The air inside Ozpin's office was thick with tension. The glow of the monitors cast long shadows as Ozpin, Ironwood, Qrow, and Glynda stood before Onyx and Ruby, explaining everything—the Maidens, the Relics, the war against Salem, and the power of Silver Eyes.
Onyx listened, his arms crossed, his Amethyst Eyes unreadable. He glanced at Ruby as she sat beside him, absorbing the weight of the truth in stunned silence. Her mother, Summer, had been part of this war—a war she never even knew existed.
And then Onyx turned to Qrow. His voice was cold.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Qrow stiffened. His normally relaxed posture was gone, his hands clenched into fists. He couldn't meet Onyx's eyes.
"Kid, it's… complicated," Qrow muttered.
Onyx's expression darkened. "Complicated? You knew I had something similar to Silver Eyes. You saw what I could do. You knew I was tangled up in all of this before I even knew it existed." His voice was sharp, cutting through the heavy air. "So why didn't you say anything?"
Qrow took a breath, exhaling sharply. "Because I was trying to protect you."
Onyx scoffed. "Protect me? From what, the truth?"
Qrow's jaw tightened. "From getting involved in this mess before you had to!" His crimson eyes were filled with an emotion Onyx had rarely seen in him—guilt. "I didn't want you dragged into this war, kid. You already had enough on your plate, raising Hemera, surviving on your own—hell, you were just a kid when I met you! I wanted to give you the choice I never had."
Onyx's Amethyst Eyes burned. "Then you should've told me and let me decide for myself."
Silence.
Then, Ironwood stepped forward, his expression grim. "We don't have time for this. The important thing now is that you know the truth."
But Onyx wasn't finished. He turned his piercing gaze toward Ozpin, studying the headmaster carefully. Something wasn't right.
Ozpin had explained the war against Salem. He had explained how they needed to stop her.
But never once had he said they could kill her.
A realization struck Onyx like lightning. He leaned forward, his voice dangerously quiet.
"…Salem can't be killed, can she?"
The room went still.
Glynda's breath hitched. Ironwood's eyes narrowed. Ruby's lips parted in shock.
But the worst reaction was Qrow's. He froze.
All eyes turned to Ozpin.
The headmaster's usual calm demeanor remained, but there was something different now—a hesitation. A flicker of something behind his glasses.
Onyx's voice sharpened. "I noticed it earlier. You told us about the war, about how she's a threat, about how she has to be stopped." His Amethyst Eyes gleamed, dissecting Ozpin's every move. "But not once did you say we could kill her."
Ozpin was silent.
Ironwood's expression darkened. "Ozpin. Tell me he's wrong."
Still, Ozpin said nothing.
Glynda's hands clenched at her sides, her sharp eyes studying her old friend, her mentor. "Oz?"
Qrow's breath grew uneven. His fingers twitched as if reaching for his flask, but for once, he didn't drink.
He turned to Ozpin, his voice low, almost desperate. "Oz, please… tell me he's lying."
Ozpin remained silent.
Qrow's heart pounded in his chest. No. No, this couldn't be right.
For years—years—he had followed Ozpin, trusted him, believed in the cause. They were supposed to be fighting to stop Salem.
To end her.
But if what Onyx was saying was true—if Salem couldn't be killed—then what the hell had they been fighting for all this time?
Qrow's grip on his weapon tightened. He didn't want to believe it.
He couldn't.
His voice cracked. "Oz… say something."
Silence.
Qrow's blood ran cold.
His hands trembled, his breath uneven, betrayal sinking into his bones.
And then—
"SAY SOMETHING!!"
His voice roared through the office, raw and filled with a mix of fury, grief, and desperation.
But Ozpin still said nothing.
Because there was nothing he could say.
The room felt suffocating.
Ozpin remained silent, his hands resting atop his cane, his expression unreadable. But that silence—**that damn silence—**spoke louder than words.
Qrow's breathing was uneven, his entire body trembling with restrained fury. He had given everything for this fight. His loyalty. His time. His life. And now, he stood here, realizing that the very war he had dedicated himself to… was unwinnable.
Ironwood's expression was dark, his fingers flexing at his sides, his usually rigid stance shaking with suppressed rage. "Ozpin." His voice was dangerously low. "How long?"
Ozpin finally closed his eyes. "James—"
"HOW LONG?!"
Ironwood's voice cracked with fury, echoing through the room.
Ozpin exhaled. "From the very beginning."
The weight of those words sent a shockwave through the group.
Glynda visibly recoiled, her face paling. Her hands, usually controlled and composed, clenched into fists. She opened her mouth, but no words came out.
