Chapter 19. Recovery
The addition of a partition to the end of Bucky's bed ended the steady stream of people wanting to see the young sergeant, making him feel less like he was on display. After Lt. Hay went off duty, Dr. Waslewski and Major Lambert each took a shift monitoring Bucky's vitals and keeping anyone from bothering him during the night. They also checked the swelling in his hand and feet caused by the frostbite he suffered. It subsided overnight as the better environment in the hospital allowed the serum to successfully restore the healthy look and feel of his skin on his extremities. By the morning both doctors were of the opinion that he could tolerate the flight back to England. The major went looking for a source of ice, wanting to cool Bucky down to numb his nerves as a form of pain relief. What he was able to find wasn't enough to last longer than an hour, so Bucky agreed to do without, claiming that the pain wasn't as bad as it was when he arrived. Just before he was to be removed from the hospital the general stopped to see him, dismissing everyone so that the conversation was between just him and the sergeant.
"Sir," said Bucky. "I'm sorry I can't salute."
"Don't be, son," said Phillips. "I am in awe of you, Sergeant Barnes. You have gone through something so horrific that I can't even begin to fathom it. You will go back to England and once you have healed enough to walk, you'll go back home."
"Sir, no, I want to fight," protested the young man. "HYDRA has to be stopped."
"On that we agree," said the general, "but a one-armed man, even one who killed a wolf while he was as incapacitated as you were, is still a liability." He put his hand up, seeing Bucky was prepared to argue. "I'm not saying you can't come back. I have talked to Dr. Erskine, and he wishes to get you back to the lab in New York. It is a better setup than the lab in England and there is no chance of being bombed by the Germans, at least by air. They're sending out those V2 rockets now, and our base is a target. The doctor is of the opinion that if you get more injections of his serum that your body will regenerate the lost arm. If it does, you will be coming back. If it doesn't, then I want you to be fitted for a new artificial arm that Howard Stark is working on. He claims it will revolutionize the field of prosthetics." He shrugged. "I don't know if he's just talking out of his hat, but the man is a genius, and he knows we need you. Don't forget that ... we do need you."
"Yes, sir," replied Bucky. "I'll try to get back as soon as I can, with a new arm either way."
"Good. Now there is one more thing I have to do." He reached inside his jacket and pulled out a long flat box. "It doesn't bring your arm back, or even come close to acknowledging the personal price you have paid with your injuries, but it's a start. It is my honour to present you with a Purple Heart, in recognition of the injuries you received while in the performance of your duty." He took it out of the case and fastened it to Bucky's hospital gown. Then he stood up and saluted the sergeant. "You do what you have to, Sergeant Barnes, and get back to the fight. Until then, you take care of yourself."
Bucky's jaw trembled slightly as he nodded at the general. When the officer left, the young sergeant turned his head and wept, feeling like he was letting everyone down. As much as he hadn't wanted to fight a war when he was drafted, he also knew that he felt responsible for the well-being of the men in the Howling Commandos. A part of him felt he was letting them down by leaving. Lt. Hay arrived shortly after, and removed the Purple Heart, placing it back in the case and packing it with the few things he had. As two orderlies arrived, they carefully disconnected him from the traction device and prepared him to be transferred to the ambulance for the trip to the airfield.
"You're coming back to England, aren't you?" he asked her.
"Damn right, I am," she replied. "So is Dr. Waslewski and Major Lambert. You'll have to put up with all three of us hovering over you on the flight back. We have a special bed made up on the aircraft that will coddle you like a baby. If you don't like it, then I'll gladly trade you places for it looks very comfortable."
She smiled at him then and he grinned back.
"Thanks Lieutenant," he said. "I appreciate the effort."
Nodding at the two orderlies she watched as they carefully transferred him to a gurney then began wheeling him out of the hospital. Outside, where the ambulance was waiting, they were surprised by the appearance of not just the Howling Commandos but the Phantom Patrol. Every single one of them said something to Bucky before he was placed in the ambulance, with all of them hoping he would rejoin the fight as soon as he could. When he got to Dum Dum, the big man grasped his right hand.
