Chapter 48: The truth

The hit to the back of their heads had come faster than either of them had anticipated.

Of course- when facing titans they expected a lot, but not a human sized force to be at their disposal.

Groggily folding into wrinkles Shizuo found the clarity to open his eyes.

They were moving.

Where to? He had no idea.

All he knew was Izaya's face, right in front of him having suffered the same fate and his eyes narrowed.

This place- they weren't inside the walls anymore. That much he could tell.

"Woke up?" Startled by the unfamiliar voice, Shizuo shot up from his position. They had been dragged into a carriage of some sort and ropes were binding their limbs at their back.

"Where are you bringing us?" startled to hear Izaya's voice, this close Shizuo noticed he had suffered the exact same fate. Bound like a caterpillar in its cocoon, he was right next to Shizuo. A glare fit his expression and Shizuo's eyes narrowed.

The guy sitting across seemed uncomfortable with the duty he had been given.

"Sorry, I can't tell you yet," he announced, awfully timid.

It was an odd sensation his act provided. Too calm for a man that was capable of turning into a titan.

Turning his gaze to the side Shizuo glanced towards Izaya whilst not letting the stranger out of sight.

"Are you okay?" he whispered.

Izaya snorted. "No one tried to kill me yet at least."

The word yet added a bitter taste to their insecure future and Shizuo frowned.

"They won't kill you."

Izaya sighed and let his head thud against the back of the carriage.

Compared to Shizuo he exerted no extra effort to watch their guard as he let his eyes shut.

It wasn't like he had given up or anything, but considering the carriage was surrounded by titans it proved little to no sense to execute any effort to try and escape. As soon as they moved the wrong way those very same titans could kill them on a mere whim and eat their corpses, just for fun.

"What makes you so sure?" he whispered quietly, and he really didn't mean to make those words sound as devastating as they did, but right now, with no control over what was going to happen Izaya really couldn't muster a lot of confidence.

"I won't let them." Shizuo announced- and it was funny.

It was always the times Izaya saw no way out that Shizuo seemed to be able to think much clearer than him. Almost as if they were opposite magnets, attracting each other always when one was at his worst.

His words were brimming with confidence and so were his eyes. And the fun thing was they didn't stop doing so, not even when the carriage suddenly halted.

Clattering sounds were to be heard and before Izaya knew it the curtain covering the back of the carriage was pulled to the side.

The rope they had been bound with was pulled and within seconds Izaya and Shizuo were on their bound way into an unknown direction.

Night had fallen.

Trees surrounded the group of what Izaya suspected to be titan shifters of the same kid as Shizuo. Some extra titan's stood guard left and right to the path leading forward. It served a gruesome image, really.

As if they were being led to their sacrificial altar.

"What is this?" Shizuo whispered as soon as a couple makeshift tents moved into sight.

Good question. Izaya would have loved to know as well.

Eyes glancing around left and right he could see armory, weapons, men in numbers fit to fight a war.

A large tent decorated with more patterns than the rest drew his immediate attention and his suspicion seemed to prove itself right.

"The enemy base I would guess."

As if on cue the front of the tent cast to the side, revealing a fairly old man of strong, but elderly stature.

The rest of the titan's seemed to adjust their stances just because of his presence and Izaya quickly concluded that he was either the captain of this battalion, or someone of even higher standing.

Absolute silence covered the area like a blanket of lead as the man took his seat in a chair that had been prepared for him.

Old eyes that had seen many battles rested on Izaya and Shizuo and within seconds Izaya came to the conclusion that this was not the kind of guy to lead an army.

This was probably their ruler.

"Sorry, but you seemed like you were the best informed of that entire troop. Stumbling upon you two alone was like a miracle." His voice was soft like velvet with a somber tone. Almost as if listening to a grandfather telling stories to his children.

"Not too wrong," Izaya spoke carefully, "I have to admit it's funny hearing the enemy apologize though." A tired smile grazed the stranger's lips and he nodded as if to confirm his own suspicions.

Izaya seemed to have given away a hint on something he wasn't quite aware of.

It caused his guts to clench in an unpleasant way.

"Forgive our actions, but there is something we absolutely need to know," the man announced and his old hands folded in front of his face. Eyes of exceptionally blue rested upon his two captives as he seemed to gauge their willingness to talk.

