Regiment Commander Uric Halsen lead 2 of his men purposely along a deserted hallway. The small company was quiet as they passed by empty rooms that in only a matter of hours would be teaming with personnel. The commander's face was heavily lined and soft, but his be-speckled dark brown eyes were unnaturally piercing. His receding dark hair was shot with grey, yet despite his age he walked with an iron-straight posture. This was a man who had seen more than his fair share of battle and strife in the name of the greater good; he was just relieved to now stand firmly on what he considered the right side.
The last door on the right had 2 of the most capable (albeit clearly exhausted) of his soldiers stationed on either side. As he approached the two men straightened, placing one closed fist angled over their hearts and the other tightly behind their back: a salute. Halsen nodded as he knocked softly on the thick interior door of the Allied Forces Intelligence office. The sun had barely risen in the sky, but he knew she would be here.
"Enter." A high, ringing voice answered. He let himself and his men in, closing the door quietly. Historia sat at the head of the long table; papers littered around her haphazardly as she poured over a mountain of documents. Her eyes were bloodshot, sleep desperately trying to force them closed. Yet still she studied each piece of paper carefully, jotting down her own notes as she went.
"My lady, shouldn't you be getting some rest?" Halsen asked tentatively. This had been a weeklong trend for them. He would find her buried beneath a mound of mission reports and conversation transcripts and almost need to drag her back to her chambers before she would relent. Historia barely looked up from the table when she responded. "I want to make sure I have every scrap of information I can give them before they do this." She whispered, grabbing another stack of papers from the towering pile.
Commander Halen was relieved to be able to give her better news this time around. "That's actually what I came here to tell you, your majesty." Historia's head snapped up quickly to assess the commander's expression.
"The convoy has been spotted, your Grace." He nodded towards the southernmost window. "They're here."
Throwing herself from her chair, Historia raced to the window and searched desperately until she saw a pillar of dust billowing in the air on the trail heading towards their command center. Even in her sleep-deprived state, the queen managed a genuine smile.
"They're home."
Just as Historia was opening the front doors of her complex to anxiously await her friend's arrival, a door within the Capitol's high council building was also being opened.
"General Loren, I apologize for the intrusion so early in the morning sir, but I have an urgent communique from the Trost district Regiment Barracks."
A wiry man in his mid to late 30's looked up from the large and ornate desk he was sitting at. General Caleb Loren of the Eldian Jaegerist Movement was a tall and gaunt man. His blonde hair was immaculately presented, trailing ends landing just above his cold grey stare as he regarded his second in command.
"Let me guess Angelo, our little band of peace-talking traitors have left to see their queen." He said in a deep voice that did not match his appearance in the slightest.
"Yes sir. The Trost district has also sent along their itinerary. This timing schedule gives them a few hours of conferring with Historia at her command center south of here before they make their way to the Capitol. They should be here just after midday."
"Hmm." Rising to his feet, Loren strode to the large picture window that overlooked the courtyard below and watched the soldiers that marched back and forth out of sight. "I wonder what they will think of the improvements we have made to the castle that used to hold their precious Historia Reiss." War battlements adorned almost every outlying parapet surrounding the fortress; soldiers patrolled the walls fully equipped with Strategic Maneuvering Gear, loaded weapons hanging at their sides. Their forces continued to grow each day thanks the strict conscription laws that had come into effect the year prior.
Commander Bernard Angelo gave a curt laugh. "There's no way in hell they would be capable of overtaking us here, sir. There are only six of them in attendance; an easily overpowered number."
General Loren shot Angelo with a hard look. "It would be in your best interest to not develop any assumptions regarding this particular group, Bernard." The commander shrunk in the General's withering stare. "We are acutely aware of what this group of so called "Allied Ambassadors" are capable of, and we should be even more conscious of the means they are willing to use to get their way." Loren came to stand directly in front of Angelo, who took a small step backwards at his advance.
"These are the men and women who lead the charge in destroying the Eldian Empire's future. The back-stabbing cowards who, when Eren Jaeger blessed us with divine retribution, sought and succeeded in securing the end of our people. We may be able to gather a great deal of information from them in their attempt at an olive branch but make no mistake: There cannot and will not be any peace with them, nor the rest of the world whose aim is to take us down. Let this foolish meeting be a reminder to all those who oppose us: Eldia is prepared to do what is necessary to survive."
Loren retreated behind his desk once more, sinking into the large leather armchair that sat behind it.
