"she's not back yet. What's she doing?"
"don't get your briefs in a twist, Levi. She'll be back any minute". That's exactly the kind of typical response you should expect in a situation where you're the only who gets worried about something while the others shrug it off. I felt like one of those parents whose kids have been out until midnight and haven't returned home yet. But apparently, ol' Hanji isn't feeling too motherly today.
Erwin must have heard the commotion going on over his tamer, cuz he raised his head and looked at us worriedly, but before he could say anything, I placed my hand on his head between those feathery ears of his soothingly massaging it. I cooed and whispered to him some words of reassurance with the promise that I'd find his tamer, dead or alive. Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned that last part… cuz he tried to get up looking as if he was about to piss himself, but I forced him back down again. this guy is in no condition to move let alone go anywhere.
"you know that there's always the possibility of something going wrong? You can't just ignore that" I continued my bitching at Hanji while still keeping my hand on Erwin's head "You've sent Nanaba out to an abandoned place if I need to remind you. And last time I checked, these places get abandoned for a reason!"
"is something wrong?" before I even finished my anxiety-driven lecture, Mikasa stepped into the resting room. Her Renamon, Ryuki, followed behind her then headed over to the window to open it and sit on the ledge, which became quite the habit for the ninja fox thingie. The brat must've woken up just a while ago because her hair looked like Medusa's hair. I almost considered not looking into Mikasa's eyes so I wouldn't turn into a stone statue. Damn, I read too many Percy Jackson novels. This is Genos's fault for getting me into them in the first place.
"Your Major has been sent to investigate some kind of a factory, and I'm demanding your commander to let me go after her" I finished the last half of my sentence while sending a sideways look to Hanji with a hidden meaning behind it. well, not exactly hidden since i have made my intentions clear enough, but she has to know I'm serious about going.
"is Major Nanaba okay? Did something happen?" asked Mikasa seemingly getting more alarmed by the minute.
"hopefully not, but she hasn't been back yet when it should've been an easy investigation quest. Doesn't that count for anything, Shitty Glasses?" the reason for Hanji's lovely nickname is because she wears those ridiculous pair of goggles whenever she uses the gear or ride on Kaiju, her Megadramon, to avoid having dust and gusts of air get into her eyes. And when she's not doing any of that, she fixes them on her forehead or hangs them around her neck, making her look more beauti – shit, this is not the time!
"alright, go after her. Might as well lend a hand if something did happen. you Ackermans can't be ignored with that sixth sense of yours". Finally someone decided to think with logic.
"want me to come with you?" Mikasa chimed in.
"no, brat. I don't think it's going to be necessary".
"come on, captain! Lemme tag along!" said a new loud voice.
"Marcus, it's really not…"
"please! Have at least one of us come with you!" this was Yaze's turn to beg. I decided to put an end to this before it turns into a chorus of "please"s and "come on"s.
"enough! I appreciate you wanting to help but it's not needed. I'll go look for your superior and be back before you know it. that's final."
"but I didn't respond when she offered to have someone come with her. I'm kind of feeling bad for that". mumbled Marcus, looking sorry as if he had broken my favourite tea cup or something just as atrocious.
"you weren't required to accompany her, Marcus, so it's not something you should feel bad over".
"but what if she needed help and no one was there to h – hmph!" I clasped my hand over his mouth almost breaking his jaw. I didn't mean to sound cruel, On the contrary, it makes me proud to have those bratty teens show some responsibility. But I hate it when they beat themselves up over something no one could've helped.
"even if something did happen, which hopefully is not the case, the fault won't be yours or anyone else for that matter. Like I said, the assignment was optional and an easy one for that matter. You had every right to refuse or accept being backup." He nodded his head with my hand still on his mouth like a muzzle. Which's kind of ironic since I work these brats like dogs.
I let him go most likely leaving a print on his face where my hand had caught a hold of. Bid Hanji and the others farewell, and without wasting another second, headed over to the stables. But not without one last thing:
"and Yaze, I expect my tea by the time I get back". And with that, I left. Hearing a small "yes, sir" as I closed the door.
I was making my way across the yard when I heard Jaegar flying in my direction. I continued walking while the big guy catches up, until I stood in front of Sierra's empty stall.
