When Jin nodded at Emily, she returned it with a smile as the golden koi swam away with Alec for a private conversation. She squinted her eyes, still feeling suspicious towards the squid even after Jungkook had concluded that he was on their side. Her worry grew more once they were out of earshot because her gut, filled with dread, was screaming that her boyfriend was in danger. The protector could only be glad that she could at least see their silhouettes from afar.
Still, Emily couldn't stop thinking about Witch Cassandra and her warning. Watch out for the prettiest of fish. Glancing behind her, she saw Lilith staring at the area in disgust, furiously rubbing her hands together as if it was a gesture to desperately be clean, the guards still stationed around her. Suspicious.
"You think so too, huh?," Jungkook whispered as he swam next to Emily, who was still staring at Lilith with crossed arms. Facing the angel, she saw the fighting fish with a glare burning in his eyes, the white scales on his cheeks shining. It was obvious that he was angry. "Princess Lilith is something else, isn't she?"
"You make her sound like someone good. Not only is Lilith a bratty and snobby koi bitch, she's also extremely racist and is such a drama queen. I'm not even making a pun," Emily spat, still making sure that her whispers wouldn't be heard by the princess herself. She had never felt this sort of hatred towards before and it was almost questionable. Still, the sight of the koi flirting with her boyfriend made her blood boil.
"Aside from that, there's something else about her," Jungkook's words made Emily face him in confusion, eyebrow arching upwards. The light gem bearer sighed deeply and shook his head, blonde hair swaying in the water. "I can't read Lilith's mind."
Emily stared at Jungkook for a good second before glancing at Lilith, who was speaking to her seahorse guards with a low voice, the knife glistening in her belt. The protector wriggled her fingers, itching to hold some kind of weapon, but she didn't have any. She spotted Taehyung, who was speaking to the others, and noted that you and Yoongi looked pissed off the most. "So? I don't see what's wrong with that? Maybe it's a Vredeian thing."
"No, Emily. It isn't a Vredeian thing," Jungkook breathed out in despair, making Emily's gut twist since the look on the angel's face made her feel like something bad was going to happen. She glanced at Hoseok, the one with the most reliable intuition, and he looked uncomfortable as well. Oh no. "I... I can't read Helian minds."
Emily's throat closed, preventing her from speaking any further, but her thoughts still ran like gears in her head. Connecting the dots, she realized what Jungkook was trying to say and gasped loudly. Looking ahead and no longer seeing any sign of Jin and Alec, her heart started to beat rapidly. She swam forward, in an attempt to look for her boyfriend, but was stopped by two spears that crossed in front of her.
"Where do you think you're going, fighting fish?," Lilith spoke slowly, her voice more intimidating than usual. Emily turned around and saw the princess staring back at her with a dark expression, knife in hand. "It's bad enough that the golden koi is out of my line of sight. I'm not letting any of you morons do anything without me."
"And who are you to say that?," You snapped, drawing out your katana which was strapped to your back and aiming the blade towards the princess' neck, eyes squinted. The seahorse guards attempted to come to Lilith's aid but the koi princess made a gesture, telling them not to. "Why are you so concerned? I doubt that you care about any of us."
"Sky, I think you shouldn't-"
"I've figured it out, Namjoon," You spoke, cutting off Namjoon and making him flinch a bit at the seriousness in your tone. "It doesn't make sense. So far, we've seen that Hel takes the center of each kingdom before spreading out to the entirety of it. Why would they take the village before the royal city? The village has no army. The city does. It would make sense to capture the government first and then take over the whole of Tranen."
"She's right," This time, it was Taehyung who spoke. He was holding his staff, which was also strapped to his back, the tip glowing a dark purple, the color matching his eyes. "Hel does make use of everyone but they make sure to capture power first. It's impossible for them to have left the city in peace."
Emily glanced around, feeling the tension in the air grow thicker with each second that passed. The seahorse guards were standing in the middle, confused. Both you and Taehyung were glaring at Lilith, all three armed with weapons. Jimin had the same glare in his eyes but he and Namjoon were obviously torn between attacking the princess or not. Jungkook had his fists balled angrily, veins of his arms nearly popping.
