"Armin," Mikasa said calmly. "I won't leave you here."

"The same goes for us," Applejack ensured.

"Mmhm," the ponies unanimously agreed.

Armin was dumbfounded by the ponies' loyalty towards him, especially Rainbow Dash. Mikasa lifted Armin on to his feet. Everybody looked back towards the HQ, hoping that they would make it out of the city alive together as friends.

"B-but moving through a crowd of Titans while carrying someone is-" Armin said.

However, Conny started to become annoyed by Armin's doubt and grabbed his right hand.

"Come on!" Conny said. "Let's go!"

"But wait! You're also low on gas as well. If you try to carry Armin with you, you'll just be exhausting more gas," Twilight interjected stopping Conny in his tracks. "You'll be endangering not only your life but Armin's as well."

Conny looked back at Twilight feeling embarrassed to be corrected by a pony and hissed through his teeth. As much as he wanted to argue with Twilight, he knew that it was far too risky.

"So what do you suggest we do, genius?" Conny questioned.

Twilight shut her eyes and rubbed her right front hoof on the side her head, trying to formulate a plan. Meanwhile, Armin looked back at the Rogue Titan roaring in fury, thinking that it might want to resume killing more titans. That's when something clicked inside Armin's mind.

"Guys!" Armin yelled. "I have an idea!"

"Really?!" Starlight asked in surprise. "What kind of idea?"

"Only you two are needed for it, so the final decision is yours," Armin declared. "I know it's crazy, but maybe we could make use of that Titan?"

"That titan?!" Conny exclaimed.

"What in tarnation are ya trying to pull off, Armin?" Applejack questioned.

"It attacks other Titans and shows no interest in us. I'm not sure how Titans would react after seeing talking ponies, but maybe we could guide it to the supply station."

"Where a horde of Titans is gathered," Starlight tweeted. "Armin, that's a splendid idea!"

Armin nodded his head in agreement while he blushed a little bit after hearing Starlight's compliment.

"If it takes out the other titans for us, everyone could be saved."

"Guide? How the hell do you plan on doing that?!" Conny roared in unbelief.

"I'm assuming it fights solely on instinct," Armin answered looking back at the Rogue Titan. "Your job would be to take down all the titans near it. Once you do, it'll probably move in search for more titans. It should eventually head toward HQ."

"D-Do you think we would risk our lives over an assumption?!" Conny shouted back, still not convinced.

"But if it's true, we could take all of the Titans attacking HQ down in one fell swoop!" Armin returned.

"Besides, what other options do we have left, huh?!" Rainbow Dash added. "That Titan may just be our only chance of making it out of this nightmare alive."

"Ah'm with Rainbow on this one," Applejack budded in. "Our friends are gettin' their flanks kicked by those nasty varmints. It looks like that there Titan is our only ride outta here."

"It's worth a try," Mikasa spoke.

"What?" Conny gasped. "Are you serious?!"

"It's better to bet on an assumption rather than simply waiting for death," Mikasa said.

"I agree," Twilight spoke. "That titan has got to be our best bet!"

"So you plan to fight Titans with a Titan?" Conny asked.

"Yep, that's the plan," Starlight answered.

Conny sighed in defeat, knowing that Armin and everyone else was certain about this plan.

"Fail, and we'll be made a mockery of," Conny declared.

"But succeed, and everyone will be saved," Armin replied.

"I'm willing to take that risk," Rainbow Dash said.

"Then we're all in agreement," Twilight announced. "Mikasa, and uh... sorry, I never got your name."

"Springer. Conny Springer," Conny answered. "But what about you ponies? How will you four keep up with us?"

"I'll carry Armin that way you don't waste all of your gas," Twilight answered.

"Huh, are you sure, Twilight?" Armin asked in a worried tone.

"Don't worry. I'll keep you safe no matter what happens," Twilight responded, turning her attention to Rainbow Dash.

"Rainbow Dash, you carry Starlight towards the supply castle and meet up with everypony else, understand?" Twilight said.

"But what about Applejack?!" Rainbow asked.

"Now, don't ya worry about me, Rainbow," Applejack replied. "Ah'm sure my legs can carry me up to that there HQ. Ya make sure that Mikasa and Conny staw outta harm's way."

Rainbow Dash knew how strong Applejack was since that earth pony worked on an apple farm for most of her life. Rainbow Dash returned a nod and a smile to Applejack.

"Alright!" Rainbow Dash returned in support. "Then let's do this!"

"YEAH!" everybody cheered.

Mikasa, Conny, Armin, and the ponies went towards the Rogue Titan to lure it to other Titans in hopes that Armin's plan would fall into place.

Meanwhile, Jean, the soldiers, as well as Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie, continued to stand on the rooftops in sheer horror as they were still watching the Titans devour their comrades. Jean wished that he could save them, but he knew deep down that they had to make it to the HQ or else everyone else will meet the same fate. Jean started to wonder to himself if he was fit to be a leader.

Do I have the right? Jean thought to himself. The right to be in a position of responsibility?

"Jean, what are we going to do?" whispered the yellow pegasus, still quivering in fright behind the slope of the roof.

Jean looked back at Fluttershy and saw tears pouring out endlessly. He suddenly remembered what he was fighting for exactly. Jean was not fighting just for his comrades, but also the ponies as well. While the ponies didn't seem to have as much bravery as the other soldiers, he knew that these ponies could be the only ray of sunshine winning this war against the Titans.

Knowing exactly what to do, he walked towards Fluttershy and kneeled down to the pegasus' level. He wiped the tears away from Fluttershy's eyes with his finger, allowing the pegasus to look up at him with glittering eyes. All of the soldiers and ponies looked at them with dismay and wonder.

