The Empire of Titans Chapter 66 (The Paths) (Patreon)

Gasp. Eren opened his eyes; he almost expected to be back at home; his head felt heavy, and the headache wasn't helping; he had expected to see Mikasa's concerned face, but instead, he was in a place he had never seen before.

In front of him stood an endless desert, stretching as far as the eye could see. The vast expanse seemed to extend infinitely, devoid of any signs of life or habitation. Surprisingly, despite the lack of any discernible features in the landscape, there was an absence of both scorching heat and biting cold.

What truly captivated his attention was the grand spectacle that awaited him at the distant end of the horizon. At the culmination of this barren desert—a tree crafted entirely out of pure, radiant light. Its magnificent branches stretched tirelessly into the sky above him as if reaching out to the heavens themselves.

"Where am I?" Eren questioned as he dusted off the sand from his pants; his eyes quickly noticed a figure standing in front of the Tree of Light. Squinting his eyes, the figure was a grown woman around her twenties with long blonde hair, slowly approaching him.

"Eren!" The voice echoed around him as if the space around him said the name. Eren kept his attention on the woman approaching him; she seemed perhaps a few years older than him; at first sight, Eren could notice the similarities between her and Historia. If he didn't know who Historia was, he would have thought she was Historia's sister.

"Who are you?" Eren asked, confused, as the woman stopped before him; her eyes were purple, bright purple; Eren couldn't remember anyone having that eye color.

Despite hearing his question, she remained silent, as if she couldn't even talk. Eren was about to ask again when a voice spoke behind him. "She's the Founder Ymir."

Eren whirled around; in front of him sat a man who seemed familiar somehow, but Eren was sure he had never seen him before, if not him, then perhaps in his father's memories.

The man was a tall, broad, well-toned body with gray eyes, shaggy platinum blond hair, and a matching mustache that descended into his beard. He was wearing a white shirt, loose pants, combat boots, and circular glasses. He was sitting in a cross-legged position, with an iron collar around his neck with iron chains linked to it that seemed to spring out from the sand.

"Who are-" Eren stopped mid-sentence; he remembered what happened before he came here; he was about to punch the Beast Titan, but then Eren remembered feeling his entire body get electrocuted. Eren winced slightly, a bad headache as he gripped the side of his head. He remembered the countless voices and visions. He couldn't understand what he saw, but he remembered a voice saying something about the Attack Titan's Hidden Ability.

"You are the Beast Titan!" Eren growled, his green eyes glittering with rage; he remembered the way the rocks had obliterated Mikasa's Titan Body if only one of them had hit her nape. Eren knew it wouldn't really do much since Mikasa's nape had been crystallized, but Eren knew the man in front of him had turned Eldians into Titans, he had killed their people, he had attacked Annie and Captain Mike, he had almost got Mikasa killed.

Before he knew it, he was advancing towards him, ready to pummel him. He didn't know if he could kill him in this place, but he would try it. But as he kept running towards him, Eren quickly noticed something strange, despite how many steps he took towards the man, he wasn't getting closer, in fact, Eren noticed he was getting a little further away as he kept running forward, he stopped on his tracks, realizing that he couldn't get to him, the man simply remained silent, his eyes focused on him.

"You are the Beast Titan!" Eren growled with rage; the man didn't react to his words; he kept looking at Eren as if searching for something. Silence stretched as the man kept staring at him without saying anything.

"You must be Eren Yeager." He finally spoke; his voice came out exhausted somehow.

"Yes. You are Zeke Yeager." Eren spoke his name with disdain that he didn't even try to hide. When he had first learned that he had a brother named Zeke, Eren had barely felt anything; he didn't know him, so he didn't really know what to even feel about all this, but Annie had informed them that the holder of the Beast Titan was a guy named Zeke.

Eren's neutral feelings quickly turned to hatred when he saw what Zeke had done to the people of the Ragako Village; at that moment, Eren didn't care that he was fighting his own brother; he would pay one way or the other.

"W-who was your father?" Zeke's question came out somehow hopeful; Eren narrowed his eyes; he still didn't know where they were and how to return back to the real world; he looked around; he had no idea how he got in this place.

"Grisha Yeager. Your father." Eren's words caused Zeke's eyes to widen in shock, his breathing rapid for a moment, but his shocked face returned back to normal as he gazed up at Eren.

