Chapter 18 – The Strong, and the Coward

Outskirts of the Nedlay District: Surrounding Towns

Everything was quiet except for the constant trotting of Liette's horse as she made her way towards the next district, alone. Irene instructed that she go like this, as part of the plan to topple the Kustov Corporation. The plan goes as followed:

Since the Nedlay District was rooted with corruption due to the power of the metal industry, the District itself, and surrounding towns were subject to the company's power, in unison with the corrupt Stationary Guard in the area. Even the government branch of the District were subordinates of Dimitri. There was, however, a small faction of Stationary Guard that were still resistant towards the corrupt influence. Since they were clearly outnumbered by the other corrupt Stationary Guard, the stayed low, and kept a grudging obedience to their superiors.

This part of the plan was to somehow muster enough Stationary Guard to stir a coup d'tat, within the Nedlay District, in other words, a sudden change in the governing head of the District. The point was to try to remove as much influence of the Kustov Corporation from the District as possible in order to strike at him directly.

Rivaille, Urdin, Zackley and Gus were tasked with this. Rivaille was given a Stationary Guard uniform that way, they can get into the District without too much difficulty. Gus got his way in by claiming he was a merchant selling wares.

The next part involved the mining operations that were overseen by Stationary Guard and private Kustov Corporation guards alike. There is a huge mine shaft towards the southeast of the District, towards the Karanese District. Most dissidents and delinquents, often punished unlawfully for menial crimes are sent here to labor. Peter, Kristell, and Elsa's jobs were to infiltrate the mine, staging themselves as new guards assigned here, and stir up a rebellion to overrun the mine.

The second to last plan involved Irene and Nelson. Since this was a very dangerous operation, Nelson was excluded because of his lack of fighting background, but was assigned the job of contacting the Stationary Guard in the Chlorba District to send reinforcements at Irene's word. He had to convince them that there was a series of illegal, and mankind threatening operations that were being undertaken in the Nedlay District, and Irene was relying upon Nelson's contracting nature to reason with them while she herself would go to the Yalkell District and do the same thing.

The final part of the plan involved Liette, and Liette alone. Her job was to undergo Dimitri Kustov's task, like any other Crime Lord. However, this was possibly the most dangerous task of all, and it involved a game.

According to Irene, Dimitri Kustov was as much sadistic as he was insane, and as a result, he enjoyed watching others suffer, especially if it was to survive. Every so often, he hosts a game for his amusement, a game of survival.

He chooses twelve workers in the mines who were punished for the dissidence, they pair up, arms them with guns and spreads them throughout a forest surrounded by plains of grass as to not allow them to escape. His instructions are clear, the last two standing alive after a week will win, and their reward is freedom.

As she went down the road through town, Liette began to ponder about the last words Irene said, Don't be scared. I know someone who is there, he will help you.

As much as she was scared about what she was going to partake in, she trusted Irene's words as much. But the mere thought of taking a human life made her hands tremble as she tightened the grip on her horses reigns.

By now, Rivaille's group and Kristell's group should be at their assigned positions. Communication would be conducted using Hooter and a few other pigeons, as by suggestion by Kristell.

That just left her. She was alone, and as much as she had the ability to turn around, and run away from this, she felt that she had to. Liette was stopping at nothing to find out who she was. "I need to know..." she murmured to herself.

Click! Click! Click! Click! Click!

All of these clicking sounds were almost simultaneous, as the sound of footsteps quickly caught her by horrifying surprise. Her heart froze, and her eyes were wide with fear as she was surrounded by armed men.

"W-what is the meaning of this?!" She asked, trying not to choke on the lump in her throat. She knew what she had gotten into, but her human instinct of fear had kicked in, and the end result was her asking why.

"Liette Herman..." A wispy voice said, eerily chilling, and sounded as if it yearned for something. This was followed by the figure of a man breaking through the ring of guards that had their guns pointed at Liette. "You're so much more beautiful in person, more than anything I have ever seen" By his lustful eyes, Liette determined the man speaking to her as Dimitri Kustov himself. He had a wide grin on his face, his large clear glasses magnifying the clear insane brink of his pupils. His blonde hair was combed neatly to the side, and his white suit shone with a bizarre sense of pure evil.

"If you are so kind, you would be compliant as to come with me." He turned and raised his hand up.

From there, Liette felt a hard poking at her side, and heard one of his henchmen say. "Get off your horse"

Shakingly doing so, Liette dismounted her horse and took a few hesitant steps towards Dimitri.

He slightly turned, "Oh, but before that." He snapped his fingers.

Then suddenly, Liette felt a hard force hit her from the back of her head, and she was out cold.

ooo

"So how much longer will we have to wait until this message arrives?" A Stationary Guard by the name of Pierce asked. He, Rivaille, Zackley, Urdin, Gus, and a few other factionalist of the Stationary Guard in the Nedlay District were at their refuge spot, a small pub at the corner of the district. It served as the central meeting point for the Stationary Guard who sought to bring order back to the district.

