"We all become stories in the end, question is, will it be a good one?" - Edith M. Brown Diary, 849

49th Scout Regiment Expedition, 849
Trost Gate

In the year 845, due to the sudden appearance of the Colossal Titan and the Armoured Titan, our daily lives crumbled along with the wall. Humanity abandoned Wall Maria, lost 20% of its population, a third of its territory and were confined behind Wall Rose in one moment.

However, humanity had not lost to the Titans just yet. The Garrison was tasked with guarding the Walls, and young recruits were being trained in techniques and knowledge to fight the Titans. Around that time, the elite soldiers of the Scout Regiment were attempting once again. To set foot into Titan territory via the Trost District.

The bell tolled, warning the soldiers of what was to come. "THIRTY SECONDS UNTIL THE GATES ARE OPENED!" Commander Erwin Smith called out, "ALL PERSONNEL, PREPARE TO DEAPRT!"

"Geez! Im tired or waiting" whined Sergeant Zoe Hanji from her place in the formation, "Hey Levi-"

"No" interrupted the ravenette.

"I haven't even said anything yet"

"You want me to help you capture a Titan, right? That's a waste of effort. I'll have no part in it"

"What about you Mike? Want to have a go?" Hanji asked, turning to the blonde on her left.

"Hm"

"Ah, the same old boring answer from the same old boring men"

"The 49th expedition beyond the Walls begins now! Forward!" cried Erwin as the gates were raised and the corps thundered through with Hanji leading the charge despite Erwin's protests.

"Think about it Erwin!" Hanji demanded the Commander as her hands slammed down on the table between the two. The tent they stood within swayed in the breeze as the sergeant and the commander continued their one-sided argument, "I understand that setting up supply bases takes priority, but uncovering the true nature of the Titans has always been our primary objective! I'm sure you're aware of that!"

"Sarge...It's probably not a good idea to talk to the Commander in that tone-" Moblit tried to warn as Hanji mowed on, ignoring his pleas.

"We need to capture a Titan alive above anything else! I know it seems impossible. After all, the last time we took one alive was more than fifteen years ago, and more than twenty people died in order to pull it off. But we cannot get any intel if we are afraid of making sacrifices!"

"...So pay extra attention to our offence and defence" Erwin continued to talk to the captains either side of him whilst he half listened to the rantings of the woman in front of him.

"Understood" replied the soldier before he nodded and left to continued his duties.

"Do we really have to go through this again?" Erwin asked, finally turning to Hanji and giving her his full attention.

"We don't have the manpower to spare for a capture mission! Even getting this fat today cost us more than ten men"

"I know that, but-"

"Hanji. You're proposal is rejected" Erwin ended the conversation as he left, leaving Hanji to hurry after him.

"Hey! Wait, Erwin!" she called, stopping outside the entrance of the tent, hands falling to her sides.

"It's no use Hanji. We put our lives on the line just trying to kill the damn things. There's no way we can take one alive" crowed Oluo with his arms crossed as he stood outside the tent with the rest of his squad.

"Think about this, Oluo" whispered Hanji as she latched onto the front of his cloak and lifted him up into the air, "Let's say Levi's coming and he's dead set on killing you. What would you do? Can you fight him and survive?"

"Of...course not" Oluo rasped, his shirt choking him as he's heaved upwards, "Hey, I can't...breathe"

"Want me to tell you how you can win that fight? You do your homework. The place he works, the food he hates, his taste in women, the number of times he takes a piss...You find out everything you can about him. Once you know him, you can find a weakness that you can exploit. If you on't do that before you fight, you'll die for sure"

"Hanji!"

"Sarge! You're going too far!" came the protests from Petra and Moblit. Hanji merely smirked before releasing Oluo who tumbled to the ground and lay in a heap as he tried to regain his breathing.

"Ah, my bad. But you get my point, right?" she replied, walking off as if she hadn't just chosen a man.

"Fuck! She damn near killed me" complained Oluo as he rubbed his sore throat, "That bitch is insane! She belongs in a nuthouse"

"Y'know, you're part of the Scouts, so you could do something about that barbaric way of speaking?" scolded Petra, hands on hips as she looked down on her teammate.

"Huh? Why do I get the lecture?"

"Petra! Are you done with the restocking?" Eld called as he came up the steps towards the two.

"Y-yes, Eld! I'm almost done!" she replied stumbling over her words a little.

Atop the roof of one of the houses still standing, stood Mike watching out over the land as he nibbled on the bland ration bar in his hand. Taking a couple of sniffs, he trotted over to the edge of the roof, overlooking the forest and watched for what belonged to that horrible scent.

