AUTHOR'S POV:
The Colossal Titan used his massive left arm to scrape the top part of the Wall.
'He went for the cannons!' Eren thought. 'He didn't take out the gate by accident then, either! He does have intelligence!'
The Colossal turned toward him. Then it reached out for Eren.
'Too slow. Still, this is the perfect chance!' He thought and swung around and landed on the large arm.
'It's the only one who can destroy the Wall! If I can just take him out! He began running up the arm.
The Colossal Titan his shoulder, causing Eren to lose his balance. With a quick maneuver, he tried to go for the nape. His target was directly in front of him.
'Got you!'
He dove for the kill. A cloud of steam burst out before he could slice the skin.
'It burns!'
Eren held on. He let out a battle cry and pushed forward, swinging his swords. They cut through steam, revealing nothing.
'I missed?'
Eren began to fall and shot a hook into the Wall.' No, the Colossal Titan disappeared!'
"Eren!" Thomas appeared above him. "Did you beat it?"
"No! It's just like five years ago! He disappeared just as suddenly as he appeared!" Eren replied, looking down.
Back on the Wall, Eren walked toward his comrades with slumped shoulders. "I'm sorry. I let him get away."
"What are you apologizing for? We were so scared-" Thomas said.
"Hey!" Connie snapped. "There's no time for that! The Wall's been broken! We have to hurry and seal it before the Titans get in again!"
"What are you doing?!" A Garrison soldier appeared and they saluted him. "The Colossal Titan Response Operation is already underway! Return to HQ at once! Anyone who's come into contact with it, remember to give a report!"
"Yes, sir!" Eren replied.
"We pray for the advance team's success!" Connie said.
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A bell rang, signaling the danger. People panicked, flooding the streets, rushing away from the oncoming danger. A little girl being carried over her father's shoulder dropped her doll. She watched with tearful eyes as it was stomped on by the crowd.
.
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At the HQ, a Garrison soldier was giving orders.
"You trainees have successfully graduated! You are now proper soldiers! I have high hopes for you in this operation!"
The soilders were now preparing their equipments. Some were freaking out when some kept their calm.
"Don't worry, Hannah. I promise I'll keep you safe." Franz hugged her.
"Franz..."
Mikasa and Faye ran by, looking around.
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"Are you okay, Armin?" Eren knelt beside him.
Armin's hands were shaking badly as he tried to fill up his canister from the gas pipes attached to the wall.
"I-I'm fine! I'll calm down soon enough. Still, this is bad!"
Mikasa and Faye then came up behind them.
"We don't have the technology to quickly seal an 8-meter-high hole. And we never did manage to unearth that big rock near Zemo. Unless we seal the hole, this city's as good as lost." Armin said.
"It's only a matter of time until Wall Rose is breached!" Armin babbled. "In fact, if they ever feel like it, they can pretty much wipe out humanity anytime they want!"
"Armin." Eren grabbed his arm. "Calm down. This isn't like last time. Humanity won't give in to the Titans anymore!"
"I'm sorry," he said, calmer now. "I'm alright."
More and more Titans were crawling through the hole.
.
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Elsewhere, a beautiful castle stood near the water. A wild patch of white, pink, and yellow flowers grew by the shore, attracting butterflies. It was peaceful.
Pixis was playing chess with a noble man named Wald. He was purposefully losing against the noble man.
"Commander Pixis! I bring a message!" A soldier ran in, followed by a harassed-looking butler.
"How uncouth!" Wald made a face. "Who are you?" Wald asked.
The soldier ignored him. "The Colossal Titan has appeared in Trost! The gate has been destroyed!"
Pixis was shocked hearing his words. He quickly left with the soldier despite the noble man's protests
.
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At the HQ, a Garrison soilders were mentioning the soilders position.
"As practiced, you will now split into your squads and perform resupply, message relay, and Titan-clearing duties under the command of the Garrisons!"
In the courtyard, soldiers stood.
"The Garrison intercept squad will take the vanguard. The trainees, led by the support squad, will take the middle guard. And the Garrison's elite squads will take the rearguard. Additionally, I've received word that the advance team has been wiped out!" Kitz Weilman ordered.
Eren gasped. The other trainees looked equally shocked, hearing his words.
"The outer gate has been breached, and the Titans have been allowed inside. In other words, the Armored Titan could very well appear again and demolish the inner gate at any time!"
"You can't be serious."
"You gotta be kidding me!"
"If they end up breaching Rose-"
"Quiet!" Weilman ordered. "The vanguard is currently engaged with the enemy. This defense operation has but one objective: Defend Wall Rose until the citizens have finished evacuating. Also, as I'm sure you're well aware desertion is punishable by death! Be prepared to lay down your lives! Dismissed!"
