Lando was in the lift when Levi and the Pastor came back.
Hange jogged over and asked.
"Have you had a change of heart yet?" Hange asked.
Pastor Nick looked at the ground not saying anything.
"We don't have time for this! You know, don't you?! Will you talk or won't you?! Make up your mind already!" Hange yelled.
"I cannot say anything. The other believers are the same as I, and that will never change" Pastor Nick mumbled.
"Well, thanks for nothing! We're so grateful for all the help you've been!" Hange yelled and started to walk toward the lift.
"It's too great of a decision for a single person to make." Pastor Nick says. "The Order of the Walls must always adhere to the sacred will we're bound to obey."
"Who's will?" Hange questioned. "God or something."
"I cannot say anything," Pastor Nick says. " However I can inform you of a name who under their sacred will we were instructed to monitor."
"Monitor?" Hange asked.
"That person joined the Scout Regiment as of last year." Pastor Nick said. "Their name is…"
Then the door behind them opens and Sasha is standing at the doorway.
"Excuse me!" Sasha yells. "104 Cadet Corps! Sashsa Bruas!"
Lando wasn't surprised at the name the pastor said he had been suspecting her for a long time of hiding something. Nobody was that nice and caring without trying to hide something.
"Her?" Eren said surprised.
"Who's that?" Hange asked.
Sasha walked up to the group after being ignored.
"Um, this is for you, Section Commander," Sasha says, trying to get Hange's attention but she ignores her again.
"You must find her at once. Only she…She may know the truths which even we cannot perceive. That is all the information I can share. The rest I leave in your hands." Pastor Nick says.
"If she's in the 104th, then she's deep in the front lines right now," Hange said.
"Let's go!" Eren said, running toward the door. "We need to hurry!"
But Eren collided with Sasha sending her to the ground.
"Ouch…" Sasha said.
"Hey there Sasha," Lando said.
"Sasha?!" Eren said.
"What are you doing here?" Mikasa asked.
"You guys didn't hear her yell when she came in?" Lando asked.
"No…" Mikasa and Eren said.
Sasha seemed to come back to and reached to grab the piece of paper in a panic, picking it up and pushing her way through to Hange.
"Upon my arrival, I gave my report to the Commander!" Sasha yelled. "Afterwards, I was entrusted to deliver this message to the Section Commander!" Sasha bowed and while she was pushed the scroll out to Hange,
"Message? Thank you. Good work." Hange said and grabbed the scrolls and placed a potato in Sashsa's hands.
"So, who is this girl in the 104th?" Hange asked.
"She's the smallest one of us." Eren said.
"She's got golden hair." Armin said. "And um…"
"She is suspiciously nice." Lando said.
"She's cute," Armin finished.
"She's always hanging around Ymir." Mikasa said.
"Ymir?" Hange asked.
"Yeah she is kinda like Mikasa but instead of Eren it's her," Lando said.
"Understood," Hange said.
Lando looked at Mikasa who was staring into his soul.
"Our main goal is finding her but for now, we've got to know the damage to the wall. Everyone understand?!" Hange said after giving her orders.
"Yes." Everyone said.
Eren started to walk toward the door "We've got to go!" he said.
"Calm down, Eren," Levi said. "You all listen too. We're going on our own ways now. The rest is up to you. Erwin may have thrown together your squad but everything's riding on you. Got it, Armin? Work with Hange and combine your knowledge"
"Y-Yes sir!" Armin said.
"Mikasa," Levi said. "I don't know why you're so attached to Eren, but…use the utmost of your ability to protect Eren at all costs…"
"Yes sir! Of course!" Mikasa said.
"Lando," Levi said. "Use your ability to make sure everyone here comes back in one piece and protect Eren from the Titans."
"Got it," Lando said, he almost smiled hearing his dad compliment his abilities was something he always wanted.
"And finally…" Levi said. "Eren. Don't succumb to the rage and lose sight of the goal. We can't afford another mistake."
"Yes, sir!" Eren said.
Everyone got ready and started to move out in the dark while they were riding Hange yelled out.
"There's a nearby tower where we can assess the wall. It's an abandoned castle to the southwest. We'll ride to Utgard Castle."
"Lando!" Hange said.
Lando rode up to Hange.
