The War Hammer ( AOT x Male Reader story)

Chapter 17: Rejuvenation

The blazing sun beat down on me as I stood tall, facing forwards as I looked around the open plain in which easily dozens of young adults stood with their chests puffed, arms behind their backs and facing forward. We were lined up with at least 1 or 2 feet of distance between each other as we faced forwards towards a set of barracks, that hosted a few senior officers and trainers. They stood at the front, sweeping their gazes over the new cadets that stood before them, searching for any early signs of weakness.

We stood in the clearing of what I would describe to be a quarry, a section of land that had been dug into, mostly to harvest rock to create bricks and other stonework for homes. Miniature cliffs surrounded us, with a sloping path upwards to our left being the only visible, and safe, exit. A watch tower also stood next to the path, which 1 guard currently occupied.

I was placed near the front row, a young woman on my left and a young man on my right, though I paid them little mind. I watched as a man made his way up the steps to the barracks deck, his head held high and forward, his strides loud and confident. He had an air of authority that reminded me of Magath in Marley, though a lot less hostility in his movements. He reached the top, made his way to the middle of the deck before turning to face us, his sunken eyes sending waves of power and control through the lines of cadets, resulting in some sounds of shuffling.

I almost had to supress a smile. You must understand the mental fortitude and attitude it takes to project such a feeling into a crowd, for them to mentally and physical feel and hear you. Its something no man is born with.

It is moulded from the very fabric of his reality, and the broken pieces of his mind

"Straighten those spines pissheads. The 104th cadet crop boot camp starts now!" He bellowed, stepping forward to address us.

"Allow me to introduce myself, I a commander Keith Shadis, and you will grow to hate me. This training is going to be a white knuckled ride through hell, and if I have done my job, you'll all be waking up in a cold sweat with memories of this place every night for the rest of your miserable lives!"

"Right now, your nothing, livestock. But over the next 3 soul crushing years, you'll learn to take down your own goliath. Remember this moment when you come face to face with him, because that is where you ask yourself...am I a fighter, or am I feed!? Am I going to be ground up to pulpy human slop between boulder sized incisors or am I going to be the one to bite!? He bellowed, spreading this question into the minds of his cadets. Will they be livestock who will forever be at the mercy of these beasts, or will they become the predators.

It was here that I did indeed break into a small grin. He knew exactly what to say, exactly what to ask. He was giving his cadets the reality of the situation, letting them realise themselves what they are going into and that if they are going to back down, today was the time to do it.

I hushed myself slightly, getting rid of the smile as Shadis began making rounds on the many rows of cadets, occasionally stopping to question or yell at cadets in the face, introducing them to the treatment of boot camp early. It also served as a wakeup call.

He had begun yelling at a young man before me, named Armin, when I zoned back into what was happening. I had a bad habit of retreating into my own mind sometimes, thinking or just letting myself switch off.

Shadis then placed his hand firmly on Armin's head, before turning his whole body to face me. I saw the look in his eyes, he was not used to this. He had an innocent, yet thoughtful look in his eyes. Armin stood at about 5'3/5'4 and had a blonde bowl cut. He looked young, maybe a few years younger than me. He had a slim, almost feminine build and bright blue eyes.

He happened to glance at me, and I gave a small, relaxed smile of reassurance in return. He returned a small one, though it quickly turned to horror as he noticed Shadis striding towards us. He stopped before me, looking me up and down for a moment, before belting in my face.