Annabelle’s Bastion

Anna woke with a throbbing headache and a stinging pain in her right arm. She lightly groaned as she mustered the energy to lift her body, sitting against the wall behind her.

“What…”

The moment she opened her eyes, she was reminded of her plight.

Standing in the bright cyan lights beyond the room was the lizardman statue, staring at her in the exact same spot it was when she got knocked out. It was just as unmoving and terrifying.

That sight earned a sharp gasp from her, but she was safe now.

Her plan—her only hope—worked. For whatever reason, the statue would not enter the room it protected, and she had managed to escape its rampage with only a minor injury.

But her mana… it was a mess. She had assumed sleeping would get it to a manageable state, but she apparently used more than she realized. It seemed like everything she produced was immediately sucked up, and what was once a calm lake was turbulent. Not only did she feel like she hadn’t slept in over a day, but she didn’t feel safe even attempting to call on her mana.

“At least…” Anna shook her head.

She almost died.

It wasn’t just a fear when those claws swiped over her head, threatening to rip her apart. At that moment, she truly thought she was about to meet her end. And she rejected it. Her instincts took over, and she managed to survive with only a flesh wound and a mana pool that would recover.

“I can’t believe it,” she muttered shakily, opening and closing her trembling hands. “I’m… I’m alive. I’m fine. I… did it.” She sniffled, wiping her wet eyes as she brought her knees up to hug.

Being in dangerous situations wasn’t exactly new to her, but nothing like this.

Nothing at all like this.

As the daughter of one of the most notorious businessmen in the world, she was no stranger to threats on her life. In fact, she had been kidnapped before! But never did she feel like her life was in danger.

She recalled the grim warnings of Alisha before she even entered the academy… she should have expected it—prepared for it. But being told something like this would happen and experiencing it were worlds apart.

“Dad…” she whispered, hugging her knees. That was why—she had protectors. Whether it be the bodyguards her parents hired to try and follow her discreetly or the overwhelming fist of her father. Her friends, her location, and her guardians.

Normally, if she ever felt afraid, she could count on her mother appearing out of nowhere as if she had a psychic sense for her emotions.

Where were they right now?

Surely, they had begun to suspect something was wrong. It had been almost a year since she joined the academy, and the cover of enjoying a campus life wasn’t one she expected to last. What were they told?

Did they miss her as strongly as she missed them, a hole in her heart that she could barely contain? Probably. No, they were probably scouring the world trying to find her.

Anna chuckled, thinking of the bizarre methods they would employ to find her. Apparently, they had people working in every airport she could even think to use in case she ran away!

Then, she thought of Aria. If she were here, wouldn’t they have already found the solution to the place? She was far stronger—physically and mentally. She wouldn’t be feeling like this.

If only they were together.

God, she missed them so much… but the only way to see them again was to survive.

She wiped her eyes and shook her head.

“Now’s not the time!” She attempted to stand. “I’m not— wha—”

Her vision faded, and she returned to the floor.

“Ow!” Anna reflexively shouted, only to open her eyes in shock. “Huh?”            

The space around her had completely changed. What was once a rocky room illuminated by a cyan light was an empty void of granite black walls with white dots scattered around, mimicking a night sky.

She could hear, see, and even move. Rather than being afraid, she felt… calm—like she had been there before. It was familiar, almost like she was in an old room.

“Hello?” she shouted.

“I find your chaotic emotions unpleasant, yet I am forced to feel them as if they are my own.”

Anna whipped her head around, only to see a carbon copy of herself sitting against a black-stone throne with her legs crossed and her head resting on her hand.  

Except, it wasn’t—it couldn’t be.

She didn’t have such a cold, emotionless face. Her green eyes didn’t contain such an unbridled arrogance and detachment… surely, they didn’t. The clone, almost a doll-like version of herself, emitted such an aura of authority that Anna felt entirely suppressed.

Their clothes were the same, being the same generic uniform: a white dress shirt and black pants. The shirt was torn on the sleeves since longer ones were ill-fitting for her forest life. But even with that… it was like staring at a queen.

“Who—”

Her clone raised her hand, and Anna stopped speaking. It was natural, as it felt like it just wasn’t her time yet.

“You’ve spoken to yourself for months, forcing me to listen to your ramblings.”

Anna’s eyes widened, and she opened her mouth to speak, only to promptly close it.

Was this the being inside of her?! The one that she had been talking to for months, every waking hour, speaking about anything that crossed her mind! It chose to take her form for communication!

And it could hear her! It could actually hear all her attempts at communication!

That was a much greater relief than Anna expected, and she heaved a heavy sigh of relief.

She truly wasn’t alone—she didn’t even feel afraid of this being. Just… relief. Maybe if she saw the being earlier, but not now. Not after so long.

“And now, your hopes come to pass.” She said, a faint trace of amusement in her tone. However, she shook her head. “Unfortunate circumstances—this is only happening because your control over your mana is pitiful. You should not be in my presence.”

Her chaotic mana? Well, everything about it felt like it was on the brink of falling apart. She’d say her survival was a miracle, but it might have had something to do with this clone.

“How—”

“I do, however, think this a blessing,” she continued, interrupting Annabelle without a change in tone or posture. “Your days won’t be headless any longer now that you made it to one of their many trial chambers. Take the stone, enter the tower, meet the priest, and find your way to the being.”

