New chapter! I really had fun writing this so far and including the scenes from the anime gave me a good reason to rematch the series and man... it was amazing to relive the world of AOT again. It was like I had come home, embracing all of the characters once more. I don't own most of the characters or the world of AOT. They belong to Hajime Isayama.
"Fall back! Fall back to Trost District!" the commander yelled as the sound of booms came from the distance. We had already run into Titans on the way to our destination and now we are running to a hellhole filled with them. "What the hell is going on?!" Heinfield cursed as we turned our horses, his horse rearing up in protest. "Damn it I know!" I shouted back as we turned back and headed back to Trost District. A streak of bright orange lightning had came from the sky, striking the ground with a slam as the Colossus Titan appeared once more and destroyed the gate.
"We can't let them take the city!" the commander yelled as we hurried back to the city. The sounds of booms and roars could be heard from the distance as Titans swarmed into the city. We were about an hour's ride from the city and I cursed under my breath. What the heck was going on? Everything had been peaceful for the past few years and now what had happened at Shiganshina is happening again? This world is getting so messed up.
We rode in silence, saving our energy for our coming battle. As we approached, we picked up a few stray Titans, lumbering around in search of human prey. "I got this!" Heinfield yelled as he released his wires, which dug into the bricks of a building. Thank goodness we were in a desolated town with plenty of buildings for us to use our 3D maneuver gear. For once, it felt like the odds were not against us.
Moments later, a large chunk of flesh flew from the sky as the Titan crashed into one of the buildings, crumbling it to dust. "Save your energy! We still have Titans to kill!" I shouted as he grinned, putting back his blades. "You're about to get lucky! More up ahead!" he yelled as a large swarm of Titans emerged from behind the buildings. "Scatter!" Commander Erwin shouted, throwing out his arm and all of us switched to 3D maneuver gear, flying into the sky.
"Take this!" I shouted as I dove at a Titan, slicing into its arm before hitting home at its nape. It roared as it tumbled to the ground, flattening another Titan. "AH!" a scream came as a girl sliced into a Titan, it's head rolling to the ground. "Yes!" she shrieked as she came near me. I recognized her as Petra, one of the top students of her year. She smiled at me as she zoomed towards another Titan, decapitating it with ease. Man, I admire her agility. I feel so old…
A blurr passed me in a second and I could barely make out the person before the Titan before me crashed to the ground, narrowly avoiding flattening Uluo, who cursed. The man who emerged from the spray of blood dropped onto the roof of a building, clicking his tongue as he wiped his blades. Lance Corporal Levi was always the one to remain neat and tidy, even when he gets his blade dirty every single time he kills a Titan, which is very often. Even so, he was one of the strongest members of the Survey Corps, and he didn't even go for any sort of training whatsoever.
"Lance Corporal Levi!" Petra shouted as she landed next to him along with Uluo. "You could have avoided squashing me you know," he snapped as the Lance Corporal threw away his bloody cloth. "Well, would you have preffered to be eaten or squashed?" he muttered as Uluo fumed. Petra tried to separate the two and I sighed. They were the not so new yet not so old Levi Squad, a group of talented individuals under Lance Corporal Levi's command. More like a small group of little killers. I wouldn't have joined it even if given an invitation. I clash too much with him.
"Oi, Isabelle!" Heinfield shouted as he clapped at me. I snapped out of my reverie to see two Titans lumbering in front of us at full speed. "Let's go!" he yelled as lunged at the nearest one, leaving me to take the back. We spun in unison, slicing into our targets with ease. As they fell to the ground, we quickly regrouped with the refill team to get more gas for our tanks. With the rate we're going, we may not have enough to get to the city.
"Say, you wanna go for a drink after this shit is over?" Heinfield said as they handed him a tank. "No thanks. I have something to do," I said and he clicked his tongue. "Always the uptight one, eh?" he said as we took to the air once more. "If you have time to think about dates, focus on getting out of this shit alive first!" I shouted as I pointed at the walls. Wall Sina loomed in front of us, its white façade gleaming in the sun and crawling with Titans. Some men were on the top, shouting to each other as they fired shells at the Titans.
"Here we go!" I shouted to the gaggle of troops behind us and we shouted as we leaped into the fray, slicing the Titans in our path. Some cried out as they fell to their doom but we didn't stop to help them, knowing we would end up in the same situation if we ever did. "What's the situation?" I demanded as we made it to the top. "Thank the heavens you are here!" one of the Garrison Force soldiers gasped, his knees shaking. "We have been shelling this guys for an hour and they're still breaking into the city! As this rate we'll die!" he blurted as a roar filled the air.
