Chapter 38: Witness

Armin had seen Eren transform once but that was years back and he didn't stand directly next to him. Now he had witnesses two transformance and could feel the confusion and shock all around them. Armin is also confused.

Hanji takes them further away and the recruits listen to her, Mikasa is watching Eren in worry, fighting her instinct to run into the fight. But with Captain Levi and Commander Erwin at his side there is not much they can do. Armin looks over at Hanji who is watching the fight, holding back her excitement about the titans and also keeping an eye on them. It suddenly occurred to him that the titan shifter isn't the only one in their small group. Eren never talked about it but it makes sense. Finding the titan shifter under the new soldiers. That means she isn't protecting them from accidently running into the fight but from whoever is the other shifter in their group. And if there really is one, she would need help.

Slowly Armin makes his way over to Mikasa, she is their best fighter, the most willing to fight. "Mikasa." Armin whispers. She doesn't look away form the fight. "There is another one between us. Eren has the armoured one. Remember which one will be the other shifter." They know it. The colossal titan who broke through the wall and let the horror for the first time in 100 years inside the wall. "He is here. Be ready to fight." She nods and starts keeping his focus on their group. She couldn't help Eren right now, and she knows it but she can help preventing an unfair fight.

Hanji seems to notice his doing and slightly nods toward him and then unsuspicious to one person in their group. Berthold. Armin feels the denial appearing inside of him but his mind told him that his subtill message is speaking the truth. Berthold and Reiner were always together. They came from the same village. Still they are his friends. They trained together, practice together, had their meal together. Why? Armin doesn't know the answer and he wont get a one soon.

Hanji´s attention is taken from their group and toward the fight as Captain Levi is taken and for the first time Armin sees Eren as something else as the boy soldier he met all those years ago. He sees him fight like a wild beast and he feels his desperation. The same he felt as he thought they would die buried under the remains of the house. Eren fight for Levi, his family. Although it isn't a pretty sign to watch his friend killing Reiner, Armin can´t imagine what a heartbroken Eren would look like. If something would happen to Levi, Armin doubt anyone could stop him from destroying this world.

Suddenly, in the silence Berthold screams Reiner´s name and makes his horse running toward the body of his friend. Mikasa is the first to recover and starts chasing after him, followed by Hanji. "Armin keep the others here. He could hear her say." The others look at him. Their group is growing smaller with every minute. There are only Connie, Sasha, Krista, Ymir, Jean and Marco left. Mikasa and Eren are fighting, Reiner and Berthold are their enemies.

Something is nagging him, his mind wants to tell him something and it does. There are more than two. "Stay here." Armin shouts as he chases after Hanji.

"Hanji, there are three." He shouts and he sees her turn. She slows down. "They were always three. Annie is another shifter." He shouts and her eyes widen as they both heard it. The heavy footsteps of another titan. They see her in the distance. A female titan running towards them. No. Towards Berthold.

She is fast, faster as they had thought possible and she didn't stop as she picked up Berthold without even looking if he is okay. The body of his horse is left behind a few meters later as she puts the unmoving body of Berthold into her mouth and she just runs away. He must have lost consciousness by the force of her taking him.

Nothing moves as she disappears in the distance. The area is deadly quite the only sound comes from Reiners still steaming remains and the fanatic sound of blades. Armin looks over and sees Levi work on something on Erens titan nape. Something that sparkles in the sunlight.