It felt rather unusual being the center of attention. Despite the large number of people crowded into the space, it felt almost empty with all the silence. No one in their right mind would have seen that coming. Annie barely conversed with anyone, let alone go so far as to kiss someone and say I love you. She held onto Josh tightly, almost as if he would float away if she let go. The feelings of guilt she felt from earlier still hung over her and she was grateful to have a moment to hold him close.
"I'm sorry I wasn't there earlier when you woke up. I should have been, but I'm just glad you're alright." She leaned on his chest.
"Hey, you don't need to be sorry, I get it. And of course I'm alright; I had to get back here to you didn't I? Titans aren't going keep me from that." He smiled at her, enjoying the cute moment they were indulging in. The feeling of finally being able to hold and kiss her without caring who saw was nothing short of liberating. It actually made him laugh to know that they got that kind of reaction from everyone. Even his friends had been surprised to see it. Well, all of them except Christa who just stood there smiling like she was seeing the most adorable thing in the world.
"Damn Kassmeyer, you've got bigger balls than I ever would've thought possible." Ymir actually sounded impressed. "You're the last person I would've expected to pair up with her."
"So let me get this straight, those two are a thing?" Jean was trying to wrap his head around it. "How long has this been going on?"
"Almost the entire time we were at the academy give or a take a week or two." Connie volunteered the statistic.
"What the hell, you're serious? So, who else knew about this?" Everyone from Squad seven, and Sasha raised their hands.
"We kept the secret pretty damn well if you ask me." Aline looked over at Josh and Annie as though she sought praise for her commitment to the task.
"I'm surprised we never figured it out in three years." Reiner was a little taken aback by what has transpired. Considering how often he and Bertolt were around Annie, the fact that she hadn't even divulged the tiniest hint about it was shocking. "I'd have sooner believed Jean turning into a saint before you could've convinced me of this." Comments jumped around the room for a while; almost everyone from the company had something to say about the whole affair. They ranged from pure shock and disbelief to approval and even jealousy once or twice. Josh and Annie owned the room at the moment, their embrace leaving everything still enough to paint a picture of the scene. He laughed to himself and whispered in her ear.
"So, why after all this time did you decide to finally give in to those bottled up feelings?"
"Well, everyone cracks eventually and that aside, if you're going to ruin my reputation in front of everyone, the least you could do was finish the job and do it right. Honestly, have some manners you idiot." She smiled and rolled her eyes sarcastically.
"They're just so cute together aren't they?" Christa asked no one in particular. Such was her attitude towards most instances of the romantic nature. She had a hand in all of this. Since the very beginning, she'd fostered the fledgling relationship, pushing the two closet lovers further into each other's arms. It hadn't taken very long for her to notice the natural progression of things, so she helped it along and supported it in any way she could. Josh had eventually posed the question of why to her, noting a heavier interest than just that of her normal kindness. She'd phrased it along the lines of "Call me a sucker for a sweet little love story. The gentle kind hearted boy comes in and showers his affections on the loner girl who basically hates the world. He melts her cold heart and they fall in love. That's a book I could curl up by the candlelight and read, even if it does sound a little cheesy." She'd said that near the beginning of it all, like he and Annie were already predestined to be soul mates or something. After everything that had transpired and everything she had said in the time since, Josh wondered if Christa was clairvoyant and just had neglected to mention it. While the latest bout of his rather common wandering mind flew around inside his head, a voice from the crowd rose to be heard.
"I hate to interrupt everybody here, but we have bigger things to worry about right now, like escaping this place. On top of that, I think Armin fainted." Marco nudged his way into the heart of the gathering.
"Right…sorry I was miles away there for a moment. I guess I get lost in those eyes of hers from time to time." Josh grinned sheepishly.
"Oh lord, would you stop with the lines; you're making me feel girly again." Annie groaned and buried her face in her hands.
"Huh, so she's not really all that scary then after all. Everything she's done has been nothing more than an act?" One of the cadets from the crowd offered up the opinion.
"Don't go jumping to conclusions; I can still floor any of you if I wanted. Just because I let my feelings out once in a while, doesn't mean I can't or won't kick an ass or two when the situation calls for it."
