Huh, been a long while since I did an intro segment, so I'll keep it brief.
This chapter, for all intents and purposes, is skippable. You don't really need to read it, but if you want, no ones stopping you… *cough*.
There's also no end credit scene, FYI. See you down below!
She… couldn't believe it.
They had won… and the realization hit her like a ton of bricks.
Slowly, her legs began to give way as her stress and exhaustion began to take their toll on her body. Almost immediately, she fell to her knees, breathing in hard as she shakily unholstered her Flare Gun, loaded a shot into it, and fired it off into the sky.
At that one moment, she didn't care there were still Titans within Trost. She didn't care about what would happen after Eren had emerged from his Titan form. Hell, she didn't even care that the Mechanical Titan had crashed down to one knee and expelled a shitton of steam that was almost strong enough to knock her off balance!
All Rico Brzenska could care about in that one moment was this; the deaths of those who were sacrificed for their victory had not been in vain. Their deaths had meaning… and the closure of the breach may not have been enough to avenge them, though it was possibly enough to give some solace to their departed souls.
And with that in mind, Rico knew that she would be able to rest easier once all of this was over and done with.
Mika, despite not having been too physically stressed, found himself breathing real hard.
A handful of emotions had hit him almost simultaneously after Eren had sealed the breach. The first thing that struck him was something he'd call a thank god it's over sort of feeling, followed by a massive wave of emotion, something that was extremely rare for someone like him.
The most prominent emotion was rather obvious; relief. He was relieved beyond belief that Mina, Nac and Annie had survived this ordeal. They had fought hard, and if he were completely honest, he was rather proud of them. As a soldier, the first mission was typically the one that was the most likely to kill you, so them not only surviving, but also doing a damn good job at it, was something that Mika could say that he was proud of.
Other emotions included a mix of both mental and physical exhaustion. His legs feeling rather numb after being used for nothing more than stepping on the thrust pedals of his Gundam, and a small amount of hunger and dehydration was nagging at him as well. He didn't really notice either whilst in combat, though now that he was out of it, he felt their effects kick in real badly. Even so, he didn't exactly mind. He still had rations saved up inside Barbatos, after all, and his raisins could provide a small amount of hydration until he could get out of the cockpit.
A gentle knock against the side of Barbatos' leg unit snapped Mika out of his mild trance, prompting him to turn his unit's head just a little to glance at whatever made that noise. The Pilot was just a little surprised to see that Mina was now leaning against his unit's leg armour, breathing in heavily as she was joined by Nac, who looked similarly winded. Off to the side was Annie, who had fallen to her knees in apparent exhaustion, with both her blades falling to the ground as she breathed in heavily, though she did acknowledge the thumbs up Nac gave her before he turned back to Mina.
"We made it… we actually fucking made it!" bellowed Nac, his relief apparently making him forget about his no swear rule, much to Mika's amusement as he watched with a slightest hint of a smile. He watched as Mina nodded before she gave her tall, black haired pal a hug, one that seemed to crush at least half his ribs. "Ouch! Not too tight! Still sore!"
"Whoops, sorry!" apologised Mina as she released him, allowing the adrenaline to slowly leave her system as she sighed apologetically, though before long, she turned her gaze towards Barbatos, prompting Mika to raise a brow. "Well, we wouldn't have made it this far without this thing."
"Yeah. It's practically the only reason we're even alive, no doubt," agreed Nac as he glanced up at Barbatos' head unit. Upon noticing that it was staring at him, however, Nac didn't flinch. Hell, he didn't even look afraid. All he did was offer the Gundam a respectful two fingered salute… and at that, Mika suppressed a chuckle as he had his unit mirror that gesture, much to Nac and Mina's surprise. "What a weird thing…"
"That much is true, but for as strange as it is, I do not recommend staring for too long," came a new voice, this one distinctly belonging to Ian, who, despite appearing rather injured, was able to offer a small, victorious smile as he limped towards the two Cadets and the Gundam. He didn't seem to be fearful of the unit, either, as, upon noticing that Barbatos was staring at it, Ian simply gave a respectful nod towards it, something that made Mika raise his brow once more. "Though the breach has been sealed, something which in itself certainly something worth celebrating, the battle is not yet over. Titans still roam the interior of Trost, and we must make haste and eliminate them."
"Gotcha! Your orders, sir!" proclaimed Mina, standing at the ready as Mika sighed. He certainly wasn't going to get a break. If they were going into combat, then he supposed he'd have no choice but to-
"Stand down, Cadet. Both of you. All Cadets are to fall back into Rose immediately. No arguments," cut off Ian as he frowned, sighing a little as he eyed Mina and Nac with a small amount of sympathy, though his pity for the two quickly faded when he acknowledged how they were no longer Cadets, but soldiers that have lived through one of the worst battles in mankind's history alongside him. "You soldiers have been through more than enough today. Get some rest. You deserve it."
"... yes sir," was Ian's response from Mina, who didn't seem too thrilled by the whole situation though she seemed a little too tired to respond truthfully. Nac himself didn't seem keen on disagreeing either, and evidently neither did Annie, as she offered a nod to acknowledge that she had heard what Ian had said. And with that, they began funneling out of Trost alongside the other Cadets present, much to Mika's relief.
