Distant Hope (Attack on Titan x Male reader)

A Unknown Goal

-Year 841

-Shinganshina District

-4 years before the fall of wall Maria

                      |THE CADET|

First came the screams, though not of random innocent people. You recognized these screams. Voices you'd heard all of your life, yet still you could quite recognize who or what. A mother perhaps? A father? Sibling? Friend? The answer eluded you until your eyes finally shot open and you took a gasp of fresh air. You were laying on cold wet stone in a dark and dusty alley, looking up at the bright blue sky.

Y/n:a guide.

You weren't sure why you uttered those words, it was merely the first thing you thought of when waking up. You managed to get in your feet with the help of a storage crate, then walked out of the alley and into a busy street. It looked like you were in some sort of market, several people bumbled into you shouting several obscenities for you to move out of the way. You quickly scurried to the side of the street and next to one of the less crowded shops.

Man:beat it kid!

The shop keep quickly kicked you out as your less than ideal clothing was scarring off a few customers. Thankfully you were able to move with the crowd much easier now that you at least got your bearings. First things first, you needed to find some shelter, you could go a day or two without food but the weather here seemed pretty bad today. You went from door to door looking for some kind of orphanage or church, through many conversations you eventually learned that the city consisted of three walls: Maria, Rose and Sina. There was a church behind wall Sina that would take you in, but it would take days to get there. Time you simply didn't have. The same man who told you about this "Church of the Walls" began ranting to you about how everything about the walls was sacred, from the way they were built all the way to where they stand now.

Priest:even now these holy walls will continue to honor us with their great protection!!! I only hold a fraction of what you must learn in order to properly enlighten yourself-

Even only being here for a few hours you could tell that these guys had a few screws lose. Still you were only 6, so saying no was a bit of a problem.

Y/n:i-im just not sure if-

Priest:not sure?! Not sure of the greatest gift that has been bestowed upon the LAST OF HUMANITY?!?!

Y/n:no no! I'm just-

???:god no you guys are sticking to harassing kids?

A much older man in his mid to late twenties with long brown hair to his shoulders and a slight goatee began seemed to just appear from behind the priest, startling him. The man seemed to be wearing what looked like a military uniform, small brown coat with a white shirt and pants along with brown combat boots. It wasn't the first time you saw this uniform, in fact you saw quite a few people wearing the same uniform as him. The only difference was the symbol he wore, it looked like a yellow sparrow with a halo above it something you had yet to see.

Priest:you have no business in our affairs sir!

???:I do when it disrupts the peace of the people.

He gestured to the several people now watching the three of you, it seems the priests rant had made a bit of a scene. The man now spoke in more of a hushed tone

???:my names Arthur Gatlin and I'd prefer if this didn't go any further. 

Priest:standing in the of progress such as this...it cannot be accepted! Any more interference and I'll have the military police-