Chapter 54 - The Walls Come Down
Act VI: Kingdom of Lies
"I should get it," I conversed with Iota on the precious items sat neatly in the display box, bathing in the sunlight. Exasperated, the I felt his cold stare leer into my crown.
"Then get it, the clarity and color are the perfect blends." That answer had me turn, my eyes brightening under the tarp
"You're right I should!" I went to point out the piece, then paused with a slump. "But it's really expensive, I shouldn't."
Penny then chimed in with a happy sigh, her spite hopping onto my shoulder. "Perhaps the one to your right, it looks really pretty and were hand-crafted in Atlas, ensuring quality above all else."
I heard Iota facepalm, "Oh for the love of God..."
"Both are really good too..." I mumbled back, that's when I just felt the urge to go with my gut and nod while a pink hue rose to my cheeks
"You guys are both right, quality is great but expensive, same goes for color, cut and so on, so I'll take... those ones!" I pointed to the right to the item confidently
"And here I believed the meeting when we get back was going to be the most stressful thing all day." Don't remind me, I'm still not sure I want to go through with this... "It's better they hear this now before stress is through the roof."
"Hmm, I agree with Iota's assessment, the morale of all our friends is moderate but I feel any perlonging may result in serious backlash later on." Penny concurred
"I hate it when you guys are right."
This was it. After returning from my shopping spree I requested Albatross and Iota to gather the others while Amber helped to walk me through my words carefully, herself unsure of this meeting but again, she agreed with Penny to no longer keep this bottled up, less we tempt fate even more-so.
"Ah, everyone's here, thanks, Albatross! Iota!" I waved happily while he returned the guestre, propping himself against the edge of the left hall with his arms crossed
In the living room, everyone was roughly seated, Amber stood by the staircase leading to the training dojo below with Iota, his steely eyes narrowed across the crowd, I felt it, he knew what had to be done and while I didn't want to distill more uncertainty we had to discuss this... issue among all of us while our heads were on straight. Clarity was the only aspect through-out my journey that kept me sane, learning of my past, the threat I can display to Remnant, all of which I had people to rely on when needed.
"Sky, what's up? Iota just kinda threatened us out of our rooms?" Yang jabbed her robotic finger in his direction
"If I told you why you'd be threatening someone's life right now, heh, believe me, I wouldn't stop you." Came his chilling reply much to my chagrin
Pinching my nose I stood at the end of the coffee table, all eyes on me as I kept silent a moment, hand covering my mouth. The next person to ask was Erika, her and Weiss appearing from the kitchen. "You good, bro? Look a little... well, paler I'd say?"
"That's only funny when it's directed at Ruby, and for the record, I am not that pale." I reminded her, removing my hand while seeing Ruby's twitching brow. "Right, so as you guys know I've learned alot about my current situation. The Vex, Horsemen, myself, and Cognitum."
I paused. "This... is different, in order to learn of Charron's plans we needed to know the cause of his existence, why he was so adamant about my destruction, hell, just to know his name," Shaking my head I smirked. "Reminds me when I found out about the Fall Maiden with Pyrrha, the whole reality I had come to know got flipped on its head."
"I am sorry to have burdened you with that," Ozpin, now in control of Oscar sighed, frowning. "The truth I trusted both you and Miss Nikos with was a difficult one, had I thought with more diligence then Beacon and its students may not have had to suffer so much." There was a wave of dread but I smiled, knowing Pyrrha was okay, Penny too though none of them knew this yet
"I put my trust in you Oz, especially concerning Mars and Cognitum, I mean, you freakin' kept probably the biggest secret on Remnant under wraps for so long," I chuckled, then Iota's postured changed, balling up his fists. "Or... should I call you Ozma?"
There, like a bomb caught on the horizon, all eyes and ears turned to the boy with two souls, how coincidental. It was gradual, he lost his calm exterior, his body gone rigid and eyes dilated at my words cut sharper than a blade. Had it not been for the crowd he'd probably have tried to make an escape, I don't blame him, especially now that I knew the truth.
