As you can see from the tiny watermark in the bottom right corner, the above image was created using AI. I clicked on Google's Gemini app, typed in the following phrase:
Create a picture of a flag waving majestically on a flagpole with a rising sun in the background.
And out popped the above. I didn't alter it a bit.
I guess it got the "idea" to use a stylized image of an eagle to represent the "majesty" I had ordered. But it's uncanny really in that this whole little project was not only to kick off my very first attempt to create something using AI, but to do so with the intent that I would generate something for this post...something to help convey the message of not only the awe at the inspiration I had in developing the fantastic worlds of my Nastralian Saga, but also its steadfast endurance in my heart of hearts after all these years.
Much like the flag, waving majestically in the picture above, my idea of Nastralia was born of a desire to capture the imagination and set it ablaze with wonder, to lift the spirits in pride at a symbol of conquest and glory, like the flag on the top of a mountain at the dawn of a new era.
Here's an image of the actual flag of Nastralia. I designed it back in 1975, the year I birthed what was then just a single nation. It is red and white sharing one color similarity to the brand-new AI image, and there's no eagle -- but the crest of Nastralia was represented by an eagle.
Today, August 17th, 1975 is the date I chose (probably a few years later) as the day of Nastralian Independence. The birthday of Nastralia.
August 17, 1975
Forces of the Norglobe Faction, a Chastenkean-funded and trained militia insurgency surrendered today to the Nastralian Liberation Front (NLF) at the newly-established settlement of Pazze in Central Marshland on the north bank of the Cherry.
Colonel Dav'd Cournya accepted the documents of Unconditional Surrender as Commander-in-Chief and President-Elect General Clovis announced to the people the glorious end to the War and the commencement of the Republic of Nastralia. Henceforth, this day would be known as Nastralian Independence Day.
Celebrations were witnessed the world over as this long awaited development signaled what should prove to be new age for our planet and the beginning of what promises to be an unprecedented era of peace and prosperity for our people, finally, after many millennia, united as one under one government, one law, one ruler!
All Hail Nastralia!
And the lore goes on from there, as I developed it over the years...
Four years after this announcement, the globe-straddling republic was formed into a hereditary monarchy and a year after that, the de facto "benevolent and enlightened" dictatorship under the Riothamus Clovis of the Nastralian Empire.
For nearly two decades the people lived in what the propaganda called "harmony", but was actually more akin to a unique form of passive, yet pervasive, silent oppression.
After a Phyrric hostile takeover of the distant planets of Hevra and Hezra, economic difficulties in maintaining these far-flung colonies as well as political pressure and influence from the powerful Epilliarian Arm Council the people of Nastralia exiled the Riothamus to his own extravagantly expensive Space Station NASTAR in 1997. But after the escape of the Riothamus and his attempted reassertion of power in 2001, the people voted to permanently banish Clovis to the Blue Planet, with no means of return.
So, on the backward and barbarian Earth, the former ruler struggles to find gainful means of survival without exposing to the Earthlings his true origin. For, if his true identity were attempted to be disclosed, equipped with no shred of proof, he would surely be deemed unfit for even their primitive society and incarcerated, perhaps forever, as a lunatic.
But what, in the real world, is Nastralia?
Obviously, it became a "Star Wars-esque" space opera epic sci-fi fantasy story, but back in August of '75, it was really just my way of deep diving into what would turn out to be my life long obsession with creating my own personal, and very private, and very exclusive (read reclusive), reality. When I wrote about, drew, or explored the woods near my house with the intent to further enhance and feed my Nastralian obsession (and yes, especially in my younger years, it was an obsession) I could not, and would not allow myself to be bothered one bit by the real world. I almost literally transported myself, and myself alone, there.
When my family and I lived in Morin Heights, there was a strip of woods, not so very deep, but deep enough I guess, that was prime for "getting away." My parents were lenient enough to allow me the freedom even at the age of seven or eight to roam around in them for hours. Here I developed my first fantasy land. Similar to the M. Night Shyamalan movie "The Village" many years later, the idea I had was that these woods housed an unknown settlement of "lost peoples" who were somehow undiscovered by modern man. They had a primitive culture and developed villages and a unique culture with their own government and society. This land I named "Chastenkeana."
When my family moved in 1975 into our little house on Pearl Street, the nearby woods were much denser and larger and even though I was now 11, they were a bit scarier since they were more of a challenge, both physically since there were marshy areas, steep hills, very thick copse with stubborn thorny weeds and a sometimes swelling brook running through the heavily-wooded valley as well as a PTSD sense of trepidation about other people I might come across in there who may not be very friendly. (That's another story though.) I persevered though and before the end of that first summer in '75 I had explored the whole valley.
