Attack on Titan
Attack on Titan: Vanguard – Chapter 03 [Lost Talents Found]
Disclaimer: I do not own 'Attack on Titan' nor its Characters
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
Darkness fell across the quiet training field, the rigging machines used to test the abilities of the recruits laid dormant as the bell to return to the barracks rang out. Annie opened the door of the barracks with a deep breath, her eyes being hit with the quick change in light causing her to squint for just a moment. After her eyes adjusted, she was greeted by a relatively emptied hall, only a few cadets littering the various beds. "The coast is mainly clear." Annie thought as she noted the only people of interest being Christa and Thalia. Sasha chose to remain at the dining hall to collect as many scraps as she could and Mikasa was likely off with Eren and Armin.
"Welcome back. What took you so long?" Thalia questioned as she sat near her bunk beside Christa and another girl, Mina if she remembered correctly.
"Just went for a walk." Annie replied as she approached the three. "What are you doing here so early?"
"We were just talking is all." Mina replied cheerfully, however Annie could sense some nervous strain in her voice.
"We didn't have much to do since most of us passed the balancing exercise." Christa added.
"Fair enough." Annie answered in an aloof manner as she recalled Christa and Mina only barely passing the exercise. "We should still do some practice before we get the real gear." Annie cautioned as she recalled at least Christa struggling the first month or so of ODM training.
"What?! You and Thalia nailed it! If anything we should practice with your help." Mina stated, becoming dejected as she continued her thought, showing what Annie had already suspected.
"That reminds me." Annie started, finding a quick reason to bring it up in casual conversation. "Thalia, I need you to do something really quick."
"Um, sure?" she replied slightly confused, looking between Mina and Christa.
"Actually Mina, Christa, you too since you're here anyways." Annie added as she undid her hair, letting it fall to her shoulders.
"I guess?" Mina replied confused, sitting next to Thalia as Annie sat on the floor before them.
"Your hair is going to be a problem in the field the way it is now. Even if you don't keep it, I may as well show you how I keep mine." Annie explained calmly as she weighed the various expressions the three gave her. Christa looked a little confused, but was seeing the logic in it. Mina was hesitant, but based on her last statement, she decided to give it a shot. Thalia looked eager in a weird way, but that was to be expected. "Now if my theory is right…" Annie thought as she began swiftly going through the motions of how she puts up her hair. She made sure not to go too fast as to make it impossible to make out the movements, but fast enough to where one would have to pay close attention.
As Annie watched the three between motions, she came to a clear result quickly. Mina and Christa struggled with the technique she used, especially given how she stacked the deck against them; however Thalia was nearly mirroring her movements, only a few milliseconds behinds as she was intently focused on Annie's hands. As Annie finished her last motion, putting her hair back to how it was, Thalia finished quickly after, smiling as she began shaking around her hair, admiring the feel.
"I've put my hair up in a ponytail before, but I never thought this would feel this much better!" Thalia admitted as she seemed to take to the style.
"How were you able to do that?!" Mina asked exasperated, her hair now in a tangled mess as she clearly missed a few steps.
"She and Annie have known each other a while, she's probably used to how Annie teaches." Christa speculated as she 'finished' the style, it being significantly different that how Annie's was.
"Actually, I don't think that's the case." Annie replied. "If you want you can fix your hair, but I'd still think about at least pulling it back, so it doesn't get in the way."
The two girls nodded confused as the mutually kept their eyes on Annie, Christa glancing over to Thalia on occasion. "What do you mean?" Christa asked as she let her hair flow down to her previous state, her hair looking as if it didn't go through the tangled mess, it just did.
"Thalia. That wasn't the first time you copied me, was it?" Annie questioned, causing Thalia's eyes to focus back on Annie, looking like a kid caught stealing from a cookie jar.
"Copying?" Mina questioned, her hair significantly less presentable than Christa's.
"W-What do you mean?" Thalia questioned naively, seemingly knowing Annie didn't buy it as soon as she said it.
"You finished the complicated process almost directly behind me. And at the pace I was going, you should have had a similar result to Christa." Annie said as she pointed. "At the very least you should have been significantly slower."
"Wait, so this was just a test?" Mina questioned as she cradled her messy hair.
"Yes, sorry about that." Annie said with a monotone voice, conveying no remorse for what happened as Mina deflated into her own world, mourning her hair.
"I guess I was just really focused on your movements. My dad always taught me I had an eye for—"
"No." Annie cut off Thalia, seeing a flinch in the girl. "While I don't doubt that's part of it, there more to it than that." Annie explained.
"She did seem pretty similar to you during the exercise…" Christa remembered, thinking back to the morning that the two flawlessly completed the ODM test.
"Not only did you have the exact same form as me, but when you lifted Sasha, you did it in the same way I did. You couldn't have seen that technique when you were facing away from me." Annie explained further as Thalia began to sweat for a moment, both Christa and Mina now looking at her as well in curiosity.
"I-I." Thalia stammered before she looked back to Annie's stone-cold face.
"She's scared shitless right now. Is it really that important?" Annie thought to herself before she began to mentally soften her expression. She watched as the tenseness in Thalia faded for a moment. Annie allowed herself to relieve tension in herself as well, a small, welcoming smile appearing on her face.
Thalia acknowledged the change as she took a deep breath. "I have a photographic memory." She said quickly, however calmly.
"Wait, you mean you remember everything? What's that have to do with copying people?" Mina questioned confused.
"Yeah, remembering something and doing something are two separate things." Christa agreed.
