WOW! I can't believe how many reviews I've gotten for just the previous chapter! I certainly hope that this chapter turns out as good as the one before it. Thanks to help from christopherrhaydon, I have a design for the suit that Jaune will wear as the Scarlet Scarab. Yes, that is his hero name from this day forth. Now, on to the chapter, shall we?
*I still don't own RWBY or Teen Titans!*
Scarlet Scarab Rising!
As Jaune walked along the dirt path to Jump City, singing his happy little tune, he began thinking about all of the good times he had back at Beacon with his team and family. Training with Pyrrha, learning medical techniques with Ren, listening to Nora's tall tales with her eating most of the pancakes at breakfast, goofing off with Ruby, reading with Blake, trying and failing to flirt with Weiss, even enduring Yang pretending to flirt with him after he failed at flirting with Weiss.
But that's not to say he didn't have any good times with the teachers. Oh no, no! Jaune actually had a lot of good times with the professors at Beacon as well.
Delving into their world's history with Doctor Oobleck, Professor Port helping him come up with some enhancements for Crocea Mors while telling more of his own stories (which the portly teacher revealed were his own subtle ways of teaching his students the vital weaknesses of all Grimm, all while forcing the students to try and stay awake.), trolling other students and faculty with Ozpin, gathering herbs with the ever reclusive Professor Peach, even playing pranks on other teachers and students with, surprisingly, Professor Goodwitch!
He still remembers the time they dyed Oobleck's hair to look like a rainbow afro, shaved Cardin's head while he was sleeping so he looked like a rodeo clown, and when they put tabasco sauce in Ozpin's coffee.
They both may have had to run away from the enraged and fire breathing headmaster for the duration of the day, but to them, it was SO worth it!
Jaune sighed as his good mood vanished.
All of that was taken away by Cardin. Honestly, that guy just doesn't know when to let go of something and just drop his lousy oversized ego! How and why he was admitted into Beacon in the first place is beyond Jaune!
"Your aggression and sorrow levels are rising, Jaune. Is something the matter?" Scarab asked.
Jaune sighed and scratched the back of his head.
"Just thinking about the past, Scarab. All of my friends back at Beacon are sure to have heard the news and attacked Cardin in a fit of rage by now, but I can't shake the feeling that they might hate me for leaving without saying goodbye to them" Jaune explained.
"Really, Jaune, there's no need to worry. I'm sure your friends will understand why you had to leave, and won't hold it against you. Just have faith and trust in your friends, Jaune!" Scarab said to him.
Jaune smiled at his new partner's words. He really felt much better after that little talk with his new symbiotic little buddy.
"You're right, Scarab. Thanks for that! By the way, how's the assimilation coming along?" Jaune asked.
Scarab began to run a check and saw that progress was complete. It would seem as though Jaune's acceptance of him as a partner caused his Aura to stop attempting to repel him, thus making the assimilation process complete itself at an alarming rate.
"Good news, friend! The assimilation process is complete! We can begin the construction of your suit whenever you're ready!"
"Cool! But before that, I think you need a new name. Just calling you Scarab all the time sounds a little demeaning, calling you by your species all the time. So how about I call you Khepri? Professor Oobleck told me once that he was the God of the Sun in an old culture of an ancient land called Egypt." Jaune suggested.
The beetle seemed to mull over the name. He certainly had no problems with it.
"Kinda rolls off the tongue… I like it! Khepri it is!"
Jaune smiled, happy to help a friend in need. It was one of his many personality quirks that seemed to always make people gravitate towards him, but it was also a quirk that made his family worry about him.
But he suddenly had to stop as he heard growling coming from the bushes on the sides of the road. Knowing what was coming next, Jaune went to draw Crocea Mors and fight the Grimm.
"Wait, friend! It would be unwise to seek a battle with your sword and shield only!" Warned Khepri.
"Then what do I do?" Jaune asked.
