It was finally the day for Erwin and Eren to be escorted through Stohess District. 

The Survey Corps' barracks had been a bustling quarters ever since morning as the fresh cadets readied themselves since they had been told that they were going to an excursion training somewhere in southwest regions of Wall Rose, while the veterans were discretely hauling the needed supplies for their final operation to capture the female titan.  

Erwin was about to step out of the building when Mike called him. "Erwin."

He stopped and turned to Mike as he stepped up beside him. "Make sure you capture the female titan."

"We will." Failure was definitely not an option this time, and Erwin knew that. He nodded to Mike as a goodbye and exited the building. 

Mike rested a hand on his hips and watched him get farther across the courtyard and out towards a waiting carriage outside their HQ. 

"Meow."

Glancing down, Mike was mildly surprised to see Mhile down by his feet, the cat peering at him with his green beady eyes, before he lifted a paw and prodded his boot. Mike chuckled and crouched down, petting him while he released a soft purr. Mhile nestled his face deeper into his palm as the Mike's eyes softened and a smile formed on his lips.

"I have work to do. See you later, boy."

•

"So because you can't fight you decided to be the classy-looking bitch instead," said Isanna with an unimpressed face at Levi who was sitting across her. He was donning a suit with his trademark cravat, and a dark jacket that he just draped around his shoulders because apparently, he was too cool to fit his arms through its sleeves. 

"If you keep talking shit, I'm ripping your tongue off." 

"Try me."

Levi scowled. Just before he could say anything else, however, the carriage door pulled open and they both turned to look at the newcomer. 

"What took you so long?" Levi grumbled, "huge shit passed through your ass?"

Isanna snorted while Erwin stepped inside the carriage and took the space beside her. "Erwin taking a huge dump? That's a funny image."

"Did you just imagine— "

Erwin cleared his throat, shooting the two a hard look with a raised brow that dared them to continue the inappropriate conversation. The last thing he wanted was for them to tear down his dignity when they were just about to enter an important operation.

"We are about to head to Stohess," Erwin said. "I expect you two to be in your best behavior." 

Levi uttered an incoherent grunt that was probably a 'fine' while Isanna merely muttered a 'yes sir'. 

In the next seconds, their carriage was finally pulled forward by a horse manned by a Military Police soldier, and soon they were on their way to Stohess district. The whole ride was silent, and a tension began to fill in between the individuals inside the carriage at the thought of capturing their target; with each passing minute, they were getting closer and closer to the most awaited event of the day. 

Jean, who had disguised himself as Eren much earlier that day, was currently in a separate carriage.

Not one of the group spoke to break the silence, knowing the risks of talking since their driver, who was an MP soldier, might eavesdrop. 

Some long moments after, there was a distant yell of soldiers outside and they heard the sound of a gate being lifted open in a grating clamor, signaling that they were just about to pass through the outer gate in Stohess. 

Isanna sat up straighter, uncrossing her arms and legs as she thought about their plan. Something the Survey Corps had taught her in all her years as a Scout was to always, always expect the worst. If things go haywire and Annie Leonhart transforms aboveground, the line of military carriages was surely going to halt at the commotion. Should that happen, she was to head to the fourth squad as planned and get her and Erwin's maneuvering equipment. 

When her thoughts began trailing towards the civilians, she caught herself and shook the thought away. No.. that's enough worrying..

She bit her lip. I'm sorry. 

"Just focus on the operation," she heard Erwin say. "Don't think about anything else."

Isanna turned to him, catching his gaze. He managed to read her thoughts again, and somehow, that seemed to calm her down. She nodded at him. 

A sudden lightning crackle echoed across from the distance, causing the three soldiers inside the carriage to tense as a slight tremor and a distant boom penetrated through the air. 

"How convenient," Levi muttered with a click of his tongue and glanced out the window to see the bewilderment among the MPs. "Guess she really did transform aboveground."