And yet, before they left, Mika did overhear one thing…
"Hey, erm, Commander Ian? Mind if we make a request?" inquired Nac right as Ian was about to regroup with his comrades, having remembered something just as the adrenaline left his systems. In response, Ian nodded, stopping dead in his tracks as he turned and glanced at his junior.
"So long as it's not unreasonable, then I'll see what I can do," responded Dietrich, prompting Nac to continue speaking as he offered a small smile.
"We have a friend whose MIA. If you could…" began Nac, only for Ian to silence him with a raised hand. His expression was enough to dishearten Nac just a little, though Ian, not wishing to depress his junior, spoke up before he could completely deflate.
"I will do what I can, soldier. Though don't get your hopes up," advised Ian as Nac and Mina both nodded in thanks.
And at that, Mika watched as they swung off to safety, feeling a small pit of terror grow near the base of his stomach.
That moment was drawing closer with each passing second. The moment that Mika would show himself to be the Pilot of Barbatos. And, while he was sure that many things could potentially happen thereafter, with things such as torture, blackmail or even death being on the table, the thing he dreaded the most was the possibility of his three closest friends turning him away after finding out the truth.
In a way, it was ironic. The one thing he didn't care about at all in the past was now his biggest fear… and it was enough to make him grimace. He really did grow soft in his time within these walls…
"Incoming Titans!" proclaimed Rico, frowning as she and the remaining soldiers got into positions. Blinking at her sudden raise of volume, Mika glanced towards Barbatos' radar and raised a brow when he noticed a pair of signals on it. At that, the Pilot had his unit rise up to its feet, and the soldiers around it took a wise step away from the unit as it turned to face the inbound threats.
"Not that it really matters when we've got a monster on our side…" muttered Mitabi, sounding rather confident for once as, beside him, Ian nodded. This felt odd, to say the least, to have soldiers speak of Barbatos and, in a smaller sense, himself as some sort of hero. Mika didn't dwell much on that, however, as he got ready to boost his unit towards the opposing forces.
And yet, before he could even act, a newcomer swung in and did his job for him. With tremendous speed, the newcomer dropped in from above and tore straight through the nape of one of the two Titans with his Anti-Titan blades, and before the slain Titan could even drop onto the ground, the newcomer circled around and swung at the other with an amount of speed that would have been impossible for anyone outside of the best of the best to pull off.
Within seconds, the newcomer had slashed the other Titan's nape with pinpoint accuracy, downing it in a single strike. The swiftness of the guy was almost enough to impress Mika as he watched the newcomer swing up and landed onto the back of the first Titan he had taken out of commission, frowning as he examined the blood on his blades and shirt. Sure, they would dissolve, but their mere presence was enough to enrage him to a minor extent as he sighed.
Then he sighed deeper when he laid eyes on Barbatos. And vice versa, Mika could only raise his brow when the soldier made eye contact with his unit.
'Levi Ackerman,' identified Mika, having already been familiar with the short man over five years ago. He seemed just as he remembered, black hair, weird napkin on his collar… and humorously short.
And meanwhile, Levi couldn't help but sigh as he and the Mechanical Titan made eye contact.
After so long… it had returned. During a rather dire situation, too, if the boulder that was blocking the massive hole in Trost was anything to go by. If Ackerman had to guess, the Colossal dingus had returned once more and broke into Trost, and by some ungodly miracle, the Mechanical monstrosity had also seen fit to return as well.
How strange… what was it with this thing and returning whenever humanity needed its assistance the most?
"Levi!" came the sudden roar of the short man's commander, and Ackerman, alongside several others, turned their attention up to spot Erwin Smith, accompanied by several Survey Corp members, descend and regroup with Levi. Even the Mechanical Titan saw fit to stare up at them, and though he didn't show it, Smith was clearly shocked by its sudden appearance, perhaps even more so than Ackerman. Still, he did not let that deter him as he landed and turned to his subordinate. "Perhaps you shouldn't rush in like that next time."
"Perhaps," mumbled Levi dismissively as he leapt off the back of the dissolving Titan corpse, ignoring the Mechanical Titan almost completely as he stared at Erwin. Meanwhile, the Survey Corps who were unfamiliar with the 'Titan' couldn't keep their eyes off it, instead locking their gaze on the damn thing like glue.
"Hm, I can overlook this one issue this time. For now, we should perhaps focus on the bigger issue, however…" muttered Erwin, finally turning towards the Mechanical Titan, who, aside from turning its head to eye them, had not moved even an inch during the entire exchange. "Such as that 'Titan's' sudden reappearance."
"Frankly I don't care about it reappearing or disappearing," grumbled Levi as several more Survey Corps landed close by and stayed on the defensive. The soldier didn't really care about them in particular. If anything, he was more afraid of someone in particular popping up. "All I'm really worried about is…"
"OH MY FUCKINGGOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!"
"That…"
And at that, Hanji Zoe swung down, stars visible in her irises and a massive, goofy smile plastered onto her face as she rocketed down to ground level. She was so damn fast that when she landed, she ended up creating a small crater on impact! Of course, the bespectacled Titan maniac did not care about that small amount of collateral damage, as she swiftly rushed up to the front of the Mechanical Titan and clasped her hands together like a schoolgirl that just met her first love.
"OH MY GOD IS THIS A DREAM?! TELL ME IT ISN'T A DREAM! PLEASE!" pleaded Hanji, and before anyone with a modicum of common sense (read; anyone) could reply to or even stop her, the maniac launched herself up to the Mechanical Titan and began examining every nook and cranny of its person. If it felt any form of discomfort, it certainly didn't show it, and whilst most questioned Hanji's sanity, Erwin, alongside a few others, couldn't help but feel amused at them.