The Kustov Corporation and corrupt Stationary Guard paid little attention since their numbers were so small, they virtually posed no threat. Cowering down to their reputation, they stayed low, and opted to do nothing. Their hopes were beginning to dwindle away, but they still held their beliefs of order close and true.

At first, they were skeptical of Rivaille and company when they first arrived a day before, but after Rivaille revealed himself, they were intent on listening to what plans he had.

"One of the brats said that her pigeon would take no more than a couple of hours to arrive" Rivaille said, crossing his legs in await for Hooter to arrive with a reply message. He was uneasy after he learned that Liette was so quickly captured. He forwarded the message to Irene, hoping that Hooter understood his directions. Tapping his foot for a few moments, he waited, and as expected, the flapping of a pigeons wings was heard.

"About time" Urdin chewing on the barley he had in his mouth.

Landing at the edge of the window, the pigeon had a note wrapped in string around its ankle. Rivaille quickly took the note and opened it up, reading the contents.

There was a set of instructions preceded by a preface written by Irene.

Rivaille, there are three central associates of Dimitri that are crucial to strike in order to see his downfall. The first one is of his treasurer. His office is located towards the central portion of the district, the building next to the Church. I want you to infiltrate his domain, and steal a lather padded folder. My spies tell me that he keeps the Dimitri Corporations most important documents hidden in there.

The next is his lead engineer. The Dimitri Corporation is known for it's innovations in firearms, much to the discontent of the government. Breach their laboratory towards the Wall Rose next to the entrance to the district, steal one of their weapon schematics and set fire to the rest. We cannot afford them to continue shipping illegal weapons to other districts, or else it will make it more difficult to fight back as we dig deeper into the inner walls.

The final associate is the mayor of the District himself. Take him out as you see fit. Without his authority, the corruption will crumble within the city.

Do not take any action as of now. Wait until I smuggle in munitions for your disposal. Remove the mayor in a weeks notice, as that is when Liette's challenge will end. Everything must end at the same time, or else the Guards at the mine shaft and the Kustov Estate will take notice.

Again, do not worry about Liette. She will be fine.

ooo

Liette was not okay as she laid there in her jail cell, her arms hugging her knees as he glared in silent disposition. She was in a terribly nervous mood, and needed some source of calming herself down, especially with the anxiety that was building up in her right now. "They took my matches..." She shunned to herself.

Liette had never felt so scared in her life, not even when fighting titans. These were intelligent people she was dealing with, not mindless titans.

"How pathetic..." Murmuring to herself, she realized how insecure she was without smoking. It was pathetic, really, to her. It was like a revelation, and that sound advice that Rivaille constantly spoke to her, Quit smoking, somewhat voiced in her head. Although quitting was something she wouldn't ever dream of doing, it gave a small epiphany to tell her to rely less on them to regulate her mental health.

It occurred to her that she was out for quite a long time. Her head still hurt badly from the blow, and a visible bruise could be seen. Liette figured that it had been a day since she was put in this cell, as, her stomach had told her. As much as she was scared, she tried her best to rely upon Irene's associate.

Nearly drifting to sleep again, Liette heard footsteps, multiple ones. Then, pacing at a walking pace, she saw the guards leading another prisoner through the cells. The prisoner's eyes caught hers for a moment before he disappeared behind the wall.

It struck her as weird, until a guard brought to her attention that it was time to get up. "Hey gal. Time to get going!" He said crankily and forcefully.

There were multiple guards with him, holding a guns up to make sure nothing would occur. They took precautions since Liette was a well trained soldier, and most likely an expert with hand combat. Which was true. Liette stood up and grudgingly followed them.

They led her through the dungeon and out to the front of the building. A jailing building, to be exact. They were just outside the wall from what Liette could tell, in a rural portion of it. Waiting at the front was a wagon with a few other chained up men sitting on it, all of them with distraught faces.

Liette was pushed to board the wagon, and all the men stared in slight grief.

"It's a fucking Scouting Legion soldier" One of them whispered. "Oh I tell you, we're dead now"

"Get it together!" The one he was whispering to replied, "We can still make it through"

All of them were reacting in the same way. None of them wanted in on this game, but all of them desperately wanted to get out. Liette felt bad for them, and at the sight of her sit in the wagon, chained up and in the same position as they were, most of the prisoners lost hope.

The average Soldier was about two times as strong as a common person, and a Scouting Legion Soldier even more than that. But Liette was more than just an average Scouting Legion soldier. She was one of the best.

There was the constant sound of crunching and bumping as the wagon was led down a rocky path. The wagon was dark, sealed like a box with iron bars protecting the small window at the end. They were being led towards a forest, Liette noticed that instinctively by looking at the foliage that they were passing.

She swallowed the lump in her throat as her eyes nervously looked down at her chained up hands. She was more nervous than all of these men combined. She was young, only nineteen years of age. Serving the Scouting Legion for four going on five years.

Out of those five years, she had never been more worried ever since that time Clara and Erick died.

