Something was going on… and Annie knew it… but whatever that something was, she thought it best to just… not think about it.

It wasn't as though she had the energy to think about it, regardless.

She just… wanted to die, really. That was all that was on her mind at this point… and with yet another defeated exhale and a lowering of her head, Annie Leonhardt shut her eyes and lost consciousness yet again, ignorant to the small-scale war that was happening outside the confines of her prison all the while.

"File in, all of you."

Nanaba's words were easily heeded by the soldiers currently with her, and by all means, the woman had settled into the role of Team Leader quite quickly as she led the group onwards without fear.

Gelgar, for as much experience as he had garnered, was still very much a follower at his core, and Mitabi, despite being an Elite himself, was not used to fighting under pressure as intense as this, and as such, Nanaba had to make use as her position as the fourth most senior member of Team Mike and lead this group of punks onwards.

Considering how they were able to reach the abandoned military outpost within a few hours of nightfall, and without any casualties to boot, it was probably for the best that they appointed Nanaba as leader.

The outpost on its own was a mostly collapsed military base that, according to Nanaba, had once been used by the MPBs, with it having been abandoned years ago due to how unsteady the ground it was built upon was. It was outrageously old but still sturdy with its construction, as evident by how one of its two towers were still standing, and as soon as they had gotten into the outpost, the kids and their seniors were quick to file in and check on the place.

Much to the Elites' dismay, the place had, indeed, been emptied or raided of its armaments, leaving it completely empty and, simply put, useless for arming their newbies up. Connie in particular seemed to have a mild mental breakdown over this whole issue as he slammed his head into the closest wall, much to Mylius' concern, but even so, the blonde and Gelgar were able to calm him down after some time.

Whilst a good chunk of the outpost was left abandoned, stripped down and with its parts all taken down for use in other regions, the soldiers still investigated around every nook and cranny of the place and eventually found a decently sized sack of items by the basement of the place. Nanaba, Reiner and Ymir were the ones to find it as they allowed the rest of the team a brief respite upstairs, and after making use of the Elite's blades, they were able to cut it open with minimal issue, revealing its contents to be…

"Hah! Rations… nice!" grinned Ymir as she reached into the sack and pulled out a few army rations from within. They weren't the best, and they were definitely expired by now, but even so, Fritz would gladly take some food poisoning over starving to death at this point. Reiner too grinned at this as he moved over to have a look as well, though before he could do so, the freckled woman grabbed two rations and raced up the steps, leaving the two in the metaphorical dust all the while.

"Damn… good thing we've got two torches, huh?" mused Reiner as he freckled young lady bolted up those steps, and as she disappeared from view alongside the glow of her light, Nanaba sighed at her haste before nodding.

"Indeed it is…" muttered Nanaba as she hoisted the bag up and over her shoulder. Reiner had offered to help her out on the matter, but even so, the Elite refused it, stating that he should focus on conserving his strength for the time being as she did the literal heavy lifting. Along the way, however, the senior soldier did notice how Braun's expression had noticeably dropped quite a bit as they ascended the steps, prompting her to pause briefly and glance back at him with some concern. "Is something wrong, greenhorn?"

"Huh? O-Oh, nothing, ma'am," assured Reiner with a smile. His words were certainly unconvincing, Nanaba decided, as she stopped walking up the steps and gave the blonde the stink eye, prompting him to flinch before sighing. "Alright, fine… it's just… I feel useless, alright? Rose's falling apart all around us and here I am, without any means of stopping it from getting worse… how am I supposed to feel good about myself when I'm literally unable to do jack shit?"

It was quite apparent to Nanaba that the large blonde was feeling a mixture of feelings at the moment, though the most prominent of them was no doubt disappointment, likely in himself. The young soldier was no doubt blaming himself for some of the things that had occurred over the past few hours, when in truth…

"It was not your fault, though. None of us could've predicted this Titan attack, and as such, none of us could've prepared for it as well. There was literally nothing you, or any of us, could've done, Reiner, so don't be too hard on yourself, you got that?" smiled Nanaba kindly as she stepped towards the blonde and gently set a hand atop his shoulder. Reiner seemed… unsure of what to say to this as he eyed his superior warily, and moments later, the blonde simply sighed before she handed the bag of rations to him, prompting him to widen his eyes as he accepted it with a gasp. "You're just like him, you know…?"

