Right as you were on approach, Mikasa approached you. He stared straight at you, "Conrad," She said. Her tone was direct, holding no regret. "If there is a chance that you can take out the Armored...Take it, no matter what, do not hesitate." There was an odd silence and distance in her tone, but you understood. She trusted you enough to do what needed to be done, but it also meant not caring for her life.
"We will take it down," You responded, not giving her a direct answer but an answer nonetheless. "Next time, you aren't going to miss," You told her. Your eyes meet hers. For a brief moment, something passed between you, a brief electric-like charge that was more than just the adrenaline-fueled combatants you were. At that moment, you felt both anger, frustation and excitement with Mikasa, as if something had awakened inside you both.
Without any need for your words, the two of us stared not at each other but forward, not just the same goal in mind, but as if your actions and movements were in sync, as if your wills, no, your fates were bound with a single purpose.
You both passed Emelina with a speed that was too fast to follow; you both had become the vanguard of your trio, the tip of the spear that would cut through the Armored Titan's hide. In this very moment, you and Mikasa were both willing to get yourselves killed in the very attempt to cut it down. But there was no way the two of you would have died today, not when the lives of those you held dear were at stake.
You fired your hooks, latching at the right angle to perform a maneuver in a convex arc. One that would give you complete control to get close enough to the back of its knees. It would be no easy manuever, but you felt as if it was the only way to get the perfect angle that no others would be able to achieve.
Mikasa and you, on opposite sides, passed the Armored Titan as expected. As soon as it saw you both, it extended its arm to cut the wires, but it missed.
At that precise moment, you dove beneath its extended arms and, for a few instants, for the chance for a complete horizontal cut on the joints on the back of its knee. The metal of the blades sang in the air before the wet noise of the slicing through the thick muscle, the resistance making your arms shudder. Yet, you did not care for such things; you only focused on the sound of your own blades tearing through its flesh. All while Mikasa, from the other side, did the same with the same precision.
The horizontal cut had one risk, though, in the narrow streets, it meant that all that momentum would likely lead to a sudden crash against one of the buildings on either side of the street. As you latched into a building, the inertia stopped. You felt the breath in your lungs get knocked out as the impact made you let out a gasp.
The Armored Titan let out a roar as its two legs gave way and it stumbled forward. The loud crash of its armored skin hitting the stone made your ears ring. For a good few seconds, the Armored Titan was grounded and unable to move.
You had succeeded.
You couldn't help but smile, the corners of your lips pulling back. You looked at Mikasa, who gave a small nod and returned the same smile as you. A shared feeling of victory that was quickly replaced by the realization that you were not yet done.
While Emelina wasted no time trying to cut through its nape and failed, the arrival of Malia landing on the roof meant that a change in the situation was underway. The brown senior garrison soldier had a look of relief on her face.
"You did it..." She whispered, "Now we have a chance!" A hopeful smile lit up her face, a rare sight amidst the chaos. "The Captain has set up artillery positions all the way to the main road..."
Armin caught up with them, "Now that it is immobilized, we might be able to defeat it..." His mind is going through the options available to them. "Gunpowder! We have a large stash in the supply depot!" An idea.
"That's correct...That was the captain's idea; he was preparing a trap with explosives should the cannons fail..." Her face then turned grim, "He was also asking for volunteers willing to sacrifice themselves...and use explosives..." She added, the words heavy in the air.
"Sacrifice... themselves?" Eren said as he landed next to the group after being sent back by Rico.
"Yes, to get to the nape of the Armored Titan and...No matter, you three managed to cripple it! That's what we needed." She turns around to see one of her soldiers, "Rush back to headquarters and tell the Captain to bring explosives here! Now!"
"Yes, Ma'am!" The soldier saluted and left without question.
At that moment, you heard far away screams of a soldier being eaten. You prepare to jump, but Malia stops you with a hand to your chest. "They are giving their lives so that you can finish the job." Her tone was firm and serious. "Don't make their sacrifice be in vain."
"She is right," Armin says, "You three are the only ones who can cripple it, keep it like this, or we may not get another chance," He says, full of confidence in the abilities of the three of you.
"That's..." Emelina says as she looks at the Armored Titan, still on the ground but trying to get up. The sound of the wind as it started to regenerate could be heard from here. Its regeneration was not as fast as a normal titan, but it meant that you couldn't let down your guard just yet.
"ARGHHH!" The Armored screamed; the sound was deafening, but you had no idea why it would scream so.
"Aren't Titans supposed not to feel any pain?" You asked, still focused on its every movement.
"They are not," The brown-haired soldier said, "....Hmm,"
"Maybe, it's scared?" Eren said as he looked at the monster. He felt a bit of satisfaction from hearing the Titan's scream. "I don't mind if it is, as long as it pays for what it has done,"
You agreed with him. The pain it felt was just a fraction of the pain humanity was going through.
But soon, it would all be over, as long as those explosives arrived on time and you kept the Armored from having its legs regenerate. You enjoyed this feeling of leaving your enemy powerless...But still, for a single moment, your mind wandered to Annie, and you wondered what she would say about this, about your actions today.
***
The scream brought Annie from her stupor. She reluctantly stood up, her concern was not for the city itself or the inhabitants, but for the fear that...Conrad...Historia and Adelaide...But her training was too strong for her to ignore her mission. Even if a small part of her soul wished that the entire world would just crumble away so she wouldn't have to choose. She felt the pull of her duty; it was a chain around her neck. She watched a city with the Titans already roaming about.
However...She had expected worse. So far, from what she could see from this high tower, the garrison was still holding the city. Smoke was rising, but the city still had its defenders.
"How...are they holding?" She muttered to herself. Then saw the source of the screams, there he was, Reiner. The one playing hero for the enemy. She knew exactly what that sound meant. He was out of options. If Bertholdt had already transformed then...the only one he could be calling was her...He was asking her for her help. Instinctively, she took a step back, almost recoiling from what that would entail.
