God & Demon XX - Her Eyes (Patreon)

The Dragon & The Wolf will be updated next.

Amos spent the next fifteen minutes controlling his emotions, which was quite an achievement considering the state he was in.

He was, strictly speaking, terrified. Not by his feelings for Mikasa, no, those feelings fascinated and amazed him more than anything else. On the other hand, what they implied terrified him. Hannibal was ready to die rather than see her die, what had happened in the forest was clear proof of that. The oriental woman had not only pulled him out of his depression, she constantly kept him afloat. If she were to lose her life, the nobleman knew he would never recover. He would barely be able to live for Historia and Ymir.

But the worst part was his grandfather. If Peter Hannibal ever learned that his heir had feelings for a commoner… Amos shuddered in horror just thinking about the consequences. And it wasn’t just the Prime Minister, the entire nobility would want Mikasa’s skin. If his feelings for her were to be known, she would suffer many assassination attempts from nobles who wanted him to marry their daughters, or from the ladies themselves.

Hannibal finally exhaled quietly, and used predation to slow his heartbeat.

“This is not good at all.” He sighed inwardly. “I can’t put my plan into action until I have obtained all the information Grandfather has. And with the external threat becoming more and more pressing, I will have to speed up. Currently, there are only two ladies who are fit to become the next Lady Hannibal, but both of them will take advantage of the fact that I am in a hurry, and will use their information about the outside world to lead the dance. Fuck... unless Annie spills the beans, I'm going to suffer for the next few weeks."

Amos finally managed to clear his head from his demons, and refocused on the mission.

To take his mind off things, he reviewed the faces of his comrades and superiors. Pastor Nick was still out, Eren, Armin and Hanji seemed deep in thought. Levi was indecipherable, but there was no doubt that he was still seething with rage at Lord Peter.

Hannibal's emerald green eyes then met Mikasa's jet-black gaze, and the violent emotions that the noble deciphered there made him raise his eyebrows in surprise.

The oriental woman was seeing red, she observed him with a frustration born of despair and helplessness, coupled with… a kind of… resolution? He wasn’t sure.

When she noticed that the tall blond had spotted her, she blew calmly through her nose to evacuate her excess emotion, and resumed an impassive face while turning her head in another direction. But Amos didn’t take his eyes off her.

“What’s gotten into her?” He thought perplexed. “How long has she been watching me like that?”

A short moment of additional silence passed, which was broken by Levi.

“Hanji?” He called suddenly.

No answer.

“Oi, bespectacled donkey?” He insisted in his dull voice. “You’re playing with a rock? That’s new.” "Yes." The scientist replied thoughtfully. "But it’s not just any rock. It’s a piece of hardened skin left by the Female Titan."

Amos raised an eyebrow in interest and looked at the crystal.

Armin looked up in surprise.

"It didn’t evaporate?"

"No!" Hanji replied excitedly. "It remained intact, even after it detached itself from Annie’s body. So that got me thinking, and I had the idea to compare it to a shard of the wall, the texture and composition were practically identical. In other words, the colossal titans are the supporting pillars of our walls, and we are protected by barriers of hardened Titan skin."

Armin’s brain raced until his eyes widened.

"But then, that means…!"

Without warning, Hanji slapped her hand over his mouth.

“Wait, Armin! Let me say it!”

Keeping her palm pressed against the young man’s lips in case he stole her conclusion, she continued: “As things stand, we’d have a hard time finding a rock big enough to restore Wall Rose. It would have to be just the right shape and size, and we don’t have enough details on the rift yet. But on the other hand, where there’s a will, there’s a way. Imagine Eren using his hardening ability in Titan form.”

All pairs of eyes, except for Amos', turned to the shapeshifter in question who was giving Hanji a blank stare.

"You want me to fix the hole in the wall with my hardening ability..." he murmured in an unconfident voice.

"Yes." the scientist confirmed. "Your hardened skin is made of the same material with a brighter addition, like the..."

Amos suddenly grabbed her wrist and released Armin who gasped to catch his breath

"Oh! Sorry." she said with a sheepish smile as she realized she had almost suffocated him.

But she resumed her explanation without delay:

"If your hardened body can stay in place even after breaking your transformation, it should do it."

The little blond took a moment to recompose himself, before adding:

"Well... it seems worth a try. If we can shore up Wall Rose, retaking Wall Maria is starting to look very promising. As vital as it is, the outpost's infrastructure is slowing us down immensely. The time and resources required to transport materials are immense, but if the supply wagons aren't part of the journey, we can head to Shiganshina much faster. What if we decide to carry out our plan in the middle of the night? When the Titans are still."

Hanji's smile widened, excited by this train of thought she replied,

"That's not bad. In fact, it's genius, especially if the group is small enough to go unnoticed."

"Yes." Armin confirmed. "But it all depends on Eren's ability to harden his skin."

Jaeger suddenly felt the weight of a crushing responsibility fall on his shoulders, he tensed.

Hanji was about to address him, when she noticed that a certain noble had still not spoken despite the plans they were making for their survival. So she turned to said noble, and discovered him deep in thought.

"You have nothing to say?" She asked a little surprised. "Usually, you always grace us with deep reflections."

A slight heavy silence followed this remark, Amos did not move an eyelash... but unsealed his lips to drop his bombshell:

"I could be wrong... but I don't think there is a breach in Wall Rose."

At that, Eren, Armin, Hanji and Mikasa looked at him with widened eyes, while Levi raised a semi-interested eyebrow.

"Erwin must have had the same idea." The captain remarked in his dull voice. "He said ‘until the state of Wall Rose has been assessed’, and not something like "until Wall Rose has been repaired."

