It was the day for their 57th expedition to take place, and if Jean were to be blunt, he was not excited at all. He would very much like to live longer, probably get married, have kids, and live in the interior, but then he realized this was what he signed up for when he chose to join the Scouts.
As he strapped the harnesses of their equipment over his body, he couldn't help but think about his late friend Marco, who was unfortunately one of the many casualties back at the battle of Trost. He unknowingly clenched his jaw at the grotesque memory of seeing his best friend lying down, all bloodied and a chunk of his body bitten off. He remembered crying the whole night when he came home, that day.
After shoving his feet into his military boots, Jean grabbed the green cloak that was hanging over a table in his dorm room and draped it over himself, securing the cloth over his torso as he straightened himself in front of the mirror.
If he had joined the Military Police, he would have been wearing a different emblem right now. Scratch that, he wouldn't even be wearing a uniform, because he probably still would have been dozing off at this hour, basking in relaxation and in the comfort of the interior.
Oh how the tables had turned.
Jean stared at his reflection. Marco.. watch over me.
And he turned on his heel and exited the room, the ends of his cloak ruffling behind him.
Once he stepped outside, he could see some of his fellow recruits leading their horses away from the stables, some loading the necessary supplies onto wagons as a bustling air wafted across the yard of the castle ruins.
"Sasha, those were our rations!"
Jean looked over to the voice and saw Connie scolding Sasha, who didn't seem to be apologetic even though she had just secretly wolfed down the rations all by herself just seconds ago.
"It was just a small bit," she defended, slightly pursing her lips in a pout.
"It was a whole satchel!"
"A small satchel."
Shaking his head, Jean walked over towards the two. "Oh to be preoccupied with food even though we're having our first expedition.. I envy you two."
Sasha looked at him with a huff. "Jean, haven't you heard of the philosophical saying, 'If you're hungry, eat'?"
"What the hell kind of philosophical shit line is that?"
Connie sighed as he looked at the brunette. "Do you even know what philosophy is?"
"I don't know, do you?"
"What's this all about, cadets?"
The trio flinched at the voice and whipped their heads to the direction where the voice came from. As their minds registered the person's identity, they all stood erectly and saluted over their chests.
"It's nothing, ma'am," Jean started as he looked at Isanna in the eye, "Sasha just—farted."
Said girl shot him an incredulous face of utter betrayal. First Mikasa, now Jean? Was she their frontal defense of excuse now?
Isanna raised a brow as she stared at the three teenagers. Erwin already had the rest of the veterans back at HQ ready themselves, so she was supposed to lead the recruits over to headquarters so that both groups can head to Karanes district together.
"If that's it, then hurry up and get ready," she ordered them, "we're heading to Karanes in a bit."
The three promptly nodded at her and turned around to get some last-minute preparation; while Connie and Jean walked away first, Sasha was held back by Isanna as the latter patted her shoulder.
Isanna discreetly peered around them for any witnesses before she leaned down next to Sasha's ear, who was evidently confused. "I snatched this from the kitchens earlier. Thought you'd like it."
Sasha could feel her eyes widening as saucers as she looked at the freshly-steamed potato in her own hand. Immediately, her mouth began watering in delicacy as the urge to scarf it down tempted her.
"But don't eat it just yet," Isanna added, refraining from smiling at the expression the young soldier was making, "you never know what happens out there. Keep it stored for emergencies."
Sasha looked at her with the most sparkling eyes. "Thank you so much, Sergeant! I highly respect you!"
Isanna chuckled as she ruffled her hair. "You're inflating my ego, soldier. Now run along and prepare your stuff."
She saw her stuff the potato into her satchel and skip happily away, humming a tune. She looked so contented that it brought a smile to Isanna's lips. Turning away, she surveyed the place and saw the other young soldiers running here and there carrying wooden crates and extra equipments.
When her eyes landed on Eren, who was pacing back and forth near his horse with anxiety written all over him, Isanna made her way over towards the jittery boy.
