Chapter 8: Broken Alliance
During the days before Eren's trial, Godzilla traveled across the land and reached the ocean. The Titans that had followed the Kaiju had scattered when they could not keep up with him and Godzilla proceeded to dive into the depths of the ocean. On his way towards the darkest parts of the water, Godzilla could feel the presence of radiation as he reached the bottom. Feeling a bit rejuvenated, Godzilla swims back to the surface and makes his way back across the land.
Before returning to the Walls, Godzilla goes towards a hill that was about a quarter of his height. He then starts digging the hill and removing the dirt off of something buried within the ground. After he was done, Godzilla stood back and looked at a skeleton that resembled another member of his kind. The bones around the ribs were broken and the skull had a large crack in the middle while some of the dorsal plates that were connected to the spine had broken off and were scattered around the skeleton. It was a sight that Godzilla had difficulty looking at, but he needed to see the corpse in order to pay his respect to his deceased relative, even if he never met him personally. Godzilla lets out mournful roar towards the skeleton and leaves it in peace.
On his journey back to the Walls, Godzilla thought back to the time when he saw the former Godzilla in action. The deceased Godzilla had fought different Kaijus of various sizes and abilities, but while he admired his powerful relative because of his immense strength and endurance, Godzilla also had to witness his brutal and slow death by the two most dangerous beings he ever saw. Horrified by the experience, Godzilla shook his head and turned his attention back to the humans.
By the time Godzilla reached Wall Maria, he noticed how the Titans roamed the land and they were not attracted to him anymore. Although this would be a problem since he needed the Titans to stray from the humans, Godzilla decided to leave them be. He knew the more important threats were the more intelligent Titans like the Colossal and the Armored. Besides Eren, Godzilla has trouble sensing the others with the same power and figured that they definitely have more experience in hiding their presence, but he would know exactly where they would be if they changed into their Titan forms. As Godzilla reaches Wall Rose, he senses that Eren is conscious again and leans over the Wall to see the Survey Corps riding their horses in the distance.
The Survey Corps rode nearly all night towards an abandoned headquarters while bringing all the supplies they could. In addition to Sonny and Bean, the Scouts took their time to transport the two Titans outside of Trost in order for the reconstruction to continue and to prevent them from escaping and attacking everyone. Squad Levi escorted Eren to the headquarters, but everyone except Levi noticed how Eren was in a depressive mood. With his head down, Eren looked at the basement key and tried to see if he could remember anything about it, but failed.
Petra sighed at the sight of Eren and said to her allies, "You guys really think his mom will be okay ?"
"I hope so," Gunther answered, "I actually feel bad for the kid, if I'm honest."
Eld added, "I thought that with him being a Titan and all, I figured he was just a monster, or a freak. That is, until I saw how much his mother cares for him."
Oruo didn't want to admit that he felt bad as well, so he told the others, "What the hell is with this emotional shit you guys are talking about ? Why do you care so damn much about a freaking Titan anyway ?"
"You're one to talk," Petra scolded him, "I saw your face when he and his mom were saying goodbye. You looked like you wanted to cry."
Eld joined in, "She's right, Oruo. You did seem like you wanted to shed a few tears back there."
"Sheesh," Oruo said as he rode ahead of them, "I don't know what the hell you guys are talking about."
Gunther rode next to Eren and decided to ask him, "So...is it true what the Commander said about the key ? That it supposedly leads to a huge secret to your basement ?"
Eren looked up at Gunther and put the key away before replying, "Uh..yeah, I guess. I've tried to see if I could remember anything about it, but nothing's come to mind."
"Well, we'll try to help you the best we can. In the meantime, just try and take it one step at a time. If you force yourself into remembering, then you might get stressed out and transform, or something."
"Thanks for the advice. I'll try to control my power so you guys don't have to worry."
Gunther nodded before riding ahead with the others. Squad Levi and Eren managed to reach the headquarters and noticed how messy the whole structure was. In a surprising turn of events, Levi ordered both the Squad and Eren to clean the whole building. Not expecting the kind of person Levi turned out to be, Eren learns from Petra a bit about Levi's past as a former thug in the Underground District and how Erwin manages to convince him to enlist in the Survey Corps. After a whole day of cleaning the building, Eren discusses with Squad Levi about his powers and the mission towards the Shiganshina District.
"I'm quite surprised that we're receiving more soldiers before our expedition in a month. We haven't had a casualty in our ranks ever since Godzilla pulled the Titans away from our formations, so our regiment will increase in size for the first time in a while," Eld explains to everyone.
Gunther added, "Not to mention that the new recruits have already witnessed a direct Titan attack for the first time. Though, I doubt they'll be facing the Titans again anytime soon."
"Yep. They'll definitely be taking it easy unlike what we had to go through our first time. Bunch of lucky bastards," Oruo said as he sipped his drink.
"Do you know anything more about this, Captain ? It seems a bit unnecessary for us to have more members when we have Godzilla defending us," Petra said to Levi.
"Don't think that we should rely solely on the lizard," Levi replied, "If any of the Titans get near our formation, Godzilla wouldn't be able to attack them without getting close to us as well. The point of getting new members would be to increase our efforts in reaching Wall Maria, especially since we have a person of high value that needs to be protected."
"I'm sure Godzilla will just attract the Titans for us again. Though, if we hadn't returned to Trost that day, we would have made it to Wall Maria," Oruo pointed out.
Eld argued, "That's true, but we would not have the knowledge about Eren's basement. In other words, I would like to know how is it that you could communicate with Godzilla, Eren."
Everyone turned their heads towards Eren, who was hesitating to answer Eld's question. He knows nothing more about his communication method with Godzilla, so the only answer he could give was just an honest, "I don't know." Unless his father's basement manages to explain the process behind it, Eren was about as clueless as everyone else.
Knowing this, Levi explains to his Squad, "He's not gonna be able to tell us anything. All we have are the reports given to us by the Garrison. There's only one person here that's willing to go through great lengths to figure this thing out….and you better pray that she doesn't do anything too extreme, Eren."
"Huh ? Who would that be ?" Eren asked until someone slammed into the barred door leading into the room.
Petra opens the door, revealing the person to be Hange, who proceeds to greet Squad Levi and introduce herself to Eren.
