"Over a century ago, humanity faced a new enemy.
Humans armed with spears stood against numerous Titans.
"Wait are these…" uttered out garrison soldier
"Our ancestors" finished Erwin
"It would appear so" spoke Pixis
They all leaned in wanting to know more about there history before the walls were constructed.
"The difference of power between humanity and the new enemy was overwhelming."
"Soon, humanity was driven to the brink of extinction."
An entire sea of Titans walked around.
The screen rotated, showing where all the Titans were headed.
They paled at the overwhelming numbers of their enemies
"No…way" spoke a scout
"There can't be this many…right?" said a garrison soldier
"It's an exaggeration!" Screamed Kitz who was shaking "it's just there for dramatic effect. It has to be!"
"Humanity once numbered in the hundreds of millions" suddenly spoke Zachary "But when the titans appeared they severely lessoned that number only leaving barely a million in the walls today"
They all looked at him in shocked horror
"It's would take an overwhelming enemy to push us to these numbers in very little time" he the stared at the screen "and that appears to be what we're looking at right now"
The room filled with hopelessness
"The surviving humans built three Walls: Maria, Rose, and Sina. They then lived the next century in peace, under their protection."
"However..."
A mouse scurried
"You can't be serious" said Jean who was shocked at the persistence of this man
"Idiot is going to get himself killed screaming like that" said Levi
A light-haired Titan came toward him.
"Now as you see, I am punished for it!"
Titans wandered around, looking for prey, shaking the ground. A mother and daughter clutched each other, hiding. A crowd of panicking humans tried to run away while the preacher walked toward the danger they were running from.
"How awful" spoke Christa
"What avarice does manifest here?"
"In purgation of these souls converted, and no more bitter pain the Mountain has."
"The hell is he even on about?" spoke Connie in confusion
A woman ran, huffing, ending up at a dead end. Turning, she clapped her hands over her mouth, eyes glued to the way she came from. A large shadow covered her and she looked up to see a Titan smiling creepily down at her. It grabbed her by the head and pulled her up. "Stop! Let go!" She struggled so hard her shoe fell, but the effort was futile.
The Military police watched on frightened
The Garrison watched on saddened
The Scout regiment watched on determined to not let there people suffer like this again.
"What more, O Avarice, can you do to us, since you my blood so to thyself hast drawn…"
Everywhere, people screamed, running for their lives as Titans snatched them up left and right.
"…it careth not for its own flesh?"
A shadow fell over him and he looked to his left to see a 15-meter staring down at him.
"Shocker" said Levi in a sarcastic tone
"What more, O Avarice—"
It opened its mouth. The book slipped from his hand, landing in a puddle of blood
Not many were saddened by this
"That's one way to shut him up" whispered Hitch
In a quieter part of town, Hannes ran, Eren over his shoulder and Mikasa tucked under one arm. Suddenly, Eren broke out of his stupor. He turned and began hitting the older man.
"Eren! What are you doing?!"
"We were so close to saving Mom! Why the hell would you do that?!" Eren slammed his elbow on Hannes's head.
"We were so close to saving her!"
"Cut it out!" Hannes grabbed Eren by the arm and threw him to the ground.
"Eren!" Mikasa struggled out of the grasp and ran to him, kneeling beside him.
"Eren…" Hannes walked up to them, kneeling as well. "You couldn't save your mother because you're weak."
"What the fuck!?" Shouted a scout
"A bit harsh don't you think?" Said Gunther
"You don't just say that to a kid who couldn't save his mother" shouted Petra
"It's the truth" spoke Eren surprising everyone. He looked down at his open palm "back then I was too weak and useless to do anything" he closed his palm into a fist "But now things have changed" he declared confidently
Eren glared and threw his fist. Without meaning to, Hannes caught the punch with ease, proving his point. Eren struggled but couldn't free his arm. "And I…I couldn't stand up to the Titan because I lacked the courage!" Tears were running down both their faces.
