Chapter 3: Svenson
A world in the shape of a ring. It shouldn't be possible.
The object looked just like something from an old Science-Fiction novel, a concept of a structure that broke physics in a way it could never truly exist. Yet there it was, sitting in the empty space before the Pillar of Autumn.
"So what is it? Some kind of Covenant planet?" Kamal asked, his voice low like he was a gossiping high-schooler.
"That ain't no planet," Gerrel said.
"And it doesn't look Covenant either," Faraday added.
The closer the Autumn approached to the object, the clearer the view became. Mountains, lakes, rivers, forests, and vast deserts covered the inner surface. From the screen it was impossible to tell exactly how large it was, but it was more than enough to make Svenson feel insignificant - a speck of dust in a vast and unknown universe.
"How would you know what a Covenant world looks like?" Kamal asked. "You ever been to one?"
Svenson turned to the window behind them, the others' conversation fading from his ears. There was no sign of the Covenant yet; if this was one of their worlds, they would have destroyed the Autumn already. This was something new. Despite that, the Covenant wouldn't be far behind.
"We have to go, now," Svenson raised his voice above the others. "We're wasting time."
"Right, sorry partner," Kamal said.
"Covies are gonna be right on top of us pretty soon," Gerrel said, his eyes scanning the hallway. "We gotta find an armoury around here."
"No, we've got our orders," Svenson stopped him. "We're gonna link up with Delta. It's safer with them watching our backs."
"And if the Covenant hit us before we can get there?" Kamal asked.
The corridor turned red, klaxons blaring in alert. The mistake of spending time with these Marines was burning at Svenson's gut. All of them would have been back with their fireteam by now if they hadn't decided to waste time together, or at least Svenson would be there if he hadn't joined in.
"Attention: all combat personnel," a woman's voice echoed through the halls. It belonged to Cortana, one of the Autumn's AIs. "Report to your action stations. Contact with Covenant boarding parties is imminent. This is not a drill. I repeat, this is not a drill."
"Shit, they're boarding us?" Gerrel said. "I guess that gives us more time."
"We can't waste it either way, I'm goin' for the armoury," Kamal said, gesturing for the others to follow.
Faraday and Gerrel chased after him, leaving Svenson to decide whether or not he wanted to take the risk. The choice was between dying alone, or everyone dying together. At least sticking with the others increased their chances of survival. The other Marines were going the wrong way anyway. God damnit.
"The armoury is this way," Svenson called, pointing down the correct hall. "Follow me!"
It didn't take much convincing for the other three to follow him. A squad of Marines came through the corridor just before they could enter, soldiers from some other fireteam. They didn't look happy to run into Svenson and the others. Great, another interruption.
"What the hell are you guys doing?" one of them said, a Staff Sergeant with the name Lipson printed on his chestplate. "We're about to get attacked!"
"Got separated from our team sir," Svenson quickly explained. "We're heading for the armoury down the hall."
"Make it quick," Lipson said. "We'll cover you if any aliens make their way down here."
"Thank you, sir."
The Sergeant aggressively pointed down the hall, encouraging them to get a move on. The other soldiers around him wore Private insignias, none of them looked like they wanted to be there. Each Marine took a defensive position in the corridor, crouching behind corners and keeping their eyes on every door.
"Attention, all personnel: We are re-engaging the enemy," Cortana's voice blared over the ship's intercom. "Internal and external contact imminent."
Something no Marine wanted to hear was that they were about to face Covenant boarders. The tight corridors of navy ships could quickly turn into slaughterhouses. Some preferred to just have their ship ripped apart by torpedoes, a quick death in space was preferable to bleeding out from plasma burns.
"We're so fucked," Gerrel said.
"I thought you liked fighting Covenant," Faraday said much more calmly.
"I like shooting 'em! I kinda need a gun for that."
A jolt through the floor almost sent the Marines off their feet. Svenson caught himself on the wall, Gerrel keeping his ground while Faraday grabbed Kamal for support, nearly dragging him down with her. He turned back to the other Marines down the hall, most of them were on the floor. They didn't take a hit from a plasma round, the blast wouldn't have been that rough.
The wall exploded, a ball of fire vaporising several of the Marines in its wake, scorching the floor and walls. Smoke poured into the corridor from the hole, out stepped an elite clad in black armour. Grunts were usually the first to waddle out of Covenant boarding ships, an elite was just overkill. It ignited a plasma sword, the blades appearing out of thin air before they cut through the other Marines. Another elite followed it out, identical in appearance.
"Holy shit," Gerrel swore under his breath.
"Keep moving!" Svenson said, already rushing away.
They turned a corner, barely dodging a burst of plasma fire. The route to the armoury was straight forward from there. Elites could easily outrun any human, there was no making it before the aliens would turn them into slag. Svenson took a detour, leading the others down a different path. A few twists and turns wouldn't save them, but he had another plan.
