Sorry, but this isn't a standalone chapter either - I already know that next chapter is going to be even longer probably, so I didn't want to write it all at once, I'm more comfortable with that, I am genuinely sorry if you wanted to read whole things - also sorry for the lack of Eremika, I promise that next chapter is going to have a lot of it . Sorry again
A squadron of more than 100 soldiers is travelling towards Wall Maria, the mission being to close the hole created 5 years ago. The 104th squadron is sticking together, the recent events fortifying their bond.
They're walking through, their horses alongside of them, too dark and the terrain too uneven to ride them. Mikasa is holding her own horse and Eren's one, with the boy trailing by her side.
"Sorry that you have to carry my horse as well, Mik", Eren says, while holding up a lantern to illuminate the way. "Don't worry about it", she replies, still walking. Ever since after the cave incident, they hadn't had a moment to truly talk about what Historia said about Eren, the words imprinted in Mikasa's mind.
"Don't be so eager to die!"
The brunette can see in her eyes that she is still thinking about that moment, and while they did talk about it, they never went into it in depth.
I guess this moment is as good as any
"Mik...", he starts, catching the raven's attention -" Can we talk? In private?" he finishes, glancing at their friends, who all get the message. Sasha grabs Connie, pushing him forward, talking about seeing if there are any snacks for them, and Jean and Armin follow suit, the latter giving them a small smile in understanding.
Now that they're alone, or as close to that as they can get, the silence reigns, Eren thinking about how to start this conversation. Surprising him, Mikasa takes the lead.
"I know that you thought that it would've helped our world - I just...I just wanted to be selfish..."
The admission shocks Eren, who doesn't reply, and Mikasa takes this as a sign to keep going.
"I truly wish that this world could live in peace, but...I don't want you to sacrifice yourself for it - there has to be another way in which none of us get more hurt than we have to"
The brunette thinks back to their conversation after his rescue from Reiner, and frowns a bit, recalling her words of self sacrifice - "You told me that you would've died for me - what, I can't do the same for you? Not noble enough to do that?" - the raven's eyes scrunch, and Eren keeps pushing, not wanting to be interrupted - "If there's any way that my sacrifice will help this world find peace, then no matter what you want I'll do it"
"I said those things before we- before we understood each other more clearly, Eren! And you too said that you didn't want me to die!" Mikasa speaks up, fighting back Eren's intensity.
A cough coming from ahead warns the two that their outburst is too loud, other people hearing their conversation, jeopardising the mission. Levi tracks back, glaring down the teens, and speaks up -"You can have your 'Who is more willing to die for the other' talk after we complete the mission - don't get distracted, and don't make noise"
Both teen look down, aware that they've ignored rules and were in complete emotional turmoil, not thinking straight. Jean and Armin slow down, allowing themselves to be reached by the duo, a silent understanding between them, dividing up roles to calm the waters. "Hey, blockhead, come up ahead - you should rest, after all" the taller blonde comments, basically pushing Eren towards the first carriage they can reach.
Armin stays behind with Mikasa,who is now covering her face with the scarf, willing to be cuddled by the comforting piece of cloth. "I thought you guys stopped fighting about stuff, after your heart to heart" Armin starts, still thinking about what to say. At her silence, he takes a deep sigh, allowing silence to take over for a while.
"I heard what Historia said, that night. I was confused too, I thought he of all people would want to push through to save everyone" - the noise of crumbling leaves can be heard, and up ahead they can hear Jean struggling with Eren, pushing the shorter boy down on the carriage, threatening to knock him out if he didn't sleep. -"I think that knowing that his rescues have caused the corps to lose many members got to him - he feels responsible for their deaths. Which is understandable"
"The thing here though is that-" Mikasa interrupts the blonde, hand coming up to stop him -"I know that I'm being selfish, and that I'm in the wrong here - I don't want him to die in order to save everything." Expression serious and strong, Mikasa doesn't show any signs of doubt in her mind -"And right now, I don't want to lose what we have either - I don't want to die and lose him"
"Maybe I understand now - my guess is that he knows that if we could use this power, he would have to-" "Don't. Don't finish that sentence" she interrupts him, not wanting to hear that.
"I know that too. Everyone does." Mikasa finishes.
Silence comes back, and neither is willing to break it this time. They keep walking forward, not talking, and they're joined by Connie and Sasha, Jean still ahead.
"Hey, do you think that Ymir will be joining us this time too? We could use more power, even if it is ugly. And not much power" Connie asks, thinking of what will happen if they'll have to meet Reiner and Bertholt again.
