"𝐘𝐎𝐔'𝐕𝐄 𝐆𝐎𝐓 to meet these guys," David insisted, practically pulling Juniper along by his arm. The other soldier was nowhere near as eager to meet the group of soldiers that had been described as 'unhinged' and 'dangerous'. In David's opinion, a little unhinged danger could do the country some good.

The December air was crisp, brushing a vibrant red hue across their cheeks and noses as they rushed across the basecamp. A light dusting a snow floated to the ground, much milder than the storm that had blown in earlier.

"You packed yet, Skippy?" Rambeau questioned at a volume just above average to catch the boy's attention as he almost ran past the group that were adding the last of their supplies to the truck.

"Who's Skippy?" Juniper questioned in confusion, raising an eyebrow as he looked over at David.

David elected to ignore the question while answering the one that Rambeau had asked, implicitly answering Juniper's question in the long run. "Yeah, I've been packed for the past hour at least. Are we ready to go now?"

"Who invited the second kid?" Jones asked in confusion as he tossed another bag of rations onto the truck.

Rambeau shrugged. "No idea. Skippy just waltzed up with Junior in tow."

David frowned at the subtle implication and opened his mouth to speak, but Steve interjected before an argument could erupt. "The kid came highly recommended from Sergeant Williams. We could always use a few more good men around here."

"Good men or good soldiers?" Dugan asked for clarification as he added a few more boxes of ammunition to the truck as Steve hooked his shield to the straps of his suit so that it sat comfortably between his shoulder blades.

Steve's silence was more than enough of an answer as he personally reflected back to the conversation he'd had with Dr. Erskine prior to undergoing the experimentation of Project Rebirth. As he looked around the group of commandos that he had gathered into his own personal squadron, he didn't have any doubts in his mind that he was surrounded by good men.

No one offered a contradiction or pushed for a further explanation as if his word was final. The silence was broken as Bucky approached, rifle in hand. "Are we ready to hit the road?"

Steve nodded his head. "Everyone know the plan?"

"I think it's permanently ingrained in my brain," Dugan whispered to Rambeau.

Rambeau grinned. "Good, that'd be a first for you."

Several of the others chuckled, and a soft smile formed on Steve's face. It had only been a few days since he'd recruited them, but they'd already seemed to grow close with one another. However, they'd ultimately be put to the test today as they began the first of many specific missions to bring HYDRA down one base at a time. It didn't take long for them to climb into one of the military-issued trucks and get on the road. They drove as far as they could without the risk of being detected.

"We walk from here," Steve said with a nod of his head as he exited the vehicle.

The others followed his example and climbed out of the vehicle. Once they were prepared to move on, Steve slapped the side of the truck to signal that the driver could turn around and head back to base. They crept forward, keeping their eyes peeled. Had the circumstances been different, perhaps they would've been assumed paranoid; however, one false move and everything would come crumbling down. It was a risk they couldn't take. Dugan stepped on a branch and the sound of the stick snapping seemed to echo through the forest. Several glares were cast in his direction. Rambeau lifted a finger to his lips as if to shush him. Dugan raised a hand from his weapon defensively and then they continued forward as if nothing happened. They reached the edge of the forest and just ahead a large warehouse was visible through the clearing. Only a pair of guards stood watch outside.

David began to step forward, but Rambeau grabbed his shoulder. He turned with a confused look and whispered in a harsh tone, "There's only two of them. We can take 'em."

Rambeau shook his head and gestured toward the towers above where several sentries had been posted to scout the area. "You need to be more observant, Skippy."

David rolled his eyes, but didn't argue. As crunching in the snow could be heard, the group turned to look toward Dugan as if to accuse him. He lifted both his hands defensively. "It's not me this time."

Steve turned with concern and that's when he noticed the small squad of HYDRA soldiers creeping their way toward them. Once the enemy soldiers realized that they'd been seen, they quickly began to fire off a round of ammunition. The glowing blue bolts singed the trees and left scorch marks along with gaping holes in a few.