"Not just a photographic memory in that sense I guess." Thalia replied.
Annie's eyes widened for a moment as she realized the implication. "You have a photographic muscle memory!" She exclaimed in a mild excitement that caught the other two off guard.
"Yeah." Thalia admitted, but she didn't look happy doing so. "My father told me that it was best I kept it a secret." She said, pausing for a moment before she continued. "I can only do so much though. If it's too fast, or to physically taxing, I won't be able to remember it. Even if you slowed down the motion, I'd only know it slowed, and training it to get faster can only go so far."
"Why would—" Mina started, before Annie gave her a side glance, causing her to stop.
"That on top of that quick wit and concentration. I can see why he'd want to keep that a secret." Annie agreed as she thought of all the people in the world that would think to acquire such a talent. "I'm glad I know though, makes it easier to lie about it, or find others we can trust." Annie stated, once again leveling a stare at the two others next to her. "I can trust Christa; I know that much from Armin. Mina seems to be easily scared at the very least, but it looks like I just added another stray to the list of people I have to look out for." Annie sighed mentally as she stood.
"T-Thanks, I'd rather it not spread around." Thalia thanked as Annie laid down in her bed.
"Don't worry, your secrets safe with us." Christa said in a smooth voice that seemed to calm Thalia significantly.
"Y-Yeah! You can count on us!" Mina joined in reluctantly, however she seemed genuine.
"Just be careful not to get to overt with your ability. If I see you swinging around trees like a scout, you better hope you trip yourself up to throw me off." Annie said in what was supposed to be a joke, however based on Christa and Mina's faces, it came off significantly more serious.
"Fine, but I'm keeping this haircut as payment." Thalia said with a smile as she climbed up to the next bunk, being around Annie enough to know when a rare moment of personhood broke through the surface.
"Not like I could stop you anyways."
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
The morning following Thalia's revelation, Annie woke up to see one of drill instructor Shadis' aids enter the hall. "All cadets report to the mustering field in 15 minutes! Following the regiment meeting we will return to the ODM test, while those who have passed will have time to speak with the Liaisons, get fitted for their equipment, and complete their workout regimen for the day!" She shouted before quickly exiting, trusting those that weren't woken up by the announcement to be quickly informed the others.
Annie made her way out of bed, quickly slipping on her clothes and getting changed as Thalia dropped down beside her. "Did she say Liaison?" She questioned as she to begin to undress, taking off her night clothing.
"Yeah, their basically in charge of showing us around each of the regiments and assigning us our job training hours throughout bootcamp." Annie explained as she remembered the forgettable nobodies they left them with the last time, the only notable one being a member of the Levi squad.
"I hope they're not as intimidating as the instructor." Mina expressed as she approached the two of them. Annie was a little surprised as she saw Mina with her hair pulled back in a braid so nice, only Christa could have helped make it, retaining the upside down 'V' shaped hairline she did before.
"I see you're also taking this more seriously." Mikasa said as she also walked over, putting her arm through her cadet jacket, her hair significantly shorter than before as a result of Eren's advice a few nights prior.
"Well I didn't want to cut it, so it was the next best thing." Mina said nervously as people began filing out of the hall.
"Come on, we better not be late." Thalia said as she finished doing her hair in the same way Annie did almost simultaneously with Annie. This did not go unnoticed by Annie, but Thalia just smiled in a joking manner as she made it look slightly different, the bun being more secure and a bit less unkempt in comparison to her own.
As Annie exited the barracks with the rest of the regiment, merging with the male barracks as they went, she immediately knew something was off as the silhouettes that stood facing away from them were different from before. "The last time all the liaisons were men, and rather unimpressive, did one of my decisions effect even this?" Annie thought as she assumed her position next to Thalia in the third row, standing at ease as she watched the three conversate with the instructor.
"Alright, time to get things started." Annie heard from the instructor in a more calm voice, likely dropping his tone for his colleagues. "All right maggots! I better not see a twitch outta you for the next 15 minutes while the regiment representatives have the floor!" Shadis began as he walked through the three as they turned to face.
Annie's stomach dropped as a few forgotten pieces fell into place with this reveal. "How the hell is she here?! And why does that garrison soldier seem so familiar?" she thought in a slight internal panic as she saw the face of her old roommate, Hitch Dreyse.
"These soldiers do not have the time to deal with your shit, so do not approach them with anything that would waste that time, am I clear!" Shadis called, expecting a group response.
"SIR YES SIR!" The cadets chanted in unison, Annie's sound off being significantly quieter than the rest, but that was to be expected at this point.
"Alright then, now shut your holes until they finish their introduction!" Shadis exclaimed loudly before he turned to the three. "Whenever your ready." He granted softly, turning his expression around quickly as he addressed the proper soldiers.
"How is she here? She's only a year or so older than me, she should still be in training." Annie began to contemplate as a tall blonde man with a bun took a few steps forward.
"My name is Eld Gin, second in command to the Scouting Regiment's Special Operations Squad. Levi squad for short." Eld began with a smile on his face as he looked through the rows of cadets, reacting positively to the reaction of his team's mention. "I will be the representative for the Scouting Regiment. I may not be around as often as my colleagues here due to scouting operations outside of the walls, but my team will operate outside of Trost due to this assignment."
"This is still going according to the past so far." Annie thought as her eyes darted towards a nearby cabin used by the instructor and his aids. Moments later a red-haired soldier bearing the scouting regiments insignia swiftly exited the building, making her way towards the instructor. "Here she comes." Annie thought as she had a disturbing moment of curiosity enter her mind. "I know her from somewhere else…" a moment of guilt washed over her. "Right… the forest" Annie thought conflicted as she returned her gaze to Eld, trying not to focus on events that had been temporarily overturned.
