The Whole Road
By: Keirube
The rights of Shingeki no Kyojin/Attack on Titan is owned by Hajime Isayama, its creator.
Chapter 2: A Requiem for Determination Part 2
For the next few weeks, Mikasa rarely saw Eren during their free time, choosing to spend it training with Annie. Even in the times he sat down to eat meals at their table, all Eren could talk about was what he learned in sparring with Annie.
At night while everyone is sleeping, Mikasa would stay up in her bunk wondering what has gotten into him all of a sudden. Eren even stopped talking so much on his dreams of fighting titans for the time being.
Looking over in the direction of Annie, who is soundly asleep, Mikasa deliberates within herself 'What have you done to him? Why is he so interested in you?'...
The next day at breakfast Eren asked Annie to sit with him, Mikasa, Armin, and Mina.
"Hey Annie" said Eren as she passed by their table, "Why don't you sit with us. There's enough room." Mikasa raised her eyebrow at Eren's suggestion. 'Great' she thought. 'Now he's asking her to sit with us'.
"That's alright Eren." Annie began. "I like looking out the window near the far end of the room; it has a good view of the courtyard."
Eren laughed, "Ah, come on, don't be shy. By the way, I remember you telling me about your village's aptitude for fishing. Mina here is something of an expert when it comes to that kind of stuff in her own right."
Mina grinned and exclaimed, "I'm a three time fishing champion back in Karanese. I once caught a salmon that weighed in at 48 kg, which still a record last I heard!"
Annie took note. "That's pretty impressive." She stated. Mina rubbed her nose at the compliment.
Eren could still see the hesitancy from Annie. "Come on, we won't bite, right Mikasa?" Mikasa gave Eren a blank stare before responding, "Sure, it's fine."
Annie sighed and relented. "Alright, alright Eren, I'll eat with you guys for change." she said sitting down next to Mikasa. As conversation resumed, Eren mentioned to Annie that it was Armin who inspired him to dream about the outside world, causing Armin to blush with embarrassment.
"I see." Annie spoke, "Even though talking about the outside world is considered heretical among the religious and to some even a crime, you two tend to break away from the pack at any cost. Very few people exist in this world with those qualities. Sometimes I wish I had that kind of spirit within me, but then again it's a hard road to travel."
Eren nodded and added, "Yeah it might be hard, but I believe perhaps it takes one person to begin walking their own path, before others start to follow."
Armin also spoke up saying, "Growing up, I was considered the oddball, constantly being picked on for my hobby of reading about the outside world. As a result, I had low self-esteem and even doubted if life was worth living. That all changed when I met Eren and Mikasa. They taught me to believe in my ideas and not let anyone tell me different." Armin paused before scratching his head saying, "I guess I still hesitate at times, but now I know I'm not alone, having my friends by my side."
"That's honorable." Annie answered, "You have a good heart Armin. I can see why Eren talks about you so much." Armin gave a sheepish smile as Mina held his hand and rested her head on his shoulder.
Eren noticed Mikasa wasn't saying much. Thinking quickly, he opened up about Annie's skill as a fighter.
"You know Mikasa, Annie is a great martial artist and a good teacher. I feel with her techniques, I might become just as good a fighter as you and won't have to depend on you to fight my battles anymore."
This caused Mikasa to flinch slightly.
"You let women fight your battles for you?"Annie asked Eren curiously.
"Well, not necessarily." Eren answered, sweat rolling down his brow. "Yet Mikasa tends to have my back every now and again."
Annie turned to Mikasa and somberly expressed, "He's coming along quite nicely in training. I imagine his persistent approach to life assists him when it comes to things that require physical endurance." Looking back at Eren she continued, "Though, I have a tough time teaching him how to talk to girls."
Eren blushed a deep red hew, causing Mikasa to bite her lip.
"You know" Mikasa finally spoke, "I thought Eren was a pretty good fighter before your training with him Annie. I don't see why he's wasting your time with all this?" Annie turned to her and hinted "Oh?"
Mikasa continued, "Yeah. In fact, he taught me years ago the only way to survive in this cruel world is to fight. So I think the instinct is something that comes natural for both Eren and I." Mikasa and Eren shared a brief moment staring into each others eyes, silently sharing in the memory of when they first met.
Annie thought for a moment and reasoned, "I think I understand where you're coming from Mikasa. You and I aren't that different from each other." Mikasa took this moment to return the phrase, "Oh?" To which Annie replied impassively, "Yeah."
A moment passed in uncomfortable silence, before the bell was rung outside indicating it was time for the cadets to prepare for classes. Annie got up first to dump her tray, but before she took her first steps, Mina called out to her saying, "Annie wait a minute, I'll go with you. I want talk to you some more about what fishing techniques your village use and what other activities you do for fun!"
"That's alright Mina, besides I think we should be focusing these couple of minutes to prepare for class." Annie attempted to protest. However Mina wasn't having it. "Pish posh" she said, "Besides I want to introduce you to a girl named Ruth. She also has a knack for sports." After saying goodbye to everyone, she and Annie took their leave.
As the three got up to go to class, Eren asked Mikasa, "What was all that tension about with Annie?" Mikasa looked at him vacantly, and then replied, "I'm sorry, I don't know what your talking about." With that, she left. Eren turned to his best buddy and sighed, "It looks like I have hard time understanding girls eh Armin?" Armin simply pats him on the back, telling him to keep his chin up…
Eren's training with Annie continued as the months went by. Currently he has mastered basic forms, and has become proficient in his kicks. Often in their spare time, Annie demonstrates to Eren the structure and form of each technique, while putting it into real time practice during hand-to-hand combat drills.
"Alright Eren, show me how far you've come." Annie said in a semi-bored tone, holding the make shift weapon. "Let's see if you can knock this dagger out of my hand."
Eren took up his stance and thought to himself 'I'll win this time Annie. I'll show you that you haven't wasted your time on me'.
Without warning, Eren moved with dynamic speed toward Annie. Throwing her a quick jab with his left hand making her dodge, he unloaded a swift right kick toward the dagger in her hand. Annie immediately recognized his attempt, ducked down for a counter move, swinging her leg to knock Eren off his planted foot. Eren acrobatically used the momentum of his kick to spin off his foot, avoiding Annie's counter.
Backing off, Eren readied his stance again. Annie looked at him and commented, "Not a bad strategy, using your first punch as a decoy. This is getting interesting."
"It would be a lot more interesting if you actually gave this your all." Eren mentioned.
"Hmm, you don't think I'm giving this exercise all I have?" she defended.
Eren smiled and said, "I remember you dropping Reiner in our first meeting a few months ago. You were much faster and stronger than when you took me out at that time. So yeah, I think you have reserved yourself since then, along with reserving your emotions. Even though you try to hide it, I can tell you enjoy our sparring sessions."
She sighed and again in a lax tone replied, "If that is what you say Eren. Let's just see you take this weapon out of my hand before talking big."
Eren increased his focus, not knowing if he finally touched a chord in her heart…
Elsewhere on the training ground, Mikasa watched them both intensely, still wondering why Eren is so interested in learning from Annie. Today, Reiner was her partner, and he couldn't help but laugh in himself as Mikasa continued to stare at the two.
"Mikasa, aren't you supposed to focus on me rather than Eren over there?" Reiner tempted. Mikasa glanced at him and then asked, "Reiner, you and Annie come from the same village right, what kind of person is she?"
An intense look came on Reiner's face as he thought about his next words. "Well, to tell you the truth, I don't know her all that well. She always tended to be a loner back home, though her father gave her a tough time. When the titans invaded our village, I heard her dad died trying to save her, but I guess only she can verify that. My family made it out, so my heart goes out to her."
Mikasa once again turned back to Annie and Eren's sparring match. She noticed a certain sadness to Annie's eyes. Reiner follows up his words in saying, "For some reason however, it seems Eren has broken through her shell. I think she may be attracted to him." At that comment, a very noticeable scowl appeared on Mikasa's face. Reiner grinned thinking to himself 'Ha, it looks like Mikasa has a thing for Yeager over there. Watch out Annie, before you have a real fight on your hands!'…
Eren charged Annie again, jumped into the air and came with a knee strike to Annie's midsection. She leaned to the left, her arms up in her stance, parried with her right knee and came back with a speedy left kick that connected with Eren's side.
