Mason glared at Sandra, ignoring the blood flowing from the small gashes and cuts all across his body. They were hiding in a small cave, far from the place where Jake had left them, after fleeing from Hydracii for a day and a night.

"You two have to stop fighting!" Emma's croaked, trying to stop her crying as she held onto Willson's hand. The soldier looked down at her with his reptilian eyes, giving her small shoulder a soft squeeze.

"She is right, Sarge. O'Reilly isn't getting any better and why Tergin hasn't croaked yet is beyond me. But they both need us, all of us." When Sandra ignored him, Willson tried again, staring at Mason this time.

"Listen, boy. I know you love your friend and want to help him, but running or swimming out there without any plan and without even knowing where he is is suicide. " Mason shook his head, staring at Willson for a moment.

"Think for a moment! Together we are a bigger target, easier to spot. What if Jake finds us while you are out there being a hero?" While Willson tried to talk some sense into Mason, Emma moved towards the towering Kobold, grabbing his golden fist.

Mason shivered at the touch, before unclenching his fingers and looking at the little girl.

"Please, you can't leave me too!" As she pleaded with him, her tears, thicker than the water, slid from her eyes and floated up. Mason followed them before closing his eyes. He had promised Jake he would always be there for him, and now what was he supposed to do? Within the few days since their arrival in this new world, they had been separated twice already! And both times this infernal sea! Feeling Emma squeeze his hand as hard as she could, he lowered his head. Jake would never forgive him if he just left her here, or got her killed in some fool gambit. He relaxed and knelt beside her, giving her a quick hug.

"You are making the right choice, and the fact it is so hard on you only shows what a great friend you are." Willson's visibly relaxed before looking at Sandra. "Serge, we need to find that island before the supply of plants runs out. Do you still know the way?"

From the side, Mason looked at the soldier. Something had changed about him recently, and he only noticed it now. He wasn't as subservient as he was at the start. Was it because of the physical change, or because they were in the water? He had no idea, but he saw from the narrowing of her eyes that Sandra knew it too. The cut and dry relationship between her and the soldiers were changing, and soon Wilson would probably not just do as she said anymore.

-- One week later --

Staring at his prey, Jake held his breath before shooting through the water. The dark grey fish felt something was wrong and tried to flee inside a small hole, but he was too late. Jake's nails pierced through the silvery flesh, causing blood to ooze out, tinging the water red.

Grabbing the bleeding fish, Jake hovered to the sandy sea bed and used his nails to gut the fish in a swift, practiced manner. As soon as he got to the white pearlescent flesh, he stuffed it in his mouth, chewing with relish. Swimming as he did, burned a ton of calories, and although the seawater provided him with energy, it wasn't nutritious.

The hand length fish was gone all too soon, and he looked around for more of the same. He was incredibly deep in the sea, and the water was dark and cold. Not that this posed any problems to him. So far, he had not gotten cold, and there was plenty of light from the luminescent algae and coral. A host of colorful fish roamed around, but he knew better now. Those would just give him a stomach ache.

"No more underwater diarrhea... I would rather starve, " Jake muttered to his growling stomach. Finding no more grey fish, he slowly swam in a random direction. He had long since given up on finding his way out and was now content just staying alive. Although he was far stronger than he had ever been, no food still meant the same thing as before, death.

Passing through a stone canyon, he saw a dark hole halfway up, a slight outcrop hiding it from anything swimming over. Reasoning that it would make a decent resting place, Jake swam to the entrance and looked inside. He had learned more than one thing he didn't know before, but he had always known you shouldn't just rush into a cave without checking for inhabitants. Remembering a previous moment, he shuddered. The cave was deep and dark and angled up a bit. Swimming inside, Jake lay down at the far side topside, giving him a clear view of anything that might enter.

"Please, no more nightmares. I need to find Mason before I turn, alright?" He pleaded, hoping something would listen, but knowing he was all on his own. Closing his eyes for the first time in days, he almost immediately dropped into a deep sleep.

--

Something was coming! Opening his eyes, he growled deep in his throat, causing his last two siblings to hide in the corner of the cave. They were so small compared to him! Looking at the entrance, he saw a shadow loomed over it before a large eye looked inside. No, not him! He wasn't strong enough to fight that one. How had he found them?

Hearing the soft and scared keening of his siblings, he panicked. He could flee if he could not win a fight, but he could flee the other but not while carrying the others. A soft sensation came, and then he felt the familiar presence in his mind. Help us! Please! He didn't know how he did it, but he voiced his plea, but it was weird. It felt like he was crying to himself, or was someone else crying to him. What was going on? His mind began descending into chaos, and he barely noticed the large head move inside the cave staring at him.

Jake woke up with a shock, his body tout as all his muscles were cramping. An incredible pain coursed through him, and he felt as if he was in two places at the same time. He could see the cave around him, dark and empty, and at the same time the head, now only meters away, snarling and with razor-sharp fangs. In the empty cave, the walls were slowly becoming alight, and a cloud of dust seemed to rise in the water. The pain was now so bad that he wished he would just die, and he felt his mind fracture. He needed to flee, escape hide, fight, ANYTHING!

Then he felt a pull, ever so slightly, and a promise of relief. Without hesitation, the remnants of Jake's consciousness rushed towards the pull.

A wave of memories, emotions, and experience crashed into him as he felt an unfamiliar yet familiar body cry out at him. Wait, where were that dust and light coming from? No, there was that predator lizard. It was in here! Pushing the chaos in his head away, Jake stood up on all four, banging his head against the ceiling, causing him to growl in anger. Who did that? Swirling his head around, he saw two yellow eyes look at him. The belonged to the predator that was out for his siblings! Wait.. wasn't he an only child? Not now!

Stepping forward, he felt his powerful limbs course with energy, and at the same time, he was hungry, so incredibly hungry. How had he not noticed this? The lizard hissed, and finally, the blurriness around his vision dissipated. It was only half his size and attempting to back up out of the cave. Seeing the weakness, Jake pounced. He moved so fast he barreled into the other, knocking it out of the cave and onto the black basalt rock surrounding the cave.

Pressing his claws on the struggling torso, Jake felt it slip away, and angry now he roared at it. The thing froze for a second, and with a vicious bite, Jake ripped out the unprotected throat, causing blood to spurt everywhere. Tasting the hot liquid, he swallowed it, feeling the hunger flare up more, and he ripped a mouth full of flesh from the bleeding wound. Without chewing, he swallowed the meat, almost instantly feeling a wave of energy course through him as his body grew an inch.

A soft noise came from behind him, and he saw two small wingless serpents look at him from the entrance. He could feel their uncertainty and slight fear, and he understood. He wasn't the same as he was moments before, not the way he looked nor the thing he was. But he felt the warm, protective feeling, a remnant of his other half, and he growled reassuringly deep in his throat. It was all the two needed, and starving from the days hiding in the cave, they rushed out of the cave and began ripping into the bleeding carcass.