RWBY Cinema Action Plus Chapter 13: Relic of the Future, a rwby fanfic

Chapter 12: Relic of the Future

Sorry for the lateness of this chapter, but stuff happened. Can't promise but I'll try releasing sooner, but again, no guarantees. In any case, now time for another story from Coeur, this time seeing Jaune of the future. A good story in my opinion, though even problems can occur. Time travel is never as easy as one thinks. Jaune especially learning not everything can go his way. For now though, we will instead just see how it all begins. With the cast and new members watching.

I should note a scene or two may be shortened and hope the author isn't offended by such a thing. Also, I'm going to be adding a twist to the chapter at the end. Something I feel is long overdue. A thing I like to call, What-If.

Enjoy.

(Beta-read by Nacoma23)

"Alright ladies and gentlemen, it's time to continue our showing, isn't that great?" The Keeper of Cinema Action said out loud to his lovely cast members. Many in the audience gave mixed signs of agreement, joy, or apathy. Many, like the new guests, were a bit excited to see these new worlds for various reasons. Be it profit or entertainment.

"Good!" Mayden said as the screen slowly loaded. "Now, this universe is very interesting. It comes from the same Creator who chronicled Captain Dragon Yang."

"Oh! Will we be seeing me again?" Yang asked excited.

"Nope, well actually yes, but the focus isn't on you, but on Jaune himself." The Keeper replied getting a few gasps.

"Me?" Jaune asked a bit surprised.

Roman asked aloud, "Yeah, seriously, him?"

Cardin silently agreed with the thief's sentiment.

"Yeah, Jaune," The Keeper says. "He's a rather popular person in the multiverse, for reasons I can't fathom." The Keeper whispered that last part.

While he didn't hate Jaune, he never understood why so many Creators focused on whole worlds dedicated solely to him. It didn't make sense at all. Sure he's important-ish, but nobody he asked ever gave him a straight answer why he was always used. Guess this was just one mystery he'll never solve. The Keeper then continued ignoring the questions why Jaune is considered popular in the multiverse.

"However, you will all see something rather interesting in this world… the beginning of an adventure." The Keeper told them all.

"Oh, like when a person reads a story." Ruby explained making a good comparison.

"Yep. You could say this is chapter one." Mayden replied. "Although, I won't lie, the 'first chapter' is a bit... well, you'll find out in the end. Continue on."

The tone he gave, it didn't sound good. The audience doubted Mayden will tell them what was up. Still, this next scene should be interesting. Jaune himself feeling rather flattered he was considered popular in this multiverse. Ren and Nora patted him on the back for this strange accomplishment.

In any case, the screen then lit up ready to show them. What they saw didn't look good at all.

Jaune came to slowly, eyes struggling to open to a world of black stone and blacker smoke. The moon's rays pierced through the broken obsidian of the tower's walls, splashing across strewn rubble and hard tiles. Motes of dust floated in the air, dancing between the shafts of illumination; the only movement that existed in a world that seemed lost to time itself. Below the wall, half-stuck through it, an airship lightly smouldered away. With a crackle of fire a large piece of the Bullhead's hull gave way, tumbling down to the ground with a mighty crash. Despite the noise, no one moved or called out.

Confusion tugged at his mind and he searched for an answer. His throat felt dry, his head heavy. One hand reached out to grasp Crocea Mors and draw it to him. He pushed the tip down into the stone floor, using it as a lever to help stand. Even then his legs nearly buckled, threatening to topple him once more. His eyes, blue and filled with fatigue, scanned the world about him.

Was it finally over? Had they won?

If so, where were the cheers?

"Oh, no…" Ironwood moaned in despair, fully recognizing what was being shown on screen. It was a war that went wrong. Feelings from the past slowly bubbled up from within. A few of the audience like Ruby and Oscar were cringing, the former having seen destruction like this, but not to an extent like this. Some were unaffected as they were familiar with such destruction.

"Is that... me?" Jaune said to himself. Realizing this version of him was old and, dare he say, broken. This couldn't be good.

One foot slid forward, his weight following. The wounded huntsman's gait was slow, punctuated by the scrape and tap of an ancestral sword used as nothing more than a walking stick. The smoke from the fire, and the battle itself, obscured much of his vision. He coughed and pushed through it, pausing as his eyes caught a familiar shock of green, white and orange.

"Ren?" he gasped, and for a moment he didn't recognise his own voice. It was scratchy and broken. He shook his head, pushing on when they didn't answer. "Nora? Are you okay?"

His own breathing was the only response. He staggered toward them, letting Crocea Mors clatter to the ground as he did the same, falling onto his knees and reaching for them. His hands touched Ren's shoulder and he knew what he would find even before he turned him over. His friend's body was cold, too cold. Those pink eyes, so unusual at first sight, now looked dull and empty. There was no light in them, no spark of intelligence or dry humour. Blood stained Ren's mouth and chin, smudged away and faded. There was a blade lodged in his chest, between his ribs. It was one of Tyrian's.

"NO!" Nora shouted, grabbing tightly onto Ren, horrified by what she was seeing. The normally stoic boy was also showing some signs of shock on seeing his lifeless body. Jaune felt the urge to throw up. Team JNR were

"Oh my god, no..." Ruby looked away a bit horrified with Yang comforting her. Winter was also comforting Weiss and Whitley, as he was still a child younger than them. She was also covering their eyes.

Cinder recognized that weapon as well as those who've actually met the psychotic maniac.

'So they finally fought us.' She concluded.

"No… please, no." Jaune's eyes shot to Nora, seeing much the same. The bubbly girl didn't move, didn't breathe, and despite the open eyes she didn't perceive the world around her. Tears filled his vision and he pressed his forehead against Ren's. "No, no, no. Please. Not like this."

A pulse! There had to be a pulse. His Semblance could help them. He just needed them to still be alive. His hands rushed to his teammate's throat, fingers prodding and poking. When that failed he tore Ren's shirt open, ignored the blood and pressed his ear against the man's chest. His own heart beat in his eyes but he struggled to hear another. His eyes scrunched shut as he tried to shut out all else.

Anything, he begged. 'There has to be something. Don't leave me, you two. I can't lose you like I lost Pyrrha.'

