I'm truly sorry this is going out later than I promised, but my computer crashed and I had to take it to get fixed and only just got it back today. But enough of my excuses, on to the story!
Chapter 16: A Turn of Events
Drake strode into the room in an expensive but simple blue dress and her usual haughty expression on her face. Her long, dark hair hung down around her shoulders in shiny, hazelnut waves and while she radiated indifferent confidence, her violet eyes were laced with reserved anger. Gwen hoped to whatever god that would listen that Drake's ire wasn't directed at her.
She was so scared of Drake, Gwen nearly missed the two cloaked figures standing on either side but slightly behind her. They walked quietly, almost ghosting across the floor as if they didn't want to attract attention away from the woman leading them. Though she couldn't see their faces, she knew it had to be Eren and Gabriel. They were the only shifters besides her, stable enough to restrain themselves in a large group of people. She shuddered to think what would happen if Riah or Sophia had come along.
The unannounced group sauntered to the middle of the room. Violet stood in front of Gwen, as if protecting her, but the girl could only shrink away from her and tremble uncontrollably, her mind running through the punishments she might receive. The two figures stopped next to Gwen, so close she could feel the fabric of their cloaks brushing against her arms. She jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder, but then relaxed when she realized it was Eren, trying to soothe her fear.
She looked up into the hood of his cloak, hoping to see a glimpse of his face for comfort, but she was horrified to see him so withdrawn. His skin was an unhealthy ashy color, his eyes were as hard as emeralds, and was it just her or had the white section of his hair grown further over his head?
Gwen knew that look, and she shuddered to think of the torture Drake had put him through. Guilt flooded through her as she realized his harsh treatment was her fault, but Eren squeezed her shoulder, expressing that he didn't hold anything against her.
"And just who are you and why have you interrupted this important trial?" commanded Zackly. The Military Police were close to jumping the barrier and forcing the group away but they were held back by their commander.
"I am Violet Drake and I am here because you have confiscated someone that belongs to me and appear to be selling her off to the highest bidder," Drake said, professionally with a bit of chill to her voice. "You say there will be arguments over who is entitled to custody of my sweet Angel, and yet you have no right to enforce such a custody, when she rightfully belongs to me."
A roar of whispers erupted around the room, many of them shocked and distressed. Erwin frowned at this strange new development but chose to remain silent and see where it goes.
It took several loud bangs of the General's hand on his desk to silence the crowd.
"Would you care to explain this claim to the young girl? Is she your daughter?"
Violet smiled tenderly, but the gesture was clearly fake. "Though we are not biologically related, I see her as my child. As for the legality of our relationship, I believe this will suffice." The woman gracefully walked to the podium and handed the General several sheets of official looking papers.
Gwen glared at her. How dare she spout such nonsense. When had she ever considered Gwen or any of them as her children? As far as she knew, Eren was the only one Violet truly liked and the rest were just there as foot soldiers.
Next to her, Rogue stiffened and Gwen knew he was just as angry as she was.
While the General looked over the papers with cautious eyes, Gwen scoped out the rest of the courtroom and saw many of them watching the two cloaked figures next to her with intense distrust. After all, they were refusing to reveal themselves and they were somehow associated with Gwen. She saw Erwin and Levi having a whispered conversation, both of their faces blank but the slight crease in Erwin's forehead and the small frown on Levi's face, indicated the importance of whatever they were talking about.
When the General finished he sighed and said, "It appears this has become more complicated than I thought."
"General Zackly, if I may," Drake blatantly interrupted. All eyes focused back on her. "Due to the sensitivity of this matter, I ask that you make this trial a private affair and involve only those that must absolutely be here. I ask that the rest of the room leave."
Outrage sprung up around the room at the suggestion that they couldn't hear the verdict of the trial, but they were hushed again by Zackly.
"I have to agree with you on this matter, Ms. Drake," he said reluctantly. "I must request that only the commanders of the regiments remain in this courtroom. Everyone else must leave."
There was a great uproar of protest but the Military Police were quick with their evacuation of the spectators and most of the soldiers. Some tried to resist or sneak back through the guards but eventually they were thrown out as well. As Levi was about to leave as well, Zackly stopped him.
"You may stay, Captain, considering your rank."
Levi nodded and remained where he was, ignoring the stare he was receiving from one of the cloaked figures.
When the room was completely emptied, the only ones left were the three commanders, Captain Levi, the General and the four in the center of the room. Gwen found the room eerie now.
