Epsilon Ursae Minoris

=Epsilon Ursea Minoris=

Initially discovered by Skrell probes in 2342, Epsilon Ursea Minoris, or generally referred to as EUM, is a habitable world home to multiple Dionae civilizations and clusters. While not the homeworld of the species, EUM is the largest-known world to have been colonized exclusively by Dionae without contact or help from outside species, being home to the Dionae for thousands of years prior to discovery. =History=

Pre-Contact
The exact year Dionae landed on the planet is unknown, however, it is generally believed they arrived around ten thousand years ago through a Dionae meteorite that crashed in the site now known as Point Entry. The majority of EUM’s history is somewhat of a mystery as the Dionae inhabitants hadn’t had a system of writing for the majority of their history, instead of passing their stories and history down through a more oral tradition. This, along with artifacts discovered over the years are largely what is used to approximate their history. What is known is that the majority of the planet’s civilizations and clusters were centered around Point Entry in the northern continent. Many of these original Dionae wandered the planet nomadically as they tried to find places of warmth and sunlight, with some eventually settling down to form permanent villages and cities. These villages were largely small and built-in places with a lessened ozone layer that allowed for a greater degree of UV light to hit the inhabitants below. One of the more notable aspects of these villages were the great towers and pillars built as a way to get closer to the entity many of the Dionae worshipped, the Sun. The towers were generally also capable of sending more light down below to the tower’s base, providing the inhabitants of the village with more life-giving energy. While these mega towers were often used only as temples and places of worship, some also incorporated them into their general architectural style, using the tops of the towers as houses and other structures and connecting them via bridges. No stories or evidence of warfare between the planet’s inhabitants have ever been found, although most villages still had some form of militia guard to help protect against any wandering dangerous animals that may happen to attack. These guards were often equipped with bows and arrows that contained a paralytic poison that would put whatever it touches to sleep in an almost death-like state to be transported and released elsewhere. While a myriad of ancient religions did exist on the planet over the years, many had some form of sun-worship integral to them. Oftentimes it was to praise the sun for granting them life and the ability to thrive on the planet. The most practiced of these religions, the Light’s Accord, did rightfully believe they came to the planet from a crashed meteorite, believing the sun is the beacon that originally pulled the meteorite to land on the planet. Villages practicing the faith oftentimes built large towers to help feel they can be closer to the sun, as well as a way to radiate more light down below to other structures in the village. Despite the majority of the planet’s city-states being independent, some prominent civilizations did exist by the time of first contact, most notably the Gleaners Of Bliss, the Mada, the Ekane Of the Bottomless Waves, and the Zilm Choir.

Contact
The initial discovery of the planet was made in 2342 by the Nralakk Federation, sending probes down to scan what they believed was a habitable, albeit uninhabited planet. Upon discovering the planet was already populated by Dionae inhabitants, contact was made strictly forbidden. The discovery prompted the construction of an observation post in orbit of EUM, with the majority of the staff being that of Skrell, however, several Dionae were brought in attempts to decipher the society below. Observation would continue unhindered for roughly a decade before it was decided that first contact was necessary. Despite plans being put forth, the Observation Post was too little too late. The Dionae of the Ozaka Gleaners had managed to conglomerate their Geras’ and eventually created a rather rudimentary satellite dish, resulting in a flurry of signals that sent the Observation Post haywire. The Dionae staff was quickly pushed to begin contact attempts, only having been considered concluded many months after the fact, with contact officially being established in 2390.

Establishment Of The CT-EUM
While the Nralakk Federation did largely wish to leave the planet to self-governance due to distance from the Federation and as a sort of experiment, The Federation did play a large part in uplifting the planet’s inhabitants and with the creation of the primary government of the planet, the CT-EUM, also known as the Co-operative Territories of Epsilon Ursae Minoris. The CT-EUM was initially established as an economic agreement between the Gleaners, the Mada, and the Ekane to help centralize the planet’s economy and currency for more efficient trade with the outside galaxy. While each nation and city-state under the CT-EUM is technically independent, they agreed to elect a council to act on their behalf and interests to the galaxy as a whole, as well as settle any disputes members of the CT-EUM have with each other. Since first contact and the establishment of the CT-EUM, the planet has largely become more and more industrialized, with many shifting away from agricultural production and moving towards mining and refinement of natural resources on the planet. In recent years the CT-EUM has also begun to establish mining sites in the nearby asteroid fields and planets located within EUM’s solar system, as well as talks of purchasing nearby solar systems to mine and later sell their natural resources. Perhaps to participate in the birth of a new nation or to escape the clutches of the authoritarianism of the Nralakk Federation, many Skrell have flocked to the EUM and helped Establish the city-state of Nral’Daaq, the only city-state of the CT-EUM not inhabited almost exclusively by Dionae on the planet. While some skrell do find themselves in the other nations and city-states of the planet, Nral’Daaq has become home to the vast majority of the planet’s alien population. =Government=