'She's probably wanted this for a very long time,' thought Erwin with a shake of his head as he watched Hanji hug the head of the 'Titan', squishing her cheek up against its vented mouthplate as she whispered sweet nothings to it. Levi rolled his eyes at that, and the very few Survey Corps who actually knew about the Mechanical Titan, and the even fewer who had fought alongside it back during the Fall of Maria couldn't help but chuckle just a little at the sight.
"Commander Smith!" came the somewhat familiar voice of Ian Dietrich, prompting the Survey Corp commander to blink as he turned towards the man who spoke his name. Erwin noticeably flinched when he saw the current state of the Garrison Elite, with his person being slathered in Titan saliva and him holding his abdomen, though he mostly ignored his current state as the Garrison Elite walked up and saluted him.
"At ease, Ian. If you may, I would like a full report on what transpired," requested Erwin, to which he responded with a nod from Dietrich.
"At once, sir. However, before we retreat from the battlefield, I would like to request that you spare a handful of your men to assist in eliminating the remaining Titans within Trost," requested Ian. "The Mechanical Titan can undoubtedly solve the issue, even on its own, though we cannot rely entirely on it. The Garrison troops will be preoccupied with calming the civilians that are held within Rose, so if at all possible…"
"Consider it done, Ian," assured Erwin as he turned towards Levi, who sighed and nodded.
"I'll get a team together," assured Levi dismissively as he turned to do just that. Erwin nodded in approval at that, and he quickly turned up to spot Hanji still clinging onto the Mechanical Titan's face. By then, her assistant, Moblit, had arrived and began fretting over Hanji's safety, as per usual, and Smith reckoned that he probably oughta throw him a bone and do him a solid.
"And Hanji, please get off the Mechanical Titan's face. I have orders for you as well," ordered Erwin, and though she was reluctant, she eventually sighed and slid off its face and flipped off the Mechanical Titan's chest, landing rather dynamically before standing and placing both hands on her hips.
"Yes siree?" inquired Hanji somewhat playfully, tapping her foot impatiently as she did her best to not turn towards the Mechanical Titan once more. Noticing this, Erwin simply shook his head and cleared his throat, an unnecessary gesture, though he reckoned that sometimes, being dramatic was cool…
"If you may, please accompany Levi with clearing up Trost," ordered Erwin, jerking a thumb towards the midget in question, who sighed when he heard those orders be given out. Hanji didn't seem to mind as she offered a quick nod, and as she jogged towards Ackerman's squad, Erwin turned up to stare at the expressionless face of the Mechanical Titan. "So, will it just stand there?"
"I… am unsure, Commander," admitted Ian sheepishly as the Mechanical Titan remained motionless. The two glanced towards its unmoving form, with Ian speaking of it in apparent reverence as they did. "The Mechanical Titan… does as it pleases. It is, in a sense, more than what it seems. It is in equal parts a machine as it is a Titan… and a human."
"... I see. So it will help us if it so chooses is what you wish to say, yes?" concluded Erwin, prompting Ian to nod.
"Yes, so do not rely too much on it, Command-" began Ian, and he was almost immediately cut off when the sound of a machine powering up could be heard. Glancing up at it, all who heard the sound widened their eyes when they saw the eyes of the Mechanical Titan glow a bright green, giving them the appearance of a pair of near perfect emeralds. Hanji was quick to step forward to get a better look of it herself… and she, alongside several others, were almost blown off their feet when steam was expelled from the golden vents that were all around the 'Titan's' body.
"Tsk…!" hissed Levi as the steam blinded him a little, lifting his arms up to shield his eyes. Before he could even lower his arms, however, the midget heard the sound of pistons shifting and gears turning, and within seconds, the steam was dispelled when the Mechanical Titan leapt out of the cloud it had created and made its way into Trost at speeds that even the most well maintained maneuver gear could never hope to match, and that mere fact alone was enough to impress Levi.
'Hmph. I hadn't been paying attention to its strengths back when it first appeared. I guess I have a firsthand view of how it functions now, huh?' thought Ackerman absentmindedly as he shook his head and got ready to depart, only for a certain Titan maniac to beat him to it.
"WAIT FOR ME!" proclaimed Hanji as she whizzed past everyone and took off after the Mechanical Titan, with Moblit following soon after, yelling about things regarding safety and recklessness along the way. It was nothing short of a miracle that Hanji's poor ol' assistant hasn't died from stress yet. Hell, even Levi, despite being considered the best of the best, reckoned that if he was in Moblit's place, he would've died from stress long ago…
"Good grief! I pity poor Moblit, but I cannot help but feel envious at his tenacity!" piped up a nearby soldier, and Levi turned to spot Luke Sys by his side, smiling just a little as he watched Hanji rocket forward behind the Mechanical Titan. The soldier seemed to be rather glad that the 'Titan' had returned, though that in itself was understandable. Half a decade ago, the damn thing did save him from being eaten, and though he had probably forgotten it by now, Levi did recall Sys stating that the next time he saw the thing, he'd say his thanks, even if he looked like a madman for doing so.
