Chapter 13: Ruby's Big Interview
"Ok... I am kind of nervous." Ruby said in a mix of fear and worry.
"Don't worry Ruby-Chan, you'll do great." Ai winked at her.
"I know, but this'll be my first interview, it's going to be nerve racking." Ruby said.
"Don't worry." Kana waved off. "You'll get used to it, trust me."
"Arima-San is correct." Ai nodded. "Once the glamour wears off, it'll feel like just having a normal conversation with the host."
"Just remember how we practiced." Aqua said.
"Yes." Reiner nodded. "Interviews can be pretty staged sometimes, so just relax and be yourself."
"That's more of a western mindset." Ai waved off Reiner's advice. "You'll need to act like the perfect girl, sweet, innocent, kind, and in no way come off as rude or insulting."
"Funny too." Kana added in.
"Really?" Reiner asked.
"Being an idol is about selling the perfect woman." Ai explained. "You sell a persona that people fall for, so you must never break character or the illusion is ruined. Above all else, we sell love."
"That sounds tiring." Reiner said with a sad look.
"Something wrong?" Ruby asked.
"I guess I understand how it feels to have to play a different role." He said. "Ignore me, just make sure you're ready."
"Ok, I think I can do this." Ruby said.
"And remember, if for whatever reason they bring up me or your otosan, you have to follow the script." Ai reminded.
"I know." Ruby said.
In the week leading up the interview, they knew that some of the questions will inevitably be about Ai and the loss of her career as well as Eren being a criminal. Ruby was told to simply either deflect the questions or to agree with them.
Under no circumstances was Ruby to defend either Ai or Eren.
Ai was seen as a failed and washed-up idol and a promiscuous woman. Twice she gave birth outside of marriage and both times with men who the public considered to be problematic. She was seen as a fake who lied and slept around. Rumors early on even started that she worked at the red light district after she lost her career, of course those rumors never bothered Ai.
After a decade now, Ai was old news, and she was never mentioned outside of a few occasional posts about old washed-up figures. Many of the newer generation on social media doesn't know who she is since many of them were young when Ai was famous.
Then of course, there's Eren. While Ai faded into obscurity, Eren was still very much a controversial figure. The ex-Yakuza turned government agent who many people still haven't forgiven him since his crimes were swept under the rug.
So, the interviewer will undoubtably bring up Eren and Ai to Ruby, and Ruby was instructed to not defend them. It's better to let the public gain sympathy for Ruby as the daughter of bad people. After all, the public do love a sympathetic person who can smile in the face of hardship.
"Ok, get ready." Aqua said as he prepared to let them onto the stage. "And good luck Ruby." He said honestly.
"I guess I'm not here." Kana crossed her arms.
"You're not going to be questioned as hard Arima-San." Aqua said seriously.
Ai giggled at Kana's pout, knowing that Kana was just upset that Aqua didn't notice her. Ai found her crush on her son to be adorable.
"Now." Aqua said as the stagehand motioned for the girls.
"Good luck." Ai smiled.
Ruby and Kana walked onto a small production stage. It was a relatively small talk show and didn't even have a live audience. Another group of girls by the chairs were walking away as the host gestured for Ruby and Kana, introducing them as the new B-Komachi.
Ruby smiled at the camera and waved in an innocent smile. She tried to act shy, but Ruby could barely contain her excitement. She was here, an interview as a live idol. She was on a very similar stage as her mother was when she first started out at the age of twelve.
Kana maintained a robotic but convincing smile, playing the part of the sweet and shy idol girl. Her experience in acting giving her an advantage, but Kana found herself struggling with the act.
Both girls sat down and the interviewer began to speak.
"B-Komachi, you know, I actually interviewed your mother years ago." He said with a gentle chuckle, trying make the girls feel at ease.
While he didn't want to make the girls uncomfortable with the questions he was going to bring up, he knew he had to since B-Komachi's debut got a massive following on social media, both good and bad.
