They rode to the Republic Base in silence as the sun lazily peeked over the horizon and chased the condensation off the speeders windscreen. Tasa was lost in thought with considering just how hectic both their lives were going to get in the coming years. He would be eligible for field studies at the start of his third University cycle. At that point he could apply for placements pretty much anywhere Solasta was stationed that wasn't considered a 'Hot Zone', whether it was planet-side or on a Republic Base, and she could be anywhere in the galaxy after she finished her training.
Solasta was trying to push down the growing doubts she felt. This day was what she had talked about for years, yet somehow the thought of leaving Tasa bothered her this morning despite reminding herself that he would be going to University on Coruscant in two months, so even if she stayed they would still be apart.
As the Mainland Base came into sight any second thoughts were washed away with a flutter of excitement, and sitting forward in her seat she said, "there it is," despite the hundreds of times they had been there before.
Tasa parked the speeder and they started to walk towards the gates. They passed a young recruit who was vomiting in grass while two friends watched over him, and Solasta recognized them from the cantina the night before, although none of them looked as though they had been to bed yet.
"Hey weren't there four of you last night?" she asked.
One of them looked towards Solasta and said, "Yeah, we lost him at a cantina last night... we hope he gets here soon."
Entering the gates to the base they waited with the other recruits who were saying their goodbyes, or gathering to pose for holo-images with their families, before they shipped out. Feeling a little overwhelmed again with just the two of them standing there, Solasta hugged Tasa and rested her head on his chest, and he wrapped his arms around her for comfort. Closing her eyes and sighing she heard a pair of little voices calling her name over the voices of the crowd, and stretching on her toes to look over Tasa's shoulder she saw a couple of very excited kitlings running towards them.
She knelt down and caught the pair as they rushed her for a hug. "Is this where you're going to live now Sol'asa?" asked Atan.
"No silly," she said, "but I will be living at a base like it for the next few months though."
Standing to greet Tasa's parents while the boys hung onto her legs, Solasta canted her head forward to press foreheads with both parents, after which they embraced her. "Your mother and father would be so proud of you Solasta, we certainly are," said Tasa's mother.
They had been talking only a few moments when a Sergeant stepped outside, and called out, "Okay recruits, say your goodbyes then head inside to assemble in the Parade Square for your gear and instructions."
Solasta gave Atan and Cudu a quick hug and told them, "I'll be back before you know it, so you better be good." She hugged Tasa's parents again and said, "Thank-you for everything this past year and letting me be a part of the tribe."
Sensing Tasa and Solasta would like some privacy, his parents collected the boys and walked a short distance to give the young couple some space.
They kissed before pressing foreheads together and stroking each other's cheeks, Solasta whispered, "I love you, always and forever," but began to giggle overhearing the protests from Atan and Cudu that they wanted to see the 'parade in the square'. Teary eyed Solasta let go and said, "I'll see you twenty-three weeks," and turning, walked through the gates into the Base.
Once past the gates, she followed the other recruits down a long hall that opened into a large courtyard where they lined up so a droid could perform a quick scan to confirm their identity before they were directed to the Parade Square. Behind her she could hear the gates beginning to close and turning back to watch she saw young recruit number four dart inside and fall flat on his face. As he stood and staggered a few steps it was clear he was still drunk from the previous evening, and a few guards escorted him across the square and through a set of unmarked doors.
In the Square there were rows of footlockers lined up. The name of a recruit was printed on the side of each one and they were organized alphabetically, so she found the one marked "S. Dinn" and waited beside it. When all the recruits had found their footlockers the Sergeant they met earlier stood before them and barked out, "Fall in!" which brought most of the recruits to a stiff and rigid stance. The Sergeant walked between the rows and barked at the occasional recruit to "stand up straight" or "eyes forward" and approaching Solasta immediately noticed the Sigil of Illya pendant and chain that Tasa had given her on her Sixteenth Season.
"Private! What is that around your neck?" he shouted.
"It's jewelry, Sir!" she responded.
"Jewelry Private? The only jewelry we have in the Republic Army are ID Tags!" and taking a step back, he raised his voice for the entire square to hear him yell, "Recruits, you will open your foot locker and retrieve your ID Tags. You will put these around your neck and unless your neck becomes separated from your body, you will NOT remove your ID Tags!"
With this the recruits all scrambled to retrieve their ID Tags, and Solasta hastily pulled her chain over her head and stuffed it in her pocket. Kneeling to open her footlocker for her ID Tags, the Sergeant said, "I had better not see you wearing that again."
The next forty-five minutes were filled with instructions on where to go pickup their uniforms and change, how they were to pack their footlockers, and the process for stowing their footlockers on the military transport when it arrived to take them to Carida Academy.
When the transport arrived and everything was stowed to the Sergeant's satisfaction everyone lined up and boarded the ramp. As they lifted off and made their way through the atmosphere, destined for the Military Academy on Carida, Solasta closed her eyes and relaxed for the long trip.