The Spark of Hope

Chapter 16 -A Bit Of Background-

Third Person POV

Wind is heard howling. In a mountainous region, a lone, cloaked feminine figure with a skull mask concealing her face crosses a rickety bridge. Halfway across the bridge, she hears the screech of a Nevermore. She turns to her left to see the Nevermore appear from the fog, and she draws her weapons - a pair of sickles.

The young Maria Calavera backflips off the bridge just as the Nevermore rams through it, splitting the bridge in half. She throws one of her sickles at one of the Nevermore's wing and uses the gravity Dust imbued in it to pull herself back up, while also dragging the Nevermore down. She grabs her other sickle on her way back up, getting above the Nevermore, and uses the recoil of her weapon to spin and grapple onto the Nevermore. She then throws one of her sickles to a mountain, pulling the Nevermore with it. The Nevermore crashes into the mountainside, losing its balance, before crash landing to the ground. Maria's other sickle is called back and lands on the ground in front of it.

Maria takes out the sickle from the Nevermore's wing, catching her breath. She looks over to the Nevermore's head, whose eyes stare back at her, causing her to gasp. The Nevermore tries to snap its beak at Maria, forcing her off. It swipes at her, knocking Maria back and forcing her to drop her sickle. The Nevermore charges forward, but Maria's eyes glow brightly, engulfing the area around her. She stands back up and notices the Nevermore petrified in midair, before dropping down and crumbling. Maria walks over to her sickle to pick it up, using the gravity Dust to call her other sickle back to her. Suddenly, Maria deflects a bullet aimed at her. She notices three men - one with a giant hammer, one carrying a rifle, and one with a machete - come out of hiding. Another woman, a crocodile Faunus named Tock, then walks up behind her.

"Well, that's a fancy trick now, innit? 'Fraid it comes with a price though, love," Tock says while she crushes a small piece of the petrified Nevermore in her hand.

Maria turns around to face Tock, while the three men ready their weapons, "I don't think you realize who I am,"

"Course I do," Tock says as she takes out an alarm clock, setting the timer and placing it on her belt, "You're the Grimm Reaper, and these... are the last sixty seconds of your life,"

Tock hits the button on her clock, starting the timer's countdown. She then draws a pair of saber swords and activates her Aura. The ticking clock can be heard in the background as the battle begins. Tock rushes forward and clashes blades with Maria. Maria attacks back, but Tock's Aura knocks her sickle out of her hand. Tock kicks Maria back, with the latter summoning her other sickle back to her hand. She then proceeds to fight the three men, deflecting their bullets. She cuts down the rifle-wielding man, knocks out the machete-wielder, and dodges out of the way of the hammer user before cutting him down. She then blocks another attack from Tock, who manages to push Maria back, causing her Aura to flicker.

Maria's sickles than circle around her due to the gravity Dust, before combining together to form a double-edged scythe. Tock and the machete-wielder rush forward to attack, but Maria blocks them. The Grimm Reaper then takes down the machete-wielder before proceeding to clash with Tock again. The two lock weapons with each other, before Tock uses her razor-sharp metal teeth to chomp through Maria's weapon. The crocodile Faunus headbutts the Grimm Reaper, shattering her skull mask in the process. Maria briefly opens up her silver eyes for a bit, when suddenly, Tock slashes at her eyes, permanently blinding Maria.

Silence for a moment, before Maria screams out in pain, her eyes bleeding. She continues to cry out as Tock's alarm clock rings. Tock presses the button on her clock as her Aura deactivates.

"It was a close call, I'll give you that," Tock says.

She walks over menacingly to Maria, who continues to cry out in pain as she holds her blinded eyes. Maria manages to grab one of her sickles and tries to fire at Tock, who nonchalantly doges out of the way. A clicking sound can then be heard from Maria's sickle, indicating her weapon out of ammo.