"What is he doing now?" Marco questioned.

Pinkie Pie grew a smile on her face, knowing precisely what Jean was doing. He was comforting and encouraging Fluttershy like a true friend.

"Listen, Fluttershy was it?" Jean asked in a calm voice, receiving a nod of agreement. "Here's what I need you to do. Gather your pony friends and prepare to charge for the HQ. While all of these Titans are distracted, we can slip right past them. Just follow my lead and stay close, alright?"

Fluttershy only gave him a small nod of approval. The other soldiers were shocked to see Jean, out of all people, comfort a little, harmless creature like Fluttershy.

"Since when did Jean become so soft?" Annie asked Reiner.

"Not sure, really," Reiner responded.

Afterwards, Fluttershy flew right next to Rarity and Pinkie Pie. Jean stood back up to his feet and started to look for the most explicit path without being spotted by titans. His companions stood tensely as they continued to witness the deaths of a few soldiers.

"I hope you two are ready," Fluttershy said to Rarity and Pinkie.

Once Jean pinpointed a route, he began to put his plan into action.

"NOW!" Jean shouted grabbing everyone's attention. "Rush over to the HQ now!"

Jean leaped off of the roof onto another conserving what little gas he had left. Marco and Sasha were the first to follow his lead towards the HQ. Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie were the next to follow Jean's lead with Fluttershy flying over the rooftops and Rarity and Pinkie Pie jumping and leaping across the roof, followed by Reiner, Annie, Bertholdt and a few other soldiers.

This is our chance, Jean thought as he ran across the rooftops. We'll be finished if our gas runs out anyway.

"Everyone charge!" Jean ordered.

The soldiers and three ponies continued to run and leap across the buildings, getting closer to the main fortress.

Further back from the soldiers' ranks, Mikasa latched both of her grappling hooks into two separate buildings over the roadway towards more Titans. She moves behind a Titan about 12 meters and cuts the Titan's nape almost flawlessly, causing the Titan to tumble onto the streets. Conny swung close behind Mikasa while Twilight, Armin, Rainbow Dash, and Starlight flew next to him. Down into the streets, Applejack galloped at full speed trying to keep up with everypony else avoiding as many Titans as possible.

A few yards down the street, the Rogue Titan wrestled yet another Titan, slamming it into a structure behind it. It finished the other Titan off with three powerful punches in the head. After delivering the finishing blow, it saw Mikasa and Conny swing past it and Twilight, Armin, Rainbow Dash, and Starlight as well. The Rogue Titan also noticed Applejack racing across the streets towards the HQ. The Titan looked at where they were heading and saw a massive horde of Titans around the fortress, longing for more Titans to kill.

Jean and the other soldiers flew above the streets with their maneuvering gear with Fluttershy flying overhead, Pinkie Pie bouncing on the roofs, and Rarity holding on to Sasha while screaming in the process. Knowing that engaging the Titans head-on would be a suicide attempt, Jean and the other soldiers flew around the Titans' heads and bodies with expertise. Fluttershy kept a close eye on everypony to see to it that every soldier made it to the fortress in one piece.

Jean continues to fly over to the HQ. However, a Titan with a horrid smile grabs Jean's left leg, restricting him from any movement.

"Jean, no!" Fluttershy yelled.

She dove straight down towards Jean head first as fast as her wings could carry her. She flipped her body and stretched her right leg, bucking the Titan's arm with the back of her hoof. The Titan was caught off-guard and lost its grip, allowing Jean to escape and continue towards the HQ. Fluttershy followed him in pursuit before the titan could grab her. Pinkie Pie and Rarity saw the heroic act Fluttershy pulled off and smiled in delight.

"Woohoo!" Pinkie cheered. "Nice moves, Fluttershy!"

The other soldiers continued to follow Jean's lead, getting closer to the castle. Jean and the soldiers landed on the roof of another tall building and ran to conserve gas. Jean looked up to his left to see the flying pony that saved him from certain death while Marco fell right next to Jean.

"Jean!" Marco called, grabbing Jean's full attention. "Thanks. We got away thanks to you."

"Huh?" Jean said in slight confusion.

"You pulled through for us," Marco continued. "I told you, didn't I? You're suited to be a leader."

Jean smiled and made his response.

"Well, I don't know about that!" Jean replied.

Soaring up in the air, Jean and the others were nearly at the HQ. Jean dodged two other Titans before one of them could get their hands on him. One unfortunate soldier was caught by a Titan, causing some blood to spill out. The soldier shrieked in fear as the Titan was about to feed on him. Jean looked back in terror as the Titan ate him alive.

"Damn!" he shouted, turning back towards the HQ.

Jean fired his hooks again and swung towards a nearby window of the HQ. He leaned back and extended his left leg to break the window that he was approaching. With a mighty kick, the window shattered into tiny pieces. Jean tumbled inside while shielding his face from the broken glass. Fluttershy dove for the window and tucked her wings to prevent injuring herself from the broken glass. Annie, Reiner, Bertholdt, Marco, and the other few soldiers that survived broke the other windows and landed to safety. She fell right next to Jean and gave her a helping hoof with a contented smile. Jean returned the smile and grabbed her hoof to allow Fluttershy to lift him up to his feet. Sasha, Conny, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie were the last to enter the building unharmed. Afterwards, Sasha let Rarity off of her back to settle her things.

"WOOHOO!" Pinkie Pie exclaimed. "We made it!"

"Thank goodness," Rarity addressed. "I thought we'd never take it alive. Now I can finally take this thing off."