Amidst her silent thought, the door opened and they abruptly forced out of the wagon.

"Get up kiddos! Time to play a game!" The guard said leading them to a clearing in the forest. Waiting for them there was six prisoners, chained up just like them. Surrounding them were Stationary Guard and private guards alike, mounted on horses.

"I see you are finally here" Dimitri's voice was heard as he stood in the middle of his troupe formation, mounted on a horse. "So glad you people can join us in this game!"

"What the hell is this you monster?!" One of the prisoners asked out of anger and desperation. Before anything else, a guard struck him in the face with the butt of his gun.

"Uh uh uh" Dimitri said to the guard, "This is a game. You should be honored to take part in it. Not many people who work in those mines get a wonderful opportunity like this."

This angered Liette, and she looked away in extreme frustration. Coincidentally, she caught eye with a man who was staring back at her. It was strange because Liette felt as if she knew him somehow. His appearance didn't ring any bells in her head as familiar, but there was this feeling.

Somehow, Liette took a detailed note on the man. His eyes seemed to widen when he saw her. There was a very light coat of facial hair streaming across his chin, and sides. His dark brown hair was combed loosely to the side, and the completion on his face was serious. He was built, and lean, but he wasn't intimidating to talk to.

They glared into each other's eyes for a moment, then he looked away.

"Now, you will each be given weaponry, and a few meals worth of food. Make wise use of it. Remember that the goal of this game is to be the last two alive. After a week, we will come back and scourge the forest. If there are more than two of you alive, well, let's just wait and see." Dimitri said with an amused tone.

"Wait... why d-don't we just run away?" One of the prisoners whispered to his partner as Liette overheard.

"Und if you think you can run away, you're horribly mistaken. This forest is an island surrounded by a sea of plains and grass. If you try to escape, my sentries and dogs will shoot you on the spot. And don't even try to hide, we will find you." The Fourth Crime Lord warned before he turned to Liette. "As for you Fraulein, I'm afraid I did not pack enough equipment for you, as, this was only enough for twelve people. You are the thirteenth." He said throwing a small hunting knife onto the ground in front of her. "Just to make things more interesting" he whispered in an evil tone, winking with a wild smile on his face.

Liette's heart almost stopped as she realized what had happened. She wasn't getting paired up, she was on her own. Looking around herself, she saw all the prisoners paired up, gearing themselves with fire arms and supplies while sitting on the ground in front of her was a lowly knife that could easily be bought from a vendor.

Out of all the times that she came close to dying out there in the Scouting Legion, she had never felt such as this. A person who is dead inside, so hopeless. Out there in the Scouting Legion, the only driving force was their will to free humanity. But here, on the inside. There only despair, brinking from the confines of mans true nature.

"But, to be more fair, I'm giving you a head start." Dimitri said, smiling again. "This forest if big, surprise me... Fraulein." He said before firing a gun into the air. "That's your queue to run."

Liette's eyes widened as she instantly began to sprint into the forest, as fast as she could. She ran and ran without looking back. She kept the knife close to her as she continued to run. She felt Roger's pipe clank inside the pocket of her jacket. It reminded her of that night, when her family, the circus, was killed. She was reliving it, and the terror, the sorrow, the sadness and regret began to swell up in her mind again. But even through that, she continued to run.

ooo

"How are you holding up?" Peter asked as he patted Elsa on the back. She had been on duty for the past two hours watching for any insurgence within the mine. It was usually dim in the mine, illuminated by lanterns that were usually kept lit by the workers by order of the Stationary Guard.

Elsa took the time to slouch and relax a bit, "I never realized how much endurance you Stationary Guard need"

The mine was a network of tunnels and rooms that were created masterfully to extract the precious metals from the earth. There were about twenty five Stationary Guard on patrol inside the min at any given time. Each of them rotate shifts to another guard paroling the outside and the Kustov estate. Luckily, since Kristell, Peter, and Elsa were considered newbies, they were always assigned into the mines. Musty, damp, hot, and dirty, it was a perfect place to force recruits to suffer and grovel.

Though, that was least of their concerns since they had much more urgent matters to attend to. There was a small faction within the mine of the Stationary Guard that held the same rebellious ideals as the trio, but with their numbers so few, they had no possibility of fighting against the rest.

Their only option was to gain the allegiance of the laborers, whom gladly sided with them in an attempt to raise an uprising. But the only possible way for them to strike back was with weapons. Irene had sent them a letter instructing that she was to smuggle them weapons in the form of mining supplies. Each of the 10 crates were marked with a special symbol, reminiscent of scratches on the box as to mask the ruse. Each crate contained an array of basic firearms, nothing advanced, but enough to outgun the Stationary Guard.

With a collaboration with the other allied members, and distraction at the slight distraction from the miners, they managed to smuggle in a few crates thus far. The crates would be stored where the supplies would be, and when the time was right, Peter, Kristell, Irene and the others will distribute the guns to the miners to cause an uprising during the night with strict instructions of no man slaughter.

