Arkansas Protectorate

The **Arkansas Protectorate** is a mixed Human-Zentraedi nation in North America.

## History

For a few years, the Arkansas Protectorate was a model of Human-Zentraedi cooperation that could have served as the inspiration for achieving so much. Instead, it was bought low by political pressures, both from without and within.

As the name suggests, the Protectorate was born from the ruins of the old state of Arkansas. The region was devastated in the Rain of Death, with no major cities surviving. The population were scattered, reduced to small towns and isolated communities, many struggling simply to survive. At the same time, a number of damaged and depleted ships from Jiabao Battalion, a part of Dolza's fleet crashed in the region. While most of the crews didn't survive, those that did created a community named for their former unit in the heart of the region. After taking stock of what they had, they began to explore the region to see what they could find.

These Zentraedi spread out across the landscape, making contact with the human survivor communities spread across the region. At first, the humans were justifiably afraid of the alien giants, but then attitudes began to shift. Despite having been a part of Dolza's fleet, these Zentraedi were more sympathetic towards the humans, and began to quietly appoint themselves as their protectors, even if the humans were unaware of it. They used their size and remaining weapons to defend communities against various threats, such as raiders and bandits.

However, the most decisive action came when a group of Zentraedi survivors from a different Battalion tried to invade the region themselves. The local Zentraedi forces stood against them, fighting to protect human settlements. This marked a shift in local attitudes, with the humans being willing to accept the Zentraedi's protection. Soon they had formed a collection of communities that were essentially guarded by the giant warriors, which came to be known as the Arkansas Protectorate (although it had grown past the boundaries of the state and extended all the way to the Gulf of Mexico).

The Zentraedi worked alongside the human population to rebuild the region. Many of them learned construction and engineering skills, turning their size and strength towards building projects. The architecture of the region became a unique case, with many structures built to accommodate giant Zentraedi, who ever increasingly were seen as being a normal part of society. Officially, the Protectorate was ruled by the Zentraedi, who were in turn run to their old rank structure, but the majority human population were seen as partners and equals.

After some hesitation, the UEDF officially recognised the Protectorate and its government. While many were wary of the idea of having what was seen as a Zentraedi state in North America, others saw it as a chance to promote cooperation and unity. The state soon became a magnet for Zentraedi immigrants from across the continent who saw a chance for a new start and a better life. Even after Khyron's suicide attack on the SDF-1 and the start of the Malcontent Uprisings, many held it up as an alternative to be aspired to.

Officially, the nation was free from Malcontent groups, but the uprisings affected it in other ways. In 2016, a covert investigation found that the Protectorate was supplying weapons to a number of Malcontent groups across the Americas despite their neutrality. (in recent years, uncovered records have suggested that this evidence may have been fabricated by parties within the UEG to provide an excuse to invade). As such, the UEG were forced to directly intervene in order to end the flow of weapons. UDEF troops entered the country under the banner of Operation TIGER, both to shut down the arms dealers and effectively take control of it from its Zentraedi rulers. Outside of a few firefights with weapons suppliers, they found very little resistance to their actions, with many of the Zentraedi hoping for a peaceful resolution to the conflict.

This lead to the creation of Camp Alpha, a detention facility for Zentraedi from across North America. The camp was run by the UEG, with its inmates kept there under guard by armed soldiers and Destroids. Those in the camp underwent involuntary micronisation, with unconfirmed claims that a number of Zentraedi died of complications from the process. Camp Alpha was shut down due to public outcry, but not before it was the target of a failed attack by the Steel Wind malcontent band.

After a transitional period, power was officially handed back to the Zentraedi authorities. However, there were a number of changes to the way that the country was run that would bring an end to its great experiment. The Protectorate was bought into the UEG, with 'observers' put in place to ensure compliance and that there were no further dealings with Malcontent groups. These operated at every level, meaning that the government could not act without approval. Finally, the Zentraedi protectors were now working alongside UEDF forces who had authority over their actions.

