Maverick

Maverick, officially the The Maverick State and Province, or El Estado y Provincia de Maverick in Spanish, is a beautiful Latin destination for tourists and creatures of all kinds. It is also the home to TSP's brother, Tortugadesetas, who rules the country with an iron fist, and as such, Maverick currently suffers due to corruption. The population, consisting largely of farmers growing lima beans in greenhouses, are usually not aware of the corruption going on, and are used to the poor conditions they live in.

The island is a offshore banking paradise and a tax haven, and the Injofaces use Maverick's extreme bank secrecy to lock away their embezzled money for their family. Many of the wealthy around Antarctica, especially those engaged in illegal business, also do the same, storing their money in Maverick banks. Additionally, Tortugadesetas is also destined to stay in power as President of Maverick for the rest of his life without any threat of being deposed due to certain higher powers.

History
In 2009, Maverick was officially founded. There were three Presidents from the founding to the Great Coup. These presidents were extremely loved by their people and brought great success to the country. This led to the point that Maverick's currency was renamed the Kurt in honor of their third leader, Sir Kurt Maverick. The island was named after Kurt and Tim Maverick, the son and father, respectively.

President Iamred777's reign
Maverick's first leader was Iamred777, who is the same person who later became the leader of both Hailvale and Red Island. He and a two hundred other settlers fled from Serbia and other islands and countries to settle on their little island paradise. It was through this leader that the population grew under, and it was he who first suggested the use of greenhouses to grow crops to feed themselves and to make money. The penguins only had lima beans, so that was declared the cash crop for Maverick. Lima beans became the largest export from Maverick, generating a lot of money.

On September 30th, 2010, Iamred777 stepped down and handed the Presidency to the newly elected leader, President Tim Maverick. In Iamred's reign, the flag, motto, and symbol were adapted. The island's population rose from an initial 490 to about 2,000 penguins during his reign as well, through policies that enriched the country and encouraged hundreds of people from across Antarctica to move there.

President Tim Maverick's reign
Tim Maverick brought in modern technology to the island. With permission from the Governance, a telenacle was built and Maverick was put under the umbrella of a very far-reaching Teranarch. Electricity from coal soon followed, and the island was lit and powered for the first time. A "presidential palace" was built by the people and by foreign workers for him and future leaders of the young democracy. Under President Tim, Maverick was electrified and became known by other lands. The population expanded to 3,680 penguins, and Maverick was officially recognized as a country.

Tim Maverick also sealed export deals with major countries, particularly Dorkugal, to make Maverick their primary source for all things lima bean-based. To pay for these incredible advances, the military had to be slashed just to palace guards and presidential security. Soldiers were annoyed at this, but they got over it as they found jobs laying roads, building houses, and wiring the island for electricity. Indoor plumbing had yet to come, but now that penguins could watch their televisions, which could only get one channel from far away, and turn on lights, they were happier.

President Sir Kurt Maverick's reign
When Tim decided to step down, his son chose to run for election as President. No one ran against him, so he assumed power almost immediately. His campaign promise was "a Sink and Toilet in every home", and Kurt was true to his word. By the end of his reign, Maverick had an plumbing system, and the entire island's sewers were redirected to the power plant. The Governance, unlike with SN's schism, were invited to operate the "green" plant like a normal telenacle. Thrilled to assist them, the Governance never condemned this "green" scheme like they did on Swiss Ninja's battle.

With running water and electricity squared away, President Kurt continued to maintain the lima bean deals with Dorkugal. He built the nation's first bank and hoped that, with the island's low taxes, rich creatures would come and live there, investing in industry and making the island great. Offshore banking did not exist in President Kurt's reign; the bank was for Mavvs only, so they could store some of their Kurts away without having to lug it around. Bankers were called from overseas to help Maverick with its new banking industry, and these bankers decided to stay.