"When did Irene say we commence?" Kristell asked Peter and Irene as they were all sitting down in one of the rooms, eating a scarce dinner.

"I don't know" Peter replied with a whisper, looking over the letter with squinted eyes because of the darkness, "She said she would send a carrier when she hears from Rivaille" Irene noted, pointing her finger to the quick handwriting on the small paper.

"What should we do in the mean time?" Peter sighed, glancing towards the door and around the cramped walls of their small room. "I don't know how much more of this I can take." It was true. All three of them were rather underfed and overworked, even for Stationary Guard. Few breaks, long periods of standing and patrolling. Large loads and shipments, meager meals. They could only imagine how much more the poor slaves in the mine were being treated. It must have felt like a god send for them to see liberators in their midst.

Irene glanced at Peter with a similar feeling, "Don't all these people working here feel the same? They go through this every day of their lives. I think we're beginning to understand how they feel."

"I suppose so" Kristell replied, glaring at the dim candle sitting in the middle of the table, "I hope Liette is okay"

Everyone else agreed unanimously as they sat in silence, watching time melt the wax of the candle.

4 Days Later

Rivaille sifted through the various schematics and diagrams of advanced fire arms that he never even knew were possible to create. "Science goes a long way..." He muttered to himself, neatly folding one design that caught his attention and stuffing it into his pocket.

The laboratory was an underground facility in which the walls were made of a rock type substance. Mostly isolated form everything else, the flames would not likely be spread to anywhere else.

"Rivaille!" Gus whispered as he finished pouring the container of flammable liquid around the room, "Are you sure this fire won't spread to the other buildings?"

"Irene said the walls were made of a special kind of material, resistant to burning. As long as we shut the door, it should be fine" Zackley said, recounting what he had read in Irene's letter, and his knowledge of the composition of walls.

"Besides! We're underground anyway. No worries" Urdin said as he snatched the box of matches from Gus's hands, "Well then! We might as well get this show started!" He added lighting it, waiting for everyone to get on the other side of the door. Eagerly dropping it, they watched the flames spread throughout the room, and promptly shut the metal door behind them.

"Hehehe...hahaha!" Urdin was laughing as they were sitting back at their quarters, "Never knew what hit them" He was lively and full of life. Many of the other factionists that sided with them celebrated also.

The operation was going smoother than expected. Sitting on the table was a leather bound folder containing hefty amounts of evidence on Dimitri Kustov, and a piece of parchment with designs and measurements strewn across it.

"Just one more thing to do" Rivaille said, folding his hands and planting them under his chin. The mayor of the district was their next target. Irene motioned for them to wait until she received the results of Liette's task. Hopefully, she would pull through.

"You seem distressed Rivaille" Zackley said, inquiring as to what was wrong. "Anything on your mind?"

Rivaille looked at him, "I'm tired of waiting"

ooo

"The coast is clear..." Liette leaned against a tree, and sighed outward. She slid down the trunk, into a sitting position. Tiresome, scared, hungry and filthy could describe Liette in a situation like this. For the last four days, Liette had been on the run, the run from twelve other bloodthirsty survivors. She was sure that by now, many of them had killed each other off, and she didn't know how much longer she could hold on her own.

Her stomach growled; it had been days since she had a proper meal, and she was starving. Her hair was tattered and messy, and her face was laced with cuts and bruises from the branches she was running through.

"Will I make it out...?" Liette murmured to herself, cupping her arms around her knees as she held the knife in her hands.

It was mocking her. She never even used the knife. She never had the opportunity to, neither did she have the courage to stake it into someone's heart. She had the courage to stand against titans, yet, the thought of killing another human being made her quiver.

Liette closed her eyes, making sure not to fall completely asleep. This was one of the very few times where she felt safe enough to sit down and close her eyes. As much as it had been days without food, she was also sleep deprived.

A few moments had passed, and Liette heard a distant clanking sound which instantly pried open her eyes. Her heart skipped a beat as she swiftly stood up and took cover. "What was that?!" She asked herself as she followed the direction of where she heard the sound. Walking cautiously, she began to see something amidst the darkness; a dim campfire off in the distance. Liette's heart began to beat faster and faster, not knowing what to do.

"Should I run...?" She thought to herself, gripping the handle of her knife tightly. Her stomach growled and her body was screaming for something to eat. "If I catch them off guard..." Her mouth quivered and her throat suddenly became dry as she inched her way closer and closer to the campsite.

Before she could turn back, she realized that in a situation like this, one person would be on guard while the other was taking rest. She tried to turn back, but she was already so close to the site. The smell of food, coupled with extreme fatigue caused her body to unconsciously move forward. Until she realized it, she could see the campfire, and quickly hid behind a nearby tree.

Her eyes, as heavy as they appeared, were wide open. Her breathing was heavy, and she tried to stay as still as possible. Slowly and stiffly peering behind her over the side of the tree, she saw one man sitting at the campfire with his back to her. He was still, unmoving, and alone.

