Disclaimer: I do not own Shingeki no Kyojin.
A/N: This story is currently being rewritten, due to such high demand (thanks for reading guys!). I had given up on this story after entering university since I had become so busy. But seeing the new favorites and follows made me want to return back and continue this story of mine.
To my old readers: You will see that I have taken down quite a few chapters, but that is only because I am extremely unsatisfied with my old work. The story will not change much, but I figured that some of you guys probably forgot about this old fanfic anyway, so I thought that maybe it would be fine to delete all the old chapters and start anew. I appreciate your understanding for those who choose to return!
This prologue was edited on July 6, 2019.
Prologue
The ground violently shook underneath the stampede as people frantically ran off in all directions. Through the gray clouds and smoke that enveloped the buildings, I could faintly see their shadows — the monsters that sent shivers down my spine as I imagined confronting them around the corner.
There was a constant buzzing in my ears. Perhaps my ears started to bleed after hearing an intolerable number of ear-splitting shrieks and helpless screams, but that was nothing compared to the pain and fear that was crushing my soul as I scrambled down the roads.
I leaped over a wooden barrel as it tumbled down the familiar streets and found the soles of my feet aching terribly from exhaustion, but it only reassured me that everything was going to be alright.
The pain was just pain. It was a reminder that I was still alive and that was all that mattered in this rotten world of madness.
Pulling myself back up on my feet, I sprinted past the lying corpses, heading towards the river. All that reflected in my eyes was the color red: my bruised skin, the endless pile of bodies, and the pools of blood that dyed the entire town in crimson red.
The metallic and rancid odor of blood made my stomach burn as an acidic emotion rose up within me. I gritted my teeth, almost biting on my lips to prevent myself from gagging at the smell.
I kept moving forward, ignoring the thundering footsteps that signaled our impending doom, dodging the blood-spilled ground as I made my way towards the evacuation ships. I pushed myself through the raucous fray of people that were standing next to the river.
To my dismay, the last ship was already on its way. Frantically searching for an escape route, I found that there were none. The people around me were shedding hot tears as they violently screamed and clawed their way through the crowd in desperation — some even falling into the river by accident.
Sweat poured down my face as I clicked my tongue while pondering my choice of actions. It was too late for me to head back to the wall gates. I couldn't risk running through the city again; that would be like signing my death warrant.
There was only one thing left that I could do.
I clenched my jaw and fists, pushing my way past the right side of the crowd. I heard people yelling after me as I sprinted forward, gaining speed. The ship was to my left and I felt the hollowed and despaired eyes of the crew staring at me with bewilderment.
With a deep breath, I shifted my feet slightly as I stepped onto the ledge. Bending my knees, I jumped and found myself soaring over the water. Almost miraculously, my hands managed to grab the side of the ship. Hauling myself up, I collapsed down onto the boat, scraping my knees along the side as I tumbled headfirst down to the floor in exhaustion.
I winced a bit as my face slammed into the ground. With a groan, I lifted my head up and caressed my forehead with my hand.
A hand was held out in front of my face. I blinked as my eyes traveled up to meet the person's gaze.
He had short golden hair and a small face. He looked to be about the same age as me. His eyes were filled with worry, but mostly — matter how much he tried to hide it — filled with fear.
"…Are you okay?" the young boy's voice was raspy and dry, probably from lack of water. I stiffly nodded and gladly took his hand as he helped me up onto my feet.
"…Thank you," I managed to meekly voice out as he nodded back in reply.
"You really did jump onto this ship," the boy's shoulder lightly shook as if he had just witnessed an amusing sight, but the laughter was soundless.
It was no surprise. Who would be able to laugh in such a despairing situation?
I stared at him with an understanding frown as I felt the salty, warm trail of tears along my cheeks.
"Well…I just…wanted to…live," I stammered out as the tears came pouring uncontrollably out of my eyes. He just stared at me sympathetically. I knew that deep inside, he was probably in pain as well…
Just like everyone else on this boat.
Without a word, he lightly grasped my hand and dragged me along. I stumbled after him. Despite the fact that he was a stranger, it didn't matter…
Because all of us had met the same fate. And no one wanted to be left despairing alone in the midst of such overwhelming terror.
He led me towards two other kids the same age as me. One of them sat there, leaning against the side of the boat. It was a girl with ebony black hair and charcoal gray eyes that shone with such strength and brilliance, unlike everyone else.
The other one…was a boy who was standing, gripping the side of the boat tight, swearing out loud at the top of his lungs.
