Haniah > Haniah's Quotes

“War doesn't determine who's right. War determines who remains.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“I have become something wonderful, she thought. I have become something terrible. Was she now a goddess or a monster? Perhaps neither. Perhaps both.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Children ceased to be children when you put a sword in their hands. When you taught them to fight a war, then you armed them and put them on the front lines, they were not children anymore. They were soldiers.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“They were monsters!" Rin shrieked. "They were not human!"

"Have you ever considered" he said slowly "that that was exactly what they thought of us?”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“You humans always think you’re destined for things, for tragedy or for greatness. Destiny is a myth. Destiny is the only myth. The gods choose nothing. You chose.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“I don't love you. And I can kill anything.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“I don't need your pity. I need you to kill them for me. You have to kill them for me," Venka hissed. "Swear it. Swear on your blood that you will burn them.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“What’s the worst that could happen?” “You’re so young,” he said softly. “You have no idea.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Power dictates acceptability,”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Amateurs obsess over strategy, Irjah had once told their class. Professionals obsess over logistics”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“But the boy already had a god of his own. And the gods were selfish.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“But how does the existence or nonexistence of the gods affect me? Why does it matter how the universe came to be?"
"Because you're part of it. Because you exist. And unless you want to only ever be a tiny modicum of existence that doesn't understand its relation to the grander web of things, you will explore.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“I am a mortal who has woken up, and there is power in awareness.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Fear was impossible to eradicate. But so was the will to survive.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“There. A clear opening. Rin raised a leg and kicked out, hard. Her leg caught Nezha in midair with a satisfying whoomph. Nezha uttered an unnatural shriek and clutched his crotch, whimpering. The entire studio fell silent as all heads swiveled in their direction. Nezha clambered to his feet, scarlet-faced. “You—how dare you—” “Just as you said.” Rin dipped her head into a mocking bow. “I only know one kick.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“We don't die so much as we return to the void. We dissolve. We lose our ego. We change from being just one thing to becoming everything. Most of us, at least.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“I command the Cike.” Chaghan looked sideways at her. His expression was grim. “You are going to paint the world in Altan’s blood, aren’t you?” “I’m going to find and kill everyone responsible,” said Rin. “You cannot stop me.” Chaghan laughed a dry, cutting laugh. “Oh, I’m not going to stop you.” He held out his hand. She grasped it, and the drowned land and the ash-choked sky bore witness to the pact between Seer and Speerly.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“But I warn you, little warrior. The price of power is pain.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“War was not a game, where one fought for honor and admiration, where masters would keep her from sustaining any real harm. War was a nightmare.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Well, fuck the heavenly order of things.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“If you were the victim, what could you say to make your tormentor recognize you as human? How did you get your enemy to recognize you at all?”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Many more will live,” Rin said, and she was nearly certain that it was true. And even if it wasn’t, she was willing to take that gamble. She knew she would bear full responsibility for the murders she was about to commit, bear the weight of them for as long as she lived. But it was worth it. For the sake of her vengeance, it was worth it. This was divine retribution for what the Federation had wreaked on her people. This was her justice. “They aren’t people,” she whispered. “They’re animals. I want you to make them burn. Every last one.” “And what will you give me in return?” inquired the Phoenix. “The price to alter the fabric of the world is steep.” What did a god, especially the Phoenix, want? What did any god ever want? “I can give you worship,” she promised. “I can give you an unending flow of blood.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Jiang was wrong. She was not dabbling in forces she could not control, for the gods were not dangerous. The gods had no power at all, except what she gave them. The gods could affect the universe only through humans like her. Her destiny had not been written in the stars, or in the registers of the Pantheon. She had made her choices fully and autonomously. And though she called upon the gods to aid her in battle, they were her tools from beginning to end. She was no victim of destiny. She was the last Speerly, commander of the Cike, and a shaman who called the gods to do her bidding. And she would call the gods to do such terrible things.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Poppy War

“Take what you want. I’ll hate you for it. But I’ll love you forever. I can’t help but love you.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Burning God

“Oh, but history moved in such vicious circles.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Burning God

“Ruin me, ruin us, and I’ll let you.”
― R.F. Kuang, The Burning God