Attack on Titan: A New Path

by The Court of Talons

Ozma and Salem have been at war for millennia. The fight has taken many lives and taken many years. The champion of the Brother of Light has failed countless times to complete his task. Now, more than ever, Remnant needs a new protector. It needs a man who knows the cruelty of life. A man who doesn't falter in doing the unthinkable. A dark guardian. Remnant needs... Eren Yeager.

18. Chapter 18

"She is not just four wheels and an engine. She is home."

Anonymous

Chapter 18: On the Road Again

The journey back to the car they recently acquired was flying through the trees, since Eren and Cinder didn't want to waste any time. Neither of them wanted to stay at the desolate farm any longer, especially Cinder. Despite the rage and lack of forgiveness she felt for anyone associated with that godforsaken place, she felt grateful to Eren. She was glad that she did what she did, and glad she did what she did to Eren.

Eren, however happy to see that Cinder was doing much better, felt uncertain about what happened at the barn. The moment he shared with her was a special moment, one that he would remember for a long time. But the moment passed when Eren knew he had to return to everyone.

When he saw Mercury kicking the car, Eren immediately wished he stayed at the barn longer.

"Dammit!" Mercury yelled as he sent another kick at the car, specifically the front. "You gotta be shitting me right now!"

Eren and Cinder quickly landed to see what was going on. "You okay, Mercury?" Eren asked.

"I'm fine, but this piece of shit isn't," Mercury replied as he ran a hand through his hair. "The car died on me."

"What?" Cinder asked. "Why?"

"No idea. I swear, it could be something with the engine, but the hood won't open for some reason."

"Here, let me try." Cinder moved over to the hood of the car and began to lift. When she failed, she poured more of her strength into her arms. Grunting and moving at the same time did nothing for the young girl, and she relented. "Jeez. It won't open."

"Told ya."

Eren suddenly had an idea. "Hey, maybe Nora can open it," he said. "We should have some Electric Dust around here. Maybe we can give it to her so she can use her Semblance."

"That could work," Mercury responded as he walked inside. "Hey, Red! I got a job for you." Nora quickly stood up and looked at Mercury. "We can't get the car hood open. Think you can help?"

Nora quickly spit on both her hands and rubbed them together. "You got it!" she said, excited that she would finally be doing something other than sitting.

"Before you do, your Semblance should help." Mercury walked over to his bag. "I think I have some Electric Dust in here."

As she was waiting, Nora's eyes fell onto a small red wire. Thinking that it could replace the Dust, she grabbed it and activated her Semblance. Electricity moved throughout her arm and brought strength to her. Wanting the process to go faster, her gluttony caused her to take more and more power.

*BOOM*

*CRACKLE*

Lightning and electricity shot through the walls of the car, causing everyone except the unconscious Winter to jump and scream in surprise.

"What the hell?!" Mercury screamed.

"Who did what now?" Emerald asked.

"Is everyone alright?" Ren asked.

"All good here," said Eren, who looked over to see if everyone else was alright. When his eyes fell on Nora, however, he saw her holding a wire. "Nora? What's that?"

Nora looked at the wire and quickly dropped it while thinking of an excuse. "Um... Winter did it?"

---

Mercury found out that Nora's situation had made things turn from bad to worse. He explained that just about every wire and possibly the battery had shorted out. He had enough tools to help him out with taking apart the walls, but he would need new wires and he still didn't know why the hood wouldn't open. In short, Mercury had a very busy day ahead of him.

Feeling guilty about the accident, Nora volunteered to go to the town of Maykr, the one they saved from the Branwen Tribe, to pick up more supplies. When she promised the skeptical Mercury that she wouldn't be using her Semblance and would only be buying whatever he needed, he agreed.

Cinder decided to go with Nora while convincing Emerald to stay and help Mercury. Ren decided to stay as well, determined to keep a better watch over Winter. Eren decided to stay and keep watch in case any Grimm showed up, given how frustrated Mercury was about everything. So with the plan in motion, everyone began to do their part.

With everyone off doing their own thing, Eren realized that he would need a clear head in case any Grimm showed up. So after he found a private area, free of both Grimm and his friends, Eren sat on the ground and began to meditate.

Taking Ren's lessons to heart, Eren began to take control of his breathing. It was this point that was always the easiest, obtaining a sense of rhythm for his breathing. Now he could focus more on clearing his head of his current thoughts and feelings.

The day's past events lingered and played in Eren's mind naturally, but he began to clear his mind. The deaths of the Branwen bandits were nothing serious, given that their deaths were justified. Just like when he helped his friends destroy their camp.

Ren's outburst was alarming, and it did take a little more effort to put these thoughts and feelings aside. After all, Eren went through the same thing when he lost his mother. In the end, despite the part he played after obtaining the Founding Titan, Eren still never got over her death. He could tell that Ren wouldn't get over his father's death, but the pain would become easier to live with. All he needed was time and the support of his friends. But Eren knew his friend would need more time before he could let his friends in. He just needed to be patient.

With all of these thoughts and feelings realized and within his control, Eren found the rest of his meditation to be extremely difficult. He wasn't concerned with the bandits or Ren anymore, but he found himself distracted by one thing in particular: Cinder.

"They do when you're here."

That phrase, that gratitude, that kiss... Eren had no idea what to make of it all. He had the pleasure of knowing her for seven years, and this was the first time she ever kissed him. Eren wasn't angry with Cinder, he was simply... confused. Confused as to why she kissed him without a care in the world. Was it simply an impulse? Or was there more to it than simple gratitude?

The reason it made him confused was because Eren couldn't think of a time when this ever happened before. When Mikasa confessed her true feelings on the day both of them were almost eaten, nothing ever became of that confession. They never talked about it, and neither of them acted on their feelings. And if that was the case, why was it different with Cinder?

And more importantly, why did Eren feel that he'd be happy if it happened again?

Despite wanting to know if it was simply an impulse or other feelings at play, Eren couldn't bring himself to confront Cinder about it when she returned. And yet, he'd give anything to learn why it happened. All he could do now was wait for her to come back and see how she felt.

---

"You kissed him?!"

"Yeah. Just once. On the cheek."

After her confession and her friend's reaction, Cinder found herself being trapped in one of Nora's bone-crushing bear hugs. It was clear that all of her earlier doubts and ideas had been cast aside, and were replaced with nothing but pride and joy.

"I can't believe this is happening!" Nora cried as she continued to crush Cinder. "First that Merc with a Mouth gets himself a girlfriend, and now you and Eren! This is the best day ever!"

"Please... stop..." Cinder begged, finding it extremely difficult to breathe. Nora finally granted her request, and Cinder finally found her breath. She also found some bruised ribs, but her Titan powers were already healing them.

"Ah, sorry, sorry!" Nora quickly apologized. "I'm just so proud of you!"

Cinder slightly laughed and rolled her eyes. "Really, Nora... it was nothing. I'm not even sure it could count as a kiss. It was quick, just on the cheek."

"Okay, walk me through it again." Nora began to walk around. "You stopped in front of the farm. The one you lived at before meeting Eren."

"That's right."

"And then you use all your arrows to blow it sky-high."

"I, uh... may have wasted all my arrows. But it was worth it. And that's what happened."

"And then you realized it was a dream come true!" Nora held her hands together and pressed them on the side of her face. "No more bad memories, no more sadness, screw that place! And it was all thanks to Eren!"

Cinder blushed as she rolled her eyes. "Yeah, that's right."

Nora's heart skipped a beat when she finished the steps. "And that's when you kissed him!"

"Pecked him."

Nora lowered her hands and dropped her smile. She was surprised Cinder wasn't as happy as she was. "What's wrong?" she asked. "I thought that you wanted to-"

"No, I definitely did," Cinder promised. "I knew right then and there. I really wanted to kiss him."

"Was it... bad?"

"No, far from it." Cinder's face became hotter by the second. "I'm really glad I did it, but..."

"But what?"

"Well, do you remember the day you found out? That I... I like Eren?"

---

Two years ago

It was a beautiful day in Kuroyuri. The weather was warm, but not roasting hot. There wasn't a cloud in the sky, which made it perfect for the people of Carla's farm to collect the harvest.

Cinder had just started her chores around the farm while the rest of the workers were gathering what was grown. Unfortunately, Eren found himself too sick to get out of bed. Cinder offered to take up part of his chores and divide the rest among the workers. And one of those workers was coming up right behind Cinder.

*TAP*

*TAP*

Two soft knocks from behind made Cinder look up from the stable floor to see Nora smiling and looking at her.

"Hey, Cinder," Nora said happily. "What's up for today?"

"Hi, Nora," Cinder said as she stood up. After brushing dust off herself, she turned back to her friend. "Most of the workers are picking up what we grew. I'm just doing the chores around here. Well, more than usual."

