Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

When Ash woke up, she realized that she was now completely alone. Her body was broken, and her spirit was crushed by the death of her boyfriend, every breath reminded her of the pain - not only physical, but also the one that remained in her soul. She could barely move, as if each movement required superhuman effort from her. The blood on her body had dried, but the pain was so intense that it almost did not give her time to feel the cold of the cell. Miller knew that this was not a dream. This was captivity. And her tormentor - Kuben Blisk, was not going to let her go so easily.
A gloomy light penetrated the cell, emphasizing its ugly emptiness. The walls were sterile and devoid of any comfort, devoid of humanity. Everything was done with calculation: every element, every detail in this place pushed towards a feeling of hopelessness. The door swung open with a dull metallic screech, and he entered the room - Kuben Blisk. His steps were heavy, confident. His gaze - predatory, full of contempt, like a man who is used to seeing his enemies in pain and suffering.

- How are you feeling? - Blisk's voice was deep, with a hint of sarcasm. - Please don't tell me you're not ready to continue. We've only just begun.

Miller said nothing, she just breathed heavily, trying to gather her strength. Her body ached - mentally and physically. But she knew that even if she didn't answer now, she would still become an object of torment. Blisk didn't like silence. He walked up to her and suddenly grabbed her face, forcing her to look at him. Ash tried to hold back her fear, but her eyes betrayed all the pain and fatigue.

- You're unable to speak? - Blisk said mockingly, letting go of Ash's face. He walked over to the table with various tools and slowly began to select what to use. - You know, I can be very patient, - he said, clearly enjoying the situation, - But there is nothing more tiring to me than impossible tasks. I will work with you until you start to respond.

With that, he picked up a soldering iron, the tip of the tool gleaming in the dim light, and walked up to Ash. Blisk burned her right shoulder, giving her no respite. Ash screamed, but Blisk continued, slowly, with pleasure. The burns on her skin were unbearably painful, and every second turned into an eternity.

- So how is it? - Blisk continued, - Come on, tell me something. I know you don't like it, but we need to finish this. You don't want any more pain. Right?

Miller tried her best not to give him the pleasure he was waiting for. She couldn't break, even if her body was ready to give in.

- You can’t break me, - Ash whispered with difficulty, barely moving her lips.

- Oh, I won't break you. I'll just...get you to a state where you'll be ready to talk. You'll beg me to stop. - Kuben straightened up, and his eyes flashed in the darkness like poisonous snakes.

Blisk moved to the table to pick up the hammer, and this time his actions were swift and decisive. He used the hammer to inflict even more pain - each blow to Ash's bones felt like an electric shock, each moment of fear more painful than the last.

- You will speak, - Blisk continued, like a machine, not stopping its work, - Tell me where your bases are, where your teams are, and this will stop. You want that, right? You don't want another dose of pain.

Ash bit her lip until it bled, trying to hold back her screams, so as not to fall into Blisk's trap, she knew that if she started talking, she would no longer exist. This was a game of survival. But her strength was running out. Every next moment was torture. Ash no longer knew how much time had passed. All she felt was the burning pain that filled her consciousness. She could no longer tell what was happening and what was just a fantasy. Her body was failing, but she did not give up. Kuben Blisk finally stopped. He looked at the girl, his face was an expression of ruthless confidence.

- I see you're not ready yet, - he said, smiling predatorily, - But don't worry. We'll have plenty of time to talk.

Time lost its meaning in captivity. When every day is filled with pain, despair, and endless interrogations, the very concept of time ceases to exist. Ash, a Militia marksman, stopped counting the days long ago. All she had left were memories of freedom and a faint hope that someone would come for her.
A year. She was here a year...
Her once-respectable battle suit was now in tatters, stained with blood and dirt. Her long brown hair was matted, and her face, once full of confidence and determination, was now gaunt, with shadows under her eyes and fresh scars. They tried to break her spirit in every way they could. The floor of her cell was always cold. Metal seeped into every cell of her body, making her nights endless and her days unbearable. The light overhead never went out, and Ash didn't even know how much time passed between interrogations.
Each torture session left new scars on her body. Sometimes it was electric shocks, sometimes knives that left long, deep cuts across her body. And sometimes it was Blisk itself, which seemed to her like the embodiment of evil. But worse than the physical pain were the games they played with her mind. They showed her videos of destroyed Militia bases, made her listen to the screams of her comrades. Sometimes she heard the voice of Fin, her dead boyfriend, on the stereo in her cell. They used her deepest fears against her. But Ash held on. Deep down, despite the pain, she repeated one thing to herself: "They can't break me." Every night, as she lay on the cold floor of her cell, she thought of her boyfriend, Fin, who was still somewhere on the battlefield. Her only hope was that Fin had survived. She believed that her companion was out there, waiting for her, just as she was waiting for freedom.
A year later, her body was exhausted and her soul was almost at the edge. But she was still alive. This infuriated Kuben Blisk the most, he did not understand how this girl could endure so much pain and humiliation.