"Guys, again bigger problems to worry about here. Oh, wait I think Armin is waking up." Marco picked up the stirring trooper and propped him against the wall.
"What's going on…why does my head hurt so much? You'll never believe this, but I just had the weirdest dream that Josh and Annie were making out in front of everybody." He rubbed his eyes.
"Don't go fainting again or anything, but that wasn't a dream." Armin nearly passed out again regardless. Mikasa walked over and put her hands on his shoulders to shake him awake.
"Armin, we need you to collect yourself for now. We'll need your help putting together a plan for retaking HQ. This isn't the strangest thing we've seen today."
"Alright…yeah. I'm sorry I…just figured that would be the last thing I'd see."
"Okay, come on it's not that weird. You'd think that none of you had ever seen two people kiss before."
"Well…it's just that…you and him? I'd have expected that titan rampaging outside a lot sooner than this pair up." Jean tried to avoid tripping on the words.
Annie flushed slightly. "What exactly are you getting at? Is that supposed to be a stab at Josh or me?" She clenched her fists and snarled which made Jean step back a bit.
"Nothing, I'm not getting at anything I swear." She wasn't someone that he wanted to have pissed off at him, especially when he had nowhere to run if she lost it. Trying to shift the attention off of himself, he turned to Armin. "Any ideas yet on how we're going to get out of here?"
"Yeah, I've got a little something in the works; I'll need someone to find me a diagram of the building and a few of us to look around for weapons and any useful supplies. I'll also need someone to give me an estimate of how many titans are inside the supply room. Once we've gathered everything we can, we'll meet up by the cargo lift downstairs and I'll lay the plan out. Our new friend outside should be buying us at least a little bit of time, but all the same I'd be as quick about it as you can." People began scattering off in numerous directions. The more of them were off searching, the faster the work would be. Time had come for the lot of them to get their heads back in the game. Being given some direction was doing an excellent job of repelling the shock and confusion of the last couple of hours. It wasn't as though it had been part of their plan, but Josh and Annie's moment had also given the 104th cadets a much needed distraction from the brutality of the war surrounding them. Perhaps feeling surprise was a great way to remind them that they were all still alive. At least, they were for a bit longer. Outside of their refuge, the roars of the rampaging abnormal seemed to shake the very foundations of the building. An occasional rain of dust accompanied the vibrations of the heavier attacks. Aline and Sasha walked the corridors in search of something they could make use of.
"Listen to that, it sounds like they're leveling everything in a three block radius. I wonder how long he's going to keep going out there." Aline found herself barely talking above a whisper.
"Who knows, but I'm more worried about what's going to happen when he's run out of other titans to kill. He's like an entire company all on his own. If he ends up heading our way..."
Aline wasn't completely able to keep a twinge of fear from outlining here voice. "Let's not think about that at the moment; we shouldn't worry about the future until it gets here."
In a room on the next floor up, Albrecht and Jansen rummaged through cupboards, cabinets, and wardrobes, but to no avail. They were empty-handed so far. Jansen peeled back the curtain from the window just enough to peek out. A cold and pale sunlight filtered in through the clouds. From up here, there was an unrivaled view of the carnage in the streets. A fifteen meter titan had just had its' head punched clean off. Another smaller variant was stomped into pulp under the heels of the abnormal.
"I'm not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, but where was this thing two hours ago? A lot more cadets would still be alive if he'd shown up sooner." Jansen banged his fist against the window.
"We can't be sure of that. For all we know, he was killing our comrades just like any other titan until recently. Either way, it isn't like we can just turn back time to find out." Albrecht's voice became less than a whisper. "If we could, maybe I would have the courage to save a few of those Garrison troopers. Instead, I just had my team stand by idly as they were being eaten alive. We would've been able to; I know we could have; so why didn't I act sooner? If I hadn't hesitated, maybe Jansen wouldn't have ended up risking his life like he did. My lack of conviction should have put us in a far worse state than we ended up in." He hadn't told anyone how he felt about the ordeal despite how it had been gnawing at him every second since then. As squad leader, he had to keep everyone's morale high. How could he expect them to follow him into battle again though? Three of the four cadets in his charge had nearly died on four separate occasions since they set out that morning. Not a single one of those times did he save them either. They'd done everything so far today without even a little help from him. He hadn't helped slay any of the four titans they'd run into either. He wondered what kind of picture that painted of his leadership. His head sank low and his hands gripped a desk shakily.
