Road of a Warrior (The Silvan, #2)

by R.K. Lander

Years of childish curiosity and unanswered questions were followed by hatred and denial, and then a partial acceptance of his illegitimacy at the cost of convincing himself that he did not care who his father had been. Yet it had all been strategy, a way to make his existence acceptable in his own mind. Lies, merciful lies, and it had torn at Lainon’s heart to watch Fel’annár’s made-up world disintegrate upon the wind like autumn leaves upon a sharp breeze. To Fel’annár’s mind, his father had abandoned him—he had been unwanted. What he had always feared was the truth.

He had wanted to run, but how does one run away from oneself?

“There is no satisfaction to be had from blaming one that is absent, for one cannot enjoy the hurt inflicted.”

“Youth has no bearing here, Commander. Only reason. Do not seek to deflect an argument by invalidating the speaker.”

“To protect is an act of love, and from love, cruelty sometimes ensues. By hiding the truth, we shield the heart, shield the body from harm, but what of the soul? What of every child’s need to be loved by a mother, by a father? What of the steady rock of family where falls can be broken, errors are simple lessons in life, dreams are fed with encouragement? All this can be lost for the cruelty of love.”

There is a succession of events, an array of opportunities that life offers us. We either take them or refuse them. It is the outcome of those opportunities we accept that shape the nature of our lives. We cannot blame the powers of this world for the decisions we make.”

Fighting together was not the only tie we would share, for we decided that to be a warrior was not about fighting alone. It was about love, and as such, warriorhood is not one facet of an elf, but his entire being. It defines who he is, how he lives.”

wisdom is about transcending those barriers, Fel’annár. It is about seeing what is outside yourself, recognizing what is not comfortable.

“I am Fel’annár at heart,” he said. “I no longer wish to perpetuate this racial discrimination. I no longer feel the need. What does it matter? The land of my mother, the land of my father. The colour of her eyes or of my father’s hair? All colours are beautiful, Lainon, given the right context, the right background on which to lay them. It is a question of perspective, I think.”

“Grief can send the strongest of kings to his knees. It can bring madness to the sanest of elves, but so, too, can it strengthen the will, the drive to achieve one’s destiny—in the name of the departed, in honour of him.”