Hannes stared at his pathetic self "And that's also the truth"
They looked at him with pity
Armin stared at Hannes "How this must have eaten him up inside over the years"
Hannes's free hand took hold of Mikasa and led the two children away. "I'm sorry."
"It's happened again." Mikasa touched her head, images of a bloodied woman on the ground and a man slumped against the wall flashing through her mind. This is familiar…
Mikasa looked at the screen sadly now having to remember Carla death and her own parents
The audience looked at the screen curious about what Mikasa was thinking about but decided not too act on their curiosity
Eren stared at Mikasa sadly having a good idea why it was familiar to her
Titans continued to terrorize the fleeing citizens.
"Hurry to the inner gate!" A Garrison soldier was waving a crowd toward the ships.
Eren stared at the man recognizing him as one of Hannes drinking buddies "hey isn't that-"
"Hugo" spoke Hannes
"Seems he's finally gotten his act together" spoke Levi "and all it took was for the wall to be destroyed and dozens of titans to roam in"
"Escape aboard the ships there! Use them to escape! Before you get eaten!" One of the ships began moving, leaving only one behind.
"City districts like Shiganshina that stick out in vital spots along the Wall serve to attract the Titans and streamline security costs and troop numbers. Performing true to its role as a Titan target, Shiganshina had but one inner gate through which its citizens could flee."
"I must say our ancestors were pretty smart when constructing our walls" spoke Moblit
"Discard your belongings! Let as many people on as possible!"
A bag went flying and landed next to other people's discarded luggage. Armin stared at the large crowd of people waiting to be let on, trying to find his friends.
"Armin, sit down." Smoke an old man
"Grandpa…" Armin spoke sadly. After the deaths of his parents his grandpa took him in and raised him as his own. His death hit him hard.
Eren put a comforting hand on his shoulder
"But Eren and Mikasa aren't here yet," Armin replied and looked out again. Then he spotted them, happy to see Hannes leading them through the masses so they could get on immediately. "There they are!" His relief ended as quickly as it began. His friends looked traumatized.
"Eren…"
"No child should ever have to experience something like that" spoke a garrison soldier
"Just let him be for now." Armin's grandfather looked down sadly. "Those poor souls. You can tell what happened by looking at them."
"Huh?" Armin turned to him, unsure.
"Don't just stand there! Hurry the hell up!"
A 15-meter Titan approached, knocking a structure down, completely ignorant of the destruction of its actions.
"Get those cannons loaded! Hurry! They're closing in!" Shouted Hugo
"we may have fooled around a lot on the job" Hannes spoke smiling at his friend "but when it came time for us to do our duty we were ready to give it our all"
Cannons were set into position and Hannes watched for a second before running somewhere.
Eren and Mikasa sat silently, horror clear on their faces.
"This can't be for real!"
"Please, god… Please, god…Please, god…"
"H-Hey!"
The plank connecting the people to the ship was removed.
Christa eyes widened "their…leaving all those people?"
"How…cruel" spoke Connie
"Cruel but necessary" spoke Pixis finally finishing his bottle "these boats were suppose to be only for travel, not to evacuate a whole city full of people"
"If only we had better arrangements for if the walls were to break" spoke up Rico "we could have saved so many lives"
"But we had grown to comfortable with our century long era of peace that we never entertained the fact that something like this could happen" Zachary said in a somber tone
"Hey! What are you doing?!"
People began to push against the line of Garrison soldiers.
"It's at full capacity! It has to leave!"
"No! Please! At least let our children on!"
This unsettled the members of the crowd
Christa eyes began to water, she always had a soft spot for kids
"I'm sorry, but we can't!" The soldier yelled in the direction of the ship, "Get going!"
A man shot forward and tried to get on, managing to catch the ledge. Two other men followed suit, one slipping and crashing.
"They shouldn't do that" spoke up hange "if the boat exceeds its wait limit it could lose its buoyancy"
"They don't care" said Levi "they risk bringing the whole ship down if it gave them a chance to live"
Cannonballs flew to the left and right of a 15-meter Titan.
