The Southern Continent

The Southern Continent is more of an tropical archipeligo, a very long one. About a hundred islands dot it from start to finish. There are three main islands that make up the continent, the West Island, Mideel, and the East Island. In the past, the Southern Continent was probably the least visited continent on Earth except for the snow covered Northern Continent, but since the fall of Shinra, all that has changed. A group of politicians and businessmen established the "Next Government of the People" about three months after Midgar was destroyed. They made their home in the ruins of the city Mideel, formerly known for only it's medical care. Since then Mideel became a large metropolican area covering about 50% of the island. It is now the busyest place in the world. On the East Island there is nothing of interest except a small village called Edinburrough. Despite being so close to Mideel, very little is known about Edinburrough. The West Island consists of the ruins of the Temple of the Ancients. Other than that there is one small mountain (that barely earns that name) and an little port on the islands south side.

Mideel
Goverment: The New Government
Mayor: The President
Population: 1,150,000
Military: 40,000 Government Enforcers
Crime Rate: Next to none

In the past, Mideel has been a small island village known only for the quality of it's medical care, and then not that widely. But since Midgar was destroyed by Meteo, this small island village has become the next Midgar, the capital to the New Government. It was picked mostly because of the natural beauty and ecology of the surrounded island, and the small pond of lifestream that erupted a year or so ago. Of course, with demolishonists and architects, the pond is now more of a perfectly circular lake. The city has branched off from this natural wonder, stopping only at either ocean. The most magnificent thing, however, is the Sky Tower. Its design is done in a way so that it appears to be howevering above the lake of lifestream, but in reality it is supported by eight semi-transparent arcs that stretch from the bank to the base of the tower. The base is about two hundred and fifty feet wide, and the full height of the tower is over a mile and a half. Small helicopters and other hovering vehicles constantly buzz under and around the Sky Tower, and a port at the edge of the lake services any number of ways to get to the tower. The bottom mile of the tower serves as offices and headquarters for many businesses (and high paying residents), but the top half mile is reserved strictly for the New Government, as are the domes. The domes are superstructures in their own sense, each half a sphere seemingly made of glass. The tower continues up in through the middle of the first dome to support the second, smaller dome at the pinacle of the tower. Very few men have stories to tell about the domes; only the most important people are allowed up, and usually it is obscured by the clouds. But the city around it is already rivaling what Midgar used to be, and is expanding quite rapidly under the shadow of the Sky Tower.

The New Government currently consists of one President who was nominated in by the rest of the "founding fathers" and is almost never seen in public. He has a group of seven advisors for Public Relations, Spending, Military Operations, Medical Welfare, Food and Agriculture, Business/Imports and Exports, and Law and Order. These advisors may command a great deal of respect, but the President's word is final. Each of the advisors runs they're department consisting of anywhere from 100-1500 people. The New Government currently commands 50,000 Enforcers (police), a small air force made of a few planes and three airships, a capable naval force made up of six dozen submarines and three enourmouse aircraft carriers, each capable of being the landing pad of an airship. There is very little in between.

The New Government hasn't done precious little to help anything except for various businesses, crime, and themselves. They do rake in a great deal of money from their taxes, which do not need to be high considering the large population of Mideel. Their law enforcement is top notch, very top notch. There is literally no crime in the city - except what various Enforcers decide they need to do in the name of the law. The Enforcers generally have a very high ego and are provoked to violence at the slightest violation of the law. However, they tend to do whatever they want, themselves, and the things that some of them want can be pretty inhumane.

There are currently 1,000 Government Enforcers given the job of hunting down all "Shinra renegades." Their definition of Shinra renegade means anyone who is: A member of SOLDIER that has failed to comply with their Mako Severing Process*, anyone that claims to be in connection to Shinra, and basically whoever they feel is their way and need a reason to arrest they call a Shinra renegade.

* - One of the first things the New Government did (what got them the support of the people) was pass a law stating that all persons infused with Mako by Shinra as a part of the SOLDIER process was to be immediatly taken in to one of their facilities, where they would remove the Mako from their body, and be compensated by a healthy amount of Gil. Now this is all well and good to the public that still fears a second Shinra, but the SOLDIERs arent too keen on losing all of their Mako-enhanced talents. Not to mention the rumors that are flying around about what really happens in the Mako Severing chambers...

The New Government has basically gotten a hold into all the cities that they are going to b able to. The Twin Cities, Fort Condor, Wutai, and Edinburrough will probably never change their forms of government, and the higher-ups in Mideel have accepted that.

Edinburrough
Goverment: Unknown
Mayor: Unknown
Population: Estimated little above 2,000
Military: Unknown
Exports: Weapons of all kinds
Crime Rate: None

A strange city located on the island north of Mideel. It isn't very large or tecnologically advanced, it is a simple village. It is a rarely visited place, but among swordsmen and collectors of tales it is supposedly the residents of the worlds best blacksmiths, and the creation of many of the legendary weapons of the world. It has attracted a little more attention since Mideel sprouted up, and this attention has come as unwelcome to the residence. Not much is known other than that, and not even that is known among your average Joes and Janes.

Cetra Temple Excavation
Goverment: The New Government
Mayor: None
Population: 20 friendly guys and gals
Military: None
Exports: Information and Artifacts
Crime Rate: None
 

The new home of the Bone Village Excavation. They were driven out rather rudely by the sprouting up of the Twin Cities and managed to salvage very little. So they decided to try their luck at whats left of the only known structure left behind by the Cetra. Of course, theres actually nothing left of the structure other than a large hole, but there are a lot of artifacts and relics in the surrounding area, and evidence of an ancient civilization. So far all findings have been reported only to the New Government, their main benefactor. A very generous one at that, too. There are 15 buildings on the south side of the island near a small port that serves as a permenant residence for the workers. They also have a lot more equipment now that they are backed by the New Government. The New Government claims that scientific curiosity is what makes them fund the project, which seems a little odd considering that they have done nothing else in the educational/scientific fields (they left the remains of the enourmous Diamond WEAPON north of Midgar, not even bothering to study it). But the workers arent complaining.