"Amazing deduction skills," Isanna said. "What gave it away? The lightning?"

"Fuck you."

Erwin was about to chide the two for their nonchalance when Isanna stood up. "Yes, yes, Commander, I'm going out now. Wait here."

Both watched as Isanna pushed the carriage door open, but before she stepped down, she peeked at them over her shoulder. "Keep Dok busy while I head out. He'll probably act like an ass again."

Before they could reply, she was already out of the carriage and stalking away; just her luck, the majority of the Military Police, including Nile, were craning their necks to stare at a pillar of smoke curling towards the sky in the distance and didn't notice her getting away. 

Isanna thought it'd be best to hurry up and was about to disappear through an alleyway when one soldier stepped in front of her.

"Halt! Where do you think you're going, Sergeant Major?"

The soldier raised his gun and pointed it at her, but Isanna was quick to grip the area near muzzle of the gun, catching the man in surprise. Hardening her expression, she tightened her hold on the gun and flicked it away. 

"Step aside, soldier."

Hanging around Erwin 24/7 ever since she was a child had its advantages (in a way), one of which was the chance to develop her authoritative persona and employ it when needed (she only learned from the best). 

There was just something in her hard expression and commanding tone that caused the soldier's face to turn a few shades paler and let out a fearful squeak as Isanna walked past him, hurrying towards where the fourth squad was waiting. 

As her figure melted into the shadows of the alleyway, with her boots clacking against the pavement in a hurried sprint, the only thing that was in Isanna's mind was to ensure they capture the female titan this time. 

•

Nile was at a loss of words.

"What on earth..?" He sent a look at the squads on top of the roof buildings that were lining the street and who were supposed to be part of the convoy line. "Escort squad! Go and assess the situation!"

"Understood!"

The soldiers hastily went on to carry with his order, gear lines hooking to the line of buildings as their figures darted across the town towards where the commotion and source of the earlier blast had come from.

Nile knew something was off, but before he could even compose his own thoughts and come up with possible scenarios, a voice came calling for him at the back.

"Nile. Dispatch all your soldiers at once."

Looking over his shoulder, Nile saw that both Erwin and Levi had already stepped down from their carriage.

"We should assume a titan has appeared," Erwin announced, only causing further confusion in Nile.

He didn't understand why both men looked so calm. "What are you saying?! This is Wall Sina!" Erwin's sudden announcement was ridiculous, he thought. Unless Wall Rose had somehow been broken down, there was no way there could be titans in the interior.

While the two commanders were exchanging words, the door of a nearby carriage was forcefully opened and out exited Jean-Eren, causing the Military Police soldier who was guarding the carriage to try to restrain him.

"Don't move, Jaeger!"

Jean-Eren clenched his jaw with an irritated glare, fully offended of having been referred to by that horrendous name. "I've had enough of playing dress up!" He roughly yanked his wig off, breaking off his disguise and catching the soldier in surprise. "Don't ever call me that again, dobe!"

Now that he was finally free from the cringing and hideous disguise, Jean jogged towards Erwin and asked for permission to join the capture, to which the latter agreed, telling him to get his equipment from the fourth squad. After some warning words from Levi about being careful, Jean finally headed off.

Nile couldn't even try to stop Jean because his brain was still in the middle of processing the chaos. He turned to Erwin. "Erwin! What's going on—!"

"Commander!"

At the familiar voice, Nile turned to see Isanna landing on the street, and it took him a second to realize that she was already equipped with 3D maneuvering gear and was carrying a suitcase. She didn't even give him the time of day and passed by him, heading directly to Erwin.

"Good work," Erwin said with an appreciative nod at her, before he began equipping himself.

"Hey, Erwin!"

Nobody paid attention to Nile. If this had been just another one of Isanna and Levi's usual pranks on him, he wouldn't have cared; however, it was clear as day to him that something was definitely going on, and that the Survey Corps was acting out of bounds and going against government instructions.

