Hate 38

"My head still hurts," Sasha said as they all sat in the headquarters located within Trost. "So Eren and the others turned into creatures that used to be alive, and those creatures might take over? Does that make them zombies?"

"I hate that I have nothing to say against that," Jean muttered with a headshake.

"Maybe Sasha is onto something?" Connie suggested, looking around the room. "If they are like zombies or ghosts, maybe that's how Eren's Dad took human form again? It just stopped haunting him or something?"

"Eren's father had to have transformed more than once," Armin reminded. "Grisha took human form, then transformed back into the creature to fight Frieda."

Historia shifted awkwardly at that, reminded of the death of the family she never got a chance to meet. Given that curse of a vow their ancestor had put on them, she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not.

"I'm more confused by there being other giant creatures," Marco said, rubbing his head. "Titans are us Eldians, and some of us can apparently turn into creatures like Grice and Eren, but then there are these giant bats and other creatures that just...exist? And the rest of the world never knew about them/"

"Yeah, it's a real mess," Ymir agreed while leaning against a pillar. "Doesn't help that we're all keeping secrets."

"It would be easier if we all talked about this honestly," Marco agreed with a sigh.

"Given what we've learned about the origin of the Walls, it's not really surprising," Armin said, putting his hands together and leaning against them. "The commanders weren’t sure if they could trust Frieda and her government even after they decided to trust Eren and the others. Especially since they suspected there were more Titan Shifters after Ymir exposed herself."

Ymir waved half-heartedly in acknowledgment.

"There is the bigger issue," Jean said with a sigh. "Even if that blockhead and the other big ones trust us, they can't exactly trust themselves- or whatever is lurking in the back of their heads at least."

"Especially Eren's," Mikasa said with a frown.

Connie sighed heavily. "You know, the one thing that doesn't surprise me is that Eren somehow got the scariest, maybe even angriest one of the bunch."

"I'm just surprised Eren could keep a secret," Sasha said thoughtfully. "Buuuuut I guess that's mainly just the Middle one's doing. He is the smart one."

Armin said nothing as he stood to journey over to Mikasa as she watched out the window. They could see Eren a few blocks away, all three of his heads gazing upwards at the clouded sky.

"He's waiting, for whatever is coming," Mikasa said knowingly.

Armin had a halfhearted smile. "If he could, I'm sure Eren would have run off to meet this "Enemy of the Sun" on his own."

Mikasa’s expression was unchanged to most, but the subtle shifts told Armin she wasn't amused by the joke.

"Right, sorry," he said, gazing out to their friend. "You're more worried about the one in his head, aren't you?"

"And you aren't?" Mikasa asked.

"The only time Eren has lost control of it was when he had to regrow all three of his heads. From what Grice has said, that's a better track record than most of the other Giants," Armin pointed out reassuringly.

Mikasa continued to look out the window and wished that it would help the unease she felt, but it did not. After all, it only added to how strange Eren's beast was compared to the others.

Armin didn't say anything, but he shared Mikasa's sentiment in truth. Because he remembered those hellish eyes that had glared at him before Eren took back control. He had thought those eyes were far too intelligent to be just instincts. That trying to eat him had been a deliberate and malicious decision on that creature's part.

They had barely a day of tense silence before it began.

Eren had never stopped watching the skies with six narrowed eyes. Even if he couldn't tell when, he could sense something was coming now, and that it was close. It was a strange feeling in his mind, much like this body's extra form of vision. It was like being in water and feeling the waves ripple against him as something approached. But these ripples were sharp and sudden, like a titan's footsteps. Or his own, he supposed.

And he knew that this would be much more dangerous than the Colossal Titan.

{{{{Whelp.}}}}

Eren glanced back and inwards at the Voice of the Storm.

[What do you want?]Eren

The voice was silent for a moment.

{{{{Deal With This Cretin, Or I Will.}}}}

Eren's attention was forced outward as thunder cracked in the distance. The wind began to pick up, brushing against his scales as black clouds quickly approached.

"They're here!" Grice yelled out to everyone as he scaled the wall to reach the top, above where the breach had been.

[Runrunrunwediewediewedierunrunrun!]

Grice growled at the crawler within his mind. "Not a chance," he retorted harshly. Still, he didn't like the implications of it screaming at him to run and flee for his life. It hadn't acted like that when confronted with a swarm of these things, so whatever was coming.....

"Damn. I thought we'd have a bit more time," Levi remarked with a frown as soldiers ran to their battle position and stocked up on their equipment.

"We've barely had time to prepare. We just advised everyone on how to fight these things," Hange said with a frown. "Not to mention they've barely had time to practice with the new guns."

