Chapter Text
November 25th 847
"Commander Erwin, private Arlert is on his way to see you as requested sir."
"I see, notify me when he is here soldier."
Lifting his head up slowly from yesterday's report, Erwin sighed deeply and closed his eyes. It had been approximately six weeks since he had last seen the cadet and he was extremely worried. The last mission had ultimately failed and they lost two of their best soldiers.
Corporal Levi and Mikasa Ackerman. 'Humanity's Strongest pair.' He thought somberly.
It had been Petra who had come into his office eyes red, lost, but still standing strong as the soldier that they were trained to be. She had said that an abnormal had left as quick as it came. It almost crushed Arlet before Ackerman came in attempting to come for its nape. Before she could even get closer her gear ran out causing Levi to swoop in grab Arlet, literally toss him to Jaeger and save the young girl. Not wanting any useless deaths Levi had ordered Mike to lead everyone back to the safety of the walls while he would dispose of the titan, and him and Ackerman will be right behind the group. That was a week ago. Why Erwin was just informed yesterday was beyond him. It was supposed to be a simple mission. That only consisted of three squads. So how had he managed to lose his strongest soldier. He knew that Levi would be back. He just had too. If he didn't then what would the other recruits think?
'Humanity's Strongest didn't make it!'
'Corporal Levi got killed by a titan!'
'Mikasa Ackerman was with him!'
'No way they both died she was the prodigy of 104th Trainee Squad.'
'We're all doomed guys, if they couldn't make it then how the hell can we!'
That was Erwin's fear. So many of the recruits had looked up to those two, and if they were suddenly gone then what will be left of the Survey Corps. And Jaeger, cadet Ackerman's highly angered brother, had just lost his sister.
Who will now help the boy control himself? Levi had once said that the boy was improving and he was humanity's last hope. Hanji had laughed and made him blush furiously for actually giving someone other than himself acknowledgement. She had accused him of changing and being nicer to those kids. She had laughed so loudly that even Mike and himself had found themselves joining with her. Levi stormed out muttering something along the lines of "shitty" and "painful death." He couldn't help but smile as he recalled that found memory, although he failed to notice Armin come in.
"Commander I brought private Arlert."
"Very well soldier you are excused."
Armin finally walked into his peripheral vision and Erwin swore he hadn't slept in months. His blonde bowl cut hair was a mess, and his eyes screamed of sorrow. His eyes were red and pants were inside out. He saw the look of despair and agony in his face.
Erwin hugged him.
And finally Armin broken down.
Erwin could tell that Armin was concealing his emotions. He had a gift of knowing when something was wrong with his soldiers. Armin was beating himself up because of what happened to Levi and Mikasa. In his mind, it was his fault that they weren't back, and if he wasn't so weak then maybe he could have saved his friend and the corporal. Armin continued to weep in Erwin's embrace, clutching his commander tightly.
"It's my fault. Everything is my fault Commander Erwin. The corporal... Mikasa... My fault." He cried.
Erwin listened silently hoping that he would calm down soon.
"The Titan he appeared from thin air! I promise! He ambushed all of us! If I only I were stronger! If only I was good at killing Titans none of this would of happened!" He screamed.
This was exactly what Erwin wanted. He wanted him to get rid of all that built up tension. The guilt was truly eating him alive and Erwin knew in order to save his sanity, he had to this.
"What exactly do you know about blue death?" He asked quietly.
Armin's eyes widened. "I know that it's highly contagious." He whispered. " The victims... They suffer so much... It's such a cruel, cruel, cruel, death."
His eyes were close, and Erwin really noticed how off the boy really was.
"They say that before the victims die they see darkness and light. There were stories long ago where they say if you see the light run towards it, to a land where the streets are painting gold and there isn't anymore suffering. But if you don't reach it before the gate closes, you'll be thrown into a furnace of fire as the darkness consumes you. It's a death... that suits me best commander."
His crying had ceased.
"It has gotten worse, hasn't it commander?
Erwin released Armin from his embrace and walked towards his desk.
"Yes." He stated.
"D-do you h-have it commander?" Armin asked quietly.
Erwin saw the look of fear cross Armin's face. Losing people that he cared about hurt the poor boys soul.
"No." Erwin replied. "Although the situation is still grave." Pulling out a folder, from insider his desk drawer he looked into Armin's face.
"Are you aware of what happened to Private Penelope Lonae?"
Armin scratched his head. She was fine the last time he had seen her. She was giggling and joking with Annie about something Connie did.
"No she was fine last time I saw her."
"She's dead."
Armin froze. Could Erwin be serious right now.
"W-w-what do... What do you mean?" He stammered.
"She's dead. Not coming back."
