HELLO ONE AND ALL AND WELCOME- no, too much effort, I'll just get right to it. THANK YOU to all who tune into this massive ass storyline and I apologize for the delay in the update. Good but giant changes have happened so things are a little hectic until I get the hang of it, so please remain patient, I won't abandon you for too long hahahaha. Hopefully this intense and slightly-longer-than-usual chapter will make up for it :D

Enjoy!

Recap:

Brian saluted briefly, tapping his fist to his chest.

Good luck.

I grinned and did the same in response before dropping out of his sight.

"Officers at our 10 o'clock!" Linda warned, flicking her head in that direction. Without speaking further, the three of us veered to our right and disappeared into the city.

I spun and gave the soldier a punch to the face, effectively knocking him out. That's what you get for pulling onto my hair, you piece of s-

"Thanks." Jack puffed, dropping the MP he had in his hands. I reached up and quickly readjusted my ponytail, despite my hair looking like it went through a war all on its own.

"Don't stress. Let's keep moving." I flicked my head over to Linda, who was discreetly following the cart from the adjacent building.

The three of us had been following Eren and Historia through the Sina area but as expected, we had been bombarded with Military Police left and right. Strangely, we seemed to be heading in a north-west direction, rather than into the government area as we had thought. Seemed like something else was going on. Linda, Jack and I now crouched behind a slanting rooftop, peering over the edge at the horse and cart, which had stopped briefly at what seemed like a supply unit.

"Any more further out and there won't be anywhere for us to hide behind. It's all flat land out there." Linda murmured, chewing her lip.

"If they're bringing those two out there, there has to be some hidden building or landmark we don't know about." Jack agreed, his eyes glued to the scene. I sighed, running a hand through my messy hair, attempting to tame it somewhat and leaned my back against the rough tiles, gazing out behind us.

"Things are never-" I blinked as my mind registered a figure popping up from underneath.

Shit.

"-DUCK!" I yelled, grabbing both their collars and yanking them down with me. As expected, it was an MP and their shot thankfully went wild, flying over our heads.

"Go go go!" I chanted and quickly unsheathed a blade, launching it at the figure. With their ODM, the blade was harmless but gave enough time so the three of us could get out of there. Jack and Linda promptly heaved themselves over the roof. I followed hot on their heels, grabbing onto the ledge and swinging myself backwards over it. My fingers twitched, and my gas cannisters hissed in sync, forcing me away from the scene.

"Do we go for Eren?" Linda called, glancing back at me every now and again.

"We can't, it's too dangerous. Besides, we have enough intel." I shook my head.

Jack agreed. "Let's get back."

Another small explosion erupted to our left, jerking us out of our conversation and back to reality. Of course, we were getting hunted by the Military Police, who could forget? Bullets continued to richochet around our path, sprinkling debris and building stones onto the unsuspecting villagers below. Suddenly, there was a chorus of screams as a weak wall began to tumble off its foundations, tilting over the street and its occupants below. The townspeople scattered, yells and piercing wails in the air. Then Linda took a dive abruptly, leaving Jack and I bewildered at her action and with us still soaring forward.

"What the hell? Linda!" I exclaimed. Nodding at each other, Jack and I whirled back around. Just as we did, Linda swooped in like an angel from above, and tackled a little girl from underneath the falling wall. Jack tutted in annoyance.

"I know you have a big heart but at least give us some notice!" he shouted.

Then time slowed as I watched the wall collapse on itself and hurtled towards Linda and the girl she saved.

"Linda!" I yelled, my eyes widening in horror.

Jack and I abruptly back-tracked to our comrade as she began moaning loudly in pain. A large section of roof had collapsed on her, pinning both legs underneath the massive weight. Jack shot straight to Linda and tried heaving the rubble off her. I went to face the incoming MPs head on, hoping to buy Jack some time. I gritted my teeth together and took a swipe at the blonde MP as soon as he came within my reach. Our blades clashed violently, a metallic ring sounding from the impact. I reeled away backwards before I lost my height. Glancing over, the little girl which Linda had rescued now lay motionless a few feet away, surrounded by smaller pieces of rubble.

"The girl…" Linda groaned, her face contorted from the pain no doubt frying her brain.

"You first." Jack grunted, heaving again, sweat running down his forehead. My feet made contact with a building wall and I took the free second to replace my blades, the dull grey metal dropping to the stones below.

"Rina, please…"

I gasped as another MP joined the fray unexpectedly, dropping in from above. I raised my arms just in time, my weapons blocking the point attack.

"I'm a little busy at the moment!" I exclaimed, twisting the attack away from me. The MP dropped past, gravity helping me for a minute.

"Rina, I can't get Linda out from here, it's too heavy to lift!" Jack shouted.

There was a sudden shriek as the little girl became conscious again and began bawling her eyes out. I instinctively rolled my eyes. Kids weren't really my thing, let alone bawling kids. However, it soon died down as a nearby villager hurried out and swept the child away to safety.

There was a small click, jerking me out of my thoughts. My legs instantly vaulted off the building and the stones exploded as the ODM bullet hit it. The explosion lit a light bulb in my head and I blinked as it registered. The ODM had enough power to transform buildings into rubble. It had enough power as a tiny bomb did.

"Hazura!"

Clashing of swords soon resonated from down below as Jack engaged with a stray MP, leaving Linda to her own devices. My right arm swung downwards, easily cutting into the flesh of my attacker, catching him on the shoulder. I grunted as the man began to scream and put my entire weight onto the blade. Another movement and I cut right through the limb. The man's screams intensified as he lost his balance and tumbled to the ground. The vocals suddenly silenced themselves, as his head collided with the stone cobbled street.

I flipped mid-air and landed gracefully, blades still brandished. Then there was a bang and my left arm abruptly jerked forward, the blade flying out of my grip. Then a brief but piercing pain shot through my arm and I shrieked involuntarily as the bullet grazed the upper layers of the skin. Anger erupted and surged to my head, pivoting my posture around to face behind me. My right arm flicked forward, hurling my remaining blade at the attacker, nailing him right in his left shoulder. Blood spurted from the wound and the MP moaned in agony, stumbling backwards.

"Hazura!"

"I'm working on it!" I growled. Instinctively pulling out another blade, I whirled on the spot, eyes frantically searching for it. Noises of brawls, screams and yells faded away as I tried to hone in my senses. Where the hell was i-

There!

My boots crunched over the stone ground as I sprinted and threw myself at the dismembered arm from before. It wasn't the arm I was aiming for…but the gun that the hand still clutched. Skidding to a stop beside it, I hastily ripped the gun from the fingers, averting my eyes from the bloody end. Jamming my finger into the trigger, I swung and fired. The power from the shot jerked my arm back and I winced at the unfamiliar feeling. The bullet rocketed through the air and met its' target. The MP from before froze in his tracks, his own gun loaded at pointed towards me, before slowly tipping onto his back.

Sucking in a deep breath, I twisted on my butt, moving to aim the barrel in Linda's direction. Despite the immense pain she must have been in, her eyes widened dramatically.

"Wait, Rina-!"

BANG!