I rammed my fingers into the stone obelisk, the pain of piercing through rock shooting through my hand and into my ragged frame. While isolating my ability to harden my skin to my fingertips allowed for me to gain a hold enough on the wall to precariously and quickly climb, the power failed to abate the throbbing bruises and cuts threatening to break my body down to nothing but steam. The pain, however, was something I was used to. I was trained by the best to handle the downsides of my unique abilities. What I wasn't prepared for was the absolute terror in my gut. Was it supposed to feel so icy cold, like the consuming chill of a furious winter's gale? I could fight through any amount of pain without fear. Why was it so hard to move?
I just wanted to run. Like a coward, I wanted to flee from the madman determined to end my life. I wanted to escape the fury of the madwoman determined to protect him at all costs. As I ascended that wall, I almost chuckled at the ridiculousness of it all, at the futility of their efforts. The ravaging of a man so determined to exterminate all Titans that he himself became one to do so. The cold anger of a woman who wanted little more in life than to see the wishes of her man through till the end. Through it all, the utter vanity of a race set on either destroying itself or allowing for the Titans to that for them.
I reached my hand upwards to dig into the titanic wall, plunging my hardened fingers into what was essentially the re-purposed carcasses of thousands of Titans. The walls were everything for humanity, their shelter, their protection, their god. The walls were perhaps the most unifying identity of the humans living within them. How ironic, the very things that those ignorant humans prayed to for protection from Titans were Titans themselves. It's as if they were praying to fire to deliver them from fire. How futile.
As I closed the distance between myself and the top of Wall Sina, I felt relief like an overflowing river course through my Titan body. Perhaps I would escape this veritable hell after all. Perhaps I would live to fight another day. Perhaps I would even survive long enough to return to my homeland.
As I heard the whistling sound of Maneuver Gear storming in my direction, I felt that hope trickle from my soul. A silver hook shimmering in the orange sun's glow penetrated the stone wall as the owner of the weapon appeared in my vision like an apparition. There she was, like a cold specter gliding through a dark night. Her crimson scarf fluttered in the breeze as she landed another hook in my shoulder, firing the gas pressure valve to accelerate towards me.
Hanging limply on that infernal wall made it rather difficult to evade the fate biting at my fingertips. That demon of a man disguised as a Titan writhing below me, death incarnate with steel blades drawn ascending above me. Checkmate.
Mikasa Ackerman severed my armored fingertips from my fingers with one swift blow. Gravity took me. The blue sky overhead swirled in slow motion as the elite soldier of the Survey Corps looked into my frightened eyes. Her own were entirely devoid of emotion as she spoke with a frigid voice,
"Annie. Fall."
And so I did. Colliding with the hard ground with and earth shattering crash, I let go of any intentions of escape. Trapped within a wall I was sworn to destroy, I lay limply as Eren in Titan form crawled upon my battered frame to end my unfortunate life.
Perhaps it was my innate instinct kicking in, that one human desire to survive. I suddenly had one goal in my mind above all others, above high ended goals to exterminate a race that I myself at least partly belonged. I will live, to keep the promise I made all those years ago. I would preserve my life until the timing was right, that I might have an opportunity to complete the task I was set out to perform.
Pushing my abilities to their limits, I transformed my Titan body into an invincible crystal casing that the Survey Corps had little chance of breaking through. I felt the hard substance envelop my human body as I heard confused clamor. I closed my eyes as the process was completed, and swiftly fell into unconsciousness.
__________________
My next memory was a strange one. My senses flooding back simultaneously, I opened my eyes. My vision fell upon a small, circular wooden table with a clean white cloth adorning the upper face. Upon the table sat two ornate porcelain cups, both steaming with a hot, herbal liquid. On the center of the wooden frame was an equally expensive looking teapot with the strange mangled word, "Teacord", scribbled on the face.
I had little time to consider the oddity of the situation before the teapot simply got up on two porcelain legs and waddled awkwardly to the teacup on the opposite side of the table. After doing a little dance, it poured a portion of its contents into the teacup, pausing for a moment before asking a question to the blue emptiness of whatever dream this obviously had to be.
