Chapter 125: Another New Ship Found

Time passed quietly after that, filled with work.

There was no sudden shift, no break, just a steady continuation of what had already been happening.

Systems updated, reports came in, small decisions stacked on top of each other without pause. It was the kind of rhythm that didn’t feel fast in the moment but added up quickly.

At some point, Aurelian leaned back slightly, closing one of the larger data layers, letting the display thin out.

"This is basically where we stand," he said. "Current strength, current limits."

Lysara tilted her head slightly, her eyes still tracking the remaining data.

"Feels like we’re stretched thin and that is saying a lot with the only territory being the planet."

"We are," he said. "This is because it is our first time, and we have not built up the rest of the fleet. This includes the AI helper that has not been issued by my family yet, which can change things around."

He brought up a different set of data, this one tied to the bastion, shifting the focus.

"There are inactive units in there," he continued. "Not just labor drones. Higher-tier constructs, partially intact command frameworks, and something closer to autonomous support entities. If they can be restored properly, they’ll change how much we can handle at once."

He paused for a moment, then added, "Right now, we’re compensating for gaps with direct oversight that doesn’t scale well; this is why the situation is like this."

Lysara’s expression sharpened just a little, the shift subtle but clear.

"Something like Astra?"

"Not exactly," Aurelian said. "Less centralized. More... distributed. But similar in function."

He adjusted the display again, highlighting a few fragmented entries.

"They won’t think the same way. They won’t make independent decisions as she does. But they can take the load off the system."

She seemed to like that answer.

"Good. I was starting to feel outnumbered."

Aurelian almost smiled, but didn’t quite, the reaction there and gone in a moment.

He shifted the display again, this time bringing up a different section of the bastion’s archived inventory, one he had not looked at in detail before.

Then he stopped.

"...That’s interesting."

Lysara leaned in slightly.

"What?"

Aurelian expanded the entry.

It was buried under layers of outdated indexing and incomplete labeling, the kind of thing that would have been easy to miss if he had not been looking carefully.

But the structure itself was clear enough once it was isolated.

"A sealed shipyard segment," he said. "Not listed in the primary access logs. Probably locked behind old command authority."

He zoomed in further, revealing partial structural outlines.

"Separate from the main fabrication lines. That means it wasn’t used for routine production."

"Can you open it?"

"I can try."

Aurelian’s fingers moved across the interface, not fast, but precise. Astra quietly assisted in the background, reconstructing fragments of authorization protocols and filling in gaps where the system had decayed over time. It was not a clean process, but it was enough.

For a few seconds, nothing happened.

Then—

"Access conditionally accepted," Astra said.

Aurelian’s eyes narrowed slightly.

"Conditionally?"

"Partial command authority recognized. Some systems remain restricted."

"That’s enough."

He didn’t hesitate after that.

The display shifted.

A new feed opened, pulled from deep within the bastion.

At first, it was dark.

Then the internal lights of the sealed segment flickered on, one row at a time, revealing the outline of something massive, something that had been sitting there for a very long time.

Lysara straightened.

"That’s..."

"Yeah," Aurelian said quietly.

Even through the grainy feed, the scale was obvious.

The vessel resting inside that hidden shipyard was far larger than anything currently under his command. Its hull was intact, its structure complete, though clearly aged.

Long lines ran across its surface, clean and deliberate, giving it a sharp, imposing presence even in standby, something built with purpose.

"It hasn’t been used," Lysara said.

"Not in combat," Aurelian replied. "No degradation patterns. It was built, then stored."

He studied the hull more closely, looking for signs of damage, but there were none that mattered.

She let out a slow breath.

"Is this a final lucky event or intentional?"

Aurelian didn’t look away from the screen.

"For something like this to be stored here, separate from the rest of the yard, there was a reason. Either it wasn’t ready, or it was being held back."

"Held back for what?"

He didn’t answer that immediately.

For a moment, neither of them spoke, both watching the silent hull.

Then Lysara said, lighter now, "You’re already thinking about taking it."

"I’m thinking about whether I can use it," he corrected.

"Same thing."

He didn’t argue because it wasn’t wrong.

After a short pause, she added, "We’re going to see it, right?"

Aurelian closed a few of the surrounding data layers, already making the decision in his own way.

"Yes," he said. "But not today."

Lysara raised an eyebrow.

"Why not? Wouldn’t this ship soon become a ship girl just like me?"

"Yes, but not now, as I am reaching my limit on the number of ship girls I can have," he said. "Adding another one just because it looks impressive isn’t efficient for us now."

He tapped the display lightly, bringing up a list of current priorities.

"Larkspur Haven still needs stabilization. The starport isn’t finished. The bastion itself isn’t fully active. And we’re still missing pieces for long-term operations."

She looked at him for a second, then smiled faintly.

"Still going to happen."

"Of course."

He closed the feed, but not completely, leaving it archived where he could return to it easily.

"Just not before we can support it."

Lysara leaned back slightly, her posture relaxing again.

"That’s fair."

The ship continued its course through space, steady and controlled, systems running cleanly in the background.

There was no rush in the movement, no sudden change in pace, just a clear direction.

Ahead of them, Larkspur Haven waited, still damaged, still incomplete, but no longer alone, no longer beyond help.