"That's what I was thinking as well." Hannibal confirmed thoughtfully.

"Out with it then." The little man replied. "What makes you think there's no breach?"

The nobleman allowed himself a few seconds of additional thought before replying:

"We know that the walls are made of Colossal Titans, we know, thanks to the interrogation conducted on Annie, that the enemy knows about it. In that case, why would they take the reckless risk of making a hole in a Wall? It makes no sense and it's extremely risky. I did a quick calculation, given the thickness and length of our ramparts, there are at least one million five hundred thousand colossal titans just inside Wall Rose."

The scouts' eyes widened in horror at that number, even Levi wasn't calm.

"You're right." Armin agreed in a trembling voice. "It wouldn't be worth it. If they had made even one mistake when drilling their hole, they would have woken up one or more colossals. Those colossals would have torn off entire sections of the wall when they woke up, which would have set off a chain reaction until the entirety of Rose ended up as a huge pile of rubble..."

"Indeed." Amos agreed. "And like any titan, they'd have to eat. They would therefore first head towards Sina, waking up all their comrades sleeping there in the process, and will leave our territory once we are exterminated for hunting grounds that are still intact. Like the civilization where Annie and her accomplices are from, destroying Wall Maria in the process and waking up the rest of their friends. In short, everyone would be screwed and no one would have anything to gain from it.

Eren and Hanji swallowed loudly as they listened to them, the scientist pointed out:

"But the titans on the territory of Wall Rose must come from somewhere, how did they get in?"

The noble's face suddenly darkened and his eyebrows furrowed, which did not bode well for those who knew him well.

He exhaled between his teeth, before continuing with a growl:

"That’s what’s bothering me… there’s a lot of stuff that doesn’t add up. The alert was given around noon, which means the titans appeared during morning… So… they’ve been here for at least sixteen hours. And in sixteen hours, no aberrants have rushed towards the villages and towns closest to where the breach is supposed to be, according to our scouts. On the contrary, all of the Garrison’s outposts have been attacked. This isn’t a random invasion, it looks like a coordinated attack that specifically targeted our defenses."

A cathedral silence fell over the cart, Levi’s features crumpled.

“Wait a minute… are you saying these titans are following a strategy?”

The scouts shuddered at the prospect, Armin and Hanji’s brains were working at full speed.

"Annie had managed to attract titans to her." The scientist pointed out. "If ever we are dealing with a more experienced shapeshifter who has a similar power… or even superior… Then…"

"Yes…" Armin finished. "It is more than likely, and that would explain their behavior."

"But that still doesn’t answer our question." intervened Eren who had managed to follow. "How were they able to get through if there is no breach?"

"There may be a breach." Amos corrected. "I’m just not sure."

Hanji nodded and started thinking again.

"The two recruits suspected of being Annie’s accomplices are on the front lines near the area where the titans appeared. There may be a connection."

At these words, Eren’s eyes popped out of their sockets, while Mikasa’s widened slightly.

"What do you mean ‘Annie’s accomplices’? He almost yelled. "There are other traitors in our class?!"

"Eren." Levi growled annoyed "Calm down." The Shiganshina native bit his tongue and complied, while Amos threw an annoyed look at a certain little blond.

"Armin?" He grunted. "Why didn't you tell them?"

The little blond lowered his head slightly under the surprised gazes of his childhood friends.

"I... I thought the officers would talk about it before me." At that, Hannibal let out an exasperated sigh.

"Oh for the love of... We really need to work on your self-confidence. Just because you're a soldier doesn't mean every decision you make requires an order or authorization."

Armin took the blow, and curled up, looking sheepish.

"Okay." the nobleman grunted again, pinching his sinuses. "Since it’s your discovery, it’s up to you to talk about it. Go ahead."

At the time, Arlet didn’t know if it was some kind of punishment or a way for Amos to force him to gain confidence in himself. Nevertheless, he tried to swallow his nervousness, and ended up revealing the supposed identities of the Female’s accomplices.

Hannibal meticulously observed the reactions of his two other comrades, Eren’s eyes widened until his retinas burst as Armin detailed the facts that had led him to suspect Reiner. Mikasa tried to remain impassive, but it was obvious to everyone that she was boiling with anger.

“That’s…” Jaeger stammered before Hell broke loose in his gaze. "What a bunch of sons of whores! I’m going to…!”

"Eren." Amos suddenly cut in. "Do a quick calculation. How old were Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie when Wall Maria fell?"

The Shiganshina native glared at the noble and grounded his teeth furiously… then… realized where his friend was going with this.

Mikasa seemed just as shocked.

“Wait a minute…” the shapeshifter muttered, remembering the day he lost his home.

He remembered it like it was yesterday, and he would never forget it.

Chaos, panic, horror, screams, blood, terror, these were the best words he could think of to describe the fall of Shiganshina. A Hell on Earth that had broken loose in his hometown. The worst experience of his entire existence.

"You’re telling me…" He mumbled without even being able to believe it himself. "That all this… all this horror… It was done by…"

"… ten and eleven year old kids." Amos completed. "Yes."

Eren couldn’t believe his ears, he met the tall blond’s gaze in the hope that he would help him see things more clearly. The latter let out a deep sigh.

"It was theorized that Annie, Reiner and Bertholdt probably came from a civilization other than ours. If that’s the case, I don’t know anything about their nation or the context in which they grew up. Who knows? Maybe they naively believed that they were serving a just cause by attacking us. Maybe we were portrayed as the bad guys in the story with our army of colossals well hidden within our walls. I have absolutely no idea at this point, but I fully intend to ask them."

