"The difference in judgment between you and me originates from different rules derived from past experience." - Corporal Levi
"Eren!" Mikasa yelled as her brother jumped out of the door, his gear well strapped around him. He couldn't just sit in safety knowing his friends were facing danger.
A loud growl declared the arrival of the titans.
"Tsch!" Levi scowled at the sight of the cadet out of the house. It barely took him a second to jump right in front of the boy, his back still facing him. "INSIDE!" he kicked back, hitting the teen in the guts and throwing him through the door where Mikasa caught him.
The corporal gave them a sharp glare, cold gray eyes which could kill. "I won't hesitate from cutting your limbs if it means keeping you there!"
The girl frowned, clutching her brother's arms tight to her. Just because Eren's body can regenerate doesn't mean he won't be suffering pain.
"S-sir!" Sasha mumbled, not knowing where to start.
Killing titans was one thing; fighting people who were titans was another.
To be honest with herself, Sasha didn't want to fight – not people. She sure lived in the woods, killed wild animals, climbed trees and hunted, but she would never forgive herself if she had hurt a human.
She wanted to be appreciated and loved by those who are similar to her.
The girl could not understand nor being close to comprehend the methods or purposes those human-titans had - but she just had one goal: I want to build a new family among my friends. I want them to cherish me. I want to protect them.
"The nape of the neck." Jean said, interrupting her thoughts, "Cut it in a way you'll separate what's inside. We need the human."
"We just need one." Levi stated, now showing up on the roof next to them. "Kill the other two. Humans like those don't deserve to live. I'll capture the last one."
The Corporal jumped, fired his hooks at the first titan, and swung at it with wires hissing in protest of his weight shift. The titan roared and lifted his arm, pulling the leader closer, attempting on catching him with its other hand.
In a swift movement, Levi released and reeled-in the hooks, fired them at a nearby tree, and let himself see the neck right in front of him.
Knowing this, a giant hand moved towards the neck, covering it. The titan possessed intelligence, it knew its weak spot, and its intellect came from the human controlling it. It wasn't a surprise to see it protecting itself—in fact, it was well expected. The fight with Annie had allowed Hanji to develop all sorts of theories possible for titan attacks – as well as counter attacks.
Levi smiled, and instead of turning in a wheel of swords at the neck, he just went down slashing the-now-visible Axilla-muscles; cutting the fibers by the shoulders in one severe slash and hence letting the arm fall down in numbness.
Tsch.. he snorted mentally, a bit of blood evaporating off his cheek.
The feeling of flesh-cutting is one of the things he could never get used to. There was this thick heavy feeling whenever his blade went through the light, glutinous meat and it somewhat made his disgusted.
Another giant hand moved towards him, he unhooked his blades from the grip and tossed them harshly into the titan's eyes, piercing them straight in the pupil.
ROAAAAAAR
Eren's looks widened, staring at his corporal's attacks. He looked to the left; his comrades were trying to tie the titans down as though following their superior's lead. Armin and Sasha's hooks and wires wrapped around the arms while Jean and Connie cut through the joints.
Mikasa grabbed her brother's hand tighter, witnessing the grave situation outside. If they don't die of a titan's attack, they'd be crushed by a giant body falling over the house. "Eren, please. For their sake as well; let's go."
Historia looked down, struggling between fighting and staying. She didn't want to be a burden by showing up in a battle where she was the target, but she didn't want to be something that needed protection, risking her friends' lives for her sake.
She was tired of being the reason for people's sacrifice.
Her hands rolled in trembling fists as a gentle soft voice came out. "M-Mikasa. We must fight."
It didn't take more than 7 minutes for Levi's titan to fall.
Its joints were cut, eyes unable to heal due to the blades stuck in them, and its body probably felt heavier than what it is so it simply lay on the ground. The man had immobilized the arms, making sure to stick a poisoned blade in the joints to prevent them from regenerating – HHHHanji's creation of course. When the titan attempted escape, he slashed the ankles, and then the knees. The titan just fell, blind and still, unable to move.
I'm not letting you escape like Annie did.