"Yeah, Ms. Yeager was just telling me that Eren was sick. And that she would be paying a little extra if we do his chores."

"After I clean up in here, I was gonna feed the pigs we just got. You feel like ruining your clothes with yesterday's dinner?"

"Sure! Lead the way!"

Cinder's eyes widened in surprise. She knew that Nora did whatever she could to avoiding feeding the livestock. The smell alone was enough to make eyes water. Eren's believable claim that he smelled worse things made him the best candidate to feed the animals, and Cinder knew nobody else wanted to take his place.

But that seemed to change today.

"Well, someone's in a good mood," Cinder said as she dumped the dirty water on the grass outside. "Why's that?"

"Why shouldn't I be happy?" Nora asked. "It's a beautiful day, lot's of work to be done, and-"

Cinder began to laugh. "No, seriously. Why?" She knew Nora long enough to know that mundane chores were never something to get excited about.

Nora giggled as she began to walk outside, towards the direction of the pig pen. "Alright, alright. I've done a lotta thinking the past few days."

"Wait, don't tell me." Cinder began to follow her friend. "You're thinking that you can beat your record of eating twenty-five pancakes."

"We both know I can easily eat fifty next time!" Nora laughed again. "But not this time. I've been thinking long and hard. And I've made a decision."

"A decision?"

"Yep! Today will forever be the day everyone knows that I, Nora Valkyrie, make Lie Ren... Drum-roll, please..." Nora stopped walking and sprang her arms in the air. "My boyfriend!"

Cinder stopped walking and raised her palm to her face. "Oh," she said dryly. "This again."

Nora stopped smiling and lowered her arms. "You were supposed to give me a drum-roll."

Cinder moved her hand from her face and continued walking. "Look, Nora... I know you like Ren, and I'd love to see the day when you two are 'together-together.' But every time you tell me what you're going to do, I'm the one who has to tell you that the ideas could use some work. And each time, you just put your plans on hold."

"Yeah, I know! But today's gonna be different!" Nora jumped in the air and landed right in front of Cinder. "Because today is the day I have a foolproof plan!"

"Oh, really?" Cinder moved around Nora and continued to walk. "Okay, Nora. Impress me."

Nora ran up to Cinder with a mischievous grin on her face. "I'm not the only one getting a boyfriend." She suddenly grabbed Cinder's shoulders to turn her around. "You are too!"

Cinder's jaw dropped immediately. "What?" she asked without hesitation.

"Yeah!" Nora said. "Until I know the best way to ask Ren to go out with me, I won't rest until I find out how to make another boy very lucky."

Cinder was finally able to raise her jaw and find her voice. However, she couldn't help but stutter. "Nora, I... I appreciate the offer, really. But I'm, uh, I'm not looking for a boyfriend right now."

"But you've been on a few dates before, haven't you?" Nora moved closer and began to count on her fingers. "What about Alex? You two hit it off when you met him."

"At first. But then he turned out to be a weirdo, remember? He finally stopped sending me letters last week."

Nora continued to count on her fingers. "Do you remember Bruce? Or Eddie? Or James? They were head over heels for you."

"Well... the feeling wasn't mutual for them, okay?" Cinder began to walk away again and found herself by the pigs. She immediately began to start feeding them, despite the fact that she hated the chore more than any chore at the farm.

It took all of Nora's willpower to walk over to Cinder and continue to talk. When she finally needed to cover her nose, she continued to investigate. "Oh, so you do like someone around here."

Cinder gagged as she threw an empty bucket away. "Nora, come on," she begged. "I'm really not interested."

"But you're interested in someone." Cinder was growing more annoyed with Nora, so she tried to focus on her work. And yet, Nora wouldn't take the hint. "Come on Cinder, I know it's someone around here."

"..."

"I'm not gonna stop until you say so."

"..."

"Awwww, I gotta know! It's someone around here, anyone!"

Cinder was fed up with the probing now, and spat out the first thing that came to mind. But because her attempts to block out Nora made Cinder mishear what her friend said, she ended up saying something she didn't want to.

"No, Nora! I do not like Eren!"

Nora's smile disappeared as confusion spread like wildfire. "What the-?" she stammered. "Cinder, I didn't say anything about Eren."

Cinder looked up from the pigs with wide eyes. Quickly turning back to Nora, she began to improvise. "Oh!" she began frantically. "I, um... Right! Right, I know you didn't! I didn't say Eren either."

"Uh, yeah you did."

"I'm pretty sure I didn't." Cinder turned heel and grabbed another bucket, hoping to forget the whole thing.

However, Nora was able to connect the dots her confusion had created. And it made her even happier than before.

"Oh. My. God!" she screamed in excitement. "You like Eren?!"

"Shh!" Cinder whispered as she looked around. But then, she realized this action let the cat out of the bag. So with a heavy sigh, she finally admitted it. "Okay, yes. You're right, Nora. I... I like Eren."

Nora smiled even more. "I don't believe it! For how long?"

"Well, let's see." Cinder put a finger to her cheek and began to tap it as she thought out loud. "Today's Friday, so, um... always."

"Always?! And we're talking about it now?! Why haven't you told anyone else?"

"Nora, you... I don't think anybody would understand."

"How can I not understand?!" Nora quickly grabbed Cinder's hands. "Cinder, trust me on this; you two are perfect for each other. You've been BFFs for so long, you have so much in common, and you both have a lot of love you wanna give away! I mean, Eren might not show it, but he does!"

"Well... maybe," Cinder confessed. "But there's no way he has any for me."

"What kind of talk is that?" Nora knew how to respond to this. "Look, let's make a promise," she said. "You go to Eren, I go to Ren. We each tell them how we feel, and meet back later."

"No, Nora... it's not that simple."

"I know, it's gonna be scary. I'm scared too. But think about the possibility."

"Nora, there's no-"

"We could go on double dates! Wait, no! Triple dates with Merc and Vernal!"

"Nora, I'm not ready!" Cinder began to walk away.

"What are you talking about?!" Nora quickly ran behind Cinder and stopped in front of her. "We both know how we feel about them, now it's time they know too!" Cinder turned away again, with Nora right on her tail. "I'm sure Eren's gonna be happy to know! I mean, he's made zero attempts to find a girlfriend, what does that tell you?!" Nora was beginning to grow impatient. "We'll never know unless we tell them, so why don't you wanna tell Eren?!"

Cinder quickly turned around and yelled at Nora. "Because I already know how he feels!"

"..."

Nora's smile and excitement disappeared when Cinder made her confession. And once Cinder turned away to dry her eyes, Nora began to feel sorry about what her friend just said. Despite seeing her in this state, Nora wouldn't be able to let the incident go until she found out the whole truth.

"What?" she asked.

Cinder finally looked back to Nora. "I know how he feels, Nora!" she said. "And I know it's nothing for me!" The idea made Cinder cry even more, leading Nora to put her hands on Cinder's shoulders and make her sit down.

"Did you... tell him?"

"No. I never had to. He told me himself."

"He did? Why? He's gotta have a reason for turning you down like that?" Nora stood up. "Do you want me to find him? Talk to him?"

Cinder dried her eyes and looked to Nora again. "No, you don't understand. He didn't say anything like 'I don't like you, Cinder.' Eren told me that he..."

Nora sat down again. "That he what?"

"That he... he loves somebody else."

"What? Who?"

"...Mikasa."

Nora looked away and began to think. After about a minute, she looked back to her saddened friend. "I'm sorry, Cinder, but... is she new here?" she asked. "I don't think I know anyone named Mikasa."

"You don't," Cinder said. "She was Eren's friend from Paradis. You know, his first home."

"Really?" Nora thought back on the memories she inadvertently saw from Eren and was starting to remember Mikasa; a girl his age with black hair, deep silver eyes, and the strongest of Eren's original friends. She couldn't remember too much from his old life, especially anything romantic between the two. "He told you he loves her?"

"Not exactly." Cinder stood up. "The first night I learned Eren was from another world, Darkness showed me his story. Eren doesn't know it, but Darkness showed me all his memories as well. It was Eren's life story... told in his own words."

"So, what happened?"

Cinder took a deep breath. "I saw how he became a soldier, how much time it took for him to grow closer to his squad. It was a lot to take in, but I saw it all. Fighting Titans hand-to-hand, killing a secret group of soldiers, finally seeing life beyond those stupid walls, and how he needed to... you know."

"Yeah, I... remember seeing all that."

"You know he had a bigger picture, right? That he wanted his friends to kill him?"

"Yeah, I saw that. I just... wish the rest of the world gave him another option."

"Me too. But if it weren't for that, Eren might not have come... Actually, let me back up." Cinder brushed a hand through her hair. "Before he died, Eren was able to say goodbye to everyone. The last person was his best friend, Armin Arlert."