Gunfire filled the halls, the ship was rocked with explosions. Screams of aliens and Marines alike came from each corridor they ran past, reports from the ship's AIs echoed between each bulkhead. Faraday looked at him with an expression that asked 'where the hell are we going?', all Svenson could respond with was a curt nod.
Their stop was a dead end. Nothing was there other than an entrance into the ship's maintenance accessways. There was no sign of any navy personnel around, Svenson had to remember the emergency code to get in.
"If you wanted to get us killed, you should've just said so," Kamal said.
"Shut up," Svenson snapped. "I need to concentrate."
The Autumn was in lockdown, only the bridge crew and the ship's AIs could unlock the maintenance hatch without an emergency code. Codes changed every few hours, the last one Svenson remembered was from just before he joined the others in the firing range. He couldn't remember how long it'd been, but tried it anyway.
72749. The door slid open.
"Alright, get in," Svenson said, stepping aside. "I'll close it behind us."
The accessways were only wide enough for one person at a time, if they wanted to fit comfortably at least. Kamal was the first through, followed by Faraday and Gerrel. Svenson backed in behind them, making sure the Covenant hadn't caught up. He entered the lockdown code, and the door sealed shut.
"We're not safe in here, so move carefully," Svenson said. "Take a left up here."
Kamal followed his directions, moving slowly to avoid attracting attention. Grunts and jackals were small enough to fit in the tight spaces, they were just as deadly as any elite in close quarters; especially when none of the Marines were in their armour. It was almost impossible to see in the dark space, soft red lights being the only indicator to tell them where they were.
"Warning: Covenant boarders on starboard decks four, and six," Cortana reported, her voice muffled through the walls.
"It's a little late for that call," Kamal said, his voice just above a whisper.
The group climbed up a ladder, bringing them to a space between the ship's decks.
"Better late than never, I guess," Faraday sighed, trying to look on the bright side. "At least we made it out of there."
"Those boys didn't," Kamal shook his head. "I knew this was gonna happen, I just wish we had more time."
"We had more time than we needed," Svenson said. "Those guys paid the price for your mistake."
"My mistake? What the hell-"
"All of you," Svenson cut him off. "We shouldn't have been there. If we just followed orders, we'd be fine right now."
"Yeah, we shouldn't have been there, we should've followed orders," Faraday said. "Don't act like it's just us three in this shit, you were with us the whole time."
"It wasn't my idea to do some team bonding."
"Nobody forced you to come, so shut it. It'll be a miracle if any of us make it out of here, so let's just focus on that."
Svenson shook his head. Faraday was right, he was just looking for someone else to blame. After climbing down another ladder, they arrived at the hall outside the armoury. Kamal looked through the grating on the hatch, seeing as far as he could for any hostile contacts.
"Looks clear," he said. "Can't see much, though."
"Alright, put in the code," Svenson said. "As soon as this door opens, we bolt straight into the armoury."
"I'm prayin' our guys left some guns behind," Gerrel said, clasping his hands.
Kamal punched in the code. Once the door fully opened, they launched out of the accessway together. The biggest surprise wasn't that the corridor was clear, but that none of them ran into each other on the way out.
Most of the weapon racks were empty. Only one MA5B rack was full, ten of the rifles lined up beside each other. A wall by the entrance held ten M6D magnums. Svenson's choice was easy, he and Gerrel went for the rifles. After grabbing one, he looked for the ammo cases. There were only two magazines left.
"Assholes," Gerrel grunted. "I should've prayed they'd leave us some ammo too."
"How about you guys? Any bullets?" Svenson asked the others, who picked M6Ds off the wall.
"Four mags," Faraday said. "Those guys really cleaned this place out."
"They really think this ship can be saved," Svenson scoffed.
"Anything's possible with enough bullets," said Gerrel.
Svenson took one magazine, and loaded it into the rifle. Gerrel grabbed the other, and continued searching in hopes there was more ammo hiding somewhere. Svenson considered grabbing one of the M6Ds, but without his holster he'd have to stuff it in his pants. Those pistols were a little too big for that.
"Where the hell are you guys now?" O'Hale's voice crackled through their radios. "If you're dead I ain't remembering your asses."
"Ran into some Covenant," Kamal answered. "Had to make a stop by the armoury."
"Sure, stop by the bathroom and the mess hall too while you're at it. We can't hold this position forever, so get a move on!"
"Yes ma'am, we're Oscar Mike," Kamal replied, the connection dropped. "Know any shortcuts, Svenny?"
"I do," Svenson replied. "And stop calling me that."
"Sure thing, partner," Kamal shrugged.
Svenson took point again, making sure the coast was still clear. All the fighting had moved deeper into the ship, at this point they were in Covenant territory. A stairwell a couple junctions down was their fastest route, but it certainly wasn't the safest.
He slowed down by a corner, hearing a familiar sound. Rough footsteps, sniffling, and whispering. Signalling with a hand for the others to stop, he leaned as far forward as he could without being spotted. They were coming closer.
