Humanity's Strongest Woman

by xDollfie

In every empire, there is an epic era that defies the boundaries of time and immortalized itself in the history books. For mankind, an epic era they will never forget has finally emerged. The war between humanity and Titans has finally come to a head. Love cease to exist in a time like this, but they found it, and promised that it'll be worth it. Every stubborn inch of it [LEVIXOC]

43. The Last Stand

Thank you for the support on the last chapter! I swear, you all leave the cutest reviews that never fail to put a smile on my face!

Trigger warnings: Deaths, Violence, Titan gore.

Thank you 92 is half of 99 and blackbutler415 for giving me your opinion! Big thank you to Aniket too!

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Humanity's Strongest Woman by xDollfie

Chapter 39 — The Last Stand

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A tsunami of chills ram against the fortress of her skin. The icy coolness from the gust of sudden wind left her lungs struggling for breath upon the unsuspecting attack that left her with no feeling of warmth.

Tonight, Shiganshina was unexpectedly and painfully cold.

"Zeke-san," Ivy sighed. "When are they coming? I'm getting impatient."

It had been months since they arrived at Paradis Island and Ivy was growing increasingly agitated every passing day. With Zeke having yet to give them the green light, she found herself at a stalemate in terms of how to sort out her priorities. Since solving the mystery of the Starkes was out of the question for now, her main priority shifted to something more tangible and practical. And at the moment, nothing mattered to her more than Ida Starke.

"Have patience, Ivy," Zeke advised coolly, a book in his hand. "They will come."

"I can hardly stay still and you're calmly reading the same book for the hundredth time. Say, are you getting cold feet?"

Zeke smiled self-deprecatingly, looking out into the distance once more. His face was filled with emotions she couldn't decipher.

"Don't you want to see your little brother? You don't even seem excited."

At the mention of his half-sibling, Zeke took a quick check at his surroundings. When he was assured that Reiner and Bertholdt were engrossed in their own conversation, he said, "How many times have I told you, do not speak of things like this when we are not alone."

"You know your secret is safe with me," Ivy smirked. "Mr. Royal blood."

Zeke didn't reply to her, but his blue eyes narrowed behind his glasses. Obviously, he didn't appreciate how she was bringing up the secret that he was keeping even from Marley so openly.

Ivy smiled sheepishly. "You know we are on the same side, I won't betray you. Don't look so stiff."

"No one can know about this, not even Pieck," Zeke reminded. With a controlled, even tone that throbbed with pent-up resentment, he finally showed some emotions, "Our top priority is capturing Eren Yeager, and then Ida Starke. You know what will happen if we fail here. The power of the Founder must never land in Marley's hands. Before that happens, we have to capture and protect our ignorant siblings."

Ivy nudged her chin to the two unsuspecting warriors a few feet away from them. "What about them? We capture those two and then what?"

Zeke seemed to have understood what she was instigating. "If it comes to that…"

Ivy's grin was growing wider every sporadic second. "We kill them and steal their powers."

The breath escaped his chest when Zeke pushed his glasses up his nose bridge. Unlike her, he didn't seem to enjoy that prospect. "I was hoping to convince them after we successfully captured both of them."

Her smile waned slightly. "You'd have better luck convincing the Survey Corps to surrender. They have their families to think about, they won't ever go against Marley. Obedience is all they ever know."

"I have my grandparents to consider too," Zeke countered stiffly. "Or did you forget?"

"You're different," Ivy said thoughtlessly, playing with her fingers. "Family means nothing to people like us."

She noticed how his gaze ran along the view of Shiganshina, nothing but apprehension inhabiting his eyes. Ivy smirked inwardly, realizing that maybe she was wrong. That despite it all, he did care for what remains of his family.

How I could forget? It wasn't our family that failed us, Ivy thought tentatively, it was the world that did.

However, their world was never one in which love conquers all. And they had a plan to enact.

"If you're having second thoughts then I can do it," Ivy offered. "I never trained or grew up with them. I'll even make it painless, they won't ever see it coming."

"No, it's alright," Zeke said after a long silence, the wind rustling his golden hair. "If it comes to that, then we must do what we have to. No great thing has ever been achieved without violence." He shut his book, putting an end to the conversation. "The cycle of tragedy has to end here."

Her face was shrouded with reserved excitement when she grinned at his resolve.

The sudden loud sounds of something approaching steered their attention to the ground. Alarmed, they quickly got to their feet. They knew who it was. Pieck had returned from her job as a scout. With the rest of the warriors behind him, Zeke peered down the edge of the wall and saw the Cart Titan.

"War Chief Zeke," Pieck's Titan voice sounded almost demonic. "Large enemy forces are approaching, they've passed the base."

Zeke smiled at the news. He took his own cup of coffee and went to where the rest of his comrades were. "Now, my brave warriors," he clicked his cup with theirs, "let us settle this here and fulfill our mission."

"I'll get into position," Ivy said elatedly, reveling in the thought of being exposed to something so fun, so exciting, and so thrilling in the near future. "One more battle, then we'll go home!"

Reiner and Bertholdt nodded, determination shrouding their expression at the reminder of their homeland. It was a reaction that Ivy did not miss and one that she had expected. She smirked devilishly to herself and thought of how susceptible, naive, and foolish they were.

Home?

Ivy would've laughed in mockery, but she had to keep her true feelings to herself. Didn't they know that there was no home for people like them? They were the betrayers of their own race and Subjects of Ymir that were scorned by the world. Their identity as Warriors and honorary Marleyans was nothing more than a beautiful dream — a dream that was never meant for reality.

Thirteen years to live as war machines and disposable whenever they failed to satisfy Marley, yet they took pride in being warriors? Funny. Wasn't it better if they weren't born?

"Let us end this," Berthodlt said with renewed vigor surging through him. Ivy could no longer see the fear in his eyes. "We don't need to put any more people through this hell."

The competitive blood inside her veins heaved ecstatically. The silence that moved between the warriors as they finished their coffee was a powerful one that sealed their fates, brimming with a resolve to do what was right in their own books.

Seeing her own reflection on the metal cup, Ivy looked at it in amusement. She closed her eyes in delight, luxuriating in the euphoria of the wretched battle that was to come. A wide, blissful smile danced across her beautiful face when a frightening chill ran down her back.

Finally...

Her green eyes illuminated under the moonlight as her calculating smile became lethal.

Wait for me, sister.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Her green cape blended in with the darkness of the night sky.

The round moon had since disappeared behind the clouds and the forage of trees. The legion trekked through the forest cloaked in an eerie silence. Albeit it was dark, the fluorescent stones carved a pathway for them to Shiganshina.

Ida took note of the sky, which was beginning to bleed stripes of red. The sun would rise soon and they would no longer be protected under the moonlight. She could only hope that they would reach their destination by then.

Keep walking, she told herself. If I look back, I am lost.

All throughout the road to Shiganshina, the memories walked with her. The first time she went on an expedition. The first time she heard Eren Yeager's thundering Titan's roar. The first time Levi and she enjoyed the presence of the silver moon and stars together, almost close enough to touch.

Her hand crept across her abdomen purposefully, and Ida imagined feeling a nervous flutter beneath her fingers.

You'll be safe. I'll keep you safe.

"You look like you need to shit," Levi noted dryly from beside her, pulling her away from her thoughts.

She raised her eyebrow, incredulous. "Excuse me?"

"You have been touching your stomach ever since we left Rose," Levi deadpanned, almost as if it wasn't an embarrassing topic to bring up with someone. "If you need to shit, go. We're reaching Shiganshina soon."

Inwardly, she made a mental note not touch her abdomen around him, but outwardly, Ida scoffed disbelievingly at his assessment.

"What a thing to say to a lady," she said, pulling on her horse. "I don't need to shit, thank you, your gracious concerns for me shitting myself mid-battle is unnecessary."

Levi and his lame shit-jokes, Ida thought angrily, shaking her head as she sped up. How embarrassing. Worse, she couldn't even clear the air up between them. Though this conversation did somehow manage to pull her out from the dark sinkhole of her subconscious she had been wallowing in since she left the walls.

Levi seemed to understand she was uncomfortable with the topic when he cleared his throat and changed the subject. "What's wrong?"

Ida scrunched her nose, realizing that he was perhaps trying to break the silence that had surrounded them earlier to prepare for the real question he wanted to ask.

But really, what type of a guy goes up to his girl and asked if she needed to take a shit?

I'm carrying your brat, you shitty bastard, and you thought I had constipation, Ida almost wanted to say spitefully, itching to smack him. It made her feel marginally better to imagine the shock on his usually stoic expression while he soaked in the magnitude of her situation.

"I'm fine," Ida replied sourly, only walking faster. "Leave me alone."

"Stop it, brat," Levi chastised. "The last thing we need is another one of your tantrums. We're beyond the walls."

She sighed and slowed down until they were walking side by side with their horses. Levi was right. Now was not the time for petty arguments. Plus, she was grateful that he didn't push the topic, her secret was safe.

As they walked in silence, Ida's chest ached with unease. It troubled her that she had to lie to him, the person she trusted the most.

"It feels just like yesterday when I went on my first expedition," Ida said thoughtlessly. "Back then, I could've never imagined that I'd ever return to Shiganshina. Are we reaching soon?"

"Probably," he grumbled. "Sun's already rising."

She smiled to herself, realizing that this was probably the last moment they had to themselves. Soon, the battle would begin.

Ida could feel his hand beside her, merely inches away. Her hands ache to hold onto him, but she stopped herself. Instead, she sighed and looked up at the sky.

There was always something beautiful when the sun was about to break into the night sky. A singular moment that brings endless possibilities. Even though they did nothing but walk side by side, it was ethereal almost; the beauty of the moment, how serene and peaceful everything was. And Ida relished in it. No Titans, no screaming soldiers, no blood polluting the ground. There were no bugs, the air was clean and fresh, the forest that surrounded them almost mystical.

And for the first time since Ida left Rose, she felt something like hope. Something like soothing water over her heart that would keep her safe.

Onwards they were marching, towards death and hope.

The calm before the storm, Ida thought with a wry smile. When the storms hit, we won't have anywhere else to hide.

"Do you remember what I told you?"

"Stay beside Erwin, I know."

Suddenly, Levi grabbed her bicep, and pulled her to the side, allowing the legion to push through the forest without them while they stopped. He searched her eyes. "I fucking mean it, Ida. You said it yourself, this is our most dangerous mission to date, you know what's out there. The last thing I need is for you to piss off somewhere on the battlefield by yourself. Whatever the situation is, I'll handle it. Is that clear?"

Ida stared at him for a moment, shocked. In the past, she could've never imagined him acting this way.

What was it again that he always said? she mused. Duty before anything?

Though Levi hid it well under the guise that she was the last of the Starkes, which made her life valuable, she knew that the real reason was that he was worried about her. He wanted her to survive.