Noticing her presence, Eren stood straighter and saluted at her, which she waved it away.
"Nervous?"
He seemed like he was unsure of how to answer to that, judging by the way his feet shuffled. It was then did Isanna came to realize of the heavy weight he had to carry as their 'new hope'; he was probably pressured to do well.
"If I'm to be honest, yes. Only a bit," Eren admitted, not having the heart to look at her. He was more nervous about the safety of his friends more than himself, actually. Ever since Jean had told him of Marco's fate, he had been contemplating deeply about it for a long time, and the pressure of the constant private experiments he did with squad Levi and Hanji were only building up. "I'm.. worried about my friends."
Isanna looked at the face he was making. Worried for his friends. Just like her, back then.
"Trust in them."
Eren finally made eye contact with her after a pregnant pause, as she continued.
"Frankly, you have no control over it. Whatever happens during the expedition, happens." Isanna thought about her first expedition. "You just do what you can do and trust in your comrades. If things don't go the way you wanted for it to be, well, you just keep on moving forward. So, trust in your friends. Trust Levi. Trust your squad."
She smiled at him. "And most importantly, trust yourself. That's the best thing you can do for yourself when you're out there."
A short silence passed between the two, the surrounding noise of the castle yard filling the gap of their conversation.
Eren briefly thought about the past three years of rigorous training he had done with his friends; all the blood, sweat, and tears they had shed together were enough proof that he should give his comrades their well-deserved trust. They had been through so much together (although there was a particular jackass whom he had light beef with), and they were probably one of the few people within the walls who did not view him with much hostility even when news of his titan powers came to light.
He smiled at her. "I understand, Sergeant. Thanks."
After a few more exchange of words, their conversation finally ended and Isanna together with Levi led their group and rode towards their main HQ to meet up with the rest of the Scouts.
•
"Thirty seconds till the gate opens!"
A Garrison soldier from atop the outer gate in Karanes announced over toward the line of Scouts that were waiting, all positioned atop the saddles of their horses with hard determination expressed through their eyes; the past month that was filled with preparation and training had solidified their resolve, and they were more than bent on succeeding in this expedition.
Clenching his jaw tighter, Jean tensed his posture as he watched the gate being lifted with a clamor of grinding noise, the spikes pulling some of the soil below it as it slowly revealed the terrain beyond the wall: titan territory.
He grappled on to his reigns with a narrowed stare, his mind going over to his Sergeant Major's words of encouragement just earlier before they departed the castle.
"I hope you're all ready for the hell we're about to enter. Actually, whether you're ready or not doesn't matter, you're in for some real shit either way; you had the whole month to prepare, so no excuses," she paused for a moment, staring at the new recruits, before her eyes softened a bit, "regardless of the expedition's results, I expect to see your faces when we return. Am I clear, soldiers?"
"Yes, ma'am!"
A veteran soldier looked behind him, shooting the new recruits a hard gaze as he rallied them up with a speech while the ringing of a bell chimed, mixing in with the air; they were stationed at the Relay teams, considered to be one of the safest flanks in the formation, but it didn't help the pervading restlessness and anxiety. Still, they all willed themselves to be brave.
At the front of the formation, the Commander was saddled atop his white stallion, back straightened in a dignified leader-like bearing as the proud crest of the Wings of Freedom ruffled behind him in his forest green cloak; a little bit to his right was Isanna mirroring his posture as the gate finally stopped moving, high enough for them to pass through.
"Forward!"
Isanna subtly flinched at his loud bellow, almost forgetting that this was his usual ritual and resisting the urge to block his volume with a hand. He could've at least considered her sensitive hearing.
She saw Maximus reeling back with a neigh, making him look even more heroic and dramatic, if that was even possible.
Rolling her eyes, she kicked Fish's sides and followed after Erwin, the cantering of hooves racketing behind her as the rest of the soldiers rode forward, passing through the gate and filing out into the lost territory of Wall Maria.
"We will now commence the fifty-seventh expedition beyond the walls!" declared the Commander as he led his soldiers, "advance!"