With steady persistence, Eren took in the blow and remained in Annie's space, close enough for him to grab her arm and attempt to throw her down. 'Very smart' she thought, but she managed to avoid his leg sweep by using the momentum of his hold, and flipping backward.
"You're finally using your strength to your advantage. I suppose that also means your using your head as well." Annie stated.
Eren was panting a little bit, but he could tell Annie was still holding back. He was enjoying himself, seeing how far he's come since being here at the academy. He had Annie to thank for that. All he wanted her to do was express her emotions to him. He wanted to see the real Annie.
"Annie" He called, "I hope you're not holding back for my sake. If you don't take me seriously, you might end up getting hurt."
"More of that talk eh?" She resounded, "It seems you're using your strength, head, and mouth all at the same time."
Eren readied his position. 'Alright' he thought. 'I'll end this quickly, and show her I shouldn't be taken lightly.'
He began to inch toward her little by little. Once he was a few feet away from her, he dashed towards her side and unleashed a fierce kick at her shoulder. She blocked and he followed with an overhead punch towards the dagger. Annie backed away a few inches, causing Eren to hit air. Then all of a sudden, using his downward momentum and pressing hard on his legs, Eren leaped and performed a flying knee to Annie's chest. She struggled to block due to its force, causing her arms to fly into her face with painful impact. Not stopping and seeing Annie was preoccupied by defending against his knee, Eren used all his strength to push off and performed a flash kick.
Annie was thrown back, hitting the ground with such force; it caused the dagger to fly out of her hand. Eren landed safely on the ground, panting heavily. He had finally won, but it felt a little hollow as he knows he didn't beat her at her full strength.
All trainees on the practice field stopped what they were doing. They were surprised to see Annie on the ground. Reiner couldn't believe his eyes, and wondered if Annie let him beat her. Reiner turned to see what Mikasa thought of this turnabout, and he could tell there was a mix of feelings swimming around in her head…
Annie sat up, not looking at Eren as he walked pass her, picking up the dagger. She brought a hand to her lip, and realized she had a small cut judging from the blood on her hand. Then she heard Eren's voice. "That wasn't satisfying for me. I know you were holding back. I wish you would take this as seriously as I do and stop trying to hide your emotions."
Suddenly Annie's eyes widened as Eren's words struck a memory of her father that she thought she had tucked away.
* "Stop holding back." her father said, "I can tell you are reserved when attacking me. Don't be so weak!"*
Standing up, Annie turned to face Eren, putting her arms up and clenching her fists. Eren saw a very different look in her eyes. It was almost as if she was seeing right through him. "You want a rematch?" He said. He received no response. He gripped the dagger and mirrored her stance. "Alright Annie, but this time show me your true strength!" With that, Eren advanced upon her.
Yet this time, Annie charged him, faster than Eren's body could keep up with, but his eyes saw her all the way. Before he knew it, she managed to get behind him. Thinking quickly, Eren whipped his body, launching a powerful spin kick in her direction. Annie performed her own spin kick, and the two clashed. A loud audible crack was heard at the impact of their legs. Eren yelled in pain as the original momentum from his kick took him to the ground. Annie followed through, holding a perfect stance, eyes still hazed over.
Again, a hush fell over the practice field…
Mikasa saw Eren on the ground in pain, and her eyes widened in horror. Reiner closed his eyes thinking to himself 'It looks like she was holding back. I just hope she didn't seriously hurt him'. Reiner looked back at Mikasa, and saw the look of despair on her face. He also noticed she was completely distracted. Smiling he ponders 'Man, come to think of it, I have never been able to get the dagger away from Mikasa. Haha, I think this chance is as good as any to change that around.'
Without a word, Reiner sprinted toward Mikasa, with the objective of disarming her of the would-be weapon. In an instant, Mikasa turned toward Reiner, and he could see a look on her face that could have frightened his soul from his body. Time seemed to slow down as she dropped the dagger and swiftly lunged toward Reiner.
Reiner could barely get out two words, "Oh shi-"…
After a moment, Annie's eyes refocused, and she realized what she had done. Seeing Eren on the ground, she began to move toward him hastily saying, "Eren are you alr-". Annie stopped and took note her shadow on the ground was getting larger. Looking up, she saw Reiner flying right towards her and she jumped out of the way, leaving him eating a face full of dirt.
Eren looked to side still holding his leg, and through clenched teeth called out to him, "R-Reiner? Ugh, where did you come from?"
A semi conscious Reiner managed to point his finger in the direction behind him. Eren followed, and saw Mikasa slowing approaching their position, a look of pure hatred on her face.
"Mikasa? What is she…" Eren started to say but then it dawned on him. 'Oh no' he thought. 'She's going to fight Annie because I got hurt!'
By now, the whole yard has been watching for a while. Everyone turned their attention to the two girls, by far the best fighters at the academy, and now they were about to go at it.
Connie got up and yelled, "Alright everyone place your bets, place your bets!"
Krista began to worry and said, "Oh no, I hope they don't hurt each other." Ymir crossed her arms and said, "Don't worry Krista. Besides, I think I'd like to see them fight. It will be the most entertainment I had in a while." Turning toward Connie she yelled, "Put me down a dinner tray for Mikasa!"
All across the field, mumblings and voices of excitement could be heard. Marco asked a cadet named Daz who he thinks will win. Daz responded, "I think Annie might stand a chance, you saw what she did to Yeager."
Jean interrupted their conversation angrily and stated, "Are you kidding me. Mikasa is going to wipe the floor with Annie's face! There's no way she can beat Mikasa when she barely took out that idiot on the ground!"
As Mikasa continued to approach, Eren tried his best to sit up and stop her. "Hey Mikasa, slow down, I'm okay. I think it's just a bruise so don't get so worked up." Mikasa stopped and looked at Eren, before focusing her attention back on Annie.
"Annie" she dared, "Why don't you teach me your little techniques."
"Mikasa!" Eren called, but she ignored him. "How about it Annie, I'm sure you won't mind giving another lesson?" she provoked.
Annie studied Mikasa intently. "I don't know" Annie began, "If a beast can learn anything."
Mikasa's eyes narrowed to dangerous levels. Annie got into her stance, causing Eren to sweat nervously. He wished he hadn't pushed Annie so far, and now Mikasa is going to fight her because he got hurt.
Mikasa readied herself, lowering into a combative stance. Annie spoke, "Come" and both girls launched forward.
"ENOUGH!"
Both girls stopped seconds from each other, as they turned to see Shadis looking directly at them, standing with his hands behind his back. All the cheering and bet placing suddenly came to a halt. Eren turned and wondered how long Shadis was watching the events unfold.
"It seems the whole class has slacked off from their training." Shadis stated, as he walked forward towards the girls. Everyone began to panic, wondering if Shadis will make them run to death or miss a couple of meals for abandoning the hand-to-hand drills in favor of watching their fellow cadets fight.
Upon reaching Mikasa and Annie, Shadis said to them, "I see you two have paired up for this drill. You do know the objective is to disarm your opponent of the wooden dagger, and yet neither of you are holding one. That tells me you two have another objective to accomplish."
They remained silent, and Shadis took that as his answer. "To tell you the truth." he carried on, "I don't mind a fight or two on these grounds, but I have a feeling one of you might not have walked away if I didn't stop this fight. From now on, I forbid you two from becoming partners during these drills."
Turning around, Shadis walked over to Eren and asked, "Can you walk Cadet Yeager?" Eren attempted to get up, but gritted his teeth in pain as he put weight on his leg. Shadis summoned a couple of cadets over, and told them to help Eren up. He turned back to the class and yelled, "I HOPE EVERYONE ENJOYED THE SHOW, NOW GET YOUR ASSES BACK TO WORK! IF I HAVE TO COME BACK OUT HERE AGAIN, I'LL WORK YOU ALL SO HARD, THERE WILL BE SHOESHINERS OFFERING THEIR DAILY WAGES TO YOU OUT OF GUILT!