But then, she heard the hiss of ODM near her. Her face turned pale as she realized she wasn't alone. 'How could someone find me so quickly?' was the last thing she could think of before her training took over, and her body moved on its own. Her hands were already on her blades before she even saw him.
"Annie!" Bertholdt said as he landed on the tower, his face full of panic and something else. He never raised his voice. Ever.
"Bertholdt," She replied. She didn't lower her guard. If Reiner needed her, it meant that the mission was a failure. A complete disaster.
"We have a problem," His large frame hunched slightly as if ashamed, "Reiner is..."
"I know..." Her voice was a low monotone, "I can hear him." Her gaze shifted back towards the source of the scream.
She didn't meet his eyes. Instead, she avoided his gaze, looking down at the stone tower.
"W-We should have listened to you. But now! Reiner is in danger, Conrad and Mikasa have managed to..." He finally stammered out what he had to say, "He's asking for you...he's..."
"Don't you think I know?" Annie clenched her fists. She hated him for that, for dragging her back into this mess she was forced to join. All she had was a single blissful year of love and friendship, a dream that would end as soon as she transformed into the tool that they needed to achieve the mission. She could already hear her father's words in her mind, the pleading for her to return home. But there was a small part of her that was glad to be back in this. A warrior in a world she was used to.
"Then will you help?!" Bertholdt anxiously took a step closer. He was pleading, something she had never seen from him. The urgency in his movements, the desperation.
Annie took a step forward, ready to follow her orders, ready to follow what the three of them had meant to do for so long. But then Bertholdt spoke once more.
"We may have to…fight…them."
The final words stopped her.
The wind blew her hair. The distant sounds of screaming soldiers were now as loud as her own heart beating rapidly with feelings that she tried to suppress. A memory surfaced of her childhood. It was a memory of her training and the emotions that accompanied it. She felt a wave of nausea, the need to throw up, her insides churned with each memory of the kicks, the punches, and the cold words of her father. She remembered the days in which she could have ended it all.
Yet, a different memory came to mind. His hands on hers, his warm smile, the way he looked at her...Conrad. Then Krista and Addie...All the faces of all those she had been with for the past year.
"Annie? Please? We have to hurry!" Bertholdt's plea brought her back to the present.
For a single moment, she looked past Bertholdt, toward the battle, to see the unmistakable silver hair of Emelina. A sister who had her brother to protect. Annie had no one but these two failures...and a father who had loved her and sent her on a suicide mission. 'Would he be alright? Her father...' she thought as she stared at the empty street below. 'No...' He was just as selfish as she; the thought brought a smile to her face. She understood. It was okay for her to be selfish, too.
She walked away from the ledge.
"Annie?! Where are you going?!" Bertholdt panicked, his large hands reaching for her, trying to grasp her arm. But she was too quick. She sidestepped with fluid grace that was second nature. A quick pivot without waste.
She gave him a final glance. Not a look of pity or compassion. Not even a look of hatred. Her expression was flat. He saw nothing. He never did.
Then, she let herself fall off the tower. A controlled drop, one that she knew well. The wind whistled. The last thing she heard was Bertholdt's shout as she ran away. Not towards Reiner. But towards Conrad.
-x-X-x-
The Armored Titan's mouth finally closed shut, and the screaming stopped. But the steam given off from the regeneration was still a problem; sooner or later, the Armored Titan would walk again. All the while, you had to keep your distance as it used one of its arms to attempt to swat anyone who got too close, while its other arm was used for crawling and moving forward. It was clear that the Amored Titan would not give up so easily on its objective. The artillery had to be here soon.
"It's healing, cut it again!" Malia shouted as she landed near the group of the best soldiers in the district.
You and Mikasa were positioned on opposite sides of the street, ready to attack once more. But the risk was high. The Armored was now more aware of the threat you posed. If it healed and kicked either of you with its legs, it would basically be game over. But as the Armored crawled towards the nearest artillery that was just beginning to set up, you realized that there was not much of a choice.
There was no need for words, nor that they would reach from across the street. You merely adjusted your stance, your feet planted firm against the wet tile as your fingers tightened on the controls. Mikasa mirrored the movement, and then you were ready.
The Armored's head twitched in her direction, then yours. Its awareness sharpened. Its arm swung, striking the side of the building, trying to cause the building to collapse, but to no avail. Mikasa jumped as soon as the building shuddered; the shrapnel from the stone didn't even reach her.
You seized your opening, the cables singing as you launched forward. The Armored attempted to move out of the way, but the fact that its leg was still healing slowed it down. A critical second was all you needed. The cables went taut, anchoring onto the back of the Titan's heel. You swung in, blades ready. The wind rushed past your ears.
But the Armored twisted, its movement faster than you anticipated. The metal wires of your ODM groaned with stress, but that didn't deter you; that couldn't deter you. However, the Armored Titan's heels gave out a burst of steam as it finished healing. Its heel moved in the blink of an eye, far too quickly; it made both of you miss as it once more recovered its footing, and for good measure, this time it attempted to reach immediately for your wires, almost catching them, and the moment the artillery began to fire it shrugged it off and charged towards the main gates in a single, terrifying burst of speed.
It appeared to have gained a renewed purpose.
"Conrad! Mikasa!" Malia shouted at the two of you to go after it. You immediately followed with Emelina and Eren right behind.
"You are not getting away!" Eren said, with the same desperation in his eyes as before. The Armored Titan ran on, as you watched the garrison's futile attempts once more, cannons and people getting stomped or destroyed. Its speed required you to manuever and angle perfectly, to even get a chance at striking its heels once more. The garrison had learned now that the only chance they had was you and Mikasa. You both latched your hooks once more, the cables singing a song of desperation. The gate is already almost in your vision...Until...
