Creation began on 02-06-22
Creation ended on 02-26-22
Attack on Titan
Attack on Titan: Compromise
A/N: Finding middle ground can be dangerous, but when you have a common foe, there is always a way to come to terms.
When they had to look at the situation from his perspective, it did seem like he was trying to stay in the middle of the problem so he could eventually get to the solution without being in control, despite his situation being one of potentially taking control. But Erwin, Hange and Levi couldn't fault Eren Yeager for trying to stay in the Garrison over being in the Military Police or his former passion to join the Survey Corps and leave the life behind the Walls; if he had joined the Military Police, he'd be in the service and mercy of the nobility within Wall Sina if they ever learned of his Titan powers, and if he joined the Survey Corps, he'd endanger the whole group if there were multitudes of Titans because they'd be attracted to the power of the Founder. From his perspective, the Garrison was the moral choice; he would stay close to the safety of the Walls, but he would still protect the people of his own volition. But now, Eren had to reevaluate everything now that these three and Reiner, Bertolt and Annie were informed of what was going on, both here on Paradis and out in the world now that his twin, his brother, his negative emotions, violent hatred towards any that were against the very idea of life beyond the Walls and whatever else he could've felt anger about, was loose out there, unbound by anyone or anything, empowered by the Attack Titan (and whatever other Titan powers he might've taken from whoever else possessed the power of the Titans before him), ruthlessly killing anybody and everybody he viewed as a threat to his desire for freedom, which was why he fought against the world and everyone in it.
But I changed most of the future he saw, he thought as he sighed, leading the trio down the stairs of his father's cellar study to show them what he had found with Armin and Mikasa. This threat that was made long ago by Karl Fritz, after he made the Walls, the Rumbling, can no longer be implemented; the Titans still sleep within the Walls, but I'll turn them back into people. I just need to ensure that the people are away from the Walls before I can do that. The Founding Titan showed me what has changed. He will return, his hatred towards me compelling him to travel across all opposition…just to do away with me.
The previous future, no different from a nightmare to him now, and one that deserved to be forgotten by all, was of bloodshed and pain that wouldn't be forgiven by anyone that had a conscience. Titans massive and many, walking across the planet, sending countless lives back to their makers, regardless of whether they were old and on their deathbed…or barely a day old and defenseless. Friends and loved ones being lost, left and right, all over creation. And in the end, his life had been ended, ending the misery he had caused for his short-lived freedom.
But the new future, still being etched, showed more hope than despair. While he still saw his dark twin committing murder to remain free, it was mostly limited to the Marleyan nation. There were survivors, and they would help rebuild their ravaged homeland. There would be a final battle…and whoever fell was the one that had everything to lose, for better or for worse.
"Here," he told them, putting the key into the slot in his father's desk, opening the hidden drawer and revealing his books. "Everything my father knew during his time, all written in these books."
"Has anyone else seen these books?" Erwin asked him.
"Only my friends, Mikasa and Armin. I've asked them not to tell anyone else about this."
"Can these two be trusted?" Levi questioned.
"I grew up with them. I trust them enough to know that they won't tell anyone they know they shouldn't. My father couldn't tell anyone while he was here…and he was manipulated into making choices that were grievous and unforgivable. So, the question should be…can you three be trusted to do right by the people and let them know the truth that the world beyond the Walls hasn't fallen to the Titans, that it's far from the truth?"
Erwin, for years ever since his father died, wanted to believe that the world beyond the Walls was not what he and countless had been led to believe it was. For years, he wanted to disbelieve the books of the world's history that stated that the people within the Walls were all that was left of the human race, and now… Now, his and his father's suspicions had been confirmed by these three books; the world beyond the Walls hadn't fallen…but were now being attacked by a wayward teenager that was just so full of spite…and they had to find a way to stop him.
"How dangerous is your evil twin if he had more Titan power?" Hange asked Eren.
"He'd be next to unstoppable against anyone that couldn't take him on or rein him in," he answered her. "There are nine different Titans that possess different measures of power. A person with more than one Titan would have access to any of them depending on the circumstances, but one of them would be the primary power over the other ones. So far, he has only three Titan powers to speak of: The Attack Titan, the Beast Titan and the Cart Titan."
"What powers do the other two Titans possess?" Levi asked.
