Creation began on 01-19-19
Creation ended on 02-05-19
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Hope from the Sky: Hatred begets Loss
As hardened Titan flesh proved to be several times stronger than the metal alloys produced by any industrial technology mastered by humans, it seemed necessary to give the okay for the Survey Corps and Garrison to use this Boeing C-17 plane to travel around. And because it could hold one-hundred-two people, whether they were military personnel or civilians, it made sense for it to be used to aid in transporting either group in the future.
"I keep forgetting how massive this thing is," said Connie as he stood in the hanger bay of the plane with the other members of the Survey Corps. "You could fit a tank in here and still have some room to spare for supplies."
"Yeah," Eren agreed, thinking his family's old house could fit inside one of these planes.
Meanwhile, inside the cockpit, Shinji and Kaede took one last evaluation with Erwin before giving their final decision.
"Fuel, power, maintenance," went Shinji, sitting in one of the chairs. "Even though this plane hasn't been in use for centuries, it still works. It looks like this plane is mission capable."
"Yeah," Kaede agreed with him; for some strange reason, she felt like she could connect with the age-old Titan flesh used to build this vehicle, and she just wanted the plane to be able to do its duty without endangering its crew or passengers. "Well, Commander Erwin Smith, I'd say congratulations are in order. You, the Survey Corps and the Garrison…have the okay to use this C-17 however you need to."
"Thank you," Erwin responded, grateful to hear this; with this plane at their disposal like the jets were, they had a greater advantage against whatever remained of Marley's military power, assuming that they even had much left in the approaching blimps to even be considered a ragtag force after the first two attempts to attack by sea. "You two…should head back to the city and be ready to provide defense."
"Yes, sir," Shinji responded as he got up to leave with Kaede. "Be careful out there."
-x-
Yui couldn't believe it when Fuyutsuki had to explain to her that both Adam and Lilith were now disposed of, which put any aims for the Human Instrumentality Project to pasture. While they could've continued with the artificial DNA derived from either to produce the Evas and rebuild Unit-02 and further the production of the Eva Series, it'd be moot to do so if the Angels ceased their attacks, which were being hoped for by some of the personnel.
"But what will happen if they do persist…and decide to keep on persisting, regardless?" She asked Fuyutsuki in his office.
"The First and Second Children will be enough to deal with this matter if it ever comes to that," Fuyutsuki explained the response to the Angels' continued attacks if it ever came to that.
"And…should they be unable to deal with the Angels?"
"Then we'll find another way to deal with them."
Even though he respected her, there was no way Fuyutsuki could accept that any attempt at Human Instrumentality was the right thing to do, anymore. He'd do anything to prevent it from ever happening, and this included making choices others would disagree with, such as keeping Shinji from coming back from the other world.
Yui could've said that destroying Adam and Lilith was a mistake that couldn't be corrected, that they were now doomed to die because of the Third Impact that would happen sooner or later, but after discovering that Shinji's defection from NERV and the defeat of two of the Angels in the Titan world, anything that was originally foretold by the Dead Sea Scrolls didn't mean anything, anymore. They were in uncharted territory and flying blind in the darkness.
"I hope, for everyone's sake, SEELE doesn't find out about this," Yui gave in before leaving.
"Do you intend to tell your husband?" Fuyutsuki asked her, just curious.
"Lately, Gendo has been…nursing a grudge against Shinji," she explained. "He tries to keep it hidden from me, but I can tell. He's angry with him, but can't accept that he's not here for them to simply talk about everything that has happened…or won't happen."
"Aren't you proud of Shinji?"
"I am, but… Surely, he could do better than this Sogen girl. I do have sympathy towards her and her family, the fact that her step-grandfather was a monster in every sense of the word, but I can't picture their relationship lasting forever."
"And this is…because her Titan threatened you…or because he made the choice to remain there to protect the people of that island?"
"And because the girl doesn't strike me as a stable person, especially since that Titan of hers has all of this power at her disposal."
"But…he does love her."
"And what happens if she decides to break his heart?"
"You really think she'd do such a thing to him?"