"I'm just happy to be here." Ruby said with a wide mouthed smile.
"Of course." He said. "I hope the trip wasn't too far for you girls to travel."
"Your studio was actually nearby." Kana lied, since she knew not to give any information, no matter how small, about where they potentially lived.
"I'm glad to hear that." The host said. "Why don't you ladies introduce yourself."
Ruby stood up and bowed towards the camera.
"Hello everyone, I am Hoshino Ruby, and I am an aspiring idol." She said with a giddy tone to her words.
"I am Arima Kana." Kana bowed as well before both girls sat down.
"Armina-San, if I remember right you were an actress." The host said, though of course he knew since he researched both girls before they came onto the show.
"Yes, that is correct." Kana said.
"What made you decide to work as an idol?" He asked.
"Well, I have chosen to slow down recently in my movie career and wanted to try to branch off into a new form of entertainment." Kana somewhat lied, not wanting to admit that she can't really get any good movie jobs.
"And why did you decide to work with B-Komachi?" Here it comes... "After all, they are very controversial due to their current manager."
Ruby felt a pang of anger in her chest but suppressed it.
Kana however, internally sighed and knew that she would have no choice but to trust Ai's direction. Ai is creating the narrative that B-Komachi gives failed entertainers a second chance. As much as Kana wants to maintain that she chooses to not take jobs, it would be better to follow Ai's script.
"Well, B-Komachi was really the only one to accept me." Kana said.
Ai smiled from where she was. The narrative is developing. Hopefully, this will give Kana and Ruby sympathy and paint Ai in a bad light as someone who is desperate for the fame again. Sometimes a hero needs a villain and if she needs to play that role for the girls to succeed, she will.
"Are you struggling for work?" The interviewer asked.
"Yes, as of lately I have been." Kana said, lowering her eyes in a moment of sadness to hopefully convince the viewers to feel sympathy.
A young beautiful girl who was sad and struggling can really cause the audience to reach out in support, especially if Kana can maintain her idol persona and avoid controversies.
"I'm very sorry to hear that." The host said sympathetically.
"It's ok." Kana smiled brightly, her acting skills in full gear. "I just hope I can bring happiness to the fans of idols."
Ai noticed that Kana seemed genuinely sad about something but wrote it off. At least her acting skills was enough to appear as an idol.
"What about you Hoshino-San, why did you decide to become an idol?" He asked.
"I've wanted to since I was a little girl." Ruby said honestly. Both times she was a little girl, she wanted to be an idol.
"I suppose no one else would take you?" The host asked.
It was a leading question, trying to shift towards Ruby's parents.
"That's correct." Ruby nodded.
"Was it due to your parents?" The host asked.
Ai knew this would be important for Ruby. She needed to either deflect the question or agree with the host. Under no circumstances can Ruby defend Ai or Eren.
"Sadly, yes." Ruby nodded sadly, though for the first time, Ruby felt like she was asking.
"Why did your mother decide to remake B-Komachi?" The host asked.
"Mama wanted to help me get a chance to be an idol." Ruby said.
Normally, you should never be too honest as an entertainer, but they knew they had no choice. They needed to gain Ruby sympathy, so it's better to be honest in this case. A girl who wants to be an idol but is held back by the mistakes of her parents, it's a decent narrative.
"Do you believe your mama is using you?" He asked.
"What do you mean?" Ruby asked.
While Ruby knew that they would insinuate this, she needed to appear clueless. A young girl who is naive and manipulated by bad people can bring sympathy as well.
"Many people on social media believe that your okaasan is using you to try and relive her glory days." The host said.
Despite rehearsing for it, a pang of anger swelled up in Ruby's chest. How dare these people insult her mama. The woman who gave her hope in her hospital bed. They should be on their knees and willing to sacrifice their lives in apology to her mama.
Ai noticed Ruby's subtle anger and hoped Ruby would keep to her script.
"I don't know what you mean." Ruby smiled and tilted her head in a cute fashion. "Mama said she'd help."
