The screams of the anguished echoed through the valley. I fired my gear, swinging gracefully between the tall trees encasing the nearby clearing. I moved swiftly, surely, not a flaw in my form. I flinched as one voice was silenced. This was my 18th mission beyond the walls, my 32nd within my legion, far more than any other junior member of my regiment, and yet never had I become numb to the deaths of my comrades. As frustrating as grief is, it tells me that I'm human. Something I do need a reminder of once in a while.

I broke through the treeline. Squad Mike was locked into combat, surrounded by a crowd of no fewer than five Nine-Meter Class Titans. Mike was skillfully fighting off a wide-set blonde Titan, but the rest of his disciples were on the brink of death. I grit my teeth, launching myself off my tree to their aid. I had never learned the actual names of Squad Mike, preferring to call them by their respective hair colors. I had grown to avoid learning names. It only made the hurt worse when they were gone.

At the speed of light, I reached the nape of the closest Titan, slicing its nape cleanly. It tumbled to the ground, narrowly missing the trembling Brunette soldier at its feet. I didn't spare her a glace, instead continuing on to the other targets. Left to deal with, there was a black haired Titan looming over two soldiers that seemed to be readying their next attack, there was a red haired Titan lifting a struggling black haired girl off her feet and towards its mouth, and there was a bald headed Titan standing still as a blonde recruit sneaked up behind it.

Reading the situation expeditiously, I made my move. The black haired girl screamed for my help as she fought to escape the Titan's grasp. However, I flew right over her. Her calls twinged in betrayal, becoming more desperate. I tuned them out, speeding for the Bald Titan. The blonde recruit behind it smirked, certain he was about to achieve his first kill. As he raised his blades, though, the Titan spun around, its jaws centimeters from closing over the boy's head. He screamed, but it toppled forward, limp.

I pulled my blades out of kill-position as the Titan's blood evaporated and turned back to where the raven-haired girl was inches from death. I moved fast enough to be a blur, ending the life of that Titan as well. The girl yelped as its fingers contracted around her, but I swooped down, sliced the hand in two and pulled her into the air. I didn't bother being gentile, taking only the necessary time to ensure the fall wasn't fatal before dropping her from the air.

She let out a small squeak of surprise, but I didn't think on it. Instead, I zoomed over to where the final two squad members were in a tangle with their Titan. Mike, who had finished off his own target, met me there as we set our sights on the last Titan. I dodged the giant hand as the monster swung at me, dipping down to the ground to sever its achilles. The Titan careened forward, face planting. Mike finished the job, slicing its weak point.

He and I met eyes as we straightened up. He nodded at me in gratitude. I shot him a smile, returning the gesture, and turned back to the woods.

"Get yourselves regrouped with the rest of the Front Guard. Erwin plans to change direction to avoid sending the back half of the formation through the valley. The right flank spotted more Four and Eight-Meters heading this direction, so I suggest you act fast." I ordered. Mike nodded at me.

"I smelled them near. I didn't realize how many there were until we were at their mercy, though." It was a clear apology. I nodded at him again, accepting his explanation.

"Go."

We all zipped off, them heading East and up the wall of the valley, me routing North and further into the compromised area. Mike may have been a higher rank than me, but he and I had an understanding. I knew what I was talking about. They would follow my orders.

I didn't have to go too far to reach our meeting point. Hanji's squad, which I'd been a part of since I turned sixteen, had decided to divide and warn the other squads of the approaching Titan horde. Hanji was already at the meeting point, accompanied by Levi Ackerman. My lip curled up in irritation. Levi and I didn't exactly get along. Our attitudes toward one another had recently reached their boiling points when he had criticized the way I trained our new recruits during drills. Since then, we'd done everything in our powers to make the other's life a living hell. Unfortunately for me, though, he had the upper hand, seeing as he was still a rank higher than me. But, the callouses from scrubbing the walls of HQ only fueled my hate-fire that much more.

I pushed our history behind me, landing beside them. Levi seemed to be glaring at Hanji harsher than usual, his posture stiff. My squad leader's usual grin was gone, instead twisted into a stressed scowl.

"What's happened?" I asked, preparing myself for the worst.

Levi scoffed, turning to face me. "She's given an order to abandon the left flank."

I whirled around, shock and horror overtaking me. "What?!"

