Underdogs

FORTY-EIGHT

❝Make it a rule of life never to regret and never to look back.❞

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Chapter forty-eight:

NOT JUST A FLING

Galene waited. She waited for long minutes. Yet no word was spoken; the soldiers were speechless. It was understandable, in her opinion. However, she was not known for her patience and was tired. Not only had she slept like shit, but she also had been working for hours. On their strategy, at first; and on her own plan afterwards.

She was stressed and in need of a drink, alone time, and sleep.

"If any of you have questions, shoot already," she snapped after reaching her limits. "If not, then I have things to do."

Some of the soldiers remained silent, eyes focused on her. However, her words seemed to awaken the rest from their trances.

"So I get that we have to inject your blood in the Titans' systems," Armin started while glancing at the sample she had brought. "Do they necessarily have to be in their human bodies for this to work?"

Galene nodded. "Their skin is too hard for a simple syringe to puncture, not to mention the fact that they're stronger in their Titan forms. Like I said, this plan is a two-—step mission: first, we defeat them. That's the hardest part."

With a troubled face, Eren muttered, "But you're also saying it's not only Titans we're fighting."

"A human army," added Armin with a nod. "That makes it twice as difficult."

"As far as I know, you've been training hand-to-hand combat," she stated, and they looked at each other with unsure looks.

It was Mikasa who spoke up then, taking the reins of the conversation.

"There's a big difference between sparring and killing people."

Galene locked eyes with her, pleased to see determination within the girl —even if her words showed her discomfort. Glancing sideways, she let a smirk touch her lips. It was probably for Eren's sake; she would have bet on it.

"You're scared of taking a life?" she drawled in a taunting voice, yet the answer was crystal clear. "Imagine this situation: the person you care about most is being beaten up, and you're just a few feet away. Would you stab the aggressor, or would you let them kill your friend?" Her features hardened and she slammed her fists on the table, nearly knocking off the syringe. "What do you think we're doing here? This is war, not a fucking picnic. There are not second chances, and hesitating will only be your demise. You either prepare yourselves for this, or you will be another name among the dead. You have suffered – all of us have. Are you going to let those sacrifices go to waste by being pussies, or do you really have what it takes to be a soldier and protect the innocent?"

She let her words sink in their brains and surveyed their expressions, noticing with satisfaction how most of them had come to their senses. It was not an easy topic for her – someone who was born with a knife and surrounded by death. She had witnessed torture and learnt the meaning of killing from a young age, and so taking a life had almost become effortless. The world was merciless; only those with a strong will survived.

No one dared to argue with her after her short speech; something she was grateful for, as her patience was tinnier than ever. However, she now understood the need to find a way around it. Galene was not the same cold-hearted, killing machine she had once been. After struggling for too long, she had been taught that violence was not always the answer.