BOOM
You saw an explosion cover the right side of the chest of the Armored Titan's body. The force of the blast sent its shoulder back, and the armor on its chest cracked, making its speed falter once more. The Armored Titan stumbled, and at the same speed as the last charge, it was slowed down.
"I am Wolfward Gensh! For Humanity!"
You heard this shout before you; the sight of another explosion came to silence the shout. This explosion, the second one, came from its left, near its head, making it even more disoriented. It slowed down again to avoid losing its balance. Your mind worked to make sense of what was happening, but it took you only a second to realize what was happening when you saw a red signal flare being fired from the walls.
"Those...are..." The word got stuck in your throat. You knew what this was. You had read it in the journal you had found after Shiganshina, but you'd never thought you'd see it in person. A self-sacrificial attack. That was what this was. The sight of such determination, such selflessness, was something else.
"R-Rosalie Koch!" The shout this time came from a woman before the third explosion happened right next to the right chest of the Armored. But the Armored, despite being hit once more, did not fall. Instead, it let out a roar of pure frustration at these brave but futile acts. Then another explosion...and another, all accompanied by shouts and warcries, all names being shouted into the void.
You saw a soldier with a bomb tied to his back running towards the Armored, only to be swatted away and explode mid-air. This was madness and beauty. This was utter carnage. But it was working; the Armored was slowing down.
This was the making of Captain Kittel, you were sure of it. Using all his soldiers and their lives to hold it down, even for a second. A tactic you knew would be written down in history as both brave and foolish.
They were doing all they could for humanity's survival. All they could do was give one more chance to those who still had a fighting chance.
And your chance had arrived.
As the Titan stumbled, its heels became vulnerable once more, and now that you were all this close to headquarters, getting explosives to the north gate. You realized what you had to do. This was it.
"Mikasa! Emelina! Now!" Eren shouted from behind, but you were already in motion. You had no other chance. There would not be a fourth. With a speed you didn't know you possessed, you latched your hooks onto the back of the Titan's ankle, and with a single gasp, you shot forward.
But the Armored Titan was faster. This time, as soon as he felt the latch of the hooks onto the ankle, he twisted around, sending the wires flying around as it broke off its charge, the momentum still making its feet dig into the stone below. As it turned to face you, it raised both arms and sent a single flying punch that sent a shockwave across the street and shattered the stone of the nearest buildings into shrapnel.
The force was immense.
"Argh!" A gasp of pain left your lips as you reeled back, a cable cutting into the rooftop of a nearby building as you latched onto it at the last second, the momentum sending your body spinning across the roof's surface. For a single second, you saw your own reflection in a glass window of a shop below, and it was of a boy who had seen too much for just being a teenager.
But you had to get up. There wasn't any other choice. Mikasa was still trying to get an angle on its nape, flying around and consuming all of it as the Armored Titan shifted his stance and prepared to resume its charge. And if that happened, all the sacrifices of those soldiers would be for nothing. And that was a failure you couldn't allow.
You didn't waste any more seconds. Just as you prepared to launch yourself again. "Look at me!" You shouted at it, the Armored Titan stopping for a second before turning its head towards the source of the shout. You held your ground, your blades at the ready, your arms screaming in protest.
It was a foolish move. A suicidal move. One that had a high chance of getting you killed. But you had to do something. You had to stop it.
"Brother..." Emelina shouted from behind, her words laced with worry as she saw you standing alone against the Titan. But you had already launched yourself in the air, the Armored Titan immediately reached towards you with its hand. All while another garrison soldier sacrificed themselves, and luckily enough, it was enough to break the armor on its nape.
"Mikasa!" You shouted, and she immediately dove towards it at an angle to cut the nape. Then you felt an immense shockwave as the Armored Titan punched into the air.
You thought it missed, but it didn't. You looked to your left and saw that your arm was completely gone.
The eyes of Emelina and Eren widened immediately, all the while Mikasa's blades broke upon contact with the nape of the Armored Titan. For a single second, all you saw was the horrified expression on her face as she tried to latch onto a building to recover. The pain had not yet arrived, but you were flashing blackness coming over to you.
And then...as the flashes got stronger, and everything turned into slow motion, you saw the glint of someone's blonde hair approaching you. Someone you were looking for.
Annie.
It was Annie.
She was firing her hooks towards you, but not to save you. She was aiming for the Armored's shoulder, not for your arm. She had a different goal, a goal you did not know.
"No..." you tried to say, but your body refused.
Your mind went blank for a second after. "Conrad!" Mikasa's shout, as she rushed to grab you before you fell. This was it. That was your end. You'd failed your goal. The Armored, after a pause, began its charge again. It was over.
But then you felt an extreme energy wash over you, one that wasn't from the adrenaline, nor the will to survive. A burning heat that didn't come from the steam of the titans.
The skin on your stump sizzled. Blood poured. Until it didn't.
Instead, you watched with detached horror as the mangled flesh of your shoulder surged with an impossible life. Nerve endings crackled like livid embers, sprouting and weaving through the air in frantic search of connection. Sinew and muscle fibers erupted from the wound with a sickening wet sound, coiling around one another like living threads, knitting themselves into cords of crimson flesh. You could feel each fiber's birth as searing agony replaced the void of numbness, pain so intense it nearly white-washed your vision. Skin followed, stretching and sealing over the rebuilding limb with a sound like leather tightening. Fingers took shape last, twitching spasmodically as sensation returned in a tidal wave of fire. Steam hissed from the newly formed arm. Your entire body shuddered as the regeneration completed in mere seconds, leaving you whole but changed, marked by an impossible power that hummed beneath your skin like a caged beast.
All the energy you had lost was now back and stronger than before, the same power that made you survive the fight with the red-lined titans, the one that you had felt in your childhood and that you'd forgotten because of the normal life that you had. All that strength was now back.
