Baptism of Fire (The Witcher, #3)

by Andrzej Sapkowski

“Fire purges. And hardens. It must be passed through. Aenyell’hael, ell’ea, sor’ca? In your tongue: a baptism of fire.”

Men are psychologically unstable, too prone to emotions; not to be relied upon in moments of crisis.”

Magic requires patience, delicacy, intelligence, prudence, and perseverance, not to mention the humble, but calm, endurance of defeat and failure. Ambition is the undoing of men. They always want what they know to be impossible and unattainable. And they are unaware of the attainable.”

Fuck me with a mangy rabbit if I’ve ever seen a stupider clod!

Figgis and Munro; you two stay here and keep your eyes peeled. We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s safe, I’ll make a call like a sparrow hawk.” “Like a sparrow hawk?” said Munro Bruys, anxiously moving his chin. “Since when did you know anything about mimicking bird calls, Zoltan?” “That’s the whole point. If you hear a strange, unrecognisable sound, you’ll know it’s me.