We reached further along the Wall, on the other side of the Gate, and noted that people had already left the other half of Hanji's mobile bomb. Conny, Sasha and Jean surrounded it to take a closer look. Cannons continued to fire, peppering the Titan with more holes, giving it some grotesque look. A shiver crawled up my spine at the sight of it and I shook my head to refocus. Glancing around one more time, I made sure I knew where the safety water was. Luckily for us, the wind was blowing the steam away from the city, hiding the fact that an actual gigantic Titan was closing in on us and that the evacuation drill wasn't really a drill. With the steam nowhere near us, there was no use for the water. Yet.
"Is anyone else praying that we can stop this thing?" Conny put out there, searching our faces.
"We'll have to rely on more than prayers to get through this." Jean murmured.
"Let's get this over and done with so I can grab some food, I'm freaking starving!" Sasha exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration.
"You just ate breakfast, Sasha."
"Your point being?"
Then, the worst happened.
Whether it was because I thought of it, or if Conny had stopped praying, or just out of sheer bad luck, the wind shifted heavily. Steam now blew up from the Titan and directly over the city. Even from up here on the Wall, a cloud of smoke enveloped the northern part of Orvud District and plunged the area into darkness. I shrieked in surprise as the hot steam blew right into our faces and covered my face with my arms. Shouts of shock and pain began to echo through the air, from all the soldiers on the Wall. I couldn't even imagine how it would be down on the ground. Hopefully, those soldiers were ready to retreat. Another gust of wind shoved more hot gas into us and I almost felt like my face was melting off.
"Fuck!" Levi and I both swore simultaneously.
"Fire!"
A distant cry ordered the Garrison and another round of cannonballs shot out at our opponent. Rod Reiss let out an ear-shattering roar as he took more hits. As the last of our cannons quietened, a screen of smoke and a deadly silence met us.
"Did we get it?" someone asked excitedly. This triggered a dejavu moment, as another had asked that very question just moments before.
"Shit." I breathed.
BOOM.
Something - that sounded like a muffled bomb going off - cleared the air before a terrifyingly large hand shot past us and into the sky. As more flesh and more steam reached for the sky, the smoke cloud decided to part for this once-in-a-lifetime appearance.
"Move!" yelled Levi, grabbing onto my green cloak and yanking me alongside him. Instincts kicking in, I also grabbed the closest person and shoved them in front of me as we sprinted. Jean, Sasha and Conny had snagged the mobile bomb and wheeled it in front of them as they ran. Looking over my shoulder, I witnessed the moment the hand came crashing back down to earth and right onto the top of the Wall. Tiles and debris flew from the impact, followed by screams of those caught too close. The force flattened over us. I stumbled, rolling to a stop on top of the good Captain. The Wall creaked as the Titan heaved itself up onto its two skinny legs. As those on the Wall regained their balance, so did the giant. My eyes widened in horror and a chorus of screams filtered into my ears as the citizens below began to panic.
The sight of its backside and shoulders pitted full of holes cause by the cannons, was nothing compared to its hidden front. To be exact, Rod Reiss had no front.
The Titan' face had been completely rubbed off, through the bone to almost halfway through the skull. Empty eye sockets gushed out blood. The brain pounded to some silent beat within the remaining half of the skull. There was no nose to be seen and the jaw had been totally shredded, with only a gaping hole to represent its mouth. More cries of fear tore through the area as the guts of the Titan poured out, with no front body to prevent it. A blood waterfall tipped over the Wall, raining down on the city below.
"Holy shit." I muttered, scrunching my nose at the smell.
"You have 2 seconds to get off me, Hazura."
"Sorry." I immediately leapt up off Levi, yelping when my hot clothes burned me. The steam from Rod Reiss' appearance must have heated them up to extreme temperatures.
"Close your eyes, Leader Rina!" Jean shouted over the noise. Following his direction, a douse of cold water spilled over me and I sighed in relief.
"Thanks Jean."
Dousing myself one more time for good measure, I stretched my limbs out, ready for action. The Garrison's time was over. Since the cannons didn't work, we had no choice but to go with Erwin's plan.
"Standby!" I called. Levi's squad rushed to the mobile bomb, miraculously still intact and steadied themselves. The left hand of the Titan was easy enough to aim for, being the biggest thing on the Wall. Levi returned from his talk to Rojas and I watched as the Garrison retreated to safer distances.
"How'd he take it?"
Levi shook his head. "He'll get over it."
"There!" Jean bellowed, pointing to the sky. Just beyond the smoke, was the distinguishable red from a signal flare. Erwin's code for: Attack.
"Shoot!"
Sasha triggered the wires and they shot out, anchoring deep into the Titan's hand. Another pull and the wires began reeling themselves back together, pulling the barrel of gunpowder with it.
"Go get themmmm!" Sasha roared, fist pumping. As the barrel collided with the flesh and the wooden container broke, the mere heat detonated the explosives and basically ripped the hand apart. The force pushed us all back a few steps, making us shield our faces from the heat. An amplified groan sounded from the Wall as Rod Reiss swayed, the humungous body shifting on its feet. Finally, it tipped past the point of no return, falling forward. The face smashed to the top of the Wall, the back of its head still bulleted with holes. The next thing I knew, was the familiar yellow lightning piercing from the heavens as another Titan transformed.
A growl shattered the air but I smiled at this – well acquainted to this sound.
Eren.