"You get back as soon as you can, Bucky," said Dugan. "They've made me Sergeant in your place, and I don't know if I can fill your shoes."
"You have bigger feet than me," joked the younger man. "Don't let Cap do anything stupid."
"Haven't been able to stop him before," replied the former circus strong man. "Do me a favour when you get back to Brooklyn and check on my wife and kids."
"You got it," promised Bucky.
Bradley was next and he also gripped Bucky's right hand, squeezing it firmly.
"You'll be alright," said the Corporal. "We'll save the hard fights for you."
Howlett came into view and the burly Canadian just grinned. "It's been a revelation," he said. "For a city boy you showed a lot of grit in surviving in the wilderness. Surprised the shit out of me. Maybe someday, we can sit over a bottle of whiskey and a couple of cigars, trading lies."
"I'd like that, Sarge," said Bucky. He glanced at Grant, who was talking to Dr. Waslewski. "Watch out for him. I didn't trust him at first but he's loyal and he came through for me."
"There was no way he was leaving you there, you know that," answered Howlett. "We'll see you back with the Commandos in no time at all."
Steve Rogers came up and gazed at his best friend. "Well, it's not the end of the line but it looks like you're taking a different train for a while," he said. "Don't do anything stupid."
"How can I when you're taking the stupid with you?" replied Bucky, using their old line. "Seriously, take care, Steve. They need you."
For a moment, Bucky thought he saw a shadow cross his friend's face and wondered if this mission coming up was the one where Steven Grant had originally gone missing. Before he could say anything, Steve subtly shook his head, so Bucky let it go. It was out of his hands now but if it did happen, he knew that Grant would find Steve. The man had changed Bucky's future; it was certain he would change Steve's as well. The final person to say goodbye to Bucky was Steven Grant. He stood next to the gurney, not sure what to say.
"Give 'em hell," said Bucky, beating him to the punch. "I'll be back as soon as I can."
"I'm sure you will," replied Grant. "Remember what you told me after Ma died." Bucky looked at him, puzzled. "I said I could manage on my own, but you said I didn't have to. Neither do you. Let people help you. You're never alone, Buck."
It was a strange thing to say but Grant didn't give him a chance to respond, squeezing Bucky's hand quickly then stepping back as the orderlies loaded him into the ambulance. Major Lambert, Dr. Waslewski and Lt. Hay all clambered in with him. Reminding the driver to take it easy on the ride, the three medical people watched Bucky on the drive to make sure the pain he felt was manageable. They were soon at the airfield, where he almost laughed out loud at the setup inside the C-47 aircraft that was meant to cushion the flight for him. It was like being lowered into a fluffy cloud. Oversized pillows on a large bed enveloped him, keeping him still without putting pressure on any part of his body. There were two other patients on the flight, not as badly injured as him, but still on a padded stretcher. Both doctors and the nurse watched over them as well on the 6 hour flight to England, landing near London in the middle of the afternoon. Within an hour of landing, they arrived back at the base, where Dr. Erskine greeted them with a single word spoken in a way that displayed his distress over Bucky's injuries.
"Sergeant."
"Doc, I'm a lot better than when I fell, and from when I arrived in Rome," stated Bucky. "I'll be back out there in no time."
"I hope that is true," said the German doctor. Then he looked Bucky in the eye. "James, I feel that I failed you. I was so certain the serum that Special Agent Grant gave you would do wonders. No doubt it saved your life, but it was unable to work well in the cold, or to regenerate your missing arm. I must do better."
"It's okay," replied Bucky, touched that Erskine blamed himself for the shortcomings of the serum. "You'll figure it out and when you do, I'll be ready."
"Of course, you will," smiled the doctor. "In the meantime, we will get you better and when we get back to New York, we will find a way to get you a new arm. I promise you."
--
Over the next few weeks Bucky slowly improved. His right arm healed enough to remove the cast after a few days although he was unable to lift anything substantial with it for another week after. His spine and ribs also improved, making it possible for him to sit up in a wheelchair. Lt. Hay took it upon herself to help Bucky regain his strength, working him through exercises he could do from a sitting position, including lifting weights and talking one of the soldiers on the base into mounting a speed bag onto the wall in their portion of the infirmary. Set at a height that Bucky could reach she was pleased at the look on his face when he saw it.