"You idiot! What are you aiming at?!"
"B-But, sir, these aren't accurate enough to aim at moving targets!"
"on the ground their not" spoke Rico
"Indeed" nodded Pixis "that's why we made the decision to mount them on the walls. Gives a better vantage point and is also safer for the personnel operating them"
Another Titan, also a 15-meter, was coming behind the first.
"I don't give a shit! Get 'em reloaded at once!"
"I can't!"
The sounds of chains and grinding bricks were heard. "The gate's closing! They're... We're gonna get left behind!" The Garrison soldier abandoned his station and ran toward the gate.
"Hey!" Hugo called after him.
"So much for upholding their duty" Spat out Rico
"You can't really blame them" spoke an MP
Inside, Hannes was arguing with a fellow Garrison soldier. "Don't shut it! Hold on a little longer! There are still lots of people in there!"
"Quite admirable Mr. Hannes" spoke Pixis
"I may be a coward" began Hannes "but I'm not the kind of man who will leave his comrades behind"
"If the Titans get through, the town being overrun will be the least of our worries! All of humankind will be forced to withdraw behind the next Wall!"
"But that's no reason to leave these people to die!" Hannes argued.
Two soldiers ran up to them. "Shut the gate! Hurry!"
"The Titans are coming!"
"Close the gate at once!" The Garrison soldier ordered. It quickly began to slide down.
"Stop!" Hannes yelled. "Hey!" The two men grabbed his arms, restraining him.
"What the?"
Thundering footsteps pierced through the noise. They froze.
The audience stiffened
"What…what is it?" asked a scared MP
"I have a good guess" responded hange
Eren and Mikasa finally broke out of their shock and looked up.
A large red foot with yellow outlines smashed through the street. Slowly, his armored body came into full view.
The crowd was stunned by the titans appearance
Moblit began sketching to beast
"The armored titan" Spoke Erwin
"Truly lives up to the name" said Levi
"We didn't see any lighting strike" said Mike "could it be he doesn't have a human form and is just a special breed?
"I doubt that" began Hange "from what I heard he deliberately targeted the gate so he has intelligence, something that normal titans don't"
They continued to listen
"It's possible it transformed outside the wall and made it way here in its titan form"
"Hmm it's a possibility" responded Erwin
Reiner was uncomfortable having his titan form shown on the screen. It's appearance did resemble him and it wouldn't take a genius to connect the dots
One leg moving back, crouching, one arm front and one back, the Armored Titan got into position. The force of the push off cracked the ground and shattered the buildings closest to him.
Their eyes widened
"The damn thing is that fast!?" Shouted Connie
Hange looked at the screen shocked "you would think the armor would slow it down but it appears that's not the case"
"Great" said Levi
"What the hell's it doing?" Suddenly, the Garrison soldier came to his senses. "Fire!" Cannonballs flew through the air and one met the target true. But it was obliterated the moment it came in contact with the skin.
"Doesn't even seem to leave a scratch" said Hange writing it down
"Or even offer an nuisance" responded Levi
"If cannon balls are ineffective then we can give up on using blades" said Mike
"Then how are we going to fight this monster" asked Gelgar
"We'll find a way" was Levi's only response
The Armored Titan ducked and the other cannonballs missed.
"What?!"
"No effect?!"
"Shit! Run!"
"It's coming! Retreat!" They turned and ran. Behind them, the Armored Titan charged like a raging bull.
"It's too late for them" said Nanaba sighing
"A Titan's coming! Hurry! Close the gate!"
They frowned at the futile effort
The Armored Titan broke through the gate, sending bricks and boulders and soldiers flying everywhere.
"It…looked so easy to him" slowly spoke Sasha
"Hugo…" sadly spoke Hannes seeing his friend who he served by for years getting launched in the air before inevitably falling to his death
Reiner kept a hard stare at screen facing his sins head on
Ymir glanced at Reiner and Bertholdt
"Hmm bertholdt appears to be showing slight signs of guilt but Reiner keeps having that neutral expression and appears to be unaffected" she thought and then glanced at Annie as well "where is she in all this?"
