Hey there,

Just to let you know, no there will be no save points or checkpoints. Death is death, The Gamer ability in itself does not reverse time. A skill that resets time a la The Edge Of Tomorrow is possible, but I won't be doing that in my story. Not only does it make for a completely bland character, but it wouldn't leave any room for interest. No matter what direction I took my story in, there would be no suspense, just "Oh, if he loses he'll just respawn and come back when he's stronger."

Boring!

Also, I'm still looking for that beta!

Good Reading!


I woke briefly to the sound of an odd chiming and the presence of a woman with strange green hair. My attempts at sitting up were easily foiled by this lady, and as I fell back into this ridiculously comfortable bed I did not stop, but continued my fall into the land of sleep.

The second time I awoke was much different. A strange blue box hung in my vision.

You have slept in a hospital bed! HP & AP restored by 100%!

"What the…" I mumbled, though my throat felt like gravel had been stowing away down there. With a few coughs, I spit coagulated blood out of my mouth and onto the floor beside me. The box persisted, so I shooed it away as I would a fly and it disappeared. Must have been the effects of…

Coughing, screaming, the sounds of hundreds of 'shots' being fired.

"Jaune! Nora, send up a flare, Ren, distract that thing!" More shots, a grunt as a man was sent flying.

"Get him on board, I'll handle this."

"I can't believe they took out a Giant Nevermore, Professor."

"I expected it."

"Sir, will he be okay?"

"We'll see, Ms. Nikos. We'll see."

With a gasp I ripped the surprisingly soft sheets off my body to see that my body was fine. No giant feathers, no holes, with a quick flex I tested my knee and it still worked as well as it could while lying down. There was dried blood on me so it wasn't just a dream but a wound of that intensity shouldn't have healed that fast at all. I rubbed my face to check for hair and with a shudder I yanked my hand away from the measly peach fuzz on my cheeks.

Then the door to my blank white room opened and Phyrra ran through, quickly coming to my bedside. She leaned down and whispered to me.

"Act like you're Jaune with no memory. Trust me."

She stood straight as a man with grey hair walked in, carrying a cane. He did not carry it for support, but more as a king would carry a scepter. He held himself with power, and though his frame was lithe his presence filled the room.

"Mr. Arc, I was not expecting you to be awake this early." He stated, though the manner in which he spoke left no room for doubt; this man expected an answer.

"I wasn't expecting to be asleep that early either." My voice sounded harsh.

"I was not expecting it either. One might wonder how such an attack could breach your considerable aura."

"Jaune and I had been fighting our way through the forest. It was likely that he had exhausted himself." Phyrra spoke in my defense. "Along with the unexpected attack, it is not unlikely that his aura would be pierced."

"Hm… Indeed." The man stared at me with a critical eye. "I have an offer for the both of you. Ms. Nikos, if you could help Mr. Arc up to my office."

"He just awoke, Sir. Could he not get some time to recover?"

"If I'm correct, he is as right as rain at this very moment. I'll be waiting for you two up there. Please don't keep me waiting for long."

Another blue box popped into my vision as he exited the room.

[Quest Alert:] Wakey Wakey!

Time to get out of bed, sleepy head! The Headmaster wants to talk to you and he's a man that's best not to keep waiting.

[Main Objective:] Meet with Ozpin in his office.

[Side Objectives:] ?, ?

[Reward:] [Initiation Exam Part Two!], [Gear Up, Buttercup!], Access to Beacon Dormitory, Increased Rep with Beacon, Ozpin, Phyrra, Nora, and Ren.

[Failure:] Expulsion from Beacon, decreased rep with Beacon, Ozpin, Phyrra, Nora, and Ren. Possible admission to mental hospital. Possible death. [He Took The Midnight Train]

Accept? [Yes] [No]

I looked around but the box followed my field of view. The "Yes" was framed in green, while the "No" was framed in red. I tried swiping it away as I did the last box, but my hand simply passed through the illusion.

"Uhm.. Not-Jaune? What are you doing? And how are you already healed?"

