Humanity Rises

The year was 770.

According to history books, humanity had nearly been wiped out twenty-seven years prior in the year 743. Those who were alive before the Titans took over the world reported having fragmented memories of life before living in the walls...

Though some knew the truth.

What was left of humanity lived in what was basically a small country surrounded by three circular walls that divided the nation into districts. These three walls were named the following: Wall Maria, Wall Rose, and Wall Sheena.

As for what these walls were keeping out; it was the Titans.

Titans were massive, human-like creatures that wanted nothing more than to devour humans. Not much was known about them since there wasn't enough time to study them. However, humanity came up with a plan.

They were going to send soldiers, Scouts is what they would call them, to explore outside the walls and find out more about these Titans. Humanity wanted answers, and the only way to get those answers was to dive in head first.

From all over the nation, from every region, thousands of young, potential soldiers signed up to become one of the Scouts. However, after basic physical and mental assessments, only around one hundred were able to participate in the training process.

Humanity would soon be in the hands of these one hundred future soldiers.

__________

About one hundred soldiers were lined up, ten in each row, outside beneath the hot sun in an empty field. They each wore tan jackets over their white slacks and t-shirts that were either white, grey, or black. Most of them were young, ranging from sixteen years old to early twenties, however, there were a few who appeared to be well into their twenties as well.

A man wearing a greenish coat, paced from one side of the soldiers to the next, scanning them all for any weakness. Once his eyes locked onto a target, the man in the greenish coat began barking at a young lady with her dark hair in a ponytail. Her face was young-looking and her skin perfect. Her skin looked as if she had never stepped foot outside in her life, having skin so pale that it might as well have been glowing like a ghost's. "You! Maggot! What do they call you!?"

His loud, intimidating voice scared the girl, causing her to begin to tremble nervously in her boots. "M- my name is L-Lisa Meyer from Stohess, sir!"

"Stohess?" the man repeated. "Why the hell is someone from Stohess stupid enough to sign up to be a member of my suicide squad!?"

"B-because I'm tired of being useless... sir!" Everyone was staring at this nervous girl, trying to figure out why she of all people thought joining the Scouts Regiment would be a good idea. If she could barely handle saying her own name in front of the sergeant, how could she even dream about taking on a titan?

"And what use would you serve to me when you're being digested inside of a titan's stomach!" the man yelled loudly despite being in the girl's face.

"Actually, titans don't digest people, they regurgitate them out." a young male's monotone voice spoke from the center of the mass of soldiers, immediately catching the attention of everyone in the field.

'Is he crazy?' was the first thought in everyone's mind.

With booming footsteps, the sergeant pushed and shoved his way through the crowd until he reached the young know-it-all. The boy had glasses and black hair about ear length, covering one of his eyes. "AND WHO THE HELL MIGHT YOU BE, MAGGOT?" the commander shouted, being only mere inches from the boy's face.

"Personal space." the boy spoke nonchalantly, having no fear of the man in front of him. His words caused a few people to begin to laugh, but they were quick to cover their mouths in order to avoid any sort of punishment from the sergeant.

The sergeant's blood was boiling. Any more lip from this young man was gonna cause him to blow a gasket. "DROP DOWN AND GIVE ME TWENTY! RIGHT NOW!" the drill sergeant blurted, prompting the young man to drop down and do push-ups. The sergeant then crouched down, getting on the boy's level, and asked his question again. "Who the hell are you?"

"Jin-" the boy did one push-up before continuing. "Ackerman."

Immediately, as if a shockwave hit the crowd, murmurs and gasps could be heard.

'An Ackerman?'

'Like from the Ackerman clan?'

'No wonder he's got the whole tough guy act going on.'

"An Ackerman, huh? I've heard about your kind. Disgusting." having seen enough of the Ackerman, the sergeant walked off and looked for another target.

Due to their unwillingness to cooperate with the king, the Ackermans were an oppressed group in the world within the walls. At the start of the new civilization, any Ackerman who went against the king's orders was hunted down and killed. Those who weren't killed were given the option to live only if they devoted themselves to the king. Those who still refused sought refuge and began living in their own civilization underground.

After years passed, the manhunt for any Ackerman had ceased, though the discrimination toward their people did not.

Eventually, the sergeant stumbled upon a young man who had hopeful, green eyes full of life and a confident smirk on his face. He had dark, bushy hair and charming features on his face. He was not the type to be a soldier if based solely on appearances. The sergeant leaned in close, locking eyes with the young man before screaming in his face. "WHAT IN THE GODDAMN FUCK ARE YOU SMILING ABOUT MAGGOT!?"

"Sorry, sir! I am just excited to finally be here, sir!" the young man's voice was just as hopeful as his face.

"EXCITED FOR WHAT!?"

"Excited to be the first beyond the walls! Sir!" the boy shouted. "I've always dreamed about seeing what's out there. Joining the Scouts will give me that dream!"

The sergeant had a disgusted look on his face. "Enough with these hopes and dreams, rainbows and sunshine bullshit. I'm going to vomit. What is your name, maggot?"

"Nicolas Schmidt, sir. From Trost." the boy stated proudly.

"Well, Nicolas Schmidt from Trost, I'd wipe that smile off your face if I were you. You aren't here to explore what's outside the walls. You're here to be snacks for hungry Titans outside the walls. Do you understand me? This isn't some field trip, kid. A single Titan is capable of killing ten thousand men. When one spots you, it won't let up until it has you in its grasp before it crushes you to death with its molars and devours you whole."

Nicolas gulped after the sergeant's miniature monologue, finally feeling the nerves get to him as the man was only just a few inches from his face. Knowing he got to the boy, the sergeant moved on to someone else.

There were a few soldiers who already looked hardened, therefore, he felt no need to intimidate them as it would be nothing more than wasted energy. For the next hour or so, the soldiers all cooked in the hot sun, and the sergeant continued getting under their skin.

Around twenty people quit within that first hour, being sent back home to their families, likely to live a quiet life as a farmer or merchant for the rest of their lives.

Those who decide to continue on to the next phase found themselves in segregated cabins, one for men and the other for women. Many were excited to move on to the next phase, underestimating the horrors that would await them in the not-too-far future.