Good, Ai thought. She's maintaining the clueless routine.
"Many fans have expressed concerns that your parents are using you, do you want to say anything about these claims?" He asked.
Come on, Ai thought. Stay on script.
"I don't know what they mean." Ruby smiled.
"Many fans are assuming that you're being abused, that your parents are forcing you to enter into the entertainment industry." He said.
Ruby clutched at the fabric of her skirt, the only sign that she was getting upset.
"After all, your otosan was a criminal, many fans are concerned that-"
"They're not!" Ruby yelled out, her innocent demeanor stayed, but added with one of sadness and righteous anger.
"Ruby-" Kana tried to calm Ruby down.
"My mama was the most amazing idol who ever lived. She has always been kind and nice and even when she got hurt and sad, she always gave me a smile and made me feel better." Ruby defended.
Ai sighed, knowing that Ruby's career is finished. A good idol would never defend a criminal like her papa, or a perceived manipulator like her.
"From the moment my mama debuted she's was an inspiration to me." Ruby slipped slightly. "She has done amazing things and had shown everyone around her nothing but the purest form of love and kindness. And I knew that she would always be there to help me."
Ruby missed her mama more than anything. Ever since she was murdered, Ai was an inspiration to her. It almost brought her to tears as she remembered that day.
"And my papa is strong and kind. He protects us and keeps us safe. He saved me when bad people kidnapped me and my mama and my niisan, and he continues to protect us. He works hard every day to keep people safe and has paid every single one of the bad things he's done back to Japan."
"Both of them are amazing people and I know they don't abuse me or are using me." Ruby sat back down, crossing her arms in a pout that Ai had to admit was cute.
Ruby reacted like an angry shiba-inu puppy and came off just as threatening. Even now, her pout made her look more like a tsundere than someone angry. Her cheeks were puffed out and her arms were crossed with her head turned to the side.
It reminded Ai of when Ruby is with Aqua and how they tease each other.
The host decided to cut things short and ended the interview. Ruby and Kana stood up and returned backstage where Reiner, Aqua, and... Ai-?
Why was her mama here? She's been gone for years, right?
No, she hasn't been. She's always been here. Ruby shook her head to clear it. That was weird.
"Well... it was fun while it lasted." Kana said.
"I screwed up..." Ruby looked down in sorrow.
"Yes, you did." Ai said with a gentle smile. "I don't know if I can get us to recover from this."
Kana didn't feel mad at all. She could understand that Ruby felt anger at how people treated her family. It was an anger she would have felt... if her okaasan didn't abandoned her when her career dried up.
"For what it's worth, I think you did the right thing." Reiner said.
"Thank you." Ruby said sadly.
Her career was done before it even started. She felt like crying, but she refused to. Her mama always stayed strong, no matter what happened. And she would as well.
"I don't know, you two might be fine." Aqua said as he browsed his phone.
"What do you mean?" Ai asked.
"The reception is actually positive." He said, scrolling through B-Komahi's social media.
"Eh!" Ai yelled out. "How!?"
Ruby broke all the rules of being an idol. She reacted angrily, yelled, and defended people, who the general public, saw as bad people.
"Look." He handed them the phone.
Ai, Ruby, and Kana practically squished their faces to read the posts, which were all updating in real time from the live show.
"Ruby-Chan is such a sweet girl!" One post read.
"Look at how cute and naive she is."
"The pout! What a cutey!"
"The host was being a jerk, making such a cute girl turn on her parents."
"Eren Yeager may be a bad person, but Ruby is too sweet and innocent to see that."
"Only an innocent and beautiful girl like that can see the good in someone like Eren Yeager."
"Her innocence is not fake! Look at that face!"
.
.
.
"So... they like me?" Ruby asked.
"There's a few negative posts." Aqua shrugged. "But overall, I think you managed to keep an innocent persona. After all, a sweet and innocent girl would see the good in a bad person, right?"
