A/N: Hey, people! I hope you enjoy this long chapter! Ad to those who ask, "Will there be personas?", I'm sorry, but since there's no more trigger (i.e. Izanami, Nyx, Death) Personas cannot materialize, but that's not to say there won't be any.
Personas will NOT be present. For now.
this is a LOOOONG chapter, harkening back to my Days of Summer days when I had over 4k words. Review!
Read and review! Ad enjoy!
Scouting along the dusty, war-torn land, Eren Yaeger stopped to get his bearings. He was above a hill, overlooking a ruined village, which seemed safe to stay. Marking the position on his map, he clambered down to the campsite, where he hooted three times.
"Who's there?!" A voice demanded.
"Its me." He said.
"Hurry up!" The voice said as he entered the hidden camp. Within the makeshift camp, was Mikasa Ackerman, Jean Kirstein, Krista Lenz and Sasha Blouse.
Mikasa slung her battered musket and sat by the fireside, "What did you find?"
"A village," Eren said as he laid out the map, "Just about north-east beyond the hill."
"Any signs of life?" Sasha asked as she prepared to cook a rabbit.
"None. Not even those Shadows." Eren said with disdain.
"No Shadows, eh." Jean remarked, "Did you see Armin and Connie? I'm pretty hungry, and with Potato Girl's appetite, we'd probably be eating ashes and charred meat... She's trying to mince the meat so it looks like there's not much, but she's not fooling anyone..."
"S-Shut up!" Sasha cried, "Don't call me that!"
"Tch... Potato Girl!" Jean muttered.
Eren snorted, and suppressed a laugh. Mikasa handed Eren a chocolate bar, but he declined and gave it to Krista, who was poking the fireside embers.
Just then, they heard a noise.
"Thunder!" Eren shouted, as the others readied their weapons, "Thunder, or we will open fire!"
"Lightning!" A voice from behind a wall cried, as Connie and a scout arrived, with full packs.
"Done foraging?" Eren asked.
"Yeah, Armin and the rest found a good haul." Connie said, "A convenience store along the road."
"Ran into a few Shadows, but nothin' we couldn't handle." Another scout said said carelessly.
"Guys, what did we talk about?" Eren groaned, "Don't attract unnecessary attention, and stay off the road! Who knows what could be watching?"
"We know, we know..." Connie said wearily, "Its just that we were really hungry."
"We're all hungry." Jean said, "But that shouldn't mean you should risk your lives for a few boxes of animal crackers-"
"I would." Sasha said quickly.
"-We need each other now more than ever, especially in this messed up world... That aside, we should eat." Eren said.
"Agreed." Jean nodded, "Anyway, where's Armin?"
"Armin and I split up along the hill. He should be making his way back here by now." Eren said, munching on a strip of beef jerky.
Just then a cry rang. The group looked outside to see Armin being pursued relentlessly by three Shadowmancers, corrupt Exiles who can call forth Shadows, who had been tracking them for days.
Cursing, Jean picked up a Hunting rifle and fired a warning shot. The three stopped and summoned several Shadows.
"Aw crap! Its those clowns again!" Jean cried. Sasha grabbed the gumbo pot lid. Jean checked the ammo, Krista and Armin hurriedly stuffed their belongings inside their bags, Mikasa readied herself and Sasha... Sasha quickly stuffed the food in her mouth for "safekeeping".
Eren unsheathed his double swords as the group fled. Connie turned around, slashed the nearest Shadows, and continued running. They had no horses here, but there were no Titans to outrun them. The other scout fell to a dart thrown at him.
"We need to regroup with Hanji-san and Levi-san's group!" Eren panted while they carried their supplies. They ran 500 meters from the Shadows, but they were still being followed.
"Jean?! Can't you shoot them, or something?!" Eren screamed.
