Free Free Fleet #03 No Rest for the Wicked by Michael Chatfield

if he needed it.
    “Vort, recall all forces that are available within six hours. Also send a confirmation to Bregend. He as well as the factory ship and a destroyer are to stay behind. Bregend will be overall commander for the scouting of this area. Send him all logs. Onur, pick a destroyer to stay in-system. I want them liaising with Bregend as soon as possible.
    “I want updates from every ship on their readiness within a half hour. Every ship is to be on yellow alert. I also want Corvettes to start making a FTL comm line through the systems Bregend went through to get here. That is to be a line of retreat if the syndicate make it to this system. Walf, I want you to get an information packet from him regarding those systems, as well as a summary of what is in those systems. Pass that to every ship.”
    Cheerleader continued to go through the data.
    How in the hell could Monk deal with that many ships? Plus he says there's probably more on the way.
    By Cheerleader's calculations it had taken Bregend nearly a month and a half to get to her, and it would take her another two weeks to get to Parnmal, time she simply didn't have. They could be dead already , she thought as cold set over her, sadness making her eyes itch as she gritted her teeth, pain being replaced by anger.
    Have faith. She chastised herself. If they are dead, then we will regroup and grow until we can beat them. Resolved, she tilted in her seat, resting her chin on her hand as she cleared her mind, using meditative techniques Monk had taught her. Now was not the time to let emotions rule her.
     
    ***
     
    Kelu's forces had finally broken through and he'd found out some not so pleasing information. It appeared that he was right about not fighting syndicate forces. The troops he was fighting were organized, able to fight in high gravity and there were only five different types of them. Either they came from a very diverse planet or from up to five different planets.
    We need to win this battle or we may have a fight on two fronts. He felt cold fear trickle through him at that little thought, especially seeing how well the enemy fought. Though they've now got everything on the line and we're already in the markets and living quarters. We'll soon have the gunnery control rooms.
    When Kelu had the team leaders regather some of his troops and ferry them to other entry points, straining the enemy even more.
    “We have movement, Captain,” The sensor officer said.
    “What is it?” Kelu asked.
    “Shuttles,” Kelu looked to the creature.
    “What?”
    “There's shutles hugging the surface of Parnmal and creeping up on ships,”
    Dread filled Kelu.
    “Pull back the troops now!”
    “But-”
    “We have no troops and those fuckers are going to board us,” Kelu clicked, an old tic from his mother race. The General didn't say another word as he began ordering the closest units back to the ships, as well as the few thousand waiting to get into the station still.
    Kelu marched to his ready room, opening his closet and putting on the mecha that waited for him there. He walked out of his charging-cradle/closet, grabbing a rifle and loading it.
    Always good to have a backup. He thought, pulling the charging handle. The mecha and weapons had been one of Kelu's plan B's in case the crew ever revolted against him. It had happened more than once in the Syndicate.
    He marched out now, more confident as he remembered the lessons he'd been given on the machine. Without neural implants he was running off of chemical surges through his body which allowed him to move his limbs. The mecha was equipped to do that but it wasn't the smoothest.
    The shuttle pilots seemed equal parts insane and brilliant as they skimmed across the surface of the asteroid turned station, barely missing protrusions. Weapons fire spat from the fast moving craft, hammering the Syndicate troops that were racing back to their ships. Of course they armed the damned things. Out in the open as they were, it