"A black smoke signal?" you hear Eren shout in concern behind you as we continue through the forest. "It's from directly behind us. It's whatever was coming towards us on the right." You hear Eld hastily reply before you turn to Levi, "Draw your blade," he announces to the squad as you join him in retrieving your sword. "If we see it, it'll only be for a second." Tense silence follows as you turn in time to see a Titan with blond hair and a female stature kill a Scout that had been hanging from a tree. You take in a breath and quickly turn around, eyes facing forward determinedly; this was no ordinary Abnormal Titan. It had killed with no intent of eating its prey. "Go!" you shout, noticing the squad's hesitance as they look behind them before they perk up, instantly heeding your words.
The Titan moves left to right, slicing across trees in an attempt to get close to you. "It's fast! In these trees, there's no way to foresee and evade its attacks," Gunther's usually calm voice is shrouded with fear as we continue ahead. "It'll catch up!" Eld's voice now rings in the air, but you and Levi don't turn. "Captains," Petra's voice is frantic as she speaks up, "let's switch to Maneuver Gear!" You see Levi slightly turn his head backwards, a barely noticeable spark of disbelief flashing through his eyes as he looks at the approaching Titan. "Captains!" Petra screams, waiting for the order, but the both of us stay silent. Her screams are cut short as her voice breaks by the sound of Scouts approaching the Titan. "Reinforcements from the rear!" But instantly, you heard the splutter of bodies; they were dead within seconds.
"Captains, your orders!?" Petra's voice shakes with fear. "Let's go for it! It's dangerous... We should kill it!" Now, Oluo joins in, voice reverberating through the silence. "I'll rip it to shreds," you hear the sound of a sword along with Eld's dangerously low voice. Despite their voices, both of us looked ahead, unflinching.
"Captains!?"
"Give us your orders!"
"Captain Levi! Captain [y/n]!"
"At this rate, it will catch up with us!"
"We kill it here... That's why we came to this forest!"
"Right Captains!?"
"Captains, your orders!"
You take in a deep breath, trying to ignore the desperation of the squad before nodding to Levi, who looks at you pointedly. "Everyone..." the squad goes silent at your voice, "cover your ears." The squad looks to us in confusion before Levi takes out a smoke gun, but when he triggers it, instead of smoke, a high-pitched ringing reaches the air. Once the noise fades off, Eren looks up, ears muffled with his hands, "A sound grenade?" Eren asks as he lets his arms fall to his side. "What is your job?" Levi asks, looking behind him to the rest of the squad. "To just let yourself be swayed by whatever you're feeling in the moment?" Levi pauses before continuing, the harsh glare unwavering as we move forward, "No, it's not. Your job is to keep that brat from getting a single scratch on him." Levi looks forward as he finishes, "Even if it costs your life."
The squad goes silent, and you know they have just contemplated the words Levi had thrown at them. "We keep going on these horses, understand?" you ask, still not turning back. "Roger!" you hear Petra reply, her voice slightly more assured. "Keep going? For how long?" Eren asks, voice still shaking. "And it's right on top of us..." He then takes in a sharp intake of breath, "Again! The reinforcements! If we don't help out, they'll be wiped out again!" Eren's voice is frantic behind you. "Eren, eyes on the road!" Gunther now speaks up, "Keep your pace up. Stay at top speed," Eld adds, ignoring Eren's words. "But sir... Why?! If our squad doesn't defeat it, who will?" Eren's voice still rings through the air sharply, before he gasps in horror as you hear the sound of another body slammed against a tree, "Another one's dead... And maybe we could've saved him! One's still fighting! We could still make it!"
"Eren, eyes back on the road! Keep going!" Petra's voice is now the one that rebuts Eren's. "Are you telling me to look away? To abandon my comrades and run?!" Eren's voice is full of disbelief. "Yes, that's right!" Petra replies without hesitation. "Obey the orders the Captains have given!" But Eren continues, despite her words, "I don't understand why we're leaving them to die! Or why the Captains won't explain! Why?!" You grip the saddle as you continue to push [h/n] down the trek as now Oluo's words join the fray. "That's because they decided the reason should not be explained. You just don't understand because you're still green! If you get it, then shut up and obey!" A brief silence takes over as you hear Eren sheathe his sword, and you instantly know the thoughts that cross his mind: he wants to use his Titan power. "What are you doing, Eren!" Petras's voice shouts out sharply, "You're only allowed to do that if your life is in danger. You promised us!" A brief silence takes over before she shouts out again, "Eren!" Silence takes over before the man beside you speaks.