"… and after you pick the Scouts, we would assign you new equipment, as well as take you to the stables too—" The voice of Eld kicked back in as Annie returned her attention to the lecture.
"Eld, the captain needs you." The familiar voice requested as she approached with a professional presence.
"Understood." Eld confirmed as he turned back. "I suppose we'll have to go more in depth another time cadets. You should be able to find me in the district at the Scout Regiment small garrison quarters." Eld apologized as he turned to leave with the woman.
"Thank you for your time." Shadis replied professionally before he turned back to the woman with white hair. "That makes it your go Rico."
"Thank you sir." The woman replied as she took a step forward, seemingly searching through the crowd for a moment in silence.
"Annie." Thalia whispered without shifting around in the slightest.
"What"
"Isn't that her? The one from Shiganshina?" Thalia questioned, causing Annie to take a closer look.
Upon further analyzation, Annie stiffened as she met the woman's gaze, no doubt in her mind that it was the same soldier that had saved her life. The woman gave out a faint smile before taking a breath. "She recognized me…"
"My name is Rico Brzenska, member of the Garrison Elite Squad. Normally I would not take on such duties, however this particular unit has some promising candidates that I would like to see firsthand." The woman expressed as she made direct eye contact with Annie, shifting her attention then to Thalia, and likely then on to Reiner and Ulric. "I will be found most often in my office in the Garrison Regiment Headquarters. As for my duties, it is my job to show you the duties that every soldier must learn, however I will be specifically focusing on garrison necessary training in how to operate and maintain the cannons, protocol in patrolling, paperwork, and the various other assignments you will undertake as soldiers. As most of you will end up in my regiment anyway, I see no point in trying to convince most of you to join the garrison, though for those I see grow into perhaps the top ten, then we may have more to discuss. That is all for now."
After the quite quick and too the point speech, Rico took her step back, taking a more generalized look around the cadets as she awaited the next presenter to go. "So that's why she's here." Annie smirked as she gave a glance to Thalia, who looked anxious to have an audience with the woman. "Now, what does Hitch have to say for herself?"
"My name is Hitch Dreyse. I have been assigned by my superiors to supervise your training in matters that concern inner wall policing. Aside from that my only goal is to scout out the top talent and convince them to join the MP's in the interior. Not that it will be that difficult." She stated briefly before taking a quick step back.
Annie wasn't surprised in the least as she watched the mellow look return to her friends face. "That's it?" a whisper caught her ear from a few rows back.
"WHAT WAS THAT YOU LITTLE SHIT?!" Shadis roared in a rage as he began descending toward the cadet in question. He was only stopped by the grace of Hitch, who held out her hand outstretched to block his path.
"I'll handle this, don't worry." Hitch calmed with a devilish grin as she miraculously reigned in the instructor. Walking towards the cadet slowly, there was an eerie silence that was nearly as intimidating to the cadets as Shadis. Annie watched as recruits trembled as she passed, each step punctuating her advance before stopping right before a blonde haired guy that unlike most of the recruits, didn't seem phased at the approaching woman. "It comes to my attention that you felt my explanation lacking?"
"Well all you said was you were going to teach us how to kick around civilians." The boy spat with clear disdain for Hitch, having a clear past with the MP's. "Are you even old enough to be in a regiment? You look the same age as us."
"Well, at least you were honest." Hitch said with a devious grin as she quickly took the man down, shoving his face in the dirt as she put him in hold, holding his arm back behind him in what looked to be a very painful lock as she pressed her boot to his neck.
"So you did learn something." Annie thought with a mental smile as she looked back, with the rest of her line.
"I have no need to deal with weaklings like yourself. I am where I am now because I happened to have some pull, and I was able to join earlier then most. The fact that I managed the Military police should tell you that you're not dealing with someone that's just 'the same age as you'" she said in a mocking tone as she released him. "While some MP's may be lazy, corrupt, or any other slur you may throw at them, do not expect the same from me. As your superior, I'd like some respect" She finished, smiling down at the boy, and simply walked away, returning to her position beside a smirking Rico.
"So you matured in the time I was in stasis, I don't know if I should be happy, or disappointed." Annie thought as Hitch's trademark smile stayed on her face, never leaving it for a moment as her curled hair flowed in the wind.
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
Annie shut the door of the on-site office that Hitch had been assigned, walking in to see a clearly burnt out and bored Hitch sitting in a wooden chair, dossier's of all the recruits spread out into separate piles on her desk. Taking a quick glance, the only one that seemed of interest was the one the contained the files on the previous top 10 from the old timeline, and the few important players that didn't make that list. "So you're still lazy. Good to know that was all for show." Annie said as she sat down across from Hitch, causing her to shoot up in her seat.
"Finally!" She expressed in a tired, yet victorious cry. "What took you so long to get in here?"
"There was a line." Annie answered calmly.
"TheRe WAs a LiNE—Of course there was a line!" Hitch teased. "Why were you so far back in it?! Do you realize how boring it is to listen to the same lines over and over again about how 'I'm gonna prove I'm the best' or 'I want to serve the king' or my personal favorite 'I want to go to the interior.'"
"I stopped at the scout's office so I could entertain his spiel. I ran into a bit of a complication a few days back so I needed to make it look like a consideration." Annie replied. "Speaking of, it seems that some of our decisions have already caught up to us, you mind explaining?"
