Gleanings: Stories From The Arc Of A Scythe Quotes
"Soon the girl who you once were will wither into memory. You will inhabit your new identity fully and completely."
"It was like thinking in a different language."
"This will cease to be a role you play, and will become who you are."
"It’s not that the others disliked her—but they did dislike the idea of her."
"And once it does, I have a feeling you’ll be formidable!"
"We can’t deny that the Scythedom and the Thunderhead are two sides of the same coin. If one is threatened, then so is the other!"
"The future is unfettered. There could not be a brighter day. Long live us all!"
"Mind over matter, Charles! That’s the guiding principle that’s gotten this world where it is today."
"A dog’s gotta know its place. They want to know their place. Once they know who’s master they’re content and relieved."
"Another moment he remained kneeling there, then he stood, gathered his accoutrements, and most decidedly did not stumble back to the house. He strode. Proudly. As a scythe should!"
"No one in recent history, he was certain, had ever earned a little time off as much as he had."
"It seemed almost like admitting defeat, but no. He was simply done with dogs for the time being."
"The scent of hot dogs tickled his nostrils while he was still a block away."
"Quite the firm grip you have there, Edgar—though I suppose when in the frankfurter trade, a firm grip’s much preferable to an uncertain one."
"She reached him, turned with a flick of her ears, and sat beside him as calmly as if she’d been there the whole time."
"Everything about the vile conspiracy became clear to Fields then."
"Fields drew a breath, slid his sword back into the body of his cane, and wiped his hand on the seat of his robe."
"None of his usual strolling about on the oceanfront boardwalk for him today."
"With deliberate care, he could still gain the upper hand here."
"The next several blocks seemed to creep by, night’s shadows deepening."
"He was Honorable Scythe William Claude Fields, after all! He had nothing to fear from man nor beast!"
"Fields broke into a run, vaulted his fence, sprinted across the lawn, and threw himself inside, locking the door behind him."
"Fields sat on the entryway floor with a freshly cleaned and loaded shotgun clenched to his chest."
"He wanted to believe that she’d gone, that she’d had her fun and had moved on, but he knew that wasn’t true."
"All he needed was to show a bit of fortitude, and he could rid himself of that monstrosity once and for all!"
"She planted her nose against the front door, pushed it closed, then gave him a look over her shoulder."
"Now it just reminded him of the endless parade of identical tomorrows."
"Everything I need, but not everything I want."
"A lot more than the Thunderhead’s willing to give."
"The measurement of time is a human construct, which means it can be reformed for planetary convenience."
"A day still measured twenty-four, but each of those hours was nearly two and a half Earth-minutes longer."
"You’d be miserable. Not even your nanites can save you from that."
"Why they still needed teachers when the Thunderhead could teach them anything they needed to know was beyond him."
"But ‘living’ and ‘inhabiting’ are two different things."
"A fascination but not a love. It actually bordered more on hatred."
"Never apologize for ambition. There’s no shame in wanting to rise above."
"This is a discussion between you and your parents."
"It’s not so bad," Carson said. "They only make me work the mine on weekends."
"I endure all this not for my own sake," he told Carson, "but for the people of Mars."
"I hate it here," Carson admitted. "More than hate it."
"Be patient with them." As if Carson was the parent, and not the other way around.
"I want to be a scythe," he said. "You can make that happen, can’t you? That’s what I want."