Chapter One.
"Damn it, I can't find him with so many faces cluttered together," Ryland Winters muttered lowly, the twenty-two year old Garrison soldier desperately scanned the crowed of newly graduated trainees with his light brown eyes. Ryland bit his lip gently as he went through the crowed a third time, this time hoping he could spot the familiar face he so desperately wanted to see for the past three years. Ryland was average height and had the build of a runner, his hair was a dark chocolate brown bombed to the side neatly however still keeping a messy manner, he wore thin framed glasses along with a pair of field goggles hanging from his neck which he wore when on duty. His wore the standard uniform of a Garrison soldier, along with a white arm band with the red medical cross on it which represented himself as a field medic. A duty that not many trainees volunteered for as many medics fell prey to the Titans while they attempted to aid their wounded comrades.
"You still can't find him?" Ian Adler asked curiously, the black haired medic beside him squinting his eyes as he attempted to scope out a face he had never seen before. Ian was a fellow medic like Ryland himself, the two of them members of the same trainee squad back in the day they both failed to make the top ten ranked in their class and thus were left with two options; the Garrison or the Survey Corps. However, before they could even make their decision they were scouted out by the Garrison's medical recruiter who had taken an interest in their high scores within the field medical exam they had taken during their final months of training, "It would probably work better if I knew what he looked like."
Ryland sighed heavily, "Shouldn't be a problem. I'll just have to catch him when he heads over to the Garrison's ceremony."
"If he hasn't decided to join the Garrison I'm sure that Survey Corps Commander will scare him away with his usual morbid speech," Ian snickered lowly as ever since the two of them had joined the Garrison they had been sent to graduation ceremonies as officials to recruit new cadets into becoming field medics. They'd usually speak with all Garrison cadets, but in the end only a small handful actually made the step forward in becoming a field medic.
"Can't argue with that," Ryland admitted as he watched the commander of the Survey Corps take the stage. The Survey Corps always took the stage first due to the fact that every year they received the lowest number of members, with the top ten usually picking the Military Police and the remaining deciding on the Garrison. However, while Ryland had to admit that the commander was truthful in his speech, the Survey Corps probably could gain five or more cadets per year if he eased up on the ceremony speech a bit more.
"Hello 103rd Trainees Squad! I'm Commander Erwin Smith of the Survey Corps," The blonde haired officer started off loudly as his booming voice echoed loudly throughout the courtyard. His tall and powerful stature as the leader of the Survey Corps caused several cadets to shift awkwardly in place as even Ryland had to admit he had a odd presence about him whenever he took stage. Erwin's eyes were sharp and deadly as they cut through the crowed like a predator looking for his next meal, "Today is the defining moment of your military careers and for many your lives! Today you will be picking what corps you desire to join and from there on you'll be working towards a brighter future for humanity! My job is to convince you who are brave enough to join the Survey Corps!"
"They say we're crazy for volunteering as field medics," Ian whispered in a hush voice, "I think the true crazies are the ones who join the Titan Fodder Corps."
"I will not lie to any of you! The Survey Corps has suffered casualties that range more than half of our numbers, the highest casualty rate out of all the military," Erwin began to explain, the faces of the cadets quickly becoming sicken as their eyes filling with fear at these words. Ryland watched from the side of the stage as several cadets who once stood with proud posture lean over in shame, the pride they once carried now crush by hearing the command of the Survey Corps himself admit to the high death rate of their corps. Erwin could see the looks of shock on the cadets faces, "The death rate for the newest cadets that decide to join our ranks is roughly twenty-five percent!"
"If he had any supporters before his speech then I'm sure they're gone now," Ryland sighed lowly, being a field medic one of his duties consisted of heading out into the field to intercept any soldiers from their expeditions that were wounded and able to make their way back towards the wall. While he had never gone farther than three miles into Titan territory he had to admit it was not a desirable feeling being out in the open like that. Along with all the wounded soldiers he had treated that carry Titan related injuries, the idea of going out there truly did make him shake in doubt that they would ever reclaim Wall Maria.
"I stand here asking for those of you brave enough to join us on our quest to take back our land! I ask of those who will give their lives for humanity to stay and stand proudly," Erwin explained as he cleared his throat lowly, "Those who plan on joining other corps may now head over to the designated areas for those ceremonies."
Ryland watched as a majority of the crowed flocked away like scared sheep that just spotted a wolf in the distance. Many of the cadets taking a right towards the Garrison's ceremonial stage, while a small number took the left towards the Military Police's ceremony. The crowed washed forward like a river, however like every raging river there were always those few boulders that would cause ripples and waves within the flow. Standing tall throughout the crowed were a small handful of cadets who had taken Erwin up on his offer on joining the Survey Corps, however like every graduation ceremony Ryland would catch several cadets stand in place for a few minutes before changing their minds the last second and racing off towards another corps.
