Disclaimer: I don't own RWBY
POV ?
The sizzling hum of energy beams and the thunderous boom of weaponized lightning faintly permeated the air of the laboratory, adding to the occasional gentle shaking of the numerous scientific instruments strewn about the various shelves and tables and the accompanying shouts and screams leading to quite the uneasy ambiance, one that was further intensified by the artificial voice routinely announcing updates on the progress the intruders were making.
To most, this would be a source stress, hanging over their heads like an executioner's axe and causing no end of worry as their nerves frayed.
However…
The sole occupant of the room was unperturbed, their fingers dancing across the console not with panicked urgency, but rather grim determination and their appearance held none of what would be expected of a person pressed for time, with neither their hair out of place or face caked in sweat, nor was their clothes disheveled.
It was to be expected, they had planned this day down to the finest detail, accounting for everything, from the response of the counsel when they discovered the project, to correctly predicting the exact composition of the infiltration team that would be sent to stop them.
The figure even planned out precisely how the intruders would attack, taking into account their reaction to the defenses and calculating down to the second on how long it would take them to overcome each check point.
A task that was proving considerably difficult for the attackers, as each and every one of them was designed and employed with an intimate knowledge of their abilities, to a degree that surpassed even their comrades in depth.
It was far to easy for the figure to accomplish, after all, what hadn't they been to these heroes? Friends, comrades, brothers and sisters in all but blood, even lovers, there was absolutely no one that knew them better.
And it was for that very reason that the figures task, while not at risk of failure, weighed heavily on the mind all the same.
'If only there was another option…'
The figure sighs as they finish their work and lock everything down, preventing any changes from taking place.
*Ping*
[Final Prayer] has been activated!
Charging…
Hearing the predicted increase in violence from the heroes as the announcement rings out across the facility, the figure walks over to a nearby floating egg.
As the figure draws closer, the egg immediately starts to scan them, matching them to a preestablished profile and altering itself to the recorded shape that offers the most comfortable sitting posture as the figure lightly jumps onto it, leaning back to face the ceiling with a content groan.
"…So this is it?
The figure chuckles softly, their formerly expressionless face taking on a hint of a smile.
"Ah, Merc! I was beginning to think I wouldn't hear from any of you this round!" the figure says with fake cheer.
"We wanted to give you some time to think."
"Mhmm, in case I decided not to go through with it, right? Heh, like I'd give up accomplishing something this BIG because of something as trivial as collateral damage or 'permanent consequences'… unless the good'ol 'mind council' decided to interfere?" the figure asks as their smile changes, becoming as fake as the tone of their voice.
"None of us would actively prevent you from doing anything. You know that."
"Eh? But that's not universally true yeah? Pretty sure you lot have forcefully stayed my hand before…"
"Baring suicidal soul destruction, we wouldn't actively prevent you from doing anything."
"Uh-huh, you got the others to agree to that? I feel like my current goal is pretty close to 'suicidal soul destruction'…"
"Neither of the others are even close to happy with what your attempting… but they understand."
The figure leans back further, softly humming in response.
"…muscle brain and wizzy agreeing with each other, never thought id see the day… what about our resident coma patient?
"Still sleeping."
"Hahaha, seriously?" the figure wipes a tear from their eye as they forcefully suppress their laughter. "haaa… at least they're consistent…"
The figure shakes their head in amusement before their expression changes back to a fake smile.
"…it isn't to late-"
"Oh come now." The figure rolls their eyes "Do you really want to continue this tired argument? Now, at what could potentially be the last moments we'll ever see each other?"
"I just want to make sure you can live with yourself after all this is over."
The figure chuckles.
"Oh I wouldn't worry about that, one doesn't simply plan to conduct a slaughter on a scale unimaginable without first being absolutely positive they can stomach the sin after all." The figure replies with a sickeningly upbeat tone.
"…"
The figure lets the silence carry on for a few minutes, quietly listening to the slowly approaching fighting, before letting out a long breath of air deeply laced with emotional exhaustion as their smile slowly bleeds off their face.
"Things can't continue as they have Merc." The figure says lifelessly, their posture shifting forward as they look at the floor with their hands clasped in their lap. "… It's taken a while, but I've reached my breaking point."
The figure pauses for a moment, a stream of memories rising to the forefront of their mind. Visions of all their friends, family and loved ones brought to focus… and only serving to further convince them to proceed.
"…they mean so little to you now?"
"The only thing worse than loosing something you deeply care about is watching it slowly change from vibrant to dull." The figure clenches their fist "Everything has looped way too many times, its transformed them all to NPCs, with dialogue I've heard far to much. Hell, I could list to you the number of times their going to blink in a conversation at this point!"
