What are you going to do with us? Gabi asks trying to get out of the ropes around her arms.
You've fired a rifle at us, that's a direct attack, you'll be judged as prisoners of war.
Judge me all you want! All I did was to fight against you devils. You are the reason my people are...
Gabi! Gustav shuts her down.
Don't you dare be amicable with me you devil in disguise, you...
Me what? Me Reiner? I think he told you didn't he? What he did to us, how he was the one who broke down our gates and set loose the titans on our civilians. Did you asked him, did he slept well, was the food good here? How did it tasted with the blood of thousands of people on his hands? That day when wall Maria fell, that was the day you declared war on us. What we are doing here is only retaliation.
How dare you? You're people killed marleyans for thousands of years, this is... Gustav slaps her.
I've been imprisoned inside a tomb, crystallised for nearly one hundred years. I'm the oldest human on this planet by now. Even when I was alive Eldia wasn't doing that. Even Marley knows the truth. Captain Levi, did you get them?
Yeah, their in the back of the ship. Books, bags filled with ancient books, war reports, treaties, casualty lists. Thanks to his time in Marley and his position in the army, mixed with a little subterfuge Gustav infiltrated the state archives and stole most of the books kept under lock by the marleyans. The story is more than clear, it's been nearly four hundred years of endless wars and the eldians lost control over most of the titans a long time ago. The story begins with the Tybur family declaring war on the Fritz bloodline using the warhammer titan and allying themselves with Marley to start the war. They've acted like slavers, captured eldians and indoctrinated them into their cult until they've gained a large enough basis to support their war efforts. Soon more eldians sought to join the Tyburs, the promise of loot, gold, slaves and prestige was too delightful to refuse. It sparked a civil war which slowly lead to the nine titans of Ymir to separate into factions and fight each other in what back then was called "the garden of the King". The first king after the civil war started was assassinated and in that instant when a blade pierced through his spine he got himself eaten and passed down the power of the founding titan. Many kings passed and many titans fought and die. Soon new nations gained the power of titan shifters by offering them positions of power and influence. At one time the world itself was split into twelve between nations which each had a titan shifter of their own. The balance of power kept changing until Marley managed to get their hands on three titan shifters bringing the scales in their favour. By then king Karl Fritz became the ruler of Eldia and decided to renounce war. He went to paradise island and decided to create the walls and trap his people inside. Marley decided to try out and capture the king's power before that happened, they sent out the Knight titan, the Warhammer and the Jaws to do the job. Unfortunately for them many other nations wanted that power and a skirmish started on the island of paradise. Soldiers from all over the world were sent to fight in the battle. There I found the worst things I could have hoped for. Gustav says before taking a small break to catch his breath.
"The knight titan was lost in a battle against the Cowled and the Furnace titan, eaten by an unknown feral controlled by the Cowled." And the worst thing is... I took on the persona of a bloody children story character. "Gustav the gallant knight" slayer of titans, saviour of the world, defender of the weak. What a terrible joke.
What happened after the battle?
Because of the Cowled titan the battlefield was scattered with ferals. Most of the titans present that day fought to the death and each got devoured by minions of the Cowled. We all went insane afterwards and the king used his colossal titans to capture and imprison all of us inside tombs only he knew where they were.
Heard that brat? It seems both nations are just as culpable for what happened in the past.
Lies, only lies!
You know how we deal with this? You know how we deal with how is the victim and who is not? We let the past go! I was there one hundred years ago, I was attacked and used as fodder against the titan shifters, where's my victim prize? marleyans were killed and eaten two thousand years ago, who cares? Not even titan powers are capable of seeing memories that far back into the past. We are killing each other because of fairy tales!
And what do you propose? Pieck says rising her head from the floor.
Done with your mental breakdown? Gustav asks putting Gabi down.
Before leaving me in that hole, you've said that you wanted to ask for peace. How were you going to do that?
What does it matter by now? Levi asks looking with Sasha outside the window. During the discussion Sasha heard engines, something was following them.
Call out Erwin, he must be done talking with Eren and Zeke.
What's the problem Levi?
Commander, you look ridiculous in that get up.
Is good to see you too Gustav. So what's the problem?
We are being followed. Levi says with an angry look on his face.
Didn't we destroyed all their boats? How are they still capable of chasing after us?
