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| “ | I! I... I have the King. I’ve protected the King, with my comrades, for many years now. I believe in the security of these Walls… and in the King. What we did was not mistaken… I want to believe it… but… it was so painful… go ahead and torture me to death. That is… everything there is… to this bloodstained life of mine. | „ |
| ~ Djel Sannes about his convictions during his torture. |
Djel Sannes is a supporting antagonist in the manga and anime Attack on Titan. He served as a major antagonist during the Royal Government arc, working as a Military Police Brigade officer of the First Interior Squad (commonly known as Interior Police) who would eventually lead to revealing the truth surrounding the Reiss family. Known Kings of the Walls he served are Rod and Uri's father, Uri Reiss, Frieda Reiss, and Rod Reiss.
He was voiced by Masaki Terasoma in Japanese and Bruce DuBose in English.
Appearance[]
Sannes generally appears to be a tall and intimidating man. He has short black hair that is shaved on the sides. He has pale skin, brown eyes that are deep into the sockets with noticeable dark circles under them, which was likely caused from his weary actions committed as a torturer. He was first seen wearing the standard Military Police uniform with a simple dark blue shirt under it. During his torture, he wears a blueish grey button up shirt with grey pants. He eventually wears standard prison outfit during his incarceration.
Personality[]
Djel Sannes can best be described as a man whose main characteristic is his extreme loyalty towards the King of the Walls and he uses it as his main justification to the actions he commits. In comparison to his colleague Ralph, Djel is genuinely faithful towards the “peace” formed by the First King and decided to put his life towards maintaining the peace inside the Walls.
This view on maintaining order finds its way to how Sannes views the other societal aspects in the Military. An example of this is his low view on the Survey Corps, which is common among the members in the Military Police. Acting cold towards Hange and Moblit and considering the Scouts to be a waste of taxes, as they can’t confine themselves to the “Paradise” inside the Walls.
At some point it is revealed that Sannes has feelings of guilt and regret for his own actions, as when Levi and Hange torture him he cries to them that they should have fun like he had when he tortured his own prisoners, and encouraged them to continue to hurt him without holding back, finally realizing just how much pain he inflicted on others during his "bloodstained" life, asking to be tortured to death as compensation. Hange and Levi did to him the same identical types of torture he did to Pastor Nick, and later both Sannes and Hange compare themselves as being no better than each other. Unlike his friend Ralph, Sannes accepts his punishment and recognizes his wrongdoings, although still thinking they were necessary to protect the peace of humanity. He claims that people like himself and their "roles" in the world will never vanish, but only get replaced, and notes that his and his side's role have been taken over by Hange, whose side thinks they are doing the "right thing" just like the Royal Government, and that one day will eventually find their own opposition condemnning their beliefs and overthrowing them.
Story[]
Background[]
Djel Sannes was born somewhere inside of the Walls, on October the 28th. At some point in his past, a young Djel Sannes joined the Military Police, either in order to work closely by the King (either King Fritz or another predecessor), or for other personal reasons. He eventually made his way to the Interior Police so he could work in the capital of Mitras, where became involved with the Royal Government's secrets and aware of the identity of the Reiss family as the true royal family, slowly becoming more devoted and loyal to the system's beliefs and ideology.
Sannes would also be forced to get rid of any kind of threat towards the Monarchy, such as one time when he and his colleague Ralph had to talk to a young boy named Erwin Smith. He spoke to them about the theories his father told him, Sannes and Ralph apprehended a teacher Mr. Smith and tortured him for information, a young Djel Sannes was seen holding a hot iron while clearly not looking forward towards the torture he has to commit. His colleague Ralph however was seen cruelly motivating him to go through with it. Mr. Smith would eventually be tortured and killed by Sannes and Ralph, who faked the truth surrounding his death.
As Sannes grew older, he would have to kill numerous people in order to keep the peace inside the Walls, including an elderly man for making guns that "threatened the King" and Armin Arlert's parents for creating a flying balloon and attempting to fly outside the Walls with it. He was seen sometimes working alongside Kenny Ackerman and chatting with him about government business.
Prologue arc[]
A few days after Wall Maria fell, Sannes and many other Interior Police soldiers gathered to witness the death of Alma who had an affair with the true King of the Walls, Rod Reiss. Sannes would be on the sidelines not intervening, however.
Royal Government arc[]
Five years after the Fall of Wall Maria, word began to spread to the Interior Police about Pastor Nick of the Church having revealed top-secret information to the Survey Corps about the Wall’s monarchy. Djel Sannes and his accomplice Ralph were tasked by the Royal Assembly to find out of the extent that Nick revealed. Sannes and Ralph would travel to the Trost District military barracks where Nick was held. The two men would then brutally torture Nick for information, only to find nothing as Nick refused to talk. Nick died from his extensive injuries, Sannes and Ralph got a Military Police officer to get rid of the body.