It seemed unlikely that Kaede Sogen would ever intentionally hurt Shinji, even if Yui had her suspicions that the girl would. She always seemed…devoted to the boy because he confided in her things that made her rethink her future after revealing her status as a Titan Shifter. What bothered Yui the most about Kaede was the girl could've used her power to control the people that were still subject to this Founding Titan power that only now existed within her Dark Titan…but chose not to because she was loyal to the queen and Shinji…and had no interest in being in control of anyone, for better or for worse.
"I don't know what she'd do," she told Fuyutsuki. "I don't know what either of them might do."
"Sometimes, I think the Eldians should give Shinji a medal for everything that he does," he admits, "but every time I try to see that happening, I just can't see Shinji accepting one, not for any of what he does. Not for bravery, for sacrifice, nothing. I don't see him smiling or saying something about it."
Yui couldn't see him doing that, either. No, Shinji was just a simplistic young man that slowly entered a position where he could have anything he wanted…but didn't want everything that could be given to him. Even when she was in the Eva and had been able to explore his past after the incident that bonded her to its core, Shinji had gone from a happy, carefree child…to this young teen that did whatever he could to get by…and lived on a few creature comforts; the small things that people took for granted were all that he really enjoyed. If he was given a medal, he'd likely exchange it for a place to live in and call his home. If he was awarded a position of power, he'd just do what he does every time to ensure that things were stable for the people.
"He prefers only the small things," she uttered.
"Yeah," he agreed with her.
-x-
When the plane took off, it got the attention of the people that saw it taking to the sky. It was something of an amazing sight because it was accompanied by three jets. They were off to keep the Marleyan blimps from ever reaching Paradis, to stop Marley from hurting the Eldians once more.
"Hey, Shinji," went Kaede to her boyfriend as he changed back into his plugsuit, "could you do me a favor?"
"Yeah, sure," he responded, pressing the button on his wrist to make the suit fit his body. "What is it?"
"I'm heading to the orphanage village to try and find Peppermint's parents out of the Wall Titans that remain. I think I know how to find them before turning them back into people, but I'll need her help to do so. Can you cover for me until I come back?"
"If Marley sends more ships or the blimps show up, I'll hold them off to the best of my abilities. You be careful out there."
"Thank you, Shinji."
As the girl walked away, Shinji hoped that she'd be able to find Peppermint's parents. The very possibility that they were among the Wall Titans that he had reduced to pulp when Asuka set them from Wall Maria months back still weighed heavily on his conscience. If it turned out that her parents were among the Titans he had to kill to keep the people safe, then it made him responsible for turning her into an orphan; Asuka might've let them out of the wall, but it was he that reduced them to pulp.
If Kaede can find her parents, I can let go of any guilt I have for the Wall Titans I had to kill, he thought as he climbed into the Entry Plug.
-x-
"…We're directly over the blimps now," said Hange to Levi as the Survey Corps members on the C-17 were putting on parachutes to aid in their ODM gear so that they could reach the blimps more effectively.
"Good," responded Erwin. "We'll let the jets get their attention first. Maybe if they hear us this time, they'll cease their attempt to invade Paradis and we can put an end to this senseless war."
"And if they persist?" Levi asked him.
"Round up as many as you can after you use these flash grenades on them. As much as I don't trust them not to kill any of us, I'd be less guilty with them incapacitated than dead."
Levi understood the order, but had to remind Erwin that there was still a possibility that they'd be dealing with some bodies rather than prisoners.
As the back of the plane opened its ramp to let the Survey Corps members out, Eren looked out at the sky in disbelief over the fact that he'd be among others that would be, quite literally, dropping from the sky and onto the enemy. It wasn't so long ago that they were using their ODM gear to soar through the streets of the internment zone of Libero when they were gathering the remaining population of Eldians that wanted to escape from it while getting the Cart Titan from the Marleyans, and now they were about to jump from over a thousand feet into the air, a bunch of mortals not looking to die so soon, but were ready to make a descent into the midst of an enemy, out of Heaven and into Hell in a way.
"I'm actually relieved that Armin decided to stay behind on the island," he told Mikasa.
"Yeah," she agreed with him. "This could turn out ugly."
"Everyone have at least three flash grenades on them?" Sasha asked, checking her inventory before getting ready to jump.
"Let's settle this quickly, everyone," Levi told them, and then jumped out of the plane.
