“They ex­pect­ed to lose. And there­fore, they lost. [..] Peo­ple who start think­ing deep dark thoughts in the mid­dle of a war start ex­pect­ing to lose.”

“Every story starts with an idea, but it is the characters that move this idea forward.”

“Don’t be creative. Don’t be stupid.”“That’s what Machiavelli said. You guys really have a lot of faith in me, don’t you?”“Neither one of us wants to lose you. Just be careful, Billy. Careful is my middle name.”Black Hawk rolled his eyes. “You told me it was Henry.”

“I need something dramatic.I thought we would start with something theatrical, something that will make an impact on the city,something to focus their attention."Nereus considered for a moment and then he smiled, revealing his hideous teeth. "I do have the Lotan."Machiavelli and Billy looked at him blankly. "The Lotan," Nereus said. The two immortals shook their heads. "I have no idea what that is," Machiavelli admitted."Doesn't sound scary to me," Billy said."It's a seven-headed sea dragon."Machiavelli nodded. "That might work.""It'll certainly get their attention," Billy muttered.”

“it is only when no one remembers that you are truly lost. That is the true death.”

“You're saying we lost the powers of magic because we grew lazy.”

“There was no honor in war, less in killing, and none in dying. But there was true dignity in how men comported themselves in battle. And there was always honor to be found in standing for a just cause and defending the defenseless.”