Eren couldn't help but notice a hint of a smile on Zeke's face. "You look nothing like him. Did he tell you about me?" His voice was neutral as if what they were discussing didn't really matter to him. Eren couldn't really read the man; he was better at hiding his emotions than even Commander Erwin.

"No. Before he turned me into a Pure Titan, he had written letters explaining everything about his Past. After I— consumed him, and turned back to human. I read his letters, and one of them mentioned you and your mother." Eren explained and saw a look of utter disgust on his face before he murmured something that Eren didn't hear.

"I have to be honest, I never thought I had a brother-" "Do Not Call Me That!" Eren interrupted with a glare; he wanted to get closer but knew that whatever this place wasn't allowing him to get closer, so, for now, he had to wait and simply talk.

"You attacked us; you turned innocent people into Pure Titans, and you almost killed Mikasa," Eren growled with rage, his hand turned into a fist, his nails digging into his flesh. He wanted to punch him, but as he took a step forward, Zeke got further away.

For what it was worth it, Zeke showed sadness in his expression; he looked as if he regretted what he had done. "Ahh, you think I had a choice?" Eren remained silent, his eyes focused solely on him.

"I don't know how much our father told you, Eren, but you don't know half of it. I reported my parents to save our grandparents. They would get caught even if I kept my mouth shut, but I made the decision to at least spare our grandparents." Zeke explained with a hint of sadness. Eren knew what he was saying made sense, but he wasn't about to forgive everything just because his brother had a rough childhood; it didn't excuse what he did to Connie's village and for almost killing Mikasa.

"I have fought with Marley for years, and they came along with me on this Island. Do you really think I could have just disobeyed their orders? My Titan wouldn't do much against their weapons, and Pieck would have been against me." Zeke further added with hopeful eyes; Eren eyed him warily.

"That doesn't excuse what you did to Ragako Village and for almost killing Mikasa," Eren growled; his brother suddenly looked downwards; he looked ashamed. Eren wasn't sure, but he knew he couldn't trust him. He might put all the sad faces he wants, but Eren knew not to trust him. There were only a few people he fully trusted with everything.

"I see," Zeke murmured before looking up at Eren. "What can I do to help?" Eren blinked in confusion; he hadn't expected to hear that from him.

"Help?"

"Yes. Those people that I turned into Titans cannot be turned back, and they are all dead after the explosion of the Colossal Titan. But I can help this island." Zeke explained with hopeful eyes; Eren looked at him carefully.

"Didn't you reported our father? I thought you hated Eldians."

"I did, but not because I was against his intentions. I'm not blind; I know how Eldians are treated around the World. After I reported him, Marley trusted me more than any other Eldian. This allowed me to gather support. You have lived your whole life on this island, and despite Grisha's letters, his information is old. I can help the island. And you, Eren. Together, we can bring salvation to all Eldians around the world." His words sounded genuine, but Eren knew better than to trust sweet words. If Zeke could truly help them, they could use him, and once he was no longer needed, they could have someone consume him for the Beast Titan.

"From your look, you don't want to activate the Rumbling, do you?" His words made Eren snarl. He had decided long ago that he would never use the Rumbling unless the situation was extremely dire, and even then, he would use it only to warn the world and not trample the world. Still, it is something I have to keep in mind, Eren thought.

"No. I don't want to trample the entire world. That's not who I am."

"Good. I'm relived to hear that, Eren, but the other countries won't be as willing to listen to you or anyone else from this island, While the other countries had started having resentment towards Marley. The hate they have for Eldians is still much more. As I told you, I have connections. I can help this island to form connections with the other countries, help this island prosper, and eventually, perhaps one day Eldians and everyone else can live together." Zeke's words were sweet and sounded like a dream.

But it sounded too good to be true. Eren desired what Zeke was proposing, but Eren knew he couldn't trust him. If Zeke was willing to help, then they could keep him alive. For Now.

Eren knew another reason, though. The last time they extracted blood from Historia, she had been sick for two months. Eren didn't want to try it again; he didn't want something unexpected to happen. Something they didn't know could happen. Eren knew his brother had Royal Blood and was a Titan Shifter. We can use his blood to make more Syringes for Semi-Titan Shifters, Eren quickly concluded. He knew they could keep it secret from him and extract the blood.

