1744 AY
"It doesn't matter, have them checked again," The cloaked warrior had insisted upon seeing Serello's defenses himself. And as they walked down the main boulevard of the small town, he insisted on checking every cannon and asking every soldier within shouting distance about his musket or pike and even some about the sheen of their boots. "battles have been decided by less." The Kruegers were known to be particular but when the green eyed lord had asked him if the cannons along the barricade had all been angled to 19 exact specifications, John Arkwright's military discipline nearly broke. "1 degree off may be the difference."
"My lord, there is a limit to how precise a cannon can be. These men are just farmhands. No matter how many times you tell them, there is only so much they can do to fit them to your specifications." he hoped the lord would see sense. Cannons would only matter for so long if a battle came to pass. Trained soldiers could rarely hold against the subjects of Ymir's terrifying monstrosities, much less peasants. As they walked down the street, it came to John that the fate of the small town nestled between mountain ranges was more than likely going to come down to the holder of the Attack Titan.
"Still, every little change could be the difference between a hit and a glancing blow. Oliver wouldn't have been caught in such a trap, but the Marelyans' new dog might. I haven't fought him yet but Beaumont has. She tells of a rabid dog. Once he has a taste of a battle, he will run here. When he gets here, you need to crush him as quickly as possible." his deep tone made it sound like it was already written down in the history textbooks they would hand out at the academy. It was said the Attack Titan long ago saw the future, and that each subsequent holder had passed on its visions. While many battles won by the empire could be accredited to its holders, the family names Voss, Rhetland, and Krueger colored the Eldian Officers Academies textbooks after all, John couldn't help but wonder what kind of prophetic visions didn't involve the fall of an empire.
"I understand my lord, any help against the Titans is help, but still, I doubt moving the cannons any more will aid us when, or if the Beast gets here." No one could be daft enough to charge into the pass instead of just surrounding it. "Are you sure you shouldn't just draw him here yourself? I think capturing another of the Nine would be enough on its own. Besides, we can take the foot of the mountain back at any time afterwards."
"Ye Of so little faith General. Wars are not one sitting on the sidelines. I have gotten you here haven't I?"
"You have my lord." took us on a merry trip up the savage northern continent you mean. Guarding the lines of refugees trying to make it to the Kings little island wasn't his idea of a worthy task in such a pivotal moment such as this. Any leader worth his salt would have taken the fight down south back towards Eldia to reconnect with the Beaumont forces that were still left in Iberia. Or even better, gone and raised a new king after putting the coward's head on a pike, or even a Consul or 2, despite all that its Marelyan origins would entail, any leader in times such as these was better than the mess they had right now.. But such thoughts were better in a man's mind after all. "I will guard this pass with my life, as Eldia's honor demands my lord."
"Very good then General. I shall make haste then. But first…" the man's cloak shifted aside as he turned to face John, revealing long brown hair that fell to his shoulders, and the piercing green eyes he held even out of his Titan form. He reached inside to a pocket in his jacket John couldn't see and brought out a vial with a blue liquid inside. "If events come to pass…well, you'll know what to do." Krueger slid the vial into John's palm and walked off to mount his horse. Rising upwards his horse trotted forward a meter or so before he yanked it around. "We live in an age of heroes and monsters General, let's remind them that heroes die young." With a tightening of his grips on the reins, the lord the horse spurred into action, guiding a lone man out of the gate of the town, down lanes of fortified defenses, and into the distance. It would have been a cutting scene. A rising sun, right through a mountain pass, and a warrior racing off to meet his destiny against an army and the killer of his fallen comrade. But John had seen enough battles through the war to know that romanticism in such times was ill-advised. That kind of thinking is what got armies trapped and starved and fleets hit from all sides. And Titans taken by bratty peasants who got a bit too loud about their 'rights and privileges'. The Great Titan War had made a mockery of man and titan's plans alike.
Still, if I can make a proper defense here count…he tightened his grip on the vial, pivotal moments indeed. What had made Krueger…he had a few more good years left didn't he? Surely it wouldn't? No, don't be silly, precautions are precautions. Best to think about whats ahead.