I sighed and closed my eyes. I was clearly not well, and this box was starting to annoy me. "My real name is Torga. Use it. As for what I'm doing, this infernal box is annoying me and I'm trying to get rid of it. I have to assume somebody around here is either a skilled alchemist or knows Restoration magic, as I have no other ideas on how I'm in any sort of shape right now."

"...What?" She looked very puzzled.

"My name Torga. Annoying blue box with words. Someone healed me." I said slowly. The red-head shook her hair back with a glare.

"I understood what you said, Jaune." I growled at her. "I just don't see any box. As for the healing, I may have had something to do with that."

"What did you do." I stared her down. Considering I'd stared down almost every powerful being in Skyrim, she held her ground surprisingly well. Likely due to my younger body having not nearly as much of an intimidating factor.

"What you should have let me do in the forest!"

The conversation with… I glanced at the floating box once more. The conversation with Ozpin ran through my head. "You gave me aura. You forced magic upon me." I swung my legs out of the bed, and was about to stand before I noticed I was wearing a gown that covered not nearly enough of my body. I was absolutely fine walking through the tundras of Winterhold in nothing but leather armor, yet this garment made me feel exposed.

"You were dying! I had no choice. Hate me if you must, but I made the correct decision. The decision that led to you being alive here today." She reasoned though a certain amount of guilt crossed her face as well. I know guilt when I see it.

"Every man has a choice, Phyrra. Even if that choice is to die with honour rather than live with shame. You stripped that choice from me." I couldn't fault her logic, however. Sovngarde awaits me, but if this is to be my new situation, than I shall not be sent there yet. There's too many new enemies to fight.

"Are you ashamed?" She asked.

"Slightly." I immediately replied. "Magic is for cowards and milk-drinkers who can't wield a sword."

"Wouldn't someone who could wield both be more powerful than either alone?"

"That would depend on your definition of power. Now, about this box." I could only take it jiggling around so much. "Is this a result of aura, as you call it?"

"No, Torga, aura does not create boxes." Phyrra stated as if lecturing a child. I frowned at her, though she held up a hand to stall me. "Aura is a representation of your soul. It shields your body and strengthens your blows, but it does not create. What do the words in the box say?"

I read it off, still confused.

"Increased reputation with me…? What does that even mean?"

"Fuck if I know." I replied, frustrated that of all the people around here that I knew, even with that being solely her, nobody could tell me.

"Have you tried moving the box? With your mind, or hands?"

"You only found out about the box because I was waving my hand at it." I deadpanned.

Her face flushed. "Right. Have you pressed either of the buttons yet?"

"No."

"Try pressing yes."

"Why?" My finger hovered over the button.

"Because the cost of failure sounds bad and we have to go and see him anyways."

I shrugged and pushed my finger forwards. The box disappeared, and was replaced by a much smaller box that fled to the corner of my vision.

10:00… 9:59… 9:58

"The box changed into a clock that's counting down."

"Interesting. How much time is there?"

"9:50… 9:49"

"Ten minutes to get to Ozpin's office. We should probably leave."

I looked down at myself and then back at her, shaking my head. "I'm not going anywhere in this."

"Failure means possible death, right?"

"Right…" I didn't like where she was going with this.

"Alright, so long as you're okay with dying because you were afraid of people seein-" The rest of her words fell on deaf ears as I pulled my way through the door and found myself in a hall with a large arching roof. Phyrra closed the door behind us, then grabbed my hand and took off running.

I yanked the hand back. "I can run without your hand!"

"But can you keep up?" She said playfully, before putting on a burst of speed and pulling ahead. She soon turned a corner and I lost sight of her.

When I also turned the corner to see an even longer hall, I was shocked to see just how far ahead she was. With a grunt I pushed myself to a sprint and found myself going faster than I ever had before.

Pillars whizzed by as I coaxed every inch of speed out of my premature body. I tended to get competitive fairly quickly, so I finally found a positive aspect of this younger me; I was lighter, and could run so much faster.

I was not catching up with her by any means, and she turned yet another corner. In but a few seconds I ran around it too only to tumble to the ground as I attempted to avoid a collision with a few of the girls that I had met in the forest.

