Chapter 15
The people in the room were so still anyone opening the door would think they had somehow entered a picture; for a moment every person around the table looked like a realistically sculpted statue, and no one made a sound until suddenly everything broke into pieces.
Eren's eyes bulged, first in incredulity and then in pure, undiluted horror when a flash took him from the room he was in to a grassy patch in the middle of a forest, then to his father injecting a strange serum in his veins, and next to himself raising Grisha in deformed and grotesque hands; it turned black as a sickening crunch was heard and when light came back Eren saw himself, as if his very soul had ejected from his body, knelt and lost aside his father's torn remains before a soul chilling scream rose from within the deepest, darkest pit of his being.
Such a sound came from the boy as he fell backwards knocking his chair down, arms flailing against a non existent threat; Jaeger muttered half pleads and curses, gurgled as he fought to breathe and clawed at nothing, his visions going from the forest to the room in a fast and unending instant Eren fell both of his friends were beside him and a second later both Mikasa and a worried Erwin lifted the boy and carried him off the room to an adjacent one, struggling against the still flailing recruit. Hange, Armin and Levi's squad followed soon after.
But not Bane; he stayed behind, unable to process what had just happened. The moment he touched Eren... no the moment he'd told him his thoughts, something like a current shot through him spreading with astounding speed and making jump to his feet, his fists and teeth clenched and body stiff. While everyone had sprung to help Jaeger he had been unable to think, to move, to do anything at all but being frozen in place, with that unknown and gut wrenching feeling possessing him. He never felt anything alike, yet he knew what it was without any kind of doubt.
_Fear. -he mumbled, voice trembling.
As soon as he said the word, the sensation began to fade; Alastor clung to it, tasted its mind numbing poison as much as he could, relished in his racing heart now calming down. Fear had put his whole being to a stop, but he remembered for a second how his first impulse had been divided into fleeing the room as fast as his legs allowed and... and beating Eren to death. Without reason or hesitation, just destroying what he deemed as a treat despite a small part of his mind kept saying Jaeger was as scared as Bane himself.
He laid back against the table and smiled, realizing he had succeeded in his goal for the first time, he'd felt something real; but before he could think more deeply about it steps echoed in the hallway and a head poked through the door. Bane immediately went back to his apathetic self.
_How's Eren? -he asked before the other talked.
_He suddenly fell asleep. -said Hange- Whatever he saw when he entered that... trance drained his energy. What happened? Why did you jump like that?
Alastor contemplated the question briefly, and decided it was better to keep his discovery a secret for the time being, shrugging and giving Zoe a flat look.
_He screamed like something was tearing him apart limb by limb Hange; i am hard to take by surprise yes, but what he did would have scared a titan enough to make it grow an asshole and shit itself.
_Yeah, he gave us all quite a fright. So are you okay? -she questioned and he frowned.
_Of course, it was but a momentary startle. I think Eren should be the one being checked, no offense.
_Oh oh of course! -she said, smiling and slapping her forehead- We'll keep him under constant care, and hopefully he'll give us a full report on what was going through his head then.
_I think his memory will return eventually; it seems his... his trauma forced him to block what happened that day.
_No surprise -the woman said, nodding sadly- to think poor Eren... gods, it's horrible.
_Let's hope it won't be an obstacle when we take care of Hoover and Braun. Remember, if my theory has the slightest chance of being true, consuming them will give us even more power.
_But what if it doesn't? Or what if having more than one power does something to Eren? Wouldn't it be better to just kill them since we can't imprison them?
Bane nodded slowly, then sat again and pointed at the chair Jaeger had thrown onto the floor; Hange lifted it and straddled it, resting her arms and chin on its wooden surface.
_I considered that briefly indeed. -he admitted- But there is something aside their titan powers we must take into consideration.
_Like what?
_Technology, first and foremost. We know nothing of their homeland, but they seem to be aware of use since some time, if they could plan this attack; which means they had a way to travel safely, not to mention some kind of mean to discover us and maybe even monitor our activity or at least our position.
_So you think they are technologically superior and therefore better prepared for a counterattack?
_Most likely. Who knows what weapons and strategies they wield, or where they live: a walled complex like ours? A giant fortress? Several of these, connected by tunnels or hanging bridges? What tools and machines do they possess? How advanced are they compared to us?
_Worrying, now you mention it. Do you think Annie Leonhardt will share any of this with us?
_I dare hope so; i think she... she doesn't want to do this. She's always avoided people, and while before i thought she was simply being mean or most likely distrutful of others, now...
_Now what?
_Now i believe she didn't want to get attached to anyone. That Annie knew it would burden her to become friends with people she'd probably end up killing if at least indirectly; remember what Armin said about them during the cleaning of Trost. Unless they were faking it of course.
_If she proves to be emotionally compromised we could use it as an advantage during interrogations, since torture isn't a good option... -Hange seemed surprised at her own words and pinched the bridge of hr nose- Walls, what am i thinking?
