That Day (Chapter 2)

On That Day, is the second chapter of Shingeki no Kyojin.

Summary
Picking up where the last chapter left off, we see the Colossal Titan continuing to destroy the outer wall of the city. With a hole in the wall and pieces from the impact being flung into houses, people are in a panic. Armin suggests they leave before the titans arrive. However, Eren, noticing the damage to the residential areas, begins to worry about his mother and heads back home with Mikasa following. Despite seeing the widespread damage, Eren hopes for the best.

Turning the corner, he sees that a boulder has landed on his house with his mother still inside. Finding her pinned under some rubble, he and Mikasa try to pull her out. A roar from a nearby titan adds more stress to the situation. Eren's mother insists that Eren take Mikasa and run. Eren still struggling with debris, objects and continues his efforts. His mother then tells him that her legs are crushed, even if he manages to get her free, she won't be able to run and to listen to her last request. The exchange is cut short when a titan is seen moving closer to their position. After more pleading from his mother and the titan bearing down on them, Hannes attempts to intervene by going after the titan. Eren's mother stops him and begs him to take the children and run instead. At first, Hanneth refuses, saying that he must repay his "savior" by rescuing his family. He tries to rationalize what the right course of action is. Should he definitely save the children and leave Carla? Or, face the the titan with the slim chance of saving all of them? Whether through fear of the titan, who is now right in front of him or deciding on the sure thing, he chooses to save the children. With Carla grateful and Eren protesting, Hanneth leaves. The titan now directly over top of her, Carla momentarily questions her decision. In full view of Eren and Mikasa, the titan devours her. In shock, Eren attacks Hanneth who then throws Eren to the ground. He insists with a little time, his mother could have been saved. Hanneth delivers the hard truth that Eren just wasn't strong enough to save her, then admits that even he didn't have the courage to face the titan and asks for forgiveness.

Next, we see Eren and Mikasa in a large crowd of refugees trying to get to safety. Military officials are debating whether they should close the gate and leave people outside or leave them open for the refugees while the titans are closing in. The debate is short-lived as a titan that seems impervious to their weapons crashes through Wall Maria. The gravity of the situation dawns on Eren when he realizes he can never go home again. Seeing the weakness of humanity, he vows to erase the titans from this world.

Fast forwarding to present day, we are made aware of the dire situation humanity faces. At the graduation of the 104th Trainees Squad, the graduates are also made aware of their expectations. A military official announces the top ten graduates for the class, asks them to step forward and informs them they are eligible for the Military Police. They are Mikasa Ackerman, Reiner Braun, Bertholdt Fubar, Annie Leonhardt, Eren Jaeger, Jean Kirschtein, Marco Bodt, Conny Springer, Sasha Browse and Christa Renz. Eren, as strong as ever in his ferver, renews his vow and says that "this time around, mankind will feast upon the titans".