He looked back at his cadets. The titans, seeing what the corporal did to their friend, pushed to their limits. One of them managed to harden its skin by its elbow and cut through the wires. It took advantage of the moment of confusion between the cadets, lifted its hand up and slammed it into the ground in an attempt to squash Connie.
"SHIT" the teen yelled, barely escaping. The weight of the thud making him rise a bit and then fall.
The leader jumped to their rescue, but the titans had already started to run away. He looked back at the one captured and saw something he wished he didn't.
Someone, covered in black, having the 3D maneuver gear on, was taking out the blades of the titan's joints, releasing it and allowing it to cure itself.
Eren's green eyes were still focused on their movements from inside the house. Mikasa was unsure what to do since she couldn't convince him, neither Historia, of running away to safety like Levi had ordered. She believed she'll stay with them and protect them as much as possible.
Sasha fell down in exhaust next to Armin, kissing the ground that she's still alive and rolling in the mud with a big smile. Jean and Connie breathed in relief, looking at the two titans run and disappear into the forest.
The Corporal quickly fired his hooks closer to the fallen lonely titan and dashed at the intruder with his swords from above.
But something shined behind a nearby tree and caught Eren's attention.
He finally realized what was going on.
This was too easy. And the enemy knew that it's going to end bad for them.
Corporal Levi was there – the one who is known for his battle skills and swift movements.
Having to snatch the cadets from him would be a big hassle for the ones holding the secret, and they wouldn't want to lose more people.
"CORPORAL!" Eren shouted.
Levi looked a bit farther into the woods and his eyes met the ones of that soldier holding the sniper rifle. The gas of the leader's 3D gear rushed in a hasty push as he made a quick turn.
The rifle fired.
In a split second, the cadets' eyes all turned towards the sound.
Levi's hooks got loose and he crashed onto a tree in a bump. He fell to the ground into a bush, barely on his feet; the bullet had merely scratched his chest so he stood back up wary, looking around for the other invader.
He flinched. His ankle hadn't fully healed yet and it couldn't take much pressure.
The titan that fell down a minute earlier had by then vanished along with the person who was helping it.
The cadets were in a shock.
Humans were their target now; direct contact with humans. No more titans to cut and slash.
"Protect them!" The leader ordered while looking at Jean. He then fired the hooks again and followed the enemy.
Broken words came out of Sasha's mouth "T-This is a hunting ground! Sir!" She noted, her leader now too far to catch her warnings. "We used to come here sometimes, me and my dad…"
"So?" Connie asked.
"You don't understand!" the girl yelled, getting up. "This place is full of traps and tricky things. Everything can be harmful if you don't know what's around!"
"What do you mean?" Historia questioned, now that she and Mikasa were out too.
"See that bush over there?" the girl pointed at the plants that cushioned their leader's drop. "I noticed some ergot growing on it, yesterday when I was out examining the area."
"What?" Jean and Connie both asked. Even though they already knew she was probably hunting and having fun in what they call 'her natural habitat'.
Armin gasped quietly, remembering gardening advice from his grandpa. "Claviceps Purpurea." He said.
Sasha nodded and continued, "Something my dad taught me about when hunting. We sometimes used it in small portions on mammals to cause small convulsions of limbs and numbness, and sometimes leading them to losing consciousness. It made hunting easier in our hardship days."
Jean's thoughts rushed out of his mouth, looking at his hands. "What if it's used in large amounts?"
"It will vary according to the person but... It might lead to hallucinations, visual disturbance, a fever and uhh.. Occasionally might cause death. It's all over the place. There's a lot of danger around here despite titans and snipers."
"Wait…" Armin concluded, "They didn't want Eren and Historia. Not yet. They wanted to get rid of Corporal Levi. They're trying to get rid of us first!"
"Damnit!" Jean cursed, afraid he might have touched something.
"If they had conducted their researches in here, then they're in a better advantage." Sasha continued.
Mikasa's question interrupted, worry in her eyes, "Where's Eren?" Then she looked at Armin and they both had a look saying oh shit.
"Corporal!" the green-eyed teen shouted, searching around the dark trees.
Eren had suspected, from the moment the titans showed, that they were not looking for him. Not once during that short attack did they try and approach the house. From afar, from where he was observing everything, he could see an irregular fight.
