Fandom Attack on Titan: Chapter II

[Loki The Trickster]

He hesitates. Like Niklas, he swallows hard, his Adam's apple heaving back and forth with each and every gulp that works its way up his throat. “I'll do it,” Lucas works himself out his horse's harness, “I'll do it!” More eager, more enthused. Yet, anyone with any ounce of sense can see that beneath the surface of this bravado, this brash show of bravery, this... burst of emotion, is an underlying fear of the unknown. “If it'll buy all of you time.”

 

[Coco Adel]

Danira sighs in annoyance "Honestly, was no one listening to me. I never suggested anyone go in half cocked and kill it alone. I suggested a team effort. There is only one titan, against all of us. We immobilize it first, cripple the bastard, blind it, cut off the limbs and then we kill it. If there were more I wouldn't even suggest trying it, but we've got a golden opportunity to get hid of this titan without anyone dying. Do you understand that or do I need to repeat myself a third time because honestly, I don't think he's gonna wait!" The way the girl talked to her corporal may have sounded insubordinate, rude even, however, she was frustrated. Either they ran and risked it catching up tot hem or they attack and get rid of it. She knew her plan could work if people just pulled themselves together to do it. She sighed and looked to Astrid and Lucas seeing as how one had suggested killing it and the other volunteer.

"Hey, you two, Astrid and Lucas. If you wanna kill that thing, we can do it. I might be a bit different with just three of us, but I think we can. So if you're interested. Here's what we'll do. I'll go for the eyes, once he's blinded of sufficiently distracted Astrid, I need you to take out his legs, knock him off balance. Once he's fallen over we can go for his arms while Lucas goes for his nape....unless of course, someone else has a better idea!" she yelled to the others taking a deep breath to calm herself, she wasn't brave she knew that or at least she thought so, she was just paranoid but paranoid or not if they didn't do something he was going to catch up soon and it wouldn't be as easy if they didn't kill it now while it was alone.

Allo Loki The Trickster Two Fives

 

[Flame Demon]

Silently listening to the other while also thinking "I'll help too" she says, four against 1 seemed more fair, plus, she's small, an easy distraction "Yuki and I can distract it while you kill it" she offers "I'm short and my grandfather taught my how to use my height to my advantage" she explains. Torture is the word ahe would use to explain the training her uncle and grandparents put her through, but it was all worth it in the end, she even trained with her horse.

 

[Two Fives]

Niklas thoughtfully chews on his lower lip, chews so hard that a scarlet rivulet sparkles in between the fold. Riding beside Danira, he simply shakes his head at her, explaining, “No! None of you understand. Against any other titan, Danira, that would be fine. Actually, more than fine. This is no ordinary titan. Abnormals are on a whole other level. We're out of our league here. Completely.”

The iron of Silver Steed's hooves beat against the earth, beat in tune with his adrenaline drunk heart, a hundred and one thoughts crossing his mind like haywire electrical signals along ley lines. One of these thoughts is that even the most seasoned of scouts, with decades of service in the military, have only on average two to three kills under their belt. We corporals, muses the young man, don't stand a chance.

“Even as a team effort, our chances are worse than slim. A sacrifice must be made here. One for the many. And,” Niklas shakily unlatches himself from Silver Steed's harnesses, “I'll be the one. When it's... When it's...” Something makes him pause, something catches the words in his throat. He can't bring himself to finish the sentence. “When it's eating me... that should buy you all enough time to escape.”

 

[Loki The Trickster]

“Don't be daft, Nik. Stay put. What're they to do without you? You make the maps. You know these fields better than anyone. Sure, you might stop it... but by the time we find the location to meet up with the others we'll run into another one. I'll make the sacrifice. Save you all. Don't sweat it. Listen. I don't mean to be dramatic but...

Always wanted to say this to you, Victoria. Taken me years... Three long years. Emotions... couldn't hold them back like everyone else. Fell in love with you, you know?” A pause. An awkward one this time. “You don't have to say anything. It's okay. Knew from the moment I realised... someone like you, smart scholar, would never be with someone like me. Barely made it through graduation. Came last. Not very clever, am I? Maybe that's good. If I was clever, maybe I wouldn't be about to do this.”

