*Levi is still following his canon part in the manga*
Bertholdt along the with rest of the people in the dinning room.
“Floch what is this?” Hange demanded stepping forward but stopped as one of the scouts aimed her gun at her. “I am your commander-“
Floch laughed. “No I don’t follow someone one as weak as you anymore. There’s only one person who actually cares about the future of Eldia”
Mikasa let out a small gasp.
“Look Floch I don’t know what Eren has promised but you can’t trust him” Bertholdt said in a calm voice.
“And why should I listen to you. Bertholdt Hoover, the colossal Titan…traitor to Eldia, traitor to Marley…tell me…who are you loyal too?”
Bertholdt didn’t have an answer.
“Say kids” Floch said looking over at the frightened children. “You the wall Maria right…all those people died, more titans flooded the streets…probably killed some of your families. Well meet the man responsible.” He waved his gun at Bertholdt.
“Floch…”
“We tried it your way Hange, even you know Eldians won’t be free until the rest of the world knows the true power of the titans”
Bertholdt felt sick. Regretting the part he played in this.
Floch turned to Armin and Mikasa. “You two, I think there is some one you want to talk to”
Armin raised an eyebrow. “He’s here?”
“Louise” Floch nodded his head towards the solider standing next to him.
“Right” she pointed her gun at Armin and Mikasa and escorted out of the dinning room.
Suddenly Connie turned to Niccolo. “You were able to tell us about the wine.”
Niccolo looked dejected and just looked to Floch.
“All the wine we’ve been serving to the military, minus those that Floch told us not too, contains Zeke’s spinal fluid…”
“Niccolo…how could you do this to us?” Sasha looked at him with a mix of shock and hurt.
He didn’t answer, and just looked at Falco.
“We trusted you Niccolo…” Jean said looking disgusted.
“Jann take the two warrior kids into custody”
Jann moved towards them.
“No they aren’t a threat!” Sasha cried out as she tried to move towards them. But Connie held her back.
“Tell your little lover here that if gets in our way, we have no issues finishing what this brat couldn’t” Jann said.
In one swift motion Gabi grabbed the kitchen knife off the table, ready to defend herself.
“Gabi…just do what they say…I promise I’ll get back to you and Falco” Reiner said.
Gabi looked a Reiner as the rouge scouts handcuffed Gabi and and unconscious Falco.
“Now the rest can just rot in a cell for all I care” Floch said.
*****************************************************
The cell was damp and cold.
“Tea’s ready” Reiner said as he and Mrs. Blaus began to serve their cell mates.
“Reiner you can’t use your Titan to bust us outta here?” Connie asked.
“Not without killing us all.”
Bertholdt leaned up against the wall.
“I was a fool Hange. I should have never trusted Eren. I just…I thought he was still the idealistic kid, I was so blinded by my own ambition to take down Marley I wasn’t able to see what he had become”
“You aren’t solely to blame Bertholdt, you thought you were doing what was the best option. Eren going rogue on us took us all by surprise. Even Armin and Mikasa were shocked”
Bertholdt let out a sigh. “Hange he was able infiltrate the Marley military because I helped him do it, I got him in touch with the right people, I didn’t know he was working with Zeke at the same time”
“Well what’s done is done.” Hange said sadly.
“Maybe Armin and Mikasa can talk some sense into him, and Levi has Zeke with a massive security detail in the forest.” Jean said taking a sip of his tea.
“So we have at least 80 that haven’t been contaminated” Hange said.
“That’s not entirely true.” Niccolo spoke up from the corner of the cell.
“What?” Hange turned to face him.
“I helped package the wine that was sent to the scouts in the forest…don’t know how many drank it, if any of them did” he said quietly.
“Knowing Levi, he probably won’t let them drink on the job” Hange said, but she wasn’t entirely convinced.
“I just don’t understand…if you cared about me so much Niccolo why would you hurt people I care about…those are my comrades, my friends” Sasha said.
Niccolo remained silent.
“That’s not important right now.” Bertholdt said. “Niccolo do you know anything else? What Zeke’s plan is? Why he needs to get to Eren?”
“I don’t know anything beyond the wine, I swear…and I’m sorry.”
“And there’s nothing we can do to help them?” Connie asked.
Reiner shook his head. “No…all it takes now if for Zeke to scream”
“A scream?” Mr. Blaus asked.
“If Zeke lets out a scream, any Eldian that has ingested his spinal fluid will turn into a Titan. It’s not as direct as an injection, but it does the same thing”
“So…those titans…they were once people?” Artur asked.
Reiner nodded sadly. “All Eldians. It was Marley’s way of punishing those who didn’t know their place.”
“It was known as ‘going to heaven’ which meant Paradis.” Bertholdt added in.
“So…why do they eat other humans if they were once humans?” Kaya asked quietly, leaning against Sasha.
“Looking for a Titan shifter. Someone like me or Reiner, or Eren. They eat one of us…they inherit our Titan and become human again”
“Is that what those two kids were trying to become?” Artur asked.
Reiner nodded. “It’s considered an honor. To be selected as a warrior. You are seen as a ‘proper Eldian’. You get a special status where we are from.”
“That’s awful to put children through” Lisa Blaus said sitting next to her husband.
“It’s not like we are any better.” Artur said. “We send kids into our military. As soon as Sasha was 13 we sent her to become a solider. Many adults hide behind the safety of the walls while we send youngins out there to fight. One side kills someone, then we get revenge, then the other side wants revenge…it’s a vicious cycle, one that our children shouldn’t be caught in. Our Sasha went to other lands, killed people, almost got killed herself. At this point we probably don’t even know why we keep hurtin each other”
A hush settled over the room. Bertholdt closed his eyes, thinking of his mother. He had caused his mother to suffer a fate worst than death, and became a cog in the machine of war.
The silence was broken by the sound of footsteps.
The cell door opened and Armin and Mikasa were shoved in.
“F*ck, Armin…what the hell happened to you?!” Jean asked, looking at Armin’s blooded and battered face.
“Eren”
Mikasa looked shell shocked.
“Armin what happened?” Jean pressed.
“I think Eren…I think he’s planning…”
Armin didn’t get to finish as Yelena and some of the Yeagerist appeared on the other side of the bars.
“So your working with them then?” Armin asked.
“I don’t see why you are looking this with such a negative mindset, Zeke and Eren are planning to bring peace and an end of the Titan threat”
Bertholdt laughed. “And you actually believe either one of them?”
“You are just too blinded to see Zeke’s vision.”
“Why does Eren need Zeke?” Hange asked.
“Zeke can use the power of the founder to put an end of the titans” Yelena said.
“What do you mean by that??”
Bertholdt was putting the pieces together. “He plans to sterilize us” he mumbled.
“What?” Connie asked looking at him.
Bertholdt pushed himself off the wall. “Zeke…he plans to sterilize all Eldians, so we will die out as a race. No more Eldians, no more titans…”
Connie whirled around to face Yelena. “That b*stard is going to stop us from having kids? Letting a whole race of people die out?!”
“It’s a…humane solution” Yelena said. “Zeke knows that this is the only way”
“That’s easy for you to say.” Connie spat.
A low rumbling sound caused them all to look up.
Marley was coming.
To be continued.
A/N I know this is a long story, but there is so much that I feel could be expanded upon with Bertholdt in the mix
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