one might think of a flea and ask, ‘What good does it do? It steals blood and spreads disease.’ But when we destroy and kill and give others plague and famine, we don’t ask, well, what good are we if we only hurt other creatures to thrive?” The Countess argues, “Fleas don’t have art and literature.” Valentina hums. “True enough, but they also don’t have ships, swords, and guns.”