Disclaimer: See prologue.
Chapter 7:
"Headmaster Ozpin, we need to talk."
The aforementioned man raised an eyebrow at this display of power, Professor Goodwitch tensing besides him. Then the flow of energy was cut as soon as it started.
The Headmaster looked at him impassively, appearing to not have been affected by the sudden yet brief wave of energy that slammed into him.
"That was quite the show of force Mister Arc. Why, if I didn't know any better I would come to think that you tried to make a statement."
"Yes sorry, I always had a flair for the dramatics." He answered while scratching the back of his head. Then he squared his shoulders and looked at his Headmaster's eyes without a shade of hesitation, displaying pure honesty. "I needed to catch your attention to add more veracity to what I am about to tell you."
The Headmaster blinked once at this, his interest piqued.
"And what pray tell is it?"
Jaune stayed his facial expressions.
'I suppose it is time to see if my story will be enough for me to explain and display my abilities as a Cultivator... To be honest I grew tired of hiding what I can do.'
The Cultivator took a deep breath.
"Headmaster, ever since my Aura was unlocked I have visions, memories to be more precise. And from these memories I have been able to discover powers that are from beyond Remnant. And me coming here, standing before you on my own, away from any prying eyes telling you this is a show of good faith on my part. Because I have reasons to believe that there are infiltrators among the exchange students, more exactly a team from Haven Academy, planning something that involves Roman Torchwick and the White Fang. And their presence in the Academy cannot be a mere coincidence. They are planning something, though I still don't know what. But I won't let them anyways, because I know those kinds of people, they won't stop at anything to achieve their objectives... And I fear they might endanger my team, my friends and everyone else in the Academy." His eyes gained in intensity. "I won't let them hurt those I care about..."
He saw both professors exchange a short look that lasted not even a moment.
"Very well, then, let's say that I would believe you, not that it is immediately the case especially without proof of your intentions, though your wish to protect your comrades and those that you care about is certainly remarkable. Who then are those students and how have you managed to find out about them? What are your evidences?"
Jaune drew a breath and squared his shoulder.
"Firstly, there is a story that I must tell you, for contexts sake."
The Headmaster yet again looked at him impassively for a moment and then indicated one of the chairs before his desk.
"You may have a seat Mister Arc."
Jaune nodded thankfulness.
"Thank you Sir." He said as he took a seat.
The Headmaster steepled his fingers before his glasses and nodded at him.
"You may begin."
And thus Jaune passed the great part of an hour to recount an abridged and heavily edited version of his memories as Xiao Long, his tales and tribulations from his most unassuming beginnings, through his failures and successes and his untimely end to his eventual reincarnation as Jaune Arc. He told the professors of the path of Cultivation and the great lines about the power of one's Qi, while keeping any informations about being an Immortal for himself. He didn't want to give up all of his secrets yet.
At the end of his story his professors where left bewildered by such a tale. Professor Goodwitch herself couldn't decide between whether considering if one of her precious student was delusional or if she wanted to believe him. The Headmaster on the other hand was looking at Jaune with bewilderment and a certain amount apprehension.
"So you mean to tell me that you have currently powers that goes beyond what Aura or Semblances can offer?"
"Yes." He nodded. "The power of one's Qi or one's life-force, capable of realizing supernatural feats."
This left the Headmaster pondering for a moment then he spoke again.
"Do you have any proof, physical or otherwise..?"
Jaune crossed his arms in reflection and thought about what he could offer.
'Hmm... Let's see... What could- Oh yes, quite convenient that I made it recently.'
He took off his ring and put it on the Headmaster's desk who looked at it with a raised eyebrow.
"And what is this?"
"This Sir, is a Magical Item that I made recently. It is called an Interspatial Ring, or Spatial Ring for short. It is a Storage Treasure containing its own pocket dimension inside it. Go ahead." He said as he waved at the ring.
Ozpin made to reach for it.
"Sir, is it wise to handle such an unknown element..?" Goodwitch enquired with a frown at the ring.
"I can assure you that the ring is perfectly safe, it's purpose is just to act as a storage medium." Jaune said.
The Headmaster held up a hand.
"I do not plan to pick it up thoughtlessly Glynda, I am merely going to analyze it."
He placed his hand over it and sent out a burst of the limited amount of magic he possessed, focusing on a spell. This of course didn't escape Jaune's notice as he visibly reacted to it. Which in turn Ozpin remarked.