"I don't think so - she would probably like to stay behind with Historia and make sure she's ok", Sasha thinks out loud - "I doubt that she came back only for all of us"
The group fall silent once again, each thinking to their interactions with Ymir -"Historia told me that she made fun of me at the castle to prevent me from knowing, because she thought that I would've felt awful knowing that" Connie comments, mind drifting to that moment -"I don't know if she was right or not - maybe hearing it from her would've been better" he finishes.
"I get why she wanted to hide again, like , I get the reasoning behind it" Sasha joins in -"But we've been cleared of all accuses, and Historia is Queen now, surely she could stay with us - everyone who worked with the military in jail now!"
"Maybe - but also remember that what made Historia be accepted was that she lent the finishing blow to the Super Titan - and while that guy's presence -" Armin says, pointing at Eren -" has become somewhat accepted, most of the MPs remaining would want to understand why Ymir knew everything and stayed silent. And if Historia would side with her, things could get iffy real fast"
Mikasa jumps in with her own comment -" She's doing what she thinks it's best for Historia - maybe it will be better if she came out of hiding, but we have no way of knowing - we just have to accept it"
The groups become silent again, following the road. Armin turns towards the raven, who's looking ahead, at the carriage where Eren is probably sleeping - It was inevitable that they would butt heads - he thinks, sighing. He hoped that both of them wouldn't too preoccupied to deal with the mission with focus, and not get distracted, but both of them had bad track records on that subject.
Day breaks, and the large squadron reach Wall Maria, and the leaders order their squad to switch to vertical maneuvering, causing the whole squadron to leap from their horses, all grappling onto the wall and landing on top of it.
Eren looks around, seeing for the first time in year his old home, remembering places and streets where him, Mikasa and Armin used to stay - behind him, Mikasa is having the same experience, memories swirling in her mind - We haven't talked yet...after the mission!
Levi runs past them both, urging them on -"Keep going! Don't stop! Go for the exterior!"
Egged on by their superior, both teens start running towards their respective positions. Armin, on the opposite side, notices some streaks of ashes, that end at the edge of the wall - Remains of some fire...they're here! - He looks around for Erwin, eager to share his findings with him. He stops once he sees Eren fly higher, launching himself off the wall, towards the hole.
This is where humanity fights back!
Biting his hand, he transforms into his Titan. He lands near the hole, and, grabbing both side, he shoots out colums of the hardening material, quickly covering the entire hole. Eren manages the break out of his body, and is immediately grabbed by Mikasa, and both are flying on the wall, landing on top.
"D-did I do it?" Eren asks, taking deep breaths to recover his stamina quicker. Mikasa kneels by him, hand rubbing his back, and answers -"Yeah. Have more faith in yourself - we all trust you more than you trust yourself" - the last part comes out as more of a whisper, her eyes looking at the ground.
Eren is about to reply, when Levi appears, talking to them -Don't rest just yet - we're not finished until we kill them, understand?" - he turns to Mikasa, eyeing her - "No hesitations this time"
Looking back at the brunette, he asks him - "Have you got your gear ready?" - Eren is still kneeling, patting his gear - "Yeah. But the cloak is gone, unfortunately" - He immediately feels someone covering him, a cloak landing on his shoulders gently, and he sees Mikasa without her own.
"Thanks, Mik!" - he tries to explain with his eyes how he trusts her, and that their little spat yesterday was long forgotten, but he's immediately called by Levi to continue the plan, until they reach the inner walls. "Don't just stand there, there are holes to cover!" - the voice of the shorter man comes through with authority, and both teem take off.
"Commander! I have something to report!" Armind lands next to Erwin, and starts explaining right away what he found - "I think that Reiner and Bertholt are here, with another person! There were three cups! They were drinking something, probably tea, and the pot has gone cold, which means-"
"It means that they knew they were coming" Erwin finishes. The longer we stay here, the longer we are in trouble... - "Keep going with the plan - we can't afford to lose time now! Armin, take as many people as you need, and search for them - think of any hiding spot, and double check everything"
Suddenly Armin gets surrounded by dozens of people, all waiting for his orders, and he begins feeling agitated - Me? Leading people?...That's not me!
He catches Erwin's eyes, hoping to make him understand how he's not suitable for leadership, but the commander just gives him a subtle but firm nod, somehow filling Armin with confidence -" Search for every place that can fit a human, no matter how uncomfortable the position might be! If you find anything, fire an acoustic shell, and wait for orders there!"
