Everything about your life can change in a single moment. All it takes is one look, one word, and things are never the same again. These little moments in time, the day to day things that most of us barely notice, often have the greatest impact. That's usually where it all begins. This is the story of four childhood friends from Karanese. These are their highs, lows, triumphs and struggles. This is how they left their mark on the world and on each other. This is their legacy, and the legacy of the 104th Cadet Corps. More importantly though, this is a record of who we were, for the purposes of preserving history for those who will come long after we're gone.
Two years after the fall of Wall Maria…
Year 847, Near the Cadet Training Camp, Interior of Wall Rose.
"Oh my God, this is so exciting I can't believe we're actually going. We're joining the cadets! We're going to be soldiers, and get to kill titans, and the 3D Gear is glorious. I can't wait to put that uniform on." Jansen Duerk, a fiery thirteen year old boy with thick, matted hair and wild eyes. He spoke excitedly, thinking aloud again. If he was talking to someone in particular, no one was actually listening. Three days of having him go on and on about it had lost its' sense of luster. Beside him walked the three other members of their little group: Albrecht Johannes, tall and thin with dark brown hair that swept back behind his head. Aline Holde, a slender, but excellently built girl with shoulder length chestnut brown hair and golden tinged eyes; and Josh Kassmeyer, a boy with short black hair and dark brown eyes that looked pensively at the world around him. Unlike Jansen, the three of them were more anxious than he was about the whole ordeal, especially considering the ramifications of what his words.
"Listen, Jans can you calm down for five minutes so we can have a little peace and quiet? You've hardly stopped talking since we left home." Albrecht said, annoyed.
"How can you not be excited Alb, we're going to be titan killing heroes like the ones in the Scout Regiment when we finish our training." Jansen was practically glowing with excitement.
Aline shot him a reproachful look "Are you crazy? You've heard about the scout expeditions, people die out there; people die a lot. Just think about the operation where they tried to retake Wall Maria. They sent what, two hundred thousand people on that mission? They say only two hundred of them survived. Most people aren't really fond of that survival rate. If you ask me, we're a lot better off joining the Garrison Regiment, higher chance of us living long enough to do something valuable with our training instead of being snack food.
Josh remained quiet, looking around absentmindedly as they approached the last leg of their journey. His thoughts were far from carefree however, plagued with dozens of what if scenarios that could transpire during training and in the time after. It was all conjecture though. Being from Karanese District he'd only ever heard of the titans in the horror stories from the Shiganshina survivors that had found their way to the interior in the weeks following the evacuation of Wall Maria. If any of what they said was true, he couldn't blame Aline for saying what she said. Everyone except Jansen had planned on joining the Garrison Regiment from the beginning, and there was still time to talk him out of the scouts before there would be any need to think about titan fighting. That was like a lifetime away now though. The Cadet Training Corps was going to be three years of intense training and study before they could call themselves true soldiers. Choosing which regiment to join wasn't even on the horizon yet. He supposed he'd cross that bridge when it came up. Taking things one day at a time, like his dad always told him.
He was broken from his thoughts when he bumped into Albrecht. The group had stopped. Josh peeked around them and saw that they had reached the crest of a rise and were gazing down into a valley. Tucked away at its' center, was the training camp. It was an austere looking place; not quite what they were expecting oddly enough. A few wooden cabins around a dusty looking pit in the ground. The quartet took stock of the surroundings; breathing in the view afforded them by the vantage point. The roads going down to the fenced in compound were pock marked with people, all here for the same reason they were.
"Wow, so this is it huh? Honestly, I was expecting this place to look a little less…depressing." Albrecht sighed heavily.
"I'm sure it's not as bad as it looks Alb." Josh clapped him on the shoulder. "We're calling this place home for the next three years either way though; let's try and make the most of it."
"Yeah, and besides they have to make us tough so we'll be able to kill titans someday; can't do that if we're living it up like we're in the capitol." Jansen was grinning from ear to ear, clearly enraptured by the thought of military life.
