Warning: Increasing rating.

The First Tale: Ysmir

"According to the story of the long lost past, there is a Titan named Ysmir who lives to last. He is a friend to all, one that everyone could call. Ysmir is a Titan, yet he is not to frighten. They say that Ysmir loves everything for only kindness he could bring. Ysmir is the people's protector, he who guides the humans with his strong endeavor…

"But the stories which we come to hear don't always end for us to endear. Like the tale of the Titan we know as Ysmir, sometimes what we see would be what we fear…

"Long ago when humans have lived in peace, during the time when they do as they please, comes the horror that provide them lease. A human has stolen what Ysmir glances as precious and took it faraway to misuse. Ysmir is saddened of what happened, Ysmir is angry for he is offended. He has loved them, but they are only to condemn…

"Thus starts the war that would destroy the people – a war where humans are forced to pay the toll. By Ysmir all the titans rose and marched against the kingdoms with all the danger they pose. And—"

. . . . . . . . .

"What are you reading?"

A small and curious voice pulled Little Armin away from the book. Little Armin had been too engrossed with the story he selected to read and didn't even notice that someone had already sneaked up on him. With a soft whimper, the young boy shrunk and huddled the book closer to his chest, looking at the other one with slight suspicion and fear. T-They musn't know… Little Armin spoke in thought, while his eyes started to dart around, seemingly trying to look for an escape route.

"Hey," the other boy spoke up. "Why are you crying? Did I say something wrong?" He asked. He started to approach Armin.

Crying? Little Armin first noted. He then placed his stubby fingers over his face and quickly felt the wetness all over his cheeks. He was so terrified that he hadn't even noticed that he was already crying. He stood up from the ground, where he sat when he immersed himself with the book, and slowly started to back away, as he felt terrified when the other boy started to move. Please, go away… He pleaded, but only spoke to them in his head. You must not know… I don't want to go to prison… Armin continued to step back, until he tripped himself against someone behind him.

He fell down, both due to surprise and suddenly losing his balance, with the book hard-bounded in dry leather flying away from him and landing just in front of the other boy. Little Armin's attention were quick to go for the book, yet his eyes even brimmed more tears after he saw the other one picked it up. Sprawled down on the ground, Little Armin tried to reach up to the other boy. "P-Please…" He stammered. "Please give me back my book." He told him. Little Armin's eyes were glazed with tears as the other one stared curiously at the book.

"Whoah!" The other boy gasped as he saw one particular symbol etched in the center of the book. "Look! Look! It's the book!" He said excitedly, as he flashed the side where the insignia was placed to Little Armin and to the person who stood behind him. "Why do you hafta—"

"Please, don't!" Little Armin tried his best to stand up and then tackled the other boy, pinning him under his weight. At the same time, Little Armin placed his hands and used it to cover the other boy's mouth, quickly muffling his words out. "I know we can't read this yet! But I wanna read! They told us that we never need to read this, but I want to read even though I don't want to!" Little Armin said in defense, still resting over the other boy and covering his mouth at the same time. "So please—"

Little Armin felt some hands that slithered under his arm. In a swift movement, the same hands suddenly tore him away from the other boy, releasing the latter from his light weight. Armin was thrown back against the soft lawn and only looked at the person who did it to him.

"Are you all right?" Little Armin soon discovered that the other person was also another child. Armin couldn't agree more that the child was a girl, judging by her long locks of black that reached past her shoulders and her girly yet monotone voice. Armin observed as the girl helped the other boy and felt frightened when she looked at him with a narrowed expression, which was too serious for a kid of their age. Once again, the warm damp sensation coursed through Little Armin's face as tears blemished his skin, too terrified to speak, too afraid to move an inch.

"Hey, don't scare him." The other boy chided the girl. "I'm just okay." He quickly stated, instantly placating his female companion. He immediately picked up the book that fell from his grasp after Little Armin shoved him seconds ago. He stepped near Armin once more and held the book back to him. "Here," the boy said. "I don't mean to scare you. I'm just really surprised that you're reading that book." He said and grinned back at Armin. "I won't tell the guards, I promise!" He told the little blond boy.

