what is the purpose

(pfp credit to PrinceFly666 on Twitter)

[harshawsflames]

“It had started with a storm, and in a way, that storm had never ended. Nina had blown into his life with the wind and rain and set his world spinning. He'd been off balance ever since.”

[harshawsflames]

     He turned his head. They were sitting so close together, their shoulders nearly touching. Her eyes were so brown they were almost black, and for once her hair was down. She always wore it tied back in a ruthlessly tight coil. Even the idea of being this near someone should have set his skin crawling. Instead he thought, What happens if I move closer?

     “I don't want your prayers,” he said.

     “What do you want, then?”

     The old answers came easily to mind. Money. Vengeance. Jordie's voice in my head silenced forever. But a different reply roared to life inside him, loud, insistent, and unwelcome. You, Inej. You.

[harshawsflames]

     “I was a monster.”

     “A monster, a maiden, a sylph of the ice. You kissed me, whispered stories in my ear. You sang to me and held me as I slept. Your laugh chased me into waking.”

     “You always hated my laugh.”

     “I loved your laugh, Nina. And your fierce warrior's heart. I might have loved you, too.”

     Might have. Once. Before she had betrayed him. Those words carved an ache into her chest.

     She knew she shouldn't speak, but she couldn't help herself. “And what did you do, Matthias?” What did you do to me in your dreams?”

     The ship listed gently. The lanterns swayed. His eyes were blue fire. “Everything,” he said, as he turned to go. “Everything.”

[harshawsflames]

“Kaz knew death. He could feel its presence on the ship now, looming over them, ready to take his Wraith.”

[harshawsflames]

“The sound of her voice, pleading with him. He'd dreamed of this. Sometimes she pleaded for mercy. Sometimes there were other things she begged for.”

[harshawsflames]

“Please, my darling Inej, treasure of my heart, won't you do me the honour of acquiring me a new hat?”

[harshawsflames]

“She felt slightly guilty for eavesdropping on Kaz, but he was the one who had turned her into a spy. You couldn't train a falcon, then expect it not to hunt.”

[harshawsflames]

     “Greed is your god, Kaz.”

     He almost laughed at that. “No, Inej. Greed bows to me. It is my servant and my lever.”

[harshawsflames]

“We're supposed to be gods together, and yet you want to destroy our destiny?”

[harshawsflames]

“I love him.”

[harshawsflames]

“I once thought you to be a god. I loved you.”

[harshawsflames]

“It's one thing to question your mind. It's another to question your eyes and ears. But then again, isn't it all the same, our senses just mediocre inputs for our brain? Sure, we rely on them, trust they accurately portray the real world around us, but what if the haunting truth is, they can't? That what we perceive isn't the real world at all, but just our mind's best guess?”

[harshawsflames]

“If someone asks for your patience... they're asking for your surrender.”

[harshawsflames]

“Wussy, you gotta be more detailed, the Devil is in that shit!”

[harshawsflames]

“It was like my way out of that black hole. But it led me right into another one. It hurt a lot less, for a while, anyway.”

[harshawsflames]

“It seems like we're always thinking of ourselves when looking for something that's lost. We never think much about the lost. Whatever, whoever is unable to be found. Whether it's a set of keys we've left somewhere, forgotten, a couple of guys wandering aimlessly in the woods. Or someone who's disappeared inside himself. And what if that's what they wanted all along? Not to be found.”

[harshawsflames]

“You're wrong. I don't like being an outsider either. Maybe I'm just good at hiding it.”