Isanna couldn't help but feel like Erwin's rallying voice was getting more and more louder and persuasive in every passing expedition, like all the energies of the universe were giving him some sort of invisible voice amplifier that was as thunderous as a lightning roar and prompted for everyone and anyone who were within hearing range to follow his orders, even at the face of certain death.
A terrifying skill, that was; she guessed it was one of his charms.
Suicidal charismatic prick, she thought, but followed behind him nonetheless, because even though he was a suicidal charismatic prick, she was still his loyal soldier.
After exiting through the eastern gate of Karanes district, the Scouts rode across the ruins of an abandoned village, bursts of galloping atop the wrecked streets where lines of smashed houses stood; mosses of green weeds had sprouted around the chips of the pavement after years of being left unkept, and an air of gloom floated in the atmosphere at the ruinous town that was once inhabited by humanity prior to the tragedy five years ago.
When they were at considerable distance from the gate, both Isanna and Mike, the latter who was riding a bit behind the former, simultaneously whipped their heads to their left when their senses picked up an enemy.
Hanji noticed her friends' reaction and followed their gazes, her eyes twitching in alarm when she saw a titan heading towards them.
"Ten-meter class, approaching from the left!" she warned, "while I'm quite interested in the contents of its stomach, I'll leave it to the support squad!"
Hearing her soliloquy, Isanna lightly scoffed with a mild shaking of her head. She could see from her peripheral a few soldiers flying towards the target with blades brandished, slaying it before it could disrupt their ranks, at least until the Scouts leave the town and out into the wider fields of Wall Maria.
Once they rode out of the town and stepped into the grassy terrain, Erwin extended an arm to his side, eyes still fixed forward. "Assume the long-distance scouting formation!"
The line of Scouts quickly obeyed orders as their ranks began separating according to the formation, spreading out into a wider layout for more coverage, enough to see distant figures of their fellow comrades.
A few veteran soldiers, including Mike, Isanna, and Hanji, were in the command team accompanying Erwin right behind the front lines as they rode forward; Levi was stationed at the back along with Eren and his Special Ops squad, ensuring their safety. Just minutes after all squads assumed their formation, Isanna saw several green smoke signals shooting high up into the air from her right.
Noticing the signals, Erwin pulled out a flare gun of his own and pointed it to his left, thereby changing the course of their route. This series of exchanging smoke signals went for a short bout of few minutes, with Erwin shooting green smokes accordingly.
Until, a black flare whizzed upward in a pillar of smoke.
Isanna and Mike exchanged looks, a sinking feeling at the unpleasant suspicion; a black smoke signal was only used in the case of an Aberrant titan. It wouldn't have been an issue if this were a usual scouting expedition, but with all the continual meetings among the veterans for the past weeks about encountering a probable intelligent titan, the tension was high.
Erwin was unfazed at the black rounds of signal flare and continued to change their course to the eastward.
As the rest of the veteran soldiers of the command team followed suit, Isanna could finally make out the outline of the array of gigantic trees that towered around at least 80 meters up ahead. In less than a minute, they had reached the entrance of the forestry where a moss-dressed pathway led deeper into the coppice.
Before they could completely enter the forest, Erwin called for Isanna and another soldier.
"Relay my orders to the squads behind us," he ordered, "only the central file should enter the forest."
Without further ado, both soldiers affirmed his instruction and pulled the reigns of their horses.
"Be careful," Mike warned her as she passed by him, with Isanna nodding back without a word.
Isanna headed to one direction while the other soldier headed to the other. The sky was a clear blue with flocks of puffy white clouds, hovering above the tranquil earthy terrain below where trees and the occasional empty villages stood; it would've been an average day if you excluded the fact that they were out in titan territory, fighting for their lives.
As Isanna saw the first squad, she waved at them to slow down as she neared the group.
"Sergeant Major!" The soldier pulled his horse to a stop. "Are we finally retreating? The right flanks have been completely wrecked by the Aberrant that appeared out of nowhere!"
