Chapter 11

The graduation ceremony was upon them.

After three years of training, they had finally done it. The top ten were predictable, knowing everyone's skill set, it was no surprise when the top ten were announced.

Eren stood at fifth, under Mikasa, Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie. The people who placed below him were Jean, Marco, Sasha, Connie, and surprisingly Christa.

These ten had gotten the top spots. Eren wasn't necessarily trying to get the top spot, but he realized that it may come as a benefit. Most had labeled him a suicidal idiot for desiring to join the Scouts. Although he was against it, Mikasa and Armin would most likely follow him into the Scouts as well. He didn't want them to join really, thinking their talents to be of better use somewhere else. However, He could work with this and even bend it to his will.

After the ceremony, the cadets gathered for drinks. It was a time of celebration. However, Eren couldn't help but feel displeased. Most of the cadets made it known they were joining the Garrison, with those in the top ten desiring the Military Police.

Eren was half tempted to smirk. Both desired to get away from the conflict that was the Titans, but in doing so they were going to get caught up in a more worse conflict.

A conflict between humans and other humans.

Eren honestly was surprised no conflict erupted before, that was until he learned of the First Interior squad.

He would have to overcome multiple hurdles, but if the knowledge he has, as well as the resources, he was confident he could pull through.

Not to mention… his unique power.

That opened up a whole other problem, future problems that would be best handled later.

Regardless, he leaned against the wall, mug in hand. In this brief moment of respite, he let it all bare down on him.

In a few days, it will be exactly five years.

Eren couldn't help but swell with anticipation at the coming events. Although he didn't know for sure, he had to trust his instinct and believe both Reiner and Bertholdt were not what they seemed. And if there was any better time, it would be on the anniversary of when wall Maria fell.

He couldn't help but stare at them discreetly. They seemed like they were getting along with the other cadets. Eren had to wonder if they were simply child soldiers, forced into a role unbefitting of them.

He half mused that they may not go through with it, but squashed the idea. They had lived outside of these walls, betraying that to stay here? Well, Eren knew what he would have done.

"And where are you joining?" One cadet, Thomas if he recalled, turned towards his direction.

The general vicinity grew quite. It was pretty well known what 'the suicidal idiot' would join. However, seemingly forgetting who he was talking, Thomas suddenly realized what he asked. He made to retract his statement, however, Eren changed posture.

This change of posture allowed him to be straight back as he addressed the room but made it as if he was answering Thomas' question.

"I'm joining the Scouts. Not because I want to die, but rather I desire change. I believe it is an honor and takes extreme courage to go against the status quo. The Scouts are trying to make a difference, they are at least trying to make a difference. That's more than the Garrison and the Military Police have done combined. Really, when you make your choice, it comes down to two things.

"Are you willing to run, or fight?"

Silence dominated the hall they were using to celebrate in. Eren, deeming he had spoiled the mood, decided to retreat outside for a breath of fresh air. He sat on a stairway, looking at the stars. It didn't take long for the two people he expected to arrive.

"You guys are joining the Scouts as well, aren't you?" Eren spoke without taking his gaze off the sky.

"Yeah." Armin said as he sat down. "We want to fight too."

Eren gave a sigh. Perhaps it was hypocritical. He really didn't want them joining the Scouts. He held no sentiment values for them, he simply believed their efforts would be better placed somewhere else.

Them, and the people around him were tools after all.

Stop that.

He mentally winched at his attitude. He swore he would do things differently, to not be the monster he had become in the past life. However, no matter how he approached the problem, the path remained the same.

He was and always will be The Führer.

Nothing can change that. He can act like he cares, he can make moves that take in the consideration of others, but it all boiled down to how he felt.

Nothing.

Not for these people, and not for this world.

Perhaps there were only two people he truly cared about, but they were in another world resting six feet under.

Eren wondered why he went along with this stupid plan of saving this foolish race.

He didn't know why, but he just did. Perhaps he wanted to see the outcome or have a challenge, or perhaps he wanted a purpose in this world.

He almost scoffed at the last idea.

"Well, I can't stop you." Eren responded to Armin. "If that is your desire, then who am I to stop you?"

The bells tolled as the men and women on horseback strode outwards towards the outer gate of the Trost district. Towards the Titan infested lands.

Eren, along with a few other cadets, gazed upon the Scouts as they made their way towards the gate. Eren could read the faces of a few. Some felt fear, while others had the face of knowing an impending doom was awaiting them. However, most seemed to hide all their feelings behind a stoic mask.

They must have been the veterans.

The gates soon opened, allowing them to leave. Soon the crowd began to disperse. Eren recalled that the Commander after Shadis was named Erwin Smith. Due to his efforts, casualties have decreased significantly. Considering the situation the Scouts always found themselves in, Eren had to give the man his respect. He didn't know if he could have done that simply with the vertical maneuver gear.

"Well, if it isn't the runts from way back then." A voice that Eren hadn't heard for a long time spoke up.

Hannes, the man who rescued them, as well as left his mother to die. He didn't know how to feel about him. On one hand, he could say he felt something for his mother and felt a twinge whenever he thought of her. So by all means necessary, he should despise Hannes for leaving her to die.

However, Eren's logical side kicked in, realized that Hannes didn't have the skill to take on a Titan single-handed, and saved Eren in his moment when he broke his Führer facade.

"And if it isn't the drunk from way back then… Say, I hear you became a captain. How did that happen, did you out drink the last captain?" Eren gave a half-hearted jest towards the man, which caused him to laugh.

"Why, don't think so poorly of me!" Hannes said with his signature wide smile, however, his face became downcast when he spoke his next line of thought. "I wanted to better myself. I haven't forgiven myself… for what happened back in Shiganshina. So, when those Titans come back, I'll be ready."

Eren looked at the man for some time. Finally, sighing through his nose, he gave a small smile.

"I look forward to what you will do."

And with that, Eren was off.

It was the day, the fifth anniversary since the fall. No one spoke about it, whether they forgot or simply didn't want to, Eren didn't know or cared to.

He was on the wall with the cadets who had cleaning duty. They would soon be choosing which corp they would join. So, it came as a surprise when they mentioned the Scouts.

"I guess your speech got to them." One boy spoke up. "Some are considering the Scouts because of how inspiration you were."

"Oh, shut up!" The bald head Connie spoke up. "Who said that it was him that made us decide? I am choosing the Scouts because I want to!"

Everyone broke into chuckles and talks about how they would slay Titans. Eren couldn't help but put on a fake smile, at least for their sakes.

He didn't know their skills, but he could tell cannon fodder when he saw it.

They most likely wouldn't survive a Titan encounter.

As if jinxing him, it was at that precise moment that the Colossal Titan appeared out of nowhere. Eren was half expecting him to show up, but when there were cadets on the walls? If Eren had assumed right, then that could be Bertholdt inside there.

Considering the flash of green lighting, signaling that it was a Titan transformation, the Colossal Titan had to be human. And just by looking at his eyes, Eren confirmed without a doubt.

Bert was the Colossal Titan.

