3rd POV
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They had...won?
Bertholdt could barely believe it. They had really managed to win against her? Then again, if he hadn't had the idea to drop on them, he's not sure Reiner nor him would've been able to get away, not with the way things were going. Speaking of the blond, he looked worse for wear, most of the parts of his armor were busted, allowing the flesh underneath to be seen.
Could he even qualify as Armored at this point?
Their escape plan had unfortunately come to a halt, however. Not because of an impromptu attack from their captive currently residing in Reiner's mouth, no, but due to the rising sun in the distance, which, by default, announced the awakening of the few titans they passed by, who most likely would give chase to an already exhausted Reiner. The colossal was unsuited for long-distance travel, and even though his titan was smaller than Bertholdt's and more enduring, neither was Reiner's. Especially not with the exhaustion that befell him after facing two relentless shifters at once.
Though the desire to quickly join their allies was present, Bertholdt managed to convince Reiner to make a stop in one of Paradis' many forests of giant trees. This decision was mainly due to his friend's apparent exhaustion, despite Reiner's initial refusal to rest.
"So, what's gonna happen to us?"
He couldn't bear to meet her eye. No... he just couldn't.
Both her arms and legs were missing. It was a miracle that her head remained. Eren was luckier—though luck would be an exaggeration given their circumstances—only missing an arm and a leg. They both, more or less, sat on a branch below them, with the latter glaring daggers at them.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
He shifted uncomfortably. Reiner, he... He knew something was wrong with him ever since Marcel... No, he, he shouldn't think about this. Not right now. He ignored his friend's— not anymore— sharp intake of breath, anger visible on his face at the blond's clueless tone.
Fortunately, it seemed that their regeneration process was slower than usual, especially Colith's, although he felt... that something was wrong. Was she not the founding Titan? That alone should have been their undoing, and yet, here they were. He was certain they shouldn't have won. Not this easily at least. Could it be that she wasn't aware of all the powers at her disposal...?
He chanced a glance at them and quickly looked away when her attention shifted to him.
Guilt.
He couldn't help it. Those three years spent with them... She had been nothing but kind and welcoming to him and the others that he almost forgot why they were there in the first place. Bertholdt wouldn't lie; she had wormed her way into his heart. Scratch that—a blush colored his cheeks at the reminder of their date. He...he liked her.
Maybe they could find a way for her to survive this? He could vouch for her life… that is, if she agrees to join them.
However, something was bothering him.
She had known.
She knew what they were, which raised the questions: Why hadn't she tried anything? And how long had she known? Had she come across one of their nightly meetings? If so, why not report them? Could she have been sent by another nation as backup? No, that couldn't be it. Her status as an outsider was no secret. She readily admitted her foreignness, though without elaboration, an action an infiltrated agent would never dare take, thus eliminating the possibility of any outside help.
Yet, why was she in possession of the founding titan? What was the bigger picture? Had she stolen it from the king? When and more importantly how?
He wanted to ask, he had so many questions regarding her motives, but the words refused to leave his throat. The logical part of him was glad that this would soon be over. Securing the founding Titan was their top priority. A priority that had required four Shifters, and even though losing the Jaw so early on had put a damper on their morale, returning with the Founding and an additional Titan would almost atone for their mistake.
Yet... it left a bad taste in his mouth, just thinking about it.
And Annie... The fact that they had no way of knowing if she was okay worried him. She couldn't know what was going on since they hadn't planned for such a thing to happen.
As much as he felt awful for their recklessness, he was glad that they went through with it. He wasn't blind; the scouts kept giving them distrustful looks when they thought he wasn't looking. Bertholdt had a higher than normal situational awareness, hence his sudden edge and the alarms in his head blaring 'DANGER' when the scouts arrived.
He was pulled out of his thoughts by a set of voices, realizing it to be Reiner and Eren. His brows furrowed slightly. He fully expected an outburst or some type of vivid reaction from the boy, not...an interrogation? Granted the lack of insult and name-calling—which were almost non-existent— was refreshing coming from someone like Eren, who he knew truly abhorred Titans. However, he didn't expect him to demand answers instead of yelling at them like he was known for.
'What's going on...?' he wondered, eyes momentarily shifting to the other shifter.