Here's a Google Maps sat image of that area today. Still the same, pretty much as it was back in 1975. The yellow dotted line is the boundary of "Nastralia." The red arrow points to my house at 27 Pearl Street.
So as you can see, not some vast primeval forest that I could possibly get forever lost in and need rescue teams to come find me, but, as you can probably make out even in this 2-D photo, there is a distinct valley there in that dense overgrowth and with an ever present, sometime swollen brook meandering its way through it, well, I doubt modern hyper-protective parents would let their kids play in there today. But the 70s were a different time for kids. And even by 70s standards, my parents were, shall we say, quite a bit laissez faire.
From time to time throughout those years, I'd play in those woods with friends I'd made as well, though I didn't let them in on Nastralia. With them, they were just "the woods." Nastralia was mine, and only mine. Especially as I got more and more detailed in my world building, I kept it secret since I thought they would make fun of it, or of me and think I was weird. Maybe I was right to keep it to myself. Maybe they would have laughed and rejected me. Or maybe they would have thought it cool and wanted to "play along." Either result frightened me. I didn't want to be ostracized over it but I also didn't really want to share it. I was its lord and commander, sole-creator; and I didn't want that to change at all.
Initially, Nastralia was similar to my previous fantasy land Chastenkeana -- a hidden enclave of lost peoples. But then I morphed it into a real-world "tiny nation" that had UN recognition, similar perhaps to San Marino or, since it was North American, a small, almost forgotten Indian tribe with a semi-autonomous tribal reservation status. But I soon abandoned that. Too limiting. By 1977 Star Wars fever had gripped my generation with gusto and I was no exception. I figured I'd plop Nastralia onto its own planet.
But I didn't want it to be "in a galaxy far, far away" or in the far from now future, I wanted it near and now. But how to do that?
For inspiration, I looked not to Star Wars, but some far lower-quality, Saturday afternoon UHF-channel fare.
Sketchy premise? Sure! But doesn't that make it even more of a "wow factor?" This and other sci-fi stories of a twin planet to Earth in the same orbit fascinated me to no end. It settled the question for my pre-teen mind as to the "near," but how to settle the "now" when I wanted the Nastralians to be superior. You see, like the Napoleon-like synopsis pasted above that I created years later, I, as the Riothamus, already had designs on "Cobalt Sky," the conquest of Earth.
The Nastralians would need a full back story, which I finally created in the early eighties complete with an 80,000 year history, tales of cultures, wars and empires long since gone ala Ozymandias and the story of an alien race of superior planet-seeders that instilled and nurtured the simultaneous development of humanity on both The Blue Planet (Earth) and The Green Planet (Nastralia). On Nastralia, in the 18th century, long after the Planet-Seeders had abandoned their twin zoo worlds, a device that had (accidentally?) been left by them was discovered. This device would enable people to learn the ways of these advanced beings and using their newly-found technological bounty, would soon propel themselves to a space-faring civilization.
Back in 2009, I tweaked the original Nastralia timelines and origin stories a bit in order to complete this outline for a proposed novel in the Nastralia lore universe. It's not "canon" to my "official" Nastralia development, but go ahead and take a look see if you like. Maybe, one day I'll make something of it. But then again, maybe not.
Nastralia could have been developed into some epic story long ago. Call it laziness, call it intimidation over my lack of confidence in being able to pull it off, or, simply call it for what it most likely is -- I just want it for myself. Just like I always have.
Other than the maps and stories I created on paper (and have subsequently all lost over time), I've only really ever revealed Nastralia here on this blog. This blog that, I suspect, only I follow.
It's morning right now so I'll not break out any champagne, but instead I'll raise my cup of coffee and sing this song (which I stole to use as my anthem in the early eighties) to the lyrics printed below, with one hand raised in honor to the new, AI-created flag.
All hail the shy, withdrawn boy who embraced his affection for solitude and found a universe of dreams that would last a lifetime...
From the great forests of the Chastenkean,
To the golden hills of Phanxmeti,
Mel-an-a-cras-tian-Cit-a-del!
These are the realms of
OUR NASTRALIA!
Uniting noble lands early on,
Bade time for endeavoring to beyond,
In rocket-ships we blasted to,
our sister planet of glowing blue.
This world, now part of
OUR NASTRALIA!
From this star system to those nearby
We stake our claim to the Cobalt Sky
The Hev-ra-Hez-ra will soon die!
This space shall last forever as
OUR NASTRALIA