A Nation Alone and Vigilant
Nova Zion (2015 Build)
The current construct of what is now the satellite nation of Nova Zion was once a precious mineral mining facility. By the year 10 BNE (Before the New Era), The Mizoguchi Corporation had secured itself as a profitable venture in procuring and mining asteroids for precious minerals. The First Contact Battles had disrupted the operations of the Mizoguchi Corporation to such an extent that the company had to radically sell off many of its assets in order to keep from going bankrupt. A buyer of the facilities would be a conglomerate of scientific fraternities, engineering firms, and private investment interests from India, Taiwan, and the United States. The general goal was to create a mini sovereign nation with a primary focus on combating The Prosecutors without the hindrance of bureaucratic regulation and oversight.
This was an overly idealistic scenario as the United Nations had expanded its power and reach, becoming a global superpower in the wake of the First Contact Battles. With so many nations, governments, and organizations handicapped and in need of assistance, and with a newfound global furor for human unity in the wake of an alien threat, shoring up nations as colonies became the UN’s modus operandi and had little interest in giving aid and support to non UN member states.
The Symbol of Nova Zion
A two-fold problem emerged from this situation for Nova Zion: The satellite nation was on its own without UN support and new Prosecutor threats were only emerging within Nova Zion space (approx. 5.2 billion km^3 [one quarter the volume of the moon]). As early as the year 2 NE (New Era), Nova Zion had established itself as a viable nation and struggled to maintain its unity and survival in the coming years. Starting with only one symphony fighter (the Gm7), Nova Zion would single handedly defend its existence and forge its own future. While the UN would continuously pressure for Nova Zion’s incorporation in the coming years, Nova Zion would only give in to incorporation as a last resort for survival.
Nova Zion (2022 build)
By the year 3 NE, the key power brokers of Nova Zion had agreed on establishing its economic and social system on the AI practice of “New Humanism.” By electing an AI (Or “meta-sentient,” as would be the politically correct term) as president, the power brokers usurped their own power as a means of maintaining social and economic coherency. By this time, different forms of government were allowed to play out and fail and all systems that allowed social, economic, and quality-of-life disparity would be in a very imminent danger of collapse and disintegration. For the power brokers, to choose another option was a risk not worth taking.
While aid and support would arrive from sympathetic organizations, governments, and individuals without UN sponsorship or authorization, Nova Zion would have to find means of procuring international revenue. The collapse of the Taiwanese company Fènghuáng left their signature spacecraft, the “Rockhopper,” open for license-free production and Nova Zion seized on the opportunity to produce Rockhoppers for sale with a key emphasis on luxury, safety, and customization. While Nova Zion provides other services, such as communication bandwidth hosting, the Rockhopper is Nova Zion’s primary source of revenue.
The Nova Zion Anthem
Nova Zion! Nova Zion!
Our starry home we pledge to thee!
To keep all of our people safe
From threats beyond what we can see
Nova Zion! Nova Zion!
We pledge to carry on the fight!
To protect all the innocent
Our one true guiding light!
Notes & Trivia
- The CGI Nova Zion in the pilot episode is unique due to the fact that it was completely rebuilt from the ground up for the second episode. When Esteban Gunn tried using the first completed model, it was so big and taxing on his computer, that the frame rate in the modeler was at about a frame per 20 seconds. The new Nova Zion is much more smooth, due to the fact that it was built with a mind to maintain polygon counts. The Nova Zion used, in both old and new cases, is a fully completed model.
- As a homage to the Metal Gear Solid series, Nova Zion looks similar to Mother Base. Additionally, "Nova Zion" loosely translates to "Outer Heaven."