Hailing themselves as the Co-operative Territories of Epsilon Ursae Minoris, the Dionae oversee their planet similar to that of a federal democracy. It is largely governed by the Council of Delegates, who are elected representatives from most recognized nation and city-state across the planet. Despite the planetary government conforming to that of a democratic ideal, internal politics are considerably different. The Gleaners align themselves closer to that of the Harmonius Hymn, instead of placing equal importance on all of those within its congregations. The planetary government is largely attributed to existing in its current state due to the influence that the Gleaners hold across the planet. The Ekane positions closer to that of the Seasoned Song. Seniority is considered to be invaluable to those within the nation, with the majority of those in positions of power typically on the cusp of becoming immobile. This has bled over into their way of life, with the younger members often exploited to the benefit of the elders. The Mada operates similarly to that of the Gleaners, aligning itself to the Harmonius Hymn, however, frequently veers into the realm of the Competence Choir. Experienced gestalts within the Mada are often considered to be more valuable than those who haven’t yet had the opportunity to do so. Lastly, the Zilm Choir exists in a state of Chaotic Carcophony - not yet able to choose which direction the Cluster should move forward with. There are growing numbers of political disparity among the Cluster, with many fearing a possible divide. While still a somewhat major power on the planet, the Zilm Choir is the largest power on the planet not officially apart of CT-EUM, although still does trade with them regularly.

United
Considered to be the capital of the CT-EUM, United is an independent city-state solely created for the purposes of remaining neutral as a place for the Council of Delegates to convene. While still technically a part of the CT-EUM United is not given any seats or positions within the Council Of Delegates, however, if an issue does arise that the Council needs to handle an elected United Speaker is chosen to address them with the city’s concerns. The city does not have any major production or exports, focusing more on tourism as the city is the second-most visited city on the planet, second only to Nral’Daaq. Dionae from the city tend to be more service-minded while working off-world such as as a chef or bartender.

Gleaners Of Bliss
Gestalts apart of the Gleaners Of Bliss often sport mind-types similar to that of Harmonious Hymn or Competence Choir, largely as a result of the configuration of their society. Equality and fairness are some of the main tenets of those from Gleaner cities, however, this has been criticized by many as being hypocritical due to the imperialistic actions of those within the group. With the rise of globalism across Minoris, the belief in the cluster’s superiority has only become more evident - with the “encouragement” that other clusters must align themselves closer to their viewpoints. Due to the cluster’s mining proficiency, many of its gestalts often sport fungi-like appearances.

Since first contact with the outside galaxy was established Gleaner-Aligned cities have begun to move away from their worship of the Sun and instead taken on the beliefs of the Eternal, although generally placing more empathize on the Stars as the embodiment of Energy, Light, and Essence. While they do consider themselves members of the Orthodox branch of The Eternal, some have begun to call themselves the Starlit Eternal.

Nral’Daaq
As a place where all Skrell come to live within the CT-EUM, Dionae from Nral’Daaq can be of any mind type, due to the chaotic nature of blood and opinions that dwell here. They can be Pro-Federation, or sympathize with those attempting to escape the Federation. The city itself is a mix of Dionae and Skrell architecture, the older parts being originally dionae in the form before the newer buildings being influenced by the skrell. A somewhat contentious point amongst the population of the city, Nral’Daaq houses the Federation Embassy.

The city is somewhat divided between the more developed areas around the Federation Embassy mostly home to Skrell supportive of the Federation and the less-developed areas home to skrell with more negative views on the Federation. As a result of a myriad of anti-Federation protests taking place over Federation practices such as the social credit system, the Nralakk Federation has pressured the CT-EUM to put more funding into hiring police and giving them additional equipment to protect Nralakk citizens in the city. This new police force, mostly staffed by pro-Federation skrell, has been cracking down on anti-Federation movements, setting up checkpoints, using more dangerous methods to put a stop to protests, and pressuring the city’s government to sign laws prohibiting anti-federation speech, claiming it will only hurt the CT-EUM’s relations with the Federation by not doing so.

