So, let's recap. I certainly need to.

The situation, as it stands, is like this: there are Titans within Wall Maria's territory. How they got there is unclear, if they had taken anyone victim was also unclear; but what is clear, however, is that the refugees need to be brought to safety and the Titans purged as soon as possible. Tomas, one of Mike's subordinates, had come as quickly as he could to bring us the news, and we set off without delay to Ehrmich District to help.

Oh, and by the way, there are also Titans hidden away inside the walls themselves (but that was a problem for another time, as awful as that was to admit).

...That wasn't all, by the way. Oh, no. Things get worse. Somehow, Pastor Nick knew that there were Titans within the walls, but if he knows anything other than that Christa Lenz needs to be kept safe, he did not offer the information willingly to us - not yet, anyway.

Mike and a few select other squad leaders and commanding officers he oversaw were in charge of watching the recruits from the 104th, for - aside from Mikasa, Armin, Eren, and Jean, the boy meant to be his double in Stohess - the others were to stay out of the mission to capture Annie. And right now, of course, they were in great danger.

Had enough yet? Too bad, because there's more. Levi was hurt, obviously, we still had at least two intelligent Titans at large, and... what else? Oh, Hange secured the background check she requested on Annie Leonhardt, revealing that, go figure, her family records were spotty at best.

The listed area she was from was within Wall Maria, which of course was lost to Titans. That would explain the lack of family listed, and lack of family we could go to for further investigation. But interestingly enough, two other soldiers of the 104th were from the same area who were also enlisted Survey Corps soldiers: Reiner Braun and Bertholdt Hoover.

That information sparked plenty of unrest and shock and a million other conflicting feelings among the younger soldiers with us, and I was left to wonder why until it was stated that Reiner and Bertholdt from the start had been told that Eren was in the right wing of the formation. That was, of course, where the Female Titan had attacked from.

If that wasn't enough, it seemed that during the expedition, Reiner had been very interested in where Eren really was in the formation. Armin had told him, but at the time they were much too far away for the Female Titan to possibly hear. It would certainly be possible that, as Armin said, Reiner could have told her while trapped in her hand.

Like before, Eren refused to believe they were involved in this, but here we had three soldiers from the same area, and assuming they all had Titans... Well, it was certainly possible it was a coincidence, but it was pretty damn unlikely. I learned not to rely on things like coincidences. Few things in life really were that simple.

Besides, there was one way we could know for sure.

So, that gave us even more incentive to find those soldiers and make sure they weren't lost to Titans... or, worse yet, tempt them into turning into their Titans if they were able.

I eased my weight from side to side, doing what I could to stay warm. For a spring night, it was sure to be chilly, and it wouldn't do me any good to get cold. These young soldiers were counting on us to lead them. As far as seasoned soldiers went, Hange, Moblit, and I were it for this fight. We'd be leading the charge, and as such, I had to stay warm, and I had to stay ready to jump in to help whenever necessary.

The plan was strong, it was clear, and everything was ready. "Everyone understand?"

A chorused reply of enthusiastic answers affirmed that our soldiers were eager and ready to go. One, it seemed, was more enthusiastic than the rest. Eren headed for the door eagerly, and if we weren't careful, he was sure to start bouncing off the walls soon. "We've got to get going!"

"Calm down, Eren," Levi said, finally calling attention to himself from his place against the wall. "You all listen, too. We're going our own ways now. The rest is up to you. Erwin may have thrown together your squad, but everything's riding on you."

Oh, these kids are lucky. They were getting a motivational sort of talk from Levi already? Goodness, he gave these far and few between. Even our own Special Operations Squad only received one altogether once or twice. For these kids to get one, and individualized at that... I did what I could to hide my smile.

Levi liked these ones. That was clear.

His eyes of steely blue found Armin's, which in this light were closer to the shade of a summertime sky. "Got it, Armin? Work with Hange and combine your knowledge."

"Y-Yes sir!"

I couldn't help but notice incredible similarities between Mikasa and Levi when he turned to face her, now. "Mikasa," he said, "I don't know why you're so attached to Eren, but use the utmost of your ability to protect Eren at all costs."

"Yes sir," she replied. "Of course!"

"And finally, Eren," Levi said coolly, the very picture of ease and yet conversely, of power, of pride. "Learn how to restrain yourself. Don't succumb to rage and lose sight of the goal. We can't afford another mistake."

"Yes sir!"

As a group, they went for the door again. I knew I had to follow, I knew I had to be the leader they needed me to be, but I waited for everyone else to leave before finally looking over at him, only to find that he was already looking at me. There was an expectant sort of look in his eyes as I crossed my arms and looked at him with something not quite unlike a smirk.

