Human Armada Defense

Terrans were the only species to join the Coalition with only an oral history to provide. Given the decimation of their planet, library and orbital repositories the Coalition had to take the Terran's word for how their species evolved and built their societies and cultures. This led to a misconception concerning the Terran approach to conflict. In every recorded instance since joining the Coalition Terrans favored de-escalation, always going for the diplomatic path when available and falling back to let the larger Ik-tek-na armies handle situations that devolved into violence.
Additionally, the Terran ships were well known to be their only homes, their planet being abandoned. It was considered understandable that they would eschew violence and become an almost pacifistic species, keeping their world ships as far from risk as possible. Terrans integrated other species technologies into their ships and underwent the typical scans when docking however it went unnoticed that many of their systems were not, in fact, separate. Partitions were in place to keep complex weaponry appearing mundane in purpose and usage.
There were rumors that the Human Armada Defense, or Hades as the Terrans nicknamed it, was more competent than it appeared but given that the only skirmishes Terrans had ever been observed in were as scouts who returned to their world ships before any heavy fire would be exchanged the rumors were summarily dismissed as propaganda.
It was only during the first meeting of the Coalition and other species to discuss the impending threat of the Frayel that the truth began to become known. Terran Generals' secrets were revealed, parts of their oral history that had remained hidden from the Coalition came to light and most damning of all was the way in which the Terrans strategized against the Frayel, ignoring decorum and honor all together for efficiency.
Throughout the Frayel war the Terran Human Armada Defense, once thought to be little more than a pageantry of military might, was revealed to be the entirety of the Terran fleet. Every ship was quickly modified, every system adjusted for violence. Their tactics were brutal, their will to fight matched only by a few and though the Ik-tek-na outnumbered them the Terrans are often attributed as one of the forces that turned the tide in many a battle.
The Terrans' careful secrecy made it a revelation that their entire time in the Coalition was nothing more than a bid for time and resources. They built alliances while scouring the galaxy for the Zithrik and their master's the Frayel. When Terrans found their enemy, they fought in a way no other species had ever encountered outside of the Zithrik, only the youngest were non-combatants. Every Terran put their lives, blood, sweat and faith into war. A greater military force has not been seen since.