"What did you see?"

"Even though he understood why Eren did what he did, Armin was still angry at him. Especially at how he treated Mikasa. I have to admit that he was right. It was really heartbreaking, seeing him push away someone who was around for so long. But when Eren finally said it was all bullshit... I knew right then and there that he still loves her."

"No way," Nora said as she stood up. "I can definitely see that he was sorry. But don't you think 'love' is kinda pushing it? Besides, Mikasa shouldn't be sad forever. I mean, she can always find someone else that makes her happy."

"It's funny you should say that," Cinder said as she pointed at Nora. "Armin asked the exact same thing, and I was thinking it too. That was when Eren completely lost it."

"What do you mean?"

"He said, and I quote..." Cinder cleared her throat before answering Nora. "'No, I don't want that! Mikasa finding another man?! Even after I die, I want to be at the front of her mind for a while! Ten years, at least! I want her to think about me and no one else for the rest of my life!'"

"..."

Cinder cleared her throat once more. "Yeah. That's what I thought too."

Nora finally found her voice. "That's... terrible," she said. "Poor Eren."

Cinder nodded. "He knew how she felt, and how he felt. He could have told Mikasa anytime he wanted, but he never did."

"And you-"

"And I saw it all." Cinder sat down and smiled. "That night, I wanted to tell Eren how I really felt. That he was my hero, that he was what I was waiting for, all of my life. I wanted him to know that he was... that he is... my soulmate." The smile quickly disappeared. "But how could I? How could I think to be so selfish, to care so little about what he wanted after he did everything for me?" Cinder quickly turned around. "Could you do that to Ren? If he was in Eren's place?"

"...No," Nora answered. "That would be... totally unfair."

Cinder nodded as she stood up. "There you go. But that didn't mean I couldn't be without him. If I could be around him, even if we weren't living together, then I would still be happy. That's why it meant the world to me that he wanted me to be his sister. At least I have that." Cinder looked down for a few seconds before laughing. "I never knew I could be that crazy."

"No, that's not crazy at all," said Nora, who jumped up and hugged her friend. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to-"

"You had no idea. How could you? Not even Eren knows." After Nora released her, Cinder made a request. "And I'd actually like to keep it that way."

"Yeah, of course."

---

Present-day

"Ohhhhh," said Nora, who had just put the pieces together once more. "You're still thinking about Mikasa?"

"I haven't really stopped thinking about it, actually," Cinder sadly confessed. "Or how Eren feels about her."

"So why'd you do it? Why'd you kiss him?"

"I... I don't know." Cinder moved her hair as she explained. "It was... an impulse, really." She began to smile again. "But you should have seen it, Nora. That moment, when he was looking at what I did. It was just... He was just... so beautiful." Her smile faded. "And given what we're doing, how we're finally going against Salem... I don't think I could forgive myself if I did nothing about how I feel while risking my life to stop her."

Nora's shock quickly wore off as she asked another question. "What are you going to do?"

Cinder sighed. "I have to tell him. But not yet." She looked away from Nora. "I'm sorry, I sound like a love-struck idiot."

"I mean, yeah, a little," Nora replied as they both laughed. "Don't worry, it takes one to know one." Just as she said that, her smile faded. "Hey, Cinder. Can I ask you something?"

Cinder turned back to Nora. "Sure, what is it?"

"You lived with Eren for a long time. Would you say it was... hard to understand him?"

"In what way?"

"Just generally. Actually, more like his behavior."

"Oh." Cinder took a few seconds to think. "Not really, no. I think it was because I was like him, growing up. I wanted adventure, I was angry at people who tried to shut us in, and I loved exploring with him." Cinder smiled again. "Like one time, we snuck outside Kuroyuri's wall when he insisted. I tried to tell him there might have been Grimm, and Mom would get mad. But he asked me something that made a whole lot of sense."

"What did he say?"

"I can't remember exactly, but it was something along the lines of... 'Are you going to spend the rest of your life not knowing what you're going to do? Following instructions and never seeing anything but the house and the forest's entrance? Without ever learning what's inside the forest?'"

Nora frowned. "That's a little harsh," she insisted.

"Just a little," Cinder confirmed. "But it made sense; we flew over those woods time after time, but never looked inside them. And it was fun, seeing what we would normally fly over. We did see some Grimm, but we avoided them. And Eren was right; it was better than just sticking with what you know."

Nora decided to focus back on her original question. "So it's easy to understand him, huh?"

"I don't think everyone can understand him at first, but it was easy for me," Cinder answered. "Why do you ask?"

"Well... I've been having some trouble... understanding Ren. Even before Li died." Nora kicked some dirt in her path in frustration. "And I don't know if that's his fault... or mine."

Cinder had been so absorbed in her problem that she completely forgot how Nora must have felt in the past hours. And given Ren's cold nature and Nora trying extremely hard to focus on the positives of their trip, it was easy for Cinder to see how upset her friend must be.

"Oh... I see," she said. "I wouldn't hold it against you, Nora. I think I'm in your spot right now."

"You are?" Nora asked. "But I thought you and Eren-"

"No, I'm not talking about Eren. I'm talking about Emerald."

Nora suddenly remembered Cinder's problem with Emerald, how she had willingly turned herself into a slave for Cinder. And from what she just said, Cinder was having a problem understanding Emerald.

"I mean, it took everything I had to convince her to help everyone else with the car," said Cinder. "Instead of following me wherever I go."

"Have you decided what you're going to do?" Nora asked. "How you can snap her out of it?"

"Well... no. I don't want her to live her whole life for me, but I don't want to push her away either. Like I said, I think I know how you're feeling, Nora."

Nora was glad that she found someone who could empathize with her, to know how sad she felt about her problem. However, she was upset that someone else was in her situation. It seemed she and Cinder were stuck in it together, for better or worse. It was that reason that made their shopping trip to town a quiet one, where they only talked about what Mercury would need or what everyone would like. In the background, Cinder had her mind on plans for Emerald while Nora couldn't stop thinking about Ren.

But all they could do while hoping for the best was simply expecting the worst.

---

"Do you think they've been gone for too long?"

"The only thing that's taking too long is this stupid thing. Hand me that wrench, will ya?"

Emerald sighed as she took a wrench out of Mercury's bag. She then proceeded to kneel down and begin to hand it to him, since he was underneath the car. Once he took it, Mercury began to use all the force he could generate to tighten a bolt.

"But to answer your question, no," Mercury said as he put his wrench down and moved away from the car. "Bad guys are dead, Em. They're not in trouble."

"Yeah... okay," Emerald agreed as she followed Mercury to his tool-bag. "Can I ask you something?"

Mercury didn't look back to Emerald, but replied. "You're gonna."

"Why did you come with us? The day Eren asked us to?"

Mercury looked away from his bag. "Why are you asking-?"

"Just answer the question," Emerald begged, not wanting to waste any time.

Mercury had a feeling his friend was expecting some deep, emotional response; something that would go along the line of seeing a bigger picture. But that was never the case with him, so he spoke his simple mind. "Just made sense."

Emerald was indeed hoping to learn more, which was why she was surprised to hear three simple words. But she wasn't able to understand them. "It made sense?" she asked incredulously.

Mercury scuffed as he walked past Emerald. "Hell yeah. I learn some old lady can control Grimm, bust down my front door, and make people their puppets. And she messed with one of us. In that case, I say she messed with all of us."

"So it's about Vernal for you?"

"More or less. This ain't the first time someone thought they could mess with her." Mercury looked back to Emerald. "Besides, this is gonna be one hell of a fight. My father trained me to be a killer, an assassin like him. Hell, when I decided to go with Eren, the first thing I thought was 'I can't wait to beat the living shit out of this bitch.'"

Emerald was even more incredulous than before. "That's it?" she asked.

"Hey, what's your problem?"

"I mean, there has to be something you want from this, right?"

Mercury sighed. "Okay, you got me," he said, wanting to get back to work. "Don't get me wrong, I meant what I said. But also... I wanna be a Titan."

Emerald's jaw dropped when she heard that. "What?" she asked. "What?!"

"I mean, come on!" Mercury turned around with a smile. "I've seen what they can do, I can totally do the same. What, I can't save the world without a few perks?" Mercury put a hand to his chin. "I can see it now... I can probably outdo any kickoff at a football game. Hell, I could kickoff the whole stadium. I wonder if I can run faster when I-"

"You're pathetic," Emerald said as she walked away.

"What? You asked me what I wanted." Mercury sighed as he put down his tool. "You're killing me, Sustrai."

Emerald shrugged off the phrase. "Whatever."

"Alright, fine. I'll ask. What do you want?"