Jean cocked his outlandish rifle he found while foraging. It had a shorter barrel, and a strange magazine underneath. He pulled the trigger, sent out a spray of bullets and was blown back by the recoil, but took out six Shadows, and wounded a Shadowmancer, forcing his companions to aid him.
They found their way across a narrow pass, where the Survey Corps had planned an expedition. They found an abandoned house underneath the shadow of the mountains.
"We should be safe here," Eren panted, "Sasha, Connie, Krista and Armin, look around for food. Jean, Mikasa and I will secure the place."
They went to it. Eren blocked the windows with a bookshelf, and Mikasa and Jean fixed up several holes in the wall.
Armin returned, "This place seems like a safehouse... There's food all in the cupboards. And the place is pretty secure... They even have hay in the garage..."
"And look up that hill by the river; Looks like some kind of castle." Jean said, "Must be locals there-"
"Look!" Connie suddenly cried and pointed through a crack in the wall. The group hurried toward him and peeped through the hole.
Outside, was a line of heavily armored Warriors, with shields and spears in the frontlines. Huge Katanas were slung at their backs. Behind them as a solid phalanx of Samurai-esque men, and behind the shield wall were archers with flaming arrows.
Then, a horn was sounded as a disorganized mob of Shadows trampled their way toward them. The archers fired a volley, killing several, but they still ran on. The vanguard valiantly charged as the apparent general, a blue haired boy with a bastard sword, deflected a blow with his spear, knocked a Shadow aside with his shield, hurled his spear at an oncoming Shadow, sliced through another's stomach and stabbed the next through the gut. The Shadows were like a giant wave that broke on a rocky shore of the vanguard.
Then, the general shouted at another soldier, who pulled out a gun and fired a green flare. A thundering from the distance was heard as a company of horsemen charged at the Shadows from the right and crushed them underhoof. The leader was a reckless red head, who seemed reckless, using a lance to impale the hapless Shadows who were caught in the crush. Her red hair flew with the wind as her companions fired their carbines at the Shadows, who retreated. Their Shadowmancers tried to escape, but were mowed down by Marksmen riding All-Terrain Vehicles..
"Amazing..." Krista gasped, "Those guys were... I mean..."
"At least we know they're not mindless barbarians..." Jean muttered.
"Badass..." Connie said in admiration, "That was AWESOME!"
Too late to chide Connie, they group pulled him out of sight, but it was in vain.
"Over there!" Someone cried, pointing toward the derelict house they were hiding in. As if they knew exactly which house they were in, many managed to enter by the windows. They were probably scouts.
Unsheathing their blades, Eren, Mikasa, Jean, Connie and Armin took their positions. Sasha and Krista stood at the rear.
A thin scout raised his sword, "Shadowmancers... I've been waiting a long time for this..." He said and the rebels approached.
Eren engaged the smaller rebel and the rest jumped in. Mikasa stomped on two rebels, and parried blows with her swords, Connie savaged a rebel and Jean fired at a rebel with a shield.
A rebel looked at Sasha, who looked at her own dubiously crafted gumbo pot lid. The rebel advanced as she smacked him in the head, ducked under a sword blow, smacked another rebel in the head. Another stabbed, but Sasha weaved through it and brought the lid down on the rebel's skull and finally ended the assault by flinging the pot at Jean opponent like a frisbee, knocking the final rebel down. With several of their comrades down, the remaining were easily mopped up.
"What the fuck...?" Jean muttered in shock.
"Damn Sasha... That was tight." Connie breathed, "I will never diss kitchen wares again..."
"You bet. I'm wondering what a frying pan would do..." Sasha said.
Then, a horn was blown and several voices from outside shouted and gave orders.
"Time to go-" Eren said as he stood up, but several men stormed the place. Eren drew his blade again, as everyone else stood behind Mikasa, Jean and Eren, who aimed at the intruders with their guns.
"Don't be stupid now." A heavily armored rebel said, as they took cover, "We outnumber you three-to-one. You're outgunned, outmatched and outnumbered. And those guys you knocked out were just scouts. Care to try your luck with us?"