All the people fly off the wall,a line forming along it, looking through every building, inside and out, while Armin is busy searching the area nearest to the wall for more signs of humans.
They must be close by , otherwise they would have had time to clean up better, leaving us with nothing - but we've almost finished searching all the houses and buildings, seeing as they're mostly destroyed anyway...where else could they be hiding ...
He looks up to the wall, almost defeated, when be remembers what is inside of them - They could be inside...
He fires off a acoustic shell, gathering the other soldiers near to him - "They might be inside the wall - I know it sounds stupid, but we can't leave anything up to chance!"
"Inside the walls? How? There aren't any holes!"
More people joined in with the one, trying to stop Armin from implementing a search along the entire wall, when Erwing steps in - "Soldiers! Chain of command! If what Arlet said is true, than they might be hiding near here - form a line, and follow Arlet!"
Not willing to disobey Erwin, the soldiers immediately start descending the wall, blades clanking against it, trying to hear anything hollow.
Meanwhile, Eren's squad has stopped, looking at the strange activities - Did Armin come up with something? - Eren turns, and searches for Mikasa - Right now we've stopped...we could talk... - he starts walking towards her, and their eyes meet, until they come face to face. "Listen, Mik, about what we said before..." - the girl quickly interrupts him, raising one hand to shush him - "We can't talk right now, Eren - we need to focus". The boy pulls back at the words, hurt clearly showing in his face. He is about to turn back when a hand stops him, turning him back around to face her - "I don't want to have a rushed talk, Eren - I want to be able to speak with time to spare, ok?" she finishes, hoping to make the brunette understand her point.
To her relief, Eren releases a small chuckle, smiling softly at her - "You're right...sorry for overreacting"
They both get startled when they hear a scream from one of the soldiers checking the wall, and they see Reiner, holding open a fake piece of wall, stabbing the man who had found him. Before they can even have time to react properly Levi shoots off, flying towards him, twisting in the air, when his blades meet Reiner's neck. The blonde makes use of his strength to grab hold of the blade, effectively stopping it from exiting from the other side, much like he did with Mikasa - But I'm having a much tougher time with him...damn Ackermans... - Levi doesn't stop his attacks, using the other blade to pierce his body.
Reiner, with one last effort , is capable of shoving Levi off and let himself fall to the ground. Levi follows him, letting go of the hold on the wall, when he sees the tell tale lightning coming off from Reiner's body, and he is forced to retreat up the wall. "DAMN IT! Almost killed him" - Levi's frustrated cries alert Eren, who is flabbergasted at the result, but doesn't have time to dwell on it, Mikasa grabbing him and both running towards their leader, awaiting orders.
Erwin immediately takes charge, preparing to order, when from outside the wall huge explosions can be heard. Turning, he sees a line of 10 meters Titans, followed by a horde of snaller ones.
Behind them all, stood there Beast Titans. It grabs a boulder, and throws it towards the wall, landing at the entrance.
Good hit...this way our paths are blocked...we can't go out...
"We need to protect our horses - squad leaders Dirk and Marlene, get your squadron and protect the horses - thin them out, and beware of the smaller Titans coming through!"
He turns towards Eren's squad, and shouts -"Squad Hange and Levi, take down the Armored Titan"
"The Armored Titan is climbing up the wall!" A soldier shouts, and below, Reiner is reinforcing the tip of his fingers into armored spears, using them to grip onto the wall itself, making his way onto the top.
"Armin and Levi, stop - I have different orders for you two" Erwin addresses the two soldiers, making them stop following their comrades. "Levi, stay here, and help protect the horses - but as soon as the situation presents itself, I want you to take on the Beast Titan. You're the only one I can trust"
Levi looks at the older man, and then nods his head, agreeing - "Alright. You can count on me".
Erwin then turns to Armin, - "I have a plan to take down the Armored Titan-" , both looking down to spot the advancing figure, still a ways to go -"Probably they'll take down the horses with the Armored, thinking we can't do a thing to harm him - I want Eren to transform in the city. Unless they want to face both Eren and our squadrons head on, Reiner will be forced to attack him. At that point, follow Hange"
Without waiting to hear back, Erwin shouts at everyone again -" THIS IS THE MOST IMPORTANT BATTLE - ONCE AGAIN, DEDICATE YOUR HEARTS AND SAVE HUMANITY!"
At that, everyone flies off to their positions, everyone shouting in support for each other.
Reiner finally reaches the top, eyeing the horses on the opposite side - Alright...time to start the plan.A flash of lightning strikes, and the form of Eren's Titan appears, staring directly at Reiner, and then starts running away from the walls.