"I'M GOING TO KILL THEM ALL! NOT EVEN A SINGLE ONE OF THEM…WILL BE ALIVE!" screamed the boy as he vigorously wiped away his tears with the sleeves of his shirt.
I stared at the boy's eyes that were brimming with a concoction of fear, worry, and determination.
There was something about his words that spoke to me, moving my already wavering heart.
I held my hands in front of me, staring at the tip of my fingers that were still shuddering from an indescribable level of fear. There was a voice that echoed in my head — a cry of helplessness, weakness, and bone-aching sorrow. But at the same time, there was something burning in my heart that wanted to claw its way out.
The fury and resentment overflowed from deep inside of me as I watched the boy continue to holler insults up at the skies above. I wanted to join him in condemning the heavens above for cursing our fate and making humanity suffer.
I wanted to change our pathetic state. Humanity didn't have to run away with fear like this. We were capable of much more. We could defend ourselves if we were allowed the chance to retaliate.
The endless hatred inside of me attracted me to the boy as I found myself stepping forward, walking towards him. Noticing me from behind, he whirled his head around to meet me with a steely gaze.
"W-What are you staring at? Do you think I'm crazy or something?" the boy snapped at me, shooting me a glare.
"...No, the opposite, actually. I think you just saved me," I found myself breaking into a small smile.
The boy just openly gaped at me, eyes whirling with confusion. From the sideline, the golden-haired boy looked at me as if I had gone insane. The girl, on the other hand, stared at me with something like recognition and understanding in her eyes.
"Thank you for reminding me that we have the choice of fighting back instead of succumbing to our fate," I sincerely expressed my gratitude, hardened my own resolve.
"Uh, no problem…?" the boy stared at me with a puzzled look on his face, visibly confused about what I was about to do.
I took a long deep breath before I ran up to the same side of the boat that he had been yelling from. Then, I mirrored his actions.
"HEY, YOU TITANS. YOU THINK YOU CAN WIPE OUT HUMANITY? WELL TOO BAD, I'M ROSE SCARLET AND I'M FUCKING ALIVE!" I pumped my fists up into the air as I screamed out from the bottom of my heart all of the hatred and burning resentment I had towards the monsters.
"...Ha...hahaha."
I spin my head around to see that all three of the kids I met were quietly chuckling at my actions.
"What happened to that shy and meek girl from a minute ago?" the golden-haired boy was now laughing out loud unlike before.
"Your friend changed me," I shrugged nonchalantly and shot his friend another thankful look.
"Man, you really got the spunk and fire in you," the boy commented with a snort. "I'm Eren Jaeger. Nice to see I have a comrade here."
"I'm Armin Arlert and that's Mikasa Ackermann right there," Armin introduced himself as Mikasa stepped forward to join our little circle.
"As much as I don't want to say anything right now, I think everyone thinks we've gone crazy in the head," Mikasa suddenly pointed out. True to her words, everyone else on the boat was staring at us with disbelief. Of course, they couldn't understand us; they didn't really want to live.
"It's fine. Just ignore them," Eren scowled. "I'm not going down without a fight. Ever."
"I think you already made that very clear," Armin sweatdropped.
"Maybe too clear," Mikasa scolded him as Eren quietly apologized while sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.
"Uh, do I even need to introduce myself?" It was a rhetorical question, as they all laughed at me.
"Nah, we heard you loud and clear. Rose Scarlet's the name, yeah?" Eren had a lop-sided grin on his face. "And you're alive."
"Oh shut up, your speech was also cliche as hell," I found myself enjoying from the bottom of my heart the bantering we were having.
"Shh, I think we're about to reach the shore," Mikasa alerted us to our surroundings.
True to her words once again, the boat had slowed down its speed as it came to a halt.
"Let's quickly get out of here," Eren suddenly said as he ran towards the other end of the boat near the exit. "Hurry up, guys!"
"Wait up, Eren!" Armin yelled as Mikasa and he ran after him.
I bathed in the silence that remained after the three left. Closing my eyes, I reminisced back to my time in the Shiganshina District. Hardening my resolve, I took a step forward towards the exit where my new friends awaited me.
Life has always been a living hell for me. Even if I look back, there's nothing there waiting for me. I might as well take this chance and move forward. This time, I'll grasp my own life without fail.
Hell? Whether it was the hell from before or the hell now, let it be.
I'll show the world that I was meant to live — that I'll be a survivor until the very end.