Skidding, it came to a halt. Hannes looked at the massive hole in shock. "The Wall's…"
"…He completely obliterated the gate" said a stunned garrison soldier
A part of the armor slid down, and he opened his mouth, growling, letting out a cloud of steam
The crowd was surprised
"It can breathe fire!?" Shouted a frightened MP
"No, it appears to be very hot steam" hange retorted "must have been holding it in when he was charging at the gate"
"Within a few hours after Walls Maria had fallen in the southern district of Shiganshina, news of the incident had reached every city inside human territory."
[South of Wall Rose - Trost District]
A group of men was talking.
"Is it true the Titans have overrun Shiganshina?!" One man said. "I can't believe this! The Walls have held strong for a century! Why now?!"
"Who are they?" spoke Armin
"They are merchants" responded Zachary
Mikasa glared at one of the merchants recognizing him as the one who delayed the evacuation in trost
"Whether we believe it or not, the fact is that refugees have fled here by boat! Reports say there are five hundred on board."
"The question is if Shiganshina is all that was affected."
"But, surely they couldn't have gotten through Wall Maria as well?"
"In any event, we must contact the Royal Government and request instructions."
"This crisis is far too much for us to handle on our own."
"I'm sorry to interrupt!" A Garrison soldier came in. "A courier horse has just arrived! Titans have breached Wall Maria and entered its interior!"
"It's over…" Hannes stared as countless Titans wandered around.
"My God…" said Kitz
"If our theory is correct" began Hange "then most of the titans should be in wall Maria being drawn by the presence of humans in wall Rose"
"So that means it's going to be harder to reclaim wall Maria" said Eld
"Hey!" screamed a scout "that titan to the far left was my first titan kill!"
"You mean your only titan kill" responded another scout jokingly
"Shut up don't go acting like your all high and mighty with your three titan kills" he teased back
"Please none of those low numbers compare to my kill count" Olue said arrogantly
"That because your titan kill stealer"
annoyingly said perta with the rest of the squad nodding
"It's not my fault y'all are to slow to keep up with my elegant speed" he said which was received with groans from the Levi squad
On the ship, the refugees were having similar thoughts. "It's all over…"
"The Titans are going to devour humanity again."
"This is the end?" Eren muttered, eyes full of tears, mind going back to his family, sitting at the table, enjoying their meal.
"I'll never see that house ever again."
The memory of Carla pulling his ear came back.
Anger then emerged itself again in Eren at the life the titans stole from him
"I'll make them all pay" he whispered darkly
"Why?!" He remembered his mother, trying to stop him from joining the Survey Corps. "Why'd I argue for no reason like that?!" Of him running away now. "Why was that all I could do?!" Her smiling face came to him. "And now Mom's gone! She's never coming back! Why?!"
His anger grew but this time because of himself
"It's because you're weak." Hannes' words came to him.
It's because…I'm weak. Because humans are weak. Tears fell freely from Eren's eyes, and into his trembling hand. ls crying the only thing the weak can do?! Curling his hand into a fist, he got up and walked toward the edge. Mikasa stood, watching him.
"What's gotten into you, Eren?" Armin walked up to him, hand on his arm. The boy shoved it off. "Eren…"
"I'll kill them all!" He grabbed the edge.
"Not even a single one will be left!"
"Eren…"
"Such an arrogant proclamation" said a MP
"I had to listen to him say that everyday for the past three years" responded Jean
The cadets corps all nodded
"I'll make it happen" he respond still determined "and I now have the power too do that"
"The same year, the Royal Government made the decision to withdraw all of humanity's domain behind Wall Rose. An estimated 10,000 people were eaten by Titans during this time."
"Eren, Carla, Mikasa, please be all right!" Grisha was driving a carriage, crying.