Eren didn't feel betrayed. No, he was long past feeling betrayed, the emotion left him back in his old life. However, he was irritated. He thought Bert had some kind of compassion. The boy had lived with them for at least three years, did that not warrant some kind of sympathy?

Regardless, Eren reacted quickly when the Titan appeared. He tried at first to rush him but was quickly blown back by steam.

He realized that it was not only him but everyone that was caught in the blast. His training kicked in and he reached for his device. Using the handles, he maneuvered in a way that allowed him to hook onto the wall. Most of the cadets followed suit, except for one who appeared to pass out.

Eren was content with allowing the kid to fall, however, Shasha appeared she wasn't. Eren really didn't bother to see if the girl caught him or anything, his focus was on the top of the wall.

He debated what to do.

The decision came quickly. He wouldn't kill the Colossal Titan. No, he needed the person who could transform into it—and he highly suspected it was Bert—alive so he could interrogate him. What he would do is just test out the beast's combat capabilities, as well as give him a little warm-up as no doubt Titans would soon flood Trost District.

Eren propelled upward without any words, going straight to the top. He slid to a stop as he reached to top of the wall, observing the Titan who first started it all. Eren narrowed his eyes in disdain, a little disgust erupted from him.

This was the same person who kicked down the wall. The same person who sent that debris flying. The same person who trapped his mother under that debris. Any way Eren looked at it, this Titan was the sole reason they were suffering. He had no doubt that the Armor Titan could break the gate, but the fact remains that it was this Titan that started it all.

And for that, Eren was a little upset.

The Colossal Titan moved first, bringing its large arm up, it slammed down on the wall, quite a ways from Eren. However, it began sliding its arms across the top. Eren knew what he was doing immediately as he made way to get out of the trajected path. The Colossal Titan completely ignored him as he took out the mounted guns on top of the walls.

He recalled how some cadets claimed that the cannons were upgraded, making them more precise and deadly. Eren recalled that the cannons had in fact been added barrels that had rifling. The spiral grooves were the first thing that Eren suggest Rommel and his industry make.

Somehow, someway, someone else had the idea. Apparently, it wasn't rejected. Regardless, the cannons were now more precise.

This, obviously, could lead the Garrison to take down Titans while engineers fix the hole the Colossal Titan made.

Eren gave a smirk as he observed the Titan finished off the cannons in the location. Even if the Titan was Bert, it was still someone who had to be inside the walls. Someone who knew that the guns were upgraded.

Granted, it could have been anyone, but regardless it showed that there were infiltrators in the walls.

Eren stopped his thought process as he shot out a hook that embedded itself in the upper bicep of the Titan. Reeling himself in, he landed on the forearm as the hook detached. Running across the arm towards its head, he noticed the movement of the Colossal Titan was slow.

He saw the hand coming for him a mile away. Jumping off the arm to avoid the other hand that tried to swat him like a fly, Eren maneuvered his way up towards the nape of the neck.

So far he wasn't impressed with the combat abilities of the Titan. It was slow, however it made up for that in size. It could literally trample towns, but regardless, an air bombardment was all they needed to end this monstrosity.

Eren was half tempted just to off the man inside the nape already. Even going as far as to latch onto an area near the nape. But as he reeled himself in, he noticed another characteristic of the Titan.

Steam seemed to erupt from his muscle mass, causing Eren to be unable to reach him as the force pulled him back.

He gagged as some of the steam entered his throat, and he gritted his teeth in irritation.

Nevermind the bombardment, the thing would just blow any projectiles away.

Soon the pressure released. Eren, noticing the change, realized he could reel himself in. Thinking it best to end such a threat he went for the nape. But as he cut to what he thought was the nape, he only sliced apart steam. He was somewhat shocked at the development. The Titan could form and disappear as it pleased? It didn't leave a carcass as his did?

Eren gave a tsk as he landed on the wall, looking down at the two large footprints, as well as the massive hole within the wall.

The footprints all buts suggested that the Titan appeared out of thin air, and disappeared just the way it came. Eren looked around, trying to see if he could find anyone flying below to signal that they were the Colossal Titan.

The steam blocked his view of anything, and when it finally did dissipate, there was nothing.

"Did you get it?!" A voice called up from the wall. "Did you kill the Colossal Titan?"

Eren bit back a sarcastic remark, desperately wanting to tell the person if he saw a 60-meter corpse of a Titan below them.

"No… it just disappeared. The same way it came." Eren barely managed out as he looked down, already seeing some Titans approach from the horizon.

Soon they would enter Trost.

Normal people would feel frustrated at this development. Hope would seem to be fleeting as the monsters known as the Titan invaded human territory once again. However, Eren was of different thoughts. He was already working through the possibilities.

He had a vague Idea as to why they were attacking. They couldn't risk a direct attack, consider what exactly was inside the walls themselves. Eren had a fleeting feeling that the walls were these people's greatest defense and offense.

Regardless, he knew they were in search of something. Waiting five years just to gather information seemed inefficient. They must have, no, Eren knew they were in search of something.

He couldn't help but think this as he and the rest of the cadets made their way back to HQ before the Titan menace invaded the city of Trost.

Was it him and his power they were after? Or perhaps something else? Come to think of it, why hasn't the king who has lived in secret—Riess, Eren recalled—done anything? Were they trying to draw him out of hiding? Eren knew the man was evasive despite being able to contact the government. Even with Rommel and his influence, it was difficult for Eren to track the man's movements.

Well, it was of little concern to him at the moment.

He couldn't help but give a smirk as a plan began forming a plan. It looks like his time table would be shortened, seeing as how today would be the day that everything Eren has been planning finally comes into motion.

Oh well, Eren was getting bored of waiting, so it shouldn't be surprising when he had a full blown smile on his face as he thought of all the future possibilities.

It was a good thing everyone was focused on the Titan invasion and not him as their view of him would have most likely change.

"You're up next!" A Garrison squad member spoke to Eren and the group that was with him.

After the breach, a small squad of Garrison soldiers were dispatched to hold off the enemy while they form a plan as well as a line of defense.

In the briefing, the captain had told them that the main priority was evacuating citizens. They were to form three lines, the vanguard consisted of all Garrison members, the second line would be all cadets, and the third would be the rear guard consiting of the elites of the Garrison.

It was natural to save the strength of the best, so if any Titans did break through they could handle them with ease.

It was one of the reasons why Mikasa was sent there, while the rest of the 104th training corps was sent to the second line.

Cadets were put into squads consisting of five members. It was putting it lightly to say that the cadets were shaken up. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the Garrison members station at Trost was little. To make up for that, the cadets would have to join the fight.

Meaning, what happened five years ago won't happen. No civilians will be killed.

Now it was the time to do what a soldier was meant to do. Protect their nation and destroy the enemy.

However, Eren couldn't help but glance at Armin and the rest of the members in his squad as they got ready to launch off the rooftop they were currently on.

Eren recalled how Armin was a shaking mess as he tried to fill up his gas canisters. At the time, Eren could offer little solace, but now he knew he had to act if he at least wanted the members in his squad to be able to move.

"Five years ago we lost Wall Maria, and over 250,000 lives were either directly or indirectly taken due to the Titan attack." Eren began as he walked over to the launch point. "Today, the same thing could very well happen. However, I believe, unlike last time, there is some hope."

