Attack On Titan: Vanguard

by Zeltic88

In a ruined timeline, the various warriors of Eldia and Marley have fallen, leaving their societies and people destroyed. A small group has sent back Annie Leonhart back to the past alongside another in an attempt to alter the course of their timeline, in hopes that their future would not come to pass. While at first reluctant, Annie returns, the future of two peoples in her hands.

1. Last Resort

Attack on Titan: Vanguard - Chapter 0 [Authors Notes]

Disclaimer: I do not own Attack on Titan, nor its characters

Description: This will be a new take on the Attack on Titan story we're all familiar with, however through the interesting perspective of Annie Leonhart (For the most part). Following a catastrophic timeline that resulted in the destruction of most of the known societies, Marley and Paradis included, some of the last remaining survivors are to make a daring play, unknowing if it would work. This Story will detail the decisions Annie makes as she is transported back to her landing on Paradis island with Bertholdt, Reiner, and Marcel. With the information Armin had been feeding her for years following the Stohess District Incident, along with her knowledge of events prior, its up to Annie not only to decide where her loyalties lie, but the course of Eldian History as it unfolds yet again. Will she be able to remember all the information she had been granted? Will she make the situation better or worse? Will the travel back in time have any undesirable affects on Annie? All these questions and more will be answered in Attack on Titan: Vanguard. (I know that time travel is rather amateurish to abuse, but I think with this specific character, it could work.) The overall goal of this is to not only utilize Annie's character in a personally more fulfilling manner, but to also explore the concept of a 'Villain' needing to struggle with her allegiance, as well as her decisions. (Think of it like a Telltale game)

Text Key:

"Speech"

"Thought"

"YELLING"

-Writing-

"Flashback Thoughts"

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O (Scene/Perspective Change)

Final Remarks:

Reviews are welcome

I have no DeviantArt, nor am I an artist so I can only describe how characters and items look

There are going to be a few OCs due to a few changes made to canon detailed throughout the story

The events prior to the time travel are in a timeline NOT shown in canon

The time travel WILL have unintentional side-effects that will be explained throughout the story.

There will be Butterfly effect changes due to many of Annie's decisions. Some good, and some very bad.

No OC will be inherently more powerful than a given main character, but that doesn't mean they can't be powerful in other ways, nor does it mean they can't work their way to it.

Attack on Titan

Attack on Titan: Vanguard – Chapter 01 [Last Resort]

Disclaimer: I do not own 'Attack on Titan' nor its Characters

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O

The ground shook around the interior of wall Sina. An unknown force was causing a seemingly abandoned headquarters, previously under the jurisdiction of Premier Dahlias Zachery, to rumble after every instance of projectiles shelling the surrounding area. Down below the building was a small dark room, housing a large, light blue crystal holding what appeared to be a blonde figure.

Another shell hit the ground, causing the encased female to open her eyes. "What could that be?" she thought, only worried about the trivial aspects of her existence. Another rumble shook the building above, causing a loud crash to be heard from below. "Is it… is it finally time?" The woman thought as no guards rushed down the stairs to secure her.

"I haven't had anyone down here in quite some time…" The girl thought skeptically as she heard faint footsteps on the ceiling above her. "Not since… They last visited…" The woman thought as two blonde faces appeared in her mind. One a timid boy, seemingly head over heels for her, and the other a seemingly carefree spirit, willing to ride out any storm.

"She's down here!" A muffled voice called from the other side of a closed door, clearly locked from the other side.

"Someone's coming at least… I wonder if today will actually be the day..." The woman thought hopefully as she heard the door explode open, a large body clearly the catalyst to its destruction.

As a few planks and chips of wood clattered down the stairs, torchlight began to lighten the dark room. "Come on, we don't have much time!" a familiar voice called down the stairs, echoing throughout the barely lit room.

"Reiner!" She thought as the sliver of hope she held began to grow.

"Alright, but make it quick, it's gonna be hard to transport that crystal." Another voice hurried the first, causing the woman's blood to boil.

"What is this?! Why is he here!?" Annie thought angrily as a large, blonde, muscle bound man entered her room with his lit torch.

"Annie!" The man exclaimed happily as three more figures entered behind him. "You were right Armin!" He called back as a smaller and meeker blonde followed closely behind.

"Perfect! I 'm so glad they didn't move her after the coup." Armin expressed in relief as he approached the crystal. "Annie, we need to get you out of here, there are enemies closing in quickly." Armin explained as another shell hit the building directly, causing it to topple over on itself.

"Looks like it's the underground passage then." The woman Annie remembered earlier exclaimed as she worriedly approached the crystal. "Annie, we need to get you out of here, please, help us out here!" the woman pleaded in a familiar manner to Annie as she had many times before.

"For all I know Reiner is a prisoner… this is easily a setup, especially if he's involved." Annie thought as her eyes darted toward the shortest figure in the room, adorned in a green cloak, slick short black hair, and a resting bitch face that could rival her own.

