“Was the life force something more than words, a tangible, mind-controlling potency? Was nature somehow, in him, maintaining its spark against its own encroachments?”

“In her enthusiasms she had always looked for something tangible: she had always loved church for its flowers, music for its romantic words, literature for its power to stir the passions and she rebelled before the mysteries of faith just as she grew ever more restive under discipline, which was antipathetic to her nature.”

“Every life force has a color and a tone. Many in your world would call this an aura, but it's much more complicated than that as anyone who could see would be able to tell you. Every life force carries a certain amount of power. Only those with the ability to use magic can draw upon the force of nature. And even that isn't accurate. The ability to use nature as the driving force behind your own power is a very intricate magic.”

“If you hold on to the handle, she said, it's easier to maintain the illusion of control. But it's more fun if you just let the wind carry you.”

“Life had taught him about something far more complicated than justice. Its name was balance.”

“The bank is something more than men, I tell you. It's the monster. Men made it, but they can't control it.”