What...why would he transform? Does he want to run back to the city? He could, in that form, but...why transform now and not later?
At his side, Erwin smirks at the Titan, who immediately catches on to the plan - Use him to drag me away from the horses...if I keep going, Eren will run away...Damn you Erwin!
Without a moment's hesitation, Reiner starts chasing down Eren, who immediately stop to confront him.
Last time, I almost beat you - I can win this fight!
Both giants size each other, circling around a square, simply looking at each other, and then Reiner leaps towards Eren, winding up a punch - Eren manages manages avoid the incoming punch, ducking down, and using the now bent legs to propel himself towards Reiner, hardening his fingers - Do you remember this place, Reiner? - the Armored Titan tries to cushion the blow with his armor, but it proves to be too much for him, and the punch breaks part of the protection on the face - This is where you started all of this
Hange and her squad are in position, standing in formation atop the tallest building in that street, waiting for Eren to bring the fight over to them. Mikasa witnesses as Reiner is able to avoid a knee to the face, instead dropping down and grabbing the leg, and then twisting around, throwing Eren using the leg, crashing into buildings - "LEADER HANGE!" - she wants to help him, but they're still too far away to do any help.
"WAIT! EREN WILL MAKE HIS MOVE NOW - STAY IN POSITION!"
Please Eren...stay on your feet...
Reiner and Eren are wrestling on the ground, the Armored Titan still trying to bite onto the neck of the other one - Eren grabs the turning torso, and using Reiner's own strength, can launch him deeper into the street, where he can see the squad readying their new thunder spears - NOW!
Reiner struggles to get onto his feet, grimacing at the effort of the fight - I can't make it alone...Eren's more agile than me...
Before he can complete his thought, he sees Hange and Mikasa flying towards him, arms stretched behind - Why are they coming in? Their blades can't- suddenly both soldiers fire the contraption attached to their arms, long iron tubes launching towards him, one landing straight into one eye, blocking his vision - What...what did you make?
"NOW!" Hange screams at Mikasa, and both pull back their firing arms, a thin cord detaching from the rods, causing them to propel themselves deeper into the body of the Titan. - WHAT IN THE WORLD -
The rest of the squad now flies towards Reiner, using the same weapons against his neck - Ok Jean, fly, fire, fly and detach! That's right!
The resulting explosion actually hurts Reiner, the blast strong enough to expose the neck, armor completely gone - I can't...not like this...I have to...
Another round deafens him, his body seen from the outside, head completely gone.
"We...we did it!" Jean exclaims, feeling relief at seeing one of the worst enemies they've faced finally gone, and also remorse at seeing a friend die - No, don't...don't feel that way...he was never a friend...- at his side he can see both Sasha and Connie openly crying, and even though he wants to tell them off for feeling pity for an enemy, he understands their feelings too well.
"Guys...we had to do this, you know it as well as I do, it was a necessary thing"
Mikasa and Armin stare at the still bodies, the headless Reiner feeling more like a teenager than an enemy. - He always was there for us...he always was there for Eren...- Mikasa recalls his unwavering support toward Eren, and feels a twinge of guilt, and sadness through her. At her side, Armin can only mutter - "We didn't have time to talk..."
"Come on Armin - you're the smartest one here, it was the only way..."
"I know...but...what if we had insisted more..."
Mikasa's thoughts turn to Eren, seeing him still in his Titan form, probably on the lookout for more danger - Maybe we can talk now...There's nothing happening...
Before any of them can fully relax, they can spot the Armored Titan tilt his head, slowly looking up -
"How...how can he still move? His HEAD IS GONE!" Jean screams, the dread of the situation representing itself in full force - right after, all they can hear is a roar, as loud as it can be - and then silence.
Armin's eyes widen, thinking of what could happen - If Bertholt were to transform on top of us, we wouldn't-"EVERYONE! MOVE AWAY FROM REINER! BERTHOLT IS COMING! RUN AWAY!"
Erwin can see the Beast Titan throwing a barrel, making its way over the wall, its height tall enough to only be a small dot in the sky - Damn...they played us...
The 104th squadron runs away, spying the falling container - most make their way onto Eren, his speed, while not greater than the gear's, fast enough to be consistent, and not require full concentration.
I'm coming, Reiner
Ymir is running towards Wall Maria, her Titan form allowing her to cover more ground, ignoring the normal path.
If their forces are there, the 104th is going to have a bad time - need to go faster!