I'M BACK BABY! 'Sup, watchers! I missed writing for you guys so much! Anyways, I'm back and kicking, ready to make this story a thrilling one! As usual, I hope you'll enjoy this new chapter! And please review!
I was once more sitting on my bed, in my uniform waiting for Levi to come and get me, while watching my alarm clock tic. My eyes then fell on my painted black nails. 'Is this really necessary? They're all wearing gloves most of the time...' I tried not to think about what he was going to put me trough tonighht. Hell, I didn't even know I'd be conscious at the end. This guy could make me kill myself if he really wanted to.
"I have got to stop thinking about that..."
"About what?"
Levi jumped off the edge of my window into my room and walked towards me. By now I was used to not seing him coming so I stopped protesting even though it still freaked me out. He tossed me something. It was a small camera.
"I found it under the roof. It was filming your window. You got a stalker or something?"
I looked at him dumbfounded before flipping the device around and finding small initials on the bottom. M.S.H.B.
"No way!"
"You know the guy?"
" Schoolmate. Well, ex-schoolmate." I lied. Well it wasn't completely a lie. I just left out the part that he was one of my bestfriends and had a genius detective mind! "You weren't filmed were you?"
"Tch. Who do you think I am? I spotted the thing before climbing."
"Well excuse me. Not all of us can see in the dark."
"You ready? "He asked ignoring my last comment.
"Like I have a choice."
"Stop whining and let's go."
Once down, Levi led me out the street to a motorcycle. I didn't ask questions, knowing he'd get annoyed and just climbed behind him. It was weird however because he didn't blinfold me this time. And I knew very well the streets he was driving through. He drove south at outrageous speed. I was a big fan of mechanics but that speed made me uncomfortable and I unconsciously hung tighter to him. When he stopped, I opened my eyes and realized we were in a very familiar container zone.
"What the... This is Maria! What are you, insane?"
"Is there a problem?"
"No, of course not! We're just casually walking in the most dangerous place in the city to be at night and ..."
I received a pinch on the nose. "And you're just forgetting that you have a monster with you. Consider me your bodyguard for tonight."
"Bodyguard? Weren't you planning to beat me to a bloody pulp?"
"Tonight's training is balance."
"Balance?"
"Keep up."
He said as he started walking off. I ran to catch up with him. Something was different about him. He wasn't focused on me. He looked bored and worried at the same time. I suddenly stopped, remembering where we were approaching. He stopped a couple steps later and turned around. "What's wrong?
"This is where..."
"They're gone. There's nothing to be scared of now. Besides you'll want to get used to the sight of blood and corpses."
"How can you just say that?"
"Keep walking."
He ordered. I sighed and followed. We arrived to the empty space that separated the C-zone from the warehouses. Just like he'd said, the bodies were gone. But bloodstains were still coloring the ground. Levi kept walking without stopping and I followed really closely starring at his back to avoid looking down. I thought that I would puke if I did.
"Are you guys... responsible for this?"
"Just the clean up. I thought the brats already told you we're not interested in drinking human blood. This is the work of the stray ones."
"What exactly is wrong with them?"
"Nothing. They just enjoy their killer impulses. Nothing more thrilling and exciting than hunting a scared prey."
"That's horrible..."
"You haven't seen half of it..."
At this point I didn't even want to know more. It was so disgusting. How can intelligent creatures that used to be human, suddenly become psychos like this. Just thinking about it made my brain hurt. I didn't want to know just how deep they'd fallen... But then again, if somehow they could be turned back...
"Hey! Stay focused kid! You're the one who said the place wasn't safe."
"Hanji. Are you there?"
It was a stupid question. Erwin knocked on the science department's main office for the third time even though he knew perfectly the head was still there. It wasn't unusual for her to be lost in thought when something had caught her attention or something was wrong. Knowing this, the commander knocked one more time before opening the door.
"Hanji, I'm speaking to you."
"Hold it." Replied the woman without taking her eyes off her computer.
"Found something interesting?"
"Interesting indeed, not very reassuring though."
"What is it?"
"The virus Petra had in her system was different than the others. Faster in developpment and a lot more threatening. She reached he final stage in less than 24h. Also the vampires were chasing Levi that night. He's an alpha. Any other subject would get scared just seeing him, but these were after him. I know he was wounded but that wouldn't have kept their animal instinct from reacting to him."
"In other words, they were ordered to catch or kill him."
"Petra got caught in the middle of it and the bite she got prooves that they were different than than the others."
