Chapter 26

Disclaimer: I do not own Attack on Titan

Rated M for gore violence, language, and sexuality

Enjoy

Shiganshina District, Wall Maria, 850...

Raisa sighed in relief. She stood over Reiner's half-fused body as his limbs were still embedded in his titan body. She had managed to decapitate him. His lower jaw was still attached, but finally...he was dead. The Armored Titan was beaten. Arden latched onto Moblit. "We did it! We blew the bastard's head off!"

"The Armored Titan just bit the dust!" shouted Clark.

"We sent him straight back to hell!"

"Good riddance!"

Jean couldn't believe it. He managed a few chuckles in relief. "We pulled it off. You were a serious pain in the ass for us. Serves you right, you scumbag!"

Sniffling drew his attention to Sasha and Conny. They were both staring at Reiner in despair. Conny covered his ears, trying to silence the happy cries of the other Scouts. Jean gritted his teeth and grabbed both of them. "What the hell are you crying for?! Stop! Get up! We still have work to do! Don't cry fro him! He would've done the same thing to us!"

"This isn't over!" Hange declared. "We'll git him with another volley just to be sure. Raisa! Dice him up as well."

Raisa gave her an exasperated frown. "Are you for real? He's still attached at the waist, Zoe. It's not gonna be like dicing a tomato or something."

"Fine! Then we'll just blow him up, body and all," she snapped. "Get off of him or we'll blow you up to."

Raisa opened her mouth to argue back, but then paused. She whipped her gaze back down to Reiner's headless body. There's no way. She gasped and raised her sword to strike. But, Reiner's entire titan body shifted, throwing her off balance. The Armored threw it's head back and roared. It was extremely loud and long, like he was crying out. Raisa flew away just as Reiner's real body erupted into steam. "Raisa, you okay?!"

"I'm fine!" Raisa assured Hange. "We need to use the rest of the Thunder Spears. Blow him up!"

A maniacal smile spread on Hange's lips. "Good!"

"Section Commanders, wait!" Armin called. "We need to fall back for now! See that barrel?"

He pointed up into the sky. Hange gasped at seeing the barrel flying through the air. "I'm sure Bertholdt's inside!" Armin continued. "If he transforms, we're done for!"

"Shit! Everyone, move away from the Armored Titan!" Hange ordered. "The Colossal Titan is falling towards us right now!"

The Scouts scattered, flying away from Reiner as fast as they could. The barrel began to arc back down, but then the lid of it opened. Bertholdt slipped out, screaming, "Reiner!"

The Scouts stopped some several hundred meters away. They could see Bertholdt flying off towards Reiner. Raisa squinted as she focused, trying to see what Bertholdt was doing. Hange walked up to stand beside her. "Can you tell what's going?"

"Not really. I think he's checking Reiner's vitals." Raisa deepened her frown. "Damn it. What's it gonna take to kill these motherfuckers?"

"Blow them up. As you said."

Raisa raised an eyebrow. "Okay, Reiner I get. But how are we going to take out Bertholdt before he transforms?"

Hange smiled mischievously. "Call me optimistic, but I'd say luck is on our side. Our primary objective has fallen straight into our laps."

"Make it up as you go. Got it," Raisa said as she mirrored Hange's smile. "I have no doubt that this whiny son of a bitch will fall."

"Hey! Look!" Moblit called. "Someone's coming our way! It's Bertholdt!"

Both Section Commanders turned to look, and sure enough, Bertholdt was zipping through the streets. Raisa got to her feet. "Levi Squad! Follow Armin's command and protect Eren! My squad will continue with destroying the Armored Titan!"

"Everyone else, with me!" Hange ordered. "We're going to surround and eliminate the Colossal Titan here and now!"

"Yes, ma'ams!"

Armin panicked. He pushed past Mikasa and hurried over to Raisa and Hange before they could take off. "Hold on! Please, wait, Commanders!"

"What is it?" Hange asked.

"This is the only chance we'll get to negotiate," he urged. "Please, let me try to talk to him. Not only will it give you more time to surround him, but I might be able to gain some information."

Hange and Raisa exchanged glances. "Last time, I was able to trip him up about Annie. I can try that," Armin suggested. "Maybe it'll be enough."