Aline was watching the groups of travelers intently. "I hope we meet some interesting people. There will be cadets from every city here I bet. I've heard that there will even be people from inside Wall Sina in our class." The other three were sure her mind was squarely on boys when she said interesting people. She had been flirting with every guy who grabbed her attention as long as he'd known her, gathering a small flock of admirers wherever she went. Aline had always been a little too good with her "feminine charms" growing up. She'd always get favors, or flowers, or presents from the other boys in their neighborhood. All she had to do was smile or wink and they fell all over themselves. Not that she really settled into a relationship with any of them for very long. Usually it lasted until she got bored; then she'd move on to the next one. Many would call that being manipulative, but she preferred the term resourceful. As the old saying goes: Why buy the cow when you can get the milk for free?
"Well then let's get a move on, it's only about an hour to sundown and I don't want to miss dinner." Josh put a hand on Jansen's shoulder. "Come on man, I'll race you there. I bet there's no way in hell you can beat me to the gate."
"Pfft, a three legged dog could run faster than you," Jansen smirked. He threw his bag over his shoulder and took off running, Josh in close pursuit. Albrecht and Aline called after them to wait up, but the two were already half way down the slope. Once they got going you couldn't stop either of them. After so many years they wondered why they still bothered trying to. Josh and Jansen had been friends for as long as any of them could remember, behaving like they hadn't a care in the world half the time. The two of them were always looking for a distraction from the day to day grind of things.
By all regards, the four of them were an odd collection of people. Even though none of them ever said as much, the oddities were probably what had kept them together for so long. At least that was Albrecht's opinion on the matter. He was what passed for the intellectual in the group, a deep thinker, pretty well read, and easily the best in the classroom.
Down the hill, Josh and Jansen were desperately trying to overtake one another. They happily took every chance they had to turn even the most boring of activities into something exciting. They shot taunts at each other and laughed like madmen as they barreled past others on the road towards the front gate, which drew worried glances from more than a couple of people. Neither of them really cared how crazy they seemed; they were used to being thought of as such. Doing this, Josh was able to put the events of the coming days and months from his mind and let his anxiety go.
"Like dad always said: just take it one day at a time." He smiled as the gate and their futures loomed up ahead of them. By the time that Albrecht and Aline had caught up with them, both he and Jansen had stopped, realizing that there hadn't been anyone to keep track of who won or lost. Both of their other friends looked winded, and a little ragged, but Josh and Jansen were grinning from ear to ear.
"So, could you guys see who won the race from way back there?" The latter shifted his eyes between Alb and Aline.
"Nobody, you're both jackasses and I'm leaving it at that!" Aline panted.
The evening was slow to pass and mostly involved getting paperwork and billeting sorted. Recruits were still streaming in from all over the countryside and the commanders didn't wish to convene with the cadets in the mess hall until they were all present. So, there wasn't really a dinner time per se; each person basically just got a bread roll and half a boiled potato after they signed a few papers and received their uniform items. It wasn't surprising that Jansen had already changed into his the moment they set foot in their assigned bunk house.
"You're planning on wearing that to bed aren't you?" Josh shook his head, flopping down onto a bunk as Jansen made poses in front of a mirror.
"To be honest guys, I don't think I'll ever take it off. Something about being in this just feels right. Plus, the ladies always love a man in uniform." He saluted into the mirror and adopted a stoic expression to add to his delusion of grandeur. It hadn't taken him long to start becoming obsessed about the whole thing.
"Well, if you go about it that way, it won't be long before you start stinking up the place. In a few days, I can promise that you will be sleeping outside. Another thing, since when were women ever impressed by the act you put on? You usually just end up embarrassing yourself." Albrecht said as he set his bag down and took stock of the quarters; Jansen probably hadn't even heard him. Looking around, the barracks were about as military as you could expect, a wooden cabin with wooden bunk beds arrayed in four rows of six. No ornamentation of any kind and the mirror was the only decoration in the building. No surprises here to contradict the view from the ridge earlier.
