Fandom Attack on Titan: Birds of Paradise

[Moonlessite]

MENTIONS: @Castello [Leon], @Colorless Spectrum [Laurie], @Danidify [Elyse]​

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Elyse's reply didn't make things any better. They were in the dark here, and there was nothing they could do but run. Laurie and Leon hadn't said anything, either. What could they say? They were only fresh meat that had been trained to cut down giant training dummies that didn't move, breath, or try to kill them. Suddenly, the feel of the wind in her hair and the thrum of Marzipan's hooves against the ground was anything but comforting. She turned to Katarina as Elyse did, desperate for any sort of command from their team's leader regarding the situation at hand. But Katarina's eyes only flickered to the sky that had been darkened by the smoke, then back to the path they rode.

"I'd say listen to the flares, but there seems to be some miscommunication going on. Let's head towards the east for now," Katarina said as she pulled her horse's reigns to the side.

Elke glanced over at Carmen, but the other woman hadn't given them so much as a look. She clutched at her reigns again, her heart beginning to race. There had been no commands, no direct observations... what exactly was going on? Just as she was about to ask the others what they thought of the situation, she heard something else join the drum of their flock. Out of the corner of her eye, she spotted Carmen flinch and turn to her right. Then, the woman bent forward in her saddle in preparation.

"Shit," she hissed out, her hands reaching for her triggers.

It happened before Elke realized. A giant hand appeared from the skies and spirited Carmen away in its grip. Her heart dropped down into her stomach as her eyes absorbed what was in front of her. A Titan with long, greasy hair and a narrow had sprinted up from their blind side and crushed the senior scout in its palm before raising it to its mouth. It didn't spare a moment before it sprinted right after their flock. Elke gaped over her shoulder, the shock rendering her speechless. Katarina screamed something, but it didn't register or it didn't carry over the wind, so she screamed it again. "Keep moving! I'll take care of it!" There was pain in their leader's voice, but nevertheless she took to the air.

But the frenzied Titan had seemingly expected Katarina's approach or it was simply so overcome with bloodlust that the senior scout was no match for its approach. Within instants, Katarina was swatted out of the air like a fly. The Titan growled as it stared down at its bloody hand before it set off at a sprint towards again once again, its sights set on the so-called "fresh meat" of Team 3. Or as the demented part of Elke's brain might say, its dessert.

"We need to do something!" Elke screamed at the rest of her team. That much was obvious, but why couldn't she move from her saddle?

GIL SQUAD
MENTIONS: Raiden [Gil + Hal]​

The sight of those faraway black flares did not comfort him in the slightest.

They had been riding for a while, and it had been a smooth ride all along. Then, off the distance, the black flares started to appear, and the ride wasn't as peaceful as it had been only a few moments prior. Xavier had been used to the silence for a long time, but right now it was deafening. Situated right alongside Pia, he cast a bemused glance over at Halvor before he spoke.

"Looks like things are finally getting spicy," he commented idly as he nodded his head in Gil's direction. "What do you think's going on over there, Captain?"

Did the ground just tremble, or was it him?

SQUAD 3 TEAM 4
MENTIONS: SpookyBones [Milo], The Prophet [Siegfried], Raiden [Luka], homintales [Sera]
​

To anyone else, it seemed to be this flock of green Scouts was nothing other than cursed. In the midst of their chatter, a rampant Titan had either apparently materialized out of thin air or their banter had distracted everyone from its ferocious approach. It had closed the gap between them with its long, lanky legs in a mere heartbeat and sprang at them like a starved cat, one of its hands slamming down on Liesel and squashing both man and horse against the ground. Even if the group had successfully avoided crashing into it, it would no doubt go after whichever one of them had been separated from the rest of their herd in response to its surprise attack. That was, after it had finished devouring whatever remained of poor Liesel Larenz and his horse.

SQUAD 4 TEAM 1
MENTIONS: KaramelKarma [Alfie], . D O V E [Gwen], AI10100 [Sean]
​

Unfortunately for Gwen and Sean, their supply runs would have to be delayed for the unforeseen future. Not far off from their line of sight, something had stepped out from behind a thick cluster of trees and out into the open right after a blood curdling scream split the air. It was a a five-meter tall Titan stood directly in their way, its head tipped back and its mouth wide open as if it was trying to scent its prey like a snake. Its small, blood-shot eyes flicked over to their encroaching convoy and stepped towards it tentatively. Then, as if it finally realized what was heading towards it, it set off towards them at a clumsy sprint, its spiky black hair fluttering in the wind.