Armin looked at him first, silently remarking the other boy. Perhaps every child of their age knew that there were books that they were allowed to read and there were books that they weren't allowed to. But that had been the exact reason why Armin took it. He was a curious child, even though he was already contented in living behind the walls of Maria. Why did the adults tell them not to read it in the first place? If it wasn't meant for reading, why was it a book in the first place? These were some of the questions that Little Armin wanted some answers to.

"I just want to learn…" Armin spoke softly at first. "I just want to discover the things around me. I just want to know what's beyond my knowledge." He didn't know, but he felt that he could speak freely towards the boy that stood tall in front of him. He didn't even realize that he was already speaking continuously. "I want to discover what's beyond this wall, beyond the titans that try to eat us. I want to go out of this wall and—" At that time he finally noticed that he just unconsciously blurted out one of his dreams. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

"So you want to know what the outside world looks too!" The other boy said animatedly. He knelt down in front of Armin that time. "I want to go out there too!" He shared to Armin. The boy twisted and looked at the girl. "Come 'ere!" He called her excitedly. "I haven't met someone else who likes to discover what are beyond these walls as well." When the girl finally reached the two of them, the boy quickly shot a question back to Armin.

"What's your name?" He asked.

"I-I'm Armin," he answered.

"Her name is Mikasa," the boy introduced her. The girl only nodded back to Armin in regard, as he did the same. "My name is Eren," the boy finally identified himself, putting his thumb against his chest. "Ahh! I'm so excited to find a friend who likes to know the same!" Eren muttered happily, flicking his eyes back and forth to both Mikasa and Armin. "Hey, you want to be friends with us, right? If that's okay with you," Eren added, looking a little shy after he said so. However, it did not stop him to reach out and offer his hand to Armin, as a sign of his happiness and that of his friendship.

Slowly, Armin extended his hand and clasped—

—it with Eren's, lacing his fingers with his friend's.

His eyes threatening to spill the tears that already brimmed over his lids, Armin watched as Mikasa hugged Eren tightly, wailing out all the grief and sadness that overcame her earlier. Armin felt the same, to the same degree as Mikasa's. In fact, that he had already decided to throw his life away in that instant when he saw his friend swallowed by that titan. It had been a real shock to him, when his friend vanished into the mouth of their enemy. Armin was devastated, to the point that he had deemed his life as worthless as it was now.

Mikasa continued to cry beside him, and Armin would have done the same if he had the strength to do so. But he felt so weak and powerless at that time. He was blanketed by different feelings; different emotions fighting inside his heart and mind. Just seeing Eren alive and well made his heart swell in joy, but at the same time an inexplicable amount of hate and anger was spewed out by his chest. He was glad for Eren, but he hated himself. He was happy that his friend had survived, but he was angry at himself.

After all, the entire nightmare that happened during that very day when Trost was assailed by the colossal titan was partly his doing. If he had just done something for his squad, just when he knew that they were already fighting a losing battle, Armin would have prevented their demise. He would have stopped that moment when Eren tried to rescue him. He would have halted that point when Eren was bitten down towards that Titan's throat. Armin was solely responsible for the death of his squad. Armin was responsible why Eren had to feel all that pain. In the end, Armin was just powerless…

…like that time when he first met Eren.

But despite the sadness and the pain he and Mikasa felt right now, Armin knew that a greater question had started to rise inside him. For now, he would ignore the sin that caused his friend to suffer. As he held Eren's hand tightly with his own – as if he wasn't going to let go anymore – Armin observed the extremities he knew that were cut off from Eren's body. The arm and legs that had been severed are right back, he said in thought. He stared at Eren then, the same friend that saved him from the titan, the same person who sacrificed himself just for the sake of someone like Armin. "What the hell happened?" He asked. It was an empty question, but it conveyed his confusion and distraught.

But it was a definite scene of hope, a small glimmer of light lying deep against the shroud of darkness. The titans might have breached the wall, but Armin could not care enough. Just seeing that his friend was alive was enough for him to carry on and move on even for a little.

