Glass Heart Syndrome

Chapter 17

Morning came with a heavy mist blanketing the city. Eren pulled himself from a restless sleep, feeling every ache, both of body and mind. The taste of last night lingered on his tongue like bitter ash. He pushed it down, forcing himself into the rhythm of the morning—washing up, dressing, fitting his cloak over his shoulders. Today, he told himself, he'd keep his focus sharp. Letting his thoughts stray was a weakness, one he couldn't afford.

As he stepped into the main room of the safehouse, Alista was there, her gaze following him with an unreadable intensity. The corners of her mouth curved in a barely-there smile, yet her eyes held no warmth.

"Not everyone has it in them," she murmured, almost to herself, but her words were clearly meant for him.

Eren met her gaze, his expression guarded. "I don't see the point in holding back. This world certainly doesn't."

A flicker of something crossed her face, gone too quickly for him to read. "A hard line to walk," she said, her voice low. "Once you've crossed it, it's easy to lose sight of where you're going."

He let her words hang in the air, his own thoughts refusing to settle. Alista had always been an enigma, hovering between loyalty to Niall and some unspoken agenda of her own. He was learning not to trust her—or anyone, for that matter—but there was a strange clarity in her gaze that drew him in, like she was holding secrets he was close to understanding.

Niall entered, his usual authoritative stride breaking their silent exchange. "Eren," he began without preamble. "You're moving with Alista today. We've got an informant inside one of the council's archives. He'll meet you at the west end tonight, but he'll need an escort to get out. The documents he's carrying are... sensitive."

Eren nodded, the weight of the task settling over him. "What kind of resistance are we expecting?"

"Guards, no doubt," Niall replied, a faint smirk on his face. "But you're up to it. Alista's there to keep you from overstepping."

Alista's eyebrow raised just a fraction, and Eren caught the hint of challenge in her gaze. "I hope you don't plan on making my job difficult," she remarked, her tone laced with mockery.

Eren met her smirk with a steady look. "Depends on whether you keep up."

---

As dusk fell, Eren and Alista made their way through the winding alleys toward the council's archives, their cloaks drawn close. The city seemed alive with whispers tonight, shadows flickering across the narrow streets as if they, too, were keeping secrets.

The informant was waiting at the designated spot—a thin, nervous man with ink-stained fingers and a sharp, bird-like face. He clutched a worn satchel to his chest, glancing around with quick, panicked movements.

"You're late," he hissed, casting a suspicious glance at Alista and then at Eren.

"Stay quiet, and follow us," Alista replied, her tone cold and commanding. "We don't have time for your nerves."

The man fell silent, nodding in jerky agreement as they began moving through the shadows, keeping close to the buildings to avoid detection. Eren scanned their surroundings, his senses heightened, every sound magnified in the stillness of the night. The council archives were heavily guarded—more so after the recent raid—and the slightest slip could mean their deaths.

As they approached the narrow street leading to the exit, a flicker of movement caught Eren's eye. He held up a hand, signaling for them to stop. The faint glint of metal caught the moonlight, and he realized they weren't alone.

Guards. Three of them, stationed just ahead, their attention focused on the entrance they'd need to pass through. Eren's mind raced, calculating. They could try to slip past, but with the informant's panic, it was a risk.

Alista seemed to come to the same conclusion. "Stay back," she whispered to Eren and the informant, slipping into the shadows with a predatory grace. Eren watched as she moved, her steps silent, precise, closing the distance toward the nearest guard with lethal intent.

In one swift motion, she struck, her dagger finding its mark in the guard's throat, stifling his cry before it could alert the others. The other two guards turned, their eyes widening as they registered the threat, but Eren was already moving, his own blade flashing as he engaged them.

The first guard swung his blade in a wide arc, his form clumsy with the haste of surprise. Eren ducked, feeling the rush of air as the blade whistled past his head, before driving his own dagger up, catching the guard just beneath his ribs. The man staggered, his eyes wide with shock, before crumpling to the ground.

The third guard, however, had regained his wits and lunged at Alista, his blade aimed for her heart. She twisted, catching his arm and forcing him off-balance, but the guard's strength proved formidable. They grappled, the two of them locked in a deadly struggle as Eren stepped forward, his grip tightening on his blade.

He moved without thought, his body acting on instinct. A quick, lethal slice, and the guard fell, his life bleeding out onto the cobblestones. Alista glanced up, meeting Eren's gaze, and he saw a flicker of respect there—brief, but undeniable.

"Efficient," she murmured, her tone as sharp as her blade.

Eren merely nodded, his focus already shifting to the informant, who had gone pale, his eyes wide with fear. "Keep moving," Eren said, his voice firm. "Or you'll end up like them."

The threat seemed to snap the man back to reality, and he nodded quickly, clutching his satchel like a lifeline as they resumed their journey through the maze of alleys. Eren could feel Alista's gaze on him, a silent assessment that made his skin prickle.

When they finally reached the rendezvous point, the informant exhaled a shaky sigh of relief. "Thank you," he mumbled, voice barely a whisper.

Eren watched him go, feeling an odd sense of detachment. He'd protected the man, delivered him to safety—but at what cost? The line he'd drawn for himself, the boundary he'd once held sacred, felt increasingly blurred.

As they turned to leave, Alista's voice cut through the silence, low and piercing. "You did well tonight, Eren. But remember this: every choice leaves a mark. And if you're not careful, you might wake up one day and find you no longer recognize the man staring back at you."

Her words hung in the night air, heavy and unyielding, filling the silence that followed them as they made their way back through the twisting alleys. Eren kept his gaze forward, his mind churning.

In the stillness of the night, he couldn't shake the feeling that her warning was more than just words. It was a glimpse of what he was becoming—a reminder of the path he'd chosen, and the darkness that awaited him if he dared to look back.