Rarity walked to the nearest table to unpack her saddlebag using her magic. The soldiers were surprised to see the unicorn use magic to levitate the bag she carried, especially Reiner and Bertholdt. Jean looked to see Rarity take out a small brush with her magic and used it to brush her hair, untying any loose ends or strands of hair. Jean looked at the marshmallow pony with a mean scowl and just ignored her. He scanned the room to see how many soldiers survived the assault.

How many made it? Jean wondered placing his left palm on his eye looking solemnly onto the floor. How many died on my order, taking advantage of our comrades' deaths?

He suddenly noticed two soldiers hiding under a large desk. The two soldiers looked back at him with worry and dread.

"You guys... are the supply squad, right?" Jean asked.

"Yeah," the male soldier answered softly.

After getting his answer, Jean grabbed the soldiers military jacket, pulled him out of the desk, and pucked him square in the left side of his face, causing the soldier to drop onto the floor.

"Jean!" cried Fluttershy, flying in front of him.

Jean ignored Fluttershy and pushed her out of the way to deliver another punch at the bruised soldier.

"Stop, Jean!" Marco ordered, grabbing underneath Jean's arms and restraining him from further advancing.

Fluttershy moved towards Rarity at her side and hugged her in terror, not wanting to see the conflict any longer. The female soldier hiding under the desk bent down to help the fallen soldier.

"These guys left us out there to die!" Jean screamed. "People died in vain because of you lot!"

"Titans broke into the supply station!" responded the female soldier in tears. "There was nothing we could do!"

"Did you forget that it's your job to do something about it?!" Jean angerly questioned.

Jean turned his attention to the ponies while he was still being restrained by Marco, specifically Rarity.

"And you!" he shouted. "What the hell was that you were doing with that brush?!"

"Well, I just used magic to simply brush my mane, that's all," Rarity replied.

The soldiers gasped once they heard the word 'magic' come out of her mouth. Jean, however, was the least fazed about it.

"Then why didn't you use your so-called 'magic' to save those other soldiers that died out there?!"

Rarity began to get irritated of Jean's back talk, and her manner started to come close to Jean's.

"The same reason your men didn't use swords to fight back against those ruffians!" Rarity replied, coming closer to Jean and Marco.

Jean was suddenly taken back by Rarity's comeback.

"I was just as horrified as the rest of you, but you know as well as everypony else that waltzing into battle unprepared is just ludicrous."

Jean ignored Rarity's statement and looked at the yellow pegasus.

"What about you?!" Jean demanded. "Why didn't you use the same kind of strength to kick that titan's arm that grabbed me and help those other men that died out there?!"

Fluttershy receded down on the floor in terror.

"Th...there were just too many of them!" Fluttershy answered in a low voice. "It was too risky!"

"I'm certain that everypony else can say the same, huh?!" Rarity appended. "How much speed or strength do you believe a pegasus like her could convene against that many titans?!"

"Clearly, the same speed and strength to save me from that titan's grasp!" Jean retorted.

"Because she sees you as a true friend!" Rarity interjected, causing Jean to step back in shock. "Sure, Fluttershy may not be the bravest pony I know, but if there's a friend of hers who is in grave danger, she would never back down from a fight! She saved you from certain doom, and this is how you thank her?! By questioning her bravery to save the others?! Forshame!"

Deep down, Jean know that almost every word that came out of Rarity's mouth was right, but Rarity was not going to let him off that easily. Before Rarity could continue her dispute, Reiner heard a whooshing sound and looked out the nearest window. What he saw made him snap into immediate action.

"Get down!" he shouted.

Everyone's attention was brought to Reiner as he ran towards the center of the room. Suddenly, a large hole was blasted through the wall by a Titan. The force of the blast forced a few of the soldiers to tumble and crash to the other side of the room. Jean, Marco, Rarity, and Fluttershy barely avoided the debris and bricks that hurled towards them. Fluttershy, being the most terrified out of everypony, hid behind a fallen table.

Jean looked outside to see where the crash came from and saw the faces of two Titans peeking through the breach after the dust cleared. After spotting the giants, Rarity ran towards Fluttershy and lifted her onto her hooves. However, Fluttershy kept her focus on Jean, who was still in shock as he looked at the Titans' ugly faces.

"Shoot!" Jean hesitated. "We got too many people here!"

Most of the soldiers fell into a state of panic and ran deeper inside the HQ.

"Hurry!" shouted a male soldier.

"Get inside!" yelled another.

"Stop! We can't all get in at once!" cried a different soldier.

"Where did Mikasa go?!" screamed another male soldier.

"She ran out of gas and got devoured!" screeched another.

"Fluttershy! We have to go, now!" Rarity shouted.

"Yeah, Titans are crashing the party!" Pinkie added.

Jean didn't even move a muscle because he began to question himself about the fate of humanity.

It was obvious, thought Jean. I guess this is how reality is. Was I... trying to immerse myself in some dream or illusion? I should have noticed... our reality. It's obvious if you think about it. There is no winning, not against them.

"Jean!" Fluttershy wailed, breaking free from Rarity's grasp and running towards him to get him out of harm's way.

"Fluttershy, no!" Rarity yelled, following Fluttershy in pursuit.

Rarity went to help Jean as well. When the three of them looked out the hole, they saw a massive fist collide into one of the Titan's face, crashing into other Titan's head as well.

"What?!", the three of them said in unison.

The impact of the Titan's punch created a thunderous sound outside the fortress. The other Titans fell right off of the building and slid into the streets. Jean, Rarity, and Fluttershy saw that the punch came from the Rogue Titan standing right outside the hole. The Rogue Titan let out a tremendous roar, making Fluttershy tremble once again. The other soldiers that tried to retreat inside the HQ walked back into the room and looked at the Titan with stunned expressions.

