Attack On Titan: Reluctant Heroes Of The North Walls

In the year 845 the Colossal Titan appeared and smashed a hole in Wall Maria leaving humanity in disarray. Afterwards a select few individuals joined the military ranks as Cadets to serve in one of the three corps. Survey Corps dedicated to the survival of humanity and to take back the outer lands from the titans. The Garrison who protects the walls and helps defend the last bastion of humanity inside the walls. And last, but not least The Military Police, which only accepts the top 10 cadets in each class, are responsible for securing the capital inside Wall Sina. Most of thecadets presented with the opportunity take this posting because it means a more stable and safer livelihood in the interior. However, Eren Yeager and his friends set a new precedent by passing up their chance of safety in the capital and joining the Survey Corps with the sole intention of destroying every titan they encounter. Tales of Eren and the Survey Corps battleshave reached all districts inside Wall Rose and inspired a new generation of recruits to take up arms for humanity. After a shaky start to their military training theirstory takes them to theNedlay district in the far North.

The summer had been long. The heat had been oppressive, and made anyone think twice before leaving the safety of cool shade. This was normal, except for a small group of people on the outskirts of the district where the training grounds were located. Here, the determination of the cadets and that of their instructors drove them out into the harsh and unforgiving sun each day. Their hard work would soon pay off as these young men and women finish their last day of training before their final exam.

The sun began to slowly creep behind the distant hills, and a light breeze that softly rustled the autumn leaves cooled the evening air. One could say that the picturesque landscape and smell of wild flowers made for peaceful scene. That peace would be shattered the instant you heard the booming voice of Keith Shadis as he commands his team of cadets. Shadis had been an instructor with the military for many years. His sole job was to take children and turn them into adults. More than that it was to mold warriors. His success at his job had given him a reputation for producing some of the finest cadets in the military. Sometimes though, no matter how good the instructor is there will be a recruit that will repeatedly falls short of expectations. What set Keith Shadis aside from his peers was his belief that no recruit was helpless, and when he found one that couldn't meet standards his focus would narrow on that individual, pushing them sometimes in harsh ways in an attempt to make them reach their maximum potential. In the past three years Instructor Shadis had zeroed in on one such cadet.

"Get your out of shape ass in gear Bellows! You need to move faster than that if you don't want to be lunch for the first titan you see!" belted Instructor Shadis. The cadets ran 7 miles around the boarder of the camp to conclude each training day. Each day Cadet Bellows would finish far behind the rest of his squad. After the run Shadis dismisses the squad back to their barracks and proceeds to his office to write character profiles for each of his cadets' in order to document their progress and give their future commanding officers insight into each person.

Zach Bellows:

Initial-Lazy, no athletic ability, unaware of surroundings, optimistic, chooses to see the best in people, incredibly selfless. Monitor closely.

Final-Has shown progression, still the weakest in the squad when it comes to physical abilities. ODM gear skill is below average. Consistently selfless in his actions. Truly believes in the concept of teamwork

Jarok Bardon:

Initial-Small in stature (could pose a problem with hauling gear), excellent motivation, doesn't appear to be too friendly with peers, could be a promising recruit.

Final-Initial worries about his size proved to be wrong, demonstrates exceptional athletic abilities, near the top of the class with ODM gear and sword technique. Although he is able to work as part of a team when necessary he still exhibits distrust of other recruits and prefers to keep to himself.

Jessica Lee:

Initial-Intelligent and resourceful, above average in physical abilities, she is quick to become infatuated with peers and it is my assumption that rejection makes her more attracted to the individual.

Final-Initial assumptions on attractions proved correct, despite her constant distractions she has done well in classroom and field work, above average with ODM gear and swords, if someone can get her to focus on training more than her male teammates she could greatly expand her skills.

Samuel Rodriguez:

Initial-Appears to possess a high level intellect, overly confident bordering on arrogant, physical capabilities are not noteworthy.