"Hey Alb, are you alright? You're looking a little…off at the moment." Jansen put his hand on his friend's shoulder.
"Yeah, don't worry about it; I'm just fine. The day's events are just starting to catch up with me is all." The words rang hollow in his own ears as he said them, a meager façade behind which to conceal the truth he felt in his heart.
About fifteen minutes had passed by the time they were all gathering near the elevator. A score or so candles providing the only illumination this deep inside the structure. The half light cast deep shadows into the corners of the room. It was as if darkness itself was beginning to encroach upon them. What the cadets had managed to collect was a rather pitiful collection. For the most part, supplies of any nature had been scarce. They'd found a few odds and ends, but nothing they could put forward to any great effect. Anything useful was likely below them in the main part of the depot or had already been issued to the surviving units, before they fled behind the inner gate. However, when Jean and a handful of others arrived at last, they carried with them several long wooden crates; each of them bore the stamp of the Royal Armory.
"This is what we managed to scrounge up, courtesy of the military police, and covered with a layer of dust." Jean said as they cracked open the boxes. There were seven of them and each carried five flintlock muskets a piece. How they were planning on using them however, Armin had yet to clarify. Personal firearms like rifles and pistols were designed for fighting other humans and hunting, not combating titans. All the same, that kid had been called a genius numerous times before today, so he had to have an idea buzzing around up there.
"Alright, I may have a solution for getting fresh gas from the supply room. It still needs work so I'll be open for input on this." Armin motioned for everyone to gather around the building map he had laid out in the middle of the floor. "First things first, get the muskets loaded up with pellet rounds, as heavy of a load as possible and extra powder as well."
The clanking sounds of ramrods packing shot into barrels echoed around the hollow chamber. For many of them, it had been several months since they had handled a firearm. Considering the practical application of such weapons against their enemy, training sessions with them had been few and far between. Hopefully loading pellets meant they wouldn't have to worry as much about their aim. Even if they had better practice, would it really matter?
"Are you absolutely sure buckshot is the way to go? I feel like we may as well try throwing spit wads. Come on guys, are guns even effective?" Jean's comment was more of a statement than a question.
"I don't know, but they're bound to be better than nothing. From last count there will be seven titans in the supply room of the four meter variety. If we use enough ammunition they should be able to do the trick." Armin looked up briefly.
"What is this trick then exactly?" Jansen tapped the rifle against his shoulder.
"The first step; we will lower a group of us with rifles into the supply room via the lift. This will hopefully draw the titan's attention. The second step; when the all of the titans come within range, said group will fire in all directions, which will blind them. That's the easy part." Armin glanced around at the cluster of his fellow cadets. "Then comes the difficult part of the plan, the moment of truth if you will. Before any of the titans have a chance to regenerate, seven of us will drop down from the rafters and cut their napes. If we time this correctly, we'll kill all of them in one go, but without any gas, we can't use ODM gear to do it. That means we'll only have one shot at getting it done. That's the plan; it puts all of our lives on the line and if we screw this up, we're dead. It may be risky, but it seems like our best shot. We'll need the seven cadets that are best with their paring blades to deliver the killing blow. The lives of the rest of us will be riding on you guys being able to get it done. I realize that's probably a ton of pressure, but that's how it has to be." Having finished laying out his strategy, he looked a bit tense. It was definitely an all or nothing kind of plan. Everybody lives or everybody dies a fifty /fifty kind of state of affairs.
"It sounds like a good plan to me." Reiner nodded approvingly.
"When you get right down to it, the risk is the same for everyone involved. It doesn't matter who goes down there." Annie spoke her ascension as well.
"Look, I'm willing to be talked out of this. One half-baked strategy can't be the only thing we've got to work with."
"Armin, you're not giving yourself enough credit. Like you said it's our best option. I doubt any of the rest of us could have come up with this." Albrecht knelt down beside him.
