Here's the premise: A starship is assigned to be the liaison ship to a new Federation colony planet. The planet is in a territory that's kind of like the wild west. The territory is/was run by a crime boss who has a major presence there, but there's all sorts of non-Federation species there, as well as the odd one who was just doing their own business apart from the Fed. The Federation (or rather, someone in it) "won" the rights to this uninhabited planet(oid) in an unlikely way, maybe a hand of cards or some other game. Maybe a concession in a legal trial. Not one to squander this incredible opportunity, they wish to establish a presence in this territory they had no official right to before. The idea attracts scientists, families looking for a new home, Starfleet, opportunists...all kinds of people. There are other planets in the sector, but this one is uninhabited. Rumors of past civilizations long gone, curses, etc... The unique alien species for this show are the Serenith, aliens that live many lives, growing up, then aging backward, until they become children again. They are cared for by guardians while kids, and live as children, despite retaining knowledge from their previous adult/childhoods, until they are adults again, over and over. Maybe one of them loses their guardians in an accident and is taken in by a family moving to the planet. What do you think?
Sounds interesting! Maybe a bit similar to DS9 in parts, but that can easily be reworked to make it stand out. I'm particularly interested in the Serenith. They sound really cool, and I can picture a ton of different stories you could tell with them. I can't remember, do the Ocampa from Voyager age backwards like this, or do they just have short lifespans? Either way, the Serenith would be what I would in particular find to be the part of the story to focus on, because they are so, as our favorite Vulcan would say, fascinating.
The Ocampa lived only about 7-9 years, but they grew from childhood to adulthood within those years. The crime boss is also a member of a new species. Unlike the Ferengi, whose government is more about profit, their syndicate is more about deals and loyalty and territory. The Serenith eventually do die, but their typical lifespan is many centuries. In their forward cycle (growing up), they are treated as children, not as the adults they once were. That is, if two met as adults, but one was on their forward cycle while another was on their backward, if the latter became a child again, the former was not to continue to pursue a romance with their spouse/lover until they were both of age again. They have the unique chance to pursue a different life than they once had. They have a coming of age ceremony when they become adults where they regain their lost memories and are aided in meshing them in with who they are now.