GROUPS
There is no "I" in "Team." We all work together to achieve things greater than ourselves and to be a part of something bigger. Such team spirit is invaluable in a world of gods and monsters where everybody's help is necessary to make the difference. And from the highest post in the UN to the lowest post in Super Mystery Magazine, there are many places where that difference can be made.
The United NationsIt has been asked if there are other worlds and if those worlds might not have giant monsters, mutants, alien invasions, lost civilizations, and clockwork Doomsdays. If such a world does exist then it would probably have no need for a powerful global body to keep the peace and survival. Not so in the case in a world of gods and monsters.
After the chaos of World War shook Europe and the colonies it ruled, President Woodrow Wilson of America asked for a League of Nations to ensure that such a war never happen again. It was a noble dream on Wilson's part but too many did not believe in that dream and feeling peace a fool's errand. For that the League was abandoned and dark powers corrupt and wicked and malignant crept over the globe. As Nazi evil sought to damn the world to eternal night, the ultimate war began, a war that shook the Earth for it was a battle of good vs. evil but good prevailed. The forces of good called themselves the United Nations and it was as newly born United Nations, rising from the ashes of the League, that victory was claimed over the forces of evil.
That peace could be kept was a tenuous hope with how the United States and Russia went from friends to enemies soon after, even fighting war by proxy in Korea that could have easily led to WWIII. It would have taken another global threat for these two to work together again but that was provided when the Mysterians tried to take over the world. Regardless of differing politics, the US and the USSR still shared the same planet and to put the cold war on hold indefinitely for so long as such things existed. The proof of that was seen with the Mu Empire when it attacked all human civilization in 1963; with the world at stake, the UN directed its efforts and served as the world's voice.
Not that such things were the only things to be faced, far from it; there was, and is, also the threat of kaiju. By their sheer existence these strange, impossible beasts garner world attention and because of their spreading out all over the world are a global problem. Having to constantly deal with the kaiju means that the UN never has an excuse to stay idle.
On seeing just what kind of responsibilities it would have after the Mysterian Invasion, the UN reordered itself to be more efficient. It was partly inspired by the solution an infant US had in organizing its congress by remaking the General Assembly into a Senate and a Chamber of Representation. (Nations have 1 vote in the Senate and between 1 and 5 votes in the Chamber based on population. It keeps either big nations or small nations from gobbling up votes while being fair to both.) While individual nations are allowed relative autonomy in times of peace, the UN mission is to: prevent war and preserve global security-by force if need be, preserve human dignity, alleviate disease and poverty, be an agency through which nations may work together for common goals (such as the US/USSR moon landing), apprehend and punish violators of international law, representing Earth in dealing with extra normal civilizations i.e. aliens and Mu, and serving as a world government in times of global crises.
Perhaps unlike in other worlds, the UN is extremely well funded because of how Earth's nations know what the UN means, because of the vast donations Mu gives for wanting to deal with one country rather than 150, and by patents from reverse engineered technology gained from the Mysterians. The UN has various organizations working under it such as WHO*, FAO**, UNESCO***, World Bank, etc. However, it's more famous for groups such as the Defense Force of Earth, Interpol, and Psychic Center.
Some people even say the UN is too powerful and invoke a doctrine of Nation's Rights not unlike how the Southern States before the Civil War felt that the US government was too powerful and (stupidly) invoked state's rights. President Devlin Emmerich, a southerner, was among the foremost proponents of nation's rights. Though not a world government, the UN is indeed very powerful and certain members of the religious right even says it's the one world government of the Anti-Christ. (The UN is glad it refused the idea of a one world currency when it was brought up.) The fact that its not a world government is evident that it cannot collect taxes and instead relies on donations. Though that will probably change in time…
*World Health Organization
**Food and Agricultural Organization
***UN Educational, Science, and Cultural Organization
Defense Force of Earth (DFE)According to its revised charter, the United Nations cannot wage war but "its power to defend member nations will be activated by imminent threat to Earth or a significant portion thereof." The first official UN Force was created for the Korean War and was led by General Douglass MacArthur of America to combat the Communist takeover of South Korea. After the Mysterian invasion just a few years later the human race realized just how petty their divisions really were. Having had to work together as one planet to win and with the constant threat of giant monsters, the Defense Force of Earth was created.