"Besides, with the situation that we're looking at, this is pretty well thought out, especially for being our only option. By giving it our all, I bet we can pull this off." Marco looked at the map thoughtfully.
"You were right about that abnormal kicking all kinds of ass outside, so I don't see any reason to doubt you on this." Aline offered a rare approving smile.
The sound of metal clattering to the floor brought everyone's eyes up. Jansen had been prepping the elevator for their descent into the dark shaft below. "Alright, the lift is ready to go and guns should be crammed to the stocks. Who's ready to go kill some titans?" He tapped his fingers against the lock plate of his musket, feeling rather eager to throw some lead down range. For once however, nobody seemed ready to fault him for it. Josh actually shared his sentiment. If they were going to die today, it might as well be with fire in their hearts. It was time to get the operation underway. Thirty five of the cadets stepped onto the lift and formed a two rank circle. The effect should create a curtain of lead on all sides when they fired into the enemy. They'd know in short order whether the plan was going to work or not. As long as they didn't slip up when the moment came, everyone would, in theory, be fine. Outside the steel cage the kill team was also setting off down the stairs to the lower level.
"Do us a favor you guys, don't miss alright?" Connie called back to them.
"You either, I'd hate to embarrass you by having to save your ass in front of everyone." Jansen's retort carried across the room. A few nervous laughs rose for a moment, easing the tension just slightly before quiet reasserted itself.
"Alright guys, settle a bit, we're ready to go. Lower us, and do it at about half speed. I'd hate for the titans to be waiting for us the moment we got in there." Marco waved to one of the remaining cadets to pull the release lever. The cage lurched slightly and they slowly dropped down into the semi-darkness of the shaft. The steady flickering of the lantern above them and the creaking of the pulley chains was the only sound audible. The silence only lent to the growing atmosphere of apprehension. Most of them were probably wondering if the titans would already be waiting for them once they got down into the room.
Josh glanced around hurriedly, the waiting before a fight had gotten to him every time so far and in the tight lift passage, he felt vaguely claustrophobic. Seeking something else to draw his attention, he looked down to his right where Christa stood motionless. He couldn't tell if she was nervous or just concentrating more intently than usual. It took a moment to realize it, but the musket she was holding was about the same size as she was. At only 4'9, she only stood four inches above the muzzle. The sight of it was a little bit comical and he barely stifled a laugh.
"I can hear you snickering back there Kassy." She didn't look back at him.
"Are you sure you can use that thing? It's almost bigger than you are." He half whispered.
"You know for a fact that my size has no bearing on what I can accomplish." She looked kind of embarrassed by what he'd said.
"Sorry, I was joking I didn't mean it to come off as an insult. I'm just a little on edge in here and I'm trying to distract myself."
"You don't need to stress yourself out so much. How many times do I have to tell you to stop worrying? You'll be fine, we all will."
"You're going to have to repeat it a lot more than that, you know almost better than anyone how thick headed he can be." Aline threw her two cents in, probably to try and lighten things up a little more.
Albrecht looked over his shoulder at them as the lift began to slow down. Deep down, he wasn't sure he shared their optimism. He was privately glad he wasn't in command this time around. Armin and Marco made much better leaders than he ever could hope to be. His thoughts continued to rebuke him for his shortcomings as they neared the end of the drop. Once free of the brick chute, they were able to see into the dimly lit chamber around them. The shadowy figures of titans resolved themselves out of the gloom. They lumbered around amid the stacks of equipment like golems guarding some ancient treasure. The lift creaked gently to a halt and Marco took stock of the surroundings.
"Good, looks like there's still seven of them in here." With a slight hand signal, the cadets took aim. The clicks of hammers being cocked rippling out around them. "Okay, hold it nice and easy."
One of the titans walking through the area stopped midway through its' stride. Its' head whipped around to face them, a terrible, implacable grin permanently creasing its' features. It started purposefully striding towards them and one of the cadets in the front recoiled and let out a short yelp. Marco thankfully was on top of things.
