America Reborn: A 1983 Doomsday Map-Profile

After a prolonged delay and other commitments, here's a bit of a surprise that I've been working on: A new entry for the Doomsday-verse AU. And this one focuses on the (Restored and formerly "Provisional") United States from 1983: Doomsday , aka New America. Aka, Amelia F. Jones, totally-not-Fem!America. 

As much as possible, I tried to be as true to the source material as possible (seen in these links) given how relatively complete and consistent the "canon" is in this regard. Though that being said, I have taken some liberties and creative licenses, most notably in adjusting and tweaking the New U.S. flag so as to look more polished. I also had quite a good time generally making this one, and more than a little pleasantly surprised given all the material available to work with, including the connections with Utah/Deseret, the U.S. Atlantic Remnant and the benevolent "conspiracy" that's helping New America become great again. And yes, there's a nod to A Canticle for Leibowitz there too with the "Memorabilia."

Also, on a last note, you may or may notice something rather peculiar with the references to "Lady Liberty."

At any rate, hope you enjoy!

(EDIT: Polishing the text. Also, apologies for the small typo in the map with Sidney/Sydney!)

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For the longest time, the fate of the United States of America looked to be as resolved as the events of 26 September 1983 when much of the world burned in atomic fire, events known to history as Doomsday. The "Gathering Order" bringing what remained of the U.S. military to Australia, the trials of the American Diaspora and the exodus from the New World that led to the "American Provisional Administration" have since become common knowledge. Of course, this attempt at a government-in-exile quickly outlived its own usefulness, as its disbanding on 1 May 1995 and A.P.A. "President" George Bush's formal resignation to the then-newly unified Commonwealth of Australia and New Zealand (A.N.Z.C.) attest; the former State of Hawaii and what remained of Alaska by then had since declared independence and became A.N.Z.C. associates. Even as the North American wastelands beyond what was surveyed by Mexico, what remained of Canada or Communist Cuba began to be properly explored by the early 2000s, what was found initially validated certain suspicions even as it debunked the theory that the "American wastes" were devoid of life. New survivor-nations had indeed emerged from the chaos and irradiated turmoil that came with the seeming breakdown of civilization across the old 48 States, many still carrying some shades of the American Dream. Some, like the regionally powerful Republic of Superior in the Great Lakes and the militaristic Republic of Virginia (reforged by and around the 101st Airborne) had proclaimed themselves successors to the U.S.A. All the while, despite then-unconfirmed rumors, adamantly insisting what had been accepted by the world at large: America was dead.

Not everyone got the notice. It turned out that some in the wastelands had other ideas: Those left behind would make America great again.

And they're succeeding.

Situated in the Midwest, the United States of America (more colloquially known as New America, the New/Restored U.S. and until 2010, the "Provisional United States") has endured, claiming both continuity and legitimacy from the "original" superpower, and not without reason. With the destruction of Washington, D.C. in Doomsday, the capital has officially been Torrington, Wyoming (also known as Torrington, D.A. owing to the vicinity of city itself being formally designated as the "District of America") since 1992. Although not part of the League of Nations that had replaced the UN, it is a founding, dominant member of the North American Union. "Rediscovered" in 2009 by an A.N.Z.C.-sponsored expedition by the League's World Census Reclamation Bureau, "Lady Liberty" is once again leaving an impact not just in the American wastes but also across the globe.

The New American story however is not without immense hardship and struggle. Compared to the rest of the Old Union, there were parts of what were at the time nicknamed "Middle America" and "Flyover Country" that were not as severely impacted by Soviet attacks, being less densely populated and with fewer "important" targets. This meant little consolation for the survivors at the time, especially with the rampant rise of raiders, return of nomadic clans and the Lakota War that first broke out in 1984 as Sioux militias unified and seized the opportunity to forge their own land. By that same token though, it meant that some semblance of order survived, be it surviving National Guard divisions, heavily armed settlements from Montana to Nebraska or most notably, the functional remnants of the State government of Wyoming; it was also around this time that a former U.S. Marine and local rancher named Ray Hunkins rose to prominence as a latter-day George Washington. By 1989, with the war ending in the Republic of Lakotah's defeat, communities from as far as Colorado and Kansas had joined the "Torrington alliance," though in reality all of them still viewed themselves as Americans. Serious discussions began not long after victory on re-forming the Union, which didn't take long as a new constitutional convention was held that led to the "Provisional Government of the United States of America" being agreed upon on the Fourth of July, 1991 as well as what's since been called the Revised Constitution. It wouldn't be until the elections of 1992, however, resulting in Hunkins (by then a war hero) becoming President that the Provisional U.S. was officially "re-established," ready to cede power to the Federal Government should the time come.

