To You, 2,000 Years in the Future - The Fall of Zhiganshina (1)
Someone being. . .lifted?
With a straining gasp, my eyes fly wide open. Two crows scurry off in a hurry as the wind kicks in. The chirps of harmony from various birds and the sound of flowers brushing against each other in the breeze fill my ears, however I am not calm. How could I be? What did I even see, and where am I? My heart is pounding as if I had just run around for two days straight. That had to have been a nightmare. My head swirls as I search for an answer. Then, a shadow appears above me.
Mikasa leans over me, a concerned look on her face. It seems to be the only emotion she ever feels anymore. It's not that I don't blame her, it's just that I wish she had more fight in her. I look over her shoulder, past the red scarf she wears every day, and notice the giant tree providing us shelter from the harsh sunlight. A valley of blue flowers rests beside us, and further in the distance are houses scattered along with windmills and trees.
"Let's head back," she says in her usual soft, monotone voice.
"What am I doing here?" I ask her. She must know why I'm here like this. Did she put me here?
"You're so out of it," she says as she stands up. "Were you sound asleep?"
I stand up as the breeze returns. "It's just, I feel like I had a really long dream," I explain, a pounding headache making its way through my skull. "What was it about? I can't remember. . ."
Mikasa slips her arms through the rope straps of the wooden pack frame. The rest of the rope is designed to keep all of the sticks from falling out. We were gathering them for firewood. The windmill's turbine blades spin in circles behind her. Her white dress flows in the same direction as it.
"Eren, why are you crying?"
The Year: 845 — Zhiganshina District
"Listen! These walls were constructed with God's wisdom!"
A pastor is shouting religious gibberish to people as they walk by. His gold necklace of the three walls shimmer in the sun. No one is paying him any attention. They're all too focused on where to go next and how to spend their time. Everyone has gotten used to his nonsensical rambling. He's preaching to closed ears.
"They were given to us by God himself!" he continues. "None may defile them!"
On the other side of the wall, Mikasa and I walk across a wooden bridge. Two women pass us, both in headscarves of different colors. One is wearing all green, and the other one is wearing gray and purple. A man stares out from the railing of the bridge in a farmer's hat. I keep my head lowered as we walk past.
"Don't tell anyone that I was crying."
"I won't. . .," she begins. We step through the gate of Wall Maria. "But if you're crying for no reason, why not have your dad check you over?"
"No way! I can't tell my dad about it."
"What are you crying over, Eren?"
A member of the Garrison steps in front of us, hands on the hips. Two roses lay over the image of a shield with leaves and thorns sticking out. The crest is placed four times on his short, brown jacket – one on his back, one for each upper arm, and one over the heart. He's past drunk (the heavy blush on his cheeks give it away).
I look up from the ground. I recognize that voice. "Hannes!"
"Did Mikasa get mad at you for something?" he questions. He bends over and gets much closer to our faces. The stench of alcohol burns my nose. He always wreaks it.
"Why would that make me cry?" I ask him, becoming defensive. I clasp both hands over my nose. "And you stink of alcohol!"
A group of three men launch into laughter on the other side of the gate. Hannes turns to see what happened, and I peer out from beside him. They all sit on stools surrounding a makeshift table of a crate, booze and cards in hands. They all wear the same Garrison uniform. A wave of disgust washes over me as a piece of my heart breaks off.
"You're all drinking again? I ask Hannes, my eyes fixated on the other three guards.
He turns back to me. "Why don't you join us?"
"Um," I start, uncomfortable by the sheer fact he would even ask in the first place, "but don't you have work?"
Hannes straightens his posture and lifts his hand up. "Yeah! We're guarding the gate today. We spend all day here, so eventually, we get hungry and thirsty. And the fact that some of what we drink may be alcohol. . .Well, that isn't too big a problem."