There was nothing. He moved to Nora, desperate, issuing an apology as he pulled her top open, exposing her pink bra, and pressed his ear above her bosom. She would wake up to see him like that, he was sure. She'd scream and hit him and they'd both laugh about it later…

Except that they wouldn't, because there was no heartbeat. Nora would never wake again. A broken sob escaped him. Just another person he wasn't fast enough to save. Just another teammate he was too weak to protect. He'd thought he'd run dry of tears after Pyrrha. He hadn't. More flowed and he wept over them, drawing both bodies against his. This... this was what they'd fought and bled for? After so long together training and fighting, growing stronger. How could it end like this?

'That is what I ask myself every day,' Ozpin thought, having become used to seeing such brutality after living for so long. It would appear Mr. Arc was finally experiencing the consequences that come with war and he clearly wasn't taking it well. Then again, who can?

'Could that be… me?' Jaune horrifyingly thought. He panicked thinking that maybe, just maybe, something like this could happen to them. It wouldn't though.

Jaune asked himself, 'It wouldn't, right?"

Many were already starting to realize what Mayden had attempted to say.

The sound of breathing ahead broke him from his grief.

It didn't come from Nora or Ren, but it was unmistakable – even if it was weak. There was someone still alive. He picked up his weapon again and used it as a crutch, already feeling just a little stronger. "I'll come back for you two," he promised, looking one last time to his friends. "You'll get a proper burial. I promise."

But for now he had to see if someone else could be saved. He'd already lost too much and there couldn't be yet more. It just wouldn't be fair.

More bodies revealed themselves as Jaune Arc dragged himself through the ruins and wreckage. Some of them he realised, others he did not. Some wore Atlas uniforms, although old and ragged, torn beyond repair and lacking the snowflake that had set the Kingdom ablaze. Others were huntsmen from Vale and Vacuo, the survivors who had come with them. More were unknown to him, brave and loyal all and here at the end to try and kill their enemy once and for all.

Everybody who knew the truth of this conflict recognized the great enemy as none other than Salem.

And worse, some he knew. Some he cared for. Sun stared at the ceiling blankly with his chest carved out. Blake lay atop him, dying in a fruitless attempt to protect the man she might have come to love. Neptune sat crumpled by a wall next to them. He'd likely given his to try and buy them time. Before them, with myriad weapons lodged inside his body, Tyrian Callows lay. They'd killed their enemy, even if they'd succumbed soon after. There was nothing he could do for them.

Blake's breathing became heavy with panic. She gripped her arms tightly, her fear of watching her friends die being shown on screen. Adam just stared at his ex, unsure how to feel about what he had seen. He felt both sickening joy and horror.

"I'll bury you, too," he promised them. His voice choked at the last.

There had to be someone he could save.

Yang had not survived. She had been killed by Hazel, whom she – with Weiss' aid – had killed in turn. There had been Grimm too, in numbers never seen before. Weiss had survived and moved on, but now lay broken within a ring of white-armoured soldiers. She was so clearly dead that there was no point looking for a pulse. "I'll…" his voice cracked.

"I'll come back for you…"

Winter grasped her sister's shaking hands. Weiss couldn't believe she had died in this battle. Even Whitley was getting uncomfortable, and like Adam he too had felt conflicted about what he had seen. Qrow and Ruby were giving Yang some comforting pats and sympathetic stares as she learned about her death.

They doubted that this would be the last corpse they'll see.

There were going to be so many graves. Was he going to have to dig them all? No. He could hear someone ahead. There was still someone with him.

It wasn't Oscar that drew breath, if Oscar had even existed toward the end. The body of the boy was pinned to the wall with several strange spikes, but the smile he wore on his face was nothing short of victorious. It was also nothing short of inhumane. No child could accept death with such calm pleasure. Then again, at the end, he'd ceased to be Oscar at all. Only Ozpin remained.

"What." Oscar asked terrified at the thought. Ozpin of course was there to console him.

"No Oscar, that isn't me...or not entirely." Ozpin said, which relieved Oscar just a bit, but the boy was still confused.

'What do you mean?'

"I mean that there is no such thing as me being the only one left. As I said before, at the end it will be both our souls combined." Ozpin told the boy, the same explanation he gave when he met up with Qrow and the others. Yet this Jaune didn't seem to think or know about that fact. The Arc on screen most likely believed that only one soul remained.

The look on the young man's face showed that he wasn't finished just yet. It looked as though Future-Arc still had some words to say.

"Was it worth it?" Jaune rasped, anger slipping into his voice. "First Pyrrha, then Qrow and Oscar, and now it's Ren, Nora, Yang, Blake and Weiss. How many more, Ozpin? How many need to die for you to get what you want?"

Ozpin had no words to express his guilt. Too many have died in his name, far too many to count. A disposition many that knew him, his circle also wondered. They could only watch as more bodies were being shown, both the good and the bad.

All of them were unsure how they'll react.

The bastard didn't answer. He'd already won.

Jaune moved on, hunting the laboured breathing, even as he stepped over Cinder's dead body and moved ever onward. The maidens were gods only knew where now, perhaps gone, perhaps sent to some random girls across Remnant. He didn't care. He never had. That power took Pyrrha away and if he never saw it again it would be too soon.

Victory under Ozpin had never tasted so bitter. He'd promised them a better world. They'd been given ashes. Maybe people in the future would reap the benefits of their actions, but that was decades away. There was a good chance the people would destroy one another before that, and maybe humanity would die out as a result. It was hard to say. It was even harder to imagine living in alone.

His feet carried him on across the stone floor, through a beam of moonlight, and towards a tiny figure crumpled at the steps leading up to a raised dais. The red of the cloak seemed to melt into the blood that pooled around her, soaked and laying lank across her body.

"Not you, too," Jaune cried, dropping his sword and rushing forward. "Ruby, please! Not you!"

Ruby almost threw up, the bile liquid in her almost let out. Just barely swallowing it bitterly as Yang hugged her tight. Qrow frowned, his hands gripping the armrests of his chair. To see his niece like this, it hurt. No, it was agonizing.