But then again, Ida argued inwardly, she was a soldier like him too.

Duty would always be the death of love.

"Do you remember what I told you the time you asked me why I wanted to stay in the Survey Corps?"

Levi didn't reply, but only frowned, expression quizzical. Then, he seemed to recall. Ida smiled when she sensed the frustration rising underneath that deadpan expression.

"To protect people," she reminded him while he remained silent. "And that's what I will do. If there ever comes a need for it, I will do that. No matter the price."

Even if the price is my life, Ida wanted to add, but she didn't.

Levi clenched his teeth and he looked like he had something to retort, but no words ever left him. Eventually, an indignant scoff escaped him when let go of her arm and exercised his jaw.

Suddenly, the entire legion came to a jerking halt, and the word "Titan" pierced through the stillness of the silence. Their anxiousness only disappeared when Hanji declared that the Titan was an immobile one. Before they could carry on another conversation, Mikasa was heard saying that she recognized the forest.

They were close to Shiganshina, Ida realized. When she looked back at Levi, he seemed to comprehend the situation too.

"You best get going," Ida urged. "Erwin will be looking for you."

Levi only stared at her, looking almost unwillingly to leave.

She took his hand in his and gave it a light squeeze. "Don't worry about me."

Even with that consolidation, Levi lingered in front of her. Ida felt as if time had stopped as they fixated their gaze on each other. She could feel the fear deep within her swell. Then, as though sensing her fear, his harsh gray eyes relaxed and a frown crept up his once blank visage.

Their hands lingered together before Levi nodded and let go of her hand. "Go to our squad, we'll be leaving the forest soon."

Ida curled her fingers together to preserve the warmness he had left her and watched him go to where Erwin was.

Maybe, this would be the last time she would hold his hand as well.

"Come back alive," Ida said the same words he had always said to her before every expedition. "No matter what happens, come back to me."

Levi didn't turn around, but he stopped. From the stiffness of his shoulders, she knew he had heard everything. She ached to run to him and embrace him one last time, and Ida was sure that he longed to do the same thing when she saw his fingers tighten around his horse's reins. Despite every fiber of her being screaming at him not to go, to stay beside her, Ida understood.

The conflict within him was strong, but Levi had to go. He had to leave her side. He had to fight and risk his life, just as he had warned her once.

And it was a decision that she not only agreed on but also one she finally understood.

He was right, as he had always been. Levi could offer her nothing in terms of a safe, normal, and comfortable life. Even though she was the one person now that might be able to sway him from his cause, Ida was never able to do that. Because without him, without humanity's strongest, the chances of success plummeted.

Levi only nodded once and he was gone.

Despite the promise to return together, Ida watched him go with an uneasy heaviness in her chest; the weight of anxiety, worry, and secrets becoming increasingly hard to ignore. But she only bit her lip and sealed the internal conflict raging within her.

Soon, the sunrise illuminated the dark sky as if it were igniting the most perfect flame, burning her dark soul along with it. Ida got into position with the legion atop of her stallion, ready to charge to the city of Shiganshina where she knew the raging storms were at.

Levi ahead and she behind.

Soldiers once more.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Wall Maria looked foreign and familiar to her when it came into view. Its towering height seemed endless when she was younger, but now it looked awfully vulnerable, as though the Titans might scale it with ease.

As her wide eyes feasted on the sight, Ida felt breathless. All the emotions she had; all the memories, good and bad, were inundating her senses at a frightening speed. Her heartbeat accelerated, overwhelmed by everything.

"Our operation begins now!" Erwin's loud voice thundered into her body from the front, slamming her back to reality. "All troops, switch to your gears!"

At that command, Ida focused on a point straight ahead. Aiming at the towering wall, she fired her anchor. The tip drove into it with ease. She felt the impact through the wire. Ida rose in her saddle. Depressing the trigger, she kicked into action the recoil of the wire. The equipment on her back growled and started to spin. An incredible force wrapped itself around her as she propelled into the air.

Along with the legion, Ida sailed through the air with temporary wings, climbing diagonally up the wall.

The moment her foot landed on Wall Maria, a lump of emotion lodge in her throat.

"Oh god," she whispered.

Everything was just as she remembered it.

The houses. The streets. The roads.

The air smelled damp and musky, the houses broken and the ground was strewn with broken bones and abandoned belongings, yet it had been home to her once. Ida knew the lure of home.

She was back at Shiganshina. She was finally home.

"Here," a voice murmured in the air, and Ida blinked.

An odd sensation, akin to a static shock, rushed through her and accompanied the voice. The voice was no more than a whisper, yet somehow, Ida felt that someone was standing just behind her. She wanted to turn around, but she knew that there was no one.

Was she so overwhelmed by the sight of the city she once called home that she was hearing things now?

"Feel it," the voice whispered again, high and thin.

She blinked again, holding on her head, discombobulated by the presence of the voice that came from nowhere. Ida finally looked around to see where the voice was coming from, but instead, she found herself looking at where Wall Rose was at.

How strange.

Ida snapped out of her reverie when Levi's call thundered through the battlefield.

"Eren! Don't stop!" Levi sprinted on the wall. "Head for the outer gate!"

"Go!" Ida shouted to Eren beside her, re-prioritizing when she realized the boy who was crucial for their plans to seal the outer gate was also trapped in a paralyzed shock. "Quickly!"

At once, the assigned squad led by Levi flew to the outer gates.

Now that Eren had left with Levi as planned, Ida shook her head, bewildered.

What the hell was that?

Among the controlled chaos that spread throughout the legion like a plague, Ida forced her feet to hurry to where Erwin was. Her squad was now at the distance, rushing to fulfill their mission of closing the gates.

Erwin nodded when she slid herself beside him. "Discovered anything?"

"So far nothing," Ida answered in a contained tone, plastering a cold expression. "But it's strange, they aren't here as we've predicted."

"Something amiss," Erwin noted, blue eyes hard. "We have to be on guard."

"Think we walked into a trap?" Ida griped sourly, her mind still wandering to the musical voice she heard just now. She didn't think it was wise to bring it up now, the legion was filled with tension as it was. She didn't want to alarm anyone unnecessarily.

"We have to consider every possibility," Erwin walked to the middle of the wall with her. His eyes feasted on the horizon. "Their ultimate goal is to capture Eren Yeager. They will come."

She hitched one side of her mouth up in acknowledgment, though she didn't respond. There were no sights of Titans anywhere near Wall Maria. It should've been a good sign, but her gut instinct was telling her that things were about to go terribly awry. It was one thing to face your enemy, but it was another when they didn't know where their enemies were.

Ida wiggled her toes in her boots, suddenly realizing that there was a strange presence beneath her. It was as though something was brewing underneath her, an energy of sorts. It was a calm, soothing heat that transmitted through the air.

"Erwin, do you feel anything?"

Her father faced her, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Nothing," she dismissed, "maybe I'm just on edge."

But she wasn't on edge, Ida knew her nerves were calmed. But why was it that no one seemed to notice it but her?

Then she remembered. The walls were made of Titans.

Feel it, the voice had said. It was advice, Ida decided. If that was the case, could it be possible that she was feeling the power of Titans now?

Was this what the voice was telling her to feel?

Ida didn't have time to ponder over it further because Armin raised his hand and called for Erwin. She snapped her head to him. Shit, she cursed. The terrified expression pulsating in the boy's face gave a clear indication as to what it was: he had found traces of their enemy's presence.

While Ida hurried alongside Erwin to hear what Armin had found, green flares pierced through the sky from the outer gates – a sign that the coast was clear. No enemies sighted there too.

She realized this was an opportunity to test her theory out. Ida concentrated at the breached gates of Shiganshina at the far distance. And she could feel it. She could feel Eren moving through the air. Even though he was shielded by the wall and thick green smoke, Ida was positive she could sense accurately where he was at. He was a heated presence; glowing almost.

Eren was going to transform, she realized.

She held her breath in anticipation.

Seconds later, lightning crackled in the sky, sending foreboding shivers all over her body. Ida braced herself for the loud boom that would surely follow the transformation.

BOOM!

And just like that, Eren Yeager had successfully sealed the outer gates.

Ida released her breath when she saw another set of green signal flares indicating the successful sealing of the outer gates.

Something is wrong with me, Ida concluded, frowning over the sudden discovery.

She could sense when a Titan Shifter was going to transform? But how? And most importantly, why was this ability only awakened now?

But now was no time to think about that. She had to focus on the situation at hand. They were in enemy territory and she couldn't afford to get distracted. A level-headed calm was needed now. Ida's brows furrowed when she listened to Armin explaining about the campfire marks that he found – traces of their enemies that were still nowhere in sight.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

In the far distance, under cover of abandoned houses, Ivy sat in the darkness of a claustrophobic barrel that the Cart Titan held on her back. Memories of her twisted past thrashed into her mind like ocean waves, making it hard for her to breathe. Memories of her fingers, bleeding from trying to claw through the metal cuffs that held her prisoner for years invaded her.

Even when she attempted to steel herself with bravery, knowing that it was just a part of Zeke's plan, Ivy continued to claw at the wood because it was against every survival instinct in her body to sit there and do nothing.

"Let me out, let me out, let me out..." Ivy chanted softly, "...please… I promise… I..."

Her fingers were steaming, but Ivy only continued to scratch, green eyes lost in her own past.

Try as she might, her body would never forget how powerless she felt under the torment of the adults who raised her. The humiliation of entrapment. Ivy could never forget what the darkness felt like, how she yelled and begged. She could never forget how she huddled in the corner, covered in her own excrements, and picked on her own blisters and wounds.

The physical pain had always allowed her to feel alive. The feeling was glorious because it made her human. It reminded her that she was human.

But being just a 'normal human' was never enough for her, was it?

"Ivy," she heard Zeke's stern voice filter through the small holes of her barrel. "Stop scratching, you're frightening Bertholdt in the barrel beside you."

She ceased her scratching immediately. Zeke's voice, though gruff, always had that calming effect on her. Alarmed at how she was acting, Ivy stared at her hands with trauma misting her eyes. Steam continued to wisp out of her fingers, sealing away the cuts caused by wooden splinters.

This isn't fun at all, she thought, pouting.

Needing a distraction, Ivy watched Zeke carefully through the small holes of the barrel she was in. He was standing beside The Cart Titan, expression contemplative. How handsome he looked.

"Seeing as the Reiner didn't call for us, the transformation wasn't him," Zeke concluded with a grimace.

"It should be Eren," Bertholdt's voice flowed into the confines of her barrel. "You were right, War Chief Zeke, they are going to seal the outer gates first. Another explosion didn't follow, which means Reiner has yet to be discovered."

Zeke nodded. "Hmm, yes, we can only assume so."