"Hm. whatever, let's just get moving," ordered Levi, to which Sys nodded. And within the blink of an eye, the Survey Corps that were brave enough followed Levi into the fray, and before long, only Erwin Smith, Ian Dietrich and the other Garrison members remained.
"Perhaps now would be a good time to retreat?" inquired Ian as soon as the last Survey Corp had gotten out of view, and to that, Erwin nodded.
"Indeed."
Elsewhere
With her ginger hair and Survey Corp cape flowing rather intensely through the wind, Petra Ral narrowed her eyes as she and a handful of Survey Corps and Garrison troops closed in on the Titans that lurked near the eastern corner of Trost.
"Steady now!" urged Petra as she fixed her amber eyes on the soldiers that were under her command. In response, her comrades responded in varying ways as Petra nodded in approval and turned back towards the Titans they were approaching. A pack of about five Titan in total, the first to notice them was a Ten metre that Petra had her gaze locked onto.
"It sees us!" proclaimed a Garrison in terror as fear overtook his body and he slowed down. Several other Garrison noticeably slowed down as well, though in comparison, their Survey Corp counterparts didn't even waver. If anything, the Titan being alerted to their presence drove them to speed up.
"Sys, Ness! Draw the attention of the other Titans and separate them!" ordered Petra, with Luke Sys and Dieter Ness nodding in acknowledgment. Several other soldiers followed them to back them up with varying levels of reluctance, though Petra's focus remained on the Ten metre, who, in turn, kept its gaze fixed squarely on her as well.
As calmly as she could, Petra watched as the Ten metre raised its arm. Narrowing her eyes, Ral held her breath as the Titan swung it at her, and she quickly released it mere moments before it could strike at her and twisted her body sideways, just in time to evade the Titan's hand. For anyone else, that simple maneuver would've sent them spinning out of control, though for someone as experienced as Petra, she remained steadfast as she used her momentum to shoot past the Titan's neck.
Once she was past it, Petra twisted her waist around to face the Titan's nape and fired off both maneuver gear anchors. And before the Titan could even lower its arm, both of Petra's maneuver gear anchors grappled onto its nape, and she reeled herself in to deliver a strong slash to its weak spot.
The strike was brutal yet swift, and within a moment, the Titan fell to the ground, dead, as Petra swung up into the air and landed on the building closest to her, taking a second to savour the feeling of victory before she moved onto her next target, only to pause briefly when she saw the amount that were approaching them from the inner region of Trost.
She quickly deduced that there were roughly twenty Titans waddling towards her general direction, and that thought alone was enough to send a chill up her spine. Even if she was considered a 'senior', Petra, and by extension her team, would definitely not be able to bring down twenty Titans, abnormal or otherwise, all on their own! A retreat was perhaps the most logical solution to their current dilemma, retreating and bombarding Trost with the wall mounted cannons…
Rather abruptly, Petra's instincts flared up, bringing her out of her thoughts as she widened her eyes and turned on her heel just in time to spot a Fifteen metre lunge straight at her. Grimacing, Ral was quick to use her maneuver gear anchors to launch her out of its reach, causing the Fifteen metre to crash straight into the building she had been standing on, before she got ready for a counterattack.
As luck would have it, however, before she could even launch her maneuver gear anchors, a newcomer swung in and did the task for her, striking at the nape of the Fifteen metre and severing it with very little issue.
"Psh, Petra, I thought you were more alert than that!" chastised the newcomer with a somewhat mocking tone as he stood atop the corpse of the dissolving Fifteen metre. Petra herself swung onto a closeby building and glanced at the dissipating smoke briefly, though she didn't need it to clear up to recognise who was speaking. "Seriously, if you wanna keep up with me, then you may need to try harder!"
"I never claimed to be trying to keep up with you, of all people, Oruo," spat Petra as she rolled her eyes. Meanwhile, the man who was speaking to her, Oruo Bozad, narrowed his hazel coloured eyes, somehow making them look smaller than they already were, and ran one of his hands through his curly, light brown hair, only to grimace when he felt the Titan blood on it. Sure, it would eventually dissipate… though it was still disgusting.
"You're just saying that to make yourself feel better!" claimed Oruo slyly, to which Petra rolled her eyes once more. The guy would never change, Petra reckoned as she shook her head, opting to ignore Oruo's comment as she swung off, much to his chagrin, and locked onto a Twelve metre Titan that was giving Luke Sys quite a bit of grief.
Upon noticing her, Sys nodded subtly in her general direction and began to keep the Titan's attention fixed squarely on him. At that, Petra offered a mild smirk as she closed in on the Titan's nape, narrowing her eyes as she took aim.
And with a single swing of her blades, Petra sliced the nape open, leaving the Titan to fall to its side as Ral swung up to check on her fellow soldier.
"You have my gratitude, Miss Petra," thanked Sys with a nod as both he and his commander landed on the closest building, to which Petra responded with a nod of her own as she checked on her Anti-Titan blade, nodding as she realized that it was still in working condition.
"Just survive, Sys. That's all I ask of you and everyone present," assured Petra gently, only for Sys to snicker gently.
"Even Oruo?" inquired Sys sarcastically, and at that, Petra bit her lower lip.
"I'll agree to disagree on that," joked Ral, and at that, Luke chuckled and nodded before they parted ways, leaving him to move to target another Titan.
Along the way, Oruo had inadvertently joined him in seeking out his next target, and the two had their sights locked onto a Seven metre that was preoccupied with glancing at another pair of soldiers that were attempting to circle it.
