In Between The Ends

Chapter Forty Seven

     The Scouts' concern regarding the intentions of the government turned out to be well warranted, though they never got the chance to discover this for themselves. Just as the sun was creeping its way up from behind the neighboring mountain range, a small and unassuming military party could be found walking purposefully through the halls of the housing branch of the parliament building, coming to a stop at the end of the hall and knocking gently on Armin's door.

President Wohl assured his worried cabinet members that this was not an arrest; maintaining the image of friendship with the Eldian heroes was of utmost importance if they wished to avoid any more civil unrest, and he only desired more time to reason with them before they became tangled up in something they couldn't possibly understand. Armin and his people were as just and valiant as they had always been, but the risk of open war was more than Marly could withstand under the current climate and had to be avoided at all costs, even if that meant discord between the races they governed.

More than his desire to hold the broken pieces of his country together, Andre Wohl was terrified, though he would never admit to it. Why were these children so keen to dig up the past and test the strength of their already compromised world? The memory of their conviction surfaced in President Wohl's mind as he paced his office in the growing sunlight, awaiting the arrival of the Scouts, and the power behind their courage sent a shiver down his spine. What kind of fire burned inside those war-hardened youths that allowed them to greet the end of days like an old friend; to stare down the barrel of a gun wielded by the universe itself and still take one step after another, despite the odds?

Wohl knew firsthand the effects war could have on a person, having fought through them for most of his life as a commander in the Marlyean Army. Half the time, those who witnessed the death and cruelty of combat were left a hollow shadow of the people they had once been, and their minds never quite left the graveyard that was a battlefield. But every war he had taken part in had been against people; folks from distant lands who saw the world through a different lens than he did, so therefore was a threat to their way of life.

These kids, however, especially the Paradis natives, have been fighting their whole lives against enemies Wohl could barely wrap his head around. Not only had they spent countless years under the weight of the Titan's massive feet, but they also grappled with the wrath of an entire world in the process. The life they led should have crushed them; the pressure placed on their shoulders should have driven them to madness long ago, and yet here they were, ready to take on another insurmountable task with the weight of humanity's survival on their backs, like it was simply their lot in life to do so.

They fought against fate itself, and President Wohl couldn't help but admit that as the record stood, they had been more or less successful in this endeavor. If his mind hadn't been so addled with fear as it was, he may have been able to say that despite the current condition of Marly and the rest of the world, it was the fortitude of Armin and his people that allowed humanity to survive, if only partly, and maybe, just maybe, they could do it all over again, one more time.

But he was afraid, and in the end, it was that fear that drove him forward, dwarfing all his thoughts and feelings and condensing them down into one singular thought: the protection of his country, and to a lesser urgency, his own skin.

He could now hear several sets of hurried footsteps making their way down the hall towards his office, and the President of Marly turned to his door expectantly. Gripping his hands tightly behind his back, Wohl braced himself for the onslaught of anger that would surely be directed at him, trying fruitlessly to mask his hysteria with some form of righteous authority.

It's better this way, my dear Armin. He thought as the large brass doorknob began to turn. Otherwise, who knows what kind of trouble you might get yourself into.