[ Eren chews on his lip for a second. He can't possibly tell Levi the whole truth. Not only is it absolutely insane, both in sound and the actual experience of it, but he really doesn't think the captain would believe him. He doesn't think anyone would. Even if they did, if they knew, how could they do anything but hate him?
That's the goal, in the end. They can't take him down if they don't hate him, he naively thinks. It's nonsense to think he can make any of them hate him, but he has no other way to figure it, to parse the horrible future.
He just shakes his head. He's absolutely certain of his words when he answers. ]
I'm not gonna die here.
[ Faith in your superiors. It isn't that he has none. But Levi also once told him he had to choose whether to trust the people around him or trust his own power. Make a decision and live with it. Relying on other people just means other people end up dead, over and over again.
Eren still sees himself as weak, though. He can't do anything without leaning on someone else. Levi. Hange. Armin and Mikasa. Historia. Even Jean.
Zeke, he thinks, though really he just plans to use Zeke before Zeke can use him. ]
I do have faith in you. More than anyone.
[ That's more or less true. Levi is the strongest person he can think of even without being a titan. Sure, Eren's view of him is biased, still gilded in the hero worship he'd had before they ever met. He's not entirely incorrect, though. ]
Can't you have faith in me too? I know what I'm talking about. I know that they'll come. They won't stop with ships. They have more titans, too. Not just Reiner.
[ He avoids mentioning the Beast, knowing Levi's hate on for Zeke. But if Zeke stays on Marley's side, that's more decimation. He knows Zeke has no love for Marley, though; he's already heard that from Yelena. Zeke wants to kill their own people.
Eren can't abide it, but he'll pretend until he gets what he wants.
Still, looking at Levi now, he wavers. There's more he could say, more he wants to say, words stuck in his throat that he's afraid of. He doesn't think he can change the future no matter what he does. But there are things he has never said that he can't take back once he does. ]
Captain. How many people do you think have to die to keep the island safe?
[ If I kill all our enemies across the sea, will we finally be free? ]
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That's the goal, in the end. They can't take him down if they don't hate him, he naively thinks. It's nonsense to think he can make any of them hate him, but he has no other way to figure it, to parse the horrible future.
He just shakes his head. He's absolutely certain of his words when he answers. ]
I'm not gonna die here.
[ Faith in your superiors. It isn't that he has none. But Levi also once told him he had to choose whether to trust the people around him or trust his own power. Make a decision and live with it. Relying on other people just means other people end up dead, over and over again.
Eren still sees himself as weak, though. He can't do anything without leaning on someone else. Levi. Hange. Armin and Mikasa. Historia. Even Jean.
Zeke, he thinks, though really he just plans to use Zeke before Zeke can use him. ]
I do have faith in you. More than anyone.
[ That's more or less true. Levi is the strongest person he can think of even without being a titan. Sure, Eren's view of him is biased, still gilded in the hero worship he'd had before they ever met. He's not entirely incorrect, though. ]
Can't you have faith in me too? I know what I'm talking about. I know that they'll come. They won't stop with ships. They have more titans, too. Not just Reiner.
[ He avoids mentioning the Beast, knowing Levi's hate on for Zeke. But if Zeke stays on Marley's side, that's more decimation. He knows Zeke has no love for Marley, though; he's already heard that from Yelena. Zeke wants to kill their own people.
Eren can't abide it, but he'll pretend until he gets what he wants.
Still, looking at Levi now, he wavers. There's more he could say, more he wants to say, words stuck in his throat that he's afraid of. He doesn't think he can change the future no matter what he does. But there are things he has never said that he can't take back once he does. ]
Captain. How many people do you think have to die to keep the island safe?
[ If I kill all our enemies across the sea, will we finally be free? ]