They remained silent for a few moments, until Bane gave her a sharp look.
_If we manage to capture her, do you think Commander Smith would object if i were to interrogate?
_You? Do you know how to do it? Or what to ask?
_If Leonhardt is, as you said, "compromised" she might be more open to people she interacted with in the past; of those, the ones she spent most time with were Eren and i; however, we should keep him as far as possible from her or we risk tempting her into trying to capture or kill Jaeger.
_How close were you two back in training camp?
_I wouldn't define it as "closeness", but as... being used to each other. We sparred, sometimes chatted about our future choices, mocked someone's poor performance; it was almost like an arrangement, but i still enjoyed it. And if i did -he added spontaneosuly- she probably did as well or at least used it as a valve to relieve pressure.
_Pressure?
_I wasn't the kind of person you get attached to; yet i never judged anyone unless it came to clearly wrong deeds, which made me some sort of... confident for some people. Annie told me a few details of her life, sometimes even without realizing; her father's harsh training, her bleak view of the world, how she considered insane to want to be part of the Corps but still respected people brave and commited enough to join it.
_And you think it could give you a special edge when it comes to interrogating her. -Hange said conclusively, and he nodded.
_I hope you will consider it, since... yes?
Alastor turned to look at the door, while the scientist frowned and directed her attention to the same place; Gunther stood outside the room with a slightly guilty look. He scratched the back of his head and cleared his throat.
_Squad Leader, Eren has calmed down already; he's sleeping soundly. Apparently whatever happened in here took a good deal of energy from him.
_I see. But he's otherwise alright, isn't he?
_Yes, although Commander Smith said that just in case experiments and training are cancelled, at least in what concerns him.
At this Hange frowned and pouted, shrugging with her palms outwards in a clear "and now what?" expression.
_Sorry, but those are his orders. Good day.
He left quickly, anxious to leave the now frustrated researcher; she was now to go on long speeches about the unfairness of life if her tests were compromised, when not in full tantrums. The scout let out a relieved sigh as soon as he was out of reach, but felt a bit disoriented when her complaining and whining didn't reach his ears.
Maybe she's being considerate now that Eren is sleeping nearby. He thought.
Unknown to him, Zoe was far from feeling considerate; instead she tried to focus on something that aliviated her bitterness and suddenly something caught her attention.
_How did you know he was there? -she asked Bane, who raised an eyebrow- He was completely out of sight for you, not only out of the room, but even if he stood on the doorframe the door would have concealed him.
_I heard him come from the other room. -he answered simply.
_Wha... how?
_I have... keen senses. -Alastor admitted with a shrug- And i am able to focus on different things at the same time. For example, i can keep a conversation and write a report or draw at the same time; not that i am great at drawing, but i can manage.
_Well that's interesting. -she acknowledged- Since when have you showed this kind of ability?
Bane opened his mouth, then closed it and frowned; for a few seconds he seemed deep in thought until he looked at the woman in the eye.
_For as long as i can remember. -he answered slightly surprised- And i have good memory; my first ones are from when i was four, and by then i helped my dad with field work while in my head i reviewed the alphabet i had been thought by the local doctor; he was some sort of teacher to the village's kids. I learnt to read properly at five.
_That's impressive.
_Yet i never realized how strange this capability of mine was until you pointed out just now; it always seemed completely natural to me.
_Really? -she said with keen interest- I think it's fascinating! Do you think your... intellectual capacity is somehow related to your ability to work with Eren the way you did in Trost?
_I doubt it; however, if there is a possibility of both things being linked, maybe we should...
_Make some tests! -she cut him enthusiastically, nodding in approval- I'm going to my lab right now, to think of some scenarios to put your Eren handling skills to work!
_You... you made it sound dirty. -he pointed dryly.
_Dirty? How? Oh, the "Eren handling" thing, ho ho! I love that acid humour of yours, keep it up! See you tomorrow, or this evening if possible! -she said excitedly, hurrying out of the room.
Alastor didn't move, instead closing his eyes and focusing on his hearing; a few moments later he caught a faint, almost inaudible sound made by light footsteps. Someone had been there for some time, listening; he suspected Zoe's return had been more than a mere coincidence, his reaction couldn't have gone unnoticed. The question was who took note of it first, if Hange, Levi or Erwin.
Good thing i made her think i wasn't aware of her attempt to get information. he though And that i managed to turn our conversation to another topic she considered more interesting.
He'd always been aware of his mental skills being above the average; his pretended ignorance of it was simply a facade made to deflect any attempts of prying from the woman, as his dismissal of his reaction to Eren's collapse. Bane knew he was taking a risk by hiding the fact Eren had actually awoken something new in him, but changing the situation could mean he would have to refrain to contact him in order to avoid such situations, and he wasn't about to let that happen now he had finally succeeded.
_Not yet. -he whispered to himself- Not yet.
End of Chapter.