"Like… him?" echoed Reiner, to which Nanaba smiled endearingly.

"Mikazuki," answered Nanaba, earning herself a surprised look from Reiner as she elaborated. "That kid's always going on about protecting his friends. Everything he does is for their benefit, and if anything… he's probably only still here because he wouldn't be able to live with himself if any of them die on his watch."

"... I don't think it's best to compare someone like me to him, ma'am," muttered Reiner uncertainly, to which Nanaba smiled before she gently patted his shoulder.

"But was any of what I said untrue? You're a big brother to these kids, Reiner, just like how Mikazuki's practically a big brother to his friends, and you've shown me that you'd move mountains just to keep them safe, just like he would. You've already done your utmost best to make sure that they survive till this point; don't think I didn't see you being the most observant one out there, or how you were deliberately riding the slowest to make sure that, if we spot a Titan on our heels, you'd be the one most likely to be taken if it catches up," mused Nanaba, with her recalling Reiner's subtle yet selfless actions back then, and to that, the blonde blinked in surprise, with even himself having not realized what he had done up till now… "You're a good person, Reiner, more so than you are a soldier. We are all members of the Survey Corps, Warriors of Humanity, but even more so than that… we are human. We have limits to what we can achieve, and by all means, you've done all that you could up till now. Don't beat yourself over what you could've done… and just focus on what you can do in the future, you got that?"

"... yes, ma'am," was Reiner's own response to Nanaba as he felt his shoulders straightening as he processed the Elite's words. What Nanaba had told him was no doubt prudent, and he'd remember it for years to come, but even so, the young soldier still felt some guilt swelling about in his stomach as he adjusted the grip of the sack atop his shoulder, and, seemingly oblivious to his silent plight, Nanaba smiled and lightly punched his shoulder, with her smiling all the while.

"That's good. Now c'mon, let's get these rations to those kids, alright?" smiled Nanaba, with her motioning for the young man to follow her up, and to that, Reiner did as he was told, with the weight in his chest feeling just a tiny bit lighter all the while.

"Will you… tell me how you saved us…? It would have been impossible for you to have been able to do such a thing…"

"I'll tell you how I did it… when you finally make use of your true name and live your life as you please, rather than the life that's been forced upon you."

Frowning heavily as she opened her eyes in annoyance, Ymir scowled and sat upright, with her rubbing her forehead all the while. Looking around herself, the young soldier saw that the other soldiers were mostly asleep by now, which was to be expected. The hour was late, and they'd have to get a move on soon, so they needed as much shut-eye as humanly possible.

Following their discovery of those rations down below, the soldiers present had dug in before getting some much needed sleep, though Ymir herself was unable to do so as she was awoken after a few hours of rest. Something had nagged at her instincts, grumbling that something bad would happen soon, and before long, that feeling had woken her up, much to her ire, as she scanned the room she and her fellow soldiers were in.

Gelgar and Nanaba, alongside everyone else in her Junior group, was present, asleep and all that, though at the same time, there was one missing individual amidst the group, and Ymir was quick to realize this as she shifted up to her feet and looked around. The only blonde present was sleeping with his tall butt buddy, who was posed in a way that signified that tomorrow's forecast would be cloudy, but he wasn't who Fritz was looking for. Rather…

'Christa…' thought Ymir as she glanced around awkwardly before moving to grab a candle. Lighting it up, the young woman used it as her light source before she looked around the place for Christa.

The last spot Ymir had chosen to look was the very top of the outpost's tower, and as her luck would have it, Christa was present at the very top, with Mitabi keeping watch as he stood with her. The Garrison Elite seemed very much surprised to see Fritz appear by the stairwell to the top of the tower, though he spoke nothing of it as he greeted her with a nod, and by all means, he didn't seem to care much for her current presence, with him simply huffing as he observed her moving to sit beside Christa.

For her part, Christa seemed surprised to see Ymir up here, though she spoke nothing of it as the freckled woman set the candle down between them and just… stared out into the open fields with a contemplative expression.

The silence was quite a bit deafening, Mitabi had to admit, as he found himself unsure on what he should do or say whilst keeping watch of the area around them. There didn't seem to be any form of tension between Ymir or Christa, who, in a way, seemed to be quite content with the other's presence, so much so that they didn't really need to say a word to show it.

