AUTHOR'S POV:
Reiner jumped off and transformed with a big blue lightning orb.
"Jean, Reiner, Hange-san! Please don't die on us!" Connie shouted.
.
The Armoured titan landed between War hammer titans.
.
Reiner gritted his teeth. 'Same to you. I'll get the attention of the War Hammer titans...'
.
The Armoured titan swang his hand and decapitated a War hammer titan while another one formed a weapon.
Slipping past them, Jean and Hange flew away towards the nape.
"Just wait until I detonate the-" Jean said then stopped as he saw more titans at the nape.
"Just how many titans are Eren summoning?" Hange said
.
Lara's War hammer titan was still holding the Cart titan's body with a trident.
Pieck got out of her nape and walked towards the War hammer, walking on the trident.
"Uhh... Knowing how to vertically maneuver must be nice." Pieck said and and bit down her thumb.
She transformed and bite off the War Hammer Titan's nape.
.
"Damn it! I can't get close!" Jean shouted, trying to fight off a Jaw Titan.
Hange flew up a bit. "We have to keep trying!"
The Cart titan jumped into action and bite off the Jaw Titan's nape, holding his head.
Jean flew up. "Whao!"
"Watch out!" Hange exclaimed with wide eyes.
Suddenly, two Jaw Titans attack the Cart titan.
"No Pieck! Get away!" Jean shouted, looking in horror.
In time, Pieck removed herself from her titan nape.
"That was impressive!" Hange exclaimed.
.
The Jaw Titan ripped apart the Cart titan's body with it's claws.
"If you guys think I am a titan that's only good for odd jobs and not fighting, you're dead wrong!" Pieck said and bit down her thumb.
With body half transformed, she jumped behind the Jaw Titan and bit off it's nape.
But, another Jaw titan jumped in and ripped apart the Cart titan but Pieck removed herself in time.
.
"Whoa. Just how many times can she transform?" Hange said with amazement.
.
Pieck was in the air. "With the Cart's endurance, so long as they don't take me out, I can fight untill I win!" She bit down her thumb.
The Cart titan bit off the Jaw Titan's nape.
.
The Armoured titan kept fighting the War hammer titans.
.
Hange and Jean moved forward to detonate the bomb.
Then Suddenly, a Jaw Titan came underneath and was about to bite down Jean but Hange took him away in time.
.
"Hey, only that pig titan is running away!" Connie said, pointing at the Okapi Beast titan.
"Go Falco!" Faye shouted and turned to Mikasa. "We'll corner that pig while it's on the tail bone!"
"That's good idea." Levi said.
Mikasa nodded and jumped off along with Levi, Connie and Faye.
"Let's get my Armin back!" Faye shouted and bite down her hand.
"This brat..." Levi said.
.
Suddenly Zeke, who was watching with other soilders and Onyankopon, found himself in the paths.
"Huh? Again?" Zeke said and looked around.
"They need your help, Zeke." Founder Eren said, standing behind him.
Zeke turned around with a surprise expression. "More help? I am ready to do it! Tell me, what do you want me to do?"
"You'll soon get it." Founder Eren said and walked away. "You should resume your sand castle, Zeke."
"Founder! Is that it?!" Zeke asked in disbelief. "And may I know why are you helping them?"
"No reasons." Founder Eren said and left.
Zeke just nodded and resumed making sand castle.
.
"I can provide cover with this anti titan rifle!" Gabi said.
"I don't think you can kill any titan with that!" Magath said.
.
Faye's female titan started fighting with a Beast Titan while the Okapi titan was getting away.
The female titan turned to the Okapi titan.
.
"Armin!" Faye exclaimed.
.
Levi sliced the nape of the Beast titan while Mikasa did the same to an Attacking Titan and Connie did the same to a Cart titan.
"Faye!" Mikasa shouted.
Faye's Female titan brought her hand up and Mikasa shot a hook towards it.
With a little force, Faye's female titan threw Mikasa towards the Okapi titan.
Mikasa went flying towards the Okapi titan. "Stop right there, pig!"
