Memoirs of the Lost Loser

Change of Fate

If those aren't them, then it's safe to assume two things:

Two soldiers broke the order; or

There are traitors crawling in the Survey corps, as Hange said. Looks like there are more than one we'd have to catch at the end of this expedition.

I kept them in my periphery. In the layers of noise I can make out shouted conversations between... women.

Women. I gritted my teeth. That pitch and feisty, know-it-all manner of talking can only belong to someone I know. Funny, if a soldier would break the chain of command, there's at least one female person I know who will.

Phoebe Johnson.

So, is Phoebe a traitor?

***

"Phoebe— Levi's squad, they're right there!" Nanaba exclaimed. You glanced briefly at them, swearing the feel of a pair of eyes observing you at a distance. It didn't matter if Levi recognized you or Nanaba, what matters now is Petra and his squad.

"It's done!" You stated, tossing your tank and gear to Nanaba in exchange of your horse's reins.

 "Take off the safety pin and the regulator and she's good to go!"

"Tell me when to shoot!" 

Nanaba aimed it on the female titan, one eye closed to perfect the trajectory of the throw. Timing, weight, possible nuisances, air resistance, even the violent movement of the horses were some of the things that made the aim difficult.

Nanaba took a deep breath and you looked ahead, the barrels and barricades of Hange traps out of the female titan's sight. There were no screams left— no soldier left tailing the female titan, and Levi's squad were left to bait themselves before Erwin did what Annie never thought.

"FIRE!"

It was slow yet sudden, Erwin's roar shook the ground, and the lines were casted in a deafening series of explosions.

"Wait until they're done!" You told Nanaba, in which the warrior only nodded in response. You followed the direction she's looking, and understandably, Nanaba's silence was perfect to say it all.

In all her mystery and glory, the titan's magnificent form was caught in explosions of dangerous  golden fireworks. Each strand of cable glistened against fire as they held her still. Her unmoving, eerie form made her look more like a statue tangled in a spider web rather than a killing machine.

How beautiful yet lethal.

Your breath quickened, your pulse raced and everyone's movements were slow. You took one big breath, one hand raised above your head, and it dropped at the same moment your voice thundered, livening the innards of the dreary forest.

"Now!"

Too fast when it happened, too slow when felt, the Nanaba aimed at her neck. The cable was shot in perfect straight. All focus was on that shot— a strange, unpredictable hook and line that appeared out of nowhere. You could feel countless shocked, wide-eyes gawking at your direction now, but you couldn't care. There was no time to care.

"Did we get it—"

BOOM!

With your gear gone and her neck exploded, the female titan's head fell, suspended on the glistening strings. And then the steam thickened, her once fleshy, athletic physique slowly deteriorated into smoke.

All that was left of the titan was its shifter encased safely in a crystal.

Annie may not have predicted the ambush, but this move you both just pulled might've been totally off her list. You expected her to pull back and flee, but she must've been so caught off guard, she never had one second to think of another way to escape.