"What's...that?" Jean murmured.

Out of nowhere, Mikasa crashed through a different window with Twilight carrying Armin in his arms. Rainbow Dash and Starlight were the next to enter the room. Twilight and Rainbow Dash settled Armin and Starlight down onto the floor plus all of their saddlebags on some of the tables to catch their breath. From outside, Applejack was about to reach the HQ when she heard somepony call out for her name.

"Applejack, hold on!" Conny shouted.

Applejack looked behind and saw Conny about to grab her. She jumped up into the air to allow Conny to catch her successfully. Once Conny got a hold of the pony, he zipped up straight through the window Mikasa broke to get inside and landed safely with Applejack.

"Thanks for the lift, partner," Applejack said, removing her saddlebag and placing it with the others.

"The pleasure's all mine," Conny replied.

"Alright!" Rainbow Dash shouted while flying in the air. "We all made it!"

"Mikasa!" Jean shouted, bringing her attention to him.

"Whew, I just ran out of gas," Conny said in relief while tapping the empty gas canisters. "We did it. Just barely!"

Fluttershy ran to Applejack and gave her a warm hug.

"Thank goodness you're ok!" Fluttershy whimpered with tears in her eyes.

"Don't worry, sugarcube," Applejack replied softly rubbing her back. "Ah'm just glad the rest of y'all are safe and sound."

"Y-you're alive!" Jean hesitated as he looked right at Mikasa.

Conny approached Armin and slapped him right on the back.

"We did it, Armin!" Conny congratulated. "You're plan was a success!"

"Ow, that hurts!" Armin stated.

"Everyone," Conny shouted to everyone in the room. "that Titan's an abnormal that attacks other titans! Not to mention, it doesn't care about us! If we can make good use of it, we'll be able to get out of here!"

Upon hearing Conny’s persistence of using a Titan, the other soldiers, including Rarity and Fluttershy, murmured loudly with confusion and uncertainty.

"Make good use of... a Titan?" muttered a male soldier.

"Like fighting fire with fire?" Rarity questioned.

"You think we'll be saved by a Titan?" Jean asked skeptically. "Something that delusional-"

"It's far from delusional," Mikasa interrupted. "It doesn't matter what it is. All we need is for that titan to continue its rampage," she continued, as she saw the Rogue Titan punch another one sending it flying backward. "Realistically, that's our best plan for survival."

"Well, while that Titan is taking care of the other ones, how do we get out of the city?" Starlight asked.

"We have to refill our gas canisters if we want to leave with our maneuvering gear, but the storage room is filled with smaller Titans," Armin stated.

"Hey, Twilight," Conny called. "Can't you unicorns use your magic to take out those Titans? I'm sure you could do a lot of cool things with that magic of yours."

"We could, yes," Twilight replied. "The only problem is that since there isn't magic in this world, the magic we brought with us would make things difficult to cast advanced spells rather than simple ones. Using an advanced spell would use almost all of my magic."

"Well, can't you at least kill them without being noticed?" Jean added. "Titans only pay attention to humans like us."

"Um... well, that Titan I saved you from tried to grab me while I was flying away," Fluttershy added. "So I think the Titans see us just as human like you guys."

"Great, so now what?!" Jean asked in exasperation.

Armin and Twilight thought deeply to formulate a plan good enough to exterminate all of the Titans in the storage room. Armin suddenly gasped once a plan came to form.

"Guys, I think I got it!" Armin called out to everyone.

The ponies and the rest of the soldiers were paying close attention to Armin's plan.

Outside of the HQ, the Rogue Titan looked behind him and saw a Titan about his height ready to tackle him. The Rogue Titan quickly turned to face the other Titan and locked his arm, using the momentum to his advantage by tossing the other Titan over its shoulder. Two smaller Titans were crushed in the process. The Rogue Titan roared once again before he charged at another Titan his height running towards him. The Rogue Titan blew a punch directly at the Titan's right shoulder sending it flying into a nearby building. It then struck a seven-meter right into its jaw with an uppercut and kicked a three-meter high into the air with ease.

"It's fine," he said to everyone. "That Titan's stronger than your average one. The building won't be attacked as long as it's rampaging outside."

Deeper inside the HQ at the highest level, several soldiers were waiting for a wooden lift to arrive at the top floor. Some of the soldiers had removed their maneuvering gear now that all of their gas has been used, making their maneuvering gear useless. The ponies sat down on their haunches next to Conny, Annie, Reiner, and Bertholdt.

"How much do you guys know about that Titan?" Reiner asked.

Conny was brought back by Reiner's question but decides to change the subject.

"We can worry about that after we get out of this," Conny answered dodging Reiner's question.

Reiner nodded in agreement.

"True," Reiner said. "First things first."

"We found them!" Jean shouted grabbing everyone's full attention.

Jean was carrying a large, extended crate along with the other few soldiers.

"They're the Military Police Brigade's stock. There's a bit of dust on them though."

"Well, it's better than nothing," Starlight commented.

Once Jean and the others set the crates on the floor, Twilight, Rarity, and Starlight used their magic to open the lids to reveal long rifles with gunpowder, ramrods, and bullets. The ponies looked at the weapons and tilted their heads in confusion, wondering how precisely those guns were used to fight.

Afterwards, Jean, Marco, and several other soldiers grabbed their own rifle and loaded them with the supplies found inside the crates.

"Are three bullets really enough?" wondered Jean. "Besides, are guns going to be of any use against Titans?"

The ponies and soldiers gathered around and looked down at the paper that Armin placed describing the detail and levels of the HQ. Armin looked at Jean to give him an answer.