"Once we are out of here. You will surrender and not put up a fight. You will be handed over to the Survey Corps, and you will have the opportunity to talk. If you want an opportunity to help us, then you will have your opportunity, but if you try to betray us. Then I will personally kill you." Eren said firmly with a commanding voice. Zeke had a small smile on his face; he looked relieved.

"I don't ask for more, Thank you, Eren." Eren narrowed his eyes; he sounded too cooperative. Eventually, he remembered where they were.

"How did we get here?" Eren asked, his voice tinged with curiosity and wonder as he crouched down. As his hand instinctively reached out, his fingers closed around a handful of fine sand grains, their texture foreign and novel to him. This was the first time his fingertips had touched sand. Slowly, he allowed the sand to slip through his fingers, marveling at each grain as it cascaded back to the ground.

"I take it you have the Founding Titan." Eren simply nodded; he didn't see a reason to try to hide it. He didn't know where they were, but he figured it had something to do with the Founder.

"When the Founding Titan is activated, those that want to use it come here to draw their power from The Founder Ymir," Zeke explained, looking beyond Eren, who turned and looked at Ymir, who had been quiet this whole time.

"Usually you can't use the Founding Titan without Royal Blood, but you can use it if you have someone who has the Founding Titan but doesn't have Royal Blood. If that person makes contact with a Titan with Royal Blood. The Founding Titan will be activated." Eren's eyes widened upon hearing that, but there was one thing that made no sense.

Wait, Historia has Royal Blood and has been a Titan Shifter for a long time; why didn't making contact with her activate the Founding Titan, Eren wondered. He had never felt a burst of electricity whenever he touched Historia, and he had made contact with her even when she was in her Titan form.

There were two options. His brother was lying, or Historia didn't count because she was a Semi-Titan Shifter, not a whole one like he or his brother was.

"What is this place?"

"I don't know, but I remember being here once. I think that Tree is the Coordinate. That is what bounds all Eldians together, is the source of our power." Eren remained silent; he hadn't known this place existed. His father had never brought it up ever before.

Eren wanted to know more, but right now, he had no need to use the Founding Titan, at least not now. While perhaps he could use it to kill all the Pure Titans on the island, he knew he could probably use them for something else before either killing them or turning them back into Humans, if that was possible, without them consuming a Titan Shifter.

Eren turned to face Ymir, who looked back at him; her purple eyes made him feel a little uneasy. He wondered for how long she had been here. Since her death, Eren wondered, suddenly feeling a pang of guilt, she was here all alone. He didn't know her story; perhaps she really made a contract with the Devil, whatever the Devil was. Who knew?

Eren didn't know, but he still wondered if he could help her somehow.

"Founder Ymir return us back to the real world," Eren commanded; he couldn't help but feel bad for commanding her. Perhaps, one day, I can free her, Eren thought, and as if Ymir could read his mind, she smiled gently as she walked up to him. Eren extended his hand, expecting her to touch his hand, but instead, her hand reached out and touched his cheek... Eren felt a sudden surge of electricity in his entire body... What is happening???

.

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Outside

Historia watched as Eren turned into a Titan and punched the Beast Titan. At that moment, she felt a surge of electricity similar to the one she felt every time she transformed. But the moment that feeling went away, Eren continued with his punch, causing The Beast Titan to sprawl across the ground in pain. The tremendous force behind the blow left a gruesome wound, a massive chunk of the Beast Titan's face now gruesomely disfigured. Witnessing this ferocious display, Historia anticipated Eren to continue his relentless assault, expecting him to pummel the subdued Beast Titan. However, Eren opted to stand his ground. Similarly, the Beast Titan seemed to have resigned himself to defeat, choosing not to retaliate any further.

Historia watched as Ian kept approaching the Beast Titan, perhaps to try and grab him; she quickly descended, landing beside Eren, who remained in his place. She was about to ask him what was happening when a burst of steam came from the Beast Titan's nape.

She growled as a man with blonde hair pulled himself out. She expected him to try and turn into a Titan again, but instead, he raised his hand in surrender the moment he ripped the tissues attaching his face to his Titan.

"I surrender. I'm not fighting." The man said loud enough for her to hear, still keeping his hands upward. Historia blinked; she didn't believe him; she didn't understand why he would suddenly give up. She wondered if it had anything to do with the burst of power she felt a minute ago.