Hanji glared at us. "The majority of the horde has hit from their direction. We must focus on pulling the right flank out of the valley before the oncoming wave of Titans reaches them. We have minutes before they hit," Sunlight reflected off her glasses, making her look somewhat spooky. "Both of you know what could happen should they reach our new recruits."

Memories of snapping teeth and red-hot saliva flashed in my eyes. I shuddered. To my left, Levi seemed to be having a similar case of déjà vu. She was right. All those on the left flank were veterans. But, the right flank carried our newest recruits, who were out here on their first expedition. I thought of Jax. He had been stationed as a scout in the right flank. If we sent our forces to save those on the left, we would be sentencing him and his class to almost certain death.

"Send us." Levi said. Hanji and I turned to him in puzzlement. "As dim as she is-"

"Hey!"

"Bently and I have the highest kill counts in the Legion. Send us, we'll take down as many of those bastards as we can."

Hanji sighed, placing her hands on her hips. "The fact that you're our best soldiers is precisely why I don't want to do that." She scrunched up her face in indecision. Levi and I shifted impatiently. Hanji peeked open one eye and then swung around, turning her back to us. "OH NO! I'VE BEEN TEMPORARILY BLINDED! I DO HOPE THAT MY SOLDIERS DON'T DISOBEY ORDERS AND GO SAVE OUR FRIENDS ON THE LEFT FLANK!"

I grinned at her antics and turned back to where Levi was standing, only to find he'd gone on ahead and left me. Irritation ticked at my head, but I followed without complaint.

We zipped through the trees, trying our best to tune out the bone-chilling screams of our friends. They were starting to get to me. My fingers twitched anxiously on the handles of my blades. I pulled the trigger again, ready to fire into an approaching boulder, but my aim was off. I missed my target, starting to swan dive to the ground. I almost screamed, but managed to fire off another hook before hitting the grass. My heart was in my throat.

Levi looked back at me from the corner of his eye. "Keep it together, Bently."

I normally would've snapped at him, but, right then, I was too shaken up to do anything other than nod.

We reached the left flank within ten minutes, not pausing for even a moment before swinging into battle. Before us stood a group of at least twenty Titans, all surrounding several of our squads. Levi and I didn't have to say a word as we began our fight. He shot for the nape of the nearest Ten Meter, while I took out a Nine. He swung towards me, slicing the nape of another Ten while I did the same to an Eight. We neared each other, both of us thrusting out our feet simultaneously. We met midair, pressed our boots together, and pushed off, both of us shooting off like rockets to take out two more Titans.

I killed three more Titans (Six, Ten, Ten) and stopped on a tree, shooting off a flare signalling retreat. The other squads followed my order efficiently, only the squad leaders staying behind to help those that were trapped. Levi anchored himself into a tree next to mine, muttering my name to get my attention. He nodded over to one Titan that stood above the rest and then met my eyes and raised his eyebrows.

I nodded. The Titan was definitely the tallest I'd ever encountered. It stood at a height of at least Sixteen-Meters, it's long brown hair brushing its elbows. It turned to us and smiled, its teeth each measuring at least half a meter long. My stomach tightened. It was either an Aberrant or just extremely rare, but I wouldn't be taking any chances. This one was different.

Levi and I fired off towards the Sixteen. I hung mid-air in front of its face, waving my blades while Levi swung around behind its head to get to the nape. It snapped at me, its eyes following me as I dodged. Because of its size, this thing shouldn't be able to move too fast, which meant Levi had ample time to put it down.

However, just as that thought entered my mind, the Sixteen turned its head, spotting him. We both gritted our teeth. It was abnormal. This was going to be difficult. While its head was turned, I shot forward, stabbing my blades into its jaw and slicing down. One side of its jaw hung slack, causing it to turn its attention back to me. Once it was facing me again, Levi thrust his blades into the remaining side, slicing the Titan's jaw fully open. Its mouth hung open, waggling with every movement it made. Levi moved downwards, expertly avoiding the Sixteen's stomping feet to slice out its achilles. Once the Titan was falling, I zoomed upwards, managing to cut out its weak point. It fell limp.

Levi and I crossed midair, immediately heading to evacuate the remaining squads. I had to hand it to him. As much of an asshole as he was, he had earned his title fair and square.

