Chapter 7: Svenson
Fireteam Delta was back up to full strength, with Bravo Team bringing a bit of extra firepower. Svenson couldn't tell how much time had passed, but they arrived sooner than he expected. Over the wait, a number of Covenant dropships were spotted in the distance. None made their way to the tower, but their forces would definitely end up there soon.
Both fireteams met on the tower platform. Excluding Kamal, who was still out cold, there were twenty-five Marines gathered around Sergeants O'Hale and McKinney. They were enough to give the Covenant a good fight, huddled so close that a lone stealth unit could take them all out with a plasma grenade.
"Hanoi, Lopes, you stay inside," O'Hale said. "Keep an eye on Stoner and our navy boys. The rest of us are takin' defensive positions around this compound. I don't want a single angle unchecked, or a single alien left standing.
"Fairy, Rizo, Dunn, you're on the ground on the other side of the tower. Keep that lane clear."
"Yobs and Shnauz will cover the other side," said Sergeant McKinney, referring to his Marines. He pointed to the tubes across from the tower.
"Ranger, Stevens, I want you in those structures in the corner," O'Hale gestured to the building where they had entered from, covered in dead jackals.
"Oh great, those dead aliens'll be stinking up the place," said Stevens.
"You don't smell much better, Private," O'Hale replied. "You'll be right at home."
Rosko gave Stevens a friendly punch on the shoulder, the Marine didn't seem nearly as amused as everyone else.
"Rosko, Clarke, you're on the opposite side in case they drop in behind us," the Sergeant continued.
As the Sergeants assigned their Marines to positions, Svenson's mind wandered. Whether they had enough soldiers to hold off a Covenant assault or not, he was expecting this to go south very quickly. They were out in the open now, the advantage of hiding behind corners and maintenance stations was long gone.
Each of the Marines were eager to face the approaching storm, cracking jokes and teasing each other. A soldier from Fireteam Bravo presented Wade with a rocket launcher they found on another lifeboat, the old man reacted like he just received a Christmas present he'd been waiting for all year. This is how it always starts, Svenson thought. Then in comes the storm.
"Svenson, Uncle, Jani, and Coop," O'Hale continued. "Y'all are staying up here, let's keep the high ground in our hands."
"Yes ma'am," Wade said with a wide grin.
The unmistakable hum of a Covenant dropship came from the direction of the hills, growing closer with each passing second. The alien ship passed over the compound, getting a clear view of the Marines before landing in the distance.
"Right on time," O'Hale said. "Get to your positions, now!"
The Marines spread out, bounding to their places around the compound. Svenson sprinted to the other side of the tower so he could get a good view of the approaching aliens. Jilani and Arceneaux armed themselves with DMRs, Wade crouched with his rocket launcher, waiting to get a good shot on the dropship.
"Backblast?" Wade asked as the Covenant ship rose into the air.
"You're clear," Svenson said.
A rocket soared out of the launcher's tube, spiralled toward the dropship, and exploded between the cockpit and the troop bay. The ship dipped to its side, the alien pilot inside seeming to fight to take control of it. It crashed out of view, behind a pile of rocks.
"Good hit," said Arceneaux.
"That'll show 'em not to mess with us," Wade said with a smile.
"Or just make them mad," said Svenson.
"Yeah, probably," Wade shrugged. "But that's one less dropship they can throw at us."
The first sign of the dropship's complement came in the sound of gunfire. Plasma weapons went off at the edges of the compound, followed by the cracks of the Marines shooting back.
"The Covies are here!" Stevens shouted over the radio.
"Hold them off," McKinney responded. "I'm sending you some backup."
Svenson gripped his rifle tight. He couldn't see any of the aliens, only the occasional stray plasma bolt flying into the air. Knowing the enemy was there without being able to see them put him on edge.
"More Covies! Centre lane!" Arceneaux shouted.
A squad of grunts and jackals marched into the compound, between the buildings and tubes. Thankful that he could fight back, Svenson opened fire. Wade joined him, catching the aliens' attention.
The jackals raised their shields, causing their bullets to harmlessly bounce off. At their distance it was impossible to land a precise shot with his MA5B, but the fire was enough to leave the jackals exposed to the Marines on the ground.
A shot from a sniper rifle pierced a jackal's abdomen, leaving it dead with one shot. Another jackal fell from a shot to the head. With the Covenants' attention split between both squads, it wasn't long until they were all dead.
