The Island of Val Verde

Nearly perfectly positioned in the North Atlantic Ocean resides an island. It resembles the Caribbean countries to its west. Warm weather. Great vistas. Wonderful beaches.

This island, known as Val Verde, was a paradise of untamed lands, and vast stretches of golden beaches. Fair weather is the norm, and the pacing of life is simply slow and steady.

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History

First discovered by brave sailors of the new world, they quickly logged its location. Yet due to the poor logistical nature of sailing during the day, they often missed it. Simply sailing by as they crossed the oceans.

The first real settlers was in the early 1700s. The British East India Company, looking to seriously expand westward, found Val Verde. Their ships anchored, and row boats set loose.

The early journals showed a land that was pretty much like any equatorial country.

From the modern maps at the time, the island was in a perfect position to act as a way point between 3 continents.

North America.
South America.
Africa.

A trading port was quickly built. Money was poured in as this new island could seize the routes and maintain the monopoly they were holding in the east.

Their gamble paid off.

Val Verde, named by its founding captain Johnathan Rico. A English national whose parents came from Spanish colonies. He named it after his first daughter, Valerie. He would become its first ruler as the Governor of the island.

From there, people from all cultures gathered. Creating the unique melting pot of the trade city.

For nearly a hundred years, Val Verde flourished. Ships came and went, bring with them the unique trade from 3 different worlds.

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Then in the early 1800s, financial woes came like a tsunami. The East India Company was bad with money. Or rather, personal interest kept getting in the way of the company interest.

Cut off from most of its dependable revenue, the county was forced to rely on taxes. Which was less then well received by the various trade captain.

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The 1900s were a rocky time for the country. The massing of armies which lead to WW1, had allied forces locking down the country. They invested a lot of resources to ensure that this important piece of land would never fall into Alliance hands.

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The 1930s were worse.

WWII shook the world in a way never seen before. Even the great war before paled before this new age of mechanized power.

Val Verde, recognized as the potential staging ground it was, became a victim of its own value.

The Axis spared no effort to reduce the island from Allied fortress, into Axis staging ground. The island was further fortified. The American/British forces built up from the original Triple Entente defenses.

While it never took the beating that the western European countries faced, the island was also less fortunate in its own way.

With the defeat of the Axis powers, the Allied forces simply withdrew.

With no additional funding, the cheaply made infrastructure would have no solution available when it began crumble.

The loss of a huge piece of its population, the odd hundred of thousand soldiers stationed, meant a large decrease in money spending.

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By 1955, the country entered a small state of emergency as the lack of funds meant that infrastructure failing had no repairs. Buildings crumbled. Power plants failed.

While the locals knew how to work the machine, ordering parts was slow and very expensive. Shipping alone was murderous.

Then came a new beneficiary. A missionary named Mother Elsbeth came to the destitute country. A follower of the Church of the Greater Good.

Her words were a salve to a aching population. The fact that Mother Elsbeth was also a philanthropist did wonders for the country.

Resources were imported. The Church of the Greater Good slowly became the countries prime faith. Food and help spoke volumes for the neglected people.

Mother Elsbeth left her acolytes to oversee the people. She left to continue spreading the faith, though for a few more years money would come through.

Though the people waited. Following the mandates of the church, Mother Elsbeth never returned.

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With the 1970, money was becoming an issue, but a minor one. The skills that Father Phoenix had initially brought in to support the country were now flourishing. Trade and tourism was a burgeoning industry.

The seeds that were planted now all grew and food was an exotic could be a wonderful export.

The repaired ports were expanded as larger, and larger ships came. Cruise ships were a wonderful invention as tourists came to the island in droves.

An airport was eventually constructed as the new form of travel grew from just the rich and wealthy, into something that the common workers could afford.

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1990s were a turning point for Val Verde. The USA had implemented a rigid national policy against drug, and drug dealing countries.

Val Verde, able to freely moved good through three major trade lines came under heavy scrutiny. Embargoes were formed, and the newfound wealth quickly began to dry up as country, after country followed suit.

The drug flow did not stop, and to the shock of the world, and Val Verde itself, a criminal organization was unveiled.