Not all boulders could withstand the force of the raging waters that pushed against them.
"I guess we should scout out the list of cadets that the Captain gave us," Ian yawned loudly, casually waving a list of twenty cadets that had scored above average within the medical exam. Ian found recruiting duty boring as most cadets knew of the high casualty rate as a field medics and would ofte argue that if the wanted a job with such a high risk they would of just stayed at the Survey Corps ceremony. However, out of every group of twenty cadets there were usually three or five that would accept their offer and join their ranks.
"Yeah," Ryland chuckled softly, "I'm sure my brother will get stationed on a cannon emplacement any-" Ryland's heart nearly stopped as it felt as if someone had burst through his chest and ripped it right out. His eyes grew wide and his breath grew short, his legs having the feel of gelatin as they shook underneath his body weight. All sound around him became muffled as Ian's constant chatter no longer mattered and Erwin's final speech felt like miles away, the only thing he could hear was the sound of is heart beating and his teeth grinding together.
"Hey! Ryland we gotta head over to the Garrison ceremony before the others recruit our cadets," Ian complained annoyingly as he couldn't understand why Ryland would want to stay for the rest of Erwin's depressing speech about sacrifice and humanity. Making his way in front of Ryland the black haired medic annoyingly followed his gaze forward, his icy blue eyes squinting hard as they attempted to determine what Ryland was starring so passionately at. Adjusting his vision from the glow of the nearby torches he spotted the source of Ryland's ghostly appearance, a single cadet standing amongst the others within the Survey Corps ceremony. A young faced cadet who was a few inches shorter then Ryland, the cadet had black hair that was neatly kept, his eyes were a light brown, and oddly enough he had a similar bone structure as Ryland. With all physical aspects of the cadet being examined, Ian could obviously tell that it was Ryland's younger brother.
The kid who Ryland had been bragging about for the past three years, the one who he was so confident would be joining the Garrison so the could serve side-by-side.
Ethan Winters.
"That is all," Erwin finished up as he motioned towards his subordinates to take care of the rest as he exited the stage area.
A blonde haired soldier with a thin mustache stepped forward as he took several sniffs around him, "Let be one of the first besides the commander to intro-"
Ryland wasted no time as he rushed across the court yard, the blonde haired soldier slightly taken back by the appearance of a Garrison soldier. Ethan gritted his teeth upon spotting his older brother, his eyes throwing daggers at the fact that Ryland was interrupting their introduction briefing. Before Ethan could even say anything, or before any of the Survey Corps soldiers could stop him, Ryland grabbed hold of Ethan by the collar.
"What the hell are you doing?" Ryland cried out as his feeling of shock had been replaced by rage.
Ethan simply darted his eyes downwards so he could avoid eye contact, but Ryland roughly shook him like a rag doll forcing his younger sibling to look at him. Ethan muttered lowly under his breath, "Joining the Survey Corps."
"I can see that!" Ryland roared out, "My question is why?"
"Please can we all just calm down," A women with the Survey Corps called out as she was followed by three other men who obviously could tell the two were brothers.
"I promise dad that when you joined I'd keep an eye on you! We agreed that you'd join the Garrison so we could be together! How can I watch over you if you going over the damn wall with the Survey Corps?" Ryland shouted angrily as Ian rushed over and roughly pulled Ryland back, his tight grasp on Ethan's collar being loosened by the powerful tug of his friend. Ethan stumbled back as his eyes glared at Ryland, a mixture of anger and frustration tainting them.
Ethan took a few seconds before speaking up, "That was three years ago. I've been training and I've decided I wanna make a difference, now hide behind the wall you so proudly protect," Ethan stated loudly, doing his best to justify his reason to his older brother and veteran Garrison soldier. The two were at a standoff as Ian did his best to hold back Ryland and the other Survey Corps soldiers made sure the two didn't get into a fist fight.
"You can make a difference in the Garrison," Ryland explained his voice now calmer, "I you truly wanna go out in the field then I'll put a good word in for you and you can become a field medic like me. I'll even make sure you're placed in the same squad as me so I can watch-"
"Don't you see it! I'm a soldier now, I don't need my older brother constantly watching over me!" Ethan exploded loudly, his fist clenched and his throat dry as he threw his arms downwards. His eyes carried a fire of passion as he declared his independence from his brother's watchful eye, "I don't need you protecting me anymore! I will not hide behind the walls like a coward, I'm stronger and braver since you last saw me. I ranked number seven in my class, I'm twice the soldier you were back in your training days... I can do this."
The words cut deeply.
