"[...] He saw suddenly-with terrible clarity-that to be a Winner was to be absolutely nothing. Like being the best flea, among all the fleas on a single dog. What was Anvhar after all? An ice-locked planet, inhabited by a few million human fleas, unknown and unconsidered by the rest of the galaxy. There was nothing here worth fighting for, the wars after the Breakdown had left them untouched. The Anvharian had always taken pride in this-as if being so unimportant that no one else even wanted to come near you, could possibly be a source of pride. All the worlds of man grew, fought, won, [...]."