Ozpin didn't even flinch as Cinder brandished her weapon, eyes aflame with the power of the Fall Maiden coursing through her.
"Aren't you afraid?" asked Cinder, not understanding how Ozpin could be so calm. "There's no way you can beat me."
"I know that. But you still haven't beaten me." said Ozpin. Cinder chuckled. "You're delusional. I won the minute I got into the CCT."
"That's not what I meant. Have you ever felt like this is somehow familiar?" asked Ozpin. Cinder furrowed her brow. Was he trying to stall her? If he was, it still wouldn't do him any good.
"What are you babbling on about now?" asked Cinder, lowering her weapon.
"We've done this before." said Ozpin. Cinder had no idea what he was talking about. Had the inevitability of his defeat broken his mind? Was he so desperate to cling to his authority that taking it away drove him mad?
"You really are delusional-"
"That's the five-hundredth time you said to me."
Cinder's eyes widened. "What are talking about? That's completely-"
Ozpin shook his head. "Why do you think you never saw me out on the front lines? I've been observing how this all plays out, time after time. I can reset the world, move time itself back 24 hours. You and I have been fighting for about 50 years."
Cinder raised her sword. "That's impossible!" she said angrily. And yet, there was a seed of doubt in her mind- what if Ozpin was telling the truth? Could he really turn back time?
"You've tried to fight me thousands of times. Hundreds of times, your followers turned on you. Twice, the dragon devoured you before you could take the power of the Maiden. Fifteen times, Adam Taurus turned on you. Nine times, Emerald Sustrai killed you to take the power of the Maiden for herself. Jaune Arc killed you once by tackling you off of Amity Colosseum, sacrificing himself to save Pyrrha Nikos' life."
Cinder grit her teeth, the grip on her weapon so tight her knuckles turned white. "You lie. Even if I have died before, why would you still go back?"
"Because I can't accept the casualties you leave in your wake." Ozpin said sternly. "I care about my students and the people you so carelessly trample underfoot in search of power. I've been going back thousands of times to save as many students as the timeline will allow."
"So there's still people you will never be able to save," Cinder taunted, giving Ozpin a cruel smirk. Ozpin's frown deepened. "That's true. But no victory is ever complete. For instance, you have never defeated me."
"There's a first time for everything!" Cinder said gleefully, charging at Ozpin. Ozpin didn't even move- but the Vault filled with brilliant emerald light as glowing gears formed around the room. Outside, massive lights shaped like gears filled the sky, creating a cosmic clockwork mechanism that even the Grimm paused to look up at. The gears began to turn, and a rushing white light began to consume the world.
"Not for this." Ozpin said as the light enveloped him and Cinder.
Ozpin woke up, opening a small leather-bound journal and marking the 18,251st tally mark. He sighed as he got out of his bed, preparing to do it all over again.