Attack on Titan: Bloodline – Chapter 17 (May 27, 2019)
A week passed and it was finally the day of the 57th Expedition Outside the Walls. Sitting atop her horse, Lorraine pulled her hair up into her usual high ponytail, letting her bangs fall around her face. She looked around at all the citizens of Calaneth District watching in awe as the Scouting Legion gathered in front of the gate, placed in their long-rehearsed formation. As she let out a sigh, taking in the final moments of calm before the gate was to open, she felt a strong hand on her shoulder. She turned her head to face Reiner and she smiled.
"Reiner."
He said, grabbing his horse's reins, "Yes, Lorraine?" She reached up, gently caressing his cheek and pulling him down to her level, placing a delicate kiss on his lips. As she pulled away, she gazed up into his beautiful sunset-gold eyes and said, "Be safe. Alright?" He smiled confidently and said, taking a hand and running it through her ponytail behind her, "I will. You, too." She smiled back at him. Commander Erwin shouted, "This is it! Humanity will finally take another step forward!" The gate started to open, scraping along the sides of the walls as it rose higher and higher, sending dust and a few chunks of stone falling to the ground. Erwin continued, "Let's show those Titans exactly what we're made of! We will now begin the 57th Recon Expedition! Scouts, move out!" Letting out a great cheer, the Scouts rode through the gate, splitting off gradually into their respective groups. The sky was orange in the light of the rising sun. As Lorraine and Reiner went their separate ways, they exchanged reassuring nods. Lorraine felt her heart start beating faster as he rode away from her.
"He'll be fine, Lo!"
Armin rode next to her. She turned to him and sighed, "I know." Jean broke off and said, "See you, guys! Armin! Don't piss yourself if you run into a Titan!" Armin smirked and said, "Yeah. Same to you, Jean." Lorraine waved at Jean as he rode to his position. Lorraine and Armin rode together alongside their squad's Commander, Luke Sys, and Commander Ness. Lorraine looked around cautiously, keeping her eye out for any Titans. For a long while, there were none. That is until Lorraine turned to her right and saw a tall, chubby-looking Titan walking in their direction. Lorraine shouted, "We've got an Abnormal!" Armin turned to look, then swiftly and surely shot off a black smoke flare, signalling the Abnormal Titan's presence to the others. Sys and Ness dragged behind to fight it while Lorraine and Armin sped forward. It wasn't long before the Titan fell to the ground and Sys and Ness, after congratulating each other, got back on their horses and rode behind Lorraine and Armin.
"Damn. That was too close for comfort. I'm glad Commanders Sys and Ness were here, though."
As she looked back at the two amazing fighters, smiling, she caught a glimpse of what seemed to be some kind of Abnormal sprinting towards them. She squinted and was able to make out the figure of a nearly 14-meter, female-form Titan with blonde hair. She was quickly catching up with the four of them, so she shouted, "Watch out! We've got another one incoming!" Almost as soon as Ness turned to Lorraine, nodding in acknowledgement, the group was shocked to find the Abnormal already practically on top of them. Lorraine and Armin gasped and urged the horses to pick up the pace. As Ness and Sys made an attempt to slash her nape and her achilles tendon respectively, she easily and swiftly killed them, leaving their corpses strewn carelessly on the field. Armin gasped.
"Lorraine! Run that way! Maybe we can confuse it! Go!"
They turned and rode in two separate directions. Lorraine was trembling, but she kept her gaze forward. She finally turned around as she rode only to see that the Female had her sights set on Armin. She looked around, seeing no one, then used her flare gun to shoot off another black smoke signal.