This time, Eren seemed completely lost, he put a hand on his face and sighed to release his excess emotion. Mikasa gently grabbed his shoulder.

“I…” he began, not quite sure, “I…”

For the first time in his life, Jaeger didn’t know who to direct his anger at. The titans? The last time he did that, he had caused the death of some of his comrades and friends. Annie? She had already been defeated, and even though she was an enemy, the feelings she shared with Armin disturbed him, and prevented him from hating her. Reiner and Bertholdt…? The ones responsible for his greatest misfortune? Hating them would be easy, especially Braun, but they were kids when they destroyed Wall Maria, damn kids. At their age, Eren’s greatest fear was doing the chores his mother assigned him, or getting caught while he was shirking. What made them do something so crazy? Why? What did his mother have to die for? What was she devoured by a titan for?

“Reiner is despicable.” Mikasa suddenly blurted out, clenching her fists. “That he’s not on our side, I can understand that. But he had no need to… act like he did. To pretend to be the big brother of the class. Everyone admired him, Marco admired him. At least Annie and Bertholdt didn’t try to get close to us.”

It didn’t take much more to rekindle the fire in Eren’s eyes, a sight that Amos didn’t appreciate at all.

“I would have done the same thing.” he admitted harshly. “I did the same thing.”

The three natives of Shiganshina stared at him with round eyes, while Levi observed him discreetly, the tall blond shrugged nonchalantly.

“That’s what you expect from a good spy.” He explained calmly. “Remember how you and Armin hesitated when you discovered that Annie was the Female. What do you think? Who else could hesitate when Reiner and Bert will be exposed?”

Eren understood where the noble was going with this, nevertheless the way he presented things annoyed him.

“You sound like you admire them.” he spat.

The predatory look that appeared in Amos’s gaze made him immediately regret his words.

“My mother also died because they destroyed Maria.” the tall blond growled. “Even if I didn’t see her die.”

At these words, Jaeger bit his tongue and lowered his head in apology.

“Sorry… it’s just that… Bert… he asked me to tell him what happened in Shiganshina. Why did he do that? What kind of crazy person does that?”

Hannibal calmed his predatory instinct and grimaced slightly, he knew Eren wasn’t going to like his answer.

“Out of curiosity, I guess.”

The shapeshifter raised his head, a half-confused, half-furious expression on his face.

“Huh?”

“It’s easy to kill people you know nothing about.” The nobleman elaborated in a sinister tone. “By not knowing who they were and what they represented, you dehumanize them, and thus the guilt you feel when killing them is greatly diminished."

He shrugged, and continued:

“Child soldiers like our three friends exist for a very simple reason: they are very easy to manipulate. All you have to do is give them a weapon, a goal and affirm that they are doing it in the name of the common good for example, and they will be only too happy to obey. Because they are too naive to realize the true consequences of their actions."

“Speaking out of experience, Hannibal?” Levi asked, leaning forward.

“Yes.” the nobleman answered sharply to the surprise of the other passengers. “and no, I did not send any children to war.”

“Apart from Historia.” He thought bitterly as an image of him arming his frightened sister with anti-personal gear appeared in his mind.

The captain nodded and leaned back again, allowing the tall blond to continue:

"What I'm trying to say is that Bertholdt may have wanted to reflect on the consequences of his actions for the first time, by asking you to tell him about the attack on Shiganshina from the point of view of a victim." Eren was increasingly disturbed by the noble's reflection, he tried in vain to sort through his thoughts.

It was at this point that Armin chose to speak:

"I have a hard time seeing Annie believe any lie to justify a mass slaughter." He admitted. "I wonder why she does that..."

"Her father..." Jaeger said distractedly.

At these words, Arlet's eyes widened and he turned to his friend. The latter then realized what he had just said.

"Um…" he hesitated out of fear of saying something stupid. "I guess… well… The only times Annie is full of life is when she shows off her fighting techniques, and she told me she got her techniques from her father… so I…"

He was interrupted by Amos’ applause.

“That’s exactly what I think.” He said proudly. "Well done."

Eren blushed slightly at the compliment, but the confusion in his head quickly brought him back to reality.

“I have…”

He took a deep breath to give himself courage, as if he were about to admit a fault that weighed on his conscience.

“I have… I have a hard time hating them.”

“Good.”

Jaeger frowned, and met Amos’s gaze.

“Good?” he repeated without believing it.

"Yes." the noble confirmed. "That’s fine. Hating them is taking the risk of being blinded by rage. And when that happens, you're automatically screwed."

Hannibal leaned forward and looked Eren straight in the eye.

"I don't hate them." He admitted without any shame. "Even though my mother died because of them. In my eyes, they are nothing more than tools, nothing more than the knives that killed her, and it would be stupid to blame a knife. On the other hand, what I want to know is: why? What did my mother die for? Who gave them the order to attack us and for what purpose? And what pushed Reiner and Bertholdt to carry out this order?"

Eren listened very carefully to each of the words spoken by Amos in order to see more clearly, for a moment, he was tempted to hate those who had ordered Reiner, Bertholdt and Annie to destroy Maria. But come to think of it, perhaps the three traitors had come because they feared the colossals within the walls. Or perhaps they had come to take that power and rid the world of the titans? Or perhaps they simply needed it to ensure their survival? If so, could he really blame them? Hate them?

“That doesn’t mean I’ll spare them.” Hannibal said. “I’ll kill them if I must, or capture them if I can. They may not be monsters or vermin, but they are our enemies. And as such, I won’t allow myself to pity them enough to hold back. It’s them or us. There’s no right or wrong side, just a war with survival at stake. To survive, we must be unyielding. If we want to protect those we love, protect our own, then we must fight and move forward."

