Chapter 3

Hearts and Minds


"…let them know that we sent you…" the young man quietly moved the paper to the side of his desk before taking a second sheet in his hand; obviously, the top story of the day. Taking a quick drink from a cup of water by his side, he began his job as a political commentator for a certain podcast.

"Alright-y, so! Fantastic news from within the gate- the other world within New York City! God what a- what a crazy, crazy timeline we're living in, but… Good news for the president, good news for us, good news for everybody today. So, the top story is of course the information coming from the FOB US troops established, oh, what, two, three days ago? Basically, contact had been made with the military on the other side of the gate, the other military faction that is within the walled enclaves of humanity in that world- but not only was friendly contact established, an ABC report from within the gate confirmed earlier today that alongside this Survey Corps, if you remember Ilse Langnar described them in her one interview, US troops managed to seal this breach within the walls that had also been described in her interview."

The young political commentator couldn't help but grin as he said that.

Time to tear into all those hippies that whined and cried about going through being a terrible idea...

"This just goes to show you what the American military can do. In less than two days we solved what to our new allies was a literal existential crisis! If left alone, they would have lost way more people trying to fix this problem, and if what the original reports say are true, then those are losses they cannot afford. What's even better, no fatalities! Not only did we fix their problems in a day or two, we did it without losing a single one of our own or their own men. I keep saying, the US military is the most powerful force in the world, and all these hippies need to have a little faith in our troops… all those angry college kids protesting, thinking its 1970 again… idiots… Anyway, the important thing now is establishing political relations with the governing body, something that should be easy enough; we saved their asses for crying out loud… so, political relations should be a breeze." He said with a wholehearted laugh before moving on to another subject.

Somewhere else, in another studio, another political commentator was broadcasting his two cents on the situation.

"So… apparently this operation was incredibly successful, which, great, if it helps these people, sure. What worries me is that…" he frowned slightly as he tried to formulate the words. He had been strongly opposed to US intervention in the lands beyond the gate from the beginning. Sending aid? Yeah, sure- but putting boots on the ground?

At least, as many as were sent?

No.

"What honestly worries me is that we may be looking at another Iraq, maybe even worse since it could be by complete accident. How so? Well, we have no idea how these folks will react to American tanks, cars, values. We know the one person that made it here was not susceptible to our own illnesses, and she didn't bring anything with her, but there is still a-a major risk of a disease breaking out on either side, and my biggest concern aside from all of that is the possibility that the local government might collapse or disintegrate on its own, kind of how the body stops producing adrenaline when it thinks it's safe."

He took a sip from the water bottle he kept nearby.

"Now, maybe I'm just being pessimistic, I could always be wrong, but these are real possibilities. We could see the government think it would be better to hand over responsibility of its people to the US, or we could see them getting inclined to do so under CIA advisory- but enough negatives, lets at least talk about the best case scenario, something everyone seems to think is going to happen after the latest news. Of course, the president wants to treat this nation as an ally, possibly granting the people there dual citizenship if they so choose, could be an option, I mean, the doorway connecting us is in New York, so… maybe that could work, I don't know. What I do know is that many companies already want to step up and get started on modernizing of the other side, which might be good; of course it really depends on the company. Uh, regardless, of both the media optimism and my own pessimism, I do think that there is a fair chance that things will at least go well, US troops along with a US representative are heading to the capital of this walled society, mostly to discuss this gate, what we can offer them, what they can offer us, all that capitalistic opportunity, you know the drill… weirdest first contact ever, but who cares, really? Hopefully they don't let the fact that we solved one crisis make them overly trusting… anyway, in other news… so Fox news, the absolute idiots that they are, think…"

"I said you are all under arrest!" the man with a unicorn on his jacket shouted at the members of the Survey Corps ahead of the small American convoy.

"Christ, a brother can't even get a break in another world."

"Unoriginal joke, jackass. And shut up!" Matt hissed.

Jake ignored the kick to the back, but stayed quiet.

Everything had been going fine! The Abrams fit rather awkwardly through the gate to the so called Wall Rose and Wall Sina, but they fit and were necessary for the trip back.

Regardless, the civilian population had reacted… oddly.

Oh, when the horse riding members of the Survey Corps rode through, they were cheering, ecstatic to have their land back, or at least, having won a victory against a supposedly invincible enemy. But the second the first Humvee drove in, they got quiet. Then the MRAPS followed, then a pair of LAVs, and finally four Abrams and an M88 recovery vehicle, tank crews awkwardly waving as they drove by, as by that point everyone had at least switched from uncertainty to curiosity.

The streets had been tight, but the convoy made it through without any real problems, and it had been smooth sailing from then until they reached Wall Sina. The members of the Military Police were, for lack of a better word, visibly incompetent. Despite Erwin sending messengers, the MPs hadn't even said anything when the Americans drove in after the Survey Corps, just staring in silence, some looking downright frightened.

Then they were making their way to the center of the interior wall when they met several of these Military Policemen who stopped the convoy. They introduced themselves by raising their muskets, some of them bringing out small cannons even.

Before Erwin could even ask, the visibly nervous commanding officer for these idiots in uniform declared that they were to be arrested!

It really didn't help that the MPs looked nervous as hell, and none of them were following the basic rule of trigger discipline, the perfect environment for a gun to go off accidentally, something every competent soldier there understood.

"Dude, tell the marines ahead to gun it, I seriously think these guys are gonna shoot first." Dave stated.

"Dave, you will stay quiet!" Matt hissed in an angry, almost parental tone.

They had four tanks, the MPs did not.

They had fully automatic rifles capable of piercing just about all body armor available in a pre-industrial society, the MPs did not.

They had Kevlar armor and armored cars, the MPs did not.

But still…

"Forget that, I'm checking if-"

Before he could check the radio, it crackled to life with a very irritated sounding voice.

"Anyone listening to this; hold your fire, sit the hell down, and don't do anything stupid. Let our commanders do the talking; this is probably just a misunderstanding."

Levi.

The admittedly short officer had moved his horse towards a Humvee and grabbed the radio, probably intending to relax the troops… or at least to order them to relax.

Matt shifted nervously at the way the voice sounded like it was somehow glaring directlyat them despite being a message to everyone with a radio.

The Survey Corps captain was already leaving a mark on the Americans.

"Captain, what is the meaning of this?" Erwin asked the visibly nervous officer.

"Uh… T-these people are from outside the walls! You declared as much in your let-"

"The entrance they came through is situated within Wall Maria, not beyond it. And if the king did not wish to meet our allies, or have them arrested, then why not send word sooner? We outnumber them after all."

"Silence! If… if you want to go through, then wait until my orders change… but the girl that brought all this upon us… one… um… Ilse Lagnar, is to be put under immediate arrest for violating royal law."

"Wait, seriously? Are you really going to ignore all the-?" Hanji protested, pushing her horse ever so slightly forward in an attempt at talking directly to the officer until a bayonet stopped her.

"I just have my orders! N-now please, let's not make this any harder than it needs to be. Now, who is Ilse Langnar?" the man said, seemingly oblivious to the single Survey Corps member hopping from her horse, visibly shaken, but still cooperative.

Before Erwin could interject, order the girl to stay down, the Military Police officer said "Ah, her, the one with the weird vest. Someone grab her, please."

One of the younger MPs rolled his eyes and walked ahead, aggressively grabbing the girl's arm in order to put iron chains on it.

Ilse protested slightly as the MP harshly pulled her away from the horse, which led to the doors on each Humvee and MRAP popping open as several extremely pissed off US Marines decided that sitting around was not on their to do list right now.

Oh no…

"The hell is this?! We fix your goddamn wall and this is how you treat us?!" one of the Marines shouted, walking angrily towards the MP.

"W-wait a second!" Ilse stammered out.

The situation cannot be allowed to escalate, damn it!

The MP suddenly slammed the Marine down with relative ease, much to the surprise of both the Marine and the young MP.

"This… is not your place, now sit down." The MP replied calmly.

The Marine got back up immediately and balled a fist when an Army sergeant spoke up.

"Alright! Enough! Commander, why the hell do they have to arrest Ilse? Did she break a law?" Sergeant Roy interjected and called to the stone faced commander.

"I doubt it, though maybe one can interpret some obscure law about not leaving the walls and apply it here, perhaps?" Erwin replied, glancing at the MP Captain who nervously nodded.

"That isn't very productive to talks, Commander. Captain, I am afraid that while we would technically have to allow you to arrest Ilse, your actions may result in communications between our two worlds becoming exponentially strained. Is that what you want to do?"

That struck a nerve with the Military Police officer.

"I-I-I-I did not… all I have are the orders g-g-given…I-I-I-"

"Calm down, captain, let's just… talk…" Erwin said, putting up as much charm as he could.

Levi frowned… what the hell were the king and his advisory thinking to send an incompetent hack with little information like this?

The truth was, they had not been thinking.

They had been panicking.

The most powerful men this side of the gate were and ever since the walls went up always had been, mere puppets; always presenting an organized front, always pretending to be trying to help humanity, always going out of their way to at least present an image of order.

What a joke.

These men hadn't passed a single law in their entire lives; all of those had been passed by the first king so long ago. All they were responsible for was deciding what level of force was necessary in order to enforce them, if even that. It was deciding that and they would also decide how to split the budget every year. But even with so little work to do their lives were always rather stressful, especially for the extra member present in the room.

For a king, Rodd Reiss did not look the part.

At any first glance, he looked little better than a well-dressed owner of a shop, perhaps a noble, but certainly not royalty. Slightly overweight, a disheveled appearance, dark shadows under his eyes, but the most telling sign was that he had no idea what to do. Since a child, he had been told to follow, never lead. Even during his rebellious phase, when he and his brother had made such bold plans for fighting and ending the threat of the titans, he had always followed his brother's lead.

He thought he would know how to react to any given situation as long as he had that guide.

The breach of Wall Maria, the Colossal and Armored titans, and the direct and horrifying attack on his family… even if he could deal with all of that rather easily thanks to the resources available, it ultimately left him without the guide.

Somehow he had managed, though.

Even if things went to hell, he could always just shut humanity within the last wall and continue the wish of the founder, the one who had decided that humanity must remain within the walls.

The survey corps had always been an excellent tool for proving that point. Their major losses inspired many to carry on the torch, but it would always be fewer and fewer that went to pick it up, and with the memory of the original founder constantly passed from one heir to the next, everything had been going peacefully for the population in spite of the constant losses. Pretty soon they would have all been perfectly complacent to forget the lands beyond those walls.

But now…

The constant questioning that filled the room made it difficult to think.

"Word comes in claims that their weapons can kill any titan in one shot! One shot! How is that possible?"

"Without the founder, how can we fight against them? How?"

"My king, excellency above all, we beg of you, what should we do?"

They followed him now, having total faith that he at least knew the will of the founder.

But if the stories were true, then this was beyond him.

"Gentlemen, this is clearly beyond our current king. I should remind you that despite knowing the last two carriers of the founder he never did carry it himself." It was one of the older men in the group who spoke, no malice in the statement. "I have taken it upon myself to take action in order to delay the enemy."

Rod and the rest of his advisory stopped dead in their tracks and turned to look at the older man.

"Deltoff… what did you do?"

"My liege, I sent a Military Police regiment to stop them outside the entrance to the capital. They are to detain them and the girl who mysteriously survived outside the walls. That way we can avoid-"

"Are you out of your mind?! I gave no order for such an action to be taken! Someone call them off right now!"

"But- my liege-"

"We need to see what they can do first you dimwit! And if the rumors are true, they could destroy us faster than the titans could, or conquer us and make us their slaves just as fast! You will give them a personal apology the instant they come through those doors!" the true king yelled in anger and panic as a pair of MPs ran out the door.

The MPs were followed by a tired, visibly irritated man who simply sighed as he went to clean up yet another mess caused by the Reiss family.

