The days leading up to the raid on Liberio were torturous for me. Levi kept me up to date up on what was going on, and I made mental notes on everything. He thought he was simply helping put my mind at ease, but in reality, I was able to take in a lot of information and I formulated a plan to sneak onto the mission.

Hell, I'd damn near planned the whole thing. The trick now was finding a way to sneak aboard without them knowing. But it'd been said once, and it's been said a million times by now: I was not called the esteemed actress for nothing.

And I had always been good at reconnaissance. Getting in and out of somewhere without being seen... Oh, yes. I was very good at that.

This was yet another measly scene in another measly act, in the grand play that was my life.

I found a solution quickly, and it was quick work to set it up; I sent a letter to Reyes, telling him when to be by to grab Emi. It was tough, writing that letter, because I told Levi that I would accompany them to the coast to help, but because of the hustle and bustle, it would be best for Emi to not have to travel; we'd be faster if she stayed with Reyes. And he agreed. The basis of my going with him was built upon a lie.

But I must have been better at this than I thought, because he was none the wiser that I was lying. Emi was with Reyes not simply because we would be able to travel quicker, though this was true - really, it was because I would be going on the mission. Otherwise, I'd have insisted we bring her along for a proper send-off.

I was happy he hadn't caught on.

When the day for us to leave came, Reyes showed up at the house, picked her up, then wished us and the Scouts good luck. Lots of love for both Reyes and Emi were expressed, and then we were off, riding towards the coast.

Without Emi and much cargo, we did more riding than we did resting, and made it to the coast in what must have been a record time. By then, the plans had been finalized, Levi allowing me to read each bit under the guise of allowing me to be a doting wife... on the belief that I'd be stuck here, waiting for his return, worried sick for his safety as I had been when they went to secure Wall Maria.

I helped prepare the cargo to load onto the zeppelin that had been readied for the Scouts on the day of the mission, telling Hange that I wanted to be as useful as I could before they set off.  She gladly allowed me to. Extra gas, replacement blades, and Thunder Spears were counted, stowed aboard, and distributed, and when it was time, I pretended to give my goodbyes to the scouts.

For Levi, I kissed him earnestly, and told him that I loved him earnestly, and was truthful in each word that I told him. That I loved him, and Emi did, too. And that he needed to return back home to me, safe. He promised.

And when he rushed off to join the others in the main compartment of the zeppelin, I sneaked around to the back to where the cargo bay was as soon as he was onboard and I was out of his sight. I'd stowed my uniform inside, the new one fitted with all black clothing, dark leather, and metal chest plates. I changed into my uniform, fitted my gear on, slipped my usual knife into my boot, then waited until takeoff.

I had read all the finalized plans, but had been kept out of the final briefings, for what should have been obvious reasons. But from what I knew, based on what Levi had told me, the festival was going to bring people from all walks of life.

Ambassadors from nations from all over the world would be there. It was apparently a big deal. Even the Azumabito had gone. And well, though we weren't invited, we'd sure as hell show up. The festival was a public event, being held in one of the low-class zones of Marley. Citizens of Liberio, alongside Marley's military and the heads of nations from all over the world would be there.

I could only hope that none of the civilians got caught up in the crossfire, but even I knew that it was a tall order. We were here to grab Eren, who was going to inevitably show himself as the holder of the Attack and Founding titan. He was a high-priority target for Marley, and for the world. So for him to do this so recklessly pissed me off. And then to just nonchalantly ask us to pick him up? To meet him there, and help him out?

I loved the kid, but I had some choice words for him. He'd better hope no innocent lives were taken, or he'd get the sternest talking too that he'd ever received and ever will receive.

When we were in the air, I contemplated getting up to show myself, but I decided not to. I'd give it more time. I didn't put it past Levi to toss me out of the zeppelin if we were still relatively close to Paradis, but he might think twice if we were over the open ocean.

...hopefully.

As part of this mission, the troops would be let off and given lights to set up as a form of runway for the zeppelin. Until we were cleared to be picked up, we'd have to fight. The zeppelin would remain safely out of harm's way until it was time for us to get back to it because it was our only way out of here.

Eren's letter detailed the festival and what he was planning to do. He was going to interrupt Marley's declaration of war with one of his own, dragging us to the forefront of the world's attention. If we were to have any allies in the war, this was a sure way to lose them.

Armin was to take care of the harbor. Yelena would be dispatched as well, with the aim to distract and hopefully lead away some of the titan Warriors. Of the nine titans available, Eren had two, Armin, Annie, Reiner, and Zeke each had one, and there had been one more intelligent titan alongside Zeke at Shiganshina. The Jaw Titan had been reclaimed by Marley, and they had one more that we hadn't met yet.

