Chapter 6 – Demons, Gods and Knights


Ozpin


The impending tick of the clocks inside of the Amphitheatre is all that they can hear in the dead silence.

Everyone has been gathered, making sure their auras are still up to protect themselves from the Horridus Morbus contagion that the Afflicted suffer with. Ozpin – uncharacteristically – is sat at the edge of the stage where he used to give out his speeches. Now he is just sat there with one leg hanging over the edge and the other bent up as he rests his arm on it. He looks at them all, since they are all ready to hear it.

The truth...

Hazel stands the furthest from Ozpin with his huge arms crossed and his eyes glaring straight at the man sat there. Even Glynda looks suspicious of Ozpin, after everything that they have been through together – she never even knew that he is the Knight of Vengeance the whole time.

"So..." Ruby begins, looking up at Ozpin with her single silver eye narrowed. "What's the truth?" Ruby inquires as she looks up at him, her hand tightly clenched into a fist, the same as Jaune as he sits with Pyrrha at his side, her head resting on his shoulder. Raven is sat beside her brother with her sword sat on her lap as she taps the blade, waiting for the man to finally speak of what is going on.

"The truth..." Ozpin chuckles softly as he sits there. "Something I have kept from so many for centuries...I am the Knight of Vengeance, you saw that during that...terrible night." Ozpin explains to them all, some of them still flinch at the memory. They may have been able to send off their lost ones in a way that gives them honour and closure – but that does not make it hurt any less.

"Why did you never tell us?" Glynda questions, her fist clenched. "Tell Ironwood or the other Headmasters? Tell Qrow?"

Ozpin turns and looks at her. "Because I could not risk revealing my identity with him always watching."

"Him – you mean, Vir Nominis Umbra?" Weiss asks fearfully of that name.

"That is correct..." He sighs, and then looks over to Kragen. "I was once a man named Wymerus Ozymandius – Captain of the Dauntless when Arkhonex was still in its power. I was young then, and I lost my family to people I could never get revenge on. Vir Nominis Umbra saw that as an opportunity and most likely altered the events so then we would find him on the Volcanic Chain Isles." He explains, as he lifts up his cane and he holds it in both hands after letting his bent up leg drop down over the edge of the stage.

"What happened to your old weapon? The stories of the Knights of Grimm always told of the weapons you were given...they were cursed by him, right?" Blake asks curiously.

"Yes – mine was a mace forged with the power of the storm itself. Named Fata Mihi Vindicta – Higher Arkhoni for Fate of Revenge." Ozpin tells them; able to picture the weapon as perfectly as when he had it.

"Then what happened to it?" Ren asks.

"Well – when Kragen managed to break my bonds to the weapon, I destroyed it. But deep down it is still a part of me..." He says with a sigh."

"What do you mean by that?" Qrow asks.

"It is unfortunately of no coincidence I believe...that the reason I could awaken my body when I did...was because of the deaths of Taiyang, Oobleck, Roy and Nolan." He guiltily admits with his head held low, and Yang's eyes widen with sadness which changes into rage.

"What do you mean? You best keep talking." Yang growls with anger, until her thrusting movement upwards causes her to cough in pain. Ruby helps her big sister sit back down and eventually her wheezing coughs subside.

"I was trying to awaken my body the whole time Vir Nominis Umbra arrived, desperately trying to save you. But only my urge to avenge them was what reactivated my form...meaning that no matter what, I am still his monster deep down. I can just control it...more or less" He sighs as he stares at his own open palm, before closing it into a fist from his sense of failure to not save them in time.

Then, Kragen stands up as he looks at the man that was once Wymerus – who looks completely different now.

"How...how can you be here? We freed you – you should be at peace, old friend." Kragen states as he stares at Ozpin – strange to see even the wise Silver Eyed Knight totally lost for words for once. Ozpin looks at him and he stands up, walking around the stage as he speaks to them all.

"I could have been – but just as I said before, my curse of revenge never left me. You merely broke my bonds to the curse that controlled me, allowing me to control it now." Ozpin explains as he walks around the stage with his hand using his cane as he always did. "When you managed to convince me that I am more than what the curse was...helped me by showing me the graves of those who I sought revenge on...I could see more clearly. And when I faded to the next world – I was faced with a choice."

