Hey guys! I'm sorry that it took nearly a month to update this fanfic. I had to get used to the old schedule again. I always hated monthly updates, but I wanted this chapter to be special because of that. This time, this chapter's going to be huge, and almost all of it's going to be in a flashback! Take a look at James's back story!

Chapter 5: Leo

"That's some story," said Daniels, shaking his head.

"It's been a long ride," I said, listening to the rain splashing against the roof of the skycar. Thunder boomed in the distance, and lightning flashed. "Tell me if I'm wrong, but that assault didn't seem like the first one you've done."

Daniels nodded. "The Blue Suns have been raiding our bases for a while. That munitions dump isn't the only place the Alliance has been targeting. We've been at it with the mercs for a long time. But who was that Marco guy you were talking about earlier? His name sounds familiar."

"Didn't remind me of anyone."

"Maybe—"

"Captain Daniels, we will be landing shortly. ETA about a minute."

"Where are we landing?" I asked, looking outside the window.

"This place looks the same as anywhere else we've been," mused Emilia, fiddling with her pistol.

The shuttle flew in to the landing pad, slowly descending towards the flashing lights. The hangar quickly enclosed the landing pad, and the drizzling rain was muted, unnoticeable in the concrete bunker. The door slid open, and I stepped out, noting at least twenty Alliance soldiers on duty in the hangar. "Gentlemen," said a voice, echoing in the vast space. "Welcome."

Two golden stars flashed across the man's chest, and it took a few seconds for me to realize that he was a general. I saluted him, and he quickly waved it down. "Forget that right now," he grunted. "I am General Ezekiel Morgan." The general gestured to the hangar.

"This is Fort Hannover. This Alliance base was built with aerial and orbital attack in mind. It's a low-lying concrete dome equipped with sonar, ladar, anti-air guns, and GARDIAN lasers. The majority of the personnel and equipment are underground. Below this base is a solid concrete foundation to prevent anything or anyone from tunneling in. It is also built on a hill, with lead deposits surrounding the entire base, effectively shielding it from any outside scanners. There are two ways out of this base: by aircraft, or through the one gate north side of the base. The walls are thirty feet of reinforced steel, with kinetic barriers to match. Do not worry; we are safe here, even if the Reapers come, we'll be ready for them."

"General Morgan, this is Captain James Clark of the 13th regiment of New York."

"Oh," said the general. "The famous Captain James Clark. I've read your file before."

"The famous James Clark?" said Emilia, smirking.

His head turned to her. "You're in the presence of a hero. Years ago, a biotic insurgency captured Atlanta. The insurgency wouldn't budge against the Alliance, but they managed to let one squad slip through enemy lines." He turned to Emilia.

"Captain James Clark lead a five-man squad through a one thousand men strong biotic insurgency and left Atlanta with fewer than five hundred left in the city. The Alliance ran them out after that, but they would have lost a lot more if it hadn't been for him. No air support, reconnaissance, or backup. Just their guts and guns, with only two casualties. Also accompanied by the budding Captain Daniels."

General Morgan turned to Emilia. "And I've been briefed on who you are. You're Emilia Guarez, ex-Costa Rican military. I understand that you will follow Alliance protocol accordingly?"

"Okay," said Emilia. I mentally clapped my hand against my forehead.

General Morgan seemed unhindered. "Very well then. Normally I would have an ensign give you a tour of the facility, but these are hardly normal times. Captain Daniels, their quarters are next to yours. Please take them to their bunks. I trust that you will all be ready tomorrow."

It's been nearly a decade since then, and people are still talking it seems. What happened then; it stays in the past. "So you're a hero now?" said Emilia.

"A thing of the past," I answered, opening my eyes.

"How'd you do it?"

I looked back at Daniels, who was chatting with an Alliance soldier.

"James?" Emilia said, waving her hand in front of my face. "You there?"

"Fuck! There's no way out of here! They're all over the fucking rooftop! We'll be shot to pieces if we go out there!"

"Wait, what are you doing?"

"Saving your asses. Get on the skycar."

"No! We're all going to get out of here!"

"We're not all going to make it out alive, and you know it. It was a good run."

"Leo, no—!"

"James? James, we're leaving now."

I blinked. Sweat was visible on my palms. I wiped them on my pants. "Yeah, I'm coming."

Marco

"Sir, we have the report on the mission."

"So you're telling me that there are no survivors?" I demanded, slamming the data pad against the desk. It slid off, clattering against the floor. "Jack was one of my best, and Grant was certainly capable of handling a simple assault. What the hell happened?"