Returning to his men, he looked over the men coated in green uniforms. Years ago these uniforms could be seen marching across the east, looting the cities that dotted what used to be Persia and the Hordelands beyond. Ymir, why wasn't he born 50 years ago? These men looked like rags, dragged from the snows of the Norselands, marched through a desert, overused, and ready to be thrown out in some random battle. Looking over them gave his heart no solace…ah the hell with it, maybe Krueger was right, a little preparation never hurt.
"LOOK ALIVE MEN, the enemy will! Check the cannons once more!" he spoke, urging himself upwards and his voice deeper with gusto. "The Marleyans will be on their way! Best be ready to make them pay the price for their arrogance!" While few cheers signaled that their moods improved, the men still held themselves in a sorry state. Emphasized when a drunkard with a coat ruined from a night of too much too fast rose from behind a wall. So maybe something was to be improved, he thought to himself cynically.
While the sun continued to rise, the orange of its glow turned into the more normal yellow coloring as it rose above. The light illuminated the brick houses of Serello, the thatch roofs of the outer slums, and the abandoned streets of all of it. Although Valle was a continent away, tales of the Eldians that became trapped in the city had spread fast, and nobody wished to see such things with their own eyes, even if they weren't Eldian. Still, what kind of men abandoned their homes? Women and children yes, but how many men were trying to catch a ship to Paradise? Dying to a Titan had to be better than…
His thoughts stopped. In the distance, from the view of the main street that cut through the town, John Arkwright could see dust in the distance. While Calvary could make up such cloud of dust, the Academy had taught him that crowding lots of it into a small mountain pass with no room to maneuver was not the best usage of such a mobile asset. Did it really work?
The cloud of dust grew larger, as the visage of.. something came into view. As it came closer, he could see horns, or ears rather, on its heads. As the image came closer it reminded him of a certain type of canine. A rabid dog indeed. A massive rabid dog, running like the spotted cats he had seen along the march, with its jaws wide approached the town, its eyes locked on target like a predator, its hunger visible even from a distance. He hadn't seen a Titan yet before, mindless Titans had grown out of use as the Founders had gotten bored of war and then left for the island. Looking at its maw, he heard the chattering of teeth. Realizing it was his own teeth, it struck him at once how such things might kill men just by their sight alone. He clenched his jaw, swallowed what he couldn't give name too and cried out.
"Rally yourselves men!" he channeled himself. "Today we have a great battle upon us, let us be the 1st since Siegfried to slay monsters and claim glory for Eldia!" The cries amongst the men made him feel better, but not enough to improve his feeling about the drunkard still messing with the cannon. Ymir be good.
"Ready men!" the cloud ended, the jaws of the dog turned wide as it became kicking wildly in its rush forward.
"Aim!" He could almost picture men and blood greasing its jaws now.
"FIRE!" a cacophony of sound erupted around him as buildings cracked in streets in front of him. Stone burst open and brick crumbled, but the jaws still came ever closer. Panic struck him in his chest.
"RELOAD!" but it would be too late, while some men reloaded guns, others saw the beast's pace and took over sprinting. The sound of a Titan spurring towards them triggering the urge of any rational being to flee. But John stood still in place, perhaps his fear had broken his legs for him, so that he could die quickly at least.
As it bound up the final street, John could see one man in place, alone, with a green coat covered in his own mistakes, putting the match rod to a fuse. As the bloodthirsty monster tore into the street to bite a man in half, John heard the roar of a cannon and finally got the courage to turn away and run. But just as he took his first step, he heard a whining, followed by a crash. The whine of a dog it was. And as the good General Arkwright looked back, he could see a man in a ruined coat lying on his back, looking up with eyes as wide as the moon at a massive dog with brown fur. But more importantly, a gaping hole in the back of its head…where the brain would be.
"Did…did we..?" he could see the soldier's freckled face turn to him at once, breaking out from frozen fear to a bright smile, as he grasped at his uniform. "Did we really get it?"