"The Beast Titan is a seventeen-meter freak of nature that takes the form of whatever animal that has ever lived. Sometimes a wolf, sometimes a goat, sometimes a monkey, bird, rhino, crocodile, whatever. However, whoever ends up with the Beast Titan would be limited to whatever form the Titan took with them, whether it was a wolf, goat or even a horse; they can't change the form the Beast takes once they have it. The Cart Titan is the smallest member of the nine at four meters, weak durability and slow regeneration speed, but compensates for being able to stay active for longer periods of time…and the person that has it can turn into it multiple times so long as they have the endurance to keep it up. Combine the Attack Titan with these two Titans, it'll likely be a greater threat with longer stamina."
"And the other Titans?" Erwin needed to know. "The Colossal, Armored and Female?"
"And the Jaw and War Hammer. The Colossal is the largest member…when you're not exploiting the full power of the Founder, and can cause great harm to wherever it's unleashed upon triggering a transformation. The Armor is basically a walking wall of hardened skin that grants it greater durability and it demonstrated that it could plow through the gates of the Walls once it has generated enough running force. The Female is nimble, has a more feminine build, and has often been able to assimilate the abilities of the other Titans after eating pieces of their flesh. If Marley started experimenting with the Female Titan not long after they got it, it probably only gained minute abilities associated with the other Titans they had in their possession. The Jaw Titan is the fastest member of the nine and has claws and teeth that could rip through just about anything not as strong as metal or diamond. The person that has this Titan now is just a lone guardian protecting someone that needs to be protected from whoever could cross the line. The person being protected and the protector aren't even members of the nobility, so they deserve to be left alone. I won't drag them into the mud with anyone else."
"How can you be sure they won't try anything?" Erwin questioned him.
"Because a member of the nobility sent one of them away to die by the Titans. I ended up sending both of them back to the nobility…to live."
"How big is the Jaw Titan?" Hange asked.
"One meter bigger than the Cart Titan, so it's not too menacing."
"The War Hammer?" Levi suggested.
"Fifteen meters, able to manipulate Titan flesh to create weapons or defenses."
"Why the name, though? War Hammer, I mean?"
"The war hammer is a signature weapon in any battle. It doesn't really have to bother with the war hammer, but it enhances its intimidation. But the person with this Titan wouldn't have to be in the nape of the Titan to control it; they'd just have to be immobile, encased in crystal, but still conscious of everything happening around them."
Erwin looked at the photo of Grisha Yeager with the woman and the little boy.
"You believe this boy in this photo, this…Zeke Yeager…is truly dead? Killed by your evil twin?" He asked Eren.
"I know he's dead," Eren responded; he'd seen his dark side turn Titan and eat Zeke to acquire his Beast Titan and this girl that had the Cart Titan, adding their powers to his own. "My twin, he only let him live long enough to get whatever information he could out of him…and then he ate him like he was a piece of meat. And then he ate the girl with him for her Cart Titan. Any information they didn't share with him would likely come in bits and pieces later…if he even cares much for it."
"What are the chances of him taking the power of whoever has the War Hammer Titan?" Hange wanted to know.
"Not that high. Even with Titan strength, he couldn't break through hardened Titan flesh without something strong enough to harm it severely. Unfortunately, the War Hammer can't be used freely as the other Titan powers can be; you'd probably only be able to use it for twenty minutes before feeling fatigue. Any longer and you risk suffering extreme exhaustion that could take days to recover from."
"And only Eldians…Subjects of Ymir…can be turned into Titans?"
"That was once the case, but not anymore. I made sure of that."
"Eren," Erwin spoke, "how likely are our chances of defeating your twin? With Braun, Hoover and Leonhart's aid? If they can be trusted?"
"I'm only telling you because he's more dangerous than you can imagine right now, but you should stay away from him. We're only alike in one way, and that's knowing what will happen before it even happens. He sees the future and can choose to deviate. The Founder could see the future and was unable to change it until as of late with me."
"And what future do you see now?"
"He still kills people…but he comes back here to kill me."
"And…"
"I fight him…but I don't see anything after that. If any of you try to face him, he'll kill you without thinking twice about it. The Attack Titan sees what's going to happen before it even happens and deviates. It's always looking ahead."
"But it never looks back?"
"It sort of defeats the purpose of moving forward."
-x-
"…It's just one Titan, sir?" A man asked a soldier as he was being informed of the situation in Marley.
"One Titan, but it's managed to cause so much damage and kill so many people, and it's not stopping," the soldier informed him. "We estimated that it has killed over twenty-thousand people, Eldian and Marleyan, along with people from other parts of the world that were living as refugees. This Titan doesn't seem to care who it kills, just as long it kills them."