He stops and swivels round to look to them all, holding one hand out. "End my existence to rest in peace." He states with one hand raised, like he is showing that option, and then holding his other hand up. "Or return and help destroy the entity that wishes to bring the end of everything." Ozpin adds.

Both arms drop back down to his side. "I chose the latter." Ozpin tells them all, and Kragen stares at him with shock – takes a very determined soul to turn down the chance to feel at peace to return back to the cold and monstrous world he left. "My duty was not finished and it still remains the same – I will never be at peace until Vir Nominis Umbra is destroyed."

"So you directed your curse towards him instead the rest of the world?" Cinder asks.

"Yes." He confirms.

"But you look so different than I remember." The Architect says to him as he looks at him from where he stands, his rifle leant against the wall.

"Well when I returned I was faced with an opportunity. I managed to find the four Relics that Kragen had hidden in that tree." Ozpin explains, looking over to him. Kragen's silver eyes widen from when he remembers that battle that suddenly ignited, the night when he and Yenna were torn apart for thousands of years.

Until now.

"I spent decades learning how to use those Relics, and when I finally did...I used the Relic of Creation to build myself a brand new form. The form you see before you is indeed that body – the body of Ozpin." He explains, his hands held out to them all – created by the Relic of Creation.

"Then how did they end up in the Academies?" Nora asks.

"Well the Academies and the Kingdoms never existed for a very long time; I and many others started them up. Kragen included – but I hid my true colours from you the whole time." Ozpin explains, looking over to the man who stares at him. The look in his eyes shows that he truly had no idea that Ozpin was his old friend the whole time in a brand new body to hide the truth. "I had to hide the truth, become absorbed into my own lie – because Vir Nominis Umbra was always there. But with every decision I made I could tell he was starting to catch onto what I really was."

"Wait...do you mean that the Battle of Beacon?" Before Jaune can even finish, he answers.

"Yes – that was when Vir Nominis Umbra realised who I really was, and launched an assault on the school. We were lucky that I did not reveal too much to you." Ozpin explains.

"I think it would have helped if we knew what the real enemy was." Ruby dejects.

"Yeah! Why the hell did you have us focused on Salem when she too is but a pawn in his game?" Sun questions with an angered voice, yet Ozpin just stands there with his never shifting calm expression.

"I could not risk it – he is always watching. He is probably watching right now, his many little crows always listen to what we say. It is how he can be everywhere at once and know everything about everyone." Ozpin explains, sending chills down all their spines – Pyrrha can even hear the faint howls of the screaming souls trapped in the Charred Forest in her memory. "And believe me when I say – if I told you all the truth about Vir Nominis Umbra, the Battle of Beacon would have been much worse." He warns.

"How worse?" Neptune asks with a fearful voice.

"Nobody would have survived his attack." Ozpin explains, painting a very scary picture for them all of what they are up against. They have always known that their true foe is unlike anything they have ever faced before – but thinking about it like this...truly puts things in perspective.

"Why does he not just kill us all then? He wiped out twenty of my forces without even looking at them. Why does he not just do the same to us?" Raven questions, wisely as well.

"Because it would take the thrill of the fight away from him – he likes having worthy adversaries so then he can kill them all in his own way. Or because he wants to use us to complete our Universe's story." He explains to all of them, and it makes him sound like he is some kind of author writing his own story.

Oscar looks over at Ozpin and his eyes narrow, since he always knew him as the Spirit of Time itself, there are so many questions he has on his mind now. "So what? The whole story of you being born at the end of the world...was that also a lie?" He questions.

"I am afraid so – I had to tell these lies in order to throw him off. If any of you were to figure out that I was alive then Umbra could track me down. I had to throw him off the scent." Ozpin explains to them all.

"So if you are the Knight of Vengeance...are you infinite just like the other Knights of Grimm?" Pyrrha inquires softly as she looks at him, he looks across the room to her to answer her query.

"No – that is another property that the curse has on the Knights. Once the curse is broken, so is our inability to end. I have also created a physical form, meaning I can die just as easily as any of you." Ozpin explains, in which Cinder begins to ponder on that thought. The battle they had in the Vault...

"Then...how did you survive...you know..." She awkwardly asks him, looking through her fringe of hair over her blinded eye.

