Chapter 21: Chapter 21
"So that's the plan you've laid out? I'm impressed that you would detail just what the enemy would do from just the previous encounters."
"Part of it is putting myself in the enemies shoes. What would they do? What would I do?"
"Hm, so, we are keeping your Cavalry in the back?"
"Yes. Your Scouts are meant to scout, right?"
"I suppose."
"But we both agree that we need to secure all enemies. If they escape and tell the information to those outside the walls the technology advancements we made…"
"You are almost sure that there are indeed enemies outside these walls?"
"You yourself came to that conclusion, did you not?"
"... I did."
"With then, Commander, I suppose the only thing we can do is retake Shingashina."
"Of course. Although, are you sure you want Rommel to be leader of the Cavalry? I thought that whole operation was yours?"
"I can't really lead the Cavalry and be the Titan to seal the walls at the same time. We already went through the plan. My role will be to deal with Riener and Bert."
"I suppose you are right, Eren."
"Then let's begin."
Eren stood atop the wall as he gazed down into his hometown, Shingashina. He allowed the brief moment of respite as the wind blew over his face, chilling him to the bone.
The mission, now nothing but a mere thought put to the side, couldn't comprehend the feeling of finally returning to where he had grown up for most of his childhood.
It was a place where he first experienced loving families. He could act like a child and play like a child without the fear of anything. And yet, he had to throw it all to the side to prepare for his so-called saving of this world.
Truth be told, he was hesitant on how to save this world. Rather, the demon just said his people. But would that sate the ever-growing desire for Eren? After learning of Annie and people of outside the wall, could he truly enact a plan that disregards everyone but the people within these walls?
It didn't matter, at that time. He would cross the bridge when it came time.
Suddenly, his thoughts were broken by Mikasa. They were to move towards the outer gate, sealing it to ensure no Titans would be able to come through.
Eren was hesitant on to why they stopped the operation. Only him and Erwin and a few high executives of each of the Scouts and Cavalry knew of the plan. They had already practically predicted the movement of the enemy and what they would do.
Levi and Hange Squad would deal with the inevitable summonings of both the Armored and Colossal Titan. The Armor would be easy to deal with, considering Eren had a method to break it with his own hardening.
The Colossal Titan would be dealt with a battle of endurance. It was predicted that he got slower and sloppier as time went on, so they would be able to deal with that.
Eren had a guess that the ape Titan would launch the Colossal Titan high in the sky, hoping that he would be able to blow everyone away.
However, if they were able to see the path the projectile took, they should be able to dodge.
Despite that, Eren didn't have a clue as to where Riener was hiding. A guess was around the area, but searching may be futile.
Nevertheless, Eren began to understand why they stopped the operation as he saw the Scouts slowly climb down the wall.
He never would have thought of it, but it appears that someone did.
Riener was hiding in the walls.
Rommel found it odd to be among such machinery. It wasn't foreign, but he had been among machines for most of his time. His office was located near the workshops of many of the technicians and scientist.
However, it was still bizarre for him to literally look to his left and see the peaks of mountains below him. Such was the metal beast they resided in. The Führer had called it a Zeppelin. A giant thing indeed. The length spanned nearly 800 feet, with the width being 100 at its thickest. It was truly a sight to behold, more so when it was launched then when it was simply hovering in flight.
Rommel recalled how he felt his stomach lurch when they initiated take off. It was an unsteady feeling, as he had never done such a thing as even use vertical maneuvering gear. However, despite his shortcomings in prowess, he was able to fly with the Zeppelin.
"Sir," An operate at a console spoke up. "We have just received confirmations from the 101st Cavalry Armored Division. They are in position and awaiting orders."
In seemed like a long name just for ten tanks, but Eren had suggested it. Why was beyond Rommel, but The Führer had gotten them this far, no use in questioning him.
"Those things are quite handly, wouldn't you agree?" Hugo wasted no time to gloat on his inventions. "Why, when The Führer came to me with such an idea, I thought it impossible. Ah, I wish I could have worked on it myself, but alas, being an overseer doesn't let me the benefit to tinker with every device."
Hugo was referring to the what had been dubbed the "radio". It was a device that transmitted noise to allow one to communicate. Rommel didn't know how it worked other than the fact it used electricity and something called a wave to transport the noise to their blimp.