Raisa thought this over. She exhaled sharply. "Fine. You have one chance."

Hange widened her eyes in surprise as Armin exhaled in relief. "Thank you, Commander."

"Before you go, tell Mikasa we need to see her."

"Yes, ma'am."

Armin flew off, circling back towards Mikasa before he headed to intercept Bertholdt. Hange turned to Raisa. "What the hell was that?"

Raisa gave her a look. Trust me. Mikasa landed on the roof in a crouch. "Yes, Commander?"

"The plan will continue as we instructed, but Armin will attempt to negotiate with Bertholdt," Raisa told her. "It's an effort to distract him. However, I'm pretty sure Armin believes he can reason with the enemy. It won't work."

"Huh?"

"Bertholdt fooled everyone for five years. Sure, he had an emotional breakdown during the rescue op, but he's still an infiltrator," she explained. "Armin thinks he can deceive a master manipulator. Our best bet? Let Armin distract Bertholdt, and when you see an opening, kill him."

Mikasa recalled her failure the first time. When Reiner and Bertholdt first revealed themselves. How fearful Bertholdt looked at her before she slashed his neck. "Yes, ma'am. I won't hesitate."

With that, she took off to begin her sneak attack. Hange hummed, having calmed down. "You think she can do it?"

"Don't know. Bertholdt was an incredibly talented Scout...with the personality of a mouse. Imagine how formidable he'd be if he had the personality of a lion." She turned to her squad. "Let's move out. We need to finish off Reiner while he's weak."

Raisa gave Hange one last smile before taking off. Her thoughts drifted to her interrogation of Bertholdt back at Utgard Castle. Mouse, indeed. Arden turned the corner first and hopped up on a roof. "C-Commander! The Armored Titan!"

Raisa and the rest of her squad halted once they turned the corner. The Armored Titan was lying on his back. Raisa swooped down, landing beside Reiner's neck. Steam was bubbling from the ground. She knelt down to inspect him further. "Damn. His nape's completely to the ground."

"What're we supposed to do?" Elsie asked.

Raisa pinched her chin in thought as she stood up. "We might have to burrow through his neck at the side. There's some openings here between the armor plating. Maybe if we-"

"Section Commander!" Arden called. "It's Bertholdt!"

Everyone glanced up. Bertholdt was sailing straight up into the air, higher and higher. Elsie frowned. "What's he doing?"

Raisa widened her eyes in realization. "Everyone! Get away from here, now! He's going to transform!"

"But he's gonna kill Reiner, too!" Elsie argued.

Bertholdt's body illuminated as Raisa shoved Elsie away, urging her to get away. The Scouts had no time to react. Some of them had turned to try and fly away as lightning struck, and Bertholdt exploded. Raisa could do nothing as a wave of fire tore through the houses and the soldiers, obliterating their bodies. The last thing she heard was Arden screaming her name before he, too, was engulfed in flames.

Atop the wall, Erwin and Cassandra were kneeling to withstand the shockwave of the explosion. Cassandra held on to him while Erwin kept his arm up to shield them. He stared at the explosion in shock. He had seen the squads split up, but...it looked to him as if all of them had been vaporized by the power of Bertholdt's transformation. As the light died down, Cassandra opened her eyes. Easing her grip on Erwin. She gasped upon seeing the Colossal Titan standing in the center of his destruction. He rose to his feet. His pale green eyes full of dark intent. "Oh, no," she breathed.

Erwin stood up, and turned to glare at the Beast Titan. "I bet he's pleased with himself. Everything's going according to his plans."

Inside the District...

Eren knelt down behind a house, cradling Jean, Sasha, and Conny. Jean blinked through the smoke, grabbing a fistful of Eren's hair to maintain his balance. "Are you guys alive?"

"No idea!" Conny shouted, coughing. "Are you?"

"I'm fine," Sasha groaned. She was laying in Eren's palm. "Somehow."

Jean whipped his head up as two more Scouts approached. "Mikasa! Armin! You two okay?"

"Yeah, it missed us," Mikasa answered, rubbing her right arm.

"Where's Raisa and Hange? Their squads?"