"Do you think THEY're at it again."
"There's a huge possibility."
The commander rubbed his face with his hand and sighed loudly before speaking again. "So we're in for an all out war."
"I said it before, I'll say it again. ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?"
I was standing on the edge of a building's rooftop (fifteen stories tall by the way). A very very wobbly bridge made out of two thin tin ropes and rotten wooden planks was stretched in between this building and another one, thirty meters away. No need to explain that I was suppose to cross this. Levi was distractingly tightening the straps on his boots.
"Stop whining, will you?"
"I can't cross this! It's impossible!"
"Why?"
"There's no way to predict which part of it is going to break under my weight!"
"Well, get over it. It's tonight's training. Cross from this building to the other, that's all I'm asking."
"That's not training! That's attempted suicide! And if I say no?"
"Then you're my next meal."
"You weren't kidding when you said this would be a nightmare."
"I don't joke. Get your ass moving."
He gave me a slap on the butt and I fell forward stepping on the bridge. It made a threatening crack sound, but nothing broke. I was paralyzed for a second. This bridge didn't have anything to hang on to aside from a thin rope also stretched across the two buildings, that reached my waist level. And it was so unstable it made it look like it'd be the first one to break. The only thing I could do was step on the middle of each plank to keep the balance and pray God that it didn't break under my weight. I carefully set my foot on the next one and tapped it a few times. Then I started putting my weight on it ... it held fine. I did the same with the next one ... that broke when I stepped on it. Luckily for me the rope I was hanging on to didn't and it saved my life. I slowly pulled myself back up.
"This is impossible. I can't just go on like this for thirty meters. There has to be some other way..."
POW!
That's when I heard the gunshot. I looked down which I regretted a second after. First because I think I discovered that I was slightly acrophobic (I never thought about it during free running) and second because there was something like a violent gang fight going on down there. And when I say violent, I mean violent. Gunshots, knifes and all. I looked at the fight, completely powerless. Then the bridge started wobbling dangerously. I turned around. Levi had kicked it. He looked at me with an impatient glare.
"Stop goofing around and get moving. Do you want to spend the whole night here?"
"But there's a fight going on down there."
"So?"
"Shouldn't you do something about it?"
"I'm here to train you, not resolve a conflict between gang members. That's the cops's job."
"You can't be serious! They're gonna murder each other!"
"Not my problem."
This could not be happening. He was seriously going to let these guys to kill each other? Then again, I was kind of asking him to throw himself in the middle of a gun fight. The bridge wobbled violently once more.
"Come on! Move it."
"You're the devil." I whispered.
I closed my eyes tightly and bit my lower lip to avoid screaming my fear and frustration. I slowly stood up on the cracking planks again. I didn't know what to do anymore. I just knew that I couldn't focus on anything. My balance, the bridge, the fight, the fear... My head was spinning so fast I was afraid I would fall anytime.
'Calm down Petra. You have to calm down.' I told myself. I forced myself to look straight instead of down and gave myself a slap on the face. 'If I make a run for it, I'm dead. If I step back, I'm dead. This bridge is a death trap. Everything is crumbling as soon as I touch it. Nothing's holding...wait...'
I looked at the rope I'd been hanging on to this whole time. I'd pulled on it a lot since the beginning. It was not stable, but it hadn't let go. I gave it a few quick pulls. It was like a big elastic. Bendy but not easily broken.
'That's it! The bridge is just a big mistake. It makes the whole thing more dangerous. And...yeah, if I do this I can even stop the fight down there."
I reached for my belt. On all their uniform belts were small knifes hidden in the buckle. When I found it, I took it out and pulled out the blade. I didn't know if I could do that, but in my mind right now it was the only way to finish the training and staying alive at the same time. I placed the knife in my mouth and sent my legs over that single rope. Then, I let my body hang from the rope with only my legs while I slightly cut each of the ropes holding the planks. I took the knife back in my mouth and moved on my rope, monkey style. Once near the end of the bridge, I recut the ropes a little before moving back to the center. I put the knife away and took a deep breath. I made sure I had a good grip with my hands on the rope before unhooking my legs from it and hitting the bridge with all my weight. The ropes broke completely on each side and the planks fell down.
"LOOK OUT!" I yelled to the people down there.