Ivy frowned when she heard that piece of information. Though it was good news, seeing as their plan was going along smoothly, she felt insanely terrible.

"Ahhh!" Ivy shook the barrel violently, frustrated. "Can those devils hurry up! I want to transform! It's boring here! Why is it that Reiner gets to play hide-and-seek?!"

"Ivy, stop moving, you're going to fall off," Pieck warned, the voice of her Cart Titan sounding like sandpapers to her ears.

Ivy's shaking only grew in strength. "I don't care! I'd roll in this damn barrel to them if they don't—"

"My patience is dwindling Ivy," Zeke warned gravely, dismissing what she was getting ready to say. His voice elevated with every irate word. "I've told you before many times, stick to the fucking plan."

Outrage. Nothing but outrage scorched his chiding voice. At his admonishing reprimand, Ivy stilled in her movements. As though he hadn't lost his temper, Zeke continued giving out the next set of instructions, "The Subject of Ymir's are all placed in positions and the boulders are all collected. It's time for us to make our way out in preparation for Reiner's call."

Her mood soared to the skies when she heard that.

"Baseball!" Ivy cheered, clapping her hands.

She felt the Cart Titan moving in position, her barrel vibrating. Ivy obediently sat in the barrel with patience that she didn't claim as her own. When the Cart Titan stopped moving, she lifted the lid of the barrel and popped half her body out.

Knowing that Zeke had left to get into position, there was no longer anyone left to reprimand her.

Finally, some fresh air. She was beginning to lose her mind in the darkness.

"Ivy, get back in," Pieck advised their wild card tiredly when she noticed she was out of the barrel. "Zeke told you to stay inside."

"It's just for a while, I won't let them spot me," Ivy argued, exasperation igniting a fire in her voice. She knocked on the barrel of her neighbor. "Hey, Colossal, don't you want to watch too? It's stuffy in there."

Ivy pouted when Bertholdt didn't reply to her. How boring.

The wind howled through Shiganshina, tussling her long scarlet hair across her vision. A maniacal smile spread on her lips when she spotted Zeke on the field across from her. She looked back to the towering wall. Ivy could see them very clearly – their enemies, those devils of Paradis Island that were on top of Wall Maria. They were like little green ants from where she was in. A surge of uncontrolled excitement caused her smiling lips to quiver.

Pests that were ready to be squashed and eliminated. How fun.

Tense moments passed. Then, lightning came, a brilliant shock of yellow and orange in the graphite sky forking to the unsuspecting ground of Shiganshina. The thunderous boom called its warning too late as the bright zig-zag lines of the transformation reflected in her elated green eyes.

BOOM!

Laughter issued from her lips, drying under the loud explosion. Ivy held onto her aching abdomen in hilarity. She couldn't take her amused eyes off the Survey Corps scrambling on top of Wall Maria, their green cloaks facing her as they braced themselves for what's to come. The panic and horror rippling through them were abundantly clear, and it entertained her to see them like that.

"W — What was that?" Bertholdt's worried voice echoed from the barrel he was in. "Is that—"

"Armored has been found," she intercepted, earning another quiet response from him. She twirled a finger in her hair and kept her observant eyes on Zeke who was going to transform. "Finally, the first blood of this battle has been drawn…"

As the world around her became overrun with the desperation for survival, Ivy only breathed in delight, her amusement persevering.

She was ready to start her fun.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Something's wrong…

Ida watched the legion check on the walls after Armin had theorized their enemies were hiding in them. It made her think about the strange heated energy she felt earlier.

What if it wasn't from the Wall Titans? What if Armin was right? She tried to concentrate, but she couldn't exactly pinpoint where the energy was coming from.

Eren and the rest were at the distance, making their way to report back to Erwin. She looked back at Wall Maria and the abandoned houses with unease brimming in her chest. She didn't know why, but Ida found her attention always reverting there, as if something was calling for her, luring her like a mythical Siren she had read only in fairy-tales.

But what, exactly?

What the hell was out there?

She wrinkled her nose in annoyance, not knowing how to categorize what she was feeling. Then Ida felt the same dissecting gaze that only Levi could deliver, and she heard the hissing of the gears. Levi had arrived back earlier than Hanji and the rest.

"The breach is sealed," Levi reported, reeling the mechanism of his gear. "Any signs of the Armored and Colossal?"

"None," Erwin looked troubled. "Armin said that there's a possibility they are hiding in the walls."

The Captain raised a brow and tsked. "With the Titans sleeping in them? Is that why everyone is dangling like monkeys?"

"There might be a small crevice between the Titans in the wall," Ida enlightened. "We've already checked the houses, there's no sign of them. I think it's worth a shot."

Levi narrowed his eyes and made a noise underneath his nose. Ida remembered that Levi was always pricklier during expeditions, but now, it felt odd watching him in his full uniform and gears. She drew a deep breath. There was no time to reminisce now.

"I think it might be worth checking the other side of the wall," Ida said, drawing Erwin's steely face to her. "They could be hiding there."

Erwin frowned, the cogs in his brain already turning. "You think that they are in Wall Maria?"

"At this point, I think everything is worth checking."

"We came from that area," Levi pointed out, scowling. He moved to stand by Erwin's side. "Those little shits didn't attack us then."

"Our horses are there," Erwin noted contemplatively. "Hmm, they might be waiting for an opportunity."

The grave rigor in Levi's eyes only deepened. He seemed to understand.

Ida opened her mouth. "I can go—"

"I'll take my squad with Klaus's group to check there."

As Levi interrupted her, he turned to glare at her, his steely eyes lingering for a briefest of moments. The unsaid concern was tangible among them. Ida sighed wearily and nodded. This was her way of conceding.

"Come back safely—"

Ida cut herself off. Something set off in her the moment they heard someone shriek in pain. Her senses went on high alert. The shriek was brief before Armin's voice calling for Reiner thundered through the air around them.

The next thing they knew, the first blood was drawn when Reiner pierced a blade right through a scout. It was at the exact moment when Ida had drawn her blade, ready to instinctively sprint into an attack, when Levi acted with lightning speed and frightening velocity.

The Captain was nothing but a blur when he ricocheted down the wall to Reiner and aimed his blade to his nape, followed by another stab to his chest. But even with his strength and precision, it was all for naught when Levi's curses on his failure to kill him streamed through the air.

"Levi!" Ida shouted worriedly, running to the edge of the wall, ready to jump off after him. "Are you—"

The remainder of her sentence cut off and she stopped in position. A flash of light blinded her when she peered down the wall. It was the light of a Titan Shifter's transformation. Even though she was so far from it, Ida could feel a pulse of concentrated energy that accompanied a bolt of lightning.

It was powerful. So powerful that it caused the air around her to stir against the force.

BOOM!

A buzz rang in her eardrums and her vision darkened, then light flooded back.

"The Armored Titan," she whispered, lips trembling.

Her blood ran to chills when Levi reeled himself back to her side.

"Shit!" Levi cursed angrily. "I didn't manage to kill him!"

Ida's disorientated mind was swirling, but amidst all the blank noise of her mind, she felt relieved that he was safe. But she didn't have time to feel grateful. The first of their enemy was found, but the Colossal Titan — their greatest threat — was still nowhere in sight. Fuck, this was bad news. Before she could further mull over the matter, the awareness of a familiar power snatched Ida out of her immediate thoughts and alerted every instinct in her body.

An enemy was in close range. She didn't know how, but she could feel it. Feel the presence of a Titan's powers. And she knew exactly where it would land now.

Her observant eyes moved like a hawk to the empty fields.

Her loud anxiety-ridden scream intermingled with Erwin's command.

"There! At Wall Maria—"

"Keep a lookout—"

It was too late.

The lightning flashed and pushed its strikes down to the field. In one, two, three seconds, the loud consecutive booms of multiple transformations struck. Jagged bolts endlessly protrude, filling the sky with undying flashes of radiance. Bolts of orange-red lightning broke the utter stillness of the air, cleaving the world in parts for the briefest of moments.

BOOM!

And in that violent illumination, emanating the might of an imminent tempest, the legion saw them in a cloud of smoke.

The Beast Titan.

And countless Titans of varying sizes lined up beside him.

Ida had thought her heart had stopped when she backpedaled in horror. For a moment, she lost her composure. She came close to falling on her knees, but then the vengeful anger she reserved – for what they had done to her life, for the people that died in this city, for the war that they started, steeled her firmly in her position.

She fastened onto her target, her skin crawling in disgust. Smoke still surrounded him, but Ida could see the amusement on the Beast Titan's face. It only mocked and taunted her.

Ida set her jaw and glared at him, feeling a surge of power run through her arms when she flexed her muscle. She knew instinctively he was the mastermind of this attack.

Even when she saw the large boulder in his long ghastly arms, she did not move from her position.

Even when she heard Erwin's call to get down to brace themselves for the incoming boulder, she did not move from her position.

Even when the entire Wall Maria shook from the impact of the boulder sealing off the breach of the gate, Ida kept her foot firmly planted on the ground and kept her firm vindictive eyes pinned on him. Bloodlust reveled and throbbed in her glare.

It was now or never; the battle had begun.

She fastened her grip on her blades as the howling wind, warning the impending bloodshed, blew strands of her red hair away from her face.

Mankind's last stand was here.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

By the time Zeke transformed, Ivy was back in her barrel.

She peeked through the small hole, hardly able to contain her excitement when the battle commenced. Her fingers trembled and her eyes bulged with adoration with what she was seeing. The royal blood was truly a curious thing even in the mysterious history of the Eldian Empire. Ivy rarely had the opportunity to see Zeke in action, and the sight of him sending Titans to their enemies was a beauty by her books.

The unknown prince of the battlefield. Her golden-haired God.

The scouts had since made their move. As foreseen, a large group had descended the wall to intercept Zeke's attack and protect their horses. The temptation to crawl out of the barrel and join the battle aside, Ivy was growing frustrated. Many of the scouts still had their hoods up and this shielded their faces.

"Where are you?" Ivy murmured, annoyed. "Come on, show yourself."

If it wasn't for Zeke's stern orders and her loyalty to him, Ivy would've run to them to find Ida herself. If whatever Reiner and Berthodlt told her about her physical appearance was true, then she would be easy to spot.

Was she hiding? Maybe she didn't come to Shigashina?

No, that wasn't plausible, Ivy argued with herself. There was no way Ida would hide. According to the young warriors, her sister was known to be condescending, violent, and would never back down from a fight. A soldier to the bone, a trained killer, just like her. Ida was an extraordinary entity.

Someone like that would never hide, Ivy was certain.

Tension saturated the atmosphere of her barrel when she saw the Armored Titan on top of the wall.

Things are going exactly to Zeke's plans, Ivy smirked. It was something that shouldn't have excited her, but she saw two figures standing beside his towering Titan form, their body language undeterred and unaffected. Her curiosity heightened.