Armin furred his brows as Mikasa slumped her shoulders. "They...they were right underneath the blast zone."

The others widened their eyes in disbelief. Jean nearly felt his knees buckle. "Are you saying...the only ones who survived...are the six of us?"

Levi Squad all turned to gape as Bertholdt reached down and dragged his hand along the ground, throwing burning houses up in the air to rain down on the city. Sasha got up onto her knees, holding onto Eren's thumb. "Oh, no."

"Armin, what do we do now?" Jean demanded, surprising Armin. "We can't just wait to get flattened by burning houses!"

Armin struggled for a response. Mikasa placed her hand on his shoulder. "You're in command now, Armin. We'll follow you to the end."

He still didn't know what to say. Everyone was staring at him, even Eren. "We...we retreat," he said finally. "Fall back to the Commander and request new orders. To beat the Colossal Titan in a battle of attrition. As planned, we have to keep our distance."

Jean raised an eyebrow. "That was the plan, but think. If we let the Colossal Titan reach the wall, the others'll be finished. He'll spread that fire to the houses past the gate. Our other squads will be trapped between the titans and the flames."

Armin blinked. He was trying to think of something, but his mind was...blank. Bertholdt threw more houses, sprinkling more burning debris everywhere. Eren growled, growing concerned by the proximity of the raining houses. Conny stared at them. "Look at all those houses up in the sky. One of 'em could be yours, right, Eren? How's it feel to have your own roof over your head again? Get it?!"

Conny erupted into a fit of laughter. The others ignored him, but Jean was growing annoyed. "Sasha, could you smack him for me?"

Sasha happily obeyed. Klonking her handle right atop Conny' head. Mikasa observed Bertholdt's movements. "It doesn't look like he knows our location."

"You're right," Armin said. "He's just scattering burning debris to turn Shiganshina into a sea of flames."

Debris landed on the building beside them. Eren raised his free arm to shield everyone. Conny, still rubbing his head, said, "Hey, Armin! What're your orders?! C'mon!"

"What should we do?" Sasha added.

Armin struggled to think. His mind was still blank. Damn it! Think! He paused. He recalled a conversation with Cassandra. A simple statement she made during the clean-up of Trost. Now, he had an idea. "Jean, can you take over command?"

"What?"

"I...I don't know what to do," he confessed. "I'm worried I'll screw up. I made a mistake thinking we could talk to Bertholdt, and look where it got us. Please, Jean. You're better suited for this!"

Jean didn't hesitate. "We need to move and make for the river. Everyone aboard Eren. Conserve gas! We need to stay out of sight for now."

Mikasa and Armin hopped onto Eren's shoulders, grabbing onto his hair. Jean poked his head around Eren's chin to glare at Armin. "Hey. I'm all right with judgment calls, but I don't have some genius plan for getting us out of this. You're the one we're all counting on. We have to stop Bertholdt at all costs."

"I agree."

All six kids turned to the owner of the voice. Jean whirled around, coming face-to-face with an angry, bloodied soldier. He gasped. "Section Commander?"

Outside the District...

Levi landed on top of a roof. How many was that? He wasn't sure how many titans he had killed. There were dozens of them, and they kept popping out like squirrels. The 13-15 meter titans remained in a perfect semi-circle around them. Never budging an inch. The Beast Titan was squatting, watching and waiting. Dirk landed next to him. "This area's all mopped up. The only ones left for us to eliminate are way up at the front. But I still don't see how we're going to take down the Beast Titan. It doesn't seem like he's got any intention of budging from that spot."

"That's true. Looks like the big guy's a coward," Levi noted. "Not that he ever had any balls to begin with."

"Save your energy. We can finish off the rest of the runts out there." Dirk turned to his squad. "Let's go!"

"Yes, sir!"

Levi watched them take off. "Shit."

He was growing anxious. He glanced back at the wall, seeing the dark smoke billowing up into the sky. Guess what's-his-face transformed. Is Raisa all right? The explosion didn't happen right away, so did she escape it in time? Damn it. I need to get to the other side and-!

Atop the wall, Cassandra squinted her eyes at the Beast Titan. "What is he...? Oh, shit!"