"Let me absorb your sword and shield. I can integrate them into my systems so that you'll have a sword and a shield in your own battle armor!" Khepri said before asking "How good are you with a long range weapon?"
Jaune glanced around, seeing multiple pairs of glowing yellow eyes and white bone masks. The calling card of the Grimm. And from what he can tell, there are mostly Beowulves and Ursas with a Death Stalker here and there.
"I'm a good shot with throwing knives and a bow and arrow. Does that count?" Jaune asked.
"That'll do just fine. Now hold still! This won't hurt a bit!"
He didn't get the chance to question Khepri as he suddenly felt a kind of exoskeleton beginning to grow on the surface of his body. But it didn't feel like the normal exoskeleton of an ordinary bug or arthropod. It felt more like it was made from technology, but at the same time it felt completely organic.
The armor consisted of a black bodysuit with a red tint to it that was skin tight and showed off his lean yet compact muscles that he had developed from his training back at Beacon with Pyrrha. It covered his body completely, except for his eyes and mouth. Over that bodysuit was scarlet red armor that closely resembled a beetle in every way. He had shoulder and chest armor with a single curved spike jutting from each shoulder, and it also covered his upper body from the neck to above his abs. The chest plate also has a stylized mark that looks like a combination of an 'M' and a Beetle's antennae.
On his head was a helmet that closely resembled a beetle, but not a typical scarab beetle. No, this helmet more closely resembled a Japanese Kabuto Beetle, even having a single long horn on his head with sharp prongs at the tip. Covering the lower half of his face from the nose down was a protective faceplate that looked like a mix of Cooler's in his final form from Dragon Ball Z, and the one Optimus Prime wears when he goes into battle. And over his eyes were two green lenses that resemble the same compound eyes that all insects have. Only these ones also have slit pupils that are a lighter green color.
Jaune's hands and forearms now have armored gloves that cover them from the fingers all the way to above the elbows, and he has barbed talons on each of his fingertips. Armored shoes appear on his feet and each one appears to have two front talons and a single talon on the back of each foot. And these talons also appear to be opposable, much like his fingers and thumbs. And on the back of this leg armor, Jaune has four little barbs going up from above his ankles to below his knees. But these seem to be more decorative than functional at first glance.
On his back, the Khepri absorbed Crocea Mors and formed an armored shell around itself for protection. This shell took the form of a Scarab Beetle with two legs on each side and one on each shoulder. And behind each shoulder, there's a pair of jagged looking Scarab Beetle antennae.
"Whoa…! Khepri, is this really my armor? Because it is totally sick!" exclaimed Jaune.
"I did not know the transformation would make you ill, Jaune. Perhaps the process was not as complete as I thought it was." Khepri said in return.
"What? No, no, no, buddy, it's just an expression." Jaune informed. "Anyway, what're we lookin' at?"
"Kabuto horn sensors indicate that our opponents include a small pack of Beowulves, three Ursas and one Death Stalker. I advise the use of your newly integrated sword until we reach the Death Stalker."
Jaune nodded and could feel Khepri downloading information of how to operate the suit into his mind, so he knows exactly how to use the blade of Crocea Mors. Using his mind, he willed the Arc Family weapon into existence making the blade jut out from his right wrist. The blade had taken on a reddish tint to the metal, due to being absorbed by Khepri. While at the same time, he turned his left hand into a sword that was more curved and had these curved grooves like a Beetle's clawed pincers.
He took up a stance with his legs apart and slightly bent at the knees with his right arm crossed in front of him and the other held back a bit. Behind those green compound eyes, Jaune's eyes were narrowed in determination.
This pack of Grimm… it's his right of passage to become a warrior! His test to prove that he is worthy of being Khepri's host!
And he intends to pass!
Without warning, four Beowulves leapt out of the bushes behind Jaune, snarling as they went to overwhelm and devour their chosen prey alive! But Jaune was ready for them. Spinning on his heel, he slashed two of the Grimm clean in half with his right hand and skewered the other two with his left!