But the attack was only just beginning. Another squad arrived, the grunts using the jackals as cover. They moved slowly, firing in every direction where they saw humans. None of the shots were precise, almost like they were too scared to actually aim at their targets. From his angle, Svenson was able to drop two of the grunts, and draw the attention of the jackals.
The sound of gunfire masked the approach of another dropship, landing on the opposite side of the compound from the first. Svenson tried to get Wade's attention, but it already dropped its troops off.
"We've got more of 'em landing behind us!" Svenson warned the Marines.
"Don't worry, we see 'em," Rosko acknowledged.
"They're not gonna give us a break, are they?" Jani asked.
"Kinda wish they did," said Wade. "It would give me a chance to use the bathroom."
"Ain't no bathrooms out here, Private," Arceneaux replied, gesturing for the Marines to move and cover the other side of the tower.
"There's plenty of bushes, though," Wade shrugged.
"Good luck with that," Svenson said. "An elite could pop out and chop your dick off."
The Marines slid into cover behind a railing as plasma fire lit up the tower. Aliens poured into the compound, the amount of grunts and jackals doubling from the first wave. Their only saving grace was that there were no elites. Yet.
"Yeah, well, honestly I'll take that over getting my head chopped off!" Wade shouted over the sound of returning fire.
Plasma bolts scorched the walls, and splashed against the railing. Wade raised his rifle above the cover and blindly fired in the direction of the Covenant.
"We're too far, you're not gonna hit anything like that!" said Svenson.
"Hey, you never know!" Wade yelled back.
Svenson peeked over the railing only to almost get his head blown off, the plasma round just hitting the edge of the railing. He ducked back down on instinct.
"Afraid of a little plasma?" Wade asked.
"Says the one blind-firing like an idiot!" Svenson replied.
He popped up again to see a grunt's head explode, and another's backpack fly off. A sniper round took the hand off a jackal, and pierced another behind it. Someone on the ground was going crazy.
"Hey! Who's got that sniper down there?" Jilani asked on the radio. "That's some fancy shooting!"
"Thanks," responded Faraday. "I'm just getting warmed up."
"I'd love to see you at full strength, Private," O'Hale joined in the conversation. "But let's cut the chatter and focus on shooting these assholes!"
"Yes ma'am! Now that's a few less birds to worry about!"
The Covenant force was cut down to mostly grunts, who were huddled close together behind a tube, hiding from Faraday's deadly accuracy. The few remaining jackals were focused on the Marines on the ground. Svenson reloaded his rifle and pulled a frag grenade off his belt.
"Grenade going out!" he shouted before priming it, and launching it.
The explosive landed in the middle of the grunts, wiping them out before they had a chance to react. The fragments ripped two of the jackals apart. The second wave of Covenant soldiers was defeated just as quickly as the first.
"God damn, those things are like pocket nukes!" said Wade.
"Aren't you supposed to be the explosives expert?" Svenson asked.
"Yes I am," Wade shrugged. "My expert opinion is that those things make a huge boom!"
Svenson could tell Wade was having too much fun with their situation; nothing about getting shot at by genocidal alien monsters constituted as fun in his book. If that's how you want to be, it's your funeral.
With his freshly loaded rifle, Svenson gunned down two more grunt stragglers. Combined fire from Wade and Jilani tore the aliens apart, leaving the terrified grunts to scatter and flee. None of them were allowed to escape, they didn't get far before falling in a hail of bullets.
"That's some good-ass shooting!" Faraday said.
"I think we're giving you a run for your money," Svenson replied.
"Is that a challenge I hear?"
"In your dreams."
"Heads up! We've got more dropships," Sergeant McKinney interrupted.
Three more Covenant dropships descended from the sky, each landing at a different side of the compound. Wade pulled his rocket launcher off his back, but couldn't ready it before they dropped off their troops.
"Got more cannon fodder comin' in!" O'Hale warned.
The dropships flew away, leaving mobs of grunts and jackals surrounding the compound. Two of the Marines from Bravo team retreated from their buildings as they were quickly overrun. Svenson swapped to his sidearm to get a more precise shot on their attackers.
He dropped a grunt behind the fleeing Marines, hitting it clean in the head. The next grunt went down in three shots. Unfortunately he was only sometimes precise.