I heard a gasp. "Well, I never!"

"Jaune! You're awake!" Ruby exclaimed, with a flushed face at seeing my outfit. I nodded as I scrambled to my bare feet.

"Yes I am, I'm also in a rush so farewell!" I ran off, not daring to look behind me. I know that if I had, I would have to see their facial expressions as they beheld my pale ass, and that was something I would rather pretend never happened. Phyrra was nowhere in sight, so I slowed as I reached the next intersection of hallways, looking down each to see if I could spot her.

In an explosion of rose petals, Ruby was standing by my side. "Where are you going? Are you okay? You got stabbed by a Nevermore!"

"Ozpin's office, I'm fine, and I've taken worse. Which way is it?"

"You're not dressed properly! You can't go see Ozpin in that!"

"He said not to keep him waiting, so I'm not."

Ruby huffed. "Fine. Hold on."

She grabbed my hand, and in a blur that felt like I was being hit by the voice of the Greybeards yet again, we skidded to a halt. I almost threw up, but barely managed to keep it down as I put a hand on the wall for support.

"Here's the elevator." She pointed at an odd looking doorway, and I could hear bootfalls as Phyrra rounded a corner down this hall. All of these hallways looked the same so I doubt I could have found my way back to her regardless. "Now, what happened?"

"I unlocked his aura while you were fighting the Nevermore, it started healing him but with the Deathstalker right there we had to forfeit. We were picked up in a Bullhead. Ren took the stinger in his shoulder, but he's recovering fine with the help of his Semblance. Ruby, we truly are in a rush as we only have…" Phyrra entered my field of view and looked at me expectantly.

"5 minutes." I said after glancing at the timer that still hadn't moved from the top-left of my sight.

"5 minutes to meet with Ozpin. I take it you know how slow this elevator is?"

She shuddered. "I'll see you two later then."

With a high-pitched ding, the doors slid open of their own accord. Phyrra walked into an empty room behind it, and I followed her in. The doors shut behind us, and with a jolt I realized I was on a lift. Maybe not as clunky as the Dwemer lifts were, but these 'elevators' moved smooth and fast. What incredible technology, with something like this I could finally repopulate Sky Haven Temple without having to walk through all those puzzles. It was amazing really, moving so fast without putting in any effort.

[Side Objective Completed!]

Oh great, another box. I tried swiping this one away and thankfully this time it faded from view.

"Another one?" Phyrra asked.

"Yes, this one said I'd completed a side objective."

"You should speak with Ozpin about it. Let him know what's happening. Remember, to him your name is Jaune Arc, and you can't remember anything before you hit your head on that tree. Stick to that story, and hopefully you will get your actual memory back soon."

Fuck, I thought she actually believed me. Shows how little you can trust Imperials, even Imperial want-to-be's.

With another ding, the doors before us slid open, and I took the opportunity to boldly stroll through. Ozpin was standing in front of a large desk nursing a steaming mug. "Are we on time?"

"Well Mr. Arc, do you mean figuratively or literally?" Ozpin gestured towards the floor with a mischievous grin on his face. He was dressed in an odd black suit and a green scarf, with seeing-glasses on his face. Despite his grey hair, he looked young, with unmarked skin.

I looked down, and saw large gears turning beneath the floor, likely powering a clock. Those gears were much too big to simply be powering that lift.

"Both?" I ventured a guess.

"You could have changed first, but I admire your need to show punctuality, even if you are somewhat lacking in tact."

"Point taken." I replied. "You wanted to see me?"

He leaned back on his desk, still studying me with eyes that looked much too old for the body they inhabited. I'd seen those eyes before, on the likes of vampires and lycanthropes, or others that have lived longer than they had any right to. "Yes. Due to the unforeseen circumstances surrounding the initiation exam, some students made it to the temple but did not grab an artifact. I used the artifacts to make the teams for this year. The details of which student is on what team will be available to you afterwards."

"After what?" Phyrra asked.