"You have your privacy now, Drake," grunted the General. "I suggest you start explaining yourself and your strange companions."
"Gladly," Violet said, smirking. "As you read on those paper, Angel here officially belongs to me. She is a subject in my company's experimental project and you have no right to decide her fate. She belongs to Atlas Corp."
There was a shocked silence in the room at the mention of that name.
"Atlas Corp.? But that organization was shut down years ago! It shouldn't be in operation!" Niles Dawk screeched angrily.
"I'm afraid that's not entirely true," answered Drake, smugly. "You see, Atlas Corp. was only publicly shut down, but we still continue to operate, with or without government funding. Isn't that right, Zackly?"
At the mention of funding, Violet's smirk seemed to transform into a snarl that sent a chill down Gwen's spine.
The rest of the room silently watched the General, as he sighed and said, "I afraid that is the case, Dawk. I have been aware of Atlas Corp. and its underground activities, but this project you mention. I have no memory of it from my reports."
Drake only smiled at Zackly's suspicious glare. "Yes, we decided to keep this project a secret due to the dangerous nature of it. We've kept it under wraps until we were certain the project would end in success or failure, and I can happily report that it has been deemed a success and we are fully prepared to cooperate with the military."
"And what exactly is this project?" Erwin asked, finally speaking up.
Violet turned to him and gave a sickly-sweet smile. "I'm glad you asked. You see, this project began over a decade ago and over the years, we've done painstaking research and trials until we finally succeeded. Our end objectives are taking back Wall Maria and ensuring the safety and victory of human. We intend to do this utilizing our greatest enemy and our greatest weapon: Titans."
The entire room froze. The officials paused in utter shock, Dawk had his mouth hanging open, while the three shifters were paralyzed with worry, wondering how this was going to play out. Even Levi was stunned enough to show emotion, with his eyebrows raised. Violet was the only one relaxed and grinning in the center of the room.
"What do you mean, utilizing Titans?" asked Erwin slowly, as if he might have heard her wrong.
"I mean as I said, we created a way to make intelligent Titans to use as soldiers in this war," Violet further explained before she turned back to the two standing next to Gwen. They both lowered their hoods simultaneously, their faces blank and bored. "You see these young men with me? They are two of our most successful subject, along with miss Angel here. I'd like to introduce you to Rogue and Lightning."
The two boys held their hardened gazes on the men in the room. They feared one of them would snap and order the guards to come back in and take care of them. It didn't surprise anyone when Dawk tried to make a run for the door only to be halted by the General. Next to her, Gwen heard Gabriel snicker before Eren silenced him with a look.
"Get back here and listen to what they have to say," Zackly snapped, trying to take control of the situation, but it was obvious he was just as uncomfortable with the revelation. "If they had any intentions to attack us, they would have done it by now."
The commander of the Military Police gritted his teeth, staring at the door for a moment before stiffly marching back to his place. Violet's smile widened, if that were even possible.
"Thank you for hearing us out on this, General, I appreciate it," she said. "But as I was saying, these two young men are a part of our project and they have already proven their worth with the retaking of Trost."
"So, that was you, then?" came a highly amused voice. Gwen was surprised to hear the bald man, the Commander of the Garrison Regiment she concluded, finally contributing to the conversation. She just assumed he would act as spectator throughout this whole thing. "How ironic that the titans would be saving humans."
"I know it's quite hard to believe, Commander Pixis, but that is what happened," Violet said, politely. "In fact, Rogue here was the titan that blocked the hole in the wall."
Brows raised and eyes swiveled to stare at Eren, who stood there expressionless. This silent, dull-eyed version of her closest companion was unsettling to say the least and it showed when Dawk and Zackly both shivered. The bald man was too busy drinking out of a metal flask to notice the scene and Gwen doubted anything would really faze the Commander and Captain of the Survey Corp.
"Hm, yes well," Zackly stuttered uncomfortably adverting his gaze to his desk. Gwen didn't blame the poor man, if only he knew how scary Eren could really get. "This project of yours should have been verified first, Ms. Drake, something as incredibly dangerous as creating Titan's is no simple matter. How are we certain these…subjects can be trusted to protect humanity? Are they truly under control?"
"Oh, I can assure you, my children are trained and obedient. They'll be the keys to changing mankind's future," Drake declared boldly. "And I'm more than willing to join forces with the military in order to achieve such future."
