Hoccoria Gamma

Hoccoria Gamma (1.1 AU orbit) is a Class D rocky planetoid, a quarter of the size of Zemlejos, with 0.17G and an average surface temperature of -120°C.  It has a 6 Standard Hour day and a 544-day long year.  It is devoid of any atmosphere.  

 

By one of those miracles of the cosmic clock, the planet plays a major role in the ecology of The Threads.  Its orbit regularly intersects with the main "comet highways", and the debris ejected by the frequent impacts create new comets, ensuring that the phenomenon is eternally renewed.

 

All sorts of exotic minerals can be found at the edge of the crater impact zones, but the impact risk, coupled with such rapid axial rotation, makes it impossible to predict survival time down on the surface.  It is impossible to live on the planet, and only the most foolhardy or desperate will attempt a salvage mission there.  As the laconic saying goes : Hoccoria Does Not Disappoint.  You will either die as expected, or survive unexpectedly and come away rich.

 

The arts dealer leaned back, gesturing to the statue on the table. A slender figure carved in obsidian-black basalt, the lines graceful. Embedded in the chest: a jagged red crystal, pulsing faintly in the showroom light.

“She called herself Veyna. Came to me for maps—no credits, only desperation. Said she'd heard of a fresh impact zone near the Meridian Trench, its rim glittering with red glintstone. I warned her. Hoccoria doesn’t forgive mistakes. She just smiled. ‘I only need one,’ she said.”

He ran a hand across the base of the statue, eyes distant.
“They landed at dusk. Not that it means much there—just shadows chasing shadows under a sky torn by comets. The planet spins like a coin on edge.”

“Her team spread out, skimming the crater’s lip in exo-suits. Ground still smoking from the last impact. They found the crystals. Razor clusters of them, half-melted into the rock. She picked one—that one—just as the sirens screamed. A comet, low and fast, howling in on a shallow arc.”

“Lander’s cams caught it. The sky caught fire. Ice and stone lit up the horizon. Looked like a god slammed a hammer into the planet.”

He paused, eyes narrowed.

“No word from the team. The lander launched automatically—AI protocol. When it reached me, there was nobody inside. Only the crystal.  Creds automatically sent from my account to hers the second I picked it up, another AI protocol just as we had agreed”

The buyer leaned in. “And you’re sure it’s real glintstone?”

He smiled, thin as razorwire. “I watched her die for it. Or live. Hoccoria doesn’t disappoint.”

He slid the statue forward.
“Fifteen million. And a story to haunt your guests.”

 

The Solar Chord Pulse

Hoccaria Gamma is already a nightmare.  Can a mere EM pulse make it any worse ?

Well, yes, if you happened to be down on the surface when they hit.

Hoccaria does not disappoint.