The camp stayed on high alert through the night. Lanterns burned late as officers moved between barracks, questioning cadets about anything unusual seen during Trost. Kael stayed quiet in his bunk, eyes closed but sleep far away. The Paths hummed faintly behind his eyelids, showing thin golden lines that connected every sleeping body in the room. Eren's thread pulsed with restless anger. Mikasa's was steady and sharp. Historia's glowed soft and distant from the girls' quarters.
By dawn the messenger's news had spread like smoke. Another Colossal sighting near Wall Rose. Possible Marleyan spies inside the Walls. And the strangest part, an unknown Ackerman bloodline flagged by unknown sources. Shadis doubled the drills and cut rest hours. No one was above suspicion.
Kael moved through the morning exercises with the same controlled pace as before. He ran the obstacle course, climbed the towers, and practiced blade swings on straw dummies. Every motion felt watched. Jean threw sideways glares. Connie kept trying to talk to him about the forest save. Armin studied him from a distance like a puzzle that refused to fit.
During midday rations Eren cornered him again near the water barrels. The green eyed boy looked wired, fists tight at his sides.
That messenger mentioned an Ackerman, Eren said low. You moved exactly like Mikasa in Trost. Faster even. If you are one of them, why hide it? We need every strong fighter we can get.
Kael filled his canteen slowly, keeping his voice even. Some strengths bring more trouble than help. You saw what happened to the last Ackermans inside these Walls. Hunted. Controlled. I will not be either.
Eren stepped closer, eyes burning. If you can fight Titans better than anyone, then use it. My mother died because we were weak. I will not let that happen to anyone else.
Kael met his gaze straight. Your mother died because of the cage, not because of weak blades. Breaking the cage means more than killing Titans. It means ending the reason they exist.
Eren opened his mouth to argue but Mikasa appeared at his shoulder, silent and watchful. She looked at Kael with those grey eyes that seemed to cut straight through pretense.
Last night on the wall, she said quietly. You spoke with Historia. And you knew her family name. No one here should know that.
Kael capped his canteen and straightened. Secrets have a way of leaking when walls crack. Hers is bigger than most.
Mikasa's hand rested on the hilt of her knife. If you put Eren in danger with whatever you are hiding, I will stop you. Blood or not.
The threat hung between them, heavy but honest. Kael felt the blood connection again, a faint warmth that said family even when words said enemy.
I am not the danger here, he told her. The ones coming from outside are.
Before more could be said, a horn blared across the camp. Emergency assembly. All cadets to the main field.
They ran together, boots pounding dirt. Shadis stood on a raised platform, face grim, a rolled map in his fist. Behind him two Survey Corps officers waited, capes stained from recent travel.
New orders from headquarters, Shadis barked. Wall Rose is under threat. The Colossal has not breached yet but abnormal Titan activity is spiking south of Trost. All 104th cadets are being split. Some will reinforce the Garrison at the walls. Others will join emergency supply runs. No one leaves camp without permission. Any cadet showing unnatural skill will report directly to me.
Murmurs rippled through the ranks. Kael kept his face blank but inside the voice stirred.
They are looking for you already. The threads are tightening.
After the assembly cadets broke into assigned groups. Kael found himself grouped with Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Jean, and surprisingly Historia for a supply escort toward the inner gate. The route would take them through forested roads where ambushes were possible.
As they saddled horses and loaded carts with gas canisters and blades, Historia rode up beside Kael. Her face was pale but determined.
I heard the officers talking, she whispered while pretending to check her harness. They mentioned a rogue Ackerman. Someone not in any records. They want him brought in for questioning.
Kael adjusted his cloak, the same ragged one from the Underground still hidden beneath his uniform. Then they will keep looking.
Why do I feel like you already know what this is about? she asked, voice soft enough that only he heard.
Because the blood remembers what history tried to bury, he said. Ackermans were never meant to serve the royals forever. We were made for something bigger. Something that ends the curse.
Historia's eyes widened slightly. You speak like you have seen things no one else has.
Maybe I have, Kael replied. And maybe one day I will show you.
The small group set out under gray skies. The road wound through thick trees, wheels creaking over uneven ground. Tension sat heavy on every shoulder. Eren scanned the treeline constantly. Mikasa rode close to him, protective as always. Armin studied maps, muttering calculations about Titan sighting patterns.
Halfway to the gate a strange quiet fell. No birds. No wind. Just the sound of their own breathing.
Kael felt it first. The Paths flared without warning, golden threads snapping into view. One thread pulsed wrong, dark and foreign, stretching from the trees ahead.
Ambush, he shouted, drawing his blades in one smooth motion.
A figure dropped from the canopy, cloaked in dark fabric, moving with trained precision. Not a Titan. Human. A scout knife flashed toward Eren's horse.
Mikasa reacted instantly, cables firing, but Kael was faster. He launched forward, time slowing in that deep Ackerman way. His blade met the attacker's with a ringing clash. Sparks flew. In the frozen second he saw the man's eyes, cold and calculating, with a small Marleyan insignia tattooed behind the ear.
The attacker twisted away, landing on a low branch. More shadows moved in the trees. Three, maybe four.
Marleyan infiltrators, Kael growled.
Eren was already transforming, steam rising from his bite wound, but Kael yelled at him to hold. Not yet. We do this quiet.
The fight exploded. Blades sang through air. Kael moved like liquid shadow, cutting cables of one attacker and sending him crashing to the ground. He severed another's ODM line mid swing, forcing a hard landing. Mikasa took down the third with ruthless efficiency, her strikes mirroring Kael's own speed.
Historia stayed on her horse, gripping the reins tight, but when the last infiltrator lunged toward her cart, she drew a small knife and slashed across his arm, buying time.
Kael finished the final man with a precise nape cut, the body dropping limp. He stood breathing hard, blades dripping, the Paths still glowing faintly around the scene.
One of the attackers groaned, alive but broken. Kael crouched beside him, pressing a blade to his throat.
Who sent you? he demanded.
The man spat blood and laughed weakly. The Beast Titan knows about the new Ackerman. You were never supposed to exist. The hunt is on, boy. Your blood will open doors Marley wants closed.
Before Kael could press further the infiltrator bit down on something hidden, convulsing once before going still. Poison.
The group stood in shocked silence. Eren's eyes were wide with fury. Mikasa cleaned her blades, gaze locked on Kael.
You knew they were coming, she said. How?
The blood tells me things, Kael answered simply. And it is telling me we need to move faster. The cage is cracking and everyone wants a piece of the key.
Historia dismounted and walked to his side. Her hand brushed his briefly, steadying. You saved us again. Thank you.
Kael looked at her, the royal thread glowing soft between them in his vision. We protect each other now. No more hiding behind walls or lies.
As they remounted and continued toward the gate, the sky darkened with distant storm clouds. Thunder rolled, low and threatening.
Far away in the coordinate, Ymir watched through the Paths and allowed the smallest spark of hope to flicker in her empty eyes.
The last Ackerman had drawn first blood against the hunters.
The loop was finally starting to break.