Grimmfall: Eclipse
I do not own Grimmfall, Gargoyles, OK K.O, Powerpuff Girls or any other franchises with characters or ideas that appear in this story.
A new threat emerges, heralded by Goliath's former love. As Point Prep's own Foxtail goes on the hunt, Sebben brings Melissa Hunter into the field to stop events from spiralling into chaos.
Xxx
Prologue: The Grim Clan
She'd kept track of the days by leaving a mark in the wall of her cell. A single line etched with the tips of her claws when night came and she shed her wretched human guise. Then five, with the fifth crossing through the first four.
Then days turned to weeks and weeks to months. Before she knew it she had begun to cover a good portion of one of the walls with these markings, each of them a failure in her eyes. Each of them another day that she was caged by her hated enemy: humanity.
Yet in spite of collecting more than a hundred of these markings, Demona was resolved to not give up and accept her fate.
For a thousand years she had worked towards the inevitable end of the pestilence that was humanity. She had worked on a scale unimaginable to most, treated with Kings and Emperors, invoked dark powers and brought about both the rise and fall of kingdoms. And in that time she had face defeat and humiliation, suffered the confinement of cages and dungeons.
But in the end she always escaped.
In the end her mission continued.
But after the fall of Crom and her capture by Sebben and his alliance of heroes, huntsmen and her traitorous former clan…it was hard to see a way forward.
For all of her claims of certainty in her inevitable escape, there was a part of her that looked at her surroundings with melancholy and remorse.
All of our work, all of our hatred and plotting…and we are locked in yet another box.
She tried to shunt that soft, sad little voice to the back of her mind and ignore it, but every night when she resumed her gargoyle state and looked in the mirror it struck her how…unchanged she was. After centuries she'd long grown used to that, but this revelation had gone beyond her physical appearance or vitality.
Goliath had moved on with his detective.
Angela with that fat oaf Broadway.
Even Macbeth. He who had hated and hunted her for the near destruction of his kingdom, who had wanted only to see her dead by his hand so he could expire as well…had moved beyond her.
And as she sat on her cot and starred at the collection of one hundred and eight lines…Damona could not help but feel as if she had somehow been left behind.
No. Not left behind. We left them.
Demons laid back and threw an arm over her eyes. "Shut up…"
We abandoned them.
"Shut. Up."
We betrayed-
"NO!" Demona snarled and struck the nearest wall, not even leaving a dent in the material. "They betrayed us. They hurt us. They killed us!"
Keep saying that. The sad little voice became hard as iron. We may even begin believing it at long last.
These outbursts were not new. Ever since her stint as a Harvester of Blood for Crom Cruach and subsequent imprisonment, Demona had rarely had a restful night. Any of the personnel watching over her who were aware of these episodes had chalked it up to one simplified explanation.
'She had a god in her head. Pretty sure that would mess anyone up. Not like she wasn't messed up to begin with.'
She'd heard their whispers. Her prison was larger than a single room. There were chambers for her to exercise in, a recreational room, even a small library with many volumes she'd kept in different collections across her long lifespan. When she was permitted to wander she saw the pity, the judgement, the apathy and a hundred other emotions in the eyes of her wardens.
And that damn counsellor. Some Faunus woman who claimed to sympathize with her feelings of being victimized by humans, who tried to help her 'come to terms with her own actions' in some vain effort to rehabilitate her.
If not for the reinforced hard-light dust barrier always separating them Demona would have ripped her to pieces by now. Her and that clipboard with its lists of questions.
Why did you help betray Castle Wyvern to the Norsemen?
Why didn't you warn your clan of what would happen?
Why did you betray Macbeth?
Why did you betray your clan?
Why did you- toss away everything you ever loved for the sake of hatred?
Why did you break your promise?
Why did you become the monster you swore to never be like?
Why did you try to kill the only one who ever truly loved you?
Why do you keep pushing people away and claiming they betrayed you?
Why can't you stop hiding behind your pathetic excuses and just admit that you're your own worst enemy?
Demona pressed her hands to her ears. "Stop…!" She felt tears begin to pool in her eyes as she rolled onto one side.
When are you going to grow up and move on?
The answer would have to come a long time.
