Because Of You

Chapter 25

"Wait, wait, backup." Eren interrupted Hange's introduction to Pastor Nick. "You're joking, right? He knew and he kept quiet?" He questioned,

It was annoying to Carmen, because she knew that if the man in front of her talked, he'd likely be tortured and killed, she often was the cause of their pain. That said, Carmen didn't know much about the topic he was hiding, she was only given names and locations, rarely anything about the walls or the titans.

"Uh-huh. Afraid so. Sums up where we are with him." Hange replied. "Cats out if the bag now of course. He's not willing to talk yet, but we'll see how he feels after a harsh dose of reality. Faith keeps him quiet. First hand experience though..."

"To hell with that!" Eren stood from his chair. "We've got this backwards. If this son of a bitch knows something, he needs to come out with it. Humanity's on the brink of extinction and all you care about is keeping your oath?" The boy gripped his pounding head, trying to ease his headache.

"There's more than one way to get at the truth." Levi took the safety of his gun. "Granted, I may not be in top form at the moment, but it doesn't take much effort to squeeze a trigger. That said, I'm genuinely hoping I won't have to blow a hole in you too settle this."

"Threats don't work on people like this." Carmen interrupted him.

"Oh?" Hange followed up, curious as they were about to say the same thing.

"If he's been allowing thousands of people to die, then he won't mind sacrificing himself for whatever cause he's protecting." She explained. "That, and the fact that if he talks, he'll be killed."

"Of course." Hange realised. "Nick is only a pastor, nothing but an mouthpiece, easily disposed of. There's got to be others, and we need to find them if we're going to stand a chance at bettering the world."

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves." Levi interrupted their hypothesis. "Right now, we've got enough on our plates. Especially with the titan breach."

"That's right." Hange nodded, turning to the assassin once again. "Am I right in recalling you have family in Wall Rose?"

Carmen's face didn't move, but she was panicking internally. A lie that she'd almost forgotten about had caught up to her, but it was an easy fix, she just hoped she wouldn't upset anyone with her next lie. "Had." Carmen corrected, insinuating they were dead. In all fairness, they could be, she'd never met them.

"Oh, you never mentioned that." Hange looked down, slightly empathetic but still not sure whether to believe the woman.

"What can I say, I enjoy my privacy." Carmen replied, wishing she could bring up the letters that Levi had stolen from her, but knowing she shouldn't. "What's that?" The woman then asked as she eyed a rock in Hange's hands. One that they'd been toying with since they arrived in the wagon.

"Since when are you a geologist? Or are rocks just that fascinating, looks like you're about to drool." Levi added, noticing Carmen's point.

"What this? It's not a rock, not an ordinary one anyway." Hange answered. "It's a hardened piece of skin left behind by the female titan."

"It didn't vanish?" Armin questioned.

"No, this random fragment broke off when Annie reverted back to her human form. It didn't evaporate, didn't simply go poof. And when I compared it with a slither of the wall, it's texture and composition were, for all intents and purposes, very virtually identical. In simple terms, we're hemmed in by a barricade of enormous titans. If my hypothesis is correct, the surface was constructed using lots of consolidated titan skin." The scientist explained, shocking a few of those in the wagon.

"You're kidding me, that's just what Armin was saying." Mikasa revealed.

"So then-!"

"Easy now." Hange pushed their hand over his mouth, stopping Armin from talking. "It's rude to steal someone else's thunder. As it stands, we'd be hard pressed, to find a rock big enough to plug wall Rose. It'd have to be just the right size and we don't have specifics yet. But on the other hand, where there's a will, there's a way. Picture Eren utilising his hardening ability while in titan form."

"I could, patch the hole." Eren realised.

"The sealing should be composed of the same material. And the hardened bit won't dissolve once you've transformed back, this might be less of a long shot than it sounds. Thoughts?"

Carmen had many doubts, not knowing whether to reveal them, but when she made eye contact with Hange, she knew she had to share her views. "It goes without saying that the Female Titan was far more skilled than Eren." She responded, watching as Eren tried to protest but she didn't give him the chance. "She's been trained, that much is obvious. However, we don't know to what extent, or who trained her in the beginning. Let's assume Eren can reach the same capabilities, who's going to allow him to achieve them?"

"It's clear that a lot of work is needed, but I'm willing to devote all of my time figuring out a way to unlock this power." Hange clenched their fists, it was likely true, meaning Carmen felt slightly sorry for Eren. "The straights we're in are as dire as they come, but there might just be a tiny bit of slack."

"Yeah, just bare in mind though, the whole plan hinges on whether or not Eren can seal the hole again."

"It's, probably unfair of me to ask. But do you think you can?" The section commander asked as all eyes suddenly became glued to Eren. Some filled with emotion, some void of it.

"What he thinks isn't really the issue." Levi interrupted the silence, knowing Eren's answer wasn't clear. "You either will, or you won't. That's the reality. Our comrades are breaking their backs, but without you, it's nothing. Failure isn't an option."

"Sir! I know." Eren answered too loudly. "And I'm prepared to do whatever it takes. That's a promise. My fathers cell, that's where the answers are. If there's a grain of truth in what he told me, everything depends on us making it there."

"But..." Carmen began to think out loud, but suddenly stopped when she realised the others look at her with both concern and worry. "Never mind."

"Go on, you can't just leave us in the dark now." Hange persisted, but the outcome they were hoping for didn't exist.

"Is all of this really worth it?" The assassin asked. "I'm aware I'm relatively new to this when being compared to the likes of you two, but surly you're thinking the same thing, right?"

"And what might that be?" The captain wondered.

"How many of us are going to die?" Carmen elaborated. "Half the regiment was lost during the last expedition, not to mention my squad. What I'm wondering is, do we have enough people to make this goal a reality? And if so, are any of us going to be alive to view the product of our sacrifices?"

"Erwin will find a way, he always has. Every angle is always analysed, if he was willing to fight for Eren's security in the scouts, then he sure as hell has a back up plan, that's something we can count on." Levi answered, though even he had his doubts. The special operations squad was left with two people, one of them was a titan shifting brat, and the other was an untrusting traitor. The odds weren't in his favour when it came to surviving future battles.

"You can't give orders from the grave. Who's going to form those plans when he dies?" Carmen argued.

"Is that a threat?"

"It's a warning. If he's humanity's future, then I have to advise he refrains from participating in expeditions."

Levi was taken back by Carmen's statement, he expected her to threaten Erwin, after all, she was a traitor. But instead, she was suggesting that they kept him safe. He couldn't exactly argue with her on that point, he too wanted the commander to be preserved at all costs.

"Come on, we're here. You can discuss this later." Hange stopped their talk, guiding the group off the wagon and towards the gates.