
     If your astrogator made the mistake of plotting his course for the
     "habitable" zone of the Jae Tellona system, don't chastise him too
     severely when you arrive in an asteroid belt. Jae Tellona, the system
     mainworld, is located one orbit into the outer zone of the system.

     When settlers originally came to Jae Tellona (ca. 230), they made the
     same mistake.  The small flotilla of settlers from Gushemege Sector
     arrived in system to stake their claims only to find they were in the
     middle of the system's solitary asteroid belt.  Thinking they had been
     suckered by a corrupt colonial-office tree-kraken-oil salesman, the
     angry settlers prepared to embark upon the long and costly flight home
     across The Rift to collect some payback.  Fortunately, a crewmember on
     one of the ships took a closer look at the system charts and
     discovered their folly.

     Even at this distance, Jae Tellona's average temperature remains in a
     survivable range because of the absence of large oceans on Jae
     Tellona's arid surface.  Because there are no oceans present to cool
     the planet, the energy of Dikaai, the system's solitary subgiant star,
     is conserved rather well.  Oddly enough, if a planet with Jae
     Tellona's hydrosphere were in this system's habitable zone, the
     temperature would be infernally high and render colonization next to
     impossible.

     Jae Tellona's original settlers came from Gushemege's rimward edge.
     This region was particularly hard hit by The Long Night.  The peoples
     of the region were eager to ply the lanes of interstellar space
     looking for a better opportunity after centuries of hardship and
     subjugation at the hands of more populated and technologically
     advanced worlds.

     The Jae Tellonan settlers were the descendents of mixed
     Vilani-Solomani stock.  Their Vilani blood came predominantly from
     several warrior caste worlds of the old Vilani Empire, including
     Answerin.  During the Interstellar Wars, several roughriding Terran
     squadrons were sent into the region to do battle with the Vilani.
     After peace was made, many of them stayed.  The hybrid of the two
     cultures featured some of the best characteristics of both human
     strains.  The settlers who were to become the Jae Tellonans were known
     for their Answerin fearlessness as well as the frontier spirit of
     their Terran ancestors.

     While colonizing a desert world is a dismal proposition for some, the
     Jae Tellonan settlers welcomed the challenge.  In christening their
     world, the settlers chose the name of an inspirational Gushemegan
     military leader who helped guide the people of the Gushemegan colonies
     through the waning years of the Long Night and into the Twilight Era.

     The Jae Tellonans learned to maximize their use of the planet's
     limited moisture resources.  In addition, they learned to distill
     water from the skimmed atmosphere of Uunkida Gar, the gas giant Jae
     Tellona orbits.  It therefore comes as no surprise that Uunkida Gar is
     named for one of Vland's largest oceans, considering its primary use
     for the Jae Tellonans.

     While the Jae Tellonan colonists held a commonality of purpose, they
     could never completely overcome their militaristic roots.  Descended
     from spacefaring soldiers, the clannish colonists found themselves
     splintering into opposed camps.  Soon warfare began to break out
     between the clans.  By 350, the warfare between the clans became so
     severe, Jae Tellona's population began to experience a sharp drop, at
     one point even dipping into pre-colonization levels.  The number of
     young men and women began to dwindle to the point that they could no
     longer sustain the population growth necessary for a colony to
     continue to grow and prosper.

     It was then that Makhid Jellosonar, a general of the Hyosonuri clan,
     went to the Duke of Rhylanor for help.  Jellosonar invited
     intervention by the Rhylanori to quell the discontent at home.  At
     first, Rhylanor was loathe to accept the offer.  While Jellosonar was
     the most powerful warlord on Jae Tellona, he was the only one to come
     to Rhylanor for help.  The resistance, bred for desert fighting, might
     be strong and Rhylanor had no desire to become embroiled in a
     prolonged conflict.  Jellosonar sweetened the deal by offering a
     lucrative trade pact to Rhylanor provided they help to establish him
     as the solitary ruler of the planet.  Rhylanor accepted and dispatched
     military advisors to help Jellosonar conquer the enemy clans and bring
     them under his wing.  Using advanced Rhylanori weaponry, he succeeded.

     Since that time, Jae Tellona has existed under nearly a millenium of
     military rule.  The Jae Tellonans, used to a hard life, willingly
     submit to the fiat of a central ruler.  The central ruler is drawn
     from the general ranks of Jae Tellona's army.  No pretense of
     pluralism exists on the planet.  The ruler is referred to as "general
     commandant" by the citizenry.  The general's hierarchy of staff
     officers provide the network by which he rules the system.  Each
     general commandant is elected by his peers in the Jae Tellonan army.
     Election of a general commandant is not taken lightly, as he rules for
     life once appointed.

     Staff generals are appointed to cities and territories by the general
     commandant.  The native city or region of a staff general has no
     bearing on his appointment.  In fact, staff generals are usually
     appointed to regions that are not their native element.  The Jae
     Tellonans believe this promotes unity and dissipates clan
     ethnocentricity.

     One element of Jellosonar's trade agreement with Rhylanor that
     continues to this day is the "Rashakhra Provision."  The Rashakhras
     are Jae Tellonan soldiers conscripted into the Rhylanori military
     services as commandos.  They are trained on Jae Tellona and known as
     one of the toughest, most disciplined military units in the Regency.
     The number of conscripts is limited based on current population levels
     so as not to upset the balance or personnel numbers of Jae Tellona's
     army.  Though many Jae Tellonans have come to resent this provision,
     for most it is considered an honor to serve among the Rashakhra ranks.

