Rourke rolled his eyes; he obviously wasn't going to take part in this fight. What's done was done and they had more important things to worry about. "Doctor; is all your equipment still secured?", he changed the subject.
Erskine exhaled, "We have to unload everything, so I can check over the equipment entirely without anything blocking in the way.", and Rourke nodded, "Right. Ladies and men, go start unloading the trucks, the digger, everything, and after the doctor finishes checking to make sure his equipment's intact, we will count everybody, and hold a candle ceremony.".
Everybody nodded, silent and went on their way to unload everything from the evac-sub and mini-sub, as Jacques walked up to Steve, as Vinny still held into his shoulders, tears drying out, "Thank you...".
Steve replied, "I may not be part of the war, but I have heard things and read many horrible things...A kid caught in the war, I wouldn't wish him or her to lose everything important to them and losing all those people...it was no man's land underwater...", with a sigh.
Jacques nodded, "Indeed...You're a good man, Officer Rogers...", glancing at the name tag, and Steve replied with a soft smile, "Call me Steve. We're all comrades now since we went through the same thing. How is the kid?".
"He ain't leaving me for a bit yet...and I don't blame him...", Jacques sighed as Peggy came up with her bags and Steve's bags, replying, "What is your name, sweetheart?".
Vinny sniffed, "V-Vinny...it is short for Vincenzo...", peering at Peggy with streaks on his face, and Peggy smiled gently, "It's not your fault nor anybody else's fault, Vinny. You're safe, and we won't be in the ocean anymore.".
"Promise?", Vinny whispered, and Peggy glanced at Milo, "Milo, you trust that the Journal's right about the rest of the way being on land?", grabbing his attention with a look at him, saying silently that he has to be considerately understandable for the kid.
"Well, so far everything's been pretty exact to what was written, so I don't have much doubts about it being wrong.", Milo explained as Peggy nodded. He was right; they thankfully were already on the right track at least, considering where they were at this moment.
Jacques looked down at Vinny with a reassuring smile, "There's no more sea monsters, you heard him. It's only land from this shore, kid.", and Vinny whispered, "Okay...I don't want nightmares, but I don't want to be a burden...", with a sniffle, wiping his eyes as he hesitantly let go of Jacques, standing wobblily on his feet.
Peggy thought for a moment before she unzipped her bag, looking before a relieved smile came as she took out a familiar sight, and Steve recognized her teddy bear with a fond smile while Peggy replied, "This little guy's name is Coney Jr. He is a memory of the surface, about Coney Island. Would you look after him like how Mr. Dernier is looking after you?", smiling gently as she showed the teddy bear to Vinny, figuring that he would feel important in doing something while helping Jacques unload and all.
Vinny held the bear before taking a deep breath and nodded. "Thank you...", he said as she smiled before Jacques leaned towards her ear, "He's not going to keep that long, you know that, right?".
"It'll be alright, at least it'll keep him some comfort for a little while. He's still a scared little boy, he's not a young man.", she reminded.
"In France, boys have to grow up really fast when it comes to Nazi occupation. Those traitors to the south in Vichy sell out their own homeland just to keep themselves in luxury, especially that bastard Pétain... Lion of Verdun, how far you fell...", Jacques growled. "Sorry, I've had to help young boys kill Nazis less they be killed themselves, especially the Jewish ones.".
Erskine heard the last part, and exhaled with deep conflict of pride yet horror, as his people had fought so much yet there are good people like Jacques, even if he's been involved, he still makes sure that children are able to defend themselves against enemies.
Steve pat Jacques' shoulder, "Yet this one's not in the war, be thankful for that.", with a small smile and Jacques nodded, "You're right. You have my utmost respect for standing up for me toward the Commander. I'd be most regretful and dismayed if I had left him behind. You have my permission to call me Jacques, you two, and it's rare to have friends to see that way.", smiling respectfully before glancing at Vinny, "Come on, kid. Tuck Coney Jr. in your shirt with his head out so you can keep him close while you help me out.".
Vinny nodded before following Jacques as Steve looked back at the waters and took a deep breath. "Feels unreal...", Peggy admitted. "To lose so many so quickly... I wonder if this is how those three survivors from HMS Hood felt after they had been rescued.".
Steve sighed heavily, "Probably...I don't blame Vinny...that Levithan must have been a rogue or something to survive this long...Nightmare fuel, indeed.", before glancing at Peggy, "But we're alive...Come on, you heard Rourke. We gotta move to unload before we linger here.", despite wanting to hold Peggy in his arms, to kiss her desperately, to feel her heartbeat.
"Right.", Peggy nodded. "Best we don't linger, who knows what else we might run into...", she said as they moved back to the subs to start offloading whatever they had at least managed to save.
