!HAPPY LATE CHRISTMAS GIFT EVERYBODY!
Hello all of you wonderful people and welcome to the next chapter of The Other Ackerman. Thank you for all of those who have reviewed my story and all of those who read even a single chapter. I appreciate it all.
"Let me go!" The voice of a young girl echoed in the small room. She was terrified, her eyes taking in the cold wooden room and the man who knelt before her who had a hungry glint in his eyes. The only source of light was a lone lamp a few feet away, it cast a chilling shadows on the man's face. Goosebumps rose on her skin and the hairs on her neck stood stiff.
"Shut up and stay still." A man grunted, Victor. He wanted to enjoy this special time.
"Let me go, LET ME-"
"Stay still." Victor was on his hands and knees, hovering over her, his eyes hungrily roving over her small quivering form. She let out an unsettled shriek when he suddenly dipped his head in the crook of her neck, breathing deeply. She turn her head to the side, unable to escape the muggy breath that hit the side of her neck.
"MIKASA ONEE-SAMA!" She cried, tears quickly gathering at the corners of her eyes. Victor lifted his head and scowled. He slammed his hands down on both sides of her head.
"Damn it. I said to shut up and stay the fuck still!" The was a muffled thud and the harsh sounds of ripping fabric, buttons torn from fabric, bouncing and rolling away to the darken shadows of the room. Weak sobs bounced off of cold walls.
"Ah haah hah, there we go." The sound of ripping fabric came to a stop, and the girl's sobs grew louder.
"Shh, hush hush. Stay, just like that. Quiet, just quiet like that, hah yeah."
Her wrist were tightly bound above her head. The bindings were so tight that her hands were going numb. any twitch of her fingers brought a wave a pain that raced up and down her hands and arms. As Victor returned his head to her neck, she felt increasingly aware of her situation. With Victor rubbing his head in the side of her neck, she could feel that the blood on the side of her face had dried long ago. The now dried blood was flaking off with every nuzzle.
No no no no why? Where am I? W-where is Mikasa? The cold floor was unforgiving, biting. She felt small slivers of wood poking her through her clothing. When trying to shift her legs her heart nearly stopped when she realized she was also bound by her ankles. I can't move. Shift. I can't move. Shift. Come on. Shift-shift. Yes! It's coming loose. I've…..wait. What….w-what is that? What is that!?
"Ah hah. Haah hah. Now you've done it." The man cooed.
MIkasa felt numb and barely aware of the cold wooden floor beneath her. She lay on her side, her head tilted up to the ceiling, her eyes blank and flat. As she lay there, her thoughts came to her at a snail's pace. Then again MIkasa didn't want to think. She didn't want to feel. All she wanted was to close her eyes and wake up surrounded by the happy smiles of her parents and sister…...wait. A small crease formed on her brow. Where….where is my sister? A renewed sense of fear slammed into Mikasa when she realized that her littler sister was nowhere in sight. Her limbs were heavy and unresponsive, still reeling from that blow that knocked her out.
Forcing her eyes to focus she couldn't see her sister anywhere only the half of a poorly lit wooden cabin.
"Moron." A man grumbled in annoyance. The sound of one of her kidnapper's voice made Mikasa stop any effort in trying to move her head, instead opting to lay her head back to rest and keep her ears perked.
"Who the hell are you calling a moron?" Heiden glared from his leaned position against a wall. His body still felt the beating from earlier, still in a sour mood.
"You Heiden. It's bad enough that you get your cargo damaged, but you also killed the mother. She had pure oriental blood, and you fucked up and killed her." Hartman had his arms crossed and a frown set on his face. "Do you even know how much the nobles would have paid for her? How much we could've made? We would have been set for months!"
"Well what was I supposed to fucking do!? I already told the bitch came at me with a damned knife! One whore is not worth getting stabbed over." Heidan pushed away from the wall and made long strides until he was in front of Hartman. "What would have you done? Huh?," Heiden sneered. Mikasa could feel the tension building in the air. She felt the malicious intent mostly from the sandy haired man, and little to none from the one seated on the old wooden chair.
Knock knock.
Both men froze and the tension evaporated, only to be replaced by an air of only thing that could be heard was the muffled and unrhythmic beating of flesh in the next room over. There was also the faint sound of two voices. One of the voices sounded eerily similar to…..
"Oh...I'm sorry." At the door to the cabin stood the small figure of a boy around her age. He wore simple clothing, his bright red scarf stood out the most, and his eyes were wide, but not with fear. Heiden felt as if he had dealt with far too much this night. Balling his fight he stalked toward the green eyed boy.