She suddenly heard Armin shriek. She looked back and saw Armin flying in one direction and his horse flying in the other. He landed hard on the ground. Lorraine called out to him and turned her horse. She skidded to a halt as the Female Titan knelt down next to him and reached out, lifting up his hood to look at his face. She stared at him for what seemed like too long. Lorraine's breathing was shaky. She felt like she wanted to scream, but she knew it might provoke her, endangering them both. The Titan gently released his hood, letting it fall back over his blonde hair, stood up, and turned her head back to Lorraine. Lorraine and the Titan locked eyes for a moment. Her eyes were a piercing crystal-blue. She felt her heart stop for a moment, but the Female turned away and ran the other direction.
"Why...? Is she looking for someone...?"
Lorraine shook her head and rode to Armin, practically falling off her horse and rushing to his side, gripping his arm tightly.
"Armin! Armin! Are you okay!?"
Armin whimpered, trembling more than she was, "I-it...no...they...they looked at my face...l-like they were...a-analyzing me..." Lorraine fell silent.
"They...? Is he implying that Titan might be...like Eren?"
"Armin! Lorraine!"
She and Armin both turned to see Reiner riding up to them. He had a second horse's reins in his hand. Lorraine smiled, relieved. She said, "Reiner!" He sighed, "Thank God you two are alright!" He asked Armin, "Hey, can you still ride, Armin?" The little blonde nodded. He stood up and quickly mounted the horse. Lorraine followed suit and asked, riding beside Reiner, "What happened? Why are you here?" Reiner explained, "I saw the smoke signal that was set off this way and came to investigate as fast as I could." Armin, now settled on his horse, said, "We have to go after her! We can't let her get away!" Lorraine and Reiner, surprised, nodded in agreement and rode behind Armin, tailing the Female.
"So that's the Titan that attacked you?"
Lorraine nodded and said, "That's right." Reiner chuckled, "You gotta admit, pretty nice ass for an Abnormal." Lorraine rolled her eyes at Reiner's comment. Armin said confidently, "That's no Abnormal. She's like Eren and the Armoured and Colossal Titans. She's a human inside a Titan's body!" Reiner's eyes narrowed. Armin fumbled for his smoke rounds, but struggled to set up the flare gun.
"Damn thing. I have to signal the others-"
A black smoke flare flew upwards behind the three of them. They looked back and saw Jean riding up from behind. Reiner said, "No need. Jean's got it." Jean rode up next to Armin and explained, "It came from the right flank. Brought a bunch of fast sons of bitches along, too." Armin asked worriedly, "Does that...d-does that mean we're compromised to the point where we can't continue the mission?" Lorraine stubbornly protested, "Not yet, it doesn't. This isn't over until we receive the order to retreat." Jean furrowed his brow and said, "Damn. Why are you always so stubborn?" Lorraine said, taking a page out of Eren's book, "Unless we keep fighting, there's no way we can win." Reiner smiled a little, then turned to Armin.
"Now, Armin, what makes you think she's one of those half-and-half breeds?"
Armin explained, "Well, for one thing, when Titans eat people, they aren't actually out for the kill. We just happen to be killed in the process." He gestured towards the Female, running just ahead of them and said, "When the others went for her weak point, she crushed them. She killed them just to kill. She didn't eat them. Her nature is different from even Abnormal Titans." Lorraine thought for a moment, then muttered, "Just like when the Colossal and Armoured Titans struck." Armin nodded. Jean asked, "You think she could have brought that army of Titans to the right flank?" Armin said, "I...I have a feeling she may be searching for someone. Possibly Eren." Reiner said with certainty, "Eren's with Levi Squad, which is in charge of the right flank." Jean, confused, contradicted Reiner, "No. The plans I got had them to the rear of the left flank." Armin stated, "Mine said they were near the front of the left flank." He looked around for a moment, puzzled, but then he thought about it.
"Wait a second. There's just no way they'd be on the front lines."
Reiner asked, "Seriously? Then where the hell do you think he is?" Lorraine suggested, "The safest location would probably be the center, towards the rear." Armin nodded and said, "Then that's probably where he is." Jean sighed. He said, "Alright. Let me just give a signal-" Armin said, "Smoke rounds can't possibly indicate how dangerous she really is. At this rate, she'll completely devastate command and the formation will fall apart." Lorraine asked, gripping the reins of her horse tightly, "So, now what do we do?" Jean said, "At this range, it might be possible to distract her and buy some time to withdraw." Armin shook his head and said, "But if she really is intelligent, then we're nothing but insignificant bugs to her." Jean shuddered.
