Chapter II: The Day the World Ended

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The early morning sun cast long shadows as Heinrik and Anja strolled hand-in-hand through the quiet streets of Shiganshina. Heinrik guided them to a peaceful little clearing, one of their favorite spots to spend time together before he had to return to his duties.

"Hey, Anja," Heinrik said with a grin, "how about a quick sparring session? Mom told me you have been practicing."

Anja's eyes lit up. "You're on!" she exclaimed, already reaching for the wooden swords they kept stashed nearby.

Heinrik chuckled as he caught the sword Anja tossed him. "Alright, imp, show me what you've got!"

They faced off, Anja's face set in concentration as she assumed her stance. With a fierce cry, she launched herself at Heinrik, their swords clashing in a flurry of strikes and parries. Heinrik raised his eyebrows seemingly impressed, she had been working hard growing her skill and strength, but he noticed something else, was she doing something wrong?

As the sparring intensified, Anja's strikes became more forceful, her eyes blazing with an intensity that was both exhilarating and unnerving. Heinrik found himself having to work harder to keep up, his own heartbeat quickening.

After a particularly fierce exchange, Heinrik called for a break. "Whoa there, Anja!" he laughed, lowering his sword. "You're getting too good at this. I'm going to have to start watching my back."

Anja beamed at the praise, her chest heaving from the exertion. "Just you wait," she declared, "I'll be even better than you someday!"

As they caught their breath, Heinrik studied his sister thoughtfully, before smiling softly. Then he settled for a friendly arm around her shoulders as they plopped down in the soft grass.

"So," Heinrik began, a playful glint in his eye, "you still hanging around with that Armin kid? Seems like he's sweet on you."

Anja felt her cheeks grow warm. "He's just my friend," she mumbled, scuffing the toe of her shoe in the dirt.

Heinrik laughed and ruffled her hair. "I'm just teasing, imp. I'm glad you're making friends. Good to know you've got people looking out for you besides me and Mom."

Anja huffed and swatted his hand away. "I've got plenty of friends, I'll have you know. There's you, Mom, Armin...Uh…And..."

"My apologies, I stand corrected," Heinrik said with mock solemnity. Then his expression turned more serious. "I see mom was serious when she mentioned your practice, glad you enjoyed my present. You're really set on becoming a soldier, huh?"

Anja lifted her chin. "Yes. I want to be like you, to protect people and have your back out there."

Heinrik sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "You know Mom will have my head if you end up enlisting. There's lots of other ways you can help people, Anja. Like farming! Keeping the people fed is important work."

"Oh stop it, Heinrik! I'm not a little girl anymore," Anja cried. "I want to be out there with you, fighting Titans and seeing the world beyond these stupid walls."

"Alright, alright, simmer down," Heinrik said, holding his hands up in surrender. "If the military is really what you want, you should know there's more branches than just the Survey Corps..."

Anja rolled her eyes. "Oh, I know. The Garrison are a bunch of layabouts who wouldn't know a Titan if it bit them on the butt. And the Military Police only show their faces out here to drag people off to the Interior. Trust me, I've thought this through."

Heinrik threw up his hands in defeat. "I can see you're not budging on this. What do you say we call a truce over some sweets? My treat before I have to head out."

"Deal! But I want two," Anja said with a grin, latching onto his arm as they ambled back towards the market square.

 

As they walked, Anja gazed up at Heinrik adoringly, committing every detail of his smiling face to memory. But suddenly, his expression morphed into one of pure horror. A shadow fell over them, as if a massive cloud had blotted out the sun. Anja followed his stare upward and felt her blood turn to ice.

 

A colossal, skinless face loomed over the top of Wall Maria, peering down at the district like a cruel god. Its eyes were lifeless, yet full of cold judgement. Anja dimly registered the screams of terror erupting around her as people pointed at the monster in shock and disbelief. Some were frozen in place, while others began to flee in panic.

 

Anja stood rooted to the spot, her mind refusing to comprehend the impossible sight before her. Then she felt Heinrik's arms wrap around her like a vine as he scooped her up and began to run. His grip was almost painfully tight, but she barely noticed, still transfixed by the Titan's grotesque visage.

 

In a move almost too fast to process, the behemoth raised one massive, skinless arm clutching the wall then it seemed to pull back, its massive foot came crashing down on the outer gate with a thundering crush. The very ground seemed to convulse from the impact. Huge chunks of stone sprayed over the buildings nearest the wall, flattening everything in their path. Anja watched in numb horror as a young couple, who had been fleeing hand-in-hand, disappeared beneath a cascade of merciless debris.