"Don't lose your cool. Remember; fire only when they're all within range. Keep it steady alright?" His words were reassuring and he held a good command presence when he spoke. Even so, anticipation was palpable in the air as the titans began drawing within mere feet of them. Josh fought the urge to wipe the sweat from his brow as his vision was filled with another of the unmoving faces.
Jansen made each of his breaths slow and deliberate, laboring as much as he could to avoid his aim shifting even slightly. His grip tightened on the small of the stock and he edged his finger down into the trigger guard. His voice was a low whisper. "Come on, that's it you bastard, just a little closer, almost there." The monster's pupil was practically touching the muzzle of his rifle. Next to him, Albrecht was trying not to show that he was trembling. His palms felt like they were coated in wax and his heart was beating out of his chest. He stared into the face of death and, with shaking hands, waited for the command to open up.
"Fire!" Marco's voice boomed out of the silence. The order was answered in kind by the report of the cadre's muskets, every shot finding its' mark in quick succession. The barrage shredded each target and the titan's stumbled back, dazed. They were open wide for punishment as planned. The group up in the rafters didn't even waste a second springing forward. They leap down from their perches like acrobats and the foe toppled one by one like dominos before the punishing assault. One down, two, three, four killed, five…Well, as the old saying goes about the best laid plans, that's when something went wrong. During their drop, both Connie's and Sasha's strikes failed to find purchase, leaving two of the monsters alive and well. Their eyes were also nearly regenerated.
"Sasha and Connie missed!" Bertolt yelled.
"Get the titans off them and lead them the hell back!" Jean cried out from across the room. Sasha and Connie were backing away slowly, looking every bit like they'd just breathed their last in this world. One of the surviving monstrosities slowly turned to face the frightened pair.
"Ah damn it." Josh fished in his pocket and retrieved a second cartridge. He wondered if anyone else had had the foresight to bring a backup load in case something happened. He quickly began reloading. "If anyone else brought more ammo with them, now would be an excellent time to use it!" The sound of clicking actions and ramrods told him that at least a couple of others had the same idea. He hurriedly packed powder and ball into the weapon and shouldered it, cocking the hammer as he lined up the shot on the titan in front of Connie. Before he could pull the trigger a hand pushed his barrel down to stop him. "What the hell, he's going to die if we don't get that thing's attention!"
"Calm down, I think she's already got it covered." Christa pointed. He followed her gaze and saw Annie vaulting a crate to deliver another precision blow. Barely a moment before it would have had Connie in its' jaws, she sliced the weak point into bloody strips of meat, neat as a butcher cutting a fine steak. The body was already steaming by the time it crashed into the floor. Connie was like a statue, unable to comprehend his stroke of good fortune. Josh rubbed his eyes, wondering if he'd really just seem that. Seven smoldering corpses now littered the ground. It seemed as though Mikasa had taken out the one accosting Sasha as well. She was on her knees clinging to Mikasa and practically singing her praises as she dried the frightened tears from her eyes. Clouds billowed up in the immediate vicinity as the titans started turning into bones and dust. An instant later Annie came walking through the smoke, as nonchalant as if she did this kind of thing every day of the week, a small bit of titan blood evaporating off of her shoulder. Josh stared and his eyes followed her as she went; his mouth was agape.
"Oh my god…that was…actually kind of hot." Aline was right for once, a girl who could swing a sword was sexy on a whole different level.
"Pick up your jaw lover boy, I don't care what's running through that head of yours, but you're going to embarrass yourself if you're not careful." She clapped him on the back.
"You really think he's worried about that after what he pulled today?" Jansen laughed.
"Is there ever a moment when you three aren't getting sidetracked by something?" Albrecht sighed. If it wasn't one thing with them it was another. At least they usually did it after the immediate danger had passed. Nonetheless, such discussions were probably best held off until they were back in the safe zone. The wall couldn't protect him from everything though. They might be safe from the enemy beyond it, but his guilt and a few ghosts were bound to follow him out of the city. Fear had nearly overcome him here as well and he was surprised to note that his finger still held the trigger firmly in the pulled position. He had to force himself to release his grip before he took a shuddering breath.