"Don't move from that spot you little vermin," Heiden reached the entrance and slammed the door open, glaring down at the boy, his body hunched and menacing. "How did you even find this place anyways!" The man was positively steaming, barely able to keep his voice below shouting. Under the weight of the of the man's words, the boy almost took a step back.
"Well, I-I was in the woods...got...lost," The boy's green eyes shined with unshed tears " and I saw you cabin…" As he spoke, he seemed to start to shake in an unusual manner. That went unnoticed as Heiden felt his irritation cool down, and allowed himself to absorb they boy's story. He got stuck with an idea. Maybe we can turn a profit with this kid. He's scrawny, not much meat on his bones, but he's healthy I'll give him that. We can sell him to a labor camp. He straightened slightly and glanced over his shoulder, Hartman leveled his arm to his chest and swept his arm in and out twice in a smooth arc. Play it cool and see if you can capture the boy. Heiden smirked and nodded in affirmation before returning his attention to the child in front of him.
"Lost in the woods huh?," Heiden smiled good naturedly and laid a hand on the boy's head, tousling his hair with a heavy hand " a kid your age shouldn't be out there to begin with, big bad wolves are liable to pounce out at you from nowhere." His smile grew more easy, less strained as he spoke. I almost got him. All I gotta to do I pull the brat inside and knock em out. " It's all right now, you'll be safe here, my buddy and I will be more than happy to take care- ahhugh!" N-no way. Heiden's body went rigid and his hand twitched uncontrollably from its position on the boy's head. His vision began swim and dim when his eyes traveled down to the boy's vicious expression and burning glare, to to the knife that was currently buried in his chest, red blossoming out, soaking the front of his shirt. My heart. He fucking s-stabbed my heart. I...I'm gonna fucking kill the brat when…..when I...Even in his mind his thoughts were slow and slurred. He couldn't feel much of anything already and Heiden could barely hear what the boy was saying. It was like hearing something through water.
"I appreciate that sir," The boy brought up his arm and cast the man's hand from atop his head. Rage was practically seeping out of the brown haired boy's body "but I'm not stupid…..and I am the last thing you'll ever see." With those final words the boy tighten his grip on the knife and ripped it out of the dying man. Hartman shot out of his chair in absolute shock as he saw Heiden collapse to the ground, blood quickly pooled around his limp frame. The fuck is this!?
"What the hell so you think you're doing!?" Hartman roared. For a moment Hartman looked at his partner's body in grief, when he looked up, the boy was gone. Cursing to himself Hartman grabbed his ax and rushed into the storage room. I don't- FUCK! There was no time to react when the boy came rushing at him and rammed his makeshift weapon straight into his stomach. The boy leapt at him and brought them both down to the floor screaming and yelling in fear and anger.
Mikasa laboriously turned her head to the side, hazy eyes wide in astonishment at the scene that lay before her. She just couldn't look away, blood was flying in specks and splatters everywhere.
" You are an animal you hear me!? You're a disease! This is what you get you son of a bitch, this is what you get for being what you are! Die! DIE!." The boy kept bringing his knife down. Again and again Mikasa could see the shine of the metal glint before disappearing into the man's dead body, the boy's voice ringing in her ears.
It was a while before the boy tired out and took in a large breath to soothe himself. When his gaze fell on her form his snarled expression smoothened out and became gentle.
"The hard part's over. You're safe now." He climbed off the cadaver and made the short walk over to her side, cutting off the rope that held her wrist together.
"Anyway, Mikasa right? My name is Eren." Speaking quietly to the girl Eren worked on unwounding the rest of the rope from her arms. "I'm 's son. I met your folks once or twice with him. We were stopping by your today for a check up. We saw-" Eren cut himself off when her saw Mikasa's heartbroken face. Her breathing was labored and her head hung low as she recalled the attack on her family. Mikasa snapped her head up and let out a gasp. Turning around she grabbed Eren's shoulders and shook him.
"What happened to the third one? He has my sister, have you seen them!?"
"YOU!" They both turned around in fright. Eren lurched for his knife when in a blur of motion, Eren flew a few feet away, reeling from a powerful kick to his side. Victor stalked his way to him. His appearance was ruffled. His shirt was wrinkled, scarf hung loosely around his neck, and hi pant looked to be hastily drawn up his hips.
"This is all your doing, isn't it?"He rumbled. Lift the boy by his hair in the air, he then started to strangle the boy. "Answer me you little bastard! You did this!" The man ground his teeth, clenching his clawed fingers down Eren's throat while shaking him this way and that. Eren kicked his legs out as the man continued to rant and rave. "I'm going to kill you. YOU'RE GOING TO DIE!" Saliva running down his chin, Eren forced his eyes and choked a garbed command to Mikasa who stared at them with frightened wide eyes.