"You forgot someone, love," I said, soft enough to let him hear all the love in my voice, but loud enough for him to hear. He clicked his tongue in annoyance but held a hand out towards me. I crossed the room and as soon as I was close enough, I took his hand. He pulled me in and I obliged, leaning in to press a quick kiss to his lips before drawing away. "Any advice for me?"

A well-natured, low chuckle escaped him, the quiet sound reaching my ears easily in the otherwise silent room.

"I didn't think you needed any," he told me. "You certainly don't need any help being a good soldier, nor a good captain." His words, well-meaning yet genuine, made me smile, but before I could reply, he continued. "But if it's advice you want..." He paused and reached up with one hand, tucking some loose strands of hair behind my ear. "Think of those brats as something you want to steal."

I laughed openly, but even through the silliness, the comparison not lost on me. "I should return to my roots, then?"

"You were a damn good thief," he reminded me. "In and out, silent and deadly."

My laughter died out but my smile remained, genuine and warm. "Are you trying to butter me up for something?"

"No," he answered. "We just don't fight apart often."

"There's no need to worry about me," I assured him. "I'll come back to you, safe and sound." Knowing I was already on borrowed time and that I needed to get going, I took his face between my palms and drew him in. We shared another quick kiss, and when I pulled away, his eyes met mine. "I promise."

"Come back in one piece," he told me. "I love you."

It didn't matter how many times he said it, because every single time he did, a swarm of butterflies alighted in my belly and filled my heart with warmth. "I love you more than I could ever say," I said earnestly. "See you soon, Levi."

With our words of parting left hanging in the air, I turned and left the room at a jog to catch up with the others. We mounted up quickly and set off into the night. As Hange requested, I was up front with them, and it was exactly where I wanted to be, as well. Up front with Hange at my side, I could jump right into the fighting, and for another thing... with their constant prattling, it was sure to keep me focused and keep me awake.

"There's a tower nearby where we can access the wall," Hange called to everyone. "It's in an abandoned castle to the southwest. We'll ride to Utgard Castle."

I found myself, during the ride, thinking about these recruits with us, and those we were to save. There was just something about this graduating class, wasn't there? The 104th... did Shadis put something in their water?

Eren, of course, had his incredible Titan powers. Armin had that wonderful brain of his, and Mikasa, though infuriating, was strong and fast, just like Levi is, making her an incredibly valuable soldier - though she could certainly use some refinement. And now, this cute girl Christa as Armin so eloquently articulated... I wasn't sure what made her so special yet, but I'm sure there was more to her than just being cute. Or... I could only hope so.

This damn graduating class would be the death of us all.

I took a glance back at the scouts behind me. They didn't know why exactly we were riding for Utgard. They didn't know that while protecting Eren was their first priority, there was another goal in mind; to save another. I frowned at the thought that, if I wasn't a captain, I'd be left in the dark like them. If Levi was, and I was not, I knew that Levi wouldn't tell me what he was briefed on. If the higher-ups knew, and no one else was to know, he'd keep it that way.

And... if Levi and I hadn't made it to the Survey Corps, if we were still underground with Isabel and Farlan, we'd be blind to everything that was going on. I'd still have that family, but I'd never have met my new one. And we'd be down there in the dark still, ignorant to the secrets of the walls. Would Erwin still be leading Eren and the others? Would we have been underground, hearing the noises of the battle at Stohess, wondering just what exactly the idiots were doing above us?

I bit my cheek and forced that line of thought from my head. I couldn't imagine going back to that life now. It was simpler, but... not better. Definitely not better. I still missed Farlan and Isabel, so much that it hurt sometimes to think of them, but I also missed El and Caden, and Moses, Flagon, and Sairam, and Petra, Olou, Gunther, and Eld, and so many others.

They had not lived to learn the secrets of the walls and of Titans. I wanted to be here, to fight for those still alive, and those yet to be born.

I couldn't do that if I was still underground.

We rode through the night until daybreak. We watched the moon cross from one side of the sky to the other, and when the sky eventually lightened up, we were still riding. The horses were tired, we were tired, everyone was tired; but we kept going.

As hour after hour ticked by, I held firm to the hope that the young soldiers were holding on, wherever they were. Hopefully they weren't scattered to the winds as Hange and I feared. With this much time, Titans would have spread just as much as soldiers would be able to. Barring tonight, they'd have had all night to spread as far as they could through the grounds of Wall Rose, stalling only as the moon arced across the sky.

But at long last, a structure towered on the horizon: Castle Utgard, or what was left of it. Honestly, I wish I could actually say that it did tower on the horizon. All I could see from here was a mess of rubble, a stark gray shadow that cut through the landscape.