The squad gave him some confused looks.

"What do you mean?" Mina, if Eren recalled, spoke up.

Eren gave a smile, one that was meant to disarm, towards his squad.

"Because this time we are here."

He will admit that it was cheesy, but he really thought it would have improved his squads moral. It had, in a way, but he had forgotten that even with moral their skills were still standard.

It was all he could do to refrain from sighing as he saw the abnormal jump at them and swallow Thomas whole.

The vanguard had done a terrible job. From their initial jump, he could count numerous Titans already past the vangaurd's line. Meaning they had done a horrible job and a lot were slipping past them, or the more likely option of them being completely obliterated.

It seemed that was what everyone thought before the abnormal snagged Thomas.

"The enemy has broken through the first line of defense!" Eren said as he drew his blades from his scabbards and took off towards the Titan that had eaten Thomas. "We are now what lays between them and rear-guard. While they number in few, those in the back are skilled. However, they can still be overwhelmed. That's why we have to stop the Titans here!"

Eren thought he did a good job at persuading them, considering they were following him. It wasn't like it came naturally to him, his charismatic character. It is just the fact he has played the role so much in his past life that he had gotten quite good in spurring the crowd.

Eren had a derect path towards the Titan that had eaten Thomas. He had thought that if he slew it, it may negate the negative effects of having a teammate, someone whom they had eaten, trained, and talked with being killed right in front of them.

However, he noticed some movement right below him. Changing course and exhibiting moves that would have put him in first place of the training crops, he dodged the 5 meter Titan's bite that was aimed at him.

He didn't waste any time.

Rebounding off the wall he used at the focal point to dodge the Titan, he stumbled to the road in a roll. The Titan seemed ready for him, as Eren was soon meant with a large hand as he came out of the roll.

Thinking quick, he jumped back as he sliced, severing all the four fingers that were outstretched to grab him.

He once again exhibiting pro like reaction as he shot both hooks into the Titan's eyes, efficiently blinding it.

Eren reeled in the hook and took notice that the Titan didn't seem affected by pain. It was interesting how each Titan was different in regards to how they operate, but he supposed that was natural that not all Titans would be the same.

As he dodged the aimless grasps of the Titan, he shot a hook behind the building of the beast. Realing in, he decided to forgo any complex moves. Simply picking up momentum, he sliced his blades straight through the neck of the Titan, decapitating it and severing the nape at the same time.

He landed on the nearby roof. He gave a slick tsk as he looked at his blades, noticing they had become dull just from that one encounter. It looks like he had used to much force, and decapitating the Titan put a lot of strain on the blades. It looks like if he wanted to preserve his arsenal he would have to be more careful.

Screaming took him from his inner musings as he looked around. He raised his eyebrows slightly at the sight before.

While not high, he still has some expectations for his group. Yet, it seems like they couldn't even last a minute.

He saw with slight regret as each and every member was eaten or torn apart. He would have saved them if he could, the benefits of having someone in your grace was always a bonus. However, if he had to choose, he knew that it would always be the person who would be the most beneficial to him.

So without hesitation, he ignored the screams of his squad as he headed towards Armin who seemed in shocked as a Titan lifted him up towards his mouth.

Eren made a split decision. He could have killed the Titan and saved Armin, however, he discerned that now was the best time to enact his plan.

How had this happened?

He was suppose to go to the interior in just a few days time.

Jean cradled his head as he grit his teeth regarding their predicament. They had been called out to act as the second line of defense, however, considering the amount of Titans they had to face it seemed like they were the first line.

It was probably true, considering the Vanguard had been eliminated without lessening the burden on the cadets. And now, after everything was said and done, the order to retreat was given. The problem was that the cadets who were assigned at the supply depot hadn't given them any supplies. So, without any gas, they won't be able to make it towards the walls.

Most of the cadets had gathered up on the rooftops. If anything, it hindered the Titans slightly, enough to give them time to move to different roof tops. However, this process was depleting their gas storage even faster. A few braves soles had tried to make it to the walls. But everyone saw them snatched from the sky before they even made it.

Jean had thought of making a break for the depot, but he saw that it was surrounded by Titans.

It clued him in on exactly why those assigned there weren't exactly supporting them with supplies. They were either too afraid to make the run or simply dead.

Jean gave another groan, thinking he was going to die here. He was so close to becoming military police so he wouldn't have to deal with this, yet here he was.

He heard the sound of gas usage signaling that someone was using their vertical maneuver gear. Thinking that another fool was trying another run for the walls, he looked up. Only to be surprised to see Mikasa of all people land on the rooftop. He recalled how she was sent to the rear guard. However, his confusion was brief as he recalled how attached she was to the fool know as Eren.

Eren and he had come to terms. An agreement that they would always disagree. It was simple, they would keep their tongues to themselves, meaning they wouldn't confront directly. Didn't stop them from doing sideways taunts by saying things that were meant for each other indirectly.

Regardless, Jean had discerned Eren and Mikasa's relationship. It appeared that Eren had no sexual interest in her, however, Mikasa displayed huge levels of affection towards him. So it was easy to say that the love story was one-sided.

Jean won't deny that he found Mikasa attractive. To the point where he really believed he was in love with her. However, after three years of watching her practically fond over Eren, it didn't take an idiot to figure that his chances with her were practically zero.

He had, in some way, gotten over her. He was still attracted by her, but not to the point where he would draw pictures of her in his bed…

Anymore, at least.

Still, it shouldn't have come as a surprise that she came for Eren.

However, he thought it strange. He had see Armin but not Eren…

He recalled them being in the same squad so why…

Oh. The realization hit him and it, quite frankly, stunned him. Eren had been one of the top ten, yet…

"Where's Eren." Mikasa went straight to the point as she spoke to Connie, as he was the closest person for her to approach.

"Eh... " Connie hesitated, seeing the cold glance that Mikasa was giving. "I don't exactly know… but Armin's over there…" Connie pointed to Armin, who was leaned up against a chimney, head cradled in his hands.

Mikasa said no more as she brushed off whatever Connie was going to say next. She walked over to Armin and began to speak.

"Armin." Her words seemed to pull Armin from his inner nightmares. "I'm glad your still alive."

Armin looked up as he saw her squat so she was on eye level. She had a smile, the genuine smile she would only show to Eren and him. He began to tear up as he realized at what exactly he would have to say, and what she would ask.

He couldn't look her in the eyes.

"Armin." Her words were smooth, yet he heard the hesitance in them. "Where's Eren?"

Armin could barely keep down his choked sobbed. He gritted his teeth as tears streamed down his face.

"Thomas Wagner, Nac Tias, Mylius Zeramuski, Mina Carolina..." He shouted out as he began, but hesitated a slight second near the end. "And Eren Yeager. These men and women gave their all in the fight against the Titans and laid down their lives for all of humanity!"

It was all Armin said as he held his head in his hands once again. While it wasn't confirmed, some had fleeting ideas that Eren had been eaten. Some thought that it would be hard to kill him, even holding out hope he had survived, however, it seemed reality was of differing thoughts.

