Wow a new story after 7 years of silence?
Well, I got three things that allow me to write now
1 - Free time
2 - No more FFXIV raiding, or FFXIV in general
3 - Some ideas that have been kicking around in my head and refuse to die.
I'm going to stick to 7k-8k wordcount per chapter and one chapter per week, This story will be 20-30 chapters at best.
He didn't want to die.
The pinions of a giant nevermore plunged into the earth next to him, and he ran.
He'd been running for what seemed like an eternity, after all.
When his family refused to teach him, he didn't reason with them, he ran.
When he couldn't hack it at Beacon, he didn't face the challenge. He just ran.
When his transcripts were revealed to the world, he didn't fight back against his expulsion, he ran.
If he was ever good at any one thing, it was running.
Yet, when chased by the enemies of humanity, darkness dressed in various forms, given the will and command to kill, he couldn't run fast enough.
A Beowulf tried to block his path. A young one, one that even he could deal with. As he drew his bog-standard iron sword, his other hand reached for his shield, only to find it missing.
The loss of Crocea Mors still stung, but it had to be returned to his family, now that they knew it was missing from the family armory.
Still, he waited for the Beowolf to lunge, and in a well-executed dive, he passed under it, using his sword to cleave through the monster's underbelly.
Except, that's not what happened. His blade got stuck, and the claws of the beast found purchase in his shoulders. He quickly kicked the Beowulf off, but the damage was done.
He was out of Aura, bleeding, and surrounded.
Whoever said that the Grimm lacked intelligence needed to be kicked in the nuts, repeatedly. Here he was, boxed in by Grimm of various varieties. A giant nevermore circled above, a target whom he couldn't hit.
For a few seconds, there was a stalemate. His sword was up, and the monsters were wary. They encircled him, waiting for some sort of signal. That signal came once the Nevermore above started firing off pinions at him.
He dodged, still getting nicked by one of the staggered pinions. At the same time, two Beowolves jumped at him. He was good enough to parry one's lunge, but couldn't stop the other one from gouging his back open. He swung out wildly, but his blade cut nothing but thin air.
For a second, he wondered why the Grimm weren't all descending on him, then he realized that the Grimm were treating him like a wounded animal.
They would just tire him out, then rip him to shreds at their leisure. They had all the time in the world, after all, and he was bleeding out and exhausted.
His vision swam as he turned around and gutted an Ursa, who had snuck up on him. How a beast of that size could be so stealthy, he didn't know. Still, he took a sick sense of pride in the fact that even when dying, he was able to take out at least one of them.
His pride was short-lived as searing pain radiated from his midsection for a singular moment before he lost all feeling in his legs. He fell, but couldn't fall all the way, as the huge pinion that had punched a hole through his spine held him off the ground.
As the Grimm closed in, all he saw were blots of red, swimming in an ocean of black and white.
He didn't want this. He was meant to be a hero, a huntsman among the finest, like his parents and the majority of his sisters.
"I-i want to live, dammit!" He spat out, words mixing with blood. The hate-filled words were enough to make the Alpha Beowolf in front of him flinch for a second. Then, it leapt, it's jaws open, ready to decapitate him.
And then, time stopped.
CONGRATULATIONS
JAUNE ARC
You have unlocked the achievement:
"The Weakest."
You have been chosen as a 'Player'
Will you accept?
YESNO
Warning: on selecting "NO" you will die in 0.82 seconds
Jaune awoke with a start.
The feeling of soft cotton clothing, excessively breezy down low, was the first indication that he wasn't dead. The second was the fact that he was in a nondescript patient wardroom.
It was then that the nurse burst in.
"oh thank god you woke up." She said, with a look of genuine concern on her face. "A huntsman team found you on the outskirts of town. We've been trying to figure out what's wrong with you since."
Jaune nodded. "I was in a fight with some Grimm. I think Aura exhaustion got me." He replied.
The nurse breathed a sigh of relief. "That's what we assumed too. Still, your clothes were in tatters but your body was untouched. Did you have to turn off your Aura mid-fight?"
