Chapter 271: Operation Quiet Anvil 3
Aurelian’s respect rose slightly.
The commander was reacting properly.
Unfortunately for him, proper was not enough.
Cassian gave the next order.
"Second volley. Break the shield anchors."
The family fleet fired again.
This time, the attack was not spread across the entire defense. It focused on six shield anchor stations positioned around the relay fortress.
The first two collapsed under lance fire. The third survived the opening strike only for a missile wave to hit its exposed side.
The fourth and fifth were disabled by synchronized cruiser fire from one of the branch fleets. The sixth tried to rotate behind the fortress body and was cut apart by the Black Crown’s main battery.
Aurelian did not even need to speak for that last shot.
Astra had already seen the opening.
"Good shot," he said.
"It was not hard to estimate and fire based on data," Astra replied.
"That can still be good."
She accepted that with a faint nod.
The fortress shield flickered.
Rhoswen spoke again. "Now?"
Aurelian looked at the tactical map. The Kharov’s closed screen was moving forward, probably trying to buy time for the docked ships to fully launch.
If they reached the broken shield anchor debris, they could use it as cover and make the next phase messier.
Now was the right time.
"Rhoswen," Aurelian said, "break the closed screen. Do not chase past marker three."
Her answer came instantly.
"With pleasure."
The Crimson Bulwark surged forward.
Rhoswen did not simply charge blindly, and that was proof of how much she had grown. She used the debris field for cover, timed her acceleration with the branch cruisers’ suppressive fire, and slammed into the Kharov screen at an angle that forced their smaller ships to scatter into Astra’s firing lanes.
Then she did what Rhoswen did best.
She hit them hard.
The Crimson Bulwark tore through the first line, shields blazing under return fire, heavy guns firing at close range while her reinforced prow smashed through a damaged escort that failed to move in time.
She did not overextend. She did not chase the fleeing ships beyond marker three. She simply broke the formation, turned, and hit the next cluster before they could recover.
Aurelian watched with quiet satisfaction.
Astra looked equally calm, but there was approval in her voice when she spoke.
"She is maintaining limits."
"She is."
"She has improved."
"She has."
Rhoswen heard that over the channel and sounded far too pleased. "I can hear you."
"Then keep earning it," Aurelian said.
The battle became one-sided after that.
Karven Spire’s garrison fought, but it was fighting inside a cage with its eyes cut out. Communications were dead.
Warp escape was blocked. The outer patrols were gone. The shield anchors were broken. Every attempt to form a counterattack was crushed before it reached momentum.
Still, the Kharov commander aboard the fortress did not surrender.
He pulled the remaining ships tight around the central dock and prepared for a last stand.
On the main display, one of the fortress communication towers briefly managed to push out a narrow signal burst using an old backup array, but Eirenne caught it within seconds and fed it into a loop that sent the same three meaningless status codes back into the local system.
Aurelian looked at her.
"That was close."
"It was crude," Eirenne replied. "But unexpected."
"Can any warning leave the system?"
"No. Not unless they physically escape the interdiction field."
Cassian’s flagship began moving forward.
The sheer size of the Tier VII vessel changed the battlefield by itself. It advanced slowly, not because it lacked speed, but because it had no need to hurry.
Fortress guns fired at it. Missiles struck its shields. Kinetic rounds sparked against layered defenses. None of it mattered enough to slow it.
Cassian opened the combat channel.
"Karven Spire garrison. This is Cassian Arcturus. Your communication network is severed, your escape routes are closed, and your defensive field has collapsed. Stand down, and your personnel will be processed in accordance with military law. Continue resisting, and the station will be disabled by force."
There was no response for several seconds.
Then the fortress fired again.
Cassian did not sound angry.
"Disable the station."
The final attack was precise and brutal.
The family fleet did not destroy the relay core. It did not crack the station open or scatter its reactors across the system.
Instead, it cut away the remaining weapons, burned through engine control sections, shattered external launch bays, and disabled the fortress’s command spire with a focused strike that left the structure intact but blind.
Within twenty minutes, Karven Spire stopped firing.
Within thirty, its remaining ships were either destroyed, disabled, or surrendered.
Aurelian watched the tactical map settle into blue control markers.
Reports from the other systems began arriving soon after.
Glasswake outer relay secured.
Durn Hollow station is disabled.
Cindervale depot captured with minor damage.
Ashen Gate patrol yard is still resisting, but contained.
Virell’s approach screen is broken.
Two smaller Kharov supply points surrendered after their communication links failed.
Operation Quiet Anvil had not ended yet, but its first blow had landed cleanly.
Aurelian let out a breath he had not realized he had been holding.
Rhoswen appeared on the display again, flushed with excitement but still in position.
"Commander, I stayed within marker three."
"I saw."
"You did well."
She looked satisfied enough that Astra did not even need to correct her.
Eirenne updated the map. "Karven Spire relay is under our control. No confirmed long-range warning escaped."
Cassian’s voice followed across the command channel.
"All units, begin secured occupation procedure. Boarding teams move only after mine and trap scans. Engineering crews preserve the relay core if possible. No unnecessary damage."
Then, after a slight pause, he added, "First phase successful."
Aurelian looked at the system map, at the broken Kharov fortress, at the family fleets moving into position around it, and at the route beyond that would one day lead toward Virell’s Reach.
The March had spent the past days receiving its foundation.
Now it had taken its first step toward securing the space around that foundation.
Astra stood beside him, her voice quiet.
"The enemy will notice eventually."
"Yes," Aurelian said.
He looked toward the red systems farther beyond the captured chain.
"But not today."
