FuturamaBand of Brothers Crossover

by Ramon 51

As a result of one of the Professor's experiments, the Planet Express Crew find themselves in the company of Easy Company on June 6, 1944.

Band Of Brothers/Futurama Crossover

By

Ramon 51

This Fan Fiction is dedicated to the brave men - living and dead - of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, whose sacrifices in World War II made our enjoyment of freedom possible. Nothing in this work is intended to dishonor their memory.

Normandy, France – June 9, 1944

The men of Easy Company sat on the floor of a half-ruined barn, cleaning their weapons, smoking, and discussing the bizarre events of the past two days. They were waiting for First Lieutenant (1LT) Richard Winters to "give them the word" on how they should handle questions about the visitors from the future.

1LT Winters entered the barn suddenly and shouted, "Group, attention!" They sprang to their feet in surprise. Colonel (COL) Robert Sink entered the room, followed by 1LT Lewis Nixon. A short but dynamic man, Sink was every inch the combat leader. He did not look happy.

With all of the men still at rigid attention, Sink spoke in a tone that let everyone know he meant business. "Easy Company, I want you to understand something. This business about people and robots from the future never happened. As God is my witness, if one of you breathes a word about this, even in his sleep, I'll have you in Leavenworth so fast your head will spin." He bellowed out, "IS THAT CLEAR?"

The men were startled and returned a series of half-hearted sounding, "Yes Sirs."

COL Sink shouted even louder, "I can't hear you, Easy Company!"

The men shouted in unison, "Yes Sir!"

"Good, now 1LT Nixon is going to have you sign some non-disclosure statements. This is all classified Top Secret. You may not discuss it again…even among each other." Turning to 1LT Nixon he said, "Lieutenant Nixon, take over."

COL Sink turned on his heel and left the room.

Winters turned to Nixon and said, "Well, Nix, let's get the paperwork over." He turned to the men and said, "The Colonel is really serious, if we ever breathe a word of this to anyone, it's Leavenworth! Now let's fill this paperwork out and get back to the war."

Earth Orbit, Aboard the Planet Express Ship – June 6, 3004

Leela was worried. The Trans-Light Drive that the Professor and Cubert had invented was now installed in the Planet Express Ship, but she had smelled too much burning Rhesus Monkey hair from the Professor's other experiments to feel comfortable with this test.

"Still," she thought, "Cubert and Amy are on board. They know the system, and we've got backup parts for everything. What could go wrong?"

She looked at Fry, who was sitting on the observation couch, drinking a can of Slurm. Bender was next to him, guzzling two bottles of "Olde Fortran" simultaneously. "Two peas in a pod," she thought with a smile on her face.

"Okay, everyone get to your action stations. Make sure you seatbelt yourselves in…it could get bumpy."

Bender looked at Fry and began to mimic Leela in a whiny voice, "It could get bumpy." Fry started to laugh, but he noticed that Leela was looking right at them. "Crud!" he thought, "Why does Bender always have to joke when I can't laugh?"

"Bender, Fry, I said move your asses!"

Fry mumbled, "Yes, Captain." He went to his console and buckled himself in. Amy and Cubert were already at their stations at the Astronavigation and Engineering consoles. Bender strolled over to the wall near Fry, pulled a staple gun out of his chest cavity, and stapled himself to the bulkhead.

Leela maneuvered the Planet Express Ship to the proper heading for the test. She could feel her palms begin to sweat a bit as she reached for the ignition button. "Stand by for ignition of Trans-Warp Drive!" she said with a touch of anxiety in her voice.

She pressed the button.

The ship lurched forward, enveloped in a pulsating blue field. Then, the ship lost all attitude control, pitching, rolling, and yawing wildly as Leela fought desperately with the controls. The ship headed for Earth and within a few seconds had entered the upper atmosphere.

"We're all going to die!" Fry shouted.

"Cubert, Amy, do some of that engineering s**t to help me get this thing under control." Leela barked.

Amy and Cubert were already frantically pressing buttons and pulling levers. Cubert yelled, "I'm initiating Drive shutdown." The blue field flickered out and the ship came under control. Leela looked at the altimeter. They were only 500 feet above the surface in a dense cloud bank!

"Phew," Leela muttered to no one in particular, "that was a close call."

She got the ship upright and level. Amy spoke up, "Leela, our sensors show that we are in a heavy traffic pattern. I detect hundreds of aircraft around us. We seem to be in a traffic stream moving roughly northward at about 240 Kilometers per hour."

Puzzled, Leela tried to get a GPS reading, but the readout simply said "No Data." She made a quick decision, "Well, I don't want to risk a collision with anyone. Let's follow the crowd out of these clouds before we climb and head for home."

After a few seconds, she could see flashing lights in the clouds. "A lightning storm?" she wondered.

The Planet Express Ship emerged from the cloud bank. What greeted Leela's eye was a series of lights twinkling on the ground and bright flashes of light all around in the sky…bright flashes that left dirty grey smoke in their wake. Broken lines of light arched skyward from the ground as well as tracing luminous patterns in the dark.

She could see strange looking aircraft all around her, marked with white stripes on the wings and body. One was on fire, plunging toward the ground like a fiery arrow. Then the noise became audible. Those lights were explosions!

A line of broken lights seemed to be creeping lazily through the sky, reaching for the Planet Express Ship. Before Leela could react, the gunners of an 88mm gun battery bracketed the Planet Express Ship. Wham! Wham! Wham! A series of explosions burst all around.

Amy called out, "We've taken some hits, Leela. The hull is breached and we are losing power."

Wrestling the controls with all her might, Leela headed for a small forest where she hoped to land the ship, away from any of the twinkling lights. The ship was responding sluggishly to her commands. She shouted, "Everybody…brace for impact!"

Five seconds later, the Planet Express Ship ploughed into the ground in the small forest, sustaining minor damage. Leela looked out the front windscreen that was peppered with metal fragments and wondered, "Where the hell are we?"

Vicinity of Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 0110 Hours

Leela turned her attention to the crew. "Well, Amy, Cubert, what's our status?"

Cubert answered first, "Well, Leela, we have minor damage to the engine. From the readouts, we can fix it in less than six hours."

Amy broke in, not wanting Cubert to do all the talking, "Our hull damage is minor as well. A little space-bondo and a weld here and there, we should be as good as new. I can finish it on my own in about four hours." She gave Cubert a glance as she finished her sentence, a glance that left no doubt she would do the job alone.

Leela pointed at Fry and Bender, "You two check the cargo hold and make sure nothing has shaken loose."

Before Fry could open his mouth, Bender replied in a voice dripping with sarcasm, "Yes Miss Leela! We're going!" Turning to Fry he said, "Come on Organ Sack, before she cuts back our beer ration like last time."

As they left the bridge, Leela began to inspect the GPS and communications array. Nothing except some Very High Frequency (VHF) and Ultra High Frequency (UHF) voice traffic in a language she couldn't understand. As she scanned the communications band she even picked up some ancient Morse code! "What is going on?" she wondered aloud.

Cubert spoke up, "Leela, we have a slight problem."

Leela looked up from the communications panel, "Yes?"

"It seems we have managed to displace ourselves through time rather than space," he said nervously.

"What?"

"Based on my calculations from star positions, we are back in the Stupid Ages, some time around the mid 1900's. Not knowing exactly where we are, I can't get an exact fix."

Leela frowned and took a step toward Cubert. She was itching to give him a swift kick in the rear end. "So we are somewhere in the Stupid Ages, we don't know exactly when, and we have no way home."

"Not quite," Cubert answered with a touch of arrogance, "once we figure out the date and our location, I am confident that we can return to out own time."

Amy began to curse in Cantonese. She switched to English, "You arrogant little pipsqueak! We had better get home; I've got a date with my Kif!"

Faced by two angry and physically intimidating women, Cubert lost all his arrogance, beating a hasty retreat for the engine room, "I'll get it fixed, I promise!"

As soon as he left, Amy began to giggle. Leela fought it, but she was soon giggling as well. Then they started laughing. When they got themselves under control, Amy asked, "Do you think he wet himself?"

Leela grinned and said, "Who cares? I'm not changing the "Boy Genius'" diapers. Now, let's get to work and figure out what we need to do to get home.

Vicinity of Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 0145 Hours

Leela looked at Amy, "I'm going to take Fry and Bender to find out when and where we are so the "Boy Genius" can get us home."

Amy pulled a face and said, "Ok, but if that little creep tries to cop a feel on me again, I'll rip his arm off and beat him to death with it."

Cubert looked as though he was going to say something and then thought better of it. Without further ado, Leela, Fry and Bender walked down the ladder into the night.

Leela, Fry and Bender moved slowly northward through the woods. There were no more aircraft overhead, but the sounds of random gunfire came from all around. Leela turned to Fry and Bender and whispered, "Keep close to me and stay quiet."

Fry nodded, while Bender practically shouted, "Ok, Leela. I'll be quiet as a mouse!"

Leela gritted her teeth and turned on her heel. "Idiot!" she thought.

After moving about 100 meters, they came on a road that ran southwest to northeast. They followed it northeast for another 50 meters when they came upon a road sign. One arrow, which pointed back in the direction from which they came, read, "Angoville-au-Plain .5 km." The one that pointed north read "Sainte Marie-du-Mont 1.5 km."

"Well, we know where we are…but when are we?" Leela wondered softly aloud.

Bender spoke up loudly, "Here come some people, let's ask them!"

Leela looked down the road and saw a group of armed figures moving in advance of several horse drawn carts. "Bender," she hissed, "shut the hell up!"

Bender shouted back, "No, you shut up!"

Before Leela could react, the figures on the road spread out in a line. Several raised what were obviously weapons to their shoulders. One figure shouted, "Hande Hoch1!" Bender stepped into the road and said, "What's that you say?"

Leela turned to Fry and said, "Let's get out of here."

Fry protested in a whisper, "We can't leave Bender."

Before Leela could respond, the figures were close enough to make out their features. She could see their weapons pointed directly at them. One man, who seemed to be in charge, said in accented English, "Hands Up, and Quick! Or we shoot you!"

For a spit second, Leela considered leaving them. Instead, she wearily put her hands up, as did Fry and Bender. The figures surrounded them and it was easy to see they were soldiers. Most held rifles with wicked looking bayonets fixed on their ends.

The soldier in charge asked, "Who are you? What are you doing in this restricted zone?"

Leela responded, "We're lost. Our commercial aircraft got off course and crashed. We are the only survivors. We've been walking for hours."

The soldier in charge took a moment to digest the information. Making a decision, he turned his flashlight on and raised it to get a better look at the trio in front of him. His eyes widened as he look back and forth, primarily between Leela and Bender.

"Gott in Himmel2!" he cried. He then barked out a rapid series of orders to the men, who responded with "Jawohl" or Jawohl, Herr Feldwebel."

Within less than a minute, the three friends were trussed up like turkeys and thrown into the second of the horse carts. When Leela protested, the Feldwebel responded, "You shut up. You are lucky I do not shoot you as spies right now."

The carts took off at a rapid clip, passing through Saint Marie-du-Mont around 2:30 by the church clock. Leela was working to get her bonds loose. She whispered to Fry, "When I get my hands loose, I'll get us out of this.

After another half hour of travel, Leela had her hands free. The soldier guarding them was sleeping, lulled to sleep by the clip-clop, clip-clop of the horses hooves. Leela stealthily began to undo Fry's ropes when they began to pass under a railroad bridge.

All hell broke loose!

Like a hellish symphony, automatic weapons roared, rifles barked, and grenades exploded. The soldiers on the last two carts turned around and fled. The first two carts were not so lucky. The hail of bullets and grenade fragments killed the horse on the second cart outright and severely wounded the first.

The human riders fared little better. Within seconds of the initiation of the ambush, all of the soldiers who had not fled lay dead or dying. Shielded by the thick wooden sides of the cart, Leela, Fry and Bender were unhurt.

One automatic weapon continued to fire and a man could be heard screaming "Ahhhhhhh!" as if a demon were being released from his chest. Leela wondered, "What is going on?"

Just then she heard another man's voice roar, "That's enough, Guarnere!"

The firing stopped immediately.

"Next time I tell you to wait for my command, you wait for my command…understood?"

"Yes, sir!"

"Alright, search the wagons for anything of value. Check the dead Krauts for documents."

A chorus of "Ok" and Yes Sir" echoed quietly.

Leela was thinking of calling out for help when a face poked itself over the side of the wagon. The man was a soldier, but wore a different uniform than those who had captured them. He had a look of absolute surprise on his face, but he called out, "Lieutenant Winters, you have to come see this…right now, sir!"

Vicinity of Les Forges, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 0330 Hours

The soldier who had originally looked over the side of the wagon began to help Leela, Bender, and then Fry out of the wagon. "Holy Smokes Lieutenant, this gal only has one eye! And this one looks like the Tin Man from the Wizard of Oz!" "

Bender shot back, "Kiss my shiny metal ass, skin tube. I'm not tin!"

Leela barked, "Shut up, Bender."

The soldier started to laugh, "Dorothy and the Tin Man…baby you're a long way from Kansas." He helped Fry down, "At least one of 'em looks normal." He asked Fry conversationally, "Hey Red, how'd you wind up with these characters? Got any extra arms or legs?"

Before Fry could answer, Lieutenant Winters said, "Malarkey!"

Malarkey answered, "Yes Sir!"

"Keep it down. You want to have every Kraut in the neighborhood down on us?" Lieutenant Winters walked up to where Leela, Bender, and Fry stood at the rear of the wagon. He stared for several seconds before he simply said, "Well, I'll be!"

In a soft, calm voice he asked, "Who are you and what are you doing here?" He listened to their story about being a commercial airline crew without comment.

He turned to a soldier with a bandaged right hand and said, "Joe, cut them loose." The soldier, a tough looking, dark haired Corporal, cut their bonds without comment. Leela and Fry massaged their sore wrists as they stood, wondering what was coming next.

Winters turned to the trio and said, "I don't believe your story. Now that you're untied, would you mind leveling with me? There's a war on and I haven't got time to mess around. If you can't level with me, I'll leave your for the Krauts."

Leela looked 1LT Winters in the eyes and realized he meant business, "We are accidental time travelers from the year 3004. Our ship crash landed near here…not far from Angoville-au-Plain. We just need to find out what date and year it is so we can return to our own time."

"No S**t" Malarkey exclaimed, "a real Buck Rodgers space ship? Wow, that…"

Lieutenant Winters shot Malarkey a look which caused him to fall silent, "Okay, as screwy as that sounds it makes more sense that the line you tried to feed me earlier. You'll come with us until we can contact higher authorities."

Leela asked, "But what day is it?"

Lieutenant Winters said, "It's June 6, 1944."

He turned to his men who had formed up nearby. Speaking in a low voice, he said, "Now let's get moving. We've got a couple of kilometers to go before we reach our objective. Joe, Don, you keep these three between you. Don't let the get lost."