Military wipeout
Kurt, however, had a drawback to his brilliant ideas, as he was extremely pacifistic, to the point of officially abolishing any standing armies in Maverick. Without a permanent standing military, all defense was given to the small national police force of Maverick, and to any agents who may have moved to Maverick since its founding. For his peacemaking actions, President Kurt was awarded the title of "Sir" by the United Antarctic Nations, and given a medal. He wore the medal until he died, and was buried with it on him.

Meanwhile, the ex-military penguins were stirring behind their leader's back. The soldiers could handle a slash, but an abolition of the military angered them greatly, as they had lost their jobs. The last military general of Maverick during the nation's absolute civilian control of the military was the easily angered General John Coo. John Coo gathered few soldiers who were also angered at this, and they secretly decided to coup Kurt from the presidency, spending weeks plotting their moves.

Coup d'etat
There were two attempts to coup Kurt during his presidency by the military, who were angered at being disbanded by Kurt. The first was a major fail due to the intervention of the citizens of Maverick, but the second knocked him out, primarily because it was time for his mandate to expire, and he was not expecting such an insurgency. After the second coup d'etat, Kurt was deposed as President of Maverick, and sent to the United States of Antarctica, where he would live out the rest of his life in exile away from Maverick.

If at first one doesn't succeed...
The military decided to attack on the day that Sir Kurt was to announce the medal he earned to the cheering throngs of 410 penguins. Nineteen soldiers from the old military that had been abolished, armed with Khanzem War era rifles, stormed the presidential palace, overpowered the police guards who were guarding the palace, and traveled to the second floor, where Maverick was giving a speech to his people. However, a wise penguin from the crowd called out to their beloved leader, warning him that a bunch of insurgents had stormed into the palace.

President Kurt turned just in time, to see three soldiers with rifles pointed at him. Sir Kurt called out to his constituents in Spanish, asking them to form a tight crowd under the balcony. All four hundred penguins did so, and with that, the President jumped off the balcony and into the waiting flippers of his people. The Mavvs then set their leader down and tended to the bruises he had obtained. The soldiers, now trapped in the palace by the civilians and the police who were encircling the palace, surrendered.

...try, try, again
It was on February 10th, 2010, when Sir Kurt began to wrap up his mandate. He began to pack his things and remove the palace desk, as each President got to keep their desk, ready to be out of the Palace by the 19th of that month. The military stormed in and ambushed the movers, and the desk came crashing down onto their feet. The soldiers grabbed the soldiers and stole their wardrobes, disguising themselves as the movers. They went back to meet Sir Kurt, and they stuffed him into a bag. They carried the defeated President to the docks and put him on a cargo ship bound for the USA.

Then, the soldiers moved back in and gave the movers their clothes, promising them extremely large sums of money and a new pair of pants. They agreed after seeing the price tag, and the movers continued to move out. The people didn't notice that their President was missing until John Coo announced it off of the palace balcony. He said that Sir Kurt finished his mandate and had successfully packed up and moved out. Since John Coo had operated on the sidelines and not on the coup attempts, since he led them, the citizens thought he was still loyal to President Kurt.

Oh the palace balcony, John explained that Kurt was invited to be an ambassador to the USA for Maverick, and the crowd bought it hook, line, and sinker. He continued his speech and said that he would assume power, but the crowd booed at him. To his, he told them that he would find an appropriate candidate to run against "whoever wished to become the next President". This satisfied the crowd, who stopped booing at him, hopeful that they would have another great president who would continue to expand Maverick and make the country great.

Rigging the elections
After Kurt was dealt with, the military had no trouble suppressing anyone who wanted to run for President. John Coo took it on himself to find a good leader. All they could find, other than one of their own, something the people would revolt against, was one of TSP's brothers, Tortugadesetas. With the military's backing, Tortuga was named the candidate, but no one else decided to run against him, because the soldiers forbade anyone from putting themselves on the ballot against Tortugadesetas, often blocking voting centers and intimidating potential candidates.