"Hm, I'm sure you are, Drake," the General muttered, rubbing his forehead, clearly, he hadn't seen this trial becoming so complex. "Very well, I'll will let your secret-keeping slide for now, considering our situation, but you are too fully cooperate with the commanders of the regiments, especially the Survey Corp."
"Sir, does this mean we will be taking lead on this new development?" Erwin questioned.
"What?! General, surely you aren't buying into this, are you?!" exclaimed Dawk, horrified. "These people have committed an unholy number of violations! Not to mention the possible devastation that could come from trying to train beasts!"
Next to her, Eren let out a furious growl, freezing everyone in the room with his malicious sound. Violet turned to him, effectively silencing him, but the room remained tensed.
"I'll ask you not to insult my children, Commander Dawk," Violet said sternly. "They are well controlled but Rogue here is quite protective of the other's so in the better interest of everyone, I suggest you keep your mouth shut."
Dawk started making a choking noise that seemed to amuse Eren and Gabriel, and a glance across the room proved Levi was just as pleased if his small smile was anything to go by.
"That's enough, Niles. I've made my decision in this matter," Zackly announced. "I will allow you take this girl with you, Drake, but you must allow the commanders, and anyone they deem necessary, access to your research, in return."
"That is reasonable, General, and as I have said before, I am more than happy to share my findings as well as my subjects," Violet said sweetly.
After hearing the verdict, Eren and Gabriel were quick to lift the pole holding Gwen down and help her to her feet. They noticed Dawk watching them closely but they ignore it.
"Are you alright?" Eren whispered loud enough for only the three of them to hear. When Gwen nodded, he let out a relieved sigh.
"I believe this meeting is over then, yes?" Drake asked, already turning around. "I will send each of the commanders a formal invitation to my compound within the week, but for now I would like to get my child back where she belongs and ensure that she is unharmed."
Not to mention destroy anything you don't want them to see, Gwen thought irritably. She didn't think for one second that Drake gave a damn about her wellbeing.
"We will hold you to that, Ms. Drake. And should you decide to forget I will not hesitate to issue a warrant for your arrest," Zackly announced sternly.
Violet nodded, acknowledging the threat, before taking her leave, with the three shifters following her, Eren and Gabriel having already lifting their hoods and Gwen situated between them protectively.
As the doors swung open, silence fell over the hallway. Every person that had been in that courtroom were standing there, some trying to listen into the conversation despite the doors being too thick, while others simply gossiped amongst each other. When they saw Gwen being escorted away by these strangers, they flew into an uproar.
"You're just going to let her go?!"
"What's the general thinking, letting that girl loose?!"
"And who the hell are you anyway! Maybe their titans too!"
The guards struggled to calm the crowd before a booming voice sounded from behind Violet's group.
"That is ENOUGH!"
At the sound of General Zackly's command, the crowded hall fell silent. Behind the General, stood the commanders and Captain Levi, watching the scene with varying degrees of disbelief and irritation, or in Pixis' case, drunken amusement.
"Soldiers! Make a path for this group to leave," snapped Niles, surprising his colleagues and his men. They did as instructed none-the-less and started shoving people away from the middle of the hall, some citizens actually getting pushed into open doorways, to allow the odd group of people to pass.
The shifters kept their heads down submissively, trying to show they weren't a threat and keep their faces away from the public eye. Violet, however, lifted her head high, enjoying the attention far more than her subordinates.
Eventually, they made it through to the streets and, ignoring the shouted questions and aggressive comments, the four of them entered the waiting carriage and set off down the road, leaving the higher officials to handle the mob quickly forming.
"What do you think about all this?" Levi muttered to his superior as they both watched the carriage leave.
"I think we should keep a close eye on that Drake woman, I don't quite trust her motives," replied Erwin.
"Agreed," said the Captain. He then looked at Erwin for the corner of his vision. "And that boy, Rogue? I assume he's the same one who insisted Angel only speak to us?"
"Not only that, but he essentially instigated this entire thing," Erwin added, pensively, as they waited for their own carriage to arrive. "He's the one who instructed Angel to be captured in the first place and I highly doubt Drake knew this. He may appear to be a simple tool for her, nothing more than a pawn, but I think he had his own plans. This could be beneficial or detrimental to us, I haven't figured out which."
"So we wait and watch, then," Levi sighed, irritated by the strange day. "I take it this stays between us?"
Erwin smiled and entered the carriage that stopped in front of them, ready to take them back to headquarters.
"You could just answer the damn question, like a normal person," Levi grumbled to himself as he climbed into the carriage and it took off, leaving the mob of angry citizens behind them.