Dec 5, 2017
Jin/Lily/Ren
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Jin/Lily/Ren
Sirens: The Queens of the Seas Won’t you listen to their song?
Concept from @princessstream and her story Corrupt Forest.
Jin x Ren Aesthetic
The aestheic itself isn’t mine, but was made by a close friend and fan! Lines taken from a fanfic shared only between me and some friends of mine.
Both characters are from a story of mine called Corrupt Forest, that's posted both on this Tumblr, Penana, and Fictionpress.com.
Chapter 9: A Magical Night: Part 3
It felt like Jin had been walking through the same area countless times. This forest could be a maze at times, but it usually had landmarks here and there. Here, wherever ‘here’ was, there was no difference in the scenery that told if he was making any progress. It must be another pixie illusion. He was growing too tired to even yell in frustration like he had wanted to. He wanted nothing more than to wake up back at camp. To sigh in relief after finding out that all this headache-inducing irritation was just another nightmare. To work on reinforcing defenses with Anubis, Ryn and… Leliana.
He had forgotten that they were even supposed to be looking for her. How long had he been walking? The pixie said she was with the corrupted assassin, could he have…killed her by now?
Jin quickly shook the thought away. Making sure that he stopped walking in circles was his top priority. He could find his way back to the others faster and much more easily if he could fly, but his wings were still ‘hilariously small’, and couldn’t lift him at all. Thankfully, his claws were still in working order. After slashing through thin trees and vines, he finally found himself in another clearing. He barely had a chance to sigh in relief before he realized that it was the same clearing he had been in to begin with.
“Lost?”
The voice sounded mature and elegant, with the same echoing voice that all corrupts had. He nearly jumped up in surprise when he realized that there was a pixie on his shoulder. It wasn’t the boyish-looking one though, it wore a robe-like dress made of twigs, and curly hair almost as long as it was tall. He distinctly remembered it as being just as childish and annoying as it’s siblings, so why did it seem so calm now? He looked at it with narrowed eyes.
“What do you want now? Your… brother or whatever it is, already showed me my 'fated future’, so why don’t you all ju-!” Jin was cut off as the pixie flew in front of him, and touched a clawed finger to his forehead.
====================================
Images flashed before his eyes, memories he didn’t remember having started to play in his head.
“W-What are you doing? What’s gotten into you?” Leliana asked, taking slow steps away from him.
“Leliana?” Jin muttered under his breath in reality.
Jin tried to look around in the illusion, as if he was really there. It being in the format of a memory, he couldn’t see anymore than where he was looking when it took place. Except it hadn’t taken place yet…so maybe it was another look into the future? Point is, he couldn’t see where he was, as he was glaring at the cowering human female. He was apparently seeing it through his future self’s eyes? It all hurt his brain to think too much about.
“Power, plain and simple.” Jin replied. “You being a full human, you could never understand how good it feels to have the powers of a demigod. To have not only one, but two species under my control, as well as the best parts of both of them. Being the way I am, I’m more powerful than a corrupt or a human.”
The words weren’t his own, but he could feel his mouth moving to say them. Could feel the passion behind them as he raised his clawed hand, no, as the 'future Jin’ raised his clawed hand. Then, he could feel the disdain as he stared at the vision of Leliana. She seemed so much more submissive than he remembered her being, so much more…inferior to him.
“But, that doesn’t mean that you never could if you…enhanced yourself.”
“…What?” The girl said.
“Back when my mother ran things, there was no way to perfectly combine human and corrupt DNA. I was a freak of nature, or as I like to think, born more superior than the average human.”
He started to pace around her, narrowing his eyes as he examined her from head to toe. Without stopping, he continued his speech.
“But, ever since I took over, I’ve been working on something that would solve that problem. An injection just diluted enough that it won’t fully corrupt even the weakest human. Instead, it would turn them into something much more useful, superior, power-”
Jin paused in his monologue to catch a punch Leliana had thrown at him. He gave an amused smirk at the attempt, before digging his claws into her closed fist. She let out a soundless squeak that would’ve been a scream if she hadn’t been feeling so weak.
