“Even pain,” said the king, with no intention of being prophetic, “even pain is preferable to dying of… — Sheri S. Tepper

Sex was pleasurable, sure, but survival was sweeter still.

“That’s different. That’s paradise. Like it was on Breadh.”

“Were there many people on Breadh?”

Snark laughed, abruptly joyous. “Hardly any! That’s what made it paradise!”

Does the worm on the hook expect to be rescued simply because the fish have eaten all the other worms?