-It's a quotation. A motto... "Vi Veri Veniversum Vivus Vici." "By the power of truth, I, while living, have conquered the universe." Latin. -Hmmm. I suppose you have, sort of. You can do whatever you want, can't you? I suppose that's conquering the universe. Doing what you want. This place is the only universe I've got at the moment. -Does that bother you? -No. Yes. Oh, I dunno. It's just that I keep thinking I should try to help you, the way you're helping me. I mean, that's the deal, isn't it? -No deals, Evey. Not unless you want them. -I..I think I do. I mean, part of me just wants to stay in here forever and never have to go outside and face what's going on... But that's not right, is it? That's not taking responsibility for myself, like what you said. I want to help you, V. I want to do something. I won't get in the way, I promise. Can I, V? Can we make a deal? -p.43
-I am not loved, I know that. Not in soul or body. I have never known the soft whisper of endearment. Never known the peace that lies between the thighs of woman. But I am respected. I am feared. And that will suffice. Because I love. I, who am not loved in return. I have a love that is far deeper than the empty gasps and convulsions of brutish coupling. Shall I speak of her? Shall I speak of my bride? She has no eyes to flirt or promise. But she sees all. Sees and understands with a wisdom that is godlike in its scale. I stand at the gates of her intellect and I am blinded by the light within. How stupid I must seem to her. How childlike and uncomprehending. Her soul is clean, untainted by the snares and ambiguities of emotion. She does not hate she does not yearn. She is untouched by joy or sorrow. I worship her though I am not worthy. I cherish the purity of her disdain. She does not respect me. She does not fear me. She does not love me. They think she is hard and cold, those who do not know her. They think she is lifeless and without passion. They do not know her. She has not touched them. She touched me, and I am touched by God, by Destiny, the whole of existence courses through her. I worship her. I am her slave. No freedom ever was so sweet. -p.38
"Bring me my bow of burning gold, bring me my arrows of desire, bring me my spear, o clouds unfold, bring me my chariot of fire... I will not cease from mental fight... Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand(...)" -p.48
"Those rich and mysterious forces that sir in the shadowy depths of the human soul... Those inexpressible longings... When their is come they shall not be denied." -p.50
"Help us to be worthy of thy mercy, as we were when thou didst turn aside thy wrath... That wrath which did rain fire from the heavens. Help us to resist the temptations of the evil one... Who is surely come amongst us in this, the hour of our greatest trial. For I have seen a vision... A vision of dark and satanic evil that cometh forth from the night to ensnare the weak and the sinful... An avatar of damnation, who will seek to sully thy truth with his vain lies and shallow sophistications. Thou who art our fate an our final destiny... Help us to clearly perceive thy will. Help us to perceive the wiles of the evil one and stand firm in thee. One race, one nation, united in thy love. This we ask in the name of the father... And of the son... And of the holy ghost." -Amen. Take your dress off, please. -p.52/53
-...Was like hell. Men burning... Choking in the yellow fog... ...And I saw a black shape against the flames. A man. Oh God, who are you? Who are you really? -I am the devil, and I come to do the devil's work. -p.55
"Let's dig an enormous castle!" cried Moon-face. "Then we can all sit on the top of it when the sea comes in." "We can't," said Silky, suddenly looking sad. "Why not? Why not?" cried Jo in surprise. "Isn't this The Land of Do-As-You-Please?" "Yes," said Silky. "But it's time we went back to the Faraway Tree. This land will soon be moving on-- and nice as it is, we don't want to live here forever." "Gracious no," said Jo. "Our Mother and Father couldn't possibly do without us..." -p.68
"Men screaming. I hate that. I hate the sound of men screaming." -p.82
"The water-colour in the flooded gallery. There's a girl who'll push but will not shove and she's desperate for her father's love. She believes the hand beneath the glove may be one she needs to hold. Though she doubts her host's moralities she decides that she is more at ease in the land of doing-as-you-please, than outside in the cold. But the backdrops peel and the sets give way and the cast get eaten by the play. There's a murderer at the matinee. There are dead men in the aisles. And the patrons and the actors too are uncertain if the show is through, and with sidelong looks await their cue... ...But the frozen mask just smiles." -p.91/92
-You've gone, Derek. I never liked you. I was afraid of you. I loved you. You've gone beyond the veil... Me too. -p.101