Roman also frowned. Sure, he may have tried to kill Little Red, but he would have made it quick. Whatever happened to Ruby in this universe, it looked like it was slow and painful bordering on torturous. It almost made him sick to look at the scene.

She lay on her side, one arm beneath her and the other limp at her side. Her face was tilted to the side, her silver eyes closed, but her lips formed into a tiny smile. To her it wouldn't matter if she died so long as she did so being the hero. She was selfless like that, or perhaps selfish. She never thought of what others might feel. His tears splashed on her pale cheek to run down it, almost like it was she who wept.

His hands flew over her, searching for the rise and fall of her chest or the rhythmic beat of a heart, no matter how weak. Jaune's breath hitched. His mouth opened and he tried to speak but nothing came forth. Words were useless anyway. She couldn't hear them. She was gone. His knees splashed into her blood as he gripped his head between both hands. This wasn't possible. This just wasn't possible.

"You can't leave me here," he begged, pouring his aura into her body. It did nothing but drain him. There was nothing left for his Semblance to bolster. He tried again regardless, forcing aura out of him as tears poured down his face. "Please wake up. Please. Someone... anyone..."

"Hrgh-…" Blue eyes snapped open. "Ruby?"

"Hah… krk…"It wasn't Ruby. She hadn't moved. Jaune's eyes trailed up and over her, toward the dais itself and the seat that stood at the top, against the back wall. There, slumped atop her throne, sat the monster which had caused all of this. She was breathing raggedly. The sight of her was enough to make his blood boil.

She was the cause of all of this. It was her fault. He snatched up his sword and stood, eyes lidded. He made his way toward her, desperate to rend her limb from limb.

"Hah…" Salem glared at him. "Hrgh… ha ha. Don't waste your breath. Ugh. She… is gone."

Salem.

The audience reactions varied. Those who have already seen the Grimm Maiden glared at their fallen enemy, hoping that some of their hate can transfer over through the screen and suffocate her. The few who have served the woman stared at the scene in shock, for they thought Salem was invincible.

There were some in the audience who were just frightened by the woman's appearance.

"What the hell is she?" Cardin asked in fear. Never in his life had he ever see a woman that resembled a Grimm. A part of him felt terrified just looking at her, she looked like evil and death incarnate. Roman and Neo also felt the same as they stared at the screen. Mercury and Emerald shivered recalling their meeting with her.

Team RWBY and JNR slightly gulped. Remembering the vision Emerald showed them. This is humanity's greatest enemy.

"So this is Salem." Ironwood observed, having never seen her in person. Ozpin had told him stories about their great enemy, and had even described in full detail what she looked like. In his opinion, the stories failed to fully describe how terrifying she looked. She was terrifying, but the scene before him showed that she was not as invincible as Ozpin claimed.

"The mistress is looking a tad dead." Tock muttered, surprised to see her former benefactor in such a state. Salem had made a deal with her that, so long as she and others hunted the silver-eyed warriors, they would be given roles in her new world. It was a task that Tock executed with passionate and brutal efficiency… and then she died.

Seeing Salem like this, she wondered if the woman ever actually had the power to make a so-called 'better' world.

Cinder narrowed her eyes at Tock. She was the only person to hear what the woman had said. She had never heard of the Faunus, yet it was clear that this Tock person knew her master. When she had time, she must ask her questions. Until then, she will simply keep quiet as she watched the rest of the scene.

She just couldn't fathom it. 'How is Salem dying?'

The woman, if she could be called that, fixed her crimson eyes upon him. Her skin had always been the colour of paper but now it was dotted with blood. The veins about her eyes and face were fainter, faded, and though she watched him approach she made no effort to kill him. The scythe lodged in her chest might have had something to do with that. It had pierced between her breasts and pinned her to the seat. Though her chest rose and fell, it was with a dry rattle and a bubble of crimson fluid that spilled about the blade of Crescent Rose.

"Is this… what you wanted…?" she whispered. Her voice was slow, faltering, and she had to pause between the words to take rattling breaths. "This… is what… Ozpin gave you. Is it -hrk- everything… you thought it would be…?"

Jaune gritted his teeth together. Grief gave way to rage, as it often did. "No."

"No?" The dying monster laughed. "Victory rarely is, boy. This… all of this…" She gestured to the tower, and all the bodies. "This is merely the culmination of our eternal game. You were, all of you, just his tools. Ever his chess pieces… just like… all the others… throughout time. Don't be so arrogant as to think you were the first."

The first…

Those words made those in the 'good' section wonder. Wonder if what Salem was saying was true. Does Ozpin really consider them expendable? Were they just pieces in Ozpin's game, ones that reincarnated wizard would just toss aside and replace after their?

'Ozpin wouldn't. He wouldn't just kill us.' Qrow thought, for he did not want to believe it. Glynda was thinking similar thoughts. She didn't want to think her boss and ally would just lead them all to their doo, especially the children. Some part of her, however, believed that might be the case.

Lie Ren, Pyrrha Nikos, Nora Valkyrie, Ruby Rose, Yang Xiao-Long. The list went on and his eyes burned at each name added to it. Penny Polendina, James Ironwood, Winter Schnee, Ghira Belladonna, Oscar Pine. There were many he knew, but doubtless thousands more he did not. Families torn apart, teams scattered, or just men and women used and tossed aside after they had served their purpose.

"You're dead now. Their sacrifices have killed you. We won, not you." Salem frowned and made to move, but after a second or two trying to push herself up she sagged back down with a tired sigh. Crescent Rose did not move, buried not only into her but through and into the throne behind her. "I suppose that you have. After a thousand tries and ten times as many sent to their deaths, it was perhaps inevitable that the fool would one day succeed." She scowled at Oscar's body. "An eternal huntsman chasing the immortal monster across Remnant. Odd, I always thought the tales involved the huntsman slaying the beast, not sending waves of children to do the job for him."

A few of the adults actually frowned at that. Ironwood himself frowned as he heard the news. Watching how Team RWBY had done excellent work... but just them. They were always there at the right time. Ozpin may not have told them to do these things, but he never actively tried stopping them. He just gave half-hearted warnings at most.

