Chapter Two:
Mikasa was back on the wall. She peered into the breach and stared at the face of the Colossal Titan. It wasn't the same titan that had broken the Wall Maria years ago, but it was the same type.
What the..?!
The titan opened its eye and stared at her. The whole wall shook as it broke free of it prison. The wall Mikasa had attached her 3DMG to have come loose. She was falling just as Annie had, amidst the debris of the shattered wall. Suddenly, she was fine. She'd landed on something.
It was the titan's hand. Mikasa tried to jump out. The titan wrapped its monstrous fingers around her. Her gear was crushed. The titan was slowly crushing her along with it…
"Ackermann!"
The yell jolted Mikasa out of her dream. Still bleary and confused by the dream, she grabbed a glass from the nightstand above her. She flung it at her attacker. He slapped her.
"Ackermann, wake up!"
Mikasa blinked and rubbed the sleepy daze from her eyes and realized she'd just broken a glass over Levi's head and that she was on the floor. She got up and sat on the bed, rubbing her forehead.
"What are you doing in here? This is my room." She demanded. Levi glared at her in the semidarkness.
"I heard a crash. Presumably, that was you falling off your bed. You were having a nightmare, weren't you?" he said.
"Yeah, it was crazy. There was a titan in Wall Sina. But that couldn't happen in reality. Just a dream." Mikasa said. Levi gave her a long, hard look.
"Ackermann, exactly what do you remember from when you cut Leonhart's fingers off? After, I mean." He questioned.
"Barely anything. Just... a lot of blurry images." Mikasa replied. Levi swallowed hard.
"A Colossal Titan was found inside of Wall Sina. Its face was uncovered. Apparently, the Wallists know something. Hanji was investigating, but was forced away by the government. You must have forgotten after I knocked you out." Levi stated. Mikasa stared. She knew Levi wouldn't lie about something this important.
"But I don't remember."
"It's not uncommon for those with severe concussions to have some small amount of amnesia. I hit you hard."
"Why did you hit me?" Mikasa asked irritably. Levi rolled his eyes.
"Because you would’ve gone on a crazy rampage. We need Leonhart alive. The identities of the Colossal and Armored titans mostly like rest in her knowledge. " He stated. Mikasa understood his reasoning. Anger began to build in her chest.
“She's alive. Why has no one killed after everything she's done?" Mikasa's hands clenched into trembling fists.
"She's still in a coma, last I checked. We need to gain information from her. She probably knows everything about how titan shifting works and who the Colossal and Armored Titans are. We'll be able to eliminate threats before they even know we're there. Titan shifters are almost indestructible in their titan form, but as humans, they are just as vulnerable as the rest of us." Levi said. Mikasa digested this. It didn't make up for Eren or anybody else's deaths, but it provided a reason as to why Annie wasn't dead. But the government doesn’t really need a reason to keep a traitor alive.
"You should get some sleep, Ackermann." Levi said as he rose to leave.
~0~
Breakfast was a minor affair of oatmeal without any sweetening. Levi and Mikasa decided to take an inventory of all their supplies before the others got there. The food was satisfactory, especially given the fact that Sasha would bring in some more food via hunting. They went down to the gas tanks room and checked to amounts in each one.
"We need to store these some else." Mikasa stated, her voice echoing around the large and dimly lit cellar.
"Why and where would we put them?" Levi asked.
"In Trost, several titans got into the gas room. We managed to defeat them, barely. Putting them higher up would eliminate the possibility. Maybe in one of the towers?" Mikasa explained. Levi considered this.
"We should do that later, when we have more recruits-" They both froze. Resounding footsteps echoed.
"Grab your gear, there's one outside." Levi whispered. The gear was stored with the gas, so they just grabbed some and strapped it one and filled it with gas. Running up the stairs, they came out on the ramparts. A 17-meter class titan was lumbering towards the castle. Mikasa was poised to strike. Something changed. Suddenly, she wasn't seeing a normal titan, she saw Annie. Rage boiled through her veins. She zipped through the trees, dodging them gracefully, spinning in the air with the incredible force. Her blades cut cleanly through the titan's neck.
"Die, Annie." She whispered, breathing heavily. The high speed she’d used was more exhausting than she’d thought. Landing on a trunk, she was joined by Levi. They checked the surrounding area for titans and found none.
Levi was shocked, far more than he should have been. But she'd moved so fast, his eyes could barely keep up. One second she was as calm as she always was, the next the titan was dead. Her speed had outmatched his for that one instant. Impossible... he kept telling himself. But his eyes told a different story.
"Ackermann, what was that?" He demanded from his side of the tree. Mikasa gave him a blank stare.
"I don't-" she started.
"The speed! How did you get that fast?" He demanded. Mikasa frowned.
"I was only going a little faster than I normally do." She calmly stated. Levi shook his head. Something was up and he wanted to know what it was.
"Ackermann that was a normal 17-meter class. You could have easily taken it out without the greater speed. So why did you?" Levi questioned. Mikasa remained silent. If they were going to work together, they would have to trust each other. The other half of Mikasa protested to trusting Levi for obvious reasons.
"I saw Annie." She stated. Levi closed his eyes. Great, the last thing I need is a bloody lunatic ‘helping’ me.
"Fine." He snapped. "We need to finish the inventory and clean the castle." He left and Mikasa followed, flying through the trees.
They finished adding up the gas and workable gear. By then it was lunchtime. After eating, Mikasa decided to try recruiting some more people.
"You should come too, Levi." She said.
"And why should I help you recruit some snotty brats from the Garrison?" He scoffed.
"Because we're partners. As joint commanders it would be better if we did it together." She explained.
"Fine, I'll come. This place is filthy, but we need more people to clean anyway. The others are coming tomorrow?"
"Yes."
"Let's go." Levi deadpanned.
~0~
Krista Lenz' home wasn't hard to find. Apparently the abolition of the Recons had been publicly announced that morning. Krista had chosen the Garrison, out of no other option. She was feeling down about it all, particularly the recent deaths.
Rap. Rap. Rap.
Krista groaned. She was not in the mood for visitors. Still, she had to answer the door, regardless if she wanted to or not.
"Hello, I'm-" She stopped. She'd expected some salesman or friend and was ready to shoo them away. She certainly hadn't expected these two. Swallowing, she said;
"Um, can I help you?"
"As a matter of fact you can." Levi stated. "I'm sure you've heard of the Recons' replacement. Krista nodded. Who hadn't?
"We'd like to recruit you." Mikasa stated. Krista stood there for a minute.
"Are you going to accept or stand there drooling?" Levi snapped. Krista realized her jaw was hanging open. Shutting it, she replied.
"Yes, thank you-"
"Great, it's settled. Return to the former Recon HQ tomorrow at dawn. Don't be late." Levi stated. Krista nodded. The two left without another word.
~0~
Ymir was next on Mikasa's list. Although, she was compliant, her main question was if Krista was coming.
After recruiting the two, Levi decided what to do next.
“I think we should check in to see if Leonhart’s woken yet.”
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