Two weeks went by rather quickly as I observed Glynda's combat class. Immediately several students stood out among the rest. Though some strange twist of fate, most of those that caught my eye were among the group of students who spoke to me in the archives a few days prior. Miss Nikos, Miss Xiao Long, Miss Valkyrie, and Miss Rose were easily the best fighters among the first-year students.
The others on their teams were passible but not extraordinary, especially Mr. Arc who had shockingly poor combat ability. One might think he had never held a sword and shield before. But what he lacked in martial prowess he more than made up for in tactical ability, so much so that during the several team battles that team JNPR took part in he was prioritized over the others. Even then he used that to his team's advantage, acting as bait allowing the rest of his team to attack the backs of their foes.
Such raw leading talent was hard to come by, but I would not choose Mr. Arc based solely on that, although I do hope he does well on the upcoming test I had scheduled for the following day which also was the end of the two weeks. It was obvious that the students were highly stressed about the test. Several students including Miss Schnee had come to ask me about the test's contents or what they should study in order to pass. I did not answer any of their questions.
In truth the test was one of character, not of intelligence. The test was also a verbal one, though the students were not made privy to that yet. I also intended to narrow down the teams who I would proctor the test to through the combat class. If three or more students per team showed promise during their spars their team would be selected for testing, but if during the test I am unimpressed by even one of them during the test, then their team would be disqualified. So far 5 teams including RWBY and JNPR have impressed me.
I was quite looking forward to the test.
The day of the test arrived, and I gathered the 5 teams into one of the available classrooms where I explained to them the nature of the test. Upon finishing my explanation I sent every student but one outside and conducted the test. It was a one question test. The question being, For what reason do you seek strength? I was not looking for any particular answer to the question, instead I looked for whether or not they told me the truth or provided me with a lie.
Because no matter how tender or exquisite…
Three teams had failed my test. Of those who failed one team stood out as all members of the team lied about their answer. Team CRDL if I remember correctly. A bunch of fools, even had they passed my test I would not have accepted them simply due to their substandard points of view. After the first three teams were disqualified all that was left were teams JNPR and RWBY.
First up was Miss Rose. "Tell me Miss Rose, for what reason do you seek strength?"
"To make the world a better place."
She answered innocently. It was the truth. "Thank you, Miss Rose, If you would please send in the next student." "That's it?" "Yes." "Oh… can I watch Weiss answer. I just know she's gonna freak out when she realizes the test is a single question." "As entertaining as I'm sure that would be to watch, I will have to deny your proposal."
"Ah well worth a shot. See you later Mr. Amana!" With that she left the room, sending in Miss Schnee. The same question was asked to her,
"So, I can one day take over the Schnee Dust Company and improve the lives of our employees."
The truth once again. I sent her out, but not before several minutes of her trying to probe me to ensure that I was not tricking her with my one question test. Once she finally left Miss Belladonna entered.
"So I can make an actual change."
The truth. Last was Miss Xiao Long.
"So, I can go on the adventure of a lifetime."
The final truth. With that team RWBY had passed with flying colors. Up next was team JNPR. The first to enter was Miss Nikos.
"To protect my friends."
Truth. Next was Miss Valkyrie.
"To break the Grimms' legs!"
She said with gusto. Despite the strangeness of her answer, it was indeed the truth. Following her was Mr. Ren.
"Because I admire the huntsman who saved my life."
Truth. Lastly was Mr. Arc.
"To be strong enough to not hold back my team."
Another passing team. It was good the Mr. Arc was willing to acknowledge his own shortcomings. In that regard he was better than I was many years ago. When I had first started my journey, I was headstrong and stubborn. I would die over and over again making the same mistakes without ever changing my strategies.
Due to my strong will, my mind could handle the increasing number of deaths and eventually I would ram my head against the wall enough to shatter it, but it was when I fought the Lost Sinner that my stubbornness died. After my 50th death to the witch's incarnation I could not take it anymore. I almost hallowed were it not for the intervention of one Lucatiel of Mirrah.