The red tinted emergency lights in her cell snapped on as an alarm wailed. Demona bolted back up onto the edge of her cot, wide eyed and alert. Her sharp hearing could pick out the sounds of battle outside of her cell.
Gunfire. Screams. Blades slicing through flash. And a familiar roar of…
Gargoyles! Here?!
The door to her cell suddenly bent as something powerful struck it from the other side. Two more impacts gave the culprit enough of a weak point to exploit, peeling the reinforced alloy open like a soup can and ripping a hole through it.
Demona shot to her feet, flexing her claws and bending her knees in preparation to dodge or attack if either became necessary.
"Peace, sister."
A winged silhouette stepped through the opening, standing at a height that rivalled Goliath's even if they lacked the same broad and powerful build. Dark red flesh and horns gave the gargoyle an almost demonic theme, black hair and a thin beard framed a square jaw and slanted brow- beneath which a pair of coal black eyes with pale silver irises bored into her very soul.
Unlike most gargoyles she had known, he was dressed rather…modernly. Dark cloth and tactical outerwear, body armour, a bandoleer of dust canisters, even a gun holstered across his lower back. Only his head, hands, feet, tail and wings were uncovered.
"I am not your enemy." The gargoyle said, claws relaxed and held at his sides. "My name is Daemon, and we are here to rescue you."
"Daemon?" Demona snorted.
A ghost of a smile crossed the gargoyle's face. "I freely admit that I long ago named myself in honour of you, Lady Demona."
Then, to her surprise, he knelt and bowed his head to her. "And I cannot put into words how pleased I am to have finally met you." He said.
Demona relaxed her stance but didn't let her guard down. "You claim you have come to rescue me? Then get on with it." She commanded.
"At once." Daemon rose back to a standing position and beckoned for her to follow.
In the corridor outside, Demona beveled the scene of a massacre. The bodies of humans, Faunus and Mobians littered the floor where they had been shot, stabbed or sliced with lethal precision. Wrecks of the many security robots provided by Xanatos to supplement the organic overseers were similarly disassembled at the feet of more gargoyles dressed similarly to Daemon.
"Brothers and sisters!" Daemon proclaimed as he stepped into the prison's atrium. "The Lady Demona!"
As one, six gargoyles mimicked Daemon's earlier action in dropping to one knee wings hanging limp across their backs as they bowed their heads.
"Hail, Demona!" They cried.
"A…gargoyle clan?" Demona whispered. "But how? Who are you?"
"There will be a time for answers soon, my lady." Daemon told her. "Reinforcements are underway to this facility, and our master would prefer it that we remain…under the radar for a while longer. Our escape route will be provided shortly. After that, all shall be explained."
Demona frowned in dissatisfaction at this before Daemon pulled one of his guns from its holster, flipped it around in his hand and offered it to her, handle-first. "If you doubt our sincerity, my lady, then we will not force you to accompany us." He said earnestly. "But as this is a Xanatos-made facility, I must assume that its maker has surveillance methods therein which we neither disable nor detect. I would rather endure your scorn than betray our master."
Damona stared at the offered weapon, then to the one offering it. He made a valid point: David Xanatos was not to be underestimated, and if he blurted out critical information that may compromise himself or whoever he served she would think less of this…Daemon.
A whimper from behind the reception desk drew her attention. Demona turned towards it and sniffed the air, picking up on a familiar scent that made her smirk.
She took the gun from Daemon's grasp. "Wait a moment." She commanded and walked towards the desk.
If she wanted to be quick she could have ripped it out of the floor, but for the one hiding beneath it she felt like being a little playful. Demona hummed pleasantly as she slowly walked around behind the desk and leaned down to peek at the shaking, wounded dog Faunus hiding beneath it, hands clasped to a bullet wounded on her shoulder.
Her counsellor: one Catherine Mala. The Faunus whimpered at the sight of her patient without a protective barrier to keep them apart, her fluffy white ears dipping down as she inhaled sharply to try and suppress a sob.
"Why Miss Mala, how good of you to see me on my way out." Demona smirked, the gun pointed towards the floor still as she crouched into full view of the Faunus. "I do hope you know how much I appreciate your efforts to…help me."
