-Chapter 19: Death in the Family-
Outskirts of Wall Maria, outside Shiganshina's outer wall
By the rising sun they approached from the south once more. Today there were seven in number, all ranging from 4 to 13 meters in height. Their lumbered steps echoed across the fields, signaling the arrival of humanities foes, the titans. Two of the smaller ones bumped into one another causing one of them to stumble onto the ground, but other than a moan it offered no retaliation, simply getting itself back up and continuing on its trek. titans paid next to no attention to what went on below nor around them, they simply continued on their march towards the damaged fifty-meter wall, with the sole desire to consume the humans that dwelled inside, nothing more, nothing less. It was an urge, a sole desire to eat, and eat some more, till they vomited up the remains, and then continue the cycle. However, it seemed that they would be deterred form their quest to consume human flesh.
In the form of a descending blue light.
It had appeared in the sky a few moments the pack had gotten closer towards the wall, as if it was waiting for them. The light soared across, like a comet in the night sky, before it soon began to descend at a rapid speed, straight towards one of the large 13 meters. The beast in response simply stared at it with its dopey grin, even as the light struck it down.
The resulting shockwave that resulted from the collision caused the nearby titans to be blown back with one of the larger ones falling onto a few of the smaller titans, eliciting wails and moans as they were crushed under the weight. As for the glowing light it too landed on the ground, revealing it to be in actuality a weapon, a morning star to be exact. The glow it emitted came from the series of markings and runes engraved onto the weapon, which soon began to dissipate.
Some of the titans stared at the motionless mace for a few moments before the weapon began to shake and the markings began to glow once more. Almost instantly the weapon rose from its position and flew back towards the wall, not before smacking into another titan on its way.
-oOo-
Atop Shiganshina's outer wall
Maverick held his right-hand outwards, with Commander Pixis and his retinue watching with amazement at what had just occurred. The elder commander had originally spoken in jest when he asked the marked man if he could cut the approaching titans down to size. Didn't believe the man would actually throw his weapon due to the very large distance, and yet he found his eyes nearly bugging out of his sockets as he saw the head of one of the larger tians explode, taking much of its upper body in the process.
Then he found himself chuckling as he watched the resulting crescendo effect, while his aides were still in shock, mouths open wide at the scene. Soon they spotted the glow quickly approaching, revealing to be Skullsmite. Seconds later the weapon returned to the right hand of its creator, who smirked at the commander.
"*Chuckle* You continue to surprise me Maverick. I suppose I'll be eating my own words much more often." Maverick simply gave the elder commander a smirk and a shrug of his shoulders, eliciting another bout of laughter. The commanders aides however found themselves slack jawed at what just transpired.
"H-How? How do you do it?" Gustav asked with stuttered speech. While he had grown used to Maverick's feats, a part of his mind still struggled to process just how he was able to not only throw his weapon at such long distances, but to be able to actually hit something from said distance. The man in question simply gave a smile to the young man as he twirled his morning star in the air.
"Like any other skill Gustav..." He said, just before winding his arm and throwing Skullsmite once again, the members of the Garison watched the weapon fly once more, all the way towards the spot where the other large titan was getting itself back up. With bated breath they saw the glowing weapon descend from the sky, straight towards the titan. Like it's fellow it suffered a devastating blow to its head, sending the corpse back down.
Looking back they watched the large man hold out his right hand once again, the markings glowing that ethereal blue glow. Moments later the weapon returned, and with a toothy grin he finished what he was going to say.
"Practice."
Gustave shoulders slumped slightly, while Anka chose to keep watch of the remaining titans, trying to keep her giggles in.
"And I suppose your greater than average strength was too practice?" Pixis jokingly asked, already knowing the answer.
"Ehhhhh…some of it." Maverick responded while shaking his hand, expressing a "so-so" response. The banter between the two elder men continued for a few moments, while they watched the titan pack, now much smaller, slowly trudge their way towards the wall.
"Well, don't think they'll be much of a bother now. Think I'll leave the rest to your troops." Maverick said just as the cannon crew began to ride their way across the rail line, ready to pelt the intruders with a hefty serving of artillery.
"Indeed, can't have our watchmen rely on you too much, but your assistance is most certainly appreciated." Gustav and Anka nodded their head in agreement eliciting a chuckle from the large 7-foot tall superhuman. "Anytime sir, anytime."