But like all the tales that were written, happiness was always short-lived. As the remainder of the trainee squad travelled back into the location the elite units were, a handful of the Stationary Guard blockaded their way. Armin thought that help was on its way, but after noticing the expression of wrath and anger and fear written all over the guards' faces, he couldn't help but think that things would end up into a deep spiral once more. As the Captain Felman, the leader of the small troop of the Stationary Guards, barked some orders towards Jean, and Jean refusing to yield to the order at first, Armin knew that there was something wrong in that instant. Jean could only look at the three of them in horror as he tried to resist, yet, in the end, the officer overpowered him. With a frustrated visage, Jean had asked the others – he included – to make their way past Trost and help in the evacuation that went underway. And when Mikasa and Armin tried to follow their classmates, all they received were bitter words from the Stationary Guard, which ultimately stopped them from moving on.

"What's the meaning of this?" Mikasa quickly asked, planting herself in front of Mikasa and Eren.

"We have witnesses stating that a p-person who should have no rights of existing right now is currently trying to escape," the Felman stated, his voice pitching up in few clicks. His eyes were wide and denoted his extreme fear and nervousness. "We have witnesses that will prove that Trainee Jaeger is a titan spying against all of humankind!" He said, as he raised an accusing finger against the still-unconscious Eren. The Stationary Guard had started to surround the trio, forcing the Mikasa and Armin against one of the walls corners.

"Trainee Jaeger is a titan!"

Armin bit his lips as he shifted Eren's weight against him. There was no doubt that many people had witnessed Eren coming out from the titan's body, as he and Mikasa did. But it was too presumptuous to think that it made Eren evil. Just because everyone had seen the titan as evil didn't mean that they had to associate Eren with them. Eren was his and Mikasa's friend – there was no way that their friend would succumb and threaten humankind. Eren had said himself that he would fight for humanity's survival; there was no way that Eren would want humankind to be eradicated and—

"I'm gonna kill 'em dead…"

Armin winced upon knowing that Eren had finally gained consciousness, for he was the one who was fully aware of those words that escaped from his friend's very lips. It was untimely, Eren's awakening, and Armin was worried that those insentient words would provoke the guards even more. But Armin could only hope for the best, which was why it was half-relieving that Eren had finally snapped out from his catalepsy. Putting his hands over Eren's shoulder, Armin quickly thrust himself in front of him and asked,

"Tell me everything! Talk to me! We're bound to figure out!"

And Armin was well aware of the blunt shock that quickly blanketed Eren's features. It was already noticeable that his friend was at loss at the suddenness of the event around him, and he was worried that the soldiers might think that Eren was actually losing it. He hoped that Eren was fully conscious now and even prayed that his friend would not go around and berserk. He was more fearful for Eren's life than to his own, now that he and Mikasa had barely just returned to Eren's side once again.

"Trainee Eren! You have come to your senses, I see!" The Captain Felman spoke aloud. "The behavior you three exhibit makes you look like traitors to humanity! Therefore I'm going to decide how we should dispose of your lives!" He said. "Try to pull any trick or to leave that spot and you'll be eating explosives!" He warned the three of them. "We'll shoot without hesitation!" But his voice already sounded that he was already to give in, that not for formality's sake he would have blown the trio into oblivion already. Armin only stared ahead as death loomed over them ever closer.

"What are you really? Human? Or Titan?"

Just who gave them the right to judge a person by who or what he was? Armin shot the guards an angry look. Perhaps Eren was indeed a titan, but what reason would be enough to give his friend a death sentence? Was it not about the value of what he did? Was it not about the lives that Eren had saved? Armin knew that they quickly gave in with the fear that rested inside their hearts, the fear that was fueled by the titans themselves. Perhaps Eren was seen to have come out from a titan's body, but was it truly enough to point at him as a monster?

All the books had told him the variations of human nature. Armin was sickened that a person was always quick to judge. Conformity told one individual to make a decision, fear always lead them to judge wrongly. Every individual had the tendency to push away what they couldn't understand, and it extended not just to ideas but to other people as well. It was human nature to put blame on someone based solely on what they saw, and fear fueled their erratic judgment. When they knew that a person was not like them, when they knew that a person was different from them, it was so easy for them to point an accusing finger and shove them away for good. People hated those they didn't know. Humanity hated what it couldn't grasp.

"I-I fail to understand the meaning of your question, sir!" Eren yelled back in reply.

