Star Ship Girl Era: My Shipgirls Are Too Overpowered

Chapter 289: Serrow Belt Operation 2

The first volley tore through the patrol line before it could form, disabling the ships closest to the starport approach and forcing the remaining vessels to scatter.

Targan Rell reacted faster than Aurelian expected.

The starport alarms flashed across the tactical map, and the hidden fleet began launching almost immediately.

Ships left the docks in groups rather than one at a time, forming behind the station’s defense screen while their shields came up.

Aurelian watched the movement carefully.

"He’s good enough to avoid being trapped."

Astra nodded. "Yes."

"Let him come out."

Eirenne’s projection looked toward him. "He is attempting to restore short-range command through hardline laser bursts."

"Can you delay it?"

"Yes."

"Do that. Don’t shut it down completely. I want him confident enough to keep forming outside the port."

Eirenne smiled faintly. "Understood."

Rhoswen’s voice came through. "That sounds cruel."

"It is war."

"I didn’t say I disliked it."

The Kharov fleet continued leaving port, believing it still had enough order to face the attackers.

That belief lasted until the first wave of Arcturus-supported fire crossed the distance.

The long-range weapons hit before most of the Kharov ships could answer.

Their front line buckled.

Dozens of shields flared and collapsed. Several Tier III hulls broke open under lance fire.

Near-Tier IV vessels survived longer, but even they staggered under the combined pressure of the Black Crown, Solenne’s strike drones, and the branch cruisers positioned on the left flank.

The enemy returned fire, but the range betrayed them. Their strongest weapons could reach, but not with sufficient accuracy, and their targeting was degraded by Eirenne’s interference.

Beams scattered against shields. Missiles lost guidance. Kinetic rounds arrived late and wide.

Aurelian waited until the starport’s third launch wave cleared the docks.

Then he gave the next order.

"Darian, move the blockade group. Seal the port exits. Younger commanders stay behind the Tier IV line and follow spacing exactly."

Darian answered at once. "Moving."

The blockade group emerged from concealment near the starport’s outer approach. Tier II, Tier III, and Tier IV ships formed a curved wall under the guidance of Darian’s heavier vessels, cutting off the path back into the docks without pressing close enough to be swallowed by station defenses.

For the younger commanders, it was a real test.

They had to hold their position while enemy ships tried to retreat toward them, and the main battle flashed ahead on a terrifying scale.

One young commander drifted too far forward almost immediately.

Darian snapped through the channel, "Back into line. Now."

The ship corrected.

Aurelian noticed and said nothing. That was Darian’s place to handle.

The Kharov fleet realized the trap several minutes later.

By then, too much of it had left port to return cleanly, and the blockade group had already cut the easiest path back.

Targan Rell’s command ship tried to push forward instead, gathering his strongest ships into a wedge aimed at the March’s right flank.

Aurelian approved of the decision.

If the enemy could not retreat, breaking through was the only reasonable choice.

Unfortunately, the right flank was where he had placed Rhoswen.

"Rhoswen," Aurelian said, "you may engage. Break the wedge, but do not cross into the starport fire zone."

"With pleasure."

The Crimson Bulwark moved.

Rhoswen hit the Kharov wedge from the side, not the front. She had learned that lesson well.

Her ship slammed into the edge of the advancing formation while Solenne’s drones struck from above, forcing the Kharov ships to turn their shields in two directions at once. The wedge bent, faltered, then split.

Astra’s Black Crown fired into the opening.

The Kharov command ship survived the first shot, but its escorts did not.

Targan Rell’s formation lost shape.

Eirenne spoke calmly. "Enemy command cohesion dropping. Their hidden fleet is attempting to divide into three groups."

"Mark the command vessels," Aurelian said.

"Done."

The battle became uneven after that. The Kharov had more ships than the old records claimed, but the surprise, the blockade, and the difference in quality were too much.

Several groups surrendered once their route back to the starport was cut and their command net failed. Others fought until they were disabled.

Targan Rell’s flagship tried to run toward the planet.

Aurelian expected that after Karven Spire.

"Disable him before atmosphere."

Astra fired.

This time, there was no delay and no lucky descent. The Black Crown’s shot clipped the flagship’s engine section cleanly, while Solenne’s drones destroyed its auxiliary drives. The vessel spun away from the planet, helpless but intact.

Rhoswen sounded disappointed. "No dramatic ground chase?"

"No," Aurelian said.

"Good," Astra added.

Rhoswen sighed. "I’m glad everyone is happy."

Within an hour, Nhalis’ orbit belonged to the March.

The starport surrendered after its defense screen failed, and Darian’s blockade group held firm.

The younger commanders had not performed perfectly, but they had held their line, and for their first real operation beyond Haven, that was enough.

Aurelian watched the final enemy markers turn blue or gray.

"Casualties?"

Eirenne answered, "Light on our side. Moderate damage among two branch cruisers and several Tier II ships in the blockade group. No confirmed friendly losses. Enemy losses heavy, but many vessels disabled rather than destroyed."

"Good."

Darian appeared on the display a few minutes later. He looked tired but satisfied.

"The young ones held. A few needed correction, but none broke formation."

"Then they passed," Aurelian said.

"They’ll be insufferable for two days."

"Let them enjoy one."

"Generous."

The planet of Nhalis waited below, untouched by bombardment and far less scarred than Karven Spire.

The surface showed no black haze, no emergency cult gathering, no immediate environmental hazard. That did not mean it was safe, but it was a relief.

Eirenne began scanning for the suspicious shipment of relics at once.

Aurelian did not need to ask.

After twenty minutes, she found the first clue.

"There is a sealed storage complex beneath the northern starport annex," she said. "Its mass and access restrictions match the hidden shipment profile."

Aurelian looked at the planet.

"Can we isolate it?"

"Yes. The local commander does not appear to have activated anything, and the complex is not connected to a civilian gathering zone."

"That is already better than Vortan."

Rhoswen’s voice came through. "So we are learning."

Astra replied, "Cautiously."

"That still counts."

Aurelian looked at the system map, where the Serrow Belt’s three systems were shifting into March control.

The second phase had begun.

Karven Spire had taught them to fear hidden doors.

Nhalis had shown them those doors could be found before someone opened them.

For now, that was a victory.