"We should never expect our enemies to be considerate of our time," Erwin remarked sagely as he joined them on the walls, their cloaks pulled harshly by the growing wind. "We have prepared all we can for this new enemy. Now, we must fight."

Both nodded grimly at that, before bracing as a stronger wind came over them, courtesy of Boris descending with Historia anchored to his back by her ODM gear. 

Using this chance, Historia disconnected and leaped off to land on the wall with the officers. "Commander, Sir!" Historia saluted in greeting. "Boris says they'll be here any moment, and....and that so will "He.""

They didn't need an elaboration on her meaning. "Enemy of the Sun, huh?" Levi remarked, looking upwards again at the pitch-black clouds blanketing over them.

"He certainly lives up to the title," Hange agreed with a frown.

Thunder cracked and roared as the soldiers ran to their position as rain began to pour from the heavens.

"This is crazy! How are we supposed to fight in this?!" a soldier at a cannon yelled over the wind.

"Like your life depends on it!" Rico called out sternly as she walked along the walls. "Because it does!"

She scanned the battlements as best she could. It was last minute, but every soldier now had a rifle on their back, ones capable of firing multiple bullets between reloads, and using small containers of bullets instead of gunpowder. Some of the lovely things coming from the government since the queen took the throne, something many looked on in either relief or suspicion.

But Rico had no time to ponder the political theater going on further within the walls. From up above, she heard the sounds of many creatures screeching.

Boris flew in circles just below the top of the wall's height while Ellie made her way to the center with Eren, who watched the skies with an impatient glare.

"Eren," Ellie called out, almost whimpering. "He's almost here."

[I know.]Eren

He never once looked away from the blackened sky churning above him.

Lightning began to strike. One hit a building in Trost. Another hit a cannon, making it explode and send shrapnel onto the soldiers. More and more it struck, as if the weather itself had become their enemy.

His foe was trying to intimidate him, Eren knew.

And It was pissing him off.

He inhaled deeply, his necks coiling inward before he napped his three heads and roared into the skies.

It was long and loud, echoing over all of Trost. Even the very storm seemed to quiet before his call, many looking at him in surprise.

Erwin narrowed his eyes. "Keep your eyes up!" he yelled his own command bellowing and pulling others out of their stupor. "The enemy has arrived!"

True to his words, the swarm of hellish bats burst from the clouds and descended upon the defenders of the wall like locusts upon a field of grain.

"Open fire!" Rico called out, gunshots and cannons echoing over the city as the battle began.

The barrage did not fell many of them. The wind and newness of the weapons made aiming the rifles hard, and the cannonballs often missed or fell before hitting a target. Still, the few that did fall were enough to spook the other bats near them.

Most soldiers quickly switched to using their blades. Using ODM gear to fight at the top of the walls was less than ideal, let alone in this weather with these kinds of foes, but it was their best recourse.

Screams echoed over Trost as many were killed and eaten by the hellbats, either swooping down on them before they could react or plucking them out of the air like morsels. Grice helped to fight them off as best he could, acting like bait one more- dangerous bait, his long tongue yanking an enemy out of the sky and crashing into the wall.

Levi led the charge in taking out many in the skies. In not for the eyes or heart, most went for the wings to send the monsters crashing down below. Aiding them was Boris who swooped throat, biting many of the foes and knocking more off flight with his greater size. The bats tried to bite and eat at him, but there was no coordinated effort to go after his wings to ground him. Still, some did and those scratches added up.

Hange led the forces that rushed through the city on ODM gear to put down any of the bats that survived falling. Injured wings did not make them helpless though, the giant creatures easily climbing and jumping around buildings. However, Ellie was more than ready to help them,  running the bats down, snapping necks and biting off heads with her powerful jaws.

A group of bats descended upon Eren, yet he did not move away. Instead, his throats began to glow with a hateful glow in his eyes. He opened his mouth and unleashed lightning from his maws. His breather cut through flesh and bone, sending them tumbling around Eren as scorched corpses.

"Why isn't Eren doing anything!?" Sasha called out over the storm, hanging by the wall.

"He's waiting for their leader!" Armin yelled back, his back to hers. "Look out!"

They both rushed out of the way as a bat with a damaged wing fell on their location.

At the interior edge of Trost's walls, Erwin observed all of this from his perch with Miche and Nanaba nearby. All of this, and Eren who remained at the center of the city.

"We're holding them back, but we'll be overrun if this goes on for too long," Nanaba said with a frown.

Miche sniffed the air. "Something is up there. Something that smells foul."

Erwin glanced back to their resident monster translator. "Historia? Have you heard anything?"

Historia frowned. "I can hear all of them, Commander. And they're all saying the same thing; Feast. Let us feast."

Erwin frowned. "They believe their leader has already won."