-x-
"Kaede," went Historia as she was playing with the children on the grass, seeing her Titan Shifter advisor coming over to the village instead of being at Paradius City. "What are you doing here?"
"I needed to see if Peppermint Doku was available for trying something with me today," Kaede explained to the queen, bowing her head to her. "If the Titans left still retain the people that dwell within them, I'm hoping that she'll be able to help me find her parents in them."
"You really think so?" Peppermint, who was among the children present around Historia, asked her. "There are so many Titans that I was told you sent to the edges of the island."
"It's…a possibility. With me…almost nothing is for sure."
"Miss Sogen…you…are awful when you express doubt."
"Awful?"
"You show sadness and fear over what might or might not be before anything is for sure. It's true, I worry about where my parents are, whether or not they're still around among the Titans, but I can't worry about what happens to me until after I know for sure what has become of them. After we know for certain of their fate, then we can move on from then. So, please, smile."
Except I'm not the only one that feels the weight of the possibility that your parents are dead, Kaede thought as she tried to put on a smile for the girl. "It's not as easy as one would make it."
"And there's a benevolent reason to why the children call you the Queen of the Titans."
"Oh, really? Why is that?"
"You're the only lady on the whole island that possesses the power of the original Titan Shifter, which, to them, in a way, makes you royalty obtained instead of royal from the start, the commoner girl that would be queen…and a kind-hearted one, too."
"Except there are things I have done recently that haven't been nice."
"Not to anyone that wasn't trying to hurt anyone else, though…and those things can be overlooked by the Queen of Eldia."
Kaede looked over at Historia, who merely nodded in the positive; many of the things the holder of the power of the Titans had done, mostly towards Marley and her step-grandfather, along with the minor offense she had committed against Eren Yeager of the Survey Corps, had been pardoned by the young queen in favor of serving a greater good, which was protecting the people of Paradis from hostile actions by Marley and others. Now Kaede got the feeling that she was going to do a lot of things that were going to be overlooked by Historia so long as people like those of Marley had hatred to spare against wanting to get rid of what remained of the Eldians.
"How will you find my parents with my help?" Peppermint asked her.
"By using the power of the Founding Titan…with your help," she answered the little girl.
Gasp! Historia reacted at such a belief.
Despite her having all of the power of the Nine Titans accessible through her Dark Titan, Historia got the impression that there were other abilities associated with the Founding Titan than what they already knew of. And if that was true, then it was more than likely that there were several other abilities associated to the other Titans that they didn't know about. It was even possible that Marley didn't know everything about the Titans when they had them, which made everyone's knowledge of them, all save the people deeply intimate with them like Ymir Fritz, incomplete at best…and Kaede was not only discovering these abilities, but improving upon them, as well.
"Do you really think that's possible, Kaede?" She asked her.
Suddenly, something fluid and like flesh emerged from the Titan Shifter's back and assumed the form of a head and face.
"Believe in Kaede like she believes in me," the head spoke.
"Whoa!" Some of the children gasped at the sight of a smaller version of the Dark Titan's head coming out of Kaede's back and talking.
"That…is something I've only discovered I could do today," Kaede explained to Historia. "Your Highness…I present to you the Dark Titan."
Historia looked at the head of Titan flesh protruding from her female advisor's back and was surprised to be in its presence and the girl that could turn into it at the same time.
"Hello," she greeted it.
"Nice to make your acquaintance, Ms. Reiss," the Dark Titan responded.
"Unbelievable," Peppermint expressed.
The Dark Titan head looked at her and responded, "Believe, child, believe."
-x-
In a way, they were falling and pretending that they were flying in the air as they soared toward the blimps. Some released their parachutes early to avoid missing their marks and then propelled themselves toward the control station of each one.
Eren, Mikasa and Levi smashed into one such station and made their presence known to the Marleyans within it.
Calvi was immediately ordering his men to attack, but one of the three threw something at them on the ground…and it detonated.
BANG-FLASH! The flash grenade went out, blinding and deafening the Marleyans in the blimp to the Eldians.
The next thing they knew, darkness overtook them.
A while had passed before Calvi regained consciousness and found himself on the floor of his blimp, along with his crew, tied up and in the presence of the Eldians that attacked them before they could arrive to Paradis and put an end to their existence. The young man in front of him was the most unusual of the bunch, like he never smiled or knew how to have a good time, probably never even had someone waiting for him at home before, and there was something else about him that set him apart from the other Eldians.