"Sir, we found their bodies. Well, except for two of them."

I stopped, and stared at them. "What do you mean, except two?"

"The Alliance soldier and the other one. The new guys."

The door sprang open, and Z ran in. "Marco, scouts reported an Alliance shuttle flying west of here from the munitions dump."

"I guess that's what happened to the assault."

"The Alliance soldier betrayed us!" I shouted, smashing my fist against the table.

Z looked at me quizzically. "What do you mean, sir?"

I turned to the turian. "Never mind that now. Do they know where the shuttle is headed?"

"An Alliance base named Fort Hannover."

"Hannover," I repeated, pacing back and forth. "I never knew Fort Hannover was so close."

"Fort Hannover is one of the last major Alliance bases left. It's a huge cache of weaponry and supplies. Things we need to keep the Blue Suns and husks off our backs."

"Change of plans. Gentlemen, we're going to Fort Hannover."

"But sir," protested Z. "Fort Hannover is a fortress. How do you even expect to get inside?"

I smirked. "Z, go downstairs to the garage. See if you can find any leftover shuttles."

The walls caved in around me, throwing me on the floor. My gun wrenched from my hands and thudded against my head. Another impact, a jarring flash of white and red and I suddenly flying, hurtling through open air. I skidded against hot asphalt, my clothes smoking. Black spots danced in my vision, and I fainted.

I opened my eyes, squinting at the harsh light. I coughed up dust and blood, struggling to my feet. A steady hand caught hold of my hand, steadying me.

"James, you okay?"

"Yeah. I get launched twenty feet from a moving vehicle every day."

"All right, men! We've got about a minute before every biotic insurgent in the city finds us, so get your asses moving to cover! Go, go, go!"

"Private Kevin, you all right?"

The private sneezed. Rubbing dust from his eyes, he slowly staggered to his feet. "Yes sir," he wheezed.

"Can you run?"

"…I think so…"

"Good," I said, loading a fresh clip into my Thunder. "Because you've got to MOVE!"

I tackled him to the ground, barely missing the biotic warp. It arced over our heads, hitting a wrecked car behind us. Suddenly, the street turned into a battleground, bullets and biotic energy flying back and forth from either side. I grabbed Private Kevin by his lapels and shoved him behind an old bus. "Stay behind cover!" I yelled to him, rolling over and flicking the safety off my gun.

Dust spilled onto the battlefield and I could barely see, spraying and praying with my assault rifle. An explosive flew overhead and landed somewhere amidst the crowd of insurgents. "Sergeant," Captain Crawley yelled from behind me. "Get the hell out of there!"

I moved to stand up, but another biotic attack flew over me, skimming the top of my helmet. I barely managed to roll out of the way before a biotic shockwave passed right by me, spinning a skycar next to me. I crawled behind it. The door simply fell apart and landed next to me; this car wasn't going to last long. Private Kevin was still at the bus; arm bleeding, but still shooting. I hefted the door with my left hand. I still can't believe I'm doing this. "Fuck!" I shouted, running from behind cover.

A biotic throw pushed against my shield, threatening to throw me off balance. I jumped over another biotic attack, leaping over a charred wheel. Bullets pinged off the car door and a biotic pull almost wrenched the door from my hands. This door isn't going to last long. I was almost to the bus. I looked to my left and threw the shield underneath myself, watching the singularity pass over me. I slid into cover next to the private. "That was some move!" he yelled over the gunfire.

"Not now, Private!" I shouted. "We're going to run back to the rest of our squad, got it?"

"I can't run through that!" A singularity exploded in a blue flash of energy, rippling the air. "I'm not fucking Commander Shepard!"

"I'd be surprised if you didn't want to! But I'll knock you out and drag you along if I have to! Now, get behind the door and stay close!"

Captain Crawley noticed us immediately and they began shooting less methodically, sweeping their guns across the entire insurgency line. We ran as far away from the bus as I could before they noticed, sending a flurry of biotic attacks in our direction. A biotic throw glanced off the car door and sent us stumbling forward. Another warp zoomed past us and splashed against a pile of rubble in front of us. I dove forward, throwing Private Kevin headfirst into the rubble. I landed face first and frantically started burying myself in the rubble. Bullets bounced off my shields and a singularity missed me and landed somewhere in the rubble, showering me with rocks and bits of metal. Finally, I turned around slowly and nestled my gun in front of me. "Private, you okay?"

A cough. "Yeah. I think I swallowed some rocks."

"Then you're doing fine. How far are we from our team's position?"

"…about ten feet to go."

