Hope Beyond The Lies [ATTACK ON TITAN OC FANFICTION]

Chapter 25: Battle Scars

All the horses, all the cavalries, everything is set to begin the expedition. The blades are sharpened and the tanks are full, we're just waiting for our cue.

My horse is next to Eren, as I waited for the gates to open and the horror to start. I turned to Levi, who was lazily staring at the front with an uninterested gaze as always.

"In just mere moments, mankind will advance once more!" Commander Erwin shouted, everyone cheered and pointed their swords to the sky, the newly sharped blades glistened underneath the sun's rays.

"OPEN THE GATE!" The gate shook and the chains rattled. Slowly, it went up and I looked at it with a face filled with wonder and enthusiasm.

I wonder what I'll find beyond this. I wonder what Wall Maria looks like after all these years. Is it nothing but rubble and ruins? Or will it surprise me with nostalgia?

It has been so long.

"It's finally happening, Eren. Our first expedition" I breathed out, turning to him with a smile.

"Yeah" He gasped, gazing at the tal gates with me.

It's really happening...after all this training, all those years of suffering and contemplating life, it was all for this.

I looked at the front of the formation. Commander Erwin sat up on his horse with Major Hanji and First Lieutenant Daniella on both his sides. They all held enthusiasm, as if this was their first, but they wore it alongside their signature looks. A serious face, a mischievous face and a smug look.

"FORWARD!" Commander Erwin shouted. Everything went forward, the horses charged and wheels on the wagon started rolling slowly as I waited for out turn to advance.

I looked at the people around me. Captain Levi on the front, Eren and I behind him, Petra and the others behind us.

"Let the 57th expedition, BEGIN!" Lorietta charged forward, I can feel her energy, her power. My lips parted in awe as I passed the wall, a feeling flew in my heart and its beats started to escalate.

Anticipation.

A seemingly never-ending field of grass trees and abandoned houses came into my view. I giggled childishly when I felt the wind in my hair. I was excited as hell.

"Don't get too psyched yet kid, the horror hasn't begun" Olou said, trying to shoot my anticipation dead.

"Geez, was bringing my hopes down really necessary?" I groaned, while he rolled his eyes in humor.

"Well, best to keep your hopes low. Won't want to have you dying on us, would we?" He smirked.

"Keep talking, Olou. I'd like to see you bite your tongue again" I snickered.

Minutes after passing through the gate, houses soon came into view. The familiar structure and design of the houses in Wall Maria made a pain errupt on my chest.

Nostalgia hurts...

If I'm already feeling this and we haven't went to Shiganshina yet, then this is going to be harder than I thought.

"Will the Special Combat and Control Squad be helping us?" I asked, distracting myself from the familiar infrastructure design.

"Jeez, were you listening to the lessons we gave you?" Olou said in irritation, rolling his eyes like a sassy bitch.

"Well there was that one time when I dosed off..." I joked, trailing off.

"Is she always like this?" He asked Eren in disbelief and annoyance, followed by a groan.