“Trial? What be—”

“From there, you’ll gain an understanding greater than what you would have been told. Your— our power can then grow.” The ghost of a smile rose on her face. “Odd, isn’t it? Our. Not mine, not yours—shared, except for in here.”

“What is…” Anna expected to be cut off, but she wasn’t! “What are you?!”

“A boring question.” Her smile disappeared. “We are one and the same—I am as you as you are me.”

“What?”

“A simple way to think of it: we are both a personality existing within this body. It is as much in my control as it is to you. Fortunately for you—unfortunately for them—I have little interest in the material world… for now.”

“That’s—” Anna stopped.

Yet, Anna didn’t feel anything wrong with what she said. Maybe due to her unchanging tone, the certainty of her words, or perhaps some kind of link, she knew the words to be true. Instinctively, she knew.

Why? Why did she feel like that?

Still, she couldn’t accept that to be her. “How can you be me? I’m not—”

“Perhaps I should say the same,” her clone interrupted, clearly anticipating her exact objection. “You do not act like me. The person across from me can not be me. That is impossible—an insult.”

Anna… didn’t want to accept it, even though her soul knew it was true! That was her? She wasn’t such a cold, emotionless being. This wasn’t like Aria’s frosty exterior at all—that was cute!

This felt like she was talking to a ruthless queen who owned half the world. A person who didn’t even see her as a human but just as an amusing subject or her rule.

But such a type wasn’t foreign to her, either.

Her father could act like that, depending on who he was talking to. As much as her parents tried to hide how they dealt with certain people, Anna had eavesdropped numerous times.

What Anna faced now was like that, but amplified to an extreme!

“I don’t…” Anna trailed off. She was at a loss, the words not coming to her.

If it was some kind of supernatural personality disorder, then, of course, they wouldn’t act the same.

There was so much she wanted to ask, so many questions she wanted answered. This person was the likely source of her Apex Sigil! The answer to all the mysteries surrounding her existence!

Did Alisha know about her? Eclipse somehow did!

Yet, the moment she thought of those questions, the trust she had for Bastion decreased—even for Alisha. What did they do to her?

“I am happy your simple mind hasn’t been entirely lost during our isolation. We may not act the same, but we share this body—I am Annabelle Frost just as much as you are.”

“No, you’re like a—”

“Another misunderstanding, one I quite detest.” For the first time since she spoke, the clone—herself—seemed angry, even with just a light furrowing of her brows… Anna could feel it. “I am not a parasite. We have existed within this body since it drew its first breath. To be labeled as such simply because I chose my position is insulting.”

Anna felt… bad? Why?

Wait.

First breath?

“Wha— you… how? What?” Anna found herself at a loss for words once again. The entire situation had become incomprehensible! From the moment she was born? What?

“Embarrassing, though I supposed that is what makes you distinct. It would be quite boring if you and I behaved the same, wouldn’t it?”

Anna embarrassingly cleared her throat. “What do you mean since birth? I’ve never even felt magic before Alisha appeared!”

“I say only what I know.” Her expression returned to normal—cold. But her posture hadn’t changed by even an inch since their conversation started! She lightly scoffed. “Whoever made us misunderstands our existence. Machaniations that are not my own will have little control over our actions.”

“What do you—”

She once again halted Anna with her left hand. “Enough. I do not care to entertain questions I have no answers for. Instead, I will tell you why you are here.”

Was she really as clueless as Anna was? She came across like she knew everything, but what if it really was just a magical type of personality split? Maybe that version of her was just better tuned to the environment?

“You…” Anna decided to change the topic. “You summoned me here?”

“Yes. Taking advantage of a hole that will soon be mended—you used too much. You should not be here in these circumstances.” She lightly shook her head. “We digress. Your mission after this meeting is as I have said: get the stone, enter the tower, aid the priest, then commune with the being. Your wound may get infected.. though I doubt it, so do this quick.”

Confirmation that she had indeed found the solution to her problem. All the months of searching, and she had finally found the correct route!

She shelved her other questions, lest her clone not let her speak anymore! Talking to her… even if it felt like Anna was just a toy, it was comforting.

“But… I’m trapped!”

“We are not so weak as to fall to a mere stone. While unfortunate that our combat capability is severely limited, there exist tools within this space. Use your head.”

“Can you tell me—”

“No. I will not impede our body’s growth by offering easy solutions.”

“But—”

Yet, Anna’s vision blanked for a moment before she once again saw the stone room illuminated by cyan.

She clicked her tongue. “Damn it! I have so many questions to ask you! You said you don’t know the answers, but you seem to know so much about everything else! How do you know about this so-called being? This priest?” Anna took a deep breath. “Damn it, you— wait…”

There wasn’t any exhaustion anymore!

In fact, her mana felt only slightly unstable! While not full, it felt like she had enough mana to comfortably engage in some combat with the statue outside.

“Was I in that space for hours?”

That was the only explanation that made sense! Time must have been warped in there.

Her arm still stung, which reminded her to once again activate her Hyper Enhancement with a focus on the body’s healing processes and pain resistance.

“Alright, fine! I’ll follow your stupid guide—not like I wasn’t going to do all that anyway.”

Finally, she looked around the room—ignoring the dreadful statue still staring at her.

She felt revitalized.