The leader stepped in. He was blue haired. Accompanying him was a guy who looked like Connie's older brother, with a goatee and a fiery haired woman with fierce red eyes.
Opposing the heavily armed men were 6 starving, exhausted survivors, who had three battered and worn assault rifles, one revolver, a sling, three knives and a very formidable gumbo pot lid. The very thought of putting a fight seemed beyond insanity. Eren gripped his sword tighter.
"If you want to make this fun," The red head said neutrally, pulling out his sword slightly, "Make a move."
After a tense standoff, Eren slowly laid down his sword and sat down. The others followed.
"Minako, go bind them." The leader said, "Junpei take their stuff. If they resist, knock them out."
"Alright, whatever you say man." The scrawny rebel named Kenji said and waved for a few rebels to bind them.
Eren looked forlornly at the soldier confiscating his 3DMG, "If you even scratch that, I swear I will end you."
"Tough words coming from a weaponless dog!" The soldier spat, and smacked Eren in the head.
Jean kept shifting and shuffling.
"Don't move now. I don't want to be disemboweling people right before dinner... Makes me lose my appetite." Minako said.
Suddenly, Jean whipped a switchblade and slashed at Minako. It cut her deeply below the left eye, right into her cheek.
"Ow! What the fuck!" Minako hissed, "You little shit!" She hissed and kicked Jean in the groin.
"Ohhhhh!" Jan winced in pain.
"Next move, and this switchblade will be the next to touch you there. Understand?!"
"...yeah." Jean huffed.
"Serves you right, asshole." Eren sighed.
Immediately after, the rebels placed black sacks over their heads and threw them inside a cart. They then waited for an hour and a half, in a road with winding and rocky roads, which bruised them painfully, until they stopped and heard the creaking of a massive door.
"We're here, vagabonds," Kenji said beside them as he took off their covers, "The Special Administrative Zone for Exiles."
The group looked in awe at a castle, enclosed with a massive wall. They could hardly believe their eyes.
"City for Exiles?" Eren said in wonder, "I thought all the cities inside the Desolation were overrun and wiped out?"
"Not all." Kenji said, "Take it from me, those Shadows tried their best. Luckily, we had the Exiles to help us."
"Exiles...?" Eren wondered aloud. Technically, they WERE Exiles, but the term somehow didn't feel appropriate. And to his understanding, Exiles and Landers had always been at war, yet now they seemed to work hand-in-hand against the Shadows. Their reports of the IDF were wrong. They weren't conquerors, they were unifiers.
As they were carted into the town square, several hecklers shouted abuse and threats at the prisoners, mistaking them for Shadowmancers, and hurled objects at them.
"Hey, watch it you little punk!" Jean spat when a little kid threw a rotten tomato at him, "Kenji! Are you guys going to resettle us here?"
"Well, normally, you would, but since you were caught trespassing, stealing our supplies and assaulting an IDF Officer-" he looked pointedly at Jean, "You'll all be tried as criminals, probably get executed and have your bodies dumped into the Iwatodai River for the fish to eat."
"That's terrible!" Armin cried.
"Yeah, I know."
They were taken into a hill with a colossal square building. Inside, was a round council room, where it was as bright as morning, even though it was night outside. Arranged around a massive table with the map of the Shadowlands and Iwatodai, every city, every state, etched on the petrified wood. They were met by seven imposing leaders, which included the ones who captured them.
"Who are these people?" The older red head asked.
"Spies, Lady Kirijo." A rebel cried, "We found them lurking up a safehouse, which they busted in."
"Spies?!" Jean hissed, "Look here, asshole..."
"Well, if you are not spies, then who are you?" Kirijo asked coldly
The Survey Corps remained silent.
"What are you, if not Spies?" Kirijo mused, staring at each and every one of them hard and carefully, "Hm? Dark Exiles? You seem too well dressed and well mannered to be. Stormdrums? Frostfoots? Bloodborn? What Exile tribe did you come from?"