And there was... commotion. As we drew ever closer, we started to be able to hear the sounds of fighting. But with day just breaking, how were the Titans so... fired up?

"We've got to increase speed," I said. "It's clear that they're there. But who knows how long they've been fighting?"

"At least they're still kicking," Hange replied. The closer we got, the easier it was to see that the entire castle was a mess of fallen stone, crumbled towers, splintered wood, and caved-in structures.

"What a mess," I lamented.

"It didn't always look like this," Hange told me. Then they called to everyone, "Prepare to switch to the gear!"

"Roger," I called back alongside the other scouts. I leaned forward, pressing myself closer to Strider's neck, and patted his side. "Alright, bud," I said to him. "Nice and steady, now."

If any horse could understand what I was saying, it was him, and he seemed to snort in reply, as if to say, "I'm always nice and steady."

I didn't even have to kick into his sides for him to know to run ever faster, and if I didn't know any better, his hooves might not have even been striking the dirt for as smooth his gait, as easy his breathing, as swift his speed. At any moment, he might just make use of the wings on my back, or better yet take flight using my blue wing. If anyone were to make use of my nickname, let it be him now, and deliver us to those brave young scouts even just moments faster.

We soon passed Hange, and the distance between us and the closest of Utgard's fallen towers fell away into nothing. I stood in the saddle, holding the reins more securely. I then lifted one foot out of the stirrup and eased myself to a one-legged sort of crouch. When I had both feet firmly pressed to the saddle, I gathered my nerve, drew in a deep, steadying breath, and stood. If Strider's gait could smoothen more, it did, and it felt more like I was standing on firm ground than on the back of a horse.

I took my controller grips in my hands, and as soon as I was close enough to the nearest of the towers, I leapt from Strider's back. A perfectly-placed wire far above me and the momentum of my leap, coupled with the burst of gas I let loose, allowed me to swing expertly around the tower and consequently release it.

With another wire hooked to the far shoulder of the closest Titan, I allowed the winch to pull me in and just as quickly as I was able to unsheathe a blade, the Titan was dead. I released the wire and perched against the nearest building, smiling when I saw Mikasa land near a blonde girl.

"Christa," she said, and my smile turned sly when I realized I had been faster than the skillful girl.

Heh, I couldn't help but think. I've still got it, then.

"Everyone get back," Mikasa continued. "We've got this. Leave the rest to us."

"Stand back, kiddos. Leave this to the pros," I said, wasting no time in dropping back into the fight. I sliced through the nape of the next closest Titan, and I let my momentum take me towards the next one. "Hey, big guy," I said to him. "That's enough terrifying the youth for you, today."

I sent my grapple into its shoulder and whizzed by his nape, slicing it out as I did with strokes perfectly deep and beautifully placed. If one could make killing Titans an art form, Levi and I had mastered it; and it seemed I could very well hold my own, even after all this time, and after getting so used to fighting alongside him.

I leapt from Titan to Titan and cut nape after nape, my smile refusing to leave my face. Hell, with each kill it only seemed to grow bigger, more genuine. After I killed my seventh or maybe the eighth, I perched against the side of one of the structures and watched the scouts work for a moment. At least this served to wake me up, huh? I wiped the sweat from my forehead with my forearm and a familiar yell caught my attention - it was recognizable as it was triumphant, and I wondered what kind of trouble our Titan-boy was getting himself into now.

"What the hell is he doing?"

I could only watch as Eren flew towards a Titan, slicing through its nape. "I did it," I heard him cheer. "My first kill!"

I shook my head in disbelief, but couldn't help but feel an immense surge of pride at the sight. My heart seemed to swell, and a warmth bloomed in my heart and - goodness, all that for a child I'd only known for a little more than a month?

Still, there were more Titans to take care of, so I let him be and dropped from my perch to continue on. The scouts did not stop until each and every Titan had been killed. Even then, I did one last sweep making sure there were none half-crushed by rubble and still living, while everyone regrouped. It was a good thing I did, because quite a few were only partly crushed, napes still intact.

By the time I did that, finding a few and slicing them accordingly, the scouts were gathered around a girl who, from the looks of it, had nearly been eaten. But... they weren't fussing over her like a typical victim, nor of someone who seemed to have terrible injuries. I made my way gently through the group, excusing myself quietly as I worked my way into the small circle they'd formed around Hange, this Christa character, and the injured woman.

I peered closer at the dark-haired woman. There were strange markings on her face, similar to the ones Eren sported whenever he was pulled from his Titan. They were distinct ridges, ones that appeared to be something of gouge marks, yet artistic, symmetric. And in missing a limb or two, but not seeming to be in incredible pain or worry, well... Wait, did that mean...

