Megatron jolted awake to find himself in the same spot he fell asleep in the night before. He rubbed his optics before noticing a cube of energon at his pedes. He picked it up, but didn't bother to open it. Megatron heard the sound of typing and followed the noise to the main hull of the ship. He found Optimus typing away on the computers, paying no mind to Megatron entering. Megatron rubbed his optics again as he walked up to the Prime.
"There is a berth on the ship," Optimus told him, "You need to well rested for your mission."
"Pretending to be a human is always an irritating and draining process, regardless of how I recharge," Megatron retorted, "But today is going to much more irritating."
"How so?" Optimus questioned.
"I'm going to have to deal with the humans grieving over their fallen comrade," Megatron answered.
Optimus finally turned to Megatron in confusion before realizing what he was talking about. Megatron was referring to the Eldians dealing with the loss of Bertholdt.
"I have no idea how their superiors would manipulate this information," Megatron continued, "But I'm going to have to deal with sad humans all day today and I don't want to deal with that. I would rather switch places with you and deal with the Survey Corps."
Optimus leaned against the console. "How so?"
"You just have to deal with betrayal," Megatron answered, "An enemy that betrayed the island that is now dead, and suffered in a rather gruesome way, I might add."
"Megatron, they still worked together for three years," Optimus reminded, "That's not something that is easily forgotten."
"And what happened immediately after those three years?" Megatron asked rhetorically, "Another attack by the Colossal Titan. Those years meant nothing. Get over it. Move on."
"…It is not that simple," Optimus spoke.
Megatron scoffed. "Clearly you haven't dealt with betrayal that much, since all your precious Autobots followed your every whim."
"It's not like you would have simpler time dealing with grief," Optimus argued, "Nearly everyone under your command has betrayed you and disobeyed your orders."
"Well someone has spark today," Megatron smirked.
Optimus didn't respond as he turned back to the monitor. "You should head back to Marley."
Megatron rolled his optics. "We should have a discussion about what happens in the next twenty four hours."
Optimus glanced back. "About what exactly?"
"To see who fairs better in our current situation," Megatron suggested.
"I am not making a childish deal with you," Optimus swore, "This is a very delicate topic."
"It's not a deal," Megatron deadpanned, "I'm fairly certain you can't express your concerns to the mad scientist or the dwarf."
"Just go to Marley," Optimus ordered.
Megatron shrugged in response and left the ship. Optimus tried to return to the monitor and continue typing, but Megatron's words weighed heavily on him.
He was right: it was going to be difficult to process Bertholdt Hoover's death on both sides.
Marley
Zeke looked outside the window to his office to see that the clouds were beginning to form. It looked like it was going to rain today. Zeke huffed in response. It was somehow fitting for today's mood.
Zeke heard the door open to his office and glared at Matthew as he shut the door behind him. Zeke stomped over to him before slamming him into the door. Matthew looked down at Zeke in irritation before rolling his eyes.
"What now?" Matthew demanded in his regular voice.
"Bertholdt died a horrible death because of you," Zeke declared, "And you just looked bored."
"I'd figure my reaction would be fitting," Matthew stated, "Considering that everyone despises Eldians."
"That doesn't matter!" Zeke nearly shouted, "Don't you feel anything for what you did?"
"Do I feel something for my enemy?" Matthew asked incredulously, "I never feel anything for my enemy. They're trying to take my life, so I choose to fight back in kind."
"You-,"
"And this is rather hypocritical coming from someone like you," Matthew cut off, "Don't you feel something? Didn't you feel something when you turned your enemies on Paradis into titans: something that is practically irreversible? Don't you feel guilty when you turn your own native Eldian people, your subject, into titans for war? Not bothering to get their consent and doing it by force? Don't you feel guilty for selling out your parents and sending them to an eternal fate of wandering around as mindless beasts?"
Zeke let go of Matthew as he dusted himself off.
"I'm certain you try to justify your misdeeds as 'the good of all of Eldia'," Matthew proclaimed with air quotes, "But the key to this situation is that I'm not denying my actions. My actions killed the Colossal Titan, and his corpse will fall under the long list of others I have killed. Meanwhile, you think there is justification of stripping away the humanity of your 'comrades'. You think you are doing this for a grand purpose. It's literally means nothing."
"You don't know my life," Zeke declared.
"And you don't know mine," Matthew shot back, "So don't bother me about a human. His life compared to mine, is what an ant's life is compared to yours."
Zeke felt sick to his stomach as Matthew left the room. He couldn't believe Matthew thought like that. He was a child! And how dare the titan accuse him of being heartless! He only turned those people into titans in order to put them out of their misery! He was doing them a service; Matthew was making them suffer.
--------
Paradis
Optimus entered the tent in his holoform to see Yelena sitting across from Hanji and Levi.
"Optimus, a pleasure," Yelena greeted.
"What is the purpose of this meeting?" Optimus asked.
"Straight to the point," Yelena remarked, "I understand that there's been a struggle with technological advancements. Even with your knowledge, I'm certain you don't have all the resources that you need."
Levi quickly glanced over to see Optimus' unwavering expression.
"So, my recommendation would be work with the Marleyan scientists," Yelena insisted, "They already have the knowledge, and the resources needed to create new weapons are already on the island. You already have them as your prisoner, Commander Hanji."
"We do," Hanji agreed, "But I'd doubt that cooperation is going to be easy."
"It's not like they can say no," Yelena retorted, "Besides, it would be a great opportunity to prove to them that you aren't devils to them."
Hanji folded her hands and shut her eyes. "We'll get back to you on that."
Yelena was surprised at the answer, and a little irritated, but prevented herself from showing it. She stood up and bowed slightly before walking out of the tent, being escorted by two guards.
Hanji sighed as she rocked in her chair. "I really want to, but…,"
"It's too early for that," Optimus declared, "I do not know how everyone else is processing Bertholdt's death. Having some of them in such close proximity to the Marleyans will no doubt create some tension."
"They could also know about the thing up north," Levi added.