'They must be close,' thought Mitabi with a smile, with him almost chuckling as he watched Ymir bring a hand up and flick Christa on the nose for seemingly no reason but to annoy her, and as he thought this, the Elite shook his head in amusement, though not long thereafter, his amusement was replaced with… confusion when he spotted some movement in the distance.

"Hm…?" muttered Mitabi as he stepped towards the edge of the tower, with Ymir and Christa having taken notice of the movement as well. From where they sat, the duo stood up and peered into the darkness alongside their superior, with them trying to make heads or tails of what was moving in the distance. "It's not just me that sees that, yeah?"

"N-No, sir… there is movement to be seen in the distance, but of what, I am unsure of," muttered Christa as Ymir huffed and narrowed her eyes. "It seems… large… and humanoid. Almost like a Titan, but…larger…?"

"Think it might be the Gundam?" posited Ymir, with her crouching down and killing the lights on her candle as she said this, and to that, Mitabi shook his head.

"Unlikely. The ground would've shaken with its approach if it was, and I didn't hear any of its thrusters or see any of its lights," argued Mitabi, and to that, Ymir had no retort; he was right, the Gundam's movements were so loud and heavy that it would've been impossible to hear its approach, and the lights on its chassis were practically impossible to miss, so what was this damn thing, anyways…?

Right as that thought came to her mind, however, the sizable Titan-like creature stopped its movements, and seconds later, its head turned towards the outpost, with its beady yellow eyes locking onto the three soldiers' almost perfectly. Christa herself flinched at this whilst Mitabi instinctively stepped forwards and positioned himself between the Titan and his juniors.

"It's a Titan… a highly abnormal one at that…" stated Mitabi with a sense of finality, and moments thereafter, they watched as the… Beast Titan turned to face them fully, and after some time, it crouched down and grabbed onto something within its reach. The soldiers could only watch on in confusion as it did this, though seconds later, they saw what was in its hands as they widened their eyes in terror. "O-Oh shit… GET DOWN!"

And right as he yelled this, the Beast Titan lobbed a sizable boulder towards the outpost tower they were standing on, and mere seconds later, said boulder tore through the side of the tower, breaking off a sizable chunk of it in the process, but the structure remained upright, seemingly out of spite. That didn't exactly stop the soldiers from leaping back and ducking, though, as the boulder still came too close to them for their liking, and as they recovered from the impact…

GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!

… a loud, primal roar, one that could almost be compared to Annie's very own, could be heard coming from where the Beast Titan stood, and as soon as he had recovered, Mitabi forced himself up to his feet and rushed over to the edge of the tower to check on what was going on… only for him to widen his eyes when he saw…

"T-Titans?!" yelled Mitabi, with his eyes widening as Christa and Ymir joined him by the edge. Indeed… there were several Titans now rushing towards the outpost they had bunkered down in, all moving towards it at maximum speed despite…

"B-But… weren't Titans meant to be less active at night?!" protested Christa in a panic, to which Mitabi scowled as he glanced back towards the Beast Titan, which kept its eyes on them as he glared at it.

"Yes… but it seems as though something has riled these fuckers up!" groaned Mitabi as he unsheathed both his blades in a panic, and right as he did so…

"M-Mitabi?! What the fuck was-"

… Gelgar rushed up to check on what the fuck was going on, with him looking somewhat tired for the briefest of moments, though when he caught sight of the Titans that were now encroaching on their current position, his sleepiness dispersed completely as his face paled several shades as Mitabi swung a hand out towards him.

"We're under siege, that's what!" yelled Mitabi as the first of the Titans got close enough to strike at the outpost, with said strike shaking it quite a bit as the soldiers all flinched. "Go get the kids up! I'll buy you some time!"

"Mitabi…" to say that Gelgar was taken aback by the soldier's bravery as he stared over at him with surprise, but even so, he found himself nodding at that as he saluted Jarnarch with respect before he motioned for Ymir and Christa to follow him back down to meet with the others. The horse stables weren't all too far; if they moved now, then they'd have a fair chance at making it out of here alive!

And as he departed, the sole Garrison Elite stared down at the Titans swarming the base of the outpost tower… and after a few seconds of psyching himself out, Mitabi leapt off the edge and descended into the fray.

"COME GET SOME, YOU FUCKING WUSSIES!"

"Nothing?"

"Nothing."