"Yes Mister Arc? Something you want to share?"
"Well, through my Spiritual Sense, an ability possessed by Cultivators to scan their surroundings with their spirit, I sensed a familiar energetic signature coming from the burst of magic that you emitted."
"You can tell I have magic?"
"Yes Sir. But if you hadn't purposely drawn upon it I wouldn't have noticed. Your magic seems... Diminished. Sir." He added as an afterthought while scratching the back of his head awkwardly.
This made the Headmaster wryly smile.
"Indeed, I am not as powerful as I used to be. And indeed I do feel a mystical energy coming from this... Spatial Ring."
At this Goodwitch perked.
"Does it feels anything like-"
"No. No it doesn't. Rather it has a rather alien and familiar feel to it."
"That would be my Qi, Sir. While someone's life-force is separate from one's soul power, or Aura, both energies have familiar enough effects on the body to look alike at first glance." Jaune offered helpfully.
"I see..." He looked at the ring with curious eyes then back at Jaune. "Tell me Mister Arc if you would, how does one uses such a ring?"
"By drawing a minute amount of Qi into it, not much really just enough to make the ring 'understand'", he made air quotes at the last word, "that you want to use it. It's like flicking a switch, basically."
"And would it work with anyone else besides you or people with... Qi?"
"Honestly I have no idea." Jaune shrugged. "To use it you need to know what's within it, preferably by using the Spiritual Sense, it's more reliable to 'see' what's inside, and then you must will the ring to return the specific object you're looking for."
The Headmaster nodded at his explanation then lost himself in his thoughts. Eventually he looked back at Jaune.
"Hmm… Do you perchance think that if I knew beforehand what lied within the ring and used either my Aura or my magic I could pull out whatever is within?"
Jaune looked at his professor and blinked a few times as he thought over what the Headmaster had said.
"Well… Really one way to find out, I guess." He shrugged.
Then he reached for the ring and put a finger on it. In a flash a textbook issued by Beacon Academy appeared on the Headmaster's desk. All of this happening before the surprised eyes of the Deputy Headmistress and the curious eyes of the Headmaster.
"Fascinating..." He said. "I recognize this book, isn't it one of the materials Professor Oobleck recommended for his classes?" The Headmaster inquired with an amused expression.
"Yeah… Uh, eheh... I might have all my school books in my ring... The bag I bring to class is more for... Show..?"
"Mister Arc..." Professor Goodwitch sighed.
"I am sure that if every student were to have such a convenient storage medium Mister Arc wouldn't be the only one..." The Headmaster assured with a point of humor.
"Yeah, hum, yes..." Jaune cleared his throat then reached again at the ring and with a touch made the book disappear. "Well go ahead..." He said with a wave of the hand.
Then with a nod the Headmaster reached for the ring and touched it with a finger, then after he applied his Aura onto it the book reappeared.
"Fascinating..." Jaune could only nod in affirmative.
He retouched the ring and after a light application of Aura the book disappeared again. Then he pulled on his inner magic power and the book reappeared yet again.
"Truly fascinating... It would seem the ring only needs an energy source to function... It makes one wonder what could be done with it..." He looked at the ring in wonder for a few instants. Then his gaze sharpened as he looked back at Jaune, it would seem the Headmaster was ready to seriously consider what his specially powered student had to say. "You made mention of having sensed an energetic signature familiar to my magic?"
"Yes." Jaune nodded with a serious face. "That's one of the subjects that brought me here in the first place. See a few days ago, I sensed an elemental magic energetic signature coming from one of the exchange students of Haven Academy. The team leader of such a team actually, one woman named Cinder Fall. Additionally, there was something else within her that worries me much more... An energetic signature similar to the Grimm..." He added with a heavy heart.
Goodwitch gasped at this and Ozpin frowned as activated the embedded computer of his desk and looked through its files for the student rooster, most precisely the one of Haven Academy.
A few instants later he pulled the student files of Team CMNE, otherwise pronounced as Carmine, Cinder and her teammates appearing onto it.
"That's them. By the way, see the girl named Mint? That's another of my proof, albeit not to my claims about being a Cultivator, but anyways, that's not her real name, her real identity is Neo. I'm pretty sure that's a diminutive for something." He turned toward Goodwitch. "We actually saw her together along with Team RWBY and the soldiers and Huntsmen earlier in the evening. The partner of-"
"Torchwick..." She interrupted as she got closer to the holographic display and squinted her eyes. "Yes, I can see it now... Somewhat. Her body proportions would check out at least..."