"As long as we keep quiet about it, they won't know about it," Hanji declared, "But this is important."
"I would strongly advise against this," Optimus advised, "Give the Survey Corps more time to process the information."
"As Survey Corps members, we don't exactly have time to grieve over lost comrades," Hanji reminded.
"But none of them have dealt with the betrayal of a comrade," Optimus retorted.
Hanji ran a hand through her hair. "We test the waters. Bring in a few of them and maybe introduce them to the others. Just enough to not start a fight."
Optimus sighed in response as Hanji stood up and walked out the tent.
"So how bad do you think this is going to get?" Levi asked.
"I believe it will become severe," Optimus answered.
"Well…if you need me to kick someone's head in, let me know," Levi proclaimed as he walked out the tent. Optimus rubbed his optics when he was gone. He doubted that Megatron was doing better than him.
Marley
Megatron had his arms crossed as he saw the Warrior Cadets fighting in the rain. He managed to find something called an umbrella, and has been using it to shield himself from the rain. Despite the rains on this world not having dangerous effects on him or the organic life, prolonged exposure to the water could lead to damaged effects on the holoform. He decided to wear the human clothes so that there wouldn't be any glaring suspicions of strange blue light coming off of his cloak. Letting the humans fight themselves was also the better option instead of him getting wet, making the excuse to see what progress they've made.
Megatron heard Gabi scream in anger as she pulled Falco and pushed his head into the dirt. Falco tried desperately to push her off, but his hands kept on slipping due to the mud. Zofia tried to pull Gabi off, but the girl continued to relent and kick Falco in his side.
"For Primus sake," Megatron whispered to himself before walking over and grabbing Gabi by her collar. She responded by kicking Megatron in his stomach. Megatron barely registered it, but he was irritated at the prospect of getting mud and water on him. Disgusting organic filth.
"This ends now," Megatron declared in his other vernacular.
"No!" Gabi exclaimed, "I'm not finished yet!"
Megatron slung Gabi over his shoulder, causing her to kick and scream and get water and mud on his coat. Zofia helped Falco to his feet and get some of the mud off of him.
"We're going inside," Megatron ordered as they walked back over to the compound. Gabi kept on kicking and screaming while Zofia and Falco kept their heads down. When they got inside, Megatron found an empty room with many beds and kicked the door open. He threw Gabi to the floor before grabbing a towel from atop the cabinet drawer and throwing it at her face.
"What was that for?!" Gabi shouted.
"I can't have you beating a fellow Warrior Cadet," Megatron responded as he removed his jacket and placed it in the empty bin. The children could only stare at his scars as Megatron grabbed more towels and threw them to Falco and Zofia. Megatron then grabbed Falco and took a look at his face to see a bruise.
"Have this checked out," Megatron ordered, "I'm not a nurse."
Megatron then stood up and crossed his arms. "Now explain why you want to pummel your friend into the ground."
"None of your business," Gabi grumbled.
"Then I'll make a guess: it's because of Bertholdt's death," Megatron replied.
"H-how did you know?" Gabi stuttered.
"I was invited to see such an 'honorary ritual'," Megatron answered as he raised his fingers for air quotes.
"It is an honorary ritual!" Gabi shouted.
"Then why are you upset?" Megatron demanded, "You'll all die within thirteen years anyway once you get the power of the titans. Why should it upset you that he died? It was bound to happen eventually anyway."
Megatron noticed the hurt expressions on their faces and rolled his eyes. "What else do you want me to say?"
Gabi had tears forming in her eyes before she bolted out of the room, Zofia following close behind.
"That was mean," Falco told Megatron.
"It's the truth," Megatron retorted.
"That doesn't make it right!" Falco shouted before quickly covering his mouth.
"Then tell me what is right," Megatron demanded.
"There is no right or wrong in this situation," Falco whispered, "We're supposed to accept the honor of becoming a titan shifter. No questions asked. We can't be upset about it. We can't grieve about it. We're Eldians…we don't deserve that right."
Megatron watched Falco walk out of the room, noting that he left the towel behind. Megatron picked it up and placed it in the bin where his now dirty jacket was. This was going to be a long day.
-------
Paradis
Armin and Mikasa eyed the Marleyans in chains with caution. The two of them were brought in to attend to the needs of the Marleyans, to try and make them more comfortable to their situation. But they had to expect refusal of cooperation from them. They were going to spit and curse in their face, and they were the only ones with cool enough heads to actually try.
One of them glared at them before spitting at their feet. "Devil scum."
Mikasa took a deep breath while Armin looked away. Neither of them wanted to deal with this situation. They just wanted time to properly process Bertholdt's death. They were only told it last night.
"You two ready?" Hanji asked, "We have to try."
Armin and Mikasa nodded their heads. They just wanted to get this over with.
--------
Marley
Megatron began reading through the book on Marleyan Laws once more, wanting to know more information about end of life treatment and care for the Eldians, and reading this…brought back some rather unpleasant memories.
"Eldians are not allowed the rights to a burial, a burial service, or a tombstone. Once an Eldian has died, their bodies will be discarded accordingly: either fed to a titan, or experimented on for further research purposes. In addition, any belongings to the deceased Eldian will be disposed of if not claimed by the Eldian's relative."
Megatron shut the book in anger. This was bringing back rather unpleasant memories of the mines. Megatron stopped in his tracks when he heard muffled crying from behind a closed door. Megatron slowly opened it to see Pieck on the ground of the room, holding a red armband in her hands. Not wanting to disturb her, he went to slowly close the door, but he internally swore when it suddenly creaked. Pieck stiffened and lifted her head in fear to see him there. Pieck quickly wiped away her tears, ready to come up with a justification.
"Look, I'm not going to say anything," Megatron swore, "I'm just going to go."
"W-wait," Pieck stuttered, reaching out for Megatron, "I-I know that it's low of me to ask, but since you don't care about humanity as a whole, could you stay and watch the door?"
Megatron raised an eyebrow at that. "You know how I feel. Why would I do that?"
"Because…deep down…you're a good person," Pieck proclaimed.