Those words triggered a memory in Jaeger's head, the memory of a speech he had given to himself while he was buried under rubble in one of the streets of Stohess.

He didn't have time to wonder if what he was doing was "good" or "bad", he had to have only one thing in mind, the survival of his friends. It was the only thing that truly mattered to him, after all, he had promised his mother to protect Mikasa. And if he had to make sacrifices, then he would, his decision was made.

He met Amos' emerald green eyes with all his determination, and nodded firmly, the noble allowed himself a small smile.

"There, he's ready now."

Without warning, Hanji let out an admiring whistle.

"Wow." She said, sincerely impressed. "You definitely know how to make your comrades grow up."

At that, Hannibal preferred to look away to hide his slight blush, unfortunately for him, Mikasa added with a smile behind her scarf:

" Amos will make a very good father one day."

This time, the nobleman froze on the spot, displaying an indescribable grimace and letting out a strangled babble. Eren, Armin and Hanji burst out laughing while the oriental woman chuckled discreetly.

"Why are you laughing?" The tall blond growled at the shapeshifter, pointing at the half-breed with his thumb. "She literally just called you a kid."

At these words, Jaeger immediately stopped laughing and glared at Mikasa, which she avoided by looking elsewhere. Armin tried in vain to hold back his laughter by stifling his bursts in his right hand.

"Don't worry Eren." Amos continued with a mocking smile. "When you've hardened enough to plug Maria's hole, no one will be able to contest your virility."

This was the final blow for Armin, Mikasa and Hanji, the three scouts were seized by a fit of hilarity so intense that several scouts around, eaten away by the gravity of their situation, looked at them as if they had become bent. Even Levi couldn't completely contain the amusement present in his gaze.

For his part, Eren was mortified, his eyes widened in horror and his mouth was gaping. Not knowing what else to do, he flipped the nobleman off before scowling at himself to sulk. Then he realized that his adopted sister was still laughing, hidden behind her scarf. His irises widened slightly, he raised his eyebrows in surprise.

"I've never seen Mikasa laugh so much." He thought in surprise. "She looks..."

He then remembered that it was him the girl was laughing at, and immediately started sulking again.

Suddenly, a brightness greater than that of the torches of their convoy came to illuminate their faces. The scouts turned their heads to discover their destination.

" We've arrived." Hanji announced. "Ehrmich."

Once inside the District, they were greeted by the ominous murmurs of refugees fleeing the territory of Wall Rose invaded by the Titans. Levi shook Nick awake, and led him towards the humans unjustly driven from their homes, so that the pastor could see for himself the extent of the disaster. And indeed, the fifty-year-old froze when he discovered the abundance of exhausted people dressed in rags, but he was pushed forward by the foot of an irritated captain.

“No one told you to stop.” The latter growled. “We’re going to end up losing the others.”

“This… this…” Nick stammered, lost for words.

“Maybe you were expecting to see something more picturesque?” Levi quipped in a sinister voice. “That’s what happens when walls are breached.”

The hordes of people continued to file past under the pastor’s gaze, who finally noticed a child lost in the crowd who was crying for his parents.

Horrified, Nick wanted to go in his direction, but the captain grabbed him by the shoulder and held him back.

“Oi, where do you think you’re going like that, holy man? Look closely, those are the faces of human beings who have lost everything they ever had. Human beings that you and yours are incidentally abandoning. It’s hard to hide your face in these conditions, huh? If your band of shirkers had the last word, we would all be in this situation. The Titans would flock and feast on our flesh, shoveling men, women and children into their rotten throats. All of humanity digested as a single being in horror and pain.

On Amos’s side, the nobleman had not wasted a second contemplating the misery of the people, he had hastened to pick up his crates and was now equipping himself with as much equipment as possible. Feeling his back pain returning, he was forced to inject himself with another dose of methadone. Then he stuffed five more syringes into the pockets of his jacket.

Hanji noticed him as he hung his grenades on his belt and his cartridges on his thighs, she glanced over his shoulder.

"You're too close." Hannibal informed her soberly, hiding more explosives in his cape.

The scientist moved a little, but didn't take her eyes off the equipment.

"That's some nice stuff." She whistled, impressed. "Who created it?"

"Me. Well, the grenades are my inventions, the guns are from a special piece of equipment designed to fight humans and used by the Hannibal Police. I simply assembled the two pieces of equipment for greater versatility."

Hanji continued her inspection for a short while longer, before turning to the tall blond. 

"Can you make a lot of stuff like that?"

The young man shook his head.

"I don’t have time to make them myself, I’ll have to restock after this mission."

Hanji opened her mouth, but Hannibal cut her off.

"And no, I can’t give them to all the scouts for three reasons: one, you don’t have the budget, two, these things are dangerous and must be handled with a certain dexterity that not everyone has, and three, my own resources are not inexhaustible."

The bespectacled woman seemed frustrated, but conceded the noble’s point of view.

The latter then turned to the three natives of Shiganshina who were preparing further away in the barracks.

"Armin?! Come here."

Although a little surprised, the person concerned approached the Advisor with his two curious friends on his heels. Amos took a grenade out of his crate and held it in front of the little blond’s face.

"Explosive grenade." He presented it, twirling it on his finger. "Keep your hand on the spoon once the pin is removed, it explodes five seconds after the spoon is detached. If you time your move well, you should be able to throw it into a titan's mouth and destroy its neck from the inside."

Armin's eyes widened in horror.

