"Babe," says Nathan, "I found a singer two times in my life, and if you get even that tasty, let alone better, you will never be able to pry my teeth out of you even by asking nicely, even if I keep my air filter, without magic. That kind of thing competes on a level with mate bonds. The Empress is alive because the the Emperor was already thoroughly into self-denial when he ran into her and anyone else would've eaten his mate."