Bulwark of the Charter - Fathom Fleet Moniker
Between the older, more settled inner regions of Terran Alliance space and the volatile, resource rich Storm Zone lies the Fathoms Reach. The Terran Alliance originally gained control of Fathoms Reach after the Wars of First Contact, fought at various points between the Aquans, Sorylians, and the Terrans. After a brief (relatively) series of conflicts, the three powers signed a number of treaties. The Aquans and Sorylians were very wary of one another at the time, and neither wanted a direct border with the other. To this end, the Terran Satellite Charter, who were acting as mediators for the treaties, were granted dominion over the Fathoms Reach and the Storm Zone, creating a buffer between the two alien empires.
To guard this new territory, the Fathom Fleet was formed. This fleet primarily served as a defensive force, defending important trade routes from pirates and alien attack. Many resources were transferred through the area from the Storm Zone, while ships, colonists and munitions passed through in the opposite direction. Such concentrations of trade goods ensured that there was always a need to guard against pirate activity. Over time, the Fathom Fleet was regarded as a safe, quiet post, ideal for raw recruits and officers who were past their prime. This unglamorous status was perhaps undeserved, as the Fathoms Reach saw more intermittent fighting than anywhere outside the Storm Zone itself. While the scale of the battles fought never reached the same levels seen in proper warzones, the sheer number of skirmishes meant the Fathom Fleet possessed a core of experience fighters. Fathom Fleet ships are often outfitted with a defensive posture in mind, as they must interpose themselves between vulnerable convoys and the hard hitting but often fragile raiders which hunt them. The fleet quickly developed what was to be their foremost specializations; communication, logistics and system defense. These specialties allowed them to quickly detect and respond to any raiders who might be active within their area, often engaging them before the attackers realized they'd even been spotted.
With the outbreak of full scale war, the Fathom Fleet has quickly shown itself to be a formidable force and vital asset to the Kurak Alliance. The fleet headquarters in the Ysgardia System has become an invaluable communications nerve center and staging area for Alliance forces before they enter the Storm Zone proper. The scale of the systems communications network is extraordinarily dense, even by Terran Alliance standards, and large amounts of important information are funneled through it from the Storm Zone to Ter-Intel and Hawker intelligence analysts.