Major Cities of Annexea

For the most part, Annexea has a vast, sprawling decentralized population. However, there are several important cities throughout Annexea. [stub]

Barat

Barat is the largest port city in Annexea, located on its southern coast on the lower jaw of the Maw. Barat is considered to be the epitome of Annexean society, at least measured on the scale of chaos and corruption. Immigrants to Annexea must pass through Barat (alhough the immigration policy is very lax), and a large portion of Annexean trade goods pass through this city.

*Slurp*

Slurp is the home of the Ectoplasmicon. The name refers to the sound by objcects being sucked into a vortex, or food being sucked into a mouth. It is meant to convey the absorption metaphor of Ectoplasm, though for outsiders it generally only creates very awkward sounding conversation.

Slurp is located in central Interzone, the symbolic heart of the Ectoplasmic state. It is important to note that Slurp is not considered a capital city, nor even the central "Church" of Ectoplasm; such sentiments would contradict its decentralized philosophy. Rather, Slurp is thought of as a, for lack of a better word, holy place, a sort of Shrine to Ectoplasm.

Very few people have seen Slurp. This is not because of security, which, though prominent there, is not an obstacle to a visit. For the most part, people have no reason to go there, and so they do not. Devout Ectoplasmicites do visit once every year to touch the Ectoplasmicon.

Those who do travel to Slurp will find a ruined city in a permanent dark fog that smells of rotten eggs. It is abandoned except for the Ectoplasmicon, his followers, and guards from the Annexean Army. In one of the abandoned buildings, an Ectoplasmicite can seek Ectoplasm (drugs are always available here).

The Formation of Slurp

According to legend, Slurp was once a bustling city in central Annexea, during the period of the Cell State. Its people prospered, enjoyed themselves, and the city grew. However, as the city became larger, "corruption" began to seep in, and soon, the city was plunged into chaos. According to some, a literal black cloud settled on the city, a dark haze that persists in Slurp to this day (Skeptics say the Ectoplasmicon has smog machines, Mugwumps say its the exhaust from superhuman creation machines). Chaos reigned for days or years, depending on who you ask. Babies were born with deformities (rumored to be from nuclear testing done nearby), diseases ran rampant, and the two most common causes of death were suicide and murder. It was in this chaos, the pinnacle of corruption in the Cell State, into which the Ectoplasmicon was born. After this point, the legend varies wildly. According to the most popular story, the Ectoplasmicon became the embodiment of Ectoplasm, and all those near it would be infected. As it wandered the streets, the people, weakened by their years of complacency (or for the younger ones, years of chaos), would either be overwhelemed by his prescence and killed, or become Ectoplasmicites themselves. After a month, all that was left of the city was smoking ruins, corpses, and the Ectoplasmicon. According to the Liquefactionists, not only did the Ectoplasmicon kill everyone, but through the force of Ectoplasm, they were melted into the substance itself, which flowed, as into a drain (hence, *slurp*), into an underground chamber that is now the Ectoplasmicon's vat of Ectoplasm. No one is completely sure what is actually in the vat, but this story seems to make a good metaphor of it.

Freeland City

Freeland City is both the capital of the Freeland region of Annexea and the most prominent center of research in Annexea. Most current biological and chemical research is based in Freeland, where scientists are given excellent treatment. Freeland City is considered the most authoritarian area in all of Annexea; its government has more of a purpose and desire for order than the rest of Annexea.

Qezzef City

Qezzef City is the diplomatic capital of Annexea. All embassies of foreign nations are located in this city. Foreign affairs and International Commerce also have their offices here. The Qezzef School of Government is located in Qezzef City as well, the illustrious university at which most government students study. The University is the only Interzone-owned land in Qezzef City, however, aside from asserting a great amount of control over the curriculum and the attendees, the Qezzefi are given local authority.

Interzone University

The Interzone University is in northeastern Interzone, near the border with Freeland. The IU is the largest University in Annexea, and has its largest campus, holding about 100,000 people, at the aforementioned location. For the most part, IU refers to this location. The Interzone University has been in existence for several hundred years, having been built long before the Ectoplasmic State. In this time it has been renovated, rebuilt, set on fire, blown up, and otherwise worn. It is only a mile apart from the Freeland Technical Institute, established about half a century later due to increased demand for a specialized scientific curriculum.

Attendance to the University is limited to residents of Annexea who achieve certain proficiency during their secondary schooling. The IU has a focus on practical science (like Engineering for Oil Wells, Deforestation, etc.), but offers some education in other subjects, like the Humanities. Students interested in becoming scientists generally go to Freeland, and those hoping for a career in politics go to Qezzef, but everyone else is likely to attend IU, if anywhere.

Bassa Resort

The people of Bassa, capitalizing on their beautiful, refreshing, and surprisingly tranquil island region, have recently contructed a huge resort area for tourists. The Bassa Resort was built largely with government money, with the Annexean Government reluctantly accepting that tourism would be more economically beneficial than, say, more suburbs, or an expanded deforestation effort.

The Bassa Resort was completed only a few years ago, and even now, it is being refined and expanded to meet a variety of tastes. The resort boasts a plethora of exotic drinks and "soothing" substances (i.e. drugs, this is Annexea, after all), beautiful flora and fauna in the surrounding forests, and miles of pristine beaches. Admittedly, the occassional oil tanker can be seen in the distance heading towards the southern Interzone coast, but for the most part, it is a pleasant atmosphere.

Politics of the Bassa Resort

The creation of the Bassa Resort demonstrates the independence that the regions of Annexea can assert. The resort violates many Annexean policies - don't preserve nature, don't let outsiders in without absorbing them into the society, don't be hedonistic. However, the Bassa people have a more easygoing, optimistic culture than that of the Ectoplasmic Interzone, so a resort seemed to be the perfect project. It was Foreign Affairs that eventually convinced the International Commerce Bureau that there would be significant benefits from such name recognition, and that it would be quite profitable to give outsiders a misleading, sugar-coated image of Annexea.

The control of the resort was given to Bassa, and aside from occassional inspections by the Annexean government, is left to its own devices.