"W-wait…"

But Hannibal didn't do anything, he took out two more grenades and said in a stern voice to force him to concentrate:

"Smoke grenade, very useful for dodging or creating a diversion. And Incapacitant, also known as "pepper bomb". Throw that in a titan's eyes and I can guarantee you that it will cry for at least three hours. However, avoid sending it when there is a scout in the perimeter. I'll give you two of each, use them wisely please."

Armin's eyes seemed about to burst out of their sockets, his body was shaking like a leaf under the worried gazes of his friends.

"T-thanks Amos... but I can’t..."

"Are you planning on going to exterminate titans with a blade?"

"Uh…"

" Are you planning on staying back and thinking while Eren, Mikasa and I get to work?"

"No;" He answered more confidently.

"Aren’t you the one who refused to be a burden?"

The effect was immediate; a determined fire lit up in the little blond’s gaze.

"Hang those grenades on your belt." Hannibal simply ordered.

Armin took a deep breath to give himself courage, and did as he was asked. His friends each put a hand on his shoulder to support him, Arlet gave them a small, grateful smile.

That’s when Hanji leaned forward, so that her face was much too close to the noble’s for him to be comfortable. The scientist’s pupils suddenly widened to form fried whiting eyes, which were probably trying to pass for puppy eyes.

Amos stopped the young woman’s head from moving forward with his index finger and pulled his own back.

“You want a grenade.” He guessed embarrassed. “Is that it?” Hanji nodded briskly.

After letting out an exasperated sigh, the tall blond reached into his box and pulled out his last explosive.

Hanji smiled with all her teeth, and left juggling her new toy while Moblit threw the noble a dismayed look, to which he responded by shrugging helplessly.

This little episode being over, Hannibal refocused on his friends.

"Eren and Armin, you can go get ready, Mikasa, stay a second, we need to talk."

If the oriental was surprised, she didn't show it. Once they were alone, Amos motioned for her to follow him into an alley behind the barracks, where they wouldn't be disturbed.

"What's going on?" The young woman asked.

Hannibal's emerald eyes suddenly hardened, his interlocutor immediately understood that she wasn't going to appreciate this conversation.

"Do you remember when I told you that I didn’t want you to sacrifice yourself for me?"

The half-breed raised her eyebrows in surprise, a slight and brief veil of sadness passing over her face.

“Yes.”

“Why did you do it anyway?”

She frowned.

“I…”

“I wasn’t in your path when Annie sent me flying.” The noble interrupted. “So if I hit you, that means you threw yourself behind me.”

At these words, Mikasa tensed and looked away.

“You almost died there.” The noble continued in an impassive voice. “If you had fallen on your neck it would have been over for you. So do me a favor and never do something like that again, will you?”

Slowly, the young girl raised her head, her jet-black eyes burning with anger born of frustration.

“Why?” She rasped. "Because you're not worth saving?"

"No." He replied in the same tone.  "I'm not worth sacrificing yourself for me. That's all."

Mikasa had heard enough, she grabbed the young man by the collar and pressed her forehead against his, glaring at him with a hellish look. Amos remained perfectly stoic.

"I've had enough." She informed him angrily. "I’m sick of hearing you demean yourself and give so little importance to your life."

This time, Hannibal frowned.

"Look who's talking." He replied. "The one who's ready to throw her life away every day for Eren and Armin. Well... that was before she decided to forget them and her promise to throw herself recklessly behind my back."

Mikasa's slap irradiated his left cheek, but in his eyes it was a small victory. The oriental woman inveighed forcefully:

"I forbid you to use…"

It was then that a flash of realization crossed her jet-black gaze, in the space of a second the expression on her face softened considerably. She released the young man’s collar and stared into his emerald pupils.

"You're telling me hurtful things to get me away from you, aren't you?"

The wide eyes of her interlocutor were an eloquent answer, she shook her head.

"It won't work Amos." She said in a calm voice. "Save your breath."

The expression on the noble's face decomposed like a house of cards, feeling his heart tighten, he evacuated his excess emotion in a deep weary sigh and lowered his head.

Mikasa then noticed that a short trickle of blood was running down the tall blond's chin, she wiped it mechanically with her thumb.

Amos looked up and met her gaze, for a short moment, he felt a gentle warmth envelop his heart. But it was almost immediately replaced by a dull terror.

"I just want to help you." The young girl breathed.

"Don’t die for this." He replied, swallowing his fear. "Don’t die… that’s all I ask of you."

The oriental girl looked at his emerald eyes for a moment, and finally nodded.

"And stop getting into such a state every time I talk about engagement." He added in a slightly playful tone.

Mikasa’s gaze hardened on the spot, far from being amused.

"If you stopped letting yourself be treated like a stallion, I would already be calmer." She hissed annoyed.

Amos then raised an eyebrow and sketched a slight smile.

"So that’s why you attacked me behind the HQ." He understood. "You thought I was letting myself get beaten down and you wanted to wake me up."

The oriental girl looked away and grimaced in anger. She just wanted him to defend himself and take care of himself, was that too much to ask?

“Listen.” The young man continued. “‘Engagement’ doesn’t mean ‘marriage’, and ‘marriage’ doesn’t mean ‘pregnancy’. So please, as long as I haven’t knocked anyone up, don’t consider me defeated.”

If he had hoped to calm her down with that sentence, he quickly realized that he had royally failed at the sight of the lightning that was leaping from her jet-black eyes.

“So you’re going to bow to your grandfather’s wishes without saying anything?” She growled, outraged.

“Correction.” The young man cut in, raising a finger. “I’m simply going to swallow my pride for as long as it takes to regain the upper hand on him. Once that’s done, you can be sure that I’m going to take him down.”

