‘You cannot eradicate evil, for without it how would we judge what is good? And if there is no greed, no lust, no baleful desires, what has a man achieved who becomes good? There would then be no mountains to climb.’
– Pendarric, to Ruth, Wolf in Shadow
‘This is not some idle theory, and I do not wish you to patronise me. What I am telling you is about life. It is so easy to compromise, to tell yourself it does not matter. Or someone else will do it if you don’t. It always matters. The world can crush us and kill us, but the most terrifying injuries are always from within. Our own deeds. They can torment us with whips of fire.’
– Stepney, to Bimbo Jardine, White Knight Black Swan
‘Yet I was wise once, I knew many secrets. But all wisdom is folly. We think we manipulate, but we are being manipulated. We think we have power, but we are as leaves in a storm. We do good works, that lead to evil. All is confusion. All is vanity.’
– Tamis, to Derae, Lion of Macedon
‘Do not make the mistake of judging a man’s physical courage, or his skills, by the work he is forced to do. I knew a doctor once who could put an arrow through a gold ring at forty paces. And a street cleaner in Drenan who once held off twenty Sathuli warriors, killing three, before he carried his injured officer back to camp. Judge a man by his actions, not his occupation.’
– Angel, to Miriel, Waylander II: In the Realm of the Wolf
‘Any good that I may do, let me do it now, for I may not pass this way again.’
– A quotation from an ancient writing, The Legend of Deathwalker
‘A man can be a robber all his life, and yet do one good deed and be remembered in song with great affection. But a king? He can spend his life in good works, yet perpetrate one evil deed and be remembered as a tyrant.’
– Pendarric, to Uther, Ghost King
‘There are many kinds of beauty, my lady, and not all of them fade as swiftly as the flesh.’
– Parmenion, to Olympias, Lion of Macedon
‘I said no such thing, lad. I said I was frightened. There’s a difference. A coward is a man who knows what’s right, but is afraid to do it. There’s plenty of them around. But the worst of them are easy to spot: they talk loud, they brag big, and given a chance they’re as cruel as sin.’
– An Old Man, to Druss, The First Chronicles of Druss the Legend
‘Death is merely another journey, lad. But you won’t be walking that road alone – I’ll be with you. And who knows what adventures wait?’
– Michanek, to a young soldier, The First Chronicles of Druss the Legend
