The words caught in Armin's throat as he knelt on the cold stone, his body trembling with disbelief. "It made a hole in the wall? Like it was nothing," he whispered, his voice was faint above the growing commotion.
A shadow fell across the ground as the first Titan emerged from the gaping breach, stepping from darkness into the harsh sunlight. Its long, jet-black hair swayed with each step, framing a smile that stretched unnaturally wide across its twisted face. Its cheeks rose high with the grin, revealing rows of massive teeth beneath eyes filled with childlike amusement.
Then, as if drawn by the scent of terror, it turned its gaze to the right—toward the panicked crowd.
Screams erupted.
People scattered in all directions, pushing and shoving, some clutching their children close as they ran.
"Run for your life! It breached the wall!" someone shrieked.
Armin scrambled to his feet, his heart hammering against his ribs.
"We have to go!" he yelled, his voice tight with fear.
He was about to run when he noticed something that made his blood run cold.
Eren stood frozen, his body rigid, eyes locked onto the breach. He wasn't moving. He was walking—slowly—toward the incoming Titans.
Armin's stomach twisted.
"Eren, no!!" he cried out.
But Eren didn't stop. His lips barely moved as he mumbled, his voice almost lost in the chaos.
"My house… it's in that direction… my mom is alone…"
A sudden realization struck Mikasa like a knife to the chest.
Carla.
Without hesitation, she turned on her heel and rushed after Eren.
"Mikasa!" Armin called out, his arm outstretched, fingers trembling so violently that he had to grasp his wrist with his other hand just to steady himself. But as he withdrew his hand, clutching it to his chest, tears welled in his eyes. His breath hitched, and in that moment, the weight of reality came crashing down on him.
"Th-This is the end," he choked out, his breath coming in ragged gasps. "They're inside... we... we..." He struggled to form the words as terror overwhelmed him. "Every last one of us is going to be devoured."
The city was in chaos.
Buildings trembled, debris rained from above, and terrified screams filled the air. But as humanity ran away from the titans, two figures sprinted in the opposite direction—toward the destruction.
Eren and Mikasa raced through the ruined streets, their lungs burning, their feet pounding against the cracked stone. Smoke and dust choked the air, swirling around them like a suffocating mist. Massive chunks of the wall had crushed entire houses, leaving only broken remains of what were once homes.
Eren's eyes darted frantically from side to side as he ran, taking in the devastation.
In the middle of the road, a mother knelt, wailing over the lifeless body of her young son. Blood pooled beneath them where a boulder had struck, cracking the earth. The child's small hand still clutched his mother's dress, his dull eyes staring—emptied of the light they once held.
Eren's throat tightened as he pushed himself to run faster, his mind racing with desperate hope.
'My house is fine. My house is fine. There's no way it was hit. I'm sure she's already escaped. Once I turn that corner... it'll just be there, just in one piece.'
But as he rounded the corner, his breath caught in his throat.
His home was gone.
His legs nearly gave out as his eyes widened in horror. A massive section of the wall had collapsed onto the house, crushing it beneath the weight of stone and timber. Smoke and dust still lingered, the air heavy with the scent of destruction.
"Mom!!"
Eren's scream tore through the air as he dashed forward, barely aware of Mikasa running beside him.
He reached the wreckage, and for a moment, his heart stopped.
Carla was there—trapped beneath the collapsed house. The wooden beams and rubble pinned her down, her body barely visible under the destruction.
Eren fell to his knees, clawing at the debris.
"Mom! Hold on, we'll get you out!"
Carla's eyes fluttered open, weak and unfocused.
"Eren… wait…" Her voice was strained, barely above a whisper.
But Eren wasn't listening.
"Mikasa, grab that pillar! We're lifting it together!"
"Hnnngh!"
They strained, pulling with everything they had, veins bulging in their arms. But the wreckage wouldn't budge.
A deep, earth-shaking sound sent a chill down Eren's spine.
THOOM!
THOOM!
He turned his head—and froze.
There they were—the Titans, moving between the buildings in the distance, towering four stories high as they advanced toward them.
But Eren didn't care. If anything, the sight only made him more desperate.
He turned back to his mother and redoubled his efforts.
"Mikasa, hurry!"
"NNNGH! I'm trying," she groaned out, her usually composed face twisted with strain.
Carla heard the approaching footsteps.
She knew.
"It's them," she said, her voice tight with fear. "You've got to get out of here."
"No!" Eren shouted, struggling against the debris. "I won't leave you!"
Carla's voice grew more urgent.
"Eren! Just take Mikasa and run—NOW!"
Still struggling with the beam, Eren shot back, "I want to more than anything, but first I need you on your feet!"
Carla's breath came in shallow gasps, sweat trickling down her face as she stared up at her son with wide, desperate eyes. "Sweetie, listen to me," she pleaded, her voice shaking as she clutched at the debris pinning her down. "My legs have been crushed. Even if you can get me out of here, I can't run. There's no time."
Eren looked at her, his eyes wide and shimmering with tears that threatened to spill over. "Whatever! I can carry you!" he shouted, denial fueling his words.
