As Jaune stood in the elegant, high-ceilinged office, his eyes drifted once more to the man before him—the confident posture, the cane, the ever-present calm that seemed to bend the very air around him.
There was something familiar about the name.
Jaune hesitated, then finally asked, "You... are the Headmaster of Beacon, right? I think I saw your name somewhere before."
The man smiled faintly, tapping his cane once against the polished floor. "I am indeed. Ozpin, Headmaster of Beacon Academy."
He paused, then added with a slight tilt of his head, "But more relevant to you at the moment, I am also the Commanding Officer of the Vale Branch of LUCID."
Jaune blinked, taking that in. "Right… that makes sense."
Ozpin's expression softened. "I imagine you have quite a few questions, Mr. Arc. And I intend to see that you receive answers. But before we get into anything else…"—he motioned toward the space between them with one hand—"I'd like to hear your story, in your own words."
Jaune complied. If this was how he would be receiving his answers, he figured it couldn't hurt to wait a couple more minutes. The headmaster listened attentively, silently taking in every word. It was clear that the headmaster had already been briefed by Ren about Jaune's unique case. What seemed to intrigue him most, however, wasn't his awakening at sixteen, rather it was about hearing the unedited story from Jaune, himself.
So Jaune started from the beginning—how, on his second night in Vale, he had found himself inside that strange, decaying dreamscape. The so-called "tutorial" he was given was vague, unhelpful, and practically useless.
At that, Ozpin chuckled softly, genuine amusement flickering behind his dark glasses. "Typical," he murmured, offering no further elaboration.
Jaune continued, detailing his first deadly encounter with the Beowolf that invaded his dream-home. The raw fear, the adrenaline, and the sheer dumb luck that allowed him to survive—twisting around its body and breaking its neck. That night had changed everything.
The encounters that followed each came with their own horrors. The Boarbatusk. The pack of Beowolves. His dream-induced return to Ansel—eerily familiar, yet distorted—where he first encountered that unnatural mist which was apparently dubbed as a nightmare… and his brutal battle with the Ursa in the dilapidated market district. Each experience had taught him something new: about fear, instinct, and, most importantly, strength.
Then came the turning point.
Jaune told Ozpin about the man named Raymond Red, a seasoned operative and Dream walker who had helped him in a moment of confusion and danger. But supposedly Raymond had drawn unwanted attention. A masked individual—his face covered by a grotesque, stripped-down imitation of a Beowolf skull—had appeared, cloaked in menace and strange power. He claimed to be acting under orders: to eliminate Raymond. Jaune had simply been a bystander caught in the crossfire.
At the mention of the rune that the masked man used—one that prevented Jaune from escaping the dream—Ozpin's expression shifted subtly. He didn't speak, but his eyes narrowed behind the lenses, a flicker of concern breaking through his composed façade. He motioned for Jaune to continue.
Jaune described how Raymond had activated a shield to protect him, shoving him off a rooftop to get him out of harm's way. His last image of the man was the sight of Raymond being run through by the masked man's spear. Jaune remembered the sensation of falling—then triggering the escape authority, and waking up.
A heavy silence followed. Jaune eventually asked the question that had been on his mind the entire time:
"Do you know who they were? Either of them?"
Ozpin nodded slowly, stepping away from his desk and pacing toward the tall window.
"Indeed. I've already begun looking into the operative known as Raymond Red. He was part of LUCID. Based within Ansel's branch of our organization. According to their records, the commanding officer reported him deceased shortly after the time of your encounter. As for the masked man... well... I have my suspicions, but it's nothing for you to worry about at this point in time."
Jaune felt a tight pang in his chest. Nothing for Jaune to worry about? That man had tried to kill him! How was it not his problem?!
Jaune however, could understand that even if he begged for answers, it was unlikely that Ozpin would entertain him.
Why was this the case?
Simple. Jaune could barely be considered more than a normal civilian, at this point. Sure, he was also an awakened, like seemingly everyone in this place but he hadn't yet earned his spot.
