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Staring up at the bright blue sky with the shining blinding sunlight peering down at the land, a hawk could be seen flying high above.
[??]: Hey...-A boy's voice can be heard. He had ash-blond hair and hazel eyes as they followed the bird's movements. The boy was laying on the rocky ground, blood dripping down his forehead as he stared half-lidded at the sky and reached his hand out- It's dangerous here..-His voice was hushed, his hand twitching slightly as around him were dead, what presumed to be, soldiers-
Each of them had gray armbands, but for the boy, was yellow. Bullets were flying at every corner and explosions shake the ground and were sounding off.
[??]: Fly away...somewhere...far away..-He stares at the bird, hand still reaching out until a figure suddenly looks down at him and shrieks-
[??]: Falco!!..-It was a young man with short blond hair and hazel eyes as he was currently wearing a helmet. The boy, Falco, looks at the young man and mumbles-
[Falco]: Huh? What's my brother doing here?..
[??]: Good! You're still talking!..-He quickly removes his helmet and places it on Falco's head-
[Soldier]: Colt!..-A soldier screamed, running past him with a gun until he was suddenly shot and fell dead on the ground. Colt, quickly hoisted his little brother on his back and holds his legs tightly-
[Colt]: Time to run! Hold on!..-He states and like so, Falco wraps his arms around Colt's neck as his brother and a few soldiers were running away from bullets just mere inches away from them-
Two of the soldiers running with Colt were shot dead to the ground while the man continued running with his might, letting out a determined yell while Falco just stared mindlessly at the ground. The bullets were gaining upon Colt as he quickly dives himself by the trenches and drops Falco, holding him close as two kids quickly rush their way over to them and shriek.
[Boy]: Falco!..-A boy's voice shrieked as he and another kid pull Falco down first then Colt-
Setting Colt down, three kids made their way to Falco's aid as a man pushes past a curtain and looks down to see Colt panting heavily with his hands on his knees.
[Man]: Colt? Status report?..-The man asked, waiting on Colt to catch his breath-
[Colt]: It was a direct hit..-He answers as they can hear rubble breaking from the distance. Colt slightly straightens himself, eyeing above the trenches- The Eldian unit at the front got blown away..-He continues to pant heavily while the man stares down at him, still asking-
[Man]: And the trench?..
[Colt]: It's hopeless! We can't dig any farther!..
[Man]: We can't? You're calling the shots? An Eldian, giving orders?..-The man hissed while a soldier behind him glared at Colt and exclaimed
[Soldier]: Watch your tone with Commander Magath, you mutt!..-Colt glances at the man behind the Commander, breathing out-
[Colt]: But..at this rate..-He was still trying to take in air, desperation in his voice while the same three kids were surrounding Falco-
There was one boy and two girls. The boy had black hair and wore glasses, a girl with platinum hair and blue eyes, and another girl with brown hair and brown eyes.
[Girl]: Falco, are you drunk?..-Questioned the platinum hair girl-
[Girl 2]: He must've hit his head good..-The brown-haired girl said, staring at Falco with furrowed brows-
[Boy]: Do you remember this war we've been in for four years?..-The boy puzzled. Falco looked between the three with confusion, creasing his brows as he looked around-
[Falco]: Who...are you guys?..Wait..Huh?..-He looked to his left- Wasn't I flying around with a sword just now? Like, whoosh!..And there was a girl by my side -He looks to his right- And there were Titans that I..-He suddenly then got water poured on himself, making him tense up at the cold liquid-
[Girl 2]: Guess I'll just have to explain everything from the start..-The brown-haired girl stated as she was the one who poured the drink on him. She went to close the tap whilst smirking- Listen up good, Falco..This battle is the climax of a war that's lasted four years..-She looks away from him and stares up at the trenches- If we can take out Fort Slava..Well, technically, if we sink the Mid-East Allied Forces fleet in its port..it'll spell victory for Marley and end the war. But unless we take Fort Slava sitting on the high ground, it's hopeless to attack the port..
She looks back down to see the other girl and boy treating Falco's wounds as the brown-haired girl watch with her right knuckle on her hip.
[Girl]: Why can't the Marley fleet just do it?..-Muttered the platinum girl as she used a cotton swap to clean around Falco's mouth. The other boy, who was wrapping bandages around Falco's head, looks at the girl flabbergasted and shrieks-
[Boy]: Seriously, Zofia?! You have faith in the fleet?!..It took those imbeciles four years to control the seas!..-In a fit of rage, the boy pulls on Falco's bandages tightly, making Falco wince and tense up and yowl- And guess what?! They lost half their damn ships doing it!..-The boy continued his rant, leaving poor Falco struggling for him to stop- Now they're telling us they're too chicken to attack till we take the fort?! Screw 'em all! They're pricks!..-He screams, shaking his head viciously until he felt a hard tap on his helmet-
[Girl 2]: Udo, you're gonna squeeze Falco's head off..-The brown-haired girl sighed, holding a bomb. The boy, Udo, blinks his eyes rapidly before looking down at Falco and let out an awkward laugh, letting Falco go as he somewhat relaxes-
[Udo]: Whoops! Sorry!..-Falco let out a groan as he held his head, eyeing the brown-haired girl, and questioned her-
[Falco]: So what's the deal? Why'd they send us Warrior candidates to the front lines?...