-And the same pictures play over and over. And I'm in the back row, watching them... ...in the grubby, broken cinema of memory. I'll go back into the corners of the past, even the shadowy, sordid corners... Just because you were there then. I'm trying to hang on. Hang on to something even though I know it's gone. Even though I know you aren't there anymore. You. The loved one. You're gone. Nothing will change that. All I can do is pack away all the things I remember, put them in a drawer with all other useless souvenirs... And just carry on. You've got to carry on. We've all got to just carry on. That's how we survive. That's our purpose. -p.104/105
-Good. You're almost there. Go closer. Feel the shape of it. Your mother died. They took your father away. There's a little girl, Evey, and she's screaming... -A-huh... Aa-huhh... Oh, make it stop.. Mummy, Daddy, please make it stop!! What... Are you doing to me? Oh, I can't..breathe..auhuhh... -You were in a cell, Evey. They offered you a choice between the death of your principles and the death of your body. -Oh. Oh, I can feel it... Oh what is it... Oh, I'm going to die, I'm going to burst... -You said you'd rather die. You faced the fear of your own death, and you were calm and still. Try to feel now what you felt then... -I...Uhhh...Oh God... I felt... Huhhh... I...felt...like...an angel... Oh god, V. Oh god, I'm so scared, I'm so cold... What's happening to me? -The door of the cage is open, Evey. All that you feel is the wind from outside. Don't be afraid. Try to stand. Try to walk.(...) -I don't want...to be blindfolded... -No, Evey. No more blindfolds. All the blindfolds are gone. -p.170/171
-Everything is connected. You must understand that knowledge is not all your heritage. It includes also courage and belief, like hers that we commemorate herein... ...And romance. Always, always romance. 'Midst insurrection's clamour, we may easily forget just what it is for which we strive... Isn't it dancing? Scented shoulders? Pupils widened by desire or wine? Anarchy must embrace the din of bombs and cannon-fire... "...Yet always must it love sweet music more." -p.218/219
-Hmmm. I suppose you have, sort of. You can do whatever you want, can't you? I suppose that's conquering the universe. Doing what you want. This place is the only universe I've got at the moment.
-Does that bother you?
-No. Yes. Oh, I dunno. It's just that I keep thinking I should try to help you, the way you're helping me. I mean, that's the deal, isn't it?
-No deals, Evey. Not unless you want them.
-I..I think I do. I mean, part of me just wants to stay in here forever and never have to go outside and face what's going on... But that's not right, is it? That's not taking responsibility for myself, like what you said. I want to help you, V. I want to do something. I won't get in the way, I promise. Can I, V? Can we make a deal? -p.43
-I am not loved, I know that. Not in soul or body. I have never known the soft whisper of endearment. Never known the peace that lies between the thighs of woman. But I am respected. I am feared. And that will suffice. Because I love. I, who am not loved in return. I have a love that is far deeper than the empty gasps and convulsions of brutish coupling.
Shall I speak of her?
Shall I speak of my bride?
She has no eyes to flirt or promise. But she sees all. Sees and understands with a wisdom that is godlike in its scale. I stand at the gates of her intellect and I am blinded by the light within. How stupid I must seem to her. How childlike and uncomprehending. Her soul is clean, untainted by the snares and ambiguities of emotion. She does not hate she does not yearn. She is untouched by joy or sorrow. I worship her though I am not worthy. I cherish the purity of her disdain. She does not respect me. She does not fear me. She does not love me. They think she is hard and cold, those who do not know her. They think she is lifeless and without passion. They do not know her. She has not touched them. She touched me, and I am touched by God, by Destiny, the whole of existence courses through her. I worship her. I am her slave. No freedom ever was so sweet. -p.38
"Bring me my bow of burning gold, bring me my arrows of desire, bring me my spear, o clouds unfold, bring me my chariot of fire... I will not cease from mental fight... Nor shall my sword sleep in my hand(...)" -p.48
"Those rich and mysterious forces that sir in the shadowy depths of the human soul... Those inexpressible longings... When their is come they shall not be denied." -p.50
"Help us to be worthy of thy mercy, as we were when thou didst turn aside thy wrath... That wrath which did rain fire from the heavens. Help us to resist the temptations of the evil one... Who is surely come amongst us in this, the hour of our greatest trial. For I have seen a vision... A vision of dark and satanic evil that cometh forth from the night to ensnare the weak and the sinful... An avatar of damnation, who will seek to sully thy truth with his vain lies and shallow sophistications. Thou who art our fate an our final destiny... Help us to clearly perceive thy will. Help us to perceive the wiles of the evil one and stand firm in thee. One race, one nation, united in thy love. This we ask in the name of the father... And of the son... And of the holy ghost."