"That's true." Ai said with her finger to her chin.
That's entertainment for you. You can do everything wrong and somehow end up as liked and popular. Even if you do everything right, it can still go poorly. Which means that even with that outburst, Ruby was able to come off as cute and innocent enough as to where defending her and Eren made her even more adorable.
Which in hindsight, makes sense. Even though Eren and Ai were controversial, they were still Ruby's parents. Family in Japan is more important than anything, so even if her parents are bad, Ruby defending them was seen as an admirable quality.
After all, of course a sweet and kind girl will defend her parents, even if people hate them. And the way she pouted only added to the cuteness.
"Well, that's a relief." Reiner laughed.
"I think my heart is going to stop..." Kana bent down in relief.
She was a little jealous that no one on social media mentioned her, but at least her career wasn't over.
"Excuse me." A small voice said near the group.
"Eto... who are you?" Ai asked. "Are your parents around?"
Ai wasn't sure why a young girl was walking backstage by herself. Especially since she looked to be young.
"Hi, I'm Tsukuyomi, and I am a fan of yours Ruby." The girl gave a wide smile.
Ruby was ecstatic to have her own fan, but Ai was a bit creeped out by the girl. She had that same uncanniness that Aqua had to him as a child. Her hair was silver in color, which was odd, and her eyes were unnaturally wide. She was dressed in a school uniform that Ai didn't recognize.
"Well, it's an honor to meet you." Ruby smiled at her young fan.
"I read a lot about you for the past week, I'm glad your mama is ok." Tsukuyomi said.
"Eh?" Ai asked.
"Yea, it would have been sad if you died to that knife." She said to Ai.
"Well, young girls shouldn't talk about bad things like that." Ai's maternal instinct took over, though she felt creeped out by the girl. "And don't worry, none of the Yakuza guys had any knives."
"Of course." Tsukuyomi said.
"Uh, can we help you find your parents?" Reiner tried asking.
"Don't worry, they're outside. I need to go now, by Ruby-Chan." She waved and ran away.
Aqua's senses were telling him that something was off. The little girl specifically mentioned a knife and he wondered why. The only two times Ai nearly died was the Yakuza boss on stage that tried to shoot her, and that time they were kidnapped.
No, there was one more time. Ryosuke, the only one who actually threatened Ai with a knife. However, only Eren, him, and Ruby should know about that. Kawachi and Mikasa overheard about it one time, but there's no way they talked about it. As far as the public knew, Ryosuke was murdered in the street and his murderer was never found.
Did this girl know something, or was it a slip of the tongue? Was she from Eren's world, or was she reborn? Lastly, why did she seem upset at the idea of Ai not getting stabbed?
"Don't worry Ruby-Chan." Ai giggled. "Sometimes when fans meet their idols, they can act kind of strange. Especially if they're young and shy."
"It happens to me sometimes too." Reiner chuckled.
"Hey, this is cool video." Kana said as she scrolled through social media. "It looks so real."
"What?" Aqua asked.
"Take a look." Kana showed Aqua the video.
Aqua gasped in shock.
"What?" Ai asked.
They huddled around the phone and saw two giant monsters fighting on the edge of a building. One of them was familiar, it was the same monster from the China video. Ai, Aqua, Ruby, and Reiner knew that meant that it was Eren.
Eren looked like he was fighting another monster, a smaller one that looked and moved like a hairless monkey and had a bone mask on its face.
"Galliard!" Reiner shouted.
"Galliard?" Ai asked, remembering that name. "He's attacking my husband!"
"Eh?" Kana asked, confused what was going on.
"Oh my... Mikasa is with Eren!" Ai yelled.
"What's going on?" Kana asked.
"This video is from thirty minutes ago!" Aqua said.
"Eren won't pick up the phone!" Ai yelled.
"Reiner, did you know?" Aqua asked.
"I haven't seen Galliard since before I was reborn?" He said.
"Eh?" Kana asked, were they pranking her?
