Here's the second chapter! Enjoy!
The black haired woman and the blond male escorted me to a cart and sat me down on a crate. Again the short, black haired man walked up to us while we sat down in the cart. "(We're going back inside the walls in a few hours. Better keep her hidden once we get nearby. I don't want people staring at this outsider.)"
"(Should we just cover her with a blanket then?)" asked the blond male.
"(What the hell,)" the shorter male said with a shrug. "(Just do something to keep her covered.)" Both of the soldiers saluted, holding their right fist to their chest and their other hand behind their back.
The short male walked away and saddled on his horse. "(Let's move out!)" he called to the rest of the troops, kicking his horse and making it run with great speed.
Our horse-drawn cart was following closer to the center of a small formation. It was a very bumpy and uncomfortable ride. To keep myself from falling out of the cart, I had to sit on the floor instead of the crate. My two rescuers sat across from me, also on the floor of the cart. The woman had her arms crossed under her breast and chatted irritably with her comrade.
"(I'm not mad because of we have to watch over this outsider,)" she replied with a sigh. "(I'm irritated because you and I have been assigned to this mission when I should have been protecting Eren.)"
"(Eren is busy doing things for Commander Erwin and Commander Pixis. He's in good hands,)" replied the blond. He sighed and turned to me. "(I think it'd be best if we at least learned her name,)" he said changing the subject. He pointed to himself. "(Armin. Armin Arlert.)" Then he gestured to his comrade. "(Mikasa Ackerman.)"
It took me a second to understand what he was getting at, but then I realized it was their names. "Armin and Mikasa," I repeated.
"(Yeah, that's it!)" the blond, Armin, said enthusiastically. He gestured to me, waiting to hear my name.
"Ariadne Sloan," I said pointing to myself.
Armin smiled and repeated my name. He nudged Mikasa and she eventually repeated my name as well. We rode the rest of the way in relative silence. There was not much we could talk about since we could barely understand one another. Armin had tried to keep somewhat of a conversation going between the three of us, but it failed after several minutes of frustrating language barriers. We were not getting anywhere.
So, we stayed quiet and let the bumpy ride carry us to wherever we were heading. I was sure they knew where we were going. It was nearly sunset when we went over a hill that overlooked our last stretch of travel. I had never seen walls that were so high. It had to have been at least eighty meters tall.
Mikasa stood and grabbed a sheet from the pile of supplies on the cart. "(Stay under this,)" she ordered and wrapped the sheet around me, hiding my face and clothes. I tried to peek out from under them so I could look more at the wall, but she swatted my hand away and adjusted the sheet again. "(Stay hidden!)" she growled at me. I sat still as we entered through the gate.
I could not seen anything as we entered but I could hear a lot of chatter. Of course, I could not understand any of it so it was useless. Eventually, most of the chatter faded and I could hear the creaking of large doors being opened. The horses were led clopping past the creaking doors until we stopped, the doors being shut behind us. The soldiers were all speaking to each other, yelling sometimes.
I did not move until the blanket was pulled off. I looked up to see someone new staring down at me. He was really tall, or that could have been because I was still sitting down on the floor of the cart. He was wearing the same uniform everyone else was, but he did not have the contraptions at his side and he was wearing a bolo tie around his neck. His eyes were a startling blue. His blond hair was perfectly parted to the side. This man seemed to reek of authority.
The man laughed when he saw me staring up at him. It was not a mean laugh, but I did like the sound of it. "(Where did you say you picked this girl up again, Levi?)"
"(I told you,)" said the short man turning up to stand beside the tall blond, "(two cadets saved her before a titan could eat her. She's obviously not from around here.)"
"(Yes, I gathered that.)" He looked up at the sky. "(Rain clouds are coming and so is the night. We can talk more in my office. Bring her with.)" He walked past the shorter man and hopped off the cart. He turned back and held his hand out for me to take it. I took his hand, it was rough and calloused, and he helped me off of the cart, the shorter man following behind me.
Finally I was able to get a good look around me. I was in a stone courtyard with horse stables off to one side and a larger building off to the other. Soldiers were walking everywhere. Where were Armin and Mikasa? They must have gone to do whatever else it was they needed to do.
We walked into the building and up a flight of stairs. The tall blond man was still in front of me, leading the shorter man and I through the building. There were only a few windows that I noticed. The blond man stopped in front of a wooden door, opened it, and walked in. We followed behind him. He gestured to a seat and I sat down. The shorter man crossed his arms and stood next to the other chair.
"(What do you think we should do with her, Erwin?)" asked Levi. "(Should we tell the higher ups about her?)"
"(You've hardly given me any time to think of what to do with her,)" he replied. "(All I can think of is leaving her here. Not like there is anywhere else she can go.)"
