Jet held his girlfriend in a strong grip as she struggled against his merciless tickling. This was too freaking fun!
'Jet, watch out!' Izzet warned. 'Yang incoming!'
Jet immediately let go of Ruby and dived under, but not quick enough to avoid Yang, who lifted him out of the water and up into air!
"Gotcha, you little pest!" Yang yelled, before hurling him back. He hit the middle of the pool with a splash and went under again. As he emerged, he saw Lilac receive the same treatment, and Blake continued moving towards Izzet.
He had to take Yang out. She was clearly the strongest while he wasn't using his godly abilities. There again…
He raised his arm and willed a sphere of water to form. Water surged up his arm from the lake to the growing sphere until it was the size of a basket ball. He then willed it to grow cold for a bit, then waited until Yang, who was now chasing Lilac again, was within range.
As soon as he could, he fired it, nailing Yang straight in the chest.
"Ahh!" she shrieked as the chilling water covered her upper body. Jet immediately capitalised on her distraction and dived again, heading straight for her. He swam past the feet of Izzet and Blake in the middle of some kind of duel, homing in on his target; Yang's legs. A brush next to him told him Lilac was next to him, also wanting some vengeance.
They reached Yang's legs, and Jet felt his lungs' call for oxygen, but he heeded them not for the time being.
'On three.' he sent to Lilac, who nodded. They moved to grab Yang, who for some reason was staying still. 'One, two, THREE!'
They each grabbed a muscly yet smooth leg and put their own on the bottom, before kicking and surging upward, flipping Yang upside down in the process. Job done, both surged away, Lilac going to help Izzet. Jet searched for Ruby, yet looking around, she wasn't anywhere. Where was-
A big splash from behind him followed by two feminine arms wrapping themselves around him. Fingers went straight for his armpits, and Jet, while not as ticklish as his girlfriend, struggled to keep his composure. He blasted her off him with the Red Pulse and spun around, a devilish grin on his face.
"No fair." Ruby whined as she moved back a little, a pouting look.
Suddenly, a pair of strong arms grabbed him from behind. MUCH stronger. Yang lifted him out of the water, and he used the red pulse again, but without his other powers, it was weak enough for Yang to resist.
"This one doesn't play fair, sis." Yang said as Jet struggled to break loose. He held his hand out in front of him, conjuring the sphere of water again. "Not this time!" she exclaimed, and fell backwards, dunking Jet underwater in the process and causing him to lose his concentration on the power.
Breaking free, he swam up to the surface and stole several breaths before going under again. He noticed Ruby's eyes on him as he did so, and knew his girlfriend would be determined not to be caught by him again. Jet swiftly swam behind her. She was crouched, knees bent, ready to either hit him or dive away. Hm. Jet eyed her lower regions as he considered a particularly nasty tactic which he knew would only work in this scenario. She had a pair of black panties on. That was good.
He reached in-between her legs and ran a hand down her stomach to her crotch and then released, before pulling back his hand very quickly. Sure enough, Ruby grabbed in front of her with a shiver, and Jet capitalised by shooting up and wrapping his arms around her with a laugh.
"Checkmate." Jet said as he locked his arms, this time making sure Ruby wouldn't get away. To his surprise, she didn't resist, but hung limply in his arms. "Tired?" he asked.
"Yeah." Ruby replied. "That was a jerk move."
"Misdirection and subterfuge are the finer points of any trickster." Jet replied, turning his lock into a hug. "Especially if they're as cunning as I am."
"What and what?" Ruby asked, confusedly.
"Never mind." Jet sighed. He looked past Ruby to see Yang running at them, Blake still entangled with Izzet. 'Lilac!' he called.
'Already there.' came the telepathic reply, and Yang went down, tripped by Lilac, who was under the water. 'We'll hold them off for you. LIJN will have victory!'
"You were talking to them using telepathy." Ruby said, turning and wrapping her arms and legs around him. "That's why you were so silent."
"Of course." Jet replied. They kissed, their bare bodies pressed against one another briefly, before they broke apart.
"I think we rest after this, then we get moving." Ruby said. Jet nodded in agreement, then leant on the side of the wall, Ruby remaining in his arms, relaxing with him in the hot spring he had created with his own hands.
About half an hour later, Jet hauled himself out of the water and ignited his flame aura, immediately drying himself off. Ruby was still within sight, though the rest of the group was hidden within the steam.
"Has anyone told you how sexy and strong you look?" Ruby asked from behind him. He turned to see Ruby with her arms crossed around the side and deactivated his aura.
"The training and whatnot has done wonders for me, yes." Jet replied, putting on a pair of boxers from his backpack. "Though I think my heart kinda drains from it."
"No." Ruby contradicted, as he put a long sleeve black shirt on and reached for his jeans. "It adds a little toughness to me."
"Really?" Jet said, considering her. Perhaps the piece of metal did.
As he thought about it, something changed.
His vision became red tinged, crimson cracks across his view. His head pounded. His blood thickened in his own veins.
Kill them. Slay them. Burn them. Tear them.
Jet clutched his head and bowed. What was this?
Feed on them. Prey on them. Rend them all.
There was a voice in his head? What?
"What's… Jet?" Ruby asked, but Jet only made out those two words. He fell against the snow and shut his eyes, but that only served to make the voices louder.
Kill them bite them eat them peel them beat them KILL THEM ALL!
Jet resisted this new compulsion to slay everything in sight as he opened his eyes. Ruby and Yang were both in his view. Oh, how he wanted to kill them. Taste their blood. See their worried faces as he tore them limb from limb with his own hands!
'No, stop it!' Jet thought, trying desperately to resist. Black aura was seeping off him like a virile gas. His eyes were itchy, the muscles in his arms deadening. No! He was going to succumb!
And yet even as Jet steeled himself for complete possession, the urges stopped, his sight returning to normal. There was a stabbing pain across his left arm, threading through his fingers like a barbed needle through his flesh.
"Jet! Jet!" Ruby yelled, getting his attention. The noise was piercing.
"Quiet!" Jet hissed. "I'm okay. I'm… okay."
He took deep breaths, the pain in his arm going away, but something felt different. Stronger… and yet lighter.
"Oh my god, Jet… your left arm." Yang said, with a worried look on her face. Confused, Jet raised it and gasped with shock.
He was looking at an arm covered with short, black fur. A bestial parody of a hand was on the end, and each digit of that black, muscled hand had a razor sharp claw at least an inch long.
"What?" was all Jet could say. He was speechless for one of the first times in his life.