John began creeping up slowly, keeping his eyes peeled on the steam coming from the beast. Did he..did we… as he reached within a foot, he put his hand upon steaming flesh, and yanked it back again.
"Son of a…" he cut off as he started flapping his hand like all hell. The damn thing was hot enough to roast chicken on impact. How the hell could anyone stay in that…oh.
John froze. Then tilted his head up to the neck of the beast, sitting right in the line of sight, was the nape of the neck. With only the slimmest of pieces of tissue still holding the skull to the body, the nape was right there. Patting his jacket all at once, John found what he was looking for.
In his left hand was the vial Lord Krueger had handed him. Did he really see? The liquid and glass sat in his hand, waiting. Behind him, men had started walking back, he turned, and saw the looks on their faces. Did he look like that? Apprehensive, hopeful and scared all at once?
Something shook inside him as the nape started to shift. John Arkwright stood up, giving a last glance to his men, he steeled himself, and composed what he hoped was a face of steel. The Titans had been held by the nobility since there were nine. For nearly 2000 years, the nobility of the empire has used them to rule over and expand the domain of the greatest empire god or the devil had seen. Well, they had. But so few were left now, weren't they. Beaumont, Krueger, and Tybur, all that once was. As he uncorked the vial and poured the fluid down his throat, Arkwright wondered about what would be.
For a second he felt nothing, he heard nothing but the footsteps that carried men back away from the Titan they had just escaped. But in an instant, he could hear his ears ringing, his body twisting on itself. His face ripped itself apart as he tried to hold something of his mind together. But with a bright flash of light, John felt himself become overrun by flesh, and then by nothing at all.
There was odd mist in the air as John opened his eyes. He expected to see the sun overhead but all he could see was a foggy night sky. In front of him was an open field, filled with fields of barley like that from his uncle's farm. In the middle of the fields, beyond the fence line, was a single tree sitting under a full moon as if framed by the light. Its branches reached out in all directions as it sat upon a single hill. Everything was quiet, the sound of any life absent, not even the wind blew, but the barley still swayed as if there was a weak breeze amongst the air. Where am I, what is this?
He began to walk to the tree, hurdling the fenceline like he had as a youth. As he walked, there was no sound as the grass crunched under his feat, it was like he had grown deaf. As he approached, he felt a warmth suddenly spread, and an odd feeling like a kind of slime had covered his body. When he looked down, he saw only the lines in his hands.
When he reached the tree, he rest his hand on it, feeling the chips of bark, as the slimness faded from his senses. Wasn't I just in the mountains? He looked around and saw only the fields of barley. He began to walk around the trunk of the great tree, but still saw nothing else, the field stretched as far as his eyes could see. As he finished his cycle around it, he looked back out at the fenceline. What is going on, how did I get here?
A low growl came from behind him, wait is that? The large hulking dog emerged from behind the tree's great mass, appearing seemingly out of thin air. The Beast! It moved slowly, each leg advancing at a crawling pace that contrasted the increasing beating of John's heart. As the monster he escaped started advancing upon him, John started walking backwards, he misplaced his foot and fell back down the hill, tumbling in a mess. As he rushed to rise, he saw the visage of the Beast's hound appearance in front of him and froze.
The jaws of the beast remained shut. But as it continued its pursuit, the advancing terror began to slow. The beasts hind slammed into the ground, shaking the ground beneath its feet, but still there was no sound, not even the beast made any noise. Its face simply looked at him, giving a more curious gaze like that of his uncle's farm dogs, rather than the sneer of a monstrous titan preparing its next victim.
As it tilted its head to the side, John saw an odder sight, the dog's right eyelid began to drop, the sink on its face. The whole right side of its face began to slip off, tearing skin and sinew from its face then its body as it seemingly melted into the ground like a sludge.