[Girl 2]:.....-The girl places her hands on her hips and continues her smirk- To judge us, obviously..To pick which one of us will be the next Warrior..-Her smirk falls and her expression turns serious as she looks up at the sky- The time is coming. Commander Magath chose the front line to be our final test. He knows what's on the horizon. The plan to conquer Paradis needs a main player...the successor of the Armored Titan!..
In the sky, an airship was flying its way over to the battlefield. Inside the ship, Reiner was sitting on a bench, fingers intertwined as he stared at the ground.
At this point, the bullets were slowly dying down as most of the Eldian soldiers were resting by the trenches. Falco looks away from the girl and down at his dirty palms.
[Falco]: The Armored Titan...
[Girl 2]: I wonder which one of us it'll be..-The girl said, making Falco look to his right to see her sitting next to him and smirking at him. He returns the amused smirk and leans close-
[Falco]: Really, Gabi? Sounds to me like you're saying none of us come close to you...
[Gabi]:.....-Gabi, gives him a light scoff and raised a brow- Because you don't, right?..-Falco's face falls and he slightly frowns while Zofia and Udo were looking through their bags-
[Zofia]: Well, Gabi does have us beat..-Zofia stated, smiling to herself-
[Udo]: As far as our grades go..-Udo added as he placed small cans in his bag-
[Gabi]: No..-The two look over at Gabi, who looked rather serious- There's more to it than grades, Udo. I keep telling you. The difference between us is that I'm prepared..-Falco quirks a brow and gives an unamused look at her- To shoulder the fate of us Eldians..and to slaughter that island of devils who've done nothing but make us suffer!..-She narrowed her brows- I'm gonna win this battle and prove that the Eldians left in this world are good Eldians!..-She looks away from the three and looks back down at the bombs she gathered and started tying them together- I refuse to lose till I free everyone from the internment zone!..
The three remain quiet, looking at the ground with sweat rolling down their faces until Falco looks back at Gabi hen at the bombs.
[Falco]: Um, what exactly are you doing?..-He puzzled just as Gabi had finished tying them together. She looks over at him with a smile-
[Gabi]: Pretty cool, right?..-She grins, letting out a small chuckle.
The sound of Colt's muffled voice makes Gabi's expression drop and look over to see Magath leaving the Commander's hideout while holding a gun handle over his shoulder.
[Colt]: It won't work, Commander Magath!..We can't destroy the railroad without the machine gun slaughtering us first. They've got soldiers along every inch of the trench. To top it off, the fort can bombard us whenever they want. If we stay here too long, they'll just shower us with shells!!..-Magath crouches turned half his body over at the blond, furrowing his brows as he questioned him-
[Magath]: Do you have a better idea, Colt?..-Sweat rolls down Colt's forehead-
[Colt]: We should let Jaw and Cart loose..-He answered- Galliard and Pieck will get in done. They'll wipe out the trench and bunker in a flash..
[Magath]: No..-Colt stared in shock at the Commander's words, who continue to speak- If we plan our cards wrong, we lose..-The same soldier from before, Koslow, was looking through a binocular before glancing over at Magath and informing him-
[Koslow]: Commander Magath, ''that'' showed up..-Magath looks over at him and stands up as Koslow hands him the binoculars and backs off. Magath stands at Koslow's previous spot and looks through them while Colt looks between the two with confusion-
[Colt]: What's ''that''..
Looking through the binoculars, Magath can see what looked like two tanks leaving the entrance of Fort Slava.
[Magath]: That. An armored train. It's equipped with four massive cannons in total. They're the Allied Forces' new weapon--anti-Titan cannons. If one of those 150mm rounds hits a Titan, it'll it in a single hit..Even one of the Nine..
[Colt]: But both of our Titans are incredibly fast. The odds of hitting their nape--
[Magath]: And it they did?..-The Commander interrupted, ripping his gaze away from the binoculars, and looked at Colt, who freezes at the question before answering-
[Colt]: We would lose a Titan and a Warrior.. with no guarantee that we get their powers back..
