Attack on Titan: A Blacksmith's Tale

Chapter 34: The Beast Titan

Well, at least most of the District's intact this time. Hanji thought as she arrived in Stohess. True, there were a few destroyed houses and torn off roofs, but bodies weren't littering the street. She knew Nile would be relieved that the Scouts kept their promise about keeping the battle contained to the area near the Wall. Still, she knew better than to assume that there would be no casualties. No doubt they'd get called out for that on top of letting the Female Titan return to this disaster area of a District.

Speaking of which, she spotted said Shifter kneeling on the ground, holding something to her face. Definitely had to be Dillon. It was truly a stark contrast compared to the Titan that decimated the Scouts not so long ago. She made her way over, catching Annie's attention once she was close enough, but before she could debrief the girl, she took note of Matthew's body lying nearby with a knife jammed in his chest along with an eyeball not far from the corpse.

"Is Elise dead, too?" Hanji asked.

"You'll find what's left of her next to the Wall," the Female Titan answered, pulling Dillon away from her.

Hanji clicked her tongue, disappointed. "That's a shame. I was looking forward to interrogating her, too."

"If it's all the same to you, Section Commander, I need to take Dillon to the hospital," Annie said.

Hanji nodded. "Alright, but don't take too long. I need the details on everything that happened."

"Understood." The Shifter was to her feet and began walking towards the hospital, careful not to jostle her boyfriend.

Hanji let out a sigh as she knelt in front of Matthew's body. She could only begin to imagine what Dillon was going through, having killed his own father. Out of respect, she closed the remaining eye. It was the least she could do.

"Section Commander!" Jean shouted from behind.

She whirled around, seeing the teen along with a now-conscious Mikasa walking towards her. "You don't have to shout. I'm right here."

Jean was as white as a sheet, like he just saw a ghost. "There's a... you need to come to the Wall."

Tilting her head in confusion, Hanji asked, "What are you talking about?"

"You wouldn't believe us if we told you," Mikasa answered, just as shocked as Jean was.

Curiosity getting the better of her, she told the duo, "Lead the way, then."

Hanji followed the two as they all but ran to the area in question. What she saw once she rounded the corner caused her to skid to an abrupt halt, jaw dropping.

A small crowd of civilians that were stupid enough not to evacuate had gathered and were looking upward at the hole Elise made in the Wall. Inside was the skinless face of a Titan that bore similarities to the Colossal Titan. Its eyes slowly drifted downwards, staring directly at the people watching it.

"Tell me this is just a nightmare," Jean pleaded. "I'm just hallucinating because of my head injury."

Hanji shook her head with disbelief. She had seen and heard so many crazy things lately, but this was pure insanity. "That's impossible."

Hanji was caught off guard by a hand clapping down on her shoulder. The owner, Pastor Nick, was panting heavily, having ran all the way to the Wall.

"Pastor Nick?" she asked, surprised.

"Listen to me," he urged, doubled over. "Whatever you do, don't let sunlight touch it!"

Hanji's eyes narrowed dangerously. This wasn't a frightened man who discovered something horrific for the first time. This was frightened man that had something horrific discovered no one was supposed to find out about. However, she would have to wait on that. The sun was setting, and the light of its rays were edging closer and closer to the Titan's face. "You heard the man!" she called out, rallying the soldiers in the area. "Unless you want the end of humanity itself, cover the damn hole."