While they were speaking, I suddenly remembered I had an app on my phone that translated foreign languages. Why I had not thought of it until now, I had no clue. Quickly, I dug through my bag and pulled out my phone, turning on the app. I looked up to see them both staring at me. I blushed and shrank back a little. "Um, I have something that might be able to help us understand each other," I said awkwardly while holding up my phone.
"(What the hell is that?)" The shorter man said taken aback. He started to walk towards me.
"(Levi,)" the blond man said loudly. The shorter man, Levi, stopped. "(Sit down.)" Levi sat, crossing his arms again and putting his right ankle over his knee.
"Um," I continued, "I can type something in here and then it can say it out loud in your language. I believe you're speaking German so… Here goes nothing."
After typing a few sentences into my phone, I pressed the play button for the sound. My name is Ariadne Sloan. I am 19 years old. I have no idea how I came here and have no idea how to get back. Please help me. I had no idea what else I could say. I figured what I had was enough for them to understand.
Again, they both stared at me. They looked as if they had just heard a ghost. I typed into my phone again. I'm guessing you guys don't have this sort of technology. Can you understand what I'm saying? They both nodded. Can you say something back? I stood and walked behind the blond man's desk and showed him how it worked. The shorter man was making me uncomfortable with his glare. Besides, the taller one seemed much friendlier.
Taking the phone from my hand, the blond man looked it over, amazed at the device he held in his palm. Slowly, he was able to type out a response. I am Commander Erwin Smith. Captain Levi here told me you were attack by a titan. Is this true?
-Yes. Someone named Armin saved me.
-Where do you come from? Do you know anything about titans?
-Another world is about all I can tell you. I don't know how to explain it. I know nothing of these titans.
Commander Erwin frowned. Levi was still sitting with his legs and arms crossed. "(What are you asking her, Erwin?)" he said.
"(Things you and I both want to know,)" Erwin replied. "(Isn't that obvious from her responses?)" Levi tched and stayed quiet. Erwin went back to typing. Would you like to know why we stay inside the walls?
-I'm assuming to keep away from the titans?
-Precisely. We are the last of humanity. We as soldiers protect the walls and many of us die in the process. Some of us "lucky" ones go outside the walls on expeditions and kill as many titans as possible.
I read his last reply and paused. All the people inside these walls are the last of humanity? How could this be? Where did the titans come from? How does one kill a titan? I had so many questions, but I could not get them answered at that moment. I looked down at my phone to ask a questions, but my phone battery had died. Darn it all! Why did this have to happen now?!
Commander Erwin and Captain Levi were staring at me again. I sighed heavily and showed them the black screen, trying to indicate that my phone did not work right now. I still had the solar charger (if it was not crushed in anyway) that I could use tomorrow. For now, my phone was the only way I could communicate with anybody here.
Captain Levi uncrossed his arms and legs and stood up. "(I suppose that means we are done for tonight then,)" he said, turning to leave.
"(Not yet,)" Commander Erwin replied sternly.
Levi groaned. "(Now what?)"
"(She still needs a place to sleep.)"
"(Stick her in the girls dorms for all I care.)"
"(Levi.)" Erwin was appalled.
"(What do you expect me to do with her?)" Levi said throwing up his hands. "(We don't have any extra rooms, but I believe there are a few extra bunks in the dorms. She can sleep there.)"
Erwin shook his head. "(No, I don't think so.)" He shot a glance at me. "(Tell Hanji she'll be sleeping in the dorms until we find Miss Sloan a proper place to sleep.)" He paused. "(Oh, and tell her to set out another set of clothes for her. Clean ones,)" he added.
"(Yes, sir,)" Levi said turning and walking towards the door. He looked back at me and waved irritatingly at me to follow him.
About half an hour later I found myself alone in a bedroom that was not my own. The woman who let me borrow it was surprised to find Levi and I standing at her door this late at night. They conversed for a few minutes before she had the chance to say much to me. She was very animated. A pair of her clothes were left out for me to change into for tomorrow.
Sighing, I took my hair brush out of my bag and brushed out my hair for several minutes. Riding in the cart had gotten it all tangled. I put the brush away and sat down on the bed. I figured I might as well get some sleep. I unlaced my shoes, unbuttoned my jeans and took them off. I also had to take off the many bracelets on my wrists and put them onto the side table. Why I ever wore them I did not know. Pushing back the covers on the bed, I buried myself underneath the blankets and tried not to cry. I prayed that this was all a horrible nightmare and that I would wake up in my own bed on the same morning I was to go to Dr. Wyatt's laboratory. I was soon to find out this would not be the case.
I can't help but feel so bad for Ariadne. I empathize with her language barrier issue because of where I work (I work at a Chinese restaurant and I don't know any Chinese). It's all very frustrating. Anyway, I hope you're enjoying this story so far because I'm having a lot of fun writing it. Don't forget to write a review! Thanks for reading!