"I think it'll be a lot better than not having them," he replied. "If only seven 3- and 4-meter-class Titans are down there, it's possible to blind them all simultaneously with this much firepower."

"Alright then, so what is the plan?" Twilight asked.

"And how will these rifle thingemagingies come into play?" Applejack added.

Armin looked down at the large piece of paper to think about the best course of action.

"Okay," Armin said, bringing everyone's attention to him. "First, we'll lower a crowd of people from the center part of the roof using the lift. Then, we'll all fire at the faces of the Titans at the same time to rob them of their sight. After that..." Armin paused for a moment and glanced at everyone. "everything will be decided in the next moment. The seven people hiding above the rafters will match the timing of gunfire and slash at the Titans' vitals. In other words, this plan bets everything - all of our lives - on a single attack."

The ponies and most of the soldiers felt anxious after hearing Armin's last statement. Regardless, they continued to listen to the rest of Armin's plan.

"It's a strategy that'll allow seven people to take down a Titan each, all at the same time. I'd like the seven most physically capable people to take up this task, though I apologize for burdening you guys with that responsibility."

"No worries," Reiner responded with a smile.

"Regardless of who does it, if they fail, we'll all die," Annie replied. "The risk is the same."

"Plus, if one of then messes up, we'll be sure that nopony gets eaten," Rainbow said, striking her hooves together.

"Same goes for me," Applejack responded.

Although the ponies' spirits were uplifting, Armin was still harboring doubts about the plan. He knew that he would also put the ponies lives at risk.

"But is my plan really the best way to do this?" he murmured.

"Let's just go with that," Marco encouraged. "There's no time anyway. It's all we've got. Now we just have to give it our best!"

"Don't worry," Mikasa reassured. "Be confident in yourself. You have the ability to seek out the right answers."

Armin was dumbfounded by Mikasa's approval.

"Eren and I have been saved by that ability in the past," Mikasa added.

"What?" Armin questioned. "When?"

They were suddenly cut off by a loud clatter that came from the lift.

"Lift is ready!" called a male soldier. "So are the guns! They're all loaded!"

The soldiers and the ponies stood up while Rainbow Dash flew a little higher in the room.

"Ah, yeah!" Rainbow shouted. "Let's go kick some Titan flank!"

"Rainbow Dash," called Mikasa grabbing her attention. "Stay close to your friends and wait here. If anything happens, you must live. If we don't make it, don't come back for us."

"No way I'm leaving you behind!" Rainbow replied. "I'll stick with you guys no matter what!"

"So are we!" Twilight interjected. "We'll make sure this plan works out in the end! Right, girls?"

All of the ponies nodded with simultaneous 'mm-hmm's in total agreement. Mikasa turned to face Armin.

"You don't realize it. Let's talk later," Mikasa concluded.

"Okay," Armin responded, walking into the lift.

Rainbow Dash looked back at all of her pony friends and accounted for all of them, except Pinkie Pie.

"Uhh... has anypony seen Pinkie Pie?" Rainbow asked.

The other ponies looked at each other with worried expressions and searched the whole room with Pinkie Pie.

"I'm right here, silly filly!" Pinkie shouted.

The ponies looked at the lift to see Pinkie joining the soldiers that were carrying the rifles. Pinkie Pie had her own weapon, as she was holding a small, blue cannon with tiny wheels out of nowhere. This brought great puzzlement amongst most of the soldiers.

"Pinkie, where the hell did you get that cannon from?" Bertholdt questioned in shock.

"This old thing, it's my party cannon. You never know when you need it!" Pinkie replied.

As much as Bertholdt and the other soldiers wanted to question her, they were relieved to know that Pinkie Pie had something to defend herself at least.

With the plan finally being set, Mikasa, Jean, Conny, and Sasha, Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie began to walk down the stairs leading to the storage room with all of the ponies right behind them. Each of the humans carried a set of blades held inside a handle.

"But are we gonna be able to take down the titans without three-dimensional maneuvering devices?" Conny wondered.

"Of course," Reiner assured. "They're only 3- and 4-meter-class Titans. Their vitals will be easy to target."

"Yeah," Jean agreed. "we just need to slash the nape from top to bottom, regardless of their size."

"One meter long, ten centimeters wide!" Sasha calculated.

"Or I could stick this up their asses," Reiner said in a joking matter. "That's their only other weakness."

"I had no idea," Conny uttered. "That's an option too?!"

"I didn't know until now either," Sasha replied.

"Reiner," Jean groaned. "those could be your last words, you know."

Once the soldiers hid on top of the rafters silently and prepared themselves to attack, Applejack and Rainbow Dash hid behind the corners of the storage room's entrance and peeked behind the corners. The other ponies hid above the next floor peeking through the lift's pathway. Everything was now put into place. The only thing to be determined was the accomplishment of the plan.

There were seven Titans in total just wandering about in the storage room, looking for any human that was still cornered. The lift continued to lower down into the storage room slowly. Applejack and Rainbow Dash saw the seven volunteers were still hiding on the rafters waiting for the soldiers on the lift to fire their rifles at the enemy. Once the lift finally reached the storage room, the soldiers had enough space to aim their weapons at the Titans. A few soldiers gave Pinkie Pie some room to allow her to fire her party cannon with great accuracy.

"It's good," Marco whispered to the soldiers. "There are still only seven here."

The soldiers cocked the hammers of their rifles all at the same time, whereas Pinkie Pie adjusted her cannon so that it would rest on the railing of the lift.

"We'll stick to the plan," Marco concluded.

A titan near the lift stopped in its tracks. After a few seconds, it quickly glanced at the soldiers on the lift, causing most of them to quiver in fear.

