Libertas ↠ AOT

XXVII

The shock of Gunther's sudden death quickly washed away. They had to act swiftly if any of them wanted to make it out of this situation alive. The person responsible had disappeared through the trees and was nowhere to be seen but it was likely that they would return.

"Oruo, grab Eren!" Antheia barked out an order, trying to keep a level head despite the horrific sight she just witnessed.

"Go kid, come on!" Oruo yelled as he grabbed the back of Eren's uniform to pull him away from Gunther's lifeless body. "Keep moving!"

"We're—we're just leaving him?!" Eren asked in protest.

"It's better than ending up like him!" Antheia shouted, holding onto the handles of her blades until her knuckles turned white.

The unknown 'soldier' who killed Gunther showed themselves once more, now trailing behind the group as if assessing the situation and figuring out a plan.

"Who is that?!" Petra asked.

"Keep him away from Eren!" Eld hollered.

"Or her," Antheia quickly added, subtly letting them know that it was a possibility their foe was the Female Titan.

"Damnit! Hey, Captain Antheia, what are we doing, huh?!" Oruo asked, sweat dripping down his face while he kept his eyes on the murderer who was following them.

Antheia's head was whirring with the various possibilities laid out in front of her. They could try and get to their horses but there was no guarantee that they'd be able to put enough distance between them and the enemy in order to safely mount them in the first place, and if she was correct in her assumption that they were being followed by the Female Titan herself there was no way that they'd be able to outrun her on horseback. They couldn't turn around and try and regroup with the others because the cloaked figure was standing in their way and if they made a move to attack them there was no doubt in her mind that they'd assume Titan form—blasting away the Special Operations Squad who would be too close and providing them with a clear path to take Eren. Right now their safest option was to retreat with their ODMG and hope they don't run out of gas before making it back to the other soldiers or the wall, only engaging in combat when the Female Titan showed up.

"We keep going! Move as quickly as you can, we have to get back to base!" She ordered them when she had made up her mind, taking less than a second to decide on their course of action.

They continued to fly forwards as fast as their gear would take them, the enemy right behind them at all times and keeping a steady pace so as to not fall far behind the group.

"Is that the Female Titan? Or did she have an accomplice?" Oruo wondered out loud, everybody watching their shadow.

"Damn. Whoever it is, they're gonna pay even if it's the last thing I do!" Petra exclaimed furiously.

"Calm down," Antheia interrupted her, "I get that you want to avenge Gunther's death, believe me I do, but now isn't the time to be getting emotional. We need to focus on everyone who's still alive rather than those who are already lost." Despite her seemingly cold words, Antheia was filled to the brim with unfathomable anger towards the person who had killed her comrade and friend, her heart constricting in her chest everytime she thought about his limp body. "And to answer your question, I believe that it's the Female Titan. I doubt an accomplice would have waited this long to attack. It's possible that she somehow managed to escape. Either way, I'm sure we'll find out soon enough who they really are."

The assumed Female Titan suddenly stopped following them, moving back into the thicket of trees while the Special Operations Squad continued onwards. Nobody felt at ease at their actions. For a moment everything was quiet and still, even the wind decided to go elsewhere. Then there was a blinding light that came from what looked like an amber lightning strike. They all knew what the light meant.