Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Bright lights, the sound of shuffling feet, girls crowding up while squealing, policemen yelling for spectators to stay behind the yellow lines.

It was a sight seen more often these days in the city of Sina. Usually a quiet town for those who have earned enough fame and fortune during their lifetimes, it’s only been recently that papers have had big enough news to splatter full page color spreads featuring just one person—the thief that goes by Jaeger.

“And we’re live at the Smithhonorarium Museum of Fine Arts where it seems a notice card from the elusive Phantom Thief Jaeger has arrived!” The female reporter excitedly talked into her microphone, eyes occasionally darting to the sky. “The man responsible for the string of robberies of ancient items from what is now known by scholars as “The Era of Titans” has now challenged the big guys in town and for the biggest of prizes. While it was announced a week ago of a new discovery that would shake the foundations of all research done on the era, the museum director has yet to announce just what exactly has been uncovered. But, it seems that Jaeger has caught wind of it and we’re here tonight live for what could possibly be the defeat or victory of the greatest thief in the history of Sina!”

The legions of girls pushing and shoving in the crowd started screaming in joy after the reporter finished talking. The bad boy thief falls in love with the innocent girl waiting in the crowd and whisks her away like he does with the jewels he steals. It’s a typical romantic fantasy, but it was enough for Jaeger to collect an impressive number of fans. It was currently unknown whether Jaeger was male or female, but the media knew how to stir up hype and it was better for ratings to paint this mysterious male thief image. That and judging from somewhat blurry photos of the thief himself escaping the crime scene, he seemed to be a tall male and with his almost superhuman physical capabilities, it let the imagination go wild. Cool, mysterious, and attractive—that was the Jaeger the public knew and despite what he was doing was a crime of a very serious nature, it didn’t stop the fangirls from growing and what sensational reporter would let such a chance go.

Briskly walking over to where the police officers who were attempting to keep the crowd in check, the reporter tapped the shoulder of the one who seemed to be the highest ranking officer. Only to be met with sharply narrowed eyes and a glare that almost made her drop her mic.

“What? Why are you even over here? Can’t you see the fucking yellow tape?” He furrowed his brow even further and the cameraman looked at the reporter with teary eyes, begging to get away from this man with the face of a serial killer.

“…U, Um, we’re with Sina news…Are you by chance Levi? The private detective.” She croaked with a shaky voice.

“And so what? I’m under no obligation to answer your questions. If you’re media, go bother Nile for gods sake, I’m busy.” Not bothering to deny his identity, Levi hurried off into the museum while leaving an offended Nile shouting for him to refer to him with his rank. But, Levi didn’t give a shit about the hierarchy in the police force and as a private detective separate from the organization, felt no motivation to respect someone just because he had a little title next to his name.

Inside the museum was eerily quiet compared to the bustling outside. Only those affiliated with the case were allowed in and Levi, though he didn’t really want to be, was part of that. Glancing at the various ancient artifacts on display in the hall, Levi heaved a heavy sigh and continued on in a brisk pace. He didn’t even want to be anywhere near this stuff.

Walking into a room with a sign saying employees only, he found three figures discussing something in the middle of the otherwise empty room. “…………Erwin, you shithead, you have some explaining to do.”

“Aah! Levi! So glad you could make it!” The ponytail woman wearing glasses noticed him first and brightened up with a wide smile.

“It’s nice to see you too, Levi.” Erwin’s pearly whites shone with that fake ass smile of his. How on earth the media and general public fall for this guy’s “charms” is a mystery Levi will never be able to solve.

“Why the hell did you call me? You have all of Sina and Maria’s police force under your command. I hope you know that I’m a detective. My job description doesn’t include preventing crimes. Leave that to the muscle brains over at the military police.” The military police was the nickname of Sina’s police force. They commonly overstepped boundaries in matters dealing with those less than the rich and famous while buttering up the upper class like they were nobles and royalty.

“You and I both know that they won’t be much of a help. They’re just one piece in my plan at the moment.” Erwin’s blue eyes shone with a look that Levi unfortunately knew too much about.

“…You try to stop him, Levi. This can only end badly for us…” Mike finally spoke up while wearily eyeing Erwin.

“Ha, no shit. You could have just locked up your precious treasure in one of those security-tight vaults of yours and phantom thief or not, there’s no way anybody except you or Hanji’s getting in there.” Levi was a bit more than annoyed at how stupid Erwin’s actions looked at the moment. “Who the hell welcomes a fucking thief?”

“That’ll be us! But, you don’t understand, Levi! Jaeger’s no ordinary thief.” Wearing a maniac grin, Hanji tightly gripped Levi’s shoulders and he could felt goosebumps crawl onto his skin. She knows he hates people touching him! “He’s definitely someone who’s knowledgeable about the Titan Era. I’d say he even knows the language!”

While the city of Sina had been built on top of the ancient ruins from the era where titans ran amok and humanity almost reached its end, the official language has progressed a good deal, not surprising considering it has been almost 2000 years since the last titan had disappeared off the face of the Earth. A plethora of books and old documents detailing the thrilling events and technology used in the fight against the titans, all of them were written in the old language and it was only through sheer willpower, luck, and effort that just a small portion of the language was deciphered. Even now, most of the readings are unreadable, something that frustrates Hanji, a leading researcher in the field, to no end.

“Lemme show you the card we got from him.” She shuffled around in her ever so messy bag. “Ah, ah, here it is.”

Patting himself on the back for remembering to wear his gloves before he entered the building, Levi took the card into his hands feeling the old parchment and glancing over the golden words.

Tonight is the night to dance the dance of regrets to bring ruin to those who brought ruin.

In the end, even the strongest fall and those who do not remember their sins shall burn.

03302853

My Wings of Freedom—I’ll be taking them back.

Signed, Jaeger

Levi couldn’t understand it. Was the guy trying to be some sort of poet? The only thing that he could decipher from the letter at the moment was the numbers. 03302853. March 30^th, 2853. Today’s date. Easy.

“I took a look at the other cards Jaeger has sent to the people he stole from before and noticed something. You see it too, Levi?” Hanji handed him a print out of all the other cards.

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Signed, Jaeger

4 different letters. 4 different lines in the most recent letter he sent. The previous cards were all written in what seems to be the language from the Era of Titans and if each letter corresponds to a line in the final one, then it seems this Jaeger fellow knows the language quite well. Much more than the researchers in the field or even Hanji.

“Seems like you see it too.” She looked a little bit frustrated with herself. He knew she took pride in her line of work and her status as the expert in the field, so it was probably a blow to her pride that someone else has so much more deep understanding of it. “That’s why I just have to meet and talk to him!”

Or not.

“If this guy’s the real thing, the stuff he knows can be the biggest thing for our research in decades! Imagine all the books and documents I can finally understand!” Hanji started pulling at her hair frantically. “That’s why you have to catch him, Levi!!”

“It’s as Hanji says.” Erwin butts in with his usual smile. “If we can get ahold of Jaeger, humanity will be able to take a huge step forward to understanding what went on 2000 years ago. He could become what I would say: Humanity’s Hope, haha.”

“Are you a middle schooler?” Only Mike seems to have common sense amongst the three. Humanity’s Hope? Really? What’s next? Humanity’s Strongest? No, don’t even go there.

“………So what’s the big ass treasure that’s got everybody shitting in their pants.” Make that amongst the four of them.

Hanji grinned. “Hmhmm? Someone’s finally interested?”

“Shut up, if it’s a job, I’ll do it damn well.” He tossed the paper backed and her and gave the final card one last look before following behind Erwin and Mike who had already started walking off in another direction.

It was a long, narrow hallway leading towards the exhibit. The museum had been on a week break since the card came and the media began its frenzy. During that time, the artifact was set up in a newly constructed exhibit room and Hanji did whatever she usually does with it. There was no small talk other than Hanji’s rambling about how dreamy it was and how it was simply the best thing to happen to her. Levi gave her a good kick to the shin to get her to shut up.