"Hey, everyone ! I hope the castle life is sufficient enough for you all," Hange said to them
"You're a bit ahead of schedule, you know that ?" Levi responded as he sipped his tea.
"Yeah, well….I guess you could say that I was a bit eager to get here," Hange said as she stands in front of Eren, "So ! You're the Godzilla whisperer from what I heard. It's nice to meet you formally, Eren."
"And you must be Squad Leader Hange."
"Yup ! I'm the main person in charge of the Scouts' research division and the newly formed Godzilla research group."
"Godzilla research group ? What kind of bullshit is that, Four-Eyes ?" Levi asked her.
She turned to him and replied, "It's a work in progress and I just came up with the name right now."
Turning back to Eren, "Anyway, I wish to ask for your assistance in the upcoming days of my experiment."
"How exactly would I be of use to you ?"
"How ?! You're the link between the humans and Godzilla. With your powers, we can create opportunities that will allow us to make contact with his kind, and hopefully the Titans."
"I wish I could help, but I'm not really allowed to do anything without jurisdiction from the higher-ups."
"Hey, Levi ! Eren gonna do anything tomorrow ?"
"He's maintaining the garden."
"Awesome ! Looks like nothing important for you to do, so you'll just be with me tomorrow."
"A-alright, then. What sort of duties will I be doing for you ?" Eren asked as he unknowingly led himself into something unusual.
Squad Levi knew what was going to transpire and immediately stand up to leave the room. In the meantime, Hange talks about the recent capture of Sonny and Bean as well as her past that led her to becoming a fanatic over the Titans. Hoping to learn something new about the Titans, Eren listened to the crazed scientist until he suddenly heard Godzilla's voice return to his mind.
"Are you available to speak, Eren ?"
"Godzilla ?" Eren said out loud, capturing Hange's attention as she was in the middle of explaining something.
"Huh ?! Wait ! Are you talking to him ?! What exactly is he-" Hange stops when she realizes Eren was trying to concentrate and just stares at his facial expressions as he spoke with the Kaiju.
"I heard you left a couple of days ago, but where are you right now ?"
"I'm currently leaning on the Wall. I can barely see the building you are residing in, but I can feel your presence."
"Hold on, I'll come out and see you," Eren said as he turns to Hange, "Um...Squad Leader Hange ? Do you mind if I leave the building to see Godzilla for a bit ? I'll head back inside-"
"I've got a better idea ! Since I'll be in charge of you tomorrow anyway, I'll go with you to see Godzilla right now ! Oh ! I can't wait !" Hange tells Eren as she drags him with her towards the outside of the building in a hurried manner.
Meanwhile, three people were grappling around the Survey Corps base and landed near the area where Sonny and Bean were located. The three people wore hooded clothing similar to the Scouts and removed them to reveal Reiner, Annie, and Bertholdt. As the three of them looked around for any Scouts wandering outside, they discussed their plan before proceeding.
"Alright, Bertholdt. While Annie and I deal with those captured Titans, just signal to us if someone's coming," Reiner explained.
"Understood. Just make it quick before they find out we left."
"Don't worry. Annie and I will kill those Titans before the Scouts get a chance to experiment on them."
"Good luck, you two," Bertholdt said as Reiner and Annie grappled next to Sonny and Bean, who were tied up and nailed to the ground.
Luckily for Reiner and Annie, the two Titans were inactive as the sunlight was no longer present. They approached the Titans with light footsteps and watched their surroundings to ensure no guard came their way. Just as they were near the position of the Titans' nape, they both heard a loud voice coming from the entrance of the castle building.
"Don't you worry about the Captain ! I can handle things from here !"
Annie and Reiner paused their movement and looked to see Hange, Eren, and a guard talking to each other. Hange ordered the guard to allow her and Eren some privacy, to which the guard agreed and left. They both approached Sonny and Bean, causing Annie and Reiner to quickly hide their presence and eavesdrop on their conversation.
"This is Sonny and Bean. The two Titans that I've told you about earlier," Hange pointed out to Eren, "They'll be assisting you in discovering more aspects of your powers."
"Are they going to be involved in what we're doing tonight ?" Eren asked her.
"Nah. They're asleep right now and I don't want to disturb their rest for tomorrow's experiment. Speaking of which, where is Godzilla ? I can't see anything on Wall Rose in all of this darkness."
Eren tried speaking with Godzilla while looking around the top of the Wall, "Hey, Godzilla. I can't really see you out here. Do you think you could….um...do something to show where you are ?"
After a brief moment, Hange jumped in excitement while grabbing and shaking Eren, "Oh My Gosh ! Oh My Gosh ! Oh My GOSH ! LOOK AT THAT AMAZING DISPLAY !"
Eren turned towards the Wall to see something he never expected Godzilla to do. Hange and Eren watched as Godzilla's dorsal plates were glowing blue and blinking in a pattern that resembled the beat of a heart. Bertholdt, Annie, and Reiner also saw the bright blue glow from Godzilla and were just as amazed as Eren and Hange.
"I-i-it's the most b-b-beautiful thing I've ever s-seen," Hange said happily as her eyes began to tear up.
Eren returned to speaking with Godzilla and said, "Um...Godzilla. Now that we can talk again. I believe that I have some things to speak with you as well."
"You can start before me. I wish to know if you managed to speak with your superiors."
Eren nodded before saying to him, "Well….let's just say that they are suspicious of your motives. They believe that you are not a true ally to the humans because you're not willing to kill all of the Titans. I'm sure you have your reason, but you have to understand that they're our enemies."
"...I cannot bear to kill all of the Titans. It's something that I would regret doing."
"What do you mean ?"
"From time to time, I can hear their thoughts. They speak fewer than five words at a time, but I can sense that they are suffering in some way."
"I can understand that you can hear their thoughts, but I don't think they'll take that as an excuse. Besides, my people only see them as mindless beings and there's no way for us to prove that they have a thought process."
"It's much more than that, Eren. Just like you and others with the same power, I sense the presence of humans within each Titan. "
Eren looked immensely shocked, causing Hange to wonder what was wrong, but he continued listening to Godzilla and hoped to get more insight on the dilemma, "I held back against the Titans because I was afraid that I was killing humans trapped within the bodies. Even though I have killed many of them to ensure humanity's safety, they have never retaliated against me in any way and I have felt guilt for doing what I did."
