Attack On Titan: Pure Blood

Chapter 15: The Battle of Trost Part 2: Determination in times of despair

The rain that had fallen in Trost did not last long. It had only lasted about thirty minutes, but in that short time he had washed a great deal of blood from the ceilings, walls, and streets of the city of Trost. Blood of soldiers who had given their lives in an attempt to defend the city from the titans.

But it was all useless. The most the soldiers could hope for was slowing down the titans while the civilians evacuated into the Wall Rose. They had achieved it at the cost of the lives of the soldiers. And now that they had finally received the order to withdraw from that hell, they couldn't do it because they didn't have enough gas to go back to the wall. They were stranded on top of rooftops, just waiting.

Waiting for help. A miracle. Or just death.

The mood was somber among the survivors. Most of them were members of the recently graduated Troop 104, along with a few garrison soldiers who were just from the previous class. But if there was one thing they all shared, it was the desperation they felt.

Nobody could blame them. What they had seen was a real hell. His companions being devoured right before his eyes. They could still hear their cries of pain and pleas before they were permanently silenced with a vicious bite from the titans. Remembering that, the despair they felt only increased even more.

"Hey, Jean!" said Connie, one of the few who was still sane enough, but concern was still evident in his voice. "What are we going to do?!"

At first, Jean didn't reply, as he was deep in thought. His eyes were red from tears shed over the loss of his best friend. He felt that he had lost all his strength. He looked at his trembling hands. Even though the rain had washed Marco's blood away, he could still see them clearly. It was a stain that would never be erased.

"There's nothing we can do," he said, his voice dejected. "Even if we were ordered to withdraw, we can't because we don't have enough gas. Surely we will all die because of those damn cowards..."

"Do you mean the Supply Troop?" Connie asked in confusion. "What happened to them?! Are they dead?!"

"It wouldn't be strange if they lost the will to fight." Jean could understand that very well. He had already done it. "Most likely they have abandoned their duty to resupply us and barricaded themselves inside headquarters. And they can't escape because titans have cornered them."

"Then we have no choice but to deal with the titans ourselves! We won't solve anything by staying here and doing nothing! The titans will be coming here any minute too! If we keep running from them, we'll run out of what little gas we have left! And if that happens, it really will be the end for us!"

Even with Connie's determination to do something, Jean didn't feel the same as he looked at him listlessly.

"It's rare for you to use your head for anything, Connie." Jean turned to look at the other soldiers. Almost all of them had a gloomy and hopeless look on their face. Not unlike him. "But... Do you really think we can do it? Most of the veterans on the front lines have been killed. Besides, who could run an operation as suicidal as this with a bunch of freshly graduated recruits like us? There's not much we can do against the titans... Besides, the gas storage is most likely full of 3 and 4 meter titans. And fighting in there is impossible."

Thinking of the desperate situation they were in, Connie gave Jean a dejected look.

"Isn't there... Isn't there anything we can do?" he asked.

Jean let out a long breath.

'Maybe if he were here ...' Jean guessed, but then shook his head.

Most likely, he is too into his own anger and pain. And, worst case scenario... Jean didn't want to think about that. He didn't want to lose another friend.