They remained quiet.
"Refusing to speak? Execute them." She said without hesitation.
"Yes, milady."
As they were being led away, Eren broke free, "This is bullshit! I demand to see who is in charge here!" He cried.
"I'm in charge." Kirijo said, "And the sentence has been passed."
"If you could be so bold enough to pass such a harsh sentence so easily, I dare you to swing the blade yourself!" Eren cried mockingly, "We'll declare you cowards if not."
"Hey, speak for yourself Eren! Unlike you, the rest of us aren't suicidal bastards!" Jean hissed.
She smirked, "... Fetch me my blade."
"Heh!" Eren scoffed defiantly.
"Eren! Shut up!" Connie hissed.
"Would any of you care to join your friend?"
The entire party shook their heads.
"Is this how justice is meted out here? I thought this place was civilized, but you're no better than the Shadows that plague this land!" Eren cried passionately.
The entire crowd outside roared with anger, demanding their immediate execution as spies.
"I personally thought they touched a rather important issue about our justice system." Fuuka squeaked to a man standing beside her.
"I beg to differ." A blonde grizzled drill instructor grunted as he threw tomato at Sasha, who hungrily ate it.
"Fuuka-san is right!" Minako cried, "This is injustice. They at least deserve the right to plead their case. If executing them without trial is our vision of peace and harmony, then I won't have any part in it. Except that bastard who gave me this beauty scar. He can hang."
The crowd roared, making Jean nervous.
Mitsuru mused, "Very well... Plead your case, then." She said as she continued swishing her blade around.
"Okay. We're from the Survey Corps-" Eren began.
"What exactly were you 'surveying'?" The blue haired leader, Minato, said.
Eren perked up and kept quiet.
Armin stepped in front, "O wise Leaders!" He implored, "Is it a crime to be lost in a desolate wasteland, to yearn for food and for water and to be trapped between the overwhelming might of the Shadows and the Insurgency?" He cried dramatically.
"Defence Force." The younger redhead corrected irritably.
Lady Kirijo nodded, and pointed her blade at Armin, "It IS a crime to enter our territory without consent. Do remember you're trampling on our lands, where you undoubtedly troubled our people by thieving from our safe houses, waylaying our scouts and spying on our lands. Also you managed to rile up the Shadows with your racket. After all the trouble and grief you caused us, we have the right to know what it is you're doing here."
"What else is there to know? We were hungry. We were lost. We were being followed by Shadows. What more do you people want to know?!" Jean spat venomously.
The tall man with a buzz cut laughed. The grizzled blonde drill instructor, Lee, said, "Yeah... I know you guys aren't skilled as we are when it comes to Shadows, but what kind of numbskull would light a fire on top of a hill with a bunch of supernatural hunting machines at their tail?"
Everyone in the group looked at Sasha, who whistled innocently.
"We've dealt with these things before!" Eren insisted.
"Yeah, right, and my mother's a werewolf." The blonde drill instructor laughed.
"I can prove it!" Eren cried, biting his hand so hard that he drew blood. To Eren's dismay, nothing happened. He bit his hand harder, tears rolling down his cheek as his teeth bit into his muscles and into his bone.
"This is weirding me out..." Minako whispered.
"Me too. Maybe he's got a mental condition?" Minato whispered back
"Disarmed, eh?" The redheaded lady shook her head at a guard, "Take these people and lock them away in the Soundless Hall until we decide what to do with them..."
The group were then taken to the cellars and into a dark, dank dungeon where it smelled wet, dusty and very earthy. The stairwell that led to it wound down several meters below the surface. They were finally led to a dark cell and thrown in.
"Hey! This isn't a Hall! It's a JAIL!" Jean shouted and kicked the door, "Of all the things that can happen, we get captured by the enemy! This is so embarrassing!"