Jaune nodded, taking her explanation because he couldn't come up with a better one himself.
The nurse mumbled something under her breath that sounded a lot like 'reckless, idiots.' And 'stupid huntsmen' regaining her composure.
"We couldn't contact anyone close to you so we had to reach out to Professor Ozpin. He and a huntsman in training are here to see you." She spoke, then walked out of the room. She'd only been out of the room for a minute when in walked the one man he wanted to see the least.
"Almost dying a week after being expelled, Mr. Arc? If I didn't know better, I'd call you suicidal." Ozpin spoke, his voice calm and even. He was carrying his trademark mug of coffee, which he sipped from. "I'll have to settle for calling you naive instead."
Jaune sighed. "I'm surprised to see you, professor. I'm not one of your students anymore. Or does the headmaster of Beacon not have more important things to do?"
A glint of steel entered Ozpin's gaze, surprising Jaune. "While I do have 'more important things' to do, I believe I need to have a conversation with you that I couldn't have while within the confines of Beacon."
Jaune scoffed. "What, going to tell me to just give up and go home?"
He sat down on a stool next to my bed, putting his mug aside. He crossed his arms, locking his gaze with my own. He took a deep sigh, and for a second, I could see the signs of age on his face.
"I know that telling you to go home would be a moot point. You wouldn't have tried to cheat your way into Beacon if something like my words could stop you." He picked up his mug and took a sip, his gaze still locked on to my own. "I knew about your falsified records since the moment they crossed my table. It was a ballsy move. Yet, I was willing to take my chance on you. Not because you have promise beyond any other youth who your seat could have gone to, but because you, Jaune Arc, were driven beyond measure."
He stopped for a second, likely thinking of how to phrase the thoughts in his mind. "You are naive, a defeatist, and you are no prodigy. On record, you have to be the weakest student that has ever walked the halls of Beacon, yet, no one had a burning desire to be a hero more than you. Your goal is naive, and dare I say stupid, but all you wanted to do was help people. And for that, I was willing to give you a shot."
"So tell me, Jaune Arc, how does dying in the woods alone help anyone?" He asked, and Jaune could not answer.
"I do not expect you to stop. It is why I tried to delay the news of your expulsion reaching your family, lest they hunt you down and drag you back to the Arc stronghold." He spoke. "I tried my level best to provide you a safe haven where you could learn to be the hero you so desperately want to be. Due to your own mistakes, that was not to be. I try to buy you time to escape out into the world, to find an alternate way to become the hero you want to be, and here I find you, bedridden by your own lack of foresight. So tell me, Jaune Arc, what will you do now?"
Guilt hit Jaune hard, but he knew that guilt would solve nothing. What he needed was a plan. He couldn't let his family take him back. Not now.
"I need to get away, I need to get better." He said. He had to run once more before he could start moving forward.
Ozpin nodded. "Here is a one-way ticket to Mantle. I would recommend going to the frontier towns. Some of the strongest warriors of humanity have been forged in those frigid plains. With your drive, I believe you can make something of yourself out there." He continued. "It is a cold, unforgiving land, but as we have learnt, forgiveness and safety do not work for you."
Jaune nodded, taking the ticket from him. "Thank you, professor, for everything."
Ozpin just nodded. "My best wishes to you, Jaune. Maybe one day, you might be able to return the favour."
With his piece said, Ozpin left the room. He'd scarcely been gone a few seconds when in marched the second person I did not want to see.
Citron Arvess.
With shaggy platinum blonde hair, a build that wouldn't be out of place on a statue, and a face that made girls swoon, Citron Arvess was the very epitome of how a huntsman should look.
He was also Jaune's best friend.
He didn't say a word as he sat down next to Jaune, but it was very evident from his expression that he had a lot to say.
"So, how does it feel to be a team leader, Citron?" I spoke with a smile. Even when my transcripts had been revealed, Citron was the one person who hadn't turned his back on me.
