Editing Republic of Palau-Cora

The '''Republic of Paula–Cora''' is a small self-declared island state on '''Pulau Ritan''' (also called ''Mala''), a roughly 52-hectare island in the '''Anambas archipelago''' of the Natuna Sea, lying behind Pulau Kiabu near the drowned port-town of Tarempa. Founded in 2026 by sixteen survivors during the early days of the Outbreak, it is one of several micro-states that emerged across the archipelago after the collapse of mainland authority. As of 2031 it holds a population of roughly 23 and is governed jointly by its two surviving founders, Aobaom and Linus

===Etymology===
The name “Paula–Cora” is drawn from the island’s local name Pulau (Malay/Indonesian for “island”) fused with a founder-era coinage; the hyphenated form was adopted to distinguish the polity from the physical island of Ritan itself. Residents commonly shorten it to “the Cora” or simply “the Republic.”

==History==

===First years===
The Republic was founded by '''Aobaom''' and '''Linus''', who selected sixteen others and fled the Outbreak by sea. Ritan was chosen for its isolation, its jungle cover, and the narrow reef passages that make approach by unfamiliar boats. The first months, remembered as the '''“Landing,”''' were spent securing fresh water, clearing the jetty, and rationing supplies among the group. It was in these disorienting early weeks that Aobaom, half in jest, coined the name '''“Republic of Palau-Cora”''' for what was really just a jetty, some jungle, and a handful of survivors. For a time it stayed nothing more than an inside joke of mock decrees and a mock “Council,” 

===2027-2028===

As the initial shock faded, a few stranded people began to reach Palau-Cora, refugees, fishermen, and sailors set adrift by the collapse. Palau-Cora took in a few, but '''most were turned away'''. With food supplies still tight and every extra mouth a real risk to the group’s survival, the Republic could not afford to be generous, admission was rare and carefully watched. Those accepted were first held in quarantine on an offshore area before being allowed onto the island, both to guard against infection and to test whether they could be trusted. Among the handful admitted in these years were a few '''Bugis''' seafaring families, whose boat craft and reef knowledge proved worth the cost of feeding them. Through this cautious, often hard hearted policy the population crept up only slightly from the original eighteen into the low twenties which keeping Palau-Cora small enough to feed itself.

===2028-2031===

By this stretch the Republic had found its feet. The first '''babies were born on the island and survived''' a "miracle" given the near total lack of proper medical equipment, and with the shock of the Outbreak finally fading, the mood shifted toward '''optimism'''; the community was stable, fed, and growing on its own for the first time. The half joking name '''“Republic of Palau-Cora”''' stuck, worn now with pride by the original 16 and the other members. It was also in this period that the wider region turned dangerous in a new way of '''warlord states, island nations and settlements''' began asserting themselves and doing as they pleased, raiding taking each other. Palau-Cora responded to this by formally forming the '''Coranese Armed Forces (CAF)''' The era also brought the island’s first real diplomacy, the '''Federal Islands of Bawah''', better equipped and more populous from the very start, had the tools and manpower to travel and explore far beyond their own waters, and it was they who found Palau-Cora. Cautious contact grew into a working relationship, giving the young Republic its first friendly tie to the outside world. By the current day the population stands at '''45'''.

==Demographics==
The '''current population stands at 45 residents.''' The community is built around the founding group Aobaom, Linus, and the sixteen they chose, Palau-Cora expanded over five years by a small number of admitted newcomers and, more importantly, by the first generation of children born on the island, most of whom have survived despite the near total lack of proper medical care. People of Palau-Cora are called Coranese, the majority are '''ethnically Thai, alongside a small number of Indonesian and Malaysian Bugis seafaring families''' admitted during the lean early years.
English is the official language of the Council and of daily record keeping, '''while English is widely spoken at home''' and formally recognized. Religious life is quiet and mixed, split between Christianity and Buddhism, usually observed privately and without formal clergy. With so few people, '''there is little distinction between citizen, worker, and soldier, everyone holds several roles at once''', and the mood by the current day is markedly more settled and optimistic than in the frightened first years.