"Before he'd died of natural causes, Alt Koida's predecessor had confided in him and moaned of the great lengths he traveled to simply keep his job. Worse than the untrustworthy peers any Minister had were the half-dozen underlings, each thirsting for promotion and supremely impatient. 'When a San'Shyuum is tired of checking his meal for crushed glass, he is tired of life,' was the advice he had to give.

At the time, Alt Koida had thought the old man to be hopelessly out of touch. Who would bother with something as archaic as ground glass when there were so many undetectable poisons out there with charmingly clever names like 'Just A Cold' or 'Natural Causes'?

As the unbearable agony spread through his intestines, it occurred to Alt that the clergy, by its nature, was a breeding ground for traditionalists."

: Army rookie during the evacuation of New Alexandria.

: The Grunt Rebellion. Ffs, the Grunt Rebellion.

The two above don't really lend themselves to short fiction, I'd think.