He scratched his cheek. "It doesn't feel right. It was your place, your team. It feels dirty."
Jaune chuckled. "don't be that way, man. If I had been more mindful and Cardin hadn't heard me, it wouldn't have come to this."
His words brought about silence, the kind of silence that only meant something was horribly wrong.
"It wasn't Cardin, Jaune. It was Pyrrha." Citron spoke. "she did it to replace you with me."
Again, silence.
Jaune broke it with a peal of laughter.
"Oh, that is rich. The invincible girl gets her team leader kicked out so she could be in the same team as her boyfriend. Oh my God, I fucking knew it." he laughed again.
Citron was surprised. "You… you aren't surprised?"
Jaune shook his head. "judging by the way they treated me in my last week at Beacon, no, I'm not. Just a bit sad I didn't see it coming." Jaune finished.
"I'm not her boyfriend anymore, Jaune. We… we took a break from each other. I'm not sure I can tru-"
Jaune shook his head. "Nah, man. Listen. You gotta be a good leader to them. Beacon is all about teams, and I wouldn't want you to fail because your cohesion with your team is bad. No one benefits from that."
Surprised crept onto Citron's face. "You… you're okay with that!?" And then, the anger came. "she got you kicked out of Beacon! She ruined your dream. And you're just…okay with all this?!"
Jaune shook his head. "I'm not. Dude, I'm pissed, but at them, not you. You deserve to make it through Beacon, to be a true huntsman." He said. "I might be done with Beacon, but I'm not done trying to be a hero. I'll find my way, but you have to make sure you find yours too. Kay?"
Citron deflated in his seat. "It… it doesn't feel right, you know? It isn't fair."
Jaune shrugged. "When is the world ever fair, man?"
Silence again, but a better, companionable silence.
"Shit's fucked, man. We just gotta make the best of it." Jaune finished.
"Yeah. Yeah, it is." Citron stated. "Just promise me you'll be safe man. Learning that you almost died one town away from Beacon was a jumpscare I did not need in my life."
"Tell you what, I'll drop by for the next Vytal tournament to cheer for you," Jaune spoke.
"The one coming up this year?" Citron asked.
Jaune shook his head. "Nah, wounds are too fresh. The one that's two years later. Then, we can compare how much we've grown. You're gonna have to work hard to keep up you know? I'm pretty good."
Citron chuckled. "Oh, I'll make sure I remember you when I give my winner's speech two times in a row."
Jaune laughed. "Sure sure, now get out. Your team must be worried for you."
Citron got up from his seat. "Just… keep in touch man. I really don't wanna lose my best friend. And for what it's worth, I apologize for everyone else." He spoke, walking out of the room.
It wasn't till a minute after he left that Jaune reached out at the transparent blue window that had been hovering in front of him all this time, even though it was hard to read the words through his tears.
"Wow, he's running again."
"Can you believe he was bedridden till a week ago?"
"Huntsmen are weird."
Jaune stopped for a second to catch his breath. Three miles of running left, he could complete that well within the six hours the system had assigned him.
Speaking of the system, he had spent the last week delving into it. In short, his life was now a video game. A proper, honest-to-god RPG with stats and all.
Every day, he got a quest. It was generally just a self-improvement quest, a massive number of exercises, which on completion would give him a Stat point.
Initially, he was sceptical about the difference each point made, but five points in strength taught him that even a single point increased his capabilities far beyond what weeks of hard-core training could.
With that, he finished off the final few miles left and got the Stat point. The quests didn't give him any experience though, and his level was still stuck at 1.
As for skills. The only skill he had was Aura, a passive skill that increased all stats by 20%, it had been 16% a week ago, but simply having it on increased his proficiency with the skill.
Between that and the Stat gains, he'd already grown far beyond what he was when he left Beacon.
It was now time to test it all out.
It took one more week before the hospital finally let him go. That left three weeks before his flight to Mantle.
The outer town of Benali was a two-day walk from Beacon. He knew for a fact that his family would be looking for him, so the roads were unsafe.
