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Over on the Far Side, Payne paced around in hercircles in the pool that caught the falling water As she splashed, she held her robing aloft and she listened to the colorful birds that sat in the white tree over in the corner The little ones chirped and carried on, flitting fro with their feathers

How in the hell they found such li up for she hadn&039;t a clue

In the sanctuary there was no conception of ti clock to figure out how late the Blind King was They had a standing sparring session every afternoon

Well, afternoon for hi was perpetually dayti it had been since herher from that deep freeze and allowed her soularly about fifteen ti before that So maybe over sixshe&039;d been kept under frosted lock and key--but it wasn&039;t like she was going to ask herat all Until that "divine" female who&039;d birthed her was prepared to let her out of here, Payne didn&039;t have anything to say

For truth, the silent treat a difference at all, but she hadn&039;t expected it to When your mother- mare was the creator of the race and answerable to no one, even the king

It was rather easy to becoh the fountain intensified and her robing started to get soaked, she leaped out of the pool and jogged around, her fists up in front of her, the punches she threw out puood, dutiful Chosen was not in her hardwiring, and that was the root of all of the problems between her and her mother Oh, the waste Oh, the disappointet over it, mother dear

Those standards of behavior and belief were for so for another robed ghost to drift around like a silent draft through a temperate roo

The Bloodletter&039;s vital h to the next generation--

Payne wheeled around andfist with a forear was quick to retaliate and the ha to happen

Fast duck had her barely out of the way Another kick froh he was blind, he had an unerring ability to know precisely where she was in space

Which uess she would coht around, ready to punch her with the sole of his boot around the back

Payne changed herhi to her right and she was out of the way of his huge, lurching body; another leap and she was latched onto his back as he landed hard, his neck caught in a choke hold within the crook of her elbow To gain extra leverage, she grabbed onto her orist and used her other biceps as she pulled against his throat

The king&039;s way of dealing with it? He turtled on her

His incredible brute strength gave hiht and rise up Then it was a ju with her underneath, flattened on theplatfor

The king was first and foremost a male of worth, however, and in deference to her inferiorWhich irked her She&039;d have preferred a no-holds-barred contest of skill, but there were differences in the sexes that were not negotiable and er

Asto be done about it

And anytiood one, it was extra sweet

The king was ni black hair fanning out in a circle before resettling on his white judogi With the set of dark lenses over his eyes, and that trenificent, the very best of the va huh that was part of his problem She had heard that that blindness of his was the result of all that pure blood

As Payne went to get up, her back let out a spas strike and faced off with her opponent once again This ti, and for a blind

Maybe that hy he never coain, they didn&039;t talk h she did wonder what his life was like on the Other Side

How she envied hio at it, working their way around the fountain, then over to the columns and toward the door that led out into the sanctuary And back again And around again

They were both bruised and bleeding by the finish of the session, but it was no bother As soon as their hands dropped to their sides and no in to heal up

The last punch that was throas hers and it was a stunner of an uppercut, catching the king&039;s chin like a ball and chain, throwing his head back, that hair once again flying

They always see when it was ti side by side to the fountain, stretching out their ether, they washed their faces and fists in the clear, clean water and they dried themselves on soft cloths that Payne had asked to have at the ready

In spite of the fact that they traded punches and not words, she had co as a friend And to trust him as one

First time she&039;d ever had that

And it was truly just friends As much as she could admire from afar his considerable physical attributes, there was no spark of attraction between them--and that was part of the reason this worked She wouldn&039;t have been comfortable any other way

No, she wasn&039;t interested in so sexual from him or anyone else Male vahbred ones They couldn&039;t help it--it was, once again, a case of as in the blood deterh of so she needed was another one of those

"You okay?" Wrath asked as they sat on the lip of the fountain

"Yes You?" She didn&039;t ht The first couple of times it had offended her--as if she couldn&039;t handle the post-sparring aches? But then she realized it had nothing to do with her sex-- he would have asked it of anyone he so exerted hireat," he said, his sinning was boss, by the way"

Payne grinned so broadly her cheeks hurt Which was another reason she liked to be with him As he couldn&039;t see, there was no reason to hide her e her she&039;d ihness, your turtles always killeven wider and she wasto hiht has its uses," he murmured

Abruptly, he turned to her, the dark spectacles he alore ain, that he looked cruel And yet he&039;d proved that wasn&039;t the case over and over again

He cleared his throat "Thanks for this Things are bad back home"

"How so?"

Now he looked away, as if he were staring at the horizon Which was likely a holdover from when he hid his emotions from people "We&039;ve lost a female The ene for it"

"Were they h they were" The king shrugged "I missed the connection between theht in a big way"

A hunger for the down-below, for the earthbound lives that were trau in "What happened?"

The king pushed his hair back, his &039;s peak showing starkly against his golden brown skin "He slaughtered a lesser tonight Just slaughtered the bastard"

"That&039;s his duty, no?"

"It wasn&039;t in the field It was in the house where the slayers had imprisoned the feation, but John just lit his ass up John&039;s a good kid but that kind of bonded- ood way, feel hting wrongs and fighting, of--

The Scribe Virgin appeared through the doorway of Her private quarters, Her black robes floating slightly above therose to his feet and bowed and yet sohtest Another reason to like hiin Scribe"

"Wrath, son of Wrath"

And that was it As you weren&039;t supposed to address any questions to the mother of the race, and as Payne&039;s mother re but air happening

Yeah, because--fates preserve us--you wouldn&039;t want to tax that female with any inquiries And it was clear why the interruption had occurred: Her mother didn&039;t want an intersection between Payne and the outside world

"I&039; Because she would not be responsible for what came out of her mouth if herput his fist out "Farewell Tomorrow?"

"With pleasure" Payne punched her knuckles against his, as he had taught her was customary, and headed for the door that led into the sanctuary

On the other side of the white panels, the bright green grass was a shock to her eyes and she blinked as she went past the Primale Temple and down to the Chosen&039;s quarters Yellow, pink, and red flowers grew in rando with jonquil and iris

All spring blooms, if she remembered from her brief ti here Ever on the verge, never to reach the full nificence and brash heat of summer Or least what she had read su wherein the Chosen resided was cut into cubelike rooms that offered a modicum of privacy to their tenants Most of the spaces were e breed Ever since the Priin&039;s private collection of ethereal do-nothings were thinning out thanks to trips to the Other Side

Surprisingly, none of them had chosen to un- Chosen themselves--but unlike before, if they went over to the Primale&039;s private compound, they were allowed back into the sanctuary

Payne went directly to the baths and was relieved to find she was alone She knew her "sisters" didn&039;t understand what she did with the king and she&039;d just as soon enjoy the cal aftermath of the exercise without the eyes of others