Love and War Aren't a Game

The German tank was insanely massive, the most intimidating piece of machinery I had ever seen in my entire life. It truly looked like it was built to withstand any force, and leave a path of destruction and death wherever it went. I pushed aside my intimidation and took in a calming breath, reassuring myself that Captain America was going to be able to destroy the damn thing and save innocent lives.

The entire team, aside from Bucky and I, were sneaking in to the Hydra camp to destroy the tank and wipe out as many enemy soldiers as possible. The task Bucky and I had was to cover the group and shoot any Hydra men that spotted them and were going to blow their cover. So far all was going well, but through my scope I could see a Hydra soldier sneaking off to have a cigarette and he was more than likely going to stumble upon Captain America.

“Man coming from the north, blonde hair, sleeves rolled up, he’s mine,” I said. A walkie-talkie had been placed next to my rifle and was on constant transmission to Bucky’s, allowing us to communicate from a distance. He was stationed at a right angle to my left, giving him a different view on Steve’s path, with the intention that he could shoot any targets I couldn’t see.

“You sure about that?” Bucky replied and I squinted my eyes. I didn’t know if he was being serious, but I still became anxious that he was going to steal my shot, so I gritted my teeth and pulled the trigger. The silenced shot took out the man a second before he rounded the corner and spotted the other Howling Commandos and his body slumped against the side of a tent hiding ammunition, hopefully meaning that he would remain undiscovered for longer.

“Why have they stopped?” I asked Bucky, unable to see what had made Steve hold his hand up to the others.

“A patrol,” he answered and a few seconds later the soldiers came into my view. They passed without noticing our men and then Steve continued to move forwards. He signalled for Jacques to head to the tank, then gestured for Dugan and Gabe to head to the right. Jim covered the rear while Steve and Falsworth shifted to the left. “There’s a man heading for the tank! Do you see him? Black hair, tall, slim.”

Bucky’s voice was urgent and I shifted my scope around the area, searching for the target he had seen. If anyone approached the tank while Jacques was securing the bomb, the entire plan would be foiled. I saw a mop of black hair that hadn’t been trimmed for a while bobbing behind wooden crates and heading for the tank and Jacques.

“I see him,” I replied.

“Do you have a clear shot?” Bucky quickly responded. I scrunched my eyebrows as the man disappeared behind a tent.

“No, but once he passes the tent I should,” I said, a partial lie because the next set of crates would give the man cover once again, making my shot a difficult one.

“Don’t fire; I’ll get him,” Bucky instructed.

My gut dropped. I wasn’t keen on just sitting back and letting him be the most help to the team. Bucky had made most of the shots so far, and no doubt I wasn’t going to hear the end of it during the ride back to the base if I didn’t step up my game. I clasped my gun tighter and waited, firing the second I saw movement emerging from the temporary cover of the tent.

“Shit! Catherine!” Bucky shouted. Time seemed to slow down and I could hear my heartbeat echoing in my ears.

“What?” I gasped, quickly diverting my view to where Jacques was. I spotted him just in time, dropping his bomb and rushing towards the rest of the team.

“You hit another man! The original soldier saw the shot! We’ve been compromised!” Bucky shouted just before gunfire erupted from the camp. “I told you to not fire! You couldn’t see!” I had no snark comeback or logical justification, so instead I remained still and quiet, lying on the ground and watching the mayhem unfold through my scope.

Moments later Jacques’ bomb exploded prematurely, activated by him dropping the heavy object to make him run for cover faster, and the debris from the tank and surrounding structures made it impossible for me to watch anymore. Some of the crates were clearly filled with small bombs and gun powder, because explosions rang throughout the camp and fires began to destroy everything in their path. I could only watch on in absolute shock and hope that whenever I saw a flicker of red and blue or blonde hair that it was Steve and that my team was going to survive.

“Catherine! They’re heading my way! Run, we need to get out of here!” Bucky’s voice called over the transmitter and I snapped out of my daze. Adrenaline forced me onto my feet and I left the heavy rifle behind, fleeing for my life.