With that Maverick turned his back on the outskirts of the land beyond towards what was going on inside the district. He crouched down as he eyed the many laborers and other members of the Garrison hard at work in their efforts in the reconstruction of the district.
A few weeks back the reconstruction had truly begun in earnest. After the last of last season's snow had melted and the ground dried up, the military had sent all available hands to begin the reconstruction on Shiganshina's outer gate. To Maverick's surprise they were not only working on the gate, they were reconstructing the entire half of the district that got assaulted by the giant horde. An entire overhaul if you will.
"So the higher ups really went forward with all this?" Maverick asked eying some members of the Garrison that were currently demolishing one of the many homes that were ruined by the Colossal Titans' attack, as well as some laborers that were digging around the area of the outer gate.
"Yes. Many of the homes here were far beyond any hope of being rebuilt. Instead this entire section of the district will soon be dedicated for military purposes and personnel." Pixis remarked as he made his way to the marked man's side. Taking out his flask he took a swig of its contents before offering some to the large scout. Thanking the elder he held it with two fingers and downing it like a shot.
"Gonna piss off a lot of people when they find out their homes a bunker now." Maverick said while returning the flask. The commanders' aides looked at him with shock at the rather vulgar tone he spoke towards the commander. The commander however seemed to take no offense as he shook the contents inside his flask before taking another swig.
"No doubt. But I'm sure many have managed to rebuilt their lives in the interior of Maria. Some might even wish to not resettle near the outer wall, much less return." He said while eyeing the demolition below them.
"Many of the local towns and villages did welcome the refugees after all." Gustav remarked, earning him a nod from Maverick. Sensing some lingering doubt the commander placed a hand over the marked man's shoulder, in an attempt to reassure him.
"If it's any consolation, we are making efforts to recover any remaining lost valuables and return them to their proper ownership." It seemed to ease the large man as smile formed on his face. The calm atmosphere was disrupted however, as he noticed a rather amusing sight.
Looking down Maverick spotted a squad of garrison looking to be chewed out by another, no doubt a senior officer. He watched as said officer began to walk around the district, amused by the somewhat sporadic movements of his arms towards each squad he neared.
"Seems like someone's taking their duties to heart…" Maverick remarked with a nostalgic tone, recalling the few times he suffered a similar treatment form his superiors from bygone armies. Pixis looked down and smiled as well.
"Ah, I see he's arrived." With a raised eyebrow Maverick turned to the elder commander.
"And who might he be?" From how Pixis sounded it seemed to be someone of importance, at least that's what he thought. Pixis didn't respond as he patted the large man's shoulder again.
"I believe it would be best if you two were to meet in person, come." With that he made his way towards one of the many lifts installed atop the outer wall, gesturing for the marked man to follow.
While Maverick would have preferred to simply jump down the wall, he accepted the offer and joined Pixis and his retinue. With his weapon secured atop his right shoulder he placed himself between the two aides, just as the lift was lowered. There was a slight shake as it descended, but other than that there were no issues as it steadily lowered.
"*Whistle* Your boys busted out the good stuff for these lifts." Maverick remarked as he tapped his foot on the platform the stood on. The two aides by his sides chuckled at his jest, yet he could see the worry in their faces as some sweat drops ran down their foreheads. The commander though didn't seem worried in the slightest, if anything he seemed assured.
"Of course, they'll be essential for the gates reconstruction. Can't have them breaking down when we're delivering supplies up and down the wall." Nothing more was said as the group simply enjoyed the ride down to meet the officer of great importance.
-oOo-
Near Shiganshina's outer gate
"Did you double check to see if there was anything left? Inspected every room, top to bottom?" The superior asked with an inquisitive and slightly unnerving tone. Didn't help that his features were shadowed over, giving the man a slightly intimidating vibe towards the troopers.
"Y-Yes, Sir…" The young Garrison replied with a salute, nearly dropping the box of valuables in his arm. His fellows saluted as well trying to keep eye contact with the man. A huff left the officers mouth, still in disbelief that these were the best men that were able to gather. A good thing that he was around he thought, for high command was wise to have him stationed in the district. With his leadership he'd get these men into shape in no time.
"Good, we can't afford to be lax, as you were." He sent them off to continue I their duties, leaving him to check on the other squads and see how they were progressing. However before he could a familiar aged and jovial voice ring out from behind him.