This revelation slightly calmed the young girl's anger, nevertheless she snorted helplessly:

"Whether he's alive or not, you'll do it anyway, you said so yourself. You have to marry a young lady for pure political reasons."

"Because you think I'll let the first bitch who comes along be the mother of my children?" Amos cut in harshly. "That's not knowing me very well, Mikasa."

The oriental woman's eyes widened in surprise, the nobleman softened and added:

"Trust me, please. I have no intention of letting them push me around, but I can't always act openly. I promise you this, however: I will never marry a woman who doesn't deserve it."

At these words, the half-breed looked him straight in the eye to make sure of the truth of his words, and smiled knowing how seriously the young man took his promises. She let out a slight sigh of relief.

“Good.” She murmured, pulling her scarf up over her cheeks. “That’s better.”

Amos smiled in turn, pleased to see her reassured. He quickly checked his watch and grimaced.

“We have to go, the others must be wondering where we’ve been.”

Mikasa nodded and followed him inside the barracks where she continued her preparations. Hannibal gave her a short glance unable to stop the regret from eating away at his heart.

“I should have done more.” He cursed at himself. “I have to get her away from me… otherwise…”

He gritted his teeth and went back to getting ready. Predation then flashed in his eyes to help him control himself.

“She reads me like an open book as soon as I try to force it. It’s not going to be easy, at least I think I’ve calmed her down for this mission. All that’s left is to complete it before worrying about what happens next. But I absolutely have to find a way to get her out of the way…”

Unconsciously, he took one last look at the young woman, and resumed his preparations.

“Everything she does, she does it out of love… that’s how she’s always acted… Good God… Why me? Why?”

(-)(-)(-)

It took another five minutes for the scouts to be ready to ride southwest, Hanji was giving her final instructions to the young recruits as they sped toward the stables.

“Once we leave Ehrmich, we’ll be in Titan territory.”

“Eren, do you think you can ride?” Moblit asked.

“Yes.” Jaeger agreed. “I’ve regained my strength.”

“Save it as much as possible.” Amos advised. “Your titan form depends a lot on your stamina. Do you remember where the rage goes?”

The shapeshifter smiled and raised his fist, the nobleman bumped it with his own.

“Good, saddle up.”

But just as they were about to leave, they spotted Nick who had just entered the courtyard with Levi on his heels. The horrified terror on the pastor's face didn't inspire Hanji and Hannibal with good feelings.

"Squad leader."  Moblit called. "We're pressed for time."

"Give me a second." The scientist replied as she headed toward the new arrivals. "So, did you see the light? Do you have any additional information to give us?"

The pastor remained silent, his features tense, as if he had been struck by fear. Finally he raised his head and scanned the scouts until he came across Amos.

The nobleman raised a wary eyebrow as he saw the minister approach him like an automaton, the other soldiers watched the scene curiously.

"I'll tell you everything you want to know." He blurted out to the tall blond's surprise. "If you promise me that you'll keep my daughters safe." Hannibal almost burst out laughing when he heard him and shook his head disdainfully.

“You have to give before you receive, pastor.” He informed him soberly. "Such is the harsh law of negotiation."

Nick gritted his teeth, he was so consumed by anxiety that he seemed like he was going to have a heart attack at any moment. But the nobleman remained perfectly impassive.

It was then that the clergyman fell to his knees to everyone’s surprise, and grabbed his interlocutor’s jacket.

The latter grimaced in disgust and was about to push him away when he heard the priest utter two words:

“The witch…”

Amos froze on the spot, before growling angrily and rolling his eyes.

“The witch is dead.” he spat as the scouts couldn’t believe their ears. “I watched her burn.”

"No… the fifty-year-old stammered, shaking his head frantically, she’s alive! I saw her as I see you, she came back from Hell!"

Out of patience, the nobleman pushed the clergyman away with a punch in the eye and turned on his heels.

“That guy is crazy.” He informed soberly as he began to walk away and dust off his collar. “Get rid of him.”

“YOU HAVE HER EYES!”

A cathedral silence fell on the room after Nick’s scream, all eyes turned to Amos who had hardened as if he had been struck by lightning.

“I wasn’t sure…” the priest continued as blood flowed from his brow. “I wasn’t sure it was her before I saw you. But now… now I have no doubt… You and her have the same irises. Emerald green pupils, speckled with small golden diamonds. I know… I know she is your mother…"

Mikasa's eyes widened in horror.

Hannibal turned around with the speed of a snake, making Armin jump in the process, and, under the astonished gaze of the scouts, grabbed the pastor  by the throat.

"That bitch is not my mother." He hissed in a guttural voice with maximum predation. The clergyman tried in vain to breathe. "Do you hear me?"

Levi grabbed the nobleman's wrist and signaled him to release his hold, the latter complied despite his anger.

"Tell me everything you know." The young man continued. "Immediately."

“I don’t know much.” The minister admitted with his head bowed. “Shortly after the Battle of Trost, she sent a message to each of her former followers to announce her return. I went to the meeting to verify with my own eyes that it was indeed her. I refused to believe them when I saw her. She told us that she had transcended her human condition, that she was now a goddess, and that those who had wronged her would pay with their lives. I immediately warned your grandfather… However, I don’t know what she has planned, but I am sure of two things: your sister knows what she is planning, and your cousin absolutely must be put to safety.” 

Amos spent a short moment observing the pastor’s face, before letting out a guttural rattle between his teeth that made his comrades of the 104th shiver.

"I will protect your daughters." he finally conceded before turning to Hanji. "Put him in a safe place while we get rid of the titans. I will have other questions to ask him."

The scientist nodded while staring at him curiously, and signaled to two of her subordinates to take Nick away.

