Levi sat on a building watching the cart that Eren and Historia were in as it slowly moved through the crowed. It really ticked him off, there were so many people that the cart was forced to constantly stop so not to hit anyone, and all because the king wanted to give the citizens of Trost compensation for all the pain that had happened.
It ticked him off for many reasons, the first being the inconvenience of it all, the other being that it had taken nearly six months for the king to do anything about it at all, he had ignored it entirely till now, and the people had mostly built everything up again, minus construction in lower income areas.
Honestly if the king wanted to help he would be sending workers to repair everything, not a celebration and a little free food. This was more than the people of Maria had gotten, everyone had hated them when they came, but here there was celebration, making the streets impossible to get through.
It was a trap.
A soon as the thought entered his mind, Oluo landed next to him roughly, his eyes wide and full of fear, his hands and clothes covered in blood.
"What happened?" Levi demanded immediately.
"A Caption of the Military Police got suspicious of us, and Mike got shot. He's alive; I put him in an ally so that I could get to you faster." Oluo said quickly, afraid, though he wouldn't admit it.
"No Captain I can think of would be suspicious unless you flat out showed your Scout cloak, who was it?" Levi demanded grabbing Oluo's shoulders.
"I don't know I only was given a first name, an older guy named Kenny." Oluo said and Levi stiffened, eyes widening slightly.
Kenny… the whole thing had his name written all over it, it should have been obvious, a large crowed all wanting to be in one area, where if you left it would be hard, and easy to see, but you couldn't stay either because there were to many guards. Thugs to catch them, even if it only removed the fake set, and I high vantage point.
"Get down!" Levi yelled and a gun shot from directly behind them.
Levi hid behind the chimney of the roof he was on, his cloak slightly torn up at the edge, and the chimney full of holes.
He turned his head to see around the chimney, and sucked in a breath when he did. Oluo was laying on the roof, covered in his own blood now, bullet holes covering his body. And below him stood the face he thought he would never see again.
"No." Levi whispered looking at the madman.
"Yo, Levi." Kenny began reloading his guns as he walked past Oluo's corpse.
"You grow any yet?" He looked up, and Levi saw his face, under the brim of his hat.
Kenny shot his 3DMGear into the top of the roof and then flung himself up into the air, bringing Levi back into his sights.
"Kenny!" Levi yelled throwing his sword at Kenny who blocked it with easy with the side of his gun. But it gave Levi enough time to jump out of the way from the other gun, and in-between the alley ways.
He flew from wall to wall, building to building, as more Military Police blasted everything behind him with their new guns. A crate exploded in front of him, blasting a piece of wood at him cutting his forehead.
He continued flying from building to building, till he crashed right into a saloon. Flipping over onto the other side of the bar, Levi hid just as Kenny burst in. Kenny stomped around the saloon, being his normal, insane self as he did so.
"Levi, come on out." Kenny said, already knowing that he would not.
"You really don't have time to hide, my men will have already taken Histoira and Eren by now… the real ones that is, not the stand-ins." The smugness radiating of Kenny was sickening, but Levi was in no position to go against him.
"Even if you manage to escape my bullets, there are two dozen soldiers just outside who will happily kill you the second you step out. So just give up already, it would be annoying to kill you." Kenny said it like it would be an inconvenience over any actual care.
"What do you want Kenny, Military Police doesn't seem like your style. And wasn't it just a few years ago when you were killing them?" Levi asked as he turned the wine bottle on the nearest shelf so that Levi could look at its reflection to see Kenny.
"Got bored, I wanted to see how law life suited me, and I think I am likin' it." Kenny said and even if Levi couldn't see him, he could tell that Kenny was smirking.
"Tell me, how thoroughly have you studied law?" Levi asked.
"Ba, who has time for that." Kenny scoffed.
"Too bad." Levi pulled up the gun from under the counter and shot Kenny, blasting him out the saloon.
Levi hopped to his feet, and threw a chair out the nearest window, which immediately got shot up. Taking the moment they had to reload to his advantage Levi flew out the same window, only to immediately turn a hundred eighty degrees, and shoot his 3DMGear hook into the person on the saloon roof.
