Chapter Three: Recruit.
"What's your name?" A tall man asked the boy beside Claudia. He was bald, imposing and frightening. He would taunt the recruits as he gave them the 'Rite of Passage', not hesitating to hit them if they gave the wrong reply. Claudia was in the 104th training squad, determined to become a part of the scouting legion. She waited as the man; Keith Shadis finally turned his attention to her. "What about you? Why are you here?" He barked. "My name is Claudia Rain. I am from Wall Sina."
Silence.
Claudia could almost hear their gasps, her fellow recruits murmuring in shock. Wall Sina was the innermost wall, protecting the Kingdom. It was where the recruits hoped to be, away from the titans. "Wall Sina?" Keith Shadis repeated. Claudia nodded her head, her eyes blankly looking forward. Without Levi, Claudia had reverted back to her gloomy and lifeless state. "Why would someone like you, a girl from Wall Sina want to join the 104th training squad? Aren't you afraid of dying?" He asked, his tone implying how stupid she was. But, she had sparked interest in the head instructor. It was rare for people in Wall Sina to join. Claudia gave out a rather forced laugh. "Sir, why would I be afraid of dying? The Titans killed me when they came That Day. I am dead inside." She replied bluntly.
"You were there on That Day?"
"Yes Sir."
Keith Shadis made no further comment, moving on to the next person. He did not give harsh treatment to those who had experienced the terrifying ordeal. He could see it in their eyes, the way they stood. Claudia was different. It was as if there was nothing inside her. She was simply an empty shell.
…..
"Hey there," A teenager came up towards Claudia, smiling rather arrogantly as he took the seat opposite her. Claudia recognized him as Jean Kirschtein, the teen who was headbutted by Keith earlier on after he had said he merely wanted to join the Military Police. Claudia gave a sigh, these kind of people annoyed her, she knew that many of them thought that her decision to leave Wall Sina was stupid but they didn't know anything.
No one did.
"Hey," Claudia muttered, trying to look busy as she stirred her bland soup. "I was wondering why would a princess from Wall Sina come here, you don't like the comfy life? Maybe you should let me take your place," He gave a smirk. Claudia looked up, her eyes suddenly ignited with rage as she stared into his eyes. "You don't know anything, so shut your mouth." Claudia said through gritted teeth. Jean stared back, his face turning a crimson red. He scratched his head, looking side to side. "What?" Claudia asked, getting annoyed.
"You have very beautiful eyes,"
"What?" Claudia felt her cheeks flush as she clicked her tongue. She had heard every comment made by her admirers but she never heard anyone compliment her eyes, her eyes were something that they feared. "Whatever," Claudia stuttered, mentally slapping herself for losing her cool. For a moment, there was an awkward silence as the pair looked at everywhere but each other. "I have to go," Claudia stood up, taking her plate. She took a few steps before stopping.
"Thank you, and you have nice hair, Jean."
…..
"Today you guys will be doing the 3D Maneuvre Gear aptitude evaluation. If you cannot balance yourself, you might as well pack your bags and leave." Keith announced. Claudia stood idly by the side as she waited for her turn. She noticed a tall girl wearing a scarf balancing gracefully. "She's good," One of the soldiers muttered. Claudia glanced around nervously, her heart beating fast. What if I don't make it? She thought anxiously to herself.
"Claudia Rain!"
Claudia jumped at the sound of Keith's commanding tone. She nodded her head as she moved towards the gear. She wore the harness, her hands trembling slightly as she harnessed herself. "Ready?" One soldier called, gripping a rope. Claudia gave him a nod as he pulled the rope down.
Almost immediately, Claudia found herself flung into the air. What the hell?! Claudia gasped in shock as she did a flip and somersaulted gracefully back down, much to her surprise. She could hear the buzz from the other soldiers as Keith walked towards her.
"Did I ask you to flip?"
"No sir, I'm sorry but I couldn't control it,"
"Take off your harness,"
Keith motioned the other soldiers to move, allowing ample space between them. He had a strong hunch about the girl and he had to test the theory out. "This is Rain's daughter, I'm sure she's as talented as him, or better," He said to himself. The fact that she flew in the air without any effort showed her talent. He gestured the trembling girl to face the harness. "Jaeger, Pick that stone up and aim for her head."
"S-Sir!"
Eren Jaeger protested, hesitant to hit the girl. "I don't think-"
"That's an order."
Eren picked the stone and with his eyes half closed, he threw the heavy rock towards her. All of a sudden, Claudia could almost see the rock. Her body instinctively moved to the right just as the rock whizzed pass her. Claudia stared in shock, turning towards Keith. "What just happened?" She asked. "I was right. You are incredibly talented. You possess the ability to know your enemy's moves. It's like intuition, very, very rare."
"W-what?"
"I'll monitor your progress; we might just send you somewhere else for training if you pass the other tests. Everyone, get back to the evaluation."
"How did you do that?" Eren asked in amazement. Claudia shrugged. "I'm not sure, my body just moved accordingly," He smiled, putting a hand on her shoulder. "You're going to become a very powerful soldier, Claudia."
"Let's hope so,"
…..
It had been a gruelling two months since the 104th trainee squad started their training. Claudia was getting used to the endless routine of harsh training and enduring insane sessions. She was down to her final evaluation before Keith made his judgement. Overnight survival training. They had drawn lots and she got Jean as her survival partner. They would be thrown into the jungle and forced to find their way out within two days, with a small ration of food and water.
"You ready to go, Princess?" Jean smiled. Claudia shook her head in annoyance. "Don't call me that," She warned. Since she arrived, she was often referred to as "The girl from Wall Sina" or simply "Princess". Many of the male soldiers had a crush on her and she was as popular as Christa, a small pretty blonde girl. Eren had gotten her as his partner, while his adopted sister Mikasa was paired with Shasha Braus.
Jean placed his hands in the air jokily. "Sorry," He gave a mischievous grin. Claudia rolled her eyes as she grabbed her survival kit. "Let's just go," She muttered. The pair were blindfolded and sat together on a horse as another soldier brought them to their designated area for the training. There, they would be left on their own devices. It wasn't as simple as it sound; in fact, some recruits had died trying to complete the mission. The place was full of poisonous snakes and at any point of time; a soldier would be tasked with attacking them.
"Cadets, you have to dismount now. Good luck." The soldier threw their bags on the ground and with the crackle from his whip; he rode off, leaving them alone.
"Jean, let's go," Claudia removed the blindfold to examine her surroundings. Lush trees surrounded them and the air felt humid. It was almost sunset and they had to move fast while daylight was still available. "Which way?" Jean asked. He pointed towards his left. "Let's go this way,"
"No, we should go right, there might be a river. Then we just follow the river and we'll be out in no time," Claudia started to move but Jean grabbed her backpack. "Look here Princess, I know more of this kind of stuff so just trust me," Jean pulled her towards his direction. Claudia shoved his hand away with an angry look on her face. "Excuse me but I think I know what to do-" Claudia let out a scream as she lost her footing. The ground was slippery and rather steep, she reached out for Jean as she fell backwards.
"Claudia!"
Hey guys! Back with a new chapter! I'm trying to expose Claudia to more people, and I think that she looks good paired up with Eren or Jean. What do you guys think? Please review!