Frowning softly as she remained latched upon the Gundam's chest unit, peering in through the sizable hole near the bottom of its cockpit, Lynne felt the urge to pull at her hair growing ever more as she felt her frustrations mounting on. Staring down at her from within his unit, Mikazuki would've been lying if he claimed to not understand the woman's frustration, but all the same, he kept his composure whilst tapping his unit's cockpit monitor several times over.

For the past handful of hours, Mikazuki and Lynne, alongside several other soldiers, mainly Garrison that broke off from their team after accompanying them for some time, had skirted the edge of Wall Rose, with Barbatos' superior speed making it easier for them to traverse from one point to another, even if its thrusters were empty. Lynne in particular had ridden upon the Gundam's shoulder, an admittedly exhilarating experience to say the least, and with its speed, the task that should've taken them over an entire day's worth of horseriding had only taken them but a handful of hours to accomplish, and by sundown, the duo had covered half of Wall Rose's entire diameter in record time.

That being said, however…

"Barbatos used every one of the scanners he has on board his systems and found nothing. There is no breach in Rose, or at least not on the southern end," informed Mikazuki, with him peering down at Lynne as he spoke. Whilst speaking, he brought one of Barbatos' arm units up and positioned them below the Elite, who detached herself from the unit's chest in favour of standing atop it as she conversed with the pilot.

"It doesn't make any sense, though… the field reports we all got stated that the Titans were all funneling in from the southern side specifically. If there's no breach here, then how…" began Lynne, with her trailing off as she pondered the situation. Mikazuki didn't say much to aid her thought process, as, in truth, he was just as confounded as she was on the matter, though as for his Gundam…

'...?'

… it had suggested something that annoyed him, prompting him to elbow the cockpit seat a little as Lynne scowled faintly before shaking her head.

"Kh… it doesn't matter. It's… it's getting late. Perhaps we should retreat for now and think about it when it's bright out," suggested Lynne, with her rubbing at her eyes as she suggested this. A yawn was held back as well, though it wasn't needed as Mikazuki could tell that she was highly fatigued by now, and without a second thought, he turned towards the rendezvous point that had initially been agreed upon by Team Mike and began moving in that direction, stomping through the grasslands of Rose all the while.

Due to the late hour, Titans were mostly inactive, save for a few Abnormals that were easily dispatched by the Gundam. Lynne didn't even need to do jack shit against them, honestly, as the unit had very easily been able to trample upon the few Titans that had come at it, something that amused her greatly as she leaned back against its manipulator and glanced up at Mikazuki through the hole in the cockpit; the pilot looked very much focused, even now, as they stomped back to the rendezvous point, and in truth, Lynne didn't quite like that.

Sure, their situation was rather bleak, but even so, she much preferred it when things were lively and cheerful rather than doom and gloom. And sure, Mikazuki wasn't exactly the most optimistic of individuals, but even so, she'd be damned if she didn't try to make him smile, if only by a little.

"You know, Mikazuki… your, uh… controlling skills? They're pretty good!" laughed Lynne, with her leaning back to glance over at Mikazuki, who didn't really look at her as she spoke. This in itself elicited a pout from the Elite, who continued either way. "Like, there's no real bumps or anything throughout the entire journey, and while you were doing that weird thing where you make Barbatos… er… fly forward? I didn't really feel like I was going to be thrown off! That's gotta be some good control on your part!"

"Barbatos controls most of that on his own," retorted Mikazuki as soon as Lynne was done speaking, with him sparing her a quick glance as he said this. For her part, the Elite was slightly surprised, though she said nothing as he continued. "He isn't just a machine that I control all the time. He's alive in his own way, and while I control most of what he does, he usually helps me control the things that I'm not cut out for."

"So like… balance and all that?" asked Lynne for clarification, to which Mikazuki nodded.

"It's more than that, but Barbatos does control that too. It's mostly because of his input that we're not falling down every time he takes a step," confirmed Mikazuki, with his words coming as a bit of a surprise to Lynne, who felt a newfound sense of appreciation towards the unit's silent input on its movements all the while. Knowing that the Gundam was alive, in its own unique way, was strange to her, and all the same, to know that the machine was just as responsible for its movements as the one that controlled it was odd as well, though with that being said, the Elite couldn't help but chuckle a little as she patted Barbatos' metal palm with a smile.