I looked to the side, where Captain Crawley and the rest of the team were bunkered in a collapsed store. "Ready then?"

"Yes sir!"

"Move it!" I kicked off from the rocks, diving for the store. Bullets riddled the door/shield and biotic powers splashed against the side, throwing me in every which direction. I hit the ground and rolled with it, dropping the door. I landed behind something, and the gunfire dulled. "Get off the ground, Sergeant!" Captain Crawley yelled, ejecting another clip from his rifle.

"Those were some moves," said Leo, peppering the insurgency line. "Think you could teach them to me?"

"I think those moves are self-taught," I grunted, leaning against the building for support. "You're on your own there, Leo."

Private Kevin landed next to me, throwing up a cloud of dust. "I'm not doing that again."

"Hopefully you won't have to," I shouted, joining the rest of the squad.

"Suppressive fire! Don't let them get an inch!"

I switched my Thunder to full automatic, sweeping my gun back and forth in an arc. Something hurtled through the air from behind and exploded, throwing up a cloud of dust and smoke. "We're not going to win this one!" Captain Crawley said, ejecting the overheated clip from his gun. "Retreat!"

I unclipped two grenades from my belt, rolling them onto the street. Smoke issued from the explosives and exploded, expelling a plume of black smoke. Biotic attacks flew randomly from the smoke, one narrowly missing my helmet. My squad and I ran between buildings, over rubble mounds, around cars, anything to lose the insurgents. I stepped on a metal bar, and it gave way. All around me, the ground crumbled, quickly losing cohesion. The rest of my squad was caught as well, throwing them onto the ground. The rumbling stopped and I looked down, the wind pounding against my visor, as I was freefalling towards the ground, fifty feet below. I backpedaled in midair and began sliding down the wall with my back. The ground came up fast and I pushed off the wall, rolling with the motion until I landed on something hard. White flashed in my vision and a dull ringing sound resonated in my ears. I could vaguely hear something moving to the side, but I suddenly couldn't move. Someone stood over me, grabbing my shoulders. "Come on man. We can't stay here forever."

"Shit," I groaned, sitting up with my arm across my side. "What happened?"

"We fell off a cliff. At least we made it in one piece."

I felt the tender area around my ribs. "Mostly."

He grabbed my hand, hoisting me onto my feet. The rest of the squad were in various stages of recovery, some on their feet, some still plastered across the ground. I applied medi-gel to the wound and the burning stopped. I looked up at the buildings above us some fifty feet away. "You'd think we would notice a fifty foot drop," I commented, checking my rifle for damages.

"I hope the insurgency doesn't notice either."

An omni-tool beeped and I looked around for the sound. The omni-tool beeped again and my eyes fell on Captain Crawley's omni-tool. I squatted down and lifted his arm; there was no pulse. There was an incoming call on the omni-tool. I answered.

"Report. Stryker Team 1, report. Repeat, Stryker Team 1, report."

"This is Sergeant James Clark of Stryker Team 1, over."

"Stryker Team 1, this is General Fornan. Where is your commanding officer?"

I looked at Crawley, who was not stirring. "Dead, sir."

"…What is your position right now?"

I glanced around the area, with no signs or significant landmarks. "Unknown, sir. Maybe somewhere in the middle of the city."

"We're organizing another invasion force on the other side of the city, where the enemy line is the weakest. Sending the coordinates to you now."

I scanned the coordinates onto my omni-tool. "Received them, sir. When is the invasion?"

"In four hours. You'll want to be out of there by then, though, Sergeant."

"Why?"

"Alliance Command has decided to launch an orbital bombardment right before the invasion to soften it up for the troops. So get out of there fast, Sergeant, and make it out alive. Understand?"

"Yes, sir."

"Command out."

The call ended. I laid Crawley's arms over his chest; it was the best I could do at the moment. I looked back to the rest of the squad: Private Kevin was fiddling with his pistol, and Leo was helping Private Jake to his feet. "Team," I said loudly. "Captain Crawley is dead."

"He gave his life to see this mission through, and we're going to finish it. Command has given us four hours to make it back to base before they blow this city to pieces from orbit. But that's not all we're going to do. We didn't come into this insurgency-infested hellhole to run away with Crawley's death being in vain. We're going to see this mission through. By the time this is over, we're all going to be getting damn medals from the Alliance. So get ready, and give them hell."

Leo nodded solemnly. "Where do we start?"

I pointed to the right. The sun was hidden behind the Alliance AA cannon, throwing a mile-long shadow on the city. "That's our target. Start running men; we'll be seeing some action soon enough."