According to Eren, Zeke was willing to work with us and con those he was supposedly leading when they were inevitably dispatched to fight us. Zeke would pretend to fight but would willingly let himself fall by Levi's hand. That was fine by me, of course. Just one small piece of revenge for Levi. It wouldn't completely fulfill his promise to Erwin, but it would provide him some satisfaction for now, and it'd be a damn funny sight to see.

Meanwhile, the rest of us foot soldiers were to set up the lights and take care of the enemies on the way. But we couldn't be careless: the Marleyan army was insanely trained and prepared for battle against us, surely. They had anti-Titan weaponry of their own, which would be used against Eren and Armin as well.

We had the element of surprise, but they'd taken time with their returned Warriors to study how we trained, moved, and fought. We had to act fast if we wanted to maintain the upper hand. I hoped everything went according to plan tonight. We had experience fighting titans, which would certainly come in handy when we came to face their Warriors.

In the days leading up to this mission, I'd helped Levi with his gear. As much as he'd tried, he had never quite gotten used to the new sets that Hange and I had worked on. I couldn't say that I had, either.

He wasn't nearly as skilled with a firearm as he was with a blade, so I'd helped him make the changes that he wanted. He also, in contrast to the rest of us, still decided to wear his cloak. When Levi hadn't been around, I'd fixed up my own gear, securing blades for myself, though I did keep a handgun on me.

We traveled as the sun set, and the moon eventually rose. I watched the horizon from my spot, nervously twisting my ring around my finger. I rose from my spot on the floor between canisters of extra gas and looked out of one of the windows, only to see the large, dark shroud that was Marley.

Inland, I could see lights lining the streets. Family homes, stores, and communal buildings filled with people preparing to enjoy the festival once the opening statements finished had light streaming from the windows, with people leaning out of them.

Once, we'd been here in Marley as tourists, as quiet ambassadors for a nation everyone else wanted dead. Now, we were terrorists. Soldiers from a foreign nation with the aim to fight. I reasoned with myself, though. They'd sneaked onto our island, dropped Titans off, and their Warriors had infiltrated our walls.

Now, we were simply returning the favor. Right? That's how my brain reasoned it. My heart still couldn't help but feel like all of this was wrong. Was there really no way to peacefully resolve this? Was a global war really the only way?

"Approaching Marley," Onyankopon's voice rang out over the intercom.

Sucking in a deep breath, I stepped away from the window and made my way through the cargo bay, grabbing a set of Thunder Spears for myself, then slipped through the doorway into the main compartment of the zeppelin. Still ahead of this one was where the higher-ups were, and then the cockpit, which Onyankopon was manning.

With everyone busy talking, I was able to slip through the scouts rather undetected. A few people looked at me, but no one questioned me as I squeezed my way through to the next door. If they found it strange that I had emerged from the cargo bay, they didn't voice it.

When I opened the door to the front-most compartment and stepped inside, I found myself freezing unintentionally at the way that all eyes in the compartment locked onto me. I pulled the door closed behind me, moving slowly, as if Hange and Levi were predatory animals whose eyesight relied on movement.

"A-Amaya?" Hange sputtered. "When did... How did... What?"

"What the hell are you doing here?" Levi spat. His eyes trailed over my body quickly, very easily picking out the fact that I was in full uniform.

"I'm here to fight," I said. "I'm a soldier, here to fight alongside my comrades. Easy as that." I began tightening one of the plates protecting my chest, not daring to pry my eyes from Levi's. He was fuming. I wasn't sure if I'd ever seen him so angry before outside of a battle.

Though, did this really count as being outside of a battle? We were all dropping soon. Yelena already had, and so had Armin. Wherever Hange needed me, I would put my all into it, but whichever role I was put in, we'd be dropping out of the zeppelin soon.

"You idiot woman," Levi hissed as I secured the Thunder Spear to my gear. I shrugged, meeting his gaze evenly.

"I told you I was going to come," I said, rolling my shoulders. The normal wad of nerves settled in my stomach at the thought of leaping into battle, but I'd seen a lot of fighting in my lifetime, so it was a feeling I was used to. This would, however, be the first time I'd be fighting on foreign territory.

As a nation, Paradis had progressed so much in the short time we'd had, doing our best to catch up with the world, but there was still much work to be done. But I was still so frustrated at having to sneak aboard the damn zeppelin.

I'd already told Hange that I wanted in on the fighting. When I devoted my heart to this cause all those years ago, I had meant it. But Hange had refused to write me into her plans, at Levi's request. As if his opinion mattered more than my own.

We both had a responsibility to Emiko. Levi was hellbent on ensuring that I stayed home to watch over her. Well, why couldn't he? We both wanted to fight and make it home at the end of the day. It was selfish, but I was done being away from the fighting. Last time it happened, only nine had returned home. I refused to let that happen again.