Fingering the signal flare, he waited until one of the pines fell and disturbed a couple of birds, before firing the red signal flare into the air. "THERE'S MOVEMENT IN THE FOREST!" he called, "ALL PERSONNEL, PREPARE FOR COMBAT!"

"Sarge! It's too dangerous to go alone!" Moblit cried as Hanji launched herself into the saddle of a nearby horse and straight towards the forest, ignoring any protests.

"Erwin! I'm going ahead!" she called as she passed by.

"Levi!" Erwin ordered.

"Tch! That idiot!" hissed the short captain before racing out after Hanji.

Racing through the forest, it didn't take long for Hanji to find the Titan. "Oh, found ya!" she cried cheerily as she rode passed, "Hey there! Nice weather we're having, eh?...That's good. Say once we're done with our walk, wanna come inside the Wall with me? What'd ya say? she asked the Titan lumbering right behind her as it made a grab for the horse.

Thankfully the horse did as it was trained to do and moved out of the way just in time. Despite this, Hanji continued talking to the Titan as if was a child; at least until it ran face first into a tree. "That was close!...Oh no! Are you okay? Follow me! 'Atta boy!"

Suddenly a red signal flare flew across the Titan's vision, drawing a line between Hanji and the giant. "This way, moron" scolded Levi, now joined by his squad.

"Hey! Stay out of my way!" Hanji complained looking over her shoulder at the newcomers, "That's the way! Keep it up!" called Hanji as the Titan continued to follow her.

Suddenly, the Titan halted in its pursuit. Glancing around at its surroundings, the Titan returned back to the forest, this time with Hanji and Levi's squad following after it. "Hey, where are you going?"

"What's that shit-head up to? Is it running back home?" Oluo asked as the squad rode after Hanji and the Titan.

"Even if it's an Abnormal, there's something strange about this" added Petra.

"Yeah, its movement patterns are like nothing that has ever been reported" Eld said.

"No, they're called 'Abnormals' for a reason, right?"

"I couldn't care less. We're taking it down here" interjected Levi as he bared his blades.

"Hey! Wait up!" called Hanji as she wove in and out of the trees, trying to catch up to the Titan who was now hell bent on leaving them behind. Is it heading towards a specific place? Hanji wondered, Even if it is an Abnormal, can a Titan do something like that?

The duo came to a halt inside a small clearing dotted with white daisies. In the centre of the clearing stood a large pine tree that the Titan stood stone still in front of. All of a sudden, it began to beat its head against the trunk of the tree repeatedly, as if it were punishing itself.

"Huh? What are you doing?" Hanji asked as she dismounted and unsheathed a blade just in case, "Is this the place you wanted to go?" Using the ODM gear, Hanji was able to launch herself up onto one of the branches in the tree, away from the Titan that had suddenly turned on her. "Whoa! That was close!"

Landing quietly on the forest floor, Hanji crept closer to the grumbling Titan, whispering to it al the while, "What is it? What's wrong? I'll hear you out" The calmness the Titan was wrapped in, shattered at once when Oluo hooked himself to the back on the Titan's neck and came in for the kill.

"No! Oluo, don't do it!" Hanji cried causing Oluo to hesitate and in that moment, the Titan swung around and grabbed onto the flailing man. One moment he was heading head first into the Titan's mouth, the next he was free falling towards the earth as the arm he was clutched in, was cut free from the rest of the body.

Levi twisted in the air, pausing momentarily to realign himself before he went in for the kill. Landing on the forest floor, he quickly pulled out a handkerchief and cleaned the steaming Titan blood off of his blade as he looked down at his weeping teammate.

"Are you okay?" he asked the man laying in the open Titan hand.

"Captain...Thank you so much!" Oluo cried, snot mixing with tears.

Off to the side, Hanji was still trying to come to terms with what had just happened. "This child was to be...an important specimen. If we could've captured him, humanity might've taken the next step forward" Hanji rambled as she watched Titan go up in smoke.

"Shut up, you four-eyed bitch!" snapped Levi as he marched over and pulled her up to his face, "If you wanna end up as Titan shit, I won't stop you. But don't you dare endanger the lives of my men!"

Hanji blinked a few times before replying, "Titans don't defecate. They don't have a digestive system" Levi just shoved her back to the ground.

"...Ah, Captain?" Petra called, her eyes locked on the pine tree across the clearing.

"What is it?" Levi asked, his tone much calmer.

"Did a Titan do that?" She asked, clasping her hands to her chest, "But...It can't be..."

"What are you talking about?"

Petra merely pointed towards the pine tree where a headless skeleton garbed in the Scout's gear could be seen sitting within the large hollow.