Ozpin did a few manipulations and brought up Neo's pictures, revealing her untruncated name being Neopolitan, Jaune thought she really pushed for an ice-cream theme, then through an image processing software compared both images. The software did its work and produced a result.
"An over 80% correspondence." Ozpin murmured.
"Sir..?" Goodwitch caught her colleague's attention. "Maybe we should contact Qrow?"
"Yes. That would be preferable..." Ozpin then took his Scroll and after a few taps on its screen started a call, putting it in loudspeaker. "Hopefully he's in reach..."
The tone dial rung for a few moments until the call was picked up.
"Yeah Oz? What's up?" Came a rough voice from the speakers.
"Qrow, I am going to send you a file. I want you to carefully look at the pictures within."
"Pictures? Huh, okay..."
"One moment." Ozpin did a few more manipulations on his computer and then sent the data through the Scroll. "It should be sent."
"Yeah one sec Oz..." Some shuffling sounds could be heard until a reaction was heard. "Holly shit Oz! Where did you get these pictures!?"
"I gather you do recognize them?" Said Ozpin with urgency in his voice.
"If I recon- You bet I do! More than half of them were the ones that attacked Amber!"
This made the two professors look at each other with sharp eyes. Leaving Jaune being the one wondering what was happening for once.
"Are you sure Qrow? Are you categoric for certain?"
"I'm as sure as if I was seeing my nieces, Oz!"
This left the Headmaster looking at his computer screen in contemplation. Then he spoke with the tone of a commander.
"Where are you at currently Qrow?"
"I'm close to Vale."
"Perfect, please do make haste back to Beacon. We will need all hands on deck."
"Got it Oz. I was on my way back anyways." Some more shuffling sound were heard. "Where did you get these pictures anyways? Wait, Beacon? Don't tell me they managed to infiltrate the school beneath your noses!?"
"I am afraid so..." Ozpin let out a suffering sigh.
"Damn... And those uniforms... They're from Haven right?"
"Yes..."
More shuffling sound was hear along what suspiciously sounded like curse words.
"What does it mean for Leo?"
"We cannot be sure for certain."
A tsk sound was heard from the speakers.
"Leo?" Jaune asked towards Professor Goodwitch.
"Haven Academy's Headmaster." She answered.
"Huh? Who's the kid voice? Sounds old enough to be the same age as Firecracker..?"
"This is actually the source of our information, but I rather we speak of this when you shall be physically present."
"Eh… Very well, we'll talk more when I'll be there."
"This is preferable Qrow, safe return."
"Yeah... Bye..."
The call disconnected, and the Headmaster put away his scroll. As he looked at his screen he seemed lost in the his thoughts.
"So… Who's this Qrow character..?" Jaune asked, pulling the Headmaster out of his thoughts.
"Hmm? Oh, yes, Qrow Branwen, a friend, close ally and associate as well as my informant on the field."
"Ah, I see..." He nodded. Then he looked at both the Deputy Headmistress then to the Headmaster. "So... Where does that leaves us?"
"Well Mister Arc, I believe that decision shall depend you. You are aware of enemies in our midst, the question that is the most important is what do you want to do about it."
"I want to help." He instantly answered without hesitation whatsoever.
This wasn't a case of Jaune using his enhanced cognitive functions to think of an appropriate answer, this was all from his heart. He didn't have to think about it. His instincts as an aspiring hero, as a Cultivator Huntsman, made him answer before he could even properly analyze the question. Jaune wanted to help more than anything.
Of course the instantaneous nature of the answer didn't elude the Headmaster who gave a knowing smile, nor the Deputy Headmistress who looked at her student with motherly and professional pride.
"Very well Mister Arc. As you know of the existence of magic, and wield yourself supernatural abilities, I do think that it is paramount that you shall be made aware of the situation at hand... Tell me Mister Arc, what is your favorite fairytale?"
And so the Headmaster told Jaune a story of his own. A story about four young women, of maidens and of seasons. He told Jaune about the secret order of the Inner Circle and their objectives to protect the Seasonal Maidens in secrecy. And he told Jaune of the Fall Maiden currently residing below the academy in a comatose state.
Suffice to say that Jaune was left quite bewildered in turn.
"Wow... That's... Quite a lot." He said as he held his chin with his hand.
