[center][u][i][b]NOTE: [/b][/i][/u]This is a [u][i]closed[/i][/u] roleplay. Please, feel free to read, follow along, drop a comment, say hello, whatever, but do [i]not[/i] make a character expecting us to review it. We welcome all sorts of comments and questions, but it is completely closed and based on invite-only. Because of the nature of the group in this roleplay, there is no true "authority," but if you're looking for an official "GM," then you'll want Vena Sera or myself. I repeat, [i]we will not be accepting any characters unless the player has been invited to the game,[/i] but we're glad to hear feedback so long as it is constructive.

[IMG]http://images8.alphacoders.com/420/420375.jpg[/IMG]

Never leave the walls... That's what they always told us. Books from outside were prohibited, the majority of people wanted absolutely nothing to do with the world beyond those fifty metre-high walls. We had everything we needed inside - farms, factories, markets... We all wondered how much more there was at some point in our lives, but it was never long before they were squelched by talk of the Titans. Among our parents and their parents before them, there were those brave enough to leave the walls for the good of us all. The Survey Corps represented everything people wanted to be, everything people were too afraid to talk about, and everything they pretended not to think about; the children who still held onto those dreams of seeing the outside world dreamed of joining as their only route out of these menacing walls. Of those children, many of them didn't even try to enlist in the military, even fewer graduated from the Training Corps, and fewer still survived their first mission.

Even the members of the most famous group of soldiers, "Levi's Squad" as they were referred to, went into battle with no expectation of survival. Another regiment, however, was less talked about than even the work of the majority of Survey Corps soldiers. The 72nd Expansion Battalion was founded during the approximate century of peace that mankind experienced after the walls were completed. Their mission was not only to research, capture, and eradicate Titans beyond the walls; in fact, they were deployed for extended periods of time, sometimes months on end, with no form of communication back to their home. Their job was to scour distant lands in search of some lost form to counter the Titans, find a location safe or free of the monsters' influence. Many of the soldiers know that finding a new location is rather unlikely, as is finding a countermeasure to the seemingly omnipresent beasts, but what else can they do apart from their duty? With what little life they get to have, these people get to see more than any other. Their survival rate can be shockingly low, based on the size of their deployed troops per mission, but they see more than just the forests and plains beyond the walls. They go farther, faster, than anybody else. They see the dilapidated metropolises that some believe to be only legend, the ruins of ancient civilizations, the wastelands ravaged by the Titans, and the untouched, natural land which has seen nothing but peace since man's extinction. Nobody, save for the select few who are crazy enough to join, know whether these sights are truly worth what they must endure to find them.

The few new recruits who flock to the squadron seem to think so.[/center]

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[u][i][b]Timeline[/b][/i][/u]

> Year 845 - Wall Maria is compromised by the Colossal and Armored Titans, creating an entrance to the entire ring for any Titan that so desires.

> Year 849 - The graduation of the 101st Trainee Squadron leads to five spaces being taken by a single five-man squad led by Ava Ekkehardt, all aiming for the 72nd Expansion Battalion.

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[u][i][b]Characters[/b][/i][/u]

[u]Scout[/u]

[HIDER=Jonah Althaus]STATUS: Living
Name: Jonah Althaus
Age: 15
Gender: Male

Appearance:
[URL=http://www.zerochan.net/1775187][IMG]http://s3.zerochan.net/Orihara.Izaya.240.1775187.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Click for higher resolution.

History: Jonah was born in the Wall Maria to a father in the Garrison Corps. His mother died giving birth to him, leaving him in the care of his older brother and father. Their city was a small one built near the wall, but a fair distance from any of the gates. They weren’t even prepared with any kind of evacuation plan when the Titans came in 845. The boys couldn’t find their father anywhere, so they sprinted home and Lykos, his older brother, had an idea… an idea which would forever change Jonah’s perspective on the world. If they killed themselves, they would never have to face one of those hideous beasts, see one as it lifted either of them into the air and… It made Jonah shudder just thinking about it. From the kitchen, Lykos took a knife and said he would go first, to show his little brother that it wasn’t anything to be afraid of in a situation like that.

When their father returned in a panic, he would find the small, eleven year-old boy trembling as he tried and tried to use that knife. His brother lie in a pool of crimson, liberated from what the havoc outside. Jonah, on the other hand, would not get to join him. His father relinquished the knife from his hand before the boy even knew of his presence. In tears, he fought, cried, and worked as hard as he could to convince the man that it was the only way they could be safe, but he was far from being as charismatic as Lykos was. He and his father moved beyond Wall Rose and very few people of the town made it out alive. The older man was discharged from the military due to an injury that gave him a permanent limp. Because of the food shortage and his discharge, Jonah’s father was one of the ones selected to sacrifice himself, reducing the population and making rations more attainable. By this point, Jonah had already decided to enlist and he knew that the Survey Corps was for him. If he couldn’t escape the way that his family could, he would damned well do his best to do what they never could: see it all. And, if he had the luck, maybe he wouldn’t return from that first mission. [/HIDER]

[HIDER=Ava Ekkehardt]STATUS: Living
Name: Ava Ekkehardt
Age: 16 – just turned
Gender: Female

Appearance:
[URL=http://www.zerochan.net/1553734][IMG]http://s3.zerochan.net/Kazemaru.Ichirouta.240.1553734.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Click for higher resolution.

