Guilded Cage

How to win a war

Levi POV
A month later we were all set. Over the spanning weeks, Pixus had sent groups of men into the underground. He had them staged all over the place. Of course my ring of spies helped to make them look legit. They were to be the muscle for some new up and comer. I linked them with one of my older kids as the “boss" figure.
With that all in check, the ring started seeing Kenny's boys lurking around. He would be the one to want to know everything that is going on around him. I was certain he knew they were all my men. I wasn’t going to attempt to sneak in. We both knew I would be coming for him.
I spent my time with Eren whenever I could. Erwin had other plans for me. Planning a strike. Little did he know, the best plan to attack Kenny, was not to have one. Kenny was notorious for breaking up the best laid plans.
“Erwin for the last time, I don’t care what you plan. When I go against him, it will be me and him, no one else.” I sighed leaning heavily against my desk. “Set your plans for your men, leave me to my job.” I added to take the sting from the words.
“You don’t want to know what we have planned?” Erwin demanded.
“That's not technically correct. I don’t want Kenny to figure it out by reading me." I told him.
Erwin folded his arms as he starred out the window. Armin and Eren were making their rounds outside. Eren had grown stronger and was almost completely back to normal. I knew both Pixus and Erwin were training him. I wasn’t thrilled with it but hadn’t stopped it either. If I failed, if Kenny killed me, well I was glad the two of them would look after the orphan.
“Eren's come a long way.” Erwin noted.
“Don’t even bother telling me if you are going to use him. That I definitely don’t want to know.” I complained.
“For your piece of mind, we're not. Eren will be kept safe, I promise you.” His wizened blue eyes turned to me.
“You look like hell, do you know that?” he glared.
“Thanks.” I sneered. He chuckled. Walking up to me he placed his hand on my shoulder.
“At least send me a text before you take off.” He warned. I snorted of course he knew me that well. From the beginning I had the idea of going after Kenny alone. There would be time to tip off Erwin, but not much. It would allow him to set in motion whatever that big brain of his had up its sleeve.
“I will.” I promised him. He gave me a curt nod, before heading out. I sighed. Walking over to the window I saw Eren and Armin laughing together in the gazebo. I went down to check on them.
The tall teen saw me walking up to him. He flashed his devil may care grin at me. I chuckled as his long arms curved me into him. Burying my face into his chest I allowed myself the small reprieve of just being close to him.
“You ok, Levi?” he asked softly as he felt me clinging to him.
“Yeah brat, I’m good.” I whispered stepping back. “How about we all go out to dinner tonight? Maybe Pixus and Erwin would like to join us?” I offered. Eren grinned.
“Sounds good to me.”
“Armin go find them. Tell them to meet us at the Scout club at six sharp.” He agreed before bounding away. I hugged Eren.
“I’m tired. Take me back to my room, hold me until I fall asleep?” I asked him. He lifted me up in his arms. Wrapping my legs around his waist I looked down at him.
“Kiss me and you have a deal.” He demanded. I chuckled but did as he wished. When we broke apart I laid my head on his shoulder. The next thing I knew Armin was calling for us to wake up. Eren had stayed with me. We showered together then went off to dinner.
Erwin, one eyebrow raised, watched as the three of us stroll up to the table. “Last supper?” he asked. I snorted.
“You wish.” Pixus kept everyone entertained with stories. We laughed until our sides hurt. Once back at the compound, I took Eren for a late night stroll. This was something we did often. As I moved around the grounds holding his hand, I made sure to make eye contact with everyone I trusted. Their small nods told me they were ready.
Back in the apartment I took Eren's hands. “No matter what happens tonight, promise me you will do what Erwin tells you.” I told him. Eren sighed.
“So, you are going alone?” he asked. I smiled.
“Not gonna answer that. Who knows who is listening.” I said. There was a knock on the invisible door. I pulled him down for one last kiss.
Holding him tightly I pressed into his mouth. Finding his tongue I teased him. My hands gripping his hair tightly. I didn’t want to let him go. Everything in me screamed to just stay here in his arms. Kenny was waiting for me. He wouldn’t come to me. He had home field advantage and he knew it.