"'Ozma'?" Jaune murmured, so I continued solemnly
"We met with a... I'm gonna say strange, guy, calls himself Gambit, he showed us... everything," I began, listing off with my fingers. "The Gods, the Relics, mankind's rebirth from complete annihilation, you... and Salem."
"...I-" Ozpin tried to get a word out but Qrow sat up, looking between us
"Hold on, what? What do you mean by 'Everything', kid?"
"And 'Mankind's Rebirth', are you saying we were...?" Weiss trailed off, Iota chuffing
"We're the remnants, excuse the pun, of the shattered moon, the magic that resided inside both the Gods as they shattered it rained down on the empty world, literally birthing man from dust," Iota stepped forward, glowering at Ozpin. "You knew all of this, reincarnation to keep the Relics safe from Salem, it's why you built schools and trained Huntsmen, why they hide the Relics themselves, you're the wizard that gave the Maidens their power."
"Whaaaat!?" Nora gasped, dragging her hands down her face, Ren blinking with shock himself
"The stories and fairy tales were based on Ozpin's past," Ren looked to have it pieced together. "This would align up with what Qrow told us long our journey across Anima."
Yang glared daggers at Ozpin. "I thought there was going to be no more lies and half-truths?"
Slowly, Ozpin's expression darkened, keeping his hands atop his cane. "I... this isn't the time-"
"No, we're past that!" Yang stood up defensively, drawing her gaze between me as I remained neutral. "We have a right to know what's going on, just what the history is between you and Salem," Yang finally showed her sympathetic gaze, putting a hand to her heart. "You can trust us, we're not going to turn our backs on you-"
"You really think you're the first!?" He snapped, head low a moment. "That others have not said those exact words to me!?" Lifting his head I could see it clearly, Ozpin shared a frightening look of paranoia and scarred experience, just like I was for so many years. "You have to understand that my words are backed by experience,"
Ozpin stood up, waving his hand low with a heavy gaze. "I'm not saying I have reason to believe you will betray me but that I have reasons for the things that I do, the secrets that I keep-"
"So all that time you talked about having faith in humanity," Ruby's words cut through the silence, an eerie stillness at that as I could feel my chest tighten. "That was just for everyone else?"
"That's not what I meant," He was starting to crack, sorta like me when they confronted myself and Iota way back, I was scared to tell them anything, afraid of falling into an endless loop until complacency overtook my sense of self. "Just, please," Ozpin begged me, eyes on the verge of becoming misty. "Don't."
Time to say it, sorry Oz. With my eyes closed my breath exhaled and I eyed him carefully, "I don't know what the Relics can do, Gambit never specified, all I know is that if all are gathered the Gods would return and judge us, and from what I've seen we'd be wiped out, permanently," The answer was grave but I wasn't through, "Why Salem wants them I don't know either, but, Oz, tell me,"
"How do you plan to beat Salem?" I was angry, confused, understanding. Ozpin to Salem is the enemy, the darkness inside her manifested with her hatred of the Gods and soon to the man that betrayed her. To Ozpin, she's the person he wished he could still save, with every century he wished and prayed for that answer. I would if it were Ruby, I'd give my everything for her too
"I... don't have one," With a defeated posture he fell down to his knees, dropping his cane. "I, I can't." Tears dropped to the floor between his hands
Albatross sighed, stepping forward to the chair behind Ozpin. "She's immortal, the Gods decided to make her that way until she learned the value of life and death, then she took a dip in one of the pools the Grimm are born from and now yields the desire for destruction with a body that cannot die and magic unlike the world has seen," Shaking his head, Albatross gripped the back of the chair with a disappointed scowl. "Why is it the bad guys always get the good shit?"
"Salem can't be killed, are you serious!?" Yang blurted out in disbelief, stumbling back herself from the shock. "There was so much you were never going to tell us, how did you think that was okay!?"
