"Tell us a story!" The children's voices were a small chorus, gathered around Syd as he built them toys from the scraps they'd brought him. The table was littered with bits and pieces, and was the only one in the commons room where the children gathered.
    "Oh, and what kind of story?" He handed a miniature void fighter to an eager little girl, absently pulling pieces to work a new toy together. The different shapes of gems embedded in their foreheads told a story of youth, when the social divisions were not the all-encompassing things that shackled adults.
    The vote was fairly unanimous. "The old heroes!", the little voices told him. 'Old' meant from the war, over four and a half millennia ago.
    Syd began shaping the scrap in his hands; pulling, pushing, and fitting the pieces into shape as he spoke. "Have you heard about the gunzosha commandos? Normal folk like you who stand by the side of Chosen like me." The children remembered, saying so. It was part of the public propaganda the Solar Deliberative had pushed to inspire the teeming masses of Autochthonia.
    The toy began to take a more definite shape. "Have you ever wondered why there are no old gunzosha?" The children grew quiet, sensing a secret that the adults had kept from them. "It's because the armor they wear costs them years of their lives. Not just being trained to use it, but their lives are used to power it. The star that burns twice as bright burns half as long. But, remember what being a gunzosha means."
    "They're all heroes!"
    "Just so. In fact, during the war, it was common for gunzosha to become Chosen of the Sun amidst furious battles. There were rules in place for their promotion should it happen." He took a breath and worked as he told the children a story.

    "There was once a gunzosha who faced Mahakal the Seventh Asuric Talon, a demon of the second circle. Mahakal had devoured their Solar commander and the Dragon-Blooded retinue, leaving only the gunzosha and mortal warriors. She laughed with contempt at the gunzosha and his warriors.
    "She taunted them. 'What do you expect to die here for, mortals?'
    "This was the gunzosha's answer: 'I will die bringing a light to end your darkness.'
    "In those days, the Unconquered Sun was gracious, merciful, righteous, and glorious. He saw the wisdom in the gunzosha's words and filled the commando with the blinding brilliance of the morning sun."
    Syd set down the completed toy, which was a figure in the distinctive heavy armor of the gunzosha commandos. "He became known as Forward Unto Dawn, and he would lead his elite Tiger Warriors for many years."