Lucas readies himself to dismount by balancing his feet on his Thoroughbred horse's back. He rides his horse like a surfboard of the subterranean, Bookworm's legs galloping across the rutty hillside with thunderous bolts of her thighs. “Tell my mother I love her. Tell Little Linne I love her. Tell my brothers, those rascals, I love them, too. And Bookworm, too. Take good care of my horse. And, lastly, let me tell you, Victoria... That--“ Abruptly, in an astonishing show of aerially dynamic acrobatics, Lucas leaps into the air, unsheathing his blades from his scabbards so swiftly the ultrahard steel dissolves into amorphously ambiguous shapes of grey. As grey as his eyes they are; but the grey of his eyes are much more distinct when he finishes his sentence, “--I love you!”

His confession is punctuated by the sound of his ODM equipment as he pulls the triggers for his grapple hooks. Steam fires out of gas cylinders into powerfully potent flows of hydrocarbons and the serrated edges of his hooks make mince of the titan's shoulders. "Argh," battlecries Lucas as he flies towards the damn thing and makes an arc around it that brings him to the nape of his neck... When he comes across it, the target in view, he rips out flesh to the bone with scarlet spurts of titan ichor and gore.

 

[Loki The Trickster]

Only, Lucas Lawrence isn't successful in his endeavour. Sure, his blades strike true... but one of them cracks through to the centre, a hard line shattering the steel from end to end like fragments of glass. The blade doesn't strike deep enough as a result, certainly not enough to reach bone as intended. This seems to agitate the titan more than agonise it. When the titan turns around, catching Lucas in his hand like a tennis ball in the same movement, he draws Lucas closer and, in typical titan fashion, chews his head off.

 

[Coco Adel]

"You don't know that! You're not even going to try!? You're just determined for someone to die for the cause, aren't you!?" As she was arguing with him it would seem that Lucas decided to go off on his own in place of Niklas in an attempt to kill the titan...but he wasn't successful, she thought about turning back to help him, but it was too late, her friend had been eaten. She wanted to scream, for the first time in a while she wanted to cry...but she didn't, now she was just angry. She glared at Niklas almost as if she were ready to kill him as much as she wanted to kill the titan now. "Well...I guess you got what you wanted..for the record I think he was totally wrong, but you better make sure he wasn't. We better make it out of here Niklas!"

Maybe she was wrong for being mad at Niklas, maybe she was just being arrogant and didn't know what she was talking about. She was a rookie after all, but so was he so what did he know? What he read in a book? She knew it sounded hypocritical of her, but it just rubbed her the wrong way that they didn't even try. She wholeheartedly believed it could have worked abnormal or not. She took a deep breath to calm herself down there was no use in arguing about it now was there? "Great, even when I'm here things go wrong, so what the hell did I come here for?" She mumbled.

Two Fives

 

[Two Fives]

With his eyes, Niklas follows Lucas; witnessing his astonishing acrobatics a moment before he slips out of his peripheries. He nods at him before then, a grave nod of gratitude, and follows this up with a tightening of Silver Steed's reins. He looks back once, only once, which is enough to recognise the 9 Metre Abnormal is off their trail, busy making a raw repast of Lucas Lawrence--an appetiser of guts with a dessert of gore. “We will, Danira. We'll come out of this alive. Now, come on,” shouts the scout to his comrades, “We must keep riding. We mustn't look back!”

Coco Adel Allo Flame Demon sr901 Appawlezz Ethereal_Dreams Loki The Trickster

 

[Flame Demon]

Victoria's eyes widen when she realizes what Lucas had said and done, she didn't get attached to her comrades, but Lucas is the exception to that "Go girl, there's nothing we can do" she whispers to her horse. Who seems to want to follow her riders friend, once they got back to the wall she was going to the library and hope she'll forget this, it helped if she read books, but Lucas was one of the first to talk to her, this was gonna be hard to forget, she quickly wipes her tears away, hopefully before anyone notices them.