The Marines communicated with their hands, trying to figure out what the hell to do. Gerrel pointed to himself and Svenson, then back to the corridor, suggesting they leave together and gun them down. Svenson opted for the safer approach, gesturing to the maintenance stations embedded in the wall, which they could use as cover. The others agreed, and they spread out around the hall.
Four grunts walked past, blissfully ignorant of the Marines hiding next to them. Gunfire came from the direction of the stairwell, it was the same way the aliens were headed. Marines were under fire there, and it was where they needed to go. They had to take the grunts down.
Svenson gestured to Gerrel, ready to go with his plan of gunning the aliens down. The Marine eagerly obliged, and they moved up. They took cover in the same station, and opened fire before the aliens could turn around. By the time the first one was dead, the other three were already returning fire.
Globs of plasma whizzed past them, heating the air and exploding on the walls. Svenson put seven more bullets into another grunt, its plasma pistol going off once it hit the ground. More shots came, and Svenson watched blood seep into his sleeve. He didn't know he'd been shot, the plasma burned so hot that he couldn't feel it. The other two grunts' heads exploded when Kamal and Faraday made their way out.
Svenson lowered his rifle, and quickly scanned the corridor for any other aliens that might be on their way. That's when he realised the blood wasn't his. Gerrel lay dead on the floor, the remains of his head scattered around the corridor.
"God damnit!" Faraday shouted.
"Keep your voice down!" Svenson urged. "There's more aliens ahead, and reinforcements can't be far behind."
Kamal stared at his dead friend with speechless sorrow, Faraday was just angry. Svenson didn't even know the guy, he felt a little guilty that he couldn't share their grief, but the dead Marine was the same as any other.
A cold feeling came over him when he grabbed Gerrel's assault rifle, and ejected the magazine. It felt like something he shouldn't be doing. The others watched him in understanding, knowing they needed the ammo.
"You're right," Faraday sighed. "We shouldn't have gotten caught up."
"We can't change that," Svenson said, he didn't know if it was the right thing to say. "He did his duty, now we've gotta do ours. Let's go."
"God, I hate leaving people behind," Kamal said.
"There isn't a soldier that doesn't."
The three Marines continued forward, having no choice but to leave Gerrel's body on the floor. If any of them made it off the Autumn, he would be remembered. That was the best they could do.
They caught sight of the Covenant in the stairwell, none of the aliens aware of the humans behind them. An elite stood hunched over, firing a plasma rifle at UNSC forces on the lower level. Grunts surrounded it, acting as living shields to take their fire. Svenson quickly devised a plan to take the elite's energy shielding down so Faraday and Kamal could hit it in the head.
They took cover at opposite sides of the corridor. Svenson opened fire, using as many bullets as it took to bring the alien's shield down. The elite turned around as soon as it was hit, and let out a deep roar before it returned fire. Bullets bounced off the energy shield like they were sticks, plasma bolts scorched the walls. He retreated to the point where he had to blind fire on the elite rushing down the hall.
Its heavy footsteps shook the ground, the alien catching up to them in seconds. At the sound of the shields crackling away, Kamal and Faraday leaned out from their cover. Three shots were fired, and the elite fell to the ground with holes in its head.
The grunts in the stairwell panicked with the death of their leader, running in all different directions and shouting in their alien language. One of them spoke in english, the words "We're all going to die!" coming through its mask in a high-pitched voice. The aliens were finished off by the Marines below. Svenson loaded his last mag into the rifle, and made his way down the hall. The room was a mess of dead Covenant bodies, colouring the room in all different kinds of blood.
At first there was no sign of the Marines on the lower level. Svenson called out that he was coming down, and the soldiers made their way out. Nobody was dead or wounded - it was just Fireteam Delta.
Shit.
"Get the hell down here!" Sergeant O'Hale shouted.
Svenson, Kamal, and Faraday walked down the first set of stairs, and dropped from the second. A strange feeling froze Svenson's blood as he watched the furious Sergeant stare at them. Never once in his career had he ever angered his superiors.
"I expected too much of you idiots," O'Hale sighed.
He didn't know what to say or do. Kamal and Faraday seemed a little more experienced in disappointing their superiors, which he could not take as a good sign.
"Yeah, sorry about that boss," Kamal said with a convincing apologetic tone. "We got caught up at the firing range, Covies showed up and chased us down right after that. Couldn't get past without grabbin' some guns."
"There's no one to blame but us, ma'am," Faraday said. "It won't happen again."
O'Hale eyed Svenson suspiciously the whole time they talked. It wasn't like they were lying or anything, and he wasn't even the one speaking. He then realised she was looking specifically at the blood on his sleeve.
"Where's Gerrel?" she asked.
"He didn't make it, ma'am," Svenson said. "Four grunts, plasma pistol to the head. He died because of us, and we're only alive because of him. He did a good service. We won't let him, or you down again."