There were too many factors to accurately predict how the night was going to go. With the media and legions of spectators outside, the police would have their hands full with trying to maintain order when the guy finally does show up. A striking trademark of Jaeger’s was his ability to almost fly onto the buildings that hold the treasures he seeks. Levi hasn’t seen it himself, but some have said it looks like he looks like he has wings. Bullshit…But, it’s true that ever since he stole the remnants of a scavenged 3D maneuver gear in his first heist that he has been “flying”. According to Hanji though, those remnants were in hardly a good enough condition to even carry around so she doesn’t think he used them.

That means as soon as someone sees him, it’ll be utter chaos outside and it’ll be difficult to prevent him from breaking in. Levi has to wonder how competent the military police are if they can’t stop someone from barging in in such a flashy way, but hey, he wasn’t there so he can’t say much about it. Hanji had previously asked why he hasn’t stuck his nose in this Jaeger case before, but honestly, the only answer he has to that is that he hadn’t been hired for it yet. For such a public display of thievery, the military police has been handling the situation so there was no room for him to squeeze in. That and he didn’t feel so comfortable with matters dealing with the Era of Titans so he didn’t exactly sell himself out there either.

He had to question Erwin’s true motives though. He didn’t buy that he wanted Jaeger to be his personal translator. There was something else, but Levi knew that Erwin wouldn’t reveal his true motives.

“Ready, Levi? Behind this door is our treasure and the find of the century.” Erwin looked back at Levi with those calculating blue eyes of his.

I’ll believe in your judgment for now, Erwin.

Levi silently nodded and with a loud clunk as the multiple locks on the door all unlocked at once, it opened.

Levi could hardly believe his eyes.

It was a decently sized room. Nothing for the value Hanji and Erwin said their treasure had. However, only one piece stood in the room, yet it had enough presence to overwhelm Levi. Even Hanji, Erwin, and Mike who had all seen it before held their breaths for a second.

It was a human boy inside a crystal.

“………Let me introduce you, Levi. I said Jaeger could become our hope, but this is the true key to both the past and future.” Erwin walked forward and gently traced his hand alongside the crystal. He had a loving expression Levi had never seen before on his face.

“……Is he alive?”

“…Haha, yes. Yes, he is.” Smiling in an almost eerie way, Erwin lowered his hand and stepped back for the rest to gaze upon it.

The boy inside the crystal looked as if he was simply taking a nap. Thin arms and legs, normal clothes from the era Levi presumed, and a small face with well sculptured features. He would be a match for whatever image the media was creating for Jaeger, Levi thought for some reason.

“Isn’t it amazing!!??!” Hanji couldn’t hold in her excitement anymore and burst out. “He’s alive! Alive!! And we did some tests and this crystal is 2000 years old, Levi! 2000 years old! Which means…!”

“This boy is from 2000 years ago.” Mike finished her sentence. Even the usually stoic man seemed in awe of the boy in front of them.

A person who had actually lived during the Era of Titans. Hm, Levi thought, it certainly was a key to the past.

“Not bad.”

“Oh my god, Erwin, Levi said “not bad” to something we found! Miracle here in this museum tonight!” Levi had never been fond of the craze over the Era of Titans so it was with much effort he managed to not kick Hanji or Erwin whenever they went on their tangents about the wonders and mysteries of their line of work. He was a man grounded in reality and planned to stay that way.

“It’d be even better if we could get him out of this crystal though.” At Erwin’s comment, Hanji’s mood considerably dropped.

“Why don’t you just break the shit out of this crystal?” Levi knocked on the crystal. The boy inside looked so peaceful that he almost expected him to wake up from the knock and felt a bit disappointed at the lack of reaction, even if was to be expected.

“Yeah, if we could have, we’d have already done it.” Pulling on her hair, Hanji got up real close to the crystal. Almost as if she was willing for a movement, trembling of eyelids, anything really.

“We’ve tried almost everything, but even without considering the consequences of breaking him out of the crystal like how he’d deal with air quality from now and then and other issues, we couldn’t make a single dent.” Mike said, remembering how crazy Hanji got with trying to break open the crystal.

There is no such thing as unbreakable. No matter what it is, there is an end to it. Be it objects, relationships, bonds…Everything had an end. Levi knew that to a painful degree.

Hmm, that so. Levi turned towards the boy again. Gray eyes met closed ones and he felt a bit lonely though he didn’t know why.

“Now do you understand how important it is for this not to be stolen away? He is the key we have been searching for. We cannot afford to lose him, Levi.” Erwin looked at Levi with stern eyes that said that he had no right to refuse. Sighing, Levi could only ruffle his bangs and nod silently. Like he said earlier, I’ll believe in your judgment, Erwin.

Smile. That knowing smile of his. Levi always hated it.

“Alright. Now let’s get down to business.”

Five squads consisting of four members to each entrance into the building. One guard at each window of the museum. Another two squads on the roof. Three helicopters scouting the sky. Two teams of hackers and support groups outside. Ten squads littered throughout the floors of the museum and finally the room containing the crystallized boy had Erwin, Hanji, Mike, Levi, and the self-proclaimed Levi Squad consisting of four police officers from Maria who adored Levi.

“Um, Mr. Levi, are we sure we want only this many officers stationed in this room?” It seems like too little to me, Erd, a member of the Levi Squad, trailed off.

“This is the way Erwin wants it.” Levi only answered that, as if that alone was more than enough of an explanation.

As Erwin said before, the military police were more of distractions than anything else. While they probably wouldn’t be able to catch the elusive thief, they would surely put him on his toes and might even force him to reconsider his break-in and break-out routes. A confused and overwhelmed thief is an easier thief to catch. With so many squads in the same area, it would also be difficult to use a gun which could harm Jaeger. As capturing him was Erwin’s final goal, they couldn’t afford to risk the possibility of a stupid officer being trigger happy.

Leaving only the best of the best in the room holding the boy itself would leave room for action and necessary counterattacks. Considering Erwin didn’t tell the military police about his main goal, it was also necessary for the least amount of people to know about his desire for Jaeger’s knowledge. He also wouldn’t want them taking the boy away from him.

“But, it’s so strange…How can someone still be alive after all this time?” The lone woman in the squad, Petra mumbled while entranced by the crystallized boy.

Oluo, another member of the Levi Squad, didn’t look amused by Petra getting distracted by the crystal and was quick to let her know of it.

“Tch, he looks like a brat to me. What would he know about anything!?” Oluo snapped.

“Oh shut up, Oluo!” They began bickering again. What a married couple.

Rubbing his forehead, Levi turned away and stared at the crystal. As expected, the boy hadn’t moved and the crystal was surrounding him as usual. Just how did he get crystallized like this? What is this material? There were too many questions this boy brought to an era that was already filled with mysteries.

And Levi loved mysteries.

Just not ones that had to do with over 2000 years ago. The past was the past and he didn’t make a hobby out of causing a fuss over something that he had no power to change now.

But, he felt a sense of familiarity with this boy and he had no idea why. Maybe this is why he agreed to this job in the first place. However, that wasn’t important now. What was important right now at this moment was protecting this child and capturing Jaeger.

“God, Petra, will you stop and get on guard! It’s almost 12, who knows when the brat’ll show uaLKASJD—“ Ah, he bit his tongue again, everyone thought.

It was already closing into midnight. While the card didn’t say when the phantom thief would arrive on the 30^th, all his previous heists took place on midnight so Levi was betting tonight’s would be no different.

It was silent in the room and the only sounds that could be heard were the noises of the crowds outside and the typical ambience of the city. Levi thought fondly about such silence. Back when he was younger, he never had such nights full of just silence and almost a serene sense of piece.