The figure leans back, laughing aloud in a violent mixture of frustration, loss, sorrow and pain. "To think! Love is conditional to its target not being known in its entirety…"
"Ahh, how GLAD I am to have made THAT discovery…"
The figures laughter cuts off abruptly, like flipping a switch as they lean forward again, their body trembling slightly.
*Ping*
Charging complete!
[Final Prayer] ready for use!
The figure smiles emptily before getting up from their seat and walking back towards the console while withdrawing a keycard from their lab coat.
"There really is no convincing you…"
"Don't act so down now, unless I've calculated this horribly wrong, this is far from the end of both of us. Most likely, this is a coin flip, do I overpower this cursed ability and finally usher in a new beginning? Or will things…"
A small tremor runs through the figure.
"Well, let's remain optimistic."
The figure reaches the console and slots in the keycard before starting the countdown.
"Haaa… I sincerely hope this fresh start of yours goes well, for both of us."
"That's the spirit!"
The figures expression takes on a genuine grin.
"See you on the other side, Merc."
POV
I softly groan, throwing off the covers and sitting up on the bed as I clutch my head in an attempt to stave off the quickly approaching headache.
Eyes still closed, I reach out to my right, swiping the air a few times until my hand finally lands on the bafflingly loud alarm clock, which I proceed to quickly silence, slamming my fist down onto the snooze button.
The alarm is cut off immediately, replaced by two consecutive cracking sounds as my hand travels through the alarm clock, utterly destroying it before coming down on the nightstand underneath it with enough left-over force to nearly split the wooden top in half.
Instantly, my eyes flick open, and I stare at my hand in confusion.
… until my memories come flooding back to me.
I groan again.
Note to self, [Precision] becomes ineffective with a muddled mind.
Crack.
I stare down at the pile of wood that used to be a nightstand.
… this could be potentially hazardous if someone were to try and wake me up…
Lightly shaking my head, I reorganize my thoughts before looking towards the window and the accompanying light filtering through the blinds.
… don't suppose the system has a clock?
*Ping*
Request-
8 am huh? Don't know why but I don't think I would have pegged the former tenet as someone who wakes up this early…
I shrug, rising from the bed and make my way to the attached bathroom, still lightly holding my head.
"Kid-"
I raise a hand, forestalling the conversation I know is going to increase my headache in favor of stripping off my clothes and stepping into the shower, letting out a sigh of contentment as I let the hot water stream down my body and taking a moment to simply relax after the events of yesterday.
A very needed moment of relaxation as well… considering…
I look down tiredly at the mix of black and red liquid slowly gathering at my feet.
It's a grim reminder, watching all this blood and dirt wash down the drain, of just how close I came to permanently dying…
And it was close, if those birds hadn't had some twisted desire to draw things out…
I close my eyes, bringing my head directly under the running water as I take a few minutes to clear my mind.
At least I'm stronger now, as the destroyed clock can attest, and my body doesn't seem to be suffering any ill affects from all the strain it was put through yesterday.
I frown.
In fact, aside from the headache, there doesn't seem to be any repercussions at all, I'm not even sore…
Actually, that's a little suspicious, did I accidentally sleep for days?
"You slept for 2 hours."
Wait really?
"Yeah, guess that counts as the second racial trait we've discovered."
Right, racials… I actually forgot about that…
I shake my head, putting off any further consideration of my weird race to a later date in favor of resuming my brief respite.
After a while, I stretch in satisfaction and separate from my other two bodies, allowing them to get clean while I search through the bathroom cabinets, smiling slightly when I spot a spare unused toothbrush still in its packaging.
That thug was surprisingly organized with his things… aside from the bedroom, funnily enough, the guy basically just threw all his clothes in two piles, 'clean' or 'unclean' and left it at that.
I chuckle softly as I open the package and move to stand in front of the mirror before flinching.
Damn, the starved appearance combined with obviously supernatural orbs orbiting my eyes can be one hell of a sucker punch when you're not fully awake…
I squint as I bring my head closer to the mirror before frowning.
… and this face still brings me no familiarity either…
I close my eyes with a sigh before quickly finishing up and heading out of the bathroom.
I glance at the clothing piles in brief contemplation before lightly shrugging, equipping a grimm shirt and pants and heading to the kitchen.
As I enter the kitchen, I take a more in-depth look at what its stocked with, searching the cabinets and fridge for breakfast ingredients before stepping back with an exasperated sigh.
No cereal, bread, or milk? But for some reason he has eggs, bacon, orange juice and coffee…
I shake my head before proceeding to test the eggs to see if they're rotten and get started on making breakfast… for three people.
A couple minutes later and my other two bodies enter the kitchen as well- both dressed in a set of grimm clothes, with my first body being defused of his clothing- and begin to silently assist in the cooking.