He was pissed at me, I knew that. Hell, they all were. But damn it, I was tired of being left out of even the mission planning stages of this war, because I was still an enlisted soldier and a captain, at that.

If I held this position without doing anything to show for it, then it meant nothing. I'd already worked this hard, and I hadn't died yet. What was one more battle, really?

"Right," Hange muttered, sounding rather disappointed, yet not at all surprised, "well, we'll have to talk about this later. Amaya, join up with Jean's group."

"Yes, ma'am," I said, nodding to her. She didn't look amused, but she at least accepted that I was here to help.

"I assume you managed to read a copy of the finalized plan."

"Considering I wrote it? I did," I said, and I could see in my periphery that Levi's eyes narrowed, knowing that he'd been the one to show me the plans and allowed me to help under the guise of just easing his wife's mind. Had I taken advantage of it? Sure. But they planned an entire mission without me. I found the score to be even.

Hange looked at me for a moment longer before letting out a sigh. "I had a feeling you'd stowaway on this mission. I would honestly have been more surprised if you didn't. Come back safely, captains."

I smiled at her as she patted both of us on the head. She spun on her heel then, heading back into the cockpit of the zeppelin with Onyankopon. Now alone in the small front compartment, Levi let out the frustrated breath he'd been holding through his nose. He turned his head to look at me then, having turned around childishly to face away from me once Hange had piped up.

"You knew I was going to do this," I said quietly.

"Where is Emi?" His eyes were narrow as he regarded me coldly.

"Still with Reyes and his family," I told him. "That has not changed, Levi."

"Does he know about this?"

"Yes," I answered evenly. "I let him know when I asked him. He's expecting both of us to return safely, as is she."

"I'm going to kick your ass if you die," he hissed, turning to face me. He had his arms crossed over his chest stubbornly, an irritated knit in his brow. With a peek out of the compartment, I could see we were nearing our drop-off point. The order would be given out soon for us to drop out, squad by squad, to secure the target area.

"What if I don't die?"

"I'm still going to kick your ass," he sighed. "We're going to have a talk about this later, so you better make it out of this alright. This is irresponsible, Amaya." It was clear that he was holding back his anger for the sake of not arguing right before diving into the fighting.

"If you can run off and fight," I said, "then so can I. But it's a date."

I met his eyes and I found that the nerves bubbling in my stomach subsided. I was here to fight, to make sure we all made it home safely. I'd make sure of it. And oddly enough, I wasn't nervous.

Onyankopon's voice rang out through the zeppelin. "Approaching the drop-off point! All squads, ready up! T – two minutes!"

In the other compartment I could hear the bustle of activity as the squads readied up. I'd have to meet with mine very soon, but Levi was to wait. His job was to just neutralize Zeke and bring him back to the zeppelin - and he wasn't even going to fight back! It was easy. Simple. Light work for someone like him.

"Kick that bastard's ass," I said, stepping close to him. I adjusted his cloak, pulling it snug around his shoulders. He allowed me to, his eyes never leaving mine. "Plan or not, make him feel it. Make him suffer, and know that it still won't be half of what you went through - what we all went through."

"Tch," he uttered, letting his anger subside somewhat in order to reply, "as if I would settle for anything less."

"Good, then," I murmured, minding our close proximity. "Come back safely to me, my love."

I took his face into my hands and leaned in, pressing a kiss to his lips. Levi kissed back immediately, knowing it was stupid to leave for a battle on bad terms. On the off chance that we did die or get extremely injured, well, we both didn't want our last moments together to be sour.

"Don't get yourself killed," he said against my lips when I drew away from him. His arms settled on my waist, holding me close. I pressed my forehead to his, smiling and relishing in his warmth before having to jump out into the cold night.

"I won't," I said. "I promise." My lips curled into a smile. "Your turn, love." The look in his eyes told me that he really didn't want to. "Come on, Levi. You promise me every time."

"I already did," he sighed.

"Do it again," I said, my smile growing wider.

"You brat," he muttered. He pressed a kiss to my cheek. "I promise."

"T – one minute!"

As much as I usually loved to hear Onyankopon speak, right now it was the last thing I wanted to hear.

"I have to go find my group," I said, pulling away from him. I took a step away, but he grabbed my wrist, tugging me back to him. He pecked my lips, and I smiled when he drew back, letting me go.

"I love you," Levi said, meeting my eyes.

"I love you too," I said quickly. "So, so much."

I jogged to the next compartment and as I slid the door open, I took one more glance back at him, sending him a smile and a blown kiss. I couldn't hear it, but I knew he clicked his tongue as he rolled his eyes. Once I closed the door behind me, I hopped up a few times, peering around the tall people milling around to look for Jean.