His sword rattled as he gripped the haft tighter, his knuckles cracking. That would have been the best outcome. Instead, the huntsman had found allies – foolish allies – and had them fight and die for him. And Ruby, his first friend, was among those sent to their doom. She'd followed Ozpin happily, eagerly, and thrown her life away without a second's hesitation. To her, any price was worth the possibility of a world without Grimm.

She'd died for Ozpin's plans. Just like Pyrrha had…

From within Oscar's mind, Ozpin frowned at that remark. He was also outraged by Salem's lies. He didn't make Pyrrha die. Oh, he certainly chose her to be the next Fall Maiden, with the risk of her becoming targeted, but he never sent her to her death. He had told her and Jaune to run.

It was then Ozpin realized, 'Ah, I see…'

This horrific slaughter has caused Jaune to see things differently. The young man was no doubt blaming Ozpin for things that were beyond his control. Anger and grief tended to make people think irrationally. It was grief that motivated his choice to reincarnate.

"Kill me now," Salem hissed. "Finish me. I will allow it. There is no greater pain I could inflict on you than to live the rest of your life knowing you will never have them back. Your loved ones died to buy you this chance so don't squander it now."

Fury bubbled up behind his eyes but he held it back, unwilling to be baited. She was already dead and they both knew it. She just wanted him to end it faster, or maybe to get one last chance in to kill him as well before she died. He stood several feet away instead, watching as her smugness faded and she slumped angrily back onto her throne, bleeding out. She was as good as dead.

Of course, so was everyone else.

"This isn't how it was supposed to end…"

"Then how was it?" Salem asked, surprising him that she even cared to listen in the first place. "You would come here and slay the monster, only to run off with the girl into the sunset. Was that your plan?"

No. It had been to join Beacon, make friends, become a huntsman, and find a lovely girl to settle down with. It could have been Pyrrha, had he not been so blind. It might even have been Ruby had she not been so self-sacrificing.

"You know, boy. It still could be different…"

"Oh, this can't be good." Winter remarked, familiar with that sort of tone. Ozpin and his inner circle felt the same, wondering as to what Salem was implying. Cinder and Tock smirked, already knowing what their mistress was planning.

Jaune gulped, fearing what Salem was about to propose to his counterpart. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

"Don't toy with me," he snapped. Crocea Mors swung up to rest against her sternum, his weight leaning against the pommel as he prepared to thrust it through with his own body weight. "I'm not an idiot. My friends are dead."

Everything I care about is gone. The Walls of Vale have fallen and the people live in terror. Haven's huntsman population has been eradicated and bandits run wild. Ironwood is dead and Atlas is in the hands of Jacques and the SDC, while Vacuo has been wiped off the map, swallowed by the desert and the Grimm! Beacon, Haven, Shade and Atlas Academies - all gone! And all of that is because of you," he roared. "It's your fault!"

All that destruction happened in so little time? The audience shivered, even some of the villains like Roman and Neo. The two wanted chaos, but not to the point where the world would become a wasteland. What point was there in being criminals if there was nothing left to steal?

Team RWBY and JNR were horrified at the thought of their world being reduced to such a state. It made them wonder what would if they failed in their world. Would the same thing happen to their own world?

'We won't allow it,' Ruby adamantly declared, ready to defy such a fate.

"My fault… or Ozpin's?"

Cinder smirked.

"He is the one who chose to hide the relics where he did. He was the one tasked with protecting them, and yet instead of doing so he hunted them down himself to craft them into a weapon to use against me." She gestured to the scythe trapped within her. "Blame me if you will but do not dare to ignore your own actions, child. I would have never found them but for you and Ozpin leading me to each in turn. Ozpin knew that. He considered it worth the risk, and the lives of all those who fell. I may be guilty, but you and yours had a hand in all that happened."

His breathing became ragged. Whether she was right or wrong didn't matter, not anymore. He'd long since lost faith in Ozpin but no one else had listened. Yang, perhaps, but she'd still sided with her Uncle Qrow and Ruby when push came to shove. Those two would do anything the headmaster said. And maybe... maybe Ren and Nora would have sided with him if he'd spoken out. No, he was sure they would have. But he hadn't. He'd been cowed, angry, grieving and desperate to leave the decision making to someone else. Anyone.

So many chances for him to have done something different. It was funny, except not at all, that he could only see those chances now - when it was too late to take any of them.

Ren and Nora looked at their leader. It was upsetting for them, having to watch this version of Jaune suffer such loss. The Jaune on screen had lost everything.

"Of course," Salem whispered, "there is still a chance for you to save your friends."

"So this is how it starts." Adam silently mused, now realizing what this woman was about to do. If things went her way, then this version of Jaune is about to make a choice that may cause things to change. The only question everybody had was but one thing.

What was Salem planning?

Jaune's eyes snapped back to the present. He leaned further on his sword, digging the tip into her. "You lie!"

"What would lies serve me now?"

"You want to live. You want me to spare you."

"Fool." Salem laughed bitterly. "I am already dead. Not even your pretty Semblance can prevent this."

"Then you want to trick and kill me," he countered.

"You are already dead; if not on the outside then on the inside. There would be no pleasure. I expect you'll kill yourself within a year or two anyway, or live a life of misery and pain. If I wanted you to suffer, I'd rather you live in despair and regret than die painlessly here."

What a monster. Even her dying words were filled with malice. He should kill her, though. Ruby had already done enough but she'd want him to finish Salem off once and for all. It was the proper thing for a huntsman to do.

But he didn't.

"What do you mean they can be saved?"

'I can't believe it,' Cinder thought in awe, gleeful that her mistress was already thinking of a way to escape death. This Jaune character was already doing what Salem wanted. She can't wait to see the rest of her plan and how it'll unfold.

Roman just clicked his tongue. It seemed the Arc brat, at least the one on screen, was more idiotic than he thought. And he has never even met the dude.

Cardin also felt the same way. Clearly this Jaune wasn't able to move beyond the grief. Perhaps with some time and help, the Arc on screen would have recovered. But with how that Grimm-Woman was speaking, Cardin doubted that would be the case.

"Interested?" Salem's smile threatened to return but cut off when his sword dug a little deeper. "I'm telling you there is a way to save them. But to do so you must prevent this from happening."

"Explain."