"When do you think we'll get to meet the other cadets?" Aline said as she bobbed up and down on her bed. "There better be some good looking guys here, three years without any real attention is likely to kill me. I heard some of the other girls mention there being some striking young gentlemen from Trost District. Oh I hope I can have one, or two, or three." She sighed dreamily to herself as her mind went over innumerable scenarios straight out of ten cent romance novels.
Josh rolled his eyes and sat up. "Oh please, get your mind out of school girl mode. That's not why we're here; we don't have time to be caught up in all that young romance crap and we really don't have time for you to manipulate every guy you come across."
Aline shot him an irritated look and stuck out her tongue. "You're the one who pointed out that we need to make the most of this weren't you? You do it in your way, and I'll do it in mine. I don't know why you're acting so stiff all of a sudden, but get the stick out of your ass okay?"
"Yeah, but I didn't mean like that, so knock off the scowl. Sorry I snapped alright? Just don't expect the commander to let you do whatever you want. They're probably going to crack down hard on that kind of stuff."
The four of them turned when they heard the door open. Around thirty boys and girls came through and began claiming bunks. Aline, as if sensing vulnerable prey, immediately made a beeline for the cutest boy she could find and got to work. If only the poor fool knew what was going to befall him. At least he'd get the suffering out of the way early.
Jansen straightened up and did his best to look like he was playing it cool, casting his eyes over at a brown haired girl who had walked in. A wry smile crossed his lips. He sauntered over to introduce himself, brushing back his hair and popping his collar. None of his friends said anything, but he was making himself look like a complete ass. Aline wasn't really acting much better herself, but she was at least good at what she did. With Jansen, it mostly consisted of waiting on him to crash and burn.
He leaned against the bed frame. "Hey there beautiful, I couldn't help but notice you walking in, if you're looking for a bunk mate…"
"Are you going to finish that?" The girl said with a tinge of apprehension.
"What?" Jansen cocked an eyebrow.
"That, are you going to finish that?" She was pointing past him to the half roll of bread that was still on his unfolded napkin. Her mouth was watering and she looked about ready to snap.
"Well um, I think that maybe I was going to—" She didn't let him finish. She grabbed it and leapt up onto the top bunk next to him. She began fiendishly devouring the bread, grumbling in a predatory manner that was nothing short of disturbing. Jansen tried to interject, but was instantly met with a growl. He shrank away from the girl and collapsed back onto his bunk, utterly bewildered as to what had just happened.
Josh looked over at Albrecht and they both chuckled to themselves. It was always amusing the ways Jans got himself derailed when he tried to act all smooth around girls. Forget the theater; they had much more amusing entertainment. What's more, it never happened the same way twice. Josh turned back to unpacking his bag as a short guy with a buzz cut started talking to Albrecht. His eyes rose again as Aline skipped over and jumped into her chosen bunk. She had that smug look on her face again.
"You already creeped out one of the guys over there did you?" Josh said sarcastically.
Aline made a face at him. "No I didn't, as a matter of fact I think he likes me just fine. His name is Jean. If he's going to be the standard for guys around here, this is going to be the best time of my life. It'll be like having my own private fly fishing pond." She looked back and blew Jean a kiss and Josh rolled his eyes in annoyance. "He wants to become an artist one day. He even said he'd draw me sometime if I wanted."
"All of that's only because he doesn't know how you are yet. Give it a few days and he'll wise up. On top of that, he looks like a freaking horse. Besides, I told you, we don't have time for that here; we need to focus on our training and studies. We're here to be soldiers; this isn't a place to find love or whatever the heck you're after."
"You're just jealous because all the guys want me and you couldn't get a girl if you tried." She said bitterly.