Both men answered, "Yes Sir" simultaneously.

"Hall, Guarnere, You've got point. Sergeant Lipton, let's move 'em out in tactical column3.

With the sky lit up intermittently by the light of explosions and crisscrossed by multi-colored tracers, the little column moved out for their rendezvous with destiny.

Vicinity of Le Grand Chemin, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 0930 Hours

They were resting in a small outbuilding on the southern edge of the village. There were eleven men from Easy Company as well as the Planet Express Crew. During their movement that night and early morning, Leela, Fry and Bender had become Dorothy, Tin Man, and Red to the men.

The Planet Express crew had learned the rank and names of all of the Easy Company men. There was Lieutenant Winters, Lieutenant "Buck" Compton, Sergeant Lipton, Sergeant "Wild Bill" Guarnere, Sergeant Myron "Mike" Ranney, Corporal Joe Toye and Privates Robert "Pop Eye" Wynn, Joe Plesha, Walter Hendrix, Cleveland Petty, Joe Liebgott and Don Malarkey. Between them, they had their M-1 Garand rifles4, a couple of Thompson5 sub-machine guns, two thirty caliber machine guns, and a 60mm mortar.

They had arrived about a half hour earlier. Lieutenant Winters had put them in position and had left to find the Regimental Commander, COL Sink. Within a few minutes, Winters returned with Sink in tow. After looking them over, Sink had said, "I don't know what you've got here, Dick, but it beats the hell out of anything I ever saw at the County Fair."

Leela spoke up, "Sir, I'm sure Lieutenant Winters told you who we are. We need your help to get back to our ship so we can return to our own time."

Fry spoke up, "Leela's right, sir. Please, you have to help us."

Bender chimed in, "Please!"

Sink pondered for a moment and then came to a decision, "Dick, I want you to keep them with you. Scrounge some uniforms for them so they don't stick out so much. Keep them away from the rest of the battalion as much as possible, understood?"

"Yes Sir" Winters responded.

"I need to have my head examined," Colonel Sink said as he turned on his heel and left the building.

The relative quiet of the morning was shattered by the sound of big guns firing close by. Their report shook the building. Bender shouted, "What the hell was that?"

Guarnere laughed and said, "It's artillery, Tin Man. The Krauts are giving us a little friggin' serenade." The rest of the men laughed as well, although it sounded a bit strained.

The cannon had begun to roar with regularity when Private Lorraine stuck his head through the door, "Lieutenant Winters? Colonel Strayer wants to see you right away."

Lieutenant Winters replied, "Okay, Lorraine. Tell him I'll be right there."

Winters turned to Buck Compton while heading out the door, "Let's get 'em ready, Buck. I smell some action coming."

Vicinity of Brecourt Manor, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 0945 Hours

Lieutenant Winters lay in a hedgerow, observing the German Battery of four guns firing at the US troops landing at Utah Beach. The guns roared with monotonous regularity, causing the earth to shake slightly when they discharged. The acrid smell of cordite drifted across to Winters, who wrinkled his nose in response.

He could see the guns were well-camouflaged, which is why the Air Corps hadn't knocked them out. They were dug into a hedgerow that surrounded a large irregular field. "Well," he thought, "they are sure giving our guys on the beach the devil." He turned his mind to solving the problem at hand.

The guns were evenly dispersed along an "L" shaped trench about 400 yards long. Three were firing northeast, obviously pounding Causeway Number 2. One gun was pointed more in a northerly direction towards Causeway Number 3. At the crook of the "L" was a MG 42, pointed to protect the guns from an attack from the direction of Le Grande Chemin. Across the field from the guns were at least three machine gun positions, sited to protect the battery as well.

Still, the situation wasn't all that bad. A couple of hedgerows offered a covered and concealed route to within grenade range of the trench. Counting the German troops available, he came up with fifty, more or less.

Winters' keen tactical mind came up with a plan. He would use the covered and concealed route to get close. Then, he would set up his machine guns to establish a base of fire, grenade the closest positions, and assault down the trench. Being in the trench would nullify the German advantage in manpower, as long as he kept the initiative. The trick, of course, was getting into the trench.

He backed away from his observation position and crawled to where he was sure the Krauts wouldn't see him. He then headed back for the outbuilding where Easy Company was gathered.

When he arrived he drew a quick sketch and explained his overall concept. Then he gave specific assignments, "Buck, you take Guarnere and Malarkey on the left…grenade that MG-42. Toye, Popeye, you're with me."

He paused for a moment, "Sergeant Lipton, take Ranney and envelop right. Take the Tin Man with you. He can carry the demolition kit. I'll position the Machine Guns, so you'll travel with me. Plesha and Hendrix take Dorothy with you. Petty and Liebgott, take Red with you. Our guests can be ammo bearers." Both machine gun teams grinned, the idea of having an ammo bearer was a real luxury to paratroopers.

Winters looked at everyone in turn before he spoke, "Questions?"

Bender blurted out, "This looks dangerous."

Guarnere shot back, "So why do you care? You're just a pile of tin…it's not like you'll bleed!"

Bender said angrily, "Kiss my shiny metal ass."

Guarnere laughed, "He's alright this robot." The rest of the men joined Guarnere in laughing until Lieutenant Winters broke in, "Enough skylarking guys. Weapons and ammo only. Let's move out. Tactical column."

They filed out of the dark outbuilding into the morning light, heading for the battery.

Vicinity of the German Battery, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 1000 Hours

Lieutenant Winters halted the Company at a road that ran parallel to the German Battery about 150 meters away. "This is the rally point," he said softly. "Remember, speed is the key. Speed is the key. Let's move out."

Buck Compton, "Wild Bill" Guarnere and Don Malarkey began to crawl along a hedgerow to the left that headed to the German position. Their route was the most perilous, as they had to cross an open stretch of field before they got within grenade range. They vanished into the dense growth like lizards.

The rest of the Company crouched low and moved rapidly toward their objective. One more soldier had joined them, Private Gerald Lorraine. He had met them outside the outbuilding and asked to come along. Winters had simply said, "Sure. You'll come with me on the assault."

About 50 meters short of their intended line of departure, 1LT Winters used hand and arm signals to direct Sergeants Lipton and Ranney along with Bender to break off for their "Right Hook." They angled off to the right, high crawling rapidly to and then along the opposite side of the hedgerow.

Winters led the remainder of the Company to the hedgerow that paralleled the bottom of the "L" shaped trench. He used hand and arm signals to indicate to Plesha and Petty where to emplace their guns. Their crews crawled up alongside, quietly setting the guns up.

Liebgott grinned, "Check this out, Petty!" He said in an excited whisper, "We've got them Kraut boys cold." Fry could see that the barrel of their machine gun was pointed right at a group of Germans who were crouched by a machine gun that was partially protected by logs and dirt.

Further to the right, Plesha, Hendrix, and Leela were setting up their gun. They had excellent fields of fire against the other three sides of the field. They could take all four guns and the other three machine guns under fire with ease.

Twenty meters further to the right, Lipton, Ranney and Bender were getting into position. Lipton could not see the first gun very well, so he climbed a tree. Bender sat down behind the hedgerow, while Ranney looked toward Lieutenant Winters for the signal to fire.

Lieutenant Winters was keeping his eye on Buck Compton's group. He watched as they low crawled to within grenade range. He could see Buck place his hand over his face in the "Are you ready?" signal. He signaled back, then turned to Ranney with a similar signal. Ranney gave the "I am ready!" signal back promptly.

Winters raised his M-1 to his shoulder. He took aim at a helmet he saw bobbing along the trench, just behind the MG 42 position. He glanced down at Plesha and Liebgott, "Fire!"

Vicinity of the German Battery, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 1010 Hours

The staccato voice of Petty's machine gun announced to the Germans that all was not well. One MG 42 crewman fell before they recovered from their surprise and began to erratically return fire. Plesha opened up, hosing down the other three guns in the battery with well timed bursts.

Petty's gun drew return fire from the MG-42, which cracked and zipped overhead. Fry covered his ears and hunched his shoulders as branches cut by flying lead rained down around him. He looked at Petty and Liebgott and couldn't help but admire their absolute concentration on their job.

Winters fired with his M-1 and the helmet bobbing down the trench abruptly disappeared from view. Over on the right, Sergeant Lipton shot and killed a German at the first gun. Everyone else opened fire as well, causing mass confusion in the battery.

Bender leaped up and ran forward when the firing started, "Oh your God! What is going on?" Ranney turned briefly and shouted, "Get the hell down and stay down until I tell you to get up! These Krauts are playing for keeps!" A machine gun across the field, seeing Bender as a piece of flashing metal, opened up. Dirt kicked up all around and branches splintered and fell as well.

Bender needed no more convincing, he dove for the ground and lay still.

Fry saw three grenades suddenly burst in the MG-42 position, heard three loud reports that were accompanied by unearthly screams from the wounded Germans.

Buck, Guarnere and Malarkey charged into the still smoking position. They vanished into the trench as he heard Lieutenant Winters shout, "Let's go; let's go; follow me!" He saw him charge straight at the trench, followed closely by Popeye, Joe Toye, and Lorraine.

As they ran, the Kraut machine guns across the field began to send rounds cracking overhead. Some ripped up the turf right at Winters group's feet.

Winters leaped into the trench. Suddenly Popeye gave a cry of pain and fell into the trench as well. Joe Toye and Lorraine leaped in a split second later.

Fry couldn't see much other than an occasional bobbing helmet or the report of an M-1 or some other weapon. It was clear that Winters was leading some men against the first gun. Petty and Plesha were both concentrating their fire on the first gun as well to keep the gunners heads down.

Three black objects sailed through the sky toward the first gun. "Grenades!" Fry thought. They detonated in rapid succession, Boom! Boom! Boom!

Again, screams and shouts came from the position. Petty and Plesha lifted their fire from the first gun to avoid hitting their own men and began to concentrate on the other guns in the battery.

Four Germans ran from the position, heading across the field. As they left, Guarnere, Winters and Lorraine entered the position and started shooting. Lorraine and Guarnere each shot one, while Winters killed two.

Winters spoke to Guarnere and Lorraine, pointing across the field. Then he ran back up the trench toward the second gun. Suddenly, Malarkey jumped out of the trench and ran over to the dead Germans. As Fry would later find out, he was looking for a Luger pistol to send home to his kid brother.

The fire slackened from both sides. Liebgott said, "They must think he's some kind of medic." A split second later, everyone could hear Winters bellow, "Malarkey, get back here. This area is lousy with Krauts!"

As Malarkey leaped up, every German in the area seemed to open up on him. Plumes of dirt sprouted up all around him from near misses, but he miraculously made it back to the trench unhurt.

Hendrix turned to Leela with a big grin and said, "Damned fools, the Irish! But by sweet Jesus they are lucky!"

Leela was watching the men assemble in the MG-42 position, preparing to assault the second gun. Buck Compton shouted, "Grenade…roll out!" Everyone rolled out of the trench except Joe Toye.

A loud explosion followed by a fountain of dirt temporarily hid Joe from view. As soon as the noise died, everyone rolled back into the trench. They dusted Toye off, who was shaking his head and saying something that Leela couldn't hear.

After a few seconds, with Guarnere in the lead, Winters and Compton charged down the trench toward the second gun.

Vicinity of the German Battery, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 1011 Hours

On the right, Lipton climbed down from his tree and turned to Ranney and said, "Let's go." They both crawled off for the trench, staying low because of the German rounds zipping overhead. Bender simply stayed where he was.

Leela watched as Lipton and Ranney began to crawl forward. Hearing the roar of grenade explosions, she turned her head to look at the second gun. About half a dozen Germans were standing in a group with their hands in the air, while Winters, Compton and Guarnere were busy disarming them. Within a few moments, the Germans headed for the rear, with their hands still in the air.

Hendrix said, "Hey, Dorothy! A little help here?"

Startled at first, Leela turned her attention to taking a belt of ammunition from its can.

Fry was watching as well until Liebgott said, "Red, break open a can of ammo."

Fry opened one of the metal cans and handed it to Liebgott. Before he could look at the action again, he saw a German standing only 20 yards away. Then something landed with a "thunk" among Liebgott, Petty, and him. He realized in horror that the German had thrown a hand grenade.

Petty and Liebgott were looking at it as well, their faces showing their shock. For Fry, everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. He was closest to the grenade, so he grabbed it and threw it back at the German.

The grenade detonated just as the German picked it up to throw it back. The roar of the grenade died away and the German lay there, bloody and not moving.

Liebgott punched Fry in the shoulder, "Way to go, Red. Nice pitching arm!"

With that, Liebgott turned back to working the machine gun. Petty continued to send measured burst of fire at any German who showed himself.

Fry sat staring at the German. He had killed a man! Unable to control himself, Fry vomited in the grass, trying not to let Liebgott and Petty see him.

Meanwhile, Lipton and Ranney reached the second gun position. Within a few moments, Lipton crawled out, obviously heading back to get Bender. At the same time, two other soldiers, one of whom Leela recognized as John Hall, arrived in the position.

Leela watched as they attacked the third gun. Hall charged up the trench, with Winters on the outside on his right and Compton and Guarnere outside on the left. Firing and throwing grenades as they went, they reached the third gun within seconds.

Just as they entered the gun position, she saw Hall stagger backwards and fall to the ground. "Oh my God," she thought, "I saw the dust fly off his jacket when he was hit." She looked away to see Lipton reach the location where Bender still lay.

Lipton was about as pissed off as he had ever been. Uncharacteristically, he roared at Bender, "What the hell were you waiting for Tin Man? An invitation?"

Bender looked at him and said in a very sarcastic tone, "Yeah, coffin stuffer, an invitation would be nice."

Lipton shoved his rifle against Bender's head, "If Lieutenant Winters didn't want you alive and kicking, I'd finish you off right here and now. Now crawl over to where I just came from. We need that demolition kit you're carrying."

Bender thought of making a smart remark, but one look at Lipton's face convinced him to start crawling. Better to take a chance of being hit by the Germans than to face a certain bullet in the head from Lipton!

As Lipton and Bender inched their way back across the open ground, the soldier who had accompanied Hall arrived at Petty's machine gun, "The Lieutenant wants you should bring your guns forward to the second and third gun positions."

Petty nodded and the soldier scooted rearward, apparently headed for Battalion Headquarters. Petty turned to Fry, who had finally stopped vomiting, "Red, crawl over to Plesha and let him know the score. Tell him to displace his gun as soon as he can to the third gun position. We'll cover him. When he gets set up, we'll move and he'll cover us, got it?"

Fry nodded and crawled off toward the position. Liebgott watched him as he reached the position, spoke to Plesha, and then crawled back.