"We need to find my baby!" Ai yelled, thinking about Kawachi.
"He's at an after-school function, let's go." Aqua said.
Kana didn't know why they were panicking but followed anyway.
Eren grabbed onto one of the levels of the mall, the hollowed-out part in the center acting like a drop down to the ground floor. Some of the top nets were broken when the weight of his Titan crashed into them, but the ones below were still in piece.
One of the nets had Mikasa screaming and laying on it, terrified at the sudden fall that she experienced. Eren felt a bout of rage swell up within him as he saw his tiny and vulnerable daughter screaming in fear for her life.
Eren braced himself, his hand on one floor and his foot on the floor below, hanging off in the drop off and waiting for the Jaws to move. The Jaws was doing the same thing, just opposite of Eren, waiting for a moment to attack.
Eren hardened his knuckles in preparation for the fight, making sure the Jaws got a good view. Without the Warhammer's power, he couldn't spread it to his forearms and just kept the hardened skin on his knuckles. Eren waited for the Jaws to move.
Instead, the Jaws looked down at his daughter, and tensed in anticipation. Eren knew it was a trap, the Jaws was going to feint an attack towards his daughter in order to get Eren to react aggressively and leave Eren open.
Eren knew this is what the Jaws planned, but he still couldn't take that gamble.
As the Jaws made to move Eren jumped the gap poised to strike. Predictably, the Jaws jumped over Eren and tried to swipe at Eren's nape. Eren didn't bother to harden his nape since hardened skin was useless against the Jaws and would just be a waste of energy.
So Eren crunched his body forward so the Jaws would miss. The Jaws flew over Eren until he grabbed a higher floor on the opposite side of the gap. Eren grabbed onto the floors again, trying to avoid crushing people as they ran away at the sight of the two monsters fighting. Eren turn around and face him again.
Eren couldn't fight very well like this. The Jaws was more maneuverable, and they were literally fighting like arboreal creatures. Eren needed to ring this fight to the ground but was unable to move since the Jaws would just attack. Eren also couldn't jump down since Mikasa was below him and could get crushed.
The Jaws reacted, attacking Eren directly. Eren let himself get clawed in the face, feeling the pain as his Titan face was torn from the clawed swipe. Eren swung his fist upwards and crashed into the Jaw's stomach, launching the Jaws into the air.
While the Jaws was dazed, Eren quickly hopped down a few levels to reach his daughter. Mikasa was still yelling for help on the net, too terrified to even move. Eren reached out and grabbed Mikasa off the net.
Mikasa looked at him with a tear-stained face, terrified of seeing his Titan form in reality but was able to understand that this was her papa and that he would protect her. Eren moved Mikasa gently around with his fingers so she would get in a curled-up position on his palm.
Due to her small childish size, she fit easily into his palm. He closed his fingers around her to basically protect her in a hardened shell, keeping his palm unhardened to help absorb her movement in his hand.
He felt Mikasa move in his palm, but she was safe. Scared, but safe. His hardened fingers providing protection form any attack.
Eren felt his face get shot at. He turned and saw on the floor next to his face a few Yakuza thugs shooting and yelling at him in pure fear, not expecting Eren to transform. They shot on preservation instincts and Eren needed to stop them in case a bullet hit Mikasa.
Eren reached onto the floor with his head since both hands were occupied, bit down on one of the thugs, and bit his body in half. Eren spit the upper body of the silenced thug over to another one and caused him to fall over. The rest stopped shooting and ran.
Eren heard movement above him and saw the Jaws jumping down. Eren was handicapped since one hand protected Mikasa and the other he used for climbing. Eren tightened his core and kicked upwards with both legs, hitting the Jaws as he descended down. The Jaw's attack was disrupted, and the Jaws fell to the bottom of the mall.
Eren knew he needed to get to the street so he climbed up to the roof, hoping that he could go around the Jaws and climb down the side of the building. He needed to get Mikasa to safety before he fought the Jaws.