"Godzilla…why have you never told me any of this ? This whole time, we were fighting humans and you never said a damn thing !"
"You must understand that I was unsure at the time. I assumed that the Titans were just another species until I had met you. A human who emerged from a Titan body. Afterwards, I believed that the Titans were also humans."
"Sorry. This is just a lot to take in and I don't know whether anyone will believe me if I told them. My superiors are worried that if you keep on helping, you'll just cause more collateral damage. Something that they are worried that you'll do again."
"I see. So I have been nothing more than a danger to your kind. It appears that all of my efforts to help humanity are a waste."
"It's not a waste ! Think of all the people you saved like my mother. And what about the breach that you sealed ?"
"..."
Godzilla appreciated that Eren was trying to make him feel more optimistic about the situation. However, he was not anything like his former relative and believed that he would never live up to the name, Godzilla. Helping the humans was all he had and the only legacy he could fulfill for the previous Godzilla, but it was clear that the humans were not as tolerant towards him as they were with Eren. He slowly turned around to see beyond the distance ahead of him where the ocean was and looked back to where Eren and Hange were. He had to make a choice to remain and become an enemy to the humans, or return to the ocean where he would remain alone with no purpose to fulfill.
Making his choice, Godzilla said to Eren, "Our time speaking with each other was sparse, yet I felt that you were a great friend. After all I've done, I cannot deny that your people clearly do not want me to intervene in your affairs anymore. To respect the wishes of your people, I shall leave."
Eren argued, "There's something that we can do to have you to stay. Even if you barely know anything about the Titans, you could help us by distracting them when the Survey Corps goes on their next expedition."
"The Titans no longer have an interest in following me and they're all across the land. I cannot risk attacking the Titans if they get too close to your people. I've done all I can and any more would be damaging to your kind. I'm sorry, Eren, but I'm not destined to help the humans like the one before me."
"One before you ? Who are you talking about ?"
"My true name is not Godzilla. It is the name that belongs to another member of my species that I took in order to honor him."
"Then...who are you really ?"
"I...am Minilla. I'm...no one important. I never have been."
Godzilla, or rather Minilla, walks away while Eren falls to the ground and lowers his head. Hange was worried that something happened and prompted Eren to tell her what happened. Eren kept the part of Minilla's name a secret, but simplified his conversation with him to Hange, who walked over to Sonny and Bean and looked at the Titans.
"There goes our experiment for tomorrow. Or any other experiments I had planned involving him," Hange said sadly as she falls flat on the ground.
"I just don't understand any of this. It was much simpler knowing the Titans were just creatures that looked like us, but…."
"There's nothing we can do to change our perception of the Titans now that we know a bit of the truth. Though, it'll be hard to explain this to the others without hard evidence," Hange explained to Eren.
"Hange, what do you think of this whole thing ?"
"I'm quite saddened to know that humanity just drove away one of our biggest hopes and we might possibly never see him again. I was really hoping to learn more about him personally. As for the Titans, I admit that I was a bit taken back when he said that they were possibly humans."
"Does it change how you see them ?"
"No. Despite everything you just told me, I still believe that the Titans are pretty cool. Even if they're humans, it just makes me want to find a way to change them back, or better yet, how they manage to change as well," Hange replied as she sat up.
"It's quite surprising how you're taking this news so well, Squad Leader Hange. Then again, you are quite peculiar," Eren told her.
"Everything so far is peculiar if you think about it. Godzilla, the Titans, and even you. It just makes life more interesting and mysterious in ways that we can't even imagine, but that's what we Scouts work so hard to achieve. The answer to our questions."
She looked at Sonny and Bean before continuing, "What do you think those two would look like as humans ? Do you think they're guys or girls ? Handsome or ugly ? Smart or dumb ?"
"Hmm...I'm not exactly sure. Whoever they were before turning into Titans, I'm certain that it couldn't be worse."
They both stayed silent for a moment until Hange turns to him, "Eren. I would like to ask something of you not as a Squad Leader, but somewhat as a friend. Do you think you could keep everything we just discussed a secret between us ? I'd rather not report our conversation to Levi or Erwin unless we have evidence to support our theory."
Eren nodded, "Of course. I'd want to keep this a secret as well."
They both got off the ground and returned to the building, unaware that Reiner and Annie were preparing to kill the two Titans.
Eren then told Hange, "Thanks for being with me tonight. I can't imagine doing this whole thing with the Captain or anyone else."
"That's because they won't understand your situation like myself, which is why I'll be the perfect person to experiment on you and-"
Sonny and Bean let out a loud sound that caught the attention of Hange and Eren. They both turned to see the two Titans slowly evaporating as their napes were sliced off. Hange began screaming and ran over to them, with Eren following her.
"SONNY ! BEAN !" Hange cried out as she kneels and slams her fists on the ground, "NOOO ! WHO DID THIS TO YOU !"
Eren looks around and manages to spot Reiner, Annie, and Bertholdt on the rooftop, unaware that it was them.
"Hey ! You three ! Stop right there !" Eren shouted as Hange turned to see the three of them as well.
As expected, Eren and Hange watched as they grappled away with 3DMGs. Eren tried to bite his hand, but stopped when he realized that he would be in trouble for using his powers without authorization from Captain Levi. However, Hange got up and firmly placed her hands on his shoulders.
"Eren, turn into a Titan and stop them !"
"B-but...I can't do it unless…"
"I'm giving you permission ! I'll explain to Levi and Erwin about this ! Just avenge Sonny and Bean !" Hange shouted as she returned to Sonny and Bean's evaporating bodies.
Eren hesitated at first before focusing his attention towards the three escapees. With a bite of his hand, Eren quickly transformed into his Titan body and roared loud enough to wake the members of the Survey Corps. Levi and his Squad quickly exit the building to see Eren running away from the base.
Oruo cried out, "Shit ! He's going rogue !"
Gunther added, "Let's get our maneuvering gear !"
"Hold on !" Levi ordered as he looked to see Hange mourning over Sonny and Bean, "Let's go see what the hell's happening."
Levi and the others run over to Hange as she sobs over the dead Titans. Petra tries to help her up from the ground and Levi approaches her in a calm manner.
"Hange, you mind explaining the situation ?" Levi asked.
Hange tried to calm down and replied, "There were three soldiers who killed Sonny and Bean. I ordered Eren to pursue in his Titan form to avenge them."
