Yesterday's Enemy [AoT]

MEMOIRS OF HAVAS [08]

'Havas' cooperation with the Walls has always been a touchy subject. Many believe every effort should be made to unify what is left of humanity. However, this is easier said than done. Trust, between ancestral enemies, is not something easily won.'

-An extract from an article on Havas/Walls cooperation written by a Havasian journalist.

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MEMOIRS OF HAVAS

08

Wall Maria, North Region, Havas, Central Grimold, Ingreed

Two weeks had passed since Lorelai and Warren had arrived in Ingreed, two weeks since Lorelai's announcement. And by now, it was safe to say many were none too pleased about her little development.

In the west of Grimold, deep in the heart of Havas' industrial core, the factories had erupted into chaos. Strikes, protests, riots, all done in demand of Lorelai taking her ancestral place among the Council. The disturbance had brought the country to a standstill, and shortages began to ravage the capital. The trains came to a halt, the automobiles lay inert, and the lavish shops shut their doors.

Much of the military was occupied trying to control the demonstrations and send the strikers back to work. It was vital that they succeeded; Havas could not survive like this for long. However, their absence had left a job unattended to.

On a cold, bright morning after being awoken frightfully early, Lorelai and Agneta trudged from their barracks and appeared, yawning, before their commanding officer. There, he handed them a high priority mission and sent them off to the gates without delay.

Apparently, Walls Scouts were drawing a little too close for comfort to one of their unmanned supply outposts. It'd be a nightmare of impossible enormity if the enemy got a hold of their weapons. Thus, without any other options, it was left to the questionable ability of two young Cadets to handle this possible disaster.

Either way, Lorelai was glad to get away from Havas, if only for a little while. The headlines. The strikes. The controversy. Escape called her into Titan Country.

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"What is this, our tenth mission outside? Cor' we can't catch a break, and we haven't even graduated," Agneta commented, strapping her equipment to her horse.

They were at the outer gate, minutes away from their planned departure time. This mission was nothing they hadn't done a thousand times before; the two were confident.

"I feel like it's been one thing after the other this year."

"Larken, I hear ya'. Hopefully, the Walls Scouts won't give us much trouble."

"Here's hoping," Lorelai sighed, mounting her horse and counting the bullets in her handguns.

Agneta followed suit. "You ready, hun?"

"Born ready." She gave her a winning grin.

The two rode their horses up to the gate, saluting the few soldiers posted there. With a rumble, the gates began to open. There, white and barren, stretching for miles, lay the Larkathi Salt Flats.

The Flats were one of the greatest banes to Havasian military activity. They were dangerous, devoid of plant or water, and took days to cross. Every mission into Titan Country demanded a full pack of supplies, and attempting the journey without them was always a death sentence. Furthermore, only Larken could save you if a salt-storm hit.