"What is my purpose?"
The teapot spoke without any real method for doing so, but I suppose that wasn't so strange relative to the overall situation I found myself in. I was hovering in some blue space on a floating blue chair seated next to an animated teapot. I might've screamed in terror if I wasn't so speechless.
"To pour tea."
The gravelly response was followed by a flash of white light. I squinted my eyes for a moment before I made out a figure now seated in the opposite chair facing me, the white teacup now held firmly in its right claw. The creature was a ridiculous mix and match of various body parts from mythology. It had the head of a horse, with the appendages of a griffon, a lion, and the tail of a reptile. I'd seen many strange, abnormal beings in my time, myself being one of them, but this strange being defied any reason I was grasping onto.
My eyes fell back upon the teapot as it voiced the vanity of its own existence,
"Oh my God."
The strange creature sipping on tea chuckled at the animated object's existential crisis. After a few moments, the being focused his attention on me. I sat silently, my practiced neutral expression hiding my mounting confusion. This all had to be some kind of twisted dream. I was still encased within the crystal of my own making. This was all just some stress induced nightmare. It had to be.
The being gestured towards me with its free lion's paw,
"You're not going to take a drink? It's good tea! Got if from my dealer in Tartarus. You wouldn't believe how hard it is to extract the leaves from the souls of the damned. Cost me my best pair of shoes."
I didn't respond, staring into the creature's oddly shaped pupils blankly. He took another long sip, placing his cup on the table next to the trembling teapot after he was finished. Sighing, he continued,
"Well, you're not a ball of fun. I thought that someone with the name Leonhart would at least be a little bit interesting."
My eyes widened as I interrupted the creature,
"How do you know my name?"
The strange being smirked slightly as he responded,
"I thought that might get your attention. My name is Discord, Lord of Chaos, Deacon of Disorder, Emperor of Entropy, Ascendant of-"
I interrupted the boastful creature of many titles,
"You haven't answered my question. How do you know who I am?"
The creature calling himself Discord materialized eight red balls, which he proceeded to juggle with unnatural speed and precision.
"I guess you could say that I've been given a little assignment. It's a small thing, certainly not something someone of your stature would consider important. Nevertheless, I've gotta do what I've gotta do, no matter how much I complain about it."
I raised an eyebrow, eyeing Discord with a suspicious look. Maintaining a calm demeanor, I replied coldly,
"What might that be?"
The strange chaotic being materialized a bucket with a snap of his fingers, allowing for all eight of the red balls to fall into it despite the small size of their container. He then proceeded to pour a liquid version of himself from the bucket into the startled teapot, chatting along as he filled the dish with himself,
"Now, just outright telling you wouldn't be much fun, now would it?"
With his previous physical form now liquidized, the animated teapot shakily poured a portion of its new contents into my suddenly empty teacup. I jumped slightly in surprise in confusion as Discord's watery face looked me in the eye from its current state as a liquid. While accepting that the normal laws that governed the universe didn’t apply as I understood them in this dreamscape allowed me to retain a small portion of my sanity, another part of me already felt my reason begin to slip.
A blinding flash of white light later and the strange being calling himself Discord was back in a seated position on the nearby chair. I blinked as the monstrosity placed an ornate, yellowish piece of paper plastered with scribbled cursive on the table. A strange object shaped somewhat like a shiny writing quill materialized in my right hand as Discord pushed the paper closer to me,
“You’ll find the details regarding my assignment in this contract. I’ll give you two pieces of advice before I let you go; one, hold up your end of the bargain or neither of us are going to get anywhere. Two, don’t be boring. I don’t think you’ll have much trouble with that one.”
I placed my free hand on the paper contract, reading the bold letters near the bottom,
By the divine order of the Princess:
The draconequus Discord is hereby instructed to reform one (1) sentient being of his own choosing in concordance with the Friendship Laws outlined above. The being is not required to be an Equestrian citizen of natural birth; however, the reformation must take place on or near Equestrian territory. This will be judged by the residing Princess of Friendship, who will make the determination of reformation at her own discretion. Both Discord and the being whose name is signed in writing on this document will be bound to it until the conditions above are met.