"Are you playing dumb with me, you goddamned freak?!" It sparked the flame of wrath around the captain. "Come on, just try again! We'll fucking dust you on the spot! You won't even have the time to assume your true form!" And he went on, venting his anger over his apparent fear. But Armin was just so struck that his friend was the one who had to take the toll of humanity's hypocrisy; that Eren was to receive the error of human nature's ignorance. He could only look back at Eren, feeling so useless and weak once more. He even couldn't help him right now, just when he understood why the Stationary Guard was picking up on him. He didn't have the strength like Mikasa to fight them; he only had his damn worthless brain to begin with.

Such was the fate of an individual eyed down by humanity's ignorance. When it came to understanding another person, humankind tended to fail in accepting one. Conformity dictated acceptance, and rejection would only come to those who would be found different. People despised when they couldn't understand and only even push those who tried to explain them things. Humanity was ignorance clothing itself with more ignorance; a perfect example of the thought of self-importance. And Eren was going to the end of it. Just because everyone feared the titans, Eren was going to die just like how people wanted the titans to die.

But Mikasa trying to challenge everyone was Armin's breaking point. No matter how he knew how skillful she was, Armin was all too-worried for her. It didn't matter if the guards had to wound the three of them, but Armin would not want his friends to die in vain. If he had to swallow his ego just to earn their forgiveness, Armin would swallow the whole lot. "We can talk this over!" Armin pleaded to Mikasa. "Anyone would get scared out of their wits when faced with a situation that they don't understand!" He reasoned to her, just like how it all went inside his head.

But perhaps the final straw was Eren himself…

"I'm human." He said in a strong voice… only for the three of them to realize that everyone else had already deemed him to die.

As the officer gave the signal to attack, Armin's thoughts were already completely clouded.

Are you human? Or Titan?

Human? Or Titan?

Human? Or Titan?

Human? Or Titan?

Life or death? Ignorance or truth? Respect or rudeness? Good or bad? Kind or evil? Life but already dead? Truth yet ignorant? A rude respect? A good that had never been good? An evil kind of kindness? Die? Die! Die! Die!

Armin's vision was blood-red. "Stop it!" He started to yell as he saw Eren and Mikasa ran away to the sides. "Stop it!" He repeated, but cannon had already been fired. "This shouldn't happen!" He continued but no one was listening to him.

Die. You don't deserve to live. The titans have won long ago. Die.

"I said, st—"

"—op!"

His voice echoed across the market district, which attracted the attention of several passersby waddling in front of several stores nearby. But it didn't take long for them to ignore the teen. They turned away from him and went on with their usual routines, walking or chatting idly with their friends. Armin's eyes were still wide as he exhausted himself in that shout, breathing raggedly after his legs weakened severely. He leaned forward and placed his hands over his knees, using it to support his form. He darted around, suddenly realizing that Eren and Mikasa were not with him.

"Er—"

"Okay, I'll stop," another voice from behind sprung up, somehow surprising Armin a little bit. The blond quickly whipped his head to the side, seeing a flustered teen move away from him a bit. He quickly saw that sly grin over the other one's face, coupled with a gesture which denoted that he was on the process of doing something nifty towards Armin. The blond only narrowed his eyes against the other teen, and the knowing smile on the latter vanished as soon. "Hey, is there something wrong?" He finally asked Armin.

But Armin's mind was too far away from the question, knowing that he didn't even recognize the seemingly energetic teen in front of him. His heart raced up once more as the sense of familiarity was suddenly turned into a hazy patch of exoticism. Now he discovered that he wasn't even where he knew he was. The wall behind him was gone. The line of soldiers that encircled the three of them was not in sight. All what he saw was a bustling center of people, crowding a large street in that unknown location. He looked suspiciously around him, looking frightened at the sight around him.

"Hey, what's happened?" The teen in front of him approached Armin. He was slightly taller than him, his spiky and short dark hair reminiscent of Jean's own – the only difference was in color. He had a roundish set of eyes, less sharper than Eren's and obviously much energetic and happy than his friend's. But despite identifying the physical qualities Armin saw in the other teen, none of his memories had pointed him to be an acquaintance – Armin could swear that he hadn't met this person before. But even with the kind gesture the other teen provided, Armin could not help but held him suspiciously.

"Who are you?" Armin asked him, tone sharp and cold. He was surprised when the other teen stopped and gave him a pained expression. Armin briefly wondered why before he remembered that Eren and Mikasa were still in danger.