Izaya hesitated for a moment.

What could they possibly want to know?

He had no idea at this point in time.

But after having been caught like this, what use was there to struggle? Getting beheaded before even starting to understand what was about to happen seemed like a wasted option.

And so he took a deep breath.

"Maybe I possess the knowledge you are looking for."

The surprise his obvious offer of sharing information brought didn't go by unnoticed as the stranger's eyes widened. The men surrounding them, including the titans also seemed quite flabbergasted by his insinuation.

Regaining his posture the potential ruler rose from his chair. Strands of brown hair streaked by gray dipped on his shoulders and he folded his hands behind his back.

"I'm looking for a woman. I believe she went by the name Anri. Where is she?"

Sonohara Anri.

To say Izaya was surprised to hear that name was an underestimation. He hadn't forgotten about her, that wasn't even it, but the importance he had assigned to her presence had been close to nonexistent.

He thought she was a mere spy of some sort. But seeing how adamant this man seemed on getting her back a whole new lot of possibilities suddenly flooded his mind.

"...locked up. Under Shiki's command," Izaya answered truthfully as the gears in his head turned and started to make sense of things he didn't consider until this point.

The ruler cursed under his lips and the surrounding enemies including the titans seemed quite devastated by the revelation.

Taking his seat once more the king took a deep breath before sighing.

"I thank you for telling me the truth."

This guy was smart.

Either that or he was dumb.

Simply accepting what Izaya had told him and not suspecting a lie came close to idiocy. Yet somehow Izaya had a feeling this man wasn't gullible even in the slightest.

He had looked at Izaya too intently to be cast aside as stupid. No. In this situation he probably had reasons to believe what Izaya had said.

"Why are you looking for her?" Izaya asked, and it was as thought he had reminded the potential ruler of his presence at that moment.

Eyes flickering back up he looked at Izaya for a moment before waving his hand.

"Bring them to the cells."

Cells.

War prisoners. That's what they were going to be?

They were not going to be killed?

What then?

Tortured? For what? Information that he just willingly gave?

That made no sense.

It was at that point that some of the freshly aligned puzzle pieces connected in Izaya's mind and the second one of their enemies reached for the rope binding him and Shizuo he moved.

"Can I be blunt?" it was just one step forward into the direction of the potential ruler, but to the present titans it must have seemed like a direct assault.

Immediately moving Izaya half expected one of them to rip his head off his shoulders like a ripe grape in spring right then and there-

But the ruler saved him by a quick show of hand.

A sign to stop.

Curiosity glazed his eyes and he nodded. "Go ahead."

"Shizuo is a titan."

Izaya probably could have kept that bomb for later, but right now he was aiming to catch their attention, to bind them to his words before they could wave him off.

And it certainly worked.

Immediately everyone present seemed to tense, including the titans standing by.

Only the ruler seemed awfully collected despite the threat Izaya had just revealed to them.

Izaya didn't need to look back to know Shizuo was probably wearing a bewildered expression. He couldn't blame him. The blond was probably waiting for a chance to transform into a titan and get them out of here.

He had expected a lot of things from Izaya but not for him to give away their best card.

And yet the simple fact that some of the human sized enemies backed off slightly told Izaya more than he needed to know.

Not everyone within the enemies rows could shapeshift.

"And you have not killed him?" the potential ruler asked awfully calm and Izaya mirrored his demeanor as he had no wish to escalate the situation.

"As far as we are aware titan's are nothing but brainless killing machines out to eradicate the last remains of humanity. It's what everyone inside the walls believes," Izaya said and pointed towards Shizuo. "But finding a titan like him that just wants to help doesn't fit the bill does it?" No sign of negation laid in the ruler's eyes which served as the only confirmation Izaya needed for his new theory.

His eyes narrowed and his gaze hardened.

"Who is the real evil here?"

The silence following was quite harsh. No one dared to move.

Not Izaya, not Shizuo, not the enemy.

While Shizuo was quite confused about what Izaya was going on about, Izaya was finally starting to gain a grasp of the mechanism driving this endless battle. Shiki's actions, their missions- the intel they gathered that seemed to contradict everything they saw here.

"Undo the ropes," the potential ruler suddenly announced, and one of his direct guards to his right complained.

"King-" he whispered urgently as if to remind his ruler of the dangers his actions would bring.