The world seemed to tilt and warp around her, screams and the crashing of debris filling her ears. She watched in mute horror as a Titan's massive hand swiped a man off the street, lifting him kicking and screaming towards its gaping maw. The sickening crunch of bones and the spray of blood that followed would be forever seared into Anja's memory. Everywhere she looked, there was destruction and death, the once-familiar streets of her hometown transformed into a nightmarish hellscape.

 

"Don't look, Anja! We need to get to Mom, now," Heinrik commanded, his voice strained but authoritative. He charged recklessly through the stampeding crowds, shoving aside those who blindly grabbled at him for aid in their terror.

"You're a soldier, please help us!" one woman cried desperately, but Heinrik ignored her pleas, his sole focus on getting Anja to safety.

After an interminable minute that felt like an eternity, they reached their home. By some miracle, it still stood intact amidst the crumbling ruins of neighboring buildings. Heinrik shouldered the door open with a splintering crash, startling their mother who was frantically throwing supplies into a sack.

"Heinrik, what in the Walls is going on out there?" Emma demanded breathlessly as he set Anja down.

"The Titans... they've broken through the outer gate! We need to get to the ferry docks immediately, there's no time to waste," Heinrik said tersely, already snatching up his ODM gear with shaking hands.

Emma paled, her eyes darting between her children as if trying to wake up from a nightmare. "How is that possible?! What do we do?"

"You take Anja and run for the boats. Don't look back no matter what, you hear me?" Heinrik ordered as he fumbled to secure the last of his gear straps, his normal dexterity lost to mounting dread.

He gripped his mother's shoulders and forced her to meet his desperate gaze. "Mom, focus. Get Anja out. I'll buy you as much time as I can."

Heinrik crouched down to look Anja in the eye, his hands firm and warm on her shoulders. "Anja, listen to me. You do exactly as I say and go with Mom, ok? Get to the boats. Don't be afraid, I'll be protecting you."

Anja could only nod mutely, not trusting herself to speak past the lump of fear lodged in her throat. Heinrik pulled her into a fierce hug.

The moment was shattered by an ungodly crash as a massive hand punched through the side of their house, sending chunks of wood and plaster flying. Anja felt herself being flung through the air as Heinrik shoved her clear of the falling debris. She hit the ground hard, rolling to a dazed stop in the street.

Blinking dust from her eyes, Anja looked back at the ruins of her home in shocked incomprehension. A 10-meter Titan with beady, soulless eyes rummaged through the wreckage, heedless of the destruction. Anja spotted her mother, pinned from the waist down by a heavy roof beam, her face twisted in agony.

"Heinrik!" Emma screamed. "Take Anja and go!"

"My blades," Heinrik cried, casting about wildly. "Just hold on Mom!"

Anja stumbled to her feet, head ringing. Acting on blind instinct, she snatched up a chunk of rubble and hurled it at the Titan with all her strength, letting out a fierce growl. "Get away from her!" she shrieked, before her legs gave out and she crumpled back to the ground.

Heinrik seemed frozen in the moment, inside he felt a storm of rage and grief threatening to consume him. The blood in his veins burned, urging him to let loose, to tear the Titan apart with his bare hands.

A red haze descending over his vision, as his muscles tensed. An urge he was fighting hard to resist. With a roar of pain and fury, equal parts human and beast, he forced his rage back, channeling it into the singular goal of protecting his sister. He sprinted to Anja's side, the last vestiges of his self-control straining as he gathered her into his arms and ran, his mother's final screams echoing in his ears

"I'm sorry Mom. I love you," he choked out. Then he was running, Anja bouncing limply against his chest.

"I love you both! Now go, save yourselves!" Emma called after them, her voice breaking on a sob.
Anja forced her eyes open, reaching one small hand back towards the shrinking figure of her mother even as the distance between them grew. She watched in helpless horror as the Titan lifted Emma's struggling form to its yawning mouth.

"Heinrik, why?" Anja whimpered, hot tears blurring her vision.

But Heinrik didn't answer, just tucked her face into his neck and ran harder, his breath coming in harsh pants. After a small eternity, the dull roar of a gathered crowd reached Anja's ringing ears. Heinrik slowed to a stop, chest heaving as he gently set her on her feet near the seething mass of frightened humanity massed at the docks.