That ship doesn't belong to Marley. They must have allies in higher places somewhere outside their country looking to climb fast the ladder of ass kissing.
We can't escape their cannons, if they fire we're done for it. We don't have artillery to deal with them either so all we can do is a direct assault on the ship.
They'll turn us into sponges before we manage to get on the ship's deck.
Don't worry, I'll deal with the ship myself. Gustav says before preparing to jump off the balloon onto the ship.
The water is shallower here than in most points, be careful when you land not to underestimate the sea floor.
Don't worry commander. Just make your escape while I look cool keeping the enemy at bay. Watch over me Pieck! Gustav says mockingly. He jumps off the flying ship into the water turning into a titan just at the right moment not to damage the ship. The pursuers attack with cannons but Gustav rises up a giant wave from the sea and blocks or slows down most of the attacks to the point where they are harmless.
Did you see that! Levi asks with wide eyes.
What did you see Levi?
There's a tomb under the water! I managed to catch a glimpse of the stonework used to build it!
And Gustav is right on top of it right now! We have to warn him. However, just as the scouts were about to jump out of the ship the roof of the tomb cracks and Gustav falls with one leg inside. Water starts entering the inside the tomb and a giant head came out from under the water. Giant was an understatement. The head, a mix between that of a snake and a human with long sharp teeth and a beard was as large as the flying balloon. Water falls into the tomb then quickly creates a vortex that implodes sending both Gustav and the ship in two different directions. It had the body of a colossal titan, walking on all fours with the neck and tail which reached around 130 meters without counting the body.
It is huge! Not even the Gargantuan titans were this big.
It looks just like a dragon!
Let's hope it doesn't spits fire too. The water around it's legs starts boiling releasing hot steam as the beast exited it's tomb and started heading towards Paradise Island. If it were to reach the shore the port they've built would certainly be destroyed. The scouts leave the flying balloon and jump onto the titan attacking all it's weak points all along the neck. They barely do any damage. The hard scales and the gigantic size does not allow them to find the location of the weak point. Eren and Gustav turning into titans attack the base of the neck but there is nothing there, the titan shifter must be somewhere along the neck of the titan, but that's more than sixty meters of flesh and bone to destroy. They couldn't remove the neck then search for the titan shifter either. Whenever they did damage the wounds made beforehand would be already healed. The scouts could not even approach the burning body of the Snake titan, the steam created by the water was too much.
There is a way! Pieck shouts from inside the air ship.
There is a way to kill the Snake titan! Erwin comes before her and asks what strategy she came up with.
Are you willing to do everything to save your island?
That's a question I've answered ages ago.
Then listen. In a few moments Pieck told her plan to the commander then jumps out of the airship into the water meeting up with the other scouts in titan form.
It's the Cart, she escaped!
I'm here to help you kill the Snake titan, but you'll have to listen to me. I'll need all of you to follow my commands. We'll kill the snake from the inside. The plan was simple but suicidal. Armin would first turn into the Colossal titan and force the snake's neck upwards after which Gustav would use the chains and anchors of the destroyed ship nearby to keep it upright. Pieck would eat Eren and jump inside the Snake's mouth, enter it's throat then have Eren turn into a titan and rip it's neck from the inside.
It's suicidal. Armin says looking at Eren.
What if Eren gets stuck in the throat of the titan? What if you are trying to eat Eren and make your way out back to Marley while we are preoccupied with the snake titan.
There are things I still have to talk about. I cannot leave yet. You'll have to trust me. Gustav smirks as she said that.
What are we going to do? Eren, are you willing to be eaten?
Don't worry, there's ample space inside the Cart's mouth. The second she tries to bite down or swallow turn into a titan and get out of there.
Let's do this then. Eren climbs inside Pieck's mouth and Armin turns into the Colossal titan. He grabs the snake's neck and starts pushing upwards. In the meantime Gustav grabs onto the chains used to anchor the ship and uses the anchor as a hook to pull the neck of the Snake titan upwards. The cart starts climbing onto the titan's neck with Eren in her mouth. Reaching the top Eren jumps inside the Snake's mouth and down his throat. A few seconds pass and there is no movement. Everyone thinks Eren is trapped and they are about to intervene but suddenly a hand rips through the Snake's throat. Quickly Eren starts tearing through the Snake's vertebrae from the very top to the bottom. Half way down the neck he punches through and finds the titan user of the Snake titan. He rips it out and exits through the wound he created leaving the enormous body to collapse into the water. Not one moment sooner for the port was in sight and they were already in the shallows. Victorious they drag themselves to shore with the crystallised body of the Snake shifter. They would not risk breaking the crystal to try and eat the titan user. The scouts rest on the beach for an instant before going to port to hand over the prisoners and prepare for the next move.
