• The Zelada system was colonised at roughly the same time as Ququve, but by a
fundamentalist religious sect, looking for a world to conduct a penance for humanity. The
conditions they found on New Africa suited their requirements to a remarkable degree. The life
was tough, uncompromising and harsh. The arrivals on New Africa had to cope with a bitter
climate, coupling torrential sleet and electrical storms with hurricane strength winds and fast
moving glaciers. The first three settlements were overrun by these natural forces and all of the
initial equipment they brought from Quphieth was lost within the first decade.
• Modern archeological and paleontological surveys of the planet reveal that at one
time the temperature of New Africa was much more benign than at present. The world is
going through a very prolonged ice age, but before the current cold cycle there was the
opportunity for life to colonise the land. The animals which are native to the land of new
Africa are fierce hunters and can survive in the harsh climate which will freeze a man to the
bone in seconds. The early colonists had to re-learn primitive hunting skills and abilities in
order to survive and their descent into primitivism was swift.
• The strict conditions the early settlers had placed concerning interference with the
colony from outside meant that no contact was established with the groups for three
generations. The early religious settlers had emphatically stated that no outside
communications would be accepted and supplies would be destroyed. It was entirely by
accident that the Birchwood New Spirit of the Lord Woodwind Ensemble, en-route for
Aymiay for a concert performance, was precipitated out of hyper space near the Zelada
system. The crew of the ship were able to reach orbit around New Africa and put down an
emergency shuttle. The tiny settlement thus formed was later to grow into Rush Depot, the
planet's largest starport.
• While the musicians tried to eke out an existence at Rush Depot, the ship crew
searched for the original colonists. No evidence of the original camps was found, but
the primitive society of the final remnants of the religious order was encountered, living
a nomadic life hunting the local omnivores and harvesting wild grasses and roots.
Instead of making contact, the ship captain decided to leave the remnants of humanity in
peace and instead sent an emergency rescue message to the Federation, describing the plight
of both groups.
• New Africa was recolonised by an assorted group of wanderers, to no set plan. The
initial colony had failed and a sort of planetary squatter's rights became the norm in
establishing rules on New Africa. This trend continues today, and the planet suffers under an
anarchy with no clear constitution nor allegiance. Zelada system has become synonymous
with banditry and hi-jacking, but the mineral rich outer worlds still attract a lot of miners and
hopefuls. Traders visit the system despite the high incidence of piracy, and freelance bounty
hunters find the bulletin boards of Zelada a useful hunting ground for information.
Entry by David Massey
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