Willy Tybur, the current head of the Tybur family, the keepers of the War Hammer Titan, looked through binoculars at the Titan as it devastated another coastal town, seeing how this Titan was just being brutal with every step it took and every swing of its arms. This was no mindless Titan, not even in the most rudimentary sense. No, this Titan…was deliberately attacking them…but the way it was attacking them was like…some pouty child throwing a tantrum. If there was one thing he knew that was more dangerous than anyone wielding the power of the Titans, it was a pouty child wielding the power of the Titans.
"Can the War Hammer Titan handle this?" A general asked Willy.
"It's Marley's absolute last resort at a time like this, General Calvi," he answered.
-x-
If Erwin had to fault Eren, or this side of Eren, for anything he said, it was just his sense of being able to defend the actions and criticism of whoever was looking to blame others. But Eren was right about the actions of Marley and Paradis regarding the Warriors and his dark side; although the former nation had sent children to attack the people living there with only half-truths and lies about something they were unaware of, and while it was Reiner Braun that insisted that they go on the attack to draw out the Founding Titan, everything they did could be held against their nation…just like how everything Eren's dark side did with the Attack Titan could be held against Eren himself, as he acted without any authority and wasn't representing the people's interests, only his own. And he was right; anything these young people did as a consequence of being sent into what they believed to be enemy territory could be held against the people responsible for sending them to begin with…and the Attack Titan Eren Yeager was solely responsible for the backlash of violence currently being unleashed on Marley because his actions did not represent the actual intentions of Paradis, thus making him a rogue, an outcast, someone that took chances and made actions without any understanding or acceptance of the consequences. So…as long as the three teens could be trusted not to attack the people any further and help them get across the ocean water, making it to Marley (or any other nation that could still be reached by them), stop the Attack Titan before it could ravage the rest of the world, they could be allowed to walk away from the penalty of their violence from before they turned themselves in and were vouched for by Eren; there was no amount of retribution that would undo anything they do, but they could walk away and overlook their crimes and let them live to make sense of their futures if the people they lost because of the Attack Titan were gone.
And as for Eren himself, there was no telling if he, with only the Founding Titan in his possession, could best the Attack Titan. Because the Founding Titan hadn't been used beyond being passed down throughout the generations in secret every thirteen years, it was uncertain if the young man could best his opposite, who would've, undoubtedly, had all the time he needed to practice his abilities. This meant that they would need to train him.
"You're taking this better than I had expected you to," he heard Levi say to him.
"He's not so secretive about anything he has revealed, except with wanting to keep certain people out of harm's way," Erwin responded, looking through the book that Grisha had written explaining what technology Marley had at the time he was living in that nation prior to his would-be death sentence of wandering around Paradis as a mindless Titan. "Whoever he's intent of protecting, he's committed to keeping their identities anonymous; one of them has the Jaw Titan, and they protect the other person. He said a member of the nobility had sent them to die against the Titans, but he sent them back to the nobility to live. If they were in the Cadet Corps for a time, they probably joined the Military Police. That's about the safest way to avoid the Titans, taking shelter within Wall Sina where they are never concerned about being attacked by anyone except other people that have the basest sense of greed."
"Do you aim to go after this person after he requested that they be left alone?"
"No. Not unless there's no other alternative and something happens that brings us to having to meet with this person. Where's Yeager now?"
"He's atop the wall in Shiganshina District doing his sentry duty with the Garrison; they don't know anything, and he's just minding his own business."
"And Braun, Hoover and Leonhart?"
"Still in holding. How long do you plan of keeping them confined?"
"Until the next expedition, two days from now."
Reiner, Bertolt and Annie were to be the Survey Corps' escort to wherever it was they were dropped off at when they first arrived on Paradis. If there was a ship or someone that was still around, then they would have transport for when they would be ready to venture into enemy territory and attempt to establish communication with the rest of the world before the Attack Titan destroyed it. Hopefully, there would be very few Titans to face if the Attack Titan had cleared out all opposition remaining on the island.
"Do you see any reason not to trust them?" Erwin asked Levi.
"They attacked us five years ago," he stated the obvious, "caused the deaths of thousands of people, and just a few weeks ago, attempted the same thing a second time, but didn't get very far. How can we be certain they won't try to kill us when we're out there in the open, no matter what Yeager says about them?"
