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f9fa378
|
You're a tough guy, but I'm a nightmare wrapped in the apocalypse. And
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James S.A. Corey |
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1fccfe5
|
Everyone here was losing someone. His tragedy was just one among dozens. Hundreds. Thousands. By the time the cascade had run all the way out, maybe millions. When death grew that large, it stopped meaning anything.
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James S.A. Corey |
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fa92056
|
The truth was her version wasn't any more or less a fantasy than his. No one would know for sure until everyone knew for sure.
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James S.A. Corey |
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21d5ca9
|
Mr. Dowd," Miller said. "What I am about to do to you is literally the only bright spot in my day. If you could see your way clear to resisting arrest, I'd really appreciate it." "Harry?"
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James S.A. Corey |
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df9d381
|
You going to take the job?" Miller said. "I haven't decided," Holden said. "Which, since you are running a simulation of my brain, you already know. So you asking is really you telling me to take it. Stop me when I'm wrong."
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James S.A. Corey |
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e8c266a
|
T]hat question is like asking what color Tuesday was. It's meaningless.
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James S.A. Corey |
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1164508
|
The old man was brilliant at looking somber and energetic at the same time. If he hadn't been the executive of the largest governing body in the history of the human race, he'd have made a killing promoting health drinks.
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James S.A. Corey |
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8a33f82
|
Basia floated next to the gunner's seat watching the hateful math spool out across the screen. "She"
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James S.A. Corey |
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3e27af1
|
you'd scare the shit out of me, so don't feel the need to prove it. But no matter how scared I am, I'm not backing down on this.
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James S.A. Corey |
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3dae757
|
Dead's not good, but at least it's simple.
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dying
simple
simplicity
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James S.A. Corey |
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2c5c333
|
What?" "You're very beautiful," Holden said. "I hope I tell you that often enough." "You do." "Then I hope I don't tell you so often it gets annoying." "You don't," she"
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James S.A. Corey |
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fa2f398
|
Fayez whistled low. "That is not dead which can eternal lie. Or, y'know, whatever."
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dead
eternal
lovecraft
lovecraftian
refrence
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James S.A. Corey |
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95d2033
|
His strike force stood around him, craning their necks, in awe of the massive emptiness all around. He was almost sorry to pull his attention back to the small, vaguely intimate necessities of violence.
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regret
space
violence
war
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James S.A. Corey |
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d65f4d3
|
You can order the sun to come up if you time it right. I'm not driving this bus. Making it do what I want would be like talking someone out of a seizure.
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orders
seizures
sun
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James S.A. Corey |
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9caca84
|
If this isn't important, I will rip your throat open and piss down your lungs.
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mornings
piss
throat
waking-up
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James S.A. Corey |
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83dcd56
|
You're not staying behind," Holden said. "You're keeping the crew alive while I do something really stupid. It's why we're an awesome team. You're the captain now." "That's a shit job and you know it."
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James S.A. Corey |
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e06431b
|
The usual state of nature is recovering from the last disaster.
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disaster
ecology
nature
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James S.A. Corey |
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e8ea9eb
|
Becca found something, and it is sufficiently weird to make my balls creep up. We're getting the hell out of here.
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James S.A. Corey |
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9fc523e
|
He had given himself permission to be afraid. It made all the difference.
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James S.A. Corey |
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3bf0181
|
I'm not asking you to sleep with him." "Good, because I don't use sex as a weapon," Bobbie said. "I use weapons as weapons." --
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James S.A. Corey |
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cecf579
|
Gah," Prax said, and curled up into a floating fetal ball."
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James S.A. Corey |
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951fdfe
|
Drainage tubes ran out of his belly and side, and there was a catheter the size of a pencil coming out his penis. Nothing particularly hurt, so he had to assume he was on pretty nearly all the narcotics there were.
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dark-humor
drugs
funny
scifi-adventure
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James S.A. Corey |
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7d66dff
|
And I understand you've got a few after-market add-ons --" "Keel-mounted rail gun," Alex said with a grin. "-- that scream of overcompensating for tiny, tiny penises, but might prove useful. The"
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James S.A. Corey |
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e2c1ebd
|
There's another mess of legal crap just came through from the UN for you." Holden sighed. "Am I supposed to read it?" "Don't see how they can make you," Amos said. "Just thought you'd want to ignore it intentionally." "Thank you. Sort of," Holden"
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James S.A. Corey |
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051cc67
|
they'd been driven to find out what was on the other side of the long trip. Driven by a need to see shores no one else had ever seen before. Show a human a closed door, and no matter how many open doors she finds, she'll be haunted by what might be behind it. A few people liked to paint this drive as a weakness. A failing of the species.