Mikasa missed you as you wasted not a single instant in following the Armored Titan. No longer were you just faster, not just stronger. You were something else. You only stopped when you realized that the Armored was no longer charging towards the yet unbroken Gate, but instead to the southern gate, the gate that led to Wall Maria. The one you and the others were meant to guard.
The entire battlefield had changed its course in a matter of seconds.
The Armored Titan was retreating.
'It's retreating?' The question dumbfounded you for a second; the cruel irony of it all was not lost on you. After all that death and destruction. After all those sacrifices. 'Now it feels like retreating? NOW?!' Your mind screamed in frustration and anger, and it screamed in unison with a part of you that was different now, the same part that made you whole again.
The grip on your blades and ODM controllers almost broke them, the new arm flexing involuntarily, the muscles, the bones, this new you still felt wrong, still felt too much.
You took chase without a second thought, leaving the others behind, as they seemed to finally process the fact that your arm had returned.
Mikasa, Eren, Annie, and Emelina were frozen, their gazes locked onto the space where your arm used to be and where it now was. The blood, the steam, the impossible sight of it all, had turned their reality upside down. They were all left in the wake of the impossible. But only one of them moved to follow you.
Mikasa.
She didn't question the miracle. She didn't question the absurdity. The sight and instead moved. She chased after you. To give you a greater chance of killing the Armored. To make sure that the sacrifice of the soldiers wouldn't be in vain. Or maybe just out of instinct.
Emelina's expression was still frozen, unable to understand what had happened. The initial fear of losing her brother had overwhelmed her too much. Her brain was not processing the impossible recovery until you were already out of sight. Only then did her mind catch up; she did not know whether to smile or cry. Instead, she broke into an unexpected laugh, her breath coming out in ragged gasps.
Eren remained rooted, a single thought cutting through the shock: "Conrad...How?" He looked at the stump that wasn't a stump anymore, then at the departing forms of you and Mikasa. 'You were always the luckiest bastard...but this?' He gritted his teeth. He had to move. He fired his hooks, but he was stopped by Malia. She was equally shocked but knew that he couldn't send him after him.
"Eren! Stay here, they are going towards the Gate...That's Titan territory." She turned to see Annie then, her face equally unreadable, "That was reckless! Getting that close to the Armored could have meant your death!"
Annie looked at the retreating forms for a second longer before finally facing the woman who spoke to her. She didn't respond. Her gaze was fixed on the ground, as if searching for an answer. 'He has it...' She thought. That felt both a blessing and a damnation.
Armin, who had witnessed the entire scene from the rooftop, could not believe it either.
Then Captain Kittel landed on the roof. His expression no longer held the discipline of both. The mask he wore was broken. After sending men and women to certain death and having nothing to show for it, he was at the end of his rope. He looked around and saw the faces of the surviving soldiers. The look of defeat in their eyes.
"Report." The word left his lips in a harsh demand for something he could hold onto. The battle had to mean something.
Malia stepped forward, her gaze on the distant figures of Conrad and Mikasa. "Sir... The Armored Titan is in retreat."
"Retreat?" The Captain stared at her. "Why?" The question hung in the air, a desperate search for reason.
"I... don't know, Sir." She couldn't give him an answer. No one could. They were dealing with forces they never truly comprehended.
"The North Gate is secure then...For now," Kittel's voice was flat, devoid of triumph. "Where is Conrad?" He looked at the spot he had been a minute ago. "Where is Almonacid? And Ackerman?"
"They went after the Armored," Eren said, pointing toward the wall. "Conrad is..." He paused, unable to articulate the impossible thing he had seen. His arm was gone, and then... it wasn't.
Armin understood the unspoken question. He stepped up to Eren, placing a hand on his friend's shoulder before facing the Captain. "They're pursuing the Armored Titan, Sir!" His voice was surprisingly clear.
Captain Kittel didn't even question the absurdity of two cadets pursuing the Titan that had just flattened several squadrons. The logic of the battlefield had disintegrated. What mattered was what happened next. "Then we will support them! Malia gathers everyone, we are going after them!" His will to fight was not yet gone. Not yet.
Malia's expression froze for a moment, but she refused to acknowledge the order. "Understood, sir." She gave a short, sharp nod, her jaw set, before turning to execute the command. She signalled the charge. The surviving soldiers, their uniforms torn and bloodied, found a final burst of resolve. They fired their hooks and followed, a desperate charge into the unknown.
"It's retreating!" One of the soldiers shouted.
"Don't let it get away!" Another soldier added.
Meanwhile, Annie stood not clutching her controllers. Merely standing still, her hand trembled for a second. "No...wait..." She muttered, all while the soldiers of the Garrison were moving past her. "Don't..." Her breath hitched, but she couldn't bring herself to stop them. There was no reason to. Her body refused to move. Her mind, her will, everything. What was the point of her being here then? She had missed her chance.
Armin noticed Annie's lack of movement. But he could not afford to let a soldier stay here. Not now, when they had a chance to finally end the battle against the Armored Titan.
You flexed your fingers. They obeyed instantly, gripping the hilt of your newly supplied blades with a crushing force you didn't know you possessed.
Beside you, Mikasa matched your pace. Her dark eyes flicked to your newly formed arm for a fraction of a second, disbelief crossing her face before her training forced her composure back into place. She didn't ask. There was no time. The Armored Titan was getting away, its massive, plated feet tearing up the streets of Trost as it headed back toward the breached gate.
Three Pure Titans, lured by the commotion of the retreating Armored Titan, stumbled into the main avenue, blocking your path. A 10-meter, a 7-meter, and a crawling 5-meter. Against them was only Mikasa, but that was more than enough. Only the hiss of gas and the wet sound of the blades cutting through their flesh was heard, as your eyes met over a brief instant before the napes of the two larger Titans were cut. The smaller one was crushed to death by one of their heads before falling.