It took only one thing to ruin it all.

~~~

It was Levi’s ringtone.

Everyone stiffened up and readied themselves for any sudden movements, but all relaxed when they saw it was just Levi’s phone ringing.

Pissed off that someone would call him at this time and smacking himself internally for not putting it on silent, he looked at the caller ID and saw that it was from his girlfriend. Erwin was looking at him with disapproving eyes. However, it wasn’t something that he could ignore, especially on this day. And knowing her, she’ll continue to call if ignored.

“What? I’m working.” With over 30 minutes till midnight and no notice from the helicopters of Jaeger’s arrival, he decided to get her to stop then and there.

“Excuse me? Is that the first thing you say to your girlfriend when you stood her up!?” She shrieked into the phone. “I cannot believe you! I cannot believe you!!”

“Believe what?” Levi was starting to get annoyed. Jaeger probably already knew which room the crystal was located in but to make such noise was not in his best interests. “I need to hang up. Don’t call me tonight, I’m busy.”

“You’re always like this! Always, always! Do you even know what day today was!? Our anniversary, Levi! I bet you didn’t even know that!” Come to think of it, she was yapping about something like that. “I just can’t stand it anymore! You always prioritize work before me! I tried standing it and being a good girlfriend, but even I have my limits! Do you even love me!? Because I don’t know if I do anymore!!”

“Fine if you feel that way, then, let’s break up.” He said without any hesitation. Clearly and coldly.

It seemed like she didn’t expect such a reply and started to stutter out a weak protest, but by then, Levi had already hung up.

“Pheww. Sarah, was it? Tsk tsk, Levi, treat your girlfriends better, will ya! What is that? The 8^th girl in a year?” Hanji was grinning while wrapping her arm around Levi’s shoulder only to receive a kick knocking her away.

“That was Charlotte. Sarah was the girl before her.” He felt a strangely uncomfortable feeling talking about his “love” life in front of crystallized boy for some reason. Even though there’s no way he can hear him.

“Uwaaa, you’re the worst, man. You’re gonna get stabbed one day.” Looking disgusted, Hanji picked herself up and took her distance.

It was true that Levi wasn’t very tight about his relationship with women. He took them in as they came and didn’t go after them as they left. It was his policy. And no matter what Hanji calls him, he has never gone without one and there’s no end to the women who vie for his affections. Not that he’s ever given any of them that.

Growing up in an unstable home, Levi never felt any sort of attachment in these sorts of relationships and he often found himself being yelled at like just a couple seconds ago by his girlfriend for not caring, not being romantic, shit like that. He honestly didn’t care. They were using him and he was using them.

“Shut up, shitty glasses.” He’s done fine up until now like this and he has no intention of changing his ways.

“You really are gonna regret it one day, Levi. You really will.” Hanji’s eyes looked a bit sad as she stared at a man that doesn’t know what he really wants.

~~~

It was Levi’s ringtone again.

Without looking at the ID, Levi angrily picked up. “What?” He should have just turned it off. And was about to hang up on her again and turn it off when—

“Is that how you treat an old friend? Ah, I guess we were never friends.”

It was an unfamiliar voice. Chills ran down Levi’s back and the rest of the members inside the room could tell something was wrong.

“Who are you…?”

“Ooh oh ohh? You forgot about me? Now that makes me sad.” The voice belonged to a male. Roughly late teens, early twenties. Levi couldn’t be sure.

Levi looked up and saw Hanji mouthing “who is it?” He replied with mouthing an “I don’t know.”

Trying to tell the others in the room what was going on in the conversation with his replies, Levi carefully chose his words. “Who are you? Why do you know my number?”

“This is making me sad, but I guess it can’t be helped. After all that happened, I guess those wings were too heavy for you after all.” The tone turned sad for a moment, but it went back to how it was originally in milliseconds.

Wings? Is this guy…?

“Are you Jaeger?!” The rest of the inhabitants of the room looked shocked.

“Haha. But, don’t worry, sir. I finally found out how to get my wings back so don’t worry. But you know, I never forgot you, Cor-po-ral Le~vi~” He stretched out every syllable and Levi felt a strange sense of joy in hearing the man say his name. No matter how many women have called out his name in sickeningly sweet voices, his heart had never budged, yet hearing this man say it now had more effect on him than any other.

The walkie-talkies in all their pockets rang out.

“Bzzshh. HQ! Jaeger has breached the building! I repeat! Jaeger has breached the building! All of squad M is knocked out! Over!”

“What!? How did the helicopters not see him!?” Gunta cried out while steadying his stance.

“Is that something to ponder over now!?” Petra yelled while slipping on her gloves and keeping her hands up and ready.

“Everyone to your stations! The goal is the capture Jaeger alive!” Erwin’s voice boomed in the room. “Levi!!”

Levi was the only one not preparing himself. He was still frantically pressing his phone to his ears.

“But, it’s okay, Corporal. It’s okay. I just wanted to let you know that………”

“Jaeger, how did you—“

“I-----------------you“

Static covered up one part of what he was saying. Then, the line cut.

Darkness enveloped the room.

“What!? Power outage!? What about the back-up power!?” Hanji cried out while scrambling to find her flashlight.

In such a tightly sealed room like the one they were all in, there were no windows to prevent any extra entrances, but that also meant that without lights, they were all in complete darkness.

“Everyone calm down and find your flashlights!”

“Bzzshh. HQ!! Can’t get in contact with squads A through H!! Lost contact! Over!!”

Squads A through H were handling the roof and support stations outside.

With the support members and hackers out, there was no way to keep real time updates of the situation of the other squads except through walkie-talkie. It was truly the worst situation for them.

Darkness is one of humanity’s greatest fears. A feeling of emptiness—nothing—enclosing around you and sucking you in deep. Flashlights turned on one after another.

The sound of an explosion. Screams were heard and flashlights tumbled across the floor. Levi who had been standing the farthest away from the entrance was fine, but his heart was racing with adrenaline. It seemed to come from the entrance…Which means that Jaeger has entered the room………!

“Jaeger!!!” Levi shouted. His eyes had finally started to get used to the darkness, but it was still impossible for him to identify where the thief was so he started trying to make his way to the crystal. If he could at least get there, he could sense Jaeger’s presence and take him head on there.

Now it wasn’t a matter of a job request from Erwin. He had to find out what the man had said to him last before the phone dropped. He didn’t know why, but he felt like he just had to. Or he’d lose him forever.

The sound of a clanks and rocks breaking and wind rushing through the room.

Oluo seemed to finally manage to get ahold of his flashlight and desperately pointed it around the room.

It was then that the flashlights lying on the floor were crushed with a huge force and the room was left with Oluo’s flashlight as its sole source of light.

“Damn you, Jaeger!” Oluo cried out as he frantically turned around in circles trying to see who was where and who was who. However, all he saw were familiar faces.

“Is everyone alright!?” Erwin called out in the dark. He grabbed his walkie-talkie. “HQ to all squads. Status report! Over!”

Bzzshhhh. The only response Erwin received was static.

“Damn it, so even those lines are dead!” Mike shouted.

“Jaeger!” Levi was still desperately trying to find where the elusive thief was. There was no doubt he was inside the room, but where!? Was he hiding in disguise? Lying in some corner where the flashlight didn’t reach!? There was no way that he could just disappear.

“Augh!” Oluo cried out with pain as the flashlight in his hand was broken to pieces by some object thrown his way.

The only place it could have come from was up, but how could he be there? Levi squinted his eyes, but could still see nothing.

…Of course…”Flying”…

“Erwin! Flying!” Levi shouted hoping his meaning would reach Erwin. And it seemed it did because he soon ordered everyone to aim their stun guns to the ceiling and shoot without mercy.

The sound of clanking and rock breaking again. Stretching of wires.

Everyone in the room felt a gust of wind and a tug on their feet and soon realized that they were all up in air.

For only a couple of moments as they came tumbling down. Levi realized some sort of wire must have tripped them all.

No, was it really tripping? It seemed almost as if someone forcefully pulled them off their feet.

Groans were heard, but on the ground, Levi soon felt a presence standing right in front of him. He quickly twisted his body in an attempt to undercut the person’s legs as well, but failed to as they easily dodged and kicked him back into the wall.