"Jean, calm down." Eren said, "Nothing we can do now but wait."
"Wait?!" Jean fumed, "That's what THAT guy did, and look at him now!" He hissed, pointing at a skeleton on the opposite cell.
"If we're gonna die, then so be it..." Krista said bravely, "But I want to die young and beautiful, not trapped here in this dirty, wet hole!"
"Me too..." Sasha nodded, "I don't want to decay like that corpse next to Jean and Eren..."
"CORPSE?!" Eren and Jean jumped in shock and backed away from the body next to them.
"Heh, I bet they locked him and his buddy across the cell for stealing a mouthful of bread." Armin giggled.
"Armin! This is serious!" Sasha cried, "No time for books!"
"Sorry, sorry..." Armin said sheepishly, "Just that his story gets me."
"We have to get out of here!" Connie cried.
"Let me figure something out..." Armin said.
After discussing the details of his plan to the rest, Armin rubbed his hands.
"Ready?"
"Yeah."
"Hey guard!" Connie shouted, "Come over here quick. I need to 'squeeze the lemon'."
The guard stopped playing solitaire to come over the cell, "What?"
"You heard me... I need to 'squeeze the lemon'." Connie said.
The guard raised an eyebrow, "So? Go piss in the latrine bucket."
"I can't do it in here, I'm shy." Conmie said, "That guy over there might look." He said, pointing to Jean.
The guard nodded, "Yeah, that's one beefcake I wouldn't want to piss right next to at the urinals... But you've gotta think I was born yesterday to believe that I'd fall for that."
As the guard turned, Connie grabbed him and pulled him into the bars of the cell, knocking him out. He quickly searched for the key and opened the door.
"Let's get out of here!" Mikasa cried, "We have to move now!" Chie hissed and they ran on. Suddenly, a guard saw them as they made their way down the dark passage.
"Freeze!" A guard cried. Yu and everyone stopped dead in their tracks. It was a lone sentry, holding a rifle.
Mikasa dashed toward him, disarmed him and pushed him to a wall.
"How do we escape from here?" She demanded.
"Go down the hall, turn to your left and follow the corridor. Ignore the first five turns, and turn to the sixth crossing to your right. You'll see a stairwell." He said.
Mikasa knocked him out with her fist and tossed him to the jail.
The Survey Corps members ran across halls after halls, until opened a door. Captain Levi was already there and had already knocked out the Guards with The Special Operation Squad, armed with bows and arrows.
"Sigh... Weren't you idiots told not to go beyond the mountains? Commander Erwin was still planning this expedition." Levi sighed in annoyance.
"Sorry, Captain," Eren said.
"Whatever. Let's get out of here. Gunther, the weapons!" Levi commanded.
Gunther grunted and tossed a bundle of weapons at Eren and Company. They seemed unfamiliar with the single-edged longswords given to them. They were significantly heavier than their usual Double Blades, yet they were sturdy and had a keen edge.
"What are these?" Jean said in wonder, touching the blade and recoiling his hand after testing the sharpness.
"This is a little heavy... And pretty long..." Sasha gasped.
"Ah, a katana..." Armin mused with delight.
"Eh... Ka-what?" Connie said.
"A Katana; a long, single-edged blade used by the Japanese Samurai." Armin said with delight.
"In English!" Jean rolled his eyes.
"The special blades that the Orientals of this land use. It can cut straight through bone..." Armin said.
Mikasa looked at her own Katana with a newfound wonder.
"Alright, enough with the history lesson, let's get the hell out of here." Levi said.
"Roger!" They said in unison.
Levi nodded as he led the way through the hall, until they reached a stair. They climbed the stairs, which spanned for several hundred meters up until they saw light.
Tired and exhausted, they rested a bit but two guards strolled through and looked at the Survey Corpsmen in shock before raising the alarm.
Mikasa rolled forward and did a leg-sweep, knocking the first Guard out. The second Guard tried to slash her, but Mikasa jumped and kneed him in the face, knocking him out.
