Sweet F.A.
“‘To the pain’ means this: If we duel and you win, death for me. If we duel and I win, life for you, but life on my terms. The first thing you lose will be your feet below the ankles. You will have stumps available to use within six months. Then your hands, at the wrists. They heal somewhat quicker. Five months is a fair average. Next your nose. No smell of dawn for you. Followed by your tongue, deeply cut away. Not even a stump left. The next thing you lose will be your left eye, followed by your right. Your ears you keep, and I’ll tell you why: so that every shriek of every child seeing your hideousness shall be yours to cherish; every babe that weeps in fear at your approach, every woman that cries out, ‘Dear God! What is that thing?’ will reverberate forever in your perfect ears. That is what ‘to the pain’ means: it means I leave you in anguish, wallowing in freakish misery, forever.”