34th Expidition (Hope Beyond The Walls)
The sun rose over the horizon, casting a golden glow over the Scout Regiment as they prepared for the 34th Expedition Beyond the Walls. The air was tense with anticipation and nerves, as this expedition promised to be one of the most dangerous yet.
The scouts stood at attention on the Wall of Shiganshina, their footsteps echoing off the stone ramparts as they gazed out into the unknown. The air was heavy with tension, the wind whispers secrets in their ears, and the clouds hung low and foreboding. The Expedition was led by Commander Erwin Smith and Section Commander Hange Zoë. The locals and scouts alike were confident in their chances of success, but the weight of their mission hung like a dark cloud over their heads.
The inexperienced scouts couldn't help but feel a sense of dread, their hearts racing with every creak of the turning gears of the gate, every groan of the ancient walls. They knew that Captain Levi, humanity's strongest soldier, would not be joining them due to fight against Kenny the Ripper, his absence a palpable void in their ranks.
But after Erwin's rousing speech which had lifted their spirits, his words hung in the air like a challenge, a call to arms. The scouts were now ready to face whatever dangers lay ahead, their determination burning like a fire in their bellies. As the sun rose over the horizon, its warm rays illuminated their determined faces, casting long shadows across the ground, like skeletal fingers reaching out to snatch them back.
The giant wall bells tolled, their deep, sonorous tones echoing through the streets, a mournful dirge that seemed to warn of impending doom. The gates creaked open, their iron hinges screaming in protest, like the very walls themselves were reluctant to let them pass. The scouts marched forward, towards their horses who stood in front of the Gate linking Shiganshina to the Cruel World waiting outside.
Meanwhile Hange Zoe and Erwin Smith stood atop the Walls, gazing out at the vast expanse of unknown territory before them. They had devised a strategy to divide the Expedition into two brigades, each following the same formation: Wings, Center, Tail, and Head. The 1st Brigade, led by Hange , would venture northeast, while the 2nd Brigade, led by Erwin, would head northwest.
Hange's Brigade
"Alright, looking sharp, are we?" Hange called out to her fellow scouts, her voice carrying across the wind. "Look, everyone, I want you all to coordinate your movements with the other flanks, so we can successfully complete this Expedition with the least casualties."
Ilse Langnar, a young and ambitious scout, stood among her comrades, her eyes shining with excitement and curiosity. She had a reputation for being fearless and brilliant, often taking risks that others dared not attempt. She stood beside Hange, her notebook and pen at the ready, eager to record any unusual observations during the Expedition.
"Ilse Langnar!" Hange screamed, her voice piercing the air. "Yes!" Ilse enthusiastically replied. "Are you ready as well?" Hange asked, her voice intense. "Yes!" Ilse shouted, her determination evident.
Hange had always appreciated Ilse's valuable insights into the Titans' behavior, including their inability to move at night. Their relationship was reminiscent of Eren and Levi's, with Ilse's fearlessness and Hange's strategic mind making them a formidable team. Hange appointed Ilse as the leader of the left wing, with her squad members forming the core of the team.
With a final nod, Hange and Erwin gave the signal, and the two brigades set off in opposite directions, their footsteps echoing across the landscape as they vanished into the unknown. The fate of humanity rested on their shoulders, and they were ready to face whatever lay ahead.
As the scouts ventured deeper into the unknown, the landscape shifted from open plains to dense forests, the trees growing taller and the underbrush thicker. The ilse squad moved with precision, their training and experience evident in their fluid movements. They had been lucky so far, encountering only a few small Titans and one paralyzed, its face stuck in the ground.
Suddenly, a shout rang out from the rear of the squad. "Hey Ilse, look! It's a purple flare... and it's from the center rear!" The squad member's voice was laced with excitement and a hint of concern.
Ilse's eyes narrowed as she gazed towards the flare. "Means we've spread further eastwards," she said, her voice steady and calm. The squad members nodded in agreement, their faces set with determination.
As they pressed on, the forest grew denser, the trees twisting and turning in ways that seemed almost sinister. Ilse chatted with her comrades, sharing stories and jokes to keep spirits high, but her mind was focused on the mission ahead. They had yet to encounter any major threats, but she knew that could change at any moment.
The journey was long and arduous, the scouts trudging through dense forests and over treacherous terrain. But Ilse's squad moved with purpose, their hearts driven by the desire to reclaim their world from the Titans. And Ilse led the way, her determination and courage inspiring her comrades to push forward, no matter what dangers lay ahead.