"I get whatcha guys are trying to say," Yoongi slurred with a mischievous smirk, eyes turning orange as the water around him started to heat up. "This bitch and her mother lied to us."
A silence. Everyone was staring at Lilith, anticipating her next words of defense. Emily noticed that the koi princess wasn't at all flinching at the blade pressed to her neck and in those few moments, the protector realized that her best friend was right. Lilith and Queen Daphne could be Helians... or something working with the kingdom of darkness. Now that she thought about it, it made perfect sense.
"Guys, I know how you all feel towards the princess right now but I don't think we should jump into conclusions right away," Namjoon said slowly while side-eyeing Jimin, whose eyes were glowing yellow. Emily could tell that the thunder gem bearer, whose body was trembling, was stopping himself from producing electricity since they were underwater. The orca was waving his arms around, obviously trying to take control of the situation. "What Sky said is true but we have no concrete evidence that-"
"I knew that the air gem bearer was a smart one but I did not expect you to catch on quickly, guardian," Lilith hissed, her eyes glaring at your face, Namjoon becoming silenced by her words. Emily squinted her eyes as the princess started to laugh, ignoring how the blade of your sword was nearly piercing through her skin. "Hel is the superior kingdom, just like how koi is the superior species. Doesn't it make sense for us to work together?"
"Oh my God," Namjoon whispered and placed a hand on his head, obviously stunned.
"Neuken you and your brainwashed idiocy," Taehyung gritted his teeth, eyes powerfully purple, the grip on his staff tightening. "Hel is far from the superior kingdom and you koi are the same. You both just want power. And that's something you don't deserve. Something you will never get."
"Look at this eel. Such a big mouth for someone who left their own kingdom for their personal safety, even though it was their job to protect it," Taehyung flinched inwardly and Emily noticed his reaction immediately, his fury of demeanor cracking slowly. Lilith cackled loudly and you continued to press the blade to her throat but still made sure that you wouldn't accidentally kill her. If the protector would be honest, she would just let you slice the princess' throat. "Same decision, different outcome. And it looks like I got the best one. Isn't that right, Helian?"
Taehyung didn't reply, only gritted his teeth as he looked away. Emily could tell that Lilith's words stung him and she had an idea why. However, knowing it was not time to think about that, she swam forward and pushed the guards away. "What kind of royal family are you. Why would you work with Hel and go against your own people?!"
"Because we koi are the most beautiful creatures of the sea," Lilith smirked a smile that was dripping with evil before she raised a hand and pointed two fingers upwards. Emily's eyes widened when she realized this was some sort of gesture. "And not even the likes of you can change that."
Emily attempted to scream and warn everyone of what was coming but it was too late. Lilith angled her hand to the right and almost right after, there was chaos. Numerous seahorse guards swam out from the village houses, all armed with spears or knives, the sudden noise of shattering pottery making her shriek loudly. Some were even disguised as common villagers, only revealing their helmets after receiving the princess' command. Following her first instincts, the protector dove towards you, just in time before the koi princess could stab you while you were distracted.
"Em!," You screeched while staring ahead and that's when Emily realized that there was a large gash on her pink tail. Strange. She didn't even feel it.
"I'm fine, Sky," Emily nodded, concealing the now stinging pain of her tail's wound. Turning around, she saw some of the wonders struggling with the soldiers, especially those who couldn't use their powers underwater. "Can you fight?"
"Attack them! Leave no survivors!"
Due to Lilith's sudden scream and a guard charging towards you both, you weren't able to reply instantly and instead swung your sword, slashing the blade across the guard's abdomen, strange colored blood appearing before mixing with water. You turned around with a small and proud smile as Emily stared back with a cocked eyebrow. "I sure can. What about you? You don't have a weapon."
"I have these," Emily shrugged before raising both of her hands and balled them into fists, her warrior mode switching on in her head. Closing her eyes, she carefully observed her surroundings. Feeling the water around and noticing ripples from both sides, she concluded that two soldiers were attacking her. Then, movement from the upper right corner, not too fast yet not too slow. Spear.