Unfortunately, the other guards heard the scuffle and began firing at them with guns. The S.O.S. scattered along with the rest of the Survey Team and took cover. After waiting for the guards to reload, Oluo and Petra fired arrows at the Guards, taking out three.
"Get across the ramp!" Levi hissed, and used his 3DMG to scale the walls.
Petra and Oluo used their to get across, while Gunther and Eld stayed behind. Gunther crept behind a wall and fired an arrow, knocking a guard down. Connie, Sasha, Annie and Bertoltz ran through the ramp.
Petra and Oluo fired two more arrows, knocking down one and scattering the rest. This gave Eren, Mikasa, Jean, Sasha, Krista and Connie an opening to cross. Petra fired another arrow at the guards, but it was blocked by a Blue-Haired young man's shield.
"Minako!" He yelled and a Red-Haired young woman used his shield as a platform, which he swung his shield, propelling the woman into the air as she leapt through the space and into the Archers.
Despite being master Titan slayers, the two met their match as the woman, wielding a spiked lance, parried every blow from their double-blades and attacked with savagery. She managed to disarm Oluo and duelled with Petra.
Gunther and Eld unsheathed their blades and used their 3DMG to quickly cross the span to aid their team mates, but the Blue Haired young man blocked their swords with his shield and raised his sword, emitting a harsh ray of light that dazzled the duo.
They were quickly knocked down and disarmed.
Levi grunted in annoyance and scaled down to help. He spun around and targeted the wild Red-head, but the young man blocked his blades with his own, causing Levi's blade to shatter. Levi was down, and the Redhead pointed her lance at him.
"Thanks." The Redhead said to the Bluehead, "But I could've handled it."
"Oh, sure..." The Bluehead rolled his eyes.
Several guards passed by them.
"Holy shit! IDF Guards! We gotta get the fuck outta here!" Minako cried.
"WE'RE IDF." Minato said.
"Oh, right... still! We have to get the rest of those guys!" The Redhead hissed.
"I think we already did." The Bluehead said smugly, jutting his chin at the gates.
Eren and Co. ran ahead, but they were surrounded them from the entrance. Thinking of going back was futile, as they saw torches below coming up. They were trapped.
They were led back to the council room, where the seven leaders, still in their sleeping clothes, looked at the group with bleary eyes and annoyed expressions.
Levi did not stop glaring at the new recruits.
"Dudes... Couldn't you have at least tried escaping on the morning?" The Connie's "Older brother" from earlier yawned, "I was just enjoying my sleep."
"As were we, Iori." Kirijo said crankily, "For trying to escape, assaulting our guards and disrupting the solemn peace of night, you will be executed tomorrow at the first light-"
"Wait! We wish to confess!" Eren blurted out, to the surprise of his friends.
Kirijo looked intrigued, "Takeba, what are the charges?"
"Okay... Do you confess on, three times, ransacking our safe houses meant for our own starving warriors on the road?" The brown haired archer, Takeba, demanded.
"We didn't-" Eren began, but suddenly remembered the big haversack of supplies they took, "Look, its all a big misunderstanding. We didn't mean to trespass on your territory or steal from your safehouses, but what choice did we have? We haven't eaten anything proper for weeks, and Shadows kept finding us wherever we go. And we're sorry for ransacking your safehouses. Nothing's missing, since you found us before we could. We'll fix anything we broke and we'll never speak of it again."
Lady Kirijo looked at Eren up and down, sizing him up, "Very well. You proved your worth... I shall take you up on that. You will not be executed."
"Thank god!" Jean sighed in relief.
"However..." Lady Kirijo said, "You have seen our base of operations. To simply allow you to waltz out all the way to Timbuktu and yonder, waiting to be captured by the Shadows, would be an obvious breach of security. So I'll present you with an option... Walk free, and we'll give you a day's start before we hunt you down and slaughter you like dogs, or stay here and serve our Defense Force."
