Boros (Part One)

April 3 - Boros

"This honour she has from the beginning, and this is the portion allotted to her amongst men and undying gods, -- the whisperings of maidens and smiles and deceits with sweet delight and love and graciousness." - Hesiod

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I knew from an early age that I was neither graceful nor beautiful.

After raising two boys, my mother was ready for a daughter. She would dress me in pigtails and pink frilly dresses, only to find me climbing trees and chasing frogs through the mud with my brother Hector, much to her consternation.

At school, I was the quiet girl, the plain girl. The boys my age were often intimidated by the quick and analytical way I would solve problems. When not in class, I would disappear into books, consuming the classics from my uncle Niccolo's library.

No one asks the plain girl to dance, especially when she can quote in Latin. Unless, of course, you are trying to get her to do your homework.

It is perhaps for this reason that when I first became aware of Companions and their profession my reaction was a mixture of quiet awe and intellectual detachment.

I was not part of their world but I felt I could understand it, in a way that one only can when excluded and forced to look in from the outside.

Athena to their Aphrodite.

I was well read enough to see historical parallels immediately. The courtesans of Europe. The geisha of Japan.

Some, when they hear the term 'Companion', may have an image of a woman making a financial arrangement with an interested gentleman for the granting of certain favours.

But I see a woman who has made a professional decision to bring grace and beauty to this harsh, cold world. Through music. Poetry. The art of dance. The art of conversation. The art of love...

The key to understanding someone is knowing their context.

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Boros. Third planet in the Georgia system.

Outside of the Core, the highest concentration of Alliance personnel was Boros. This was due in large part to the presence of the Iskellkian Military Shipyard on the moon Ares. A full battalion, operationally ready, was stationed in the area.

Boros, itself, was also home to Companion Guild House Shanjian.

When the Governing Council of Al Raqis decided to make extradition demands on members of the federationist movement they asked Registered Companion, Calina Tereshchenko to be their liaison.

It was a clever choice. She was articulate and pleasant. Her neutrality was unimpeachable. And it was not without historical precedence. It is said that the intrigues of the Franco-Prussian war were played out in the salons of Paris.

As I had some familiarity of the situation in Mu Draco, Calina, in turn, requested to meet with me.

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[pictures courtesy of Calina Tereshchenko]