“You’re right, I never was a fan of words. Always been a man of action.” he said, not letting go of her, now bleeding, hand. “I guess this means that you aren’t interested in being my halfling queen?”
“N…Ngh…N-Never!” she yelled out.
Jin gave a sigh, with a shake of his head. “Then, I suppose it’s time to do what I should’ve done years ago.” he growled.
It went by so fast, Jin wasn’t completely sure his strike hit it’s target, until he saw the blood run down from the human woman’s throat. She gasped and coughed up blood, finally falling to the ground once he let go of her hand. He figured he’d feel something from her death, satisfaction, pride that one more obstacle was out of his way, maybe even disappointment over the loss of a potential bride. But, he felt nothing as he walked away from her.
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Jin hadn’t realized he was grinding his teeth, or that his fists were clenched so hard his knuckles were turning white, until the illusion was over. The pixie was still fluttering in front of his face, it’s expression still eerily calm for a pixie corrupt. It didn’t even flinch when he wrapped his fist around it.
“Why would you show me that? What was that?” Jin demanded.
“I was only showing you what would happen, if you were to continue down this path.” the pixie answered.
“What are you talking abou-”
Another tap on the forehead, and false memories filled his mind again.
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This time, he knew exactly where he was. He was sitting on the large throne that overlooked the main room of the corrupt castle. There were two lines of corrupts, one to the left and right, waiting in silence. Before long, two more corrupts burst through the double doors of the throne room, dragging another along with them. It was thrown roughly onto the ground, before it got to it’s feet, breathing hard. It was Anubis. He may have been bleeding, but since corrupted blood is black, it was nearly impossible to tell against Anubis’ dark fur.
“Long time, no see, buddy!” Jin greeted, a mock-joyful smile plastered on his face. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.” he added, his sarcastic grin quickly turning into a cold scowl.
“What… What do you…want from me, Jin?” Anubis panted, sending a piercing glare towards Jin.
“It’s. The. Corrupted. King!” he replied.
On the last word, Jin’s vision turned bright purple, and he raised a glowing hand up, before swiftly slashing it back down. Anubis was surrounded in a purple aura, and before he could realize what was happening, he was brought down to his knees in a kneeling position.
“What…was that?” Jin found himself saying in reality. Had he inherited his mother’s magic? No. He didn’t care. This wasn’t him, and it would never be him.
Anubis growled as he tried to resist the magic aura, to no avail. Jin got up from the throne, stepping towards Anubis, still acting as if he was greeting a friend. When he released Anubis from the aura, he didn’t so much as flinch when Anubis attempted to leap at him. Mostly because as soon as he tried, the two guards that dragged him into the room held him down.
“Anubis, Anubis…” Jin sighed, shaking his head. “Resorting to recklessly throwing yourself at opponents much stronger than you? No wonder we finally got our hands on you.”
“You 'got your hands on me’, because you threatened to kill Tak if I didn’t show myself.” Anubis said, with a scowl.
“Who…?” Jin muttered in reality.
“Stop talking! You’re disrupting the illusion.” the pixie snapped.
“Tak?” Jin had a confused expression for a split second, before smirking in his realization. “Ah yes, that other corrupt you’re so fond of. They’re fine. Living comfortably deep in my dungeons. I wonder if I remembered to send food to the cell… Ah, they could probably go another week. That’s not what I brought you here for anyway. It occurred to me that you could be a threat to me.”
“How? You’ve already proven how easily you can capture me. How could I be a threat to you?” Anubis asked.
“Don’t play dumb. I know about the little rebellion you’ve been planning along with our old friends ever since Leliana fell by my hand. Can’t risk you or any of the others being a hero, now can I?” Jin said, as he gently grabbed both sides of Anubis’ head, digging his claws in enough to draw blood. “With that said, goodbye.”
His grip tightened, and with a strong pull upwards while simultaneously digging his claws further into the corrupts skull, a satisfying, sickly, wet snap was heard. The corrupt’s body fell limp to the ground, and Jin nonchalantly tossed Anubis’ head over his shoulder, allowing two rat-like corrupts to feast on it.
