AN: I have posted the images for Jaune's casual clothes, combat clothes, and the weapon 'Anubis' on the Facebook page for the stories so they're there now.

Second Coming of the Reaper

Chapter 7

-Mercury-

Holding back a wince, Mercury saw Cinder get sent rolling across the ground, this 'Morrigan' chick sending her flying with a backhand. "Cinder!" Emerald cried out, the stupid little thief as pathetically obsessed with Cinder as she'd always been, the once street rat likely to have tried attacking Morrigan if he hadn't grabbed her arm to hold her back.

"How dare you?!" Cinder snarled, eyes shining with rage as she glared at the cold and composed Summer Maiden.

"I dare, because you have made our work that much more difficult." Morrigan glared, "The faces of you and your little pawns weren't known before, but now because of your foolishness that is no longer the case."

"Oh, is someone failing now that they're in char-" Cinder started to taunt before Morrigan held up a gloved hand, Cinder's words failing as a chain of energy wrapped around the ravenette's throat.

"My scrying has shown that Adam Taurus, has joined the Fall Maiden and her guardian." Morrigan's words made Mercury wince, figuring out the problem right away.

"So what?" Emerald scowled, "He barely survived escaping us before."

"Think you, impudent girl." Morrigan glared at Emerald, "Or does Cinder keep you around for reasons that aren't related to any useful combat ability?"

"She wishes." Mercury sighed, shaking his head as he let Emerald's arm go, "And the problem Em, is that with Adam joining them, then that group and Ozpin now know what we look like, they know our faces so we have to scrap the transcripts that would have said we were students from Haven Academy. Hell, Lionheart will have to scrub them from the system if he wants Ozpin to now find out about him working for the big boss as well."

"Precisely." Morrigan nodded to him, "I could have worked to sway him should he have been captured. The Fang were easy to turn, they are weak, they are full of rage and lacked direction. But Taurus was powerful and focused, it would have taken more than a bit of magic and the word of another Faunus to convince him. But now the entire plan has to be changed. Salem and Lionheart have already been informed of your failings as well." Meaning Cinder wouldn't have the chance to spin this to her advantage. Keeping up the glare for another moment, Morrigan let the chain dissolve as Cinder fell gasping for air, Emerald rushing to the side of her crush. "Mercury, follow me." Morrigan ordered, "There is something I wish to ask you." Nodding, having no intention of pissing off the woman who could doubtlessly kick his ass, he followed her away from Cinder and Emerald, the Faunus of the camp they were at still moving about and doing what was necessary to fulfill their orders even without Tyrian here.

"So, what did you want to know?" Mercury asked the woman once they were far enough away, taking the time to sit down and do some tuning on his prosthetics.

"Why did you join Cinder?" the woman asked him, sounding genuinely curious, "That Emerald girl's motivation is painfully obvious but not yours. I've seen no actual loyalty towards Cinder from you and I'm well aware that the stupid girl isn't one to genuinely negotiate for the aide of others."

"I went with her so I wouldn't die." Mercury scoffed, spitting in the dirt as he thought back to that night "I was on my last legs, literally," he wrapped the metal limbs "with my body about to give out and my father dead on the ground. They came across me having looked to hire my father for this gig. With him gone I was the next best option, and I was well aware refusal wasn't exactly an option. After I'd recovered and gotten my prosthetics…well where else was I supposed to go?" he began tightening the screws "Dear old 'Dad' liked to live off the grid so the kingdoms have no record of me, I don't have a semblance anymore, and the people I'm with needed the only set of skills I possessed. Just seemed to fit, ya know?"

"What do you mean, you 'don't have a semblance anymore'?" Morrigan narrowed her eyes as Mercury gulped, the woman unsettling him.

"My dad's semblance let him steal the powers of others. He couldn't use them, just hold on to them though. He'd spent years 'training' me, beating me black and blue till I learned what he wanted. And when I unlocked my semblance, he said it was a crutch, took it while saying he'd give it back when I got strong. Rather obvious the level of bullshit that was. Still, he's dead and those semblances went with him."

"And what if I said I could get it back for you?" Morrigan asked as she approached him, "That you could have your semblance again?"

"…You can do that?" Mercury hated how hopeful he knew he sounded.

"Boy, I am a Maiden fully realized." Morrigan's silver eyes lit up with matching flames "My magic is strong, and a semblance is intrinsically a part of you." Her hand grasped his head as the silver flames wrapped around him, his aura burning and pulsing as gasped. He lost all sense of time as the sensation continued, it could have been five seconds or five hours and he wouldn't know the difference. Eventually though, she did draw back her hand as he collapsed, panting and dripping with sweat, "Use your semblance." Morrigan ordered him, "Show me your power." Gritting his teeth, Mercury forced himself up before feeling his aura, pulsing it as he'd only had the chance to do once so long ago. Instantly, he felt himself shift, no longer facing Morrigan to look her in the eye but on the other side of the clearing, staring at her side as she turned to face him again, "Teleportation, a useful skill for combat." Morrigan nodded as she appraised him, "I may have a way to salvage part of the plan, and much of that will hinge on you Mercury Black. I can get at least you into Beacon without jeopardizing the plan, a bit of magic and a cover story handling that for me. But you won't have Cinder or Mercury to rely on, you'll be unable to contact them. Do you think you can succeed?"