"Those rookies wouldn't even know how to hit the nape of a Titan, even if it were offering them a free shot!" spat Oruo pridefully as they closed in on the Titan, readying his blades as they did. Sys held no opinion on that matter and remained silent as they got close to the Titan's weak point, with Oruo rearing his arms back for a slash.
And as fate would have it, Oruo's moment of glory just had to be ruined, as right when he was roughly two metres away from the Seven metre's nape, something flew in and crashed straight into it, with the ensuing shockwave being more than enough to send him, Sys and the two other soldiers flying backwards, with Oruo landing on the ground in a roll whilst Sys and the other two soldiers landed rather harshly atop a close by building.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE THOSE GARRISON GUNNERS THINKING?!" proclaimed Oruo, fuming at the prospect of the Garrison cannon manners opening fire on a Titan that was clearly about to be taken out by someone more capable than they were. He was so mad that he ended up ignoring how none of the cannons were aiming in their general direction, however… and he also failed to notice that the thing that had just 'saved' them was a weapon that was familiar to Sys.
And upon seeing it, Luke Sys couldn't hold back a massive smirk.
"Well… I suppose I didn't see that coming…"
A short while ago
Levi Ackerman was never one to ask for help, not in a direct way, at least.
As the top soldier within the Survey Corps, Ackerman had little to no equals in terms of strength, speed, agility and overall cleanliness, and that translated remarkably well on the field. Many said that even when pitted against the literal devil whilst standing before the gates of Hell, all Levi would need to do was glare at the keeper of Hades to send him packing.
That was probably an exaggeration, though it wasn't too hard to believe, considering the skills and overall threatening aura that shrouded the midget. With the guy's massive Titan kill count, being more than some of the Survey Corps previous commanders even, and the amount of expeditions he had survived, it wouldn't be difficult to consider the midget a living legend, for both his strength and, to a lesser extent, his stature.
And yet… even with all that said, Levi would have been lying if he had said that the Mechanical Titan's assistance was unwelcomed.
Having been tasked to clear out the Titans, Levi had chosen to mop up their numbers within the central region of Trost. He, alongside several others, were doing an alright job, though the primary reason as to why they were doing it so effectively was due to the presence of the mechanical monstrosity assisting them.
That thing was truly a monster, so much so that Levi had to offer it some small amount of begrudging respect. The ability to dispatch a Titan solo was something a regular soldier was unable to do effectively, with Levi himself requiring roughly ten seconds to eliminate a Titan on a good day, and here this thing was, taking on three Titans all at once and killing them within the same amount of time! That was nothing to scoff at!
Hanji, as one would come to expect of her by now, was absolutely drooling over the Mechanical Titan in a metaphorical and slightly literal way. She had not left its side ever since she had laid eyes on it for the first time in roughly five years, and Levi would've done something about that, though he reckoned that leaving the topic alone was for the best. Zoe did wait five whole years just to even catch a glimpse of this damn thing, after all, and he had a feeling that if he pried her away from it, the fit that she would throw would've been legendary.
Then again…
"HOLY SHIT, MOBLIT! IT JUST SLICED A TITAN IN HALF WITH A SINGLE SWING OF ITS SWORD!"
"HANJI PLEASE STAND BACK BEFORE IT HITS YOU, ACCIDENTAL OR NOT!"
"BUT MOBLIT!"
It probably would've been a pretty nice favor for Moblit…
"INBOUND!"
The sudden yell from a nearby soldier snapped Levi's attention back to the battle at hand, and he turned to the side just in time to see a Titan charge at him. Muscular and roughly Fourteen metres in height, the Titan charged at Ackerman, who remained passive until the last second, where he dodged out of the way as it swung its hand at him, with the limb instead slamming into the roof that he was standing on.
As soon as he was back on his feet, Levi sprinted towards the edge of the building he was on and launched both maneuver gear anchors at the Titan. And, without much effort, the soldier swung himself up into the air before catapulting himself back down and swinging both Anti-Titan blades at the Fourteen metre's nape, killing it in one fell swoop.
In the corner of his eye, Levi could vaguely make out another Titan fall at the hands of a pair of Survey Corps. A blonde and a brunette, respectively. Ackerman knew who they were, having thought it to be a good idea to keep a close eye on the two quite some time ago after seeing their potential, though he was quick to dismiss that thought when he heard a loud boom, prompting him to turn and spot the Mechanical Titan with its mace slammed into the ground and the remains of a Four metre beneath it.
To its side came another Titan, roughly Fourteen metres in height, and it was promptly obliterated when the Mechanical Titan swung its mace towards it, obliterating its upper body with a single strike and sending blood and guts raining everywhere. Hanji squealed in joy at that, though Levi just shook his head at that, frowning as he watched the 'Titan' raise its weapon up into the air before bringing it down upon what remained of the Fourteen metre to ensure that it stayed dead.
"That thing's a lot more aggressive than the reports made it out to be," came a new voice, prompting Levi to turn and spot the two aforementioned Survey Corp soldiers landing beside him. Ackerman watched as the one who spoke up first, a guy with blonde hair tied up into a bun and brown eyes, walked up beside him with a gentle smile as he stroked his less than impressive beard. Curiosity shone in his eyes as he watched the 'Titan' lift its Mace up off the ground, though he did appear more wary of it than curious. "I've never seen it for myself, and truth be told, I've always thought the reports and rumors of the Mechanical Titan to either be mere myths or exaggerations. So to see it for myself…"
"Not a smart move to consider something a myth just because you've never seen something like it before, Eld," responded Levi, his tone sounding somewhere between sarcastic and mildly scolding as the blonde, Eld Gin, chuckled lightly.
