Jet stretched his wings, his lance and shield appearing on his arms. Ruby watched as the purple flames flared up next. She had her game plan but he… but he…

Ruby looked down on the hands that were holding Crescent Rose. She was shaking. Shaking because of what was before her, in the arena.

She looked up to see a grin on their opponent's face. The aura meter beside him turned gold. Purple energy gathered around the lance and shield as the Angel of Darkness stared them down. The tense atmosphere of themselves and the crowd could be cut with a knife. Their eyes met.

He crouched and pointed his lance at her, before giving his head a slight tilt towards his left wing. Realising that he was waiting for her, she looked to her teammates. Weiss, Blake and Yang met her gaze and nodded in unison.

This was it.

"Go!" she yelled, and immediately triggered her semblance, firing bullet after bullet in her haste to reach Jet. He fired, a great beam flying in her direction, and she immediately dodged to the right as her teammates rushed him. Jet immediately thrust at Yang, knocking her flying backwards but Weiss and Blake slashed him as they passed, the flames growing as if in anger, though the aura indicator didn't fall at all.

Ruby checked Yang and saw her getting up, eyes red. Her aura was at 25% from that single hit.

"Checkmate!" she commanded, and her teammates responded, Weiss and Blake repeating their slashing attacks on Jet, watching as he swung his lance, but to no avail, as this manoeuvre was too fast for him. Unfortunately to Ruby's despair, Jet's aura did not drop from any hit, and after the tenth pass, she saw the tell-tale charging of the Red Pulse. "Stop!" Ruby yelled, and to her relief, the duo avoided a potentially lethal (in terms of this fight) blast which shook the ground.

"Sunflower!" Ruby shouted, and she ran forwards with Yang. Unlike her tactic before, this was all about damage being dealt, though she at least had partial protection from Jet's attacks in that he would hurt himself if he damaged her. As they reached each other, Jet's lance parried Crescent Rose as his shield deflected Yang's first punch, though he was forced to fall back under Yang's brutal set of punches and Ruby's deft slashes, despite not being harmed by them.

"Enough!" Jet roared, and punched the ground after blocking Yang's second set of punches. A shockwave blasted forth, blowing them up into the air and backwards, making Ruby land on her back a good 100 meters away, but Yang flew up high. Ruby noticed Jet crouch, aiming his lance at Yang, and she knew what was coming!

"Jaune, switch and stop that attack!" Ruby called desperately, as the lance glowed with sparkling energy.

"On it!" he yelled back. Weiss and Blake grabbed Yang and dragged her to safety as she hit the ground, Nora hitting Jet's lance down just as he fired, causing the beam to blast harmlessly into the dirt, before Pyrrha followed up with a brutal chain of attacks on Jet that culminated with him being knocked up into the air, before being slammed into the ground by Nora.

As her team gathered around her, she watched as Jet got up only to be punched in the face by Ren before being subjected to another series of chops and kicks before being pushed back even further.

And yet, Jet's aura didn't fall. But something was happening. His flames were steadily changing colour from purple to red. Was it possible that he wasn't completely invulnerable?

Another massive shockwave was sent by Jet punching the ground again, blowing away the team around him. He got up, but he looked far from happy now.

"Impressive so far." he said. "But I wonder how long you'll last without a leader."

He pointed at Ruby, and her heart jumped into her throat. No. Not that move.

"Lock!" Jet called, and Ruby made to run at him, but she found herself rooted to the spot as she was surrounded by that red aura. Her muscles were instantly paralyzed. Ruby couldn't move! Jet grinned, crimson red flames surrounding him now. He pointed at someone else behind Ruby as well, and she heard Jaune shout as he too was locked.

"Ruby? Ruby!" Yang yelled as she ran over, forgetting her attention on Jet, mirroring the others as they turned to their respective leaders, no-one focussing on Jet.

Ruby saw his smile reappear as he crouched and aimed in her direction, his lance gathering power behind Yang, who was grasping Ruby's arm, trying to move it. It was useless, as while Ruby could feel her touch, she had no success either, and Jet was building up more power behind her.

'Move, Yang! MOVE!' Ruby screamed desperately as Jet neared full power, judging by the way he was now shining with energy. Was that Jet's plan? Yang carried on trying to break her out of the lock, uselessly, unaware of the great danger behind her.

