With lots of convincing and reassuring, and talking, Levi allowed Nathalie to get back to work. She was still bitter about needing his permission to do something, but she knew it was just his own way of showing how much he cared. She would spend the afternoons in the labs beneath the royal palace. Nathalie with Hange and Moblit would prepare the huge amounts of the serum that they were going to be taking with them on the mission in Shiganshina. But in the mornings, the three scientists, along with Levi and their brats, they ran hardening experiments with Eren, collecting all the TSF they could get.
One of those experiments led to another crazy idea that Hange and Moblit had. The Executioner from Hell. Or else, a contraption outside the walls of Trost, made by Eren's ability to harden his titan body. They would put a soldier as bait, and the titan would reach close enough. A large, thick tree trunk would come crushing down right on the nape.
Or at least in theory.
But the first time they had gathered on the wall to try it, Hange and Moblit were both way too excited. Keiji was the bait. A member from Hange's Squad. Nathalie had to admit. She was excited too. They were going to be collecting lots of titan spinal fluid. They needed it for the mission. The sample that they had collected from Mrs. Springer was in no way going to suffice.
Connie had been given the permission to stay with his mother a few weeks, and learn exactly what had happened on Ragako. Mrs. Springer said a fog spread all around the small town, and a large scream came before her nightmare began. Before all the people of Ragako were turned into titans. Nathalie was sure. That fog was Titan Spinal Fluid in gas form, and not just anybody's. It was the Titan Spinal Fluid from a member of Royal Blood.
Only members of Royal Blood could order titans around. And since a loud scream resounded before the people's transformation, then it was the only way she could explain it. But this also meant that this person had inherited one of the Nine as well, and if she was to guess who that was, then it could be no other but the Beast Titan. The titan who had talked to her after squeezing Mike to death. Nathalie had let Erwin, Hange, Moblit and Levi know right away. Erwin was expecting to find the Beast Titan with the Colossal and the Armoured Titans in Shiganshina as well.
Nathalie had explained it all. The Beast Titan. Strong, capable of hardening and ordering other titans around. Capable of throwing objects with great accuracy and immense destructive power. And then, the Colossal Titan. The more the Colossal Titan transformed, the thinner its skin would become, which was going to make it easier for their ODM to hook on it. Of course, there was the problem of getting burned because of the large temperature of the steam that it was emitting. Nathalie and Levi had been searching that library beneath the royal palace trying to find answers on how to deal with that. Of course, it was going to take some time to find the right book, since the only one who could read the language was Nathalie.
And then, there was the Armoured Titan. A tough one to deal with. Hange and Moblit came up with another crazy idea. She called them thunderspears. They had yet to try these, but a couple of them were ready for use. Not to mention that the glowing ore from the underground cavern beneath the Reiss Chapel, was also going to be used in the mission. They gathered as much of that ore as they could. It was going to light their way because they were going to get there in the night when most of the titans would be inactive. That was Armin's idea. That kid was just brilliant.
When the mission to retake Wall Maria was only a few weeks away, Erwin ordered that the Special Operations Squad returned to the Survey Corps HQ in Trost. Nathalie couldn't say she liked it, but it was closer to their job. The ride to the interior was far shorter and she could get to the labs beneath the royal palace in only just a few minutes. Their Squad continued training with the other squads, and new recruits soon joined the Survey Corps from all other Regiments.
"THIS IS IT! WE DID IT! THAT'S A TWELVE-METRE WE CRUSHED!" Hange's loud voice snapped Nathalie out of her thoughts and she finally looked down. The Executioner from Hell was successful.
"Jean, Mikasa, Sasha, go gather the TSF!" Nathalie ordered and the kids set off right away.
"Yes, ma'am!" They jumped off the wall with the rest of Hange's Squad and the large syringes in their hands.
"Hell yeah! We did it! We can kill titans without putting any soldiers at risk! We'll hunt down those bastards all day and night…" Hange continued her excited monologue, but Eren dropped on his knees tiredly.
Blood streamed out of his nose and Levi with Nathalie rushed beside him and knelt down right away. Levi offered his handkerchief and Nathalie pressed it on his nose for him. Nathalie gritted her teeth. She didn't like the looks of the capacity of blood that he lost.
"You'll take the next few weeks off," Nathalie said. He needed rest.
"N- No, it's alright-"
"You need rest, Eren," Levi cut him. "You've overused your titan abilities. You've been doing hardening experiments for days,"
"I'm sorry, Eren," Hange said apologetically.
