The Omnipotent Fan of RWBY

6 :So That's How It Storms: 04&5

My hand reached for a necklace that no longer hung around my neck—a cross that had once been my anchor. Gone now, like so much else. But I could still feel the weight of it sometimes, a ghost resting over my heart. The one comfort I never questioned, even when everything else fell apart. I knew He was still out there—the true God—but where was His story in all of this?

A question for another time.

"Salem can't be killed. You all heard her too, right?" Yang's voice cut through the silence like a blade. She stood rigid, fists clenched. The anger in her voice mirrored my own.

Everyone stared down at Oz like he was a stranger. Qrow especially... He looked like he'd been shattered.

Oz's voice trembled. "I..."

Yang didn't let him finish. "There was so much you haven't told us! How could you think that was okay?!"

He looked down, shoulders crumpling under the weight of centuries. Then Ruby, bless her heart, still reached for something solid. "Professor? What is your plan to defeat Salem?"

And then... silence. The kind that feels like it'll choke you if it lingers too long. "I... don't have one."

The world shattered in one sentence.

"AAARRRGGHH!" Qrow's roar shook the air, and in one furious motion he struck Oz—no, Oscar—straight in the face. The boy stumbled back, colliding with the trunk of a nearby tree.

"QROW!" I shouted, panic rising—not for Ozma, but for Oscar. The boy didn't deserve this. He was just a vessel caught in the tide of something older than he could ever be.

Qrow didn't stop. "No one wanted me. I was cursed." His voice cracked, filled with bitterness and betrayal. "I gave my life to you because you gave me purpose! I thought I was finally doing some good!"

Oz, still dazed, tried to speak. "But... you are."

Qrow's expression twisted in pain. "And Henry? What about him? He trusted you more than any of us! He fought for this—fought and died for something impossible. His death was for nothing? Meeting you was the worst luck of my life."

That hit harder than any punch. My breath caught in my throat. A tear slipped past my defenses. It wasn't Ozpin's fault that Henry died. It was mine.

I could've warned him. I could've told him the truth about Lionheart's betrayal... but I stayed silent. I let fear of breaking the story stop me. And now he was gone.

Oz scanned the faces around him. Hatred. Disappointment. And worst of all—hopelessness. "Maybe you're right." Oz vanished into Oscar's soul like a shadow fleeing the light. Hiding himself into the deepest parts of him that even I couldn't see.

Oscar gasped, one hand clutching his cheek.

"What happened?" Ruby asked, stepping forward.

"He's... gone," Oscar murmured.

Yang stormed toward him, fuming. "THAT BASTARD! Tell him we're not done yet!"

"No!" Oscar shook his head. "This is different, he's gone. It's like he locked himself deep inside my head. Our Head?" Oscar struggled to get Ozpin to come out. Holding his head and grunting. "I hate this. I want it to stop!"

Weiss's voice trembled. "He just left us?"

"What are we supposed to do now?" Blake's voice cracked.

"ENOUGH!"

I stepped forward, shoving past the circle of despair. As I approached Oscar, I handed the Lamp to Ruby without looking back. My focus was the boy in front of me.