Svenson's ears picked out the familiar pulsing of a needler from the racket of gunfire. A jackal armed with one rounded the corner of the compound, and fired a burst of needles at the fleeing Marines. Svenson tried to take the alien down before it could kill anyone, but it stuck one of the soldiers with a dozen shots. Their body ruptured, and they fell into the grass. At least it was mostly painless.
"There's too many of them!" Stevens shouted over the radio.
"All units fall back to the tower!" O'Hale ordered. "We'll give you some cover!"
"It's a little late for that!" Hanoi chimed in. "We've got grunts flying up our asses down here!"
With Hanoi defending the tower's entrance, they would be feeling the heat pretty soon. Svenson felt the urge to rush down there and help, but their soldiers outside still needed cover, and he wouldn't act outside of orders.
"They're gonna need some backup," Svenson suggested to Arceneaux.
"Sounds like you're volunteering," the Corporal said. "Be my guest. We'll keep our men covered from up here."
Svenson nodded and rushed across the tower, staying far away from the railings to avoid as much plasma fire as possible. It was a short run to the interior of the structure, where he was met with Hanoi and Lopes hiding in the stairwell, each defending a different ramp to the ground.
"Nice of you to stop by," Lopes said. "They're almost inside!"
Plasma bolts flew through the entrances, keeping the Marines suppressed. The clammy footsteps of grunts grew closer with each second, jackals barked behind them; Svenson could only assume they were ordering their underlings to charge in and die.
They had a small break in the plasma assault as the grunts waited for their weapons to cool down, giving Svenson and Hanoi a chance to return fire. He could barely make out what happened in the short time they were able to shoot, but at least two of the grunts were dead.
Svenson swapped to Lopes's side as more grunts pushed up the ramp. One of them made it through the entrance, but was cut down in an instant. Lopes crouched as they blindly fired their rifles down the ramp. The high-pitched wails let them know they were hitting their targets.
"I think they're pulling back!" Hanoi exclaimed.
"That's right, fuckers!" Lopes shouted, firing down the ramp again. "Get outta here!"
Svenson peeked through the entrance, catching a glimpse of the attackers diving for cover outside of the doors. The continued sound of gunfire outside told him they weren't even close to being done.
"They're just regrouping," Svenson said. "They'll be back soon."
"Then I'm not moving a muscle," Hanoi said, keeping her rifle trained on the ramp.
Svenson took advantage of the brief moment of respite, sitting between Lopes and Hanoi as he reloaded his gun. He was already running low on magazines, and couldn't imagine the other Marines were doing well on ammo either.
Kamal sat in the corner of the room, opposite of the frightened naval crewmen. He had completely forgotten about protecting them up until then; his primary objective was to kill as many aliens as he could before they could kill him.
Hadrian cowered in the corner, gripping his pistol tight. The others were huddled behind him, covering their heads as if the ceiling was going to come down on top of them. It was almost an amusing sight, given that Svenson had been in this situation countless times.
"You scared?" he asked.
"Hell yeah I'm scared," Hadrian said. "We weren't trained for this shit!"
"What was your job anyway?"
"Mostly calibrating the Autumn's MAC," Hadrian said.
"We can die at any moment, and you guys are making small talk?" Lopes interrupted.
Svenson rolled his eyes, joining Hanoi again as they kept watch for the Covenant outside. The restraint the alien soldiers were showing was almost surprising, or more like they were waiting for something.
"Think of that pistol as your own personal MAC," Svenson said. "And you can use it to blow the shit out of any aliens you see."
Hadrian didn't reply, Svenson couldn't tell if his advice was even good or not. They would find out when the grunts came back, and they wouldn't have to wait for long.
"Eyes up, Marines!" O'Hale said over the radio. "More dropships comin' in fast! We ain't outta this fight yet!"
So that's what they were waiting for.
The Covenant sprang back into action, waves of grunts pushed into the ramps once again. Svenson bounced between both sides, assisting Hanoi and Lopes as they tried to hold them off.
"They're coming up!" Hanoi shouted over the booming of her rifle.
Grunts shouted and cheered with their high-pitched voices as they pushed up the ramp, the little aliens seeming to have lost all their fear. Plasma bolts splashed against the walls, one hit the muzzle of Hanoi's rifle, bending it out of shape. She cursed as she tossed it on the floor, and swapped to her pistol.
"How many of these guys are there!?" Lopes shouted as she was forced into cover.
Despite their best efforts, grunts started making it into the room. The three Marines were pushed back, gunning down all the aliens that entered. It was almost easier to kill them once they were inside, but they were putting Kamal and the officers at risk.
