But at least you cared. At least you were ready to do something." "This little mess," Auger said, "is all because of people who were ready to do some… - Alastair Reynolds

“Tell me, scientist to scientist, do you honestly think it will work?”
“We won’t know until we try,” Naqi said. Any other answer would have been politically hazardous: too much optimism and the politicians would have started asking just why the expensive project was needed in the first place. Too much pessimism and they would ask exactly the same question.

She looked at him, marvelling. “Sometimes it’s as if you’re living a century behind the rest of us.”
“Elephants don’t care what century it is. They care what season it is.”

Clavain felt little in the way of regret; more a sense of quiet relief that they were past the negotiating stage and into the infinitely more honest arena of actual battle.