She was mostly silent, preferring to watch everything unfold and occasionally look off into the distance. He had followed her line of sight, wondering what she was looking for, but quickly got distracted by Reiner and Eren. Aside from that, she didn't seem troubled, which he found odd. Still, he was grateful for that at least. He wasn't sure how he would have reacted if she—huh?
He blinked.
Why were her eyes—
The first thing he registered as his eyes slowly opened was a sense of motion.
'Wha...' he thought as a confused noise left his throat. He blankly stared at the evening sky, trying to remember—
"Oh, so you're finally awake."
His brain took a few moments to process the new voice. His eyes widened as he suddenly sat up and gaped at the person in front of him.
"Sieg-sir?!" He fumbled, instinctively doing a salute before realizing what he did and promptly apologized. "S-sorry...!"
"Still as polite as ever," Sieg chuckled, "though I must admit that the title 'Colossal Titan' fits you well. It's been a while, hasn't it, Bertholdt?"
His jaw hung loose, taking in the blond in front of him. His eyes quickly darted around and widened even more when he realized they were on the cart titan and in the middle of a desert. In the distance, he could see the outpost they had arrived at five years ago.
Flabbergasted, he opened his mouth, likely to ask what was going on, and promptly yelped when Reiner snorted awake beside him, looking as lost as ever.
"Frankly, I wasn't expecting to see you both," Sieg said idly, scratching his ear as he observed the duo. "Not like this at least," he added, shaking his head, which caused them to pause and stare back at him.
"What do you mean?" Reiner asked, regaining his bearings.
The blond quirked an eyebrow, then simply gestured behind them. They followed his line of sight and saw steam billowing out of a carcass, three hundred meters away. Puzzled, they whirled back to him, still not understanding.
"I didn't know traveling via titan was a common thing here."
"Traveling via what—" They both froze as the previous events came back to them in a flash and everything suddenly made sense.
"...it's Colith."
"Excuse me, who?"
"The current Holder of the…founding Titan." The air around them tensed immediately as Sieg's countenance shifted. Reiner hesitated. "We don't know the reasons why… But it seems like—"
"She spared us..." Bertholdt continued, eyes wide.
It was silent.
"Well, it looks like those five years were... interesting. We've got some time before we get to the boat, so why don't you tell me more about this—"
[12 Hours earlier]
"Colith."
"Yes, love?"
Eren flushed a bit, still unused to the terms of endearment she easily dropped even after five years, though she seemed more...motherly lately.
"Why did you let them go again? It wasn't part of the plan, so why?"
"Because I got what we needed from them. There was no need for them to realize I know their secrets and potentially inform whoever sent them."
"...Right, still don't know how you did that, but couldn't we just have captured them like we did with Annie?"
"No can do, kiddo. With what I just learned, letting them go was the best decision."
He frowned and asked, "What do you mean?"
"Remember that shifter the others mentioned earlier? He's the one who created those titans."
"You mean...he turned people into titans...?"
"Seems so. There might not even be a breach and Bertholdt's the only shifter with the Colossal. And from what I've seen of his memories, that beast was the only one capable of that kind of thing. Turning people into titans I mean."
"Then...Connie's village..."
She nodded, her face grim. "There's no doubt about it; those were from Ragako."
There was a pause. Eren was deep in thought.
"So… you know who sent them, right? Reiner mentioned bringing us to his 'hometown'. Does that mean other humans are living out there?" There was a pause as if she was hesitating to reply before she nodded. Eren frowned. "What?" She sighed.
"Honestly, I'm debating whether or not to tell you— calm down, let me finish," He closed his mouth with an audible click. She chuckled. "As I was saying, the reason I'm hesitant to tell you is, well, there's a chance it might have something to do with what's in your father's basement and, y'know..." Eren hummed in understanding.
"But I want to find out for myself." he reiterated.
"Exactly, which directly conflicts with the knowledge I currently hold." Eren looked torn between asking more about it and leaving it, though she cut his musings off. "Unfortunately the situation has changed and we cannot afford to waste time. There's more at stake, so I'll ask you, will you let me tell you, and potentially spoil what's inside your father's basement?"
He...he didn't know. Would that mean returning to Shiganshina will no longer be required? This seemed way too easy and somewhat... Disappointing. Don't get him wrong, learning why those bastards attacked will greatly help him redirect all his rage to the source, especially now that he knew someone sent them and he wanted them to pay. But—
"I don't plan on using my powers to get to Shiganshina so we'll head there the old fashioned way if that's what you're worried about. After all, I'll need evidence to back up my claims, not everyone will believe me, especially not the current government, so going there will most likely be mandatory." he squawked when she reached to stroke his hair with her finger. "So what'll it be?"