Megatron did see this as an opportunity to see the titan shifter's weaknesses, at least mentally. Megatron shut the door and locked it before sitting down next to Pieck.
"I'm not a good person," Megatron told her.
"You could've told someone I was here crying," Pieck retorted as she let the tears fall again.
"Ratting you out doesn't benefit me in the long run," Megatron declared, but keeping her alive for the time being did.
Pieck laughed as she held the armband to her chest.
"Did that belong to Bertholdt?" Megatron asked.
Pieck nodded her head. "He wore it when he came back from Paradis, but he's been in the research lab for such a long time. I guess they didn't care about the Eldian protocol."
"Shouldn't that go to his parents?" Megatron asked.
"His original went to his parents," Pieck explained, "I was going to give this to Reiner…but he hasn't been able to talk to any of us as of late."
Pieck began trembling. "I know that my wish is futile, but I only wished that they all got to live to their full term. Marcel is gone; Bertholdt is gone."
Megatron didn't know what to do. He couldn't just say what he said to the kids. It wasn't exactly going to blow over with someone that was actively grieving in front of him.
Megatron placed a hand on Pieck's head. "I…can only stay for about thirty more minutes."
"…thank you…," Pieck whispered.
Megatron grew stiff when Pieck placed her hand on top of his own.
"Your hands…are cold," Pieck commented.
"Well…I was out in the rain," Megatron reasoned, "Of course my hands would be cold."
Pieck continued crying, and Megatron swore to himself about putting himself in this situation. But if he ever did fight her, he could use the death of Bertholdt to aggravate her.
--
Reiner felt numb, listening to the Commander Magath yelling at him for his outburst the other day.
"Do you have any idea how much trouble you could've been in?!" Magath demanded, "Your outburst and insistency to stop the ritual could have cost you the power of the titans! You would've been fed to someone else because of your incompetency!"
"…I just…wanted to save Bertholdt-,"
"Bertholdt was a dead man, already!" Magath shouted, "There was no way we could even keep him alive even if we made reason to keep Bertholdt alive!"
Reiner didn't respond to that.
"The only reason you are still alive is because I was the highest authority present in the room and there is a war going on!" Magath told him, "If Calvi was there you would've been severely punished! You're already on thin ice because of the failure of Paradis! Do not do something that stupid again!"
Reiner meekly nodded his head. "Yes, sir."
Magath turned and walked away from Reiner. Reiner wanted to just swallow himself in his shame and sorrow and disappear. Reiner was about to leave, but grew stiff when Porco shoved past him. Reiner gasped as he saw the blue in Porco's eyes, all be it faint, and the veins in his skin. Porco glared at Reiner in response to his dumbfounded expression.
"What?" Porco demanded.
"I-I," Reiner stuttered.
"Stop looking at me with that stupid expression," Porco cut off, "If it wasn't for you, Bertholdt and Marcel would still be alive."
Reiner hung his head. "I know."
Porco walked past Reiner to follow Commander Magath, and Reiner was this close to collapsing on the ground and bursting into tears.
----
Paradis
Optimus dodged Eren's punch before attempting to kick him in the face. Eren managed to dodge it before charging at him in anger. Optimus maneuvered behind Eren and twisted his arm behind his back. Eren headbutted Optimus with the back of his head, causing the Prime to let go of him. Eren then tried to swing his arm at Optimus, but he dodged and kicked Eren square in the face. Eren quickly regenerated his face before tackling Optimus to the ground. He tried to pin him down, but Optimus grabbed his face and pushed him to the dirt.
"Get off!" Eren grunted.
"You have to make me," Optimus ordered.
Eren growled as he felt the energon go through him. He bit Optimus' finger, causing the Prime to let go. He decked Optimus in the face again, and tried to pin him down.
"Eren, enough!" Optimus exclaimed.
"Make me!" Eren shouted.
"Eren, you cannot strain yourself!" Optimus told him as he grabbed both of his arms and looked him in the eyes, "We'll continue in five minutes; you need to calm down."
"No," Eren hissed as he pulled his arms from Optimus grip, "They won't stop. Marley won't stop! All they see us as are demons! They won't stop until they kill us all!"
"Your anger is getting the better of you," Optimus retorted.
"Don't talk to me about anger!" Eren shot back at him.
"I understand you are upset about recent events, but this will only inhibit your progress," Optimus reasoned.
"What's the point of making this progress if I'm just going to die in seven years or less?" Eren demanded, "Just like Bertholdt,"
Optimus felt the sting of guilt and stood up. He tried to reach out for Eren, but he swatted his hand away.
"I'm done for today," Eren proclaimed, "I'm going to help out the others, and make sure Armin and Mikasa are okay."
Optimus retracted his hand as Eren grabbed his horse and rode back to the military camp site. He deactivated the holoform before deciding to drive to the neutral ship. He really didn't know how to handle this situation.
----
Zeke tried to keep himself occupied with work, to finish the papers that were on his death. But Bertholdt's death had weighed his heart down for some time. He wanted Bertholdt's suffering to end. He wanted all the Eldians' suffering to end, but seeing him die like that, it filled him with sorrow.
Zeke turned his attention to Matthew, who was sitting by the window watching the rain fall. Part of him hated how the titan didn't care, another part of him recognized that the titan wouldn't care about his enemy.
Zeke noticed that Matthew hasn't taken his eyes off the rain. Not once. He kept on watching the pitter patter of the rain from his office window, ignoring the papers within his hand. His eyes drifted to humans outside the compound using umbrellas and others trying to gain shelter from the rain. It was almost as if he has never seen rain. A titan from beyond the stars never seeing water fall from the sky. It was so…strange.
"Tell me something," Matthew finally spoke, "Does rain here hurt the humans?"
Zeke raised an eyebrow at him. "Hurt humans?"
"It's a simple yes or no question," Matthew proclaimed.
"For me it's a strange one," Zeke retorted.
"Because you're used to it, and know how it works," Matthew reminded.
Zeke blinked in response. The titan admitted his knowledge was limited?!
