Work Text:
“Excuse me, Commander, may I have a moment of your time?” Shadis had been walking down the hallway toward his office when the young man caught his attention.
“Smith, isn't it?” He asked studying the tall blonde man trying to place a name with a face. He usually didn't take the time to learn the names anymore, but this boy stood out. He was pretty, looked like he belonged among the nobles in Sina, at a ball decked out in the finest clothes, surrounded by pretty women and servants, not out in a muddy field of bloody Titan corpses and mangled remains of soldiers. Yet, here he was.
Of course he was singled out almost immediately, getting heckled by the rest of the troops for his pretty-boy looks and high society manners. However, his skill and intellect had quickly quieted the naysayers. He had graduated at the top of his class after all, a virtual prodigy, and, for some reason, he chose to be here instead of part of the MP in the interior.
He had quickly climbed through the ranks, he was skilled and lethal in the field, accumulated a high kill record in a short time. He was able to think quickly and adjust when formations fell apart or commanding officers perished. Shadis had no choice but to recently promote him to Squad Leader as no one came close to his accomplishments even though he had only been among the ranks a little more than a year.
However, he did tend to make Shadis slightly uncomfortable for some unknown reason.
“Yes, sir. I was hoping that you had just a moment of your time. I would like to discuss the formation, sir.”
“The formation? You’re on free-time, Smith. Learn to take a break.” Shadis unlocked his office and motioned for Erwin to enter.
“But Commander, I think I have a new approach...actually, it’s a totally new formation.” Erwin pulled a piece of rolled parchment from under his arm and handed it to Shadis. Shadis just looked at Erwin, then at the parchment.
“Smith, look, I get it. You’re a smart kid, one of the smartest that has ever walked through these halls. You’re one of the best soldiers I have, and invaluable in the field.”
“But?” The blonde prompted.
“But you take orders, not give them. That’s my call. The formation is my call.” Shadis sat down behind his desk, leaving Erwin standing there, holding the rolled parchment.
“Sir, I am not trying to undermine your authority, but I believe that this formation I am proposing will reduce fatalities by at least a third.” Erwin again thrust the parchment to Shadis.
“By a third?” Shadis studied the young man in front of him. “You’re awfully cocky, Smith.”
“Not cocky, sir, confident. Sometimes we cannot see the forest for the trees. We have been using the same formation since before you became commander. It’s comfortable, familiar, and it works to an extent. However, I believe that if we switch our objective into avoiding Titans, we can gain ground and increase our survival rates.” Shadis gave in and unrolled the plans so eagerly presented to him.
“This spreads the troops out more, thinning support.”
“No, see, the officers will be here, in the center at the front, the best position to judge direction and to switch tack if needed. We would use colored flares to determine the course of action. Green flares to indicate direction. Red would indicate the presence of a Titan, black if it is an aberrant. Yellow if we need to retreat. Soldiers on the outer edge will be the vanguard, first line of defense. They will use flares to help direct us. If we can spot a Titan early enough, then we can change course to avoid it, thus avoiding casualties.” Shadis leaned back and studied the formation in front of him. He couldn’t deny it...it was brilliant. Probably the best military strategy he had seen in years.
“Smith, you brilliant bastard! I’ll have to get approval from the Commandant, but I feel like we need to start educating the officers in your formation techniques immediately. Of course, we will have to work out some kinks, make sure we are able to obtain the proper equipment, but this...you did well, son.”
“Thank you, sir.”
Shadis’ mind was racing with possibilities and hope. Hope was something he hadn’t allowed himself to feel in a long time. Erwin Smith was the hope of mankind, he could feel it. This boy was going to make a fine commander one day, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. Erwin Smith was going to lead the movement that was going to free humanity from Titans.