"…I suppose in the end, there's a killer in all of us…maybe not the mass murderer kind, maybe just the bug swatter kind"-Edith M. Brown Diary, 850
Spring 850
Titan Forest, 57th Exterior Scouting Expedition
"So if we're going home, that means the operation was a success, right?" Jean questioned as he and the others made their way back to the original entrance to the Titan forest; where they would regroup with the rest of the ranks.
"Hopefully so. If that is the case, then they might've already discovered the identity of the Female Titan" Armin replied.
"I wouldn't mind knowing that myself" Edith tacked on, "Still, I'm impressed with the Commander. How'd he know she'd come after us once we took Eren beyond the Wall?"
"Think about it at the Trost invasion. Did it strike you as odd that the Titans suddenly halted their advance midway through? They must've had some purpose when they destroyed the front gate, but they never made a move on the inner gate; nor did they interfere with Eren when he sealed the breach. Perhaps something happened which made them reevaluate their plan entirely"
"What would that be?" Jean asked.
"Something drew their attention away from the Wall's destruction, something that forced them to call off the attack"
"What like Eren's transformation?" Ryan gasped.
"That's the most logical conclusion"
"Wait, but then that would mean…" Jean breathed.
"It means they were there, whoever called off the attack saw Eren transform. It means the enemy is one of us"
"Holy shit, did not see that coming" Ryan muttered.
It all happened so fast. One minute they were flying through the air, the next Gunther was hanging upside down like a dead spider. Eren raced over to him, calling out his name but stopped when he saw the condition he was in. Gunther's head was bent at such an unnatural angle and a vacant look was present in his eyes; one that didn't belong there. There was no doubt about it, he was dead.
"GUNTHER!" Eren cried trying desperately to rouse the dead scout.
"GO KID! C'ME ON! KEEP MOVING!" Oluo called grabbing Eren as he swung passed, hoisting him back into the air.
"W-WE'RE JUST LEAVING HIM?!" Eren cried, all sense of decorum gone out the window as the shadowed figure struck again, this time going after the remaining Scouts.
"W-WHO IS THAT?" Petra demanded.
"KEEP 'EM AWAY FROM EREN!" Eld called from the front of the pack.
"DAMMIT! HEY ELD, WHAT ARE WE DOING?" Oluo shouted.
"THERE ISN'T TIME TO GET THE HORSES, MAKE FOR HQ AT FULL SPEED!" Eld cried zooming forward with the shadowed figure right on his tail.
"Is that the Female Titan or did she have an accomplice?" Oluo wondered aloud.
"Damn! Whoever it is THEY'RE GONNA PAY EVEN IF IT'S THE LAST THING I DO!" Petra declared spinning in place with a murderous look on her face.
The Female Titan? Eren worried, peeking over his shoulder at the shadowed figure who disappeared from their sights as they dodged around a tree. No! That can't be right! I thought we'd caught her! They didn't have to wait for long. A familiar light struck the earth and steam poured out of the creature that emerged.
"I hate being right!" Oluo complained.
"No time to lose, move it! She's coming for us!" Eld ordered as the Female Titan rose and began to sprint after the fleeing Scouts. Her thundering footsteps shook everything in its path, very few of those things remaining intact.
"DAMN YOU! NOT AGAIN! I'LL KILL YOU! I SWEAR I WILL!" Eren declared preparing to take her on.
"NO! DON'T! WE'VE GOT THIS! THE THREE OF US CAN HANDLE IT! GET BACK TO BASE! GO NOW!" Eld shouted, stopping Eren from transforming.
"I CAN FIGHT HER TOO!" Eren protested.
"JUST GO! THIS IS OUR BEST COURSE OF ACTION! WE CANNOT AFFORD TO PUT YOU AT RISK!"
"HAVE YOU LEARNED NOTHING? AFTER ALL THIS YOU STILL DOUBT OUR SKILLS?" Oluo added.
"IS THAT TRUE EREN? I THOUGHT YOU HAD FAITH IN US! THAT YOU TRUSTED US!" Petra ended, her voice cracking slightly as she spoke. Eren paused for a moment, gritting his teeth as he fought over what to do. Eventually he gave the remaining squad members a small nod before lowering his hands from his mouth and turning back around.
"I HAVE FAITH IN YOU!" Eren cried, zooming forward much to the relief of the others.
Eld, Petra and Oluo triple-teamed the Female Titan, dodging outstretched limbs and slicing through her eyes, blinding her. Eren could only watch as the Female Titan backed herself up against a tree with her hand covering the nape of her neck like she had done only moments before.
We've blinded her! Eld thought determinedly, That should give us at least a minute before she regenerates!
We'll finish her well before then! Petra exclaimed. We're gonna carve you up!
To hell with capturing you, we're gonna kill you! Oluo declared. We'll make you pay, bitch!
Covering your neck isn't gonna save you! We'll just keeping slicing those shoulders until your arms are worthless! Trust me, we know what we're doing! No mercy! Go to hell! Eld thought as the trio took turns slicing through both of her exposed shoulders.
"NOW TAKE OUT THE NECK!" Eld yelled once the beast's arms had fallen limp at her sides. The had to be careful though, Titan steam was beginning to pour from her wounded eyes.
"TAKE OUT THE MUSCLES SUPPORTING HER HEAD!" Oluo roared.
"LET'S CARVE OUR WAY TO THE NAPE!" Petra cried.
They…they've got it totally overwhelmed! Eren thought peeking over his shoulder as the trio descended on the defenceless beast, They're so good, they've all co-ordinated an attack without even saying a word! It must be the trust they have in each other as teammates, that's how they've survived this long, it's how they've managed to stay this strong even after losing Gunther!