You didn't stop to watch.
The wind tore at your clothes. The heat of your new limb was a constant presence against your side. The gap between you and the Armored was closing; the Armored was fast but not fast enough to evade you.
Without wasting any more time, you took your chance to strike at one of its heels. You saw the world far slower and more calmly than before, though your fury almost seemed to have calmed down. As you reached the heel, you cut, and the same thing happened. The deep cut was now deeper, and the blood flowed more freely as the Armored stumbled. It fell on one knee.
Mikasa's expression almost softened with relief, her hope re-ignited for a second. But you did not share the sentiment. The cut wasn't as deep as you wanted. The Armored continued to defy you.
It rose from its knee, then turned, not with its arm but its entire torso, swinging with a force you couldn't dodge completely. You twisted mid-air, the force of the shockwave almost sent you crashing, but you managed to hold on, though the building you landed on cracked with your impact.
A hit like this one would have previously knocked the wind out of you, but now? You barely felt the force of the impact. Your legs pushed you off the shattered roof almost before it gave way.
The Armoured Titan's charge resumed, its gait slightly altered by the deep gash in its heel. But it was still too fast. Still too strong.
'Again...' The single thought echoed in your mind. 'Again.'
Mikasa was already moving to provide support, her ODM gear screaming as she launched herself towards the Titan's flank, but you were ahead of her. You managed to slip below its arm, cutting one of the exposed tendons on its arm. His arm weakened, but even then, it changed angle. Mikasa had to pull away to avoid being crushed as the arm flailed. But you didn't waste any more time, you slide both blades across its upper chest, the gushing blood blinding him temporarily as you moved towards your next target, the heel.
"Again..."
Your face was now stained with blood from the Armored as you dove down to completely cut its heel. With both your arms, you now managed to do it with greater force than before. The Armored Titan roared, not of pain, but of frustration as its leg gave way again.
Instead of standing up, the Armored slumped onto its hands and knees. Its movement ground to a halt. Steam poured from the wounds, coiling around its body like a shroud.
The world seemed to hold its breath. From behind, you could hear the growing sound of reinforcements. Garrison soldiers, led by Malia, finally caught up.
"Hold the line!" she yelled. "Protect them!" Her command was aimed at her soldiers as they formed a perimeter, their weapons pointed outward at the approaching normal Titans. But then flashes of yellow thunder cracked all around you. The Titan's eyes were widening as their veins glowed red from within...The same thing that had happened before at the gate was happening again.
You ignored the warning; the same feeling that you felt before was not stopping your rage.
"This is for Shiganshina!" You let out your own roar, not to anyone in particular. But for those you could not save. With a final, desperate burst of speed, you lunged toward its other heel.
Mikasa, seeing your attack, moved in sync, her red scarf whipping as she aimed for one of the exposed tendons in its arm. Two-pronged. A finishing move.
It gave out a deafening roar as the blades made contact, carving deep into the unarmored flesh. The Armored slumped fully onto the street, its remaining leg giving way with a wet crack. The impact cracked the stones. A final, shuddering breath escaped its lips as its head came to rest on the ground with a thud.
It was over.
But this time, the victory wasn't complete without the death that the yellow thunder promised. The bloodlust in their veins, now with the Armored defeated, turned towards you. Mikasa was standing on the Armored's head, looking down at you at its heel, preparing for what was to come.
***
The eyes of Captain Kittel were cold, refusing any understanding of the combat situation. "Fight! Kill them!" His shouts were roars but filled with emptiness. He was a dying man screaming at the sun not to set. The garrison tried, all around him hooks latched into the side of the buildings, blades cut into the flesh of the Titans, but the Titans were far too many. They were like a wave that focused only on those who had been brave and foolish enough to try to fight.
Armin stood on a roof, unable to fight properly as he saw dozens of garrison soldiers overwhelmed by the wave of Titans, their screams silenced by the crushing jaws of the monsters. His eyes had seen the Armored fall once more, and he felt completely useless even as Eren and Emelina fought valiantly near him.
Emelina's blades were a flurry of silver, her movements precise but frantic. Every slash of her blade, every swing of her body was laced with a desperate need to be where you were. To protect you, to be by your side. The way that the Titans now seemed to ignore him...Her frustration mounted; what could she do to get to him? She had to get there before...
She saw Eren get grabbed by a Titan's hand. His scream was raw and full of defiance.
"I won't die...not here!" Eren shouted from within the Titan's grip. The other soldiers attempted to free him, but they were all cut down like flies.
Emelina saw an opening, but as soon as she got close, another Titan swatted at her direction, forcing her to pull back to avoid a similar fate. "Conrad..." She muttered, the frustration building into a silent scream.
But just as she muttered your name, your blades, stained with the Armored's blood, cut through the arm of the Titan that had just gotten in the way of Emelina. This allowed Mikasa to rush straight ahead towards the Titan holding Eren.
The cut was clean, deep, and effective. The Titan's arm went limp.
Moments before, you had been cutting the Armored't limbs and joints the best you could, though, its armor was a clear obstruction; the unarmored parts were all you had left for you to cut. But the return of the glowing Titans forced you to act immediately.
Even so, with Mikasa and you, the battle was downhill; you were all cut off, with the empty eyes of Captain Kittel looking at you from a nearby rooftop as he got surrounded by Titans, his last act was to shoot a red flare that made its way to the top of the walls. But the only thing he managed was to get a single titan's attention.
But destiny had not abandoned you all, not yet. A flash of green cut across the three Titans' napes with such speed and ease that it could only be one person. The black hair and small silhouette were a giveaway. It was Levi, with his squad members trailing behind him with their dark green cloaks.