"You collapsed the roof of the Vault onto me, that is true. But I never forgot the fact that you let me live, so when you left I changed form and I fled to a regeneration pod I found in Vale." Ozpin explains to her, remembering the end of that battle so clearly.

"Changed form?" Penny inquires.

"My Spirit Animal form is that of a Green Hummingbird." He says, and Oscar's eyes widen and so do Jaune's. Both of them remember seeing that Hummingbird multiple times in the past, and now it all makes sense. The Hummingbird has always been a symbol of time itself. "I must say, I am proud of you for changing." He says.

"If that is the case then why did you shun me? After I lost..." She stammers, remembering the horrible memory of Kassius getting mauled by the Terror Bird Grimm when they were kids. He may have survived but the memory will never fade away.

"That is because I went through time...spoiled the future I guess you could say. I saw how your future would turn out – so I decided I had to play the part of your own personal devil. Until you would meet the real monster." Ozpin explains to her, in which answers some questions but also raises even more questions. This one specifically coming from Kragen.

"That's another thing – how the hell did you get the power of the Travellers? Surely it was not from the Relic." Kragen questions.

"In fact it was – I needed to create an ability that I could use to plan ahead to find a way to stop our enemy. Took me a long time to learn how to use it..." Then he stops and looks to Oscar. "Not everything I told you that day was false, Oscar. The story of when I tried to change the past was true – and it was not the only time I tried to do so."

"What do you mean?" Oscar asks.

"Well once I tried to protect a village from a Grimm attack before Arkhonex fell – but instead my actions actually caused the attack in the first place." Ozpin reveals and Oscar's eyes widen in horror. "Sometimes even when our motives are to commit good deeds...we can cause the bad ones to happen in the same moment." He sighs, his brown eyes turning to face Pyrrha and Jaune, sending a chill through her spine.

Jaune can finally ask his question. "Why did you do it?" Jaune questions, and Glynda looks at him.

"You know why, we told you." Glynda attempts to defend, but Ozpin holds up his hand, to silence her.

"No, Glynda. He is right to be angry with me for what happened, and it was wrong." He says with a saddened expression for what happened that night. "The truth is, Jaune Arc – is that I was desperate. I knew that Vir Nominis Umbra was catching onto my tail, he had Salem command Cinder to attack Amber." He says, and Hazel releases a soft snarl that gets Oscar's attention as he turns. "He was working his way to launch a full scale assault, Mountain Glenn and all the Grimm congregating around the area – the signs were clear." Ozpin continues to explain.

"So you forced the powers onto Pyrrha." Jaune growls.

Fully expecting Ozpin to defend himself with some sort of statement like I gave her a choice and she chose...Jaune stood there ready for it. But yet again, Ozpin's response to that gives him a chill. "Yes." He states, and they all stare at him with shock. "I gave her an ultimatum that I knew she could never refuse...because I wanted to get the power out of Amber and make sure that Pyrrha got somewhere safe to hide it." Ozpin explains, before he looks at Cinder slowly. "But no matter how hard I tried – the events still happened."

Jaune looks at Pyrrha, seeing the look in her eyes that reminds him of that day when she spoke to him about Destiny. Like such a heavy burden has been weighed down on her shoulders at all times. Jaune crushes his eyes shut before asking the question that haunts him, so he stares the Professor right in the eyes. "Did you know?" He questions.

"Know what?" Ozpin asks him for he seeks clarification.

"That Pyrrha was gonna die that night?" He clarifies with a croak in his voice, even though she sits beside him...alive...it still hurts to picture it. Pyrrha gently holds his hand as she looks at him with a smile.

"Yes...I did. Yet I still had hoped I could change the past by telling her to find Glynda, Qrow and James. But time has a way of forcing events to happen the way that they must happen." Ozpin explains to them all, raising another question.

"Wait, how far back did you go?" Penny questions with her green eyes open wide. Ozpin looks at them all and he sighs, turning his eyes to Oscar.

"What I told you – was not a full lie – because when I used my powers are went forward in time...but I did not realise how far I went." Ozpin explains, and Oscar looks fearful.

"The Shivering Dominion...you saw it didn't you?" He asks.

"Yes – I was not born in that moment and I never saw my parents frozen in time before my very eyes. But I was taken to a frozen point in time – like an important marker..." He stammers as he pictures the moment in his eyes.

"What did you see?" Ruby asks him.

