Chapter 263: Cassian’s Announcement
As everyone who came on this expedition was getting used to the new location and admiring the view, Cassian decided to tell the people the truth about this place and how Aurelian had found it, since he did not take credit for the discovery or let any other elders do so either.
Once the first landing schedule was approved and the convoy began settling into its assigned positions, his next announcement went out across the secured command network. This time, it was not only a warning or an order. It was an introduction.
Aurelian stood on the Black Crown’s command deck and watched as his father’s voice reached every commander, branch officer, senior administrator, and military leader who had crossed Mournveil with the convoy.
"The Crownward March was discovered, secured, and developed by Aurelian Arcturus," Cassian said calmly.
"Without his report, this region would have remained outside the family’s knowledge. Without his fleet, Larkspur Haven would have fallen, Helion Bastion Twelve would not have been inherited, and the Mournveil route would still be an unknown danger rather than a controlled passage."
The command network went quiet.
Cassian continued without exaggeration, which somehow made the words heavier. He spoke of Larkspur Haven’s recovery, the plague crisis, the hidden route, the Voidshade Fenrir hunt, the Kharov raid, the recovery of old infrastructure, the production capacity already forming in orbit, and Astra’s successful rise to Tier V under Aurelian’s command.
He did not make things overly exaggerated, as that would raise expectations too high, which is bad for expeditions like these.
He simply stated what had happened, which was more than enough.
Across the convoy network, reactions began to ripple outward. Many of the senior commanders had already heard pieces of the story, but most of the younger commanders and branch officers had not known the full shape of it.
To them, Aurelian had been Cassian’s son, a young Tier III commander who had returned with rumors around him. Now those rumors had been placed into order by the family head himself.
The effect was immediate.
Orvain’s branch channel became especially active. Aurelian saw Darian’s name appear several times before he closed the smaller feed, not because anything improper was being said, but because reading everyone’s shock in real time made him feel like he had wandered into the wrong room.
Rhoswen, unfortunately, had no such restraint.
She opened a private channel and grinned at him from the Crimson Bulwark’s command seat. "Commander, they’re praising you again."
"I noticed."
"So are you going to say something?"
"And why would I need to say something?"
"Why not? It will help you gain more followers who will work for you without having to use the family’s name."
"Your idea is good, but it will also be bad for the leaders who these people are under, as although they are now under my roof, I haven’t given them enough assurance other than me being strong for them to willingly throw themselves to me."
Astra, standing beside him, said calmly, "Both can be true."
Aurelian looked at her.
She looked back without much emotion.
Rhoswen looked delighted. "See? Astra agrees with me."
"That is not what happened."
"It felt like what happened."
Aurelian gave up and returned his attention to the main network.
Cassian did not give the convoy much time to be shocked. After making Aurelian’s contribution clear, he immediately moved into practical orders.
Landing groups would proceed according to the approved sequence. Engineering teams would report to Eirenne and the March infrastructure office.
Medical groups would move through Larkspur Haven’s screening network. Security forces would remain under restricted deployment until assigned.
Young commanders were not to leave their vessels or orbital berths without authorization.
That last order was probably necessary.
A hidden frontier filled with danger and opportunity was exactly the sort of thing that made young commanders want to prove themselves before breakfast.
After the announcement ended, Cassian called for a restricted strategy meeting aboard his Tier VII vessel.
Aurelian was included without question. So were Orvain, several branch representatives, the elders who had joined the expedition, and the commanders responsible for the first-stage military reserve.
The meeting was held aboard Cassian’s flagship instead of Larkspur Haven’s starport. The starport was already too busy, with civilian arrivals, docking schedules, cargo transfer, and screening procedures filling every major channel.
Holding a high-level meeting there would only cause delays and worsen Astercourt’s mood, which nobody wanted.
Aurelian took the Black Crown closer to Cassian’s vessel, then transferred over with Astra.
Rhoswen wanted to come, but Aurelian told her to remain with the outer patrol layer for now. She accepted it with visible reluctance, mostly because Astra looked at her before she could argue.
The interior of Cassian’s flagship was exactly what Aurelian expected from a Tier VII strategic vessel.
Vast, controlled, and quietly intimidating.
The corridors were wide enough for heavy armored teams to move through without slowing down.
Defense fields hummed faintly beneath the walls. Every door they passed looked like it could withstand a siege, and the ship’s internal systems carried the weight of something built not merely to fight, but to keep fighting after lesser ships had already broken.
Astra walked beside him in silence, but he could tell she was studying everything.
The council chamber was already half full when they arrived. Cassian stood near the central projection table with Orvain to one side, while the other elders and branch representatives settled into their places.
The number of people was smaller than at the previous family meetings. Many senior figures had remained behind to guard the Arcturus family space, and several branches had sent only one proper representative each.
This was not the full family council.
It was the expedition council.
That made it more practical.
Once everyone had arrived, Cassian activated the star map. Larkspur Haven appeared first, then Mournveil, Helion Bastion Twelve, Redglass, Glasswake, the surrounding unclaimed regions, and the nearby Kharov-held systems.
The map was not as crowded as the one in the earlier briefing, but its purpose was different. This one focused on action.
"You already know why you are here," Cassian said. "The first support wave has arrived safely. The next stage is not celebration. It is placement, defense, and future claim structure."
No one interrupted.
"Our first priority remains stabilization. Larkspur Haven will not be overburdened. Helion Bastion Twelve remains restricted. Mournveil remains under Crownward March navigation control. No branch will send independent teams beyond assigned zones."