Armin had no clue what Mikasa would do. He knew just how attached she was to him. Even going as far as to disregard the retreat order to come look for him.

So it was a shock that he found her so calm.

"Okay." It was her response. A simple 'Okay'. Armin looked up, ready to demand an answer as to why she wasn't mad at him. As to why she wasn't crying and screaming Eren's name. But one look in her eyes made Armin understand.

Her eyes looked like that of a dead person's. They held no more emotion. She had hidden her feelings behind a mask, but now she didn't need one. She held no more emotions.

"What's the situation?" She continued on, ignoring Armin as she moved forward.

"We are low on supplies, our gas won't let us make it to the walls." Marco spoke up "We could probably make it to the supply depot to replenish, but it is surrounded by Titans…"

"Okay, so we break through." Her answer was simple, yet it shocked all the cadets that could hear her.

"Are you serious?!" One cadet spoke up. "How do we get through all those Titans?!"

This erupted into more complaints. They shouted negatives, like how they were suppose to get to the depot. Others cursed the cowardice of those at the depot. A few cried as the situation became too much.

"I'm strong." Mikasa didn't raise her voice, but it was the power of it that stopped the speeches of the other. "I'm strong. Stronger than all of you. I'll go to the depot, alone if I have to. I will kill all the Titans in my way and survive."

She looked back one last time before she jumped and shot out a hook, propelling herself forward.

Everyone was in shock at how she could say something like that and go back out there where the Titans were.

"Damn" Jean swore under his breath. "Come on! We can't let her show us up!"

He stood to his feet "Follow me if you don't want to die!"

Jean soon ran after his crush, causing a domino effect of everyone doing the same.

"Ugh, I don't want to die!"

"We can overpower the Titans!"

"Let's do this!"

Armin followed suit as well, observing how Mikasa led the way, slaying any Titan that came into contact with her.

However, at the rate she was going all her gas would be used up.

Armin's eyes widened at the realization of what she was doing. Her rate of gas usage all but suggested it.

She didn't plan to come back alive.

Armin bit his lip as he followed after her as soon as he saw her run out of gas and plummet from the sky.

She recalled his look.

It was cold when they first met as if she was just a burden needed carrying. She realized she was weak.

Weak enough she couldn't even pay him back.

He had saved her and what had she done? She tried. Every waking day she would try and make up for the endless debt she owed. It wasn't a hassle for her, no, she quite enjoyed the time she spent with Eren. But this cruel world put it to an end.

There was beauty within this world, Eren all but proved this to her. Although he treated her like a sister, she saw him more than that. She never once thought it was love and certainly not an obsession. She simply regarded him in high light. However, if he were to wish for them to take a further step in their relationship…

The sound of the gas being admitted stopped, breaking her from thoughts that should have never been present in the first place. She fell to the ground with quite the grace. She was lucky to land on a tarp overhang that broke her fall.

She stared at her blade, having broken long ago. Her thoughts were of Eren, but most importanly, the fact that she lost her family not once, not twice, but a third time. Once with her blood father and mother, a second with Carla and Grisha. And now a third.

Eren.

He was gone.

Never to come back.

She heard the thump and felt the ground shake. She stared hazily towards what looked to be a fifteen-meter class Titan. It was fat, having a large belly hanging over his legs. She sat up, not even bothering to look at the Titan after the brief glance.

She simply thought it was it, and awaited the inevitable feeling of being grabbed and soon eaten.

"What are you doing?"

Mikasa glance over at Eren. He had the makeshift wood carrier over his shoulders, looking at her skeptically. "You're crying."

He stated it nonchalantly as he nodded towards her.

She brought a hand up to her eyes and discovered what he said was true.

"These flowers." She went back to looking at the bright white budding flowers. "We grew them outside our home."

Silence followed after what she said. It would seem like Eren didn't know what to say, and apart of her wished he wouldn't say anything. While he had saved her, he had never experienced loss like her.

He didn't know how she felt.

"It's painful to lose someone close to you." He spoke as if he was familiar with the topic. "However, to do nothing but simply cry and weep is spitting in their image."

"Get up"

"Fight."

She burst to the side in an unnatural boratherost of speed, swiping the broken blade towards the Titan that had reached out for her. Her attack did nothing more than add a paper cut to its finger. In the breif respite, she found the resolve to fight back. She was about to turn and run, but fate wouldn't deem her lucky. Another Titan came, blocking off the only way to escape.

Mikasa knew that this was it, but rarther than sit down and do nothing, she would die fighting. She would never give up, as that would surely disgrace his image.

If she were to die, who would remember what he did for her? Grisha was gone and the MPs never suspected it.

Right, it was only her. It was their own secret. The fact that he killed to save her and she killed to save him. They both had stained their hands with blood, but regardless of that, it was to save simple children.

No, that memory couldn't be forgotten, it couldn't be lost to the tide of times.

With new resolve, she grabbed the shattered sword with two hands, facing the original Titan that had come at her first.

With a fire now lit in her eyes, she screamed as the Titan came to her.

Only for her's to be outdone by the Titan behind her.

His roar was horrendous, and it left Mikasa grasping her head in pain at it being so near to her. But that shock wore off to complete and other bafflement as the Titan that had roared began to beat down on the much more fatter one.

Mikasa stared as it opened with a punch, stunning it and pushing it towards the ground. The Titan, who she saw was fitter than its counterpart, had elongated ears and an unusual, jagged lipless mouth, showing two offset rows of teeth. As soon as the fatter Titan was on the ground, the Titan that knocked it down brought up its foot and slammed down on its nape, efficiently killing it as it brought its foot up and down to ensure it was dead.

It stopped only once it confirmed that the Titan was dead. However, before Mikasa could do anything, a force grabbed her from behind. She had first thought it was another Titan but realized that it was Armin.

"Mikasa!" He shouted as they landed on a roof. "Are you okay?!"

Mikasa could only stare at the head of the Titan, as the roof allowed them to be on a somewhat eye level. The Titan seemed to regard them for a moment, if the slight tilt of the head was of any indication that he was listening to them with one of its elongated ears.

"We got to run!" Another voice spoke up. "There is literally a Titan in front of us!"

Mikasa turned to look at who was speaking, seeing that it was Connie.

"No, that one's different." Those were the only words she spoke as she returned to look at the beast. "It saved me."

"What do you mean?" Armin asked.

"Okay, then chalk it up as an abnormal and get out of here." Connie intervened.

However, Mikasa ignored both. Instead, she saw the Titan's ears twitch and shifted its head towards an alleyway. At that precise moment, another Titan emerged. It walked up to the Titan with a stupified look on its face.

The muscular Titan gave a huff of steam, shocking the three cadets as it took a combat stance with raised arms.

The Titan seemed to lose it, beginning to roar as it charged the one with a combat stance. The clumsy attack resulted in its demise, as a haymaker was thrown its way, completing separating the head from the lesser Titan's body.

Before it could fall, the Titan that just decapitated the other Titan used the hand that wasn't healing from the recent attack. It grabbed the nape and squeezed, crushing the nape with it. It was all it took as the Titan fell over limp, disintegrating into a cloud of steam.