 

[Allo]

She decided to stay with Niklas, following his lead. She found it amazing and admirable that Lucas was willing to take on the titan. Though the whole love confession was a bit cheesy, she saw through his facade. This man was ready to die if he had to, if he didn't have a choice. She turned her head to watch Lucas take on the titan, her browd furrowed as she silently prayed for him. She hoped he would get out of this alive. But she was wrong, so wrong.

The titan finished him off with ease, making her curse quietly to herself as Chise galloped along with her squad. "What the hell... So easily?" She asked, before she shook her head and listened to Nik. She continued riding, looking straight ahead. "Better one of us than all of us. What he attempted was noble. He just shouldn't have, so he paid the consequences." She said with a cold tonr of voice, seemingly void of any emotion.

 

[Coco Adel]

"Didn't have to be any of us! An abnormal is no stronger or weaker than any other titan, just strange in its behavior there was no reason we couldn't have!--" She sighed as she continued to ride forward with the rest. "You know what, nevermind. Next time I won't bother, I refuse to waste my breath on people that won't listen so do what you want, but did not sign up to die when I don't have to." Arguing wasn't going to bring him back, so she'd drop it for now. What he did was noble and maybe she should be proud of him for that instead of being angry that he didn't have to. She rolled her eyes to his comments and wiped her face "I'll believe you when we get back home!"

Allo Two Fives

 

[Two Fives]

.

.

Beyond The Wall

the rendezvous

By the time Niklas and the rest of the Scout Regiment unit reach the rendezvous location, the day has aged. The skyline, once a blanket of early blues, is now only a shroud of mature purples and reds. Deep are these sanguine shades... as deep as Lucas', as a matter of fact. Camilla the Captain would ascertain, however, that, “The sky is as deep as that blood moon,” the nightfall preceding. She shakes her head lamentably when she hears the reports of Lucas Lawrence's death, taking into consideration everybody's input, concerns to complaints.

She whispers a prayer for the first few of the fallen. Unfortunately, Lucas Lawrence hasn't been the only casualty. Shortly after the prayer, the Captain dismisses them and the unit are free to immerse themselves with the others of the division. The rendezvous location is a large field of tents, not that much different from a housing district. This one, however, is made of woolly linens and brittle firewood rather than clay brick and metal beams.

Around them is a border of barb wire fencing, designed in a similar way to those adhesive mouse traps. When titans try to come in, their flesh is punctured by the metal, after which this flesh regenerates around it. The more they struggle, they more stuck they become. Some distance to the south are forests with tall trees and bushy beds that reach from the west to the east.

All of the scouts seem to be eating. Most have their hands on some kind of meat, those hands, fingers especially, greased with all manners of animal fats. Spinning on one skewer is a barbecue husk of rabbit. Above the heats of a fire, it spits and sputters, naked flesh melting from the bone like frozen yoghurt on a summer's day. Not far off a scout has a knife to a second rabbit's hide and works at peeling it off. Skinning an animal is a difficult process. This anyone can discern by the way this scout is excessively meticulous in his activity.

A whistle sounds.

“Attention, attention,” It's Camilla's voice. “The nature of this expedition has been modified slightly. This is your briefing. To the south, all of you will be able to see a forest,” the Captain states, pointing. “Our rendezvous locations tend to be in close proximity to forests as that's where us scouts thrive. However, this forest is different. This forest has aroused interest from us as well as the Royal Government and, for this reason, this is why we've chosen this location.

In the centre of this forest is something that, for a number of years, has been transmitting a radio signal that has been known on occasion to reach Wall Maria. The signal, of course, is much more strong the closer you are to it. Never have the Scout Regiment investigated this transmission... up until now. We'll be mapping out the forest until we find it. Finish your feasts, scouts... ready your horses. Soon, we ride. And, as always, beware of the titans.”