The disgust I've been feeling boils into anger. "Can you fight like that if you have to?" I ponder, gripping the straps of the wooden pack frame. It's heavy with hundreds of sticks. A part of me yearns to drop it and get right into his face.
His eyebrows lift and he goes, "If we have to? When would we. . ."
"When else?!" I don't give him the chance to finish. I don't want to hear the rest of his bullshit. "If they breached the walls and entered the city!"
"Ow. . .," whines out Hannes, grasping his head. "Hey, Eren, don't yell like that. . ."
One of Hannes' fellow guards stands up. It's Hugo. His belly slightly pokes out from his belt. His brown hair is slicked back as usual. The same heavy blush is spread across his face, the bottle of booze in his hand the clear culprit. Typically, he's laid back and, in my opinion, a coward. But if he wants to fight, a fight is what he's going to get.
He laughs. "The doctor's son is pretty lively today." He makes his way to stand beside Hannes and places his hands on his waist. "If they ever do breach the walls, we'll do our jobs. But that hasn't happened for a hundred years."
"But my dad says that you're in the most danger when you lower your guard!" I shout. Their ignorance sends me fuming. Their stupid baffling looks makes me want to drive my fist right into them.
"Doctor Jaeger, huh?" Hannes repeats, his hands on his hips as well as his eyes travel up to the sky in thought. Hugo stares at him, and Hannes continues. "Well, he's right. . .He once saved the whole city from an epidemic. We owe him more than we could ever repay. But that has nothing to do with them. As a soldier, when you go up to repair the walls, you can sometimes see them, wandering around outside. But this wall is fifty meters high. They can't do anything about it."
"Th-Then, you're actually not prepared to fight them?" I ask in disbelief. What did they even do during combat training? Why do I bother to ask? They were most likely drinking. . .
"What?!" I yell at Hannes. "Then stop calling yourselves the Garrison, and become the Wall Repair Corps!"
He chuckles, the idea amusing to him. "I wouldn't mind that. . .But listen, Eren. . .If we're fighting, it means things are bad. As long as everyone's laughing at us and calling us useless freeloaders, that means we're all safe."
I can feel Mikasa's gaze burning into my skull. That doesn't matter. Anger runs through my veins as I ball up a fist as tight as I can muster. "Even if we can never leave these walls for our entire lives, as long as we eat and sleep, we'll survive. . .But that makes us just like. . .Just like cattle!"
The other two guards laugh at their table.
"That's a brave kid you have there."
"Not like he could do anything about it, huh, Hannes?"
"Y-Yeah," Hannes replies to them, nervous. Mikasa and I are already walking off. We've heard enough of them. "Hey, Eren!"
"Does he want to join the Survey Corps?" Hannes asks aloud.
"Eren, you should stop considering the Survey Corps."
My eyes widen and I whip my head to face her. "What? You're going to tell me they're stupid, too?" That familiar feeling of anger bubbles in my stomach again. I thought she was on my side, no matter what.
"That isn't it. . ." She's interrupted by the swinging of bells. They all ring at different times in different outposts, but they all mean the same thing.
"The Survey Corps is back!" I point out to Mikasa. "The front gate's opening! Let's go, Mikasa! The heroes are back!"
I take her hand and rush to go greet the soldiers. A crowd has already begun formation. Damn their tall bodies. They block the view of the road and of the Survey Corps. I peer through the windows between people's shoulders, but it doesn't help any.
"Damn it, I can't see!" Just then, I spot two crates next to a house. I rush to them and hop on the first one, then the next one. That way we both get a chance to see the Scouts.
Some of them arrive on horseback. The team members ride bay horses (mainly brown, but black as the mane and tail) and the commander rides a white horse. Nearly all of them are bruised and beaten up, blood staining their faces and attire. Grief and horror paint their expressions. They're all covered head to toe in bandages, some in slings. The ones unable to walk are thrown in a wooden horse drawn carriage.
"These are all that made it back?"
"Everyone else must've been eaten."