"Who the Hell do you think you are," he demanded of them, "attacking us and using a bomb inside an airship that could've ignited the hydrogen that keeps up afloat over the ocean, killing us all in an instant?!"
"You know who we are," the young man said to him, "and as for the bomb, it was a mere flash grenade. No fire, but quite effective. We've had ample time to understand non-lethal methods in the following months since our victory over the Titans you unleashed upon Paradis with your Warrior Unit. Going further, we've learned more about you and the world beyond the island in that time than what would've taken us years to understand. So we know about Marley and our past history together…and we're trying to put an end to it."
"The only way it ends," went one of Calvi's men, "is if what's left of the former empire of Eldia is wiped out, down to the last Subject of Ymir."
The other Eldian man, Eren Yeager, looked at them and uttered, "It's not going to happen like that, so we should really talk about this. We've taken over each of your blimps and restrained your crew. None of you are getting within attacking distance of Paradis, so we should really try to settle this war peacefully. Nobody else on either side should have to suffer because of the actions of our ancestors."
"Your ancestors," Calvi pointed out. "You Eldians are a despicable race, always have been ever since Ymir Fritz made her deal with the Devil in exchange for the power of the Titans."
The way he said it made the three Survey Corps members suspect that, due to the propaganda they used to influence the former Eldian populations that had been liberated from their lands, Marley believed the Titans were part of a pact Ymir Fritz made with a demon instead of a result of her discovering a source deep within the planet. They must've believed in the falsehood so much that it made them disbelieve any other possibility, even if it was the truth.
"You call us the Devil's children when you made a deal with an Eldian outcast that turned into a Titan that was a reasonable facsimile of the Devil because of his intolerable immorality towards everyone he got near with the intention of harming them," went Eren to Calvi. "How can there be peace between the Eldians and Marleyans if one side wants to get rid of the other over what happened generations ago that we didn't even know about until earlier this year?"
"So long as you live, there will never be any peace between the two nations," he enforced. "As long as even one Eldian survives, even an infant barely a day old, you will always be a threat."
"You'd treat even an Eldian infant as a threat to Marley when they can't even defend themselves?" Mikasa asked him.
"To give even the slightest bit of mercy to any of you is admit defeat, and I would rather go to war and die fighting against you fiends than to admit defeat and disgrace Marley with showing mercy to you."
"Even when we seek peace between the two sides because this senseless fighting will only lead to more pain?" Eren questioned.
"The only good Eldian is a dead one," another of the Marleyan soldiers expressed. "There will be no peace between the two nations."
"We'll see," Levi told them.
-x-
All she had Peppermint do was hold her hands, and suddenly she and Kaede felt like they were somewhere else, beyond the island, beyond time. It felt like they were in the ocean of the night, but it felt like they were also somewhere connected to the Earth.
"It's beautiful," Peppermint expressed.
"Yes, it is," Kaede agreed with her…and then looked down at her feet, seeing them covered in hardened Titan flesh, resembling… "Peppermint, I want you to try calling out to your parents here. Maybe here, they can be reached."
"Mommy, Daddy! It's me, Peppermint! Are you here?!" The girl called out, and suddenly a legion of Titans appeared among the specks of light that surrounded them, but they didn't look anything like the Titans they had seen before.
They were massive like the Wall Titans, but lacking all of their muscle tissue, resembling giant skeletons, only with one eyeball in each of their skulls. However, behind each of the heads appeared to be a smaller skeleton with a person's head hanging by a series of fleshy strands, semi-conscious and seemingly intact with the exception of the rest of their bodies deprived of flesh and blood.
"We're looking for the parents of Peppermint Doku," Kaede told them. "Has anyone seen them around here?"
One of the heads slowly rose up to look at them while the skeletal Titan body's right arm rose up, pointing further away.
"Peppermint," the male head's voice uttered as it escaped his mouth, "Peppermint Doku? A woman cries herself to sleep over her inability to find someone by that name."
"Thank you, sir," Kaede praised him, and the hardened flesh at her legs shattered as she found herself floating. "Whoa… Peppermint, it looks like we can fly here."
