Asciano, Sechina System
| Planet Name | Asciano, Sechina System |
|---|---|
| Stellar Classification | Red Dwarf |
| Habitability Grade | C2 |
| Satellites | 0 |
| Orbital Period | 213 Days |
| Rotational Period | 32 Hours |
| Capital | N/a |
| Population | 20,000 (circa 31154) |
Despite its inability to support life, Asciano has the unique distinction, for better or for worse, of being one of the most well-known planets in the Frontier. It is considered the greatest boondoggle in Umbrian Republic history or, alternatively, a testament to Umbrian ingenuity and willingness to push the boundaries of science.
The story would begin not long after the planet's discovery. While within the habitable range of its parent star, the planet was completely lacking in surface water. This, added to the general lack of oxygen in the planet's air, prohibiting the development of carbon-based life.
Asciano would retain a healthy atmosphere however, protected from the solar wind by its strong magnetic fields. When coupled with its slightly above average gravity and comfortable atmospheric pressure, the planet had missed the characteristics required for habitability by a hair.
This strange phenomena, a planet perfectly suited for life but devoid of the most important elements, proved unusually attractive. Recent technological advances had transformed the idea of terraforming planets from a fringe discipline with niche applications to one that possessed real possibilities, and Asciano was seen as the perfect testing ground.
The Umbrian Academy of Sciences would take an interest in the world, sending a series of survey missions to the planet.
Soon convinced of the world's suitability for their purposes, the UAS would establish a research outpost on the planet, where they would begin to map out the steps necessary to bring Asciano to life.
The first step in their plan involved bombarding the planet's surface with water ice from a belt of nearby comets. When this proved to be insufficient, the UAS's board of governors agreed to import liquid water directly, at outrageous expense. This too would prove to be slow going, and after fifteen years, the UAS had little to show for their effort.
Some Senators began to wonder aloud whether this was the most appropriate use for the Academy's resources, and draft legislation was drawn up to end the program.
The Academy's board would react sharply, publishing an open letter in Republic News Today stating that science cannot be subordinated to the whims of politicians, and that if the legislation were to pass, the board would resign en-mass.
The threat would dissuade enough wavering senators to abandon the bill, but the UAS's victory was pyrrhic at best. It significantly damaged its standings in the eyes of many of the Republic's citizens, who struggled to see why the Republic's public funding continued to support an organization which spurned any attempt at oversight or accountability.
By the time the Ascomanni war began, the costs of the project had exceeded five trillion credits, while the UAS conceded that to obtain the minimum level of oxygenation in the atmosphere necessary to support Umbrian respiration would require at least another three decades of investment.
As the Ascomanni advanced through the Frontier, the planet would be attacked in 31152. The Republic military hurried to rush elements of Praetor Artorius's command to the planet.
Fighting amongst the dunes and barren plains proved challenging. Combat shifted instead to the deep ravines and cave networks carved into the planet's rocky outcroppings by millennia of wind and sand. Hidden from the baking heat, the Umbrians and Ascomanni played cat and mouse for the better part of four months, trapped in a brutal stalemate and unable to dislodge one another.
The Ascomanni launched a last gasp assault on the UAS facility, but legionnaires under the command of Legate Aria Fulvia Nobilior was able to evict them from the science station after a brief occupation.
In a shocking twist, the Ascomanni abandoned their assault on the world, leaving the Umbrians in sole possession. The URA maintained a token force for a while, but when the Asco failed to return, they pulled their forces too, leaving the scientists to their experiments in the desert.
While questions were raised as to what the Ascomanni were after, and whether or not they succeeded in obtaining it, other events quickly overshadowed the mystery surrounding the alien incursion.