"You aren't wrong. If you want to do it, do it." You turn slightly to see Levi's eyes shine with certainty as he mutters the words to Eren. "I can tell. He's a real monster. And it's nothing to do with his Titan power. No matter what power you use to suppress him, no matter what cage you put him in, he will never submit to anyone." You think back to our first encounter with Eren and his words to us, realising Levi is right. I just want to slaughter the Titans. "Eren, the difference between your decision and ours is experience. But you don't have to rely on that. Choose. Believe in yourself. Or believe in the Survey Corps and me." No one ever knows how it will turn out. "Choose for yourself whichever decision you'll regret least." Silence takes over as Eren contemplates Levi's words, as the last Scout moves in the air by the female Titan.
"Eren! Have faith!"
[Flashback]
"I found a way to half-kill you," Levi spoke up as you leaned on the same desk Hange sat on, observing Levi talk to Eren. "I said I'd only be able to stop you as a Titan if I killed you. But this method would only badly wound you. Of course, it relies on the squad's skill." Levi pauses, drawing out a picture of a figure supposed to be Eren on the blackboard and marking it with two dotted arcs that intersect the figure's limbs. "The idea is to cut you right out of the Titan's neck. We'd end up cutting the ends of your arms and legs off, but they'd just grow back like a lizard's... Creepy, really." Levi finished with his deadpan stare, glancing at Eren. "Wait," Eren said hesitantly, "I don't know how they grow back. Is there some other way..."
Levi's eyes narrowed sharply at his words, "So you're saying you don't want there to be any danger or sacrifice?" Eren looked taken-a-back before replying, "N-no." Levi's glare remained, "Then just resolve yourself. We will, too. The danger for us is that you might kill us. So don't worry," he said as you looked around the room at the other squad members who were also present. "Yes... understood." Eren, albeit hesitantly, nodded. "Th-Then, I can do experiments?" you turn to your side, sweatdropping at Hange's sudden ominous look, glasses shining under the light from the windows. "It's very risky," you sigh, getting up, before turning to Levi, who catches your eye, "But that doesn't mean that we can't use him to investigate." He nods to me, agreeing.
"I can be in charge of planning this, right?" You turned back to Hange, who still sat in the same position. "Eren, if there's something you don't understand, learn to understand it. It's well worth any risk to our lives."
.....
We found ourselves by a well several meters away from headquarters. Levi, Hange and you stood around it, our horses also nearby as we looked down. "Ready, Eren?" you ask. We had lowered him into the well, readying for the worst after he transformed. "When it's prepared, I'll use the smoke signal to notify you." Hange said, looking at Eren, "After that, any decisions are up to you." Eren saluted the two of us, "Roger!" You smiled kindly at him before turning to Hange, who again had a strange look masked on their face. "This dried-up well could hold even a mindless Titan... Probably." You sigh before slightly smiling; despite Hange's antics, many people overlooked their smarts because of the way she acted. You dragged Hange away from the well as Levi followed us. Making sure we were at a safe distance, Hange set off the green smoke signal in the air.
The three of us waited, all of us atop our horses as you stroked through [h/n]'s mane frowning. "Did he not see the signal?" You ask, looking at the two next to you after minutes passed with no movement. "No," Levi replied, his face darkening as he looked to the well. "His ability just isn't that reliable." We trot over to the well before Levi yells out, "Hey... Eren! We're calling it quits for now." As we dismounted and walked over, Hange looked into the well. "Did something happen?" They asked before stopping abruptly in shock. When you follow their line of sight, you also freeze; Eren had blood seeping from his mouth to his clothes, hands as bloodied as his face. "Hange," Eren says, looking up with a disturbing look in his eyes, "I can't become a Titan."
.....
The squad and you sat on some benches outside as we huddled around the table. "So, your self-inflicted bite wounds on your hands aren't healing, either?" Levi asks from where he stands just behind you. "No." Eren's face looks distressed as you look up at him and his now bandaged hands. "If you can't transform into a Titan, our main goal of sealing Wall Maria is off the table," mutters Levi, his eyes flickering with disappointment. "This is an order... make it happen." Levi then wanders off as you sit, unable to comfort Eren despite the harshness of his words, knowing what he said is the truth. Petra follows Levi, needing to debrief on a situation as you look at the men at the table.
"Don't let it get you down, Eren," Eld says as he looks up from beside you to the boy. "B-but," Eren sighs, dismay clear on his face. "Well, it just means you're more human than I thought," Oluo adds, looking at the cup of tea in front of him. "Better than rushing into something and getting us killed. This isn't meaningless." Eld says, and you smile slightly at Eren, "He's right; we can't be too careful." Eren looks up in surprise before silence takes over. A second passes before he reaches for the spoon on his saucer, and you notice him flinch as it falls to the ground. As he leans forward, however, you notice a spark from his hand. Your heart rate spikes as you realise what's going to happen, "Everybody get down!" You yell, using your speed to lunge for Oluo, who sits closest to Eren. Levi turns, eyes sharp with concern at your sudden yell, but it's too late.
