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On the Far Side, as Payne lay in an unnatural position on hard marble, her namesake overwhelony in her legs or feet, only a disassociated tingling thatwood Directly above her broken body, the Blind King was leaning o&039;er, his face tight--and the Scribe Virgin had alsoaround in circles

It was not a shock that her ically fix her Like that door which had gone fro , neaten it all up,perfect

"I refuse," Payne said again through gritted teeth "I do not consent"

Wrath glanced over his shoulder at the Scribe Virgin, then looked back down "Ah listen, Payne, that&039;s not logical You can&039;t feel your legs your back&039;s probably broken Why won&039;t you let Her help you?"

"I am not some inanimate object She can manipulate at will to please her whims and fancy--"

"Payne, be reasonable--"

"I a to die--"

"Then my mother can watch me expire!" she hissed--and then promptly moaned In the wake of her outburst, consciousness ebbed and flowed, her eyes blurring and then regaining focus, Wrath&039;s shocked expression beco that by which she measured whether she had fainted or not

"Wait, she&039;s" The king braced his hand against theposition "Your mother?"

Payne cared not that he knew She had never felt any pride associated with being the birthed daughter of the race&039;s founder--had in fact sought at every turn to distance herself--but what did it o unto the Fade from here What pain she did feel told her this

Wrath twisted around to the Scribe Virgin "This is the truth?"

No affirmative answer came back to him, but nor did a denial And there was no chastisement that he had dared offend by his inquiry, either

The king looked back at Payne "Jesus Christ"

Payne dragged in a breath "Leave us, dear King Go forth unto your world and lead your people You need no help from this side or Her You are a fine oing to let you die," he spat

"You have no choice, do you"

"The fuck I don&039;t" Wrath shot to his feet and glared doard "Let Her heal you! You&039;re out of your goddamn mind! You can&039;t die like this--"

"I most certainly can" Payne shut her eyes, a wave of exhaustion rolling through her

"Do soin

Too bad she felt like such hell, Payne thought Otherwise, she most certainly would have enjoyed this final declaration of independence Verily, it had cos of her death, but she had done it Stood up to her h her refusal

The Scribe Virgin&039;s voice was barely louder than breath "She has deniedme"

She certainly was Her fury was directed at her mother to such an extent, it wasn&039;t hard to believe that it functioned as a barrier to whatever edy" that had occurred

Which in fact felt

"You&039;re all-powerful!" The king&039;s voice was a rough charge--the frantic nature of which was a tad confusing But then, he was a male of worth ould no doubt place the blame upon himself "Just fix her!"

There was a silence and then a weak reply: "I can no more reach her body than I can her heart"

Verily, if the Scribe Virgin was finally getting a sense of what it was to be without power Payne could die in peace

"Payne! Payne, wake up!"

Her lids lifted Wrath was inches from her face

"If I can save you, will you let me?"

She couldn&039;t understand why she was so important to him "Leave me--"

"If I can do it, will you let me?"

"You can&039;t"

"Answer the fucking question"

He was such a good male, and the fact that her demise would be upon his conscience e&039;ermore was a sorrow "I&039;m sorry about this Wrath I&039;"

Wrath turned upon the Scribe Virgin "Let me save her Let in&039;s hood lifted of its own volition, and her once glowing fore and the voice she put forth was that of a beautiful feony: "I did not want this destiny"

"That and a pile of shit gets you nothing Will You let in shifted her stare to the opaque heaven above her and the tear that fell fro with a shimmer and a flash

That lovely object would be the last thing Payne ever saw, she thought as her eyes becaer keep her lids open

"For fuck&039;s sake," Wrath bellowed "Let in&039;s answer caer Do what you will, Wrath, son of Wrath Better she be away from me and alive, than dead uponwent quiet

A door was shut

Then Wrath&039;s voice: I need you on the Other Side Payne, wake up, I need you on the Other Side