"If I'm quite enough..." Liette thought desperately; her trembling hands barely keeping grip on her knife, "Why...? Why... am I so scared? This fear... it's completely different from the fear I feel when fighting titans. It feels... more real right now. Not just in my mind, but in my body too..."

Liette's fear of fighting titans was driven by her dedication to protect mankind, but like this, she knew not what to do, or think. If she took a mans life for the sake of mankind, what purpose would that have served? It was paradoxical, and it went so contrastingly against how she thought, her mind was frozen in place. She couldn't understand how easily people can do this, and she couldn't understand how one can even be human after doing this.

Standing there, clutching her knife, Liette hesitated, but it was too late.

"I know you're there" The man said before the click of a gun was heard, "Come out with your hands up, and I won't shoot you"

Liette's heart froze as she stood as frigid as a corpse, she didn't know what to do. She knew she couldn't really escape, but she couldn't run straight at the man. Closing her eyes for a moment and trusting her gut, she held her arm out with the knife and dropped it. Then she slowly stepped to the other side of the tree, with both hands up, praying that the man would keep his word.

Nothing happened. Liette stood there, staring at the man. It was the same man whom she crossed eyes with four days earlier. "You..." Liette whispered in a terrified shrill as she examined him. He wore a dirtied wide spread collar dress shirt with the sleeves rolled up. The sleeve garter on his right a rm was a dark gray, matching that of his vest and his pinstriped dress pants. A leather strap was around his shoulders that held a gun holster. It was clear that this man was from the inner wall, but Liette did not know what the was doing in a place like this.

His expression was unchanging as he lowered his gun. He then turned back towards the fire, and continued whatever he was doing.

The Silver Haired Striker stood there, dazed and speechless as her hands still stood in the hair. She searched for something to say, and when her mouth opened, she nearly gagged. "E-excuse me...?" she asked rather confusedly.

"I'm sorry. Come, have a seat" The man replied, pointing towards the log placed near the fire.

Still speechless at the unexpected turn of events, Liette bent down to pick up her knife, and cautiously walked her way to sit down. The whole situation was not what she expected, and she was still unsure of what to do. The thought of striking while he turned a blind eye crossed her mind, but quickly forgotten as she sat next to the fire.

Liette glanced at the man, wondering why he had spared her. It seemed that his pair up was nowhere to be seen, dead she assumed.

The man glanced at her, "You look hungry" he said, taking a can and pouring some brown substance into it from the pot over the fire. He held it towards her with a spoon inside already, "Here, it tastes better than it looks"

She was hesitant for a moment, scared that it might be laced until she saw an empty dirty can by his feet. Hunger was eating at her stomach. Still cautious, she took it with a slightly shaking hand. "T-thank you..." She said. Taking a small spoonful at first, Liette took a quick look at it. A brown liquid with beans. Opening her mouth, she chewed slowly. Immediately after, she took another bite, and then another, and another. It was salty, and a bit bland, but anything tastes good when starving.

As Liette was left to savor the bean meal, the man who was watching her slightly smiled. "My name is Geoffrey by the way."

Liette returned his introduction with her own, "Liette."

"Liette..." Geoffrey murmured, "I suppose there is a reason why we cross paths on this day."

Liette soon realized that this man was the one that Irene had told Liette about. "Are you the one..."

"That Irene told you about?" Geoffrey replied, his voice casual as he scooped himself another portion of beans. "I suppose so" He chuckled to himself.

At an instant, Liette's body began to relax as she sighed of relief. She was safe for the time being. After her hunger was quelled, Geoffrey simply glanced at her occasionally.

It was an awkward silence before Liette broke it, "Geoffrey, can you tell me one thing?"

He looked over to her, "What would that be?"

"What happened to your partner?"

It was a slight pause before he replied, but it was blunt, "He was killed"

"Oh... I'm sorry..." Liette regretfully said.

"Yes, quite unfortunate"

The silence fell upon them again, and Liette didn't really know what to say next. Instead, to took this liberty to smoke for once in four days. Taking out her tin, she took one of her wrapped tobaccos and felt for her box of matches, but felt nothing. "Oh no..." She suddenly remembered that her matches were gone, and was stricken with disappointment.

Geoffrey slightly gasped with surprise when Liette took a cigarette out, but quickly masked it up and she frantically searched for a light. "Here" he said, taking a lighter out. In contrast to a match, a lighter had a supply of oil, which struck, created a small fire using a mechanism that Liette did not really understand. It was a luxury item that most people on the Inner Walls only had.

"Thank you" Liette replied gratefully, taking one long drag of the relaxing act of smoking.

"Welcome" The conserved middle aged man replied as he too took out a cigarette and lit it. "I'd never expect a girl like you to be smoking" He noted.

Liette blew the most from her lungs out, "I picked it up in the Military Police. And it kind of stuck with me ever since"

"Silver Haired Striker..."

"Excuse me?" Liette asked, confused as to why Geoffrey called her by her nickname.

