"The pale blue is lovely..."

Statistics:

Region size: Single-system

Region habitability: Impossible

Region population: 0

Description:

The Axtracan System is a star system centered around a 0.97 solar mass white star, possessing only a handful of asteroids and merely two planets of similar size, neither of which have moons. The entire system is obscured in a wide field of dust that is mainly comprised of a cobalt-aluminum oxide, giving even empty space in the system a blue hue. Both planets, Axtracan I and Axtracan II are both rocky worlds with atmospheres dominated by similar particles to the space around them. How such large quantities of the material have appeared in the system is unknown, though it is thought to be a synthetic creation from either a past civilization or a nomadic horde that lived in the system before. The particles suppress tracking methods such as RADAR and Jericho sonar, and appear to react adversely with fuels such as hydrogen, helium, and most fissile materials, making space travel and living difficult in the system. The particles, however, do not seem to impact organic life and are safe to inhale. 

The surfaces of Axtracan I and Axtracan II are both populated with an overgrowth of azure kelp-like growths that grow on hard stalks, often surpassing 200 feet in height. The ground foliage is made up of lesser growths more akin to grass and shrubs, with the occasional spherical pseudo-mushroom. Both planets are known to have these mushrooms in identical quantities, though a variant with red stripes can be found in the polar regions of Axtracan II. Around these polar regions can massive "concrete gardens" be found. These gardens are devoid of all macroscopic life and consist of even grids of "roads" and large rectangular concrete structures, often compared to buildings. Massive obelisks can be found as well, pointing in a variety of directions at angles between 45 and 78.

Apart from native life, the system is completely uninhabited. Migrating space whales and exosneegs avoid the system, despite the dust that fills the system being completely benign to their bodies. Marauding hordes in the area consider the system "cursed", and do not enter it. Attempts to colonize the system have been made, with complete failure. In each attempt, colonists report hallucinations and a sense of impending doom throughout their stay, driving many to return to their home worlds. Typically, communications with the colony is lost in roughly two weeks, after which no trace of the colony can ever be found.