"I mean besides getting wet, rain is pretty harmless," Zeke explained, "People get wet, but you can get a towel to remove it."
Matthew hummed in response and muttered something Zeke wasn't able to pick up.
"Do you have rain on your world?" Zeke asked curiously.
"Rarely," Matthew answered, "There had never been weather cycles so violent on Cybertron, and any type of weather change was extremely violent and dangerous to the denizens. Chemical compounds in acid rain burns off the metals of Cybertronians that they have to go to a medic to get repairs."
"I had no idea," Zeke said.
Megatron opened the window, allowing the wind and rain inside the room. He placed his hand out and tensed a little at the cold contact of the droplets hitting the holoform. It was such an odd feeling, seeing this from the perspective of a human.
Megatron's gaze turned to someone dragging himself through the rain through the compound. Megatron recognized that it was the Armored Titan. His feet dragged through the wet ground and the water. He couldn't tell if he was shedding lubricant or if it was from the rain.
Megatron shut the window and stood up. "I'm going back to my quarters."
Megatron left the room before Zeke could say anything. When he reached his room, he grabbed the spare umbrella before making his way outside of the compound. Megatron opened the umbrella and placed it over his head, tailing Reiner from a safe distance. For a while, Reiner's destination seemed aimless, and Megatron was going to call it a quits and not confront him. Megatron then saw the training grounds in front of Reiner, something of a shooting range from the looks of it. The targets were wood instead of the traditional target, or even a moving holographic person.
Megatron watched Reiner just stand there for a few minutes. Reiner was in a vulnerable state. He could use that to his advantage and try to get secrets out of him. But it was just timing that mattered at the moment. Megatron looked out of the corner of his eye to see his younger self staring at him with disappointment in his optics. The rain not even bothering to wash away the energon staining his armor.
"What?" Megatron hissed in a low voice.
His younger self didn't say anything as he disappeared from his line of sight. Megatron sighed before finally walking over to Reiner. He looked up at the umbrella before holding his hand out once more to feel the rain. It was too heavy a downpour.
Megatron stood next to Reiner, covering him with the umbrella. Megatron noticed Reiner tensing at the lack of contact from the rain. His head slightly turned to Megatron, and Megatron could see the sheer terror in his eyes. His tears mixed with the water on his face.
"You should be inside," Megatron commented, "You'll get sick."
Megatron noticed that Reiner's terror was slowly turning into confusion.
"Look I get that you're grieving, but outside is not really a great place to do it," Megatron explained, "I've read Marleyan law."
Reiner slowly turned back to the shooting range, glancing back at Megatron with caution. "Here…Bertholdt always got his mark. He could always shoot the target, while I always missed."
Megatron didn't say anything as Reiner's guard went down.
"Annie was good at fighting. Pieck was intelligent. Marcel was a natural leader. Me…I was nothing," Reiner said, raising his arms to hug himself, "I was just a weak kid who could only kiss ass to my superiors. I just wanted to save the world, but…,"
Reiner sobbed. "I killed my friends instead. I should've turned back."
Reiner fell to his knees and continued sobbing, not caring if Megatron was there anymore. Meanwhile, Megatron didn't say anything. He was the killer. He ended Bertholdt's life. How would Marley spin this in their favor? Would they pin it on him and use Bertholdt as a martyr to rally their broken spirits? Would have done something like that?
"Dreadwing, stand down!"
"This desecrator must pay for his actions!"
"I said stand down! That is an order!"
"One which I cannot follow,"
He manipulated Dreadwing. He used the death of Skyquake to keep his loyalty in check. Once he had no control over him, once he knew the truth, he disposed of the other twin. What difference did that make between him and Marley?
Megatron shook his head. No. They were insignificant humans. He would not stoop this low and compare himself to these pathetic creatures.
"Why tell me this anyway?" Megatron asked, "I'm not an Eldian."
Reiner didn't respond for a moment. "I'm probably going to die anyway. Bertholdt should be alive, not me. I don't deserve to live."
"…You think I'm going to tell your superiors," Megatron spoke.
Reiner didn't respond, confirming Megatron's suspicions. Megatron grabbed Reiner's arm and pulled him to his feet.
"I'm taking you back to the internment zone," Megatron declared.
"W-why?" Reiner stuttered.
"Because your death does not benefit me," Megatron answered, "Stay under the umbrella."
Reiner did as he was told as the two of them walked away from the shooting range and out of the military compound. As they walked to the interment zone, very few people looked their way, probably because they cared more about getting out of the rain. The two arrived a few feet away from the gate, and Megatron looked up to see the large wall that surrounded the entirety of the internment zone. He turned to Reiner before handing him the umbrella. Reiner looked at him like he was insane, causing Megatron to roll his eyes.
"Just take it," Megatron practically ordered.
Reiner slowly reached out his hand before taking the umbrella from him. Megatron was already irritated at the rain hitting his entire body, but he simply waved goodbye and headed back to the compound.
Megatron tried to find places of shade as he made his way back to the compound. Why did he do that? Why did he show and act of kindness? He had no reason to give the umbrella, but he did.
Megatron looked up at the pouring sky. His actual form was above the clouds, so he couldn't feel the rain on his armor. But the sensation of feeling rain in this form was so strange.
Despite his misgivings about Earth and this world, he supposed that rain was the one thing he could appreciate. At least his armor wasn't being eaten away by the acid rain.
-----
Eren, Jean, Connie, and Sasha were moving some supplies around when they rain into Armin and Mikasa, both looking exhausted and worse for wear. Eren quickly rushed over to them, forgetting the items he was holding in his hands.
"What happened?" Eren demanded.
"We were helping out Hanji," Mikasa answered, "It's been tiring."
"Yeah, Hanji can be pretty draining," Jean agreed.
"It...wasn't Hanji," Armin admitted.
Eren grew angry at Armin's proclamation. "What did they do?"
"The usual insults," Armin declared, "But it's not something I haven't heard before-,"
"That doesn't make it right!" Eren exclaimed.