Reporting on the loss of a fellow soldier was the one thing Svenson was more experienced in. It always went the same way, eventually getting to the point of being exhausting. Only this was the first time in years where he meant what he said.
"He better give you a good haunting for this shit," O'Hale said. "We're getting your armour, and you're keepin' your asses by our sides at all times. Nobody's waiting for you again."
"Yes ma'am," Svenson said.
For this being the first time he fucked up, it couldn't have gone any worse. How they got off that easily was beyond him. The other Marines gave them mixed expressions. Angry, disappointed, indifferent. One of them, a man with the name Stevens printed on his vest, seemed to think what happened was somehow funny.
Now that he was back with his fireteam, he was starting to regret not getting to know any of them. He would've known at least one of them needed a punch in the face.
The armour worn by the UNSC Marines was strong by all standards. Heavy plating on top of a thickly padded uniform to stop all kinds of weapons fire. It was enough to keep someone alive after three or four shots from a plasma rifle, which were capable of killing an armoured human with just one.
When Svenson strapped his helmet on, he felt at home. A thin screen covered his right eye, showing him tactical readouts and crosshairs linked to his weapons. No longer was he cursed with just one magazine; ammo pouches covered his chest and his belt, his rucksack filled to the brim with extra magazines and emergency medical supplies.
Now he was ready for a fight, there was no reason to run from the Covenant any longer.
"Great time you picked to get lost," Stevens said. "I loved getting to sit on my ass while my ship is falling apart."
"Deal with it," O'Hale stepped in before an argument could break out. "This ain't your ship, it's ours. We've got plenty more time to shoot some Covies."
Svenson's watch pinged, a general alert came across all channels aboard the Autumn. Orders scrolled across his eyepiece as the voice of Captain Keyes blared over the intercom.
"All hands, this is the Captain," Keyes said. "Prepare to abandon ship! Combat teams, repel boarders until ops personnel are away. Good luck, Keyes out."
Svenson knew this was going to happen. They were one ship against a Covenant armada, anybody who thought the Autumn would get away was a fool. But if we're leaving the ship, where are we going?
He wasn't sure he liked the answer.
"This was a losing battle anyway," O'Hale said. "Let's get our crew off this ship. Coop, you've got point. Everyone else fall in behind us."
"Stay frosty, Marines," Arceneaux said. It took Svenson a few seconds to realise the Sergeant was referring to him as Coop. "Keep a wide formation, staying close together in these quarters is a good way to get killed. Eyes on those doors and corners, that's where they'll get you."
"Don't think the Covies are that smart," a Marine said, a man named Rosko. "Never seen 'em pull off a successful ambush."
"It doesn't matter what you've seen, soldier," O'Hale chimed in. "We're too far from home to take risks, there's nobody to reinforce us if anyone goes down."
"Roger that," Rosko said. He had a voice that made him sound naturally sarcastic, it was impossible to tell if he was acting or not. "No heroics, Sarge."
"Glad to hear it," O'Hale. "Now move it out, double time!"
Corporal Arceneaux moved out with Sergeant O'Hale and another Marine named Lopes at his side. Svenson took advantage of the downtime to familiarise himself with the other Marines. Half of them were turned away from him, he only saw their names on the backs of their helmets. Skenandore, Hanoi, Seguin, Rizo. A camera in the back of his helmet let him see who was behind him. Faraday and Kamal were among soldiers of all different ethnicities.
"Shots fired ahead," the Corporal called out as soon as they heard rifles rattling in the distance.
"Forward!" O'Hale ordered. "Let's help our people out!"
Arceneaux launched forward with the fireteam chasing after him. They reached an intersection where four Marines were pinned down, hiding behind hastily set-up barricades. Plasma fire soared through the hall, tearing wall panels apart and melting machinery. One of the Marines spotted Delta when they approached.
"Bastards have us pinned!" she shouted. "Can you go around?"
"How many?" O'Hale asked, gesturing down a side passage that would take them closer to the Covenant.
"Six gas-suckers, one hinge-head!"
"Delta team, follow me! Pick your targets, and check your fire!" O'Hale ordered, leading them down the side passage. "Coop, draw their attention. The rest of you, light 'em up!"
Arceneaux dove past the corner, startling a grunt that was watching their flank. O'Hale popped the creature in the head with a DMR before it could fire, Svenson rolled into the hallway alongside Rosko and Faraday. While the rest of the team focused on the grunts, Svenson set his sights on the elite.
The massive alien roared, getting a shot off before its shields broke. It fired again, catching the chestplate of a Marine named Hanoi. She was knocked onto the floor, but ultimately unharmed. Faraday finished the elite with a shot to the head, and it collapsed. By the time it was dead, so were the rest of the Covenant.
"You good, Gunsmith?" O'Hale asked, helping her back to her feet.
"Just stings, ma'am," Hanoi said. "I'm alright."
