Quotes from Storm Constantine

The next journey, the next story, he thought.

If he went away, would the link between himself and the others be broken? Would he be free or drawn back against his will? Would Owen come after him? He shuddered at the thought, suddenly presented with the image in his mind of a moonlit night, himself in a small room alone, and a figure outside below, looking up at his window, forming a wordless summoning.

Othman came to fill the dark space in the doorway, his eyes lit by blue sparks that seemed to shine from somewhere deep within him, perhaps through centuries of time.

All the oldsters present were watching Peveral Othman with greedy, inquisitive eyes. He acknowledged each of them with eye contact, knowing that to risk more would prove to be a waste of his energy. Just the slightest touch could set them off, sucking and starving at his soul.

What are we but despairing souls trapped in lumps of flesh?

Light was provided by baskets of burning bones. Skulls grinned from niches in the wall, presiding over offerings of braided, hairy plant-roots, which suggested the temple was still in use for all its appearance of neglect. On the far side of the chamber, bowls of lighted oil on the floor illuminated a ragged curtain, which was drawn across an alcove. Ays experienced a deep feeling of recognition. He knew that he was in the home of a god, and that he had been here before.

By understanding the soulscape, it might be possible to understand human motivation.

He sensed immediately the woman's spirit of yearning, her unfulfilled dreams.

How small, how fragile a human being was. No matter how powerful you might feel, whether magically or physically, ultimately others, in concert, could always stamp out your life.

He saw cruelty in her face and a tenderness too great to be born. He saw the balance of life and death swinging within her expression, the fate of love on her brow.

For hundreds of years, Casmeer's libido had lain dormant, but now, as if the act of writing had rekindled a forgotten lust, he was moved to inflict his feelings upon his stories. He'd no intention of doing that. Also he felt as if the tales themselves were running away from him. He found it hard to keep them in line.

Almorante will make a competent emperor, but he is not the beautiful sun king. When you defeat the dark lord, Valraven Palindrake, your name and your reputation will shine.

There was a tiny seed of feeling within Emma whispering that Lily might spring some surprises of her own.

Leila felt as if he was a fluid in her hands, dripping away.

She was with them now, enfolded by their magic.

Sofia's freezing embrace filled him with a delicious terror. He was helpless in her arms. He could feel the tentacles of her greedy soul caressing his heart, a sensation so intoxicating he felt sure he would die in the terror of this dark ecstacy.

He has been away from the world for a long time, and a cage is no place to reacquaint yourself with reality.

When he'd first looked at the painting, Othman had felt a charge of shock course through his flesh. The woman was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen, and some part of him knew her. Still, he was wary of approaching her. The long, knowing eyes seemed to trace his passage around the room.

It was as if Tatrini had been waiting for the right moment to show her claws, and her image to the people now seemed part of a carefully contrived plan.

As if the elements themselves were relieved the ceremony was over, the sun had begun to shine wanly through a gap in the clouds.

You are a product of my mind, my ego. I know I would like to be different, but who doesn't?

The shapes in the shadows uttered tittering chimes of thin bones clattering together in the breeze.

I think this illustrates succinctly what the Magravandian kings have become," Tayven said. "Moldy, stagnant, rotten, and dank.

Eva's instinct was to flinch away from the demand for truth in Lily's hot eyes.