"All this time I thought I was finally doing something good..." Qrow's hands slowly started to ball up white, betrayal, and hopelessness evident in his eyes. "No one cared about some cursed person like me other than you."
He refused to move, not even a simple motion of his hand as he groveled on his knees in shame and heartache. With haste I lunged from the table and quickly took Qrow's fist to my gut, almost stumbling atop Ozpin as I coughed from the lack of air in my lungs, the very force causing a ripple behind me.
"Often... those that lie... hide behind half-truths have... been scarred the most," Qrow, while his face was jagged with scorn and hatred faltered, his fist leaving my stomach as I tried to hold in my lunch. "Something... Specter told me... that Summer Rose used to say." I wheezed, pushing his arm away without resistance
I covered my mouth a moment. "Hold on, ugh, yep that hurt," I gulped, shivering slightly as I turned to Ozpin with a glare. "You're all angry, and scared, I get that but... how he different from me?"
"But Sky-" I put my hand up to Erika
"I lied every day to you, kept secrets, and even know I'm holding onto some that I know would hurt when the time comes," Thoughts of my very existence, and of Summer herself ran rampant. "When I finally had my hand forced you were for me, you comforted and guided me when I didn't deserve it," Raising my head to them all I held a grateful expression. "You saved me when I had nothing left to live for."
"Salem meant so much so Ozpin before the Gods screwed everything up for them both, what Salem did was wrong, but damning her to an immortal life wasn't going to solve problems, our present day proves that," I knelt down beside the boy lost in his own head with a man who has burdened the world for too long on his own. "To Ozpin, Salem isn't just the enemy, you still want to save her but you don't know how, I'm sorry," Resting a hand on his shoulder, I felt his eyes lock to mine as I lifted up a smile. "I'll still be here, no matter how difficult is may seem or how impossible the odds, we can save her, I promise."
There was a mixture of emotions ranging from sorrow to anger, they had a small idea of the truth boiled down to its core components, our situation is far direr than simply defeating the bad guys and saving the world, this isn't the White Fang's terrorist actions or Roman and his robberies, this was a being capable of amassing an army from seemingly nothing in a sacred place no one can find on Remnant. Ozpin has tried, people have betrayed him and his army is falling, if we have any chance of survival he needs to trust us as I do my friends, otherwise Salem has already won.
"But why?" Ozpin croaked out while my fist tapped to his forehead
"Because four annoying girls wouldn't let me wallow in my own self-pity, no matter how badly I tried to push them away," My thumb jabbed back at Iota. "If they can get a coldhearted personality like him to be nice then anything's possible."
"...Never have I ever been offended by something... I completely agree with." Iota slumped his head out of embarrassment, Amber patting his shoulder with a small smile. For my team, they looked far less restless, Weiss was calm in her seat, Yang finally lowered her guard with a smile, and Ruby held her own warm expression with glee, moving over to kneel next to me to meet with Ozpin's eyes
"It's not going to be easy, and... we're not going to trust you so openly for a while, Professor," Her eyes softened, holding her hand out for him. "But if Sky believes we can find a way then I'll be here to help you too, people have told us so many times that the things we do are crazy or stupid, but if there is a chance then we owe it to everyone that brought us this far to try."
"What's it with you and Red giving speeches, makes it annoying to refuse," Iota grumbled
"Comes with the territory of being a leader I suppose," Albatross replied shyly. "I um... kinda have that problem too according to my friends, hehehe."
"Fantastic..." Iota ran a hand over his face
[No POV]
Chess. A game that spans centuries for those who appreciate a game of skill, where calculated moves, and outsmarting the opponent are key to any victory. Chess was the simplest of mind games, yet the most effective one too.
It tells you a lot about who you're playing against.