"If you're trying to prove that you don't need me babysitting you then mission accomplished. You scored number seven out of your whole class, I know your strong but you don't have to be reckless." Ryland explained, doing his best to convince his brother to come with him and head over towards the Garrison's ceremony before it ended.
"I'm joining the Survey Corps," Ethan hissed lowly, "I'm sorry."
"Fine," Ryland spat weakly as he could feel his legs become weak once again and his weak become crushed by the pain of his brother's decision.
"We're with the Special Operations Squad," The female soldier spoke up through the awkward silence of sibling rage, "We'll be personally training the new recruits for the next month so there's no fear of him being unprepared. Along with his skills as a top ten cadet and our training course I ensure you that he'll be ready."
"Lets go," Ryland whimpered lowly at Ian as he began to walk away, "Congrats on graduating."
Ethan glared at the ground painfully, he hadn't planned for his brother to be at the graduation and initially he was simply gonna inform him of his decision in a written letter. However, he was caught of guard by his sudden appearance and all the strong points he had been formulating the past three years were thrown out of the window. Instead, of coming off as a proud soldier he came off like a brat of a younger brother who had yet to grow up.
"You had some strong points and were passionate kid," A blonde haired soldier from the Special Operations Squad stated firmly with a hand on Etan's shoulder, "Your brother is just worried about you that's it. Gotta say you don't see much of that these days, most people are just in it for themselves."
"I'm sorry if he caused problems for the introduction briefing," Ethan apologized as he truly hated their first impression of him was a kid who needed his brother's protection.
"It's not a problem at all," A brown haired Special Operations soldier explained with a sly grin, "We can't argue with the guy. He's a field medic, he's the guy who patches us up and saves our asses when we head back to the wall."
"Plus, if it makes you feel better those two pissed their pants during their first exhibition," The blonde haired soldier snickered lowly as he pointed towards the female soldier and a rather arrogant looking soldier. The two of them sharing expressions of sock at the mention of the embarrassing story, while the other new recruits all joined in on the joke with laughter.
...
"I can't believe he would do this," Ryland growled angrily as he stormed back towards the Garrison's ceremony with Ian trailing a few steps behind him.
Ian gulped lowly, "I mean I heard the Special Operations Squad are some elite soldiers so at least they'll be mentoring him!"
"Ian don't sugar coat it," Ryland snapped, "We're the ones who meet the Survey Corps wounded when they reach the wall. You've seen their wounds and the looks on their faces, we both know very well what happens out there."
Ian glared down as the faces of the traumatized soldiers was forever imprinted in his head.
"You two." A voice called out, as the two spun around to see Erwin approaching them both. Ian quickly snapped to a crisp attention and Ryland weakly followed his lead, the two realizing he was probably furious with their little show they had just put on in front of his new recruits and their attempt at stealing one of them.
"Sir, allow me-" Ryland began to explain but was swiftly cut off.
"You're with the 1st Garrison Division, correct?" Erwin asked curiously with a slight tilt of the head.
"Uh... Yes, sir." Ryland answered as he was surprised tat Erwin wasn't chewing them out.
"I've been trying to get into contact with the head of the medical regiment there, but been far to busy to make a visit. I was curious if you could ask her if the higher ups have considered my request," Erwin explained casually as he was amused by the peak of interest by bother of the medics. Erwin smirked devilishly as he spoke up once again before they could ask anymore questions, "My request for an attachment detail of some field medics of course."
Ryland's heart sank.
He knew Erwin was a devious and well calculated leader, but he never would imagine he would bring up such a thing right after witnessing two brothers conflict like that. Ryland knew the Survey Corps had nearly no medical personnel and it was obvious that Erwin had noticed the argument that had just occurred, using it as fire in hopes it would fuel Ryland's decision to take him up on the offer and even convince his the medical leaders into accepting the request.
A backhanded and sneaky plan, but Ryland had to admit the offer was very tempting and he was nearly about to take it right there-and-then when Ian interrupted.
"We'll pass the message right away," Ian called out, "Now sir if you may excuse us we must preform our recruiting duty."
"Very well," Erwin simply stated as he began to walk away but not before his icy blue eyes glared into Ryland's soul. If Ryland took on the request he cold protect his brother and Erwin would get the field medics his corps so desperately needed. In a way it was win-win for everyone, but even then Ryland was unsure how Ethan would react to him doing so.
"Ryland you can't," Ian pleaded.
Ryland sighed lowly, "No worries. I haven't made my decision and still it's on the higher ups to make the call, they'll decide if we'll send an attachment and they'll handpick who we'll send."
Ian simply nodded weakly.
"Ethan doesn't know what it's like out there," Ryland whispered, "I just hope he doesn't regret it."