Previously:

Before Eren could react, they both transformed into titans. Eren was almost blown away by the explosion of steam along with everyone else, but Reiner caught him in his titan hand.

"Agh!" Heidi groaned as she slammed into the top of the wall, rolling from her momentum. Her eyes widened when she saw the stretchers sail past her.

"… Nh?!" Historia grunted as she also hit the top hard. Bertolt reached over her head with his massive titan arm and snatched Ymir from the air. "—?!" she gasped in alarm. "Ymir!!" Reiner jumped down from the wall with Eren in his hand.

"Wh… Eren!!" Armin yelled. Eren squeezed his eyes shut against the rush of air as Reiner slid down the wall. Tears leaked from his eyes as they fell together. He remembered sitting and talking to them in their bunks during training. The smiles on their faces. 'Reiner… Bertolt… You… traitooors!!!' he thought angrily with a monstrous glare, digging his teeth into his hand. Mikasa, who was hanging from the wall, watched with wide eyes as Eren transformed into a titan in midair, breaking Reiner's grip on him.


Chapter 32: The Armored Titan


Eren delivered a powerful punch to the Armored Titan's face. Both of them plummeted to the ground, landing with a loud boom.

"Eren!!" Mikasa shouted. She looked up at the Colossus Titan, which was only partially formed on top of the wall, with the upper half of the body fully formed. She gritted her teeth and furrowed her brow. 'If only… I could've done it right… and lopped both of their heads off!' she thought. It was our best chance… I should have been able to do it. … Why?' She remembered their terrified faces as she attacked them. "..." She looked back down at Eren and Reiner. 'It was the last chance… I won't get another one.'

Up on top of the wall, Betolt raised the giant fist that wasn't holding Ymir. Hange's eyes widened.

"All troops!! Get off the wall!!" Hange ordered, and the soldiers all quickly scrambled to get away as Bertolt's fist smashed into the wall where they had been standing. Armin saw Heidi was being blown away and reached out his hand to her. Heidi grabbed it and held onto him, and he pulled her to safety. Sasha grabbed Connie, and Nifa grabbed Historia.

"He got Ymir…!" Historia cried in alarm, not wanting to leave her.

"Wha?!" Keiji exclaimed when he looked up and saw that not only was that true, but he had grabbed someone else as well. "He got one more!!" Bertolt tossed both Ymir and the other unfortunate soul into his giant mouth. Everyone stared, horrified, as Bertolt closed his mouth and they disappeared from sight.

"He ate them!!!" someone yelled.

"Th-This can't be..." Sasha said, horrified.

"Bertolt..." Armin said with wide eyes, shocked.

"Maybe not!!" Heidi said. The Female Titan tried to carry Eren away in her mouth, maybe this was the same thing! "We might still have a chance to save them!" Hange watched with gritted teeth.

"All troops, ready for combat!" Hange ordered. Armin and Sasha left Heidi and Connie with Nifa and Historia. "Eliminate the Colossus Titan!! You're facing humanity's greatest enemy! All troops, attack!!" Everyone with 3DMG pounced on the Colossus Titan. Bertolt formed a fist again and tried to hit the soldiers coming at him. Keiji, Hange, and the soldiers with them dodged easily. They were close enough to look him in the eye now. Bertolt tried to swipe at them with his other hand, but they dodged again.

'Just like the reports said! It's slow…!!' Keiji thought, furrowing his brow.

'All it's got… is size!" the guy wearing goggles thought.

'Compared to the smaller titans we normally take on… It's nothing!' their comrade thought.

'We've got this!' Moblit thought.

"Now!!" Hange ordered. "All troops, cut through!!" They all fired grappling hooks into the base of Bertolt's neck.

BOOOM!

There was an explosion of steam, and a wave of scalding hot air rushed over them.

"?!!" Keiji gasped.

"All units, pull back!!" Hange ordered.

"Hot!" a soldier said, holding up their arm to shield their face. They all retreated to a safe distance.

"Agh… my hand..." another soldier complained, in pain. He wasn't the only one who got burned.

"Water! Someone get me water!!" someone else shouted.

"Is he trying to disappear again?!" Hange asked.

"No! Something's different!" Armin said. "In the past, he vanished immediately. But this time, his frame is still here… and it keeps emitting heat, like a candle. If he can keep protecting himself with that steam… We can't…" Armin fired a grappling hook at Bertolt, but it was blown back uselessly by the hot air around him, "… attack him with 3DMG! Wh… What do we..."

