No Choice (Eruri)

Downfall

Erwin could hardly hear more than the drumming sound of their horses' hooves on the stone ground as they all rode along the road. The closer they got to the gate, the more it mixed with the screams of the people who were lucky enough to be still able to scream at all. He looked to the side and saw the soldiers around him jumping off their horses one by one, hoping to move faster and to retain an overview. Erwin joined them just before the end of the street and steered his mare into one of the small alleys before sending it away and pulling himself up on one of the towers lining a big building.

A few tiles broke under his weight as he came to a stop with too much momentum on the tower's roof, taking a moment to get an overview. Eyes wide, he spun around several times as he took in the sheer mass of Titans that had already advanced into the city and spread out into the streets.

How was this even possible?

A loud scream snapped him out of his state of shock. Again the low sun blinded him, and he held his hand over his eyes before abruptly lowering it again when suddenly something came to rest with a dull thud right at his feet. In disbelief, he looked down at the woman's head. Her lips still open in a now-silenced scream as her body disappeared into the jaws of a titan just a few feet away from him. It was by no means the first time he had been subjected to such a sight. After all, he had fought outside the walls for years. But having to witness these very scenes inside the walls was not even up to his worst nightmares.

He forced himself to quickly push the thought away as the behemoth now turned in his direction by drawing his blades in one swift motion. He wanted to outrun it and prepared to jump, but then he felt something suddenly graze the back of his neck. With a violent tug on his cloak, he was pulled back. Quick-witted, he loosened the fabric around his neck with one hand, but despite the easing draw on his throat, he fell back-first onto the hard tiles.

He ignored the pain and, still lying on his back, threw his head back, only to find himself staring headlong into the eyes of another Titan.

Again the vast paw reached for him. In a single motion, he rolled to the side and tried to get to his feet as quickly as he could, while the Titan's lumbering claw slammed into the roof just inches away from him, taking a large section of the entablature with it. He felt the ground give way beneath him as he leaped from the edge of the roof with all his strength, the anchors of his equipment digging deep into the Titan's skin.

For a split second, he thought of aiming for the monster's neck, but the Titan spun with him, at which point Erwin immediately discarded his plan and used the momentum to leap onto a roof next to him.

His face contorted painfully as his right foot caught the entire force of his jump and threatened to give way under his weight. He used the boost of his ODM gear to keep himself upright, successfully blocking out the pain thanks to the adrenaline boiling in his veins. He hurried to the other end of the roof to escape the Titan, but suddenly, the face of another Titan appeared right in front of him.

This time he didn't hesitate and used the momentum of his run to take a full running leap over the giant's head. In mid-leap, he turned and buried the anchors in the behemoth's flesh while using the pull of the coils to aim for the Titan's neck. This time he made it before the monster could turn to face him and felt the sharp blades cut into his neck.

While the swords were still cutting through the thick skin, he was already aiming at one of the roofs behind him and pushed off with his feet against the neck of the slumping Titan. For a moment, he thought he was safe, but even as he jumped, he could see the first Titan dangerously catching up to him. Before he could react, the monster had already reached him and stretched out its paw. He felt the thick fingers grasp his foot as his surroundings suddenly spun. Everything around him suddenly turned upside down, and it took him a moment to realize that the gray mass above him was the ground of the street. Hanging upside down from the Titan's hand, Erwin tried desperately to fish for the two swords dangling from the cables of the hilts a scant meter below his head.