Ruby sat frozen, gripping Crescent Rose so tightly her knuckles turned white. "No…" she whispered. "That can't be true…"
Onyx's Amethyst Eyes burned. He had suspected it—but hearing Ozpin confirm it made his blood run cold.
All this time… there had never been a way to win.
Qrow took a shaky step forward. "So all this time—" His voice was raw, his breath heavy. "All this time, we've been fighting a war we can't win?! All those years, all those missions—you sent us out there knowing Salem can't be killed?!"
Ozpin finally met his eyes, but there was no excuse in his gaze. No comfort. Only a tired, broken man.
Qrow's hands balled into fists. "Then what the hell are we doing this for?!"
Ozpin's voice was quiet. "Because if we don't fight, she wins."
The words hung in the air, but they weren't enough.
Qrow let out a bitter, humorless laugh. "That's it? That's your excuse?" His voice cracked with disbelief, with betrayal. "We're fighting a war we can't win, just to delay the inevitable?! You let people—good people—die for a cause that was hopeless from the start?!"
Ozpin's grip on his cane tightened. "Hope is never hopeless, Qrow."
Qrow snapped.
In a blur of movement, he lunged forward, grabbing Ozpin by the collar and shoving him against his desk. Papers and scrolls clattered to the floor.
Glynda and Ruby gasped. Ironwood reached for his weapon, but he didn't stop him.
Because part of him wanted to do the same.
"Do you know how many people I've lost?!" Qrow's voice was a storm of rage and anguish. "How many people died thinking they could win this fight?! How many of us fought, bled, and killed for this war—for YOU?!"
His grip tightened. "Summer is dead because of this. My team—Tai, Raven, and I—we've suffered because of this! And you…"
Qrow's eyes burned with something unfamiliar.
Something broken.
"You knew." His voice was barely a whisper. "You knew and you let us believe there was hope."
Onyx watched, his own expression unreadable. For the first time, Qrow looked truly lost.
Betrayed.
Ozpin didn't struggle. He didn't fight back.
Because, deep down, he knew he deserved this.
Onyx finally spoke. His voice was cold, cutting through the air like a blade.
"You don't even have a plan, do you?"
Ozpin didn't answer.
That was all the confirmation Onyx needed.
Ruby stood abruptly, her voice shaking. "There has to be something! There has to be a way to stop her! We can't just—we can't just keep fighting forever!"
Ozpin finally lowered his gaze.
"…I don't know."
Ruby's breath hitched.
Ironwood exhaled sharply, stepping back like the weight of those words had physically struck him. His face was unreadable, but his eyes—**his faith—**were crumbling.
Glynda turned away, her hands trembling.
And Qrow…
Qrow let Ozpin go.
He took a step back, his expression twisted with rage and grief. He looked like he didn't even recognize the man in front of him anymore.
For years, he had believed in Ozpin.
But now, that belief was gone.
Qrow turned away, reaching for his flask, but… he didn't drink.
Ironwood said nothing, but for the first time in years, his faith in Ozpin was shaken.
Glynda was still, her hands clasped tightly together.
And Ozpin…
Ozpin simply watched Onyx, with a tired expression on his face.
---
The room remained heavy with silence, the weight of Ozpin's confession pressing down on them like a suffocating fog. The truth had shattered everything—their trust, their purpose, their very belief in victory.
Ironwood's hands were still clenched at his sides, his expression dark with frustration. Glynda's face was pale, her mind racing through every battle, every sacrifice—all for a war that had no end.
And Qrow…
Qrow stood there, his body rigid, his eyes locked onto Ozpin as if searching for something—anything—that could undo what had just been said.
But there was nothing.
Ozpin had known.
He had always known.
The realization dug into Qrow's chest like a dull knife, twisting with every unspoken thought.
Summer died for this.
People died for this.
And Ozpin let them believe they had a chance.
Qrow exhaled sharply, running a hand through his hair before turning away. He couldn't even look at him anymore.
Ruby swallowed hard, her silver eyes shimmering with unshed tears. "So… what do we do now?"
No one answered.
Because no one knew.
For the first time, it felt like the war was already lost.
Then—
A voice broke through the silence.
Low. Cold. Unshaken.
"We find another way."
All eyes turned to Onyx.
He stood firm, his Amethyst Eyes burning in the dim light, unwavering even as the rest of them crumbled under the weight of the truth.
Ozpin regarded him carefully. "And what do you suggest, Onyx? As you've said. Salem cannot be killed."
Onyx tilted his head slightly. His voice was calm, controlled—dangerous.
"There's more than one way to defeat an immortal."