"… Nothing," Hange said. "We wait. Teams 3 and 4! Flank target and stand by! Rashad, take charge!"

"Yes, Squad Leader!" Rashad said.

"Team 2, stand by here! Lauda, it's all yours!"

"Roger!" Lauda said.

"We'll just have to see how long he can keep his body burning," Hange said. "But he'll come out sooner or later. We wait for our opportunity. Got it?" Hange asked Armin. "You can't try to capture them any longer. Kill them. Don't hesitate."

"..." Armin stared at Hange. Hange could see Armin was having a hard time with that, but it couldn't be helped.

"… Armin..." Hange turned away from him and jumped off the top of the wall. "Team 1, come with me! We're going after the armored titan!!"

"It's hot…!!" Connie complained, carrying one of the injured soldiers on his back.

"What… Nnh... did you expect?" Heidi said, struggling to make her worn out body keep working as she dragged Nanaba's stretcher, which had miraculously survived intact with her only receiving a few more scrapes. Historia was dragging another injured soldier.

"Krista… Connie… Heidi… fall back!" Nifa ordered them. Heidi took three more steps to get behind Nifa then fell to her knees, catching herself by placing her hands on the ground in front of her.

"I… should not... have done that..." Heidi said, breathing heavily while she tried to recover. She really shouldn't be doing any heavy lifting until the pain passed, but there was no time to rest.

"Those three are your responsibility now!" Nifa told them.

"… Excuse me!" Historia said. "Ymir… probably isn't dead yet..." Tears welled up in her eyes. "Please… try to help her..."

"I think so, too. The Female Titan carried Eren alive in her mouth," Heidi said, and Historia looked at her with a grateful expression.

"All right..." Nifa said.

"Where are Reiner and Bertolt?!" Connie asked, panicking when he realized they weren't there. Nifa and Heidi stared at him. Did he not see what happened? Heidi had looked back in time to catch it.

"Connie..." Heidi said gently.

"Neither of them have their 3DMG on! Please… You've gotta help them!" Connie pleaded anxiously.

"Connie… didn't you see it happen…?" Heidi asked, wondering if he was in denial.

"See what?!" Connie asked. "How can you be so calm when—"

"Connie," Heidi said firmly. "Reiner and Bertolt just turned into those titans!" Connie's eyes widened.

Down on the ground below, Eren's titan form lay there steaming with injuries. Reiner was closer to the wall, but he was injured as well. While Bertolt was making a commotion up above, the two of them had been slugging it out.

'Damn it...' Eren cursed. 'That piece of shit… that asshole went on about being a soldier and responsibility… So all that time in hand-to-hand training… He was going easy on me?! You're pretty damn strong… I can't even move...' Reiner even had the nerve to tell him that if he did it right, any training would one day be of use to humanity. 'You were seriously talented. You could stay calm and see the big picture in any situation...You put your comrades above yourself… I can't believe that I wished that one day...' Reiner had healed and was stomping towards Eren, towering over him. '… I could be as strong as you.' Mikasa flew up behind Reiner and tried to slice out his nape, but the blades broke on his armor. She tried switching tactics and attacked his calf to limit his moment, but they broke again.

"Kh..." Mikasa gritted her teeth in frustration. 'Nothing seems to work on him… not Eren's attacks… not my blades. And he's not like Annie. His whole body is constantly hard.' She spared a glance up at the top of the wall. 'If only Heidi could fight, too… The way she fought before... What would she do in this situation?' Mikasa fired a grappling hook into the soft tissue near Reiner's neck. She had to keep trying. "Eren!!" Eren glared up at Reiner.

'Hey, Reiner...' Eren thought, furrowing his brow and gritting his teeth. 'I don't know what kind of look you have on your face right now… but you two really are pieces of shit.' He thought of the day they destroyed the wall of Shiganshina, of the horrible way his mother was killed. 'I doubt anyone in human history… has done anything as terrible as what you've done.' Mikasa was repeatedly stabbing the armor at Reiner's nape with her blades. 'I have to get rid of you...' Eren picked himself up from the ground in an eerie way, arching his back. 'You can't be allowed to exist. What are you thinking? You make me sick. Just thinking about that righteous expression that was always on your face…' Eren rolled his shoulders up until he was standing upright. 'It makes me want to vomit.' Mikasa saw that he was ready to fight and jumped away from Reiner. Eren hit Reiner with a hard punch. 'You giant pest! I'll exterminate you—right here!' "RAAAAAGH!" Eren roared fiercely. But little to no damage was done, and Reiner countered with a punch of his own that sent Eren flying.

