Failure, Eternally Retold, Part Two: Nature's Blessings

by Kiernan

Chapter the Seventh: Into the Woods

Nik was glad no one he knew was around to see him. While he was happy to have new clothes that were clean, the design was far more flamboyant than he would like. He had a distinctive style, and he liked it. A grey pocket tee with carpenter pants was a very utilitarian choice, as it was loaded with storage capacity. He could keep all of his daily carried objects, plus many more. Not so much with his new outfit.

He wore a puffy white blouse that was sure to stain yellow right away with his sweat, tucked into a pair of tan breeches, which were themselves tucked into a large pair of black cloth boots. A black cloth belt kept his pants up. The clothes fit nicely, and he imagined that he looked dashing in them, and if he had a mirror to look into, he was pretty sure he'd compare himself to a polo player, despite knowing nothing of the sport. Still, he'd thanked Fluttershy for hoof-crafting them, as doing so hadn't been easy or quick, and it was an appreciated gesture from her.

Kai was much happier. Not only had Fluttershy cleaned his cloak, she'd accurately returned everything to the correct pockets. He'd waited until Nik had climbed into the cart, then asked her to help him with the yoke. When they'd pulled it up, he leaned in and kissed her cheek, thanking her for doing this for him. She'd insisted that it was no big deal, and that she'd do it again if he asked. With a hug and a blush, she climbed into the back. Twilight wanted to help pull today, so she could find out a bit more about how Kai did magic.

For several hours, she rattled off question after question, and Kai's jaw was sore from all the answering he'd done by the time midday rolled around. It had been ages since last he talked so long. He was about to go into the subtle intricacies of how earth ponies performed their magic, but at that moment, they reached the top of a hill, and could see their destination.

"I think this is as good a place as any to stop for a moment," he said, applying the parking brakes. As he opened the door to let the others out for a chance to stretch their legs, Twilight looked in awe at the dense cluster of incredibly tall and girthy trees in front of them. Every single leaf was vibrant and verdant, with branches stretching out taller than Twilight had ever seen. When Fluttershy saw it, her eyes went wide and her hooves began to shake. To her, seeing a forest so strong and healthy was beautiful; so much so, she couldn't put it into words.

When it was time to resume, she opted to let the back door hang open. As they made their way through the forest, she wanted to see the foliage up close. On their way through the thick trees, she had to have Nik's hand on her shoulder to keep from bolting out to look at the trees and becoming left behind and lost. He also helped to steady her, as the tree roots protruding from the ground made for a bumpy ride.

It wasn't just the flora that made this forest so captivating for Fluttershy. The fauna scattered around them were exceptionally healthy, too. With a quick call from her, a striped ground squirrel with a brilliant red coat jumped aboard the cart to sniff at her. It stayed with her, crawling around her torso and receiving pets for half an hour or so before jumping off and scurrying back toward its home. In that time, a few birds had come to perch on her forelegs, and one was taking a small rest in her mane. These weren't big birds by any stretch, but they were clearly very strong and well-fed. This place was a paradise for ponies like her.

When it came time to stop for the night, they didn't set up camp as usual, under orders from Kai. "This isn't going to be an easy night for us," he said, moving things around inside the cart. "We can't have a campfire tonight, so that means no meat for Nik and no cooked vegetables for anypony. We'll have to subsist on what we can eat as it currently is. This is in part because there is no dead wood around here, and partially because the ground cover is too thick and the web of roots flowing beneath us catching fire means the whole forest goes up in flames. Horn lights only."

"What if we don't have a horn?" asked Nik.

"Fluttershy, you go with Twilight," Kai said. "You know what to bring back." As they left, Kai turned to Nik. "You and I are going to find some water. We're not as close as I'd like to be to a river, and we may not have to put out a fire tonight, but I'm parched, and my canteen ran out hours ago."

Nik climbed out of the wagon into the light of Kai's horn, grabbing a bucket in which to carry the water. He was a bit upset that he wouldn't be allowed to eat any meat tonight, but he could deal with that if he had to. Not that he wanted to hunt in this forest, anyway. The trees were so dense he could barely see even a few metres away. Plus, the canopy was so thick that without Kai's light, he might not even be able to see in the dark. Trudging through the tall grass, he followed Kai, hoping he knew what he was doing.

Kai had a spell for finding fresh water. He'd found it in an ancient guide to exploring strange lands that was intended for soldiers in the wild thousands of years ago. He wished he still had a copy of the book, as it had kept him alive in his youth, and a lot of the information contained within applied to what they were doing. He remembered a lot of it, but he couldn't help but think that he was forgetting a few things.

They found a stream and filled up the bucket. Before heading back, Kai drank his fill of river water. He felt refreshed. "Oh, and we'll all be inside the cart tonight for safety reasons. Twilight probably already told Fluttershy."

"Safety reasons?" asked Nik. "What safety reasons?"

Kai wiped his mouth. "You've seen the forest. Everything in here is healthy, stronger than normal, and even breathing the air in here fills me with vitality. If you were to hunt and cook an animal around here, you'd find virtually no fat, and lots of muscle."

"And?"

"We saw three bears on the way in. I'd rather not tangle with a stronger-than-average creature of that calibre."