Bonds of Steel and Blood

CHAPTER 28 - Against the Odds

In the far corner of the room, two kids sat on the floor, hugging each other, eyes wide from fear. The older boy, who must've been around ten years of age, protectively moved in front of the younger girl when Rei and Levi entered the basement. They were both skinny, too skinny, their clothes disheveled and torn. Empty packages of canned food were laying around the floor. There was a bucket of what Levi assumed was rainwater in another corner and a bucket emitting the unmistakable smell of feces. But the most shocking sight, and the source of the rotting smell, was a woman laying on the floor, covered with a blanket.

Levi's chest tightened as he connected the dots. He watched Rei slowly step towards the kids, extending one of her hands as a sign of harmlessness.

          "Can you speak?" she asked gently. The older boy nodded, hugging the shaking girl tighter. "How long have you been here?"

          "I don't know," the boy answered thinly.

          "Are either of you hurt?"

The boy shook his head.

          "Is there anyone else?"

Tears began to dwell in the kids' eyes. They looked at the corpse in the corner.

          "Mama didn't want to eat," he said, starting to sob. "She wanted to save food for us. One day... she didn't wake up."

Rei slowly turned to Levi, who was as pale as her. The grip on his blade was tight. To say he was disturbed by the sight was an understatement. He could see that same horror in Rei's eyes.

          "They've been here since the fall of Maria, Levi," Rei whispered, her voice breaking.

          "I know."

          "That's why the Titans won't leave the village alone... "

Rei turned back to the kids, her eyes determined but soft.

          "We will get you somewhere safe, okay?" she said. "But I'll need you to do exactly as I tell you."

          "Rei, what are you- "

          "I don't care what you have to say, Levi," Rei interrupted him. "I'm getting these kids inside Wall Rose."

Levi closed his mouth, staring at the familiar determination in Rei's expression. He wanted to explain that her leg would slowly start to grow numb, that she wouldn't be able to ride if they didn't leave at that instant, and that there was no way she would get back to Trost alive if she tried to take those kids with her. But he knew her enough to know he'd be wasting his breath. And while he respected her for her sympathy, he was starting to grow anxious about what that decision could bring.

Rei lifted the girl into her arms and grabbed the boy's hand. Neither objected; on the contrary, the girl was barely responsive. Levi knew they needed medical attention as soon as possible.

          "Do you have a plan?" Levi asked, trying to hide his anxiety.

          "Of course I do," Rei said, but the line between her worriedly furrowed eyebrows betrayed her.

          "Agnar... "

          "Just give me a moment, okay?!"

Levi patiently waited, struggling to hold his tongue behind his teeth at the sight of Rei's grimaced face, knowing she was in a lot of pain. He struggled not to reach for her every time she looked like she'd lose her balance when her injured leg tried to betray her.

          "Fall back! Everyone ride back to Trost!"

The sound was coming from outside. Levi and Rei met each other's gazes. Fuck.