the_wider_world [Scoop!]

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====== The Wider World ====== 

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New Glabe is the home of millions of people who dream of one day making it big. The city is huge, bustling, and vibrant, housing celebrities, billionaires, royalty, and ordinary people just trying to get by.

The capital city of the country of Seldona, New Glabe is of major political importance, containing both the parliament and royal residence. The country's financial district is a global leader and the city hosts a popular Fashion Week every year. Clustered around the west of the city, thousands of talented artists, actors, and musicians contribute to the exciting, inventive culture of New Glabe.

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The Ailsa river flows through the heart of the city, with many visitors flocking to the centre for sightseeing. Property is extremely expensive close to the river, so most people live further out and commute into work using the subway. However, locals and tourists alike make ample use of the beautiful Royal Park that brushes against the northern banks of the Ailsa and provides a peaceful escape from the busy streets. The two miles of trees, lakes and carefully maintained flora and fauna allow for many photo opportunities or quiet reading spots.

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Dozens of skyscrapers tower above the city centre, but life passes at a slower pace in the outer boroughs. Away from the crowds and traffic, independent bookshops, cafes and corner shops nestle within neighbourhoods. The architecture is less glass and metal, more brick and sandstone. 

Towards the north, sandwiched between the city centre and outer suburbs, apartment buildings are packed closely together. People live in small, cramped flats, saving carefully and working hard to support their families and maybe even be the next big success story. The city feels different to everyone who lives in it, but one thing that most of them can agree on is that it feels like //home//.

===== Organisations =====

Many companies of global importance are based in Seldona, and several of these are headquartered in New Glabe. Other key governmental, educational and financial institutions can be found throughout the city. A few examples are:
  * **The New Glabe Lookout:** The Lookout is the main rival to the New Glabe Gazette and has scored a series of groundbreaking exclusives in recent years. Although it was only established fifty years ago, it has quickly grown to become a highly successful publication, with a disruptive lack of tradition.
  * **Seldona Royal University:** The most elite university in Seldona, found in New Glabe.
  * **Toma-Toad:** Toma-Toad is the largest producer of tomato-based products in Seldona.  From tomato sauces to tomato candies, they make everything.  Their cute tomato-themed toad logo makes them instantly recognisable and lovable.  They've been a long time advertiser with the New Glabe Gazette.
  * **Sygyzy Incorporated:** A Seldonan spaceflight technology company. Its ambitious, multi-stage programme to establish a semi-permanent lunar research base, "RAY", has been the subject of much public and academic interest.
  * **Frederick-Chase Management:** Previously **Hafton-Chase Management**, a major hedge fund that has recently gained a new senior partner following the exit of the New Glabe Gazette’s own William Hafton. Managing billions in assets, the fund has consistently achieved market-beating returns for almost 30 years, but little is known about its investment strategies.
  * **SALVO Civil Engineering:** A massive international construction conglomerate, headquartered in New Glabe but with operations around the globe. Currently vying for a major government contract to build several new ports and corresponding infrastructure.
  * **FreshCorp:** The Fresh brand is known around the world, with interests in industries ranging from healthcare to luxury holidays to domestic goods. Originally a food wholesaler, the company has expanded over time, but kept its original branding. Most recently it has begun attempts to break into the world of civil engineering, with a new subsidiary, **FreshCorp Construction**, competing for the same government contracts as the more established **SALVO**.
  * **KoiKarp:** a charity dedicated to stopping the consumption of and harm to fish in New Glabe.
  * **Pasta Partridge:** a bankrupt pasta sauce company and the former major competitor brand to **Toma-Toad**.
  * **Dohong:** A multinational corporation from Kotoraya that has been Seldona's primary provider of rubber since a major merger with Stillwater Industrial 30 years ago.  The company's full name is Dohong-Stillwater Industrial, but it's widely known as "Dohong."




===== The Pragmarium =====
As are many worlds, the planet that hosts Seldona is enveloped in a sky of stars, and as with all such worlds the sun trots around the plane of the ecliptic, illuminating in turn a number of constellations. Many in Seldona believe that the relationship of the twelve signs of the Pragmarium to the sun, moon, and planets can be used to predict future events — and it's become standard for newspapers to print horoscopes on their basis.

^ Sign ^ Time of Year ^ Common traits ^
|Konkh|Early Spring|Intrepid, dreamer|
|Trapeza|Mid Spring|Stable, supportive|
|Melanodoch|Late Spring|Creative, inspired|
|Aegis|Early Summer|Protective, sorrowful|
|Petrad|Mid Summer|Distracted, carefree|
|Kyvos|Late Summer|Straightforward|
|Cherama|Early Autumn|Hard working, lover of nature.|
|Xylak|Mid Autumn|Trustworthy, lover of food|
|Pharmakot|Late Autumn|Good memory, reliable|
|Arkouda|Early Winter|Comforting, kind|
|Kypello|Midwinter|Versatile, adventurous|
|Xiphos|Late Winter|Assertive, just|


===== Relevant NPCs =====

^ Name ^ Pronouns ^ Description ^
|Miranda Hamilton |she/her | Miranda is Seldona's Minister of Finance and is a leading member of the governing Wig party. Charming, capable and politically astute, she is predicted by many to be the next leader of her party.|
|Her Royal Highness the Princess of Ovind|she/her|Charlotte Ava Mercy Anne, Princess of Ovind, Duchess of Gleesheel, Keeper of the Three Lakes, Lady of Chylde, Most Honourable Grandmistress of the Order of the Waters of Minerva, heir apparent to the throne of Seldona. She has plenty of other titles, too, but this is a newspaper and space is at a premium.|
|Argos Strand|any/all|An actor most famous for portraying Lanagore, the protagonist's adoptive father in the //Princess of the Dragons// saga. Struggled to score new roles after becoming so tightly associated with the character, and has spent several years removed from the limelight. Looking to break back into the industry, having scored a role as Lanagore's mother in the soon-to-be-released prequel trilogy.|
|Rebecca 'Skyward' Skye|she/they|A singer/songwriter known for her eclectic style of music: Poppy beats, folk instrumentation, and operatic singing. Commonly attracts controversy for being impossible to work with, as well as her tumultuous love life. Soon to embrace on a publicity tour pending the release of their new album --- GOΔΔESS GARΔEN.|
|Altona Price|he/him|A famous stylist known for popularising the Altona - a pennanular brooch used as a fastening in much of his couture. Often in the papers outside of the style section for his outspoken political views, or embroiled in controversy for the health consequences of his fashion, much of which involves sky-high heels and tightlaced corsetry.| 
|Michael Bills|he/they|The young Chief Executive Officer of //Sygyzy Incorporated// as of a handful of months ago. His serene pragmatism and decisive intelligence are the stuff of urban legend, or more aptly, popular discourse -- though they have become a household name, Michael is not a frequent public speaker himself, and most of what is known of them is due to //Sygyzy's// omnipresence in the news.|
|Evelyn Clark|she/her|A professor of Chemistry at Seldona Royal University. Has been the recipient of public accreditation as a consulted chemical engineer during the launch of the //INTEGRAL// probe, but has since withdrawn from both public life and her long-term association with //Sygyzy.//|