Annabelle’s Bastion

“Dang,” Anna whispered as she and Aria approached the camp.

They were among the last duos to return to the camp, a fact that earned them quite a few stares. Some were bewildered, others angry, and some even resentful. Of course, most were directed at her companion.

Jaxon stood outside the gathering of people, likely intent on letting them talk about their findings. Judging by the dread on some faces, it seemed they saw the corruption.

Did they feel afraid of it? That was interesting—Anna felt nothing but disgust and urgency when she saw it. Aria also didn’t seem fearful.

The core was a vile thing. A force that could twist the minds of thousands, millions of people. And even those fortunate few who survived the corruption would be forced to fight their brethren. 

If that forest wasn’t conveniently empty, it’d likely have an army of aliens corrupted to fight for it. 

All of that destructive potential, and it was only an F-Tier core.

Anna and Aria took a spot in the gathering, finding their way to the center thanks to Aria’s presence.

Nobody spoke yet, save for the murmurs amongst the duos still together.

Everyone was scattered around the camp, with a small group forming close to Jaxon. These were the braver ones and those who’d likely lead the rest based on whatever they discussed. Naturally, Anna and Aria were among them.

Ashton and one of his partners didn’t look pleased with Aria going in beside her. But Anna didn’t care, and nobody would question Jaxon. 

The third man, the one who would have been her partner, looked suspiciously at Aria. Whatever nonsense Ashton spouted, he didn’t seem to take it as gospel. But the fact that he was still doing that…

Whatever was offered to Ashton and his crew to kill Aria must still be on the table. 

That would explain why Ashton was against Anna participating! They knew she would try to bring back a Sigil because of how close the two were. And once Aria got a Sigil, nobody in that academy could hope to best her—their hope of her death would be erased entirely.

Anna clenched her fists.

Once word spread that Aria was beaten, people would find out how and make plans around it. What if a group of that water Sigil ambushed her?

They had to get Aria a Sigil today. 

“Sir!” Ashton suddenly said with his hand raised once Aria and Anna took their spot. “Before we begin, I have to point out that Aria disobeyed your orders and entered the Forest!”

Anna froze, her then narrowed eyes directed toward the audacious man.

She wasn’t sure if she should immediately beat him senseless or compliment his nerves to so openly question the obvious!

A quick glance showed that Aria’s cold face became a little colder, but Anna reached over and pulled her shirt.

She shook her head gently, receiving a light nod from Aria in return.

Audaciousness aside, it had to reflect poorly on Jaxon for him to allow Aria to participate after publically saying no. He probably didn’t care, but the rest of the expedition clearly wanted to hear it.

“Wells,” Jaxon said, unusually calm, his arms crossed and standard, narrow glare directed at Ashton. But his voice alone showed his annoyance. He gestured toward Aria. “Do you think you’re stronger than her?”

“Uh...” That clearly caught him off guard. He collected himself but took a few moments to give the question serious thought. Finally, he shook his head. “No, sir. She has far more experience with magic than I do.”

That nonsense, again!

“Did I fucking ask why? When I ask a question, I expect a yes or a no. Understood?”

Ashton froze for a moment, then bowed his head. “Yes... sir.”

Jaxon nodded. “Good. That goes for all of you—the same question.” He tore his glare off Ashton and scanned the group. “If an expedition went sour, who do you think would be the highest priority for evacuation?”

Everybody looked at each other, but the answer was implied. Expectedly, many eyes swept Anna. Some were upset, some were annoyed, but a few were understanding.

She wasn’t exactly thrilled at the idea, either. How could she ever allow herself to be saved over the others just because of her innate features? But she also understood where that value came from.

“Annabelle, sir,” Ashton said quietly. His fists clenched by his side showed his thoughts on the matter. Those quickly went behind his back, likely to hide his anger.

“Correct.” Jaxon scoffed, shaking his head. “Does that sound harsh? It is. A supporter’s value will almost always be above a soldier’s. We can pump you guys out like fucking candy. But people with Frost’s talent?” He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in. “We’d be lucky to see even one.”

“I understand why, sir,” Ashton said, nodding. “I agree people like her should be taken care of.”

“Doesn’t fucking matter if you agree, Wells.”

Again, he bowed his head. “Sorry, sir.”

Jaxon paid him no mind.

It felt great to see Ashton defeated.

She didn’t want people being killed for her or for her to be saved over everyone else, but seeing Ashton so thoroughly shut down was satisfying.

However, After a minute of silence, someone stood up.

It was the man who was to be her partner in the forest, the man with long hair and a faint beard—Ashton’s third partner.

“Sir, with all due respect,” he said with his head bowed. He spoke respectfully and in a manner that seemed normal to him. “I do not think myself weaker than her.”

Anna quietly sucked in air through her teeth. That was a rhetorical question!

“Well, congratu-fuckin-lations,” Jaxon immediately replied. However, his bloodthirsty presence spoke otherwise.

