Yes, I killed off Annie. I'll work around it, ok?

Chapter 6

Oh god, my head…It feels like I just got slapped by the colossal titan...and why is it dark?

Rattle Rattle.

Huh? Chains? But that means…

I looked down at my hands. I was in a bed. With perfectly normal, human hands. Albeit chained, but human!

"YES!" I thrust my hands in the air, ignoring the rattling chains all the while. "Oh, thank you whatever god has blessed me on this day!"

I looked around and found myself to be in a dungeon. Probably the same one the scouts kept Eren in. Looks like whoever dumped me in here chained me to the bed, too. Looks like these aren't my clothes, either. That probably means I returned to human buck naked.

"Oh good, you're awake."

I jolted my head towards the bars and an oil lantern flicked on. Both Erwin and Levi sat there, with less-than-amused faces.

"So Daniel, care to explain to us what the hell happened?" Levi asked me. Even though he was completely calm, I could still feel the wave of mistrust and anger coming full force.

"Well…uh...Where should I begin?" I tried to sound as calm and collected as possible, but still heard my voice shake a little.

"Let's start with where you came from." Erwin suggested.

I probably shouldn't blow their minds too much yet. "Alright, my name is Daniel. I'm not from this world. An entirely separate reality where titans don't exist. You all exist there too in a way, but not in a way you would understand. I know all about you guys and the world you live in, but I can't really convince you guys without Levi possibly having a mental breakdown."

Levi narrowed his eyes. "Try me."

"You made a bad call that day, Levi. You left them, and they suffered. You left them to die."

Levi shot towards the bars, teeth bared and glaring daggers into my very soul. "You son of a bitch! You're lucky there are bars here."

Erwin was equally surprised, not at Levi's outburst, but from the fact that he probably just remembered the day I hinted at. The day of Isabelle and Farland's deaths.

"Levi. That's enough." He said. Levi backed off, returning to Erwin's side. "So, what exactly do you want to do?"

I thought for a moment, choosing my answer very carefully. "I want to use my newfound power to help humanity and create a future. Hopefully with a little less bloodshed than what I remember."

"Which reminds me," Erwin leaned forward in his seat. "What is that power? Is it similar to Eren's? No doubt you already know about that."

I sat up straight and inched forward as far as the chains would allow me. "That it is. I now hold the Athletic Titan. Previous holder was a quiet girl by the name of Annie Leonhardt."

"One of the top 10 graduates?" Erwin inquired.

"Yep," I replied. "She had the Athletic Titan. She could use it with terrifying efficiency. Extreme speed, endurance, and could harden her Titan skin into a crystal substance to increase her combat proficiency or protect herself without covering her nape with her hand. When that happens, the average soldier pretty much becomes a simple nuisance."

Erwin had a concerned expression in his eyes, taking in my words. Finally, he spoke again. "And exactly how powerful is this crystal substance?"

I shivered, remembering the scene of the anime when the armored titan first appeared. "It's the same crystal substance that covers the entire body of the armored titan, and god damn cannons didn't do jack shit to it." Erwin and Levi looked at each other.

Levi, still looking absolutely pissed, was the one to ask the next question. "Judging by how much you know about the Titan's combat capability, I would only assume that we somehow fought it in one reality or another. What exactly happened?"

"Oh boy, here we go," I sighed. "It was on the 57th expedition. Erwin arranged a new goal before then to lure out the traitor that killed Hanji's test subjects. The female titan appeared and slaughtered anyone who tried to engage her. She was looking for Eren. Eventually, she found where he was and pursued your squad into the forest of giant trees. You led her into a trap. You know those harpoon guns that trap Titans by burrowing into the skin and having the skin heal around the coils? Yeah, those things.

You got her from all sides. Completely immobile. Unfortunately, you said something and it set her off. She roared, and about forty or so abnormal Titans just came running. They ate her. They just started fucking eating her! That gave time for Annie to escape from her Titan form, get far enough away, and transform again. She killed someone with her gear before she did, but I don't remember who. Poor bastard had his neck sliced open like a Titan."

I paused, remembering the gruesome scene of him, just dangling there, blood dripping from his open neck, barely hanging on by a thread.

"Anyway, you guys tried to get Eren away from her again, but she just kept going faster and faster. Eventually, your squad had to intervene themselves. That's where the horror really began. They bravely fought the female titan, for about roughly 2 minutes before they were all mercilessly slaughtered. Eld was the first to go. Bitten in half before being spit back out."

I saw Levi look down and wince, no doubt imagining the scene.

"Oluo was the last to die. Tried to attack the Titan's nape in desperation. It crystallized and instantly shattered his blades. Both of them. After realizing his mistake, he was promptly spin-kicked into oblivion. That was the end of Squad Levi."

Levi looked back up at me. "Petra is in my squad. You didn't say anything about her."

Oh no. No, no, no, no.

"Well?! What happened!" He barked.

"She…" I began, "She helped disable the arms and blind the female titan. She focused her healing to one of her eyes, got back up, and ran full speed after Petra. She chased her towards a broad tree, then just fucking stomped her into it. Her scream was haunting. You had to dump the body during the retreat. I'm sorry. I really didn't want to tell you."

"Keep going."

"Come again?" I asked, hopeful that he wasn't going where I think he was going.

"If you know this much, then you know she was my fiancé. What happened when we returned to the wall?"

"Petra's father was one of the first to greet you. He said something about marriage, and to 'say hi to his baby girl' and you just sorta...stared into nothing...He never once showed concern that she might have died." A sad silence soon followed.

Erwin coughed, getting both our attention. "So, what does it mean, now that Leonhardt is dead, and you have her power?"

"Well," I put my hand on my chin in thought. "I guess those events will never happen. The female titan will never be exposed, the expedition can proceed with minimal casualties, and most of all, Levi's sweetheart isn't dead. Seriously, the community went ballistic over her death…"

Erwin leaned back and sighed. "We'll discuss the matter of your apparent omniscience at another time. One more thing before we let you out."

"And what's that?" I asked.

"Who are the colossal and armored titans? They're most likely the same as Annie and Eren."

"I know who they are, but I'm not telling you. Now hear me out before you brand me a traitor or something dumb like that."

"We're listening…"

"I'm not telling you because you would be constantly observing them. These two notice everything! Your sudden behavior shift towards them would immediately set off red flags that you know something. It would push them to strike sooner and without warning. They're already shocked by Annie's death no doubt, any more problems would absolutely push them over the edge."

"So what the hell do we do, just sit around twiddling our thumbs waiting for them to make a move?" Levi asked.

"No. Not at all. I'm going to talk to them. They already suspect me of being a shifter now, and not talking to them about it and at least trying to clear some things up would paint an even bigger bullseye on my back."

"I have to agree." Erwin stated, surprising both of us. "Daniel may have a point. If they've been hidden among us for so long, there must be an emotional connection to their new comrades that they're hesitant to destroy. Attempting peaceful negotiations could prevent further Titan incidents. At the same time, this could horribly backfire and instantly provoke them to attack us and the walls."

"Then again, you're quite infamous for coming up with plans that could horribly backfire, right Erwin?" I asked with a small chuckle.

"Quite observant. Now then, Levi?"

Levi came over to the bars and pulled out a small key. The bars slid open, and he came over to unlock the chains.

After I stood up, I received a swift knee to the gut. Fucking...Ow.

"That's for bringing up Isabelle and Farland."

"You've made your point...haaaahhh...ow."

"Oh yeah, Welcome to the scouts."

Fuck. Yes.

Don't expect me to upload very often like I am recently. I just write during a two hour period between my college classes.