The Beast Titan whipped his arm. Hundreds of gray blurs soared through the air. Erwin rushed to the edge. "Frontal bombardment! All troops, take cover now!"

Rocks of various sizes crashed into the houses. Dozens of screams of the Scouts could be heard as they were peppered with the rocks. Debris and body parts scattered everywhere. The Beast Titan picked up another rock, crushing it in his hands. Levi zipped around. "Damn it! GET DOWN!"

The monster fired another wave of rocks. More screams as the Scouts at the front were shredded further along with the titans they were fighting. Cassandra covered her mouth, trying to hold in her urge to scream. She turned to Erwin. "Sir, is there anything we can do? The Beast Titan just took out almost all of our soldiers. What do we do?"

Erwin narrowed his eyes in thought as the Beast Titan unleashed another wave. He had a plan in mind. "I'm heading down to re-group with Captain Levi. The horses are the priority. Your orders haven't changed. Stay with me."

He didn't wait for her answer. Erwin hopped off the edge to fly down to the wall's base were the recruits were gathering. Cassandra followed him down. Levi was dragging Floch by his cloak, trying to get the crying boy out of the line of fire. "You wanna die? Get up!"

"Commander! Princess!" Marlo greeted with an awkward bow.

Levi dropped Floch, and walked over to them. "How's it looking?"

"Terrible," Erwin replied bluntly. "The front line of houses is gone. He decimated them. If he keeps throwing those, everything will be leveled. We won't have anything left to hide behind."

"And we can't retreat to the other side of the wall?"

"The Colossal Titan is headed to the wall," Cassandra answered, furring her brows in panic. "He's tossing houses around, setting everything on fire. Commander, maybe we can scale the wall?"

"Leaving the horses behind? No."

Levi felt his impatience simmer. "What happened to Raisa's group? Is Eren all right?"

"I don't know," he confessed. "Most of them are gone. Caught up when the explosion occurred. We've sustained a great many casualties. The beast titan directed the small titans in such a way that our soldiers would group up in one place. Dirk squad, Marlene squad, and Klaus squad were engaging the small titans, which put them in the line of fire when he launched the bombardment. They were all wiped out."

The recruits exchanged fearful glances. Marlo couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Wait...sir, you don't mean...?"

"Yes. Our remaining forces on this side of the gate consist of you new scout recruits, Captain Levi, Princess Cassandra...and me."

More rocks showered the wall, and the recruits screamed again. Cassandra flinched at their screams while Levi stared up at Erwin expectantly. "So, what now? Do you have any kind of plan?"

Inside the District...

"Section Commander, are you okay?" Jean asked.

His hands hovered over Raisa, unsure where to grab her. She was covered in blood and soot. She had burns and cuts along the right-side of her body. Raisa wiped the blood from her eyes. "I'll be fine. Have you found any other survivors?"

"No, ma'am," Armin answered. "Just you."

Raisa slumped her shoulders. So many comrades' faces popped in her mind. Before the explosion had hit, Arden had shoved her into the Armored Titan's armpit. Raisa wiped more blood off her eyes, ignoring the stings of the wounds on her right cheek. "Alright, focus. Armin, what's the plan?"

Armin's cheeks flushed. "Oh, um...actually, I gave command to Jean."

"Why?" she growled. "I tasked you with leading Levi Squad to protect Eren. If Hange's gone, you're the next tactician per Erwin's orders."

"I don't know what to do!" he cried. "I-I-I-I can't think of anything."

Raisa grabbed him by his shoulders, squeezing tight. "Goddammit, Arlelt! Think!"

"Section Commander, calm down." Jean steered her off of him. He grabbed her right arm and she cried out. "I'm sorry. Listen, I have an idea. I'm not like Armin or Hange, but...I think there might be a way for us to stop Bertholdt. And it'll definitely work better now that you're here."

Raisa listened patiently to his idea. She had to admit she was impressed with Jean's on the fly planning. "That's not bad. Except, Mikasa is gonna go for the kill, not me."

"Huh?"

"And we're running out of time. I'm obviously not at my best, so Mikasa's gonna take the kill shot." Raisa yanked on Eren's hair. "Eren, roar. Get Bertholdt's attention, now!"