[Magath]: That's right. Just like our plan nine years ago to retake the Founding Titan resulted in us losing the Colossal and Female Titan. The perceived hit to Marley's military might is what sparked this war, putting the Paradis Operation on hold..-He pauses, looking back over the trench to see the armored train moving along the tracks then back at Colt- What is it that makes our motherland Marley so great?..
[Colt]: The Power of the Titans..
[Magath]: Correct. Our nation won't last if we keep losing 'em..-The Commander replied, furrowing his brows- The Power of the Titans is absolute, and it must always remain that way..-He looks over his shoulder and at Koslow, stating- Prepare the Eldian unit for attack!..
[Koslow]: Yes, sir!..-Koslow turns around and runs off while Colt looks at the Commander again and tries to object-
[Colt]: Commander Magath! But that's...
[Magath]: What's the matter, Eldian?..-Magath spat, staring straight into Colt's eyes- Are you not warriors who swore loyalty to Marley?..-The blond gasped a bit at his words- This is a chance for the 800 Eldians here..to serve our motherland with honor...
The soldiers were all shaking in fear, holding their guns close and silently praying to let them live through this war. Koslow walks down the aisle of soldiers, his arms behind his back before bringing his right hand out to the group and ordered.
[Magath]: Everyone up! Prepare to attack!..-Despite not wanting to, the soldiers were quick on their feet and brought their guns nearly pressed against their chest, still scared out of their minds-
One of them didn't seem they wanted to get up as a soldier was ushering him to. Koslow paid no mind, putting his right arm back behind him as he continued to walk down the line.
[Koslow]: Eldians! Your mission is to assault and destroy the enemy railroad! The suicide squad will rush the bunker and disable the machine gun!..-He glanced at the suicide squad, who were covered by bombs, were shaking hard before returning on staring ahead- Listen up! Let your actions purge the disgrace of being spawn of the devil! This is your chance to be honored by our great motherland Marley..-He turns to them and raises his right arm in the air- Prove yourselves worthy!..
[Soldiers]: Yes, sir!!..-The soldiers replied, standing tall-
[Magath]: You Warrior candidate are to stand by. The 800-strong Eldian unit must destroy the rail at whatever cost. As long as that armored train is patrolling the fort, the Armored and Beast Titan can't do what they came for..-He points to the sky-
[Colt]: But...-Colt narrows his gaze and frowns, looking to the side. He then felt a fist lightly touch his chest, making him look back to see it was the Commanders-
[Magath]: Colt. As the chosen successor of the Beast Titan, learn what it means to lead already..
Colt just looks away from him as Falco stares at his brother with creased brows. Magath removes his fist from Colt's chest and climbs back up on the step stool and looks through the binoculars. It seems that the armored train was getting closer and closer to the trenches.
[Magath]: Perfect. We can destroy the train, too..
[Gabi]: Please, let me take a shot al it..-Gabi then grins and holds up the tied bombs to him- Ta-da!..If you'll let me, I can disable the armored train all on my own!..-Colt and the others stare at her with wide eyes and mouths dropped, especially Falco's-
[Falco]: Hey, Gabi..
[Magath]: How much do you think Marley's spent training you all these years? Hell no..
[Gabi]: It's true..I am exceptional compared to Falco and the others.. There may never be another Warrior as talented as I am.. Not to mention one this cute..-Udo, Zofia, and Falco sweatdrop at the last sentence while fighting the urge to roll their eyes. Gabi looks back up at Magath- But if I succeed, we won't lose the whole unit of 800 Eldians!..
[Magath]: And if you fail?..-The Commander steps down from the stool and rose a brow-
[Gabi]: You lose just one promising candidate and seven hand grenades..-Magath just stares down at her for a moment, making the girl's smile drop and frown- If you think I'm more valuable than 800 Eldian soldiers, I totally understand..-Her voice wavered as she held the grenades close to her chest- You love me so much that you'd rather sacrifice the lives of 800 soldiers over me..
[Magath]: Fine..-Magath grumbled- Go ahead..-Gabi's eyes brighten up as she nods while Falco's eyes had shrunk and were struck with fear-
[Falco]: Gabi, don't..
[Gabi]: I swear! I will to you that I'm worthy of inheriting the Armored Titan..-She exclaimed, her cocky expression turning into a serious one. She gently places the grenades down and went to quickly remove her uniform, making Falco flinch at the sudden movement, blush, and looked away shamelessly as Gabi was left with her plain top-
[Magath]: What are you doing?..-The Commander asked, genuinely confused as he watched Gabi soon remove her uniform pants-
[Gabi]: For this to succeed..-She holds her clothes in a ball and looks back up at the man-....please allow me to remove my armband..
[Magath]:....-He stares at her for a moment and replies- Very well...
Falco, Udo, and Zofia all stare at her with worry, thinking she was insane while hoping this plan would work.
⋙Start our war⋘