Underdogs

FORTY-TWO

❝Unlimited power in the hands of limited people always leads to cruelty.❞

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CHAPTER FORTY-TWO:

BLOOD AND BONES

Deep within the Headquarters of the Survey Corps, there existed a room only very few had been allowed to visit. The walls were of a dark shade of brown, as well as the floors which were covered by a thick, green carpet. The ceiling was high enough for Galene to have to crane her neck to see its large expansion, and a single window allowed sunlight to illuminate the wooden table that sat under a hanging lamp with candles.

Important meetings to discuss strategies in the never-ending battle against Titans took place there, yet the reason of her presence held a different meaning.

Galene took a seat by the window and glanced at her surroundings with a closed expression. Only five people had been called to witness and hear her tale: Erwin Smith, Hange Zöe, Jack Leonhart, Farlan Church and the queen herself.

Expectation was thick in the air, but Galene waited — there was someone missing.

Not long after her realization, the door cracked open. She glanced at Levi out of the corner of her eye, feeling unsure for the very first time in many years.

"You're late," attacked Jack as the shorter man crossed the room and sat down in front of her, giving her no option but to meet his expression.

His eyes were already on her, holding the same intense glint she was used to seeing in them. However, something else caught her attention. Beneath them, grey bags spoke of insomnia. A slight frown curled on her lips as a question remained unspoken between them, but the lack of coldness in his grey irises answered it.

When handing those files to him, she had opened a door only for him to walk through. No one knew about what was written in them, about whom she was and what she had done. Except for him: Levi Ackerman. And that would lead to a conversation once the meeting was over.

"Shall we?"

Her attention was grabbed by Erwin, who was looking at Historia. The latter nodded and turned her focus on Galene. "There's nothing about your family in our archives. But from what I gathered during your conversation with the former king, Everharts signed some kind of business contract with the royal family. Would you care to elaborate?"

Galene noticed how she had avoided referring to the former king as her father, but made no comment on it and sighed inwardly. "I think it'll be easier if I start by revealing the truth about us before I jump into details."

"Go ahead."

"Have you ever heard about the Devil of All?"

"The demon my ancestor run into and made a contract for power? It's said it vanished after giving the royal family the power to control Titans," Historia mentioned with a serious frown.

Galene titled her head and smirked ever-so-subtly. "Yes... and no. The Devil of All created the First Nine and gave them to your ancestor to put an end to the war between humans, but the royal family was greedy and after winning, they built up these damn Walls and hid the people inside. They wanted to control everything; they locked up the First Nine while giving humans the false belief that the royal family were some kind of saviours by stealing their memories. The Devil of All witnessed everything and couldn't allow its power to waste away in cells, so it planted some seeds before returning to its world."

"Seeds?" Hange repeated in a voice of utter disbelief.

"Descendants of the Devil of All," Galene elaborated. "It left those seeds and gave them one single mission: to get the First Nine back from the royal family. It took many years, but eventually, they succeeded. But the plan had escalated into something bigger and bolder; not only did they retrieve the Titans, but they also killed the former king's family."