"The world frozen in ice and smothered with snow, Beacon Academy invaded and destroyed by the Grimm. Vir Nominis Umbra stood on the tower with his three Demonic Children at his side...and multiple brave warriors fighting to the death at the fountain outside." Ozpin explains to them all, and Ruby looks behind her at the area too. Seeing exactly where Ozpin is describing.

"Who were the warriors?" Weiss asks, and Ozpin truthfully answers.

"Some of you."

The answer gives them all chills, knowing that by using the word some...that means that most of them will die before that moment ever comes. "I will not say who is not there...because I do not wish to have that plague your minds. I know better than anyone what it is like to know where you future will lead – it is not as useful as you might think." Ozpin states, Glynda and Qrow can see the pain in his eyes.

And as if Ruby's fears were not enough...now she knows that more people she cares for will die before this moment ever comes. Even she could die before it even arrives. "Do...do we win?" Ruby asks, and Ozpin just stares at her.

"I don't know." He replies.

"How can you not know?" Yang questions.

"There are some things in this world that I simply do not wish to know." Ozpin states, looking down at the floor. "And many memories I wish I could forget forever – but alas they remain for the rest of time." He states as he sighs, looking down at the ground with his cane beneath his hands.

"Wait..." Nora says, and she slowly looks at Ozpin with a worried expression. "Demonic Children?" She asks him with confusion.

Why wouldn't he call them the Knights of Grimm?

Unless...

He is talking about something else.

Ozpin nods his head as he walks back and forth. "The Onyx Brotherhood." He reveals and Pyrrha stares at him wide-eyed when hearing that word...onyx...the Onyx Phantom. "There were originally four Demons that he created to serve him. The Lord of the Wood." He begins, and Nora gasps when she realises that the Leshen that has hunted her for so many years is actually one of these demons. "The Onyx Phantom." Pyrrha flinches at the mere mention of the entity's name. "The Ebony Berserker – or as you all know him, Hyde." He says and Yang's eyes widen with disbelief. "And the Whisperer."

The Whisperer...

Of all of them that is the only one of these entity's that they have not even met yet. "Hyde is one of them?" Yang fearfully questions.

"He used to be." Ozpin answers.

"Hold up, he used to be? The how come he does not remember?" Ruby asks.

"I can tell you." Ozpin assures.

He paces back and forth as he begins to explain the legends behind the Onyx Brotherhood, the four Higher Demons that Vir Nominis Umbra had forged. "The Whisperer is the first and the wisest of the Onyx Brothers, then the Lord of the Wood followed. The Whisperer has always been a sadistic and evil entity, one that is a master of blending in with his surroundings and using his words to manipulate people to his will. Whereas the Lord of the Wood is the only one that is not evil, other than Hyde obviously." Ozpin explains.

"Yeah? I beg to differ." Nora scoffs, touching the place on her chest where she still feels that scarred handprint of the Lord of the Wood.

"The bond you have with the Lord of the Wood has no malice in it, that is merely down to the fact you touched the totem. The Lord of the Wood is more like an animal than an entity, he merely does his duty – if you had never touched that totem he would have never cursed you. He might have even helped you find your parents." Ozpin explains and Nora's cyan eyes widen with disbelief.

"What?" She questions.

"The Lord of the Wood has been known to help children that never touched his totems or harmed his landscape, holding their hands to guide them to the nearest town. He only attacks people if they are armed or harm his totems or the territory his totems are placed." Ozpin explains to them all, really making sense as well behind how the Lord of the Wood operates. It never struck them as a Grimm but also not a demon...like a machine almost.

"But the Onyx Phantom is dead – I killed her." Pyrrha states.

"No – you merely destroyed the fragment that was bonded to your soul. That is why it appeared as a darker form of yourself – the Phantom always reveals itself as a darker version of the person it speaks to. If it speaks to Blake it will be the opposite to what she really is – if it spoke to Sun he would see the same. Usual characteristics are black hair and orange eyes." Ozpin explains, and the description is exactly what they have all seen. Even the Assassin's form had the same sort of look, even when Neo was acting as her.

"And...Hyde?" Yang questions.