«« Flashback ««

Eren hit the ground hard.

"Gah..." he groaned, gritting his teeth. Annie stood over him, holding one of the fake rifles they used in hand-to-hand training. "That hurt…! Listen, Annie… you know what it means to pull your punches, right?"

"Same to you," Annie retorted.

"Huh?" Eren said.

"You charge in with all your strength. So I had to return in kind," she explained. "I can't match you for brute strength. And you're a man, right…? Shouldn't you be more careful with this delicate body of mine?"

"Wha…? Don't make me laugh," Eren said. "If you're no match for my strength, then why do I keep ending up on my back while you're still standing?"

"… Oh… The techniques I used are different from the ones they're teaching us here. I'm not using strength to throw you," she said. "These techniques are used by someone to defend against an opponent who's stronger than them." She raised her fists. "It wouldn't hurt… for you to learn them, too."

"Okay. Let's take a quick break," Eren said a little warily. Annie swung her fist at him. "Huh?!" He raised his arm to protect himself, but Annie slipped her arms around his side and neck and squeezed hard as she kicked his legs out from under him, driving him down to the ground with a thud. Annie kept squeezing, keeping him trapped.

"Ahg..." Eren grunted, trying and failing to free himself. "… Annie… you win… I give up..."

"Give up? Don't give up, learn," she told him. "How to use your strength… and how to talk to girls."

"O… Okay!" Eren said, turning a little red in the face. "I will, just let go!"

"… Oh. So you really want to learn more?" Annie asked him, still not letting go. She sensed movement and saw that a body was flying at them. Annie quickly jumped out of the way as Reiner crashed into Eren.

"Gah?!" Eren cried out in pain as his eyes rolled into the back of his head. "W-Why did Reiner fall on us…?" he asked, sitting up.

"Hey, Annie. That move… Teach me, too," Mikasa said darkly as she walked over to them, staring Annie down.

"..." Annie stared back. "I dunno… these techniques are for humans," she said, standing up. "I don't think you'd have any use for them. But..." She assumed her favorite fighting stance. "I am interested to see if they work on beasts."

"Is this… for real?" Eren asked. "They're finally..."

"Whoa… are those two going to go at it?" Connie asked.

"It's a dream match!" Sasha said.

"Should be interesting…" Heidi said. "I wonder who's going to win…?"

"Think Annie can do it?" Marco asked.

"Huh?! Are you stupid?!" Jean said incredulously. "I'll bet my whole dinner on Mikasa!"

"I'd rather see Heidi fight," Peter said with a shrug.

"Ah, Mikasa vs. Heidi would be another dream match!" Sasha said.

"Don't agree with anything that idiot says!" Heidi scolded her. Though, she would also like a crack at Mikasa, for curiosity's sake.

"What about you, Eren?" Reiner asked.

"Huh?" Eren said. "I..." he looked at Mikasa and Annie as they stared each other down. "Who will it be…?"

»» End Flashback »»

Eren hit the ground with a thunderous boom. Half his face was missing.

'Hm…?' Eren thought. 'Who ended up… winning that fight…? No… Why am I thinking back… to that day? Don't tell me… is this what they mean by your life flashing before your eyes?" He could see all of his friends' faces, including Bertolt and Reiner. 'Oh well… It doesn't matter. Either way… It feels awful.' Eren picked himself up again.

"Eren! You can't!! Going hand-to-hand with him won't do any good!!" Armin said, hanging on the wall, along with other soldiers. "Come this way! to the wall!! You can't fight him, Eren!!" Mikasa landed on the ground near a tree. She looked at her damaged blades.

"Eren!" she shouted. But Eren continued to fight Reiner where he stood.

"Oh no!!" Armin exclaimed.

"Did he forget about us?" Hange asked. Eren swung his fist at Reiner. Reiner returned the favor. Eren ducked and slipped his arms around Reiner's side and neck and squeezed hard as he kicked his legs out from under him, driving him down to the ground with a booming thud.

"Hey, he threw the armored titan!" a soldier said.

"That's… Annie's—!" Heidi said, crawling precariously close to the edge of the wall to see, before Connie yanked her back, afraid she might fall.

"I remember..." Armin said. "That was the technique Annie used..." Eren kneeled on Reiner to keep him pinned.