The woman traced Annie's eye, seeing its target was the shorter man. "Forget it Hitch, she clearly won't come out willingly." The shorter man expressed irritated as he approached the crystal.

"Captain Levi, what are you—" Armin began before the man known as Levi gave him a deathly stare, silencing him quickly.

"How long would it take to cart her out of here?" Reiner questioned.

"Too long." Hitch replied as she turned back to Annie, giving her a pleading look.

"I still have one trick up my sleeve." Levi expressed coldly as he pulled what looked to be a large tooth from his jacket.

"Wait, how do you have that?! A titan body should dissipate in—" Armin tried to question before Levi struck the crystal at a weak point, chipping away a small chunk.

As the crystal hit the ground with a glass like thud, Annie began to panic inside. "That's not possible!" she thought frantically as the man began making short work of her crystal prison.

"Slow down! We need to be careful we don't shatter the actual her inside the crystal!" Hitch announced in concern, nearly grabbing onto the captain as he continued chipping away.

Armin quickly grabbed ahold of Hitch's shoulder, holding her back. "Of all the people left, he's the least I'm worried about making a poor cut." Armin explained as Levi kept at it, shaving the crystal as if it were a simple ice sculpture.

Another tremor hit the building, but this time it was enough for dust and rock to begin falling form the ceiling above. Seeing this, Reiner began to speak again. "We won't make it if we finish cutting her out now, just get her to a point where we can carry her out easier." Reiner suggested as he turned, grabbing Hitch as he went. "Show me where this escape tunnel is."

"What is going on?! This whole situation is… its too odd for it to be fake." Annie thought as Levi was making it dangerously close to her person, chunks of crystal lining the floor below her. "The last news I heard was that the scouts invaded Marley, but if this is a rescue mission, why are the Eldian's here? If this was a matter of moving me further into the capital, why is Reiner here?" Annie thought to herself as one final strike released her hand, allowing her to feel the cold damp air of her room. This was followed promptly by another powerful quake, this time sending much larger debris falling onto their heads.

"Levi, we don't have time!" Armin scolded, seemingly forgetting about the death glare his commanding officer gave him earlier. "Grab her legs, we have to get her out before we get caved in!"

Levi gave Armin a frustrated scoff, knowing he was right as he began to comply, helping Armin lay her flat on the stone ground as Reiner and Hitch returned. "I'll take it from here." Reiner expressed in an authoritative manner, picking up the crystal, now only a thin inch of rock separating Annie from the rest of them.

As Reiner lifted the still imprisoned Annie, he quickly took off running, his heist crew following closely behind as they disappeared into the dark tunnel. Annie had second thoughts about their intentions as another shot hit the ground, causing the room they were in moments ago to be buried in rubble. "Are they actually trying to save me?"

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O

Annie was still being carried as the four that had transported her stood around what appeared to be an abandoned building. "Alright, get her inside and we can start explaining things." Armin ordered as he pulled open a decrepit makeshift door, causing the bottom to drag on the forest floor.

"Right, now that we have some time, an explanation is in order." Hitch agreed as she, Reiner, and Levi walked into the abandoned building.

"They seem to have a legitimate reason for breaking me out… but I'm only going to find out if I listen." Annie surmised as Reiner sat her up against a wall, followed by a creaky shutting of the door. Annie looked around the room to see some old furniture, what looked to be a limited amount of rations, and a few too many bedspreads for her four rescuers.

"Levi, I'd get back to it." Reiner stated as he walked passed the short man.

"I don't need you to tell me that." Levi responded, disdain emitting from his voice, clearly not completely fine with Reiner. Levi quickly began chipping away at Annie, however with a much smaller tooth.

"I guess I'm getting out of here whether I like it or not." Annie thought defeated, however not trusting Lewi's skill with an improvised blade. Deciding that she had run out of options, Annie began to focus, allowing her crystal to slowly begin steaming.

"Wait! Hold on!" Reiner exclaimed, catching Levi's arm mid swing. "I think she's coming out."

"She couldn't have done this before we carried her 5 miles into the forest?" Levi questioned in an aggravated tone, tossing the small amount of tooth he had left onto a nearby table.

"Last time she saw you, you were probably slicing her to bits." Hitch pointed out, recalling the stories Levi had shared.

"Yeah? well last time I saw her she had eaten Eren and slaughtered my squad." Levi replied coldly, walking away to take a seat in a chair, deciding to brood in the corner.

Those around Annie waited patiently for a few moments as the crystal grew thinner, and thinner, until finally, Annie was free of the crystal. Armin was the first to approach. "Annie! It's so good to finally—" Was all the further he got before Annie had him in a hold on the ground.

"Someone is going to tell me what's going on." Annie said neutrally, holding Armin's arm in a way that the slightest bit of pressure could break it. To Annie's surprise, nobody rushed in to save the helpless blonde, causing Annie to raise an eyebrow in confusion.

"Go ahead, break it. He'll just heal it back up." Levi said in a degrading manner, treating Annie's threat as a child's tantrum.