"Now what?!" he shouted as he turned to look at Trost District. He froze in his tracks as we watched a large Titan walking toward us with a boulder on its shoulders. It walked towards the large hole in the wall, its eyes shining green. "What the heck is the Titan doing?!" Heinfield shouted as he watched. The Titan grunted a little, steam emitting from its mouth. As it walked, several members of the Training Corps zoomed past it, guiding it to the wall. "Don't tell me… it's gonna seal the wall!" one soldier shouted as others clambered to see.
"Don't stop shelling those Titans!" their Squad Leader yelled and they quickly got back to position. As the sound of cannons going off filled the air, we watched as the Titan carried the boulder closer to the wall. "Go! Eren!" a blonde boy shouted and the Titan roared, slamming the boulder into the wall with a slam. The boulder stuck fast, preventing any Titans from entering further. As the soldiers yelled in victory and leapt to cull any remaining Titans in Trost District, I could only looked in both amazement and horror as I watched Eren appear from the Titan's nape. "Eren Jaeger… just what the hell are you?" I whispered as I joined my comrades in battle.
….
We ended the day with eliminating all Titans within Trost District. The town was a wreck though, most of the buildings smashed and the place covered with blood and bodies. I pulled a cloth over my face, tying it so that the stench of rot wouldn't reach me. Even with it, I still felt like puking when I came across a large ball coated in slime, filled with the bodies of humans. "What the hell is this…" Heinfield muttered as he tried not to hurl. The sight was disgusting and some of the recruits that survived threw up or just went hysterical.
Titans do not have a digestive system nor an excretory system. Instead, when they have had their full meal of humans, they vomit them back out. I recalled one of the instructors telling us back when we were in the Training Corps. Even in all my years of fighting Titans, I had never seen this ever. "Damn it. It's going to take a while to identify all of them," Maurice, one of the men in charge of autopsy cursed as he removed a knife, preparing to cut out the bodies. "I can't do this," I muttered as I turned, my head spinning from both the stench and the idea of humans getting devoured only to be spit back out.
As I leaned against a wall and yanked down my mask, tears filled my eyes as I threw up. "You okay?" Heinfield asked as he came to me. He looked as bad as I did, his lips coated with vomit. "Can you please clean your mouth," I muttered as I wiped mine on my sleeve. "Say, isn't tomorrow the day the recruits have to pick their military faction?" he asked as I stood up. Poor kids. To have to deal with this on their very first day out of the Training Corps… I wonder how many of them would actually be mad enough to join the Survey Corps now after witnessing this hell…
….
The stars shone in the sky as around less than 200 recruits gathered in the open area. Quite a number of them had died in the battle of Trost District yesterday. Those who had died were burned in a large pyre, too many dead to count to have their own pyres. I watched from a corner as some of the recruits watched their friends burn, some of them on the ground sobbing. One boy had his hands on his head, sobbing uncontrollably while another stood still near one pyre, his face staring into the flames.
Poor people… I thought to myself as I watched them burn. After the whole Commander Keith going hysterical shit, I started to wonder whether any of this is even doing mankind any good. Also, after what I had witnessed with Eren earlier, I thought even more how ridiculous the idea of humans transforming into Titans seemed. As I smacked myself on the cheeks, I gazed at a gaggle of recruits, who were looking at the guy who had been staring at the pyre, who now turned to face them.
"Do you guys know which faction you're joining? Because I do," he said, his voice shaking so bad that his body followed suit. "I…" he started to say, bringing up his hand before grabbing with the other, as though he was about to curse himself. "I'm joining the Survey Corps!" he yelled before he broke down into tears, his body shaking. His friends only looked at him in pity, wondering whether he was out of his mind or if they should do the same thing. "Run while you still can…" I whispered to myself as ashes rained from the sky.
…
I walked down the corridor, my head facing out of the window. The sound of birds chirping made me breath a sigh of relief for a moment. It looked so peaceful even though hell had broke loose not long ago at Trost District. Speaking of which, I remembered Mona mentioning she had come from Trost District and I wondered what Leila was up to now. She had been assigned to a different unit not long ago and I wondered if she had even survived the battle. As I tried to free my brain from these thoughts, a slightly familiar voice made me snap back to reality.
"Big Sis Isabelle?" a boy asked and I turned to face Eren Jaeger, who had the Survey Corps cloak around him along with a large smile. "You know this kid?" Uluo asked as I hugged him, surprising the boy a little. "Yeah. We came from the same town," I said as Uluo clicked his tongue. "Come on. We still have cleaning to do," he started to say when I yanked Eren away. "I'll deal with Levi later. You go do the cleaning," I said and he snorted, turning his heel and stomping down the hall.