Slowly, the two figures pulled down their hoods to reveal their identities to Reiner.

A tall blonde-haired man, Ivy analyzed the figure, squinting her eyes. That was probably the Commander of the Survey Corps, Erwin Smith.

She migrated her gaze to the figure beside him.

Synchronizing with the lightning that terrorized through Shiganshina again, every inch of Ivy's being vibrated with anticipation. Adrenaline was coursing through her veins. But Ivy wasn't appalled over the other unwarranted Titan transformation that was probably Eren Yeager. She wasn't thrown off over the fact that the Survey Corps had so casually revealed where the Founder was. She wasn't anxious that Zeke's plans to confine the Survey Corps at Shiganshina with no supplies and escape route had gone slightly awry.

Instead, Ivy was focused solely on the woman who was shielding the Commander with an arm extended in front of him, blades out in preparation as she glared at the Armored Titan, her body language challenging him to try and attack.

Ivy's whole world stopped at the appearance of the magnificence that was a red-haired woman.

Ida Starke.

Around her, thunderous Titan's roars echoed through the battlefield, elevating the battle to new heights.

"Sister," Ivy whispered, vocal cords trembling as she indulged in the sight she had always wanted to see, "you are really here…"

Just as she said this, her vision blurred and a jolt of electricity slipped through her nervous system. By the time Ivy blinked the cloudiness out of her eyes, the scenery changed. She was no longer looking at the fields of Shiganshina.

The warm sand beneath her boots, the dampness of the air, and the blue hue of the aurora in the sky…

She was back in the paths.

"Please," the broken woman behind her spoke, "don't do this, she's your sister..."

Ivy smirked, recognizing the owner of the voice. "So... you can see her too, mother. But I don't want to talk to you now, send me back. It's getting fun out there."

Her cheerful, yet cold voice echoed through the vast emptiness of the paths.

"I will show you everything I know, all my memories," Elsie said, desperation underlining her words. "Anything you want to know. Please, don't do this. Not to your father too."

Father?

Thunderstruck by this revelation, Ivy froze.

I have a father.

Elsie's sorrowful expression never changed as she spoke, but Ivy's mind hasn't caught up with what she was saying. The blood that pumped in her veins wasn't that of usual excitement from imagining herself hurting people, strangely it was one of dread.

"Erwin Smith," Elsie continued, "he's the Commander of the Survey Corps and your father. You saw him on the battlefield. In order to get to Eren and Ida, your father and everyone there will have to die. The Survey Corps will never allow you to take them."

Dread set in Ivy's nerves like acid.

"Leave that man's side and go to him, Erwin will protect you. I know he will. You don't have to do this."

Throughout her mother's statement, Ivy felt her fingers tremble at Elsie's — if she was being honest — tempting proposition. But she couldn't allow herself to be swayed by this. Ivy couldn't allow herself to be manipulated or affected, there was too much at stake here.

But try as she might, the tremors in her fingertips told a very different story.

She stared at her mother with colorless emotions. Ivy couldn't comprehend what was happening to her. Why was she trembling at a moment like this? She shouldn't be affected that two of her family members were here on the battlefield. She had a job to do and a part to play. Nothing made sense to her but the daunting task at hand. The only thing that made sense was returning to Shiganshina and back to the battlefield.

No, she told herself, I have to return to Zeke.

"Please," Elsie pleaded as if she had read her mind. "They know nothing about you. It wasn't their fault."

Something cracked in her heart, but Ivy had to push through it.

"I don't care," she heard herself say. "Why should I care about them?"

"You are my daughter."

Rage blared inside her.

All the different variations of anger chased after one another in her blood. Ivy whirled around. Her fingers went straight for the neck of the target and her eyes narrowed into frightening slits.

"Then why won't you let me meet her?! Why won't you show me your memories?! Why only now?!" Ivy shrieked, losing control. "Ida, Ida, Ida! That's all you care about! My sister! You don't care about this island either! Not even me!"

Ivy could hear Elsie fighting to breathe. Even by strangling her, Ivy could feel her emotional pain. This fact alone scared the hell out of her. How long had it been since she felt sympathy? She did not want to feel anyone's pain, least of all a woman who she had killed and loathed all her life.

She was aiming to be extraordinary. She did not want to feel pain. She was better than this.

She had to be better than this.

"You are nothing to me," Ivy growled under her breath, applying more pressure against Elsie's neck to show her how serious she was. "Ida is nothing to me. My father is nothing to me. The only thing that matters… is ending this hell."

Tears embellished Elsie's eyes. Weakly, she caressed the side of Ivy's face. The gesture was warm, almost understanding, and it only disgusted her.

"That isn't true…" Elsie croaked with difficulty. "I... didn't know that you were alive..."

The uncontrollable emotions devoured her and seared her once, rational mind.

Desperate to keep herself from falling apart, Ivy threw Elsie to the ground so that she could end this once and for all. "Don't touch me! Don't ever touch me!"

Elsie crashed into the sand and sobbed. Ivy's face blanched at the sight of her crying. She closed her eyes in frustration, her breathing growing hoarse. Her mother's incessant crying was driving her crazy. Moreover, it was ripping her heart apart. She couldn't fathom all these emotions brewing like a storm inside her.

What the hell was happening to her?

She fell to her knees in front of Elsie and took her into her arms.

"Shhh, mother… I know. I know you didn't know. I'm sorry, you have nothing to fear from me. I hate seeing you cry," Ivy said affectionately, consoling the sobbing woman in her arms. "Please don't cry."

Through glassy green eyes, Elsie sniffled and stared at her with an abundance of hope. Ivy only regarded her with a sad smile and wiped her tears.

Funny, she thought, soaking the imagery of her sobbing mother. You aren't crying for me. But I don't need your tears, I don't need anything from you. How could you understand? You wouldn't. All I need is him. I have to return to him. We have to end everything.

"Don't you see, mother?" murmured Ivy. "If my father dies, then you two can reunite. And once, I get hold of my sister, we can all be together."

"No," Elsie whispered harshly, horror outlined her expression when she registered her words. "No… No. I will keep you here, I — I won't let you..."

Elsie tried to back away from her, but Ivy didn't let her. "You can't keep me here. I have the main control of this place. I have the power! Not you! You're nothing, just a soul! But we will be a family, never to be apart again! Isn't that your dearest wish?!"

Elsie wasn't listening, she was screaming hysterically now, thrashing in Ivy's arms and begging her not to do this, but Ivy never let her go. Her grip on her mother only got stronger, fiercer. Her expression more deranged. Red-hot tears threatened to mist Ivy's eyes while she took a moment to ponder its value.

"Shhh," Ivy's tender whispers were drowned out by the screams. Her hands went to cradle Elsie's face in preparation for what she had to do. "Mummy dearest, look at me."

You don't understand, the darkness within her murmured and Ivy listened intently to it, you will never understand.

Seconds passed before Elsie drew in another shuddering breath. "…Why?"

Ivy smiled, sadness penetrating her eyes.

"…For peace," replied Ivy quietly. "For what is right..."

Elsie searched her eyes for any traces of lies as a tense moment skipped through them.

Suddenly, Ivy's sad smile morphed into a sadistic one, "...and because it's fun."

A loud crack abruptly jumped in the air and Elsie's body, like a marionette whose strings have been cut, fell like dead weight in her hands.

Ivy knelt the immobile body gently into the warm sand.

"Ahah…" Ivy laughed, thinking of how morbid Elsie looked with the broken neck, the slightly agape mouth, and hollow green eyes.

Soon, her mother started disintegrating into specks of blue ascending to the sky, returning to the void of the paths.

Her shoulders started shuddering. Ivy continued to gaze down on Elsie's disappearing face, her mother's blank eyes reflecting nothing but her own deranged grin.

She felt a hand on her shoulder. Wooden bangles adorned the pale wrist. "Go now. Find her."

Ivy didn't look behind to see who it was, nor was she listening. A moment later, the hand disappeared, and so did her mother. Faded into oblivion as if they weren't there in the first place.

Now alone, the paths started to disappear around her, but not before Ivy's world came alive with the music of her laughter.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

It was a merciless battle on both sides.

Everywhere Ida looked, it was anarchy. Anger. Hatred. Disgust. All these emotions ripped through her, drowning her. No longer able to stand it, she threw it into the hollow space and forced herself to focus on the battles that were happening.

At the city of Shiganshina, Eren's Titan roar instilled a surge of anxiety hitting her system. His fight with the Armored Titan was in full swing. His roar was a sound that embodied the purest rage, a promise of death coming swiftly. On top of the wall with Erwin, Ida saw Hanji and her squad closing in on Reiner, lurking on rooftops with the Thunder Spears, waiting for the right moment to strike.

Her brain registered all the happenings of the battle and she shifted to where Levi and the rest of the legion were at.

It's worse here, Ida concluded, frowning.

Fierce battles unfolded in every direction in Wall Maria. Her comrades and juniors, who had little field experience, were falling in quick succession.

Ida felt sick watching the banquet happening below her, but she never forced herself to look away.

A fellow soldier was being fed on by two Titans, working respectively from his head and his legs. Blood jetted from the neck and sprayed from the knees. The two monsters continued to gorge, soaking their faces red with blood, moving closer until their noses touched. As Ida watched, her rage had filled her to her chest, and it was growing suffocating.

"The Survey Corps isn't as it is before, they are struggling," Ida incited, "you should deploy me now, Erwin. We will lose all our damn men if this goes on. I'm better out there. I have nothing to contribute here."

"You know why I can't," Erwin never took his observant eyes off the battle, the patience in his voice constant while he addressed her. "You are too important for humanity."

"Because I'm your daughter?" Ida retorted, unhappiness penetrating her tone at the reminder of why she was stuck beside him. "Or because I'm a Starke?"

Erwin took a while to reply, though his gaze never met hers, she could tell that he was deep in contemplation – he was thinking about something else that wasn't her.

"Both."

"Fuck that. I'm your soldier before anything, use me. If we fail here, then everything goes to hell. Your dreams and even humanity. Deploy me now."

The mention of his dreams earned a silent response from him. As the silence continued among them, a horrific scream pealed through the air. Ida turned to see a soldier caught by a Titan and being devoured headfirst. The Titan had both hands clamped around his shoulders. The soldier's legs flailed in vain. There was a loud crunch as his skull splintered. His right leg began to convulse as blood rained down. After that, his entire frame went limp.

It was seconds later when Levi ripped past the Titan's nape. Blood spurted through the precise and lethal slice. Ida smiled inwardly when she saw him. His blade was steaming. Following the attack, Levi began to bark out orders on the battlefield. He appeared to mean the flow of the new recruits with their horses nearer to the gate.