As the scouts ventured even deeper into Titan territory, the atmosphere grew increasingly somber. The silence was palpable, and the scouts knew they were taking a huge risk. Suddenly, a shrill cry pierced the air ,"Ilseeeeeee!!", followed by the sound of crashing and snapping branches. The scouts drew their weapons, ready for battle.
A massive horde of Titans emerged from the forest, their eyes fixed onto their prey. The scouts were shocked, their hearts pounding against their chests as the horses kept running without a second thought. Ilse commanded, "Shift to ODM gear!" while she pulled out a red flare, shooting it vertically upwards as a warning and call for help.
The flare barely made it through the thick canopy above, but the ilse squad listened to her, unleashing their ODM gear and flying into the air like birds. They were chased by Aberrants, their lives hanging in the balance. Ilse shot her grappling hooks at the trees, perfectly sticking in the thick bark, as she maneuvered upwards above the Titans.
But in the chaos, one of her comrades was sqaushed by an Aberrant. But before the squad could react to his death another one of those beasts targeted Ilse. Its menacing hand casting a deadly shadow on Ilse's fearful face. "Gah..." Ilse grunted before realizing that another squad member had pushed her to safety, sacrificing himself to save her life.
The comrade's screams were cut short as the Titan's hand slowly crushed him, his bones breaking and blood spewing from his mouth . The Titan peacefully enjoyed it's meal slowly devouring him whole.
"You bastard," one of the remaining members screamed, slashing the Titan's nape, but it was too late.
Ilse's voice cracked as she screamed Carl's name, her words hanging in the air as she watched in horror. Carl's body was biten in half, his intestines spilling out, his eyes frozen in a silent scream. Jane one of her comrades helped Ilse get safely to a branch where the only one other member of the Ilse squad waited in despair.
The Titans loomed, their jaws open, ready to strike. Ilse's mind reeled, her thoughts a jumbled mix of fear, grief, and desperation. She felt like she was drowning, unable to escape the nightmare that surrounded her. Her comrades, her friends, were being slaughtered and she was powerless to stop it.
" Ilse.. what do we do.." Jane asked her eyes expressing nothing as if she had lost all faith in survival. Ilse replied her voice barely audible," I... I don't know... Wait.. wait here I'll be right back." A thought crossed Ilse's mind forcing her to release grappling hooks further higher.
As she ascended upwards, a glimmer of hope flickered to life, only to be extinguished by the sight of the black flares on the horizon . The reality of their situation hit her like a sledgehammer, leaving her breathless and reeling.(Note: Black flares represent that the entire flank is wiped out with one or two survivors)
Ilse whispered, "The hell..." her voice barely audible, her eyes streaming with tears. She felt like she was staring into the abyss, with no escape, no rescue, no hope. The Titans waited below, their jaws open, ready to devour her, ready to snuff out the last flicker of humanity's resistance.
Ilse's grave news hung in the air like a death sentence, her comrades' faces etched with despair. Jane collapsed, her body wracked with sobs, while Holger's(the other scout) eyes seemed to hold a thousand sorrows. "Then there's no way we can...make it out alive," he whispered, his voice a mere shadow of hope.
Ilse's nod was a stark acknowledgment of their dire fate, yet a glimmer in her eye hinted at a plan. "I'll distract the Titans," she said, her voice steady as she unsheathed her blades. "You two make your way out of this."
Jane and Holger exchanged a disbelieving glance, but Ilse's firm tone brooked no argument. "It's a command, go live your lives, you two." With a fierce cry, she charged towards the Aberrants, her blades flashing in the fading light.
The Titans gave chase, their thunderous footsteps shaking the earth. Ilse's gas-powered blades sliced through the air, her movements a blur as she dodged and weaved between the monstrous horde. The dust cloud swallowed her whole, leaving Jane and Holger to stare after her in awe.
With heavy hearts, they turned towards their horses, Carl's lifeless body a grim reminder of their desperate plight. "Thank you, Ilse" Holger whispered, his voice barely audible. As they rode away, the sounds of Ilse's valiant struggle faded into the distance, a testament to her unwavering courage in the face of unrelenting horror.
Later that night
"As I emerged from the frenzied battle with the Aberrants, I managed to escape with my life, though my blades found no victims to claim." Ilse scribbled in her notebook, her grip on the parchment tight. The moon's silvery glow illuminated her brown eyes, casting an eerie light on her exhausted face. She tread cautiously through the treacherous woods, her hopes of survival dwindling with each step.