Final-Remarkable ability to analyze situations and formulate correct course of action (this skill becomes irrelevant when he lets his arrogance cloud his judgement), nearly failed ODM training due to lack of balance, while he has shown improvement I would not advise sending him into battle. My recommendation is a position as an advisor or strategist.

Samantha Stewart:

Initial-Incredible understanding of ODM gear, greatly exceeds rest of the class in all aspects, exceptional skill has led to extreme arrogance, frequently looks down on and belittles peers, rising star but needs to get her attitude under control.

Final-Top of the class with ODM gear, sword technique, classroom work, field work, and overall skill. Attitude continues to be a problem and leads to conflicts with teammates. Her overconfidence makes her act without thinking and can put her and members of the squad in danger.

Greg Holloman:

Initial-Doesn't appear to be exceptional in any one area, but seems to be very well rounded. Very reliable and trustworthy. Dislikes bullies, he has stood up for Recruit Bellows on multiple occasions. Also comes across as a bit of a ladies man.

Final-Has shown good improvement in all skills, still not considered at or near the top of the class. He shows respect to everyone he meets and because of this he has become somewhat of the anchor for the squad and attempts diplomatic solutions to any problems that occur. He also continues to stand up for and encourage Recruit Bellows and anyone else who is targeted for any deficiency in their skills.

Back at the barracks,Jarok, wanting to enjoy to refreshing night air, decidedto take his dinner outside. As he was finishing his meal he heard loud shouting coming from inside. He was hoping to get some rest after the long day and noise would certainly make that difficult. He opened the door into the dimly lit common area to find Samantha harshly scolding Zach. "Watch where you're going you fat piece of shit! You spilled soup all over my uniform!" shrieked Samantha. With his head down Zach timidly mutters "I'm sorry…" Samantha scoffs at his apology and continues her barrage of insults. "Sorry doesn't clean up this mess. Why is someone so useless even here?!" Drawn by the commotion Greg enters the room and cuts Samantha off mid rant. "Hey! Just because you're betterthan everyone else doesn't mean you can come in and shit on other people. Keep burning bridges and one day you'll find no one is there to have your back!"Samantha simply rolled her eyes at this and stormed towards the exit before stopping and looking back to say "I'm not good,I'm the best. Your friend should be more careful in the future and so should you." After witnessing the conclusion of the exchange Jarok approached Greg and let out a sign of relief. "Good thing that's over, now I can get some sleep. We have a big day tomorrow." Greg walked over to his bed and pulled back his blankets. "You're right, I just hope we can get along tomorrow to make it through the exam," replied Greg as he blew out his candle. Unknown to the men inside, Jessica was spying on them from outside the window eager to catch an eyeful. "Damn it, they didn't take anything off. What a drag," she said with a disappointed look on her face. At that moment Samuel snuck up from behind and tapped her on the shoulder. "What are you doing here Jessica, are you secretly a peeping tom?" he asked with a sly smile. A look of embarrassment spread across Jessica's face as she knew she was caught. "No need to fear, the guy you're looking for is right here," boasted Samuel with a confident look on his face. Jessica quickly turned her back and her embarrassment evolved to anger. She then grabbed a nearby wooden plank and cracked it over Samuel's head and snarled "not if you were the last man on earth jerk." She then retreated to her room leaving a unconscious Samuel lying in the dirt.

