AN: This is an idea that came to me when I was watching 'Solo Levelling' the other day (specifically the 'Dark Aria' scene). A different take on a 'levelling system' that is specialized for Remnant.
Lord of Bones (Working Title)
-Ozpin-
"Ozpin, what's this all about?" Qrow sighed as he led Glynda, James, and Qrow himself down into the depths of the vault beneath Beacon.
"Me informing you three of one more secret." Ozpin put a bit of mana into his palm as he touched a hidden rune, a section of wall sliding away.
"Another one?" Glydna blinked "What is it? And why now?"
"Because of Atlas actually." He nodded to the Atlesian General with them, "I'm hoping that Atlesian technology might be the key to destroying this secret." Reaching another door, he opened it to show a glowing crystal that looked like dust apart from the black color and smokey aura.
"What the hell is that thing Oz?" Qrow recoiled from the item in question.
"That, Qrow, is the seed of Power from the god of Darkness. It is the source of the Grimm in Remnant." He began, but before he could explain fully, James was already moving, pulling out his gun and unloading on the shard.
"NO!" Ozpin recoiled, reaching out in a vain attempt to stop the bullets but he was too late, the crystal was shattered and the fragments dissolving into smoke which vanished within moments, "You idiot!" he whirled on James who looked stunned at his reaction.
"Ozpin, why are you upset?" Glynda got between him and James lest a fight break out, "If you brought us down here to destroy it-"
"If he needed help, then it wouldn't have been that easy to break." Qrow cut her off, "There's something else Oz hasn't told us yet. Probably something he was going to before the tin man here got trigger happy." James flushed but couldn't exactly counter the statement.
"That fragment cannot be permanently destroyed by conventional means." Ozpin hissed, "By destroying it, all you've done is let it reform somewhere else on Remnant. At least while it was here, I could exert some influence over it! Slow down the formation of Grimm bit by bit. But now it's out there in the wind, and if Salem gets her hands on it…"
"…Is blaming Qrow's semblance out of the question?"
-Jaune-
Gritting his teeth, Jaune trashed in the grip of the bandits as they drug him over to the pit, the sound of screams having stopped but the sounds of tearing meat still carried out. Around him, parts of his village still burned, the Branwen tribe having destroyed so much of his home. While most of the bandit tribe had already left, a few were still there for some 'fun'. During the Grimm incursion of Ansel, a few had gotten stuck in a deep pit in town, he couldn't even remember what the hole was being dug for anymore, but now the bandits were using it for sport. They'd take a villager at a time and shove them in, a few knives and swords already down there.
"Hey, let's try something!" one of the bandits grinned, their breath smelling of booze even at a distance "I've always wanted to see what would happen if someone ate one of these!" the bastard rummaged in a bag, pulling out a Dust crystal. It wasn't like any other Dust Jaune had ever seen before though, the color was black, and it almost seemed like it was smoking. Not that the drunk monsters even noticed that.
"Open wide brat!" one of the bandits dragging him to die squeezed Jaune's cheeks, forcing his mouth open as they stuffed the black crystal into before slamming his jaw shut. The crystal shattered in his mouth, shards digging in to his tongue and gums. The bandits laughed, holding his mouth and nose shut as they forced him to swallow the broken Dust.
As they threw him into the pit, he began to trash and scream, it felt like magma was surging through his veins. It built and built, making the few seconds of falling feel like an eternity, before he blacked out.
Or did he?
Jaune opened his eyes, finding that the pain was gone and he wasn't in Ansel anymore. He was in what seemed to be space. Dark skies as far as he could see, motes of starlight, swirling purple energy all around.
And a dragon with deer antlers watching him.
"My, my." The dragon rose up, moving to inspect Jaune who froze, too terrified and confused to move, "Now isn't this a surprise." The Dragon circled him "Someone who ate my first seed…and survived."
"Y-your what?" Jaune finally found his voice as the Dragon chuckled.
"My seed, little human." The Dragon held out his clawed hand as a crystal appeared above it, looking just like the one Jaune was forced to eat "A shard of my divine power. The source of the Grimm in your world."
"Y-you made the Grimm?!" Jaune was horrified.
"One of my first creations, when I was younger, less prone to thinking ahead." The Dragon admitted, sounding neither ashamed nor proud, as if they were simply reading out an inconsequential memory "Back when myself and my brother resised in your world as its gods, back when magic filled the air of Remnant and her moon was whole. Many mistakes were made during that era, both those of men and those of gods."
"Then…then what happens now?" Jaune clenched his fist, trying to figure out how to process standing in front of a god as well as what he was being told. He could feel his fingernails digging in to his palms, still feel that sting even if the pain from being forced to consume the 'seed' was gone, so he knew this wasn't a dream.
"Now, we finish our conversation, and you get to 'wake up' as it were." The dragon god waved their hand lazily "The power of my seed is now secure within you. Until the day you die, you are now my seed. And I cannot wait to see what will happen." The dragon rose up to leave before pausing, and glancing back down "By the way, one last parting gift so you don't end my entertainment too early. Once you wake up, close the fingers of your right hand and swing up and to the left."
Before Jaune could even try to figure out what the dragon was talking about, his vision turned white, revealing Ansel again. And the Beowulf lunging for his face. Moving on instinct, his body remembering the dark god's words, his right hand closed around a hilt, swinging up as he beheaded the young Beowulf in a single stroke.
Beowulf slain.
+1 Agility
Acquired skills:
Howl
Tracking
Negative emotion sense
The corpse dissolved, the smoke rushing into his body rather than dissipating into the air as Jaune breathed in.
"W-what the hell?!" one of the bandits up top gaped as Jaune gave in to instinct, his body reveling in the 'rush' he was feeling. He moved, sword gleaming as he beheaded the other two young Beowolves in the pit, the Grimm too young to be smart enough to plan.
Beowulf slain.
+1 Agility
Beowulf slain.
+1 Agility
Looking up at the three gaping men, Jaune tensed before running, his body moving far faster than he'd ever gone before as he leapt, clearing the pit as he landed back by the Bandits.
"H-heh." One of the three men tried remaining cocky, "Little boy thinks just cause he took out a few baby Grimm he's a big man. Come on guys, let's show-" the bandit cut out with a choked gasp, Jaunes sword buried in the bastard's gut, the bandit having been too drunk, too arrogant, and too stupid to put up his aura.
"Huh…interesting." Jaune tilted his head before looking up to stare the other two bandits in the eye "I just killed a man…but I didn't feel a thing." He swung his arm to the side, his sword tearing out of the bastard's gut.
"What the hell!?" one of the men fell to the ground while their buddy backed away "You're just some dumb fucking kid!" Jaune slowly stalked forward, stabbing down at the trembling coward on the ground.
"No, I'm not just 'some dumb kid'." Jaune tensed as the bastard tried to run, rushing forward as his sword hit the bandit in the back "I'm the kid you pissed off!" he pulled out his now dripping blade "Huh…pissed off. I guess I lied before, I do feel something." He looked up as the lumbering sound of Grimm approached, drawn in by the Bandit's panic since the three weren't there to watch anymore.
Roaring, Jaune surged toward the Grimm. He had to kill these monsters, he had to save whoever was left in Ansel.
Ursa slain.
+1 Strength.
AN: So yeah, every time Jaune kills a grim one of his 'stats' goes up depending on the Grimm in question. And if the Grimm has access to 'skills' Jaune doesn't have then he gets them. I'd still have to decide what Grimm give what skills, and decide what Each Grimm's 'stat' is, but I thought the idea was interesting.