- You know, Ash, that no one will save you? - he said one day, slowly walking around her. - Your comrades have forgotten about you. They won't even try to bring you back. You're just a pawn to them, sacrificed long ago for the sake of the game.

Ash looked up, her eyes still glowing despite everything she had been through.

- You're wrong, Blisk. You don't understand what it means to be part of the Militia. We don't abandon our own.

He laughed, but it sounded forced. Something about her words made him uncomfortable.
Ash was lying on the cold floor of her cell when she heard sounds outside her isolated world. They weren't the guards' footsteps or the monotonous hum of the ventilation system. It was something else. Loud, harsh, like a battle somewhere far away. Her heart started beating faster. "This is my chance. It might be my only chance." She knew she had only a few minutes before the prison returned to normal. In the corner of her cell, a weak weld in the metal wall glimmered, the result of weeks of hard work. Her hands, though covered in cuts and bruises, clutched a small piece of rebar that she had once hidden under the panel. Swallowing a lump in her throat, Ash began to hammer at the weak spot. With each blow, the metal gave in more and more. Soon the weld opened up enough for her to squeeze through, her shoulders scraping in pain, but it didn't matter. She was free... at least from her cell.
The corridors of the prison were in chaos. Gunshots were ringing out somewhere, and guards were rushing towards the sounds, ignoring her frail figure. Ash made her way past, hiding behind containers and running from shadow to shadow. Her breathing was ragged, every step was painful, but the adrenaline drove her forward. At one of the guard posts, she found a dead IMC soldier. His weapon, a G2, lay nearby. Ash grabbed it, checked the magazine, and moved on.

- The main thing is to get to the hangar, - she whispered under her breath, like a mantra.

When she reached the massive hangar doors, she was met with a majestic but terrifying sight: dozens of Titans lined up like massive sentinels. Most were IMC, but a familiar shape caught her eye among the gray and black metal.
It was the Militia Titan.
HL-12.
Ash bit back tears when she saw it, it was her chance to save herself. Its hull was slightly damaged and its systems were on standby. She didn't know if it was still functional, but there was no other choice. Reaching the Titan's leg, she began to climb up, using the ridges on the armor. Once she reached the cockpit, her fingers were running over the controls, trying to activate it.

- Come on... COME ON! - she screamed, hitting the panel.

The systems came to life. The screens lit up and Titan's voice came from the speakers:
- Pilot detected. Systems starting.

For the first time in a long time, Ash felt hope. But as she activated the Titan, the hangar filled with alarm. The base's AI voice boomed:
- Unauthorized Titan activation detected. Interceptors en route.

The hangar doors opened and IMC soldiers began running in. Several Titans were already launching, ready to intercept her. Ash gritted her teeth, grabbed the controls, and braced herself.

- HL-12, weapons available? - she asked.

- In the arsenal: a powerful flamethrower, a system of directed missiles, a shield-domain, a core beam - Titan answered calmly.

- Then let's give them a show.

Ash pulled the trigger and the HL-12 sprang to life. Its machinery roared, crushing the first enemies to enter the hangar. The soldiers retreated in panic, taking cover behind the containers, but the missiles fired by the HL-12 found them even there. Two IMC Titans, Ion and Scorch, activated and moved toward them.

- Scanning, - HL-12 reported. - Enemies are heavily armed. Chance of success: 32%.

- The odds were never in our favor, - Ash muttered as she ducked out of the way of a volley. She activated her shield domain, deflecting Ion's shots, then fired a missile salvo, hitting him in his vulnerable hull.

Scorch closed in, his weapon engulfing the HL-12's cockpit in flames. Ash clenched her fists as she felt the heat fill the cockpit. She steered the HL-12 forward, delivering a devastating blow with his vicious claws, then finished the attack with a volley of fire. With the last enemy down, Ash steered the HL-12 toward the hangar's exit. Outside, they were met by a dense forest that stretched for kilometers around the base. Tall trees with dense foliage blocked out the light, and the humid air filled her lungs with a fresh scent mingled with the scent of earth and moss.

- We can't stay here, - HL-12 said, his voice low but firm in the cockpit. - Blisk will soon realize you've escaped. We need to get away.

Ash nodded, looking into the dark outlines of the forest. This was her only chance. HL-12 began to move forward slowly, step by step, deepening into the thicket, where their tracks were lost among the roots and fallen leaves. The sounds of alarm coming from the base gradually died down, leaving them alone with nature.