Signed,
Princess Celestia
Cosigned,
Discord
Below these signatures was a blank dotted line I assumed to be where I signed my own name. My eyes widened in confusion as I pondered the implications of the contract. Of course, I recognized none of the proper names or places referenced in the paragraph. I noted the odd titles mentioned as I addressed the alien being across the floating table,
“What does ‘reformation’ mean in this context?”
Discord smiled widely, a small chuckle erupting from his strange mouth,
“I’ll try to explain this as simply as possible. In short, from my observations, your...actions in your own dimension don’t quite meet the moral and ethical standards of the culture I’m from. The rulers of my nation have called in an old favor, and I’m in no position to refuse, unfortunately, so here you are.”
My eyes narrowed in annoyance as I inquired,
“And I assume there’ll be no getting out of this?”
Discord nodded somberly,
“Not until the terms of the contract are fulfilled, I’m afraid. We’re in this boat together, friend.”
I snorted in frustration as I pondered my options. There didn’t appear to be any escape from my current environment, and the strange horse-like creature seemed to be resolute in his quest. Crossing my arms across my chest, I asked the creature coldly,
“And if I refuse?”
Taking another sip of tea, Discord shook his head,
“Then neither of us will be able to leave this place. Trust me, I don’t like this situation any more than you do.”
I had just one question to ask him before I resigned to my strange fate,
“Why me?”
Discord’s smile widened even further as his voice dropped to a low and mischievous tone,
“There’s one golden rule that I always follow, no matter the situation, Leonhart. That which isn’t fun isn’t worth doing.”
I held the pen tightly in my hand, gliding my fingers to the dotted line that determined my future. My purpose didn’t belong in this netherworld of fantasy. This couldn’t be real. Yet, how could my mind develop such insane and vivid dreams? Only one valid course of action remained. If this all was just a dream, then I would simply awake back in reality anyway. If not, then...I’d have to be, ‘reformed’ whatever that actually meant.
“I want your word that if I fulfill my end of the contract, you will uphold yours, Discord.”
“You have it. Try not to be boring, Leonhart. Have some fun. Spread some chaos.”
Without fully understanding the implications, I scribbled my name across the line quickly. As I drew the outline of the last letter, the paper document vanished in a flash of white light. Seemingly satisfied, Discord snapped his talons and dissipated along with it.
The world faded away in the blink of an eye.
_________________
My attempt to open my eyes was thwarted by a stinging yellow light overhead. Squinting, I automatically bolted to a seated position. My hands fell upon a soft and earthy substance, cool and silky to the touch. The initial pain of the light subsided, giving way to a warm, golden glow. I inhaled the sweet air slowly, enjoying the breeze blowing through my hair. I felt an odd, foreign feeling flow through my veins, like a cold cup stream of water. I relaxed my tense muscles as I at last opened my eyes.
A dreamlike scene played out before me as I exhaled the warm air of summer. Rolling green hills of shining grass dotted with a rainbow of flowers stretched out as far as I could see. Great towering mountains stood tall in the distance with white capped peaks of snow and ice. Perhaps most striking was the sky overhead, so deep a blue and so expansive that I can only describe it with one word: free. The sky was free to exist, unbound by constraining walls.
My wandering eyes fell upon a group of structures in the distance. From my elevated position, I could recognize individual buildings of interesting architectural design. I rose shakily to my feet, unbalanced slightly by my Maneuver Gear. Mildly surprised to find it on my person, I fired a silver hook to test its functionality. The shining steel chain dug into the ground in front of me cleanly. Relieved, I retracted the cord, brushing the dirt from my trousers.
I laughed at the strangeness of it all. One moment I stared death in the face, locked in a lethal battle with who I believed to be the key we so desperately sought. The next, here I was, free to roam an unknown world.
My face curled slightly as I realized that I was not truly free. I had a purpose, to fulfill the duty of the contract I signed. While this place was certainly pleasant, it was not my home, and the assignment given to me was by the foreigner was not the one I set out to perform.
With little else to do, I put one foot in front of the other and walked towards the distant town. I was going to find a way to escape this fate, one way or another.