How did it ever come to this?!

Ilse had now been standing between two men from different worlds glaring daggers at one another as Erwin kept calming the MP Captain down.

However, the younger MP was visibly angry and had been trying to provoke the Americans.

At first it was just with petty insults, but then…

"Look at you, wondering around, thinking you own the place…"

"Last I checked we could wipe you off the map and take this world for ourselves. I hear there are only titans beyond the walls and we can handle them with ease." The American growled; a doglike grin on his face.

"Captain! These men are threatening to destroy us!" the MP shouted, removing a blade and aiming it at the Marine who immediately put a hand on his M4.

Ilse grabbed both the blade and the rifle in a panic making it impossible for the Marine to shoot or for the MP to stab.

Although she cut her hand on the blade… and if that carbine went off she might lose a finger… or a toe depending on the angle…

Damn it all….

Before it could escalate, though, some men appeared on horseback and called out, distracting the respective officers on the scene.

"Let them through, Deltoffe was just panicking." The older of the other officers said in a calm and tired voice.

"F-first brigade? Yes Sir! Let them through! Withdraw!" the captain immediately retreated, though the angry MP lingered for a second before shoving the marine aside and walking back to his horse, leaving him to tend to Ilse's cut.

Matt narrowed his eyes at the odd group of Military Police officers, several of whom were glaring daggers at them, not unlike trapped animals, but the older MPs, the ones that had arrived looked… dangerous.

Their bored faces and studious looks suggested that these were the elites of the Military Police much like how Levi and his team were the elites in the Survey Corps. Matt was somewhat surprised the short man had been completely stoic during the whole ordeal. Even he had considered turning the MK-19 in the general direction of the men and letting off a single round if it came down to a standoff, which it had essentially turned into, but it wasn't exactly American policy to shoot first, and as much as he would've liked to do so, it really wasn't something a disciplined soldier should do there and then.

But he could dream…

He noticed then that the Survey Corps captain was returning death glares at the MPs.

Really now, who were these guys to act with so little discipline?

It was just the first of many clues as to how disorganized and divided the military leadership was on this side of the gate.

And if Matt had looked even a little more he would have noticed that one of the seemingly high ranking officers that stopped the situation wasn't wearing any emblems and appeared to be actively trying to hide his face.

Rodd paced impatiently from one side of the royal hall to the next, his advisors watching nervously.

"Your majesty, they will be here soon, you should-"

"I want to see what Kenny has to report before I make any decisions, gentlemen." the true king replied, unaware of how much like a growl his voice had come off as.

The men fell silent, as the main door opened up and a very calm Kenny Ackerman walked into the hall.

"What happened?" Rodd asked nervously.

"Bah, the idiots were more than glad to be relieved, and the strange men in green had kept their cool for the most part. They're as human as you and me from the looks of it."

Rodd sighed, more than a little relieved himself given the fact that he had avoided a major catastrophe should his soldiers have attacked these strange men, but still, he couldn't allow them to disrupt the perfect peace his lineage had created, so with a quick breath, he spoke up.

"You will ask few questions other than how they got here and what they plan to do, I will be hiding in the wall near the left exit, listening in. if you have doubts, look to Kenny, I will tap twice for yes, once for no, and he will discreetly show two or one fingers accordingly. Don't let them think they own the place, don't let them do anything outside Wall Maria, don't let them encourage anything we have deemed dangerous. Understood?!"

Kenny hid his annoyance at the job while the other men nodded, unquestioning in their devotion to their physical god.

Even if he was just a stand in until they could regain the true founder.

Ilse awkwardly opened the door to the American politician, the blonde woman sighed as her security escorted her into the large building.

She whispered a simple thank you to the young girl that had been helping her country, not because she couldn't say it out loud, but because the building was deathly silent. The many guards of the Military Police simply stood there, staring at her and her people as if shadow monsters had materialized in the hall.

"We are here to speak with the king and his council." Erwin said, startling the woman.

The guards nodded, leading them up the stairs and to the main room.

The young girl couldn't believe she was about to meet the king.

The king!

The last remaining ruler of humanity on her world!

The man who was ultimately in charge of protecting all that remained!

The man who had made the toughest decisions during the fall of Wall Maria!

The man who… looked like he hadn't had a good meal in years…

The doors had opened to reveal an incredibly tired and bored looking old man and several other stone faced old men who were glaring at the people entering.

She actually found it difficult to recognize the king, even if he had plenty of art pieces all over the nation; he just looked so… frail.

Her mind went back to a previous American president she had read about, one who had entered office looking quite young, yet aged twenty years in the span of eight.

Clearly, the same had happened here.

She glanced at Erwin who, alongside herself, saluted the king before speaking.

"Your majesty, I am certain you have heard already, but in case you haven't, wall Maria has been sealed and operations to exterminate the titans within it can commence at your discretion!"

The old man sitting on the throne didn't even nod, it was one of the fatter advisors who leaned forward slightly before saying "Yes, commander, and while that is certainly fantastic news we… are very concerned about the means through which you did it... as well as the phenomenon occurring within the lost territory." He said slowly, carefully even.

Ilse did her best to hide her confusion.

Shouldn't they be happier about this?

Was fear that big a deterrent from them celebrating?

Had they just celebrated before?

Paranoia was understandable given the situation, but why would titans or humans that were in favor of the destruction of mankind within the walls want to help them in any way?

It just didn't feel like the paranoia was warranted.

"Well, sir, the situation isn't exactly understood by them either, but the best way to explain it is that a sort of doorway has opened between our world and theirs."

All the men standing by the king stared in a shocked silence.

"A-another world…" one of them mumbled, the insanity of the statement apparent but also undeniable.

"Correct, Miss Langnar over here first discovered it after getting separated from the main force of a previous expedition almost a year ago. She helped the people on the other side stop a titan incursion and found out just how efficient their technology is."

Instead of appearing interested, the king's men gave worried glances at one another.

In their eyes, this was not something good at all. Oh, sure, wall Maria had been sealed, off, but this was opening up a whole new threat to the land.

"So… excuse us but… why would… you… come here?" the question was directed at the Americans who had been standing silently behind the scouts.

The representative took a breath and spoke up "Well, sir, our intentions are simple, to secure the opening between our two worlds. The doorway, if you will, opened up in one of our most populated cities, I'm actually a representative from there- and we don't want another titan attack occurring in the most-"

"THEN WHY DIDN'T YOU SIMPLY SEAL IT?! WHY ARE YOU HERE?!" a shrilled yell interrupted the US representative.

Everyone turned to look at the oldest man amongst the advisors, his face red with misguided anger. If he could see King Reiss behind his hiding spot he would find the middle aged man covering his face in abject frustration.

"Please forgive Deltoff, ever since Wall Maria was attacked he has been paranoid of… everything. He was the one who misguidedly sent the MPs earlier…" The fat man said, exasperated.

"I'm not paranoid! Why on earth would they come here?! What's in it for us?! What's in it for them?! Huh?!"

Ilse took a breath.

"E-excuse me, sir, but… you sent that brigade of Military Police to intercept us, yes?" Ilse asked as politely as she could.

"Yes! What of it?!"

Here we go…

"Well, if I may, they were rather unprepared… they decided to intercept us just outside the building instead of at the main entry, which would be a bottleneck for an army without 3D maneuver gear. I believe one benefit would be that the Americans could send better trainers to boost security around the walls." Ilse said as respectfully as she could.

It had been the plan to have her suggest the idea a little later, but it seemed that the situation called for it then.

The old man raised an eyebrow.

"That… answers one question…but what exactly is in it for them?" he growled back, sounding like a lion despite his old age.

"Sir, we would like to establish trade, be allowed to bring in explorers, scientists, people that can help you out while also benefitting us; businesses, innovation, stuff everyone can benefit from. We believe we can eliminate the titan threat not just within the walls, but outside as well. You can't retake the world alone, sir, and we could help you out with that, benefitting ourselves in the process- a sort of… mutually beneficial alliance." The US representative stated calmly, suspicion written in her eyes.

Something was off here…

That seemed to calm the man down slightly.

In fact, the mood seemed to lighten as the advisors looked at each other, smiled and one of them calmly answered.

"No."

Rod wanted to scream in his hiding spot.

Those bastards decided without my approval! Damn them! Kenny!

"Kenny! Give them a heads up! Now!" he hissed

The interior police officer sighed and did the required signal with his hands, sliding a finger across his neck as if he was scratching an itch.

One of the advisors noticed, and quickly interrupted the other man who was explaining some made up garbage about how preserving their way of life was important.

"Of course, we would genuinely appreciate the help… as long as certain conditions are met."

Erwin, Ilse, and the Americans collectively raised their eyebrows but never commented on the odd switch of pace.

Rod sighed in silent relief. The destruction of the titans took him back to a time long forgotten now.

"What exactly would those conditions be, if I may?" Commander Erwin managed to ask while the US representative was still trying to understand the last pair of statements.

Rod narrowed his eyes from his hiding place.

The commander was a… problematic man. It was very unfortunate he had been the one to make first contact. It would have been preferable if the men from somewhere else had simply marched into the capital instead of meeting Erwin.

But now they had met the leader of the Survey Corps, and from the looks of it, certainly seemed to trust him more than they trusted the nobles that served him. And that was always assuming Erwin hadn't fed them some lies about the government, assuming he was still loyal to the king, assuming these men were peaceful and not out to conquer… things that Rod did not want to leave up to chance.

Now he had to hope his men knew enough to explain themselves to these… visitors from somewhere else.

"Well… for starters, use of flying machines is prohibited."

Rod nodded in his hiding spot. It was one thing to explore the lands beyond the walls on foot or on horseback, or even whatever land roving vehicles these men had brought with them, but to fly and explore? Unacceptable, too dangerous to allow, one of the few constants with the other kings, though one he never quite understood.

"E-excuse me, but their flying machines are vital to destroying the titan threat, if-"

"Silence, child, we have heard enough from you…"

The young girl, one Ilse Langnar, had been very patiently standing around, talking when permitted, but she was visibly frustrated with the royal advisors. If what the information he had received was accurate, she was presumed dead after her unit was attacked during one of the previous expeditions. From what he understood, she had survived, found that strange… doorway, and brought the Americans "to help".

If it ever comes to it, we can use that against her…

He whispered to Kenny, who rolled his eyes and made another gesture with his hands.

"You, please tell us why you need your… flying machines." The man who noticed asked.

General Connor blinked, uncertain as to how exactly he could explain this to someone who apparently didn't see the use of an air force in an age when they could easily benefit from it.

Unless they don't want their people to develop…

"Well, sir, in our world, wars amongst humans are partly won by controlling the skies. You can attack your enemy without them being able to shoot back, doing maximum damage. Titans don't have any air power, and with coordinated efforts, air power alone could easily wipe them out both within the walls and outside of them."

"Yes, but is it necessary?"

What the hell is up with these guys?!

"Well, our tanks have proven very effective at annihilating them, but we still need the air power to locate titans before they locate us. It would save lives."

The men glanced at each other, some seemingly looking past one another, before they all nodded.

"Well, we suppose you can you use air power to destroy the titans within Wall Maria, however exploration beyond the walls must be limited to ground travel. It is just the law of the land here, and we believe it is less risky."

Connor nodded simply, not wanting to argue right there and then.

Ilse wanted to protest, but kept silent.

Erwin was used to the nature of the nobles, so he remained silent.

"What exactly do you call these machines, anyway?" the older man asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

Before anyone could answer, Ilse stated "Helicopters, sir."

"…ah, I see. These heli-copters are to only be used in destroying the titans, but not in exploring or assisting the Survey Corps when they go beyond the walls. Is the matter settled?"

The small group of outsiders nodded.

The man grinned, satisfied with himself, completely unaware of the reason why the young scout had been the one who had answered, not the general. Like most people in that room that weren't the Survey Corps or had come from another world, he didn't know that there existed more than one type of flying machine.

