In the partial silence, the ocean asserted itself, waves hurled loudly against rock, slithering back with smashed spines, then, healed by immersion, … - Tanith Lee

It is a phenomenon of such spots that any noise is encapsulated in this ringing stillness, and made strangely tiny, however loud. The shouts of bandits and the squeaks of fauna sound as if confined in bubbles, a symbol of their impermanence. Only the desert endures.

Like most loners," said Moddik, "you carry the seeds of violent authority. Loners need to be bossy. They quickly learn it's the only method they have of shoving people off their backs.

True beauty is always oddly surprising.