Eren climbed through the glass ceiling of the mall, which normally would let in natural light during the day and crawled on the top of the mall. He felt the roof begin to buckle from his weight so he crawled on his knees and one hand, keeping Mikasa close to his chest. He needed to keep his weight dispersed or he'd crash through the mall.
Eren felt one leg go through the roof but pulled it out and continued to the side. of the building. Eren broke through the glass and plaster on the side of the building and grabbed a steel beam that was used to support the building.
All around Eren were lights and screens, making the dark Tokyo night brighten up as if it was daytime. Eren braced his foot on the steel beam and started climbing down. Eren looked won and saw the Jaws climbing up as well, probably going out of the front door by smashing through it. He climbed up, trying to reach Eren.
Eren couldn't fall from this height because the shock might kill Mikasa, so he needed to fight the Jaws as he descended down.
Eren used his foot to break apart and kick down pieces of the building, sending concrete and glass down at the Jaws. The Jaws jumped from side to side as he climbed, avoiding the falling debris.
When the Jaws was close, Eren let go of the building and let himself fall, using his free hand to punch the Jaws as he fell down. The Jaws opened his mouth and bit down on Eren's hand, crushing it, but was able to push the Jaws back.
Eren forced his mangled hand into the mall and put his feet into the wall, sliding to a halt as he used his arm to hold himself on the side of the building. He immediately started heeling his hand but needed a few moments.
The Jaws jumped back up and climbed onto Eren's body, biting and clawing at Eren to make him fall or get an opportunity at his nape. Eren tried to shake the Jaws off, but he couldn't.
Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck above Eren. Eren prepared for the worst, expecting one of the other Marley Shifters. He knew that if the Jaws had help, there was nothing he could do. Not while he dangled on the side of this damned mall.
Instead, a fleshy hand reached down from the top and grabbed the Jaws off of Eren. The hand was massive, and Eren knew it was Armin.
Eren looked up and saw that Armin did a partial transformation, similar to what Bertold did when they revealed themselves. Only the Colossal's upper torso was formed, while the spine and ribs were elongated and tangled themselves into the framework of the mall. Bits of bone and rib went two or three floors down, anchoring into the steel beams to not only distribute the massive weight, but also to anchor the Colossal to the mall.
Eren saw the nape of the Jaws explode in steam and saw the Shifter propel himself out of the Jaws. Right in that moment, Armin lightly threw the Jaws into the street below. While light for the Colossal, it was still fast enough to obliterate the Titan's body.
Eren saw the Jaws Shifter fall from the mall, biting his hand so he can transform again. With a flash of lightning, the Jaws reformed and landed on the opposite building. Eren prepared for another fight, before he heard an explosion above him.
Eren looked up and saw Armins arm fly off in a fireball, barely missing Eren as it fell. Armin's Titan yelled in pain from the hit, surprised by what happened. The three Shifters looked up and saw two aircraft in the sky. Eren knew what those were, Miyuki told him about the recent purchase.
Japan bought new flying boats, called jets, from the United States. F-35 aircraft to replace their aging fleet. Supposedly, Miyuki said they were stealth, but Eren didn't know why, he could still see the jets as they flew close to them in a circle. How stealthy could they be?
The jets circled them, confirming what their next course of action will be. The Jaws knew this fight was done and started to hop away. The jets did not give chase, probably deciding that the Colossal Titan was the bigger threat.
Armin used his remaining arm to grab some debris from the building and wound up for the throw. The jets saw this and turned to fly upwards and hopefully out of range. Miyuki said they can attack from kilometers away, so Eren assumed they got close to visually see what was going on and now were pulling back to a safer distance.
Armin threw the debris at the jets. While not as good of a thrower as Zeke, the massive hand of the Colossal Titan and the force it can generate made it so he could throw more debris and faster than Zeke could, even if Zeke was much more accurate.
