?!”
“One month, maybe less. I need to have proper thermals, pants, a working hat, gloves...and tools like an actual hatchet and a strong knife. And preferably, some kind of deterrent for wildlife,” Roseluck nodded rather understandably.
“W-well, it’s not like I’d make it there without your help, the train’s not here, it’s in Canterlot.”
Kacie looked to her with a smile, “is that where everypony you knew headed?” He asked and she nodded, “hey...weird question, but does Equestria have any fruit trees? Or Orchards?” Roseluck tilted her head.
“There is the cherry rrchard in Dodge Ju-.”
“Holy shit,” Kacie breathed out, “oh man...what I’d do to make a cherry pie.”
“You can bake?” Roseluck’s eyes beamed.
“Humans can be incredibly talented, Rosie. You know...after I cook all this up and I go out tomorrow, I’ll come back with a treat for you.”
“A treat?” She came into the room, sitting next to him at the fire.
“Something to really look forward to,” he nudged her, “and thanks for sitting with me, I know you don’t exactly like the smell of this cooking, but-.”
“No no, it’s alright. I got a little used to it now I think. You’re kinder than you let on, K.”