"If people lived here, there's gotta be a way out!" Rein told himself, clinging to hope.
He wandered the chamber, found no exit, and decided to push deeper.
The gray cave stretched into the unknown. Rein rubbed his eyes, forcing them to catch more light, keeping his mind sharp.
"Huh?"
Rubbing revealed a problem.
Were those two lights ahead?
Dim, barely brighter than the dark.
"Hallucination?" He rubbed again. Still there.
Heart racing, he rubbed four or five more times. The lights grew bigger, clearer.
"No way!" It hit him. "Someone's here?"
A living person in this abandoned cave?
He held his breath, terrified of what might happen.
Then, a massive head emerged from the shadows. In the faint light, Rein saw it—a giant's head!
Not human—a Titan!
"Roar~" A low growl filled the cave, echoing louder and louder.
Rein's jaw dropped as it stepped fully into view.
A four-legged Titan!
About 10 meters tall, matching Rein's size, with a twisted face glaring at him.
A guttural snarl rumbled from its throat.
It looked a bit like the Cart Titan.
"B-Big bro, sorry… just passing through…" Rein forced a grin, waving awkwardly to show he meant no harm.
"Roar!"
The quad Titan didn't buy it. Brows furrowed, growling, it crept closer.
Scary as it was, Rein couldn't help thinking: This thing's like a damn dog!
Dog Titan?
"Ruff ruff~"
Two more warning barks. Rein got it—it was telling him to back off!
"Bro, it's a dead end back there. Let me through, give me a way out, please?"
He begged, but his garbled roars didn't translate. Communication? Impossible.
The quad Titan blocked the tunnel. No way around.
They stared each other down for ten minutes.
Rein cracked first. Time for a distraction.
He grabbed two logs from the left side of the chamber and approached again.
"Good dogs don't block paths. Move, or I won't be nice!"
With a warning, he hefted the logs, ready to swing.
"Roar!"
Whoosh!
Before he could throw, the quad Titan blurred—moving too fast to track in the dim light. It pounced.
"What the—!"
It was on him before he could react, towering over him.
Jaws wide, it chomped the log in his hands.
Crunch!
The meter-thick wood snapped clean.
That bite force—if it hit his arm, it'd be gone.
Panicked, Rein bolted.
The quad Titan chased, relentless.
"Bro, I'm sorry! Spare—ow, damn it, let go! Let go!"
"Ahhh!!!"
His screams echoed through the cave, raw and desperate.
Rein ran like a madman, ignoring the bites, driven by survival. He reached the waterfall.
The moment he burst out, the Titan froze—maybe stunned by the waterfall's roar.
But it didn't give up. Brows tight, it edged closer.
"Freaking mad dog!" Rein gasped, staring at his torn body and shaking hands.
Tears and snot streaked his face, mixing in his mouth.
Bitter. Titans do taste.
"Bro, stay back!"
Mad dog ahead, waterfall behind—both death. No way out.
The "dog" pressed closer. Seconds from tearing him apart.
"No! No!"
Hands shaking, he backed up to the waterfall's edge.
Whoosh~
Rumble~
The white falls thundered, deafening him. He couldn't hear the Titan's growls anymore.
He just saw it lunge, jaws gaping.
Terrified, he slipped—his whole body swallowed by the falls, screams swept away.
Cough, cough~
Third time drowning, Rein spat water, mind clearing from fog.
Dim light. Rumbling ears.
Same scene, same sound—he was back.
"Sigh~"
He sat up, checking himself.
Wounds still steamed—Pure Titan healing just finished.
He was lost. Where to now?
Back? Can't beat the falls. Forward? Can't beat the dog.
Trapped here forever, waiting to die?
"Ahhh!!!" he screamed, breaking. "This puzzle's too hard! I can't solve it!"
Helplessness crushed him.
Mid-rant, a chill hit. Sweat beaded.
A shape loomed from the cave.
That quad Titan again!
"Damn it!" Rein cursed. "Haunted!"
Sure enough, it charged, roaring, fast as hell. Rein pulled his legs in—still got bit.
Fresh-healed wounds tore open, steaming.
"What the hell?!"
All he could do was swear.
Swearing didn't stop it. More bites—pain frying his brain.
It'd chew him alive!
In fear, he glanced at the falls.
"Rather drown than be eaten!"
Words out, he rolled into the cascade. Nature's force yanked him back into the abyss.