"He's in a bad mood," Erwin muttered thoughtlessly.

Ida grimaced. "Is that really a thing to say at a moment like this?"

Erwin regarded her with yet another silent response. Meanwhile, Ida kept her eyes feasted on Levi. Her heart throbbed painfully; it was excruciating being a bystander. She should've been there, fighting beside him.

"Erwin," Ida implored again.

"There's no need for you to go to the battlefield now," he countered with haste. "A more dire situation might arise."

"Our men are fucking dying," she snarled, furious that he was using such a patronizing tone with her at a time like this. "We don't know where the Colossal Titan is and Levi can't protect them all, he will tire out eventually."

"Stand down, that's an order."

Helpless whenever Erwin gave a direct order, Ida shot one more worried glance at the silhouette of her Captain, and then screwed her eyes shut, having no choice but to adhere to her Commander's order. She didn't like it, but her loyalty superseded her feelings.

The father and daughter fell into a tensed silence, each watching the chaotic battle and onslaught happening below them. Guilt rippled through her when she saw another scout screaming for help after he got caught. She could feel his fear and agony, almost as if she was the one getting eaten herself.

Fuck this.

Fuck keeping quiet.

Ida opened her mouth, preparing another argument to convince him, but stopped herself. Her eyes expanded when she saw Erwin stealing a backward glance at Shiganshina City.

Furrowed brows, hazy blue eyes, pressed lips...

She knew what he was looking for.

Erwin was looking for the basement of Grisha Yeager. The basement shrouded in mystery and carried the promise of the truth of the world. The place where his dreams would come true.

This was what he was thinking about all this time?

Don't tell me… he wants to go there now?

"Stop looking back, you should focus on the battle," Ida suggested monotonously, yet the undercurrent in her voice revealed an aversion that was simply uncontainable. "Our men are dying."

Was it disgust she felt? Horror? Or was it understanding?

Ida didn't know, but a lump of unfamiliar emotion had contained itself in her throat, unable to be dispelled. Erwin seemed to have caught onto her disturbed body language because guilt had now penetrated his eyes.

He parted his lips to say something, but he refrained from saying what he wanted to say. The conflict within him was abundantly clear and this only irked her more. Ida took a moment to herself to contain her rampant emotions.

"I trust you," she said quietly. "I always had."

She watched him swallow when he replied, "I know that."

"You are so much more than your dreams."

Even with all the chaos that surrounded them, the screams of the fallen, roars of the Titan Shifters, the loud deafening booms of the Thunder Spears, a bitter smile graced Erwin's lips. Perhaps he had found comfort in her words that gave birth to a new resolve.

"I won't," said Erwin, "even if I wanted to. I can't."

Ida privately agreed and wanted to voice this aloud in hopes it would be enough to dissuade the guilt within him, but Erwin seemed to know what she was thinking. He stared at her sadly, as if saying that he was fine, and so she refrained.

They drew their attention back to the battle.

Ida's eyes focused on the gruesome beast. "The Beast Titan has yet to make a move."

"He's waiting for something," Erwin shared concisely. "When the opportunity comes, Levi will take him down. At the moment, the one we have to watch out for the Colossal Titan."

"The Red-Haired Titan might be here too. No plans still?"

"Not until I know their location," replied Erwin. "Before that, the Armored Titan must be taken down quickly. We need Eren here."

Ida nodded, moving her gaze across the battlefield again when another agonizing scream ripped the air. A scout who was protecting the horses and the new recruits was caught. The Titan grabbed onto the wires of his gears and pulled him violently backward. The scout's body ran through the tiles of the roof, tearing his skin. The string puppet was now a tattered sack. Scattering blood, the Titan lifted the corpse over the screaming recruit's heads, showering the new recruits with blood while they ran to safety with the horses.

Sick.

Ida was sick to the stomach.

And yet she could do nothing but watch. Utterly helpless and useless.

The last Starke? What good were these awakened powers when it was preventing her from utilizing it to good use? As she thought of this, guilt consumed her, slowly encroaching her like a snake.

Wanting to distract herself, she endeavored in another proposition. "That bastard monkey is just sitting there, we should do something. Deploy me, I'll find a way around him. We can't afford to wait for him to act—"

The rest of her sentence was drowned out with a piercing roar that seemed to have stopped the entire chaotic battlefield. A Titan's roar, Ida realized. It was so chilling, so foreboding, that every muscle in her body became rigid. Erwin turned around to Shiganshina where Eren and Reiner were fighting with Hanji and her squad.

Ida followed him. "Is that…?"

Erwin frowned. "That isn't Eren."

Before she could reply, something else made her blood freeze solid in her veins. The Beast Titan had taken a barrel from the Cart Titan's back and launched it to the sky of the Shiganshina. Then, everything played in slow motion.

It was just a barrel, but it looked like a red flag of death.

Her eyes expanded when a horrifying realization rammed into her, knocking her barely maintained stoicism out of her body.

No.

Please no.

Panic descended on her when she saw who emerged from the barrel.

"That's Bertholdt! The Colossal Titan!" Ida shrieked, already taking her handles out from her holsters. "Fuck! Why didn't he transform?! If he did—"

"Then everyone in Shiganshina would've been killed in the explosion," Erwin finished for her.

While Erwin was a picture of composure, his daughter was the glaring opposite.

Ida rushed to the edge of the wall. "Fuck!"

"No, Ida," Erwin stopped her, grabbing on her arm. "Wait."

"Wait?!" Ida screeched, livid at his command. "The Colossal is with the Armored Titan! I'm not going to stand here and watch with you!"

Erwin met her outrage with an aggravating calmness. "I'm asking you to think about your position. You're not just another disposable soldier anymore. You're the last Starke—"

"I don't care!" Anxiety plagued her as her heart raced without signs of slowing down. "I'm not letting my squad die!"

"Hanji is with them," Erwin reasoned calmly. "He didn't transform. It's possible the Colossal Titan won't due to the Armored Titan being there. For now, we'll observe the situation. That's an order, Ida, remember the condition you agreed on when I allowed you to partake in this mission."

"We can't afford to think about that now!" she screamed the retort back at him. "I need to go to them!"

"And humanity needs you to survive," Erwin argued sternly. "That's final."

"Deploy me!" As their eye contact strengthened, fear of the highest level overtook Ida. She would be damned if any more of her comrades died on her watch. "If we all get wiped out here – if they take Eren – then there's no longer any more hope for humanity!"

"Ida—"

An aggravating scream of frustration escaped her.

"Fuck!" she snapped, unable to contain her rage. Ida clenched her fists, wanting nothing more than to rip his guts out with her bare hands. The muscles in her bicep where Erwin was holding flexed. "Let me go."

There was a veiled threat in the way she said it. It was a threat that Erwin caught and understood. If he continued holding onto her, Ida was even prepared to use brute force if need be.

"Should anything happen to me, I disobeyed your direct orders. If Levi or those pompous fucks cowering behind the walls says anything – there's no way a crippled bastard like you would be able to stop me." Ida searched his blue eyes challengingly. Her characteristic acidity was starting to surface. "I'm going, with or without your damned order. Let me go."

He debated for several seconds. Then Erwin, defeated, released his hold on her. "Go then."

Despite Erwin's emotionless face, he was practically emanating worry and pain. Briefly in Erwin, Ida saw herself, and she felt something for him, a conglomerate of emotions, one that she now understood because she was going to be a mother now.

For even though he was famed as a brilliant strategist and Commander, Ida realized that Erwin was a father to her as well.

Moved with the emotions that suddenly inundated her, Ida hugged him briefly. Must be the hormones, she thought wryly, burying her face in his chest.

"Stupid old man. I'll come back alive, and we'll all go home together after reaching that basement you want so badly to go. I'll see you then, stay safe."

She moved to the edge of the wall. Though silent, Erwin's eyes followed her. Anxiety brimmed in his chest, yet instead of feeling discomfort, a small smile had graced his dry lips.

Soon, the anxiety he felt shifted, and a swell of pride took its place.

"I'm proud of you, Ida," he said. "Dedicate your heart."

Ida looked back one last time and saluted, expression cold like that of a lethal killer. Then, she fell backward off the wall.

And she was gone.

Just like her mother, Erwin couldn't hold her back. Could never hold her back.

And so all he could do was hope. Hope that they'll meet again.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Ivy strained her ears.

Something had gone terribly wrong. The signal for her long-anticipated launch was supposed to arrive minutes ago, but there was still no sign of Bertholdt transforming. Barely able to contain her rampant emotions, Ivy was growing antsier as the minutes passed.

Never did Ivy want anything more to get out of this damned barrel.

Sweating from how humid the choking the barrel was, Ivy banged on it to get Zeke's attention. She was at her last shred of patience.

"Zeke-san! What is Colossal doing?!" she shouted, agitated. "Isn't it supposed to go 'boom' any second now? This isn't fun at all!"

Ivy did not know why she was being so belligerent, but something about the whole talk with Elsie annoyed her — a curveball thrown at her just when things were going to plan.

Father? Sister? She shouldn't care. She ought not to care, because she was on a path for greater things.

Her heart was palpitating furiously now, and the throbbing pain in her chest intensified. She knew what would soothe the miserable ache in her chest. Violence, as it had always been. When the adrenaline pounded in her temples and the beast within her stirred, nothing else would matter then.

Nothing else would matter, but finding Ida Starke.

"Something seems to be wrong." Zeke, who was in his Beast Titan, scratched his furry head. "Hmm, maybe he ran into some troubles."

"Launch me!" Ivy demanded loudly so that he could hear her even when in his towering Titan. "I'll get that Colossal fool to transform!"

Much to her dismay, Zeke ignored her and fixated his eyes on the Cart Titan instead. "Let's wait for a while more. I think it's time to bring out the boulders, Pieck."

"Alright," Pieck nodded her large Titan head. "I'll go fetch it."

Ivy groaned disgruntledly in the darkness of the barrel. She folded her arms and pouted. This was the absolute worst. Not only was she still stuck here, but Ida had since disappeared from where she was standing on top of the wall with their father too. Ivy could only hope that she had run to where Shiganshina was and not the area where Zeke was about to pulverize with rocks. It'll be hard to find her among all the corpses – if she survived that is.

If Ida gets pulverized with the flying rubble, then it'll be hard to fix her back up, Ivy thought pensively. No good. That wouldn't be fun.

BOOM!

Before Pieck could move out of the area, the signal finally came. The Colossal Titan's explosion. A bright light cascaded in the sky, igniting a fiery ball of bright yellow flame billowing outwards, filling the skyline of Shiganshina. An instant later, the boom had reverberated over the sleeping town as efficiently as an agitating thunderclap. It was a transformation unlike any other. Even from the safe confines of her barrel, Ivy could feel the level of destruction that it had brought. It was strong. Stronger than even the bombs that Marley had in her possession.