On that note, Shadis lead Eren and the cadets helping him to the medical hall. Mikasa and Annie watched as they left the field. They then turned from each other and began walking away before Mikasa asked, "You do know Shadis saved you right?"
Annie stopped walking and said, "I believe that's my line."
"Listen Annie, if you ever hurt Eren again, I'll make sure you pay dearly."
Annie didn't saying anything, and after a moment, she started on her way…
Later that evening, Eren tried to put weight on his leg and noticed all the pain was gone. He thought for sure he heard a crack in his leg during his fight with Annie and feared he may have broken it. He tried playing it down in front of Mikasa, but she saw through his pained expression knowing he had a serious injury. However, the doctor examined him and told him his leg appeared to be fine, just had some swelling.
Now here he was, waiting in the patient wing of the medical unit applying an ice pack to his leg, and it appears it ultimately seemed fine. After a while, a staff member opened the door and addressed him.
"Cadet Yeager, there's someone here to see you." she said. Eren figured it was Mikasa checking in on him again, being through with training and classes. 'Boy' he thought 'Mikasa is going be surprised when she sees my leg is completely fine'. Yet too his pleasant surprise, it wasn't Mikasa this time or even Armin.
"Annie!" Eren expressed in excitement.
As she walked in, the medical officer took her leave, giving them the room to catch up.
Eren eyed her curiously as she took a seat next to him and asked her, "How are you doing?" Annie looked at him for a moment before smiling and said, "You're the one in the medic's office, and you ask me how I'm doing?"
Eren laughed and said, "Yeah, I can see your point. Actually it's strange, I thought my leg might have been worse due to not being able to put weight on it earlier, but as of now it feels like there was never anything wrong with it." He showed her his leg and stood up, demonstrating to her he was in no pain.
Annie looked astonished. She to was afraid she might have broken his leg, but for it to be as it is now was a wonder. Another smile graced her face, and Eren knew this was one of relief. Immediately, guilt panged his heart. "Annie" Eren started, "I'm sorry for pushing you out there on the field."
Annie looked up at him and then turned her gaze toward the window. She spoke and said, "Your words out there reminded me of training with my father. He was a stern teacher and at first I didn't want to learn his fighting style. However after a while I came to appreciate my time training with him."
Annie got up and went toward the window to look at the first stars appearing in the sky as the sun set before continuing…
"One day he ordered me to attack him as if he were my worst enemy, to see how far I've come. At first I hesitated. He saw this and decided to encourage me by attacking first. I managed to dodge his attacks and found an opening to go on the offensive, but again I hesitated. Taking that as a sign of weakness, he kicked me to the floor. He told me how disappointed he was in me, and how he wasted so much time on such a weak person."
Eren could see even though her eyes remained strong as she looked out the window, tears began to roll down her face. "Annie" he said in concern, but she stopped him.
"I became furious." she said, wiping away her tears, "I charged him with everything I had and attacked relentlessly. Before realizing what I had done, he was on the floor, bloodied and broken. I stood there, traumatized. Yet as he looked up at me, he smiled…told me he's never been more proud."
Eren reached out to her putting his hands on her shoulders. She stared into his eyes, being surprised by the sudden contact. "Annie" Eren said, "Your father shouldn't have done that to you. Then I mess up and make you relive that memory. I…I'm sorry. I promise to never provoke you again!"
She continued looking into his eyes for a second, before brushing his hands away and walking towards the door. She stopped, and turned her head. A record third smile within the past few minutes appeared on her face as she said, "You fool. I came here to apologize to you, but…thanks."
She then exited the room, leaving Eren to ponder about his day. He turned toward the window, looking out into the evening sky.
Two years have passed. A Hundred and fifty students started out in the 104th Trainee Squad. Out of that number, only 80 remain. Many were sent home their first day at the academy. Few others received substantial injuries during training, forcing them to stop until they could recover. However, of those that remain, they have endured the toughest of training and completed their classes. The only thing that remains is where they will rank.
During morning instruction, Shadis told the cadets they would be going on a wilderness survival exercise, to put everything they learned throughout the years to the test.
"Alright cadets, this morning I will split you all into ten groups. When I call your name, stand near one of the assistant officers on my right, who are holding up your assigned group number. Once everyone is selected, I will assign each group their leader and second in command." commanded Shadis.
After calling everyone's name, having them stand in their group, and assigning their leaders for this mission, Shadis exclaimed, "Now, for this particular mission, it may or may not count against your final rank. For all intents and purposes, everyone here has pretty much graduated from the academy." This caught Jean's attention, and he raised his hand to speak. Shadis gave him the floor.
Jean saluted and asked, "Sir, if you don't mind me asking, should this mission not count against our overall rank, what is its overall purpose?"
Shadis smiled at the cadet's question and answered, "A soldier must be prepared to live off the land should they find themselves in difficult circumstances. Perhaps for those like yourself who plan to go into the Military Police Brigade, this mission may not mean much, but as stated, this mission could go against your final rank so I suggest everyone take it as such."
With no other questions, Shadis dismissed the cadets to prepare.
Back in the men's bunk, everyone was packing up everything they would need to complete the task. Eren looked over at Armin and saw him packing a notebook into his backpack. He and Armin were assigned to the same group, and interestingly enough, Shadis selected Armin as their leader. So Armin took it as his chance to impress the head instructor and finally gain his respect.
"Armin, why are you packing a notebook?" Eren asked him.
Armin smiled and addressed Eren, "I want to record our mission. Show Shadis that I can be capable and strong as our group's leader. Hopefully if he likes my progress, he'll stop making fun of my name."
An ease dropping spirit spoke, "Ha, I don't care what you do, the reason Shadis picks on you all the time is because you and Yeager are the only idiots who want to join the Scouting Legion."
Eren and Armin turned to see Jean standing there. Eren grimaced and told Jean, "You better watch it, being apart of Armin's group and all. Have you forgotten Armin was assigned our leader? With him taking notes, and you not knowing if this mission is graded, I'd be careful how I talked to him."
"He's right you know" Marco said, appearing on Jean's side, "and as second in command, I'm honored to serve Armin in anyway I can, and I won't have anyone bad mouthing our captain haha!"
Jean scoffed and said, "Whatever, this whole thing is stupid in any case. I mean, if we weren't going to be told if this was a graded assignment, the least Shadis could have done for me was put me in a group with Mikasa instead of Yeager of all people."
Eren stood up and balled his fists, "It's not like I wanted to be stuck with you either. By the way, why do you want to be in Mikasa's group?" Jean grinned and said, "Well, not that it's any of you business kid, but I intend to ask Mikasa to marry me one day. We could have used this time to be around a camp fire, and experience our first kiss."
Eren laughed out loud, causing Jean to grit his teeth, "Why would she marry someone like you."
Jean grabbed his collar and angrily asked, "You want to run that by me again kid?" Eren grabbed his collar in return saying, "I said why she would marry someone like you?" Growling in each other's face, they didn't recognized Reiner and Bertolt's approach towards them.
"Hey, I think you two make a much better couple than anyone at the academy." Reiner joked. Both boys turned toward him and gagged. Reiner and Bertolt were assigned to Mikasa's group, and she was their leader.
Marco laughed at their reaction, then turned toward Reiner and Bertolt and said, "Your group should be pretty successful on this mission with Mikasa at the helm." Reiner nodded but added, "True enough, but it should be interesting seeing as Shadis elected Annie as her second in command. Both of them got pretty worked up over Eren a couple of years ago, so it should be fun." Bertolt looked at Eren, and he felt a hint of jealousy.
Armin finished packing and stood up. "Alright I have everything I'm going to need." he said, "Why don't we all head out together to the horse stables before our groups set out." That said they ventured out...