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A wave of nausea fell over Jin, and he fought to not puke where he stood. He reached out to grab the pixie, which fluttered just out of his reach each time.
“Tell me why you’re showing me this!” Jin demanded.
“Still don’t understand? This is why corrupted royalty can never have allies. Especially not humans and rouge corrupts. In the end, you will succumb to the power that comes with being the Corrupted King after defeating your mother. In the end, you will kill all you’ve come to know as your 'friends’. The redheaded girl, the corrupt rogue, the dark-haired girl, and a few more that I’d prefer not to spoil the surprise about. They will all fall under your superior power.” the pixie replied. The obnoxious, fang exposing grin that the pixies were known for was spread on it’s face.
With a loud roar, Jin tried to claw at the pixie in frustration. Something knocked him to the ground, it felt like a strong wind. He hit the ground hard, and found himself unable to get back up. The pixie tauntingly smiled down at his face. He was just about to test if he could blow the thing away with his breath, when he heard a familiar voice.
“…Jin? W-Why…?”
He looked up, his body still pressed against the ground, and his eyes widened in horror. Leliana, Anubis, even Ryn, whose death he hadn’t witnessed, were standing there in front of him. But, they weren’t as he remembered them. Leliana had four long scars across her throat where he had ripped it out. Anubis’s head was crudely sewn back on to his body. Ryn, however, was the most haunting. He didn’t see him kill her, because he hadn’t killed her. Her torso had entire chunks bitten out of it. He guessed that other corrupts had gotten to her, probably before he even turned evil.
He wanted to scream, to swear loudly, to have some kind of guilt-ridden reaction, but he couldn’t find the energy to do any of it, a different energy fueled him. The energy that allowed him to fight against the invisible chains keeping him on the ground. The adrenaline that allowed him to give an inhuman roar as he lunged at the illusions.
“You…are not…real!” Jin panted, trying to attack them, but his claws only caught air. “You’re NOT them!”
The illusions were like water, only rippling when his claws did hit their mark. Their hurt expressions only filled him with more rage.
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“I hear something coming from the east path.” Anubis announced.
“Do you think it might be Jin?” Leliana asked.
“Most likely, and it sounds as if he’s in danger.”
That’s all that the trio needed to start running down the right pathway. Ren still going unnoticed as he silently followed after them.
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Jin’s anger was the only thing keeping him from growing tired as he hopelessly slashed at the illusions. He didn’t care that none of what he was doing was affecting them. He wanted them to go away. To stop impersonating his teammates. He didn’t even notice the pixies watching him from the trees.
“This is bo-ring!” The boyish pixie groaned.
“Couldn’t you have made illusions that fight back?” The one in the dress sighed.
“Things are about to get much more interesting, my siblings.” The robed pixie replied.
As if on cue, Leliana, Ryn, and Anubis burst into the clearing. The pixies collectively grinned at each other, before turning into black fog. Jin’s blind rage turned to confusion. The illusions had disappeared. Had he defeated them?
No, they hadn’t disappeared, just changed. They didn’t have any wounds anymore, so they looked even more like his allies. He didn’t care, he wouldn’t go any easier on them for making him feel so damn guilty. He pounced at the one that looked like Leliana first.
The illusion stood there, stunned. The other two grabbed him, holding him down and pinning him to the ground. He didn’t know they could fight back. They looked down at him in concern, and the one that looked like Ryn may have said something, but his mind was too far away to hear it. He dug his claws into the two of them, forcing them to let him go.
'Ryn’ said something more, her hands up as if trying to calm him. He incapacitated her with a roundhouse kick, making her fall to the ground with a bruise quickly forming on her head. 'Anubis’ slashed at his back, he yelled in pain, swiftly turned, and drew his claws across the illusions eyes. It screamed out, stumbling back and leaving itself wide open for a hard punch from Jin, causing it to drop to the ground as well.
The last one, 'Leliana’ was shaking as she tried to pull out her sword. Jin rushed towards her, but was hit from behind with a powerful kick from above. He wobbled as he tried to stand, looking over at his attacker. It was the corrupted assassin from before. Before Jin could ask what he was doing here, or even try to attack him, he was picked up and lifted into the air, courtesy of the assassin’s wings. He planned to drop Jin from high up.