"Indeed…" Headmaster Ozpin nodded.
"I mean, don't get me wrong, I knew there was something going on in the world what with Aura, Semblances and Dust, and also from what I knew about the supernatural what with Qi, magic and the likes but I sure wasn't expecting a story like that. And I've got lots of memories of crazier stuff..."
This made the Headmaster chuckle good-heartedly.
"Yes, I might know a few things about this feeling."
"Mm-hmm... So you really split up your magic, just like that?"
This made the Headmaster blink in surprise. After all he hadn't outright said that the hermit of the story was him.
"Oh..? I was expecting you to catch on this but not that fast..."
"Well you have magic and your magic is diminished so... Wasn't exactly that difficult to connect the dots." He shrugged off.
"Yes, I must admit that might have been more obvious then I thought." He chuckled. "But yes I did indeed split up my magic like that. At the time I hadn't foreseen that people would come to such length to acquire the power of the Maidens..."
"But working with the Grimm? How does that even works?"
The two professors exchanged looks at that question.
Eventually the Headmaster let out a weary sigh.
"Well then Mister Arc, let me tell you about a being, the queen of the Grimm themselves called Salem..."
Thus the Headmaster then talked about a woman cursed by immortality who lead the Creatures of Grimm for as long as the world could remember in secrecy.
This left Jaune not quite as speechless as they thought he'd be.
"Makes sense..." Jaune nodded with his arm's crossed. "That would explain how Cinder managed to steal the powers and the Grimm-like signature within her."
"You seem oddly accepting of this?" The Headmaster said that with an eyebrow raised.
"Oh you know... A cursed being hellbent on the destruction/domination of the world for Cultivators... It's a monday." He shrugged off under their wide eyes. "I don't tell you how much Demon Lords and the likes Xiao Long encountered in his life, honestly some where a lot more scarier than what this Salem person, Grimm queen or whatever sounds like." He nodded lackadaisically.
"I see..." Ozpin said. "Well then welcome to the Inner Circle, Mister Arc."
Jaune bowed gratefully for being accepted in such a short time.
"Now then," began Jaune, "why don't I have a look on this Amber? I don't know whether I might be able to help but I'll never know until I try."
This surprised the two professors.
"You mean to say that you might be able to help Amber?" Ozpin asked.
"That's the thing, I don't know." He apologetically shrugged. "There is quite a number of techniques that I know which can help a comatose person to recover, but to know whether or not if I'll be able to I need to check on her."
Ozpin nodded.
"This sound sensible well then-"
"Wait." Jaune interrupted by raising a hand. "There's a development..." He said as he closed his eyes before the confused faces of the two professors.
"What kind of development Mister Arc?" Asked Ozpin with a worried frown.
"It's better that I show you..."
He raised his hands and focused on his Spiritual Sense's abilities, to be more precise on the Sound Manipulation and Perception Manipulation to shape visual representations of what the Astral Projection he set to follow Cinder was hearing and seeing.
Before the two professors eyes, the scene around them changed from the Headmaster's office to the inside of a dorm room. More precisely a dorm room allocated to the exchange students from Haven Academy, the dorm room of the false Team CMNE. Inside the room where situated three persons. One was seated on her own bed with her legs crossed, this was Cinder Fall, one leaned on a nearby wall, this was Mercury Black, and finally another was seated on the bed facing her team leader, Emerald Sustrai.
"What is this?" Asked Professor Goodwitch.
"I'll tell you later, for now you should record what's being said..." Jaune answered with his eyes closed, deeply focusing his mental power on the taxing task.
The professor then hurried to get her scroll and started recording.
"So Torchwick got owned?" Said Mercury. "Huh, I'm not surprised..."
"Because you're so much better than him..." Responded Emerald with heavy sarcasm.
"Silence!" Cinder scolded the two. "Now is not the time for your senseless bickering..." She growled.
"Sorry Ma'am..." Said Emerald.
"Sorry, boss..." Added Mercury.
Cinder brought a hand to her mouth and started nibbling on her thumb nail.
"I can't believe he got himself arrested ahead of schedule and with his henchwoman to boot..." She said.
"But how did it happen?" Asked Emerald. "Ma'am..." She added hesitantly.
"According to our contact within the White Fang he and Neo were bested in combat by a bunch of students of all things..." She answered after noticing what she was doing and quickly crossed her arms.
