For those who are new to this series:
Thanks for checking out this story! I seriously recommend reading my first part: 'Sacrifice' first, though. This probably won't make too much sense otherwise.
For those who have read Sacrifice:
Heeeeyyyy
I really hope you enjoy this new installment. I want to give you big AO3 hugs for all of the amazing comments and kudos you guys have given to me and give a huge thanks to my Beta: Bloody Pinprick from FF! Without you my punctuation would turn people to tears.
I really hope you all enjoy!
P.s. If you're interested in the song Eren sings: youtu . be / vxlste3JucU?t = 103 (minus the spaces)
The sun sank steadily into the earth as I sat in front of a large crude fire, winding a hand through my hair, watching the humans around me set out their sleeping rolls. My hair was thick now, black and almost to my waist.
While I was probably looked just about old enough to join the army before, I knew Armin's old man would have had some (many) complaints if he recognised me. He'd probably tell those in charge that I was actually younger than I looked; that seemed the sort of thing he would do. So I took my older form of Eury, a thirty-year-old woman with thick, black hair, a strong nose and brow, and a cool olive tan. My arms were bare, but for the black bands of dotted ink from my wrists weaving up to across my chest. My eyes were the same burning bluish green though, as always.
I got a few odd glances now and then with the appearance that varied from this time's norm, but most of the humans seemed lost in their own heads, unable to even see their own hands as they gazed at them. I wasn't surprised when the humans had been slow to gather that first morning but, as time slowly went on, more and more of them started to fill the space. Each time I thought that it must be all of them a new wave would come, shepherded by officials or being dragged along by ill looking soldiers into the queues of people filing out.
The first two days had been toughest.
A stagnant miasma of misery and choking despair filled the air as everyone shuffled around the crudely erected tents, silently picking up equipment and soldiers' clothing.
In my life before I woke to this new world, I had little to no experience with metal. Yes, technically it came from my domain, but the odd mixtures and forms they made with it had been a rather new invention of the humans then. I knew enough, however, to be shocked at the poor quality of the blades we were being given. I suppose those in charge didn't want to waste good materials on the Titan food. Some of the humans around me seemed to have the same understanding in their eyes, but instead of the burning anger in mine, theirs only held fear and sadness.
That first night none of them slept properly, waiting to start training properly the next day. They knew they only had a two weeks to master the basics before being churned out of the front gates, past frozen soldiers and empty homes. The last hints of sunlight faded away and I sat in the dark, simply watching them as they slept. It was a bad situation but- in a weird way- I couldn't help the little bubble of excitement in my stomach at the thought of flying without wings, moving like those military members I had at one time helped and even vaguely admired.
That felt like years ago now...
It was the next day, while everyone was in those funny little postures the army liked so much, as we stood in the open barren field, that I finally saw the face I had been searching for since I arrived. I almost missed him. He didn't seem to have his old hat on any more, and his white hair was long and frazzled around his head, like a seeding dandelion.
Once the ill looking sergeant at the front had finally stopped shouting and had everyone put their equipment on, I made a beeline towards him. His eyes were ringed in red.
"Hello," I said as I strapped on what I now knew was called 'man-oo-ver gee-r'.
Surrounded by silence, but for the shuffling noise of all the humans struggling to put on their equipment, my voice sounded almost like a thunderclap. The old man turned to look at me with surprise as I nodded at him.
"My name's Eury, what's yours?" I asked.
"Christophe Arlert," the old man nodded weakly as he put on the straps over his shoulder
"Hmm... never gonna remember that. Can I call you Oldman?" I asked with an overly lively grin. The old man seemed surprised, either by my smile or what I said but he smiled back too, ever so faintly.
"Yeah I suppose so young girl," he said in a quiet croaky voice, sending me another weak smile which I returned tenfold.
"Why are you so cheerful?" Spat a voice from behind me. I slowly turned around to look at the middle aged woman staring at me out of pale scared eyes.
"...The sky is blue, the sun is warm and one day we are coming back here," I told her easily.
The woman had only stared at me with angry doubt before turning away to face the sergeant at the front again.
I had thought before I got to that place that the days would be long, boring and crammed with all the things that everyone had to learn. Well two out of three wasn't that bad.
The thing was: there were so many new recruits and so few instructors that a large part of each day just involved everyone standing in formation as we watched people test out their equipment in front of us. Not everyone would have a go.
My patience for this lasted all but two days.
"Fuck, this shit is boring," I said loudly as everyone watched the instructor go through the basics again. Probably too loudly, as the human turned to look at me with a cold expression.
"Alright, big mouth. Your go," he snapped.
I smirked faintly as I went to the front. I got this, I thought.
Ten seconds later I had to take that back as my head slammed into the earth.