"We will have our justice served, one way or another. Speaking of which, I believe you have something to attend to Commander, do you not?"
"Yes sir." Commander Angelo nodded and took his leave from the chambers, passing swiftly by two elite soldiers that were stationed on either side of the General's office door. Had he taken a moment to observe their expressions as he left, he may have caught the troubled look that rested on the face of the left-most guard. An anxious crease had developed between the eyes of the small woman who saluted him, crossing both her arms over her chest as he hastily made his exit down the hall. A cool sweat beaded at the nape of her neck as she digested the meaning behind her commanding officer's conversation.
They don't mean to give this a chance at all. It doesn't matter what this group from the mainland has to say, it will fall on deaf ears. Their choice is made. Fear and unease rippled through her as she watched Commander Angelo's retreating form go around the corner and out of sight.
The people deserve a chance at peace. Who are they to take that away from them?
The reuniting of the Allied Ambassador group and Historia's brigade gave all involved a hefty boost of moral. Now that they were here, the plan truly began to take shape into something much more concrete, though their chances of success regrettably remained the same.
A delighted squeal met them as they all entered the command room. They barely had enough time to turn their heads before a woman with light hair had knocked Connie to the ground.
"Connie! Thank God, oh thank God." The woman began to softly sob into the folds of his cloak as Connie wrapped his arms hard around her. "I'm here, mom. I'm here." He mumbled, pressing his own misty face into her shoulder.
"Dad! Uncle Ed!" Jean cried, rushing to join the two men seated in the closest chairs to the door, tightly embracing the taller of them. This man could have been Jean's twin if age and hardship didn't reside so deeply in the wrinkles of his face.
Connie pulled his mother up into a standing position, arms still roped securely around her. He gave Historia a grateful look. "Thank you for keeping her safe. For keeping them all safe."
Her eyes were full of tears as she smiled broadly at them. "That's what all of this is about, right? Giving back what we thought we had lost." She wiped away the moisture that had spilled over onto her cheeks. "I'm just so happy that you guys are okay."
Reiner was staring intently at Historia, drinking in the aura she cast around the room. His thoughts were the same as they had been on the day she came to Armin, Jean and his rescue in the not yet reclaimed wall Maria. Embarrassed, he rubbed his face and tried to focus.
The rest of the group looked on with happiness, and Armin's heart lightened. This right here is why no matter how impossible this may seem we have to push forward. This is what the world deserves.
But then a slight movement in the far corner of the room stole all his attention away from his friends and their families.
"Mikasa."
Everyone turned to look at him, then followed the path of his eyes to where Mikasa stood. Unlike the hurt he had found in Shinganshina, Armin was almost relieved at how much she still looked like the person he once knew. Lean and agile, black hair trailing over her shoulders and down her back. Slender eyes regarded them cautiously as if she wasn't sure of the reaction she would receive after so much time apart.
This caution proved unnecessary as they all converged on where she stood, and Armin threw his arms around her into an emotional embrace. She was here and she was safe, that's all that mattered. After a moment of shock, her face broke out in a smile, ruddy patches coloring her cheeks as they once again found themselves together.
Following several hours spent exchanging information, Armin stood up from the boardroom table and regarded the group. "Well, despite all the intel you've been able put together Historia, it seems as though we haven't learned a whole lot more than what we already knew, except for this hanger being built of the southeast coast. It looks like they are trying to protect themselves from every angle of attack now, since the northern area of the island is blocked off by mountain ranges. The Jaegerists are continuing to build their forces, but for what specific reason remains a mystery."
Historia nodded solemnly. "The people of Paradis are scared. It's this fear that allows the Jaegerists to control them so easily. Though luckily for us there are still many of those who support our cause. They just want their peace and the freedom to live out their lives without the threat of war."
"It's only those bastards sitting pretty in the Capitol that really want a war." Jean said angrily. "The rest of them are just doing what they think will save them from some imaginary enemy."
Reiner was the one to respond. "Except until a few years ago, that "imaginary enemy" was real." They all looked over at him as he stared at the patterns on the wooden surface of the table. "How do we convince anyone, let alone the entire Eldian government that there is no one left in this world that can afford to go to war?"
"Everyone is weak." Annie replied. "The toll of the Rumbling knocked out any of our ability to stand up in arms. It's not like they don't know this."
