The Warriors of the Walls

Ghosts in the Daylight

AURORA

Steam billowed into the air as the deformed Titan's scream assaulted our ears before collapsing to the valley floor below in a grotesque display that had my insides rolling with nausea.

This isn't working.

Three times Eren had transformed, and three times he had failed to produce anything resembling hardened Titan skin or whatever it was that the walls are made of and each time he had done so, his Titan had suffered, alarming us to the fact that despite the great power Eren's Titan held, it had very real limitations.

Not only do we learn that monsters are protecting us from more monsters but every time we think we understand what we're dealing with, the posts get moved and were left behind...

"EREN!" Mikasa's cries of anguish rang up to where I was standing from the clifftop above with Levi, Hange, Moblit, Armin and Historia observing the malformed Titan body that had half of Eren's human body protruding from the nape in such a way that my anxiety was beginning to rise because if Eren's titan form was taking a hit, then his human body had to be suffering too.

We have to stop this, if we push anymore, we risk harming Eren further and I can't allow that to happen.

"What's wrong, Eren!? Get up!" Hange stormed and I turned to glare at her as she continued to berate Eren like he wasn't already giving this his all, "The future of humanity depends on you god damn it! GET UP!"

"Enough!" I snapped as I took a step towards her, my hand gesturing to my brother as he lay collapsed in his Titan form, spent, "Can't you see that he is done?!"

"She's right," Levi reasoned as he stepped in front of me and blocked my path, his hand held out to me in warning, "This is the third time and his form has changed again. He's not even 10ms tall, and some of his body lacks muscle. Plus, Eren's scrawny ass is hanging out."

"I can see that!" Hange snarled, not willing to give up despite the cost it could bring, "Eren think you can still move?! Give us a signal or something will ya!?"

No response was given by way of movement or noise as steam continued to billow out from the rapidly disintegrating Titan below us, and crying out again in the anguish that I too was feeling at seeing Eren as he was, Mikasa jumped from the back off her horse before barrelling towards Eren, startling Jean, who reached out towards her to stop her hurtling into the boiling steam.

"Mikasa wait up!" Jean cried, but he was too late as Mikasa Clambered onto Eren's Titan form, wincing as this steam burnt her clothed skin but no less deterred. 

My brave girl...

"Great. The brats at it again, off to the rescue. She never learns does she." Levi drawled, and despite the truth of his words, I still slapped the back of my hand across his chest before shooting him an icy glare that had him shrugging, because that was my brat he was talking about.

"This isn't working Hange, he isn't responding." I said through gritted teeth as I pushed my way past Levi to meet Hange's eyes with challenge, "Eren can't go on like this, not unless your goal is to harm him so much that we have no chance of plugging wall Maria?" 

and I know you don't want that...

Staring into my eyes, Hange's face fell as she realised that I wasn't just speaking as someone who cared deeply for Eren and his wellbeing but as someone who was working towards the same goals as she, and as such I wasn't fighting her on this for the sake of it, but rather because it was the truth.

"Agreed. We're done here." Hange relented before engaging her ODM gear and shooting off towards Eren, without a second glance in my direction, Moblit hot on her heels as he always was, "EREEEEN!"