"Please…" Catherine whispered shakily, her eyes on the gun. "You don't…have to do this…"
"Do what?" Demona asked playfully, holding up the gun to examine it. "We're just having one last session before I return to society as a 'productive citizen'."
"Demona…I wanted to…help you…" Tears began to trickle down Catherine's face. "I promised Goliath and-" Her next words were cut off as Damona's free hand closed around her throat.
"Don't." Demona growled, her eyes glowing red. "Say. His. NAME!"
"Guh-uh!" Catherine grasped Demona's wrist with the hand not pressing a cloth down to her bullet wound. "Aah-an-juh-"
"You Faunus are as bad as the humans." Demona hissed. "You all act like you're different species, but in the end you're no different from them. And you dared to think that I need help from a pathetic little mutt like you? I? Demona?"
Her lips twisted into a cruel smirk as she brought the gun to level with Catherine's head. "I don't need help from someone like you." She declared as the Faunus' eyes widened, her body frozen and shaking with terror…except for one hand that drifted to the pocket of her suit jacket.
Demona's hand around Catherine's throat released its grip and clamped down on her wrist instead, stopping her from pulling something out of her pocket. Catherine gasped for breath and let out a sob.
"Please don't!" She wept as Demona slowly forced the Faunus' hand back out of the pocket, bringing with it something that definitely wasn't a weapon.
"What's this?" Demona tilted her head, and twisted Catherine's wrist to make her drop a tablet to the floor, its background screen that of a photo of Catherine Mala and…two children: a boy and a girl both of them Faunus like her and undeniably her offspring.
Demona stared at the image of Catherine sitting by a coffee table with her children to either side of her, two cakes on it. Each pastry had a number six figure on it and both children were preparing to blow out the candles. Their names were written in blue frosting: Chris and Sarah.
She didn't realize how long she'd been staring until Daemon called out. "Lady Demona, we must go!"
Demona had a single finger pressed to the image, manipulating it to zoom in on different areas. In the background she saw a mirror which presented an outline of the man taking the picture: a human man wearing a warm smile that she found all too familiar.
He used to look at us that way…
Catherine's hand found the tablet, brushing a finger over each child's face.
Demona looked back up to the Faunus woman, who had stopped her weeping and had shut her eyes. Her body still trembled with fear, yet she drew some kind of comfort from the mere reminder of her human lover and their halfbreed children.
We never got to have those memories with Angela.
Demona shook her head and levelled the gun at Catherine's head again. Her arm trembled, her jaw tightened and her vision turned red as she tried to imagine Goliath's human lover at the end of the gun barrel.
She squeezed the trigger once and shot to her feet. "I'm ready!" She blurted out as Daemon stopped a few steps short of rounding around the desk.
"Our transport is here." Daemon said, bowing his head even as Demona shoved his pistol into his grasp.
"Then let's be done with this." Demona stormed past him to where the rest of the clan waited. "I've had enough of this pit for an eternity."
Daemon holstered the gun. "Of course, Lady Demona." He glanced towards where Catherine's legs stuck out from under the desk and followed after Demona, momentarily vacating the lobby…
And only then did Catherine Mala allow herself to exhale and open her eyes. Looking to either side, she saw a hole next to her head to mark where Demona had shot through the desk.
She was still in that same spot ten minutes later when Xanatos' reaction team breached the facility and found her as the sole survivor.
Xxx
Their transport turned out to be of the unconventional variety. Some paid off mystic who performed a translocation spell to teleport them out of Empire City entirely. Demona found herself in a cavernous dark chamber when the spell dissipated, with only Daemon and his clan for company.
"Where are we?" She demanded.
"Approximately a hundred miles off of the coast of North America, give or take ten." Daemon answered. "On a cargo vessel. Our mobile headquarters if you will." He snapped his fingers and a set of overhead lights came on to illuminate a cargo compartment that had been converted into a combination of living quarters and training area, complete with individual containers that were made into bedrooms while the main floor possessed weapon racks, training rings and munitions boxes. "It is called the Hsi Wu, but we prefer to just call it…home."
"Home? This?" Demona looked around. "Just another cage. Gargoyles are meant to fly openly, to rule castles and cities. Not hide in floating dens like rats on a ship."