Peering inside the hollow, Hanji moved the cloak aside to inspect the uniform. "The emblem from the 34th expedition..." she mumbled, her voice echoing around her, "This soldier died a year ago. The soldier's names was...let's see...Ilse Languar" said Hanji as she read the dog tags hanging around the skeleton's neck, "I can't believe it. Why would a Titan do such...Levi, what's that?" she asked as she turned to come back down again.

Back on the ground, Levi was flipping through an old tattered notebook, his eyes never leaving the delicate pages. "It's the fruit of Ilse Langnar's labour"

My name is Ilse Langnar. I am part of the 34th expedition beyond the Walls, Second battalion, in charge of perimeter defence. On our way back, we encountered some Titans. I lost everyone in my squad, even my horse.

My ODM gear was damaged, so I had to leave it behind. I am running due north. I have lost my horse in the lands ruled by the Titans. No human can outrun a Titan on foot. I have no comrades to rely on, my chances of returning to the Walls are despairingly low.

However, if I avoid contact with the Titans, I might be able to reach the Walls. That's right. Right now, I must not give into fear. I have been prepared for this scenario since the day I joined the Scout Regiment.

I am the wings of humanity, making its last stand. I am a member of the Scouts! I will fight to the end, even if I end up dying! I have no weapons, but I can still fight! I will record my experiences on this paper, and do everything I can! I will not give up!

I have encountered a Titan, it's a seven-no, six-metre class. It didn't attack me right away. Is it an Abnormal? This is the end of the line. This is as far as I go, I have lived a whimsical life. I haven't done anything for my parents yet! I feel sick! The end.

It just spoke. The Titan just spoke. No way. The Titan is speaking words that I can understand, "Ymir's People" "Lady Ymir" "Welcome" There's no doubt. This Titan is showing facial expressions, it appears to be showing respect to me. I can't believe it! For the first time in humanity's history, I'm...conversing with a Titan?!

I asked this Titan about its nature. Instead of talking, it's moaning. I asked for a location, he didn't respond. I asked him for a motive.

He has me between his teeth. I can feel his teeth upon my skull, like the pressure of a-

Hanji sat back in her chair with a sigh as she thought over what she had just read. This dainty little notebook could be the very thing that helped her further her research into the Titans. Or it could be the reason the project is shut down before it begins. Leaning forward over the desk once more, Hanji pulled out a quill and paper and began yet another project proposal to Erwin.

Mr Erwin Smith,

I write this letter in regards to Subject: Resumption of Attempts to Capture Live Titans by the Scout Regiment. A glance through the enclosed notebook makes one thing clear, we are still completely ignorant about Titans, I would say.

The Titan that Ilse Langnar met spoke a recognisable language, and appeared to show her respect. Also, instead of consuming her body, the Titan stored it inside a tree hollow. This seems to be a reasonable assumption. Although, this is obvious, such a case is a first in all history of mankind.

We have a responsibility to make use of the information Ilse gave us, recording everything down even in her last moments of her life. We cannot let the effort she put in toward finding some truth behind the Titans go to waste.

We have to continue it. No matter how little intel we gain from such missions, it will not be in vain. I firmly believe that it will play an important part in humanity's fight against the Titans.

Sergeant of the Second Squad,

Zoe Hanji

Stepping outside the Langnar home, Hanji came to a stop, surprise written on her face as she saw Squad Levi on the doorstep with sacks of supplies slung over their shoulders. Oluo stood at the head as he begged for her forgiveness with his captain watching over. Clearly he had been pushed to do this.

"Um Hanji?" Oluo stuttered clutching to the sack tied around his shoulders.

"You followed me here?" Hanji demanded, hands on hips, "Can't say I appreciate your manners"

"...I'm sorry about last time. If not for my mistake, we might have captured it and it might have helped mankind. If I have to give my life for that, it's not too high of a price-"

"No, I am the one who should apologise" stated Hanji as she leapt forward and latched onto his lapels, lifting him closer to her face, "I nearly got you killed. I'm so sorry. But never say that your life is cheap again. Understand?"

Hanji glanced up at the man when she received no reply to see the Oluo had not only bit his tongue hard enough to make it bleed, but he was slowly turn blue as well. Her grip on his shirt being far too tight.

"Hey, are you okay?" Hanji demanded as she dropped him on his ass, "Oluo? What the hell are you doing?"

"By the way, Erwin has come to a decision" Levi stated as the group made their way back to base.

"I see" Hanji muttered, "Hooray!" she cheered, scaring the crap out of Oluo who flinched into Petra at the sudden movement.

Twenty days later, Sergeant Hanji gained the support of the Special Operations Squad led by Captain Levi, and succeeded in organising the first ever expedition beyond Wall Maria to capture a Titan.

For that mission, a new method of capture proposed by Sergeant Hanji was used, and not a single human life was lost.