"Really? That's what you want to talk about first?" Hitch asked almost hurt. "No 'It's good to see you Hitch, I can't believe Armin's device worked, now we can save everyone.'"
"It's good to see you Hitch, I can't believe Ar—"
"Don't patronize me!" Hitch snapped before a smirk crawled onto her face. "It really is good to see you. I missed that personality of yours."
"Really? Even after everything I did?" Annie questioned, not quite having the chance to talk about it before they went back.
"Well, yeah. None of that happened now regardless." Hitch shrugged. "Besides, with us working together, we should be able to prevent most of that stuff anyways."
Annie felt a tinge of guilt as she pictured her team in her head, and their plans to capture Eren as quickly as possible. "What does she think we're planning? Surely she knows our intent to capture Eren right?"
"We can talk about the details of the plan later, but right now, what all have you changed?" Hitch questioned with extreme curiosity.
"I believe I asked you that first." Annie retorted quickly.
"Right, right." Hitched remembered as she leaned back in her chair. "Nothing much really. I just got my dad to get me into the military immediately after Shiganshina. With enough theatrics, and with help from all the useful information I have stored in my head, I was able to not only convince the higher ups that I was prepared, but I managed to place 9th in my class early." Hitch explained casually. "It's not really much different from before, I'm still just a grunt that signed up for the most work intensive position at the moment, but I just… expedited the process."
"That sounds about right." Annie admitted as she rememberd Hitch had lived just outside the interior before she joined the military. "Why not just enlist with us by 'accident' so you would have been in this company?"
"Well because… because…" Hitch paused as she thought over the idea, quickly shaking her head so she could deflect the question. "So what about you?" Hitch prodded further.
"Well, before Shiganshina I saved an old friend of mine that hadn't made it to the walls. He's smart, a great leader, fit, and most importantly, he's the jaw titan." Annie started off, knowing that she could trust Hitch to keep all this a secret regardless of whether or not their goals completely aligned.
"Jaw titan… does that mean that one girl, Ymir."
"She died a titan before she could consume him." Annie explained emotionless, not catching Hitch off guard, but still causing some sadness.
"That makes sense I guess." Hitch said reluctantly, quickly switching gears. "Well, what else happened."
"I ended up saving two people in Shiganshina with the help of some garrison soldiers, one of which being Rico." Annie continued, recapturing Hitch's interest. "There in the same unit as the rest of my team. But aside from that, only minor changes like making it sound like I was interested in the scouts when I didn't mean too. I feel like the biggest impacts will be Marcel, Ulric, and Thalia."
"Wait, I remember those names." Hitch stated as she briefly looked through some of her files, pulling them out one by one, opening them up to show the pictures to Annie. "These three?"
"Yeah, those are the ones." Annie confirmed as she looked at the photos in the dossiers.
"Well I'll be sure to keep an eye on them." Hitch expressed as she placed them in her neater pile with the rest of the cadets of interest. "Well talk about how we'll somehow manage to unite the Eldians together on Paradis, for now, you should probably talk to Rico. She's been mentioning you and a few others quite a bit." Hitch said with a smile, standing to hug Annie across the desk. Reluctantly, Annie returned the gesture, albeit in an awkward manner that caught Hitch off guard. "You've never done that before." Hitch smiled, causing Annie to flinch a bit.
"I had an… interesting two years." Annie stated cryptically as she turned to walk out, the last thing she saw being Hitch and her devious smile. "What the hell am I gonna do?"
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
The white-haired garrison soldier sat quietly in her temporary office as she tapped a stack of papers on the desk, making sure that the dossiers were organized a neat as she placed them to the side. "Send in the next cadet when you leave." She said in a monotonal manner towards a rather meek looking cadet.
"Y-Yes ma'am." The soldier acknowledged as he turned to exit, closing the door quietly behind her.
"He passed the ODM test her first try?" Rico said aloud as she stared down at the boy's profile. "This 'Thomas' has a long way to go." The opening of the door did not catch her attention as it closed almost as quickly as it opened. "Please state your name." she said robotically as she looked down the sheet of one Thomas Wagner.
"Annie Leonhart." The voice expressed, followed by the distinct sound of a fist meeting an issued jacket.
The name quickly pulled Rico out of her focus, causing her to look up to see the familiar face staring back at her with a full salute. "At ease cadet." Rico stated with a more calm demeanor. "Please take a seat." Annie did not say another word as she sat down, her expressionless face now staring back at Rico. "It seems like the events of Shiganshina may have affected her mental state. I suppose that's something I'll have to work on throughout her training." Rico surmised as she flipped through the folder containing the dossiers she had yet used.
"Before we begin, I have little intention to join the garrison regiment." Annie spoke up as Rico pulled the proper file, laying it gently in front of her.
"So I've heard." Rico replied transparently. "However I would urge you to hear me out at the least, you have three years to do so." There was a pause, not hesitation, but almost that of a silent acknowledgement. "Your record is quite impressive. Extensively trained in hand-to-hand combat, passed the physical fitness exam with a near perfect score, and solid scores from various trainees on your ability for squad cohesion."
The last description caused a moment of confusion in the girl, seemingly expecting to be labeled a loner or at the very least average. "I see why you've taken interest in me, but—"
"That's not why I've taken interest in you. I'm certain you remember the events of Shiganshina. I'm certain you remember me." Rico explained with a small, but sly smile. "I can't say I didn't expect you and the others to join the military, but this resume, it only adds to my curiosity."