Eren stood up and unleashed a deep, loud roar. Sasha and Conny covered their ears. Raisa kept her gaze focused on Bertholdt, but the fact that Eren's roar was muffled worried her. My eardrum must be ruptured. Damn it. The Colossal Titan paused mid-step and glanced over at them. Jean nearly cheered. "He heard you!"

The Colossal Titan squinted his eyes, and then continued on. "Gah! The bastard's ignoring us!" Jean growled. "He's heading straight for the wall."

"So, what do we do now, Commander?" Conny asked. "If he gets there-"

"I know. We're gonna have to wing it at this point." Raisa turned to Conny. "Springer, give Mikasa your Thunder Spear."

"Uh...yes, ma'am."

"I want you kids to distract him. You, too, Eren. Tackle his leg or something. Keep him distracted." She drew her blades. "I'll take down his legs. He's got thick ankles, so I doubt it'll slow him down for long." She shifted her gaze to Mikasa. "Can you do it?"

"Yes," Mikasa assured her. "I can kill him."

Raisa glanced back further as Eren began to run. "Listen, Armin. We still need a solid plan if this doesn't work. Stand by and observe."

Armin swallowed his self-doubt. "Yes, ma'am."

"Good. Now, scatter!"

All of them zipped off of Eren's shoulders as he increased his speed. He turned the corner and headed straight for Bertholdt, roaring as he tackled his left leg. Eren roared again and pushed with all his might, and the Colossal's leg began to move. Conny stopped to cheer. "You can do it, Eren! Knock him on his ass!"

Whoa. Is he actually doing it? Raisa gasped. Bertholdt raised his leg, arching his foot back so that Eren dangled 20 meters off the ground. And then he kicked. In an instant, Eren crashed into the top of the wall. Mikasa skidded to a half on a rooftop. "Eren!"

Raisa gritted her teeth. Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! She grabbed Mikasa's arm. "Don't stop! Eren's still alive. We need to focus on Bertholdt."

Mikasa fought against her instincts, forced herself to turn away. "The...plan?"

"We're sticking with the plan. Conny, Sasha, Jean...distract him, so I can cut his Achilles' tendons. Then, Mikasa...go for the kill. Quick."

Mikasa adjusted her hold of her Thunder Spears. "I won't fail."

"Let's go!"

The kids scattered again. Mikasa followed Raisa to sneak around behind Bertholdt. Jean flew up into Bertholdt's field of vision. "Hey, freak-show! Forget your skin somewhere?!"

"You look so gross!" Conny added, waving his blades around over his head.

"No one wants to see all that, ya pervert!" Sasha spat.

Bertholdt's attention was on all of them. Raisa pushed her tank, flying around a house for extra momentum. She dove down and carved deep into the Colossal's ankle. Bertholdt wobbled a bit, glancing down to see his wound. Mikasa zoomed upwards. She was ready. She soared up to the nape and reared her arm back to fire the Thunder Spears. Then, Bertholdt unleashed a powerful wave of steam.

Conny, Sasha, and Jean shielded their faces as they tried to remain anchored onto Bertholdt's shoulders. The Thunder Spears were blasted off, detaching behind Mikasa. She cried out as they exploded, feeling pain bursting in her right arm. Below, Armin watched in horror as everyone was thrown back. "Guys!"

Conny was falling blindly. Sasha dove down and caught him before he hit the ground. "Conny! Are you okay?"

"Damn it." He coughed, blowing out smoke. "I breathed some in and burned my throat."

Mikasa landed roughly next to Armin and Raisa. She cradled her right arm, and Raisa scooted over. Armin gasped. "Mikasa, you're hurt!"

Raisa quickly inspected it. Her clothes were extremely hot to the touch, but she was able to locate the actual wound. "It isn't bad. You got hit by shrapnel, but it's shallow."

She quickly worked on bandaging Mikasa's arms. In fact, she used up the last of what she had in her jacket. It was barely enough to cover her arm, but it would have to do. "All right. We're gonna have to try again."

Armin blinked. "Huh? You can't be serious."

