Chapter 12: A Chance to Strike Back

"Eren Yeager the Titan. And here I thought I was special, but low and behold, Yeager surpassed me in that regard. I can only wonder what the hell happened to make him turn into one of those things. According to Armin, he lost his leg and arm before he was devoured by a Titan, so he had regeneration abilities like a Titan. Wish I had regeneration. Would go well with my powers.

"Naturally, the whole event spooked the Garrison Troops, so they planned on "interrogating" Eren about whether he was human or not, and whether he was a threat to humanity or not. Honestly, I couldn't blame them. Over 100 years of Titans killing them and considering that the Invasion of Trost had been so recent, tensions were extremely high. That being said, their version of interrogation meant a bullet to Eren's head at the end, and that was something the human race couldn't afford to let happen.

"And it was out of my control."

There were certain situations Dillon never expected to be in. He didn't expect to rank five in the 104th. He didn't expect to be attacked by Titans just after graduation. Most of all, he didn't his friends to be literally up against the wall with several squads of Garrison Troops surrounding them.

After the cadets made it over the wall, the soldiers who witnessed the whole thing slapped a gag order on them all under threat of being charged with treason. As Dillon followed Annie, he knew that Eren was going to undergo a field interrogation. He didn't have to be a mind reader to sense the paranoia in the air. They were probably gonna find any excuse to kill him along with Mikasa and Armin, who stood by his side despite the odds. And if nobody stopped the Garrison…

"Annie," Dillon finally said, coming to a stop.

She turned and looked at him, her eyes cold. "What?"

He let out a sigh. "I... there's something I need to do, and you're not going to like it."

She continued to stare at him, waiting for him to get on with it.

"Those soldiers are going to look for any possible reason to kill Eren. Hell, the fact that he was... a Titan-" He still couldn't believe it. "-is probably going to be the reason." He stared at Annie. "I can't wait around, Annie. I... I need to make sure he and the others make it out alive."

"Don't be stupid," she replied bluntly. "They're scared, they're under attack, and they have guns."

"I know, but they're my friends."

"And how will you be helping them if you get yourself killed?" she asked, stepping up to him. "It's not like you can do anything anyway."

"Yes, I can. I'm strong enough to be able to hold off the cannon men." He looked down at her. "Annie, Eren is the best chance that we have at not only winning the battle but turning the tide of this war. Think about it: we have a better chance of surviving now than ever before. If Eren dies, that hope dies with him." Dillon closed his eyes. "He's my friend, and... someone who could save us all."

Annie couldn't believe what she was hearing. "Hold off the cannon men? Are you thinking of fighting them? Don't be a fool. That's treason. Hell, if they tell you to stand aside and you don't, that's disobeying an order in a time of war. They'll kill you just for that."

"But Annie-."

"This isn't a courtroom and you are not a commanding officer," Annie interrupted without hesitance. "When you took an oath as a soldier, you promised to be a good little boy who nods his head when his superiors tell him to do something. You are a grunt." From her end, it looked like she was getting through. "Say you can hold off the cannon men. You've used a power no one understands because it'll be obvious it was you. What if he transforms and kills you all? Doesn't really matter, cause once they realize you've used force, you're dead."

Then, there was a fire in his eyes. "I swore an oath to protect humanity. If I have to become humanity's enemy..." His voice trailed off, the fire all but extinguished. Whatever facade he had vanished as he spoke. "I can't make the difference Eren can. Even with my abilities, I'm not good enough. I've watched people die like you have. I need this, Annie. I need to believe that Eren can give the hope we all need."

"You're only remembering the convenient part of your oath. It doesn't matter what you need. They need to feel safe and they'll kill anyone to do it. There's nowhere you can run if things go bad, and your plan to use Eren to save humanity? It's not worth shit if humanity's best and brightest don't agree."

