The True Free Man

by The Alamore

When Gordon Freeman accepted the G-Man's deal, he had never expected his next assignment to be placed in another world where humans were hunted down and eaten by giants while backstabbers and undermines plague what remains of humanity. All of it tendering on a world on the verge of collapse and ruin, but the right man in the wrong place can make all the difference in the world.

3. Chapter 3 - We Are Pulling Out

Despite having some company who can watch his back and some to aid him in combat and with the knowledge of the ins and outs of the city, Gordon was finding it to be more of a burden than when he travelled alone.

For one, he was back on the ground and relying on his feet. It felt like an utter drag compared to using the grappling gear. Gordon recalled somewhere that Hannes referred to it as the Vertical Manoeuvring equipment, or the Omni-directional mobility gear, or the 3-dimensional Manoeuvring equipment. Hannes himself was confused about the official name, referring to either of the other two as nicknames and civvies with no military knowledge calling them that. Either way, Gordon much preferred to use the gear rather than running. It was quicker and provided fewer obstacles in their paths. The only thing stopping him was the children and their injured mother. Gordon knew the gear required the user to have an equal balance to operate properly. Holding a frail woman or two kids would ruin that balance and cause numerous issues and problems. It was far safer to run on foot and carry them to safety.

Speaking of which, his second burden was the two kids he was carrying. One that was constantly asking him questions and the other that feels like he was carrying an RPG with one hand. Seriously, how could someone so little weigh so much?! As much as it was a hassle to carry her, at least she was quiet, unlike the other one. "Can't we go any faster!? Please! Mom might not make it!" the boy, who Gordon recalled was named Eren, begged. "Let me and Mikasa down! You take mom and get her out of here! You have the gear. You can make it"

"Eren! Give it a rest! We need to focus now!" Taking point up ahead, Hannes yelled back over his head.

"Gordon can make it to the gate with mom! You saw how fast he was! He was faster than you! He didn't even get caught back there!"

"Maria's sake! Shut up Eren! Your mother's gonna make it out of here on foot with me! Or are you saying you want to be abandoned? Have our only defence against the Titans leave us here by ourselves? Leave Mikasa to die here? Is that it?!" Hannes yelled at Eren.

It was brutal in Gordon's opinion to use ultimatums like that, but it worked in the end. Eren grimaced and looked down at the ground in shame. "N-No…"

"Then shut it Eren! We're making it out of-"

A crack in the air caused both men to stop to a halt. Their eyes scanned around them, snapping from building to building with both silent as they listen intently. While Hannes was surprised, Gordon was in full-blown panic mode. "What was that?" Eren asked.

Fortunately for the men, Mikasa quickly reached over to slap Eren upside the head to shut him up. A retort from the hot-headed boy was silenced when there was another crack, then another and another. The sound was all too familiar to Gordon. "Gunfire. Poor bastards are probably trying to defend themselves…" Hannes whispered to himself.

Gordon solemnly agreed. Visions of Black Mesa yet again played out in his head. Hearing the distant gunshots that echoed through the bloodied halls of the facility or across the New Mexico mesas and canyons. Leaving Gordon to always wonder if they were friend or foe firing their weapons. A friend in defence or a foe to attack? Gordon never knew nor wanted to know.

"We need to help them!" Eren interrupted Gordon's inner thoughts with a yell. "You can save them like you saved us!"

"We can't Eren. We need to focus on ourselves- our own survival. I can't fight and Gordon needs to protect you two. Sorry to say this but those people are on their own" Hannes bitterly told.

Eren snarled at Hannes and turned to Gordon with pleading eyes. Hoping that his rescuer would see sense and help those being assaulted by the Titans. Unfortunately for the young boy, Gordon shared Hannes' sentiment. Gordon reasoned with himself that Hannes and the Yeager family's safety were his top priority. Though a selfish part of him favoured Hannes' words because it meant Gordon would escape this hellish city and survive to live another day.

"We Are Pulling Out"

Dejected, Eren huffed and threw his head to the side, refusing to look at Hannes or Gordon out of spite. In Gordon's other arm, Mikasa looked at Eren with a saddened expression but remained silent. With his passengers somewhat settled with their plan, Hannes continued to lead Gordon through the streets. Gunshots still rang out as they ventured forward to the Entry Gate. This task quickly proved a hassle when they started to run into the same problems Gordan experienced when he was on the ground: rubble and debris blocking their paths. Hannes cursed with each dead end they found and each double back they took. A few minutes passed by as they slowly made progress to their destination. As they continued forward, Gordon noticed that they were nearing closer and closer to the gunshots. Which was bad news for them as it meant they were getting closer to danger. Hannes caught onto this too, halting by the corner of an alleyway. "This is bad. Really bad. This leads down to the main road. If we go down there, it'll be dangerous…" Hannes mumbled.

His reddened, exhausted face was draining in colour and sweating up a storm. Gordon noticed his hands were slightly shivering and how he struggled to gulp down saliva. He was terrified, that much was obvious. Gordon guesses it was doubly so now that his gear and weapons were destroyed. He was going to be entering the lion's den without any protection. Gordon lowered down to kneel and usher the kids off of him. They tentatively stepped away from him and he directed them to Hannes. Hannes tore his frightened stare away from the alleyway when he felt little hands grasp his pant legs. He looked down to see Eren and Mikasa on either side of him and looking towards Gordon. Gordon used his newfound freedom to equip his blades. Holding the swords in his hands, he gave the group a recurring nod. Moreso directed at Hannes. The Garrison Officer looked slightly relieved but still pale. Regardless, he steeled himself and ushered everyone along. "O-ok. Ok. Eren! Mikasa! You follow me and you stay close! When we exit out of his alleyway, we need to run. Gordon will protect us from the Titans and cover our escape. Don't worry, he can handle himself. We just need to focus on running. Got that?"

"Yes Mr Hannes" both children replied.

Hannes took one last deep breath and turned to Gordon. "You ready?"

Gordon gave him a stern nod and led the charge. Running down the alleyway, the group arrived at the main street. It was pure chaos and destruction. Wagons and their cargo laid astringe amongst the toppled buildings and raging fires. The culprits for this destruction stood five Titans: two 15 meters and three raging from three to five meters. The two largest Titans were on their right ripping the rooftops off of buildings, looking inside of them for any humans to eat. Meanwhile, on their left and towards the direction of the Exit Gate, the other three Titans were swarming a line of wagons and caravans further down the street. The makeshift defence spend the entirety of the brick street where a group of humans used it as a barrier against the advancing Titans. One was stuck in a mess of wood that impaled its leg ligaments and lower torso preventing it from walking. The other two had no such hindrance. Boarding the defences and trying to slow them down with guns, men and women were desperately fighting off the encroaching Titans. "COME ON YOU BASTARDS!" one screaming could be heard from where Gordon was.

"Aim for the eyes! Aim for the eyes!"

"Screw the eyes! Aim for the fingers! The arms! Anywhere! Just keep shooting!"

Wedged between two sets of enemies with one blocking their path, Gordon knew that sneaking past wasn't an option. Hannes knew too and looked to Gordon with a question. "Gordon? Can you handle this?"

Gordon gave him a strong nod and launched himself into the air. Hannes below took the children close to him and ushered them to stay close and follow him as they made their way to the makeshift barrier. Climbing at a good height, Gordon directed himself towards his targets. That being the two 15 meters too preoccupied with searching the houses. Their distracted states made them easy targets. Gordon was quick to capitalise on it and score his second kill of the day. The first Titan was felled with minimal effort. The other one saw its brethren fall and snapped to attention. A little too late as Gordon swung around its head and sliced its Nape off. With the two confirmed kills, Gordon hooked himself to a nearby roof and veered to face his next set of enemies.

Sawing over Hannes and the kids, Gordon got as low as he can to strike at one of the three meters further ahead. His feet almost touched the ground he was going so low. The closest three-meter was in striking distance. Gordon readied his strike and applied more pressure to the gear. He shot straight to the Titan and successfully carved its Nape off. Unfortunately for Gordon, his poor timing reared its ugly face again as his strike coincided with another barrage of gunfire from the stranded group of humans. Gordon cursed and drove himself out of the way. A few bullets grazed past him, but one struck him near the hips. He cried out as he collided and tumbled onto the ground. "You fucking idiot! You shot him!" Gordon heard a scream through his pounding heartbeat.

There was a crash and more screams followed. Gordon rolled over, ignoring his pain and looked over to see the other Titan had breached the barricade and was grasping at a man's legs. It held onto him so tightly that blood and viscera oozed out from in between the Titan's fingers. The other men and women tried their best to push the Titan off of him and free him, but it was a vain attempt. No matter how many bullets they pumped into the beast, Titan would not let the man go. Gordon jumped to his feet and charged the Titan with his blades. Using the same jumping manoeuvre he used for the Long Jump Module, he gained a great deal of speed and swung his blades at the Titan. His right blade slid effortlessly through its outstretched arm, while his left carved across its knee. The Titan cried in pain and fell forward. Gordon came to an abrupt halt beside the Titan. With both blade hands together, Gordon swung upwards with a great deal of effort. He twisted his body around, following his swing and building enough momentum that when he brought his blades back down over the neck of the Titan, he easily decapitated it. The head fell off its neck with a light thud. A bit anticlimactic but Gordon didn't focus on that. He saw the neck stump swiftly enclose around the wound and regrow bone and nerves. Still, without a brain to dictate its movements and protect itself, it was as good as dead. Gordon walked up to the headless Titan and promptly sliced off its Nape. The skin and bone ceased to regrow. The Titan was no more.

There was a loud crash and someone screaming something. It was all overshadowed when the last Titan slammed into its brethren's corpse and knocked Gordon on the floor. Seeing its allies defeated and Gordon within close proximity, the Titan had ripped itself apart to chase after Gordon and eat him. Its lower half was gone. Either remaining where it had been impaled or dragged across the street by its machinations. It even still had bits and pieces of wagon and wood embedded into its torso.

Bigger than the other two that assaulted the blockade, the five meter threw the decapitated Titan's corpse away from it and charged at Gordon with an open maw. Too disorientated to act fast, Gordon crawled and pushed himself against the buildings bordering the street. His back was against the building as the Titan came down on him with an open maw. Swiftly, Gordon managed to stick the crowbar in between its teeth as it chomped down. There was a loud clang and the crowbar remained firm. The Titan pressed itself onto Gordon and pinned him down. Gordon groaned at the pressure the giant was laying on him. He grit his teeth and pushed himself forward. The Titan's slobber made an excellent lubricant to slide his lower half partially out from under its jaw. Inch by inch, he squirrelled out from under the jaw but found each centimetre gained was met with more residence from the Titan. It was pressing down hard on Gordon, desperately pinning him down long enough for it to bite him. There was a shiny glare within the Titan's mouth that caught Gordon's eye. Stuck between the inner cheek and one of its molars was a weapon: a double-barrelled blunderbuss. Seeing the deadly weapon, Gordon stretched his hands to reach for the gun.

Through the nasty breathing from the Titan and his own pounding heart, Gordon heard a dreadful noise: groaning metal. He looked at his trusty tool-turned-weapon. The crowbar's rusted paint started to chip, and its form slowly bend. He needed to act quickly! He pressed himself up further and further. Agitating the Titan and pacing the damage of his crowbar but allowing Gordon more reach. Finally, Gordon grasped the blunderbuss. He brought it to bear and broke open the barrel to see his lifeline. Two shots. Only two to either escape or kill the Titan.

It would take a miracle for the two buckshot to disable the Titan long enough for Gordon to escape and kill it. The other option was… frankly suicidal and an idea only a madman would make. Yet again, Gordon had made a few of those for the past forty-eight hours and he's come out of them a little worse for wear but still alive. Gordon decided to risk it.

Like an insane idiot, Gordon shoved himself into the Titans mouth. Holding back vomit from the putrid stench and the wet warmth seeping into his clothes, Gordon pushed himself as far as he would go. He stretched his arm, blunderbuss in hand, deeper into the Titan's mouth. The barrel pushed past the dangling uvula and pressed it against the back of its throat. Ignoring its gagging, Gordon focused and angled the gun downwards. Using his mind to create a closely accurate prediction, Gordon targeted to wear where the Nape was from this angle. Pushed for time by the groaning crowbar and satisfied with his calculations, Gordon pulled the trigger.

The powder ignited, and with a thunderous boom, all cylinders fired off the powerful buckshot. At such close range, the pellets easily tore and minced through muscle, flesh and bone before breaching out of the other side. Gordon closed his eyes in reflex. Not from the blood or bone splatter but from the sunlight. His predictions were correct. Gordon had just blown the Titan's Nape away from the inside out!

Gordon felt the Titan let it a death rattle before sinking down to the ground. Gordon let out a sigh of relief and started to worm his way out from under its chin. With the Titan's face pinned against the wall, he had no choice but to crawl through the hole he just made. Grimsley, Gordon wedged himself out of the Titan's chin and crawled through the slimy mouth and out of the hole where the Titan's Nape once was. After tucking his feet in, he reached back and pried off his crowbar. Tool in hand, Gordon pressed through the sizzling hole. To his surprise, a group of hands reached into the hole and tried to take hold of his arms. "Alright! I think I got him" Gordon heard a man say.

Immediately, Gordon was tugged through the hole and out the other side. Falling face first near the feet of the men who pulled him through. After dragging him out of the Titan, the men rushed to pick Gordon onto his feet. Picking and flicking bits of Titan off of him as they went. Once upright, the men led him back towards their makeshift barricade. Gordon was too preoccupied with cleaning his glasses to notice where he was going. Nor did he notice the looks he was given till he put his clean glasses back on. Gordon saw that all of the refugees were staring at him with disbelief and pure wonderment. A group of several dozen or so people, a mix of old men, women, teenagers and children. All of them were sharing the same look. "By the fucking Wall Goddess!" One of the grizzled men exclaimed.

"Holy shit Gordon" Hannes gasped behind him.

Gordon turned to see Hannes and the children arriving at the barricade safe and sound. "Are you alright? Sweet mother Maria! What the hell was that Gordon?!" Hannes shockingly asked.

Any response Gordon could've made was dashed away when the civilians bombarded him with exclaims and praises. "That was bloody amazing!" a woman called out.

"Never seen a Titan be put down that way! Holy crap!"

"History in the making fellas! Bet no one in history managed to kill a Titan with a gun before!"

"Prying open a Titan's jaw, crawling into it and blowing it to chunks with a gun? Walls, that was amazing to see!"

The voice from the last statement sounded familiar to Gordon. Turning around to see who provided familiar faces to Gordon. Though not properly introduced, he recognised the two men from the ferry earlier today. The tall, skinny blonde-haired man had a relieved and ecstatic smile on his face as he looked at Gordon. "You're like some super soldier ain't ya? Related to lieutenant Levi Ackerman by any chance?" he gushed.

"Can it Blaire" A grizzled older man with black hair grunted at Blaire.

Blaire snicked at the older man. "Whatever Butch. I told ya back at the ferry, this insane bastard means business" Blaire jutted a thumb at Gordon.

"My Godesses! It's you! You're the one who saved us!" one of the elderly civilians called out to Gordon.

It took a while, but Gordon was already recalling the sights of familiar faces. True to their words, a lot of these people here were the countless lives he had saved during his venture to the Entry-Gate. He recognised the elderly in their walking sticks and some of the families with children he risked his neck saving. All of them looked at him with gratitude and admiration. Such love could not be said for Hannes. Upon seeing him, a stockier and taller man in his early fifties glared at Hannes and stomped over to him. "YOU!" he roared at Hannes.