Even with the pains and tumult that marked much of the 1990s, much was done to rebuild and consolidate that part of North America. Efforts were made to repair roads, railroads and other infrastructure in the immediate years, while the remaining nomadic clans were either pacified and brought into line or in case of hostiles, forced out. In 1993, President Hunkins through Congress even granted the Native American tribes that had consolidated themselves in P.U.S. territory statehood and self-government; to this day the "Hunkins' States" of Absaroka and Kootenai stand testament to that legacy. As New America's stability grew, so did its borders and knowledge of the surrounding wastes. By 1995, scouts and military patrols reached what had been Idaho, in the process encountering the Mormons of Utah (by that point the Commonwealth of Deseret) as well as the Navajo Nation and helped the two, closely-intertwined survivor-nations mop up the remaining survivalist warlords and Neo-Nazi factions that remained from the "Spokane War" of 1990-93. In the aftermath, part of the State of Idaho was restored while the northern fringes that had suffered under the warlords were declared the State of Lincoln that same year.

A more significant event arose in 1997, when the authorities met with their counterparts from a neighboring Canadian survivor-nation calling itself the "Provisional Government of Canada" (more often called "Prairie Canada" since 2009, when contact was made with the legitimate St. Johns government in Canada) as well as the nomadic clans to sign the Treaty of Morgan, which resulted in the establishment of a political and economic bloc known as the North American Union, with Billings, Montana as the alliance's "capital." Before long, this led to renewed economic growth and development as trade was revitalized across the region. It also allowed the P.U.S. to expand New American influence and power to greater heights, with the entry of Lakotah and the successes of the "Buffalo Dollar" currency (a slightly altered U.S. Dollar meant to recreate a functional, advanced economy) being among the most lasting manifestations to this day; until Utah's entry into the N.A.U. in 2014 serving as something of a counter-balance, the alliance was very much dominated by the Stars and Stripes. That prestige proved to be especially beneficial as more American survivor-nations, even from as far as Texas, became aware of a light shining in the darkness.

The "rediscovery" of the P.U.S. in 2009, however, would make another turning point. With that momentous encounter with the W.C.R.B. expedition, the wider world beyond the wastes was once again clear to the New American people for the first time in over a generation, just as it was eye-opening for that same world which had until then consigned America off to the dustbin of history. Before long, negotiations with the Municipal States of the Pacific (a survivor-nation originally forged with A.N.Z.C. aid) on establishing railroad links and trade, opening the prospects of an unprecedented economic boom. But by that same event came the revelation that the A.P.A. set up by the exiles in Australia was long gone; the "Federal Government" the "Provisional" authorities were meant to cede power back to no longer existed. This stunned President Wayne Allard in Torrington just as it did his countrymen, who had since then come to treat those exiles as cowards at best, traitors at worst. All the same, the decision was nigh unanimous. On the Fourth of July, 2010, New America dropped all "Provisional" pretensions and officially proclaimed itself the legitimate successor to and continuation of the pre-Doomsday superpower, for all to see: the United States is very much alive.

Today, the New U.S. continues to uphold (and live up to) the American Dream. Since the "New American Declaration," as the proclamation has been called, "Lady Liberty" has welcomed two new States into the fold (the unified State of Dakota, formed by patriotic American loyalists and refugees who held out against the Sioux during the Lakota War, and the reconstituted State of Oregon) and through the Active Resettlement Act (first brought to Congress in 2006), is actively encouraging the exploration of and expansion into the surrounding wastes. It has been winning the hearts and minds of those from nearby friendly survivor-nations, including the Municipal States of the Pacific (originally forged with A.N.Z.C. aid) and the peculiar, if patriotic Republic of Lincoln in Eastern Nebraska (the epicenter of the American ideology known as "Lincolnism"); this is saying nothing of the new member states that have been welcomed into the N.A.U. in addition to increasingly amiable ties with N.A.U.-affiliated nomadic clans, though Utah's entry have proven to be both a blessing and curse. The vast majority of the population, similarly to the pre-Doomsday years, remains White (predominantly of Germanic, Scandinavian and British descent), with a sizable number of Native Americans (such as the Crow and Kootenai), who are particularly prominent in the "Hunkins' States." English continues to be the lingua franca, though owing to the citizenry's descent, there are still a number of German and Norwegian speakers as well, in addition to the Native American languages. Seemingly in line with old stereotypes and recordings of the region, self-sustainability remains the dominant mantra, with agriculture and limited manufacturing the principal industries within its borders, the latter increasingly benefiting from the strong economy and foreign trade. Tourism too, has been promoted, be for the enclaves of landscape relatively untouched by Doomsday, intact and picturesque landmarks like Ft. Collins, Colorado (long thought to be an inspiration for the long-destroyed Disneyland) or bustling centers of trade like Billings, Montana. Meanwhile, the restored U.S. Armed Forces (primarily comprised of the U.S. Army and a functional U.S. Air Force), even in a diminished form and with somewhat dated if well-maintained equipment, also continues to be one of the most potent and professional compared to its neighbors, though is increasingly catching up to modern standards. In comparison, though carts, horses and trains remain the predominant modes of civilian transportation, growing wealth as well as renewed access to various sources of fuel and vehicles have resulted in the easing of long-standing government rations on motorized cars and aircraft use; standards of living in fact have been rising to the point that even the frontier settlements have access to electricity and functional media. 