################

"Hey, James. Ever wished you were a biotic?"

"As long as I could get past the danger of being mutated or killed at birth, then I don't see why I wouldn't want to be a biotic."

"Yeah. I heard that biotics in the Alliance get extra rations and better treatment."

"Well, according to Command, they're more valuable than the average soldier."

"How many credits do you think we're wasting right now?"

Another crate sailed over our heads, smashing against the wall behind us. I popped out of cover, emptying another clip into a biotic insurgent. I felt a crackle of energy in the air and dove to the side as a biotic singularity passed overhead. "You know James," yelled Leo, blind-firing behind cover. "I don't think I would mind being a biotic."

"I thought your father hated biotics."

"That's my uncle, and he's 127. I bet he can still remember the times before the First Contact."

I ran behind another crashed skycar, ducking behind the armored shell. "I'd like to be a biotic."

"You got the physical augmentations; you don't need biotics!"

Time slowed down as I felt the familiar rushed sensation flood my body. I rose from behind the car, firing in quick, short bursts. A biotic passed through my scope and he dropped to the ground. I swept my rifle to my right and shot another insurgent out of the corner of my eye. My hand blurred as I flung a frag grenade, throwing several biotics through the air from behind a bus. The orange slowly crept back from my eye, retreating to the outer edges, and I ducked behind cover again, inserting a new clip. Leo glanced at me, my body still shaking from my enhanced fervor. "You see? That took like five seconds!"

"If you wanted to be able to do that, then you should've gotten them!" I dropped another biotic.

"That was awesome!" My head flipped back to Kevin and the other private, who were bunkered down in an old, combustion engine car.

"Bet you couldn't do it again," Leo grunted, switching to his sniper rifle.

"What do you expect to do with that?"

A biotic ran from behind cover, sending a shockwave barreling past us. He raised his arms for another biotic attack and Leo fired, spinning him with a shot to his shoulder. Suddenly, the biotic was launched into the air, thrown by his own biotics. "You try to do that," Leo smirked, putting a clip into his rifle.

I threw a grenade at a cluster of insurgents and, faster than the eye could see, fired a concussive shot into the grenade. The explosion blew the insurgents in all directions, some flying high into the air and smashing through two-story windows. "Beat that."

Leo grinned. "We'll see about that."

The rest of the insurgency finally retreated into the building, leaving the front door firmly shut. I motioned to the squad and ran up to the door, scanning it with my omni-tool. "Private Jake, you're the tech expert here."

The private quickly accessed the lock, scanning and hacking with expert precision and speed. The door opened in less than ten seconds. "I feel like I'm the only one who can't do anything amazing here," noted Private Kevin.

"Keep shooting. Something'll come up."

We stepped inside, and immediately a hail of gunfire splashed against our shields. I reflexively drew my Thunder, getting a few shots off before my shields threatened to break. I slid behind a desk, watching bullets bounce off the metal. The ground shook momentarily and I frowned, looking over the desk. Twin-mounted cannons and two tons of heavy armor, with a voice to match. "Target locked."

"YMIR mech! Get to cover, now!"

I ran forward and dove, sliding across the floor behind a pillar as a rocket exploded against the desk, disappearing in a ball of flame. Shards of hot metal rained down above me. I held my gun against the side of the pillar and blindfired, hoping it would hit something. "Leo, M-100 now!"

"Let's do this!" Leo yelled, bring the grenade launcher to bear. He fired twice, covering the heavy mech with fire and smoke. I threw a grenade at its feet, watching the mech disappear again. I reloaded my gun.

Silence. The smoke cloud wavered, and then burst as air hissed out of the YMIR mech. The twin cannons rotated to life, spitting bullet after bullet. A sharp beeping sound and my shields were down, forcing me behind the pillar again. I could hear every step the YMIR mech took towards my position, the ground shaking in response. Leo fired the M-100 again, blasting its face with the grenade. I jumped to the side and rolled into a desk to the side of the heavy mech and peppered it with my rifle. A loud burst to my left and I realized it was Kevin's shotgun, and he was close to the mech. "Private, get your ass out of there!" I ordered, hitting the mech with continuous fire in hopes it would come to me again.

"I think we got it, sir!" Kevin said, firing his shotgun again.

The YMIR mech twisted around and set itself. "Shit!" I dove forward, tackling Private Kevin as the mech fired a missile, the force of the blast pushing us a few more feet. "You don't make any new moves unless I order you to! Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Good." I looked back to the mech, worn down by the firefight but still functioning. Leo fired another grenade, knocking it back a few feet. "I'm out!" Leo shouted from across the room.

