The Fires of Vengeance (The Burning, #2)

by Evan Winter

“It’s because the powerless, having no understanding or experience with how much real power can save or destroy, think too simply. They see things as either right or wrong, but the world and the purposes of those in it are distorted, misjudged when reduced to so basic a binary.”

To be understood, he’d speak the one language the powerful share with the powerless, the language of pain, fear, and loss. The powerful had to be shown that people can only be pushed so close to the flame before they catch fire and burn everything down.

“The lie isn’t that we can’t be their equals. The lie is that they were ever anything but our equals.”

“Please be one of the lucky beaches,” Themba said, following Tau. “Are you often lucky?” Tau asked over his shoulder. Themba sighed. “Since I met you? Never.”

Grief, anger, they’ll hold you for a time. They must. But if you let them root and fester, they’ll become a hate that will consume you.”

“What does any such group, priding itself on being more than others, want?” she asked. “They wanted their claims and their beliefs about themselves to be true. They wanted to be more powerful and better than everyone else. So that’s what our queen promised them.”

The world had too many people prospering from the pain and struggle of others to leave a man like him untouched.

They went back as many times as it took to remember that, though they shared no blood, Tau Solarin and Jabari Onai had been and would always be brothers.

It isn’t good enough and nothing will be for a while, because that’s part of what loss is, an absence of goodness and happiness that can’t be reasoned with or diminished.” “When does it end?” “In time.” She shook her head. “Not good enough.” “No,” he said, “it’s not.”