What will it be...? Technically that doesn't impede his mission. She was just giving him the option to find out now than later which he appreciated.
"I would like to know."
Colith smiled. She opened her mouth to speak—
"But quick question, where are we going? The wall's the other way...?" He said, eyes skimming over the vast plains.
After knocking out the traitors and ordering one of the Titans that had gathered beneath the tree to take them out of Wall Maria, Colith shifted and was currently heading southeast, putting more distance between them and Wall Rose, much to Eren's confusion.
"We only have two hours before they call for backups." he stared straight into her eye.
"That's enough time for what I'm about to do."
He blinked, "Huh? Do what exactly?"
"A little investigation."
"Why?" he asked, feeling her gaze focus on him despite the lack of pupils for a moment before she shifted her attention ahead and grunted.
"There's something odd I've been sensing for a while now. I want to see what it is and make sure it's nothing dangerous." his mouth formed a 'o', finally understanding why she kept glancing left the entire time they were stranded.
"A shifter?" He suggested.
"It doesn't feel like one nor does it seems to be a regular titan."
"That's weird. Can't you just...teleport to it?"
"Nah, I feel like running. It's fun." Eren sweat dropped. "Anyway, your dad might actually be an outsider so welcome to the gang." she said casually, nearly causing him to trip down, though the hairs around his waist held him back from plummeting.
"What?!"
"Trust me, there's a lot to unpack here. This is just an assumption since you said he mentioned 'the truth behind Titans.' Now that I know where they come from and why they are as they are, it would make sense if he also hailed from elsewhere if he knew the truth and kept the evidence."
Eren was at a loss of word. He had to sit down to process her words which caused her to slow down her pace before stopping altogether. She placed him in her palm, brought him to eye level and started gently patting his head in comfort.
"If you want, I can wait until we get back," he surprised her by quickly shaking his head.
"No, no, It's just...a lot to take in, but go on." her face cringed a bit.
"Just so you know it gets crazier from here," she sighed, "So try not to fly off the handle, understood? I won't get into heavy detail until everyone's gathered though."
He wanted to protest but backed down at the meaningful look she shot him. She resumed her jog.
"This place," she motioned around with a hand, "is actually called 'Paradis Island.'"
"Island...?"
"Hm-hn, an island is a piece of land commonly surrounded by water," Eren nodded slowly, humming in understanding.
"I didn't know this place had a name, let alone what an island was. Will that be relevant?" She nodded. He blinked. "Huh, whoever choose 'Paradis' as a name must've had a messed up sense of humor." he deadpanned.
"Or, mostly been a delusional dumbass with a strong desire to dodge reality I'd say. Now hush, let me continue before I go off track."
"Yes, ma'am."
"So, you already know why the walls exist, right?"
"What's with that question?"
"Just humor me."
His face scrunched up, "I guess...to protect us from titans? Not that they did a great job." he rolled his eyes. "Why are you bringing this up?"
"Well, the island is full of titans, which makes it impossible for human life outside the walls, reinforcing the belief that you were all that was left of humanity. But plot twist, that's a big fat lie. There is indeed human life, but they're just not on the island." He frowned.
"Then where...?"
"Beyond the sea." His eyes widened, heart skipping a beat.
"Beyond...the sea?"
"There's a place called Marley, and it's actually a continent- Continents are a hundred times bigger than islands." She explained, "That's where Bertholdt, Reiner, and probably your dad come from. I didn't really dwell on his life that much, but long story short, this place is hell, especially for people like you."
"People like me...?" she nodded.
"Eldians, also known as 'the subjects of Ymir.'"
He was utterly bewildered by the alien word, and Ymir?
"I have so many questions. Subjects of...Ymir? El...dians? And why would this 'Marley' place be hell for Eldians?" he ignored the few titans who bowed as they passed by. Colith scowled, irritation clearly showing which surprised him.
She told him about the Eldian Empire and essentially informed him of how the entire world—since apparently, the world is vast—viewed and treated them.
He was pissed.