"Captain Amaya?" I heard, and I grinned. So, he'd found me before I could find him. I made my way to him, beaming at him as I approached. He looked completely dumbfounded by my sudden appearance, and I couldn't say that I blamed him. "You weren't written into any of the plans," he said.

"Well, who do you think wrote them?"

"What? You mean..."

"It was me, Jean."

"So, those strange empty spots in the formation..."

"You caught onto those? Well, they're red herrings. They're useless."

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm a stowaway, now under your command," I said. I saluted to him with a smirk playing on my lips.

"Oh," he said. "Um... Well, this is the group I'm leading. You know all of them, don't you?"

I did. The few soldiers were looking at me curiously, wondering why exactly I was a rogue agent tonight but not questioning me currently. I smiled at each of them in turn. "Pleased to be working with you all." I looked back at Jean. "Are we on light detail?"

"Uh," he muttered, "yes. But to be honest, I'd feel better if you were in command."

"Nonsense," I said, waving it off. "You're in charge. Hange entrusted you with the command for this, not me."

"Yeah, but..." At my look, he sighed. "Alright. You can be on the point with me. Are you prepared to fight?"

"I am," I said with a nod. "Always. I can help clear the way for you guys."

"Thank you, captain."

"Thank you, lieutenant."

He flushed slightly at my words, then nodded hurriedly. Onyankopon's voice rang out, telling us that we'd reached the edge of the district. "Oh, that's our cue. We're on!"

I smiled and laughed lightly at the fact that he'd used one of my lines. Following his lead, I jumped from the zeppelin. We free-fell, the night air cool and crisp as it rushed against us. We neared the roofs of buildings, and finally we allowed ourselves to hook, using our momentum to swing us down and back into the sky without the use of gas.

I could hear the shocked cries of civilians in the streets below as we zipped further into Marley, traveling from the portside neighborhoods into one of the internment zones, Liberio. It was our target.

In the distance, there was a titan explosion. Shifting course slightly, we aimed for it. Along the lines of houses and roads, I could see several yards to either side of my squad others all traveling to converge on the same road. Racing through the unfamiliar streets, between buildings never seen before, it was a rush.

One familiar to when, so long ago, I would race through the streets alongside Farlan, Isabel, and Levi. We went quickly, and quietly, our shadows racing far below us, dancing over the heads of people down below. There were few people in the streets lining the edge of the district where we'd dropped, but I could hear the gasps of those who'd dared to look up.

I imagined that now we really did seem like Devils, what with our dark clothing silhouetted against the sky. Dark creatures of the night, as black as night itself, sneaking in for battle. Flying through the air, like bats, or perhaps gnats, if we were enough of a nuisance.

"Captain," Jean called out from next to me. I slowed slightly, keeping time with him. "You remember the plan and were able to see the finalized ones, right?"

"Yes," I called back.

"So, with the Titan transformations, the military will probably mobilize very soon," he said. "Right?"

"Right," I affirmed. "So we should prepare for a fight."

"We've got to keep them from getting Eren," he said. "Captain Levi will take care of Zeke. But we're going to have to keep an eye out for the others." Just at that moment, there was another titan explosion. "That's probably one of them now."

Way up ahead, I could see the vanguard, meant to meet up directly with Eren to assist him. Based on what I knew, only Mikasa formed the vanguard tonight. She was the only one Eren had advised to be in it. Hange figured that that was for a reason, and so Mikasa was sent ahead to support him.

"Military personnel," Jean called out. "Dead ahead, in the buildings!" The boy had a good eye; from within the darkened windows it was plain to see movement. Getting closer, I could make out the outline of weapons. "I'll take this side of the street," Jean said to me. "I think there are some across the street. Can I count on you, captain?"

I looked and sure enough, there they were: snipers, opening the windows of an apartment and setting up to shoot us down. "Absolutely. I'm on it."

Taking a sharp dip, I swung low, then attached to the top of the building where they hid. I adjusted my trajectory and swung along its side, pressing as close to the wall as I could. As the snipers began lining up their shots, I swung underneath the windows they perched in, their guns sticking out rather obviously and awkwardly.

As I'd anticipated, they hadn't expected somebody to zip under them, and so my wire caught on each of them. Surprised shouts rang out from the windows as they either lost their grip on their guns completely or fumbled with them. My momentum and added weight of my body ensured that my arc was smooth, and despite myself, I smirked.

I forgot how exhilarating it was to be in a battle, as terrible as it was to admit. It was tough to not feel alive when your life was at stake.

When I reached an empty window, I released my grapple and instead attached to the inside wall, dragging myself inside quickly. "It's one of those damned devils!" One of the soldiers cried out. "Get her!"