     The delicate balance of peace between the clans is maintained by the
     checks and balances of a system that could best be described as a
     draconian feudal technocracy.  The military ranks controlled by the
     general commandant consist of carefully mixed clan blocs so as to
     prevent any one clan from obtaining a controlling majority of a
     military unit.  Each clan bloc is privy to a large stock of
     top-of-the-line Rhylanori military technology, enabling them to hold
     power by the sheer potential force of their ranks.  While some of the
     old clan conflicts continue to simmer to this day, the historical
     threat of self-destruction and the strength of the general commandant
     maintains the peace.

     Jae Tellona's novelty tech level is of particular importance since it
     reflects the military technology level.  While domestically
     manufactured weapons, sensors and computers may be purchased by the
     general populace for commercial and self defense purposes, only the
     military is allowed use of imported high-tech weaponry and
     electronics.  The Jae Tellonan military trades with only two preferred
     partners:  Rhylanor and Porozlo.

     The above description may give the wandering traveller the impression
     that Jae Tellona is a powder keg waiting to blow.  Just the opposite
     is true, however.  Jae Tellona maintains a remarkably harmonious
     society.  While the planet is technically under military rule, this is
     more out of tradition than necessity.  Jellosonar's unification of the
     Jae Tellonan clans was looked upon as a paradigm shift in the history
     of the planet.  The military was not looked upon as an oppressor, but
     rather a liberator, freeing the citizenry from the self-imposed prison
     of perpetual war.

     The military is actually proportionately smaller than those of most
     other Regency systems.  The revered training and discipline of a Jae
     Tellonan battalion, however, makes them the equal of most Regency army
     brigades.  At age 17, all Jae Tellonans are conscripted into the army
     and are taught, in addition to basic weapons, tactics and fighting
     skills, the tenets of civil defense and desert warfare.  The length of
     conscription is one term.  Many Jae Tellonans opt to remain in the
     military for a second term, but for the most part, the only "lifers"
     in the Jae Tellonan military are those who become Rashakhras.

     Jae Tellona's populace for the most part thrives on trade, producing
     components and materials for many offworld industries.  The Jae
     Tellonan silicon industry, for instance, claims to cut more silicon
     than the rest of the subsector's worlds combined.  Indeed, Jae
     Tellona's main specialization is the production of military-grade
     silicon components.

     Jae Tellonans take pride when they see their part in the greater
     scheme of things.  While the planet's pre-stellar TL-8 doesn't allow
     them to compete with neighbors Rhylanor and Porozlo in most
     industries, Jae Tellonan craftmanship and attention to detail is
     respected subsectorwide.

     As a leading exporter of many technological components, Jae Tellona is
     resented by many other systems in the subsector for their trade
     surplus.  Jae Tellona ships a great deal, but is rather stingy on
     importation for several reasons.  First and foremost is the
     aforementioned trade limitations imposed by the general commandant.
     Second is the culture of the Jae Tellonans themselves.  Accustomed to
     hardship and relatively few material comforts, Jae Tellonans simply
     don't demand many consumer products.  They work hard, play hard and
     enjoy travelling the wild outbacks of their harsh and unforgiving
     world, but they don't buy much in the way of entertainment, fashion or
     leisure products.

     Because of this, Jae Tellona is frequently at the center of TNS
     financial news pieces.  They have been subjected to numerous economic
     sanctions in the past from other systems in Rhylanor Subsector, but
     maintain their monolithic stance and show no signs of abating their
     aggressive trade policies.

     Hyosonuri Starport, located in the industrial city of Dan Mokheidi, is
     a meticulously maintained and highly functional starport, albeit a bit
     small.  A large portion of the starport is allotted to Jae Tellona's
     government-controlled freighter fleet and small but efficient SDB
     squadron.  Eight ports are reserved for offworlder starships.

     The seat of government lies in the small and seemingly provincial city
     of Brokari Ai.  Located next to one of the planet's few permanent
     oases, Brokari Ai is more a military base than a city, though a fairly
     large commercial sector exists to serve the needs of the general
     commandant's brigade.

     Offworlders will find Jae Tellonans surprisingly friendly and
     forthcoming.  They criticize their leaders quite freely and without
     fear of reprisal.  Casual observers and self-proclaimed civic experts
     attribute the unwillingness to overthrow the government to a general
     malaise or complacency on the part of the Jae Tellonan masses.  Those
     who are so misinformed fail to remember that Jae Tellonans are
     descendants of Vilani military castes.  Committed to duty and
     efficiency, the Jae Tellonans subscribe the old addage, "If it ain't
     broke, why fix it?"

     Their society, under military rule, prospers to a degree that the Jae
     Tellonan populace finds satisfactory.  Most see no reason to alter the
     system or liberate the government, thereby risking a return to the
     bloody days of old.

     Jae Tellonans, for the most part, are dark skinned with black or dark
     brown hair.  Their eye colors have a much greater natural range, with
     hazel, amber and light brown being the most common.  Jae Tellonans,
     due to their ascetic lifestyles, are rarely overweight.  Poor physical
     condition is taboo in Jae Tellonan culture.  "The gluttonous man," it
     is said in Jae Tellonan proverbs, "has drawn too long on the well that
     nourishes us all."