Peppermint looked at the older girl and almost mistook her for a being her mother once referred to as an angel; Ms. Sogen had this sense of serene beauty and calming kindness that couldn't be obscured by her Titan power. She allowed herself to be picked up by the girl and they floated away towards their destination, flying around each of the Titans.
"There are so many of them," she expressed.
"Yeah," Kaede agreed with her; it wasn't just her knowing that there were over tens of millions of Titans that were now keeping watch over the island of Paradis, but feeling them within herself. "There's almost fifteen-million in total."
"Is that a lot?"
"Almost enough Eldians to cover half the planet if scattered around, and the planet is a big place to cover."
They must've passed by dozens of Titans for less than two minutes until they saw two of the Titans were aglow in a bright, pinkish color in the distance.
"Those two," Peppermint spoke, "they look different from the rest. They don't look like skeletons or lack skin."
Kaede noticed this, too, and flew the little girl behind one of them, stopping at the nape where a skeleton with a woman's head could be seen. She appeared to be in her early-thirties, with the same shade of brown hair as the little girl and a serene face.
"Mommy," Peppermint spoke, hoping she could hear her, "is that you?"
The woman's head lifted up and looked at the two, revealing a pair of emerald eyes.
"P…pep… Peppermint," she uttered. "Are you Peppermint?"
"Yes, Mommy, it's me, Peppermint."
-x-
"We've taken all their vials of the Jaeger Serum, but we don't know if they've taken any before we showed up," Sasha informed Levi of the status of the captured Marleyans.
It took twenty minutes to round up all the Marleyans on the blimps and relieve them of their syringes and vials of Jaeger Serum meant to endow them with the power of the Titans temporarily, as well as any other weapons they might've had.
"They wouldn't be careless to risk transforming while inside a blimp several hundred feet in the air above water," Levi expressed, "and based on what we now know, Grausam Zanki was only able to give them the ability to transform into a Titan for no more than thirty minutes. We're over an hour away from Paradis, and travel by sea would take over three hours at top speed. Even if they were Titans able to travel underwater, they'd barely cover a mile because of the reduction in speed. Still, it's best to make sure they can't transform if they did, just in case."
None of the Marleyans onboard could voice their negative opinions toward the Eldians because their mouths had been taped shut; they had no idea these people were able to develop such a tool that was sticky and like rope. If they had been at this for years within their walled haven, developing technology that would be used against them, then they were just as unholy as they were taught in the past and couldn't be permitted to live in the past.
Eren and Mikasa took out a pair of small canisters and threw them at the floor beside the Marleyans where they released streams of smoke around them, causing the men to cough as they inhaled the fumes.
These gas canisters were a variation of smoke grenades utilizing Kaede's Dark Titan spinal fluid against these artificial Titan Shifters that were the result of Grausam's Jaeger Serum. Since they were a recent development, there was no guarantee that they would be effective against Titans, but should've been effective against people before they got a chance to transform, stripping them of their powers.
Levi took out a walkie-talkie and ordered the other corps members on the other blimps to administer the gas grenades on the captives.
"And with that, I think this makes strike three for Marley," he told Calvi, looking down at him. "We've learned about baseball and its rules and regulations, which aren't so different from this law used to intimidate and control people with criminal records. Three strikes, and you're out. You tried to attack Paradis personally not once, not twice, but more than three times. Just three if you exclude the Eldian Titan Shifters. So, in a way, you've lost big time."
Calvi couldn't believe this was how it would end for Marley. There was no way that he would allow these demons to get away with humiliating them so utterly! If it became necessary, he would sacrifice his own men to inflict grievous harm to both their numbers…and their pride.
-x-
As she regained consciousness, Kaede noticed how two of the Wall Titans were approaching the village from opposite sides. With the search for Peppermint's parents over and done with, she had called the two Titans the couple were trapped inside of to arrive at the village where their daughter was waiting for them.
"Are these Wall Titans them, Kaede?" Historia asked her as the children gathered around Ymir.
"Yes, Historia, they're Peppermint's parents," she answered, feeling a sense of elation at this.
As the two Titans came within ten feet of the village, they began to collapse onto their knees and palms, evaporating as they were doing as instructed by Kaede prior to arriving; during the other-worldly sojourn search for the girl's parents, Kaede had told the Titans that were their physical prisons to release the two from their bindings and return them to life. They were doing as they were told and ceased to be. Dropping to their torsos and heads, they evaporated further as who they once were began to separate from their degenerating flesh.