Plesha turned to Hendrix and Leela, "We'll cover the ground using five second rushes. I've got the gun; Hendrix, you've got the tripod; and Dorothy, you've got the ammo. Any questions?"

When no one spoke, Hendrix extracted the ammunition belt, Plesha hefted the gun, careful not to burn his fingers on the barrel. Leela grabbed the last remaining can of ammunition. They all came to a crouch.

"Let's go," roared Plesha. They covered the field in a series of five second rushes. Run like the devil for five seconds, then drop. Crawl a few feet, lungs burning, and leap to your feet again. Run another five seconds, then drop, crawl, and repeat.

For Leela, this seemed to go on forever. Bullets zipped overhead and ploughed up little fountains of dirt all around them. Miraculously, they made it!

They set up their gun quickly and began firing at the Germans. Leela felt her heart seem to stop as she saw Fry running toward the trench along with Petty and Liebgott. They had a much shorter distance to cover. They entered the trench near the MG-42 position and used it to cover their movement to the second gun. Within minutes, they were firing as well.

Vicinity of the German Battery, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 1020 Hours

Bender and Lipton were pinned down. Lipton realized that, in spite of the fatigue jacket Bender was wearing, he drew attention from the Germans across the field. They were unable to make any headway against the torrent of machine gun and rifle fire that chewed the ground up around them.

Lipton thought for a moment and shouted to Bender, "Tin Man, we're going to have to back up and crawl to the trench near gun number one. There's a slight depression there we can use for cover. If we lay here much longer, some Kraut is going to get the idea of dropping some mortar rounds down our throats. Understand?"

Bender answered, "I understand we need to get out of here, meat bag. Lead the way!"

They turned slowly around, keeping low, and began to slowly scoot on their bellies toward the relative safety of the trench.

Lieutenant Winters had gone to the rear to find reinforcements and ammunition. He was soon back, looking very angry. With him was a Private that Leela thought was named Hicks.

Leela overheard Winters tell Compton with some heat in his voice, "I sent a runner telling them to send ammo and reinforcements and they were sitting on their behinds looking at the maps we captured!'

Buck laughed, "I take it you let them know you were not happy?"

Winters smiled, the angry look leaving his face, "You might say that. Captain Hester will be forward soon with what we need to take that fourth gun. I hate doing a job half way."

As if on cue, Captain Clarence Hester, the Battalion Operations Officer (S-3), crawled up to the position. He was lugging a demolition kit. Behind him were a Lieutenant and four men laden down with boxes and bandoliers of ammunition.

Winters turned to Compton and said, "Buck, get this issued out as quickly as you can."

The Lieutenant who had just arrived said, "Lieutenant Winters, mind if Fox Company takes that gun?"

Winters smiled and said, "Be my guest, Lieutenant Spiers."

Spiers turned to the men who had come with him, "Sergeant Houch, Hicks, come with me. Taylor, you take DiMarzio and follow us to lay down a base of fire. Let's go Fox Company!"

With that Spiers high crawled toward the fourth gun, flanked by Houch and Hicks.

Once within grenade range, Houch rose to throw a grenade. A German rose from the gun position and shot Houch dead. The grenade dropped from his hand, exploding a few feet away, wounding Hicks.

Spiers rose and charged into the position, firing his Thompson submachine gun with deadly accuracy into the gun position. No one who had remained up to that point escaped alive as thirty rounds of .45 caliber ammunition tore into them.

As Spiers was leading the charge against the position, Leela watched as Winters and Hester destroyed the barrels of the first three guns by stuffing them with explosives and then following that with a grenade. It all took less than five minutes. Stuff, grenade, bang!

Winters could see Spiers waving from the position, signaling that it was in friendly hands. At that moment, Bender and Lipton arrived at the third gun position.

"Sorry it took so long to get here with the TNT," Lipton said apologetically. He had seen that the first three guns were already taken care of, a fact which caused him to want to shoot Bender.

Winters merely said in a calm voice, "Head over to the fourth position and blow that gun for Lieutenant Spiers. Then meet us at the rally point."

"Yes, sir. Come on Tin Man, let's go." Lipton and Bender moved off toward the fourth gun, keeping low in the trench.

Lieutenant Winters turned to Lieutenant Compton, "Buck, let's pull out to the rally point. You lead the men out. The machine guns will withdraw last. I'll give them the word when to withdraw myself. Questions?"

Buck shook his head.

"Okay, let's move out."

Buck headed down the trench to begin the withdrawal.

Winters tapped Plesha on the helmet. When Plesha looked at him, Winters said, "Burn it up Walt. Give our guys covering fire."

Plesha began to squeeze off long bursts of .30 caliber toward the German positions. Within a few seconds, Petty began to do the same.

Less than a minute passed before Winters turned to Plesha and said, "Cease fire and fall back to the rally point."

Without waiting to see if his orders were obeyed, he set off down the trench toward Petty's gun.

"Come on, Dorothy!" Hendrix said, "Let's haul ass back to the rally point."

Lugging their gear, they headed for the rally point as they could go.

The Rally Point, Vicinity of the German Battery, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 1050 Hours

Lieutenant Winters checked to make sure everyone from Easy Company was present. "Popeye" Wynn was absent, having been wounded early in the fight. Everyone else was there, a bit winded, but elated at the same time.

Captain Hester, who had withdrawn with the company, looked at Winters, "Dick, keep those Krauts busy. I'm going back to see if any more of Easy Company has shown up. If they have, I'll send them forward."

Winters smiled at his friend, "Thanks. If you see anything else that might help us clean them out, will you send it forward?"

"Sure, Dick. Once you feel you've cleared them out, the battalion is pushing on the Sainte Marie-du-Mont."

"Okay."

With that, Captain Hester moved in a crouch toward battalion headquarters. As he moved, a German MG-42 sent a stream of lead his way, ripping into a hedgerow just a few inches from his position. He dove through the hedgerow and was lost from sight.

Winters called out, "Anybody spot that gun?"

Malarkey answered, "Yes sir, it's right next to the Manor house, about one thumb to the right in that outbuilding."

Winters looked and saw that Guarnere and Malarkey were already setting up a 60mm mortar to seal with the problem. Winters knew it was capable of throwing a three pound antipersonnel high explosive round for around 2000 yards. He also knew that Guarnere and Malarkey were naturals with the mortar.

The only problem he could see was that they had no sight or base plate for the mortar. This meant that they would have to rely on eyesight to direct the rounds. They would also need to dig the mortar out once it fired a few rounds, as the recoil of the tube would cause it to bury itself in the ground.

Guarnere turned to Fry, "Hey Red, see those cardboard tubes stacked over there?"

Fry looked, saw them, and nodded. He remembered that everyone had carried two of them and dropped them off, along with the mortar, at the rally point.

"Bring me a couple, will you?"

Fry ran, hunched over as he had seen everyone else move, to where the containers were stacked. He grabbed two and brought them to Guarnere.

Guarnere looked him in the eye and said, "Nice job back there with Petty and Liebgott. Joe won't shut up about it. Here, let me show you how to unpack a mortar round."

Fry watched as Guarnere opened the cardboard tube and extracted a round. It looked like a shiny rocket ship, but somehow it seemed to radiate danger.

Guarnere said, "Now pay attention. Under no circumstances do you bang the nose of this baby on anything hard. If you do, the next time it even brushes anything, BOOM! Got that?"

Fry nodded.

"Great! Now go bring the rest of the rounds over here and unpack about a half dozen. Malarkey and me are gonna give that friggin Kraut machine gunner a headache."

Guarnere turned to sighting the mortar tube. Once he was satisfied, he said, "She's all yours Don."

Malarkey took the first round, prepared it for firing, and dropped the round down the tube. When the round reached the bottom, it struck the firing pin. "Whoom! The explosive charges at the base detonated and the round sailed out of the tube.

Fry, who was unprepared for the blast, nearly dropped one of the rounds he had just unpacked. Guarnere was watching the second hand on his watch, "Three, two, one…now!"

Just as Guarnere said, "Now!" the mortar round exploded within a few feet of the machine gun position. A second later, the sound of the round detonating rolled over their position.

Within three minutes, Malarkey and Guarnere aided by Fry pumped sixteen rounds onto the German position. Somewhere in the process, they killed the crew and wrecked the position.

As the last explosion died away, Fry felt somewhat elated. He had unpacked sixteen rounds without a screw up. Guarnere and Malarkey had even shown him some respect. And that machine gun wasn't going to bother anyone anymore.

Within a few minutes of the destruction of the MG-42, a Lieutenant arrived with around thirty men. He moved to where Winters was sitting, talking to Lipton, "Hey Dick, I brought a few more of the boys for the cleanup."

Winters stood and shook the Lieutenant's hand, "Good to see you, Harry. Let me give you the lay of the land."

The Rally Point, Vicinity of the German Battery, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 1120 Hours

As Winters and Harry were discussing a plan of action, the squeal of tank tracks and the roar of engines could be heard coming from the direction of battalion headquarters. Two minutes later, a Sherman tank nosed around the corner, with Lieutenant Nixon riding on the deck, talking to the tank commander who was standing half out of the turret hatch. Right behind the first tank was a second Sherman tank.

The tanks pulled up with a roar and ground to a halt, their engines idling loudly. The smell of engine exhaust drifted over the area, causing Leela to cough. Nixon hopped down and said, "Colonel Strayer thought you might be able to use these to good effect."

"Well Nix, It beats the heck out of risking paratroopers."

Winters hopped up on the tank and spoke to the commander for a moment, then dismounted. He gave the hand and arm signal for all officers and NCOs to come to him. Everyone responded quickly.

"Alright, here's what we do. The tanks will move up to the positions we used to launch our assault this morning. Buck, you take a squad and accompany the first tank. Keep them from getting torched by any Kraut antitank weapons. Harry, you take a squad with the second tank…same drill.

We will use North as twelve o'clock. Tank one will take from 12 to 6 going counterclockwise. Tank two will work from 12 to 6 clockwise. I'll ride on tank one to make sure they do a thorough job. Questions?"

No one spoke.

"Okay then, let's move out."

In around ten minutes, everyone was in position. Leela, Fry and Bender watched as the tanks clanked forward to their positions. The tank commanders stood in their turret, manning their .50 caliber machine guns. Inside the tanks and hidden from view, their gunners manned the .30 caliber machine guns.

The full throated roar of two .50 caliber machine guns was augmented by the staccato chatter of the .30 calibers.

Fry borrowed a set of binoculars to watch the action. "God!" he thought, "Nothing could live through that!" Trees were cut in half, branches fell like rain, and dirt flew everywhere as the tanks systematically chewed up the German positions.

In another ten minutes it was over. The tanks clanked by, headed for a resupply at the beach. Winters and the two squads returned. After a few moments rest, Winters collared Buck and Harry.

Leela was sitting nearby trying to be inconspicuous and heard him explain to Harry about Easy Company's "guests." Harry listened with apparent amusement. Then Winters switched to tactical matters.

"Okay, our destination is Sainte Marie du Mont. We don't have enough men to make up three full platoons. Harry, you take half of the riflemen as first platoon. Buck, you'll take the other half as second platoon. The heavy weapons, both mortars and machine guns, will travel with me. Our guests will travel with heavy weapons as well. Order of march is first platoon, heavy weapons, and second platoon. We'll use the road as much as we can. Our traveling formation will be tactical column on the road. We'll use the platoon wedge crossing danger areas. Move out in ten minutes. Questions?"

Neither Harry nor Buck spoke.

"Okay, then let's get going."

Outside Sainte Marie du Mont, Normandy, France, June 6, 1944 2000 Hours

Easy Company had settled into position in a hedgerow just outside of the town prior to sundown. Soldiers who had been separated from the Company continued to trickle in. There were close to one hundred men assembled, although the Company Commander, 1LT Meehan, and First Sergeant Evans hadn't shown up. So Lieutenant Winters was still company commander.

Lieutenant Winters had told Leela, Fry, and Bender to stay with the Weapons Platoon. Looking at Guarnere he said, "Bill, you're responsible for our guests tonight." Guarnere had merely nodded and answered, "Yes sir."

As each new person joined the platoon, Liebgott would launch into his story of the fight. He would always pause dramatically when he related how the German grenade landed next to the machine gun.

Then he would say, "I was sure that Mrs. Liebgott was going to get one of those letters about how her dear Joseph died heroically, when old Red here snatches that friggin grenade. Cool as a cucumber, he threw it back…nailed that Kraut right in the chest with it! BOOM, bye-bye Kraut boy!"

He would then laugh and pound Fry on the back, "Good old Red, you should've been a paratrooper!"

Fry found himself half believing he had done something heroic. But every time his mind turned to the mangled corpse of that German, he felt his stomach churn. "No," he decided, "I'd never be a good paratrooper."

Leela watched Fry as Liebgott told the story over and over. She knew Fry well enough to sense he felt anything but heroic. Still he had saved the lives of two other men…that was something.

Guarnere came up to her, "Hey Dorothy, want some chow?" When she looked puzzled, he laughed, "You know, chow, something to eat."

She smiled, "Yes, I'm really hungry. Good Lord, I haven't eaten all day."

Guarnere handed her what looked like a large chocolate bar. "Try this. It's called a D Ration. They taste pretty good, even if they are filled with lots of vitamins. We sent a couple of our best scroungers out to find something tastier than rations. If they don't come back soon, I'll share my K Ration with you."

Leela had already eaten half of the D Ration but managed to mumble, "No thanks, this is great."

When she finished the D Ration, she looked around and noticed Bender was missing. "Sergeant Guarnere," she asked with some concern in her voice, "have you seen Bender?"

"Who?"

"Tin Man."

"Oh, he went off with More to see if they could find something a little stronger than K Ration lemonade powder, if you know what I mean."

Leela nodded, "Bender…I mean Tin Man needs alcohol to survive. He gets really crazy without it."

Guarnere chuckled, "Me too."

Don Malarkey loomed up in the darkness, "Hey, I got us some beef."

"Great!" Guarnere responded, "Get an ammo can and we'll cook it."

While Malarkey hustled off to cook the beef, Leela looked over at Fry. She felt a little guilty at having gobbled down the entire D Ration, but she saw that Liebgott had given Fry a K Ration, which he was busy consuming. He saw her looking at him and stopped eating, "Hey, Liebgott, give me another K Ration for Dorothy."

Liebgott pulled one from a box he had "liberated" from supply and tossed it to Fry. "Eat hearty, for tomorrow…who knows?"

Leela smiled as Fry walked over with a K Ration, "Leela, do you want a K Ration? They're really not that bad."

"Thanks Fry, but Guarnere just gave me a monster candy bar. I think he called it a D Ration."

"Oh yeah, Liebgott told me about them. Never eat more than one, or you'll be on the toilet for a good while!"

"Fry!"

"Sorry."

Leela looked at Fry closely. In the faint light, he looked tired and somehow different. "Maybe it's just that I'm so tired," she thought.