"Yang, watch out!" Weiss called out just as Jet fired a huge beam straight at them, the size of it comparable to a shining blue freight train, and they were on the tracks. Ruby couldn't even cower as Yang turned and yelled out in surprise before it hit them.

And yet, as Yang swore as she was knocked flying backwards by the blast, she didn't feel any damage to her aura at all. As the last flash of blue light shot past her, nothing changed. She was undamaged, unmoved, still unfeeling. Yang's aura hit zero.

Blake and Ren flew at Jet from different angles, intending to sweep past and deal damage to the red flames surrounding him. Her hope swiftly vanished as the Red Pulse charged, cleverly concealed by the flickering flames. Once again she tried to cry out, to warn them, but the lock placed on her denied this desperate action, and she was forced to watch as both of her teammates in this fight were both blasted back, annihilated in a single attack.

Another two down. Only Weiss, Pyrrha and Nora remained.

"The most skilled." Jet said aloud. "Now, I will show you true strength!"

The red flames around him grew until they were a bloody blaze surrounding her lover. Jet's eyes flashed scarlet as shadows gathered around him. Ruby had seen this before. But what was coming out? Phantom? Abyss? Venom? But as she watched, a new shape formed within the red and purple darkness before them.

"Roaring forth from the deepest reaches of hell, the one who bears homage to the cruellest darkness of them all! He who controls pain, fear, despair, and feeds on such as if they were naught but sustenance! I command you, rise, my avatar of the shadows in reverse, Phantom Mark 2; Dark Aegis!" he roared, and a new battle cry could be heard, a screeching, hatred filled bellow that sounded akin to a bird's cry were it not for the deepness of the tone.

The shadows vanished, and Ruby's jaw would have fallen open had it not been for the lock. Another suit of armour was now here.

Jet's new suit was similar to Jet Black Phantom, but it was a deep crimson colour, and looked more jagged, steel spike designs criss-crossing the chest plate and armoured leggings. There were crystals embedded into some of the designs, and a closer look revealed they were rubies. Behind Jet, attached to his back was a metallic circular wire that intertwined in a pentacle design. It was glowing with red energy.

In Jet's left hand, he held a new weapon. The spiral design of his lance was still present, but a massive two-handed great sword now resided in Jet's hands. It too glowed with a red aura, menacingly, as if searching for a victim. Ruby could practically feel the evil-ness of that sword, and yet she felt almost… pleasant, as if it was like Crescent Rose. So even his Dharc armour had been empowered.

Jet thrust the great sword into the ground, embedding it into the ground. With a keening scream of the air, as if even the air had cried out in pain, red lightning bolts flashed across the ground, causing all three of his opponents to release their own screams as they were touched by the bolts. Black aura surrounded them as Weiss, Nora and Pyrrha's aura indicators dropped to 0 in a heartbeat.

"The black sword, Soulrender." Jet commented. "Anathema to any living being. With my power, no one can stand in the way. Any enemy of mine will be crushed!"

It was over, and Ruby knew it, as he walked towards her. There was a black flash as the sword slashed her locked form, and she felt her aura hit 0, signalling the end. Another flash, and Ruby fell to the ground, unlocked but defeated.

Even as she tasted the bitter defeat, she'd known it was coming. Ruby knew about how powerful Jet was now. It was stupid to think she could beat her soulmate, even though she was connected to him through their bond. As Ruby felt herself being lifted into Jet's unarmoured arms, she wondered if there was anyone that could beat him aside from Flux.

From their office, Ozpin switched off the monitor that had displayed the fight Jet had had with teams RWBY and JNPR. Despite the fact that Jet was something that should be shunned and cast away in an instant, his power level was now at such a level that humanity could ill afford to lose him, at a time like this. While he still had control.

"Something isn't right." Goodwitch said from beside him. She'd come to watch the fight after the moment when Jet's 'aura' had turned red.

"Hmm?" Ozpin queried. While he knew that Glynda was no fool, he also remembered his promise to Jet. The Angel of Darkness would remain in the shadows with his fulcrum until their duty was done, and he would make sure of it.