Eren looked behind the two of them to see the Marleyan engineered being escorted away. When he noticed Armin's look of defeat and Mikasa's look of disdain, he moved past them to confront them.
"Eren!" Armin called out, but Eren quickly grabbed one of them by the shoulders and spun them around to look at him.
"Apologize," Eren ordered.
"Jaeger, enough!" an escort shouted.
"Why should I apologize to an Eldian devil?" the Marleyan demanded.
"They were being nice to you all day!" Eren shot back.
"And you think we care?!" another shouted, "You're just Eldian filth! Trying to trick us and prey on our weakness!"
"We don't have to play nice! We can just treat you like dirt! See how you like it!" Jean shouted.
"Devils always resorting to violence!" the first Marleyan stated, "The world was destroyed by your ancestors! It' only logical you would do the same!"
"Apologize!" Eren ordered.
"I will never apologize to a weak devil!" the second shouted.
"We are not weak!" Sasha shouted.
"Without those Metal Titans, you'd be nothing!" the first shouted, "You're lucky that beast is nothing more than a lifeless husk who follows the whim of his deviled masters!"
Eren let the energon flow through his arms and grabbed the man by his shirt.
"Take. That. Back," Eren hissed.
The Marleyan spit in Eren's face in retaliation. Eren was about to throw the first swing, but a shot rang out through the air. Everyone turned to see Levi holding a pistol in his air that was directed towards the sky. Optimus stood next to him in his holoform with one of the escorts right behind him.
"What the fucking hell are you all doing?" Levi demanded in an ominous tone.
Everyone was tense with fear, and didn't want to respond. Optimus placed a hand on Levi's shoulder, causing him to lower the gun. The titan walked forward and looked over at Eren. Eren saw the stern and disappointed expression on his face, and let go of the Marleyan in guilt and shame, wiping the spit off of his face.
Optimus turned to the Marleyans. "Every single Marleyan is here as a courtesy, not as punishment. I do not care that you insult me and my intelligence, but I will not tolerate the disrespect you have been inflicting on my comrades."
"They start-,"
"I do not care who started it," Optimus shut down, "We have treated you with civility up until this point. Nothing like the stories you have been told by your country. We did not harm you; we did not kill you. The one who did was a soldier under your command."
The Marleyans were conflicted, but Optimus continued. "This will be your only warning. If there is any more infighting within the camp, I will personally transport every single Marleyan here to the innermost walls. Do I make myself clear?"
The Marleyans meekly nodded their head. Levi told the escorts to take them away. When they were at a far enough distance, Optimus turned to the Survey Corps in disappointment.
"I expected more out of all of you," Optimus began.
"They started it!" Jean exclaimed, "They were treating Armin and Mikasa with hatred all day while they were being nice to them!"
"Every single Marleyan here has been told from their youth the Eldians are demons and devils who want to destroy the world," Optimus reminded, "They are not going to change their opinion. Aggravation and infighting will only lead to their beliefs being solidified."
"We didn't do anything to them!" Connie shouted.
"That is not the main issue," Optimus proclaimed, "We are here to make allies, not enemies."
"They insult you," Eren hissed, "They treat you and all of us like we're nothing. That's not fair. We didn't do any of the stuff their talking about. We didn't know they existed. And you, you're always fighting for the rights of others. Even if the stuff about us is true, you don't deserve any of that."
Optimus sighed in response. "It wasn't that long ago that you all saw me the way the Marleyans did."
"Wait-,"
"Armin had a near panic attack when I saved him the day I arrived here," Optimus interrupted, "You and Mikasa have attacked me with the intent of ending my life more than once."
Eren looked down in shame while Mikasa rubbed her arm.
"Sasha has expressed hostility towards me more than once. Everyone else has looked at me with fear. I am fairly certain that Captain Levi hated me for a certain amount of time," Optimus continued.
"Captain?!" Connie exclaimed.
"It was more distrust than hatred," Levi corrected, "Part of me was irritated at the way you talk."
"The only one who has expressed a positive reaction towards me is Commander Hanji, but it was only for experimentation, not because she personally knew me," Optimus finished, "We are all anomalies to them. We do not conform to their beliefs and they are lashing out in anger as a response. We cannot control how they react, but we can control how to respond. One being to not start infighting."
The Survey Corps nodded their heads in response.
"I understand that these past months have been a hard adjustment," Optimus said, "And learning about Bertholdt's death may have-,"
"We're glad that Bertholdt is dead," Jean interrupted.
"They were still our friends," Sasha retorted.
"And how well did they sleep at night next to us, knowing what they did?" Jean demanded.
"Enough, brats," Levi ordered, "Go to your tents, now. This isn't the time to talk about this."
The Survey Corps wanted to retort, but they knew they couldn't disrespect their superior officer. They relented and went back to their tents.
"They do not deserve this," Optimus proclaimed in a solemn voice, "None of you do."
"It's not their fault," Levi retorted, "The world just keeps getting bigger. It used to be a just cause. Now what the hell are we fighting for?"
Levi could see the guilt on Optimus' face.
"I'll make sure the kids don't do anything stupid," Levi reassured, "If you want to, head back to the ship."
"Are you certain?" Optimus asked.
"Nothing a good kick can't fix," Levi answered.
"Please do not be harsh with them," Optimus requested before deactivating the holoform.
--
Later
Megatron dragged himself through the ship, wanting to get some energon and rest in his bipedal mode. He saw Optimus in one of the room, sitting down and drinking from an energon cube with a tired expression. Megatron walked over and saw that there was a spare cube across from Optimus. He sat down and took a sip.
"What I would do for high grade right now," Megatron remarked.
"Your day was eventful as well," Optimus concluded.
"'As well'?" Megatron questioned, "What happened on your end?"
"There was near infighting," Optimus responded, "What about you?"
"Constant grieving over the Colossal Titan," Megatron answered, "Mostly in private. Eldians aren't allowed to bury their own. Their either fed to titans or used for experimentation."
"That is awful." Optimus was appalled.
"Well there's not much that they can do," Megatron reminded, "The world sees them as demons, so they will be treated like demons."