"Hard at work, Captain?" Almost immediately he straightened his back and turned around to meet the commander face to face, as his military doctrine ordered of him.
"C-Commander Pi-iiiii-" Whatever confidence and resolve immediately went out the window at the sight of the 7-foot tall being standing next to the commander, allowing Maverick to finally get a look a the man. He was a rather tall man, not as tall as him, but still quite tall. His reddish-brown hair was slicked back to be made presentable, as well as his clean-shaven face, which displayed his current look of shock, as his mouth quivered still trying to say the commanders' name, who proceeded to introduce the two in his stead.
"Maverick, like to introduce you to Kitz Woermann, our recently promoted captain. He will be stationed here in Shiganshina for the foreseeable future. I'm sure you will both see one another very often." Maverick tied to calm the man down by putting on a calm and non-threatening tone.
"A pleasure sir." He slowly approached Kitz with his hand out in order to perform the universal greeting. Kitz however was absolutely frozen stiff, for this was honestly the very first time he had ever seen the illusive "man from beyond the walls" in person. Sure he had read the reports, and had been subjected to the preaching's of the band of cultists that worshiped him, but to see him in person, in all his glowing and rugged looking glory, was an entirely frightening feeling, if he was being completely honest. Not to mention the massive, spiked weapon in his right hand, that the reports also said that was practically an extension of his being, capable of feats that were borderline supernatural.
Maybe his followers were right about him, his gaze could leave you breathless…and quivering in your boots…
"Ugh….I-I…I-I-I-" Was all the captain could mutter out as he stared at the large glowing hand in front of him, then back to the bearded marked man, then back to the hand. The commander left out a humored huff and tried to calm him down, less the captain suffer a sudden cardiac arrest.
"At ease captain, don't let his appearance fool you, he's just as human as you and I." He patted the marked man's arm as a form of reassurance. When he saw the goliath not act out from being touched only then did his heartbeat begin to slow down and his mind returned to a more rational state.
"Y-Yes! Of course! My a-apologies…" He slowly brought his smaller hand to formally greet the large man. Though his worry returned once the large hand practically engulfed his.
Then came the shock that ran through his back…
A very audible yelp came from Kitz as he backed away, holding onto his hand, both relieved and surprised. He had read reports from others who had the…pleasure to shake the man's hand, many of them reporting to feel something running through their backs the moment their hands touched. Seems they weren't mere fabrications, as he once deduced.
"The good captain will be making sure the reconstruction goes smoothly. As well as overseeing the defense of the breach." Pixis continued, while Kitz massaged his hand.
"That reminds me, there been any progress on the gate yet?" Maverick asked looking back at the gaping crack that the Colossal Titan had made. Pixis nodded while taking a sip from his flask.
"Their progress has been steady, if their weekly updates are to be believed. May be wishful thinking but we might see the gate operational soon." The good captain's eyes widened even more at what the commander just said. He said "their" as in a group of individuals. There was only one group that came to mind.
"C-Commander! Does he know about the-"
"That he does captain." Kitz mouth went agape once again. Their existence was known to only military personnel, as their work was crucial to humanities efforts against their great enemy. All the more surprising at just how casual the commander said it.
"B-But Commander, knowledge of the industrial city is re-" He was stopped by Pixis' chuckles as he gestured towards the glowing goliath with his usual jovial tone.
"Maverick has shown himself to be trustworthy with such information Captain. He has no reason to betray us at this point." Woermann could only hold his shocked look as Maverick mad his comment on the matter.
"Plus they did send me a letter when they delivered my set of gear. So the cats pretty much out of the bag already." While Pixis let out an amused huff at the marked man's idiom, Kitz deflated a little as his arms dangled.
"Commander, we should get going soon." The young Rheinberger said getting the attention of the elder Garisson commander.
"Ah indeed. Well gentlemen, as my dear aide has informed, I must be off, have some other matters to attend to. Pleasant time with you as always Maverick." With that the commander departed his two aides following behind him.
"Likewise Commander. Till next time you two." Said aides turned back to waving farewell to the large man, which of course left him with only Captain Woermann for company. The man said nothing, only giving him a nervous glance before shifting his eyes to another part of the district, or at one of the Garrison squads moving about. Seeing as he wasn't going to talk anytime soon it was up to Maverick to break the ice.
"So, recently promoted hmmm?" He asked. It seemed to get the captain's attention as he made eye contact with the large scout.
