Not The One Who Dies ⇀ Attack on Titan *Original*

Part 51: Paths

Two soldiers walked around the intermittent zone. One had called the walled-in area home for his whole life, the other didn't know it had existed until four years ago.

"What all do you know? About your people?" Issac asked, rolling a small rock around in his hand as he spoke, Logan following close behind.

"Nothing, really. My dad didn't tell me anything and my brother was too young to remember his time here." Logan said causing Issac to nod.

"Well, lucky for you, my dad was kinda obsessed with it all. If you want to hear about it, I'll tell you everything I know." Issac offered, raising an eyebrow at the boy who sighed, thinking about the offer before he nodded.

"Around a hundred years ago, during the great Titan war, Marley decided they needed something to combat the Titans. They ram many experiments on their prisoners of war until they finally had created something that turned a normal Eldian into a brainwashed soldier with different mutations. The majority of them were men of a certain family." Issac started causing Logan to nod, the two now standing still as Issac told him the story.

"They named them Valkyries since one of the most common mutations was a pair, or a singular wing... they used them to take on and push back the Titans," Issac said, now looking away as he remembered what had been coming next.

"King Fritz then left for the island and Marley seized control... around a year after that, they-" Issac spoke, his throat getting caught in his voice as he remembered how his father described the events.

"They ordered all of the Valkyries to a meeting room, told them that it was a celebration and a gift for helping the great nation of Marley. They had them bring their wives... T-Their children. Then, once all of them were there, they firstly sprayed their machine guns through the walls, killing most if not all of the nonmutated people in the room. Then they pumped gas into the room, one that stripped them of their mutations and made them just normal humans once again." Issac said, staring blankly at the ground. He had a confused look on his face, just as he did when he was told the story.

"When the soldiers went in to finish them off, they didn't even put up a fight. They were just holding their families. They had trusted the Marlians, they'd become friends whilst fighting alongside each other. Then they were all slaughtered and their bodies were shown off as a sign of victory." Issac spoke, Logan biting the inside of his cheek as he listened to what had happened to his ancestors.

"Then- why? Why am I alive how'd my family survive?" Logan asked, looking at Issac who looked up at the boy, a small hopeful on his face.

"Because... when king fritz left Marley, he took your father and his wife, as your father had been next in line for the throne of the empire... Logan, do you understand what that means?" Issac asked, his eyes staring intently at Logan who furrowed his eyebrows.

"Your brother, if he is alive as you said he was, is the true king of Eldia and its people."

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Logan sighed as Issac helped him to the room that the two would be sleeping in. Hushed voices came from the room causing Logan to stop in his tracks.

"It's just Proco and Pieck, they're not gonna hurt you... they trust Reiner and I." Issac said, trying to ease the nerves of the boy. Logan sighed, slightly nodding before continuing to walk. Issac looked at Logan who had very obviously tensed, his hands curled into fists as his eyes narrowed, waiting for the man to open his door. Issac did just that, finding Reiner sitting on his bed with the other two warriors standing on the other side of the room.

"Reiner, if what you're saying is true, this will change the ENTIRETY of the war... Why didn't you say anything before?" Pieck asked as she folded her arms over her body before her head snapped towards the door, finding Issac standing there with an unfamiliar blonde next to him.