"That... Titan seems to possess some form of combat knowledge!" Armin couldn't help but say in awe. "But not only that, it knew the weak spot…"

The three stood on the roof in awe, until Connie spoke up.

"S-Shouldn't we go? I mean, now that there is no more Titans won't that thing come for us?"

"No." Mikasa spoke with determination. "It won't harm humans."

She said it as if it was fact. Armin couldn't help but look at her and notice a change in her demeanor. Suddenly, a thought occurred to Armin.

"If it is true that this Titan only kills other Titans…" Armin trailed off as he stared at the Titan. He had thought it was looking at them, perhaps listening. "...Then if we can lead it to the depot, it could take care of the Titans outside!"

"Yeah." Connie spoke up. "But there seems to be a problem, Mikasa is out of gas."

Before Connie could even finish his sentence Armin was immediately at work. Switching out his canisters, he gave Mikasa the rest of his gas.

"Don't worry." He said, a determined look on his face. "All you need to do is slay any Titans in the way. I have a theory that the rogue over there will go to the closest area congested with Titans. The supply depot."

"But… What about you?" Connie asked.

"Don't worry about me." Armin said, holding up a shattered piece of a blade. "Just leave this for me and…"

Before he could continue, Mikasa walked up to him and grabbed the blade. Throwing it over the edge, Armin scampered after it, only to look at it as it plunged to the ground.

"Mikasa!" He shouted. "I would rather die then get eaten alive!"

"Shut up." Her stare became cold as she looked at him. "We're not losing anyone else today, you got that?"

Armin couldn't help but feel dismay. Truth be told, he had a guilty conscience. If it wasn't for him, if he hadn't froze, then Eren wouldn't have…

"Don't worry! I can carry you!" Connie said as he placed a hand on his bicep, posing in a manner that said he was strong.

"B-But you'll be unbalanced!" Armin weakly protested.

"Well, if Mikasa does all the fighting, then I only have to focus on keeping my balance while carrying you. Plus, you weigh, like what? One hundred?"

Armin didn't even bother to answer as he grit his teeth, doing nothing but looking down.

"Come on." Mikasa grabbed his arm, tugging it along. "This is your plan. You have to see it through. For all our cases."

Armin's eyes widen as he realized just what he was about to do. It was his fault Eren died, and he was just about to as well. He was going to leave Mikasa all by herself…

Shutting his eyes so the tears wouldn't fall, he opened them back up with a new fire in his eyes.

"Alright, let's go."

Eren had made a split decision. He could have killed the Titan and saved Armin, however, he discerned that at that time, it was the best time to enact his plan.

He recalled flying through the air, his target not the nape, but rather the maw of the Titan.

He had just arrived when he saw that the Titan had picked up Armin by the back of his trainee jacket. Eren waited for a mere second to allow the Titan to drop Armin into its mouth. Acting quickly after the fact, Eren shot forward to the mouth. Reaching it, he grabbed Armin's outstretched arm, seeing as he had apparently woken up from his shock, he was desperate to climb out of the throat of the beast.

Eren gave a helping hand. Pulling with all his strength, he launched Armin forward, all the while holding the mouth open of the Titan.

He would admit, the Titan's jaw was strong. He was barely able to hold it open, with his strentgh fading. He actually gave a soft snort. Even if he had wanted to jump out, the strength at which the Titan was biting down wouldn't let him.

As soon as he tried to leave, the absence of his pseudo reverse clamp would cause the Titan to bite down instantly, with him only being part way out of the jaw.

He could have tried to keep it open as he tried to get out, but there was no guarantee his strength would hold or the Titan would allow that to happen.

So, with a bittersweet smile, he looked at Armin, who seemed to realize just what was happening. Armin shouted at him, reaching for him, but all Eren did was retract his strength and allow the Titan to bite him.

He lost an arm in the process. A lesser man would have gone into shock, but for Eren it was of no consequence.

To be honest, he was quite curious as to what the insides of a Titan were. They had no digestive system, so in theory, if someone were to be eaten whole it would not be the concept of being eaten that kills them but either the acids or the unbreathable environment that was a Titan's stomach.

When Eren finally reached the pit that was the Titan's stomach, he realized that it wasn't much. Simply a large room with waist high fluids. The fluids themselves didn't sting like acid would, but rather was a putrid smell. The fumes were making his head dizzy and, if he hadn't the adrenaline of having his arm being bitten off, he may have succumbed easily to the fumes themselves. In which case he would either die of lack of oxygen or simply drown.

He didn't know if it was better to die by blood loss from being eaten bit by bit, or suffer the slow tormented hell of being suffocated.

He was already once almost killed by asphyxia, so he wasn't into much of a hurry to relive the painful moments of not being able to breathe.

He half wondered if Armin would question a giant emerging from a Titan, but figured the boy was in shock from seeing his best friend eaten alive. If Armin froze up when seeing people he had only known for three years die, Eren didn't doubt Armin was up there motionless after seeing the spectacle that was Eren's death.

So, with a deep intake of breath, that resulted in him coughing due to the stench, Eren "willed" himself to turn.

Bursting forth from the corpse of the bearded Titan, Eren's Titan emerged. Elongated ears twitched as his staggered, lipless mouth opened up to release a burst of steam. He took a sideways glance to confirm that Armin was in fact out of it. Arm still outstretched, he only looked forward as tears fell from his eyes.

If Eren could, he would probably give Armin his pity. But a part of him realized that if he couldn't transform, then his sacrifice would have been for nothing, as the Titan would have taken him next if he just sat there.

Eren was broken from his thoughts as he saw a shadow move out of the corner of his vision. He looked in the direction to realize one of the five meters had jumped in the air much like a frog and was going directly for him.

Eren mused that it was strange that the Titan would attack him. Did he not look like their kind? Perhaps they relied upon a smell system, and they could tell that Eren's Titan housed a human within the nape.

All Eren did was lift his fist and let gravity do the rest. The speed and velocity at which the jumping Titan was at allowed Eren's fist to completely penetrate his skull, going straight through the mouth and out the nape.

A one shot kill.

Eren flung the remains that had gotten stuck on his arm off, allowing the now deceased Titan to decompose by means of steam. Eren theorized that he could take on any Titan individually, but it would start to get difficult when he had to fight in groups. Unless he had an effective weapon to use in his Titan form, the only way to kill the Titans were with his bare hands.

Well, Hugo had taken a liking to building a ginormous sword. He even mentioned armor, saying that if they added some steel to the already hard Titan skin, it could become an unstoppable war machine.

Eren thought of how much more effective it would be to even have something like a club, seeing as the hand he used to punch that leaping Titan was pretty much obliterated and in the current process of healing.

His regenerative abilities, he would say, are above average of a regular Titan just from the information he was able to glean so far. It seemed like if he was able to focus on one bit, it would speed up the part significantly. For example, if he let it be, the hand would regen part of the skeleton, then the muscle and finally the skin all at once. Whereas it would simply be faster to focus on regenerating the skeleton then the muscle and then the skin one at a time.

Rommel, Hugo, and anyone else involved in the resreach they did on his Titan figured this out. Eren was quite confident that he knew almost everything about his Titan.

