After Owen and Heartbeat got off the military plane, there was already a helicopter waiting on a nearby runway. The two transferred to the helicopter and flew for a few more minutes before finally arriving at their destination and beginning to descend.
Through the heavy rain, Owen saw a person standing on the helipad below.
The helicopter landed smoothly, and the rain was blasted outward by the rotors. That person pulled open the cabin door and shouted through the roar of the blades, "Steve Owen?"
"Yes."
Owen had to shout as well; otherwise, the other party wouldn't be able to hear a thing.
"I'm Lieutenant Colonel Austin Travis. Please come with me."
Owen and Heartbeat followed Lieutenant Colonel Travis off the helipad and entered a building. As soon as the door closed behind them, the noise, wind, and rain outside seemed to be sealed in another world.
In just that short time, both of them were already soaked to the bone, rainwater dripping from their chins. But Travis was no different—every step he took left a trail of wet footprints.
Lieutenant Colonel Travis pushed open a door, which led to what appeared to be the operations briefing room. The room was pitch black except for the area around the briefing board, which was lit up. A few soldiers were already seated in the surrounding chairs. Travis motioned for the two of them to find seats, then walked to the board to begin the mission briefing.
Owen and Heartbeat exchanged a glance and shrugged before sitting down. It looked like Lieutenant Colonel Travis was the commanding officer this time. That made sense. They were working with the legendary SEAL Team Six, and Owen had no intention of trying to command such elite operators. In their eyes, even regular SEALs were rookies—let alone someone like him who hadn't even gone through SQT.
"These two are from CTU. You can call them 'Cowboy' and 'Heartbeat.' Today's mission will be carried out in cooperation between our two units..."
Travis first introduced Owen and Heartbeat to the team. The two greeted everyone and got acquainted. Since they'd be working together, introductions were necessary.
Except for Lieutenant Colonel Travis, everyone used call signs. This wasn't for secrecy—it was just a military habit.
Owen hadn't had a call sign before, so he gave himself the name "Cowboy." That's what he would go by from now on.
The SEALs all greeted them in return. Owen noted each name and was surprised to recognize two familiar faces—"Valkyrie" and "Blackbeard."
Seeing them there genuinely surprised Owen. He hadn't realized they were members of SEAL Team Six. He had assumed they were just regular SEALs.
Valkyrie and Blackbeard had both been his instructors in Colorado. Valkyrie had taught them how to disassemble firearms and hand-to-hand combat, while Blackbeard had taught marksmanship. Owen hadn't expected them to be part of Team Six.
Owen had especially strong memories of Valkyrie—not just because she held the record for disassembling American firearms in Colorado, but also because she was the only female warrior in the SEALs. Given that the SEALs traditionally didn't recruit women, he had no idea how she'd been admitted, let alone made it into Team Six.
Owen glanced at the two of them a few more times, but neither showed any sign of recognition. It was as if they didn't recognize him at all. Then again, that made sense. They trained so many people each year—how could they remember everyone?
After the brief introductions, Travis continued with the mission briefing.
"Gentlemen, the codename for this operation is 'Horn.' Our target is a man named Sarayev. He's the husband of the Chechen leader's youngest daughter. Our mission is to infiltrate quietly and capture him alive. Once we locate him, SWCC will be in charge of our extraction…"
SWCC? What's that?
Owen frowned. He hadn't heard of the organization but didn't want to show ignorance—couldn't have that on his first mission. Fortunately, he remembered that Heartbeat came from a military family—both parents were Air Force officers—so he likely knew. Owen leaned in and asked softly, "What's SWCC?"
Heartbeat froze for a second, then glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention before whispering in a voice only they could hear, "SWCC stands for Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewmen. They're a naval special warfare unit specializing in surface boat operations. They've been around since the Vietnam War…"
Special Warfare Combatant-Craft Crewmen?
Owen nodded subtly and turned his attention back to Travis, who continued the briefing.
"According to our intel, the target is hiding on a cargo ship in the Port of Pula, Croatia. That location is a stronghold of the Chechen militants, with about a hundred personnel. We must move quickly, enter silently, and leave without drawing attention. Oh, right—Cowboy, are you and your partner familiar with underwater operations?"
At that, everyone looked over at the two of them. Owen nodded. During his time at the SEAL base in Colorado, he'd practically lived in the water and was almost ready to evolve into a sea creature. Underwater infiltration and assault weren't new to him. He just wasn't sure about Heartbeat…
Owen looked over at Heartbeat, who also nodded. "No problem. I received training in that area during my time in the Army…"
Seeing that both claimed they were good to go, Lieutenant Colonel Travis didn't ask further and resumed the briefing. Owen, however, was curious. "Aren't your parents in the Air Force? How'd you end up with the Army?"
Heartbeat rubbed his shaved head and gave a smug smile. "Yeah, my parents are Air Force officers, and I grew up on an Air Force base. But my brother's in the Army—he's a Green Beret. I got to train with them for a while through his connections."
That explained it. Truly a military family. Heartbeat was probably the only odd one out—everyone else in his family was in the military, and he ended up joining CTU.
"Okay, that's all the intel. Meeting's over. We deploy in half an hour. Get your gear ready. Blackbeard, take Cowboy and Heartbeat to pick out their equipment."
"Got it, boss."
Lieutenant Colonel Travis gave the order, then dismissed the meeting. Blackbeard waved at the two of them, signaling them to follow.
In the armory, the SEALs who had arrived earlier had already picked out most of their weapons. Owen noticed that most of them chose the HK416. As for sidearms, there were several options—M9s, P226s, and USPs.
Generally speaking, whether it's elite units like the SEALs or urban counter-terror units like SWAT, they pick weapons based on the mission.
For example, in urban close-quarters combat, submachine guns like the MP5 are more suitable than assault rifles because of their high rate of fire and reduced risk of injuring hostages due to bullet over-penetration.
But today's battlefield was a cargo ship, with a possibility of exchanging fire with enemies onshore. So submachine guns, with their limited range, wouldn't be appropriate.
Heartbeat picked an M4A1. Though CTU had several models of assault rifles, Heartbeat had always used the M4A1. Naturally, he chose the one he was most familiar with.
Also, the M4A1 and HK416 used interchangeable magazines, so there wouldn't be any ammo compatibility issues.
Owen chose the same rifle as the others—a customized HK416, which he found easy to handle. For a sidearm, he went with the familiar SIG Sauer P226.
Seeing Owen's choice, Blackbeard gave a slight smile. "What's the matter? Not using the MK17 anymore?"
As soon as Blackbeard asked that, Owen knew he had recognized him. Back in Colorado, it was his performance with the MK17 that had caught Blackbeard's attention.
"I'm strong with whatever I use."
------------------
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I Am Hades, The Supreme GOD of the Underworld! (Chapter 570)
Reborn as Humanity's Emperor Across the Multiverse (Chapter 660)
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