"Though I did want to prank you, this 'I-don't-know-who-you-are-game is not exactly funny," the teen just answered, trying to humor Armin at that moment. But a nervous Armin was never the type to be pacified at times like that. The blond continued to hold him in that strangling stare, which made the teen look back at him worriedly. "I'm Isvenn," but he did answer him though. "Satisfied?"

He's thinking that I'm playing him a game? Armin said in thought, incredulously at that. But he hadn't had the time to play a game, now that he knew his friends were in grave danger. As he planted his gaze around him, he couldn't really identify anything familiar. The absence of the fifty-meter wall was making him paranoid, as if everyone was giving the titans ticket to free food. The absence of the wall was driving Armin crazy, as the seconds passed without him understanding what the hell just happened to him. "W-Where are we?" He muttered.

"You're not serious, are you?" The teen in front of him suddenly spoke. Armin hadn't intended to make it sound like a legitimate question, but it seemed that the other boy – Isvenn – thought that it was a real one. "I think you're overdoing that act of yours." He only remarked, the pained expression he wore seconds ago now being lavished with an irritated one. "Come on, we don't have the time to play your little game." He only said, approaching Armin for another try. "We can continue on with that after we return, Miccaello—"

"W-What?" Armin looked at him curiously. "What did you call me?"

"Miccaello?" Isvenn replied. "That's your name, idiot." He said, frowning a little bit. "Now I'm getting annoyed." He stated as he turned from Armin and started to walk away from him.

Armin just stared back at him, now more confused than ever. He opened his eyes to discover that he was in a strange land, and someone misidentified him as his friend. Just what the hell is going on? Armin asked himself, both frustrated and annoyed at the same time. Ignoring the other teen who started to speed away, Armin finally took the initiative to walk and see the answers himself.

And once he found the answer to his question, Armin's eyes were only open wide in shock and disbelief. He glared at the wooden sign that were plastered on the walls that outlined what seemed to be the marketplace, looking at it as if it was meant to mock him. He walked slowly nearer the sign and rechecked if he hadn't read wrong. But the letters that were written were clear. As Armin finally took in the name into his head, he looked once again at the place around him.

He was in Trost's market district.

But there is no such place! Armin yelled in thought, looking at the structures that dotted the area. They had scanned the area once in a while, first during their training as students and the rest as part of their duty as trainees. Trost's marketplace was as dull as the fifty-meter wall that soared over the district, and was never lively as he was seeing right now. Armin knew that there was something wrong in this place. This place never existed. He had never seen it before. But the walls were missing. The walls were—

The walls! Armin took his thoughts back. The walls were the only real thing that he could use to know exactly where he was. As long as he could the gigantic structure with his eyes, Armin knew that he was still within the vicinity of the human-occupied lands. But then, even though how much he tried to look up into the sky and find where the foundations of the walls where, Armin could only stand in doubt as the walls that steeled his hope didn't stand on where it was. As if it didn't exist in the first place…

"Where are we… Isvenn?" Armin finally asked once more, though he was reluctant to speak back at the other teen. The only immediate thing in his mind was the safety of his friends. And if needed him to ask for help, then Armin would gladly throw in his sense of self just to make it in time. He saw that the dark-haired teen looked at him confusedly, twisting and marching back at where he was. The blond waited as Isvenn covered the distance between them. "Please just answer my question," Armin added, hoping that the other teen would give him a reasonable response.

"We're at the town of Trost," Isvenn answered him, squeezing a doubtful countenance over his face. "Say… you're not trying something, are you?" Isvenn added, adding a droll smile at the end of his statement. It made Armin a little tighter on his words though.

"Perhaps I'm just overthinking some things," Armin lied. But on how Isvenn's face changed into a cheery expression, it seemed that the other teen bought his explanation. Armin only felt discomfited as the scene in front of him rolled out. The more seconds that he wasted, the more that Mikasa and Eren were left in danger!

"You're Miccaello and you're really supposed to overthink things!" Isvenn barked a laugh and punched Armin's shoulder playfully. "That was really a good act though; I almost thought that you've lost your memory or something." Isvenn continued to laugh before he erased a tear of joy away from his eyes. "I don't really know what I will do I lost you just so instantly." He added and turned away from Armin once more. "We're really going to be late if we don't move right now."