As he went along, slaying Titans, he conducted quick experiments that would have been otherwise difficult, liking having multiple injuries inflicted at once, and how long it would take to heal.

But he soon realized that the longer he took, the more people would die. It's not that he cared much about the people and their lives', but rather the fact that their deaths could be far more useful in a different situation.

His first target would be the supply depot. He had seen some Titans gather around it from a distance. From there he could conclude what had happened. Those inside couldn't resupply the rest of the squads outside since they were either afraid or the simple fact that the enemy surrounded them, and there was no way out without getting caught.

Plus, the higher-ups would most likely monitor the situation and notice the cluster of Titans near the depot.

It would be a perfect stage for his performance.

It was on his way that he discovered Mikasa. He immediately reacted by killing the Titan that was aiming for her. To lose a valuable asset like her would have been a major defeat for him.

It was there he overheard Armin's plan to use him to take care of the Titans surrounding the depot. He was impressed with Armin's ability to come up with plans on the spot right there. The boy was most likely still had thoughts on Eren's "death", so for him to come up with, albeit simple, plan was impressive to Eren.

And that was saying a lot, as Eren was rarely truly impressed. It made him think of what a benefit it was to have befriended the blond hair boy.

Regardless, he was thankful for the plan, as Mikasa's skill showed in taking down Titans that were distracted on him. It allowed him to preserve energy for the fight he knew was about to go down. It wouldn't be too simple, as there would most likely be a group of Titans, all varying in sizes.

It was the worst case scenario, but the fact remained that he would still have to fight them. So, while he may be only armed with hands and feet, he still had one thing superior over the mindless Titans.

The fact he could think and therefore use tactics in the upcoming fist fight.

As Eren tripped a Titan on the floor and quickly stepped on its nape, he noticed that Mikasa felled the last Titan in his way.

The path to the depot was clear, and Eren took the opportunity to have a running start.

He would catch the nearest Titans, a pair of fifteen meters, by surprise. As Eren past by, he quickly observed that many of the windows were broken, indicating that some of the cadets had made a break for the depot.

Eren was glad for that, since if they were already in there, it meant that he would have to wait for them to arrive.

Eren reached his targets who had just broken a side of the wall of the depot, he jumped up and thrusted his fist forwards, connecting with the first Titan. The Titan, along with its partner, were flung back on to the ground. Eren, who was still in the air, put his feet forward. Aiming carefully, he landed directly on the chest of the Titans, smashing the cavity along with their napes.

Eren gave a low growl that emitted steam. Pressure like this would build up often and it significantly helped to release it. The only thing Eren could compare it to was how people screamed during fights. It somehow relieved them to allow them to continue.

Well, Eren wasn't a scientist, so instead of focusing on the biology of his Titan, he instead turned to face the Titans that were coming around from the other sides of the depot. He had counted at least twenty when he was nearing the depot and currently six were in front of him. A quick glance showed that two were approaching from behind.

Deciding it would be best to get rid of the threat first, he went forward. Two five-meter classes were ahead of the pack. Bringing up his leg for an axe kick, Eren brought it down, completing destroying the Titan and forming a crater. Pivoting on his now stump of a leg, he used his good one to kick the other five meter Titan. It was sent flying into a house, and Eren could only hope that the impact destroyed the nape.

Getting up on his leg, he focused on healing the more damaged one, however, his attention was brought to the four other Titans. Two appeared to be seven and ten, while the others were confirmed fifteen.

They were close together, so fighting them individually was out of the question.

If he beat two with his hands, he suffered being unable to do anything with the others. Eren decided he needed a weapon, so in a split decision, he punched the taller of the two titans that first appeared him. The punch didn't cause any damage to his hand, but that was also in turn to the fact that the Titan he punched received no damage.

No, Eren wasn't going for anything major, he had just wanted the Titan out of the way. The smaller one, seven meters, ran towards Eren with the intent to bite down on him, if the open mouth was of any indication. Eren reached out and grasped the Titan's skull with both hands.

He then applied pressure.

The skull caved in to his superior strength, and in the brief moment the Titan was stunned, Eren reached down and grabbed it by the ankles. Lifting it up, he swung it forward in a vertical manner, having it collide with a fifteen meter. The impact resulted in both Titans napes destroyed, evaporating into nothing more than steam. The other fifteen meter came in first, hands outstrecthed to grab Eren.

Eren dodged both hands and brought a hand forward. He forwent clenching his hands to form a fist, but rather left it straight and jagged so there would be more penetration.

The result was that his hand past through the chest of the Titan and out the nape due to his angle of entry. Granted, his hand was now nothing more than a stump, leaving him vulnerable to the ten-meter class Titan that had just recovered from Eren's previous blow.

Well, Eren would have been vulnerable if he hadn't planned out everything beforehand. He still had one good hand, using that to his advantage, he will be able to take out the ten meter Titan.

Standing straight, he lifted his foot and kicked out towards the Titan rushing him. His kick connected with the other Titans knee, causing it to shatter. This, in turn, made the Titan stumble, allowing Eren free access to the nape.

Using the hand that wasn't destroyed, he dug his hand into the nape, destroying it.

With the Titan corpses now nothing more than carcass and pile of steam, Eren turned to take on the two that had come from behind, only to feel pressure on the back near his shoulder.

Eren let out a low growl to show his disdain. The Titan had arrived faster than he thought. Was it the miscalculation of his fight? Eren grabbed the entity on his back and flung it forward. It pounded against the ground, causing a crater for what once was a road.

Eren's eyes widen slightly at realizing that this was not one of the ten-meter class Titans that were behind him. Looking in the direction, he noticed that the two Titans numbers had tripled. With the one that he had just dispatched, it looked like he would have to fight six opponents once again.

The only problem was that four ranged from seven to ten, while the last two looked like thirteen and fifteen respectively.

This would certainly be a challenge for Eren, but it would also be a great learning experience.

The cadets were sprawled around the storage units that contained the gas, each one filling their fill of canisters.

The mood was significantly better compared to a few minutes ago. Thanks to the Rogue Titan outside, they didn't have to fear ten meter or fifteen meter Titans breaking in. All they had to do was take care of the smaller ones that were able to fit in the doorways. And with the plan of Armin Arlert as well as the skill of some of the top ten in the 104th, they were able to defeat the Titans and finally be able to make it up to the wall.

The mood was drastically better, and Armin could feel it. However, he was not of a happy mind. While he was ecstatic that his plan had actually worked, there was still the fact that the death of Eren weighed heavy on his mind.

He pondered on what he could have done but soon realized that it was foolish. He could think on the "what ifs", but the fact remained that in the heat of the moment they all made decisions. Going back and criticizing them was easy, but making the right decision at that very moment without any forethought was extremely difficult.

And yet, Armin couldn't help beat himself over on how he had just sat there and let the Titan grabbed him. Perhaps if he was stronger…

Armin shook his head as he put down a full canister and moved on to the next. He was thinking about what ifs again.

"Armin." The voice that Armin least wanted to hear right now spoke to him. "How did… How did he die."

She hesitated at first, but in the end, Mikasa was able to make her statement clear.

