"A Tsavitee fleet appeared moments ago," Finn answered.
The ship tilted as he evaded a round of strigmor eels, a particularly nasty Tsavitee weapon that looked like a long, silvery ribbon and moved like it was gliding through water, sinuous as it hunted their ship.
If they impacted, they would burrow through their hull, depressurizing everything inside.
"They're trying to capture us alive," Raider said.
Blue nodded in agreement. "They would have sent something better than eels otherwise."
Wren's gaze didn't move from the display of the Tsavitee fleet. "How did they get close?"
"They evaded our scanners somehow. It wasn't until they fired that our systems picked them up," Talon answered as Devon and Joule appeared in the hatchway behind them.
"Where's the general? Who has eyes on him?" Raider barked.
Raider's skin crawled at the thought of Aeron walking around this ship unsupervised while they were under attack from the Tsavitee. He wouldn't put it past the general to sabotage their ship to make it easier for the other Tsavitee to take them captive.
"We locked him in his quarters as soon as the alarms sounded," Devon answered.
Joule nodded. "I put a shield around the area as well. Just in case."
Good.
Kira would be proud of the boy. He was turning into a good soldier who'd make a fine leader one day if he kept going the way he was.
"How many enemies are there?" Wren asked.
"Too many," Talon answered.
"How did they even find us?" Blue asked as Raider moved to one of the other displays, bringing up the exterior feeds to see what they were dealing with.
A half dozen ships came into focus.
"Oh fuck," Blue cursed. "We're no match for them."
In addition to the Tsavitee Superior Class One ship in the middle, a vessel capable of housing approximately 120-150 souls, there were five smaller escort vessels arrayed around it. Each with an additional capacity of thirty to forty depending on the mix of species inside.
During the war, the Superior Class had given their fleet fits, pushing the Centcom's back again and again.
"Don't be so quick to count us out," Wren advised. "We are not without recourse."
"Look, I know the Tuann think they're the biggest, scariest thing in the galaxy who no one else can match," Blue said sarcastically before stabbing a finger at the window and what was waiting outside. "But we're heavily outnumbered and out gunned. Nor is it likely we can outrun them for long. Like I said before—the odds aren't in our favor."
Wren and Finn exchanged a look.
"Then perhaps it’s time we call in a few people who can change that," Wren said.
Raider stopped to look at his seon'yer. Something in Wren's voice warning him that the other man wasn't just talking out of his ass.
The calm on Wren's face, despite the very dark odds they were facing, was all Raider needed to see to know the old man was up to something.
"You're having us followed," Raider guessed.
From that look the two shared, Finn knew. And hadn’t told Kira.
"Harlow's people or Graydon's?" Raider asked.
Wren's eyes were steady as they met Raider's.
"Both then," Raider guessed.
Wren's facade cracked a tiny bit, enough to allow one side of his mouth to twitch up in approval.
Raider sighed. "I'd be angry you kept this from us if not for the fact it's probably going to save our asses."
He'd take the Tuann's interference over being captured by the Tsavitee any day.
"Whatever we're going to do, it should happen soon," Talon announced, firing the Wanderer's weapons. "Their ships are closing fast."
The Wanderer jerked under their feet, a boom echoing.
"I take it Harlow upgraded her weapons too," Raider said as the laser hit one of the smaller Tsavitee ships, destroying it.
Kira's little pea shooter wouldn't have been able to do that.
"Not bad," Finn said, looking over at his friend with a half-smile. "Looks like you're less rusty than I expected."
Talon’s smirk was small. "There are some things that are impossible to lose. Excellence is one of them."
"Arrogant," Finn murmured as he went back to concentrating on flying.
"Call your people in," Raider ordered Wren, coming to a decision.
Wren nodded, touching the communication panel on the forearm of his synth armor.
"Oh. Oh. Not good," Blue cried. "Another set of ships just came into range."
"Your people?" Raider asked Wren.