Chapter 2: To Neil and Ryck

Neil Lydman looked down at the outdated Marleyan Navy suit jacket he was holding, glancing back at his reflection to admire the matching pants and belt around his waist. The thick, grey fabric was heavier than he had imagined, but he guessed it was to keep the sailors warm out on the ocean, where the air temperature was much cooler than on land.

Shrugging the jacket over his broad shoulders, he was grateful he had a nearly identical build to his father when he was a cadet decades before, and the uniform fit perfectly.

His father's old pendants and honorary medals glittered in the dim candlelight of the bedroom, reflecting off of the mirror to where his younger brother Deryck still slept, not to wake up for hours more.

Neil would have to be careful not to wake him if his plan was going to work as he intended. If Ryck stirred, there was no doubt his brother would come with him, and no one would leave with their mother in the morning on the train.

Shaking his head, Neil removed his father's pendants, tracing over the embossments with his fingers before leaving them on his dresser.

Someone had to take care of mother if anything were to happen, and Neil had decided to entrust that task to Ryck.

He regretted almost convincing his brother to stow away with him last night and felt even more guilty that his mother had overheard them. Deryck was a child still, not even sixteen, and the thought of rashly dragging his brother into a risky situation scared Neil more than the potential danger ahead.

He ignored the pang of guilt in his chest at the thought of his mother's tears when she discovered his absence in the morning. She would cry, but at least one of her sons would be able to comfort their mother while they waited at their grandparent's.

The other would be valiantly offering his efforts towards victory.

Pride swelled in his chest, though how he would prevent any chance of losing, Neil wasn't sure. All he had was an outdated cadet uniform, and a basic knowledge of the layout and workings of his father's ship. But he'd been around warships since he was a boy and understood from stories that one could always use an extra body on deck. Today that extra body would be him.

Neil saluted in the mirror before blowing out the candle beside his bed. If it was for Marley, and his family, he would do his best. No matter the cost.

Besides, how could they lose?

The most impressive ships in the Marleyan Navy had been gathered in the harbor. Without their parents knowing, he'd taken Ryck to go see the ships with him the day before. They'd arrived in the Navy Harbor just as the leading ships pulled in, witnessing the largest canons the two had seen in their entire lives.

"It's beautiful!" Neil had waved and pointed at the incoming vessel, unintentionally drawing attention to himself with his overexcited gawking.

"Shhh! Neil, someone will hear us!" Ryck was the ever calm one of the two, and simply admired the ship's oversized artillery with a wide-eyed look of awe.

"Someday, I'm going to be in charge of one of those!" Neil remembered boasting proudly. "I'm going to blast Titans to smithereens and—"

"There won't be any need for those ships if this battle succeeds." Deryck stated, his gaze still unremoved from the ship. "If we win, Titan power is out for good. I bet Marley will even close the Warrior Candidate campaign."

"Aw..." Neil moped, wondering how exactly Marley planned on closing the Warrior branch of the military. Shrugging, he then realized he didn't care, and puffed up his chest all the more. "Well then, I'm going to see that ship in action tomorrow!"

His brother scoffed. "How are you going to do that?"

"Like this," Neil thought, closing the door to his bedroom and tip toing across the house.

He wasn't only going to see that monstrous vessel in action, he would fight alongside it.

It would be the the war to end all wars. The conquering of Eldia, once and for all. Excited shivers caused goosebumps to form on his skin as he realized he would watch his Empire singlehandedly smite the King of Demons, the devil, Eren Jaeger.

Justice, he clenched his fist, Justice would be served for the innocents who perished in the onslaught of Liberio, and he would witness their revenge.

He pictured the massive cannons once more, firing off into the swelling clouds of steam. He'd barely been able to sleep picturing the shots hurdling into the oncoming clouds that shrouded the enemy.

Deryck and Neil had discovered the incoming steam yesterday evening. It blotted the seaside view in a thick line that traced the horizon as far as the eye could see, billowing up to the height of the tallest clouds and moving at an incredible pace. It resembled an oncoming thunderstorm, but on a much larger scale than anything he'd seen before. And the steam was hot. Already, the temperatures had risen in the coastal town. It was a foreboding side effect of whatever was to come, and the thought of the battle ahead sent shivers down his spine.

Colossal Titans. Fifty meters high, and who actually knew how many there were?

Who cared? He didn't need specifics, he needed to be out there, doing his best. That was the only way his mind would be eased. Not twiddling his thumbs on some train, or on his grandparent's farm in the countryside.

He would be fine, he was sure of it. All he would do is help his father, then celebrate their victory at the end of the day with the military brass. And if he was lucky, Father would let him have a beer.

Neil smiled. Happy thoughts. That was what he needed to concentrate on. Not anything else. He would be fine.

And even if he wasn't, it didn't matter. This was what he had to do.