We had found one of the other intelligent Titans. The question of whether she was an ally or foe to humanity still remained. We could only hope, for our sake, she was with us, and not against us. But for now, she was a woman in need of help.

We'd rode through the night, and fought through the morning, but we weren't in the clear yet. We had all of Wall Rose to purge of Titans, we had a breach to find and block, we had soldiers to count and injuries to tend to, and we had to get going. So, get going we did.

—

By the time our forces regrouped on top of the wall, the skies opened up. We'd seen the clouds roll in, dark and gray and thick, with the promise of coming rain. It waited to start until we got back to the wall, and despite the fact I wanted to lie down on the cool stone-like surface - rain be damned - and sleep, I could not. But I did keep busy.

I assisted getting the young ones without gear up the wall, took headcounts of who we had, divvied up our resources, and composed a list of what we had lost, lives included. And that had me particularly worried. Mike was missing in action. Nanaba and Gelgar had died valiantly, and it was (unfortunately) safe to assume the rest of his squad had perished as well.

As I looked over the list of familiar names either missing or dead, I heard the tones of an argument. Christa was arguing with Hange about Ymir's intentions - which to us, who did not know her, were unclear, but to Christa, she seemed convinced that Ymir was on their side.

Certainly, she knew we had to be careful, right? We had another intelligent Titan in our hands, now. Christa argued that while it was unforgivable for Ymir to have kept her power a secret until now, she was an ally to humanity.

I wasn't quite convinced. For one thing, I'd learned already that things were not always as they seemed. As a commanding officer, I was told time and time again not to leave things in the hands of others, nor allow someone else to make an opinion of something and blindly agree with it. Additionally, we had to leave feelings out of it.

Soldiers were to listen to their higher-ups first and foremost. Whether or not I believed in something or someone, if I was told to go against it, I had to go against it. How many times had I needed to go against my fear while in the Vanguard, or had to listen to some real shitty orders under Shadis? I was a soldier, and I wanted to be here for a long, long time - not just in the scouts where I was making a real difference, but just regarding life in general.

Actions were what mattered. Was I to just blindly trust in how close two people were and take it at face value? I couldn't. The fact of the matter was that this girl, Ymir, had clearly known she had a Titan, but kept it hidden. At the very least, according to the reports, her Titan wasn't the Armored nor Colossal, so we at least had that to be grateful for. Goddesses, within a week, we discovered not one, but two new intelligent Titans. Granted, these weren't the Titans we wanted to capture, but...

I nearly scoffed aloud at the thought. They were weaselly sons of bitches, weren't they? Here we were, trying to weed out the only two that we'd known about, and somehow we found two more.

And, as far as this graduating class went, we had Eren the Titan-boy, Mikasa the incredible soldier, Armin the tactician, Christa who was special... somehow, Annie the Female titan, and Ymir, the... other Titan.

If our suspicions were correct, then there were two more kids in that graduating class who were hiding Titans. That was only if we were right, obviously, but for now...

I accepted a ledger from a runner and listened as he relayed that the Garrison section commander had approved our use of their stored rations here, provided we kept track of how many we used.

"Thank you," I said. He saluted, waited for me to excuse him, then left. It was a damn good thing I could multitask, because my mind was still racing with the implications of what we'd found today.

Eren hadn't known about his Titan power - at all, and it was incredibly clear. When he used it for the first time, it had been a surprise not only to him, but to everyone around him, even those closest to him. Annie had, of course, known about her powers and had used them accordingly, efficiently, skillfully.

If what Christa was saying was true, and Ymir did know about her power and proved to have great control over it, why hadn't she stepped forward before? Was it for her own safety? I supposed that made sense. If Ymir had come clean about her power before, she might have been taken in by the MPs and dissected, especially if she didn't get a chance to prove her worth to humanity. But she kept it hidden for so long.

From the reports and from what we conjectured, it appeared that the only logical explanation for the Colossal and Armored Titans was for them to be intelligent, commanded from the inside by a human; that was something we all agreed on. But honestly, I couldn't help but worry that the girl was still withholding information.

I folded the ledger and set it in my jacket pocket as I followed Hange and Christa - though apparently her true name was Historia - as they approached Ymir, who was still peacefully sleeping.

"Her bleeding has stopped," I heard once I was close enough, "and we think steam is coming out of her wounds."

"For now," Hange said, "take her back to Trost so she can get some proper medical care." When they came to a stop before the slumbering girl, I caught up, and looked down at this new Titan. "She's in your hands."

"Understood."

