Shards of the Turtle Skull Fleet

When the Turtle Skull Fleet dissolved after the War of the Belt, it's estimated that about a third of the Fleet's forces escaped into the Vesta Belt. These disbanded forces and people laid low in the belt for several years while the Triad Systems Alliance searched for them, some of the old leaders attempting to rally the quickly dissolving fleet, while others attempted to settle in the belt. Advanced life support technology mastered by Fleet engineers allowed loyalists to begin setting up strongholds, and deserters to begin to found temporary settlements.
Months became years, and as the Alliance became the Federation, temporary settlements became permanent, and lines between competing factions were drawn. Almost half the remaining population chose to settle or disperse into the region, a large portion of them joining the burgeoning spacer community in the belt.
The remaining members of the fleet formed into several factions. At first, they avoided conflict with the Federation, but as they accrued strength, they became bolder, more confrontational, until they were strong enough to rival the local military's power. By the time the Federation mobilized to root out the pirates, it was too late: they had become too entrenched, and strong enough to hold their own in any small skirmishes the High Navy could catch them in.
While not nearly as powerful as the Fleet once was, these factions have endured one way or another for over one hundred years, into the present day.
The four main factions in the modern day are the ruthless Hollow Skull, the flashy Corsairs of the Lost Belt, the enigmatic Léviathan Noir, and the powerful Golden Banner.