"Like hell I couldn't! I could get a girl if really wanted one. I just don't…want one right now." The last part came out a little more awkward and flustered than the rest of it. Aline laughed at him and gleefully turned her attention on her next target and departing. Josh scowled a little bit before busying himself once again with his unpacking. "What does she know? I can get a girlfriend if I really wanted to. Aline's an idiot." He heard footsteps approaching somewhat cautiously, someone was distracting him from his task once again. He felt agitated. They'd been on the road for the past three days and he just wanted to relax a bit. At least have the decency to give him a few minutes to start settling in! He listened a little harder. They didn't sound like Albs footsteps and Aline was obviously busy making herself an idol for man worship. That only left one other person. Josh didn't bother to look up. "I'm not going to help you get with that girl so you can forget about asking. I'm not here to make up for your jackassery."
"Um, sorry to bother you, but is the top bunk taken?"
Josh looked up and into the face of a small blonde girl with big blue eyes. She looked a little upset and wrong footed by his comment. He cursed inwardly, hoping he hadn't hurt her feelings. That had easily been the dumbest thing he'd done all week. "Um no, no it's not; go right ahead and take it if you'd like. I'm really sorry for being rude; I thought you were someone else." He rubbed at the back of his neck, thoroughly embarrassed. Situational awareness must have been passed out to everyone but him when manners were being taught.
To his complete surprise the girl gave him a hug and smiled. "Thank you so much, I just didn't want to have to bunk over there. The hungry girl looks scary and the guy…well he seems like he's a bit of a pervert."
Josh looked over. "Pervert…oh you mean Jansen?"
"Is he a friend of yours?"
"We grew up with each other, yeah. He's one of the three people I came here with. It may not look it, but he's not exactly someone to lose any sleep over." He gestured over to a cluster of people on the far side of the room. That girl over there flirting with that group of guys is Aline, and that tall skinny guy over there is Albrecht. We all came here together from Karanese District."
"I bet it was really nice getting to grow up in the city; I've spent most of my life in the countryside. My sister used to tell me stories about the districts all the time though." The girl seemed to be daydreaming about it. "Speaking of nice, I really, really appreciate you letting me have the bed." The girl smiled again as she climbed up onto the bunk. She leaned over the side and looked down. "I'm Christa Lenz by the way, and you never told me your name?"
"Josh…I'm Josh Kassmeyer, nice to meet you." He reached up and shook her hand.
"Pleasure to meet you Mr. Josh; I'm sure we're going to be great friends. This should be an interesting experience for us." She gave him another big smile and vanished from view.
"I'm sure we will be good friends too." he whispered, not entirely to himself. She seemed like a nice girl, overly friendly perhaps, but she was really adorable. Kind of like a little sister. If things went smoothly, that was one new friend already. After only a couple of hours, he'd count that as a good start.
Now in a much better mood and with a minimal amount of further distraction, Josh went back to organizing his stuff and lied down to listen to the chatter of the others. From the sound of things the hungry girl had gone off in search of more food and Jansen had followed her out, perhaps seeking a way to win her attention. Even weird girls struck his fancy on occasion it seemed. Oddly enough, even with all the other people talking, it seemed a lot quieter without him jabbering on. During the trip, for hours on end, he'd babbled incessantly. Josh reached into his bag and pulled out the brand new journal his dad had given him the day he left home. He remembered that moment and it felt like a lot longer than three days ago. He could see the event go over again in his mind like he was watching a play.
"You'll be the first person in our family to serve in the military in a long time my son. We've been anticipating this, your mother and I both. Ever since the fall of Wall Maria I had a feeling the day would come when you felt the desire to serve, especially with all of your friends talking about it. I'd have liked to have you stay and run the print shop with me for another few years, but this is not my decision to make. I was going to wait until your birthday to give you this, but since I don't know if you'll be able to come home around then I thought I might as well give it to you now." Tomas Kassmeyer pulled a journal from his pocket, handing it to his son.
Josh's eyes widened. "Dad, you didn't have to get me this. This is premium leather bound; it must have cost you an arm and a leg to buy something like this for me."
"Oh nonsense, if my son wants to be a writer someday, he'll need a place to write down his ideas and stories while he's off defending the country."