"Unless you have any better ideas, Armin. The Colossal is still our-!" An explosion drew their attention east. Two large houses crumbled as the Armored Titan got to his feet, his titan body fully healed.

Outside the District...

"Damn it. Eren's not moving," Levi noted.

He, Erwin, and Cassandra stared up at the top of the wall. Levi turned his attention to the hundreds of rocks peppering the wall and surrounding houses. "This place is gonna look like a honeycomb before long."

Cassandra kept shifting her gaze back and forth between the screaming recruits, Eren, and the Beast Titan. "What do we do? Commander...maybe we should just cut our losses."

"She's right," Levi said then pointed up. "Princess, go shake the shit out of Eren till he wakes up. He can run away with as many people as he can carry. Then we'll have at least some survivors."

"It's our job to guard the horses!" Marlo screamed. "Why'd you let yours run away?!"

"Shut up!" Floch shook off Marlo. "Like it even matters now."

"What was that?"

Floch plopped down on the ground, cradling his head as tears flowed down his cheeks. "Those other scouts were insanely strong and all of them died in an instant! What chance do we have where they failed? There's no reason to guard the horses. Because there's not gonna be anyone left to ride them home!"

Cassandra listened to him rant. What's wrong with me? Under normal circumstances, she would've slammed a soldier like Floch. Urge him to fight on, to fight for humanity. Give his heart and life...everything Commander Erwin preached. She told herself she wanted to join the Scouts to avenge her mother. A woman who stole her from her father, beat and abused her...that doesn't the fact that she was still my mom.

But she wasn't the real reason Cassandra wanted to join the Scouts. She was angry. Like a wild bird stuck in a cage. Always letting someone else hold the key. My mother, the Interior Police, Reiner...She needed to be free. And the Scouts were exactly that. Escape. But look at what I've done. She raised her gaze to the top of the wall where Eren laid. She felt a familiar ache in her belly. An ache that fueled the guilt in her heart. Look at how useless I am.

"You could tell what's left of the recruits and Raisa's group to run away on horseback," Levi suggested. "They wont have much of a chance, but they'll be decoys. They can give Eren and the princess a shot at escaping."

"And how would you fit into this plan?" Erwin asked.

"I'm gonna go after the Beast Titan. I'll try him away somehow and-"

"Wait, what?" Cassandra interjected. "That won't work. You'll never make it to him."

"Probably not, but that's not the point," he said with a glare. "You and Eren are the highest priority, but if Erwin goes with you both then there will still be hope. All things considered, I feel like that's the best we can ask for."

"Best we can ask for? Why can't we fight? Distract the asshole. Something? Anything?"

"Look around you, Princess." He gestured to the crying recruits. "This is all that's left. We've been brutalized. These kids haven't tasted a single shred of combat."

"Perhaps," Erwin agreed. "If we had no way to fight back."

Levi blinked then glanced up at Erwin in surprise. "Is there a way?"

"Yes."

"You could've mentioned that before," he snapped, causing Cassandra to flinch. "Care to explain why you kept your shitty mouth shut?"

Erwin exhaled and began walking over to a crate to sit. "Best case, you'll have a decent chance of killing the beast titan. But for it to succeed...the recruits and I have to die. The Survey Corps may survive. But regardless, most of us will end up dead."

Levi and Cassandra followed him as he talked and sat down. Erwin rested his elbow on his thigh. "Frankly, we're almost guaranteed to be defeated, no matter what. The recruits and I will be staking our deaths on the slimmest change of victory."

Cassandra widened her eyes. "But...sir. That would mean-"

"Yes." He nodded slowly. "For this to work...to convince these youths to charge towards their deaths, it would take an expert con man and a whole slew of blatant lies. If I don't lead the vanguard myself, then none of them will have the courage. which means I must be the first to charge...and the first to be slain as well." He slumped his shoulders. "So I'll never learn the truth."

"Huh?" Cassandra frowned. "What truth?"

"I just...wanted to reach that cellar." Erwin rubbed his forehead. His mind racing with numerous thoughts. His regrets. His guilt. "Everything I've done up to this point, I did in the hopes that this chance would come. I dreamt...that I'd get to prove I was right. Many times, I tried to forget. To cast my selfishness aside, but then I...I think of the questions I needed answered. And now those answers are no more than a coward's leap away."