"Yes...the Ebony Berserker, or as he is now named as Mr Hyde – he is in fact the youngest of the Demons. Created to ignite rage and feed of that anger on anyone he would possess, bringing war everywhere he would go with that anger. However over time he developed a conscience, when he possessed a child he began to question why he was doing this. Umbra could sense the betrayal coming and when he did...he banished the Berserker. Bound him to the firstborn of future person he would bind a contract with – wiping the Berserker's memory until he would remember to be a demon." Ozpin explains to them all, revealing the truth behind Hyde as well.

Or the Ebony Berserker.

"When we saw Hyde yesterday, he kept muttering that he was not a demon." Jaune remembers, Yang looks at him with so much concern both for the man she loves and even the demon trapped inside him.

"Then his memory is returning...perhaps if Kassius can free himself from wherever he is now Hyde can tell us something very interesting." Ozpin states.

A silence fills the room for some time, just of people comprehending that there are now four Demons that they have to handle. "The Whisperer...I never heard of him." Ruby says.

"You wouldn't, I have never even encountered the entity. I have merely heard the whispers once...he hides in the darkness and manipulates people." Ozpin says to them all.

"If you know all this...then surely you must know what Umbra is." Weiss presumes, but even Ozpin does not know exactly what he is.

"No...But I do have a theory." He says as he walks around.

"That's better than what we had earlier." The Architect says as he shrugs his mechanical shoulders.

"Okay...let's hear it." Oscar says as he sits forward, listening to what Ozpin's theory on Vir Nominis Umbra could be.

"I believe – that he is the embodiment of Evil itself." He says as he walks back and forth, they all stare at him with a confused expression.

"You mean to claim he could be Evil in the flesh?" Jaune asks with confusion.

"Everything I have seen him do is because he enjoys it, and as he has made clear, he does it all because he chooses to. He creates deals and contracts with those that end with them losing their souls. I believe that could be a possibility of what he is – however I have been wrong before, I may be wrong about this too." He states.

"Okay...what weaknesses does he have?" Qrow inquires.

"Unknown." He replies, shocking all of them.

"Surely he must have a weakness." Ruby denies.

"Not many – I have fought him in the past and you saw what he was capable of yesterday. The only time I have ever seen him be weakened was yesterday when Ruby used her Silver Eyes on him...I have never seen that happen before." Ozpin explains, looking right at Ruby.

"Indeed – not only this but her powers are beyond any I have ever seen." Kragen agrees with the firm nod of his head. "When we were training she managed to lift up to twenty huge boulders on her second try with ease...no Silver Eyed Warrior has been capable of such a feat before."

"But...I don't know how I did that." She stammers.

"And she changed into Fenrir – the Legendary Big Bad Wolf." The Architect adds, even giving a name to the huge wolf that she became as well. "I have never seen that Spirit Animal before."

"Fenrir?" Jaune asks.

"An Ancient Giant Wolf from a long lost Universe." Ozpin states, and imagining entire Universes being lost and forgotten terrifies them.

"Umbra...did he destroy it?" Ruby asks, remembering what she saw in that Visionary Book, seeing all those worlds being completely destroyed and reduced to not even ash. She never forgot the horrifying image of Vir Nominis Umbra at the end there.

"Yes...he did...one of the many he destroyed." Ozpin answers, and that one sends gasps through the Amphitheatre.

"Wait...what? He destroys entire Universes?" Weiss whimpers with terror, only adding more weight to how much of a monster they are up against.

"You will want to listen carefully to what I am about to tell you all because I will not repeat myself." Ozpin advises, so everyone – even Hazel – listens extra carefully. "I once found an Old Visionary Book that is now burned to dust from a battle I had against Fury. What I saw...was similar to what Ruby had seen, except it was more complete." He explains to them all. "I saw the stars disappearing in the sky and the moon shattering completely and once it did, the Grimm came through the sky like a storm of endless demons. They flooded the world I saw it from and attacked everything that moved."

"In this Universe, the people there did not have the same abilities that we had, did not have auras or semblances or even dust. They were easy pickings for the Grimm and their cities were wiped out. Umbra then used the stars as weapons, causing them all to supernova at the same time, wiping out everything in that universe. Every single person, animal, plant, fungus...even strand of bacteria. Nothing survived." He explains to them all, really creating a helpless picture for them all.

Ozpin looks out the window at the stars and the moon and he exhales. "The stars have already started to vanish and the moon is breaking apart faster and faster. We are running out of time." Ozpin explains, then Ruby looks out the window and she gasps.