"Why aren't they fighting back?! Why are they letting this happen to them?! They had the power to—Ow! What was that for?!" He glared at her, rubbing his stomach she just poked with her nail.
"Don't be stupid and blame them for something they had no control over," she scolded, startling him. He was about to retort, but she continued.
"Imagine one day your ruler decides to leave you in the hands of people who want you dead, taking with him a part of his people on a remote island without caring whether your survive or not. Imagine the betrayal and terror his subjects felt at this moment when their king, the one supposed to protect them, chooses to abandon them. And to add insult to injury, brainwashes those under him to forget everything so that the consequences of his shitty actions don't fall on him. And don't get me started on the repression those who dared question him endured because the brainwashing wasn't fully successful. Several families, including the Ackermans and Asians, almost got entirely wiped out, save for a few individuals you're already familiar with. This is just the tip of the iceberg—I'll tell you what an iceberg is later."
She clicked her tongue and narrowed her eyes in disdain.
"I can assure you they fought. But what's the point of fighting when there's no hope? You see those Titans? That's what happens when you oppose those in power. If they don't outright erase your entire lineage, that is. The fear of becoming a Titan and the resentment they harbor towards their so-called king was so deeply ingrained that they were brainwashed into believing that they are nothing but monsters who need repentance. Guilt the Marleyan government exploits to their advantage to this day, turning them into cannon fodder." She huffed, shaking her head.
"It is not just a matter of whoever is Good or Bad though. Both parties are definitely at fault. The Eldian Empire for having traumatized the entire world for over 2000 years, even if they did some good, that doesn't erase their crimes. And Marley for inflicting atrocities on their descendants, billions of innocent people who have nothing to do with their ancestors' crimes and essentially enslaving them for who they are."
"This in no way excuses the attack that happened five years ago, even though it could have been prevented if the former 'king' of Eldia had not been a spineless coward who abandoned his people to their fate in the pursuit of artificial peace. As for Marley, their greed and thirst for power will not go unpunished. Both shall and will receive retribution; be sure of it."
Screeching sounds caught the horned titan's attention. She glanced up, catching sight of a flock of birds taking off in the distance. Her eyes narrowed until she felt eyes on her and promptly looked down.
Eren was staring right at her, with his mouth wide open. She winced.
"Sorry, I got a little...carried away. I told you it'll get crazier." She admits, scratching her cheek sheepishly.
He gulped, still flummoxed, "Uh-uh... A little."
She chuckled a little. She was so focused on her rant that she didn't even notice she had stopped running again.
Meanwhile, Eren was still processing the flood of information. He definitely didn't expect any of this... especially not her anger. Ten minutes passed in silence, occasionally broken by the sound of her footsteps.
"I don't...really get all this historical stuff. It's a bit..."
"Complex? Indeed it is," she agreed.
"Hm, you never said why they attacked us though." he spoke, looking up at her.
"Marley wanted the Founding Titan, the only one capable of controlling Eldians which the Royal family possessed. Not only that, but they were also after resources—"
"Wait wait wait! So you're the Founding?!" He did a double take when she shook her head. "Huh?"
"I know what my titan is called and it's definitely not the Founding. There are only nine Titans, each with its own unique abilities. Before the attack, Marley had seven: the Colossal, Armored, Female, Jaw, Cart, Beast, and War Hammer. They sent four to Paradis—" Her jaw clenched tightly. "—Children, and expected everything to go smoothly. One of them was eaten on the way. Bertholdt doesn't know who inherited the Jaw's abilities after that."
"Then why do you think you're not the founding? Titans bow to you! Heck, the thing you did to those bastards? You can literally control shifters!" she held up a hand.
"Trust me, I am not trying to confuse you. I can assure you that the Founding isn't in my possession."
"How can you be so sure? That doesn't make any sense!"
"Listen! See that I only mentioned seven under Marley's control after the great titan war and with the Founding on Paradis, that's eight in total." Eren was confused.
"So...there's one missing and it's you? Me? Huh— wait, that doesn't add up."
"How do I put this...Alright, lil bird, listen well, much isn't known about his abilities since Marley had no data on him, yet, he still originates from there. Apparently that ninth titan is called the Attack Titan." Their eyes met, "And I think it is what...your titan is called. The attack titan."
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"Eren! You'll understand the truth someday if you visit the basement! It will be a harsh, painful journey...but you must reach it! If you want to save Mikasa, Armin, and everyone else...you must master this power!"