"Hey listen up, we did it, all the titans are dead! Bring the lift down here and start loading up supplies. Have everyone upstairs bring the 3D gear down; we're getting the hell out of here as soon as we load up." Jean called out from down below, thankfully bringing them back to present matters. It took a second to realize it, but their gamble had managed to pay off, and without any casualties to speak of. A wave of relief crashed over the cadets in the lift and they started laughing and smiling again. A hair's breadth of difference and every single one of them would have become naught but crimson smears on the walls. The notion was incredible. Marco looked so relieved that he was unsteady on his feet, almost falling over. It was an amusing switch from earlier when Armin had passed out seeing as he was the one holding Marco up this time around.
"I can't believe that worked." Ymir said offhandedly as she slung her rifle across her shoulder blades.
"One surprise after another today huh?" One of the other cadets said as she leaned against the support cage. "Seems like our luck is finally starting to turn around."
"Don't hold your breath kid, this is far from over you mark my words. There's plenty of time for more blood to spill before the sun sets." Despite the weight of the words, she spoke them like she was bored.
"I…suppose you have a point…but hey, worrying about what's yet to come won't do us any good…right?" Ymir's indifference seemed to have sapped the confidence from her voice.
"You really are naïve aren't you? But, who knows, maybe our luck is improving like you said? Whatever the case, we're alive for the next ten minutes or so; I guess that's reason enough to be happy." She sighed and stepped off the lift, leaving the girl unsure whether to feel good or bad about their situation.
"Don't mind her, she's like that to pretty much everyone." Aline walked past. "If she's not being passive aggressive, she's talking like a pessimist. Even if the day is far from over, things are bound to get better for at least a little while. Speaking from my personal experience, we're due for some good luck by now." Aline smiled and continued on, her squad mates following in her wake.
"That was awfully kind and considerate of you. A little bit uncharacteristically so if I'm being honest." Jansen said sarcastically.
"Maybe I'm just a better person than you give me credit for." She grabbed a few fuel tanks from the rack and tossed a pair to everyone. She perched herself on a nearby crate and took hold of a fuel line. They started refilling each of the canisters in turn from a line of large pressurized tanks.
"I guess we're good then." Josh smiled as he finished filling another cylinder with gas. "There aren't any more titans coming in and we're going to be fully stocked up on equipment."
"With the help of that abnormal outside, it looks like we were able to clear them all out for the time being. Not that I doubted our chances for even a second, but it still feels good to know we won this fight. Even if we've lost the city for the moment, I'll take living to fight another day as a victory." Jansen actually had a right to sound smug this time around. A lot of their comrades, veterans and cadets, hadn't made it as far as they had today. It was something considering the number of times they'd barely cheated death. Each and every one of them that had stormed the citadel was lucky to be alive and even luckier to be getting out of here no worse for the wear. Not bad for a bunch of greenhorn recruits honestly. Over on their right, Sasha was busy freaking out about how she'd reacted when the titan came after her. Connie was trying to shake her out of it so she would focus on escaping over the wall. A few of the surrounding troopers tried not to laugh at the spectacle.
The members of Squad Seven reacquired their ODM sheaths and hooked the fresh tanks into place. As they were strapping their equipment back on, Jansen looked over at Josh. Christa was helping him attach the motor to his back strap. It had always been a mystery to him how things had worked out for his childhood friend. If it wasn't luck, he wanted to know what it was. "Okay, I've got a question for you man. You've got the sweetest and most adorable girl in the 104th as your personal guardian angel, and you've got the coldest girl in the 104th in love with you. Seriously, how in the hell are you this good with women?" The question had been burning inside him for quite some time now.
"Well, I'm not. Christa is probably the kindest person on the planet anyway and with Annie…well I was just kind of persistent. That wasn't easy on me either mind you. I've gotten the crap beat out me like a thousand times. That and I don't go around feeling girls up all the time like a certain someone."
"Hey, it's not like I do that to everyone all the time or anything. You make me sound like I'm the kind of guy who hides in the female showers to watch girls undress." He protested rather loudly.
"You just called me adorable." Christa said suddenly.
"I should like to thin…wait, what did you say?" He stopped mid-sentence and turned halfway towards her.
"You called me adorable just a minute ago...you've never done that before."