She provided me with a human effigy once I had run out of all that I had. She saved my life that day and with that I had decided that I needed proper training. That was when I had first met Benhart. But that is a story for another time.
With my selection finished I made my way to the headmaster's office to finalize my class. I also needed to discuss one final concern with Sir Ozpin. The elevator doors opened, and Sir Ozpin was sitting at his desk with Glynda by his side. "Mr. Amana, we were just discussing your class. Please come join us." I made my way to the chair opposite him and took a seat.
"Do tell, what aspect of my class were you discussing?"
"We were merely debating what it is that you plan on teaching the students. I proposed that you would teach group tactics, and Glynda here believed you would teach combat against overwhelming odds."
"Those are both good guesses and they will be taught both of those topics but my class will focus on three disciplines. Miracles, Pyromancies, and Magic."
At the mention of the last discipline the room grew cold. A serious look came across both Sir Ozpin's and Glynda's faces. "Mr. Amana, do you mean to tell us that you can use magic."
"Yes I can. I am also aware that you can use magic as well." Sir Ozpin's eyebrows raised up just slightly, and so quickly that if you were not paying attention one would miss the look entirely.
"Oh? And do tell how you would know that?"
"I suppose now is a good time to tell you of one of my abilities. Long ago a master of mine occupied himself heavily in the arts of soul sorceries. During his research he developed a way to visualize the souls of others. He taught me the method he referred to as soul sensing. As you can imagine you can tell much about a person by their soul's appearance."
"And by using this ability you can tell through my soul that I am a mage?"
"Yes. I can also infer that magic must be a rarity at this time. Although I have not met many people, I can tell that none of the students can use magic. Also none of the books in the archives mention magic in anything but in fantastical settings. With that said I did have a question for you Sir Ozpin. In my time magic was quite prevalent so I have felt the way magic exudes itself off of people's souls, but the magic I feel from you is… different in some way. More… powerful and yet weaker. If you would, could you tell me of some of the spells you know?"
"Very well Mr. Amana but only if you do the same."
"Deal."
"Magic has greatly dwindled in the world since I was young, being relegated to children's stories mostly. That would be why you have not felt it in any of the students. As far as my own magic I can perform several kinds. One spell allows me to conjure lightning. Another lets me share my memories with others. I can also use a spell to travel short distances instantly."
"Wait a minute," Glynda interjected.
"Is that how you're always sneaking up on people?" A guilty smile appeared on Sir Ozpin's face,
"I have no idea what you're talking about, anyway I could tell you all of the spells I know but it would take far too long. So how about your magic? Can you do any of the spells I mentioned?"
"No. I can conjure lightning but my ability to do so is not linked to my magic."
"Ah yes that was another thing Glynda and I were discussing, we know you were able to conjure fire even before you unlocked your aura. I had assumed it was magic of some kind but until you confirmed your ability to do so I was at a loss. You also mentioned something called miracles, are they another type of magic?"
"No, they are quite different from magic." I pulled a chime from my item box.
"They require the usage of a chime. To use them one must have belief in the stories of the gods or of the tales or heroes, and be able to recite the stories to use the power they contain."
"Would you mind giving us a demonstration?"
"Very well, I shall also take it slowly for both of your sakes."
Forsalle of Lindelt master of miracles.
Above the rest he stood at the pinnacle.
Through his battles there was a great strife.
Lindelt forged the way with his Resplendent Life.
With the final verse spoken I rang the chime causing the power of my words to resonate and erupt the room with soothing light. Glynda appeared to be mystified by the effect while Sir Ozpin seemed to be trying to feel the power from the miracle. "That was indeed quite different from any magic I know of. Perhaps the magic we use are inherently different from one another."