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James S.A. Corey |
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f40ad15
|
Maybe he should have rallied, risen to the occasion like the rest of them. The truth was the thought made him tired. Shaddid
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James S.A. Corey |
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ba3f6d4
|
You ready?" Amos asked. "Does it matter?" "Not a lot. Let's"
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James S.A. Corey |
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d941330
|
We'll forget how to do this, Holden thought. Humanity had only just started learning how to live in space, and now they'd forget. Why develop new strategies for surviving on tiny stations like Medina when there were a thousand new worlds to conquer, with air and water free for the taking? It was an astounding thought, but it also left Holden just a little melancholy.
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James S.A. Corey |
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f2f6553
|
Elvi blinked in puzzlement as Murtry left. "Is he mad at me?" "Sweetie," Amos said, clapping her on the back, "that just means you're not an asshole."
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James S.A. Corey |
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c14d98d
|
Her mind wandered a little bit during the slow moments. Human violence as a kind of fractal--self-similar on all scales from bar fight to system-wide war. The buildup of insults and lost face that swelled over the course of an evening or a century. The shoving and shoving back, neither side sure they wanted to escalate and uncertain how to back down. All of that was the history of the inner planets and the Belt since the beginning. Then Mar..
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James S.A. Corey |
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09805c4
|
There was a scuffle, and it got out of hand. Dawes, tell me you've never had something like it." "I've never had something like it," Dawes"
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James S.A. Corey |
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51aa968
|
The Mormons had been planning to run the human race's first extrasolar colony from a place that would have been equally at home as an accounting office. It felt anticlimactic. Hello, welcome to your centuries-long voyage to build a human settlement around another star! Here's your cubicle.
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James S.A. Corey |
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f32112e
|
Human brains needed an answer, even if they had to make up something they knew was bullshit. A
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James S.A. Corey |
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ae9fc74
|
The birds, on the other hand, were going crazy. They filled the air with chirps and trills and songs. It was probably sparrow for Holy shit, what's going on, we're all gonna die, but it sounded pretty. Amos
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James S.A. Corey |
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d4c5af9
|
the idea of trying to reconnect to humanity again filled him with the presentiment of exhaustion.
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James S.A. Corey |
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6a8ff50
|
It was the widest concerted attack ever. Hundreds of ships on at least four sides. Dozens of stations, millions of lives. Among the stars, it didn't stand out.
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James S.A. Corey |
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e238afd
|
If I had. If I had done those things, that would have been okay with you?" "Oh, fuck no. I'd have broken your neck and thrown you out the airlock," Amos said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Ah," Prax said, a gentle relief loosening in his chest. "Thank you." "Anytime." The"
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James S.A. Corey |
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98471cd
|
Humanity hadn't changed, but it had. The venality and the nobility, the cruelty and the grace. They were all still there. It was just the particulars he felt shifting away from under him.
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James S.A. Corey |
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cd6b60a
|
It's funny," Clarissa said. "Most of human history, going to the moon was impossible. A dream beyond anyone's imagination. And then, for a while, it was an adventure. And then it was trivial. Yesterday, it was trivial. And now, it's almost impossible again." "Yeah," Amos said, "well..." He felt her shift, tuning her head as if to see him better. "What?" He gestured up toward the sky. "Pretty sure that's the sun. I get what you're saying tho..
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James S.A. Corey |
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f58ea3a
|
History itself was a massive n=1 study, irreproducible. It was what made it so difficult to learn from. After
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James S.A. Corey |
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d1148c7
|
Kings were always the last to feel the famine. That wasn't just the Belt. That was all of history. The people who'd just been going about their lives were the ones who could speak to the actual cost of war. They paid it first. Men
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James S.A. Corey |
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9319486
|
We don't have permission to kill him," Bull said. "A finger slips, think we can get forgiveness?" "Probably."
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James S.A. Corey |
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e45ede7
|
They had no idea what it does, but they slapped their label on it like they'd made it. They found an alien weapon, and all they could think to do was brand it." "There's"
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James S.A. Corey |
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8411560
|
I try to do the right thing, Holden. But there are times when it's not obvious what that is." "I agree with you," Holden said. "Right up to the part where you tell me this is one of those times."
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James S.A. Corey |