"Come on! I got bullets for all of y'all!" Hanoi shouted, shooting aggressively into the wave of grunts.
A plasma bolt hit Hanoi in the hip, and she fell on the floor. No matter how painful it was, it didn't keep her from fighting back.
Three grunts made it all the way inside, firing indiscriminately as if there were humans in every corner of the room. Plasma bolts hit Lopes in the shoulder, and Svenson in the shin. Unfortunately for the aliens, the UNSC made their armour pretty durable; Svenson only felt a sharp sting.
Hanoi killed one of the grunts with a shot to the neck, Svenson killed another with the last of his magazine. Lopes was already in the middle of reloading as the third grunt charged its plasma pistol. A shot came from behind the Marines, blowing the alien's brains out the back of its head.
Hadrian sat up, pistol firmly in his hand as smoke flowed out of the barrel. The officer's eyes met Svenson's, and they exchanged a nod. He felt just a little more respect for the crewman.
More gunfire came from outside, followed by the cries of jackals. The next wave of grunts were gunned down from behind, falling before they could make it up the ramps. A squad of Marines made their way inside.
"Jeez, you guys went to town in here," said Rosko, looking at the remains of the grunts, the walls splattered with blood.
He was followed by Stevens, Clarke, and Skenandore, the Marines briefly amazed at the carnage they just missed.
"How does it look out there?" Svenson asked.
"Like pure shit," said Clarke. "We've got the outside covered, at least until the Covies grow some balls and actually try to kill us."
"Svenson, you there?" Arceneaux asked over the radio.
"Copy," Svenson said. "It's all taken care of down here."
"Well that's great, get your ass back up here!"
"On my way."
Svenson searched his pouches for any full magazines, only having two left. He had a few more in his backpack, but it wouldn't be enough to hold off this assault for much longer. The Marines made their way back to the upper level of the tower, leaving Lopes to treat Hanoi's wound.
Marines from both teams were lined up behind the railings, firing at Covenant on the ground. Rosko and Clarke took positions next to a couple of Bravo Team's soldiers, Stevens and Skenandore joined Wade and Jilani. Svenson found his place beside Corporal Arceneaux.
"So, what did I miss?" Svenson asked.
"You know," Arceneaux said. A plasma bolt hit him in the shoulder, and he crouched behind the railing. "The usual."
Svenson looked over the railing to see that the compound had turned into a complete warzone. Grunts and jackals advanced from every direction, bodies littered the ground with their blood seeping into the grass.
"Jackals on the left!" Wade called out.
Svenson swapped to his pistol, not wanting to waste the rest of his rifle ammo. It was much easier to get a shot when there were lots of targets on both sides. Jackals fired all along the tower, not caring which particular human they shot at. It gave him a chance to shoot a jackal in the arm, the pistol's high caliber rounds ripping it off.
"Another dropship!" Skenandore shouted.
"Get down!" Arceneaux ordered.
A Covenant dropship descended over the tower, its cannon spraying the structure down with scorching plasma. A shot splashed the floor behind Svenson, another hitting the wall behind them. Jilani didn't get to cover quick enough, and was torn apart. Her remains flopped to the floor as Wade watched in horror. It wasn't the worst death Svenson had ever seen.
The plasma barrage kept them pinned to the railing as the dropship released more soldiers into the field. The other Marines on the ground were able to continue fighting, using the upper platform as cover from air attacks.
Svenson felt like they were huddled forever before the dropship left. When he rose above the railing to take on the Covenant reinforcements, he began to wish he stayed down. Two elites charged into the battle, roaring as they relentlessly fired their plasma rifles at the Marines.
"Oh that's not good!" said Rosko.
"Yeah, you think?" Clarke replied.
Aboard the Autumn, the elites weren't as big of a problem. They could be easily manipulated into falling for traps in close quarters. In an open space, elites could turn any battle into a bloodbath. The Marines had a new priority target.
Svenson focused his fire on the first elite that rushed toward the tower. The massive alien weaved between rocks as cover, the second elite returned fire at him. A plasma bolt splashed against the top of the railing, spraying Svenson's face with its heated remains. He dropped behind cover, fighting the urge to scream in pain.
His face burned, but he could still see, which meant he could still fight. He fired again at the elites as both of them ran between cover, the pain in his face motivating him to fight harder. Both aliens stuck close together, counting on the grunts and jackals to draw the Marines' fire. It gave him an idea.