"Y-Yes, minus the Commander, many others in high positions were discharged after the restructuring. Many of us lower ranking officers had to step up, take charge from that fiasco." Maverick noticed the shift in the captain's tone, turning sharper, most likely recalling the events in his head. Thus he decided to play off of that.
"Well, can't say much on the previous command….but you seem fit for the job." The small compliment was enough for the captain to huff out and re inflate himself.
"Of course! Someone has to keep these men in line." He gestured towards one of the squads, who gave him questioning looks. Maverick could only smile in response glad to have settled the awkward atmosphere between the two.
"Captain!" Came a shout from a soldier running towards the two.
"What's the issue?" Kitz responded, putting on the air of the calm and collected leader once again, as if the last few minutes didn't happen at all.
"We're having trouble moving some debris from one of the homes." The captain's gaze sharpened as his eyebrow raised. "I-It's a piece of the outer gate sir, it's far too heavy for our equipment to lift!" He let out an exasperated breath
"I see…." His eyes widened a bit as an idea formed, which involved the giant standing next to him. "Do you believe you can provide assistance?" He asked with a less sterner tone, to which Maverick responded by cracking the joints in his hands. "Should be no-"
"Oi, Mav!"
Turning around Maverick caught the sight of his squad leader running towards them with a gleeful look on her face, as she sped across the main road. He also spotted Moblit a short distance away trying to catch up, only to nearly trip over himself, and settling to simply speed walk the rest of the way, not before waving hello to his large friend.
With a soft chuckle he smile and waved back to the vice-captain, just as Hange nearly collided with him, only to stop a few inches in front of him.
"Saw Commander Pixis pass by, said we'd find you here!" She exclaimed while catching her breath. "So! Ready to head back to HQ?" That was when Captain Woermann made himself know to the squad leader.
"Your comrade's strength is needed here in the district for the moment." Kitz proclaimed. Hange turned to the captain finally acknowledging his existence, with a rather…less than pleasant tone.
"With all due respect, he's not part of the Garrison." She said firmly, with a slight hint of scorn in her voice, despite the smile on her face.
"It's alright Hange, I'll be back before you know it, promise." He said not wanting to start some petty drama between the two sides. A less than pleased expression formed on her face for a few moments before a sigh left her mouth as she patted his arm.
"Alright, but I'm holding you too it." She turned on her heel back towards their headquarters, with Moblit letting out a tired sigh and waving at the marked man, before following the squad leader.
The three soldiers were left to themselves once again with Kitz giving Maverick a questioning look, wondering what he had done to earn the ire of the bespectacled scout.
"Weve been working on some projects back at headquarters, to better fight the giants and whatnot. I'm sure you understand." He said with a smile.
"I-I see…" Was all he said before taking his leave, leaving Maverick to follow the other garrison soldier who directed him towards the area of concern.
-oOo-
Residential area, inside the Shiganshina District
"Sorry about dragging you off from your usual business with the scouts…." Said the young rose backed soldier as he lead the marked man across the war-torn street. The man in question simply brushed off his concern with a smile.
"No trouble at all kiddo, made a living having to lift heavy things, ya know." He emphasized by flexing his left arm, getting a small chuckle from the soldier.
"Still, she looked pretty pissed back there." A small bead of sweat began to form atop his forehead as he recalled the smile on the scouts face, that held nothing but absolute venom. Another chuckle erupted from the large man who patted the Garrisons' back.
"Ah don't worry about it, she wasn't mad at you. Relax." The soldier did just that as he took a couple deep breaths. Seemed to work as he said no more and continued to lead the large scout. As they passed through Maverick looked around eyeing the ruins that once housed the residents of the district. He was practically on auto pilot as the memories of that day flashed in his mind.
'How long ago was that, almost a year? Gods…'
He wouldn't reminisce for long as the young Garrison turned a corner towards a residential street and shouted out to the rest of his comrades, snapping him out of his funk.
"Sir! I brought some back up!" Maverick sighted a group of Garrison gathered atop the stone stairs of the street, among them a certain blonde and short-haired soldier. Turning around to meet them, the soldiers eyes widened as the two made eye contact, before lowering to a more relaxed look.
"Oh, fancy seeing you again." Hannes remarked in a somewhat tired tone as he made his way down the stone steps. Maverick picked up on it but choose to not say anything for the moment., deducing that the reconstruction was wearing him out. All work and no play can make a man grow dull after all.