"Dad!?" Screamed Eren
"So he headed back to check on his family" thought Erwin
"If he's not in the interior than where is he?" Asked Armin
"Eren! Eren!" An ember hovered in the darkness. "Eren! Eren!"
"Dad! Please, stop, Dad!"
There eyes widened
"W…what?" Uttered out Eren "when did this…I…I don't remember this" he was so confused
A syringe. A determined Grisha.
The warrior trio eyes widened.
"How did he get that" thought Bertholdt
"So Grisha Yeager was a titan shifter until he had his son eat him? Interesting" thought Annie
Hange's eyes sparkled "What is that!?"
"Looks like a serum of some kind" Moblit offered his commentary
"Could that be…" Erwin thought out loud "what gave Eren the ability to turn into a titan"
This peaked everyone's interest
"You think so?" Asked Gunther
"How did he make it?" said Marlo
"More importantly how do we make it?" Responded Rico
"Ya we could have a whole army of people who can turn into titans!" Declared a scout
This then got everyone talking about all the possibilities if they figured out the ingredients to the serum
"EVERYONE SHUT UP SO WE CAN CONTINUE WATCHING!!" shouted hange who was shaking in her seat
"What are you trying to do?!"
The ember again.
"Just give me your arm!"
"No! Mom's death has made you go crazy!"
The yellow ember became a red key.
"The key" Levi's eyes narrowed
"Eren!"
"Let go, Dad!"
"It's for your own sake!"
Eren's fingers dug into the ground, his body convulsing. "What are you talking about?!"
"Listen! Don't forget the key!" A rush of distorted images, Grisha likely injecting his son. "You must reach it! Until you learn the truth someday!"
Erwin was fully invested leaning towards the screen
Bells rang in the distance and Eren's eyes snapped open, he let out a gasp.
"WHAT!?"
"NO!"
"IS THAT IT!?"
They all were severely disappointed they didn't get more
Hange blitzed towards Eren and grabbed his shoulders
"Think Eren! THINK! Try to remember anything else about this!" She screamed as she began shaking him
"I…I swear I can't remember anything!" Mikasa and Armin began to pull hange off of Eren
"So close…" Erwin wispered looking down
"Commander Erwin" spoke Zachary snapping Erwin out of his thoughts "tell me is this upcoming expedition of the survey corps in order to get to that basement?"
"…Yes sir" he responded
Zachary then put a hand on his chin in deep thought. Everyone waiting to see what was on his mind.
"If this basement holds the ingredients to this serum or information about the titans then it is high priority to get to it" he began to speak with everyone listening "after the viewing session is complete and we return home we must discuss plans to ensure this expedition is a success"
"…I absolutely agree Premier Zachary" responded Erwin
"If need be the garrison can also assist with giving more equipment and manpower" said Commander Pixis with his last word frightening some members of the garrison
Erwin was shocked that he was receiving help from the rest of military. Usually it was always the scouts on their own with the rest of the branches casting them aside claiming they were fighting for a lost cause and wasting tax money.
Mikasa joined him. "Eren, are you okay? You were crying in your sleep."
Eren sat up. "I felt like I just saw Dad."
"No, you were dreaming."
"I see…" Eren stared at the bronze key before tucking it underneath his shirt.
"Let's go," Mikasa said and stood.
"They're handing out rations." The two wandered outside. "Apparently this was their food storehouse. They've gathered all the ship refugees here."
The place was overflowing with people.
A blonde-haired girl went up to get her bread.
Armin squinted his eyes "hey is that…ANNIE!?"
This immediately got cadets attention
"Your right!" Screamed Jean
"It is her!" said Sasha
"Ah look how cute little Annie is" teased Connie
Eren turned to Annie "I had no idea that you were so close to us after the walls fell!"
"…me neither" finally spoke Annie who had been silent through out the whole viewing session. "He was that close to us!?" Thought Annie internally "if only we knew back then about his titan it would have been so much easier to capture him"
"Hey! Get in line, will ya?!"
