WARNING: MAJOR, MAJOR SPOILER ALERT for the end of the 58th Scouting Expedition, the identity of the Beast Titan and the end of the Shiganshina War. DO NOT READ IF YOU AREN'T CAUGHT UP WITH THE MANGA. Read on if you don't care for spoilers. Enjoy and don't forget to review!

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This can't be happening. Eren sank to his knees, tears blurring his eyes as he gazed at Armin Arlert's charred corpse lying on the roof of one of the sounder structures left standing. Not him! He didn't deserve this!

Armin had done it. Somehow, he managed to slip under Bertolt's defenses and use the Thunder Spear to blow him out of the Colossal Titan's nape. Thanks to him, the Colossal Titan was subdued and being held hostage by the Levi Squad and Floch, the only other surviving Scout member who miraculously escaped being killed by the Beast Titan when the Scouts suicide charged him in a last desperate attempt to take him down. .

That was the good part.

The bad news? Armin didn't survive his attack on the Colossal.

Since he wasn't a shifter, his fragile human body could not withstand the immense heat generated from Bertolt's pressurized Steam, and he plummeted to the earth, dead before he could hit the ground but one of them caught his heavily burned body and gently placed him on the roof Eren was kneeling on now.

Sniffles and muffled sobs alerted him to the presence of his friends. This wasn't fair! Why did he have to play hero and sacrifice himself? Did Armin truly believe his life was that meaningless that he would commit such an out of character act of suicide? Did he seriously believe he could willingly throw his life away and not stop to consider the impact it would have on everyone?

We wouldn't have gotten this far if it wasn't for him. Eren thought, desperately opening his mind to speak directly to the Attack Titan. He needed to talk to someone and his comrades in arms were in no condition to do so.

Whaddya want me to say kid? War sucks people die, al dente. It is what it is. Eren felt the familiar thump against his chest, right at the center of his being where the Titan lurked until he was summoned into battle. 'Sides last I checked, you played hero back at Trost. Pulled him outta that one Titan's mouth. Remember? That's when I made my grand entrance into the world.

And now it's come back full circle. He did this to save us…but he-this was his way of apologizing. To me. For almost dying in Trost. He never fully forgave himself for that.

What the hell is it with humans and their need to kill themselves for each other? I don't understand. Love makes you do really stupid things.

Eren sighed. That's what makes us human.

It's impractical. Waste of resources.

It's not a waste. I don't expect you to get it.

And I told ya I wouldn't care. This ain't gonna bring the dandelion back from the dead.

The brunette shifter scooted closer to his best friend's body. Smoke still rose and he almost threw up at the sight. Armin looked like an overcooked sausage. Tears streamed down his face, cutting through the grime and dirt. Hold on. Doesn't Levi have the titan serum? Maybe that'll-

He does but he's savin' that for the bigger blond. The useful one. His master.

Levi isn't Erwin's pet!

Boy, he might not wear a leash, but he damn sure acts like he wears a collar. Erwin's got him well-trained.

Eren was about to retort, but stopped short when he heard shuffling behind him.

"I wish I could've done something about this." The young man nearly crumpled in relief. Never in his life was he so happy to hear Hange Zoe's voice. But she didn't sound like her usual crazy, Titan-obsessed self. She sounded spent. Exhausted. And full of guilt.

Hange was only on her feet due to willpower and Mikasa lending her shoulder. She was a mess: hair tangled. Eye missing. Cuts and bruises decorating her exposed skin. Tears trailed down her cheek.

She continued her lament.

"If only…if only we learned all this sooner, then maybe we could've saved so many lives," she whispered on the verge of a mental breakdown. "I wish we could turn time back. But we can't! We've lost so much. So many. Gone."

Eren felt his heart break when he noticed Mikasa crying as she supported most of Hange's weight. Every fiber of his being ached to wipe her tears away and hold her close.

But he was too tired. And the one man who held the ability to bring his friend back was sitting on his haunches next to Erwin's corpse nestled in the upper floor of an abandoned house. Contemplating the decision that lay before him, the syringe holding the serum heavy in his pocket. The man he chose to give this to would change everything. Familiar doors would be shut forever and new ones opened.

It…this just isn't FAIR! Eren was dimly aware he was being redundant. But he didn't care. We worked too hard! Everyone's dead…except for us…and Floch, but Hange's right. Too many died to figure out the truth behind who's holding humanity captive. Dad…was directly responsible for all of this…Mom DIED because…because he was married before. Had a kid. Then he met Mom. Married her. And had me.

And left his other son behind at Marley. Pissed off his mama. The Attack Titan hummed, the pieces slowly clicking together. So, he grew a conscience and ran away. Took a bunch of intel with him, just to spite his government and hid it in a secret drawer in this cellar. That's what they were after this whole time. Retake me, the Founder and the truth about Marley. Then yer Pops' ex learned what he'd done. Found out he remarried and…well. You can guess what happened. She ate your ma out of revenge. I mean, Grisha WAS married to her first. Then ya went Coordinate on her ass in that field. Got his mom eaten and whatever. Damn. What a mess. No wonder the Ape wants to 'save' you.

Eren remained silent. Unable to refute a word his Titan said.

Deep down past all the layers of rage and hatred, he knew it was the truth.

That didn't mean he had to accept it.

TBC…