"I know Levi said to keep us all alive but I have a favor to ask," Hange said.
"I was surprised he asked me to keep you guys alive." Lando said.
"He may be mean but he knows your value," Hange said. "Anyway, I need you to ride to Utgard Castle and scout it out."
"Ok," Lando said and took off.
Lando had been riding for about 45 minutes now and he finally made it to the castle when he got there he saw a horde of Titans running toward the castle, then something came flying out of the air and Lando saw 2 bodies fall from the tower. When he got there he was too late, he heard the screams and saw the garrison soldiers getting eaten. When he got there Lando got off his horse.
"Run Hachiman." Lando said softly.
Christa was standing on top as she watched the final Garrison soldiers get eaten.
"They got him," Conny said with despair.
Christa grabbed a rock and threw it at the Titans but Yimir grabbed her arm.
"The tower is about to crumble! You'll fall!" Yimir said.
"But they are dying in our place!" Christa retorted.
They heard the final screams of the soldiers before they all got ripped apart and eaten.
"Damn it all to hell!" Conny said and punched the wall. "Hey...Do we gotta wait here now until the tower falls and we get eaten alive? Is there nothing we can do about it?!"
After Conny said that they heard a sound coming from the North side of the tower, they all turned around expecting a Titan but what they saw was a hooded figure.
"Who is there?!" Reiner says.
They watched as the figure walked forward; they couldn't see his face in the dark but they saw the wings of freedom.
"Lando?!" Conny yelled.
"And this was supposed to be a simple scouting mission…" Lando said.
"Why are you here?" Reiner asked.
"Does it matter right now?" Lando asked.
"I guess not," Reiner said.
"So I assume you don't have ODM gear or any weapons at all?" Lando said.
"No…" Conny said.
"Ok so I guess I'll have to buy some time," Lando said.
Lando walked past them all and was about to jump down before Christa said.
"You might die though!"
"Hmmm…" Lando reached into his pockets in his shirt and threw a black journal at Christa. "If I die give this to Levi he'll know what to do with it." Lando then jumped down and started to engage with the Titans.
The Titans were all bunched together, probably still trying to finish off the Garrison soldiers corpses, Lando started to pin and cut 3 Titans' napes before turning and doing the same. But the Titans caught on that there was another human and started to try and kill him Lando was dodging with his ODM gear using the Titans to hook his ODM gear into.
"We've got to help him!" Christa said. "If he dies fighting for us like the others…I need to go down there and die alongside him!"
"Christa…You're still saying things like that?" Yimir said. " Don't you dare use their deaths. They didn't die so you'd have an excuse to get yourself killed."
"That's not…That's not what I…" Christa was stuttering.
"You're not like Lando!" Yimir said. "You can't do what he does…You're not like Conny and the Scouts either…They don't want to die, but you don't even care. All you want to do is die in a way that makes you seem like a hero."
"Th-That's not.." Christa said.
Then Lando shot back up there.
"I don't know how much longer I can hold out for, I'm running low on gas…" Lando said.
"Conny," Yimir said. "Give me that knife you had."
"Huh?" Conny said. "My knife?"
"Just hand it over," Yimir said.
"Fine," Conny said as he walked over and handed it to her.
"Thanks," Yimir said, patting his head.
Conny swiped her hand away. "What do you want it for?"
"Hmmm?" Ymir said. "Well, you see…I'm going to fight with this."
"I'll take all the help I can get I guess," Lando said.
"Ymir… what are you planning?" Reiner asked.
"Who knows? I don't even know myself." Yimir said.
Yimir started to walk toward Christa.
"Ymir…" Christa said.
Yimir put her hands on her shoulders.
"Christa." She said, "You've probably forgotten all about it by now…But this might be the end, so…..Try to remember…that promise we made training on the snowy mountain. I have no right to tell you how to live your life. So actually, this is nothing more than a hope of mine….I want you….to live a life you're proud of."
Yimir started to run toward the edge, jumping off.
"Ymir! Wait!" Christa said.
Lando thought that she was going to sacrifice herself and let him kill the rest of the Titans while they ate her but then yellow lighting started to turn into a Titan.
"Another one…" Lando said. "Are you friend or foe?"
Lando then jumped off as Ymir Titan was being eaten and started to spin, slicing one of the Titan's napes.
