"The beast has long since stopped serving to become the master. The Confed did what governments were famed for: it made more government. To oppose it was treason, and worth death. Even a monster has fear."

“Could he use the same excuse as the Confed—the end justified the means? Sometimes it did, of course, but could one ethically justify using the same methods as a deplored enemy, in order to get it to stop?”

““One who searches for the definition ‘devious’ can find it listed under ‘human.’”

“He had thought about it. Mostly, after the fantasies, he had let it go. It was done, history. No point in bumping into the furniture while looking back over your shoulder.”

“The loudest sound on a battle field was click! when you were expecting bang! It was a never-ending wonder: What was going to go wrong next?”

“Rich people seldom run amok; They hire somebody to do that for them.”

“Desire, she realized, was a thick fog that could completely obscure reality.”