Coco Adel Allo Flame Demon Ethereal_Dreams sr901 Appawlezz Loki The Trickster

 

[Flame Demon]

Victoria pets her horse quietly, she makes ome friend and this shit happens "You okay girl?" she asks her horse softly and she looks at the others as she feeds the animal a treat, putting her next to her horse it's easy to see how short she is. She checks the saddle before going over to Bookworm and she pets it "You have to stay here buddy" she mumbles, she felt numb to be honest, like all feeling left her "This is what I get for making a friend" she says "Don't worry though, I'll take care of you", she wondered if anyone else felt like this, crappy, numb and wanting to break down.

 

[Two Fives]

Setting his horse by a rudimentary stable, the corporal navigates through the evening dark, threads of empurpled black skirting about the campfires in shapeless circles. After catching Camilla's announcement, he nods, then lights up a stick of firewood on one of the several blazes dotted here and there. He uses this torch to get himself by, a pocket of ruddy brilliance acting as a guide in a terrority dauntingly unfamiliar. Past tents and other makeshift structures, he comes across Victoria, eyeing her as she tends to her own horse as well as another. That must be Lucas', Niklas determines.

"Hey," Low, so low it's almost a whisper. "Sorry about Lucas. You were close, weren't you? Always seemed to see you two together, you know. You coping alright?"

 

[Allo]

Astrid ignored the announcement, and nowhere to be seen around the campfires. She was actually sitting in a dark field that was relatively close by. She really didn't care if she was disobeying orders, she just wanted a moment to herself. She took off the beige jacket that showed her Scout Regiment emblem, still bringing her pride and joy every time she looked at it. The grass crunched beneath her as she laid in it, staring up into the dark sky that was speckled with stars. "It happened again..." She mumbled, recounting the memory of Lucas' and Samantha's death. She closed her eyes, spreading her arms out as she inhaled the fresh forest air whilst laying in the dark, right under a tall oak tree.

Finally, a moment of peace. She thought, and she was alone too and began humming a lullaby she always listened to as a child.

 

[Flame Demon]

Victoria turns to Niklas "No, I not coping" she says "So I'm taking care of Bookworm and Yuki" she adds turning back to the horse, she didn't need a sorry, she didn't need sympathy from someone "I really just want to go home right now" she whispers, so quietly you probably have to strain your ears to hear it.

 

[Two Fives]

Niklas sighs. When he moves the torch from his left hand to right, the shadows in his face deepen, wrinkles and all intensifying and making him seem much older than his years. Life in the Scout Regiment will do this to anyone, even the most strong and stalwart. He lets the crackle of the torch's flame fill several seconds or five of silence before he tells Victoria, "Stay strong. I won't say I know what you're going through because I don't and that would be a lie... but stay strong, Victoria. We need you. Everyone does. The Scout Regiment is a team... we are a team here; and teams stick together through thick and thin."

 

[Coco Adel]

Danira overhears the conversation and isn't sure if she should scoff or laugh. The Scout Regiment is a team? We stick together through thick and thin? Please, that was the biggest lie if she ever heard one. She sighed and got up from her seat. "Suuure we do." She said in a voice that seemed both bored and completely done. "I'm with Victoria. Been out here five minutes and I'm already sick of the grand old adventure." She said sarcastically twirling her finger above her head as if to say whoopty damn do.

 

[Flame Demon]

Victoria rolls her eyes "What we need is a leader who doesn't allow comrades to have to sacrifice themselves!" she snaps as she sharply turns to Niklas before turning her attention to Danira "And I am certainly not taking any crap from someone who can't imagine how I feel!" she says and she walks off. She wasn't in the mood for this shit, she plops on the ground far from the others and she sighs, her horse walks over after hearing a whistle from her owner and Bookworm follows "Let's just rest here for a moment, away from everyone else" she whispers stroking her horse's manes.