The two men are seen standing guard at the door until they are confronted by two soldiers from the Survey Corps, Hange Zoe and her assistant Moblit Berner. Hange’s capable of briefly seeing Nick’s corpse, before Sannes shuts the door and begins making up a fake story serounding Nick’s death. Sannes claims that Nick was murdered by a robber who stole some of his belongings, only does Hange see through this lie, as Nick suffered injuries rare for a normal robbery, such as ripped off fingernails. Sannes replies by rudely grabbing her and begin reading the soldier’s status which is written on her jacket. Sannes is stopped by Moblit however, who grabs Djel’s arm and firmly responses by explaining their positions in the Survey Corps. Sannes is unimpressed by their ranks, claiming that the Survey Corps is generally a garbage branch, and that these kinds of situations are out of their league. Sannes continues to badmouth the Survey Corps’ low success rate and that they have no knowledge about investigations such as what happened to Nick, and that they should go “count some Titans”, causing Ralph to chuckle in a condescending way.
When Hange and Moblit appear to be speechless, she notices that Sannes and Ralph are from the MP's First Interior Squad, the royal soldiers of the King. Sannes immediately changes his tone to being more tense after Hange notices this, with Moblit finding it odd that the Interior Police is all the way in Trost District, as they are supposed to work only in the capital of Mitras. Sannes responses that regarding the lack of proper structure in Trost after the breach, they are needed to fill that lack of quality. Hange starts to pretend as though she’s thankful of their service and even shakes Sannes’s hands. She acts as though she’s oblivious as to why someone would ever try to rob Nick in the first place, with Sannes explaining that the Wall Religion ornaments are very valuable. She then acts ignorant to that information, claiming that she just put Nick in the barracks while thinking he was just a chairmaker. This makes Djel more anxious, believing he just spilled information yet still manages to compose himself. Tensions get higher when Hange claims that the culprit shall expiernce even worse pain then her friend went through, but Sannes and Ralph appear to be unbothered by this. As Hange and Moblit leave, Sannes is unaware that Hange shaking his hand confirmed her theory about Sannes and Ralph murdering Nick. As his hands were bruised and Hange would retell her experience with Sannes to other members of the Survey Corps, who contemplate the Interior Police’s intentions.
Sannes is later seen in the capital of Mitras and is present during a meeting with Rod Reiss and the royal ministers. Djel is by himself while he and his subordinates get criticized by Minister Gerald for their failure in capturing Historia and Eren Yeager. Sannes tells him that they are mobilizing the mission to continue, but Rod doesn’t think it’s necessary, as Kenny Ackerman and his team have already been sent to capture them.
After Kenny and his team successfully captured Eren and Historia, Sannes and Ralph continue to track down the rest of the Special Operations Squad, led by Captain Levi Ackerman. A close associate of the Military Police, Dimo Reeves, pretends as though he’s aware of where they are hiding. He takes them to a discrete location, only for them both to be knocked unconscious.
In the original manga source material, Sannes and Ralph’s kidnapping happens before Eren and Historia are captured, and in the manga version the two are present when they listen to Armin's regretful speech about the Survey Corps no longer being "good people" for kidnapping and torturing their opposition.
Sannes wakes up but is quickly taken aback when he sees Hange and Levi preparing numerous tools in front of them while he’s strapped in a chair, knowing that torture awaits him. As Hange steadily begins torturing Sannes, he yells out that she at the very least should ask questions first. Levi responds with asking what the Reiss family is, but Sannes simply looks down refusing to say anything. Hange then angrily begins torturing the man as he screams out loud.
The torturing continues until all of Sannes’ fingernails have been ripped off, Hange presents said fingernails on a plate while Sannes just simply stares without speaking. Hange asks how many fingernails he has ripped off and Djel responds with a number that is “limitless’’. Sannes goes on to explain his individual convictions as to why he was capable of torturing people to such an extent, with him declaring he did it all for maintaining the “peace” inside the Walls. He claims that the harmony everyone takes for granted was formed by the Interior Police’s responsibility of dirtying their hands to prevent any kind of “threat”. Sannes thinks back to different people he had to kill in order to maintain the peace. Such as a teacher who, “let his tongue slip.” “To an old man who made guns that might have threatened the King.” “A stupid couple that was trying to fly off in the sky.” “Even a whore on a farm in the countryside.” Sannes angrily states that humanity's survival was completely based on the Interior Police’s involvement with killing such people, and that his torturers should be grateful towards him.