"That's what happens when you go outside the walls."
An old lady steps out of the crowd and stops in front of one of the Scouts. A maroon scawl rests over her shoulders and nearly reaches her elbows. Her graying hair is held in a low ponytail with a few strands swept to the side of her face. She scans the soldiers around her in a worried fashion.
"Um, my son, Moses. . .I don't see him," she states. She looks up at one of the members and walks toward him. She grips hold of his green cloak.
"This is Moses's mother," the man says to the one next to him. He closes his eyes for a second, then glances to the other. "Bring it."
The lady falls back a step, a gasp leaving her lips. Her eyelids spring apart as if they were two magnets. The man places a bloodied cloth in her arms. She stares at it in fear mixed with confusion. Her gaze falls back on the man whose cloak she grabbed onto, as if to say, "What the fuck is this?" But words fail her.
She quickly begins to unravel the dirty cloth that was given to her. After one more untangle, half of the cloth falls down, unsupported. A tan hand sticks out. Three black bruises and the blood of who knows cover the hand. The lady gasps and wraps an end of the cloth around the arm again to hide it from her sight. Sobs escape her throat as her body shakes and her head lowers in defeat.
"That is all we managed to receive," the man speaks. He is the only one that can face her. All the others face opposite directions.
The woman falls to her knees on the pathway. She brings the covered arm up to her face and cradles it as if it were a baby. Tears fall down her cheeks and stain the cloth. She doubles over and continues to sob strainingly.
He gets down in a crouching position, and the lady talks again. "But my son. . .He helped, right? Even if he didn't do anything directly. . .My son's death helped humanity fight back, didn't it?!"
Silence falls over the crowd with only the wind creating sound. Dust kicks up on the pathway and sends it into most likely someone's clothing, taking random shreds of paper and leaves with it. Each of the soldiers' heads are lowered, eyes closed or gazing at the ground. The man who spoke gawks at her as he searches for an answer in his head while battling grief and loss.
"Of course!" he reassures her. His eyes fall on the ground just like everyone else as tears fall down his own cheeks. "No. Our recon this time didn't. . .No, we never. . .NEVER LEARN A THING! It's my fault. . .My own incompetence killed our men! And we still don't even know WHAT THEY ARE!"
The Scouts and their horses flee the scene and the crowd slowly disperses. The remaining handful of people watch as their protectors leave. The wagons leave a trail embedded in the dirt roads, ruining any chance of grass growing.
Two middle-aged men spark a conversation. "You've got that right," one tells the other. "It's like our taxes all go to fatten them up."
I rip one of the sticks out from my pack and smack him on his bald head. He grunts, covering his head where I hit him. "What are you doing, stupid brat?"
Before I get the chance to whack him again, something pulls me out and around the corner. But I already know who it is. I don't need to see. What's painful is that she's dragging me away when they're the ones in the wrong!
"What are you doing, Mikasa?!" I shout, as the other man shouts for me to get back there. I'll gladly do that. I'll gladly give you the fight you deserve. "Mikasa, you can let go now!"
Mikasa lets go of me – she throws me right into the brick wall, causing the sticks I worked so hard to gather to fly out. Pain shoots up by spine from having the pack frame dig into my body. I get a mouthful of dirt from landing face-first in it. Mikasa has strong muscles, almost too strong at times. Even I'm left with bruises from these kinds of stunts.
"What was that for?" I snap at her. "The firewood spilled everywhere!"
Mikasa pauses. "Eren, do you still want to join the Survey Corps?"
Her words echo throughout my head as I stare at her. She gives me her usual blank yet dedicated expression. Did I hear her right? And why isn't she on my side? I want to yell at her, but something in me tells me not to. I'm more disappointed than anything. Of course I want to join, I want to tell her. No, not tell. Yell. I want to shout it in her face. I want to get it through her skull, through everyone's thick skull, that this is what I want. I want to fight those barbaric titans and save humanity.