Why should he be given special treatment when the only thing interesting about him was the nature of his awakening.
Jaune sighed at those thoughts.
As for Raymond, even though Jaune barely knew the man, there was something deeply tragic about his now confirmed death. Raymond had seemed so confident. So capable. So… alive. Now, he was just another name on a report.
"I see. I kind of figured that he might be... dead." Jaune said quietly. "He saved me, you know. He didn't have to... but he did."
Ozpin was quiet for a moment, looking away and acknowledging his words before turning back, his tone gentler now.
"And now, Mr. Arc, it seems your path has crossed with something far more complex than a series of... nightmares."
He gestured toward the window again, where rows of armor suits, operatives, and researchers moved purposefully within the hangar.
"You've touched something most never will. But make no mistake—what you've stumbled into is not a game. The Dream Realm is more than metaphor, and certainly more than madness. It is a battlefield, a frontier and to many, a hunting ground."
He stepped forward again, cane in hand.
"And you, Jaune Arc, whether by fate or by accident… are now part of it."
"I see," Jaune muttered, shoving his hands into his pockets. "So… does this mean I finally get some answers about all of this? I've been kind of winging it up until now."
Ozpin nodded. "Yes. Please follow Miss Goodwitch. She'll take you to a briefing room, where you'll be taught the basics."
Jaune blinked. "Oh. I thought you were going to explain everything. Guess you're busy, huh?"
"As much as I would like to personally guide you through all the intricacies of the Dream Realm, I'm afraid my time is… divided. Your case is unusual, yes. But there are larger matters demanding my attention at this moment—one of them being the masked man you encountered."
He tilted his head slightly, a weight behind his words. "Do not mistake my delegation as indifference. You have my gratitude for bringing this to my attention. But for now… I must ask you to follow Miss Goodwitch so she can get you properly settled in."
Jaune nodded and turned.
The woman who had been silent the entire time—still silently tapping at her tablet in the corner—glanced up and adjusted her glasses, her expression unreadable. Glynda Goodwitch was all efficiency, but Jaune could tell she had been listening the entire time.
"This way, Mr. Arc."
Her voice was crisp, almost impatient, but not unkind. Certainly efficient, however. She was clearly a person who had no time to waste and even less patience for hesitation.
Jaune followed.
They came back out the door to see his cabal of friends still waiting patiently outside.
Miss Goodwitch addressed the four of them before they could get any words in.
"Head to class. Mr. Arc will be put through our standard orientation program. He'll meet you after classes where you'll see him in the training rooms."
Ruby opened her mouth to say something but Yang elbowed her to keep her mouth shut. She winced and nodded.
"Wait. What about my classes today, Miss Goodwitch?" Jaune couldn't help but ask.
"You'll be skipping them today. We have a lot to go through and not much time to properly get you situated."
"I... see. But... I'll get in trouble with my dad if he finds out I skipped classes."
Goodwitch regarded Jaune with an incomprehensible look as if she was looking at a fool. "You are speaking to the assistant headmistress of beacon academy, young man. The school isn't even going to report your absence from classes if I tell them not to."
"Oh... right. My bad." Jaune coughed out, feeling slightly embarrassed.
"We'll see you later, then Jaune." Ruby have him a half-hearted smile which he returned.
"Bye Jauney. Don't worry, we'll come see you later. Oooh I'm so excited to see you in the dream realm too!" Nora squealed happily before waving and walking away with Ren who gave him half-wave in goodbye.
"See ya. Good luck learning all the work we do. It's boring but it gets fun later." Yang gave him a fist bump before heading off to join the others.
Goodwitch then brought Jaune along throughout the base.