Dillon's knees were wobbly to the point where he almost fell to them. He knew she had a point, a very good point. By all rights, he needed to listen to her and walk away. And yet, he took a deep breath and let it out. Things couldn't be this way. "It's a risk I'm willing to take, Annie. I have to take it."

"Don't be stupid, Dillon." It felt more like a plea this time.

His mind was already made up as he looked at her. "I'm sorry, Annie. I know I hurt you when I went off to save Mikasa and now I'm doing the same thing again." He clenched his fist. "But I'm not gonna let my friends die. Not when there's a chance I can do something about it. I just can't. Because if I stay here and they die, I'll live the rest of my life wondering if I could've done something."

Annie glared at him. "Get over yourself. The whole world doesn't turn on you. Their lives? They don't depend on you either. Look after yourself, damn it!"

He looked back where he left the trio. Eren was still unconscious with Mikasa and Armin by his side. There were too many unknowns. This wasn't a simple matter of rescuing a friend anymore. With the Garrison bearing down on them, what could he really do to fix things? "I..."

"Don't do it."

He turned back at Annie, a look of hopelessness on his face. "I can't do anything. I can't fix this. I can't save them."

"Welcome to being human," Annie muttered.

Dillon tried to cling onto something, anything, that would give him hope for the future, but he couldn't find it. All he could see in his mind were his friends getting blown to bits by paranoid soldiers. His eyes were wide and his breathing rate increased dangerously.

Annie stared at him, at first not comprehending. "Dillon?"

His body jerked with a gasp, almost as if he just registered that she was there. His wide eyes and breathing rate, however, remained. It was like he was caught between reality and something else. Something harmful.

Annie's eyes widened ever so slightly, and she stepped forward. It was rare for her to be the one to initiate contact between the two of them. Sparring was one thing. That was violence. She understood that, but this? This was something else entirely. Her fingers brushed up against his sleeve, gently grasping his upper arm. He just stared at her, not saying a word. It was like he couldn't talk. She held his gaze, her cold eyes suddenly mesmeric. But within the coldness she displayed, there was concern, a small spark of warmth. She guided him out of the way of traffic to the side, moving slow and steady. She listened to his rapid breathing. It sounded louder to her than all the distant shouting.

Then, within their mind link, an image appeared almost like a nightmare. She watched as Eren, Mikasa, and Armin were gunned down mercilessly, their pleas falling on deaf ears. First, Mikasa got in the way, swords drawn, and the rounds would pierce her body first. Blood poured her chest as she sunk to the ground. Armin, horrified, tried to drag Eren away, and their bodies became filled with holes. The back of their heads exploded as they, too, fell. The bodies of his friends were lying there as their blood sunk into the ground. Then the situation repeated. And then it happened again. And again. And again. And again.

"Dillon, look at me," Annie spoke slowly and softly. "Listen to me and what I have to say. We don't know what's going to happen. You don't know what's going to happen. You can't. What you can do is be here with me, now, in this moment. Listen to my voice. You're going to be okay. I can't tell you what's going to happen, but you're breathing in this moment right now, and I need you to stay in this moment with me, into the next moment, and then the next."

The more he stared at her, the more he regained control of his breathing. The image was fading away from the link, though whether he still saw it or not was a mystery.

She guided in him into a sitting position on a box, moving beside him. She then reached down to slide her hand under his, slowly enclosing it in a loose grip. "You feel that?"

Dillon nodded. He opened his mouth to talk, but aside from a few noises, he couldn't reach that moment yet.

"I can't make promises to you about what is going to happen. But I'm here now."

Another nod followed by a word at last. "Okay." His throat felt very dry all of a sudden. "Water. Where can I get water?"

Annie stood back up. "Come with me." She kept ahold of his hand.

"Okay." He let Annie guide him while he managed to come back to reality. "Did I hurt you?"

"What?" She looked puzzled.

"That... moment I had. I could tell you were reacting to what I felt."