Turning around, Emily used her forearm to hit the wooden base the spear, making it slip off the seahorse guard's hand. She took this opportunity to grab it and, after recalling her various weapon training, began to spin it rapidly in her hands. Using the blunt end of the spear, she hit the first guard's face before feeling movement from her left. The protector ducked, the blade of the second guard's spear barely dodging her long hair, before stabbing him in the shoulder with her own. Hesitating, the first guard attempted to charge at Emily only with his fists but she took no time in punching him across the face, forcing him to fall with her tail and stabbing him. The seahorse guard screamed as more blood mixed the water.
Emily turned around, seeing you staring at her in shock whilst defending yourself from guards. She shrugged, sporting a cocky expression before raising both her fists. "See?"
"Don't we have any sort of plan?!," Jungkook screeched, using the light beams of his palms to blind some seahorse soldiers before hitting them with his tail. "Namjoon?!"
"I'm working on it!," Namjoon elbowed a soldier in the face as Jimin hid behind him, baring his teeth and hissing at anyone who came near, which served as a distraction for the orca to attack. "Just go and protect the civi-"
"Let go of him!," Jimin suddenly screamed and Emily spotted Namjoon getting dragged away and being man handled by three seahorse guards, the thunder gem bearer trying to fight through the group. Then, there was a yell from the orca and suddenly the biggest of the guards was tossed to the ground like a rag, the ground cracking under the force. The earth gem bearer, whose eyes were dark brown, then raised a hand, rock rising from the ground in the form of a fist and hitting one of the guards.
It seemed like the guards had changed their target because they suddenly turned towards Jimin, who stiffened because he couldn't use his powers. Emily glanced at the spear in her hands and squinted at the distance between her and Jimin, calculating in her head before ultimately throwing it with all her strength, praying that the water current wasn't strong enough to change its course. The spear passed over your head, Yoongi's shoulder and barely missed the tip of Taehyung's nose before puncturing both the guards attacking the thunder gem bearer.
"Thanks, Emily!," Jimin shouted before charging towards another guard who was aiming for Yoongi, claws and sharp teeth out. The seahorse guard flinched at the shark and screamed as he was attacked.
"Agh!," Yoongi screamed, making Emily turn towards him instantly. The axolotl's cheek had been slashed by Lilith's knife and it was obvious that the princess was furious. She remembered Jin, who would be a great help if he was actually here, and wondered if her boyfriend was safe. Since the fire gem bearer was distracted by the pain for a moment, the princess took this as an opportunity to try and stab him. Before Yoongi could get hurt, he was covered by a purple forcefield.
Taehyung's long tail fluttered across Emily's line of sight, then he charged towards Lilith and tackled the princess to the ground. Yoongi was sitting down in confusion for a moment, frozen in his place, then the eel's voice boomed throughout the village. "Sky! Emily! Help Jungkook and Hoseok protect the civilians!"
Emily turned around, nearly getting the shock of her life when she saw you standing behind her silently, a bloody wound on your cheek and arms. You nodded at her with a serious expression before cocking your head to the side, where Jungkook and Hoseok were fighting too many seahorse soldiers on his own, whilst a group of clownfish children hid behind him in fear.
Wasting no time, Emily swam towards Jungkook and stabbed the nearest soldier with her spear, Lilith's cries of fury fading behind her. Jungkook shot her a grin before shooting out light beams whilst you positioned yourself in front of the children, giving them gestures of reassurance.
Emily was watching you, which lead to her being distracted, only coming back to her senses when Hoseok screamed her name. Thankfully, her instincts made her aware of the incoming danger at the last second, so she raised her spear, its body breaking into half at the force. The soldier in front of her was huge compare to the others and was holding a spiked bat, strange horns poking of its shriveled hair. She noticed the dark purple veins in its skin, which all crawled to his back.
"Neuken, that soldier was mutated by a kern," Jungkook whispered before turning towards the children then at you. "Sky, put the children in a safe place, yeah?
You nodded and put your katana back in its scabbard before leading the children away, hopefully somewhere safe. Emily glanced at Jungkook, then back at the mutated soldier as the light gem bearer summoned beams on his palms an the protector balled her fists.
"These kerns," Hoseok swam into the scene after knocking out some regular soldiers, cracking his knuckles as he prepared for a fight, eyes glowing green. "Didn't Jin mention something about it before?"