"Calm down! Let them get closer!" Marco ordered.

One by one, the Titans approached the lift with all of the soldiers and one pony inside of it. As Pinke Pie got a better view of the Titans' faces, she began to shudder herself. However, she started to giggle and prepared her cannon to surprise them.

"Let's put a smile on their faces!" Pinkie whispered, hardly containing herself.

Wait, Marco said to himself.

The soldiers on the rafters waited for the others to fire. The other ponies continued to watch as the Titans drew closer to the lift, hoping that Pinkie Pie would not be harmed in any way.

We can't afford to lose our advantage, Reiner thought.

Not if we want everyone to survive, Bertholdt assumed as well.

We'll decide it with a single blow, Conny speculated.

The Titans were only a few feet from the lift.

"Wait," Marco murmured.

The Titans were now just about a foot from the soldiers, staring directly at them.

"Ready..."

The soldiers placed their index fingers on the trigger and Pinkie Pie placed her right hoof on the knob of her party cannon. All of the Titans were now inches from them.

"Fire!" shouted Marco.

"Suprise!" Pinkie yelled firing her cannon directly into a titan's face.

The barrels of their guns were blazing with fire as the bullets shot right into the Titans' eyes. Pinkie Pie's cannon shot confetti, balloons, and streamers at a titan's face instead. Surprisingly, two party horns jammed right into the Titan's eyes, robbing it of its sight. The rest of the Titans' eyes were bloodied and smoldering, leaving them without their sight.

Mikasa, Jean, Conny, Sasha, Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie leaped off of the rafters and readied their blades to strike.

Mikasa killed her target swiftly without fail, landing safely on her knees.

I got it!, she cheered in her mind, turning around to see everyone else. And the others?

Jean, Annie, Reiner, and Bertholdt successfully made their kills as well. However, Conny and Sasha missed their point, tumbling on the floor. The Titans that were still standing turned around to see their attackers. Sasha and Conny looked at them with terror, knowing what was to come next.

"Sasha! Conny!" Rainbow Dash screamed, beaming right towards the Titans.

Applejack ran off with Rainbow Dash to assist her. The other ponies gasped seeing their newest friends in danger. Rarity, seething with courage, grabbed the nearest set of blades with her magic and ran downstairs leading to the storage room.

"Rarity!" Twilight screamed. "What are you doing?!"

Conny and Sasha backed away from the titans trembling with fear.

"U-um, I apologize for sneaking up behind you so suddenly..." Sasha wobbled.

"Oh no!" Conny exclaimed.

"Sasha and Conny need help!" Bertholdt shouted.

"Hurry, cover for them!" Jean ordered.

Annie ran towards the titan going for Conny. Before she could reach her target, Applejack sprinted towards the Titan and bucked the Titan's tendon with her rear hooves, forcing the Titan to lose balance and tumble on the ground. Annie saw it as the perfect opportunity and expertly sliced the titan's nape, killing it. Rainbow Dash bucked the other Titan's knee, causing the Titan to tumble towards Sasha. Sasha quickly leaped out of the titan's reach.

"I'm so sorry!" Sasha screeched.

Mikasa was about to strike at the titan until she saw Rarity with her own blades in her magical grasp. Sasha also noticed the unicorn charging right at the titan at the corner of her eye. She jumped high in the air and moved the blades near her front hooves. With a clear view, she readied her strike onto the Titan's nape.

"Not today, you ruffian!" Rarity bellowed.

Rarity spun swiftly with the blades in her grasp, matching the movement of her body with the blades. She performed a clean strike directly into the Titan's nape, ending its life and sparing Sasha's life. Rarity skidded to a sudden halt on all fours and magically dropped the blades onto the floor. The frantic Sasha jogged towards the pony and hugged her around her neck, weeping in Rarity's mane.

"Rarity!" Sasha cried. "You saved me!"

"Are you hurt, darling?" Rarity asked with concern.

"No, thanks to you!" Sasha replied.

"Then stand up already, dear. This is very uncomfortable," Rarity said, bringing Sasha to her feet.

Conny walked towards Applejack and Annie to give them his gratitude.

"Thanks a lot you two," Conny said to them.

"Happy to help, partner," Applejack replied tilting her Stetson.

"No problem," Annie acknowledged.

"Hey, now," Reiner called to Annie. "that was dangerous, Annie. I'm relieved you didn't get hurt."

Jean ran towards the soldiers standing on the lift with a smile on his face.

"We got all of them!" Jean yelled at them. "Start filling up your gas tanks."

The soldiers returned smiles of their own.

"Great!" Armin cheered.

Armin saw Marco about to collapse in relief, but he and a female soldier caught him before Marco could do so. Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie ran towards each other to meet themselves with a group hug. Twilight, Starlight, and Fluttershy came from the storage room entrance to join the group hug.

"Applejack! Rainbow Dash!" Starlight called. "You two were amazing!"

"Hey, what am I? Chopped liver?" Pinkie yelled.

Starlight giggled after hearing Pinkie's protesting.

"You did well too, Pinkie," Starlight reassured.

"Rarity," called Twilight. "What were you thinking? You could have gotten hurt."

"I'm terribly sorry, dear," Rarity apologized. "I couldn't bear to see another friend get devoured by one of those fiends."

Twilight smiled at her and returned a warm hug.

"Well, I'm just glad you're alright."

"Hey, Rarity," Rainbow Dash budded in. "I can't believe you actually made your first titan kill."

"Well, it doesn't take much to outfox a Titan," Rarity replied flipping her mane.

The soldiers went to restock their supplies by refilling their gas canisters and equipping themselves with more blades.

"Yeah, we're saved now!" said a male soldier.