He picked up his new scroll. He had to ditch the old one because it could be traced back to him, plus he had no interest in reading the plethora of messages his family and friends had left him.
Especially not the messages that came from the Beacon folk.
"Guess I'll have to brave the forest." He spoke to himself, drawing the basic iron sword from his inventory.
The prospect of going back into the same forest he'd died in was daunting, yet he walked in. As he kept walking, he noticed a few Grimm circling him. Two beowolves. Juveniles by the looks of it.
They could no longer hide from him. There was a title above their head, in orange.
He drew his sword and stood ready, letting them know that they'd been seen.
True to his expectations, they leapt at him. Two weeks ago, the prospect of fighting two Beowolves at the same time would scare him, but now, having faced down death, having gained the system, and having grinned out stats, he was more than twice the man he once was.
He sidestepped the first one, slashing down and hewing it into two with minimal effort. He then spun around, decapitating the second one mid-leap.
One second of movement, and two dead beowolves.
You have levelled up!
+1 to all stats!
Your health, mana, stamina and Aura have been replenished!
Jaune couldn't help but laugh as he read the level-up prompt. This was brilliant! Killing Grimm gave him the ability to kill more Grimm better!
Almost on cue, attracted by the sounds of his deranged laugh, he felt the gazes of multiple Grimm on him. Due to his increased sense Stat, he could feel them all.
There were dozens of them.
"You know, I couldn't ask for a better semblance if this is one," Jaune spoke, taking a combat stance.
"Killing you guys is a reward in itself. This? This is just icing on the cake!" He shouted, jumping into combat cackling like a maniac.
He'd been killing them for six days.
At first, the Grimm tried to swarm him. Beowolves, Ursa, and even the odd deathstalkers tried to run him down in hordes.
He killed them all.
Then they gathered around alphas. Better guidance from a seasoned Grimm allowed them to try and flank him, to tire him out. Yet, they still died. He knew where they were. He knew their weakest links, the ones whose titles were Grey. It was just a matter of picking them off safely. After all, time was on his side.
He killed them all, again.
Then came the heavy hitters. The large deathstalkers, the giant nevermores. The first deathstalker managed to shatter his sword and he could have sworn he felt hope in them. Hope that now, finally, they stand a chance.
He cracked his knuckles, said 'bet' and started killing them again.
Who knew that fifty strength was enough for him to pull out a deathstalker's stinger and launch it sky-high, impaling a flying nevermore?
And so it went, till it appeared.
In a clearing next to a small, clear pond, he found the largest Grimm he had ever laid his eyes on. It was at least twenty stories large, and as wide as a house. He'd never seen one in real life, but he'd seen enough photos of it in the Grimm studies course book to realize what he was looking at.
"A goliath, just my luck." He spoke, as the Grimm bellowed at him.
Jaune was able to dodge the first swing of its trunk. He punched back, but it hardly made a dent in the armored plates covering the monster's legs. He tried punching again but was swatted away by the reverse sweep of the Goliath's trunk.
The monster was fast for its size, which explained why its name title was orange.
At this point, it had become clear to Jaune that there were four colors the titles came in. Grey, for weak, Yellow, for middling strength compared to his own. Orange, for strength exceeding his, and red, which he'd only seen once, on a Grimm he couldn't even recognize.
He'd run from it, and it was probably for the best… for now.
He righted himself, noticing that a single swing from the monster's trunk had taken a massive chunk out of his Aura.
He'd underestimated the Grimm, he would not do so again.
He leaned forward and jumped back into the fray, concentrating on movement and dodging. He slipped under the trunk, then elected to jump as the goliath slammed the earth with its front feet.
Airborne, he realised that he could no longer dodge, so he grabbed onto the Goliath's right tusk and pulled. With some resistance, it gave way, leaving the Grimm stunned in pain.
"And now, for the coup de grace," Jaune muttered as he landed, holding the tusk like a weird, curved Lance. He thrust it at the Grimm armored head, finding purchase. Still, it wasn't deep enough to kill it, so with all his might, he punched the base of the tusk, driving it all the way into the monster's cranium.
