"…To kill or not to kill? That is the question"-Edith M. Brown Diary, 850
Spring 850
Eren Jeager Trial, Sina Courthouse
"Mutters and murmurs spread through the interior like wildfire. The publication of Eren Jeager's involvement in the resealing of Wall Rose, was met with much trepidation and fear on both sides.
Those within Wall Sina believed that the news was just propaganda to help boost the people's moral and hope. And how could they know any better? You could count the number of successful military operations on both hands…They were more worried about the influx of refugees from Wall Rose and their own safety than that of their fellow human beings.
Whilst those within Wall Rose, believed that Eren's involvement in the operation solidified his loyalty to the military and held a new hope for humanity in his hands. Now that they had a Titan on their side, they might finally have a chance to obtain another victory from the Titans…They were calling him a saviour.
The people called for a trial, one to decide whether Eren should live or die…The only man suitable for the job was Premiere Dolohas Zachery. He held Eren's life in his hands and he knew that. He knew that no matter how the trial ended, there would be outcry from the people…That's a lot of pressure for one man"-The Trials of Eren Jeager, Marie S. Roberts
Eren woke to stiff muscles and musty smells. The clanging on chains and rock hard bed reminded him where we was and what had happened over the last day or so. There was not much he could see by candlelight and there were no windows down here. He had no way of knowing how long he had been kept in this cell. Or how long he would stay here.
Glancing around the cell, his eyes focused on the two wooden bedside tables that sat empty on either side of his bed. The dirty white sheet that lay strewn underneath him, rustled and crinkled every time he moved. Through the cell door at his feet, he saw that two officers dressed in Military Police gear. Even with the low light, they looked like they were armed to the gills.
"Uh, excuse me?" Eren called sitting up in bed with his hands in his lap, "I gotta pee"
"No, you just went" replied the first officer without so much as turning towards him.
"Then can I have some water?"
"Hey! You're not getting a thing, got it? Damn monster" the second officer replied, this time looking over his shoulder at Eren, before facing forward once more.
Monster. I guess he's not too far off the mark there. Eren glared down at his bound and clenched hands. Frightened of me or not though, I don't deserve this. Except how can I blame him? I don't even understand what's going on. On the bright side, at least these guards haven't tried to kill me yet.
When I think back, they weren't afraid of me even after everything they'd seen. I wonder what they're doing now…and all the others, I wonder what happened to them? I've been in here so long, what's been happening outside of these bars? I-I'm not going to spend the rest of my life like this, am I?
The sound of footsteps echoed throughout the room as they approached his cell, breaking him from his thoughts. He flinched backwards at the sudden appearance of the Scout who gripped tight to the cell bars and pressed her face right up against them. Her wide-eyed stare was definitely freaking him out.
"So then, you're Eren. Are you well? How are things? I'm really sorry you've been waiting so long, but here's your chance to finally get out. One thing…you'll have to put these on for me, okay?" she smiled, handing him a pair of iron-cast handcuffs as a tall blonde scout quietly joined her at her side.
Once bound, Eren was escorted from his cell, the two officers that had stood guard, accompanied them. Eren kept his head bowed, walking just behind the female Scout, in the middle of the formation as conversation began to pick up.
"My name is Zoe Hanji, I'm a sergeant for the Scouts. This is a fellow captain in the Scouts, Mike Zacharious" Hanji jovially introduced the blonde who was nonchalantly sniffing at Eren's neck, much to his char-gin. "Oh! Don't mind him, he makes a habit of giving new people a good sniff. Tends to laugh through his nose a bit, but I don't think he intends it to be derisive. Quirks aside, he is a skilled captain"
Eren glanced up at the man in question, it was a pretty odd habit, the sniffing thing. Was he like a bloodhound or something? But then again, who was he to judge? Coming to a stop in front of a pair of large ornate wooden doors, Hanji exclaimed, "Oh shit! I've just been prattling on with the small talk and now we're here. Well, I'm sure it's fine! It's probably better if I don't explain anyway"
At those words, the two Military Police officers man-handled Eren through the wooden doors and into the room beyond. "Hey! Hold on!" Eren protested struggling against the tight grip on his arms.
"It might seem callous but remember, we've all put our faith in you Eren. Best of luck" Hanji stated slamming the doors shut on Eren's feeble protests.