Though the night offered a temporary reprieve from the Titans' relentless pursuit, Ilse knew the forest was a deathtrap, stretching miles into the darkness. Her body screamed for sustenance, her thirst and hunger verging on unbearable.
Suddenly a deer darted into view making her look extremely lucky. With a fierce cry, Ilse sprinted towards her prey, her last blade at the ready. The weapon soared through the air, striking true, and the deer collapsed with a faint bleat. Ilse's grin twisted into a macabre smile as she approached her kill in order to skin it, her weariness forgotten in the thrill of the hunt.
"That's how it is, kid..." a low, ominous voice resonated beside her, "...the apex predators always reign supreme." Ilse's smile froze, her face blanching as her heart stuttered. A Titan, its blonde hair and blue eyes gleaming in the moonlight, loomed beside her, its massive frame casting a long, sinister shadow on the ground.
As the Titan opened its mouth to speak, Ilse lunged forward with a fierce cry, her blade flashing in the moonlight. But the weapon, weakened from the previous battle, shattered against the Titan's skin, leaving only a faint scratch. The Titan's eyes blazed with anger, its teeth bared in a snarl.
"Aghhhhh!" Ilse screamed, flinging a handful of dust into the Titan's face as she turned to flee. Tears streaming down her face, she frantically unhooked the heavy ODM gear from her waist, the empty gas tanks bouncing against the muddy ground. Her mind raced with a single thought: "I don't want to die."
But before she could escape, the Titan closed in, its massive body pinning her against a tree. Ilse's breath caught in her throat as the Titan's hot breath washed over her face. Her shaking hands grasped her notebook and pen, her eyes fixed on the page as she scribbled furiously.
The questions swirled in her mind like a maelstrom: How could the Titan move at night? Was it the moonlight that empowered it? And how could it speak, its voice dripping with emotion? The Titan's breath grew heavier, its face inches from hers, as Ilse wrote with a desperate intensity, her words a testament to her dwindling hope.
"Subject... of... Ymir." As the Titan's heavy voice uttered the words the forest grew quiet, as if the trees themselves were listening. Its eyes widened in disbelief, and it bowed its head in a gesture of reverence, "Miss... Ymir... It's an honor" The moonlight cast an eerie glow on the scene, illuminating Ilse's confusion and fear.
Tears streaming down her face, Ilse scribbled the Titan's words in her notebook, her hand shaking with terror. The Titan's gaze remained fixed on the ground, its expression a mix of torment and guilt. Ilse's questions pierced its conscience like daggers, filling it with a deep sense of remorse.
"What are you?" she asked, her voice barely audible over the sound of her own heartbeat. "Where are you from? Why do you eat us?" The Titan's silence was deafening, its stillness a stark contrast to the turmoil that seemed to be brewing inside it. Suddenly, the titan started to grunt and moan.
Ilse's words hung in the air like a challenge, a dare to the Titan to reveal its secrets. And then, in a burst of anguish, the Titan's face contorted, its hands tearing at its cheeks, ripping out flesh and cartilage. Blood gushed from its face like a river. Abruptly, the Titan stared ilse dead in the eye, its teeth ready to eat her whole.
"Nooooooo." Ilse's scream echoed through the forest, a primal cry of terror as she fled in fear. The blonde Aberrant who was torturing itself noticed Ilse running away.
The Titan's massive body lurched forward, its strides devouring the distance between them. Ilse's screams grew louder, her legs pumping furiously as she tried to escape the Suddenly ,The Titan mercilessly grabbed ilse it's tight grip shattering her ribs as she shriekd in pain. But Ilse kept writing thinking that whatever she observed in that cruel night would somehow benefit humanity.
The Titan's jaws opened wide, its warm breath enveloping her like a shroud. Ilse's writing grew more frantic, her words tumbling out in a desperate bid to leave a legacy, a testament to her existence.
"I'm caught. I'm done. Big mouth. It smells. Many teeth. Not sharp. Breath is warm. It hurts a lot. Waiting alone is..." And then, in an instant, her writing ended. The Titan's teeth closed around her head, crushing her skull with a sickening crunch. Ilse's notebook fell to the ground beside a bloody flowerbed, its pages fluttering in the moonlight like a dying bird's wings.