A burst of hot steam hits us, flinging those at the table away, as a strike-like lightning lights up the area, followed by a thunderous boom. You grunt as you reach the floor, back hot from the sudden explosion. Oluo looks up worriedly, but you quickly reassure him. You hear Scouts around you start to shout out, but nothing's visible through the thick smoke. "[y/n]!" you hear Levi's shout as he makes his way towards you, worry mingling in his eyes as you brush yourself off. "I'm okay," you mutter, slightly shaky from having the air knocked out of you before he helps you up, grip firmly around your forearm. You frowned slightly as you saw his hands shake slightly, squeezing them gently before you finally saw his eyes relax. You take the time to look around as the smoke clears. Your eyes widen as you see Eren in a state of pure distress, trying to pull himself out of a hand... a Titan's hand.
You quickly make your way to his side as Levi does the same, noticing a more dire situation. "Calm down," Levi says, putting a hand in front of him with you trying to do the same. "Captain Levi, [y/n]! This is..." Eren trails off as he realises that we weren't turned to him, but to the four members of our squad who had their swords unsheathed, looking weary and full of distrust for the boy behind you. "He said calm down," you say, looking towards the four, "all of you." You hear a sudden squeal despite the serious situation and turn slightly to see Hange jumping up in the air at Eren's form.
"Eren! What's the meaning of this?" Eld's harsh voice takes to the air, ignoring you and Levi. "Sir?" Eren says shakily, looking at the infuriated man in front of him. "Why now? Without permission? Answer me!" You look sharply at the man, "Eld, wait." Oluo, however, joins in, "Answer him, Eren! What are you thinking?" The atmosphere became tense as the looks of the four Scouts in front of you darkened. "No, that can wait... Prove you're not our enemy, humanity's enemy!" Gunther shouts out, holding his blades dangerously." Eren looks around in complete hopelessness as Gunther continues to shout, "Prove it! Prove it now! That is your responsibility!" Oluo then approaches Eren from behind him, "I dare you to make a single move with that arm! I'll cut off your head! I can do it... I'm serious!" Eren takes a sharp breath, not knowing what to do. "Oluo! I said to calm down." Levi said from beside me, slightly stepping forward wearily.
"Captains get away from Eren! You're both too close!" Petra now screams, face adorned with fear and fury. "No, you're the ones that should get back," Levi says, eyes turning sharply to where she stood. "Why?!" Petra screamed, "My intuition," Levi replied without hesitation.
"What's wrong, Eren?! Say something!"
"No sudden movements!"
"Prove it to me, Eren!"
"Answer us! You think we can't kill you?!"
"I'm serious!"
"Do it now!"
"Are you even listening?!"
"Okay, let's do this!"
"Are you humanity's-"
"Please shut up for a second!" you turn to Eren, who shouts out against the squad's constant cries, causing sudden silence to take over despite it doing nothing to ease the tension. "Eren~!" you turn to see Hange with a wide grin on their face, eyes sparkling and face flushed as they rush to his side. Hange rams past Gunther, who stands in front of Eren, as they squeal, "Can I touch that arm?!" Drool starts to seep out of their mouth as their face turns into ecstasy, "It's okay, right? Right?! Just let me touch it!" Eren looks now confused at their outburst, "Hange... Wait a second!" Hange doesn't heed the warning, however, and goes to touch his arm; suddenly, a sizzling sound takes over as they quickly retract their touch. "It's... hot!"
Hange then jumps up before kneeling on the ground dramatically, "Without the skin, it's really damned hot!" They cry out, hands flung into the sky, "Unbelievably hot!" You look on at the scene, not sure how to feel now, as one of the members of Hange's squad tries to calm them down. Eren then goes to pull his hand out of the Titans, ignoring Hange's squeals of disappointment when he finally yanks free, as the Titan's hand starts to evaporate. You and Levi walked up to Eren, where he knelt, "How do you feel, Eren?" you ask quietly, looking down at him. He seems to take in several deep breaths before answering slowly, though his gaze looks to the ground. "Not... not so good."
....
Night fell as Levi, Eren, and you were in a small room, Eren breaking the silence. "Until I saw they were actually ready to kill me, I didn't understand... That they doubted me so much." You laugh humourlessly under your breath, "Of course, that's why we chose them," you say, looking at the boy grimly. Eren looks up with surprise before Levi speaks, "People say you only truly become a full member of the Survey Corps after making it back alive from a mission. But whenever you fight the Titans, you never have enough information. There are too many situations you can't anticipate, no matter what."