Such power and force! Jaeger was rumored to possess superhuman abilities, but Levi was no pushover himself, yet he was knocked back this easily. Feeling a sharp pain in his back, Levi couldn’t bring himself to get back up and fight. Even though he has to fight. He has to fight and yet! Fight, fight!

“……” The figure is silent. Almost as if he was waiting for a response from Levi.

Levi spit out the gross feeling in his mouth and leaped forward sliding down halfway and spinning while keeping his leg stretched out. A hit! The person felt surprised but quickly regained their balance.

Figuring out where Jaeger was by feeling his presence, Levi shot forward with a fast punch only to be blocked. Strike, block, dodge, strike!

They exchanged blow after blow. Even if he couldn’t see, it was the first time someone was on par with Levi in hand to hand fighting. But, he was ready to end this now…

Grunting, Levi maneuvered his body to jump back a bit and then shot forward in an almost unbelievably high speed. No one has ever blocked this before and Levi was sure it was his victory when…

“Gah!” He cried out in pain as he was flipped over and brought down to the ground.

“Sir!?” He could hear Erd and the others cry out for him.

Why? Why had Jaeger been able to defeat him like this? No one should have been able to defeat him after he went all out like that. No, to begin with, it was all strange. Just why did it feel like Jaeger knew all of Levi’s moves already? Almost as if exchanging blows with him was a daily occurrence.

The letters, the robberies, the call, this…

 Just who are you, Jaeger?

The sound of the crystal being hit resounds in the room.

“Everyone, protect the crystal!”

“We can’t just shoot here though! We’ll hit each other!” Petra cried out. Since the crystal was in the middle of the room, in this complete darkness, if they just randomly shot towards what they thought was the middle, they would end up hitting each other.

“Kuh…! Keep moving around!” Damn you, Jaeger. Hanji thought in her mind, but she was almost excited about this. Just how much will you turnover my expectations, Mister Jaeger…

“………Traitor.” The silent figure mumbles in a muffled voice. Traitor? Did Jaeger just call him a traitor?

Before Levi can process what he said, a huge amount of steam envelops the room.

There are screams everywhere and everyone ducks to avoid the full brunt of the hot heat.

Sounds of clanking and rocks breaking again. And finally, another explosion and the squad can feel rocks begin to tumble down. Grabbing onto the backs of the necks and head, they can only lay still and wait for both the hot steam and rock fall to cede.

Outside, cheers and shrieks fill the streets of Sina and the sound of helicopters flying rage on above in the sky. Aah, Levi thinks. He got away. He let him get away!!

It takes a while for everything to settle down.

“Cough, cough….Is everyone alright…?” Hanji cries out weakly after the debris settles down. She adjusts her glasses and waits for her eyes to adjust to the new light from the moon. “…Ah, it’s a full moon tonight……”

“Professor Hanji…! The crystal! The crystal!!” Petra cries out while sitting down on the ground. Her eyes are wide and her hands cover her mouth opened from shock.

In the place of the seemingly unbreakable crystal that held the boy from 2000 years ago, was now a melted down mess with the precious boy gone.

They had failed.

Not only had they failed to capture Jaeger, they had failed to protect the treasure, the key to the past.

In his place was a small card.

I have taken back my wings.

Live through life without regret in the choices you have made.

Signed, Jaeger

“………………Haha……” Levi couldn’t help but laugh as he stared down at the card and at the ruined museum. Don’t regret the choices you’ve made, huh?

March 30^th, 2583.

Humanity lost its hope and one man sitting alone while looking at the moon, felt like he had lost something very important that day.

Chapter Text

Jaeger succeeds again! Smithhonorarium in ruins!

Can Jaeger not be stopped!?

Mysterious treasure stolen from the Smithhonorarium

Jaeger singlehandedly defeats Sina and Maria Police!

Newspaper after newspaper. Headline after headline. All the newspapers talked about nothing except Jaeger and his successful heist the other day. The TV stations did nothing but discuss the heist and show reels of reporters asking pedestrians about their thoughts on the robbery and Jaeger. Girls would blush and talk about him as if he was their god and guys would rave about how cool and athletic he must be. One thing was clear. Even if he was a criminal, Jaeger had a grip on the public’s heart.

On the opposite end of the spectrum was the humiliated military police. They were more useless than predicted and many injuries were reported after the night. It was shameful how so many of them were wiped out by a single thief. They never had the greatest reputation amongst the citizens of Sina, but Levi almost winced at the comments he saw about them. And by that, he winced at the colorful language of commentators, not at the general opinion of those shits at the military police.

He already gave Nile a piece of his mind after the incident, but even that wasn’t enough for how much they fucked up last night. Levi let out a small scoff. Not one squad in their so-called high-class police force was useful. Shameful indeed.

The Smithhonorarium itself was in shambles. The roof to the room the crystallized boy was held in was broken through and many other halls and exhibits were damaged from crushed marble and walls. Not to mention the destroyed emergency power system and lines. Cost and damages were through the roof and Levi almost felt sorry for Erwin.

But more than that, he felt an insuppressible irritation at himself and everyone else.

He looks at one of the newspapers on his desk.

Is there no one who can stop Jaeger?

Clicking his tongue, he threw the newspaper into the trash can by his desk.

March 31st, 2538. Only a day after failing to capture Jaeger and losing the crystallized boy.

Levi stared blankly up at the sky that appeared after Jaeger had broken through the roof. Surrounded with concrete and marble, he glared hard at the moon. Strangely, his heart hurt. He had failed, that much was obvious, but why did he feel like screaming out and crying?

It was a strange and unfamiliar feeling.

Confusion arises in humans when they are approached with emotions they have never felt before. Levi never considered himself emotionally stunted, but he absentmindedly mused that maybe he was since he had never felt pain like this before. It felt like his soul was screaming, clawing at him.

Why? Why? It screams. Traito-

“Levi, you’re still here?”

He turned around to the voice. It was Hanji. She must have finished shooing away the nosy reporters. Oh yes, they would have a field day tomorrow. Already sensing the troubles that would follow, Levi felt his head hurt and massaged his forehead with his hand that wasn’t wrapped up in gauze.

Noticing the wrapped hand, Hanji looked at him concerned. “Were you hurt by him?”

“No, this is from when the ceiling was falling on us. Petra wrapped it up for me.”

“Is it broken?” Hanji looked guilty. She had been one of the people to persuade him into trying to capture Jaeger so she felt like his injuries were her responsibilities.

“No, don’t worry about it. It’s just a gash.” Levi hid the hand in his pocket and looked back up to the full moon.

Surrounding the moon were gray clouds. He couldn’t hear the sounds of helicopters, but he already imagined that Jaeger had gotten away and the military police failed to tail him. A boiling sense of irritation rose up in the pit of his stomach again. He was the one who had the most contact with Jaeger. He was the one who exchanged words with him, even if it was just him one-sidedly shouting at Jaeger. He was the one who fought him. Exchanged blows. Felt his touch. The military police failed? No, no. The one who really failed was no one but him!

“Pretty, isn’t it?” Hanji broke him out of his thoughts. She dropped herself down beside him on his right.

“What?” He wasn’t really interested in talking about the beauties of the moon with an eccentric type like Hanji.

“…Isn’t it funny how when you focus too much on one thing, you lose sight of everything else? I didn’t even remember tonight would be a full moon.” Hanji continued on. “Would be romantic, right Levi?”

He felt like throwing up then and there. “Like I want to be romantic with you.”

“How rude! A short old man like you isn’t my type either!” Hanji puffed her cheeks. You are the same age, woman. Levi grimaced when he remembered the time she blabbed on and on about her ideal type to him when she was drunk at a bar one night. Tall as can be, kind face, but aggressive to the point he’d eat her. Hanji Zoe—a weirdo through and through. “I’m talking about Jaeger, Levi.”

“Hah?” Levi looked at her incredulously. What is this freak going on about now?