"Wh-What was that?" Conny said. "Is she worried about the tower falling?"
"She has to be," Christa said.
Lando was killing the Titans as fast as he could but it wasn't fast enough as Ymir was still almost being eaten.
"Don't you die Yimir!" Lando heard Christa yell. "Not in a place like this! Don't pretend you're good, you big idiot! You wanna go out in a blaze of glory? Are you stupid!? It's too late for you to try and get into heaven! Live for yourself goddamnit! If you're going to die protecting this tower, forget about it! Tear it down!"
"Guess she snapped…" Lando said as he killed another Titan.
Yimir's Titan started to grab brick and throw it at the other Titans knocking them down but her doing so caused the tower to lean and fall to the ground. Ymirs Titan went up to the top while the tower was still falling, grabbing them all but as it was falling a Titan hand reached out of the dust grabbing Ymir.
"Look out!" Christa yelled as the hand grabbed Yimir's Titan.
They watched as a spinning figure came toward the Titan killing it but the figure got buried in the rubble.
"Lando!" Conny yelled.
The rubble buried the Titans.
"Lando…" Christa said.
Titans started to spring up from the rubble, Yimir jumped onto its neck and bit it's nape but another Titan grabbed Yimir's head slamming her down. Then all the other Titans started to rise up and snatch Yimir, ripping her apart.
"Ymir is…." Conny said.
"This can't…" Christa said.
Christa started to run toward the Titans yelling.
"I still….want to talk to you!" Christa yelled. "I still- I still haven't told you my real name!"
A Titan's head appeared from behind the rubble and was staring at Christa, but Mikasa came in and sliced it's nape.
"Christa. Everyone, get back." Mikasa said. "We've got this. Leave the rest to us."
"Mikasa!" Christa yelled.
Then Scouts flew overhead killing the Titans eating Ymir.
"Have the others disperse and cover the area! The rest of us will attack where the Titans are gathering!" Hange yelled.
Eren defying orders took off with his ODM gear killing a Titan.
"I did it!" Eren yelled. "My first Titan kill!"
But his hooks collided and locked, sending him to the ground.
"Hey!" Eren heard someone yell, he turned around and saw Conny, Reiner, and Berthold running toward him.
After the Scouts cleaned up the Titans they watched as Hange and Christa looked after Yimir.
"It can't be.." Armin said. "Ymir is…"
They watched as Yimir opened her eyes and Christa said something to her.
"Ymir is a Titan but there is also something else…" Conny said.
Reiner and Berthold, knowing what happened, looked at the ground.
"Lando he…" Conny said. "Uh.."
Everyone was looking at them.
"What is it?!" Eren said hoping it wasn't what he thought it was.
"Lando…" Reiner said. "When the tower fell we got on Yimir's Titan but another Titan grabbed Yimir keeping her from moving, that's when Lando came spinning in killing it but the tower fell down on him…"
"No…" Eren said, "You're lying!"
"He always seemed so…" Armin said.
"Invincible…" Mikasa said.
"That doesn't mean he died!" Eren said. "He could just be buried! He could still be alive!"
"It's a possibility," Armin said. "Lando doesn't die easily."
"Let's search!" Eren said.
Conny ran over and told Hange what happened and she ordered the Scouts there to search for Lando.
After about 20 minutes Hange lifted up some rubble and saw the wings of freedom.
"Over here!" Hange yelled.
Eren, Armin, Mikasa, Conny, Reiner, and Berthold all ran over and helped Hange lift the rubble. They saw Lando with his blades still in the Titan while his body lay against the dead Titan, they dragged him out before checking his pulse.
"He's still alive." A Scout said as he started medical attention.
After they found him the Scouts headed out toward the Wall.
Lando woke up and got up slowly.
"Jeez, I'm in a lot of pain," Lando muttered.
He got up and could barely walk. He made his way to the nearest person he saw and it was Hange and Christa talking.
"Lando!" Christa said when she saw him.
"How are you even standing right now?" Hange asked.
"I just kinda am…" Lando said.
"You took quite the beating," Hange said. "Thank you for what you did saving the others."
"Oh, I was just killing Titans," Lando said.
Hange laughed before saying "I guess you were."
End of Chapter 31