General Connor was not about to let the man dwell on it too much, and neither was the representative.

"If I may, are there any other conditions you would like us to meet in order to continue operating in this land?"

The men looked at one another again before one asked "What exactly would you like to do here?"

The US representative took a breath and began her explanation.

"Well, sirs, like we said, we would like to share some of our technology with your people. We have improved medicine, healthier ways of preparing food, plus electricity and weapons are just some of the things we can offer." She said, showing the men a simple flashlight, flicking it on.

The fat man that had spoken plenty stared at the light on it.

"This is… impressive." He said, studying the odd invention from his seat.

"That's just the tip of what we can offer you, sir. Better communication is something we can give you almost immediately if you allow it. You could contact someone in wall Maria form this very room and have a conversation with them with ease without having to travel there."

"You can just do that?"

"Sir, where we're from, you can talk to someone across the world without travelling there." The representative said, smiling.

"And what do you want in return? Specifically." the older man asked, calm now but an edge remained on his voice.

Oh boy, here we go…

"Well, for starters, the land we are already on… we need a base of operations and we could appreciate it if we could buy it from you."

The men glanced at each other, suspicious of the Americans, but seeing no reason to deny them… so far.

"Acceptable, but surely that isn't all you want."

"We need another Forward Operating Base in order to launch attacks on the titans beyond Wall Maria…" the representative paused, allowing for anyone who objected to the idea to speak.

None did.

"So, our generals believe that control of the Shiganshina district could prove beneficial to us all. A good portion of it is destroyed already, so we could work on fixing it while your people work on other parts of the wall that weren't as damaged by the titan invasion. That way we can both preserve the residential areas while establishing a base for ourselves, if that's alright with you." she finished, leaving out the fact that more bases would inevitably be needed if they wanted to expand.

The men looked at each other again.

It most certainly wasn't an unfair idea, they helped reclaim it after all, and they couldn't imagine how much damage there was to clean, and it was better to keep both of these bases as far away from the capital as possible. They weren't even asking for a district that hadn't been damaged, they were asking for the one that suffered the most damage once Wall Maria fell. All the cleaner and more attractive districts that were abandoned could be sold off to any rich person they could benefit from… many possibilities…

There was no fathomable reason to say no.

Let them keep it.

However, at the same time, a launching off point for further exploration could be… very problematic in the long term. It gave them everything they needed to launch both offensives into the land of the titans sure, but also scouting operations. The scouts, limited by their supplies and speed, would soon be able to travel further and faster… and if the Americans lent them their destructive weapons, casualties would never mount as high as they usually did, and public opinion would be easily swayed in the favor of the scouts and against them.

Against the will of the founder, the will of a god!

Unacceptable...

But it would take them a while to get to that point… hopefully long enough for them to think of something… they could work with.

"Well, as long as you focus on destroying the titans first, we see no reason to object. Not many survivors from Shiganshina either, so you may even have the entire district for your own use."

Erwin almost gawked at the statement.

Had this… truly happened? The Survey Corps had its forts and bases for operating and managing supplies, but from what the Americans were saying, most if not the entire Shiganshina district would now serve as a launching point for future operations! The commander felt a knot in his throat, something he easily pushed away for dealing with later.

"Is that all?" the old man asked, interrupting Erwin's train of thought.

"One more thing, we would also like to begin training some soldiers with our own weapons, that way you can begin to better equip your army in order to fight against the titans yourselves." The US representative said.

"We allow it, contact the commander of the garrisons for recommendations of… let's just stick to one regiment for now. Is that all?"

"Actually sir, we were wondering where the other military commanders were. We kind of expected them to be here." General Connor said.

"No, they have yet to arrive, which works for us, since we can interview you without their endless questions. Ah yes, once they arrive, they may want to see a demonstration of your weapons. There is a field not too far from the capital that should work for you all to show off your weapons or whatever you soldiers do. Anything else?" it was the old man who answered, looking far more relaxed than before, friendly even.

"I… believe that is all?" General Connor mumbled, turning to the representative who nodded before speaking up.

"We look forward to working with you all. Hopefully this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship! I can bring some formal papers for you to examine and to make our alliance official!" The US representative said cheerfully, offering to shake the hand of the king.

The king had fallen asleep.

"I do apologize; the years have been very hard on him. You are free to go. And thank you for your time." The fat man said, nodding for the MPs to open the heavy doors.

"Never seen someone so ungrateful in my entire life…" Ilse mumbled, still shocked at the attitude of the nobles.

"You should see my meetings with certain other nations." the US representative mumbled.

"The nobility here is very protective of their way of life. I am frankly amazed they conceded as much as they did." Erwin said.

Ilse looked at her commander, realizing how difficult it had to be to work with such obstructive leaders.

"Still, something was way off about them, though. The king didn't even say anything."

"He rarely does." Erwin replied calmly.

"Well, to be fair, I suppose they are just trying to preserve their way of life. I don't know, I've seen far more closed off individuals. At least we got something out of this." The US representative replied.

"And I should add that it was much, much more than anything I could have ever strong-armed from them." Erwin replied courtly.

"Well, we aren't fully restricted from using aircraft, and Isle's quick thinking also technically gave us access to use drones in order to assist in your scouting operations. As long as they don't find out..."

"Once we fully clear wall Maria of course." Erwin replied, no longer able to hide the smile on his face.

Ilse thought about it, and finally said "Well, I guess that, in a way, we all benefited from this deal."

Hopefully everyone's happy with it.

Everyone was not happy with the deal, especially King Reiss. Once again, the middle aged man was pacing from one end of the room to the other as his advisors remained silent.

"We cannot allow them to bring any weapons into the capital, period! Some rich prick like you might get the bright idea to sell those things on the black market, and the next thing we know my head has been turned into a fine powder by some moron from the underground!" he yelled.

Kenny silently laughed at that.

"Why the hell did you allow them to show them off within the capital?!" he yelled again.

His advisors remained silent, and he knew why. It was a military matter, and Pixis and Zackly weren't exactly going to travel for a full day on end in order to meet some men only to have to travel all the way back to Wall Sina to test some new weapons when a perfectly good military field was well within range. Might as well get the demonstrations over with quick and then ask them to head back to Wall Maria. Rod knew this, but it still infuriated him how absolutely helpless he was to stop anything.

"Look… obviously we can't stop them from changing our society to some extent…" he sighed, regaining control over his emotions as he sat down on a wooden chair.

"No, not really…" Kenny murmured; a smug grin on his face.

"What we can do is limit it. Prohibit them from bringing their weapons in here; keep them as far away from the population as we can… how many people would be resettling into Wall Maria once they clear it?"

Kenny read him a rough estimate, which put the resettling population in the low hundreds to few thousands.

Exact records had always been sketchy…

"Right… as for ultimately dealing with the problem of the Americans, we are going to need The Founder back. Only The Founder can decide how we move from here." Rodd said solemnly.

Kenny rolled his eyes.

Deltoffe caught this action and immediately stood up.

"I don't believe this Ackerman is very helpful to our cause, your majesty." He protested.

"Ah? Can you find someone better?" Kenny replied, somewhat, though not entirely, confused by the man's sudden hostility.

"Maybe we should! I bet you would gladly start to work with these people against the king!"

"And how would that help them? From what I heard, they could conquer us in a few days with little problem." The member of the interior police sighed back, hiding his growing irritation with the old man.

"You doubt the power of The Founder?!"

"The one you all lost?"

Deltoffe had had enough. Nothing had been going their way since the titans broke through Wall Maria, and he did not need a lowly Ackerman talking back to him!

Deltoffe went to strike the man when Kenny simply grabbed the old man's arm and twisted it, dropping the man to the floor and jabbing the tip of a knife on the very edge of his mouth.

"Look here, maybe I am just some lowly servant, but I think I know enough to tell you that power can be taken away with incredible ease, Deltoffe. Humanity was the dominant species until the titans ripped that from us, the founder was a god to you all, until some man from the outer wall stole it from you all. I may be subordinate to you, but if I wanted to jab this knife down your throat, you couldn't even delay it. I suggest you all think very carefully about what you do next."

Rod watched in silence; Kenny was a valuable tool to keeping order within the walls, but he had always been a… sort of loose cannon now that his brother was gone, his soul stolen along with the founding titan, as well as the soul of his daughter.

They had searched everywhere they could but there was no sign of the doctor that had robbed them of the true founder and its memories of why humanity was within the walls.

Only the founder could lead in this dark time, and though they had a replacement ready, they still needed the founder in order to continue the line.

That said, Kenny's outburst made a point that he needed to consider.

"Deltoffe, please refrain from biting the hand that guards you. And Kenny, I think we need more members trained in using the anti-personnel gear."

The man dropped the still angry Deltoffe and glanced at the king, asking "You want me to get more recruits?"

"No, I want you to assign three good leaders to train new recruits while I assign commanders to them all. I want four more regiments ready. I want the Interior Police ready to confront these Americans, these forces from beyond the walls, should the need arise."

Kenny winced at that, saying "Hold on, they haven't done anything to-"

"It is a precaution, and a way of keeping order. Anyone tries smuggling illegal technology in here, I want their bodies to never even be found. Not a trace left. And sooner or later we will find The Founder, and when we do, she will ultimately decide what the fate of the Americans will be. Maybe she will allow them to stay, but if she says we should get rid of them…"

All Kenny could do was nod.

But deep within the confines of his tired mind, a possibility he had been pondering ever since the previous king had passed his soul reared its complicated little head.

He would have to change things, of course, but…

Soon after, the meeting concluded and Rod began to make his way back to his secret home away from the capital, maintaining the façade of being a regular old somewhat rich noble barely related to the royal bloodline.

Kenny left him with two of the men most loyal to the king, Rod reminding him of his task, "Make sure they are loyal to the true king, Kenny, I will be interviewing them myself."

Kenny nodded as the carriage left through the less seen rear of the government building.

That had been a warning…

None of my loyal men, his loyal men…

On its own, that left plenty of options, but would certainly complicate things for him.

He glanced at the sun, still hanging high up in the sky.

Maybe it was finally time he should pay a long overdue visit to his beloved nephew.

"What about the one in the pink dress?" Dave asked.

"Hmm… five, bordering on six." Jake replied, seemingly bored.

"Really? I call that a solid seven."

"I call that an eight back home." Matt mumbled.

"That's just her figure; you guys gotta look at a woman's face before her body."

"Ohh…" both of the younger Americans replied thoughtfully, conceding the woman was too far way to see the details on her face properly.

"Are you boys calculating otherworldly math equations or something?" a certain girl with goggles asked, eyebrow raised as the Humvee crew turned to give her a sideways glance, not really caring about her eccentric nature and bizarre ability to pop up wherever and whenever something she was unfamiliar with was happening.

"What?" Hanji asked.

"Miss, no offense, but do we really look like we're the smartest in the bunch? Or do we really just look like we're pondering mathematics to ya'll?"

Hanji scoffed at Matt's question, saying "Well, if I knew I wouldn't be asking, now would I? Seriously, why the number's game?"

"I take it the booklets don't talk about that, huh?" Dave mumbled.

"Pretty sure they're basing the number on how pretty a girl looks." A calm Eld said before Hanji could ask again, walking past her with a small pile of hay under his arm.

"Yeah, what he said." Jake said, grinning.

Unimpressed, Hanji angled her head so that sunlight reflected from her goggles, perfectly blocking her eyes from the view of the Americans.

"Is that really all you men do in your off time?"

"No, but there really isn't much more to do right now, especially when the benefit of having a Humvee is that you don't really have to prep it too much for a simple demonstration... Unlike our poor mechanics over there." Matt said, tilting his head slightly towards the Marines and other Army personnel who were still working on ensuring their heavier vehicles worked perfectly.