"No reason you can't work this with your right arm," she suggested. "If the serum regrows your left arm Dr. Erskine says it will match it with your right one, as it wants to maintain balance in your physique."
By the time he was able to stand, then walk on his legs, Bucky was certain that he would regain all that he lost from the fall. In the three weeks he had been on the base in England, he had proven the full healing qualities of the serum worked in concert with the recipient's body and mindset. His enthusiasm to get back to his unit had helped to almost transform him back to the man he had been before. All that was left was to fine tune the serum to perform one more miracle; creating flesh and bone out of what didn't exist. That would be done in New York.
Italy / Germany
After Bucky and the medical staff returned to England, the two SSR units, as well as a large contingent of the United States Army trained for the attack on Johann Schmidt's fortress in the Bavarian Alps of southern Germany. With a layout provided by Arnim Zola, that closely matched the one Steven Grant remembered from his own time, the plan would see Rogers fighting his way in, then allowing himself to be taken prisoner. Schmidt's ego would demand that Rogers be brought in front of him in his workroom, as he personally demonstrated his superiority to the American super soldier. While Schmidt was distracted, the Phantom Patrol would break into the lower regions of the facility, which differentiated it from the one Grant remembered. Suspecting that it contained another super soldier lab, they would free any prisoners there, then destroy the facility. They were also to board the Valkyrie aircraft, render it unable to fly, removing Schmidt's main method of escape. General Phillips would lead the army unit in to deal with the contingent of HYDRA soldiers and take control of the entire headquarters built into the mountain. The Howling Commandos would rappel in through the windows of Schmidt's workroom, surprising the man and his guard complement. If the plan worked, then Red Skull would meet his defeat there. If he managed to get away and this timeline followed Grant's, that would set the stage for the final battle the Red Skull and Captain America. Either way, the man who led HYDRA would be stopped.
Of course, as Special Agent Grant reminded Steve Rogers, the universe didn't like change and the reality of what happened to Bucky ensured that some things happened the way they did in his timeline. Everything that Rogers did to get taken to Schmidt transpired the same way, as did the arrival of the Howling Commandos and the attack of the army unit. But in the lower levels of the mountain the Phantom Patrol came up against something completely unexpected. They found a super soldier lab, and a baker's dozen occupied cryostasis units, containing twelve men, and one woman. The men, wearing HYDRA insignia clothing, had no visible documentation as to their identity or nationality. The woman, estimated to be in her late 20s was blonde, beautiful, and also not identified.
"Get Grant," said Howlett, to Rose. "Everyone else go through those filing cabinets and find out who these people are."
He looked at the woman, specifically, wondering if she was the one they had been looking for since the raid on the German lab. There was a code on the front of her cylinder, Subjekt: W1743. Glancing briefly at the other units he saw all the others had the prefix M after the word Subjekt. Their number designations were all different, with the first two digits in the teens, and the second two digits either 43, 44, or 45, with a couple having another letter after, and A, a J, and an S for the three with the same code. Considering that they were located in Germany the first letter designation could be the German equivalent for male and female.
"Raines!" He called over to the tall corporal. "What is German for male and female?"
"Männlich and weiblich," replied Raines, coming towards him then looking at the face inside the cylinder. "She's beautiful. You think the M and W is referring to male and female? Subjekt is German for subject. The first part of the numbers is all in the teens. There can't be that many of them, can there?"
Grant arrived with Rose and looked at the woman in the cylinder.
"You find the files yet?" he asked.
"No, but do you think she looks like Dr. Waslewski?" asked Howlett. "Could it be her sister?"
Grant reached inside his jacket, to a pocket there and pulled out a small leather pocketbook. Opening it up he took out a picture of two women, one of whom was Eva. He held it up next to the face then looked at Howlett and Raines. Both men nodded in agreement.
"She's 28, so the 17 probably refers to her birth year," said Grant. "She went missing in 1943."