'I have no idea why you two… are doing all of this...' Eren thought. Reiner grabbed Eren and rolled over, switching their positions. 'But, looking back on it, you made a lot of bad decisions. And one of them...' Eren retaliated by pulling on Reiner's right hand and wrapping his legs around and under that arm and over his shoulders. 'Was teaching me how to fight like this.' Reiner was trapped, and part of the armor on his face and shoulder cracked. 'I did it…!! Submissions work on him!! I can still fight…!!' Reiner gripped one of Eren's legs with his free hand and tried to peel Eren off of him. 'Gah! Not yet… You're not getting away so easy!!' Eren twisted Reiner's hand, tightening his grip on it, and readjusted the way his legs wrapped around Reiner and squeezed even harder. He pulled Reiner, crashing him face first into the ground.

"Eren!" Mikasa shouted, running parallel to them.

"RAAAAAAAAHH!!" Eren roared as he ripped Reiner's arm off.

"He did it!" Mikasa said.

"Eren!!" Armin called, landing next to her. "Can you hear me?! Run for now!! Get closer to the wall!!" Eren moved away from Reiner and stopped fighting for a moment to look at Armin. "Their goal is to kidnap you! We still… have a chance! You have to keep them from doing that!"

"… But, Armin…! Reiner isn't going to just let him get away!" Mikasa said. Reiner roared as he started standing up again.

"It's dangerous! Both of you, fall back!" Goggles ordered as he joined them. They gritted their teeth and retreated. They were all relieved when Eren followed them back to the wall.

"That's it, Eren! You're making the right decision!" Keiji told him.

"He's coming back to his senses," Mikasa said.

"Yeah… But it's like you said…" Armin told her as Reiner stalked towards them. "Running from Reiner… is no easy task." Steam rushed out from Reiner's broken jaw.

"You got that, Eren?!" Hange asked, landing on his shoulder. Eren turned his head slightly to look at the squad leader. "For you to get away, you'll have to immobilize Reiner and buy some time! Can you destroy the Armored Titan's legs using one of those holds?! Our blades won't work on him… but use your head and think of whatever works best!" Eren nodded in response. "?!… Oh..." Hange said, excited to have such an interaction with a titan, blushing a little.

"Mikasa, use these!" Armin told her, handing her several blades. "They're my blades!"

"Good luck!" Hange told Eren, moving back to the wall. The armor on Reiner's calves cracked and fell away.

'Right now... getting away means that I win,' Eren thought with a furrowed brow as Reiner drew closer. 'You're the ones who've been discovered. It's you… who're cornered with no place to go—' Reiner suddenly picked up speed and charged at Eren. "?!!" Eren gritted his teeth.

"Wha?!" Armin exclaimed.

"He's fast!!" Mikasa said. Reiner tackled Eren and slammed him into the wall. Reiner tried to punch Eren, but he moved his head in time.

'Damn it… His legs!' Eren thought, trying to get him into another submission hold. 'Get his legs!!' He wrapped his legs around one of Reiner's. Reiner retaliated with a series of punches aimed at his head. Eren managed to dodge them all, but...

"Get off your back, Eren!!" Armin shouted.

"Get up!!" Mikasa yelled. Eren placed his feet firmly against Reiner and pushed him over. Eren picked himself up and moved back to the wall. Reiner sat up.

'Damn… That tackle is fast and deadly,' Eren thought, turning so that his back wasn't up against the wall as Reiner moved towards him again. 'I can't stop it!!'

"Damn it! Why can he suddenly move so fast?!" Keiji asked as they pursued Reiner.

"Is there nothing we can do?!" Goggles asked.

"Agh..." Mikasa said, gritting her teeth.

"No… if his whole body really is rock-hard, he should not be able to move like that..." Hange said. On top of the wall, while searching the Armored Titan for weaknesses, Heidi's eyes widened as she realized something and recalled an old story her grandfather had told her about how a knight who was thought to be invincible was killed because his armor had a weakness.

"Joints!" Heidi yelled. "Squad Leader Hange! The Joints!"

"!" Mikasa said.

"Iron armor used in wars long ago had sections that couldn't cover the wearer because of the structure of the human body," Hange said. She assumed that was where Heidi got the idea, too. "The armpit and crotch areas, and… behind the knee."

'If you're going to take me down either way…' Eren thought as Reiner charged at him again. 'Then fine!!' He trapped Reiner in another submission hold, wrapping his arms around his head and legs around his waist. 'Gimme your neck!!' They hit the ground hard, but Eren was in control.