"It's fine. I've seen it before. You're not the first today and you won't be the last."

The relief Dillon felt was little, and then he saw the 104th cadets had gathered around nearby. Sasha was caterwauling about something, Marco was holding down a freaking-out cadet named Daz, Connie was engaging in a conversation with Krista and Ymir, the former of which looked extremely worried, Reiner and Bertholdt were off to the side, and Jean was watching Marco trying to calm down Daz until Dillon and Annie approached. He turned to face them, his facial expression unreadable.

"Where have you two been?" Jean asked. His tone was almost even.

"Trying to get over the fact that I can't do anything about Eren, Mikasa, and Armin," Dillon answered glumly. His own expression didn't betray what he just went through.

"What?" Jean looked back and forth between the two of them. "Look, that's beyond our level right now." He scratched the back of his head. "I still can't believe... what we saw."

Annie helped Dillon over to one of the boxes, only releasing him so she could hunt for some water.

He took a seat, staring at Jean. "You look like shit, buddy."

"So do you, man." Jean tried to give Dillon a smile, but he couldn't manage it.

Dillon sighed. "They're worse than I thought. Damned monsters. Why can't they just...?" He shook it off. "Forget it. We've got bigger problems." He spoke a little softer so no superior could hear them, gag order be damned. "If the military acts on their paranoia, we're going to lose the best chance humanity has at surviving. I know what you think of him, Jean, but you saw it, too. He's what we've been needing."

Annie reappeared with a canteen and stopped Dillon from going on by holding it up for him.

Jean shook his head. "Damn it, I don't..." He ran a hand through his hair. "He turned into one of those things, Dillon. I've been seeing what those things do all day. Our friends." He shook his head. "We've lost too many already. I don't know what to make of any of this."

"Normally, this would be the moment I say something inspiring or meaningful." He scoffed, taking a sip of water. "I've got nothing."

"It was never supposed to be like this. Only a couple more days and I'd be in the Interior." He grimaced, like he was surprised that thought didn't make him feel any better. "Why now? Why after all this time?" Jean took a deep breath to calm his nerves, then let it out.

Annie said nothing as she quietly kept an eye for anyone who could report to the Garrison for the conversation that was being had.

Once he finished taking a drink, Dillon responded with, "Who knows? I'm just worried the Armored Titan will come back." He paused. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen that bastard today. According to the newspaper, it showed up shortly after the breach in Wall Maria, but it's been hours."

"You think that it'll come again? That they're acting in coordination?" Jean leaned in close. "I mean, the first part happened just like last time."

"It's too coincidental," Dillon agreed. "Somehow, those two Titans are working together. And get this. The Colossal Titan didn't attempt to eat a single human. That goes against the fundamental nature of the Titans." The moment those words left his mouth, an image of Eren came to mind. A human being able to transform into a Titan and defy the instincts of other Titans. "Oh, God."

"What?"

"Give him some space," Annie interjected, stepping in. "Take a breather, you two. They're probably going to send us out again soon."

"Annie, wait a minute. Listen." Dillon's voice dropped to a whisper. "Those two Titans, the Armored and the Colossal... what if they're like Eren?"

Eyes widening, Jean started to say something, but Annie stopped him.

"There's a reason we were ordered to silence. You start spreading things like that, paranoia follows. Can you imagine what people will do to each other once they start to believe their neighbor might be a Titan?" She looked between the two of them. "They could tear each other apart."

Dillon sighed, holding his head. It was still healing from how much energy he exerted. "You're right. We need to keep this between the three of us for now. At least, until we can figure out a better way to prove this theory." Of course, that means I'd have to wait until one of those Titans show up again. I think I'd like to avoid that.

"I just want to know what the hell is going on," Jean said with a grunt. "I just want to figure this damn thing out."

"We'll find answers," Dillon assured. "One way or the other."

Jean let out a chuckle, a real one. "There's your inspirational, idealistic statement right there."