Levi looked at his companions. They were in an agreement, "We accept your offer of staying. But we must speak to our Commander about it."
Kirijo thought for a while, "Fine. Bring your Commander here for a talk. I will allow only three of you to walk free. If the Commander is not here by the first light of the next day-" she dragged her index finger across her neck, "Am I clear?"
"Yes." Levi nodded.
"Do remember," Kirijo said, "We will not waste any bullets. A length of rope will do just fine." Kirijo said.
Levi, Petra and Olou left using their gear. Meanwhile, the rest were placed in a much nicer holding cell, with lots of light. Hours later, Levi and Commander Erwin. Mitsuru met him up on her Office, along with Akihiko and Zen.
"Greetings. I am Directress Kirijo. This is my Adjutant, Akihiko and Captain Zen Stryker, of the Guard." Mitsuru said.
"I am Commander Erwin, and this is Captain Levi, of the Survey Corps. My rank should suffice." Erwin said.
"Have a seat." Mitsuru said.
"Thank you." Erwin and Levi sat down, "Would you like to claim aggrieved status?"
"Yes, I would." Mitsuru said, "Now, Commander, I know your men have been spying on our lands and raiding our supply lines. You also have in your possessions certain supplies, plans and personal letters of IDF Corpsmen. I request you return the things you have taken from our caravans as a token of goodwill."
"I will return them immediately." Commander Erwin said.
"Thank you. Now, onto the case of specific targeting of our outposts to the group... Commander, you must know, our outposts are vital in keeping the land secure. Patrols keep the public order in check, and if necessary, to protect the Exiles we swore to defend in exchange for their loyalty. These outposts also contain Exile people, trading and seeking protection, some of whom are women and children, who mustn't be accorded inappropriate levels of hostility."
Commander Erwin seemed confused, "I'm sorry, but we have no involvement with that issue. Our scouts and men have orders to stay away from settlements and outposts."
"Well, if you have any idea who did it, we would appreciate it." Mitsuru said.
Commander Erwin scratched his chin, "Could be roving bands of Exile bandits looking for loot?"
"Our outposts are quite secure." Mitsuru said confidently.
"It could be the Targryns." Captain Levi, who had been silent throughout the exchange, said quietly.
"Targryns... No... They're too far north." Commander Erwin dismissed.
"Who are these Targryns?" Akihiko said, "I've never heard of them."
"Nor I." Mitsuru said.
"I doubt you would have heard anything. The Targryns are a family of Exile Nobility. Conquerors." Levi said, "From our reports, whenever the Shadows invaded, they were always there to enlist or enslave the people who resisted. Reason you never heard of them is because the people who HAVE heard of them were never heard from again."
"They appeared in the far north, way beyond the Haunted Marshes." Commander Erwin said.
Mitsuru turned to Zen, "Stryker, have you known about this?"
Zen seemed perturbed, "I've only heard whispers, Directress." He said, "These Targryns are near-mythical. I thought it was just a rumor so that we wouldn't stray north."
"That's not all, I'm afraid." Commander Erwin said, "Our scouts have reported them amassing an army, but that report was a week ago."
"An army?" Mitsuru said in shock, "Are you certain they're hostile?"
"Yes, we're sure." Levi reassured, "These Exiles are fanatical to their Lords, and are allied with a Shadow Priest."
"And you?" Akihiko said, "Are you friend or foe?"
Commander Erwin stood up, "Against the Shadows? We're your friends."
"There are no finer recon unit than the Survey Corps." Levi said.
Mitsuru nodded, "Will you pledge yourself to the IDF? In exchange, you will be given a Headquarters at the Shadowfort, as well as retaining your ranks."
"We graciously accept." Commander Erwin shook Mitsuru's hand. As they left, Mitsuru plotted her course of action. When she was ready, she called her Officers to briefing.