Eren faced forwards once more, determination driving him forward. Gotta keep going! I have to have faith that the right choice is to keep moving without looking back! I've gotta trust in them, I understand that now.
Just then, Captain Levi's words from earlier flashed before him. Truth is, I don't know which is better, I never have. Should I go out on my own? Should I put myself in the hands of my comrades? Either way there's no guarantee…" Eren glanced over his shoulder once more to see Eld going in for another shot. "SAY GOODBYE TO YOUR NAPE!" he cried prepping his blades to cut through the beast's neck. But he didn't move fast enough.
One of her eyes had already healed and she snapped her head to towards him so fast that he didn't even have time to scream. She bit down on his head, decapitating him in one go before spitting out both pieces on the forest floor; making sure to keep her gaze locked on Eren as if she was mocking him.
Eren didn't think twice about swinging back around to help Petra and Oluo. Just one, let me just save one!
"HOW? SHE CAN SEE AGAIN? THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE! IT HANS'T EVEN BEEN THRITY SECONDS!" Petra wailed as she fled from the Female Titan. The beast in question raised her head and locked her gaze on the Scouts in from of her; it made her look quite eerie.
She no longer felt the need to guard her nape well aware of the advantage she now had. "ONLY ONE EYE? SHE CHANNELLED HER ENERGY INTO ONE EYE TO GROW IT BACK FASTER? HOW CAN SHE DO THAT?"
"PETRA! PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER! PETRA!" Oluo ordered as he trailed after the fleeing Scout and chasing Titan. He didn't make it in time, the last thing he saw was the Female Titan raising her foot and smashing it down on Petra; leaving her as nothing more than a smudge on the tree.
"Now…DIE!" Oluo cried as he sliced his blades through the nape of her neck. However it was not the flesh that gave way, but his blades which shattered upon the impact of the glistening crystal covering her nape. Oluo barely had time to register what had happened before he too was swatted away, bouncing off a nearby tree with a sickening crack.
Eren felt sick to his stomach at what he had just witnessed. Not only had the Female Titan decimated their ranks earlier in the day, she had also just killed the Levi squad-the Special Operations squad-they were supposed to be the best of the best and she had swatted them away like they were pesky flies.
Eren burst forth from the canopy, his gaze wandering over the corpses of his teammates who littered the forest floor in a bloody mess. Instinctively he bit down hard on his hand, giving the beast what she had wanted all along.
The familiar light of a Titan transformation illuminated the forest and the sky as Eren emerged from the smoke, standing tall over the crouched female. His roar pierced through the trees, declaring his fury to the world.
The next few moments were a flurry of swinging limbs and furious roars. Even while holding the majority of the advantages, Eren was no match for the Female who moved with the elegance of a trained fighter.
Eren, on the other hand, relied on a brawling fighting style; the kind you would see kids use when fighting in the street. It was clear that where Eren was driven by pure unadulterated rage, the Female Titan was driven by cold and calculating steps pushing her towards her goal.
Levi rushed through the forest, using the sound of fighting and roars alone to guide him to the beasts. His anger grew with each body he passed. It was a cold anger, the kind that built up slowly and released itself in devastating actions. Gunther, Eld, Petra, Oluo. His teammates, his friends, gone. That bitch is going to pay!
Eren pinned the Female Titan to the ground and rained down blows that physically split his limbs with the force. The Female continued to struggle despite this, twisting and turning to avoid the hits being dealt her way.
I made the wrong decision, you came after us and I made the choice to trust my teammates! And it got them all killed! I should have never left it to them! I should've fought her from the very start! It's all my fault! I SHOULD'VE KILLED HER!
Eren recalled the first time the Female Titan had appeared on their tail, I should've…should've changed into a Titan then. No, even earlier than that. I should've fought back! And with Captain Levi there, we would've beaten her! WE COULD'VE CAPTURED THIS MONSTER!
"…I wouldn't blame you, do as your conscious dictates…"
It was…it was my choice and because of that choice, my teammates are dead! All of them gone and I'm to blame! NO! MORE THAN ANYTHING, THIS IS YOUR FAULT! I'M GONNA RIP YOU TO SHREDS! ONCE MY HANDS HEAL, I'LL TEAR YOU APART PIECE BY PIECE! THEN I'LL DEVOUR YOU!"
It was only once Eren had begun to tire, his emotion-fuelled hits coming to a close, that the Female Titan struck her final blow. With a swipe of her crystallised fist, she tore his head clean off, leaving his steaming body to drop to the floor. Eren couldn't even react as the Female Titan latched onto his nape with her fangs and tore him free.
It was to this scene that Mikasa arrived, her beloved brother fused to his Titan carcass with the Female Titan leaning over him with her jaws cracked wide in an eerie grin. "EREN NO!" Mikasa wailed as the Female Titan tore him from the carcass and swallowed him whispers gave way to murderous revenge in an instant, driving her forward after the retreating Female.
"Give him…give him back!" Mikasa cried as the Female Titan placed a hand over her nape. Mikasa held no qualms about slicing through the hand to get to the nape. "DO YOU HEAR ME? GIVE HIM BACK!" she roared, landing hits any which way she could, anything to slow the bitch down. She was like a one woman army.
At the last second, the Female Titan crystallised her hands, breaking Mikasa's blades as they struck home and sending shards flying everywhere. Hooking into a nearby tree, Mikasa barely let herself rest before she took after the beast once more, clinging to the hope that Eren was still alive.
"My blades…didn't even break the skin? He's still alive, he's still alive and I'm coming for him! JUST HANG ON EREN! I know you're in there and after I kill her, I'll carve out her insides and pull you out again. I swear I will, just hang on a little longer. Don't give up, Eren, never give up!"