Her soul went into hysteria.

Yes! Yes! Yes!

"Ivy," she heard Zeke call for her. "It's your turn."

"I'm ready!" she yelled excitedly. "Launch me!"

Gripping the handles of the lid of the barrel, Ivy braced herself. The wood around her squeaked under the mighty Beast Titan's grip. Her entire body was trembling from vigorous excitement. The gunpowder in her veins sparked, bringing her twisted soul out to play.

An impish glee escaped her when Zeke launched her through the air.

The barrel trembled and shook, threatening to break apart as it cut through the stillness of the air with dynamic velocity. Her heartbeat accelerated and pounded on her ribcage in strong beats as she held onto the barrel lid with all the strength she could muster. Ivy laughed in joy when the powerful winds gushed through the opening of the holes, blasting her face with a slap of cool air. The wind sounded like sharp blades as it zipped past her ears.

Then, she saw it.

A column of pure smoke, rushing up into the vacuum created by explosive transformation. The surrounding area had flattened from the impact, waking the sleeping town to life under great rags of fire, soaring away to dissipate in the upper atmosphere.

And in the middle of the glorious destruction, stood the Colossal Titan in all its glory.

Now that Bertholdt had done his part, it was time to do hers.

Ivy released her hold on the lid and in an instant, the lid flew with the wind. Taking the small dagger in her pocket, she shifted her position in the barrel. Geysers of hot ash that polluted the air above the city clouded her vision.

A wicked smile graced her lips when she pressed the dagger in the palms of her hand.

In one swift violent movement, the dagger licked her blood that came out in ribbons.

Transforming into a Titan was a feeling that Ivy could only describe as euphoria. The euphoria of power filling her up till she was whole, scorching her skin and cleansing her. It was an orgasmic experience that revved her soul and revived all her dulled senses. The power that got her drunk in ecstasy came in yellow-hot pulses of electrical energy.

One pulse, through her legs.

One pulse, through her arms.

One pulse, down her spine.

A bright light emitted out from her chest when the lightning as if heeding the calls from heaven, struck her. Hot. The steam was so hot that it was scorching her skin. Her vision blanked out into a white space and she felt the tendons wrapping around her like a parasite. Ivy instinctively closed her eyes and indulged in the sounds.

The glorious squelching sounds of tendons forming, of strong bones clicking into place, of tough skin forming out of thin air.

Everything delighted her and Ivy relished in it.

BOOM!

Hot steam enveloped her frame when she regained her senses. Ivy tested her muscles first. Her hand was working, and so were her legs. But they felt powerful now. Stronger. Inhuman hands and legs, capable of a level of destruction that only a Titan could.

Now, she had a weapon that could tear apart any man who stood by her way.

Now, she was extraordinary.

When she opened her eyes, Ivy was on the ground of Shiganshina, at the battlefield where she had so desired to go to. Steam, dust, and locks of scarlet red Titan hair created a thin veil of her vision. She pushed herself off the floor.

No enemy in sight.

A sharp crackle jumped in the air when she crystalized her arms. Ivy's Titan smiled wickedly as locks of red hair washed over her skeleton-like face.

Now, sister, where are you?

The hollow eyes of her Titan scoured through her surroundings, commencing the start of the hunt.

Her Titan roared.

Come out and play with me!

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Fuck.

Everything was a bloody fucking mess.

His anchor zipped through the air and stabbed into the building to his rear. Levi Ackerman set the wire to rewind. A brutal force took hold of him and he took flight at a frightening pace. Swishes of air followed by the sounds of flesh being sliced open. A great curtain of steam burst from the nape of the Titan's neck before it staggered and collapsed onto its rear end, pulverizing the wooden structure trapped underneath.

Levi spun around and landed on the rooftop. Just as his boots hit the tiles, another hysterical scream vibrated in the air, piercing the ears.

Damn it. Levi gritted his teeth. He had told them not to die on him, but most of their experienced soldiers had perished in the previous battles.

The Survey Corps simply wasn't like before. Filled with nothing but kids. Livestock to be used as damn bait, and he had to be the one to herd them to death.

Fuck, why was it he always got the shittest of jobs?

Immediately, Levi could feel his hate for the Titans resurface.

And for just the briefest of moments, he found himself wondering how many more comrades he was going to lose, how many more people was he going to sacrifice before all this shit was over. They'd lost so many on these missions it was beginning to feel fruitless. But that dark thought left as fast as it came. This was no time to be questioning anything, or for sentimentality or even mourning.

His eyes moved like a hawk to where his Commander was. The furry bastard had thrown two barrels to Shiganshina and two Titans explosions followed afterward.

There were not one, but three Titan Shifters at Shiganshina now.

To make matters worse, Ida had disappeared from Erwin's side. It didn't take much for Levi to discern what had happened. Things had taken a turn for the pissing worse and that shitty brat wasn't one to stand still.

Ida was at Shiganshina now.

Levi couldn't just stay sitting around with his thoughts. He'd be driven to madness if he had to contemplate what Ida and his squad might be going through right now, without him.

Levi's hands tightened around his steaming blades. Fuck. He needed to finish cleaning up here quickly and get to that side. There was no more time to waste. Albeit he could feel his fatigue catching up with him, he ignored Dirk's suggestion to rest.

He was just about to launch himself into the air when screams and loud booms erupted around him like a chaotic celebration. A bombardment, Levi realized too late. The loud noises became icy drips onto his already cold skin. His survival instincts kicked in and Levi crossed his arms around him to shield himself.

BWOOSH!

His mind whirred when his laser focus slowly eased, the rest of the world becoming real again.

"Shit!" Levi cursed, launching himself into the air. "You guys!"

Across the fields in the distance, the Beast Titan was preparing another bombardment.

Fuck!

Levi halted his momentum and ducked between the houses. Seconds later, all that could be heard was screaming and the sounds of rocks pulverising houses and his subordinates.

The acrid smell of blood invaded his nasal cavities.

All throughout the massacre, Levi was filled with intense horror and disgust. Above all, shock. Shocked at how swiftly the sudden bombardment managed to disarm them. A violent disturbance of the mind and emotions. The attack had caused phenomenal devastation. The well-plotted ambush was highly diabolic.

Unimaginable deaths of soldiers, misery that surpassed fucking description.

Fucking monkey bastard. He'd kill him for what he did.

He clenched his teeth in anger, feeling himself going blind from rage. It was impossible that the squads in front would've survived that attack. With that conclusion, Levi steeled himself. It was right out of the same old playbook that he had always used – dehumanize, stabilize, and rationalize.

Right now, what he needed to do was to get the fuck out of there and take charge of the recruits with the horses. Erwin would've seen the bombardment; he'd be actively plotting a solution now.

While he zipped his way through the air with his gears, Levi made a quick survey of the devastating scene. Though the ground glistened, the liquid that shone wasn't clear but red. The fragments of what was left of his comrades stuck to the grounds in gruesome, mottled patterns alongside the rubbles that killed them.

His heart hopelessly ached in his chest when he imagined Ida's corpse among them. But he buried the pain deep within the recesses of his mind where it could be avoided. Those soldiers had embarked on this mission on their own free will, ready to give up their lives, just like he did.

There was no die or live right now.

Only failure or success.

And Levi would make sure that success was achieved, what the price, whatever it took, and however much it'd fucking haunt him afterward.

For humanity, they had to succeed here.

And yet when Levi barked out orders to the frighten screaming recruits, instructing them to go further back to the wall with the horses, as he watched the horror and devastation on the faces of his subordinates when he told them the Beast Titan was throwing rubble… throughout all the chaos, the hysteria, the fear…

One simple thing repeated in his mind, in a familiar voice that was firm yet soft.

No matter how much Levi tried to clear his mind, tried to shake the voice, the emotions, and focus on the dire situation, the definite words that Ida once said rang through his entire being resolutely.

"No matter what happens, come back to me."

Never mind what happens, whether success or failure, he had to survive.

He had to return to her.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

Levi stared at Erwin silently after he finished explaining everything.

Now, the voices of Ida had since disappeared deep into the darkness of his subconscious. The Colossal Titan's explosion had probably wiped out Hanji, his squad, their subordinates, and Eren was kicked to Wall Maria and fucking unconscious. Then, Elsie's Titan had also appeared.

As for Ida, Erwin didn't know where she was or whether she had survived the explosion.

He wanted to scream at Erwin then, demanding why didn't he stop her, that she was an irreplaceable asset for humanity, and she couldn't die. But he refrained from doing so. He was lying to himself; Levi knew. He had always known it, when it came to her, he didn't give a fuck whether he was the last Starke or not. It was all just a pathetic excuse he used.

All that matters was that she survived.

But he didn't even know if she was alive now, did he?

And so, everything faded in his world slowly, his survival, Ida's survival, their future… until all that was left was just humanity's survival. The fires of hell sang in his blood. At that moment, all excess emotions were stripped out of his soul and all that was left within him was wrath.

Pure, unadulterated wrath for the world, and their enemies.

All this shit on top of the fact that the monkey bastard was still flinging rocks at them like he was having a fucking field trip.

It was a disaster. A total shitty loss on humanity's part. Levi had frankly thought that everything had gone to hell and all he could count on now was Eren escaping with Erwin with whoever else he could carry back to the walls, while he distracted the Beast Titan.

That was, until Erwin, after much hesitation, told him that there was a silver lining. Albeit it was a silver lining that was buried under the immense bloodied sacrifice.

That was, Erwin's own and the recruits'.

And then, Levi felt the emotions return to his soul again.

In every society, there are always individuals who are gifted with the ability to anticipate the future before anyone else. In that select group, there are also elites who could orchestrate future events. As Levi scanned the terrified legion made of mostly children when Erwin explained his plan, he saw in them the gifted individual who could create soldiers out of frightened men.

This was what Erwin had meant when monsters like them would sacrifice anything for the greater good of humanity. Even if it was their own lives. Levi had always known this. Only a legend can foresee the future of another legend. Perhaps this pragmatic quality was exactly why Erwin chose to invite him to the Survey Corps; why he personally chose him to be his right-hand man. As a revered legend himself, Erwin saw the indescribable quality that he knew would lead him to greatness that would benefit mankind.

So why… why was this legend looking so despaired and sorrowful right now?

The answer came to Levi when Erwin mentioned the basement.

The entire time as he absorbed Erwin's sorrowful confession about how much he wanted to see the basement, he felt his heart grow heavy. Every word Erwin spoke, it felt like nails were being drilled into him, twisting deep into his soul.

Finally, Erwin dipped his head shamefully, seated on a box, looking drained. "But Levi… can you see them? All of our comrades?"

Levi's heart was so tight he could hardly breathe when he registered what he was doing.

Fuck, Erwin, don't do this to me. Not this. Anything but fucking this.