I couldn't look down but I heard a couple screams and the planks crashing on the ground. Then I had to focus on the fact that I was hanging from a rope pretty far from the ground. I took a deep breath and tried to swing my body to once more hook my legs on the rope ... Which I managed to. But my arms were so tired I wasn't sure at all I had the strength to drag myself towards the other building again. My heart was beating faster than a hummingbird's and I was panting like a dog. Sweat drops were falling from my face. The adrenaline level was lowering and my strength too.
"You know kid, tonight's lesson was finding balance, not the stupidest way to die."
My eyes widened and I looked up. Levi was standing on the rope just above me, with perfect balance. He then grabbed one of my arms and pulled me up with him. Once standing on the rope, I had no choice but to hang on to him to avoid falling.
"How the hell... Can you do that?"
"Years of practice." He simply replied. "Let's finish that training."
"Huh?"
Levi forced me to turn around and make me face the other building, while still holding me by the shoulders. He got so close I could feel his chest on my back. I heard him whisper in my ear.
"Balance your weight in the sole of your feet."
"It's ... Not that easy..." I said more distracted by him than anything else.
"Start by stabilizing your waist."
My body was following his command without me even thinking about it. I didn't like it. I didn't want this guy to be touching me like this. It felt wrong. He was giving me advice to survive, after all the death threats he'd given me. It wasn't right. I was afraid. But I had no choice but to obey. In that moment, he was my light. He was my only guide to survival. He let me go.
"Now walk slowly." He instructed.
I took one step. I was trembling and I could feel my imperfect balance. I took a second one and almost fell. But Levi was behind me again.
"Again." He ordered.
I did and after three steps lost balance again. And yet again, he caught me.
"I don't understand. I'm doing everything you're telling me."
"But you're only half focused. If you keep thinking that you're gonna fall, well guess what? You'll fall. And also..."
He trailed his index from one of my shoulder to the other, touching the skin over my chest in the process. I flinched and tensed up even more.
"Make sure your pec muscles are flexed. It'll stabilize your upper body. And focus brat. You won't fall as long as I'm here."
Saying things like that was so out of character. But I had to get this exercise done. I tried to ignore him and focused on the building. I closed my eyes and imagined that my feet were a piece of metal and that I was walking on a magnet. I started walking, ignoring the drop and only looking at the objective. One step. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. And before I knew it, I stepped on the roof of the second building. But my knees gave in the second I touched the ground. I fell on them and panted again. I couldn't believe what had just happened.
"Hey don't pass out on me, kid."
I raised my head and looked at him. His face in the dark was even more mysterious than usual. A memory then flashed before my eyes. The man from two years ago was standing right there. In front of my eyes.
"Quit staring kid. It's creepy."
"Were you here? Two years ago? On top of a roof, and met a girl? She tasted like strawberries."
"What the hell are you talking about?"
No it wasn't him. It couldn't be him. There was no seduction, no falseness in his voice. No trap. It wasn't him.
"Never mind."
"You're weird. Come on. We gotta go."
"Are you taking me home?"
"To base. Four eyes wants to run some more tests on you."
"Can't it wait till tomorrow? I can't take anymore."
"No." He snapped mercilessly. "Stop complaining and move it." He started walking away.
"You're a monster." I said.
He stopped and turned around. "So you finally understand."
He din't add anything on the way back. And I think i was even more scared now.
RING RING RING! I turned off my alarm and looked at the time. Just turning around in my bed to do so was torture. My body was aching so much I could barely move. It was 12:00 pm. I tried to remember why I'd put on this alarm. I'd come back at 6:00 last night. Six hours of sleep was not enough for me to catch up. But if I'd set it, I must have had a reason. I sat up in my bed and tried to remember if I'd forgotten something. I was looking around my room distractingly when I saw the camera. That's when I remembered what I wanted to do today. I quickly dressed up and went downstairs. Amanda was in the kitchen as usual.
"Good morning, sweetie! Or good afternoon actually. Want to eat something?"
"No thanks Amanda. I'm gonna go to school. I need to see the others."
"Aren't they in class right now?"
"It's almost lunch break."
"Hold on." She said grabbing me by the back of my shirt and pulling me in the kitchen. "You're not going anywhere until you eat. Two meals a day is not enough Petra. And you have to stop working so late."
"Is there something wrong with my grades?"
"That's not what I mean, genius." She said hitting my head with her wooden spoon. "You can't sleep till twelve every single day. It's eight hours of sleep at night, no more no less."
"But I've had trouble sleeping lately." I lied.
"Then go see a doctor, okay? You've got free time today."
"Alright, I'll go after I see the others."