I need to know more! Armin thought. From the looks of it, engaging with a light conversation wouldn't really bring him enough information. Everything was simply too vague and knowing that he was still in Trost District made it more confusing. But if I'm still here, then where are Eren and Mikasa? Just where is that damn wall which is supposed to protect us? Armin continued to speak in thought. You can't simply put away a hundred year old structure away to hide—but Armin stopped midway as he realized one important factor. What if he was indeed in Trost? In a place where the wall wasn't there yet in the first place?

"Isvenn, what year is it right now?" Armin probed.

"Whoah, whoah, I thought you're simply trying to tricking me?" Isvenn answered.

But Armin wasn't interested to hear the reply anymore when he felt the ground shook beneath him. He had felt the similar sensation; he would never forget that feeling. As the tremor continued to grow stronger, the more that Armin started to feel anxious and afraid. And when a shadow loomed on top of him, Armin could only look in terror as a fifteen-meter titan stood towering over him. The titan slowed and stopped when he noticed Armin gaping back at it. Slowly, the titan dropped on its knees as it looked at Armin in great interest. The titan gradually revealed a large grin, which exposed its numerous and huge teeth. Armin could only shake in horror as the enemy of humanity once again looked down on him as if a hapless prey, an insignificant being that were powerless against them. He tried to reach out for his blades, but noticed that they weren't latched around his waist. Armin could only stare as the titan beheld him in that funny look. And when the titan's hand was an arm's reach away from him, Armin heard someone spoke behind him.

"It's year 738."

Armin could only look up at the titan that—

—that loomed over him and Mikasa.

And then an insufferable pain coursed inside his head, making Armin dropped against the ground in an instant. His eyes tearing up at the excruciating agony that struck him down, Armin could only half-observe that great being that instantly appeared before him and Mikasa. It wasn't the same titan that gave him the lecherous grin, but it was still a titan nonetheless. The vapor that materialized together with the titan slowly diffused and finally revealed the form of the being that it shrouded. It was only half a titan, the lower torso completely gone, leaving only half its extremity a head and a body.

It was even in an incomplete form, the ribcage completely exposed, and muscles remained uncovered due to the lack of skin. Armin could not see what the titan looked from the outside, but as he barely noticed the expressions written amongst the ranks of the Stationary Guard, he knew that it was as if they were gazing back at the visage of death itself. But Armin couldn't care for them when his thoughts were focused on saving both Mikasa and Eren. Despite the great pain that befell him, Armin tried to stand up.

"It's so hot," Armin could only say. He kept a hand on his head, trying to ignore the pain that pulsated across his skull. "W-What are we doing inside this gigantic skeleton?" He only added as he looked back at Mikasa.

"It's Eren… He protected us." She answered. "That's all what we need to know for now." She maintained.

At the same time, Eren slipped in between the skeleton's bones, quickly asking them if they were all right. It was Mikasa who regarded him at soon, but Armin could barely keep up as his mind started to get hazy at the same instant.

He could not even hear what Eren was saying, though it seemed that his friend did not even notice it. Armin could only hear some strange whispers that begun to assault his ears, flooding away his friends' voice away from him. As his hearing transitioned from bleary to clear repeatedly, Armin had finally started to listen to a crisp and strong voice. Isvenn… Armin could only think of the name. What i-is this? What is happening?

You opened up the gates, the voice of Isvenn only started started to speak. But his voice wasn't even heard by both Eren and Mikasa. You opened up the doors that wouldn't be closed anymore. Miccaello, you are the only person who can save the rest. You are the only one who could take back what was taken away. You are the only one who could put everything back in its proper place. Isvenn continued to speak. Find… find… find… find what was lost…

After that, Isvenn's voice was gone.

"I'm getting out of here." Armin was finally pulled out of his clouded thoughts, though the pain remained.

Armin could only glare at his friend in question, wondering how Eren could possibly do if he planned to do it himself. But, at the same time, he could not veer away from the vision that tormented him in agony, and the voice of that person who appeared before him. Armin could only stare in Eren in shock as a seeming memory flooded his thoughts for that moment. What's t-that supposed to mean? Who's that Isvenn anyway? What has it to do with me? He asked himself, never knowing that the true answers were. What is wrong with me?

- End of First Tale -