The bombardment continued to pound, faintly audible was the horrified screams of the recruits and the steeds hysterical neighing, but all Levi could register was Erwin.

Erwin Smith. The legend of the Survey Corps. Leader of monsters.

"Our comrades are watching us… they want to know what the objective that they forfeited their lives for because they know that this battle is not over..." As though it was hurting for him to breathe, Erwin inhaled sharply, "Ida… she said that she trusted me and that I was so much more than my dreams..."

The mental imagery of his daughter came to the forefront of his mind, and suddenly Levi could see her. See her smile, the regrets in her eyes, the affection she reserved for her estranged father. He replayed every single conversation they had with her about Erwin as he listened with more care than the Commander would've ever known.

"Tell me, Levi… it's all in my head, isn't it?" The anguish in Erwin's voice was clear. It was so, so fucking profoundly clear. "Is it all nothing more than my own childish delusion?"

The thumping of Levi's heart echoed in the vacuum of that question.

Erwin Smith. His ingenious Commander. His trusted friend.

And Ida's beloved father.

Levi knew, had always known, that one day Erwin's unfazed mask would crack. No one could be that fucking perfect. There was always something underneath, some big secret. He had spent so many years trying to figure it out, and yet it was only during the coup that he discovered it.

For all these years, Erwin had borne the burden of his own delusions alone.

It had grown too heavy, especially at this moment when he was so close to the truth, so close to his dreams. And now, Levi knew, there was no need for him to say it.

Erwin was looking to him for freedom.

He was asking him to free him, to give him the hard push on the back to the right direction. Now, as Levi stood in front of him, he was representing everything from the insidious truth to his binding responsibilities. Only he and just he could give him the support he needed now.

Damn it, he really had the shittest of jobs handed over to him.

Levi mentally braced himself and his expression darkened. It felt like he was being ripped to shreds. He forced himself to think rationally, of humanity, of their anguish fallen, of what needed to be done…

And yet all that appeared in his head was the memory of Erwin and Ida together, all smiles and laughs, the imperfect family who undoubtedly loved each other. They were the people that Levi held dearest to his heart, and it was killing him to know what his decision would ultimately do to them.

But there was no turning back. No live or die. Only success and failure.

And so out of respect… for all the years he had followed him, Levi fell to one knee in front of him.

He bent before his Commander, his friend, and his closest confidante. He bent to the man he'd followed into battle more times than he could count, respected more than he ever let on, and trusted more than another else in the world. He bent to the man that had saved him from the previous life as an Underground thug, who gave him a purpose, and guided him all these years...

And most of all, Levi bent as repentance for what he was going to do.

The world stood still, the seconds distending to eternities. Other than the screams of anguish bellowing within him, nothing was discernible to his ears, not the chaos around him, not the screams of his subordinates, just an endless dark abyss of tortuous agony that Levi was spiraling in.

Father and daughter were one and the fucking same. Always. They always thought that he was unbreakable, forever enduring. With so much at stake and so many eyes on him, Levi felt it was necessary to silently bear the burden.

But Gods was he weary.

Down in his soul, the kind of exhaustion that goes beyond the physical ails. He was tired of death, he was tired of losing people. Every time he returned, he added more badges to his collection; more people to mourn, more fucking families to apologize to.

Yet as his right-hand man, the one who had always followed him loyally, Levi Ackerman knew what he had to do.

There was no other way.

Humanity's survival must always prevail over his own selfish wishes.

"You've fought a good fight. We've only come this far thanks to you."

Despite all the agony, rage, and pain swirling like a cyclone inside of him, his voice was clear and firm.

Those blue eyes that usually looked so determined and so strong like his daughter's… were now wide and hopeful as Erwin stared at the ground. He was listening. He was waiting expectantly. Like a child, innocent to horrors of the world.

Levi felt as if someone had shot him through the chest when he comprehended what Erwin was waiting for. He was waiting for him to free him, hopeful that he would tell him to give up on his dreams.

He fisted his fingers on his cloak and forced his vocal cords to work again.

For Erwin, he would take this burden onto himself.

"I'm making that decision…"

Erwin did not say anything when he voiced this. He merely stared at the floor, a million different emotions playing on his features. There was unbridled grief in his gaze; it was one that mirrored every inch of his.

With a heavy heart, Levi went on with a strong voice, never feeling more broken.

Forgive me.

"Give up on your dreams and die for us."

The sentence sounded more like a death sentence to him more than anything. He wasn't sure if Erwin knew how hard it was for him to do this, how much this fateful day would haunt him afterward.

But it was what was needed, for humanity, for the scouts, and for Erwin himself.

Forgive me.

"Lead the recruits straight into hell and I'll take down the Beast Titan."

As if those words were what he wanted to hear all along, Erwin lifted his head off the ground, and slowly, his expression transformed. All the self-conflict, the grief and the guilt, everything vanished. Their eye contact strengthened. As though the obligation and responsibility returned to him, a small but serene smile graced Erwin's lips. His dreams, which would forever be broken and unfulfilled, seemed to be so far from his mind now.

"Thank you… Levi…"

The silence that came after that was deafening even after a series of bombardments crashed the city around them. Levi knew what he was thanking him for, but he couldn't find the words to respond to it. His throat was so dry. It was so, so dry.

What had he done?

What was needed? Necessary?

Or what was immoral, wrong, and unforgivable?

That familiar lump of emotion rose in his throat, always seeming to threaten to spill over, but never manifesting in tears, or wails, or even words. It just sat there. Choking him.

Erwin was looking at him with such kindness as if to say it was okay that it tugged at his heartstrings, and Levi couldn't bring himself to look away, and so he just stared at him…

Levi looked at him for absolution.

"Ida…" Erwin placed a firm hand on his shoulder, and he felt the heat of his life transmitted there. "I leave her in your care. She's a handful, and I know she'll never forgive me… but…"

Erwin paused and squeezed his shoulder. It took Levi all his self-control to maintain his stoicism.

"Take care of her," Erwin said, the pain for what he would leave behind returning to his voice. "I'll leave the rest to you, Levi. Be there for her, protect her, and tell her that... I'm sorry."

Anger coursed through him briefly. The mention of his daughter, that Levi didn't even know was dead or alive now, caused unwanted thoughts to course through his mind. The hardships and regrets always pushed forward. The unwarranted guilt forever pushing closer.

"Erwin… I…" Levi lowered his gaze to the ground.

How could he possibly explain why that wasn't a good idea at a time like this?

As if buoyed by a secret strength, Erwin's shoulders slowly rose, squaring strong with a peace and purpose that matched the calm in his eyes.

"I know you love her," Erwin said, understanding throbbing in every word. "And she loves you. I can only trust you for this. She needs someone beside her, you know she does. Both of you do. Do this, Levi. For me."

You don't understand you bastard, Levi wanted to retort. Erwin had gone crazy. He had no right to be by her side after what he had just fucking done. Ida wouldn't want him by her side.

"I wished I forgave him sooner."

Levi inhaled sharply when Ida's words from the past came to haunt him, hitting him where it hurt most, as if to remind him of the consequences.

"But now I regret hating him."

And then it was almost like she was next to him again like she was the last night before their departure. But Ida wasn't smiling radiantly at him now, she wasn't finding comfort in his embrace, but she was screaming… she was screaming – wailing hysterically at what he had done.

Levi ran the scenario in his blank mind, the control he held already withering under the fire of guilt burning within him.

Another shitty job assigned to him, another burden to bear, another sin to carry, another nightmare to haunt him at night. But he wasn't the one to break. He never was. Perhaps, it'd have been better, easier, if he did.

"I understand, Erwin," Levi grabbed his large hand on his shoulder to assure him. "I will protect her and I will take down the Beast Titan. You have my word."

And for one last time, he met the eyes of the man he had just sentenced to die for humanity. Determined, blue eyes that would soon turn hollow. Erwin had such a tranquil expression on his usually stiff countenance. He was resigned to his fate, ready to do what was right.

And most of all, Erwin was at peace after hearing his vow.

Levi stared at him, his blank face a contrast to the maelstrom of emotion he currently felt.

No more words were needed.

They both knew what they had to do.

o o o —xπ{Ö}πx — o o o

"Now, fire!"

He was on top of his white steed, galloping through the wind. The thunderous battle cries of his brave soldiers boomed behind him as they fired in unison at his command, bound together by their hopes and despair. The smell of the signal flares burned his nostrils, stinging his eyes, and Erwin could see the enemy, could see the Beast Titan at the distance, and he knew what he needed to do.

"Fight," the word resounded within him in his own voice, "dedicate your heart for humanity."

"Forget your dreams."

"Forget everything."

"Fight!"

Erwin felt the dark behind him, looming and chasing, and the red door that was his fate seemed farther away than ever.

It was said that in one's last moments, one's life would flash across the mind. A harmonic and treacherous recount of everything. Of all the happiness, all the regrets, and all the unattainable dreams.

It was a soul's last lamentation before the finality of death.

Now, as Erwin Smith charged willingly to his death, he could see himself as a child.

All that was happening now, all the fear that filled his chest, making it hard to breathe... everything was just a nightmare.

Wings shadowed his fever dreams.

Suddenly, he was back in his father's classroom. Young, naïve, and innocent. His late father smiled proudly at him and the questions that he used to ask – the questions that cemented his childish dreams even to this day – ran across his mind like a torn page from a book.

"Teacher, you said that we didn't know anything that happened one hundred years ago, but if so, how do we know that we are the only humans left?"

"How is it possible that no verbal history is passed down to the descendants?"

"Teacher! Tell me more!"

And for a moment, for just the briefest of seconds… Erwin couldn't even remember why he was charging to his death, why he needed to die, let alone why he needed to fight.

But he did, of that, there was no doubt in his mind.

"Remember," the stern voice that was his own whispered, soft as a wisp, "remember your duty."

Then, the classroom disappeared and Levi stood before him, drawn and sorrowful.

"Give up your dreams and die for us," Levi said, thumping a hand on his chest, right above his heart, and with a hard push, Erwin fell.

The ground was so far below him Erwin could barely make it out through the mists that whirled around him, but he could feel how fast he was falling, and he knew what was waiting for him down there.

The deafening cries of the soldiers dragged him back to the bleak reality from the cloud nine he was on, and Erwin slammed back on the hard concrete of truth. Beaten, broken and yet, stronger than ever.

He rose, no longer the selfish boy who lived solely for his dreams, but a selfless man that was the Commander of the Survey Corps.

"Dedicate your heart," the Commander said, and though the boy with unattainable dreams wept, he listened silently, "this is your last stand."

The bolo tie he was wearing was nothing more than a medal of sin, leaking with the blood of his comrades. For a long time now, Erwin sat in the seat that was heavy with the responsibilities of hundreds of deaths.