People started to murmur quietly as I struggled up and tried again. I hadn't exactly been quiet about my reason for coming here, telling anyone who looked too scared or that I took a liking to that I was here to help everyone else, to get back to the wall with them one day- and now it looked like I was failing before I even started.
Fuck. That.
I stood up, strong and tall, body frozen in place as my stomach flexed and pulled to keep me steady. I looked out determinately at the humans before me, my eyes meeting theirs as I stared confidently out at them. Then the earth span up into my face again.
"What?!" I exclaimed through a mouthful of sand.
"...Sir, could you check her belt?" Asked a familiar voice. I picked myself up from the dust below me as the old man stepped forward with a contemplative expression on his face.
I looked down in confusion as the instructor inspected my belt. His face, at first, filled with irritation and then with sharp surprise.
"The puh-ih-voht pin is missing!" He exclaimed before looking at me oddly.
I had no clue what this pin thing was but by what some of the humans were whispering it sounded like I shouldn't have been able to stay upright as long as I did. It was much much easier to stay up when they gave me a different belt.
I grinned at the crowd as I swung gently between the two wooden poles. A few of them even tentatively smiled back to my surprise. The old man was smiling hugely when I got down to join him again.
Unfortunately the old man was one of the many who didn't get to try out his belt with the others. That didn't matter though, I decided as I quietly motioned for him to follow me that night. I was a god. Who better to teach a mortal to fly?
I heard people say that the old have a harder time learning new tricks. Well, the Oldman would sure shut them up; he soaked up the information like a sponge. The only problems he had were on the physical side. He just didn't have the flexibility or fluidity of movement for much of what I tried to teach him. It took him several nights to gain the correct balance but, by that time, our late night training sessions were no longer just the two of us.
The second night brought a nervous boy of about eighteen with short cropped flaxen hair and an upturned nose, and a woman in her forties with glasses and the most freckles I had ever seen on one face, who asked for my help to get their balance right. Freckles and Flaxen seemed to be related, not mother and son as far as I could tell, but still close.
I got them to improve their stances by trying to knock each other down, occasionally stepping in to make them widen their legs and find the centre of their balance. Freckles was really good at this, sending me small, reserved smiles every time I walked by as she helped her kin.
The third night, there were five more arrivals to our group. That doubtful middle aged woman from the other day had swallowed her pride and asked that I could help her with her balance, along with pair of milk-skinned twin women in their thirties (one jittery looking and the other always quietly furious). Then came an emotionless looking ginger-haired man in his late thirties and a really very masculine woman in her early twenties who liked to flex her arms a lot.
"Good work Flaxen. Pair up with the old man now."
"Pokerface, either pull in your legs or push them out, you won't keep your balance like that!"
"Flexer, for my sake stop hitting on Jitterone and try and knock her over."
"Fury, you're supposed to be pushing Pride over not giving her a hug!"
It was actually a bit enjoyable this. I was glad now for my time following the Scouts and observing their fighting against the Titans.
The group of humans didn't seem to like the names I had given them at first (except for Pride- the grumpy middle aged woman seemed to actually like it when I called her that if the tight smug grin she gave was any clue) but they soon got used to it. By the fifth night they had even given me a name as well- two, in fact: Green eyes and Commander. Green eyes was obvious enough and commander seemed to be too at first. I thought it was because I was doing a better job than the instructors and taking their place, but the old man carefully explained that it was because they felt I commanded their attention and told them what to do.
Hell, I wasn't hearing any complaints and they still came back every night.
There were more additions to our group as time went on, but by this point I couldn't be bothered to memorise all of their faces and started getting Freckles, the old man and Pokerface to teach the new ones, occasionally popping by to offer some tips or just shout at them. The shouting thing was kinda fun.
By the eighth night I somehow got up to thirty people gathering around me. I was surprised none of the people in charge had tried to break the group up yet. Probably they didn't care enough to do anything, although I did, on occasion, get a few odd glances from one of them: a tall man with a blond bun.
"Now, I'm sure you all heard them lot talking about the best way to attack a Titan with your gear!" I called out at them once they were all gathered together. "But that's gonna be worth shit if you don't know how to attack from the ground. There's a lot of open land out there, as you know. It's not all going to be nice forests to swing like a monkey from." There were some odd looks exchanged at the word 'monkey', but I kept on talking, bringing their attention back with a question.
"Anyone got a clue how we are going to take down a fucking fifteen meter Titan when we're bugs on the ground? -or on horses if we're lucky."
"We h-have to attach our gear to the Titans," Flaxen spoke up in a wavering voice.
"Well done, you; you were actually listening to them earlier on. I think I was almost asleep by that point." There were a few chuckles and I grinned at the huge group of people spread out on the ground before me.
"Okay so we're going to fire some sharp spikes into their bodies and pull ourselves up to cut up their necks. Anyone see a problem in that?"