"That day may be closer than you think." Daemon smiled. "Now that you are here, our master's plan will finally be ready to move forward."
"And who is this master of your's?" Demona demanded. "Why does he not show himself?"
"The answer is simple, dear Demona…" A familiar voice made a chill shoot through her spine and wings.
Demona spun around to see a figure emerge into the cargo hold, stepping into the light to reveal…
"Sammael." She hissed. "Of course."
"Long time, no see, Demona." Sammael replied politely. "Of course, if that's still the name you've settled on."
"So you're dabbling at making use of my kind as foot soldiers again." Demona crossed her arms. "Why am I not surprised?"
"Don't be so bitter, Demona, otherwise you would still be locked up." Sammael chuckled. "And after you allowed yourself to be enslaved. You, Demona, the gargoyle who nearly committed genocide in the name of revenge. Honestly, I know some people in our old circle who were making bets on how long it would take for you to move onto Faunus and Mobians if you ever got around to wiping out mankind."
Demona growled. "Spare me your rhetoric. If this is what you broke me out of prison for then I'd prefer to go right back."
Sammael shook his head. "No, no. Rest assured, that's not at all my intent. Rather, I aided in your escape for the sake of an…old colleague of mine."
"Colleague? Old?" Demona snorted.
"Surprised?" Sammael asked sarcastically. "It's not like you were the only one."
"Surprised that you would do favours for anyone." She replied.
"You would be even more surprised to see just how generous I can be with longtime compatriots." Sammael shrugged. "In the fifty thousand years that I've lived I have made many allies, enemies…and only a few of the former have had the courage to walk away from me."
"We were never allies." Demona huffed. "Just…convenient associates, and only for a time."
"Then perhaps, to properly address that statement…" Sammael gathered energy into one hand. "I should just tie up a loose end here and now. You did hurt my feelings a bit when you so abruptly ended our business. And perhaps I'd be doing you a favour by saving you the further humiliation of eventually being hunted down like an animal and dragged back to prison by your former mate…who I understand had a hand in freeing you from Crom Cruach. I imagine that detail must simply burn."
Demona inhaled slowly, refusing to let her outrage at that fact show. Instead she averted her eyes to one side and shrugged. "You could. But you didn't go through all this trouble just to kill me."
Sammael chuckled, his bluff called. "You speak the truth, Demona. Indeed, it would be easier said than done to be permanently rid of you. As I understand, the one who you are bound to has reached a stage that very few have managed to reach in thousands of years…even during my own youth. But no, as I said before, I only helped in breaking you out. In fact you could say I didn't do more than provide some information and a guarantee." He then motioned with his head to one side. "He, on the other hand, did the ground work in preparing for your liberation."
The alcove he indicated was shadowed, but Demona's sharp eyes picked up on a silhouette sheltered within, kneeling before an open book. The individual therein raised their head and slowly rose to their feet, wings unfurling from their back as they turned and ducked out from under the edge of the storage container's opening.
And what emerged was a Gargoyle unlike any other Demona had ever seen. He was taller than any she'd met to this point, that was for certain, but what set him apart from the rest was his distinctly inhuman anatomy, only vaguely resembling that of the three mortal races. Luminous red eyes stared down at her while a set of three blade-like fins that were swept back across his brow. His deep blue flesh was leather and marked with ancient symbols from a variety of cultures from across every continent, all of them of arcane significance.
Clawed feet tapped against the metal floor while a hand reached out and tilted the stunned Demona's head up by her chin, allowing this being to lean in and examine her closely.
"Who…what are you?" She whispered, finding herself locked in place as some primal, instinctual command within her forced her to refrain from batting his hand away as she would with anyone else.
"Why dearie…is that any way to greet dear old daddy?" The gargoyle bared his teeth in a grin as his eyes glowed brighter and nearly sent Demona to her knees from a sense of fear she hadn't felt in such a long time…that of a child to an angered parent.
"My children have gone so far astray. Turning on one another or serving the interests of the weak mortals. Defending their castles and cities. Submitting themselves to eternal servitude when I crafted them to be gods." the gargoyle chuckled and reached down, gently brushing Demona's hair back. "But don't you worry, dear…dad will fix everything."
He spread his wings to their full width. "My name is Vorador. And I, child…am the Father of Gargoyles."