"Damn it. You should have waited for us before you made a decision like this," Levi reprimanded, "Oruo, Eld, Gunther. You three follow me and we'll track down Eren. Petra, look after Hange until we return and notify Erwin of what's happening."
They all nodded as Levi, Oruo, Eld, and Gunther went back inside to retrieve their 3DMG. In the meantime, Minilla returned to the skeleton of the former Godzilla and stared at it hopelessly. He contemplated on helping humanity and wondered whether they were worth his time or if he should try to look for other monsters to be with. Despite bonding with the human child and his grandfather years ago, Eren was the first human he actually manages to talk with, which made Minilla feel like he truly wasn't alone. Suddenly hearing a distant roar from the Walls, Minilla looks back at the human settlement and senses that Eren had transformed again. Gaining the will to continue fighting for humanity, Minilla returns to the Walls in hopes that humanity would give him another chance.
Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie grappled as fast as they could with Eren right behind their trail. With no buildings to grapple onto, the three of them had to improvise and grapple along the scattered trees.
"Damn ! There's no way we can outrun him doing this !" Reiner pointed out.
Bertholdt suggested, "Then we'll have to fight him head on ! We should try to immobilize him rather than transform !"
"I'll take care of his eyes while you two deal with his legs," Annie told them as they proceeded with their designated targets.
Annie, Reiner, and Bertholdt split up into three different directions, forcing Eren to stop and direct his attention all over the place. Bertholdt and Reiner swung beneath Eren and grappled all around his legs to gather momentum before slicing the back of his ankles. At the same time, Annie was flying in circles around Eren's head before making a straight shot towards his eyes. With such small enemies to fight, Eren had trouble locating their exact locations and was easily taken down to the ground. As he was regenerating his damages, Reiner, Annie, and Bertholdt quickly all landed by Eren's nape.
"Let's take this time to remove Eren from his nape," Bertholdt told them, "At least we won't have to go home empty-handed if we failed our mission."
"You're right," Reiner agreed, "It's too dangerous to allow the enemy to have the Power of the Titans in their hands."
Annie said to them, "Whatever, let's just hurry up before the Scouts get here. We'll decide what to do with him after we-"
It was already too late for the three of them as Levi swung into the scene and kicked the three of them off Eren before landing on his body. Reiner, Annie, and Bertholdt landed on the ground as Eld, Gunther, and Oruo landed beside them with their swords pointed at them. Luckily, their hoods prevented their faces from being shown and they looked to see Levi standing on top of Eren's body menacingly.
"You three are in a whole lot of trouble if you don't explain yourselves," Levi told them as he jumps off of Eren and slowly walks towards them.
Annie slowly pulls out a knife from behind her back with Reiner and Bertholdt noticing the concealed weapon. Reiner decided to follow her lead and slowly moved his sword closer to his hand. As Levi begins to get closer, Annie turns to Bertholdt.
"Get out of here. We'll regroup with you back at the barracks," she whispers to him.
As Levi readied his swords, Annie and Reiner cut their hands and summoned a lightning strike at their position. Levi was taken by surprise and quickly ordered everyone to move back from them. In an instant, Annie and Reiner transformed into their Titan forms with Reiner being the Armored Titan and Annie being a skinless Female Titan. Levi and his Squad were shocked to see more people with powers similar to Eren's and prepared for a fight.
As Bertholdt quickly flees back to the Trost district, Annie and Reiner begin their assault on Squad Levi and hope to either immobilize them, or eliminate them completely. Reiner slams his fists at Eld and Gunther until they manage to evade the attack and regroup with Levi and Oruo. Annie lifts her leg and slams her heel at the group, forcing them to grapple away. With little foundations for them to grapple on and no horses to assist them in escaping, Squad Levi had great difficulty avoiding the strikes of the Female and Armored Titans. Levi and Eld launched themselves into the air while Oruo and Gunther tried to attack the two Titan Shifters. However, Oruo's sword blades were broken as they made contact with Reiner's armored skin and he was smacked by Reiner's hand. Oruo was thrown into Gunther's direction and they both landed hard on the ground. They both quickly got back up and continued evading before Reiner could smash them to pieces. As Levi surveyed both of the Titan Shifters, he noticed various things that he believed could give himself and his allies an edge in battle.
"Eld, Gunther, Oruo ! Leave the Armored one to me ! Take care of the other one !" Levi ordered as he zips around Reiner while the others started their assault on Annie.
Seeing as how there were exposed joints on the Armored Titan's body that allowed movement, Levi flies at a high speed and spins his blades in a circular motion while slicing the area behind the knee. As Reiner loses control of his legs and falls, Levi quickly moves to the upper area and slices parts of the elbows to disable the arms. Reiner was easily defeated, but Levi was faced with only one issue. As he lands on Reiner's neck, Levi notices a thick plate of armor covering the nape and tries to cut it with full force. With one swift swing, the blades immediately broke and left a small crack in the armor plate. Levi grunted before equipping new blades and grappling over to his allies in order to take down the Female Titan.
Oruo, Gunther, and Eld had some difficulty facing Annie in her Titan form as they never had to deal with an intelligent Titan before. Nevertheless, they make quick work of Annie as Oruo and Eld fly straight for her eyes and swiftly cut them, effectively blinding Annie. Gunther sliced her ankles as he made a serpentine like movement around her legs and forced her down on the ground. After Annie falls and holds herself up with her arms, Gunther slashes her right arm while Oruo and Gunther do the same on her left arm. Annie falls flat on the ground as the three members of Levi's Squad quickly aimed for the nape. However, Annie manages to focus her regeneration on her arms and swats the unsuspecting soldiers away. She then focuses on healing her eyes and looks to see them on the ground before slamming her right fist. Suddenly, Levi comes from behind and slices her nape at the last minute, causing Annie to miss her target and fall to the ground again.
Reiner quickly recovers from his wounds on his joints to see Annie taken down. He didn't expect himself and Annie to have lost so easily, but he tried to charge at them in order to rescue Annie. However, he is stopped when Eren interrupts his charge and tackles him. Reiner was able to hold his ground against Eren and lift him up, only to throw him into the ground with great force. Levi and the others noticed the fight and immediately went into action. Levi suggested to his allies to focus on the joints of the Armored Titan while he stays behind to look after the Female Titan.