"There were two sets of partners that failed to collect artifacts, Ms. Nikos. Yourself and Mr. Arc, as well as Ms. Valkyrie and Mr. Ren. As you technically failed the exam, you will not be admitted to Beacon Academy under these circumstances."

Phyrra's shoulders slumped briefly, before setting themselves once more. "Then under which circumstances would admission be possible, Sir?"

Ozpin smirked. "Good catch. Mr. Ren is currently admitted to the medical wing, and will be out of commision for a few days. Until he recovers, you will be admitted into a dormitory. After his recovery, you will be brought outside the city walls by a professor in order to take a new proficiency test. Upon passing that, you will be formally granted admission to Beacon."

"Thank you, Sir, you won't regret this!" Phyrra exclaimed.

"No, I don't imagine that I will." He gave another smirk, and I finally had him pinned. He's the type of person that knows something you don't, and lords it over people in a very subtle way. This man would have been loved by the Thalmor. "Ms Nikos, the location of your new dormitory has been uploaded to your scroll." Phyrra emitted an odd chiming noise and I raised an eyebrow. "Please head there, I would like to have a word alone with Mr. Arc, here."

With a glance of worry in my direction, she nodded. She then turned on her heel and left, leaving me alone with a very intimidating man. He wasn't particularly large, but he was powerful, that I could tell.

"So, Mr. Arc," He started, putting emphasis on my not-name. "What's an Imperial?"

'Shit.'. He knows. "Look, I wish I could explain, but I can't."

"Explain what? How you're not Jaune Arc, despite inhabiting his body? How you seem to have no knowledge of culture, climate, or modern technology? Or how you managed to not only take this body but rip it's aura out and implant your own?" Ozpin looked at me expectantly, and I noticed his hand had moved towards the head of his cane.

"Have you ever heard of the Elder Scrolls?" I started, though his expression didn't change. "No?" Still nothing. "Well, this is a lot harder. An Elder Scroll is an artifact that exists outside of time and space, created before the universe and after the universe ends. They simply are, and within them one can find all that is."

"Sounds like a bad lie to me, Mr. Arc."

I held up a hand. "The real name is Torga. I assume Mr. Arc is the one who had previously inhabited this body."

"Assuming you aren't suffering from Multiple Personality Disorder, then yes."

"From wha… sure. Anyways, whenever an Elder Scroll is involved, shit gets out of hand. I've had three encounters with Elder Scrolls before, one of which was the end of the world and the afterlife, and the other was in an attempt to extinguish the sun."

"And the third?"

"The plot to extinguish the sun involved two Elder Scrolls." I told him.

"Yet, the world still stands, and it is quite a sunny day today." He said, gesturing out a magnificent window.

"Yea, you're fucking welcome."

"I'll ignore that. You mean to say that you're responsible for the continued existence of Remnant."

"I… maybe? I'm not even sure if I'm anywhere close to home. With the Elder Scrolls existing outside of time and space, I could be literally anywhere, or anywhen right now."

He turned and look out of the gigantic window to an odd looking city in the distance. "You seem to be in quite a predicament. I assume you would like to return to your home."

"You would assume wrong. I opened that Elder Scroll in order to find adventure. My life was getting stale, after fighting for my life for 15 years there was no other life for me to be content with. This Remnant seems very dangerous, and with equally dangerous weapons to wield. This place seems to be a combat school, if I'm not mistaken, and one Jaune Arc is currently awaiting his proficiency test." I told him. "From the shape this body is in, the boy that originally inhabited it had no inclination towards combat or even hard work." I held up my hands. "These are the hands of a scribe, or a mage. Not a warrior you want to be slaughtering those Grimm."

He seemed deep in thought. "Professor Ozpin, allow me to offer a sort of personal proficiency test. Allow me to do this secondary exam. If I do not live up to your standards, I will allow you to kill me yourself, so long as it is in combat."

He turned back around. "You think that if you fail my test, you will be able to fight me?" He asked incredulously.

"No knowing what will happen until it happens, Professor. You just seem like the type of man to give a glorious battle before I die and join my allies and ancestors in Sovngarde." At seeing his curious glance I continued. "Sovngarde is a holy mead hall that warriors go to when they die. There we will fight and drink and prepare for the final war against the Dremora."