The debris spread out like a shotgun blast, reaching the jets in moments. One of the jets was clipped by the debris and caused it to lose control. Eren saw the pilot eject from the jet as it spun in a circle, the damage catching fire and causing it to fall out of the sky.
Eren had to move fast before the remaining one came and attacked them. Eren knew that now, they would stay way out of range and attack from afar, meaning that they had no defense.
Eren climbed back to the roof, knowing that he needed to check on Armin. When Eren reached the top, he placed his upper body on the roof and opened his hand holding Mikasa. Eren then got out of the nape and ran over to his crying daughter.
Mikasa was curled up in a ball, crying and sobbing. Refusing to move from the fear of being jolted around in his hand. Eren ran over and picked her up. She panicked for a second, but Eren tried to sooth her, and it made her relax. Mikasa held Eren and buried her head in his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. She looked terrified and it filled Eren with more rage.
Eren smiled and started to laugh. His laughter reminded him of his youth, both when Hannes dies and when Sasha died. The emotions, the rage, and the fury bumbled up inside him, making him feel nothing but pure rage and anger at the Marleyan bastard the nearly got his daughter killed.
Eren shook his head and calmed down. He needed to get to Armin. He needed to stay focused.
"What the hell are you all doing up here!?" Eren yelled as he saw those acting girls run up to him.
"Monster!" The blonde yelled at the Titans behind Eren.
The girls stepped back when they saw the Titans, unsure of what to do.
A thud sounded behind Eren, and he looked over to Armin, who fell down the back of the Titan and hit the ground. He looked exhausted.
"Armin!" Yuki yelled.
The girls wanted to check on him, but they were too paralyzed with fear to move towards the steaming monsters.
The girls screamed as Armin stood up, part of his face missing and steaming. While his face had the normal Titan marks, an eye was missing, and a flap of skin hung off his cheek.
"What happened?" Eren asked.
"I ripped myself out of the nape... I'm kind of rusty." Armin said through the hanging flesh. He shook his head and let the damage start to heal, luckily not tired enough to only be able to slowly heal.
"Armin... you..." Akane said in shock.
"We need to go before that jet comes back!" Armin yelled, his face now fully healed.
"W... what..." Mem-Cho tried to say.
"Let's go!" Armin yelled.
The group ran away and went to the roof access, going in and making their way down a floor. Once they reached safety, they heard explosions on the roof, signaling that the remaining F-35 destroyed the decomposing Titans.
"What's going on?" Yuki asked.
"Look, I can transform into a monster called a Titan." Armin said quickly. "Eren can too. And we need to get to safety right now."
There was a silence from the girls, trying hard to process this news. Armins face still had the look of a corpse, and they saw him fall from the monster. Soon after that, it started to disappear.
"What happened?" Akane asked.
"Let's get to my car." Eren said. "We'll head over to Zeke's for safety."
"Sounds good." Armin said. "Listen, you girls come with."
"W-with h-him?" Mem-Cho asked, pointing at Eren.
"He's safe, trust me." Armin said.
The girls felt like they had no other option. Between the Yakuza, the monsters, and now explosions... they didn't know what to do. So, they followed Eren and Armin.
Eren squeezed Mikasa closer to his chest, terrified at almost losing her. His only thought was the feeling of rage he felt when the Jaws tried to attack her. He'd make that damned Jaws pay for trying to harm his family. Eren also needed to make sure that the rest of his family was ok.
He reached into his pocket and saw missed calls from Ai. He needed to call her and tell her to meet at Zeke's house.
Since I first thought of the idea for this story, way back in the beginning of A Second Chance, fight scenes like this really interested me. AoT had some amazing action scenes but I wanted to see some interesting ideas.
A Titan having to fight while protecting someone in their hands (Someone that was helpless and couldn't fight). Titans fighting in an arboreal like environment. Titans actually dealing with having to fight on fragile structures. Titans dealing with modern weapons.
So, this was fun lol. I really hope the action scene was good lol.
As always, hope you enjoy.