Reiner began to slowly approach the girl, his hands outstretched to show no ill intention "Calm down, he's the best one to explain it to you." Reiner explained in an unusually dispassionate voice. This concerned Annie enough to relax her grip on the scout. Reiner quickly blitzed Annie, slipping around her to put her into an armlock. As he placed his arms under hers, holding his massive hands onto the back of her head, he stated. "Your out of practice." In a very mild, yet somewhat joking tone.

Annie watched as Armin stumbled up, landing in Hitches arms. "No." She said simply, Headbutting Reiner before judo throwing him onto the ground before her. "You just caught me off guard."

"This is all well and good, but can you let us explain what's happening?" Hitch questioned as she helped Reiner off the ground.

"Why exactly are the four of you together? What, did we finally make peace?" Annie asked sarcastically, getting into a passive defensive stance.

"Does it look like I'm fond of this arrangement? If it were up to me, I'd have you both executed. But there isn't much of anyone to watch now is there." Levi replied in his usual tone, dropping a small clue as to the state of the island.

"What do you mean by that?" Annie questioned, relaxing herself, only enough to show some form of trust.

"This island is all but extinct." Armin explained. "After the final battle… there isn't much of anyone left."

"Final battle? Did Marley come and destroy everything? Why are you here then?" Annie asked Reiner, getting surprisingly heated compared to her composed personality she displayed throughout her career.

"Marley didn't win… and neither did Paradis. It was a slaughter on two fronts." Reiner explained as he felt in his jacket, two yellow armbands bearing the Eldian symbol covered in blood showing ever so slightly.

"Then who did?" Annie questioned, shifting her attention to Armin.

"After Eren and Zeke's coup, all opposing military personnel were essentially turned into titans. Cannon fodder for the battle. Many citizens volunteered, seeing Eren as some sort of savior. When the bulk of the Marleyan forces landed with their untamed pure titans… they didn't stand a chance. Especially with the rumbling on the Jaegerist's side." Armin began to explain, causing Annie to freeze for a moment.

"Untamed titans… you don't mean." Annie stopped, looking back to Reiner.

"They turned every Eldian they could find into a titan, thinking it was the only way to win considering they didn't have Zeke's spinal fluid." Reiner began as he started to shake violently. "Including every honorary Marleyan."

Annie's stomach sank as she heard the news, stumbling back as she hit the wall sliding downwards to the floor. Despite this, Reiner continued. "We thought we had the backing of the other nations but… they found out about our lack of titans, and halved military strength. They decided that they had had enough of both of our peoples, destroying the entirety of Marley while it was open, then invading Paradis with the force of every nation in one combined front."

"We held out for a while, but soon are numbers dwindled. Eren and Zeke were the first to go down, and without them, the colossal titans stood motionless, letting the anti-titan weaponry tear them to bits. Mikasa died on a rampage after she learned of what happened to Eren, and the rest of us were picked off little by little until all that was left was us." Armin finished, gesturing around the four lone warriors.

"After the betrayal of the other nations, I decided it was best that myself and the other titan candidates remained with the Eldian's… but they didn't make it." Reiner said choked up. "G-Gabi…" He clutched his jacket close as tears began to flow down his eyes.

Annie was floored by the revelation that not only was her family dead, but every Eldian in Marley, and even those she considered friends before her betrayal. Annie's head fell into her hands as only one more question was left in her mind. "Why? Why go through so much effort, just to tell me this?" She asked pleadingly, turning to Armin and Hitch, knowing that Levi didn't care, and Reiner was too emotionally unstable to answer.

"Because we have a way to fix it." Armin explained as he walked over to what looked like some old machine, covered in a dusty tarp. As Armin ripped the tarp off of the machine, he looked back to Annie with a smile. "We're going to fix this timeline."

"Timeline?" Annie questioned, threatening to tear up herself. "What the hell are you talking about?! After all that you think I'm gonna believe that time travel is the solution?! Do you realize how ridiculous that sounds!?" Annie ranted angrily as she stood up, showing the opposite of what she was known for, genuine rage and emotion.

Without a word Armin flipped on the machine, creating a spark before an unstable looking pool of blue energy began emitting from the inner chamber, causing the machine to shake uncontrollably before Armin shut the machine back off. "I assure you it works, our situation was much more dire than this, so I decided to travel back a few days considering I had nothing else to lose… and it worked. Basically, using all the DNA of the current Titan wielders, alive or dead, I was able to synthesize a chemical that—

"He used the power of all the titans formed into one to pull off this machine. She doesn't need all the details." Levi explained in a monotone voice, rushing Armin along.

The explanation Armin gave was crazy, and every fiber of Annie's being wanted to reject it, but the honest and desperate eyes of Armin made it impossible. "You still didn't answer my question." She stated, composing herself by force.

"Simple." Levi cut in. "Because we need the firepower, especially considering Armin can't go back." Levi explained.

"Why not?"

"Because we intend to go back to right when you landed on Paradis, meaning Bertholdt would have the Colossal Titan, not Armin. We don't know if that just means two titans, or an Armageddon level rip in time, so we won't be risking it."