"A kern mutated Jin's butler and he had no choice but to kill him," Jungkook's words made Emily close her eyes because she remembered one night she spent with Jin in their bedroom and he had told her about Sam. He looked sad but for some reason, he was concealing it. Hoseok's eyes widened as he shook his head.
"How do we kill it?," Emily asked while side-eyeing Jungkook, who had a furious expression on his face.
"Kerns are the literal manifestation of the King of Hel's hatred. The more hatred he feels, the more powerful they get," Jungkook's words stunned both Hoseok and Emily, the angelfish and fighting fish glancing other with wide eyes. "The first time Sky encountered them, her katana was enough. Now the blade can't break through the shell."
"The King must really hate us, huh," Hoseok smirked cockily, the mutated guard grunting in front of them. "I guess-"
Emily jumped in her place when an axe flew across the water and struck the mutated soldier's head, dark blood seeping from the wound. As the soldier screamed, there was a loud cheer from a very familiar voice: "Nice shot, me!"
Instantly recognizing Jin's voice, Emily nearly gave herself whiplash when she turned around and spotted the golden koi raising both his arms in the air, a cheeky grin on his face. He had a few weapons strapped to a belt on his waist and she could see Alec behind him. A smile grew on her face as she quickly swam towards her boyfriend, intent on tackling him with a big hug.
Jin smiled even wider, opening his arms for his beloved girlfriend. However, Emily couldn't reach him, because someone had trapped her in a thick net.
"Emily!," You and Jin screamed in unison as Emily was dragged on the ground by the mutant soldier, who was still standing, despite the literal axe in his head. The protector was wriggling in her net, trying to get herself free, but thickness of the rope plus the pain in her throbbing tail wound made her fail.
"Retreat! Capturing the girl is enough! Go!," Lilith's voice was getting nearer with each second and Emily could barely make out what was happening. She could see your silhouette charging towards her, katana in hand, but the mutated soldier simply punched you away. There were also different villagers, including Alec, clad with various weapons attacking the soldiers. Rebels.
"Emily!," Jin called out and Emily could recognize his golden tail and blonde hair no matter the distance. She was starting to tear up at his cries, especially because he looked so helpless as he desperately swam towards her, bloody axe in hand. "I'm coming to save you! Just hold on-"
"Not so fast, water gem bearer. If any of you make a move, she's gonna have a spear through the stomach," Lilith spoke when she noticed that Taehyung's hands were coated with purple mist. Guards lined up, separating Emily and Jin, the protector noticing the mutated soldier pointing his spear at her. The koi princess held her by the hair and net, forcibly pulling the fighting fish upwards. She wanted to puke at how the koi was smirking at her so victoriously. "Your little girlfriend will come back to your arms, not after she joins my team, hm? I'm sure my kerns will love you."
"Fuck you," Emily spat, earning a frown from Lilith. Then, she was hit across the face, resulting in her crumbling to the ground.
"Don't touch her, you-," Jin stopped himself before he could say anything and watched in anger as the mutated soldier started dragging a half-conscious Emily away. "Em, mark words, I'll find you and I'll save you! I promise!"
Emily closed her eyes, hearing Jin's voice fade slowly before she succumbed into darkness.
-
When Emily woke up, she was inside a cage made of thick coral bars. Grunting, she tried to get up, only to discover that her hands were bounded. The light was barely seeping into her cell through the bars but she noticed one thing - her cell wasn't in the dungeon of the castle. Instead, she was inside a rocky cave, which was barely illuminated by the entrance that was far away. Seahorse guards were lined up across her, including he mutated soldier who was staring at her with its beady black eyes. She could hear the dripping sounds of water from above and assumed that there was an air bubble somewhere.
Emily wondered where Jin was and her heart ached at the thought of him worrying about her. She was irritated at how she wasn't able defend or free herself from the net, which ended up in her getting captured. She wished that she would have been smarter about the situation.
Still, Emily knew that if she somehow escaped this cave prison, she had no idea where she was. Having analyzed situations like this before, the protector knew that breaking out would most probably lead herself to get killed. And that was a possibility because she was outnumbered by all the guards. So, she decided to stay and figure things out later.
"Rise and shine, little neuken," Lilith hissed as she appeared in Emily's line of sight, knife in hand. With greeted teeth, she attempted to swim towards her, but was halted by the chain strapped to her tail. She flinched at the pain, wound still throbbing. "Took you a while to wake up."