Mada
Generally, those from the Mada show mind-types similar to either Tyrannical Tune or Singular Sound, which stems from the cluster’s autocratic beliefs. The Mada shy away from the notion that of individuality. It is a blight among Minoris that individuality exists, and is a sign of decaying traditions. There must be a sense of unity within society that makes it a singularity - fractured gestalts will not survive the harshness of Minoris. Dissimilar to others, the cluster attempts to maintain somewhat isolated, only interacting when necessary - which has resulted in the peaceful co-existence of smaller citystates not independently recognized across the planet with the Mada. Due to the environment in which the Mada Cluster finds itself, they often have leafy appearances with eyes elongated from their torso.

Ekane Of the Bottomless Waves
Those from Ekane normally exhibit mind-types similar to either Tyrannical Tune or Seasoned Song, originating from the cluster’s belief in experiences derived from age. Whilst there exists a level of meritocracy within the Ekane Cluster, it is usually influenced by the experiences gathered, as well as the age of the gestalt in totality. Those that have survived on Minoris for long periods of time are often revered as being strong, wise conglomerates of nymphs - especially due to the turbulent circumstances of the planet that often make surviving difficult. Those from Ekane usually display themselves with headtails similar to that of Skrell, or thick beards of vines to support the overseer nymph.

Notably, the Ekane are considered the most “migratory” nation on the planet, generally sailing across the seas in floating cities known as Ekane Arks. What permanent settlements the Ekane do have generally found on the bottom of the ocean or near coastlines, with their inhabitants mining underwater and sending it to the surface-dwelling Arks to be refined and traded away.

Zilm Choir
Due to its relative “youth”, the Zlin Choir is one of the more freeform city-states on the planet. There is no distinctive culture that exists across the gestalts, however, Chaotic Carcophony is a popular mind-type for those that belong to the Zlin Choir. There are inklings of niches into which the Cluster may expand, but it’s still far too early to tell. The future may bring exciting changes.

Citizenship
CT-EUM citizenship is fairly easily obtained compared to the way some other galactic nations handle theirs. The person applying must live on the planet, although they can leave without forfeiting citizenship. There are no issues with applying for citizenship with other nations and/or holding dual citizenship, notably, those from EUM can apply and hold dual citizenship with the Nralakk Federation and vice versa, those from the Federation can apply for CT-EUM citizenship and still hold their original Federation Citizenship.

While many nations and city-states under the CT-EUM do offer their own citizenship, CT-EUM citizenship is generally required to go off-world and be recognized as a citizen of the planet. Almost all nations of the planet, including the few not a part of the CT-EUM, allow for dual citizenship with both their own citizenship and CT-EUM citizenship. =Economy= Prior to the discovery of the Skrell, the Dionae operated an economy that could largely be considered "barter-and-trade". Early on in the expansion of the Dionae, it was understood that these newer regions come with a wealth of resources that wouldn't necessarily be found elsewhere - resulting in what was called the "Beneficial Pact of Trade". The rudimentary alliance between the growing nations guaranteed that a fair amount of resources must be divided among the recognized Clusters in an attempt to establish a mutually assured extinction should the agreement be defaulted on. It largely served as the foundation for the establishment of the Co-operative Territories of Epsilon Ursae Minoris. It has changed incredibly since the adoption of the Federation sqiips shortly after contact with the Skrell. Initially, the introduction of sqiips had widespread difficulties, mostly exposing cracks within the simple economy of the CT-EUM. The planet quickly descended into a recession, at the brink of an economic collapse. It soon become apparent that the initiation of sqiips was the root of the problem, with Grizzled Pilgrim of the Pious Eternal eventually passing reforms aimed to restructure the economy to better accommodate the changing times. Today, the "Beneficial Pact of Trade" continues. The Clusters maintain the "barter-and-trade" approach as they had before being introduced to the Orion Spur, only utilizing the sqiips and Solarian credits in circumstances whereby the foreign market comes into play - essentially imports and exports. The majority of the industries across Minoris have been nationalized and under the direct oversight of Gleaners Of Bliss, who cite the collectivization of the economy as having been necessary at the time. =Environment= The fifth orbiting body of the Epsilon Ursae Minoris System, EUM-5 has an orbital period of 645 days. It takes roughly 18 hours to complete a singular revolution around its own axis, and experiences twin-dawns and twin-dusks thanks to its two satellites; Ena and Anu. The average annual temperature of Minoris rests at 22.6°C and experiences almost year-round rainfall. Due to this, and a combination of other factors, it is not unheard of for seasonal monsoons to cause flash floods that tear through the landscape with ferocity (and great velocity). Several intricately carved stones have been placed throughout the regions of Minoris, creating a song of warning when the wind begins to blow in potentially hazardous environments. Minoris is a relatively “young” planet and is a hotbed for tectonic activity resulting in routine earthquakes that often disturb the cities inhabiting its surface, namely across the southern Sazkan bluffs. Despite the disturbances being rather destructive, some yield untapped treasures kept deep beneath the crust. It is largely believed that after the traumatizing ordeal of surviving these devastating tremors, the Dionae began exploiting the resources exposed to them -- resulting in advanced underground mines even before the species managed to explore the world they found themselves on. Minoris has two natural satellites, Ena and Anu. Both are roughly half the size of Luna and are yet to be colonized. It is largely believed that they were once a singular orbiting body, but eventually suffered a catastrophic celestial event that resulted in its splitting. The presence of large craters across the surface of Minoris, as well as the foreign sediments located within, is largely attributed to the splitting of Ena and Anu. Due to their size and distance, Minoris does not experience any abnormal tidal differences or gravitic anomalies.

