"The cornered rat will bite the cat."
— Japanese proverb
A cornered fox is more dangerous than a jackal!
There is a Dwarf saying: "He fights hardest whose back is against the Karak gates." That’s why Dwarfs fight harder than any manling — we’ve tasted so much of death and loss, we know exactly the price of defeat. No disrespect to you Humans and Halflings, but you have short lives and short memories, and know nothing of the true fear of extinction. The Skaven have no fear at all, and only fight because another, bigger Skaven will whip them if they do not. I’ve seen many a Human like that, too, come to think of it.
—Behram Gundarson, Dwarf Skaven Slayer, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay: Children of the Horned Rat — A Guide to Skaven
To whom do lions cast their gentle looks? Not to the beast that would usurp their den. The smallest worm will turn being trodden on, And doves will peck in safeguard of their brood.
—Lord Clifford, Henry VI Part 3
"Even a worm will turn."
—John Heywood, paraphrasing Shakespeare
Weakness can imitate strength if bound properly, just as cowardice can imitate heroism if given nowhere to flee.
Snarling and lashing its tail in arrogant confidence, the leopard advanced in search of the tender food that it craved. Had it met its prey in the open, it would have had no problems, but now that the man-apes were trapped, desperation had given them the courage to attempt the impossible. And for the first time, they had the means to achieve it.
The trouble with small furry animals in a corner is that, just occasionally, one of them’s a mongoose.
♪We're turned around and taunted, but Moonlight is our friend.♫
♪The way ahead is haunted, our hackles stand on end.♫
♪We'll make our stand right here, our choice is crystal clear.♫
♪We are the Beasts the Monsters fear!♫
♪The way ahead is haunted, our hackles stand on end.♫
♪We'll make our stand right here, our choice is crystal clear.♫
♪We are the Beasts the Monsters fear!♫
— Gilneans, Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft
"[If] a hunted cat, surrounded and hard-pressed, turns into a lion, God knows what I, who am a man, may turn into..."