"I see… so the Gundam… has a will of it… of his own as well? Like a soul of sorts? How very interesting… I never did think it possible for a machine to have a soul, and yet, here I am…" chuckled Lynne, to which Mikazuki remained silent. Machines in possession of a soul was an odd concept to grasp, even for himself, but all the same, the concept wasn't completely off the table for him, really, as Barbatos did always feel as though he were more than a simple Mobile Suit, and not simply because he was a Gundam.

The unit did always feel like a companion of sorts to him, a friend even, and by all accounts… he would have no issues in regards to agreeing to the possibility that the Gundam was sentient in some way.

"Yeah… it really is," mused Mikazuki, with him almost smiling as the soft thrum of appreciation sang through the Alaya-Vijnana System. It seemed as though Barbatos had appreciated its pilot's thoughts and words, and to that, Mika simply huffed and adjusted his grip on its arm controllers; he wasn't sure how to show affection to a Mobile Suit, but all the same… he let his unit know that he was well aware of how it 'felt'.

Likewise, Lynne could tell that, in a way, Mikazuki's mood had been lightened to a certain degree, something that had delighted her quite a bit as she turned away from him with a smile. She was aware of how much pressure was put upon him, what with him having to deal with the whole issue of everyone thinking that he was a traitor and, beyond even that, the revelation of Annie's betrayal as a whole.

Mikazuki was putting up a brave front, Lynne was very much aware of that fact, and although commendable, she could tell that it was taxing for him to maintain this cover, and in truth, she reckoned that he deserved some level of respite. There was so much that he had to deal with in such a short amount of time, and by God… it just felt nice to see him relax, if only by a little, in between moments of tension, and with a satisfied sigh, the Elite said nothing more as the Gundam continued to stomp through the grasslands.

Whilst traversing through the mostly barren region of Rose, occasionally toppling over the random Titan that happened to be in their way, Mikazuki did take stock of a handful of blips that became present upon his unit's radar; too faint to be Titans but also too noticeable to be some sort of woodland pest, and judging by how quickly they were moving upon the radar, Mika, or rather Barbatos, surmised that they were soldiers riding atop horses, headed in their general direction.

Also based on his unit's scanners, Mikazuki surmised that they were less than a kilometer away from their current location, and upon acknowledging this, he relayed this fact to Lynne, who hummed thoughtfully as she processed this info.

"Considering our current predicament, I'd say we'd do best to link up with them. The Titans might not be as mobile in the darkness, but this whole situation is very much abnormal, and I'm not willing to take any risks, especially when it comes to the potential lives of our fellow soldiers," commented Lynne, with Mikazuki nodding a little as he moved to intercept the convoy, and before long, the Gundam took stock of a lit flame that was moving in the direction of Wall Rose.

Upon seeing this, Barbatos hastened its approach towards the small group that were apparently retreating, and, having sensed his unit's approach, they halted momentarily, having suspected it to be a Titan at first, which was understandable. Thankfully enough, however, the soldiers that Mikazuki and Lynne were moving to link up with were quickly proven to be wrong in their initial assumptions when the Gundam stepped into view, with them having relaxed a little when they saw its glowing green optics and bright pink power symbols, and as the unit's damaged sensors zeroed in on the soldiers, Lynne found herself surprised by the individuals that were before them.

"Eld? Oruo? Mikasa? And… Sasha, was it?" greeted Lynne, with her standing up whilst Barbatos crouched down to inspect the aforementioned soldiers with more clarity, and as it did so, the Elite with it smiled down at her fellow soldiers as they stared up at both herself and the Gundam with a mixture of emotions. The former two looked rather amused and apprehensive, specifically Oruo, who didn't like how ominous the Gundam appeared to be in the dim moonlight, though as for Mikasa and Sasha, they seemed somewhat relieved, if a tiny bit on guard, as they glanced between Lynne and the Gundam in silence.

Whilst Mikazuki kept an eye out via his unit's sensors, however, Lynne did take stock of how there was a fifth person present, a girl that was riding atop the same horse as Sasha, sitting behind the bumpkin and staring out at both herself and Barbatos with a wary gaze, and with a look of surprise, she crouched down atop the unit's palm to inspect the kid with intrigue, smiling kindly towards her all the while.

"And a fifth stray, so it would seem. Adopting children so soon, Miss Sasha? And amidst a disaster, no less! Have you no shame?" teased Lynne, with her smiling cheekily as the bumpkin in question reddened at her words, though moments later, Eld rode up to the Gundam's lowering hand and waved her off.