 

[Coco Adel]

"Oh, I wasn't aware I was giving you crap. Could have sworn I just said I was sick of this place and wanted to go home too but sure, why not. It's not like anyone around here listens to me anyway so why and I am not surprised that people actively choose completely misunderstand what I say? I'm also sorry that I can't understand how you feel, because you know it's not like I didn't watch my friend die too, it's not like I didn't know him just as long as you did." She shrugged "Okay sure, fair enough, I'm not mind reader, I'm not an empath, so you may very well be right to say I can't imagine how you feel, but don't you ever in your life assume you know how I do. Now if you don't mind I've got enough attitude of my own and I do not need yours so there's wonderful thing called taking nap that I plan to do until we have to go, so see you later." Danira waves her off casually and walks over by the fire to lay down while they waited to move out. Maybe she was being mean, maybe she shouldn't have been so snippy, but what the hell did she care. If people weren't going to make the effort to actually listen to her, she's wasn't going to make the effort to be nice to them. Why should she have to? She wasn't belittling Victoria's grief despite her insistence to belittle her own, but her grief was about as far as she was willing to extend her kindness right now. Maybe later when she calmed down she'd apologize depending on how she was feeling.

Flame Demon

 

[Allo]

Astrid had gotten tired of laying out in the dark alone, and walked along back to camp where she saw the argument ensue. Something in her got ticked off by Victoria's words. "Now is not the time to blame others, that's too immature. If you weren't prepared to lose people, you shouldn't have join the Scouts. You're not the only one hurting." Her voice was cold and filled with a harsh tone. "Don't be a special snowflake and act like you're the only one that knows what it's like to hurt. It's annoying. Don't blame Niklas either, Lucas would've gone to fight the titan regardless of what the squad leader said. That's what we don't need-- someone who doesn't follow orders and gets themselves killed. That's what he did, he became an idiot and didn't listen, and got himself killed. I wouldn't be surprised if it happened to you too." She was sick of the damn complaining. Lucas wasn't the only one they lost.

"He wasn't special. Nobody is, so there is no difference between him and the other scouts who have died. If you're so distraught over one death, transfer." She ended on the note. It was like Astrid had no compassion for others and felt nothing of death. That's just how life was. You live and then you die. Sighing she took Niklas' sleeve and pulled him away. "Leave her. She doesn't want to listen to us right now... Hopefully her mind is clear by the morning." Her small fingers let the man's sleeve go as she walked along with him, until she returned to the spot she was at, in a field not too far from the camp. "Man, what a day. So annoying." She sighed, rubbing the back of her head as she plopped down on the soft grass.

Flame Demon Two Fives

 

[Ella Victoria]

Isa Reede was not in the time nor place to hesitate. But, at the surprise ambush of the abnormal titans, none of her team had a chance.
She was the survivor. The survivor that hadn't even been able to watch her comrades fall. Because she could not bare to watch their life be ripped from their bodies.
She hesitated for her team. The team that died fighting. The team she had not shed a tear for. She, who was so much a coward, had ridden away from the battle, when the leader had clearly stated for her to remain steadfast and fight. She would be killed for treason, if ever she went back within the walls. She laughed bitterly to herself, she knew she would not make it to the walls. But, if she were, treason would be the least of her worries. She would come up with some scoundrels lie, as her whole life had been. Isa turned her horse, Olive, round and to her astonishment, she saw smoke snake its way up into the air from the thick forest not far from the base of the hill.
People.
Perhaps she had stumbled into some other teams turf. Perhaps, she had found a group that would give her a safe passage out of this hell. Or just some one to better her chances of survival.
Isa lightly tapped her horse with her foot - it was a small creature, because of Isa's small body, but swift. In a matter of minutes, she was down the hill from where she stood thinking and at the base of the hill. It was best to be cautious, she decided, as she got closer to the smoke. Any sudden movements and all movement might start a panic.
She would say that her leader sent her forward to scout the area and when she waited to meet up with them, she found that titans had taken over and had to assume the worst. Isa did not fancy being hung for treason.
As she drew near the camp she was surprised to see the team seeming in almost great condition. Yet, the dead look on their faces said otherwise. Someone had died. She counted the heads she could see. They were missing one. Isa tried to make herself sympathetic but she could not. One life? If they couldn't handle one life, what were they doing here? Isa dropped from her horse, her large cloak - too large - shielding her face.
"I am a scout." She said, moving carefully into view. The people glanced up as though flung out of a trance. "My team is dead. I am the only survivor. I request to join your team."
Isa walked slowly into the camp grounds.
She pulled off her hood.
"Please."
​