"where are you, Nanaba?" I whispered. dammit.. please be okay. I could hear the gruff neigh of Yaze's Rapidash, Dashie, from his stall at the far end. His fire mane swishing violently and could've burned down the entire stable if these guys didn't have control over their flames. I turned into the direction of the next stall to find who I've been looking for.
I opened the door to usher out Jessy, my black mare, her coat as shiny as ever thanks to me grooming her regularly, to the point that everyone would make fun of it and act up shit like "my eyes! They burn!" "someone bring my sunglasses!" "Y u so shiny!" sigh, some people just can't appreciate cleanliness. Even her mane and tail are as straight as a ruler from brushing them once in a while. Her tail is long almost touching the ground with a whitish hue at the upper part of it. I went over to bring her stuff, that's when I felt Jaeger land behind me.
"going somewhere?" I heard his voice behind me. When I looked at him, he sat on his serpentine tail with the end curling around itself. His huge metallic wings folded in and – is that a layer of dust covering him from top to bottom? How did I mess that? and he didn't bother telling me. Tch, shitty bastard.
"Nanaba went out on a mission this morning and I'm going to get her. It's been two hours since we've last heard from her". I explained while putting the bridle and saddle on my mare.
"where could she be?"
"Hanji has sent her to go investigate for clues at some abandoned factory whom the Titan Squad deemed suspicious enough to inspect." I mounted Jessy and turned her to face my digimon "and Nanaba is taking her sweet ass time and I'll go for her neck once I find her".
"why didn't the Titans get the job done themselves?"
"from what I have heard, they were heading home from a mission when they had come across the factory place. They were probably too worn out to enter the place themselves so they asked for our help. They were even generous enough to leave us a report though".
"where's that place anyway?"
"it's 30 mins from here to the east. The address is written on the report I got from Hanji" that's when I decided I'm having too much chitchat for what was most likely an emergency situation. So I turned my horse around and prepared to take my leave.
"can I come wi -"
"No! you stay here and recover. How's your head?"
"still kinda hurts but I'll manage"
"that's enough for you to sit your ass here and make a proper recovery" then I turned my head to look at him one last time "and make sure to remind me to hose you down once I get back. You're filthy". And with that, I took off.
I could've had Jaeger give me a ride if it hadn't been for his injury. His fight with the bird monster had been chaotic to say the least. Damn thing unleashed one of it's lightning attacks opening a crack in Jaeger's helmet, and that awoke the Virus digimon inside him putting him into a state of rage. He counterattacked without mercy, eventually killing off the shitheap by tearing out both it's wings simultaneously with his pincers. when he came back to us, his crack was still shining with remains of electricity inside it, but it gradually worn down with time. In the meantime, he has to look like Harry Potter until that thick head of his re-shapes. Until then, I'm not letting him go anywhere.
And that's why we don't always rely on our monster companions. They're a great help, that can't be denied, but unless you're self-dependent even with your Familiar around, you'll find yourself helpless in their absence. Even when we go out on an expedition or a quest, we mount our steeds while they either run/fly alongside us or scout ahead. It gives them more freedom to move around and act accordingly should anything happens. we do mount them occasionally, of course, We'd be stupid if we don't. Anyone we know for that matter, even if they can magically develop wings, still resort to mounting their Familiars or fly/run next to them. According to Hanji, aside from conserving energy, it also helps to "increase the bond" or some hocus pocus like that. Well, my idea of a bond with Jaeger is to literally wash the shit out of him until i can see my reflection on him.
And that's exactly what I'm going to do once I get back, but I have the rescue mission on my mind in the meantime. I can only hope that I'm not too la- wait, is that the place?
I could see in the distance some building that looked as if a tornado had passed right through it. no wonder it caught Titan Squads's eyes. And right in front of the door, I could see Sierra, a definite sign that Nanaba must still be inside. Next to her is another brown horse I didn't recognize. I slowed down Jessy to a canter, then to a trot the more I close the distance between me and them. I dismounted her before she completely came to stop, then walked over to the distressed mare, who recognized me instantly and went to lick my hand when I offered it to her. I could tell she was kinda spooked with the way she kept snorting and swishing her tail and kicking the ground with her front leg.
"where's your rider, girl?" I whispered. i could hear the anxiety in the tones of my own voice. I didn't bother looking at the other horse since I really didn't want to waste more time. I have an idiot to get.