Emerald stopped walking and sat down on a large rock. "I just..." She sighed once more before answering. "Cinder's the only family I have. She cares about me, taught me things... I just hope being out here, with her, can help me be better than I was before we met, even after we first met. Without her, I don't know if anything I do will-"

"Wake up, already."

Emerald gasped as she looked up at Mercury, who continued to run his mouth. "What, you think you're the only one Cinder cares about?" he asked as he jabbed a finger at her. "Hell no, Em. Cinder's my friend too. Did me more favors than I can count. She's also friends with Ren, Nora, and Eren." Mercury put his finger to his chin. "Scratch that last part. Something's different about Eren. Well, to Cinder at least."

"..."

Mercury looked back to Emerald. "Look, here's some free advice. Nobody likes a kiss-ass."

Emerald widened her eyes and stood up. "What did you call me?" she asked.

"Oh, come on. Do you ever hear yourself? 'Oh, Cinder. Lemme do your chores for you. Lemme wash your clothes, lemme do everything for you!'" Mercury grinned at his impersonation, but quickly became serious again. "Do you have any idea how annoying that is?"

Emerald stood up. "Oh, screw you!" she said as she walked away.

"Hey, don't kill the messenger!" Mercury called back to her. Just as he did, Eren emerged from the forest. "Oh, hey man."

"...Hey," Eren said as he saw Emerald walk away. "Um, what did you say to Emerald?"

"Something she needed to hear. I swear, if I see or hear her begging Cinder to let her help with something, I'm gonna explode."

Eren's eyes widened. "Wait, you told her-?"

"That she's a total kiss-ass?" Mercury chuckled. "Come on, Eren. Tell me you've noticed it too."

"Oh, I definitely did. I actually wanted to talk to her about it."

"Guess I beat you to it. Sorry."

Eren smiled. "Don't be sorry," he said. "I think you just saved me a lot of trouble."

"I dunno," Mercury said. "She's kinda pissed right now. But she'll learn."

"I hope so. Listen, you didn't have to go through the trouble. I really appreciate it."

"Don't worry about it." Mercury suddenly got an idea. "Actually, hold up a sec. There's something I wanna ask you."

"Sure, what is it?" Eren asked as he walked back to the car.

"I think I found out the best way to help take down Salem."

"Oh, yeah? What's that?"

"Can you make me a Titan?"

Eren stopped in his tracks and quickly turned around. "Say what?" he asked.

"Can you make me a Titan?" Mercury repeated. "Come on, it can totally help! I could crush a hundred Grimm with just one kick, maybe step on Salem's house or whatever!"

"I think we have enough Titans," Eren said. "I don't know if-"

"Pleeeeeassse?" Mercury begged in a satirical manner, cupping his hands together.

"Why do you even want one?"

"Why not?" Mercury let go of his hands. "Titans are the best, man! And not just for killing Grimm! Nora told me how you guys scared the shit outta Jackass Schnee! I could totally do the same, and then some-!"

"Hold it, hold it!" Eren said as he moved closer to Mercury. "A Titan is not a toy, Mercury. People need to be responsible with them."

"Oh, please," Mercury replied sarcastically. "Name one time I was irresponsible."

"Okay." Eren stuck out one finger. "You broke our TV when you were sweeping the floor." He stuck out another. "You let a wild horse loose across the town while fixing the stables." He stuck out one more finger. "And isn't Ms. Fritz still looking for her Scroll?"

"...Okay, Wednesday wasn't the best day," Mercury admitted. "But come on! I'm way more responsible than Nora! Why does she get a Titan?"

"Nora may talk a lot about breaking things, but she knows the right time. And being a Titan helped her see what she can do, and how to figure out when the best time to act recklessly is."

"It sounds to me like that Titan made her responsible. Look, it could do the same for me. Gimme a chance."

Eren looked back to the broken car. "Let's focus on the car right now. Then, we'll talk."

"Oh, yeah. Guess break's over." Mercury walked back to the car with Eren.

"How's it coming?" Eren asked.

"Actually, I kinda hit a snag," Mercury said. "I was able to make that rattling underneath stop. I can start the rewiring when Nora and Cinder get back. But I don't think I can fix anything under the hood."

"It's still stuck?"

"Actually, that's not the problem. I managed to get the computer to work for a second, and send the blueprints to my Scroll. Turns out the hood needs to be unlocked from the inside. When I tried to unlock it, my Scroll asked me for a login. An Atlas military login."

"You mean-?"

"Yep. It's some kinda built in security. Come to think of it, I think that's why the engine turned off on me. Unless we get this hood open, we're not going anywhere."

Eren looked to the rest of the truck, beginning to have an idea. "Is Ren still inside?" he asked.

"I think so," Mercury replied. "He's probably cooling off from that shit he pulled. But let's stay focused."

"Definitely." Eren turned back to his friend. "I might be able to help. It won't be perfect, but it'll be the best I can do." Voices from behind made Eren turn around. "Why don't you take another break? Looks like Cinder and Nora are back."

Mercury turned around. "Oh, yeah. Let's see what they got."

"While you're doing that, let me talk to Ren." Eren began to walk back to the car. "On that note, maybe you guys should stay out here. I'll be in there a while."

---

Sunlight had just found its way into two blue eyes. Slowly but surely, a young woman was regaining consciousness. And inside that woman's head, a voice had found its consciousness a long time ago.

"Come on," said Ymir, who was already growing impatient. "Get up."

"I... I am up," said Winter, who immediately began to look around her surroundings. "Where-?" She stopped talking when she looked up to see Eren staring down at her. When she tried to sit up, a metal bar stopped her from moving. "Oh."

Deciding that she had enough time, Eren got to the point. "Ren told me what happened," he said as he gestured to his friend, who was sitting behind Eren.

"And I suppose he caught me again?" Winter asked sarcastically.

"He did. Just like I knew he would." Eren moved closer, getting his face extremely close to Winter's.

"What are you doing?" she asked as she tried to back away. When Eren didn't answer, she asked again. "What are you-?"

*SWISH*

"Aaaahh!"

Winter felt an extreme pain in her side, causing her to scream. When Eren finally got out of her personal space, she looked down to see a bloody cut on her side. Eren slowly cleaned the knife he was holding, watching Winter's pain intensify. He suddenly took the blade to her neck.

"I told you what would happen if you broke any of the rules we agreed on," he said. "Did you not believe me?"

"...No," Winter said as she used her Aura to heal her stab wound.

"He's just trying to scare us," said Ymir.

"What?!" Winter asked, who was already starting to feel afraid. "How do you know?!"

"What about now?" Eren asked as he began to slide the blade across her neck.

"I know Eren. And listen to how he talks. He wants something from us."

"I've seen that look before. He has what it takes to kill someone."

"Not right now, he doesn't. Look, just let me out. I'll show you."

Winter quickly relented out of fear for her life, but Ymir was more confident. "Okay, you scared her off," she said from Winter's mouth. "What do you-?"

"There you are." Eren turned to Ren. "Go ahead."

*BAM*

Ren quickly head-butted Ymir, causing her to hit the back of her head against the metal headrest. Before she could react, Ren quickly pulled Ymir free from the chair and threw her against the wall. Once she looked back at him, Ren quickly threw his fists at Ymir's face and stomach.

The pain was beyond intense for Ymir, given that she couldn't use Winter's Aura to protect herself. However, she was able to stand back up and defend herself by throwing a punch of her own. But Ren simply raised his leg and kicked her gut, causing her to fall back. He then kicked her again and again, even succeeding to knock out one of her back teeth.

It wasn't for another ten seconds until Ren finally stopped his violent beating. Ymir simply laid on the floor, gasping for breath. When she found enough strength to look back at Eren, she took a few seconds to speak.

"Who... are you?" she asked as she looked upon the young man as if he was a complete stranger.

Eren grabbed Ymir's hair and looked at her face. "I don't think I can answer that," he said. "But I can tell you who I'm not. And I'm not the blockhead you met back in training, or the kid who liked to talk big to Reiner. You might want to remember that." He then dropped Ymir back on the metal floor. "If you let the Schnee take over, her Aura should heal you in a minute. Once she does, she's going to help my friend fix this rust bucket you call a car. Or I can just finish what I started."

Ymir understood that Eren was telling the truth. But she had another idea. "Just... kill me," she painfully demanded. "You... don't want to... help me."

"You're right," Eren said. "There may have been a time when I wanted to, but that passed when you hurt Ren."

Ymir spit blood on the floor. "So... do it."

"Not yet." Eren leaned closer. "I want to try something else first. It's called 'help me help you.' See if you can help out Mercury fix this rust bucket you call a car. Then we'll talk about getting you outta here." He then spat on Ymir's face. "Even if you don't deserve it, you selfish piece of shit." He then walked out of the car with Ren, leaving Ymir to her thoughts.

As well as Winter's.

"Let me take over," she said. "He's right, I can use my Aura."