"What makes you think I even want to go?" Annie questioned skeptically. "You should have let me die in that room." Annie said neutrally as she stared down the room.

"So your going to sit back a do nothing?" Reiner asked, his voice growing more impatient. Annie recognized this as she remembered back to the moment Reiner took on Marcel's role in their unit.

"I—"

"If you wanna die then go right on ahead! That portal will destroy your body on a molecular level, sending back only your consciousness! Hell! If it doesn't work, then you get your wish anyways!" Reiner snapped as he stood up tall, towering over the rather short Annie.

Annie looked back without fear in her eyes, shooting a matching glare right back towards the man. "I'm done taking orders from you." She replied defiantly.

"So your really just going to stay here?" Hitch questioned; a look of disappointment painted across her face.

Annie searched for a response, by she didn't have one. She was unsure of what to do. She new she was only defying Reiner out of spite, but the thought of making things better was enticing. "It doesn't matter anyways. It won't be my family or friends I save… only an imitation." Annie replied in a tone of finality as she walked towards the door.

Levi quickly stood to block her path. "Listen, you go out there, your probably gonna die in less than a day."

"That doesn't matter to me. I'd rather die fighting than in some gadget." Annie explained, attempting to shove Levi out of the way before a crash came through the window. As everyone's attention was quickly drawn to the object, shock erupted through Annie's body as a grenade laid only a few feet beside her.

Before she could react, Levi grabbed her, shoving her across the room as the device detonated beneath him. Her ears ringing, Annie looked back to see the upper half of Levi's torso on the parallel wall, a bloody paste littering the scene. "Why would he do that?!" Annie thought in a panic as she looked over to see Reiner protecting Hitch and Armin.

"Looks like we have a change of plans." Reiner expressed as his wounds heal. "Give her the rundown, then send'em both. I'll give you as much time as I can."

"Reiner let me—" Armin began before Reiner gave him a glare of his own.

"It's better I die here anyways, I won't be of any use as I am now…" Reiner explained, knowing that he was emotionally broken, more likely to be a hindrance than a help. Gripping the two armbands from his jacket, and sliding one onto each arm, Reiner charged out the door. A bright green flash appearing just outside the now broken window as a massive plated titan appeared between them, and the invading force.

"Annie! We can't let this chance go to waste!" Hitch cried as she quickly ran towards her, grabbing her by the arm as she essentially dragged her to the machine.

"I'm sorry, but there's no other way." Armin pleaded as he began quickly switching nobs and pressing buttons.

Annie hesitated as the blue hue returned, oddly mesmerizing the woman as she stared intently at the motion of the energy. "Fine…" She obliged as she stood beside Hitch.

Not acknowledging Annie's consent, Armin began to describe some of the more important details, however Annie knew he heard her. "When you go through, your material body will be destroyed, but your conscious will be implanted in your former self. Only your previous memories will be retained, including muscle memory. The only problem is that of your titan shifting ability. I had to change some of the calibrations, but there is a slight change in the duration of your power. In order for the process to work, the combined DNA will have a side effect for titan shifters. It will essentially eliminate the timer on your life, meaning…" Armin paused for a moment. "All of your fellow warriors will move on without you." Armin concluded.

"If that's the case then I will willingly pass on my titan regardless." Annie replied boldly as she stared down Armin.

"That's your own choice." Armin said calmly, accepting the decision, however skeptical to say the least. As he finished typing in what he needed too as he backed away from the machine. "When you two make it back, don't try to find each other immediately. Hitch, it would be best if you played out your life in a relatively similar manner until events like Trost begin to unfold." Armin then turned to Annie. "Honestly, I don't know too much about your situation, but there are key events that must be set in motion. I'm sure that you'll be able to decipher which based on our long chats." Armin explained with a final smile. "Good luck."

Annie watched on as Armin walked to the center of the house, holding his hand up to his open mouth. "Come on Annie! He's going to destroy the evidence!" Hitch rushed as she grabbed Annie's arm, running through the machine.

Time slowed as Annie watched the smile on Armin's face fade as he bit down on his thumb. The last thing she saw was a blinding green light, before her body felt light, and her sight darkened.

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O

Annie's eyes began to flutter open, but they felt quicker, lighter than they had before. As She began to rise from aa blanket, she was quickly made aware that she was not alone as a fire crackled in the near distance, along with mild chatter to go along with it

"Where am I?" She questioned, looking around to see three figures sitting around a campfire.

"Oh, your awake." A boy with reddish-brown hair expressed as he gestured over to an empty space around the fire.

Annie quickly rubbed her eyes as she made sure she was hearing correctly, noticing the distinct voice of a thought to be long dead friend. "M-Marcel?" She stuttered, sounding uncharacteristically relieved as the three looked back in confusion.

"Yes? You need something?" He questioned as the other two, a tall black-haired boy and a blonde boy looked at her with similar looks of concern.

"Armin's device really worked…" Annie thought in disbelief as she stood, approaching the fireplace. "Sorry… weird dream." She said calmly as she played off her previous comment.