"Because if Yeager is right, and part of the reason they're here to begin with is to find the Founding Titan, take it and return home, then what they wanted after being here for five years is no longer waiting for them because of his evil twin, meaning they were sent on a fool's errand. Their home and the people that they hoped to return to are gone, killed by someone that didn't even know a thing about them, that had never even met them. It's cruel and intolerable, but if going home and being free from discrimination and people's hatred was their reward for capturing the Founding Titan, the reward was taken away from them, leaving them nothing but their lives left to make do however they can."
"The world is cruel."
"The world is cruel," Eren had mentioned, "except that it's only cruel when people choose to be cruel to others in it. It's learned behavior. You see a turtle and turn it on its back on purpose because you felt like it, that's being cruel. You see a turtle and leave it alone because it hasn't done anything wrong to you, then that's not being cruel. You force children to become soldiers because you see someone else that you've never even met to talk with as an enemy that has to be fought against due to conflicting beliefs, thinking that your way is the right way, then you're being cruel. But you tell kids that they can be whatever they want when they grow up, depending on how much they want to be whatever it is that they want in life…then that's not being cruel. That's just being accepting."
For someone that joined the military with the initial aim to join the Survey Corps, only to instead join the Garrison, Eren Yeager is very…tamed for a person that's been stripped of his bad attitude and propensity towards acting out, Levi thought.
But this side of Eren Yeager that was willing to talk with them, with or without the Founding Titan, wasn't that much of a pushover. He was just trying to be open to all alternatives because he didn't have his negative half making him act out without thinking clearly, wanting to choose the least likely possibility that promised the least amount of violence and repercussions on all sides involved. But if he lacked control over the Titan this Marley had been after, there would be no way to resolve this matter with his other half if simply talking things over was impossible.
"I don't trust this Yeager unless he can control his Titan," he told Erwin.
-x-
The next city to be attacked by the Titan had a population of over forty-thousand people, and they were afraid of it due to its brutality. For years after learning of it, they feared what was referred to as the Rumbling, an event where the world was destroyed by the marching footsteps of many, many Colossal Titans should Paradis ever become threatened by the people of the outside world. However, this was only one Titan, but it was one Titan that kept attacking their homes, killing their loved ones, slaughtering them without any sign of stopping, as though the person inside the Titan was full of nothing but anger at everything and everyone, choosing to view the world as their enemy. But even as they ran for their lives or hid underground, the civilians held onto hope that this Titan would be stopped by Marley; they had received word that the Tybur family would stand up to the Titan with their own Titan and put an end this slaughter.
"Are you sure your family can deal with this Titan, Mr. Tybur?" A general asked Willy as they saw the Titan smash another building.
"What other choice is there?" Willy responded. I just hope he can handle the Titan before he tires himself out. He was supposed to be enjoying his retirement before this happened.
Moments later, the ground shook and a glossy-skinned Titan emerged from the ground, looking muscular and wearing what looked like some sort of mask made of the same material as the rest of the bodysuit-like form it possessed, covering its face, eyes and all, leaving only a pair of slits for the mouth to be viewed through. It stood around fifteen meters, the same height as the enemy.
The other Titan looked at it and just yelled an inane roar, stomping its feet on the street beneath them and smashing its arms through two buildings.
"Rrrrrraaurgh!" It shrieked as it then charged towards the enemy Titan.
The War Hammer Titan raised its arms up and summoned a wave of spikes from out of the ground, some of which impaled the other Titan and sent it up several feet into the air. Then, as if affected by such a simple move, the War Hammer Titan dropped to one knee and looked as though it was panting from exhaustion.
Willy Tybur saw this and was worried for the person inside the Titan; the War Hammer was powerful, but couldn't be used excessively like the other Titan powers could. It used more energy from the user and could only be used in moderation, otherwise risking the user being fatigued for days afterward. Then, he watched as the War Hammer got back up and raised its left hand up, generating something long from it.
Inside the other Titan, the young man felt only contempt at being impeded by a surprise attack from people he could care less for. But he refused to stop just because he was impeded at the moment; to stop fighting was to cease moving towards freedom, and freedom was all he lived for, wanting it more than anything else in his life. He willed his Titan to grab the spike impaling him and began to remove himself from the impalement.
-x-
Just under his feet within the wall were the countless people that had been turned into Titans by Karl Fritz over a century ago. He wanted to set them free, to return them to humanity, to let them live their lives…but he couldn't. Not yet. But he swore that he would, no matter what happens; if the Founding Titan still possessed the power to command all but the Attack Titan, it could mitigate the suffering the people here felt for years because of the Titans.
