"Who are you?" |Reader Insert| |Attack on Titan| |Book 1|

Relentless

You and the rest of the Survey Corps rode well into the night. Once you got under the cover of the forest, you dismounted and continued on foot. The lights you held in your hand were remaining crystals of Rod Reiss's underground chapel. They were much brighter than normal torches. Even though your sight had grown accustomed to darkness, a little light won't hurt either. The soldier to your side, who you didn't know the name of, tripped over his own feet and stumbled into you. The light dropped to the ground. You caught and held him up by his cloak.

"You have eyes, Shithead," you said, "Use them." A whimper left his mouth.

"So-sorry!"
You pushed him back and continued to walk forward.

"Are we not at the foot? Dawn is close."
You walked up to Dirk and Levi who stopped to watch your interaction with the other soldier. Dirk looked down at the small map in his hand.

"Once we're over this mountain, Shiganshina's right there," he replied. You let out a slight sigh.

"Titan on the left! Everyone halt! Light up the area!"
You turned and pulled out one of your Eclipses. The others shone their lights on a sitting titan propped against a small rise. Everyone drew their swords. Tension rose amongst you.

"It's all right," Hanji said, "He's fast asleep. This lad must not be one of those new types that moves at night. That's too bad. Let him be."
You holstered your gun at her words and began to walk again. Unlike most nights, there was no moonlight. It was the new moon, so no residual sunlight was able to aid the titans.
You continued walking for a few minutes, side by side with Levi who remained quiet. You also weren't one for talking on missions unless necessary.

"I can see the foot!" You heard Moblit call to those behind her. "There's signs of a trail!"
The forest slowly grew less dense and the foot trail became more visible. By the time you all arrived at the edge of the forest, the break of dawn was among you.

"We continue on horse from here! Keep an eye for any titans!" Erwin ordered. You mounted yours as did everyone else. You glanced at Levi once before taking off into the open. The broken wall was close, as was the operation. The thunderous pounding of horse hooves echoed through the air and your ears. By now, daybreak had happened, and it was shining brightly.

"Be on guard for titans hiding in the shadows!" Erwin yelled as you rode through the old village. "Our operation begins now! All troops, switch to 3DMG!" As you got closer to the gate, you pulled up your hood like the others. Multiple soldiers left to go to the wall before you. Levi also stood up on his horse and drew his blades. You watched him maneuver himself to the wall.

'Damn.' You stood up and shot your hooks into the wall, swinging and pulling yourself after the others. You got to the top of the wall and looked out over Shinganshina. You walked to the edge of the wall.

'Home away from home, I guess.' You thought, eyes scanning below. Charred stone drew your attention.

'What's that?' You walked up to the black spot and kneeled next to it. You sniffed the air.

'A fire. Someone was camping here.' You'd recognize the smell of char anywhere. You heard Armin walk up behind you and look over your shoulder.

"That's..." He trailed off. You stood up and he raised his arm towards Erwin.

"They're here and close," you said, eyes once again scanning the entire district, but this time more carefully.

"Yeah... Bertholdt and Reiner!" Armin replied. A few minutes later, green smoke signals were shot off, signaling the operation is a go. On the other side of the district, you could see the tiny figure of Eren fly up into the air. Yellow light exploded from him, lightning crashing into the ground. The light died down. It was quiet for a few minutes, but you felt slight tremors go through the wall. A little after that, two green flares were shot off.

'Successful.' You thought, but something else went through your mind.

'Surely they'd expect us to come here, waiting. This too easy. I've seen this before. They'll fool us into thinking we have an advantage, but they'll reveal themselves and reverse the roles.' With that thought, you hastily walked up to Erwin who stood with Dirk.

"Erwin," you called, "Keep your eyes out. The enemy is waiting." Both of their eyes turned to you.

"Waiting? For what?" Erwin asked.

"A signal, perhaps. Maybe they're waiting for Eren to seal both gates. Or until they're found out," you replied. Wire zipping made you turn your head. Armin appeared from below the wall and landed next to you.

"I looked into it," he said, "I'm pretty sure someone was camping. The pot was cold and lights were scattered on the ground. They were drinking something like black tea."

"So they were waiting," you spoke out. Armin nodded at you.

"Yes. Also, there were three cups with drops of black liquid in it. At least, there were three people atop the wall."
Dirk let out a small gasp.

"Th-three you say!?"
You turned your head to the houses.

"Was the metal pot completely cool?" Erwin asked.

"Yes," Armin replied.

"I find that odd."

"Armin," you called, "Where did you find the campsite?"

"Near the wall," he replied. You nodded and jumped off of the ledge. You hooked your wire into the stone and slowly descended to the ground. It was pretty obvious where the camp was.
You walked over to it and kneeled down. The faint smell of smoke still lingered in the air.

'The pot and cups are cool, but the fire was put out later. They knew we were coming.' You looked up at the wall and scanned its stone.

'Hiding in houses is practical, but simple and obvious. They've outsmarted us before. Why?' You touched the cup and felt the cold metal beneath your fingers.

'Because they think like titans and we think like humans.'

Ja ne!

{Ruby Red}