Cobra had secretly set up a massive structure to the northern mountains. From there they had set up processing facilities for world wide distribution of narcotics.

Disguised as a research facility for US pharmaceuticals, they employed the natives for labor. To protect against ‘Terrorists’ and ‘Cartels’, they had supplied the locals with basic weapons and training.

Leading the charge was the Justice Society of America.

In support was the elite covert operations, GI Joe, supported by the American Navy. The Navy simply bombed the northern half into submission, while both the JSA and the GI Joe took on Cobra.

In the end, the Americans buried the various complexes of drugs and weapons caches. They cleaned up by taking away their injured, and their prisoners.

Their jobs done, the US government gave Val Verde strict warnings about housing known terrorists.

The people of Val Verde were shocked. No one even knew about the complex aside from the fact that it was a research facility for US interests.

What was left was smoldering ruins, and a confused populace.

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2000s saw a deeper conversion of the Church of the Greater Good.

Father Zemo had arrived, and with him came a retinue of new people. From what was simply a few million, it doubled within five years.

Mass scale construction projects began, and the people of Val Verde was once again tasked to work.

Father Zemo unveiled the truth. Hydra was the Greater Good, and their service had not gone unnoticed.

Which was lies as the various sleeper cells were totally forgotten during various Hydra civil strifes. The original Mother Elsbeth was a hydra sympathizer, the wife of Wolfgang von Strucker.

With the might of his new weapon, he would unveil his plan of unifying the splintered factions of Hydra.

The second Hydra Flying Fortress lifted off in 2009. I mix of the designs of SHIELDS helicarriers, the Flying Fortress was a symbol of Hydra’s new power.

Hundreds of thousands flocked to Val Verde, eager to support the new Supreme Leader.

In turn, this prompted a response by the the Avengers, the Fantastic Four, and the US forces & SHIELD.

After three full days of bitter fighting, the Americans won, and the fortress crashed into the northwest mountain range. It would become known as the land of the unlucky.

The innocent people of Val Verde simply did what they did best. Pick up the pieces, and take on each day as it arrived.

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2010s was a relatively quiet decade.

The only thing of note was the invasion by the criminal mastermind, Bane. He brought with him, his team of expert soldiers, and scientist to make a new strain of venom.

Hiding out in the ruins of the northern mountains, the local forces did their best to fight a battle they were ill equipped for.

The old relics of the previous wars were either powerful, but irreparable. Or simply old guns that were poorly maintained.

It wasn’t until the arrival of Batman, with the support of Young Justice, did Bane disappear.

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Val Verde, January 1st 2020.

Richard Jackson lost his temporary seat. His poor performance during Bane’s invasion had lost the trust of the people.

In his place Johnathan Rico was elected. The new Supreme Leader now stands at the forefront of Val Verde.

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Geography

The 61,872 square kilometer island.

Which still has to be mapped since the writer is lazy.

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Demographics

Val Verde once had the peak population of roughly 15 million citizens. Under Hydra’s rule, the loyal forces intermingled with the locals.

After the devastating battle of 2009, the crushing defeat left many dead, and most of the loyalist forces scattered to the sea.

Leaving only the local populace, and the unlucky Hydra lower echelons.

Currently the island has a shrinking population of 5.8 million people.

With it’s founding as a British colony, most of the population is a mix of the three continents that border it. The spice trades also brought in families from all over the globe.

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Economics

The main form of income was taxes for the ports, and tourism for the globe.

With the international Embargo, Val Verde has fallen on hard times.

Its only other sources of income where supplies of metals. This included: Copper, Iron, Nickle, Magnetite, Manganese, Silver, Titanium.

Due to the Caribbean competition, the various ores are sold on the cheap.

Food was also once a great export, but due to the last terrorist acts of Bane, many farms are contaminated and its soils lie in ruin.

Fishing was once a great industry, but the massive fleets of foreign countries have made it far less reliable then it once was. Most ships now simply sit docked as the costs outweigh the income.

Only a small fraction fish to try to provide food, and they receive donations to upkeep their meager fleets of volunteer fishermen.