- Pilot, your vital signs are dropping significantly, - she heard before everything went dark.

Chapter Text

Ash came to her senses a few hours later to the sound of a familiar electronic voice.

- Pilot, your blood pressure is critically high. I recommend you reduce your physical activity and drink fluids, - HL-12 reported.

Her eyelids opened heavily, trying to adjust to the soft lighting of the Titan's cockpit. Her body ached, every muscle a reminder of long days of grueling torture and the strain of her recent escape.

- HL...where are we? - Ash whispered hoarsely.

- We're outside IMC coverage. Course set to the nearest neutral point, - he replied.

Ash tried to straighten up in her chair, but the world around her was spinning. She barely managed to reach the bottle of water; after a few sips, her breathing evened out a bit.

- How long was I unconscious?

- Two hours and forty-two minutes, - HL-12 reported calmly. - Your condition remains unstable. Medical intervention is required.

- Thank you, HL, - Ash squeezed out, barely holding back tears.

- Directive №3 - Protect the pilot, - HL-12 replied.

Her hand fell limply to her lap, and she closed her eyes, trying to steady her breathing. There was a long way to go, but for the first time in a year, Ash felt like she could handle it.
After months of solitary captivity, Ash and HL-12 began to build a bond, albeit in an environment where trust was not easily gained. Combat, stress, and torture had left their mark, and every moment they spent together felt like a test of their relationship's strength. HL-12 was a Militia Titan Ash had previously met before her capture, but she barely remembered those days. She had survived a year in IMC captivity, her memory clouded. She knew only one thing: HL-12 was her salvation, her only chance in this mad, cruel world.
At first, they remained silent. HL-12 was simply a system performing its task, and Ash struggled with physical and emotional exhaustion, but with each passing hour, with each passing day, their interactions became more human. For a long time, Ash viewed HL-12 simply as a weapon and a protector. She treated him solely as a combat unit. But at some point, when she was completely alone, unable to remember what had happened before her capture, HL-12 began to cautiously attempt to communicate with her. He wasn't just a machine. This was HL-12, with its own personality, its own logic, and even certain preferences. He processed her responses and offered advice based not only on data but also on her mood. HL-12 was reserved, but visibly caring. When Ash first asked for a moment of silence after a long journey, he allowed it, adjusting his noise filtering system. It was his tacit agreement to understand her. Several hours later, after Ash had regained consciousness and taken a few sips of water, HL-12 spoke to her again.

- Ash, your condition is still unstable. I need to convince you to take medication to normalize your blood pressure, - he said with his characteristic clarity.

Ash closed her eyes again. She was tired, and the thought of taking another medication seemed unnecessary, but she had already gotten used to his care and had almost learned to listen to his recommendations.

- I don’t want to... - she barely squeezed out these words, again feeling the weakness that had been haunting her all this time.

- Ash, I understand your fatigue, but treatment is necessary. Your blood pressure remains high. It could affect your health. - HL-12 continued to repeat his requests.

Ash sighed, feeling every cell in her body protest this new intrusion. But she knew HL-12 was right; she couldn't let herself fall. She had to hold on.

- Okay, okay... You're always right, - Ash whispered, barely containing her irritation. HL-12, of course, knew she was tired, but he nonetheless persisted.

In HL-12's cockpit, a glove compartment containing the necessary medications opened, and Ash took the pills as HL-12 instructed. HL-12's internal cameras continued to monitor Ash in its cockpit, and its voice carried a new, soft note of concern.

- Your indicators are stabilizing. I recommend rest, - he said when she finally sat up, feeling a slight sense of relief.

- You really care about me, don't you? - Ash asked, feeling her gaze soften.

- My goal is to protect the pilot. That is my duty. - HL-12's answer was as straightforward as ever, but there was a hint of... something more?

She nodded, but a slight smile appeared on her face. Ash realized that this Titan had become much more than just a fighting machine. It had become her ally and a true friend. And in that moment, in the dense forest, amidst the silence of the night, she realized: they were a team.
A dark sky, dotted with bright stars, hung over a forest clearing. A gentle breeze played through the treetops, filling the stillness with a barely audible rustle. A fire burned in the center of the clearing—small, but warm enough to dispel the chill and provide comfort. Orange light danced on the metal surface of the HL-12 parked nearby. Ash sat by the fire, rubbing her frozen hands, her gaze fixed on the flames, which seemed to fascinate with their vibrant, unpredictable movements. She felt the tension of the last few days gradually fade, leaving only a faint weariness.
HL-12 stood next to her, his massive frame leaning slightly forward, his muzzle lowered toward the girl. The firelight reflected off his optical sensors, giving the impression that he, too, was staring into the flames. His voice, deep and measured, broke the silence:

- Ash, I want to talk to you about our mission.