All the groups were gathered outside in an open field south of the training grounds. Each of the eight group leaders were given their assigned destination within a forest that took a little less than a day's journey on horseback to reach. Once they reach their target, they will find a red flag with the group's number. Their mission is to retrieve it, and bring it back.
All the preparations made and with everyone ready, the cadets took off to fulfill their mission.
During the first segment of the trip, all eight groups traveled as one until they branched out en route to their destinations. Armin's group consisted of Eren, Jean, Sasha, Krista, Connie, Mina, and Marco.
Armin pulled out his map from his pocket and studied their current location. "Everyone" he said, "Once we reach point B on the map we can let our horses rest and we can eat lunch."
Sasha's mouth began to water at the mention of lunch. Jean looked toward his left and saw a peculiar lizard traveling in the same direction as their horses. "Hey, look at that. Even though we're not going full speed, it's interesting to see that lizard able to keep pace with the horses." Sasha turned and said, "I'm familiar with that species of lizard. In fact, they taste pretty good when cooked to proportion."
Jean was very familiar with Sasha's cooking skills and tastes from these years at the academy. If she said something was good, he had no reason to doubt her. "That settles it then." he said taking out a blade from his 3DMG, "I think I'm going to catch it for our lunch." This caused Sasha to really get excited.
Veering off a bit toward the lizard, Jean got in place to make a clean strike at its neck. He didn't notice Eren pulling on the other side of the lizard, and was surprised his blade's strike was block by Eren's own blade.
"Hey what gives?" an annoyed Jean asked. Eren replied, "Leave it be, there's no reason kill pointlessly when we have enough food rations for lunch."
Jean smirked and said, "Wow, I didn't know you were such an animal activist."
"It's not that." Eren responded, "I just don't like pointless harm being done. To eat something just for the sake of eating it, perhaps it reminds me too much of the titans out there."
"Ha, I just think you're taking this titan stuff too seriously kid."
"Shut up, and quit calling me kid!"
"I'll quit calling you kid when you stop acting like one!"
"GUYS" Armin called to them. They looked and noticed the rest of their group was ahead of them by a small distance. "Forget about that lizard, you're falling behind!"
Giving each other one last glare, they sped up to rejoin the pack. Before long, they reached their desired checkpoint, and stopped for a quick rest and meal. As they ate on their reserves, Sasha complained about not having that juicy lizard they saw on the way.
"Ah Eren, we could have had a feast on that lizard!" she cried. Eren was about to respond, but Armin spoke first, "Let's not start that again Sasha. Since this is a survival exercise, there will be plenty of time to hunt."
"Yeah, and if we find a lake, I can fish us out a spectacular meal as I brought my fishing rod along with me." Mina told Sasha, causing the young cadet to dance with joy. Armin smiled at Mina, before turning to Marco to discuss their next checkpoint and where they would set up camp. Once everyone was ready, they set off…
It was around evening when they reached point C on the map. "Alright guys, let's set up camp in that open clearing." said Armin.
Once camp was mostly set up, Armin turned to Mina and said, "There appears to be a small running stream nine meters in that direction, so perhaps there are fish biting tonight. If not, we can have some of our leftover reserves."
Mina nodded and began setting up her rod. He also told Connie and Jean to go with her, to keep her company. Jean and Connie started to protest, saying fishing was boring, but Marco reminded Jean that he wouldn't want Armin giving Shadis a bad report concerning him. Sighing, Jean relented, earning a punch to his shoulder by Mina, a way she shows her approval. She then puts Connie in a choke hold before he gave in.
Armin turned and said, "As for the rest of us, Eren, Sasha, and Krista, I charge you guys with the duty of gathering wood and starting a fire. Marco and I will stay here and finish setting up camp. We'll also feed the horses and strategize on the best route through the forest to our flag." They all nodded and went to accomplish their given task…
"So Connie, what military branch you're thinking about joining?" Jean asked, waiting around for Mina to catch a fish. Connie shook his head and answered, "I don't know yet, though if I make it into the top ten, it would hard to turn down a job in the MP."
Jean smirked and said, "Ain't that right. What about you Mina?"
She smiled, "The Survey Corps."
"What!" Jean and Connie exclaimed. Mina simply kept smiling, staring out onto the stream.
Jean regained his bearings and asked, "Why Mina? I hope it doesn't have to do with your coconut headed boyfriend." His comment earned him a knock on the head. "Ow!" he cried.
"I'm not necessarily doing it for Armin, but he and Eren definitely inspired me. I think about my family back home, my little brother. What if the titans attack my hometown just like they did Eren and Armin's? I want to protect them."
Connie lay on the ground and while looking at the stars he said, "That's understandable." Jean looked at Connie and mused, "It's understandable yes, but is it smart? Mina, you sure you're not doing this just to follow Armin? Chances are he and Eren won't survive much longer once they make it in the Scouting Legion. You think Armin wants that for you as well, to follow him at the cost of your life?"
She began thinking what she would do if Armin died on the battlefield, and it made her want to fight the titans even more. "Perhaps I'm selfish Jean. Maybe I want to take the fight to the titans, before they can harm the ones I love."
Jean stared at Mina, her face full of resolve. He then thought of Mikasa, how protective she is concerning Eren. 'Is she going to join the Corps over Eren?' he thought. A hard tug on Mina's fishing line interrupted his thoughts.
"Ha, looks like we got a big one here fellas!" Mina shouted with excitement. Connie and Jean helped her to reel in her catch, revealing to be a big bass on the other end. "Wow, this is a huge one!" Connie proclaimed. Mina chuckled in saying, "No fish can resist my championship bait!"
Jean's mouth began to water just thinking about the smell of their catch cooking over an open fire. "Hey guys" Mina getting their attention, "That was a pretty quick catch. Let me see if any more will bite. Perhaps we can all have our own fish, though I imagine this one is the biggest in a stream this size." Both Connie and Jean nodded in agreement…
Over in the distance, Eren, Sasha, and Krista were busy searching for wood they can use to keep a good fire going.
"This brings back memories of camping with my family." Sasha said carrying a pile of dry sticks. "Hey Eren, Krista, are you ready to go back to camp?"
Krista and Eren were off in the brush, looking for more wood they thought might be a little drier than those near the muddier patches on the ground. "We're still looking Sasha." Eren called back. He turned to Krista and asked, "How's it going over there Krista?"
"Pretty good, but I hope the wood is dry enough. I don't really have a lot of experience in camping." she shyly stated. Eren grinned, "Ah that's alright. I don't have that much experience either."
After a moment of picking through a couple of more sticks, Krista asked, "Eren, do you think I'm a dependable person?" He turned to her curiously and answered, "Of course, why wouldn't you be?" His question slightly caught her off guard. "I…I don't know." she said, "I guess sometimes I feel like I'm not pulling my weight compared to others."
Eren looked thoughtful for a minute before responding. "Well, I know if it weren't for you giving her food to eat, Sasha might have passed out from all the running Shadis made her do on our first day of training." he said, "Also I think Ymir would have gotten into plenty of trouble over the years if you weren't there to keep her stable."
She smiled. "Thanks Eren." she said, "I appreciate your words." He returned her smile and said, "Don't mention it. That's what friends are for."
"Friends?" Krista voiced her thought.
"Sure, we are friends aren't we?" Eren grinned.
As she was about to respond, Sasha called back to them, telling them to hurry it up. Standing up with his pile of sticks, Eren motioned for Krista to come along. "Well, let's go. I'm sure Sasha is dying to scarf down some fish." Krista nodded and followed Eren back on the main path to catch up with Sasha.
Something out of the corner of her eye caused her to stop. Eren turned and asked, "Something wrong?" She shook her head and said, "No, it just felt like I sensed some movement from behind us." Eren responded, "Hmm, perhaps it was a frog or something." She nodded and shook the thought off.
Sasha suddenly yelled to them, "Hey slowpokes, if you don't hurry up I'm going to eat your portion of the fish!" Eren and Krista laughed, and hurried along…
After chowing down to a good meal and receiving instruction from Armin on the direction they would take in the morning, the group turned in for the night. Fortunately for them, Shadis gave this mission during the summer time. This made it easier to sleep outside with only having their sleeping sacks.