Levi pauses as he looks ahead of him with a hard stare. You look to Eren sympathetically, "They've had to cultivate the ability to take quick action and to make ruthless decisions by assuming the worst-case scenario. But that doesn't mean they've become heartless." You say, Eren looking at you. "It's not like they felt nothing when they turned their swords on you." We hear footsteps approach under the dimly lit lights, "Captain Levi, Captain [y/n], Squad leader Hange would like to see you." We nod, walking down the hallway with Eren and opening the wooden door as it groaned before we entered, seeing our squad and Hange scattered around a table.
"Take a long crap?" Levi asks nonchalantly. "Actually, it was pleasantly quick." Hange replies, making you roll your eyes, "You guys need to get a better sense of humour," you mutter before sitting down. "I wasn't sure what to tell the brass, but anyway." Hange reached out a hand to show a handkerchief with a teaspoon in it. "Look at this. The right Titan hand Eren created was holding this. Like this between its index finger and thumb." They continued to do just that, showing the group. "It's hard to imagine that was an accident... And for some reason, the heat and pressure didn't warp the spoon at all. Anything come to mind?" Hange then looks to Eren, who meets their eyes at their words. "I was trying to pick it up... I transformed right after."
"I see," Hange mutters. "That may explain why you couldn't transform either. Kill the Titans. Block the canon shell. Lift the boulder. In each case, you had a clear goal before you transformed." Hange looked up to all of us as they continued, "My theory is that your self-inflicted injury isn't the sole trigger. You may need some goals as well." We look to Eren as he replies, "It's true that when I turned into a Titan this time, it was like when I blocked that cannon shell. But... I turned into a Titan to pick up a spoon? What the hell is this?" Gunther looked up as Eren stared at his hand in front of him. "In other words, you didn't deliberately change without permission?"
"Y-yes, sir," Eren replied quickly. Gunther let out a sigh of relief at his words as you looked to see that he, Eld, Petra and Oluo nodded to each other, before biting their hands. "Huh? Eh?" Hange looked around in confusion as you and Levi stared silently at the scene. "Wait, what are you doing?" Eren asked, shock clear on his face. "That hurt," Gunther muttered, a bite mark embedded on his hand. "This is tough. I'm amazed you can bite through, Eren," Eld added from his side. "We made the wrong decision." Gunther smiled, "This is a small price to pay. Not that it makes a difference." Eren takes a breath at his words, emotion glinting in his eyes. "Keeping you under control is our job," Oluo says, "And there's nothing wrong with that. So don't get cocky!"
"I'm sorry, Eren..." Petra looks up from her seat on your left. "We've been so jumpy. You must be disappointed in our stupidity. However, even so... We're going to rely on you. And we want you to rely on us." Silence takes over the room as Eren absorbs her words. "So, have faith in us."
[Back to storyline]
"Eren! You're taking too long! Decide!" Levi shouts out, face now fierce. It was a sight you rarely saw as you kept holding onto the reins, forcing [h/n] onwards as your heart started to beat harshly against your chest. you turn back to see Eren squeeze his eyes shut before shouting out, "I'll continue forward!" The squad looks at him in shock before we hear the wail of the last Scout, caught in the female Titan's grasp before being crushed against a tree. You cringe inwardly. Too many people have died for the sake of this plan. You notice the Titan now leaning forward, seeming to pick up the pace as you force [h/n] even faster, turning back to the road in front of you. "Target is accelerating!"
"Go! We will Outrun it!" You shout to the squad as we sprint down the path, the Female Titan quickly gaining on us. But just as she was right on top of us, just as she went to reach for Eren, she suddenly stopped. A loud bang echoed through the forest, followed by Erwin's unmistakable shout, "Fire!" In a matter of seconds, hundreds of wires spring out from the trees, impaling the female Titan who clutches onto their neck quickly. Our squad, however, continues forward. "Advance a bit, further, tether the horses, and switch to Maneuver Gear. You guys will be off on your own for a while," Levi says, looking to the squad behind us. "Eld lead the squad. Once you're a good distance away from the Titan, hide Eren." He then looks to you, "[y/n], let's go," you nod quickly, standing on [h/n] and looking to the squad, "We'll leave you with our horses." You give them one last glance, trying to give them slight reassurance in your gaze. The five of them nod as you take off behind Levi.
You fling yourselves through the air with your maneuver gear, as the both of us land swiftly at Erwin's side. "Looks like it's stopped moving..." you mutter as Erwin looks at the scene in front of him and replies, "We can't let our guard down." You look at the wires glistening under the sun as the Female Titan remains standing but immobile. "But you both did well, leading it here." Levi looks up at Erwin, "Men in the rearguard squads died buying us the time we needed. We couldn't have done it without them." Erwin looks solemnly at the scene in front of him. "Is that so?" he asks. "It is. Thanks to them, we'll be able to see who's inside this thing." You see Levi turn to glare at the Female Titan, eyes darkening. "I hope they haven't pissed themselves..."