"Once again Sir Ozpin, that was not magic. Since I am demonstrating at the moment I will go ahead and cast a spell, then we can really see if there is a difference."
The use of magic was similar in a way to how one might solve a puzzle. You had to feel the magic in your body and send the appropriate amount of it to several different key areas. The head, the hands, the chest, the navel, the knees, and the feet. The quantity of magic was measured in a unit Carhillion liked to refer to as scales. Each spell relied on knowing how many scales of power to send to each area, and to know which spells correlated to which areas. For example, the simplest spell Soul Arrow would require you to send 1 scale of magic power to your hand that held your staff and 1 scale to the opposite foot.
The spell I intended to cast for Sir Ozpin and Glynda was the spell chameleon. For this spell 4 scales were sent to the chest and 1 scale was sent to both hands. With the preparation done the spell activated, transforming my physical appearance to that of a mug on the floor. Sir Ozpin got up from his chair and walked over to my place on the floor. He seemed to try and feel the magic from the spell again and once satisfied he touched my mug like form which caused the spell to deactivate.
"For future reference Sir Ozpin that spell does not change my physical form, it causes an illusion to manifest, obscuring my appearance."
"Why did you transform into a mug of all things?"
"The spell detects my surroundings before activation and determines the best item to turn into based on that, this time it chose a mug but were I to cast it again it might choose a chair or a statue. Regardless Sir I do believe you felt the magic from the spell. Did you sense any similarities to your own?"
"No." He said with a shake of his head, "Your magic and mine are very different."
"I see. That explains the unique feel of your magic then. Well with that mystery solved I do believe we are quite off topic."
"Yes yes. We were meant to discuss what you shall teach the students. You said you would teach them all of what you just showed us correct?" "Indeed Sir. I will teach them each discipline based on their talent for it. Not everyone has the intelligence for magic, or the faith required for miracles. Anyone who has the will for it can learn pyromancy, but I think it a poor idea to have all of the students practice each discipline all at once."
"That is reasonable. By the way, which teams have you selected?"
"Teams RWBY and JNPR have been chosen."
"A smile appeared on Sir Ozpin's face. "Those two teams are not our best first year teams for no reason it seems. I am glad they impressed you."
"They achieved the goal through their own means, satisfying me was just one of those goals. Now onto the next matter. I feel the need to inform you about this beforehand as I want you and Glynda to be present for it."
"And it is?" Glynda probed.
"I intend to inform them of the origins of what I will teach." A tense silence filled the room.
"Are you sure that is a wise choice Atellius?" Glynda asked.
"Yes. If they are to be disciples of mine then they must understand where such power originates."
"Do you think they will believe you?"
"No I don't. That is a roadblock, but I do have a solution to that, the solution being the reason why I ask you two to attend as well. I have in my possession a relic that allows one to transcend time through objects. Using that relic I will show you both and the teams the truth."
"You intend to send our students to the past?"
"Not exactly Glynda. The relic only allows one to view the past, not alter it in any way."
While I do think of Sir Ozpin and Glynda highly, I have seen what the pursuit of power can do to someone, thus I decided to alter the truth of the Ashen Mist Heart. Another silence as Glynda and Sir Ozpin took in what I had said. "Very well if that is how you wish to prove it to them I shall not stop you. You have my word that Glynda and I will be in attendance during your class, just let us know when you will do it. I do ask that you not use the relic to see into the past of any of the students or staff."
"Many thanks Sir Ozpin although I have one final request. I know the relic to work on myself but I have never tried to use it on several people before, I think it unwise to test such a function on the students so I ask one of you to assist me."
"You don't even know if it's safe?" Glynda said.
"It is safe, I just need to know if it will work on more than a single individual at a time."
"Very well Mr. Amana, I'll be your test subject just once." "Thank you, Sir." With that said I summoned the Ashen Mist Heart in my palm and instructed Sir Ozpin to place his hand on my shoulder. Following that I reached into my bottomless box and took out the lantern that I had found at the start of my journey and placed it on the Heart.