“Sir, please allow me to—”

“Shut the fuck up!” Jaxon growled, interrupting him and even making the others, including Anna, jump with his outburst. “She won’t get away with her intrusion, and she won’t walk away with rewards. Anything else is my decision. You lot are too fucking comfortable objecting to your leader. I made the decision that Aria would go with Frost—that is all you fucking need. Wells, Cole, and even you, Frost. You would all be fucking blacklisted if you weren’t a damn student.”

Anna slightly recoiled. 

Why did it turn back to her?!

She already understood why he said what he said and knew to watch how she publically acted against authority! 

That was a commandment she would never obey, but regardless of how she felt, she understood why it was that way!

Jaxon glared at them for a good minute before he scoffed and returned to his ordinary, angry-looking self. His presence dimmed—that had to be a Sigil!

And then it was awkwardly silent for a few minutes.

“S-sir, what does blacklisted mean?” Someone who Anna couldn’t see asked, breaking the silent spell.

“Stupid teachers,” Jaxon grumbled while he shook his head. After a few more groans to himself, he clicked his tongue. “Fine, I’ll explain it.” He sighed frustratingly. “Expeditions like this one don’t happen often. Only when the core has an army of corrupted or has warped the environment to such an extent that it qualifies as a dungeon hiding the core. But this one?” He shook his head again. “I could snap my fingers and make it disappear. We do not need 60 people—we only need one. But when we do need 60? These are rare, and there’s no shortage of people who’d kill to get in.”

Anna nodded, along with many of the others.

From what Anna understood, the cores were primarily deadly because of the amount of corrupted they made and how strong they made them. With the core in the Titan Forest having none, destroying it should be simple. If they knew what they were doing.

The rest of what Jaxon meant could be inferred. 

Expeditions likely meant a plethora of opportunities for Sigils. Since there would be no shortage of people wishing to partake, they could be as selective as they wanted. 

Assuming expedition leaders weren’t in large supply, it meant being blacklisted by one translated to the others. Or, it was an official list. Neither boded well for Anna’s innate distaste for unquestioning obedience.

Those in power didn’t typically like being questioned, even if someone’s objections were warranted.

All of that made a sad reality dawn on Anna; a species suffering was only getting solved because their saviors wanted to grow in power. 

Even if it worked, it was sad.

“Seems you all understand. Good.” He sighed, and his tone lowered to a more amicable one. ”Now, some of us don’t mind objections—but most want them given privately. As I have said before.” He remindedly glared at Ashton, Anna, and Cole as he said that.

“Sorry, sir.”

“My apologies, sir.”

“Learn from it. But for the sake of expedience, I will offer an explanation,” Jaxon continued, “Frost is damn talented. But even that is a fucking understatement. She has more talent in that field than any I have ever seen. Do you understand the gravity of that? How many lives she will save? How many battles we will win simply because of her presence? That is why I changed my mind and allowed Aria to go with her. I know her strength more than I know yours.”

People looked at Anna in a new light. But it wouldn’t be that simple to understand—they didn’t have to deal with anything where that would matter. The scale was a bit difficult to comprehend. Large battles? War? When had any of them seen it?

Anna herself only felt the weight on her shoulders grow heavier. If anything, Jaxon did a good job of making her feel selfish. After all, she wanted to fight, too. Regardless of her mana purity, she wanted power just as much as everyone else. 

It went silent for a minute after that, but Jaxon clearly wanted them to discuss amongst themselves. 

Seeing that the one who was about to stand was Ashton, Anna decided to take the initiative away.

“So,” she said with a raised voice, then paused for a moment to get all the eyes. She still wanted to finish the disgusting core today. “I assume we all saw the edge of the corruption.”

An awkward moment passed with nobody responding until Cole stepped up.

“Indeed,” he replied, nodding. “A grueling sight, to see the world robbed of its joy.”

That received a wave of affirmations. 

Anna’s opinion of the man went up even more. He kind of reminded her of Aria in the sense that he was battle-hungry. At least, that was the impression he gave off, and he definitely was about to ask for a spar before Jaxon stopped him.

“Agreed. But at least it doesn’t have any corrupted aliens with it.”

“How can you be sure?” Ashton objected. “I don’t mean to doubt you, but the center is entirely obscured by that fog—that conclusion is still too early.”

“Which brings me to my next point,” Anna said and raised a finger, unfazed. “Aria saw what looked like alien homes built into hollowed-out areas of the trees.” 

Those words got the group going.

“Holes in the trees?” A man asked. 

“Yeah, those!” An energetic girl shouted. “I saw a few waaaay up the trunk! I was gonna climb, but I figured it was better to continue forward… and I hate heights.”

“Does that mean...” Another man stopped himself. 

“I didn’t notice anything strange about the one I saw and assumed it was some kind of natural defect.” A man with a higher-pitched voice said. He was clearly shocked. “Aria actually got a look inside?”