"Use your sniper rifle then!" I yelled back, sneaking behind a couple of desks. I equipped my Thunder with an extended clip. "Right, let him have it!"

The squad simultaneously opened fire, breaking down its shields and armor. The YMIR turned to me and fired another missile. I quickly ducked behind cover as the explosive sailed overhead. A sharp retort of a sniper rifle and the heavy mech's head flew off, landing at Private Kevin's feet. "Yeah!" he shouted. "That's a battle trophy!"

Finally. Wait, he shot his head off. Shit! The YMIR hit the ground and began glowing orange, shaking and crackling. "Everyone, hit the ground now!"

I flattened myself against the ground, setting my visor to black and shutting off my audio sensors. Even so, a bright light penetrated my opaque visor and blinded me. The sound of the explosion reverberated in my ears. I held myself on the ground, feeling the explosion ripple through the air. A few seconds later, the light in my eyes dimmed and I fixed my helmet settings to default again. The YMIR mech lay in flames, its parts scattered around the room. The room was dark, and I held onto a fallen desk for support.

"Report!" I coughed, holding my hand against my chest. Something in the room fell, then silence. "I said report!"

"Reporting," said a voice in the room weakly.

"Reporting," replied Leo's voice.

"Reporting for duty sir!" answered Private Kevin.

"Don't call me sir, private," I grumbled, putting my hand out in front of me to feel my way through. "Find your way to the stairs."

I heard something slide. My hand brushed against a metal surface briefly and it vanished. "I found the door. Follow the sound of my voice."

The door opened and I stumbled through, disoriented. A gun barrel jammed into my throat and held me in place there. The rest of my squad bounded through the door and were caught in a similar fashion. Someone pressed me against the wall with the tip of his gun. Suddenly, I couldn't move, my muscles biotically frozen. My assault rifle was wrenched from my hands with biotics and thrown across the room along with the others. My captor's face was helmeted, with an opaque visor obscuring his face. He was wearing plain black armor with no markings or design. "You are to come with us," ordered the biotic.

"Like hell we will," spat Leo.

He drew back a gloved fist and punched Leo's helmeted head, reinforced with biotics. Leo fell back against the wall, and the gun barrel followed him still. Forcing our hands behind our backs with biotics, they marched us through hallway after hallway and stairwell after stairwell. Finally, we came to a stop at a double door.

The leader—at least I thought he was—entered a few codes on his omni-tool and the doors opened, revealing an old conference room with what looked like real black leather chairs and a polished wooden table. Terminals lined the walls, manned by several people typing away furiously at the holographic interfaces. A man in a black suit was standing in the middle of it all, between two sides of a serious discussion at the table. As we walked in, they stopped talking. The man in the black suit looked at us, his eyes glowing blue. "The Alliance," he declared, holding his arms out. "has infiltrated the city."

The men at the table looked at us. "Though I am surprised, this does not matter." He pushed back his smooth black hair. "I am not surprised that the Alliance sent you, not just because they want to stop us, but also because I am used to the Alliance not caring for the welfare of their soldiers."

"What are you talking about?" I said.

He stared at me, and then turned around, facing the window. It was beginning to rain outside, darkening the sky. "Do you know how misunderstood biotics are?"

"What?"

"I did not think so. We seem alien to others, as though our abilities put us beyond the understanding of the most. The ability"—he held his hand out in front of him, generating a blue corona at his fingertips—"to do this separates us from the rest. Some see it as an affliction, something to be pitied and treated for. Others see it as an advantage, something to be utilized to their benefit. And many more still see it as an abomination and condemn us for it. In my youth, I had thought that we were like everybody else, that there was no barrier between us. I had sought to fight for the biotic population and their treatment. Now, I realize that we are not the same; we are better."

"We can do things nobody else in the galaxy can do. We move and lift things far away from us and rip apart objects at will. Our powers transcend the imagination of the general. Even the most renowned scientists have not yet figured out the abilities of biotics. This was a test. A test of our strength, and what we can do when we work together to achieve a goal. We took Atlanta with ease, and with only a thousand men. The Alliance has managed to put only four men into the city, and they do so with their deaths in mind. But you four will only be the first."

"The first?" I said, absorbing the information.

"The first. As you probably know, the Alliance will begin an orbital bombardment in less than three hours. The strike may as well destroy this force and render the city defenseless against their army. But that will not be the case."

