Chapter 433: Outer Recovery Cooperative

Astercourt’s request for a larger office was still on Aurelian’s screen when the Valeris council sent its answer.

They had agreed to receive Orison’s delegation.

The meeting would take place aboard a civilian conference station near Valeris’s outer shipping hub, rather than inside an inhabited habitat.

Orison could bring one transport and a small security detail. The Outer Recovery Cooperative would receive the same allowance, and Valeris would provide the meeting staff.

Crownward had been asked to help with external security.

Aurelian read the conditions twice before forwarding them to Rhoswen.

"That seems reasonable," Astra said from the other side of his desk.

"It does. I want the approach routes settled before anyone starts moving."

He opened the Valeris map and marked the conference station. It was close enough to the inhabited habitats for local authorities to reach quickly, but far enough from the main civilian docks that an unexpected confrontation wouldn’t put thousands of people in immediate danger.

There was one problem.

The station sat near the entrance to the mining corridor Orison had only recently agreed to recognize in principle.

Aurelian could already imagine what would happen if an Orison escort arrived there at the same time as a cooperative salvage ship.

Even if nobody intended to fight, one nervous captain could turn an ordinary approach into a military incident.

He contacted Rhoswen.

She answered from Crimson Bulwark’s bridge, where several Valeris officers were working beside her.

"The council approved the meeting," she said.

"I saw. Have they decided how the delegations will approach?"

"They suggested bringing both groups through the same checkpoint."

Aurelian looked at the map again.

"At different times, I hope."

"Yes, but only an hour apart."

"That’s too close. If the first group is delayed by an inspection, the second could arrive while its escorts are still waiting."

Rhoswen nodded and adjusted the proposed schedule.

"Three hours?"

"That should work. The Orison transport can approach from its own recovery zone. The cooperative can use the outer civilian route. Neither group needs to cross the other’s path."

"What about their escorts?"

"They stop at separate holding positions. Only the approved transports continue to the station."

Rhoswen studied the arrangement.

"That leaves the conference station between them."

"Exactly."

She smiled.

"You’ve put Crimson Bulwark right in the middle."

"I put you where you can observe both approaches."

"Same thing."

Aurelian ignored that.

The more important issue was how quickly either delegation could leave if the meeting failed.

He did not want anyone trapped aboard a station while armed ships argued outside.

Both transports would remain docked during the talks, with their departure routes kept clear.

Valeris security would control the station itself, and Crownward would monitor the surrounding space.

Nobody would be allowed to position a warship directly beside the station.

Rhoswen approved the arrangement, although she wanted two additional patrol vessels closer to the Orison approach.

Aurelian checked the deployment list.

"Where would you get them?"

"Valeris has offered two of its own ships."

"Then that’s their decision. Make sure the council understands where they’ll be stationed."

"They do."

"Good. And don’t move our other patrols away from the civilian routes just to make the meeting look impressive."

Rhoswen gave him an offended look.

"I wasn’t planning to."

Aurelian waited.

"I was considering it," she admitted.

"Leave them where they are."

"Fine."

After the call, he invited Eirenne, Seraphiel, Talyra, and Neris to review the security plan.

The six observation platforms intended for the two shipping corridors had not yet been deployed.

Valeris had approved their proposed locations, but Orison was still reviewing the monitoring agreement.

That meant they could not rely on the new network for the meeting.

They would have to work with the equipment already available.

Eirenne brought up the existing sensor coverage.

"The conference station has reliable local scanners, but the outer approach has several gaps. A vessel could enter the region without being detected immediately if it approached from the old mining debris field."

Talyra examined the gap.

"That field is difficult to navigate. Most civilian captains avoid it."

"Most," Aurelian repeated.

Talyra nodded.

"Someone familiar with the old mining routes could still pass through."

Rhoswen had four Crownward patrol ships at Valeris, along with Crimson Bulwark and her scouts.

The local authorities had their own patrol vessels, but they needed those ships to protect ordinary traffic as well.

Aurelian did not want to concentrate everything around one conference station.

"Can we put a scout near the debris field?" he asked.

Talyra enlarged the map.

"One could watch the main opening, but there are several smaller passages. I’d place it farther back, where the routes come together."

