The Sea titan (Attack on Titan）

A Traitor's end

"So...Floch...are they really all dead?" He asked, his expression grim like his voice.

"Who are you talking about?" Floch asked, sitting beside him on the roof.

"My squad, they're the ones firing the comet guns." He specified while hugging his knee closer to his chest, the others beside Floch staying silent watching the exchange.

"Oh those guys...yeah...they're gone..." Floch revealed. The revelation didn't shock him but it still gave him a sinking feeling that it's confirmed.

"Did they at least get a shot in?" He asked, Hanji moving up behind him.

"No...they missed." The ginger admitted, probably slowly becoming uncomfortable with his presence. "The beast sent the titans into us when we charged. They did their best to defend our flanks."

He opened his mouth to ask another question but was interrupted. "Now, now...Don't question the new recruit too much, you'll traumatise him with your interrogation." Hanji whispered as they clutched his shoulder. The sound of lightning striking nearby as the scientist's sentence finished.

"We all lose our comrades, it's part of being a leader, we just have to move past it and carry on." Hanji continued, voice soft and comforting, a far cry from the usual bombastic scientist he's used to.

"I've already moved past it." He answered bluntly. "It's just, losing Armin and Ymir as well...it's just a bit much." He gritted his teeth, looking to his other friends who shared the same sentiment.

"How would we tell Historia..." Connie pointed out, the thought sending his heart plummeting.

"I'll be the one to tell her. It's my fault I wasn't able to defeat the warhammer alone." He replied, moving away from them.

Shit this is getting too depressing...

"At least we got Bertholdt right?" He asked, trying to be cheery, the depressing mood won't help any of them cope. "You did great Eren, you finally got the final kill you always wanted." He gazed at the green eyed boy who looked back at him. The both of them silently welcoming each other in their own way. It was too early to go all lovey doves with the tradgedy at hand anyways.

"But what does it matter, if in the end we couldn't even save Armin?" Eren questioned, eyes wide, tears still staining his cheeks. Hanji and the others recoiled a bit at those words, especially Mikasa.

"Come on guys...Let's just watch it unfold." Jean tried to make the others move but he was going to go watch the traitor's end anyways.

"Losing one of the people we love just means that we need to work harder to defend the ones that are left." He stated as he moved to sit on the edge of the roof. "By the way, Ymir told us to protect Historia." He added, the others looking somewhat shocked.

"You guys are the only sparks left in my life, small little flames in the dark to keep me away from darkness. I don't have a purpose here, except to protect the ones I care about." He continued, speaking every word with full honesty. He didn't have anything left to live for anyways. His life was already over the moment he arrived at this world, and the new life he made for himself only revolved around these people.

Watching as a yellow haired titan grabbed the previously unconscious Bertholdt. He noticed something gave him a glimmer of hope, but...he could never be sure.

The titan's hair was similar to Armins's, and that may just be because of the titan transformation but he wanted to hope that Levi changed his mind. Armin is so important to him and he didn't want to lose that spark.

"Is that really him?" He questioned as the titan breached the building, getting close to Bertholdt's unconscious body.

Even then, he shouldn't linger on a loss, he should just push forward and enjoy what was about to unfold. With everyone that the enemy has killed, it made their defeats ever the sweeter. Even if this isn't Armin coming back, this was still Bertholdt being eaten.

He watched in sadistic pleasure as the titan grabbed Bertholdt who woke up. Just in time to see the titan slowly lifting him up to it's maws. At the very least they got revenge. Sweet revenge for his squad, Ymir, and for either Erwin or Armin as well.

Bertholdt screamed and frantically looked around before finally spotting them, eyes growing wide with a glimmer of hope.

Pathetic...thinking we would still help him after everything he did...

"Guys! Please! Help me!" Bertholdt screamed, trying to worm his way out of the titan's grasp, limbless body struggling under the crushing grip of the titan.

He clasped his hands together in prayer before projecting his voice, wearing a wide smile on his face despite the stains of tears on his face. "I hope you burn in hell Bertholdt! We won't miss you mate!"

Bertholdt expression returned to horror, screaming as the titan brought his body closer and closer to its gaping jaw, lifeless eyes looking down on the once great colossal titan. Suddenly a pang of guilt ran through him as he watched on, likely Annie's memories triggering something but he shrugged it off. He couldn't care less what she thought, he just wanted to see the traitor suffer.

"ANNIE! REINER!" Bertholdt screamed before the titan's teeth crushed him into a bloody pulp. It then devoured the rest of his body hungrily with it's shrivelled and bony hands.

"Captain...why did you..." Eren trailed off, likely catching on to the similarity between the titan and Armin as well.

"Follow me." Hanji motioned to him and Floch.

They both complied, following her to the other building where Erwin's body rests. The commander's face a relaxed expression with one hand raised. He felt a wave of relief wash and sheer joy wash over him knowing that Armin got chosen but at the same time he was also worried. What would they do now that Erwin was gone? Of course he was overjoyed that Armin survived but...Erwin was also quite important...

"Do you think you can forgive him?" Levi spoke up, likely addressing both of them. "He had no choice but to become a devil. It was us who wished for that. And in the end, when he had finally been set free from this hell, we wanted to bring him back once more." Levi expression darkened, the raven looking towards the commander's body.

"But you're right." The captain directed at him. "It's time to let him rest." The man said just as the titan collapsed over, steam emanating from it's body.

"I'll be back father, I need to see this." He said quickly, despite knowing how rude it was he couldn't help it, he can feel tears forming on the edge of his eyes as he grappled towards the fallen titan, Eren and the others joining him.

His other two closest friends also kneeled down right beside him, all of them teary eyed. He wrapped his arms around both of their shoulders, pulling them in closer to share the moment. The two of them also sobbing beside him.

He watched in tearful joy as Armin appeared from within the titan's nape, the flesh around him steaming away to reveal the boy's body, fully intact without a single burn mark from earlier.

He was so happy that Armin survived that he threw the three of them onto the boy's unconscious body, the others following suit despite the immense body heat. At that moment they were all too happy to care about the burn.

One thing would linger at the back of his mind though.

Armin...is now the new colossal titan.