“For a private detective, you’re not very good at deducing things, are you, Levi.” She sighed in an exaggerated manner. “Why choose tonight to steal our precious treasure? Especially with that letter that practically gives it all away. He chose tonight for a reason, Levi.”

“And you want to say that he chose it because it’s a full moon?” Oh god, how could she be so dumb while being so smart. Was this really the leading researcher in the field?

“Well, what do you think, Mr. Detective-pants!”

“……Can’t say for now. There are just too many things we don’t know.” It was the truth. Levi made it a policy never to say anything when he doesn’t have the evidence to back it up. That and he couldn’t help but feel that the full moon thing wasn’t really a part of why Jaeger chose tonight of all nights. He was relying on his instincts, but his instincts were rarely ever wrong. Hanji whined a bit but he ignored her.

Footsteps could be heard and the two looked towards the entrance where Erwin was walking through.

“There you are Hanji. And ah, it seems like Levi’s with you too. Perfect.” Erwin smiled with that usual smile of his. Shiny whites and a fake as hell expression to top it off. It definitely didn’t look like the expression of someone who just had their museum wrecked and their precious “hope” stolen away.

“Ah, Erwin! Media finally back off?” She spat out media with a bit of venom in her voice. It seems that even the unswayable Hanji can’t stand the Sina Media and Levi didn’t blame her. Since the city had so little news all the time other than a resident’s company taking over the stock market or so-and-so moving into a multibillion dollar mansion, they were starved for fresh news. Sensationalist papers were their specialty and sometimes they wrote like they were a celebrity magazine you could find while waiting to check out in the grocery store.

“They did. It took a bit of persuasion, but they backed down for the night. There’s much to do after all.” Even Erwin looked a bit tired and Levi gave a pat on Erwin’s back in his mind. Thank you for dealing with the media so I don’t have to.

“So what are you gonna do about this? You lost your precious key.” Levi asked while standing up and dusting his pants. Gross, he didn’t know what got into him that he of all people would sit on the ground. “And your museum looks like shit now. The roof literally blew off.”

It was still a mystery as to how Jaeger managed to make such a large hole in the roof. It was a circle about 10 feet in diameter. Judging from the explosion, Levi considered explosives, but the fallen cement used to make the roof didn’t reflect that. Pieces near the center of the room were smaller in size while pieces closer to the edge, were much larger. Plus none of the pieces were small enough to determine if it was an explosion. The pieces looked almost as if they were ground broken up by an earthquake so a large and powerful enough force had to have broken the roof to cause this. The biggest evidence though for suggesting it wasn’t explosives was the fact that many of the rocks were shot up out into the sky and fell around the roof. Explosives don’t have enough power to propel those large rocks up into the air; they would simply fall after breaking. But if it wasn’t explosives, just what was it? There was no end to the mysteries surrounding a very mysterious person. But, Levi does love mysteries.

“The state of the museum is rather disappointing, but nothing that I can’t handle.” Erwin smiled. Of course, Levi thought. He’s stinking rich and the publicity this event will bring will more than make up for the damages. “And our objective was reached so I’m actually quite satisfied with the way things turned out.”

Wait, what?

“We didn’t capture Jaeger and you lost the kid in the crystal. How the hell can you call that achieving your objective?” Levi could hardly believe his ears. Didn’t Erwin say the goal was to capture Jaeger alive? What was he going on about now?

He looked at Hanji in disbelief asking for answers. However, Hanji herself was nodding her head agreeing with Erwin.

Oh great. The shock of failing so badly caused them to go nuts.

“It would have been ideal if we captured Jaeger, but our final goal wasn’t that.” Erwin explained. Levi felt a sinking feeling in his stomach.

“You know how we couldn’t break open the crystal no matter what we did?” Hanji butted in. “But, we figured Jaeger knew how to. He knows the language and somehow he knew about our secret treasure when we haven’t even announced it to the public. It’s frustrating, but Jaeger’s the one who knows the most about that era. There has to be some sort of link between Jaeger and that boy and if there’s anyone to break free that crystallized boy, it would be Jaeger.”

Holding a dormant key is the same as having none at all. They would rather let go of the boy than have him stay sleeping forever.

“And it seems that our predictions weren’t wrong. Jaeger freed the boy.” Erwin smiled in that eerie fashion again.

“So you guys welcomed him so you could get him to get the kid out?” Levi looked from Erwin to Hanji and back. They smiled back at him.

“Exactly.” Hanji’s eyes were sparkling.

“He’s the key to the Era of Titans, Levi. But without him out of there and able to communicate with us, we can’t learn anything, now can we?” Erwin replied while checking his watch. 4 AM. Lists and time schedules flew through his head. There was no end to a director’s job.

Levi narrowed his eyes. He always knew he couldn’t underestimate this man, but he never felt so strongly about it till now.

“Like I said, it would have been ideal to capture Jaeger, have him free the boy, and act as a translator for us, but our main objective has been accomplished.”

“So you wanna find both of them now?”

“Naturally. They’ll probably act together from here on out so if we find one, he’ll lead us to the other.” Erwin smiled while loosening his tie.

Levi was more than a bit put off. He realized that Hanji and Erwin had a lot more at stake with the crystallized boy and Jaeger than he did, but he was a part of the team set up tonight. On top of that, he was their friend, though he would never admit it out loud. He felt betrayed that they would lie to him about their true goal.

Noticing his mood, Hanji smiled apologetically at him. “Sorry we didn’t tell you about this, Levi. The less people who knew the better.”

“Ha. I can’t be trusted then, I see.” He knew he was being bitter, but he couldn’t help it. He was more than knees deep in this case and they just shut him out. Like he had nothing to do with it. Like he was nothing more than a little detective, a piece in Erwin’s game.

“Don’t get angry at Hanji, Levi. It was my judgment to not tell you.” Erwin looked at him. And you’ll follow my judgment, right, Levi?

Levi’s eyes asked why. Why was he left in the dark?

Erwin acknowledged his resentment, but didn’t say anything right away. He walked over to where the melted crystal was and leaned down to pick up a stray piece. Holding it up to the moonlight, he admired its beauty. This would sell for much on auction sites.

“………You value the present more than the past, Levi.” Erwin finally said when Levi was about to voice his thoughts out loud.

The present over the past? “What does that have to do with stopping Jaeger?” Levi fired back.

“And that’s what we’re talking about, Levi.” Hanji replied looking a bit uncomfortable. “It’s sort of hard to explain. You know how we’re studying the past?”

Events from over 2000 years ago. To some, it seems like a useless endeavor to try to uncover the secrets of the past because that’s exactly what they are. The past.

There are people in the field who get into because of simply an interest in the history like Hanji who became obsessed with the towering titans. And if there are people like that, there are people like Erwin who see profit, though not necessarily monetary gains, in it.

Either way, they were both looking towards the past. So in this Jaeger case, they place the crystallized boy, the link to the past, over the thief. However, Levi was different.

Levi was always looking ahead. He had no time or room within himself to keep looking behind his shoulder, pondering over wrong choices and past deeds. The future was always within his grasps because he kept on reaching for it. And that is exactly what he would do.

“When push comes to shove, you’ll choose the future over the past. We can’t have that, Levi.” Hanji looked firm in her resolution. She felt guilt over lying to Levi, but this was for her and Erwin’s goals. There was no one who she would allow to block her from achieving what she desired most in the world. “We’ll choose that boy over any other.”

Levi couldn’t fully grasp what they were talking about. Past, present, future. To apply them to Jaeger and the crystallized boy, what does that change? He felt a sting of pain coming from his tightened fist.

Erwin saw through the whirlwind of emotions storming inside Levi. “To say it simply: you’ll choose Jaeger over the boy in the crystal, Levi. For instance, if you had the choice between chasing after Jaeger and protecting the boy, which would you choose?”

“That’s the same thing. By chasing after Jaeger, I would be stopping him from stealing away the brat. Two birds one stone.” Levi stared right into Erwin’s blue ones.

