The People You Meet in the Afterlife

Mina Carolina

They say your life is suppose to flash before your eyes before you die. That's a lie, she thought to herself. It was over before she had a chance to recognize or process pain. The last thing she remembered was as starting down a Titan. It's hot breath on her face, and being paralyzed with fear.

Now she lay in a forest, staring up at the blue sky, the only sounds were her breathing and the occasion bird chirps. Mina laid there her mind trying to process the last day of her young life.

It was graduation day. They had been on top of wall rose, Sasha was showing off the meat she had nabbed from the officers store house. Mina had been looking forward to that. Then the colossal Titan appeared. Her squad was assembled, and they were sent on their first mission. Clear Trost of titans as a way was figured out to plug the hole.

Eren had given a speech about "the glory of humanity and strength". They had all felt confident in their training. But soon everything fell into chaos. It started with Thomas, being caught and swallows whole by a Titan.

"I wonder if he is here somewhere", she thought to herself.

Then she remembered the crushing arms, and the damp and horrible smell as the Titan open it's mouth and...."ahhhhhhhh" Mina sat up screaming. She remembered now. The Titan had bitten her head off.

She tried to calm her breath, reminding herself that she didn't have to suffer the fate of being slowing digested by a Titan.

Mina finally found the strength to stand up, and take in her surroundings.

"Well if this is hell? Not so bad", Mina mused, she always liked the woods. Playing in them as a child.

Mina started walking, and calling out to anyone.

"Thomas??" "Milieus?" "Anybody?"

She felt her stomach drop, what if she was here alone, doomed to wander the forest forever.

"Maybe this is hell", she muttered.

She stopped suddenly, she could hear the distance sound of a horse, and the sound got louder, almost matching the rhythm of her pounding heart.

A male voice began calling out. "Hello....anyone out here?"

"Yes!!!" Mina cried out, relieved that she wasn't going to be alone in this after life.

A man with sandy blonde hair rode up on a horse. He looked pretty young, but still older than her she guessed. 

"He is kind of handsome too", Mina thought to herself. Then suddenly saddened that she would never get to experience love.

"New arrival??", the man said getting off his horse.

"I guess so", Mina said with a shrug.

"D*amn, you didn't even make it out of the cadet corps", he said sadly. "Since when did they start sending cadets into battle". He said noticing her uniform badge.

"It's a bit of a long story, but first who are you and where am I?" ,Mina asked.

"Oh I'm sorry, I'm Farlan Church" he extended his hand.

Mina took it, "Mina Carolina".

"Well in short you are in the after life or Heaven, Hell, purgatory, depending on the person", Farlan said.

"Is it just the 2 of us then?" Mina asked quietly.

"Hop on Jasper her and I can take you to the town, and can explain everything as best I can", he said patting the brown horse.

They both climbed on the horse, and Mina put her arms around Farlan's waist, feeling a jolt in her stomach, but shot down the thought, he was probably way too old for her, plus she also thought of Thomas.

"Is it just the two of us?", she asked.

As they rode along, Mina asked about the others that she knew had died with her.

"I haven't seen anyone yet, but they should be here, maybe Isabel found them, or they wandering there way into the town", he answered.

"I hope so", Mina thought to herself.

After about a 20 minute ride, Mina gasped as the rode into a small town, similar to Trost, with stone streets, shops, a tavern, and houses scattered about.

Farlan slowed up and they trotted over to a watering trough for his horse.

"What...what is this place?"

"Paradis is what we where told it was called when we got here", Farlan said.

Mina felt a bit of comfort seeing people go about their day. But then her heart felt a pang as she saw a group of children playing in a field.

"They must have died when Wall Maria fell", she sadly thought. She felt a lump in her throat.

Before she could let the tears flow. She heard a familiar voice.

"Mina!!!!!"

She turned, running towards her was Thomas  Wagner. Her heart beat quickened.

"Thomas!!!"

He nearly tackled her in his embrace.

"Oh Mina! I'm so sorry you here too. I'm sorry that you had to suffer. I'm sorry you didn't get to live". He cried.

"It's ok Thomas, it was over so quick, I didn't really have time to even recognized that I had died", Mina said softly. "I'm glad you're here though, I was so frightened I would be alone here".

Thomas broke their embrace with a laugh/sob. "Well it looks like we definitely aren't alone here"

"Oi Farlan, found some new ones did you?", said a blonde man walking up to them.

"Yeah, Flagon, unfortunately they are just cadets, not sure what happened though."

"From what Isabel saw, before she went riding off, the Colassal Titan reappeared 5 years later, Bertholdt, Annie, and Reiner are trying to smoke out something called the founding titan"

"What?!?!" Mina and Thomas yelled out. "Bertholdt???? But he was so kind, and Reiner was like everyone's big brother, why would they do something like that?" Mina spluttered.

Flagon turned his attention to the 2 young cadets. "You guys have a lot to be caught up on, come we can talk about it over dinner, I'm sure you guys are hungry, most new arrivals are".

Mina and Thomas followed Flagon to the tavern.

"Farlan you coming?", Flagon asked.

"No I'm going to the edge to have a look." He answered grimly. He watched as another person rode out into the woods.

Farlan let out a sigh. "These definitely won't be the first 2 today".

To be continued....