Immediately our surroundings morphed and shifted until there was only dark, but the dark did not stay, soon light came and we found ourselves in the ruins of a castle near a giant lake. In the center of the ruins stood a giant tree covered in brightbugs.
"Where are we?" Sir Ozpin asked with a twinge of worry in his voice.
"The past Sir. Welcome to the ruins of Drangleic Castle." I spread my arms out beside me, showing off what once was an impressive sight.
"Why have you brought us here?"
"It is a safe memory, and one that holds significance to me."
"Why is that?"
I pointed at the lake behind him, when he turned to look he saw a man on a rowboat making his way to the ruins. The man was covered head to toe in rags, the only thing visible being the lower half of his face and the tips of his fingers. "Who might that be?"
"That would be me."
He gave me a short look before putting his attention back to the scene unfolding before him. I rowed the boat to the shore closest to the ruins before stepping out. I made my way into the ruins walking around at random, before spotting the tree in the center. I walked over to it looking at the bugs crawling all over it before I spotted the moon behind it.
The moon was red.
It seemed that the brightbugs had acknowledged the moon's new color by going into a frenzy. Then an earthquake shook the ground and the still waters of the lake shook violently. The once unlit torches on the walls of the ruins sprang to life, illuminating my past form as I walked towards the lake's edge.
Soon a vortex formed in the water as wide as 20 men. I walked to the edge of the vortex and threw myself in, allowing the darkness of the depths to take me. Once I had disappeared from sight the land settled and the torches extinguished. The bugs once again took their positions and all was as it should be.
With that the mist faded and with it any light that remained. Once the light returned Sir Ozpin and I were back in his office. Glynda gave a surprised yell before composing herself.
"Glynda, how long were we gone for?" Sir Ozpin asked.
"About 8 minutes." That was about the same amount of time we spent in the memory.
"So Mr. Amana care to explain what we witnessed?"
"We just saw my oldest memory. Anything that came before then is foggy so I cannot explain why I was there. Though if I had to guess I'm sure it had something to do with my curse."
"That would make sense but what about the moon? Or the vortex in the lake?"
"I cannot explain the moon nor the vortex, though I can say that the vortex allowed me to travel back in time, a century or two after the curse touched Drangleic."
"I must say Mr. Amana, you continue to surprise me."
"I aim to please Sir." We exchanged a few additional pieces of information before I left his office and waited for the next day.
It came quickly. Sir Ozpin had given me a smaller training area secluded from the main campus to use as my "classroom". It worked in my favor since having my students fire off miracles and sorceries would draw unwanted attention. The training area included several lanes for gun practice, a handful of training dummies, and a running track.
It would serve its purpose well enough. I was doing several final preparations to the training grounds when Sir Ozpin and Glynda arrived, students in tow.
"Welcome all. For you students today will be the first day of your training under me. However I am not here to teach you all the basics of swordsmanship, proper footwork, target practice, or anything of the sort."
"Then what will you be teaching?" Miss Schnee interjected.
"You will learn group tactics, how to survive overwhelming odds, and one of three disciplines that I intend to teach you all. You will not get to choose which discipline you get to learn. While observing you in Glynda's class I determined the best one for each of you, with the exception of Mr. Arc who will be learning swordsmanship from me before he will learn what comes after."
"So what are these 'disciplines' you keep alluding to." Miss Xiao Long said.
"They are pyromancy, miracles, and sorcery." Their mouths went agape. They gave looks to one another and spared a few glances to their Head and Vice Headmasters.
"Uh Mr. Amana are you doing alright. You didn't hit your head somewhere did you?" Mr. Arc said, managing to compile the feelings of everyone present into a single sentence.