Suddenly, two Jaw Titans came between them.
"Uh?" Mikasa said and sliced the two titan's nape in one go. "Out of my way!" She gasped as an Armoured titan ran towards her.
Mikasa tried to slice the Armoured titan's nape, breaking her blades in the process.
She gasped. 'Armour? Oh no!'
Faye's female titan chrystalized her fist and swang her hand and decapitated the Armoured titan.
Mikasa looked at her. "Faye!"
"Don't go off on your own!" Levi said, flying up.
"They will kill you in no time flat!" Connie said, flying with Levi.
.
Faye's eyes widened as the Okapi got away. 'The pig... Oh no! It's heading towards Bertolt!'
.
Levi, Connie and Mikasa landed on Faye's female titan's shoulder.
Soon, they were surrounded by titans.
"Shit. This is bad." Levi said.
"What are we gonna do now?!" Connie asked in panic.
.
More soilders joined the land force.
.
Armin found himself in the paths, beside his body. Then he leaned beside his own body in the paths. "Why? Why won't my body move?! Please! You have to move! Everyone's going to die!"
.
Two War hammer titan stabbed the Armoured titan with spears.
.
Four Jaw Titans attacked Pieck.
.
Jean and Hange were chased by a Jaw Titan.
.
Levi sliced the nape of a Female titan and a Jaw Titan.
.
Mikasa did the same with Beast titan.
.
Connie struggled to slice a female titan's nape when Levi did it for him.
.
Faye's female titan punched an Amoured Titans head off.
.
"All of them! Don't you get it? They are going to die!" Armin shouted, teary eyed, kneeling beside his unconsious body. "Wake up you piece of trash! Filthy bastard! Useless idiot! I hate you! I always have! You have never done anything but betray me! The life I was getting given! The expectations! The responsibilities! Everything! All of it! You haven't been able to give them anything in return! So, why are you dead like that?! Move! I said move!" He slammed his fist on the ground and grabbed some sand. He looked at it. 'Sand...' He sat up. "Think! If I really was dead, how would I be able to think with no oxygen coming to my brain! This... Isn't a dream. It's not a vision. It's not afterlife..." He clenched his fist. "This is the Paths! This is reality!" He looked up at the Coordinates. "I'm supposed be in a Titan's mouth right now. So, why do I know what everyone's doing...? Because all Eldians are connected via this paths. In that case..." He stood up. "There might be... Something I can do here. Yeah. Think. Think!" He looked behind him to see Zeke making sand castle. "Huh?" He approached him and kneeled before him. "Hello, Mr. Zeke."
"Hello, Eren's friend." Zeke said and looked at him. "So, Founder Eren ate you too. Huh?" He looked down.
"Yeah." Armin replied.
"Let me tell you the story of life." Zeke said. "Long ago, when nothing but mere matter existed in this world. As countless masses of some unknown things appeared, disappeared then appeared again. But, one of them eventually survived. We now know it as 'Life'. The reason the 'Life' ultimately survived was because it was in it's nature to multiply. Life took new forms in order to multiply, adapting to every kind of environment and eventually leading to us as we are now. It sought numbers. It sought spread. It sought abundance. And so, this is to say the purpose of life is to multiply." Armin starred at him with wide eyes. "This sand. This pebbles. The water. They don't seek to multiply. But life never stops in it's frantic quest to do so. After all, death and extermination of species runs counter to the goal of multiplying. That is why we face the punishment known as fear. And why that child sought to avoid such pain. Something stronger. Something larger. The first Founder Ymir Fritz gave birth to an undying body. Then she died and left this world which is free of death to the Founder Eren."
"That man was Founder Eren and this is the world free of death." Armin said, looking around. Then he looked at Zeke. "Why this place was created?"
"I myself spent an astonishing amount of time her to try to understand the First Founder, Ymir." Zeke said. "In spite of all her strength she had, she could never defy King Fritz. That's why this place was created."
"Why was that?" Armin asked.
"Ymir still wanted to serve the king even after her death." Zeke said. "She felt attached to the world she left behind. But, before her death, Founder Eren assured her that he will take her place. That's why Ymir died with a smile. Because of Founder Eren, she got freedom."