Xxx
Back in the pillaged prison facility a few short hours after these events, armed security officers in David Xanatos' employ were now mixed with local Empire City Police officers and standing across from a third group that was attempting to gain entry.
"I don't care what your orders are." A Police Lieutenant held up a hand. "You have no jurisdiction here and until I hear otherwise-"
A tablet was held in front of his face. His eyes scanned the contents and widened momentarily before he stepped aside with a sigh. "Stand down, boys and girls. We're done here."
"What?" One of the private security officers balked at this and stormed up. "That's ridiculous, Mr Xanatos-"
"Lost the ability to say 'no' to me the moment he allowed the one and only prisoner in this whole building to go free." The holder of the tablet forced her way past and into the atrium.
She was a tall, dark skinned fox Faunus with bright orange and white hair and a matching set of ears and a tail. She wore a dark blue uniform jacket with gold shoulder pauldrons and a blue cape.
"P.O.I.N.T Prep has jurisdiction now." Foxtail declared. "So kindly clear my crime scene and leave this to the real heroes."
The cops and private security mumbled bitterly among themselves as they departed from the atrium. But as they cleared the corridor outside, a single figure stood out, one who caused them to part more willingly and nod respectfully as they passed him. Once the passage was clear he sighed and walked into the atrium, which was now occupied by government agents under Foxtail's direction.
"Foxtail."
The Faunus didn't turn her attention away from a list of catalogued evidence. "Sebben. For the mayor of a city entire states away you have quite the tendency to wander."
Phil Ken Sebbben knew not to expect a warm welcome from her and took no offence to her attitude. "And you have quite the tendency of showing up where a breakout has the biggest attention." He looked around. "However, that bears the question: why are you in a prison that almost nobody outside of Xanatos' company knows about?"
"Cleaning up his and your mess." Foxtail replied, finally facing him. "Xanatos had one job: hold Demona and rehabilitate her. He's failed on both counts. Now people in power have turned this matter over to me."
"People in power?" Sebben raised a brow. "Or people in your back pocket."
"Tomato, tomahto." Foxtail replied flippantly.
"And the fact that gargoyles affected this breakout have nothing to do with your involvement?" Sebben asked.
"I can neither confirm nor deny any factors that may or may not have motivated persons in power to have assigned me to this investigation." Foxtail drawled.
"But I can confirm that several of your own off-campus research facilities were hit by gargoyle attacks in the last three weeks." Sebben stated bluntly. "More accurately they were hit by gargoyles that used guns and other more modern weapons, with the aftermath closely mirroring this scene. I know that you're hunting them, Foxtail, and I would urge you to actually show some level of restraint before you make Gargoyle-kind more hostile to humans and Faunus alike."
Foxtail's eyes narrowed. "I'm not surprised that you'd know that." She muttered. "As appreciated as your 'advice' is, Mr Sebben, I believe you are presently trespassing on a crime scene. I will need to ask you to leave."
Sebben smiled. "Of course." He began to turn, but paused. "…Titanomachy."
This one word made Foxtail freeze in the midst of turning back to her agents. "What did you just say?"
"Titanomachy." Sebben repeated. "It came up when I was looking into those prior break-ins. As did Melissa's name." He looked over his shoulder at her. "Anything you wish to get off your chest?"
Foxtail's ears stuck upwards and then flattened themselves backwards across her head. "If you utter one word about-"
"About what?" Sebben interrupted her. "A project you were supposed to terminate? One that actually never should have reached its first stage? One that was terminated in its infancy?" He looked at her sharply. "Tread lightly, Foxtail. This isn't the first time you've gone down such a path. You're fanaticism towards trying to keep the peace is your own greatest failing."
Foxtail composed herself. "And your inability to neutralize these threats before they manifest, for all your apparent omniscience, is yours." She replied. "And it isn't any of your business what Point Prep does. That belongs to someone far higher up the chain than a mayor, even one like you."
"True." Sebben nodded. "…but it is Melissa's business. You needn't worry, unlike you I don't care for blackmail. She won't hear it from me." He resumed departing the room. "I'll leave that to you, as it is your confession to make. And for your sake, I pray you don't require any great persuasion to get around to telling her."