"That still makes no logical sense," Optimus retorted, "If the Marleyans wish to gain the loyalty of the Eldians, why not give them the right to bury their own? Grisha's journal stated the concept of an honorary Marleyan. Bertholdt is supposed to be considered one."
"This is an oppressive regime," Megatron proclaimed, "They're not going to care about their slaves, especially when they can just be used as cannon fodder."
"That still does not make it right," Optimus declared.
"Was the infighting caused by the Marleyans?" Megatron asked.
"That and, I feel as though Bertholdt's death may have placed the team's morale at a tipping point," Optimus proclaimed, "Their world used to be so small, and it is changing at a fast and rather alarming rate."
"This island is aware of our existence," Megatron reminded.
"But our world itself was still far away to them," Optimus retorted, "They thought this world would be theirs to claim, but it is occupied by others that want us gone."
Megatron was quiet as he drank some more of his energon. "Well a start would be to just forget about the Colossal one."
"It is not that simple," Optimus retorted.
"He was a traitor,"
"He was their friend,"
"Who was responsible for the death of over 300,000 humans in a single day," Megatron shot back, "An impressive feat, but one that happened."
"Bertholdt didn't know that the people of Paradis weren't demons," Optimus retorted.
"And even when he knew the truth, another attack," Megatron reminded, "And let's say, hypothetically, the human did decide to change his mind and switch allegiances. His allies would be eaten by the next set of warriors, and his family and friends would have been turned into titans to be shipped off for the next war."
"They…were children," Optimus stated.
"And they chose this path, despite how limited their options were," Megatron declared, "The Survey Corps don't have to feel bad for a traitor who murdered their own to stay alive."
"I suppose everyone betraying you has led to your insensitivity of the situation," Optimus proclaimed.
"Don't forget, you were one of them," Megatron reminded.
Optimus glared at Megatron in response.
"Besides, it does no favors for me, being in an environment where everyone is grieving for the Colossal one," Megatron stated, "I'm the one that led to his death. I can't exactly grieve for someone that is my enemy."
Megatron chuckled at the thought. "I can't imagine someone grieving over their enemy."
Optimus kept his gaze to the energon in his hand. "…I did."
Megatron tried to process the thought before abruptly turning to Optimus. "What? Over who?"
Optimus looked up at Megatron, and that was all the answer he needed.
"You should've been elated that I was killed," Megatron proclaimed in a neutral voice.
"I was…relieved that you could no longer harm anyone again," Optimus admitted, "But you were still someone I considered friend."
"That died a long time ago," Megatron said with warning in his voice.
"I know. You chose your path and I chose mine," Optimus agreed, "But…it allowed me accept that it happened, so I could move forward."
Megatron threw the empty cube in response. "What foolish nonsense,"
Optimus watched Megatron leave the room before finishing his energon. He was tired and he wanted nothing more than to rest, but he still had work to do.
Optimus turned his attention to the monitor. The only thing that would really be useful from this ship is the walls and broken parts. They couldn't fly the ship, or access any of the other tools. He worried how long it would take to get the tools needed. And the 104th, they were still trying to adapt to this new world, but Bertholdt's death has become a tipping point for them.
He needed to confront them all about this in the morning. He needed to try and help them move on.
Meanwhile, Megatron found his way to the berth and lied down on it. Moving forward? How preposterous. He was certain his own men didn't grieve over his death. Starscream was certainly for face, but he didn't waste any time taking his position to lead the Decepticons. So why would his mortal enemy grieve over someone who destroyed worlds?
Megatron sighed as he place his arm over his optics, remembering the sad and heartbroken faces of those children. He hated being on this world.
--
Morning
Hanji saw the tired expressions of her subordinates as they mindlessly ate Niccolo's cooking, actually irritating the chef.
"I cook for you devils. The least you can do is enjoy it," Niccolo hissed.
"We appreciate it," Hanji reassured him as he walked up to him, "It's been a rough couple of days for them."
Niccolo rolled his eyes in response, but Hanji had a gut feeling that he understood. He just didn't want to admit it. Hanji heard an engine noise before turning to see Optimus drive in his alt mode before activating his holoform.
"How are they?" Optimus whispered.
"About as well as you could imagine," Hanji responded in a quiet tone, "Guess part of this is my fault. I was taking a risk and it ended up backfiring in my face."
Optimus nodded his head in response. "May I talk to them? In private?"
Hanji thought it over. "They do have some stuff to do today. We have to try to be ahead of schedule."
"I believe that this is something that would help," Optimus said.
"How long will this take?" Hanji asked.
"I am not certain," Optimus admitted.
Hanji looked back at their sullen expressions. "Be quick about it, if you can."
"Thank you," Optimus told her before walking over to the Survey Corps members. Everyone noticed Optimus, but wanted to keep their heads down.
"I wish to have a meeting with all of you," Optimus requested.
The Prime saw their worried expression. "No one is in trouble, but this something that needs to be addressed. We will discuss this after you have finished your meals."
"Yes sir," They meekly said.
Optimus deactivated the holoform and drove away from them. Hanji could see the dread on their faces and felt pity. They really didn't want to be left alone with him.
"Seems devils also fear something," Niccolo noticed their expressions.
Hanji turned to the chef. "Optimus isn't like that. He values human life. Regardless of who you are and where you're from. He isn't the lifeless husk or monster you think he is."
Niccolo didn't respond to that as Hanji grabbed some food and waved goodbye.
--
Calvi was going over some of the data in regards to Porco's health in his office when Matthew walked in.
"Here to break my door again," Calvi demanded in irritation.
Calvi noticed a rather…somber expression on the man's face as he crossed his arms.
"I'm here to make a bargain," Matthew began.
--
The Survey Corps followed Optimus to an open field, completely void of any humans or animals. They tied their horses to some rocks and plants while Optimus activated his holoform once more. He sat down in front of his alt mode and gestured for them to sit down. They sat in a circle, Armin and Eren sitting next to Optimus, Mikasa and Jean sitting next to the two, and Connie and Sasha on the far end of the circle.