Erwin addressed all the soldiers in the vicinity, "All able-bodied soldiers, follow me! We'll join the female titan capture squad!"

Gritting his teeth, Nile finally found his voice back and stepped in front of the blond before he could take another step forward. 

"Erwin, stop!" He cocked his gun at him, prompting the rest of his soldiers to follow after his gestures as they all pointed their weapons at the Commander of the Survey Corps.

"What you're doing is outright treason against the monarchy!"

"Nile," Levi finally spoke up, unfazed at all the guns, "is your head as lacking as your thin mustache? You don't even understand what's going on."

Nile never removed his glare from Erwin. "Remove your equipment, Erwin, or else I'll shoot!"

SWING!

Almost every Military Police who was in the scene gasped as Nile's gun was cleanly cleaved into two, the other half falling on the pavement with a clattering tinkle.

Swallowing down a lump in his throat, Nile lifted his eyes to come face-to-face with Isanna, who was now standing between the two Commanders with a blade drawn in her hand; there was a threatening glint in her dark irises as she held his gaze.

"Dok, you of all people should know," she paused, narrowing her glare, "what happens if you lay a hand on my Commander."

For a moment, Nile hesitated as he slowly lowered his cleaved gun, a nervous sweat breaking down from his temple at her unwavering glare. 

He was briefly reminded of their training cadet days. Fuck, of course she'd do that for him. 

"C—Commander Nile!" one of the soldiers behind him called in worry, tightening his grip at his own gun. He recognized the threat in Isanna's stance and aimed his gun at her. "Permission to shoot?!"

"Idiot!" Nile yelled back with a click of his tongue, but he didn't break his eye contact with her. "Don't you recognize the woman in front of you? She'll have your head rolling by your feet before you could even pull the trigger."

The soldiers flinched and swallowed back a nervous gulp. Some slowly lowered their guns while the others were still hesitant, and a tense silence hovered above the street waiting to be broken.

Before anyone else could make a move, a soldier under Nile's command had arrived and relayed the cause of the sudden commotion: currently, there were two titans battling it out inside Stohess district, and damages of both civilian and military soldiers were steadily increasing.

Nile tightened his grip on the handle of his gun, glaring at the spot where Isanna had sliced it into two. She really didn't hold back and made a clean cut. He moved his glare towards Erwin. "Is all of this your doing?!"

Isanna was about to snap back when Erwin placed a hand on her shoulder and silently signaled for her to step aside, to which she begrudgingly obeyed. She then returned her blade back in her gear and made a clear point to threaten Nile through her steel glare.

"That's right," Erwin admitted. "Everything was set in motion solely at my command. I do not intend to make any excuses."

Nile's expression faltered at his confirmation, pissed beyond words how he could have allowed such a thing to happen inside the interior knowing full well of the consequences. He could care less about Isanna and stepped forward, roughly grabbing Erwin by the collar. "How could you do this?! So many people have died because of your decision!"

"For the sake of mankind's victory."

Cursing under his breath, Nile tightened his grip on his clothes. "Don't screw with me!"

Isanna watched the two commanders engage in a stare down, neither side backing out. She could see where Nile was coming from. By carrying out this operation inside Stohess, Erwin had basically condemned the civilians to their deaths.

Frankly, there really was no excuse to his decision. And she herself was equally responsible.

"Even if I were to execute you right now, I doubt the top brass would disagree!"

Nile's outburst finally snapped her out of her thoughts, causing her to glare at him and she was about to step forward to intervene when Erwin spoke up.

"I wouldn't mind."

Isanna stopped.

"However," Erwin added, "I'd be leaving everything in your hands. Don't let the female titan escape, no matter what." He began reciting the squads in charge of the capture and that should Nile kill him now, he must work together with the Scouts to apprehend the enemy titan.

"Wait, wait!" Nile thrusted a palm at his direction, wondering how Erwin could say all that with a straight face. "Do you really believe this can benefit humanity?"