"I suppose. But something as fantastical as this… it's hard to believe that it exists without seeing it with your own two eyes," admitted Eld, wincing as the Mechanical Titan tossed its Mace directly at a Titan that was harassing a group of four soldiers before pulling its arm back and elbowing another in the face with enough force to cave its skull in. The other guy that stood alongside Eld and Levi winced a little as the now faceless Titan stumbled and fell back, and he winced further as the Mechanical Titan stomped down onto its nape.
"I'll be honest, even though I'm seeing it with my own two eyes, it still feels surreal," admitted the other soldier, wincing when he saw what remained of the Titan that was stomped down on. Turning to face him, both Eld and Levi made eye contact with the brown eyed/haired young man, who winced a little at the attention, though he didn't let too much of it show as he recomposed himself.
"Then correct yourself and realize that you're not hallucinating, Gunther" advised Levi, prompting Gunther Schultz to redden in embarrassment as he nodded.
And for a brief moment, things were strangely silent.
The central portion of Trost had been mostly cleared out within the past hour or so. The combined might of Levi Ackerman, the Mechanical Titan and about twenty Survey Corps had made the task rather simple, so much so that it was most likely a new record for 'clearing as many Titans in a specific area'.
Hell, they had cleared the central area of Trost so quickly and with so few casualties that even Levi appeared to be surprised… though he was quick to shake it off as he turned towards Eld and Gunther, ignoring everything else as he issued a new set of orders to them.
"Eld, Gunther, I want the two of you to lead the soldiers currently gathered here and reinforce the west wing of Trost," ordered Levi, leaving no room for argument, though Eld did see fit to ask one last thing before nodding.
"And you, Captain?" inquired Eld, somewhat shocked at that possibility of the Captain retreating, though that thought was quickly amended as Levi shook his head.
"I'm assisting the eastern wing. Trost's eastern side is much warmer than the west at this time of day, so the Titans will be attracted to that side more so than the west," explained Levi simply, only for Gunther to stop him for a brief moment.
"And you're going to help them on your own?" asked Gunther, prompting Levi to internally sigh and turned to face the tanned young man, though before he could answer, he heard a rather strange sound coming from behind him, prompting him to turn… and swiftly, he, alongside Eld and Gunther, widened their eyes when they saw the Mechanical Titan quite literally leap up over twenty metres into the air, soaring straight over several buildings until it landed directly atop a Thirteen metre that had once stood at its impact point.
"... I never said I was," responded Levi, and at that, Eld and Gunther simply nodded.
"I see… well, either way, good luck, sir," said Eld, bidding his Captain farewell with a two fingered salute as he and Gunther moved to rally the soldiers and depart to the western wing of the District.
And to that, Levi just shook his head. He didn't need luck…
"HOLY SHIT MOBLIT! DID YOU SEE THAT?!"
… though he reckoned that Moblit did.
Western wing
Sniff sniff
Twenty two soldiers were approaching to reinforce their ranks…
Sniff sniff sniff
Those closest to them were Eld and Gunther.
Sniff sniff sniff sniff
They smelled rather strange. This scent… it was mostly foreign to him. The scent of gas and burnt Titan flesh was familiar… but… there was something else mixed in. It smelled like paint… but at the same time, it didn't… what was this?!
"Erm… Commander Mike? Please tell me you didn't smell anything bad coming our way…" came a somewhat pleading voice as the man in question, Mike Zacharius, turned to face the speaker, fixing his light blue eyes on a rather manly looking female soldier, ignoring the body of a deceased Titan that he had just taken out of commission some time ago. At that, Mike shook his head as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, in turn rubbing his beard and mustache.
"No, Nanaba, it is reinforcements," replied Mike reassuringly as he turned in the general direction of where said reinforcements were approaching from. Likewise, Nanaba too glanced in that general direction, fixing her blue eyes on the inbound soldiers as she nodded. "It's just that they smelled strange."
"I see. It could be due to the Mechanical Titan," reasoned Nanaba, to which Mike nodded.
"That is the most likely answer, for they still smell like the centre of Trost. I recall the 'Titan' fighting alongside them there," agreed Mike with a nod, only to shake his head as he glanced off in the distance, where a long faced guy with an interesting haircut and a young woman with messy brown hair tied into a ponytail were taking on a Fourteen and Twelve metre Titan head on, though they were visibly struggling with the task. "Nanaba, if you may, please welcome our reinforcements. I believe Gelgar and Lynne require assistance."
"Understood, Commander. Good luck," responded Nanaba, to which Mike answered with a nod of gratitude and a quick salute with his blade before he swung off into the distance, leaving Nanaba to greet the reinforcements, who were quick to land in front of her. The first two to arrive were soldiers that Nanaba were all too familiar with. "Eld Gin and Gunther Schultz, I presume?"
"Good to see that you're as sharp as ever, Nana," quipt Eld with a nod of acknowledgement, prompting Nanaba to lower her brows in irritation at that lazy nickname.
"You are here to provide backup, not be witty, Gin," grumbled Nanaba, prompting Eld to nod apologetically.