"Shut up! I ain't eaten anything since last night!"
Zachary sighed "and here is the worst part about the fall of wall Maria. The lack of food."
"We will still struggle for survival," Mikasa said, watching the two men grabbing each other's collars.
"Eren! Mikasa!" Armin ran up to them, loaves of bread in his arms.
"Armin…"
"Here! Just in time!" Armin gave them each one loaf. "My grandpa got us some by saying it was for children!"
"People definitely took advantage of that" said Ymir
"Thank you," Mikasa said.
A Garrison soldier came up behind Armin, making a face before moving on. "What's his problem?" Eren stared after him.
"You can't blame him. There's probably not enough food to go around," Armin explained. "And this is an entire day's worth."
"That's a whole days worth!" Said an MP
"I would starve!" Said Sasha
"There are just too many refugees," Armin said. Eren stared at the loaf of bread in his hand. "There was already a food shortage going on, plus the people here aren't treated as well as citizens on the outer wall."
Two more had joined and now four men were struggling and arguing with one another.
"Hunger does crazy stuff to people" said Sasha munching on her snacks
"Oh I know" said Christa remembering how savage Sasha acted after she came to give her food after Shadis made her run
"This is mine!"
"Shut up!"
The two Garrison soldiers looked on at the scene with scorn.
"Useless" said Levi
"Why don't they interfere" asked Christa
"Not getting paid enough and not caring enough probably" said hitch
"Why should we hafta give our food to some lousy outsiders?" The soldier wasn't keeping his voice down and it was clear the trio had heard him. "If the Titans got through the Wall, they could've at least eaten some more people, if you ask me."
Eren glared at the man with hatred
"Bastard" said Jean
"And here I thought only the MPs were the assholes" said a scout
"Hey!" Responded a offended MP
"Eren!" Armin called out as his best friend started walking purposefully toward the arrogant Garrison soldier.
"What a surprise" sarcastically said Jean
"This is just gonna make the food shortage even worse." Too busy whining, he didn't notice Eren coming up to him until he kicked the man in the shin. "Oww! What the hell?!"
"Idiot" said half the audience
"The guy had it coming" Eren grumbled
"You damn brat!" He hit Eren. The other Garrison soldier stepped in, kicking the young boy and knocking him down.
They winced at this
Pixis then stood up and faced his garrison subordinates "Are these two men present in this room" he spoke
No response
"Good" he said sitting back down
"You don't know what it's like! You've never even seen it! You've never seen what the Titans do to people!" Eren yelled.
The older man quickly changed his reaction from surprise to anger. "Shut up!"
Armin quickly stepped in. "We're sorry! He's just hungry and irritable! That's why he so rudely lashed out at an adult. I'm very sorry!"
"Way to defuse the situation Armin" praised Hange
"You know Eren you could learn a thing or two from your buddy" Jean said
"Shut it horse face"
"What you just-"
"Enough" ordered Levi
They complied
Murmurs picked up as a large crowd formed around them, now watching the spectacle unfold openly.
"Now they care" scoffed Ymir
The Garrison soldier glanced around.
"Whatever... You would've been dead without us!" He turned and started to walk away. "You kids ought to show some gratitude!"
"Of course!"
"Damn," Eren cursed. "I refuse to let them take care of me."
"I'm going back to Wall Maria! I'm going to destroy every last Titan!" Eren vowed.
"Eren, you're not being serious, are you?" Armin asked.
"I'm serious! I'm not like those guys who do nothing but act tough inside the Walls!" He threw the bread angrily and Armin fumbled with it, trying not to drop it. "I don't need this crap!"
"Little brat" said Levi
"At times like these you can't afford to be so…spoiled" said Petra
"Your lucky your in a camp that had enough food for you" began Zachary "so many people starved to death due too the lack of it in other camps"
Eren looked away, he was a little shit when he was younger
"Eren! You'll starve to death!" Armin said.