They were trying to draw Leader Levi away and keep everyone busy so that they can have their own fight alone.
Someone else was expected to kidnap the cadet but something went off their plan.
"They may have not known about the plants though." Armin argued. "Ergot grows in a certain seasons and certain temperature. The amount of crystals I've found was too little to indicate their stay in here but it seems it hasn't been for long."
"So we're on the same boat?" Connie asked, a bit too hopeful.
"No. We just all need to be careful where our steps fall." The blond assured.
The teen fired his hooks again, shifting his weight slowly to make sure he covers as much distance as possible.
Something shined again to his lower right, making him stop on a large tree branch. He took a closer look; it was the man in black who was helping the titan out, but he seemed unconscious—maybe dead.
I wonder if it's Corporal Levi… He thought. Where the heck is he?
A sudden shooting sound put Eren in alert as he suddenly saw a hook clinch to the tree, a man in black dashing at him with a sword.
He pulled himself back, barely having time to take out his holders and clip them to the blades on his sides.
The man slashed and the boy stepped back, falling off. His hooks seized a set in a nearby branch as he hardly balanced himself, looking up where his opponent was.
Levi stood there, his arm bleeding, and so was his blade, which made the teen hope that blood did not belong to him.
He had saved him right in time.
"Corporal!" Eren pushed himself up to meet angry cold eyes.
"I thought I told you to stay put." The man said, making his cadet wish to see the poker face again.
The teen wanted to argue, even though guilty. But then he noticed something different. The Corporal's eyes weren't as cold as usual. In fact, they were red and somewhat irritated.
Levi was blinking far more than what he normally would and his breath was rapid.
"Sir?"
Eren heard a soft groan from below. A man in black, probably another one of those soldiers, was stumbling, tripping— his chest bleeding a bit—then fell on the ground , moaning.
However, the teen was sure his pain didn't come from the wounds.
What's happening?
Something told him he needs to keep an eye on his corporal. So he looked back.
Levi was breathing heavily, an obvious frustrated frown coloring his face. "Let's head back." He said, panting.
"Sir, not that I doubt your capabilities or anything, but you seem a bit ill; you sure you can handle your gear well?"
"Then we better do it fast, don't we?" The corporal rubbed his eyes and jumped off the tree, firing his hooks and swinging forward as fast as he can.
This man is a wonder… Eren thought, following him. I'm sure he can barely see his way and yet he's still managing to control his body and shift his weight efficiently.
But that didn't last long.
The leader made a turn to avoid a tree and somewhat lost his balance. The teen found him faintly holding on to a branch and pulling himself up to his feet.
"Sir!" Eren stopped by him and helped him up by the arm.
Levi stood up, barely. His whole body felt so heavy as though he lifting a titan up his shoulders. He could hear his cadet's voice but could see nothing but brown and green smudges of paint on black canvas.
"You must…h-have them change location." The leader managed to order, gripping the boy by his shoulder to keep himself stable.
"Sir…" Eren hesitated.
"Listen you shithead! You must listen to me! Change locations! We must hide well before they attack us again. Humans are worse enemies than titans, kid, you hear? I hate them for that. F-Filthy selfish creatures indeed. You need to pack up the food… F-fill up your gear gas. A-and report to Erwin Immediately."
The Corporal's weight was now falling more onto Eren, who supported him by the arms, a bit of fear and confusion and lots of questions troubling him – yet he stayed composed. He may have no known what was happening; but he knew he must at least listen to his superior.
After all, this is all happening because of him.
Because everyone is always trying to protect him.
"Sir…."
Levi's reddish eyes looked up and met the boy's jade ones, quietly as though the leader could read every hesitation and emotional distress the teen had. His hand tightened around the edge of the kid's shoulder.
"Show me what you can do." He whispered, in a manner that made this seem like a dare.
Eren smiled softly, now holding a still, unconscious Levi in his arms. He lifted him up to his shoulder, sensing his muscles press against his.
Guilt never loosened upon him.
The closer the boy got to the small house, the more frustration was built in him.
I'm killing every one of them…. I'll kill those titans… I'll save my friends… and I'm definitely going to win!