"It is a step forward."

After a moment of mulling his words over, Nile made a decision. He ordered his men to lower their guns and bring a set of handcuffs. He nodded at Erwin's direction, and the soldiers began cuffing him.

Nile told a soldier to gather round all troops to help evacuate the citizens, emphasizing that their safety should be prioritized.

"And," he added, thrusting a thumb at Isanna's direction, "handcuff her as well."

For the first time ever since this whole ruckus began, Erwin finally showed a bit of emotion on his face and frowned at Nile. "I alone should be enough."

"You don't get any say in this," Nile quipped back, glancing at Isanna who returned it with her own glare. "She's still your second-in-command, and I'd rather have a wild dog leashed in case she tries anything funny. Besides, the higher-ups will require her presence too when all of this is over."

Isanna glowered at him and helpfully said, "Bitch."

"Erwin," Nile said, ignoring her, "I'll let your execution be decided by due process of the law." He then spared a short glimpse at Isanna, before immediately looking away.

Erwin looked at the cuff on his hands, before he looked at Isanna. She was also now being cuffed and was shooting daggers at Nile; the soldiers who were cuffing her flinched at the ferocity in her glare and quickly inched back after securing her cuffs. 

Moments later, Erwin ordered Levi to stay put in consideration to his injury, and Nile ordered a few of his soldiers to accompany him as the group head to the east wall of Stohess where the titan battle was currently taking place. 

It didn't take long for them to reach their destination.

"Shit," Isanna muttered as she looked over from the arched bridge they were standing on towards the battle between Eren and Annie's titan forms.

All around Stohess were wrecked buildings, debris scattered around the streets with splatters of blood and the occasional corpses; trails of smoke from blazing fires due to the destruction were swirling upwards, and there were screams of help coming from all around the district as civilians scrambled away from the battle.

The center of attention was now on the two titans; Eren was currently atop of Annie, the both of them struggling in a fight of dominance. Eren released a loud gurgling roar and squished Annie's face, causing liters of blood to spurt around as well as a howling wind and a ground tremor to wave over the nearby soldiers.

Isanna was initially pissed at Nile for preventing her to join the fight (although Erwin had already forbidden her to participate), but now she wasn't so sure whether she could even make a difference.

She watched as Annie shoved Eren away, her own injuries regenerating and her fingers crystallizing into layers of blue as she darted towards the wall and dug her fingers into the cement to start climbing up.

Eren quickly recovered and latched onto her lower body, the two titans dangling above the ground for a short moment before Annie kicked him off.

Everything inside Isanna's system was screaming at her to find some way to break her cuffs and fly over towards the female titan before she could escape, but she managed to calm down when someone had already flown over.

::

Meanwhile, in the heat of the titan duel, Mikasa swore to herself that she was going to take accountability after letting their strongest combatants sustain injuries in the previous expedition. It was her fault that Levi wasn't in his best condition to fight. Isanna, as well, even though she'd tried to act fine—but Mikasa knew she only did it to stop her from feeling any guiltier than she already was. 

"I won't disappoint you next time, Isanna-san."

She tightened her grip around her blades, feeling the sharp wind hitting her face as she eyed the female titan.

I'm gonna take responsibility.. and I'll be the one.. to bring you down, Annie.

Shooting a grappling hook at the wall, Mikasa zoomed past Annie's titan form and in a swift second, sliced her fingers off with an audible swish.

Mikasa's gaze held Annie's large blue pupils, one pair widened in alarm at her pending defeat, the other pair slimming into a calm, cool expression; time felt like it slowed down right in that scene, and after hovering in the air for a moment, Mikasa allowed herself to fall and landed a boot on Annie's forehead.

"I know you won't—you never have."

Thank you for believing in me, Isanna-san.

"Annie. Fall."

And she did.

