“Got any new ways to torture and kill people?”“Hmmm,” said the voice. “Did you try stabbing them?”“Of course. That’s one oh one stuff.”“Shooting?’“With extreme prejudice.”“Burning?”“Yes.”“Strangling?”“Naturally, I mean, I strangle people while I’m sleeping, even.”“Crushing?’“Sure.”“Mangling?”“All the time.”“Hmmmm. Can we think aboutthis?”
“We all love each other, Ange," I said impatiently, hating this whole conversation. "No, not like this," she went on relentlessly. "Fang loves you."......My mouth dropped open. How does she know this stuff? "Forget it! No one's getting married!" I hissed. "Not in New Hampshire or anywhere else! Not in a box, not with a fox! Now go to sleep, before I kill you! Oh yeah, like I got any sleep after that. - pg 35”
“Just remember who you belong to, Hannah. I wouldn't want to have to shoot anyone - or strangle you."She leaned over to kiss his shoulder. "Why am I the one to be strangled?""It's a much more personal death.”
“I think you’re confused as to the nature of our relationship. You and I, we don’t get along. You’re a psychopathic control freak. You order me around and I want to kill you. I’m a pigheaded insubordinate ass. I drive you mad and you want to strangle me.”
“Of course I remember you." My voice is a strangled whisper. I squeeze my eyes shut. "You were the only one who ever looked at me like a human being.”
“What’s Ephebe like?” said Ptraci.“I’ve never been there. Apparently it’s ruled by a Tyrant.”“I hope we don’t meet him, then”Teppic shook his head. “It’s not like that,” he said. “They have a new Tyrant every five years and they do something to him first.” He hesitated. “I think they ee-lect him.”“Is that something like they do to tomcats and bulls and things?”“Er.”“You know. To make them stop fighting and be more peaceful.”Teppic winced. “To be honest, I’m not sure,” he said. “But I don’t think so. They’ve got something they do it with, I think it’s called a mocracy, and it means everyone in the whole country can say who the new Tyrant is. One man, one—” He paused. The political history lesson seemed a very long while ago, and had introduced concepts never heard of in Djelibeybi or in Ankh-Morpork, for that matter. He had a stab at it anyway. “One man, one vet.”“That’s for the eelecting, then?”He shrugged. It might be, for all he knew. “The point is, though, that everyone can do it. They’re very proud of it. Everyone has—” he hesitated again, certain now that things were amiss—“the vet. Except for women, of course. And children. And criminals. And slaves. And stupid people. And people of foreign extractions. And people disapproved of for, er, various reasons. And lost of other people. But everyone apart from them. It’s a very enlightened civilization.”