I don't understand why everyone is against me joining the Survey Corps. No one is ready for the day the titans come to attack. I have to be the one who can pull it through. I'll be the hero, I'll put an end to all of the titans. That way no one will have to worry about them. The Survey Corps will finally be viewed as heroes again. Everyone will love them just like how they used to. I'll make sure it happens.
My gaze falls to the sticks all over the ground. "Help me pick these up. . .," I order Mikasa. She might as well help me, I mean, she is the one that made them all askew to begin with.
"There isn't enough to bother," she points out, despite already crouching down and helping pick them up again.
Information We Can Share So Far:
Humanity lives within three walls.
The outermost is Wall Maria.
The innermost is Wall Sina.
Distance between each is roughly the same.
100km separate Maria and Rose.
130km separate Rose and Sina.
From Sina to the center is 250km.
Mikasa and I make our way up the long stone staircase to our house. I've been living here for as long as I can remember. She's carrying far more sticks than I am, although I'm not willing to argue. She's the one that spilt all of them. She can carry them. I open the door to the house and announce our return with a simple, "Back."
Mom and Dad are both here – that's a shocker. Usually Mom is outside doing laundry or hosting conversations with the neighbors. Dad often makes house visits all over Zhiganshina, and sometimes even in Trost or other places. Not only that, but he attends so many business meetings. He never really talks about them, either.
Various animals are hung from their legs, from rabbits to geese. They are hung right in front of the windows. Mom's doing dishes right near them and Dad is filling out some paperwork at the dinner table. I can't tell what they're about.
"Welcome home," says Mom as she turns around, dishes in her hands. Dad turns around to see us.
Mikasa heads to the kitchen portion of the house and begins her chores. She's pumping water which I am guessing is for dinner. I flip open the firewood box lid and lift the wooden pack frame onto the edge of the box. I undo the ropes and tilt the pack forward, hundreds of sticks flying in the container. Mom fiddles with her apron as she comes to me.
"Oh, Eren!" she exclaims, leaning forward. "You actually worked hard for a change."
Looking off to the side, I respond with, "Yeah. . ." The moment I blink I can feel a hard pinch at my ear. I cover it with my hand to shield further pain and look to my mom. "What?"
"Your ears turned red," she says. A smile forms on her lips as she leans back up. "That means you're lying. Mikasa helped you, didn't she?"
"Huh? Are you going somewhere, Dad? Work?"
It's dinner time at last. Mikasa sits at the head of the table, and Dad and I sit on the side closest to the door. Him and Mom are the only ones not eating. Mom is cleaning the dish she already ate from and Dad is packing away his belongings in his bag. He didn't touch his food at all. Steam is still seeping from it.
"Yes, I'm going inland to see patients," he explains. "Probably for two or three days."
"Eren said he wants to join the Survey Corps."
For a second, the entire world goes quiet. For a second, I thought my life was over with. Mom stops whatever she was doing and quickly turns to me, her hair flying in the process. Dad lifts his head up in response. Mikasa just examines the table as if she's never seen it before.
I drop my plate and spoon on the table in frustration. "M-Mikasa, I told you not to tell them!" I snap at her.
"Eren!" barks my mom as she makes her way toward me. I know I'm in trouble now. When she has to quit what she's doing to fuss at you, you know you have messed up big time. She places her hands firm on my shoulders, leaning so close to me I had to lean a little away. "What are you thinking? Do you know how many people have died outside the walls?"
"I do!" I return. Of course I know. I've seen it, well, the aftermath of it. I've seen what it's done to soldiers, to people, to men and women. I've seen what it's done to their families. I'm well aware of the consequences and that makes me want to do it more.
"Eren. . ." We both cease the argument and turn our attention to Dad. "Why do you want to go outside?"
I'm shocked he wanted to hear me out, given Mom's reaction. "I want to know what it's like out there. I don't want to spend my life inside the walls, not knowing anything! Also. . . If no one carries on their work, all the casualties till now will have been in vain!"