"He died saving me." Armin was surprised he didn't stutter. That he didn't hesitate. He now knew that he had to become stronger. He had to, if he wanted his personal dream to come true.

It was selfish, but it was perhaps the only thing keeping him together. By having a vision in mind, a goal to work towards, it allowed him not to break down.

He would see the ocean. All three of them.

Armin's eyes widen as the thought subconsciously ran through his mind. It was now impossible for all three of them to see the ocean.

"I… see…" Mikasa drew out hesitantly. Armin was fully prepared for an outburst. He was prepared for her to yell profanities, for her to proclaim it should have been him. However, he knew that wasn't in Mikasa's nature. "I'm glad you're still alive, Armin."

Armin was shocked at the response, but slowly came to an understanding. She didn't blame him. Armin understood this better than anyone as to why she didn't blame him. Because if Eren had died to protect Mikasa, he knew he wouldn't blame her for his death.

"Alright!" Marco's voice spoke up from within the confines of the basement. "We got almost all our canisters filled! We'll be moving out in five!"

With that said, many of the cadets began to get ready, and soon five minutes passed.

Many of the cadets immediately made a break for the walls. It seemed that despite there having been perhaps more than twenty Titans, most were gone. It bugged Armin how they all disappeared, but then he remembered the Rogue and turned to go to the nearest roof. It seemed he wasn't the only one with this line of thought, as he saw Mikasa, and oddly enough, Jean, Annie, Reiner, and Berthold. He could understand why Jean would follow Mikasa, but the other three?

Now that he thought of it, Reiner had been persistent on learning about the Rogue Titan… So it shouldn't come to a surprise that he wanted to see it.

As Armin landed on the roof near the others, he immediately looked for the Titan that had saved them all. It didn't take long, as all it took was to notice the many pillars of steam surrounding one individual.

The Rogue Titan that had saved them was in bad shape. The entirety of his left side was gone, even to the fact that his ribs were showing. He was on his knees as his legs had yet to heal, using his one and only good arm to hold a five-meter Titan at bay.

It could have been seen as comical, seeing a fifteen meter Titan swat a five-meter Titan around like a fly, but the Rogue only showed irritation. Finnaly having enough, he let the Titan come in close, only for it be knee'd in the head as the broken legs had finally healed. Atleast one of them, in any case.

Balancing on the only good leg, the Rogue used the remains of a stump that was his other legs to spear point the nape of the five-meter class.

The five meter spasmed for mere seconds before it layed still, steam erupting from everywhere on its person.

Silence became dominate as the six observed the Rogue. It was then that the Titan made a jerking motion with its head, presumably to look at them.

Armin heard Jean mention something about leaving it to die and getting out of there, but it was interrupted by the screeching roar that bellowed from the Titan's throat.

Once it was done, the Titan gave a heave of built of steam, covering its entire face.

It could be seen as intimidating, because through the steam they could only see the piercing glow of green eyes as it stared at them. For the first time, Armin felt true and utter fear. It was a different fear from the one he felt when the Titans were invading.

No, this fear was one that chilled him to the bone. One that made him want to cry, vomit, and scream at the same time.

Because in the deep pit of his stomach, he saw intelligence in the Titan.

And that was what he truly feared.

Only for the fear to die down and turn into shock as the Titan emerged from the steam that it blew. But it did not walk away from it, but rather fell.

He fell down, unmoving, and began to evaporate into a pillar of steam like the rest.

Armin had thought the Titan was dead, as the only indication that their kind had died was the amount of steam that erupted from them.

However, that wasn't the case, as he soon saw something emerge from the nape of the neck.

And what emerged would forever change the fate of mankind.

All had gone according to plan. Initially, Eren had wanted a way for him to reveal his powers so that he could operate in the open. There were many consequences that would result in him showing his powers, most negative, but the few that were positive would do for the time being.

He knew that it would seem odd if he just randomly transformed, so he elected to be eaten. He knew Armin would reveal the news to the others, and although Eren disregared how they felt on the matter, a small part of him knew it must have been cruel for those who had gotten close to him.

It mattered little to him in the end, the feeling of others. What mattered was that he brought attention to himself, and the higher-ups on the wall saw what happened. How he fought agaisnt other Titans and how he revealed himself inside the nape.

Granted, he did pass out after exerting that much energy, the only thing he could recall was being cradled in Mikasa's arms. However, what he wanted was acheived.

Now he woke up, sitting on the ground supported by Armin. Right in front of him was Mikasa and further beyond was a line of Garrison troops who had their swords drawn and even guns pointed at him.

He was a little shocked that they would so brazenly keep him in the open like this, after seeing what he had done. If he was in command, he would have locked the shifter underground, but it seems that the Garrison relied heavy on the cannons he knew were also trained on him.

He could transform and kill everyone in front of him, perhaps even the initial onslaught of cannon fire, but to do so would go against his already blooming plan.

But now came a part he knew he would despise.

He had to let things play their course.

He couldn't intervene or manipulate for that matter. The conclusion would have to come at the behest of those his influence couldn't reach. Normally, he would be hesitant about something like this, but Eren knew what the deciding factor would be. Armin. He knew the boy, with his intellect, could get them out of this situation.

"...human or Titan!" Eren was brought back to reality as a voice cut through to him. Eren looked up to see the man who had briefed them on the Titan invasion of Trost those few hours ago. He had the appearance of a man who was scared, but was doing his best to hide it. All those around him faired worse. They seemed to be riddled with fear, believing that the boy in front of them was a monster.

In some way, they were right.

"I'm human!" Eren was quick to respond. He could have tried to play dumb, but he was quite tired. The day's event was weighing on him, and he just wished it to be over.

"Don't bullshit us!" The man yelled. "We all saw you emerge from the nape of the Titan! Now, if you don't tell us what side you are on, we'll blow you to Hell!"

Eren narrowed his eyes. He wouldn't be able to convince them, he knew this, that was why he resorted to his trump card.

"Don't worry Eren." Mikasa spoke. "If they do anything, I'll just show them how good I am at slicing up meat…"

Eren gave a glance at Mikasa. If his plan failed, she would be his failsafe. Granted his failsafe was more of a "search and destroy", meaning he would, bluntly put, kill anything and anyone that would get in his way.

But if he desired things to go more smoothly, he had to follow his first plan.

"Armin… What do they mean?" Eren asked the man who supported him.

"You mean…" Armin hesitated. "You don't remember."

"It's vague, fuzzy at best, but I get the feeling these guys won't let me off easy."

"Yeah." Armin agreed. "So, what do we do?"

"... Convince them not to kill me?" Eren offered. Essentially, he wanted Armin to tell them just how much of a benefit he could be to humanity. He couldn't do it himself as he was currently being seen as a monster, and nobody desired to fall for the devils lies.

"Times up!" The man in charge yelled out as he lifted his hand and abruptly threw it down.

Damn, Eren thought as his calculations were slightly off. He expected the Garrison to be rash, but this quickly was unexpected.

Regardless, he knew he had to act fast. Mikasa came running near him, knowing that a large caliber of iron was soon to head their way. However, before she could grab Eren and scale the wall like she intened, he acted first by grabing her arm. She was about to protest when Eren clutched Armin and brought them close.