"Uh..." Dugan raised an eyebrow, growing more concerned with each passing second as he drifted backward. "Are we still sticking with the plan?"

"We adapt," Steve replied calmly.

"Alright." Bucky nodded as he dodged a blast. "What's the plan?"

Without answering, Steve pulled his shield from his back and charged toward the facility. He blocked the oncoming shots fired from the watchtowers. David didn't hesitate to sprint after him with a large grin of exhilaration growing on his face.

Bucky frowned and shouted after him, "That's not a plan!"

"It's either stay here and get shot or go after them," Jones retorted and followed after David.

With that realization, the other Howling Commandos sprinted to catch up with Steve as he took the grunt force of most shots. Once they arrived at the front of the facility, Steve kicked down the doors and lifted his shield to protect the group from the front. Each man loaded their weapon and fired off a few rounds without hesitation knowing that even just a second was the difference between life and death.

"Set the charges!" Steve shouted over the sound of gunfire.

"Right then," Falsworth nodded his head and pulled Dernier aside to begin setting charges around the support columns of the facility. Jones and Dugan took the other half of the charges and moved to the opposite side of the facility to do the same while Morita, Rambeau, Howlett, and Juniper took care of the additional guards that entered the room. Steve, Bucky, and David made their way to the back of the facility to determine if there was any other information regarding the locations of the other HYDRA facilities. Although they already knew their locations, if there was any other information that could help prepare them, they'd certainly take advantage of it.

"Charges are set!" Falsworth shouted to be heard.

"Time to go, Steve," Bucky instructed as he turned to go.

Something caught Steve's eye. He stopped and gestured for Bucky and David to go ahead. "Go on without me, and don't wait to blow the charges."

"What are you doing?" David asked, confused.

"There's something I want to grab," Steve vaguely explained.

Bucky frowned. "What—"

"No time to argue, just go," Steve interrupted, "I'll be right behind you."

Bucky sighed and shook his head, but grabbed David by the arm long enough to tug him along. They sprinted out of the facility and met up with the others back along the edge of the forest where they'd have plenty of cover. Rambeau raised an eyebrow. "Where's the captain?"

"He said to blow the charges," David replied without answering. It was evident that Bucky wasn't pleased with the decision, but also didn't argue either.

Falsworth hesitated. But after a single look cast in his direction, he waited no longer and pressed the button that would set off the charges. The facility began to blow from the inside out. Suddenly, the glass window from the upper floor of the side of the building shattered. A motorcycle flew overhead with a blaze of red, white and blue on the back. With a skid across the ice, the bike came to a stop. The flames from the explosion reflected off the metallic surface of the shield.

David's eyes widened with excitement as he ran over to Steve. "Wow! Ain't that swell!"

"Don't encourage him." Bucky frowned as he approached Steve. His frown was replaced with a more incredulous look. "You went back for a bike?"

"I liked the look of it," Steve admitted sheepishly.

Bucky remained unamused and opened his mouth to speak; however, Morita interjected, "Perhaps we could continue this conversation somewhere less nazi occupied."

As if to support his statement, a few shots were fired from the survivors of the explosion. Steve pulled his shield off his back and gave it a firm toss, knocking out all that remained conscious. Once they'd completed their assignment, they called in for support to provide them a ride back to base. A frown remained on Bucky's face throughout the duration of the whole ride.

"If it bothers you that much that I took the bike, I'll get rid of it," Steve offered quietly.

Bucky shook his head. "It's not just that Steve. We went in without a plan."

"I don't see what the big idea is," David added his own input under his breath. "We got the job done."

"It could've just as easily gone the other way," Bucky retorted. "Unlike Steve, we're just men. We can't rely on just one soldier to get the job down. We can't fly blindly into these sorts of things anymore. That's the difference between success and getting shot."

"Would you ease up?" David asked.