He left Foxtail to mull over these points. As he made the elevator to the surface he pulled out his tablet and sent an encrypted message to Deputy-Mayor Briggs back in Grimmfall.
"Contact Mrs Hunter. I need her assistance."
Xxx
(Tomorrow by SR71 begins playing)
(Instrumental)
The sun rises over Empire City, illuminating the statue forms of the Manhattan Clan.
Cut to a sunrise in Grimmfall where Melissa is laying in bed, staring longingly at the empty spot next to her while a photo is illuminated just enough to reveal her in a wedding dress but keeps Carlos cut out except for an arm around her shoulders.
Cut to Demona standing atop the superstructure of a cargo ship and standing fully illuminated in the sunlight in gargoyle form, neither changing to human nor stone.
(Instrumental post-0:16)
Suddenly, cuts to P.O.I.N.T Prep Academy where Foxtail is engaged in a sparring match with several students. Each time that she repels their attacks with ease she suddenly flashes back to being much younger and sparring with Melissa. This aggravates her and she begins to lash out more aggressively.
As she comes back to the present she sees that her students have been laid out on the floor and are looking to her in fear. She looks remorseful and disturbed by this.
Cut to title card.
GRIMMFALL: ECLIPSE
Demona stands at Castle Wyvern, standing over the remains of her clan mates. Her tears of sorrow quickly turn to rage as her eyes glow red while she beholds Goliath flying with Elisa in his arms. Then she sees her younger self in the reflection of Puck's mirror. Her younger self recoils at the sight of her.
Foxtail sits at her desk and looks to one side to see a chess board. Suddenly she finds herself assuming the position of the King on one side but sees that the spot next to her is vacant. On the other side she sees pieces that resemble Sammael, Crom Cruach, Billiam Milliam and other major villains. Suddenly Foxtail stands along at her side of the board, save for a line of faceless pawns as the opposing side towers over her and her small army.
Melissa is attempting to go about her normal routine by jogging but suddenly sees herself running alongside Foxtail, visibly younger and happier. Then it changes to her running alongside Team RGCK, a little older than before but visibly energized. Then the moment passes and she looks around in shock before a sad expression settles in.
Is it any wonder why I'm scared?
If I was a little younger would I care?
Feeling like the walls are growing stronger
I don't know if this cage
Can hold me any longer
The screen splits to show Melissa watching over her children as they play in the backyard, Foxtail looking over her students training from a balcony and Demona staring down at the Grim Clan from a carved wooden throne.
You never dreamed you'd have to
Live your life so guarded
The scenes change to a younger Melissa walking away from P.O.I.N.T Prep, Foxtail sitting at the head of a table of professors and Demona roaring furiously within her prison cell.
'Cause they'll find a way to
Make you feel discarded
Demona and the Grim Clan dive down and fight against the Manhattan Clan. Goliath knocks her away only for Daemon to kick him from behind. As Demona rolls to her feet and turns to swing her claws at her next target she comes face to face with a horrified Angela and freezes.
Suddenly Foxtail strikes Demona from the side as the scene changes to show them both fighting among a burning, collapsing building. Foxtail launches another attack at Demona, only for her to turn into Melissa and catch the blow at the last second as the two grapple.
Their eyes lock, and the screen splits again to show each of their eyes reflecting a younger version of the other woman.
I'm not afraid of tomorrow
I'm only scared of myself
Feels like my insides are on fire
And I'm looking through
The eyes of someone else
Demona kneels alongside the Grim Clan before Sammael and Vorador. They both look down on them in amusement.
Foxtail and Melissa stand back to back, glaring in irritation at one another. Overhead, a dark cloud begins to form and fall down over them.
I never thought they'd want me
To go even faster
Never thought I took my foot off the gas
Everybody loves to be in on the pressure
But I know they're all waiting
For the crash
Demona stands over Angela with her claws raised much like before, but this time she hesitates to swing.
Foxtail, looking bloodied and bruised, faces off with a similarly hurt Melissa.
You never dreamed you'd have to
Live your life so guarded
(So guarded)
Vorador casts a winged shadow over both Demona and further on to Angela.
Foxtail and Melissa charge at one another.
