| Rivenstone | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
| USS Rivenstone (NX-27) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| ||||||||||||||||||||
The USS Rivenstone was the 27th NX Class vessel constructed by United Earth's Starfleet Command, originally built in the year 2159 prior to the inception of the United Federation of Planets. The vessel was constructed to explore the barriers preventing travel faster than Warp 5.2. As such the space-frame was built with additional reinforcements and a higher energy output structural integrity and inertial dampening fields.
Prototype Engine
The Rivenstone was built with a prototype warp core, in theory capable of going Warp 7.5. This prototype caused numerous delays in the initial construction. Engine core redesigns were being submitted even just days before the vessel was to be inspected prior to being taken out on its initial shakedown cruise. The prototype engine used an intermix formula based on a theorized relationship between antimatter and time, though the theories were unproven Starfleet was impressed by the work and the promise of jumping ahead technologically.
Shakedown Cruise Issues
The vessel had numerous issues relating to the new engine design throughout the initial and subsequent 4 shakedown cruises. It was put back into dry dock twice for power system instability issues effecting all key systems. Starfleet nearly cancelled the project and replaced the engine core with a less theoretical version. The designers came up with a different solution, which would end up becoming standard. They refitted the main power grid to add a secondary lower-capacity channel so that power could be taken from the impulse engines directly and cutting off systems the matter/antimatter reactor. This redesign allowed the crew of the ship to stabilize power in key systems even if the reactor core and warp drive became unstable.
Warp Field Experimentation
The prototype engine core was successful in allowing the ship to achieve Warp 6, though a strange temporal lensing effect was detected. Though minimal, the crew was tasked with significant testing to determine the nature of this lensing effect and how it might impact travel. The engine core's design was to blame, the core was built to take advantage of the ability for antimatter to cold-start and thus reduce thermal engine pressure. The testing revealed numerous problems, Starfleet was seriously considering cancelling further experiments when the vessel disappeared on it's final test.
Disappearance
The ship and all hands vanished on October 2nd, 2160 during their final approved warp field test. The test was approved to hold Warp 6 for an extended period of time while they attempted to diagnose the temporal lensing effect. The last transmission from the Rivenstone said they were attempting a core shutdown after an unexpected gravitational surge of unknown origin. Long range scans showed evidence of a potential warp core breech, though no debris were ever found. The ship and all hands aboard vanished. No clear evidence was ever found to indicate what happened.