Half an hour later, the group boarded a military aircraft and departed from the Fleet Training Center, flying through wind, rain, and lightning toward the nearest U.S. military base in Croatia.
That night, they arrived at the base, and then two CH-47 helicopters carried all personnel and equipment toward the Port of Pula.
In the darkness, the CH-47s finally hovered two kilometers from the port. From there, the faint lights on the cargo ship could be seen. The pilot turned and gave a hand signal indicating everything was ready, and the SEALs on board began preparing.
Owen slung his rifle on his back and secured his handgun. Once everyone was ready, the first team member, holding his ASDS, leapt straight into the water with a splash, followed by the second, third...
One after another, personnel jumped from the two helicopters into the water like dumplings into a pot.
Owen took a deep breath and jumped in with Heartbeat following. Even though they knew there was water below, the pitch-black void beneath them offered no visibility except for the splashes made by the teammates ahead.
Owen felt a wave of cold as his body plunged into the water—a feeling he was all too familiar with. Just a few months ago, he had done this dozens of times a day.
After a brief moment of adjustment, Owen activated the closed-circuit rebreather system on his body. A steady supply of air was generated from the device on his chest and flowed through the oxygen tube into his final breathing unit.
The closed-circuit rebreather is a SEAL-issued underwater breathing system that produces no bubbles when in use, making it ideal for stealth operations.
Heartbeat followed behind and activated his rebreather system as well. Although he had undergone diving training, he had never used this SEAL-specific breathing gear before. But it was simple enough that Owen had taught him once on the plane and he had picked it up quickly.
Not far away, a faint blue light appeared. Owen patted Heartbeat on the shoulder and powered on his ASDS, swimming toward the light. Heartbeat mimicked him and followed.
The ASDS (Advanced SEAL Delivery System) is a fully enclosed underwater propulsion vehicle designed specifically for SEALs. It can stay submerged for long periods and, combined with the rebreather system, allows SEALs to reach any location completely undetected.
Since neither of them were professional SEALs, their movements were slightly slower. By the time they arrived, the other SEALs had already regrouped. Lieutenant Colonel Travis did a headcount and signaled for the team to proceed toward the cargo ship.
Beneath the surface, the ASDS tail rotors spun, propelling the SEALs forward swiftly and silently through the deep, quiet sea.
Owen, having participated in SEAL training, wasn't particularly moved, but Heartbeat was deeply awed.
If nothing else, just the SEAL equipment cost close to a hundred thousand dollars per person. The ASDS, the rebreather, and various weapon systems and modular attachments were all incredibly expensive.
Thanks to the ASDS, the infiltration was much easier. Otherwise, swimming several kilometers with all that gear—even for SEALs—would have impacted combat effectiveness.
The team approached the target silently underwater. Even if someone had been standing on the cargo ship's deck and looked down, they wouldn't have spotted them. The ASDS's blue light blended seamlessly with the surrounding seawater—almost impossible to detect unless you were submerged.
They soon reached their position. Travis signaled a stop, and everyone powered down their engines, holding their positions. They were now around the cargo ship.
Travis quietly surfaced near the waterline. In the glow of nearby lights, he spotted a man leaning on the railing, smoking. Their originally planned boarding point was occupied.
Travis quietly submerged again and returned to the team. Using hand signals, he relayed the new situation, then led the group to the other side of the ship to find a new boarding point.
They arrived quickly, and Travis, after scouting ahead, signaled that it was safe. Receiving the all-clear, the group silently surfaced. Once the situation was confirmed, Blackbeard gently extended a grappling ladder.
Blackbeard's movements were precise and quiet. The grappling ladder emerged like the claw of a sea creature, latching silently onto the ship's railing.
After giving it a tug to confirm its stability, Blackbeard climbed the ladder. Before he even finished climbing over the rail, a muffled shot sounded from the suppressed USP in his hand, dropping a nearby unsuspecting guard.
Blackbeard vaulted over the railing, kicked the dead guard's weapon away, and scanned the area. Once he confirmed it was secure, he attached another rope ladder to the railing and dropped it down.
With the entry point secured, the rest of the team advanced in two lines and soon gathered on deck.
"Boarding successful!"
Travis reported the mission progress to the operations command center. Watching the thermal images from a drone, the intelligence officer replied, "Copy that, Colonel. There are twelve hostiles on deck, positioned at the bow and stern…"
"Understood."
"Advance."
Travis issued the command, and the two teams began to move. There were ten operatives in total, split into two five-man squads. Travis led Team A, while Owen led Team B.
After weaving through several shipping containers, enemy figures finally appeared. But before they could react—before they even saw the SEALs—several muffled "pfft pfft" sounds rang out and they dropped.
All weapons in this mission, whether pistols or rifles, were equipped with suppressors.
"Pfft pfft\~"
"Pfft pfft\~"
…
Suppressor fire rang out continuously. The SEALs moved with precision and coordination, covering all directions. Every time an enemy appeared, they were quickly eliminated.
Soon, they had swept from the boarding area to the bow of the ship, just short of the bridge.
"Team A, secure the bridge. Team B, move to the cargo hold\~\~\~"
As the order came through, the two teams split naturally. While Travis led his team up to the bridge, Owen took his team into the cargo hold.
Once a firefight breaks out in the narrow confines of a ship's interior, it becomes extremely dangerous. The tight quarters mean that any encounter results in a quick shootout. The cargo hold was the most difficult type of CQB (Close Quarters Battle), made even more dangerous by its steel construction—making ricochets a serious risk.
Owen didn't know if his two former instructors had spoken to Travis or if the Colonel simply wanted to test him, but either way, this high-risk task had fallen to him. Not that he minded—when it came to speed, he didn't lose to anyone.
Ahead was a corridor with rooms on either side—probably the crew's sleeping quarters.
The five-man squad maintained a tight CQB formation and moved swiftly. Speed was crucial in this operation—this was enemy territory, and there were likely dozens more Chechens housed in the containers onshore. If they were exposed, escaping would be extremely difficult.
The sweep continued. When reaching each room, the two operatives behind Owen automatically split up. Heartbeat took the left room while another SEAL checked the right. The remaining two continued forward with Owen.
Soon, the two who had checked the rooms rejoined the group, bringing the team back to full strength, though the previous assault positions had now rotated, placing the former rear guard in the lead.
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