She smiled. "Good girl. So, eggs and bacon?"
"I'm in a more sugary mood. Pancakes, please?"
"Done."
After I finished eating. I grabbed my jacket and headed to school. I walked through the school entrance and said hi to the people who recognized me. A black haired girl that was in front of her lockers called out to me.
"Hey Petra!"
"Hi Isle. What's up?"
"So is it true that you transferred out?"
"Not really. I'm being home schooled."
"That's really cool! We'll still get to see you sometimes."
"Yeah, no problem." I didn't want to waist too much time here, although it was nice to see my classmates after an almost two week break. "Do you know where I can find Krista?"
"Same as always. You guys always eat on the roof, even when it's freakin cold. Want me to come with?"
"Thanks but I haven't been absent long enough to forget where the roof was. Nice chatting with you!"
"Same here."
I climbed the staircase, all the way to the roof and kicked the door open. Krista, Jean and Marco were sitting in a circle on the ground and Ymir was leaning against the fence. I glared at her. I slammed the door behind me. Luckily no one else was on the roof.
"Petra! What are you doing here?" Exclaimed Krista all surprised.
Jean made an 'oh crap' face. Ymir looked a bit disconcerted and Marco... still had that goofy smile of his. He stood up as I walked up to him and slapped him as hard as I could.
"Ow. What was that for?" He said rubbing his cheek.
I threw him the camera. "You really thought I wouldn't find it, did you Marco Sherlock Holmes Bott? Since when have you become a pervert?"
"Sorry, it's not like I was trying to look at you change or something. I was just interested in the way a college student living in her folks's house organized their day."
"Can you not take me for an idiot? I want a real explanation now! Why is Ymir here? You're all in on it, aren't you? Why are you guys spying on me?!"
They all looked down and Krista was the first one to speak. "We were worried about you..."
"And spying on me like peeping toms with a camera was the best option you had? Are you freakin kidding me? And just so we're clear, I'm perfectly fine!"
"Hey chillax Petra." Said Ymir. "You've been acting weird for the past week. You can't blame us for being worried."
"What do you mean, act weird?" I pretended to be surprised.
"You haven't called us or come in contact with us for the past twelve days." Stated Marco.
"Amanda told us you never went out, not even to practice shooting." Said Ymir.
"And that you sleep until 1:00pm every day." Added Krista.
"Also you never answer our texts." Finished Jean. "When we came to your house to see you this weekend, you were sleeping. At five pm!"
Damn, those were all good arguments. But I couldn't let them see me confused now.
"Okay, I've had trouble sleeping lately. I'm going to see a doctor today just for that. And so what if I didn't tell you? It's not like I was trying to hide it." I lied. "That doesn't justify you guys spying on me. What kind of friends are you?"
They all looked away. Truth is, I was more angry that they were getting so close to the danger rather than at the fact that they had been spying. I had to make sure to convince them for good.
"You know what? This doesn't make want to see you guys right now. If you do anything like that again, I'll get mad for real." I started leaving and opened the door. Before going out I turned back and added. "And Marco, don't bother checking the videos. I erased all of them. You missed me doing night work."
I slammed the door behind me, before walking out of the school and heading to the closest doctor's office.
School Rooftop
She left slamming the door. Marco then smirked and threw his fists in the air.
"Yes! Got her!"
"What are you talking about man?" Said Jean. "This is a disaster. She figured it out."
"Actually she fell in the trap."
"What? How?" Said Krista, dumbfounded.
"When you're angry you make mistakes. Everyone knows that. I made sure our dear Petra was pissed off enough to let her guard down. And thanks to that, I now know for sure something's really going on."
"You had all of this planned from the beginning. You sly bastard. Way to go." Praised Ymir.
The detective boy took a look at his camera. He checked the hour that the device had been deactivated.
"Dude what are you doing?" Asked Jean.
"The camera was deactivated at 12:47am. That means Petra was still up then. And that she opened her window."
"How is that gonna help?"
"My camera was directly linked to my computer. All the footage she erased are still there. Now I know at what time of the video I should pay extra attention to."
They all looked at each other. They knew something was up. And they had to figure out what, before their friend got into real trouble.
AH! SO FREAKIN GOOD TO BE BACK! Thank you guys so much for being patient. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter (I know I enjoyed writing it!) Anyways, I love you all and hope you're enjoying summer (or winter depending on which side of the globe you're on. Oh and please don't forget to review! ;)