Armin felt as if he was going to faint. How on earth was Penelope dead? She survived the mission, he had seen her laughing joyously.
"Are you sure?" He asked.
"Positive."
"B-b-But how!?"
"Do you remember those two girls who were raped by the military police?" Erwin asked.
Armin sunk back. Hardly believing that he could stand right now.
"Th-those young girls, th-they were e-e-eleven and thirteen both of them really young. They were collecting fire wood when four men from the military police attacked them." He said.
"So you remember a lot." Erwin replied. "Well the thirteen year old just so happened to be Lonae sister, and sadly that whole ordeal traumatized the girl tremendously. Her family was absolutely livid when they found out what happened, but they couldn't do anything having been only a lowly middle class family. The girl did what any girl would do."
"Commit suicide." Armin finished in horror.
"Exactly."
Armin whole world seemed to spin around him. He couldn't believe this. After all that has been going on with the Titans why on earth would anyone consider this.
"What have humans turned into?" He asked.
"Beast. Some way worst than Titans." Erwin answered.
Armin felt sick to his stomach.
"Why would anyone do that?" He questioned. "How does this all tie in with blue death?"
Erwin had already mentally prepared himself for this conversation. He just prayed to whoever was listening that Armin was as well.
"Squad leader Hanji Zoe has inf-.." Before he could finish his sentence two cadets burst into his office.
"COMMANDER COME QUICKLY! CADET ACKERMAN IS BACK SIR!"
Bursting quickly out of the room, nothing could prepare him or Armin for the sight that they were going to see.
___________________________
Mikasa was covered in blood, whose blood was yet to be determined. Her once raven bowl cut hair was longer and caked with mud, dirt, and as scary and disgusting as it sounded to Armin feces. But that isn't what terrified Armin most. It wasn't the cuts that she possessed on her arms ,or the fact that she only had on undergarments on this cold snowy day. It wasn't her eyes that were once so filled with life ,and energy that was now reduced to terror and pain. It was the white cravat that she gripped so strongly in her hand, and Armin finally took notice that the red scarf that she adored so much was gone. Tears streamed down her face and Armin knew that this was the first time he had seen her cry.
"LET ME GO YOU BASTARDS I HAVE TO SEE MY FUCKING SISTER!" Eren screamed barging into Hanji's lab. Four guards had his arm two on each side all trying desperately to conceal the Titan boy, but failing horribly. Sadly Eren wasn't prepared to see the state his sister was in either."Ka-Ka KASA!" He screamed.He pushed all four soldiers off of him, quickly rushing too her, and wrapped his arms around her in a tight embrace. Tears were streaming down his face, fighting desperately to be strong. His grip on her tightened as if he never wanted to let her go.
"Everyone out with the exception of Arlet, Jaeger, Ackerman, and Squad Leader Hanji." Quickly the other soldiers followed Erwin's ordered the last soldier shutting the door behind him. Erwin took a very long look at the three kids in front of him. They were huddled together hugging, crying, but offering each other comfort. He stared at Ackermans form and couldn't believe that this was the same girl who graduated at the top of her class.
"Ackerman." He called his face stoic."What happened to corporal Levi?"
She froze. Her crying had stopped and her body didn't tremble, although her eyes did widen.
"Hey! Don't ask her questions she's not ready for Commander!" Eren screamed angrily.
Erwin stood silently for a full minute, thinking about the words that should come out of his mouth next, although he never got the chance.
"Dead."No one moved. No one said anything. They only stared at the girl with the broken spirit in front of them.
Finally Hanji had broke the silence.
"H- How?" She choked out.
Mikasa didn't look up, but she opened her mouth and spoke softly,
"That day in the woods neither I nor the corporal expected things to get as bad as it did." She said closing her eyes. "The plan was to lead the Titan away from the group to give everyone a chance to escape. But if we knew the horrors that we were going to face we would of just let the Titans eat us."Armin shivered at her words, not wanting to believe that things for the corporal and Mikasa weren't that terrible.
But deep down he knew that it really was.
"We were on foot and my 3dmg had gone out. But that didn't really matter because it was humanities strongest pair against an abnormal Titan. At least that's what we thought." She paused for a minute and tried to get herself together.
"What do you mean you guys thought it was an abnormal Titan?" Hanji asked. Although this was a grave situation Hanji couldn't let her thirst for Titan knowledge go dry. "I feel like I should just get to the point." Mikasa said suddenly. "The Titan crushed him." She said. We were running and it lifted its leg and squashed him like a bug."
No one in the room moved. They could hardly believe it. Even Erwin let out a look of horror then quickly went back to his stoic mask. "That's what I at least thought had happened." Mikasa said. She pushed her long bangs out of the way and shivered making Eren wrap her up in his cape.