Having evolved from the NATO and UN Peacekeepers and a direct descendant of Allied Forces that stormed Normandy, its easy to imagine that the UN has an army numbering in the tens of millions; not so. If anything the Defense Force of Earth; and its subdivisions, Aerial, Land, Maritime, and G-; serves as an umbrella of UN legitimacy under which military alliances may operate and coordinate their strategies.
It was the DFE that faced off against Mu and it was under its banner that many nations fought alongside the US military in the first Swarm Wars. Its finest hour was undoubtedly the Monster Wars because the global campaign to save the world was exactly why the DFE was made. Without the DFE coordinating global efforts and uniting the hundreds of armies, navies, and air forces around the world under one banner, its uncertain if Earth could have survived.
Such things are rather rare, however, and more often its just a short skirmish to keep rogue nations in line. When the UN sees a trouble zone, it will either send in its own forces or request member nations to send in their forces. Aside from G-Force the only real force the UN permanently maintains is the Lagos Battalion an elite band of special forces that gets in, does the job, gets out, and not be seen.
UNGCCWhile kaiju consultation teams had existed since the fifties when Godzilla began the Age of Monsters, it had been suggested for years that the UN create an organization to specifically deal with the ever increasing threat of giant monsters. It hadn't partly because of how kaiju attack had tapered off during the 1970s. When Godzilla returned in 1985 that tapering off ended and when he survived being cast into a volcano only to emerge from another, did the world realize just what it was they were up against. On seeing that and all the monsters around the world that it was seen that the kaiju had to be dealt with before it was too late. So it was in 1989 that the UN created the United Nations Godzilla Countermeasures Center. Its purpose is to investigate sightings of new and old monsters; study them if possible, destroy them if necessary.
Its armed branch is G-Force and the relationship it has with it is the relationship the US Department of Defense has with the actual military. For the most part, UNGCC works to advise governments and armed forces dealing with kaiju on how they should best proceed. It is headed by a director and with Godzilla having saved the world the United Nations Countermeasures Center is now the Untied Nations Control Center.
G-ForceWith the omnipresent threat of kaiju meaning it always has a job to do, G-Force is the closest thing the UN has to a standing army. Answering to UNGCC, its headed by G-Force Alpha and is led by Commander Aso. Its subdivided into Commander Raschen's G-Force North America, Commander Hess's G-Force Europe, Commander Ahmed's G-Force Africa, Commander Espinoza's G-Force South America, Commander Kuroki's G-Force Asia, Commander Cowen's G-Force Australia/South Pacific. With the soldiers trained to be the best and armed with the finest weapons on the planet, each commander is responsible for protecting his domain from giant monsters.
G-Force is answerable only to the UN Security Council and is as formidable as any fighting force ever seen. However, because the UN's resources are not limitless, they focus more on quality than quantity and often rely on the armies of local nations to supply sheer numbers. When the kaiju threat is small, it allows local forces to handle the problem, advising or coordinating efforts of two or more nations. On the opposite, if the monster is a truly powerful beast then the G-Force fighting it might be stronger than armies of several nations. The perfect example of this was seen in G-Force Africa in how it fought Apophis for years to contain him and his fellow monsters to Egypt; for that, G-Force Africa was one of the more powerful G-Forces.
Other powerful G-Forces are those of Asia and Australia/South Pacific because of the amount of kaiju that appear in Asia and the South Pacific. However, as it is armed with giant robots, maser tanks, maser planes, Black Hole Guns, etc. the strongest by far is G-Force Alpha. Its not surprising with how it fights not monsters but the King of the Monsters. G-Force Alpha has the responsibility-curse-of dealing with the really big monsters such as Godzilla (though with little success against this giant among giants despite all it brings to bare). It operates primarily in Japan to fight Godzilla and deal with the indigenous kaiju such as oodakos and giant boars. However, being the best of the best, it goes around the world wherever a really nasty monster rears its ugly head… such as King Ghidorah. Winning the admiration of the world, G-Force Alpha took point in the Monster Wars and was at the front of the front and fought the good fight as it never had before and hopefully will never have to again.