"I do recognize you, and I owe you my life for that day, but I am fairly set on my options." Annie replied firmly, but it was clear that Rico could see the slight hint of joy in her expression.
"Well then, I suppose I have my work cut out for me." Rico expressed as she set the dossier in a smaller pile of strong candidates she had compiled. "The Garrison has changed since that day, and I look forward to the day when you join it." Rico replied with a more full smile. "Do you have any questions?"
"Yeah, is it alright if we talk another time? Preferably where we don't have a time limit? I have many questions, and I'm sure my fr— colleagues would want to talk to you." Annie replied, her façade faltering to a point as she allowed her emotional curiosity surface.
"As your liaison, I am required to be open for you at any time. As I have taken this position, I am exempt from basic duties not revolving around your training. I'm certain we could schedule a time to meet." Rico answered affirmatively, resulting in a mild sigh of relief.
"Thank you." Was the final response from Annie as she turned to walk out of the door.
"It's good to see you." Rico finished as she watched Annie close the door behind her.
The door cracked open a smidge as Annie put her head back in to say "It's good to see you too." Before closing the door behind her once more.
Rico sat in a distinct curiosity as the next cadet walked through the door. "She's an odd one I suppose."
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
"That Rico is going to be a problem." Marcel expressed to his companions concerned as he and the other warriors sat in an isolated place within the forested training grounds. "She's intelligent, if she finds out what we're planning, we'd be doomed."
Annie looked towards the leader, making sure to keep a straight face as she responded. "Yes, but she has a unique connection with Reiner and I, we could easily do what we've done with Thalia and Ulric. Having someone so high up in command, as well as with that intelligence, it would only legitimize us further."
"Yeah, but the longer she gets to know us, the more likely she is to suspect us." Reiner cut in, causing Annie to glare back with mild frustration.
"Would you shut your mouth for once?" Annie thought angrily, but she quickly began questioning herself. "Why is this so controversial? Its because she's an asset to be used… right? It would be a tactical blunder to waste this opportunity. That's it." She thought in an attempt to convince herself.
"Either way, we'll all need to be on guard around her." Bertholdt stated, trying to return to the crux of the issue.
"Exactly." Marcel agreed as he reined in the focus of the group. "IF she gets to nosey, we'll have to take action."
"I'm not sure that would be wise." Annie argued quickly, almost without thinking. This surprised the group, but Marcel relented in allowing her to speak. "It's too risky to do anything that rash. If she starts getting 'nosey' then we'll just have to distance ourselves in a more natural manner."
"What do you propose by that?" Bertholdt questioned confused.
"If she starts making connections, we make it look like we have a falling out, make it look apparent. When we're all split, she'd have to focus on one of us, or drop it. Worse comes to worse one of us could escape with our abilities. This way we don't risk bringing the resources of the entire garrison down upon us." Annie explained further in an attempt to avoid any notion of taking out her savior.
"This isn't like you." Reiner said calmly as he leveled a stare against Annie's. "You've never had a problem with stomping out resistance in the past."
"This is different, I'm just thinking logically about—"
"This is about Shiganshina, isn't it?" Reiner cut off, catching Annie off guard.
Annie faltered for just a moment, seemingly giving the others enough to cast doubt on her motives. "When the hell did Reiner get so confrontational about this…" Annie thought angrily as a flash of realization hit her. "This is because of Marcel…"
"Annie, your personal feelings cannot come before out objective. If we are to rid this world of the devils, we must do anything necessary to accomplish our mission." Reiner replied in his zealot like tone.
Annie felt mortified, but she shouldn't. She should have agreed to a greater extent. What was happening to her? As these thoughts zipped around in her head, Annie took a deep breath. "I'm only suggesting that a plan of aggression will only make all the work we've done to this point void. We've committed to blending in to find the founding titan, if we break form now, we're finished." Annie expressed coldly.
"I've of a mind with her." Bertholdt said in agreement. "But if it's necessary, I think we should be more proactive than distancing ourselves."
"I'm inclined to agree." Marcel expressed after a moment of contemplation. "Keep your heads down for now, and—"
"Hey guys, I was just wondering if you had a sec." the voice of Ulric appeared from a nearby bush.
"How did you find us?" Bertholdt said nervously as he looked between the calmed Annie and Marcel, landing on the more aggressive Reiner reaching for a nearby rock discreetly.
"I've always been able to find you, I'm a master of hide and seek." Ulric said with a smile as he jested with the group. "But I was wondering whether you guys wanted to go on a light run. I've been doing the same drills for hours now, I could use some running mates."
"Sure thing, I'll meet you at the barracks in a few minutes." Marcel replied with a smile, his serious tone dispelling immediately.
"Sounds good!" Ulric said with a thumbs up as he left as quickly as he came.
"Now that I think about it, he has been unnaturally gifted at finding things." Annie thought as she recalled the various schemes and plans he laid out with detailed recon that was almost never wrong. "Is he like Thalia?" She thought as the tension around their group began to fall.
"We should leave for now, we don't want to seem to suspicious." Bertholdt suggested as he stood up. "Lucky for us, Ulric isn't the most perceptive in social settings."
"I'm not too sure about that…"
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
Annie's fist had a brisk sting that she had grown accustomed to for a brief moment before it quickly dissipated. A loud thud shook the ground as Thalia landed in front of her, clutching her chest, a wooden knife landing a few feet away. "How am I supposed to learn anything if your just gonna go all in like that?!" Thalia questioned as she rubbed her shoulder.
"Sorry, I thought you could keep up with that pace." Annie replied in a dispassionate manner as she relaxed her stance, moving forward to pick up the wooden knife.