When I pulled away, I slipped the necklace I always wore off. Eren had asked about it only once. My answer had simple been it was a reminder of my past. I dropped it over his neck. Patting it against his chest. “This was my mother’s. She loved it so much. I often wondered if it was a gift from my dad to her.”
Looking up in his eyes I smiled. “If you believe nothing else I say, know I will be back for this. Not just the necklace, you see I’ve sort of grown fond of this neck too.” I kissed his neck. “This ear.” I nibbled his lobe until he giggled. I went around his entire face. Ending with one last kiss to his lips.
“I love you, Eren Yeager. You have proven to be a home I don’t want to lose. I promise you, I will come home.” A heavy sigh left me as I held him tightly. Once he was unconscious I laid him on the couch.
“All set?” the ragged little figure asked.  Without answering I pulled out my phone. I typed in two letters, then hit send. Once the notification came up I tossed the phone to my desk. I didn’t need to know anything more. Tonight I was going to hell.
(Third person POV)
‘Go’ flashed onto Erwin’s phone screen.  The blond just shook his head. He had already set his plan in motion. The diner was the giveaway. Just be careful, Levi. He thought. He counted to one hundred then headed up the stairs.
Finding Eren unconscious on the couch made him chuckle a little. He woke the kid. They looked at each other. With a nod they separated. Eren headed off to find Armin, Jean and Mikasa. Erwin went to fight a war long over due.
(Levi POV)
The gear seemed to weigh me down tonight. It usually felt like freedom to me. Flying through the air, not a care in the world. Nothing to stop me. Tonight though I had already seen the evidence that Kenny was out and about. This cat and mouse game was stupid. Trying to find him like this.
I swung over town Square. Landing on the steeple I drew in a breath to fill my lungs. “KENNY!” I yelled as loud as I could. The town rang with my voice. The few shutters and doors that hadn’t been closed or barred soon were. Then I saw it. He flew up over the row of houses before me. Why did I wait? I saw him coming but stood my ground. My fingers flinching over the controls. To look at me it would appear I was defenseless. That’s what he taught me. As he flew towards me all his lessons came back. All the beatings, the insults of my mother, the pounding home of not knowing my father. I carried the Ackerman name because no man chose to give me theirs. His taunts burned within me.
As the rage boiled with every flashing memory something else appeared. A pair of sea blue eyes that changed when he was happy, or with the color of his shirt. How that smile never left his face as he watched me doing just about anything. There was one person in this world that would give me a legitimate name. One person I swore I would return to. Lifting my chin I saw his body shift. The smirk came unbidden to my lips.
Kenny shifted to my right, my stronger side. Did he think me stupid. I readied the blade. At the last second he moved. As did I. I dove right flashing the sword in my left hand to slice at his chest. It caught a wire sending him spiraling. There in the air I saw the tiny flakes of blood.
“First strike.” I called. From a roof top off to the side. The square lay between us.
“You know you can’t beat me, little jerk!” he yelled. “Your friends are already walking into a trap. Yeager will be mine again by the end of the night.” A cold anger grew in me. It rose blinding me to anything else but him. Eren? Would Erwin be stupid enough to send him into this fight?
Before I could move I heard an explosion. I didn’t know whose side caused it. Smoke bellowed around us. Then I saw them, five, no six forms on wires. I gasped when I saw the one to the left of Mikasa. No! Eren what are you doing? I had no more time. Kenny was between us somewhere in the smoke.
Throwing myself off of the roof tops I swung out into the grayness. The smoke swelled over me. There he was waiting watching the shadows. I moved joining the others. Without a word I mixed my shadow with theirs. He wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between Armin’s size and mine. I twisted around the younger man. Ordering him to do the same.
He was quick to copy my moves. Erwin trained him personally I could tell. Kenny rose up. Not to come at us, no he had figured out which one was Eren. He dove toward the boy. I saw the flash of steel in his hands. Swinging away from Armin, I went after Kenny, exposing myself.
Yet it wasn’t Eren. That much was evident in his quick turn about. The flash of his hand. These movements took years to master. I laughed. The sound echoing out over the valley of lost souls. Erwin, always the strategist. He sliced upward with the blade, Kenny was already reversing. I was sure my laughter had caused it.