"Wade!" Svenson shouted. "How many rockets you got left?"
"Uh, three!" the old man responded. "I think!"
"Those elites are about to make a break for the tower," Svenson said. "They're close enough to blow them both up."
Wade nodded, and pulled the rocket launcher off his back. Svenson spotted the elites behind a rock, their helmets sticking out above the cover. He fired, hitting both of them in the head. The angry aliens made their way out in order to shoot back.
"Now!" Svenson shouted.
Wade fired, the rocket shooting straight into the ground between the elites. The explosion blasted them apart, killing one instantly. The other fell forward, struggling to rise to its feet. Svenson put it down with a shot to the head.
"Nice one!" Arceneaux said.
"Nobody claimed the aliens were smart!" said Svenson.
More dropships came down all around the compound, the Covenant were quickly realising there were too many Marines to just throw grunts at. Still having no sign of rescue, Svenson was losing faith in their ability to keep holding.
Unless somebody could pull a Pelican out of their ass, the only way this would end was with all of them dead.
"Heads up, Marines!" O'Hale said over the radio. "We've got a hell of a lot more Covies inbound, and I just lost contact with Faraday's squad."
Svenson scanned the outside for Faraday, the only thing he could see was an army of aliens. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't heard her sniper rifle go off in a while. I knew this would happen.
"Svenson!" Arceneaux shouted. "Take Mouse and Ranger, and go look for her. We'll keep you covered!"
"That's a hell of a risk right now!" Svenson warned. "If she's dead, we could end up with her."
"Show some goddamn faith!" Arceneaux shouted. "Dead or not, we don't leave our own behind!"
"You got it," Svenson sighed.
Skenandore and Seguin were already behind him, which he could only assume Seguin was Mouse. He would have time to worry about stupid callsigns later if they made it out of this mess.
"It's safer to go down on the other side," Skenandore suggested.
"Right, let's get a move on," said Svenson.
The three Marines moved around the tower, out of the attackers' sight. With the tower being mirrored on both sides, they found another ramp to take down. The fighting wasn't as intense behind the tower as it was in front, but they still had to dodge plasma fire from grunts.
A squad of grunts sprang out of the foliage with an elite behind them, like they were waiting for some hapless humans to come running by. The Marines slid into the closest cover they could find, a rock just big enough to accommodate the three of them.
"Oh great, someone put an elite in our way!" said Seguin.
"I got it, don't you worry!" Wade replied.
The old man's communication was followed by an explosion. The whole Covenant squad exploded, showering the field with their remains.
"Don't go wasting all those rockets," said Svenson.
"Don't you have people to save?" Wade replied.
Svenson rolled his eyes, and signalled for Seguin and Skenandore to follow him. They spotted Faraday beneath the tower, she took cover behind a rock with a pistol in her hands, and her helmet missing. Beside her was Dunn with a hole in his shoulder, and Rizo laying lifeless in the grass. Grunts and jackals bombarded her position with plasma.
"Clear them out!" Svenson shouted.
The three Marines fired on the aliens, pushing them back with relative ease. They sprinted to Faraday's cover, who definitely looked happy to see them.
"So where have you been?" Faraday asked.
"Killing all the aliens," Svenson replied. "Like usual. What happened here?"
"Helmet got busted up," Faraday said. "Dunn's wounded, Rizo's dead, and I'm all out of ammo."
Svenson spotted her helmet next to Rizo, the eyepiece shattered, and a hole burned into the front. Skenandore pulled a sniper magazine out of his backpack, and handed it to Faraday. She squinted at Svenson while she reloaded her rifle, he wasn't sure why.
"They hit you in the head too, huh?" she asked.
"Yeah, kinda," Svenson said. Without having a mirror, he couldn't actually see what his face looked like. "Is it that bad?"
"Nah, I'm sure it'll wash off."
"Are you lovebirds aware there's a fucking war going on?" Seguin asked.
"Right, we're getting you to the tower," Svenson said. "I'll take point."
Seguin and Skenandore helped Dunn up, and they moved back the way they came. They didn't get far before they encountered another elite rushing out of the buildings. It fired two rounds from its plasma rifle before its head flew off, neither of its shots hitting anyone. Faraday stood with her sniper raised.
"Damn, Fairy," said Seguin. "Glad you're on our side."