"Now then," Hange said. "Amaya, Moblit... with me." We both fell into step alongside Hange - an aide, their assistant, their brother, and a captain, their confidant, their sister. "Our original mission was to seal this wall."

"We just need to know where the hole is," I snarked. "It should be easy, then."

"Let's hope there's a big rock handy," Hange replied, looking at me with a smile. They turned, just in time to greet a group of scouts from the 104th. "Is everyone clear? We'll deal with Ymir later. And Connie, I'll arrange for a Scout Squad to investigate your village later. For the time being, I want you to focus on the mission to fix the wall. Got it?"

"Got it!"

Clearly biting back a sigh, a scream, or even a frustrated groan, Hange walked towards the edge of the wall. "Still," Hange said, "I was expecting this place to be swarming with Titans."

"It is strange," I agreed, standing at their side. I sighed and crossed my arms over my chest. "And for them to concentrate in one place..."

The sound of approaching horses caught our attention, and we both turned to see soldiers of the Garrison approach. Being soldiers technically under the jurisdiction of the Military Police, we did not interact with them much, though I had met Pixis on more than one occasion - and had gotten asked to go get a drink with him on nearly every single one of those.

"Hannes," we heard Mikasa say with surprise, and we all followed her gaze as a group of Garrison soldiers approached the wall on horseback.

"It's the Garrison's advance squad. They came to tell us where the hole is."

We waited as they hitched their horses then climbed the wall, and as soon as his head appeared over the top of the wall, a blond soldier who I assumed was Hannes frowned. HIs jacket held on it the insignia of a higher-up, so he was a fellow commanding officer.

And it seemed-

"There's no hole anywhere!"

...

Huh?

No, really. What the hell?

I spoke up first. "How?"

"We spent all night looking for it," Hannes said, looking at me. "But at least between Trost and Krolva District, there's nothing wrong with the wall."

"No, see... that still doesn't make sense," I muttered.

Hange piped up next, and it seemed she was as confused as I was. "What'd you say?"

"We bumped into soldiers from Krolva and retraced our steps," he reiterated. "We haven't seen any Titans the whole way here."

"But," Armin said hesitantly, "we know for sure there's Titans on this side of the wall."

What I wanted to say was left unsaid. There are Titans, all right... in more ways than one.

"Did you actually look?" Eren asked. "Are you sure you're not drunk?"

My eyes widened, a pure reaction from his words. Perhaps it had nothing to do with it, or perhaps it had everything to do with personal history or the fact that I was his direct commanding officer (you know, unless you counted the royal government reclaiming custody of him, which I sure as hell did not), but he had never spoken to me like that. Oh, I certainly dared someone to try.

Still, I felt the urge to laugh but bit it back. The blatant disregard for authority and the chain of command, to always speak with a sharp tongue, whether the truth hurts or not... It reminded me of someone.

"I didn't drink," Hannes said defensively, and I wondered for a moment why he was even bothering defending himself against a group of kids. "Wait, why are all of you here anyways?"

"If there's no hole in the wall," Hange started to say, only somewhat answering his question. I mean, wasn't it obvious? We were scouts; we fought Titans. But if there were no Titans, then... Well, we could pull back. "So be it. For now, we're falling back to Trost District!"

"Thank goodness," I said wistfully, falling into step alongside Hange once more, Moblit following after us. "Maybe I can even get a nap in, today."

"Rainy days are perfect for it, aren't they?"

"Mm-hm," I hummed, before drawing in a deep breath and letting it out in a huff. "The damn rules keep changing on us. People turning into Titans, Titans in the wall, Titans appearing without making a damn crack in the wall... what's next? "There's just so much we don't know. Got any ideas, Hange?"

"Oh, lots," Hange said. "None of them are too good for us." She then perked up, and I knew that she had suddenly thought of something. "Oh no, what if there's a Titan that dug a hole underneath the wall?"

"The hole will be hard to find in that case," Moblit said.

"How deep do the walls go underground?" I asked.

"Good question," Hange said. "Right now, we need to focus on getting Ymir back safely."

"Even with our horses, we still have to worry about Titans."

"True, but..." I trailed off, my stomach suddenly unsettled.

Hange caught on right away, and looked at me. "Amaya? Are you alright?"

My eyes narrowed as I tried cluing into what the feeling was. It felt... off, it felt wrong, it was...

Something wasn't right.

I turned slowly, without sudden movements. With the way the hair on the back of my neck suddenly rose, danger was coming - and a lot of it. Something was about to happen.