"Damn. You're right. She'll just crush all of us. What a terrifying thought."
Reiner chuckled and said, "Who are you and what have you done with the real Jean? The Jean I knew only cared about himself." Jean sighed, "You need to work on your people skills." He looked up at the Female and said, "Look. I...I just don't want to end up as a nameless pile of charred bones."
"Marco..."
Jean said shakily, "I-I know what needs to be done. This is the job we chose." Armin nodded, then said, pulling his dark green hood over his head, "Alright. Put on your hoods. Make sure it's as far forward as you can get it, that way she can't see your face. I think that because she's looking for Eren, she won't kill us until she's sure of who we are." Reiner pulled his hood up and said half-jokingly, "Right. Hey, maybe we'll get lucky and she'll also be nearsighted!" Jean said, pulling his own hood up, "You've got a damn brilliant mind, Armin. You know, it always creeped me out the way you always clung to Eren like a security blanket." Armin smiled and said, "Thank you, Jean...though, I-I'm not really sure how to take that last comment." Jean scoffed, "Call it a compliment." Lorraine followed the others in pulling up her hood, making sure it mostly covered her face, and they all rode faster to catch up with the Female Titan.
They swiftly caught up with her. She seemed to be running a little slower than she had been before. Lorraine and Armin both noticed and shared a quick glance. Jean brought his right hand gently to his lips, then leaped off his horse, digging his ODM cables directly into the Female's achilles tendon. The Titan jerked her head around to look at him and she sharply turned, blocking the grappling-hooks before they could lodge themselves beneath her skin. She gave a forceful swipe, stirring up a large gust of wind, blowing Jean back to the ground. While she was distracted, Lorraine swung around behind her and aimed for the back of her knee. Reiner called out, watching as the Female shifted and raised her leg, dragging Lorraine in tow. Lorraine let go and reattached her cables to her other leg while the first was in the air. She flipped her blades around and spun down, but she saw the Female's knee getting closer and managed to dodge, letting her cables loose and tumbling to the ground roughly. She coughed hoarsely.
"Damn! We can't seem to get an attack in with this landscape! I-if we had a few trees, then I might be able to hit her!"
The Female Titan swung at Armin, but he wasn't sharp enough to dodge and his horse flew out from underneath him. He rolled and tumbled to a stop, hitting a few rocks and spraying blood down his face from his forehead. Lorraine shrieked, "Armin!" Before she could run to him, the Female Titan approached Armin and knelt down once again. Jean shouted unintelligibly and grappled her shoulder blade, ready to attack her nape. As Jean was about to swoop down, she reached up and guarded her nape with her hand. Jean cursed and the Female stood up and started spinning around, keeping him locked inside her spiral.
"Damn it! Jean! Let go!"
Just as Lorraine gripped her blades and jumped up to her feet, ready to strike her, Armin shrieked loudly, catching everyone, including the Titan, off guard.
"Jean! Don't let that suicidal maniac die in vain!"
The Female Titan stopped, standing frozen in place, giving Jean an opening to detach his cables and fall to the ground. Lorraine ran to Jean's aid, yanking him to his feet by the arm, listening as Armin shouted, "She did it! She killed him! I told him that the right flank was suicide, but he went anyway and now, he's dead, thanks to her!" Lorraine stammered, "Wh-what the hell...?" She and Jean jumped a little when they heard the sound of Reiner's ODM cables swishing past them.
"Reiner?!"