I toss a package of bacon over my shoulder that one of them catches easily and moves over to another burner on this ridiculously large oven while the other starts making coffee and gathering silverware and plates.
Soon enough, the food is finished, and I sit down next my other two bodies on the stools.
"Kid-"
I hold up a hand again, stalling the conversation once more before starting in on my food.
…
This is…
"Disgusting…" One of my other bodies mutters.
Well, that not exactly accurate… I think id describe it as… overcooked?
I frown.
But it doesn't make any sense. I'm not so blind that I wouldn't be able to see if my food was burnt black, and that exactly what it tastes like… it's as if I was trying to make charcoal.
I massage the bridge of my nose as my headache grows.
… now that I think about it, I don't actually have any memories of cooking before. How did I even know how to cook this anyway?
I pause.
Is it possible my memories are so messed up that what I perceive as adequately prepared food is actually horribly overcooked?
One of my other bodies frowns before taking a sip of orange juice.
All three of my bodies freeze before my body holding the glass of juice slowly begins to drink the rest.
And its tasteless.
My other body gets up and walks over to the fruit basket while I tentatively take a drink of coffee.
The body holding the empty glass of juice looks over at me in disbelief while I look at the cup of coffee feeling perplexed.
The coffee tasted exactly as it should… so what the hell is wrong with the food and juice?
Plucking an apple from the basket, my first body looks over towards the other two and takes a bite before shaking its head.
Just like the juice, the apple is tasteless… so fruits are tasteless and eggs and presumably all meats taste disgusting?
Why?
Is remnant food different, and thus incompatible with my taste buds?
Or…
I sigh and rest my face in my hands.
Its my fucking 'custom' race isn't it?
Third?
"Looks like it, yeah."
Great, why?
"Not enough information."
Amazing.
I slam my fist down on the counter.
Couldn't even have a simple meal…
I grimace, looking over the food I'm going to have to throw away in annoyance.
"You can still eat it."
…really? You want me to eat food that taste like garbage and would likely give me some sort of food poisoning?
"Taste aside, it's still digestible…"
My first body sits back down as I raise an eyebrow.
"It just doesn't seem fully compatible… like using the wrong fuel for a vehicle."
… Doesn't that damage said vehicle?
"Sure, but you have both [Adaptation] and a healing factor. The real problem is that it doesn't fully sate your hunger."
Meaning I'm still going to starve, just slower?
"No, [Adaptation] would patch you up… but it would have to borrow soul energy to do so."
So soul death, the fun upgraded version of regular death.
"Exp, being soul energy, would be taken first, then your body would start deteriorating, followed by starvation."
Couldn't [Adaptation] just change my body? Like photosynthesis or something?
"Not if its trying to support your body through an energy drought."
I look back down towards the food with a frown.
And eating this will delay how long it takes for my Exp to start decreasing?
"No, it'd decrease the amount of Exp taken, which would still give us more breathing room to figure this out."
I groan lightly while picking up a fork and resume eating, attempting to clear my plate as quickly as possible while simultaneously tasting a minimal amount of it.
… having to eat this with three bodies is a pretty big downside to [Multibody]…
Any clues to what I'm supposed to be eating?
"Not really… it looks like your body was looking for something in the food that it obviously didn't find, but that doesn't really narrow anything down."
That's it? what about the difference between fruit and meat?
"Fruit gave even less energy than the bacon did, like your body was reluctant to even consider digesting it."
I tap the counter lightly as I finish the rest of the food.
…so meat is the correct type of food, I just ate the wrong meat?
"Maybe?"
I frown in thought, downing the last of my coffee to wash away the disgusting after taste of my breakfast before I pause, examining the now empty coffee cup.
Why does coffee taste normal?
"No idea."
…
Let's just… talk about this later.
I shake my head helplessly as my second and third body move to wash the dishes and start a new pot of coffee.
Well, now that we've added an exciting mystery to my to do list, lets revisit yesterday's events yeah?
I stretch my back briefly before leaning forward and placing my hands on the table, smiling sweetly.
What the fuck Third?
"…I told you that wasn't what I was going to suggest for raising your level."
Alright.
I nod slowly.
So why is my soul cannibalistic?
"Your soul is… unique? Its ability to adapt is absurdly strong."
… I think I'm going to need a little more of an explanation than that.
"Your soul is very very weak right now, so when it was presented with a relatively easy way to get stronger it metaphorically jumped at the chance."
That's… does this mean my level is a measurement of my soul's strength?
"I would have thought that getting Exp would have tipped you off to that."
I look up at my third body as it refills my coffee cup and watch it pull out the scroll and move to sit next my second body in the living room before returning my gaze to the countertop, deep in thought.