So Izaya was right. He was the ruler after all. The king of the lands beyond the walls.

"These people are probably on our side more than some of our own," the king suddenly announced and the guard that had spoken up so confidently quickly retracted back to silence.

"Anri is my precious daughter," the king said with urgency, "She was kidnapped by one of our people a few years ago."

Years.

As far as Izaya recalled, Anri was barely sixteen. It left an odd taste on his lips to realize that someone with unclear intentions had actually abducted a child.

But she had survived. And she had acted on her own will as far as Izaya could tell.

Didn't that mean she managed to escape her perpetrator within the walls?

She must have survived on her own with the goal in mind to return home.

Was that why she joined the survey corps?

A long life of misery and hardships unfolded in Izaya's mind as he realized what this girl had to go through.

The moment Shizuo spotted her in the forest- she had been this close to return home.

No.

Wait.

Then why did the titan's attack?

Something was off about the day they recaptured Anri.

"You are trying to get her back," Izaya mouthed carefully, "Is that why you sent forces? We saw them, but they were trying to kill her and us to top it off."

"What forces?" the king suddenly laughed bitterly and something in the depths of Izaya's stomach churned as he realized what had truly been going on.

"If I may ask, why has the war been going on for so long? Why not end it?" he tried, and received nothing but confirmation of his darkest ideas.

"We ended it decades ago. The ones defending themselves are us."

Shizuo had no idea what was going on. Everything Izaya and the king spoke of made no sense to him.

The war had been going on for so long. Titans were killing their people. Their family, their friends. Titans tried to kill Kasuka.

And now they tried to say they were only defending themselves?

"You mentioned Shiki. I suppose you have met the man?" the king suddenly questioned, addressing Shizuo's obvious confusion.

"More than I like to," he agreed, and the king's lips curled into a smile.

"Good answer." A bitter tone took to his words as if he were trying to not speak of the next fact aloud in order to prevent it from becoming the truth.

"He is a titan, one of our own."

Shizuo had expected a lot.

Really.

A lot.

But that?

He had seen the bastard up close, he hated him from the bottom of his guts. But learning that he was a titan- just what did that mean?

His confusion was quite visible and the king quickly elaborated.

"Decades ago this used to be a simple war over lands and riches. It was supposed to be over within a year, if not less. And it stemmed from an immediate need to sustain our own people as food had come to an absolute shortage," the king started to explain. "It had been a war for resources. Initially." A dark expression decorated the king's cheeks and he frowned. "Shiki was the one who made it more. He likes the demise. The pain war brings. The power it granted himself. He got intoxicated by the sudden might his orders held. The war was supposed to be a short one, one to benefit us with the right to use the lands and spread all equally after dethroning the cruel ruler bound by greed."

A short pause followed in which Shizuo let the information sink in.

Shiki had been part of the titans.

Their hometown was ruled by an asshole that they meant to take out.

"What can I say, the ruler has been taken care of by Shiki," the king suddenly said and this time Shizuo was able to follow.

"You mean to say he is leading the war?" he mumbled quietly, and the kind nodded.

"He is leading an oppressive force with my daughter as insurance for us to not attack full on."

"What the hell-" Shizuo cursed and the king sighed.

"A genuine reaction."

"Pardon me if I say so, but you strike me as a man of reason. All this war over one girl seems quite odd." Izaya suddenly said, and it seemed he struck a weak cord in the king as his composure faltered.

"You are right. Had it been only my daughter it would have been one story," he admitted with the bitter resolve of a father that had considered abandoning his daughter for the sake of his people. "But there is more to this bastard of a man," he cursed. "There is an ancient device that can kill all titan users and those carrying their blood immediately." A soft gaze was cast towards the king's men and Izaya didn't need to be told to realize that this death would affect almost every single person present.

"And he has it," Izaya concluded correctly and the king grew silent. It made sense.

If he were Shiki he would aim for more than just one security measure. And seeing how he had obviously lost track on Anri after kidnapping her he had had to restock his securities.

And yet- if Shiki was a titan then this was a double edged sword. "It would mean his own death to use it," Izaya mumbled, but the king only showed a sad smile.

"He wouldn't care."

It was only then that Izaya realized the dilemma this situation brought about.

