The nurse came to wake them both up. Ash struggled to pick himself up; he was still reeling from the aftereffects of the new ability and the killing of Casper. Lita awoke as well, she rubbed her eyes as she let out a small yawn. Both got out to see Daredevil's condition. Lita had to know what would become of him; she needed closure.
They made it to the spot where the horse and doctors were, one held a syringe in his hand. It was obvious what they were going to do, and it wasn't an antibiotic shot. She begged the doctor to let her sit beside him one last time, she needed to be there to send him off. Three years together, besides Ash, Daredevil was the closest to an honest relationship with another person she ever had. She couldn't help but sob and hum a song to him to ease his pain if by a little bit.
Ash looked defeated, he had no way of knowing how to help Daredevil now. All he could do was avenge him when he killed Casper.
{Warning. Destined steed about to die. User must save the steed or suffer a penalty.}
"Shut up! I don't want to hear it. What can you do that could even make this better?"
Ash scolded the system, he was not about to hear it especially any excuse or some useless mission where he would be rewarded but not for Lita's benefit just his own.
{Notice. The user can sacrifice the soul transference skill to save steed. Due to the user's failed attempt at keeping steed alive, the user must sacrifice skill to save steed and transfer to a compatible source. If the user does not find the source within 24hrs steed's soul will disappear.}
Lying it on thick for him, Ash was torn. He didn't want to use the system after all the hell it was giving him with making him lose and gain skills like a predetermined course. He would have said screw it if he didn't see how much pain Lita's face was in. Even if the body was gone, maybe saving Daredevil's soul was better in that her memories of him would still live on.
Ash walked up to Lita holding her in one arm's embrace, while the other caressed the neck of Daredevil. Ash could see in his eyes, the pain and fear the horse had. Ash knew that look, he had it when Isaac died, wondering what his life was going to be without him in it to take care of him.
Ash could feel a sensation in his hand, followed by a glowing aura around it. It must have been special to him because he noticed no one else, even Lita, was seeing the glow. Ash followed through with the feeling in his hand, he let himself be relaxed, letting the flow of power course through him and Daredevil.
Daredevil glowed, the light he emanated faded out, and the same light now covered Ash's hand.
{Congratulations, soul successfully obtained. 24hr period will commence.}
The system showed a clock for Ash to see, reminding him of the urgency in finding a new body for Daredevil to inhabit.
Ash looked over the body one more time, Daredevil's eyes slowly closed now that his soul was separated from his body was finally entering its deserved rest period.
Lita leaned into Ash's shoulder sobbing, Ash wanted to tell her he saved Daredevil's soul, but the risk was too high to let her in on his secret. The doctor and animal handlers carried his body to the trailer to be cremated, Lita signed a waiver as his caretaker that she wanted him burned and put in an urn instead of some company using his body for profit.
After the scene everyone went home, Lita waited for her dad to come pick her up, she was in no condition to ride a bus home or call an Uber.
It took long but her dad arrived, driving the same beat-up Honda he refused to spend money on or replace because of how bad their financial situation was.
Ash didn't like her dad, even as kids Lita's dad was mean to him, if not for Isaac who knows what he would have done to him and Lita when he was on a bender. Granted he sobered up, albeit for a short time, but enough to take care of Lita properly before she had to step up with her multiple jobs.
"You gonna be ok? You don't have to go home, you can stay at my place tonight?" He asked Lita.
"No, I'll be ok. I don't want to bum you out with how I'm feeling." Lita turned to hug him tight, before planting one on his lips. "I'll be fine. You go home and rest I'll see you Monday."
Lita grabbed her pack as she headed to the car, her dad still giving a cold look to Ash. Ash in turned responded with a harder stare, he wasn't going to be intimidated by a forty-year-old alcoholic.
The car headed off, and Ash couldn't help but worry for Lita and her mental state. His thoughts were interrupted by the system's clock reminding him he was still running on a schedule.
"Oh yeah, I still have one thing I need to do. But where am I gonna out you, boy?"
Ash scratched his head thinking of how to solve Daredevil's situation properly. He made his way to his bike, when he felt the same sensation in his hand he did when he extracted the soul.
{Detection confirmed. The user has found a compatible form for the soul to inhabit to complete the transfer. Does the user wish to begin the transfer process.}
Ash's eyes gaped, not a chance in a thousand years would he believe Isaac's bike would be a suitable host for a horse's soul.
"Either it's dumb luck or a bad cosmic joke. But if it saves his soul it'll be worth it. Yes, begin the transfer."
The system did as instructed, the light in Ash's hand transferred itself into the bike. The entirety of the bike was surrounded by the glowing aura, and on the gas tank, a small carving of a horse's head appeared.
{Transfer completed. Destined steed has survived....WARNING!!!}
Ash didn't have time to react, the bike started on its own, and the engine roared louder than it ever had previously.
"What the hell?"
{Alert! Destined steed's soul was filled with regret and anger before transfer. Soul is now in a berserk state. User must quell the soul's rage by avenging its host's previous wrongs before the steed becomes consumed with pure hate.}
"What are you talking about? I already killed Casper there's nothing else that would have wronged Daredevil."
Ash couldn't finish his sentence, the bike stormed off, with Ash hanging on with everything he had to not fall off or lose his head.
"Wow, boy! Calm down, where are you taking me? There's nothing else left, who in the world wronged you that badly you still carry a grudge over…"
Ash realized it. It hit him in the moment, Casper leading to his death didn't count because he didn't know it was him that poisoned the treats that were meant for Lita, no, the ones that wronged him, that injured him badly and left him sitting in that stall hurt and angry was what Ash hated as well. The Kraegans.
Now he knew where he was going, Daredevil was taking him to a part of the town that was secluded off, a spot where the Kraegans were nesting under careful watch of the military.
"No! Don't you dare! This is my bike, you're not taking me there." Ash struggled to get the brakes to work or move the handle bars to another direction. Daredevil fought back, he refused to let Ash control him even in the form of his bike. "Damn you you wild horse, I won't let you use me for your vengeance. Give me back control of my bike!"
The engine roared again, like a neigh being screamed out by Daredevil. Daredevil continued to his destination, cursing and shouting at him to regain some control on the bike or risk losing not only Daredevil's soul but Issac's bike as well.