Daedalus-Class perhaps? She would have loads of space to handle a crew of miners plus all their equipment. Some of the ENT era ships could possibly appear (especially the freighters).
Just to continue with my whole Halfway Space Station train of thought - I see this as a place that a company (I'll use JMC from Red Dwarf as a placeholder name) towed out from the Federation when they could see what was happening with the prospectors and realised that there was money to be made with such an enterprise. The station itself is an old refinery that was broken down into modules for the journey and reassembled on the outskirts of the Cimmerian Cluster - acting as the changeover point where ships on the 'asteroids-Halfway' leg drop of their passengers and cargoes to be collected by ships who do the 'Halfway-Federation' leg of the journey. Halfway Station is essentially the only safe haven between the Federation and the asteroid-field - if your ship has a problem there are no habitable planets to seek refuge on - the whole region is a vast, uninhabitable realm. The JMC employees running the station have a vague idea of what ships are destined for Halfway via representatives at the asteroid-field and on the closest Federation outpost that is the 'staging ground' for these prospectors when they set out, but vessels are known to go missing during both legs of the six-week voyage.
Names for consideration for the Sioux-aliens, or any others in the region: Abbai Braktali Cehrona D'nor Ethellinite Felrux Gghreeht Hallayda Insédi Jek Khevedan Lloris Maetavite Nyagdel Omolloan Pedi Q'osok Rhesarhel Silvaronian Terkalite Uhmpa Vrik-Zah Wynumi Xahdai Yith'los'vrii Zylan
What about the aliens having a 'slang' name that the prospectors and everyone use to refer to them - something like the Wraith from Stargate Atlantis?
Let me make a alteration, between the Federation and the asteroid field there are two large alien powers, empires-republics-kingdoms-whatever. Neither is openly hostile towards the Federation, however neither want the the Federation cutting through their territory (stay off my yard). Now, while they are not hostile toward the Federation, they can't stand each other and have fought a series of wars. Between them now is a neutral zone. The only reasonably short route to the asteroid field is to traverse the length of this neutral zone from one end to another. The course required to is as twisted as the zone itself, and civilian ships aren't known for their precision navigational systems. Entering the territories, on either side could trigger a new war, which amount other things, would close the route to the asteroid field. Halfway Station is situated in the neutral zone, towed there in pieces and reassembled. How about a nice girls name, like "Sue." Ah, the birth place of Conan the Barbarian. Cimmerian does have the advantage of containing no apostrophes.
Dunno if anyone is still interested in this but I'm seriously considering writing something for it. All the interest in my challenge entry has boosted my confidence!
It is something that could be fun to play about in. I've had a few fleeting ideas about this project, though never typed anything out.
I think I should commission Fanboy to write that Halfway station thing I have in mind. PM me Fanboy. Can you PM me this early in the game? Well whatever...
Thought about a possibly entry for "Abandoned", based on this idea. Depends on if I can get it to work and written in time.
Hi SANDOVAL I'd be happy to read whatever outline you may have produced! No I don't think I can use private messaging yet sorry, but you can email me at angryfanboy00@hotmail.co.uk if you like.
Be great if you could tie this in to the challenge BRY SINCLAIR! I look forward to reading whatever you decide to enter!
Oh great, people are now expecting me to write something I've been having a thought for a small prospecting ship, owned by a big-assed mining company. I was thinking about using the Intrepid-Class (from ENT), does it seem feasible that they would still be on the go by the mid-23rd century? I liked the design and fancy using it, but I don't want it to seem far-fetched that one is still on the go.
I wouldn't call it far fetched in the least. Look at the current USS Enterprise aircraft carrier - 53 years old and built with 1950s technology, still actively deployed in 2012. A starship built with 22nd century technology should easily see out a hundred years.
Alternatively, it could be a new ship type that's based on the old design but sports modern warp technology and such.
* 2244 (TWENTY YEARS BEFORE JAMES KIRK TAKES COMMAND OF THE ENTERPRISE) A hundred and twenty light-years beyond the outermost reaches of Federation space, the transport ship Themis slipped smoothly out of warp, her eight week journey across the barren gulf that lay between the United Federation of Planets and the Cimmerian star cluster finally at an end. In the Themis' forward observation lounge, Adam Lainer stood with a gaggle of other JSP employees who had been his travelling companions for two months since boarding the transport ship at the JSP terminal orbiting Trent, one of the Federation's most remote outposts. The group watched as one through the tall viewports as their destination became visible, a solitary spaceport suspended in the void over a hundred light-years from civilisation, christened Halfway Station in honour of its position almost exactly halfway between the farthest edge of Federation territory and the vast resources recently discovered in the asteroid belt of the Avalon system deep within the Cimmerian Cluster. As they drew nearer, Lainer began to make out a number of vessels gathered around Halfway, ranging from transport ships similar to the Themis to small, sleek-looking spacecraft that he decided were private yachts of some kind. Naturally his eye was drawn to what he immediately recognised as a Starfleet vessel, or more correctly a former Starfleet vessel that had outlived its usefulness to the Federation's vast exploratory and peacekeeping force and found a new home in civilian service. As his gaze moved from the dark letters etched into the starship's primary hull to the crisp new JSP uniform he was wearing, Lainer felt a sudden kinship with the former USS Clydesdale. Dwarfing everything but the station itself was an immense ore-freighter, holding position nearby as a handful of smaller craft gathered around like newborn chicks around a mother hen. Lainer could see that nearly all of the freighter's detachable cargo pods had been removed, giving it the appearance of a tree that had shed its leaves, leaving just a skeletal-looking trunk remaining. Physically Lainer likened Halfway Station to a dark-metallic doughnut with two gently-curving pylons of similar diameter reaching up and down from one end, an older design from the one the Themis had docked with above Trent but clearly from the same lineage. He'd been in space long enough to identify that the larger ships docked above and below the doughhut while smaller vessels docked at the doughnut itself. "Quite something isn't it?" a woman said softly in his ear, reaching both her arms around him and placing her chin on his shoulder. "Drifting out here in the middle of nowhere." Lainer's gaze remained fixed on Halfway as he sought out his wife's hands, interlacing her smaller fingers with his own. "I'm not sure if it was worth the two-month trip," he admitted. "It wasn't all bad," Corrine Lainer whispered playfully, giving him a tight squeeze. Lainer smiled, but before he could reply the ship's PA system chimed, silencing the low-level conversation in the lounge. "This is Captain Bowers speaking," the disembodied voice of the Themis' commander announced from the bridge. "If you're not already aware we're on our final approach and will be docking at Halfway station within the next few minutes. It's been a pleasure flying with you all and I hope to see you on the return leg at some point in the future. Welcome to Halfway Station." "A fresh start," Corrine said, sliding around and kissing Lainer gently on the lips. *