He sighed and smiled anxiously. "Thanks dad. I'll write in it as often as I can, I promise." He looked down the hallway towards a slightly cracked door. "Mom still doesn't want to come out and say goodbye?"
"Let her have her time. There wasn't exactly a lot of time between when you told us about your plan and now. She's just having something of a difficult time processing it. She doesn't want you to go and get yourself killed. Joining the military is a noble, but dangerous choice, especially these days. You'll be back in a few months on leave; until then, write letters for us and she'll be fine. While you're out there, just take life one day at a time and you'll get through it. Now get going son, Albrecht and Aline are here and you three still have to pick up Jansen."
"I promise I'll make you and mom proud and I'll stay safe. I'll be back before you know it. I love you guys both so much." He gave his father a hug and grabbed his knapsack, walking out the door to meet his friends.
Three days and a ton of Jans' hyperactive ramblings later, here he was. The memory faded away, bringing him back to the here and now. He rolled over on his side, making a mental note to write home tomorrow as he put the notebook away.
Aline trotted back over to her bed and sat cross-legged as she surveyed her recent handiwork. "With so many boys interested in me, how can I possibly choose just one?" she laughed softly.
"You're a terrible human being you know that? You go around breaking hearts like it's a sport," Josh said to her offhandedly.
"It's not my fault I'm so charming. Besides I can pick and choose a little more carefully if I have options. I don't want to end up settling for the first guy to turn my way."
"That actually makes you sound even worse, just so you know. If nothing else, I hope you mature a hell of a lot during all this." Josh glanced up as he heard the door opening again. Two big men, both rather muscular looking, walked through it. Puberty hits some people like a fully loaded wagon. He looked down at his own physique as he put his bag under his bed. And some people just land smack dab in the middle of Durchschnitt Stadt. In the short time since their arrival, he'd seen a wide variety of individuals. It was amazing how many different types of people existed considering how small the human race was nowadays.
When his gaze drifted back up, a girl had come in just behind the two large guys. For some reason, his eyes did more than give her a passing glance. He found himself looking her over from head to toe and taking in her features. She had blonde hair like Christa's, but it was done up in a bun, a few strands hanging down in her face. Her eyes were a lovely ice-blue and there was a fire in them despite the expression of deep indifference that she bore. Though kind of short, she had this air of power flowing from her. It was as though her slender form contained within it the essence of a Walküre. The girl's movement reinforced this impression.
As she walked, her steps were so light it was almost like she floated across the ground. She went across the room to grab a bunk at the far end; his eyes followed her the whole way, utterly mesmerized. Never in his life had he laid eyes on a woman that looked more beautiful. When she passed by, as if sensing his gaze, she turned in his direction. Josh's heart skipped.
She put her hand on her hip. "Can I help you with something; is there a reason you're staring at me?" The girl said flatly.
Josh tried to say something, anything to explain himself, but the words were caught in his throat. She leaned ever so slightly closer, expression hardening. His eyes darted back and forth, trying to avoid her penetrating stare.
"Weirdo," she said before walking on. Josh's eyes still followed her and he fought for words to come out of his mouth. She got to the end of the room and lay down on a top bunk. He swore under his breath, annoyed that he wasn't even able to say hi to her and instead stared like an idiot. He grabbed his pillow and buried his face in it, grumbling to himself. He heard Aline laughing under her breath and looked over at her angrily before glancing towards the blonde girl's bunk again.
"My my, you look like you've been standing too close to a fire. I've never seen a face that red before. Somebody's already got a crush do they? What about not having time for romance? Aren't they going to 'crack down on us' for that?" Aline smiled at the irony.
"Just because I looked at a pretty girl, doesn't mean jack or shit about anything."
"Wow, I can't believe it's taken me this many years to realize that you're worse at lying than Jansen is at hitting on women. Actually, you might be even worse at that than he is; at least he's capable of talking to them when his perverted interests are aroused."
Josh turned over and laid face down in the pillow. "Aline, shut the hell up."