Eyes scanned the horizon. A cloud of dust was blooming in the distance, and if Jean listened carefully, he could hear the rumbling of footsteps. He could sense them coming but seeing their presence impacting the world truly set it in perspective for him. With a sigh, he turned behind him to look at the city and its evacuation. The waters were crowded with ships. Warships, civilian ships, and even their own airships were being packed to capacity in an attempt to try and evacuate Liberio of everyone.
A possible act once, but now the city was overflowing with refugees from every other surviving city in Marley.
Trains had been running non-stop for hours before they had drifted into silence one by one. Cities going quiet, overrun by Titans that mercilessly hunted down any survivors. Those fleeing had done so by any manner possible, word spreading quickly about the remaining military strong point on the continent. The soldiers of Marley had reacted in a mixed manner. Some had been fearful, not wanting to face the enemy they knew to be rampaging and near unstoppable. Others had been angry. They had wanted to be with their families and blamed the Eldians for the attack that had drawn them away from their homes. Only the ongoing evacuation kept them working.
Figures soared overhead, and Jean flicked an eye to confirm as he saw another Eldian team dispatched to intercept the Titans. It was an ongoing process, but so far manageable. No casualties had been taken from the Titans, but they were certainly not safe. Every excursion, every fight and dead Titan left them weakened. The time would come when they were too weak to fight back, and then they would be torn apart.
Jean himself was on break, sitting on the wall of the Internment Zone and resting. His ever-loyal assistant Sandra was by his side, waiting for anything she could do to help. She'd given him an update on the latest progress and was now simply left idle as they all waited for the evacuation to continue.
"Sir… may I ask you something?" It was her first words for some time, and to Jean's surprise, she spoke uncharacteristically softly. He nodded an approval, and after a small hesitation she continued. "When you were out there, you saw the creature didn't you? This… Cell. Was it really as terrible as they say?"
"Worse." He didn't have the words to describe it truly but knew that Sandra needed something. "It was the most disgusting creature I've ever seen. Even my worst nightmares couldn't come up with something like that. It wasn't just that it was inhuman, or ugly, or even how powerful it was. It was the sheer joy it took in everything. Humiliating us… killing Gohan."
Sandra was quiet, stifling the tears that tried to flow. Like nearly every Eldian, Gohan was a hero of hers, and news of his death had been hard. "All of this… is it really already over?"
"I don't know Sandra." He reached out with one of his hands to pick up a small stone, inspecting it briefly before he flicked it off the wall and sent it soaring out of the city limits. "I haven't felt anything like this since Trost."
"Really?" She perked up. "I didn't serve there, but I heard stories about what it was like. If we survived then, we should be ok now, right? You must have been so brave back then."
"I wasn't brave. That day had me terrified, certain I was going to die. I'm just better at hiding it now." Something itched at the back of his mind. He wanted to ignore it, but he knew better. It was his senses, feeling the team that were battling the Titans. None of them seemed to be in danger, it wasn't as if anyone had been caught and killed, it was their attacks. They seemed to be blasting at… nothing?
He stood, grabbing a set of binoculars as he walked to the edge of the wall. With a quick close of the eyes, he mentally prepared himself, narrowing his senses towards the battle only. Then he looked.
He almost dropped the binoculars as he saw what was happening. "Damn Titans are hiding their power levels!" The team in the middle of combat weren't just fighting a small group of Titans, there were hundreds of them. "Get a team scouring the perimeter for any sign of other Titans, and anyone free needs to follow me!"
His own orders to Sandra were cut off by an explosion in the harbour, his eyes following to see exactly what he'd feared come to pass. Depth charges had been fired, detonating against an unseen target, but he knew what it was. More than just an isolated incident, ships were firing on both sides of the evacuation convoy. He didn't know how many there were, but Titans were attacking every side of the fleet and Jean was certainly willing to bet that there was going to be another attack overland as well.
"Fuck," he grabbed the radio kept nearby, "this is Senior Officer Kirstein, all forces scramble to the perimeter! We've got Titans hiding their power levels in the harbour and overland! I'm taking my team to defend the harbour."
He put the radio back down and began to rise as Sandra staggered in confusion. "S-sir? Shouldn't we go help the team outside!?"
"They'll retreat if they can, but the longer we wait the more civilians die. Come on Sandra, time to act!"
His rocket away was swiftly joined by several other bodies. Sandra hesitated only briefly before joining her superior. Inexperienced as she was, she was certainly not lacking in determination to act. He knew her hesitation wasn't out of fear, but rather instinctual devotion to her comrades. The feeling was mutual, but he had a job to do.
