And the story really begins! After today I'll start (trying) to post a new chapter every Monday. I hope everyone enjoys this!
Chapter One: Eren's POV-
When I opened my eyes, I knew something was going to happen today. My common sense told me I just thought that because it was my eighteenth birthday, but I couldn't shake the feeling that it was more than that. After all, I've lived alone out here for the past eight years, and every day has been exactly the same. Why would it be any different today just because I turned eighteen?
I tried to ignore the feeling, and instead went on with my normal routine. Get up, rekindle the fire, heat some water, bathe, get dressed, and get rid of the dirty water. Still couldn't shake the feeling. Go outside, tend the garden and other plants, refill canteens, harvest fruits and vegetables, and eat breakfast. Still couldn't get rid of it.
I was starting to get irritated as I placed the basket full of produce on table, especially when I looked around the hut and had the intense urge to clean. The place was filthy, I couldn't deny that; the floor was made of dirt after all, but it never really bothered me before. It's not like anyone ever came to visit. As far as I could tell, there was no one else.
It's been eight years since I saw another person, eight years since I watched my parents run out the door after an argument. I was positive they would return, and the three of us would continue living in this small hut like we have since before I was born, but minutes turned to hours, hours turned to days, and days turned to weeks, and I could only assume they were dead.
Mother and Father always told me that without the plants outside, the ones the color of silvery blue topaz, there would be no way to protect ourselves from the other Titans. They drilled into my brain never to leave the clearing because the plants couldn't protect me out there. However, sometimes Father would cover the both of us in this gross slime and bring me into the forest to help collect fire wood, and learn to hunt.
The day they both disappeared, they left the clearing, and they didn't put the slime on to protect themselves. At the time I didn't think of it, I was far too exhausted and drained from the incident, and I quickly fell asleep after. The next day, however, when I woke up to an empty home, I ran outside and screamed. I called for them for hours, screaming and crying and begging for them to come back. I did this for days before I gave up.
Of course I blamed myself. I didn't really understand what had happened to me, but my mother thought I was a monster, and she was right. I am a monster. I'm a Titan in a human's body. Mother always warned me about Titans and how they were cruel, and I knew they probably killed my mom and dad, and even though I've never eaten a human, I could pretend to be one and that's even more terrifying.
However, I eventually started blaming Father as well. He did something to me. That much was obvious considering how my mother screamed at him after he cut me out of the burning flesh of my Titan. Everything that happened after that was really vague. I remember Father telling Mother he created the "ultimate weapon" and her demanding to know what he did to me, but the memories are hazy. All I can know for certain was my father, my own flesh and blood, turned me into an abomination.
I had promised myself I would never turn into a Titan again, but as the days went on, it was becoming increasingly harder to survive off the garden, and at ten years old, it was hard to cut down fire wood and haul it back to the hut, especially while covered in slime. It had gotten to the point where I was certain I was going to die if I didn't do something. Part of me was okay with that. I was all alone, and some kind a freakish monster. The world would be better off with one less Titan. Even so, I didn't want to die, so one day I went outside, and let instinct take over.
As I got older, I learned how to control my transformations, and now I can shift whenever I want by biting my hand. I started out using my Titan form to hunt, which was incredibly easy, and I would just carry whatever game I caught in the palm of my hand all the way back to the hut.
However, I also learned that collecting fire wood was a lot easier in this form as well, and while I tried staying "human" as much as possible, I've had to shift into my other form at least once a day so I could hunt, since keeping meat fresh was impossible.
There were up-sides to the shifting abilities though. For instance, I could finally explore outside the clearing I grew up in, and that was something I've always wanted. I wanted to see the world outside, and I hated being confined, and I noticed that other Titans tended to leave me alone when I was in my Titan form.
That was another good part about the shifting. I could fight the Titans. Ever since my parents disappeared, I've wanted to remove all the Titans from this world. As far as I was concerned (and I still am,) Titans were the enemy. They were the reason we were trapped in this clearing, and they were the reason I was alone.
Snapping myself out of my thoughts, I once again let my eyes scan the inside of the hut before sighing, and standing up. The feeling that something was going to happen was still there, and for some strange reason, I had the intense urge to clean everything, so I pinned the door flap up, letting the sun in, and got to work.
There really wasn't much I could do, but I did what I could. Washing the bedding, and taking the futon outside, beating it, and letting it air out. Cleaning the fire pit and using the broom my mother made out of a large stick and dried tall grass to sweep all the loose dirt and dust outside, and finally, boiling some water, and dampening a rag so I could wipe down all the surfaces in the hut.
It didn't really take long, and the place still looked the same, but for some reason I felt a little more satisfied. So after bringing the futon back inside, and remaking the bed with the now dry blankets and deer hides, I decided it was about time I go hunting for tonight's dinner.