The air of admiration was shattered by the man as the man ran up close to Hannes. Not caring for the injured Carla in Hannes' arms, the man thrust a finger and gapped harshly into Hannes' chest. "Hannes you dumb fool! You and your useless friends left us all to die!" the man roared in Hannes' face and shoved his shoulder.

Hannes grunted but didn't retaliate. With Carla in his arms, it was impossible to throw back at the man, but Gordon had an inkling it was the man's words that stopped Hannes from attacking back. Hannes' face showed his confusion. While he couldn't hit back, Eren took it upon himself to do so. "Back off!" He cried and kicked the man in the shins.

The man didn't so much as flinch from the strike. He was too enraged to care about Eren. He simply pushed Eren to the side to accost Hannes more. That plan was put to a stop when Gordon quickly intervened. He thrust his blade out in between Hannes and the man. The blade leaned more towards the man and the sharp edge pointed towards him. The man looked at Gordon with a stunned look equal to Hannes' own. Seeing Gordon's stern face, he wisely backed off. Gordon felt extremely irritated by the man's accosting. They were in the middle of a warzone! There's no time to be picking fights with each other! Despite backing away, the man didn't re-join the others. He instead took three steps back and levelled a glare at Gordon. "The fuck are you defending him for?! His whole Garrison left us here to be eaten! My family! My grandkids! They left us to die!" the man screamed and pointed to Hannes.

Hannes looked at him with a puzzled look. "Leave? What the hell do you mean Ron?! I had to leave. I had civvies to save! I left a contingency here! The captain had four squads here even! We're trying to help people you idiot! We're coordinating excavations and killing any Titan that comes through here!" Hannes screamed back.

The older man, Ron, barked out a laugh. A sentiment the others shared. "You're an idiot Hannes! You abandoned us! You and those cowards! You're a disgrace to call yourself a part of the Garrison!"

"Where the hell are the squads? Why aren't they here? Where did they go!?" Hannes fitfully asked.

"We followed your evacuation orders and head down the main road to the Inner Gate, but low and behold it's swarming with Titans. Half of the side streets are overrun with Titans too! All because the Garrison messengers relayed orders to pull out and abandon the district several minutes ago. Our fucking escort abandoned us to the Titans here."

"Good thing we can rely on some Shiganshina hospitality, right?" Blaire laughed and gestured to Gordon.

"At least someone is looking out for us!" Ron shouted.

"Shit! What the hell is the captain thinking?!" Hannes bemoaned.

"Shit indeed Hannes. Once they made sure their friends and families were safe, they left us to die! What?! We didn't want to be buddies-buddies with a bunch of failures or bow to you and kiss the earth you walked on, so we get to die because of that?!"

"That isn't-"

"That's why you left your post huh? To save your friends!" The man accusingly pointed at Carla and the children.

Hannes' mouth opened and close, struggling to get a word out to defend himself. What was there to truly say when the bulky man had a point? Even Gordon shameful had to admit he was right. Hannes left his post, his position to defend the people of Shinganshina, to save his friends. Hannes said nothing and refused to look the man or the crowd in the eyes. Seemingly satisfied with his shaming, Ron backed away.

Gordon gave a snaring look to Ron. Hollowed words coming from Hannes brought Gordon's attention to him. "They're abandoning the city. By the Walls, this can't be happening…" Hannes spoke with utter disbelief.

The group seemed to grow ever sombre at Hannes' accurate approximation. Their heads lowered, downtrodden at the reminder that they were abandoned and there was no hope for a rescue. Even the children weren't convinced by their parents' words of hope and salvation. They saw it on their faces clear as day that all hope for their survival was lost. All they were willing to do was sit in their makeshift camp and defend themselves to the last man. That was until Gordon walked to them. Unlike them, Gordon was feeling bitter and frustrated.

He had to witness yet another group of helpless people left to die because the forces in place to protect them couldn't manage it. Again, it was up to him to make a difference. He pointed to all of them with his blade and a stern look, then flicked the tip of the blade down the main street; towards the Inner Gate. A few people were clueless to his expressions, but Hannes and a handful of others released what he was ordering. "Gordon… you're not serious, are you? You can't defend all of us!" Hannes exclaimed.

"He sure can! You saw what he could do right? He can save all of us!" Eren spoke up.

"Not when he's been shot and injured!" Butch bellowed and pointed to the wound on Gordon's hips.

Gordon forgot that he was wounded till Butch pointed it out. Back when he fought off the two Titans he was stuck by a bullet. Recognising the wound made it release a dull ache into his system. He examined it to see it had stuck the surface but didn't go any further or embed itself into his flesh. It had left a nasty gash across his hip. Gordon didn't care about it and continued ushering the group into action. He saw one of the wagons loaded with weapons. He grabbed a few and started passing them out to shaky and confused hands. "Y-You can't be serious!" a terrified woman asked.

Gordon snapped his attention to her and gave her a stern nod. "By the Walls, you don't mess around do ya?" Blaire laughed again.

"We're doing this? We're seriously doing this?!" a scared older man asked.

"Better than doing nothing and dying here!" Eren proudly proclaimed.

A booming chuckle came from Butch. "Well said little brat" Butch said in good faith.

"And we'll just shoot at them? Look how well that went last time!" Ron argued.

"We're not trying to kill them with it…" Hannes spoke as he stepped towards the group. "We'll distract them with gunfire while Gordon finishes them off".

Gordon snapped his fingers and gave a thumbs up to Hannes. That was exactly Gordon's plan! So far, Gordon was impressed by the man. He was one of the few people he'd met that had a quick wit and a high possibility of surviving. Gordon resumed giving out weapons, now along with Butch and Blaire, as Hannes and others tried to convince the reluctant others to join. "This is your- our only chance to survive. If the captain ordered the Garrison to fall back and abandon all of you, that means we're losing ground and they're not coming back to save any of us. If… if this gets any worse, they'll close the Gate. Sealing us in here with the Titans! If that happens, then we can say goodbye to our lives".

"But we have a Goddess given chance! Right here, right now!" Ron stepped up and gave his own piece. "We've got someone with a pair willing to kill these giant bastards while we run for it. He's willing to lay down his life for us, unlike Hannes and his goons, to lead us to safety…" Ron's bitter statement made Hannes and the Yeager children glare at him, "… I say we take this opportunity and save ourselves" Ron and Hannes' speech managed to convince everyone in the group to reluctantly stand and go through with their plan.

They collectively thought that a slim chance of survival was better than sitting and waiting to be eaten alive.

All of the able-bodied adults were given a firearm. A range of old pistols and rifles. A mixture of derringers, flintlock and what looked to be early- really early, iterations of caplocks. Gordon wondered where on Earth these people find a wagon stocked full of firearms. Hannes answered his question with a sour look. "Black marketeers. Great…" he grumbled.

"Hey boss, said black marketeers are ones helping to save your behind after having your buddies dipped out on you" Blaire snickered.

Hannes gritted his teeth at them and moved on. Gordon was silent as he observed Hannes talk to a young man. Steadily, Hannes past Carla into the young man's arms. Given the man's build, he could easily carry Carla without issue. This freed up Hannes to grab himself a rifle. Good, Gordon thought. Hannes, being an officer, had experience with firearms and they were in high demand for their plan. Gordon and the others moved on filling their pockets with as much ammunition as they could carry. Gordon felt a sharp tug on his shirt. Looking down he saw Eren looking up at him with pleading eyes and Mikasa beside him looking conflicted. "Mr. Freeman, give us a gun! We can help!" Eren exclaimed.

"Out of the question Eren! You're more than likely to shoot someone in the back than be useful. Stay with the other children and stay close!" Hannes sternly ordered.

Eren glared at Hannes with silent fury. He looked back to Gordon, hoping he was going to ignore Hannes and see him as a potential helper rather than a handicap. Eren's hopes of fighting vanished instantly when Gordon thrust his thumb over towards where the other children and elderly were standing. Eren didn't have a chance to voice his frustration as Mikasa grabbed the back of his collar and dragged him. "Wait! I can help you! Just give me a-"

"Listen up everyone!" Hannes yelled.

Everyone stopped checking their firearms and turned their attention to Hannes. "We're strapped for time at the moment, so I'll be brief- yes Ron, I know you don't care to listen to me but for the love of the Walls, put it aside and listen to the plan! We are going to stay as a group, and you are going to follow me! Gordon, you stay on the rooftops and try to stay out of sight! Hopefully, a large group of humans will be distracting enough for the Titans to not notice you.

Yes, that's right. We're bait. Our guns won't do jack shit to them. Just annoy them and that's the plan. While a Titan is distracted with us, Gordon will come down and kill it. We'll rinse and repeat till we reach the Inner Gate. No matter what happens, we stick together! If Gordon falls, we scatter into the buildings. If a Titan breaks through our circle, we break for the buildings till Gordon kills it. I want the children, the injured and the elderly in the centre. Those able-bodied will surround them. Everyone got the plan? Good, let's form it and get ready to move!" Hannes yelled.

The adults quickly scrambled into formation. Under the guidance of Blaire, Butch and Ron they formed a circle with Hannes at the head of it. Gordon walked beside Hannes. He was securing his own acquired weapons. A four-barrelled derringer pistol in his back pocket, a musket rifle slug over his left shoulder and a rearmed blunderbuss slung over his right shoulder. Gordon stopped beside Hannes and scanned for an anchor point to scale the buildings. "Are you sure you can fight with that wound?" Hannes asked with a bit of worry in his voice.

Gordon looked him in the eyes and gave him a stern nod. That reassured Hannes somewhat. The Garrison Officer still looked at his gunshot wound with concern. Eventually, he snapped out of it and, with a clear and loud call, yelled at the group. "Alright everyone! Move it out!"

Hannes' call was echoed by Ron and the others. The circle of refugees moved out and that was Gordon's cue to scale up to the roofs. Up above he saw the mess the group was about to run into. Swarms of Titans flocked to the main road. Mainly three-to-six meters were clustered on the main road. The taller ones were busy ripping apart buildings and clammily climbing over them like toddlers on a playground. Gordon sprang into action and rushed ahead of the group. He cut and downed several Titans that had noticed the group. The Titans used the gap between his passes to close the distance to the group. Several of them had stopped their pursuit of the group to try and catch Gordon on his next flyover. Hannes called for a halt and ordered the front few civilians to fire at the Titans. In the hands of civilians who had never touched a gun, their firearms missed several shots. Some however did strike. The Titans immediately focused their attention back on the large group of tasty and defenceless humans. A costly mistake on the giants' part as they were cut down by Gordon moments later. A few more passes and a good kilometre of the road before them was clear of Titans. The same could not be said for the road behind them.

Some Titans had followed closely behind them. Gordon was forced to swing back and forth from either side of the group. The panic set upon the group as they found themselves surrounded but the firm and steady words of Hannes, Ron, Butch and Blaire stopped them from routing. The children and elderly held close to their defending relatives. Mikasa was in between Eren and Carla. She was making sure that Eren did not fall and made sure the man carrying Carla did not harm her accidentally. Carla had pouts of cries from the pain and the horror when she managed to be coherent enough to see the Titans swarming them.

Despite the high number of Titans flocking to them, numbering in the tens, they were cut down swiftly by Gordon. The more the scientist used the gear, the more proficient he was with it. Planning his next anchor points and picking the moments to brake or trigger the gas was slowly becoming second nature to him with each confirmed kill. Soon he was performing low altitude maneuverers and swings that Hannes would classify as expert level. Finally, the group followed a bend on the main street and was met with the sight of the Inner Gate. "We're almost there! Keep moving!" Hannes cried.

Gordon flew past and didn't like the look of things in front of them and within the group itself. In between them and the Entry Gate, Titans were coming out of the alleyways and buildings themselves. All of them are small few meters in size. Meaning Gordon had to get dangerously low again to attack them. That wouldn't be that much of an issue if the group wasn't slowly beginning to fail in their ability to distract. Proficient firearm experts like Hannes, Butch and Blaire were doing their part swimmingly but civilians like Ron and the rest were struggling and even failing to load and fire their weapons. Gordon bemoaned as he saw half had lost their weapons or had used up all their ammunition. Three people trying to distract the Titans wasn't effective at all. Now Gordon had to deal with oncoming attacks. He wished he had the firepower to distract and fight against the Titans. The world then had to be a cruel vindictive bastard when Gordon got his wished firepower. Though not in the way he'd like.

There was a series of distant booms coming from the Inner Gate, followed by a series of explosions littering the main road. Gordon was caught in the blast of one, being flung right out of his trajectory and through the window of a burning building.

---

Hannes wasn't proud to admit it might've 'dropped a bit of mud' when he was thrown to the ground by cannon fire. The wind was knocked right out of him as several cannon balls impacted the buildings and road around his group. He saw some Titans in front of him were blown apart while others stumbled about from the blasts. He tried to get back up but was knocked down by a civilian. "Run! Run for your lives!"

"No! get back here! No!"

Hannes scrambled onto his hands and knees as the circle disintegrated. Men and women threw down their firearms and ran for it. They ran to the surrounding buildings for protection. Some ran inside while others hugged the walls and pushed onto the Entry Gate. Another barrage of cannon fire further fractured the group. Hannes rose to his legs and looked around for the Yeagers and Freeman. He looked above and couldn't see Gordon anywhere. He looked across the cratered street and struggled to find the Yeagers. There was a pained cry over a cloud of powdered debris that sounded like Eren. Sure enough, Eren was slung over Mikasa's shoulder. The little girl had run to the buildings, threw Eren to the wall and pressed herself firmly against it and shielded Eren. Knowing they were temporarily safe, Hannes looked around the young man holding Carla. Hannes saw what was left of the young man was a pair of boots with his feet still inside. Hannes' heart sunk into deep dread at the possibility that Carla met the same fate. That was quickly evaded when he heard Ron curse out loud. Hannes snapped his eyes to Ron's bulky form and the woman he was carrying. It was Carla!

"Ron!" Hannes cried and ran to him.

"Fuck! Hannes! Get down!" Ron kneeled to the ground while Hannes threw himself prone.

Cannonballs flew overhead and Hannes felt his bones shake from the impacts around him. When it was clear, Hannes scrambled to his feet along with Ron. Both of them bolted to where Eren and Mikasa were kneeling. "Mom!" Eren cried out.

Eren stayed close to Ron and held Carla's limp hand. She was still alive but she had a pale and tearful face. Hannes bet the bastard carrying her dropped her the moment the artillery fell. The wounds on her legs looked more agitated than before. Hannes flinched as another round of fire rained debris over them. "Where the hell is Gordon?! I can't see him anywhere!" Hanne yelled.

"Poor guy got hit with a ball! He swore I saw him splatter! He's a goner!" Ron roared.

Hannes felt a ping of regret and sorrow at the news. It was overshadowed however by the need to find safety. "Quickly! Down the alleyways now!" Hannes quickly scooped up Mikasa and Eren and ran for the nearest alleyway. Ron followed close behind. Running down the end, they ran into a few remaining survivors. Among them was Butch, Blaire and Ron's family. Hannes felt instant relief when he saw all of the children and their family members were accounted for. The rest of their group seemed to have scattered. "Goddesses of the Walls! It's a slaughtering ground out there! The Garrison doesn't care that we're out here!" Blaire cried.

As if confirming his statement, the rooves above exploded and rained heavy titles over them. Everyone covered their heads and bolted for it. Hannes was ahead, again leading them to salvation. "Damnit! Everyone, try to keep a look out for the others!" Butch yelled.

"W-Where's Gordon?!" Hannes heard Eren cry over his shoulder.

"Man got blasted to smithereens kid!" Ron exclaimed.

"Poor bastard!" Butch muttered.