"You know what I find amusing, Trinity? The fact that you believe yourself to be 'a guide', yet here you are, playing games like a child." Charron moved a black rook by three spaces, the last one to stand
"I see it as a good pass-time with old friends 'and' enemies, you would know that but I suppose being trapped in an interdimensional prison designed by yours truly would put a damper on social interactions." A woman in white with a golden scarf over her eyes remarked. She debated whether to advance another of her six remaining pawns, or a bishop to counteract that approaching knight of her enemy
"You shouldn't take my antisocial imprisonment lightly given how close I am to freedom." Charron spat, pointing an astral white finger across the board, yet Trinity just looked at him with a calm smile, her hidden eyes on the game, not a thread of fear crossing her heart as her hand flicked at the cow-lick atop her blonde hair
"Someone's confident, though I suppose you have been planning this escape of yours for centuries so I can understand feeling as though most threats aren't within reach of you," Trinity replied honestly
In the short time, Trinity had managed to take out both Charron's bishops, seven of his pawns, one knight, one of his rooks and now she was close to taking out the queen. Charron was no slouch, proving to be an expert of the game; having gotten rid of six of her pawns now, both her rooks, the king, and both bishops.
In short; Trinity was losing.
But her poker face was still invisible to read, and Trinity was far above allowing the Vex to get to her. Keyword in her mind, she 'WAS' losing.
"You know what I like about this game we play? Is that so many tiny hints and unexpected moves can turn the tides of war in the favor of either side, depending on if they have the intellect to see this misfortune and turn it into a gift, a state of glory for one's desires, such like my goals." He prattled on, with Trinity tapping a finger to one of her white pieces, tilting her head on her other knuckle
Then, within the shattered remains of the ascendant realm, Charron's eyes widened.
"Ah, I see it now, that same look so many Gods like yourself have claimed to be their rising victory, but the higher their struggle, the deeper the depths of despair once they fall." He concluded, seeing her remove his final pawn with a white knight. "And yet you proceed to grow stronger, how curious."
"Should I be flattered that you're comparing me to my kin?" Trinity hummed in thought
"Considering your 'relationship' with that cyborg, I thought you would take the comparison as a compliment, seeing as he would think so." He shrugged, taking his next move... and internally smiling as he did so. He had her, the vile God thought her mind games could fool him, deceive his plans. All was effortless, she underestimated him, and he wanted that
"Gods are told never to meddle with the affairs of mortals, not to pick favorites, so what? I can do whatever I want, and so far I think my actions have spoken volumes, however, the events unfolded for Him were of his own making I have only been here as his guide, as you put it." Trinity wasn't falling for his tricks, one of the few Gods Charron knew would be a challenge to avoid given her near limitless sight on every individual across the Multiverse, even to people as insignificant as Sky and his allies, something he forgot to take into consideration
When he proceeded to advance with his queen, a question popped up, over a subject that honestly had Trinity baffled about the intentions of her enemy. "I am curious, why is it that you play this game with little ol' me? Why not stop my little knights from moving forward?"
"Nothing will stop me from creating the perfect world my creators sought to create, not even Sky can change fate," He growled, seeing her raise her hands in defense, though her fingers did click, moving her white piece to rid the final knight on his side. "Tch."
"I see..." She moved another piece as the two stared at one another. "Also, a little tip about playing any game." When Charron looked, he saw it, she had claimed his king with what little remained of her forces, she had won. "The moment you take your eyes off the game, you'll lose."
"Checkmate."
To Be Continued...
Yep, the reveal of Ozpin's past ahead of time since I realized a while ago that both Sky and Oz share similar traits with betrayal, isolation, and a feeling that entrusting others completely would result in a painful cycle of regret. Just one more chapter than then its on to the Haven battle... what fun that'll be to rewrite, but I'll try. Sorry if uploads stretch but I'm sorta being dragged in all directions lately.
I hope you enjoyed, and I will always appreciate the support, seeya in the next chapter Huntsmen and Huntresses!
Next Chapter: Until the End
With time all to themselves, Sky and Ruby put aside their responsibilities for the day to be a couple who are idiots.