It didn’t matter, I met him then in the air. Both my blades tasting his blood. I felt the sting in my side. Now wasn’t the time to worry about it. I flung my anchors around. Swinging down I came from below him. He hadn’t seen the change as Erwin sprang in.
Another form appeared. This one wasn’t one of mine. I caught Kenny from behind. Losing one of my swords in his back. I twisted away. Then he was there again before I could reload the handle. Of course he wanted me at a disadvantage.
I spun to face him ready to take the beating of a life time. This time, however, I wasn’t alone. I wasn’t a scared child trying to survive. As Kenny's focus became solely on me, he tuned out the rest of the battle. Leaving his army to fight my friends. Thinking I came in with only six others.
The guns sounded. Various colored smoke filled the air. There were more bodies flying around than I could count. Yet Kenny was focused only on ending me, the heir to his empire. Did he not see, I had built my own.
As he flew towards me, out of the smoke came a form I had prayed had stayed away. Instead he had just been waiting. Kenny was nearly to me. The sea green eyes never left the blade in the man’s back. Eren flung himself around on the wires. Feet first he imbedded the sword deeper into Kenny's back.
Not only that he had his own weapons. As his feet struck, Eren was lashing out with his sword. Bent double he was cutting Kenny any place his weapons could reach. Then Armin rose up coming from underneath as Kenny tried to turn to Eren. But Eren was gone. Erwin was there, blades ready slicing at his throat.
Mikasa came in under Armin, her blade dove deep in my uncle's back. She clung to him as she pulled out a smaller blade. I watched as she stabbed him repeatedly as fast as she could.
No this was my job. I flung myself into the battle, knocking Armin off course slightly, I caught Kenny's hair. “One lesson you drilled into me, never fight alone!” I hissed in his ear as the blade in my hand drove through his neck. The wires reached their limit. They began pulling me back. I clung to the handle watching the blade slice his head off. Kenny was gone. His mouth open, eyes starring up at me as his head fell into the smoke.
I could only stare at where the head had gone. Mikasa and Erwin were dealing with the body. Then arms wrapped around me. “He's losing a lot of blood. I need to get him to Hange!” Eren called.
“Keep him safe.” A gruff voice answered. “Jean, Bertolt go, protect him.”
“I've got you.” Eren's word rang in my ears. I turned to look at him. His smile filled his face like the sun. My hand raised to touch him. I saw the blood on it. I didn’t want to dirty Eren with his blood. My hand clasped the necklace he wore. The darkness fell around me.
“He keeps moaning and mumbling in his sleep. Nothing I can understand other than mine or Kenny's names. Hasn’t woken yet.” A quiet voice said.
“He will. Just stay with him. He will be damn near impossible to handle if he wakes and your not here.” Erwin stated.
“He's awake.” I groaned forcing my eyes open. The smiling face filled my vision. I grinned back as I reached one bandaged hand up to touch his cheek. The other was grasped in his hand.
“Told you I would come home.” I said. Eren laughed, a second before his mouth found mine. The kiss was long, desperate but freeing. When he pulled back, I clung to the back of his head.
“We will get married once I’m healed.” He opened his mouth I shook my head. “You don’t have a say in it. Come here and hold me.” I felt him climb onto the bed.
“Whenever you're ready, I would love to be your husband, idiot.” He whispered in my ear.
“Fucking brat.” I muttered as I cuddled into his chest.
Days later Erwin told me that all of Kenny's men had been rounded up. They disintegrated the body and tore apart the under ground.
“Pixus found places for them all above ground. He wants to revamp the area to use as a base for his troops. The kids got to see real sunlight.” His face beamed at this.
“Don’t worry your little ragtag bundle hasn’t abandoned you. They are all holed up in the compound.” I smirked.
“Good.” I was out of the hospital a week later. It took another month for me to heal. Armin and Hange used this time to plan the wedding. Erwin officiated. Eren became mine in the gazebo. Armin was his man of honor. It was the best day of my life.
Things have settled down. Eren loves the kids. He has been teaching them to read. Erwin, although technically still in the military spends most of his time teaching history to them. Mikasa teaches hand to hand combat. Life has become normal.