"Erwin, incoming!" Miche yelled, weapons at the ready.

Erwin looked up to see one of the bats finally heading in their direction.

"Ymir, now!" Erwin called out.

The shifter propelled herself up, having been waiting just below on the wall behind them. She bit her hand, lightning coming down as she shifted in mid-air. She landed on the bat, her teeth chewing through the neck and arms with ease before she leaped back and landed next to Erwin and the others.

Historia smiled up at the Jaw Titan crouching protectively near them.

"What's this thing waiting for!?" Ymir called out in her titan form.

"I was hoping to wait until the leader arrived, but we need to take advantage of how many we've lured in," Erwin said as he pulled out a flare gun.

"Sir? I don't think that'll be visible in this weather?" Historia pointed out.

"Then it is a good thing it isn't meant to be seen," Miche remarked to Historia's confusion.

Erwin pointed the weapon towards the sky and fired it.

A great ringing sound echoed over the sound, making the others grab their ears.

"An acoustic flare?" Historia realized with a wince.

"You want to try it now, Erwin?" Levi murmured as he and several others across Trost pulled out their own signal flares and aimed them toward the giant bats.

The creatures screeched in pain and confusion as the soundwaves hit their sensitive ears.

"We were right. It does at least disorientate them," Hange said, watching as one flew into a building.

Ellie whispered, having sensitive ears of her own, running off to target any of the grounded bats that weren't near any soldiers.

"We're doing better than I thought," Brois said as he observed the battle blow, looking for an ideal target of his own to attack.

"Boris!" Grice's voice yelled from the wall, holding down a bat with one claw. "Above you!"

Brosi turned his serpentine head to the clouds again.

He barely glimpsed the dark claws that came from the blackness, slicing through his side and one of his wings.

"Boris!" Eren cried out in alarm as he saw their comrade fall like a stone. His body impacted the city with a small rumble.

Smelling blood and seeing a sizable meal, many bats swarmed on the downed Boris.

But even like this, Boris was not helpless as he used his snake-like body to lash out and avoid them as best he could, even as many began to scratch and bite into him.

"I got you!" Ellie called out as she leaped forth and bit one off of Boris.

"Thanks, Ellie!" Boris said gratefully.

"Looks like you guys could use a hand!" Connie called out as he, Mikasa, Jean, and Marco joined the fray with a few others.

"Don't get too close to Boris and Ellie!" Jean called out. "You'll just get in their way! Focus on those around them, not on them!"

Eren watched that unfold with growing frustration and rage as he saw his friends hurt and in danger.

As the battle raged on all over Trost, his six eyes looked back to the sky with hate dripping from his maw.

[COME FACE ME YOU COWARD!]Eren

His challenge was roared long and hard.

A screeching roar answered back.

All at once, the bats began to fly up and away from their foes.

"What now?" Jean muttered as he stood near Connie, who was nursing a wounded leg. "Marco, get him to safety while they're not attacking."

"Don't worry about my ass, it's just dislocated. Mikasa? Any chance you can pop it into-DAMN IT!" Connie exclaimed as Mikasa casually and effortlessly snapped the bones back into place. "Give a guy a moment to brace himself!" Connie said with gritted teeth.

"We should move," Mikasa said, looking up at the skies as the bats that now circled around the edges of Trost.

Everyone practically held their breath for the moment to pass and the true enemy to descend.

When it did, many soldiers fell backward in terror.

Like something from the mouth of Hell, the Enemy of the Sun descended. A great bat, far larger than any of the others. Nearly fifty meters long with a wingspan that was more than double the height of walls at over one-hundred twenty meters. Two massive horns were upon the head, like a crown, above faded white eyes that possessed an almost demonic glow to them. His massive wings looked to be in tatters but also covered in deadly long spikes. Much of him was covered in hardened skin, like armor. He was grey with a mane of black fur on his back and neck. A long tail trailed from his spine, covered in spikes. His mouth looked more like a contraption of gruesome death with dozens of jagged and dagger-like teeth.

With thunderous flaps of his wings, the great bat descended upon Trost and landed like a mass of darkness upon the land.

"That thing is nearly twice as big as Eren," Historia said in alarm.

"He took down the Colossal Titan, right?" Nanabi reminded with a raised eyebrow.

"While true, these creatures are of a higher order than the Titans," Erwin said evenly as he watched the great bat stand tall and mighty on its four limbs, snarling at Eren. "For now, we must trust in Eren and see how he fairs," he added, glancing back up at the bats. "If we joined the fray, I have no doubt they will as well. We must use this time to our advantage."

If Eren felt any fear or doubt, it was buried beneath wrath and hate as he glared down the massive foe.

{{{{....}}}}

And he wasn't the only one.