"Move, cadets. You're in the way." His voice held a detached authority that carried over the cacophony. He landed lightly on a roof. Then he noticed you. His gaze flickered for the briefest of seconds. He did not address you directly. Instead, he noted the sheer volume of Titan blood drenching your uniform. Then his eyes narrowed further. He saw the Armored Titan, not dead, but truly crippled. A feat he knew was impossible for normal soldiers.
"Tch," he clicked his tongue. "Which one of you brats is responsible for this mess?" He gestured with a nod of his head toward the downed behemoth.
The cadets, exhausted and covered in grime, simply stared back, unable to comprehend the sudden appearance of the man known as Humanity's Strongest. Emelina's grip on her blades tightened, her exhaustion momentarily forgotten as she took in the small figure who commanded such an undeniable presence.
There was no answer other than the sounds of Titans in the distance. Levi didn't need one.
"You." His gaze settled directly on you now, standing amidst the carnage. Then it drifted towards Mikasa, standing on the same roof. His eyes lingered on the red scarf. His eyes scanned the battlefield one last, dispassionate time before giving you both an order. "Keep fighting, or that stupid-looking stunt won't mean a thing. The rest of the Survey Corps is taking the perimeter. Don't slow us down."
Before another word could be exchanged, he was gone. Eren's expression was filled with awe for a brief moment before the reality of the battle set in again, the sheer number of Titans in the district becoming all too apparent.
The brief exchange also seemed to take Captain Kittel out of his stupor. He realized what he had done, the incredibly reckless order that only the arrival of the Survey Corps could possibly make right. A small spark of shame and guilt fought its way through the haze of combat, but there was no room for any of it now, only a desperate hope that the newcomers would be able to handle the Titans that were quickly swarming the area. His gaze fell upon the Armored's still body, its armor cracked, bleeding from its legs. The sight filled him with a new, desperate resolve. He would not let that monster get back up, and for that, he needed to be there to help.
His face was full of determination as he withdrew from the surrounding Titans, "Malia! Get us reinforcements! We don't let the Armored get up, no matter what!" He shouted with renewed fire. The Battle of Trost would be a victory, not a defeat.
-x-X-x-
Outside the Walls
The horse's hooves hammered against the dirt road; the entire formation of the Survey Corps rushed back to Trost. The faces of the Survey Corps soldiers, each one etched with the weariness of battle and the knowledge that the city that they had left could now be overrun with Titans, but none of them let their fear stop them. The reason for their return was one that had changed everything. They had seen the flare from Trost; the Armored was inside the district.
"Commander, are you sure about this?" A Scout asked; the concern for the other soldiers that they had left behind was evident.
Erwin's reply held no sentiment of doubt. "Soldier," He began, his gaze on the road ahead, as if he could already see the devastation that awaited them. "Your comrades stayed to give us this opportunity to take down the Armored Titan. To see it slip through our fingers now would make all those sacrifices worthless."
The Commander's words did not comfort but instead reinforced the resolve of the soldiers. Each one held onto their reins with a new determination. The Scouts had to be the ones to end this. The speed of the horses did not decrease for a second.
Erwin had sent Levi's squad ahead of the main force; he fully expected the Armored to be making its way to the gate, unstoppable. The only plausible objective was a coordinated attack, aiming for unarmored sections, using all the artillery and explosives available to them. However, the suddenness of the attack would mean that it was a matter of chance whether they would arrive in time to provide the support needed to bring it down.
As soon as the regiment approached the gate, he signalled for the right and left wings to attack the remaining Titans on the Gate. Levi's squad had managed to cut enough of them down to make the approach easier, but they still needed to fully secure the perimeter. As soon as contact was made with the Titans, the battle cries, screams, and hisses of gas could be heard; they fought as they had been taught. Each of them was now doing their part to take the city back.
However, he cared not for the Titans on the perimeter; he only wanted to get to the Armored. Defeating him meant not only the survival of humanity, but also another step towards breaking free from the Walls that had imprisoned them for a century.
"Forward!" The roar came from a scout next to him as the group approached the gate. The sight they beheld was that of pure devastation, but also of unbelievable hope: the Armored was down, truly down, its legs mangled, a sight he thought would be impossible, but here it was. Not only that, but a small group of survivors, a mix of cadets and garrison, were still trying to fight the wave of Titans that surged all around the monster.
Erwin's eyes held still for a long second. 'The probability of the garrison managing to achieve this on their own....' He knew that he hoped the best for humanity, but after facing the many hurdles of the world, hope was a commodity he had to be sparing with, 'One in fifty.'
Yet, here the hardened blonde man felt hope spark in the depths of his stomach; it was a small thing, easily crushed, but it was there. A seed of possibility that could grow into something more. The Armored was down. That was enough to hold on to. He raised a hand, his lungs filled with breath as he gave the order.
"Soldiers of the Survey Corps!"
"The Armored Titan has fallen!"
"Seize this moment! For every life lost beyond these walls!"
"Advance!"
The soldiers gave out a roar of approval, the sight of their Commander's conviction giving them the last bit of will they needed to fight for their lives. The sight of the downed Armored Titan, the impossible dream, now made them stronger.
Their ODM gear latched onto the walls and roofs of the inner district. The sheer number of Titans was an issue, but the arrival of the Survey Corps' main force turned the tide. They moved like wolves, cutting down the Titans one by one, showing the results of the painful and costly accumulated experience.
The battle was now being fought on two fronts: the Garrison and the remaining cadets trying to deal with the final swarm of Titans around the defeated Armored.
***
Around the Armored Titan
"Die! Die! Die!" Captain Kittel yelled at the top of his lungs as he cut down a Titan with renewed purpose. The shame of sending those soldiers to their deaths, the shame of not listening to the concerns of a soldier like Malia or even Rico...It all fueled him. He had to make this victory count. He had to.
His new sword, fresh from the supply wagon, glinted in the afternoon light, the Sun almost about to set. The tall walls provide ample shadow that would soon limit the activity of the Titans. 'If we hold until night...' He thought, but upon seeing the Survey Corps, he realized that it may not be needed anymore.
