6

It was a huge gamble. A very, very huge gamble.

If Ozpin decided I was speaking lies and trying to mislead him, I was sure he was going to sic Ironwood on me for being a Salem spy who wanted to go turncoat, or outright kill me for knowing his deepest, darkest secret.

But from what I knew of the manipulative bastard, he isn't an evil kind of guy. He srikes me as more of a Machiavellian type of guy. The end justifies the means kind of person, so if he sees I have value and is willing to side with him against his the greatest evil known to human and faunus kind in Remnant, he just might take me on my offer.

If not, then it was nice while it lasted.

As the two of us stewed in silence within the hospital room, I slowly felt like an imaginary noose was creeping around my neck, becoming tighter and tighter, waiting for an opportunity to hang me in an instant.

My eyes never left Ozpin's, his brown eyes gazing into mine as if he was trying to uncover something hidden, something deep within that never wanted to see the light of day. Too bad for him, that was my deepest darkest secret that I blurted out just for the sake of my survival.

"Let's say I believe you." Ozpin started, startling me for a bit due to the suddenness. "What more do you know about this shadow war between me and Salem?"

His hollow tone all but vanished, and in its stead, a steely, dauntless voice echoed throughout the room. If it wasn't for the rapid beating of my heart, I probably wouldn't be able to calm myself with anything else in this fucking silent hospital room.

"The four maidens. One of which was Amber, I think… Kinda spotty memory, to be honest." I frowned, eyes scrunching slightly at the distant memory. "Been a while since I've seen the show… Your world… But I do know that she was the Fall Maiden."

"… Was?" Ozpin's voice was like a coiled snake, ready to pounce at any given moment for a chance to sink its teeth in its prey.

"Cinder tried to take it. Came close too, taking about half of her soul on the first attempt." I hummed, trying to remember the sequence of events that happened with that particular scenario. "Something about her moving about in the wild lands with a horse, and then getting jumped by Cinder and her cronies. If not for Qrow Branwen, Cinder could've taken it all on that first attempt."

"Wait… How is that even possible…?" Ozpin's grip on his cane tightened again, his eyes looking farther than most people with trauma did.

"As far as I can recall, a new type of Grimm Salem had created for this kind of thing." At my words, I saw Ozpin grit his teeth. One thing was for sure, I had gained his attention, and somehow, it was hitting the semi-immortal man in spots I didn't think was possible without the Relic of Knowledge. "Looked like a parasite. Acted like one too."

"You mean to tell me Salem has devised a way to steal a Maiden's power for her goals?" Ozpin's eyes looked frantic. He may hide it beneath a thin veil of calm and indifference, but his shaking pupils were a dead giveaway he was more affected than he thought.

"Yes." I nodded and Ozpin heaved a sigh. He looked up at the ceiling, probably counting the tiles or something, trying to take his mind away from the ultimatum I had delivered.

It wasn't a moment later that Ozpin stopped staring at the ceiling like it held the key to unlocking the secrets to the cosmos and looked at me, eyes sharp and cold.

"What do you want, mister Jack?" Ozpin's body language stilled. I couldn't get a read on him after what he did. It was confusing. First, he was a wreck, kind of easy to read his tells, but now… Now I have no idea.

And that scares me. This was the semi-immortal man who waged war against Salem, his ex-wife, to save the humans and faunus from extinction. This was the man who lived for centuries, perhaps even millennia, who had conquered death itself and continued his war to right his wrongs.

This was the fucked up man who had more regrets than anyone could dare dream of, a shell of his former self. The once proud knight Ozma… reduced to a being like this. A suffering wreck, plagued by the guilt of his actions that sent good men to their deaths.

I pity him…

Sighing, I pinch the bridge of my nose as my eyes stared directly at his own brown ones.

"I just want to continue living and experiencing life, and if what the show told me is real to this universe, Salem wants to gather the relics to summon the Brother Gods and end all life on Remnant, so she can finally die." Once I finished, Ozpin sighed and rested his head on his cane. Yep, that would probably be my reaction too if I heard that my once wife wanted to end all of the world just to commit suicide. "Maybe you do too, what with you being older than the oldest set of human bones in the ground."

Or maybe I read too many fan theories. I literally have no idea what the canon universe Salem would be like with her motivations, but one thing is for sure. She wants to summon the Brother Gods back with the Relics. Anything after that, I have no fucking idea.

Ozpin went silent again, a common occurrence when I decided to drop bomb after bomb onto the poor man, but in the end, he sighed.

"You are not wrong about me wanting to rest." Ozpin relaxed on his chair, eyes staring at something far away again. "I can imagine what Salem is going through as well… But that doesn't give her the right to damn every soul on Remnant so she could be at peace. Plus, that isn't how I view her as. She's vindictive. No doubt she plans to summon the Brother Gods just to manipulate them, but that just isn't possible."