"This is your chance. Take him...out! Fight! Kill or be killed. Fight for your life! It's...it's the only way!"
"Who the hell do you think you are you little brat!"
"It's the only way to live is fight!" Mikasa shook almost uncontrollably when she stood up and braced herself. The bloodied knife in her hands wavered unsteadily.
"I can't! I don't think I can do this!" The feeling hit her like a strike of lightening. Her heart raced and her stance was solid. I've seen this all before. Many, many times, since the day I was born…..It had been all around me forever, but...I'd always look the other way.
This world is a cruel place...and it's home.
Her body no longer shook. She was in total control, focused. Ready.
"...fight." She could do it.
"Fight." She can do it.
"Fight!" In a burst of strength Mikasa slammed her foot down and propelled herself forward in a speed unknown to her. Starled by Mikasa's cry of fury Victor whipped his head back, not even seeing the girl when he felt tip of the knife enter his body.
After a few seconds Eren manage to pull his body out under the man who tried to strangle him just a minuet before. He crawled one or two steps away before he dropped onto his bottom and rubbed his surely bruising neck.
"Hey Mikasa. Are you okay?" Eren got up to his feet and stretched his sore body. When he received no answer Eren curiously turned his head to see Mikasa running to a dark room.
"Hey wait! Where are you going Mikasa?" He started forward but faltered after his first step. Mikasa said she had a sister. I've only seen her a once. Why was she in a room with that….man. Eren's eyes grew when a memory flashed through his thoughts. The Military Police had found a woman who had been missing for some weeks before was found when reports of noise complaints and public disturbance was enough to call for a search in a small house. Considering the situation of possible injury, Eren's father was called to report to the scene. Thinking there would be no serious injury allowed his son to join him.
Eren remembered arriving at the house around midday. The MP were pulling a lanky man with a satisfied smirk on his face in cuffs to an awaiting carriage. Most likely to be thrown into prison. What Eren had not been expecting was a sobbing woman, bloody,battered, bruised, and disheveled, to be gently introduced to his father. Eren was confused when the woman flinched away from his father and back into the arms of a female Military Police woman, absolutely refusing to be touched by him.
When expressing his puzzlement later to his father later that night, his father had given him a long look of grief before pulling Eren aside from his mother's prying eyes to explain the situation to him the best he could for a boy his age.
Eren felt his face contort in rage. Eren wasn't stupid. Even when his father had dumbed it down and left out major factors, Eren was able to figure out exactly what had happen. Afterwords he hadn't left his mother's side for day on end. Glaring at strangers and placing his small body between his mother's and other men in the street. It had taken weeks before Eren was convinced that nothing would happen to his mom while he wasn't watching.
Forcing himself to walk slowly, Eren tried to be as quiet as he could as he approached the room occupied by the two sisters. Upon reaching the door Eren peered in, trying not be seen, only to duck out and distance himself a second later hands covering his eyes, his jaw working, unable to show his anger. Eren walked to the end of the main room and sat down in Hartman's former seat, thinking about that had happened so far and how make it so it would never happen again.
Mikasa was horrified when she entered the room to find her sister staring blankly at the ceiling. Her body was bared for any and all in the world to see, scraps of clothing lay around her sister's body, her body that was black and blue, small little cuts here and there. Panicked, Mikasa dropped to her knees beside her sister. Her hands hovered over her, not sure where she should touch her, would it hurt. What did he do to you? Throwing whatever caution she had to the wind Mikasa gathered her sister's unresponsive body into her arms and pressed her ear to her chest. Tears starting to leak down her cheeks as she waited to hear the rush of air in her younger sister's lungs. She's breathing…..oh thank god she's breathing.
"Hey," Mikasa whispered. "Are you awake? You're safe now, okay?" More tears spilled out and fell on her sister's face when she was meet with no reaction.
"Come on. You okay. We're okay. Say something please?" Mikasa set her chin on the top of her sister's head. She rocked them back and forward, running her free hand through her little sister's silky black hair. She thought back on earlier in the morning. The start of the morning, where everything was fine. Everything was okay. Waking up and playing outside with her sister, welcoming their father father back from his hunt, and preparing dinner with their mother. Then they knocked on the door and changed everything.
Mikasa tensed when when she heard a knock on the cabin door.
Alright. Here is the fourth chapter. Did you guys like it? Was there not enough?
Well, we'll finally learn the name of Mikasa's little sister in the next chapter. Again I apologize for taking so long, but I do have a question to ask. Do you guys want me to focus on this story, or is there another story that you want me to update next?