"I have not Mr. Arc and this is the reaction I expected which is why I have prepared three pieces of evidence for you all to ease your minds into the truth. First piece, Sir Ozpin would you mind telling the students when it was I unlocked my aura." Sir Ozpin seemed to be put on the spot in a way he was not expecting. With a clearing of his throat he answered,
"Mr. Amana unlocked his aura exactly 15 days ago, I know this because I was the one who unlocked it for him." A few quick gasps came from the students at the revelation. "So you took your initiation test shortly after having your aura unlocked?"
"Correct Miss Belladonna."
"Then how did you survive that fall? I mean you hit the ground feet first and took no visible damage?"
"That would be thanks to a spell I casted before I hit the ground. I would cast the spell now for you all to see but the only visual indication of it is a slight glowing around my feet. Something that can be accomplished through aura manipulation. Instead I have two spells I will showcase for you all. First is the spell Chameleon."
With that said I grabbed my staff and casted the spell. Quickly an illusion surrounded me making me look like one of the trees that surrounded the clearing. A few seconds passed as I allowed the students to take in my transformation before I dispelled the casting. "Second, I will demonstrate offensive magic."
I turned to one of the target dummies and casted Crystal Soul Spear. A tad overkill but I thought it would be more convincing showing a stronger spell. The casting of CSS required 5 scale magic power to the staff wielding hand. 5 scale to both feet, 2 scale to the navel, 1 scale to the rearward knee, and 3 scale to the forward knee. It was one of the more complicated casting requirements but well worth it for its destructive capabilities.
Finishing the cast the magic was sent to the dummy, obliterating it instantly. I turned back to the student, the only one managing to keep their cool being Mr. Ren. Before I could continue I was accosted by questions from Miss Rose, Miss Valkyrie, and Miss Schnee.
"Ohmygodshowdidyoudothatareyougoingtoteachusthatwellofcourseyouareyoujustsaidyouwouldbutisthatwhatyouregoingtoteachmeohpleasetellmeitisiwanttolearnthatmorethananythingintheworldimgonnabeallwhooshandbangwithhugeexplosionsandohohohitsgoingtobeawesome" Miss Rose carried on like that while I could not understand a word.
Miss Valkyrie had a similar reaction but she was more interested in the 'leg breaking' ability of sorcery. Miss Schnee was slightly more composed and information oriented but her questions went unheard over the volume of the other two. I thought back to how Master Carhillion would punish me for being distracted and thought such a punishment was appropriate in this context as well.
I grabbed my staff by one end and slammed the other onto the heads of all three of them, sending them to the ground rubbing the newly forming bumps. "Your questions will be answered in time students but I will not tolerate such disruptions in my class. Am I understood?"
"Yes sir." They all said in unison, gaining looks of sympathy from their non participating classmates.
"Good. Now I assume some of you can believe my words from my demonstration but for the skeptical in the crowd I do have one last piece to convince you with." "Hold on hold on. This is all a lot to take in at once." Miss Xiao Long added.
"Yes, I imagine it is. My apologies for dumping all of this on you all but I doubt easing you into this would have gone much better. For now how about we take a short break, time to gather your thoughts and formulate some calm questions."
I gave a look to the three interrupters which they recoiled from.
A few minutes went by and we reconvened. "Questions anyone?"
"Yeah, uh so what exactly is your semblance if the stuff you've done before was magic?" Mr. Arc asked being the first to have enough courage.
"Not everything I do is magic Mr. Arc, but semantics aside I do not have a semblance. Like Sir Ozpin said, my aura was unlocked a little over two weeks ago and I have not had much time to experiment with it so far. Next." Miss Schnee took her chance to ask one,
"Why do you want to teach us magic?"
"After some research I performed shortly after becoming an instructor here I found that magic was nothing more than a myth. The same with pyromancy and miracles. I thought it to be a shame to allow such power to die with me, and if it allows you all to slay the Grimm more efficiently then all the better."
"Why us specifically? There must be a reason beyond that test you gave us, and why not choose a third- or fourth-year team to teach?" The next question coming from Miss Belladonna.