"What's the point?" Ymir asked, having enough strength to speak clearly. "I don't care anymore." When Winter went silent, Ymir spoke again. "He's deliberately keeping us alive. That sadistic son of a bitch probably wants to use me as a punching bag when things go wrong."

"All the more reason to stop him from hurting anyone else."

"No. No, I'm done." Ymir spit out more blood before talking again. "I'm not gonna live for this."

"Well, I am."

Ymir suddenly felt herself fall back into a weightless abyss, where Winter once was. Winter had just taken back her body, and now was healing her body with her Aura.

"This is tragic," said Ymir. "You're really going to do this?"

"I am," Winter replied as she stood up. "I don't care how long it's going to take, or what it's going to take. I'm completing my mission, and then going back to Atlas. It starts with getting on his good side."

"Did that green guy hit you where you think properly? Being a slave won't get you anywhere."

"I am not that monster's slave," Winter said firmly, focusing on her plan to take down Eren.

"I didn't say Eren's," said Ymir. "You can't keep giviving up everything just to make your boss happy."

"You were a soldier as well, weren't you? Didn't... wherever you came from teach you about following orders?"

"I was taught how to be a soldier. But that didn't stop me from thinking for myself. So far, I haven't seen you do the same."

Winter sighed. "Maybe because I have someone who I need to think about," she said. "Someone who I'm going to see when I'm home."

Ymir remained silent as she thought about what her bodily host had just said. At first, she believed Winter was talking about the General who loved his army more than the people it served. But then, her mind drifted to an image of a girl, a few years younger than Winter. Someone who looked like her, who shared the same goals as her. Someone that, Winter knew, the only way to see her again was to play nice with Eren. And more importantly, someone Ymir knew Winter loved.

"Now do you get it?" Winter asked, who sensed Ymir's thoughts.

"...Do what you have to do," Ymir reluctantly ordered. "If it's not getting the hell out of here, leave me out of it."

---

As soon as Eren and Ren left the car, they completely avoided everyone else. Ren insisted on moving as far away from everyone as they could, which was how the duo found themselves in the middle of the woods.

"How do you feel?" Eren asked after they stopped walking.

Ren looked down at his bloody hands, remembering his violent action. While Eren intended for it to serve as a punishment for Ymir, he realized how it could help Ren release the anger he was obviously carrying after leaving Kuroyuri. After all, he felt the same kind of anger when his mother was taken from him by the Titans. While he first took it out on people like Jean in training, Eren eventually had his chance to take it out on Titans. And now it was Ren's turn.

"Honestly?" Ren asked. "I feel... better."

Eren felt a glimmer of hope. "Really? I didn't know if that would work."

Ren nodded as he looked away from his hands. "Only a little," he said. "I think I regained my temper." He suddenly sat on the ground. "You have my thanks, Eren."

"Um, yeah." Eren chuckled. "Sorry. Everyone I knew said my behavior was going to get me killed. I never thought I'd be using it to help my friends."

"Very strange in hindsight, I agree. But perhaps they couldn't understand what it was that we lost."

Eren nodded at the idea, knowing better than anyone how people grieve after losing a parent. He saw the position Ren was in, how he looked like he was going to practice in meditation. Eren completed his earlier, and decided to leave. "I'll leave you to it," he said as he walked away.

"Eren, wait."

The young man stopped walking and turned back to Ren, who was still sitting on the soft earth beneath him. "Am I..." He suddenly trailed off, seeming like he was having trouble asking his question.

"Are you what?" Eren asked.

"Am I... going to be okay?" Ren finished. "Now that... I'm not that mad anymore?"

"Okay?" Eren walked back to Ren. "That's... a hard question." He then sat in front of Ren. "You know about my mom, right?"

"I do. That's why I wanted to ask you."

Eren took a deep breath and spoke. "Ren... Believe me when I say this, I know exactly how you feel. When I lost my mom, I was told it was because I wasn't strong enough. And the soldier who saved me instead said... he wasn't brave enough to kill the Titan that ate her." Eren had to take another breath. "When you hear stuff like that, you eventually hear that it wasn't your fault. Even though you know things could have been different."

"They could have," Ren admitted. "I could have done what he told me, or I could have saved everyone else instead." Ren suddenly got an idea. "Or maybe I wasn't strong enough to stop the Wyvern." His idea began to grow. "Maybe things could be different now."

"What do you mean?" Eren asked, unsure what Ren was thinking.

"I'm... I'm not sure." Ren closed his eyes. "I think I need a minute to think it over."

Eren stood up and walked away, in order to make sure he wouldn't be disturbing his friend. As he made his way back to the car, he was beginning to believe that Ren was hoping to change the future and use the past as a lesson. The idea made him proud of Ren, that he was willing to try and be better than he was before. Eren knew he could have done the same if he wasn't so pigheaded about killing all Titans. But luckily, everyone back home was there to get him out of whatever trouble he found himself in.

It was at that moment Eren began to feel a small hint of self-loathing. Back in the day, he found himself under the leadership of Captain Levi and Commander Erwin. They were aware how much trouble he was with his Titan powers, how many people had to die in order for the hope he brought to Paradis. To say that they were the strongest of humanity and the world's greatest leader would be an understatement. But now, those tables had turned. Everyone in Kuroyuri was expecting him to be both things, the strongest person alive and the man with a plan. Not only that, he had people he was responsible for. Eren knew the team he assembled believed in him, that they were all chasing a wild dream. And when that time came, what did they expect him to do?

Did everyone expect Eren to go in the Land of Darkness, guns blazing at whatever they saw?

Would they charge towards a barrage of rocks just so someone could sneak behind the enemy?

Did Eren really matter that much to them, that they would lay down their lives for him?

More importantly, could Eren make that sacrifice if there was no other way?

"Hello? Remnant to Eren?"

Eren quickly turned around to see Cinder looking back to him. "Hey, sorry," he said. "Guess I spaced out. Any progress?"

"The Schnee's finally helping Mercury," Cinder replied with a grin. "I guess she had a change of heart along with the change of face."

"You'll have Ren to thank for that. Well, him and me."

Cinder laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not judging. I was wondering what we would do after that stunt she pulled."

"I hate to say it, but we kinda need her right now."

"Yeah, Mercury told me. Though I don't think that'll stop her from wanting to knock her teeth out." The duo found themselves back at their temporary camp, where Cinder pointed to the car. Eren followed her finger to see Mercury and Nora with a weaponless Winter.

"No, no, no!" Winter cried out in exasperation as she walked over to where Nora was sitting next to the the the wires. "This one goes in, and then this one goes next!" she said as she was pointing to the correct wires.

"They're both the same wire!" Nora cried out, just as exhausted as Winter was.

"They may share the same color but they're made for specific functions!" Winter looked over to Mercury. "You told me you were a mechanic! Shouldn't you know how to this sort of thing?"

Mercury pinched the bridge of his nose. "Yes, I do... except those are for regular cars and bikes and not for TRICKED OUT MILITARY SUPER VEHICLES!" he screamed.

Winter sighed as she watched Mercury and Nora work, while Emerald came out of the car with the remaining wires that weren't needed inside. "So what do you need all this wiring for again?" she asked as she set down the box by Mercury's feet.

"Most of the wiring is connected to many of the vehicles electronic features such as navigation and even for activating the flight function" Mercury, on the creeper board, pulled himself out and wiped some sweat and grease off his brow. "But most of the wiring is shot to shit, either from actually being shot or natural degradation from exposure to the elements. So they need to be switched out with some newer stronger wiring." After a quick drink from the water bottle next to him, Mercury pulled himself back under the vehicle.

"And you're sure that this wire will hold up?" Emerald questioned as she scrutinized the boxes on the ground. "I mean, this is a military vehicle and not a tractor."

"Which is why I have to insist once more that you let me do this work," Winter said as she looked at the rope on her hands.

"Sorry, no can do," Mercury said for what felt like the millionth time. "Trust me, I know what I'm doING!" Mercury voice rose an octave when a large spark erupted from one of the degraded wires.

Both Nora and Emerald stumbled back in surprise as a series of panels and mechanisms shifted around from the vehicle. Out from the top emerged two boxy looking contraptions, barrels extending outwards from the front along with some kind of drum attached to the side. The two of them realized quickly that these were in fact machine gun turrets.

Mercury pulled himself out from the undercarriage and stumbled over to the two gaping females. His face was slightly covered in black soot while a majority of his hair was slightly standing on end. "Well... that happened," he said painfully.

"You know what you're doing, huh?" Although she was staring agape at the sight, Emerald still managed to convey sarcasm.

"It has turrets..." Nora mumbled almost monotonously.

"I tried to warn you those old wires are dangerous." Winter said quickly. "Just be glad that this only happened here rather than on the road."