I drew one of my gear blades in my dominant hand, and a small handgun in the other. I trained specifically for this method, knowing that eventually I'd use both. I was far more lethal with a blade than a gun, but Onyankopon had taught me a cross-dominant form of aiming to use my non-dominant hand so that it would line up with my better eye.

"Hello, boys," I said, immediately shooting the closest soldier to me. Another man rushed me, and I ducked under his obvious punch and butted him in the chin with the handgun. I kicked him in the stomach and shot him as well once he'd staggered back, killing him.

"What are you doing? Get the bitch!" One of them towards the back called.

"Well now, that's not very nice. How do you know I'm a bitch?"

They all had handguns of their own, but I had an effective shield to use as I ran towards them. Slipping my gun and the blade back into place, I hefted the man up, dashing towards the next closest soldier. I lifted one foot, the one that my blade always sat in.

"See? I might actually be a very nice person, given the chance."

I grabbed it and as soon as I was close enough to the next soldier, I sliced through his neck, the blade making quick work of him and the next two soldiers that came at me. With only the one last man left, the one who had lovingly called me a bitch, I dropped the body, ducking down as a bullet whizzed over my head. An explosion across the street distracted him, and that was his fatal error.

"Sorry," I muttered, shooting him down. I hopped into the window, crouching along the pane, and holding the side as I watched what was happening across the street. The next building over was engulfed in flame. "Holy shit!"

Jean rounded around the building, locating Floch who was atop one of the neighboring rooftops of the one on fire. Floch was absolutely loaded with explosives.

"Hey!" Jean called out to him. "Are you trying to burn this entire internment zone down? Keep civilian losses to a minimum!" Floch watched as Jean landed next to him. I followed, zipping across the street to land on the roof as well. "Do you understand me, Floch?"

"Jean," Floch said confidently, "everyone here is our enemy. And these are just our enemies' homes." His words pissed me off immediately. "Have you forgotten how much of humanity inside the Walls has been killed by these bastards outside of them? They ate us alive, you know! This isn't even close to payback!"

"Are you still going on about that?" Jean demanded.

"Look," Floch said, "Eren showed us. He said to fight. We can't just wait inside the walls for death to come. And we need that Devil right now."

A sudden terrified scream from the building on fire stole my attention away. "There's a difference between an enemy and an innocent family," I snapped at him. "Fight with honor for once in your life, you ass."

With that, I leapt from the building.

"Captain-!"

I heard Jean hurriedly tell Floch to stay put as he dove after me. I ducked into one of the windows which thankfully wasn't on fire. There was banging on a nearby door, panicked cries of help coming from within. I located the door, Jean right on my heels. "We're here to help! What's wrong in there?"

"T-The explosion knocked a beam in front of the door," someone spoke. "We can't open it!"

"Jean," I said, "help me rip the door from the hinges."

"Got it," he said.

"Back up from the door!" I called. Jean and I got to work weakening the hinges, making quick work of them. The hallway we were in was a mess of fire and fallen beams and broken glass. We'd have to work fast to rescue these people.

This was evidently an apartment building, with many families living inside. I could only hope that this one was the last one inside, and that the others were already evacuated. I couldn't hear anyone else though, and I didn't know if that was a good or a bad thing. We tore the door from its frame with a bit of work, revealing the heavy beam just inside and the terrified family behind it.

Peeking through the small gap, I could see a mother and several children. No wonder she couldn't lift it up to force the door open. Seeing what uniform we were in the mother tugged her children to stand behind her.

"We're not here to hurt you," I said gently and hopefully reassuringly. "Jean?"

At his nod, we both readied ourselves to lift. And with a great deal of heaving, we did. The family scurried out from underneath, sending us hurried thanks. We helped escort them from the burning building, thankful that the stairways were open for the most part.

We took to the sky again once the family was safely out. And then we met up on that rooftop again. "Listen here, you little shit," I fumed to Floch. "You've had a stick up your ass for years now. But even you must know the difference between a soldier and a civilian, yes? Would you like it if Marleyans invaded the island again and went after your family? No, you'd rather if they focused on fighting soldiers, yes? Only fight the god damned soldiers, you ass!"

Floch visibly blanched at my words. "I..."

"Do you understand me, boy?"

"Y-Yeah."

"You're forgetting something."

"Yes, captain."

"There we go," I muttered, sending him another well-placed glare.

Jean issued our next set of orders, and off we went. We pushed further into the city, diverging on the street now designated to be our makeshift runway and eventual pick-up point. We set up lights along the way and ended up meeting up with other squads.

Crouched on the rooftops, we switched to our guns and Thunder Spears, taking out the enemies we saw. In a lull in the fighting, with most of the enemies in the area dead and us finding a spot to watch Eren take on a strange, white Titan, I approached Jean and patted him on the head, ruffling his hair playfully. As far as our work went, it was a success. Our set work was complete. All we had to do now was be backup for whoever needed us. And Jean had led us through it.