“Doesn’t that prove my point, then?” Ashton raised his voice over the group, a light smile on his face. “If we navigated the forest uncontested, then we can only assume the core has them.”

“Hold on, Wells,” Cole intervened. Then, he squinted toward Aria. “You saw inside?”

“Yes,” Aria answered. 

Everyone waited for Aria to explain, but she gave no indication of continuing.

Anna cleared her throat to get the attention back. “She looked inside, and they did appear to be home to some kind of intelligent life.”

“What did you see?” Cole asked Aria.

“An organized room.”

Foreseeing a possibility of anger, Anna stepped in front of Aria. “It was just arranged like—”

“I’m asking Aria, Frost,” Cole said as he raised his hand to signal her to stop. “I mean no disrespect, but for better or worse, she is a part of the expedition and should behave as such.”

“Ah… I—” Anna stopped herself. 

He was right, and his intent wasn’t ill—Aria did have a problem with saying too little!

Anna moved aside and shrugged. “It would be better to hear it from your mouth,” she said quietly.

Aria glanced at her, to which Anna nodded, signaling she didn’t mind.

“Annabelle is capable of speaking for me; she is my partner.” Before anybody could object, she continued, “I saw a room of organized food. Empty. It had no markings to indicate a conflict nor signs of fleeing, and hundreds of them dot what I could see in the forest.”

“So no scattered objects like people left in a rush, and no blood, markings, or any other combat-related signs.” Cole nodded. “In other words, the possibility is higher that the forest was abandoned before the core had the chance to corrupt its occupants.”

Aria nodded and said, “Yes.”

“And that, if you had let me finish, was my point,” Anna said, a mocking smirk directed at Ashton. “We can reasonably assume the forest was abandoned.”

His own partner agreed with her!

Ashton, however, didn’t react. Or he probably had his fists clenched behind him. “I apologize, Annabelle. But she only saw a few; we should still double-check these findings.”

“Agreed,” Cole added. “With our enhancements, we could check enough of the trees to confirm.”

“Let’s do that!” The energetic girl from before jumped out. She was tall, with long blonde hair tied into a high ponytail and bright brown eyes. “I wanna see for myself. It’s an alien’s house, after all. Aliens!”

Anna silently clicked her tongue.

That lit a fire and gained a round of agreement as people began to recall just what it meant to be on an alien planet. Core aside, it was an astounding experience.

Although most probably just wanted to delay the hard, scary part.

It was difficult to fathom that these were the top students in the academy. In fact, just based on appearance and demeanor, most didn’t look it!

Ashton stared at Jaxon for a few seconds, likely waiting to see if he objected. When he had no change in expression or posture, he turned. ”Let’s do it right away; don’t go in too deep, just check the holes on the outskirts. It shouldn’t take more than a few hours.”

“If we make haste, we can finish all of this expedition today,” Cole said, taking the initiative to leave camp. 

Anna groaned. “Well, we’ll just stay here.”

The camp quickly cleared once it became clear Jaxon wouldn’t say anything.

“Ridiculous waste of time,” Aria said.

“Usually,” Jaxon said his first words since his lecture, “scouts take care of all this. Or, we have more scouts in the expedition to do it.”

“Why does this feel so…” Anna paused to consider her words. Jaxon was a teacher and a proud Bastion member, after all. “Well, rushed. Why does this expedition feel so rushed?”

“They were told they either cleared it immediately or lose the opportunity,” Aria answered.

“Alisha, again,” Jaxon groaned. “Way too damn chatty.”

“Huh. Isn’t that a little suspicious?” Anna shook her head. “But why?”

“Suspicious?” Jaxon scoffed. “Damn right. But Alisha has her own plans. Besides, I’d like to see anybody try to fucking do something with me here.”

“Right.” 

Yet Anna still felt uneasy.

“How are cores created?” Aria suddenly asked. “Are they natural?”

Right. 

That had been on Anna’s mind ever since the expedition announcement. The nature of the core itself. Everything it did sounded like it was some sort of creature, from taking residence in an area to making it its home. 

“Ain’t that the damn question.” Jaxon sighed and shook his head. “Are they natural? Or is there actually a conscious entity behind them?” He scoffed.

He sounded like he didn’t just mean the cores, but Anna knew asking was fruitless—they were tight-lipped until the topic came up in classes. As was the case for most beyond simple magic. It seemed they wanted to blow open that can of worms during their second year. 

Still, Anna had to try, “I don’t suppose—”

“No.”

Anna clicked her tongue—as expected.

Save the shattering of their imaginations until they get a solid foothold in the world of magic.

At least, that’s the premonition Anna got from how much they purposefully kept from them. Even the mission they were on!

“They’ll be back shortly,” Jaxon said, interrupting Anna’s thoughts. He had a smirk as he looked down at her. “I look forward to how you guys deal with it.”

“How ominous,” Anna muttered.

If he wanted to make her nervous, it worked.