The flight over the harbour gave him time to scan for the Titans, but all he could see was the explosions of depth charges beneath the waves. One hand reached out and gripped the side of a transport, beginning to tilt it over, he started with that one. A Ki blast blew away the hand, and he soared beneath the waterline to see the creature itself. It's snarling face locked onto him and leapt at him as fast as it could swim, swiping to crush him in its remaining hand. A careful dodge and blast into its nape killed it, the body sinking limply to the bottom of the ocean.
His eyes peered through the water, spying the sinking remains of two other Titans, blown to shreds by the bombs. Another three were still swimming towards the boats, twisted and terrified faces permanently enshrined upon them. It was a terrible reminder of what he had now known for two years. That these were people, that they still felt what was happening to them. He shot a beam that pierced through the neck of another, sending a mental farewell to them as they died. Idle thoughts about what kind of person they were he pushed to the side. He would think about all that later, after they were dealt with.
More bodies entered the water, and beams of Ki blasted away the remaining Titans. He scanned around, but seeing nothing he broke back through the surface of the water. Hovering right where he'd expected was a familiar face.
"Sasha, Titans here are dealt with for now, but I don't know if there's any others lurking beneath."
"I'll keep my team here." Sasha's clothes were dry, but the bodies that flew out and rejoined her showed themselves as part of her team. "What about the land attack?"
"I'll reinforce the walls. I don't know how long before we- fuck." They all felt it at the same time, the sudden rise in Ki as the Titans stopped hiding themselves. None revealed themselves beneath the waves, but as he rose higher into the sky he saw them with his own eyes. The overland attack he'd predicted had begun, but on a scale he hadn't thought possible.
It wasn't just hundreds, or thousands, but tens of thousands of Titans sprinting towards the city from all sides.
"Holy shit. Sasha, keep the harbour safe with your team! Everyone else, to the walls!"
Jean rocketed back towards the city, seeing at the same time the massive, panicked push of the civilians. They were swelling as they tried to squeeze onto every boat available, they didn't need sensing to know the Titans were coming. Their rise in Ki had been marked by a storm of noise as they broke into a sprint, booming footsteps echoing throughout the city and getting closer and closer.
Jean flew quickly, only for another body to rise up and intercept him. It was one of the senior staff messengers, flagging him down and pointing towards the Eldian headquarters. He didn't like it, but swiftly obeyed, dropping down to land by Mike and whom he recognised to be the Marleyan General Theo Magath.
"Kirstein! You're the one who called in about the Titan attack right?"
"Yes sir." Jean snapped a quick salute to Mike, though his eyes couldn't help but linger on the Marleyan soldier. He was as pale as a ghost, perhaps he knew what a Titan attack of this scale truly meant. "They're hitting us from all sides, I don't know if we'll be able to hold them back."
"We won't." Mike's tone was bitter, angry about his own certainty. "There's too many coming too quickly, a decision has been made. We're pulling out every ship we can, all the civilians we can and abandoning Liberio."
"But…" His eyes flicked to the General. "Sir, we haven't fully finished the civilian evacuation, let alone the Marley Military."
"I know." He spoke quietly, but the pain in his voice was as loud as thunder. "My force is primarily either infantry who can't fight against Titans, or artillery that can't be moved. We'll fire off every shell we have, help control the crowd, buy time for you all to leave."
"You'll die. All of you."
"Not him." Mike cut in, surprising the general. "Whatever happens on the other side at Paradis, Marley is going to need someone of your position and experience."
"There are others who can do it, I won't go." He shook his head. He was afraid, terrified, but utterly unwavering in his refusal. "This is my order, my people, and my country. I won't leave my people to die in my stead."
Mike bit back his words, wanting to argue but acknowledging the mans will. "Very well. Kirstein, buy time and kill as many Titans as you can. When the time comes, each of ours will grab as many civilians as they can carry and fly them across the channel to Paradis. Civilians are the priority; orders will be distributed to the Marley soldiers on the ground. They'll manage the situation themselves."
With a hesitant nod, Jean accepted. He left with a final salute, soaring up into the sky as his Ki rose in preparation for a fight.
Petra blasted through a Titan, tearing a hole through its chest with her own body. Its spine destroyed, the creature sagged to the ground, arms flailing as it tried to keep itself held upright. She shot a blast into its nape that killed it for good before she swept her hands around and blasted away the top half of another.
Too much power, wasted energy. She cursed herself, knowing she should have held back. But the anger she felt demanded otherwise, it demanded revenge. The scene had been playing on a loop in her mind every moment since it had ended. Cell killing Gohan, the moment her heart broke. She roared in anguish, throwing a blast that detonated and knocked down dozens of Titans. They weren't dead, and quickly they scrambled with what limbs remained and charged her.