Krista was particularly having a hard time falling asleep. Whether it was due to this being her first time sleeping outdoors or contemplating over Eren's words to her earlier, she didn't know. Sitting up in her sack, she thought a brisk walk might help her insomnia. Silently she got up and walked over to where they kept the lanterns. Upon lighting it, she decided she could also check on the horses while she's up.
As she got closer to the horses, she could see one of them was still up, chewing a bit on the grass. Walking over, she smiled and embraced its head. "It looks like you're also having a hard time sleeping." she spoke softly. Suddenly, she heard movement in the distance. "Guys" Krista called, thinking she might have woken them up. No one responded. Thinking to herself 'It must be my nerves.' Turning back to comfort the horse, she saw a human figure a few feet away, having their faced masked behind a linen sack. The figure rushed Krista…
"AHHHHH!"
Eren's eyes shot open and he sat up, only to found himself suddenly staring down the barrel of a gun. The other cadets awoke to the same circumstance, figures pointing a gun at them while others were loading their maneuver gear into the back of two horse drawn wagons.
"Don't move and we won't have to hurt you." the figure told Eren. It sounded like a man's voice, so he assumed as much.
"What are you doing, and why are taking are maneuver gear?" Eren asked.
The man replied, "Isn't it obvious. We're going to sell your equipment to the highest bidder. As you know, times are hard. In any case, it's not like you're going to put this equipment to better use. They were originally designed to fight titans, but that fight is pointless. It's better to sell it to those who find another use for them, and stop wasting tax payers' money!"
Eren seethed at the man, and in an instant grabbed at his gun and began to struggle with him. "Everyone, we can take them! Remember our hand-to-hand combat training!" Eren shouted, flipping the man to the ground and seizing his gun. Jean smiled and thought 'That smart ass, always trying to show off'.
Immediately Jean tipped the nose of the gun of his captor down. The movement caught him off guard, pulling the trigger and causing the gun to go off toward the ground. Jean then head butted him, getting him to release the gun. Jean said, "You can thank my training instructor for that move."
Eren smiled, calling to Jean and saying, "Don't get too cocky back there Kirstein. Here I thought you always slacked off during those drills."
"Put a cork in it kid. Like I'd let you show me up." Jean smirked.
Marco and Connie managed to break free and took out the other two captors. All of a sudden, they heard a scream coming from the direction of those loading up their gear on the wagons. Turning, they saw Krista being held captive, with a knife at her throat.
"That's enough, unless you want your fellow cadet to lose her life." said the man holding her.
"Krista!" Eren called. He began to move toward their direction, but was stopped by the sight of the knife being inched closer to her neck. "Not another step" he spoke, "Now put down those rifles in your hand."
Eren looked at his rifle hesitantly and back at the others, before throwing it on the ground. The rest followed suit, and their captors took back their weapons. Eren was then immediately struck to the side of his face with the back of the gun, sending him to the ground. "You little punk!" his subjugator yelled. He was angry that Eren stood up to him before. Just as he was going in for a second strike, the man holding Krista ordered him to stop.
"Leave them." he said, "Murdering someone in the military, even a trainee, will have the Military Police on our trail. Go help the others load the equipment."
The man standing over Eren gave one last look, spitting on the ground near him through one of the slits in his mask, then went with the others to do as they were instructed. Once they were finished, the man holding Krista told the cadets they would hold on to her to ensure they wouldn't be followed, and they would eventually release her at some point. So they watched helplessly as the thieves made off with their maneuver gear and Krista…
"Those bastards" said Eren, "We're not going to let them get away with this are we?"
The group looked at each other and weighed their options in silence. Then Armin spoke up. "If we pursue them outright, we may put Krista in danger." Eren responded by saying, "So we let them go and hope they keep their word in letting Krista go? I don't think that is going to happen, Armin. Guys like that don't have a conscious."
Armin held a hand and said, "Hold on Eren, I'm not saying we shouldn't pursue them. We will need to travel another route, and cut them off. Krista will stand a better chance if we take them by surprise." Armin took out his map and began calculating where they would be at the rate they were traveling in the direction they left. After a few minutes, Armin pointed toward the map and said, "They left here traveling along this western route. Judging by the speed, which couldn't be any more than 28 km per hour, we could travel at full speed on our horses going northward and then west to cut them off within 30 minutes if we left now."
Folding his map up and putting it in his pocket, Armin addressed them again saying, "A couple of us should stay here if in the event the rescuing party doesn't return before sun up. If that happens, they should head back to the academy and alert the military police."
Eren shook his head and said, "I'm definitely coming along. Without our gear we will have to fight them with our fists and I'm definitely the man for the job."
Armin turned to Mina, and upon staring back she said, "I'm going as well. They took my friend and I can't stand by waiting, knowing she's out there." Jean smiled and said, "That goes for me to. If it was Yeager they captured, I might have said good riddance, but I can't let a sweet girl like Krista suffer at their hands." The group started to laugh, as Eren threw Jean a murderous look.
Armin stood up and said, "Alright then, Sasha, Connie, and Marco, I elect you guys to stay behind. Marco, as second in command I'll leave you in charge here." Marco nodded and the rescue party got on their horses and took off…
Krista eyed her captors with a fearful expression. She had her hands tied in front of her as she sat on the side of the wagon. They have been traveling for over 20 minutes, and not much was said between her kidnappers. One of them caught her staring at him, and he got up to take a better look at her.
"You know" he said, "It's a waste just to let her go once we're near the city. We probably won't arrive until sometime in the morning. She might be a little young, but why don't we have some fun with her." Krista's eyes widened as he continued to approach her, seeing his lustful eyes through the linen mask he was wearing.
"Don't touch her." said a gruff voice from the one sitting off to the other side of Krista.
"Aw come on boss, I want to play with that pretty mouth of hers."
He cupped her chin and tilted her head so she could see the bulge in his pants. The one he called boss moved and grabbed him by his shirt, then threw him to the floor of the wagon. "I said don't touch her! If I have to repeat myself one more time, we're going to have a problem."
"I'm…I'm sorry boss, forgive me." the man on the floor said. Krista turned toward her savior, and he sat down next to her, making sure no one else tried to take advantage of her.
"Thank you, kind sir." Krista told him. He turned toward her and said, "Don't mention it. I'll make sure you are not harmed." After a minute, Krista asked him, "Sir, if you don't mind me asking, why you are doing this? You seem like a good person, so why?"
He turned toward her and then back to the front of the wagon before responding, "You know, you remind me of my daughter." Krista stared at him as he continued, "She's a little younger than you and she doesn't understand the hardships of the world. With the loss of territory in the titan attack five years ago, a lot of people lost businesses and their jobs. I fall into that category. I'm doing this for my family; I'm doing it for my daughter's well being."
Krista pondered over what he said. That someone would resort to crime for their children. "If I was your daughter, I wouldn't be proud that you were committing crime." He laughed and commented, "You and her are definitely a lot alike." Krista smiled, feeling a comfort with this man, almost wishing he was her father. "However" she said, "I would be on your side. Knowing you loved me so much to go to extra ordinary lengths to make sure my life was good."
His breath was caught in his lungs at her statement. "Your friend with the shaggy brown hair, he called you Krista right?" She looked at him for a second, before nodding. He then spoke, "I can't tell you my real name, but my daughter has a storybook she likes to read and her favorite character's name is Marcus. You can call me by that name if you like."
She gazed at him for a moment before nodding and said, "Alright, thank you Sir Marcus."…
In the distance, Armin, Jean, Eren, and Mina were waiting in a tree they climbed. It had over hanging branches above the dirt path below. Eren turned to Armin and asked, "Armin you sure they haven't passed by yet?" Mina growled at him and said, "Do you doubt my man Eren?" Eren began sweating nervously and said, "No, not doubting, hehe."