"I have a quota to fill," the blacksmith snarked as went for another sip.

The two leapt off their boxes in horror when there was the sound of an explosion.

"What the hell was that!?" Dillon yelled, looking down the direction where it came from.

There was a large plume of steam rising to the sky. The only way steam would be rising from that was if there was a Titan. Already, the cadets around them were panicking.

"Came from where they took Mikasa." Jean shot towards the commotion.

Ymir must have heard him because she shook her head in irritation. "Of course, that's who would come into his mind."

Reiner and Bertholdt soon went after him, taking the rooftops.

Annie started to follow, then stopped. She then held out a hand to Dillon. "Can you stand?"

Dillon managed to stay on his own two feet and nodded. "Yeah."

"Come on."

It took just over a minute for them to reach the source of the smoke, which was the area where they were forced to leave Eren, and what they saw dumbfounded them.

Reiner asked the question that was on everyone's minds. "What the hell is that?"

Amidst the shroud of smoke and steam, there was a half-formed Titan sitting there. Its bones were completely exposed and there were only scatterings of flesh on its body. It even had eyes. To add the disturbing display before them, the Titan started moving a little, freaking out the soldiers that were there.

"It's alive," one of the soldiers said fearfully.

"Captain Voormin!" Rico was not above being terrified, but she was able to keep herself from losing it.

Unlike Voormin, who was on the verge of losing it, especially when the Titan's single eye looked right at him. "Let's see what it does. Maintain your distance! All squads remain alert. It can strike at any time. Artillery crew, get that cannon reloaded!"

"It's gotta be Eren," Dillon muttered, moving to the side.

"Dillon, what are you doing?" Bertholdt asked, concerned.

"Trying to see if our friends are alive," he answered, his eyes glowing for a brief moment before fading. He moved, making it look like he was trying to get a good view on them while not getting spotted by the Garrison. "Mikasa, don't freak out. It's me. Talk mentally."

Amidst the chaos, he thought he heard a sharp gasp. Then, an anxious voice penetrated his thoughts. "D-Dillon?"

"Yes, Mikasa. I'm here."

Poor girl was trying not to succumb to her hysteria. "I-I wasn't imagining what I saw. You… you attacked that Titan without touching it. How is that possible, Dillon? What are you?"

"I'll explain everything later. Are all of you still alive?"

"Yes. Armin's with me, but I don't see-." She was cut off when a plume of steam erupted from nape of the creature. "He's inside the Titan!"

"Listen. The Garrison still has you all pinned down. This little steam show should by you some time. If things get bad, I will blast as many soldiers that I can so you can escape."

"But Dillon, you'll be-."

"I don't care," he responded. "You three have to survive this." He saw Annie coming for him. "I need to go."

Once again, he found himself face-to-face with a glare. "Did you just forget what I told you?" she asked in a quiet voice.

"Did you eavesdrop on my conversation?" Dillon asked back, staying quiet.

"No. You're too predictable. If I have to knock you out so you won't do something stupid again, I will. Don't test me. Especially after everything that's happened today."

"Listen," he urged. "Just one more second. This is a last resort plan only. The Garrison won't be able to figure out that I'm the one causing the problem. I'm only going to interfere if they try to kill them again. Honestly, I'm hoping they'll come up with a plan before things go straight to hell."

Annie let out a sigh, knowing that she wouldn't be able to deter him. "If that moment comes, you do what you have to. Just like I will."

Dillon didn't dare ask what that would entail, mostly because he nearly had a heart attack when the Titan's skull crashed to the ground, causing more steam to fog up the area. "That bought them some time."

As they returned, Reiner immediately asked, "Did you see them?"

"Yeah, I did," Dillon lied. "Briefly, but I caught sight of blonde hair that was moving. They're still alive."

"Captain Voormin," Rico said from below. "The cannon is almost reloaded. We're ready, sir. What are your orders for the next attack?"