The first two died instantly as their two halves fell to the ground and began dissolving, but the other two were writhing around in pain on Jaune's hand. So he decided to put them out of their misery and decapitated them.
He looked behind him and quickly rolled out of the way of a large paw slamming down where he once stood. The Alpha Beowulf had decided to attack Jaune while his back was turned, and just barely missed. But Jaune wasn't about to let himself become Grimm chow and charged at the Beowulf with his horn poised to strike. It seems as though the horn is designed for more than just sensory, as the prongs on the tip of the horn grew and sharpened just before Jaune rammed into the Beowulf's chest!
The beast gargled on it's own blood as it's heart was hit by the horn before it fell to the ground, dead as dust.
Turning around, Jaune turned his attention to the three Ursas that were now charging at him with plans to destroy him! Clearly, these things are not the brightest creatures around if they can't detect just how much of a threat Jaune really is.
And this proved to be their downfall.
The horn on Jaune's helmet began to glow with a bright red light and shot three energy blasts at the attacking Ursas. Each one hit their target, right between the eyes, killing each of those Grimm instantly.
"Whoa! I've never had this kind of power and skill before!" Jaune exclaimed with a grin under his mask
"Don't start thinking that you're Invincible, Jaune. You still need much more training before you can truly take on any opponent." Khepri said, sensing Jaune's growing pride and arrogance.
Jaune realized what was happening and immediately squashed down the arrogance of his inner macho man, not wanting to ever become like Cardin and his team. He focused his thoughts to the pack on his back and instantly grew a jetpack that seemed to look like a pair of scarab beetle wings. Not in the mood to deal with the Death Stalker right now, he jumped into the air and flew off at speeds that would make the fastest of Atlas's ships look as slow as a slug! Maybe even slower!
As Jaune was flying, he half expected to have an attack from his chronic motion sickness, but was pleasantly surprised to realize that he felt fine. His stomach, for once, doesn't feel like it's doing backflips! This was all almost too much for our young former Huntsman in training to comprehend!
"Despite your momentary lapse into a sense of arrogance and pride near the end, you did very well for your first time operating the battlesuit!" praised Khepri.
"Thanks, Khepri! I never knew that such technology even existed!" Jaune said in thanks. "Even the most advanced technology of Atlas PALES in comparison to what you can do!"
Khepri chuckled at his host's attitude. Such a bright and likeable guy, it was refreshing to know that there are still such life forms out there in the universe. If only the scarabs of Reach understood the importance of free will before things started getting out of hand for their colony.
"Hey, with this kind of tech and power, I could become a superhero if I wanted to! It would be a great plan on where to go from here, since I can't very well become a huntsman anymore." Jaune said.
"Well, if you're going to become a superhero, then perhaps you should give yourself a secret identity. Wouldn't want any of your enemies, who would no doubt be stronger than the likes of Roman Torchwick, to go after your friends and family to get to you."
Jaune thought about what Khepri was saying and realized that he was right. If he went around just being called by his real name when facing off against supervillains, then his family and friends would be in constant danger! He needed a secret identity to protect them!
Let's see… perhaps Red Beetle? Nah, that's too plain and sounds like it's already taken. Suddenly, an idea came to Jaune as he grinned under his mask.
"Look out world, there's a new hero on the loose! And his name is… Scarlet Scarab!" Jaune declared.
And so, he continued his flight all the way to Jump City. But like all great protagonists of a story, he was completely unaware of the new chain of events that are sure to take place.
*To Be Continued…*
Okay, here's the new chapter. I hope you like it. I wasn't sure if it was actiony enough for everyone… Anyway, I've posted a poll for the story's pairing, since everyone seemed to be wondering what that was going to be. I really wasn't too sure myself when I posted this story, so I hope you guys remember to cast your votes. And as always, I'll see you all next chapter! Also, next chapter I had planned to reveal who it was that was assigned to seal away Jaune's Aura. If you would be so kind as to send in who you want it to be and why in your reviews, that would help immensely.