Armin smiled and said, "Don't worry Eren. If I'm right, they won't pass by this spot for another few minutes. I made sure to give myself a margin of era earlier." Eren nodded his head in approval. After a couple of seconds passed by, Armin spoke again.
"Hey Jean, not that I doubt your reasons, but I must say I'm a little surprised you didn't elect to stay behind. There's a chance we could get hurt or worse in our attempt to rescue Krista. I know it's your goal to make it into the Military Police, so with the risks of this mission, I thought you might have gone with the safer bet of staying behind. I would have still given a good report concerning you once we got back."
Eren and Mina turned towards Jean, wanting to know his response. Jean thought on Armin's words, eyes glued to the dirt path below them. "I guess Marco's kindness has rubbed off on me a bit. Yeah making it into the MP is my goal, but is it not the MP's job to bring criminals to justice within the walls? Ha, I guess I'm not afraid of these thieves as I am of the titans." Everyone grinned at Jean's new doggedness.
"I guess you're starting to come around" stated Eren, "Perhaps I can convince you to join the Survey Corps if you continue to become a man." Jean sneered and said, "Oh, so I suppose you're a man now?"
"Come on guys, enough with your bickering. We have a job here to do first." said Mina, attempting to calm the two down.
Armin turned to Mina. Smiling he said, "To tell you the truth Mina, I wanted you to stay due to the reasons I mentioned to Jean. I myself am not the most physically imposing fighter on the earth, but decided to come to make sure we were able to cut them off before they got out of the forest. That and it's my responsibility as the leader of this undertaking to ensure we all go back to the academy safely."
Mina looked into Armin's caring eyes and returned his smile. Holding his hand she said, "I'll be alright. I'm not going to let those stupid thieves get away with kidnapping my friend." With that, she kissed his cheek.
'Man, it looks like braniac is getting all the action. Why can't Mikasa look at me like that?' Jean thought.
'Ha, when did Armin all of a sudden become a smooth guy?' Eren wondered.
The sound of wheels rolling down the path came to their attention, interrupting them from their thoughts. "Okay here they come." Armin stated, "Here's the plan. Eren, you and Mina jump into the first carriage. If I remember correctly, they put Krista into that one. Jean, you will come with me onto the second. That is where they loaded our maneuver gear." Everyone silently nodded, and waited for the chance to jump…
Strangely enough, Krista came to befriend her kidnapper, the one she calls Marcus. They continued their conversation about their lives and how they have come to be.
"So why did you join the military Krista?" Marcus asked.
"I guess you might say I had no choice." Krista answered, not wanting to give away too much detail. Marcus nodded saying, "I see. Well then tell me, which branch of the military do plan to go under once your training is complete?"
She thought about her answer for a moment, and responded, "I…." Before she could finish, all of a sudden a shout was heard from above, then two figures ripped through soft roof roof of the wagon.
"Eren, Mina!" Krista called in surprise.
With the sheet of the roof open, Krista could see the other wagon behind them, Its sheet also torn, revealing Jean and Armin fighting those there.
Eren started to go in the direction of Krista, but upon sensing someone raising a rifle, he turned toward their direction and tackled the man to the floor. "Mina, go after Krista!" Eren said, punching his guy in the face. "Alright" Mina grinned, and headed to rescue her friend. Two men stood in her way, while one more stood beside Krista and another at the back. Mina charged them yelling, "Out of my way!" She jumped in the air and split kicked the two in front of her to the side, able to use the close quarters of the wagon to her advantage. They fell off the wagon, leaving a clear path to Krista…
On the other cart, Jean and Armin were back to back, being encircled by five guys pointing their rifles at them. One of them shouted, "You stupid kids, you should have stayed away. Now we are going to have to teach you a lesson!"
Jean smirked, "Hey Armin, how you liking these odds, five against two?" Armin grinned, "You really want my answer Jean?" Laughing, Jean stated, "I suppose not. I'll have to remember never to ask for the odds."
Annoyed by their conversation, one of the men started to pull their trigger, but Jean anticipated their emotion and reacted quicker by pushing his gun upward, causing it to go off in the air. With the rest being distracted, Armin slung around one of the men and jumped onto his back, putting him in a chokehold around his neck. Immediately the man beside him took aim at Armin, but he used the one in his hold as a shield at the last second, the bullet hitting the man in the shoulder as a shot rung out.
Jean elbowed his attacker, taking his gun. Using it as a battle axe, he swiftly took out two more men, causing them to fall out of the cart. After seeing Armin take hold of his second guy and seeing the other holding his shoulder, Jean rushed the driver of the cart. Taking him by surprise, Jean kicked him over the side and took control of the reigns.
Seeing Jean behind them, the man in the back of the first cart pointed his rifle at Jean.
"No Don't!" Krista shouted as she ran to the man and struggled with him. This caused him to shoot at the front wheel of Jean's wagon, making it loose. Being unable to maintain its weight, the second wagon became unstable with its wheels coming off the hinges. The horse pulling it broke free, causing the cart to slide off the path and crash against a tree, coming to a rest.
"Jean, Armin!" They heard their names yelled as the first wagon continued down the road.
After Jean assessed his situation, he looked back to see if Armin was okay. "Hey, you good back there Armin?" he called. Armin had a couple of scratches, but he replied, "Yeah, I'm okay. I don't think these guys can put up any more fight." Jean looked down at Armin's feet and could see the three remaining thieves may have suffered some broken bones from the crash.
"Anyway, let's find something to tie them up with, and we can catch up to Eren and the others with our maneuver gear." Armin stated. Using the rope the thieves originally used to tie up the maneuver gear, Jean tied them to a tree. He called back to Armin and said, "The other guys who fell off the cart may have gotten away."
Armin studying some of the contents in the cart, nodded and said, "Yeah, but that's alright for the time being. Look at this, I found a flare in their belongings. I'll use it, perhaps there's another one of our groups close enough that we can alert them." He then took the flare gun and fired it into the air.
Jean came over to pick up on his maneuver gear, and strapped it on. Armin did the same. Figuring everyone else's gear would be alright, Armin said, "Okay, let's go."…
Mina and Eren eyed down the menacing figure them. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way, hand over Krista and we won't have to hurt you." said Mina. He said nothing in response, causing Mina to become irritated.
"No, don't fight him!" Krista shouted, who was being restrained by the masked individual who was at the back of the cart. Everyone turned to Krista is surprise. She continued, "He's not a bad man. He's just struggling to survive. Perhaps we can help him in some other way. Ask the military for help." Eren and Mina looked at each other in question, before they heard the man start to chuckle.
Marcus spoke, "Krista, you're too kind. Actually, ten years ago I was in the military myself, the Survey Corps to be exact." Eren gasped, wondering how someone from the Corps would turn out to be a common thief.
"During my experience, I learned how corrupt the government was. How the king and his nobles biggest concerns were only about controlling the people inside the walls. The few who actually cared only wound up dying on the battlefield, never to see their families again. So I left the Survey Corps and managed to open up a craftsman's shop within the territory of Wall Maria, actually putting my skills learned in the military to good use. Yet then everything was lost in the titan attack and here I am today. The military could care less about me or my family, even after serving them for so long."
Eren stepped up and stated, "You're wrong. I know the military is lax about many things, but not to take care of its veterans? Surely they would hear you out." Marcus waved him off and said, "You're too young to see it now, but one day all of you trainees will come to hate the government."
Mina having enough, she rushed Marcus saying, "I've heard enough from a guy that hides his face behind a mask!" She threw a punch, but Marcus caught it. He commented, "The others you fought were more on your level, some of them being from the Garrison unit who haven't had much fighting experience beyond their own trainee days; however I'll be a different story." He began to crush his grip on Mina's fist. The sound of knuckles popping could be heard. "Aaaaarrggh!" she grimaced in pain, trying fruitlessly to get away from his grip.
"Mina!" Eren shouted. He made a dash for the two. Marcus grabbed Mina and threw her at Eren, making them both fall to the floor.