"I haven't, really? I can't believe I've never done that." He half-laughed, the idea sounding a bit ridiculous to him. "Honestly though, are you really surprised that I did? I'm only like the thousandth guy to do so; you hear that ten times a day at least. Unless, by some strange coincidence, you haven't noticed the way everybody kind of drools over you."
"Yeah, but it's not that. It's just…this is the first time I've ever heard you use that word when you described a girl. That's also the first time that I can think of you giving a normal compliment. Usually you just take from your library slang terms or say something about their chest."
"Oh come on, you're the last girl that should be talked to like that. You're much too good to be treated that way."
"Well aren't you sweet today? That means a lot to me it really does." She gave Jansen a big hug and smiled.
"I'll be damned; it sounds like he's finally maturing a little bit, ha. Let's just hope he keeps going; I'm sure every girl in the class would be glad of it." Aline said as she fixed her gas cylinders to her rig.
"We've all done a bit of maturing after today I think. No doubt that there's more where that came from in the near future." Albrecht rose from the crate he was sitting on. "So, it might be an obvious question, but who's ready to get out of here?"
"You don't have to ask me twice. I could really use a break, my everything is killing me." Josh stretched.
"Yeah, I think we've earned a couple hours at least."
Everyone was ready and rearmed. Their small contingent, the last of Trost's defenders gathered in a hallway leading out of the supply depot. With moral soaring and a renewed sense of purpose, they open the doors to sunshine and clear skies. They could taste freedom and sanctuary on the breeze; the 104th was finally heading home.
"Are you ready people? Then let's do this!" With a collection of victory cries, the cadets flew off towards the wall. Cables whipped through the air and razor sharp steel glinted as it caught the sun's rays. With all of the nearby titans vanquished, heading for the inner gate was like taking an afternoon stroll. Squad Seven was at the rear of the exiting column, heads held high. One by one, they shot themselves across and out of the courtyard. Josh was about to do the same when by chance he glanced upwards at the roof while retrieving his launching mechanism. A small cluster of cadets stood at its' apex, Annie among them. He paused for a moment, wondering what was going on.
"Hey man, are you coming or what?" Jansen was just about to leave.
"Go on ahead; I'll catch up with you guys in a minute." He catapulted himself up onto the tiles, walking up towards everyone as he landed. "Everyone's left already, what are the six of you still doing up here?" He momentarily followed the direction of everyone else's gaze and answered the question himself. On the other side of the broad avenue separating the former command center from the nearest row of buildings, a grotesque sight was playing out in front of them. The abnormal titan whose rampage had bought them all time to escape, was pinned against a wall. Other titans had gathered around him and had begun feasting upon his flesh; tearing him apart one small piece at a time. What's more, it didn't look like he was regenerating at all. Everyone had seen him fighting his way through an entire horde of the creatures like it was no task at all. As a weapon, having him at their disposal could help turn the tide in humanity's favor, but if he died here, so did the best hope they had for a lasting victory. Luckily, it didn't sound like anyone was willing to let that stand.
"I think our choice is clear; we have to go down there and get the other titans off of him. He won't be much good to us if he's picked apart." Reiner had a determined look in his eyes.
"Are you out of your mind?! We have a straight shot out of this nightmare and you want to stay?!" Jean looked a little less collected than his comrade.
"Think about it for a second. Having an abnormal like him on our side would be an incredible advantage. Nothing we have in our arsenal even comes close to the power of a titan that likes to rip apart its' own kind." It was clear where Annie stood on the matter.
Jean was almost hysterical. "Do you even hear yourself? It isn't like he's a new friend!"
"Do you have a better idea Jean?" Josh looked at him narrowly. "If you've had a super weapon hidden around somewhere, I'm all ears."
"We have another titan approaching from the West!" Armin gestured to their front. "Oh no, that's the one that ate Thomas!"