"No." Bucky shook his head. "You charged in blindly after Steve. Rambeau and Morita just about shot one another after getting spooked. Jones and Dugan almost started to set their charges up wrong. Howlett looked like he was about ready to kill Juniper himself. And Falsworth and Dernier almost set the charges off too early. It's a miracle we even made it out of there alive. We knew where the facilities were, but as a team we were completely unprepared and out of sync."

"You're right." Steve nodded his head in agreement. "It'll take a little bit of time to understand how each of us work—"

"Time isn't a luxury that we have at the moment," Bucky retorted, interrupting before any other excuses could be made..

"Which is why we'll have to do better—why I need to do better." Steve paused to collect his thoughts and make sure he said the right thing. "You're right, Bucky, if I'm going to expect you to follow me into battle, I need to make sure we're prepared for each possible outcome."

Bucky nodded his head satisfied. "Alright..." However, after a beat of silence, a small smile crept onto his face from the corner of his lips. "Keep the bike... that entrance was pretty sweet."

════════ ⋆★⋆ ════════

Time passed and soon enough the team was so in sync that HYDRA didn't stand much of a chance. Two years flew by in the blink of an eye and each of the men could see the end of the war in sight. It surely couldn't be much longer 'til they were home.

"I think I'll take her out to a ball game," Dugan announced, leaning against the cliff side as the January winds threatened to rip his signature bowler hat from his head.

Rambeau barely managed to catch it in time before it fell over the edge of the rocky crag. He rolled his eyes and smacked the other soldier to bring him back to the present. "Now isn't the time."

"Besides," Jones retorted with a laugh, "Does she even like baseball?"

"What New Yorker doesn't like baseball?" Dugan skeptically asked as if insulted by the very idea. "I promised I'd take her out and I'm true to my word."

"Is that so, ol' chap?" Falsworth chuckled. "Remind me again how many letters you've sent her?"

Dernier held up a zero behind the soldier's back as Dugan opened his mouth and immediately closed it again. Howlett scoffed and muttered under his breath. "Man of your word, my ass."

Juniper jumped back in surprise, eyes widened almost in horror. "He actually speaks?"

"I ain't no mute, that's for sure," Howlett continued to mutter under his breath almost as if he was growling. Juniper raised his hands defensively and took another step back while keeping his eye trained on the soldier warily.

"Could we stop talking about my sister long enough to finish the mission?" Steve requested.

The soldiers glanced between one another long enough for the same mischievous look to cross their expressions. Steve sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, determining that he really didn't want to listen to what might come next. He stepped aside from the group and took his place at Bucky's side who uneasily looked over the edge of the snow-covered mountainside at the train closing in on the rails below. "Remember when I made you ride the Cyclone at Coney Island?"

"Yeah." Steve nodded. "And I threw up?"

"This isn't payback, is it?" Bucky asked, gulping as he finally tore his line of sight from the long way down to the bottom of the canyon.

The corners of Steve's mouth upturned ever-so-slightly into a sly smirk. "Now why would I do that?"

"We were right. Dr. Zola's on the train," Jones verified, setting the headset down that had been connected to the radio that he and Morita had connected to the communications of the Schnellzug EB912. "Hydra dispatcher gave him permission to open up the throttle. Wherever he's going, they must need him bad."

Falsworth lowered his binoculars from his face and nodded his head in agreement. "Let's get going, because they're moving like the devil."

"We only got about a ten second window," Steve explained, "You miss that window, we're bugs on a windshield."

"Well that's a great picture." David's frown was more nervous than not as he hesitantly asked, "You sure this is safe?"

"You're welcome to stay behind, Skippy," Rambeau replied with a chuckle.

"No way." David shook his head defiantly. "I'm going."

"Mind the gap," Falsworth suggested.

"Better get moving, bugs!" Dugan shouted.

"Maintenant!" Dernier shouted in French.