Ironwood stiffened. "And what does that mean?"
Onyx's expression didn't change.
"It means every immortal has a weakness." He took a step forward, his eyes never leaving Ozpin's. "And Salem's weakness…"
He let the moment build, the silence stretching taut.
Then—
"…is simply us."
The air in the room shifted.
Ruby blinked. "Us?"
Onyx's gaze flickered toward her, then back to the others. His voice was steady, but there was an edge to it—a sharp, undeniable truth.
"She fears the Silver Eyes." His Amethyst Eyes pulsed faintly. "And she reacted to me."
Ozpin's grip on his cane tightened.
Onyx continued.
"Salem's power is undeniable. Her knowledge, her influence—it makes her seem invincible." His tone sharpened. "But no one is truly invincible. Because in the end, power means nothing when it comes across something it cannot control."
He met Ozpin's eyes.
"She cannot control the Silver Eyes." His gaze darkened. "And she cannot control me."
Glynda inhaled sharply, realization dawning.
Ruby's breath hitched.
Ironwood narrowed his eyes.
And Qrow…
Qrow finally looked up.
Onyx kept going.
"She's spent centuries orchestrating wars, manipulating people, spreading fear. But there's one thing she could never account for—change."
He turned to face them all.
"If she could truly do whatever she wanted, she would've won already." His voice was like steel. "But she hasn't. Because something—someone—keeps getting in her way."
His eyes flickered toward Ruby.
"She's afraid of the Silver Eyes. Not because of what they do, but because she doesn't know how to stop them."
Then, his gaze swept over the room, his expression unreadable.
"And now, for the first time in centuries, she's encountering something else she doesn't understand."
He let the words sink in.
And then—
His voice dropped to something almost lethal.
"She doesn't understand me."
The Grimm inside him had reacted to her name in fear.
Salem, the unkillable witch, the immortal ruler of Grimm—something about him unsettled her.
Ozpin's expression was unreadable. "That is… an incredibly dangerous assumption, Onyx."
Onyx didn't blink. "So is assuming we can't win."
Another beat of silence.
Then, Ruby spoke, her voice quiet but resolute.
"…Then we fight."
Onyx turned to her, their eyes meeting. Silver against Amethyst.
She nodded, gripping Crescent Rose tighter. "If she's afraid of us, then we use that."
The weight in the room shifted.
What had been despair just moments ago now felt different.
Onyx's words had planted a seed.
A new possibility. A new path.
Qrow exhaled, rubbing a hand down his face. His voice was rough, raw. "…Damn kid." He let out a small, bitter chuckle. "Guess you really are my best student."
Onyx didn't reply.
Ironwood crossed his arms, considering. "If this is true… then it changes everything."
Glynda finally spoke, her voice quieter. "It means we have an advantage."
Ozpin still looked troubled. But for the first time since this conversation started, he didn't argue.
Because he knew Onyx was right.
He had felt it too.
Salem wasn't invincible.
And if they were the key to stopping her—
Then this war had just taken a new turn.
Onyx glanced at Ruby once more.
She nodded.
And for the first time…
They weren't just fighting to survive.
They were fighting to win.
"Ozpin," Onyx said, his voice unwavering. "How did Salem become immortal?"
The room went silent again.
Ozpin's eyes, weary and old, flickered with something indecipherable. "Why do you need to know?"
Onyx didn't hesitate. "I need to know how she became what she is—how she was made immortal. The answer to defeating her might lie in that very process."
Ozpin exhaled slowly, his fingers tightening around his cane. He looked at each person in the room—Qrow, Glynda, Ironwood, and finally, Ruby and Onyx.
"…Very well."
He stepped forward and began to speak.
"She was born as a princess in the era of the first humanity, long before the world became what we know today.
Her father was a king, a man who sought to protect her from the dangers of the outside world. To keep her safe, he locked her away in a solitary tower, ensuring that no harm would ever come to her. But in doing so… he denied her the very thing she desired most—freedom.
She spent years gazing out of her tower, dreaming of the world beyond. And then, one day, a warrior arrived.
His name was Ozma."
Ozpin's voice softened, the name carrying a deep, personal weight.
"Ozma was courageous, kind… and he loved her.
He saw the longing in her heart, the fire in her soul, and he freed her. Together, they traveled across the land, building a life together.
And for a time… they were happy."
He paused. His grip on his cane tightened.
"But happiness, as it so often does, was fleeting.
Ozma fell ill. And no magic, no medicine, no plea could save him.
He died in her arms."
Ruby sucked in a breath, her silver eyes glistening.
"She was shattered. But grief, when left unchecked, can become something… far worse.