Hange and Levi aren’t grateful towards in the slightest however, with Hange even claiming that Sannes and his colleagues are responsible for preventing technological progress. Sannes doesn’t back down, saying that the Survey Corps have become the exact problem that threatens the peace inside the Walls, while asserting that they should have been eradicated long ago. Levi sarcastically thanks Sannes for all his work, only for him to then break Djel’s nose, and goes straight to his previous question being, “What is the Reiss Family?” Levi asks how such an average noble family can have ties with the Titans inside the Walls and the Church of the Walls. Sannes condescendingly responds, prompting Hange to rip one of his teeth out. Sannes frantically judges his torturers that they probably take sadistic pleasure in hurting him, thinking themselves as heroes punishing a "bad guy". He claims that he understands them, as he enjoys inflicting pain to others as well and always felt righteous about it, telling himself that they deserved it for being threats, appealing to the idea that when one thinks they are committing evil acts in the name of “justice” it becomes more doable.
Sannes calms down when he thinks of his own “justice”, being the King who he and his comrades have protected for dozens of years. That his actions were painful but not misguided. Sannes says that they can kill him if they want to, even “torture him to death”, as he did the same to many with his own bloodstained life either way. Hange, Levi and Moblit decide to “take a break” and leave the room. Sannes knows he doesn’t have long to live anymore so he leaves the threat of the Survey Corps in the hands of his comrades. He then tearfully closes his eyes hoping that civil war can be prevented.
Suddenly, Sannes hears a familiar noise and looks at the hallway from the door that was slightly left open. He sees Ralph being apprehended by Levi and Hange, shocking Sannes knowing he will be tortured as well. He overhears the conversation they are having and is shocked when he hears that Ralph has spilled all information. Levi says that Ralph is nothing like Sannes who refused to say anything while being tortured, but Ralph rudely responds, saying that he doesn’t care about his wellbeing and that everyone thinks Sannes is annoying for his overly loyal nature and obsession with the King’s peace. Ralph says that they should just kill Sannes already, but Levi wants to confirm that Djel’s claimes match what was said by Ralph, with him saying that it doesn’t matter as he explained everything anyway. He asks if there is a bed in his cell and he’s told that if Sannes were to reveal information, he will share a room with him. Having heard all of this dialogue, Sannes simply decides to close his eyes and go to sleep.
A short bit of time goes by and Sannes is woken up by Hange and Levi who barge in the room stating that they are going to torture him to death. Sannes finally decides to give in and says that the Reiss family is true royal family of the Walls.
Sannes is put into the same cell as Ralph who wasn’t expecting to see him. Ralph wonders if he’s okay and asks that he didn’t reveal any information. Sannes then furiously attacks Ralph by chocking him. He tearfully yells that he never wants to hear from him again as he betrayed his trust. Sannes is told the truth by Hange however, Ralph didn’t reveal any information, nor did he meant the words he said. Hange reveals that they wrote a script that Ralph was forced to read out loud, while having been falsely told that Sannes was somewhere far away. Sannes let’s go of Ralph and breaks down on the ground crying, knowing he betrayed the King. Hange insolently talks down on the two men, knowing the hatred they feel for her is what Nick felt towards them. She gives the men a condescending farewell, stating that their power is forever gone. Sannes then calmly begins speaking on the fact that these kinds of overall responsibilities are “taken in turns”, when one burden is taken over by the other, who have to then bloody their own hands. Sannes then tearfully wishes Hange good luck.
After a successful coup by the Military and the death of the King Rod Reiss, Sannes is transitioned to a prison, along with his fellow members of the ousted government, and is seen peacefully sitting on the prison grounds.
War for Paradis arc[]
Four years pass since Sannes's arrest, and the Military now acts as Paradis Island’s ruling government body. Hange who is now the commander of the Survey Corps starts having problems with her soldiers who disagree with the Eldian Military's admnistration and poor management of the crisis with humanity outside the Walls. Hange frustratedly thinks back to the last moments with Sannes, when he wished her good luck on taking over the torch.
After Eldia's military dictatorship on the island is overthrown by the Yeagerists, the previous leaders of the Military became prisoners and almost all of them are eventually killed during the Revenge for Liberio invasion by Marley. Hange and Levi became runaways and outcasts, and Hange thinks again about Sannes's words to her, realizing that her side's time has come to face the same fall as the previous system of government, despite the fact they were also convinced to protect the peace and doing the "right thing".
It's assumed that Djel Sannes remained in prison for the rest of his life.
Known Victims[]
Direct[]
- Mr. Smith (presumably; known to have directly tortured him and been involved with his death)
- Unnamed gun-making civilian
- Mr. Arlert
- Mrs. Arlert
- Pastor Nick
Involved only[]
- Alma
Gallery[]
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