The Path Back to You | Levi x OC

Chapter 55 - Dream vs. Humanity

Anastasya

Anya stared at the serum nestled in its box upon the wooden table. To the average stranger or acquaintance she appeared spaced out but those who knew her recognised that, in reality, her mind was racing at a thousand miles a minute. It was far from the first time that she'd analysed the serum, but she was growing evermore desperate for answers. Where had it come from? How was it made? What else could it do? What was it? Perhaps most importantly of all, she wanted to know what the hell they were going to do with it. She'd drawn the curtains against prying eyes as soon as they'd come in, and she broke herself from her trance long enough to glance around the darkened room at Levi, Hange, Erwin and Pyxis as they all waited for Dhalis Zachary to arrive. Levi leant against one of the covered windows, his arms folded, while she, Erwin, Hange, Pyxis sat at the table. She shot Levi a small smile, but it wasn't returned. She was on the verge of speaking when the tall figure of Dhalis Zachary strode into the room.
"Sorry I'm late," he said, taking a seat next to Erwin and steepling his fingers. "Well? Have we discovered what's in the container?"
"The thing is," said Hange, "with our technology, I'm afraid we can't dig much deeper. Like we've heard from Eren and Historia, it seems to originate from some sort of human bodily fluid. However, it vaporises when exposed to air, making analysis difficult. Whoever made it must have had technology far superior to ours. If it was the Reiss family, I can't imagine how..."
"Hmm," said Pyxis. "In that case, instead of tampering with it, we should use it to achieve our current objective."
"But whom do we entrust it to?" asked Zachary. "To you, Erwin?"
"No," said Erwin, moving his hand to touch the stump of his right arm through his coat. "I'm no more than a wounded soldier. This box belongs with one of our elite soldiers, someone who has the best odds of survival."
Anya's breath caught in her throat. She certainly didn't want the serum, and she prayed Erwin both knew and respected that. Whoever ended up having to carry it would hold an incredible amount of responsibility in their hands. The power to turn someone into a Titan was not to be taken lightly, and the decision would almost certainly have to be made in extremely difficult circumstances.
"Levi, would you keep it?" Erwin asked.
Anya both relaxed and tensed. Her gaze shot to Levi.
"If it's an order, just say so," he replied, blunt as ever. "Why even ask the question?"
"We can't predict in what situation we'll have to use this. We'll be relying on you to make a decision on the fly. Judging when and who to use it on will be for you to choose. Can we leave that to you?"
"If this dream of yours comes true, what will you do then?" Levi asked.
The question surprised Anya and by the way Erwin frowned, she could tell it had caught him off guard too.
"I...don't know. I won't until it happens."
"I see..." said Levi, clearly troubled by Erwin's response. "All right. I'll do it."
He reached forward and closed the serum box before putting it in his coat pocket. Anya was still trying to understand why he'd asked Erwin what he had when Zachary spoke again.
"By the way, I'd like to unveil that work of mine soon. Have you given it any more thought?"
Anya's eyes widened. The idea was preposterous.
"You still haven't given up on that?" Pyxis chuckled. "If the public saw that repulsive display, trust in the military would hit rock bottom."
"You don't know art when you see it."
Anya was only half listening to Pyxis and Zachary. The rest of her focus was on Levi who, not for the first time that week, seemed lost in his thoughts. The meeting ended, and Erwin left with Zachary while Hange went off with Pyxis to talk about the Executioner from Hell and what it would mean for the Garrison regiment. Neither Anya nor Levi made any effort to move.
"You're not leaving," she remarked.
"Neither are you."
"That's because I want to talk to you."
"Hmm?"
"How do you feel about being entrusted with the serum?"
Levi shrugged.
"It's just another duty."
"It's a pretty big one."
"I take it you don't want it?"
"No."
She went to perch on the edge of the table so that she could face him.
"Will you talk to me?" she asked softly.
"About what?"
"About what's been troubling you for the past few days."
"It's nothing. Worry about the upcoming mission."
He looked away, training his eyes on the floor.
"Levi..."
"I'm serious, Anya."
She heard the faintest trace of irritation in his voice, and he pushed off from the window ledge and walked towards the door.
"I've got things to do. I'll see you at the meeting later."
With that, he left. Anya dropped back into her chair and rested her chin on her hand, drumming the surface of the table with her fingers. She was sure that Levi was worried, and it wasn't just because of her this time. She suspected that Levi was being plagued by the same bad feeling that was twisting her gut and keeping her awake night after night.