Power!
POWE—
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A horrified look gradually came over his face. The weird dreams, no...the memories, his father's last words, and the feeling of being injected with something, a resounding boom, a forest, and...and...
"...I love you, son."
*CRUNCH*
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"To become a shifter, one must first become a pure titan then devour a previous shifter..."
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And then it all clicked.
'I... I ate dad.'
He wanted to puke. So badly.
He barely registered the feeling of getting pressed against something warm and soft.
BA DUMP
BA DUMP
BA DUMP
'Heartbeats…?' That effectively caught his attention. He quickly blinked away the dark spots that had begun to appear in his vision as he calmed down. 'Wait… why am I—'
"I'm sorry..." He tensed before a sense of security washed over him, causing him to relax. He craned his neck to look around, puzzled when he saw that they were closer to the ground, meaning that Colith was sitting.
"...What happened?" he asked.
She pulled him away from her chest, cupping him in her hands, giving him space to sit and look at her.
"You had a panic attack," she bit her lip, "If I had known this would overwhelm you, I wouldn't have—"
"No...I, it's not that. " He shook his head, "I just, I just remembered something..." he said. Her brows creased in concern.
"Is it...about that day...?" Eren froze then slowly nodded, averting his gaze.
"I think I..." His breath shuddered, "I think I know how...dad," his hands trembled, "how dad...died."
It was silent.
"I'm sorry."
He stayed silent, trying not to think too much about it. He closed his eyes and counted to 10 before sighing. He opened his eyes to the contemplative expression on her titan face. He wondered what had her so deep in thought before a grunt and a nod from her startled him.
"Maybe we should go back."
He blinked and then asked, "Huh? What happened to the investigation?" He was confused.
"It can wait," she said, getting up and placing him on her shoulder. "It's not that important anyway."
"It's not that— you've been running for an hour now! And you said it might be dangerous!"
"Might."
He paused, and then it dawned on him. "Is it because of me?" She remained silent. "Hey, look, I'm okay! We can continue, I promise!"
"No, your health's more important. I can always come back and check later."
"What if it does wind up being something dangerous, huh? Come on, please! It wasn't that big of a deal." she quirked a brow, causing him to shrink a little though he didn't back down. "Look, I actually want to know so let's keep going!"
After more back and forth, he surprisingly won the argument, causing her to reluctantly turn back.
"Don't say I didn't warn you." he scoffed, rolling his eyes.
"Please, I couldn't be more surprised after the boatload of things you just dumped on me."
He did get surprised.
"So let me get this straight. There are humans out there. We're not the last remnants of humanity?" Hanji began.
"Yes."
"We are part of a race that can exclusively transform into Titans, known as the Eldians."
"Uh-huh."
An awkward silence ensued.
"The objective of the attack five years ago was to recover the Founding Titan and eradicate us in the process."
"And exploit the resources in your soil."
"And exploit the resources in our soil, right."
Another beat.
"Erwin, why the hell are you smiling? It's creepy."
"...Apologies," he cleared his throat and turned to the blonde. "Your real identity is Historia Reiss, illegitimate daughter of Rod Reiss, who happens to be the current ruler of the Walls."
"...Yes."
"And Ymir is the current Jaw titan."
"But she's on our side so long as Historia's safe."
"I see, and this is...?"
"Dina Fritz, the last member of the royal family who lived in Marley. And the late Dr. Jaeger's first wife," the woman shrank into herself under everyone's attention.
"And you turned her back into a human."
"Yep."
"..."
"So, you are the Founding Titan?"
"That would be Eren."
"Pardon ?"
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1st POV
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Messing with people sure was fun.
We stumbled upon Dina and sure enough, she was the one I felt all this time.
Eren wasn't too happy when he caught sight of the one responsible for his mother's demise, and he made it very clear by socking her right in the mouth after obviously shifting right next to my fucking face.
It shouldn't have surprised me honestly, but I wasn't expecting him to throw hands and ask questions after.
Then again I would've done the same.
Moving on, after pinning him down before he could get back up, turns out that punching wasn't all he did since he unknowingly activated the Founding's ability when he touched her and, therefore, summoned a bunch of Titans to rip her apart.
Panicked, I had no other choice but to scream, which effectively knocked everyone out and gave me an opportunity to pull Eren out before he regained consciousness and resumed his assault on the smiling titan, who honestly barely escaped death.