"It is their presence here which led to their deaths. It is Ozpin's little plan which saw them sacrificed to bring about my end. Prevent this from happening in the first place and your friends would still be alive today. All you need is a chance to go back and change it. I can give you that."

"A chance to change what's already happened?" he spat. "You're talking about time-travel. You're saying you can send me to the past?"

When she didn't deny it, his temper roared back to life. She was mocking him! She'd gotten his hopes up and then pissed on them, bringing all his pain back to the fore. He prepared himself to kill her once more, drawing his sword back for the final blow. His eyes flashed with pure rage.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Salem breathed heavily, waiting for death. But he had paused, against his better judgment. When she saw that she quickly explained. "I do mean time-travel in a sense. Did you not think it strange that Ozpin could never die, that he was untouched by time and able to live from one host to another?"

Many began to wonder about this, especially those who didn't know Ozpin's secret. Some were confounded by what this Salem was implying, confused as to what she meant.

Those that thought about the woman's words wondered if the Headmaster had a few secrets. Whatever those secrets were, they did know that the young farmer had some knowledge about them.

Oscar suddenly felt as though somebody walked over his grave.

"He told us he was cursed by the Gods."

"The Gods abandoned Remnant long ago. Did he not tell you that?"

Jaune's brow creased. "Qrow did. What of it?"

"The Gods vanished long before I existed and long before Ozpin walked Remnant. In that case, what Gods would there have been to curse him?"

None…

'A lie...' Ozpin knew the truth.

He was no stranger to bending the truth with his allies and followers. How it wasn't actually a curse so to say, more a deal, really. Of course, this Salem proved to be as cunning as his, and she already had Jaune eating out of the palm of her hand. The sole survivor of Team JNPR already hated Ozpin, so he would no doubt believe whatever Salem told him, by appealing to his own weakness.

Truly, it was the perfect scam.

"He didn't lie, not really. His curse came about as a result of my actions, and at the time I was considered akin to a God, so the moniker might have been good enough for him. It was not intentional on my part. I slew him but in my haste did so in a manner that bound his soul to my fate." She chuckled at the irony. "As you see, while he was a powerful Wizard in his time, I was the stronger. In truth, it was I who granted him his immortality, no matter how much an accident that was."

"What does that have to do with time-travel?" he asked.

"With the relic of creation I can form for you a body in the past. With the relic of choice I can send your mind back to make your own. It is that relic which put Ozpin in the situation he is in, and I can replicate that with you. You would die here, but your soul – your memories – would travel back into a new body. You would exist outside the flow of time, and thus be capable of making changes. You could stop this," she gestured to the bodies and the wreckage, "from ever happening."

"Well played…" Cinder complimented her alternate mistress. She guessed Jaune will do as she says after all. Tock also smiled, now seeing how Salem is going to play this this out.

His hands were shaking. A part of him, a large part, refused to believe the creature before him, if only to save himself the pain of being wrong. If this were some cruel trick then it would break him.

'Don't get your hopes up, he thought. She's just trying to trick you. She's trying to hurt you.' Nothing hurt as much as hope, especially when it was crushed. He knew that well enough by now.

"You'll just kill me," he said. "Why should I trust you?"

"Look at you, boy. You're a walking corpse already. What are you going to do once you kill me? You'll bury them, perhaps, but then you'll walk out into the wastelands to die. I may kill you, yes. But I could have killed you already had I wished it. This may or may not be a trap. Nothing I say will convince you otherwise. It is up to you to decide if the risk is worth it."

The tip of his sword wavered.

'Fool.' Ironwood thought, knowing if he said this out loud many would yell at him. But he had his own reason to think this. Ironwood didn't know what this version of Ozpin did, and maybe some of the things Salem and Jaune said were true. However, this version of Jaune was being a fool. For as Salem told him before, what did he expect, to leave the war without a sacrifice.

'It would seem this Jaune couldn't handle his friend's deaths, let alone prepare himself for them.' Winter herself deduced. She knew what it was like to lose friends, having served in the military for so long as a Specialist. She had seen comrades die in battle, sometimes in her own arms. Yet while she mourned, she also knew their deaths were inevitable. From the look of things, that Jaune never even considered his friend's death as a possibility.

Ruby herself also wondered about this, and realized that death could easily come to her team. They could have died so many times in fact, such as the incident with the Paladin, Mount Glynn, and even the Fall of Beacon. They survived but a single mistake or unlucky accident could have killed them.

It was then the former students of Beacon realized they had become too lax in their training. For it wasn't until after Beacon's fall did they ever consider that they could die. Because if they didn't... then what would they do after losing everyone? Especially if given a chance like the Jaune on Screen?

It was fantastical and foolish to consider her offer. He would be signing his life away – and for what – a chance to go back and do the same thing? A chance to change things so that people didn't have to die. What if he could save Ruby, Ren and Nora? What if he could save Yang, Blake and Weiss?

What if… what if he could save Pyrrha…?

His eyes watered as the memories assailed him, the grief and the pain and so much more. Salem was right, damn her. He was a dead man standing right now. He had no reason to live or any plans on what he was supposed to do. Everyone he cared about was dead. Everyone!

Even if it was madness to consider it, Salem had a point. She was dead either way and whether she killed him or he died to exposure trying to drag his injured self to Vale, the result would be the same. In that case why not go out on a limb? He didn't have anything to lose. The world was in turmoil anyway. After they'd arrived at Atlas, drawing Salem and her allies along with them, the city had been through hell. Ironwood had tried to help them, but he'd been betrayed, killed, and Jacques Schnee had seen his chance for more power, stepping into the power vacuum and taking control of the entire kingdom. Jaune would be killed the second he returned to civilisation. Jacques would string him up as a scapegoat, if angry and grieving families didn't do it first.

The Schnee siblings suddenly became horrified at the mention of their father. Especially since a part of them believed he actually would do it, taking over Atlas like that. Winter was also a bit taken aback, hearing that Ironwood actually had died. Was everybody in this room, aside from Jaune, dead in this world?

She wasn't sure if she wanted to know.

Even his family was dead, hunted down and killed by Tyrian in a sick attempt to draw him into a trap. This wasn't the world Ozpin had promised them. It was hell.