SQUAD 4 TEAM 2
MENTIONS: Arcanist [Jo], @lion. [Ramiel]
​

It was unlike anything they had ever seen before. A massive Titan stood not far from where they rode, the sight almost a majesty to behold; the beast looked nothing like its compatriots, for it bore a more feminine stature and even a more delicate face and elaborate figure instead of the common, bloated, and deformed Titans. It wasted no time in sprinting towards them at full speed, two other Titans joining it in its charge westwards-- and towards them. The Titans that joined the strange Abnormal had every intention in passing by their team for a quick snack, but it was difficult to read the intentions of the outlier.

Luckily for both Jo, Fran, and Ramiel, one of the Titans was slower than the other and lagged behind it in its approach. The first and the most desperate of the Titans, however, was eager to try to snatch one of them up-- the girl with the red hair and spectacles-- with its stubby outstretched hand.

 

[KaramelKarma]

[click/press on image for the post]​

• aa
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  alfred

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  "man, monster, or miracle?"

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  alfie's theme

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  miner's lament

  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  As the broadening horizon fell away, replaced by the dappled shadows of the forest canopy, Alfred's mind was going a mile a minute. Rewinding, recalculating and re-assessing the events from the moment they spilled out of the gates. The facts were these: the formation's direction had changed much earlier than expected---but nonetheless, adapting to it had been child's play. Since then though, Alfie could only watch, with all the helplessness of a child, as yet another flare lit up the skies, forming into one continuous rainbow made up of the worst kind of colors: black and red.
  
  At the sight of the first black flare, Alfred wasted no time. At his command, his team leaders took their carts, horses and split off farther from one another into a 'V' formation, though not as far as to lose visibility of each other. This arrangement Alfie knew would most likely be temporary, done only to ensure that in the event of a Titan attack out in the open, said Titan would not have a huddled group of carts to destroy all in one swipe. Only one need be the sacrificial lamb.
  Despite the weight and the precious cargo they held, the squadron remained remarkably diligent in following Alfred's orders; with him in lead, they stayed relatively on par with the rest of the Corps. That is, up until forces beyond their control inevitably began to break the formation apart, leaving a confusing trail of flares, steaming Titan carcasses, and most saddening of all, their ant-like counterparts behind.
  
  In the end, the results on their end were far from uplifting. On his right, there used to be Ardnt Blay and his team, before Ardnt inexplicably lagged behind and both teams lost sight of one another, leaving Alfred to enter the forest first with only his left wing following suit behind him, consisting of carts and horses led by Amalia Straub and Ros Brandt respectively. As they crossed the first line of trees, Alfred's estimates rang true: the three teams grew closer, reunited thanks to the thundering advance of a twelve-meter Titan. On Alfie's signal, outlying scouts on horseback flanked on their team's respective cart, acting as the shields. Before they knew it, the twelve-meter was cut down into a steaming pile of flesh by Taylor's expert blade. Alfred, candle in hand, gave a quick salute as the fellow senior Scout mounted back onto her horse. Pausing in her exchange with Sean, she returned it with one of her own, not realizing the man was actually solemnly addressing the fallen Titan now fading in the distance. Alfred on the other hand, turned and nudged his young protege Seidel, prompting him to talk and stare less in awe at Taylor and focus more on making sure they don't die to another twelve-meter. Tree, that is.
  
  And just like that, all seemed well again.
  Well, except for him. Guilt gnawed and paralyzed Alfred for a moment, tangled in with a mix of morbid curiousity as to what could have happened to Ardnt and his team. Stragglers rarely survived in these expeditions, that the young leader knew all too well. His whole strategy relied precisely on that phenomena: sacrifice the few to save the many. In theory, it made sense, but in practice, Alfred was surprised at how much sense had very little to do with any of it. He remembered Ambrose, as well as their exchange in the tavern that night. In the end, one way or another, their blood was most assuredly on his hands...
  
  Oh, chin up, commander, came the stern voice of Maria. She gave him no time to interject. It's too early for all that. I swear, if it weren't for me keeping you on the straight and narrow, you would have made too good a priest. Now, drink your flask and pay attention. The redheaded minx wants to talk to you.
  
  Indeed, Gwen was talking to him, though in more technical terms, a certain candle would have liked to call it a pointless little complaint. A ghost of a smile tugged at the corners of Alfie's lips, remembering fondly of his own naive, restless excitement on his first Survey expedition.
  
  "I see and hear you, Gwen," he answered, nodding as his hand met her shoulder reassuringly. "Having been on multiple logistics and supply divisions in the past, I can say wholeheartedly that these carts are definitely not kind on the rear. Or the back, for that matter! A bad posture can be as deadly as any Titan. As for the supply run---"
  
  "Sir!"
  Alfred looked over his shoulder, seeing Taylor motion up to the sky. He followed her direction and noticed the reason for the interruption: in the not-so-far distance, a red flare tore across the sky just ahead of them. Within the space of a breath, Alfred rose his own flare gun in the air and red spilled out, signaling the rest of the carts to move further rightward.
  