The man activated a projector in the center of the table, producing a holographic image of a rectangular transmitter, with a pulsating center in the middle. "This transmitter will broadcast a signal to anything orbiting Earth, with a controllable range of course. The signal contains a coded message; almost identical to the one the Alliance will send soon, with one critical difference: this message contains the coordinates of not the city, but to a certain army in waiting outside Atlanta. We have estimated that 80% of their forces will be destroyed."

As he talked, the holograph disappeared and an image of a ship in orbit appeared. A shining light materialized in the belly of the ship and spiraled off the holograph, and an image of Atlanta appeared, with the Alliance army outside the city. The beam struck the army, sending ripples across the holographic image. A number appeared on the projector and began rising quickly. The death toll.

"Why the hell are you doing this?" Leo yelled. The man seemed unperturbed.

"To show the world the power of the biotics, and to send a message to the rest of the galaxy that we are not to be trifled with."

"If you think that this'll help the situation with biotics, you're a fucking idiot!" I shouted. "How is this going to help biotics gain support?"

"I told you we do not need support!" the man growled, for the first time losing his cool. "Biotics are superior, and once we transmit, the galaxy will know of our power, our strength. This, I can assure you. And I'm going to make sure that you will not interfere. You all will be excellent examples of the ghost of a chance the Alliance has against our might. I will not be seeing you soon."

The wall facing the street suddenly opened, sliding across the floor until the entire room was open to the air. A shuttle flew next to the room, wind blasting us. He put a foot inside the shuttle. "Good day to you gentlemen."

"This'll ruin his image of us," Leo muttered, and rolled his hands around. I noticed the biotics holding our arms together had loosened. Yes! I quickly drew my pistol, managing to shoot a biotic before something threw me across the room. Leo slashed at his guard with a knife and helped me up. Private Kevin and Jake also sprung into action, spraying bullets all over the room, narrowly missing the both of us. I sprinted at the leader with my knife in hand. His bodyguard stepped out in front of him. "Mr. Coulter, get behind—"

I grabbed his shoulder and vaulted over him, kicking off his back and lunging at Coulter. I froze, body held still by biotics. Mr. Coulter stood right in front of me, hand held towards me. A vein pulsed in his head. "You have a lot to learn, soldier, much to learn before you can think about facing a seasoned biotic like me. Experience that you won't be getting."

He pulled his arm back, throwing me out the opening. I lashed out with my knife and managed to catch the blade against the side of the building. Mr. Coulter stepped inside the skycar and the vehicle turned its back to me. Something grabbed my arm and hoisted me up before the back burned into the side of the building. The flaming behind of the skycar quickly disappeared in the distance. "We need to go now!" Leo shouted, tossing me my gun.

"That AA gun is still standing; we're not leaving until it goes down!"

"We've got to catch up to him!" Private Kevin yelled back. "We can't let him activate the transmitter!"

"We'll split up! One team goes down to the garage, the other goes up top to the AA gun!"

"All right!" Leo pulled out a hook from his belt. "Let's do this shit!"

I grabbed a magnetic hook from by belt and latched it onto the side of the building. Bracing myself, I jumped off the side. The belt slowed down my descent, but I was still falling at a fatal speed. I kicked off the side of the building and rappelled down the wall, taking a floor at a time. Leo zipped past me and straight down, freefalling towards the ground. I finally landed, unhooking my belt. Leo was sitting on top of a crushed soldier, unmoving. "I found my landing pad," Leo shouted, standing up. "What took you so long?"

Insurgents poured from the open garage, releasing a flurry of biotic attacks. I threw a grenade and sent several flying back. I looked overhead and immediately ducked behind cover again. "Leo!" I yelled. "We've got a gunship!"

"I know!" Leo fired a grenade at the gunship, but it strafed to the side, missing it completely. "I'm out of grenades!"

"You've got to be kidding me!" A missile flew from the gunship, nearly missing my head as it exploded against the skycar.

"I think I can disable it with my sniper!" Leo yelled back. "But you've got to distract it first! I can't hit a target the size of a credit chit if it keeps moving like that!"

"Distraction? Sure! Why the hell not?"

I ran from behind cover, peppering the gunship with gunfire. "Over here, bitch! I'm over here!"

I threw a grenade, and the gunship flew lower and dodged the grenade. It turned to me. Bullets rained down on my position, and I hit the ground. I held my Thunder over cover and blindfired, hoping I hit something. My gun was suddenly wrenched from my hands, almost breaking them. My rifle lay smoking on the ground. "Shit!" I cursed, pulling out my pistol. "Leo! Where the hell are you? Disable the bastard already!"

"Cool it, man! I'm trying!"

