The Last of Its Kind [AoT]

LXIV

Night had slowly begun to arrive as feet dangled from the ship in consistent uneven rhythm. Thick eyelashes rested softly against porcelain cheeks as eyebrows furrowed deep in thought and concentration.

"You seem more gloomy than normal, Kyra." A voice spoke sitting next to Kyra, breaking any sort of thought they once held.

Fushia eyes were revealed as they shifted towards the short blonde haired girl. A scoff made its way past her lips.

"Could say the same to you. You seem to be moping around more pitiful than usual, Annie." Kyra spoke, patronizing the girl.

"What else am I supposed to do? I'm stuck on a ship with nowhere to go and nothing to do." Annie said with a heavy sigh.

Kyra gave a hum and nodded, "Fair enough. I would suggest reading a book, but I'm sure you've grown bored of stories." Kyra commented, causing Annie to roll her eyes as she brought her knees to her chest.

"Enough to last a lifetime, thanks to you." Annie retorted, causing Kyra to smirk.

"Aw, don't be like that. You should already know I'm not much of a talker like Armin is. I can only ramble for so long, and most times, it turned into a mess of a therapy session I never asked for." Kyra chastised with a shrug.

"A hot mess indeed. To be honest, I can't tell you what it's like to have a father. I'm still trying to figure that out, myself." Annie stated as Kyra raised an eyebrow, turning to glance at Annie as she exhaled with a sigh.

"My parents abandoned me shortly after I was born. Turned out my mother was cheating with an Eldian. I was later taken in and raised in the internment zone by an Eldian man who came from overseas. Apparently, he was taken to the internment zone for a similar reason. The man wanted to train me into a Marleyan soldier so he could improve his living environment. For as long as I can remember, the man beat the martial arts of his homeland into me. The only value that man sees in me was whether or not I could become a Warrior." Annie explained before pausing as she raised her head from her knees, glancing at the red and orange hues of the sea that reflected the falling sun on the horizon.

"After some time passed... I became strong just as the man wanted. So I paid back for all the pain he'd beat into me. I made it so he'd never be able to walk straight again. But... the man rejoiced. "Now you can kill your enemy even when unarmed," he said. And so everything stopped to matter to me. I didn't care who died, no matter who they are or where they came from. I didn't think life had any value, not even my own. Until that moment. On the morning I'd be heading off to the island, the man dropped to his knees and apologized. He told me that everything he taught me was wrong. He then cried and pleaded. He wanted me to come back. My status as a Warrior, and our status as honorary Marleyans... He told me to give up those things and return. That man...was my father. He thought of me as his own daughter. I have a father who waits for my return. But our relationship is by no means what a typical father and daughter relationship is. So, I can't tell you what it's like having one besides knowing that somewhere out there he's still holding on to any hope that I'm out there alive and will come home to him some day." Annie informed, causing Kyra to hum, shifting her eyes from the sky to Annie.

"I see... neither here nor there was spared from a depressing childhood. But it did give some insight. A shared will of unrelentless faith. Much like he is holding hope for your safety and return. You are also holding the same, despite the Rumbling...you are still holding on to the slightest bit of hope that he is out there alive so you can reunite with him." Kyra commented as Annie's eyes widened before she clutched her knees closer to her chest, glancing down sullenly.

"Yeah... I am." She mumbled back as Kyra sighed.

"I have no way of telling, and I frankly, won't be the one to give you false hope, since I know how detrimental that can be when it all comes crumbling down..." Kyra spoke truthfully, glancing up at the black smoke that rose from smoke stacks before dispersing and drifting along the sky. Her eyebrow rose intriqued only for her eyes to narrow, spotting something before shaking her head in dismissal.