Chapter 13

(Flashback 3 years ago)

Eren is panting after creating 7 bodies of the Titans. "I never knew Titan making is this hard... And to think our Founder Ymir did this for almost 2000 years..."

The more he thinks about it, the more he is impressed by Founder Ymir, and he is happy that Founder Ymir is set free instead of being a slave. He looks at the 8 Titans and smiles.

"The Female Titan possesses the ability to easily mimic the attributes of the other Titans. It could also selectively harden parts of its skin and attract Pure Titans with its screams, possibly due to its aforementioned mimicry ability." Eren says.

"I don't know the right answer," Levi admitted. "I never have. I can believe in my own abilities or the choices of companions I trust. But no one ever knows how it will turn out. So choose for yourself whichever decision you'll regret least."

"Eren!" Petra called out. "Believe in us!"

Eren closed his eyes and gritted his teeth before declaring his intentions, "I'll go forward!"

After a while, the Female Titan slammed Petra at the base of the tree with her foot. Her front side pressed against the tree, her back bent at an impossible angle.

"Petra... you'll be the Female Titan..." Eren says. "Of anyone in the Levi Squad, you have been kind to me..."

He walks toward the next finished titan, the Jaw Titan. "The Jaw Titan has a ferociously powerful set of jaws and claws that were able to tear through almost anything. Due to its small size, it was also known to be the fastest out of the Nine Titans." Eren says.

"Mister Zeke! I'm not telling you to just lie and die down and die here! I just want you to wait until Falco is outside the range of your scream!"

Eren and Zeke were shocked to learn Falco ingested his spinal fluid. "Slaughter each other as much as you want! Marleyans, Eldians, kill whoever you like! Just please! Don't get my little brother into this!"

Zeke sighed, "Colt, you care for your little brother as do I. So it is truly a shame."

Just then, he screamed, and Falco was about to transform, Colt hugged Falco and said, "It's okay, Falco! Your big brother will never leave your side!"

It was then the steam burned Colt to death after Falco transformed.

"Falco... I never got to thank you for helping me with my time in Marley... you are the only Eldian I got to talk to besides Zeke... I'll revive your big brother, as the redemption of my sins..." Eren says.

Eren walks next to the Armored Titan. "The Armored Titan is one that specializes in hardening abilities. One slam from that body should be able to destroy both Walls and gates."

"We couldn't have made that proposal go through without your tolerance." Erwin knelt before the boy and held out his hand, "You have my respect." Eren's eyes widened. The commander smiled. "I look forward to working with you, Eren."

"I'll do my best, sir!" He shook the man's hand.

"There is no future where humanity can inhabit these lands without Eren! We recover Eren and immediately retreat!" Erwin slammed his hand over his heart, saluting, before charging. "Give your hearts!"

"Everyone died when the Beast Titan threw boulders at us. I didn't think anyone could be saved. But Commander Erwin was the only exception. He thought of a plan for us to bite back at the Beast Titan and we did." Floch recalled how the last of the soldiers were wiped out by the Beast Titan. "We were smashed to bits just as planned."

"I still don't understand. We can't let Commander Erwin die." At Armin's words, Eren and Mikasa shifted their eyes guiltily. "What are we supposed to do without the commander?"

"I also thought Erwin was the right person to bring back," Hange said and the teens stared at her. "That's my honest opinion. But most of all, I wish we could have prevented things from turning out like this. In the end, Erwin entrusted Levi with the decision to use it. And Levi ended up choosing you."

"Commander Erwin... it is Mikasa and my foolishness that caused your life... my feelings for my friends caused you to be the sacrifice for it... I promise you... I'll revive you. You're still our commander."

He walks to the next Titan, the Colossal Titan. "The Colossal is notable for its massive size and significant control over the steam emitted by its Titan body along with the user's control over the power of the blast released by its transformation."

"I shouldn't have accepted the group leader position." Marco held a mug out to Eren.

"Really?" Eren accepted it. "It seemed to me that it fits you."

"I wonder what kind of soldiers everyone will become," Marco smiled.

"Marco's dead," Jean said plainly.

"What…did you say?" Eren looked like he was in denial. "Did you say Marco's dead?"

"Not everyone goes out in a blaze of glory. I don't even know how it happened," Jean's head bowed. "He died alone, without anyone seeing or knowing."

"Marco…" Eren was stunned, his comrades equally down.

"I want to know, what happened to Marco? Annie said you have her steal his ODM gear and that's why he was eaten by a Titan." Jean says. Eren was also listening in the paths while spying on them.

"Marco..." Reiner says, "Heard a conversation between me and Bertolt that had to be kept a secret. I feared our true forms would be found out... I thought that if Marco was killed by a Titan it would silence him well. I threw Marco onto a roof in midair. I held him down to keep him from moving while I made Annie take off his ODM gear. Marco was stuck there until a Titan came from behind and ate him."

