The lands of southern France showed visible scars of a battle that had occurred here years ago. There were even some forgotten Omnic remains scattered throughout the area. A single Overwatch Dropship flew over these lands with Cody and Emre inside waiting for deployment. The flight hadn't been too long and was mostly quiet. Cody never speaks on his way to a mission unless spoken to by someone in the squad or one of his superiors. With all he witnessed during the Covenant War, he was no longer one for small talk before a mission happens. He spends most of his time preparing himself to witness the death of a squadmate or the death of others. Death always followed him on missions involving the Covenant and other hostile forces. To him, this mission was no different. Only main difference is enemy, location, and the young man with him. Emre didn't say much and mostly checked his burst rifle to ensure it was ready. So, it was a quiet trip. Cody turned his head to the cockpit where he saw the pilot focused on flying to their destination. A voice then pulled his attention away from the pilot.
"Sir, did you fight in the Crisis?" Emre asked.
Cody kept his gaze on the pilot with a second of hesitation before he looked at Emre.
"Yes."
Other people wouldn't appreciate lying, but Cody has had to do so many times. Given his circumstances, lying was necessary. He didn't want to share his origins with everyone, especially when he didn't know who to trust yet besides Jack and those who he trusted with the information of his origins. He's also had to lie to squadmates to keep their morale up when times get dire.
"Can't imagine what it was like fighting the Omnics during the Crisis." Emre said. "How'd you get through it?"
"I followed orders, kept my guard up, and… well, luck." Cody answers.
"Luck?"
"From what I've experienced, often times you survive because you're lucky." Cody says before his voice drops into a whisper. "Though, I wouldn't call myself lucky."
Emre couldn't hear what the Sergeant said but could somewhat make out the bitterness.
"We're nearing the drop zone." The Pilot announced from his cockpit.
Cody stood up and grabbed his battle rifle and walked towards the back of the dropship. Emre soon stood up with his weapon in hand and followed him.
"Here we are but be advised, we are close to the base. But a walk is needed." The Pilot said.
"We'll manage." Cody said.
The ramp begins to lower as the dropship descends to let them off the ship. Once the ramp fully lowered, Cody and Emre saw the ground beneath them get closer and closer as trees came closer to the dropship. The pilot lets the dropship hover above a clearing with a short drop.
"let's go." Cody says to Emre as he jumps out of the dropship, landing on the ground below.
Emre does the same and lands beside him. The ramp on the dropship begins to close as the pilot turns the ship around while ascending. As the dropship flew away from the landing zone, Cody's HUD lights up with a waypoint guiding him to the base. A Base he can see in the distance. Before he could walk towards it, he hears a voice coming through on comms.
"Sergeant Calloway, this is Anchor 1." Anchor 1 said. "I'll be your eyes in the sky."
"Roger that." Cody says before looking at Emre. "Follow me and stay close."
Cody raises his BR55 and begins moving towards the base with Emre behind him. As they trek through the forest, the sound of nature is all they can hear for the time being and Cody doesn't like it. His eyes scan the environment around him with his rifle's barrel following his gaze. Emre also kept his eyes and ears focused on their surroundings in case an Omnic surprises them. The ODST can see the waypoint getting closer but his motion tracker wasn't lighting up. Cody began to consider that if there are Omnics, they haven't started patrols or don't have patrols. The Covenant War veteran hears metal footsteps and raises a clenched fist before motioning for Emre to take cover behind a tree. The two take cover and soon a pair of Omnics holding assault rifles emerge from the Forest and come closer.
"Omnic Patrol." Cody announces with a whisper.
"Do we take them out?" Emre whispered back.
Cody kept an eye on his motion tracker and then looked around. He didn't hear or see anymore and considered the risk. The Omnics were approaching them, and they couldn't afford to be spotted yet. He shifted his position and aimed his battle rifle.
"On my signal." Cody whispered to Emre
Following his lead, Emre aims his burst rifle. The two Omnic oblivious to who was aiming at them kept walking towards them. Cody waited for the right time as his sights locked on his target.
"Take the right one, left is mine." Says Cody.
Emre shifts his aim and locks onto his target. The ODST placed his finger on his trigger and began counting down.
"Three…. Two…. One. now!"
The two pull the trigger and the bullets tear the heads off the Omnics. Sparks fly as their bodies twitch while they slam onto the ground. Cody emerges from cover and advances with Emre behind him. They moved past the two dead Omnic fighters and approached the base which had a wall surrounding it but there was a large hole in the wall. The two Overwatch agents approached it carefully and hugged the wall before moving to the edge of the breach. Cody peaks around the corner and spots a truck that would act as perfect cover. He stops peaking around the corner and looks at Emre.
"Follow me and be quick."