Stepping out of the hut, I couldn't help but grimace at the plants surround me. In my human form, they didn't bother me. I couldn't even smell them actually, but my Titan form was a different story. When in that form that smell absolutely atrocious, and made me was to run as fast as possible. It was no wonder why the Titans wouldn't come near them. I realized rather quickly that Titans weren't smart. They didn't even appear to know how to think, so it was only expected that when they did smell the plants, they didn't think twice about turning in the other direction.
Sighing, I walked forward so I had more room to work with, and quickly bit into the flesh of my hand, allowing the bright yellow light to consume me. At this point the sensation of shifting was familiar. The heat, the tight, sticky feeling of being wrapped in red hot muscle tissue; however, I could never get use to the weightless rush that passed through my body as my brain took control of its new appendages. It felt amazing; empowering even, but I couldn't help but want to rip myself out of the neck as fast as I could.
Quickly getting over my euphoria, I pushed myself forward, stumbling out of the clearing before I could even take a breath. "Don't breathe in yet. Don't breathe in yet! Don't breathe in yet!"
I breathed in, and immediately felt like vomiting. It was still as putrid as ever, so I broke out into a sprint, running as fast as I can until breathing became bearable.
"God dammit, I did it again," I tried to say; frowning when I remember this form couldn't talk. "Force of habit," I mused to myself, before pushing forward again. It didn't take me long to make my way through the forest, and once I was out, I shrugged my shoulder a bit and continued walking forward.
As always, I saw various sized Titans wobbling around, stumbling over their own giant feet, and as always, they left me alone. However, I frowned when I noticed how many were in the area. That meant the chances of finding any deer or rabbit around here were low, so I'd have to go looking for a new area to hunt in.
Walking away from the forest, I casually made my way forward, opting to take my time since I really wasn't hungry and it was a beautiful day out. Also, I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy the view from up here.
I kept walking, looking for any sort of wild life, and had probably been traveling for around three hours when I finally saw what looked like a herd of deer in the distance. Frowning, I noticed around eight or nine Titans running closely behind them, as if chasing them.
That didn't make sense though. Titans didn't care about deer, so what was going on? As I got closer, however, I noticed that they weren't deer, but…horses? But what was that on top of them? Straining my vision, I gasped, catching the air in my throat when I finally was able to see them clearly.
"H-humans? B-but, I thought there weren't any left?! Look at them all! But wait, I know that uniform. Mother and Father both have one hidden at the bottom of the chest. And those carriages look like the one next to the hut. I can't believe there are other people! Where did they come from?" I thought, freezing where I was as I watched in horror as the Titans started catching up.
One of the humans seemed to notice this too; a male with dark, ebony colored hair towards the front of the group. However, I wasn't expecting him to suddenly stand on his horse's saddle, pulling out what looked like two blades from a large, bulky metal contraption at his hips.
He turned to the group of Titans, yelling something at the brunette woman next to him that apparently was upsetting, because a scream ripped through her throat just as he suddenly jumped up. I expected him to drop harshly on the rider behind him; however, instead, what looked like metal ropes shot out from his hips and attached itself from one of the Titans.
Suddenly he was right in front of them, slowing them down as he weaved between the group of beasts, yelling things at them that caught their attention. Soon enough the rest of the humans were forgotten as all of the creatures dumbly tried to grasp the human, who was just too fast for them all.
"He's using himself as bait to distract them so his friends can get away?!" I thought; eyes wide as I watched him desperately using the scarce number of trees to attach to and pull himself away from the Titans, creating an impressive distance between them. It actually seemed like he was going to make it to the near-by forest and get away, but suddenly the rope jerked, and went slack, causing him to fall roughly into the grass below him.
I flinched when he fell on one of his swords, the blade ripping open his side, staining the white shirt red as his head collided harshly with the ground. However, he still stumbled into a standing position, ripping the blade out and gripping his injured side as he stared at the Titans quickly approaching.
My chest tightened, and something inside me snapped.
I don't want him to die.
I don't' want him to die.
I don't want him to die!
Without even thinking about it, I began racing towards him, my heart beating heavily in my chest. He wasn't going to die. Someone so heroic and amazing didn't deserve to die. "I will save him!"
When I was finally close enough, I let out a murderous roar, causing the Titans to falter, but the human didn't notice. Instead, he turned around, his eyes training on me as he glared. I was slightly aware that he screamed something, probably assuming I was going to eat him, before closing his eyes, but I ignored it, keeping my eyes focused on the closest Titan as I pulled back my clenched fist and let it collide with its face.