Although they were still in their infancy and could be easily disrupted. Regardless, they did the job in the current operation and gave them quite an edge that allowed them to convey information over long distances that was deemed impossible in the past.
Now, as they awaited high above the sky, seeing the outline of Shingashina as they climbed quite the distance, they looked for the signal that would begin the attack.
The signal was one of two. Either when a second flash of green went off or when abruptly multiple flashing of green went off.
One would signal that Eren had transformed a second time, leading for the Cavalry to advance either way, while the lateral would signal that the enemy began their attack by spawning in a plethora of mindless Titans, if their information was anything to go off by.
So it was ironic that as soon as they saw the second lighting flash, signaling a single transformation, the entire spot surrounding Shiganshina lit up in a bright, green light.
"I suppose that's all the confirmation we needed." Titus, who was also on the bridge acting as a bodyguard for the Rommel and Hugo, spoke up dreary.
"Hmm," Rommel gave a nod. "Inform all personal. Begin attack."
Scott was the leader of the Armored Division 101st. He didn't know why it needed such a name, but for the ten small tanks that consisted of a crew of four, it seemed fitting that they had something to call themselves.
It made them feel professional. Currently, Scott resided as the Commander for his tank, with him he had a gunner, loader, and driver. The four men each gave bated breaths as they awaited the orders from the large floating behemoth above them. The day had begun and any moment they knew that the battle of Shinashina would take place, if it hadn't already.
A knock on the turret had Scott raise the hatch panel. Peeking from within, he observed the man in the vertical maneuvering gear. An elite, a part of the Kräfte. Scott never partook in his training, as he led that to the current leader of the Kräfte to do.
"What is it, soldier?" Scott, never bothering to learn the man's name, asked.
"Reporting," The man stated smoothly. "No Titans had been sighted since the sun has risen. Confirm orders for when we engage in battle?"
Scott gave a slight cringe at the man's rigidness towards stated orders. It was well known what they should be doing, but it seemed some comfort would be given to those around them. Currently, there was a Kräfte soldier assigned to each tank. They were to act as ground soldiers and dispatch any Titans that came close for the tanks to be unable to fire upon. Once they received the order to advance towards Shingashina, their roles were especially important.
To remain undetected, they couldn't allow any shot to be fired as they were quite loud. They would dispatch any Titans that they came across, gaining them silence and achieve the sneak attack they desired.
Once they were revealed to the enemy, they were to dispatch and track down any Titan that the tanks missed on the first salvo, because after that each and every Tank would be focused on the Beast Titan. After the Beast Titan was either slain or captured, they would begin mop-up operations and eliminate any Titans possible.
Scott relayed this information to the man who only gave a nod as he saluted Scott.
Sitting down in the Commander's chair high above his crew, he gave a sigh. It was nerve-wracking for the men to simply sit here. He saw sweat among a few of their brows, no doubt anxious to finally get this day over with.
It would be a lie of Scott said he wasn't worried, but he couldn't help but feel like they were coming into this extremely prepared. Really, it was the Scouts that had to worry. It would take ten minutes tops to get to Shingashina, enough time for things to take a turn for the worse. Without the Cavalry to secure the victory, it could go either way. Simply put, there were too many variables. However, with The Furhers tenacious form of planning, he had an idea of what exactly the enemy would do and how to counter them.
Suddenly the new contraption known as the 'radio' barked as a buzz like noise emitted from it. From that buzz came a slightly distorted voice.
"...peat ...ration. Repe… egin ope... repeat, beg… eration. Repeat, begin operation."
With their orders confirmed, Scott gave the command for the driver to punch it. Before that, he had shouted at the Kräfte to tell everyone to move if their order wasn't clear enough.
Soon, theCavalry's 101st Armored Division was on the move.
The fight with Riener was going as expected. Harden fist, Eren was able to crack his armor. In a battle that would ensure their victory, he would no doubt need the SCouts. The problem was the Colossal Titan.
Regardless, they had a trump card in the fact of the Thunder Spears. A creation developed by Hanges team specifically for the Armored Titan, it was something to truly fear.