Most soldiers Svenson served alongside had callsigns or nicknames, but he never understood them. It only caused more confusion than it was worth. Besides, there was no issue with calling someone by their name.
"We're clear!" one of the pinned Marines shouted, drawing Delta into the hall. "Thanks, we owe you one."
"Get back to your team, soldier," O'Hale said. "We're on our way out of here."
Svenson stopped by the dead Covenant, the elite catching his attention in particular. There was nothing off about it, it was just as ugly as every other alien. The problem was they were supposed to be aggressive, this one seemed to almost let itself be killed.
"These guys weren't pushing," Svenson said. "The other elites we ran into were way more aggressive."
"That's because they're too busy shitting themselves," O'Hale said. "Word on the pipeline is the Master Chief's loose."
The Master Chief? Until now, Svenson had entirely forgotten there was a Spartan onboard, let alone the Master Chief. He wasn't very familiar with Spartans, only catching glimpses of them on Fumirole and Reach. In both instances they tore through legions of Covenant like they were nothing, it was no wonder they were afraid.
"And you said this was a losing battle," Rosko said with a grin.
"Oh we're still losing," another Marine said, the name Clarke written on his shoulder plate. "Now we're just losing in style."
Clarke crouched next to the dead elite, attaching his M90 shotgun to his back and grabbing the dead alien's weapon. Plasma rifles were small in comparison to their Covenant wielders, in Clarke's hands the weapon was massive.
"Real guns aren't enough for you?" Stevens asked, speaking like he was accusing the Marine of something.
"Killing Covies with their own toys just hits a certain spot," Clarke replied, inspecting the weapon. "I'm sure you wouldn't get it."
"Cut the chatter," O'Hale said. "Just got new orders, and we're already falling behind."
"What's the job, boss?" asked Kamal.
"We've got some crewmen trapped between here and the lifeboats," the Sergeant said. "We're gettin' em out of here. Stay on my six, no falling behind."
"Yes ma'am," Kamal said, the others following suit.
The ship rumbled and lurched, buckling under fire from the Covenant fleet. The impacts from boarding craft weren't helping either, the Autumn was rapidly falling apart. It was impossible to tell exactly what was going on outside, but it somehow wasn't as bad as it could have been. In any other battle, the Autumn would be long gone. Why the Covenant chose to board them instead of just blowing them up was unknown.
Constant twists and turns led Fireteam Delta past the remains of other engagements. There was an alarming amount of dead elites, Covenant attacks rarely involved this many of them. It already felt like being back on Reach.
When they ran into the personnel they were charged with escorting, it was by coincidence. Six naval officers bumped into them, retreating from a deeper section of the ship. They had no time to talk before a trio of grunts entered the corridor. Svenson quickly rushed for cover, and watched Faraday drop all of them before anyone else had a chance to shoot.
"Damn, Fairy," Rizo said, giving Faraday a friendly push on her shoulder. "Save some for us."
"You gotta keep up," Faraday replied with a grin, loading a fresh magazine into her pistol. "Better luck next time."
The officers were all out of breath, they had to collect themselves before offering the Marines thanks. There were a little more of them than Svenson would have liked, he didn't have much faith in getting them all out alive. O'Hale made the report to the Captain that they found the crewmen.
"Can you guys fight?" Arceneaux asked.
One of the officers, a man named Hadrian, looked between the others before giving the Corporal a nod.
"Alright, let's spare some sidearms," the Corporal ordered.
Svenson offered his immediately, they needed it far more than him. He passed it to a woman named Tokunbo, who handled the weapon like a professional. Only one of the officers didn't seem to know what he was doing, a skinny man named Adams. He was the youngest of them all, someone who clearly forgot his training. There wasn't time to refresh his knowledge.
"We were headed for the closest escape pods," Hadrian said. "The fastest way there is through the mess hall a couple junctions down, but it's packed with Covenant."
"How many?" Sergeant O'Hale asked.
"There's at least two elites, didn't see how many of the little ones. We had to get out of there quick."
"Clarke," O'Hale quickly turned to him. "I need you on the hinge-heads. Stevens, Dunn, Svenson, you're with him."
"My pleasure," Clarke grinned, eager to get some use out of his plasma rifle.
"Coop and I will help out, the grunts are the rest of y'all's problem. Until we get there, let's keep our friends here safe. Kamal, Rizo, watch our backs."
The Marines eagerly obliged, Rizo pumping her fist in the air as if her job was exciting. Svenson double checked his rifle to make sure it was fully loaded, it was something he could never be too sure about. Another announcement from the Captain echoed through the halls.
"Combat teams Alpha through November, pull out to the nearest evac station!"
"That's our queue," the Sergeant said. "Let's move!"
Svenson moved up behind Clarke, the officers staying together between the Marines. If they were caught without cover, they would have to use their bodies as shields to protect people considered more important than them. Not every soldier took issue with it, they were all ultimately expendable.
