In the Russian hinterlands, many years ago, a city was erected.

A testament to the success of the scientific modern society over the old ways and Nature itself, Novograd was a technocratic wonderland. It was filled with the best and the brightest of Russia's Soviet Union, and made into a center of intellect and innovation, the envy of the world.
Along with it's innovative design, inspired architecture and educated populace, the city of Novograd was also furnished with that most effective and modern of power sources, a nuclear reactor.

This reactor, in the Chernobyl forest, has been hailed as one of the worst sites of nuclear contamination in the world, the worst accidental disaster until the Fukushima reactor.

After the nuclear disaster in Chernobyl, people were evacuated from the region and the surrounding villages were relocated from the area.

No people were allowed to remain there, and in our absence, nature returned. The boar, elk, and even the wolf roam freely in the forests of Chernobyl, and though their bones and organs house radioactive material, they are healthy and strong.

Even in the shadows of nuclear horrors, then, there is a hope for regeneration.
Recovery.
Prosperity, even.