“And that’s why we couldn’t tell you.” Hanji said while running a hand through her hair. “Just think over it a bit, Levi. It’s not something we can tell you straight up. Aaah, I really need a cup of coffee around now.”

She began walking towards the entrance calling for her subordinate Moblit. Erwin soon followed suit, leaving Levi the only one not moving from his spot.

He didn’t completely understand what they were trying to tell him, but he assumed that’s why they were the ones usually giving orders and he was the one to carry them out. Biting his lip in frustration, Levi stared at the entrance where Erwin was about to leave through.

They said that their main objective had been completed, but Levi didn’t feel satisfied at all. But that’s a given. He wanted answers from Jaeger, not from the crystallized boy. There were so many questions he wanted to ask and demand answers for. Even more so with how many more questions popped up tonight with Jaeger’s appearance. Yes, the one he wanted was Jaeger.

“Levi.” Erwin’s voice pulled Levi back from his thoughts.

He saw a dark object flying his way and caught it with his reflexes. Levi looked at his hand to find the crystal Erwin had been admiring earlier.

“Souvenir of the night. Smithhonorarium policy to not let anyone go home empty-handed.” Erwin winked and left out before Levi could react.

Levi was the only one left in the room, holding the crystal tightly in his hand.

You mean you don't let anyone go home without one of your stupid souvenirs, shitwin.

Levi leans back on his chair while holding the crystal up in the light. Its bright shine was almost a bit too bright for him. He replays the fight with Jaeger over and over in his mind. How he was pushed back so easily and how he was beaten down.

His eyes wander to the newspaper he threw in the trash.

Is there no one who can stop Jaeger?

“I will. I swear it.” Levi mutters out before grabbing his coat and walking out of his office.

Sina was pretty warm around this time of year, Levi noted while walking down the streets. It’s not like he didn’t have a car, but he preferred to not use it for when he was just going to his office since it was so close. That and if he walks he can stop by wherever he wants like that one coffee shop in a corner that he’s pretty fond of. He can’t stand the popular chains with their ever-noisy atmosphere and brats drinking shitty coffee, so he thanked the lords when he found this one. Since it was at the very end of a one-way street, it was shielded away from the bustle of everyday life and had a very peaceful atmosphere. It definitely got points for having lovely tea, Levi’s usual choice. Since he was always so busy and on the run, Levi usually just ordered his coffee or tea to go and ran, but it was cozy enough to actually get him to enjoy his order in the café.

He was planning on staying inside the café to savor a cup of tea before heading home, but he wrinkled his brow in displeasure when he saw a dark brown-haired girl chatting it up with the blonde at the counter. That and they were talking about Jaeger while holding up the very newspaper Levi threw away into his trash can. He just can’t get away from him, can he?

Sighing in defeat, Levi decided to just order to-go so he can think and rest in peace.

“Strawberry black tea. Large. To go.” He interrupted their flirting. The brown haired girl looked a bit surprised for a moment before snickering. Strawber—he heard her start to laugh about and shot her a glare, getting her to shut up.

The blonde worker regained her composure and started working the register. “Ah, yes! Strawberry black tea it is. That’ll be 3.40 with tax.”

He handed her his card and took out his phone in case someone had tried contacting him. He clicked his tongue when he saw the lone message flash across the screen.

Meet me at that café you like so much at 3 tonight. Don’t you dare not show up.

It was from his ex-girlfriend, the one he broke up with the night Jaeger robbed the Smithhonorarium. He honestly didn’t care that they broke up and was now rather annoyed that she was trying to contact him like this. A relationship over is a relationship over. He rather not go somewhere just to get yelled at.

“Umm…Sir…” The worker looked at him with concerned eyes. “Your tea…”

“My angel made your tea, sir, you better appreciate it!” The other girl said, grabbing his attention and wrapping her arm around the blonde who went bright red.

“……Yeah, sure.” He responded after a brief pause. Let it go, Levi.

He took his drink and card and turned away from the flirting girls. Yeah, definitely right choice to choose to-go. There was no one else in the shop so it became a little heaven for the couple that Levi was not willing to put himself into.

After leaving the shop and walking for a couple minutes, Levi reached his apartment complex. It was a rather homely place owned by a nice couple that constantly spruced the place up with flowers and decorations. He walked into the lobby and pressed the button for the elevator when someone called out to him.

“Oh, Levi! Great timing.” It was the landlord’s wife. She had helped him a lot when he first moved into Sina and her warm smile always got him just a little bit happier to carry on through the day. Looking young for her age, she was the one who got people’s attention with her gardening and holiday treats she baked.

“Is something the matter?” Even someone with a potty mouth as bad as Levi does can’t be so vulgar in front of her.

“Something came in for you today.” She fumbled within her bag. “Where did I put it…?...Ah, found it. Here you go!”

Levi warily took the package off her hands. It was a small wooden box made out of real wood. It had no return address or even his address on it, so apparently it didn’t get here through the post office. He couldn’t recall anyone he knows sending something like this.

“If someone wanted to send something, why didn’t they just mail it like a normal person?” This was too suspicious…A package from an unknown sender the day right after Jaeger’s heist. “How did they even get it to you anyway?”

“Well, you know how I’ve been planting narcissus flowers outside recently?” He nodded. “Well, I went back inside really quickly to get something, but once I came back, this was left right where my gardening supplies were along with this.”

She took a piece of paper out from her bag.

To Levi

With love

He just couldn’t understand it. Was this from Jaeger? But, why? Why would he want to send something to him? He assumed that Jaeger hated him judging from how the only one in that room that day Jaeger bothered to face head-on was him and how he called Levi a traitor. Things were just getting too complicated and Levi was becoming more and more involved in the case personally. He’s been dragged into Jaeger’s web, trapped with no means of escape in this maze of lies and clouded truths.

“…And by the way, are you alright…?” She looked hesitant to ask. He realized she was talking about the failure to capture Jaeger and the media frenzy over it.

“…It’s fine. It’s my job, nothing for me to get worked up over.” He told a little white lie. He has already invested the little emotions he has in this case.

“If you say so…Ah! I just remembered! One more thing!” Her mouth formed an ‘O’ as she covered it up with her hand. Levi stiffened a little at the possibility that it could be another Jaeger linked thing. Work, the coffee shop, home—he just can’t run away from Jaeger.

Instead, she handed him a bag of cookies. “Here you go! They’re fresh from this morning. My husband is really fond of them so I made a bit too much. They’re not too sweet either so I think you’d like them.”

Levi tried reaching out to grab the bag but realized he had no more hands left. Realizing his small dilemma, she placed the bag of cookies giggling a bit.

“…Thank you.” Levi was never used to such acts of kindness from others, especially those older than him, so he didn’t know what to do when faced with such. His parents were never around so she felt more like what a mother would be like to him than his own mother. It’s a bit sad how he can barely remember her face, but then he remembers all the times he got his hopes up, only to end up disappointed yet once again, and throws those thoughts out of his mind.

“You’re very welcome, Levi.” She nodded in a satisfied matter. “I’m going to go back to tend to the garden so take care, okay?”

“Yeah, you too.” He managed to wave bye with his hand holding the tea mug. This was one of those times he regrets he’s not able to emote his feelings very well. The feeling of gratitude is swelling up within him yet he doesn’t need a mirror to know that none of that shows up on his face.

Once he sees her off, he turns back to the elevator and makes his way to his room.

When he gets to his apartment, room 104, he sets down the tea on the ground next to the door and pulls out his keys. After little difficulty, he is welcomed by the sight of his perfectly clean apartment. Aah, home sweet home.

Setting the package down on the dining table, Levi sipped his drink as he wiggled out of his coat. Finally settling down, he stared at the wooden box before him.

To open or not open? As if there was any choice, fuck it.

Levi clicked the lock in front open and cautiously opened up the box. There in the container was a letter that looked identical to all the ones Jaeger had sent before.