Shiki was a sociopath. A sadist. Merely enjoying the war and the misery it brought, along with the power to do as he pleased and have people act on his bidding.

This endless battle against the titans was nothing but a game to him.

A game he would rather end than to lose.

And that's who Izaya had taken orders from.

"So Shiki sent his own men against us?" Shizuo suddenly mumbled, having realized the most disturbing detail to this revelation.

Yes.

Exactly.

That's what he had done.

Shiki was faking titan attacks to the walls in order to keep everyone under control with fear. The entire survey corps was nothing but a means to filter out the people willing to stand up and fight, so that Shiki could send his own titans to wipe them out.

It was funny, Izaya had always thought Shiki sent him on missions to get rid of him, he just didn't know how true that assumption really was.

And yet one detail was as unexpected as it was unplanned.

"Why are you one?" Izaya had addressed Shizuo.

He was a titan. He could transform.

None of the people inside the wall should have the ability to.

A soft blink was cast as Shizuo seemed to connect his own set of dots.

"Kasuka," he started, but faded out quickly.

"What?" Izaya repeated and Shizuo inhaled sharply. "Kasuka and I are not related by blood," he explained, "Or at least not entirely." Izaya realized quicker than Shizuo was at explaining what that meant.

"Our mother was raped once. By whom she couldn't tell," Shizuo revealed and confirmed his suspicions.

"... you never mentioned that," Izaya whispered, but Shizuo merely shrugged.

"Because it doesn't matter. She loved both me and my brother equally. And despite what happened to her she said it was worth the pain if it meant having me."

Wow.

A mind like that- was impressive to say the least.

Most women would probably try to abort the child by any means possible. Maybe even go insane. Most definitely hate the child at least.

A woman with such a conscience- Izaya suddenly realized who Shizuo probably took after.

"It must have been one of Shiki's men, right?" Shizuo asked, addressing the king.

No answer was given except for a short nod.

Made sense.

And yet despite the clearance that everyone had finally received, the information brought along was anything but uplifting.

A dull mood grazed the campside.

"You can stay if you wish. We mean no harm," the king suddenly offered and the titans stirred.

"But-" One of them complained in an awfully distorted voice, but the king quickly silenced his people.

"Of course not for free. If you could give us intel on the structure of the walls that would be insanely helpful."

Izaya nodded, "Like Anri's location, right?"

The king smiled a tired smile, "It would be a personal desire I crave."

It was a tempting offer.

Really.

And yet-

"We can't stay." Chatter and commotion acted up quickly in the enemies rows and Izaya waited for a moment until the king silenced them once more.

"As you have your daughter I have sisters, as you just heard this man here has a brother to take care of," Izaya explained, hoping to reach the king's kind side.

It seemed he succeeded as his wish came fairly close to the king's desire to see his daughter again well and alive.

"Having you go back would be-" he started, and Izaya knew what to do.

"You desire your daughter, right?"

Halting mid sentence the king's words stuck in his throat as eyes regained a glimmer of hope he had long buried.

"No harm would be brought to you by letting us return," Izaya continued, "Shiki would kill us the moment we spoke of what we just learned. It's only downsides for us, really." And Izaya wasn't even trying to cover anything up here. Them returning was suspicious at the very best if not dangerous now that they knew Shiki was out to murder them. "But that would act in our favor, since he wouldn't expect us to try and free Anri," Izaya drove the final nail onto his coffin or arguments and the king's hope sparked.

"You-"

"I'm not saying we will succeed. But it's a chance at the end of the day," Izaya quickly declared. And funnily enough despite just having said they might not succeed, the amount of thought he had put into this showed all the more how real this chance was to regain the king's daughter.

Deep in thought the king contemplated Izaya's suggestion and he added what he hoped would tilt the decision in their favor.

"And even if we don't succeed, at the very least give us the chance to free our own family of this hell."

Silence ruled the next few moment.

None of the guards dare to interrupt and neither did the titans standing by.

It took longer than expected but after a few minutes the king sighed.

"... very well." And Izaya smiled.

"My king-" one of his men tried to argue but a quick glare shut him down.

"I have spoken."

That's it.

A certain kind of thrill and relief filled Izaya's veins as he turned to Shizuo.

"Time to get them all out of this shithole."

to be continued~

Allllright~ Only 4 more chapters xDDDD