'Cause they'll find a way to
Make you feel discarded
(Discarded)
Cut to Demona standing among shattered gargoyles that turn to dust and blow away in the wind.
Cut to Foxtail and Melissa laying several feet from one another, more badly injured than before, this time at one another's hands. Yet as the camera pans over their faces they are both visibly saddened.
So changed, you've become a complication
Can't make it through
Another day's humiliation
Cuts to Demona, looking melancholic, watching as a horde of Grimm sweeps over a darkened Grimmfall while her Grim Clan looks on in glee.
Down below, the Manhattan Clan are surrounded before Melissa leaps into view and saves Broadway from a Alpha Beowulf.
A great mammoth Grimm charges only for Foxtail to leap in the way and lift it up by its tusks and flings it away before she and Melissa lock eyes.
I'm not afraid of tomorrow
I'm only scared of myself
(Scared of myself)
Feels like my insides are on fire
And I'm looking through
The eyes of someone else
Together, they all form a circle as the Grimm close in on all sides.
Demona watches in growing horror as the Grim Clan jeer and celebrate. They slowly fade out along with the scenery until Demona is left standing alone once again.
Someone else
(someone, someone, someone else)
Someone else
(someone, someone, someone else)
Someone else
(someone, someone, someone else)
A gauntlet covered hand rests on her shoulder, and she looks back in surprise which quickly turns into a hopeful expression.
Xxx
Huntress Profile: Melissa Hunter nee Farren
Code name: The Auramancer
Semblance: Aura Sight.
Melissa is capable of directly perceiving the aura of living creatures as well as her own, and overtime has developed a means of manually manipulating aura to fulfill specific tasks.
Directing aura to fortify itself at a specific point on her body, creating a solid barrier at the expense of dropping protection across the rest of her body.
Pouring aura through her fists at the point of impact to enhance her strikes and cause sub-dermal damage to targets, with the added benefit or more quickly shattering an enemy's aura.
Direct her aura to focus on repairing specific areas of her body, inducing a situational state of cellular regeneration.
Perceive and target pressure points, hindering movement of specific limbs or even temporarily disabling certain aura or chi based abilities.
Fight infections, viruses and poisons via meditation.
Melissa has undergone training at different Huntsmen academies as part of a short lived exchange program run by P.O.I.N.T Prep. The martial arts taught at Jade Academy have proven to be a particularly powerful influence on the development of her semblance.
Weapons: None. Melissa is one of the rare huntsmen who does not make use of any specific weapons in favour of focusing on unarmed combat.
Rating: Class-V
Academic Credentials:
Three years at P.O.I.N.T Prep.
One year at Nevernest Academy (post-transfer, graduated).
One month at Jade (Exchange program).
One month at Outer Haven (Exchange program).
One month Yamanouchi Academy (Exchange program).
One month at Lucha Aademy (Exchange program).
Background: Melissa Farren was one of the star students of P.O.I.N.T Prep in its earlier days and had been predicted to become one of its future teachers and leaders. She was known to have associated highly with the actual POINT team led by Foxtail until her third year when she took part in an exchange program, spending a month at each of the academies until the last on her list: Nevernest.
It was during this time that she became affiliated with Team RGCK. It can be noted that during her thirty day stay she adopted a sudden shift in personality. Where before her psychological profile aligned closely with that of P.O.I.N.T Prep's faculty and students, placing great emphasis on duty to that school alone as well as adherence to working within the limits set by the government; suddenly she had adopted a new rhythm of behaviour which closely aligned with that of Team RGCK, that of doing what was right regardless of how others viewed it or even if they technically weren't authorized to do so.
By the end of that month she had returned to her original school for a period of three days before applying for a transfer to Nevernest. All that is known is that during that stage she had been in conflict with Foxtail and had suffered a falling out related to her new boyfriend: Carlos Hunter, the Infernal Huntsman.
Her final year was spent at Nevernest where she graduated with honours and entered a long term relationship with Carlos, eventually marrying him and having three children: Charles, Robert and Ellie. She had mostly retired from Huntsman life but regularly appears at Nevernest as a guest instructor for combat classes in the field of unarmed combat. On the side she teaches self defence classes on her own time.
Query: Did she only date Carlos because he beat her in a sparring match?
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