If that's the case, this could be potentially good news… the only thing preventing me from leaving is my soul's strength. So, assuming the way Third suggests I gain Exp is grindable…
"… you might not want to get too excited just yet…"
Right, you did say it would be time consuming, so the Exp reduction from the food might be an issue-
"That's not what I meant."
…
"Look… originally, I was going to suggest meditating and drawing in the ambient energy in the atmosphere to slowly gain Exp. Hell, maybe the 'dust' you mention earlier could have given us a boost as well but…"
…
"Right now, our soul is volatile, trying to add a different energy type to it would be suicide…"
Meaning that if I want to get stronger and leave this world, I have to purposefully commit an act that most would find unforgivable?
"That's… actually looking at the situation too optimistically…"
…
"To be blunt, we risk soul dispersion if you don't consume more souls."
Madness…
"…"
Utter madness.
I sigh heavily and burry my face in my hands.
So, in order to not die in the worst possible way, I have to go out and eat people's souls… how much time do I have to look for a target?
"Less than a week."
…will it just be one more person?
"At least until level zero."
Haaa….
"Sorry kid…"
I reach for my cup of coffee while closing my eyes, taking a moment to savor the warm bitter liquid as I attempt to organize my thoughts and suppress my growing headache.
…
Less than an hour… it's not even been an hour into my second day and my situation has already turned bleak again, with the threat of death looming in the distance…
I take a deep breath.
So, it's no longer possible to remain completely hidden and quietly gather the strength needed to leave this world, my very first move after entering this city saw to that… I need to find an acceptable target to gather Exp from, one that's weak enough to be preyed upon while simultaneously lacking allies.
…this might be a problem…
My expression darkens.
I'm not in a good position to be making enemies... and that's exactly what I'll get regardless of whether I choose to target civilians or an organization…
…I suppose I should just be grateful my deadline is measured in days rather than hours… if I plan carefully, I might still be able to maneuver through this minefield…
I start slowly tapping my finger against the table.
I'll delay deciding a 'main' target for a few days to gather both information and supplies… and I'll also need to gain more practice with my powers…
If anything, I can likely get away with picking off a homeless or two without attracting to much attention if I absolutely have to.
No, the main problem right now might actually be my food situation.
How much of an issue is an Exp drain going to be with a volatile soul?
"Not sure, I'll look into it."
Hmm…
I shake my head and have my second body get up and take out the blindfold and cane again before having it walk over to the pile of clothes lying on the living room floor.
Searching for a minute, it soon fishes out a brown leather wallet and tosses the clothes back onto the floor.
I watch it walk out the door, frowning in thought.
My second body is heading to a store to buy an assortment of food, which will hopefully solve one of my two biggest concerns… but this is going to seriously harm my financial situation…
I glance back at the clothes pile.
…robbery might not be a bad idea, given current circumstances…
My frown deepens and I stand up and head into the bathroom.
…call me paranoid, but I don't like the idea of two copies of me walking around at the same time. It's too big of a trump card to reveal that easily…
But at the same time, the ability to be in multiple places at once is a huge advantage, and I'm not willing to give that up and have two of my three bodies remain at the apartment either.
Entering the bathroom, I come to a stop in front of the mirror.
So then, the question is, is there a way to retain the secrecy of my trump card without giving up the utility brought by having multiple bodies?
… This really brings to focus my lack of familiarity with the shards… and the annoyingly vague descriptions aren't exactly helpful either…
I stare at my refection.
So, the goal is to temporarily change the appearance of this body… I can think of two possible options.
[Create] or [Adaptation].
[Create]- being a power centered on bio matter- would likely be able to change my appearance, right? It was able to heal a beowolf before, which means it not limited to creating and destroying…
"That won't work."
…But I have the bio data from the thug earlier, surely it wouldn't be too difficult to have the system make a skill to-
"What I mean is that it won't work for you specifically."
Haa… why?
"You're not human kid."
… Worthless gods damn custom race.
Alright… so let's use [Analysis] to get the bio data of my race and then-
"That's not going to work either."
I close my eyes and slowly count to ten.
Why?
"A few reasons, the first being that [Analysis] doesn't just instantly analyze everything."
And yet, it collected the entire bio data of the beowolves in seconds…
"And it did so by violently destroying the target."
I wince.
…what would be the estimated amount of time it would take to analyze my body?
"I can't even begin to guess, your biology is far more complex, and… supernatural?"
… and I can't even begin to describe how frustrating and annoying that answer is.
I let out a breath of air.
Alright, lets shelve analyzing my race for now and move on to option two.
[Adaptation]… I haven't really used the active of this ability for much more then matching physical stats with my enemies, so its not an exaggeration to say I know almost nothing about it… but with how versatile the other shards are, I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility that it can be used to 'adapt' a different appearance.