When he woke up a minute later, I promptly scolded him about shifting without warning. He did look chastised but immediately snarled when he saw Dina's unmoving form and before he could attempt anything, I dumped the contents of the vial into her still-recovering mouth. Thankfully, the punch wasn't aimed anywhere near her neck, leaving it relatively unharmed. I rolled her body so she was on her stomach and waited. This effectively snapped Eren out of his revenge-driven rage, puzzling him as to why I was doing this until he noticed the horde's prone forms surrounding us.
"What are these titans doing here? Did you call them? Why?"
Ah, the million dollar question. The fact he didn't go straight to the paths was a blessing in itself. Not sure how Ymir would've reacted.
"Me? That was you!"
I'll never forget the face he made when I told him that. Obviously he asked what the hell I was talking about but told him to wait as I felt my link with Dina strengthen and proceeded to cover her nape with a hand. I'll spare you the details but I now had complete control over her physiology and could, therefore, modify it as I see fit, and easily willed it to revert to its origin.
In summary, her Titan form blossomed.
Literally.
White flowers immediately sprouted into existence, and if my clones hadn't already tested it once, I would have probably looked like Eren. Poor kid was utterly flabbergasted. Slowly lifting my hand, it revealed the naked body of a woman in fetal position, surrounded by lushness.
Ever since I got here, I've noticed that plants and pretty much anything related to vegetation have been a recurring theme. Hell, they come to me naturally! Kinda ironic considering the reason I died in the first place.
Aside from the...oddly beautiful process, I swiftly warped her in a cloth to spare her some modesty and waited for Eren to snap out of it...which was easier said than done.
I wasn't blind; the kid had been struggling, despite saying otherwise. With the non-stop revelations, it was a given. Especially after learning about Annie, Bertholdt and Reiner's betrayal, the walls' titans, their heritage and ability to become titans, that humanity was still thriving out there and actively loathed them, that his dad had been a shifter which brought its own set of problems, and all in the span of a mere week would overwhelm anyone. Especially a teenager. However, finding out that the weird presence had been his mother's murderer and subsequently witnessing me reverting her to a human had been too much.
I put him to sleep, not wishing to further load his head with information and so that he and more importantly, his brain, could rest. I felt bad for dumping this on him this way, but it was far better than him learning it via inherited trauma and memories from the past wielders and ultimately being influenced by their experiences. It was foolish, and quite selfish on my part, but I didn't want things to go the same way, story be damned. My decision to knock him out turned out to be a good call; on my way back, I ran into Ymir.
In Titan form.
I hadn't seen that one coming. I didn't account for her to forsake her cover for me, and although I appreciated the sentiment, it utterly ruined the plans I had for her.
Oh well, time to improvise.
We got back an hour later. Ymir had exited her Titan form sometime before we arrived, still unused to her newfound power. It was understandable, considering she hadn't trained her Titan form enough to master it. She couldn't hold the transformation for too long, even though her Titan was small.
Of course, questions flowed as soon as we arrived. Questions such as, "What did you learn?", "Where are the traitors?", "WHAT THE FUCK YMIR?!" "What happened to Eren?" and more importantly who the hell is this sleeping woman?!
I simply responded that I couldn't answer without the Commander's presence and that immediately put a stop to the questions. I shared a look with Hanji which was enough for her to understand and call for a retreat.
We were done there.
One trip back to HQ and a day later and now here we were, in Erwin's office.
Levi, Hanji, Mike, Eren, Historia and Dina were present. Everyone was mostly...bewildered but Erwin? Boy, the man looked ecstatic! Scratch that, his aura was going wild! A given, considering I just confirmed his dream and that his father was definitely onto something.
"Erwin, I believe informing Zackley should be a priority, this is far from what we expected." Hanji said, frowning. "A meeting with every officials would be ideal to discuss our next steps. We're no longer facing mindless creatures I'm afraid..."
"And that, my dear Hanji," I said, "is a bad idea." Everyone turned to me, puzzled.
"Bad idea?" she repeated.
"The Royal Government seems to already be aware of it since it's practically illegal to do research on the outside, so their stance is very clear. If they find out that we know, even with evidences that would be Mrs.Dina's existence, I wouldn't be surprised if they found a way to, one, disband the Survey Corps, and two, execute everyone in this room beside Historia."