"Sir!"
Soldiers ran around, getting ready. 'Why today?' Jean covered his face with one hand. 'I would've been on my way to the interior tomorrow.'
A few feet over, Daz puked. "Are you okay?" Christa rubbed his back. In response, he threw up again.
Jean moved past a few trainees who looked like they had completely given up and were now wallowing in self-pity.
"No, no, no..." One of them whimpered.
Not paying attention, Jean ended up running into Eren. They both looked at each other, startled.
"Get out of my way!" He said and tried to move past him.
"Hey, Jean!" Eren grabbed his arm. "What's wrong with you?"
"What's wrong? That's easy for you to say, Suicidal Bastard!" Jean stepped in. "You wanted to join the Survey Corps!"
His yelling attracted Mikasa and Faye's attention.
"You're ready to be Titan chow anytime! But I was headed for the interior tomorrow!" Jean yelled.
"Calm down!" Eren said
"You expect me to calm down and accept death?!"
"No!" Eren forced him back against a pillar. "Think back! Think back to the three years of sweat and blood we endured!" He continued. "So many times we came close to dying during those three years! Some people did die. Some ran off. Others were kicked out. But we survived. Right?!" Eren demanded.
The trainees who had thrown in the towel straightened up, listening to him.
"I'm sure we can survive today, too! You can just survive today and leave for the interior tomorrow!"
Jean blinked, stunned. "Damn!" He turned and walked away. "Let's go, Quit your damn cryin'!" Daz!
"R-Right."
"Eren!" Mikasa said, walking closer to him. "If the battle gets chaotic, come find me."
"Huh? We're in different squads!"
"In amidst the fray, things won't go according to plan. I'll protect you!"
"What are you-" Eren was interrupted.
"Trainee Ackerman," a Garrison soldier, Ian, interrupted, "you're in the rearguard. Special orders, come with me."
"I-I'm not skilled enough!" Mikasa protested. "I'll only be a burden!"
"I am not asking for your opinion. The citizens' evacuation is behind schedule. We need as many elite soldiers near them as possible."
"B-But-"
"Hey!" Eren stepped in and head-butted her.
"Eren!" Faye yelled.
"Cut the crap, Mikasa!" Eren scolded her. "Quit freaking out like everyone else. Humanity's on the verge of extinction here. This is no time to go and impose your own selfish rules."
"But-" Faye tried to argue but Mikasa gestured her to stop.
"I'm sorry. I wasn't thinking clearly." Mikasa said and grabbed Eren's sleeve as he turned away.
"I do have one thing to ask. Please don't die." Mikasa said, looking down.
Eren's face softened. Then he put his hands on her and looked at her.
"I promise Mikasa... I won't die." Eren declared. Then he turned to Faye. "Take care Faye."
"You too." Faye said.
Then Eren walked away.
'I won't die...I can't die yet! Because I still don't know what this world is really like!'
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Squad 34, Eren, Armin, Mina, Thomas, Nic, and Milieus stood upon the rooftops, waiting.
"Alright! Don't do anything stupid and try to avoid Titans if you can't kill it. Ok? Let's start." Eren said and led his team.
He was good at ODM gear so he started killing Titans in sight. His teammates were mostly avoiding titans.
Then Eren went ahead of them, killing more. Armin, Thomas and Mina were now barely surviving. All of them were in separate directions.
Then a titan grabbed Nic and Milieus.
"Stop! Please stop!" Nic cried, but it fell on deaf ears.
Armin collapsed onto his knees, staring at as Nic and Milieus were getting eaten. Mina and Thomas were too far away from him.
'Why? Why am I...watching as my friends get eaten?'
The ground shook. Armin's eyes shifted to the left. A 15-meter titan with a white beard stood there, smiling.
'Why won't...my body...move?'
Armin was like a limp puppet. The bearded titan picked him up and opened its mouth and dropped him. Armin panicked, struggling not to slip down.
Before he could slip down, Eren grabbed his hand. Gritting his teeth, he used one hand to grip the titan's teeth and threw Armin outside its mouth.
"Eren!" Armin cried out.
Eren struggled to keep the titan's mouth open.
"You think I'm...going to die here? Listen, Armin...you told me about it... So, I have to...see it...the outside world..." He reached his hand out.
"Eren!" Armin moved forward, arm outstretched. "Hurry!"
Then the titan chomped down, sending Eren's arm flying out. Armin screamed, crying, as the titan swallowed Eren.
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Elsewhere, Mikasa turned, looking behind her, as if she felt something bad happened.
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Before the titan could reach out for Armin, Thomas grabbed him and took him away. Mina was behind them.
"Armin! Are you ok?" Did you see Eren?" Thomas asked.
Then Armin quietly replied.
"We lost... Eren..."
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