Before he let them get too high, Jin elbowed the corrupt’s stomach, making him loosen his grip on him. Jin fell to the ground, thankful that his bone structure was stronger than a human’s. As the assassin descended back towards him, Jin threw a high kick up, knocking the corrupt away with relative ease. He brought his attention back to the Leliana clone, with a vicious growl he tackled her to the ground.
She looked up at him with terrified, tear-filled eyes. The gray, almost silver irises taunted him. Reminded him of the real Leliana. Without another second of hesitation, he brought a claw down, digging for his target, and ignoring her screams and the sick, wet sound as he pulled out his prize. 'Leliana’ fainted as he stood. He thought it was for the best, he couldn’t stand to hear her voice coming from a copy.
Jin threw back his head and called out, “Where are they, pixies? Why waste my time with mockeries?!”
All three appeared on his shoulders, grinning obnoxiously. The boyish one spoke first. “How do humans say it? They’re…right under your nose.”
Jin froze up, his mind finally clearing of the bloodlust that previously ran through it. He couldn’t will himself to look down. To look at what he had done. His shaky hand dropped the eyeball. The last thing he heard before passing out was the shrill, sadistic laughter of the pixies.
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TO BE CONTINUED
A picture of one of Jin's wings done by a friend of mine, Ku!
Ryn Aesthetic
Face claims for Jin(Ben Barnes) and Leliana(Karen Gillan) respectively!
Chapter 8: A Magical Night Part 2
Leliana carefully stepped around the thorns protecting Ren's cave. By some miracle, he hadn't noticed her leave, as he was preoccupied with shuffling through his storage. She'd taken one of the blades he had along with his other supplies, no doubt taken from raids of human homes, which was most likely what he was looking for. It was much sharper and more cutting efficient than her machete, but she decided against using it for just slicing vines. She was starting to get doubts about traveling so far from, what Ren considered, safety. She hadn't had any time to practice her sword skill since she ran away from camp, and who knows what kind of corrupted beasts she could run into. It was still relatively light out, so most of the more dangerous corrupts wouldn't be out yet. However, it seeming to be around noon, so she didn't have much time to stay at Ren's base, if she planned to make it back to camp. Still, every time she thought she heard a twig snap, leaves rustle, or the ground shake under her, she froze in fear. She didn't have the right instincts for this place, and if it wasn't for the team, she doubts she would have made it this far. A small part of her wished she could be back in her bedroom, waking up to find out this was all a bad dream. But, then that was ruined by the memory of her town being invaded, and completely destroyed by the monsters she was hiding from. She tried not to think about that night, mostly because it was all a blur. But, every once in a while, she ends up crying herself to sleep thinking about where her father must be now. Was he killed by the army, or worse, turned into one of them? Thoughts like that almost sent the tears flooding back. She finally managed to get back to the clearing Ren had found her in. She thought about heading back to camp as soon as she left Ren's cave, but she wasn't sure what to say to everyone when she returned. The image of Jin curled up on the ground of his tent in pain crawled back into her mind. She'd be too ashamed to look him in the eyes after leaving him like that. She took a deep breath, before she started walking in the direction of the camp. She felt claws dig deep into her shoulder, her scream of pain was muffled by another hand covering her mouth. "Just what do you think you're doing with this?" Ren asked calmly. He grabbed the sword from her hand. Leliana managed to struggle out of his grip, stumbling forward. She reached for her machete hilt out of pure instinct, before remembering that she left it in camp. "Your plan to use me as bait isn't working!" she said. "The others are probably more concerned with more important things... S-So there's no point in keeping me with you!" "Perhaps." he replied, without a flinch. "But, if all else fails, I could always make an example of you. Put a blade through your head and pin you to a tree? Surely, the halfling prince would be shaken to see his girlfriend killed by his mother's loyal assassin." "Y-You wouldn't kill me, if anything that would just give him more of an excuse to kill you in turn. Also, I'm not his girlfriend!" "My point being, him being bloodthirsty is exactly what we need. The prince must be as rage-fueled as possible when he challenges the queen. A broken mind, and twisted morals makes him an easier target for our true monarch. If