"My apologies, Nanaba. If you may, how's the situation as of now?" inquired Eld, prompting Nanaba to turn towards where a majority of the Titans were located at. Eld and Gunter did so as well, and they were quick to wince when they saw how many were left.
"We've taken out about seven Titans in total, though nearly twenty or so remain in the western wing of Trost. We were considering the option of retreating temporarily, then you all showed up," explained Nanaba, prompting Gunther to chuckle just a little.
"A stroke of good luck, I presume?" inquired Gunther, and Nanaba simply shrugged.
"This day feels like a series of events that toy with the concept of luck. The breach of Trost, the reappearance of the Mechanical Titan, and other things that my team were not present for," replied Nanaba with a shrug. "I reckon that I'd be lucky to even see the end of this day."
And to that, Eld held no disagreements to, and he would have voiced that out, though he stopped himself as he heard the sound of Gelgar screaming in the distance, something that made Nanaba tense up and turn towards where her teammate was located.
"Enough talk already, let's move!"
Eastern wing
How irritating…
Though his worries for Mina, Nac and Annie had been put to rest for the time being, Mika found that his worries had been quickly replaced by a newfound emotion, with this being immense annoyance.
Not at the Titans, not at how his Gundam's Autocannons were out of ammo, and not even at the rapidly dwindling amount of gas within Barbatos' thrusters.
No, his irritation was fixed almost entirely on one person, or more specifically…
"FUCKING HELL! IT JUST LEAPT STRAIGHT OVER THOSE BUILDINGS! DID YOU SEE THAT, MOBLIT?!"
"Y-YES, I DID! BUT COMMANDER, PLEASE CALM DOWN!"
Hanji Zoe…
While he has worked with irritating people in the past, both before and even after he came to this god forsaken world, at the very least, Mika could've told them to shut their mouths before they got too irritating. Now, however, Mika couldn't even do that! The only way to get her to shut her mouth now was to kill her! And as tempting as that was, he'd rather not rob the Military Brigade of their (alleged) greatest tactical mind.
As such, he did his best to resist the urge to 'accidentally' swat her off the face of the world with the Wrench Mace by preoccupying himself with swatting the remaining Titans off the face of the world instead. And admittedly, it was enough to distract him from the temptation of murdering Zoe right there and then just to shut her up, albeit just barely.
At the moment, Mika simply tapped on the cockpit monitor of his unit several times and checked its radar, frowning just a little when it picked up several inbound Titans. If the radar was anything to go by, Mika guessed that the eastern wing of Trost had over fifty Titans within it. Could've been worse, he reckoned…
Right as he thought that, an on screen alert warned him of a Titan sprinting in his general direction. Blinking at that, Mika had Barbatos turn to face it. Augus raised a brow as the Titan dove straight for his unit, its mouth wide open as it attempted to lunge straight for his Gundam's chest. In response to that, Mika simply raised Barbatos' arm to chest level, in turn causing the Titan to bite down onto the outer armour and break off some of its teeth.
Seeming oblivious to that, the Titan continued on with its attempt at biting into Barbatos' arm, with Mika, and a handful of soldiers around the Gundam, watching in amusement. After a short while, however, the Pilot had his unit rip the Titan off its arm, though he probably put a little too much force into doing so, as Barbatos ended up ripping the top of the Titan's head off as well.
Blinking at that, Mika was quick to discard the upper half of the head before he stared down at the half decapitated Titan squirming on the ground. He was quick to slam the Wrench Mace onto the damn thing, obliterating it with a single strike. He could vaguely hear Hanji squeal like a fangirl by the side at the Mace, though Mika subconsciously tuned her out as he turned Barbatos around to face a pack of five Titans.
Somewhat nonchalantly, Mika had Barbatos toss its Longsword straight towards the pack, and the blade didn't fail to deliver as it sliced through the pack without any issue, only stopping when it buried itself on the side of a building. Rather unfortunately, the blade did almost kill a soldier that was standing on that building as well, though by some miracle it had missed him by half a meter. If he bothered to look closer, Mika would've seen how the guy was several times paler than he usually was.
"My God…" came the shocked voice of someone unfamiliar to Mika. Turning towards its source, Augus raised a brow when he saw a young woman staring at the Titans that Barbatos had dispatched with its Longsword with widened eyes, only to wince when she saw that it was looking her way. "Uuu…"
Rather abruptly, a mild, nearly inaudible tink near the nape of Barbatos could be heard, and Mika responded with a raise of his brow as the heads up display for the cockpit alerted him to a very minor, practically insignificant, amount of damage that was located near the nape pipes of his unit. That was when he realized that something had just struck his unit near the nape mere seconds ago. This confused Mika briefly, only to pause when the audio receptors picked up the angered groan of a nearby soldier.
"My slash didn't go through…!" grumbled a Survey Corp, prompting Mika to turn Barbatos' head unit towards the speaker. The moment his unit's optics locked onto the guy, Augus raised his brows when he saw how quickly his Gundam's assailant had gone from angered to horrified within the span of less than a second. "Oh shit…!"
And admittedly, Mika had to hold back a snicker as he saw the look on that Levi-wannabe's face. Still, he didn't let it distract him for much longer than a few seconds as he turned his attention towards a handful of Titans that were approaching it. Without much of a thought, Augus had Barbatos rip its Wrench Mace out of the ground and boost towards the pack.