"The Titan didn't squash him with his foot it wanted me to believe it did." She continued. "It didn't kill him but it knocked him unconscious."
"Then how do you know that he's dead?" Hanji questioned.
"Because I just know!" She screamed. "I haven't seen him since the day he got unconscious and I know the Titan just ate him!" Tears were streaming down her face and she shook violently. This wasn't the girl that Eren or Armin knew. Instead this was the girl that Eren had first met when he found her in the cabin that day. Broken. Scared. Confused. And alone.
"How did you manage to make it back?" Hanji asked her.
She sniffled a little. "Luck. Fate. The gods. As I running through the fields I managed to find a soldier who was dead, but all of his equipment was still intact. I traveled on foot mostly to conserve gas and it was truly luck that I didn't run into a Titan not once."
She turned towards Eren with a look of despair.
"I'm so sorry Eren." The men in the room didn't say anything, just offered her silent comfort until Hanji spoke up.
"Mikasa you're not to blame sweetheart." She said kneeling down. "We all lose important people to us, whether it's to the Titans or just a simple shot to the head. Corporal Levj wouldn't want anyone hear moping about his death but instead he would want you all training your asses off." She encouraged. "And he would mutter something along the lines of shitty and constipated." She finished with a grin. "Now how about I call someone to help you get cleaned up?"
"Sasha and Krista please?" Mikasa asked.
"Of course. Who ever you want kiddo." Hanji took Mikasa's hand leading her out the door. As soon as the door was shut Armin turned toward Erwin.
"We weren't done." He stated.
"I was aware. Now where was I."
"Wait what are you guys talking about?" Eren asked.
Erwin looked at Eren for a long moment, finally deeming him worthy of the information that he had to share.
"Listen up the both you because what you hear today shall not leave this room understand?"
Nodding silently both boys understood.
Erwin took a deep breath, and chose his word very carefully. "I'm going to start back from the very beginning so Eren won't be confused." He stated.
"The military police soldiers that got caught raping those teenage girls left one girl emotionally unstable. She committed suicide a month ago afraid to death that someday it would happen
again.
"ARE YOU FUCKING SERIOUS, SHE WAS JUST A FUCKING KID ! ILL KILL THEM ALL FOR WHAT THEY DID!" Eren screamed out enraged.
"No Eren." Armin told him calmly.
"Let Erwin finish first there's way more."
He slowly calmed down and his faced filled with despair and guilt.
"I'm sorry commander. Please finish." He said quietly.
"That very girl was Penelope Leonae's half sister. Usually with taxes rising like never before middle class families just burn the bodies instead of having a ceremony but private Carolina sister was an exception. They used her body as a sign to show how the military police really is. Vile. Dirty. And to the wall worshippers unholy."
"But I still don't understand what this has to do with blue death Erwin." Armin said.
Everything was just so damn confusing and he was starting to get a headache.
"Only a select few got to attend her funeral of course private Leonae with that being her sister, and a couple of other important people like Darius Zackley, Nile Dawk, Pastor Nick and Mike went in my place."
"Why couldn't you attend Commander?" Eren asked.
"Business."
Nodding his head Eren took his answer. It was something about the commander that was off... something he didn't trust.
"As I was saying at the funeral everyone made a very important discovery, the wooden box that private Penelope sister was supposed to be in was closed.
"Supposed?" Armin questioned.
"Yes." Erwin nodded gravely. "The body that was found inside of the box was not the body of her sister, but it was the severed head of her mother instead."
Both of their eyes widened in horror.
"S-someone seriously cut of her mothers head?" Eren asked terrified.
"Yes." Erwin replied staring directly at Armin as he grew deathly pale.
"Nothing makes sense." He whispered, "Penelope was just fine, blue death takes at least two days for the side effects to start showing and at least a week and a half until you die a cruel death. Commander what's really going on?"
The commander let out a small smile. "It's a great thing that you catch on pretty quick Armin. Now listen to me closely because what I tell you both next will change the fate of humanity forever."
• • • • • • • • • • •
Mikasa walked down the hallway silently behind Hanji. She honestly thought that she would never see anyone ever again. Everything that had happened to her in the last two days really changed her entire outlook on life. She used to be fearless and so good at hiding her emotions, but now she felt as if she was going to break. A side of her that she had only seen once had come out. She had only shown it to one person before, but not a group of people got to see her in her weakened state. Why did she feel as if she were the weakest person in the room? Why did she feel like everything that had happened was her fault.
"Only the strong survive." She had heard corporal Levi say once.
The world was so beautiful she realized.
But so cruel and merciless.