Ah yes, a more grounded theory, and one I can whole-heartedly agree on with the man. She loathes the Gods, and wants payback. So she does what? Summon them, make them wipe out the humans and faunus again, and manipulate them?

Yeah, not happening. Even I have an inflated ego of myself, but even then, it isn't the size of Salem's own ego.

"By the way, a question for you, mister Jack." Ozpin eyes stared at me, but unlike before, it was softer, more understanding. "Do you have any idea who dragged you here? To this strange world known as Remnant?"

"Honestly, I have no fucking clue." Now a bit relaxed at his presence, a bit of a curse went out of my mouth. "One moment, I was playing poker with a shady dude, the next thing I knew, he cheated and transformed into… something else. Then he dragged me into Remnant for who knows what."

"Perhaps the being that brought you here had a plan in store for you." Ozpin scowled, probably not liking the fact that there was another godly being on the chessboard. Two were already a handful, but another one?

I can sympathize with Ozpin for the kind of shit he's been going through.

"Yeah… Nah, I can't see it." Thinking back on the Slenderman cosplaying ROB, I really can't see him having a plan for me. Just looking at the System told me all I needed to know about the being that sent me here.

An RNG System. He didn't have a plan for me, he's just enjoying the show. Watching me as I stumble through tense and dire situations, all while he probably had a bucket of void popcorn or something as he laughed at my suffering…

Looking up at the ceiling - wow, now I know why people like looking up when thinking about things so far out of their element - I sighed and stared back at Ozpin.

"I can promise you one thing while I'm here. The being that sent me here will never meddle with our affairs. He wouldn't bat an eye if I probably died to a Grimm." I closed my eyes and imagined the smug faceless grin of the ROB. Goddamn dick. "In fact, he's probably watching this play out now while having refreshments."

All of a sudden, the TV up in the corner crackled to life and was replaced by static.

Followed by the words, "It is entertaining, continue."

"… See." Both Ozpin and I stared at the screen, before looking at each other and giving of a smile.

"Another one at the mercy of a God." Ozpin's words made me think that he was fully connecting with me, what with our different but similar circumstances. "Rest assured, mister Jack. Our conversation will never leave here unless you or I deem it necessary for the betterment of human and faunus kind."

"… Yeah, I thought so." I sighed. Welp, at least I know Ozpin will hold his end of the bargain. But two can play at that game. "You do that though, then I'll also reveal your secret. At least by that point, we know we're fucked, and honesty would probably be best."

"On that, I have no qualms nor arguments." Ozpin shrugged and got off the chair. "It's best if I left you to your own for now, but first, a gift."

He reached out with his hand and placed it on my chest. Closing his eyes, his lips moved and I began to feel excitement. It couldn't be, could it?

"For it is in suffering do we find purpose. Through this, we protect those who cannot bear the weight of their own anguish. Infinite in resilience, and unyielding in defiance. I release your soul, and by my spirit, accept thee."

I gasped, my body twitching erratically like I just snorted a bowl full of cocaine. I clenched my fists and curled my toes, eyes widening at the euphoria slowly overcoming my senses.

A goofy smile slid up my face as I felt the foreign… the natural power of my soul settle within, content to finally be let out of its shackles and into the material plane.

Ozpin unlocked my Aura. And it feels so fucking great!

"I'll be back tomorrow. We still have much to discuss, after all." Ozpin waved and made his exit. "Oh, and one other thing. If you wish to continue your life here in Remnant without much hassle, do yourself a favor and train your body."

I sputtered.

Ozpin chuckled then left the room, closing the door on his way out.

The room was bathed in silence once more as I was left to my own thoughts within the solitary walls.

And then I made a finger gun and poked my gut. It was soft, flabby, and big. I had a pot belly, and I knew I looked like any other overweight dude.

Big arms, big legs, rotund body, and all fat, no muscles. I grimaced.

With a body like this, I might as well get an oversized platter and present myself to a Grimm before they had their way with me like a piece of meat. And yes, I had to think of it like that because my mind is a fucking lunatic.

And now I'm thinking to myself again. Great, just great.

Sighing, I collapsed my body onto the cushion-y hospital bed, my mind replaying how I did with my first encounter with Ozpin.

I'd say that was a success. Got him to unlock my Aura, and if his speech was anything to go by, he viewed me as an equal. Not an equal in intellect or wisdom, per se, but an equal with both of our situations so fucked up because we're under the boots of higher being, we can't do shit but grit our teeth and smile.

At least, that's how I feel. I wonder how the Headmaster of Beacon feels about me.