- About the mission? You mean our goal of getting to safety? - She looked up at her Titan, frowning slightly.

- Not quite, - replied the HL-12, stepping forward so that the firelight illuminated his front. - My mission is far more important. Even before we met, my former pilot, William Tax, received a mission that could change the course of the war.

- William Tаx? Was that your pilot before me? - Ash tensed, her interest instantly piqued.

- Yes, - HL-12 confirmed, his voice quieting slightly. - He was an experienced and fearless fighter. We carried out many successful operations together, but on the last mission, everything went wrong. We were ambushed by the IMC. William died during the battle, and I was captured.

Ash remained silent, feeling HL-12's words awaken a strange feeling within her. Sadness, respect, and a slight sense of guilt mingled within her.

- What was that mission? - Ash finally asked.

- We were supposed to meet with Captain Tai Lastimosa, - HL-12 replied, his voice firmer. - He's one of the Militia's finest strategists. He has information that could change the course of the war against the IMC. It's a mission we can't fail.

- And now you think I should finish what your pilot started? - Ash chuckled and wrapped her arms around her knees, leaning back slightly.

HL-12 paused, his optical sensors flickering softly.

- You're my pilot, Ash. That makes this mission yours. I believe you can handle it. You've already proven you're stronger than you seem.

- I don't think I look like a hero who's going to save the world. I'm not William Tаx. - Her gaze slid back to the flames.

- You're right, - HL-12 said calmly. - You're not William. You're Ash. And you have something he didn't: your determination to survive at any cost. I saw it when you freed yourself from IMC captivity. You're my pilot, and I trust you. Together, we will complete this mission.

Ash remained silent, feeling HL-12's words resonate within her. She understood that the burden of this mission was now on her shoulders, her life had changed, and there was no turning back.

- Lastimosa... - she said thoughtfully, stretching her legs closer to the fire. - He definitely won't be happy to see me replace your previous pilot.

HL-12 purred softly and shook his head. Ash wasn't sure how things would turn out yet, but with HL-12 around, she felt like she had a chance.
The fire continued to burn, warming the girl on the cold night. Unknown dangers awaited them ahead, but in that moment, Ash allowed herself to relax a little. She knew that together with HL-12, they could overcome any challenge. The night in the forest was calm. After long conversations around the fire, Ash finally felt the fatigue creeping closer. Her body ached from the recent battles, and the tension she had carried with her for the past few days finally began to ease. As the fire began to die down, HL-12 quietly offered:

- Ash, you need to rest. The morning will be early, and the road will be difficult.

Ash looked up at her faithful partner and nodded.

- You're right. But here, on the cold ground, I'm unlikely to get any sleep.

- You can rest in the cockpit, - HL-12 suggested. His voice was even, but there was a softness to it that she had begun to notice over the past few days. - It will be warm there, and I can keep you safe.

Ash hesitated for a moment. She wasn't used to being inside a Titan, but after so long on the run, the idea was tempting. She rose to her feet, stretched, and stepped toward the massive HL-12. The Titan lowered its head toward her, and the cockpit opened with a soft hiss, revealing the familiar space within. Ash climbed the console, looked around as if entering a new home for the first time, and settled into the pilot's seat. A feeling of safety washed over her instantly.

- Thank you, HL-12, - she whispered, closing her eyes.

- That's my job, Ash, - HL-12 replied, and the cockpit hatch slid shut, leaving the two of them alone in comfortable darkness.

The HL-12 adjusted the temperature inside the cockpit to keep Ash comfortable. Its systems operated silently so as not to disturb her sleep, and it locked the seat in the most comfortable position, maintaining her warmth so her muscles could relax.
A few minutes later, Ash was already asleep. Her breathing became even, her face took on a calm HL-12 hadn't seen since they met. At that moment, she seemed completely different—not a warrior who had survived captivity and battle, but an ordinary person who also needed rest. He activated his external cameras, scanning the surrounding area. The forest was calm, with no signs of danger. Despite this, HL-12 remained wary, knowing that Ash deserved not only rest but also protection.
Hours passed, Ash stirring occasionally but remaining in a deep sleep. HL-12 monitored her vital signs, adjusting the cockpit temperature to keep her warm. When she suddenly felt a little chilly, it blew a blast of warm air on her, reminding her she was safe. The night wore on, and HL-12 remained a loyal guardian. He thought of Ash, how she had quickly adapted to her new life, despite all the difficulties. Her determination, her strength—all of it made her unique.