Alex adjusted the straps of his ODM gear, cloak fluttering lightly in the wind. His gaze drifted past Mikasa, past the broken streets, past the smoke curling into the sky.
"On second thought," he said quietly.
Mikasa turned sharply, eyes narrowing. "What?"
"You stay," he continued, voice calm but heavy. "Watch Eren."
She froze. "Alex—"
Too late.
The Six Eyes flared. Below, on the rooftops above the houses, cadets were pressed against chimneys, collapsed beams, and broken tiles. Some lay flat against the shingles; others peeked through shattered windows. Fear anchored them in place.
"…Yeah," Alex muttered. "That's bad."
Without letting her argue, he fired his ODM gear. The cables snapped taut. Cloak snapping, wind tearing past him—he vanished down the street.
Mikasa clenched her fists. "…You better come back," she whispered, then pivoted sharply toward the direction Eren had gone.
---
Above the houses, Jean Kirschtein crouched low, boots pressing into broken tiles. He glanced past him at the rooftops surrounding the district.
Cadets were scattered across the tops of buildings, pressed low against chimneys, shattered tiles, and collapsed beams. Some peeked nervously through upper windows. Hands trembled. ODM gear tangled. No one moved.
They weren't hiding because they were cowards.
They were children caught in the storm, clinging to high ground.
Jean's chest tightened.
If there was someone here… someone strong enough to lead—
Someone they could see.
Someone standing instead of hiding—
But there wasn't.
Hope slipped further away.
Connie landed beside him, boots scraping broken shingles. "So… what do we do now?"
Jean let out a short, bitter laugh. "What do we do? We're out of gas, surrounded, and the people who were supposed to help us… aren't here!"
Connie swallowed. "You mean the cadets assigned in supply ?"
Jean's jaw tightened. "Yeah. Them. Cowards, probably frozen in place, or too scared to move. Or thinking their lives are worth more than ours!"
Connie blinked, hurt. "They're cadets too!"
Jean shouted, frustration cutting through the smoke: "So are we! And look where that got us!"
Silence fell, broken only by distant groans of Titans.
Connie muttered, "They should've tried… at least tried to bring the gas."
Jean's gaze drifted across the rooftops. "Worse? They're probably dead, or hiding somewhere, frozen in fear. If they're not dead already, they're waiting. Terrified. Just waiting."
Connie's fists clenched. "…Damn it…"
Jean pressed his hands against his thighs, breathing through his nose, trying to steady himself. He scanned the cadets above the houses. Fear radiated from them like a second heartbeat.
If there was someone here… someone strong enough to lead them—
There wasn't.
---
Then—
A shadow moved overhead.
A sharp CRACK split the air.
Jean's head snapped up just in time to see a Titan's head jerk violently to the side—and detach.
Blood sprayed. Steam erupted.
Before anyone could react, a second Titan collapsed. A third followed.
Three massive bodies hit the street in rapid succession. Silence fell.
"…What the hell?!" Connie gasped.
A figure landed lightly on a nearby rooftop, cloak fluttering.
"Hey! You guys still alive?" the man called cheerfully.
Jean's eyes widened. "…You."
Alex hopped down casually as if the battlefield were a quiet street, not soaked in blood and fear.
"Wow," Alex said, glancing at the cadets above the houses. "You look like you've seen ghosts."
"You just killed three Titans!" Connie shouted.
Alex blinked. "Oh. That." He waved a hand lazily. "Reflex."
Jean rubbed his face. "Who… who are you?"
Alex smirked. "Right now? Very convenient."
Then he looked directly at them, gaze sharp. "Alright… status. Tell me everything."
Jean blinked, surprised at the calm but commanding tone. "…What do you want to know?"
Alex's eyes swept over the rooftops, scanning every cadet, every shadow, every Titan groan. "…Everything. Gas supply? Cadets? Any seniors nearby?"
Jean exhaled sharply, forcing himself to focus. "No gas. Supply base unreachable. Seniors already sent deeper inside to protect civilians closer to Wall Rose."
"They left us," Jean added bitterly. "Said this area was expendable."
Alex nodded slowly. "…Sounds like command."
Connie's face went pale. "That's it?!"
"I didn't say it was fair," Alex replied calmly.
Jean hesitated. "Where's the Survey Corps?"
"Scattered," Jean said. "Orders came fast. They moved inward first."
Alex's Six Eyes flared again, calculating. Cadets, Titans, fear levels—mapped in milliseconds. This was where people died quietly.
"…Alright," Alex said, voice firm. "We regroup. Stick together. Then we head for the supply base."
Connie's voice shook. "You're serious?!"
Alex nodded. "Dead serious."
Jean swallowed hard. "…Why?"
Alex's gaze drifted past the rooftops, toward the streets. He thought of Eren's blood, Armin frozen in terror, the bodies littering the ground. "…Because someone has to go first."
Jean studied him carefully. This man wasn't scared. Not even a little. "…You think I can lead them?"
Alex met his eyes. "…I think you already are."
Jean exhaled. Danger stirred in his chest. "…Alright. We regroup."
Slowly, the cadets gathered atop the rooftops, every tense movement reflecting fear, hope, and a desperate desire to survive.
Alex adjusted his grip on his blades. Supply base. Missing cadets. Titans everywhere. Somewhere, an angry boy wrapped in flesh and rage.
"…This city's hanging by a thread," Alex thought.
Then, with a faint smile:
"But threads can still hold."