"Do you think what I aim to teach you all will be easy? The third- and fourth-year students are about to get their official huntsmen licenses so I would only have a year at most to teach them what I know. That is not nearly enough time, even the four years I intend to use to teach you all will likely not be enough. As for why I picked you all specifically, I have one singular reason, one choice that all of you made. The choice to lie to me during the test yesterday."
"I learned long ago a foolproof method to tell when someone is lying, no matter how good they are at it."
"Bullshit." This time coming from Miss Xiao Long,
"I can assure Miss Xiao Long my words hold true."
"Prove it. I'll start, I use Lantein shampoo when I wash my hair."
"That is the truth."
"I once sent 8 men flying with a single punch."
"Truth."
"I have exactly…" She rummaged through her pockets and pulled out a wallet before observing its contents, "200 lien in my wallet."
"That is a lie."
"Ugh, someone else try him."
"OH OH I am the queen of Pancake Island!" Miss Valkyrie said unsurprisingly.
"A lie."
"Aww man."
"Students, while I am sure my ability fascinates you, I do not wish to stand here being your personal lie detector. Let us get back to the matter at hand. I do not expect you all to take me at my word, which is why I have a last proof for you all. This proof is also for the head and vice headmasters as well, which is why they are here beyond Sir Ozpin's word about my aura."
With that said I extended my hand forward, palm facing up. I willed the Ashen Mist Heart to appear in my palm. It came quickly, a small blur of light, something so tiny and insignificant was actually a tool that could bring the world to its knees. Why the Ancient Dragon never used it for itself spoke leagues about its character. I was brought out of my reminiscing by Miss Rose.
"Uhh, what is it?"
"This is the Ashen Mist Heart. It is an artifact given to me by an Ancient Dragon." There were a few faces of shock, from Miss Rose, Xiao Long, Valkyrie, and Goodwitch. The rest were rightly skeptical, it seemed that dragons were nothing but myth in this time as well.
"Riiiiiiiight, well what does this artifact do?" Mr. Arc said in an attempt to move this conversation forward.
"It allows one to view the past as long as they use it on an appropriate item."
I provided them with the same explanation I gave Sir Ozpin and Glynda.
"With this I will show you all the truth of pyromancies, sorceries, and miracles. Before I show you all I will give you an opportunity to leave. What I aim to teach is not easy and it might paint a target on all of your backs for the rest of your lives. Those who hunger for power will seek you out and try to control you. I only offer this power to those who can understand that truth and will walk forward regardless of it."
A few nervous looks were exchanged before they were replaced with ones of determination.
"We can handle it, teach!" Miss Rose proclaimed.
"Good, now come place a hand on me and I shall show you what once was."
They all did as asked, and I reached into my box and retrieved the Petrified Egg I found in the Dragon Shrine. I placed it upon the heart, and we all faded into the mist and were overcome by the darkness that followed.
AN: Hello once again.
In the last week I have gotten several reviews about my formatting in this story, and I felt like I should explain myself a little.
When I "read" the fics on this site I use the safari text to speech option that they have on the iphone so I never really had to deal with bad paragraph lengths before. My bad to those who have suffered from my inadequacy. In order to make up for that I checked out a few other fics and used them as reference for proper formatting. Not sure if I managed to do a good job in that regard so do let me know. I also went back and altered the formatting in the previous chapters. I hope that will satisfy. This chapter also has a lot of dialogue so hopefully my formatting works well for it.
In this chapter you can see a few of the lore changes I mentioned before. How sorceries and miracles work and how the ashen mist heard functions. I'm hoping those changes will make for an interesting read. I was especially proud of my sorcery concept, and I intend to explain going forward what is required for each spell. I also intend to come up with the rhymes for miracles even if making a decent sounding rhyme makes me want to rip my hair out.
Anyway, thanks for the read I hope you all will enjoy.
-Truth