"What's up, kiddo? You officially in the Survey Corps?" I asked and he nodded. "Yeah, due to various reasons," he said and I could imagine what those reasons were. "Wow, you've gotten big," I grinned as I rumpled his hair. As he smiled, I thought how Jon would be slightly older than him if he was still alive. "You still got the cloak I gave you?" I asked. "Yeah. I have it in my room as a souvenir," he said as I knocked him in the head. "Cloaks are meant to be worn, you know," I said. "Oi not my fault they gave me a new one," he said.
"So the choosing ceremony is tonight. Are you going there?" I asked. "Lance Corporal Levi allowed me to go but I'm not to appear in public," he groaned, his face downcast. "No worries. I'll be sure to tell you if any of your buddies signed up for the Survey Corps," I said. "Really, Big Sis?" he blurted as I smiled. "You know, I go by Squad Leader Isabelle around here," I said as he flushed a little. "Oh, its just that I'm used to calling you that," he muttered as I held out my hand.
"Why don't we start over, eh?" I said as he smiled, taking the hand. "I'm Isabelle Lightbane. But you may call be Izzy for short, or if you want, Squad Leader Isabelle," I grinned as he snorted. "Showoff," he said as I grappled him, rubbing his head. "Oi, what do you think you're doing?" a stern voice said and we looked up to see Lance Corporal Levi donned in a white cloth over his mouth and head. I stifled a giggle, since he looked so much like a maid. "Nothing. Well, of you go Eren," I said, waving a goodbye as the Lance Corporal snatched him by the scruff and lead him down the hall.
…
That night, the chattering of voices filled the air as the recruits decided which military faction they were going to join. Some were so nervous that they were sobbing on the ground, unsure of what to do. Only some remained calm and I recognized the boy and girl who were always with Eren standing close to the stage. A small gaggle of Survey Corps soldiers, me along with members of the Levi Squad stood backstage, Petra and another man holding onto a large paper. "What's that for?" I whispered and Petra shrugged. "Just something the Commander wanted to show them," she whispered back as the Commander walked onto the stage.
"I'm Erwin Smith, Commander of the Survey Corps," he began and some of the recruits gulped. The Survey Corps was considered to be a death sentence for those who joined. "Today you choose where you'll be enlisting. And to be blunt, I'm here to recruit soldiers for the Survey Corps," he said, some inward groans coming from members of the crowd. "I'm sure the latest Titan attack has you questioning your strengths and you have your doubts on joining the Survey Corps. However, through the battle, mankind has met unprecedented progress in our battle against the Titans. The key is Eren Jaeger," he said and some whispers started to fill the air.
"His willingness to risk his life for mankind justifies his allegiance to us. Furthermore, not only did he help us stop the Titans, but he also provided us a way to unveil the Titans' mystery!" he said and people started to gasp, me included. He started to tell the crowd about the key being based in Shiganshina in the ruins of Eren's old house, where his father had given him a key to access the basement the day Shiganshina was taken. The Commander further explained the plan he had came up with to retake the town and Petra and her partner unfolded the plans, letting all recruits to see it.
Is he crazy? By showing this to the recruits, they would be even more scared in joining the Survey Corps! Are you trying to drive potential members away? I thought to myself as he listed down the possibilities of them surviving in their time in service and the numbers were not pretty. I felt grateful I had even survived eight years in the Corps. "Those of you are willing to endanger their lives for us, please remain here. Please, ask yourselves. Are you capable of offering your lives to mankind?!" he shouted. The recruits stood silently, some rocking on their feet. "That is all. Those of you who wish to enlist elsewhere, you may leave," he said.
Silence filled the air for a while as we gaped at him, sure that he had driven off potential members. "Commander, don't you think you went too far? You may scared them off," one man said as the Commander watched the recruits. At his words, the recruits began to leave the square one by one, soon the gates flooded with them. As I watched the spectacle unfold before me, I remembered my own choosing ceremony. I remembered how everyone who I had thought to be my comrades abandoned us in fear of saving their own skins.
As the recruits filed out, those that remained behind stood their ground, some too afraid to speak. Some seemed to be having a battle in their minds, probably debating whether they should even be here when the odds of them surviving are so low. The guy who had volunteered to join the Survey Corps from yesterday howled, his cries filling the night sky.
When the ordeal was finally over, only around 20 recruits remained. "Could you die if given the order to?" Commander Erwin asked. "We don't want to die sir!" one man shouted and the commander smiled. "I see… I like your expressions. Now then, I accept all of you who remain as new Survey Corps soldiers! This will be a true salute! Offer your lives!" he shouted as he slammed a fist on his heart. The recruits followed suit, shouting as they saluted their new Commander. As they pledge allegiance to the Survey Corps, I smiled to myself. "Eren Jaeger, you truly have amazing friends," I whispered to myself.