Right now, we were relatively safe overlooking the ongoing fight between Eren, Mikasa, and the titan we'd never seen before. It was a great white Titan, tall and powerful, and able to make weapons out of hardened titan skin. It was incredible, and certainly made for a tough opponent. I lowered my eyes from the fight to Jean, who was flushed from the sudden attention I was showing him by messing with his hair that he worked so hard to style.

"Good job, kiddo," I said with a warm smile. He looked up at me, nodding quickly as a fine blush overwhelmed his face. All these years later, and he still had that puppy love. I chuckled lightly. "I always said that you'd become a great leader one day. I think that day has come, Jean."

"T-Thank you, captain," he said. "That means a lot to me. Especially coming f-from you."

I hummed affectionately. "You know I mean it, Jean. You're a wonderful soldier, and your ability to be a leader is clear."

Suddenly, another squad landed on the rooftop. I grinned at the sight of Connie, Sasha, and a handful of others. "Jean, and... Amaya?" Connie said. I lifted my hand away from Jean's head and instead crossed my arms when I turned to face them. "Hey there, cap. Good to see you. We won't be seeing any enemy reinforcements for a while."

"We've taken care of most of the enemies here, too," Jean replied. "And the lights?"

"All are in place," Connie responded. "Is the plan moving forward?"

"For now, it is," Jean said. He directed his eyes back towards the fight. "Just as long as we can disable the War Hammer Titan in time."

"But there's still no telling what could happen next."

"If we want to figure out what comes after this battle is over... we need to survive."

Eren managed to successfully find where the titan's real body was hidden, because no matter how damaged the nape got, the Titan still lived. But he found the body and lifted the large crystal holding the Warrior.

But somehow, we'd missed the transformation of the Jaw Titan, no longer held by Ymir, but by a new Warrior. Quick as a flash, it attacked Eren from behind.

"Oh, shit," I exclaimed.

But then, even quicker, suddenly Levi was on the scene, distracting the Jaw titan that began to retreat as suddenly as it had appeared. He sliced right through its bottom jaw, removing its ability to bite down. My chest swelled just seeing Levi. From where he attacked, the Titan began to retreat, and right towards us.

"You beautiful, smart man, you," I said. "It's coming right for us! This is our chance!"

The Titan scrambled along the sides of buildings like a damn insect, but Mikasa made sure that it couldn't. It fell to the ground, and from there, we took over, charging at it from all sides with Thunder Spears. In true scout luck though, something else entered the fray.

There was sudden gunfire coming from a rooftop across the plaza, and it took all we had to dodge. Some of the Scouts weren't so lucky. "Damn it!" Jean shouted. "That thing too? The Cart Titan!"

We were lucky that Eren had the foresight to tell us the names and general likenesses of the titans we didn't know about. Otherwise we'd have really been in the dark, and knee-deep in shit that we wouldn't know how to escape.

Eren was suddenly thrust into the air by the War Hammer Titan's - was that its name? - structures. We dropped onto a nearby roof. Well, shit was certainly hitting the fan quickly. More heavy footsteps sounded down the road. "Oh, God," I muttered, turning to look.

"It's here," Jean said. "The Beast Titan."

"Leave the Beast to Levi," I said. "We'll support him by taking care of the other two."

"Don't you die," Jean said. "Captain Levi would never forgive me."

"Wouldn't dream of it," I promised. Across the battlefield, I met Levi's gaze. It was too far of a distance to see details, but the quick glance was enough. A reminder of a promise. That was all I needed to smile and leap into the fight again.

A few rogue scouts rushed for the Beast, swinging around its backside, but were gunned down nearly immediately by the Cart Titan. "Try to fly irregularly," I called out as we headed towards the Cart. "Don't let them catch on to how we move!" The unit headed towards the Cart Titan, with the aim of getting above it, but were soon slowed by the Jaw Titan that approached to support it.

"Shit!" Jean said. "Into the building, all of you!"

We ducked into one of the nearby buildings, peeking out of the windows to watch as Eren tried biting through the crystal the War Hammer holder had crafted for herself. He discarded the titan body of his that had gotten caught and reformed immediately. Thank god for all the training he'd undergone all these years. The Cart and Jaw Titans were above us on a nearby rooftop, and we took the time to catch our breath.

"Everyone good on fuel?" I asked. The soldiers with us all checked, offering their affirmations once done. We checked guns and blades while we were at it. I peeked out the window again, watching Zeke Yeager in his Beast Titan wind back his arms. "Get down!"