Dad lifts his head up, his glasses shimmering in the sunlight. Then, "I see. The ship is waiting. I'll be going now." He arises from his chair and makes his way to the front door. He slips on his coat, the one that had been resting on the rack in the corner, as well as his fedora.
"Wait. . .," Mom calls out as she chases him to the door. "You need to talk to Eren!"
"Karla," he tells her, "human curiosity is not something you can restrain with a lecture. Eren. . .When I get back, I'll show you what I've kept a secret in the basement all this time." He lifts up the key that dangles from his chest.
I'm excited now, especially knowing that Dad is on my side more than Mom is. "R-Really?" I ask him. I examine the key in his hand that's held together by a brown string. It's golden, with the bow resembling a diamond shape and having spheres at each end. The bit reminds me of a crown. He snatches it and tucks it away.
I wave to Dad but he won't see me. His back is turned to me and he's descending the same steps we go up and down each day. When he's out of earshot, Mom talks to me.
"I won't let you." She holds her hands together at her stomach all neat and pristine. "Joining the Survey Corps? Don't be stupid."
I swivel to her and throw my hands out. 'Huh? Stupid?! I think people who're fine being cattle are way more stupid!" That's when I ran off down a path between to houses. That's when I heard my mom scream my name, but I don't stop running. I'm not listening to someone who can't bother seeing my point of view.
Karla bends over and rests her hands on my shoulders. She knits her brows together. The years of worrying for Eren's well being portrays in her face in the form of wrinkles. I have doubts she has gotten a single good night's rest since she has had him. No, I don't want to be rude to Eren. He means well, I know that, it just does not always come off as such.
"Mikasa, sometimes he doesn't think things through." Her voice is full of concern for her son, yet she sustains a stern voice. I am envious of her for that. "When you're in trouble, you must help one another."
"What's wrong, heretic? If you don't like it, hit back!"
I'm pushed into the wall of some person's house like I am a rag doll. My cheek burns from being punched. I wrap my fingers around the bullies arm. There isn't enough strength in my body to fight back. I'm not a fighter, not like Eren and Mikasa. I wish they were here. Tears form in my eyes from frustration.
"No way," I tell him. "That would put me on your level!"
Got him. "You know what I said is true. That's why you're hitting me instead of arguing. Doesn't that admit I win?" This earns me three stumped bullies. Whether or not they understand what I'm saying, they have stopped hitting me and throwing me around.
"Shut your damned mouth!"
All four of us turn to the source of the voice. Eren is running at full speed from the road with a look that reads, "I'm gonna kill you all!" That alone sends shivers down my spine. He's the last guy I want to pick a fight with. . .
"He wants to get his ass kicked?"
"Let's give him what he wants!"
Just then, Mikasa appears into view right behind at Eren. She appears scarier than he does! That's something I would see in my worst nightmares.
"N-No. . .Let's get out of here!"
The three bullies run off in the opposite direction. Eren arrives out of breath yet with a smile on his face. He's sweating from running such a short distance. "They ran away when they saw me!" he exclaims, the short victory sending dopamine hits in his brain.
Time to ruin his happiness. "No, they ran when they saw Mikasa," I inform him. Mikasa stops behind Eren as if she was on a nice little afternoon stroll. I go to stand up but I immediately fall right back down. "Ouch!"
"Hey, are you okay, Armin?" Eren extends his hand out to help me up in front of my face. This small gesture makes me feel so worthless. No matter what he's here to fight off the bullies, and I'm always the victim. I feel weak. No, I am weak. I'm an easy target for the bullies and Eren and Mikasa believe I'm someone who constantly needs saving. Seeing his hand reminds me of that fact, something that will continue to haunt me for years to come unless I do something about it. "I can stand on my own."
"So I said that humanity should go out into the world someday. And they hit me and called me a heretic."