I turned towards the door, but before I completely faced the other direction, I could spot Jessy approaching Sierra and nuzzled at her. good. Poor thing must've needed some comfort. I left the two girls to handle each other while I took determined steps towards the entrance.
I'm coming, Nanaba.
The door had no handles. Even if it did, I wouldn't have touched them anyway. I could tell this place didn't meet some proper hygiene standards.
I was two seconds away from kicking the door open when I heard those familiar sobbing sounds behind it… Nanaba!
Don't tell me she's injured! Judging from the sound of it, she must be badly hurt! Fuck me if anything happened to her.
Without a moment to spare, I kicked the door open like a cowboy entering a bar.
And that's when I located her…
This is bad..
Really bad…
She's in the filthiest state I could have witnessed her in, but this was the least of my worries. I ran over to her and crouched down beside her, she looked at me with emotionless eyes, then all off a sudden, she squeezed me in a hug and littered my face with a thousand kisses. Yeah, I'm happy to see you, too. This should've been one of my infamous "tch, so dirty" moments but this dilemma was really irrelevant in the meantime. I hugged back without hesitation rubbing soothing circles on her tense as hell back.
"sshhhh, it's okay, I'm here. calm down, Nanny, it's alright" surprisingly, her sobbing calmed down. I expected her to explode into a series of weeping on my shoulder but she visibly relaxed all of a sudden. She nuzzled the crook of my neck (that fucking tickles) and her breathing has gotten steadier. That was definitely a relief. She's okay!
I gave her a peck on her bloody cheek, most likely getting blood on my lips, I should remember to wipe them once this whole ordeal was over. Then I placed her head against my chest and nuzzled her hair. Oh my God.. there's blood there, too. I left up my fingers to see them smudged with red spots all over them. What the hell happened? Is this blood even hers? But she doesn't seem to be in pain? Then whose is it? what caused her to look so.. dammit, so many questions and the only one who could answer them is in a state of shock. She needs help.
I gently caught ahold of both cheeks, and made her look at me. She was such a mess. face bloody, eyes teary and nose snotty. I tenderly ran my fingers across her tussled hair, Trying to prepare her for what I'm going to ask, using my gentlest tone.
"Nanaba, what happened?" she flinched. Should I question her further or… "hun, please talk to me".
"I'm going to kill him…"
huh?
Her voice was low and groggy, probably from the exhaustion and crying for a long time, but the place had been so quiet that I managed to hear what she said. Has she been attacked? Did someone hurt her? Nanaba is fierce by nature and if someone tries to oppose her or anyone she cares for, they're basically bringing doom upon themselves.
But I didn't have time to be more confused, for Nanaba started spouting out more enigmatic threats and profanities.
"he's going to pay.. that son of a bitch.. I'll slaughter the shit out of him!" her cries were getting more frantic and high-pitched with every threat. But before I could calm her down again, she said something that made me stop in my tracks.
"it's all my fault…" way to make things more mysterious than they already were, Nanny. One minute you were promising to kill someone and blame yourself in the second. The famous phrase left her mouth in a chocked whisper that could barely be heard. I don't know what the hell happened, but first thing is first.
"it's okay, Nan. Don't talk. I'll hear what you have to say later. Let's just go home" I stood up, suddenly feeling bad for leaving her on the floor like this. I reached out to help her up, but she yanked at my shirt giving me a small touching puppy eye, albeit a bit gory, that torn my heart apart. Then with a shaky hand, she pointed towards the door that lead to the inside of the building, still sniffing.
"but, Nan, this is not the time. Lemme get you outta here first and.."
"I'm fine, b-but.. you have to know what happened *sniff* just… just take a look" I was hesitant at first, but her condition didn't seem to cause any rush. Plus, If I didn't do as she said, she might get upset. And I don't need her to get more restless in her fragile state of mind. In fact, it's better for her if someone else shares her predicament, Instead of leaving her to be the only one dealing with it. it should also save her some explaining.
I headed over to the door she directed me to, opened it wide, and that's when my eyes landed on the scene right in front me.
Holy. shit.
What the hell, Nanaba…?
I slowly approached the half of a person who had been trapped in what seemed to be a meat grinder, but what's a machine like this doing in a factory? You usually see things like these in a… a butchery.