"RROAAHH!!" Reiner roared as Eren applied pressure, trapping him further.

"Get him, Eren!! Keiji shouted.

'I got it!' Eren thought. 'Now it's just a battle of strength…!! I have more arms… so I have the advantage!' Mikasa swooped down upon Reiner, slicing through his muscles in the joint behind the knee. That leg slammed into the ground, useless. 'Mikasa!!'

"She got him!!" Hange said.

'His resistance… is weakening!!' Eren thought. Armin gritted his teeth.

"We can do it!" he said.

"Get him, Eren!" Keiji called. "Pull his whole head off!! Yank the traitor out of there!" Eren squeezed and pulled harder, cracking some of the armor around Reiner's neck and on his back.

'I can win,' Eren thought. 'I can—' He jerked back, and the armor cracked further. Reiner opened and closed his mouth, then dug in the heel of his good leg and pushed. "?!" Reiner dragged Eren forward, pushing with all his might.

"Huh…?" Armin said. "What's he—?!"

"Hah… Look at him squirm..." Keiji said.

"Good!" Nifa said. "A little more!" Reiner stopped moving.

"He gave up..." Armin said. "And he's right under..." Armin looked up. Two shadows flew up the wall on the other side from the battle. Hannes and his men had returned. Hannes landed on the wall along with one of his men, and his eyes widened.

"… Wha…?!" Hannes said, startled to confirm the scene before him with his own eyes. "What in the… so it is the Colossus Titan… Why…?" He remembered the day he first saw it. "Why's that damn thing… here...?" His hands shook with fear and anger.

"!" Historia noticed.

"Where's Eren?!" Hannes asked her, since she was nearest. Connie and Heidi were both watching the battle a relatively safe distance from the edge of wall. "What's going on?!"

"RROOOAA!!" Reiner gave a deafening roar.

"!!" Hannes, Historia, Connie, and Heidi gasped, covering their ears.

"Eren and the others went that way..." Historia yelled, removing one of her hands to point to the other side of the wall. Eren, Armin, Mikasa, and Hange's eyes widened at the sound of Reiner's roar. Hange gritted Hange's teeth.

"Watch the perimeter!" Hange ordered. "He called for more titans!"

"No other titans spotted in the area!!" Goggles reported.

"He's struggling in vain!" Keiji said. "You should be more concerned that your head's about to get ripped off, asshole!! Look!!" Eren pulled harder and a loud snapping sound was heard. "It's about to snap!!"

"What's the Armored Titan doing…?!" Connie asked. "It suddenly cried out..."

"When the Female Titan was about to be captured... she cried out like that, and a swarm of titans came..." Heidi said, narrowing her eyes. Whatever Reiner was up to, it couldn't be good. "Eren needs to be careful."

"Eren?!" Hannes said, looking down with them. "So that's what Eren looks like as a titan..."

"You said she called titans… but the only other titan here is..." Connie said, looking at the Colossus Titan. "?" Heidi followed his gaze. She knew he was right, but when she saw the way the Colossus Titan started to tilt, she was startled. Their eyes widened. "W… Wait…" The titan was leaning heavily to the side of the wall Eren was on. "Wait, wait…. wait!" Connie shouted. The rib bones holding the titan onto the wall broke.

"Above you!! Mooove!!" Heidi yelled. Hange's eyes widened as everyone looked up. Eren moved his gaze from Reiner to look above him just in time to see the Colossus Titan's massive face hurtling toward him. Hange watched with a furrowed brow and gritted teeth, while Mikasa, Armin, and Eren's eyes widened.

BOOOOM!!

There was a massive explosion of steam as the Colossus titan slammed into Eren and Reiner.

—∞—

In Trost district, three titans were beating uselessly on the enormous boulder that had plugged the hole in the wall's gate. Commander Pixis had fallen asleep sitting up on top of the wall.

"Commander," one of his escorts, Anka, called as she walked up to him. "Please wake up." His response was a snore. "You'll get sick if you sleep here," she scolded him, slapping his bald head.

"Fngh?!" Pixis said, startled awake.

"How'd you drink so much…?" she asked him, looking at one of two discarded empty bottles of wine.

"..." Pixis rubbed his head.

"You're not young anymore, Commander… I don't want to have to change your diapers in the near future."

