"Damn... thing is tough...", Steve said to himself as he glanced around. "Hmm... may have been a bit off with the drop.", he noticed as he seemed he was a bit off course; he was expected to have landed a little closer to the hamlet. Steve took a deep breath as he got himself out of the tree and landed on the ground, "Now where exactly-".

Suddenly, a loud sound of thunder rang and then in less than a second, a crack struck the trunk of the tree only inches away. Steve quickly ducked as that was, for certain, the shot of a rifle.

"Hans! Einer von ihnen war im Baum! Ich habe ihn!". That was definitely German. Not even a minute in France and already, he was being shot at by the German occupiers. Steve pulled out his handgun and got his shield ready as another shot rang out and struck the tree again. Steve took cover behind as he got himself ready to take out his attacker. He glanced around the tree to see the German solider had his Kar98k aimed right at him and if he was correct with his aiming, a sure fire shot right between Steve's eyes.

However, another shot rang out and the German collapsed dead on the spot; shot right through the left side of his head, not even striking the famous Stahlhelm helmet. Everything went quiet for a few moments before Steve saw, coming out of some brush, a man in about his 30s wearing some mostly civilian clothing and carrying a French MAS-36 rifle.

"American?", he called out as Steve broke from cover and got close to him, "Je m'appelle Pierre LaRoche. Welcome to France, mon ami.".

"Thanks for the save there.", Steve told him as Pierre nodded. "I'm afraid our meeting has been compromised. The Boche picked the perfect night to sweep the area of resistance groups. We've already packed up and moved to our secondary hideout in Ansacq.", he explained.

"Got it. Are we still good with the mission though?", Steve asked as Pierre nodded, "Yes, we're still good for tomorrow night, no change there, we just needed to relocate for the time being. We need to get moving, more German patrols are sweeping every house, field and forest around here.".

Steve nodded, "Right. Let's go.", and Pierre nodded, leading the way as they kept poised, alert for any German in their way, and before he knew it, he had shot three Germans in two minutes straight while Pierre took care of the other two Germans as it turns out the lone German back there wasn't exactly alone.

Pierre commented, "You're a goddamn great shooter.", and Steve smiled crudely, "I'm a fast learner, and apparently, even faster when I am welcomed like this.".

"You would have enjoyed our hospitality when we aren't occupied by those bastards.", Pierre snorted, and Steve replied, "Well, let's not forget how to have hospitality while we can. How are the innocents getting out if the Germans are sweeping the houses?".

"More or less, they just simply come in, walk through and check for a minute before leaving. There's still so many French men and women throughout the country and not that many Germans that aren't defending the coast and major locations; not to mention more and more of them are getting transferred eastwards and those that replace them are of less hearty stock.", Pierre told him.

"Hopefully, that's a good sign that they're starting to be greatly weakened.", Steve said. "Not weak enough or I'm sure your countrymen would already be here...", Pierre grumbled as Steve nodded.

"True; we're still practically having to play catch up with building up our army. Bit of a double edge sword when you don't have to worry about your neighbors, and being an ocean away from every major power, you get a bit complacent with your forces.", Steve said.

"Right. Now come, we need to move away from here; others will find them soon enough but hopefully, they'll waste time trying to scour this area and stay away from Ansacq. We only have a few hours before dawn.", Pierre responded.

Steve replied, "Let's go.", and so, the duo steadily and carefully went through the rest of the forest, yet with an urgency of making to safety, and within an hour, they got to Ansacq, with Pierre guiding Steve carefully, to one of the side doors behind a house within a wall path.

Pierre knocked on the door, two sharp raps, and one soft tap in a pattern, as Steve watched around the wall path, his gun and shield poised, and then a slot opened, eyes showing, speaking in French.

Pierre answered, "One for all, and all for one.", and then the voice affirmed, and Pierre whispered, "Come!", as the door opened in a flash, with the duo slipping into the room, as the door closed after them.

"You certainly were fast, Pierre.", one of the Maquis said. "Blame the American; I could barely keep up with how fast he was moving... and not even winded...", Pierre said as Steve chuckled.

"Just some really intense training that pushed my body to some crazy lengths.", Steve told them. "Anyway, what's the plan now?".

"We hold here for a few hours, rest and gather our equipment then we head to L'Isle. Our group leader has more of the overall plan. He's the one who's basically come up with this whole plan.", someone snapped their fingers before another door opened... and in walked Jacques.

"Jacques?", Steve's eyes widened before Jacques' did as well. "Rogers!", he chuckled. "Damn it all, I should've expected it to be you when I heard that they were sending someone.".

Jacques looked rather well despite being warworn in appearance, and if Steve wasn't mistaken, there is a new scar barely visible beneath Jacques' shirt, yet he can tell that it was healed the Atlantean way, as his crystal is intact and glowing strongly, but it doesn't seem like anybody noticed the crystal at all.

