[Video]

[neverfeltthatway]

[An abrupt and shaky view of Flamegard, from a vantage point that is both moving very quickly and several stories in the air, abruptly appears in everyone's mind. After a short moment, Armin's voice, high pitched and shaking with fear and adrenaline, rings out.]

There are... at least a dozen dragons heading due west from Flamegard. Young, about horse-sized, and working together, which is unheard of.

[The image pans up to the dragons for a moment - sure enough, there are many large shapes in tight formation flying low in the distance. After a moment, the image pans down again, a flurry of limbs and wires and blades and buildings. Anyone familiar with it will recognize that Armin is using his 3D maneuvering gear.]

Most of Flamegard's knights are on an expedition to the Ash Wastes - we can't stop them here. And any other method of carrying a message inland would come too l-

[The voice cuts off abruptly as he lets out a pained and terrified shout and lurches to the side - landing on a rooftop and tumbling to a stop, which luckily puts out the flames that had begun licking his sides. Throughout the tumble and after he lands, it becomes obvious that he's being chased by at least one of the creatures. Too close to stop unless it wants to take a similar tumble, the creature flies quickly past, breathing another gout of flame. Armin jumps to the side, and then follows, flying back into the air before the creature can turn around for another pass.

He manages to stay behind it when it does turn, and it doesn't seem to see him following. Then one of the cables snags onto the dragon's exposed neck and it seems to rush forward as Armin moves in for the killing blow. At the last moment, he hesitates, crashing into the dragons wing as his stroke goes wide.

Both Armin and the dragon scream as the tumble to the ground, falling a ways apart. With obvious difficulty, Armin struggles to stand - but when he does, he sees the dragon trying to flee Flamegard, struggling with a bleeding gash in the side of his throat and a probably broken wing. The rest of the flight are now little more than specks in the distance. Armin collapses, blades clattering to the ground, his breath coming hard.

His breath gradually slows, and, eventually, he continues.] Any other message would come too late. I don't know what they're doing, but... we need to get the inland cities prepared.

Someone with the expedition, please... let Eren know.

Comments

[tealeafs]

[ Yeah, she can notice that much from the distracted tone, so her own gets a little more forceful than usually - not that it's hard, considering she's usually pretty passive. ] Armin-san, you have to take a moment to yourself.

[ Are you ready to see just why exactly Chizuru is Hijikata's girl.. well, you're about to experience it, not much of a choice in it here. With the worry making her heart feel like it's pounding in her throat, she's about ready to dig in her heels about this. She's used to it, really. ]

I know everyone is probably asking things, but it won't be any good if you pass out halfway through answering them. Does anything feel strange about your head? [ That didn't look like it was a great fall, after all. ]

[neverfeltthatway]

[It takes a moment for her words to reach him, as she can tell by the half dozen responses he's still giving out to other people talking to him. But eventually he quiets, and when he takes the time to actually take a breath, he'll realize he's still sitting in the street, and he's shaking badly. He takes a ragged, uneven breath and tries to calm himself down.]

...T-thank you, Chizuru-san. You're right, I wasn't thinking. I guess it j-just seemed more urgent, since I can't go anywhere right now anyway.

[Wait, why did he say that? Now she'll just worry more. He must be more shaken than he'd thought. He takes a moment to feel around for injuries and broken bones.] I t-think my head's okay.

[Remarkably, he hasn't broken any bones. Then again, he has practice falling from several stories, after training with his 3-D maneuvering gear for so long. However, he does have several severe cuts and lacerations along his arms and legs, and he's severely overexerted himself after the way his muscles had decayed and atrophied earlier.

He starts to tear off strips from his shirt to bind the worst of the cuts, but resolves not to mention anything unless Chizuru specifically asks. Knowing Hijikata, and seeing their friends, he suspects she has enough to worry about as it is.]

[tealeafs]

[ For better or for worse, she doesn't have a full idea whatsoever of just how bad Armin's condition is. She thinks that if there's anything wrong with him, it's because of that fall - but even that fall was ugly enough to possibly cause quite a few things, so she's nowhere near being at ease just yet.

Especially when she hears that slip. ]

Eh..? What do you mean, you can't go anywhere..? [ He can't walk? Or maybe just not for long distances? But nothing has ever seemed that wrong with Armin before.. ]

Do you need someone to get you out of there? You can't stay there by yourself if there's dragons..!

[ Chizuru would go over there and help if she could, but she's too tangled up in the mess with Souji over here and helping out other people already that she can't. At least one of Armin's assessments is right - Chizuru has way too many people to worry about and not enough time to help out all of them. The woes of being too easily invested in people's wellbeing. ]