"It has turrets!" Nora spoke louder this time, a large smile began to form on her face.

"Yeah well next time, maybe take precautions like strap this thing down or something!" Emerald almost yelled in hysterics. "I mean, what if you turned the flight thing on and left us stranded?"

"IT HAS TURRETS!" Nora screamed in jubilation, stars in her eyes.

Winter sighed once more. "I will never understand how you were able to steal something as sophisticated as this," she said.

While everyone was continuing to work and bicker at the same time, Eren and Cinder laughed to themselves at the scene. "How long have they been at it?" Eren asked.

"A while," Cinder replied. "Everyone's done something stupid or wild, but things are going good. The Schnee's still being bitchy, but at least she's helping."

"And at least we're all working together," Eren said as he nodded. Just as he said that, he had an idea. "We're all working together."

Cinder looked back to Eren. "Sorry, what?"

Eren looked to Cinder. "I was just thinking out loud." As he said that, Eren was still thinking. He was thinking how his current situation left him with an undebatable truth; he wasn't a soldier anymore. This wasn't the military, there was no chain of command. Eren wasn't surrounded by naive recruits or leaders who expected a heart's dedication in order to achieve victory. Instead, he was surrounded by people who offered their own gifts and skills to a cause they were united in.

Despite her current state of mind, Emerald had a very loyal personality. And when guided properly, Eren imagined how her loyalty would blossom into trust and respect that would go both ways.

Mercury, the trained assassin who could fix anything, would no doubt be able to get himself and everyone else out of a bind with his hard work.

Before he lost his father, Ren's patience in battle always allowed him to succeed against any opponent that crossed his path. If he had begun the process of healing he needed, Ren would undoubtedly contribute to the team.

Nora's strength was unquestioned by anyone, and her positivity never fully disappeared when she was faced with the darkest of times.

And though he was biased in this case, Eren knew that Cinder was the best of them all. She was his rock, someone who believed in him more than he believed in himself. Cinder was truly one of a kind, someone who made sure to spread Eren's ideas of freedom and doing the right thing wherever she went. And at the same time, she did the best she could to protect him not by getting him out of danger, but by having his back wherever he went.

Eren pondered the idea of his team not necessarily having a leader, even though they were chasing after his dream. If his friends were united and willing to work together through thick and thin, he had everything he needed.

"I think things are looking good," Eren said, returning back to the real world.

"Progress is progress," Cinder agreed. "You know, with all the bickering going on, maybe you and I can start to make a plan for Salem."

"Oh, okay." Eren immediately sat on the ground and began to draw in the dirt. Cinder joined him, having a good idea as to why he was doing that. "I can't recall everything I saw last time I was there, but let's say this is Salem's castle." Eren drew an "X" in the dirt. "If memory serves me right, it's crawling with Grimm. And you remember how I can make Grimm out of my blood?"

"Yeah, you did it all the time when we were training," Cinder recalled with ease.

Eren nodded. "There's going to be pools like that there. Each one makes more and more Grimm."

"So let's use the truck. Fly over as high as we can, see if the noise doesn't attract them."

"No good. Tons of Nevermores. If they can cause an airship to crash, they'll have no problem with cars."

Cinder drew an "R" in the dirt and made a line towards the "X." "So let Ren use his Titan," she offered. "It's invisibility should be able to take us to the castle. Nobody will suspect a thing."

Eren considered the idea, seeing that the Grimm would be none the wiser to an invisible man among them. But there was one question he had. "Do you think he's large enough to carry all of us on his back and head?" he asked.

"If not, he can make more than one trip." Cinder drew an "O" in the ground. "We'll just have to park as close as we can without drawing attention."

"That might be the beach." Eren erased Cinder's drawing and remade it further away from the "X." "I never saw any Grimm there when I made my escape."

"We'll see when we get there," Cinder countered. "Okay, we got a plan to get to the castle. How do we get inside?"

Eren rubbed his chin for a second. "There was this giant hole, one that was big enough for me to get inside. I don't know where it is, though. It can't be too far from the castle, though."

"We could give it a shot," Cinder agreed. "But it sounds like we shouldn't be leaving this whole thing to chance. We should know where it is rather than let Ren walk all over."

"Hang on." Eren stood up. "I think I got an idea." Quickly biting down on his hand, Eren moved his hand to the ground, making a small puddle that grew until someone could stick their whole hand in their. He then healed the wound and held his open palm out. After a few more seconds, a small black bird emerged from the tar-like substance and leapt into Eren's hand. "We can make ourselves a scout," Eren explained. "Let this thing fly around Salem's castle and let me view its memories."

Cinder stood up as she looked at the small Nevermore. "Or..." She pulled out her Scroll and pressed a few buttons.

*BUZZ*

*BUZZ*

Eren used his other hand to take out his Scroll, which showed that Cinder had made a video call. "What are you doing?" he asked.

"Give your Scroll to the Nevermore," Cinder calmly ordered. "Put it in its talons."

Eren let the Grimm off his palm and made it take the Scroll in its talons. Cinder pressed the screen to start the call. "Now make it fly," she said. Once Eren obeyed again, he watched the Grimm fly off with his Scroll. "Yeah, this can work." Eren looked back at Cinder, who was looking into her Scroll. She looked up and showed him the screen, which was still on a video call. Only now, it was showing the vast forest. Eren smiled as he understood the idea and called the Grimm back to him.

"This is perfect," he said. "Cinder... you're a genius."

Cinder formed a smug grin as she brushed her hair. "Tell me something I don't-"

"How did you do that?"

Eren and Cinder turned to see Winter, who still had her wrists tied with rope. She only approached closer not to run or hurt Eren, but to ask a question on behalf of Mercury. But she was more interested in how he made a Grimm rather than the Atlas vehicle.

"You... You made a Grimm," Winter said. "With blood. How did you do that?"

"This is none of your business, Schnee," Cinder said. "Get back to the truck."

Winter's eyes quickly changed as Ymir emerged. "She wasn't talking to you, hick." She then looked to Eren and asked her own question. "What the hell was that?"

Before Eren could answer, Cinder quickly stood in front of him and growled at Ymir. "What did you just call me?"

"You heard me."

Eren quickly cracked his knuckles. "Man, you're really asking for it, aren't you?" he asked.

Ymir was ready to run her mouth even more, since she had more than enough of living like this. Winter, however, still retained her will to go on, which led her to taking control of her body once more. "I apologize for that," she said in her attempt to calm down Eren and Cinder. "But could you at least tell me what all this is about? After I finish helping with the vehicle? There's no possible harm in just talking and listening."

"...Just finish it up," Eren ordered. "Then we can talk."

Winter nodded and walked away while engaging a mental conversation. "What was that?" she asked. "We could have been beaten again."

"If she doesn't wanna be called a hick, she should stop dressing like one," Ymir pointed out.

"That's not the-Oh, forget it."

"Bitches, both of them," Cinder said before looking back to Eren. "You sure you wanna tell them? It might give the Schnee a reason to try running back to Atlas."

"I'm not keeping slaves around here," Eren declared. "If she does a good job and wants something in return, we'll treat her fairly. Regardless of whether or not she deserves it."

---

After another hour of work and a few minor accidents, Mercury announced that he would soon be ready. However, to avoid any potential distractions when he was faced with the most challenging task yet, the young mechanic asked everyone to move away in case things went bad. So Eren and everyone else found themselves waiting at the foot of a hill, looking out into the distance and talking for hours.

"What gives?" Nora asked as she finally lost her patience. "Shouldn't he have been done by now?"

"I don't know," Emerald said as she looked upward. "But it's starting to get dark."

"Indeed it is," said Ren, who was sitting in a meditative position on the hill. "Did he say why it was important that we give him space?"

"All he said was that he found out something about the car," Cinder replied with a hint of uncertainty in her voice. "I think it was something about us... blending in."

"Blend in how exactly?" Emerald questioned.

"I think I know what he's referring to," Winter said, who was being watched by Eren even though her hands were tied. "You may have figured it out already, but your transport is a military prototype equipped for both living and driving on the road. Our chief scientists and engineers equipped it with numerous tools and methods for survival. Even with blending in with the environment."

"Is it dangerous?" Emerald asked, growing increasingly worried about Mercury. Even though she was upset about what he said earlier, she was worried about the dangers of working alone.

"The instruction manual specified a new piece of technology that could allow the car to blend in with the surrounding environment," Winter explained. "Not only was the piece experimental, but surprisingly volatile if the smallest error occurs."

"Wait, what?!" Emerald asked as she stood up and walked over to the Atlesian. "Why didn't you say anything?!"

"I did!" Winter stood up. "That was when he told us he wanted to work-!"

*RUMBLE*

The group jumped in surprise as a loud roar echoed throughout the clearing, followed by a rumble that could be felt in the ground beneath their feat.