"…really kid?"
My eyebrow twitches.
Is there anything on your side that says this won't work?
"No, but there's also nothing that would make me think it's possible to 'adapt an appearance'."
…I'll admit my phrasing is bad, but that doesn't mean the idea is.
"…[Adaption] is a defensive power meant to increase survival, like gaining fire resistance in a burning building."
… as far as the passive part of the shard is concerned, I'll concede that your probably right, but the active isn't as simple as merely gaining resistances to imminent danger.
I shake my head.
As far as I've been able to work out, each of the shards works slightly differently, like how [Create] needs bio data to function, but I could get away with using intent for [Mind].
[Adaptation] itself seems to operate around the idea of selecting a target with a desired effect in mind.
Like yesterday, I chose the wolves with the intent of increasing my physical stats to match theirs.
So then, what would happen if my target was the former tenet of this apartment, and the intent was copying their appearance?
"…Damn, this might actually work."
I smile lightly and close my eyes.
Gathering my energy, I form a mental image of the thug and activate the shard, willing it to alter my appearance.
The power responds swiftly, and I soon feel a slight discomfort as the shard's energy washes over my body and muscle and bone begin to shift underneath my skin.
A minute later, my power settles down and I slowly open my eyes, feeling slightly surprised.
… I don't know why but I thought this would take longer…
I clench and unclench my fist experimentally.
Well, I guess compared to when it was increasing my stats in seconds earlier, changing how I look in less than a minute isn't really that big of a deal…
Did it turn me into a human?
"No."
… Probably because my intent was only to look different… but that means-
"You won't be able to use it turn human."
Seriously? What could possibly be the problem now?
"You really haven't noticed? Look in the mirror kid."
Haaa…
I look back up at my reflection.
…
I don't see what the problem is…
I lean in closer.
…ah, my eye and hair color didn't lighten, and my hair length remained the same.
"Another racial trait, it seems. Your body is resistant to change."
… I'm beginning to hate my race.
I massage my forehead.
So I'm resistant to my own power?
"Not completely… based on what the system is telling me, your body will only resist your power if it deems it harmful."
I nod slowly.
Meaning that my body would resist turning into a human because I'd lose my healing factor, which would weaken me, and is therefore considered harmful...
I suppose I can understand that… but how the hell does that translate into my hair and eye color not changing?
"Not a biologist."
Meaning you-
"Don't know, yes."
Well, what about using [Adaptation] on just my stomach?
"You digest food just fine, so there's nothing [Adaptation] can fix. The problem is that the food itself is lacking something your entire body needs."
Which means I'd need to do a full body [Adaptation] for it to work, which is currently impossible.
"Unfortunately… but after we get stronger, we might be able to overpower your body's resistance."
I shake my head and chuckle bitterly.
By the time we get to that point, the food issue is likely to have already long been solved.
"Yeah sorry, that usually how it goes."
I wave him off.
In any case, I still managed to change my appearance, which was the main goal. So I still feel like this was an overall success.
"And to think, this was all just to go out and pickpocket…"
I raise an eyebrow.
What do you mean 'was'? We're not done here.
"Hmm?"
I gesture to my reflection.
I can't just go out looking like the thug, what if I run into someone he knew?
No, now that I know I can change my looks I'm going to make some adjustments to my face and body… I'll also need to cut my hair, and there's also the matter of the chromatic orbs orbiting my eyes…
"…"
POV Third body (15min later)
I lean back against the couch with a groan as I stare up at the ceiling blankly, taking a moment to process everything I just read as my headache increases.
I groan again.
"Gods, the alcohol cabinet is starting to look reeeeal tempting right about now" I mutter, looking back down at the scroll with growing annoyance.
It's actually incredible, I was only looking into recent news to see where I was in the shows timeline and trying to make sure that things were, at least for the most part, how I remembered them to be… but instead, I received a giant fucking sucker punch.
S class huntsmen gather to form expedition to the dark continent.
You'd think, knowing Remnant's geography, that the 'dark continent' the headline is referring to would be the dragon shaped one, right?
Well, that was my assumption… until I looked further into it and found out that its actually referring to a one of the other two unexplored/unpopulated continents…
Yeah, one of two… the first being located between the afore mentioned dragon continent and Solitas, and the other between Solitas and Anima, both of which are at least three to four times the size of menagerie… and there's also a large wandering island that's believed to be a giant grimm moving in-between Sanus and Anima…
It should also be noted that Remnant doesn't have any satellites, meaning all the data collected on its geography are from drones, which in turn means there's a pretty decent chance that there are other undiscovered mysteries remaining in the world.