It failed for a few seconds in pain, before finally, it fell, its body dissolving into wisps of darkness. Jaune breathed a sigh of relief, falling down onto his ass. He was about to reach our and close the level-up message, when he noticed the Grimm had left something behind.
It was a longsword, with emphasis on the word 'long'. It was easily five feet long, but thin. It looked ornamental, but as he picked it up, he could tell that it was meant to be used in battle. The hilt was long enough that it could be used two-handed, but with his strength Stat, one-handing it was not a problem.
Longsword - Goliath's Ivory
+200 damage
+20 dex
+20 strength
Rarity - Rare
The stats were incredible, especially compared to the meagre stats of the iron sword he had lost a few days ago.
He gave it an experimental swing, and it felt extremely good in his hands.
He walked up to the pond and took a look at his reflection. He could barely recognize the person looking back at him. He was definitely taller, a few inches taller than Ozpin, even. His lanky body had filled out. It was the kind of physique he could only dream of in the past.
A light chuckle escaped him as he looked around at the Grimm surrounding the clearing that had been watching the fight. It was a known fact that Grimm did not feel fear. Yet, when he looked at the Grimm encircling the clearing, he could see clear signs of hesitation.
"There's a monster in this jungle with a red name tag, you know?" he spoke as if talking to the Grimm.
"Let's see if the lot of you are enough experience to help me turn that title orange." He finished, leaping at the Grimm, his new sword in hand.
Four days left till he left for Mantle, Jaune sat in a tree, staring at the Grimm he had run from less than a week ago. The title 'Behemoths stared back at him, a foreboding orange.
"thirty-eight level-ups, and your name is still orange." He sighed. "then again, I can't expect any less from a Grimm that isn't even in the books."
He jumped off the tree, using one of the two skills he'd learnt as he levelled up.
Blink
Allows the user to short-distance teleport to a spot of their choosing.
Cooldown - 8 seconds
Mana cost - 50 mana
It was probably the single most used skill out of his grand total of two active skills. When he'd gotten it, the cooldown was thirty seconds and the mana cost was triple the current value. It was a testament to how much he was using the skill that the cost and cooldown had been driven so low.
He was able to sneak right up to the Behemoth and land the first hit, using his second active skill in the process.
Critical Chain
Guarantees the next attack does 2x damage
Cooldown - 30 seconds
Additional Effect - can activate again instantly x number of times when hitting a weak spot
Current Maximum Stacks - 4
Attacking the monster's neck from above was the ideal opener. Four vertical lines sliced into the monster's massive neck, causing it to rear back in pain.
In all honesty, though Jaune was expecting it to outright kill the monster.
"No luck huh, well, let's try again."
Before the monster could recover, Jaune jumped and slashed its right eye, blinding it. The cooldown of both blink and critical chain recovered, he attacked the neck again, this time from below. Four more vertical lines shredded the monster's throat, still, it refused to die.
Aggravated, Jaune continued his assault. Taking out the left eye, Jaune repeated the manoeuvre. The monster was recovering fast, but every time one of its eyes would grow back, Jaune would slash it out again and put four more critical chains into it. Over and over, he kept doing it. It was pitifully easy to dodge the monster's flailing.
Five minutes of toil later, the behemoth lay dead, and Jaune felt unsatisfied for a whole second before the level-up dialogue confirmed that he had hit level forty.
He also gained his first-ever title.
Title: Grimmslayer
+10% damage to all Grimm enemies
-10% damage from all Grimm enemies
Simple, but insanely useful. He also got gear from the Grimm. A white long coat at that!
The Behemoth's Regalia
30% damage absorb
+20 dex
+10% regen
He put it on immediately. His T-shirt had been shredded while fighting a few days ago so it was nice to have some upper coverage, even though it still left his chest open.
The regen effect seemed to stack with his passive regen from Aura, which was also boosting his stats by 40% now.
And finally, there was the rune stone.