Eren gets back up from the ground and faces Reiner, but it appeared that he was out of control again. He mindlessly attacks him with punches, which Reiner easily dodges and counters. Each punch from Reiner's hardened fists turned Eren's Titan body into a bloody mess all over. Just as Reiner was reaching for Eren's nape, Gunther zips across his arms and slashes the elbows. Oruo and Eld follow up with cuts on the ankles and the joints on the legs. Gunther finishes the attack by stabbing both of Reiner's eyes rather than swinging his blades in order to prevent his weapons from breaking upon the hardened skin. Gunther, Eld, and Oruo watch as Reiner falls next to Eren, who was quickly regenerating from the damages done to him. Possessing some awareness, Eren looks to see that Reiner was taken down and decides to help Squad Levi by removing the armor plate protecting Reiner's nape.
With both of them taken down with little effort by Levi and his team, Reiner and Annie were afraid of their immense power and efficient cooperation. They saw no way to escape as they were forcibly pulled out of their nape and thrown next to each other. Although they still had their hoods to conceal their identities, Squad Levi were on the verge of discovering who they were. Eren exhausts himself and leaves his Titan body in order to join up with the others, but is carried by Eld and Gunther when he grows slightly weak from using his powers. Levi stands in front of the two Titan Shifters and begins talking to them once again.
"You two may think that you could take us out with your powers, but you're still Titans in that form. You should've ran away when you had the chance since we did not have our horses at our disposal," Levi explained as he approached them with his guard up.
Annie and Bertholdt remained silent, allowing Levi to continue, "Since we had lost two Titans for further experimentation, I'd say you two would make excellent replacements. If only I was the one to be torturing you, I believe that you'll be facing far worse than me once you become 'her' new test subjects."
As Eren steadily regained his stamina and stood on his own, Eld, Gunther, and Oruo prepared themselves for any tricks that Annie and Reiner might pull. Levi tried using the tips of his blades to lift their hoods, but stopped when the sound of horses alerted him. They all see Hange, Petra, and Erwin riding towards their position along with other members like Moblit and Mike riding along with them. Hange quickly got off her horse and ran over to Levi's side where she glared at the two Titan Shifters.
"You two don't realize what pain you've caused me when you killed Sonny and Bean ! I'm going to make you feel that pain when we bring you back to our base !" Hange said angrily.
"Before you do, Hange," Erwin said as he got off his horse, "We must interrogate them."
Erwin stood in the middle between Levi and Hange as he looked at the kneeling soldiers in front of him.
"Whoever you people are, just know that you're facing some of the best soldiers in our regiment and I highly advise that you cooperate with us. Unless you wish to be treated with extreme force, I suggest you reveal your identities and calmly inform us of your motives," Erwin explained to them in an emotionless tone.
Once again remaining silent, Annie and Reiner quickly thought of ways to escape. They initially wanted to escape when it was just Levi, Eren, and the three members of Squad Levi, but the arrival of other Survey Corps members had made it more difficult. Just as Erwin, Levi, and Hange grew impatient with their delayed response, the sound of a 3DMG was heard, causing everyone to look up at the night sky. A dark figure appeared falling from the sky and Levi recognized the figure to be the person that got away. Annie and Reiner saw hope as they witnessed Bertholdt coming to rescue them from the tight situation. With the Scouts distracted, Annie and Reiner made a run for the Trost District while Bertholdt sliced his hand with his sword. Levi noticed what was coming and quickly told everyone to fall back, but it was nearly too late as Bertholdt summoned a partial transformation of his Colossal Titan body. Bertholdt's massive arm instantly manifested and formed a blockade between the Scouts and his friends, allowing them to escape. After seeing that Annie and Reiner were a good distance away, Bertholdt paused his transformation, detached himself from the arm, and grappled towards them.
The Scouts were blown away by the sudden attack and the steam coming off of the large arm had blinded them. Eventually, the arm quickly evaporated and left a large heated mark on the ground. Once the steam cleared, the Scouts gathered their members together and discussed the current situation.
"This is just great," Oruo said sarcastically, "We got our asses handed to us after all that work we just did."
Eld agreed, "Yeah. This is not gonna look good for us if the higher-ups find out about this."
"They're not gonna find out," Levi argued, "Not unless we catch up to them and deal with them without drawing any attention to the other Military branches."
"How are we going to do that, Captain ?" Petra asked, "They should have been gone by this point."
"Not exactly," Mike said as he sniffs the air, "One of them reeks like a Titan, but it's wearing off quickly. However, I can at least tell which direction they're going."
"Then we don't have a moment to lose. If they're using maneuvering gear in a flat land like this with barely anything for them to grapple onto, then we can catch up with our horses," Erwin said to them.
He gets on his horse and orders them, "Pursue the targets and prevent them from reaching whatever sanctuary they have at the moment before they are lost for good. Mike, lead the way."
"Understood, Commander," Mike said as he and everyone else gets on their horses.
Mike rides ahead of everyone and leads them into the direction of the three Titan Shifters. In the meantime, Levi explains the fight to the ones who were not present and reveals to them that there are a total of three people who possessed the Titan power similar to Eren. One being the Colossal Titan, and the other two being the ones that Levi and his Squad defeated earlier.
As Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie ran from one tree to another and grappled onto them in order to gain speed and distance, they didn't notice Minilla leaning over Wall Rose. He felt them using their Titan powers earlier and eventually catches them fleeing in their human forms. Ensuring that they do not escape, Minilla charges atomic energy in his dorsal plates and lets out another breath attack at the unsuspecting soldiers. In the air, Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie were unknowingly heading into Minilla's Atomic Breath as it instantaneously passes them and blocks their way. They quickly dodged the beam in time and retreated back to the ground. In addition, Minilla's breath attack accidentally hit Wall Sina and created burn marks on the Wall's surface. He charges another attack and aims on the ground where Reiner, Annie, and Bertholdt were desperately trying to avoid the beam of radiation. As he was too focused on the Titan Shifters, Minilla was too reckless to notice the destruction he was causing to the land and Wall Sina in the distance. With large burn marks on both the ground and the Wall, soldiers from the Garrison automatically assumed that Minilla was launching an attack on the humans because they were unable to see the people he was targeting. With Reiner, Annie, and Bertholdt closing in on the Trost District, Minilla tried to block their path until he felt cannonballs hitting his chest. He turns to see the Garrison soldiers attacking him in response to his breath attacks. With Minilla distracted by the weak attacks of the Garrison, the three Titan Shifters manage to escape back into Trost as the guards supervising the gate were too focused on Minilla.
