Colony Common Name: Annancale VII
Colony Local Name: Lagaana
Governtment Type: Democratic
Population: 25 million
Principal Exports: petroleum products
History: The only planet in the Annancale system with a breathable atmosphere, Annancale VII is an oceanic world covered with water. The global ocean has a number of relatively shallow areas where large domed cities, called gumbaj, have been constructed.
Where its sister-colony on Agoze V has facilities constructed deep underwater to escape the planet’s high surface temperatures, Annancale’s domes are constructed so that they actually breach the surface. This serves two purposes. First, it allows natural sunlight into the habitation units. Ports at the peak of the domes allow residents access to the surface oceans where pleasure boating, fishing and aquatic sports are widely popular.
The main industry of the colony is the extraction and refining of petroleum. Although tapping into the resources beneath the sea floor is difficult, the volume of the reserves makes it worthwhile. It is estimated that the colony will be able to continue its current processing rates for at least 600 years.
Once the petroleum is collected, it is sent via a planetary pipeline to various processing facilities. A wide variety of products ranging from plastics to fabrics and cosmetics to cleaning chemicals are then produced.
The locals call the colony by the name Lagaana, which translates loosely as “those anointed by the sacred oil.” The fact that Lagaanan ceremonies use a distilled and perfumed petroleum oil is a departure from traditional Intaki ceremonies where the oils are plant based, usually from the jaitoon, an indigenous olive variant.
When its charter was issued, the Lagaanan colonists established a government of democratic representation. Each gumbaj has a governor who is advised by a cabinet of ministers assigned to various areas. The residents of the gumbaj also elect a sabha, or council, to serve as a local legislature.
Each gumbaj also elects a representative to serve in the pradhaan sabha, the planetary council. By tradition, the sabhaasad with the longest tenure serves as the leader of the council and head of state for the colony. In the event two or more sabhaasad should have equal tenure, the members of the pradhaan sabha vote to elect their leader.
Visitors to the colony are encouraged to attend during the annual Jahaaz Chalaana, a sailboat race to circumnavigate the planet. The racecourse, which covers more than 75,000 Km, takes most crews about 40 days to complete. The current record, set two years ago, is just over 36 days.
Another destination is called the Shrine of Sati, a small house that sits on the only known area of land above the ocean’s surface. Sati, an Idama known for her dedication to the self-reflection aspects of the Ida, lived in the house alone for years. Sati was known to entertain host guests, but she preferred to be left alone to consider the many aspects of life.
About 100 years ago the house was discovered empty. There are no records of Sati leaving the colony and no one has seen her since. In the years since her disappearance, the house has become a destination for students of the Ida to stay in isolation for short times while reflecting on their own lives.
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Topic: [Planet] Annancale VII (Read 1962 times)