Ability stone - Domination
Break this rune stone to learn the skill: Domination
Domination : apply your will to any object near you with a mass of less than x kg
Current mass : 60 kg
He quickly broke the stone, gaining the ability. Testing it revealed it to be a form of limited telekinesis. He could use telekinesis on as many objects as he wanted as long as the total weight did not exceed 60 kg.
Finally, a ranged option.
He got up. Level forty in the better part of two weeks. While he did not know how strong that was, he was more than certain that none of the students of Beacon could take down a Goliath alone, let alone the Behemoth. Maybe a full team? Even then, he doubted it.
He'd spent months at Beacon. Learning, training, practising, and yet it was all for nothing compared to what the system had given him.
His thoughts went back to his old team. Pyrrha, the invincible girl, both on and off the field of battle. She'd been the catalyst for this betrayal. Ren, ever cold and pragmatic, probably seconded her decision. Nora would probably not have agreed, but it wasn't like they needed her permission.
As for his sister team. Team RWBY had turned their back to him the moment they learnt about his transcripts. Weiss had been furious that someone of his calibre was allowed into Beacon. It made sense, she'd spent her whole life studying and training for it.
Blake didn't care, she never did. When he was leaving, the last thing he learnt through the grapevine was that she was a Faunus, possibly ex-white fang. Of course, there was no way she was going to be expelled. The entirety of her team had been out searching for her the day he finally left. Terrorist or not, she was capable and probably passed an exam to get in.
Yang hated him. The very idea that my lack of abilities could be a danger to her sister and friends was enough reason for her to hate me with passion. If not for Ruby, she would've broken a few of my bones, just on principle.
And finally, Ruby. Dear, little, naive Ruby. Other than Citron, she was the closest to him. When he'd been expelled, Ruby tried consoling him, her bright idea was to tell him to go be a civilian and leave his dream of being a hero to her.
It probably hurt more than the others combined.
He looked up at the night sky, and he roared.
He did not have it in his heart to hurt them. All things considered, they were children, just like him. Naive, but capable, each with their own dreams of becoming huntsmen and saving the world.
He would still have his revenge, but not directly. He would become the strongest huntsmen ever, superior to them in each and every way, even combined. He would have his revenge by becoming the greatest hero Remnant would ever see.
He would take their dream from them, he would make huntsmen obsolete. He would save the world, even if it's the last thing he did.
And he would do it alone if that was necessary.
"Ugh, I HATE these mosquitos!"
Nebula Violette was not having a good time.
Vale was boring, the Vytal festival was the only reason she came here. The chance to fight strong opponents was the only driving factor why she was here.
"Can you stop bitching about the mosquitos for ONE SECOND, Dew." She shouted at her teammate. "Look at Gwen, she hasn't even complained once!"
Gwen, still dressed in her Gothic ensemble, just shrugged. "I'm just using aura to make sure the critters can't get through."
That stopped Octavia in her tracks. She slowly turned around to glare at Gwen. "And when we do run into Grimm and you are too exhausted to fight, don't expect me to cover for you."
Gwen simply shrugged. "We've been walking in the forest all day and we haven't seen a single Grimm. Either they are all on vacation, or are actively avoiding us."
Nebula felt a migraine coming. "They could be preparing an ambush, we're in Grimm-infested woods on a mission with Miss Goodwitch, can you at least pretend to be professional?"
Gwen pointed at Glynda, who was standing a few meters ahead of them, observing a fallen tree, looking absolutely confused. "I mean, she's had her Aura on full blast for at least a few hours now."
Nebula's gaze narrowed. Why would the professor be exerting her Aura when there were no Grimm nearby? Was she trying to attract them to her? It made sense. The mission was a patrol and cull mission, wouldn't be right if it ended up as just a simple patrol.
It was at that very moment that a gigantic Ursa Major ran past them faster than she had ever seen one move. It was running so fast that for a moment, it didn't even notice them. By the time it did notice them, it had to scramble to change direction.