It spread out to John's hands and the feeling of sliminess returned. The melting coat of skin, then started to creep up his hands and feet, and John scrambled upwards in horror, trying to lift his head from the ooze reaching up his limbs. He looked back into the Beast's eyes, and saw that half its face was now bone and muscle. It had stopped moving and simply stared at him, none of the curiosity from before remained in its eyes, it just looked, as if frozen, as if life had been torn from it.
The ooze continued up John's body and panic began to set in, he could feel his legs crystallizing as if the melted skin had become hard as rock and soon he could not feel his legs, arms, nor back. He could feel the still slimy feeling reach up onto his mouth and neck, and as the skin encased his face, he cast his last eye away from the ooze upon back at the beast and saw its eye, empty and colorless with no iris.
John felt the panic fully take him as he tried to scream, but found he could no longer scream aloud, so the only terror remained in his mind as he felt the slime over his eye turn to rock. No…NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-
"-OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" he screamed in his mind. He felt his body lurch upwards, his chest rising as his legs remained seated. He could sense a return to him. That was…aloud. What happened? Where am I? Is this a bed? He could see that he was in some kind of tent, 2 men surrounded him, both in the green uniforms he knew. One stood overlooking him, his head turned from the front of the tent with surprise in his eyes, as the other on his left, who John realized now had his hand holding Johns chest over his heart, rested on his knee looking at John attentively.
"Well he's awake now m'lord, the whole camp will know it. But it's still best if I let him adjust for a bit, sleeping for a day might have him fussed a bit." said the man on Johns left, a medic if he could guess the gear in the tent. He had been talking to a cloaked man just outside the tent's flap.
"That's quite fine private," the cloaked man said, then he stepped into the tent, ignoring the look of worry from the medic. "Although I've experienced this myself before. I trust the good general should be plenty rested now. If you gentlemen would.." the cloaked figure of Krueger nodded to the outside of the tent as he removed the cowl, revealing his brown hair had been tied back up behind his head, keeping his face upon John.
Both the men looked to their official commanding officer. As he looked at their expressions and back to the lords, he nodded in consent. Both men gave a slight bow, and exited the tent. Within a few seconds of hearing their footsteps go away. Lord Krueger took the chair that was sitting in the corner and placed it upon John's right. John rose to meet him but Krueger lifted his hand to hold him, and settled into the chair.
"You did well, riders came in and said the refugees would reach Liberio in a week, and then be off to Paradise."
"Thank you sir, I'm glad I could help with the evacuation." Krueger's hand lifted to his mouth as he took on a faraway look. "If I may, why did we send Ackerman with them? He could have been used-"
"How do you feel, Beast?" Krueger interrupted, his tone adopting its deep baritones that would barter no further inquiry.
"Beast? My lord what do you.."
"Your Titan." Krueger said, his face shifting as he gave a quick laugh before glancing back at him. "Don't worry too much General. Most of us never did remember much from the transformation. A few odd scenes, some missing memories, and a morning like coming up from your 1st hangover. You'll be fine." he patted his knee with a smack, coming off as much looser than before.
"So then I…I ate the Beast Titan?"
"Oh yes, the man outside, Matthew, I believe, said he saw you drink the vial, and become a giant." he leaned towards him, throwing an elbow on his knee, as his cheek rested in the hand. Was this entertaining to him? "Of course, he added in a few choice words."
"So I'm… one of the Nine now am I…my lord? I hold the Beast Titan?"
"Ah yes, what the Volkers held carefully for millennia has switched hands thrice in 5 years. The power of Ymir and Sina is now yours to use as you see fit. I wonder what you will look like, a dog would be terribly useful against the Warhammer with its speed, like a second jaw, but any Titans on our side are helpful at this point." Krueger was rambling a bit, but John was still locked into his head. I'm a Titan? Is this what it feels like? There was a strange something he had now, he would say it felt like a jolt of energy, but when he tried to focus on the feeling it vanished. Truly when he thought about it, he felt the same as he had always felt. The flesh and bones felt no different. How do I transform? He had never seen Krueger actually trigger the Titan form, he had seen the lightning strike from clear skies, but never had seen it in person. Maybe I summon its power from—
"-General Arkwright." John whipped his head back up as he realized he had started murmuring to himself, if only in his own head. He looked back up at Lord Krueger, who wore an expectant look, as if a father was waiting for his son to answer a question.