"Cut the girl some slack, Lynne; they've been through a lot, especially the bumpkin and the kid that's with her," commented Eld, with him lightly chastising Lynne for her words as he spoke, and to that, his fellow Elite nodded before speaking.

"Yeah… I can tell. You five look like crap," chuckled Lynne, though moments later, she let out a soft sigh before speaking more solemnly. "But either way, you guys being here doesn't really inspire all that much hope in me, really… don't tell me that Team Levi's been torn apart to this extent for you all to be here. Were things over by the gates really that bad?"

"Thankfully, no. Why we're here is a lot less interesting than you'd expect, though it mostly involved a request on Mikasa's part," admitted Eld, with him motioning towards Mikasa, who hid part of her face behind her scarf, as he said this. Humming softly to herself, Lynne reckoned that she'd ask about what he meant with that later as she nodded in acknowledgement, and thereafter, the blonde Elite motioned for the others with him to gather around Barbatos.

As they did so, though, the youngest person in the group couldn't help but whimper a little as they drew closer to the Gundam; understandable, considering its impressive size and intimidating appearance, but even so, Sasha had assured her that it was a friend and, if it turned out to be an enemy, she would stay with her, regardless of how bad things would get, and with a faint nod, the girl followed Braus up as Barbatos lowered its other arm unit down to allow them to step upon it.

Kaya wasn't sure about how she should feel about all this, really, though then again, she wasn't exactly sure about how she should feel about… anything at this point.

So many things had happened to her in the past few hours… and part of her was still struggling to process all of it, even now, as she remained close to Sasha, clinging onto her as though she were a lifeline. Her old way of life was all but a memory by now, and the situation she had found herself in was so alien to her that she wasn't even sure how she should react to it.

But with that being said, there was one thing that Kaya was certain of in this one instance, and that one thing was, to put it simply…

"Ooooh…"

… just how magnificent the view was from atop the head unit of the Gundam.

As a means of calming the girl down, Sasha had made quite a reckless request to Mikazuki, one that he only just barely heard via the damaged audio sensors of his Gundam. She had asked for both himself and Kaya to be allowed to sit on the very top of Barbatos' head, a spot that would undoubtedly give them a good view of their surroundings, and, seeing no reason to decline, Mika had granted their request, and here they were now, with Sasha seated atop the head crest of the Gundam whilst Kaya sat on her lap, staring up at the world around her through her vantage point all the while.

It was a miracle that there were no Titans present to be seen visually, everyone reckoned.

That aside, whilst Sasha kept Kaya distracted from the whole ordeal whilst also proving to her that Barbatos was a friend rather than a foe, the other soldiers were situated next to the hole in the Gundam's cockpit, where they spoke to one another in hushed tones; they didn't wish to draw Kaya's attention to them at the moment, and at the same time, this also allowed them to include Mikazuki in the conversation as, at the moment, is input was very much necessary.

They got a few things out of the way first, namely why Eld, Oruo and Mikasa were here in the first place. Apparently, Mikasa had requested that, since the defense of Stohess was already going rather smoothly, they could split their team up to support the soldiers that were fighting out on the field. For one reason or another, Levi had agreed to this… though he probably wouldn't have, had he known that his fellow Ackerman would've made a beeline straight for…

"Yeah, for some reason she kinda just… rushed straight through Rose and stopped at a random village that just so happen to have one of her… friends in it. Kinda weird, but I'm not one to judge," commented Oruo, with him glancing between Mikasa, who hid part of her face behind her scarf, and Sasha, messing a little with Kaya's hair whilst remaining oblivious to the conversation going on. Eld and Lynne didn't really comment on this, though the latter had offered the top 104th graduate a somewhat knowing look as she grinned sheepishly, much to her chagrin.

Whilst Lynne silently speculated on a few things regarding Mikasa, however, Mikazuki couldn't help but huff a little as he acknowledged how Mikasa almost certainly swung that way. Their interactions during training were sparse, but even so, Mika was perceptive enough to know that his fellow Mika in name never did have an eye out for guys; her adoration of Eren had only come from a place of loyalty and platonic love… which was not reciprocated. When it came to ladies, though…

'... weird how she seems to have an eye out for Sasha specifically, but I'm not one to judge,' thought Mikazuki with a shrug. Barbatos agreed with him on the strange tastes that Mikasa seemed to have, though as with its pilot, it did not judge Mikasa for it, and thereafter, both he and his unit refocused on the conversation at hand.

