Every Single One (Eren X Reader)

018

"Ready?" I turned to Eren amongst the entire Survey Corps. Today was the day that we began our mission to find a route to Shiganshina, and the whole regiment was waiting in front of the gate, ready to begin. I felt a pit in my stomach, terrified that something would go wrong and the entire branch of the military would be wiped out. Despite my qualms, I remained calm so as not to bother the other soldiers around me, who I'm sure were just as anxious. Eren didn't answer, only met my gaze, and nodded.

"We will now begin the 57th expedition beyond the walls!" Erwin shouted from the front of the formation, "Onward!"

My heart raced with anticipation as we neared what was now considered titan territory. Though it wasn't exactly outside the walls, it was still dangerous and outside of human territory. I felt the same heart ache as we sped through demolished towns and past destroyed homes, all lost to the titans along with countless lives. I didn't know what humanity did to deserve this, but I didn't think anyone could do something so terrible to deserve such destruction.

"Ahead, to the left!" I heard Hanji call out to the Scouts, "a 10-meter class!" The support team jumped from their horses behind us, zipping after the beast. I watched in horror as the first soldier missed, leaving himself and his partner vulnerable. They were barely able to escape the titan repeatedly, but I didn't get the chance to see what became of them as a higher-up next to me grabbed my head and twisted it back forward.

"Focus," he ordered, letting go of me, "Trust the support team, and keep moving!" I shook myself slightly and nodded, leaning forward on my horse. I could only pray that the support team could keep us all alive until we made it out of the invaded cities.

"Onward!" Erwin called again from the front, "Onward!"

"Sir, can they..." Eren turned to Oluo next to us, "Can my classmates beat the titans?" I winced at his random question, feeling quite a bit of second-hand embarrassment. What kind of a question was that?

"Huh?" Oluo responded, annoyed, "What have you been doing this past month?" he turned to look at Eren and me, dragging me down with Eren, "Listen, brats," he said, "The most crucial part of an expedition is how you avoid fight--" a splash of blood exploded from his tongue, and I suppressed a tickle of laughter. This was the third time he'd bitten his tongue while trying to lecture Eren and me on horseback, so it seemed he wasn't one to learn from his mistakes.

Before I had the chance to react, Erwin stuck his arm out to the side, "Go into long-range scouting formation!" he ordered. The soldiers split, saying a few farewells as they spread out around the field, still heading for Shiganshina. I locked eyes with Mikasa and nodded, wishing her the best. She did the same before riding off to my right, where I could just barely see her near us in the vanguard.

I heard a bang in the distance and snapped my head in the direction it came from. I felt my heart rate quicken as pillars of red smoke shot into the air. I recalled what we'd learned about the smoke signals, and calmed down slightly. Primarily, the forward recon squad would encounter titans and fire a red smoke round as soon as one was sighted. Anyone who sees the flare takes on the responsibility of relaying the message to Commander Erwin by shooting the same flare themselves. When the Commander sees it, he is to fire a green smoke round and show the formation where to go. This way, the entire formation can advance by avoiding as many titans as possible.

"In the circumstance that there are obstacles or obstructions blocking the view," I remember my superior saying, "a titan won't be sighted until it's already within the formation. In that case, fire a red flare and recuperate with scouts near you to take the titan down and alert others."

I noticed Eren glance at me as we rode steadily through the fields with a concerned expression on his face. I met his eyes and held his gaze for a moment before we both nodded and looked back at the ground. It was slightly awkward, but I had much, much bigger issues to worry about.