In his helmet's rear camera view Svenson could see Stevens following him closely. The Marine had a look of annoyance plastered across his face. He was the only one that was still upset over Svenson's mistake, which made him feel a little better.
Three straight minutes of sprinting through the halls brought them close to the mess hall. They were lucky enough not to see any Covenant on the way, but the bodies of fellow soldiers weren't much of a better sight.
"Eyes on your trackers, people," O'Hale said, slowing down. "We've got movement ahead. Coop, take point."
Arceneaux moved up, being the first to peek around a corner. He swapped his MA5B to his left hand, holding it out while he identified a squad of four grunts at an intersection ahead. Svenson and the others followed behind him, prepared to fire on the unsuspecting aliens before they were startled by something else.
Bullets flew down another corridor, striking the grunts and prompting them to return fire. Arceneaux shot next, killing two of the wounded aliens. Gunfire from rifles and plasma weapons went everywhere, filling the halls with sparks and smoke - all for a few grunts. What remained of the aliens were glowing piles of flesh and blood.
"I think we got 'em," Kamal said from the back.
"A little overkill, if you ask me," Skenandore replied.
"Ain't no such thing," Rosko said with a wide grin. "That's a closed casket funeral for all of 'em!"
The Sergeant signalled with her fingers that she was taking point once more. She approached the corner and lowered her weapon, the rest of the Marines following suit. Svenson glanced down to make sure his rifle was still loaded, he only got two shots off on the grunts.
"This is Fireteam Delta!" Sergeant O'Hale shouted. "Are we clear?"
"You're clear!" a man said from the other end of the hall. "Come on out!"
They made their way into the intersection. Another dozen Marines sat at the other end of the hall, making their way over. Two of them were covered in medigel patches, but they were still up and moving. Svenson's eyepiece identified them as Fireteam Bravo.
"What's the situation?" O'Hale asked.
"On our way to the lifeboats," Bravo Team's Sergeant said, his nameplate reading McKinney. "Same as you?"
"Affirmative," O'Hale said. "Got a group of navy boys that are comin' with us, they're tellin' us there's heavy resistance through here."
"They're gonna know we're coming now," said McKinney. "We'll take the left door."
"Alright, good huntin'," O'Hale drawled. "Gunsmith, Ranger, keep our officers protected out here. This is gonna get messy."
Hanoi and Skenandore obliged, ordering the officers to take cover around the corridor. Great, another nickname to learn. Delta formed up by the entrance on the right, Bravo on the other. The doors slid open at the same time, weapons were already going off as soon as they pushed inside. Svenson saw his first target, an elite in red armour. In the grand hierarchy of the Covenant, red signified the second lowest rank. In the battlefield, it meant death.
"Eyes up, red-head!" Svenson shouted.
"I got him!" Clarke replied, lighting the elite up.
The plasma rifle tore into the elite's shields, the heat overloading its systems faster than any human weapon could. Svenson and Stevens joined in, barely missing their target as it rushed into cover. The alien roared, diving behind a lunch table as it returned fire. A plasma bolt grazed Svenson's shin as he ducked behind cover, he only felt the heat from it.
"Frag out!" Stevens shouted, tossing a grenade over the table.
The elite pushed itself back to its feet, but it was caught in the explosion. Its shields were torn away, fragmentations cut deep into its armour. Svenson and Stevens finished it with ten shots each to its abdomen.
Both fireteams pushed further into the mess hall, using tables and support columns as cover and dodging plasma fire. Svenson watched Sergeant O'Hale shoot into the seam of a grunt's backpack, causing the methane inside of it to rush out and push it into the side of another grunt. He then spotted his next target.
A blue elite jumped over a table, taking out two of Fireteam Bravo's Marines with a storm of plasma fire. They used the same tactic, Clarke stripping its shields while Svenson and Stevens finished it off. Neither of them ended up killing the elite, a shot from Rizo's magnum was what dropped it to the floor.
"Split-lip's wig split!" Rizo shouted.
"Hey! Get your own kills!" Stevens shouted back.
More grunts stomped into the room at the other end, including four in red armour moving ahead of the final elite. Using the grunts as cover, the elite released bolts of plasma all over the room. Kamal took two hits, one in the chest and the other in the abdomen, neither getting past his armour. It was clear the blows weren't light however, as he was knocked onto the floor.
"Need that cannon fodder dead!" Svenson said, trying to peek out from behind the column. Plasma bolts flying by made him decide to stay in cover.
"Steady, Marines!" O'Hale warned.
After a couple dozen shots, the elite's rifle crackled and sputtered, gas pouring from its vents. The alien angrily shook the weapon as if it would help cool it down.
"Now!" O'Hale shouted.
A hail of bullets ripped the grunts apart, giving all the Marines a straight shot at the elite. They took it down together, leaving the room clear of hostiles. The remains of Covenant soldiers and Marines gave the name 'mess hall' a new meaning.
"Clear!" O'Hale shouted, bringing Hanoi and Skenandore in with the officers.
