Edda

Edda orbits at a considerable distance from its parent star, which would otherwise leave its surface too cold to support human habitation. A network of orbital mirrors supplements the light and heat reaching the surface, rendering the world livable. The planet is served by the Tavrosi Orbital Guard, the military branch responsible for the defense of its orbital installations.

Edda is a world of the Tavrosi Demarchy, whose citizens identify strongly with their clan affiliations. Valka, a xenologist and daughter of the Tavrosi clans, was born and raised on Edda and served in the Tavrosi Orbital Guard before leaving the planet permanently.

Edda falls under the political authority of the Demarchy of Tavros, an independent human polity distinct from the Sollan Empire. The planet was the site of a crisis when Prachar religious nationalists -- a faction operating within or against the Demarchy -- seized a Durantine trading cog in Edda's orbital space and threatened to drop the planet's orbital mirrors onto the surface unless the Demarchy entered negotiations. Valka, then serving in the Tavrosi Orbital Guard, received orders from Command to destroy the terrorists' ship despite more than two thousand captives in fugue aboard. She obeyed the order, killing all aboard. The act resulted in widespread public condemnation across the datasphere. Valka resigned her commission the following day and left Edda, never returning.