"Even Neo?" Began Mercury. "Damn, that psycho might not be all there but she's no pushover... Especially with her Semblance. What are were going to do 'bout Mint then?"
"I'll contact Lionheart and have him make an excuse about her absence... We cannot have any suspicions falling on us." Cinder answered.
As the infiltrators fell into a contemplative silence, this last sentence brought a gasp from the two professors.
"Lionheart?" Jaune asked, eyes closed stills focusing on his Spiritual Sense.
"The last name of Haven Academy's Headmaster. Leonardo Lionheart..." Professor Goodwitch answered hollowly.
"So he's indeed a traitor..?"
"No..." Ozpin began. "No Leo my old friend why..." He whispered.
The short silence ended when Cinder talked again.
"In the meantime I want the two of you to stay low... Meaning none of your antics! I better not catch either one of you messing up with the plan... Am I clear..?" She said as one of her eyes lit up in magical flames.
"Yes Ma'am..."
"Yes boss..."
Emerald and Mercury said respectively, their answers seeming to placate Cinder as the flames disappeared.
"Good..." She almost sensually said, all traces of her former mood gone. "For now let's go to bed. We will have a long day tomorrow to fix Torchwick's mess..." She said as she got up on went to the bathroom.
The feed, for lack of of a better term continued to show the two other members of the false team going through the motions of getting ready to go to sleep. An odd normal moment fort a bunch of criminals, thought Jaune, but then he conceded that even criminals needed to sleep.
Then as he saw that nothing more of notice was going to happen he cut off his focus, the Headmaster's office going back to normal as he slouched in his chair, letting out a relieved breath, Professor Goodwitch cutting off the recording and putting her Scroll away.
"Oh my head..." Jaune said as he massaged his temples, as he flooded his head with his Aura to try to alleviate the forming headache. "I won't be doing this all the time..."
The two professors looked at him with bewildered eyes. Then the Headmaster shook himself off from his stupor.
"And what was this Mister Arc..?" He asked as put his two hands on each other on the surface of his desk.
Jaune let out a sigh and then began to explain in more depth the abilities of his Spiritual Sense. He explained the Astral Projection he left monitoring Cinder and how he managed to showcase the feed of what the projection saw.
"I see..." Ozpin began. "Then I gather everything we saw right now actually happened within my own Academy?"
"Yes..." Jaune answered, looked apologetic. "I'm sorry, about your friend..."
The Headmaster looked even older than he appeared at this.
"So do I, Mister Arc... So do I..." Ozpin responded eyes showing apparent hurt and sadness.
"Ozpin, we must do something about this." Said Goodwitch.
"Yes of course, I must contact James and Theodore... They must be made aware of a traitor in our midst..."
"Are they trustworthy?" Asked Jaune with a serious face.
"Yes… I believe so. At least on James' part. I am talking about General James Ironwood of the Atlas Military and Headmaster of Atlas Academy, and I completely trust this man to always do the right thing. If not for the people of Remnant as a whole then at least for the Kingdom of Atlas." Ozpin nodded.
At Jaune's questioning look the Deputy Headmistress took over.
"It is because James, General Ironwood, is the most incorruptible man we know. He would never ally himself with the likes of Salem, for anything." She said with an affirmative nod.
Jaune looked at her then nodded in turn. Then he looked back at his Headmaster.
"And what about the other person?" He asked.
"Ah yes, Theodore, or Professor Theodore, Headmaster of Shade Academy. I also do believe that he is trustworthy. I must believe so... We are already so few that I cannot just disregard him. Even more so concidering that were he to reveal anything to Leo, to Lionheart, precious information could ultimately go to Salem's ears..."
"Yes this would be quite a gamble…" Jaune agreed. "Well then I will leave warning them to you. In the meantime, should we still head to Amber?"
"Now more than ever." Ozpin nodded as he stood up, Jaune following his exemple. "If this... False Maiden is here it is not a coincidence. She aims for the rest of the Fall Maiden's power still within poor Amber."
"Alright then, let's go."
After this they made their way to the elevator. After calling it and entering it, as it was already on their floor, Ozpin did a manipulation that directed the elevator to a hidden floor.
On the way Jaune wanted to ask more about Amber's conditions. But decided to wait until they were before her.
A few moments later the elevator stopped and opened to a wide emerald colored corridor. They disembarked and headed further into the subterranean space.