The Survey Corps rides fast towards the direction of Trost as Mike begins losing Bertholdt's Titan scent. Eventually, he loses the scent and smells regular humans as he and the others approach the gate of Trost. During that time, they witnessed Minilla's breath attack and the destruction it caused throughout the land within Wall Rose. As they stopped, everyone looked to see cannon fire upon Minilla, who was unfazed by their continuous attacks. Eren knew that Minilla was trying to stop the Titan Shifters, but he didn't expect the Kaiju to be attacked by the Garrison. Erwin and Levi didn't know what to say about what was displayed in front of them, but they knew that humanity had resented, possibly, one of their greatest allies. Minilla looked at the frightened state of the humans attacking him and could barely hear their harsh words towards him. He looks at Eren and the others inside Wall Rose and lets out a sad groan. Minilla had hoped for another chance, but it appears that it was out of the question now that he made it seem like he was attacking the humans. He turns around and runs away to the direction of the ocean, causing the Garrison soldiers to cheer in their supposed victory.
High above the sky to the point where it was invisible to the naked eye, a spacecraft with an odd claw-like appearance flew directly above the Walls. Within the vehicle, there were several grey humanoid figures with pointed heads and black veins that spanned across their whole body. They watched a holographic recording of the events at the Walls where Minilla was using his breath attacks and compared it to another holographic recording that showed another slimmer Godzilla with white dorsal plates.
"Kaiju identified as another possible member of Godzilla. He is not currently in our database, which means he has managed to evade our scouting ships years ago," said one of the figures.
"The Controller will be angry to know that we somehow missed an Earth Monster. Not only that, but it has significantly reduced the Titan population and lowered our quota for the upcoming invasion," another one of them responded.
Another individual spoke up, "That's impossible. Our defenses on Planet Earth should have prevented this situation. What happened to our facility ?"
One of the alien figures activated a communicator and tried to contact his brethren that were supposedly stationed on the human planet.
"Facility 11, what is your current status ?" The figure asked until he received only static.
The static went away as a new voice talked through the communicator, "I...uh...I apologize for the delay. Facility 11 reporting."
"We have not been receiving any reports regarding the expected delivery of Titans to the Mothership for this year and the quota has not been reached. Not only that, but a Kaiju has been spotted attacking an unprecedented human settlement outside of your designated establishment. Can you elaborate on this situation ?"
"Uh...yes, of course. Our facility….has changed its current method of breeding humans and Titans by creating a setting more comfortable for the inhabitants. The Titans roam the land while the humans live blissfully within the Walls. The...uh...Kaiju has certainly caused some issues with the process, but we are currently dealing with the matter at hand."
"Just for you to know, the Controller will be invading another planet soon. If he does not receive his shipment of Titans in time for the invasion, your entire facility and its staff will be punished severely for your lack of progress."
"I understand, Sir. However, if I may ask, when will the invasion commence ?"
"The Controller will make way to the targeted planet in an estimate of one month from now. Your deadline will be before that. Ensure that you do not fail in your duties," said the alien as he deactivated the communicator, "I swear. With the Doctor gone to help the Controller, the whole planet is out of order."
"It won't be our fault if the Titans aren't delivered on time. We shouldn't have to worry. Let's return to the homeworld and notify the Controller of the situation. He may want that Kaiju added to his collection."
The spacecraft began its journey towards the deepest parts of space and disappeared in blur. On the other end of the communicator, a man and a woman were in a small confined room. They were both wearing similar uniforms that consisted of a red armband and whitish coats with a black tie, with the exception of the girl wearing a long gray skirt. They were anxious after answering the call and discussed it with each other.
"That was certainly a close one, Porco. I figured they would have caught your lie," the girl said to him.
"I did my best, Pieck. That's all that matters," he said, "I'm just simply giving my brother more time to find the Coordinate."
"It's been five years already, hasn't it ? Our superiors are growing impatient by the minute. They even ordered me to go to Paradis along with Zeke to check up on them. We're departing in a couple of weeks."
"I know. It's just that I had high hopes that Marcel and the others would have returned by now. We don't know what's going on over there and I'm afraid that something might have happened to them."
"Which is why we must head over and investigate their progress. If anything, we'll bring them right back before the Xiliens return."
Porco sat on a chair and sighed, "Do you think the Coordinate would be enough to defeat them ? We have been told of their immense control over powerful monsters and...I really don't think the Titans are enough to stop them."
Pieck sat next to him and wrapped her arm around him, "We still have a monster of our own. Even if it might not be enough, we're fighting with everything that we've got."
"Let's just hope that we actually have a fighting chance. We'll be lucky enough to last a minute against their army."
"Hope so, but until then, let's both do our best," Pieck told him as they both exited the room.
The Scouts return to their castle base as the sun rises on a new morning, but the loss of Sonny, Bean, Minilla, and the three Titan Shifters, affected them greatly. They slowly rode their horses back and contemplated on what to do next. Erwin expected Darius to request a report on the events that had occurred and decided to collaborate with Levi, Hange, and Mike on what to say.
Erwin was sitting at his desk with Levi, Mike, and Hange standing in front of him, and explained to them, "With the existence of three other humans who possessed the power to transform into Titans, which we will refer to as Titan Shifters, I believe it would be best to conceal this fact from Darius for the time being. Until we manage to capture them and bring them back alive, we will divert the Military's attention towards Godzilla's destruction and call it a unforeseen attack."
"So we're making everyone think that Godzilla caused all of this damage because he was attacked first ?" Mike asked.
"No, we'll let Darius and the other high-ranking commanders believe that Godzilla started the attack by killing the two Titan subjects."
Levi added, "And he laid waste to the land because he thought there were more within the Wall."
"Exactly. If we make everyone think that Godzilla did all of this on his own without influence from the Survey Corps, we will be allowed to continue our operations and proceed with next month's expedition. However, we will have to lose him as a potential ally since he will be faced with repercussions and suspicion from the Government."