…I don't even know how big this planet is compared to Earth…
On top of that, it's apparently common knowledge that there is something ancient, evil, and powerful located on the dragon continent.
A threat, which is taken seriously enough to warrant the four kingdoms joining forces to build a large military/city base out on the ocean between Vacuo and Vale to guard against it.
So, between the ocean city and the joint venture of exploring the dark continent, the idea that anything will go as canon did is pretty laughable, and my future knowledge is pretty much useless.
I shake my head helplessly.
Vale could be completely destroyed tomorrow as far as I know…
And I don't even have the confidence of surviving it anymore.
Because S class huntsmen exists…
How strong is an S class?
Well, the birds I fought yesterday- which are actually called a 'Flock of Sorrow' when they're gathered together- can be brought down easily by a team of C class huntsmen…
I just… don't even know where to start complaining.
I message the bridge of my nose and pick up my coffee cup.
The only arguably good news to come from this is that the expedition might attract some of the stronger huntsman away from the city for a while and give me some breathing room to work with.
I grimace and take sip of coffee.
… and I suppose there's a possibility, with the sheer scale everything is running on, that I might find some weaker organizations not affiliated with Salem or Ozpin to farm some Exp…
Creak.
I pause, tilting my head and glance up at my first body as it walks out of the bedroom, now dressed in a pair of jeans and a T-shirt in place of the usual grimm clothing.
Looking over the physical changes, I mentally nod to myself as I watch it put on a jacket.
Is it narcissism to be proud of what my first body has accomplished?
I'm not sure, but I welcome the feeling of satisfaction bleeding over from my other body's mind as it turns to face me.
It's no exaggeration to say that my first body looks completely different from me now, to the point that I wouldn't even recognize it if it wasn't for the memory feedback.
Though admittedly, and this may have just been me indulging a little as a way of destressing, but the changes I made have all turned out to be a bit…vain.
…ok it's more than a bit.
Its' entire body has essentially been sculpted to be pleasing to the eye, with a slim, but well-built physique and sharpened looks shaped to what I'd picture a super spy to look like.
I smile wryly.
Funnily enough, the 'super spy' mental image I was working with helped me come up with a solution to my 'eye orbs' problem, since I couldn't work out how stop them from appearing without deactivating the shards.
The answer being sunglasses… and I feel really stupid for not thinking of that when I was trying to enter the city.
I shake my head.
I also decided against cutting my hair and instead opted to turn it black.
By which I mean I experimented with the 'black substance' part of the grimm material stored in [Forge] and managed to make hair dye by changing it into a liquid form and adding adhesive properties to it.
Which normally wouldn't work, considering that combination is essentially glue, but with [Forge], coating each individual strand of hair with an impossibly thin layer of grimm material that's only adhesive to the portion actually touching the hair was ridiculously easy.
Another benefit of [Precision], I suppose.
Though it does make the hair look slightly ethereal from up close…
I shrug.
The appearance is a throw away anyway, so it doesn't really matter if it's memorable.
It's just a shame that all these changes are cosmetic and don't add anything to my stats.
Name – First body
Title- 7th soul
Level- -1 (5%)
Race- Custom
HP- 100/100
SP- 98/100
BG- 100/100
MP- N/A
STR- 19
VIT- 14
DEX- 23
INT- 30
WIS- 51
CHA- 32
… or maybe not?
"Your WIS and CHA increased while you were sleeping, its unrelated to your 'cosmetic' changes."
…yeah, I'm currently booked full of mysteries, so unless you have the answer to why those increased readily available…
"I don't."
Right, moving on.
I look at my first body's face with a grimace.
Whether its sunglasses or blind fold, the black lines from Bio Gear being equipped just isn't concealable, so my first body is unfortunately going to have to go out without it.
My first body takes on a reluctant expression as the black veins begin to recede from its' face and I begin to shift uncomfortably as Bio Gear reemerges on mine.
A very unpleasant minute passes as I struggle not to scratch my eyes while my first body, having finished dequipping Bio Gear, finishes putting on its' jacket and walks towards the door.
Shuddering slightly, I trace along one of the veins on my cheek while watching my first body leave with a sigh.
I really wish Bio Gear didn't look the way it did, it's just way too conspicuous to casually walk around in public with.
Especially so in this world, where people would draw a connection to the grimm from it…
Well at least I have sure fire way of getting Ozpin's attention should I ever need it.
I chuckle quietly before returning my gaze to the scroll.
Sighing again, I reluctantly pick it up and resume browsing through the news.
"Hmm."
I pause.
…More bad news?
"No."
Then?
"I'm just surprised, I half expected I'd have to talk you out of rushing out and hunting for Exp."
I snort.
Just because I seem to be lacking a repulsion to killing, doesn't mean I have an urge to.