"W-what?! B-but what if he's not?! How can you be sure?! You don't even have your glasses on old man! Hannes! We need to go back! We need to look for him! We need to save him like he saved mum!" Eren begged.

A painful few seconds later, Hannes mournfully spoke "He's gone Eren".

Hannes didn't know whether or not Eren had gone on another tirade or was silently devastated. Hannes had tuned out the world by then, swarmed by sorrow for the loss. Hannes had lent a man die. A good man who suffered at the hands of a psycho. Hannes berated himself for not being the one in the gear. An innocent man had died for his folly. A man who had helped him forgive a life debt only to replace it with his own. Tenfold might Hannes add. Gordon saved him twice and his friends more times than he could count. How could he honestly honour his memory? Maybe track down his kidnapper after all this whole mess is said and done? Yes, that's what Hannes will do. That'll do nicely. Hannes vowed to do that with his heart and soul.

Time to grieve and vengeance planning was a short one though. Explosions and rumbles surrounded them from all angles was dust and rubble rained from above. Hannes' sole focus now was getting everyone out safely. The more they run for it, the less and less they came under cannon fire. Several minutes of continuous running later, they made it out of the destructive cone of fire. The sounds of cannon fire were stronger, and their fallout was a mere distant echo long behind them. Clear of explosions, the group halted their charge and ended up in a slow stumble. Everyone was sweaty and panting from exhaustion. Butch sounded like a furious hog while Ron let out wheezed gasps as he struggled to carry Carla. When it looked like everyone was about to fall to exhaustion, help arrived.

Out from a bend came Garrison soldiers, eight men and women armed in Vertical Manoeuvring Gear. They saw them and sprinted towards them. Instant relief flooded through the group, vocalised with groans and gasps. Hannes was glad to see a few familiar faces among the Garrison soldiers. Grover and Oscar were part of his regular patrol group here in Shiganshina. Seeing their worried faces flooded Hannes with a brief respite. "Walls! Hannes?! Help them now!" Oscar barked to his comrades.

The Garrison soldiers rushed to the aid of the group. Grover ran to Ron and tentatively took Carla into his arms. Ron was then passed to a soldier to lean onto. Any injured or tired civilians were aided by the Garrison. Hannes' body, releasing he had a brief moment of safety, let his fatigue catch up to him. Hannes felt weak in the knees. He knelt on the floor and gently dropped the children off of him. Eren and Mikasa scurried up to their feet and stood beside Hannes. "Mr. Hannes" Mikasa softly said with a concerned tone.

Hannes gave her a struggling nod. "Y-yeah kid. I'm ok. I need a breather" Hannes groaned.

Hannes heard Oscar jog to him and say, "Walls Hannes! We thought you were dead! The whole Eastern block was overrun! How the hell do you survive?!" Oscar gaped out.

Hannes took a tired gasping breath in. Mikasa answered for him. "There was a man, Gordon Freeman. He used Manoeuvring Gear to help us escape".

"Unlike you bastards! He's not even a soldier yet he saved my mum! He killed hundreds of Titans while you cowards ran! We rallied us to fight! We wouldn't be here if he hadn't stepped up!" Eren yelled.

"And he would still be alive if you assholes didn't shoot at us!" Blaire bellowed.

Hannes saw Oscar and the rest grimace. "Our spotters saw you lot walking into the firing line. We didn't want to fire the cannons, but we were about to be swarmed. The captain ordered us to fire!" one of the female Garrison officers defended.

"Oh. I completely understand. It wasn't like you had weapons that allowed you to manoeuvre around and kill Titans more effectively than cannons…" Butch drawled out with a bitter tone.

The soldiers bristled at his insinuation. "Listen civvy: have you ever used gear before? Have you ever tried to hit a three or five-meter Titan that low to the ground? No, you haven't! It's near suicide to do so! You'll hit the ground" the same female soldier rebutted.

"Some civvy with no training managed to do it. Why can't you, you lazy bums?!" one of Ron's relatives bit back.

A shouting match looked to be brewing, so Hannes took a deep breath and stood up. "Alright! That's enough! Stop bickering! We made it through, that's all that matters!"

"And what about the others?! Half of us are still back there!" Blaire howled.

Oscar stepped forward. "I'll leave some men on lookout but they're on their own. With the number of Titans and cannon fire, it's too dangerous to move out and help".

"So, we leave them out there to die?" Eren gasped.

"Eren!" Hannes snapped.

Eren ignored him and tried to start a verbal fight with the soldiers. Hannes put a stop to that by grabbing his hand. "Enough damn it! Oscar, let's go! We need these people evacuated yesterday!" Hannes said.

Hannes dragged a fighting Eren behind him as the Garrison soldiers moved with him. Through all that time from leaving the backstreets to the Inner Gate, Eren was fighting Hannes. Yelling curses and desperately tried to pry Hannes' fingers off of his hand. Mikasa tried to defuse the situation by softly telling Eren to stop but it was to no avail. Carla was too delirious to form a single word. Everyone else though was busy looking the other way or silently cringing from Eren's antics. All too embarrassed by Eren's childish actions to do anything about the situation. When Hannes didn't budge, Eren moved onto the soldiers. Berating them and demanding why they couldn't go back for the others. More specifically, Gordon Freeman. Learning from Hannes' words in the past about Eren's tantrums, the soldiers either ignored him or curly said, "Sorry kid, we can't do that. Captain's orders. We're here to protect you lot while you evacuate on the ferry".

That riled him up further. When they passed behind the cannon firing line and into the Inner Gate itself, Hannes chose that moment to have a few choice words with Eren. "Grover. Mikasa. Stand over there for a minute will ya?" Hannes asked.

Grover hesitantly followed while Mikasa unquestionably obeyed. They splinted off from the group being escorted through the Gate and towards one of the doorways that led up to the Gate's battlements. Hannes heard Ron and the black marketers shout something akin to gratitude towards him. Hannes didn't acknowledge or focus on their words. Eren's yelling was flooding his mind. Hannes walked through the doorway while Grover and Mikasa stood outside. Hannes didn't go that far inside in the sparsely populated entry before throwing Eren to the ground. Eren let out a gasp and scrambled onto his feet. Hannes knelt at his eye level. Eren moved to punch his face but Hannes grabbed the weak hook and then the other one. Eren squirmed as Hannes squeezed his hands. "Listen boy! Listen!" Hannes yelled in Eren's face.

Eren froze at Hannes' stern roar and angered face. Hannes took a deep breath. "Eren… You need to listen to me-".

"Why?! So you can tell me to let someone else die?! First mum now Gordon? Who else?! Mikasa? Armin? Dad? You?!" Eren started to fight again.

Hannes shook his hands roughly. Eren let out a pained yelp. "Why? Why the hell do you think I told you to run away?" Hannes asked.

Eren sniffed and growled. "Because you're weak! You're pathetic and cowardly!"

"Yes!" Hannes cried with relief.

Eren didn't expect that from him. He looked at Hannes with stunned confusion. Hannes continued. "Yes. I'm a coward and pathetic. I'm not strong enough to fight them Eren. And neither are you! You're not strong enough! You might be brave enough- stupidly brave and suicidal enough but you're nowhere near as strong!"

Eren snarled. "Says an admitted coward!"

"Really? What would you have done?! When your mother was trapped under your house? What then? Using your strength to pull her out? Fat lot of work that did when I got there! You were there for what? Ten minutes? She didn't even move a millimetre! None of us could've moved her! We got lucky when that Smiling bastard moved her! So, what the hell could you have done?!" Hannes yelled at him.

Eren's face was frozen with a twitching brow. Hannes could see in his eyes the imaginative scenarios playing out in his head. The boy seemed to settle on one to tell Hannes, which the man was having none of. He yelled at him again. "What about when we found the others on that street? What could you have done then? What could we have done? I had no gear. I was holding your injured mother for Maria's sake, and you had nothing but your little boots to fight back with. What the hell is a stupid little boy like you suppose to fight a monster?! Huh?! Tell me! What about when we were shot at? What then? What could you have done?!"

"Nothing" Eren cried.

"Exactly! Nothing! You're a child Eren! Not an adult. Not a soldier. Not whatever the hell Gordon was. You're nothing but a child and one with the strength of one! You couldn't do anything during those times. You aren't strong Eren!" Hannes yelled.

Hannes took a moment to breathe and let his words stink into Eren's mind. Slowly his words affected the stubborn boy. A sad look fell upon Eren's face. Red-eyed, tearful and quivering broke down Hannes. The boy's bright green eyes died to a dull hue. The boy was torn to pieces, ripped into by Hannes' naked reality. He knew now how futile everything was. How bleak and miserable the situation truly was. The death and decay around them. Tearing apart his loved ones, his home and his life. Tears ran down his face. His throat quaked and his mouth let out a croak. "It's… not… ok. It's not… fair" Eren whimpered.

Hannes felt his heart sting. It felt like his whole being crumble ever so slightly with each sob Eren made. Strong-willed Eren who never backed down from a fight or problem, breaking down and crying. Hannes' grip slacked. "I know Eren. It's not. It's never…" Hannes started to choke.

Hannes' shoulders shook. He blinked repeatedly and shook his head. He blinked hard and looked Eren in the eyes. It was impossible to stop the wave of emotion crashing into him when he did. "I… almost killed your mother. I almost ruined your family…" Hannes broke out.

"I froze when I saw that… Thing look at me. I didn't even fight it. One look was enough to break me. I ran like a coward Eren. I didn't even try to fight it! I just ran… but Gordon didn't. He did hesitate to fight back. He didn't try to run or hide in the face of danger as I had. He fought. He fought with so much fury I could never match him. I knew he wouldn't freeze up as I had. That he wouldn't run as I did. He faced so many threats that if it were me… I would've run…".

Hannes took a shaky breath. From head to toe, he was shaking uncontrollably. "… he didn't run. He fought. He saved people when I couldn't. He was strong enough to do what I couldn't. That's why I let him keep the gear. Because I'm a coward. It was my cowardness. My cowardness killed him. That killed the others!" Hannes was now openly crying.

Hannes couldn't help it anymore. The last hour had finally gotten to him and he couldn't hold back anymore. He sniffled and let some tears well in his eyes. "The others are dead because I wasn't strong enough. None! None of us were strong enough to save him or anyone else! We couldn't go back for him Eren! Do you understand?! No one here is strong enough! That's why the captain is pulling everyone out of Shiganshina! That's why we're running away! We're running away to live another day, so that one day we can get stronger. So that one day we can fight back and avenge the fallen. So we can have our home and lives back!" Hannes cried.

Hannes closed his eyes hard to get rid of the tears, but they kept coming. Hannes' hands slid off Eren's hands and moved them to grasp his shoulders. "Please Eren! For once, please just listen to me! Listen to everyone else! Get on the ferry, stay with your mother and sister, and do what you can to help them! Please, please strong enough to do just that! Please just survive for your father's sake! For everyone's sake!" Hannes yelled.

The horror and the guilt he felt… it was too much to bare. Too much-

Hannes' mind went blank when Eren slid forward and wrapped his arms around his torso. Eren was no longer sobbing, just dead still as he hugged Hannes. The man couldn't help but slump forward onto him. Hannes croaked. "I'm sorry I couldn't save them…" he choked out.

Eren said nothing.

Hannes didn't know how long they spent there but it was enough for Eren to feel comfortable pulling away. Hannes knelt there like a lifeless doll. He saw Eren had no fresh tears to shed or any words to give. He looked hollow and empty. 'Like looking in a mirror I bet' Hannes mused.

Eren walked away from him and only when he stepped out of the entryway did Hannes stand back up. He spared a few moments to collect himself and to hide any evidence of his breakdown. Mentally prepared and cleaned to the best of his current abilities, Hannes walked out to the others. Eren stood silently next to Grover with Mikasa beside him. Hannes noticed her red scarf had wet marks but didn't comment. Grover looked away awkwardly. Hannes coughed to get his attention. "Please get them to the ferry Grover. Use my seat. I'll ride with the others. Please, Grover, don't drop her at all" Hannes looked down at Carla.

"I won't Hannes" Grover stiffly promised.

Hannes looked down at the kids. "Both of you, go. Follow Grover, stay close to your mother and listen to the officers" Hannes ordered.

Eren said nothing. Mikasa was the one to answer for them both. He turned to face him, her eyes slightly red, and softly said, "be safe Mr. Hannes".

Hannes shook again. He quickly returned her kind gesture with a sad smile and a nod. "I will" Hannes swiftly said before turning around and walking the other way.

He didn't spare them a single glance back as he forced himself to join the fold. He told himself he couldn't break down again. They needed him strong and in control. He needed to buy them enough time to escape. Hannes emerged out of Inner Gate and into the Garrison defence line. The line of cannons fired non-stop further down the road. Behind them were only a handful of soldiers breaking open supply crates and emptying them of ammunition and gunpowder, and even fewer going back to the battlements to retrieve them. Hannes knew they were undermanned for a full city-wide evacuation, but this was just pitiful. Ten soldiers ran ammunition while ten more manned 15 cannons. Most of the cannon crew were manning three cannons. It was no wonder their shooting was off point. Ahead of them, Titans walked towards them in thick groups. The leads absorb most of the cannon fire while unaffecting the ones behind them.

Hannes sprang into action when he saw the ODM resupply point. He ran to it and saw spare gear in one create. He quickly attached it to himself and loaded it with blades and gas. By the time he was done, a soldier had come up to him. "Hannes! With me. We'll get you to the Captain and assign your orders" the soldier crisply informed.

Hannes froze midway screwing in his tank. He closed his eyes, took in a deep breath and mentally prepared himself to meet the man who fired on the people he was supposed to protect and the one responsible for putting him through the shit. Screwing in the last bolt, Hannes stood and turned towards the soldier. "Lead the way".

---

"Sit back down Armin. Don't get in the way of the others".

Armin combed his eyes again over the long line of worried people filing into the ferry before he did as he was told. Armin slumped off the railing and took his seat on his grandfather's leg. The Garrison was focusing on putting as many people on the ferry as possible, so his grandfather was only afforded one seat because of his old age and his young grandson. Armin continued to look out for his friends, but this new angle proved troublesome. Armin gave up after a minute and moved on stressfully toying with the helm of his grungy coat. He gripped and pulled at the fabric as his fingers slowly turned pale white. His grandfather's wrinkled hands grasped his own and eased them off his coat. "They'll be fine Armin. There's no need to tear your clothes asunder worrying about them" Armet Arlert assured him.

"But what if I went with Hannes? What if I could help? What if I was too late in telling Hannes where they went?" Armin fitfully mumbled.

"No, you weren't too late. You did the right thing my boy. You told Hannes and ran to me. You increased your friends' likelihood of survival and saved yourself. That is all you could've done to save your friends. You did good" Grandpa Arlert praised.

Armin didn't feel proud. He felt agitated. Like he wanted to run but he was too scared to. Armin tried to take deep breaths to calm himself like his grandpa told him to. It didn't help much, not when a pained scream or mournful cries interrupted him. Hearing them made him even more unsettled. Armin pawed at his shirt again. He heard his grandpa take a sharp breath in. Armin was prepared for another stern talking to, but Grandpa Arlert's voice came out excited. "Look Armin! By the mouth of the gangplank" Grandpa Arlert said.

Armin snapped his eyes over to where his grandpa was pointing. Struggling to see what he was pointing to, Armin leap to his feet and sprinted back to his spot on the railing. There he scanned through the crowd once again and this time spotting the distinct scarlet scarf belonging to Mikasa. "Eren! Mikasa! There here!" Armin cheered.