"You men are so bizarre. If I was in another world I would be looking every which way, exploring, trying to see everything! Aren't you at least curious about this city?"

The three Americans looked around.

"It's cleaner than New York and Jersey, I guess… which is weird since everyone travels via horse drawn carriage… actually, do you guys have designated cleanup crews or-?"

"Commander Erwin's back!" Moblit called, as the Commander returned alongside Ilse and the American team sent to talk to the reigning monarch and his heads of government.

"Whelp- I take it officer duty calls, right, miss-?" Jake shut up as Hanji had run off, almost leaving a cloud of dust behind her.

"Rude…" he mumbled and went back to eyeing some of the female scouts nearby.

"I think everyone can tell what you guys are doing… aren't you ashamed?" Ilse mumbled as she approached the Humvee.

The young soldiers and several nosy Marines laughed loudly.

"I think shame would be warranted if most of the girls in your regiment weren't doing the same damn thing." Matt said, deadpanned.

"What are-?" Ilse began only to note that a clique of scouts composed entirely of female recruits was chatting near the stables, stealing glances at the working Marines while feeding their horses, as if they were school girls from the other world or something.

"Huh…" the girl admitted, unsure what to do with the knowledge.

Some blackmail might prove beneficial, but other than that…

"Anyway, how was it?" Jake interrupted her thoughts, seemingly curious.

Before the scout could answer an ear-piercing "WHAT "came from the small group of officers surrounding Erwin.

"…I, uh… hope that's good news." Jake mumbled.

"Well, the Commander will give more details soon, but other than the advisory being oddly ungrateful and the king being almost eerily silent-"

"What, like… was he alive?" Dave asked.

"W-? Yeah, he was alive. He just didn't say anything, like he's too old for the job or something. Most of the discussion was had with the advisory."

"That has happened a lot back on earth, Monarchs too old to rule handing over executive power to a parliament or something… anyway, what did they say?"

Levi sipped the small amount of water before placing some coins on the counter as payment.

The interior had some very fresh and clean water, and he didn't mind taking advantage of it as he made an order for some supplies to give the corps and its horses; simple business really.

He did, however, mind the loud partying that had broken out in the nearby bar, and despite the sun still being at its highest point of the day, several men had already gotten drunk and passed out.

He was in no mood for dealing with any of this and began to head back to the area near the main government building where the corps was still loitering about, waiting for the other military officers to show up.

The news was not just good, it was excellent.

Once the titans within Wall Maria were dealt with, scouting operations could begin anew, and with assistance from the technologically superior soldiers from another world… casualties would not only drastically drop, but much larger distances could be travelled with ease. He didn't even care that much about the odd restrictions on flying machines.

It was as if all of their efforts and the efforts of those who had died were finally being rewarded.

Despite his mind focusing on the good news, he did not relax his senses enough not to detect that he was being followed.

He turned ever so subtly and immediately stopped walking.

The man trailing him noticed and smiled.

"Yo, Levi! Still a squirt, huh?" an annoyingly cheerful voice came from the scratchy throat of the man who had raised him so long ago.

The Survey Corps captain didn't speak.

He thought one of the MPs that had cleared them to enter the capital looked familiar, but now…

"Nope! Guess not…" the man said, grinning as he walked over.

"Kenny, I thought the Military Police had slit your throat long ago… or at the very least tossed you in a hole and thrown away the key." The captain said; an unreadable tone in his voice that most would classify as unimpressed but to the trained ear, it could easily be resentment.

"Nah, you can't get rid of me that easily, squirt!"

"You seem to have gotten rid of yourself all on your own last we met…"

Definitely resentment…

"Geez. There you go with the silent anger, no hi or where've you been, huh?"

"You working with the people you used to murder?" Levi asked, noticing the slightly more disciplined air coming from the man, confirming his suspicions.

"Sort of, you enjoy seeing how huge the world is?"

Levi didn't say anything.

"Look, kiddo I won't take up much of your busy time, but be sure you will be seeing me around. And before you ask, no, it isn't a threat."

Levi cocked his head slightly, wordlessly asking what the man meant.

"Your new friends spooked people in high places, squirt… you may not have to worry about me, but be sure to keep an eye out. Watch your back at all times."

Levi frowned, asking "Assuming you're being truthful here, what exactly do you get out of this?"

"Hah?"

"Don't screw around, Kenny, you want something from me or the people I know. What is it?"

The old man grinned.

"Nothing, nothing at all. You don't even have to tell them about how tense things are getting up there. But, when we see each other again, I hope to actually have information worth bargaining something for. See you around, Levi! Count on it."

The stoic man watched him leave.

Questions popped up in his mind, and he wondered what suddenly brought someone he hadn't seen in years to come out of hiding in order to talk to him, seemingly warn him about something.

Figuring he would learn more at a later date, the Captain shoved a hand in his pocket and continued walking back, debating whether Erwin should be made aware of this or not.

Anka Rheinberger wasn't sure what steps she should take to wake up her commander, which was actually a somewhat new experience for her. Oh, she had seen him this drunk a few times before, but for once the old man was attempting (and failing) to stay conscious.

It had been fifteen minutes since he had last opened his eyes in the carriage, and she gave a worried glance at her partner who simply returned it.

"Maybe we should dunk him in the river, legs first, wake him up that way?" he asked.

She sighed, knowing that they had no time to stop by any nearby rivers.

A messenger from the scouts had caught up to them and informed them that the so called "men from somewhere else" had finished their talks with the king and were ordered to leave the capital in order to demonstrate the titan killing weapons to the military commanders.

New weapons and titan killing methods were all well and good, but the scout had been adamant that Commander Pyxis not only be present, but that it was vital that he arrived early as these… Americans… had some things to discuss with him and the head of the military, premiere Zachary.

None of that could effectively be accomplished with the commander sleeping calmly in the carriage.

Anka started formulating a plan in her mind of carrying the old man into the meeting when the carriage promptly stopped near some tents in an almost empty field.

"Alright… Gustav, maybe if we carry him out the-"

As if jolted awake by electricity, the old man got up and calmly walked out of the carriage and in a straight line towards the largest tent, startling his subordinates.

The two of them sighed and chased after their enigma of a commander. Just how he was able to down so much alcohol and still function was a mystery as great as the origin of the titans and one they still weren't accustomed to.

The tent was fairly empty aside from the table with a few men standing around it.

One she recognized as the both popular and unpopular Erwin Smith, commander of the Survey Corps.

Premiere Zachary was standing next to him, a well-built man with white hair and glasses, staring at the table as the other men pointed at different highlighted pictures on a large paper.

The other men were in a getup she hadn't seen before, the vest with strange devices and tools she didn't recognize, the green uniform, and while the leader had it removed, the men had strange helmets that blended with their uniforms well, two armed with dark colored rifles that were compltely different to what she was used to.

She assumed that these were the men from another world.

"…done by this time next month, I hope… uh…" the strange man stopped talking and began staring in their direction.

Anka winced and looked at her commander who was eyeing the other men suspiciously.

"Hmm… I still worried the stories were complete fabrications, but you are as real as I! A pleasure to meet you, uh…"

The man stood straight, saying "Connor, General Connor; United States Marine Corps."

"Dot Pyxis… Fascinating… you and your boys really are from another… place."

The man nodded.

Anka expected to be more surprised at her commander not slurring his words but at this point she was more interested in understanding those… maps?

They seemed to be… drawings… incredibly detailed drawings of parts of Wall Maria she recognized somewhat, the smaller drawings were placed above a map of the walls, some areas highlighted.

"Very detailed drawings you have there…" her commander mumbled as he looked at one of the incredibly detailed pictures.

She recognized the curiosity in his voice, though.

"They are actually photographs, Commander. They utilize light reflecting off the surface of objects to capture an image." Erwin said, recalling the explanation a fascinated Hanji had given him while greeting the man.

It was Zachary who was quiet.

"Regardless, I was explaining how we may be able to eliminate the threat of titans within your outer wall."

"Ah, yes, these… flying machines of yours… I must say, I'm very interested in seeing how those work."

Again, Zachary seemed rather bored.

"We also wanted to discuss a new training curriculum for one regiment of your soldiers. At least to show them how to handle new weapons." the general said.

"Ah, yes… a trainee regiment, preferably one not too fresh but not too experienced, yes?"

"Whichever you think is best, commander."

"Well, there are quite a few regiments still in training to my knowledge, Anka, be a dear and bring me that list."

Anka wasn't sure what to make of the grandfatherly voice her commander used, but did as told.

Pixis eyes the map, asking "You're planning on retaking Wall Maria from the titans. Is this your plan?"

The American nodded, saying "Yes, commander. We recently brought several long range recon drones-aircraft- and we have been trying to locate the areas where titans have a larger presence. So far, we have found a few areas near the wall with somewhat high concentrations, but we also know plenty of titans have just sort of stuck around random areas within Wall Maria, so we need help in order to locate them- guides, maps, really any information available."

Pyxis nodded.

"The Survey Corps is already providing assistance in that field, what will ultimately be needed, however, is a new generation of soldiers for humanity." Erwin stated.

Pyxis glanced at the fellow officer while maintaining a pleasant expression.

Deep down, he thought getting cozy with the new faces rather quickly there, Erwin… suspiciously so.

"Pyxis, do you think you can provide us with a regiment of trainees that haven't graduated yet but have most of the basics down?" Zachary asked before Pixis could continue wondering about the Survey Corps officer.

"I believe you mentioned the Shiganshina district will become a sort of launching off point for incursions into Titan territory once they are cleared from Wall Maria, yes?"

The men nodded.

"I recently met a trainee regiment that has a few survivors of the attack on Shiganshina four years ago. Mostly still kids, eager, hardworking, and they have one hell of a cook…" the old man grinned, smiling at the memory.

"Alright? Well, let us know then, I think we could send a messenger ahead of time. Give them a heads up while we start working some other details out." The general mumbled.

"Sure, sure… now… about your titan killing weapons…"

You must return! If you want to save Armin and Mikasa you must-

He opened his eyes, realizing he was still in bed despite the fact that the sun was already rising over the mountains.

Eren forgot the nightmare immediately and sprang up, panicking at the mere thought that he had somehow stayed asleep in spite of the officer's call to wake up for the day's training, the wrath of commandant Shadis being a far more pressing concern than some enigmatic words from his missing father.

Then he realized that he was the only one awake.

What the-?

He looked around the barracks through his cabin's window, utterly confused a t the emptiness of the training fields beyond. A light mist rolled over the field, the ground still humid with the morning doe, but he was used to seeing that since he was usually awake by that point, already training.

But no one was up, as evidenced by the light breathing of the sleeping cadets.

He considered waking up some of them, they had gotten plent of free time the previous day, so to have it occur twice in a row was… impossible.

Also, detrimental to our training…

He stepped outside, only to realize the area was entirely devoid of humans. Like they had all vanished somewhere.

It was like the world around him had died…

A few birds sang in the trees by a hill not too far away, reminding him that he had, in fact, overslept. Had the commandant simply been in a good mood that day and let them sleep in?

He didn't feel like sleeping in.

He made his way to the mess hall, hoping to find more cadets, but to his mild disappointment, it was empty.

No, not empty, a hefty breakfast of porridge had been placed for anyone to help themselves to. Which meant the cooks had been there… but weren't here anymore.

The door then opened behind him.

He hoped it would be an officer who could explain to him why the trainee camp appeared deserted, but once again he was disappointed.

"Eren. Did you sleep well?" Mikasa, in her usual stoic self, greeted as she moved past him.

What are you, my mother?

He pushed the painful memory aside and said "Yeah, I slept fine, but where the hell are the officers? I thought we would get some seriously grueling training today after getting the day off yesterday… or at least something."

Has anyone actually seen the officers since we got back?

The dark haired girl stopped, seemingly considering things.

"Is everyone else still in your dorm?" she asked.