"No more Titans are coming inside!" shouted another. "It's thanks to that abnormal's rampage!"

Armin scanned the room to see the soldiers replenish their supplies and was relieved to know that his plan worked out in the end. He turned around and noticed Twilight and Starlight looking at him with happy expressions. The next thing he knew, the two ponies hugged him around his waist.

"Twilight! Starlight! What are you-" Armin sputtered in slight confusion.

"Nice job out there, Armin!" Starlight commented. "Your plan actually worked!"

"Who knew you were this smart for pulling this off?" Twilight added.

"Uh... thank you," Armin answered, still staggered after earning such compliments.

While Sasha was resupplying her gear, she was still producing some tears after that near-death experience with a Titan.

"I surrendered to a Titan," she trembled.

Rarity sat right next to her and comforted her by rubbing her shoulder with her hoof.

"It's alright, Sasha," Rarity hushed. "We're perfectly safe now."

"Yeah, but...now I'm too ashamed to look anyone in the eyes!" Sasha cried.

"We'll all scorn you for it later!" Conny called out. "Right now, we need to leave!"

Rarity couldn't help but giggle slightly. Jean and Marco refilled their tanks as they sat down next to each other.

"I can't agree that I'm suited to lead," Jean said. "So stop saying I am."

Marco remained silent for a brief moment as he finished refilling his canister to start on the next one.

"You might be mad, but listen," Marco spoke. "You're not a strong person, Jean, so you can't sympathize with the feelings of the weak. Nevertheless, you excel at looking at things objectively. So you have a clever idea of what needs to be done, don't you? Like when you comforted Fluttershy when she was witnessing people being devoured by Titans?"

Marco's compliment brought Jean into realization.

"Your order was right. That's why I was able to move and why I'm still alive, why she's still alive," Marco ended, pointing at the yellow pegasus.

Jean looked to his left to see Fluttershy sitting bashfully with blushing cheeks, surprising Jean to a greater extent. She stood up to walk towards Jean and wrapped her front legs around his neck, embracing him in a warm hug.

"Hey, what are you-" Jean questioned.

"Thanks for saving all of us, Jean," whimpered Fluttershy. "I'm so happy I met somepony like you."

Jean felt the strain from today's mission drain away, remembering Rarity's words when they first made it to the HQ. Jean couldn't help but return her gratitude by laying his arms on the pegasus' back. Marco smiled after watching the heart-warming scene.

"By the way, didn't you mean to say 'someone'?" Jean asked.

"Hm, is that how you say 'somepony' here in this world?" Fluttershy wondered.

"Yeah, I guess," he answered with perplexion.

"You all ready?" shouted Conny. "Let's move out!"

The soldiers walked outside the HQ and used their maneuvering gear to fly across the city. Rooftops were buzzing with hooks and wires as the soldiers flew towards the wall north of Trost.

'We gotta bail now!" shouted a male soldier flying across the buildings.

"Go! Go! Go!" screamed another. "We need to meet up with the main units!"

Armin ran outside to join them until he saw Mikasa standing on the roof of a large building. She seemed to be fixated on the Rogue Titan from earlier.

"Mikasa?" Armin said in worry.

Bertholdt, Reiner, Twilight, Starlight, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash spotted Mikasa as well wondering what she was staring at. Armin fired is hooks at the building where Mikasa was standing on, followed by Twilight carrying Starlight Glimmer and Rainbow Dash lifting Applejack onto the roof. Armin landed right next to Mikasa along with Twilight, Starlight, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash.

"Mikasa," Armin called. "we've gotta hurry!"

"That titan..." Mikasa whispered.

Armin and the ponies looked down to where Mikasa was watching. Armin gulped in fear and the ponies suddenly gasped all at the same time. Two fifteen-meter Titans, three four-meter Titans, and one seven-meter titan swarmed the Rogue Titan, tearing and devouring the flesh from it.

"Cannibalism?" Armin murmured.

The rogue titan roared faintly as his body was weakening, unable to regenerate its body.

"Its body can't regenerate?" he questioned.

"I thought that if we could solve the mystery of that Titan somehow, it'd become a chance to pull ourselves out of this hopeless reality," Mikasa evaluated.

"I agree," Reiner spoke, bringing all of his attention to him.

Bertholdt, Annie, Jean, and the rest of the ponies joined everyone else on the rooftops as well.

"If it gets devoured, we'll be as clueless as ever," Reiner stated. "Let's take out the Titans clinging to it and keep it alive for now."

"Are you serious, Reiner?!" yelled Jean. "We can finally get out of this hellhole, you know!"

"But there's a chance that Titan could become our ally," Annie butted in. "Don't you think it'd be a greater weapon than any cannon?"

"An ally?" Jean stuttered. "Do you hear what you're saying?"

"Who cares!" Rainbow shouted, flying a few feet in the air. "Let's help it out before it's already too late!"

Rainbow Dash bolted straight for a fifteen-meter Titan devouring the rogue one.

"Rainbow! Stop!" Twilight cried out to her.

However, Rainbow Dash did not take Twilight's heed. She turned backward and bucked the Titan's side of the head with her back hoof, knocking it off of the Rogue Titan. Rainbow quickly flew away from the Titans so that they couldn't attack or grab her.

"You see?" Rainbow yelled with pride. "These things are not so tough."

Unbeknownst to her, a fifteen-meter titan with blond hair and a square jaw walked right behind her, ready to swat the pegasus like a fly.

"Rainbow! Look out!" Starlight screamed.

The moment Rainbow Dash turned around to see what Starlight was warning her about, the Titan swiped its hand. The force of the impact caused Rainbow Dash to crash directly into the side of a building.