"No…" Jaune wept, burying his face in his hands. Tyrian killed his family, his entire family, all because he got involved with Ozpin's war.

Salem saw his conflict and smiled. "You could change things. You could keep them all alive. You could change the way the world is now and make it better."

"Why?" he had to ask. "Why would you want to send me back? What could you possibly gain?"

"Is that not obvious? If you return and meddle then this may not happen. It is a chance that I will survive."

"I'm not on your side, though. I'll still kill you."

"You will certainly try... but you might fail. Ozpin's gambit here was successful due in no small part to the willingness of you pawns to throw your lives away. Your victory here is pyrrhic, and if you go back and seek a more fulfilling one, there is a chance it will fail. It is that which I seek. That chance is all I have left now, seeing as my life ebbs away before my eyes."

So this was her plan. While the teenaged heroes saw hope, the 'bad side' and grown adults could already tell this Jaune had made his decision. How can anyone refuse such an offer, the chance to make things right?

Or in this case… the chance to possibly make things worse.

It made a twisted sort of sense from her point of view, and even if the honesty surprised him he supposed she knew it wouldn't change his answer. If he wanted to see his friends alive again he'd need to accept it, and while that meant Salem would live, it also meant he would have another chance to kill her. A chance to do it properly, with us preparing for a battle and not rushing off after Ozpin like lambs to the slaughter. Salem wasn't wrong; Ozpin had sacrificed them all for this. It wasn't just their teams but all four Kingdoms as well. Humanity would survive but there was no telling how much carnage would occur. Another faunus war, for sure. The White Fang had done too much. It might even be a Great War if the SDC saw the weakness of others as opportunity. No one had the strength to oppose them.

Of course, none of that had mattered to Ozpin. So long as his eternal enemy died, the world could be in any state. He'd died smiling, even as they all fell one by one to Salem and her forces. And he hadn't even been sure it would work. If it hadn't, the man would have simply taken over another body and started the process all over again.

Now Ozpin was really starting to become angry. So angry in fact, that Oscar actually felt it. Ozpin gave his condolences to this Jaune, and he did concede that he probably is manipulative toward his comrades. However he drew the line at how Jaune just seemed to believe that he didn't give a damn! For how would Jaune know what he has been through?

For where Jaune fought one war and lost many, he has been in countless wars losing everyone era after era! And this Jaune acted as if he didn't care!

Even Cinder actually felt some pity for the immortal wizard. She didn't like him or care for him, or even give a damn about his feelings. But she heard how Salem despised the wizard and their countless conflicts, telling her how happy she was when she destroyed someone close to Ozpin.

This boy's bias and anger toward Ozpin had blinded him. This Jaune actually thought that any plan Salem provided was better.

"There isn't much time," Salem warned. "Make your decision."

There was no hesitation. There should have been, he knew that, but there wasn't. Perhaps he was too spent, too emotionally drained, or just tired of everything. If she killed him, fine. He didn't have anything to live for anyway.

"I'll do it. Send me back."

Salem smiled, or tried. Blood bubbled from her lips and she coughed, her body shaking. "There is no time," she rasped. "Come here. I shall return you to another time and what you do there is your choice. You will exist outside of time as my avatar, which means any changes you make will not snap back and remove you from existence. It would do little good for me if by preventing this you stopped me sending you back and caused a paradox. You needn't worry about it."

"I won't," he said, feeling a strange tingling sensation overtake him. She took hold of his left hand and a strange burning sensation ran through it, making him hiss. He tried to pull away but she wouldn't let go.

"It is my mark," she said once she was done, finally releasing him. There, on the back of his hand, a strange symbol was burned into his flesh. It was a vertical eye that seemed to be trapped in a net, with a ring around the outside marking the four points of a compass. He turned his hand over, marvelling at how it was reflected on the palm of his hand as well. "It was necessary to tie your soul here and your new container together. It would not do for either of us for me to miss and send your soul spiralling into oblivion. This mark will connect the two and act as a bridge for your soul. My survival now depends on yours. Do not die before you can fix this."

Salem reached out and touched one of the relics that had been placed into Ruby's weapon. It shimmered and twisted, and light poured from it – down Crescent Rose and into Salem's body. She cringed and tossed her head to the side as the energy destroying her from the inside. Even so, she drew on it.

"What are the relics, anyway?" he asked.

"They are relics," she hissed, as if that explained it all. "They are all that remains of a time long past, as you will soon be a relic of a future that must never happen. They are power." Bright white lines spread out across the dais, underneath and around him. Salem's eyes glowed and blood dribbled from her lips. "Go now. Change the past and seek your foolish friends. Prevent this travesty and restore me to power."

"I will," he promised. "But once I do, I'll come and kill you. I'll come with an army bigger than this one, and this time we'll be prepared. You won't stand a chance, and without the knowledge of my coming you won't even know about it until it's too late."

"We shall see, boy." Salem sneered. It was a chance he knew she'd take. Better a poor chance than a slow death. The world turned to black a moment later. His last thoughts being one thing.

"Wait for me, everyone. I'm on my way."

The screen went black.

"So, how'd you all enjoy?" The Keeper asked, though he already knew the answer.

It was given by a shouting Glynda, "How could you ask us if we enjoyed watching this?!"

It angered her that this being would show them such a world. A world where many of her friends and the students she taught have died for nothing. There were a great many who agreed with her on the matter. Not a single person liked what they saw, sans those who felt they would profit from this second chance.

"Why would you show us such a world, you sick bastard!" Qrow barked, enraged by the Keeper's blatant disregard for everyone's feelings.

"Well, what did ya' expect? That I would show you only nice and happy worlds all the time? Heck, no." As stated by the rules, every Keeper was allowed to show their guests different dimensions. However it couldn't just be 'good' ones, but also the bad. There was a reason for this, not that Mayden would say why.

"Still... to show us... that…" Jaune couldn't believe what this world he saw was. A world where all hope was lost and those who were left had to endure such tyranny. But it hurt the young Arc having to watch his alternate lose all of his friends. It was too much to bear.

"Sorry, but I had to show you such things. Trust me, it'll help you all in the long run," The Keeper told them. "But if it helps, while I can't explain too much, I can say that this version of Jaune is doing super well-ish."