"Why Founder Eren took her place and stayed here for 2000 years?" Armin asked. "And who exactly is he? He does look like our Eren though."
"We live in a multiverse. Like our world, there exist unlimited world. Some are different yet similar." Zeke explained.
Armin gasped. "Multiverse?"
"Yeah. Founder Eren is from another universe in which the world is already destroyed by the Rumbling." Zeke said.
Armin gasped. "What!"
"Yeah. As I said, universes are similar yet different." Zeke said. "After his death, he got teleported here without his permission. He took this as an way to atone his sin of killing 60% of world population outside of Paradise."
Armin gasped again. "60%?!"
"Yeah. He freed Ymir in his universe so he did the same in here too except he took her place here." Zeke said. "He is also waiting to be freed so that he could fullfill his promise."
"Promise?" Armin asked, curious.
"Yeah. He had promised Mikasa of his universe that he will wrap her scarf around her in their next life." Zeke said. "That promise."
"Really? That's so... Sad." Armin said and looked down. "Do you know who killed him in his universe?"
"It's Mikasa herself." Zeke replied.
Armin gapsed with wide eyes. "Mikasa?"
"Yeah. Eren once talked about her. She loves Eren so much. Doesn't she?" Zeke said.
"Yeah..." Armin said.
"Probably, her killing Eren was what freed Ymir in his universe." Zeke said.
"How?" Armin asked with a surprised expression.
"That's something only Ymir knew." Zeke said and looked away.
"I see." Armin said then he remember something. "Mr. Zeke. Isn't there some way of getting back to the outside world from here?"
"I don't know." Zeke said. "Founder Eren brought me here to help you guys. Probably, you are here because Founder Eren wanted you to do something." He looked away. "We all were born for a reason afterall."
"What could it be..." Armin said looked down.
Then, he found a leaf in the sand and remembered his days with Eren, Mikasa and Faye when they were little.
Armin picked it up and starred at it. "The sun was starting to set." Zeke looked at him. "We were running to a tree on the hill. The four of us were racing." Armin smiled sadly at the memory. "Eren brought up the idea and took off out of nowhere. Faye tried to compete him. Mikasa ran too but stayed behind them on purpose. And ofcourse, I was dead last."
.
.
.
Eren running ahead of Mikasa and Faye, laughing.
Armin was dead last but he was enjoying his surroundings.
.
"But the breeze was nice and warm that day. Just running felt good."
.
Several dried leaves flew along the air as Armin was running.
.
"Just running felt good. Leaves fluttered everywhere and for some reason I thought then..."
.
Eren and Faye reached the tree at the same time with Mikasa following behind.
Armin was panting heavily at the back.
.
"May be the reason I was born was so that the four of us could be racing there."
.
Armin sat at the window, reading a book.
.
"I thought the same thing when I read books at home on a rainy day."
.
Armin was offering some peanuts to a squirrel, leaning on the ground while Sasha and Faye were behind him.
.
"When a squirrel ate some nuts I gave it."
.
Eren, Mikasa, Faye, Jean, Connie and Sasha wondered around in the market during their training days.
.
"When we all walked around the market too."
.
.
.
"I felt it. That these trival moments might actually be precious." Armin said.
Zeke looked at the leaf and gasped as it looked like a baseball in his perspective. "That's..."
"This? It was buried into the sand." Armin said. "
Zeke brought his hand forward. "Why is that..."
"Who knows. But to my eyes, even if there is no need for something like this in order to multiply, it's still something incredibly precious." Armin said.
Zeke just starred at him with wide eyes, remembering his days with Tom Ksaver.
"Yeah. You're right." Zeke said and took the ball from Armin. "Just throwing, catching and throwing again. That simple repitation." He looked at the ball. "It doesn't mean a thing. You're right. I would have much rather just kept on playing catch."
Suddenly, some of past the titan shifters appeared behind Zeke.
Both Armin and Zeke looked at them with wide eyes.
"You guys..."
_______________