Chapter 1
"Sophie!"
The girl vanished in the masses that were desperately trying to reach the gate. The gate out of Shiganshina, the only hope for the people of this town - well, at least for the ones still alive. Armin turned around and tried to reach out for his sister, but she was already gone.
"Go on, boy!" a man screamed, "or we are all going to die!"
And with these words Armin was swept away by the masses.
My eyes widened. I had tried to reach Eren and Mikasa's home, hoping they were there, alive. But as I turned around the corner, it was gone. A ruin of stones, wood and broken household goods were at the space of the house, with a piece of the wall on it. It looked almost like a strange gravestone… I felt a hysterical laugh creeping up my throat, but held it back and looked up to the evening sky. It was dawn, and the sky looked like flames, orange and yellow flames. But it was mixed with red, as if the clouds wanted to cover up the blood that was shed beneath them. This was hell, and I was right in the middle of it. But why? Why did this happen? What did the people do to deserve this?
Then my eyes fell on the house again.
"Carla." I whispered the name of Eren's mother. She was trapped under the roof of the destroyed house, seemingly unconscious. Or was she already dead? I almost hoped she was. It would be better. I didn't hold a grudge against the kind-hearted woman, no, quite the opposite. If she was dead already, she wouldn't see the Titans. Their faces, the grin before they devoured the people they caught. She wouldn't have to feel the hands grab her and see her death. She would have died in peace.
"MUM!" I flinched. I saw Eren and Mikasa, running around the corner. Relief flew through me. They were alive! They had made it! But then i realised where I was. "Mikasa, grab this side! We're gonna have to lift it!" Eren's voice was pure despair. They tried to lift the roof. Fruitless effort. Then we all heard it. Loud rumbling sounds, as if a thunder storm was approaching. I looked up to the sky, confused. Then it struck me: These were not thunder and lightning, these were footsteps. The titans were really inside!
"Eren! Take Mikasa and run! Even if you get me out of here, I couldn't go with you! My legs have been crushed!" "No I'm not gonna let you die!", Eren screamed. "Just do what I tell you for once in your live Eren! Go, Live!" Suddenly Hannes landed next to Eren. "Don't worry, Carla, I'll get all three of you outa here. After all, I'm a soldier, that's my job." He grinned at her and run towards the titan that was approaching the Jaeger's house. Then he stopped. He stared at the Titan in front of him. A smooth curtain of blond hair was draped around his face, and it seemed to be grinning. Hannes snapped out of his immovability, but instead of attacking the Titan, he turned around and grabbed Eren and Mikasa. "Eren! Mikasa! I love you! Live!" Carla's words were desperate.
Suddenly my breath was cut off and I was lifted into the air. A Titan? No, a soldier had grabbed me and flew through the air. "Don't worry, we're gonna get you out of here. I'll take you to the boats. From there you will go inside the walls and maybe even inside Rose. Don't worry, we'll all get out of here." I almost didn't hear him. I was still staring back at the jaeger's house. The Titan had lifted the roof and grabbed Carla. She struggled, but he grabbed her head and broke her neck. Then he opened his mouth and put Carla into it. When the jaws of the monster closed, I closed my eyes. All around us was screaming. But I kept my eyes closed, knowing that if I opened my eyes, I wouldn't be able to keep still. I heard enough; The screaming, the crying, the footsteps, the sound of a Titans closing mouth, followed by the sudden stop of a scream. Or worse, I heard the agony even more. That must be people that had their legs bitten off or other things, that weren't dying immediately but experienced the worst pain I could imagine.
Even though my eyes were closed, images flashed into my mind, as if my own mind wanted me to see everything. Then the soldier carrying me suddenly stopped. I opened my eyes. We had almost reached the boats. But I was facing the other direction. I saw Shiganshina, home in crumbles, invaded by these mindless monsters. A wave of anger hit me, and I wanted to kill. To stop this and to be free from this. But I was weak. Unable to do anything. It was like this. The walls that were surrounding us suddenly didn't seem like security anymore. They were a prison. A fence. The walls were a pit and humanity was cattle.
The man swung into the air again. When we landed again it was at the boat. "Go!", the soldier said, and lightly pushed me forward. I turned around and clung to him. "Don't go! If you go you could die!" The soldier smiled. "Maybe. But I saved your life, so I hope you will return the favour one day. Now concentrate on staying alive." He turned around and started to walk away,and I felt tears in my eyes. Then I took a step forward and called out to him again: "What's your name?" He turned around. "Samuel Linke-Jackson."
I felt a hand on my shoulder. "You're alive." My brother's voice was hoarse and almost breaking. "Come." He grabbed my hand and pulled me towards grandfather, who was sitting at the wall of the cabin, staring at the ground. Without a word he pulled the two of us down with him and slung an arm around each. His eyes were hidden in the shadows of his hat, but we saw a tear falling onto his legs. I nuzzled into the embrace and breathed in the familiar scent. Suddenly Armin jumped up. "There they are! They made it." Suddenly worry and fear shadowed Armin's face. "Eren…" It was almost like a question. Eren's and Mikasa's faces were empty. "Give them some space", grandfather said. "God knows what they just saw."
"I know." I said. "I saw it too." Instead of an answer, grandfather tightened his embrace around me.
When we left, he covered my ears, but I heard the people anyway. Those poor souls who hadn't been lucky enough to get a place on the boat. They tried to jump onto it, but they were pushed off or fell off. I heard a lot of people sighing when we passed the gate to the inside. We would be save! A weak smile passed my face. Then the wall seemed to explode. I gasped. A Titan had broken through. They were inside. I covered my face in my hands and felt Armin's hand on my shoulder, when Eren jumped up and walked to the rail. "I will wipe them out. I'll erase them from this world. I will kill them. Every fucking one of them." Tears ran over his cheeks, but his voice was filled with determination. I will help you.