That was enough time for her team to prepare to stop it.
All four members assumed their well-practiced positions as the Ursa…tried to escape them?
Even Glynda was surprised by the Grimm's actions. An Ursa Major was a tough customer. Even experienced huntsmen had lost their lives to them.
Yet this Grimm looked terrified, like death itself was chasing it down.
Before anyone could move, a white blur shot out from the trees, past the Ursa. Six glowing white lines appeared on the Ursa's chest before it was cut into pieces instantly, armor be damned.
"Whew. That one sure gave me the runaround. Thanks for slowing it down!"
Apparently, the white blur was a person, and what a person he was.
Shaggy, long blonde hair, a face that could make supermodels swoon, and a body that could make professional men's physique athletes envious. She found herself blushing just looking at him.
"Sorry to trouble you all but, well, I'm kinda lost in here and I have a flight tomorrow. Could any of yo-" his voice dried up as he noticed Glynda Goodwitch, whose eyes were wide as saucers at this point.
"Miss Glynda! hi! Uhhh, fancy running into you here!" He spoke, while Glynda looked like she was trying her best to put a name to the boy's face. It wasn't until he finished talking that the light of realization finally appeared in her eyes.
"Mister Arc? What are you doing here?" She asked.
"Uh! Well, I was trying to get to Beacon but I kinda got sidetracked and lost in the forest. If you can point me in the general direction I'll be out of your hair in a second." He spoke.
"No no, you should definitely stay! Maybe take the bullhead back with us! There's more than enough room in our dorm for you." Dew spoke, sauntering over to him. "Hell, play your cards right and you could even share my bed if you want."
That horrendous pickup line seemed to stunlock the boy, the rest of the team, and Miss Glynda for a good second before the boy looked straight at Nebula with a pleading look on his face. She quickly, stealthily pointed East, and the boy understood.
Before a single word could be said by anyone, the boy seemed to disappear. He appeared a few meters away, from where he looked back at the team one last time.
"Thanks! And to you, lady." He said, looking at Dew, "Please, there's a time and place for everything."
And with that, he shot away at a pace none of them could hope to match.
"So, uh, we found a Grimm! And a hottie! Is that 'mission complete', Misa Goodwitch?" Gwen asked, an incredibly fake innocent smile plastered on her face.
Glynda was silent for a moment, before muttering something that sounded suspiciously similar to "I don't get paid enough for this" She finally looked up and nodded.
As they walked back to the bullhead, Dew sidled up to Nebula. "Just so you know, I saw you point out the direction to him. Jealous much?"
Nebula sighed. "The boy was confused and had a flight to catch. It was just the right thing to do."
Dew hissed. "The right thing to do was to drag him to our dorm and make him miss his flight. Trust me, he'd be happier for it."
Nebula could only sigh.
Though she too wouldn't mind sharing her bed with that guy.
"Are you sure it was him?"
Glynda felt like bashing her head against the table. "Yes, Ozpin, for the last time, it was Jaune Arc. The very same Jaune Arc that we just expelled, not someone else with the same name, not some weird doppelganger, it was the genuine article."
Ozpin took a sip of his coffee. "The same Jaune Arc that was in a hospital bed a few weeks ago. The same Jaune Arc whose training with a weapon doesn't exist past 'stick it with the pointy end'."
"I know what I saw, Ozpin, and I have a whole team of girls from another academy who can back me up on this."
"So, let me get this straight," Ozpin spoke, leaning forward. "The same Jaune Arc who could barely fight a single Beowulf without sustaining life-threatening injuries practically emptied out the forest around the town of Benali, a known Grimm hotspot that we have to assign three teams to all year round." he leaned further, almost coming face-to-face with Glynda. "On top of that, he singlehandedly killed the Elder Behemoth that we've had an open bounty on for three decades?"
Glynda was silent for a moment. "Yes Ozpin, that is exactly what I've been saying for the last thirty minutes you deaf bat!"