"No worries." Marcel smiled as Annie sat down between Marcel, and what was clearly a very young Reiner.

"This is… surreal." Annie thought in disbelief as she scanned her surroundings, recognizing it as their first campsite in Paradis.

"Looks like we didn't get to travel very far tonight, I don't blame you for taking a short nap."

"Yeah, no thanks to this cloudy weather." Reiner added as he watched Marcel prod at the fire.

"Wait… this conversation…" Annie thought as the words that her friends were speaking seemed eerie, and familiar. Just as these thoughts began arising, Bertholdt said something that made everything clear as to where she was sent back.

"Even if we manage to destroy the wall, how can we know for sure that the king wont use the Founding Titan?" Bertholdt questioned, causing a shiver to run down Annie's spine.

"This is happening to quickly, I just got dropped in the middle of the past, and—" Annie's thoughts were cut off as her comrades carried on with the conversation that started the doomed mission.

"What are you talking about? Have a little faith in Marley's research." Reiner replied dismissively.

"If this keeps going, Marcel will definitely admit his actions to Reiner, and then while he's still in shock…" She thought panicked as Marcel began to speak.

"That's right, there's no going back. Tomorrow we attack the wall." Marcel stated seriously as he gazed into the fire, thinking about the implication.

Annie watched as Bertholdt did similarly, remembering she was thinking the same thing back then. Now she was looking towards a confused Reiner as he stood up. "Huh? What's the matter?" He started. "You do want to kill the island demons, don't you?" he questioned, shifting his gaze from person to person. "Don't you remember what they've done?"

"There's no use in trying to stop the conversation." Annie thought, knowing that it was too late to try and change its course without seeming out of place. So instead she played along, only this time resting her hands directly in front of her face, feigning thought as she prepared for what was supposed to happen next.

"We are warriors chosen to bring the world's judgement down onto those demons!" Reiner expressed passionately, causing Marcel to look at Reiner with both shock, and guilt.

"I'm sorry." Marcel said quietly, causing Annie to tense up. "I only have one chance." She thought as she discreetly pulled her hand closer to her mouth.

"Huh?"

"Reiner, I'm sorry. You weren't supposed to be chosen as a warrior." Marcel spoke up as Annie looked in Reiner's direction, but focused on the rocks behind him. "I tried to make you look good to the army while making Porco look worse." He admitted for his second time, even though he didn't know of the first.

"What?" Reiner replied, his shock settling in as he looked at Marcel in disbelief.

"I wanted to protect my brother." Marcel continued as tears began to build in his eyes. "I'm Sorry… Reiner, I'm sorry!" He said once more, his tone significantly louder than before.

Annie watched as the dirt began to rumble behind Reiner. "This is my chance! It's believable that I would notice this back then." Annie thought before she took a deep breath. "Get back!" She yelled, Catching Bertholdt and Marcel off guard. As the two saw her fist at her jaw, they quickly began to scramble back, trying not to get crushed by the transformation they couldn't stop.

"What are you—" Marcel said as he ran, stopping as he saw the titan begin to slowly rise from behind Reiner.

Annie bit down on her hand hard as a green light exploded into existence. As she transformed, she saw the creature just beginning to sit up from the dirt. "I made it." She thought relieved as she quickly scooped the comatose Reiner into her palm, just before the titan was able to lunge.

Hardening her fist, she watched the Titan's grasp harmlessly bounce off of her hand. "I'm sorry… Ymir." She thought saddened as she hardened her left leg, roundhouse kicking the small titan across the plain, watching it land, sprawling across the ground and kicking up dust before it settled.

Without a word, Annie found her other companions, setting the now responsive Reiner next to them as she turned to look at Ymir. As expected, Annie saw the unexpectedly upsetting sight of steam as the body began to slowly deteriorate. Knowing her job was done, Annie bent down, exiting her titan.

As she surfaced from the nape, and muscle tendons detached themselves from her face, she watched the steam bellow around her as she climbed her way out. Making her way down slowly, only losing a small amount of stamina, she was met by the stunned looks of her team.

"How did you…" Marcel trailed off as Annie faked fatigue, falling towards Bertholdt, allowing him to catch her.

"I saw the ground rumbling behind Reiner… So I acted." Annie said simply as she regained her footing.

"Well at least it's taken care of." Bertholdt said, accepting the explanation. "But a bit more warning would be nice."

"I had to act quickly." Annie replied neutrally as she looked to the now emotionally confused Reiner.

"I-I… I'm sorry..." He said in a state of self-loathing, likely thinking to himself how everything was his fault. With Reiner as an emotional mess, Annie decided to approach him.

"Since Marcel isn't gone, that means Reiner won't have that personality split. After some time Reiner will grow on his own now… I didn't think a change this early could have this much potential change." Annie thought as she began to contemplate the possible effects this first branch could have.