Emre nods. Cody shifts his stance before making one last peak. He then sprints around the corner with his fellow agent following behind quickly. They get behind the truck and take a knee. Metal footsteps can be heard everywhere, and Cody noticed a broken guard tower on the wall that had an Omnic Sniper on it. It just turned and looked at the forest. He kept that fighter in mind as he peaks around the truck and looked around the courtyard of the base. Crates of weapons and ammunition were stacked across the courtyard with Omnic fighters holding assault rifles and submachine guns moved through the courtyard. He then spots humans lined up in front of two trucks. Their armor is still on them but their weapons were placed on a crate behind the four Omnics that guarded them. They had the Overwatch symbol on them, and he counts five agents. He stops peaking and placed a finger on the side of his helmet.
"Anchor 1 this is Sergeant Calloway, I have eyes on the missing agents." Cody reports.
"Condition?" she asked.
Cody peaks once more and saw bruises but nothing critical.
"Minimal injury. Other than that, hard to tell." Cody says.
"Omnics?" Anchor 1 asked.
"Present."
"Then proceed, Sergeant."
Cody moved his finger off his helmet and began quickly forming a plan. He wanted to distract the other Omnics and take out the guards so those agents could grab their weapons and help fight. But how would he do that? He looked around for anything that could help. His eyes scanned everything that could be useful for a distraction. He saw a fuel tank across the courtyard and got an idea. But he needed those guards away from the agents.
"Sir, what's the plan?" Emre asked.
"Distract and grab." Cody answered while looking at him.
Emre didn't know what that meant and it showed in his facial expression, so Cody explained.
"There's a fuel tank that would cause a distraction, but we need to get rid of the guards near the agents." Cody explained.
Emre reached down to his utility belt and grabbed a disk object making Cody confused.
"I grabbed this EMP Disk from the armory for this mission." Emre said.
A light bulb went off in the ODST's head as he knew what to do with it.
"That'll do." Cody says before holding his hand out while putting his BR55 on his back. "Give me that and throw a grenade at the fuel tank."
Emre nodded before giving him the disk and Cody looked at it for a second before his fellow agent moved away from him to the other end of the truck and slung his rifle before grabbing a grenade. Cody peaked around the truck before looking back at Emre who looked at him. He nods and activates the EMP Disk. Emre pulls the pin and emerges from cover before throwing the grenade at the fuel tank. The grenade lands next to it and blows up beside the tank causing a large explosion that gets the attention of all Omnics. Cody emerges and throws the disk at the guards. It lands at their feet and goes off sending an electromagnetic pulse out killing the Omnics. They dropped down as Cody grabbed his rifle and opened fire with Emre doing the same. The Agents see what's happening and sprint to their weapons, grabbing them and joining the fight. The distracted Omnics are cut down before the rest open fire at their human adversaries. The Overwatch Agents used the crates as cover while the Omnics did go for cover, but some didn't do that which confused Cody. He saw an Omnic grabbed a grenade with the intent of throwing it at the agents, so he stopped that and shot them. The Omnic had pulled the pin before being shot so the live grenade hit the floor before detonating and taking surrounding Omnics with it.
"Emre, with me!" Cody ordered loud enough for him to hear over the sounds of battle.
"Right behind you, Sarge!"
The two leave the truck and rush over to the Overwatch Agents who give them covering fire. When the two enter cover beside their fellow agents, Cody removes the empty magazine from his weapon and with practiced movements puts a fresh one into the weapon. With his weapon now loaded he takes aim and shot down an Omnic before returning to cover and looking at one of the agents he and Emre are saving.
"Sergeant Calloway, What's your name agent?" Cody asked over the sounds of combat.
"Corporal Lucas Colt, sir!" Lucas said.
"Is this everyone?" asked the ODST veteran.
Lucas shakes his head. "No sir, our Sergeant is still inside the base."
The corporal gave a quick gesture to the base and Cody looked at the entrance. Knowing there was still an agent to save, he makes a plan and acted on it. He placed two fingers onto his helmet.
"Anchor 1, this is Sergeant Calloway!" Cody starts. "Signal the French Military for attack! We got the agents but there's still one inside the base, I'm going after him!"
Anchor 1 replies. "Roger that, Sergeant. Hurry."
Cody turns and starts speaking to Emre.
"Emre! Get these agents to the evac point, I'm going after their sergeant!" Cody ordered.
"Alone!?" a surprised Emre asked.
Lucas looked at one of his squadmates who had an SMG.
"Holden! Go with the Sergeant to find North!" Lucas ordered.
"You got it!" Holden said.
"You have your mission, Emre! Do it!" Cody said before he rushed over to Holden with bullets whistling past him.
Emre hesitated before he sighed.
"Let's go!" Emre said.