"You know this guy?", Pierre asked in surprise, and Jacques grinned, "Know him? I knew him way back before I went back here! Oh, hold on! Moliere, get up here!", before a rumbling sound is heard, and a head appeared in the basement of the house, blinking, "You bellowed, Jacques?".

Jacques smirked, "Look who's here, Mole.", with a gesture, and Mole turned around before all but leapt out of his hole and smiled widely, "Steve!".

Steve laughed, "Good to see ya, Mole.", as Mole looked his usual self, though he looked like he had been in one of the coal mines, his crystal intact and in great shape.

"We missed ya, Steve! Oh, Jacques, can I dig now under the Nazis, please?!", Mole grinned happily before looking at Jacques with a pleading look.

Jacques chuckled, "I think you might, thanks to Steve here. Come along, Steve.", and Steve nodded, hearing whispered gossip by the others, "The American knows them? Our scrappy digger and our vicious savior?".

Steve followed his old friends into a man-made war room that was replaced from a basement wine cellar, and he asked, "I get it about Mole being a scrappy digger, but what was that about you being a vicious savior?".

Jacques exhaled deeply, "Where's your crystal?", and Steve replied, "Behind the star in this uniform. I thought I needed to hide it.".

"Well, it turns out that in war, no matter what kind of war it is, our crystals are invisible to others; comrades and enemies, and they turn visible when it's safe from the front lines and such. And as it turns out, they can heal comrades, but it turns out that when they are healed, there is a flash for anyone who saw me healing with my hands, not the crystal, as they thought I am a savior like Jesus, to somehow erase the memory away when interrogated by the enemy, unable to say anything about it.", Jacques replied.

Steve widened his eyes, "Like a magical contract to keep their mouths shut?", and Jacques nodded, "Something like that. And for the vicious part, let's say that I've been exploding the buildings those German bastards raid and live in, after Mole digs tunnels for the citizens to escape, along with convoys on the road when I can. Look, I know it's horrible to hear that, but see this scar? I was narrowly close to being exposed in a clearing where a convoy of secret supplies for my group was attacked by Nazis, and there was this one guy where I nearly got in the arm, and as our guns went out of bullets, we fought when I was backed into this rock wall, and his knife scrapped me damn close, and I had to dodge, and he caught into my jacket, tearing the very pocket I had her picture, my family's picture. I was down, Steve, but when he picked it up, he had the guts to be the most shitting bastard, and after he degraded my family, he spat on it, stepping on it, and that was when I knew I cannot hold back, asking God to forgive me when I went into warrior mode, deciding to be like Sia. That day, I healed a few injured comrades before healing myself, but lost others, and that was when I became their vicious savior.".

"I hope you've been at least claiming that some of those wounds just looked worse than they were as a sort of excuse. Last thing we need is for you to actually be thought of as the next Messiah and son of God.", Steve said as Jacques sighed.

"Yeah; that or I'm pretty damn good with my hands when it comes to fixing, which is the only other excuse I could use.", he said. "Either way; I'm certainly seen amongst the groups of Libération-Nord, that's what our faction of the Maquis is called, as pretty much a must have on most missions.", Jacques replied as Steve nodded.

"And how bad has things been since you got back?", Steve asked.

"Strangely was a little easier at first; the Nazis were fairly lax for a while amongst their occupation. Guess they felt like they had crushed us well enough to lower their senses a bit and feel like they had reached a turning point with the occupation. That's changed again...", Jacques motioned for Steve to follow him. "By the way, you should know that Mole only came back the other day. He's been in much higher demand than me amongst the resistance groups in terms of escape routes, tunneling under the Nazis and digging hideouts.".

"Can't say I'm surprised... now, you mentioned that things changed?", Steve asked as Jacques led him into a room with a lot of papers on a board and several pictures.

"This bastard-", Jacques pointed to one image. "Carl Oberg. The new SS Police Leader since May has been cracking hard. Just the other month in July, thousands of Jewish families got rounded out and he had them sent east. And his cracking down on our groups have been tough. That fucker Heinrich Müller, the Gestapo's head, in Berlin, he sure sent the right bastard to deal with us.".

"Let me guess... he's going to be at our meeting?", Steve smirked as Jacques chuckled, "Him and Karl Bömelburg, head of the Gestapo here in France. Basically, we have a chance to cut the head of the snake for the time being.".

He then sighed, "Well, more of a Hydra... they'll send others, and I fear that if we pull this off, the reprisals will be brutal like when the Czechs killed The Butcher of Prague, Reinhard Heydrich, back in May.".