Minutes later they arrived to a chamber, within in its center were placed two pods. One was empty but the other was inhabited. Within lied a young brown haired woman whose skin that used to have a dark complexion had a sickly pale hue to it. She was dressed just enough to protect her privacy. At first that would be all there was to the young woman's appearance if it weren't for the scars that marred the left side of her face.
"Mister Arc, may I introduce you Amber, the Fall Maiden..." Ozpin said with a saddened tone at the end. "Please, if you are able to do anything to help her do so... The alternatives are not something I wish to concider..."
"According to the second pod, and if I guess correctly, you plan to forcefully transfer the Maiden powers to a more healthy and able woman isn't? Killing Amber in the process most certainly."
The silence that followed was telling.
"Yes..." Ozpin eventually answered.
"I see... Well then, let's get to work."
He focused his Spiritual Sense on Amber and what he saw disgusted him.
'What manner of monstrosity is this!? Her soul... It's been shredded apart, torn asunder..! Cinder must die...'
Unbeknownst to Jaune in his anger he unconsciously leaked his Killing Intent, startling the two professors who took a few steps back, readying themselves for a potential fight.
"Mister Arc..?" Called out Ozpin.
Fortunately this was enough to shook Jaune from his state, his Killing Intent vanishing instantly.
"My… Apologies." He said as he shook his head to clear his thoughts. "Upon seeing this poor girls state I..." He finished, unable to find his words.
The Headmaster walked back to him and put a hand on his shoulder.
"I understand Mister Arc... Jaune..." Jaune gave him a small smile and looked back at Amber, with sorrowful eyes. "What can you say about her?"
"Her soul has been torn apart, there's even a few... Fragments of it missing..." He heard a gasp from the Deputy Headmistress.
"I believe Miss Fall must have used the Grimm to... Consume for lack of a better term Amber's soul to aquire the Maiden powers linked to it."
"You connected the power to the souls?" Asked Jaune bewildered.
"At the time it seemed like a good idea... I wasn't expecting Salem to debase herself even further by tempering with souls..."
Jaune let out a noncommittal grunt at this.
"I guess that's understandable. Souls are precious things, to temper with them is to incur the wrath of the Heavens, of the gods."
The Headmaster let out a sardonic chuckle.
"Thinking about it this way actually makes sense..." Jaune sent him a questioning look. "Another story for another time..."
He merely raised an eyebrow then shrugged it off, focusing his attention back on Amber.
"Fortunately I might be able to do something through the use of two of the Spiritual Sense's abilities called Soul Manipulation and Energy Manipulation."
This time both professors gasped.
"You mean you can save her..?" Asked Goodwitch in wonder.
"Yes. However this won't be without dangers. For both of us. Soul Manipulation is an ability capable of many things, such as ripping souls apart among other things or in what matters to us, do the opposite. Though that won't be enough to help Amber. Because while I might be able to reconstitute her soul with the fragments that are left within her, there will still be pieces missing."
"Devoured by Miss Fall..." Stated Ozpin.
"Precisely." Jaune nodded. "And to reconstruct her soul to its whole state I must fill in the blanks as a manner of speech."
"You don't mean..." Began Goodwitch as she looked at him with fright.
"Yes, I must use my own soul to complete hers. Which isn't without its own dangers. Because while at first I just have to reconstruct her soul together with Soul Manipulation, which is a fairly simple procedure, I must then carefully rip pieces of my own soul, small enough to allow it to regenerate itself, then I must transfer this piece to her while attuning it to her soul's frequency with Energy Manipulation. Then afterwards I must fill in the voids within her soul and mend them yet again with Soul Manipulation and repeat the process again and again until her soul is able to regenerate itself on its own..."
They both looked at him with horrified and scared expressions.
"Am I right to presume that ripping pieces of your soul won't be as easy as you make it seem." Asked Ozpin.
Jaune gave them a wry smile.
"Nope. I'm not going to lie or hide it it's going to hurt. Lots. And there won't be any substance in the physical world that shall be able to alleviate the pain."
"Then is there really nothing that could help?" Asked Professor Goodwitch.
"Well I don't suppose that you have access to any magical item able to interact with the metaphysical world?" He rhetorically asked.
"No, not at the moment." Ozpin truthfully answered.
Jaune chuckled.
"Well then I suppose there's no helping it, let's get to work." He said as he walked a bit further away from the pods. "Hum, just to be sure, can she be removed from her pod?"