::

Back at the bridge, Isanna couldn't see the person who had stopped Annie's attempt to escape, but she was grateful nonetheless. 

The figure was quick, slicing off Annie's fingers until she began plummeting downwards, landing in a loud crash as smoke curled and debris scattered around the impact of her fall.

Once the female titan was back at the ground, Eren began pummeling her hit after hit with no mercy accompanied by a raging roar; the force of his attacks caused some of her gigantic limbs to fly away, particularly her hand, which was sent hurtling towards the bridge where Isanna and the rest were standing.

Isanna's instincts took over before her mind could and she was about to pull Erwin away, but her hands were cuffed and the titan hand was quicker. 

"Commander! Look ou—"

It hit the side of the bridge in a rough collision.

As the Military Police soldiers including Nile ran away for cover, Isanna's mind was still in a mess of panic and shock to realize that Erwin had moved to stand in front of her, shielding her from the flying debris while a determined frown was still glued at the battle before him.

The next events that took place were so quick that it was a blur, and all Isanna could make out from that distance was that there was bright shining light of blue flashing from the point scene of the battle, and then, it was silent.

Isanna blinked away her daze, finally recovering from that titan-hand-crashing-on-the-bridge incident. "What the fuck just... happened?"

Erwin couldn't clearly see what was happening from where they were standing, but he had a sinking feeling that something unexpected had happened. Yet again. Nevertheless, he teared his eyes from the scene, knowing that Hanji would take care of it in the meantime.

He turned around and looked at Isanna. "Are you hurt?"

She took a second to blink a few times at him. "Huh? Ah.. no, I'm fine."

She saw him do a quick once-over over her, probably just to make sure, before he nodded. "We should head down and meet up with Levi."

After regrouping with Nile and his soldiers (who all looked embarrassed of leaving their two 'prisoners' to save themselves earlier), they finally went down the bridge and headed nearer to the scene of the aftermath of the titan battle.

Isanna's eyes landed on a crystalized form, and seeing the way some soldiers were continuously hacking at it with their blades with no success, it didn't take long for her to piece things together.

Don't tell me, Isanna thought, her eyes widening. Did we fail?

Levi was sauntering towards them with a slight limp and a somber expression. "Mission accomplished," he mumbled as he reached them. ".. Wouldn't be appropriate to call it like that, huh?"

"No," Erwin swiftly replied, his piercing eyes still glued solid at the crystal. "The Survey Corps can keep its head with this." Although, he added, their chances were likely hanging by a thin thread.

Moments later, Nile ordered some of his men to take both Erwin and Isanna away.

As Isanna fixed her frown at the crystal where she could make out the figure of Annie Leonhart inside, she balled her fists and clenched her jaw, cursing under her breath. She shrugged an MP's grip off her shoulder with a glower before looking at Levi.

"Levi, I think it'd be best you stay with Hanji in the meantime while you take Leonhart below ground. Just in case something happens."

Levi arched a brow. "What about you?"

"As you can see—" Isanna lifted her cuffed hands, the cold chains rattling together— "I have an appointment. You stay with Hanji, I'll go with the Commander."

Levi glanced and saw the line of MP soldiers escorting Erwin to the carriage a few meters away. "Fine. Don't say anything stupid. Let Erwin do the talking."

"Rude. What if they ask me a question?"

"Act dumb. That shouldn't be hard for you."

Isanna bristled. "Listen here, you—"

Whatever she wanted to say was cut off when a group of MPs came and herded her away. She had no choice but to let herself be steered towards the carriage. She quietly huffed.

First, their successful capture of the female titan was now crushed out by the fact that they couldn't even extract any sort of information from her. Second, she knew that the next hurdle to jump over would be the summons by the council concerning this whole wreckage. Third, she did not miss those ugly council pigs in the very least.

Another day, another failure, she thought bitterly. She could only hope Erwin could convince his way through with his eloquent manner of people persuasion—just as he always did.