Back in chains you go Cart titan.
That's fine, I'll take care of that. Gustav says falling on his knees in his titan form. The sea waves were devastatingly hard to walk through, doubly so as a titan with lower body weight.
We need to talk. Pieck says sitting on the beach.
There's nothing to talk about.
I want peace.
A little late now that you don't have a saying into it.
You said you were going to bring peace between the nations, how would you do that?
I'll get rid of all the titans in the world. I'll destroy the source, I'll destroy the Devil Titan. Along all the books he has discovered Gustav found an ancient, pseudo science book talking about the origin of all titans. They all know the story, it is implanted into their brain, how Ymir got chased and became a titan by entering in contact with a higher entity. That place, the tree where she found the spine, everything in the story, Gustav went and searched for it. He found the locations where the tree could have existed, he found where the source of all titans could be. He would burn it down, destroy it and free the world of titans forever. That was his plan, that's what he wanted to propose to Marley and they knew. But they cannot allow that to happen, they just don't want to lose the power of the titans, not yet at least. It would be the perfect story, first Marley gains the powers of the founding titan and control over all of them, then once their military power was once again the greatest in the world and titans would no longer be required then they will rid the world of them. Politics and the thirst for power is going to get thousands of people killed.
And do you think eldians would just be left alone on their island to live out their lives?
I'd rather put all my money on facing the world as humans and not devils rather than keeping things as they are. Better yet, rather than being genocided as Zeke plans to do.
Wanting to make it so that eldians can no longer have children... That's a terrible thing to do, can you imagine how the youngest eldian would feel knowing one day that he's the last of his kind?
That plan will never go into action, even if I'll have to fight the scouts to stop it.
There's still something we need to talk about. Turn into a human, it's unfair that I cannot see your expression.
What is there to talk about?
How much of it was a lie?
Oh, we're not talking about that.
We are! Two years of lies. Do you even think about half the... things we've done together?
Of, trust me.. I remember everything vividly.
Why did you smirked when I said trust me earlier?
Thrust me...
So that's what you were thinking about. Finish it already, humiliate me all you want and be done with it!
Let me play this game too. Do you remember when I asked you on which side you'd be if a war started. Right after the eldian rebels attacked and I came up with the story of the war veteran? I confessed of telling you a lie back then. Maybe after this is all over I'll confess to more lies.
You're a bastard. Can't even put things straight for once. Is this some kind of sick game you like playing? Gustav looks to the sky in an effort to hide his face.
The sand is cold although we're in the sun... It reminds me of your toes.
You always liked to cuddle before bed.
I was doing it for myself! Do you know how it feels to be all warm and half asleep then suddenly feel a pair of cold feet touch your back or waist? How were your feet even cold? I'd understand in winter, but in summer too? It was so aggravating considering you sleep like some kind of tree lizard always wrapping your legs around me!
That's completely your fault, you started using my stomach as a night mask and I just developed the habit of wrapping my legs around you. Gustav thinks about the past and burst out laughing.
You know what's funniest. Back then, when I was trying to act all suave and alluring, I wasn't kissing your neck out of interest, I was holding back not to tear open your throat.
You find that funny? I slept in the same bed with the man that gave me nightmares for years.
You ate me first!
You cut your way out of my stomach with a sword!
You tried to eat me twice!
I should have tried it three times! If only I had known. I even had the suspect once, how did I fell for the eyebrows story? Chemicals in my hair.
I forgot to have my eyebrows changed. I was seating bullets when I told you that lie and you ate it up just like my dinners!
How come you've never tried to poison me?
I thought about it but I wasn't sure poison works on shifters so instead of blowing up my cover I chose not to do it!
Looking back on it, what a nightmare I was living.
It wasn't all bad though.
It wasn't? I thought you said it was like a living hell for you.
I told you, after the war ends I'll make one or two more confessions to you.
And what would those be?
You can make your own mind on that. Maybe, after this is done, if we make it through out alive, we can start lying to one another again.
You really were making me happy you know.