His excitement was somewhat lessened when they were led by a Garrison soldier carrying Eren's mother. Mrs. Yeager was dirty, marred with cuts and clothes spotty with blood. Her legs looked crooked and a deep shade of ugly purple. He couldn't see her face but by her lack of movement, Armin concluded she was unconscious. Armin watched as the Garrison soldier pushed through the crowd, spoke briefly to the guard by the gangplank and walked up it. "You did it Armin!" His grandfather cheered him.

Armin smiled widely. Seeing Eren and Mikasa struggle to keep up with Garrison soldier due to the bodies of refugees, Armin thought about intervening. "I'm going to help them!" Armin yelled to his grandpa.

Grandpa Arlert narrowed his eyes towards the Yeagers and the crowd. Turning back to Armin softened them. Armin did his best pleading face that quickly won his grandpa over. "Fine. Just till they find their seats, then get back here" Grandpa Arlert ordered.

"Yes grandpa" Armin gave him a quick hug before rushing off to his friends.

Due to his small size, Armin easily ducked and waived through the crowd of crying and scared people. No one noticed him move past, not every Eren or Mikasa when he came close to them. "Eren! Mikasa!" Armin cried to them.

When Armin walked beside them, he felt like he shouldn't be here. The looks they had worried and unsettled him. Eren struggled to meet his eyes. They were unfocused and clouded. Mikasa was much the same though not to the extent of Eren's state. "Armin. It's good that you made it. Sorry for leaving you" Mikasa said in her usual soft tone.

Armin tried to smile but it fell. Under their hollowed gazes, he didn't feel like smiling. Armin felt that any show of happiness would make him insensitive. "It's fine. I understand you needed to help Eren's mum. How is she?" Armin looked up to the Garrison soldier leading them.

They had made it to the large cargo doors on the ferry's floor. It was wide open, and Armin could hear countless crying voices echoing out from it. Armin felt terrified at the noises below, then disgusted with the smell wafting out. The acrid scent of blood, death and sweat. The Garrison soldier was escorted by another. All of them ventured down into the ferry's depths. "Not good. Broken legs and cuts. She was dropped by a Titan onto our house from a great height" Mikasa said.

Armin grimaced and looked at the poor woman with a sad expression. His mind pinged when he subconsciously picked up something in Mikasa's words. "Dropped by a Titan? Did Mr. Hannes save her?" Armin asked.

Mikasa shook her head, but it was Eren who verbally answered. "Mr. Hannes ran away with us. We weren't strong enough. It was Gordon Freeman who saved mum. He saved all of us even after that. So many times…" Eren sorrowfully said.

Armin looked inquisitively at the duo. The question of who Gordon Freeman is, or was in all possibility, was on the tip of Armin's tongue when he was interrupted by the sight before him. Blood, so much blood. Armin instinctively hid behind Eren and Mikasa as they walked forward. They were led into the many room sections that made up the ferry's cargo hold. Packed to the brim were stretches and cots. Their occupants were heavily injured civilians. They were being tended to by a few soldiers and men and women in a mixture of everyday clothes and dirty white uniforms and aprons stained with red. Armin recognised them as nurses from Shingashina's hospital. Armin was more concerned and terrified by the people in the cots though. Men, women, and morbidly, children were either agitatedly resting or yelling their lungs out with hideous injuries. Burns, gashes, broken bones, crushed or missing limbs. The yells and cries were deafening and made Armin's legs weak. Accompanying them were screams of the hospital workers and soldiers yelling at each other. Bandages, manpower and morphine were in constant demand. Armin squalled and hid behind Mikasa when she saw the torn stump of a man's right arm squirt blood on the floor near them. "Why are they all down here? Why?" Armin weakly asked.

"They're here because they're bleeding, that's why. Titans are like rabid dogs: as soon as they smell blood, they come hunting. It's best to hide everyone with a major injury down here so they don't attract too many Titans" the Garrison soldier carrying Carla informed before yelling out, "Special civvy here! A family member of a Garrison soldier! I need a bed here now!"

"Over here! Cot free here!" Armin looked to see a nurse flag them over.

They walk to them, but not before noticing the cot had just been freed up. The last occupant had been moved to a stretcher and wrapped in a white sheet. Two nurses hulled him off past them with Armin morbidly seeing whoever it was had no legs and were burnt so badly Armin couldn't tell if it was a man or woman. Armin snagged Eren's arm and held onto him. Eren said nothing but didn't push him away. The Garrison soldier rested Carla gently down on the cot. When he moved her legs straight did Carla awaken. Her bloodshot eyes snapped open and she let out a pained cry. Eren flew out of Armin's reach and stood beside his mother. He grabbed her hand and held it tightly. "Mom! Mom! It's ok! We're safe! It's ok!" Eren cried to her.

Carla's bloodshot eyes registered Eren before they closed again. Her head fell back onto the cot's surface and her body went limp again. Armin was incredibly disturbed by the sight of Carla's condition. Never had he dreamed of seeing Mrs Yeager in just a horrible position. Armin fidgeted on the spot and thought about running away. He wanted to go back to the safety of his grandpa. He was stopped when the Garrison soldier who escorted them ushered Eren into him and took them away. "Let's go! The docs here need the space. Come on. I'm taking you to the upper deck with the other kids" the soldier said.

Armin began to panic. "But my grandpa! He said I needed to go back to him" Armin said.

"Stay here kid. My orders" the soldier pressured.

Armin looked downtrodden and terrified. What if the other children were being held near more horribly injured people and their guttural screams? He wanted to go back on top of the ferry! He didn't hear the screams up there and he would be in the comfortable presence of his grandfather. Possibly sensing his discomfort, Mikasa took a hold of his hand and gave it a comforting squeeze. "It's alright Armin. You're safe with us. Everything will be fine" Mikasa spoke softly.

Armin was tempted to believe her words wholeheartedly if it weren't for the sounds of echoing footsteps that rumbled through the air like the dreadful beat of death and destruction.

---

Hannes came into the Inner Gate's Gatehouse just as a hated exchange began.

Captain Nathanial, Garrison leader of Shiganshina, is a tall skinny man with a permanent stern expression that coupled well with his bossy personality. If it wasn't for him being easily distracted by the smallest things, thus allowing the Garrison soldier to get away with being drunk on the job, Hannes would've considered him a horrible boss. Now though, Hannes just considered him a horrible human being. Regardless of their horrendous situation, it wasn't in the Garrison's duty to fire on civilians and kill them by proxy.

Hannes and the soldier who escorted him stood by the doorway, listening in on Nathaniel yelling at five of his troops. They were dirty and sweaty, possibly back from a patrol or panicking over Nathanial's yells. "I've given this order several hundred times! I want every single soldier here at the Entry Gate! How many times do I need to explain it to you simpletons?!" Nathanial screamed.

The five soldiers looked abrasive and tried their best to hide their anger behind solemn faces. One hesitantly spoke. "Sir! We did! All combative Garrison personnel are positioned here at the Inner Gate!"

Captain Nathanial gritted his teeth to the point Hannes swore he heard them crack. "Really?! Name soldier!" Nathanial yelled.

"S-sir! Gerald Wilber sir!" the soldier stiffly said.

Nathanial marched forward and stood close to the soldier to the point their noses were almost touching. "Tell me Wilber! Tell me, if your words are correct, why the hell are their civilians still coming out of the district? Tell me why the Titans coming down the main street have been reduced by half? Why a majority of them have gone back up the street? Tell me why there's Titan steam coming up the street?! Because all signs point to the fact that there are still soldiers out there!" Nathanial screamed in the poor soldier's face.

Nathanial's words made Hannes' blood freeze. A dry chill went through his body and his throat tightened. His mouth slowly hung open and his eyes widen in disbelief. The soldier bearing the brunt of Nathaniel's wrath stuttered. "I-I d-don't know s-sir! Th-there shouldn't-".

"Don't lie to me! I'm getting reports from civilians that they were saved by someone in manoeuvre gear?! Who?! Which one of you is going behind my back?!" Nathaniel questioned.

'It can't be!' Hannes paled at the news. Hannes leapt forward to Nathanial's peripheral vision. "Sir! I know why" Hannes spoke out.

Nathanial's eyes snapped to him. The captain's ire was directed solely towards him. "Hannes? Who is it?!" he barked.

Hannes swallowed and spoke clearly and loudly to quiet the shaky relief in his voice. "It's a civilian sir! A man by the name of Gordon Freeman" Hannes sharply announced.

Hannes could scarcely believe what he had heard but it had to be him. In the short time he had known him, Hannes had witnessed the man survive near-death experiences with little more than a cut and bruise. The man was hard to kill, and he had the mindset to survive anything by doing everything. That included using military equipment that he had never used before and killing a Titan with a gun. A first for the history books. "Gordon Free- Wait, wasn't that the same one who you put on a report today?!" Nathanial looked at him with surprised scepticism.

Hannes have him a confident nod. "Same one sir, though I'm personally struggling to believe what he said, considering what I saw him do. He said he was a civilian but he's beyond proficient at ODM Gear and has a confirmed kill on an Abnormal. Sir, he saved my life and that of several others. He helped defend us when I was stuck on foot and with damaged Gear" Hannes explained.

"Really?" Captain Nathaniel narrowed his eyes.

"Really sir. We lost him on the way here and I thought he was K.I.A when the cannons fired on us" Hannes admitted.

"…Not the case it seems…" Nathanial's stormy expression turned into deep contemplation.

It was the type of thinking that made Hannes uneasy. Someone who just flipped so easily from rampant anger to a relieving and thoughtful expression couldn't result in anything good. Hannes kept silent as Nathanial turned around with his hand pinching his chin. He was pacing about in silence. Only the cannon fire echoing outside was there to fill in the dead silence. It was because of that they were surprised by two young soldiers bursting into the room. They were tired and sweaty but had ecstatic expressions on their reddened faces. "S-Sir! The Titans! They're thinning out!" one said.

"Something's grabbed their attention and they're heading away from the Entry Gate!" the other said.

"W-We might have a chance to push them back and gain ground!"

Everyone looked at each other with gasps and genuine happiness. Finally, the first piece of good news any of them had received for the past hour. They had all been at the backfoot ever since the Colossal one appeared and destroyed the Outer Gate. Now, they might have a chance to reclaim their burning home. Nathanial did not share in the enthusiasm spreading in the room. Instead, he stared grimly at the chains that held the Gate up. He pressed his palm against the old ultra-steel that made up the chains. Hannes couldn't see what expression he had when he spoke with dreadful sadness towards it. "Holy Maria, forgiver me…".

Captain Nathanial turned to face his men with a stern expression and a quivering lip. "Order the men below: pack up the cannon line, grab any equipment they can carry and retreat behind the Inner Gate. We're shutting it".

The wind in their sails was knocked out completely. Everyone looked at him with horrified looks. Hannes was more so than the others. They were given a chance to fight back, take back what the Titans were crushing beneath their feet and rescue the civilians they were intrusted to serve and protect. Gordon was busy out there doing so. He was fighting half of the Titans so the Garrison could mop up the other half and bring the full force of their combined might on their enemy. Use that opportunity to save as many lives as possible. Instead, their Captain sought to use this opportunity to save their city and its people as a chance to abandon it to be destroyed. "What?! Sir! There are still people out there! We have a civilian using military equipment out there! You shut that gate, they'll all die!" Hannes yelled.

"Yet we have more civilians safely on the other side and I will keep it that way! We are pulling out!" Nathanial turned to the two soldiers who just came in. "Send word to the squads. We're sealing the Gate, locking and collapsing it! Anyone unable to leave will be left behind!"

"NO! YOU CAN'T!" Hannes yelled as he charged his captain.

There was no way he was going to let anyone, Gordon or civilian, die under his protection again. Hannes didn't know what else to do than to charge at Nathanial. Mayhap shaking some senses literally into him will make him see that pushing their front-line forward was the way to go. Hannes only got one step in before he was subdued by his comrades. Two of them grabbed both of his arms and started to pull him away. While Hannes was strong, he was not strong enough to fend against two men who were younger and more vigorous than him. Any further complaints or struggles from Hannes or the others were silenced when a rumble shot through the air. Then another and another. A series of footsteps that rang with heavy strength and dread echoed throughout the City of Shiganshina. It was a call of a challenger ready to face off against humanity.

---

Gordon twisted his body to avoid a Titan's swinging arm before launching himself towards its neck. Again, Gordon easily craved the Nape off and scored himself another kill. Not that he was counting. His mental focus was better used for deciding where his next target was and where to mauver to kill it. Below him, he heard the scrambles of a few civilians. Small pockets of survivors from all over the district were coming out of the woodwork. From alleyways to buildings, they rushed to the Inner Gate thick and fast. Easy pickings for the Titans if Gordon hadn't been there. Gordon honestly should've remained focused on retreating to the Inner Gate but a slight detour had prevented that thought process from happening.

After smashing into the burning building, Gordon had spent several minutes traversing through it. The way he came in had been blocked and using his gear to exit out of the remaining windows would've been suicide. Operating a device that expelled gas to make any sort of operation so close to flames was a sure-fire way to blow himself up. So, Gordon traversed through the burning building. Using his crowbar again, Gordon craved through wreaked doorways and hallways to salvation. From some divine shenanigans, Gordon had been led to the basement and through a hole, he had to crouch through to get out of the burning building. He arrived at the sewers underneath the street, walls and foundations cracked and bowing from the Titans and cannon fire above. He managed to find another crumbled hole to crawl into another building. This one was special as it was filled with military equipment strewn about. The Garrison must've used this place as their initial defence line. Gordon croaked out a laugh when he saw two unused gas canisters among the disorder and a box filled with ODM blades. Gordon desperately needed these. He was running on fumes and he was on his last pair of blades. After a quick resupply, Gordon made his way back out onto the street. Just in time as he heard a cry from a woman.

Gordon rolled his shoulders, cracked his neck and readied himself to jump back into the thick of things. The bombardment from earlier had to have split up the group, so it was up to him to save Hannes, the Yeagers and the others. Blades at the ready, Gordon launched himself upwards to rescue his allies.

Several minutes later and Gordon had rescued a few civilians from both his group and those of others that made it on their own from other parts of the district. Throughout that time, Gordon did not see Hannes or the others walk among the living or laying with the dead. Gordon hoped they made it. Gordon thought about retreating to the Inner Gate but the amount of Titans and cannon fire in between him and the Gate made him rethink that. Might as well hang back and wait for the Garrison to clear some Titans out before he ventured on through. He could go around to the side but the number of dense buildings and not a lot of tall structures to hook to made Gordon uneasy to traverse through that. That was Death Valley. Smaller Titans would be there in between the buildings waiting to leap up and take a bite out of Gordon.

Speaking of taking a bite out of him, a 12-meter thought it was smart squatting low to get under Gordon. It jumped up and Gordon carved it up. It was a bit difficult though as his current blades were dull and chipped. After mincing the Titan's neck, Gordon flew onto a rooftop near the end of the main street. As Gordon was in the middle of equipping new blades, he felt the earth shake below him as something stomped towards him. He paused and scanned the area. Once he found what was making the ground quake, Gordon's jaw slowly gapped open in disbelief.

Within the city limits and stretching far outside of Shiganshina, a mighty monster of unseen power, strength and intelligence marched towards the end of the main street. Its feet crashed into the ground with mighty stomps that made meter-wide craters and shattered the foundations and windows of the buildings beside it. Its wide and heavy frame took up the width of the side street it emerged from. A frame filled with large dense exposed muscles needed to hold its key feature: armoured plates.