"I wouldn't mind being bedridden if it meant a fine young lady would be attending to me," Pixis said, taking another drink from the bottle of alcohol still in his hand. "So, what's the situation?"

"We sent troops to scout after the titans stopped appearing at our primary and secondary defense lines..." she replied. "But we've barely discovered any titans."

"Hmph… If Hannes's advance party safely swept the wall… they should be returning just about now..." Pixis said, checking his watch. "If they arrived now, that would mean they met the team from Krolva halfway and doubled back. But in that case, they would have also encountered few titans on their way. Which would be impossible if there really was a hole in the wall."

"Commander Pixis!" Erwin said as he landed on top of the wall next to him.

"Hm? Ah, Erwin," Pixis said. He put a hand on his shoulder. "I hear we've caught one of our mice."

"Yes… but we ended up one step short..." Erwin said.

"Still, I'm sure our friends in the center have something to think about," Pixis said. "Now they have to consider if they're prepared to die together with their old-fashioned traditions."

"That seems to be the case..." Erwin agreed. "Just look. We've finally been able to drag the Military Police Brigade out here to an area where we actually face titans." Below them, a number of soldiers had gathered from not only the Survey Corps and the Garrison, but also, as Erwin had said, from the Military Police.

"Are there really no titans?" Jean asked one of the Survey Corps veterans.

"Looks like it. I thought it was oddly quiet," he replied.

"… I wonder if they're alive..." Jean said, thinking of his friends among the unarmed 104th.

"Hmm…? We heard it was an emergency and came out here…" said one MP.

"But things look pretty relaxed around this place," another said.

"Hey, Levi! Where's our prey?" the first MP asked.

"What?" Levi said, turning to look at them from the wagon he was still seated in with Nick. "You fellows look awfully disappointed. Sorry that I couldn't set you up with any titans," he told them, looking completely unapologetic. "You might be out of luck this time around, but… There are plenty of chances to see them outside the walls. Why don't we start combining our forces… to face off against the titans?" There was something in his voice and the look in his eyes that told the MPs this was not someone they wanted to mess with.

"Well..." the first MP said nervously.

"You know…" the second MP said. "We have work on the inside, too—"

"The advance party is back!" one of the Garrison soldiers yelled. "Someone tell Commander Pixis!"

They all gathered around the messenger from the Garrison and Sasha, who had been sent with him, waiting for them to catch their breath and finish drinking their water. Pixis and Erwin waited to hear what they had to say.

"W… We found no holes or any other irregularities in the wall..." the Garrison soldier reported.

"I see..." Pixis said.

"B-But the situation has turned into an emergency!" the Garrison soldier continued. "On our way to report to Trost district, we encountered a Survey Corps team led by Hange! There were a number of unequipped recruits from the 104th with them… But among them… three of those soldiers… were titans!!" Everyone stared at him.

"Huh…?" Jean said with wide eyes. "What are you saying?! T-There were still three titans… on that team…?!" He looked at Sasha. "Who?!"

"W-Well… um..." Sasha said nervously, a bit taken aback by his ferocity.

"Jean, wait," Erwin said. "Once they were discovered, what happened?"

"The Survey Corps engaged the Colossus Titan and the Armored Titan!" the Garrison soldier replied. "By the time we joined in the battle—it was over..."

—∞—

"Are you sure you're okay?!" Peter asked Heidi for what felt like the hundredth time, holding her arms. He was clearly using it as an excuse to touch her.

"I'm still alive, aren't?!" she snapped and pulled away from him, getting to her feet and stomping off to check on Mikasa, who had been laid out separately from Hange and the other veterans who were injured. Fortunately, Heidi was actually starting to feel better after five hours of rest. Her muscles were complaining a lot less, and she thought that by the time the horses were there, she might be well enough to help, if she took it easy. She was just kneeling down beside Mikasa, when Mikasa's eyes shot open. "Mikasa!" Armin looked up in their direction when he heard that.

"What…?" Mikasa said, staring back up at Heidi with a furrowed brow. Her eyes widened, and she jerked up into a sitting position.

"Whoa, Mikasa!" Heidi said, bracing her. "I don't think you should..." Mikasa ignored her, looking left, then right, searching the top of the wall for something. Heidi was sure it was Eren. Her own expression fell. Mikasa stared with wide eyes at the lack of Eren, then winced as her head hurt.

"?" Mikasa said, holding her head. "?!"

