Home > Work > Deadhouse Gates (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2)
61 " the all too human need to conjure symbolic meaning from meaningless events. "
― Steven Erikson , Deadhouse Gates (Malazan Book of the Fallen, #2)
62 " The mage leaned both hands on the table, scanning the charts splayed out on its surface. There was a map there, showing a land he could not recognize: a ragged coastline of fjords studded with cursory sketches of pine trees. Inland was a faint whitewash, as of ice or snow. A course had been plotted, striking east from the jagged shoreline, then southward across a vast ocean. The Malazan Empire purported to have world maps, but they showed nothing like the land he saw here. The Empire's claim to dominance suddenly seemed pathetic. "
63 " Is your friendship such a burden, then?” “Some burdens are willingly embraced. "
64 " Rhizan gathered in writhing clumps at his hands and feet, "
65 " We are all gripped in madness. I have never seen the like nor heard of such a thing—gods, what we have become… "
66 " It was as if a giant invisible hand had reached down to the Crown, closing to gather in every building, crushing them all while pushing down into the hill. "
67 " I see now that the unnamed soldier is a gift. The named soldier—dead, melted wax—demands a response among the living…a response no one can make. Names are no comfort, they’re a call to answer the unanswerable. Why did she die, not him? Why do the survivors remain anonymous—as if cursed—while the dead are revered? Why do we cling to what we lose while we ignore what we still hold? "
68 " Soldiers have no imagination, meaning they're capable of vast surprises "
69 " Victory tastes sweetest in the absence of haunting memories, Bult. Savor it. "
70 " The tall, leaning buildings to either side shrouded the narrow passage in shadow. "
71 " A faint frown wrinkled his broad forehead. "
72 " roar poured through that ancient arched passageway, a wave of sound that buffeted soldier and prisoner alike, bouncing off the high walls and rising up amidst an explosion of terrified pigeons from the upper eaves. "
73 " flash of sorcery ignited the air above the front street, followed by an agonized shriek. "
74 " The blood in the fine, white sand was only a few hours old, still gummy to the touch. The stench of loosened bowels soured the hazy air. "
75 " Every body that darted within his reach he grasped, twisted, bent and broke. "
76 " The world outside is in flux—your love of ignorance is not worthy of these precipitous times. Attend this field, travelers, or remain lost at your peril. "
77 " Importance lies solely in the deeds done, the goals achieved. Time is preparation, nothing more. One prepares for as long as is required. To do this is to accept that planning begins at birth. You are born and before all else you are plunged into shadow, wrapped inside the holy ambivalence, there to suckle sweet sustenance. "
78 " Closing in a noose around her neck, the sound blocked the outside world – its air, its light. "
79 " If I’d known a lecture was coming, I’d have kept my mouth shut.” “Coming to terms with life as an adolescent, are you? "
80 " A savage awareness seemed to ride the spinning sand, reaching relentlessly past the folds of their telaban, a thousand abrasive fingers clawing paths across their skin. Loose cloth and rope ends spiked upward, whipping with urgent rhythm. The roar filled the air, filled their skulls. "