Carla's own tears streamed down her face as she finally yelled at her son, "Will you shut up and listen to me just once in your life?"
Carla turned to Mikasa, her eyes pleading.
"Mikasa… please…"
Mikasa shook her head, tears trickling down her cheeks as she lowered her face, unable to meet Carla's eyes.
"One thing," Carla begged. "I'm asking you one thing."
Not far from the collapsed house, a Titan loomed over the buildings, its grin stretching wide across its face. Each step sent tremors rippling through the ground.
KR-THOOM!!
The earth split beneath its massive foot, fractures spiderwebbing outward as dust and small rocks jolted into the air.
Its hollow eyes gleamed with eerie hunger, lips curled into a nightmarish smirk as it advanced—unrelenting, inevitable
Despite the approaching danger, Eren and Mikasa hadn't given up. They pulled at the beam with renewed strength, fueled by sheer desperation.
"You want all three of us to die?" Carla asked, her voice breaking.
Before she could continue, a familiar figure appeared, soaring through the air. The sharp hiss of ODM gear filled the air as steel cables shot out, anchoring into a nearby building. Gas propelled the soldier through the air in a controlled arc, the harness distributing his weight as he controlled with practiced precision.
Hannes landed before them, his ODM gear hissing as he steadied himself.
Carla's eyes widened with a desperate spark of hope.
"Hannes!"
He knelt, surveying the scene, his expression tightening.
"Take the children and run," Carla pleaded.
Hannes looked shocked at her request, but quickly regained his composure, offering a confident smile. "Come on, Carla, that's not our only option," he said, his voice firm with confidence.
He drew his blades.
"Hey. I'm a trained soldier. My skill set is killing Titans and saving lives."
With that, he turned and sprinted toward the incoming Titan.
Carla's breath hitched.
"No, wait! Please—!"
Hannes' thoughts raced as he charged forward. 'Not a chance. Just take it down, get the three of them out of harm's way, and make good on the debt you owe!'
But as he drew closer, the reality of what he faced hit him like a physical blow.
The Titan stood before him.
Its grin stretched impossibly wide sending a chill down his spine.
Long blonde hair framed its twisted, smiling face, swaying gently in the wind as it towered above him.
Its lifeless eyes locked onto him, soulless and unblinking as if savoring his fear.
His breath hitched, His pulse pounding in his ears.
He tightened his grip on his blades.
But his body refused to move forward another step.
"I…"
The word barely escaped his lips, his voice trembling with disbelief as courage failed him.
In that moment, he made his choice.
Sheathing his blade, he turned and sprinted back to the children. In one fluid motion, he scooped up both Eren and Mikasa, one under each arm.
"No! What are you doing?" Eren shouted, pounding his fists against Hannes' back. "Put me down, you bastard!" His voice cracked with rage and grief as Hannes carried them away from the collapsed house.
Carla's expression softened, a strange calm settling over her. "Thank you, Hannes," she whispered.
"Wait, no! We can't just leave her!" Eren cried, his arms outstretched, hands reaching desperately for his mother as the distance between them grew.
Carla stretched her hand toward her son, tears welling in her eyes. "I love you! Do you hear me? Stay alive!" she shouted, her voice carrying across the distance that separated them.
In that moment, memories flashed before her eyes—Eren's birth, Mikasa joining their family, quiet evenings with Grisha—all the precious moments that made up her life. Her body trembled slightly as she covered her mouth with her hands, closing her eyes as tears streamed down her face.
"Please don't leave me," she whispered, her voice breaking with a sadness.
The ground suddenly shook violently beneath the ruined house. The Titan's presence loomed over Carla as it swept aside stones and wood with one massive hand, lifting her from the debris. She dangled helplessly in its grip, tiny and fragile as a doll in its enormous fingers.
"Stop it! Nooooo!" Eren screamed, watching in horror as his mother was raised toward the monster's face.
Carla struggled weakly against the Titan's grip, her fists pounding uselessly against the massive fingers that held her. Tears streamed down her face, her voice breaking into choked sobs as she fought against the inevitable. But it was futile. The Titan's grasp was unyielding.
With cruel amusement, it raised its other hand, its fingers closing gently—mockingly—around her head. For a fleeting moment, she could only gasp, eyes wide with terror. Then, with a sudden, merciless pull—
It tore her head from the body.
Her outstretched hands fell limp, her body hanging lifelessly in it hands, as if all that remained of her was an empty shell.
Eren and Mikasa fell silent in Hannes' grip, their bodies rigid with shock as they witnessed what came next.
The Titan's hands moved with terrible purpose.
A sickening crack echoed through the desolate street. Blood sprayed into the air, catching the sunlight in a fleeting crimson mist. It tilted its head back swallowing with chilling satisfaction, its grin widening as streams of red ran down its chin.
For a long moment, the Titan's gaze seemed to find Eren, its empty eyes somehow triumphant as it stared after the retreating figures.
In Hannes' arms, Eren's screams had died to silence—a silence more terrible than any cry of grief could ever be.