"Sasha herself was returning to her village when the Titan invasion happened. She wanted to warn the others about it, though she was evidently too late," commented Eld, with his expression falling a little as he acknowledged the grim reality of his words; the soldiers were all unaware of the fates of Sasha's parents, and for all they knew, they could be dead… though none of them said a word about this for now as Eld continued. "She did manage to save Kaya, though.

"Based off what little she was able to share with us before she broke down, she had come from another nearby village, Ragako, I believe it was called, after her parents were killed by Titans. She hid in the building she deemed to be safest looking until Sasha found her… and the rest is history."

"She's a strong kid, for being able to make it as far as she did on her own," smiled Lynne, with her glancing up at Kaya, who seemed to be losing herself to her fatigue as the seconds ticked by. Sasha herself smiled from her perch as she held Kaya close, allowing her to nestle into her lap as she hummed a gentle tune to the child, and moments later, the Elite continued. "Sasha too; she risked her life for that kid… that soldier's going places, I'm sure of it."

"Let's just hope she doesn't head off to death's door, then. The Survey Corp hopefuls have a bad tendency of ending up at the reaper's front lawn," muttered Oruo pessimistically, to which Eld elbowed him in the ribs as punishment for his words. "Kh… I wasn't being serious!"

"Well, it's hard to tell when you are, Oruo," rebutted Eld, much to Oruo's ire as he pouted and turned his chin away in annoyance, and as they spoke, Mikazuki found himself sighing softly as he turned back towards his unit's main cockpit monitor in silence.

He wasn't able to move his unit's head, more so thanks to how Sasha and Kaya were atop it, but even so, the pilot was able to get a good view of his surroundings thanks to the on board radar and built-in sensors. There were no Titans present in the vicinity, something that was relieving, to say the least, but all the same, there was a nagging feeling in the back of the pilot's mind that wouldn't go away.

His intuition was always sharp, and when something bad was about to happen, he'd somehow find a way to feel its approach, one way or another, and right now, there was a pit forming in his stomach that informed him of just that. Things had been too calm recently, especially considering how they were in the middle of an invasion, of all things, and he was just waiting for shit to hit the fan, for in this one instance, it was all a matter of when something would go wrong more so than anything.

Rather abruptly, however, Mikazuki perked up a little when he heard feet falling upon the top of his unit's cockpit, prompting him to glance up at it momentarily before refocusing on the unit's optical display, where he saw Sasha, having jumped off his unit's head, with a sleeping Kaya in her arms. Moving towards where the others were gathered at, Braus entrusted Ackerman with the girl's sleeping form, to which she accepted with some reluctance, and as she did so, the bumpkin took a step away from the edge of Barbatos' chest and backed up just enough that Mika was able to see her through the on screen display.

Opening her mouth, Sasha was about to say something, though she seemed to recall how the Gundam's audio receptors were damaged, something that Lynne had relayed to all of them ahead of time, and upon acknowledging this, Braus rubbed her chin thoughtfully before snapping at her fingers, and moments later, she began making a few gestures with her hands.

Mikazuki took all but a handful of seconds to realize what Sasha was doing, and before long, he nodded, humming softly as he watched the bumpkin sign out the words beautiful night tonight with her hands. Simple sign language was something taught to the soldiers during their Trainee days, and although they were taught the very basics of it during training, several of them, including Sasha and Mikazuki it would seem, had taken it upon themselves to learn some of the more complicated gestures, and for all it was worth, Mika was impressed by Braus' knowledge on this nonverbal form of communication as he had Barbatos nod its head in agreement.

'Yeah…' thought Mikazuki in agreement as Sasha grinned a little and turned back to stare up at the sky alongside himself. 'It is a pretty nice night… Titans notwithstanding…'

And for a while, Mikazuki and Sasha simply stargazed whilst their superiors discussed their next course of action. Mikasa herself was too busy holding Kaya to do either…

… though moments later, their little moment of tranquility was interrupted when the pilot took stock of a rising plume of orange, just barely noticeable in the darkness of the night, and upon identifying it as an Orange Signal Flare with the aid of his Gundam's sensors, Mikazuki could only scowl as a single thought ran through his mind.

'... fuck.'

And so it begins.