Mikasa came to put a hand on the young man's shoulder, making him instantly swallow his predation. He let out a sigh as frustrated as exhausted.

"Are you okay?" She asked worriedly.

"No." he admitted through gritted teeth. "But we don't have time to worry about it."

Hanji, Levi, Eren and Armin approached him to surround him, it was the scientist who spoke:

"You told us that only three people were still of royal blood, which one is your sister and which one is your cousin?"

It was at this moment that Sasha chose to enter the room, throwing the door open.

"Important message!" She shouted, clutching a piece of paper tightly. "I'm part of the 104th Cadet Corps. Oh, and my name is Sasha Braus."

Unfortunately for the Dauper native, no one noticed her, they were all focused on the noble.

Amos clicked his tongue in annoyance, but eventually spilled the beans:

"My cousin joined the Survey Corps under a false name, she calls herself Christa Lenz, she was with us in the 104th."

The other cadets in the same class widened their eyes when they heard this, Hanji and Levi frowned.

"I thought she was a bastard from the Hannibal family." Mikasa blurted out, confused.

Amos gave her a murderous look that made her realize she had made a mistake. The oriental girl froze in place and lowered her head to apologize.

“We are cousins ​​twice over.” The nobleman explained, containing his anger. “My aunt, Margaret Hannibal, fell in love with my uncle Rod Reiss fifteen years ago and had Christa with him. The shame of birthing a bastard earned her her place as false Queen.”

Sasha approached Hanji cautiously in order to try to convey her message.

“Sorry, this message is for the squad leader…”

But despite her efforts, she was still ignored.

“But, if she is part of the 104th cadet corps, she is on the front lines.” Hanji realized.

“She’s what?!” Amos who had not known anything about it until then, roared. He started to boil with anger."

“Calm down, Hannibal.” Levi ordered in a cold voice. “And tell us about your sister.”

The tall blond had to make inhuman efforts to obey his superior, events were happening much too quickly, and with Mikasa at his side, he had trouble using predation correctly to concentrate.

He managed it nevertheless, and answered through gritted teeth:

"My half-sister, her name is Eva Reiss, she is a madwoman totally devoted to the cult of her mother. She has been interned in the Yarckell asylum for five years. Grandfather stopped me from killing her despite the fact that I insisted several times. Today, I think he did this because he will need a Reiss uterus, in case Christa and I were to leave this world prematurely."

Everyone shuddered when they heard it, Eren, Levi and Mikasa grimaced in disgust.

"Sasha?" The nobleman continued, turning to her to everyone's surprise. "What is your message?"

" Sasha?" Jaeger repeated, turning around to come face to face with Potato Girl. "What are you doing here?"

Realizing that this was her moment, the girl rushed to Hanji and handed her her piece of paper, performing a very exaggerated bow for all to see.

“I was sent to deliver a message to Commander Erwin, who then entrusted me to deliver it to you, Squad Leader!”

“Oh.” Hanji said, a little surprised by his bow. “uh… okay, then. Excellent work.”

With that, she grabbed the parchment and placed a steamed potato in Sasha’s hands, whose face lit up with pure joy. She took a big bite, delighted to taste real food again.

“Alright.” Hanji exclaimed as the cadets began to strap on their ODM gear. "Priority number one: Christa Lenz. What does she look like?"

“She’s the smallest girl in our class.” Eren explained as Mikasa made sure her gear was properly secured.

“She has blonde hair and blue eyes.” Armin described. “And she’s… uh… she’s really cute.”

That remark earned him a slap on the back of the head from Amos.

“Was that useful information?” He growled, clearly in a very bad mood.

The little blond blushed, but didn’t comment.

Hannibal turned to his superiors, and added:

"She's dating a tall girl with brown hair and a freckled face named Ymir, those two are inseparable."

Hanji gasped at this revelation, while Levi's eyes widened slightly.

"Ymir…?" The scientist repeated under the noble's analytical gaze.

Amos reacted instantly.

"What now?"

"It's nothing…" She answered too quickly for the noble to believe her. "I'll explain another time."

"Riiiighy." The tall blond growled inwardly in dismay. "You demand all my information despite the fact that time is pressing, and you keep yours. That, I'll remember."

Amos checked his equipment one last time before Levi came to put a hand on his shoulder.

"Listen Hannibal." He rasped in his dull voice. "I can only imagine the storm that is sweeping over your head. But for now, I want you to focus on your mission. Remember that as long as I am injured, these three are under your command. Your main objective will be to bring them all back in one piece, but don’t forget to come back yourself."

This call of duty did not fall on deaf ears, the nobleman reviewed the faces of his comrades, and was touched to see how much they trusted him. Admitting the truth of his captain’s words, he closed his eyes, swallowed all his emotions, and let his predation do the work.

Satisfied, the little man turned to his other subordinates.

"Listen to me carefully, brats, our paths separate here. From now on you’re on your own. Erwin assembled your team at the last minute, but we can't do otherwise, we're counting on all of you. Armin? Keep working your brains with Amos and Hanji, if things get out of hand it will be up to you to find a solution."

"Yes, captain." The little blond agreed.

"Mikasa? I don't know why you're so attached to Eren, but all your abilities must be used to protect him."

"Understood." The young girl replied automatically. "Yhat goes without saying."

"And as for you, Eren."

The shapeshifter gulped, before gathering his courage.

"Quite frankly, the trust Hannibal places in you is beyond me. Maybe he sees something I'm unable to see, if that's the case, make sure you're worthy of that trust. Don't lose control, behave pragmatically, like you did in the forest."