Thick white plates that glistened like dulled diamonds hug its body like a second skin- or it is its skin. The armour was formed like skin to cover large portions of its body and exposed muscles. The face, shoulders, arms, hands, torso, legs, feet and buttocks were covered in heavy slabs of armour like a carapace. The only parts exposed were the joints and some muscles that joined the limbs to the body. Even the top of its head was not covered, leaving a large mop of short pale blonde hair covering its dome. Its eyes were glowing yellow behind semi-transparent protective lenses. Those eyes were directed towards the Inner Gate.

The civilians outside of Shiganshina were a buzz with confusion, fear and curiosity. The Yeager children and Armin were quickly ushered with the other children as they questioned what the noise was. Meanwhile, the Garrison stationed at the Inner Gate was staring dumbfounded at the sight of this new Abnormal. Hannes and the others in the Gatehouse were frozen with fear. They'd never seen something like this before. There had never been a Titan with armour before in history. The only thing any of them could think of that was close to the monster before them was the Ogre from several decades ago. However, the Ogre had callused and toughened skin, not bone-like plating that reminded them of a knight. What's worse is the Titan's eyesight. It was boring into them. More specifically the Inner Gate. Its glowing eyes and glaring face stared unblinkingly towards them ever since it made visual contact. Hannes could just feel the heated glare, filled with malice and wrath, wash over him like flames from a roaring inferno. This Abnormal wanted nothing more than to destroy them!

While all the humans were either confused or terrified by this new challenger, the closest man to it looked at it with exasperation and mentally bemoaned, 'Oh God. Not another one…'.

Gordon Freeman was somewhat hopeful he wouldn't have run into an armoured enemy variant but the world, again, had to prove him wrong. The armoured plating the Titan sported, while a different shape and colour, reminded him of a Gargantua. Instead of a fusion of bio-organic and cybernetic augmentations, the Titan's armour was purely organic. Even at this distance, Gordon can see the armour was made out of highly condensed carbon material. Maybe enamel or periosteum? Gordon hoped this armour wasn't as powerful as a Gargantua's, or that the Armoured Titan didn't spew plasma.

Gordon studied the sudden change this new arrival brought to the battlefield. The Garrison had stopped firing, maybe due to shock at the sight of the Armoured Titan. The smaller Titans trying to catch Gordon had instead turned their frenzied attention onto the newcomer. Gordon watched as a few six and eight meters latched onto the legs of the Armoured Titan and start to chew on its armoured legs and belly. Despite their teeth chipping against the armour, they did not stop trying to eat it. Gordon was confused by the whole exchange. They were trying to eat it? Was cannibalism a common practice among Titans?

The Armoured Titan largely ignored them as his attention was solely focused on the Inner Gate. He did, however, lazily swat them away with backhands so powerful their heads were ripped off and their bodies were minced. The sound as well was explosive. Gordon well knew the sound of metal hitting soft flesh and the Armoured Titan gave him a demonstration of what it sounded like with the power of several tons of force behind the swing. Gordon felt a cold sweat brewing when the Armoured Titan effortlessly destroyed the last few small Titans under his heel before coming to a stop. It stared down at the Inner Gate with a glare that could rival Arne Magnusson's. It then, slowly, shifted its posture from a tall and powerful stance to leaning forward like a sprinter mid-stride. Right leg back while the other is placed forward, its torso angled slightly, and an arm hooked in front of its chest and the other arced to its side. Gordon paled, not knowing the Garrison was sharing his expression as well, as he realised what it was going to do. Its right leg flexed, and the powerful muscles snapped tautly. Its right ankle snapped upwards so it was on the balls of its feet. With all its strength, it pushed off of the ground with such a powerful force that it created a shockwave and crumbled the surrounding buildings behind its foot. Gordon was thrown off his feet as the roof below him gave way. He panicked and quickly launched a hook to save himself.

Recovering quickly, Gordon looked back to see the Armoured Titan had broken out in a full sprint towards the Inner Gate. Gordon couldn't believe it. The Titan was going to ram the Inner Gate down!

Gordon amped up the throttle and blasted forward to catch up with the Armoured Titan. With each step, it was gaining speed. A raging dust cloud bellowed behind it as it charged through anything in its way. Titans were its foremost obstacle, yet they proved no more of a resistance than a stiff breeze. They were pulverised when the Armoured Titan charged through them. The bigger ones were thrown to the side while the smaller ones were crushed and obliterated under the Armoured Titan's feet. The booms of the cannons start back up again. Gordon had to pull some evasive manoeuvres to dodge the oncoming fire. Something the Armoured Titan didn't bother with. His mighty frame was battered with a barrage of cannon fire. There were loud pings as the balls struck his armoured chest and belly and ricocheted right off. Some balls just crumbled from the impact and peeled off of its armoured plates. Gordon was almost stuck with one of the ricocheted cannon balls as he flew neck-and-neck beside the Armoured Titan. Just as Gordon had feared, the Titan's armour was just as strong as a Gargantua's. The cannon balls barely scratched it. Gordon bet that nothing short of a high-calibre artillery piece was enough to kill it. With the Garrison failing to stop it, it was up to Gordon to do so.

Don't get him wrong, Gordon was terrified at the prospect of facing this monster. Regular Titans were bad enough but this thing? An Abnormal like the smiling one he faced nearly an hour ago? A Titan covered in an armour he didn't have the means to penetrate? Gordon was sweating bullets at the prospect of drawing its ire. He could run away and save himself, but Gordon knew the outcome of that. The Armoured Titan would ram through and destroy the last sure-fire barrier between Gordon's safety and the Titans. If it goes, Gordon's survival will go with it. It was a catch-22. Both options were suicidal, yet one had the higher probability of guaranteed survival if Gordon was skilful enough to stay alive during the ensuing battle. Not to mention one option led to the lives of those he risked life and limb saving from perishing. The faces of the Yeager children flashed before his eyes along with the other innocents. The thought of their lives now in his hands gave Gordon the resolve to enact yet another suicidal assault.

Gordon looked back towards the Armoured Titan, now halfway towards the Inner Gate. Gordon scanned its body and knew how to cripple its charge. This thing wasn't like the Gargantua. It was bigger and had self-healing but it had one weakness the Gargantua didn't have. Gordon noted the positioning of the plates. Opposite the Gargantua, there were exposed gaps in the armour. The joints and muscles that dictated movement and flexibility were armour-free for the Titan. The Gargantua had interlocking armour to cover the joints but kneecapped its mobility. The Armoured Titan did not have that. For perfect articulation and movement, they were exposed. That is why he can run so fast because he had the movement range to do so. Gordon saw the back of its knees, nothing more than flesh and blood, and chose that point to strike.

Gordon saw a tall building ahead that would make the perfect anchor point for his attack. With a burst of gas, Gordon shot past the Armoured Titan and hooked towards the building. The timing was perfect as Gordon would just pass its swinging legs. The Armoured Titan was too preoccupied with its target to notice Gordon was about to strike its unarmoured back knee. Steam bellowed out of its nose as it prepared its final burst of speed to mow down the gate. Gordon chose that moment to attack. Reeling his line in and throttling his gear to the max. Gordon swung around the building and shot across the street just as the Armoured Titan ran past. Gordon gritted his teeth as roaring air and debris kicked up by the Armoured Titan's run slammed into his body. Pain shot through his eardrums and his head was rattled. Gordon, however, mentally subdued the pain and pushed on like he's always done. He draw his blades back and with a mighty swing carved through the exposed meat of the Titan's right knee.

Gordon's blades cleanly carved right through to the bone. Boiling blood sprayed out in the wake of his slashes. Gordon narrowly missed being doused by the tidal wave of crimson. The taut muscles snapped loose and failed to respond to the Armoured Titan's wishes. Gordon heard the Titan release a booming cry before stumbling about. Gordon recovered from the attack in time to see the Armoured Titan fall. With its right leg unable to move, the Armoured Titan's body stopped running. Its momentum carried, however. Coupled with its large mass, the Armoured Titan was unable to balance itself with a crippled limb. Its whole body was thrown forward and crashed into the ground. The impact was so powerful that Gordon could feel the earth shake just from his cables trembling.

Gordon saw the Titan's body twist and crumble in on itself. He heard sick cracking and oozing pops come from it. Its momentum persisted as it rag-dolled through the street. Buildings were knocked down by its flailing limbs. The street had now become little more than a trench with clay pipes and copper gas lines spewing out water and flamed gas respectfully. The Armoured Titan came to a stop just fifty meters away from the Inner Gate. It rested on its stomach with its battered form unmoving. Gordon flew above to scan his opponent. He saw great chips and cracks run across nearly all of its armoured plates. He couldn't help but smile when he saw great slabs of it had snapped and peeled off its body. Its arms and legs were bent in odd angles and bone pierced out of them. The trench it made was being filled with a great tide of evaporating blood coming from its crippled body.

Gordon focused his attention on the Armoured Titan's Nape. Disappointingly, that was covered with undamaged armour; armour plates that were thicker than most other parts of its body. Fitting seeing it was its only weak point. Gordon landed on a structurally sound building beside the Armoured Titan's prone body. He didn't need to worry about the cannon fire, as from here he can easily see that the firing line was abandoned. Gordon scoffed. 'Figures the Garrison would run for it. Seems that's the only thing they can do' Gordon thought bitterly.

Eyeing the abandoned firing line did give Gordon an idea though. They needed gunpowder to fire the cannons and Gordon assumed they might have some grapeshot among the ammunition. Did they have any explosive rounds? A plan was swiftly formulating in his mind. With his experience with killing a Titan from within its mouth being the foundation of his plan, Gordon was thinking about making a large makeshift bomb to blow the Armoured from inside its mouth. Bypass the armour entirely. It didn't have to be big but big enough for it to blow through its flesh, its spine and large Nape. Grapeshot should be enough to mince the flesh and bone. The issue now was requiring the materials, finding a way to get them into the Armoured Titan's mouth and triggering it without blowing himself up.

Gordon's musings were interrupted by loud cracking and popping noises coming below him. He peered down to see the Armoured Titan's wounds knit back together and limbs snapped back into alignment. The Titan when slowly crawled to its hands and feet. Gordon saw its right face was smashed in with flakes of armour falling off to expose its bare face and eye. Gordon heard it make a deep groan as it rested on its knee. It looked back behind itself to see its back knee was slowly healing. Seeing its injury was due to a nasty cut, the Armoured Titan looked around with a confused face. Its body froze when it finally saw Gordon.

Gordon felt his heart stop when its glowing and bloodshot eyes looked at him. Since it was kneeling and Gordon was atop a building, they were at eye level. Something Gordon felt a bit uncombable with. It was like he was silently telling the Titan he was on equal footing with him. That he could match his strength. Gordon flinched under its sight. The Armoured remarkably flinched too, though more out of surprise than fear. Gordon saw its unarmoured yellow eye show emotion. Shimmering with life and conflicting feelings. Gordon stared back stupefied, though it was short-lived. Whatever funk the Armoured Titan was experiencing was gone, replaced by a snarling face. It let out a roar and threw a fast punch at Gordon. Gordon yelped and jumped into the air. With the help of applied gas, Gordon narrowly missed being obliterated. The roof he was just on a millisecond ago was reduced to rubble. Gordon's high jump lost attitude and he landed on the Armoured Titan's forearm. Thinking on his feet, Gordon ran up the length of its arm. The Armoured quickly reacted by swatting Gordon with its other arm. Gordon again performed a long jump and launched himself past the Armoured Titan's face. He slashed at its unprotected eye as he flew past. The Armoured cried as it was blinded in that eye. Gordon managed to fire his hooks and fly away from the Armoured. He reeled himself to a tall chimney and squatted on the surface of it with the help of his wires. He turned back towards the Armoured Titan just in time for it to do the same for him. Gordon's determined green eyes met with the Armoured Titan's glowing yellow one. Hostility sparked between their hated glares. With a mighty roar from the Armoured and a puff of air out of Gordon's nose, they charged at one another.

---

Hannes and his old team, minus Grover, had regrouped during the hasty evacuation of the Inner Gate. Hannes hesitated to call it an evacuation, more like everyone blindly running for their lives in the face of the Armoured Titan. The damned monster was deadest on ramming and destroying their last line of defence. Hannes doubted even the heavy stone block Gate with Maria's protective seal could stop that monster. No, someone else stopped it instead. Hannes was on the other side of the Inner Gate when he heard a loud crash. His back was turned to the Inner Gate so he thought the Armoured had charged through, but turning around proved him wrong. The Inner Gate was still there and intact with the Gate itself halfway lowered because the Gatehouse crew abandoned it mid-lowering. Through the gap, Hannes could see the Armoured Titan battling something. The way the Titan's feet and legs shifted and moved gave Hannes a good idea as to what it was facing. Hannes had only seen a Titan move like that when it was targeting Gordon. Of course, that mute bastard had to be the one facing off against another Abnormal Titan by himself. Again!

Hannes saw this as another chance to rescue Gordon and took it without hesitation. "Hannes Squad! To me! To me!" Hannes called out, much to the shock of his stunned comrades.

Before Hannes could take a single step, Captain Nathanial jumped in front of his path. "What in the hell do you think you're doing Hannes?!" he barked.

"Sir! Finishing our orders sir! You ordered us to lower the Gate to prevent any Titans from breaching Maria territory. If able, my team will continue to lower the Gate and seal off Shiganshina. Sir, the Armoured Titan is preoccupied. You have to use this chance! Please order us to go into the Gatehouse and seal off Shiganshina!" Hannes crisply replied.

Nathaniel gave him a bewildered look before being distracted by confused shouts around him. The Garrison was a mess. Half of the soldiers were on the ground gasping out of exhaustion and relief while the others were barking or performing orders that contradicted others. Nathaniel wisely chose to fix the mess around him and rally his command back into shape. "F-Fine! Get that Gate sealed then relay back here! Everyone! Retrieve the backup cannons and form a sparse defence line in a 30-meter circumference away from the Inner Gate!" Nathanial yelled as he rushed off to hound his men.

As for Hannes' own, he had a small squad of fourteen soldiers, that also doubled up as his drinking buddies, as his detachment. Hannes had to admit that they were a sorry lot from the mere sight of them. Red-faced, exhausted and dim, their spirits were rocked to the very core. Hannes could see in their eyes that they had seen some sights that will give them nightmares forever. Hannes couldn't help but doubt if they were enough for his plan. "Hannes Squad! Form up! We're going to seal the Gate! Move it now!" Hannes cried and led the charge.

His soldiers staggered behind him but managed to keep up. They were flanked by other squadrons seeking out military equipment and placements that were hastily scattered during their brief retreat. The closer they got to the Inner Gate, the louder the battle between Gordon and the Armoured Titan became. Hannes could feel the earthquake under the Titan's stomps and punches. He felt his bones rattle and spirit crack when he heard that booming roar the Armoured made. It was the sound of anger and frustration mixed into one. A volatile mix.

Hannes and his squad arrived at the Gatehouse's entry. There they could see the full extent of the battle and it was a devastating sight to behold. Their old defence line was still intact but the same could not be said for the street before it. Buildings were crumbled into unrecognisable piles of rubble, the street was a mess of craters, heavy smoke hung in the air and other Titan skeletons and decomposing bodies lay about. In the midst of all of it was the Armoured Titan. The giant beast looked bigger up close, Hannes moanfully thought. Its wide frame and muscular limbs made it look like a force to be reckoned with. Its face meanwhile terrified Hannes. Glowing yellow eyes wide with fury and a lipless mouth that held so many white teeth stained with blood Hannes struggled to count them all.