Suddenly, Historia watched as Eren burst out from the nape with a burst of hot steam; strangely, she noticed his nose was bleeding, something she didn't remember seeing ever before.

"Eren!" Historia called him in confusion; Eren ripped himself from the nape before jumping on the ground below.

"I will explain everything later, Krista, but right now. We are not fighting, but keep an eye on him." Eren ordered firmly. Historia raised an eyebrow; she expected Eren to be much more furious towards the man. He killed many of their own people and almost killed Mikasa.

"Eren, are you sure?"

"Trust me on this," Eren said; she reluctantly nodded but kept an eye on the man who kept his arms raised. She couldn't see blood leaking from any wounds on his body, but she knew all she needed was for him to bite his own hand.

Eventually, the others arrived; by that point, Ian had crouched down, now looking like a twenty-meter titan; he kept his eyes on the man who stared back at him. She knew the man wanted to ask questions about the Titan Shifters.

Eren

As the deafening sound of thundering hooves grew louder, echoing through the air, he strained his ears to discern the distinct rhythm of horses approaching. Among them, Erwin, positioned at the forefront, led the charge towards their location. With a mixture of urgency and resignation, Captain Levi and his team quickly surrounded Zeke. The latter wisely raised his hands in surrender.

"I surrender to you. I don't want to fight." Zeke said. Captain Levi didn't look convinced as he pointed his sword right at Zeke's face, close enough to touch his face.

"Try something, and you will be a head shorter, Monkey." Levi threatened as he quickly ordered his team to keep guard and keep an eye on Zeke.

"So right about your height," Eren heard Zeke murmur under his breath, but luckily for him, Levi wasn't really paying attention to him as he turned to look at Erwin.

"How is Mikasa?" Eren quickly asked Sasha with concern; the girl walked up to him with a bottle of water that he gladly accepted. Sasha explained to him that everyone was alright; they had found Annie and Mike in the forest nearby. Floch had a broken leg and broken ribs; thankfully, Petra had checked on him. None of the broken ribs had damaged any of his internal organs, but she said that he couldn't properly fight again for two months at least.

Eren was relieved to hear that; he knew if the Semi-Titan Shifters hadn't been a thing, Zeke would have killed many of the Survey Corps. Sasha had brought a horse for him. "Thank you, Sasha," Eren said gratefully; the potato girl blushed, her face turning red; Eren chuckled in amusement as he mounted his horse.

"You must be Commander Erwin?" Zeke's voice came from nearby, but it was more of a statement rather than a question. Eren looked forward; Zeke was placed on top of a horse, and both his hands were tied.

"No talking," Levi ordered, ready to put a gag in Zeke's mouth, but Erwin raised his hand as he looked at Zeke with a look of intrigue.

"That would be me, what do you want?"

"I know your first instinct is to feed me to a pure Titan, to kill me and obtain the Beast Titan, but I assure you that I'm worthy more alive than dead." Erwin's blue piercing eyes looked right at him as if he could read his mind.

"Ohh, Annie Leonhart has already provided us with enough information about the outside world." Erwin said with a calculating look.

"I don't doubt she did, but I'm the Captain of the Warrior Unit from Marley. I have information to give you that Annie could never give, but most importantly. I have connections, connection with countries that might be willing to listen to the people of Paradis. Of course, they would refuse to listen to what they call devils of Paradis, you all are strangers to them. But they know me." Zeke said with what sounded like a sincere voice, his words making it clear what he was offering.

Eren could see the look of suspicion on Levi's face and the same for Erwin's, but the Commander's face looked much calmer than that of Levi's.

"Levi Squad will place you in the cell. I will personally make sure you will have a trial, and your words will be heard. But try anything, and you won't get to see the sun again. Everyone we are returning back." Erwin shouted as everyone started riding back to the Headquarters.

Eren remained mostly silent. Ian was still inside the nape as Erwin ordered him to pull himself out. Eren remembered what Ymir had told him when they had been in the Paths. Eren sighed heavily before looking right at Ian; his green eyes glittered; at that moment, the hand of the Colossal Titan moved, but Eren's eyes quickly turned back to normal.

.

"What the hell are you doing, Ian? We are done here." Rico shouted; she was standing by the foot of the Titan. Ian successfully pulled himself out of his Titan, falling twenty meters below; he groaned in pain and stood up while massaging his sore shoulders as Rico brought him a horse.