"Mikasa!" Armin called, coming over to join them. "Wait, you shouldn't be moving yet..." He kneeled down to help Heidi support her. Mikasa looked from Heidi's face to his. "Heidi! Armin!" She grabbed him by the front of his clothes. "Eren! Where is he?!"

"Mikasa, calm down! Don't move!" Armin told her. "We don't know how serious your injuries are!"

"He's right—" Heidi started to agree, when Mikasa completely ignored them and hurried away from them to look over the side of the wall. Below them was a massive crater where Bertolt had landed on Eren and Reiner. Two titans that were by the wall next to it looked tiny by comparison, even though they were much taller than the trees in the surrounding area.

"Where is he he?!" Mikasa demanded.

"Eren was taken away..." Armin replied. Mikasa's eyes widened. "Ymir, too! … By Bertolt and Reiner..."

"The moment the Colossus Titan hit the ground, it's body evaporated," Heidi added. Poor Mikasa looked devastated.

"Since we were down there, the heat and wind pressure did enough damage to incapacitate us," Armin explained to Mikasa. "The force was so strong, it kept our comrades stuck up on the wall for a while. But I did manage to see something… while that was going on. I saw the Armored Titan defeat Eren. The Armored Titan was the only one able to withstand the force. It bit into his neck and tore it off with Eren inside. Then the hot wind started to calm, when out of the Colossus Titan's remains… came Bertolt, with Ymir in his arms! He was wearing the 3DMG that belonged to the other soldier he ate. He jumped onto the Armored Titan's back, carrying Ymir. And they left… with Eren and Ymir… It's already been… five hours since then." Mikasa looked from him to Heidi, then out at the land beyond Wall Rose.

"Did anyone… go after them?" Mikasa asked, her voice trembling a little.

"No," Heidi replied with regret.

"Why not?" Mikasa asked, releasing Armin to grab her instead, pressing her face so close their noses almost touched. There was a frightening look in her eyes.

"… They can't get any horses over the wall," Heidi answered.

"We can't get Eren back until the lifts arrive so we can move the horses to the other side," Armin added. He placed a hand on Mikasa's shoulder. "You need to be ready when they arrive… so check your injuries."

"Squad Leader Hange and the other ranking officers are severely injured and can't move," Heidi said. "We need every able soldier if we want to create even a small-scale enemy scouting formation."

"Especially good soldiers… Understand?" Armin asked. Mikasa let go of Heidi's shirt. She looked down and nodded.

"Unh!" she winced and held her head. "Ahh… This again..."

"Does something hurt?" Armin asked.

"… No. I hit my head hard, but I'm fine," Mikasa said.

"Are you sure?" Heidi asked.

"I'm sure. It's just… when Annie kidnapped Eren… I could go right after her and fight her with you and Levi… and eventually, I got him back," Mikasa said. "But… if five hours have already passed..." Tears formed in her eyes. Heidi reached behind her and picked up Mikasa's scarf and handed it to her. Mikasa stared at the scarf in her hands. "Hey, Armin…? Why is it... that Eren… always gets so far from us?" Armin looked at her.

"… When you put it that way… Eren has always been… running off on his own… and leaving us behind," Armin said with a small smile. "Whether it's of his own will or not… he always does it. I guess that's just his destiny..." Heidi suddenly felt like an intruder.

"We'll get him back," Heidi said firmly. "We have to." She patted Mikasa on the shoulder and left them to themselves. Maybe she would recover faster if she napped? She really did need to be in the best condition possible if she was going to help rescue Eren.

"All I want… is to be close to him," Mikasa told Armin, wrapping herself in the scarf. The tears in her eyes were threatening to fall.

Heidi passed Hannes and saw he was carrying enough rations for three. She got the feeling they would be all right.

"Hey, Heidi! Have you eaten yet!" Connie called to her.

"Nope! Thanks for asking!" she called back, heading over to him to get the ration pack he was holding up. Eating should help her recovery, even if it was only field rations.

"Heidi! I have some for you, too..." Peter said eagerly, trailing off when she completely ignored him as she approached Connie.

"Thanks, Connie," she said.

"No problem..." Connie said, sweat-dropping at the daggers Peter was glaring at him.

"Hey, you two," Hannes said, taking to Mikasa and Eren. "You must be hungry."