Using his other hook to actually propel himself onto the neighboring building dragging the hooked body with him. The Military Police reloaded and fired, but Levi used the hooked man to his advantage by pulling him in front of himself, making the body take the bullets.
Throwing the body aside Levi shot his hook to the building behind the police and shot forward, killing both of them as he passed them.
Now free from the trap Levi flew to where he knew the cart Eren and Historia was supposed to be headed.
He flew through the air, faster than what would be considered healthy; killing all the Military Police flying through the city that got in his way. Soon more Scouts joined him, though he was disheartened to not see any veteran soldiers among them.
They caught up to the cart, and Levi quickly killed the people who had taken control of it, allowing Jean and Armin to take it as he went back to the sky to kill off more Military Police.
/Hari/
Hari and Annie shot to their feet, as the cart containing Eren and Historia barreled past them. Without any hesitation both of them began chasing after it, they ran after it for a moment before they took to the skies to get there faster, but the second they were in the air, they were truly able to see the devastation caused by the Military Police.
Across the rooftops Scouts laid dead, and Military Police patrolled the sky, hunting for more. It was impossible for someone to survive, well for normal humans anyway.
"Annie you chase the cart I'll distract them." Hari said watching the Military Police who still hadn't spotted them.
"Hari!" Annie yelled, realizing what she was about to do was stupid.
"Go!" Hari yelled before she shot straight towards the Military Police swords drawn and a mad look on her face.
The Military Police spotted her approaching them fast, they were not ready for something like that to acute though, and momentarily panicked, giving Hari enough time to reach them. She caught the first one, and killed him so fast that the others didn't even realize he was dead till she went towards them.
She got a woman next, her face full of fear and Hari tore her to shreds with her blades, getting drenched in blood in the process. Though when doing this the third woman seamed to regain her composure and shot Hari straight in the gut, the frag bullet tearing apart her middle.
Hari hissed in pain, but did not stop. She flew at the woman who had shot her, and the woman froze, not expecting Hari to be able to shrug off such a wound.
After dealing with the woman, Hari flew towards the cart, killing every Military Police who got in her way, or got near Annie.
Five Military Police suddenly jumped in front of her, all of them shooting at her at once. Hari dodged but still many shots hit her, turning her front into a mess of flesh and blood, barely recognizable as human. Hari lost her balance from the on slot and crashed into the building she was flying over.
She lay still for a moment, waiting for a bit of her body to regenerate, she was lucky, only one fragment had hit her face, and her arms and legs were mostly intact, so she was still able to move, the Titan ability making it so she could survive; and still do stuff, with all her organs blown to bits.
She heard the Military Police who had shot her approach, and slowed her breathing while closing her eyes.
"She was insane, what the hell." A man said, Hari felt his nudge her with his boot, she assumed it was out of curiosity, and less if she survived, because, who honestly could survive the amount of damage she had taken.
"Wait, is that steam?" Someone else asked, and Hari smirked.
Her eyes shot open, and she kicked the person nearest her, knocking them down. Hari twisted her body and stabbed them in the chest, killing them. She slowly pushed herself back up to her feet, the blade in the man being used as a support.
The other four did not move as she did this, frozen in fear as she climbed back onto her feet, covered in blood and riddled with bullet wounds. She detached the blade once she was on her feet leaving it in the man, before slowly pulling out another one.
"What, what?" One of them asked, staring at her in horror like he was looking a Titan in the face, and he kind of was.
Hari lunged at him, stabbing him in the chest before pulling the fresh blade to the side, cutting through his middle. She lunged at the next killing her, before detaching that blade as well, she stabbed the one next to her with her other blade as they tried to get away.
Pulling out one more blade, she threw it, hitting the one who had just started their escape. She stood there for a moment collecting herself, the blood lose addling her mind, and though she knew she wasn't going to die from it, it still greatly affected her ability to function.
Falling onto her backside Hari slowly lay down in the pool of blood on the roof, her vision growing hazy. She wondered if Annie had intercepted the cart, and with that thought her vision faded to nothingness.