Trivia: It has been mathematically proven that it is safer to fight giant monsters than human forces. (With the exception of G-Force Alpha since it always fights Godzilla and the big boys. Its casualty rates were so high that it was nicknamed the Kamikaze Squad.)
Lagos Battalion/PlatoonNamed for the Lagos Garrison, the Lagos Battalion is an elite band of special forces; its more than the best of the best, it is the best of the best of the best. Each member of the 750 strong Battalion is many times a better soldier than an Army Ranger or a Navy Seal. They are certainly better armed because maser rifles and cryo-grenades are standard issue. (Medics there are also equipped with Red Water and Regenerator G-1.) They always get the tough assignments whether making tin pot dictators disappear or fighting the not so giant monsters. The Battalion often works hand in hand with G-Force Alpha in fighting the creepy crawlies though it also works fighting human monsters in the service of the DFE.
The most famous Platoon of the Battalion is Tomas Santos' Platoon. He was rather famous for a daring raid to free captured children from a Dome King Ghidorah had erected. However, that was one of his last missions. He has since been kicked upstairs to become a giant robot pilot.
Psyonics Research Institute/Psychic CenterEven in a world as used to the strange and amazing as one of an Age of Monsters, being psychic isn't easy. Some times its even a nightmare and in the past, people with that power often felt like freaks, like outcasts, and became increasingly withdrawn and antisocial. However, that was before the Psionics Research Institute in Tokyo, Japan, the foremost center for psi research on Earth and the best school for young psis in the world.
It was opened in 1986 as a place where young psis could live and learn in an understanding environment. Surrounded by other psis, they wouldn't feel alone and would not only learn how to use and develop their powers-along with more traditional subjects like reading and writing-but, more importantly, how to use them responsibly. The children there are taught to think of their powers as gifts to be used for the betterment of the world and to not give in to bitterness in confronting prejudice. The school is the first of its kind and has welcomed children from all over the world, though for unknown reasons a large percentage of children born with psychic powers were Japanese, and Japanese girls at that.
Miki Segeusa sometimes gives lectures there and she indeed went to school there. Students from abroad live there while local students go there from their parent's homes. The younger children are asked to paint what they dreamt of when they wake up; older ones write of what they dreamt of. Common training for all students to enhance their abilities include meditation in pyramids, usage of Zener cards, levitation of small objects, detection of thoughts, etc. As they grow older and their powers and skills increase, they move on to greater training. When they end their formal schooling they may either reintegrate into regular society or use their powers for Psychic Center.
(Psychic Center is the psionics branch of UNGCC and serves G-Force as most giant Monsters are susceptible to telepathic suggestion. Miki Segeusa's official job is as a member of Psychic Center.)
WSAThe World Space Authority is NASA on a global scale. A feeling of global unity pervaded with the Soviet Union and the United States allied once more after the Mysterian Invasion and John F. Kennedy swore that before 1960s were out that that the nations of Earth would put a man on the moon and have him returned safely to the Earth. Feeling a cold peace better than a cold war, the US and the USSR put aside their competing space programs and combined their forces to land Buzz Aldrin and Yuri Gagarin on the moon. However, the UN banner they placed there was just the beginning.
A fusion of American and Russian space programs, the WSA now has a permanent base on the moon and is contemplating a manned mission to Mars. It also has several space ships capable of traversing the inner solar system and various space stations. (Or had. Several of those stations were destroyed by Ghidorah.)
InterpolA cross between the CIA and the FBI, Interpol serves as the UN's police force and espionage agency. Its main purpose is to bring international criminals, such as the Italian and Russian Mafias, and terrorists, such as Red Bamboo and Cobra, to justice and collecting information on member nations. It is often the first uncover global conspiracies and also facilitates the transfer of information between local law enforcement agencies. It has the power to enter and make arrests in all UN member nations. (This power does not exist in non-member nations such as Selginia.) Often accused of doing the UN's dirty work and of CIA paranoia, it admittedly goes on more unsavory missions to advance the UN's interests.
