Remember My Legacy.
[No one remembers the names of the trampled flowers...]
"Captain..."
The girl's voice was soft and hoarse, a whisper that was barely audible to the Lance Corporal who bent over, his figure hovering directly over hers. Blood stained the side of her uniform; the jade green cape that donned the wings of freedom was torn to shreds with blood sprinkled across the emblem. Much like the situation at hand, the symbol of hope for mankind was in a wretched, bloody state.
"Eyes on me, Cadet. No talking," he ordered in that stern tone of his, his emotionless eyes locked on the face of the girl whose existence was dissolving into the void of death with each passing second.
"You're going to be okay."
"No Captain, I-"
"Cadet! I said no talking. That's an order," the Corporal interrupted, authority ringing despite the calmness of his voice. [Name] silenced. Her [e/c] hues remained fixed on the Corporal who glanced around tentatively for more monstrosities known as Titans.
None appeared in the area, which caused an inconspicuous sigh of relief to issue itself past Corporal Levi's lips. He continued to keep his eyes solely on her, anxiety, though barely noticeable was present on his face as he watched blood seep from her side; her arm severed off from a Titan attack.
There was nothing he could do to stop the flow of crimson liquid from spilling out, neither him nor the clots that he put earlier were able to sustain it, and he knew that her consciousness was slipping along with it.
Then, there was a momentary feeling of shock that raced through his mind, as he saw the girl...smile at him?
[Name] was mere steps from the Doors of Death and she chose to use the last few shards of her strength to smile?
"Cad-"
Corporal Levi started to say when he was cut off by [Name] mouthing something. She sparsely had the strength to utter words out loud now.
"Promise?"
"Captain Levi I'll be joining your squad from today," a rookie recruit [Name] approached the unimpressed Corporal.
"Is that so," came his response as [Name] saluted in a quick, uncoordinated manner.
"Y-yes sir, Cadet [Last Name] reporting for duty," she stumbled over her own introduction as the Corporal looked even more disinterested than before- the crease in his brow suppressing a frown.
"Can't you introduce yourself without stumbling, Cadet? Is that the kind of legacy you want to leave when you fall in battle? An idiot who can't even introduce herself," he inquired in a rhetorical manner and [Name] seemed to increase the confidence in her poise upon his judgment.
"No sir, Captain Levi," she saluted once again, this time with more force and confidence in her words and stance.
"Good. Now get to work. This room is filthy."
"Captain Levi, when are you going to address me by my actual name," [Name] asked one day, much time after their first meeting.
"Someday when you prove that you're not a rookie anymore," he said plainly.
"But I'm not a rookie now," she protested with a childish look. This caused the Corporal to glance at her in such a manner the caused her to immediately shut up.
"Why is it you want me to address you by your first name," he asked finally. In a way, he was curious, because this wasn't the first time the two broached on this topic, but in another he just wanted her to be quiet.
"You call everyone else by their first name," she remarked to which he responded with a nod.
"I said before, you need to prove to me you're not a rookie," he repeated with less enthusiasm in his tone than the last time; he wasn't fond of repeating himself. Especially over matters such as these.
"All right," [Name] relented.
"But can you promise me something?"
"What is it?"
"If I die before I can prove my worth, can you call me by first name?"
"What's that going to do?"
"Well..."
"I just want people to remember me. When I fall in battle, the only legacy I can offer is my name."
As the Corporal tried to recall the promise, something jarred inside him. It was a feeling that he couldn't seem to suppress.
An unbearable pain in his chest. And he didn't know why.
"Captain Levi...Have I proved my worth," she asked in such a small voice that the Corporal had to strain his ears in order to hear her.
The pain increased upon hearing that question. Like a warning that her life span was on the verge of ending. He paused before answering, and before he knew it...
She was gone.
"Dammit [Name]."
[Only the will to fight will change our world.]