"I'd like to avoid doing that." Ozpin answered. "Her vitals are steadily decreasing and I fear the shock could further accelerate her passing."
"Mm-hmm…" Jaune did as he crossed an arm and put a hand below his chin in thought. "Then I guess there's no helping it."
He walked back to Amber's pod and raised his hands around it. He then drew upon his Qi and made gestures in the air.
Instantly shapes and lines appeared in mid-air and on the ground, taking shape into an array of symbols and signs in various different foreign languages.
A few moments later he was done.
"Phew, well the easiest part is finished..." He said as he wiped his brow with the sleeve of his shirt.
"That's the easiest part?" Asked Professor Goodwitch as she looked at what her student did before them with wide disbelieving eyes.
"Well, yeah I still need to actually start the ritual."
"And what is this..?" Asked Ozpin as he pointed to what Jaune had made.
"Oh, well, I do need to make a connection with Amber's soul if I want to actually heal her, hence the Array. Well no time like the present I suppose..."
"Will you be safe?" Professor Goodwitch asked concerned about her student's well-being.
He waved her off with a boyish yet reassuring smile.
"Don't worry, I'm fairly confident about my success. The thing I don't look forward to is the procedure itself... It's really going to suck." He dryly said with a frown.
"You can still renounce to go through with it, Mister Arc. We wouldn't think otherwise of yourself." The Headmaster said.
"Nah… Don't worry about it... I always dreamed to be a hero, long before I had those memories..." He began with a bright smile. "I want to do this. I must..."
"Well then I wish you good luck with this tribulation Mister Arc..." The Headmaster nodded in respect.
"Likewise, Jaune..." Goodwitch said warmly.
The Cultivator bowed and turned toward Amber, sitting cross-legged in his favorite meditation position right within the Array.
'Well then, let's begin...'
He closed his eyes and drew upon his Qi, focusing on the spells he had inscribed into the Array.
After a moment from an external perspective nothing seemed to happen until a flash of light burst out of Jaune's body, followed by a glow from Amber's Aura.
At first everything seemed to stay that way until they heard the young woman starting to whimper. Slightly at first, then the moans of pain increased in intensity.
Eventually Jaune followed next.
After a moment each time Jaune's pain increased Amber's seemed to diminish. Her Aura, which was faint at first, gained more intensity as time passed while Jaune's seemed to wither at intervals only to regain its usual shine a few moments later.
This was the spectacle that happened before the two worried Beacon professors for the span of an hour.
Time to time Jaune's body shivered in pain and he let out a few pained sounds that burned at Goodwitch's, at Glynda's soul. Ozpin wasn't exempt from being affected by the spectacle happening right before his eyes.
The both of them thought that the student before them definitely would deserve some rest and perhaps a vacation afterwards.
Suddenly as fast as it happened it all stopped. The glows coming from the two young people's Aura before them disappeared.
Nothing else seemed to happen until Amber suddenly woke up with a gasp, looking around her with panicked eyes.
"O-Ozpin..?" She weakly said as another gasp came from Jaune.
As the young Cultivator followed Amber to the waking world, he slumped from his sitting position, panting for air.
"I-it's d-done..." He said as Goodwitch rushed to his sides, holding him by the shoulders support him.
"Amber... How are you feeling..?" Ozpin asked as he approached her pod.
"Tired... What happened..? The last thing I remember-" She cut herself off with a gasp. "I-I was... I was attacked..."
"Yes Amber, but now everything is fine you are safe..."
"B-but how? The last thing I can recall was that woman pointing some kind of Grimm at me, intense pain and... That's all..."
"All shall be explained in time, for now just know that because of this young man you are now healthy again." He said as pointed at Jaune.
"Yeah…" Jaune started weakly. "But now that I know she's awake... If you don't mind... I'm going to pass out."
At this his eyes rolled backwards in his head and he fell down unconscious.
A/N:
Phew it's done... Gotta say I wasn't expecting to update this late-ish.
So nothing but mostly talk this chapter, please let me know what you think about it.
On my part this chapter was oddly difficult to write. But it did allow me to try my hand with a few things. Especially the phone, or rather Scroll, call and the scene with Cinder and her "team". I'm especially curious to know what all think about the way how I went about it.
And of course the healing Amber scene too.
Well that pretty much sums it up.
Though writing two stories at once is definitely trying... For those following Magecraft User it is very likely that the next chapter will not be uploaded the coming Monday but rather the one after.
Fyr out!