Lorraine and Jean watched, but just as it seemed like he might land a hit on her nape, the Female Titan grabbed Reiner. Reiner squirmed and wriggled inside her clenched fist, grunting and growling in frustration and agony. Lorraine shrieked and ran to his aid, but Jean grabbed her wrist, pulling her back. She shouted angrily, "Jean! Let me go! I have to-"
She looked back. Blood dripped down the Female's arm from her now-closed fist. Lorraine whimpered and collapsed to the ground, tears welling up in her eyes. She felt her heart stop and her voice left her. Just as it all began to sink in, she heard the sound of metal slicing through the flesh of the Titan's fingers.
"Not today, Bitch!"
Blood spewed into the air and steam immediately started to emit from her hand as Reiner, alive and well, landed hard on the ground and grabbed Armin, holding him under his arm and running away from her. Lorraine gasped, but felt her arm get yanked hard by Jean. She ran behind Jean, feeling him pulling her along. Reiner shouted, jostling poor Armin as he ran, "Come on! We have to get away for now! If she's not a man-eater like you say, she shouldn't follow us!" Lorraine jerked her hand away from Jean roughly and sped up to catch up with them. They all looked back and watched as the Female stood up and started to run in another direction. Lorraine sighed with relief at first, but then realized what direction she was going.
"That's the direction of the center ranks...but why go that way? Unless..."
She looked at Armin, whose eyes were thoughtful. He was eyeing the Female as she ran towards the center ranks, too, probably thinking the same thing. Reiner, not seeming to notice, gloated, "Hey! The giant bitch got scared and ran off!" Jean laughed and said, "Yes!" The group ran until they felt like they might be safe for a little while.
As the sun finally reached a higher point in the sky, Jean stood next to Reiner's horse, who had returned shortly after the encounter with the Female. He whistled repeatedly, hoping for his own horse to return. Lorraine sat next to Armin, her med kit open beside her. She had just finished cleaning Armin's wounds and held out her hand.
"Reiner, can you grab bandages, please?"
He reached down into the bag, grabbing the small cloth roll, and handed it to her. Reiner asked, looking over Armin's ODM gear, "Damn. How old is this gear?" Armin said softly, being careful not to move while Lorraine gently wrapped the bandage around his head, covering the cut on the edge of his hairline, "It's okay. Don't worry about it. It came off like it should, so it didn't break." Reiner said, "Well, that's something, then." Lorraine said, concerned, "Tilt your head forward a little. We've still only got one horse, though." Reiner said solemnly, "Yeah. I know. Not exactly an ideal situation. We can't get moving again until at least one of the other horses shows up." Armin sighed.
"Damn. We really can't afford to stay out here. We're totally open to an attack."
Jean whistled again and again, but still no horses answered the call. Lorraine finished off Armin's bandages, gently placing her hand on his shoulder and saying, "You're done. How do you feel?" Armin stayed silent, seemingly lost in thought. Lorraine gently shook him and said, "Armin? Hey." Reiner said sharply, "Armin." Armin gasped, his blue eyes refocusing. Reiner asked, "Hey. You still with us? I guess your head's still a bit shaken up, huh?" Armin said, looking down at the grass, "Y-yeah. A little. Sorry." Reiner said calmly, "It's okay. The choice wouldn't be easy even if you were thinking clearly." Jean turned to look back at them. Reiner said nonchalantly, "Two of us are going to have to stay here. We need to figure out who." Armin spoke up almost immediately.
"Wait. before we give up, let's try firing off a smoke round. Maybe there's someone nearby who can bring help. If the formation continued as planned, then...row 4, squad 3 should be in close proximity to us right about now."
He loaded up a purple distress signal and shot it up into the air.
Armin said calmly, repacking the flare gun, "That's the emergency signal." Jean shrugged and said, "I kind of doubt anyone's going to see it and think, 'hey, maybe they could use two extra horses'." Reiner said, "We'll wait another three minutes. By that time, we'll have to decide-"
"I'll stay."