Jean closes his eyes and asks, "Marco... is there anything he said to you at the very end?"

"He said... "We haven't even tried to talk this out yet." Reiner says.

Jean says, "That's it... we haven't been trying to talk this out. That's why we've been fighting to the death with each other like this, isn't it? If we'd just talked to each other at the start, we wouldn't be killing each other like this."

"Marco... You have been caring for all of us... that's why I'm reviving you..." Eren says.

Eren turns to the Beast Titan, which was a wolf. "The Beast Titan is the same as ever. It's a bit larger than the others, but that's far from all..."

"I brought some meat from the officer's storehouse! We can all share it later. All sliced up, and between some bread." Sasha drooled, cheeks red. She let out a guttural sound in delight.

"It'll be fine!" Sasha went to the wooden ice-box. "We can just raise more cattle and sheep once we retake our land."

"Sasha..." A single tear fell from Connie's eye. "...is dead."

"Connie. Did Sasha... have any last words?" Eren asked, his broken voice not showing in front of everyone.

Connie sniffled, his voice quivering as he answered. "She said... Meat."

Eren's eyes widened and he suddenly began to laugh. A tensed, unhinged, broken laugh as everyone stared at him in disbelief.

"Sasha... it was my fault that you got shot by Gabi... I'll revive you and we'll have meat for you again..."

Then he walks to the Cart Titan. "The Cart Titan, with its unusually high endurance, is well suited to long missions. This allows us to equip it with armaments, expanding the variety of tactics at our disposal."

"It's so nice. I wonder if I'll be able to ride a blimp if I become rich someday." Fay said to Grisha after watching the blimp take off.

"Didn't I tell you? Our ancestors were heinous criminals. They believed in eugenics and committed genocide. Devil's blood runs through our veins." His grandfather said.

"I didn't do any of that, and neither did Fay! All we did was go for a walk!" Grisha complained.

"Please Grisha... don't bring your parents the same fate that befell Fay..." His grandfather pleaded.

"Who was in the wrong? Me? Or this world? It was probably both. I was foolish and ignorant... and the world was unfair and insane."

"I don't know anything about Aunt Fay more than you do, Dad... but she was killed in an unfair way... that's why, I'm going to save her, she deserved to live with happiness..." Eren says.

The final Tian is the War Hammer Titan. "The War Hammer Titan controls Titan hardening to create weapons or anything it needs, from underground." Eren says.

"When I grow up, do you think I can be just like you?" Historia asked Frieda.

"Sure... Sure, sure! That's perfectly fine!" Frieda hugged Historia with tears in her eyes.

"We can't escape our sins, the time has come for the Subjects of Ymir to face judgment. Man is far too weak in the face of such massive power. The tragedy of the Titan war has made me realize someone must keep the power of the Titans out of human hands. If the power of the Founder were to again fall into the hands of the weak, the world will be turned to hell once more. In order to protect the walls, we must accept our sins. Our only choice is to perish." Frieda's purple eyes were glowing, meaning she was controlled by Karl Fritz.

"Frieda Reiss... I watched your memories... you were never free... you always wanted the best for Historia, and you desired to save us as well. It was the fool Karl Fritz who made you a slave. Historia... when the Rumbling happened, she was the only one of my friends that supported me... we were enemies of humanity. That's why my final choice goes to you."

After the seven Titans were chosen, Eren watches them sink into the sand, preparing to be reborn to the world. Eren also remembers Mikasa as he closes his eyes.

"Mikasa... It must be painful for you to kill me, right? I'm going to return to you... please wait for me..."

Eren also lies down on the ground, returning to the world he once knew.

When Eren woke up, he noticed that he was in the Titan Woods. He looks around to find 7 other bodies lying near the trees. "Did I return..."

He stands up and bites his arm, transforming into a Titan. Seeing that it was still his Attack Titan self, he quickly jumps off the Titan and let it disappear.

"I did it..." Eren mutters, but he starts to remember the horror of the Rumbling, "No... I can't think about it right now..."

He decides to look around and he finds some abandoned houses, there are seven of them and nobody has been living here for ages. "The villagers must be the pure Titans that we killed while trying to get to the ocean..." Eren frowns. "But it can be our hideout..."

Then he turns to the seven bodies on the ground, "But how should I explain everything to them? Will I be able to talk to them?"

Eren shakes his head and he decides to sit and wait for them to wake up.

Here is a new chapter, and starting this chapter, it will be the Flashback before our main story, I am not sure how many chapters it is going to take, but I hope you like this chapter. In the next chapter, Eren is going to explain everything to them.