The three of us are sitting at the edge of the stream that goes through the town. We come here often to get some peace and quiet. Today, peace doesn't even exist in my vocabulary. I'm pissed off at those three bullies. Why can't they just leave us alone? Why can't they leave Armin alone? Don't they have better things to be doing than terrorizing him? I throw a rock into the water and watch as the water ripples.
"Why does everyone act like you're going crazy if you want to go outside?" I ask, placing my arm on my upright knee. The other leg dangles off a ledge.
"Because staying within the walls has brought peace for a hundred years," explains Armin. "They're afraid that if many of us venture out, we'll risk letting them in. So the royal government declared any interest in the outside world taboo."
I look back at the water, furrowing my eyebrows. "That's our lives we're risking, so it's our business!" I tell him. No, I tell the world.
"You can't." The two of us turn to Mikasa. "No."
The events from my house spring up to mind again. Mom yelling. Dad leaving. "Come to think of it, why did you tell my parents?" I ask her.
"I don't remember ever saying I'd help," she says, making me angry again. She should be on my side, she should be helping me.
"H-How did it go?" questions Armin, leaning toward me with his arms folded on his legs. He wants to break the tension.
"Well. . . They weren't happy," I explain. That's a given.
Armin lowers his head with a soft sight. "I bet," he responds. The wind picks up once more, throwing leaves and dust and rubble around. "But you're right. I wonder about those who think staying inside the walls will protect us forever. Just because the walls haven't been breached in a hundred years doesn't mean they won't be breached today. . .
Just then, a single strike of yellow lightning struck Wall Maria. Thousands of branches form and sprout from the main strike. The world goes dark for a handful of seconds, the lightning serving as the only light source. It's so powerful we lose our sense of balance and tumble to the ground.
"What?" Armin asks aloud. None of us have an explanation for that.
"An explosion?" I wonder, turning to see where the lightning struck.
"I think something fell from the sky!"
Armin runs off in the direction two men went in. I call out his name, but it's no use. He won't listen now. I rush after him with Mikasa taking the back. When I finally catch up to him, he's in the same state as everyone else. They're all staring up at Wall Maria in shock. Everyone is gathered in an attempt to figure out what is happening.
I come to a stop next to Armin, examining his worried features. "What's wrong? What can you see?"
That's when I see it. A hand of pure muscle grips the top edge of Wall Maria. It doesn't have any skin on it. It's got a death grip on the stone while a trail of smoke comes from behind it. The hand is huge. . .there's no way this is a normal titan, right? Can one really be that big, if the hand can reach over the wall? There's no way. Everyone says that the walls are tall enough to block out all the Titans. It can't just go over the wall.
"No way. . .," shouts Armin. He's thinking the same thing I am. "That wall is fifty meters tall!"
"It's one of them. . .A Titan!" I shout.
The titan rises from the other side of the wall. It's face is pure muscle, just like its hand. Hundreds of teeth poke out from its cheeks. Steam escapes its face from multiple points. Is it melting or something?
I'm not too sure what happened. One minute we were all staring at the titan, and the next everyone is running and screaming. Pieces of buildings fly through the air as more smoke rises in the town. Those pieces form mini explosions as they collide with the ground from all the force. Then, the titan was gone.
"It broke. . ." Armin's on his knees now. "A hole in the wall. . ."
Titans. I can see them now. They're in my town. They're in Zhiganshina. Everyone's running from them, grabbing their loved ones and screaming. They're all afraid. Armin's yelling at me but I can't hear him. I can't stand here.
My house. My house is that way. They're all running away from my house. "My house is over there. . .My mom!"
I run as fast as I can to the direction of my house. A guy with a paper boy cap slams into my side but I keep going. I don't care who I run into, I just have to get to my house. My mom is still in there. I need to save her! We need to get to safety. My legs run on their own at this point. All of the adrenaline makes them numb.