"…Aaurgh…" They heard a man's groan as he climbed free of the searing Titan flesh.
"…Aah…" He was followed by a woman's gasp for air as her head pulled away from the remaining strands of Titan flesh as she slowly fell from the decaying behemoth.
In two minutes, there was barely anything left of the Titans…and two naked adults on the ground, looking like they had just gotten out of a sauna or hot bath or shower. The woman, the first to look up to the people looking at her…and seeing the one face in the small crowd that made her heart pound like crazy.
"Peppermint?" She spoke, her voice raspy because she was dehydrated from so many years of being a Titan, reaching out to her daughter.
Peppermint walked over to her mother…and then ran into her mother's embrace.
"It was a nightmare being so far away," her daughter told her.
"A long nightmare for everyone," she responded.
-x-
The wait was long, but Shinji had to endure. At any moment, something could happen to change the present, whether it was a ship operated by Marleyans coming to attack the island or the return of the Survey Corps from a successful mission to stop their enemies from invading for the third time. And he was still waiting for Kaede to return from her goal of finding Peppermint's parents among the Wall Titans. He was hoping that she had succeeded in the endeavor so that they'd know for sure that Asuka hadn't caused him to kill any Wall Titans that might've been people with families or children; so long as he knew for certain, he could let go of whatever guilt he felt over the lost Titans.
Shinji, he heard Kaede's voice in his mind. Shinji…I did it. I found Peppermint's parents. They're with her now.
It put a smile on his face to hear this.
Congrats, Kaede, he thought back, grateful for her perseverance.
Suddenly, he noticed from afar the sight of the C-17 returning…along with being either followed by or towing along at least fifteen blimps.
"Sasha Blouse to Shinji Ikari," he heard a female voice speak to him over the intercom. "Shinji Ikari, do you read?"
"Loud and clear, Ms. Blouse," he responded. "Did everything go well?"
"We had a…slight mishap, but otherwise, everything went as smooth as can be."
"Are we to expect more trouble in the coming days?"
"Not most likely now that we have the guy in charge of running the whole Marleyan military in our custody."
"That's going to be a major blow to Marley's pride."
"The biggest of blows ever made."
The C-17 flew over the Eva with the blimps following suit, heading towards the landing site, no doubt wanting to keep the captured Marleyans away from the Eldian civilians.
The size and shape of the blimps were impressive to Shinji; he had only seen them a few times in his childhood and they never did appeal to him like they did right now. Maybe, in the future, these blimps could be used to show the Eldians around…and unlike the Marleyans, they would be permitted without any prejudice or hatred because on this island nobody needed those ridiculous armbands to identify themselves as Eldians.
-x-
In retrospect of the loss of both Adam and Lilith, Kaji had managed to obtain the information NERV had hidden from the world. And it was a lot more than what he had bargained for, initially. Not only did it reveal the actual cause of Second Impact, it revealed the true purpose of the Evangelions, which didn't include protecting humanity from the Angels…but unifying their souls in an artificial evolution after confirming how people were obsolete in the evolutionary race.
"The time it takes to find to the truth and expose the people responsible for causing the end of the world fifteen years, thy names are Shinji Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki," he uttered as he began transferring the date he had collected from the MAGI.
As disheartening as it had been to see Shinji defect from NERV because he found a greater purpose in helping the Eldians of this Paradis against the Marleyans, it was this same situation and unexpected aftermath that allowed the triple agent to do his job and gather Intel to expose the people behind the madness that had been unleashed upon the world. And it wasn't like they had forgotten about Shinji if they were still trying to keep tabs on him through the Eva; maybe one day, when the Evas weren't a necessary evil to anyone's survival, anymore, NERV (or some faction dedicated to simple research, they could find a way to coexist without any hidden objectives that would most likely endanger people's lives.
So long as that Dirac Sea portal stays open, he thought, and then realized something that might've been overthinking it. I better check with Ritsuko on how long that portal is likely to stay open before something happens to seal it up.
