Lex had to return; there was no other choice. He wasn't a coward, and he wouldn't let her believe him to be one. Already five days had passed, and Lex was a day out of Fort Doral.

Brutus galloped hard down the washed-out roads leading back to the duchy's capital. He leaped over sinkholes, dashed around derelict carriages, and crushed any bandit in his way. Mud from the road shot behind them as they rode hard for the city. Mist thick enough to cut with a knife blasted him in the face, enough to give even a young man pneumonia.

Something from his bond with Brutus lets him see through the mist without his eyes. For some reason that sense directed him to Morgan in the city. So he could sense the right roads and trails despite the fog, the winding roads, and the obstacles in their way.

"That's my mare sense. It lets me since any filly I have been with, convenient isn't it. Though normally, I use it to go the opposite direction. While pregnant mares love a good pounding, they're crazy enough to change your minds, a bite to the sack will do that." Brutus said.

The nightmare's hooves pounded down the road, ripping up roots and tossing submerged bones in the air. Lex had kilometers of road left to travel but was sure he'd make it.

It seemed just when he was certain they'd make it, a obstacle blocked their way.

Lex saw a destitute lady in the middle of the road jumping up and down to get his attention. Someone had ripped her dress down the middle for easy access. Behind her were children hiding in the trees. Off the road, Lex saw her wagon and slain horses. The dagger she hid in her ruined skirt may have been the one that tore open the lady's dress, as well as those horses' throats. So he concluded they had been spared being killed in exchange lady was raped and possible her children had been as well. Without a more thorough examination of the scene he couldn't guess any more of the story. Lex sighed and pulled on the reins. Brutus slowed first to a casual gate and then to a steady trot until he stopped and from the woman.

"Sir Knight, thank you for stopping. Unfortunately, we fell on some hard times. Is there anything you can do to help us? I don't have much, but my husband's family is wealthy. I am countess Harriet Chase, maybe you've heard of me, my husband is Herada Chase count of Black Hills.". Harriet said.

Lex didn't know what to think about this woman. Her long leaf-filled dirty red hair limply hung at her shoulders. Her face maintained a fairy-like youthfulness made stranger by her metallic silver eyes. Those eyes made his spine crawl. When he turned his attention to the daughters behind the tree, he felt odd. Neither held the same heat as their mother. It was more like their mother fed them heat from herself. They also had metallic silver eyes, and their hair was a mix of blonde and red; the red seemed to consume the blonde.

He didn't have time for this, and something about him set him on edge. "What do you think about this Brutus? Do you feel like pulling their carriage out of the sinkhole?" Lex said.

Brutus snorted; "Something about them isn't right."

Lex knew the nightmare didn't want to pull anything out of the sinkhole except its dick. He didn't need a bond to figure that out. "I can do it, don't think I can't. Why should I, and what do I get out of this? What do you get out of it? That mare is all used up in the other two are fillies. Unless they can get you into a larger herd with more good breeding potential, I don't see the point in helping them." Brutus stomped a hoof when he realized Lex wasn't getting it. "Let me explain this in a way you'll understand. I've heard of the situation before, and the nobles often have whoever helps them executed to save face in the herd." Brutus said.

That was far more insightful than he expected. For a stallion obsessed with fucking everything around it, it had some well-thought-out opinions. But how was he going to spin this? What if someone else helps them and she managed to send some guards after him? He thought about the situation; it seemed Lex was damned if he did and damned if he didn't help them.

"I'm no knight, merely a man on his way to the hidden Dragon Institute to beg for admittance. You could say I've worked for the inquisition for a while and earned the horse and armor. So where were you headed?" The lady was taken aback by his frank answer.

She seemed to stare through him with those silver eyes like he was an idiot. Lex realized soon after that this road from this point on led to only one place. "We were traveling to Fort Doral when epsilon chose to punish us. Our carriage fell in a sinkhole during the recent storm, and one of our horses broke its leg. While our guards attempted to pull us out, bandits attacked. They gave our guards an offer they couldn't refuse. The rest is history; we've hidden for the last few days waiting for someone like you to come and help us.

Lex looked over the carriage by his estimation; it shouldn't weigh more than a couple of tons. However, getting that out of the sinkhole would be a challenge. Brutus could probably do it, but he'd be vulnerable the entire time. To make matters worse, one of the metal axles was bent at a 90° angle. At best, they'd get the carriage out; it would drag on one wheel and slow them down.

"You'd be better off waiting for someone with their own carriage to come by. I don't have any tools to fix even out that axel. What about your husband? Shouldn't he have already sent someone to check up on you?" In theory, a count should be around the ninth stage of the foundation. Some in more significant lands could be core or higher. That's what's expected of a count. Someone with that power and the resources of an entire county should be able to check one road. If he cared at all about them, a few knights should be out looking for them. Maybe that's who they thought he was, originally.

Theoretically, he might be able to pull it out himself. Lex had grown much stronger since taking on familiar bonds with Zhan and Brutus. Brutus had given him a boost of endurance, strength, and speed. Zhan had increased his qi control, qi quality, and durability. Those were only the passive abilities he knew of. There may be more than he was unaware of having. Neither had been too forthcoming with the abilities they'd granted him through the familiar contract. Brutus just said yes and they were bonded.

Lex also knew there is a chance this is all a trap. The second he slipped off his horse, she'd take it, collect the other two children, and ride away. Lex flicked Brutus's reins and galloped away from her and towards the carriage. As he looked it over, it appeared more damaged than he thought. There were heavy dents in the wheel; two wouldn't roll, and one would even touch the ground. It was a lost cause.

He turned his head to see the same noble lady with the silver bow in her hands an arrow knocked aimed at him. The second their eyes met she released the arrow. Lex felt something come over him, and he knew that no matter where he twisted, turned, or what he tried to hide behind, the arrow would hit. Lex threw his hand in the air as a path and let it hit. The broadhead ripped through his hand, turned at an angle, and bounced off his shoulder pauldron. He turned and kicked, and Brutus shot down the road. Two more arrows slammed into his back and three slammed into the calf of his leg.

His blood flowed freely, and despite his skill, he was bleeding out. Some silver substance mixed with his blood, and he was bleeding heavily on Brutus and leaving a trail. He concentrated on the first arrow, the one in his hand; he snapped the broadhead from it and then pulled the shaft out. Only when the arrow was free from his hand, did his golden blood finely clot the wound.

This wasn't what he was used to. Most wounds would stop up immediately, harden over, and rapidly heal. That wasn't the case here; something about those arrows didn't play well with his demonic skill. He tried to pull the arrows out of his leg they wouldn't move. Finally, Lex realized he only had one choice. He needed to push the broadhead through, snap it off, and pull the shaft out. If he didn't, Lex would continue bleeding out until he lost consciousness. The worst place to do that was on the back of the horse galloping down a washed-out road.

They made it off the road a few kilometers away from that woman and her daughters. The daughters were the ones who got him in the leg her claims of being a countess was probably a lie. Lex had been too quick to believe. He had other questions like why his armor didn't extend to protect the back of his legs. While his chest, shoulders, back, and thighs were well armored, the area below the knee until his boots was not.

Brutus took a detour off the road and to a derelict house. It was an old log cabin filled with cobwebs and a forgotten past. It might've been an inn at one time. Lex stripped the armor from his leg and began the bloody work of pushing arrows out of his leg. He kept the broadhead's to study later. After making sure he wouldn't pass out from blood loss, Lex mounted Brutus and rode through the night. By morning he'd reach the gate of Fort Doral if nothing else happened.