"Sure, but most don't exactly take the threat of death well."
Ha. Don't get confused here, I'm definitely not taking this well at all.
I shake my head.
In all honesty, it's taking a considerable amount of will power to just resist the urge to pull my hair out and yell from sheer frustration.
I let out a breath of air and continue scrolling through recent news.
I just don't have the luxury of time for a mental break down right now, there's too much that needs to be done, and a single wrong move could get me killed.
"Well, for what its worth, the moves you've been making so far have been pretty good."
A ghost of a smile creeps onto my face.
You mean aside from the ones that gave me at best a week to live?
"Eh, I've been in worse situations, there's a reason I've become a disembodied voice after all."
I laugh.
And I'd probably be one too if it wasn't for said disembodied voice's constant advice.
"Glad you like it, because I don't intend to be quiet."
I don't know about that; I could probably get the system to make a mute button.
I shake my head in amusement before returning my focus to the scroll.
And thanks Merc, I need that.
"Any time- …what did you call me?"
Hmm?
I pause.
Oh, sorry about that.
I yawn.
Guess I'm still tired.
POV (Hours later)
Jaune felt lost.
His whole world was collapsing around him, and he didn't know what to do about it.
There was no guide to fixing broken dreams.
It was a deep pain and a profound loss of direction, born from having his driving purpose taken away.
There was no replacement. He had only ever had one aspiration.
To be the greatest huntsman.
A hero, that mankind could stand behind and feel save.
An unmovable shield protecting everything that mattered.
To be the force that would rise up and change the world for the better.
That was what he decided to dedicate his life to.
And he worked towards that vision every day.
He gathered every scrap of information he could about huntsmen, from their duties to their methods, to aura and semblance, to grimm and criminals, and everything in-between.
He actively hunted for any article related to huntsman activity and recorded every syllable spoken by them.
He studied all of it, in addition to regular academics, until he could recite it by heart, and then he studied some more, hoping to mine it for even a scrap of wisdom he could utilize later in his career.
He trained his body to the limit, pushing himself every day to do one more sit-up, to run that little be further, to be even just a bit better than he was the day before.
And when he took all of that to the point he was unable to progress further.
He started to learn how to fight, swinging anything remotely shaped like a sword until his hands bled and signing up for any and every self defense class he could get his hands on.
And he was starting to get good.
He was confident his foundation was solid, at the top of his game both mentally and physically, and had already planned and mapped out what he believed to be the most optimal path moving forward.
He just didn't expect the violent opposition from his family.
They knew, of course, that he took his studies seriously, that he was a mile ahead of his peers in academics, and that he both exercised regularly and took martial arts classes.
They were even aware that he like to go out and 'play' with sticks.
But when he went to them directly and stated his intent to be a huntsman, everything changed.
He was quickly, and without mercy, forbidden from having anything to do with huntsmen and told that that was the end of the discussion.
It shocked him greatly, to hear his family so adamantly against his dream. To so casually dismiss his desires for his future and out right prevent him from moving forward.
He tried, of course, to convince them. He showed them everything he had been working on, all the information he had been collecting, and all the training he had undergone.
He had thought that would be enough, to show how seriously he was taking this, how much effort he had put in.
His father watched him speak passionately as he proudly took out his journal, never interrupting once as he explained exactly why he had decided to become a huntsman and how it wasn't a whim or phase of his, but a long-term goal he had been striving for.
And after his long, heartfelt speech, he met his father's eyes once more, trying to convey the determination he felt.
"Huntsmen, have the worst occupation in the world… and as your father, I can't stand aside and let you take that path."
He said simply with an unchanging blank expression, and before Jaune could react to such a blunt refusal, his journal containing all his collective work over the years was snatch from his hands, causing him to stagger back in disbelief.
That day, signified by the burning of the book, marked the beginning of a rift forming between Jaune and his family, and the start of their suppression.
He was immediately barred from participating in any future self defense classes. Any articles related to huntsman would be destroyed, his scroll would be confiscated if it was discovered he was looking up anything regarding the occupation, and he would be confined to his room if he was seen holding anything that even remotely resembled a weapon.
It cut deeply.
He had never imagined he would face such intense opposition from the people who should be his staunchest supporters.
It both hurt and frustrated him to no end.
But it wasn't enough to make him give up, not by a long shot.
He was under constant surveillance, but he struggled against it bitterly every day, pushing and pushing to get even a single step closer to his dream.
It continued for years like this, he and his family exhausting themselves in a never-ending tug of war that continuously strained their bonds.
It marked a true testament to the Arc family's stubborn nature that neither had shifted from their stance, no matter how battered it made their house.
But, that isn't to say there wasn't a winner, and the cruelty of time doesn't care for conviction.