He raised his hand, trying to grasp at the sky. "I'm so close...it's right there."

Cassandra looked to Levi for answers. She had never seen Erwin like this. Levi did not meet her gaze. Instead, he knelt down in front of Erwin. "You led us well. Fought hard. No one else could've gotten us this far. So I'll make the choice for you." He glared up at Erwin in determination. "Give up on your dream and charge to your death. Lead those crying children straight to hell. I'll reach the beast titan and tear him apart."

Erwin studied Levi's sincerity. And after a long moment, he smiled softly. "Thank you. I needed that."

With that, Levi stood up. "Princess, care to join me? Out of all of us, you're the next person who stands a chance."

Cassandra hesitated to answer. I want to, but I- "No, Levi," Erwin said. "You were right in what you said earlier. She and Eren need to escape here alive at all costs. All we're doing is distracting the Beast Titan for your sneak attack."

"And how exactly am I supposed to do that? He's standing in the middle of a field," he pointed out. "I can't fight without something to hook on."

"You're wrong. There happens to be a line of objects at just the right height for your approach." Erwin gestured to the direction the titans standing guard. "Use his thralls to advance unseen...and assassinate the son of a bitch."

"Fine," Levi harrumphed. "Princess, give me your blades. I need to replenish."

Cassandra obeyed. Handing over two sets of her blades to him. "Princess, I want you to wait until the Beast Titan engages us, and then head up to Eren," Erwin instructed. "I'm going to announce the mission to the recruits."

"Uh...yes, sir."

Levi studied Cassandra's demeanor. Noting her conflicted disappointment. "Hey, surviving this...doesn't make you a coward. Believe in Erwin. In all of us."

Cassandra said nothing, and furred her brows in self-disgust. If only you knew...

"All troops, line up!" Erwin ordered, gaining the recruits attention. "We're going to mount a cavalry charge, rushing the beast titan directly. This will make us ideal targets for him. So we'll wait until the moment he's ready to throw, and then we'll fire out smoke signals together. That should somewhat reduce his accuracy. While we distract the beast titan, Captain Levi will get in position to dispatch it. Does anyone have questions?"

They stared at him in shock. Sandra fell to her knees and vomited. Floch forced himself to speak. "Be honest, sir...are all of us...riding to our deaths?"

"Yes, we are."

Floch felt more tears flow as his knees shook. "And since we're dying anyway, you're saying that it's better...if we at least die fighting?"

"I am."

Floch chuckled to himself in realization. "Wait...if we'll die anyway, then who cares what we do? We could just disobey your orders...and it wouldn't mean a thing, would it?"

"Yes, you're precisely right."

His candor shocked Floch. Erwin met every single recruits' fearful gaze. Fueling them with any sliver of courage he could. "Everything you thought had meaning...every hope, dream or moment of happiness-none of it matters as you lie, bleeding out, on the battlefield. None of it changes what a speeding rock does to a body. we all die. But does that mean our lives are meaningless? Does that mean that there was no point in our being born? Would you say that of our slain comrades? Were they meaningless?"

The recruits were speechless. "They were not!" Erwin answered, letting all of his inspiration flow. "Their memory serves as an example to us all! the courageous fallen! The anguished fallen! Their lives have meaning because we, the living, refuse to forget them! And as we ride to certain death, we trust our successors to do the same for us. Because my soldiers do not buckle or yield when faced with the cruelty of this world!"

That was enough. The recruits readied their horses as Erwin took the lead. Levi and Cassandra waited right above the hole in the wall, watching as Erwin ordered the charge. The Beast Titan was crushing another boulder. He had glanced up, noticing the soldiers and they fired their green flares in unison. Levi took off, zipping along the wall to the first titan on the left. And, Cassandra flew to the top of the wall to Eren. I'm sorry.

Erwin screamed alongside his soldiers. Through the smoke, he could see the Beast Titan moving. "Incoming! Spread out!" he ordered as the monster prepared to throw another volley. "My soldiers push forward! My soldiers scream out! My soldiers rage!"

End of Chapter 26