Swinging around to the front, Eren blinked once or twice adjusting to the bright sunlight that shone through the tall windows to his left. Terrified shock and awe was present in his expression as he stared at the room around him. A courthouse? I was housed in the basement of a courthouse this entire time? Eren wondered.
Up on the ceiling sat a mural depicting humanity's fight against the Titans, to his left the Scout Regiment and Cadets took up the majority of the benches and to his right the Military Police and public jury took up the other benches. The Garrison regiment were spread evenly on either side.
The crowd that had gathered to watch the trial sat squished together behind the fence jostled each other to get a good look at him as he was shoved down the aisle. His eyes continued to rove over the room as he moved, up the front sat the judge's chair (which looked more like a throne than anything else) underneath the four placards of the regiments (from left to right: the Cadets, the Military Police, the Garrison and the Scouts).
In the centre of the room stood a single pole upon a pedestal. Apparently that was his destination as he was roughly shoved to his knees on the pedestal, the pole was slotted over top of his bound hands and into the slot in the ground. A few experimental tugs revealed that there was no way he was going anywhere.
Why are all these people here just starting at me? Is someone going to explain what the hell is going on? Ignoring the whispers of the jury, Eren's gaze wandered around the room once more, landing on the cadets that stood in the left-hand jury box. My friends? What are they doing here?
The sound of a side door creaking open pulled the room's attention up towards them. Not a sound was heard as Premiere Zachery scraped the chair back and sat down, folding his jacket on the table next to him and snapped his suspenders into place.
"Alright, shall we begin?" Zachery stated adjusting his glasses, "Your name is Eren Jeager and as a soldier you have sworn to give up your life when called to for the good of the people. Is that correct?"
"Yes" Eren replied, sweat beading on his brow.
"As an enlisted soldier during a time of war, military doctrine demands your tribunal will be held as a court martial. As Commander of our armed forces, this duty falls to me. Thus I will decide whether you live or die. Any objections?"
"…No sir"
"Your astuteness is appreciated. Let us proceed: as expected, covering up your existence has proved quite fruitless and unless we publicly disclose your existence one way or another, we risk the threat of widespread civil unrest. A choice must be made and the regiment that takes custody of you will determine your fate. The Military Police or the Scout Regiment. To begin, the Military Police will now present their case"
"Thank you. My name is Nile Doc, I am the Commander of the Military Police" stated Nile stepping forward, "Our recommendation following a through examination of his physiology, subject Eren Jeager should be disposed of immediately.
We acknowledge that Jeager's abilities played a part in turning the tide on the latest Titan incursion, however as has been stated his mere existence is creating a swarm of rebellious sentiment. For the greater good after we have gathered all the information that we can from him, we would see him made a fallen warrior of humanity"
"UNACCEPTABLE!" interrupted the furious Pastor Nick pointing towards Eren, "THIS VERMINOUS FIEND HAS DEFILED THE MIGHTY WALL HEAVEN HAS GIFTED TO US!" Only to be scolded by Zachery for his outburst. Another deranged Wall cultist. Five years ago, everyone ignored them and now they've actually got some clout.
"And now I'd like to hear the Scout Regiment's proposed plan" Zachery said.
"Yes sir. As the Commander of the Scout Regiment, I Erwin Smith, propose the following" stated Erwin, stepping forward, "Let Eren join our ranks, instate him as a full member of the Scouts and we'll utilise his abilities to retake Wall Maria. That is all"
"Hm? Is that it?"
"Yes, with his assistance sir, Im certain we can reclaim Wall Maria. Ergo, I believe our top priority is perfectly clear"
"Quite bold, assuming you were given clearance where do you plan to launch this operation from? Commander Pixis, the wall at Trost district has been completely sealed, is that correct?"
"Yes, I doubt its gates will ever open again" Pixis replied smugly.
"We'll depart from Calandeth district, to the East. From there we'll make for Shiganshina, a new route can be established as we proceed"
"BUT THAT'S RIDICULOUS! OUR TIME AND MONEY WOULD BE BETTER SPENT SEALING UP ALL THE GATES! THEY'RE ONLY PARTS OF THE WALL THE COLOSSAL TITAN CAN BREAK RIGHT? LET'S REINFORCE THE BLASTED THINGS SO WE CAN WASH OUR HANDS OF THE ENTIRE AFFAIR!" cried a member of the public. It didn't take long for the courtroom to descend into chaos.
