AN: Started playing Darksiders Genesis so I got inspired to update a story from that fandom. So yay!
AN2: A point I want to make is that 1. I've already determined who will have the weapons, and therefore mantles, of Strife and Fury as well as how they got them. Pairings aren't decided yet but 1. NO HAREMS, 2. I don't plan to pair Nora with Ren as I feel a sibling relationship would work best since (given how young they were and how they had to rely on each other like family), 3. Jaune and Ren won't be paired with their fellow mantle holders. I am also willing to consider girls from the Darksiders universe so tell me in the review what pairings you want.
AN3: Just because Jaune and Ren have the mantles of War and Death doesn't mean they have the personalities of those two. There will be some pieces of their predecessor's personalities, but they aren't carbon copies. They got the gear and have learned the fighting styles to honor those two. Still haven't decided if they're going to have regular semblances or if their semblances are going to be letting them use the abilities of their predecessors. They'll already have powers from the horsemen but I'm undecided if they'll have more to add on or not. I want them powerful but not unbeatable.
Riders Reborn
Chapter 2
-Ruby-
"Hey guys!" Ruby grinned as she bounced over to Ren, Nora, and Jaune, the trio sitting on one of the top rows of the Beacon combat arena.
"Sup Ruby!" Nora grinned back as she got closer, Yang following behind lazily, "You ready for MORTAL KOMBAT!"
"Nora, no fatalities." Ren spoke without looking up from his scythes as he inspected them.
"Or breaking any legs." Jaune added, running a whetstone down his massive greatsword.
"Booooooo!" Nora throws her hands up before flopping down in her seat and sulking.
"How'd you guys do at the tactics test?" Yang asked, preparing easy reloads for her shotgun gauntlets, "I hated the damn thing. Why do I need some sort of fancy twelve step plan when I can just punch a Grimm till it dies?"
"Guess fighting you'll be an easy win then." Jaune smirked, finishing with his whetstone as he rested the sword on his shoulder.
"Wanna say that again?" Yang growled, her eyes instantly turning blood red with rage.
"An opponent who doesn't think?" Ren smirked as he stood beside Jaune, the butt of his Scythe planted in the ground, "Sounds like a decent warm up."
"YOU LITTLE-!" before Yang could continue her furious response to what was honestly just some teasing, Professor Goodwitch got on stage and slapped her riding crop against her palm.
"Students." Professor Goodwitch spoke up, her calm voice carrying clearly in the suddenly silent room, "Welcome to the first of your four combat initiation tests. This test, along with the next two, will involve you fighting against your peers. Today will be done based off of challenges. You all will be called forward one by one to initiate a challenge to another student here and you shall fight. Everyone is required to fight but if you challenge someone who has already fought they have the right to turn down the challenge. The next test will be done tomorrow which will be random selection, and the final arena one the day after will involve pairings designed by the faculty. The last combat test will be the newly designed teams sent into the Emerald Forest to kill Grimm. For the Arena fights you will battle till the aura is in the red, ring out, or if ten minutes have passed." The different Beacon applicants start getting excited at this, every one of them loving a good fight.
"First to choose is," Professor Goodwitch checks her scroll, "Lie Ren."
"I challenge Jaune Arc." Ren gave a vicious grin as he pulled out a mask of what looked like bone to protect his face, Jaune gripped his sword and looked excited and, although she was sure she was imagining things, a weird symbol seemed to be shimmering on his face. The two didn't even bother with the steps to walk into the arena through the locker rooms, they just vaulted the railing and landed in the arena itself.
"Give me one moment to link you both to the arena's aura reading system." The professor tapped her scroll as the two were scanned and their faces appeared on the large screen behind the fighting ring. Ren's aura bar started appearing first, filling all the way up and then going almost halfway into a second bar.
"Holy fuck." Yang gaped at the sight of just how much aura ren had, even their dad, an adult with one of the larger aura pools of his generation, barely had more than a full aura bar on a system like this but ren, as a student, had a bar and a half! "Well…Jaune's screwed." Yang gave a shrug.
"That's…that's impressive Mr. Lie," their blonde professor was slack jawed before shaking herself and initiating the readout of Jaune's Aura. Jaune's aura bar filled up to the max as well, as did the second, and the third, and he got halfway through the fourth.
"…OKAY THAT'S JUST BULLSHIT!" Yang threw her hands up while Nora cackled happily.
"Sweet Brothers." The normally unflappable professor actually dropped her riding crop in shock.
"Chaoseater is sharpened and ready brother." Jaune gave a wild grin, barring his teeth, pointing the sword with his right hand, somehow holding it with just the one as Ruby noticed his left hand was covered with a massive gauntlet.
"Harvester is just as hungry." Ren spun his scythe as it split into two, "I hope you can at least make this interesting."
"Enough trash talking boys." their professor chided before stepping out of the ring, "Begin!" Instantly, Ren shot towards Jaune, spinning as he swung his Scythes at the muscle-bound blond who used the massive gauntlet on his left hand as a shield to parry. Ren was fast, moving and striking, dodging and almost dancing around the much slower Jaune. His attacks seemed much weaker though as while Jaune was moving slower, the attacks weren't doing nearly as much to him, while his attacks, although not hitting as frequently, were doing far more damage to Ren.
Ruby was confused when Jaune brought his sword back and leveled it like it was a spear to thrust, while Ren was on the other side of the ring, only for a bolt of red lightning to shoot out towards her Scythe buddy, the masked huntsmen having to move quick to dodge the bolt of energy. Ren, in response, joined his scythes together and hurled them at Jaune, the double headed buzz blade of death spinning and grinding against Jaune's sword before flying back to Ren's hands.
"Go Ren-Ren!" Nora shouted at the top of her lungs, bouncing up and down in her seat, "Go Jaune-Jaune! FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!"
"This is intense!" Yang was on the edge of her seat as they watched the battle between he two friends.
"I had no idea they were this strong." Ruby was just as excited as her sister, especially at seeing the awesome weapons the two were using.
"Come on Ren!" Jaune let out a roar, stomping his foot as his skin and armor became rocks lit by veins of magma, "Let's turn this up a notch!"
"Gladly." Ren rolled forward, swinging his arm as glowing skeleton arms appeared swinging an even bigger scythe at Jaune who tanked the blow with his stone skin.
"Enough!" Goodwitch called out as everyone looked up at the screen and saw that ten minutes had passed, both of them still with most of their auras. "Both combatants still have their auras in the green, so this match is a draw." Jaune turned off his stone skin before he and Ren laughed and began heading back up the steps.
"GUYS!" Nora tackle hugs the duo as they return, "That was awesome!"
"Seriously, that semblance was awesome." Yang grinned as she bumped her fist against Jaune's armored shoulder.
"Stoneskin is a useful skill." Jaune nods, sharing a weird knowing glance with Ren at that. Ignoring some guy named Cardin was called forward and challenged someone else named Dove.
"Still, you showed your colors Ren" Yang smirked, "Challenging Jaune so I couldn't fight you? Chicken."
"Don't worry Yang, I still have more than enough aura to kick your ass." Jaune gave her a patronizing pat to the shoulder, "Or Ren could. I can take any hit you can dish out, he would just dance around your slow widdle punches." The last part was teasing as Yang got pissed and started trying to choke out a laughing Jaune while Ruby was just left sighing.
"It's like dealing with Toddlers." She despaired with a cackling Nora while Jaune and Ren took turns taunting Yang.