"My Lord, I'm sorry. I was…caught up in this feeling."
"I understand General, I do." he gave a pause as he looked up wistfully. "When I ate my aunt, my sister said I had become a wholly different person. As if all my mannerism had been adopted from someone else. Memories come with it too, the useful and the not so very. It certainly carries an adjustment period. If anything important, or at least may be, be sure to share them."
"I will do so my lord." Arkwright gave him a nod, and began listening attentively. "My lord, may I ask you something."
"Well I would expect you would want to." he nodded and gave a wave towards him. "Go on. Wondering how to transform? I wouldn't leave you learn that part on your own."
"Well yes my lord. But…did you…did you know this would happen? Did you really see this future? Is that why?"
"Hmm. There is a strange thing about this Titan I hold. While it shares bits and pieces, it rarely gives me a whole plot. My father compared it to seeing Rapheal being tossed out the window of the church but not the rest of Sailor's Lament." he looked at him for a moment, but then just as quickly picked back up again. "I saw you, a cannon's blast, and a Titan rising in front of a large dog's corpse. From that, I made my best guess." He leaned back in his chair and put a finger to his head. "Rarely does knowing the future help us in any great way. Like having a compass that points true north but with no map. I took a gamble. A gamble on you and your soldiers, General. And now I see if it pays off."
That had felt like a question. John looked again to his own hands, the lines in them still as he saw before, but with none of the slime or melting skin he had felt before. He lifted one up so he could gaze at the sunlight creeping through the tent's flap, as it grazed his hand. What now he thought to himself. He had a power that had been unrivaled for centuries, but he and his men, more the men, had slayed the very power he now had. Did that make this power weak? Was the beast weak? Would he be?
"Sir, do you know what I'll turn into?" Krueger smiled at him.
"No I don't, Ymir does not deem me fit to know yet."
"Ymir herself sir?"
"Not important, what is, is this." Krueger shifted the chair forwards and leaned towards John. "This war has been going on for 20 years now.I have 4 years left, and Warhammer 10. This war started because of him. Right now, the Female is trapped in Iberia, guarding the last prince, and the Warhammer is closing in. Both are alive, and the mountains hold the Marelyans out of Iberia and in Gaul. The Cart is sprinting across the western Carthraginian desert trying to hold our forces there, but the Armour has left Hellas and should be in Egypt shortly. If we wait here too long, the Cart will be lost, we will be cut off and Iberia surrounded. If-" Krueger's eyes flashed down as he let out a breath. He stared into the dirt for a second before continuing, "-If that happens, the continent will be lost to Eldia forever, and you and I will be stuck here defending our people as they flee their own homeland." He then stood, reached out his hand, John took it and stood up with him. "We have the advantage now. The army at the mountain's foot is in ruin, thanks to my stunt. We can make for the Cart, try to save what is left of Eldia, and put the Marelyans back in Line. Or we can try to carve a new Eldia out of what's left here. The Nine have never been able to force each other to do anything, which is how we got into this war. So now I ask, not command you General. Will you help me?"
He had let go of John's hand but kept looking him in the eye. The Green eyes of Lord Arthur Krueger stared into his soul, reminding him of the Attack Titan's menacing glance. He felt something rise in him. Hadn't he wanted to take the fight back to Eldia, hadn't he been criticizing the Lord's decisions up until now because of that? Pivotal moments indeed. With a newfound resolution, he took the Lord's hand.
"I will my lord. I will save Eldia, and put the Warhammer back in its place. The Marelyans and Tyburs shall know neither hope nor joy nor victory no more, this I promise, so long as any of my kin and I shall live." Krueger's visage tweaked, as a smirk crept out.
"Very well then. Let us start our hunt then…Beast." As Krueger's smile grew, he could hear something in the world crack.