Levi's Journal

Volume 1 Entry 1

Day: 4
Month: April
Year: 854

This is the full account of the life of Levi R. Ackerman, the survey corps, & and life beyond the walls, and those who dedicated their hearts to the survival of humanity. If you are reading this then I'm dead, but through these journals, our story will live on.

Cold, hungry, and dirty. That's how I would describe my childhood. I was born in a brothel, where my mother sold her body to survive. I never knew who my father was, he was one of my mother's clients. I do have vague memories of my mother, I remember her warmth when she held me, her soothing voice when she would sing to me, or tell me stories about life above. I can feel her fingers in my hair, when she stroked my head. Her smile when she would give me her last bit of food. I do everything I can to hang on to those memories.

Then, my mother got sick. I'm not sure what from, but she quickly wasted away. I was 9 years old. Every morning I would go to her bed side, to see if she was breathing, to try and get her to take a sip of water, or eat whatever food I could get. Then one day....she was gone. There was no life left in her gaunt face. It's odd, I didn't cry. I just felt empty. I sat against the wall and just stared at her frail body. I'm not sure how long I sat there, I seemed to lose al track of time. I didn't bath, eat, change clothes...I was filthy, but I didn't care. I didn't have any reason to care.

Then after who knows how long, a man came into our room. He went to my mothers bed side, and he instantly knew she was gone. His eyes then swept across the room to me. A filthy skin and bones child. He turned as if he was going to leave the room, but he stopped. He took one more look at my mother, then to me. He sighed and cursed under his breath, and said "come on kid, you need to eat".

From then on out, Kenny was the closest thing I had to a father. He wasn't the best, but it was something. I started putting on more weight, had somewhere to bathe regular, and cleanish clothes. Kenny also cut my hair. At that point in my life, I decided to never let myself or anything else ever get as filthy as that again.

As I got a bit older, I soon learned that Kenny conducted unsavory business, and soon I was dragged into that life as well. Kenny taught me how to fight, how to handle a knife, how to hurt people, & how to intimidate. Soon I was making quite the name for myself at age 14. Grown men soon became fearful of me.

I remembered the day Kenny walked away. I had a man on the ground, beating him senseless, over what I can't remember now. A crowd had formed, and it a split second I looked up, I saw Kenny. He had this disappointed and almost sad look on his face. He just shook his head, and walked away.

It would be almost 20 years before I saw him again.

-Levi Ackerman