Second Fleet

From FEInfobase

Created in 2404 by Fleet Admiral Taylor's first executive order of the year, the Second Fleet was orderd to head out in to space and make peaceful contact with Friends of the Federation in an attempt to secure more resources for the continued rebuilding effort.

Initially only 4 ships have been assigned to this fleet as it is more of a political move than any real attempt to secure extra resources, the public aren't aware of the Second Fleet's other orders, to simply take what they need if they cannot get it through peaceful diplomatic needs.

It has been speculated within Starfleet that the second Enterprise Class Vessel, USS Columbia will be assigned to the Second Fleet in order to strengthen public belief that this initiative is one of Starfleet's highest priorities.

The appointment of Vice-Admiral Falco Tauvits to the Fleet, despite a short assignment, finally kick-started the project into action. Tauvits, with his unbeatable knowledge of the uncharted space that would be the Second Fleet's theatre of operations, turned the rag-tag dead-end group into a fully fledged task force ready to meet the duty of expansionism. Thus by the time Tauvits was promoted to become head of Starfleet Intelligence the Second Fleet was finally prepared to begin operations, now under the command of the former Fleet XO, newly-promoted Rear Admiral Matthew Royce, an officer who has served with the Fleet since its creation.

Royce's first choice for the new Fleet Executive Officer was his former first officer from the Borg War, Captain John Avery, who was also granted command of the prestigious new starbase of Deep Space Five, still under construction. However, within days of this assignment and before Avery could even reach his new posting, a tragedy struck as the distiguished Starfleet Captain died suddenly of an unexpected heart failure.

Avery's death would send a ripple of discontent through the fledgling Second Fleet, already having undergone many changes, for better or worse, and desperate for some stability. Many called for the new executive officer to be one of their own, and tended to favour the young, but brilliant Captain James Langley of the USS Caliburn. Royce, however, defied the pressure by appointing another old comrade of his, Captain Edward Beckett, former Deputy Federal Security Advisor, and presumed to be intended as an outside source of stability.