"Care to explain?" Mercury asked raising a brow.

"Let's just say Jaune has changed many things in that world. He did a lot of good in this altered timeline in fact, like what he did for Emerald and Summer." The names got the interest of Summer's relatives. They wondered what exactly Jaune had done that would be considered "good" for Summer. The former pickpocket wondered what Jaune did to make her happy.

"Hold on," Whitley began, noticing something with what the Keeper just said. "You said well-ish."

"That's right, so something went wrong?" Roman guessed.

"…Yeah, Let's just say that for all of the good he did, Jaune also made mistakes, some beyond his control. I won't say too much, but let's just say Blake suffered the most from one of those mistakes." At that admission, Blake's eyes widened. What could Jaune have done that would 'mess' her up?

She doubted it was anything good.

"In any case, I actually have to thank Jaune." Cinder said, surprising many, including her allies.

Though surprise turned to rage with her next sentence. "After all, your impulsive choice and unwillingness to accept the deaths of everyone you love allowed my mistress to gain a second chance." Adding insult to injury, she applauded the young hunter, giving him a slow and condescending clap.

Really, She was thankful for the boy's impulsive choice, it saved Salem and by association, her as well. Something the adults and the boy's friends found a bit disturbing. Though they could slightly understand why Jaune did it. If they were in his shoes, they probably would have taken that chance to create a better future for everyone. Ruby, of course, just stood up and declared in defiance.

"Well, too bad, Cinder, because Jaune is going to save the world!" The others joined her, proudly standing in defense of Jaune.

"Yeah, Fearless leader is going to save the planet!" Nora cried out.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but even I believe Jaune will help the people of that dimension." Weiss lamented sourly, but fully believed in that dorky but now reliable blonde knight.

"True that!" Yang shouted, giving the antagonists the one finger salute. "After all, he's one of the multiverse's most popular guys, so that means things are looking up."

"Uhhh..." Mayden quietly said knowing that was a lie. He liked the adventures that version of Jaune did for his world, but things actually weren't too perfect. Like how some people died. The reversed roles of Adam and Blake, Ruby possibly not being the destined warrior she was meant to be, and so on.

Plus, it would seem in order to counter the many victories of Jaune throughout the Multiverse; he would also have to lose something of equal value. It was a sort of way to maintain the balance. He had seen worlds where Jaune had a horrific past, lose his sanity to become an outright monster, and that certain multiverse where Jaune was sexually abused and tormented to the point of being a broken husk that obeyed only his abuser. What was that world called again? Taste of something, Suspense, and whatever Anthology of Arc…

Oh yeah, that multiverse of the blonde knight can be quite horrific for him.

Mayden shuddered at the thought of those universes. There were some universes he was definitely NOT going to show and those were among them.

Popularity can be a double-edged sword, after all. This wasn't just true for only Jaune either, but for all of the characters. They should feel lucky he wasn't going to show them those worlds. Though, he may as well show them another possibility that would've played out in that world.

"Next world will be a bit less darker." Mayden told them with the cast hoping it would be. Though they got the feeling they may see other worlds like this in the future. Still, perhaps those types of worlds can help them all in upcoming battles. Only one way to see as the screen showed the next one.

And that's the ending of Relic of the future. Hoped you all like it, where I also gave my thoughts on the series as well.

Plus that part with how Jaune thought on Ozpin, I honestly didn't like it. I do believe Ozpin is somewhat manipulative and secretive, but isn't he someone who's suffered longer than even any of the cast. Going to countless wars losing many. So it feels wrong that Jaune says how Ozpin doesn't care about anybody so long as humanity is safe. Heck, Jaune has been in one war only yet acts as if Ozpin lost nothing. Despite the fact canon Ozpin doesn't exactly act like he's willing to destroy a kingdom. Granted, this is my opinion. And I still like the story.

Coming up though is a special thing I like to call is What-If below. Consider this non-canon to the story and shows something of my own idea. Read on.

The screen played on again. Some of the cast confused.

"Huh, the worlds is still going?" Cardin asked.

"Sorta." Mayden replied. "Just going to show you, that while what you saw was bad, it wasn't that horrible as Jaune is already fixing it. However," A small sense of fear entered them all. "I need to show you that not everything will go your way."

That's right, in many worlds, the Creators would have the protagonists win would usually won, like the worlds that usually involved the outworlders and crossovers; especially crossovers where the overtly powerful characters could beat the bad guys with ease.

Sure he could appreciate the heroes getting their way, but those stories lacked drama and action, as well suspense and intrigue.

Nobody likes an OP character.

Except for that One Punch world, that one at least had good plot development, and hilarious yet interesting characters. In any case, the screen turned on again. Showing the same scene where Salem proposed a deal. Everybody could already tell something was up.

"There isn't much time," Salem warned. "Make your decision."

"So back here huh." Cinder could see this was the same thing. Already though she can tell there must be a twist coming along. But what?

"I'll do it. Send me back."

"What are the relics, anyway?" he asked.

"Yeah...what are they?" Mercuy and Emerald both heard about the relics, but weren't privy on what they could do entirely. Even Tock raised a brow. She also knew what they were, but not fully.

Team RWBY also held the same questions, but from the way the adults looked, they doubted they could get any answers.

"Perhaps we can do our own research." Weiss quietly suggested to her team with the other girls nodding.

"Got it. Best to see how this won't blow up in our faces." Yang said not wanting these relics to go crazy on them.

"But we'll have to be sneaky about it." Blake told them glancing quickly at the reincarnation form of Ozpin. "No telling what the faculty will do. There probably keeping it hidden for a reason."

"But we'll surly find out." Ruby said now turning back to watch the screen. Hoping her friend Jaune won't suffer.

"We shall see, boy." Salem sneered. It was a chance he knew she'd take. Better a poor chance than a slow death. The world turned to black a moment later. His last thoughts being one thing.

"Wait for me, everyone. I'm on my way."

"And this is where the shit storm happens." Roman remarked, to which Neo nodded in agreement. Everybody paid close attention.

Jaune soon woke up. Head disoriented from the 'fall' he experienced. Nonetheless he ignored it and got up. His eyes adjusting to where he was, already thinking on what to plan to save his friends.

