CHAPTER 11: A GUIDE TO GIVING UP

Armin Arlert

Armin Arlert woke up to the sound of angry shouting. It took him longer than it should have to realize that no one was yelling directly at him, but rather the sound was coming from outside the window of his office.

Well, not his office.

The office he'd been assigned to work in.

The office in the palace at Mitras.

He shook his head to clear the fog from sleep. How has he fallen asleep on the job…again? A week in the palace and you'd think he would feel more urgency in his duties, but Armin spent most of his days wondering what he should do to appear busy.

Because there had been absolutely no news from Captain Levi, Historia, or Commander Dok. He was grateful because that meant he didn't have to do anything, but worried because what exactly was going on down there?

He yawned, straightening the papers on his—er, the desk he was using.

A glance outside showed the beautiful orange clouds of sunset, bathing the courtyard in a playful light. Armin liked to think that one day maybe he'd have someone to enjoy a similar scene with, maybe on a walk around the city.

The shouting however was definitely distracting. A cluster of common folk were pouring in from the gates, and the palace guards were not having it. Angry waving and tense postures spoke to the unheard conversations, and Armin sighed.

Too bad it didn't concern him.

His stomach grumbled and he rose to his feet, stretching.

Dinner time already? Yes, from the look outside.

He figured he may as well wander down to the marketplace and see what all the fuss outside was about on his way. Maybe he would take the long way to the marketplace, around the water channel. Anything to take up the time before he could call it a night and go home.

The door closed quietly behind him as he locked it with a small click. He walked through the empty hallway with a yawn. After two weeks of working in the royal palace, you would think he'd be used to the place by now. It turned out to be quite the opposite. Barely a moment passed without him gawking at the sheer size of the place! Though Shiganshina was only a few days' ride from here, he'd never felt further from the small town he'd grown up in. From those weed strewn cobblestone pathways, he'd never dreamed of stepping foot inside the palace.

And yet, here he was, tiny compared to the large doorways he pushed through. Armin Arlert. Scout. Friend. Trusted confidant.

Bored…

"It's fine." He muttered out loud. "The report is due tomorrow."

Straightening his posture, he strode out into the courtyard.

He instantly felt trapped in his standard military coat, the heat growing stuffy against his skin, but he wore his wings blazoned on his shoulder and back, broadcasting to the entire area that, yes, he was a part of the Scouting Legion.

And he was proud of it.

But currently, no one was paying attention to him or his jacket. Everyone in the yard, about 40 people, was gathered around the gate. Their clamoring voices clashed like thunderclouds. Armin wondered if he could walk around them without drawing attention.

A closer look provided an interesting scene. About half the people in the crowd wore the uniforms of the Military Police. Though several of them had weapons with them, most kept them safely strapped onto their backs or shoulders. However, the rest of the crowd was made up of dirt covered faces. People in filthy rags and muddied capes shouted and pushed against the guards.

What was going on?

He wanted to hear their conversations, to see what was going on. Curse his nosey tenancies, but he couldn't help—

"…I am part of the patrol, and these were our orders!"

Oh?

Armin stopped short. Who said that?

He scanned the faces, both sides until his eyes landed on a slender woman with brown hair near the front of the confrontation. Her fiery eyes refused to back down from the guard she debated with, and clutched tightly in her hand was a single pristine piece of paper.

Adelia. Nile's second in command.

Armin's feet were flying across the cobblestone before he was even aware of it.

"I don't like the attitude you're taking with me, and making such a scene at the palace!" The guard barked at Adelia. "I should throw you all in the streets—"

"Adelia!" He called.

Both of their heads shot over to him as he pushed through the throng of people around them.

"Hey," He said as he arrived. "What's going on here?"

"That's what I'd like to know too." The guard sneered.

Adelia rolled her eyes.

"What's your name sir?" Armin asked.

"Section Commander Wilson, Scout."

He nodded, ignoring the snide tone. "Why is the underground patrol back? Why the commotion?"

"We got this—" Adelia began.

"These officers left their posts underground to cause a disturbance at the palace while the Queen is on holiday." Commander Wilson interrupted.

