Chapter 255: Branch Family Meeting 2
Aurelian could almost feel people doing the same calculations Orvain had done.
Frontier territory meant danger, but it also meant land, posts, resources, merit, command experience, and the chance to become important before the region grew crowded.
Orvain’s voice remained steady.
"I intend to align our branch’s future development with Aurelian’s Crownward March."
When he said that, the room fell silent as people took deep breaths at the sudden news.
Some people looked shocked.
Others looked excited.
A few older administrators immediately looked worried, which Aurelian actually appreciated because those were the people who understood how much work such a move would create.
Maeron leaned forward, eyes bright. "So there is a fight."
Orvain closed his eyes briefly.
"There may be many fights. That is not the point."
"It sounds like a very good point."
"Maeron."
He leaned back again, though he did not look sorry.
Orvain looked across the hall. "This will not be a blind migration. No one is packing the whole branch tomorrow. The first group will be small and carefully selected. Engineers, survey crews, logistics officers, administrators, medical support, security personnel, and a limited number of young commanders."
A senior woman from the administrative side raised a hand. "Under whose authority would they operate?"
"Within the Crownward March, under Aurelian’s strategic authority."
That caused another wave of movement through the hall.
Orvain lifted one hand.
"We remain part of the Arcturus family. That does not change. But if we enter his territory, we do not enter as people trying to carve out our own little court. We enter as builders. We earn our place, or we leave."
Aurelian’s respect for him rose slightly at that.
He had not softened the terms.
Another commander asked, "Will the family head approve?"
"Cassian has not formally signed the branch arrangement yet," Orvain said, "but he knows enough of my thinking, and this will be discussed with him today. I am not moving behind his back."
That eased the room somewhat.
Then Maeron spoke again, though this time his tone was more serious.
"What do you need from us first?"
Orvain glanced at Aurelian. "He will answer that."
Aurelian had expected it, but the entire room turning toward him still felt strange.
He stepped forward and spoke simply.
"The March needs people who can work without needing perfect conditions. If your branch sends people expecting a finished territory, they will be disappointed. We have rebuilding worlds, old bastions, unstable routes, enemies nearby, and more work than comfort."
"The first people who come will shape how others see the branch inside the March. If they are arrogant, careless, or greedy, I will send them back. If they are useful, disciplined, and willing to build, they will have more opportunities than they would find in safer regions."
Several commanders exchanged looks.
Aurelian continued, "I need engineers who can repair, administrators who can follow Astercourt’s systems without trying to replace them, security people who understand secrecy, and commanders who can obey orders even when a battlefield looks tempting."
Many people looked surprised by the composed and direct nature of Aurelian’s requirements, which they all liked.
Almost every commander tends to be someone who likes to get to the root of the problem and deal with it, rather than go about it in a roundabout way.
Aurelian added, "The March will eventually need its own training structure. Not a full academy yet, but a command school and officer pipeline. If your branch helps build that properly, your younger generation will have a place to grow. But I will not let it become a place for dumping weak candidates or useless relatives."
That statement earned him several approving looks from the older officers.
The administrators looked even more approving.
Aurelian finished with the most important part.
"This is not safe. But it is real."
For a few seconds, the hall was silent.
Then Maeron stood.
"If there is danger and room to earn merit, I’m willing to send people."
Orvain looked at him. "You are not leading the first group."
Maeron frowned. "Why not?"
"Because I need the first group to build things, not find the nearest enemy and start testing the guns."
Several people laughed quietly.
Maeron sat back down with a grumble, but he did not argue further. Once he was finished, the room quickly moved on, and the questions began coming one after another, covering everything from how many people would be sent and what secrecy rules would apply to whether families could accompany the first wave.
Others wanted to know whether young commanders would be allowed to bring their shipgirls, whether branch industries would receive production rights, whether settlement land would be granted permanently or tied to performance, whether technical staff could rotate back to family space, and whether service within the March would be recognized as family merit.
Aurelian answered what he could and deferred what needed Cassian’s approval. Orvain supported him where needed, but he did not take over, which mattered. He was already teaching the room to look to Aurelian for the March’s decisions.
By the end of the first round, the branch did not look united in excitement, but it did look awake.
That was enough.
When the meeting paused, Orvain leaned slightly toward Aurelian.
"You handled that well."
"I feel like I was ambushed."
"You were."
"At least you admit it."
"It was a useful ambush."
Aurelian gave him a tired look. "That does not make it better."
"It does for me."
Before Aurelian could respond, Darian returned with several updated attendance notes and leaned toward Orvain.
"Most of the branch’s Tier V commanders have answered the call. The rest are either off-world or on duty, but they can join by secure channel within the hour."
Orvain nodded. "Good. Prepare the full restricted council."
Darian looked at Aurelian again, clearly still wanting to ask what exactly his younger relative had done to cause all this, but he controlled himself this time.
Aurelian almost respected the effort.
As the hall shifted into preparation for the next meeting, Astra stepped closer to him.
"You have acquired more work."
"I noticed."
"You also acquired manpower."
"That part I like."
"Then it is acceptable."
Aurelian looked at the gathering branch members, the officers whispering to each other, the administrators already forming lists, and Maeron quietly arguing with another commander over what counted as unnecessary aggression, and smiled at the ever-increasing structure of his future territory.