"Death by combat… I will not grant this request. You will rest with Ms. Nikos. She will get you up to speed on the world you now live in, and you will pass my test without flaw. After, when you return, I will ask you which of your team-mates you will choose as leader. Should you live up to my expectations, you will be admitted to this school on a probationary basis. Should you fail in any aspect of this, I will deposit you outside of the walls to live your life."

I shrugged. "That works for me."

He turned back to his window. "Meet with Ms. Nikos in your dormitory. The location is on your scroll."

I wasn't holding any sort of scroll on my person, but I wasn't going to appear stupid in front of this man that looked like he was already testing me. I simply turned and walked back to the odd doors, pushing the glowing button to summon the lift.

[Quest Completed!] Wakey, Wakey!

Time to get out of bed, sleepy head! The Headmaster wants to talk to you and he's a man that's best not to keep waiting.

[Main Objective:]

Meet with Ozpin in his office. [Complete]

[Side Objectives:]

Beat Phyrra in the race to the elevator. [Complete]

Convince Ozpin that you are Jaune Arc. [Failed]

You've earned 1000 XP!

Beacon Dormitory (Safehouse) unlocked!

Quest: [Initiation Exam Part Two!] unlocked!

Quest: [Gear Up, Buttercup!] unlocked!

Reputation with Phyrra Nikos: Friendly 10/5000

Reputation with Ozpin: Neutral 500/1000

"Ugh, these things are annoying." I waved it away as I stepped into the elevator. "I don't even know what that means."

You seem to be having issues with the system. INT -1. Would you like to activate the tutorial?

[Yes] [No]

A witch walked out from behind a pillar in Ozpin's office. Wearing a low-cut shirt, glasses, and wielding a riding crop, she approached the Headmaster himself.

"You don't actually believe him, do you?" She asked.

"No, not until I have some sort of proof and further questioning. Unless he impresses me in the trial, I will simply wash my hands of the whole situation."

The woman snorted. "We both know you won't leave this alone, even if he is just crazy."

Ozpin looked into her bright green eyes. "Glynda I implore you to find a Huntsman or Huntress that is not a little insane."

I pressed the [Yes] button, and the lift stopped itself.

Welcome, player! You seem to be having issues with the system. Please say 'Status' to begin the tutorial!

I paused for a moment. Player? "Status."

Name: Torga

Age: 17

Lvl: 3

Race: Human

Title: The Displaced One (-90% to AP, -30% to WIS)

Status: Healthy

XP: 30.3%

HP: 76

AP: 1 (The Displaced One)

STR: 7

VIT: 5

AGI: 4

INT: 2

WIS: 2

LUK: 2

TITLE: The Displaced One: You have no idea where you are, what's going on, or how people are doing the things that they are doing. You don't belong here, and you know it. Unlock your semblance to remove this Title.

"That's… me? I still don't get what all these numbers mean but-"

Name: This is your name. It will not change unless you get it legally changed, become married, or suffer a large existential crisis.

Age: This is how old your body is.

Level: This is a representation of your overall power. Higher levels mean more dangerous beings.

Race: This is what species you would be classified as.

Title: A descriptive title granted to you through hard work or special actions. Can contain buffs and debuffs and be changed at will with some exceptions.

Status: The condition of your body. Reflects status effects such as poison, paralysis, fatigue, etc.

XP: How close to the next level you are. XP is earned by completing quests, fighting enemies, and certain actions.

HP: A numeric representation of your life. As you take damage the numbers get lower, and if it reaches 0 then you die.

AP: A numeric representation of your aura. This allows you to use skills and raise your stats, though if it reaches 0 you suffer from 'Aura Exhaustion',

STR: A numeric representation of your Strength. This number dictates your ability to lift heavy objects, deal physical damage, and works in tandem with your agility to determine movement speed.

VIT: A numeric representation of your Vitality. This number dictates your ability to resist damage and status effects, heal back lost hit points(HP), and directly affects your maximum hit points.