"Hannes, my man. Your boy tells me you need a little hand with something?" He joked eliciting a soft chuckle from the squad leader.
"Well as you can see we've got a pretty big piece of the wall in the way. Keeping us from doing our job." He gestured towards said piece of the wall that had crashed a section of an already collapsed home.
"Well, good thing I'm here." Maverick said as he began to walk up towards the group. Another tired chuckle sounded from Hannes who waited for the marked scout to catch up.
"*Chuckles* Aernt we lucky…" He soon followed in step the large man while his squad mate went on ahead. As they trudged along the steps Hannes turned to Maverick with an interesting comment. "This spot ring any bells?"
Maverick stopped and looked around the area with a clam and somewhat nostalgic look. Ah yes, it was all coming back to him, as the events from that day flashed in his mind once again. For it was here in this street and on the ruins of this home that he had slain that giant grinning mutant and saved a mother in the process, all while completely naked besides a torn cloak. Seemed like it all happened just yesterday.
"Yeah….time sure fucking flies."
A smile formed on Hannes face as the two continued up the trek towards the collapsed home. He eyed the large boulder like piece of what was once a part of the outer gate. The young soldier wasn't joking, it really was quite a large piece, even he had to crane his neck upwards just to eye the whole thing.
He then eyed the other members of Hannes' squad, all equipped with either shovels and pickaxes, some of them either broken or looking rather blunt. Seems they at least made an attempt. With a deep breath he prepared himself to do perform his miracles.
"Alright, if you could all give me some room?." The Garrison quickly made some distance between them, receiving a thankful nod. Maverick then set his weapon down on the steps before beginning to stretch his body, eliciting some cracks from his joints and back. They cringed at the sounds but found themselves waiting with bated breaths as they watched the large man make his way towards the collapsed home and crouched down near the chunk of outer wall.
"*HRMPH!*" With a grunt he lifted the massive boulder-like chunk into the air with both hands before getting a better grip on it. Some of the members of the Garrison looked utterly stupefied as they watched the man moved the boulder with ease. In under a few second he had the boulder out of the rubble and placed it away from the group.
"Alright, there we go." He said as he wiped the dust and dirt from his hands. Once again the Garrison squad, mostly the younger members, were left in awe and bewildered, all minus Hannes who simply scratched his chin with a resigned look.
"Jeez, still not gonna get used to that. Still, appreciate the help." Maverick simply smiled and reclined himself on the boulder he just moved, barely broken a sweat from the ordeal.
"Don't mention it. Stuff like this keeps me in shape, so it's a win-win." A few chuckles erupted from the Garrisons with some still in disbelief from what events just occurred mere seconds ago. Eventually they had to be slapped back into reality as now they could get back into work.
"We can take it from here, just needed that chunk of the wall out of our way." Hannes said, waving the Maverick farewell, however he was confused when the man stood up from his reclined state and began to approach the blonde.
"Eh, think I'll stick around for a bit." Hannes eyes widened, honestly surprised. "Don't you have to get back to y-"
"It's fine. I'm already here anyways, so might as well pitch in." Seeing as he was not going to convince him otherwise Hannes relented and let Maverick join in on the cleanup. He assisted by lifting and throwing aside broken wood and rubble with ease allowing the soldiers to attempt to gather up whatever possessions and valuables that the Yeager's had left behind. While a few bits and bobbles survived, much was either shattered in pieces or torn up from either the crushing boulder or the elements.
"Don't think they'll want anything from this." Hannes remarked picking up some ragged clothing that was beyond repair. Maverick couldn't agree more, much of what was left was utterly trashed.
"Yeah most of its looks preet-Oh, hello…." Hannes looked back at the man after hearing the surprise in his voice.
"What'd ya find?" He asked. Maverick didn't respond as he kicked away a few pieces of debris, before answering him properly.
"Basement. Looks like it's still in good shape." Opening the large undamaged door proved Maverick correct, for the stairway looked to be in pretty good condition. "Sure there's something in here they still might want."
With that Maverick began to slowly descend down the stairs with Hannes following along, not before motioning for his men to keep working above level. However the moment he took his first step he found himself unable to keep going down. Not out of fear of course, but more in the lines of that he should not be here, that this was meant for someone else to discover. Considering who had once used this basement.
