I own nothing. RWBY is the property of Monty Oum and Rooster Teeth Productions.
This story is dedicated to Monty Oum. RIP.
Silence. Silence hung over Beacon Academy like shroud, dark and oppressive. The silence was resounding and could be felt from Vale to Atlas, from Mistral to Vacuo. All of Remnant was silent, as if the entire world was waiting for an end that would not come.
No people walked the streets. No classes were in progress. No shops were open. Every corner of every town was deserted, as if some great cataclysm had wiped the earth bare. Even the Grimm were silent, their normally destructive nature somehow subdued in the wake of what had happened.
No one knew for sure what the event had been or what had caused it. All that was known with certainty was that the entirety of Remnant had shaken, as though something bigger than them all had hit it with tremendous force. The foundations of the earth had shifted beneath the people's feet and for a moment it had seemed as though the world was ending, but the end had never come. Not for them, in any case, but some sensed that something had changed. Someone, somewhere, had met a tragic end, and that end had changed their world forever.
Ruby Rose had been the first to sense this change, but she was not alone. With time, Weiss, Blake, Yang, Jaune, Pyrrha, Nora, and Ren had noticed it as well. Then Ozpin had picked up on it. Later still Sun, Neptune, Roman, Cinder, Mercury, Emerald, Glynda, Oobleck, Port, Velvet, and others had noticed it. Even Cardin had eventually realized something was different, though he could not say what.
And with their realizations had come waves of emotion, reactions of a thousand varieties, each one as unique as the person from which it had spawned. Weiss had gone silent, tears streaking her pale cheeks as she sobbed in mute sorrow. Blake had become reflective, remembering times long since passed. Jaune had become nervous, turning to Pyrrha for comfort, which she had provided. Ozpin had remained calm, his face showing no emotion, though inside it felt like he was dying. Nora tried drowning the feeling in syrup and pancakes. Ren was simply silent.
Roman and Cinder had turned to each other, while Mercury had looked to comics and Emerald had looked to books. Sun tried lightening the mood with jokes, though no one was in the mood to laugh. Oobleck had tried to see the lesson in the change, while Port blamed it on the Grimm and Glynda fought to keep her emotions in check.
And Ruby and Yang felt the desire to do something about it, to somehow make it right.
But they did nothing. They did not spring into action, they did not try to fight. For they sensed that there was nothing to be done.
What had happened had happened and all that was left was the picking up of the pieces and the observation of a moment of silence.
A moment of silence for a fallen friend.
End.
A/N: A fallen friend indeed. For though many of us never met Monty Oum in person, he was our friend. He was more than a man, more than an animator or a creator. He was a force of nature, one that never stopped striving to create, to make something new. The mark he left on the world is greater than I can even begin to express and the void he leaves behind is one that will never be filled. But even in tragedy there is a silver lining and that is what Monty would want us to focus on now. Monty would not want us to stop, to roll over and give up. He would want us to keep creating, to keep dreaming, to keep striving for more. And that is exactly what we shall do, if for no other reason than to keep Monty's memory and legacy alive. We will continue to write, to paint, to draw, to sing, to support RWBY and RT, to dream a better dream and we will never let the world forget Monty Oum. The world he created is a testament to his brilliance and it is now our job to keep that world alive.
So whoever you are, whatever you do, keep doing it. Keep being yourself and never let go of the dream Monty had.
Thank you Monty, for all that you have done. You are a true inspiration and you will be deeply missed.
Cheers, KT.