I have to kill you and all of the little friends he makes between then and now, so be it." Despite her unease at his words, Leliana opened her mouth to say something, anything, she could to stall further. Then, a scream was heard in the distance, causing them both to look toward the direction it came from. It sounded familiar. Without thinking, Leliana dashed towards it, focusing only on following it, barely noticing that Ren was following close behind. ==================================== Ryn covered her nose and mouth, trying not to breathe in the black smoke that surrounded her. One minute she was next to Anubis and Jin, the next she was transported to a part of the forest that was foreign to her. The fog got thicker, threatening to fill her lungs if she so much as exposed a nostril to it. The trees and grass warped around her, before the fog started to obscure her vision. The fog converted into heavy smoke, and she saw where she's been transported to. A burning house with debris falling from the roof. She frantically looked around for an exit, and instead her eyes set on two dead bodies crushed under fallen support beams. Their faces were charred by the flames, as if they were already decaying. Despite the dry, hot air, her eyes were watering, and she passed it off as the smoke getting in her eyes. She still needed to find an exit. The living room of the house had a front and back door, the front door was on fire and the back was blocked by more debris. She ran upstairs to look for another option. Black, demonic creatures blocked her way, and she covered her mouth to prevent herself from screaming. Their attention was on something in the corner of the hallway, and the house was a few minutes away from completely collapsing. She had no time to think, she had to get pass them. She ran by them, trying to get to her room. There was a window there, and it wouldn't be too big of a jump. Just as she got to her door, she made the mistake of looking back at what the creatures had been paying attention to. It was her brother, Ren, slumped over on the floor. The beasts moved away, prepared to make their exit. She quickly moved through her room and opened the window, despite how much it burned her hands. She crawled out of it, refusing to think too much about how she'd land. She fell through it, the ground meeting her in a matter of seconds. She let out a loud scream. The impact wasn't as hard as she expected, it was more like she'd just fallen over onto the ground. The burning house was gone, and suddenly she was back in the forest. The black mist was gone, and the illusion was over. It had all felt so real, but in reality, she hadn't moved an inch. ==================================== "Ryn!" She stood up once she heard the familiar voice. Leliana rushed out from seemingly nowhere, to meet her with a hug. Ryn was still too dazed to hug back. "Lily? What are you doing here? Where were you?" Ryn asked. "It's a long story, but, all that's important is I'm here and ready to head back to camp as soon as possible!" Leliana replied. "Where are Jin and Anubis?" "I-I don't know. All I remember is that there were small pixie corrupts, and then a black fog, and then I was in a burning house, and now I'm here..." Ryn replied. Ryn seemed to look through Leliana, into the trees behind her. Leliana turned around to see what'd caught her attention. Ren had caught up to her. Leliana stood in front of Ryn in an attempt to shield her, but Ryn stepped around her, placing an arm on her shoulder to signal it was okay. For a minute, the assassin and the girl stared at each other, his was a of disdain and confusion, while hers was of deep concentration as if she'd seen him before all this. A strange familiarity. Leliana stayed to the side as the two looked themselves up and down, not being able to help but think they looked awfully simular. Then, an inhuman shriek snapped them all out of their thoughts. Ren looked up, noticing the signs of a corrupted pixie's magic. A huge tornado-like swirl of black fog extended towards the sky in the distance. The girls followed his gaze, Ryn's skin turning even paler. "That's the illusionary vortex the pixies put me inside." she said, her voice barely above a whisper. She turned to Leliana with a grim expression. "Someone else is in trouble, and judging by the voice, it sounds like another corrupt." "It must be Anubis, come on!" Leliana said, grabbing Ryn's hand and running towards where the black fog started. ==================================== "He went this way!" Anubis' heartbeat was pounding in his ears, yet he could still hear the flock of vulture-peacocks overhead. His enhanced senses allowed him to run through the dark mansion courtyard with ease. Unfortunately, it also made him very easy to spot, with practically no cover for him to hide himself in. If he could just get to the woodlands that surrounded the queen's