"Squealing louder won't help your case, pig" Levi interrupted, his voice never raising "While we're bolstering our defences, do you think the Titans are going to stand idly by? And when you say 'we can't afford' do you speak for anyone other than your fat merchant friends? Do you pigs even realise that most of our people are struggling just to survive off of what little land we have left?"
"I'm simply saying that sealing that gates is the only guaranteed protection we've got!"
"HOLD YOUR TONGUE! YOU VILE BELLIGERENT HERETIC! ARE YOU REALLY SUGGESTING THAT WE LOWLY HUMANS MEDDLE WITH WALL ROSE? A GIFT TO US ON HIGH? THE WALL IS A MIRACLE AND ITS DIVINITY TRANSCENDS HUMAN COMPREHENSION! DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND!…" cried Pastor Nick.
"It's that cult's fault. They're the ones who delayed the Garrison's arming of the Walls!" breathed Armin.
"That shows you the amount of support and power they've got. I don't trust them at all" Rico muttered in reply as the merchant and the Wallist continued to bicker.
"ORDER! I ask that you save your personal sentiments for a more appropriate venue" Zachery interjected slamming his hand against the bench top. "Now then Mr Jeager, I have a question for you. As a soldier you have made a solemn pledge to answer humanity's call. Can you still serve by controlling your abilities?"
"Yes, I will sir" Eren readily replied.
"Oh, is that so? But this report from the battle for Trost contradicts that statement. Just after transforming it seems you made an attempt to crush Mikasa Ackerman"
Eren started at that revelation, snapping towards where his friends stood to his left, shock clearly written across his face. He doesn't even remember! He completely lost control! Armin thought as Mikasa turned her glare on Rico.
"What did you expect? You want me to lie in the report? Glossing over that important fact could potentially spell disaster for us all" Rico defended.
"And who is this Mikasa Ackerman?" Zachery asked.
"Me. That would be me, sir" Mikasa stated.
"Alright then, is it true that Eren Jeager assaulted you in Titan form?"
"…"
"Answer the Premiere honestly, Eren's future depends on it" said Rico.
"…Yes…all of that's…true" Mikasa forced out.
I-I tried…to kill Mikasa?…What's happening to me? Eren thought as he watched his sister with wide eyes.
"However, he also saved my life twice before. In each circumstance he was using his Titan ability. The first: shortly after Trost fell. I was nearly killed by a Titan and Eren came, he stepped in and protected me. The second time: he transformed to shield Armin and I from canon fire. I implore you to take these facts into consideration" defended Mikasa.
"OBJECTION!" called Nile, "I have reason to believe that personal feelings play a large part in her testimony. Let the record show that Mikasa Ackerman was orphaned at a young age and subsequently adopted by the Jeager family. What's more, our own internal investigation into this matter led to a most shocking discovery.
Eren Jeager and Mikasa Ackerman at the tender age of nine, dealt with three adult kidnappers by stabbing all of them to death. Granted this was done in self-defence, all the same, one cannot help but question the violent nature of the act. Knowing all of this, should we really invest in him? Money? Manpower? The very fate of us all?"
The accusations that were thrown about at this revelation began to escalate the situation. The shouts had begun to grind on Eren's nerves; threats and accusations thrown his way he could handle, but at his sister? It's really no wonder he snapped. Besides Eren always had a short temper, it was bound to happen one way or another.
Eren's explosive rant was suddenly cut off by a boot to the face. The kick had so much force behind it that a tooth came flying out of his mouth as his head whipped to the side, a bruise already forming. Looking up, Eren met the eyes of Levi Ackerman who stood there for a moment before roughly dragging Eren up by the hair and kneeing him repeatedly in the face until blood gushed out.
"Y'know personally I think nothing instills discipline like pain" Levi commented with his boot pushing Eren's face into the floor "You don't need a good talking to, what you're in need of boy is to be taught a lesson and you happen to be in perfect kicking position" Eren grit his teeth at the statement, ready to fire back when Levi returned to kicking him repeatedly as the people watched on.
"N-Now hold on Levi" Nile stuttered causing Levi to pause with his foot pushing Eren upright by the face.
"What is it?" Levi asked removing his foot.
"It's dangerous. What if he gets angry? What if he turns into a Titan?"
"Don't be silly" Levi kicked Eren face first into the floor and heaved him up by the hair "After all you guys just want to direct him, don't you? During the time that he was transformed they say that Jeager was able to kill twenty Titans before he finally ran out of strength.
