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“At the word sacrifice, something sparked in the Fate's cold eyes. He held the girl tighter, carrying her in his bloodstained arms as he stood and started down the ancient hall.
'What are you doing?' A crack of alarm showed in the queen's implacable face.
'I'm going to fix this.' He continued marching forward, holding the girl close as he carried her back through the arch.
The angels who'd been guarding it now wept. They cried tears of stone as the Fate set the girl at their feet and began wrenching stone after stone from the arch.
'Jacks of the Hollow,' warned the queen. 'Those arch stones can only be used one time to go back. They were not created for infinite trips to the past.'
'I know,' Jacks growled. 'I'm going to go back and stop your son from killing her.'
The queen's face fell. For a moment, she looked as old as the years she'd spent lying in suspended state. 'This is not a small mistake to fix. If you do this, Time will take something equally valuable from you.'
The Fate gave the queen a look more vicious than any curse. 'There is nothing of equal value to me.”
― The Ballad of Never After
'What are you doing?' A crack of alarm showed in the queen's implacable face.
'I'm going to fix this.' He continued marching forward, holding the girl close as he carried her back through the arch.
The angels who'd been guarding it now wept. They cried tears of stone as the Fate set the girl at their feet and began wrenching stone after stone from the arch.
'Jacks of the Hollow,' warned the queen. 'Those arch stones can only be used one time to go back. They were not created for infinite trips to the past.'
'I know,' Jacks growled. 'I'm going to go back and stop your son from killing her.'
The queen's face fell. For a moment, she looked as old as the years she'd spent lying in suspended state. 'This is not a small mistake to fix. If you do this, Time will take something equally valuable from you.'
The Fate gave the queen a look more vicious than any curse. 'There is nothing of equal value to me.”
― The Ballad of Never After
“I absolutely believe that people are more good on balance than bad,” he said. “All the wars and all of the cruelty and all of the violence. I’m not looking away from any of that, and I still think there’s something beautiful about being what we are. History is soaked in blood. The future probably will be too. But for every atrocity, there’s a thousand small kindnesses that no one noticed. A hundred people who spent their lives loving and caring for each other. A few moments of real grace.”
― Leviathan Falls
― Leviathan Falls
“Callum would simply have to look Tristan in the eye and say, as un-pathetically as possible, you don't have to choose me. Just know that it won't stop me from choosing you.”
― The Atlas Complex
― The Atlas Complex
“Thank you, but I don’t deserve any mercy.” “Of course you don’t. That’s why they call it mercy. If you deserve it, they call it justice.”
― The Sins of Our Fathers
― The Sins of Our Fathers
“... the girl remained unmoving. Dead. And yet the Fate continued to hold her.
'Bring her back,' he said softly.
'I am sorry,' said the queen who'd just awoken. She was a petite thing. She's tried to pull her son away from the girl to stop his unnatural feeding, but her hands were not strong enough. The queen could not fight immortals physically, but she had an iron will forged of mettle and mistakes. 'You know I cannot do that.'
The Fate finally looked up. 'Bring her back,' he repeated. For he also possessed an indomitable will. 'I know you can do it.'
The queen shook her head remorsefully. 'My heart breaks for you- for this. But I will not do this. After bringing back Castor and seeing what he became, I vowed to never use that sort of magic again.'
'Evangeline would be different.' The Fate glowered at the queen.
'No,' she repeated. 'You wouldn't be saving this girl, you would be damning her. Just as we did to Castor. She wouldn't want this life.'
'I don't care what she wants!' roared the Fate. 'I don't want her dead. She saved you, you need to save her.'
The queen took a shaky breath.
If the story curse could have breathed, it would have held its breath. It hoped the queen would say yes. Yes to bringing her back, to turning her in to another terrible immortal. Despite what this Fate believed, the girl would be horrible- the ones with endless life always were, eventually.”
― The Ballad of Never After
'Bring her back,' he said softly.
'I am sorry,' said the queen who'd just awoken. She was a petite thing. She's tried to pull her son away from the girl to stop his unnatural feeding, but her hands were not strong enough. The queen could not fight immortals physically, but she had an iron will forged of mettle and mistakes. 'You know I cannot do that.'
The Fate finally looked up. 'Bring her back,' he repeated. For he also possessed an indomitable will. 'I know you can do it.'
The queen shook her head remorsefully. 'My heart breaks for you- for this. But I will not do this. After bringing back Castor and seeing what he became, I vowed to never use that sort of magic again.'
'Evangeline would be different.' The Fate glowered at the queen.
'No,' she repeated. 'You wouldn't be saving this girl, you would be damning her. Just as we did to Castor. She wouldn't want this life.'
'I don't care what she wants!' roared the Fate. 'I don't want her dead. She saved you, you need to save her.'
The queen took a shaky breath.
If the story curse could have breathed, it would have held its breath. It hoped the queen would say yes. Yes to bringing her back, to turning her in to another terrible immortal. Despite what this Fate believed, the girl would be horrible- the ones with endless life always were, eventually.”
― The Ballad of Never After
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