The group splits, Emre takes four of the agents and rushes for the hole in the wall to make their escape while Cody and Holden move to the entrance of the base. The Omnics divide their attention into Emre's group and the two entering the base. A bullet nearly hit Cody who turns around and pulls the trigger causing an Omnic to drop dead. Holden gets the front door open and rushes inside with Cody following. Once inside, Holden slammed his fist on a button and shut the door.
"Alright, time to find the Sarge." Holden said.
"have an idea?" Cody asked.
"Yeah, the Omnics had us all in the same cell before they transferred us outside for execution." Holden said. "North should still be in that cell."
Cody then motioned with his head as a way of pointing. "Lead the way."
Holden nods and takes point. They move down the hall as quickly as they could while checking their flanks and the corners. The base was noticeably vacant in most parts, Cody guessed there wasn't a lot of Omnics. That or they were busy elsewhere. They reach a large metal door with a control console beside it.
Holden moved to the console. "The cells are on the other side of this door."
He reaches the console and looks for the open button. Cody had his rifle aimed down the hall while the agent messed with the console.
"Okay… maybe this one." Holden mumbles.
He pressed a button and locks disengaged. The door then begins to open.
"Haha! Success!" Holden rejoiced.
A squad of Omnics came around the corner down the hall and immediately start shooting at them. Cody returns fire as he backs up.
"Get North! I'll hold them off!" Cody ordered.
Holden nods and rushed into the room where a few cells were built. Cody dove behind the console and used it as cover while he fired at the approaching Omnics, taking two down in the process. Holden searched the cells and found one at the end of the chamber. Inside it was North and he sat on the floor with his back on the wall. The agent had heard the gunfire and saw Holden standing there.
"Holden, how the hell did you get here?" North asked as he stood up.
"Had some help from a rescue team." Holden reveals. "Let's get you out of there."
Holden walked over to the console in the chamber and pressed the button to open the cell doors. Once the cell doors open, North walks out while Holden grabbed a rifle that was propped up against a wall. He tossed it to his sergeant who caught it. The two then rush for the exit where Cody had killed the Omnic Squad. He emerged from cover and saw the two exiting the cell block.
Cody reloads his BR55. "We need to get going before more show up."
"And you are?" North asked.
"Sergeant Cody Calloway." Cody introduces.
North returned the favor. "Sergeant Thomas North."
The trio then move down the hall in quick motions as they run towards the front entrance of the base to leave it. When they got outside, they saw a vacant courtyard that they sprint across towards the hole in the wall. As they pass the wall, a hailstorm of bullets rush past them from the base. They turn and see a Bastion marching out of a different entrance.
"Son of a bitch!" Holden cursed.
"Run!" North shouts.
Cody didn't object, he remembers fighting one of them on his first day in 2053. They sprint through the forest with the ODST leading them. Omnics began pouring out of the base and chasing after them resulting in bullets flying past the fleeing Overwatch Agents.
"Emre! We're approaching the evac point!" Cody reports over comms.
"Hurry, sarge! We got a lot of Omnics coming our way!" Emre says over comms.
The three agents vault over a down tree with Omnics chasing behind them. As they kept sprinting, a series of explosions erupted behind them making the agents take cover behind trees. Cody peaks around cover with his rifle raised and see the bombed remains of the Omnics. A fighter jet flew overhead at high speeds.
"One of ours?" North asked.
"The French." Cody said.
He didn't know, he was only assuming. Comms then lit up with Emre's voice.
"Sir, it seems like the French Military arrived." Emre reports. "Faster arrival than I previously thought."
"Rest of the agents?" Cody asked.
"Bagshaw got grazed by a bullet but she's alright." Emre answers.
"Alright, hold position until we arrive to extraction." Cody ordered.
He then motioned for the agents to follow him as they move to the evac point.
[Timeskip]
The dropship lands in the hangar of the Overwatch base where Jack Morrison was waiting with a medic beside him. The landing gears engage and the ship touches down. the ramp lowers letting its occupants disembark. Cody had his rifle on his back while the others held theirs in hand. Bagshaw had a bandage wrapped around her left arm and she gently held it. The medic rushed over to her. Cody and Emre walk up to Jack who waits for them.
"Glad to see you both alright." Jack said to them both before focusing on Emre. "Your dismissed Private."
Emre nods and walks away before Jack returns focus to Cody.
"How'd your first mission go?" Jack asked.
"Good." Cody answered. "Thankfully no casualties. The French responded quicker than previously thought."
"They were waiting nearby." Jack reveals. "Good job though with your first mission, you've earned some down time."
"Hey, Calloway!" North calls out.
Cody turns to look at him.
"Thanks for the save." North said. "We owe you one."
Cody just nods to acknowledge what he said.