Zephyr
The planet of Zephyr orbits a G0 type star almost 100 light years from Sol and was colonised in 2433, towards the end of the third dynasty of the resource management world government.
The government was inspired partly by the Neo-anarcho-syndicalist works of Tanrin Jay and partly by the writings of the anti-nationalists on late 24th century Earth. It was organised into a series of Clans which despite their theoretical differences operated rather like nation states, altough they could more easily unite when called to face a common foe.
Less than a hundred years after foundation, Zephyr had become a relatively wealthy system in the unusual position of being far enough from the main centres of power within The Solar Group to consider itself only weakly attached to their political and economic structures yet not in such a fledgling state of organisation that it was dependent on continuous external investment to maintain the structures of its society.
At this time, the erratic and draconian policies of the 4th dynasty of the Resource Management World Government were causing concern and even consternation in the Solar Group. The S'arys contract had already demonstrated that Earth could no longer command total authority over its colonies and Gallian trading gangs had broken the monopoly of the Great Commercial League. Even so, the Zephyr Insurrection of 2531 was the first time that a system had openly declared independence from the Solar Group. Forces loyal to Earth offered only a token resistance to the new order and the relative ease with which the coup was accomplished sent shockwaves throughout the Solar Group and led to a spasm of authoritarian action elsewhere by the Resource Management World Government.
Historians now consider that the Zephyr Insurrection was an important trigger for the events that led to the end of the 4th dynasty of the Resource Management World Government as recounted in the Nine Meditations In The Temple Of Chromatic Enlightenment.
In later years as the Bubble began to fragment, The Republic sought to bring Zephyr under its control, a take over which the system successfully rebuffed. From the late 26th century to the end of the 29th, when the Solar Group and the Republic vied for influence and authority throughout the region, Zephyr retained its independence, operating in a narrow buffer zone between the two powers.
Geography
Zephyr is aproximately half way between the diameter and mass of Earth and Mars. It orbits its sun at a mean distance of 1.2 AU. With the primary star being a little brighter than Sol, the temperature levels and climatic conditions are remarkably close to Earth.
A single ocean occupies about seventy five percent of the planet's surface and covers both poles. There are four significant landmasses; Boreas the smallest is close to the northern pole, Zephryos is the largest and spans the equator. Notos is an egg shaped continent south of Zephryos, and Eurus lies to its east and also spans the equator.
The human presence on the planet is principly concentrated on Zephryos and Boreas, but small settlements can be found on all four continents.
In the Steeple Hills of north Zephryos, the Non-aligned Ishiguro Clan maintain a Planet School called Highwitch. It is partly artistic and partly scientific in nature and centred around the Prism, an evolving scutpture built with artificially constructed gem stones, molten resin and sacks of shocked crystal pearls taken from the thermal vents in the higher reaches of the Steeple Hills. The Prism is designed to catch the sunlight rising over the Steeple Hills and refract it over the Highwitch study centre.
Further south where the river Rantle flows into the river Ilk, there is a famous Planet School called Ishfanar which is a well known centre of intellectually rigorous scholarship.
Zephyr : The Prism at Highwitch by DMFW
Fauna & Flora
Zephyr is a world with a rich native flaura and fauna, supplemented by alien species brought from Earth and from Green Home.
In the mountainous regions where the Whitefire Rapids emerge from the Steeple Hills, the famous Mist Forests are home to the chatter kings, a native animal looking something like a large black and white lumur. There are at least five genera of fur birds with more than a hundred distinct species in this region alone.
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