"A-All troops will await my signal!" he shouted.

"Yes, sir."

"This is not good," Jean muttered. "That trigger-happy captain is going to kill them all."

"If that happens, we're all dead," Reiner added unhelpfully.

Dillon said nothing, eyes on the two people in charge of the cannon. He needed to take them out first. The simplest plan would be to use his powers to block the cannonball from leaving the cannon. However, he knew those two would not survive the explosion. There was no way in hell he was going to start killing soldiers. The only way he could buy time and get them out alive was a mental assault. It would hurt like hell, but it was better than the alternative.

Sure enough, they finished reloading the cannon, giving a wave.

"Artillery crew has reloaded, Captain," Rico confirmed. "It's your call, sir."

The captain didn't answer, eyes locked on the scene before him.

Voormin and Rico would go next. Dillon planned. With the chain of command crippled, it'll fragment the troops. And then… I pray we all make it out alive.

Then, he heard a clanking sound and the sound of running footsteps. The Garrison soldiers looked ready to panic as Armin charged out of the smoke.

"Halt, halt, halt!" Voormin ordered as the weapons were aimed at the blonde.

Once Armin skidded to a stop, he raised his hands in surrender to keep their guns at bay.

"Is this supposed to be your true form, monster?" Voormin demanded, losing it. "I don't buy it! I'll give the signal to fire! I mean it!"

Cowardly, paranoid, and stupid, Dillon thought, preparing himself. That's an interesting combination.

"Eren is not a foe of humanity," Armin professed. "We're willing to cooperate with military command and share everything we've learned about his powers!"

"Your pleas fall on deaf ears," the captain shot back, spit flying out of his mouth. "He revealed his true form and because of that threat he cannot leave here alive. If you insist he's not an enemy of ours, show me proof! Otherwise, we'll blast him back to whatever hole he crawled out of!"

"You don't need any proof," Armin pointed out desperately. "The fact of the matter is it doesn't matter what we perceive him to be!"

"What?"

"The reports say hundreds of soldiers saw him," he explained. "And those who were there saw him fighting other Titans… and that means they saw him get swarmed by Titans as well. To put it plainly, the Titans saw him how they see each and every human being: as their prey! And it doesn't matter how else you look at it! That is an irrefutable fact!"

Dillon couldn't help but smile a bit. One thing he always admired Armin for was his way of talking through situations. He had a feeling Mom would draft him into being a defense attorney if she could.

Some of soldiers started lowering their weapons, believing Armin's statements. They realized that he raised a very good point.

Unfortunately, Voormin refused to accept it. "Prepare to attack! Don't let yourselves be swayed by his cunning lies!"

You have got to be kidding me. Dillon was tempted to go down there and punch the captain in the face.

"The Titans' behavior has always been beyond our comprehension. I wouldn't put it past him to assume human form. He's… speaking our language in an attempt to deceive us! I refuse to let them continue this behavior anymore!"

Mortified, Armin briefly turned around to the two cadets behind him. They didn't say anything and remained impassive. They were ready for anything. However, Eren gave him a brief nod of encouragement. Gritting his teeth, Armin whirled around and slammed his fist right onto his heart.

"I am a soldier!" he declared. "And I have dedicated my heart to the restoration of humanity, sir! Nothing could make me prouder than to die for such a noble cause! If we were to use his Titan ability and combine it with the manpower we have left, I believe we can do it! We can retake this city! For humanity's glory and what little time I have left to live, I will advocate his strategic value!"

Armin's voice seemed to echo throughout the city it was that loud and powerful. The pride the cadets had for him soared hearing him say all that while facing down the guns pointed right at them.

"Captain Voormin," one of the Squad Leaders said, "his words are worth considering. Maybe we should-."

"Quiet!" Despite all that he heard, Voormin refused to listen to reason. Once again, he began to raise his hand to signal the cannon to fire.