"Yeah, that I could tell, at least. The officers are the only ones gone. Kind of creepy actually…"

"They could be in a meeting. Most of our training is done by now, so maybe they're discussing other matters."

Eren wanted to argue that point further, but the door almost slammed open and a frustrated entity stormed in.

She did not acknowledge the other two humans in the mess hall and moved angrily towards the large pot filled with warm porridge.

She angrily grabbed a plate, dumped a single spoonful onto it, sat down right there on the floor and started eating.

"Whats wrong, Sasha?" Mikasa asked calmly.

Very few souls in the 104th trainee regiment dared interrupt the usually cheerful girl when she ate, but that number dropped significantly if she was irritated. The signs were all there, she was huffing, puffing, her cheeks were red, but not from running, and the way she angrily stuffed her mouth with spoons of porridge was evidence none could dismiss.

For Mikasa, the girl's irritation was a non-issue.

Though still irritated, the brown haired girl turned to look at the only two people with her and mumbled something indecipherable, swallowed, and said "So you know how the officers keep a pound of meat for special occasions?"

Eren kept his frown from forming.

She didn't…

"I heard it was in a neat little box in the commandant's quarters…"

She wasn't that crazy…

"And… yeah, I got a little curious…"

She wouldn't!

"So I went to check-"

Sasha pouted as both Eren and Mikasa sighed in exasperation.

"What?! You asked, I'm just telling you what happened." the girl barked.

"Were the officers there?" Mikasa asked, wanting to get to the point.

Sasha nodded, saying "Yeah, they were discussing a message sent from the capital. Some kid from the Survey Corps showed and the commanders were all acting distracted and worried, so I tried to sneak some of that beef out early, but commandant Shadis saw me and sent me here."

A devilish grin appeared on the girl's face.

"He also told me to slip this into every sleeping dorm! Guess it's our lucky day!" she said waving a note.

Mikasa nodded, but Eren suddenly shouted "Wait! The survey corps sent a messenger here? Did you hear why?"

"Huh? No, but if it's really important I bet they'll tell us." The girl sighed, going back to eating after handing the note to Mikasa.

The stoic girl read it out loud, saying "All cadets are to train in the field they excel the least in for three hours, the rest of the day is to be spent within the camp… more orders to follow before the end of the day."

"See? Told ya!"

"That's… weird… were the guards on edge or did they give any hints as to-?"

"Nope! Relax, and just wait until the commandant addresses us later."

Eren could not relax.

It all reeked of something being wrong, but he had no way of knowing what. Was the wall breached? Had there been some form of major death? Had the gang of thieves they had fought less than a few nights previously secretly larger than what the garrison troops suggested and they were all secretly in danger? Had the latest scout operation uncovered something new about the titans?

He was starting to get a headache.

He had to get his mind off the drama and figured that jogging would help.

He turned to leave the mess hall when his ever worried adopted sibling grabbed his arm, saying "Eren, you should eat first."

"I'm fine, I just have to get my mind-"

"We graduate in a few months, you need to be in peak health then, and right now…"

The teenager narrowed his eyes, and without saying a word, admitted defeat by moving to the table and grabbing a plate of porridge.

Mikasa hid her smile, knowing that if she wanted him to take better care of himself all she had to do was give slightly more logical reasons for it.

They were all still just children…

"Uh- Eren… maybe you shouldn't force yourself too hard-"

"Shut. Up. I. Can. Do. This!" Eren spat back at the somewhat shorter boy with golden hair as he desperately attempted to pull himself up on a bar.

He dropped down, unable to do so anymore.

"Damn it! How do those guys do it?!"

"Eren, Mikasa and Reiner are… very different from us..."

"So what?! If they can do it, so should I! I just have to push a little further… I was close, right?"

Mikasa once manages a total of a thousand pull ups during a physical training day, Reiner wasn't too far off with about seven hundred… those numbers aren't exact, but…

"Well, since you started earlier this morning, this is… I think three hundred, so…"

Eren stared at Armin for two seconds before lying down on the floor entirely, a frustrated sigh escaping his tired lungs.

"How do they…? I don't get it, damn it. Those two are inhuman."

"Well, Eren, it was a day where they solely focused on that one exercise. You just tried beating Annie's record earlier, right?"

The grumpy teenager sighed, saying "That's not the point. If we can't keep up with the best, then how are we supposed to beat the titans back…"

The boy, despite not wanting to admit it, knew how vital people like Mikasa and Reiner were in the war against the giants. But they needed more people like them; they needed to make Mikasas and Reiners the norm, not the exception!

He looked around the camp, now lit up by the late morning sun; most of the cadets were done with their assigned training and were now simply chatting or slacking off. Very few seemed to be actually taking the extra training hours seriously.

He wasn't sure whether it should irritate him or not that he was right, seeing that Mikasa was one of the few still training, albeit she was helping another girl better her hand to hand combat, and Reiner seemed to be doing the same with a tall boy with dark hair.

"Well, at least Mina and Bertholdt are getting some extra training out of this…" Eren noted just as Reiner, the young man built like a wall, easily toppled his apprentice, Bertholdt, much to the entertainment of another young man with ash brown hair. Yeager was extremely tempted to call out the laughing cadet, but simply stood up and said "Come on, Armin, you give it a shot. If we're both mediocre then lets at least try to improve together a bit."

"Uh… right." Armin wasn't sure if Eren meant that as encouragement or belittlement, but he did need to improve his physical condition if he wanted to catch up to his childhood friends.

He began doing his set of pull-ups easily enough… but was somewhat distracted upon hearing a strange sound off in the distance.

He didn't think much of it until Eren pointed it out.

"What is that?" Eren mumbled quietly.

Armin stopped pulling himself up on the bar and listened. It… sounded like a low humming- it… was hard to pin down. He certainly had no reference for it.

The noise got louder.

Eren felt a cold current of air hit his neck, and when he turned he saw Mikasa was suddenly standing right next to him.

How she managed to cross a field so quickly was beyond him, but it irritated him more than anything.

Still, he focused more on the unknown sound that continued to grow louder. Other cadets approached their location not too far from the cabins, where the noise could be heard without much trouble.

"What is that?" someone, a girl, asked out loud.

"It… kind of sounds like some of the factories I worked at… but… not at all either."

A short young man with bald hair glanced at the dark haired teenager and said "So it sounds like nothing you've ever heard before then?"

The teen nodded.

"Well, why didn't you just say you hadn't heard anything like it before, Samuel?" Connie mumbled just as an excited Armin exclaimed.

"Look! Over by the hills!" the boy said, pointing.

"What- what the hell?"

Eren wasn't sure who said that but he was surprised by the odd vehicle that appeared from behind a hill, following the road to the trainee camp.

No horses pulled it.

The wheels seemed to be made of some dark material that they didn't exactly recognize.

It was painted green, like a leaf, except for what had to be its doors where bizarre markings the young cadets could only assume were letters were painted on.

It passed a fair distance away from them before stopping very close to the building the commanding officers were meeting in.

A tall man hopped out of one side while several others exited the other side; all of them wearing what appeared to be a military uniform that none of the cadets had ever seen before.

One of them turned to look at the cadets and they briefly saw shock cross his face.

He slowly waved at them, and almost as one, the cadets returned the gesture, albeit awkwardly.

He nodded, the worried look on his face never disappearing as he entered the building, vanishing from sight once the door closed behind him.

"Uh… who was that?" someone else asked, Eren thought it was Bertholdt, but he was too transfixed by the horseless carriage they had all just seen.

"Colonel, they are literally just a group of kids!"

"Yup."

The Army Colonel stopped as several of the officers from the trainee squad eyed his small detachment.

"Well, come in then." A bald man with extremely dark bags under his eyes breathed.

The colonel walked forward and sat down as his subordinate mumbled "Rangers always lead the way, I guess… even if it means infanticide…"

Luckily his colonel didn't hear him.

"Comandant Kieth Shadis, correct?"

The bald man nodded, not asking for the colonel's name.

Good, we're getting somewhere.

"Colonel…" the man said, studying the Americans.

"Well… let's skip the formalities- you are in charge of child soldiers." The colonel sighed.

"They're old enough to fight." One of the officers replied, somewhat indignant.

Who the hell were these men to judge them?!

"I know… I… apologize, we… we don't exactly approve of tossing children into a meat grounder back home. We haven't had a need for it in… centuries."

Although cases of children sneaking their way into the military existed all the way up to World War Two, the last time the Americans had allowed anyone below the age of 17 to join and fight in the armed forces had been during the Civil War… God knew how that turned out…

Oh, many argued that age 17 was still too young, especially the United Nations, but…

"The average age of my recruits is between fourteen and sixteen years old, colonel. I wish we were in your situation, but this is what we have to work with…"

The colonel nodded.

The UN is really not gonna like this…

"Regardless, we are here to help where we can."

"I see… am I to inform them about the switching of commanders?"

The colonel winced before shaking his head.

"No, commandant, this is a joint operation. We are estimating that with continuous strikes and help from the Survey Corps, we can clear a good chunk of Wall Maria in a month or two. In that time you need to ensure that these cadets are experts in their… three dimensional maneuver gear… then they will transfer to a base camp we will be establishing in the coming month to give them training on some… newer weapons. You'll still be helping us, I would hope."

Shadis blinked.

"I don't understand, you have weapons that outclass anything we could muster up. My training and I are, by all means, outdated… at least compared to what I have heard about you."

"Incorrect, our boys need our vehicles and air power to survive. If one of our regular infantry platoons got stuck in a street with two or three titans… well, they may do some damage, maybe hold them off until help can arrive, but that's it. They're screwed without our heavier weapons. Meanwhile, if one of your cadets is in a street out on his own and some titans show up, they can basically fly away and pull back with relative ease. Your three dimensional maneuver gear is the perfect weapon for what you have."

Shadis shook his head.

"I appreciate the kind words, but you men haven't lost a single man to titans so far assuming what the scout said was true…"

Unlike myself…

"Again, because of our technology and we are being extremely cautious. We were warned ahead of time of the titans, we planned ahead, even equipped our men with heavier weapons than what we usually carry."

The colonel smiled slightly before saying "Now, we have permission both from the king and commander Pyxis to begin a new training course for this batch of young cadets… we're not a hundred percent sure how far we can take this training, their age might be a problem if people back home find out and we aren't exactly sure on what weapons we can bring in and adapt to your needs."

Shadis glanced at his officers before asking "What are you getting at?"

The colonel's smile widened.

Armin was by no means the most social of the 104th.

Oh, he talked with everyone, they all sort of did, but his interests were not something the others could easily understand.

The 104th understood Eren, he wanted vengeance, he wanted to reclaim the lost lands, destroy the enemy… he inspired the others to fight.

The 104th understood Mikasa, she pushed herself to be the best and had proven to be the best in the regiment, most likely out of a need to protect her only remaining family… she inspired them the others to at least try and better themselves.

Armin had liked to read, to absorb information. His interests lay on the lands beyond the walls, but that was something no one could or even wanted to think about with so much land lost in the last four years, preferring to dream about reclaiming Wall Maria instead of what wonders could lay beyond. He simply wasn't someone who could be pushed to physical extremes like Mikasa or even Eren, many noting it was a miracle he had made it this far.

No one hated him or disliked him, they just weren't sure what to talk about with him, and he wasn't too sure what to talk about with the others, so he was mostly just in the background, talking when needed and little else.

At least, that had been the case less than ten minutes prior.

"You got a working theory yet?" Sasha whispered.

Armin shook his head, too wrapped up in analyzing the strange horseless carriage beyond the wooden fence to notice that he was in the middle of a herd of soldiers, all quietly waiting for him to figure out just what the mysterious vehicle was.

"Well, it's definitely a carriage…" Connie said.

"Obviously." a bored blonde girl mumbled back.