Crawling out of the small space he was cooped up in to access the MAGI, the unshaven man would send his findings to the media outlets across the planet so that they could broadcast the truth and allow the authorities to go after those responsible for Second Impact later, after he checked with how long portals made from a Sea of Dirac could and would stick around.
-x-
"…So…what was the mishap that occurred while you guys were out there?" Armin asked Eren and Mikasa when he saw them later that evening after sending the Marleyan soldiers to holding cells, getting dinner along with everyone else on the carrier.
"We lost one of the blimps and at least a dozen of the captives," Eren revealed. "They didn't escape, though they might as well have tried to."
"What do you mean by that?"
"Failed murder-suicide," Mikasa expressed. "Three of the soldiers had bombs inside their bodies and they set them off. The hydrogen inside the blimp caught on fire and detonated the rest of the blimp. Marco and Jean were on the blimp, but escaped before the fire could burn them."
"We're going to have to check each of the remaining soldiers for concealed explosives," Armin realized upon hearing this.
"The medical personnel are already doing that. We'll know as soon as they're done."
As the three were conversing, further away from where they were sitting, Shinji and Kaede were enjoying their meal together.
"All and all, it wasn't a bad day today," Shinji expressed.
"Two good things happened," Kaede agreed with him. "We stopped Marley again and returned Peppermint to her parents. And…I think I discovered another aspect of what made the Founding Titan so special out of the Nine Titans."
"Oh? What was it?"
"It…felt like I was in space, surrounded by the Titans that represented the people who were turned into the Wall Titans. It must've been what I was once told were the invisible pathways that connect all people with the ability to turn into Titans to the Founder, but it also felt like…a visual example of the nervous system or something similar mixed with the cosmos."
"Was it…beautiful?"
"Yeah, it was very beautiful. Nothing can compare to it."
"You think we'll all be able to…move past the hatred Marley has for the people of Paradis?"
"I want to believe that Marley will give up now…but I can't let go of the smallest possibility that they won't stop just yet."
"I thought you'd say that. That would've been too easy."
"You mean, you don't think they're gonna stop, either?"
"People that have been in conflict for so long aren't likely to give up, even when they've been beaten a bunch of times, but the truth is, I don't know for sure if they will stop now. But maybe there's someone who will know."
"Who would that be?"
"The man who was in charge of the Marleyan military that the Survey Corps brought in when they returned from intercepting the blimps."
"That would make sense; being the one in charge of the military's divisions, he'd have to know everything about what each aspect of the country's offensive and defensive forces. Unless Marley decided to replace him if he failed to take us all down, that is."
"That's turning a smile into a frown, Kaede."
"Sorry. I want to believe that they'll stop now, but…"
"I know, because it's hard to picture Marley giving up after everything we've done. But…to let hatred consume you…"
"Hatred becomes so much a part of you that it's all you know… Did the Survey Corps take care of the Marleyan ships when they captured the blimps and Marleyan soldiers?"
"Yeah, they did as they captured the blimps. Why?"
"Maybe we should see this Marleyan military head honcho tomorrow, try to put an end to the hate once and for all."
"Yeah, because if this does persist, it's not going to end well for Marley…and may have just as negative repercussions for Paradis."
"How negative would the repercussions be for us?"
"The chances of bridging relationships between the two nations that can be more positive become harder to achieve…and it's something I hope to see happen in the future."
Kaede then recalled something from a memory belonging to Karl Fritz in the time before he decided to lead Eldia to its downfall, something he heard from his father when he was a little boy. It was the belief of how people being separated by time, distance and culture was nothing more than an illusion…and how there were two types of people that respond to this in different ways, with different outcomes.
"The wise choose to build bridges," she said, "while the foolish choose to build barriers."
"Yes," Shinji agreed with her, even though he didn't know yet that her reason for saying such was because of a memory that wasn't hers.
"I think there are at least a few other people that should meet this man."
"Who else should meet him?"
Kaede leaned over the table and whispered who she felt should've met with this Marleyan man later on.
Shinji's eyes widened as he wondered if this was a good idea.
To be continued…
A/N: Here's the latest chapter. I'm surprised by how out of all my work, this crossover's gotten the greatest degree of attention and admiration from each of you out there. Who do you think Kaede wants to meet with Calvi? She did say a few people, so take your pick on anyone you can think of and leave it in your review. Peace!