Levi's POV-
We weren't going to be able to out run them. That much was clear. There was also no chance of fighting back due to the amount of injured soldiers that easily outnumbered the amount of soldiers still capable of fighting, which was far too low to take on nine Titans. Dammit.
Clenching my jaw, I looked back, seeing all the terrified, tear stained faces of my comrades. I wouldn't let all these people die. Slipping my feet out of the stirrups, I effortlessly stood on my horse's saddle, turning so I was facing the oncoming threat with my blades in my hand.
"No matter what happens, lead everyone forward back to the walls. Don't turn around, and don't you dare stop! That's an order!" I yelled at Hanji, whose head snapped up to look at me. I didn't wait for her to reply before I jumped, using my 3D maneuver gear to grapple onto the closest Titans shoulder, sending me soaring towards them.
"LEVI!" Hanji screamed, but kept moving none the less. I effortlessly weaved between the idiotic creatures, managing to confuse and distract them from my fellow soldiers. They immediately slowed down, all turning their attention to me as they tried to grab at me but with no luck.
"What? You disgusting dumb fucks aren't smart enough to catch me? How fucking unfortunate!" I taunted, scowling at the giants. Once I was certain the others were far enough away, I immediately shot towards one of the few trees that littered the land. If I was lucky, I could easily maneuver my way to the closest forest, and I already created a large gap between me and my nine pursuers. I was actually getting my hopes ups that I would survive when my maneuver gear sputtered, and the steel cable jerked.
"I'm out of gas?!" I nearly yelled, cursing as I started falling to the grass below. I felt a searing pain in my side, and my vision went white when my temple smashed into the hard dirt. After blinking vigorously, I was able to clear my vision and register the blade lodged into my side. I let out a vicious growl as I ripped the blade out of my flesh, wincing and gripping my side as I dragged myself back to my feet.
The Titans were catching up quickly, and I finally realized this would be it. I was going to die. I couldn't help but smile bitterly. At least I would be with my other fallen soldiers. I'd finally be free, and heaven better be fucking spotless, and Titan free.
However, just as I was about to accept defeat, a loud, angry roar erupted from behind me. Turning, I saw a seventeen meter deviant type Titan sprinting towards me with what looked like murder in his eyes. Growling, I forgot my resolve to die peacefully and turned the rest of my body towards the new Titan, keeping my arm pressed to my wound as I clenched my fist. My vision was starting to blur slightly, definitely proving I had a concussion, as I forced myself to hold my ground.
"Fine then you filthy bastard! Come at me!" I challenged, screaming at the creature before squeezing my eyes shut. I was going to die kicking and screaming, that much I was sure of, but that didn't mean I wanted to see myself get eaten. "I'll be with you all soon," I sent out a silent pray to all my fallen comrades, their images flashing through my mind just as the Titan reached me…
…and ran past me, completely ignoring my presence.
My eyes snapped open and I turned around (a little too quickly) just as the deviant Titan slammed a fist into one of the other Titan's jaw. It stumbled back, falling into the other Titans before all of them turned their attention to the deviant, obviously seeing it as a threat.
The fight broke out immediately, but something was different about the deviant. It wasn't just swinging and biting at its opponents blindly like the other Titans, but instead, it seemed intelligent. It bobbed and weaved, avoiding as many hits as possible, before striking with determination and precision, albeit a bit sloppily. It actually reminded me of my own fighting skills back when I was a brat on the streets. It seemed to have natural, fighting talent, just without any proper training.
"And it's protecting me…?" The idea itself seemed ridiculous, but whenever one of the Titans (now there were only seven and a half) tried to move past him, and refocus its attention on me, the deviant would immediately grab it and throw it further away before turning around, its gaze briefly falling on me as if to make sure I was still alive.
Despite being convinced that the deviant planned to devour me once the other Titans were dealt with, I wanted to continue watching the fight. There was something strangely magnificent about the deviant, and the way it moved. Its body was hard with muscle, unlike most Titans that looked like fat middle-aged men, and lean; allowing it to move fluidly with amazing strength that actually made each hit cause the other Titans head snap back.
"I sound like Hanji," I thought bitterly, however, my vision began fading again, blurring around the edges before slowly going black as I started swaying. I could feel blood seeping down the side of my face, and my shirt was now completely saturated in the blood that was pouring out of my side and dripping down my leg and onto my shoes.
My legs buckled, and I gracelessly crumbled to my knees before fully falling onto my uninjured side, the pain now fully consuming me. I could barely see, but I tried to keep my eyes open as I watched the deviant take down the final Titan. Finally, it turned back to me, and I could have sworn I saw alarm flash through its green eyes before it slowly, and dare I say gently, reached for me.
However, another wave a pain rolled through me, forcing my eyes shut, as I drifted into unconsciousness, and the last thing I remembered was being surrounded by warmth.