Microcosmos || Rivamika

Ch5 Memory Lane

Summary: After direct orders for Levi to be sent back to Paradis, a lone Mikasa wanders the streets of Marley and is flooded with many unearthed memories. Each precious memory brings her closer to realizing the truth that her captain was there all along.

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Ashes fell like snow from the barren sky. The piercing screams of men in the distance following the crashes and explosions was bone chilling. Far ahead, a soldier in white wearing an armband sprinted above the corridor and carried an injured man back, reaching for safety in the pit, only to be shot down before he could make it. Both bodies lay lifeless atop each other, blood oozing from their backs and dripping into the pit.

Eren Jaeger sat still in the trench and watched the blood trickling down from the dirt edge, then slowly looked down to the pool of blood surrounding his own severed leg. He spat out the torn cloth stuffed in his mouth masking his screams a moment ago, then wiped the fresh blood from his shaking hands as he dropped the knife. His pained breath seethed through gritted teeth. Those moments slicing right through his own flesh were excruciating, and he was certain this would be a nightmare that would haunt him til the day he dies.

The explosions never ceased. The screaming never did, either. And if he didn't push forward, the same sounds would soon be heard on Paradis Island.

Fight...

Fight...

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"Fight."

Mikasa uttered the single word calmly to herself as she stared out the foggy window of the landed plane. Her eyes fell on the land of Marley once again. This was a vastly different arrival compared to the grandeur of the sea port, and the nation didn't look quite as advanced from this rural area. The dirt paths and shabby buildings that surrounded the landing zone looked similar to that of Shiganshina before the destruction. Somehow it stung knowing that the run-down parts of enemy land were comparable to the nicer and humble areas of Paradis.

The pilot swiftly exited the plane and unlatched Mikasa's door, safely bringing her to level ground. Half a day was spent in the air and her numb feet had missed the solid ground. She stretched and took a deep breath. The air smelt of dust and oil, and she realized the air of her small island and of Hizuru was much cleaner than this.

"Mikasa-san. As instructed by Lady Kiyomi, here is your identification and set of clothes." The pilot handed her a simple bag made of bamboo; a set of documents, money and kimonos lay neatly inside. "This should be enough for two weeks, as you've requested. Will you be okay for that long?"

"...I'll manage." She took the bag and bowed to the man, thanking him for bringing her safely at such short notice.

He leaned closer to her now, peering over his shoulders as he spoke. "There is one ship scheduled to Hizuru in exactly two weeks from today. It is the only one scheduled for three months. You and Eren Jaeger must take that ship. Do not forget, Mikasa-san." He turned to close the door of the plane behind him, then faced her once more. "Until then, find the Strauss family in the city. They are a powerful family that will indeed take care of you, and they might know something useful for finding Jaeger."

The pilot bade her a goodbye and began to service his plane as soon as the silent woman began to tread forward to the main city of Marley.