Another major development has been the very close ties established with the United States Atlantic Remnant. Based from the former U.S. Virgin Islands and outlying isles ceded by now-independent Puerto Rico, it's founded mainly by U.S. military forces (particularly those stationed at Guantanamo Bay and the Panama Canal Zone as well as most of the U.S. Navy's Atlantic Fleet in the Caribbean) who "mutinied" against the Gathering Order, deeming the act "unconstitutional" in favor of protecting American lives stranded across their corner of the world, a mission that continues to be upheld by the current democratic, if nominally civilian government; to this day it maintains arguably one of the most powerful remnants of the pre-Doomsday U.S.A.F. Although separate from the "Mainland" by thousands of miles and officially considered an autonomous "associate" of the East Caribbean Federation, these hadn't stopped the local Governor and Commissioner from meeting with New American delegates led by President Allard at the U.S.A.R. capital of Charlotte Amalie in December 2010. While this initially caused a somewhat mixed reaction among the locals, over time the "partial unity" declared the following year (under the "pretense of harmonized political goals and military consolidation") has since blossomed to the point that it tends to be considered the 12th State of the Union in all but name.

But as startling as the survival and seeming rebirth of America is, there's more than meets the eye. As the Cold War intensified prior to 1983, a secret contingency plan by the U.S. Government was drafted, involving the preservation of the constitution, American assets and the survival of the country itself. That "back-up" plan, believed to be related to President Carter's "Executive Order 12148," was known to select elected officials (particularly among State governments in the Midwest) and "trusted" military personnel, involving encoded instructions, fiber-optic transmission lines and protocols that would only be set into motion in the event of a massive cataclysm, in addition to keeping vital documents and recordings; unless by legal means provided by the constitution, there was no "cease to exist" option. When Doomsday occurred, it fell upon the officials and staff stationed at Cheyenne Mountain Complex in Colorado to enact that plan; the attempted Soviet bombing of the facility failed, allowing the personnel inside to not only survive but maintain contact with the dying President Reagan and the figures behind the ill-fated A.P.A. until sometime in 1984. In practice, the only part of the plan's relay network to survive was the "Wyoming line," with Cheyenne Mountain soon establishing a hidden correspondence with Torrington. It wasn't until 1989, however, when the Lakota War was turning decisively against the Sioux, that those figures finally left their underground complex and took the risky journey to Wyoming.

With them were the complete protocols and vital documents ensuring the legitimacy, legality and continuity of the United States. These included the final, recorded directives from President Reagan himself stating in clear terms that if all else failed, "get the message to Torrington." The Memorabilia, as those files came to be known, were soon passed on to the governors of the reconstituted States as well as President Hunkins, who in turn passed it on to their successors. Thus, by the time the "New American Declaration" was made in 2010, President Allard saw it fit to at last put the Memorabilia "into good use" and made it clear to the world in no uncertain terms: The New U.S. isn't simply claiming to be a successor to America, but that it is America now. And this time, they aren't going to give up the freedoms, legacy and Dream that had almost been extinguished in the nuclear flames.

This turn of events would also be a major contribution behind the so-called "American Spring" that erupted in 2011-12. What started as widespread protests in the M.S.P. over the prospect of "rejoining the Union" soon spread to a number of other survivor-nations across the American wastes, even in countries across the world where the American Diaspora were present in sizable numbers. Many of those protests were supported by an non-government organization called the Committee to Restore the United States of America (founded by disgruntled American exiles in Australia after the A.P.A.'s disbanding), though some suspect that elements in the New American government may have been more involved in the affair than just rousing rhetoric. There's little doubt that all these have contributed to New America's continued. Even as delegates and dignitaries embark on goodwill visits to as far afield as the Celtic Alliance and Alpine Confederation in Europe or Hawaii and the A.N.Z.C. lands across the Pacific, many of the other predominant powers are finding themselves in an awkward position over the New U.S.; even Canada, America's stalwart ally before Doomsday finds itself torn even as relations between the two are gradually warming up once more. Given how it may only be a matter of time before New America becomes much more than a nation of farmers, shopkeepers and frontiersmen with big dreams, some are already wondering what would happen when "Lady Liberty" is no longer content with being as easily dismissed on the world stage. Whether from "sea to shining sea" though remains to be seen.

Just as others are wondering what else the Memorabilia holds, as to this day parts of it remain classified. Rumors persist of varying credibility on how those secret protocols and files addressed to a particular person, how "Lady Liberty" and "Uncle Sam" may be more literal, or how it ties to the name "A. Jones."

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As a disclaimer, I don't own 1983: Doomsday, which belongs to its respective owners. Neither is this meant to be a deliberate political/ideological/propaganda screed of any kind.

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