"Sir Marcus, don't hurt them!" Krista screamed. Marcus looked back at her, and then to the two cadets on the floor.
As Eren held Mina, he asked her, "Are you alright?" Mina rubbed her hand and said, "Yeah I'm fine. Eren, he may be too strong for us to fight." Eren looked back on Marcus, still having a hard time believing someone from the Survey Corps could become a criminal. If anyone within the three branches would resort to crime, he figured it would be someone from the Military Police.
"Don't worry Mina. I'll handle him. I can't have someone running around giving the Survey Corps a bad name."
This caught Marcus' attention. "Give the Survey Corps a bad name?" he said, "That's laughable. Out of the three, the Scouting legion is the most useless. Out of all my years of service there, the only thing we accomplished was causing the pointless deaths of countless men and women. We can't win against the titans and that is why, the Survey Corps is a disgrace upon itself."
Leaning Mina off to the side, Eren stood and took up a battle stance, eye's full indignation at the man before him. Memories of him as a kid seeing the Survey Corps off on one of their missions flashed through his head. How he always wanted to go with them. "Take it back." he said in a low voice.
Marcus looked at him curiously. Eren spoke again, a little louder, "The Survey Corps are not a disgrace, take it back!"
"Interesting" said Marcus, "You seem to care deeply about the Survey Corps, but what I said is the truth. Yet you will have to convince me to change my mind." Upon saying so, he took up a defensive stance. "Show me what they're teaching you in the academy these days."
Eren took off, closing the very short distance between them. Marcus took this as Eren's youth and inexperience, to charge in without sizing up his enemy. Quickly he threw a punch toward Eren's face. To his surprise, Eren ducked with ease and placed an uppercut blow to his chin. He stumbled back slightly before blocking a successive kick aimed at his torso.
Pushing off Eren's foot, Marcus stood back to take in the young man. "That's an interesting fighting style you have." he stated, "Is that what they are teaching the cadets at the academy now?"
Eren readied himself for another attack and answered, "No, it's something I picked up from a friend. With it I'm going to bring you down."
"Hmmm, well then, let's continue." Marcus motioned with his hand.
More than happy to oblige, Eren eased toward him. Using his upper body strength and head motion, Eren threw a fierce right punch to the mid section, but was blocked by Marcus' arm. Undeterred Eren jabbed with his left fist towards Marcus' face, missing and coming back with a punch to the chest. Marcus took it in stride, again motioning with his hand for Eren to come at him.
Once more Eren drew all his upper body strength, drawing back and placed a well aimed elbow swing at his opponent's stomach. Marcus puffed up his body and took it into his chest. With an opening, Marcus began punching Eren in the face and finally picked him up and threw him a couple of feet away on the floor.
"Eren!" Mina and Krista screamed.
Mina began moving toward Marcus, but Eren stopped her. "No Mina" he said as he got back up, blood dripping from his mouth. "This is my fight."
Mina shouted back, "Don't be stupid, he's too strong for you. We have to fight him together to stand a chance." Eren smiled and replied, "Perhaps he's physically stronger than me, and a more experienced fighter, but no way will I allow him to win. He's nothing but an obstacle in my path, but my will is stronger. I'll show him the fortitude of one aspiring to be a member of the Survey Corps."
"So that's it." Marcus spoke, "You want to join them. You are a very interesting person, very rare for someone to want to join the Survey Corps. Yet listen to someone who's been there, nothing awaits you other than heartache. The titans can't be defeated."
Eren clenched his fist and stated, "I will defeat them, every last one!" Getting back into his stance, he continued, "…and I will defeat you."
Marcus shook his head. "It seems there's no getting through to you. Or perhaps, the only thing you understand is the will to fight. I'll try to reach you through my fists. After all, if you can't beat me, how in the world can you defeat the titans?" He moved toward Eren slowly.
'If I can't beat him with my strength alone' Eren thought 'perhaps I can beat him with his'. Marcus continued to walk up to Eren, until there was only a foot between them. For a moment, the only thing that could be heard was the weight of the wheels as the cart rolled down the dirt path.
"Let's go"
No sooner than Eren spoke those words, he launched a powerful knee strike to the midsection, attempting to create space. Grunting, Marcus defended with his left arm and made a grab for Eren with his right. Eren adjusted his stance, moving to avoid the grab and performed another knee strike to create more space.
"It's time I put an end to this." said Marcus. Anticipating Eren's next move, Marcus caught his arm, and attempted to pull him down to the floor. Using the force from the takedown, Eren added his own by launching off his legs into Marcus, connecting with a success punch to the head. Mina barely got out of the way as Marcus was knocked back and fell to the floor beside her.
"You did it Eren!" Mina cheered as she moved to hug him.
"No, not yet Mina." he said panting, pointing at Marcus, who slowly sat up and rubbed his head. Mina gasped, but upon looking closer, she notices his mask was torn. This is the first time they both got a look at the face of the man they were fighting. He was a lightly tan skinned individual with a shaggy beard. His hair was shaved low, pretty similar to Connie's.
The one restraining Krista called out to Eren and Mina saying, "You damn brats. You think can beat us? Yet now that you've seen one of us, we can't let you live." Pushing Krista to the floor, he pointed his rifle at Eren.
Before he could get off a clean shot, a grappling hook seemingly coming from nowhere, struck the rifle, sending it falling out of his hands. Everyone looked up, seeing Jean and Armin following them through the air with their 3DMG. "Jean, Armin!" Mina cried in joy.
Jean shouted to them, "Guys, we're going to take that cart down. Jump off it now!" He and Armin continued to propel themselves forward, until they were out in front of the wagon. "Oh no you don't." stated the man in the back of the cart. Picking up his rifle, he aimed it Jean. Jean accelerated to his right, avoiding the first shot. As the man attempted to reload, Mina came charging his direction and caught him with a right hook, sending him to the floor.
Smiling, Armin nodded to Jean to get in position. Eren saw it as well, and made a dash to pick up Krista. "Come on Mina, we have to jump!" Eren told her.
Jean and Armin swung from opposite sides of the cart, and made a precise strike with their blades on the bindings keeping the horse connected with it. Upon seeing the horse separated, the driver jumped over the side, leaving the cart rolling down the path without control. With Krista in tow, Eren and Mina jumped over the back just as the cart came upon a turn, sending it crashing into the trees and flopping over.
They landed roughly on the ground, Eren using his body to cup Krista and Mina as best he could. Finally sliding to a rest, he asked, "Are you both alright?"
Mina looked at herself, not seeing anything broken or bruised, and replied, "I'm good. What about you Krista?" Krista nodded, "I'm fine."
Jean and Armin safely landed on the ground, and they ran over to check and see if everyone was okay. "You're plan worked!" Mina praised Armin, giving him a big hug. Eren turned to Jean and Armin and said, "It looks like you two were also successful in getting the gear back." Jean nodded, "Yeah, the rest are back down that way. We can head over there to retrieve them."
Suddenly they heard noises coming from the turnover cart in the trees. They saw Marcus and his partner crawl from the wreckage, covered with scratches and blood. "Sir Marcus!" Krista cried, as she ran over to help him. Jean tried to call her back.
"Krista, what are you doing come back!"
Ignoring his calls, she knelt down beside Marcus and checked the cut and bruise on his head. "You're going to be alright. We'll go and bring help, just don't move." she said to him. As she turned to go back to the group, Marcus grabbed her hand, got up and restrained her. Pulling out his knife and pointing it at her throat, he whispered, "I'm sorry Krista."
Eren and Jean began running in their direction, but Marcus called for them to stop. Becoming enraged Eren yelled, "Hey what's your problem. Let her go, there's no where for you to run!" Standing up, Marcus' partner pulled his rifle from under the cart, and aimed it at Eren, intending to shoot.
"Wait" Marcus told him. Turning back to the two young men, Marcus said, "Give us your maneuver gear. Tell the other one to come and put his maneuver gear down on the ground, and then I want all of you to back away."