"Doesn't it piss you off?!" Eren demanded. "It's because we take everyone's charity that we can't beat the Titans!"
"That literally makes no sense" said Jean
"He's just throwing a tantrum" spoke Ymir
"It's impossible!" Armin yelled. "There is no beating them! All we can do is live inside the Walls! If we try anything, we'll die! Just like my mom and dad!"
"The kid really is smart" said an MP
"Yet he still joined the survey corps" responded another MP
"So you're just gonna grovel to them then?! That's not shameful to you?!" Eren continued furiously.
"There's nothing we can do for now!" Armin argued.
"That's just an excuse! If you wanna live like livestock forever, go ahead! You weak piece of shit!"
That stunned the audience especially the cadets since Armin and Eren always seemed so supportive of each other
Eren winced at this but Armin still had a neutral face as if he's has accepted that as fact
"Dude what the fuck" said Connie
"That was very mean Eren" spoke Christa
"And I'm suppose to be the douche bag right?" Retorted Jean
"I actually find it funny coming from you" Olue snorted
"It is quite ironic" said Levi
Eren sighed and turned to Armin "Armin I'm-"
"There's no need to apologize" he spoke cutting Eren off
"…Ya but still I've never should have said that to you, you got to be one of the most strong minded person I know"
Armin smiled at this
Mikasa stepped forward and punched Eren, knocking him to the ground.
This once again surprised the audience and ESPECIALLY the cadets
"Woah" said Connie with wide eyes
"Never thought I see the day the Mikasa actually hits Eren" Ymir
"He needn't to be snapped back into reality" Said Mikasa
"Your right I had that coming" said Eren
"Mikasa?" Armin said softly.
"If Armin's a wimp, then so are we. Whether it was running from the Titans or fleeing the town, we didn't manage anything on our own."
"We even had help finding food today. There's no way such powerless people can defeat even a single one of those Titans," Mikasa continued. Eren sat up and made a face, too stubborn to admit she was right. "Staying alive is what matters most. Just like your mother said."
She took the bread from Armin and walked over to Eren.
Then she tried to force him to eat it.
"Mikasa!" Armin gasped.
"You have to eat and stay alive."
Tears were in his eyes.
"I won't let you starve to death."
"Tough love at its finest" said eld
"Several days later, the throngs of refugees were tasked with cultivating the wastelands to secure food."
Men and women worked the fields under the supervision of Garrison soldiers. The trio, alongside Armin's grandfather, worked among the group.
Sasha remembered how she felt about the refugees when they first showed up and took all the animals and food and how angry she was. She now felt extremely guilty over it seeing how much they suffered
"However, a food shortage was unavoidable. So, in the following year of 846-
"Wait!" Shouted Connie "Reiner! Bertholdt! Is that you guys right there?"
The cadets all examined the screen
"It appears to be so…" Reiner answered
"bertholdt you really haven't changed that much in appearance" Jean said "except of course for your height"
"Man Reiner what was that hair style?" Ymir snorted
"I think it looks good him" Christa said as to not make Reiner feel embarrassed
"R-really?" Reiner had a slight blush at the compliment
"That's enough" Levi demanded "we shouldn't halt the viewing session for such trivial things"
the Royal Government sent a multitude of refugees on a mission in the name of retaking Wall Maria."
Armin's grandfather gave him his hat
Armin began to get a little emotional "the government knew what they were doing sending all those people into Titan infested areas" he spoke coldly "they were purposely sending them to their deaths"
Some people nodded to this while some looked at him shocked
"Don't go jumping to conspiracy theories" said an MP
"the government wouldn't do that to its own citizens" said another MP who paused to contemplate his words "right?"
"Unfortunately No" said Zachary with all eyes turning to him "it is as many suspected that in order to handle the lack of food situation the royal government sent out the refugees in order to cull the population"
The people who had suspected something like this was the case all nodded, while the people who never considered their own government would do something like that were horrified
"250,000 were sent, nearly a fifth of the population."