Time, followed up by a mistake, was all it took to have everything fall apart.
To rise to through the ranks and become an S class huntsman, he needed to be one of two things.
Either he had to be a natural born, someone that unlocked their aura by themselves and had it rise naturally to a monstrous extreme.
Or he had to attend one of the four great huntsmen academies.
Naturally, with the unpredictable nature of awakening as a natural born Jaune didn't put any hope in becoming one, and instead aimed for beacon.
But an academy like beacon is for the best of the best, one needed to excel in all aspect of a huntsman to gain admittance.
And even though he had done his best to build himself up as much as possible, the setbacks were just too much.
He was still missing two important aspects every huntsman needs.
Combat experience, and aura.
He wasn't overtly worried about the lack of combat experience, that could quickly acquired once he entered the school, but having no aura was damning.
Aura was the core power used by huntsman, and unless one was lucky to have naturally large reserves, it needed time to grow.
Time he no longer had.
He knew years in advance the importance of unlocking aura early and how much of an impact becoming familiar with its use at a young age would make.
The difference was like comparing a lifelong childhood friend to trying to tame a wild beast and make it head your commands.
But what could he do? He was only a kid, and without his parents' approval and entering a combat school there was no legal way for him to unlock his.
For years, Jaune fought with his parents, at first demanding, then arguing, and finally pleading.
But the only thing he ever received was an ever-increasing bitterness.
Eventually, after exhausting all other options, he turned to the criminal underworld to unlock his aura.
It was an agonizing process, attempting to carefully tread through such a violent environment while simultaneously dealing with his families monitoring.
And in the end, his inexperience paired with a lack of time just led him to another failure.
It was then, at the eve of beacon's admittance deadline with no alternative, he made a mistake.
In a last, desperate hail-mary attempt to attend beacon, he gathered up all his savings, sold most his possessions, and used every scrap of lien he had to buy fake transcripts from one of his contacts.
The resulting series of events was like a storm.
His parents were contacted, he was brought before one of the staff in handcuffs, and was 'gently' told he would likely never be able to go to beacon.
He managed to avoid prison, the officer and beacon teacher taking pity on him after he had an emotional break down during the ensuing interrogation, but the damage was done.
Any future career as a huntsman he might have had was dealt an irreversibly fatal blow.
In a single move, he managed to finish his families work for them.
His dream was destroyed by his own hands.
'They were probably really happy with how it turned out… explains the lack of punishment at least.'
He thought idly as he stared lifelessly down at the sidewalk.
'They didn't even send someone to monitor me.'
It would have normally been a cause for celebration, being allowed to freely head into city, but it all just rang hallow.
"Hurry uuup, we're going to be late!"
Hearing the familiar vibrantly excited voice calling out to him, he forced a smile and started walking.
"I'm coming."
"Geez, you're still so slowww walk fasterrr."
"Sis, it's a nerdy tec demonstration, not a Seras Siren concert, it's not going to be sold out no matter how late we are."
Jaune deadpanned as the blond girl tugged on his arm with a pout.
"I told you its not just any demonstration-"
"It's going to have the latest robot soldiers." Jaune rolled his eyes. "You already told me that… several times."
"It's going to have state of the art software!" She practically drooled with stars in her eyes. "Just imagine, a machine able to make decisions with the intelligence of a human, its going to be so awesome!"
"Uh-huh."
Jaune nodded placatingly.
Seeing his unenthusiastic reply, the girl let go of his arm and took a step back, sticking her tongue out at him.
"Hmph, you just watch! After AUGENSOL's demonstration you'll be down on your knees thanking me for letting you come!"
She promptly turned around and began dramatically marching away.
Jaune let out a brief chuckle.
Joan Arc.
His smart, funny, irritating older sister and future super scientist… and the only person in his entire family who firmly supported him from start to end.
If he was honest with himself, he's not sure he wouldn't have snaped if she wasn't there to act as a pillar during the more difficult moments.
He shook his head.
He knew, even now, that she was trying to be there for him, taking him out to get his mind off things and relax…
'Wonder if she had a part to play in the lack of guards today…'
He allowed his smile to become just a bit more genuine and moved to catch up to her.
It was then.
A cold voice reached his ear from behind.
AN: I did mention this was a dark story right? Jaune be OoC.
Please note, I'm bad at naming and am thus going to completely ditch the color naming rule... I'm not sorry.
On a different note, I know that 'grimm dye' might be a stretch for some people.
But I like the idea of it so it's staying.
On another different note, show of hands, who thought it was going to take 8 months for this updated?
Oh, and for those of you curious on how AU this fic is going to be
Imagine vanilla skyrim.
Now compare that to the average modded skyrim.
Only immersive ones, naturally.