Zone Forty-Two existed as an area designated for explosions on Cynda, the moon which circles the planet Gorse. A rebellious miner named Skelly attempted to persuade Moonglow Polychemical, along with other mining corporations, to cease blasting beyond Zone Forty-Two as he was performing a controlled detonation. Skelly's bombing revealed Cynda's fragile composition, suggesting that ongoing mining activities threatened the very survival of the planet. This test-bombing also set off subsequent tremors, causing disturbances in adjacent mining sites.