He dropped to a crouch, gripping Anja's shoulders almost hard enough to bruise as he forced her to meet his wild eyes. "You have to be brave now, Anja. Brave for both of us. I'm going to find the bastard that ate Mom. I'll make them pay, every last stinking Titan in this forsaken city. I promise you that."

Anja shook her head frantically, clinging to his sleeves. "Let me come with you! I can fight!" she begged.

"No!" Heinrik snapped, giving her a small shake. "I promised I'll protect you, remember? Now promise me you'll survive this!"

Anja bit her lip until she tasted blood, but finally gave a jerky nod. "I promise," she whispered.
Heinrik crushed her to his chest in one last desperate embrace. "Get to the boats and don't look back. I'll find you again."

Then he was pulling away, turning to a nearby Garrison soldier and demanding a set of blades. The man took one look at Heinrik's emblazoned wings of freedom and handed over his own without question. Heinrik saluted grimly, then glanced back at Anja. He managed a small smile and a wink, then launched himself into the air, vanishing over the rooftops with a hiss of wires and gas.

Anja stared after him, feeling numb and hollow. The world seemed to be moving in slow motion as soldiers herded shell-shocked civilians onto the waiting boats. She shuffled forward on autopilot as the crowd pressed in around her.

"Hurry lass, into the boat now," urged a grizzled soldier, practically lifting Anja off her feet and depositing her in the bow.

She barely noticed her dress was torn and dirty, the other weeping, stern-faced refugees filing in around her, some still craning their necks back for one final glimpse of their crumbling home. Anja drifted to the rear of the boat, finding an isolated corner to collapse into. She stared back at Shiganshina with burning intensity, committing every detail to memory.

She heard the rumbling screams of canons that snapped everyone to attention, they felt like they sent shockwaves through the air, then silence and a loud crash.

"The inner gate! They've breached Wall Maria!" someone cried in horror, pointing a shaking finger.

"We're all doomed!"

But Anja barely heard the exclamations of hopeless terror rippling through the boat. She just glared at the towering forms of the Titans rampaging through her home, her small hands balled into white-knuckled fists at her sides.

"I'll kill you! Do you hear me, you monsters?" she screamed, her young voice cracking with raw grief and rage. "I'll kill you! I'll kill every last one of you! This isn't over!"

Spent, Anja crumpled to her knees, angry sobs ripping from her throat. She startled at a light touch on her shoulder, head whipping around to see a familiar concerned face.

"A-Armin?" she hiccuped. Her friend said nothing, just enveloped her in a tight hug as she broke down in earnest, clinging to him like a lifeline.

"Shh, it's ok Anja. We're safe for now," he soothed, awkwardly petting her hair. "You sounded just like Eren for a minute there... Why don't you come sit with us?"

Anja allowed him to guide her, unresisting, to where two other shell-shocked children huddled together. Armin smiled wanly and gestured to each in turn.

"Anja, this is Mikasa and Eren. Guys, meet Anja."

"Hey," Eren mumbled, shooting her a commiserating glance. Mikasa just dipped her head in solemn greeting, dark eyes full of empathy.

The four sat in heavy silence for hours, lost in their own swirling storms of grief and trauma, before they began speaking again, Anja told them about her brother, then Eren smacked his fist into his palm. "If your brother is Scout, he's sure to make it out," he said bracingly. "They're humanity's finest, not a cowardly bunch of freeloaders like those useless wall-jockeys."

"Eren, enough," Mikasa chided quietly, laying a calming hand on his knee. "No one could have predicted this."

Eren just crossed his arms with a scowl. "Maybe not, but if those lazy bastards did their jobs instead of getting fat and drunk in the Interior, we'd be taking back our home turf already. But I'll show 'em. They'll see."

Anja listened wordlessly, fixing her red-rimmed gaze on the horizon, where the top of Wall Rose was just becoming visible in the distance. The seed of rage and vengeance, planted by Heinrik's parting words, unfurled in her chest with a newfound resolve. One way or another, the Titans would pay for what they had stolen from her today. She would become a soldier, the best of the best, and she would not rest until every last one of those mindless man-eating monsters was wiped from the earth.

As the ferry carried them further from the only home she'd ever known, Anja swore a silent oath to the lost. For Heinrik. For their mother. For Shiganshina. She would fight to avenge them. No matter what it took.