Getting to use his skills? Not having to deal with the egotistical bitch and her loyal little lapdog? "What do you need me to do?"

-Jaune-

Gritting his teeth, Jaune shoved his arm forward, tossing Adam back before shaking out his arm, even without his weapon Adam hit like a truck. Thankfully, Jaune was still able to give as good as he got, Adam's ribs covered in several bruises from Jaune's various kicks as they trained their hand to hand, wanting to work on those skills in case of either of them losing their weapons like had happened to Adam. "Sweet brothers you hit like a damn truck." Jaune grimaced as he bounced on his feet, pumping his aura to boost his healing factor. Was it cheap? Yes. Did he care? Not a fucking bit.

"Your feet aren't exactly pillows either." Adam grunted, glowering at the obviously healing bruises on Jaune's torso. Across the training room, he could see Amber and Melanie working with the Malachite sister's new weapons, some guns that were terrifying in conjunction with her semblance and other gear.

"So, the other Huntsmen hopefuls are going to arrive tomorrow for orientation." Jaune charged at Adam, sending another kick at Adam which got caught, letting him use the fact his opponent's arms were therefore occupied to throw a punch "You ready to see Blake again?"

"She made her choice clear." Adam's eyes hardened, "She abandoned her family, then she abandoned the Fang and she abandoned me." Jaune's new teammate clenched his fist tightly as he forced his breathing to calm, "Still, I have a mission. That is my priority, it has to be, I don't have time to spend chasing after some flighty backstabber who was happy enough leaving me to die. And what of you? Your sister is coming as well, and you seem to be at odds with your relatives given your tone when you mentioned it."

"Most of my family are grade A bastards with a stick so far up their ass they rival Jacques Schnee." Jaune grumbled, grunting as Adam slammed him hard onto the sparring mat, "My parents wanted to use me as breeding stock to ensure the family name survived with a strong next generation so they tried to deny giving me huntsman training despite all seven of my sisters being trained regardless of their own wishes."

"Your sister strong?" Adam called an end to the spar as they panted, both covered in sweat and needing some water.

"Extremely." Jaune nodded, "One of the fastest learners among my sisters and her semblance is no joke either. It's a stockpile one like yours, but hers draws energy from the sun. Joan can absorb sunlight through her skin to store up in a reservoir that she can use to enhance her strength, speed, stamina, durability, or even to replenish her aura. The more sunlight hitting her skin means the more power in her reservoir and it's not as effective if the sunlight isn't direct."

"So, we have to deal with Blake, your sister, and this Yang girl who destroyed Junior's club." Adam pinched the bridge of his nose as the girls made their way over "Is there anyone else I should be aware of in the student roster?"

"When it comes to people of note there's the Schnee Heiress and the Mistral tournament Champion Pyrrha Nikos." Amber shrugged casually as Adam's eye twitched irritably.

"Moving…on." Adam grit out, clearly unhappy at who their classmates were going to be, "I've heard teams are decided during orientation. How is Ozpin going to explain you already having yours set?"

"Oh, I talked it out with Glynda, and we came up with a solution that Ozpin accepted." Amber nodded as she began floating cross legged, drifting lazily "He's going to say he's trying a new method for deciding teams and he's going to have everyone sparring to show their combat ability to help decide who get's paired with who, as well as taking into consideration if people enter Beacon with people they already have teamwork or partnerships with."

"You really don't trust him, do you?" Jaune shook his head as Amber floated over towards him as she drifted about, giving her a light poke as she began drifting the other way with a pout.

"Jaune, one of the tricks with my magic I figured out was how to tell if someone was lying to me or not." Amber shook her head before sending a petulant look at Melanie who'd taken a page out of Jaune's book and given the Fall Maiden a shove "I can even help coax the truth out of people who are less willing to talk, although that trick doesn't work if they're will or magic is strong enough when I try it. Still, Ozpin lies more than anyone else I've ever met. He lies, he tells half-truths, and just keeps other things to himself while demanding everyone else put their trust in him completely. I wasn't even given a choice before being pretty much dragged into his little 'cult', yet he still demands that I obey him without question and never hide anything from him."

"Lovely." Adam sighed before putting his palm on Amber's face and pushing her away.

"Nooooo, not you too!" Amber whined as she continued to drift around, moved at their mercy.

"Then just stop floating and walk." Melanie deadpanned at their 'leader'.

"But that takes woooooork." Amber whined.

"I don't care." Melanie smirked as Jaune and Adam chuckled, the next few years would be interesting at the very least.