He then brought his hand up to his mouth. Giving a slight scowl in disdain for what he was about to do, Eren bit into his right hand. Bring forth the desire, the will, he let the transformation and thought of "blocking the cannon fire" take over.

The shifter mechanism were really simple. Just like the demon said, it required the will to do something. However, the will could be translated into different things and the transformation would impact that. Say if he wanted to pick something up, then the transformation would only make a Titan arm, hand, and fingers to pick up an item.

Eren discovered it saved energy this way, only doing a partial transformation to complete a task.

So with the idea of blocking, only the top portion of his Titan was made, extending an arm that blocked the cannonball that was otherwise directed at the trio.

It took little time for Eren to break free from the cords that bound him to his Titan.

The steam from the corpse made a good concealer for Eren to make his way to Mikasa and Armin who were safe inside the ribcage of his Titan.

They seemed shocked, for lack of better words, at the delevoplemnt of the Titan. It took little time, but they soon came back to their senses.

It was there that Eren revealed that Armin would have to do the talking, seeing as Mikasa didn't hold any expertise on the matter and they had already proven that they wouldn't listen to Eren.

Armin seemed hesitant at first, which Eren knew stemmed from his development of how he was treated as a child. But it was merely a brief passing. The support and encouragement that Eren had given in the past had developed Armin far more than ever.

Perhaps in a different timeline, it would take the convincing of both Eren and Mikasa to get him to go out there, and even then he may still be doubtful.

However, this is not that timeline. When Eren said to go out there and convince them to not kill them, Armin did so without a second thought.

Tired and beaten down, Eren could only give an amused smirk as Armin spouted off how Eren was the key to humanity, how he would be the new hope that everyone desired.

The last thing Eren saw before he drifted off to sleep was a man stop the sub-commander from issuing the order to fire upon them again.

It came to no surprise to Eren that when he awoke he was on top of the wall again. It appeared that Armin had done it.

In the past, Eren would have held doubt of letting someone handle his own fate. He would have taken whatever option was convenient to him, after all, it was his life, he didn't want to trust it to anyone else. But it appears that Eren's speculations were correct. Armin's excellent persuasive ability coupled with the fact of human curiosity got him this far. It was an extreme gamble by his measures, and Eren hated when things weren't one-hundred percent guarantee.

He could deal with surprises, as they were apart of the human variable, but if he could avoid gambling, he would very much like to not do it. Especially if his life is on the line.

Granted, Eren wasn't without his contingencies. If those weren't in place, then this whole secerio wouldn't have happened.

Regardless, it didn't take long for everyone to be alerted that he was up.

Apparently, the man who had stepped in was Commander Pixis, the supervisor for all of the Southern districts Garrison troops.

Upon arriving at Trost, he was informed of the developments and hastily head over to where Eren and the others were.

It appeared he was a man who sought reason and saw the befit in which Eren provided.

"...and then Eren will plug the gate with the blouder…" Armin gave his plan. When Eren had awoken, Pixis requested Armin to go over the plan in which he stated 'would take back Trost district'. Apparently, that was part of the speech Armin gave, but it was during the time Eren was desperately trying to fend off the sleep, only to be overcome with it.

A pity he missed it, but not desperately regretful.

But the plan was set in stone. Eren would be escorted by the elites of the Garriosn, including Mikasa, where he would plug up the wall. The other soldiers would show their usefulness by acting as bait and getting all the Titans in one corner of the wall, so they wouldn't interfere with Eren.

The plan was simple but effective, and Eren liked it.

Now all that was left to do was execute it.

Eren gave a somewhat disdainful look at the way Pixis gave out his speech. It wasn't one that demanded entire loyalty, but rather one that demanded a certain obligation. If they failed here, then they failed everyone else within the walls.

It wasn't the manipulative way Eren, as The Führer, would have chosen but it was of little concern. The plan was laid bare and they would begin immediately.

It took little time for most of the Titans to get congested into one corner of Trost just like the plan called for. These were mindless creatures, only heading to the spot where most humans were located. Being baited into the corner, it would allow some releif on Eren and the elite squad in regards to how many Titans they have to deal with.

As they traveled across the wall, one of the elites spoke to Eren.

"Just know, I don't fully trust you." The women, Rico if Eren recalled, spoke to him. "However, if you can plug the hole of the walls, it will mean that those who died for us wouldn't have died in vain."

Eren just looked at her. He had many automated responses he could have given in this situation, but staring into the pink hair women's eyes, he knew that whatever he said would have not mattered. In her eyes, there was only two things she saw in him. If he failed, all their comrades' deaths would have been in vain, and the men who died for him would have done so for no reason. However, if he succeeded, then their deaths would mean something.

Eren didn't care about much about the 'meaning' of death. Every death had some kind of meaning, in Eren's eyes at least. The men who died during the invasion slowed the advance so the civilizes could flee. Now the men who would die for him, even if he did fail, they had to try.

If you could push back an enemy that had never been defeated before, would you back out because the plan was uncertain? Would you retreat because, if it meant the death of a few troops, success was not certain?

Eren didn't like gambles all too much, and for the Garrison, this was definitely a gamble. They were relying on an unknown to potentially change the course of this battle.

Would Eren, if he were in the place of the Garrison, choose what they had done?

The answer would be no. Eren would never trust an outside source, also, Eren strongly believed that he would have never been pushed this far back by meager, mindless Titans.

But that was simply Eren's thoughts.

It mattered little in the long run, just a minor inconvince.

Eren knew he would succeed, so it wasn't a matter of 'if', but 'when'. These thoughts ran through his head as they broke off from the wall, coming upon the closest route that would take them directly to the boulder.

It was a massive boulder. A piece of the gate that the Colossal Titan had kicked apart. It would be large enough to plug the hole, and hopefully heavy so that no other Titans could move it.

A part of Eren, as they neared the boulder, realized that the Armor Titan hadn't shown up.

If that were the case, then does that mean they found what they were searching for? A part of Eren realized that it was perhaps him and his power they were searching for, but that couldn't be all.

Regardless, taking into account that since the Armor Titan didn't smash the inner gate of Trost, they must have been intrigued by him. Eren didn't know what their objectives were, but he knew that one of them must have been him. They would allow him to plug the wall, as a test of some sort to see if he was something to fear.

Eren gave a smirk as a long gone emotion rushed forth to him. Excitement flowed through his veins as he neared the rock.

Now then, Eren thought, let the first act of this play truly begin.

Eren then bit his hands as he transformed into a Titan.

"There he is."

"Yeah."

"Undoing all that hard work you did to put a hole in that wall."

"...Yeah."

"G-Guys…"

"Marco… You… heard?"

"W-What are you talking about! W-We need to regroup, come on!"

The three boys simply stared at each other.

"Marco… You heard."

It was all Reiner said, and Marco, making a half attempted to defuse the situation, ran.

He was caught.

Desperately pleading for them to at least give him a speaking change, they didn't.

Three figures watched as their teammate was left to die by their hands. And another figure, who was on his way to support Eren, watched from the shadows at the revelation that was revealed.