"Annie, come on, at least pretend to be interested! This is something insane, I mean, horseless carriages, who ever heard of something like that?!"

"Can't be that crazy if it's right in front of us…"

Armin kept eyeing the back of the carriage, wondering what that pipe on the back was for. It was the one fundamental difference between this carriage and the others that he could see from the fence.

He gasped and said "It has to be a gas engine! Just like our gear!"

A collective "huh" came from the gathered soldiers.

"That pipe over there, near the wheels- um… think of it like… it's not too different from the exhaust our ODM gear lets out whenever we use it… maybe it works on the same principle…"

Understanding came over the regiment, and then more questions reared their ugly heads.

"Huh?! Why would the king waste time making a horseless carriage with the motors our gear use?!" Sasha cried out, not understanding why anyone would need a horseless carriage. Horses were loyal and could serve more than one purpose, so why take that away from them for something that wasted more resources?

"It makes little sense in all honesty… it looks to be made out of metal too, so why waste precious resources on something like that?" Armin asked the question to himself.

Wouldn't it make more sense to continue mass producing ODM gear? And what was up with those strangely dressed men?

"Maybe it's some kind of… titan killing super weapon… developed by the scouts!" Eren suggested, the slightest tinge of childish wonder lining the words. The potential of a super weapon to take the fight to the titans gripped him like nothing else.

"It would surprise me… I don't see any artillery or… really anything that looks remotely like a weapon." Armin mused.

Eren sighed at his theory being shot down so quickly.

"Maybe it isn't that complicated, maybe this is just some new invention one of the rich guys on the inner wall came up with…" Reiner suggested.

"Horseless carriages… inner wall… no mess to clean up… God, if it's true…" the quiet muttering came from a young man who was suddenly very interested in the prospect, a smile forming on his face.

"Oh great, mister Military Police gets to enjoy a new fancy invention while the rest of us-"

"Cadets! Fall in right this second!"An unusually fierce sounding Commandant Shadis interrupted the theorizing of the teenagers.

The young cadets formed up and stood at a rigid attention only to realize that commandant Shadis wasn't alone.

The man in green was standing next to him while the other men in green were working on something right behind the odd pair.

"Alright, maggots, I bring you pleasant news!"

He paused for dramatic effect before declaring "The breach within Wall Maria has been sealed!"

The cadets didn't react.

Eren was too stunned to ask anything.

Some just blinked, others just looked at one another, until Armin suddenly asked "W-what?! B-but how-?"

He shut up, realizing his mistake. The commandant would surely force the usually quiet cadet to run laps until the sun set…

"Glad you asked, Arlert! I'm sure you are all wondering who these strange men are."

No one uttered a word.

"This is Colonel Parker, with the United States Army. They… are not from around here."

A slow, cautious murmur rang through the ranks.

"Where are they from, you ask? Well, that answer is certainly complicated. You see, during the 34th expedition by the corps, one scout was separated from the formation. She stumbled upon a structure out in a field and was forced to run through it… this is not a normal structure as it leads to another… world."

Armin's eyes widened.

The idea of another world, a whole other world with people, had never entered his mind.

"Now, they don't understand it either, but this doorway- gate, if you will, connects our two worlds. The two things you all need to know right now is that their world never had titans and technologically they are far more advanced than us."

Before anyone could ask Shadis said "I know that doesn't answer many questions… Arlert… but trust me, they have plenty of information to give us, and you brats are going to be some of the first to receive that information."

Armin lowered his gaze, hiding his excitement.

"Another thing, you lucky pieces of titan fodder have just been selected to be part of a program that seeks to train us in utilizing the anti-titan weapons these men brought."

Well, anti-tank and anti-material back home, but sure…

"Well? Rejoice, maggots! You will be the first to take the fight to the titans. For the next few months we will continue to train with our ODM gear, then, in about a month's time you will transfer elsewhere to begin the new training program to build on what you know. And for those worried, these men were able to help seal the wall without losing a single man."

No one cheered, but the mood lightened with some excitement surging at the prospect.

Eren forced himself not to cry out of joy.

Not only was the wall sealed, not only was a whole entire world open to them suddenly, not only did said world bring much more powerful anti-titan weapons, but he- they would be one of many regiments to begin training as a force to take out the titans beyond Wall Maria with better weapons and tactics than before!

He shut his eyes and thought about the possibility of titans being destroyed in his lifetime.

"Any questions?" the commandant asked after a second.

A single hand was raised from the formation.

"Is… is this mandatory?"

Eren forced himself not to break formation and glare at the young man with ash brown hair.

"Private Kirschtein, I don't see why you would want to leave this group, but…" Shadis turned to look at the American colonel.

"Uh… in all honesty, we don't want anyone to be forced to be part of this. We are aware that… some of you see the military at gaining a chance for a better life by being the best you can be, and I'm sure several of you have earned as much already. It isn't fair to take that away from you, I understand…"

Behind the colonel the Rangers collectively rolled their eyes.

"That said, I believe you will gain more through this program than anything the interior can give you. These are the front lines, the frontier, the great unknown- it will be a reclamation, a Reconquista but for the human race. We will not force you to be a part of it, and if you think you cannot handle this program you are free to leave…"

There it is!

"But if you stay, and work to reach the goal set by generations of fallen soldiers in these lands, believe me when I tell you the reward will be greater than what you can imagine!"

Jean Kirschtein wanted to ask what exactly those rewards were (as well as just what in the world did the word Reconquista mean) but the glares from some of his fellow soldiers silenced that.

They're looking at me as if I betrayed them, what the hell?!

Shadis on the other hand nodded in approval, the colonel had essentially called those that quit cowards and most of the cadets were already interested, so any of them even thinking of leaving were now pressured to stay more than ever since failure to do so would result in a sort of betrayal of their fellow soldiers.

Peer pressure is a hell of a thing…

"That said, we wanted to give you a bit of a preview of what you will be working for, hopefully this will help calm any fears about facing a titan head on you may have."

Behind the man, two of the otherworldly soldiers stopped what they had been setting up, a table, and placed a metal box on top which they quickly opened.

Eren didn't recognize the material, but… it looked like a gun. He watched the colonel approach it and pick it up and showing it to the formation.

"Boys and girls, we call this an anti-material rifle, specifically, the ehm-one-oh-seven, or better known as the Barrett."

The cadets weren't really impressed by the strange looking rifle, but its sleek material did earn their curiosity.

"This is one of the types of weapons you will be training with a month from now, should things go as planned." Shadis announced.

"Who wants to shoot first?" he asked suddenly.

"A-actually- commandant, I recommend someone with used to heavy lifting or with peak physical strength-"

"Colonel, are you suggesting my cadets aren't capable of handling your weapon?"

Colonel Parker glanced at the youths… even if they were capable of using them, he didn't want any of them getting hurt.

"Hmm, actually… Private Ackerman! Front and Center!"

Colonel Parker half expected the burly blonde that was built like a wall to step up. He was tall, muscular, looked like a boxer or a wrestler.

He was shocked when a girl a little over five feet tall walked from the formation.

The straight, dark hair had been cut short despite the seemingly lax regulation of the military, her thin complexion, and her bored yet devoted expression as she stepped forward…

This is a child who has had to grow up quickly.

"Before you ask, she is the most skilled cadet from this regiment as well as physically fit. She is a prime example of what we train our cadets to become. Tell her what to do, I am certain she will perform with excellence."

Eren wasn't sure how to feel about the statement. He wasn't jealous, everyone knew Mikasa was the top ranking member in the regiment, but to have the commandant declare it so openly… he wondered if the man had ever actually spoken like that about her or anyone.

It was a surprise to be sure.

The American colonel looked at her, suddenly wincing as if he had realized something.

"W-what is your name, private?"

"Mikasa Ackerman, sir."

The American stared at her before chuckling lightly.

"Huh… fun fact, we have a…" he stopped as he realized these kids had probably never heard of Basketball.

Still, the fact that Asians existed in this world was… interesting.

He smiled awkwardly and said "…a famous company with that same name back home. Anyway, private… this isn't any regular gun you have here… see-"

Mikasa's thought turned to the previous sentence that the colonel had said.

Are… there more people from the orient in that world?

She couldn't think about it too much as she forced herself to pay attention.

It wasn't so different from firing some of the muskets they had trained with, but the man mentioned that loading the weapons was far easier and quicker.

Then he showed her what she would be firing.

"Kids, this is what we call a fifty bee-em-gee. It is a bullet that can disable vehicles like that… horseless carriage we drove in with. It needs to be aimed carefully if you encounter a titan, but evidence in the field shows that it can and will take them down in one hit."

When aimed right…

"Now, to demonstrate how… destructive this is… private, you see that wooden crate my men put up over there?"

Several meters down the field, a large box sat idly in the gravel.

Mikasa nodded.

"Good, now… we set up this table right here so that you can fire in a stable position…you can try to hit the target but don't feel bad if you miss."

The girl looked at the table, uncertain of how she was supposed to use it as a stabilizer. All the guns she had fired and trained to fire had been done standing up in a rigid fashion, the target never too far away. This target wasn't too far away either, but she wasn't sure how sitting down made firing the gun easier.

"I feel more comfortable standing, sir."

The colonel gave her a very worried look, saying "Kid, this has some serious recoil when shot. It'll feel like the gun is trying to punch you. I don't want you to get hurt before training starts officially, but if you want to shoot standing up, well…"

Even if she got a black eye, it would serve to teach the cadets a valuable lesson, he just didn't want a kid to get hurt. Staff sergeants had little problem stressing young recruits, pushing them beyond the breaking point, but he hadn't had to do anything like that to young men, let alone to a fourteen year old girl.

"Just hit the target. Everyone, cover your ears!"

One of the Rangers approached Mikasa and handed her some ear protection.

"Trust me, you'll need it." the young man told her before walking back to a safe distance.

Mikasa put on the protection and lifted the heavy rifle up. The ammo was already loaded and chambered according to the colonel; all she had to do was aim and pull the trigger… right?

The convenient scope on top made aiming easy, but she took the man's warning, shifting her legs so that if the gun pushed back, she would be ready.

Her grip tightened and she stiffened herself as much as she could before gently squeezing the trigger.

It sounded like a thunderbolt had landed where she stood.

The recoil had been insane, more than she had expected, but she held herself in place, the force of the rifle going off messing up her hair slightly.

"God damn! Nice shot!" the colonel exclaimed, surprised the girl was still standing.

She blinked and lowered the gun as she realizes that she had only grazed the target. A hit, sure, but nothing comparable to what a marksman like Sasha could pull with a bow and arrow.

"And that, kids, is just a preview of what you can expect!"

Some of the cadets clapped as if it was all a show, the colonel patted the shorter girl on the back before speaking.

"Of course, we aren't going to start this training formally until after you get a little more acquainted with us. So, we have brought with us some booklets that give all of you basic information about our world, our culture, and our weapons. I understand you have a classroom here for understanding titan anatomy, at least what is known?"

Kieth nodded, still amazed by the display of firepower.

"Well, we want you all to read up on what we have here. I know reading probably isn't the most exciting activity for all of you, especially when these books were translated in a rush, but we want to work together, so it's better that we start learning about each other. So… are you with us?" the colonel said, smiling awkwardly, feeling like he was giving a speech to a class of tenth graders.

In a way, he was.

"And, I think that should do it!" the US representative said, a cheerful smile on her face as she handed the paper that Ilse had so kindly written out for her to the man known as Aurille.

The young scout sitting next to the American politician forced herself to keep a neutral expression as the king's advisors read over the translated agreement with the Americans. It wasn't anything too official, or groundbreaking, but it was officially a starting point for future relations with the walled enclaves of humanity.

"…we hereby allow American supplies, primarily food and medicine, to be brought into Walls Sina and Rose, American doctors are allowed through, engineers…" Aurille read aloud.

This is good stuff.