"Damn, we missed all the fun?" Hanoi asked.
"Doesn't look like there was anything fun about it," Skenandore replied, his eyes on the two dead Marines from Bravo.
The Autumn rumbled as it took more fire, they were quickly running out of time. The dead would have to be left behind. Everyone was bothered by the loss of life, they just had to suppress it to continue forward.
"There's one last stretch," O'Hale said. "Let's get a move on."
"We're with you, Delta," said Sergeant McKinney.
They moved past the dead bodies, leaving multi-coloured footprints behind as they were unable to avoid the pools of alien blood. If the Autumn somehow survives this, it'd make one hell of an art exhibit.
Another explosion shook the vessel, this one strong enough to throw a couple of them onto the floor. Svenson managed to stay up, and quickly helped a member of Bravo that had fallen. Emergency klaxons echoed through the halls ahead.
"Sounds like a hull breach," O'Hale said. "Move carefully."
Continuing through the halls brought them past more and more dead bodies, far more humans than Covenant. Scattered Marines and crewmen were torn apart by plasma fire, some of them had deep cuts across their chests, others were missing their heads. Svenson remembered the elite he'd seen wielding a plasma sword earlier; he almost ended up like these poor souls.
The Marines came under fire at another intersection, two elites. The aliens fired relentlessly down the hall, keeping the Marines suppressed while they charged forward. Clarke traded his plasma rifle for his shotgun on his back.
They didn't have time to retreat to a better defensive position before the elites rounded the corner. Svenson fired on instinct, his bullets bouncing off the shield of the closest elite. The alien's rifle choked and sputtered, dying before it could get a shot off. Svenson was about to thank God for sparing him, but the alien decided to rush straight at him. It masterfully dodged a blast from Clarke's shotgun, pushing the Marine aside to focus on Svenson.
He was almost out of ammo, it didn't matter anyway. The elite stared him down and raised its hands, its jaws opening wide to reveal a gaping maw lined with sharp teeth covered in spit. Neither on Fumirole, nor Reach had Svenson been this close to one of the massive aliens. Now it seemed like luck that had kept him from encountering them this often, luck that had all been spent getting off both of those worlds.
The closer the alien came, the slower time felt. A bright light blinded him, he was dead. After months of barely surviving, and being the last of his team time and time again, he was finally dead. He was a little angry about it not being some kind of heroic last stand, getting killed by a random elite aboard a random UNSC cruiser was a little underwhelming.
When the light faded, Svenson realised it was just the flash of the elite's shield breaking. A bullet cracked the alien's helmet, going straight through its skull, and dropping it to the floor. Kamal, Hanoi, Rosko, and Faraday had their weapons trained on the dead alien. With Faraday being the only one of them wielding an M6D, Svenson was able to figure out she landed the final blow. The other elite had fallen victim to Clarke's shotgun.
"You looked like you were about to shit yourself," Faraday said, loading a fresh magazine into the pistol. "You're welcome."
Svenson was too stunned to even thank her. He cleared his throat, and reloaded his assault rifle to distract himself, pretending like nothing bad just happened. Faraday responded with an eye roll, and continued forward with the others.
"I guess we're even now, huh?" Kamal asked as he ran past.
"Yeah, whatever," Svenson sighed.
He glanced back at the elites on the floor, and silently thanked his team before catching up with them. The rest of the Marines were gathered at a blast door, the screen above the keypad reporting a loss of pressure on the other side. O'Hale slammed her fist on it, and turned to face her soldiers with a sigh.
"Going around will take too long," the Sergeant said. "I'll try to find another bay close by."
"There aren't any other lifeboats left on this deck," Hadrian said. "We have to find a way around."
"You're absolutely certain?"
"Yes ma'am, that's why we were headed here."
Faraday and Kamal both turned toward Svenson, knowing he was already searching the corridor. There was an entrance to the maintenance tunnels next to the blast door, and it wasn't sealed. He rushed over to it, and typed in the code to get it open.
"What'cha got there?" O'Hale asked, turning everyone's attention to him.
"We can use the tunnels to get around," Svenson said. "I know my way through them, ma'am."
"He's right," said Hadrian. "The passages would have been sealed if they were breached too, this can take us straight to the lifeboats."
"Maybe you're not useless after all," the Sergeant said. "Lead the way, then. Everyone in single file, no wandering off!"
Svenson nodded, and moved in first. Hadrian followed behind, Svenson assumed it was to make sure he was going the right way. With the two dozen Marines and six officers, they were packed tight in the accessway. After just a minute of moving, Svenson's uniform was slick with sweat.
"How do you know where we're going?" Hadrian asked, sounding like he was in disbelief.
"It's just part of the job, sir," Svenson replied. It was technically the truth.
"Some of the mechanics can't even get around here without a map, it can take them ages to find a broken fuel line."
"Maybe they're just not looking hard enough, sir."