"No, there's nothing to apologise about," Eren said turning at the three adults and he took the handkerchief from Nathalie's hand, supporting it on his nose by himself. "Let's just fix those weapons,"
Nathalie passed his hand around her shoulders and she helped him stand back up. "I'll take him back to HQ," Nathalie suggested, turning at her husband.
Levi nodded -giving her the permission to go- and Nathalie set off right away.
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"There you go," Nathalie said with a smile as she handed a bowl of warm vegetable soup to Eren.
Eren was sitting on his bed cross-legged, with a warm blanket that Nathalie had wrapped around him no matter how much he had complained that he didn't need it. He wasn't pulling it off of himself either. He took the bowl, and the warmth around it was so comforting for his cold fingers. She had set off in the kitchen of the Survey Corps HQ and she had made some for him right away. He needed strength.
"Thanks," Eren gave her a smile, before he grabbed his spoon and he started eating the delicious liquid. Nathalie's soups were always so much better comparing to what Mikasa would make. He sighed contently as he ate and Nathalie sat beside him on the bed.
"No problem, sweetheart. You'll need all the energy you can get," Nathalie said and her hand slipped around his shoulders. She settled the blanket a little bit tighter around him and Eren chuckled.
"I'm alright," He said.
"You sure?"
"Yeah, no need to worry," Eren took another slurp from his spoon. "You're really starting to remind me Mikasa,"
"Well, that's good, isn't it? She cares too much for you," Nathalie said.
Eren frowned. "It's annoying,"
Nathalie laughed. "Oh c'mon, this is how some people show they care for each other," She said.
At that, Eren turned and looked at her confusedly. "Really?!"
She chuckled. "Of course!"
"You're saying she… cares about me?"
"Oh dear, there I thought I was oblivious," Nathalie messed his hair and Eren cringed, but chuckled anyway. "Of course, she does. She may find it difficult to express her feelings otherwise. Trust me, Captain Levi can't express his feelings with words either. I suppose this must be an Ackerman thing," Nathalie rubbed her chin.
"I see," Eren finally finished his soup, and he handed the bowl back to her. "Thanks, Nat. I needed that,"
Nathalie stood up and she placed the empty bowl with the spoon back on the tray that she had left on the nearby wooden table of his room. "The soup or the Ackerman info?" She grinned.
Eren lied down on his bed. "Both," His hands reached for his blankets, but Nathalie pushed them up and covered his body for him. It caught him by surprise. Only his mom would ever do that.
Nathalie giggled and she pinched his cheeks. With those wonderful, huge green eyes of his and the fluffy cheeks, she couldn't resist it. Eren was adorable. She pressed a sound kiss on his forehead and she caught him by surprise again. Another thing that his mom would always do when she'd tuck him to bed in the nights. The memory almost made his eyes water, but he blinked it away and he tried to snap back to reality. There was no way he was letting himself crack up in front of his Lieutenant. But Nathalie was more than his Lieutenant. She wouldn't have cooked for him, nor tucked him to bed if she was just his Lieutenant. No.
She was his friend. She filled the role of a mother that everybody lacked in their squad. Nathalie was now dressed in her light grey skirt that reached her ankles. A white, buttoned shirt, and a white apron on top. She was still wearing her glasses, and her hair were barely reaching her shoulders. She didn't look like his mom, but everything about her was just so, so close. Eren couldn't believe that, for once, his mom's absence didn't hurt that much. But he didn't get to tell her any of these, as Nathalie pulled back and she picked the tray in her arms.
"Now, you better sleep and wake up tomorrow, is that clear?" Nathalie asked, snapping him back to reality.
"U- Uh, y- yeah, sure," Eren stuttered and he gave her a smile. She gave him one of her own and she turned around to leave. Nathalie opened the door of his room and proceeded to walk out, but his voice stopped her halfway the door. "Nat,"
Nathalie turned and looked at him with that same smile on her lips. "What is it, darling?"
"Do you think I'm special?" Eren had no idea why he was asking this, but he knew why he was asking her. Her opinion just mattered so much.
Nathalie couldn't begin to imagine why he had asked that, and she knew he was too tired, so, opening up a conversation wasn't an option. She just gave him a smile. "I think everybody's special in their own unique way. But you don't have to be special to change the world,"
Eren looked at her for a moment. Those bright, piercing green eyes met her own in utter surprise.
"Now, now, why won't you stop torturing your head with such stuff, and focus on getting some much needed rest?" Nathalie suggested.
Eren chuckled. "Alright,"
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Nathalie made her way through the endless halls and corridors of the Survey Corps Headquarters. The Headquarters were a mess, honestly. The preparations for the mission to retake Wall Maria were overwhelming for everyone on all levels. But most of all, the Commander. Moblit had barged in the lab, letting her know that the Commander was asking for her. Of course, Nathalie knew Levi wouldn't let her go to the Commander's office alone, but she was sure he was too busy supervising the rookies' training at the moment so he didn't really have to know.