"Rainbow Dash!", cried Starlight along with the rest of the ponies.

The Rogue Titan took a glimpse at the Titan that attacked Rainbow Dash and looked to where the pegasus crashed. Twilight and Fluttershy flew towards the unconscious pony to help her out. Meanwhile, Armin took a better look at the titan that assaulted the pegasus and instantly recognized it.

"That's..." he exclaimed. "the abnormal that ate Thomas!"

"Ah, I recognize it too!" Starlight proclaimed. "We saw that Titan before we came here!"

All of a sudden, the Rogue Titan lunged away from the titans still tearing away its flesh from its body while roaring viciously in the process. Although the other Titans tried to hold it back, its fury and anger were too much for the Rogue Titan. One of the Titans that were knocked of managed to tear the Rogue Titan's right arm off of its body. As the Rogue Titan dashed towards the abnormal one, it manages to shake off the other Titan still latched onto him at the cost of his other arm. It aimed straight for the abnormal's nape and clenched its Teeth hard into it. The soldiers and ponies were shocked and terrified to see this Titan's fury press on, despite its status.

The Rogue Titan lifted the abnormal up in the air with its head high up, causing some of its ribs to crackle. Noticing the Titan behind it getting on its knees, the Rogue Titan whipped it down with the Titan still in its mouth, ending its life. The abnormal's lower waist was torn off right after the impact. Another Titan tried to attack while the Rogue Titan's body was turned away; however, the Rogue Titan's reflexes were too quick as it whipped the abnormal's body once again tearing off its head and slamming its decapitated body into the other Titan straight into a nearby building, killing them both instantly.

"Hey..." murmured Jean, astounded by the sheer strength of this Titan as it dropped the abnormal's severed head.

The Rogue Titan made another tremendous roar of victory.

"You all want to save that?" asked Jean.

Without any strength left, the Rogue Titan fell to its knees and landed face first on the ground. The rest of its body started to evaporate into thin air, shocking the others.

"Looks like it finally ran out of gas," Jean deduced. "We're done here, right? Time to go!"

"No, we ain't!" Applejack argued. "We gotta help that there Titan! It may help us win in this here fight!"

"There's no way that monster could be an ally," Jean retorted back. "Once a Titan, always a Titan."

"But I wanted to throw it a 'thank you' party," Pinkie Pie moaned. "Do you think titans enjoy cake as much as I do?"

Reiner, Bertholdt, and Annie just face-palmed themselves after hearing Pinkie Pie's ridiculous, rhetoric question. Jean looked back to the others and noticed that they were still staring at the decomposing Titan body.

"Jean, look!" Starlight said in surprise.

"What is it now?" Jean groaned.

Everyone looked at the Rogue Titan's nape and couldn't believe what they were witnessing. Twilight and Fluttershy managed to get Rainbow Dash out to the building. She was still dizzy, but only got a few bumps and scratches.

"So Spitfire drank all of the liquid cabbage," Rainbow said wobbly.

Twilight and Fluttershy glanced at the Rogue Titan's body and saw what the others were seeing as well. A young man popped out of the nape of the decomposing Titan. Mikasa's eyes widened in total disbelief after recognizing the man. Twilight, Fluttershy, the other ponies, and the rest of the soldiers gasped concurrently as they realized who it was. The ponies saw that boy yank Armin out of the bearded titan's mouth sacrificing his life to save him. The ponies, along with everyone else knew exactly who it was. It was Eren in the flesh.

Mikasa quickly grappled onto a building with one of her hooks and swung down to the streets to run towards Eren, who was still bending on his knees with his face facing the sky.

"Mikasa!" Armin cried out.

Mikasa didn't even listen to Armin. She continued to run towards Eren until she reached him, wrapping her arms around his chest and waist. Twilight and Fluttershy placed Rainbow Dash onto the roof where the others were still standing, with Rainbow Dash regaining consciousness.

"Is she okay?!" Starlight said with deep concern and worry.

"She's alright. Just a few bumps and scratches," Twilight answered.

"We should say the same for him," Reiner replied, pointing down at Eren.

"Wait," Rainbow murmured. "Isn't that..."

Mikasa suddenly placed her left ear on Eren's chest to make out a heartbeat just to be certain that he was still alive. Sure enough, she heard a thump followed by a few other bumps in his chest. Knowing all she had to know, tears began to flow out and Mikasa started to wail loudly in immense joy. The soldiers and ponies came down to Mikasa and Eren to help them to safety. Twilight flew down to them and used her magic to lift them up to the balcony of the headquarters. The soldiers used their gear to follow Twilight with Rainbow Dash being held by Reiner, Applejack by Bertholdt, Rarity held by Fluttershy, Pinkie Pie grabbed by Armin, and Starlight by Jean.

They all looked down at Eren and Mikasa as the girl continued to cry for Eren's well-being and presence.

"Sweet Celestia!" Rarity panted in total shock.

"It can't be!" Fluttershy whispered.

"It's..." Starlight began to say.

It's Eren, Armin said in is mind.

He saw that his left leg and left arm that were previously bitten off grew back past his ripped sleeve and legging.

His severed arm and leg are still there, he continued. Back then, Eren was devoured by a Titan. Back then...

Armin finally began to produce tears of his own. He knelt down and grasped Eren's rejuvinated arm by his hand.

"What... in the world...?" whimpered Armin.

Jean, one of the speechless witnesses, realized something and turned around towards the disintegrating Titans. Reiner, Bertholdt, Annie, Rarity, Starlight, Pinkie Pie, and Fluttershy looked back doing the same.

"Does that mean Eren did all of this?", Jean speculated skeptically.