"Well, perhaps you have begun your journey toward wisdom, Mr. Flattery," Kent said seriously. "We have such a short time and the journey is so terrib… - Sean Russell

Soldiers, Your Highness. Men trained not to think for themselves.

The carriage, Tristam realized, was becoming the metaphor for this period of his life: he neither owned, drove, nor directed one in any way but was simply carried along.

"We continue to negotiate the treaty, endlessly apparently, to everyone's continuing loss." He smiled wryly. "You know how such things go. We no longer debate to gain real advantage but to come away from the table having created the perception that we have somehow won. 'Politics,' this is called."