"Understood!" Jaeger replied, relieved to hear that there was at least one person here who trusted him.

In less time than it took to say it, the scouts were on horseback heading southwest, straight towards the ancient fortress of Utgard Castle. Where, unbeknownst to them, a most furious battle was raging.

But as they galloped at full speed, Amos could not contain a shiver of horror running down his spine as he recalled the pastor’s words. In less time than it took to think, he was back in his mental library, where he hastened to consult a very particular memory. The memory of seeing his biological mother burn at the stake while she promised to return one day to take back what was rightfully hers.

Amos gripped the reins of his mount so tightly that his skin whitened, the dull terror that knotted his stomach nearly made him lose control of the predation. He shook his head.

"She can't be alive!" he roared in his head. "She can't have survived!"

He let out a beastly groan, before finally managing to control himself.

"She's dead, but her bitch of a daughter and I are going to have a very long conversation."

Hannibal ran his hand over his face and took a deep breath to slow his heartbeat.

"What a fucking day..." He growled exasperated. "Everything is happening too quickly. I barely had time to get rid of Annie before I'm attacked from all sides. The next few weeks are going to be very complicated..."

Considering that he had complained enough about his situation, he slapped himself and refocused on his mission.

"One thing at a time, first recover Historia and Ymir, then slaughter the titans, then capture Reiner and Bertholdt. And then I'll take care of the Interior's affairs... Permanently."

(-)(-)(-)

The new cell Annie had been locked in was slightly more welcoming than the previous one. Indeed, unlike the first, this one did not reek of piss and was not crawling with rats. But it was still underground and was even narrower.

The four scouts assigned to watch over her had transported her shortly after the alert was given to a property in the heart of the Stohess shantytown. Which fortunately for everyone, contained enough food and equipment to last a few weeks. The scouts had locked their prisoner in the cell contained at the bottom of the cellar, and took turns every six hours to watch over her. However, one as well as the other allowed themselves to inveigh against her about the hundred of their comrades she had killed during the expedition.

Leonhart royally ignored their hatred, and replied by throwing them mocking looks each time they were forced to feed her.

On that first night, it was Ulrich, a twenty-two-year-old scout of modest stature, who was in charge of feeding her dinner, and as she had expected, he was as courteous as his predecessor at lunch.

“You really are a fucking bitch.” He spat, shoving a spoonful of bad soup into her mouth.

“I heard you the first time.” She replied in her cold voice, swallowing the foul liquid.

Ulrich froze in anger, but continued to feed her nonetheless. After all, he was a soldier in the service of Humanity and he had been ordered to keep his prisoner fed, and alive. And this, despite the hatred he felt for her.

Once Leonhart was fed, he picked up the tray and began to go back up the cellar stairs, in order to leave the surveillance of the dismembered traitor to one of his comrades. But at the last moment... he changed his mind, grabbed the copper bowl and reopened the cell door to smash the blonde's skull with it.

The latter took it without flinching or uttering the slightest complaint, she just gritted her teeth and waited for the bad moment to pass.

"That's for Gunther, you bitch."

"I have no fucking idea who Gunther is." She replied with all her bite.

Ulrich's eyes widened with pure fury, he raised the bowl again, but stopped himself at the last moment. Choosing to listen to the voice of his superiors rather than that of his hatred. He snorted contemptuously, closed the cell and finally went back up the stairs with his tray.

For her part, Annie shook her head to dispel her headache, and took a moment to observe her new quarters. She had to admit that she was both impressed and worried by the resources at Amos’ disposal. This house, although picturesque and hideous on the outside, had reinforced walls, an authentic hidden arsenal, and a hardened steel cage. The traces of blood on the floor indicated to the warrior that she was not the first occupant of this cell, and that she certainly would not be the last.

It was then that a gunshot rang out, startling the little blonde who saw Ulrich run down the cellar stairs before sprawling on his back. His face forever frozen in confusion was now adorned with a perfectly placed hole between his two eyes.

Leonhart’s eyes widened, and she looked up when she heard someone coming down the stairs. Her visitor was a dark-haired man in his forties, dressed in a black military uniform decorated with a coat of arms depicting a woman's head wearing a crown of sapphires on a red field. Annie would recognize this coat of arms among a thousand, she had often studied it in her childhood: it was the symbol of the Fritz, the banner of the royal family.

The newcomer examined the dismembered teenager carefully, then he raised his head towards the entrance of the cellar.

"Your Majesty, she is here!"

Annie's heart seemed to stop beating, she widened her eyes as she had stopped breathing.

"Your Majesty? What the..."

It was then that she heard a new person descend the steps that led to her cell, slowly, one after the other, each of her steps resonating in the ears of the little blonde like the drum that accompanied her to the gallows. The first thing she saw was a pair of heels from which two varnished toes protruded. Then came the sumptuous satin dress, ebony black with a deep neckline, where a splendid sapphire pendant rested on the hollow of a voluptuous chest.

The woman who stood in front of Annie was tall, even without her heels, she was at least six feet tall. She had long golden blonde hair that cascaded down her back.

But above all, she gave off an evil aura, accentuated by a demented smile with almost perfect teeth and a hungry emerald green gaze. Annie's eyes widened in horror as she fully discovered her visitor, the physical resemblance she shared with a certain noble had not escaped her.

The tall blonde waited for her subordinate to open the cell door for her, before entering, crouching down next to the dismembered warrior, and running her finger with the sharp nail over the latter's terrified face.

"Good evening, warrior of Marley." She smiled in a captivating voice. "If you knew how happy I am to make your acquaintance..."

Under Leonhart's terrified gaze, the tall woman licked her lips greedily.

"You look… delicious."