  Ardnt? Alfred couldn't help but wonder. Or someone else?
  
  Ardnt was always a quick thinker, Maria jumped in, though her tone could not help but betray a hint of unease. One Titan hasn't gotten in his way of accomplishing what needed to be done in the past and it won't now.
  Alfred nodded. I suppose that is true. He quickly glanced around, eyeing the individual horsemen and women that circled the carts. Are you sure that's the wisest decision? The unease had dissipated; it was all sass now.
  It's a decision, countered Alfred, not noticing that the rest would be spoken aloud. "Sending them out front to pave the way and act as reinforcements to any who need them up ahead is the best I can do, for now. Quaver's Rook is not too far, we will be alright."
  With that, Alfie stood up and began to pace inside the cart, snapping his fingers in anticipation for the slew of instructions he was about to give out. Within minutes, directives were announced and the individual cavalry were sent off ahead, led by Taylor.
  
  Alfred sat back down, lifting his flask up to his lips to drink. He fished out his maps and spread across the space unoccupied by rations and silver jets of gas, readying to formulate the plan for supply runs once they hit Quaver's Rook. For the second time that day, all seemed well.
  
  Too well.
  
  All of a sudden, the air trembled in fear as an ear-shattering caterwaul split it in half. Beady, bloodshot eyes zeroed in on the first leading wooden locomotive, it's wolfish jaws taking up nearly all of it's five meters, cracked open in anticipation for the sitting ducks riding on top.
  
  Alfred grinned widely. Black hair! Just like his old boy back home! He gathered the maps and tucked them quickly back into his satchel before turning towards Gwen, the winds picking up as Sean went into overdrive.
  
  "Time to shake what your mama's given you, Bulwark! Go get 'em!"
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  

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  On one of the leading supply carts, heading towards sweet death

  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  Gwen Bulwark ; Sean Seidel

  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  
  ➸ . D O V E (Gwen Bulwark)
  
  ➸ AI10100 (Sean Seidel)
  

  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  
  
  
  

  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  
  

  𓀁

  
  

  
  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

  
  

  
  
  

𓀁

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𓀁

nine lives

 

[homintales]

Sera Mayer
Mentions: Arcanist Raiden SpookyBones The Prophet ​

With Liesel, Team 4’s now crushed and consumed leader gone, Sera, not willing to allow anyone else to meet the same unfortunate fate, attempted to take charge over the situation.

“Shit…” Swearing time would need to come later. “Everyone, we need to maintain our current formation…” She called out to the others as she took a glance at the new titan.

“Dammit, and try to increase your speed while you’re at it!” She wasn’t even qualified to give such orders. But given the sudden void in leadership, someone needed to.

This Abnormal Titan, not ready to cease its pursuit, was fast. A little too fast to simply outrun, even while moving as fast as possible on mounts. “Dammit!” It was getting even closer now.

Sera’s mind returned to Trost, specifically when she, Jo, August, and the others in the old squad first earned titan subjugations. It was so organized too, at least when compared with Sera’s current mess.

Gwen and August took out the legs, while Sera grappled onto and sliced through the nape once the titan was rendered inoperable. Even though it was quite effective then, was such a technique even possible in this scenario? Especially when the titan was so unbelievably fast.

As the titan grew even closer, to the point where it could now reach out and grab the female Scout, Sera spun around, leapt from the stead she was supposed to remain on at all times, and, with swords pointed towards it, grappled on to and charged at the titan.

The titan immediately responded with its own leap, intending to catch Sera in its mouth. Please don’t stall, please don’t stall, please don’t stall… The ODM Gear proved kind. And with just three movements, each one giving Sera the chance to lose a new limb, she avoided the titan’s mouth.

Unfortunately, as the titan collapsed on to the ground after missing its target, it landed on Sera’s stead, crushing it just like Liesel’s own. She wasn’t going to let it get away with that.

Grappling on to a tree to the titan’s right, Sera swung towards its now exposed and unprotected nape. Still on the ground, there was absolutely no way the titan could resist the attack.

Both swords utilized, and in two separate though equally lethal cuts, she successfully managed to rip through the titans nape, officially earning Sera a second subjugation.

But a good reason to celebrate quickly vanished. Sera, much like the titan she just eliminated, collided with the forest ground at a speed that was less than safe. She flew and tumbled across the grassy terrain some more until the ground finally started to level out, granting Sera an uneasy yet welcome stop.