Before She could think further, Marcel began to approach Reiner, holding out his hand to him. "I am sorry… but what's done is done." He said, a firmness taking hold of his voice, forcing Reiner to look up, first in confusion, then anger, but eventually as he stared toward the serious Marcel, he began to soften, like always. "Regardless of how, you were chosen to be a warrior of Marley. We both have responsibilities now, and we're going to make decisions we must live with for the rest of our lives. Can I trust you to do what needs to be done?" Marcel asked professionally, not trying to cheer up Reiner, but reassure and stabilize him.

Reiner looked up conflicted, however through his tears, he reached up to grab Marcel's outstretched hand.

Annie looked on and decided that she certainly made the right choice. "It might be small, and it may take a while, but Reiner's going to be fine." She thought as she looked towards the true leader of their expedition, now set to play a part in their history more prevalent than martyrdom.

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O

As the four warriors rode on horseback following the surprise attack, and a long day of resting until the sun fell, Annie looked up towards the night sky, contemplating her next move. "Now that Marcel's in charge, we'll probably have a different plan in regard to the wall." Annie thought as she decided to ask the boy himself. "So what exactly is the plan? We'll be at the wall soon."

Turning back, Marcel thought for a moment. "Aside from having Bertholdt destroy the outer gate, and Reiner the inner, I hadn't thought about it. I guess now's good a time as any." Marcel explained honestly.

"It would be wise for someone to hang back to pick me up after the destruction." Bertholdt expressed timidly, averting his eyes as Annie and Marcel's fell onto him.

"Good idea." Annie expressed to Bertholdt's shock. Turning to Marcel, she continued. "You're the fastest, you should probably handle that."

"You have a good point, that means you'll handle Reiner after he destroys the inner gate." Marcel added, looking over at the silent blonde, most likely still thinking on all the emotional whiplash he's been experiencing.

"If that's the case then I'll need to get inside the walls. What's your idea?" Annie replied in her monotone voice.

"You'll walk in as just another titan with Reiner. After he destroys the second wall, you follow him to a safe place, and then you both exit your titans, blending into the crowd. This'll be dangerous, but it's better than having you running around with him in your hands as a titan." Marcel proposed, however Annie looked troubled at the idea.

"This is the same thing Reiner asked… the only difference being that I don't have to worry about Bertholdt. Was Reiner really that close to what Marcel would have tried?" She thought to herself, thinking about the bad memories she had with Reiner in her previous life. "I agree." Annie said calmly.

Skeptically, Marcel continued. "Once we get through, we rendezvous at the escape vessel. They'll likely take us on but if they don't, stay close to the defense force, and only transform if absolutely necessary." Marcel said, enunciating the last part as clearly as possible.

"R-Right." Bertholdt agreed.

"Got it." Reiner said emotionlessly, throwing Annie off a bit as she looked towards him, maintaining her composure.

"Look! Up ahead!" Marcel pointed out, causing Annie to refocus her attention quickly onto the encroaching wall.

"I guess this is where I truly begins." Annie thought as an interesting thought went through her mind. She knew that Armin, Eren, and Mikasa were present during this attack, and she knew that Eren's mom died in the attack. "Maybe I should—"

"…there are key events that must be set in motion." The voice of Armin called out, causing Annie to tighten her grip on her reigns.

"No… I have a job to do."

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O

Annie waited a decent distance away in titan form, seemingly walking around aimlessly alongside Marcel and Reiner as they awaited the signal. From her vantage point, she could see the wall about a mile away, but there were no guards stationed atop it. "These guys have been sitting peacefully for about a hundred years… they were never prepared for this." Annie thought as the dusk sun shined down on her, casting a massive shadow.

As the thought entered her mind, she saw a large explosion of green light, followed by the emergence of a 100m tall titan controlled by Bertholdt. She looked towards her companions as they began to slowly walk forward, marching on as Bertholdt's leg began to wind up backwards.

"This is where it begins." Annie thought as the colossal foot slammed into the wall, leaving a massive hole in the gate of Shiganshina.

Marcel quickly began dashing to Bertholdt as the colossal began to emit steam, covering his exit from the naked body. Knowing their roles, Reiner and Annie began to make their way to the opening, blending into the crowd of titans now making a move on the district.

Annie quickly made it to the opening, but unlike last time, she hesitated for a moment, seeing the carnage in a new light. At first, she saw the people as nothing more than devils, but now when she watched innocent and ignorant citizens being slaughtered, she couldn't help but feel for them. After spending enough time with them in the past, and listening to every story Armin told, she felt guilty. "Snap out of it!" She thought to herself, focusing on the mission, and on what needed to be done.

Annie wandered around, watching amateur garrison soldiers fall by the dozen in their lack luster attempt at defending the wall. Trying to keep a low profile, Annie mingled around other titans, making herself an undesirable target for the cowering soldiers.

Annie heard the distinct sound of a garrison soldier reeling up behind her, thinking he had just caught her off guard. Knowing that she was far enough away from other soldiers, she quickly hardened her nape, allowing the soldiers blades to shatter. With his moment of hesitation, the surrounding titans managed to take hold of him, ensuring he wouldn't be around to expose his discovery.