We had all been told to regard Bertholdt and Reiner with caution, but to act normally around them so as not to set them off or even hint that we suspected them. But they certainly weren't acting normally right now. Armin and a brown-haired girl I hadn't met were behind us, only a pace or so behind. Further behind them, Mikasa was waiting for Eren. Reiner and Bertholdt - I knew them by description only - were with Eren, even further back. I brought my dominant hand to my chest, linking my fingers through the controller grips to prepare to retrieve it, if necessary.

If the Armored and Colossal Titans revealed themselves here, I was ready to fight them.

From where I was, I could just barely see the steam rising from Reiner's arm, an injury, as he lifted it and unwrapped his bandages, undid his sling. Well, steam, that was evidence enough! I drew my blades and ran back, nearly running Armin down. Only, a familiar surge of power began to rush by, and promise of something to come, and I knew already we would be too late to try to stop this before it happened - either of them.

"Shit," I hissed as they both started to turn.

Familiar with them by now, and the consequent gust of air and steam, I shot my wires out in front of me and covered my face with my forearms as steam and dust and a hell of a lot of heat was picked up. The force of it all threatened to throw me backwards, but my grapples stayed put and I kept my feet planted as firmly as I could.

It was hot, so damn hot, but I forced my eyes open. They stung immediately and went dry, but I had to get my bearings. Through the gaps in my fingers, as I did what I could to still protect my eyes yet still be able to see, I could see... Fuck. They... The Armored one had Eren.

Before anyone could react, and before the sudden wave of heat even dissipated, the Armored Titan leapt from the wall, Eren in hand. A third explosion could only have been Eren, and as I finally was able to push against the heat and rush of air, I knew that Eren would have to deal with the Armored on his own, at least for a little while, because we had another problem to deal with.

In fact, I would argue we had a bigger problem here - literally.

"Hange," I called, "the Armored has Eren!"

"There's nothing we can do about that right now," Hange lamented. "We have to take care of this, first!" When the Colossal started to move one arm, and I just barely registered the fact that it was built into the wall, somehow, Hange cursed under her breath. "Everyone," Hange called, "jump away from the wall!"

No one was stupid enough to disobey, and like small flies he was only swatting away, we leapt just out of reach as he swung towards us. It was a damn good thing he was so slow. I leapt without firing off a wire, and twisted midair to send one into the wall. My momentum did what I wanted, and it let me swing right back up above the wall by the time his arm had passed.

Landing back on the wall in a crouch, sending my other grapple into the stone just before me to keep me in place, I saw the Colossal's hand enclose around... something? No, someone. Was that Ymir?

Well, things just kept getting worse. Good. Great.

... I needed to stop thinking such things, because it got worse somehow. The Colossal popped her into its mouth. Because, you know. That's what we needed right now.

Hange's voice rang out, loud and clear: "All soldiers prepare to attack! We're taking down the Colossal Titan! It's a threat to all of humanity! Swarm the huge bastard!"

Hange led the charge, and I fell into position right after them.

I really needed a nap, and that'd only happen once these two assholes had been taken care of. "Show it no mercy," I called out to the scouts behind and around us. "This is the one that destroyed the gate all those years ago! Let's get our revenge!"

This fucker was the one who sparked the fight, who allowed the first wave of Titans to invade our territory. This Titan was the reason why, at the end of the day, we could not go beyond the walls. I missed it, I did. To that end...

I imagined that we appeared as only gnats to the Colossal Titan. It was so big and so slow, and it seemed all it could do was attempt to swat us from the sky. But, contrastingly, all it would take was one lucky swipe of his arm to destroy us. And the heat... If we were too close for too long, we'd damn well melt where we stood.

I let loose some gas to get up and around its arm on my way closer to its body. I wasn't stupid enough to think this fight would be easy, but it was fused to the wall - it couldn't move, not like a normal Titan. Its mobility was definitely limited. It could twist around, sure, but not to the same range that a normal Titan could.

"Now's our chance," Hange called. "Slice up his neck!"

All at once, we were sent away by a wave of steam. I winced and released my grapple - or was it released on its own? Whatever the case, I reacted accordingly. The force of it all sent me back, but with a quick release of gas and then another, I landed outside the dense wall of steam a bit roughly against the balls of my feet.

I eased myself to stand, calling out a loud, "Fall back!"

It was obvious that nobody would last long in that heat, and if it could do this on command, we'd be hard-pressed to get anywhere near it. Seeing most of the scouts fall back as told, I backed a few paces away and took in a big lungful of cooler air. I allowed myself a brief reprieve, letting the air soothe my lungs.

The other scouts landed around me and behind me, similarly breathless and similarly watching the Colossal Titan warily. Some even had burns already. "Don't touch your equipment," I told them. "Not until it cools off."