And so, after a hour of unloading everything including Erskine's equipment which he checked thoroughly to make sure there weren't any cracks, anything of the sort, and to his relief, the secure straps had done their job excellently well, and so, the equipment got loaded into one of the trucks once again with the straps, Erskine told Rourke that he's good on it, and then after counting every survivor, they gathered at the shore with Dr. Sweet lighting a candle on a sailor hat boat.
"When we started this expedition...", Rourke started a short eulogy for the lost. "We had with us 200 of the finest soldiers and sailors I could ever hope to serve with. Now, we're all that's left. I'm not going to sugar-coat it, ladies and gentlemen. We have a crisis on our hands. But I think we owe it to those we lost to at least try to see the rest of this thing to the end.".
Steve bowed his head in respect and praying that all the lost souls are found and sent to the heavens, and he sighed deeply as he felt Peggy squeezing his hand, while Erskine quietly murmured a Jewish prayer next to Thaddeus who was listening to him, bowing his head.
Nearby, Jacques gently ruffled Vinny's hair as he held Coney Jr. in his arms, tears falling.
Rourke then sighed deeply, "I don't see any reason why we couldn't keep going. From this moment on, everybody works double duty from the youngest to the oldest, driving, working, cooking and all the duties in between. Only times we will stop is mealtimes and hold ups on the trail and until evening time by my clock, camp will be set up. So, my only and first warning right now, everyone. If anybody needs to go before we make tracks, take it. Ladies on the left and men on the right in the rocks between our fish sculpture entrance.".
"For the rest of you... let's get this convoy moving; we've got a long journey ahead of us!", Rourke added as everyone moved; orders and positions quickly given out as Erskine walked up to Milo.
"You've had time with that book, do you have any idea how far we might have to go?", he asked as Milo sighed, "No real idea; the Shepherd doesn't give exact distances, but it might not be too long of a journey as long as we have the vehicles moving at a decent speed.".
Erskine nodded, "Fair enough.", with a small smile, "You're doing good so far, my boy.", and Milo smiled softly, "Thanks, Opa. I just wish my grandfather was here...", with a sigh.
"Something tells me that he's with us in spirit, and that he's watching over us to make sure we have a smooth journey as much as we can.", Erskine smiles reassuringly, a bit sad that Milo doesn't know that Thaddeus is actually here.
Milo nodded, and they went to grab their chance to do their business before they get going, and a bit later, after Steve is latching up his belt and all, leaving his spot, he sees Peggy leaving her spot on the opposite side when he saw Mole coming up, smiling at Peggy, flirting.
A spasm of jealousy runs through him as he glares at Mole, it was one thing with Jacques as he seemed more focused on Vinny, and it was fine with him, and he seethed for a moment when he saw Mole whisper into Peggy's ear, and then smirks proudly when a furious look came over Peggy's face, and she punches Mole in the face, with Helga behind Peggy, laughing with a grin as she watched, "Nice hit, Carter! Mole, get back to your digger, or I'll put a double hose on you if we encounter a pond on the way!".
Mole looked horrified by Helga's suggestion and runs like heck, heading to his digger as Steve nods to himself with a chuckle, and a little voice asks near him, "Why did Miss Carter do that?".
He looks over to Vinny, and he leans down to reply, "You know how everybody has a personal bubble?", and at Vinny's nod, Steve continues, "Well, there are things that is inappropriate, and it bursts a personal bubble.".
"Oh...Because Mr. Mole was being inappropriate, and it burst her personal bubble?", Vinny asks in surprise, getting what Steve meant. Steve smiles, "That's right, Vinny.", knowing the real reason, and he would never blame Peggy for her natural beauty.
"Plus, he thought being English and our histories with the French, that I might not have learned French, and he was trying to say something he deemed romantic...", Peggy snorted. "Well, then I guess I can't say anything in French now if I was to talk to myself...", Jacques chuckled.
Peggy replied, "Don't worry, Jacques, you're far better than Mole, being respectable, so you're free to say anything in French. And besides, I'm taken already. I hope my punch was plenty of hint for him.", with a smirk.
Steve smiles warmly, "I think he got it as a warning, and of course, Helga's threat works as well.", and Peggy grins with a nod, softly blushing to see a bit of a desire in Steve's eyes, seeing that he got a bit turned on.
Jacques blinked, looking between Steve and Peggy before smiling to himself, realizing why Peggy did that, and went along with it just fine, not going to reveal that two valued officers are already infatuated with each other, and pats Vinny's shoulder, "Come on, kid, let's go into the convoy.".
Vinny nods, and so everybody got into the convoy, taking up trucks or such, and so, with Steve driving the head truck as he's in charge of the convoy, with Milo sitting next to him, reading the Journal as they went on, helping him direct occasionally.