A wave of rushing air and stone blew through, rattling the windows. "Eren Yeager," his voice boomed. My ears perked up, hearing it. It was the first time I'd heard his voice. He continued, "is not my enemy. Someone else comes first. Show yourself, Levi. You can't afford to wait, can you?"

His voice was chilling as he called out my husband. My husband. He had the audacity to call out my damn husband. If I weren't a lowly stowaway, I'd go out there to give him a piece of my damn mind. I didn't care if this was all just a clever ruse or not. I did not want him speaking to or about Levi like that.

Jean met my eyes almost warily. He must've seen the fury in my eyes. But before he could say anything, there was another explosion. It sounded far away, but the whole city rumbled. Hell, the building we were huddled up in shook from its foundation as if a titan had transformed right outside. An explosion of that magnitude could be one titan and one titan only: The Colossal. Armin was taking care of the harbor.

"Come on!" Jean said. "We have to support the others!"

It was a good move, going now; the Marleyans would be distracted by the Colossal's explosion. At his command, we followed him out of the building. We once again charged for the rooftops, swinging at full speed towards the Cart as the Jaw went after Eren and Mikasa now that the War Hammer was exhausted of all energy and her body had been found. "We're almost out of time! We need to take out the Cart's machine guns before that, no matter what!"

"Yes, sir!"

I kept most of my attention on the Cart as we sped towards it, the guns slowly aiming at us, but my attention flickered momentarily to the Beast as it began to fall. A smirk found its way to my lips as Zeke fell, defeated by Levi's hand. He landed atop the Titan, and I wanted to stop and talk to him, kiss him, whatever we could come up with, but I couldn't.

Instead, I hooked to the top ledge of a nearby building, slowing to a stop with my feet pressed to the wall at the level he stood at atop the fallen beast. We met eyes for barely a second, but it was enough for me to smile and him to nod. Then I was off again, just as he dropped an explosive on the Titan's carcass.

As quickly as I could, I caught up with my assigned squad, meeting with them easily before they'd even reached the Cart. We all leapt up simultaneously, confusing the gunners and holder alike. Our flurry of Scouts overwhelmed them, and Sasha managed to take out one of the gunners inside. With them distracted, Jean was able to dive in and use his Thunderspears, creating an opening for the rest of us.

With the last remaining strength it had, it leapt from the building, the flaming body falling to the road below in a mess of loose limbs and torn sinew. "Captain," Jean called, "with me! We'll finish it!"

"Yes, sir!" I followed closely behind him and dove off the building at his side. But from the smoke of the explosions, a small figure emerged. "That might be the Warrior," I called out to him. But the figure was tiny, the person only... a child. Dammit, that was a child! Before I could do anything, Jean readied his Thunder Spears. "Wait, no, Jean, that's just a-!"

He shot it off. Maybe it was the blowing steam, or perhaps his aim, but he missed. "Oh, thank god," I muttered. Damn my bleeding heart. The kid's probably a soldier, too.

"Fuck," Jean hissed.

"We can still capture them," I said.

"It's the Cart's body!" The voices of other Scouts rang out from above. "Don't let it get away!" I landed on the ground and ran for the child who was now cradling the rather mangled body of a woman. Shots rang out nearby, and I ducked down.

"Protect Pieck!"

"For god's sake," I huffed.

"Fall back!"

I'm not sure where the sudden ambush of Marleyan soldiers had come from, but they came in full force. I hesitated to fall back. The Cart was right there, I could grab her... No. I was given an order.

I fell back alongside the others, hearing bullets whizzing by from every which way. I did my best evasive maneuvers, hearkening back to my days as a criminal. In some ways, I was a criminal again. Funny, then, how things always came full circle.

Life worked in funny ways, that was for sure. We retreated a bit, ensuring that we were all safe. Then, there was another rumble. "Oh, good," I muttered. "What now?"

"Jean, Captain," Connie said. "It's here."

"Yeah," Jean responded. "Right on time."

I turned and sure enough, the Zeppelin was on its way. A weight lifted from my shoulders, but it wasn't as though our job was done. "Good, then. What now, Lieutenant?"

"Protect the Zeppelin," he replied. "Assist anyone who needs help getting to the ship. Go home."

"Yes, sir," I said, nodding. "Here we go, then."

We took to the sky once more as the Zeppelin neared. The Scouts in Jean's command were quick to follow. "Protect the zeppelin from enemy fire from below!" Jean cried out. "Shoot your remaining ammunition on any enemy that approaches!"

"Yes, sir!" I called back again, across the road from him, starting a chorus of people calling back affirmations to him. He met my eyes briefly, still not used to people seeing him as an authority figure.

He knew all too well that I was the one that recommended him to Hange, though she'd already been considering giving him an official position by the time I had. I always knew he was fit to lead - hell, even Erwin had - and even if he wasn't so confident, this battle had proven that he could handle it.

