Bombardment

Levi wiped the sweat from his forehead. Finally, that horrible voice stopped talking in his head.

He looked to his right. Several of his fellow soldiers had landed on the surrounding rooftops.

"We're done cleaning up the Titans that were here!" said one of them, tired. "There are only a few small ones left in the front! But, how can we take down the Beast Titan? It doesn't look like he intends to leave his position very soon..."

Levi looked at the furry creature and the row of countless Titans that stood on either side of the Beast Titan.

"Yeah..." replied Levi. "He sure is a coward... But that makes sense. After all, he has no guts."

"You can take a break, Captain," said his colleague. "We'll take down the rest of the small ones." He then turned to the other soldiers. "Let's go!"

Everyone except Levi flew off with their ODM gears, shouting "Understood!"

Levi watched them disappear among the houses ahead, then he looked back, as if trying to see behind the Wall.

"Damn it..." he thought. "This explosion from the Colossal Titan... How are Hange and Lara doing? I really hope they managed to escape in time, as well as their Squads... I've gotta hurry to--"

He could not finish his thought.

For, at this moment, as if in slow motion, he saw pieces of boulders pass very close to his face.

BOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOM!!!

Levi flinched, covering his face with his arms and the swords in his hands. Countless chunks of boulders were hitting the houses around them in deafening explosions. A boulder hit very close to his feet. When he dared to open his eyes for a second, he couldn't believe what he saw.

The Beast Titan had thrown several pieces of boulders, which hit many houses and buildings in front of him. Dust and brown smoke, mixed with the blood of his fellow comrades, rose through the air.

The worst thing of all was that Levi could hear the screams of his colleagues as they were hit by the powerful volley.

All he could see now was a sea of blood and debris.

His eyes widened and for a moment, he couldn't breathe anymore.

"BOMBARDMENT INCOMING!"

Levi looked up and saw that it was Erwin's voice, watching everything from the top of the Wall.

The Beast Titan was preparing another hail of boulders to throw at the soldiers.

"All troops!" ordered Erwin. "Take cover!"

Just outside the inner gate, there were many of the recruits who had recently joined the Survey Corps, tending to the horses. Everyone was very confused and perplexed by what had suddenly happened.

"Damn it!" exclaimed Levi, astonished, looking at the destruction in front of him. "YOU GUYS!!!"

He flew at rapid speed towards the wreckage, looking for anyone who might be alive. However, when he barely touched the ground, he had to throw himself behind a house, for the Beast Titan had just launched another hail of boulders.

BOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOM!!!

Levi watched, completely bewildered, the immense dust and smoke that rose, with more blood from his colleagues. Some of them were even thrown into the air.

Erwin also watched that massacre, speechless.

The new recruits were crouched on the ground, wondering what the heck was that all about. They even thought the enemy was using cannons, hundreds of them. The horses were also frightened by so much noise.

"The Beast Titan is throwing boulders!" shouted Levi, very distressed, as he landed in front of the recruits.

"Captain Levi!" exclaimed one of them.

"All of you!" he ordered. "Take the horses and retreat to the Wall!"

They barely had the time to reply "Understood!", when another hail of boulders came, almost hitting them.

BOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOM!!!

"Hurry!" shouted Levi, pointing to the Wall. "Stay outta the line of fire!"

The boulders hit everything on their way with brutal force. At this point, many pieces hit parts of the Wall, and at one moment, they heard the bell of a building being hit, which made the noise even more deafening.

Levi was the last of the line of soldiers and horses that desperately ran towards the Wall. His heart was racing and the only images that popped into his mind were of Lara and Hange.

For an instant, he thought about the last hug Lara had given him, which was when she had said 'good morning' the day before.

For an instant, he thought about the last kiss he had given Hange, in her bedroom.

"At least," thought Levi, "I had the courage to say that I loved them."

If anything were to happen, this weight he would not carry to his grave.

As he ran, he looked to the side and saw a red-haired recruit crouched on the ground, screaming and covering his head.

"Hey! Stand up!" exclaimed Levi, taking the recruit's green cloak. "You wanna die?!"

Fortunately, at that moment, the boulders stopped hitting them.

Levi looked at Erwin, who by now was on the ground with them. All the recruits and horses were gathered there, trying to hide behind the last line of houses before the Wall.

"How's the situation?" asked Levi, heading towards the Commander.

"Terrible. The Beast Titan has already destroyed the front line of houses. If he continues with his attacks, the entire area will be leveled and then we'll have nowhere to hide."

"We can't retreat to the other side of the Wall?" asked Levi.

"No," answered Erwin. "Up there, I saw that the Colossal Titan is approaching from that side, leaving a trail of fire behind. If we climb the Wall to avoid the Beast Titan's hail of boulders, we'll have to leave the horses behind. Retreating now would leave us with no hope of victory."

"Do you know what happened with Hange and Lara's Squad? Are they okay?! What about Eren?!"

"I don't know," answered Erwin, impassive. "I'm so sorry, my friend... But, most of them were caught in that explosion... We've been dealt a serious blow."

Levi lowered his head and covered his face. He felt a big lump in his throat and his chest tighten.

"This ain't happening..." he thought. "This is all a nightmare..."

"The Beast Titan used the small Titans to lure most of our soldiers to an area, which would then receive the full hail of boulders," continued Erwin. "Dirk Squad, Marlene Squad, and Klaus Squad were who were dealing with these small Titans and were all wiped out by the bombardment."

The recruits watched in bewilderment as the Commander said those words. Everyone was terrified.

"The only remaining forces on this side of the gate consist of you, new Survey Corps recruits, Captain Levi, and me," concluded Erwin.

Levi looked at him with heavy, tired eyes.

BOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOM!!!

Another explosion hit them and all the recruits screamed and ducked. However, Levi was still looking steadily at Erwin.

"We're doomed!" they heard a recruit shout.

"Erwin..." began Levi, slowly, "Do you have any sort of plan?"