At the same time, you finished off another Titan. Your blades were now empty once more; however, a line of supply had been set up thanks to the supply corp, Altisia included among them. She hurriedly and anxiously managed to push through to the center of the field, passing Mikasa and Emelina along the way to meet you. She pushed a fresh set of swords your way. But her eyes looked past you, unable to maintain eye contact.
"Here...Fresh blades..." She stammered out, her hands moving quickly. The ginger hair that framed her face was slick with sweat.
You took no note of her other than to grab her blades and a new gas canister, your attention elsewhere. You scanned the field of dead Titans, a grim harvest of flesh and steam. The Survey Corps' arrival had shifted the battle's entire dynamic; what had been a desperate last stand would soon turn into an overwhelming victory. However...
"The Armored, it's healing!" Malia shouted.
Your gaze sharply turned towards it. But it wasn't a mere heal, its entire body was steaming more than before; too much, but you saw no movements. With each second, the vapor blurred your vision; whatever it was attempting, it made its muscles shrink, and its armor turn brittle. 'What was happening?'
Was it defeated? How could it? You thought that after so many cuts, its regeneration must have cut down significantly. But then, as you saw, the muscle gave way to bone. It made no sense, but then you saw the armor around the nape break away. The steam thickened, the unique scent of the Titan filling your nostrils.
Then you saw it. It was a brief moment. The briefest of moments. A moment longer or shorter, and you would have completely missed it. Something...Someone was trying to get out. You saw the back, the arms, and the head of a person. A person. A human was inside the Titan.
Your mind stopped working. The question wasn't "How could it be?" That was a useless thought. The only question was "Who?" Who was it?
The steam made it difficult to see. A flash of blond hair. Or perhaps it was brown? The fog from the Titan made it impossible to tell. But within your mind, you put two and two together. Your earlier regeneration with the regeneration of Titans. You wasted no more time; you rushed straight towards it. The new blades and gas are coming in clutch, as you were the only one who had spotted the human inside the steam.
The closer you got, the more you could see. Not only was it a human...It also held on its hips the ODM gear of the garrison corps. You had no time for second thoughts; you immediately cut through the steam and latched onto the Armored Titan's, your blades ready to cut the human, to stop it before it transformed again. That's when you saw it.
The face.
The face of the person you had known for the entirety of training, and even before. The face of a friend and comrade. The face of Reiner Braun. The face of a man you admired and respected. His face now was covered in tears, but not those of a warrior crying for a fallen brother, but the tears of a monster.
"Reiner..." The word was a question, an accusation, a plea.
"Conrad...I..." He tried to speak, but the steam was still too thick.
You were engulfed with rage once more. It was now a new type of rage, a personal one. A betrayal. You felt your new arm tremble, not out of fear, but out of the need to kill the traitor who had brought this upon your world, upon your home. Your family, your friends, the fallen soldiers. All of it. Was it for him? For this? This monstrosity?
"REINER!"
But before you could cut him down, a pair of dark green cloaks landed between you and him. You felt the hand of Captain Levi on your new arm, a grip that was almost as strong as yours.
"That's enough, Cadet." The Corporal's voice was level, almost bored. He wasn't even looking at you. His eyes were on Reiner.
"The mission isn't over yet," He said. Then he let go of your arm as if it were a piece of dirty laundry. He gave a quick order to two of the soldiers from his squad, one with a copper head and another with dark blonde hair. "Secure him. We need him alive."
He held onto your arm until you finally came to your senses. The rage within you subsided, but not the feeling of betrayal. The world suddenly spun, and you looked at the scene in front of you: the Armored Titan was turning into bone and then disintegrating into steam and dust, the Garrison soldiers who had given their lives were now scattered across the ground, and the Scout Regiment had secured the city, but at what cost?
"Conrad...Reiner...How?" Mikasa's own question came from behind. Her own face showed confusion, but the glare in her eyes spoke of betrayal and anger.
Her words were enough to snap you out of it. But before you could answer, you saw someone's silhouette running away from the scene. You had no more time to see them as they managed to get away too fast. But you had the one you had to question in your hands. The traitor who had caused all this. You turned back to face Levi, but the Corporal was no longer there.
"Secure the area," You heard the booming voice from the Commander of the Survey Corps. Erwin.
You saw the blonde man with a stern expression on his face. He was now the one in charge. He looked at you, then at Reiner, who was now being held by Levi's squad. His expression did not waver for a moment.
"The battle isn't over! We must still drive the remaining titans out of Trost!" Erwin's command cut through the lingering chaos, rallying both Scout and Garrison soldiers still on their feet. "Finish them!"
That's when Eren appeared, his jaw dropping, upon seeing Reiner held captive by the scouts. "Reiner...He...? That can't be." He looked at you for confirmation, or maybe he was asking for a denial.
You didn't have any answer for him. Your attention was now drawn towards the Armored's now skeletal remains. The situation left you wanting answers. Left you wanting revenge. But...The Commander was right. You would get your answers later. The Titans remained. You still had a job to do. But you could feel the unnatural heat in your new arm...a question was raised, but it was one that you would have to answer later, after you helped take the city back.
-x-X-x-
At Night
The dawn of the night was the sole signal of victory for humanity. The setting sun had left the city of Trost in a state of bittersweet victory. The Titans were now gone, either dead or with their activity slowed down enough that the remaining forces of humanity could easily cut them down without much issue. The streets were left in a state of ruin, but they were now free from Titans. Meanwhile, the remaining Titans outside the walls were now inactive, allowing for reinforcements to arrive from the rest of Wall Rose and the interior. The bodies of the dead were being collected and piled up. The Garrison and the Survey Corps were now in a state of exhaustion after the battle.