Red BambooAfter the USSR put the Cold War indefinitely on hold with the Myterian invasion, China felt betrayed by what it perceived as its former ally having gone soft. In fact, some extremists in the Communist party formed a terrorist group called Red Bamboo that was determined to free the world from the shackles of capitalism. At the height of its power, Red Bamboo had an island base, nuclear weaponry, a legion of slaves, an air force, and several biotech monsters. That was ended when King Kong was awakened on the island and destroyed the lot of it. Red Bamboo was dealt a tremendous blow that day but its still out there and has since recovered. Interpol's Enemy Number One, it is feared. With the collapse of the USSR and China on its best behavior-they're nice communists now -Red Bamboo is now a loose cannon and more dangerous than ever before.
CobraMost people are afraid of Red Bamboo… with the exception of Cobra. That's because Red Bamboo is afraid of Cobra. It began with the fall of the Third Reich in World War II as Nazi war criminals sought to escape justice through Odessa, an organization made to smuggle them out of Germany. These villains were headed by surviving SS officers and were hell-bent to enslave the Earth or destroy it. After all, if their Fuerer could not have the Earth, then no one should. In the shadow of the swastika, they have since formed the most infamous terrorist group known to man: Cobra.
Their leader is General Zador, and his right hand woman is Colonel Varna, and they deal in prostitution, drug trafficking, arms smuggling, slave trading, assassinations, and gambling. They are reputed to have bases in rogue regimes. Their cruelty is legendary not to mention systematic; they felt that the wermacht was too soft and should have been a larger Waffen-SS… Indeed, like the SS, these black clad madmen wear the skull and crossed bones and engage in the occult to invoke the forces of evil. Unlike Red Bamboo to which it is sometimes compared which at least thinks it's helping people, Cobra's mad Nazi ideology is the closest thing there is to the deliberate worship of evil.
They are convinced of the mystic superiority of the master race, that civilization should be destroyed, and that the world should be taken back to the Dark Ages where pagan tribes gloried in war and ruled their slaves with iron fists. Seeking to enslave the world and damn it eternal suffering, only the most depraved terrorist nations deal with them and reluctantly at that. (Communist North Korea remembers what Hitler did to King Communist Stalin.) They either have or are in the process of making various weapons of mass destruction; nuclear, biological, and chemical; and have giant monsters.
Born from the hatred and carnage of WWII and sworn to destroy all goodness in the Fuerer's name, Cobra is the devil on Earth.
Anti-Megalosaur ForceAs Japan is cursed by giant monsters its JSDF has been forced to becomes a monster fighting force like no other. Taking point is its Anti-Megalosaur Force which specializes in combating the kaiju facing the Land of the Rising Sun. It often works hand in hand in with G-Force; something shown by how Commander Aso began his military career in the AMF. The AMF is often consulted by regular armed forces on how to best work. Its main enemy was for years Godzilla but during the Monster Wars when he left Japan to battle across the world, they had time on their hands. After Godzilla forswore his war with humanity it was even asked if the AMF outlived its usefulness. Not so. With all the monsters that make their way across Japan-giant boars, Oodakos, gargantuas, and MANY more-the AMF is always busy.
United World (Television) NewsUnited World News began well over a century ago as the official newspaper of the British Empire, though back then it was the "Planet Times." A man reading it in London could know what was happening in India or Australia and know it was true. That was because it never spared any details, not even the worst of colonial abuses. Not surprisingly, it wasn't as popular as the London Times but United World News never cared. Even then, it was meant to be a newspaper for the world and not a tiny portion of it.
Fortune smiled on it when it found a young French lady named Nadia Raltique who moved to London hoping to become a reporter. After several false starts she became its star reporter and ultimately the editor; by the time she was forty she'd renamed Planet Times United World News and made it into the most widely read newspaper in the world. Its American edition competed with the New York Times for prestige and in the World War, it was there on the front. UNW's darkest hour was in WWII as it railed against the Nazis all through the 1930s and when the continent was enslaved, its European edition was outlawed. (As for Nadia, she and husband Jean were trapped in La Havre after the fall of France. Afterwards, they lived in happily into old age.) Even so, UNW's American edition was there to tell the truth and denounce Axis cruelties.