Everyone was quiet for a moment, seemingly unsure of whether I wanted the obvious answer.
"They're going to feel it," said Pokerface, standing a little way off to my right with a bored expression... I think.
"Right! Well, actually sort of right. Some Titans will feel it but some won't. They don't all- uh- reply to pain the same way. So how can you tell which will feel it and which won't?" There was a silence were everyone tried to scrape their brains for an answer.
"The answer is... you can't," I interrupted their attempts to think. "So I want you to treat each Titan like they can actually feel you jab sharp spikes into their skin... Hey Flexer, get up here, I want you to help me show everyone what I mean."
Flexer looked slightly nervous at this, but, after seeing Jitterone looking expectantly up at her, she quickly got up and casually sauntered over.
"Okay. Flexer's a Titan, so sorry for you," I informed her with a small, wry smile, "and I've just shot a painful barb at her. What you going to do, Flexer?" Flexer grinned at me and lunged forwards; I danced out of her way.
"You got to be fast when attacking; keep up the speed and don't stop. Not all Titans are the slow, lumbering, brain-goners some people say they are. Some are fast and move in ways or do things you don't expect." Flexer dropped to the ground and span her leg around as I jumped up in the air. "Treat every Titan as if they could be like that. Don't relax," I continued, my quiet smile gone now as I weaved in and out of Flexer's punches, not once landing a blow on her as I jumped and dived around her in fluid, wind-like movements.
"So how should we fight these creatures with their fast speed and feeling skin?" I asked them, suddenly stopping in front of an irritated looking Flexer, who immediately made to grab me-
-only to fall backwards, broad mouth a little 'o' of surprise as Fury kicked her legs out from the side with a smug smile.
"This is the answer: together. Teamwork is key when fighting any enemy. Right there I was the distraction and Fury was the attack. I want you to find a partner you can do that with- but to do that you need to know everyone like you know yourself, it makes the teamwork much better. Some of the best armies in history relied on close friendships and teamwork. See Oldman there? He is great for ideas and strategy. Pokerface here is surprisingly flexible and good at flips, and Pride here has some fucking fabulous bloodlust going for her once she's over her nerves."
These humans smiled at my words, even Pokerface, I think- I mean there was definitely a faint twitch of his lips.
"As I know what they're like I know how I'll work with them. So you all, this is your mission during the day: while watching the others using their gear, start talking with other hu- people. We don't know who's going to be in our squads when we set out in a few days so it's a good idea just to be friendly to everyone, find who you'd work best with." I clapped my hands and looked around at my silent audience with a grin.
They were staring at me quite strangely now. Slowly one of the newer members raised his hand. It was that young thing with a yippy, little voice; I'd seen him the other day struggling to balance with his belt.
"Yeah what-"
"-Wereyouinthescoutsorsomething?" he interrupted in a rushed garble of words, staring up at me with huge, wide eyes.
"No," I replied shortly. "We're done for the night. Everyone go get some sleep. You'll need your rest for all the standing around you've got to do tomorrow." I turned to walk quickly away from the humans, but slowed my stride to let the Oldman fall in step with me.
"You should follow your own advice you know," he told me conversationally. "I think I haven't seen you sleep once since I have met you." I didn't bother to reply to this, simply shrugging.
"You missing them?" he asked. If I had a heart it would have skipped a beat as I stopped short and stared at the Oldman.
"Thought so," he said with a small, sad look, "you smile a little too wide and a little too much... I see you sometimes, and you look like you're a hundred miles away- or that you wish to be."
I looked down, still silent, not quite sure whether to be relieved or strangely disappointed that he hadn't in fact recognised me.
"What are their names?" He asked me softly as he could in his scratchy voice.
I hesitated, then felt my face fall into a scowl. No... I wasn't doing this. I turned to leave but stopped as he started to speak again.
"Sorry little o-Eury, if you don't want to talk, you don't have too. Just remember what you always say: you will come back here. You will see them again," he croaked out, eyes distant as if consumed by those thoughts. He tried to put a hand on my shoulder but I quickly dodged out of the way.
"...You're a good person Oldman. I swear to you you'll see your grandson again," I whispered to him before heading back to the camps. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the old man stare after me, hand frozen in the air.
He's a nice human; a bit odd, but nice, I thought to myself. Like hell am I going to let him get eaten.
It was now that evening. The final one. The last night of relative safety that many of these 'soldiers' would ever have.
Across the fire the old man sat, rubbing his hands, occasionally sending me a quick glance. To my right, Pokerface looked into the fire, pale eyes unblinking. Flaxen and Freckles were sitting on the hard ground, clasping their hands together in a heavy silence, and between the tired twins Flexer was staring up at the sky with a tight twist to her lips.