Jean looked back at Armin, and he nodded. As Armin walked over to where Jean and Eren were standing to put his gear on the ground, Eren stared back at Marcus with contempt.
"You still want to dishonor the military and Survey Corps by selling our equipment?" he asked. Marcus frowned at him and said, "I told you before, the military doesn't care about anyone but themselves. What? You still think you can defeat the titans with your skills and equipment?"
Through clenched teeth, Eren stated, "I do!"
Marcus spat on the ground and said, "You're living in an imaginary world."
Jean and Armin unstrapped their equipment, and began backing away, motioning for Eren to do the same. Marcus called to his partner and said, "That boy is destined for pain and suffering by choosing to become a Survey Corps member. I think it's best if we spared him of that life. Kill him."
The group's eyes shot open in horror at the order he gave. With the man taking aim at Eren, Armin rushed to get in front of him screaming, "NO!"
As Marcus' accomplice started to pull the trigger, a flash of steel flew past and he realized his rifle was now shorter in length than it was a second ago. Looking to his right, he sees a girl with blonde hair crouched to his side wearing maneuver gear with her blades drawn. Her blue eyes concentrated on him, almost being frightened to death by her icy glare.
"Annie?" Eren gasped
The group then noticed a figure flying out of the trees, blades gleaming in the moonlight and closing in fast toward Marcus. Krista cried out, "No don't kill him!"
The swing of the figure's blade stopped instantly, microseconds from going clean through his neck. Everyone looked and saw Mikasa standing next to Marcus, eyes devoid of any ounce of sympathy, staring directly at him.
"You dare order someone to kill Eren?" she said in a chilling voice, "Drop your knife and let her go, or I swear I won't hesitate again in taking your life."
Seeing there was no falter in her composure, and upon looking at the fear in Krista's eyes reminding him of his daughter, he did as he was told. His partner also dropped his shell of a rifle and relented. Using the wire from the 3DMG, they managed to restrain them, putting an end to the ordeal.
The group turned to Mikasa and Annie, Mina running up to them and congratulating them for saving their butts. "Hey, you two were so badass." she said to them, "You both make a great team." Mikasa and Annie looked at each other in annoyance, and then looked away. Mina laughed and said, "Though, it's probably a good thing Ymir wasn't in your group Mikasa. I don't think she would have showed the restraint that you did, with that guy holding Krista at knife point."
Eren walked up to them and asked, "How did you know where we were or that we needed help?" Before they could answer, the rest of Mikasa's group appeared from the dirt path, arriving on their horses.
"Hey everyone" Reiner called to them.
The group walked up to meet them. Cadet Thomas Wagner got off his horse, and handed Armin a flag. It turned out to be the flag his group was supposed to retrieve for the mission.
"Hey, you got our flag!" Armin exclaimed. Reiner chuckled and said, "Yeah, Mikasa memorized the location of your group's flag when you showed her your map before we left the academy. Once we got ours, she ordered us to head in your direction, I suppose to check and see if Yeager was alright."
Eren snarled at her and said, "I'm not a baby Mikasa. You have to trust me that I can take care of myself, just like I trust you to do the same." Mikasa gave Reiner a sideways look, causing him to sweat a little.
"Anyway" Reiner continued, "when we arrived at your flag's location, we saw it was still there. We figured something could have gone wrong, and went to look for you. After traveling for a bit, we saw a flare go up. Mikasa and Annie went ahead of us to investigate." Jean smiled at Armin, giving him thumbs up.
Mina spoke up and said, "You know Mikasa, you don't have to worry so much about Eren. He held his own and single handedly took out a couple of really strong guys. All that training with Annie paid off tonight."
At hearing her name, Eren nodded and shared a glance with Annie. Mikasa caught it and thought about how much Eren changed over the years. One day he will be out there fighting titans, and it scares her.
Turning to her, Eren placed a hand on her shoulder and said, "Of course with all that said, if it weren't for you and Annie, I may not be standing here right now. Thanks Mikasa!" A light blush appeared on her face as she looked into his eyes. "You're welcome Eren." she replied...
After picking up the rest of Group Armin's maneuver gear, Sasha, Marco, and Connie, they all headed back to the academy the next day as one group, also carrying Marcus and four of his accomplices with him. Once they reached the training grounds, the authorities were alerted, and they came to take Marcus and the others into custody.
As they were about to load Marcus into the holding cart, Krista asked the MP officer if she could say goodbye to him, to which he gave her a few seconds to speak.
"I'm sorry it had to end this way Sir Marcus." she said.
He simply smiled and told her it was alright. "Don't worry about me Krista." he said, "You make sure to take care of yourself. By the way, I don't think its right to depart like this without you knowing my real name. It's Raymond."
The officer motioned for Krista that it's time for him to go. At the very last second, Krista ran up to Raymond and hugged him. She then whispered something in his ear.
"What, that's your real name?" Raymond asked her.
"Yes" she replied, "However it's a secret."
Raymond smiled at her, before getting on the cart and looking at her as they pulled out…
Within the head instructor's office, Shadis finished scanning over a written report by Armin, detailing all that happened during their mission.
"So" Shadis began, still eyeing the report, "Your team had a little trouble on the way with these thieves stealing your gear."
"That's right Sir." Armin responded.
"According to the MP's identification of the lead suspect, his name is Raymond Heinrich, a former captain for the Survey Corps. Actually, it was I who elected him captain 12 years ago, while I was still commander. I remember him quite well."
Armin was silent for a few minutes, and then he spoke, "Sir, according to Cadet Yeager's words, Raymond suffered from the loss of territory to the titans five years ago. There were no benefits as a veteran, and thus he resorted to theft as a way to make ends meet."
Shadis put Armin's report down and sat back in his chair, contemplating Armin's words. "For those who enter into the Military Police or the Garrison Unit, they usually have a very long career. As active members, the military provides for their housing and needs. Those who make it into the MP, the king provides and pays handsomely for their services. Yet for Survey Corps members, if they don't die within the first year, it's not long before they retire. Most leave after two or three years of service. Of course the government sees the Survey Corps as a waste of money to fund, so you can only imagine what it's like for getting support for veterans."
"Yes Sir." Armin stated with sadness in his voice. Shadis looked at the young man and stood up. "As for you, I congratulate your team's effort to bring them to justice. You managed to retrieve the stolen gear, but more importantly, you saved your comrade Krista Lenz. You have earned my respect Cadet Armin Arlet."
"Sir" Armin said, shocked with excitement that his instructor didn't call him by the nickname he gave him. Armin saluted him. "Thank you Sir!"
A few moments went by, and Shadis was curious why Armin didn't dismiss himself. "Is there something else cadet?"
"Ah, if you don't mind me asking Sir, was this particular mission graded against our ranking in the class?" Shadis' curiosity continued to grow. He asked, "Why are you concerned Arlet? Have you a change of heart in career choices due to this incident, and are now trying to qualify for the Military Police?"
"No Sir. I just wanted to say I saw a lot of growth in Cadet Jean Kirstein. He was one of the ones to elect himself to go after Krista when she was kidnapped. He's stated his goals in becoming an MP Officer, and now I think his reasons aren't totally selfish. I wanted to recommend him to receive high marks for this mission."
Shadis walked over to the window and look out over the training grounds. Smiling to himself he said, "To tell you the truth Arlet, the real purpose behind this mission was to get a couple of days of relaxation to myself and not have to deal with you young bloods." Armin almost fell over, but managed to catch himself.
"However" Shadis continued, "my mind may be changing. You took the initiative to write a detailed report concerning your mission, and now you're vouching for your classmates. You know, I would have loved to have someone of your calibur with me back in the days when I was commander. I'm sure with your strategic prowess, many lives could have been saved and perhaps, we could have won a battle or two against those beasts." Turning back to Armin, Shadis acknowledge him and said, "You're going to make a fine scout Armin."
"Thank you Sir!"
Finished speaking, Armin took his leave, looking to join his friends in the mess hall for lunch. Shadis turned back to the window, and silently prayed for the future of his students, that they will be successful in whatever branch of the military they decided to join.