"You coming Hannes?" Asked the marked man. Shaking his head he was met with the glowing eyes of the large scout who had stopped to see if he was still following. He'd be lying If he said the sight of the glowing eyes staring at him down the dark stairwell didn't creep him out for a bit.
Shaking his worries off he resolved himself and began to walk down the steps. "Y-Yeah."
Maverick continued down the stairs eventually making it down, and waited for Hannes to catch up. As he did Maverick turned towards the door, and noticed the small lock on the door.
"Hmmm, locked…" He said with a flat tone, before suddenly kicking through the locked door, breaking said lock and nearly tearing it from it hinges. "I'm sure they'll understand." Maverick said, positive the family would find no fault with him essentially breaking and entering into their basement.
"Yeah, a little warning next time before you try to blind me with splinters!" Hannes exclaimed, while shielding his face with his forearms. Maverick simply gave an apologetic smile as the two made their way inside.
They sheer darkness that engulfed the room was made clear instantly as Hannes couldn't see beyond his two feet. It was quite difficult for him to maneuver around the room, a problem not experienced by Maverick who spotted a lantern on the nearby table. With his directions Hannes was able to light the lantern, not without slightly exposing his fingers to the flame.
"Dammit!" He shouted out, before sticking his finger into his mouth, in an attempt to soothe the burning sensation. However his worries were set aside as the light began to reveal the room in its entirety.
Besides the small personal table the room was filled with a multitude of boxes, cabinets, and shelves of varying sizes. All filled with assortments of bottles, jars, and other stored valuables.
Maverick eyed the area for a few minutes before setting his sights on a few unmarked and empty crates. "Well no use standing around, let's get to it." Hannes nodded receiving an empty crate from the marked man.
The two went to two different spots and began to gather the contents of the basement in silence, trying to get it done as quickly and carefully as they could. Maverick in specific had to be extra careful less he crushed whatever contents the bottled jars contained. He eyed the one currently in his hands in an attempt to read out the contents, revealing it to be a medicinal tonic. Taking another one revealed it to be yet another medicine.
"Lot of medical stuff." He remarked, earning him a dry chuckle from his rose backed companion.
"Well, he was a doctor after all…" Hannes said in a low and…despondent tone, causing the marked man to take pause. The blonde had been in this mood since the beginning of their encounter, and while Maverick had simply deduced it as simply tiredness on Hannes' part, the fact that his tone grew even more dower was starting to concern him.
"Hannes, what's going on?" Hannes stopped packing and slowly looked back towards Maverick. Immediately the goliath noticed the look of bewilderment on the soldiers face, which was lit up by the lantern, making his facial expression a bit more unsettling than it should have been.
"Y-You mean you don't know? You haven't heard?" He asked with a raised tone, honestly surprised.
"Haven't read the papers lately, stuff with the scouts has kept me busy for a while." Hannes continued to stare with his hands on the table, before looking down and taking a few deep breaths. I was as if he was struggling to say whatever was on his mind. Maverick didn't press him seeing as whatever was on his mind was troubling him greatly, even regretting to ask at this point.
Soon however, Hannes got his act together and looked up at the marked man.
"*Sigh*…Erens' father, Doc-G-Grisha…..he….." He struggled to spit it out, taking another long breath before finally saying the words he dreaded to hear the day he found out.
"He passed away…."
Silence filled the air as Maverick's brows were raised at the revelation. His broad shoulders slightly dropped as the air left his lungs in disbelief. The good doctor passed away? How? The last time he saw the man he looked rather healthy, bit of a cold sure, but from what he said he was a doctor, should have been able to take care of himself at least. He slowly began to shake his head, the grief beginning to sound in his voice.
"No….When?" Hannes stayed silent a few minutes before replying.
"A few days ago, body was found near the western forest…What was left of him…." A shocked and questioning look formed on Maverick's face, to which Hannes answered despondently.
"MP's say that a bear must have gotten to him while he was out there…" Bear attack. An awful way to leave the world. Adding on the fact the man was a father made it all the more worse in Maverick's head.
"Gods… the family?" Hannes shook his head as he reclined on the wall, clearly not intending to finish the clean-up anytime soon.
"Still grieving. Carla, Mikasa, Eren too…" The way he said the boy's name did not sit well with Maverick. He didn't even need to ask, as Hannes answered the question in his mind.