To her credit, Adelia didn't react to the guard's rudeness.

"We received orders last night to leave the underground." She said firmly. "I have them right here."

She held up the note.

"I showed it to you already, but for Armin's sake, I'll read it again." She shot a glare at Wilson.

"All members of the Underground Initiative," Adelia read off the note.

"Due to several unforeseen circumstances and dangers, the 'Underground Initiative' is to be terminated until further notice. All Military Police part of the underground operation are to return to the surface. Time will be granted to gather supplies and guarantee the security of all safe houses.

Upon arrival to the surface, all MP officers will report to the royal palace where they will debrief with their senior officers and await reassignment. Failure to comply with this notice will result in disciplinary action.

Please direct any questions to Captain Burns or Officer Randor.

Thank you,

Nile Dok, Commander

Damion Burns, Captain"

"What?" Armin blinked.

"It's hogwash." Wilson stated.

Adelia rolled her eyes again.

"Will you just tell me if Commander Dok is back from his leave?" Her voice was tight, tired.

Wilson stood straight. "No. He's been gone for over a week."

"Thank you. That's all I needed to know." Adelia turned to leave, giving Armin a gesture to come with. "My men and I will leave, but I'll remember your name for later Section Commander Wilson."

The man glared after them as they left.

Adelia signaled a few other people to leave, and together the entourage of about 20 soldiers left the courtyard behind. Armin struggled to keep up with the determined pace she led the pack at.

"Nile didn't sign that note." Her furious tone met his ears.

"What do you mean?" He panted.

"I've worked alongside Commander Dok for years." She glowered. "His handwriting isn't that neat. He doesn't talk that flowery, and he wouldn't do something like this out of the blue without consulting me first."

"He didn't talk to you?"

Adelia stopped abruptly, looking him in the eye.

"Nile was supposed to meet up with me yesterday to discuss the operation."

Armin didn't like where this was going. "Supposed to..? What happened?"

"He never showed up." Her ponytail whipped around as she scanned the street outside the courtyard for listening ears. "Also, I'm guessing Captain Burns isn't around either?"

"No. He went underground earlier today."

Adelia nodded.

"Something isn't sitting right with me about him. Plus, it was Randor who delivered the note to us, and he was never filled in on the details of the operation. Their involvement seems suspicious at best."

Armin's mind finally caught onto something that had been nagging at him since he laid eyes on Adelia in the courtyard, and his eyes widened.

"Wait, where are Historia and Levi?"

The other woman's mouth hardened into a thin line.

"No one knows."

"Are they still underground? Without backup?"

She shook her head. "To our knowledge, yes. Not even a gangly cadet is with them."

Armin grasped the tops of his hair. "This is not good."

She gave him a hard look. "Kid, I know you've been working hard up here, but I'm organizing my patrols to return to the underground. Are you going to help us?"

"Of—of course." Armin stuttered. His heart hammered in his chest. He had never been underground, never wanted to go there, was he really up to helping a rescue operation there?

"Good." She gave him a small smile. "Be ready to leave by morning. We'll meet you here then."

And with that, she turned to go, the rest of the patrols following behind her.

Armin watched them go until they disappeared down a far street. The bustle of a day winding down in the city was alluring, but ethereal. As if it was everyone else who didn't belong on the streets instead of Armin.

His stomach grumbled angrily at him, reminding him of why he'd stepped outside at all.

"So much for being bored." He whispered to himself before turning back towards the palace.

He had a lot to do before morning.

AN:

Y'alllllllssssss I'm so SORRY I keep putting this OFF and I NEED TO NOT DO THAT!
But good news is that I have the next like 5 chapters ready to go!
I've been so bad about working on this fic, and I KNOW it's been like three weeks since I've updated it.
I'm sorry.
I'll post another chapter this week hopefully to make up for it :)

In the meantime here's Armin I guess. idk, this chapter is definitely just here to keep people in suspense, but also because there's some important information in it.
Next chapter will be back with Historia and Levi tho so don't worry :) :)

LOVE Y'ALL
~Gamma