As the war progresses, Captain America
and Bucky become part of the Invaders along with the Sub-Mariner, the
Human Torch, and Toro. What Bucky does not admit to anyone is how
out-of-place he feels on a team of superheroes, a fact the arrogant
and angry Sub-Mariner keeps reminding him of. The Invaders are on
their way to stop a gang of Atlantean rebels who are aiding the
Nazis; Bucky insists on facing the enemy on a beach armed with a pair
of pistols but he is quickly disarmed and threatened with death.
Namor is forced to allow U-Man to escape to rescue Bucky, which only
increases his contempt for the teen sidekick....
On a mission in Poland three weeks
later, a trap is sprung which nets all the Invader save for Bucky who
was doing recon some distance away. Finding Cap’s abandoned shield,
he trails the Nazis to a hidden base in the woods where mad scientist
Arnim Zola has the heroes imprisoned in huge glass tubes. His object:
to drain their powers into a musclebound test subject to create a
superhero for the Third Reich. Bucky rushes in and opens fire on the
Ubermensch but the villain uses the Torch’s powers to melt the
bullets then Namor and Cap’s speed and agility to leap across the
room and overpower Bucky. But being a newborn, the enemy hasn’t yet
gained control over his abilities and Bucky manages to free himself
with a kick to the face. The Nazi lashes out blindly and immolates
two guards. Zola unwisely lets slip that the monster’s powers are
only temporary so Bucky hurls Cap’s shield to crack open the glass
tubes imprisoning his allies. He then dodges the enemy until Cap
arrives to knock him out. Zola and the Ubermensch are taken prisoner
and the lab is burned to the ground. Namor grudgingly recognizes
Bucky’s limited value and the young hero is pleased with the
near-compliment.