"I understand that these past couple of months has been difficult for all of you." Optimus began, "It has been a very sudden and unexpected change, and I am aware that Bertholdt's death may have caused more conflicting emotions in all of you. So, what we will do now is discuss the situation together, and confront these conflicting emotions."
"…we're not…going to be in trouble?" Connie asked.
"No," Optimus answered, "Here, you will be allowed to freely express your emotions. Your sorrow, your doubts, your fears. There will be no repercussions to what happens in this moment. I give you my word."
There was still silence, everyone still uncertain about letting go and venting their frustration in front of the stoic titan. Optimus wasn't sure how any of them would respond, or even if they would respond. The first to react was Connie.
"Those bastards!" Connie shouted, "I hate them so much!"
"Connie, they were our friends!" Sasha retorted.
"Our 'friends' killed our comrades!" Connie shouted, "Our 'friends' most likely killed Marco! My family was turned into titans! My siblings! My dad! The only one that is still alive is my mom, who's still a titan! She's motionless in the destroyed ruins of my home town! The only way to turn her back into a human is to feed her another human! And that gets her what?! Thirteen years at best?! They were not our friends! They were never our friends!"
Sasha looked down in shame, still feeling conflicted at the thought. "I just-,"
"Just what?!" Connie demanded as tears were beginning to form, "Tell me, Sasha! Just what?!"
"It's not just them!" Sasha retorted, "They were prisoners too! They were lied to in Marley! Told that we were demons! They didn't know!"
"That doesn't matter," Jean hissed, "They still attacked us. They still killed us. Even though we're the same as them! What did we do wrong?! Who gave them the right to decide whether we should live or die?! Who gave them that right?!"
There was silence as Jean covered his face, not wanting his friends to see his tears.
"We were supposed to live and survive," Connie whispered, "We were supposed to survive the titans together. Grow old and laugh about our battles over drinks."
Connie shut his eyes and lightly hit his head on his fist. "What a lie that was. Those promises were nothing but empty."
"…I'm sorry," Mikasa apologized.
Jean raised his face from his hands and turned to Mikasa. "Why could you be sorry?"
"I had the chance to kill Reiner and Bertholdt when they revealed their identities," Mikasa explained, "I hesitated, and didn't cut their heads off. In the grand scheme of things, it wouldn't have ended the actual powers of the Colossal and Armored Titan, but it would have bought us more time to actually proceed with what we know now."
"I must apologize as well," Optimus confessed.
Everyone turned to Optimus in shock.
"I did not have the same connection you all had with Reiner and Bertholdt," Optimus explained, "But I did not want to raise my weapons against children. As a result, I had hesitation in my attacks against them. I am not like Megatron. How could I raise my weapon against life I swore to protect?"
The Survey Corps didn't know what to say at Optimus' proclamation. They didn't even know how to feel in that moment.
"…Do you think…," Armin whispered.
"'Do you think' what?" Connie demanded.
"Do you think…that if we talked to them…that they could've been a better solution?" Armin asked, "That we wouldn't have had to fight each other?"
"God damn it, Armin," Jean hissed, "You can't be serious."
"Somewhere, I know," Armin continued, "They must've cared for us somehow. Annie didn't kill me when I first saw her as the Female Titan."
"And then she caused destruction when she tried to escape!" Jean shot back, "Optimus already offered her a chance to switch sides! She made her choice, clearly!"
"We're not demons," Armin retorted, "They saw who we are. They saw that we were just normal people."
"Who they decided to kill!"
"So we don't try?!"
"What does it matter?!" Jean shouted, "Marco's dead because of them!"
Jean quickly shut his mouth as his tears threatened to fall.
"It doesn't matter what they think," Eren finally spoke, causing everyone to turn to him.
"What Reiner and Annie think or believe doesn't matter," Eren continued, "The world sees us all the same way. They see us as devils, and monsters, for something we didn't do. I thought that outside the walls would be freedom, but it's all the same bullshit we have here. Freedom doesn't exist for us. If we try, we're turned into titans, or fed to dogs, or locked away forever. Reiner and Annie want to be part of that because they decided to hate us."
"Eren…how would you know that?" Mikasa asked.
Eren turned to Optimus, who didn't say anything and merely gestured to the group.
"…I've been seeing my dad's memories," Eren confessed.
"What?" Armin questioned in surprise, "When?"
"When we found the notebooks," Eren answered, "Having accessed to them allowed me to unlock my father's memories. All I see is the hate and discrimination; no light at the end of the tunnel. Just…"
Eren saw the memory of the Colossal Titans stomping the Earth. "Just…devastation."
Connie laughed despondently. "So there's no point. To any of this! That's just great!"
"Does that mean we shouldn't bother at all?" Sasha asked with sadness.
"That does not mean we should not try," Optimus told them.
"Easy for you to say!" Jean shot at the Prime.
"Hey," Eren growled as he let the energon flow through his veins.
Optimus placed a hand in front of Eren to prevent him from attacking Jean. "There is no repercussion from what is spoken today."
"You're the one that fights for good!" Jean exclaimed, "You had a pretty narrow and simple goal: stopping Megaton from destroying life! The world sees us as the enemy; the one that wants to destroy all life on this world! Doesn't helping us go against everything you ever believe in?! You shouldn't be here! You should be helping Marley, not us!"
"…I will not lie to you," Optimus began, "Learning the truth about this world has been rather difficult, but I will not leave the island or any of you. You are human, and good people. You do not deserve suffering for what your ancestors have caused."
"You don't get it!" Jean emphasized as he stood up, "Our best option right now if everything else fails, is to use the rumbling! Something that could wipe out humanity! That cannot be our only option at survival! We can't just kill everyone! We were supposed to save humanity!"
Jean exhaled in anger as he sat back down. Mikasa, meanwhile, wrapped her scarf tighter around her neck.
"I thought…that if we got Shinganshina back, we could go back to the way things were," Mikasa confessed, "We lost everything that day…and I thought that if we got it back, we could have some piece of our old lives."