"Fine, lets see if the basics you showed me hold up." Thalia said standing up, brushing the dust off her pants.
"All you need to do is disarm the knife. I'll be coming at you held back since I doubt most citizens have combat training." Annie replied as she tried to forcefully break down her stance to be more unbalanced and unrefined. "It feels painful just stooping down this far." Annie acknowledged as she forced herself further into an amateurish form.
"I'm ready when you are." Thalia expressed as she in turn stood in the stance that Annie took whenever she was engaged in a fight.
"She's got that down at least, now lets hope she remembers the details." Annie thought as she studied the girl for a moment, this being the first time she can properly see the form that she's been using. "Here I come." Annie expressed as she silently charged Thalia, making sure not to move too fast or to precise.
While she did her best, it was clear that her body was slowing down the movements Annie had demonstrated. With both hands gripping the knife, Annie lunged forward through the stance that while it looked strong, the form was easily broken. Thalia once again ended up on her bottom, this time clutching her chest. "We're getting nowhere with this." Thalia said with some strain as Annie moved to help her up. "We've gone through the moves, I'm just too slow."
"While I can slow myself down, it's hard for me to not see an opening to strike." Annie seemingly apologized as she pulled Thalia back up, taking a moment to look at the lackluster performances the others were giving. "I don't know why I expected any change." Annie thought in a similar disappointment that she had felt before. "I honestly don't see a point to learning this."
"Really? Why not?" Thalia questioned confused, seemingly seeing something she did not.
"What is hand to hand combat training going to do against a titan?" Annie questioned with a bit more fire than she had in the past. "You saw what happened in Shiganshina, I almost died when I got to close." Annie questioned as she retreated back past her monotone demeanor, landing around a more fearful tone that seemed to startle her.
"Killing titans isn't our only job as soldiers." Thalia responded, bringing Annie back, her expression showing confusion an interest as Thalia looked back with a solid expression. "Our job is to defend the people, from titans, and themselves. Both the garrison and the MP's are tasked with keeping order in the walls. Not to mention scouts work pretty much wherever they want. Having it in their arsenal isn't a bad idea either." Thalia rationed as she walked closer to Annie. "Look around again, I'm sure you can find plenty of people putting there all into this."
Doing as instructed, Annie looked around. She first spotted Eren and Reiner, which she wasn't all that surprised about. Scanning closer she could see Mina and Thomas sparring. In what used to look like two people going through the motions evenly, Mina seemed to at the very least be edging out Thomas. Sasha and Connie, while still messing around, were giving their all in their bouts, no longer simply posing at one another. Looking at Christa, she was having a very productive bout with the boy that Hitch laid out when she arrived. "Why is there such a sudden change? I haven't done all that much different around here, at least nothing to make this much a difference."
Thalia waited until Annie's eyes fell back onto her. "Now, teach me how to do the disarming thing again, I want to see if I can follow it at a quicker pace." Thalia asked as she picked up the knife. "Besides, once we finish our reps here we can get into a proper spar." She said, motioning to a nearby square ring surrounded by fence posts at its corners, ropes connecting them.
"Very well." Annie replied as she sighed, getting into her stance. "Come at me at a pace that you find comfortable, I'll adjust accordingly. Make sure that after you make your attack you focus on my movements. Worse comes to worse just watch me another time while I'm with another opponent.
"Right!" Thalia cried as she lunged forward, this time slightly slower than she had previously. Annie's vision seemed to go in slow motion as she adjusted to the speed, flowing through the motions. Placing her hand at Thalia's wrist, she used her other to smack Thalia's into the first palm. The sudden shift in momentum forced the knife to go flying away, leaving Thalia open for a quick and simple takedown, once again landing her on the ground.
"You think you can recreate it at that speed?" Annie questioned as she helped up Thalia.
"Only one way to find out." Thalia said with a bright smile as she assumed a defensive position.
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
Annie plunged the dagger forward towards Thalia, watching as she effortlessly made it fly to the side with the disarming move, following it with the simple takedown that Annie demonstrated. While Thalia wasn't able to take her down with it, only forcing her halfway down before Annie reversed her outstretched hand into an armlock, spinning her around and taking her down herself. "Alright! Uncle! Uncle!" Thalia pleaded as she pounded the dirt with her hand.
Releasing Thalia, Annie smiled a bit as she moved off. "I'm impressed by your advancement, but you'll need to work on your physical attributes if you want to be effective." Annie said in a half compliment, watching Thalia stand up. "Now if I'm right, Eren should be here right about…"
"Hey, Annie!" the voice of Eren came from behind her. Turning around she saw the smiling boy alongside a polite looking Reiner. "I was wondering if I could ask for your help!"
"I guess they can't really comment on my laziness." Annie thought as she looked back towards Thalia. "And why is Reiner acting like he did before? He should be almost religiously anti-Eldian since he didn't take on Marcel's persona. Unless this is all an act still…"
"This is perfect!" Thalia spoke up. "I could test out that disarm on one of them!"
A brief smile appeared on Annie before she turned to Thalia. "Another day." Annie replied as she began walking towards the now crowded fight pit.
"What's the problem? Are you afraid I couldn't handle your training?" Eren asked confused as he looked to Thalia.
"Alright, now that I seem baited." Annie thought as she turned around in her fighting stance. "Might as well teach him this lesson again."
"You better grab that knife." Thalia said with a smirk.