As she eventually made her way close enough to the main gate, she saw Reiner make his appearance at the inner gate's line of defense. Alone, she decided to watch the spectacle as he began charging at full speed. A cannonball disintegrated as it impacted the hardened plates, not slowing Reiner in the slightest. Annie watched as Reiner threw his shoulder into the wall, likely killing many soldiers and civilians with the rubble that flew as a result of the charge.

As Reiner slowly began to walk back into Shiganshina, he made his way towards a nearby house that masked his size and began to eject from his titan. Not wanting to be late, Annie made her way over, discretely squashing any titan in between her and Reiner. "He stopped to early." She thought irritated as she eventually stood before Reiner, kneeling down as she stared at Reiner's calm face.

Disembarking herself, She and Reiner waited a moment, sneaking into an alleyway until the markings left on their faces were healed. "You were early."

"It's fine, you took care of them." Reiner replied quickly. "We have to get out of here."

"But I might have been spotted taking down those things." Annie said back as the began running from the alleyway towards the inner gate, several titans blocking their path.

"It doesn't matter anymore, they already know about mine and Bertholdt's abnormal titans anyways, one more isn't going to hurt."

"But keeping it secret would be better!" Annie replied, her anger seeping in as Reiner looked at her surprised, not expecting an outburst. Annie thought back to all the hoops she had to jump through thanks to the 57th expedition, remembering all the years she sat trapped in crystal.

"Help!" a voice called from nearby, causing Annie to stop.

"Annie! What are you doing!" Reiner yelled back, stopping himself.

"Did you hear that?" She asked, looking around.

"Yes, and now I'm trying to rendezvous!" Reiner retorted, just as Annie spotted what looked to be a small dark-haired girl trapped under rubble, and a boy, about the same age as them trying to pull it away. Without thinking, Annie rushed over to the scene. "Annie!" Reiner called after her to no avail.

"Why am I doing this?! I have a job to do!" Annie thought, conflicting her actions. As she arrived at the rubble, the boy saw her as she began to throw off small portions of debris.

"We don't have much time!" he said without hesitation, pointing toward a grotesquely grinning, 9-meter titan approaching down an alleyway.

Annie acknowledged as she continued moving small debris, gradually making it easier for the boy to lift. "It's not enough!" Annie said firmly as she tried to aid in lifting the last piece. To her horror, it was too heavy for them to lift.

Annie began to panic as the titan drew nearer. "Lift with your legs!" Reiner called from behind, surprising Annie to say the least as he stood between the two, helping them lift. Deciding not to question the sudden resurgence of Reiner's protective nature, she continued to lift with all her strength, just barely managing to get it up enough for the girl to crawl out.

As the three let go of the wall, it landed with a loud crash. Annie quickly tried to pick up the girl, but it was quickly made apparent that she couldn't move as she cried out in pain. "C'mon, grab her and let's get out of—" the boy began before the titan grabbed him tightly, pulling him closer to him.

Annie froze as she looked at the titan, then down towards her shaking fist. She slowly began to move her hand to her mouth, but she was shocked to see Reiner grab her arm, subtly shaking his head as he picked up the injured girl. "We have to go."

Annie agreed, she knew he was right, but she couldn't do it. Without a thought she charged the titan, prepared to transform if necessary. However this sudden burst of energy was cut short as the titan extended its other hand, seemingly ignoring it's first catch. This wasn't normal for titans, and as the and grew closer, she knew that she wouldn't be fast enough to transform.

"What am I doing? I should be at the gate by now. I didn't come all this way to die. I don't even know him, so why am I doing this? This isn't like me! There's nothing I could have done either way without exposing myself!" Annie thought to herself as the world slowed around her. For a moment, she saw death. The titans arm grew closer, and closer, and then in went past her, sliding across the ground. She looked back to the titan's face, only to see a blonde-haired garrison soldier flying across the nape. She watched as blood splattered across the destroyed buildings, leaving a steaming pool behind.

"Stand back!" another voice shouted from behind her as an unknown person grabbed her by the waist, pulling her back in time to avoid being crushed by the titan's corpse. Annie quickly turned to see a white-haired garrison soldier with glasses staring at her. "Are you okay? Where are your parents?" She asked quickly.

"Dead." Reiner said from behind, approaching the soldier. This quick thinking led to the soldier cursing herself under her breath before she turned back to Annie.

"I'm sorry." She said quietly as the blonde approached with the boy in his arms, and another dark-haired soldier arrived from elsewhere.

"Mitabi, take the girl, their should be a medic on the escape boat." He expressed; I'll take him. Rico, you lead these to the boat personally." He ordered.

"Yes sir!" she responded without hesitation. "Follow me." She said firmly as she turned to start running, barely giving the two of them time to process what was happening.

Once Annie regained her senses, she started following the soldier with Reiner in tow, staring towards her apparent savior as the two were lead towards the main gate. "I've made a big mistake, but at the same time, I feel like it was necessary." Annie thought to herself confused as she ran with all her strength, determined to finish the mission, but also determined to make sure those two made it to the boat safely.