"The Jaegerist Regime is adamant that the fortification of the island and their strict control within it is solely to prepare their people for an attack from the Allied Nations as retribution." Commander Halsen removed his eyeglasses and folded them neatly into his pocket.
"But that's not the truth, now is it." Mikasa, who had remained mostly quiet during the exchange, was now standing on the commander's left closest to Armin: that was who she directed her words to. "I'm sure that the Eldian government is indeed worried about a possible retaliation for the part they played in the Rumbling, but that worry pales in comparison to their resentment. The Jaegerist's driving motive is anger, specifically anger derived from the death of… of someone they considered their God and a bringer of "divine retribution" for the Eldian people. Now that they no longer have that, they see anyone that wasn't born here on Paradis as an accomplice to the downfall of their people. I don't think it's going to matter what you say to them. In the end the consensus will be the same: They do not want peace with the mainland, they want revenge."
Armin remained silent for a moment before meeting her eyes. "That doesn't matter right now."
"What the hell do you mean it doesn't matter?! If we all know how this whole thing is going to play out, then why are we risking our lives for it?" Connie laid his hand over his mother's outstretched one.
"Yeah, it's better to go back to Veritas with our tails between our legs and ALIVE, than to end up with our heads mounted on spikes outside the castle walls." Jean muttered. "Why continue when failure is the only option?"
But it wasn't Armin who provided the answer to Jean's question: Mikasa had been studying Armin's resolve. "Because we need to try." she whispered.
"That's right." Armin agreed. "Maybe this whole trip will end up being for nothing, but we need to at least try and extend our hand to them. If an alliance can't be made, perhaps we can get them to agree to a temporary truce for the time being. This would allow both the Allied Nations and Eldia to rebuild, and for the people who reside within them to, as Historia put it, live without the constant pressure of a potential war." He looked sternly around the table. "We all know and understand the risk we are about to face. We could sit here for days going back and forth over this, but the truth is that whether we succeed or fail is not in the equation anymore. All that's left to do is try."
The company was morose as he turned to Historia. "Your majesty, your people stationed within the Capitol are ready to aid us if a quick escape is necessary, correct? With minimal casualties?"
"Yes" she said softly. "They are laying the groundwork as we speak."
"That' that then. Ambassadors, do what you need to do to prepare yourselves. We leave within the hour."
The boardroom emptied as one by one the company dispersed to complete their preparations for the task ahead. Historia had begun clearing the table and organizing the slips of paper left from the meeting as Armin remained at the head of the table lost in thought, until he felt Mikasa approach him. Without turning he let out a sigh.
"I don't suppose you've reconsidered joining us, have you?" He asked half-heartedly, nodding to himself when his question was met with silence. Historia, respectful as ever, set her stack of notes down softly. Averting her gaze she headed towards the door, closing it quietly behind her. After a moment he glanced at Mikasa's expression, which was one of conflict and guilt, and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"Please don't." He whispered. "You already hold such a heavy burden, don't carry this with you to."
Her eyes swam with tears that threatened to spill over as Armin faced her.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked. I understand all too well why you need to stay, and if they knew the truth you wouldn't be safe here. I know it's better this way, and I will hold to our story… I guess I just wish you were there beside me, as you once were."
Mikasa's voice wavered. "As do I. This story is ours, after all. I just…I can't…" She closed her eyes tightly and took a steadying breath. "I can't leave him. If they knew, I would have to leave, and I'm not ready. But if ever there was a person who could do this it would be you, Armin. You saved our lives more than once with words, you will do it again." She placed a kind hand on his, and Armin desperately hoped that she was right.
The door opened then, revealing a young child; a little girl no more than three years old. "Mika!" The girl cried, rushing over to where they stood as Mikasa quickly wiped her eyes and smiled at her. Stooping down she extended her arms and scooped up the little one with surprising enthusiasm as Historia returned, out of breath. "Ymira, I asked you to wait!"
"You came back!" The girl said happily, ignoring her mother's protests. Wrapping her arms around Mikasa's neck with a content sigh, she rested her head on her shoulder.
"Of course, I did; I promised you didn't I? Ymira, this is my friend Armin. Would you like to say hello?" Ymira lifted her head and smiled shyly at Armin, who was regarding this interaction in amusement. "Hello."
Armin chuckled. "Hello there, princess. It's nice to meet you." Ymira giggled. He looked between the two, so comfortable and happy in each other's presence, and he understood. It seemed as though there was more than one person keeping her here, and this pleased him greatly.