Deaths of his family.

Deaths of his comrades.

Death of his closest friends.

He needed to repent. To do what was right. The time had come for the grim reaper who was shadowing him for years to collect his debt.

He remembered how he had galvanized a group of cowards to charge to their deaths along with him, the fear on their terrified young faces, the shivering of hands, and the wide eyes. A devil's whispers elicited goosebumps down their backs, causing a few to purge out stomach acid for what's to come.

The young boy within him cried and covered his ears, refusing to look at the faces, refusing to look at what he had done.

"Look! You have to dedicate your heart!" The Commander within him chided, in a voice stronger than before, and the boy trembled but listened. "This is your last stand!"

This was what was needed. Life was cruel and devoid of any rhyme reason. Erwin needed to play the role of the monster, of the devil that sent children to their early graves, he had to continue what he had started. The cycle of sin had to keep on going, right till the very end.

Because this battle was not over yet.

If they lose the freedom here, there's no place to escape.

For all his daughter, for the friends still alive now, for the comrades who followed him loyally, and for the subordinates that were following him to their graves now…

This was the last stand of humanity.

With that determination in mind, Erwin screamed on top of his horse. "My soldiers, rage!"

Was it his voice that was speaking? Had he always sounded this strong, this determined, this inspiring? Erwin didn't know. But he needed to rage, and he needed his men to rage along with him. He needed them to die for humanity. Right till the end, Erwin needed to be the inspiring Commander of the Survey Corps that transformed the fear in his men to rage, and not the broken boy who harbored childish dreams.

"Erwin, you're not the kind of person who would prioritize only your own dreams."

A succession of images flashed across his eyesight just as Ida's voice echoed, reverberating deep into him. The Beast Titan's long gaunt arms that were crushing another boulder had disappeared from his vision.

The cloudy sky, the ruined city, and the fields that would become his grave vanished into oblivion.

Instead, all Erwin could see were ghosts, dressed in the faded raiment of the Survey Corps. In their hands were bloody swords. Ghosts that were the soldiers he inspired, lied to, and guided to their early deaths.

Mike, Nanaba, Nifa, Petra, Oluo, Eld, Gunther… there were so many faces, Erwin could hardly recognize them all by their names. But in that infinitesimal moment, he felt their weight of presence. Their expression was all blank, but they were staring at him, demanding the reason behind their deaths, and it pounded on his bleak soul for deliverance.

The anguished fallen. The forgotten fallen. The meaningless fallen.

"Dedicate your heart," they whispered hauntingly, "dedicate your heart…"

He smiled bleakly as their voices resounded around him. They were waiting for him, and behind them all, Erwin saw the shadowing reaper who would grant him his salvation.

His heart slammed into this ribcage in thunderous beats, increasing his body temperature, and he fisted his horse's reins.

The reaper was here to demand repentance today. The time was now. This was his last and final stand.

He could feel his vision blurring and he was getting dizzy again. Not yet. He couldn't fall just yet. He sharply sucked in the air around him, allowing that whispered voice to slip through his consciousness. His skin tightened over his face, and his mouth was wide and open as a piercing battle cry escaped his chest that was heavy with anxiety.

How frightened he must've looked, but he would not stop. Could not stop. He will die with his men today. The time was right.

"We die trusting the living who follow to find meaning in our lives!" The Commander within him bellowed in a fierce tone, pushing him the boy within him on. "This is our last stand!"

Those words brought back that reassuring sense of equilibrium, as though he had been pulled back from a cliff edge before he could tumble over.

Fear and desperation rippled through him, and yet Erwin willed himself to carry on.

"My soldiers, scream!" he shouted, the fear elevating within him.

The Beast Titan was getting into position. Erwin only charged faster. His heartbeat was accelerating, the fear was choking him, but he forced past it and screamed. In overwhelming despair, fear, and anger, just as what he was expected to do, Erwin raged with his men. He screamed along with them, their anguish vibrating among the octaves in the sounds of humanity's last stand.

He wanted to live. For his dreams. For Ida.

But he couldn't, he was prepared to die.

He needed to die.

This was his last stand, and soon he would leave this hell, trusting the living to give meaning to his life.

"My soldiers, fight!"

The thundering of hooves blended with the cries of the soldiers, almost in a harmonic melody of death. The Beast Titan launched his attack. The world seemed to play in slow motion. Erwin saw the boulders approaching, ready to take his life. The heavy thick green smoke of the signal flares was choking now.

But Erwin never stopped, determined to see it through to the end. His throat felt so dry from all the screaming. But he would rage. He would scream. He would fight. Right till the very end. This was his ultimate atonement and his final duty.

"Hey, eyebrows!"

The devastating scene of boulders approaching at lightning speed cleared as the musical voice flowed through the noise of his surroundings. And suddenly, Erwin could see it.

He could see her.

Elsie Starke was standing on the hilltop, beautiful and young. They were back in the past, long before he had ventured down this arduous road and before circumstances ripped them apart. She waved him over, and he walked to her in a trance, his boots leaving bloody footprints on the grass.

Her welcoming smile was dazzling. The warm sun was shining behind her when he reached, and she showed him the bundle in her arms. It was her new-born daughter. Their daughter.

Elsie touched the sides of his face as a welcome. Her touch was comforting, it was so, so warm. Her beautiful green eyes moved to the baby in her arms. Erwin reached out, his long, bloodied fingers laying gently on cloth that wrapped around his child.

The beautiful peaceful scene with his family was divine and stunning, but even then, Erwin thought of how undeserving it was for a monster like him.

Ignoring how the mental scene had just ripped out the beating heart from his chest, Erwin smiled wearily at her.

"Soon," he only said to her, "soon."

Soon, he would be able to apologize for everything he had done.

Soon, he would reunite with her again.

Upon hearing that, Elsie nodded and smiled. He watched her leave, one moment she was there, and the next she was fading, her flesh colorless, less substantial than the wind, and suddenly a new person appeared before him.

A grown-up Ida stood before him, screaming. His beautiful, strong daughter that he would be leaving behind. His daughter that he loved. His daughter that would mourn and shatter over his death.

She was crying hysterically, breaking into fragments. But he only stood there with a blank expression, listening to her. Ida was begging him not to go, pleading with him not to do this. She reached out to him with trembling fingers, her beautiful face twisted in despair.

"I won't let you die."

"Because you are my father."

"We'll all go home together."

The past voices of his daughter's words pounded on his soul and Erwin imagined himself hugging her for one last time, her tears sliding down her cheeks as she fisted his shirt. She was trembling. Ida was trembling so hard.

He held her close to him, to his beating heart that would stop soon, and all Erwin could do was to tell her that everything would be okay, that his time had come, and that she was strong enough to carry on without him. He held her close, shamefully relishing in her warmth for one last time as he apologized to her.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…"

He apologized for never being around her in her childhood. He apologized that all he could offer her was a life on the battlefield. He apologized for never prioritizing her over his dreams and his duty.

And most of all, Erwin apologized for leaving her first.

As though those words were all that she needed, Ida faded into oblivion, right from his arms, and then another picturesque scene played around him.

It was his daughter again.

But she wasn't alone this time. Levi was with her. The strongest pair, standing proud in their uniforms and brandished steaming weapons. They stared unyieldingly at him, serious and determined on the battlefield where they triumphed. Splatters of crimson blood decorated them.

The reluctant heroes. The despaired heroes. The broken heroes.

But nevertheless, Erwin smiled before he walked away from them, finding a silver lining of peace that they were together. He would meet his death free of regrets and with a light heart.

Now, it was finally time to open the red door.

Louds booms of boulders showering down on his calvary caused his heart to frantically skip a beat. The horses' terrified cries mixed with devastating screams from his fallen soldiers. And then, Erwin felt a sharp pain in his ribs.

Slowly, he realized a boulder had ripped through him.

But the pain was gone in just an instant, he didn't even release a single shout of pain.

When Erwin finally comprehended what had happened to him, Levi and Ida had disappeared and the devastating scene of boulders tearing into his legion returned.

And one thing echoed in his mind, vibrating through his broken body.

"I want to live," the boy within him wept, grasping on the fragments of his disappearing youthful dreams that were nothing but a mirage, "I want to see the basement! I can't die yet! I can't! Teacher! Father! I don't want to be the Commander! I want to live!"

The denial of death was only for a moment and the sudden thought in his mind of how he wanted to go on faded into the darkness.

The world began to shut under his closing lids.

At his very last moment, all Erwin could see was a figure dressed in the proud uniform of the Survey Corps walking away on the fields. Ghosts of past soldiers lined the horizon. Then, the figure looked back at him. Blonde hair, blue eyes, the figure's face was of his own; the face of the Commander's.

His green bolo tie glistened in the disappearing sun. "Thank you," the Commander said, smiling faintly at him; he smiled at the weeping young boy that Erwin had become at his final moments, and joined the ghosts.

It was then that peace overwhelmed him and completely overshadowed his pain and cries of the selfish boy within him.

For it was then that Erwin knew, he had finally completed his last duty, he had dedicated his heart and he had given meaning to the anguish fallen.

This was his atonement, his last stand, and now it was time to rest.

"Commander!" he heard someone cry.

But he wasn't the Commander of the Survey Corps anymore, he wasn't the monster that humanity needed any longer. Right now, after completing his last duty for mankind… he wanted to be just Erwin Smith, a boy with unattainable dreams…

He wanted to be free.

I wished I could've seen the basement…

...but I'll entrust my foolish dreams to you…

Erwin Smith felt his body gave way as he slipped off his white steed, finally free, but the Commander of the Survey Corps no more.

---

I debated including Levi and Erwin scenes because it was in the anime, but didn't feel right without it considering future chapters. Plus, Erwin is my favorite character, so I wanted to give him some spotlight. I hope it's okay :') The next chapter would mainly be Ida-centric, so it's a different take of RTS!

Seeing as I have been actively posting monthly for a year now, would you all like a Special (4)? I was thinking of it as a small thank you for the support. Frankly, I've so many omitted scenes. It's mainly humor/fluff/romance with no plot direction, just heart-warming stuff, so even if you don't read it won't have any impact on the plotline! Let me know!

Guest review replies:

Bender: Oh, you mean THAT kind of complicated. Haha, well without revealing too much, no the pregnancy won't be 'physically' complicated. :)

Anon reviewer: If you're asking if I'll ever write a lemon with explicit scenes, then actually… I do have a one-shot written on request. *blush* Yes, it's Levi&Ida, but I doubt I ever post it here due to regulations. If you're interested in reading (or anyone else), please PM/Email/Discord me, and I'll give you the googledocs link! Contact info is at my profile on this site: xDollfie

I've seen someone asking for the fanarts and where to see them. It's on an IMGUR link also on my profile!

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. Have a great day everyone! Stay safe!