-Amen. Take your dress off, please. -p.52/53
-...Was like hell. Men burning... Choking in the yellow fog... ...And I saw a black shape against the flames. A man. Oh God, who are you? Who are you really?
-I am the devil, and I come to do the devil's work. -p.55
"Let's dig an enormous castle!" cried Moon-face. "Then we can all sit on the top of it when the sea comes in."
"We can't," said Silky, suddenly looking sad.
"Why not? Why not?" cried Jo in surprise. "Isn't this The Land of Do-As-You-Please?"
"Yes," said Silky. "But it's time we went back to the Faraway Tree. This land will soon be moving on-- and nice as it is, we don't want to live here forever."
"Gracious no," said Jo. "Our Mother and Father couldn't possibly do without us..." -p.68
"Men screaming. I hate that. I hate the sound of men screaming." -p.82
"The water-colour in the flooded gallery. There's a girl who'll push but will not shove and she's desperate for her father's love. She believes the hand beneath the glove may be one she needs to hold. Though she doubts her host's moralities she decides that she is more at ease in the land of doing-as-you-please, than outside in the cold.
But the backdrops peel and the sets give way and the cast get eaten by the play. There's a murderer at the matinee. There are dead men in the aisles. And the patrons and the actors too are uncertain if the show is through, and with sidelong looks await their cue... ...But the frozen mask just smiles." -p.91/92
-You've gone, Derek. I never liked you. I was afraid of you. I loved you. You've gone beyond the veil...
Me too. -p.101
-And the same pictures play over and over. And I'm in the back row, watching them... ...in the grubby, broken cinema of memory. I'll go back into the corners of the past, even the shadowy, sordid corners... Just because you were there then. I'm trying to hang on. Hang on to something even though I know it's gone. Even though I know you aren't there anymore. You. The loved one. You're gone. Nothing will change that. All I can do is pack away all the things I remember, put them in a drawer with all other useless souvenirs... And just carry on.
You've got to carry on. We've all got to just carry on. That's how we survive. That's our purpose. -p.104/105
-Good. You're almost there. Go closer. Feel the shape of it. Your mother died. They took your father away. There's a little girl, Evey, and she's screaming...
-A-huh... Aa-huhh... Oh, make it stop .. Mummy, Daddy, please make it stop!! What... Are you doing to me? Oh, I can't..breathe..auhuhh...
-You were in a cell, Evey. They offered you a choice between the death of your principles and the death of your body.
-Oh. Oh, I can feel it... Oh what is it... Oh, I'm going to die, I'm going to burst...
-You said you'd rather die. You faced the fear of your own death, and you were calm and still. Try to feel now what you felt then...
-I...Uhhh...Oh God... I felt... Huhhh... I...felt...like...an angel... Oh god, V. Oh god, I'm so scared, I'm so cold... What's happening to me?
-The door of the cage is open, Evey. All that you feel is the wind from outside. Don't be afraid. Try to stand. Try to walk.(...)
-I don't want...to be blindfolded...
-No, Evey. No more blindfolds. All the blindfolds are gone. -p.170/171
-Everything is connected. You must understand that knowledge is not all your heritage. It includes also courage and belief, like hers that we commemorate herein... ...And romance. Always, always romance. 'Midst insurrection's clamour, we may easily forget just what it is for which we strive... Isn't it dancing? Scented shoulders? Pupils widened by desire or wine? Anarchy must embrace the din of bombs and cannon-fire... "...Yet always must it love sweet music more." -p.218/219