So it was from him…Levi was half-hoping it wasn’t from him. He took the letter into his hands, only to notice the object that laid under the letter.

It was a carved wings of freedom. The symbol of the Recon Corps.

“What the fuck?” Levi muttered and turned his eyes to the letter. Opening in a swift motion, he took out the message card inside.

Enjoy how I crushed all of you last night, Mister Corporal?

Remember who you are for that’s when things will truly begin.

Endless pain and suffering to you.

Never will I let you forget.

Levi almost crushed the card in his hands. This was a personal attack on him. Jaeger was attacking him as a person, not as a random detective on the case. He felt a burning sensation rising up within him. Jaeger was looking at him. He shouldn’t be so happy yet here he was. Happy that he’ll look his way, happy that those golden eyes will finally look—

Wait, golden eyes?

Why did I suddenly think Jaeger had golden eyes?

His head stung with pain. It felt like someone was smashing his head repeatedly into the wall. Levi collapsed back into his seat while gripping his forehead in an attempt to lessen the pain.

Golden eyes. Golden eyes. Did Jaeger have golden eyes? It was too dark the night of the heist to properly tell anything so why did he think that Jaeger had golden eyes?

Remember who you are. The card’s words repeated in his head. Remember. Remember.

Never will I let you forget. But forget what!? Levi screamed out in frustration.

Forget what, Jaeger!? What is it that you want me to remember!? Tell you if you want me to remember so badly!

A familiar ringtone broke the tense atmosphere of the house.

Breathing heavily, Levi grudgingly reached out for his phone and turned to see it was a call from Hanji.

“…What?”

“Woah, don’t you sound cranky?” Hanji didn’t sound all that good herself though. The usual cheerful demeanor she had was not present. Her voice dropped. “…Did you get a package from Jaeger too?”

“By too, you got one too then.” Of course, it couldn’t have been just him. “I assume Erwin got one then?”

“Yeah…I checked with him and our letters are exactly the same except mine said Miss Squad Leader and his said Mister Commander…” Hanji’s voice was laced with worry. It was natural for her to feel freaked out. A famous thief that had just stolen their precious treasure, who had the answers to the Titan Era, was calling them out, personally. This wasn’t anything like what Jaeger has done before.

Levi read out the contents of his letter to Hanji. When he said “corporal” out loud, he realized one thing. The phone call!

“Hanji, did you manage to trace that call?” It was his only trace of Jaeger at this point. However, he was disappointed.

“Unfortunately, no. Apparently a calling card was used and the phone that was used to call it isn’t under any contract. The last records that have it were from 5 years ago. My guess is that the calling card and the phone itself are either stolen or lost items that Jaeger must have picked up somewhere along the line…” Hanji laid out her reasoning. “In any case, they aren’t going to become leads to where the kid and Jaeger are.”

“Damn it.” Levi cursed. He leaned back and stared up at his ceiling. “No leads. No traces. And now this…”

“We’re in a pickle, aren’t we?” Hanji managed a small laugh. “…This is my theory so you don’t have to take it too seriously, but I think he’s giving us hints.”

“Hints?” Levi perked up.

“Yeah, why else would he take the risk of delivering these to where we live? And go out of his way to find out where we live actually. That on top of these letters…He’s targeting us for something.” Hanji spoke carefully into her phone. “Not that I know what though! Haha, remember something I guess!”

“I agree that he wants us to remember something…But, this all seems like some sort of revenge plot to me.” Revenge. Yes, sweet revenge. But for what? Jaeger seems to be angry that all three of us have forgotten whatever we did to somebody.

“Agree with you on that…Honestly, I’d rather have him just come out with it so I can serve up my crimes or whatever, but then I guess all this is part of his revenge too, huh.” Her voice gave away that she was feeling down. She was similar to Erwin in that she had the ability to cut off things that had no use to her, but he knew that she was quite emotional as well and that became her strength and weakness at times. Levi wasn’t one to fall for such emotional plays, but the letters, the phone call, and everything else about Jaeger was getting to him.

“To be honest, Levi…I kinda feel like I do have something to repent for something too…But it’s frustrating because I have no idea what I should be repenting about! It’s like a child getting punished yet not knowing what they’re getting punished for!” Hanji shouted out in her usual exaggerated manner. Levi recalled that she sometimes looked depressed whenever there was a new find about the Titan Era. It had been happening more and more often recently he noted as well. It was like the more and more she dug deeper into the secrets of the past, the more it hurt her herself. Another reason why Levi preferred to keep the past locked away, not to be touched, not to be acknowledged. Because the past is the past and how can you live for the future when constantly trapped up in things you can’t change?

There was silence between them. Both not knowing what to say and lost in their own thoughts.

“Levi.” Hanji finally spoke up. “……Actually, no. I’m not sure enough about it to say anything at this point. Forget it for now.”

“What? Just out with it.” Levi growled. He never liked people keeping stuff from him.

“Don’t get mad!” Hanji scrambled. “But, really. It’s honestly just a thought that popped into my mind and I don’t want to make things more confusing than it already is so I’m going to stay silent until I get more solid evidence. You like evidence, don’t you?”

Well, he couldn’t deny that.

“We’ll talk more about it tonight. Meet me and Erwin at the museum around 5, will ya? Gonna just gather what each of us knows so we’re all on the same page.” Before allowing him any time to answer, she cut her line.

All the women in his life today simply won’t let him say no.

It was 5 PM and Levi was standing in front of the ruined museum. He eyes Erwin who has a blank expression standing right next to him.

“Pity. No thoughts about the shit inside, but the building was nice and clean.” Levi remarked.

Erwin turned to him and smiled. “It’ll be fine. After we find Jaeger and the boy, nothing else will matter.”

And with that Erwin walked into the museum and Levi trailed behind him.

Hanji was already inside the staff break room. She had three cups of what seemed to be tea in front of her.

“Heey! Late, aren’t you? I already poured in some tea.” Hanji laughed out while patting on the table in front of her. Levi inwardly gagged. It probably would taste like sewer water if Hanji was the one who made it.

Erwin sat himself by Hanji and Levi sat across from him. Levi didn’t even bother trying the cup of “tea” in front of him. Erwin did though because he is a suicidal maniac.

“Cough…Well, let’s get right to business, shall we? Lovely tea, Hanji. Very…” Erwin’s face went blue and he wiped his mouth with his handkerchief, probably trying to ignore the sickening feeling of the water going down his throat. How does one ruin tea that badly?

Hanji took out her laptop and started frantically typing out the general outline of events so far and what they knew about Jaeger.

Jaeger – Assumed to be male

Superhuman strength and reflexes

5 heights. All successful.

Stolen items: Documents, books, pieces of jewelry that were found in a noble’s house, a rusty key, military boots, torture tools, 3D maneuver gear, and the crystallized boy

Assumed to have knowledge of the language of the era

Some connection to the crystallized boy (?)

Last letter sent:

Tonight is the night to dance the dance of regret to bring ruin to those who brought ruin.

In the end, even the strongest fall and those who do not remember their sins shall burn.

My Wings of Freedom—I’ll be taking them back.

Signed, Jaeger

Wooden box with carved wings of freedom and letters reading

Enjoy how I crushed all of you last night, (enter name-calling)?

Remember who you are for that’s when things will truly begin.

Endless pain and suffering to you.

Never will I let you forget.

Assumed personal grudge

Assumed strong love or hate for Recon Corps

Assumed use of modified or enhanced replica of 3D maneuver gear to emulate “flying”

“And…that’s about it on my end. Anything you guys wanna add?” Hanji spoke, looking up from her computer.

Levi pointed at her last point. “How did you think of this?” He knew that Jaeger had somehow found a way to simulate “flying”, but didn’t know where the 3D maneuver gear came in. Hanji had said before that the stolen ones had been in too rough shape to be of any use and it was suspicious as to if any modern human could properly use them.

