The Cadet's Origin

Chapter Three - Meeting Miss Mary

After the longest ferry ride in her life, Kenna finally arrived in Trost. She was ushered off of the ferry by some soldiers. Kenna saw a mix of the roses of the garrison alongside the horse and sword of the military police. Kenna did her best to remain small while walking through the streets of Trost. All of the refugees were being funneled into a smaller area. Kenna grabbed her uncle's instructions out of her bag and kept them tightly in her hand. She tried to remember the streets she was walking by, but nothing came to her mind. Even though their family had lived in the interior, they lived a few miles outside of Trost within the boundaries of Wall Rose. Kenna had only been through the city when she left for Shinganshina.

Everyone around her were screaming. The guards were yelling at the refugees to keep moving. The refugees were yelling about everything they had lost. It was almost too much for Kenna to handle.

The refugees were finally ushered into a courtyard type area. Kenna ran into the corner while she tried to figure out her next game plan. She looked down at the paper her uncle had given her. He had written that his housekeeper lived two doors down from the town's apothecary. The apothecary should be easy enough to find, but Kenna didn't feel comfortable roaming the streets of Trost by herself. She had no doubt that the fear and anger people had felt in Shinganshina would carry into Trost as the refugees flooded in. She wasn't stupid: Kenna knew that they were already having issues with food production. That's the entire reason her family was sent to the outermost district possible. Now, humanity had lost a third of its territory. Humanity was in for some rough days.

Kenna looked among the soldiers. She knew that she would have the most luck with a member of the Garrison regiment. Her uncle and father had both been respected. One of them had to help. Kenna finally locked on to a Garrison soldier. He was alone and didn't look too mean. Kenna walked up to the soldier.

"Excuse me, sir," Kenna tried to catch the man's attention.

The man looked down at her with a raised eyebrow, "If you're looking for extra scraps, you're not going to get them from me."

"I'm Kenna Dressler," Kenna pushed back her anxiety. "My father was William Dressler and my uncle is Karl Dressler. My uncle told me a safe place to go, and I'm just trying to find it."

"Yeah, right," the soldier scoffed. "I've already heard that too many times today."

"I have a letter with his signature," Kenna held up the paper in her hand. "I'm not lying."

"Get lost, kid," the soldier brushed her aside. He turned and walked away from her.

Kenna looked around the courtyard to try and look for someone to help her. The soldiers were in groups of three or more. The ones that were alone were directing lines, handing out supplies, or just looked bitter. Kenna put the letter in her father's bag. She brought her hands together and tapped her index fingers together. She had to try and keep her composure.

"That's a shocking mane you got there," an upbeat voice said from behind her.

Kenna turned to see who was talking to her. A tall soldier with glasses was walking up to her. Kenna saw the wings of freedom on the soldier's arms. Kenna's eyes slightly widened as she realized that a Scout was in front of her.

"Someone I used to work with sometimes talked about a daughter with red, curly hair," the Scout knelt to meet Kenna's eyes. "He had the bag you have around your shoulder now. You're the daughter of the William Dressler, aren't you?" Kenna nodded. The soldier sighed and closed her eyes. "He's dead, isn't he?"

"Yes," Kenna quietly said.

The soldier opened their eyes, "My name is Hange Zoe. I worked with your father whenever I was in Trost. We would sometimes work on projects that could help us defeat the Titans. Would you happen to have any of his notebooks?"