Harha’kuva
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Harha’kuva is an M-class planet located deep within the Shackleton Expanse - a desert world characterized by emerald sand and obsidian, monolithic ruins.
All sensor readings of Harha’kuva are unreliable. Its apparent mass, atmosphere, temperature, and magnetic field fluctuate depending on the observer’s expectations and the technology used. At times, the planet seems to vanish from scans entirely.
Available Data
The origins of Harha’kuva are unknown, as is its exact location. It is a desert world of emerald sand, with no visible bodies of water, and the existence of subterranean oceans remains unconfirmed. It does not appear to be home to any native species, humanoid or otherwise, and, while appearing fully capable of doing so, does not sustain life of any kind.
Deep sensor sweeps detect a slow, rhythmic energy pulse emanating from monolithic structures across the surface - a phenomenon that interferes with imaging systems and prevents accurate readings.
Across the quadrant, multiple cultures preserve myths and legends that appear to reference Harha’kuva either directly or through striking parallels. As such, the Atriari adorn their temples with murals of an emerald eye attributed to one of their guardian deities. The Rosvakaar recount attempts to reach a fertile planet that moved just out of reach whenever ships drew close, and the Varjokh warn of a malevolent influence that twists their communal dreams into nightmares when fed the wrong thoughts.
Romulan expedition logs describe sensor phantoms matching the crew’s personal longings, drawing landing parties to the surface. None of those away teams ever returned.
These reports, combined with the reactive psionic energy, suggest that Harha’kuva may possess a form of sentience.
Cognitive and Instrumental Distortions
Harha’kuva’s interference surpasses conventional subspace distortions. The planet's psionic resonance disrupts most forms of remote imaging, which results in inconsistent sensor data such as temperature fluctuation spanning hundreds of degrees, shifting atmospheric density, and contradictory mineral analysis.
The same resonance interacts with the sapient mind and projects deep-seated fears, regrets, or desires as vivid and often disturbing visions.
The more unsettling these projections and the more negative the emotions connected to them, the more powerful the interference seems to get.
Encounters
These Encounters are suggestions and entirely optional. When using these encounters, keep in mind that the planet makes sensor readings and any form of imaging unreliable. What you see might not be real.
- A ship identical to yours orbits Harha’kuva, but does not react to your hail. Scans show no lifesigns on board. Comms broadcast a repeating, cryptic message, warning your crew of the ‘wrong side of the mirror’. Only when your crew realises that each of them hears the warning in a different voice do the implications begin to settle in.
- Your crew has been hoping to discover strange new worlds, but so far, their assignment has proven almost disappointing. As Harha’kuva appears in front of them, the first scans indicate breathable atmosphere and sprawling cities on the surface. But just as the first away team prepares to beam down, the readings change.
- Through scientific advancements, a true scan of the planet’s surface becomes possible. The structures deemed responsible for the psionic field appear to be of Vezda design, and the ebb and flow reminiscent of a slow inhale and exhale. At the same time, sensors pick up a single lifeform deep within the planet's core.
- Unable, or unwilling, to face their hallucinations as fiction, members of your crew have defied orders and taken a shuttle down to the surface. Only seconds after landing, they begin broadcasting a distress signal, but sensors no longer pick up their lifesigns.
In Play
- Locating Harha’kuva has proven almost impossible. You will either stumble across the planet by accident or have to invest tremendous time and energy into finding it
- No two encounters with the planet are the same, and sensor readings change depending on who the planet’s psionic field has locked onto. This enables writers to dig deep into past character history and traumatic events, summoning echoes of past encounters.
- The mystery of Harha’kuva cannot be solved entirely, and its unique properties can only be circumvented for a short amount of time. This isn’t a villain to be defeated.