If you try not to get anybody killed, you wind up getting everyone killed.
— Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, Angel
Clark Kent: Why are you so determined to see Davis Bloome die?
Tess Mercer: That's simple, Clark. An entire civilization's survival depends on it.
If you're gonna be bad, be bad with purpose. Otherwise, you're just not worth forgiving.
— Damon Salvatore, The Vampire Diaries
Even if I am to carry "all the evils of this world," it won't matter. If that can save the world, then I'd gladly accept it.
— Kiritsugu Emiya, Fate/Zero
You'll condemn me. Set the dogs on me. Because that's what needs to happen. Because sometimes the truth isn't good enough.
— Batman, The Dark Knight
My first priority is and always has been protecting people. If it’s a question between abandoning the security the Birdcage offers the world at large or requesting the assistance of a scoundrel-a known murderer, even-I will take security without question.
—Alexandria, Worm
But he [Lord Vetinari] was popular, in a fashion. Under his rule, for the first time in ages, Ankh-Morpork worked. It may not have been particularly fair or just or democratic, but it operated.
—Terry Pratchett, Guards! Guards!
"There's a saying I like: 'One sword keeps another in the sheath.' Sometimes, the threat of violence alone is a deterrent. Sometimes, by taking a life, others can be preserved. It's the code the samurai lived by..."
— Raiden, Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance
"If I am forced to make a choice between saving a friend/lover or fulfilling my mission, I will remind myself that failing to accomplish the mission will probably result in the friend/lover's death anyway, and go on with the mission."
"I thought you were a hero. Heroes don't do things like this. I wish I'd never met you."
"Nate sends his apologies, Martha. But your partnership was never going to last forever. If you want his personal opinion, it would be best if you moved on and drew on the support of your friends and teammates. Farewell."
—A clone of Nate, For The Mission
Martha: "If that was the truth, why didn't you tell us?!"
A clone of Nate: "*snort* The guild wouldn't have believed him. The recruits wouldn't have believed him. Nobody would. Not even you, Martha."
"What? If I'm going to be treated like this, I might as well own up to the dirty fighting to take items from outlaws. Besides, I can count the ones on our team that have moves for Ghost-types on one hand."
Skuntank: I thought you guild chumps were supposed to fight fair and square!
Nate: What? You think I'm a person of principle, like Martha? No. You saw me playing nice for appearances. Where I come from, you do whatever it takes to defeat the opponent, or you lose your life.
"I thought you knew me, Martha. Missions, I do them with cold, calculated efficiency. Before, you were someone I wanted to misdirect, not hurt. Trying to mislead someone familiar with my tricks is much harder than just zapping them, and doing that is still harder when you're holding back from killing. It's actually much easier for me that you took out Dusknoir. He was smart; you're insane."
—Nate, For The Mission
"About the whole no guns thing... I'm not sure I feel as strongly about it as you do. "
—Catwoman, The Dark Knight Rises
"Someone needs helping, we help 'em. Someone needs hurting, we hurt 'em. It's not hard."
—Hancock, Fallout 4