"All of these men are in their 20s and 30s, so the final two numbers probably refer to the year they became a subject for experimentation," replied Howlett.
"We just need to know if they are Nazi or not." Grant looked towards a bunch of tall cabinets. "Find those files. I want to know before we take them with us or not."
No elaboration was needed. If the men in the cylinders were Nazis, they would be left behind, buried along with the remains of the base when the explosives were set off. If they were PoWs then they would be rescued, returned to England and undergo the unfreezing process. As Howlett and Raines left to search the cabinets for files with the same subject designations Grant looked at the woman who was inside the cylinder. Who knows what was done to her but he could imagine with her fair looks it had been assumed she was Aryan in heritage.
"Found them!" yelled Raines, in front of a large cabinet with a broken lock. He pulled out the box marked W1743. "Anya Waslewski, nationality Polish, occupation, nurse, conscripted into German army in 1941, stationed at Schwarzebitte until November 1943." He scanned over her file, written in German. "She wasn't experimented on except for the cryofreezing. She was to be used for ... breeding. They fucking assigned her to be the first brood mare for these dozen men." He read more and his lip curled as he read the file. "Animals, fucking animals. That's all they were to them. The men would compete for the privilege of breeding with her. A competition and the victor would be allowed to have a child with her."
He looked like he was ready to punch something in his absolute disgust. Grant squeezed Raines shoulder, acknowledging the anger.
"Look at one of the men's files," he suggested. "Tell us if they were PoWs or Nazis."
With a nod he pulled out the box marked M1544 and began to read through it.
"Werner Bauer, nationality German, occupation, SS captain, enlisted in the army in 1934, stationed at Dachau." He looked up at Grant who shook his head. Putting the file back he shoved the box away and opened another. "Heinz Fritz, nationality German, occupation, SS lieutenant, stationed at Auschwitz. No, he doesn't get to live."
Raines pulled every box down and read that every single one of them was in the SS and had been stationed at one of the concentration camps, all of them officers. There was a 14th box and he pulled that down to the floor, then read the first file before looking up at Grant.
"They were going to send them to Argentina," he said. "They were setting up a breeding colony, to make an army of super soldiers because they were certain the children would inherit the physical abilities of the father. Even if they lost the war in Europe, they would rebuild in secret elsewhere. There's already a place for them. They were supposed to ship out tomorrow to join their brothers already there. Even though Anya was Polish they rationalized that her features proved her heritage. They also kept her because of her expertise in helping to resuscitate people from the freezing process." He read some more. "There are other labs, buried within several mountain ranges, not just in Europe. They knew Dr. Waslewski was in England, and it refers to the attempt to kidnap her after D-Day. She was supposed to be taken to Argentina to help bring their people out of freezing and to instruct their scientists in the freezing process. That means the ones there might still be frozen. If we can get to them before they wake up ..."
"One fight at a time," Grant reminded him. "We have some people we can assign to go there and keep an eye on them. They'll be dealt with, I promise you. In the meantime, bring her file box, bring this file box, destroy the others and anything else you find here. Burn it all. I'm going up to the hangar level to sabotage the Valkyrie then we'll get Anya out of here and rig the place to blow."
While he left Raines, Rose and Rumlow behind to destroy the lab, he and the others, Bradley, Murphy, Costello and Howlett, ran up the stairs to the hangar level, hearing the sounds of fighting getting louder the closer they came. They even got in on the action, taking on several HYDRA soldiers in the stair well, then tossing them down the well-hole, not even watching as they fell to their deaths. Once upon a time Grant felt something for those men, but after all the depravity he witnessed during his first time around fighting HYDRA, as well as this time, he knew there was no saving them. All of the research he did on the known members of that organization revealed very few who were there by force or as double agents. Eva and Anya were forced into it during his timeline, with Eva staying to protect Bucky as best she could, both sisters ultimately paying for it with their lives. The other handful of people would be part of missions to come, where they would be rescued then recruited into SHIELD to continue the fight against HYDRA's infiltration of that organization. HYDRA had to be defeated properly this time and they needed many capable hands to do it, not just his, Steve's or Bucky's.