Ozpin leaned back, sipping again from his trusty mug. "In that case, there's only two options. Either Jaune hid his true capabilities for months while studying in our humble institution, or his expulsion awoke a semblance so powerful he went from an untrained teenager into a huntsman who can take down one of the continent's strongest Grimm alone… in less than a month."
Glynda nodded. "I know it seems impossible, but I surveyed the damage all over the forest. I even found this." She spoke, throwing a broken sword onto the desk."I'm sure it looks familiar."
Ozpin picked up the broken sword's hilt. "Yes, it's a standard issue Iron sword with the Beacon logo on it. I do remember lending a weapon like this to Jaune Arc after he had to ship back his ancestral weapon to his family."
Glynda shrugged. "I matched the serial number on the pommel with the requisition ID. It's a match. There's no doubt that was Jaune Arc."
Ozpin was silent in contemplation for a second. "What if someone just… knocked out Jau-"
"I spoke to him, Ozpin. He looked…different, but the moment he opened his mouth, there was no doubt in my mind left that it was him." She spoke, clearly exasperated. "There's no other explanation here. No, he wasn't knocked out by some super-huntsman who also could emulate his mannerisms and speech perfectly. No he wasn't experimented on in some lab and gained superpowers, there's no comic-book plot here. It was him, and he's stronger, stronger than any of the students who lobbied to get him kicked out."
Ozpin smirked. "If I remember correctly, Glynda, you too petitioned for him to be expelled. Actually, were you not the very first person to petition against it? Right after initiation at that?"
Glynda shook her head. "That was then, this is now, Ozpin. Circumstances have changed. We've made concessions for less. You've brought terrorists and bandits into this school just because you thought they could give you an edge in your war. Why should this be any different?"
Ozpin sighed. "Glynda, do you know what I told Mr. Arc when I went to meet him as he was bedridden?" he asked, and Glynda shook her head.
"I told him 'forgiveness and safety do not work for you'." He finished. "And that goes both ways. We took him in, we tried to train him, we tried to give him safety, we gave him hope. And then, when he was finally on the right track, he was betrayed, thrown out, and turned away. Do you think he will come waltzing back if I tell him we're making an exception for him?"
Glynda frowned at Ozpin. "Casually leaving out the other half, huh? You also believe that the way he's growing was stimulated in some way by a lack of safety, don't you?"
Ozpin chuckled. "Months, he spent here. He was there for every class, he trained outside school hours with Mr. Arvess, even Miss Nikos joined in on training him, yet he barely learned anything. Then, we expelled him, and here he is now, killing Grimm that parties of trained huntsmen avoid angering, all alone. Could we replicate that growth here? I think not?"
Glynda's gaze narrowed. "What's your hypothesis?"
Ozpin smiled, "Oh dear Glynda. It's a simple application of Occam's razor. As we keep shearing down the impossibilities, whatever theory we're left with must be correct." he took a sip of his drink. Then continued. "Cutting down the possibility that he was hiding his ability and factoring in his growth, as well as the sheer volume of Gimm he's killed, I'd say the young man unlocked a semblance that makes him grow over time."
Glynda laughed. "As if such a powerful semblance can exist. They're supposed to be reflections of our souls, are they not? What kind of soul would need to devise something this drastic?"
A somber look appeared on Ozpin's face. "A sad, weak, damaged soul. One that belongs to a man who is trying to fill the holes in his life with power and gratification. Provided he keeps growing, we'll surely see more of him in the future."
Glynda nodded. "And how do we approach him when we do need him?"
"We keep a cordial relationship and get out of his way. That's all." Ozpin spoke. "He's not the type to get seduced by the darkness. That, and where he's going, by the time she learns about him, it's going to be too late."
"Provided he survives the harsh northern frontier."
And that's chapter 1. I'll be looking for a trustworthy beta for this because my habit of writing drunk has NOT gone away.
I'm also opening a challenges segment on my profile. if you have any specific challenge or story in mind, I'll write it for you, but at a cost. You can DM me more more details.
Yours,
Cold Daylight (Formerly CruelRuin)