"Try harder!" The gunship spun around and launched another missile, this time where Leo was hiding. There was a string of curses. "Fuck!" Leo muttered through the comms. "James, I'm hit!"

"What? Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, but I can't shoot the damn thing with one arm!"

"Shit," I muttered. "Where were you going to hit it?"

"There's a piece of wiring in a space the size of a credit chit right below the rotors. But now we can't do anything about it!"

"Try me." The world slowed down. I rose up out of cover and aimed my pistol below the rotors. I breathed deeply and squared my sights on the target. I braced myself with one foot behind me and squinted, using my helmet's targeting system help. The gunship moved as if in slow motion. The wiring was in my sights.

I fired. The shot passed through the wiring and out the other end. The helicopter whined and began spinning in circles, smoke issuing from the rotors. The gunship crashed against the side of the building, sending sparks flying everywhere. The helicopter finally dashed against the second story, grating down the wall until it landed in a burning heap in front of the garage. I rushed over to Leo. "You okay?"

"I'll be fine. Medi-gel will do until we get back to base. Let's kick some ass."

We sprinted to the garage. More insurgents poured from the inside of the building, spraying fire everywhere. I ducked behind a row of skycars. "Forget them!" Leo yelled. "Just take one and go!"

"There's too much fire!" I shouted back as Leo entered the skycar. "We can't push through all of them!"

"Then I guess we're just going have to thin out the crowd!"

I got in the skycar and I backed up, crashing into several insurgents as I did. The roof opened and Leo mounted the turret, mowing down lines of insurgency. I drove the skycar straight out of the garage, running over a couple of biotics along the way. "Daniels!" I yelled into my radio. "Is that AA cannon gone?"

"No, sir!" came back the reply. "Jake's trying to hack into the gun, we're pinned down by some crates on the rooftop! We could use some assistance, sir!"

"We won't be able to give you any assistance if that gun's still up!"

"We're trying, Sergeant!"

"We'll be there! ETA whenever we get there!"

The skycar shot up into the air, almost straight up. "Shit man!" Leo yelled from the gunner's seat. "It looks way worse over here than the driver's seat!"

"Just keep them off us! We're going to be dodging some anti-aircraft fire soon!"

"You sure know how to pick 'em!"

The skycar reached the roof, and we passed by the colossal anti-aircraft weapon. The two privates were bunkered next to the gun. "Leo, take out those insurgents!"

"Roger!"

The turret swept over the rooftop, covering half the rooftop in dust and gunfire. The AA cannon finally noticed us, swiveling in our direction. The barrel pulsated bright red and fired, painting a red line across the sky. I dropped the skycar and flew underneath the beam, slowing down next to the rest of our squad. "Done yet?" I yelled.

"It's done!" Jake yelled, climbing into the back of the skycar. "The explosion this gun's going to cause is going to light up the whole city! We gotta get out of here now!"

As Daniels was climbing in, something slammed into the side of the skycar and rocked it. "They got missiles!" Leo yelled.

"We're leaving," I grunted, jamming my foot on the accelerator.

The skycar shot forward, leaving a blue vapor trail behind it. The AA cannon turned to us again and fired, narrowly missing the skycar. More skycars entered the airspace, firing anything they had at us. A biotic warp hit the back of the skycar, pushing it forward. "Shit! We've got to lose them!" Daniels yelled, firing out the window.

"Forget that! Where's the transmitter?"

"In Bankhead!" Jake yelled back.

"I don't know where Bankhead is!"

"Give me a second!" Jake opened his omni-tool menu and keyed in a few commands. "The location should be in the skycar's navigation system now."

A holographic interface appeared on the windshield, prompting me to go west. The skycar banked left hard, throwing Daniels onto the floor. "Next time, I'm driving!" Leo shouted over the roar of the turret.

"We're here!"

The dingy area of Atlanta lay below. "How the hell are we going to find a tiny transmitter?" Leo yelled.

"That's not tiny," Jake pointed to the left.

The transmitter sat on top of a building on our left, where I could dimly see Mr. Coulter. Something flashed and suddenly the skycar jerked to the left. "What happened?" Jake yelled.

"That son of a bitch is pulling us down!" I shouted back. "Leo, mow him down!"

"I can't! This stupid thing is jammed!"

"Shit!" The skycar slammed into the building, ripping apart as it grated upwards to the rooftop. The vehicle stopped on the edge of the roof. "I'll admit it," Mr. Coulter said, nodding. "I'm impressed. But it is too late, if you'll pardon the cliché. In a few minutes, the Alliance will begin the orbital bombardment on their own troops, decimating their army."