 

[Two Fives]

When Victoria snaps, he startles. He tries to say something... anything at all. A word to ease everything. A word to ease that mournful malice on the tip of everyone's tongue, that stale feel of suffering that hangs in the still night wind, the tragedy of Lucas Lawrence's death. Try as he might, Niklas doesn't find the word. Unfortunately, no such word exists. Even if it does, Victoria has long since stormed off before Niklas can open up his mouth to reply. “Guys, guys,” exclaims the corporal eventually. “Knock it off. You too, Danira. This isn't over yet. Things will only be tenser from this point onwards. We need clear heads. Sleep it off. Otherwise, we're all as good as dead.”

When Astrid emerges from the darkness, he looks over at her with downcast eyes. On his face linger shadowy lines of doubt. The torchlight makes the cast of shadows on his face deep and dark. “Thought my choice was the right call. Maybe not... Maybe there was another way. We can't travel back in time. No point in wondering what if, I try to tell myself. It's over now.”

A voice sounds behind him. Turning to look around, he finds Isa in the firelight. Hearing her story, he can't help but think if that could've been them, that their team dodged a bullet. Nevertheless, he offers his condolences along with a solemn nod of his head and speaks. “Caught us at a bad time,” explains Nik to Isa after the argument, “but, yes, you can join our unit. I'm Niklas. This is Astrid. You should introduce yourself to the others. Now might not be the best time, though. We've also lost someone.”

 

[Flame Demon]

Victoria sighs hugging her horse as she looks at the fire in the distance "I lost my best friend and she's giving me bullship" she mumbles, she wished she could read a book right now to clear her head "Should've picked the Military Police" she mumbles to herself, she hated the lufe of luxery, but at least she wouldn't feel like crap.

 

[Two Fives]

.

.

Beyond The Wall

the deep dark woods

When the swallows chirp, it's time to wake up. The morning is here. Soldiers of the Scout Regiment stumble out of their tents into the cyan light and ready themselves for what awaits them in the day. Most of the soldiers opt to bathe in the river, setting their clothes by the bank as they have a short swim of sorts in the stream to wash themselves. Others choose to break their fast first on rations of bread and mead. Next to be watered and fed are the horses, immediately after which they're readied with harnesses and other equipment necessary for the ride ahead.

Some feet by the river, an argument breaks out. One of the soldiers is lashing out at a teammate, arguing about how he wouldn't have lost his wife had their leader's orders been better. Members of his unit are desperate in their attempts to calm him down.

One soldier, who's most definitely not one for mornings, remarks, “It's too early for this shit!” By the black bags under his eyes, anyone can discern a lack of sleep has spoiled his mood. How could he sleep, though, with his teammates waking up in the middle of the night because of their nightmares?

Close to some willow trees, three men are caught up in a vicious brawl. “Started out as an argument,” an onlooker reports, “swearwords were exchanged for strikes and here we are.” One of the soldier's fists is red. From a distance, could it be a glove? No... it is blood. There are lots of arguments and altercations like these around the camp, most more or less for the same reasons, and at this lack of morale Camilla the Captain simply shakes her head.

Rounding up the soldiers in the camp, Camilla, after a speech, starts the process of sending them off on horseback. Similar to before, the Scout Regiment is divided into several units, each and every one tasked with scouting out a particular point of the forest to find that radio signal's source. Due to the deaths, however, several units find they have an extra member--or five--and must work on building their camaraderie anew.

Flame Demon Ella Victoria Allo Coco Adel Loki The Trickster Ethereal_Dreams Appawlezz sr901

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