Zipping around the Armoured Titan was none other than Gordon Freeman. The crowd of Garrison soldiers all looked on dumbfoundingly. Questioning who in their right mind would dare attack a seemingly invincible beast such as the Abnormal right in front of them?! It was like a trip through time for Hannes. He had the same reactions as they had watching a civvy take on an Abnormal none had seen before. Though Hannes knew that Gordon's fight with the Smiling Titan hadn't been this devastating.

Their fight was a brutal one. The Armoured was throwing its arms around like a man trying to swat a wasp, destroying everything it made contact with. Including other Titans. A large 15-meter one, drawn by their scuffle, joined the fray. Hannes' men buckled and tried to run but Hannes held them firm. He told them to hold their position. The 15-meter Titan ignored them and, most shockingly, Gordon. It tackled the Armoured Titan. The Armoured staggered from the assault, allowing Gordon to get a few more hits in. He cut somewhere behind the right leg, forcing it to go down onto its knee. This rightly aggravated the Armoured who took it out on the 15-meter gnawing at its armoured stomach.

The Armoured grabbed its face with such force that its eyes pooped out of its skull. The Armoured then dragged it towards itself, sunk its teeth into its Nape and ripped it off. Blood sprayed everywhere as gore flooded out from the nasty wound. The Armoured then used the dead Titan as a club, swinging it at Gordon who dodged it in time. The Armoured continued to swing away. Smashing the corpse into the ground and buildings again and again in the hopes of killing Gordon. Titan blood and guts were thrown everywhere till all of it was beaten out of their pulped container. The Armoured Titan's club was now little more than a femur, at which point the Armoured discarded it by throwing it at Gordon. The impact imploded a building Gordon was near. Despite all that, Gordon remained standing and even repaid in kind by slicing up the Armoured Titan's muscles.

The sight of such brutality made his men quake in their boots. Hannes could hear some whimpering and hyperventilating. Hannes would've joined them too if he didn't have the resolve to do his duty.

Of course, he was going to lower the Gate. Hannes knew that there are still civilians out there in the city that needed to be saved but the Garrison was now facing a devastating foe that threatened to further cause casualties unless they seal Shiganshina. However, before he sealed it, he was going to pull Freeman out. He already let the man down once and Hannes wasn't keen on doing it a second time. Hannes turned to his men. "Sadie, Buckler, Quin and Josiah, head up to the Gatehouse, lower the Gate and engage the locks. The rest will form up on me! We're going to engage this Armoured Titan!" Hannes ordered.

His orders were met with horrified gasps and stutters. Hannes expected his team to react this way, so when the barrage of "Are you insane?!", "We can't do this!", and "Why?!" were hurled at him, Hannes remained calm and sternly explained. "Because that's our job- our livelihood as soldiers! We lay down our lives to save those who can't. Those who are not strong enough! We save people, and out there is a man in need of some saving! Look! That's a civilian facing that thing! A civvy! He ain't no soldier! Unbelievable as that looks now, he doesn't have the training or duty as us soldiers!" Hannes pointed towards Freeman.

Their eyes widen at his words. Disbelief is written all over their faces. Hannes pushed his message further. "We need to go out there, take out that bastard somehow so we have enough time to get Freeman out of there and for the Gate to be fully sealed. Now, do your duty as soldiers, as the men and women of Wall Maria, and give this Armoured son of a bitch a Shiganshina welcoming!" Hannes hollered.

That seemed to spur them though not by much. They were still hesitant but willing to charge into battle. Hannes turned about and lead the charge. Focusing on a still-standing structure, Hannes anchored his hooks onto it and shot himself into the air. The others followed suit and soon they were all in the air rushing towards Gordon and the Armoured Titan. The chorus of multiple maneuvering equipment in use was not a silent one. The Armorued Titan was alerted to their presence. It snapped its head over to them. Seeing ten soldiers using the same equipment that the man harassing it was wearing sent the Titan into a panic. He performed a preemptive strike at Hannes' squad. With a great burst of speed, the Armoured Titan jumped at them and threw a haymaker. "Dodge!" Hannes screamed.

Hannes twisted his body to the right. His squad mates followed suit. However, some were not as quick to the trigger as he was. Gilbert and Lenny were slaughtered in an instant. The Armoured Titan's fist pulped them while the limb snagged onto the wires of another two. One veered right into the Titan's body while another flew straight into the ground. Hannes couldn't tell if they were injured or dead. As much as it pains him, he and his men had to leave them. They need to take out their foe.

He and his men swung around the Armoured Titan and called out their target. "I've got the Achilles!"

"Targeting the biceps!"

"Plantaris!"

"The triceps!"

"The eyes!"

"Aiming for the fibularis longus!"

Hannes scanned the Armoured Titan head to toe and called out his target. "I'm making a run for the Nape. Let's finish this thing once and for all! Engage!"

He and his soldiers shot their hooks into the Titan's body and launched themselves towards their targets. Their manoeuvres were textbook perfect. Their paths did not intersect, there were no casualties or injuries, and they hit their mark. Unfortunately, it didn't do squat. They struck at the armour and, much like their cannon fire, all it did was scratch the surface. In fact, the Armoured Titan did more to them as its armour shattered their blades. "Shit!" Hannes cried out.

He and his soldiers quickly retreated from the Armoured Titan to restock their blades. Hannes looked at the Armoured with confusion. How the hell did Gordon cut through the armour? He saw from a distance that Gordon's strikes drew blood but Hannes didn't see how he did so, only that he used regular attacks.

Speaking of the man in question, Hannes heard him pull up beside him. The man looked dishevelled and exhausted. The man's white shirt was caked in dirt and blood. Cuts, rips and burn marks marred it along with massive sweat patches under his arms. His face is beet red and tired but he looked grateful and relieved at Hannes' arrival. "Freeman! You alright?!" Hannes called out.

The man gave him a nod. "Alright. Do you know how to take this thing down? We can't penetrate its armour at all!" Hannes asked.

Before Gordon could respond in any way, a large crank noise shot through the area. Everyone, including the Armoured Titan, was altered to the Inner Gate. It saw the chains start to move and the Gate resume to lower.

"GGGHHAAAHHH!"

The Armoured Titan bellowed and ran to the Inner Gate. Hannes cursed. "Damn it! Everyone! Stop it!"

Hannes and Gordon shot towards the Armoured Titan. Hannes' men followed suit and flew in for attacks. Again, their strikes did nothing to the Titan but scratch it. "Cut it down! Cut it down!" Hannes desperately screamed.

"We're trying! Are blades keep snapping!" A Garrison soldier yelled.

Hannes' heart was beating so fast he felt like it was going to explode. The situation looked disastrous till Gordon, yet again, proved overwise. In clear view of everyone, he blasted forward with great speed and struck the Armoured, not at the Nape but at the exposed muscle of the Titan. Hannes' team saw exactly where he had struck. The joint of the leg, behind the knees where the calf and thigh met. Pure flesh with no armour. An exposed point. The results of striking it were shown before them when the Armoured Titan fell to its hands and knees and skidded to a stop. Thanks to that titbit of information, Hannes then realised that the Armoured Titan was completely exposed around the joints. The ankles, knees, elbows, neck and crotch. Any place where the human body would've needed to bend. "It's like a knight's armour!" Hannes exclaimed in realisation.

"But we still can't get to the Nape!" another soldier cried out.

The Armoured Titan began to crawl to the Inner Gate in a mad rush. It was desperate to destroy the Gate. "Then we keep the fucker down! Get enough distance between it and our people! Our families! We keep it down in the dirt till Gate's down and locked! How long till then?! A few minutes?! We can keep him here till it does! Once it's down, we leave and it's stuck here in the city! Away from our families" Hannes howled.

Hannes pulled the trigger for more gas and shot himself into the action. He saw a slight sliver of muscle in between the armour plates on its right elbow. Taking the risk, Hannes hooked onto its arm and flew down. He threw his blades downwards into the gap. He felt some resistance, but his blades sliced through. He reeled his line in and swung himself upwards away from the Titan. He looked back just in time to see its right arm slacken and fall uselessly to its side. Hannes barked out a laugh when he heard the Armoured Titan groan. His smile widens when he saw his soldiers copy him. They dove in and sliced at the gaps in its armour. Blood sprayed everywhere and the Armoured Titan's crawl was slowed considerably. Once they knew how to bypass its one strength, it was too easy. "Cut him through!" Hannes roared to his men.

His friend Oscar sought to throw in his own contribution. He flew over the Armoured, scanning for a place to strike. He hovered low atop the Armoured Titan's head. Suddenly, the Armoured Titan's limp arm was shoved into the ground and used pushed the Armoured over. Oscar froze, as did everyone else. Hannes assumed he was about to be eaten right then and there, but no. Something much worse happened to Oscar.

Steam bellowed out from the Armoured Titan's clenched teeth. Its chest expanded with a deep breath. It opened its mouth and let out a focused pillar of molten hot steam right at Oscar. The man was cooked in an instant. Hannes was scared shitless as he watched Oscar's confused face just… melt. His hair was blown away like ash in the wind. His skin and flesh stunk and flacked off in an instant. His clothes crumbled and fused into him as his body turned charcoal black and grey. His gear crumbled and warped, becoming useless. Everyone, including Gordon, was horrified by Oscar's state. The poor soldier flew out of the Armoured Titan's breath and fell to the ground dead.

The Armoured turned its head back to them. Hannes hooked away from it while Gordon grabbed a Garrison soldier and flung them and himself safely away as the Armoured spewed its molten steam at them. Some got caught in the blast but not to the extent Oscar was in. Some parts of their bodies were bright red and Hannes saw Gretta's entire right arm was burnt. Her skin was leathery and peeling off with the wind. She was struggling to remain in the air. Hannes quickly flew over to her. "Gretta. Disengage! Scale the Wall and get out of-"

Gretta let out a shocked cry as she failed to launch another hook. Her hand was too scolded to operate the controls of her gear. Hannes quickly dove under her and caught her. Once secured in his arms, he yelled out. "Falling back with injured friendly! I'll come back! Keep the hurt on!"

---

Gordon watched as Hannes flew off ahead towards the Inner Gate. Honestly, it was a pretty poor time to retreat. The Armoured was breathing down on the Inner Gate, which had yet to still close. There was only 20 feet left before it fully closed. Gordon wasn't hopeful about the situation. He believed that he couldn't stop the Armoured Titan. Gordon didn't bother to factor in the Garrison soldiers Hannes left behind. As rude as it was, Gordon thought them incompetent.

He was initially relieved to see the Garrison pulling its finger out of its ass and arriving to help. Doubly so when Hannes arrived. However, to Gordon's eyes, they've been blundering about more so than helping. At first, they were striking against the Armoured Titan's armour. Gordon almost pulled his hair out in frustration watching them miss the obvious weak spots and instead focus on the armour impervious to cannon fire. He hoped Hannes would pull them through but he was just as oblivious as they were. So Gordon had to show them how it was done. After that, they were slowly proving to be a boon till the Armoured Titan demonstrated its molten steam breathability. Now the Garrison won't even touch him. All the Armoured had to do was look in their general direction and they will pull back.

Gordon's foe was a smart one. It was shuffled on its back, protecting its back joints and ligaments while keeping them in view and range of its ranged attack. So Gordon had to get creative. Some of the buildings around the Inner Gate weren't destroyed so Gordon used them to his advantage. He swung down into the tight alleyways and flew through them. It was a tight squeeze and Gordon skidded across the walls a few times. He made his way back to the main street just in time to pass under the Armoured Titan. A few successful cuts later and the Armoured fell completely on its back immobile. That cheeky move earnt him the ire of the Armoured- as if he didn't earnt that already. The Armoured saw him fly into another alleyway, which the Titan was quick to flood with its molten breath. Gordon was moving too fast for the pillar of steam to catch him. Gordon mentally recorded that it had a range. A bright idea struck him, and he doubled back. This time coming from a different alleyway, Gordon attacked the Armoured. Instead of attacking a ligament, Gordon sliced open its throat. Blood and steam exploded out from the wound. The Armoured Titan's face flashed with surprise. "He did it! He stopped its breath!"

"Cut it through now!"

"Go go go!"

Gordon reeled back around to join the Garrison. They all struck as many places as they could to disable the Titan. However, with it on its back and most of its important tendons located there, there wasn't much they were able to do. The Inner Gate was close to reaching the ground. The Armoured Titan must've known because as soon as its tendons were healed, it rolled over and made a break for it. Gordon unfortunately was midway through a strike and had to dodge at the last second. He tumbled to the ground and was wrapped up in his wire. He quickly unknotted himself and reeled it back in but by then it was too late. The Armoured Titan reached the Gate, just a feet away from closing, and slid its fingers underneath. With its muscles bulging, it lifted the Gate back up. The Armoured then started to pull the Gate towards itself. Gordon saw cracks spreading around the Gate. Bricks and motor bulged out as the Armoured Titan started to rip the Gate out of its slot. Gordon was too far behind to help and the Garrison soldiers who were struggled to cut the Titan down in time.

Hope came from above. Hannes appeared again, and true to his words, jumped back into the fray in spectacular fashion. Flying down at insane speeds, Hannes swung past the small gap between the Armoured Titan's abdomen and the Gate. With a roar that Gordon could hear even against the rushing wind, Hannes sliced the Armoured Titan's fingers clean off. The Gate fell back down and slammed into the ground, cutting half of the Armoured Titan's feet in the process. The loss of tension and feet caused the Titan to stumble back and crash into a nearby building. As the sounds of heavy gears turning echoed from the now locked Gate, Hannes' squad cheered as their commanding officer flew overhead. Hannes was shaking his fist in the air and cheering along with them. "Soldiers! Are job here is finished! Retreat! Retreat back up the Wall!" Hannes yelled.

No need to tell anyone twice. The Garrison quickly hooked onto the wall and began to scale it. Gordon reminded back for a bit. He grimaced at the destroyed firing line and the wracked equipment scattered around. Looks like that bomb idea was useless now. Gordon looked back towards the Armoured Titan, who started back with a heated glare and a growl. Gordon flipped it off and joined the others. Gordon hoped the Gate was strong enough to stop the Titan.

It was a bit of a struggle to climb Wall Maria. It required a good bit of core strength and balance to keep his feet on the Wall's surface. Shoot one line, reel it in as fast as he can move then repeat with the other one. Rinse and repeat. The hot wind blowing through Shiganshina bellowed up the Wall. Carrying with it was the stench of death, blood and ash. It brought back horrible memories of Black Mesa to Gordon. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He needed to focus. He wasn't out of the woods yet, but he was so close. Gordon was the last one to make it to the top. Hannes and another soldier were there by the edge to give him a hand. "There's our civvy hero. Come on" Hannes said.

Once Gordon was pulled back up, he gave both of them a nod in thanks. The Garrison soldier gave one in return and moved away from him. Hannes meanwhile stayed beside him. "Alright everyone, I think we can afford a little breather. Five minutes then we report back to the Captain. Ned, get Gretta to the medics" Hannes ordered.

They responded with grunts of acknowledgement. The soldiers slumped to the ground. Some resting on the ground beneath their feet while others are on the incline in the centre of the Wall. Gordon heard Hannes sigh. "If only we had rails on this side of the Wall. Fucking church. At least we could've moved those cannons there" Hannes spat and pointed to his right.

Gordon turned to see massive cannons pointing towards Shiganshina. Gordon was confused as to why the Garrison didn't use them till Hannes answered. "Barrel's got water damage. Totally useless. Some idiots forgot to cover the barrels last fireworks celebrations and rainwater got inside. Replacing them wasn't the top of our priorities before this afternoon. Bit us right in the fucking ass. We could get more cannons located near the Outer Gate, but without rails to transport them, they're stuck there" Hannes bitterly mumbled.