"Irene told me a lot about you Liette" Geoffrey began. "You're well known throughout the Districts. One of the strongest of the strong in Titan combat. It's an honor to finally meet you"

She was a bit flattered before replying, "Does Irene know that much about me?"

"I wouldn't know" He replied, shaking his head before continuing to smoke.

A sigh left Liette's lungs as she crossed her arms, tired and worn out. Again it was silent, and Liette thought of nothing else except to lie down and sleep.

"You seem tired" Geoffrey said, pointing at a mat and blanket already spread on the ground. "I can tell you've been up for long time. Don't worry, I'll keep watch"

Liette smiled slightly, with her tired eyes almost closing on themselves. She threw her cigarette on the ground before crushing it with her boot. Before lying down on the mat, she turned around towards Geoffrey, "Um.. Thank you so much Geoffrey. For once in my life, I felt true fear in this forest."

"We all feel it at one point in our lives" Geoffrey replied, waving at her, "Good night"

ooo

The next morning felt as if Liette woke up in heaven. Her body felt so rejuvenated, and her mind was at slight ease from the nightmare that ensued before. Geoffrey greeted her morning with eggs and some water.

"Can I ask you how you know Irene?" Liette asked as she bit onto her fork. "Why are you here in the first place?"

"Irene and I used to be associates" Geoffrey began to speak as he sipped some water, "I've done a few things I regret. That's why I'm here"

"So you wanted to die?"

"That's how I feel sometimes. But your safety is my priority." As he stood up, he began to kick dirt onto the fire.

"Why?" Liette asked in return, "Why are you helping me? Is it because Irene is paying you?"

"I'm not getting paid for anything. It's my only chance to mend my past, and you're key to getting to the Paramount" He replied, rubbing the handle of his gun. "Come, we have to keep moving. There are possibly still two other teams that are still alive. We have to hunt them down before they hunt us first"

Before Liette could inquire about the Paramount, Geoffrey began to move onward. "Wait! Geoffrey! Couldn't we just wait until they killed each other off first?"

Geoffrey shook his head, "We can't be guaranteed that will happen within the next three days. If there are more than two of us alive by the time Kustov comes by, he'll kill us by order of when he sees us until there are only two left"

"But how do you know that?" Liette asked as she followed in pursuit of Geoffrey as he took off running. Unfortunately, her question remained unanswered, and the uneasy feeling in her stomach remained.

ooo

"They've been dead for a few days..." Liette surmised as she stood up from examining a corpse of one of the unfortunate miners. Seeing dead people did not surprise her in the slightest. She had already seen more dead bodies than one does in the average lifetime. This was the fourth corpse they encountered within the past three days.

"May their souls rest in peace" Geoffrey paid his respects.

"Why does he do this?" Liette asked as she salvaged whatever supplies she could get her hands on.

Her "guardian" replied, "Amusement"

"How is it possible that anyone would enjoy something like this?"

Geoffrey sighed while folding his arms, "I always ask the same question. But I realized that it's pointless against people like that."

"But doesn't he feel anything?" Liette began to ask, "It's like he has no emotions at all-?!" She was going to continue, but there was a very subtle shuffle in the leaves. "Geoffrey duck!"

With instincts as fast as that of a well trained soldier, Geoffrey ducked down as said without question. A split second after, a gunshot was heard. Immediately after, Geoffrey pulled his gun out and fired in the direction that it came from.

A BANG! Was heard before a slight scream followed by a thud. A miner was seen scrambling up as he hastily tried to reload his gun, but he quickly took to the cover of the trees. The man was about 20 meters away from their position, so Liette and Geoffrey tread carefully.

Geoffrey held his gun close as Liette stayed close to the cover of the trees. She had no firearms to work with since all the bodies they had encountered so far had their ammo pillaged from them, and flintlocks broken. It was almost as if it was on purpose.

"Stay here, and watch out for the other one" Geoffrey replied, weaving quickly through the network of trees, keeping a watch for any sudden movements.

Liette did the same, keeping her distance, but staying within reachable range. Using her agility to her advantage, she scaled one of the trees and continued up above. There was another lurking somewhere, Liette was sure of that. She perched herself on a large branch that was in between Geoffrey and the miners estimated position, and she watched.

The situation was tense, as whoever was caught out of cover first would most likely get hit. Geoffrey peered from the side of the tree to scan the area. Nothing. He sprinted to the right, only to hear a gunshot miss and hit the tree behind him. Standing with his back against the tree he glanced around once more, looking for Liette this time to see if she saw something.

He was a little worried that he did not see her anywhere despite knowing that she was probably the most deadly one in this fight. Still looking around, he saw an acorn being thrown to the ground, which triggered another gunshot at it. Then he looked up, to see Liette perched in the trees signaling to her left. He understood where their target was, so he continued rightward to catch him without him ever knowing.

Silently moving into position without making a sound, Geoffrey stopped until he caught ellipse of his target. The man was back against the tree, constantly looking over the tree, desperate to find Geoffrey. Little did he know that while constantly look over his left, he neglected his right.