They made it back to the tower, hiding Dunn inside while Faraday joined the others at the railing. The attack continued to escalate, pushing everyone to the upper level of the tower. There were so many aliens to keep track of that they couldn't get eyes on every incoming dropship.
Screaming came from the distance; Svenson first believed it was from a Marine, but no person could scream loud enough to drown out the sound of gunfire. He only registered what it was when the ground exploded close by.
"Wraith!" Arceneaux shouted.
Svenson looked to the hills, a Covenant Wraith sitting atop them. It fired another plasma mortar at the tower.
"Everyone inside!" O'Hale ordered. "Let's go!"
"I got it!" Wade said, firing a rocket at the alien tank.
The plasma mortar hit the top of the tower, causing burning shrapnel to shower the Marines as they retreated to the entrance. Wade's rocket hit the front of the Wraith, shattering its hull and causing it to fall to the ground.
There was no time to celebrate before more mortars came down from every direction. Even with their numbers cut down, Svenson was doubtful they could all fit inside the tower.
"Get your ass inside, Uncle!" O'Hale shouted.
"On my way!" he shouted back.
The old man sprinted to catch up with them, dropping the rocket launcher so it wouldn't slow him down. Svenson made it to the entrance as the other Marines rushed inside, Wade was much further behind.
Another mortar exploded atop the tower, and a third landed right on top of the old man. He was consumed in the explosion, leaving nothing behind. Svenson didn't even get to ask why they called him Uncle.
It was crowded inside the tower to the point where a single grunt getting inside would be dangerous. Rosko and Stevens moved to cover the entrances on the ground.
"This shit just keeps getting deeper," O'Hale said.
I guess this is how it ends, Svenson thought. After all he survived, dying on a strange alien world wasn't too bad of a death. At least it was more interesting than a normal planet. When his radio crackled, it was almost like hearing the voice of God; coming to save him from this hell.
"This is Pelican Victor-327 to any UNSC forces in the area. I see some trouble down there, and I've got some first class seats waitin' to be filled."
"Maverick, you son of a bitch," O'Hale replied. "I could almost kiss you on the mouth right now. Get us outta here and we'll buy you dinner for the rest of your life."
"Roger, Fireteam Delta," the pilot responded. "Sit tight, I'll be right with 'ya."
"Don't celebrate yet," O'Hale said to the Marines. "There's still Covies out there."
"Aww, I was just about to pop the champagne," said Rosko.
Several explosions came from the distance before Svenson heard the Pelican's thrusters outside.
"That's a couple'a Wraiths dealt with," Victor-327 said. "I see a lane between the tower and those buildings. Meet you there."
"Alright, Marines," O'Hale said. "Who's ready to run like hell?"
The Sergeant grinned before dashing outside, the rest of the Marines sprinting after her. Victor-327 descended from the sky, an autocannon on its nose gunning the Covenant down. Missile pods under its wings shot a volley out, annihilating the remains of the alien force in the compound.
Svenson was among the first to make it to the Pelican. He jumped on, helping Faraday up. At the end of the lane behind them, more Covenant made their way into the compound. Behind the usual screen of grunts and jackals were massive, armoured monstrosities armed with fuel rod cannons. They lumbered into the compound, the metal spikes on the back twitching as they spotted their target.
"Sergeant! Hunters!" Svenson shouted.
"Move! Move!" O'Hale ordered.
The Marines fired out the back of the Pelican, their bullets harmlessly pinging off the creatures' heavy armour. Svenson helped Seguin lift Dunn into the dropship, and took his hand to pull him in.
"That's everyone!" said Arceneaux.
"Punch it, Maverick!" O'Hale shouted.
The Pelican lifted off the ground as the Hunters charged their cannons, narrowly avoiding destruction as they left the tower behind. Svenson picked a seat and sat down, feeling like he just let out a breath he was holding for hours.
The compound faded into the distance, soon they were a long ways away from the murderous aliens.
"I'd say you did a good job keeping up," Faraday said, sitting next to Svenson.
"I guess I did," he sighed, relaxing in the Pelican's seat.
"So, we're even now, right?" she asked. Svenson didn't know what she was talking about, but she reminded him. "I saved you on the Autumn, you saved me down there."
Svenson shrugged. It wouldn't have been much of a rescue if she didn't help them on their way back. He looked outside of the Pelican as they flew above the ring, letting out a sigh.
"Actually, I think I still owe you one."