Eren jumped a bit as he fumbled the knife in his hands. After he regain his composure, he readied himself before charging Annie in a more refined way than in her past life, however it made no difference as Annie effortlessly sent him collapsing to the ground, the impact kicking up plenty of dust.
"I warned you this was going to happen." Reiner said with a hardy laugh.
"Who said you were getting out of this?" Annie questioned, still holding her stance.
"Yeah Reiner, what was that about 'showing me how its done'?" Eren questioned with a twisted expression.
"R-Right." Reiner expressed in a significantly more fearful tone than before.
"This definitely isn't an act, at least not entirely" Annie thought as she barely noticed herself leaving Reiner crashing onto the ground, landing at Thalia's feet. "Come on, let's see what all that commotions about." Annie said as she faced towards Thalia.
"I guess that's enough disarming training for one day then." Thalia said with a shrug as the two began making their way towards the arena that was growing ever louder.
As Annie found herself at the pit, she shoved her way through some of the onlookers that were cheering incoherently, only making out the names of the combatants. "So this is why there's so much attention." Annie expressed with a sigh as Thalia made her way next to her.
"Their at it again?!" Thalia complained as she two recognized the two. "Honestly, there lucky this is an actual training exercise."
"Who you got this time?" the strained voice of Reiner asked behind Annie.
Annie turned to see a slightly slouched and out of it Reiner followed closely by Eren in a similar state. "I haven't got a good look yet." Annie replied as she turned to analyze the fight between Marcel and Ulric.
"Do they fight often?" Eren questioned as he pushed up next to Thalia, leaving Reiner to look over his shorter companions.
"Basically, but it's never been malicious. Just a matter of 'training'" Thalia explained with air quotes as Marcel landed a particularly hard punch, knocking some blood out of Ulric's mouth.
"I think I'm going to give it to Marcel this time." Annie weighed in as she watched the rather unphased Ulric bring his head back, wiping the blood from his cheek.
"With that face? Ulric has this." Thalia chimed in with a regretful interest as her attention focused on the two now in the midst of slick combat, either of them dodging, blocking, and landing with explosive performances in a near even contest.
"I got an idea." Reiner said as he placed a hand on Annie shoulder. "How bout if Ulric wins, you finally give him the fight he's been asking you for."
"He's not ready for that." Annie replied as she shoved Reiner's hand off, twisting his wrist a bit to break his grip, causing him to recoil it back.
"He is pretty desperate." Thalia agreed. "Why not show him how far he has to go? He's clearly in the mood for this."
"You too?" Annie questioned calmly as she looked at the tired looking Thalia.
"Well it does seem like those two have the best skill here." Eren stated as he seemed entranced with the battle, not realizing that Annie had taken mild offense to the statement, which happened to look like a major annoyance in her expression. "Don't get me wrong, you definitely have more skill than us, but this seems ridiculous."
"Fine, if he wins, I'll get in there. Just don't blame me when he's bedridden in the med tent for a week. Annie scoffed as she watched Ulric land a quick sweep, sending Marcel tumbling to the ground face first. Annie winced as she watched Ulric put Marcel in a rather painful hold that she had taught him about a year back.
"Yield! Yield!" Marcel cried in pain as Ulric released him, quickly turning him around and helping him up. Annie cursed herself for not waiting a few seconds longer to make her statement.
"Good fight, too bad you left yourself open this time." Ulric said with a wide smile as he wiped some dirt off Marcel's shoulder.
"If you weren't so slippery, I wouldn't have an issue." Marcel panted. "What is that make it, 67-74?"
"68!" Ulric quickly corrected. "That time in front of the guard counted.
"It was an act!" Marcel complained as he grabbed his shoulder and swung it around.
"Thalia, hold my jacket." Annie expressed as she took of her training jacket, handing it to the girl. "I may as well test a hypothesis."
"Right." Thalia smiled as she folded it neatly over her arm. "Pay attention, you might learn something." Thalia said cheekily towards Eren, causing Annie to shoot her a glare.
"Are you one to talk? You could use some more forms. I want you paying as close attention as you can." Annie expressed stoically as she stepped over the fence.
As she walked in following a nervous nod from Thalia, she eventually got close enough to hear the pair talking quieter, though this was made easier by the crowd growing eerily quiet, some people even calling other pairs to watch.
"Looks like you get a nice reward." Marcel jested as he caught the sight of Annie.
"Are you too injured for a spar?" Annie questioned Ulric with no emotion.
"You know I've been waiting for this." Ulric replied in anticipation as his eyes locked with Annie's, a lot of tension leaving his body as his adrenaline boosted his senses. The surprise reward coming out of nowhere certainly aiding in this feeling.
"Don't you think it's a little unfair to take him on after a bout?" Marcel asked between pants. "Besides, are you sure you want to make a scene?" He questioned, his tone holding a double meaning only they understood.
"This was Reiner's idea, take it up with him." Annie pressed as she motioned her head towards where she entered from.
"Take this with you!" Ulric said as he tossed Marcel not only his jacket, but the black undershirt he wore underneath, showing his slim, yet toned physique.
"Well I can see there's no stopping this now." Marcel granted as he held the sweat drenched shirt in his hands. "Don't break him."
"Don't worry, I'll recover." Ulric replied as he assumed his fighting position, one akin to Annie's, only rather than standing solid, he was staying on his toes, his arms freely shifting position.