Audrey glances at Peggy who's driving while being in one of the trucks a few ones down the convoy, "About time you got a hit on Mole for warning him early. He actually tried to hit on Helga from what Papi said about the Iceland expedition, and let's say that Helga was more...inventive than you...", with a smirk.
Peggy had questions, but decided that with what Audrey said, it might be better to not let her explain more and just leave it at that.
Meanwhile, up front, Steve was keeping his eyes ahead as he was trying to keep the truck stable as it rolled up the stairway, "Hopefully we'll have at least what can be described as a fairly smooth road on the way; I don't think anyone wants to abandon the trucks.".
"Especially not with what we're carrying." Milo glanced back at one private that was on a twin Browning .50 cal on the back of the truck that was practically used as an anti-aircraft weapon fitting for battleships.
"Will we need the firepower?", Steve asked as Milo kept reading. "Milo, please tell me there's nothing more like a Leviathan waiting ahead for us...".
Milo shook his head, "No, just mainly darkness, lots of turns and curvy roads, with markers probably on each day of traveling if that, maybe changes of temperature if we go deeper here and there.".
Steve exhaled, "Good thing that we got winter clothes in the packs and all.", and Milo nodded, "Yeah. We got plenty of lights for the darkness, speaking of which, have you got them on?".
Steve pulled a lever on the wheel, and lights came on, filling up the entrance of the tunnel, revealing it to be a cavernous tunnel which is miraculous to fit the digger and all, and after the last stair, he drove on smoothly, "Let's hope the doc's stuff is doing good back there too.", even after knowing that every fragile object like guns and such is strapped down, glancing at the mirrors on the side to see that the digger's lights came on, with more lights further downwards behind.
"Straight ahead, I guess... and hopefully along the way we might find a way out.", Steve chuckled. "Imagine in the entrance to Atlantis from the surface was just behind a small rock wall in a cave somewhere. Almost too funny in a sort of tragic sense if you think about it.".
Milo hummed, "At least we got the digger to help out with that if needed.", and Steve nodded, and so, after quite a few hours later, they had traveled down a cavernous valley with cliffs in a similar way to the famous Lombard Street in San Francisco, minding their speed and careful driving, and in the end of the valley, Rourke noted the time, and called for dinnertime and camp.
Parking the trucks, digger, and such in a circle of sorts like the old wagons of the Wild West when they went for Westward Expansion, Steve took charge of camp, talking with Cookie on rationing food and water, and organizing people to their areas of campfires, tents, and such.
Exhausted, almost everybody went to bed after such a tumultuous day, dousing two fires out, leaving one alight, protected by some steel fences and on low wood, after seeing Steve head behind the Digger in the distance, Peggy quickly and quietly left her tent, as everybody is still wearing their clothes to bed, ready to run and fight if anything happens during the night, unknowing that Thaddeus is leaving his tent to check on Erskine on a farther side of the circle, as Erskine is checking up on his equipment once more.
Peggy heard the sound of paper rustling as she whispered, "Steve?", peering around to see Steve holding a flashlight under his chin, with his first beloved sketchbook, drawing into it, and he glanced up, "Hey...", putting it down with the page showing a few scribbles of the Ulysses, the subs, and the Levithan in miniaturized size, dimming the flashlight.
"Your memory is good, Steve...", Peggy smiled gently, and Steve got up, smiling sadly, "Proof to show Phillips of what happened. I know some of those men knew Phillips...Maybe he would work together with Mr. Whitmore to configure things out for the families...".
Peggy nodded, "That's really honorable of you, Steve...", looking at him with a smile, seeing the desperate need in Steve's eyes, and she whispered, "I thought we were going to die...Kiss me, Steve, hold me, please...", feeling the same, wanting to feel him, to get it in her head that Steve's alive and breathing in front of her as today felt like a nightmarish dream.
Steve slowly put her arms around her as he took a deep breath, "I was afraid too, I was so worried that something was about to happen that might cause us to separate... part of me felt a little bit better when we were close... that if it was the end, at least we'd both be going out rather than say if I got left behind on the Ulysses like many of the other poor souls..."
Peggy exhaled, "And we'd have your mother and my brother welcoming us home...", tears prickling at the corners of her eyes, and Steve leaned in to kiss her tears gently before whispering, "Mom used to say that home is made from the heart, and I'd be feeling empty without you for I feel at home with you...", before tightening his arms around her and kissing her on the lips desperately, picking her up slightly, almost trapping her against the side of the digger, his hand softening the landing at her back.
"Steve...", Peggy wrapped her arms around him, sighing and biting her lip as she felt Steve's lips kissing her neck, wrapping her legs around his waist, their hands desperately reaching under their shirts and jackets to feel each other's skin, feeling their warmth to get it to their heads that they haven't lost each other, caressing through their hair, their mouths trying to kiss any chance of skin and lips.