And to confirm what I had in mind, there were hooks hanging from the ceiling. And I think I spotted what's left of a pig dangling in the far corner. And to make things worse, the floor was littered with blood and random pieces of meat.
But I'm more concerned about the human remains. Someone fell into the meat grinder and, oh fuck me… their shredded remains lay on the other side of the machine on a metal tray.
This is the kind of situation that makes me happy that no one is unnecessarily involved. it is one of the times when I get proud of my decision to leave the brats back home. They're not from the faint of heart, but no need to disturb them further by letting them witness such a thing. Some of them started having nightmares already, and even though they're very rare to occur, they're still not a good sign.
Directing my attention back to the scene, this person may have been a friend of Nanaba or something, most likely from the Trost branch because we don't befriend anyone of those military police dickheads. Annie used to be an exception before she quit them to join us.
"her name was Lucy" I jumped and turned around to see Nanaba slowly walking towards me on wobbly feet. I didn't even hear her..? nevermind. She carried on. "she was from the Trost branch. I've met her not long after I have joined the scouts. Poor thing barely had what it takes to be a soldier"
She finished her grief filled speech whispering the last sentence. With sad eyes, she looked at the remains of her friend. I expected her to have another breakdown at the scene like one would normally do, but she seemed capable of handling the sight yet another time. She just looked… lifeless.
Her eyes remained fixated on her friend's mangled corpse. No expression. No emotion. she must have had no more tears to shed, thus leading to her apathetic state.
She must be silently mourning the girl. I know the feeling when you share a bond with someone, and when you look at their dead body, you can't help but remember all the times you've spent together. You reminisce their past moments back when they were still alive, only to stare at their deceased state once you're back to earth.
Nanaba's friend… she was alive at some point, laughing, crying, scared, surprised, now nothing more than a burger.
"it's not over yet, Levi. There's… one last thing you should know"
"there's more?"
"Take a look at the door o-over there" she pointed with her head at the direction behind me. But before I went over, I stepped closer to her, put a hand on her shoulder directing her towards the exit.
"I will. I just want you to go outside and try to sit down. You can barely stand" she obediently walked with me following her, my hands not leaving her, until I seated her on the previous spot on the floor when I have first found her. I crouched down in front of her, gently caressing her cheek. I should've at least brought something to drink with me. The girl looked deprived. When was the last time she had something to eat?
"try to relax, Nan. I'll be back soon" she silently nodded, barely having it in her to speak anymore. I stood up, opened the doors again, walked right past the grinder, and over to the room Nanaba told me to check. I had lots of guesses on what I might find in there, but something is telling me that I wouldn't like it one bit.
Can't say I'm surprised. The door was half open and I could already take a better peek at what's behind it the more I got closer, so I already had a decent idea about what's inside there before I finally opened it all the way.
Humans.
All hanging from the ceiling like culled animals. There was even a Zombie laying dead on the floor, he must have died recently judging from all the fresh blood gushing from a deep hole in his head, most likely Nanaba's handy work.
I slowly approached one of the bodies, carefully stepping on top of the Zombie and avoiding the blood - I just cleaned that boot - and stood right next to this guy who has been hanging from his back. His skin impossibly stretched to accommodate for all the hooks going through it. i reached out with my hand and touched him.. he's relatively warm. Same goes for the others, whose blood was still slightly dripping, no wonder they haven't started to smell yet. But the scent is still not something I'd recommend.
I decided I have had enough groping dead bodies, so I turned around to leave this madness, but I stopped dead in my tracks right at the doorstep, I spotted something in the far corner that seemed to be rotting. I took a better look at it and, lo and behold, it was a half-eaten human head. Could it have belonged to one of the people here? I turned around and tried to spot someone missing their head, and yup, found it. it was a girl with a Goddamn blood smeared embryo stuck between her thighs, now bleeding from someplace else. And I wager that dead asshole must have had something to do with it before he made his departure.
With everything wrapped up, I made my way over to Nanaba again. she hadn't moved one inch. She was sitting against the wall hugging her knees to her chest, staring into nothing, and when she saw me open the door, she relaxed a bit and straightened one of her legs. I took a seat right next to her not saying a word. It was pretty obvious that I have seen it all and she knew it.