"He was found near the site. Was a bit away from where they found Grisha's body. Probably took him out for a bit of father-son bonding or something." Just when he thought it couldn't get any worse. If losing his father wasn't bad enough, if what Hannes was saying to be true then the young Yeager got a front row seat to his father's gruesome demise.
Maverick felt the need to sit down, but resisted the urge knowing that there was no chair capable of supporting him. He simply resigned himself to lean of the wall of the basement, and began to rub his eyes.
"Losing you father at such a young age…fucking Christ…" He said under his breath, but Hannes was able to hear as he nodded his head in agreement, despite not knowing who this Christ was that Maverick was cursing. "Yeah…"
The two men stayed silent for a bit, Hannes trying to keep his sorrows in check, while Maverick processed the news of the now late Doctor Yeager. Eventually he had to ask the next concerning question.
"What are they gonna do then?" Hannes' head rose at the mention of "them", but surprisingly there was a small smile on his face, despite his troubled tone.
"Johns' gonna be helping them out more often, plus the towns' been really supportive. Heard Carla's parents are moving back, help support her and the kids." Well, least there was some silver lining to all this, it was nice to hear the community band together to help their other in need. Especially considering the mothers' current condition.
"Good, that's good." He remarked, hoping, and praying in his head, for the family. There was soon another bout of silence as the two men struggled to continue the troubling conversation. Eventually Hannes spoke up as he got up from his leaning position and clapped his hands, as they still had a job to do.
"Well, let's get back to it. The boys must be wondering what the hell's taking us…" Maverick agreed and soon the two men continued to package and store away all the items inside the basement.
About five crates were full of all of the late doctors tonics and medicines, alongside the many medical books in his possession and other assorted necessities. They were stumped on what to do with the remaining furniture, seeing as they emptied out most of their contents. In the end Hannes said to leave them be in the basement for now, for they pretty much got all the stuff they needed to retrieve.
Besides, not like the Yeager family was desperate for furniture, he doubted there was anything of great importance in those dusty old cabinets anyway.
Hannes called for his boys to get down and help with the crates. When one asked about the furniture he said that he'll get another squad to get the rest later on. The soldiers did as told and carried the crates towards a nearby carriage to be delivered to the family of the household.
"Welp, that's that." Maverick said squinting as his eyes readjusted to the sunlight.
"Yep, thanks for the help big man." Hannes replied patting the large scout on his back. Maverick looked back and offered the man a small smile in response, before he two patted the soldiers shoulder.
"Take care Hannes." He said in a soft tone. Hannes gave a nod as he made his way towards the carriage with his men and crates in tow, not before receiving a final request from the marked man.
"Send the family my regards, yeah?" He stopped for a moment before turning his head, a sad smile on his face formed as he spoke.
"I'll let em know." Nothing more was said as he motioned for his subordinate to get the carriage going. Maverick waved the Garrison squad farewell, receiving a few waves back in return. Only then when the carriage disappeared did he deflate. He stood motionless for a bit, lost in his own thoughts.
What started out as a semi-normal day had turned dour in the last half hour. He couldn't blame the family, of course he couldn't, not like anyone expects on of their parents to leave so suddenly. In the end he could only offer prayers to the family, knowing that they would all see one another once again.
How fortunate for them…
-oOo-
Later, Inside Survey Corps Headquarters
Maverick had returned to HQ a few minutes later, now in a less than cheery mood compared to earlier in the day. Some scouts outside the plaza had noticed this change in his behavior and asked him about it, only for him to put on a smile and reassure his fellows, telling them that there was no cause for concern. Many didn't buy it, noticing the faded glow his body emitted, but choose to drop it.
Eventually he made his way towards the main building, and straight towards the lab of his squad leader, who no doubt was venting out her frustrations on his poor friend and vice-captain regarding his lateness. Eventually he eyed the door leading to the lab, as the newly placed sign on the door said for all to see.
-Zoë Laboratories: Making dreams come true since 846-
A dry chuckle left the marked man's breath, recalling how proud Hange was of herself when she placed the sign, as if they needed a sign to be official. Whatever made her happy he supposed.
Opening the door revealed the two members of his squad working on something on one of the tables. Moblit looked back a gave him a small, yet very thankful smile, yet he noticed the trail of sweat that ran down his forehead. Hange seemed less than amused, judging by the look on her face as she turned her head.
"*Certainly took your sweet time didn't you?*" The sharp and irritated tone was very much clear to him. Maverick simply closed the door to the lab chuckling in response at her English.
