System: Denebola

Denebola V, known to its inhabitants as either Everwood or Lyracropis, is a cool world with untouched woodlands covering almost eighty percent of its equatorial and tropical zones. The three giant landmasses of Neurasia, Zadipos, and Slovakia, which straddle these regions, are home to most of the planetary population, which established its cities along the winding rivers that cut through the forested lands. The northern and southern regions, by comparison, are virtually devoid of life, as polar caps extend well into the temperate zones, retreating ever so slowly at what experts believe is the receding edge of a planetary ice age.

When this world was first settled, Denebola's ice caps reached as far as the northern tropical latitudes, and the early colonists considered various means of terraforming the world to open more land up for farming. Time and economics, however, were not conducive to such a venture, as the faltering Terran Alliance attempted to assert its authority over the independent-minded settlers. Denebola V was the first of the early Terran colonies to declare its independence from the Alliance, and successfully repelled that ill-fated government's efforts to bring its population in line. This independence would be short-lived, however.

Virtually isolated after securing their freedom, the inhabitants of Denebola soon found themselves forced to rely on loose trading alliances with various local systems for badly needed equipment to survive on their cold world, an ironic result of Terra's sudden shift toward isolationism. Disease and poorly executed agricultural programs added to the planet’s woes, and several early settlements died out completely, resulting in a fractured population as local communications broke down. Two separate colonial groups survived, one on the frosty northern reaches of Zadipos, the eastern continent, and the other on the hilly, river-crossed land of Neurasia in the central equatorial zones. Both colonial settlements presumed the others were lost as central government collapsed on Denebola, until years later, when the ascendance of the Terran Hegemony brought Denebola back into touch with the rest of the galactic community.

The arrival of the Hegemony, and the Star League after that, saved the Denebolans from the brink of oblivion, but those who remained were some of the hardiest and most stubborn of the planet’s population, adapted to years of living and forging a living in relative isolation. The trouble came when the Hegemony attempted to help the locals establish a central authority for the planet, as the Zadipos and Neurasian peoples each claimed the right to self-rule. A series of compromises averted what looked like the onset of a brushfire war on Denebola, as the Hegemony brokered the formation of a confederation-style government.

Allowing each of the two populations to see to its own affairs, while representatives from each made planetary-level decisions using an as-needed planetary council forum. This loose confederation and dual-government state evolved into a more homogeneous combination and centralized government after the fall of the Star League, as Denebola, lying right on the border of the Lyran Commonwealth and the Free Worlds League, changed ownership a number of times through the centuries. The resulting influx of off-world immigrants with each change of hands, mixed with the planet's past as a dual-society world, has resulted in a cosmopolitan melting pot.

Today, Denebola still maintains capital cities for each of its continents. Zadipos' capital, Fallen Star, is nestled on the western cost and is home to a thriving fishing community and regional defense post, while New Bonn covers the entire northern edge of the large inland Lake Diamond on Neurasia, and maintains several prime logging and farming industries. The official planetary capital, St. Cameron, is located on the eastern Rhyde Peninsula of Slovakia, and is home to Denebola's largest spaceport.

There are no functional factories located on this planet.