“Name none of the fallen, for they stood in our place. And stand there still in each moment of our lives. Let my death hold no glory, and let me die forgotten and unknown. Let it not be said that I was one among the dead to accuse the living.”
-Deadhouse Gates (Book 2 in the Malazan Book of the Fallen) by Steven Erikson
"Hrmpt. I believe in God, good cigars and strong liquer.... who are these fools that still believe in people?"
-East of West chapter 17
"The miracle of hindsight is how it transforms great military geniuses of the past into incompetent idiots, and incompetent idiots of the present into great military geniuses. There is the door, and be sure to take all your pompous second-guessing delusions with you..."
-Emperor Kellanved
“Every decision you make can change the world. The best life is the one the gods don't notice. You want to live free, boy, live quietly."
"I want to be a soldier. A hero."
"You'll grow out of it.”
- Steven Erikson, Gardens of the Moon
"Don't be coy. We immortals live cynical lives, playing out the same dramas over and over again."
- Heathen ch1
"I didn't create the concept of supply and demand, okay? I merely abused it with very little regard for basic human decency!"
- Rick Sanchez
"It was our cowardice that permitted such crimes in the first place. No tyrant could thrive where every subject said no. The tyrant thrives when the first fucking fool salutes."
- toll the hounds
"Seek sovereignty from the laws of man and God. Shatter the gates of heaven and build your fortress with their ruins."
- kill six billion demons
"A great warrior kills with his weapon, a greater still his hands, a greater still his tongue, a greater still a glance, yet the greatest have no need for killing at all."
- kill six billion demons
"i'm not the nicest guy in the universe, i'm the smartest, and being nice is something stupid people do to hedge their bets"
- rick sanchez
"Young ones take heed: nothing is sacred. Not even the divine. But remember, too: Goddesses keep their promises. And their memories are eternal."
- Monstress
"The world breaks every one and afterward many are strong at the broken places. But those that will not break it kills. It kills the very good and the very gentle and the very brave impartially. If you are none of these you can be sure it will kill you too but there will be no special hurry."
- Ernest Hemmingway
"You should not be afraid to kill off player characters. You should constantly be getting them into fights, traps, betrayals and other soap operas. There should be no one they can trust entirely, no place that's absolutely safe. Never let them rest. This doesn't mean you shouldn't play fair. But you should always play for keeps."
- Cyberpunk 2020 GM advice
“Among the tales of sorrow and of ruin that came down to us from the darkness of those days there are yet some in which amid weeping there is joy and under the shadow of death light that endures."
- The Silmarillion
“The gates of Hell are open night and day; smooth the descent and easy is the way.”
- Virgil, The Aeneid
"The bow of God's wrath is bent, and the arrow made ready on the string, and justice bends the arrow at your heart, and strains the bow, and it is nothing but the mere pleasure of God, and that of an angry God, without any promise or obligation at all, that keeps the arrow one moment from being made drunk with your blood."
- Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God
"Let’s say I posed this question to you: 'Can all human souls be bought with money or not?' Now remember, the keyword here is 'all'. The answer is 'There are times when you can buy them, and other times, not,' right? The human being… sometimes he’ll uphold his pride and conscience even if he’s offered ten billion yen, and other times he’ll murder someone over one yen."
- Izaya Orihara (Durarara)
"It's kinda scary how much people trust me."
- Izaya Orihara (Durarara)
"There's no one who can live their whole life being completely uncorrupted."
- Izaya Orihara (Durarara)
"Cast aside the illusion that there is a beginning and end to the story. The story has no beginning. And it has no end. All there is, is a performance of people connecting, living, influencing each other, and departing."
- Gustav St. Germain (Buccano!)
"Let me tell you how important it is to keep your mouth shut. Me, I've seen so many damn people going on and on about "these will be the last words you ever hear" and "take these words with you to the afterlife", and then that gives whoever they're fighting an opening to strike back. Crazy, isn't it? I see it all the time, in books, in plays, even in real life! I don't even know why, but somehow the more comfortable someone is with killing, the more they flap their mouth when it comes time to do the deed, yakking on and on and on. As you might have guessed, I myself happen to be such a person! And therefore, as such, in light of that revelation, I'll say that one is enough, and since that one is of course myself, I want you all to shut up. You're boring. Swallow those words and take them to the afterlife yourself, if you want them delivered there so damn much."
- Ladd Ruso (Buccano!)
"Justice. I can't think of another word more loved by the people. It does have a nice ring to it. However, without ever exercising your own strength, you seek the death of others at the hands of someone else. Well, the justice you refer to smells pretty rotten to me."
- Balalaika (Black Lagoon)
“Violence is inescapable,” said the Very Wise Frog.