The air around me was unnervingly still, unchanged as if the universe itself hadn’t noticed eren was gone.
Why was there no rain? No storm to echo the turmoil within me?
It seemed the world didn’t pause for his loss.
I could feel a surge of despair threatening to break free, but I knew I had to suppress it. I had to endure, for now... to navigate through this battle, for them.
I jumped when Connie's voice cut through the stillness. He was looking at Armin, disgust wrinkling his face. "What the hell you got all over you that's so damn slimy?"
Had I been so lost in my own world that I hadn't noticed him arrive?
Taking a few steps closer, I scanned Connie quickly; he wasn’t injured. Relief washed over me briefly—he needed to survive this. "Penny, what...happened?" he asked, turning to me now.
Armin, hearing connie's question let out a scream so raw it seemed to rip from the depths of his soul, startling connie, and I stood motionless, my expression unreadable.
As Armin's shout tore through the air, filled with his own despair—"You're worthless! Why can't you just die?"—I acted instinctively. My hand clamped over his mouth, halting his harsh words abruptly. I held it there firmly, silencing him, preventing more of his agonizing self-criticism from spilling out.
"Armin, please, stop," I implored, gazing deeply into his eyes as I slowly lowered my hand. "You need to survive this, so please, stop"
"Where is everyone?" Connie's question, loaded with dread, hit me like a blow. I stiffened, every part of me screaming to avoid the truth. Please, don’t make me say it.
Ymir's response was calm but cutting. "Let it go, Connie. It's just them ; the rest are gone." I glanced at Ymir, her usual bluntness bordering on rudeness, yet it was a dynamic we understood between us.
As Ymir and Connie's heated argument escalated, I remained unfazed by their bickering. None of it mattered; as long as they were alive, that was enough for me.
Krista approached Ymir, her gaze shifting between the quarreling parties. "Both of you, stop it right now," she said softly, her voice tinged with exhaustion, aiming to defuse the tension.
She continued, her tone still gentle but firm, "We're watching our friends die like animals—it's only natural to feel upset."
I noticed Armin trembling, clearly distraught by everything happening around us. Silently, I prayed he could hold himself together—he absolutely had to.