Calls of affirmation reached my ears as I turned and picked Hange out from the crowd, seemingly searching for water, if I had to guess. It was a good idea. I wanted to keep an eye on this Titan, but it would be better for everyone if we backed away, made some distance, and cooled off, especially with the threat of another Titan fighting Eren just below us.

"Fall back further," I said, leading the way back, away from the behemoth before us. "We'll get nowhere if it just sits there and keeps blowing us away."

"Yes, ma'am!"

We retreated just enough to make ample distance between us, and close enough to Hange and the others for me to be able to hear their conversation, or at least part of it.

"No," Armin said to Hange, "something is different."

I looked up at it. I hadn't seen it before, so I didn't know what was different about it exactly, but the damn thing was still putting out steam. It was also... perfectly still.

"The last time he vanished instantly," Armin said, "but now he's maintaining his form and emitting heat like a furnace. If he keeps protecting himself with steam... We're unable to attack him with our gear! What do we do?"

"We can't do anything," Hange said evenly, seriously. "We wait." Hange spoke louder then, to address all the scouts here, anticipating their next orders. "Squads Three and Four, take position behind the target. Rashad has command."

"Got it!"

"Squad Two will wait here," Hange continued. "Laura is in command."

"Understood!"

"It's yet to be seen how long he can keep his body burning, but... eventually he has to come out. We wait for that moment to attack."

"He's certainly  a big boy," I said, walking up to Hange yet not letting my eyes stray away from the Colossal. "If this is abnormal behavior for it, it's for a reason. I imagine it's gotta take a lot of energy for him to maintain sending out that steam, and besides, the kid inside it was up all night. Let's hope he's as exhausted from his night out as we all are."

"Hoping isn't all we can do," Hange told me, their eyes brightening slightly as they regarded me. Hange turned to address the scouts left without orders. "Listen up! Forget about capturing them. Kill them, and don't hesitate! Armin, Amaya, and Squad One follow me. We've got a date with the Armored titan!"

I couldn't help but smile, despite the situation. Those were the words I was hoping to hear. If it was between fighting a still target or a moving one, I knew what I would pick. One was a little more... interesting than the other.

Besides, if the Colossal was stuck in place, it could only do so much damage. The Armored Titan could easily break through the gate if it got to it, and I didn't put it past it to be able to break through the wall itself. If Annie's hardened fingers could break through the wall, so too could his entire armored body.

I approached the edge of the wall, waiting for no one's lead but my own to leap from the wall. I dove towards the ground, twisting only to send out a wire and slow to a stop, suspended far below the grapple with my feet pressed to the wall so I could watch and figure out what was happening. The others stopped partway down the wall as well to watch the fight ensue.

Oh, and I use the word fight very liberally. It was really just Eren getting his ass handed to him. Reiner was a big, tough guy, so I imagined he was the one who turned into the Armored. I couldn't say for sure, I hadn't been looking, but if we went by the whole Mikasa argument of Annie looking like the Female Titan, then Reiner looked more like the Armored than Bertholdt did. He was a big guy, built like a cannon, meant for the offensive.

Still, Reiner was handing Eren's ass to him. If any comparison could be drawn between Reiner and this Titan, it was that they were both beefy, both large, both muscled. Eren's titan was... fleshier. He definitely wouldn't win if he just kept getting punched like this.

We were just considering the possibility of him having lost control of his Titan, when we were proven wrong. We'd only thought about it because of how little a fight he was seemingly putting up, and the fact that he was still so new to this. So, it caught us by surprise when Eren ducked under the arm of the Armored Titan and put him into a tight hold. I nearly lost my grip on my controller grips, I was so surprised. And I wasn't the only one.

"He threw the Armored Titan!"

"Wait, isn't that the technique Annie used?"

"The peak of irony," I mused, watching Eren work. Instead of being out of control, Eren seemed scarily calm, incredibly controlled. His movements were clear, and if I didn't know any better, I'd say he was out of his Titan for how they seemed to be working as one.

And... the tide of the fight was seeming to turn. The Armored titan's plating was breaking, and at the thought that Eren was putting his all into it and was using his brain, I grinned. An inflexible material, of course, being forced suddenly to stretch, to bend – Eren was not operating with fear or anger, but with extreme focus and calm!

We would have a good shot of winning if he kept this up, but we needed Eren close to the wall. Reiner was still dangerous, like any Titan was. A lucky swipe of a hand or a sudden grab would kill one of us instantly, or damn well get close to it.

There wasn't much for us to hook to except for their bodies, which went directly against training. Of course, it wouldn't be a problem for me, so used to using their bodies against them, but at any rate, Reiner was intelligent. He knew how the gear worked, just like Annie, and if we tried fighting him now, he'd kill us efficiently, I was sure - which is likely why he was staying as far from the wall as he could.