"Leela, aren't these some great guys?"

Startled by the question she took a few seconds to answer, "Yes, I don't believe I've ever met a better or braver set of men…especially Lieutenant Winters and Bill Guarnere."

Lieutenant Winters' voice sounded from the darkness, "Thanks, be sure to tell Colonel Sink when you see him."

He loomed up out of the darkness and took a seat on the ground next to Leela and Fry. He looked tired, but still alert.

"Listen," he said in his normal calm voice, "we are only a few miles from your ship. Colonel Sink wants us to secure your landing area, get you on board, and see you on your way. He thinks that you being here might disturb history if you stay too long."

Leela spoke up, "Lieutenant, we're grateful for all you have done so far."

He nodded, "That's okay, but we still have to get to your ship. Just stick with the weapons platoon and stay close to Sergeant Guarnere. Don't do anything rash, okay?"

Both responded, "Okay," simultaneously.

Just then, Bender came in with Private Alton More. They were lugging a large cask of Calvados, the local firewater. "Drinks for everyone!" Bender said with a laugh.

Outside Sainte Marie du Mont, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 0500 Hours

Leela felt someone gently shaking her foot and saying, "Dorothy, wake up." She sat upright, tossing off the poncho that Guarnere had put over her when she fell asleep.

Leela looked and saw that it was Bill Guarnere who was trying to get her up. "What's up Sergeant Guarnere?" she asked.

"We're moving out in about an hour or so. I thought you might want some coffee."

Leela gave Guarnere her best smile, "Thanks, Bill."

Guarnere handed her his canteen cup, which was half filled with dark hot coffee. She sipped the steaming liquid, which was so strong it gave her a rush. She took a second sip and handed it back to him.

"Want to share a K Ration? I got some ham and eggs already cooked up. It ain't much, but it's better than starving."

"Sure, Bill. Thanks."

Leela looked over and saw that Fry was still sleeping on the ground next to Liebgott and Petty. All three were snoring, which struck her as funny.

She smiled and Guarnere said, "They look like the Three Stooges, don't they?"

"Who?" she asked with a confused look on her face.

"You know, the Three Stooges…Moe, Larry and Curly!"

Suddenly her face brightened, she remembered seeing a Three Stooges episode when she was in the Orphanarium, "Oh Yeah!" She gave a short laugh, "Come to think of it, they do look a lot like them."

Bill handed her his mess kit, into which he had placed better than half of the ration, and a spoon, "Eat up, you can't keep up on an empty stomach." He produced a second spoon from his right jacket pocket and began to eat what was left of the ration out of the can.

She enjoyed eating the chopped ham and eggs and the biscuit actually tasted pretty good, too. They split the fruit bar and D Ration chocolate. Bill said, "Keep the D Ration in your pocket. You never can tell when we'll get to eat again."

She nodded, "Bill, when are you going to wake the Three Stooges?"

He glanced at his watch, "Right now, thanks for reminding me." He walked over and tapped the sole of Liebgott's boot with the toe of his boot, "Hey Joe, you lazy bastard. Get up. We're moving out in less than half an hour."

Liebgott came up to a sitting position, "Petty, Red, let's shake a leg. We're moving out in a half hour."

Petty sat up and rubbed his eyes. Fry turned over on his side and mumbled, "Just five more minutes, Mom."

Petty shook his head and laughed. Then he yanked the poncho off Fry and said, "Come on Sleeping Beauty. We got a date with some Krauts. Get your lazy ass up." Both Petty and Liebgott laughed as though Petty had just uttered a penetrating witticism.

Fry sat up slowly, looking bleary eyed and confused. He ran his hand through his hair and shook his head. He had come to the edge of getting truly hammered on the Calvados that Bender and More had brought back. It tasted like apple cider, but it had a kick!

Liebgott was already brewing coffee. Fry could smell the aroma and asked, "Hey Liebgott, is that coffee I smell?"

Liebgott smiled and shot back, "Well, the Army says it is. Do you want some?"

Fry said, "Please!"

"Help Petty get our gear ready and I'll fix us a quick breakfast."

Fry went to work with Petty, rolling up the ponchos, packing the musette bags, and making sure the machine gun, tripod and ammo were ready to go. When they finished, they sat down together and consumed the three K Rations and two canteen cups of coffee Liebgott had prepared.

They finished up and began to don their equipment. No one had passed the word yet, but everyone knew they wouldn't have long to wait before they moved out.

They were right.

Outside Sainte Marie du Mont, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 0600 Hours

Leela was sitting nearby when Winters briefed the assembled officers. "Here's the deal. We don't know what's in the town. Strayer thinks it's empty, but I'm not willing to take any chances. Order of march will be First Platoon, followed by Second, mortars, and then Third Platoon."

"If we meet any resistance, Harry take your platoon to the left of the road. Buck, you deploy to the right. Lieutenant Rousch, you are in reserve with the mortars. We move out in five minutes, questions?"

"Good, get your men assembled."

Easy Company assembled on the road. They were leading the 2nd Battalion's advance to Vierville, a small town about 1000 meters away from their position. Two hours prior, the 1st Battalion had cleared the village of light resistance, with the aid of a few tanks. But no one knew for certain what lay ahead.

At Lieutenant Winter's orders, Fry, Leela, and Bender were traveling with the mortars. Fry was irritated that he wasn't moving with his buddies, Liebgott and Petty.

Guarnere had absolutely refused to listen to any arguments to the contrary, "The Lieutenant wants them to travel with the mortars and that is it. Now quit bothering me and get your asses over to Second Platoon. You're supporting them today."

Petty and Liebgott stalked off, muttering to themselves. Fry continued to protest, but Guarnere just ignored him.

Bender spoke up, "Fry, you're an idiot for wanting to risk your neck any closer to the shooting than necessary."

Fry shot back angrily, "What the hell would you know? Those guys are my friends. I know it's dangerous, but so what? Like the screwy missions we go on aren't dangerous?"

Bender replied, "Hey Meat Bag, I just wanted to remind you of the dangers."

Guarnere broke in, "Close your pie holes, guys. We're moving out. Dorothy, Tin Man and Red, travel with Don Malarkey's gun. When the s**t hits the fan, help to break out ammo. Keep low and don't take any chances, got it?"

Before anyone could answer, Guarnere called out, "Mortars, saddle up!"

Two platoons were already on the road, spread out with a 5 meter interval between each man. The mortars fell in, followed by Third Platoon. Once everyone was in place, they began to move toward their objective, the village of Vierville.

For the first 800 meters all was relatively quiet. The occasional "Crump" of distant artillery and staccato chatter of distant small arms fire echoed across the battlefield. The sickly sweet smell of a dead cow, laying rigidly in death on it's back drifted across the road as well. Leela and Fry both fought their gag reflex as the smell wafted by their nostrils.

When the lead squad of First Platoon cleared a hedgerow that cut the road parallel to the edge of town, an MG 42 opened up from a small outbuilding at the edge of town.

Their shooting was dismal, missing the squad and causing no casualties. Like a well oiled machine, Easy Company deployed just as Lieutenant Winters had ordered.

The volume of fire began to build as two platoons of paratroops and four .30 caliber machine guns began to rake the buildings closest to the hedgerow. The Germans, who turned out to be from the 1st Battalion, 6th Fallschirmjaeger (Paratroop) Regiment, were returning fire as well.

Guarnere turned to the mortars and shouted, "Deploy along this ditch. Malarkey is base gun. Target is the outbuilding with the Machine Gun, azimuth one-six-zero degrees, distance three-zero-zero yards. Fire two rounds HE Quick on my command."

The mortars set up in under three minutes. Fry quickly showed Leela and Bender how to unpack the mortar ammo. Then they feverishly began to unpack rounds for the guns.

Malarkey sighted his mortar by direct lay, simply pointing it at the target. The other gunners took his cue and did the same.

When all was ready Malarkey shouted, "Guns up!"

The other gunners followed suit.

Guarnere barked out, "Fire!"

All three mortars fired nearly simultaneously. Their shells described a lazy arc high into the air and came down all around the outbuilding.

Dirty grey smoke and flying debris filled the air. The explosions were so close together they seemed to be just one long, "Boom!"

Even before the explosions died away, the second set of rounds were on their way. They struck with devastating effect as well. The MG-42 fell silent for the rest of the fight.

While all of this was going on, Dog Company deployed to the left of Easy Company and Fox Company deployed to the right. Soon the entire battalion was firing at the Germans, who were well dug in.

Through the midmorning both sides exchanged fire without much effect. It looked like a stalemate, until three Sherman tanks clanked into the firing line. Wanting to keep out of Panzerfaust (the German Bazooka) range, the Shermans deployed near the mortars.

The Germans fired small arms at them, which only annoyed the crews. The turret of the Sherman closest to where Leela and Fry were unpacking ammo swiveled toward a stone building that had resisted the best efforts of the mortars to silence a machine gun housed there.

The cannon fired, "BOOM!" Fry and Leela, caught unawares nearly dropped the rounds they were holding. The other two Shermans opened up as well, blasting gaping holes in the sides of the closest buildings. Dirt, smoke and debris flew everywhere. Some of the buildings began to burn.

The cannons continued to roar and the German fire began to slacken. Emboldened by the lack of German fire, the tank commanders climbed out and began to use their .50 caliber machine guns on the buildings as well.

After fifteen minutes of unremitting pounding, they could see Germans trying to flee the village. They were almost all cut down before they got fifty yards.

The Shermans ceased fire and Dog Company entered the village. There was little firing as the Germans were more interested in surrendering than fighting. The Shermans had tipped the scales.

Guarnere turned to the mortars, "Okay, saddle up. We've still got a job to do, unless I miss my guess."

Vierville, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 1100 Hours

Easy Company entered Vierville in a tactical column. The first two platoons worked down the main street, methodically clearing the buildings on each side of the street. First Platoon took the right side of the street, while Second Platoon took the left.

Third Platoon moved up to the edge of town as a reserve.

The mortars halted in a ditch just outside of village, preparing to provide covering fire as needed. After about twenty minutes, a runner brought back a message that all was clear.

Guarnere looked at the mortars, "Okay, get off your dead asses and onto your dying feet. We need to clear the town so we can cover our next advance."

The crews quickly broke their mortars down and prepared to move. Fry, Leela and Bender shouldered their burden of mortar rounds.

Bender as usual was complaining, "Lousy stinkin' mortar rounds…why do I have to carry them?"

Fry chimed in, "They are kind of heavy, but we need to do our part."

Bender shot back, "What the hell is wrong with you? Can't you even complain anymore, Flesh Wad?"

Leela waded in, "Bender, you just don't get it. If we were turned over to the authorities, I'm sure they'd cheerfully dismantle you. God knows what they'd do to Fry and me."

Bender sneered, "So what's your point?"

Guarnere cut in, "The point's on your head, Tin Man. Now shut your yap and let's move out."

Bender was readying a cutting reply when he looked at Guarnere. He saw the same look he had seen in Sergeant Lipton's eyes at Brecourt Manor. He just mumbled something and shouldered his load of mortar rounds.

"How do you put up with that salty bastard, Dorothy?"

"It's not easy Bill, but he is our friend."

They moved through the center of the village and right to the outskirts. Guarnere stopped the mortars near a barn. He looked the barn over with a critical eye, like a prospective tenant.

"Okay, listen up. This is going to be the temporary Mortar Command Post. That loft gives a good view of the surrounding countryside. We'll stack the reserve ammunition here until I can see what's next."

Guarnere walked off toward where Lieutenant Winters was standing, conferring with the Platoon leaders.

Most of the men went into the barn and sat down. Bender went in the barn as well. Leela was fascinated by a cow that was placidly chewing grass not far away.

"Fry," she asked with a tone of wonder, "is that a real cow?"

Fry was surprised for a moment, but he remembered that cows had been extinct for a long time in the 30th Century.

"Yes Leela. That is a cow."

The cow was grazing among several German bodies sprawled in a ditch. Fry looked at the young men as they lay on the ground in all sorts of crazy attitudes. He felt sorry for them. He was about to see if any of them were alive, when one suddenly came to a kneeling position.

Before he could speak, Fry saw him pull a stick grenade from his belt and pull the cord at the base. He heard the pop and saw the grenade fly end over end, until it landed directly behind Leela. She was so preoccupied by the cow that she did not see or hear the grenade.

Fry threw himself at Leela shouting, "Grenade!"

He tackled her with such force that they slammed to the ground. He clutched her close, willing his body to cover hers.

The grenade detonated with a roar. Fry briefly felt pain. Then everything went black.

Leela was stunned and confused by the concussion. She stood up and shook Fry off of her, "What's wrong with you, Fry? Why did you knock me down? What was that noise?"

She looked at Fry lying on the ground. He looked like he was asleep.

"Come on Fry, get up." Leela bent over and shook him. She tried to get him on his feet, but she lost her grip and he flipped over onto his face. It was then that she saw the blood.

"Medic!" Leela screamed over and over.

Eugene Roe came running up and looked down at the shrapnel torn, bleeding body. He could see that Fry was still breathing, "Calm down and help me Dorothy. Go get Doc Neavles. Hurry!"

Leela ran off into the village, while Eugene turned his attention to his patient.

Vierville, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 1200 Hours

Guarnere had spun around when he heard Fry's shout and saw the grenade detonate. Before anyone else could move Shifty Powers slammed his rifle into his shoulder and put two shots into the kneeling German.

As Leela screamed "Medic!" Guarnere ran for the spot where Fry lay wounded.

Doc Roe beat him there. Guarnere heard the hurried conversation between Doc Roe and Leela. They passed each other as Bill ran up.

"Anything I can do Doc?"

"Hang loose, I'll let you know."

Doc Roe turned his attention to Fry. He did a preliminary assessment. Fragmentation wounds to the left shoulder, back, buttocks and thighs. Damn! Fry was breathing okay and he didn't seem to be bleeding too badly.

He rolled Fry over to check for exit wounds. There were none. "Good," Roe thought, "maybe this isn't too bad."

Fry began to stir and groan.

Roe shook him a bit, "Hey Red, talk to me."

"Ow! My whole back hurts."

"Listen, I'm going to roll you onto your stomach so I can get the metal out of you. You've got some grenade fragments in you."

"Is Leela Okay?"

"Who?"

"Dorothy."

"Oh, she's fine." He took his scissors from his aid bag and began to cut away the uniform that covered the wounds. He turned to Guarnere, "Sergeant Guarnere, could you get me some clean water to wash the blood off with?"

"Sure, Doc can do."

As he examined the wounds he was able to count eleven. On ten of them, he could see that the fragments were still partially sticking out.

Guarnere came up with a canteen, "This should be clean Doc. It was in me haversack all the way from England."

Roe smiled, "Great. Thanks."