With dead eyes, the refugees followed the Survey Corps soldiers on foot.
"How horrible" said Christa
"To think the royal government could do something so cruel and inhumane" spoke a shock Marlo
"It was a necessary evil" said Zachary with many looking at him in shock "wall rose would have fell into chaos with many fighting for food which would have caused a civil war and more deaths then this alternative option"
They all let his words sink in
"Not even 200 survived."
They grimaced at the massive lost of life
On the bloodied battlefield, only the Titans remained standing.
"Although it wasn't much, their sacrifices did improve the food shortage situation for the rest of the population."
"Like I said a necessary evil" Zachary reminded the audience
Armin sat against a wall, clutching his grandfather's hat, crying.
Tears began to form in Armin eyes, he was at least grateful that the screen didn't show his grandpa's death
"It's all the Titans' fault." Eren stood next to him, Mikasa a couple of feet in front of them. "If we could just subdue them, our place in the world could be ours again. Armin." He sat with his best friend. "I'm going to apply for the military next year." Mikasa let out a resigned sigh. "I'm going to gain the strength to fight the Titans!"
"Me, too."
"Armin?!"
"I will join you, too."
"Mikasa, you don't need to! You said yourself staying alive is what's important!"
"Yes, that's why I'm doing it. So you won't die," Mikasa said plainly.
Eren stood. "Alright. The three of us, then."
"So you guys already faced the titans and are not scared to face them again?" Connie spoke astounded "I never wanted to see a titan again after what happened at trost"
"Dido on that" replied Jean
"Same" said Sasha
"And yet here you are" commented Eren "Officially scouts who are about to head on an expedition"
"Don't get me thinking about that"said Connie
This made Erwin think of something "I wonder if the screen will show the upcoming expedition"
"Hmm well the Being did say we would see the future" said Mike
"So that means we can change anything that doesn't go our way" excitedly spoke Hange
"You are now officially members of the 104th Training Corps," Keith said loudly.
The Cadets gasped at this
"Woah there going to be showing our training!" Spoke Connie excitedly
"Isn't training three years" said Hitch a little nervous
"They will probably skip through most of it…hopefully" responded Marlo
"You have the misfortune of having me, Keith Shadis, as your commandant!"
"Ah this brings back bad times" said Jean
"Sprinkled with some good times too" said Christa
"I do not welcome you warmly! In your current state, you'd be nothing but food for the Titans! You're mere livestock!" Showing some of the cadets
"Hey there's me!" Said Connie
Sasha began to speak "There's also Jean and-"
"Marco" said Jean with and hint of sadness in his voice
"This is weird" thought Annie seeing herself on screen
"You're less than livestock!"
"Ya Bert and Reiner do look different from there younger selves" commented Eren
"Over the next three years, we're going to train you worthless nothings and teach you how to fight Titans!"
"There's my future wife" Ymir teased getting a reaction out of Christa
"Oh oh there's me!" Screamed Sasha
"Y'all are beginning to REALLY annoy me!" Shouted Olue
"Will you serve as an honorable barrier that protects the king?!"
"Almost forgot Mikasa had long hair at the beginning of training" said Armin
Jean sighed "what a shame"
"Or will you be a glorious soldier for humanity that drives the Titans out! It's up to you to decide!"
Yeah, don't worry. Eren stared intently.
Eren glared. I'll kill every last one of them.
Fades to Black
"That seems to be the end for now" said Erwin
Some people went out to get more snacks while most of the people stayed in their seats waiting for the next episode to begin
"I thought this thing was suspose to reveal stuff to us" spoke Levi "why is it being so secretive about What happened to Eren and the armored titan's transformation"
"No idea" said Erwin "we just got to wait and find out"
The people returned with snacks and sat back down starting the next episode
AUTHORS NOTE(ok even I wasn't expecting to have this chapter come out so soon after the last. I just started writing this weekend and couldn't stop. Chapters will probably start taking a week to come out, two at most)