Failure, Eternally Retold, Part One: The Human Element

by Kiernan

Chapter the Thirtieth: Downpour

Bone poked his head out of the sarcophagus and looked around. The chill of the rain invigorated him. "The coast is clear," he called down to Kai and Nik. "There's no army up here. Just rain. Unless they're hiding in that wagon."

"No," answered Kai. "Those are our companions."

Bone smirked. "Romantic companions?"

Kai remained silent. He wanted his relationship with Fluttershy to be a romantic one, but he feared that was still out of reach. He wanted it, but if she didn't feel the same, he would stay her eternal friend.

"None of us are sleeping together, if that's what you're asking," answered Nik.

Bone shook his head. "Ah, well. At any rate, I still feel a battle approaching. When that day comes, if you're the force I am to fight alongside, I shall be glad to count you as my compatriots."

Kai nodded as he stepped outside. "Until we meet again, Bone. Fare thee well."

"if we ever do meet again," corrected Nik, following Kai out. He carried with him a brand new deep river fishing spear with tension loop and a large kukri, gifts from Flesh for the purposes of gathering meat. They meant bigger fish, with an easier time catching and preparing them.

"If you want to weather this storm, head east!" called Bone after them. "There's a small hill with some large oak trees! That'll keep you at least a little bit dry for the night!"

"Will do!" called Kai, harnessing himself into the wagon. He waved as he took off, with Nik climbing into the back.

The rain only grew heavier as they went on. The ground eventually became so muddy that the wagon wheels sank into the dirt. Despite this, Kai kept pulling until he found the hill. It seemed that Bone's information was out of date. There were no trees here. Instead, what he found was a series of very wide tree stumps. These had long ago been cut down for lumber. Nevertheless, the rainwater would not pool here. This is where they would stay for the night.

With the wheels locked, he opened the backdoor to the cart. "This is a good a place as any to stop for the night!" he shouted, only just able to be heard over the roar of the rain drumming on the roof. "I know you're not going to like this news, but your best bet would be to stay inside the wagon! If we set up the tents, we'll all be covered in mud come morning!"

"We can't all fit in here!" called Twilight. "It's cramped enough with just three of us sleeping in this confined space!"

"I realize that!" Kai reached in with his muddy hooves and grabbed one of the tents. "I'll be outside tonight! The rest of you should stay in here!"

Kai closed the door, bringing the sound of the rain back to a dull roar. Fluttershy was the first to speak up. "I suppose that means we go back to the dried food?"

Twilight shrugged. "That is what it's there for. I suppose it's a good thing that Kai's been foraging for us, otherwise we'd be out by now."

"A real shame about this weather," Nik added. "I was hoping to try out my new fishing spear."

Twilight shook her head. "It'll have to wait until we come to a body of water that isn't falling from the sky."

Nik didn't eat much, reasoning that he'd had a large, delicious lunch. The girls also didn't eat much, but that was mostly due to the flavor profile. They knew that if they waited a day or two, they'd be back to fresh again.

As they were lying down, about to fall asleep, Fluttershy suddenly bolted upright, startling Twilight. "What's wrong, Fluttershy?" she asked.

Fluttershy stood up. "I just thought of something important. I need to talk to Kai. I'll be right back."

Fluttershy opened the door, flooding the cart with the roar of the pouring rain. As she stepped outside, she was soaking wet in seconds. Closing the door behind her, she shivered and looked around. There were no rivers or lakes particularly close to them, but the flash flood had stranded them on a makeshift island. In order to leave without flying, one would need to go through the water. At the base of the hill, the water was about half a metre deep, rushing quickly over the grass to find its way to the lowest point it could.

On one of the stumps was a tent, staked directly into the wood. There was also a length of rope, which had been loose when Kai had tied it, which was now taut, connecting the wagon to the tree stump. Presumably, this was to keep the wagon from moving in case the water tried to wash it away.

Fluttershy made her way to the tent and poked her head in. While it was quieter here than it was outside, it was louder than the wagon had been. Kai sat upright with his back to her, hunched over an oil lantern. He hadn't seemed to have heard her yet.

"Kai?" Fluttershy's voice took Kai out of his trance, and he turned around. "I was just think--"

She was interrupted by Kai grabbing her hoof and pulling her all the way inside. "It's freezing out there. Come inside before you catch a cold." He wrapped his cloak around her, and soon she felt the chill of the rain leave her entirely.

"You know, I actually came to check up on how you were doing," she said, smiling gently. "It's nice to know that you care about me, too."

"Of course I care about you, Fluttershy. You make me want to be a better stallion. Especially since you care enough to come make sure I'm alright."

"Well, I just thought to myself that we were all in that wagon, eating dried food, and I felt so horrible that you didn't have any dinner. So I grabbed some and brought it out to you." Fluttershy lifted her wing, showing that she had brought a bag of dried seaweed and a mango melon strip of fruit leather.

Kai chuckled. "That's really sweet of you. By the time I'd thought of that, I guessed that you all were asleep, and I didn't want to risk waking you by opening the door." He reached forward and gave her a hug, feeling blessed to have her back in his life. Just as he was releasing his embrace, however, a bright light lit up the outside of the tent. This was followed by a loud, crackling boom that caused the ground beneath them to shake. Fluttershy leaped forward, wrapping herself tightly in Kai's front legs.

Kai thought back to the first time she'd ever embraced him. He'd come back home after doing her bidding for the day, and she'd confided in him that she was terrified of thunderstorms. Back then, he'd only wanted to calm her down so that he could use her. Now, he wanted her to feel safe. Having only a flimsy tarp and his cloak with which to protect her, he began stroking her mane and humming gently. It was the same melancholy tune he'd hummed to her before; A song of a soldier dying in a prison.

The lightning and thunder kept up through the night. While Kai wanted to keep his promise to Twilight, he refused to send Fluttershy back to the wagon in the midst of her panic attack. When Fluttershy finally did manage to fall asleep, Kai lay her down softly on the bedroll, covered her with his cloak, and curled up outside the tent. Though it was uncomfortable, he somehow managed to find a way to sleep in the rain for a few hours before the sun arose.