It was as if time slowed down. Eren's hand went for his mouth, Mikasa's hand went for her sword, Armin's eyes widened in horror, and Dillon's eyes began to glow. It was going to be complete chaos in just a few seconds.

Then, a firm hand grabbed Voormin's arm, preventing him from going any further.

"That's enough," a grave voice stated. "You should really do something about your nervous disposition, Captain Voormin."

Stopping Voormin was a much older gentleman with a bald head and a gray mustache. Unlike the other soldiers, this man was more interested in talking things out.

At first, Dillon was shocked, but, as his eyes returned to normal, a smirk appeared on his face. They were saved.

"C-Commander Pixis," Voormin stuttered.

Pixis moved past him and stared at Armin, who somehow managed to stay still with his hand still on his chest. "Can you not see this soldier's heartfelt salute? I've only just arrived, and I'm quite aware of our situation. Gather our reinforcements. I think we can give these young soldiers the favor of hearing them out."

Armin's response was to sink to his knees, a relieved smile on his face.

"Cadets, I would like to have a word you on top of the Wall in ten minutes," he stated. "Should be enough time to get some water. You all look thirsty."

"Th-thank you, sir," Armin stuttered, feeling like he was about to faint.

Then, Pixis looked at the rooftops with a smile. "Ah, do my eyes deceive me, or is that you, Dillon?"

Surprised the attention was on him, he quickly saluted. "Yes, Commander. Good to see you again."

The older man chuckled. "My, my, have you grown. Tell me, is your mother still with that father of yours? If she's divorced him, I'm happy to be a shoulder to cry on."

Dillon's smile faltered. "No, Commander. They are still happily married."

Pixis let out a laugh. "Just my luck. Well, send them my well wishes when you can and tell your dad he's a lucky old dog."

The blacksmith resisted the urge to roll his eyes. The man had not changed. "Sir, permission to accompany my friends?"

"Request granted. Nine minutes."

Dillon let out a sigh of relief as he turned to the others. "That was too close."

"You're telling me," Jean replied. "So, why are you going with them?"

"Well, I want to help with the planning." It wasn't a lie, but that was only half the story.

"Try not to fall off," Annie warned. "It'll take weeks to clean up that mess."

Now, he rolled his eyes. "Love you, too, Annie."


Nine minutes later, Eren, Mikasa, Armin, and Dillon all approached Commander Pixis, giving him a salute.

"Let's take a stroll for a bit," he requested, walking down the path on the Wall while sipping something out his plastic flask. From the smell, it definitely wasn't water.

Quietly, the cadets followed him.

"Hey, Mikasa, can you still hear me?" Dillon asked.

"Yes," she answered. "I told Eren and Armin what were able to do."

It was so hard not to react to that. "You what!?"

"They won't tell anyone," Mikasa quickly promised. "In case things fell apart, I wanted them to know what you were willing to do, and they're grateful for it. We all were."

Since Dillon couldn't audibly sigh, he settled for a mental one. A flash of his eyes later, and all of them were linked. "So, she told you?"

"Yeah," Eren responded. "This is weird."

"Happens to first-timers. You get used to it."

"How is this possible?" Armin wondered.

"I inherited these abilities from my father. He's always had them, but his father died when he was young. Maybe it runs in the family."

"This is an incredible ability," Armin said. "Dillon, you could do so much with this."

"That's what I'm planning on," he assured. "By the way, don't worry about Commander Pixis. He's a good and reasonable man."

"You sound like you know him," Mikasa pointed out.

"Met him once when I was nine," Dillon explained. "Can't remember off the top of my head the circumstances, but it had something to do with one of my mom's cases. He said something about me having potential, and then he left. He's weird, but Mom thinks well of him."

Pixis turned to the edge of the Wall and looked down. Below him was a horde of Titans, arms outstretched towards him and jaws wide. The commander simply clicked his tongue, sounding disappointed. "Nope, not any of you. Eaten by a Titan wouldn't be so bad…if it was a sexy lady one."