Other Eldians moved in, striking with precision where she could not. They were finished off quickly, but for every one that fell, dozens more of them took its place. For every metre they reclaimed they had to give up twenty more. A hand reached out to try and ensnare an Eldian, only to be blasted apart from a pulse of Ki that shredded the limb.
But as that hand was destroyed, a dozen more reached out. The soldier moved to fly away, too slow to avoid them all, and they were swiftly pulled screaming into the pile of raging beasts. They were not the first casualty, and Petra sensed every one of them as they happened. Most were hovering overhead, firing at the Titans from a distance and dodging artillery shells that rained down upon the horde. But others like her, they had the most dangerous task, trying to cripple the front line of Titans and slow the horde by making them climb over each other.
It was working only in the most cynical sense.
Titans were fumbling, falling over each other in a desperate race, and giving them all so much time. But it wasn't enough, it was nowhere near enough. The perimeter was too wide, the Titans too relentless, and their numbers too many. They were closing in one by one.
A Titan leapt at her, flinging itself with reckless abandon for its own life in an attempt to kill her. She didn't even move, burning her Ki and punching with such force to blow off its entire head. Another came, and she killed that one too. Another, and another. Every one of them came for her and she killed each of them, holding her ground as the bodies piled up around her. Her muscles burned with exhaustion; her voice hoarse as she screamed her fury.
Light was dimming around her, the bodies creating a shadow that blotted out the rest of the world. She didn't care, only focused on killing each that she could see. For a moment, all the world was darkness. Then, bright blinding lights appeared as shells hit all around her. Shockwaves blasted her body, and through gritted teeth she pushed herself out of the pile of disintegrating corpses.
The battle line had shifted. In her distracted fury, she hadn't even noticed as they raced past her and towards the city. A beam of energy from her finger cut through the front line of Titans, slicing through chests and legs to stop them in their tracks. The Titans behind them crashed against their sudden halt, but the ones behind them simply scrambled over. Petra snarled, pulling back a hand and gathering a ball of energy before hurling it down into the eternal horde of monsters.
It stopped.
She watched as it smashed down into the crowd before slamming into them and… not exploding. The ball of power crackled, twitching as it almost broke apart before quickly reforming and rising back up into the air. It was being held, by a Titan. Her eyes widened in fear as she looked at the Titan. Fear, and recognition.
The energy ball was hurled back at her, ripping through the sky so fast she almost couldn't dodge it, flinging herself to the side and evading by only the barest of breadths. Her clothes were singed as it passed, but she paid no attention to it. Instead, her focus was entirely on the Titan she had seen. The Titan she had recognised.
"Levi…"
Amongst the crowd, he stayed still, staring back up at her with a face she had known for years. Her Captain, her Commander, her leader… her friend.
"PETRA!" She snapped to the side as the soldier screamed at her, recognising him quickly as Jean Kirstein. "The evacuation has been called; we're pulling out now!"
"But, I saw…" Her eyes returned to the horde, scanning for him. Anywhere, everywhere she looked, but saw nothing. "I saw…"
"Petra! The Titans are breaching the city!"
She followed the swarm as they moved, eyes tracing as she watched them reach the outskirts of Liberio. Farmland homes were trampled without a care, and the beasts began smashing into the rising buildings of the city proper. With a reluctant grimace, she moved, joining the rest of the forces as they flew back towards the harbour.
The last of the guns fired and fell silent, their ammo fully depleted, and she watched as the operators abandoned their equipment to join the rest of the Marley soldiers. There was a small number of them still organising the crowd, but the rest had placed themselves as a physical barrier between the civilians and the Titans.
The other Eldians were landing, grabbing a hold of those who could make the trip and beginning their exit. Among the crowd, Petra saw it. A woman, a mother, she held up her child among the people as they each fought in an attempt to flee, to survive. Just a baby boy, wrapped in a swaddle and crying. The mother let him go, passing him over the heads of the others. Their hands reached out, passing the baby over each other one by one. Each of them understood immediately, if not their own lives, at least one more. At least the baby.
Petra's hands reached out, plucking the baby from the crowd. Her eyes met the mothers. She looked at Petra as if an anger, descending from the heavens to save the one she loved the most, to grant her desperate wish. Petra felt sick at her inability to do more. She landed at the docks for only seconds, long enough for the waiting chosen civilians to be strapped to her body. More children, the young and most loved.
A bark told her that she was ready, and she took off without hesitation. The children strapped to her screamed, the baby in her arms cried, and Petra cried as she took off into the sky and flew over the ships as they sailed to Paradis. Only a last lingering gaze watched the city, watched as the Titans continued to tear through the buildings and the wall of the internment zone. Racing towards those who had been left behind.