"How did he get so powerful over the Christmas holidays?" Goodwitch asked. "It's like he no longer needs any skill, purely because his power enables him to defeat anyone in one attack."

"Perhaps a new semblance?" Ozpin suggested, though he knew this was a lie. "Jet does have the ability to copy others."

"What single semblance gives the user complete invulnerability and titanic strength?" Goodwitch asked, giving him her classic piercing stare over her frown.

"Nothing I know of, yet." Ozpin replied, clasping his hands in his lap. "We need to find a weakness, so that he still has the need to improve, however. Any thoughts?"

"He seems slow," Goodwitch mused, "perhaps a speed based opponent, or one with enough power to break through that fire that surrounds him. It doesn't seem invulnerable."

"True, but the main threat is his power." Ozpin reminded her. "Whoever challenges him will have to bear in mind that one hit means losing, be it from his long range attacks or the weapons he uses at close range."

"This reminds me of a phenomenon that occurred once before." Goodwitch said. "Someone gained this power practically overnight, and in fact was using the same weapons that Jet uses now."

Ozpin felt a small jolt at her words. He'd have to nip this in the bud quickly, it seemed.

"Wasn't he exiled for embracing the Grimm?" Ozpin asked. "If Jet is the same case, surely he would suffer the same fate upon getting anywhere near Vale. I don't believe Jet would do that."

"I am not accusing him of anything." Goodwitch replied sternly. "I am only noticing a connection."

"In any case, we need a way to stimulate further growth of his abilities." Ozpin said quickly. "I think I have an idea."

Jet landed in front of the dorm rooms, alone.

Purple flames still flickered around him. And they felt so good. He felt so good.

JNPR and RWBY. Two of the strongest teams around in their year.

Utterly decimated by him.

Jet smiled to himself. If truth be told, he was holding back, but this power he now held was insane! It felt so glorious! None of them stood a chance against him now. Flux, her Grimm army, none of them would survive his wrath!

He couldn't help but chuckle quietly to himself. No one could challenge him. This was evil, but he didn't care anymore. Nothing mattered now, except saving this world from Flux's machinations.

"Hey, Freak!" a familiar voice yelled from behind him. Extinguishing his flames, he turned to see the entirety of Team CRDL, just before Cardin punched him full in the face, the force of the blow knocking him down and breaking his nose with a sickening crack.

Jet got up and backed up a couple of steps as he stared down the four bullies, ignoring the pain from his shattered nose. He focussed his mind and pictured his nose being repaired. The flames flickered into life, and his nose was reformed. Jet inhaled through it to check that it was still working, before focussing on the bullies again.

"You can't do anything to me, Cardin." Jet said, with a sneer, fully flaring the violet fire that danced around him protectively. "Tell me, do you want to be sent to the hospital facilities?"

"You're just talk." Cardin replied. "I bet those bitches you fought let you win. Eight on one, what a joke."

"I'm not going to try convincing you." Jet replied. "So why come and bug me if you stand no chance against me? Did I hurt your pride a little? Maybe prove your uselessness?"

Cardin swung again at Jet, and this time, he let Cardin knock him down. The punch to the forehead caused a bruise to instantly take hold, but once again, he got up and pushed his hair aside to show his attacker the healing of the wound via the flame-aura around him.

"You're nothing but all bullshit tricks and scams." Cardin asserted, receiving 'yeahs' from his cronies. "I bet you and Ruby are actually the weakest people, and the whole thing is rigged."

Something clicked within Jet. A small flare from within.

He swung back, nailing Cardin in the gut with a significant level of power, winding him but not doing much else. As Cardin coughed, Jet stood over him.

"Never, ever insult Ruby in front of me." Jet growled, his voice darkening.

"What, is your bitch really that precious?" Cardin asked as Sky and Russel helped him up. "I could show her more in a single night than you'll ever give her. You're probably sterile too, or maybe you even have rabies, you half-breed. She should be in bed with a real man, not a mutt who barks worse than bites. You don't even try to hurt people that hurt her. Coward."

Jet felt his defences crumbling. The calmness of before was rapidly being replaced by anger.

"You know what?" Cardin continued. "I bet she needs a better man, because you can't satisfy the slut for long."

With that, he swung his fist once more at Jet, who stood perfectly still.