No Calm Before the Storm

The U.S.S. Rafale, NCC-93017, is an Akira-class starship assigned to Task Force 75, Seventh Fleet.

==History==

Rafale entered service on stardate 75680, under the command of Captain Mal'Kon. Hoping to find ways to begin upgrading the fleet's Akira-class starships to take a more active role in the exploratory mission of Starfleet (like the ship they were meant to replace, the Excelsior-class), Rafale was built without the fly-through hanger deck that had been a standard of the class. The space was used instead for a conventional aft-facing shuttle bay, as well as numerous labs, an expanded crew recreation area, and a larger astrometrics lab. In addition, the weapons pod was altered to house scientific probe launchers, reducing the total number of torpedo launchers. Her sensors suite was updated drastically from the simple suite most Escort ships are provided, allowing the Rafale to act as a short-range exploratory starship that was more than capable of defending herself during the time of increasing tensions with the Klingons and the Romulan diaspora.

===Early missions===

Named after the early 21st century fighter airplane built by Dassault Aviation, the Rafale quickly lived up to her namesake, taking part in numerous skirmishes with Romulan ships in previously unexplored territory.

Captain Mal'Kon was prone to risk taking and incredible battle tactics, and ships that were involved alongside the Rafale spoke on numerous occasions of the speed and maneuverability in combat that she demonstrated; time and again she was described as a "violent storm of a ship."

The Rafale was one of the first ships on the front-lines when war broke out between the Federation and the newly expanded (and aggressive) Klingon Empire. She was assigned to the Seventh Fleet and transferred to the Klingon front permanently.

===Scientific missions===

The Rafale was unique in that it retained many of the best qualities of the Akira-class escort, while also able to be deployed as a research vessel. This gave the Rafale an incredible advantage over the more conventional science ships, which traded armor and firepower for sensors, allowing her to take part in many exploratory missions near the Federation-Klingon border.