I smiled at him before returning my attention to the road below. The soldiers below were just now realizing our plan and began to fight back, aiming their weapons past us at the zeppelin. With a deep breath in I released my grapple, letting myself freefall. The cold air rushed past my face as I hurtled towards the ground.

"Captain!" Jean cried out, and it was this, added with my freefall, that the soldiers below assumed I was a corpse.

By the time the group of soldiers I fell towards realized I was in fact alive, it was only once I'd shot my grapple through the chest of one of them, landed atop his back on the ground, and shot him and two others with the handgun I'd tucked into my gear. I released my grapple once I had, preparing myself to fight back as they began to react to me.

I leapt out of the way of their obvious shots, zipping around them and slicing their throats one by one, until all five were dead, their curses aimed at me dying in their throats. Landing in a crouch on the stone road after killing the last soldier, I watched as the other Scouts zipped around, protecting the ship.

"Captain, get back to the ship!" Jean called out, slowing briefly and looking back at me as he fought. With a nod I leapt to my feet, getting a running start before shooting my grapple to the brick wall of the nearest building, releasing gas to zoom upwards.

I released the grapple and reattached to the top of the building, letting momentum swing me upwards. At the peak of the arc I lined up the shot and attached to the bottom of the zeppelin, to the wooden infrastructure lining the bottom of the compartments.

I let the winch pull me in, and when I reached the bottom and grabbed onto the netting below the compartment's open doors, I let out a breath and looked down at the fighting. I could see the kids fighting hard, and I debated whether I should dive back into the fray.

No, I'd pushed my luck already. I'd taken care of an entire squad, their blood staining my uniform. Down the road I could see Mikasa holding... goodness, that was Eren in her arms, approaching the zeppelin. I smiled, happy to see them safe, too.

"Captain," I heard, and I looked up to see Armin crouched by the door, reaching for me. "Come on up." I reached my free hand towards him and he helped pull me up. I clambered into the compartment, patting him on the shoulder as I stood up.

He stayed crouched by the door, watching Mikasa and Eren approach. I stood on the opposite side of the doorway, holding the bar on the side to hold steady as I watched the action below. Mikasa attached to the infrastructure, swinging up to grab onto the netting.

Eren let go of her to grab the netting, and Armin reached out for him. A quiet moment passed between them, but Eren grabbed Armin's hand, letting him assist him up. Eren clambered up on his knees into the compartment, and I stepped back from the door to allow him some room.

"You're filthy," Levi said, and I was surprised I hadn't noticed he was in here earlier. Still, I smiled down at Eren. He was filthy.

"Filthy and looking awfully like a hobo," I said. "What'd I tell you about your hair?" Eren tore his eyes from Levi to look at me. There was an odd look in his eyes. He looked... distant, a bit vacant. This wasn't the same Eren I once knew. There was no warmth in his eyes.

"You look like you just crawled out of a shithole, Eren," Levi spoke again.

"Captains," Eren said quietly. Without any further warning, Levi kicked him, the force of it sending him to the floor. Mikasa, having just climbed up, cried out angrily and Armin had trouble holding her back. I assisted him, setting a firm hand on her shoulder.

"This brings back some memories, Eren," Levi said. "Still easy to kick around, I see."

I let go of Mikasa and helped Eren up, leading him to sit against the wall of the compartment, away from the door. I patted him on the cheek Levi had kicked. "You'd have seen it coming if you'd cut your hair," I teased, tugging on one of the bangs that had fallen into his face. He jerked his head away, annoyed, and satisfied, I stood and stepped away as Levi and two soldiers joined me.

"First," Levi said with a sigh, "we're going to arrest you. We'll save the talking for after."

"That's fine with me," Eren said, touching his now-bruised cheek. "But nothing I wrote in my letter was wrong." He looked up at Levi with a bored look. "Was that not enough to earn your understanding?"

The way he said it was venomous, vindictive. My eyes widened with shock. A quick glance at Levi and he met my eyes, and immediately I knew he was thinking the same thing. That look was dangerous. We'd seen it all too often.

It was a man who had had everything go his way, one that had nothing to lose because he'd been so ready to lose it all. He'd been prepared for it, to sacrifice us for this. It was a dangerous combination. I didn't think I'd ever see that face on Eren - one that had been so happy, once.

"That face... just like every rotting piece of shit we saw in the underground. I never thought I'd see you like this. Well, cheer up. It all went the way you wanted to." With that said Levi turned to look at the other person in the compartment, another I hadn't noticed until now. My eyes narrowed upon seeing the blond, icy anger constricting my heart at the mere sight of him.

I knew who this was.

I knew exactly who this was.

And we were about to have a nice little talk.