He is right.

There are less stars than there used to be three years ago for example. There used to be billions of stars out there.

But now...

There are so many less.

"Vir Nominis Umbra has been destroying Universes for so long now I doubt he even remembers which one he initially even comes from anymore. Even parallel universes to our own – for example a version where Ruby never fell in love with Oscar is a universe of its own. One that Umbra could have already destroyed and we have no idea." He states, giving them all the chills at the idea of it.

"If there are infinite universes...then why does he try to destroy them all?" Winter asks with a fearful voice.

"I believe he may want to see if Infinite really is forever." Ozpin states, a scary idea. Ozpin continues on with his explanation of what he has learned over the many, many years. "But I do know that not everything from those past Universes is forgotten – we have been fighting the remnants of past universes for as long as we can remember." He explains.

"What?" Qrow questions.

"The Creatures of Grimm? They are echoes from forgotten Universes – the Nuckelavee, the Taijitus, the Kraken...countless other forms of Grimm are merely creatures taken from each Universe he has conquered and turned into merely shadows of what they once were." Ozpin tells them.

"The Knights Bannermen...they're people?" Ruby asks fearfully and he nods his head.

"Nothing more than echoes of who they all once were." Ozpin concurs.

"And Salem? What was she?" Oscar asks, and Ozpin pauses, standing there with what appears to be guilt in his eyes. He sighs as he lowers his head, placing both hands atop his cane.

"My...greatest failure." He shamefully says as he lowers his head down.

"What did you do?" Glynda sternly questions, then Ruby looks at Kragen, who looks just as ashamed as well. Clearly he knew who Salem used to be as well.

"You all know she was once a Silver Eyed Warrior, correct?" Ozpin asks.

"Yeah." They all respond.

"Well – when Pyrrha Nikos' Great Ancestor, Cynthia Nikos helped start the Silver Eyed Order with Kragen...I came to her...under the control of Vir Nominis Umbra still." He sadly reveals as he closes his eyes and Oscar stares at him. He still remembers Cynthia and how she fell in love with him – he was the one that took him to her as well. "She was loyal to the cause...but she was heartbroken and the monster in me fed off that. I offered her the stone...the one in her head...and after a moment she accepted."

"And became Salem..." Qrow softly says as he fits all the pieces together.

"She is the way she is because of you?" Raven sternfully snarls, but Qrow just presses his hand to her chest to stop her from storming towards him.

"Yes – and it is my greatest regret...one I so desperately wish I could change. But alas – the past cannot be changed...I may just end up causing it to happen in the first place." Ozpin shamefully tells them all, practically spilling his darkest secret to them all. Something none of them ever expected him to actually do.

And then...

Silence falls again.

So many minds trying to process everything that Ozpin has informed them all on. Except for one thing. Ruby looks up at him, the final question she wants answered. "Why are we different?" She asks him, and he looks down at her, then to Oscar, then to Jaune and finally to Pyrrha. "You said that he has destroyed countless Universes...why are we so different?" She asks him.

"I do not know why – but I know how." Ozpin says.

"How do you know all this?" Oscar questions before Ozpin even answers Ruby's question.

"When I was under Umbra's control I learned a great deal from him, that and a few thousand years of searching for answers...it gives you a lot." Ozpin assures.

Yet Oscar still does not feel over convinced by that answer.

"Vir Nominis Umbra knows how to manipulate the future choices for individuals in every single Universe...yet here we are and the four of you stand. Your choices somehow always manage to go around the ones that Umbra has placed for you." He explains.

"When?" Ruby asks.

"The arrow Death shot at you was meant to kill you there and then, Pyrrha Nikos was meant to become his slave, but she broke free from the Onyx Phantom and his control. Jaune was meant to die in a miscarriage many years ago but you survived, then you survived the Major Ursa attack in Forever Fall. And Oscar – you were never meant to find these people – yet of all the people I happened to bond to you when I began repairs on my form." Ozpin explains to him.

"Wait...you never meant to find me?" He asks.

"Not in that sense, dispersed my aura and it happened to find you...but as soon as I realised your importance, I had to help you. I had to guide you to find Ruby."

"Why?"

"For that prophecy?" Ruby asks, remembering the one of a Traveller and a Silver Eyed Warriors' child bringing peace once and for all.