Theo watched the Eldians leave along with the ships. All that remained of the once mighty Marley navy. A final salvo of cannon fire hit the city, at best buying them a few more seconds. It was all they could do, and the sailors aboard knew it. It wasn't meant for the Titans, not in truth, it was for them. A final farewell.
He looked over the soldiers around him. They were terrified, facing an imminent death. Behind them, he saw the people who had been left behind, their faces stricken with grief and terror. This was no way for his men to behave. They were soldiers, the guardians of their nation, of their countrymen. He would not show them fear.
"MEN! STAND FAST!" Eyes looked to their general, confused as to why he was even pretending to still be in control. But he was in control. Not of the Titans, or their fates, but of himself. He would not die cowering, or frightened. He would die as he chose to. "Harden yourselves men! Steel your spirits! I see before me the finest men I have ever known! There are no others I would rather be here with, I would sooner die by the sides of brave men than live with the cowards! Death is coming for us all! Accept it! Embrace it! I will meet my death with steel in my veins, and with courage in my heart! I will stand proudly, as a soldier of Marley! For my country! For my people! For me! Stand proud my brothers! Stand proud as we die and let out your cry! Roar in victory, for even as we die, we will not cower! We will not run!" He plucked a rifle off the ground, dropped by some unknown soldier and pulled out his bayonet, affixing it at the ready. "Stand with me my soldiers! Swallow your fear, don't show these bastards any of it! Show these Titans your courage! Your rage! Your pride!"
He thrust the rifle forwards, spearpoint gleaming as he saw the Titan rampaging down the street directly towards him.
"FOR MARLEY!"
The soldiers roared, crying out in one final defiance.
Crackles of lighting tore through the world as the Hope 2 finally tore its way through to its destination. The crew onboard groaned as they were thrown around, only a few remaining in their seats.
"The hell was that King Kai, I thought you knew what you were doing?"
"Yamcha show some respect for a god!" The blue Kai rose from off the ground and cracked his back. He didn't know a god could feel this way, but his time with Goku had given him some unfortunate new experiences. "I know where to go but communicating that to your little machine is a little more than just hard to do. You know this thing is an abomination in my eyes, right? You should be thankful I even managed to get it to work at all."
"Thank you, King Kai." Goku cut in, swiftly putting an end to any further complaining that Yamcha wanted to do. "Is this the place? Are we really here?"
"That's right." King Kai waddled over to the door, opening it and stepping out without any fear. He hopped out and landed on soft grass, the air breathable and pleasant to sniff as he inhaled deeply. "Welcome to the Sacred World of the Supreme Kai. The Sacred World for Universe 9, more specifically, but it's pretty similar to ours. Don't worry, the air is breathable to anyone who comes here." He waved a hand around to show off the world to the others as they stepped out.
It wasn't his world, or even his universe, but still, King Kai took a certain amount of pride at the beauty of the world. This was after all still a world of the Kai's, and he was a Kai. He had a certain right to be proud of the magic at work. There were less mountainous hills than in the Universe 7 equivalent, but in their place were floating small islands of rock and grass. Beautiful, but in an arrogant way. King Kai frowned at that, the world was often an indicator of those who inhabited it, and he didn't like what it suggested.
"This is where we'll find the one who did this right? The Supreme Kai?"
King Kai could hear the heat rising in Goku's words, and he didn't like it one bit. "It is, but seriously Goku, you need to be careful here. This isn't someone you can just barge in on."
"And yet here you are." They turned to see a figure stepping into view on one of the floating islands. By his side were several animal like humanoids, each with muscles tensed and eyes narrowed down at them. At their centre was what could only be the Supreme Kai, eyes narrowed and openly sneering at them. "My name is Roh, Supreme Kai of this universe. Now, you need to explain just what you're all doing on my world."
Cell watched from above as the slaughter came to its conclusion. The droll shouting had mercifully come to an end, silence settling in as the Titans came to a halt, their mission completed. A surprising display he admitted, he'd so thoroughly expected them to kill each other in the end, or at least not stand as resiliently as they had.
Still, his game was coming to an end. His eyes roamed to the distance where the ships were still sailing off towards the island. It would be their last stronghold, their last stand. At least this would give him a new source of entertainment. He sent out a mental command, the Titan crowd stilling before they moved as one.
More would come from further away, but he was confident that he wouldn't need them. There were still tens of thousands of them at his immediate disposal. He watched as one by one they descended into the water to begin their swim. It would take them some time, and he couldn't wait.
The end was almost here.