Gordon huffed and messaged his temples. This Garrison was as useless as the H.E.C.U and Black Ops combined. A cough caught his attention. It was Hannes. The officer looked Gordon in the eye. Gordon could see shame and guilt written all over his face. "G-Gordon, I'm sorry about leaving you. Back when we were being shot at by our own people. I… I want to make the excuse that I had to save the others and I didn't know if you were dead or not, but I… I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't strong enough to go and find you. That I wasn't-" Gordon stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

Gordon did not want to be insensitive to Hannes' feelings, but he had witnessed this a thousand times before. Scientists wishing they knew how to wield a gun to help him fight the creatures of Xen and the military, and security guards with their dying breaths regretting that Gordon had to go on without their protection. Gordon heard it all too many times. All leading to the person self-doubting or dying without certainty or peace of mind. The former often leads to the latter. Gordon didn't need another soul plagued with such a hindrance. Those who didn't see themselves as strong enough would get themselves killed trying to prove otherwise. Hannes didn't need to go down that way. Coming back to fight the Armoured Titan and extracting a wounded soldier was proof enough that Hannes was strong.

The conflicted man looked at Gordon's hand and then back to his face. Gordon gave him a reassuring smile and shook his shoulder. Gordon wanted to sign him some words of encouragement, but it would be lost on Hannes, who didn't know a lick of sign language. However, it looks as though just his positive expression was enough to assure Hannes that Gordon forgave him. Yes, he was peeved that no one sought to go and look for him but considering the Titans surrounding them and the Garrison firing on them, Hannes made the correct choice in saving the others by running away.

Hannes sniffed. "T-Thanks Gordon. Sit down for a bit. We'll be leaving soon" Hannes ushered.

Hannes walked away from him while Gordon chose a spot to rest away from the other Garrison soldiers. They were looking at him strangely. Gordon couldn't exactly pinpoint it but they were looking at him with a mix of puzzled and irritation. Gordon wisely sat away from them. Gordon looked towards Hannes to see him staring off over the other side of the Wall. "Damn. Sorry Gordon. I was hoping to get you on the ferry but it looks like it's just about to leave. Looks like the captain is setting up some wagons to take the other civvies though. I'll get you a spot" Hannes called out.

Gordon thrust a thumbs up and tried to find a moment to rest. He didn't get a chance to as something shook the Wall under him. Everyone jumped to their feet and readied their weapons. "What the hell was that?!" one soldier exclaimed.

Gordon had a good feeling about what was causing that racket. Gordon ran to the edge facing Shiganshina and looked down to see the Armoured Titan ramming the Gate. It collided with the Gate with a mighty crash. Kicking up dust from its impact. It jogged back and rammed into the Gate again. The other Garrison soldiers and Hannes ran up beside him. "Shit! He doesn't give up does he!?" a soldier exclaimed.

"No. No he does not…" Hannes sighed under his breath.

Gordon shared the sentiment. A soldier on Gordon's left hummed. "Dumb idiot's gonna be there awhile. A locked Gate can handle several 15 meters beating against it. Ain't no way it's gonna punch or ram down that Gate now. sir no sir" the woman laughed.

Gordon wished he could share her optimism. Being jinxed so many times thinking the same thing left him sceptical and jaded. Gordon focused back on the Armoured below. Sure enough, the soldier's words were truthful. No matter how many times the Armoured rammed or punched the Gate, it held firm. The Armoured realised this too and stopped attacking it. It stood back and scanned over the Gate. "What's it doing?" Hannes asked.

Gordon signed towards the soldiers. "Looking for a weakness".

Sure enough, none of them knew what he was saying. Gordon huffed and continued to watch the Armoured. The Titan's eyes combed everywhere around the Gate. Its hands touched the edges of it. Its frame and the bent seal fused into it. His eyes then looked upwards. The Garrison flinched and stumbled back, thinking the Armoured was looking directly at them. Gordon was the only one to remain unmoved because he saw the Armoured wasn't looking at them. No, he could see the Armoured was looking at the Gatehouse and the chains holding the Gate.

The Armoured held its hand out. Gordon and Hannes' squad were astonished when a light crackled over its fingertips and claws formed on them. The soldiers gasped and mumbled about how that was impossible for a Titan to do. Gordon was starting to feel a deep sense of dread. Especially when the Armoured sunk its clawed hands into the Wall and started to scale it. Hannes and his squad started to panic. "It's climbing! It's climbing the Wall!" one screamed.

Hannes calmed them down. "Calm down all of you! It's a sitting duck if it climbs up here. When it gets close, we'll fly down and cut its fingers and feet off. Hopefully, the fall will kill it" Hannes explained.

It sounded like a good plan if the Armoured was climbing towards them. No, the Armoured had climbed up over the Gate and towards the Gatehouse arches. It stopped there, pulling its hands out of the Wall and grasping onto the chains holding the Gate. With a chain in both hands, the Armoured lent back and pushed against the Wall. Gordon and Hannes' squad could feel the Gatehouse's structure wain against the strength of a Titan. Cracks formed all over the Gatehouse. Gordon paled when he saw it start to bow out from the Wall.

"GGAAAHHH!"

The Armoured Titan bellowed as it pulled harder and harder till the whole Gatehouse was destroyed. Crumbling in on itself as the chain spools held within were ripped out through it. The Armoured Titan fell back to the ground, chains in hand. It landed on its back but rolled with its momentum. In expertly reversed rolled back onto its feet. Gordon had to admit that was impressive. The Armoured then wrapped the chains still attached to the Gate around its arm and pulled. Now it was time for the Gate to be cracking and bowing under the Armoured Titan's strength. "Maria no! Don't let it be so!" a soldier begged.

There was no goddess to hear her plea. The Armoured let out a rumble and pulled with all its might. There was a mighty snap before the Gate was ripped clean off its frame. The surrounding brick and motor structure fell with the Gate. A cloud of dust cloaked the area. Gordon quickly ran to the other side of the Wall to see the same cloud billowing out from the other side of the Inner Gate. It confirmed that the Gate had fallen. It was over; Wall Maria has been breached.

The news and realisation brought Hannes' squad to their knees. They were devastated and frozen in horror. Below them, the Armoured Titan strolled past the fallen Gate. The seal of their Goddess Maria lay looking up to the sky. Its face was warped and disfigured. The Armoured unravelled the chains around its arms over the Gate and even stomped on the seal. Insult to injury. The Armoured sauntered over to the now exposed Inner Gate. Fists raised; the Titan began to punch through the structure. Unlike the Gate, built with reinforced steel and stone blocks with large rebar, the inner structure was made of wood and regular bricks. The Armoured Titan easily carved through the Inner Gate in no time and created a massive unrepairable hole in the Gate. Even when it burst out of the other side, it still wasn't satisfied with the mess it already made. It turned back around the kept making the hole larger.

While Hannes' squad and Gordon were atop the Wall watching all of this happen, the rest of Shiganshina's Garrison was busy preparing for this scenario. Hannes pointed it out to everyone. On a hill just a few miles away from the Inner Gate, a series of cannons were stationed there. It looked like the Garrison set up a camp there. Horses and men were running around like mad ants. Gordon also noticed a few smaller cannon placements doted around the Inner Gate in a semi-circle, surrounding it. No sooner did the Armoured Titan burst out of the Inner Gate, the cannons were firing at it.

Some cannons got lucky and shot unarmoured parts of the Titan. The Armoured Titan cried and roared with unbridled fury whenever those lucky shots hit. One shot was bad enough to nearly blow off its leg. That shot was the braking point for the Armoured. It stopped tearing a hole through the Inner Gate and turned its attention to the line of cannons atop the hill several meters away from it. That hill was the primary source of the Garrison's firepower. Gordon watched with bated breath as the Titan moved away to the Gate and towards the firing line. Gordon could see a majority of the Garrison soldiers had left their cannons and shifted to horseback, riding out to meet the Titan in close-quarters combat. The Garrison must've thought an overwhelming number of men on ODM gear would be enough to take down the Armoured Titan if their cannons couldn't. Gordon's concern worsen when the Armoured Titan stopped in its tracks and focused its attention on something else. Even up on the Wall, Gordon could hear the shocked screams of those near the ferry station and the ones on the ferry itself. The intensified when the Armoured looked over in their direction. "No…" Gordon heard Hannes say under his staggering breath.

Gordon and Hannes' squad all paled when the Armoured started to run towards the ferry struggling to swim away. "No. No! NO!" Hannes screamed.

His squamates did the same, voicing their horror while Gordon was left to do so silently. They all watched as the Armoured Titan tore through the crowds. Stepping on them like ants as he charged to its target. It was at that point that Hannes made a move "Everyone! Arm yourselves and get down there now! We need to kill this beast!" Hannes cried and dove off the Wall.

The other soldiers quickly followed though a few stayed behind. Gordon could see by their paled and vacant eyes they were shell-shocked. He'd seen it plenty of times with other scientists, security guards and rarely a few H.E.C.U soldiers at Black Mesa. There was nothing Gordon could do to make them move or follow Hannes' orders. Gordon left them be and sought to follow Hannes. However, Gordon happened to notice something behind the large cannons. His eyes focused on the crates behind them. Curiously, Gordon ran to them and opened them up with his crowbar. Inside were cannonballs, white bags and ODM gas canisters. He hastily ripped open a white bag to see they were filled with gunpowder. Gordon signed in relief. Looks like his easier plan to deal with the Armoured hadn't gone to waste. Hearing the screams and blasts below spurred Gordon to hurry along and assemble his solution.

---

Hannes pushed his gear as hard as it could go. His face stung as hot air whipped at it. He squinted his eyes as his vision became blurred as wind and force stretched out his face. Nearing the bottom of the Wall, Hannes eased on the throttle and levelled out. Once doing so, he pushed the gear again. Using the Wall, he hooked on it to gain more and more ground towards the Armoured Titan.

It had torn through and scattered the survivors on land as it neared its target. The unarmed ferry was easy game for the Titan. Hannes was too far off to save the ferry. The refugees on the deck jumped off to save their lives. There were those who were too slow to act and were thrown off either in the water or, unluckily, on land as the Titan ripped the boat off its wired line and out of the water. "NO!" Hannes screamed.

He watched as the Armoured swung the ferry over its shoulder and turned back to the Garrison force swarming it. To Hannes' horror, the monster ran at them with the ferry in hand ready to swing. The vanguard barely had time to move before the ferry came down on them. Then, like a baker with a rolling pin, the Titan rolled the ferry over the riders behind them. Some were quick thinkers and launched themselves up and over the ferry with their gear while others were too stunned and left to be rolled over by the ferry.

The rear guard steered their steads away from the ferry, splitting into two groups. Some from each group leapt into action with their ODM gears and fought the Armoured while some stayed on horseback to provide backup. Hannes' horror worsened when she saw the Garrison making the same mistake he and his squad with their tussle with the brute. They were striking its armoured plates and fracturing their blades.

The Armoured didn't take all of this sitting down. It swung the ferry around much like it did with the 15-meter Titan not long ago. Many soldiers circling the Armoured were collected by the boat. Splattering into tiny pieces or becoming a red smear on the hull. The Armoured even targeted the horsemen, swinging the ferry low to collect the riders and their steeds. Hannes used that moment to advance. Using as much gas as he could, Hannes launched himself off a tower overlooking the river and up into the air. He flew over the Armoured Titan's head. Well out of the way from others' paths. Finding a gap in the armour, Hannes flew down and struck it. Hannes heard the Titan growl and swing the ferry around. Hannes narrowly dodged it. Hannes circled around it, careful not to get his cables snagged by the ferry or another soldier's wires. Hannes' squad finally arrived and use their prior experience to lay waste to the Armoured. Seeing his squad striking its weak points, the other Garrison soldiers followed their example and relayed it to the others. Now everyone was targeting its exposed muscles and tendons. Unfortunately, the Armoured now knew they were all targeting its weak points.

It defended them with savage ferocity. It stomped, jumped, swatted, bit and breathed its molten hot steam all over the Garrison. Soldiers were dropping like flies. None of them had the experience to go against an Abnormal like this. What didn't help things either was the cannon fire. Seeing as the refugees were scattered away from the Armoured, the Garrison still stationed by the cannons opened fire. Regardless of their comrades being in the firing line. Hannes heard the men of horseback scream to them to retreat and Hannes frustratingly acquiesce. He shouted at what was left of his squad to fall back to any horse available. The only one close to Hannes was occupied yet the rider was more than willing to have Hannes ride behind them. Hannes landed behind the soldier and almost fell off the horse. Luckily the man grabbed Hannes and strengthened him up. With him secured, the soldier spurred his horse away from the firing cone and the Armoured Titan.

Hannes turned his head around to stare at the Armoured. With the Garrison's retreat, it was free to pursue whatever it wanted. It looked towards the main firing line and ran at it with the ferry slung over its shoulder. The remaining riders grouped together on either side of the Armoured, with Hannes on the right side. They gave it a wide birth to not be struck by either the ferry or the cannon fire. However, this wasn't enough to get out of danger. Hannes saw cannonballs strike and ricochet off of the Titan's frame. They flew into the crowd of riders on the left side. Before Hannes could say a word to his rider about retreating further away, they were hit with a ball.

It didn't strike their horse, but it was close enough to fling them and their horse into the air. Hannes somersaulted through the air and landed on the ground with a nasty crack sound. Hannes was flung onto his belly and was winded. He spent the next few moments desperately trying to catch his breath. He eventually succussed and entered a coughing fit. He spat out a mouth full of spit and dirt. He clambered to his feet. A big mistake. Hot searing pain shot through from his right leg, into his system and paralysed Hannes. He fell to the ground with a cry and a staggering breath. He tried moving again and was met with the same mind-numbing agony. He felt it in his shin. He must've fractured it! Hannes began crawling on his hands and one knee. He gritted his teeth and moaned as the aching in his leg intensified with his movement. He crawled around the body of a horse and over a ditch just in time to see the Armoured Titan finish off the firing line.

Explosions and human remains littered under the Armoured Titan's feet while soldiers on ODM gear struggle to take it down. The firing line was little more than ruins and the soldiers manning them were strewn about injured or dead. There was only a handful of soldiers left. With his leg broken, Hannes could only watch in horror as his comrades were killed one by one. Out of the corner of his eye, a silhouette was dashing across the dirt streets and cratered landscape. Through the light haze of dust and debris roaming in the air, Hannes could see clear as day what was running towards the Armoured Titan. Gordon Freeman appeared yet again, this time charging towards the Armoured Titan with a cobbled-together mess tied to his back.

---

Gordon huffed and puffed. He thought operating his gear was bad enough with several kilograms attached to his back, running with it was worse. He breathed hard through clenched teeth. A growl threatened to escape him. The metal wiring securing his cargo dug sharply into his shoulders and chest. Maybe he should've gone with the harnesses to strap his bomb together.

It wasn't a pretty thing his makeshift explosive. It was a mishmash of objects tied together in an oblong shape. In the centre was a large, pressed sack filled with gunpowder. Covering that sack was another one that was soaked in lamp oil. Surrounding that were four cylinders of ODM gas canisters, and attached to their bodies were sacks filled with grapeshot cannon rounds. All in all, this Frankenstein of a bomb was as primitive as it was ugly. Gordon just hoped it could get the job done.

Gordon saw his target use the ferry boat to club more soldiers out of the sky. Gordon felt his gut tighten when he heard screams coming out from that ferry. There were people in there. Gordon stood still and stared at the Titan. The look on its face told Gordon that using a ferry full of innocent people as a weapon was out of sadistic wrath. It wanted to take its anger out in the most horrific way on these poor people. Gordon had to put an end to this here and now!