Following the end of the Uprisings, compulsory Micronization was introduced to the protectorate. The government agreed with the plan, having effectively lost all their power to the UEG. The massive structures that had been built to house the Zentraedi populace were either repurposed or simply replaced. With this came an increase in the power and influence of the human populace of the region. Reforms gave them a greater say in governance, and it was not long before the majority of the Protectorate's leadership was made up of humans.

The changing attitudes of the UEG during the 2020s only served to further reinforce these changes. By the start of the Second Robotech War, the Arkansas Protectorate was a majority human state, with the Zentraedi populace living mostly in rural communities or Zeetown districts within the major cities. Sadly, the state suffered from bursts of anti-Zentraedi rioting during the war, with false accusations of collaboration or espionage running rife. The truth was that the Zentraedi population were just as much victims as anyone else, and none of them had any desire to be the Master's slaves again.

Following the war, the Protectorate's government chose to reassert its independence, even though by that point it had no resemblance to its original incarnation. It tuned isolationist and closed its borders, choosing to have little interaction with the outside world. Its Zentraedi population, however, were acutely aware of a new threat emerging as the Flower of Life took root across the country. In the months after the war, many of them quietly left the cities, retreating deep into the wilderness to shelter from the inevitable.

The Invid Invasion bought a final end to the Protectorate. The majority of its population, both human and Zentraedi, were killed when its cities were destroyed in the opening Invid bombardment. During the occupation, the country was a largely agrarian backwater, reduced to a collection of isolated communities. At least two Invid hives were in the area, while Protocultre Farms were set up to harvest the Flowers that had taken root across the former nation.

## Geography

As the name suggests, the Arkansas Protectorate is was founded around the pre-war state of Arkansas. It also includes much of pre-war Louisiana and parts of Mississippi, extending its borders all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. The northern portions of the country are mountainous, extending into the Ozark ranges. To the south it is largely plains, extending all the way down to the coast where the country turns marshy. Numerous rivers cross its territory, while patches of forest can be found

The region suffered badly in the Rain of Death, with many of its cities destroyed. Massive fires started by the attacks and radioactive fallout added to the damage. However, recovery efforts, both natural and through official programs, have seen the area regenerate somewhat. The remaining rich soils of the region have made it a major agricultural producer and a key to the North American food supply.

The capitol city is Jiabao, which was built around the wreckage of the battalion's crashed command ship. Much of the population is rural, and live in small towns.

## Government and Politics

As originally established, the Arkansas Protectorate was functionally a military state. The nation was ruled by the survivors of the Jiabao battalion, who in turn maintained their previous command structures as best they could under the circumstances. However, they also were largely hands-off with the lives of the human populations, and left them to largely handle their own affairs and look after themselves. The Zentraedi would only step in to handle broader disputes between communities or those that threatened to spill over.

The Protectorate's military during this period was made up of full-sized Zentraedi warriors, armed with their surviving equipment, such as Tactical Battle Pods. While the military was officially desegregated, the vast majority of its members were male, with female warriors organised into specialty units. If needed, they could be supplanted with human auxiliaries, but these were rarely armed with anything heavier than light armoured vehicles.

After the re-establishment of the government, the Protectorate was now run as a democractic state with a mixed leadership. However, UEG-imposed conditions meant that there had to be a minimum number of Humans in leadership positions. Furthermore, as the population was majority human, this created a cascading effect that saw the Zentraedi further marginalised in the nation's leadership. By the time of the Second Robotech War, the nation's leadership was almost entirely Human.

The enforced micornization of the Zentraedi populace, along with the confiscation of their Mecha, also necessitated a change in the armed forces. The protectorate's military was equipped with UEDF-supplied conventional armoured vehicles and aircraft, many of which were older designs dating back to the Civil War. Like the government, the military came to be gradually dominated by humans. However, the Protectorate's military was given little autonomy to act by the UEG, and instead served as a supplemental force.

The Protectorate was a reluctant member of the United Earth Government, even if it had originally joined voluntarily. Its only real ally was the Republic of Quebec, with the two having major trade deals and a shared reluctance towards the UEG. Conversely, the Protectorate was strongly opposed to the Barony of York due to its xenophobic policies, at least publicly.