Right, because gender is very important when your being grinded into mush. Dillon thought, shaking his head in annoyance.

Taking another sip of his drink, Pixis turned around. "Now, tell me what this is all about."

So, Eren began to divulge his life story as fast as he could, about how his father somehow turned him into a Titan after the fall of Wall Maria, and how he had the key to the basement which contained the secrets of the Titans.

"And that's that," Pixis said once he finished explaining. "So, visiting this cellar should clear everything up?"

"Yes, sir," Eren answered. "Well, at least I think so."

"For the moment, there is no way to validate all of the claims you've made." Pixis turned his head and pointed at his head. "For now, I'll just catalog them in here. With that said, I can usually tell the difference between the disputable and the sincere… which is why I personally guarantee your safety."

The cadets breathed sighs of relief.

The commander's eyes landed on Armin. "You're Cadet Armin Arlert. Is that correct?"

"Yes, sir," he responded, saluting.

"You mentioned the plan to harness this so-called Titan ability and then utilize your friend's power to retake the city," Pixis pointed out. "Do you believe it could work, or were you grasping at straws trying to save your hides?"

"Well, both, Commander," Armin admitted. "I was going to suggest that Eren, using his strength as a Titan, to lift that giant boulder."

"What giant boulder?" Dillon asked.

"There's a giant boulder that's a landmark in this city," Mikasa explained quickly.

"We could use it to block off the Titans' entry point." Armin let out a sigh. "That was the best idea I could come up with on the spot. I just wanted to make everyone see how Eren's ability might provide a solution to the problem we all face."

Pixis simply turned around, thinking about his solution.

"Granted, I was pretty desperate to survive," he admitted.

'"Desperate to survive,' huh?" Pixis repeated as he continued drinking. "That's as credible a reason as any, son." Wiping his mouth from any traces of drink, he walked to Eren and kneeled to his level. "What do you say, Cadet Yeager?"

"Say, sir?" Eren asked, confused.

"That hole," he elaborated. "Do you think that you can plug it up, son?"

Eren hesitated to give a definite answer. "Well, I-I don't know. It's possible… but at the moment, I don't understand my power any more than you do. It's just I feel that any answer I give would be irresponsible because I don't know."

"Ah, yes. Of course. My apologies. I asked you the wrong question," Pixis replied with sincerity, before a serious look invaded him. "Are you willing to, Cadet Yeager, or not?"

His green eyes widened as he felt the responsibility of the task come crashing down on him. Subtlety, Pixis gestured behind him and Eren looked back. So many houses with people living with them, and so much life that were contained in just Wall Rose alone. If he failed his duty, then every single person within Wall Rose would die. He made an oath to protect and serve humanity, and he couldn't let his doubts get in the way of that.

"I'll do it," Eren promised. "I'll do it! I don't know if I can seal that hole, but… I'll do it."

Pixis grinned, patting his soldiers. "Excellently said. You have the heart of a lion." He walked to another part of the wall and yelled, "Staff Officers, up! We have a plan to flesh out!"

Armin's eyes widened. "Wait, we can't actually be going forward with this-?"

"Armin, it's a good plan. Stop doubting it," Dillon interrupted, having enough. "If Pixis believes in your plan and Eren, then we're going through with it."

"He seems like a guy who knows what he's doing," Eren agreed. "He has it all under control, like he has a bird's eye view of the situation. Either way, we've got another problem to deal with before we can get your plan off the ground, and my gut tells me the commander's keenly aware of it."

"Which would be?" Armin wondered.

"Titans aren't our only foe," he said.

Immediately, Dillon thought of the MPs. Once they found out about this, things would get really interesting really fast.

Before they could ask him to elaborate, Pixis interrupted them. "Look sharp, soldiers!"' He was back with several officers behind him. "The fate of mankind rests on your shoulders."