"VICTORY!!!" A soldier shouted at the top of his lungs after the speech from Commander Pixis. The victory shout soon turned into the entire surviving soldiers of Trost shouting the same word. "VICTORY! VICTORY! VICTORY!"
The city's bells rang out, announcing the victory to the remaining soldiers. Even the refugees who had left the city cheered and celebrated at Humanity's victory, even if there could be no return to a state of normality. At least, not until the southern gate was repaired.
The scene around you was a strange mixture of celebration and desolation. On one side, soldiers were clapping each other on the back, tears of relief streaming down their faces, some even breaking out into joyous, off-key songs as they carried their wounded comrades to makeshift infirmaries, and some finally allowed themselves to cry their hearts out for the losses suffered. On the other hand, the moans of the injured and the silent, still forms of the dead were a constant reminder of the price paid for this 'victory'.
But this did not feel like a victory. Not for you. This was a betrayal. A betrayal of a friend. The knowledge of a friend turning into the very monster you had sworn to kill. This was not a victory.
You stood on a rooftop overlooking the city. The moon cast a pale light over the city. Your new arm already felt entirely natural, the strength thrumming beneath the skin a constant, disquieting hum. You clenched your fist, the motion smooth, the pressure immense. The memory of flesh knitting itself back together was fresh, a film playing behind your eyes that you couldn't shut off.
All afternoon and what had remained of the night, you had fought with a ferocity that startled even yourself. Each Titan you killed had Reiner's face. Each cut you made, you wished that it were his neck.
You felt a presence behind you.
"Conrad," Mikasa's voice took you almost by surprise. You thought that she would be with Eren or cleaning up, but she was here. Her scarf, dark against the night.
"Mikasa," You turned.
"I was asked to...to ask if you were alright," She said, though her face suggested she was the one who had wanted to ask.
"Do I look alright?" You said, the bitterness is a taste like ash in your mouth.
"No." Her honesty was a blade itself. "You don't."
She took a step closer, the only sound the soft scrape of her boots on the roof tiles. Her gaze drifted to your new arm, now indistinguishable from your other. "Your arm...Eren said...He said he saw..."
"He saw, so did the others," You told her, "He must think I am a traitor like Reiner too." You turned your back on her.
"That's not true." Her words were quick, a sharp retort, but then she softened. "He doesn't...He is worried. We all are. You are not like Reiner." She reached out, her fingers hovering just above the new skin of your arm, not quite touching. She pulled her hand back. "This has to be different."
"It has to be," You repeated the words, a bitter echo. You thought of Annie again. Where was she? And what would she think of this? Krista? Adelaide? Would they look at you and see a monster, too?
The thought made your stomach clench. You hadn't seen any of them since you'd charged after the Armored Titan. They were probably at the headquarters or helping with the injured.
"You're thinking about them, aren't you?" Mikasa's voice cut into your thoughts.
You didn't have to ask who she meant.
"They'll understand," She said, her certainty as solid as the stone of the Wall around you.
"How can you be so sure?" The words were torn from you, almost defiant, still angry at Reiner, at the Titans, at yourself for being this thing. "We don't even understand what this is."
.
---------------->
.
Her scarf was wound around her neck. She traced the frayed end of it with her thumb. Then she placed her hand over yours. It was a hesitant gesture, but her touch was firm. "Whatever it is," She stated, her gaze fixed on your new arm. "It helped save them. It helped save Eren."
Then she shifted slightly, her gaze moving from your arm to your face, a fleeting, almost imperceptible movement. "We saved them." Her fingers tightened around yours. You felt a spark race through your hand to the rest of your body at her touch. You turned around to see her, her face so very close and her lips fuller.
You had noticed the connection between the two of you the moment that you fought against the Armored Titan. Her movements, your own, the way you synced...The two of you became a whole in a way that you could not understand. It was a terrifying, yet exhilarating feeling, a sensation that was so very different from what you felt for Krista, for Addie, for Annie. The connection was buried deep inside of you, and yet it burned with the same heat.
Mikasa let out a huff as she saw your face, noticing the new energy in your expression. The magnetic tension pulling the two of you closer made her cheeks flush with a color that you had only seen in a few rare moments. The stress of battle, the relief, the betrayal of a friend, and the confusing miracle of your arm. Almost everything faded away as a directive within you, a desire you did not know you had, that almost got in control.
But then you realized that this feeling wasn't just because of what the two of you had just gone through. No, it was something else. Something that had been lying dormant within both of you and had just been awakened. For a moment, you felt as if you could have kissed her and damned the world away. You held strong. You had to. You weren't the kind of monster to fall into your desires without a second thought, not when the ghosts of today's sacrifice would haunt your nights for years. You were better than that. At least you hoped you were.
You let go of her hand. Her fingers lingered for a second before falling to her side. The space between you, now charged with a tension that had no name, was almost as heavy as a Titan's corpse. She turned away from you, her gaze fixed on the moon. The silence was not awkward; it was the kind of silence where two people understand each other without needing any words. Your connection was now something that you both had to deal with later.
"...Krista and Adelaide," Mikasa finally spoke, her back still to you. "They were at headquarters when last I checked." She didn't ask if you wanted to see them. She just gave you the information. That was Mikasa. Her own feelings didn't come before her understanding of what was important to you.
Going to headquarters could be a death sentence if the rumor of your arm had spread. But you had to go. This connection with Mikasa would have to wait, for now. You had to see them. You had to see if they would see a monster when they looked at you.
Without another word, Mikasa fired her hooks and disappeared into the night, leaving you alone on the roof with your thoughts. You looked at the arm again. The moonlight caught on the new skin, giving it an almost ethereal glow. You flexed it again. The power was there. A power you didn't ask for. You were now a monster, but one with a choice to make.
You took a deep breath and leaped from the roof. The journey to the temporary headquarters would be dreadfully short.