"Yeah, but if I recall my intel, he was second in command of the SS under Heinrich Himmler; you might get a little luckier with the reprisals since this is France and they're not as high on the pole when it comes to the Nazis as say Heydrich.", Steve replied.

"Either way, we have our best chance to reach them tomorrow... I can't tell you how impossible it is to even get close to them in Paris.", Jacques said.

"Why are they going to be in L'Isle?", Steve asked. "Why not have this meeting in Paris or something?".

"Because they're meeting with this Vichy agent who's apparently gotten a lot of high-profile information on many of the resistance group locations and leadership. I don't know how that traitorous bastard got it but silencing him as well is what we need to do. That and grab whatever he has with him to know just who exactly was on the list and how he got it.", Jacques scowled.

"Hence why I'm here rather than just smuggling you some more explosives and blowing the meeting place to kingdom come.", Steve replied, with a grin.

Jacques nodded, and Mole replied, "Oooh, tell him, Jacques! Juicy details!", and Steve raised an eyebrow as Jacques said, "Getting to that, Mole.".

"Now, we need to surround L'Isle like a hunting party, but silent and deadly. Mole will sneak any remaining citizens out via tunnels to a prime hiding spot or two after some of the Marquis subtly pass the message on. We need to bait the patrols first because if we can't get the patrols down and out, they will alert Orberg, Bomelburg, the Vichy agent, and other high-class Nazis.", Jacques made marks on one particular map.

Steve replied, "So, flash grenades, silencer guns, maybe my shield as a deadly frisbee...", and Mole grinned, "And camouflage badger traps!".

Steve looked at him in bewilderment, "Badgers?", and Mole nodded, "Badgers ain't happy with Germans stomping all over the place! Badgers are my comrades!".

"I suppose goose stepping does have its unexpected downsides...", Steve chuckled. "So, what's our role in the plan?".

"You, me, Pierre and a few others will storm here...", Jacques pointed to the map they had made. "Hôtel de Ville. That's where the meeting will be. We get inside, find our trio, fill them with lead, loot whatever important things they've got on them and then hurry and get out before any major garrisons come running up from Paris.".

"Yeah; last thing we would need is a whole Panzer battalion pulling up on us. I think this will work.", Steve said. Jacques nodded, "We just have to make sure that our Nazi guests don't get scared... or making sure we're not walking into a trap. Thankfully we've got people that will make sure of that up to the last minute.".

Mole giggled, "So excited! Let's liberate France once again!", before smelling the air, "Ooh, escargot!", all but running out of the room, and Jacques chuckled, "He will never change...", with a smirk.

"How are you holding up?", Steve asked softly, and Jacques sighed deeply, "I'm glad that I am making great progress as much as I can with the Marquis, but even after three months, it's getting harder as I really want to go back and just leave all the horrors behind when I'm with Sia again, in her arms, to ruffle Vinny's hair again, to soak into Kory's baby scent, and wondering if I'm missing out on him crawling for the first time...Honestly, Paris seems dull compared to Atlantis...".

Steve patted his shoulder, "You will get through this, Jacques. After all, Sia got family behind her, and you ain't alone. I'm sure Mole had been cheering you up as much as he could. I got family in Peggy, her parents, and Bucky...The last two days, I got to meet her parents, and they were a bit upset when I said that everything involving this and us is classified.", gesturing to his body.

Jacques chuckled, "Must have been something...They good folks, huh?", and Steve smiled, "Oh, very much so. They love their daughter, it was obvious...And Bucky, my best friend. He forgave me for the fact that you were my best man at my first wedding, and hopefully, around Christmas, there'd be shore leave, and he would have the chance to be my best man officially.".

"You're marrying her again?", Jacques widened in awe, and Steve nodded, "It makes sense, really as Peggy is both American and British in citizenship, and being her spouse, I should do the same. I properly proposed to her last night...Gods, if it wasn't for Pierre, I would have been shot if I was not fast enough with the shield, right in the first minute I landed here in France!".

"Yeah; it's not that easy in a fight when you're not the one jumping on the enemy. We only got the advantage on those HYDRA goons because they never expected us with the craft.", Jacques said.

"Well, I'll certainly be more careful and take better care of making sure I'm confident in my surroundings. I won't let them get the jump on me again like they nearly did.", Steve told him.

"Just try not to be too cautious; the blade swings both ways fairly easily there.", Jacques said. Steve nodded, "Yeah. I hear you.", and Jacques replied, "But Peggy's good, yeah?", with a warm smile.

"She is...Jacques, did your parents have any trouble conceiving before you?", Steve asked with a sigh, knowing that he had heard Harrison's admittance of his troubles, but it was his father-in-law...Maybe a different listener would help out, even if Jacques had miraculously given Sia Korbyn, thanks to the Great Kings/Queens of the Heart.