The cadets thought the same thing: No pressure.


"ATTENTION!"

The soldiers that had been gathered at the base of wall were instantly silenced by the commander's shout.

"Take note," Pixis ordered. "The blueprint of the Trost Recovery Operation is this: our primary objective is to reseal the hole. Yes, you heard right. What's more, it will be done manually."

That caused several mutterings that doubted his claims.

"As for how the task will be done," he went on, indicating Eren, "that's where this fellow comes in. Allow me to introduce Cadet Eren Yeager!"

The teen simply gave a salute in response.

Dillon allowed himself another smirk as he thought about what the rest of the 104th was thinking right now.

"Don't let appearances fool you," Pixis warned. "This young man is in fact the successful product of cutting edge science. Fantastic as this may sound, Cadet Yeager possesses the ability to fabricate and control a Titan body at will. Recall the massive boulder roughly a league from the gate. Having assumed Titan form, Cadet Yeager will hold said boulder on his back, take it to the hole, and voilà! And this is where you all come in! Your job will be to defend him. Yes, defend a Titan against its own kind."

"They're lying," Daz screeched out from below. "I'm not gonna be drawn into sacrificing myself for this crap! We're just disposable tools to you people! You expect us to live and die by whatever comes out of your mouth!?"

This caused a domino effect where a sizable section of soldiers all started muttering their disbelief of this situation and started walking away. Some were too emotionally compromised to deal with this anymore, and others wanted to spend what time they thought they had left with their families.

Naturally, Voormin's response helped no one. "Traitors! I'll shoot you all where you stand!"

If this keeps up, there's gonna be a riot on our hands. Dillon thought with worry.

Pixis once again called for attention. "Anyone who wishes to leave…will by my personal order not be charged with treason! Those who have seen a Titan firsthand will not be expected to revisit such horror again! Whomever this applies to, you may leave with my blessing. Additionally, anyone with family or loved ones they would spare from the same problem may also leave. The crown will continue to recognize your service. Thank you, and good luck!"

The soldiers that were prepared to leave stopped dead in their tracks before turning back around and fell back into formation. They did not want to leave their loved ones to suffer at the hands of those monsters.

The commander went on. "Now, think back four years ago, namely the operation to retake Wall Maria!"

Dillon snorted. Is that what they called it?

"I bring it up because you all deserve to have your suspicions confirmed. Officially, we labeled it reconnaissance, but, in fact, as probably most of you know, it was little more than a purge. A thinly disguised exercise in population control. We knew this in our hearts. Of course we did, but we turned a blind eye. We supported the state-sponsored myth because the deaths of our fellow human beings allowed us to survive, pure and simple.

"The guilt is ours, and we share the blame. All of us. The citizens of Wall Maria sustained themselves on the wholesale slaughter of the refugees who'd flown to us for help, but turnabout is fair play, is it not? If Wall Rose succumbs, the population will fall by a whole other order of magnitude. The lands comprising Wall Sina would only support half the people now living. If we're wiped off the face of the Earth, the culprits will not have been the Titans, let me assure you. No, no, we'll have done it to ourselves! If the line isn't drawn now, it won't be drawn at all. If we must die, let us die here!"

Slowly, Dillon looked over the Wall behind him. He saw countless hordes of Titans wandering the city, looking for humans to devour. He saw the hole that allowed them to get in in the first place. Everyone would be counting on Eren to lift that boulder and seal the Wall, but so many people would die today. That being said, if he had to die to save humanity, so be it.


Remastered Edits: I didn't expect it this time, but after looking at it, I decided not to have Dillon stay with Mikasa and Armin. It wouldn't have really added to anything. Instead, I've decided to add some more flaws to Dillon as he struggles on the hardest lesson he has to learn: he can't control everything. Also, this gave way to some much-needed time for the friendship between Dillon and Jean. I'm hoping to continue on improving that friendship.