He cleaned the wounds off and saw that they had mostly stopped bleeding. He pulled out a set of tweezers from his aid bag, "Hey Red, I'm going to pull some of this stuff out of you. Okay?"

"Go ahead, Doc."

Roe went to work and quickly got the ten fragments out, just as Leela returned with Doc Neavles.

Neavles, who was the senior medic, asked Roe, "What's up?"

"Well, I've pulled ten out of eleven fragments out of him. The only one I can't see is up under his left scapula…I think. His pulse is good and he hasn't lost too much blood. A little sulfa, some stitches and I think he'll recover."

Leela, who was standing by, began to weep silently with relief when she heard Roe's prognosis.

Neavles asked, "You want to try to get the other fragment? It could turn septic and we can't send him back to the hospital."

Roe thought for a moment before he answered, "Sure. Colonel Sink wants him to go home to his own time, not die here."

Roe looked at Fry, "Hey Red, we're going to dig out the last piece of grenade from your back. I'm going to give you a shot for the pain, Okay?"

"Okay."

Roe pulled out a morphine ampoule and administered it to Fry. Within a few moments, it took effect.

Roe and Neavles went to work, swiftly cutting out the fragment which had lodged just below the surface. They quickly sprinkled sulfa powder on his wounds and sewed him up.

Only once they were done with their tasks did Doc Roe turn to Leela, "Dorothy, he's going to be fine. By tomorrow, he'll be able to move around without much difficulty. We're going to move him into the barn. You watch him until the morphine wears off. Make sure he doesn't choke on his vomit if he should throw up, Okay?"

Leela nodded while blinking back tears, "Thanks Doc."

"All in a days work, Dorothy. All in a days work."

Vierville, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 1400 Hours

Leela sat in the cool of the barn by Fry, watching his every move. Liebgott and Petty were nearby as well. Once they had heard that Fry was wounded, they convinced Guarnere to let the pull security for the barn.

Alton More has rustled up a new uniform for Fry, as well as a stretcher for him to lie on. Bender had gone out to find some Calvados, which he did, and promptly drank all but one small bottle. "This is for Fry," he said as he tucked it away in his chest cavity with a flourish.

Fry gave a moan and everyone in the barn turned their eyes on him. Leela asked, "Fry, do you need something?"

Fry's mouth felt as though it was full of cotton. "Water," he croaked.

Leela looked at the watch Bill Guarnere had given her. Doc Roe had said no water until 1400. The watch read 1400 exactly.

"Okay, let me get you a canteen."

Joe Liebgott hopped up and brought one of his canteens over. He unscrewed the cap and handed it to Fry, "Here you go, buddy. Just sip it."

Fry felt a little better after the drink, but then another pressing need came to his mind. Leela could see he was uncomfortable, "What do you need Fry?"

"Uh, I have to go to the little boy's room."

Leela covered her mouth to stifle a laugh.

Joe Liebgott said, "I think that's my department. Come on Petty, let's help Red outside."

Petty came over and the two helped Fry to his feet. As they did so, he gritted his teeth from pain, but refused to make a sound in front of his buddies. His wounds, though mostly superficial were stiff and painful.

He hobbled outside supported by Liebgott and Petty. After a few minutes, Leela heard a splashing sound, followed by Fry exclaiming, "Ah!"

When Fry came in, he found he couldn't look at Leela without blushing. Damn! He hated that. Why should a natural body function embarrass him?

Leela remembered something. Doc Roe had given her some pills for Fry to take. She fished them out of her jacket pocket and said, "Here Fry. Doc Roe said you should take these to fight off infection."

Fry reached out and took the pills. When their hands touched, her eye met his, and an electric current seemed to flow between them. She gave him a smile that set his body stirring.

Both Liebgott and Petty caught the look and grinned at each other. Liebgott flashed Fry the "thumbs up" sign.

Liebgott elbowed Petty, "Hey Petty, let's take a walk around the barn…make sure everything is secure. Tin Man, get off your mechanical behind and come with us."

Bender replied, "Why should I?"

Liebgott gave a crafty smile, "Because I know where there is a stash of good booze."

"I'm there!"

The three left the barn together. As they left Liebgott turned in the doorway and said to Leela, "See you in about an hour."

Fry, who was laying on his right side on the stretcher, was surprised to see Leela kneel by him. She cupped his head in her hands and gave him a long, soulful kiss. Fry felt as though his heart was going to leap out of his chest.

They broke off their kiss and Leela, her face only inches away from his, said, "Fry, you saved my life. How can I ever thank you?"

Fry blushed, "It was nothing. But maybe we could try going out together…once we get out of this mess?"

She smiled, "Yes Fry. I'd like that very much."

Much to both of their surprise he shouted, "Woo Hoo!"

Once they recovered from the shock, they shared a long laugh together.

When Liebgott, Petty, and Bender returned, Fry was lying on the stretcher on his stomach, sleeping soundly. Leela lay on the ground next to him, her right arm draped across his back.

Liebgott turned to Petty with a smile and said, "Ain't love grand?"

Vierville, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 1800 Hours

"Dorothy, wake up! We have to get moving."

Leela sat up on the barn floor, shaking her head to clear the cobwebs from her mind. Realizing that Petty had spoken she turned to him, "What time is it?"

"It's 1800," Petty replied. "The rest of the company headed for Angoville about an hour ago. We're going into reserve while we look for your ship. Doc Roe said to let Red sleep, but we have to catch up with them before dark. It's only a kilometer or so away."

The mention of Fry and the ship made her begin to hope that they would get home again. She turned to Fry. Shaking him gently, she said, "Fry it's time to go. Fry, are you awake?"

Fry mumbled, "Just ten more minutes, Mom."

Leela smiled, "It's Leela. Come on Fry, we have to go now."

His eyes opened slowly. When he saw Leela's smile, he remembered their passionate kisses before he fell asleep. He wondered if he had dreamed it all.

"Leela," he whispered, "did you say you'd go out with me before I fell asleep?"

"Yes Fry, I did."

His heart began to race, "Then I didn't dream it."

"No."

Liebgott came in from outside the barn, "Hey Red, do you think you can walk?"

Fry thought for a moment, "I'll try."

"Way to go, paratrooper!" Liebgott said.

Leela and Petty helped Fry to his feet. His shoulder hurt like the devil and his wounds were stiff and sore, but he was determined to walk.

Slowly, painfully, Fry shuffled out of the barn.

Leela folded and picked up the stretcher. She looked at Liebgott, "Just in case."

Liebgott nodded, "Good idea."

She glanced around to make sure they weren't leaving anything. She noticed the musette bag that Fry had been carrying. She picked it up and threw it over her shoulder.

Bender spoke up, "I'll carry that for you Leela."

At first she was ready to hand it to him. Then she realized that Bender just wanted to go through it for valuables, "No thanks, I'll carry it for him. There isn't much in it anyway."

"Suit yourself, Pork Pie."

As they left the barn, Leela could hear that the sounds of gunfire had receded into the distance a little. The dead Germans in the barnyard had begun to stink from lying in the summer sun. She fought her gag reflex and moved upwind as quickly as she could.

She watched Joe Liebgott, who was shouldering the machine gun as well as helping Fry limp painfully forward.

Petty cradled a rifle in his arms, keeping an eye open for any stray Germans.

Bender was carrying the tripod and a can of ammunition…unwillingly…but he was carrying it. Leela smiled to herself. She muttered under her breath, "I wonder how they got him to do some work?"

They walked slowly down the road for a little over an hour and a half before they entered Angoville. Sergeant Lipton happened to be at the point where they entered. He called out, "Hey Liebgott! Take our guests to the CP. It's right in the middle of town. You can't miss it."

Liebgott waved, "Okay Lip!"

After a few more minutes, they entered the largest house in town. In the living room were Lieutenants Winters, Compton, Welsh, and Rousch. They were all clustered around a map spread out on the table.

Liebgott spoke up, "Sir, I've brought Dorothy, Red and Tin Man."

Winters looked up and smiled, "Thanks, Joe. Why don't you get Sergeant Guarnere for me? He's at the south edge of the village in a white stone cottage."

"Yes, sir."

As Liebgott and Petty left, Winters turned to the PE Crew. He motioned them over to the table. When they were all there he said, "Based on what you've told me, the most likely location of your ship is," pointing at the map, "this small patch of woods here."

Leela nodded.

Winters continued, "We'll send out patrols after dark to make contact. Red is too banged up to wander around. Dorothy, I'd like you to go with the patrols and make contact with your people. Once we know where the ship is, we'll bring Red and Tin Man to the location."

Bender responded angrily, "Why can't I go?"

Winters looked at him with a raised eyebrow. In his normal, unruffled tone he replied, "Because your big mouth got everyone captured in the first place. So put a button on it until we get you safely aboard."

Bender considered responding with something sarcastic, but he knew that it wouldn't work. Instead he simply shrugged and went to sit on a chair in the corner of the room, mumbling to himself.

Leela spoke up, "What time do we leave?"

Winters looked at his watch and replied, "You leave at 2300."

Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 2000 Hours

Fry, Leela, and Bender were waiting with Sergeant Guarnere in the white stone cottage that was the Weapons CP. Fry was sleeping, sprawled out on the stretcher that Leela had thought to bring along. He had been utterly exhausted by the thousand yard walk, but he had neither complained nor asked for pity. Instead, he had simply gutted it out like a paratrooper.

His hair was matted with sweat and had fallen across his face. His uniform was darkened with sweat stains, as well as by a few blood stains where the bandages had soaked through. Comfortingly, his breathing was strong and regular.

Leela was sitting cross-legged on the floor next to Fry. She smiled as she looked as his sleeping form. She reached out and gently brushed back the hair that had fallen over his face. He moved slightly when she touched him, smiling in his sleep.

Bender was sitting in a corner, still sulking. Deep in his circuits, he wished he had done something brave like his friend Fry. "Oh well," he thought, "may as well go look for some booze."

Bender looked at Sergeant Guarnere, "Sergeant Guarnere, do you mind if I take More and look for some booze?"

Guarnere looked up from the map he had been studying, "No objection, as long as you stay away from the Krauts and share some with me."

Bender stood up straight and gave his best salute, "Can do, sir-de-sir-sir."

"Get the hell out of here…and don't call me sir! I work for a living."

Without comment, Bender left in search of his buddy, Private Alton More…the best scrounger in Easy Company.

Guarnere turned his attention to Leela, "Tell me, Dorothy are you going to miss us?"

Leela was a bit taken aback by the question. She paused for a few seconds before answering, "Yes, I'll miss Easy Company a great deal. But I won't miss the war at all."

Before they could pursue the question further, there was a knock at the front door. Guarnere called out, "Enter!"

Joe Toye entered the room followed by Don Malarkey, Cleveland Petty, Joe Liebgott, Burt Christianson, and Woodrow Robbins. Toye spoke up as he entered the room, "I've got the patrol members together for tonight."

Guarnere replied, "Good. Alright, gather around the table and have a look at the map…you too, Dorothy."

Once everyone had gathered around the table, Guarnere began, "OK guys, here's the scoop. We're going to take a little patrol at 2300 tonight to find Dorothy's ship so our guests can go home. The Lieutenant thinks it's in this patch of woods about 300 meters to our south."

Guarnere used a piece of straw as a pointer to indicate a small patch of woods.

He continued, "Lieutenant Nixon says there shouldn't be any Krauts around, but we're not going to take any chances. We'll travel single file. Malarkey, you'll be the lead scout. Robbins, you'll be second scout. I'll be next with Dorothy right behind me. After Dorothy will be Liebgott, Petty, Christianson, and Toye…in that order. Any questions so far?"

No one spoke.

"Okay, then. Weapons and ammo only, but I want everyone to carry at least four grenades. The assistant patrol leader is Joe Toye. Sign and countersign are "Flash" and "Thunder. Any questions?"

Everyone remained silent.

"That's it, then. We'll assemble in front of the barn at the South edge of the village at 2230 for inspection and rehearsals."

Several of the men groaned. Rehearsals! What were they, recruits?

Guarnere frowned, "Listen, you idiots. We have an inexperienced person going on this patrol. Night patrols are fun enough as it is, I don't want any screw ups…capiche?"

Everyone nodded.

"Okay let's synchronize our watches. On my mark the time will be 2015…mark…mark…now."

Joe Toye spoke up, "Anything else, Bill?"

"No, not a thing in the world."

Toye turned to the men, "Let's go guys."

Liebgott asked, "Mind if Petty and I stay for a minute to see Red?"

Toye shook his head no and the rest of the men shuffled out of the building.

Liebgott walked up to where Fry was still sleeping. He knelt beside him and examined his clothing, noting the blood stains.

Petty walked over to Leela, "Dorothy, do you want a pistol?"

Leela thought for a second and said, "If someone will show me how to use it, sure. I'm a fair shot with a laser pistol, but I'm not familiar with yours."

Petty smiled, "I've got a sweet Kraut automatic. It's got a smooth as silk action. I'll show you how to use it in a half hour. Come over to our machine gun position."

"Thanks, I will."

Fry began to stir on the stretcher. He shook his head and pushed himself up to a kneeling position. He could feel his bandages pulling painfully at his wounds as he did so. He looked at Liebgott, "Wassup, Joe?"

Liebgott flashed a smile, "Nothing worth talking about. How are you feeling?"

"I've felt worse."

"No s**t, buddy. I'm going to get Doc Roe to come change your bandages. Is that Okay with you?"

"Sure, I could use the attention."

Both of them gave a short laugh. Liebgott stood up, "I'll see you soon pal."

Without any further discussion Liebgott and Petty left the building.

Leela looked at her watch and thought, "Only two hours until rehearsal." She then turned her attention to Fry, "Hello, sleepyhead! Can I get you anything?"

Fry smiled, "A drink of water…and a kiss."

She smiled seductively, "Which do you want first?"

Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 2100 Hours

Bender and Alton More had wandered just south of the village to a spot that More had noticed before sundown. It bore all the marks of a good hiding place, by local standards at least, for Calvados.

When they got to the site, they poked and prodded through the hedgerow until they found a large jar of what More called, "the elixir of life."

More set about filling a spare canteen full of the stuff. Bender took a canteen cup from his musette bag and began to drink cup after cup in rapid succession.

More looked at Bender with some surprise, "Trying to drown your sorrows, buddy?"

"Nah, I just need alcohol to fuel my circuits."

More grinned, "Hell, you're taking enough on to run for a long time…expecting a drought?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, I am a little upset."

"What's eating you?"

"It's just that nobody but you likes me. Everyone thinks I'm just a pain in the neck."

With real feeling in his voice More replied, "Look pal, more people like you than you think. You're a good scrounger and everybody likes that."

Bender thought for a moment. He realized that he had begun to like Alton More a lot. The cowboy from Wyoming was a tough, unsentimental sort of man. But for some reason, most likely their mutually shared views on private property, they had begun to form a friendship.

