Creation began on 05-24-21

Creation ended on 05-03-22

Attack on Titan

A Decline in the Warrior Unit: Decisive Meetings

It wasn't every day that Marley had received a message from an island representing what remained of a nation they had a sour history with that was an update on another nation. It wasn't even every day that they learned that Roman Reiss, the current ruler of Paradis, was requesting an audience with the leaders of Marley, just as he had requested an audience with leaders from other nations where Eldians dwelled. This was a discovery that nobody in Marley had expected to hear. Ever. And yet, it continued to make things worse for Marley; the loss of the Titan powers that gave their military its might had decimated their personnel, the Warrior Unit had to be disbanded, and the Eldian populace within the internment zones were demanding equal rights after learning that they were incapable of being turned into Titans by the will of the person that had possessed the Founding Titan.

"…We can't put this aside forever," Calvi was informed by one of his lieutenants during another meeting with the head of the Tybur family. "We run the risk of inciting riots if we continue to keep the Eldians confined to the internment zones after learning that they're as human as we are now that the power of the Titans is gone."

With no other alternative that could be used to paint the Eldians in a negative light, the current head of the Tybur family sighs and expresses that Marley needed to meet with the other nations and the leader of Paradis Island.

"The sooner we deal with this matter," he announced, "the sooner we can resolve this for all."

-x-

The nobility of Paradis weren't happy with Roman Reiss' recent actions, but they had little say in the matter. Actually, they had no say in the matter; the people needed to know the truth, the truth that had been kept from them for over five decades now, and they couldn't be confined to a place that was meant to feed a lie. Whatever peace there was to have now had to be obtained without fear from the rest of the world that Titans as large as the Walls were going to be unleashed upon the people and destroy everything. And with the ideology of Karl Fritz gone, the Titans within the Walls had been released from their dark slumber and returned to humanity, albeit with some grief.

Tens of thousands of Wall Titans confined within the Walls…and over a dozen of them were once elderly men and women…and each one died as a result of dehydration and starvation due to being on the verge of death when Karl turned them into Titans to create the Walls. But Roman Reiss had to accept that their deaths were due to Karl's indifference; if they had been given water and food prior to being turned into Titans, the strain of being turned back into humans would've been reduced with only a little more water and food needed to get them on the road to recovery until they died of natural causes. Still, they needed to be gathered and identified for proper burials; even if they were people they didn't know, anymore, they deserved to be remembered. They deserved to know that their lives mattered to the people left behind.

"…We're still facing backlash from the people within the districts and villages of Wall Maria," one of the nobles informed. "It's mostly farmers that are upset that there's more land beyond the wall and that they've had to use the limited space within to grow crops."

This was to be expected by Roman, people being upset, but he was willing to shoulder all of that displeasure from the public. None of this was expected to be easy, but he was going to do all that he could to make sure there was a future for all of them. Already, a lot of Titans that had existed beyond Wall Maria had returned to human form and were rounded up for medical attention and getting them settled on Paradis, all of them informed of how long they were Titans and what was going on. One of the foundlings was a young woman from Marley that had lost her name and was found by a small cult that believed in Ymir Fritz…and gave her the name Ymir, after the supposed mother of the Eldian nation…and she was just relieved to be free from what she had perceived to be nothing more than a nightmare she couldn't wake up from.

It's always a nightmare for each of them, Roman thought as he heard the ramblings of other members of the nobility about how the unrest was costing them money, not that it mattered to him when they needed to change from the old ways and move forward, being open to the world. There's always a nightmare that we need to be awoken from. To have to live within it is madness and suffering.

"Reiss!" A woman shouted, breaking from his train of thought, holding a letter in her hand. "A letter from Shiganshina District! A boat was seen off the shoreline in the south! People from across the ocean!"

This was a revelation! It was the start of something they were hoping would be a change for them. To meet with people from other parts of the world.

-x-

"…People from Hizuru have established contact with Paradis," the head of the Tybur family was informed, two weeks later. "This makes ten now."

In the two weeks that had followed after discovering that the royal family of Eldia had sought to meet with people from beyond the island of Paradis, they were beginning to gain support and connections with people from other nations that had sought to revive their economy and replenish their resources through trade routes with other parts of the world. But Hizuru, a small nation that once had a relationship with Eldia in the past, long before the Great Titan War, was among those small nations that tolerated Eldians with as little hatred as possible, and now, with these rumors that the Rumbling, the one thing that made Eldians from Paradis a threat to the world, was no longer a threat because there were no more Titans, all the island was in this world…was just an island of people that wanted to reconnect with the rest of society.

"Has anyone else from other parts of the world attempted to meet with the leaders of Paradis?" Calvi questioned the soldier that reported the news.

"The king and queen from the nation of Baraka, the princess of the nation of Minilla, even the political assembly from the island of Roku are considering a meeting with this Roman Reiss. The only nations that haven't met with Paradis are Marley and its allies. However…"

However, this waiting period to decide on whether or not to meet with the people from Paradis was causing the Eldians confined to their internment zones to lose patience with Marley and their allies. The longer they risked waiting this all out, the more they risked inciting another war based off a fear of something that wouldn't happen because it was neutralized a short while ago. But Marley, fearful of admitting their inability to protect their people after the Eldians lost interest in having their children join the military due to the fear of them dying in thirteen years after inheriting one of the seven Titans they used to have before this craziness occurred, didn't want to consider the mere possibility that this man that had the Founding Titan was looking to build bridges between his island home and the rest of the world that had every right to despise the people that possessed a power bestowed by the Devil himself.

"Have one of our nation's allies go to a meeting with Paradis," the head of the Tybur family suggested. "Let them know for sure that this Roman Reiss means everything that he says. If it's confirmed to be the truth, we'll strategize on how to proceed from there."

"Sir," the soldier responded. "Which nation ally, sir?"

"Calvi?"

"How about Amestris?" Calvi suggested. "They're our smallest and weakest ally after they lost to us eight years ago. They're barely holding on after losing their military and can barely support a million people because their city was reduced to ruins."

"Meaning that they're also easily influenced by the promise of support from any other nation that offers aid and resources to help them rebuild," the Tybur leader claimed.

To be continued…

A/N: To those that can take a guess on the references to other franchises from the choice words I chose to use, I could care less about your criticisms of lack of originality or following the canon. In fanfiction, we're allowed to rewrite existence however we choose. I hope the next chapter will include a meeting between the Reiss family and the Tybur family after decades of last speaking to one another and trying to establish some connection. Marley is just being fearful and stubborn, but then again, isn't anyone when they live with the fear of something they only suspect will still happen when there is belief that contradicts the possibility? And who do you want to see in the future of this story? You let me know, and I'll see how they can be added on later. Peace of mind, body and soul as we continue to move forward into this new year.