As an enemy, his intelligence makes him all the more dangerous, but I can still take him down without a problem. How many of you can say the same? Before you torment the beast, you better think, can you actually kill him?"
"Sir! I have a proposition" Erwin piped up, hand in the air.
"Proceed" said Zachery
"There's still too much we don't know and no doubt his danger will be ever present. As such I suggest this: Eren Jeager be placed under Captain Levi's supervision and we'll conduct a recon mission outside the Walls"
"Jeager will join you in the excursion?"
"Yes sir and you can look upon the mission's results yourself and if he successfully controls his ability, Eren will have proven his value to mankind"
"Eren Jeager will be closely supervised? And if he should lose control?"
"I can definitely kill him if it comes to that. The only downside is, there's absolutely no middle ground" Levi replied.
"Then I have made my decision"
Edith padded quietly behind Norfolk as he led her through the twisting hallways of the Sina Courthouse. Gnawing on a piece of crystallised ginger, her thoughts drifted back to what had happened earlier that day. She had woken late, sometime around lunch, where she had then learned that Eren had been placed on trial for his actions during the battle of Trost.
After lunch, she had sent off a letter to Peggy about replacing her prosthetic arm, before going over her gear and making sure that everything was working as it should be. Sometime before dinner, Norfolk had approached her and ordered her to follow him. Apparently she had been requested to deal with any injuries Eren had incurred during the trial; under the guise of gaining some 'more experience'
She quickly stuffed the bag of ginger in the medi-pack on her hips as they came to halt outside of one of the many wooden doors that lined the hallway. Norfolk knocked sharply on the door twice before taking a step back as it swung open. In the doorway stood Zoe Hanji who greeted the taller brunette before allowing them inside.
Once inside, Norfolk made his way over to Erwin in the corner and begun to talk to him in hushed tones. All other chatter in the room ceased as the occupants stared at the sudden appearance of the cadet and the medical officer. Edith shifted awkwardly under the stares, her eyes never fully meeting any of the others in the room.
To her right sat Eren and Levi on the blues chaise and Hanji stood in front of Eren, clearly wanting to analyse him. In the back corner of the room Mike stood staring out of the window and Erwin & Norfolk stood off to the side of the door talking in hushed tones.
"Ah Brown! There you are!" Hanji smiled as she turned to face the cadet in the doorway.
"Professor!" Edith saluted.
"Ah, drop the title! I'm not your professor anymore, Brown"
"Uh, yes ma'am!"
"Edith?…" Eren questioned looking up at his classmate who still stood in the doorway. Getting to his feet, he quickly strode over to the shorter girl and wrapped her in a tight hug, lifting her clear off the floor and trapping her arms to her sides "You're okay" he breathed, nestling his head into her shoulder. Apart Armin and Mikasa, she was the first classmate he'd seen since he'd been arrested the day before. Besides, nothing really brings people together like trauma, y'know?
Edith grunted at the tightness of the sudden hug, not that she minded of course. But she was finding it a little harder to breathe and she could have sworn she heard her prosthetic groan under the pressure. "Eren…can't…breathe" she wheezed. Eren quickly released his hold on her, causing Edith to stumble to her feet much to Eren's embarrassment.
"Sorry" he muttered looking down at his feet.
"It's fine" Edith quietly replied, trying to ignore the quiet chuckles of Hanji and Norfolk as the others watched the scene play out. Taking pity on the girl, Norfolk spoke up garnering the room's attention, "Right, Brown. Change of plans. You're gonna heal Jeager, then you're gonna see Lady Colt about your arm and you're gonna collect your things and meet the Squad Levi & Hanji at the gate"
"Sir?" Edith questioned at the sudden change of plans. What happened to the assignment ceremony? Sure as a field medic her options were limited, but the sudden change was odd.
"Is that understood, cadet?"
"Yes sir!" Edith saluted as Norfolk bid his goodbyes and left. Turning to Eren, she immediately went into what Gus like to call 'medic mode' "Right, you. Sit" she ordered Eren, pointing to the chaise behind him.
"What happened to you? You look like you kissed a wall" she joked coming to kneel in front of Eren.
"Uh, I got beat up while I was chained to a pole"
"Kinky, I didn't know you were into that sorta thing, Jeager. But I guess that explains why you asked Reiner about dogging" Edith grinned.
"EDITH!"a red-faced Eren spluttered.
"Your bedside manner sucks, Brown" Hanji cackled.