We sat there silently for awhile, absorbing in all what had transpired in the past few hours. I wanted us to get moving already, even though Nanaba's condition thankfully isn't critical and doesn't call for any urgent actions, we still have people waiting for us at home, most likely worrying their asses off. But the lass seemed too weak to move, so I decided to let her have some more rest while I call Hanji and tell her at least that Nan is okay, she can know the details once we return.
The phone call was easy to imagine: ranged between "where are you" and "are you okay" to "we're fine" and "we're on the way" bla bla de bla de bla. I made sure to let Hanji know that Nanaba was okay, cuz that was the most important detail at hand. I knew the ride home was going to take longer than ever with her condition. she wasn't just mentally shaken, but she was actually physically weak as well. I don't think I've seen her eat or sleep properly recently, and sending her out on a mission in a faraway location only to have her friend slaughtered right at her face is akin to adding insult to injury.
I subconsciously licked my lips in deep thought when I felt the metallic taste – oh fuck shit! I forgot to wipe my mouth! i pulled out my handkerchief at lightning speed and sputtered and spit in it. I could feel Nanaba's eyes on me, must be thinking: "what's wrong with that crazy dwarf?". I didn't bother giving her an explanation. Instead, I pocketed the handkerchief and leaned closer to her.
"come here" I pulled her closer to me to envelope her into another hug with her head underneath my chin, completely forgetting about all the crap she's covered in. my shirt must be a mess right now. I could imagine myself staring at a nightmare when I look at the mirror back home. This shirt is SO going into the laundry.
I got ahold of her hand and felt her tense up. What, did I do something wrong? with her head still close to my lap, I raised her hand at eye level and that's when I saw these nasty wounds like she has just wrestled a tiger. She must have known I was going to question her about them, because she answered the query before I even took a breath to say it.
"I almost fell in with her" the shocking explanation left her mouth in a small sob and I didn't need to prod her for more info, I already knew what she meant. It was one thing to lose her friend, but to almost share the same fate had never crossed my mind. I imagined setting out to find her, I enter the corridor but didn't find anyone this time, I go inside only to find two bodies being trapped in the machine instead of one. I imagined finding locks of blonde hair amongst the minced human flesh.
Refusing to believe the idea, I squeezed her into a bigger hug, feeling happy and relieved that this was not the case at all. She's still here living and breathing in my embrace. I may not still know all the details that explain how all this shit has started in the first place, but we can always leave these things for later. But there was something else that still worried me.
"we have to go. Your hand might get infected from having gotten in contact with that grimy machine. Why didn't you tell me about it?" she looked at me as if trying to think of something to say, but her already broken mind didn't help. I figured she must have been distracted with the disaster, she forgot to tell me. Or maybe remembered to, but didn't bother for some reason. But frankly, I could care less. I gently pulled her up to her shaky feet. She truly was stressed out, mentally and physically. But we can't stay here any longer. We have to move. Come on, Chop chop.
"nevermind. We'll get you batched up once we get back. And more importantly, bathe you, you filthy fuck". She giggled like the idiot she was. Yeah that's right, the best way to cheer someone up is to insult the living hell out of them.
We went out to find our horses still waiting for us outside, Sierra losing her mind with ecstasy at the side of her rider finally coming back to her. Nanaba walked over to her horse while covering her eyes, I could imagine her hissing like a vampire at the sudden contact with sunlight. Just how long did she stay in there?
"hop on behind me. You can't ride in your condition" that's when I spotted her standing next to that brown horse I saw earlier. After what I have already learned, it was easy to deduce this horse must have belonged to Lucy. What the clueless animal didn't know is that it's owner is no more, still inside, all mangled up and shredded to tiny pits.
"once we get home, we'll place May in one of the empty stable stalls to feed her. Then send her back to Trost to see what they're gonna do with her" that was Nanaba's plan to me when I walked over to her with the both of us patting the now owner-less horse.
"we'll cross that bridge once we get there. let's just move" I walked over to Jessy and climbed on top of her, Nanaba followed behind with my help, I made sure her arms were secured around my waist and her legs pressed firmly on both sides. I nudged Jess to move in the desired direction, the other two horses already preparing to follow behind us. Then without further ado, we set off.
"levi?"
"yeah?"
"you've got dry snot on your neck"
Fuuuuck….