History: Ava was born in the Wall Sina and, try as every babysitter, teacher, and noble around her might, they could [I]not[/I] stifle the sense of wonderment she felt with the world. The girl was never one to hide behind lies or false truths so after the fall of Maria, she knew that they were all going to be facing danger that they never would have thought imaginable. She had never seen a Titan before in her life, but she rationalized that there were a lot of things she hadn’t seen… and she wanted to see them all. Her parents were horrified and pulled every string they had to prevent her joining of the military. However, Ava stuck to her guns and enlisted, she was there on the first day, facing the insulting drill instructors and even a bit of discrimination for her roots. [/HIDER]

[HIDER=Wes Heidrich]Name: Wes Heidrich

Age: 24

Gender: Male

Appearance:
[URL=http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131102184819/villains/images/6/6d/Scorpius.full.859331.jpg]Here[/URL]
[IMG]http://img3.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20131102184819/villains/images/6/6d/Scorpius.full.859331.jpg[/IMG]

History: Wes is the eldest sibling of the Heidrich family.  He always had a protective, take-charge attitude.  He’s always kept a level head and an upbeat attitude for his smaller siblings.  However, after a falling out with his father at a young age, Wes enlisted in the military.  When his father didn’t show up to watch him graduate in the first position of the entire unit, he made the decision to join the Survey Corps’ 72nd Battalion.  While the decision was birthed from spite, it was one which he did not regret.  He learns a bit more about himself every day and was made one of the youngest people to ever be granted the position of Red Cloak.  Now? He’s the third of five in age.

Other: The Red Cloaks are an elite unit of five members existing only within the 72nd Battalion.  Typically there are five, but historically there existed as many as ten at one time (it was a particularly famous period for the Battalion, and thus enlistment was high for their specific mission).  They act as mentors and overseers for the newest recruits (often acting as “squad leaders” for the groups of newbies who haven’t seen much action) as well as the strongest defenders and fighters for the entire unit.  For the most part, their original squads with which they joined and learned alongside are now dead, so they find comfort in teaching the new recruits rather than trying to form those bonds over again, only to lose them.  Some, however, received the promotion and still have former, living squad members.[/HIDER]

[u]Vena Sera[/u]

[HIDER=Alois Heidrich]STATUS: Living
Name: Alois Heidrich
Age: 15
Gender: Male

Appearance:
[IMG]http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/y408/VenaSeraIV/Alois_zpsf062c983.jpg[/IMG]

History: Living in a Titan infested world can make things really suck. The lifespan of any one person depends solely on the strength of the walls that surround them. Despite being a manmade feat those structures are not impenetrable, Titans do get through. It is rare, but breaches have happened, and each time it has humanity has had to either drive back the menace or be pushed further back inside. Luckily for those in the Karanese district there hasn’t been such an event for some time. It is relatively quiet on the Eastern front and as such those within the walls can live peaceful lives. Some places aren’t quite as lucky, but thus far Karanese has been spared.

One would suppose then being allowed to live a safe life would lead to contentment. Yet for Alois, it has been anything but. He has known peace all of his life despite other districts facing the Titans, and has been brought up by a loving, caring family. Neither particularly rich nor poor, they have lived a comfortable life, they always have. He has two loving parents and a younger sister, all of whom care for one another. It would be a picturesque setting for anyone in this hellacious world humans are made to live in, but not for Alois. He has never been able to enjoy the peace as others do, or relax quite enough. He’s always been a little… Off.

Even as a young boy Alois showed unusual signs of aggression. And not necessarily outright violent aggression. He has always seemed to enjoy tension and violence, or rather, it excites him. Hard to say, but as a result this peace of theirs has little appeal to him. He simply does not feel he fits in with the current status quo. It was inevitable then that, once he had come of age he would join the military. It didn’t matter what branch, or where he ended up. He needed to be doing something with himself. Something exciting, something dangerous. [/HIDER]

[u]Gold[/u]

[HIDER=Rodrick "Tinker" Driuker]STATUS: Living
Name: Rodrick "Tinker" Driuker
Age: 15
Gender: Male

Appearance:
[IMG]http://i593.photobucket.com/albums/tt18/Kid_Nickles/NinjaAnimeBoy.jpg[/IMG]

History: Rodrick - known as Tinker or Tink to his friends - comes from a long line of soldiers. His grandfather was a pikeman on Wall Maria, killed by a jumping aberrant. His father manned a cannon on the same wall and lost a leg when another Titan threw back the cannonball fired at its head. Tink figured that it was his duty to join the army as well. Tink’s house is on the edge of the Shinganshina District, right against the wall. 

Tall, with grey, piercing eyes. Tink’s name is well deserved. He is rarely seen in public without tinkering with some new weapon or another. He already sports a fair number of scars from testing out new projectile weapons or blades. Tink decided that he could best serve his city by joining the Scouting Legion. When he heard about the 72nd Expansion Battalion, Tink knew that he had found his true home. A place where he wouldn't be judged for his antisocial tendencies, a place where he could test his weapons in the field, a group that would perhaps accept him. 

The real trick would be to survive it all, though. [/HIDER]

[u]Cicoco[/u]

[HIDER=Kiryuu Zero]STATUS: Living
Name: Kiryuu Zero
Age: 15
Gender: Male

Appearance:
[URL=http://www.zerochan.net/1776710][IMG]http://s3.zerochan.net/Prussia.240.1776710.jpg[/IMG][/URL] Click for higher resolution.

History: Born behind the Wall SIna, Kiryuu Zero, was born into one of the wealthiest families in Sina. Growing up Kiryuu was extremely interested in the mysteries of the outside world and all of its history. Growing up all of his friends mocked his last name "Zero" meaning that he wasn't intelligent. When Wall Maria fell to the Titans, Zero expressed his knowledge of the outside world and how there may be an answer in the old cities. While all food was being rationed behind Rose, Zero felt it unfair that the wealthy families dont have to participate. Zero ran away from home into the military to try and join the 72nd Battalion for the opportunity of finding the answer to the Titans. [/HIDER]