War Lord Quotes
"Chain mail is hot in summer, even when covered with a pale linen shift."
"They would see the wolf’s head, the gold about my neck, and the thick arm rings won in battle."
"We were the warriors of Bebbanburg, the savage wolf pack of the north."
"Even you can’t escape fate, Lord Uhtred. You must do God’s work whether you wish it or not."
"‘It’s fate,’ Finan answered, ‘and fate is a bitch.’"
"We watch the flight of birds, fear the fall of a branch, look for the wind’s pattern on water, draw breath at a vixen’s cry, and touch our amulets when a harp string snaps."
"‘The worst thing about death,’ I broke my silence, ‘is not knowing what happens next.’"
"‘Peace?’ I asked angrily. ‘Invading Northumbria brings peace?’"
"‘But the dragon and the star do not lie,’ he went on. ‘The trouble will come from the north. The prophet has told us so in the scriptures!’"
"There is something about a smiling Norseman holding his beloved sword that will chill most warriors."
"Only a fool wants a battle like Lundene again."
"They competed, of course, not to be the first finished, but for who could make the most elaborate shelter."
"I laughed at that. ‘Alfred was never a friend,’ I said. ‘I admired him and he endured me.’"
"My boys don’t miss. And this isn’t one of my arrows."
"What choice do you have if there’s a sword at your throat?"
"My first duty, lord, is not to kill the Norse, though God knows I’ll slaughter every last one if it is His will."
"I’m the man who will ram Serpent-Breath up your arsehole and slice off your tongue, you rat-faced piece of worm-shit."
"There are times when a king’s counsellor must do what he thinks is right, not what the king wants."
"In a small sense, yes, in the larger? No. It is loyalty."
"The only thing that lasts for ever is God’s mercy."
"A king does not have friends, he has subjects."
"If you want to steal something it’s good to have your god with you."
"What if there’s war, lord?" "Look at the banners of my enemies whose only reward for their enmity had been a few deeply dug feet of Saxon soil."
"If you go looking for trouble, you can be sure it's gaining from behind."
"That's made trouble," Finan said cheerfully.
"The world is a better place without Guthfrith."
"If claiming a throne is enough then why should I not claim the throne of Dyflin?"
"I’ll be in Valhalla soon, meeting a lot of your other cousins who I put to death."
"Maybe you can trust the man who swore to protect you."
"All dreams mean something. They are messages."
"I have good relations with the Northmen! The church will survive."
"Our task is to keep the eastern parts of Northumbria peaceful."
"Their task is to protect the city, not wander across Britain because of rumour."
"I can still hear the screaming. Those poor men had no escape."
"I am not your slave! Not a slave any more! I am not your wife. I am a free woman, you said so yourself!"
"I am the Lord of Bebbanburg, the guardian of my people."
"If you fight a dragon, lord, I promise to be beside you."
"Swa begnornodon Geata leode, hlafordes hryre."
"I thought the dream must come again that night, but it stayed away."
"Better a pagan ally than an arrogant whelp who treats us like dogs."
"We’re the wolves of Bebbanburg, and we have never been defeated."
"Because Anlaf and Constantine believe we can’t win. They’re confident. So we use that confidence to defeat them."
"Only a fool is not frightened before a battle."
"God is on our side! It is our land that has been invaded, how can God not support us?"
"We fight to drive Anlaf and his followers away from our land, to teach the Scots that to trespass on our land is to gain nothing but graves."