Carefully aiming, Geoffrey aimed square at the mans head, and pulled the trigger. A short spray of blood followed by a shrill thud of a body echoed through the forest.

Liette watched Geoffrey as he stood there, unmoved for a few seconds. She was amazed at how unphased he was. Merely watching made Liette uncomfortable. However, as she turned her head, she saw someone else, the miners partner, creeping up from a large root of the tree nearby, gun cocked and ready to aim.

Geoffrey was a clear shot from the side, and Liette was not about to let that happen.

During the last two days, Liette got to know Geoffrey a bit more. He was an educated man, talented fighter, and a troubled soul. During her conversations with him, she learned that he and Irene were associates for sometime during the rise of the Second Paramount about twenty years before. Geoffrey served as a personal officer and bodyguard for many of the corrupt elite on the inner wall. He also a hitman during this time.

But it wasn't his job that made him fall into the depths of sorrow. He never told Liette, even when she asked. She felt that he was hiding something important, something that related to herself.

"Still..." Liette whispered in her own mind as she leaped off the branch down, "I must protect him as he protected me..." Pressing her hands on the ground to commence a roll, she quickly rolled onto her feet and dashed. The partner was 10 meters away, and by the time he took notice of Liette, he was already too late. Recounting for her hand to hand combat training back in the day, she performed old techniques she thought she had forgotten.

Quickly clamping her hand on his gun arm, she pushed upward, slamming the hard metal of the trigger onto his head. While he was dazed, she punched him in the gut, forcing him to back up, dropping his gun. Liette kicked the gun as far away as possible. As he regained his senses, he charged at Liette swiping to the side.

Ducking, Liette uppercut towards his chin, but missed as he pulled back. Punishment soon followed as Liette was kicked in the stomach and then punched in the face. Momentary unsettling of the stomach left Liette open for a few seconds as the man continued to charge towards her with a straight punch.

With sullen eyes, Liette barely dodged, sliding her head to her right. There was a quiet sound of metal scraping against leather, and then a flesh piercing echo as Liette pushed forward, jabbing her knife into his chest.

"Ah..." His breath was taken away as he felt his body go numb, and then suddenly, limp. He couldn't move, and fell backwards when Liette retracted the knife from his chest. He was still alive, but he was dying rapidly as the blood began to fountain out of his red chest. Liette glared at him before going over to pick up the gun she had kicked away from the fight. Looking into his eyes as she pointed it at his forehead, she pulled the trigger.

"Dying should be painless. Not filled with pain..." Liette whispered.

ooo

Tomorrow was the last day that they needed to survive until, and both Liette and Geoffrey were sure that they were safe for now.

However, Liette was still sullen from the fighting that occurred a few hours before. She had killed plenty of people prior, but those all, all of them, were an act of euthanasia. Mercy killing of the near dead Scouting Legion Soldiers. The only exception was that child she accidentally marred back in the Shiganshina District.

"Why does it feel... so different this time?" Liette asked aloud to herself as she hugged her knees, sitting against the tree, glaring at the fire that Geoffrey had made.

"Because it was deliberate" Geoffrey replied, sitting down next to her, lightly combing her hair with his hands. It felt strange, but it was comforting to Liette. Strange how she felt so comfortable around Geoffrey, she wondered why.

"But all the other times too! They were deliberate..."

"They wanted you to do it." He said, "They were going to die anyway."

Liette shook her head, "How do you do it... Geoffrey?"

"How do I do what?"

"Forget. How do all the things you've done, how do you wash them away?"

"You don't. You just learn to live with it" Geoffrey replied.

Liette hugged her knees tighter, "How can you live with it? How can one, possibly be strong enough to carry the burdens of such guilt for the rest of their life?"

Geoffrey was silent as he stood up. The sun was only beginning to set. "Liette, when did you join the Scouting Legion?"

"Almost five years ago"

"Since then, how many titans have you killed?"

Liette did not understand the reason of his questions, but answered anyway, "Upwards of 50"

"What is the average for a regular soldier?"

"Less than two" She began to see what Geoffrey was aiming at.

From there, Geoffrey turned and squatted down to look at Liette in the eye. "Can you look me in the eyes, and tell me now, that you are weak?"

She shook her head.

"To look up at the titans, and slay them. It takes more courage than me, or anyone else combined. It requires someone who is the strongest of the strong." Geoffrey continued as he gently held Liette's hand, "Liette, you are strong. When compared to someone like me, I am nothing but a coward. That is why..." He added, before pulling his gun out and sliding it into Liette's hand.

The handle was smooth, of iron and steel. The design of it was so foreign to Liette. It had a very narrow barrel, and did not seem to use gunpowder, and instead, had a circular chamber and a trigger. Liette noticed that it made a different sound in comparison to the other guns, and she figured that it was a new model not in massive use.

"That is why, I want you to kill me" The chilling revelation that Geoffrey had just said made Liette shake her head.

"Why...?"

"This game is a lie. In the end, there is only one survivor. In the end, he makes us duel each other." Geoffrey said.