Bender decided to express his feelings, "More, I like you. You're the best thief…I mean scrounger…that I know."

"Thanks, Tin Man. I'll take that as a compliment."

Bender was about to reply when her heard a metallic sound directly behind him. More began to raise his rifle, when a voice with a distinct German accent came from the darkness, "Hands up! We haff you covered!"

Bender stuck his hands up and rotated his head. He could see four Germans, standing close together, all with their weapons leveled at him. He realized that he was directly in the line of fire between the Germans and More.

"What do you want?" Bender asked belligerently. He had already decided what to do. He only had to get close enough.

When he got no reply, he stepped toward the Germans. In the moonlight, he could see the whites of their eyes glinting. Their eyes got wider as he came closer.

"Gott in Himmel!" The German closest to him exclaimed. "Mekanische Mann!"

"No s**t, wienerschnitzel," Bender replied.

Just as they raised their weapons to a firing position, Bender took action.

He opened his mouth and belched a gout of flame several yards long. The accumulated store of Calvados provided ample fuel for a ten second belch.

As More described it later to the rest of Easy Company, "He really roasted the Krauts."

Hair singed, uniforms smoldered, and web gear smoked. One of the startled enemy shouted, "Flammenwerfer!"

Then they all fled through the hedgerow, dropping their weapons as they ran.

More doubled over in laughter, "Holy Hannah!" was all he could say for a few moments. When he finally recovered his composure, he grabbed the jar of Calvados and handed it to Bender saying, "To the victor belongs the spoils."

Then he started laughing again, while patting Bender on the back. Bender laughed too.

Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 2200 Hours

Doc Roe inspected Fry's wounds as Leela held a flashlight for him. The interior of the cottage was only lit by a single oil lamp, making a flashlight necessary to see anything in detail.

He saw that the walk from Vierville had opened Fry's wounds up. Doc began wiping blood away from the wounds to better inspect them. Thank goodness, they weren't septic.

"Damn it Red, I want you to stay off your feet. No walking unless it's to answer the call of nature, okay?"

Fry smiled sheepishly, "Doc, I couldn't just let Liebgott and Petty carry me."

Doc Roe replied, "Listen to me, Red. No excuses, if you have to go any distance you have to move by stretcher. Got it?"

Fry replied with resignation in his voice, "Okay, doc."

Roe fished some sulfa powder out of his aid bag and sprinkled it on the wounds. He then applied fresh bandages to the wounds as Leela watched closely. Doc kept up a running commentary as he worked, "Make sure that you clean the wound before you sprinkle sulfa on it. Wipe any excess blood off with sterile gauze. Once it's clean, make sure to get every wound…even the small ones. Make sure his skin is dry before you apply the gauze and tape to bandage him up."

In an emotional voice Leela said, "Thank you, Doc."

Doc smiled one of his rare smiles, "Hey this is my job. Besides, Colonel Sink would have my guts for garters if you guys didn't get home."

Leela laughed at the expression. Still, she knew Colonel Sink was a very determined man. It wouldn't do to get him angry.

Guarnere entered the cottage carrying a battery powered radio. He didn't say where he had gotten it. He turned it on, fiddled with the dials and eventually, a voice in English came over the speaker, "This is Armed Forces Radio bringing you the latest hits. This number is going out to the men of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment. It's a Glenn Miller number called, "My Everything."

The music of a band drifted from the speaker. Fry cocked his head toward the radio, "Leela, I heard this song this afternoon on a radio Bender and More found. When I heard the words, I could only think of you."

The singer began,

You are to me…everything,

My life to me…everything,

When in my dreams you appear,

There stars and deep blue appear,

Each time our lips…touch again,

I yearn for you…so much again,

You are my favorite star,

My haven in heaven above,

You are everything I love.

As she heard the song, Leela felt tears coming to her eye. She held them back and instead stroked the back of Fry's neck affectionately.

She bent over and whispered in his ear, "This will always be our song." Then she kissed him lightly on the cheek.

The song ended and Guarnere cleared his throat to break the mood. He looked at Leela and said, "I hate to break you two love birds up but we may as well head for the patrol rehearsal. We need to find your ship. Doc, stay with Red if you can."

Doc Roe nodded, "Sure Sergeant Guarnere, I'll make sure somebody keeps him off his feet."

Leela whispered in Fry's ear, "I'll see you soon."

Before he could think of a reply, Leela picked up her musette bag and pistol, rose to her feet, and was out the door.

Near Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 2300 Hours

The patrol stepped off into the darkness, headed for a small woods about 300 meters away. Leela was very sure that the Planet Express Ship was there, waiting to take them home.

Malarkey was the lead scout. Robbins backed him up as the second scout. As patrol leader, Guarnere was next. Leela was close behind. They were followed by Liebgott, Petty, Christianson, and Toye. Guarnere and Toye had Thompson Submachine Guns. The rest except Leela were carrying M-1 rifles.

There was enough moonlight to see some distance, so they moved cautiously and stayed in the shadows as much as possible.

Leela felt as though if there were any Germans in the area they must be able to hear the patrol breathing. She put her right hand on her pistol, ready to draw it at any moment. Petty had shown her how to use it during the rehearsal. She knew it was very short range, but having it gave her some comfort.

Malarkey gave the hand and arm signal for "Halt," so the patrol haled in place. Everyone crouched down as Guarnere went forward to see what was happening.

When he got there Malarkey communicated through hand signals that there were to enemy about 10 feet away. Guarnere peered through the darkness and saw the two silhouettes standing at the edge of the hedgerow that led to the woods. They were Fallschirmjaegers, both armed with machine pistols.

He thought things through. There was no way to bypass them. They were in a position that dominated the fields on both sides.

He motioned Robbins forward. When they were together, Guarnere whispered, "We have to take them out silently. Malarkey, you take the one on the left, Robbins, you take the one on the right. I'll cover you."

Both men nodded. They lay their rifles down and silently slid their bayonets out of their scabbards. Slowly, the trio moved silently forward. Once they were within touching distance, Malarkey and Robbins sprang forward.

The enemy never had a chance. Both died without firing a shot or making a sound. Malarkey and Robbins lowered the lifeless bodies to the ground. Within a few moments, they had retrieved their rifles and the patrol moved forward.

As Leela passed the spot where the action had taken place, she could smell the blood. Her stomach contracted as she thought of how many men had died in the past few days. She would be very glad to get home.

They entered the edge of the wood. The going was slow, but the area seemed familiar. She tapped Guarnere on the shoulder while whispering, "We should be close."

They moved slowly forward. Bit by bit, the woods thinned until Malarkey halted the patrol. Guarnere turned to Leela and whispered, "Follow me."

They crept forward to where Malarkey was crouched in the darkness. When they were side by side, Malarkey pointed ahead, "There's a clearing up ahead."

Guarnere nodded and whispered, "Come on Dorothy, let's go."

They moved to the edge of the clearing.

Leela felt her heart pounding in her chest. This was the right clearing, she was sure of it…but the Planet Express Ship was gone!

Clearing 300 meters south of Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 7, 1944 2330 Hours

Guarnere nudged Leela and asked in a whisper, "So where is your ship?"

She was so stunned she couldn't think of a reply. Then she remembered something…her Wristamajigy!

She plunged into her musette bag and pulled the device out. Deftly, she snapped it onto her wrist. She used the touch screen to activate the communications panel. She whispered into the device, "Amy this is Leela, come in please."

She listened to the hiss of static for a moment before speaking again, "Amy this is Leela, come in please."

As she was ready to speak again, she heard Amy's voice, "Leela this is Amy…where are you and where have you been?"

Leela felt a sense of relief flood over her, "Amy, I'm at the clearing. Where are you?"

"Just a second, I need to shut down the holographic generator."

There was another brief rush of static when, suddenly, the Planet Express Ship appeared in the moonlit clearing as if by magic.

Leela felt tears spring to her eye.

Guarnere looked as if his eyes would pop from their sockets and exclaimed, "Holy Mary Mother of God!"

Malarkey just stared, slack jawed without speaking.

Amy's voice came over the Wristamajigy's speaker, "Welcome back, Leela. I'll activate the forward landing gear ladder."

Leela spoke, "Amy, I have some people with me. They are friends. I'll explain when I get on board." She turned to Guarnere, "Bill, will you come with me?"

Guarnere still seemed a bit dazed, "Just a second Dorothy, Malarkey go back and bring up the rest or the patrol. Have Toye set up to secure this clearing. Keep your eyes peeled for any Krauts." He turned to Leela, "Okay, let's go."

They walked forward together and climbed the ladder into the ship. Guarnere felt a sense of wonder as he emerged in the ship. As they made their way to the bridge, he marveled at nearly everything he saw.

They reached the bridge. Leela glanced quickly around and saw that Cubert was nowhere to be seen. Amy was there, with an ear to ear grin.

Amy rushed forward to hug Leela, "I am so glad you are back! We're ready to go as soon as we find out when and where we are. Cubert and I have made good use of the time you've been gone. I'm sure we can make it back."

Amy stepped back and looked at Leela's clothes, "What's with the uniform?" Then she looked at Guarnere, "And who is he?"

Leela gave a small smile and replied, "These uniforms have helped keep us alive. This gentleman is Sergeant Bill Guarnere of Easy Company, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment…did I get that right Bill?"

Guarnere merely nodded, still taking in the surroundings.

Amy broke the silence, "Where's Fry and Bender?"

"Bender and Fry are with the rest of Easy Company. Fry got wounded and Bender…well…we couldn't trust him to keep his mouth shut."

"Fry's wounded! How did that happen…is he going to be okay?"

Leela put her hand on Amy's shoulder, "Don't worry, he'll be fine." She turned to Guarnere, "So, how do we get Fry and Bender back here?"

Guarnere seemed to focus with some effort, "You, Malarkey, and I need to hightail it back to the Company. Lieutenant Winters will probably want to move at least a platoon here to make sure that everything goes okay."

Leela nodded, "What about the rest of the patrol?"

"They'll stay here to secure the clearing against any Krauts that might show up. As a matter of fact, we need to move out right now if we want to get there and back before dawn."

Leela smiled, "I'm ready when you are."

Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 8, 1944 0030 Hours

Malarkey, Guarnere and Leela had made it back to the village without incident. They had stopped at the white stone cottage where Fry was sleeping on the stretcher. Doc Roe was propped against the wall, tired but still alert.

Before Leela could speak, Doc Roe spoke in his soft Cajun accent, "He's doing okay. I've kept him off his feet. He couldn't stop talking about you until he drifted off to sleep. I just have one question, how come they call you Dorothy?"

Leela shrugged her shoulders, "Don Malarkey gave each of us a nickname when we got here. I guess it sort of stuck."

Guarnere, who had entered a moment later, smiled at Doc Roe, "Come on Doc…Dorothy and Tin Man…don't you get it? It's from the freakin' Wizard of Oz! Jeez!"

Doc Roe simply shook his head, "Did you find the ship?"

"Did we? I'm on the way to see Winters right now. Can Red walk about three hundred meters?"

"I wouldn't advise it. We should carry him on a stretcher."

Guarnere shook his head, "I don't like the idea, but I guess it can't be helped. I'll be back in a few minutes. I have to report to the Lieutenant." With that, Guarnere headed out the cottage door.

When he left, Leela continued her conversation with Doc Roe, "Doc, how long will it take for Fry's wounds to heal?"

Doc Roe thought for a few moments before answering, "It's hard to say. If he stays off his feet and there's no infection…I'd say a week for everything except the one under his left scapula. You ought to have a real doctor look at that when you get back."

Leela looked concerned, "Is that one serious?"

Doc Roe shook his head, "Not life threatening, but we had to cut a bit to get it out. That's why I think a for real doctor should check it over."

Leela went and sat on the floor next to Fry. Doc Roe excused himself saying, "I've got to go see a man about a horse. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Leela shot him a puzzled look, "See a man about a horse?" She figured it had to be slang for heaven knows what. Roe gave her one of his infrequent smiles and stepped outside.

Alone with Fry and her feelings, she began to stroke his neck softly. He smiled and stirred in his sleep. She realized that if everything went well, they would soon be home. She knew that she loved Fry, but it had taken him risking death for her to make her admit it.

She bent over and kissed him softly on the cheek. He twitched and mumbled something she couldn't understand. She didn't need to.

There was a sound outside the door. It swung open and Lieutenant Winters entered the room followed by Sergeant Guarnere and Lieutenant Compton. Winters looked at Leela, "We are going to move out in fifteen minutes. The Second Platoon under Lieutenant Compton and the balance of Weapons are going to accompany you to your ship. Doc Roe tells me that Red shouldn't walk. That's okay; we'll carry him on a stretcher."

Leela looked at the tall, blonde Lieutenant. She smiled her best smile for him, "Lieutenant Winters, thank you. It's going to be hard to…" her voice trailed off as she felt herself choke with emotion.

Winters spoke softly, "You've been through a lot. Just hang tough."

She nodded, fighting back the tears.

Winters excused himself, "I've got to report our impending departure to Colonel Sink. Buck, stay here until the two platoons are assembled. I'll be back to accompany you to the ship."

As soon as Winters left, Buck tried to crack a joke, "As long as we don't run into any flying monkeys, you should get back to Kansas before daylight."

Leela asked, "Is that a Wizard of Oz joke?"

Buck, chagrined that his joke had fizzled said sheepishly, "Yes it was and not a very good one."

"I've never seen it."

So, for the next ten minutes, Buck Compton told Leela the story of the Wizard of Oz. Several times during the telling, she laughed at his descriptions. When he finished she said, "That is quite a story. I'll have to watch it some time."

Buck smiled.

Just then, Sergeant Guarnere poked his head through the door, "Hey Buck, both platoons are assembled. I've got Tin Man outside as well as four stretcher bearers. Lieutenant Winters is coming down the road right now."

Compton replied, "Okay Bill, let's get this show on the road. Dorothy, why don't you wake Red up and let him know what's going on?" He rose and headed out the door to supervise the final preparations for movement.

Leela shook Fry gently awake. When his eyes opened, he smiled. His smile got even bigger when he heard her say, "Wake up Fry, we're going home."

Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 8, 1944 0100 Hours

Leela was walking in the middle of the column alongside Fry on his stretcher. Four men from Second Platoon carried it uncomplainingly. Bender was slightly behind, walking next to Alton More. Lieutenant Winters was with the lead squad, alongside Buck Compton.

The column was almost sixty men strong, with Second Platoon in the lead followed by Weapons Platoon. The men moved like silent shadows along the same hedgerow the patrol had traversed earlier.

The moon had gone down, so movement was slow. It took a full hour to cover the 300 meters to the clearing. Still, they did it without incident.

As the column crouched by the hedgerow, Lieutenant Winters came back to where Leela and Fry waited. He looked at Leela, "Ready to go home?"