They would get most of the benefits in this first treaty. People from the other world would bring in many of their verifiably superior technology and know-how, helping solve many of the problems facing the populace. In exchange, the Americans would get the lands they had requested, as well as…

"Use of Attack Helicopters is only permitted in the act of locating and destroying titans, good, scientists from the other side of this doorway will be allowed through in order to study the titans and the identification of potentially valuable resources, acceptable…" he mumbled the last part, unsure if his king would be happy about it. it wasn't exactly terrible, not much had been learned from the titans in the century they had existed, so what more could the Americans possibly find? As for identifying precious resources- where was the harm in more riches?

"All seems to be in order, but we would like to add one more request."

The US representative had allowed her mind to wonder as the older men read through the details of this first "treaty". It was more of an official recognition by the United States that this was an actual nation, and now an ally.

Another request?

She was confused.

The representative had chosen to cut out most of the other benefits the US would have liked (tax cuts) in order to make these men feel like their way of life wasn't being threatened. She did hope to raise the issue later, but now she was seriously worried about this new request.

"Yes, please don't bring weapons into the capital. Smuggling is a small but very serious problem. We fear for the safety of our king if a bomb is stolen."

"Of course, I completely understand."

Ilse turned to look at the woman in confusion but didn't say anything.

"Splendid, splendid…" Deltoffe said then, suddenly looking quite sheepish, he turned to Ilse and said "…I… apologize. I mistakenly believed that you had brought a curse upon our lands. I was mistaken in ordering your arrest… I also apologize for taking so long. You have yet to see your family, yes?"

The girl simply nodded, not saying anything.

"She has been helping us where she can, but now that we have a mutual understanding and the paperwork to prove it; I believe the very next stop should be a visit to her family."

"I went out of my way to find their current address in case it changed from when you were gone. I know it isn't enough, but…" the old man sighed, removing a small piece from his coat of paper before handing it to the girl.

"I… thank you, sir."

The old man gave her a grandfatherly smile which confused her more than anything.

Didn't he hate our guts earlier?

"Well, gentlemen, I appreciate your time. We should get going then, I need to report back home and… this young lady has an appointment that is long overdue." The representative said, signifying that the meeting was adjourned now that the agreement had been made official.

"Yes, I;m glad we managed to do some good here. Have a good evening, Representative, Miss Langnar…"

Once outside, Ilse asked "You didn't bring up as much as I thought you would. Weren't tax breaks and companies coming through part of-?"

"It's politics, Ilse. They are petrified of having their way of life changed drastically, so I focused on giving them a taste of what they can get. Make it look like we're here to serve them, which, in a way, we are, but keeping in mind that things like cars and planes seem to scare them. So, we'll take it a step at a time… hearts and mind, Ilse. Remember that. I just hope the president understands." she finished with a sigh.

Ilse saw the Marine MRAP and the Army Humvee with her escorts waiting.

Two familiar figures stood by them, a white and blue coat of arms.

"I hope you find your family well." The US representative said, moving away from her and to the Humvee that brought her along.

Ilse nodded and looked at the two scouts.

"Hey! We got the file on you!" an excited Hanji said, waving the papers in the air.

She took a breath, not sure if she was ready.

For a split second, she could have sworn she saw a shadow move into the MRAP.

Probably just imagined it...

She had far more pressing matters as she moved to the waiting Humvee crew.

"They put a man on the moon!" Armin declared suddenly, turning the book over to Eren and getting the attention of the other cadets.

The mess hall had been temporarily transformed into a library as the Americans brought the translated copies of several books that gave basic information the cadets needed to know if they wanted to advance into whatever type of soldier the Americans and the Garrison wanted to create.

That mattered little to Armin and Eren, both of whom had reignited their fascination with the outside world, especially now that a large portion of it was made accessible to them through books and a new method of capturing images called photographs.

Eren looked at the picture, a dusty landscape had a human figure wearing a bizarre white suit, with a strange helmet that covered the persons face entirely, standing next to the flag he now knew belonged to the Americans.

"Wait, how? And why?" an also fascinated Connie ran over and sat down, accidentally shoving Mikasa slightly.

The girl ignored it as she tried to read the same book Armin read.

"It says here that there was something called the Cold War… basically a war where both sides tried to outdo the other, and the Americans went to the moon in order to beat some people called the Soviets…"

Connie narrowed his eyes before asking "Are you just skipping ahead to whatever interests you?"

"That's what everyone else is doing, Connie." Mikasa replied, deadpanned.

"What? Am I the only one reading it in order?"

"Connie, all you're doing is walking around asking everyone else what they've read." Eren replied, eyes still on the image of what the book called an astronaut.

Connie didn't reply, switching back to his own textbook.

He discretely watched the Shiganshina trio continue reading in silence until Eren suddenly said "Armin, this says they have lands of ice and fire too!"

They really were just reading what they wanted to read…

"Maybe our two worlds aren't so different! But what does that mean?"

Eren shook his head, saying "I don't think so, I mean, look at the world map, they have a huge ocean- didn't your parents say it was more of a gigantic lake? I really doubt our ocean covers as much of the world as-"

"Their world has Orientals." Mikasa interrupted, almost whispering the words.

The two boys stopped and looked at her.

She looked worried.

"Mikasa… what page are you reading? I didn't see anything on the World section…" he looked at he world map.

There were places labeled Asia, but-

"It doesn't mention them there, directly- they're… in the section about wars."

The two boys glanced at each other and turned to the section simply titled "Armed Conflicts in the Modern Age".

Armin felt a chill run down his spine as he read the title "Global Conflicts".

There weren't a lot of pictures, but it did show what looked to be older, much smaller, versions of the vehicles the Americans had referred to as cars, there were odd looking metal… birds? No, people were piloting them so… aircraft.

He focused on the other photographs, these showing the different types of soldiers that fought in these conflicts.

One in particular looked eerily similar in physical appearance to Mikasa.

"The then called Empire of Japan, a nation near the Asian continent was a major power during the… Second World War…"

The table went silent as he read that, the chatter of the other cadets filling the void.

"So… people over there fought each other so much without the titans that they engulfed the whole world in war more than once? Well isn't that something?"

Armin shook his head, frustrated.

"I wish it gave more information. It lists all these other countries, one side has The United Kingdom, France, the Americans, the Soviets, and the other side has-"

"Wait, I thought the soviets and the Americans hated each other"

"They found themselves on the same side during this war." Mikasa stated, something visibly bothering her as she continued to read for herself.

"But, Mikasa, I don't see them being labeled as Orientals any-"

"Next page, Armin."

The boy winced before nodding and passing the page.

Treatment of Civilians… what?

"After Japan attacked the American Navy in Pearl Harbor, many American citizens of Japanese descent were forced to move to internment camps for the duration of the war, mostly out of fear of spies. While other people of Asian, or… Oriental descent… were allowed to continue working and living within the United States, they faced heavy discrimination by the authorities and civilian population alike, with many injustices committed."

Mikasa had closed the book and placed it on the table just as Armin finished reading, a look of discomfort written across her face.

"You… don't think they still hate each other over there, do you? The colonel seemed pretty nice." Connie asked.

"Mikasa, that war was mentioned to have happened more than sixty years ago, I doubt the Americans hate Orientals now." Eren stated, trying to get his adopted sister to stop looking so off.

He found that the role of comforting the usually stoic girl was something that he was not used to.

"It isn't that, I just… didn't expect to read this about anyone related to my old family."

"Well… it's a different world over there. And we're just starting to learn about them same way they're just starting to learn about us."

"Yeah, and in a way we should be thankful they were too busy fighting each other, cause thanks to that they have the weapons to kill all the titans, right?"

"Connie, go bother Sasha." Mikasa sighed.

"Great idea!" the short teen replied, happy to evacuate from the awkward position he had accidentally put himself in.

"Uh… look, Armin, how long ago were these conflicts again?"

"More than sixty years in their world."

"Right, now look, Mikasa, sixty years is a lot of time for things to change. Maybe the people helping us aren't so different from us, but… they clearly want to help us, and even if we can't eradicate all the titans, simply retaking Wall Maria would make things a whole lot better, right?"

Mikasa nodded, lifting her scarf up slightly.

"Yeah, for once, let's try to be a little optimistic, even if cautiously so." Armin chimed in.

She nodded again, smiling slightly.

She could only hope what they learned in the following month would be less depressing.

At least her remaining family was happy to actually get a detailed glimpse of what could lay beyond the walls.

She secretly hoped they would get to discover those very things for themselves soon enough.

She didn't notice that Eren had a thoughtful expression.

If… the titans are all destroyed… will we go down a similar path?

He nervously eyed an intimidating black and white photograph of a city, burned down worse than anything he had seen even during the initial titan invasion four years prior, as if the fire had destroyed everything and only left the empty, almost skeletal construction of the buildings.

A tiny footnote was written just below it read:

The remains of the German city of Dresden, the firebombing of which left thousands dead and homeless, is considered one of many atrocities committed during the Second World War.

His jaw clenched, firmly choosing to believe that they would not make the same mistakes.

But a small part of him worried that assertion might be wrong.

"I'm surprised the Newspapers didn't name you directly." Hanji told Ilse as the Humvee turned a street corner.

The Survey Corps scientist was far less distracted by the mostly bare interior of the American transport vehicle than by the complex maze of switches and buttons found in the Abrams tanks she had ridden on a few days prior.

"I think I prefer it that way. I really don't want any more attention after these last few days…" the young girl sighed, glancing at her now bandaged hand.

"You really gave us a huge help, you know. I do hope to work with you three mysterious men later." The older girl called to the other passengers in the Humvee.

Dave was silently sitting up front, asleep, which left Matt and Jake to answer with a halfhearted "we aim to please, ma'm."

"I'm sure you do, and I appreciate these books you translated for me… but I have to ask, just how… biased are they?"

Jake raised an eyebrow before saying "Well, I think they're mostly high school textbooks, and given our education system… I don't know, it all depends on your questions. I can guarantee that it is mostly truth, though maybe you'll find some bias here or there. Like the World Wars, but I haven't read it so… for all I know-"

"Ah, yes, I had been meaning to ask you about- what do you mean world wars?!"

Jake made a face and whirled around to look at the girl, saying "I thought you read the damn thing!"

"I got the book today and I'm still human, Jackson-Jackson! I only got to the section on world exploration, not the section on wars! H-how can the entire planet be tossed into a single conflict?"

"Well I can't explain it without context, and I am not a history buff, so maybe-"

"Cut the chatter and make a left here. House is near the end of the street so find a place to stop without blocking the damn road." the radio crackled causing Hanji to stop talking immediately and Ilse to sigh, thankful that the Survey Corps captain could still manage to intimidate despite being in another vehicle.

Levi placed the tiny box in its place and returned to reading the signs on the street, the MRAP driver briefly glancing at him as he followed his instructions.

The Marine narrowed his eyes slightly, but decided to be blunt, saying "So… this a first?"

"First time delivering good news to a family? Yes, actually." The captain guessed and answered honestly.

He felt like he was being watched…

"Huh… well, I can't speak for everyone, but back home my grandpa knew this Marine who had been MIA for months, and the day he came back, uh… well, it was something that my grandpa never described, though he said there was a ton of crying…"

He glanced at the stoic captain of the Survey Corps and felt like shrinking when he saw his face.

It was subtle, but a fire burned in the older man's eyes.

Levi was slightly jealous, though he would never admit it. From what he understood, the Americans hadn't had to deal with casualties the likes of the Survey Corps for decades.

If asked, he wouldn't lie, but he wouldn't bring it up. He wasn't a kid anymore.

The American must've noticed, because the Marine mumbled a quiet "Sorry, I keep forgetting how messed up your situation is… and how easy we have it…"

"Stop over there, Hanji and I will see if the parents are still home." The captain said, choosing to move on from the subject.