"Maybe...I do not tend to focus on Prophecies too much. Because your four have clearly been able to prove most of them wrong." Ozpin explains.

"But why us?" Ruby asks him.

"I don't know – perhaps the Gods have plans for you yet." He states.

Ruby sits back down, as she thinks on all of this, the Onyx Brotherhood, past Universes destroyed, the truth of what the Grimm are, Ozpin being the Knight of Vengeance and how he became Ozpin. Even Salem...it explains why she was so determined to kill Ozpin when Ruby was captured by her five years ago.

Ozpin sighs as he sits back down, feeling so much of a weight lifted from his body. "Well...there you have it. Now you know the truth." Ozpin tells them all as he sits there, and what a truth it was.

But...

They still do not know what Vir Nominis Umbra really is and how to beat him, only a theory and that Ruby could be the weakness that they seek. "Okay...then what now? What's the next step?" Jaune asks.

"Well, the first is to find a cure for Horridus Morbus." Ozpin states, and Yang looks up at him.

"Really?" She asks with confusion, considering what the real threat is.

"Yes – I may be the Knight of Vengeance but I am still your headmaster. And thus your safety is still my priority." Ozpin assures with a kind smile, and for the first time in quite a while – that is just like the Ozpin that they remember.

"Then where do we start?" Ren asks.

"Well – Qrow, Kragen, Architect and Yenna already have a plan. To find the Witches of the Restless Marshlands and get their help. They are the best curers the world has left to combat this plague – we will find out if they can and whatever it is that they need to craft one." Ozpin explains.

"Then what?" Sun asks with a strained voice.

"Then we locate the Visionary Books, learn as much as we can about the Knights and Vir Nominis Umbra. If we can break the curses that the Knights are bound to just as I was, they hopefully will help us. Then...we will hopefully find a way to beat him." Ozpin explains.

"Merlot found something...Vir Nominis Umbra has ordered his death and his forces have turned against the Doctor but they cannot locate him." Jaune remembers, since Umbra did mention that Merlot found something...so did Yuma.

"Then we will have to find him before Vir Nominis Umbra does."


Kassius


Sat down in the cold dark cell he has been thrown into, Kassius keeps his eyes shut as he rests.

The Fractured Moon floats above the home of the Traffickers in the middle of the night, like the watchful eye of the gods. The sky is cloudless, and Kassius has not even noticed the things that Ozpin has warned the others of. The slowly diminishing amount of stars can be seen here too, and the Fractured Moon is worsening, more chunks breaking away from it and floating away.

Once the Moon shatters...

The end will arrive.

However the coming apocalypse is not what Kassius will need to worry about, as suddenly his door bursts open and Thorn storms in towards him. "Get up!" He yells, grabbing him and smacking some cuffs onto his wrists.

"Argh! Alright, easy! Ah..." Kassius groans as he is taken out from his cell. "I was having a really good dream too." He sighs as Thorn keeps pushing him across the hallway past the cells. Where a few other Gladiators are forcefully being shoved out from their cells and towards the gate that is being prepared constantly.

"Keep 'em coming! This should be a good fight!" He laughs, and Kassius sighs.

"Great...a fight at this time? You guys do crappy showings, ya know." He jokes.

"You won't be making jokes in a minute." Thorn states.

"Ooh, I wouldn't hold your breath pal." Kassius assures with an ever-present grin on his face.

Thorn shoves him further as he moves him and some other Gladiators towards the door at the end of the hall. The one that leads into the armoury where they are able to choose what weapons that they will be using. Thorn opens the door and pushes Kassius into there after he takes off his cuffs, then the others follow him inside.

Kassius looks around and he chuckles. "Wow...what a shithole." He scoffs, it literally looks like they kept animals in here. Hay everywhere and the stench of crap in the air that makes a couple people gag with disgust.

"You best get used to it, cause you'll be seeing it a lot. Good luck." Thorn says as he forcefully slams the door shut and locks it. Kassius cracks his neck and he walks over to the weapons, picking up a couple of swords.

Not Lash Equinox but it will do.

As he checks them out, one of the other Gladiators stumbles over to Kassius and prods his much more muscular arm. "Hey! I wanna that sword!" The man slurs, but Kassius just scoffs.

