USS Endeavour
The USS Endeavour (NCC-91505) is an Obena-class starship assigned to the Fourth Fleet under the command of Captain Matt Rourke. Commissioned in late-2399, Endeavour was attached to a diplomatic mission to the Neutral Zone to continue the work of her namesake, a Manticore-class decommissioned after a terrorist attack by the Romulan Rebirth Movement. In the face of this opposition, Starfleet has recommitted to building bridges with the Romulan factions and bringing stability and support to a troubled region that has over fifteen years become a home to warlords and refugees alike. Endeavour thus performs operations in the region to maintain its security, support the refugee worlds, cooperate with the Romulan Star Empire and Romulan Republic and build bridges in the region.
Design and Layout
Expected to take point on diplomatic operations in a fraught region of space, Endeavour has been outfitted to defend herself against the threats of the Neutral Zone and Starfleet's enemies in the region, but more importantly with the facilities to represent the Federation by hosting summits and providing relief to the many stricken refugees. Permanent offices have been set aside for the Diplomatic Service staff adjacent to the VIP section and conference rooms, space reserved for a bullpen of their desks and an office for the Mission Leader.
At Captain Rourke's behest, refits were undertaken to install a Combat Information Centre akin to the one aboard her predecessor, harnessing the greater space and resources of an Obena and using the software modifications by Endeavour's crew to expand the CIC's strategic analysis capabilities to economic and political. From the CIC, staff have an overview of a region on the holographic interface and can monitor changes and plan operations. This positions Endeavour for data gathering and analysis operations across multiple systems and locations, be they focused on strategy, intelligence, or science.
The Security Department section includes facilities for Endeavour's Hazard Team. This includes a small training area, a locker room, armoury, and briefing room. This allows the team to operate independent of the Security Department for selection, training, and mission preparation.
Auxiliary Craft
Some of the auxiliary craft from the previous Endeavour were recovered, and Rourke retained and expanded the naming conventions of before, shuttles and runabouts named after the mythical court of Camelot. Rather than retain the full complement of smallcraft for an Obena, a quartet of fighters have been installed, deployed for ceremonial escort duties as much as patrol and scouting missions.
- 8 Type-12 Shuttles: Galahad, Lancelot, Bedivere, Percival, Gawain, Tristan, Agravain, Dagonet
- 2 Orion-class runabouts: Uther Pendragon, Merlin
- 2 New Atlantic-class runabouts: King Arthur, Guinevere
- 4 Valkyrie-class starfighters: Black Knight Flight
The Safe House
The main lounge and bar aboard Endeavour, the Safe House is expected to act not just as a leisure space for the crew, but to host gatherings with guests that could include diplomats and dignitaries. As such, it has been designed for comfort and entertainment, with floor-panels of real maple and brass-coloured fixtures to give the establishment a warm, welcoming feel helped by gentle lighting. Seating is a mixture of comfortable booths that can provide a limited privacy or even intimacy, and tables on the main floor that are cleared away when more space is needed.
Staff are a mixture of holograms overseen by several real shift leaders and their manager, whose attire matches the décor to invoke something of the feel of a 1920s speakeasy. This aesthetic is matched by the music from a holographic band on the main stage, though the space is sometimes used for live performances by crewmembers. The Safe House can swing between an atmosphere of a bustling party to a more intimate buzz, but the nature of the Starfleet life and its shift patterns means it always feels like a place to catch up over bar snacks and a drink, or at least a coffee.
History
The USS Endeavour was originally commissioned as the Tianwen, one of the last waves of Obena-class ships constructed in the 24th century. As the United Federation of Planets began to reconsider its isolationist policies after the Coppelius incident of mid-2399, the construction of more ships capable of conducting missions of diplomacy and exploration was ordered. With the Obenas originally designed in the years after the Dominion War to evoke the prestige of Starfleet's more peaceful eras, a new construction order was logical.
The Tianwen had an uneven birth. An error by programmers slowed the development of her bio-neural circuitry, a delay that cost the Tianwen the anticipated choice for commanding officer, as Captain Dorain accepted assignment to Starfleet Science instead. She was considered a choice for First Secretary Sophia Hale's diplomatic expedition to the Neutral Zone, but without a captain or selected crew, the duty remained with Hale's first choice, the Manticore-class USS Endeavour.
When Endeavour was damaged by sabotage at the hands of the Romulan Rebirth Movement and decommissioned, Admiral Alexander Beckett stepped in to secure the Tianwen for the Neutral Zone operation. At his behest she was renamed Endeavour, with the admiral arguing the continuity sent a message to those who opposed Starfleet's involvement in the region. The surviving crew of the previous Endeavour were assigned to the new ship, including commanding officer Captain Rourke, and further personnel selected to bolster her ranks.
As of December 2399, Endeavour has entered the Romulan Neutral Zone to begin relief missions, on occasion in cooperation with the Romulan Star Empire or Romulan Republic, for the refugee worlds that have mostly stood alone for a decade and a half.