/
Hari woke with a start, cool air blowing across her chest; she blushed deep red realizing that the bullets had completely destroyed her shirt. Looking around she grabbed a male Military Police officer's shirt. She ripped it off of him and put it on herself.
After she finished buttoning the shirt Hari got up, and realized that the sun had move quite a bit since she had passed out.
A switch went off in her mind, and the memories of her quick battle poured in, she didn't know what had happened, and she was keen on finding out.
She activated her 3DMGear only to realize it was out of gas, Hari looked at it in confusion, because it shouldn't be out of fuel yet, but then she saw that it had a bullet hole in it.
Sighing in annoyance she jumped down into the ally next to the building she was on, only to be pinned against the wall instantly.
She tensed, but then her captor let go, Hari spun around and came face to face with Mike. They stared at each other for a minute and Hari realized that his shoulder was bandaged and covered in blood.
"Oluo and I were watching the enemy when we were spotted, I was hit and he hid me here while he went to report to Levi. I passed out soon after he left, what happened?" Mike asked, looking at the Military Police crest on the shirt she had stolen.
"I don't know, we had just gotten back the fake Eren and Historia when the real one's were stolen, me and Annie chased them, and I ended up being a distraction so Annie could intercept the cart, but after getting hit several times I passed out form lack of blood." Hari reported to the older man.
"So neither of us knows what is current, I don't like what that could entail." Mike said, stroking his chin with his uninjured side.
"Unless everyone is dead we will learn soon enough." Hari shrugged and they both exited the ally, heading towards the exit of Trost in hopes of finding allies.
As they walked they noticed Garrison soldiers picking up and carrying away many bodies, both Survey Corp and Military Police. It felt like a waste, so many people dead for no discernible reason, many had family, and in the end it only served to weaken humanity further.
It was like the Wizarding War all over again.
The thought struck Hari like lightning, it was like the war, people dead, blood wasted, for what? More power to the people already in charge? It was pointless, and it angered her; people cowered in the streets, waiting for another firefight to fill their streets, kids stared off into the distance traumatized by the horror they had witnessed.
It was all pointless.
They arrived rather quickly, though that may have been due to Hari being lost in her thoughts for the whole walk.
Jean, Conny, Sasha, Annie, Ymir, Petra, and Levi sat on benches while Mikasa patted Armin's back as he threw up into the river they were next to.
"What happened?" Mike asked walking over to Levi, Hari tried to follow but she was suddenly wrapped up in Annie's arms.
"Hello?" Hari said both brows rising in surprise as she looked down at Annie.
"She's been worried about you, she said that you had gone to distract the Military Police, and when you didn't return to her she freaked out." Ymir said smirking, though Hari could see that she wasn't into it, her eyes dark and distant. Hari didn't need to be good at Legilimency to know that Ymir was deeply worried about Historia.
"I did not." Annie said, glaring at the other girl.
Hari and Ymir both gave the shorter girl deadpanned looks, but she did not back down.
"Whatever." Ymir said sitting back down to continue brooding; Hari's brows shot up in surprise. Ymir was not one to back down like that; Historia being taken must be really affecting her.
"So we failed to keep Eren and Historia out of the Military Police's slimy hands?" Hari asked, already knowing the answer, there lack of presence, as well as the tension left no other option.
No one answered, they really didn't need to either, it was written on their faces what had happened.
"Why is Armin throwing up?" Hari asked, hoping to get a better response out of everyone.
"He killed one of the Military Police chasing us, saving Jean when he did it." Mikasa said slowly leading Armin away from the river he was throwing up in, over to where everyone else was sitting.
After he was seated Hari walked over to him, and kneeled in front of him, smiling at him when he looked up at her.
"How are you doing?" Hari asked kindly, wishing that therapists existed in this world.
"What right did I have to do that, I bet they were nice, she hesitated, I didn't…" Armin continued his rambling, but Hari tuned it out and instead rested a comforting hand on his shoulder.
"Calm down, you are just going to make yourself go into shock." Hari said calmly.
"Mind if I sit?" Hari asked pointing to the floor right next to Armin.
"Sure." Armin said hesitantly, watching her as she sat down next to him.