Even if they were older than most of their members, these Americans have an almost childlike naivety…

"Alright, Hanji! Come on! Langnar, are you ready?" Levi asked as he hopped from the MRAP and moved to the Humvee that had followed them.

Hanji stretched, saying "Ah, I don't think I'll ever get used to how much more comfortable these carriage- cars are. Alright, let's go before people get too curious and ruin the surprise."

The street was mostly empty as the sun was beginning to set and people were already home, cooking dinner.

The few that were out were all staring at the strange vehicles form a distance, still wary of the newcomers even if news of the walls being sealed had probably reached them by now.

Jake watched the two Survey Corps officers walk towards a house on the street before turning to Ilse, who was visibly shaking.

"You'll be fine." He said simply.

She nodded before saying "I-I know, I'm just… worried… it's been almost a full year… I don't… what if I screw something up by coming back?"

"You even believe that?" Matt asked, still standing on the turret.

The girl whirled around saying "Of course I'll be fine, but what if my parents aren't?!"

Both the Army guys turned to look at the MRAP driver, as if asking for him to speak up.

The Marine sighed, saying "Trust me; there's nothing to worry about."

Ilse was about to protest when she heard the door open and a familiar voice ask "Yes?"

Ilse looked at the man she recognized as her father from behind the Humvee, spying through the bulletproof window as the man turned and looked at the strange new sights to behold on the humble street.

Hanji turned and waved to her.

Jake gently pulled her from the window, and the young girl stepped from behind the Humvee finally making eye contact with the tired man.

Neither spoke for a few seconds.

"Il…se?" the man asked, as if still not believing what was in front of his two eyes.

"Papa!" the girl exclaimed, the trained scout vanishing as she ran to her father.

Jake shook Dave awake, motioning for him to get out of the car and appreciate the moment.

Matt watched as the girl they had known for a little more than a week finally returned home. A woman in an apron stepped out and looked confused for all of two seconds before she screamed in shock and happiness as she recognized the crying girl.

"We're going to do some good here, guys." Matt said after a few seconds.

"Yeah… I hope so…" the Marine sighed.

Neither the Marine nor his brothers from the Army knew what it was like to actually do something good while fighting for their country, even if that was why most of them had signed up in the first place. They knew the horror stories many veterans recounted about outraged and angry citizens demanding to know why children had died, why their boys were out fighting a war nobody understood, they knew many of the negatives of what they were signing up for in spite of what the recruiter had said.

They all watched the news, and the internet was a thing after all.

But for once, they somewhat smiled, knowing that at least here they had done some good.

If only a small bit of good.

Levi and Hanji stepped back to give the reunited family some room as they embraced.

The stoic captain looked away from the heartwarming scene of a family finally reuniting.

He felt a pang of pain as his mind brought images of an intelligent young man who always had a plan and a retort to his attempts of pushing others away… and a red headed girl no older than the one sobbing joyfully along with her father; one that had brought him some joy before they all joined the corps a lifetime before present day.

He did a good job hiding his old wounds as he gazed at the orange sky.

Then he stopped.

He blinked.

He narrowed his eyes and focused on the strange person standing at the very tip of a house.

Long, jet black hair seemed to float ominously with the wind and Levi felt as if time had stopped.

Piercing magenta eyes met his dull blue and he found himself confused as to how the girl was standing up there, on the very edge of a home.

He realized that it was impossible, the relatively fragile ceramic roofing wasn't mad e to support much weight, if any, and even if the girl was light she would have to weigh next to nothing to be standing right on the very edge like that.

The mysterious girl returned a sickeningly sweet smile, almost childlike, before she disappeared.

Levi blinked.

She wasn't there anymore.

He blinked again, hoping that it was just a trick of the eyes or the sun that had caused her to simply vanish.

She hadn't returned.

Had he imagined it?

He stayed silent as Ilse's mother spoke up, saying between sobs "Well… come on! Don't waste any time, invite your friends! I don't know if we have enough food ready, but… please, come in!"

Levi was too absorbed in analyzing what he had just witnessed to pay much attention as Hanji followed the parents inside, the Americans following suit, leaving him alone on the almost empty street.

He regained his composure quick enough to enter the relatively small home as if nothing had happened.

Unless he saw her again, he would keep it that way.

The sun slowly set behind him as he watched the young girl begin to bring her parents up to speed on what had happened while she was gone.

The other soldiers (and couple of Marines) stood around not really saying anything.

At least that he could do.

Three Warriors sat under a tree; the moonlight was too bright for them to risk standing out in the open.

"Calm down." was the first thing one of them said.

"We are calm, dumbass." another replied.

"Y-yeah, in all honesty, what are we going to do now?!" the third one asked.

"We figure it out."

"Oh, like when you figured out how we would sneak into the walls?"

"Maybe."

The second Warrior was stunned.

"Y-you're not serious. Again? You want to break the walls again?!"

"They said that in a month they will clear out the titans within Wall Maria. I would love to just run over to Trost and tear down the gate myself, but we can't. Not yet. I take it you all read the textbook they gave us."

The other two nodded.

"They can wipe out any titan incursion as long as they have the munitions… but in all honestly, I see many options moving forward."

They gave him a questioning glance.

"We have at least one month to get acquainted with our new enemy-"

"Oh, labeling them enemies already, I see."

"They want to help these devils, so until we get the chance to explain it to them that these… people are… evil, we have to treat them as enemies."

"So… you want to wait until they lower their guard and then strike?"

The Warrior nodded.

"Right, smart, except for one small detail. What the hell do we do then?! We have no idea where the Founder is, if… if that other titan is anywhere close by… if we don't take some precautions we will be found out and we will be executed! These people clearly aren't as powerless as the people we have been dealing with!"

"We have a month to decide on a better plan then, or need I remind you that retreating now isn't an option? Do you want to come back a failure?!"

The second warrior went quiet, the third one saying "That isn't fair. I say we retreat and just leave them alone, that way we can let our people know-"

"Know what? We need to get to know them first, those history books are obviously simplified… regardless of what we decide we need to stay here at least one month. If you two want to quit and run, go right ahead, but I still plan on finishing the mission, understood?!"

The other two warriors nodded simply.

"Do you object to this?"

The other two warriors remained silent.

"Good. We can do this, guys, I know we can."

Rod calmly looked at the four adults sitting in front of his desk.

Ackerman's recommendations…

He put the individual files down and took a breath as he studied them.

A blonde woman that simply went by the name "Caven" was the only one he could theoretically object to as she was probably extremely loyal to the serial killer now turned secret police officer.

But she would have to do…

The others, he knew were loyal to a fault. One of them, Sannes, had once helped track down and execute a tragically curious couple that had managed to build some kind of balloon they had intended to use for exploring the lands beyond the walls.

Sannes had executed them himself.

He was a good leader, unquestioning, willing to get his hands dirty… a follower.

"I have gathered you here to inform you personally of your new assignments. You are all to recruit as many members of the Military Police as you can- make sure they are loyal to the king, not money, not women, just the king. You are all… no doubt aware of the situation occurring."

The four officers nodded.

"What do you think of these… Americans?" he asked calmly.

Caven answered swiftly, saying "They are clearly a danger to our way of life. That is a simple fact. Whether that danger will be beneficial or not isn't up to us to decide."

"I agree with her, my king. If you believe they are a danger to the wishes of The Founder, they must be resisted in every way. Although I worry our firepower may not be enough to push them back."

Rod nodded as the other two men agreed with the previous statements.

Kenny did not disappoint, he had brought him well trained killers, but also seemingly blind followers as well.

"Sannes, you are correct that we lack the firepower to push them back. So such weapons are not to be allowed within the innermost wall, period. But I have ordered a special factory to begin mass producing the improved anti-personnel gear Kenny Ackerman has been training with. In the meantime, I want all of you to seek recruits, monitor the Americans from afar… especially their interactions with that Erwin Smith. This job won't be easy; you will have to continue your duties as protectors of humanity all while training an entire regiment for a conflict that may be inevitable… or may never happen. Let us hope that the Founder is located soon."

He got up and looked out the window, the moon was glowing a bright blue in the starry night, a rare sight.

"Continue doing your job, don't be afraid to ask for more help or assistance from each other, but above all prepare."

"Yes, my liege!" all four soldiers declared, offering up their hearts to Rod who nodded solemnly.

It was both a blessing and a curse that the person who would receive the Founder once it was located again was now training with the Americans, but on the bright side, she didn't know that she was an heir to the throne.

The king had grown to appreciate how important a tool ignorance could be when it came to keeping order in the last enclave of humanity.

The American president impatiently tapped his foot against the ground as the US representative finished her report.

"So… we may be dealing with a puppet king then…" it wasn't a question.

"Possibly, the king was supposedly very kind to the people during the crisis four years ago, and maybe they think they need him to keep the population from all out revolting."

"Still, what idiot doesn't see the benefit of an Air Force? In all honesty, I don't like it…" the president mumbled as an aide stepped into the Oval Office, quickly placing a few sheets of paper on the desk.

"It could be that they're worried about needless deaths and losing their way of life… or at least that's what they seemed to be trying to convey." she replied, not entirely convinced herself.

"Okay I'll give them the benefit of the doubt, but you watch yourself out there, I hear the base is coming along smoothly, but I don't want to lose a representative to some giant naked freaks."

"Yes, of course Mister President, thank you."

"Good night."

"Good night, sir."

The American president hung up with that and turned to his aide.

"Give me good news."

"The Harriers are ready to be shipped out, and we have droves of companies in line to go through and begin the process of modernizing the other side, including foreign companies."

The president glanced at the list on his desk.

"Germany, Japan, the Netherlands… deny all Chinese based companies, we don't need them over there… Mexico… interesting… what about American companies?" he asked with a yawn.

The aide sighed, trying not to yawn himself, saying "They all want to start bringing electricity and communication to the walled society, and we could certainly use some of the private investments…"

"I sense a but coming along…"

"Well, they all want tax exemptions for their work, and we can't guarantee it since the king and his advisors haven't made themselves available to discuss these terms and we forgot to bring them up on the first meeting."

The president nodded, his mind moving back to the mysterious actions of the King and his advisory.

"You know something… I kind of want more information on that king."

The aide blinked unsure of what the president was thinking as he stood up and moved to the telephone.

"Mr. President?"

"Sorry, John, I need to make a call. Give me a minute…"

The complicated network of communications that connected humanity across the globe worked endlessly to transmit a call to different people, this time seeking one out in particular, causing a phone to ring.

Somewhere, a tired man answered.

"Hello?"

"Hey, general, I need to ask you something."

"Mister President?"

"Correct answer, now tell me, if you wanted to spy on a king that's hiding something from you, and said king is hiding behind his little government building within the innermost wall of a walled society, who would you send?"


A/N: More cannon divergence… yay? I don't know, this chapter felt off in a lot of places, since it was mostly just set up for the next arc. Rod in particular was a tough one because I kept wondering if he knew what lay beyond the walls. Ultimately, I figured he didn't know enough to make an informed decision which is why he put so much faith in The Founder (unless that was all him trying to manipulate his heir but that's something to ponder at a later time). I also wanted to try and show that the advisory aren't all evil, just misguided and somewhat selfish. I feel like the Americans bringing in translated textbooks to educate the 104th was a bit out of the blue, but I think it would be a legitimate action taken by the US if it means preparing a better fighting force.

The place I have to suspend my disbelief a little is in the fact that the US would allow kids Eren or Armin's age to fight, but I think it isn't entirely unrealistic, since these kids are already trained soldiers by age fifteen so all the US would be doing is giving them better tools to not die later. Also, let me know if anything really felt off or needs fixing, though, I keep thinking I forgot something.

With that out of the way, thank you all so much for reading this latest chapter! I hope it was an enjoyable read, and if anything felt off feel free to let me know! Reviews and advice are very much appreciated. Thank you once again for reading, I hope to have the next chapter soon!