Mikasa quietly whimpered. "But…it's gotten so much worse. We can't ever go back to the way things were. We lost so much."
"But not everything," Optimus proclaimed.
"Optimus…is there any way to make it out of this alive?" Armin asked, "Is there any way that we can survive this?"
Optimus saw everyone turned their attention to him, concerned, frightened, and scared. They were all just frightened children, looking up to the only adult with enough experience.
The Prime took a deep breath. "I wish I had a positive answer."
----
Colt, Zofia, Gabi, and Falco waited for Matthew to train them, trying to keep their emotions bottled up and saving face. They became confused when Matthew walked past them, holding a rake and shovel in one hand, a dagger in the other, and the wood used for target practice under his arm.
"I wish I could give you all a solid answer about our chances at survival,"
The four were confused and quickly followed close behind Matthew. Zeke saw the items in his hands through his office and bolted out the room to confront him.
"I…wish that we could go back to those simpler times, where our only goal was to fight against the titans for humanity's freedom."
Pieck and Reiner followed Zeke as they saw him dash out the compound. Matthew stopped in front of a tree, placing the other items down expect for the rake.
"I wish I could lie to you all and say that we will make it out of this…but I am not certain."
Matthew began to rake away some of the leaves and stones away as the four Warrior Cadets watched. Zeke, Pieck, and Reiner arrived, clearly confused at what he was trying to do.
"I am uncertain of the future that lies ahead. I am uncertain if the island will be able to survive by the end of this. I am uncertain if there is a chance of peace for all of us."
When Matthew was done, he set the rake down and grabbed the shovel.
"The world we believed in was one that never existed for us. It is one occupied by others. Others who have their own hopes and dreams, others who believe that they are the heroes of the story, and others who merely want to achieve their selfish desires."
Matthew dug a small hole in the ground before grabbing the wood and sticking it in the hole. He placed some of the dirt back and patted it down in order to keep the wood in a secure position.
"The world believes that our destruction would mean peace for everyone; that the Eldians deserve to die for what they have done. That is unjustified and unfair. There is no guarantee that we will survive…,"
Matthew grabbed the dagger and kneeled down, blocking the view of the wood from everyone.
"But that does not mean we should not try. We must try to fight for another day. A day where the island will truly be able to obtain freedom.We must try to strive for that hope for a better tomorrow, or else everything we worked for will be for nothing."
When Matthew stood up and revealed the wood, they were all shocked to find the Eldian symbol, large and at the center, carved in by Matthew's blade.
"We must keep moving forward, no matter where our path leads."
"What is this?" Pieck asked.
Matthew threw the blade to Pieck in response. "You're given 24 hours before this is torn down. No more, no less."
"…is this for Bertholdt?" Colt asked with hesitation.
Matthew didn't respond as he picked up the rake and the shovel. "Don't expect something like this from me ever again."
Matthew walked away from them, not before shoving the tools at Zeke. Zeke was about to yell at him, but stopped when he heard sniffling. He turned to see Pieck letting her tears fall and Reiner covering his eyes with his arm. They walked up to the makeshift tombstone and kneeled down, grieving together. The others joined in, overwhelmed by their own grief and sorrow. Zeke felt that twinge of guilt in him and decided to keep guard, in the event someone came by.
Calvi watched from the window of his office as Matthew walked towards the compound. He never thought that bastard would be daring enough to sacrifice his free will, just so Eldians could grieve for a day. Well, Calvi did benefit from this: three months worth of orders and tasks without any form of complaint or threat. He would make the most out of it.
----
Connie looked at the Prime. "Do we…have to forgive Bertholdt for what he did? Because of his circumstance?"
Optimus shook his head. "No."
The Survey Corps looked at Optimus in surprise.
"You are under no obligation to forgive Bertholdt Hoover for the crimes he has committed against you, and the wrongs and misdeeds that he has done," Optimus answered, "Those are crimes that can never be atoned for so easily. You are; however, allowed to grieve. You are allowed to grieve for the one you once called friends, or the lives of the people he has taken. That does not make you weak, or a traitor of your own people. It only makes you all the more human."
The Survey Corps were surprised at the words. Was this validation? Validation for their emotions? Everyone heard a quiet gasp of someone trying to hold their breath. They all turned and were surprised to see Mikasa beginning to cry as she buried her face in her scarf. She began to hiccup as she covered her eyes.
"I'm so sorry," Mikasa apologized, "I'm so sorry."
"Mikasa...," Sasha stared with a sad expression.
"I want…I want my mom," Connie spoke as he covered his eye and his own tears began to fall, "Mom…,"
Jean tried so hard to hold back his own tears, but he began swearing as his tears hit the ground. Sasha moved to hug Connie while she cried over Bertholdt. She grabbed Jean and pulled him in, despite his reluctance. Armin rested his head on Mikasa shoulder and cried silently. Mikasa took his hand and held it tightly.
Optimus saw that Eren had his head low, and that blue tears were hitting his clenched his fists.
"Why?" Eren whispered, "Why is the world like this? I just wanted…I just…"
Eren couldn't form words, ashamed of what he wanted to stay. He couldn't say anything to Optimus. Optimus deactivated the holoform and transformed into his bipedal mode. He gently scooped up the six of them in his servos, startling them.
"If you want to, I can reactivate the holoform," Optimus said.
Eren rested his head on Optimus' digit. "It's fine."
The Survey Corps continued to cry and comfort one another. Optimus held them close to his chest, letting them feel the warmth of his spark. The downside of the humans was that he couldn't use his E.M. field to show his comfort, but he hoped that this was enough.
----
Magath walked up to the makeshift tomb late in the night, away from the prying eyes of Eldians and the military. He lifted the flashlight to see weeds left at the wood. No doubt a substitute for actual flowers, but Eldians could never really get good ones.
Magath kneeled down to the tomb before pulling out his own flower, a rose, and laying it down next to the weeds. He covered the flashlight with his hand to dim the brightness before walking away from the tombstone.
Rest in Peace, Bertholdt Hoover.