Eirenne checked the proposed position.

"That would provide earlier warning, although identification would be less reliable at that distance."

"Early warning is enough," Aurelian said. "If something appears, Rhoswen can investigate."

Seraphiel had been studying the station’s communication systems.

"I would also recommend a separate emergency channel for the civilian staff. The normal network passes through Valeris traffic control, and a disruption there could delay their messages."

"Can you arrange that?"

"Yes. The equipment is already available at Helion."

Neris looked up.

"Getting it to Valeris is another matter."

Aurelian checked the meeting date.

The delegations were expected to arrive in three days.

A transport leaving Helion immediately would have little time to spare, especially if it encountered a delay along the route.

"Don’t send a ship just for one communication unit," he said. "Use the equipment Valeris already has, even if the channel is less sophisticated."

Seraphiel nodded.

"That will be sufficient."

Neris looked relieved.

"Thank you."

Aurelian glanced at her.

"You’re welcome."

"I wasn’t thanking you for the decision. I was thanking you for remembering that transport ships have schedules."

"That’s fair."

They spent another hour reviewing the plan.

Eirenne suggested mirroring the conference station’s external communication records at Valeris traffic control, so neither delegation could later claim an official message had been altered.

Talyra recommended a clear identification procedure for every vessel approaching the meeting.

Seraphiel proposed separating the station’s internal security network from its civilian communication system.

All three suggestions were practical, and none required Crownward to take control of the station.

Aurelian approved them for submission to the Valeris council.

Then Eirenne brought up one final concern.

"Orison’s amendment has still not arrived."

Aurelian frowned.

"They acknowledged the original charter yesterday."

"Yes. Their representative says the amendment is being retrieved from a restricted archive."

"How long?"

"They haven’t provided a firm estimate."

Rhoswen, still connected remotely, looked annoyed.

"They want us to believe the document exists, but they won’t show it."

"Maybe it does exist," Aurelian said. "They’ve had centuries to move their archives around."

"Or maybe they’re buying time."

"That’s possible too."

He looked at the historical recovery map.

The missing amendment was becoming important because Orison claimed it expanded the original emergency council’s authority.

If genuine, it might explain why Orison considered several distant wreck fields part of its recovery zone.

If it was incomplete or improperly issued, it might explain why the cooperative rejected those claims.

Either way, Aurelian wanted the document before the meeting.

"Tell Orison that the amendment needs to be provided to every delegation before the formal discussion begins," he said.

"If they can’t produce it, the meeting can still proceed, but nobody will treat its contents as established fact."

Rhoswen nodded.

"I’ll send that."

Aurelian looked toward Eirenne.

"Can we authenticate it if they do?"

"Not immediately. We can compare its format, signatures, and registration details with the records from Helion and Annex Seven. The Veyr legal team will still need to examine its authority under the relevant law."

"Then prepare the comparison."

"Already working on it."

Aurelian smiled slightly.

He was beginning to appreciate how much work Eirenne completed before he asked.

The meeting ended shortly afterward.

For the rest of the afternoon, Aurelian dealt with Helion’s repair schedule and the latest reports from Sanctuary Ardent.

He had just finished approving a shipment of medical equipment when Eirenne contacted him again.

"Orison has transmitted the amendment."

Aurelian put down the report.

"Complete?"

"It includes the main document, signatures, and a registration entry. There are also several supporting records."

"Any obvious problems?"

"One."

That caught his attention.

"What kind?"

"The coordinates in the amendment do not match the recovery-zone map Orison gave us."

Aurelian opened the file.

The amendment was thirty-one years newer than the emergency charter, exactly as Orison had claimed.

It authorized the recovery administration to extend operations beyond the original wreck fields when necessary to secure replacement materials and preserve the repair yard.

The language was broad.

Aurelian could see how Orison might use it to support a larger claim.

But the document also listed approved recovery corridors.

He compared those coordinates with Orison’s current map.

The difference was substantial.

Several of the wreck fields Orison claimed were outside the approved corridors.

More importantly, one of the two proposed civilian shipping routes passed through an area that the amendment described as open to independent traffic.

Aurelian leaned back.

"That’s interesting."

Eirenne nodded.