Mike crossed his arms, "Such a shame that we have to lie and put the blame on the big guy so that we don't get in trouble and lose Eren to the Military Police."
Erwin turned to Hange and noticed that she was unusually quiet, "Do you have anything to say on this matter, Hange ?"
"No, I don't. I….must tend to the cleanup of the Titan subjects," Hange replied as she walks to the door with her head down and leaves the room.
Hange returns to the area where she kept Sonny and Bean, looking at their nearly evaporated skeletons. She was heartbroken to see more Titans at her disposal die in front of her, despite having accidentally killed most of them in the past. As her squad removed the nails on the ground and the wires wrapped around the skeletons, Hange meets up with Eren and the rest of Squad Levi, where they were sitting on a bench doing nothing. They noticed her walking towards their direction and allowed her to sit with them.
"How...uh….are you feeling about your test experiments ?" Petra asked her.
"I'm glad that I didn't kill them this time, but….I'm going to make those people pay for what they did to Sonny and Bean," Hange replied angrily.
"Wow. I heard she held quite the fury back when she hated Titans, but this is pretty fucking scary," Oruo whispered to Eren.
Eren turns to Hange and asks her, "Do you know what's going to happen after everything that just occurred ?"
Hange sighed deeply before replying, "Godzilla...will be blamed for an unsolicited attack on humanity. The existence of the three Titan Shifters, which is what they will be classified from now on, will be hidden until further notice."
"W-what ?!" Eren cried out, "This can't be happening. Most of humanity will see him as an enemy and we'll lose him for good."
"The Commander is well aware of that, Eren. If we were to reveal the truth to the higher-ups, then there's a possible chance we could lose you to the Military Police for our incompetence."
Eren stayed silent and listened attentively to Hange as she continued, "We cannot afford to lose you most of all, Eren. I hate to say something like this, but we have to let Godzilla go in order to secure your position in the Survey Corps. In terms of priority, you come before him because of your close relation to the Titans."
After listening to her reasoning, Eren was reminded of how high the stakes were. Despite not wanting the humans to antagonize Minilla, Eren had to think about his mother's position with the Military Police. He and the others sat quietly on the bench as they waited for time to pass while thinking about how their whole operation was nearly dismissed.
In the meantime, Erwin finished the report of last night's events and left out the details about the Titan Shifters like he told Levi, Hange, and Mike. He hands the report to a messenger, who quickly delivers it to Darius' office later in the day. The General of the three Military branches read the report, believing the lies that Erwin stated, and wrote a reply back to him. The same messenger returned to the Survey Corps base and delivered Darius' letter to Erwin. Levi stood besides Erwin as he read the letter with high hopes that their expedition could continue.
Back in Trost, the news of Minilla's attack had shocked the citizens and some were wondering about the fate of the Kaiju. The Garrison received orders to attack Minilla on sight, but Dot Pixis was worried about having to retaliate against him since he considered Minilla to be a friend to the humans. The 104th graduates had mixed feelings about the news and some were questioning whether they were true. Reiner, Annie, and Bertholdt were quite surprised that their Titan forms were not mentioned and wondered if the Survey Corps had a reason to exclude their involvement in Minilla's attack.
"This doesn't make any damn sense," Reiner said to his friends, "Why is it that the Survey Corps hasn't ratted us out to the public ?"
"Isn't this a good thing ?" Bertholdt asked, "They never saw our faces and our presence is not known to anyone else."
Annie argued, "It would have made more sense to spread the news about our abilities to the public and flush us out by determining who's the more suspicious among the masses."
"Maybe we can find out more if we join the Survey Corps."
"You're not thinking of joining them, are you ?" Annie asked Bertholdt with an annoyed look, "We're supposed to be infiltrating the Military Police in order to get closer to the Royal Family."
"I know, but we could get a chance to know what information they possess. After what happened last night, we should take the opportunity to infiltrate the Survey Corps as well and see what they have planned for us."
"Bertholdt's right, Annie," Reiner agreed, "Not all of us have to join the Survey Corps, but at least one of us should enlist in the Military Police to find the Royal Family. In the meantime, we also need to find out what the Survey Corps knows about us."
"Fine, then I'll be the one to join the Military Police. I'll try to find the Royal Family and get the Coordinate as soon as possible. Once the expedition starts before I manage to find anything, I'll help you guys get Eren when the Survey Corps leave the Walls."
"That's fine with me," Reiner told her, "Are you alright with this, Bertholdt ?"
"Uh….Yeah. I guess," Bertholdt answered despite not wanting to leave Annie alone.
"Then it's settled. If we don't pull this off soon, then there's no doubt that we'll be faced with severe consequences," said Annie.
As the conversation comes to a close, a Garrison soldier announces to everyone that an inspection of the 3DMG will commence soon, causing a bit of anxiety in the three Titan Shifters. As Reiner and Bertholdt were in a different section of the inspection, Annie stood next to Armin and Connie. She listened to the two of them whisper to each other about enlisting in the Survey Corps.
"I wasn't so sure if I was going to join the Survey Corps after what happened. I mean, the Titans were a lot more frightening than I expected," Connie said to Armin, "Though, I heard that Jean was considering joining them as well."
Jean, who stood on Connie's left, began eavesdropping as Armin continued the conversation, "Marco did mention to me about that and he was surprised as well. Because of that, Marco is having doubts about joining the Military Police."
Jean widened his eyes to hear about how Marco was considering joining the Survey Corps. He recalls hearing about his friend's dream of serving the King, but was annoyed to know that Marco was going to throw away that dream.
He says to Armin and Connie, "There's no damn way he's considering backing out from joining the Military Police. Especially if I had anything to do with it."
Connie responded to him, "Try asking him. He seems really confident that he's going to switch."
Jean turned away and hardened his fists in frustration, wondering why Marco would throw away the opportunity to live within the Inner Walls. Connie and Armin continue their conversation and decide to include Annie.
"So, are you also thinking of joining the Military Police ?" Connie asked Annie jokingly, "Or maybe you want to reconsider for Reiner and Bertholdt's sake ?"
"I've made up my mind," Annie replied, "They have their own reasons and I have my own."
"In that case, you got any insight on which branch I should join ?"
"Would you kill yourself if someone were to tell you to die ?"
"Obviously, no."
"Then focus on what you would want to do. It is your choice after all," Annie suggested as she turns to Armin, "I'm assuming that you've made your choice already."