I crossed the clearing caused by the rampaging Titans and killed two Four-Meters, saving the last squad on my side. Sending them off towards the formation, I turned to where Levi was, surprised to find him actually struggling with a Titan. Then, I saw it. His left gas tank was dented severely, the gas escaping far faster from that side than it was from the right, causing all of his movements to be slanted and uncontrollable. A Nine-Meter was reaching for him, swatting all around as if he were a fly.

The Titan reached out abruptly, snatching Levi from the air. Without another thought, I launched myself forward, slicing the Nine's nape before it could bring him any closer. Levi cut his way out of captivity, firing his broken gear and landing clumsily on the nearest tree branch. If it hadn't been a serious situation, I would have laughed. It was the first time I'd seen him do anything that wasn't in perfect grace.

In the air, I did a quick scan. There were five or six Titans left, but the only soldiers still here had been killed or were too far gone to rescue. I changed course, heading for Levi's tree. Landing beside him, I didn't stop to chit-chat. I jogged up to him, threw him over my shoulder, and shot back into the air.

He didn't struggle, to my surprise, but made sure to lean his head close enough to mine for me to hear his growl of, "Mention this to anyone and I'll feed you to the Titans."

As shaken up as I was from battle, I couldn't hold back the small laugh that bubbled up in my chest. "Your secret's safe with me, Princess."

The bruise on my head would probably take a week to heal. But, I mean...worth it.

-T-

I sat glumly with Fran at our usual table in the mess hall. The room was bustling, people celebrating a mission well done. After regrouping and exiting the valley, which would now be known as "Dead Man's Divide," Erwin had made his order to continue onward to our goal. We had succeeded in our mission within the day, riding home in good light and good spirits.

Most of us anyway.

I didn't understand how people celebrated after a mission, even a successful one. As many times as I'd tried to slap a smile on and join the festivities, my eyes were always drawn the the empty seats; my mind conjuring up the missing faces. Losing people wasn't something I would ever get used to.

Fran understood my feelings and, although she participated in the festivities, stayed beside me as comfort. I was grateful for her presence. Her motherly aura had a calming effect on me, allowing me the peace to grieve silently.

I lifted the last bite of my dinner to my mouth, about to stand up to dispose of my dishes, when Mike placed a hand on my shoulder.

"Nyx, Erwin's asking for you."

I frowned. I was looking forward to taking a quiet shower while everybody was attending the party. What was so urgent that he needed me now? "What for?"

Mike shrugged, sniffing the air, beaming, and racing off to the kitchens for cake.

I sighed, standing from my seat and stretching. I couldn't exactly refuse the Commander.

Erwin's office was on the other side of the building where the noisy mess hall wouldn't disturb his work. I'd made the trip enough, though, that I knew the shortcuts to get there within five minutes. I reached his door and entered, not bothering to knock. If he sent for me, it's not like I wasn't expected.

Erwin was sitting in his chair, smirking at a highly irritated looking Levi, who's arms were crossed defiantly. Erwin turned to me, his expression growing even more smug (if possible).

"Ah, Onyx. I have some exciting news for you."

I raised an eyebrow, leaning my hip against his desk and crossing my arms. "Do you?"

Erwin gestured to the mission reports on his desk. "I hear you two make quite the partnership. Taking down a total of twenty-six Titans, including one Sixteen-Meter Aberrant. Pretty inspiring."

I furrowed my brow, not sure where he was going with this.

"You both have the highest skill stats, highest kill counts, and highest public favor,"

I groaned at his last comment. After cutting myself from the throat of a Titan on my first expedition, at fourteen years old no less, my name had spread throughout the nation like wildfire. They'd learned of my surname and begun to call me, "The Legacy."

"I could, daresay, that you are the two most compatible soldiers the military has."

I rolled my eyes but knew he was right. As at each other's throats as we were in everyday life, Levi and I worked extraordinarily well together in combat. This was mostly due to both of our remarkable foresight, allowing us to know our next move without even having to communicate.

"So, I want this official."

What?

"I want you two as partners."

What?

"Levi, I want you to be the head of a new squad composed exclusively of our most elite, with Nyx as your second."

WHAT?

"You two will handpick your members, but I may place a few myself as well. Observe our new recruits. I want your list by next Sunday."

I stared at him, openmouthed.

WHAT?