Expendable

Paycheck and Other Classic Stories by Philip K. Dick
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First published in Fantasy & Science Fiction Jul 1953

A man is terrorized by ants and is subsequently informed by some spiders that he is correct to be afraid because the ants want to destroy him and all of mankind.

Cast of characters

  • The man – our unnamed protagonist
  • Tirmus, Lala – anthropomorphic ants plotting against the humans
  • the Cruncher, the Stinger – anthropomorphic spiders