Not for the fact that it would allow them to beat the Armored Titan, but the fact that Eren saw the use beyond that. Armored vehicles were practically paper with its firepower. The explosive capabilities along with the speed of Maneuver Gear allowed the Thunder Spear to be a weapon that could change the course of any conventional battle.
But such thoughts were useless right now. Battles like that wouldn't happen for a long time. The focus was now on Riener and his armor, or the lack thereof.
He had been blown.
Eren didn't expect Riener to go down that easy. He was expecting him to call Bert, but perhaps he never had the time.
But it was a mistake to think that.
A roar.
The barrel was the only indication they needed to disperse.
Pieck had little sympathy for the Devils of these islands. A part of her knew and recognized that they were probably misunderstood humans. Much like her, they had a heart and breathed. But to think such things would be foolish in the Marley government. She knew her duty and what she signed up for.
So she didn't hesitate to find large boulders for their warlord Zeke to throw at the groups of men and women. They no doubt all had families to get back to, but it would all end an a massacre.
Or so she thought.
She had to find rocks large enough in unique places, sometimes even digging them up, in order to give them to Zeke.
It was at one of those times when she was trying to find a rock that her keen sense of hearing detected something unusual. The noise was like an engine from a car, but more powerful. It was odd. She recalled the sound from the Devil's gear and how the gas made a distinct noise.
It was like that but amplified hundreds, perhaps thousands of times more.
The realization shocked her. Did the enemy have a second wave that was to come later on in the day? But that was foolish. Riener and Bertholft described how the Scouts couldn't make any headway during the day as the Titans would slow them down, but now they were this close.
As she looked up from the boulder she had been pushing towards Zeke, her little Titan eyes widen as she got a glint of metal coming down from the hill she had just walked past.
Tanks. Real tanks. Living, breathing, metal contraptions known as tanks.
In that simple conclusion, she realized that the intel that Riener and Bertholft had was incorrect. The military within these walls on Paradis Island was far more advanced then they had ever thought.
Peick cursed the Armored and Colossal Titan's incompetence for not finding such obvious technological advancement.
The only sound she heard before the fight for her life began was "Titan spotted!" and then a barrage of cannon muzzles going off at once.
Scott saw the Titan before the Kräfte had shouted off the location. He was already speaking when he brought the little box-like item to his mouth. Hugo's design was simple. Click a button and speak into and it would be received among the other tanks. Due to being so close, the 'static' as Hugo called it wouldn't be as strong.
Scott didn't care to learn the science behind it, seeing it as nothing but a tool that they could use.
He had already discerned that the unique Titan was a shifter. No way would they entrust a mindless Titan with what seemed to be valuable cargo. Not to mention, if the information from that capture shifter, Annie, was correct, this Titan matched the exact description of the so-called 'Cart Titan'.
No one question as to why they had foregone secrecy to open fire on this one Titan. Just the fact that their commanding officer told them to, so they all opened fired.
They were met with less than desirable results.
They had desperately trained to this day, but it seemed that the moving target was quite fast. Forgoing its cargo, it launched itself out of the line of fire. Clipping only it's legs, there wasn't as much damage as Scott was hoping for.
"Cavalry Seven through Ten, as well as all Kräfte, handle the Titan known as the Cart Titan. Two through Six, follow me to deal the surprise blow to the Beast Titan!" With a following affirmatives, the tanks and Kräfte dispersed towards their mission.
If only Armin hadn't had the idea to talk to Bert. Eren knew that such a thing was foolish, but couldn't voice his thoughts in the Titan.
He realized that talking with them would elect nothing.
And it showed, as Armin failed to do whatever he decided to do. His failure and incompetence cost Hange and her Squad's lives as they were no doubt caught up in the explosion as they were en route to finish Riener.
Now, they had the behemoth known as the Colossal Titan to deal with, and Levi Squad was the only unit able to be dispatched.
Rick was a man of little words. However, just because he spoke softly and sparingly didn't make him a horrible leader.
He was the current Commander for Cavalry Ten. However, he was also one of the oldest veterans among the groups of the 101st, second only to Scott.
Without any hesitation, he brought the radio to his lips and spoke his orders simply, taking charge of the situation.
"Seven and Eight, flank left and right respectively. Nine, get in close. Kräfte, prepare for extraction of Shifter when we get close. Ten will lead the target with suppression fire." A few affirmatives later and everyone began to get into position.
