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Planet Earth. It's a luscious lump of rock sitting on the Orion-Cygnus arm; a planet with the precise correct conditions to support life as we know it. It is a planet that defies all chaos in the universe to do so.

On the other side of the universe sits almost a cloned copy of Earth, even down to the tectonic movements; not conquered by humans, but by human-animal hybrids that live just like ordinary humans do, for the most part. Various anthropomorphic animals roamed the surface, all varying in size and strengths, all subject to the same weather patterns and the same challenges that face modern humans today.

Niraqa was positioned slap bang in the middle of the Tyrrhenian sea as a large island, with mountains to the south, desert in the centre and an expansive forest spanning the entire North coast, wrapping the top of the island like a tree blanket. Population a little over 2 million, it was a prosperous island; tropical in weather, the people there relatively happy, ruled over by an absolute monarch system. The Cranada family ruled over the entire island and were all historically and currently African Wild Dogs.

Despite having a prosperous capital (the city of Sornamor) and a healthy export of manufactured goods, the island suffered from a punitive, corrupt taxation system that favoured the wealthy populus, of whom primarily lived in clusters in the capital. Development and prosperity outside of the capital was sporadic and rare, with most citizens relying on the cheapness of land to farm for food or money, or for gem-farming, one of Niraqa's biggest exports.

Nestled right on the outskirts of the capital sat the royal headquarters: a 4-storey, 32-room palace with grand, sweeping curves and artistic architectural additions arching around the property. The grounds were surrounded with acres and acres of well-kept private gardens, the money printing press and several agricultural outposts. Militarised guards wielding automatic guns and sporting the island's national flag colour as their uniform surrounded the rear of the grounds where the city faded and the forestry began, with the front heavily guarded with concrete barriers.

The palace's decor could only be described as grand. Statues moulded from gold, silver and various other precious metals adorned the expansive hallways, along with plush carpeting and exotic rugs created from advanced polyester fabrics. The gargantuan front doors opened up to two sweeping staircases opening up symmetrically to meet several metres above in a circular fashion, a royal purple rug worn and tattered with time linking both staircases together. The palace had a staff of 12, with the vast majority of them being some form of canine species, all well-dressed, well-fed and well-educated.

The Cranada family stood as the wealthiest family to live on the island, with large inter-generational wealth and de-facto rights to the whole island. Despite being nearly 60, King Jeremy sat confidently on the throne, having 'successfully' defended the island twice from invasion and attack from neighbours. Despite this, his popularity was starting to wane, as the poor fell further and further into poverty. Worker exploitation from capitalist companies in the capital were at an all-time high, and Jeremy received handsome cheques from said companies in return for the lack of a more comprehensive worker's rights bill. As a result, tensions between the poor and the wealthy started to increase, with more and more civil unrest.

Besides the palace, the royal family also owned a 'getaway' palace hidden in the mountainous, coastal region of Porqua. The palace was a feat of modern engineering, having been built brutally into the mountain side for the specific reason of having beautiful coastal views along the Dannadia sands, which were miles and miles of private, untouched, sandy coastline owned by the monarch. The monstrous holiday mansion stood as an ugly, concreted mark squaring what was otherwise a perfectly pristine equilateral triangle of a mountain. The mountainous tribes protested, as the river Rhagan that supplied salmon and other fish as well as clean water had to be diverted to make way for the home. Obviously, they were paid off handsomely for their sacrifice, although the once thriving rural communities that once sat in the Porqua mountains now faced 12 mile walks to the nearest clean water source, and tensions began to rise with the neighbouring mountain colonies, only made worse in the summer when the rivers practically dried up.

Not that this was any concern for the Cranada family; such bickering was saved for The Regent's Collective, a group of three wolves who filtered and managed any correspondence for the royal family, who simply discarded anything deemed unworthy for the attention of the king himself.