"That's not true... is it?" Liette asked, profusely rejecting Geoffrey's request.

"Why do you think I partner died?" He challenged Liette.

"I t-thought he was killed?"

Geoffrey put his other hand on Liette's, "By my hand. He knew what was going to happen in the end, and he tried to kill me before I killed him, but it didn't work"

"N-no..."

"I'm a coward Liette, and cowards deserve to die" Geoffrey urged sadly, "Please Liette"

Liette shook her head again as she slid his gun back into his holster, "No coward deserves to die. Only a coward who has no more hope, deserves to die" She said, standing up, recomposing herself. "There must be another way..."

"Another way to what?" Geoffrey asked, not understanding what hope Liette saw, "To cheat the game?"

Looking back at Geoffrey, Liette had a hint of plot tumbling in her mind, "No Geoffrey. To cheat death"

ooo

"Rise and shine my dear Fraulein!" Dimitri Kustov said cockily as he rode on his horse, slowly trotting to take a clear look at Liette and Geoffrey. "Geoffrey Winsted! It baffles me year after year why you're still here!"

Geoffrey's eyes slanted in slight anger as Dimitri continued.

"Look closely Fraulein, this is the man that will kill you, or this is the man that you will kill!" Dimitri said with an excited expression on his face.

"What do you mean?" Liette replied, glancing at Peter, Kristell and Elsa's worried faces. All the newcomers in the mine were rounded up to witness this "exciting moment" and those three were included. She was surprised as they were to see each other at this extremely suspenseful moment.

"Oh, I'm so sorry. I forgot to tell you that the rules of the game has changed. Now, only one person can leave here alive" His face had that same wicked smile on his face. "Will you be able to do it again Geoffrey? Will you be able to kill an innocent girl again?"

Liette glanced at Geoffrey in worry, was that what was troubling Geoffrey so much? Who did he kill? Why? All those questions fluttered in Liette's head.

"No response, as expected from you" Dimitri said snapping his fingers, "Oh well. Let's see you response then shall we?"

From there, they were forced to step about 10 meters apart, and facing each other.

"Now, on my count, you draw your guns as fast as you can and shoot!" He said with a blowing of enthusiasm. "Three... two... one!"

Nothing happened. Neither Liette nor Geoffrey moved.

"Okay..." Dimitri said, slightly pissed, "I'll count to ten this time, and if both of you are still alive by then, I will gun both of you down personally"

Still, no response. Liette and Geoffrey continued to stare at each other.

"Ten...Nine..."

"Do it Liette..." Geoffrey urged

"Eight..."

"There's no point in both of us dying"

"Seven... Six..."

Liette shook her head with distress on her face, "I- I can't. I can't do it."

"Five..."

"Do it! Do it now!" Geoffrey began to yell.

"Four... Three"

"Kill me, or I kill you!"

"Two..." A glare was strewn across Dimitri's glasses as his sadistic grin opened to say:

"One..."

At the same instant, he said two, Liette pulled the gun she pilfered from the man she killed the day before out, and at one, she pointed it forward, about to pull the trigger.

A loud bang was heard, and everything was silent as it echoed through the forest. Everyone was still for a few seconds, waiting to see who would fall first.

They waited, and waited until eventually, they heard someone drop their gun. They turned to see, it was Liette.

Liette dropped her gun with her hand trembling as she quickly moved it to press over the growing red puddle forming through the white of her shirt on the left side of her chest. She looked down at it with wide eyes, and then back up at Geoffrey. "G-Geoffrey... why...?!" She asked before she bent over and covered her mouth. She vomited blood as the red liquid dripped over her hand and onto the ground. After it was over, she looked up once more, and fell forward to the ground.

ooo

Irene sighed, sitting down, enjoying a cup of tea. She was wondering what the outcome of the events that occurred today would be, if everything went according to plan, she would see one of her pigeons perch itself on her window still within the coming hours.

Within a few minutes, the flapping of heard, but a caw was accompanied with it.

Irene's eye's widened as her mouth quivered, dropping her cup of tea. It was a crow. "A crow..." She said to herself as she quickly stormed out of her study, and through the halls of the HQ.

"Nelson, watch the HQ while I'm gone. When the reinforcements come from the Chlorba District, direct them to the Nedlay District." Irene ordered.

"Wait! Irene, where are you going?" Nelson asked, concerned.

"I have and urgent matter to tend to" Irene said as she forced the door open and quickly untied the reins of one of the horses outside. Mounting hastily, she sped off as fast as she could. "Geoffrey... why? Why would you kill the one you swore to protect those years back?"

A/N: Hey guys! Long time no see, but I've finally allocated the time to finish up this chapter. College has just kicked in, so I've been stripped of all my time, but I'm still trying my best to make this story catch up to the anime! I did rush through this chapter since I wanted to get my main point across, but I hope you enjoyed it! I'll try to write the next chapter up soon, but no guarantees! So just bear with me and be patient. :)

Anyway, hope to see you next time!