Mikasa's boots hit the rubble-strewn street hard, eyes scanning quickly, breath sharp. Smoke clung to the air, Titans groaning in the distance, civilians screaming somewhere beyond the chaos.
Up ahead, a small figure stumbled, chest heaving, legs shaking. Armin.
He froze when he saw her. Eyes wide, pale.
"…Armin," Mikasa said softly, crouching slightly to meet his gaze. Her voice was firm, steady, but gentle. "You're still here. That's good."
He shook his head, voice barely audible. "…I… I almost—" He broke off, ashamed, eyes dropping to the ground. "…I froze. I couldn't—"
Mikasa stepped closer, placing a hand lightly on his shoulder. "It's okay. You're alive. That's what matters."
Armin's chest heaved, panic still in his movements. "…I can't… I have to try… I can't just wait!"
"You won't be alone," Mikasa said firmly, cutting through his fear. "I'm not leaving you."
He blinked at her, hesitation and disbelief twisting his features. "…But the Titans—"
"Alex said the Titan I've been following…" Mikasa's voice lowered slightly, more reflective, "…it's Eren."
Armin's eyes widened. "…Eren? A Titan?"
Mikasa nodded, her gaze distant for a moment, tracking the chaos around them. "It saved people… probably even you. It's not mindless. It's… careful, somehow."
Armin's lips parted, trembling. "…I… I can't believe it…
"You don't have to," Mikasa said softly. "But… it seems true. Alex wouldn't lie."
For a long moment, they both stared in silence. The Titan moved with a strange precision, smashing other Titans without harming anyone nearby. Even in its monstrous form, there was something… human.
Armin swallowed hard, still unsure, but a small spark of relief flickered in his chest. "It… it saved me. It really did…"
Mikasa didn't speak. She just let him absorb it, the words unnecessary. The weight of fear and awe hung in the air between them.
"…Then…" Armin whispered finally, voice trembling, "…then maybe… maybe it's not all lost."
Mikasa's hand remained steady on his shoulder. "Stay close. Keep moving."
He nodded, still shaky, still pale—but moving. Step by step, they advanced, eyes drawn to the towering figure in the distance. Titan-Eren. Alive. Fighting.
And for a moment, nothing else mattered.
---
The supply base loomed ahead, walls cracked and windows shattered from earlier chaos. Smoke curled through jagged edges of the roof, sunlight slicing through dust and debris.
Jean vaulted through a smashed window, shards of glass tinkling around him. Inside, cadets huddled under overturned tables, pale and trembling, hands gripping whatever they could.
Jean's chest tightened. "Get up!" he barked, sweeping toward them. He grabbed one by the collar, lifting him off the ground. "Were you assigned here? Tell me!"
The cadet stammered, "…Y-yes, sir…"
Jean's jaw clenched. "And because of you—some of our people… some of them are dead!"
Another cadet's voice quivered from beneath the table. "We didn't have a choice! It… it was packed with Titans! We couldn't—"
"I don't care!" Jean snapped. "You should've tried! That's your job! You were supposed to handle this, not hide!"
The room shook suddenly—a deep, low groan vibrating through the floor. Two massive Titans smashed into the outer walls, faces twisting in grotesque fury as debris rained down.
The cadets screamed, scattering wherever they could. Jean pressed himself against a beam, hands gripping his face, chest tight. "…This… this isn't supposed to happen!"
His mind raced—bodies, smoke, blood, panic. "…I failed…" he muttered. "…it's my fault…"
Then, over the chaos, he heard a steady, commanding voice:
"Jean! Cadets! Listen!"
Mikasa and Armin dropped lightly onto the roof opposite him, eyes scanning the room. Mikasa's scarf fluttered in the wind; Armin's face was pale but determined.
"You have to know," Mikasa said, voice cutting through the panic. "The Titan attacking the others—Eren."
Jean froze, heart hammering. "…Eren?"
"Yes," Armin added, voice barely a whisper but firm. "Alex got him out… saved him. That Titan—he's not attacking indiscriminately. He's helping."
The cadets blinked, confusion and disbelief written on their faces. One muttered, "…It… it can't be…"
Mikasa's eyes scanned the approaching Titans. "It's true. He saved people already. And he'll fight the ones threatening you."
Jean's hands loosened on his blades. "…Saved… people?"
"Yes," Armin confirmed. "You saw him. He's relying on instincts… but he's on our side."
A moment of silence fell, broken only by distant groans of Titans and creaking beams. Jean's chest still pounded, but slowly, a flicker of hope crept in.
"…Eren…" he muttered, almost to himself. "…He's… alive."
Mikasa's gaze swept the room. "…Focus. This is our chance. Don't panic."
The cadets peeked from under the tables again, still trembling—but for the first time, not frozen. Fear was there, yes—but so was hope.
And in the streets beyond, Titan-Eren's shadow stretched long, muscles coiling, fists smashing relentlessly into the advancing Titans.
Jean gripped his blades tighter, feeling the weight of responsibility settle on his shoulders again. "…Then… maybe we can make it."
Mikasa and Armin nodded, eyes on him and the cadets. The battle raged around them, but the knowledge that Eren was alive, fighting, made the impossible feel just a little less… impossible.
Jean glanced around, taking in the chaos, the smoke, the shattered buildings, and the cadets slowly regrouping. Then his eyes narrowed, scanning the rooftops and streets around him.
"…But wait," he muttered, voice low, tense. "Where's Alex?"