"Fuck you!" Leo yelled, unclipping and throwing a grenade at the insurgency leader. He caught it with a flick of his hand, suspending the explosive in mid-air for a second before launching over the skycar. It exploded, flipping our skycar over twice. My door fell off, cracking on the ground. I started firing, emptying an entire clip in his direction, but he was already moving, sliding behind the transmitter. My squad gravitated behind the car, barely evading the succession of biotic attacks that followed. There were only three insurgents guarding the transmitter. A loud gunshot rang out and pierced an insurgent's helmet, blood spraying from the hole. The other two launched biotic warps in our direction; I dropped to the floor, shooting their legs from underneath them. "Stop that transmitter!" I shouted, and my team moved from behind the skycar. "Jake, start hacking your way into it! We'll see if we can break it first!"

I sprinted to the transmitter, but an invisible force blew me back a good ten feet, landing me near the edge of the building. I looked up, dazed. Leo was swinging his gun at Mr. Coulter, who was fending him off with his biotics. I reached for my pistol and took aim, putting my sights on his head. I fired twice; both times the shots bounced off. Shit. We outnumber him four to one, but his biotics are too strong! We can't break through them. There's got to be a way.

I looked to my right, and the skycar filled my vision. Then it hit me. I limped towards the skycar and sat down in the driver's seat, hard. The skycar started and began floating. Though severely damaged, it looked like it could still fly. My foot hit the accelerator, and the skycar rushed forward. "Leo, Jake, Jack! Get out of the way!" I yelled as the skycar picked up speed.

Leo took one look in my direction and dove backwards, barely avoiding another biotic attack. Mr. Coulter turned his head my way as well and threw a biotic attack at me. The blue ball glanced off the windshield, but the vehicle was still gaining speed. I looked straight at him, but his eyes were already staring at something far away. I crashed into him and the transmitter, jarring me and sparking an explosive retort from the engine. A deafening scream filled my ears and disoriented me even more. Suddenly, the entire front end of the car was on fire, blazing with heat. I staggered out of the skycar and slowly crawled a few more feet away from it. Mr. Coulter's last scream still rang in my head. His figure was indistinguishable amidst the flames. Strong hands gripped my own hands and hoisted me up, setting me on unsteady feet. "James? James, you all right?"

I looked up dizzily. Leo was holding my shoulders, shaking me. "James? Come on, man, wake up."

I coughed, blood splattering across the ground. "Did we win?"

He shook his head. "You got five seconds to get your head together. Mr. Coulter called in reinforcements."

My head snapped straight, all signs of drowsiness gone. I grabbed my rifle and inserted a new clip. Skycar upon skycar fell from the sky, landing on the other end of the rooftop. We took cover behind the blazing metal heap. "How the hell are we going to get off now?" Kevin yelled.

"Mr. Coulter has a pretty sweet ride, don't you think?"

The rest of the squad glanced to the left. Mr. Coulter's golden skycar lay parked on the edge of the roof. "There's too much fire!" Jake yelled over the gunfire. "We'll be shot out of the sky before we even get ten feet away! We're just going to have to stick it out until the crowd thins out!"

"That'll take too long!" I yelled, opening the back seat. "The Alliance is about to bomb the entire city! It's the only way off this rooftop!"

"We won't make it!"

"We don't have a choice!"

"Fuck! There's no way out of here, all right? They're all over the fucking rooftop! We'll be shot to pieces if we go out there!"

A loud ripping sound filled the air. Leo mounted the gun on top of a vent. The gun spun to life, ripping apart the insurgent line. He set it on auto-fire, walking up to me. Suddenly, he shoved me into the skycar. I landed on my back and almost fainted again as lights danced in my vision.

"Wait, what are you doing?" I coughed.

"Saving your asses," Leo said. "Get on the skycar."

"No! We're all going to get out of here!"

"We're not all going to make it out alive, and you know it." Leo looked at the rest of the squad. Slowly, they both began to nod. Kevin slid into the driver's seat, his expression hard. Jake turned his head towards Leo for the last time, and entered the car. Leo looked at me. "It was a good run."

"Leo, no!" I moved out of my seat to grab him. His fist crashed against my face and knocked me back into the car. I could barely see; it felt like a tunnel was closing in on my vision. Leo looked back, and then turned away. I could dimly see the sky light up, bright lights falling from the sky to the city below. The skycar shuddered and took off, but I could still feel the vibrations of the bombing. Leo! It should've been me!

How was that for a flashback? I'll be sure to make the next chapter just as exciting, with a huge siege and everything! Next chapter: Marco returns, and it's just chaos!