"Get your own." Kassius advises as he grabs a chest garb, leather and bone plated piece that is like a bandolier. It covers over his left peck and he takes a kilt made from bur hide and fur around his waist. He also picks up a pair of boots too, nothing like what he normally wears but it will get the job done.

"Nah! It's mine!" He slurs again, as he swings his fist at Kassius, but he just steps out the way and he falls flat on his face. Kassius stares down at the pathetic excuse of a man and he just chuckles.

"Wow." He says, just walking away from him as he spins his swords through his fingers. Not used to how light these blades are, but then again there are no mechanical pieces inside to make it shift and fold – or even combine into a spear.

It's weird...

As he stands there another Gladiator pokes his shoulder and Kassius turns to look at the nervous young man. "Um...I know you're a Huntsman...I'm not...Could you...Let me win?" He asks nervously but Kassius just scoffs.

"And get punished myself? Sorry pal, I ain't a hero." Kassius states as he stands his ground, waiting for the doors to open up.

"Please! I don't wanna die!" He cries out.

"Trust me, if I fake it and you live, you'll suffer a fate worse than death." Kassius assures, he knows Bandits and they would probably make an example of him just as they did to those people they hanged.

Except it would probably be whole lot grislier.

"Damn you...you Huntsmen are heartless beasts!" The Gladiator cries out with terror, shaking erratically as he stumbles away. Kassius just ignores that comment, he feels for the poor lad but all he cares about is getting out of here and getting back home to Beacon to Yang. Nothing else matters.

Except for his hat.

"Ladies, Gentlemen! Why I am excited for this little show we have!" The familiar voice of Kelham roars from outside the room that the Gladiators all stand inside of. Kassius cracks his neck and swivels his shoulder round in that chest clothing he wears, whilst a couple people just stay in their underwear or get different clothes to wear. "We got two Huntsmen here in this fight! I wonder which will win!"

Kassius stands there, listening to his words.

Two Huntsmen?

I don't recognise anyone here...and none of them even look like Huntsmen.

Who is Kelham talking about?

"Let's show off these scumbags, shall we?" Kelham roars.

"Rude." Kassius mumbles as the doors begin to open up into the arena. Kassius walks out first and is greeted by welcoming boos and fruit being thrown at him. Kassius however – being the smartass that he is – just cheers with his arms in the air as a tomato hits his chest. "Yeah! Many thanks, love you all!" He sarcastically cheers to himself.

The other Gladiators are not as...crazy...as Kassius seems as he catches a tomato and takes a bite out of it. Immediately spitting it out since he hates tomatoes anyway.

"Now! Let us reveal our next contestant!" Kelham roars.

Kassius readies himself, no longer joking around as he holds the swords the same way he holds Lash Equinox. One pointed at the enemy and the other crossed horizontally to deflect any attacks.

"He is our reigning champion!" Kelham cheers with the crowd as the door begins to open up before Kassius.

"Never beaten!"

"He is...the legendary..."

The doors open up and he emerges from the darkness, dragging his weapon across the sand as he approaches the arena. He has burnt-orange hair that used to be combed backwards with a slight peak at the front, and indigo eyes. His hair now is longer and covers his ears, messy and unkempt. He also has grown a bristly burnt orange beard too. He wears silver-gray armour with gold trim. The chest plate sports a bird with its wings outstretched. Underneath the armour, he wears a black shirt with red trimmings and black pants with a red belt tied around his waist.

He drags his huge mace across the sand with his indigo eyes focused on Kassius.

"Cardin! Winchester!" Kelham roars and the crowd cheer with him.

Immediately...

Kassius' eyes widen from all the stories Jaune has told of this man.

And only two words form.

"Holy shit..."


Author Note - Oh yeah, he's back.

Cardin Winchester is back and in the clutches of the Traffickers, did any of you see that one coming? Because I have been bouncing to write that part for ages. And also what did you think of the bulk of this chapter? With all those revelations told by Ozpin? It was a lot but trust me there is plenty more still to be answered, but I also hope I answered a lot of questions that you all had. Especially the ones surrounding Ozpin being the Knight of Vengeance. He still has a lot more to his character to come, so don't worry about that.

I hope you enjoyed, please review, follow and favourite!

Stay tuned for the next chapter - Locke Vs. Winchester!

- Matt