We called to Eren, and he listened, and I couldn't help but feel yet another surge of pride flow through me. That was happening a lot, lately. But then again, he was giving us a lot to be proud about. He had total control over his titan. Hell, Hange would have a field day with this later.

With his back against the wall, Hange and I dropped down to each of his shoulders. "Listen up, Eren," Hange said. "If you're gonna escape, we've got to find a way to halt Reiner and buy you some time. Can you break his leg with another one of those joint locks? Our blades don't seem to work on him, so use your head and figure out the best course of action!"

He nodded at Hange, and I was afraid they were going to explode at the simple motion.

"Eren," I called, drawing his attention to me.

I smiled up at him as his green eyes, glowing like ethereal coals of emerald left to smolder, met mine. It was odd, looking into the eyes of a Titan, but definitely not unwelcome.

"Just keep doing what you're doing," I told him. "We know you must be exhausted, but you're doing great! However, if you could take care of this quickly, I'd be very grateful. I'd love to take a nap at some point today." An odd noise came from his Titan – it almost sounded like a laugh. I reached up and patted his cheek before leaping back up towards the wall. "Thank you in advance, Eren!"

"I'm counting on you," Hange said, following me. With that, Eren readied up again as the Armored Titan stalked closer. The Armored began sprinting, then, and ran into Eren. As I swung around them to give them space with the others, I noticed the plating on its calves were gone. Had Eren broken it before coming over? No, we'd have noticed it... So, could it sacrifice its armor plating for more mobility?

...Eren was tossed to the ground. That was a bad spot to be. "Hey, lazy ass," I called, "get up!"

"Don't stay on the ground!"

"Eren, get up!"

"Hange," I said, "look at the Armored's legs." We all took to the air, following the Titans along, and Hange glanced towards what I had pointed out and right away, I could see their brain start to work.

"If his entire body was hard like stone, there's no way he could move like that," Hange began to say. "In the armor they used in wars of the past, it had sections at the joints not covered in metal to allow for movement. Like the armpits and groin... And also, the spot behind the knee."

"That's what I was thinking," I said. I glanced upwards, towards Mikasa. "Mikasa, with me!"

That was when Reiner tackled Eren, but Eren reversed it and put Reiner into a headlock. By now, the backs of Reiner's legs were exposed, and Mikasa and I were on our way - but she passed me, went right to Reiner, and cut through the backs of his knees. I faltered, then went back to the wall, biting back my scoff.

"Not quite what with me means..."

"She cut him," Hange exclaimed.

"And it was almost like she followed an order," I muttered dryly.

"You've got this!" Armin shouted to Eren. Emboldened by the way the fight was going, the rest of the scouts followed.

"Go for it, Eren!"

"Tear the head off his neck!"

"Pull the traitor outta there!"

I couldn't help but, in turn, feel emboldened by the camaraderie between the scouts. It was probably a bad thing to get excited so soon; I was no stranger to fights and how unpredictable they could be. But seeing two giants duke it out... it was hard not to get excited. "You got it, Eren," I cheered. "Tear his stupid head off!"

You know, hindsight is always crystal clear. It was really starting to look like Eren had the upper hand until Reiner began pushing Eren along the ground, and my heart that had been lifted with hope sunk back down to its rightful spot in my chest.

"That's not supposed to happen," I said. "Reiner's still a soldier. Who authorized this? Who the hell told him he could do that?"

"What the-?" Armin said uselessly.

"Heh, it's useless," another soldier said, still confident in Eren's abilities.

"Keep at it! Don't let up!"

Then, all of a sudden... Reiner stopped. His Titan opened its mouth, and screamed, the sound not quite as piercing or jarring as that of the Female Titan's, but louder, and it seemed to rumble through the walls' very foundations.

Knowing what happened last time, I looked around for Titans, preparing to kill them on sight. "Be on your guard," Hange ordered. "He's calling in Titans!"

Only when the screaming stopped, silence ensued. And ensued. And ensued some more. "No other Titans spotted in the area!"

What in the hell was he calling for, then?

"What a useless struggle."

No, wait.

"Try screaming for help with your head ripped off, you idiot!"

There was another Titan nearby.

"Look, he's tearing it off!"

I didn't want to look up, for fear of what was coming. But when I heard a terrible cracking noise far above us, I knew it was too late. "Move," I shouted as loud as I could. "Go! Get out of the way, now!"

My fear was what inspired me to move, but it was my instinctive nature to help others that redirected me to push another soldier out of harm's way. But even with that, I didn't anticipate the sudden wave of heat. And it was this intense rush of heat that made me black out, even temporarily.