"We have to do something before any more of them show up. We're already outnumbered as it is." Bertolt drew his blades, but stopped short of jumping from the rooftop. Something was happening. The Abnormal let out a ground shaking roar, slamming its' feet into the cobblestone. Despite the cluster of monsters feasting upon it, it forced its' way past them. They pulled and bit at him, taking his arms off one after the other. Amazingly, it paid the wounds no mind and instead charged as fast as it could at the newly arrived foe. With no way to grapple with it, the abnormal instead bit down deeply into the neck. The cadets looked on in shock as he took his crippled adversary into his maw and swung it into the titan behind like a club, reducing it to pulp. The task was obviously a strain on the creature, the ribcage cracking under the weight. Just as before however, it completely ignored the wounds. It then mashed one of the smaller ones into the street until it was but a stain. Another fifteen meter came at it from the side and the abnormal again swung its' makeshift cudgel. This time, the blow came with such intensity, the head was shorn completely off and both corpses flew into a tenement. The resulting explosion of stone and mortar crushed anything that remained. The abnormal briefly surveyed the scene before arching its' neck towards the sky and bellowing in rage. Steam and sparks gushed from the stumps of its' arms, creating a light haze. Then, as if satisfied with the results of the engagement, it collapsed to the ground and expired.
"Whatever you were saying before doesn't matter. Now it's pretty much a moot point if you ask me. Like we could've really recruited him to our cause? What kind of fairytale are you all living in? That distracted us for too long; we need to leave while we still can. We're just lucky the bastard didn't get bored." Jean turned to go, but no one followed him. Their eyes were still transfixed on the decaying body of the abnormal. He grunted and walked back into the midst of the squad. "Look, it was all very impressive, but a titan's a titan."
"I'm not sure that statement is universal anymore…" Josh was the only one to speak.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Josh grabbed Jean's head and tilted his gaze down. In the midst of the ruined mass, was the prostrated form of a human being. As the body melted further, the person inside rose up and sinew and muscle fell away to reveal their identity. Even after everything he had seen since he woke that morning and even after his own dances with the reaper, Josh Kassmeyer never would have imagined he'd see the dead rise. The person inside was Eren. That didn't make any sense. Armin had witnessed the slaughter of his whole squad and yet right before their eyes was Eren Jeager, looking as though he was in the midst of a dream. Mikasa flew down to street level and hit the ground running. Armin tried to protest, but the words fell silent on her ears. She was intent on reaching the body, she had to know if this was real. One by one, the rest of them followed suit. In all likely hood it wasn't safe on the ground, even with the fierce melee they had bore witness to.
When they reached Mikasa, she cradled Eren in her arms as she sobbed, overcome with emotion. The scene was shrouded in rising smoke. If Josh had to put a word to it, surreal would have barely done it justice. This had to be some crazy dream, or perhaps a hallucination? He felt the hairs on his neck standing on end. He cast his eyes on each of the people around him; none of them said a word. They had to grab Eren and get back up to the roof; they couldn't stay down here for much longer.
The group made it back up to the Citadel's tower as quickly as possible. Mikasa wouldn't stop crying and Armin was on the verge of tears as well. He shook as he grasped his "dead" friend's hand, unable to find the facility to rationalize what he was seeing. This whole thing defied logic on an unimaginable scale. Josh found himself thinking out loud. "I'm not the only one who's a little freaked out about this am I?"
"I think we're all a little uneasy about it. This changes everything we know about our enemy." Reiner sounded like he was trying to piece the whole thing together.
"It makes me wonder what else we don't know…" Annie's stared blankly out across the city.
Jean's voice was shaking slightly. "So uh…I still can't wrap my head around it, but…Eren did all of this?" He gazed down at the charred corpses littering the street; there had to be more than a dozen of them.
"I'm…I'm going to ask the obvious question here. How exactly do we plan on explaining this everybody…not to mention the debriefing command will no doubt have in store?" Josh addressed all of them.
"I think a better question is, what are they going to do when we explain it?" Reiner likely wasn't the only one thinking the worst. The implications of this little discovery were far reaching, perhaps even to the point of inciting widespread unrest across the realm.
"Hey, I see someone heading this way; it…looks like a squad from the Garrison. Have they been watching us?" For the time being at least, none of them had answers for any of the questions they'd asked. Whether or not they would even get them was another matter entirely. Either way, it was a matter for later; the Garrison troopers arrived below them.
"Cadets, we're here to escort you back to Wall Rose. The commanders have a few questions for all of you."