Retrieving ?Eremika

Armin's P.O.V.
I was sitting opposite Mikasa and Eren during the ride back to the camp base. She was murmuring something to Eren, occasionally giving him a peck on his bloodied forehead. My head ached at the sight of their pain. I wondered where Annie was. I hoped she was not too apprehended for my safety.

When we returned, we were greeted by several soldiers, who led Mikasa and Eren to the infirmary of the Survey Corps camp. "Back again, are we?" I heard one of them say.

My eyes swept the place for Annie, Jean, Bertoldt or Reiner. They were nowhere to be seen. A force nudged me from behind. It was only Jean, who had flung an arm around my shoulders, "Glad to see you, Arlert."

"W-where's Annie?" I stammered, wincing slightly at the bruise on my shoulder.

"I don't know. I haven't seen any of our friends for the entire morning," Jean screwed his face up in bewilderment, "Oh, who cares about their whereabouts right now- oh, right, you're with Annie. The most important thing to me right now is that I have my buddy Armin back."

I forced a smile, hoping that he would not see through my mask of fear. Where were the three? Being her boyfriend, I was not supposed to have any doubts planted in Annie, yet something was telling me that she, Reiner and Bertoldt were involved in this entire kidnapping incident. What else would explain their sudden absence? I wished I was wrong about Annie.
End of Armin's P.O.V.

Mikasa's P.O.V.
Eren was still in a coma, not responding to any of my calls. He was on the bed, his hands beside his sides. They were cold. I gripped onto them, as if I could transfer warmth into his hands, awaiting Hanji's arrival. We were in the same room where he was kidnapped with Armin less than twenty-four hours ago. Armin was doing relatively fine, the last time I checked on him, except for his constant shuddering and his horror-stricken expression.

On this exceptional occasion, Hanji allowed me to stay when she assessed Eren's wounds and his recovery rates. I knew, from the gloomy look on her face, that the results would not be very optimistic. The examination took a while. Those minutes were the longest wait of my life. The room was dead silent besides the ticking of the clock and Eren's hitching breaths. Every slight movement of the second-hand was prolonged, the tick-tock echoing in my ears drums.

"Mikasa," Hanji croaked. I braced myself for the worst. "His nape has been cut, as you know, and although the cut was very shallow, it seriously hinders his regeneration. I'm afraid..." My eyes widened, waiting for her to tell me the truth. She sucked in a raspy breath, "I'm afraid he would not wake from his coma. Ever."

It was a blow I could not take. "No, you have to be joking. You said he was gone last time but it turned out that he would survive. No, Hanji-" I protested in denial, hoping that she would say it was a crude joke. She shook her head, gazing down at the unperturbed expression on Eren's face. The blood-streaks on his face, sustained when he was forcefully detached from his titan, were not even beginning to fade.

"I wish I was just joking, Mikasa. I'm sorry. Things are not looking very bright from here. You should consider yourself fortunate that you did not completely sever the nape. He could've died. But since he's in a coma now, our last shred of hope for humanity is gone.Even if he wakes up, I don't know what changes would occur to him. We never should've put our hopes on a kid." With that, Hanji stood up from her seat and left without another word, leaving me alone with Eren.

"Wake up, please, Eren, I need you. Humanity needs you," I cried, my voice cracking like static radio. My hands were wrapped tightly around his arm, the one which had regenerated in the past. I laid my head on his chest, hearing the faint thumps of his weakened heart. The tears splashed onto the sheets which were drawn up to his shoulders. Some fell onto the scarf loosely hung around my neck. Regardless of my whimpers, not a single muscle of his twitched. Why did he always have to abandon me to fight against the world on my own?
End of Mikasa's P.O.V.