The bid was successful, and Tortuga ran unopposed, and the few that voted, namely soldiers voted for him. The voter turn out was near zero, with estimates being at around 5% out of the about 5,000 citizens. Obviously, because of the lack of opposition, Tortugadesetas won the Presidency, becoming the next President of Maverick. He was sworn in to a small gloomy crowd in front of the presidential palace, consisting of mostly soldiers and a few citizens who hoped that the new president would continue to make the country great like before.

Maverick today
Tortugadesetas slowly began to depurify the Maverick government. Instead of forcing everything and changing everything in days, he slowly degraded his regime so that no one would notice what was going on. He gradually appointed soldiers to various jobs, he very steadily seized ownership of various companies and stakes in farms, etc., and he eventually seized the bank, and there, all was lost. The economy was now completely under the control of Tortugadesetas, giving him near complete control of the entire country and its population as well.

Tortugadesetas had crafted his takeover so well that he had seized the island from right under the inhabitants' beaks. When they finally realized what happened, it was over a month after. The people really didn't have a choice but to accept their new President, and plead to themselves that he wouldn't abuse them. Tortugadeseta partially kept true to his word, for he didn't lay a flipper on his citizens, and neither did his army, which was controlled by him. However, he had an increasingly strengthening control over the economy of the country.

Every time a crop was sold at the dock, Tortuga snatched up some Kurts in between. When a deposit or withdrawal was made in the Maverick bank, a small "tax" was charged for using said bank, and that tax went to Tortugadesetas. Everything purchasable and sell-able in Maverick had a "tax". Money from this "tax" poured into Tortugadeseta's coffers. The tax only applied to Maverick natives, not to foreign investments, so to the outside world, Maverick appeared nearly tax free, since the taxes didn't apply to them, though it wasn't.

Many thought that Tortuga would eventually be exposed, but that subsided when Tortugadesetas opened up the little Maverick National Bank to the world, promising total secrecy and no taxes. The Injoface Family were the first to take advantage of this, coming to Maverick to open up a bank account. They didn't tell him who they were or why they wanted a Maverick bank account, but they promised him that if he gave the Injofaces the use of the bank, he would be granted "BOF anonymity" and "regime protection".

Tortugadesetas asked what they meant, and Benny responded back, saying that "he knew people" and would "ensure" that he would rule without danger "for the rest of his life". With their IIRS money secured, Benny had finally protected his family's vault from the ever-watching eye of the PSA, EPF, AIA, and other related intelligence agencies. Mayor McFlapp was none-the-wiser, because Benny cloaked the bank's IP as well. To silence the good-natured Mavv bankers, Benny gave them all extremely large sums of money, and pairs of new pants.

Tortugadesetas and his rule were completely stabilized, made anonymous, and protected from invaders, all because of a certain little bank. Other creatures with secure Maverick bank accounts include Swiss Ninja and Project X Mark 1. Those rumored to have a Mavv bank account include Bow Tie Tom, Andrew K. Rapone and the Working Penguins Network. Over time, the rich of Antarctica, and especially those involved in illegal businesses, opened bank accounts in Maverick to store their money.

Yowien War and aftermath
After the Yowien War and the subsequent arrest of Feey, the former King of Yow, the international court in South Pole City sentenced Feey to live in exile in Maverick, as the country's leader, Tortugadesetas, was the only one who agreed to let him in that the court allowed. Feey arrived in Maverick and was greeted with open arms by the country's leader, who gave Feey a plot of land on which to build a house and farm. Feey built a house in the old Puffish colonial style and hired local Mavvs to farm the land, making food to eat or to sell and make money.

Feey's exile in Maverick also encouraged hundreds of Yowien loyalists who loved their King and country to move to Maverick. Many former officers and high ranking commanders in the Yowien military who had escaped capture by the invading forces also came to Maverick, building large houses and gaining a high position in Mavv society. Feey tried to set up a government in exile in Maverick, but it failed as no country recognized it. It is known however, that Feey directs Yowien nationalists around Antarctica from his mansion in Maverick.