Someone got crushed by a rock. A father, most likely. A mother and a young child hold onto the remains while sobbing. I can't help but to watch, but that means nothing hit my house. Once I turn that corner, my house will still be there!
My house is destroyed. There's hardly anything left of it. The whole thing is crushed by a rubble. My mom lays in the middle of all of it. Mikasa and I run to her as she calls out my name. Thank fuck she's still alive. I tell Mikasa to grab the other side of the wood so we can get her out. I grab hold of it and pull with all my might. Mikasa does the same. We both pull and pull with everything that we have, with every ounce of strength I can muster.
Loud pounding footsteps echoes in the distance. I stop pulling to see where it's coming from. To my left, Titans walk through the same roads I did and have been my whole life. They're on the hunt for humans, destroying all that's left in their paths. One is making its way straight for my house. For us.
We begin pulling again, and Mom starts talking. "The Titans are inside, aren't they? Eren, take Mikasa and run! Now!'
I keep on pulling. I can't leave her behind like this. No, we will make it out of here. Alive. Together. My hands are bloodied from lifting such heavy material, but my fingers are dug into it. We're getting close! "I want to run!" I shout at her. "So hurry and get out of there!"
"My legs were crushed by the rubble," she says. "Even if I get out, I can't run. You understand, don't you?"
I stare at her as tears threaten to spill out of my eyes. Has she lost it?! She's spouting nonsense! "Then I'll carry you!"
There's tears in her eyes, too. She yells right back at me, "Why do you never listen to me?! At least listen this one last time! Mikasa! If you don't go, all three of us will. . ."
Mom cuts herself off when the sound of wires make a presence. The sun shines beams of light on her face. She's covered in dirt, sweat, and tears as she calls out a name, a name we all know well. Hannes jumps down behind us and recoils the wire from his gear. He slips a handle away in his jacket and heads our way.
"Take the children and run!" she tells Hannes, as if we can't hear her. We're not even two feet away from her. Mikasa and I keep pulling at the board that entraps her.
"Don't underestimate me, Karla," Hannes says, lowering his upper body to get to Mom's eye level. "I'll defeat the Titan, and save you all!"
Hannes sits upright and takes a few steps. The steps turn into a jog, then a run, as he unsheathes his swords. He leaves to handle the Titan while Mom is begging for him to not try. But it's no use. Hannes is a stubborn man, even when he knows others are right and he's wrong. I hate that about him. Just admit you're wrong and move on!
Someone's lifting me up from the rubble. It's Hannes. . .It's Hannes? Wait, why the hell is he back? He's supposed to be fighting the Titan! "Wait, Hannes! What are you doing?! My mom is still back there!"
Hannes has me on his shoulder, Mikasa tucked under the other arm, running off. I can't believe him. How can he leave my mom like that? I can see her, she's still under the rumble. If I could have five more minutes I could get her out of there! I reach out for her, as if she could grab my hand from this distance.
Mom reaches her hand back out to me. She's calling out our names, then, "You must survive!" She recoils her hand and clasps it over her mouth. Tears stream down her cheeks like waterfalls. I want to be by her side, I want to tell her it'll be okay. That we'll all get out of here okay.
I squirm around to the point where I sit on Hannes' left shoulder. He won't let go of me no matter how much I move around. The Titan reaches my house and starts digging through the rubble. It's on the hunt for something like a dog searching for its prey. It puts two hands together and drags something out of it all, breaking wood and the leftovers of the house into even more pieces.
"STOOOOP!!" I shout at the Titan. The damned bastard has my mom. I want to go kill it. I want it to suffer. I w-
The Titan, restless of the kicking and punching, takes one hand to hold Mom and uses the other to grab the other end. It pulls at her until she no longer moves, until she's bent over like a kids toy. The Titan brings her to its mouth and bites into her, my own mother's blood spilling everywhere.
That day, humanity remembered. . .the terror of being ruled by them. The humiliation of being kept in a cage.