The Birth of Freedom

Exoneration

ERWIN

"As you might imagine we have many questions." the Stohess mayor addressed not only to me but to the room full of government officials, MPs and a lone wall priest attending the exoneration hearing, and as expected, all their eyes turned to me demanding answers. 

What reason would the order of the walls be doing at a military exoneration hearing?

"If the target's identity was beyond all doubt, why would you neglect to request aid from the military police?" the mayor queried as if the answer to that question wasn't already obvious. We had been infiltrated by our enemies right to the heart of our walls, and my gut was telling me that the armoured and colossal Titan and god knows who else were still out there waiting for their moment to bring us to our end.

We need to strike while the iron is hot. 

"Discretion. We have reason to believe she was operating in conjunction with other insiders, I felt that it was necessary and involved those only well above suspicion sir." I explained though it wasn't the complete truth as I had purposely left out the part where I didn't trust the Military police to look past their own self-importance as glorified government lapdogs and see the truth for what it was.

The interior has its own agenda and it doesn't go hand in hand with the Scouts.

"Yes, and the price of your discretion was the near obliteration of Stohess, well done." the mayor jeered, and I felt my lip twitch at his disregard for the lives my Scouts had given to rip the enemy from their midst. 

Can't lose composure here, I need these men behind us, not against us.

"I didn't foresee the scale of the damage, sir." I apologised, "Blame my incompetence."

"Blame isn't going to rebuild my roof." the man to my right spat oblivious to the fact that there would have been no roofs left if we had allowed Annie Leonhart to go undiscovered, and that still might come to pass unless we find her accomplices. 

"If the female titan was left to roam free, the wall would be subject to breach, and the damage to Stohess would have been beyond devastating." I defended and one look at the men around this table showed just how underprepared they all were if the wall was to be breached.

"Perhaps." The mayor reluctantly admitted as his eyes flickered to the wall priest, "Erwin you have me grasping at straws to exonerate you, what I need is proof that your tactics yielded some manner of benefit. Granted Annie Leonhart is rendered innocuous but also essentially useless." 

"Yes, sir. That she is." I conceded, and gasps of outrage filled the room, but my eyes remained solely on the mayor and his nervous gaze that was continually shifting towards the wall priest. 

What power does this man have?

"Are you saying it was all for nothing?" the mayor asked incredulously and I seized this moment to press my advantage.

"For nothing? I believe this latest tragedy has moved us forward by leaps and bounds. Not long ago, we hadn't even imagined the possibility of humans turning into titans, now we are not only aware of the enemy in our midst, but we've managed to catch one of them. Make no mistake there are more out there, and we will hunt down every last one. The initiative is ours, starting now we launch an attack on the Titans within our walls." I declared, my eyes finally meeting the wall priest's in a challenge "Today we are at war."

AURORA

A gentle breeze filtered into the room via the open window as the sound of church bells ringing called the occupants of Stohess to their evening vigil for the dead, and all I could do was stare out the window, watching as people milled by with a heavy burden on my heart.