Government
Maverick is led by a President, currently Tortugadesetas, who serves as both the head of state and head of government of the country. The President is almost the supreme leader of the country, ruling with an iron fist, as there is no legislature or supreme court to check his power. However, his power is partially checked by the military, who ensures he doesn't step too far out of line. Still, the President of Maverick stays in power no matter what due to the favor of a certain entity, which ensures Tortugadesetas will stay in power without any threat to his position.

Bow Tieland
When Tortugadesetas was picked for his job as President of Maverick, a close Turtlenator known as Bow Tie Tom wanted to tag along and invest his enormous wealth made through TSP's company in a distant land of luxury. Since a small island, no more than fifty miles large, was near Maverick and in its territorial control, they agreed to hand it over the Bow Tie Tom, and he created Bow Tieland out of it. Bow Tieland has been a close ally of Maverick ever since and the two countries and their leaders are often in trade deals with each other.

Yowien government-in-exile
After the fall of Yow and Feey1's capture and subsequent release to Maverick, Feey1, decided to set up a Yowien government in exile, based at his mansion and surrounding property in Maverick. He's the only member of it, as all other former high-ranking government members were captured or forced to disown Yow. The government of Maverick has not voiced any opposition to the creation of the supposed Yowien government-in-exile, but has not offered any support or recognition either. No other sovereign nation has recognized them to this day. Although Simon McClark wishes to, he hasn't because he knows doing so would hurt the UP's relations with Shops Island and the other Partition of Yow members. Feey stopped mentioning these claims in 2017, after failed protests and revolts in the Yowien Sea.

Military
Maverick's military, the Maverick Armed Forces, was first founded in 2009 after the country's independence as a defense force, but at the time only consisted of five soldiers, with their job being to protect the president of Maverick. Under the leadership of President Tim Maverick, the Maverick National Police, was founded as a police force, and initially consisted of ten police officers. President Kurt, the third president of Maverick, disbanded the military, which by then consisted of nineteen soldiers, handing the defense obligations over to the twenty member National Police.

This triggered a coup d'etat, in which the formerly disbanded military attempted to assassinate Kurt Maverick during a speech, but failed due to the intervention of the audience below, who caught the President as he jumped from the balcony. The second attempt, which involved kidnapping him and shipping him off to the United States of Antarctica, succeeded. Under the new president, Tortugadesetas, the military was restored. The Maverick Armed Forces, saw action during the Bow Tie War, the only foreign war it is participated in. As of 2018, the armed forces has 160 active soldiers.

Currency
The currency in Maverick are Kurts, which was named after third President of Maverick, Kurt Cobain. Before this, Maverick used the standard Antarctican pebble, which was used by the United States of Antarctica at the time. After he became the country's president, Tortugadesetas chose to retain the currency to honor the former President. Kurts are usually worth around 0.10 CPC, and the currency symbol for Kurts are ♲. Fish, the currency of the United States of Antarctica, is also a legal tender in Maverick, due to the country's Free Republic status.

Language
The two official languages of Maverick are English and Spanish, with English being the more common language, though members of the military can speak Spanish fluently, and Tortugadesetas can only read and write it, but not speak or understand it. If the military were to challenge Tortuga, they could discuss their plans in Spanish, and the President wouldn't be able to understand, which helps keep him in line. Both English and Spanish are taught in schools in Maverick, with English being the primary language, and because of that, almost all Mavvs are bilingual.

Geography
Maverick is about 2,702 mi² and is a beautiful island with staggeringly warm 19° F temperatures in the summer and decent, -20° F winters. Trees, mostly palm trees and other tropical flora, cover most of the island, but it is mostly flat land, aside from a few low hills, with a small extinct volcano tucked in the back of the island. The beaches are considered one of the most beautiful in Antarctica, with white sand, and it is said that the southwestern part of the island has amazing surfing conditions. Small rivers also run around the island originating from the low hills.

Flag, Motto, and Anthem
When Tortugadesetas seized the government, he chose to retain the flag (with few a few changes) and the motto.