"Yeah, I know. It's a good thing I'm not a Civie"
"A Civie?" Eren asked.
"Civilian Doctor, their practice is all opinion based. So say you have a bad day or a patient doesn't like your treatment, they can complain and you'll be out on your ass faster than you can say 'Titan" Edith explained as she began her examination.
Having determined that his major injuries were healed (gotta love that Titan healing), she turned to the smaller ones. "Does that hurt?" Edith asked prodding his right forearm.
"Yeah" Eren replied holding a cold cloth to his swollen cheek. The underside of the forearm in question appeared slightly lumpy and Eren hissed when she pressed down on it.
"Right, well you've got shrapnel in your arm that I need to take out" Edith continued shifting through her medi-pack for her tools as she ignored Hanji's outburst.
Setting aside a small bowl, a pair of tweezers, a scalpel and a lighter she got to her feet and she also removed her belt. Rolling up Eren's sleeve, she tied the belt around his bicep and pulled it tight so that she could cut off the blood flow to his lower arm.
Next she picked up the lighter and held the scalpel to the flame to sterilise it. It was under watchful eyes that Edith sliced vertically up Eren's arm and pulled the flaps of skin open to reveal the fleshy inside. "You don't have to watch" Edith told Eren when she glanced up at the slight gagging noise.
"No…I'm good. I'm good" Eren mumbled as he winced at the slight tug he felt when Edith picked out small pieces of shrapnel and place them in the bowl. After a moment of silence Eren spoke up again, avoiding eye contact with the others in the room.
"Hey, Edith?" Eren mumbled.
"Mm?"
"…How come you're not scared?"
"Of what? Of you?"
"…"
"Eren. You choked on a minnow when we went swimming. Excuse me if I'm not shaking in my boots" she said waving her hand in the air as she did so.
"…Can't believe you remember that"
"What? It was funny…Though I guess it does explain the short temper"
"I don't have short temper!" Edith merely raised an eyebrow at him and he sank back against the couch.
"Now hold still" she requested placing the tweezers in the bowl with the shrapnel and bloody scalpel before she clapped her hands together and held them over the wound.
The small light produced by the alkahestry garnered the attention of the other occupants in the room and Erwin stepped forward and gripped her wrist in his hand pulling it off of the now fully healed arm. "What are you doing?" he demanded.
"Healing him" she replied forcefully pulling her wrist from his grasp, retrieving her items and sealing them away.
"Explain"
"T-That's alchemy, right?" Hanji asked intrigued.
"Alkahestry, actually. But they're pretty similar so I can understand the confusion" Edith casually replied as she continued to clean up.
"Alkahestry?"
"…Essentially, you use the same fundamentals as alchemy but for medical purposes" she sighed, "Like how I used to help Armin kick your ass in gear" she continued directing it towards Eren.
"What do you mean?"
"If you disregard the fact that Titans don't have digestive tracks or reproductive organs, we have similar if not, the same biology fundamentally speaking. So with that in mind, certain procedures that work on us, should in theory, work on Titans as well. So using alkahestry, I sent a command to your heart to, well, kick you into gear"
"In English?" Levi drawled.
"I restarted his heart"
"…How did you know it was going to work?" Eren asked.
"I didn't"
"Fine, why wasn't any of this in your reports?" Erwin interjected with arms crossed and eyes narrowed.
"With all due respect sir, do you see me hiding? No, do you know why? Why people turn the other cheek when strange things happen? Because they wanna feel safe and they can't do that if they admit a girl can 'magically' heal people or a kid can turn into a Titan. Because then they have to admit that their problems are real; that they are not safe"
There was a beat of silence as those gathered processed Edith's words before Erwin turned once more to the topic at hand. "…What's alchemy?"
"…Science. It's a branch of science that's not used so much anymore. Supposedly back in the day, it was quite a common practice but with the changes in technology, it kind of just faded away. A few families still practice it though" Edith sighed.
"And…this is a learned skill?"
Edith's head snapped up at that question, her movements freezing as she locked eyes with the Commander. She squared her shoulders and spoke in a cold voice. "Whatever you're thinking, stop it. Power always comes with a price, especially with alchemy and these prices are always high. Trust me"
You could've heard a pin drop in the silence that followed. Or more accurately an arm. "I knew I forgot something" Edith murmured as she bent down to retrieve the metal prosthetic next to Eren's feet.