He needed to grab its attention. Gordon long-jumped towards it while clashing his blades together, trying to make as much noise as possible. He needn't try too hard, however, as a man in white and blue clothing against a green and dirty brown field stood out like a sore thumb. The Armoured saw him in no time, and recognising him, put all of its focus on him. A costly mistake as a few Garrison soldiers capitalised on it.

As the Titan reared its arms back to slam the ferry down on Gordon, two brave soldiers shot towards its hands. They both stuck the Titan's wrists and unfortunately collided with each other in the process. The Armoured Titan let out a shocked roar as its grip loosened on the ferry. The boat slid out of its grasp and smashed onto the ground on its bow. It then tipped to the side and rolled onto its deck, capsizing it on land. Gordon used the Garrison's assault as a chance to hook onto the Titan. With as much throttle as he could push it, Gordon shot himself up to the Armoured Titan's head.

The Titan tried to bite him on the way up, but with a quick maneuver, Gordon dodged it and sliced at its cheek through the gap in its mouth plating. He then hooked around the back of its head and came back around on the other side to slice the other one. The Armoured Titan's mouth now gapped open. Gordon flew straight into its maw. He landed on its wet tongue and almost gagged from the smell and heat mixture. He sliced the tongue to it wouldn't move. Stabbing his blade into the cheek for support, Gordon quickly untethered his makeshift bomb and planted it by his feet. He stepped on it to stop it from rolling down into its throat and down to its stomach. Now he waited.

Thanks to the Armoured cooking his allies with its molten steam breath, it inadvertently solved Gordon's quandary about a trigger to his bomb. The breath was a perfect activator for the gunpowder. The heat generated to melt the flesh off a man's body is definitely enough to trigger the substance. If not, then Gordon's backup substance will; the lamp oil. Highly flammable, the heat of the Titan's breath will light it and that will then trigger the gunpowder. The gunpowder will then rupture the gas tanks, and with their combined force, will blast the grapeshot into the Titan's Nape and blow it to pieces. Now all Gordon needed was the Titan to blast him.

Sweat brewed on Gordon's forehead from the heat and suspense. He grits his teeth as his heartbeat boomed in his ear. He saw the cheeks begin to heal so he sliced at them. He saw shadows move behind him. The Armoured Titan's fingers tried to grasp him, but Gordon reacted fast. He slashed upwards and hacked off the Titan's fingers. He pushed himself and the bomb deeper into the Titan's mouth. He was now at the back of the throat. He grabbed hold of the Titan's uvula and stared down at the dark abyss below him. One wrong move and he was gone for good. Gordon growled, his throat burning, and he slashed angrily at the throat and mouth's walls. 'Come on you son of a bitch! I'm right here! Come on! Cook me! Now!' Gordon mentally screamed.

His next slash halted when he felt a change. The throat walls gapped open, and a rush of hot air blasted behind Gordon. He could hear bubbling and sizzling below him as well as a deep rumble. It was here! Gordon's heart was beating so fast. His hands were shaking and his lips trembling. Still, he waited. It wasn't the right time. It's too soon to act. Gordon held on as the rushing air slowed. Gordon bit his lower lip. The air was now still. Nothing was moving in or out. Not yet…

The bobbing and sizzling suddenly grew tenfold. A slight gust of blistering air wafted out from the Titan's throat. 'Now!' Gordon screamed.

He kicked the bomb down its throat. He turned and, throttling as high as he gas could go, Gordon launched himself out of the Titan's mouth. Its hands were out to grab him. Gordon curled himself into a ball and narrowly slipped through the Titan's fingers. It was thanks to those hands now in between him and the mouth that Gordon was able to survive his bomb.

---

Just as Dr. Freeman had planned, as soon as the molten breath washed past the bomb, it triggered. The explosion was small but devastating enough to everyone around it. The loud boom as it tore through the Armoured Titan had surviving soldiers and civilians diving down to the ground as boiling hot chunks of meat and blood rained down on them. Along with it a thick plum of black smoke.

By the time the smoke fell, the effect of Gordon's makeshift explosive was as clear as day. The Armoured Titan's neck and head were gone. The only remains of them were its cranium and upper jaw embedded in Wall Maria several meters away from its body. The rest of the Armoured Titan's body was stiff and still. Its mangled hands were frozen near where its head once was. Slowly, the red muscles of its body turned to a nasty grey hue. Its muscles bubbled and burst as the body slowly started to decompose. Thanks to the bravery of the Garrison and Dr. Freeman, the Armoured Titan was defeated.

There was no celebration to be had after this painstaking victory. After the explosion, the area around the destroyed Inner Gate was filled with dreadful silence. A dead air only permeated with sounds of crackling fires and distant screams. Nothing around the Armoured Titan's body made a sound. Slowly, it decomposed. A stiff breeze carried muffled screams of men, women and children within the ferry resting on the hillside. Alongside them were those of the Garrison and civilians unlucky enough to be in the way of its fall were the only ones to be heard around the Titan that ensured Shiganshina's fall.

---

He didn't know how long he lay there. Still and silent. Unmoving as the world turned around him. Gordon just did not want to move. Nearly dying in that explosion had made him reach his limit and all he wanted was to rest. We wanted to fall into a deep sleep, but he couldn't. No matter how hard he closed his eyes or how much effort he tried to empty his mind, sleep avoided him. So, he lay there. Stiff and sore. He didn't know what he fell upon, only that it was soft and uncomfortable at the same time. At some point, something fell on him. He didn't move it. It was like a blanket. A harsh uncomfortable blanket that applied pressure to his chest.

There were footsteps. Voices in the distance searching through the rubble. Gordon stirred as the pressure on his chest was elevated. He heard muffled noises that became clear as soon as the debris atop of him was lifted. "Careful! Careful! We don't know the condition of this soldier. He could be in- Gordon? Gordon Freeman! Rose be fuckin' praised! Butch! Get the stretcher!" a familiar voice screamed.

Gordon's eyes slowly peeled open to see Blaire and several other civilians staring down at him. The sky overhead had changed since he last open his eyes. A blood-red dusk had given way to a cold and dark night. There was still enough light though to see. One of the civilians, head bandaged with dried blood streaks running out from under it, knelt beside him. "Hey. Hey! He's awake!" he told Blaire.

The man turned around and stared down at him. "Hey! Hey Freeman! Are you ok? Anything broken?" He asked.

Gordon ignored him. He was… honestly too tired to respond or care. He slowly climbed to his feet. He hissed through his teeth as fatigue made his sore legs buck underneath him. He stumbled about but regained his footing. "Ok, looks like you're good. Maybe rest for a few…" Blaire went silent as Gordon walked away.

Gordon saw what looked to be a gathering near the fallen ferry. There were 15 to 20 people by Gordon's rough estimate, all of them huddling by the ferry's port side. Gordon saw some holes in its hull. Places where the Armoured Titan had dug its fingers into it when it first caught it. Gordon could see hands reaching out from it. So, some people survived what the Armoured did to them. Gordon felt some relief from that fact. Not enough to quell his fatigue and exhaustion though.

He continued his sore walk towards the crowd. Walking through it was a miserable experience. Injured civilians wallowed in their agony while the more able were busy giving them medicine, bandaging them or preparing an improvised camp. Crates were moved to make seats and structures, discarded and ruined clothes made as makeshift beds, and sticks wrapped in cloth soaked in oil made for torches. Gordon saw several people make a large circle surrounding their camp. Lighting up the perimeter and giving them a line of sight around them. Gordon could see, despite their efforts, the camp had an aura of dread and depression. The common thought process around here was that they were preparing for the inevitable. Soon, the Titans will come. Gordon saw only three Garrison soldiers around the camp, all of them in no state to fight or use the ODMs. One of those soldiers was a familiar face.

Hannes was being tended to by a young woman with a bruised face and dirtied clothes. She was setting up a few planks of splintered wood to use as a rest for Hannes' leg. He had a minimalist cast on his right shin. Two sticks wrapped tightly with cloth around his leg. Hannes cried out when the woman set his leg down. "Sweet mother Maria! Couldn't you be gentler Randi?!" Hannes cried.

The girl huffed. "I'm going as slow as I can you useless sod! Stop complaining or I'll-"

Gordon's eyes turned to the bottle of alcohol resting beside Hannes. Amber in colour and singing out his name. Gordon found himself incredibly parched. When was the last time he drank something? Gordon wandered over to Hannes. The man instantly noticed him. He gave him a genuine smile though Gordon could see it was marred by the current mood around the camp. "Gordon fucking Freeman. Our hero…" Hannes' smile fell.

He stared at the ground with an ashamed look. "Blowing up and killing the Armoured bastard. Three Walls be fucking praised… and some reward you got huh? Saved me- saved us all. Killed that armoured monster… and you ended up stuck with us… left behind-" Gordon dragged a small crate beside Hannes and took a seat beside him.

Hannes swallowed nervously at the look on Gordon's face. No doubt seeing Gordon's tired face filled with exhaustion didn't give him much of a reason to be happy. Gordon looked down at the bottle beside Hannes. Hannes blinked at the bottle and watched as it was snagged by Gordon. "Whoa. Careful there. That's rum from the viscount's private stock. Very strong sh-"

Gordon drank heavy gulps of it. He was right, it was very heavy stuff. Much more than he was used to but at least it hit the spot. The more he drank, the more it dulled the ache of his muscles and quelled the emotions inside of him. Eventually his 'pain relief' ran dry. He brought the empty bottle down and stared at it with a vacant look. "Sheena be buggered" Hannes softly exclaimed in disbelief.

"And there goes some good disinfectant…" Randi mumbled.

Gordon blinked and shook his head in confusion. He looked out into the night. Suddenly he jumped to his feet and screamed. Everyone in the camp jumped at his hollering and looked at him with fearful eyes. Gordon bellowed and threw the bottle in his hand out towards Shiganshina with as much force as he could muster. The bottle disappeared into the night. Gordon's yells turned into rasping coughs. The burning alcohol coupled with his scarred throat did not do wonders for him. He didn't care though. Coughing and spitting blood as much as he was forced to, he remained steadfast in glaring into the night.

Hannes and the camp were silently watching as Gordon sat back down. They all watched with bated breaths, wondering if he would go on an even worse breakdown not soon after. None said a word to him, including Hannes. The poor man looked terrified by Gordon and the raw anger he had on his face. None of them knew why he screamed the way he did or why he was so angry. Some assumed he was mad that his end was near or that he had lost someone important. None of them knew the truth, for none saw what he saw out there in the dark.

Even as the last bit of daylight faded away, he could still see him standing there, framed by the ruined Gate of Shiganshina just a mile away. The G-Man stared at him with a straight unblinking face. Even after Gordon screamed and threw a bottle at him, he remained stoic. So, Gordon remained glaring at him till the last bit of daylight faded, and all he could see was his glowing eyes. That too faded just as the light did.

---

25k plus words. Damn did this chapter take a while to write. Sorry about the wait. I wanted to end it sooner, but it would've ended on a cliffhanger and that's something I needed to break out of. I hope you don't mind but I'm going to rumble on a bit about what I have done in the chapter and my reasoning behind certain decisions.

A big factor in this chapter, is Gordon Freeman and his skills with the ODM Gear. Obviously taking elements from gameplay, Gordon is incredibly proficient with any weapons and equipment he gets his hands on. While it is reasoned Gordon can wield a handgun and rifle efficiently because of his training in the Hazard Course, that doesn't explain how he can easily operate weapons still in the R&D phase like the Tau Cannon. I've showcased a bit of it in the previous chapter and expanded it here, Gordon needs to get used to the equipment through trial and error and time. One of Gordon's biggest strengths that helps him with this is that he is highly adaptable. Just like the player getting a new weapon in-game, Gordon gets used to it, expands its capabilities in situations and experiments with it. Gordon has used the gear so much in a short time frame that he's now somewhat of a pro with it.

The Garrison are also a highlight in this chapter. While writing them, I was toeing between the lines of competence to incompetence. It's canon that before Shiganshina fell, the Garrison were considered useless, undisciplined and the losers of the military. That goes doubly so for the Shiganshina Garrison, stationed in the ass-end of Wall civilization. The police force amount to little more than mall cops. They weren't skilled enough to handle the attack on Shiganshina nor facing off against one of the nine Titan holders.

Just like most boss-like encounters in the Half-Life series, Gordon is the only one competent enough to face and defeat the enemy. When the Garrison comes to help, they blunder about. Again, because they're not skilled enough or have the temperament to face the Armoured Titan. Gordon isn't working with a crack squad. At best they're a squad on crack.

I did give them some competent moments to show they aren't all bad but their usefulness as a military force is yet to be desired. Following canon, they'll be marketability improved later in the story.

A big part of the chapter was dedicated to the Armoured Titan. The Titan with the coolest design yet has the blandest ability and the shittiest K/D ratio. I highlighted how, as soon as people know to target his (incredibly large) exposed points, his armour is next to useless other than it protects his Nape. I gave the Armoured the ability to spew hot steam at people. As far as I'm aware, Reiner blowing out steam from his mouth was an anime-only thing and not canon, however, it is feasible. A Holder could manipulate their bodies to contain their steam emissions and channel it through breathing. I mean, if Reiner could transfer his consciousness back and forth between his Titan and real body, why can't he have a steam breath? It's a helpful ability and give him an edge in fighting soldiers on ODM gear.

Speaking of fighting on ODM gear, one of the reasons the Garrison and Gordon did as well as they did against Reiner was because he didn't know how to fight against ODM gear. He had never heard or seen people use a device that grapples the user around so they can kill a Titan with blades. In fact, you can properly guess his reaction based on Porco's during the Raid in Liberato. Dude thought he was all-powerful and wondered why the Scouts didn't run away or why he was failing against them.

Another advantage Gordon and the Garrison had was the fact they were facing the least qualified Titan User to date. It is canon that Reiner was never the physically or mentally best Warrior to inherit the Armoured Titan. He didn't have a good connection with the previous user nor did he succeed in his classes. Only thanks to Marcel, who somehow, convinced Marley that Reiner was the best pick for the Armoured. Reiner was also given the easiest Titan to operate. Before The Fall of Shiganshina, no one besides another Titan user could break Reiner's armour. He was given an invincible Titan. That doesn't condition Reiner well enough to properly use his Titan to its fullest capabilities. That mistake cost him dearly when facing Gordon.

Another thing to note and something I add in the chapter, why the hell do the Garrison and Scouts aim for the armour?! In the Clash of the Titans arc, Mikasa and the Scouts attack the Armoured Titan by hitting its armour when it has clear and obvious weak points. The flesh literally contrasts with the pale white armour. I don't understand so I just accepted it was a common blunder everyone should have so I had the Garrison make that same mistake.

The next part I want to write about is Hannes and Eren's heart-to-heart. I'll say it right now, I struggle a lot with writing emotions and trying to keep in line with characters' personalities. It was difficult to write Hannes' speech admitting none of them were strong enough to save Gordon or the others. I tried my best not to reference Gordon too much and not have him be the centre focus of their conversation. They just met the dude after all, though both have been impacted by him saving both their lives and the lives of those they care about. I hope this scene was alright.

If you so wish, support me on Pat r eon to receive chapters early and to see sneak peeks of developing chapters. This chapter was on my Pat re on for the past week and snippets of it weeks beforehand. I upload this and other content like 3D projects, TF2 Blender animations and other shorts, so if you want to see some, head over to my YouTube channel to check them out. Same name as this account.

Pat re on/ TheAlamore

Thank you all for reading and look forward to the next chapter of The True Free Man: Captive Freight