Ecstatic wouldn't be an appropriate term to use for a fellow commanding officer but Rita Iglehaut was positively radiant. Considering she ordered all her soldiers to the town hall, perhaps a bit too radiant for her own good. Most of her young soldiers were just as happy as she was, smiling to themselves as they stood in rank. The good doctor was much more quiet, his glasses rested comfortably and he impassively looked over the small regiment. Without even protocol, Rita saluted her soldiers and went off about their mission. Whatever useful she had to say, Miche's squad would tell him later. He turned and went off with 2 scouts to the isolated holding cell of Bernhardt the runaway MP.

What do they have to run from? Barmaids?

Bernhardt as it turned out was a strong wiry man, and gifted a body for tanking ODM-Gear maneuvers.

"Oh? I was sure it would be former employees that came to collect me. What with the cruelty of taking away my food rations…"

He was saying something, but all Miche could think about was how frustratingly trivial a duty like prisoner transfer was. Safer, but he didn't dedicate his heart to a feather bed. Even with the cuffs on him Bernhardt's eyes were flashing around too observantly for anyone's good. Miche shook his head to clear his scattered thoughts and in that instant Bernhardt moved.

One scout was at his back and another at the far end of the corridor with Miche in between. In hindsight it was spacing them so far apart was an error but capturing humans was never a mission for them. Bernhardt elbowed the scout behind him and smoothly took ownership of the handles of the scouts ODM gear. He fired an anchor straight at Miche, accuracy unfailing as the scout near the door rushed closer. Miche quietly sidestepped the anchor as it lodged into the wall of the corridor and grasped it with a firm hand. He yanked the taut cable towards himself to stumble Bernhardt, but the scout on the floor did nothing to slow Bernhardt's fall and the much larger man leaped over the fallen scout.

He charged Miche with nothing but the heavy iron cuffs on his wrist and swung them at the his chin, Miche bent out of the way, Bernhardt smelled slightly starved, which was all the more fortunate.

Miche would hate to have the smell of a dead man's dump lingering around him. He took another step back, vaguely aware off the scout behind him too close for comfort. Miche lightly redirected another blow, sidestepped a clumsy kick from Bernhardt's less dominant leg. Before the MP could put his leg down and regain his balance, Miche tilted and replied the failed blow in kind. His left leg going straight for the side of Bernhardt's kneecap, the leg barely scraped the knee and Bernhardt was quick to grab the leg. He tried once again to tip Miche and lost control of his own balance. Miche ripped free and easily moved in close, quickly wrappinng his left arm over Bernhardt's nape and bringing him down face first into the ground with a resounding crunch. The scout didn't wait to look at the face of the MP and he crashed his face into the brick floor again and again.

One whiff of Bernhardt's bloodied face and he knew he never wanted to lose his own nose in such a brutal manner.

"Hmph."

Another whiff

"Too much arrogance."

With a signal, they hauled their truculent prisoner out into the sunlight to the noose of excitable Rita. The soldiers around were an inch short of shouting and cheering as the criminal was hauled out into the sunlight. Grisha was up on the stage instead and none too happy at the sudden shift in focus.

When they turned back to face him he continued talking about the situation within the walls including the government's purge of Wall Marians.

"As soldiers of the king we don't believe you'll be pushed back into Wall Maria but your families will certainly be ordered to join the reclamation. With no training and no gear, it's unlikely they will last a week in Titan territory. Survivors will be the few the Titans were too full to eat. I know I don't have to tell you how miniscule that number is expected to be." Grisha paused to take in his dampened audience.

"We are informing the populace of Quinta that they may return to Wall Maria if they wish. Afterwards, you may inform your families that refugees will be residing in Wall Maria. That is all."

Mitras| 12 hours later

The exact words to describe the current situation escaped Erwin. The Armored Titan had shown up at the Reiss Homestead, murdered everyone there and run off into the distance. His tracks were found leading to a particular spot where he must have dropped and evaporated. And Erwin's orders from the council…

Were to continue his presentation. It took every bit of his willpower not to risk entertaining the wonderful thought that they would soon be deposed.

Then decomposed.

No. Breathe

Any hint of defiance on his face could spell the end.

"The refugees from the other cities, as we suspected, can confirm that their districts were not directly compromised. The only breach in Wall Maria is in the south. Which as a consequence cut off Mankind..."

A map of the Walls was beside him as he droned on about the state of the Walls to the king on a stolen chair far away. His disinterest was formerly puzzling (but no longer), but the pompous assemblymen were far more distracted; Mismatched buttons, wandering eyes, biting fingers. The contrast was painfully obvious from their previous looks of disdain, with faces pressed together with distaste at being in his presence, their eyes once narrowed like hawkish fingers ready to tear apart any opening and cut down the funding for the slightest excess.

Could it be?

He looked at the present Priest of the Walls.

"Yet despite all this it appears the number of Titans is very thin when contrasted with the direct onslaught we faced outside the Walls. You could say, that Wall Maria continues to protect her children even when breached."

"..."

Erwin praised the Walls and he got no reaction? It was one thing to be under a suicidal leader, but if they were all going to lead humanity to die without a fight?

Then the Kingdom of Fritz would have to do a house-keeping, at the very top.

I never guessed there was this much work in becoming Commander.

-o-

As soon as he was dismissed, Erwin left the stables and raced off to the nearest barracks in Mitras. If he hadn't been in such a hurry he might have noticed the brown-haired shifter and the blond-girl eyeing him from the crowd.

Quinta

The people crowded in the late titan's square, thankfully the monster wouldn't be disturbing them again and its demise had won them good will with the people. The same people were milling about and waiting for Grisha to take the stage with curiosity.

I might as well get it over with.

"People of Quinta, the time has come for you to return to the rest of mankind!"

Silence.

Well that was a possible, no matter how unwanted, response.

"The government has prepared refugee camps for all of you to sleep in and food will be rationed out to you. Of course, you will be relocated to suitable farms and plantations for easy food distribution, anyone who wishes to join the reclamation army, will as I've heard be given the available tools. Please be prepared to leave by dusk two days from now."

As innocently as he could manage he quickly left the stage and went back to his carriage. Unless they had an odd love for tents and starvation without lying to them he'd at least made clear they weren't entering a profitable deal. Rita had wanted otherwise, "Let as many want to go leave!"

If she had her way, he'd have proclaimed the recapture of Wall Maria and free land benefits. But… that wouldn't have been right. Keeping knowledge from people never was.

As much as it left a bitter taste in his mouth, he'd done the same by not mentioning that the reclamation draft would be most certainly mandatory.

When can this end?

You fool, the thought came unbidden. We're only setting up.

A/N: The chapters took a while in coming and my profound gratitude for the reviews dropped!

Erwin and Grisha are playing their own first moves in a chess game with three players, I hope to improve on their characterization over time especially for Erwin.

Looking forward to That Bright Dawn!