“ Poison can only ever be the tool of a murderer - as such, alchemists are tightly regulated by the Crown, and anyone found in posession of an unknown substance is forced to taste it themselves.”
“ Rich Romans raised fish in private pools at their villas. A favorite fish was lamprey, a parasitic fish which sucks off blood and flesh but made an excellent meal. A particuarly gruesome punishment for slaves was to be thrown into the lamprey pool, where their flesh was ripped from the bone by swarms of the jawless fish.”
“ A demagogue imimates the warrior-king or military officer of a long past age-his followers have the uniforms and weapons of that past time and are a dangerous group.”