Straight ahead was the door that would bring them to the escape pod bay. The only problem was a grunt standing right in front of it. If there were any other Covenant outside, Svenson couldn't see them.
"Grunt guarding the exit," Svenson warned.
"Let's find another way around," said Hadrian.
"If we had more time, we would," O'Hale said. "What about other exits?"
"There's four others, Covies will be guarding them too," Svenson said. "But if we spread out, we can hit them from every side."
"Good thinking," said O'Hale. "Coop, Fairy, Stoner, go with Svenson. Tell me when you're in position, we'll attack on my signal."
"Yes ma'am," said Kamal, along with Arceneaux and Faraday.
The three squeezed past the crewmen, and Svenson led them to the other exits. Arceneaux moved into position first, letting the Sergeant know he was ready. With just Kamal and Faraday behind him, he had a chance to ask a question that just started burning in his mind.
"They call you Stoner?" Svenson asked. He understood the others' nicknames, but Kamal's was one he couldn't get behind.
"Yeah, ha, about that…" Kamal said, acting like he was embarrassed. Svenson couldn't tell if it was just hot in there, or if the Marine was actually blushing.
"The others think he's too calm," Faraday explained. "Like, y'know, a stoner."
"Right," Svenson shook his head. "That makes perfect sense."
He directed Faraday and Kamal to their positions, and let O'Hale know when he was ready. In front of the door was a grunt sitting on the floor, hunched forward and snoring - sleeping through the battle. A countdown appeared on his eyepiece, starting at 5. He opened the door once it ended, and sunk his combat knife deep into the grunt's neck.
Gunshots rang down the hall, plasma bolts flew through the open air. Svenson spotted another elite, guarded by a pair of grunts. Luckily they hadn't seen him, he had enough time to roll a grenade across the floor. The explosion killed both of the little bastards, and shattered the shields of the elite. He finished it off with his rifle.
"Clear!" Sergeant O'Hale shouted from the other end of the hallway.
They rushed into the escape pod bay, Lopes punching in the code to open the doors. Each lifeboat only had eight seats. Unless half of them wanted to sit on the floor, they weren't all getting out together.
"Who here can fly?" O'Hale asked.
"I can," said Hadrian, followed by the other officers as well as Lopes.
"Alright, y'all pick a lifeboat," O'Hale ordered. "The rest of you, we're splitting up. Coop, take your pick."
"Svenson," Arceneaux said, gesturing to the lifeboat in the middle. "Rizo, Dunn, Fairy, Jani."
A scream came from behind, Svenson spun around to watch one of the officers collapse on the ground with burns all across his body.
"More Covenant!" O'Hale shouted.
Grunts came down the hall, the remaining crewmen rushing into the lifeboats. Another of them was shot before he could make it in; poor Adams. Svenson opened fire on the first grunt he saw, a red-armoured one wielding a needler.
The alien fired a stream of needles before being cut down. The Marines managed to dodge most of them, Svenson was able to break one on his shoulder plate. One of the shards went into Kamal's abdomen and shattered, the Marine fell onto the floor in pain.
"Man down!" Svenson shouted, rushing to cover him as another squad of grunts rounded the corner.
"Get him onboard!" Arceneaux shouted.
Both fireteams provided cover while Svenson grabbed Kamal, and dragged him into the lifeboat. Hanoi rushed in behind them, helping Svenson strap him into one of the seats.
"I'll take care of him," she said, pulling a canister of biofoam out of her rucksack. Kamal quietly groaned the whole time, making it seem like it somehow didn't hurt that much. Maybe he is a little too calm.
Arceneaux entered next, followed by Faraday and the others the Corporal had called to, a Marine named Wade had joined them as well. Hadrian was already in the pilot's seat, fastening a helmet on his head. The doors sealed once everyone was in.
"Good to go?" Hadrian asked.
"Good to go!" Arceneaux shouted. "Get us out of here!"
"Aye aye," Hadrian said.
The lifeboat exploded out from the Autumn's hull, the other two following behind. Svenson turned straight to the window at the front of the pod. There sat the ring world, unfathomably huge for an artificial construct.
"What in God's name is that?" asked Wade.
"That's where we're landing, Private!" Arceneaux said with a grin. "Hang on to your asses, we're in for a rough ride!"
The Pillar of Autumn soared ahead of the lifeboat, explosions tearing the sides of the vessel apart as it approached the ring alongside them. The closer they came to the object, the more unbelievable it was. He couldn't believe he was seeing this with his own eyes.
"The Covenant thought this was gonna be their day!" Arceneaux said. "Let's make this ring a living hell for every alien we see!"
"Hell yeah!" The Marines shouted, all except Svenson, and the wounded Kamal.
What mattered the most now was that they no longer held the home field advantage, most of the Marines hadn't fought a battle without it. This was uncharted territory for humans and aliens alike, meaning the fight was going to be much more desperate.
Svenson was going to give the Covenant his all no matter where he was, he just wasn't sure about what else they would encounter along the way.