"She's right," Erwin agreed, garnering everyone's attention. My eyebrows rose, "It would be more beneficial if everything discussed today remains in this room until further notice." he stated eying all of us, the unspoken order clear.
"Tch, give me a damn break." Levi grunted, "In other words, there's nothing we can do about it for now. What about the new titan brat?" Historia tensed.
"It seems she has no affiliation with the three warriors despite currently possessing the Jaw Titan. On account of this, she will be questioned and reintegrated into our ranks." he said, "Regarding Miss Reiss, and Mrs Fritz—"
"Jaeger." Dina corrected softly.
Eren's aura spiked, and I had to give him a warning look, essentially conveying to him to behave. He clenched his jaw but remained silent. Learning that his father had been married before and even had a son with the person who was essentially his mother's murderer would leave anyone perplexed. In Eren's case, he was angry and mostly lost. He hadn't taken the news well and refused to speak to the woman despite her attempts. An understandable reaction on his part.
"Apologies, Mrs. Jaeger," he smiled before continuing to say that they would be relocated somewhere hidden and would be accompanied by a team responsible for their security.
"The stakes have clearly changed, indeed. However, it appears that the crown does not share our perspective, making it difficult to find a common ground."
Mike sniffed and spoke for the first time since the meeting began, "What's your plan, then?"
The gears were already turning in his head, and silence enveloped the room. Tension was palpable, and everyone was clearly on edge. Especially Dina, being a stranger to all this; her fate was literally in our hands.
"For now, let us make sure that nothing happens to our guests. Again, I apologize for the hectic welcome. I hope this whole ordeal doesn't overwhelm you."
Dina shook her head, understanding how dire the situation was. I'm honestly impressed with the way she basically took everything in stride.
The rest of the meeting revolved around Eren's new abilities, but since the teen didn't know how they worked, I was the one answering. I roughly told them everything I knew - how only the Royal family or someone with royal blood could access the Founding's full powers. However, there was a catch; hundreds of years ago, the 145th King, Karl Fritz, made a vow to renounce war, which prevented any of his descendants who inherited the power from ever having any form of free will. The past hundred years, and their passivity during and after the attack, were proof of that.
When asked how I knew all this, I simply told them the same thing I told Levi. The results were very flabbergasted—and excited, Hanji—looks sent my way. Of course, I purposely dodged any questions about me. Having titan powers without being one of the nine would raise many eyebrows. Fortunately, my distraction, meaning Dina, an Eldian originating from Marley and a former restorationist was a very good diversion. Even Eren seemed to look at her in a new light upon learning that. Unfortunately, Erwin wasn't fooled.
"Colith, may I have a word with you?" I stopped in my tracks and glanced at him in question. The meeting had just ended and we were all returning to our business.
I gently pushed Eren, who had been waiting for me, out of the room. Once the door closed and we were alone, I spoke. "How may I help you?"
The blond laced his fingers together and regarded me for a moment before smiling.
I unconsciously gulped.
"So, what happened?"
"Sorry guys, but I'm not allowed to talk."
"What?!"
"Seriously? We've been waiting for answers all this time! Can't you at least share something?"
"Leave him alone, Connie. You might get him into trouble."
"But come on, Mikasa! What now? We find out that Annie, Bertholdt, and Reiner are traitors, Ymir is a Titan, so what's next? Are we all going to turn into Titans?!" Connie screeched before pausing, "What's up with you guys?"
"Nothing," Armin replied, causing Jean's eyes to narrow slightly.
"You guys seem to know something we don't, right?" The Shiganshina Trio remained silent, Jean sighed. "Let me guess, classified?"
"Sorry Jean," replied Armin.
"Ugh, this whole situation is so freaking confusing." Sasha bemoaned, slumping on the table, "I'm glad there was no breach, but still, how did those Titans get inside in the first place and why didn't we kill them? Was it safe to leave them be?"
"Well, they aren't hurting anyone so..."
"That's rich coming from you, Eren. Last I checked, you couldn't stand Titans, so what gives?" Jean said incredulously.
"People can change, alright. Don't look at me like that, horse face."
"Huh?!"
"Keep it down, guys," Marco scolded. "This isn't the time for this! I don't know why we've been summoned, but anyone could arrive at any moment." The two boys muttered something before begrudgingly conceding. They had been ordered to wait in a room sometime after breakfast.