The room was heavy with silence as Erwin concluded his report on the 34th Expedition. The tension was palpable, making it hard for anyone to breathe. Hange Zoe's expression was a mix of pride and sadness as she gazed at Ilse's notebook. "Subject of Ymir," Eren whispered, his hand rubbing his hair as he struggled to recall where he had heard those words before.
Levi and Erwin exchanged a knowing glance, their minds racing with the same question, but they decided to probe Eren later. Petra's concern for Hange was evident in her gentle inquiry, "Hange, are you alright?" Hange nodded, her eyes fixed on the notebook, her drool dripping onto the pages.
"Four eyes you really are an idiot." Levi said as he left the room followed by Erwin and the Levi squad , Eren lingered, awaiting Hange's thoughts on the talking Titan. "Hange, this is the first time a Titan has communicated with a human... what do you think?" Eren asked, his curiosity piqued.
Hange's brow rose, her cheeks and ears flushing as she grasped Eren's hand. "Eren, this changes everything! A Titan that speaks and shows emotions? We need to learn more about this Ymir. It could be the key to understanding the Titans!" Hange's words spilled out in a torrent, her excitement distracting her from her grief that was brewing within. Eren listened intently, grateful for the distraction that kept Hange's heartbreak at bay. The night flew by as Hange shared her theories and questions, her passion for discovery eclipsing her sorrow.
Though days later the 34th Expedition's triumph was short-lived, as a sudden uprising erupted in Mitras, fueled by the priests' machinations and their bribery to the ignorant locals. The once-celebrated Scout Regiment found themselves facing a new threat, as the very phrase "Subject of Ymir" became a death sentence, deemed illegal by the authorities. The scouts' doubts and suspicions grew, their minds racing with the question: "Who was the real enemy?"
The geniuses among them like Hange, Erwin, Levi and Eren couldn't shake off the feeling that they were mere pawns in a larger game, that the true enemy lurked in the shadows, manipulating the strings. The illegalization of the phrase only added to the mystery, hinting at a sinister force that sought to suppress the truth. As tensions simmered, the scouts found themselves torn between their duty to the kingdom and their quest for answers, their loyalty and curiosity at odds.
(Year 843, 19th July, Odel District)
*Thud*
"Ahhh!" Eren yelled out as Levi slammed him to the ground, the summer sun's rays casting a golden glow on the two Ackermans as they wrestled in the training grounds. Levi's face was a picture of approval, his muscles rippling beneath his half-sleeved shirt. "That's enough for today, Eren. You've done well," he said, his voice firm but commendatory.
Eren's gaze flickered upwards, his eyes locking onto Levi's for a brief moment before he looked away, his expression hinting at a mix of emotions. " What?" Levi asked a bit confused."Nothing," he muttered, quickly donning his shirt and striding towards the castle to bathe away the sweat and grime.
Levi followed suit, his movements fluid as he kept pace with Eren. After a refreshing shower, they headed to the dining room, where the Levi Squad and Hange, the newest member, awaited their arrival. The atmosphere was lively, filled with the clinking of utensils and the hum of conversation, a welcome respite from the intensity of their training session.
"Haaaa!" Eren's eyes widened in excitement as he gazed at the roasted turkey, the centerpiece of Hange's welcome party. The warm glow of the setting sun casted a golden light on the gathering, filling the air with a sense of camaraderie. "Well, aren't we lucky?" he exclaimed, taking his seat between Petra and Levi, feeling like a third wheel despite Petra's hidden feelings for Levi.
Eren devoured his food with his usual gusto, going for seconds despite his full stomach. Hange matched his pace, while Levi and the others savored their meal. As they finished, Levi stopped them from retiring to bed, his gaze fixed intently on Eren. "Eren, is something bothering you? You've been acting strange lately."
The room fell silent, the only sound the hooting of owls. Eren met Levi's gaze, knowing he had to reveal his plans. "I'm going back to Shiganshina to get my mom," he said, his determination evident. "I've saved enough money and even bought a house in the Utopia district."
Levi rose from his seat, his expression serious. "Very well, when do you plan to leave?" Eren replied, "In three days." Levi nodded, "Fine, I'll book your fare. Be ready and don't do anything reckless." Though Levi warned him, Eren knew exactly what he'd do regarding Grisha, his plans already in motion.
As the night drew to a close, the group dispersed, each member retiring to their quarters. Eren's heart raced with anticipation, his mind fixed on the journey ahead. He knew the road to Shiganshina would be treacherous, but he was ready for payback.