Seasons
A year on Minoris is 645 days divided into 5 months, each with 129 days each. There are three conventional seasons on Minoris, revolving around the average global changes in climate throughout the year. Each season is roughly 215 days, usually encompassing just under two months. Vessizk is the first season. A cold front typically marks the beginning of the season. The first snowfall usually marks the beginning of hardships for the Dionae. Although having advanced preparation and technology helps mitigate many risks, earlier Dionae were extremely vulnerable and many often didn't make it through the season because of the high level of risk. Despite the hellish conditions, some of the oldest, bark-covered structures on the planet still exist. But despite their massive size, they have become increasingly uncaring towards the outside world, and respond rarely or never to it. Throughout Minoris, the weather continues to be cold, and it only begins to change to more comfortable temperatures at the end of Vessizk. Vessizk is characterized by longer nights. Tuzinzi is the second season. Most of the miserable weather brought on by Vessizk has dissipated, and the temperature has begun to increase rather slowly. Tropical storms are infrequent, to begin with, but become more common as temperatures rise - bringing with them the first monsoons of the season known to wreak havoc in its path. The temperature typically reaches its highest towards the very end of Tuzinzi almost just as Hasizk begins. Both day and night are equally as long during Tuzinzi. Hasizk is the third season. During this time, Minoris experiences both the hottest temperatures and most "driest" weather. A great deal of the wetlands begin to dry during this time, leading to large migrations of indigenous fauna to the more hospitable parts of the planet. The last of the seasonal monsoons and tropical storms subside into oblivion, and many refer to Hasizk as the calmest time of the year if one ignores the tectonic disturbances. Hasizk is characterized by much longer days than the rest of the year.

=The Deathflower Journal=

The Deathflower Journal is a famous series of books based on a journal with the same name. Whilst the book series is officially published by the Nralakk Federation as a fiction novel while at the same time providing a layman's education on the Diona species as a whole, the original author of the journal is unknown and its contents show several inconsistencies.

The author of the journal is generally accepted by academics to be Wreshin Tup - or someone who claims to be Wreshin Tup depending on interpretation, a notable figure in Skrell history. Wreshin Tup, however, lived hundreds of years prior to the discovery of Epsilon Ursea Minoris and first contact with Dionae, but this is the only recorded name given in the original journal. Several theories have been proposed regarding the author's origin, each having their own merits yet also having evidence against them being the correct version. The most popular theory is that the journal was penned by a member of a Skrell exploration mission, centuries before first contact with Diona was made, who survived a crash landing onto the planet and began observing the species and their civilization, however, there have been no recorded instances in Epsilon Ursea Minoris’ history of alien vessels crash landing, and no gestalts who could have been living at the time have memories of meeting Skrell before first contact.

The journal itself contains stories, anecdotes, and general notes regarding Dionae, their biology, and the local culture of the planet. Dionae from Epsilon Ursea Minoris who have been interviewed regarding the original journal generally agree that some of the recorded events in the journal line up with their own records, but certain details regarding the species have been disregarded as either being biased, anecdotal, or misunderstood on the authors part. Despite any inaccuracies recorded in the journal, it has been copied and stored as part of the Nralakk Federation's Archive project, and the series based on the journal attempts to stay factual while still being a source of entertainment.