Eren soon spotted movement from the edge of his vision when he turned. His eyes widened at what he saw. "What the hell?"

Hearing Eren's exclamation, the group turned to where he was looking. And they too shared their leaders surprise.

Driving down the path was not a large military vehicle like what they were expecting, but rather a motorhome. A very large motorhome. It had six wheels, three on each side. The motorhome had a glossy and matte violet paint job with two grey and white stripes painted and stretched horizontally, reaching the back of the vehicle. But easily the most eye catching thing, and one that made Eren do a double take, was the wings that were painted on the sides.

They were the Wings of Freedom. Or rather they appeared to be a Wings of Freedom variant. Like the Wings of Freedom there were two wings crossing over each other. But rather than them being a pair blue and white wings, they were instead a pair of white and black wings. And unlike the Wings of Freedom, which were two feathery wings, this logo had one white feathery wing and one black bat-like wing.

The motorhome came to a stop, and from the driver side window was a grinning Mercury. "Sup?" he asked as he cut the engine and opened a driver door.

"...Sup?" Winter asked incredulously as she stared wide eyed at the vehicle. "What did you do?"

"I gotta agree with the Schnee," Cinder said, ignoring the stink eye Winter gave her. "How did you go from a military vehicle to this?"

Mercury stepped outside. "Well, the idea came to me when I was finished installing the new wiring and components," he explained. "After all, it would draw some unwanted attention if people see us driving in a big military vehicle. So, using some metal and extra help I got from Maykr, we got to work on a new outward frame, one that was based on a CMG Motorhome. This way, we can blend in when we're driving around Mistral. And we even got six by six wheels now." Mercury looked back at the car and then everyone else. "I call it the Dark Wing."

"That's... actually impressive," Eren said, his eyes roaming over the vehicle in great detail and lingering on the wing logo. "But why exactly did you choose these colors? And that logo? And why Dark Wing?"

"Because CMG Motorhome is stupid in conversation," Mercury explained. "Everything else just came to me when I took a nap."

"Why do I get the feeling that Darkness somehow got involved?" Eren mused internally.

"A nap?" Emerald asked. "Is that why you took so long?"

"Yeah," Mercury admitted with a smile, earning a smack from Emerald. "Hey, I was working all day, what do you want from me?!"

"To be less of an idiot."

Mercury rolled his eyes. "Whatever. Anyway, this is just the outside. Let me show you the inside." Mercury motioned for everyone to follow him and he led them through the side door.

"Wow!" Nora squealed, her eyes like stars as she danced around the interior. The others couldn't help but agree with her.

"Like Winter told me, the Dark Wing was originally a military troop transport with thirty seats in total, fifteen on each side. So we removed the seats on the left side so that we could have better room for the necessary appliances that we will need." Mercury pointed to them as he began to explain which was which. "We still have the small cooking stove and oven, but I bought and installed a kitchen sink and dishwasher. Up top we have installaled several cupboards and pantries for us to store food and things such as plates and bowls." Mercury then pointed to the right side. "As for the seats on the right side, I had those replaced with a single large curved bench seat that can easily hold all of us. With the bench seat, I had a couple of guys from Maykr move a small dining table for us if we decide to eat inside." Mercury then diverted their attention to the back. "Of course, since this is where we will be staying, I looked in the manual to see anything about sleeping arrangements. I found some small mattresses, and got the tools from Maykr to make them bunk beds."

"Um, there are six bunk beds for seven of us," Winter pointed out.

"That's because those beds are for us." Mercury pointed to himself, Emerald, Eren, Cinder, Ren and Nora. "Don't worry, I got something for you." He moved back to the first bed and tossed Winter a blow-up air mattress. "Start blowing." He immediately burst out laughing.

"Oh... fantastic," Ymir spoke sarcastically.

Mercury calmed down and continue to explain the rest of his work. "I wasn't able to install any toilets, so I hope you don't mind using the great outdoors instead."

"Oh yeah, definitely," Cinder said sarcastically, Emerald and Nora nodding in agreement.

Mercury detected the sarcasm and offered a rebuttal. "Well, it was either a toilet or a shower!" He pointed to the back. "The people from Maykr got it installed while I was working on the beds."

"Wait, for real?" Cinder asked as she moved to the back. "Holy crap, there is!"

"With that out of the way, let me show you some new features." Mercury pulled out his Scroll and pulled up a holographic image of the Dark Wing. With the press of a button a new image of the Dark Wing showed up, this time with two wings extending from the side, two large turrets on top, and what looked like a booster at the back. "The wings you see here are something that was added to give us better control and stability for the flight function. The turrets were something we found by accident, but we can use them for Grimm or bandits. The turrets can either be controlled manually from a console at the front passenger seat, or be set to automatic. And lastly, we have an afterburner system which will give us a nice boost in speed both on the ground and in the air."

"Mercury, you are the man!" Nora cheered while giving him a high-five and jumping up and down.

"Agreed," Eren nodded. "I thought what you did with our weapons was impressive, but this?" He motioned to the entire environment. "This definitely surpasses all of that."

"Hope you don't mind I kicked you all outta here," Mercury apologized. "Maykr's got the right tools and people for stuff like this."

"No, this is great!" Nora said.

"Very well done," Ren included.

"I got dibs on first shower!" Cinder claimed.

*RUMBLE*

All eyes fell onto Nora when a loud noise filled the air. However, the eyes immediately fell to Nora's stomach.

"Um... can we eat first?" she asked.

Everyone decided to eat outdoors that night, given they didn't have anything worth cooking in the stove. Cinder used her Semblance to make a campfire, one that Ren used to heat up canned food he packed for everyone. Luckily, Nora packed enough salt so that the canned food would taste just fine.

Surprisingly, after witnessing Eren's demonstration with the Grimm, Winter found herself to be talking nonstop about Eren's explanation for the miracle.

"Okay, let me see if I understand this," she said for the hundredth time. "You, a regular human being, are saying that you can create Grimm because... you were chosen by a god."

"And he's been saying it for hours," said Ymir, who also listened to Eren's story. Even though she couldn't tell what was true or what was a lie, she was growing tired of him repeating the same thing over and over again.

"That's right," said Eren, who was being patient with Winter.

"And you believe you can use this as well as your... Titan... to stop the woman who's supposedly controlling the Grimm," Winter concluded.

Eren nodded once again. "Salem," he reiterated.

"Salem," Winter repeated.

"Right, and you thought 'Ymir' was a stupid name!" Ymir shouted.

"I still stand by that," said Winter, which confused everyone around her. "I mean, who in their right mind would believe something like this?" Everyone around her raised their hands, which caused her to roll her eyes. "I knew it, I'm surrounded by madmen."

"You could believe it much easier if you take my hand," said Eren, who offered his hand out to Ymir. "Either that, or you can see for yourself tomorrow."

"Well, it's clear that I won't be going anywhere any time soon. That being said, I'll be taking the safe route, thank you very much."

Eren lowered his hand. "Suit yourself." He then crossed his arms in an attempt to conserve body heat.

"Yeah, I feel you, Eren," said Mercury. "Freezing my balls out here."

"Want me to warm up the fire?" Cinder asked.

"I think it would be wiser to call it a night," said Ren, who looked at the time on his Scroll. "We have a long day ahead of us."

"No arguments here," said Mercury, who sat up and moved to the car. "If anyone needs me, it can wait until morning."

Nora let out a loud yawn. "Same goes for me," she said as she walked towards the car. But then she grabbed Ren's arm. "Come on, Ren! We can share a space inside!" Before he could protest, Ren found himself pulled off the ground and towards the car.

Winter's eyes suddenly turned to gray as Ymir let herself out. "Can't believe you want me to sleep on an air mattress, after all we did for you," she said.

"Come on, Ymir," said Eren. "We're being fair."

"How is that fair? I couldn't see a space for me to lay down."

"Emerald, think you find a space for the Schnee?" Cinder asked.

"Sure," Emerald agreed as she stood up. "Okay, come on."

Ymir rolled her eyes as she looked back to Eren. "Don't think this makes us friends."

"Don't worry, I won't," Eren said, which caused Cinder to laugh. "Go ahead, Emerald. I'm gonna stay out here for a little longer."

"Me too," said Cinder, who decided to warm up the fire after all. Emerald obeyed and took Ymir into the car, leaving Eren and Cinder alone. "What made you wanna stay out longer?"

"This is probably going to be the last time I see the sky like this," Eren answered. "Everything at Salem's home is red, even the sky."

"Why am I not surprised?" Cinder looked up into the sky, specifically at the broken moon. "Next thing you'll tell me is that the moon is broken even more."

"I wouldn't be surprised if it was." Eren looked at the moon with Cinder. "You know what else isn't surprising? Darkness was the one who made the moon like that."