Erwin's orders were clear. "I want you to give the rookies the same training you gave Oluo, Petra, Gunther and Eld," He was probably asking for the impossible. Those four were handpicked by Levi and Nathalie. Nathalie doubted the rookies could ever fight like her fallen comrades. A slight bitterness spread across her chest as she remembered their faces. It had only been a few months, yet so many things had happened it almost felt like years.
Nathalie lifted her hand to knock on her Commander's door, but she found herself hesitating. She didn't know why she was hesitating. Maybe she didn't want to face him. But why wouldn't she want to face him? No. She didn't want to think about it. Erwin was her Commander. He only said he required her help and her knowledge. Nothing else. And this was how things should be. Nothing else.
Nathalie finally knocked on his door. "Come in," His voice came strong from inside, and she entered in the large office of her Commander. Erwin was standing in front of the green board that he had hanging by his wall. His fingers were tight around a piece of chalk, and his other hand was holding the reports that she had made on the battle of Utgard Castle. Nathalie raised an eyebrow. Why would he go back to that report?
"You asked for me, sir?" Nathalie asked.
"Yes," Erwin turned and gave her a smile. "I'm afraid I'll need your help," He turned his attention back on the green board in front of him and Nathalie approached to see what he had come up with so far. "You said the Beast Titan will be there too,"
"Yes, sir,"
"Something in my gut tells me that he's the one who leads," Erwin said and he crossed his arms against his chest. "And if that's the case, then he's going to use the same strategy that he did to his attack in Utgard Castle,"
Nathalie's eyes widened. He was right. She hadn't thought about that. "That's true. The first thing that he's going to target is our horses," She pointed out and he nodded.
"Exactly. That's why there will be no horses," Erwin said and Nathalie raised an eyebrow. "At least not in sight," He grabbed the chalk and he started drawing on the board. "Intel tells me, that there's two forests surrounding Wall Maria. I'll have the rookies camp with the horses there. We'll engage on ODM, and in no way should we approach the wall with our horses. There's lots of buildings around. We don't need them anyway," He turned and looked at her. "Tell me, Nathalie. What's his strategy?"
Nathalie's hand found her chin and she tried to think. Back in Utgard Castle, the Beast Titan used his scream to order titans around, which meant that he was definitely going to use that again somehow. Not to mention that he was still going to throw boulders at them. She couldn't imagine how destructive things would get if he could smash the boulders to pebbles and throw them in high speed. They were going to get slaughtered.
"The Beast Titan can order other titans around. And based on the intel that Mrs. Springer gave us, I'm willing to bet that the man controlling the beast is a descendant of the royal family. The only way for the Beast Titan to control other titans like this, the host must have royal blood," Nathalie said.
Erwin's eyes widened. "I see. So, he's going to have his own army of titans, and they're going to act to his will,"
"They're going to attack us in waves just like he did in the Battle of Utgard Castle," Nathalie said and she grabbed another chalk and she started drawing on the board. "Let's say he's got two series of titans, varying in sizes. He's going to send one first, to keep us occupied, and when we're occupied, he's going to start throwing boulders at us," Nathalie said. "He's powerful enough to turn those boulders into pebbles, still too large for us, way more destructive. He's going to wipe us out before we know it,"
"So that means we'll be dealing with two frontlines. One with the Colossal and the Armoured titan, and one with the Beast and his army of titans," Erwin cleared the board and he grabbed another piece of chalk. "Let's start this from the beginning, shall we?"
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"Your new weapon is a big metal rod?" Jean raised an eyebrow.
"It's pointy, you dumbass, that makes it a spear," Hange said. "The core of engineers really came through with me on this one," She said excitedly.
The entire troops of the Survey Corps were now gathered to discuss the plan. Hange couldn't wait to demonstrate the new babies that she and Moblit had come up with. The thunderspears. It was Erwin's orders to search that Library in the Catacombs of the Royal Palace for all the useful knowledge that they could find.
"We found and translated several books on Explosives Engineering, so there you have it," Nathalie pointed her pencil on the thunderspear that Hange was holding in her hands. "These are the good shit that are going to breach the Armoured Titan's armour,"
"Our blades may as well have been made of paper against that armour of his," Hange said. "All we could do in our last battle, was watch Eren fight the Armoured Titan from the side-lines. There just aren't enough openings for us to cut through,"
Nathalie smirked. "Captain Levi and I could take down that son of a bitch, but unfortunately the Commander has other plans for us,"
"And because Captain Levi and Lieutenant Nathalie won't be with us, we'll need the thunderspears if we're to bring the Armoured Titan down," Hange explained.