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O

"What were you thinking!" Reiner exclaimed through his teeth as Annie sat across from him, beside Bertholdt, Marcel, and with two sleeping and injured additions sleeping behind her as night fell on the boat.

"Calm down Reiner." Bertholdt pleaded quietly as Marcel simply looked between the two.

"Annie." Marcel began. "Why did you deviate from the mission? It was inevitable that there would be civilian casualties, even children. You knew that." Marcel questioned, trying to be as considerate as possible.

"I—"

"She lost sight of what was important." Reiner expressed under his breath.

Annie waited for the ramblings to stop, regaining her monotone composure as she thought of a proper explanation. "We were on the way back, and I saw these two. It looked simple enough to help them out, so I went to do it. I thought that it would be good to have insiders to give us details." Annie explained calmly.

"That doesn't explain why you charged a titan." Bertholdt pointed out.

"I wanted to make myself look good in front of the two and saw the soldier out of the corner of my eye, it was the best solution to gain the unconditional trust of those two." Annie said neutrally, gesturing towards the two unconscious Eldians.

"But you were about to be—"

"That's enough Reiner." Marcel snapped, causing Reiner to immediately stand down, an act that hadn't happened before. "It's clear that Annie had a plan in mind, even if I can't say I agree with it." Marcel admitted. "That was reckless, and now we have two more mouths to feed."

"We'll just find out what they know and then part ways. That should be the simplest solution." Bertholdt suggested, looking intently at the injured kids.

"While it was reckless." Marcel started. "Having people that trust us unconditionally would have massive benefits." Marcel admitted to Bertholdt and Reiner's shock. Turning to Annie, he started again. "But they're your responsibility. It's clear they'll be the most trusting of you or Reiner, and considering his stance, it's your job to make this idea a reality."

Annie sat conflicted at the order. "I'm glad I saved them, and I'm glad that I can make this mess beneficial, but am I really the best person for this role? I'm not exactly a people person." She thought to herself. Annie kept these thoughts to herself however, nodding in agreement.

"S-Sorry, Annie." Reiner apologized. "I still think it was stupid, but it was wrong to suggest you were abandoning our goals."

"It's understandable." Annie replied honestly, causing Reiner to look back at her with a peculiar look of confusion, borderlining curiosity. "After all we were in an adrenaline filled situation. It's difficult to decipher everything that's going on with tunnel vision."

Annie said this not only to Reiner, but she was also trying to reassure herself in a way as she thought back to the sensation that gave way to her recklessness. "Yeah. Your right." Reiner agreed as he laid down on his own. "I'm going to get some rest; it's been a tiring day" He replied rather abruptly.

"Reiner's on the right track. We should all get some rest." Marcel concurred as he laid back on his cot, followed by Bertholdt silently complying.

Annie stayed for a moment, deciding to take a closer look at their new additions in a way. Looking at the girl, she had dark black hair and glasses, which were cracked and in need of repair. She wore rather nice clothing, most likely the daughter of a merchant or trader. Shifting over to the boy, he was dirty comparatively, even down to his hair being either dirty blonde, or bright brown. He was fairly toned for his age, but not exactly bulky. By the looks of it he also seemed to have weathered hands, signifying that he did some sort of manual labor.

"Such opposites, but both terrible luck…" Annie trailed off as a small smile appeared on her face. She didn't understand it, but she let it be. "Now with these two, and Marcel, grabbing Eren and getting out should be no issue. The only problem is finding enough evidence to convince the others it's him." Annie thought to herself, realizing that whatever she did, Trost was going to have to happen. Lying down, she continued thinking "Until then, it's time to lay low for a few years. I can't keep Hitch waiting."

O~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~O

Authors Notes: I hope this new series has you exited! I know a lot of my viewers are going to ask about y schedule if their coming from another fic, so to put it quickly, Naruto will be weekly, and Vanguard/Mage will be Biweekly (Depending on how I feel too). Now back to this story. The plot point of time travel has always interested me. Not the act itself, but the characters interactions following it. I understand that the time travel in this fic is only briefly explained, and that's only because its not as important as the interactions in the rest of the story, its merely a vessel to get the story going. The side effect of Annie no longer having a timer on life is not simply so that she can live on past her expiration date, but rather to introduce an interesting dynamic and future conflict that I think will liven up the story, letting me explore more than just the set pieces the show has already given us. This is also the reason why Hitch was sent back with Annie (Chosen due to significance to Annie, as well as me wanting to make her more relevant). The survival of Marcel will have massive consequences already, considering Reiner will be of one mind, and the leadership of Marcel will affect the story in both a positive and negative light, depending on yours and the characters perspective. RIP Ymir. Annie as a character has certainly evolved since her first appearance, and she still maintains some of that person inside her, but all her relationships and interactions affected her, nonetheless, creating interesting dilemmas that she hadn't had to face before. I hope you continue to the next chapter [104th Cadet Core]