“Sitting back and not getting involved while people get killed in an endless cycle of wars doesn't count as not having blood on your hands.”

“Darman: I want my HUD back. I want my enhanced view.Fi: But you get to wear face camo instead. Makes you feel wild and dangerous.Sev: I'm wild. And then I get dangerous. Shut up.Fi: Copy that. [exits Sev's comlink channel] Miserable di'kut.Scorch: Don't mind him. He'll be fine once he's killed something.”

“Your boys okay?”“Tired, edgy, but giving it all they’ve got. One of ‘em has sworn to get Vau, another is having a love affair with a woman he shouldn’t even look at, I’m collecting waifs and strays like an animal shelter, and we nearly killed a treasury agent. But if I told you the really bad stuff, you’d think I have problems.”

“Oh, you are a little ray of sunshine today, aren’t you? Now, look at your progesterone levels. Still higher than normal. Are you pregnant? Have you been throwing up?”“No. But I get cravings. Will I get stretch marks?” said Fi.Gilamar kept a straight face. “Yeah, say goodbye to your figure. Everything sags from now on.”

“Is it better to not get to know them?' 'No. It's not. It's sharking your responsibility, and it's disrespectful. Get to know them, and then you fully understand the price you're asking them to pay.”

“That’s the worst thing about having chakaare like us around. We just wander off, find someplace you don’t know about, and hole up in it and get into all sorts of mischief that you know nothing about. And then we bill you for it. Dreadful.”“Dreadful. Is this the kind of thing that CSF might notice?”“Were we to get out of hand, I imagine very senior officers in CSF might need to be reassured, but not by you.”“Dreadful. Hypothetically, anyway.”

“I wish you'd get one thing straight - I'm not a traitor. I was never on your side. I'm called the enemy.”