The White Wolf

XXVI

Azzano, Italy.

"Duck!" KABOOM. Sergeant Barnes cried out as he and the 107th comrades witnessed the giant tank wiping out a dozen more of their fellow men with the attack they have never seen before. A big, blue spark of energy burst from the cannon, and beams of energy just disintegrated his friends and allies into nothing but dust.

"Goddammit! What the hell was that?" Corporal Dugan shouted shortly after they barely evaded the blast, scurrying over the wall of the trench.

"Whatever it was, we have to escape from here. This... this is something different." Barnes said, collecting  his heavy breath before the ground shook once more.

"Sh*t, if we can even make it out alive, that is!" Dugan scoffed as he reloaded his rifle. "Those Nazi's are gonna have our heads if we don't hurry. Come on, let's follow the trench and head out North. We can try to cross the lake and see what we can do from there." He said before signalling the rest of their squad to follow him.

The dark, crimson night sky roared with blasts from this unknown tank, and the sounds of explosions and the screams of his fellow men filled his ears as Sergeant Barnes rushed across the lines of the trench. Each and every time the ground shook, the terror of that tank coming near grew bigger inside of his heart. The feeling of fear never before felt from his days at the front line. The thought of dying without leaving a trace of whatever is left of you scared him to the core, but the reality was cruel; the only thing he could do was run. Run for his life so he could see the next day.

"Dugan!" Barnes yelled before lifting up his rifle and firing, shooting a Hydra soldier just before he could shoot down Dugan. "You check our back and make sure to see if anyone comes up from the side. Everyone stay sharp, alright?" He shouted before witnessing one of his men shooting down another Hydra soldier. "Stay sharp, men!"

"We're almost there, lads! Just keep running!" Dugan called out from the front as he threw a grenade, spotting a group of enemy soldiers not to far from where they were.

A young private suddenly screamed out in pain as he fell and rolled across the dirt. The entire squad stopped dead in their tracks before Dugan and Barnes ran back and gave cover while the only medic in their squad immediately began to check the wound.

"Leave me! Just go!" The young man cried through grit teeth, ready to risk his life to save the others. "I'll only be a drag. I'll hold them off as long as I can."

"Don't you dare say that! No one is left behind, you hear me? No one dies on my watch!" Dugan yelled over the sound of gunfire, holding the young man's collar. "Bucky! Help me get him up! The rest of you, just keep running toward the end of the trench!" He ordered to the squad before the ground shook once more.

Barnes looked around his back, hearing the sound of the enemies' footsteps and the rolling wheels of the tank coming closer and closer every second. "Dugan, leave without me." He said, pulling out ammunition and began to load his rifle fully. 

"The hell are you saying? Stop talking stupid and let's go together! Come on, help me get him up!" Dugan shouted as he held up below the younger soldier's arms.

"None of us will make it out alive if we all carry him! You get him the hell out of here and I'll  hold them back as long as I can." Barnes said before tightening the strap of his helmet. "Go! Just go!" He snapped before turning his back and charging in the opposite direction.

"Bucky! Bucky! Goddammit, Bucky!"

Dugan's cry echoed in the Sergeant's ear, the last familiar voice to be heard before Sergeant James Barnes charged into the threatening sounds of enemy tanks and soldiers firing.