It didn't matter how many stood in his way. Mika knew that the Titans wouldn't stand a chance…
… and meanwhile, Oruo held a hand to his heart as he continued hyperventilating.
That slash… it had everything he had behind it. His strength was nothing to scoff at, and the strike he had directed towards the nape of the Mechanical Titan would've killed any regular Titan with very little issue… and yet, it didn't even make this damn thing flinch! To make matters worse, the damn thing could've killed him there and then!
Hell, Oruo thought that his life would've ended the moment the Mechanical Titan made eye contact with him. Death by terror was an embarrassing way to go, though it wasn't off the table at this point…
The moment the Mechanical Titan had left, Oruo thought that the worst had come to pass.
Then came Hanji, who had seized Bozad by the collar as she unleashed the metaphorical flames of Hell upon him.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TRYING TO DO?! YOU SCUM! SCUUUUUUUUUUUUM!" proclaimed Hanji, shaking Oruo in her hands. The poor guy was subjugated to quite a bit of verbal torment for the next few seconds, with no one keen on helping him out of it. They knew better than to incur Zoe's wrath.
However, for Levi Ackerman's case… he was focused on something else… something that, quite honestly… scared him.
'A strike to the nape with that amount of strength should have killed any normal Titan… any yet…"
A quick glance towards the Mechanical Titan was enough to silence that thought. If this thing were to become hostile towards them… then, well, unlike this human/Titan war, they'd stand no chance at winning.
Atop Wall Trost
"... and that concludes our report, Commander Erwin."
At that, the Survey Corp commander fell silent. There was a lot to take in, what with this 'Eren Jaeger' being able to transform into a Titan at apparent will and the Mechanical Titan's amount of involvement in mankind's first victory against the Titans.
As he processed all that information, Rico and Mitabi both stood somewhat uncomfortably. They were exhausted, though they could still fight if forced to, something that couldn't be said for Ian, rather unfortunately, as he had been sent off for medical attention. They were fine with their commander being absent, though if they were completely honest, it would've been better if he had remained, considering how Dietrich knew Smith much more than either of them…
"I see, thank you for sharing, Rico Brzenska, Mitabi Jarnach," thanked Erwin with a nod, to which the two Elite Garrison members nodded. "You may leave and recuperate now, if you wish."
His response was a quick salute from both Brzenska and Jarnach, both of whom seemed rather surprised that he dismissed them as quickly as he did, though they didn't dwell too much on that as they left, leaving Erwin behind to stare down at Trost.
Down at the Mechanical Titan as it quite literally ran through a Fifteen metre Titan and struck a Fourteen metre over the head with its bare hand, causing its entire skull to collapse into its chest in an admittedly comical fashion.
The raw strength shown by the Mechanical Titan was definitely not to be ignored. Erwin had enough reason to perhaps try and… goad it to become an ally to mankind, though how he would go about doing such a thing was still a work in progress. And as for this Eren Jaeger person, the Survey Corp Commander would have to have a look at how he was like for himself. Rico and Mitabi had told him that the boy was loyal to mankind, though he could be rather unstable and loud at times, especially when in his Titan form.
Both would make great additions to his portion of the Military Brigade, Erwin reckoned. Though it was best if he didn't think too much on that for now.
First came the clearing of Trost, then the possibility of recruiting the two oddities of this world. If Erwin had to give a name to what he was doing now, he reckoned that the term baby steps, a term brought to his attention by Hanji, of all people, would describe it best.
'One step at a time… no matter how slow or small they are, will most likely be worth it in the future…'
And Smith had to pause briefly to watch as a Titan was swatted up nearly a hundred metres up into the sky, courtesy of the Mechanical Titan, before landing on the other side of Trost with a splat.
'Well… it'll definitely be worth it…'
I did have fun writing this, admittedly. It's not as good as what I usually send out, but it's a serviceable 'in between' chapter, least to me. Admittedly, I'm not sure how you guys will feel about this, especially when the reveal is so close… but I hope you enjoyed it.
I'm not really sure what else to say. Quarantine has me writing more often and I feel half dead. I do have Gunpla on the way, though. HG Kimaris Trooper, SDCS Barbatos Lupus Rex and SD Soketsuden Wu Sheng Guan Yu Yun Chang Nu Gundam on the way. Feeling pretty excited about that.
Anyhow I won't ramble on. Y'all have more important things to do than read the ramblings of a madman, so I'll get onto the replies.
blacksoul123: well I'm glad you felt that way
UndeadLord22: I can't say for fear of spoilers, so there's that…
daggercloak000: well you flatter me! I never thought anyone would love anything I wrote, but here we are. All I can say is thanks!
starscreamer11: well I'm glad you feel that way!
Guest: WELL HERE'S THE NEXT CHAPTER
Spyro fanboy: ah shucks. You rock too, my dude.
MachineOmega: I do apologise that the reveal isn't here just yet. But I do thank you for your patience!
Touhoufanatic: that's quite a thing to imagine…
Dead344156: ah shucks, thanks my man! Or… cat?
TrueForenStalkr: ah shucks, you flatter me! I'll admit, I did get better when compared to the original Tekketsu No Kyojin, though I wouldn't say by too much, but your words still make me feel like the happiest teen alive!
So yeah… erm, chapter over… see ya?
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YOU FELL FOR IT YOU FOOL!
THUNDER CROSS SPLIT ATTACK!