Chaos isn’t a pit. Chaos is a ladder. Many who try to climb it fail and never get to try again. The fall breaks them. And some are given a chance to climb, but they refuse. They cling to the realm, or the gods, or love. Illusions. Only the ladder is real. The climb is all there is.

When you have known the kiss of a flaying knife, a laugh loses all its power to hurt you.

Shattered legs may heal in time, but some betrayals fester and poison the soul.

We only make peace with our enemies. That's why it's called making peace.

The sea is never weary. I must be as tireless.

As Daenerys Targaryen rose to her feet, her black hissed, pale smoke venting from its mouth and nostrils. The other two pulled away from her breasts and added their voices to the call, translucent wings unfolding and stirring the air, and for the first time in hundreds of years, the night came alive with the music of dragons.

Love is the bane of honor, the death of duty.