Once In A While

Chapter 13: Hope

Footsteps coming closer and closer to us.

With my gun in hand, I was ready to shoot if ordered to; allas, the captain let out a sigh once he realized who the people in front of us were; Hange and Moblit. With a letter in hand, which they handed to our leader once they finally reached us.

"And there you have it. The coup d'etat was successful. Premier Zachary has full control of the government. For the time being, at least. The nobility seems to be staying in line." Hange told us, as we were bending over the Captain to get a better glimpse at the newspaper's article he was skimming through.

"And what about the incident with Mr. Reeves?" Armin asked.

"No need to worry, we actually got a public confession by a member of the Interior Police. Reeves' son, Flegel, really pulled through for us. It's all in there, in that newspaper. The truth about the king being a fraud, us acting as self defense. In short, we're no longer criminals!" The section commander filled us in.

We exchanged looks, a sparkle tinting all of our eyes; hope.

At the sound of Hange's words, that we were not to be considered criminals anymore, all of us celebrated like a bunch of little kids; not that we weren't, deep down. Connie jumping in the air with his fists held high, Sasha engulfing poor Mikasa in a hug, Armin bending on his knees, cradling his head in his hands out of relief, Jean and I hitting each other playfully; finally, after all of this struggle, we had pushed back.

"Well, that isn't the end. They still have Eren and Historia. We need to find them." The captain cut our celebrations short, and he was in fact, right.

"Right, I think I know where they are. So, let's get there." Hange agreed, with a book in hand.

Deep into the night, we made our way to the Reiss Chapel. All the while, Hange was quick to fill us in with what information she had gathered; about how five years ago, on the same day Wall Maria fell, the Reiss family was assassinated in their chapel by bandits, having gone there to pray. Though, the patriarch of the family, Rod Reiss, Historia's father, was able to make a run for it. And all of that was somehow connected to Historia's mother being murdered by the Interior Police.

Hange's theory, was that it was no simple bandit attack, for there were too many breaches of the chapel's stone walls; something that would have required, perhaps a titan shifter, to happen. And it didn't help that Rod Reiss was the only survivor, rushing to repair the damages as soon as possible; indicating that he was hiding something about that fateful night's events.

Captain Levi also mentioned that since that we'd be fighting against Kenny's squad, we should be prepared for the worst; according to his personal experience, having lived with said man for a while, his strength was equal to his own, and with those guns they had, they'd be unstoppable.

"How come you've lived with Kenny the Ripper, and know next to nothing about him?" Hange asked Levi.

"He wasn't talkative I guess. In fact, I just learned his last name. Ackerman. He must be a relative of yours." He said, to whom I assumed was Mikasa, who then proceeded to tell him about her family's ancestry.

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Barrels with flammable liquids were dropped down the crystal stairs. Once they reached the bottom, led by captain Levi, we burged in; Sasha aiming at the barrels with her arrow, setting them on fire.

Flying through the smoke created by the gunpowder, Mikasa the captain and I counted down the enemies, whilst the rest of our squad fired green smoke flares.

"35 in total on the upper parts of the pillars! Keep the plan going, we're taking them all out here!" Yelled Levi.

Joined by everyone else apart from Sasha and Armin, we began hunting the Interior Squad down, in a chase inbetween those crystal pillars that seemed otherworldly. Maneuvering swiftly, I managed to strike a couple of them, either cutting them with my swords or if the situation allowed it, grace them with my kicks. The odds seemed to be in our favour, knowing our enemy's weaknesses. That was until Hange was shot, falling harshly to the ground, blood smearing behind.