"*Yeah, took a bit longer than I thought…*" Turning around he was met with his squad leader who had now fully turned to face him. However whatever irritation she had was replaced instead with curiosity and slight concern. Considering that she noticed his tone and less than bright glow in his eyes.
"*What happened?*" She asked now slowly approaching him with a more relaxed stance. He debated whether to tell her the truth, but figured he couldn't hide it from her, she'd most likely keep probing and pestering him out of concern. Thus he recounted what Hannes had told him, about the passing of the late doctor and father of the kids they met a few months back in Eisengrad.
The looks on both the scouts faces pretty much told him what they were feeling, with Hange looking the most shocked out of the two.
"*Those poor kids…*" She said after Maverick finished his tale. "*Almost lost their mother…only to lose their father….*" She looked down and just like Maverick, she too was lost in her own thoughts.
"As if the breach was bad enough. Gonna be difficult having to raise them on her own." Moblit remarked, recalling the condition the mother was in when they met.
"Hannes says that the locals are gonna be giving them a helping hand, so there's that at least." A somewhat relieved sigh escaped the vice-captains' lips, glad to know there were still those willing to lend a helpful hand to the less fortunate. "Least there's some light at the end of the tunnel."
And just like that the overall mood of the squad was brought down. It wouldn't be for long however, as Maverick eyed the contraption that was on the table that his squad mates were hunched over. Said contraption being the prototype of the squad leaders' Net Launcher. With that in mind he clapped his hands, gaining the attention of his comrades.
"*Alright, so…where did we leave off?*" He said in a rather upbeat tone in an attempt to alleviate the depressing mood, that he himself was responsible for. Hange picked up on it almost immediately as she perked up a bit and turned to her creation in progress.
"*Right. We were figuring out the launching mechanism…*" She said getting back into her work, a pleasant feeling inside her, now that her large statured squad mate had returned to the fold.
A/N: You know I really want to say to expect more frequent uploads, but I don't want to jinx myself and disappoint you all when I suddenly don't update my story in five months or so, I honestly just found myself with more free time than I thought this month.
Anyways, a lot to talk about in this chapter, starting with the debut of the minor character Kitz Woermann into the story. As you may have noticed by how I described him he is a younger version of himself. Think of him right now as more of a commissar wannabe, and less of the paranoid math teacher we know him as. He'll look like his original self later on, the pressures of his duties haven't fully sunk in yet.
We also see the reconstruction of Shiganshina's outer wall finally going forward, pretty much making our dear titan trios' hard work all for nothing. And It won't be just the wall that gets restored as we'll see the half of the district that got destroyed be rebuilt into something greater than before.
Next we say a fond adieu to Grisha Yeager from the story, as his time as the wielder of the great nine powers is up. If my math is right then Grisha should have died in the year 845, but I wanted to have him stay for a little while, so lets just chalk it up to sheer willpower as the reason he was still kicking in the year 846.
Speaking of him, now comes the part of this story that I think many of you are very much wondering about.
The basement…what the hell huh? A bit too early once again, right? Let me explain…
When I started this chapter a few weeks back I debated with myself whether I should have added this part in the chapter or just avoid it entirely. But then I told myself that I've pretty much thrown the original plot out the window with all my changes to the story, which was one of the main reasons I started this story. To change things up, stray from the original path, to change the future and the fates of our beloved and hated characters, subvert your expectations if you will.
In a good way of course…I hope…
Anyways, after a bit of thinking I eventually went forward with changing this world-breaking revelation. Plus I thought it would be pretty amusing, having such a grand revelation end in such an anti-climactic way. Besides, it's not as if that plot point is completely scrapped seeing as Grisha has left behind a little something for his son. And I'm sure the events in this chapter wont bite Maverick in the ass way down the line, eh?
Plus, there's still plenty of ways that the people of Paradise can find out about the outside world…just gotta either find them or draw them out…I'll just leave it at that for now.
Also I guess you can say this was a rather sour chapter, as the death of a parent is never a joyful topic to write about, hope I've written it the best I could.
But let me promise you that the next chapter will be much more lighthearted, as it's something I'm very much excited for. Don't want to reveal too much, all I'll say is that the cast of this story is going to get a little bigger.
That all I wanted to say for now. Thanks for reading and supporting my story and don't forget to leave a review. Till next time.