"Wait, where will you guys be?" Connie asked.
"We'll be taking down the Beast Titan," Nathalie turned on the green board that was hanging on the wall behind her. She grabbed a piece of chalk and she started drawing. "There's two frontlines that we'll be dealing with here. The Beast, Armoured, and Colossal titans are going to be there. If the Beast Titan is the one leading this operation, then they'll do exactly what they did in Utgard Castle,"
Connie gasped. He remembered exactly what had happened there. He could never forget. "You… mean…"
"They're going to take out our horses," Nathalie said and she turned at the kid. "Connie, you and I witnessed it. The Beast Titan was sitting on top of the wall. So far away, but he was still able to make an accurate throw, and powerful enough that took our horses out instantly. Thus, he eliminates all chances of our escape, correct?"
"Yeah! I remember," Connie nodded.
"Imagine what's going to happen if the Beast Titan throws multiple boulders at once. We will be slaughtered," Nathalie said.
Hange smirked. "Thankfully, the Commander has taken all of these into consideration. And that's why we have this," Hange turned at Moblit and he took out a wooden box placing it on the table in front of them. "The Resurrection Serum,"
Moblit cringed. "Should we really call it that?"
"Yes! It sounds AWESOME!" Hange insisted. "Now, shut up and let me explain the plan, will you?!"
Nathalie smacked Hange's shoulder. "Don't shout to Moblit like that," She scolded her friend.
Hange frowned and she turned at Moblit who was glaring at her. She placed a hand on his chest and she pouted. "We talked about this, darling!"
"Uh, Nat, will you get on with the plan, please?" Jean asked drawing the three adults' attention.
"Sure…"
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Nathalie's head ached. It wasn't the kind of headache that should worry her, but the plan for the mission in Shiganshina brought everybody a headache. She only hoped that the rookies and the squads had understood every tiny little detail. But Nathalie had to admit, Erwin's capabilities as a strategist never ceased to amaze her. Their enemies had almost every advantage and Erwin had somehow managed to turn the entire operation to their advantage.
But right now, Nathalie couldn't bother to deal with her headache at the moment. She had to get back to those labs and get back to work. She hadn't tried recovering any knowledge from her ancestors, and she wasn't going to try at all. No knowledge had come to her either. She was grateful. She didn't want to risk this. She didn't care about her life one bit, but it was Levi. He and her kids were her reasons to live. She made sure to let Historia know right away, that everything was alright now, and that they had figured out a temporary solution to her health.
It made Historia so happy. Nathalie smiled as she made her way down the basement labs of the Royal Palace. The place was filled with a large crew every day at all times, trying to figure how everything worked. They had made a pretty good progress the past few weeks.
"There you are!"
Hange's voice caught her attention and Nathalie watched as her friend approached her. Moblit was no further away, talking to the rest of Hange's Squad members. Half of Hange's squad was filled with scientists, so most of them were always around when Nathalie and Hange worked on something.
Hange passed a hand around Nathalie's shoulders as they reached together the lab where most of Hange's squad were preparing the injections. "We're almost finished," Hange pointed a finger at the endless injections that were laid on the large counter. "We've already covered at least two hundred soldiers with these, and our supplies on TSF aren't even finished yet,"
"That's great," Nathalie picked up one of the injections and she looked at the purple liquid. She turned at Hange's Squad members. "You guys have done an excellent job,"
"Thanks, Nat!"
Nathalie turned at Hange and she raised an eyebrow. "Did you show them how to conduct Electrophoresis?"
"Relax, I showed them what you showed me, and it worked," Hange shrugged. "You haven't tried any weird Burgess Family shit, have you?!" She turned and pointed an accusing finger on Nathalie.
"N- No!"
Hange leaned closer, with that dead serious look on her face that scared everyone. "Convince me,"
Nathalie leaned slightly back away from her friend and she gritted her teeth. "I haven't tried anything, I swear! I'd be passing out by now if I had!"
Hange stared at her for a moment, with that same look, before she stood straight and she tucked her glasses further up her nose. "Fair point! Shorty will kill me if I let you die,"
Nathalie chuckled. "I know,"
"No, but, seriously, if you try it, I'll kill you myself," Hange threatened and Nathalie cringed.
"Alright, alright! I won't try it, I promise!" Nathalie took a step back away from her intimidating friend and she sat down on a bench. "Now, how about we get to work?"