The next day all the recruits emerge earlier than normal to a cold and overcast morning. The weather looked like it would take a change for the worse before the day was out. It left a somewhat ominous feeling lingering in the air. This didn't sit well with some of the recruits but that didn't matter not, it was time for the final exam that would determine whether they passed or failed their training. The exam was to take place in a forest around the Trost were several steam powered hydraulic titans in the trees that would spring forward at a moment's notice. It would be the cadet's job to slay these mechanical beasts by cutting the cloth padding attached to the back of its neck, while demonstrating efficient use of ODM the cadets were caught or hit by the titans they would fail and would be forced to go work in the farmlands. For anyone who volunteered to fight for humanity and risk their lives, being sent back to society as a failure was considered the worst fate that could befall them. The young troops,brimming with anticipation form up at the starting line. Instructor Shadis ensured his squad was ready to begin and gave them some words of encouragement before they ventured into the dark and dense forest. "Today all of you will have the opportunity to showcase what you have learned since you started your training. Each of you came here of your own free will because you have a desire to see humanity thrive outside these walls we have called home for so long. That will be accomplished through the sweat and blood of your sacrifices and the sacrifices of all your brothers and sisters who came before you and those who will come after you. Exceed the expectations the generation before you set and strive to set the bar higher for the next. Good luck to all of you today…you'll need it." The recruits placed their fists over their hearts as a salute to their instructor and with that Keith Shadis raised his flare gun and sent a spiral of green smoke high into the sky signaling the start of the exam.

The squad dashes toward the forest and when they are within range begin using their ODM gear to fly high up into the trees. Constantly scanning their surroundings so not to be caught off guard therecruits split up and begin hunting the colossal machines. Not long into the exam a titan springs out from behind a tree. Samantha dodges its clench, loops around a nearby tree and accelerates towards the weak spot at the nape of the neck with her swords clenched fiercely in her hands. With one fluid motion slices a large and deep piece from the lifeless training dummy. Had this one been the real thing it would have been expertly slain. She smirks and says to the other recruits "Samantha one, you chumps zero!" and started laughing in a condescending manner that brought the blood of the other recruits to near boiling. Her laughter was soon interrupted by the crisp sound of ODM blades ripping through a titan's cloth padding. It was Jarok scoring his first kill of the exercise. "Now what were you saying Samantha?" Jarok challenged as he stood triumphantly on the head of the deactivated titan with crossed arms. Samantha shrugged off Jarok's comment and flew deeper into the forest looking for more titans to her search Samantha noticed Zach closing in on a mechanized titan and screamed "Not today you fat fuck!"She flew over and bumped Zach out of the way to score the titan kill for herself, inadvertently causing him to lose control and sending him towards a tree. Zach hit his head hard on the tree trunk rendering him unconscious, causing him to fall to the ground below. "No one will miss you fat ass, you were useless anyways," said Samantha without looking back as she took off deeper into the forest. After an hour of slaying the fake titans the cadets all gathered on the branch of a tall tree feeling exhausted from their exam. The titan kills where as follows: Samantha - 11, Jarok - 8, Greg - 6, Jessica - 5, and Samuel - 2. "I think that's all of them. There can't be any left, but has anyone see Zach?" asked Greg. Everyone exchanged looks of confusion and shook their heads except Samantha. "It's not like him to run off from the group like that. I have to find him," Greg proclaimed. Before Greg could take off in search of his friend the ground started to rumble and some nearby tree started to shake."I didn't know these practice titans moved. It must be a new model, but it doesn't matter, you might want to watch this Jessica," Samuel boasted as he moved towards the rustling trees. As Samuel drew his swords a 14 meter titan emerged from the trees. In one swift motion the monster caught Samuel with its mouth and bit both of his legs off. The sound of bones cracking and sight of blood spurting from the mangled extremities of their teammate froze the remaining cadets in place. The titan had bitten Samuel's legs off just above the knee and the rest of his body fell from the creatures grasp and landed on a nearby branch. "Is…is this part of the exam…? Because that was real!"screamed Jessica. The cadets were watching the scene unfold in an intense panic. Samuel, in shock from having his legs bitten off let out a blood curdling scream for help as the titan swallowed what was left of his legs. With a hungry look on its face the titan starts to move towards the group. Samantha steeled herself and shouts to the other cadets, "Don't be scared, it's time to show what we've learned. Prepare to fight!" With this cry to battle the group engages their ODM gear and flies toward the titan.

To Be Continued …..