“What is it about humans that make us so prone to prejudice?”Blue arches one of his unnaturally colored eyebrows and looks up to meet my gaze. “If we didn’t form prejudices, we wouldn’t be learning from our environment, you dolt. It’s an animal instinct. If a porcupine’s quill gets stuck in your hand once, you won’t be likely to go grabbing it again soon, right?”

“Yeah, he’d yield. He was a bad cut of steak left on the open grill too long, though—the general’s teeth wouldn’t be enough to do the job.”

“Do I smell like wild places, still?”Sergei laughed softly and ruffled his hair. “I’d have to compare. And monitor that. Refine my assessment over the next years…”“Ranch has plenty of spare dung. I’ll be sure to roll in it regularly.” Teeth scraped his arm, nipped his skin gently.“I always knew the Alliance was decadent. I intend to see just how decadent.”

“Me and my insatiable curiosity. If there's any justice in the world, I was a very good cat in a past life.”

“The inherent prejudice in unnaturally-produced nationalism causes a form of cultural blindness, which prevents us from seeing the obvious ways we could co-exist in the world as a co-operative human family.”

“If I died –” – Nick“Your father would have another child. That one won’t have your humanity. Your mother is what makes you special, Nick. Adarian’s next woman wouldn’t be her. His child wouldn’t be you. All of us are a culmination of vital parts of our parents and their pasts. A vital part of the circumstances we were raised with. Everything that happens to us, good and bad, leaves a lasting impression on our souls. You take one part of that out, and you can completely rewrite something crucial about us. By and large, we’re not shaped by the big things. It’s the little, day-to-day moments that make us who we are. Who we’re going to be.” – Nekoda”

“Anyway, here.” He handed me a bag. “Thought you might be hungry. Since you’re our guests, it would be impolite if we didn’t share our food with you. That’s your rations for the week. Try to make it last.” At my surprised look, he rolled his eyes. “Not all of us live on oil and electricity, you know.”“What about Ash and Puck?”“Well, I’m pretty sure eating our food won’t melt their insides to gooey paste. But you never know.” (Glitch)-----------------Puck sat and gazed mournfully into the bowl I handed him. “Not an apple slice to be found,” he sighed, picking through the gooey mess with his fingers. “How can mortals even pass this off as fruit? It’s like a peach farmer threw up in a bowl.”Ash picked up the spoon, gazing at it like it was an alien life form.”