AGI: A numeric representation of your Agility. This number dictates your ability to dodge and run, your speed of physical attacks, and works in tandem with your strength to determine movement speed.

INT: A numeric representation of your Intelligence. This number dictates your maximum Aura Points (AP), the damage you can do with Aura based attacks, and all intellectual pursuits. It improves fact retention, preventing you from forgetting even the most mundane of details.

WIS: A numeric representation of your Wisdom. This number dictates the rate at which you use AP, as well as how fast your AP regenerates. Wisdom also gives a small boost to experience points and the rate at which skills level up. In the physical world, wisdom will help you come up with plans and strategies in order to use what you know to maximum effect.

LUK: A numeric representation of your luck. This number dictates how lucky you are and influences enemy encounters, loot chances, gambling odds, and gives a small bonus to each stat.

I read that lengthy screen over a number of times and compared it to the one that held my statistics. I was slightly outraged at my apparent lack of intelligence, but more so at my lack of wisdom. Years of experience were under my belt, and yet due to this 'Title', The Displaced One, I apparently had no idea what was going on or what to do. Thinking back to my time in the forest, that was all too true.

Continue with the Tutorial? [Yes] [No]

The elevator still hadn't restarted, so I poked the [Yes] option once more.

Bring up the Skills Menu by saying 'Skills'

I shrugged. "Skills."

Skills

The Gamer's Body (Passive) (LVL MAX): Allows the player to live his/her life as if it were a video game. Instead of receiving grievous injuries or being cut open by attacks, the player loses hit points. The player does not need to eat, drink, or sleep, though these actions do provide benefits. Sleeping restores HP, AP, and returns Status to normal.

The Gamer's Mind (Passive) (LVL MAX): Allows the player to logically think things through with a sense of detachment. Protects against psychological status effects.

Running (Passive) (LVL 1): A skill that levels up by running. Increase this skill to run faster and farther without exhausting yourself.

The skills menu displays all of your abilities. Abilities are either passive or active. Passive abilities are constantly activated, Active abilities can be activated either by going through with the activity or saying the name of the skill.

Would you like to continue the Tutorial? [Yes] [No]

"That explains a lot." Apparently I hadn't been healed by anyone, I'd just… slept it off. I chuckled a little bit. Was this how everyone around here lived? No, it couldn't be, that other fellow that was injured still isn't healed so I must be a rarity.

For coming to a correct conclusion with little information, WIS has increased by one!

I looked at the status page, one of the two boxes floating before me, but it didn't show anything different. I decided to immediately get rid of that title as best I could by unlocking my semblance, whatever that was, and to do that I would need to find Phyrra.

For thinking things through and creating a plan, WIS has increased by one!

Now my WIS was up to 3, though I certainly didn't feel any wiser. I pressed the [Yes] option once more.

To complete the Tutorial, open the Inventory. You should know how to do this by now.

Rolling my eyes, I said "Inventory."

I saw a new box pop up, with… boxes inside of it. The entire left side was full of empty boxes, while the right side showed a blonde boy in an odd dress. Underneath, in the bottom right, a circle with an odd white box inside it. I raised my hand to poke it, and the figure also raised his hand. 'Hm, I guess that would be me'. I touched the only other thing that was not a box or myself. It was a small image of the gown.

White Hospital Gown: A simple gown made for ease of dressing and removal. Allows a wonderful breeze through.

+1 VIT.

I wouldn't call that breeze wonderful.

To use the inventory, simply place items inside physically. To take them out, just grab the item and pull it out. Money will only take up one slot per currency type. All other items will be stacked up to 99 times before moving onto a new slot. There is no limit to quantity of items, though the overall weight cannot exceed 3x your strength in pounds.

Congratulations! You have completed the basic tutorial. This is not all that is offered, however, so feel free to experiment and figure things out for yourself! Here's a hint: Try saying Quests, Heads Up Display, or Party Options.

I swiped all the screens away, and the elevator started descending once more.

It felt wrong. Normally I would be angry beyond belief, or incredibly confused by this. Instead, I just felt a sort of… acceptance.

I refused to accept that.