"You are doing pretty well, all things considered, my first kill I ended up passed out for three days." Hari said patting his back.
"That's not reassuring, considering what you do now." Armin said chuckling without any humor.
"The past can't be changed, if you get stuck in the past you can't change either. Let the dead be fertilizer for you to grow more as a person." Hari said seriously.
He looked at her in confusion.
"I never knew my parents, and I couldn't let go of that fact, I lost my godfather, and I couldn't get past that, all my friends before joining the training regiment are dead. It was only after I entered these Walls that I have been able to finally accept, and… forgive myself. I'm a very different person from who I used to be, I grew, accept what has happened, and you will grow too." With that Hari stood back up, and left Armin to dwell on those thoughts.
"Who were you before coming here?" Mikasa asked once Hari had walked out of earshot of everyone else.
"That version of me is dead." Hari asked, but Mikasa only crossed her arms, glaring daggers at Hari.
"Why hide what is dead?" Mikasa asked, raising a brow.
"What is worth learning about it, it has no impact on me now, that life is gone." Hari said, but a shiver went down her spine when she said it; she ignored it.
"Fine. I will learn one day though Hari Peverell." Mikasa said threateningly.
/Zeke/
"Magic! That's how we are planning on fighting them?" Bertolt yelled looking into the black hole of a hood, in hopes of finding a face.
"It is a powerful tool, one that will help us greatly in the battle ahead, because if I remember correctly, there are an equal amount of Shifters on either side, plus extremely powerful soldiers, you are outnumbered." The Sorcerer said there voice genderless, hidden by some form of magic.
"We have the Backpack Titan, just because they aren't here yet doesn't mean that they aren't coming!" Bertolt said angrily.
"Colossal Titan, the Backpack Titan is not a Titan meant for fighting, you know that." Zeke said annoyed, with the boy.
"Why the reservations? It is extremely powerful, and… effective against Titan Shifters." The Sorcerer said, their voice irritating Bertolt the more he heard it.
"I'm not an idiot, seeing your power displays against the regular Titans showed me more than you think it did. Hari suffered at your hands, at the hands of magic, it is the only explanation for why she has scars despite being a Titan Shifter." Bertolt said pointing an accusing finger at the Sorcerer.
"I was not involved with what has happened to Hari, none of her scars are of my doing. I still fail to see were your worry is placed." The Sorcerer said.
"You are just as able to do what was done to Hari, and we aren't your allies, we are just a way for you to get her, and take her back to continue whatever your people have been doing to her." Bertolt scoffed, but all of a sudden he could not breathe, the breath pulled from his lungs.
"I will not take Hari Potter back to that place, you insinuating that is insulting." If Bertolt could see the Sorcerer's eyes he was sure that they would be burning with anger.
He started to feel faint, and the air still hadn't returned to his lungs, only when his vision started to darken did the air return to his lungs.
He fell to his knees and took a huge breath of air, his lungs singing with joy at being refilled.
"Harming you would not be of value to me, I need you to keep the others away when I take Hari back, because based on what I have heard; they will not be the most willing to part with her."
/Rod/
Rod smiled as he walked up to the house. It was an old house that sat on his land. It was near the church, that he would take the occupants of this building to soon.
He walked to the door, ignoring the Survey Corp cart parked on the side of the building as he walked in. Once inside he debated taking off his coat and hat, or leaving them on; he would appear more desperate to meet her if he came in with his outside wear on, but he would be more approachable in simpler clothes.
After a moment of debate, he decided to take off his coat and hat. He gently hung them up on the coat rack, the coat making the old stand lean slightly to the side. Brushing his shoulders he walked up the stairs, his hand just barely hovering over the railing, as he climbed them.
He reached the door they were both being held in, and waited a moment before slowly opening the door, Historia's name on his lips as he did so.
When he entered Historia was staring at him in shock, without weighting a moment he ran across the room and enveloped her in his arms, her body sagging when he did so. He smirked slightly; he was right about her wanting to have parental connection, something her mother always failed to do; though now Rod saw that more to his advantage than as a disadvantage.
Yes, it was all going perfectly.
Rod is being scummy as ever.
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