As I looked around, some of them met my eyes with faint nods and pale almost-smiles. Each and every one of them (except for Pokerface) held some element of fear on their faces; the emotion seemed to leak from their pores, cloying the air. Each of their breaths seemed to drag as these people sat in the fogged up air of their own fearful misery.
I started to hum.
Incredulous eyes turned to me, and the humans around all watched as I opened my mouth.
"Hoson zēs phainou, mēden holōs sy lypou, pros oligon esti to zēn to telos hi chronos apaitei..." I sang slowly in a deep earthy tone, catching people's attention and their eyes before changing to their language in a soft but joyful tone, tapping an aching beat on my legs with every word.
"While you live, shi-i-ine on, be joyous and dance, and seize the day... We're only here until we're gone, and time demands to be paid... Hoson zēs phainou, mēden holōs sy lypou, pros oligon esti to zēn to telos hi chronos apaitei..."
Oldman started to hum next to me and I grinned widely at him. Across the fire, Pride stared at me with her pale, wide eyes, saying something in her silent gaze that I couldn't quite understand.
I continued to smile softly at those around me as I sang those words over and over and threw a log into the fire, causing sparks to jump up and dance through the dark smoke-scented air as I sang in their language once again.
"While you live shine on, be joyous and dance and seize the day. We're only here until we're gone and time... time demands to be paid..." The song wound down with the fire as the people around me drifted off into more pleasant dreams. Only when the last sleep crusted eye closed did I let the smile slip from my mouth as I buried my face in my hands...
"...You sang beautifully there," came a soft voice from behind.
I blinked and slowly stood, turning around to see the bun man who I had noticed before- the man who watched me sometimes during the days of 'training'. He was tall with soft brown eyes, a small beard and long blond hair in the aforementioned bun. The man nodded to me slightly, clearly wanting me to walk with him.
Well, I wasn't going to say no to a distraction from my thoughts.
"You know who I am?" He asked as I fell into step with him.
"Nope," I said, kicking my legs forward as we walked, watching the wide arch of the dry earth fall to the earth in the star light. The bun man nodded and smiled as he told me his name and started listing off his rank.
"Yeah great. What was it you really want to talk to me about?" I asked, feeling my already short patience starting to fray.
"...you don't like the people in charge here, do you?" The bun man asked with a bemused half smile.
"Not really. But I find it hard to like people as a rule," I returned.
"Really? Then what about that group of people you've been teaching each night? Do you not like them?"
I stopped walking and turned to face the human.
"What. Do. You. Want?" I asked, voice becoming hard as I met his eyes.
"...I want you to join my squad. Not going into Maria but into the Scouts. I've seen you teaching and on the runs and using your gear. With a bit more practice you could be great. You have real prom-"
"No."
This obviously wasn't the answer he was expecting if the level of surprise on his face could be trusted. I was finding, though, that I didn't trust much about this face at all.
"Can I ask why?" he asked, after he collected himself.
"I'm not leaving the old man. I made a pa- a promise that I would keep him safe." That shut up the bun man for a bit as we walked past the other crowds of humans and their dwindling fires. Many of them still seemed to be awake and full of terror.
I wondered faintly if I could sing to them too but there were far too many humans, far too many fires dotting along the shadowed earth like a war-torn reflection of the heavens above.
"I could get your 'old man' assigned to the Garrison," said Bun man suddenly, breaking into my musings.
"I wish he could be safe,"
"Save them."
"I don't want him to-"
"Save them all."
"...No-o. I can't..." I found myself saying. The man looked really confused now and I sighed, looking behind me where the old man and the others slept not too far away.
"You see that boy there? Don't remember his name but I've started calling him Barker; often interrupts people when they're talking (has no patience at all) and sounds like a yippy dog when he's stressed," I said as I pointed towards a young red haired boy just visible from where I stood. "That girl there we call Flexer. She likes to show off her arms whenever she can, she has a large crush on the woman to her right, who I call Jitterone. She doesn't know that it's Fury, to her left, that's started to like her. Don't think even Fury knows."
I could feel the man looking at me now as I turned to look at him with a heavy frown.
"Pride, Freckles, Pokerface... Can you promise you would take all of them too?" I asked him with a shrewd look. He sighed and shook his head.
"Then I'm okay, I'm sticking with them... I don't like them the way you mean. I can't. But... I'm not going to leave them."
"...Then I'll suggest tomorrow that you and your 'colleagues' go to the West Division. They're being assigned horses... If you survive this, the invitation still stands." He had a doubtful look about that, but it faded away as I started to laugh.
"I'm not going to be killed." I smirked at him before turning to leave. "See you again some day, Bunman,"
"Good luck, Green Eyes." I heard him return before he too walked away.
I don't need luck; I'm a god, I told myself.
I was naive.