Seven and Eight began their flanking maneuver as ten shot out in front of the Cart Titan, causing it to change course abruptly, which lead to Seven firing straight at the Titan. Truing to dodge, it only led to them losing a limp, causing the Titan on all fours to tumble.
Desperately trying to fight back, it broke into a lunge towards the nearest tank, Nine. Reacting quickly, the driver hit the breaks and began backing up. With the Cart Titan's maw wide open, it tried to snap the tank with its jaw in two, only to come short.
Nine, instead of hitting the head, lowered the barrel and shot off another leg. Following shortly, Eight shot off another leg, causing the Cart Titan to only have one function limp.
However, even that didn't last, as Seven aligned the barrel and shot off the last limp, securing the capture of the Titan.
Ensuring that the Titan could no longer function, Rick fired off a shot from his own tank, obliterating the head of the beast. With nothing to lift its body with, or any face to receive sensory data, the Kräfte were free to go towards the nape and slice out whoever was controlling the Titan.
It had all happened so fast. With the person inside the Titan secured, Rick gave the orders to the Commanders of Seven, Eight, and Nine to go assist Cavery One with the subjugation of any more Titans.
He and the Kräfte would remain and ensure the captivity of the Titan.
It was at that precise moment, as the other tanks drove away, that a shadow encompassed their location. Opening the hatch and looking up, Rick couldn't help but stare in awe as the Zepplin made headway towards Shingashina. Taking his gaze off the mightly flying behemoth, he stole a glance towards the girl that was in the Titan. She seemed shocked to see such an awe-inspiring metal contraption in the sky.
If it were any other man, they would made an off-handed comment about the greatness that their Führer has achieved for them. But since it was the soft-spoken Rick, he simply seemed content to know that the enemy was flabbergast at their current situation.
They had almost been too late.
Scott saw the arm of the Beast Titan wind back in an attempt to throw the boulder that was no doubt crushed into tiny rocks. Such projectiles, if thrown at a certain velocity, could even pierce the armor of the tank.
So, with bated breath, he allowed the gunner to take aim at the arm of the Beast Titan. Without a second to hesitate, the man pulled the trigger, unleashing the shell that came perfectly crashing into the elbow the Titan as he was mid-throw. With the arm only attached by a sliver of meat, the rock fell short and only crashed in the field in front of them.
Kicking up dust from the failed barrage, the Beast Titan seemed to look behind him in shock. Observing the situation, he kept his calm and order his Titans to charge at the six tanks he saw before him.
However, his Titans stuttered in their order as he heard the roars behind him. The Scouts had just mounted a counter-attack and were charging towards him.
With the Tanks behind him and The Scouts in front of him, he had to make a choice. The choice he made was to continue as he was doing before. Sending the Titans to deal with the tanks behind him, he picked up another boulder to launch towards the Scouts. Realizing that the Cart Titan was most likely defeated, the Beast Titan would have to make do with the three boulders he currently had.
He was currently about to throw the rocks when another interruption happened. In the form of a smokescreen from the massive blimp that blotted out the sun.
It was truly marvelous to see a battle of such scale from a bird's eye view. The Zepplin could see everything. The Titans seemed so small compared to their actual heights. It was a bit concerning seeing the large abomination known as the Colossal Titan inside the walls, But Rommel knew to not worry about.
The Armored and Colossal Titan were to be dealt with by the Führer and whatever squads accompanied him. Rommel had no doubt that the beast would soon be felled.
"Do you think they have spotted us yet?" Rommel wondered aloud. While they were high up, it simply took a glance upwards to make the surprise attack was moot.
"Unless we encompass them with our shadow, they have no reason to look up." Hugo spoke. "Our secretly is secured, I assure you."
"Yeah." Titus piped in. "However, our shadow is about to come over the Beast Titan by the looks of it."
"Ahh, but by then it will already be too late." Hugo smirked. "Why, are tanks are already engaged. Look! It seemed the Beast Titan has already noticed their present by sending in the remaining Titans!"
"Then everything is as the Führer had predicted." Rommel stated as a matter of fact. "Then if everything is proceeding, the Scouts should be upholding up their end of the pincer attack. Are the flare shells ready?"