She whispered, "It's not like this hasn't been fun, but heck yes. Somebody has to get Bender, though."

Winters gave a subdued chuckle, "I'll get him. Get ready to move to the front of the column." Then he vanished into the darkness, headed in Bender's direction.

The stretcher bearers hoisted Fry onto their shoulders. Leela stood up and looked around, goodness it was dark! In just a few moments, Winters returned. He was followed by Bender and Alton More.

Winters patted Leela on the shoulder, "Let's go" was all he said.

They moved to the clearing where they could just barely distinguish the bulky shape of the Planet Express Ship looming up in the darkness. Leela felt a wave of emotion run through her; they were so close to going home! She keyed up the communications panel on her Wristamajigy, "Amy this is Leela, come in please."

This time the response was immediate, "Leela this is Amy, we are ready to receive you."

"Amy this is Leela, we have Fry on a stretcher. Please lower the cargo bay hatch. We'll take him straight to my quarters. With his injuries, he can't sleep in a hammock."

There was a momentary pause, "Amy are you there?"

Amy responded, "Just a second, I'm headed for the cargo bay."

Leela waited patiently for a few moments. Then she heard the unmistakable hum of machinery as the cargo hatch lowered to the ground.

She turned to Lieutenant Winters and her voice quivered with emotion, "Lieutenant Winters, thank you for all you have done for Fry, Bender, and me. Without you, we'd never have made it."

"I don't know about that," he replied, "but I am glad to have helped.

In a rare impulse that startled her almost as much as it did him, she threw her arms around Lieutenant Winters and gave him a fierce hug. Then she stepped back and said, "Thank you" as tears coursed down her cheeks.

Guarnere walked up at that moment, only to be given a bear hug by Leela. She whispered, "Thank you, Bill" several times.

He smiled and said, "You're welcome, but you are making it hard to breathe!"

She released him, "Thanks for watching over me, Bill."

"Don't mention it. Jeez, did you ever consider wrestling as a profession?"

All three of them laughed softly.

At the same time Liebgott was standing by Fry's stretcher, "Well buddy, looks like you're going home. See you later."

Fry was so choked with emotion that he could only nod. He didn't want to cry in front of his friend. Liebgott patted him on the right shoulder and moved silently off into the darkness.

Bender hugged Alton More, "I'll miss you pal" and began to sob. More stiffened. He had already had to recover his wallet twice from Bender. But this time, Bender was genuinely grieved. Deep in his circuits, he would miss More.

More patted Bender on the back, "Come on, buddy. Who knows, maybe we'll see each other again."

Bender turned tearfully away, "I hope so" was all he could manage to say as he headed toward the ship.

The stretcher bearers placed Fry on the cargo bay hatch. Leela and Bender climbed onto it as well. The soft hum of machinery and hydraulics filled the night as it slowly retracted into the ship.

As soon as they were lost from view. Lieutenant Winters turned to Buck Compton and Sergeant Guarnere, "We'll stay here until they lift off. Then we'll head back to the village."

Inside the ship, Amy could tell that Leela was distraught. So was Fry, who lay sniffling on his stretcher. What really surprised her was that Bender was weeping like a child that has lost its favorite toy.

Leela mastered her emotion, "Come on Amy. Grab one end of Fry's stretcher and get it to my quarters. He needs to sleep in a bed until his wounds heal."

"Where will you sleep?"

Leela didn't answer, "Let's quit wasting time. We need to get out of here before daybreak."

Amy raised an eyebrow but decided against saying anything more. She could sense something was going on, but she wasn't sure what. So, she knelt down and took her end of the stretcher. Within a few moments they had set Fry on the deck in Leela's quarters.

Leela turned to Amy, "I'll meet you on the bridge."

Amy nodded and left without a word.

Once Amy was gone, Leela knelt alongside Fry. She gently stoked his neck as she said, "Rest here until we take off. As soon as I can, I'll help you clean up and put you to bed."

There was a certain something in her voice that made Fry's heart seem to leap in his chest. At first, he thought he wouldn't be able to speak. Finally, he managed to say, "Okay captain, whatever you say."

She kissed him lightly on the cheek, rose, and headed for the bridge.

Aboard the Planet Express Ship, Clearing 300 meters south of Angoville-au-Plain, Normandy, France, June 8, 1944 0300 Hours

Cubert finished making some entries at the astronavigation panel. Then he turned around to face Leela and Amy, "I've put all of the information into the computer for us to get home. However, we will need to travel out for a day and return for this to work. Last time, we had an uncontrolled reaction and it just hurled us back into the past. This time, I'm sure we can control things."

Leela looked doubtful, "Am I going to have to be at the helm the entire time?"

Cubert shook his head, "No. Except for takeoff and landing we should rely on the autopilot."

Leela snorted, "That drunk?"

Amy spoke up, "Cubert and I reprogrammed him with a twelve step program. He shouldn't be a problem."

Leela looked skeptical, "Why do we need two days again?"

Cubert answered, "To control the time warp effect with our available means is difficult. That's why we will have to proceed slowly. The real problem is computing power."

Amy chimed in, "Don't worry Leela, Cubert and I have run the simulation at least ten times. It will work."

Leela thought it odd that Amy seemed to be standing up for Cubert. What was going on? She decided to ask Amy about it later…in private. She shook her head, "Okay, let's get this show on the road. What's the procedure?"

Amy replied, "We'll need to do a normal lift-off and get into geosynchronous orbit. Once we are in orbit, the computer and the autopilot can do the rest."

"Okay, Amy. Let's go home."

Stripping off her M-1942 Pattern Paratrooper Jacket, Leela sat in the pilot's seat. Clad in a perspiration stained olive drab tee-shirt, dirty Paratrooper Pants and her normal boots, she looked a bit wild.

As she looked over the readouts, she caught her own scent and thought to herself, "I need a shower."

"Amy…Cubert…are all systems ready?"

They both answered in unison, "Ready!"

Leela's hands flickered rapidly over the controls, "Prepare for lift-off!"

The ship's engines roared into life and she began to rise slowly. On the ground, the men of Easy Company looked on in awe. Lieutenant Winters spoke aloud, "God speed."

To his surprise he heard, Bill Guarnere whisper, "Amen."

The ship rose rapidly into the air. Within a few moments it was lost from sight, its engine exhaust merging with the stars of the heavens.

Lieutenant Winters turned to Buck Compton and Bill Guarnere who stood close by, "Well, gentlemen, let's move back to the village. Our job here is done."

Both men simply said, "Yes sir," and moved off into the darkness, each wrapped in his own thoughts.

Aboard the Planet Express Ship, Leela felt a sudden wave of sadness break over her. She knew that she would probably never see her friends from Easy Company again. Before the sadness could lead to tears, she forced her mind back to the task of piloting the ship.

The ship gained altitude rapidly. She could have reached orbit in a few seconds, but she wanted to test control surfaces and systems on the way up. Everything was running beautifully, she noted. After five minutes, they were at orbital altitude, so she deftly maneuvered the ship into position.

"Okay Amy, engage the autopilot."

"Right, Leela." Amy pressed a few buttons and Leela could feel the ship leaving orbit. Cubert was working diligently at the engineering station. He looked at Leela, "Five Seconds to Time Warp…four…three…two…one…engaging warp."

The ship was enveloped in a bluish glow. Otherwise, things seemed to be normal.

Leela looked at Cubert, "Is this what you expected?"

He looked up from the instruments, "Everything is running perfectly."

"Great, I'm going to my quarters for a shower. Amy, you have the bridge." Leela rose slowly from the captain's chair. She left the bridge, pausing only to pick up her jacket. Walking down the corridor to her quarters, she felt her thoughts drifting back to that terrible moment when she had seen Fry lying unconscious and bloody on the ground.

She had not realized he was that brave, although she should have. After all, he had taken a stinger for her. Leela looked up in surprise, realizing that she had arrived at the door to her quarters. She smiled as she decided that she would reward Mr. Philip J. Fry for his bravery…in her own special way.

Aboard the Planet Express Ship, Traveling Through Time

Leela entered her quarters as quietly as possible. Fry lay sleeping on the stretcher. A lock of hair had fallen across his face. She smiled as she paused in the doorway to…well…just look at him. She suddenly felt mischievous.

Kneeling next to Fry on the deck, she blew gently on his neck. He stirred in his sleep, smiled, and muttered, "I love you Leela."

She knelt – bolt upright – on the deck. Her heart pounded in her chest. She watched him closely for a few moments hoping that he was awake, but he was asleep. Leela knew he loved her but he was afraid to say it. Well…she was determined to coax it out of him.

She shook him gently, "Fry, you need to wake up."

"Hmmm?" he muttered, "Oh Leela, how did take-off go?"

"Great. Now, you need a shower. I'll help you out of your clothes." Leela smiled enigmatically.

"My…my…my clothes?"

Leela continued to smile, "Yes. Your…your…your clothes. Come on Fry, I've dressed your wounds a couple of time already. Doc Roe made me promise to clean you up."

Fry tried to be nonchalant, but her smile was driving him nuts. What was she smiling about? He pushed up on his knees and began to peel off his jacket. Leela gently helped him to remove it. She noticed his tee shirt had soaked through with blood under the left shoulder blade. She frowned briefly before resuming her smile.

Struggling with his tee shirt, Fry hadn't noticed her frown. When she reached out to help him, he felt the touch of her hand briefly against his skin. He fought hard to control his body's response. "Think of blernsball" he thought.

"Stand up," she commanded.

Fry struggled to his feet. Leela extended her left hand to steady him. Once he was on his feet, she waited for a moment before saying, "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Well," she replied with a smile, "do I have to take your pants off, or can you handle it?"

Fry blushed crimson. "I can handle it. You need to turn around."

Leela turned around, still smiling her smile.

Fry remove his trousers and shorts. He stood naked and more embarrassed than he'd ever been in his life. "What is wrong with me? It's just Leela," he thought. He picked up his tee shirt from the floor and used it to cover his groin.

"Okay Leela, you can turn around now."

She turned around and began to laugh, "Now you turn around so I can check your wounds. I'll have to remove the dressings before you take a shower,"

Fry turned around obediently.

Leela step forward. She carefully removed each dressing, examining the wounds as she did so. They looked okay, she noted with satisfaction. Good, she could go ahead with her plan.

"Fry, I'll run the shower for you."

"Thanks Leela, I feel a bit shaky."

She reached out and took his arm, leading him to the shower. After turning it on she turned her face away and stuck her hand out, "I'll take the tee shirt to the laundry. You won't need it in there."

Fry gave her the tee shirt without comment and bolted into the shower. He closed the door behind him and stood under the cascade of hot water. He could feel his muscles relaxing. "Oh that feels good," he said out loud.

"Fry, you need to wash up."

How long he stood under the water, he had no idea. After what seemed like an eternity, he heard the door click behind him. "I'll wash up in a minute, Leela. I just want to enjoy the water a little while longer."

He nearly fainted when he felt her body press against his. Her hands came around him and took the soap from the shelf. Without a word, she began to soap his back. His knees felt as if they would give way.

"Uh, Leela, I appreciate…"

"Oh hush, Philip."

Her hands began to massage his shoulders as the water continued to send steam billowing in the shower stall.

"Think of blernsball," went through his mind, over and over again.

Leela reached around and soaped up his chest, his breath became ragged…almost labored.

He felt Leela pull away. "Here Phil," she said while handing him the soap, "you get to soap your own personal areas. Don't soap them too much." She gave a short laugh.

He looked over his shoulder at her. It was then that he saw she was still wearing her bra and panties.

"I'll let you finish, then I'll get my shower." She stepped out of the shower, closing the door behind her.

Fry finished quickly and stepped from the shower. Leela was standing there wearing a bathrobe with a towel in her hand. "Dry off and lay on the bed. I'll dress your wounds after a quick shower."

Obediently, he toweled off, then stretched out on the bed. It was so warm and comfortable that he was unable to stay awake.

He awoke to a gentle touch applying anti-bacterial gel to his wounds. "Thanks Leela," he mumbled, still half asleep.

"You're welcome, Phil."

Suddenly, he was wide awake. She had called him Phil!

He attempted to roll over to face her, but she gently kept him on his stomach, "Easy tiger, just relax until I get your dressings on.

She finished the job, "Okay Phil, just close your eyes."

"Close my eyes?" he said shakily.

"I just want to get the lights."

The lights…she was getting the lights…what should he do?

The lights snapped off. He could sense her moving though the darkness, heard her slide into the bed.

"Leela."

"Yes, Phil?"

He made up his mind, "Leela…I love you…and I always have."

There was a brief silence. The darkness seemed to assume a weight that threatened to crush his spirit.

"I love you too, Phil."

He felt as though his heart would leap from his chest, "Leela, I don't know what to say."

He could almost feel her smile through the darkness, "Don't talk Phil. Just love me."

Aboard the Planet Express Ship, Traveling Through Time

Fry propped himself up on his right side as he looked at Leela's sleeping form. He watched the rhythmic rise and fall of the sheet that covered her body. Her face was peaceful. Every few minutes, the ghost of a smile would flicker across it.

How beautiful she was as she slept!

A strand of hair had fallen across her face. He reached out and gently brushed it back into place. She moved slightly and muttered something he couldn't catch.

His mind ranged across all of the things they had been through together. How many planets had they been to? How many times had she saved his life? He couldn't count them all.

He thought back to their first meeting, how he had been impressed by her uniqueness. Her being a Cyclops had only strengthened the attraction he had felt for her. So often it had seemed as if there was no hope for them. Now they had spent hours in love's embrace.

How could he ever live without her?

His peaceful contemplation of the loveliest person in his universe was abruptly terminated by the bedside alarm going off. Leela's eye popped open and she sat bolt upright in bed. Her hand shot out and hit the alarm button.

She smiled at Fry, "Good morning, Phil. Did you sleep well?"

Fry returned her smile, "Best sleep I've ever had."

She reached out, gently touching his cheek, "I'm sorry that I wasted so much time with my doubts. Can you ever forgive me?"

"Forgive you," he asked in a voice full of surprise, "what's to forgive? I love you Leela, and I always will."

"I love you too." She looked at the clock, "But we need to relieve Amy and Cubert. I'm sure they are exhausted."

She slid out of the bed, striding gracefully over to her clothes closet. Fry admired her as she walked. He made up his mind, "Leela, can I ask you a question?"

As she slipped on her bra and panties, she turned to him with a smile, "As long as it's not about my eye…is it about my eye?"

They both started to laugh. Leela got dressed as quickly as she could. Then she came over and helped Fry finish getting dressed. She knew that he still had trouble raising his arms.

"Seriously, Leela…I have an important question."

She kissed him gently on the cheek, "Okay, what is it?"

He gulped, "Will you marry me?"

Leela paused for a second, then burst out in tears, "Oh Phil…oh Phil" was all she could say between her sobs.

