DJ

“But…history was full of the bones of good men who’d followed bad orders in the hope that they could soften the blow. Oh, yes, there were worse things they could do, but most of them began right where they started following bad orders. His”
― Terry Pratchett, Jingo

“Tain Shir walks the deck of RNS Sulane between the bombs and incendiaries and steel-tipped barbs. A weapon among weapons but she alone is free. The tragedy of the knife is the hilt. The tragedy of the crossbow is the trigger. Shir has neither. She cannot be gripped nor fired.
She is unmastered.
The sailors are rude with her. So be it. Etiquitte is the domain of those whose power is conditional upon the respect of others, and Shir is unconditional. If she drifted alone in the void beyond the moon or if she walked among the monarchs of the ancient Cheetah Palaces she would not be altered in her capabilities or her intentions, for not one truth of her resides within a relationship to any other thing.”
― Seth Dickinson, The Monster Baru Cormorant

“Honor,” Apparitor murmured, “is just a credit rating for violence.”
― Seth Dickinson, The Monster Baru Cormorant

“I mean, I started out with nothing, son, except that old boat that your grandad left me, but—” “—you worked and scraped—” said Les wearily.”
― Terry Pratchett, Jingo