There was more than likely something she and the others were taught in training that could’ve prevented such a mess like this. But seeing as the main point of the training was to learn how to kill titans, she could at least say she learned a little something.

“ARGH… fuuuuuckkkk!” Needless to say, some important things were now shattered. At the very least, the leftover adrenaline was pushing the less notable pains away. “Luka….” She called out to the fellow Scout, even though there was no one in sight. “Argh, shit… man... Luka... c-could ya' give me one of them extra horses you got?”

 

[The Prophet]

Spoiler: Appearance

====================​

Here it was, the outside. A place so many wanted to see, few actually saw, and even fewer returned from. Scanning the green plains and upcoming wilderness, Siegfried waited for that telltale feeling of awe to wash over him. It was such an open sight, something he had never seen before. Yet, as the horses pounded against dirt and ran along, he could not enjoy it. Something about it did not feel as freeing as it should. It was so picturesque, yet it all felt so fake somehow. Was it the threat of titans? Possibly. Regardless, Instead of wonder and awe, he felt frustration and emptiness. It wasn’t a good feeling. Looking down to his running horse, he sighed. What was its name again? “...Horse. At least one of us is enjoying ourselves. What do you know that I don’t?”

One-sidedly talking to a horse did not last for long; a black flare pierced the blue sky, and soon came the sounds denoting that they were not alone. Siegfried gripped the leather reins tighter; he could not be caught unawares when death could come at any angle. While his squad bantered, Siegfried was low in his saddle, ready to leave his horse at a moment’s notice.

Those short minutes felt like hours. When a titan could kill a man in a single shot, every second counted. As time passed, he started to believe that there just might be nothing there. Not yet at least. However, the moment he considered loosening up, he heard wood snap in front. Siegfried opened his mouth to say something, anything to alert their leader, but just as soon as he opened his mouth he watched someone die.

“...Well.”

There was no time for mourning, so Lissel’s gruesome death would receive little more than acknowledgement from the fresh scout. Others were also on the move; Sera, was it? He really was terrible with names. Trusting the horse to not be an idiot, he let go go of the reins with one hand and tried to guide the animal with his legs, drawing one of his blades preemptively to aid the fellow scout. “I will play the role of distrac- or not. I will instead move.” Both Sera and the titan jumped, and the titan landing on him was becoming an ever more present threat as it flew forward. Cutting a new route around where he supposed it would land, Siegfried did not look when he heard the titan land, or felt the sheer weight of it in the way the ground shook and wind rushed. He had heard the distinctive sound of gas escaping into the air as a killing blow was dealt. His horse looked a little skittish as it bucked and neighed some; guess the whine and squelch was Sera’s horse, or some other squad mate. He needed to make sure that no other titans were on their way over, and scanned for such indication briefly before allowing himself to look away. From the way Sera hit the ground and cursed, she was probably injured. Well, injured and down one horse was something, but she was alive and there were spare animals. That was good. He called out, patting the medical bag on his person. “I can deal with whatever injuries were sustained once we have a moment, but I do not think now is the moment. If it gets too bad, I can prescribe the equivalent of adrenaline for now.” He offered, drawing a syringe.

homintales (Sera) SpookyBones (Milo) Raiden (Luka) @Lisse- wait

 

[AI10100]

Mentions: KaramelKarma . D O V E ​

Sean couldn't help the snicker that came out when Gwen loudly complained to Alfie. He couldn't blame her. They've been on this cart for a good lot of minutes and despite the titan that had appeared earlier and the looming doom of whatever that black flare meant, it wasn't exactly the most thrilling event to sit through. Trost had their blood pumping constantly and he spent a long time being surrounded by titans there, hoping that the walls would hold.

Alfie pretty much agreed. Looks like Sean wasn't the only was cursed with being placed in supply divisions constantly. Of course, he only had two missions in his entire life— but still, that just means that he's always been placed in supply divisions. He was about to comment on it when Taylor had called attention once again to the black flares. What in the Three Walls was happening back there anyway? It would have been nice to get something like a message on what was happening, huh?

The ground shook once more as another titan made its appearance, screeching all the while. Sean let out a heavy sigh as his grip on the reins tightened once again before urging LEO to go faster. It was almost directly ahead of them and he had to veer off to the side to make sure that they weren't in a crash course collision into the damn thing— but it was also adjusting its movement to head towards them.

Gwen was given the directive to kill it and Sean chuckled. "Well, Gwen, here's your time to shine. Don't let it fall on the cart, please!" He said, reaching out to give her a pat on the back before bringing his hand back to the reins.