"Yessir!" A man at one of the many consoles spoke up.
"Aim all guns in front of the Beast Titan. We are to provide smoke to cover up the assault of the Scouts to ensure a higher percentage of survivability." Rommel barked out orders. "Fire!"
With the command, all four of the 127 mm guns mounted upon the Zepplin open fired in a smoky salvo. The five-inch shells left a trail of white smoke as it rained down upon the open terrain. Upon impact, the smoke dispersed even more, blanketing the land in front of them in a thick fog of smoke.
It was a new bullet designed to obscure vision. Its design was intended to cover the tracks of the Cavalry as they either advanced or retreated. So the original purpose of it was still being used. But rather for tanks moving forward, it was for the Scouts on horseback.
Rommel couldn't help but grin as the plan came together.
With everything in place, victory would come swift and sure.
It appeared to Pieck that they were lax around her. They didn't even seem to notice that she had regenerated most of her injuries, the little ones she had.
When they had ripped her out of the nape, they didn't bother to cut off her arms or legs to prevent her from transforming. Where they confident in their abilities or just arrogant of the fact?
Regardless, she could use it to her advantage. Only one tank remained with around ten ground soldiers. Two were close enough that she could reach out and touch them.
They would die immediately from the heat of the transformation.
She wasn't to worried about the other eight, she was confident in her speed that she could run away from them if the need arisen. And she had a feeling she would need to. She didn't know about warlord Zeke, but if she had a struggle with four of the tanks, then he would even more so with nine.
Her main problem was the tank that was stationed here. The Commander of the tank seemed to be observing her, only taking his eyes off her as he made a quick glance around to ensure that no other Titans were approaching the area.
It was at one of these moments when he had his eyes off her that she struck.
Transforming, she overestimated the strength of her burst of steam, as it simply blew the two men beside her away with some severe burns rather than the death she was expecting.
However, it didn't matter as she immediately went for the tank. A warning shout came from the man's lips as he ducked inside the tank, closing the hatch. However, before the tank could even so justle in movement, Pieck extended a hand and swatted it away.
The armor of the thing was well made. It must have also been very thick, as only the tread caved in as well as a large dent. But the damage was done. The tank went rolling until it landed sideways, resting on a tree.
They wouldn't be able to flip it over in time and even if they did, one of the treads were destroyed, leaving it immobile.
The soldiers around her acted quick. Two went to attent the soldiers caught up in the blast while one went to check on the men in the tank. That simply left five to fight her. She was simply going to run away, but their speed was anything but human.
It appeared she underestimated them herself, seeing as that one had already attacked, causing her to lose an eye as it swept around to deliver a blow to the nape.
Countering this move, Pieck rolled onto her back, maw right open to shut down on the soldier that attempted to slice open her nape. His reaction was fast in shooting a hook in a tree nearby, trying to get away from the Titan's maw that would end his life.
He was fast, but Peick was faster. Sitting up, she slammed her teeth down, catching the man by the torso. With his upper chest falling down to the grass with a wet splat, she spat out the lower appendage that remained in her mouth.
The death of a comrade so suddenly seemed to faze the men, as they took a more defensive posture and didn't immediately go in for another attack. This was their mistake, as immediately, upon noticing their hesitancy, Pieck made a run for it towards the warlord.
Rick, coming out of the semi crushed tanks remains, saw the end of the skirmish with the Cart Titan running away. The men made quickly to pursue, but a quick order from himself told them to stop.
Reasoning that with the current injuries among them, they would need all the force that could muster to protect them from the Titans.
"Report." Holding a bloody, injured arm close to his chest, Rick asked the nearest soldier for an update.
"Two injured, one dead." One of the Kräfte stated as he gave a salute out of protocol. Anger was in his eyes as he felt the need to get revenge for the death of one of his comrades.
"That brings the death toll to two. Our gunner took most of the brunt from that attack and crushed his head on the console. Radio's busted, but we aren't far from Shiganshina. We'll have to walk."
The crew of the tank offered to carry the injured, as they were the only ones without Vertical Maneuvering Gear. This way, the Kräfte could use the little force they had left to kill any Titans that came to close for comfort.
Rick only hoped that his failure to secure the Cart Titan didn't result in any more deaths.