When they burst out of the stairwell into the hangar Grant was troubled to see the American army unit were already there, trying to take on the HYDRA soldiers. They were pinned down by the blue-pulsing weapons that systematically were being used to destroy their cover. If they weren't able to get past those soldiers there was no way they were getting on the aircraft to sabotage it.
Before he could order the others to try and flank the HYDRA force, he saw Red Skull running out onto the surface of the hangar, followed by six of his bomb drone pilots. They boarded the Valkyrie, although several of the pilots fell as they were shot. Immediately the aircraft began taxiing and Grant started running after it, followed by his men, desperate to take their own shots on the aircraft as it pulled away from them.
"Is that Rogers?" asked Howlett, pointing to a man further down trying to intercept the aircraft but even he was having trouble keeping up as the throttle was applied, increasing the take-off speed.
It was surreal to Grant to watch the General and Peggy Carter race towards the aircraft in Schmidt's roadster, picking Rogers up on the way. Even as the Special Agent and his men raced towards the opening signalling the end of the runway, they could all see Captain America make his leap onto the aircraft's wheel, then disappear into the belly of the plane, and watch it fly into the sky. The roadster, sliding dangerously towards the edge of the runway, turned sideways then backwards.
"Keep going!" Grant yelled to the others. "We may have to rescue those two."
Fortunately, the car stopped, its back end hanging dangerously off the edge. The five of them reached it within moments, and pulled it back onto the flat surface, where the General looked carefully at Grant from where he sat behind the driver's wheel.
"Tell me you were able to sabotage the aircraft," he drawled.
"We didn't get to it," answered Grant. "We were delayed. Rogers is on his own. We did find something in the lower levels that Zola conveniently left out. A super soldier lab, 12 men and a woman in cryostasis cylinders, set to be transported to Argentina to a base there. There are more labs. The woman is Dr. Waslewski's sister."
"The men?" asked Phillips.
"All Nazis, SS officers who were part of the concentration camp system," replied Grant. He looked back at the long tunnel they just came out of. "What are your plans for the aircraft in there?"
"I was going to take them," said the officer. "What are your plans for the 12 men?"
"I was going to leave them here and blow the whole place to kingdom come," replied Grant. He looked at his watch. "You better get to the radio room. Rogers will be able to talk to you soon." He looked at Peggy. "Are you okay?" She nodded. "Go, talk to him, be the voice he needs to hear when he takes it down. We'll find him, I promise you."
Several vehicles came up driven by the Howling Commandos. Grant broke the news that he wasn't able to get on board the Valkyrie first to sabotage it. Without saying anything more they all knew it meant that Rogers would be on his own and would likely sacrifice himself to take the aircraft down. As they all headed back into the structure, Grant sat in the front of the roadster with the General. It was obvious he was angry with himself.
"We should have taken the hangar first," he finally said. "I could have done more."
"I seem to have heard from someone that the universe doesn't like being tampered with," stated the General, his eyes forward. "You did what you could to change things but even I know that if I jerk this steering wheel too hard that I can lose control and crash this beast. You changed Dr. Waslewski's future, and now you've changed her sister's. Sergeant Barnes will not become the man he became in your timeline. You've alerted us about the wolf in sheep's clothing that is Dr. Zola, and about the HYDRA supporters currently in the American military and government. Now we know the location of more labs and bases. I would say you've done more than anyone in this fight, Steven. You've made a believer out of me and that's damn near impossible. Rogers will be alright. I believe that and we will prevail."
Grant nodded in acknowledgement. It was still a bitter pill to swallow, even though he thought he had prepared himself for the inevitability of Steve still ending up in the ice. At least with Eva and Anya safe, they would be able to get him through the thawing process. Another thought came to him just before they pulled up to the entry into the radio room. He stepped out of the roadster and looked back at the long runway.
This was new ground. He was alive and now in charge of two special service units dedicated to the fight against HYDRA, that included five super soldiers and a mutant soldier that they didn't have when he went down in 1945. Dr. Erskine was still alive, and that, more than anything, filled Grant with hope that perhaps this time they would get it done. HYDRA would cease to exist in this timeline. It's how it had to be.