As they walked, Jaune couldn't help but glance around. The deeper they moved into LUCID's core, the more surreal it became. Soldiers—operatives, he corrected himself—strode purposefully past them in matte-black armor trimmed with personalized accents. Some wore visors, others full helmets. Many carried standard-issue rifles across their backs, while others had blades or experimental-looking gear strapped to their sides. Several glanced at Jaune as they passed, eyes flicking toward him with the casual curiosity reserved for new recruits.
"So... how does this work exactly?" Jaune asked.
"Well, we are going to have to introduce you to all the concepts you will need to know as a future operative." Glynda said without slowing.
Jaune blinked in confusion. He was to be an operative too?
Before he could ask more, they stepped into a central chamber—a wide rotunda filled with soft digital screens, glowing holographic-maps, and half a dozen seated at command terminals. The air thrummed with urgency. Mission updates scrolled across a curved glass display on the far wall, and to one side, a vertical lift awaited.
Glynda moved swiftly toward the elevator, her heels clicking softly.
As they stepped inside, she finally addressed him again. "I trust Headmaster Ozpin didn't overwhelm you."
"Uh... no nothing really overwhelmed me," Jaune admitted. "Except for Raymond's... death, I guess. I- he saved me, you know? He didn't have to, but he did it all the same. Maybe if... he didn't focus so much on trying to protect me, he might have had a chance against that other guy."
Glynda was quiet for a few moments.
"It's best not to think about what-ifs too much. " she spoke. Her voice had an uncharacteristically gentle tone to it, like she was afraid he would start crying. "Whether or not he would have lived isn't something you should burden yourself with. The only thing that matters is that you are alive. And now, we have a potential lead as to why some operatives in the field have died during missions." She inputted a destination on the panel. The elevator hummed to life.
"This isn't the first time it's happened?" Jaune asked after a pause.
Glynda's eyes didn't leave the display. "Indeed, but enough of that. Now its time for protocols. You're not technically registered with LUCID yet."
"I see... wait. I'm not yet... registered?"
"Not officially," she explained. "You are an anomaly, after all. Dream walker, you might be but you are also not within the system's automatic detection function which should be impossible. However, here you stand, and here we are. The fact that you entered the Dream and survived long enough to be found by us is a miracle in an of itself. You're very lucky that you didn't die, Mr. Arc.
Jaune frowned. "Gee. Thanks."
Glynda gave him a side-glance. "Do not mistake that for me being unkind. Luck is also a form of skill. Now, lets see if we turn that luck into genuine prowess, shall we?"
The elevator doors parted with a low chime, opening onto a narrower corridor. Unlike the previous clean steel designs, this area felt more clinical—like a hospital wing crossed with a military R&D lab. Glass walls gave way to labs with humming equipment and stacks of special inscriptions which looked like runes, were suspended in containment units, and stasis tubes holding objects Jaune couldn't begin to identify. Some of them looked like armor. Others... like weapons.
He turned away and kept his eyes forward.
At the end of the hall, a wide set of reinforced double doors slid open, revealing a debriefing room. It was well lit, dominated by a circular table of black glass and a projection rig built into the ceiling. Chairs ringed the space. Glynda led him in and gestured to a seat.
Jaune sat slowly, still trying to process everything.
Glynda remained standing.
"You've survived multiple nightmare incursions without training or equipment. That alone is notable. But surviving an encounter with a Rank 1 human entity is… truly unprecedented."
Jaune's stomach did a little flip at her words. He couldn't feel any pride from her words, however, as he knew that he didn't really do anything special.
He nodded, simply unwilling to trust his mouth to speak. Now, he was finally going to receive his answers and he was glad that there wouldn't be any more interruptions. "
"Welcome to your first official LUCID briefing."
Jaune stared at the floating interface, before him.
'Whatever this place is, he thought, whatever I've gotten myself into…'
He looked up at Glynda's steady gaze, then at the waiting holograms.
'...I'm already in it.'
And there was no turning back.
.
.
AN: We're back!
Advanced chapters are available on patreon. I've also added images for how the characters look like in standard issue LUCID armor, in my patreon. Check it out if you're curious.