How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #1
I didn't run. I couldn't. Whether it was one of them or an Aunt Tilly, I had to defend my turf. The only way to stay alive is to stay alone. That's rule number two. (3.29)
Cassie, who has found herself in the middle of a very unusual war, is making the rules up as she goes along. This "never trust anyone, ever" rule seems sort of rough.
Quote #2
I turned to my father and said, "We should nuke 'em." (5.119)
Cassie's first instinct is to nuke the aliens. (That's before the war begins.) Do you think the Others saw humans and had the same thought?
Quote #3
It [the announcement] came from the sky, from them. In the form of a 727 tumbling end over end to the Earth from ten thousand feet until it disappeared from behind a line of trees and exploded, sending up a fireball that reminded me of the mushroom cloud of an atomic blast. (6.29)
The aliens' first visible act of war occurs when people see planes fall from the sky. It's a terrifying image.