"What was that?" Rico asked with a raised eyebrow. Ian ignored her as he looked at his hands in confusion.

"I-I don't—It doesn't matter," Ian said dismissively as he mounted the horse that Rico had brought him. She didn't look convinced but simply shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly. As they followed the Survey Corps, Rico leaned closer to the second in command of the Garrison.

"I think you are doing a good job, Ian. You will be a role model for your daughter." Rico praised him with a smile; this took Ian by surprise.

"I didn't expect a compliment from Miss Glasses." Ian couldn't help but tease her.

"Don't expect another one." Rico quickly said with a smile of amusement before gripping the reins of her horse, riding away quickly, followed by Ian.

.

Eren remained silent as they rode forward. Now he realized why he felt a burst of electricity every time Levi, Mike, and Ian turned into Titans. It all made sense now, and why didn't he feel the same when Mikasa, Armin, and Historia turned into Semi Titan Shifters. It wasn't my Spinal Fluid, Eren thought; he wondered if this would happen to everyone else.

On their journey back, Eren occasionally checked on Mikasa, who was sleeping peacefully in the wagon, but he knew he couldn't do much to help her. It would take at least two days for her to wake up after using her Titan. The first time, it had taken three whole days.

Eren talked with Sasha on their way back; the potato girl talked about her encounter in the village. Eren was impressed that Sasha managed to save a little girl.

"You have done very good, Sasha. You are incredible." Eren praised with a smile, and Sasha blushed, much to his amusement.

While riding back, Eren often looked at Zeke. A gag was put on his mouth, and his hands were tied, yet he didn't seem bothered by it. Eren wasn't sure what to make of him yet, but he knew one thing. He couldn't trust him. At least not yet.

Eventually, they returned to the Headquarters, and Levi ordered Eren to rest. The latter wanted to be there when they questioned Zeke, but Levi told him that he would have his chance to catch up later, saying Commander Erwin wanted to talk with Zeke alone, and not even Levi nor Hange would be there to supervise; Eren found that odd, but reluctantly nodded.

"Eren." He turned to face Captain Levi, who called him. "You did a good job today. But remember to keep training, now go rest." Levi said sincerely. Eren was caught off guard but felt pleased that Captain Levi said that.

"Thank you, Captain," Eren said with a genuine smile before walking away.

As Eren walked away, Levi hung his head down. "I'm getting too attached to those kids." He murmured under his breath. Before walking away, since he had some time to rest, he decided to drink tea with Hange. He liked the way she blushed.

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Eren reached his room; he wondered where Ymir and Historia were; he figured the two of them wanted to spend time with one another, perhaps. Annie was resting on the hospital bed alongside Mikasa since, according to Mike, both of them were defeated by the Monkey Titan. He knew Annie would be back at her feet very soon.

As he stepped inside the room, he was taken aback by the unexpected sight. Sasha was gracefully sprawled across the bed. Her beautiful, lustrous hair created a mesmerizing cascade of brown locks, delicately draping the pillow beneath her head. As he closed the door, the room seemed to glow with a soft, warm hue. Their eyes met, her lustrous gaze filled with a mixture of surprise and delight. As if awakening from a dream, she slowly rose from the bed, her cheeks flushed with a rosy hue, resembling a perfectly ripe, adorable tomato.

"S-Sasha, why are you here?" Eren asked with a small stutter, his tone laced with genuine curiosity and a hint of surprise. But the silence was the only answer he received. As she closed the distance, Eren couldn't help but notice that her normally fair complexion had taken on a deep shade of crimson, highlighting her embarrassment. Her eyes flickered nervously, unable to meet his gaze as if searching for an escape. Somehow, her trembling hands found their way to Eren's shoulder. Despite her initial reluctance, her light brown eyes finally found the courage to connect with his own.

Sasha gathered her courage and found the strength to express her feelings sincerely, uttering, "I-I like you, Eren." Eren's cheeks flushed with a subtle blush. However, before he could verbalize his response or react further, a wave of surprise washed over him as Sasha leaned closer, bridging the gap between them. With an undeniable allure, her lips, possessing a delicate and enticing tenderness, made contact with his, evoking a rush of emotions and sensations within both of them.