Then, Eren looked back down at Shiganshina, the home he and everyone else that wanted to come back for so long among the rest of Wall Maria…and felt nothing but relief that the people that returned and were able to reclaim their homes. There had been no Titan sightings beyond the Smiling Titan that had disappeared, and with some carefulness in integrating her into the city populace, Eren was able to get Dina Fritz-Yeager setup with her own life in Shiganshina as what she did during her time in Marley, before she met and married Grisha, which turned out to be a florist, which surprised Eren, as he thought someone like Dina was a teacher or baker.
"Can you stop your dark side?" Dina had asked him.
"I won't let him kill me if it comes to that," he had replied. Even if he's had five years to master and hone his abilities with the Attack Titan, I refuse to let him feel that his way is the only way. A Titan that can never listen to others, even when they have opinions, criticism or just ideas of what should be done instead of the outright desire to cause pain and death to others, is not a Titan that has the people's interests at heart. Instead of being kept as a deterrent, he just goes right ahead to the case and comes to blows with anyone he decides to take out. Sure, he protected the people here from the Titans in one sense, but only because he wanted to fight. He may be the darkest part of me, but he doesn't really care about anyone; he'd kill his own friends if it meant being free.
Compromise was the best way to come to terms with others when they disagreed on something or everything…but when Eren thought about his evil twin, the fact that he was just himself when he threw a fit whenever he couldn't have his way or when someone spoke their mind and he couldn't agree with them, whether it was the truth or not, there didn't seem to be any way either one could agree to what should be best for everyone, Eldian or not. One wanted to live in a world where there would always be an opportunity for all to have the chance to coexist…and the other wanted only to be free of any threats that existed in it by destroying anyone that could try and stop him. A young man stripped of his anger that wanted to believe in stability and peace for everyone…and a young man stripped of his morale constraints that reveled in the instability he caused due to the loss of morality. Two sides of the same whole…and yet neither one half probably felt like they needed the other half.
"Neither one can truly live while the other continues to survive," he thought he heard someone say sometime ago. "They who possess the power of the Titans that refuse to be melded together after being divided between the two opposing powers, one embracing benevolence and the other full of malevolence, locked in a feud of hope against hate. So long as they each possess the power to refuse the other, there will be no peace between the divided ones. One must overcome the other. Either hope overpowers hate…or hate consumes hope. Neither one can truly live while the other continues to survive."
Feeling like he got the wind knocked out of him, Eren leaned over one of the parapets, panting.
"Neither can… We were divided by the powers…and we haven't even spoken to each other. How can there be no peace between us?" He wondered, worried.
-x-
Even when impaled ten times, even after having half his head smashed to pulp, the Attack Titan refused to submit against the War Hammer Titan. But as the Attack Titan's head regenerated, the War Hammer Titan had evaporated from sight, leaving nothing but vapor.
"Rrraurgh!" The Attack Titan growled, enraged by the enemy's escape.
Unfortunately, while the two were engaged in combat, the military was able to evacuate the civilians that remained in the city.
"Grandfather, are you alright?" Willy asked his grandfather, the current War Hammer Titan, who was rescued by three of the Tybur family's personal bodyguards.
"That Titan was so full of rage," the elderly Tybur informed his grandson, looking dehydrated. "It was the most aggressive Titan I've ever seen."
"We need to gather all of our remaining forces and take this Titan down," the general decreed.
Except the grandfather feared that they wouldn't have the time needed to stop this Titan. He was also afraid that this Titan was the other member of the Nine Titans that Marley was never able to acquire: The Attack Titan, a Titan that couldn't be controlled because it refused to deviate from the chosen path it took. Based solely upon the memories of those that had the War Hammer before he did, he had to consider that this was the Attack Titan, the one that opposed all other authorities in existence in favor of personal freedom to do as it pleased. A Titan that felt like it was entitled to do as it wanted, having carte blanche, without any restraint, was a threat to everyone here and around the world.
It only moves forward, he thought as he and Willy were escorted away from the city by their bodyguards. It refuses to stop for anything. It never deviates and always strives to be ahead of others. Even if it's not wrong to want the future, this Titan will destroy everything that exists. It's its own doomsday.
To be continued…
A/N: And here we are. Any that could see a reference to one other franchise in this chapter will be mentioned in the next chapter. The two nations have their doubts about their enemies and allies, but only one will get to decide which is good or bad, and Eren's two halves are more problematic than ever because one has never exploited their power and the other refuses to be tolerant of others. How far do you suspect this will persist?