Salem could not accept his death.
And so, in her desperation, she sought out the Gods."
Ironwood frowned. "The Gods?"
Ozpin nodded.
"She went to the God of Light, the deity of creation and balance. She fell to her knees, begging him to return Ozma to her.
But the God of Light refused.
Death was a natural part of life. To reverse it would be to disrupt the balance of the world."
Qrow's jaw clenched. "Let me guess. She didn't take that well."
Ozpin sighed.
"No, she did not.
If the God of Light would not grant her wish… then she would turn to his brother."
Onyx's eyes darkened.
"The God of Darkness."
Ozpin nodded grimly.
"She traveled to his domain—the land where Grimm first emerged. She pleaded for his help, and unlike his brother, the God of Darkness was not bound by balance.
He granted her wish.
Ozma was brought back to life."
Glynda gasped.
"But when the God of Light learned of this, he confronted his brother. They realized what had happened—Salem had played them against each other.
And so… the God of Darkness took back his gift.
He killed Ozma once more."
Ruby's hands trembled.
"But that wasn't enough.
For her deceit, the Gods placed a curse upon Salem."
His voice grew heavy.
"They made her immortal."
The word hung in the air.
"Her punishment was to live forever, to never know the release of death.
They believed that, in time, she would learn the value of life's natural order.
They were wrong."
Ozpin exhaled.
"She was furious. Enraged at the Gods for their cruelty. And so, she set forth to do the impossible—destroy them.
She incited humanity to rise against them. She told them the truth—that the Gods had cursed her, that they were unjust rulers.
And humanity followed her.
They fought against the divine."
A chilling pause.
Ironwood's voice was low. "…And then?"
Ozpin's expression darkened.
"The God of Darkness destroyed them."
The room froze.
"The Gods, enraged at humanity's defiance, decided that they were a failure. The God of Darkness shattered the moon, sending its fragments crashing upon the world.
And in a single act of devastation, the first age of humanity ended."
Glynda covered her mouth in horror.
Qrow swore under his breath.
Ruby's eyes were wide, shaken.
Onyx, however… was silent. Listening.
Ozpin continued.
"But they did not kill her.
No… she was left to suffer alone.
She wandered the ruins of her rebellion, searching for an end to her torment. And eventually… she found the Pools of Grimm.
She believed that the darkness would consume her, that it would free her from immortality.
But instead… it changed her.
The darkness became part of her.
And in that moment… Salem became the master of the Grimm."
The silence that followed was suffocating.
No one spoke.
Until—
"…And what about you?"
Everyone turned to Onyx. His amethyst gaze was locked onto Ozpin.
Ozpin sighed. "After the Gods left, the God of Light appeared before me—before Ozma.
He told me that humanity would return. That life would begin again.
But he also warned me—Salem still lived.
And she would seek to control this new world.
So, he gave me a choice.
I could return. I could be reborn, again and again, forever. But my purpose… would be to stop her."
His voice was softer now.
"So, I accepted."
His fingers brushed against his cane.
"I thought that if I could reach her… if I could make her see reason, make her remember who she once was… I could save her."
A bitter smile.
"I was wrong."
Ruby's breath hitched. "She didn't listen?"
"No," Ozpin said. "We fell in love again. We built a kingdom together.
We had… children."
Ruby's hands flew to her mouth.
"Four daughters," Ozpin said quietly.
"And for a time, we were happy.
But then… our daughters discovered they could use magic.
And that's when I saw it.
Salem… did not believe humanity could ever change.
She saw them as weak. Flawed. And she wanted to replace them, I tried to persuade her, but she wouldn't listen."
His voice cracked.
"So one night, I tried to escape with our daughters to keep them safe."
"But Salem caught us."
"We fought, and our daughters... My daughters, they... They—"
Onyx's fists clenched tightly.
"They were caught in the crossfire," Ozpin whispered. "And then I died with them."
The silence was deafening.
Qrow looked… hollow.
Glynda was wiping away silent tears.
Ironwood's face was unreadable.
Ruby's lip trembled, tears falling freely.
And Onyx…
Onyx understood.
He met Ozpin's gaze.
And for the first time, he saw not a liar… not a manipulator… but a man who had lost everything.
And worst of all?
He forgot how to hope.
Slowly, Onyx spoke.
"You're tired."
Ozpin looked away. "Yes."
Onyx took a breath.
Then, he said something that no one else had ever told Ozpin.
"…You don't have to do this alone anymore."
Ozpin's breath caught.
He looked at Onyx. Then at Ruby.
At Qrow. Glynda. Ironwood.
And for the first time in centuries…
He let himself believe it.