"Oh my. This is interesting." His blood then ran cold. Knowing who's voice that was.

"Well, I hope somebody picks up the scroll," Roman began before gleefully adding, "Because I fucking called iiiitttt⁓"

"This won't end well." Oscar worriedly said, fearing for his friend's alternate's well-being.

"That's an understatement." Whitley muttered feeling a chill.

Jaune, horrified, then turned around. His eyes finally able to see where he was. A castle. A castle in the Grimmlands. Home to Salem herself. For sitting on the throne was the witch herself smiling. Eyes confused how a human got here. Her unholy eyes then gazing at the mark on Jaune's hand. It suddenly made sense.

"Ahhh!" Jaune screamed as he readied his sword ready to cut her down. Knowing it was futile but would buy him time. Unfortunately for the poor man Salem showed no fear, instead calmly raising her hand at him as he ran toward her. Saying but one word.

"Kneel."

"Now this is interesting." Adam said with a sadistic smirk, wondering what that witch was about to do.

Many of the 'good side' didn't share his disturbing curiosity. Even some like Cardin felt worried, including some of the 'Bad Side'. Cinder oddly enough as well. But that was only because she knew what happened to those who crossed Salem. It never ended well.

A burn coursed through Jaune's body. The burn forcing him to kneel, the worst of it coming from his hand. His eyes widening at what just happened. Questioning what was going on. Then, he remembered. What Salem's words were.

"Is that not obvious? If you return and meddle then this may not happen. It is a chance that I will survive." Recalling how she was only doing this to win, and sending him back so she had another chance. But she never said when she was sending him and where. It was then Jaune realized just what big a mistake he had made.

"Become mine." Those were the soft words Salem said. Then like a quick rush Jaune felt everything inside him twist and turn. A pain so unimaginable that he could barely think, only able to process this horrible pain.

"AAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!"

Many in the audience yelled in terror, "Jaune!"

"Just what is this?" Oscar asked in fear. The Keeper answered him.

"A What-If world of how things can go wrong. There are many of these out there. Most just don't know about them as they're usually background dimensions that nobody bothers with. Many Creators usually chronicle the universes where the hero usually wins. This one I dug out from Coeur's dimension to show you how things could have gone wrong, even if you're a hero. These worlds were made and hidden to serve as counterbalance for the 'Light' realms."

This thread of dark universes was fittingly titled the Dark Multiverse, for they were the shadows lurking behind the primary multiverse.

The cast couldn't believe what they were hearing. Yet it made a sickening sort of sense, as there were worlds where anything bad could have gone worse. The one they just saw in the last screening was bad, but everything was going to fixed by Jaune via time-travel.

The Keeper though was now showing them this What-If world where Jaune's arrangement with Salem could have gone wrong.

"I see." Salem said not minding the screams Jaune was making. Using the mark on him to glean information from it. "So this is my future. A disappointment how Ozpin wins. But," She then smiled, raising her fingers as the Grimm liquid started appearing under Jaune. "Thanks to your pathetic attempt to save your friends and agreeing to my future-counterpart, I can change that."

Jaune didn't know what to do, nor what to say. He started praying he could find a way out. A way to fix what he had done. In another world it would...but in this world his fate is sealed.

"Turn." Like that the Grimm liquid began absorbing Jaune, causing even more pain as he could feel himself turning into something he shouldn't be. His very core turning-turning...into something Grimm.

'P-py-oyrr-*R%-Pyr$%&V" It wasn't long before the liquid absorbed him completely, encasing him as the knight couldn't even make a single thought of his beloved. But he wouldn't be trapped in that encasing forever. Salem standing up and walking to it. Placing a hand on it and chanting a few magic words. Ending it with a final sentence.

"From future bright to hell over heaven, a decision made in vain, now turn to a beast I command, the Grimm Knight Jaune Arc." Like that the encasing then receded showing what was once Jaune Arc, now nothing more but a new follower and pawn to Salem. His body having the same color scheme as Salem, his outfit now Grimm-like with spikes and veins all over. His face the same but in an agonizing tormented look of horror. His mouth opened wide and eyes all black.

His conscious mind was still there and unaltered though, but it cannot do anything to help him. A cruel sick punishment Salem made so he would obey her but still be aware of what he would now do as her new knight. A knight that will now serve her to change the future alright, the future made for her sake.

"Thank you Jaune." Salem whispered to his ear. "Thank you for accepting my deal. Now enjoy as you change this world for me, my new pawn."

The Grimm Knight stared impassively at Salem and then bowed, asking with a rough and hollow voice. "How may I be of service, my Queen?"

The scene then ended with the mental scream of Jaune, who was forever tied to Salem into killing whoever she decided. Ozpin, his allies, and his friends. This was his fate.

Now and forever.

Nobody said anything as the screen went dark. Not even the so-called villains said anything. Cinder and her subordinates were now glad they were working with Salem and not against her.

What they have seen happen to the Jaune of this What-If world was simply the stuff of nightmares.

Ozpin himself was now feeling sorry for Jaune, knowing how cruel Salem could be. It would appear that this Jaune Arc has died a true living death.

The young students were unable to comprehend what they had just seen. The blonde knight himself simply felt sick, like he needed to throw up, but he was too paralyzed by fear to do so. He truly cannot fathom the horror he had just seen, the fate of his What-If alternative.

"As you can see, not every world has a happy ending." Mayden said, snapping them out of it. "Don't worry, I won't show you worlds like that What-If too often. For now, enjoy this pleasurable one."

Nobody said anything else. Instead they sat down and hoped the next world wouldn't be too bad.

With that the next universe was shown.

As for what I just showed, it is a What-If scene. That was inspired by Marvel and there What-If. However instead of doing some random thing, I instead showed what would have happened if it showed Jaune failing to save the day. Being tricked by Salem because I feel like that could have happened in the Relic of the Future story if Salem wasn't in a rush and almost dead. I might make another, but who knows. Till next time.

Question: Why do many like using Jaune as the main character? I don't hate him, and genuinely like some of the stories he's in-aside from crappy unwritten ones. But why is he popular, never got that.

(Beta-Reader's note: A Dark Multiverse? I'm very frightened now.)