Cinder chuckled. "Of course he did." She continued to stare at the moon, but moved against Eren's body. Eren wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her closer.

"You know, the moon in Paradis is whole," he said. "No chunks missing, no lingering pieces, just... whole."

"That must be nice," Cinder said. "I always hated seeing it like this."

"I never got used to it. Never thought I'd be taking the moon of all things for granted."

"Who could blame you?" Cinder shifted her gaze from the moon to the stars overhead, which gave her an idea. "Hey, Eren. Did you ever have constellations back home?"

"Oh, yeah," Eren confirmed. "My favorite was the Big Dipper. I don't think it's here, though."

"What did it look like?"

"Like this big scoop. You know, like something that dips in ice cream."

Cinder laughed. "Oh, my gosh. That's the dumbest thing I've ever heard."

Eren chuckled. "What, you have a better one?" he asked.

"You can see the Hydra right there." Cinder made a shape with her finger and the stars, one of a snake's head and body. "It's the only Grimm that was hunted to extinction, according to legend."

"Not for much longer." Eren continued to look at the sky. "Maybe it won't happen tomorrow. Or next week. But we're ready to stop Salem, I can feel it. I know things will go our way, today felt like we were more united than ever. That's how people win, even back in Para-" Eren suddenly felt something moving in his arms. He stopped looking at the sky and turned to the girl in his arms. "Cinder... you're shaking."

Cinder didn't turn to meet Eren's gaze. "We had all this time, all these fights before we were finally going to stop Salem," she said. "Now that we're so close... I can't help but feel scared about all of it."

Eren instinctively hugged Cinder closer to him, understanding her fear as he attempted to comfort her. He felt a twinge of fear as well, realizing that Salem could kill any one of them whenever she pleased. And all he could do was whatever it took to keep his friends safe. And now, that started with Cinder.

"It won't be easy," he said. "Salem has a lot up her sleeve. Magic, Grimm, immortality. But listen." Cinder finally looked up to Eren. "She flies, she dies, but most importantly... Salem always lies. She'll be using that when we meet her." Eren immediately looked Cinder in the eyes. "Cinder... do you trust me?"

"Always," she replied, also staring into his eyes. As she did, Cinder stopped shaking. The aqua color soothed her, as did the amber for Eren.

"Don't listen to Salem. No matter what she says, no matter how much she might hurt you, you can't listen to her. She might offer you a deal, try to turn you against us. Don't. Listen. To her."

Cinder understood Eren well, but it also made her afraid once more. She found comfort in reaching up to touch Eren's cheek, who immediately leaned into the touch. "Can I ask you something?" she asked.

Eren nodded. "Anything," he said.

Cinder smiled. "You need to know... I can't do this without you. I'll be right beside you, when we get there. Do you think... that's a weakness? That I can't rely on myself for this?"

Eren shook his head, disregarding the idea. "I can't stop her alone either. We're sticking together."

Cinder nodded, glad that she wasn't going to be alone. Eren felt the same way, grateful that he could rely on Cinder. But there was a lingering feeling that came with his comfort, as if there was something missing.

Eren instantly knew what it was.

"Cinder, can I ask you something?" he asked.

"Of course," she replied with a smile.

"Did you... mean what you said? You know, back at the barn?"

Cinder felt a heat rise to her face, one that wasn't courtesy of the fire. "Yeah, I really did," she answered. That was when she had another question of her own. "Did you mean what you said? Have I really made you happy? Have I really been..." She suddenly chuckled. "Have I really been your best friend?"

Eren smiled again. "Absolutely." The smile disappeared when he remembered something else. Specifically, how he meant to say that Cinder had meant more to him, even more than a best friend.

However, Cinder had no idea he wanted to say such a thing. Which was why she got the wrong idea from his new facial expression. "Hey, I'm... I'm sorry," she said. "I'm not trying to replace anyone. I mean, how could I live up to the smartest man from another world? I just-"

"No, no," Eren said as he reassured her. "You're not replacing anyone. Yeah, I know that's probably the first time I've called you my best friend. But I meant it, I really did. I just... wanted to say it before tomorrow."

The last sentence gave Cinder a sudden boost of confidence. "I have to tell him," she thought to herself, thinking back on what she told Nora. "Mikasa or no Mikasa... he needs to know." Cinder brushed her hair aside and looked into Eren's eyes once more. "Well, I'm glad I've been your best friend," she said sincerely. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't feel the same way... and then some." She laid her head on his chest and hugged him. "Eren, I... I love you."

"I love you too."

Cinder quickly looked up at a smiling Eren. "Without you, I would have been a stranger in a strange land for a while longer," he said. "I'm really happy I chose you to be my friend, the day we met. You're the best, Cinder."

Despite more praise and the fact that he was close to her, Eren wasn't able to feel Cinder's heart break. And yet, she could see there was still a glimmer of hope to correct what she said. "Eren, I mean-"

"Eren! Cinder!"

The duo looked over to the car to see Ren standing at the door. "We shouldn't keep the battery running like this!" he called out.

"Okay, we'll be right there!" Eren called back. He then looked down to Cinder. "Looks likes its bedtime."

"Yeah... bedtime," Cinder replied as she moved off Eren's chest. As she watched him get up and brush himself off, Cinder looked away and shut her eyes. "Ugh... dammit," she thought in sadness. "Way to go, Cinder. Looks like this is-Huh?"

Cinder suddenly felt herself come off the ground, even though she wasn't standing up. She looked up to see that Eren was carrying her in his arms. "If you're going to fall asleep, you can do it inside," he said calmly.

"..."

Cinder decided to say nothing else and simply enjoy the ride. Eren took her inside and laid her down on an empty bed, where she pulled out a blanket she had in a bag. "Thanks," she said.

"No problem," Eren replied. "Hope you don't mind that I don't wanna smell like perfume again."

Cinder laughed. "What I don't mind is the extra space I'll get tonight." Cinder put the blanket on. "Maybe you're right. Tomorrow, win or lose, won't be easy. All we can do is just pray for the best while expect the worst." She turned to her side and closed her eyes.

Seeing Cinder lose her confidence struck a blow to Eren's. It also reminded him of the first day he and Mikasa were forced to fight real Titans, when they broke through the Walls a second time. On that day, Mikasa was assigned to protect the evacuating citizens while Eren was sent to kill the Titans. However, Mikasa panicked when she knew she wouldn't be with Eren. He remembered how he helped her refocus by headbutting her and reprimanding her for thinking about disobeying orders.

This moment felt familiar to Eren, despite the different circumstances. And he had a feeling a similar reaction would put Cinder back on track. However, Eren found himself incapable of performing the feat. The last time he was that harsh on his friends, he pushed them all away so he could move forward alone. And this war required all hands on deck, friends and uncertain allies included. Eren knew if he wanted Cinder to have hope, he needed to approach the situation differently as well as honestly.

"They do when you're here."

Eren widened his eyes, but quickly relaxed when earlier events gave him an idea to do both the things he wanted.

"I don't need to pray for the best," he said. "I already have it." He then leaned down and kissed Cinder's cheek, hoping it would rejuvenate her spirits. "Good night, Cinder." He walked away to leave Cinder touching her cheek and smiling.

---

Author's notes: Hey everyone, this is The Avenging Titan here. I hope that you enjoyed the chapter and thank you all for sticking with us. A part of me still can't believe how much the story has progressed since the initial planning stage nearly a year ago.

Now this chapter has been relatively low action compared to others but we felt it was important to establish a key piece for the group: transport. Unlike Team RNJR in canon our group is slightly larger, and is heading to a much more hostile location compared to wilds of Anima. Plus walking to Salem just wouldn't work. So they will need a little something extra to aid them.

And so came the Dark Wing.

For those who wish to know, the visual design of Dark Wing is heavily based on a GMC Motorhome 6x6. Just head to Google Images and you'll be able to find several images of vehicle, then just imagine the Dark Wing's color scheme and logo. As for the concept of the Dark Wing itself, a motorhome with a bunch of secret gadgets and weapons, that was inspired by the Rust Bucket from the Ben 10 Franchise. I wanted the Dark Wing to serve both as a transport and a 'main base' for the main cast in their mission, and the Rust Bucket was a perfect example. Plus some of the special gadgets of the Dark Wing such as the flight mode and the afterburner also were based of similar features the Rust Bucket possessed in Ben 10.

One last thing of note, the beat down with Winter/Ymir was actually based off of the Courtroom scene from the actual AOT series where Levi beat Eren. A nice little callback wouldn't you agree?

Anyhow, we hope you enjoyed the chapter and don't forget to leave a review on your thoughts (what you liked or didn't liked) as well as any theories one what may happen. This is The Avenging Titan signing off.