"Any news about your family, Connie?" Eren inquired, an apprehensive look in his eyes.
Connie blinked, "Now that you mention it, yes actually! I got a letter this morning saying that they were in Yalkell! They got invited by some noble last week 'cause I saved their niece during Trost's attack, though I don't really remember saving anyone." he scratched his head in confusion.
Everyone shared puzzled looks. "Weren't you on the front line?" Armin asked.
"That's the weird part! I didn't come across any civilians. I mean, I was too busy trying not to die to notice."
"That's weird..."
The door suddenly opened, and two people entered, interrupting whatever Marco was about to say.
"Colith! And...Ymir?" Eren blinked, "What's going on?"
"Hey guys, sorry for the wait," I said, placing the folder I was carrying on the table, which immediately caught their attention.
"Was it you who called us?" Marco asked uncertainly. I hummed in response.
"Correct! You have been selected to be part of a newly established unit, known as 'The Anti-Shifter Squad.' Congratulations!"
"Anti-Shifter Squad, that makes...," Armin paused before a painful expression crossed his face as he looked at me. A devious grin morphed onto my face, and I bumped fists with Ymir, who was smirking.
"I don't make the rules, Min, but anyway, as you would have guessed from the name, we'll mostly be covering anti-shifter training, and will also participate in joint trainings with the Special Operations Squad." I handed them papers containing information on the current shifters, descriptions, advantages, weaknesses, and all the details known so far, along with some meta knowledge since Bert didn't know much about the Warhammer titan.
"Nine titans...?" Marco said, baffled. "Hold on, where did you even get all this information?"
"Our mission, with Eren, was to gather intel without arousing Bertholdt and Reiner's suspicion; that's why we let ourselves get captured. As you see in the 'Beast Titan' segment, he possesses the ability to turn people into Titans, meaning those Titans were the inhabitants of Ragako. This allowed the invasion to happen without the need for a breach. Reason why we decided not to further harm them. I'm sorry, Connie. I will explain our findings in more detail later. Please pack some casual clothes and don't forget your toothbrushes; we'll be camping for a few weeks. Any questions?"
I was met with a deafening silence and mostly bewildered faces.
"What." Sasha said.
"None? Alright, come on, we don't have all day! Go pack up!" I clapped my hands and leaned back.
"Wait, wait, wait... I don't think I understood what you just said." Jean started, "You mean, those Titans are from Connie's village?"
"Yup."
"And, that beast was what turned them into titans?" Marco piped in, aghast. "Which means that titans… are…"
"Human, yes, bingo," Ymir rolled her eyes sarcastically, "Just think about it, I can shift, Mama Bear's a shifter, a weird one at that. This ball of anger is one too and everybody on this God-forsaken island can become a Titan, it's not that complicated."
Connie paled, "Then... Oh shit." He held his head in disbelief, "Oh shit.. Oh fuck."
Ymir quirked a brow and motioned for Marco to explain the situation.
"Um, I think he just realized that his family almost became titans."
She whistled. "Damn, that's some luck you've got there, midget. At least they got off scot-free."
"...but my village."
"Good news is! There's a way to revert them!" Connie glanced at me with wide hopeful eyes and everyone looked startled.
"That's possible?" Armin, Jean and Marco said in unison. Mikasa's brows simply lifted.
"R-really?!" I nodded.
"Hadn't you guessed? The lady we brought with us was a titan. No clue how she did it though. Not that I care."
"Wait—I can't believe you knew all this time, Ymir," Sasha exclaimed, pointing accusingly at her. "So you knew we were fighting humans?! Why didn't you tell anyone?!"
"What is she even doing here? Isn't she with them?" Jean's eyes narrowed and clicked his tongue. Ymir remained unfazed.
"Nope, she was lucky enough to eat a previous shifter." I quickly diffused the situation before it escalated. This effectively caught their attention.
"...What?"
"It's on the paper."
"Wait, I thought Commander Erwin had said to keep this information confidential...," Eren realized. "You could get in trouble for this!"
"No, I believe informing my new squad of the current situation is essential for their understanding of future events." I waved a hand, "Plus Erwin's cool with it. Anyway, pack up, we don't have all day!"
No one moved.
"Your new squad." Armin repeated.
I simply replied with a peace sign and a "yay."