Steve, Bucky, David and Rambeau grabbed hold of the zipline and slid down onto the train. Once balanced, they carefully crept forward to avoid falling off the train as well as to remain unnoticed. Rambeau positioned himself on top of the train as Steve, Bucky and David made their way inside. However, as they tried to enter the next section of the train, the doors closed and separated Steve from the Barnes brothers. A pair of HYDRA soldiers entered the room and Bucky quickly aimed and fired at them. Meanwhile, Steve had problems of his own to face as a large, armored guard entered the room and fired at him with one of the tesseract-powered weapons created by Zola.

Zola's voice could be heard screaming over the speaker system. "Stop him! Fire again!"

As another pair of guards entered the room with David and Bucky, they quickly found themselves pinned in separate corners. David quickly lost his patience as he was forced to hunker down further behind the crates to avoid the barrage of gunfire. He shouted over his shoulder, "Can you hit one of them?!"

"I'm trying!" Bucky retorted through gritted teeth as he fired another round in the goons' direction.

"You missed!" David shouted to remind him that he was indeed aiming for a target, or he was at least supposed to be aiming.

Bucky immediately shut down the unwelcome criticism. "Shut up or try to do better!"

Meanwhile, from the other room, Steve blocked several shots and waited for an opportune moment to go on the offensive. As the gun whirred, signaling another load up, Steve charged. He jumped up and grabbed one of the hooks meant for transporting heavier crates and used it to gain momentum as he slammed into the armored guard.

Bucky took a chance to move to the other side of the room as the goons reloaded their weapons. As the brothers continued the fight side-by-side, Steve used the armored guard's weapons to blow open the door that kept them separated.

Bucky cursed under his breath as he realized that he was out of ammo. David's gun soon clicked in a similar manner to reveal an empty cartridge. Recognizing they were in need of firearms, Steve tossed Bucky his gun as he entered the room. The super-soldier shoved a crate from the nearest shelf in the center of the room and the guard was forced out into the open. With a single shot, Bucky took him out.

Immediately after the tense situation was over, David shoved Bucky out into the open away from himself. He complained while dusting off his bruises, "You're crushing me."

Bucky panted and gestured to the guard on the ground, "I had him on the ropes."

"I know you did." Steve nodded his head. However, the armored trooper from the other room returned without warning. Steve barely had time to pull his team behind the shield as he shouted, "Get down!"

The side of the train was blown out as all three flew backward. Zola's shouts overhead only grew more fervent. "Fire again! Kill him! Now!"

Bucky stood, grabbed the shield and the gun that had been thrown to the floor, and began firing at the armored guard. The weapons system fired back up again and the guard didn't hesitate to use his artillery. However, as the weapon fired, David's eyes widened and he dove to pull his brother out of the line of fire. Unfortunately, the momentum was too great and it sent them both over the edge. Reacting out of fear, Steve grabbed his shield and threw it at the guard, taking him out once and for all, before rushing to the open side of the train.

"Bucky!" Steve screamed as he looked out the open side of the train. Bucky was struggling to hold his own weight with one hand while his other hand clutched the form of his unconscious brother. Steve shouted over the rushing wind and began to crawl toward them, "Hang on!"

Bucky strained and could feel his strength fatiguing but he refused to let go.

"Grab my hand!" Steve instructed as he reached out.

Bucky quickly shook his head and released a strained shout, "Take David!".

"I can take you both," Steve protested and reached out further. "Take my hand!"

David began to stir and his eyes filled with panic when all he saw was the cavern several thousand miles beneath him. "Oh my gosh!"

"Stay calm, stay calm," Bucky quickly tried to console him, "You're gonna be okay. Steve, take his hand!"

Steve did as he was told and realized that he didn't have much time left as the metal bar groaned beneath their weight, prepared to give way. He took David and situated himself so that he could then help Bucky. "Bucky, grab my hand!"

Bucky reached out to take his hand, but the bar snapped and he fell with a bloodcurdling scream.

"No!" Steve screamed, his hand grasping nothing but air.

David fell to his knees. His eyes refused to leave the mist that concealed the bottom of the mountains as if he expected his brother to emerge, laughing like he'd just told them a bad joke.

Steve's hand on his shoulder was enough of a reminder to bring him back to reality and completely shatter his world.