Fry put his arms around her, "Please don't cry Leela, I didn't mean to upset you."

She returned his embrace, "I'm not upset. I was afraid that you wouldn't want me after we slept together…but I couldn't help myself. I love you so much."

Fry kissed her cheek, "I want to be with you forever, Leela. Please, marry me."

She looked thoughtful, "Are you sure you want to marry a mutant?"

"Why should that matter? There are people who would call me a mutant. Besides, haven't you always said you liked older men? How many older men do you know?"

She smiled, "You make a pretty strong case."

He fell to one knee as he took her right hand in his, "Turanga Leela, will you marry me?"

Her eye glistened as she leaned forward and kissed his forehead, "Yes Mr. Philip J. Fry… I will."

Aboard the Planet Express Ship, Earth Orbit, June 6, 3005

The blue aura surrounding the ship blinked out. On the bridge, Leela looked at the instrument panel with relief. They were back only two minutes after they had left. She turned to Amy, "Nice work, Amy."

Amy started to speak, but Leela added, "Good job, Cubert."

Fry, who was perched very tentatively on the couch next to Bender chimed in, "Way to go guys."

Bender drew out a cigar, lit it, puffed a ring of smoke and remarked in a voice dripping in sarcasm, "I don't see why you coffin stuffers are so happy. You're just going back to your loser lifestyles. What the heck is so great about the 31st Century?"

Leela started to make a snappy comeback, but she realized that Bender was really upset about the wedding. Fry was his only living friend and she knew he didn't want to share him. She spoke softly, "Bender, I'm sorry you feel that way. You can come visit us any time you want. We'll still work together."

Bender broke down, "It won't be the same. I'll miss you, Fry. I've actually had two friends…you and Alton More. Now, I've lost you both."

Fry put his arm around Bender's shoulder, "You can't lose my friendship, Bender. We'll always be buddies."

Bender stood and walked off the bridge, "It'll never be the same…never be the same."

Cubert spoke up, "Do you want me to check out his circuits? He seems awfully emotional for a robot."

"He's not just a robot," Fry replied, "he's my friend."

Leela decided to head off an argument, "Let's continue this discussion after we land. Next stop, Planet Express building!"

The ship sliced through the atmosphere under Leela expert guidance. Soon they were setting down in the Hangar Bay of the Planet Express building.

As Leela powered down the engines, Fry rose from the couch. As he walked over to Leela's side, Cubert and Amy left the bridge as if on cue. He leaned over and kissed Leela gently on the cheek, "We're home…home to our new life."

She reached up and touched his cheek, "Married life," she smiled, "are you sure you just don't want to live together for a while?"

He shook his head, "Nope. I want you always and forever. We may as well tie the knot."

Leela rose from the captain's chair and took Fry's hand. Together they walked down the landing gear stairs into the Hangar Bay. Amy and Cubert had already disembarked. They were already in the meeting room, talking excitedly with the Professor and Hermes. Bender was nowhere in sight.

As Leela and Fry prepared to enter the meeting room, the front doorbell rang. Since they were closest Leela said, "Let's answer it, Phil."

Eager to please, he nodded, "Okay."

The doorbell rang again. "Keep your shirt on, we're coming," Fry called.

Fry opened the door. Both he and Leela gasped at what they saw. Fry actually shouted, "My God, it's Joe Liebgott!"

The Planet Express Building, June 6, 3005

Fry threw his arms around Liebgott. "Man is it great to see you!" Without loosening his grip, Fry then cut loose with a barrage of questions, "Were you frozen, like me? How long have you been in New-New York? Is anybody else with you? What's with the beanie?"

Liebgott gasped, "If you let me loose, I'll answer."

Fry released his death grip, "Sorry…you took me by surprise."

Leela chimed in, "Joe, it's a real surprise to see you."

Liebgott smiled and said, "I hate to disappoint you, but I'm not the Joe Liebgott you're thinking of…I'm his 28th Great Grandson."

The smile left Fry's face, "Oh."

"My name is Joseph Liebgott. As for the beanie I am Rabbi Joseph Liebgott and I am a Chaplain in the DOOP Navy. You are a legend in my family…a bit of secret history. Grandfather Joe entrusted a few things to his descendants. He remembered everything you ever talked about, trust me."

Leela looked dubious, "Everything?"

"Believe me, the man had a memory like an elephant! He sent you a letter, a recording, and these." With that, he held out a pair of silver jump wings. "Here…take."

Fry extended his hand. He took the silver jump wings in his grasp, turning them over. They were engraved…one with the inscription "P.J. 'Red' Fry" and the other with "Turanga 'Dorothy' Leela."

Leela murmured, "He even remembered how to spell our names."

Liebgott looked around, "Where's the robot…Bender? I have a set of wings for him as well and a bottle of booze."

At the mention of the word "booze" Bender's voice came from within the Hangar Bay, "Keep your shirt on coffin stuffer! I'll be there in a second."

Bender emerged from the shadows where he had been sulking, "You sure are the spitting image of old Liebgott. Where's my stuff?"

Liebgott reached into his pocket and handed Bender the silver wings. Bender just tossed them into his chest cavity without looking. He frowned, "Come on, you mentioned booze. Don't hold out on me."

Liebgott took off his backpack and pulled an obviously old bottle out of it. "This," he said dramatically, "is from your old friend Alton More. He gave it to Grandfather Joe in 1950. It's the last of the Calvados you two dug up in Normandy."

Bender reached out and took the bottle silently. He looked at the bottle, then tucked it quietly into his chest cavity. "Thanks," he said softly.

"You're welcome."

Leela asked, "You mentioned a letter and a recording. Do you have them with you?"

Liebgott smiled sheepishly, "Oy! I almost forgot." He fished around in his backpack. Then he pulled out a small tape deck, "Grandpa Joe said you'd recognize this." He pressed a button and a big band tune began to play a song from the distant past…a song they had heard a thousand years ago yesterday.

"You are to me…everything,

My life to me…everything,

When in my dreams you appear,

There stars and deep blue appear,

Each time our lips…touch again,

I yearn for you…so much again,

You are my favorite star,

My haven in heaven above,

You are everything I love."

A tear rolled down Leela's cheek, "Fry let's play this at our wedding."

Fry was fighting tears and could only nod his assent vigorously.

Liebgott took the letter from backpack. It was obviously ancient and had been laminated to keep it from falling apart. He held it out, "Do you want to read it or would you rather I read it to you?"

Fry, still swallowing hard, motioned to Liebgott to read it. As he read, Fry had images if his friend flit though his mind.

"Dear Red:

Hey Buddy! If all goes well, one of my descendants is reading you this letter…or you are reading it yourself.

I have to pinch myself when I think back to those few days and nights in Normandy when we became friends. You saved my life. I've never forgotten it.

Letter writing isn't one of my skills, but I want you to know that I've prayed every day that you and Dorothy (I know her name is Leela, but she'll always be Dorothy to me) get married. Nothing beats having a good wife and kids, unless it's having grandkids.

Let Tin Man know that he was one of the last people that Alton More spoke about before he passed on.

As I said, I'm not much of a letter writer. May you enjoy a long and fruitful life in the future. When the going gets tough remember the spirit of Curahee!

Your Friend,

Joe Liebgott"

Both Fry and Leela were weeping when Liebgott finished the letter. Bender was sniffling too.

Fry turned go Bender, "Old buddy, don't think I'll ever let marriage interfere with our friendship." Leela said softly, "Bender...You will always be a part of our family. Please don't let our marriage come between you and Fry."

Bender suddenly grabbed Leela and Fry in a fierce hug, "You guys won't get rid of me that easily. Wedding receptions are great places to pick pockets."

All three stood there and laughed. After a few moments, Liebgott cleared his throat, "Well, I've done my job. So, I'll be going."

Leela had a sudden impulse, "Rabbi Liebgott…would you conduct our wedding ceremony?"

Liebgott looked puzzled, "Are either of you Jewish?"

Fry spoke up, "No. But can't you do a civil ceremony?"

Liebgott paused for a moment, drawing a deep breath, "Why not? Yes, I would be honored to conduct the ceremony."

Leela smiled as she turned to Fry, "Now we have to do is pick a date. I'd say this all has turned out rather well, wouldn't you?"

ACTUAL GROUPS AT BRECOURT MANOR

Left Hook: 2LT Compton, SGT Guarnere, and Pvt Malarkey

Center: 1LT Winters, Cpl Joe Toye, Pvt Lorraine, Pvt Wynn

Right Hook: SGT Lipton, SGT Ranney BENDER

Support: Joe Plesha & Walter Hendrix 1 MG DOROTHY, Cleveland Petty & Joe Liebgott RED

EASY COMPANY SOLDIERS WHO LINKED UP ON D-DAY

Pvt Burt Christianson & Pvt Woodrow Robbins (MG) SGT Denver "Bull" Randleman

Pvt Gordon, John Eubanks, Forrest Guth, SGT Floyd Talbert

TEXT OF LT WINTERS ACTUAL COMBAT REPORT

Detail of Actions 6/9/44

Second Battalion while marching through above mentioned town 0930 D-Day was fired on point blank by a battery of four 88's, from a range of 350 yards ... same battery was also firing on troops on the beach. Nine men and two Officers made the assault.

The enemy had dug positions in a hedgerow around the perimeter of a rectangular field - about 1200 yards total in length. One corner of this position had a hedgerow that led into the entrenchment. Covering this hedgerow and the enemies flank were one 88, a M.G. and few riflemen. The other three 88's were firing out toward the beach and on the battalion they had pinned down.

The assault team decided on attacking the position down the one hedgerow that led to this entrenchment - all other approaches were across open fields. So under fire from the 88 protecting this flank and also small arm fire, the party worked their way into position and then opened up with all the fire power they could muster to pin the enemy down, while SGT Guarnere lead a group of three men to a position where he could hand grenade them.

The combined small arms fire and grenades drove the enemy out of the entrenchment protecting the flank, permitting the assault team to gain a fast hold. More grenades drove then gun crew of three from the first 88, who were killed before they had gone twenty-five yards. SGT Guarnere accounted for one of the three. The assault team was reorganized here again, and as in each case to follow, SGT Guarnere displayed extraordinary gallantry and disregard for his own safety in see that this job was done correctly. By his very attitude and manner and display of confidence, he inspired the whole assault team and displayed the type of leadership that wins battles. After reorganizing the team, knocked out a M.G. and crew by rifle fire that was firing at us through the entrenchment. Immediately the team rushed the second 88 and crew, leaving behind three men to protect the rear. In the second assault, SGT Guarnere was again lead man and by using the same tactics, the second position was taken and five Germans killed, with no losses to ourselves.

At this time six Jerries decided they had enough and advanced with hands over head calling to us "No make me dead". They were immediately returned to the battalion along with all the documents and maps we could find - one map was of great value for it showed all 88 emplacements and entrenchment's of the defensive set-up of the peninsula.

With all four guns taken and destroyed, we withdrew out of the position, and continued to harass the enemy with M.G. and 60 MM mortar fire - which had just arrived - until two tanks arrived. Then we made an assault with the tanks and cleaned out the position. In all we suffered six wounded and four killed, the enemy had 15 killed - SGT Guarnere personally accounted for five - and captured twelve. Enemy forces estimated at about forty-five.

Mission completed, we rejoin our battalion, which had departed after the four 88's were destroyed, for their objective.

Supporting Data:

Battery of four 88's was destroyed which permitted troops on the beach to land without casualty, and battalion to move on to complete it's original mission.

LETTERS - PROPOSED CMOH DECLARATION

The President of the United States of America, authorized by Act of Congress, March 3 1863, has awarded in the name of The Congress the MEDAL OF HONOR to

FIRST LIEUTENANT RICHARD D. WINTERS
UNITED STATES ARMY

for conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity in action at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty:

Proposed Citation: First Lieutenant Richard D. Winters Company E. 2nd Battalion, 506th Parachute Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, distinguished himself by conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty in action on 6 June 1944 in the vicinity of Le Gran Chemin, Normandy, France. During the early phases of the airborne assault on D-Day, Lieutenant Winters assumed temporary command of Easy Company, then numbering twelve men, and advanced to destroy a German four-gun battery of 105mm artillery pieces that was placing indirect fire on UTAH Beach. Lieutenant Winters personally conducted a reconnaissance under direct enemy fire and quickly stabled that quick, violent action was required to destroy the battery and it's 50-man enemy garrison. Organizing his men into support and assault teams, Winters crawled toward the jump-off position. In the process, he noticed one German Soldier and killed him instantly. With the support team engaging one enemy gun. Winters placed himself in the lead of the assault column and charged across the fire swept open field into the hedgerow where they silenced the first gun. As the enemy crew retreated, Winters killed three more Germans and planned to assault the second howitzer. Placing a machine gun to fire down the trench, he gathered two soldiers and prepared to charge down the trench in the direction of the second gun. Crawling forward in the trench he noticed that his path was blocked by an enemy machine gun getting ready to fire. Without hesitation Winters fired and wounded both members of the enemy crew. Leaving three men to hold the first gun, Winters lead his remaining five on a charge directly down the enemy trench throwing grenades ahead of him. Urging his men forward by shouting encouragement and leading the assault team, Winters captured the second gun and discovered a map that depicted all the German artillery and machine gun positions throughout the Cotentin Peninsula. Sending the map back to headquarters, Winters then directed the assault on the third gun which he quickly captured. With three guns under his direct control, Winters halted only long enough to destroy the barrels of the enemy guns. Still under direct fire, Winters then ordered another platoon to capture the final gun, which they did in short order. With his mission accomplished and now under intense fire from machine guns from the hedgerows adjacent to neighboring Brecourt Manor, Winters finally ordered a withdrawal. As was his custom, Winters was last out, but not before killing another German rifleman. With what amounted to a squad. Winters and his men had killed 15 German soldiers, wounded many more, and taken 12 prisoners. In all, Winters killed at least five Germans and his whirlwind hand-to-hand assault had resulted in the destruction of the complete battery and the entire fifty-man platoon of the elite German paratroopers defending the battery. Later that afternoon Winters harassed the enemy forces, preventing their return to the fortified position until armored forces from the amphibious forces secured Brecourt Manor. The superb leadership, conspicuous courage, and consummate devotion to duty demonstrated by Lieutenant Winters were directly responsible for the successful accomplishment of a hazardous mission and served as an inspiration to his men and exemplify the heroic traditions of the military service.

1 Hands Up

2 God in Heaven

3 Tactical column was basically a dispersed column of twos. Each man had five yards between them in daylight and a bit less at night. This lessened the effect of a grenade explosion of a surprise burst from an automatic weapon.

4 The Garand was a thirty caliber semi-automatic rifle that was fed with an eight round clip. It was often referred to simply as an "M-1."

5 The Thompson was a .45 caliber sub machine gun, also referred to as a "Tommy Gun."