castle, he'd be more in his element. The birds after him had attention spans as small as their beady eyes. If he could only find a way to distract them... He remembered this part of the yard well. This was where he hid the dead squirrel, the one that he would have thrown and effectively caused the scatterbrained flock to fight over. It was supposed to be the simple yet risky act that would end up being the key to his escape from them. But, there was no dead animal anywhere near, and the woods seemed to be getting further away the faster he went towards them. He dared to look back, and somehow the small flock had multiplied in number, turning the night sky itself black with their dark feathers. It wasn't just them chasing him anymore either. More of the queen's guards burst out of nowhere, all much larger and faster than him. This wasn't how he had planned his escape to go. It was all so sudden when it happened. The crowd of guards all leapt on him at once, threatening to rip him apart for daring to disobey their queen, for trying to run away from being a part of her reign. But suddenly they stopped. As the crowd dispersed from around him, he saw the queen tower over him. Her expression was a deep scowl, and she lifted her hand up, a purple glow surrounding it and her blank eyes. With just a few hand gestures, the queen created a portal in front of them. It was an almost mesmerizing swirl of multiple shades of purple. She looked down at him. "Anubis, are you aware of what we do to puny corrupts that try to rebel against their monarch?" she said, a disturbing face-splitting smile taking over her face. Anubis kept his face as stoic as possible. "Rebellious or misbehaving corrupts get sent to...the forest. But, frankly? I believe it'd be a worse punishment to have to be sent to your bedroom every night, my queen. I believe that would break any poor corrupt into obedience." Snorts and chuckles rose from some of the corrupts still watching the scene, but they instantly stopped with a glare from the queen. Without another word to Anubis, she turned towards the portal with twisted joy on her face. "CORRUPT FOREST." she demanded. The portal was now complete, showing a clear birds-eye view of the forest. The corrupts around her dug their claws, talons, and fangs into the ground, as the strong suction of the portal started to pull Anubis in. He gritted his teeth as he attempted to fight against it, but a purple aura appeared around him, pulling him into the portal while making it impossible to thrash or struggle against it. As he was thrown into the vortex, he heard the queen's last words before everything started to fade away. "Have fun in hell." her voice echoed. ==================================== "...Anubis...Anubis, can you hear us?" Leliana asked. Anubis jerked up, standing up and quickly taking a defensive stance. Leliana and Run both stepped back in surprise, and he gave a sigh of relief. "Are you okay?" Ryn asked. "Never been better." he replied, searching the area around him. "Where's Jin?" "We don't know. We figured you would." "Wherever he is, he have to find him fast, before... Gah!" Leliana yelled out as she felt something crawl up her back. It went from her back to sitting comfortably on her shoulder, wrapping itself in her curly, red hair. The pixie adjusted it's dress, before playfully kicking it's feet as it started talking. "You're a new one! Are you the girlfriend of the princeling?" it teased. "The princeling... You mean Jin? You know where Jin is?" Leliana said. She grabbed the pixie from her shoulder and held it on her flat palm. "Are you the one who did all this?" "Is that what he calls himself now? Well, you've got one thing in common, you both ask way too many questions!" it said. "But, no. While I play a big part in this, It's me and my siblings together who are causing all this! Teamwork conquers all, and all that! As for where the prince-ling is, well that's a more complex answer." "What do you mean?" "By now, one of my siblings is having a lot of fun with him! By the end, he'll either be the perfect halfling weapon against humanity...or broken beyond repair and be a shell of his former self. Either way it's a win-win, right?" it giggled. Leliana grew impatient, curling her palm into a fist and bringing the pixie close to her frustrated face. Her voice was harsh, and angry. "Take us to him, now." she growled. The pixie just gave a shrill chuckle. "Not sure if you want that, but... It'll at least be entertaining to watch! Let's go!" In a poof, the pixie turned into a small black mist, slipping through Leliana's fingers and reappearing in front of the three. "Follow me!" It said, before flying off. Ren watched as the three took off after the pixie, moving through the branches of the tangled trees as he followed close behind. The pixie could be right. Maybe this would be entertaining to watch. TO BE CONTINUED