She lightly frowned, slight dread filling her up but chose to ignore it knowing how she along with the veteran soldiers who were aware of the plan had been prepared for the inevitable losses. "No. We're pushing forward. Only the central file along with the carts are to enter the forest, the rest of you, circle around and wait for further orders; make sure not a single titan passes through."
The soldiers exchanged confused glances. As far as they were concerned, the primary objective of this scouting mission was just a rest-run to Shiganshina and see if they could get Eren Jaeger there and secure a supply route along the way, so they should have been heading southwards.
However, going against orders would subject them to insubordination punishable by death—although at this point, the soldiers weren't sure if they'd die from that or by the hands of titans first. They nevertheless decided to follow orders.
"I still need to head back to the Commander— " Isanna jerked her reigns as Fish turned around with a nicker to face the direction she came from—"relay the orders to the rest of the squads behind you!"
•
Isanna was aware that by this point, the rest of the soldiers who were not informed about their plan were probably shitting their pants.
She felt sorry.
But this is unavoidable. She gritted her teeth as she thought about all the casualties they had received by the Aberrant. Isanna had not even seen the titan in question yet, but she could already tell it had formidable strength based on the emergency reports the command team had received earlier about how countless teams had been killed by it. Judging by those reports, it neither looked like the colossal nor armored.
Please, she desperately thought, let the sacrifices be worth it.
If Erwin's plan failed and their target managed to escape their clutches, Isanna wouldn't have the guts to face the fallen soldiers' families.
Currently, the soldiers who were forming the central line, who all happened to be part of their plan to capture the Aberrant, were busying themselves deep inside the forest and preparing all the launching equipment while keeping an eye out for Levi's squad; they were the bait for luring the Aberrant right into their trap.
Isanna stood on top of a thick branch along with Mike and Erwin, watching the soldiers unmount the needed equipment from the wagons.
"Keep a high alert," Erwin ordered the two with a stern expression and a grave tone, "they'll be here soon."
Mike nodded without a word while Isanna straightened herself and hooked a line to the next branch, casting a glance downwards and noting how the veteran soldiers stationed behind the capture equipment were all tense as they stared down the road where Levi and his squad were supposed to pass through.
The air was noticeably heavy, to the point that there was an unseen weight bearing down on everyone's shoulders as they all waited for their target, jaws tensed and nervous sweat dripping down their temples; if you listened closely, you could even hear someone gulping down a lump of saliva at the back of their throat.
Then, a distant ring of a sound grenade echoed from deep within the forest.
They're near, Isanna thought as her body went rigid and she lowered her gaze back at the soldiers down below who were still in the middle of processing the ringing that resounded. "Everyone, on your guard!"
As she returned her attention down the rocky pathway, she closed her eyes and strained her hearing, tilting her ear at the direction where the sound grenade had come from, and then after a silent pause, she heard it.
Those thudding footsteps, rushing towards them in a hurried dash.
Getting closer.
And closer..
And then, Isanna saw it.
A flash of blond hair attached to a lump of skinless fourteen-meter flesh appeared through the trees; its large blue eyes momentarily darted around as she noticed the countless of soldiers and realized that she was surrounded.
But by the time it clicked her, Erwin had already given the order to shoot.
"FIRE!"
All soldiers stationed behind their capture equipment on the ground and on the branches pulled the trigger ropes, the action causing hundreds of hooks shooting out from their special weapons and latching onto the spaces of the titan's skin, holding her in place. Sparks of explosion at the shots erupted from the holes where the hooks had come from, smoke trailing behind while rapid bursts similar to cannon shots danced and mixed into a cacophony of deafening rounds.
Isanna's eyes caught the members of Levi's squad along with Eren riding away from the scene, but she refocused her attention back at the titan, who was now covered in billowing clouds of both dust and smoke due to the successive shots, and when the clouds began to dissipate, she could finally see the numerous lines of hooks penetrating deep into her flesh and locking her in place.
They had caught her.
But this was only just the beginning.