"Mister Hannes," Armin said

"Here, eat," Hannes told them, holding out one of the packs of rations. "All I have is the same old field rations, but… here." He handed it to Mikasa. "Here, Armin." He handed another one to him. Hannes sat down and took a bite out of his own rations. "Eh… Not bad, but not good… same as always." Mikasa and Armin couldn't bring themselves to eat it. Not with Eren still missing. Hannes washed his rations down with water. He looked at their depressed faces. "No different from all the other times. You've always had to take care of the messes… that little brat got himself into, right?" Mikasa and Armin looked at him. "You're stuck with him, for better or worse. Sheesh… so much has changed since then, but you're still doing the same things you did as kids. Right?"

"Heh… There's a bit of a size difference between neighborhood bullies and titans," Armin pointed out.

"Still… that idiot never seemed to care that he didn't know how to fight. He'd still charge right in, even against groups of three or five," Hannes said. "And by the time you or a soldier stopped him, he'd already be in shambles. But… even though I never saw him win a fight… I never saw him admit defeat, either. He's so tenacious that it even scared me from time to time. No matter how many times he fell, he got back up. That's who he is… Do you really think he'd let himself get carried off without a fight? No, sir. He'd fight with everything he had. And he's only up against two guys. No matter who, he'll keep giving them trouble… until you or I get there. Eren's always been like that, right?"

"..." Armin and Mikasa stared at him. They knew he was right.

"I liked those days… If Eren were here he might call them a time of false peace… but being a good-for-nothing, drunk soldier was enough for me. I'd do anything to get those quiet, dull days back… no matter how long it takes…" He clenched his fist. "I'm coming, too. Because as long as you three aren't together, I'll never get those days back." Armin and Mikasa's expressions became more determined. The unwrapped their field rations, and took big bites, chomping away with all their might. They were going to be ready to save Eren. Heidi watched them from a distance. It seemed Mr. Hannes got through to them. She turned back to her own field rations, tuning out Peter's attempts to drag her into a conversation.

—∞—

3DMGs were brought up to the unarmed recruits. Heidi was happy to have proper gear again. She'd rather not have to activate her berserkergang again so soon. And it still bothered her that she had failed the last time she tried. Maybe it was her body's way of protecting itself from too much abuse, but it unsettled her. That had never happened before. Her thoughts were interrupted by the sound of horses's hooves beating against the ground. She looked up and saw from where she was waiting with the others that a group of people was riding horses along the top of the wall.

"They're here," Mikasa said.

"They're even riding their horses up here," Armin said. He glanced at Historia. "Krista. I think it'd be best if you stayed here, but..."

"I told you over and over. That's not happening," Historia said. "I can't just sit here and wait after Ymir was kidnapped. You two should understand how I feel."

"Krista's right, Armin..." Connie said, standing with his arms crossed. "We all have more than enough reasons to go after them. Personally, I still can't believe it… I won't believe that Reiner and Bertolt are our enemies… until I hear it straight from their own mouths..."

"Connie..." Heidi said.

"Hm?! Oh…!" Moblit said when he saw who was leading the pack. "Commander Erwin! Wha?! The MPs, too…?"

'MPs…?' Heidi thought, surprised.

"You made it, Commander Erwin!" Moblit said, approaching him.

"Any changes in the situation?" Erwin asked. Someone grabbed Moblit's leg. He looked down at the culprit.

"Hange?!" he said, surprised. Hange's skin was angry and red from being burned by the steam, and Hange couldn't stand, but the squad leader persisted anyway.

"The… The map..." Hange said. They gave Hange the map, laying it down so Hange wouldn't have to get up. "Here… It's small, but there's a titan forest here." Hange pointed it out on the map. "You should head that way… I don't think that the Armored Titan will be able to hide his footsteps… But either way… they're probably heading here."

"Why?" Erwin asked.

"It's a gamble, but… they might be able to turn into titans, but outside the walls, other titans are still a threat to them," Hange replied. "I'm sure they're not in as bad shape as Eren, but they must be drained after fighting that hard. "I believe even Annie was out for a while after transforming. … And let's also assume that they don't have enough stamina left to cross a distance that great. Let's assume their goal is to reach the other side of Wall Maria. They'd want to find a resting place where titans can't get to them, right? Until night, when the titans can't move! We have until night!! We still have a chance to make it in time if we can get to the forest before night!!" Heidi moved with the others as they all left Hange to stand on the edge of the wall, ready to rappel down as soon as the order was given.

—∞—

Eren slowly opened his eyes and was startled to find himself sitting in a huge tree. Ymir was sitting near him on the same branch, and Reiner and Bertolt were perched on two branches above them.

"Oh, Eren. You're up," Reiner said