Rommel gazed out the window as he watched the final stages of the battle wrap up. Somehow, someway, the Cart Titan was able to escape. When the moment came when the Beast Titan had fallen, the Cart Titan bursted out of nowhere.
Taking the shifter of the Beast Titan within its mouth, she ran away at a speed that the tanks tried to match.
Due to the abrupt surprise, the tanks couldn't respond fast enough, leaving them to follow a short distance behind. Firing desperately to knock a limb off, it seemed the Cart Titan had learned from previous examples.
It was unfortunate when they saw the Titan attached itself to the walls, as that was when they ceased to fire. They all knew that if they were to attack the walls, the large Titans within them may be exposed to sunlight, which would cause them to move.
That would, of course, lead to a whole plethora of problems.
It was just unfortunate that all of the Scouts were at the field where the battle of the Beast Titan took place. No one was close enough to intercept them, even though some Scouts began to mount the saddle and run towards the walls to catch up.
It looked like whoever was inside the wall would have to deal with the Cart Titan.
As Rommel observed, he noticed that the Colossal Titan had fallen, so he hoped that they would be prepared. But then again, he was unaware of the current situation. After all, Eren had just been knocked upon that wall, unconscious.
Regardless, he hoped they had everything under control.
Eren gazed upon the charred form of Armin.
Eren gave a sigh as he tugged the limbless form of Bertholdt up the roof. Despite this situation being entirely Armin's fault, Eren couldn't find it in himself to blame it. It was disappointing that they had fewer forces, but in reality, Armin was all they needed.
He redeemed himself, in a way, that allowed them to take down the Colossal Titan.
And now, he laid dead upon this roof.
If there was ever anyone that deserved the title of hero, Eren didn't doubt Armin deserved it.
With a sigh, he wondered what to do. The rest of Levi Squad must be somewhere. He didn't know what happened to them, but he may have recalled the Armored Titan showing up out of nowhere while he was still on the wall recuperating from the kick that the Colossal Titan did that landed him up there.
It was at that moment he heard the thudding of a Titan. He noticed it before it noticed him.
Hopping from the roofs like some frog, it was the Cart Titan that Annie spoke of.
Eren narrowed his eyes as the Cart Titan made contact with him. If she was operational, then what does that speak of the situation of the other side of the walls? Had they failed?
Regardless, when they came close, he noticed a battled and bruised person on top of her.
That had to be the beast Titan.
It looks like everything wasn't completely hopeless, if his injured form showed anything. They must be running away from the battle.
Giving Eren some much needed relief that everything on the other side of the battle was probably alright, he held Bert up by his hair, pressing his sword against his neck.
"Any closer and his head rolls." Was the only threat Eren gave.
"Ah," The man on top of the Cart Titan spoke. "Eren, right?"
Eren said nothing as he put more pressure on the blade, causing Bert to bleed from his neck.
"I'm sorry, Eren, that we were both victims of that man." The statement from the Beast Titan caused Eren to raise an eyebrow. "On that, I will save you from him."
The Cart Titan made to leave as the user of the Beast Titan gave one last glance at Eren and Bert. Muttering something that no doubt pertained to Bertholdt, he and the Cart Titan left. Whatever the destination was didn't matter.
Even from that distance, he could hear the sound of gas being used from the Vertical Maneuvering Gear.
With a slight smile, he noticed how numerous Scouts scaled down the wall, indicating that causalities weren't that high.
However, a sudden realization happened upon Eren.
"Captian!" Eren suddenly called out as he noticed the small figure of world's strongest human. "Captian!"
"What it is, brat?" Levi remarked as he landed on the roof with Eren. It was at that moment he realized the corpse of Armin there. Realizing what Eren wanted, he looked to the only man who gave him orders.
Erwin stood there, coming down himself as to witness the final moments of the operation.
"I gave you the syringe at your discretion." Was all the Commander said.
"Is he even alive?" Levi remarked to the charred corpse. As if to answer him, Armin gave a heavy breath, indicating he was still breathing.
"Please," It was the first time Eren would ever beg. "Captian. We can have him eat Bertholdt. Unless, is there someone else as injured as him?"
The only answer was for Levi to bring out the syringe and tell everyone to getaway
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone