Sh'Vara Station
M-Class
PX-438 System
Teneebia Sector
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"When life first dove out to reach the stars, Sh'Vara was a safe harbor."
- Unknown
A long standing trade outpost, the history of Sh'Vara station is largely a mystery. References to the station and its merchants have been found dating back to the dawn of modern warp travel, and even its most prolific Trade Clans do not claim to know the origin of their home. What is certain is that Sh'Vara has long been known for hosting a vibrant mix of species from across known space, and for it's eponymous mercantile guild.
The highlight of any visit to Sh'Vara Station is the Grand Concourse, a multi-deck spanning shopping plaza famous for it's verdant foliage. Nearly an arboretum unto itself, the plant life actually plays an important role supplementing the stations life support systems. Small open greens ringed with shops of all sizes fill out the whole of the stations expansive main deck, with goods on sale from nearly every conceivable corner of the Alpha quadrant. The center of the Concourse houses the so-called "shrine district", an area dedicated to the odd mish-mash of pantheons that have been amalgamated within the local Sh'Varanist faith.
Situated above the Concourse the engineering pylons house the stations critical systems, from the fusion and antimatter reactors to the industrial replicators. The modular and intentionally simplistic design of the station ensures that nearly every piece of the structure itself can be produced within a replicator, with only certain advanced systems requiring non-replicateable components. Indeed, while references to the station go back over five hundred years quantum dating has found no piece of the station to be more than a century old.
Immediately below the Concourse is the docking level. While the stations fixed structure includes only a trio of paired docking arms, a number of modular expansions have greatly expanded the stations capacity, as well as providing space for markets beyond the Grand Concourse. Although the docking level markets are viewed by most Trade Clans as less prestigious than the Concourse markets their leases are generally far less expensive, making them more attractive to smaller Clans or those lobbying to join the Mercantile Guild.
The bulbous lower section of the station has been converted to serve as a mix of storage and habitation space. Trade Clans will often store their stocks alongside their living space, crafting warehouse mansions as a pragmatic but effective show of affluence. The stations modular design lends itself well to the constant ebb and flow of wealth amongst the Trade Clans as their shares of space are adjusted semiannually. Some aspiring hoteliers have even created lodgings in the lower deck, attempting to cash in on the stations reputation and the unspoiled wilderness of the M-class planet PX-438 below.
Of note is the water of PX-438. Examinations have shown that rather than the expected dihydrogen monoxide, the surface water of PX-438 is almost entirely deuterium oxide, or heavy water. While short term exposure is largely harmless to most species, the risks of long term exposure have ensured that the planet has gone largely uninhabited. Day trips, however, have proven popular with those interested in seeing the planets foliage, and the novelty of a quick dip in the denser water of its lakes.