Sighing, Neil threw a few necessary items into his bag before exiting and softly closing the bedroom door behind him. He had succeeded, his brother was not awake. Now all he had to do was find a place to wait until his mother and Ryck had left on the train, until they were gone for sure, and there was no way his father could make him leave.

That was the easiest task of the day. The only thing left; Survive. Find his father's ship, and fight. For the sake of Marley, for the sake all he had ever known, he had to fight and win.

Lightly stepping on his feet, Neil tiptoed past his parent's door and made his way towards the kitchen, where he then put on his father's old shoes, and pocketed a pistol in his belt. There was no reason for him to take a gun. His battle wasn't against humans today. But for some reason, the weight of the weapon against his abdomen made him feel more secure, so he kept it there, hoping his father wouldn't be mad that it was missing.

Taking a deep breath, he stood, making a mental note of all his items, and making sure he had everything he needed.

Breakfast.

He pocketed an apple in his bag before slipping out the door, taking care to look one last time at his home before he left.

At the train station:

Deryck Lydman had always been known as the more sensible son of the two Lydman boys, despite their birth order. So, when he awoke the next morning to see his brother's bed empty and his father's old uniform missing, he wasn't surprised.

Holding one of the gold pendants in his hand, Ryck trudged reluctantly onto the crowded rail platform unable to stifle the burning anger in his chest, that Neil hadn't even given him the option to go with him, wherever he was going.

He hadn't even left a note. Not even a goodbye. Just the pendants on the dresser, a trail of discarded items for Ryck to pick up after him.

That's what Ryck had always seemed to be, the clean-up crew for his brash older brother. From the time they were in school it had been Ryck apologizing to the other kids that Neil had gotten into fights with. He was the one who helped his bother study when he received a failing grade. His parents always thanked him, asking him to pardon his brother's strong will and eager spirit. But today thank you wasn't enough.

If Neil was going to leave a mess, the least he could have done was take him for once.

"I'm not going," Ryck whispered under his breath, feeling all too well the weight of his luggage in his hand. "I'm going to find Neil."

His father handed him a ticket, as Ryck and his mother reached the platform.

"Ryck, you're in charge now."

"Father, isn't there any way mother can go by her—"

"Absolutely not." Father shook his head, his jaw locked, a generic expression of his displeasure. "This is the last train leaving the city, you both are leaving on it."

Mother said nothing, accepting both tickets from her husband with a single tear trickling down her cheek.

"But Neil is going to the harbor, you know that! I can just go with you and—"

"Deryck," Father took one his son by the arm, firmly pulling him closer and looking him in the eye. "If I can't go with your mother, I need someone I trust to go with her, and that person is you. Please don't give me another reason to worry."

Here he was again, conceding to take responsibility for something that wasn't his own.

"Yes, Father."

"Thank you." Genuine relief filled his father's eyes. "Now go! I love you both!"

"I love you, Ben!" His mother dropped her bag and wrapped her arms around Father. For a moment Ryck considered making a break for it while his father was distracted, but he'd already promised. He wouldn't go back on his word.

"'Love you." Ryck mumbled to his Father, glaring down at the railroad platform. "Go kick some Titan ass."

Deryck barely heard his mother's scolding as he pictured Neil on the deck of his father's ship, cheering as the Collossals were shot to pieces in the harbor. Clutching the pendant tightly in his palm once again, he winced slightly as the metal to bit sharply into his flesh. He would keep his word. He had to keep his word.

"You have both the tickets, Mother?"

"Yes."

"Alright, let's go."

"I love you, Ben!"

His father turned to leave, waving one last time. "I love you too, now get on the train!"

"C'mon, Mother." Deryck pocketed the pendant and took his mother's bag. "Let's go."

To my sons, Neil and Deryck,

Your mother keeps trying to convince me that these letters are of no use, and I agree with her wholeheartedly, however the worry of a father keeps lurking in the back of my mind, and because of this, and the slight possibility of failure, I am writing to you.

I refuse to leave this world without having a chance to say what I need to say, so please forgive me as I write these words. I dearly hope they are not my last.

The worry of a father has been a constant friend. He's been at my side since I first saw Neil jump off the dinner table at four, and Ryck almost ride his bike into the fence of that cow pasture at six. During those time's I was reminded of my own blind courage, the same audacity that made you boys as boisterous as you are, and eager for adventure as I.

It grieves me that I am not there with you, even now my dear companion urges me to shirk my duties and travel with you to your grandparent's. But I cannot. For the fear of abandoning my country, the great Empire that I serve, eclipses the fear of a father, because if Marley fails, it is her people who suffers, and that means you.

Forgive me for the times I let my position overshadow your importance. You two are my pride and joy, much more than my pride in my country, and it is for that reason that I fight. To war against these devils and protect my pride and my heart from being wounded, was the greatest honor I was ever given.

If there is hope for you, live on, as my pride, and fight for good and for honor.

If there is not, i'll wait for you in what is beyond.

I love you my sons.

Your Humble Father

Benjamin Lydman