No other life forms know they are alive, and neither do they know they will die. This is our curse alone. Without this hex upon our heads, we would never have withdrawn as far as we have from the natural—so far and for such a time that it is a relief to say what we have been trying with our all not to say: We have long since been denizens of the natural world. Everywhere around us are natural habitats, but within us is the shiver of startling and dreadful things. Simply put: We are not from here. If we vanished tomorrow, no organism on this planet would miss us. Nothing in nature needs us.
- Thomas Ligotti, The Conspiracy Against the Human Race
- Thomas Ligotti, The Conspiracy Against the Human Race
“One speaks of a ‘conflict of motives,’ but designates with this phrase a conflict which is not one of motives.”
—Daybreak, §129 (excerpt).
—Daybreak, §129 (excerpt).