"Yeah, I have for a while," Armin told her, "I know the risks, but that's not going to stop me from seeing what's beyond the Walls."
"You may be physically weak, but I have to admit that you're quite mentally strong."
"Thanks, Annie. I'd have to say that you're also a kind person. Considering that it seems you wouldn't want us to join the Survey Corps."
"Yeah, Annie," Connie added, "You going soft on us or something ? I didn't know you cared so much about us like that."
Annie remained silent as she knew exactly what might happen if they were to join the Survey Corps. Although she wouldn't admit it to Reiner and Bertholdt, Annie was conflicted about hurting her comrades during the expedition. She eventually grew fond of Armin and everyone else, but she had to put her mission before them and focus on getting back home to her father.
As it was nearly their turn to have their equipment inspected, Annie felt her heart rushing as she hoped that the examiners would not catch her and the others. After a few minutes, Annie began to calm down as she was cleared and passed the inspection. She later meets up with Bertholdt and Reiner, who had also passed the inspection. As everyone returned to their designated barracks, the three Titan Shifters discussed their plan for the upcoming expedition.
Prior to the assembly where the graduates are deciding their future occupation, they stood around waiting for the event to start. In the meantime, Jean decides to look for Marco and finds him talking to Sasha and Mina. He angrily pulls Marco away from the girls and drags him into a private conversation.
"What the hell, Marco ?! Are you really thinking of joining the Survey Corps ?!" Jean yelled at him.
"Yeah, I am. Is something the matter, Jean ?" Marco replied.
"Are you kidding me ?! You're gonna throw away your one chance to join the Military Police and serve the damn King, but you're not at all conflicted about it ?!"
"Well, the thing is, I heard that you were going to join the Scouts. So I figured that I should join too."
"Why ?! It makes no damn sense for me to be the reason that you're switching branches !"
"Then explain to me why you're considering switching branches, Jean."
He tried to answer Marco's question, but hesitated as he tried to find the right words.
"I…..want to join because…..I feel so damn useless."
Marco became surprised as Jean continued, "After seeing those Titans….and what they're capable of, I realized that they're a much bigger deal than I expected. I mean, I'm one of the top trainees and...how exactly can I contribute to humanity if I let all my hard work be put in a safe and easy life in the Walls. I'm scared, Marco, but knowing that I could do more than sit around on my ass all day really bothers me."
"That's how I also feel, Jean," Marco responded, causing his friend to be confused, "I do want to serve the King, but I feel like I can do more for all of humanity if I also join the Survey Corps. In a way, I'm still serving the King by helping humanity move forward. Just like you said, I'd much rather do more than sit around doing nothing."
Jean never knew that Marco felt that way, but understood that he was a good enough person to take this sort of action. Despite their personalities being different, they both had the same values and inner conflicts that caused them to change their goals in order to benefit humanity. Finally understanding that Marco's reasons were similar to his, Jean felt content to know that he wasn't the only one that felt like they were wasting their talent by joining the Military Police.
Afterwards, the assembly was beginning its preparations and everyone began lining up. It was night by the time the assembly was finished and began commencing, but the graduates were anxious about which branch to join as the deadline was closing in. Erwin stood upon a stage-like structure and started presenting his case for joining the Survey Corps.
With a serious look and a confident posture, Erwin speaks loudly towards the audience, "I am Commander Erwin Smith of the Survey Corps and since today is the day that you'll be choosing a regiment to enlist in, I'll head straight to the point. I would like for you all to consider joining our regiment. I understand if the latest encounter with the Titans in Trost had affected you in any way, but rest assured, that encounter had helped humanity in an impactful way."
As the graduates thought back to the Battle of Trost and felt slight fear of the Titans, Erwin continued on, "Through that event, we had gained Eren Jaeger and Godzilla as allies for humanity. Though, Godzilla may no longer be with us for the time being. Nevertheless, they both have contributed much to humanity and we were able to learn that they are the key to the mystery of the Titans."
Everyone was surprised to hear that piece of information and began listening more closely to Erwin's words, "Our intel has led us to the location of where the Titans' mysteries can be revealed, which is the basement of Eren Jaeger's home in Shiganshina. Thus, allowing humanity to defeat the Titans once and for all."
Armin was quite shocked to hear such valuable information to be told in front of everyone, especially since they are only to be recruited. To let out potentially important knowledge to everyone, Armin wondered whether Erwin had an ulterior motive.
"As of right now, we are currently not receiving aid from Godzilla himself due to an unsolicited attack on the Walls. However, his presence had shaken up the population of the Titans to a significant degree that we can reach Wall Maria without much interference. If we were to encounter any Titans along the way, we would have to rely on our forces alone and be willing to risk our lives for humanity. Which is why I would like to ask you all, are you willing to give your lives to all of humankind ?"
Most of the graduates considered Erwin's question very carefully and thought heavily about what they were willing to do. Although people like Mikasa and Armin had already made up their minds, people like Sasha, Connie, and Krista were still having doubts.
"That is all I would like to say to you. Those of you who wish to join a different regiment may leave this area," Erwin said as some of the graduates began leaving the premises.
After a few minutes, there were only around half of the graduates left. Those remaining graduates turned out to be Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Marco, Connie, Sasha, Ymir, Krista, Reiner, Bertholdt, Mina, Mylius, Nac, and many others who were convinced by Eren a while back. Erwin, impressed with a higher than expected number of new recruits, salutes their courage and officially welcomes them into the Survey Corps.
I don't have much to say about this chapter, but there's one thing that I would like to make clear to all of you. From this point on, I will be referring to Godzilla as "Minilla". Since Eren is the only one who knows of Godzilla's true identity, everyone else will stick with the name "Godzilla" when talking about him. If there's other confusing things in this chapter, feel free to let me know and I'll clarify as best as I can.
Justin D: If I ever decide to add Monster Hunter elements, then I would have to research that a bit more because I know nothing about it. Though, I don't think it would be necessary since I'm already adding an abundance of Godzilla monsters from every era.
To the Guest who wanted MechaGodzilla: I'm definitely adding MechaGodzilla, Kiryu, and even MechaGodzilla 2. However, the version of the OG MechaGodzilla will be determined by the viewers. The choices would be Showa, Ready Player One, Monsterverse, and the Anime.