The 13-Year Campaign

Chapter 11

The rain arrived, drowning your campsite and thankfully by that time, you were already seeking higher ground. A mountain with a winding path was the best option. Reginald became tired and woozy from the punch from Eren. He and you put Reginald atop his horse and tied him down so that he would not fall. It was getting too difficult to ride horses, so each person had to go on foot and walk the horses themselves. You volunteered to lead Reginald's horse with him on top and yours as well. Friday was known for being wild, but you stupidly thought you could manage. You started climbing high atop the mountain. The trails were directly over a cove that connected to the lake. Right below were rumbling waters and the dark sky was only lit with occasional lightning strikes. Armin was at the front of the group holding the lantern. Sasha was right behind, with chattering teeth and worrying over the environment. You were the third in line with Reginald technically fourth but he was tied and unconscious on his horse so he would not fall. Your horse was next to you while Reginald's horse trotted behind. you held the reigns for both while your eyes fought the wind and pouring rain. eren was directly behind you in the back it overlooked the lake, its base dipping into it with massive rocks below swallowed by a powerful current.

You put on your hood and followed the group. Your horse Friday was restless, and you had to tug him along. Reginald's horse was calmer. Eren felt something off suddenly and halted to look back at you struggling. nervously you looked down to the water.

Then lightning struck near the group and your horse reared and fearfully whinnied. You tried to calm him, letting go of Reginald's horse for a second. but then he too became bothered, and you tried to grab both. but you were swung to the edge of the horses. You let Friday go and he was able to move to a more stable earth. Thankfully, your horse stumbled away in time although you were not so lucky. you cried out as the ground underneath you gave way. you were falling. the ground under you gave way.

"(Y/n)!" Eren yelled and grabbed your wrist, but he was too close to the edge and the ground disappeared underneath him as well. Lightning struck and for a moment you could see Eren's determined expression with gritted teeth as you prepared to hit the water. You braced for impact, but your ankle extended out. As you landed in the water, it twisted and hit itself against a sinking boulder that fell before you.

Eren sunk next to you, bruised and unconscious. You grabbed him around his waist and tried to pull him away from the cliff as it continued to break apart. As you spread across the surface, you saw large pieces of the cliff plunge in front of you as you swam away from the ledge. The rain and the extra weight offset your stride and you looked back to see what looked like rocks falling right above your head. Although you were a fast swimmer, you were not fast enough to avoid a large rock that crashed into your leg. More debris fell and whizzed by you as you dove lower with Eren knowing deep enough that the water would slow the rocks. Searing pain struck your exhausted body on the shoulder and lower back as slowed rocks scraped you and Eren. A rock split you from Eren and he disappeared from your arm. you broke free of the water's grasp, sputtering and stifling your exhausted noises. You put a hand to feel your leg while using the other to keep you afloat. The cool water temporarily soothed your back injury. Thankfully, nothing seemed broken, figuring the water had slowed the rock down just enough to prevent significant injury.

After settling for a moment, you pushed yourself to the surface and tried to breathe. You started looking for Eren. You looked back and the storm strikes showed that the cliff high above was still crumbling into the water. Your eyes widened and you dove back under the surface, grabbing your nearby pack.

"Eren!" you cried out frantically, increasingly getting louder. You were struggling because of your leg. Every direction seemed the same and the rain pounding on the water hindered your vision. You were not used to having to work this hard to stay afloat and the blindness of your eyes made it difficult. Although the ocean during a storm was far more formidable than this, the lake's buoyancy was harder to work through considering the circumstances. Time was running out.

You looked around and took a deep breath before diving under. It was dark but you saw air bubbles rising from a particular spot just when a lightning strike gave a faint blue light. Eren's eyes shot open, and he swam to the surface as the water poured into his lungs. He threw his body high and his newborn breath steamed hot into the freezing air. After hacking twice and coughing once, he called out your name. he panicked until you arose next to him. Your spirit out some water from your mouth and continued to tread weakly next to Eren who was still gasping for air. Eren's head had been struck by debris, and he was bleeding. He had a concussion. Your ankle hurt so you were having difficulty keeping your head above water, as your chin kept dipping into the lake and filling your mouth.

Eren noticed you were too busy keeping yourself from drowning to communicate. He put his hand under your arm and helped you stay above the surface. You were exhausted and just pointed in the direction of the closest bank. He followed your finger. He took ahold of your forearm and started pushing towards the bank. You used your legs and free arm. Together, you reached the shore quickly. Eren dragged himself onto the rocky shore, heaving and panting, before flopping onto his back. You scraped yourself across the rocks to collapse on your stomach a second after him to avoid hurting your gashed back. Your injured leg extended out behind you, dripping blood onto the ground. You hissed loudly and clutched the back of your thigh, squeezing to numb the pain. Eren heard but was still recovering.

"You alright," he tilted his head to his side and looked at you through his eyelids. You did not reply and just looked over your shoulder at the cliff where you had fallen. Lightning struck just enough for you to see how much of the cliff had gone and fallen into the water. The only path your party could have used to get to you both immediately was blocked.

"Landslide" you puttered to him. "Path...blocked." He sprawled on his back and weakly turned his head back to the sky to curse.