"I won't be holding back." Annie expressed as she slowly raised her arms up in her fighting stance. "Even if Marcel is right, and even if I'd rather not have come out here. If there's the chance that Ulric has some talent, I can get a hint from like Thalia, this fight needs to happen. I do best when I'm analyzing an opponent." Annie figured as she glanced around, seeing essentially the entire unit watching the stare down, Shadis and Rico included. Shadis' expression was of disapproval, but he said nothing. Rico looked anxious, but also intrigued as she looked towards the two lives, she and her teammate saved in Shiganshina in a combat pit.
A few moments of tension passed as Ulric's breathing eventually slowed. Annie would not go on the offensive. Not yet. "I guess it's about time we started." Ulric replied as he changed up the tempo of his steps to be a bit more random, dashing forward to make a lunging strike at Annie.
Without hesitation Annie deflected the outstretched arm, countering the overextension with a short leg sweep as she threw Ulric to the ground, twisting his arm as he landed. "Yield." She said calmly. "This certainly won't keep him down."
"You wish!" Ulric replied with a smile through gritted teeth as he maneuvered his body to not only untwist his arm, but also return the favor to Annie, sweeping her off her feet.
Annie effortlessly used her hand to shift her momentum and push up, landing on her feet as she watched him recover. "I've seen his slippery nature, but now I have to analyze it firsthand if I want to counter it." Annie thought as she took a step forward, seeing a slight twitch in Ulric's ears and feet. So slight that the average onlooker or even an adept fighter would miss.
Annie made her own charge, significantly faster than Ulric as she threw a combination of punches toward him. Each punch quickly slipped past his guard, tagging him in the gut, the shoulders, and even a few times in the face for a time. Slowly but surely each one began being dodged or blocked by her opponent, albeit with major damage to his forearms as the punches hit hard. Annie tried a roundhouse kick, but as soon as her weight shifted to allow her to rotate, Ulric was already in position to block the attack, forcing Annie to disengage following the negated attack. "Damn you pack a punch!" Ulric replied excited as he shook his leg.
"That was definitely a reaction I couldn't have made that quick, even if I would have made it eventually." Annie determined as she stared down her opponent, drowning out the various cheers and commotion erupting from the crowd.
Ulric charged Annie again, this time leading with a flurry of kicks that were fairly telegraphed, allowing Annie to quickly evade them before they made contact. More attacks came, but Annie didn't need to block a single one as she gracefully evaded the attacks, countering on occasion as she found a rare opening. One particularly egregious opening showed itself, causing Annie to launch what would have been a devastating kick to the back of Ulric's knee.
Annie watched as Ulric, seemingly telepathic, backflipped over the strike with little to no warning, sending a foot into Annie's gut as he used his hands to change his position, sending her tumbling to the ground. Before she could recover Ulric pounced on her, sitting in a position that made it impossible for her legs to kick him, using his arms to restrain her own. Annie was taken down. "Yield." Ulric said with a smile.
"That definitely confirms that something weird is going on with him. That twitch plus his ridiculous reflexes that match my own, I'll have plenty to prod him on after he wakes up." Annie thought as she opened her mouth to speak. "Your hold is sloppy." She said coldly as she surged forward, his grip not in a proper position to restrain her shoulders enough to where he couldn't be reached by a headbutt. As her skull made contact with his, and a moment of disorientation hit Annie and Ulric both.
"Shit!" Ulric cried in pain as he pulled back clutching his head.
Annie took her opportunity to push Ulric back enough to where she could manuever her legs, quickly locking them around his neck in a triangle choke hold, causing his face to quickly begin changing to a bright shade of red. "Submit!" Annie ordered to no avail as Ulric continued to struggle on. "Suit yourself." Annie sighed as she tightened her grip.
After a few more moments of struggle Ulric went limp, prompting Annie to finally release the hold as an unconscious Ulric fell to the ground. "Medics!" Rico called as two aids ran over to collect Ulric.
"Don't worry, he should wake up in a few moments." Annie explained as she turned to walk back towards her stunned collegues. "I know that my group is surprised that Ulric managed to take me down, but the rest of them probably know not to challenge me in the future." Annie thought as she made her way over the fence with barely a bruise on her.
O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O
Authors Notes: Alright! There were definitely a lot of changes and exposition I threw at you so I might as well start off by saying that I have taken a few creative liberties within the world. Thalia's ability, Photographic Muscle Memory. Essentially an extension of Photographic memory that gets translated into her physique. This is extremely nerfed when it comes to strenuous activities, but for things that require little effort, it's a powerful gift. I wanted to make her unique, while also not being broken overpowered, like the rest of the cadets not named Mikasa. She's not very physically inclined, but this ability will be key. I gave you a taste of what Ulric can do, but I won't let you know just yet. You may have noticed that I have aged up the cast about three years. This is mainly because I wanted this to be a bit more realistic than cannon, while not really changing much in terms of story. It is also to be assumed that the curse of Ymir is pushed back the same amount so that the numbers can stay the same. Let's talk about Hitch for a moment. I decided to make her a part of a mildly influential family so I could have her join the academy a little early for the sake of this reveal. I figured that Hitch being how she is would have also made at least one drastic change so that she could meet up with Annie quicker, but in a way that wasn't as efficient as joining with them by 'coincidence'. It may be clear, but Annie's personal barriers have effectively been damaged by her years in the crystal. She was essentially starved from social interaction outside of being talked to by Armin for an extended period, and right after she found herself in a more relieved state following her reveal in the original world. She is more social than before, making conversation with the various recruits while giving various different excuses for doing so. What will come of all these new connections and decisions? I suppose you'll have to keep reading! The next chapter may take a bit as finals week is just around the corner, but it will be titled [Tormenting Allegiance]