“Well, I was thinking about how he broke in. Remember how you could hear wires and the cracking of rocks? I think that was the sound of the launching of the anchors of the 3D maneuver and them hooking onto the walls of that room. You can go inspect the walls too and check if I’m right or not.” Hanji rested her cheek on her hands.

“Sounds reasonable enough. If then, we can confirm that Jaeger has deep knowledge about the Titan Era and about the military in particular. I for one believe that he has a strong admiration for the Recon Corps.” Erwin spoke up. Levi looked to him.

“And why is that?”

“You saw that carved wings of freedom, the symbol of the Recon Corps. It was carved beautifully. Every feather carefully sculpted. One with utter hatred for it couldn’t have possibly made that.”

Levi recalled his wings of freedom. It was carved beautifully. Someone had put the time and effort to perfectly replicate the symbol of freedom for humanity.

“But then, where does that place us?” Hanji questioned. “He called us by traditional military ranks. Squad leader, corporal, commander…Considering how it seems like he’s trying to get revenge on us for something and he loves the Recon Corps, I don’t see us being part of them. Maybe military police or something? Haha.”

“Don’t lump us together with those trash.” Levi furrowed his brow. He couldn’t stand the thought of being labeled as the corporal of the shits at the military police. Hell no.

Hanji stared at him, but chose not to say anything. No one broke the silence in the room any further, even the usually talkative Erwin and Hanji.

Finally realizing that they were gonna get no more out of each other today, Erwin decided to just end the meeting there.

As the three stepped out of the museum, Levi was called by a somewhat familiar voice.

“Levi.” It was his ex-girlfriend. Ah, he remembered vaguely. She wanted him to meet her at 3, but he had never agreed to it so he just forgot. Add a plus 1 to the number of meetings he never went to.

Hanji looked at him with worried eyes and Erwin gave him a disapproved look. They didn’t approve of his habits and now looked him with ‘I told you so’ faces. Yeah, this was probably his fault, but he didn’t them to tell him that.

“Let’s go somewhere private.” Hanji laughed a little and Levi gave her the finger before walking to his car with her.

They ended up going to the café he went to get tea today just like she said in her text. The blonde was there again, but her friend wasn’t. She seemed to work all day today because she recognized his ex and gave her a concerned look.

Sitting down with his tea, he motioned for her to start.

“…I’m sorry.” God, he could have bet money that that would be the first thing she would say.

“About what?”

“For yelling you when you were on a really important case.” She looked uncomfortable. “You’re always saying you’re busy with work so I thought…that you were cheating on me. Meeting someone else.”

“No, I don’t even see why you’d think that. And I don’t really care about you yelling at me. It’s in the past and I agree I’m not a very affectionate person.” She flinched at the word ‘past’. But looked a bit hopeful when he said that he didn’t care. “But, I don’t intend on getting back together.”

“…Why?” With that he took away the flames of hope in her eyes. “Is it because of what I did? Weren’t we fine!?”

“No. It was about time for it to end anyway. You were reaching the end of your ropes with me and I couldn’t bring myself to love you. That’s all.” He could see the eavesdropping blonde worker frown at his harsh words. Teenagers and gossip. Geez.

She said nothing after that, simply just letting tears fall. Levi noted that she didn’t deny that she was about to give up on him anyway. It wasn’t in her best interests to try to keep up with a man that wouldn’t love her. It would only hurt her in the end.

She stood up suddenly, startling Levi. She glared right at him. “Can I slap you? I won’t let you say no.”

He nodded. The least he could do was allow himself to get slapped across the face for wasting her time in a dead end relationship. She readied her arm and with one strong, swift movement, slapped him.

Levi felt a bit shell-shocked a second and blinked rapidly, feeling the stinging pain on his left cheek.

“I’m gonna find a new boyfriend a thousand times more handsome, and kind, and everything! Then, I’m going to be happy as hell while you’re still wallowing in whatever you always brood about!!” She yelled and flashed him a dazzling smile before walking out of the coffee shop.

Both Levi and the worker stayed in their places, shocked for a couple minutes, before the worker scrambled to get him an ice pack.

“Um… Here.”

Levi graciously took the pack and placed it on his swelling cheek. With her amount of strength, it probably won’t leave a mark, but damn, it hurt. Yeah, she was a cool woman. He didn’t deserve affection from someone as straightforward as her.

“Are you alright, sir?” The worker peered at him with concerned eyes. Even those shining blue eyes of hers were too bright for him at the moment.

Avoiding her gaze, Levi placed a tip on the table and stood up to leave. “Yeah, I’m fine. Thanks for the ice pack and sorry for the ruckus.”

“Ah, no, it’s fine. There’s only a few other customers anyway…” She glanced around the room. There was someone reading a newspaper in the corner, a couple too in their own world to notice whatever was going on around them, and an old man who had fallen asleep.

“I appreciate it.” Still pressing the ice pack on his cheek, he left the shop.

In the corner, another blonde was reading a newspaper. As soon as the door to the shop closed with a tinkle of the bell on top, he set down his newspaper.

‘Is there no one who can stop Jaeger?’ the headline reads.

He looked through the window to see Levi’s retreating figure with his sky blue eyes. “Hmmm…”

A smile.

April 2, 2583.

It had been 3 days since Jaeger’s big heist and Levi was once again in the Smithhonorarium.

“I’ve been in here way many more times than I ever wanted to be.” Levi muttered with a disgusted glare at the mess that museum was still in. “Can’t you hire cleaning staff or something? This place looks like shit.”

“We can’t get rid of any crucial evidence yet, Levi. So you’ll have to control the clean freak within you for awhile.” Erwin chuckled. He was not a clean freak, thank you very much.

Levi rolled his eyes and sat down on one of the chairs in the staff room. Erwin placed a cup of tea in front of him. Hanji’s bad, but Erwin is probably just as bad at pouring tea in as she is. Making it a point that he wasn’t going to touch it, Levi pushed it away from him.

Erwin simply shrugged his shoulders and sipped at his tea. His face instantly morphed into one of disgust, but he looked like he manned up something within him and carefully sipped the concoction.

It was peaceful, pointedly because there was no Hanji blabbing her mouth off.

“Hey guys! Look who I brought!” She destroyed it all in an instant, bursting through the door carrying some poor soul. “C’mon, stand up straight and introduce yourself!”

The soul was a young-looking kid with blonde hair and blue eyes. Both Erwin and that worker at the coffee shop had blonde hair and blue eyes as well. He has a streak for running into them, he guessed.

He was wearing the local Sina Private Academy school uniform. Great, Levi thought, either a rich kid or a brainiac.

“U, um. My name is Armin Arlet. I, I’m a senior at Sina Academy.” He fumbled over his words trying to introduce himself.

“Armin here has a clue about Jaeger!” Hanji explained excitedly. “ I already saw it, but this is HUGE! AAAAAH!!”

Ignoring her, Erwin stuck out his hand for a handshake. “I’m Erwin Smith, the director of the Smithhonorarium. And this is Levi.”

The blonde carefully met Erwin’s hand for the handshake and quickly pulled back. “Pleasure’s mine.”

“So, what’s the big clue?” Levi didn’t really believe that a punk like this quivering kid could have such a thing.

“Right here!” Armin presented a large photo to the two of them.

It was a blurry photo, but what it showed was unmistakable. It was the roof of the Smithhonorarium. Not only that, but it was the roof when Jaeger was escaping.

But that wasn’t the unbelievable part.

It looked as if a giant hand was reaching out from inside the museum.

A giant hand.

“What…?” Both Levi and Erwin were speechless. How could they believe such a thing? But, the proof was right there in front of them.

A giant—no a titan—broke through the roof of the Smithhonorarium.

With a large bang, Moblit ran into the staff room. With all eyes on him, he stuttered, but spoke the words that signaled the true start to all this nonsense.

“J, Jaeger sent a challenge letter! He’ll give up the treasure if the Commander, Squad Leader, and Corporal can catch him!!!”

April 2, 2583.

3 days since humanity lost its hope and the road to both the future and past were opened again.