United World News has always been on the forefront of new technology even when the most advanced technology was using telegraphs. UNW also had the idea of purchasing a radio station when those new fangled things were brand new to broadcast news at the speed of the light. That was the precursor of United World Television News, the second or third 24-hour news station, all news, all the time. Most famous of these is Godzilla Watch Network which specializes in reporting on all giant monsters.
Super Mystery MagazineKnown in supermarket lines near and far is one of the most famous, or infamous, tabloids in the world: the Japan based Mu, The Super Mystery Magazine. A few steps ahead of Weekly World News and a few steps behind Omni, Super Mystery Magazine is dedicated to covering things weird and unexplained that "other" newspapers wouldn't touch. Not that "other" newspapers won't report weird news—New York Times' reports on Inagos's Swarm proved that—; it was that they will only report what can be proven. While Super Mystery Magazine doesn't make up its stories like tabloids that claim that the ghost of Elvis is having cook-offs with time traveling sorcerers on Mars, it doesn't care about proof as long as somebody claims its true and the story sounds interesting.
Lagos GarrisonThe Japanese Army of World War II was, sad to say, just plain bad. However, one shining exception to this was the Lagos Garrison for it fought not only with the fierceness of the samurai but with the honor as well. Japanese soldiers were stationed on Lagos Island, a small atoll between Kwajielin and Liat Island in the South Pacific indefinitely and were told to guard the island until death. They indeed held it fast until they were faced with superior American force but they were saved by Godzilla, or at least his forty foot tall pre-bomb self. Yet it was only a reprieve as the men knew that theirs was a lost cause; indeed, after the war the men of the Lagos Garrison returned to see their homes in ruins. With the war done, the men returned to daily lives as best they could. The Lagos Garrison was led by Major Shindo. One of its soldiers was Private Akira Segeusa, grandfather of Miki Segeusa.
Teiyo GroupAfter World War II a quarter of Japan's wealth was lost, its cities were rubble, and its people were starving. It seemed as if Japan was down for good but ingenious business men made the world wonder as they lifted it up phoenix like from the ashes. One of these was Mister Yasuaki Shindo. Shortly after his discharge from the Japanese Army, he entered the world of business in the hopes of serving his country that way. He created the Teiyo Group and put his countrymen to work and work they did as they produced a production miracle. By the fifties, the Teiyo Group was one of the most powerful companies in Japan and by the nineties, it was one of the largest in the world. With interests ranging from banking and brewing to cars and computers, the Teiyo Group is widely credited for making Japan an economic superpower. With King Ghidorah having destroyed the competition in the US, the Teiyo Group might just be ready to become the greatest economic power in the world…
Bio-MajorIt is powerful and amoral American genetics company that's been called the Frankenstein of laboratories. That's indeed true because in splicing genes, they're more concerned with whether or not they can than if they should. Its certainly true that they follow the rules only when the inspector shows up. Its suspected that they've conducted human experimentation and that they've been bioengineering monsters for terrorists. Their CEO and Chairman of several years was President Devlin Emmerich, although he can be excused of Bio-Major's shadier dealings by incompetence. They've a long rivalry with the Saradia institute of Bio-Technology.
Saradia Institute of Bio-TechnologyBased in Saradia, the Institute enjoys a good reputation. Its alleged goal is the production of the perfect GM food and make the desert lands of Saradia a vast granary. Or so they say, there are ugly rumors that the Institute is a front for a terrorist agency, rumors that may be true.
Pacific PharmaceuticalsIt's a Japan based drug company that sells the usual, aspirin, cold tablets, etc. However, what gives it quite an edge is the exclusive rights to Red Water, a silver bullet cure all, found on Solgell Island. (Having determined the formula, they make it in the lab.) If not for that, they would have been bankrupted after they tried to take Kong to Japan for publicity.