Jean and Reiner looked at Armin, shocked. Lorraine smiled and said, "I'll stick with Armin." Reiner began to protest, but Lorraine said, grabbing his hand, "Look, I can protect him until more help arrives or, if we have to, we can retreat on foot." Armin smiled at her for a moment, then said to Reiner, "If we are left out here, I want you to pass on a message. Preferably to Commander Erwin himself." Jean said, squinting back out into the field, "Hang on, Armin. Looks like you'll get to tell him yourself. Look! Someone's coming! And they have two horses!" Armin and the others looked out at the rider coming closer. Armin said with relief in his voice, "It's...it's Krista!"
"Is everyone alright out there?!"
Krista rode up to them. Jean took the reins of his horse and said, "Well, damn! That's my little runaway! Calm down, Buchwald. It's alright. I forgive you." Krista explained, "He ran to me as though the Devil was on his tail. He was terrified." She looked at Armin and gasped.
"Armin! Your head! Are you okay?"
His cheeks turned a light pink and he said, "Yeah. I think so." Lorraine said, putting her hands on her hips, "I can't believe that smoke round actually brought you here! You're a life-saver, Krista!" She said kindly, "Well, I was nearby and I had two horses with me, so I figured I'd see who needed help. I'm just glad you're all okay." She wiped a tear from her sparkling, blue eyes. Reiner helped Lorraine up onto his horse, picking her up by the waist and setting her gently on his back. He climbed up behind her, his legs on either side of hers. She sighed a little, feeling his chest pressing lightly on her back. Krista said, "Okay, let's get going before more Titans show up." Lorraine nodded in agreement and said, "Yeah. Just keep an eye out for the order to retreat."
They rode out back into the formation. As they began to see more Scouts, Jean said, "I'm glad we survived, but to think that we're retreating after only an hour? Man, things must be even worse than I'd thought. While we're on the subject, is anyone else wondering why she's heading away from the command squad?" Krista squeaked nervously, "She?" Before they could explain, they heard the sound of smoke signals going off not too far away.
Lorraine said, pointing out from under Reiner's cloak, "Look! Green smoke rounds!" Armin said calmly, "I guess we're not retreating after all. Just changing our course." Krista said, "Yeah, but that doesn't make any sense!" Jean jeered, "What the hell is Commander Erwin thinking?" Reiner growled, "Any one of us has the authority to declare this mission a failure. Why isn't anyone speaking up? Is command too far ahead to see our signals?" Armin said, "It's possible. Either way, I think our course is clear. Assume that command's got this." He reached down into his bag and fired a green smoke flare into the air.
It seemed as though they had been riding forever when they finally came upon a huge, towering forest. Jean growled as they rode along the edge of the forest, "Damn. Are we on a sight-seeing tour now, or what? Why the hell are we going so far off course?" Armin said, "It's odd. But I'm sure the Commander has something in mind. Perhaps he's been forced to improvise." Jean said sarcastically, "Maybe he's planning a nice, shady spot for all of us newbies to have a lovely little picnic." Armin said, "I...I highly doubt it." Jean chuckled and shook his head.
"Lighten up, Armin. It was a joke. The point is, I'm hoping he doesn't intend for us to set up camp here."
"All soldiers, halt!"
The group came to a stop and the Scout Regiment Captain ahead of them announced, "Alright, rookies, we are to assume intercept position in the trees! Draw your blades and find a place to stand! If any Titans attempt to enter the forest, you are to stop them, no matter what!" Jean began to protest, but the soldier interrupted him, "I gave you an order, rookie!"
"Y-yes, Sir."
The Scout zipped up into the trees, landing on a branch above them. Jean muttered, "Okay. What the hell is going on?" The group split up, flying up in different directions. Reiner and Lorraine landed on a branch together. On a nearby branch, Bertholdt said, "You two made it." Reiner nodded and said confidently, "Yeah. You okay, Bertholdt?" The tall boy nodded and said, "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." Lorraine drew her blades and stood next to Reiner by the thick trunk of the tree, looking down into the forest below.