Cassandra
The last two weeks were the hardest. Cassandra could stand the two months onboard The Cave crossing back from the raid on Golden Reef.
It was the two weeks of quartine that they waited in orbit that drove her mad. She missed being planet side. She could visit one of the many gardens on the Cave, but it wasn’t the same.
She could even visit one of the Holo Rooms although they were often booked days in advance. Again it didn’t feel the same.
It might have all looked real enough, but it didn’t feel the same a real planet. The way the heat of the star hitting her face warmed her. Or the way the breeze made her skin tingle.
Maybe it was that no planet was the same, and every ships garden felt the same. Every Holo Room felt the same. Cassandra didn’t know. Jom felt like home, and she yearn to feel the sun on her skin.
It wasn’t just the sky above her she was looking forward to. It was her friends. Those in other legions returning from contracts or preparing to leave on contract. It was the great hall and the stories that flew quickly with a cup of drink.
Cassandra always hated when the massive Star-Carrier made planet fall. Edmund and the rest of the retinue seemed to take no notice as they lazily strapped in. It didn’t make her feel any better that this was the safest world in the galaxy for them to make planet fall on.
Cassandra tried to force herself to think of the three months leave the 10th had been granted. Three months of feasting and drinking in the great hall of the Jom.
The rest of the retinue was laughing and joking when the all clear came through.
“Come on,” Cassandra heard Edmund call out. “We have the fallen to honour, and homage to pay.”
Cassandra realized she had been lost in thought and the others waited for her. She finished unstrapping herself from the padded chair, and grabbed the rest of her gear.
They would march from The Cave through it’s many landing ramps and through the main compound of Jom. The remains of the fallen wwould be placed before the great statues of the Jom. There they would pass by and they and the civilians come out to feast and drink would lay down items for the dead.
Cassandra had a simple coin a to lay at the remains of the fallen. In truth it was worth several hundred credits.
Every Legion did the same. The items would be sold to help the families of the loss on top of their contracts.
It was half day by the time Cassandra reached the altar the remains of the fallen lay near. Departing the Cave was easy. It was designed to disembark troops, and starfighter quickly. Even the outside of the main complex they moved quickly as they marched in dress gear down the main drag of the city of Jom.
The only city on the world of Jom. A military base that the families of the Jom built around and finally within. Those first structures replaced with more permanent structures. You could still make out the old camp layout if you knew what to look for.
The old dirt paths long covered with cobbled stone bricks. The long path through the city was lined with qo foot tall statues. Even with the main street lined with welcoming crowds, and children on the statues, they stood large and tall.
In truth Cassandra didn’t know who half of them were she realized. Edmund likely knew each one and the house they belonged to.
The Alter of the fallen was filled with those grieving the loss of friends and family. Until battles of the pass where urns overflown onto the steps. Losses had been light. Cassandra didn’t know any of them. Only one had been combat related.
The altar was surrounded by all manner of trinkets. Dozens of coins of different metals, and shapes and sizes littered many of the raised alters that split the main road in half. Datapads, and other items which must have been of important to one of the fallen or the other. All to be collected and sold to raise funds.
Cassandra placed a coin on one of the Altars. The face of some long lost king on some forgotten world no doubt. Still they were beautiful, and if not worth anything to collectors, had valve for the rare metal.
The somber mood lifted as they crossed through the gate into the main military complex. Only Jom allowed inside it’s grounds. Cassandra loved the sounds of the waves crashing on the cliff behind and below.
The inner military complex could only house three legions. The 10th legion added another 60 thousands troops to the mix. Cassandra had to push through crowds of people to navigate, and she knew it would be like that for days as they feasted and drank.
Unlike the garrison legions, they would find no place to sleep in Jom unless it was passed out drunk in the streets somewhere.
Great meals from the local wildlife were cooked in the many halls. The smell drifted out into the streets of Jom as Cassandra and Edmund wandered from one mess hall to another to accept a drink with one person or other.
The sky had darkened by the time Cassandra made it to the last hall. It was a favorite of Cassandra’s. She and Edmund had enjoyed many moments in it as a child and ward of the Jom along with Edmund.
The hall was packed, and dark. The smell of roasting food filled the air, and Cassandra’ss boots stuck to the floor from the countless slipped drinks over the night. Not even the cleaning bots could keep up.
“If it isn’t the great prince himself.” A voice called out from further in the hall, and the noise died down.
Cassandra turned to see Frea Ash sitting with her feet on one of the large tables.
“Jom welcomes you back,” the dark golden blonde of her curls and fair complexion made her stand out in the darkness of the room. “And such loot you brought back,” she finished with the chorus of laughter.
“I understand the that Retainers in the 10th only got a bonus of twelve hundred credits on contract completion. Buy a the hall a round and call that homage” she added to more laugher.
Cassandr grimaced, it was an embarrassing low figure, and she had fumed over it until Edmund had calmed her. Cassandra had learn while in orbit that Frea had gotten a bonus of over a hundred thousand. She made a large homage to the order, and in doing so took over the top position in their great hall.
Edmund and Frea were always out doing each other in their homages to the hall, but Edmund had always come out on top.
Edmund was the first to speak once the laughter died down. “Our contract did not yield great wealth it is true. Not all contracts do. Nor does the 10th raid worlds of their riches.” The prince called out.
That brought Frea to her feet but Edmund continued. “I was however gifted an object of some worth I would offer up in homage” he said Cassandra watched him reach his hand inside his uniform to pull out a book he much have had on him all day.
“A book?” Frea asked with a fit of laughter.
“Indeed,” Edmund replied as he looked at the book and it’s weathered edges. “I can think of no better protector then this order.” Cassandra watched Edmund look up from the book with a smile, and look at Frea before he held the book up. “I give you, a copy of the Book of Laws by the Lawgiver himself.”
“What?” Frea exclaimed in disbelief. The same disbelief that Cassandra knew she had been she had first learn of the gift moths ago, and that very moment with his words.
“It’s a fake,” Frea countered as Cassandra had done so herself.
“All tests both on the Cave prove otherwise.” Edmund countered. “The order is of course free to run more tests.
“Give it here,” A sturdy woman said as she came out from behind the bar. The head of the hall grabbed the book from Edmund and ran her fingers through the nano paper pages. The old womans eyes darted across pages as she studied it.
The head of the hall looked at Edmund. “If this I not a fake, it is priceless,” she gasped. She closed the book between her hands, and held it against her chest. “We will test it, but we accept your homage.
Not only was it priceless Cassandra knew. But if it was real, it ensured Edmunds position of top honours.
“And you?” the old lady asked Cassandra well the crowd was still in quiet disbelief.
Cassandra pulled the fist sized bag of coins from her uniform and handed it over. The woman looked inside, nodded, and then feld back behind the bar and into the back.
“But you are right,” Edmund hollard. “I will buy the hall a round. Tonight we drink!” he shouted as large chants and cheers took over the room.
Cassandra followed Edmund to a large up barrel of mead. They grabbed hanging cups and filled their cups before taking a drink as people congradulated Edmund.
“We were leaving anyways,” Frea said as she walked through the crowd to Cassandra and Edmund. “Cass,” the honeyed eyes blonde said with the bite of a lower lip. “If you ever get tired of warming his bed, mine is always open.”
“Fuck off cunt,” Cassandra replied curtly before filling her mouth with mead. She could see that Frea was red with anger from being out done from the prince again.
“That’s what I love about you, the fight,” she said and turned her back on Cassandra and Edmund to leave the hall with her small following.