"Why are you doing this?!," Emily screeched as she tightly held the coral bars, knuckles turning white. Lilith only stared at her blankly. "Why do you give yourselves privilege? Why do you think of your species to be above everyone else?!"
"Because koi are the most beautiful and most powerful fish of the sea!," Lilith's voice boomed throughout the entire cave, shocking Emily a bit. The koi princess swam towards the cell, banging her fists on the coral bars, eyes burning with fury. "Why don't you understand that?!"
"Because privileges are self-proclaimed!," Emily felt herself getting angrier the more she processed the princess' words. She gritted her teeth, face flushing red due to her irritation. Still, she tried her best to keep herself calm. There was definitely a way to talk out of this. That's what she believed. "It doesn't matter if you're of different color or species, everyone should be treated the same! So what if you're pretty? What does that have to do with anything? In the end, you're the same as everyone else! You're all Traneians trying to survive in a war torn world. You're all people trying to live in peace. What makes you so special?"
"Shut up!," Lilith shouted, cutting off Emily's words. She swam away angrily, hands tangled in her own hair. "Just shut up. You really are a Jaager. You think you know what goes on in everyone's heads, don't you? You believe that there's always a good method to solve everything. You're just like your mother. So full of yourself!"
Emily frowned, confusion striking her at Lilith's remark. Swimming backwards, she folded her tail into a sitting position. Before she could get angry once more, she processed the princess' words, eyes widening. Mother. It seemed bizarre for the enemy to know her mother but that word alone struck her. "You know my mother?"
"Hm?," Lilith turned around with a raised eyebrow, smirking once she noticed Emily's baffled expression. The koi cackled loudly and clutched her stomach as she threw her head back. The protector stared at her with a mixture of confusion and disgust. "She never told you? Ha! That's wonderful! Your own mother never even made you aware!"
"Cut the crap! What the hell are you talking abo—"
"Lilith!"
A third voice rang and it took less than a second for Emily to recognize it. From her view, she could see the silhouette of a golden koi just a few feet away from Lilith. She smiled, knowing that Jin kept his promise and was here to help. "Jin!"
Jin swam forward, finally entering Emily's line of sight properly. Since he didn't react to her words, the protector assumed that he didn't hear her. Strangely, he was alone and was only armed with a single bloody axe strapped to his back. A very stoic expression was on his face and she found it weird because he never looked this serious before.
Lilith clicked her tongue, raising both her arms in the air in frustration. "You took out my guards that easily? Fine. Let's see how you can go against my mutant guard on your ow—"
"Wait," Jin said suddenly, making Lilith raise a brow and gesture at the mutant soldier to halt. He glanced at Emily, almost as if he was trying to relay message through his eyes before swimming closer. The protector's heart dropped inside her chest when Jin gently held the princess' hand and slowly leaned down to kiss it. "I did not come here for a fight, princess. I merely came here for a negotiation."
Lilith scoffed at Jin, who gave her a smile. Emily felt like a dagger was being thrown at her heart with each second that passed, knuckles white due to how tight her grip on the bars was. "What are you trying to pull off?"
Jin chuckled darkly, something Emily didn't know he was capable of doing, before holding Lilith's waist and pulling her closer, faces merely inches apart. Both the fighting fish and koi were stunned at the action. "I'm not trying to pull off anything. I'm just being respectful to you, princess. After all, you are one of most beautiful creatures that I have ever laid my eyes on."
Emily's teeth gritted to the point that her jaw ached and despite how a part of her believed that Jin was doing this for an acceptable reason, she was already considering dumping his golden scaly ass. Lilith's expression shifted almost instantly and now she was smiling. "Why, thank you. You flatter me, Jin."
"I am only speaking the truth," Jin spun Lilith, as if they were dancing, making the princess giggle. Emily just wanted to slap him across the face. "You were right. I was too blind to see the truth. We koi truly are deserving of the title of most beautiful and most powerful fish of the sea."
This was the last straw for Emily. She would not at all hesitate to break all ties with Jin right at this moment but no matter how painful the sight was, she couldn't look away. Why would he fall for that sick belief? Her tears were already mixing with the water that surrounded her. She couldn't believe that her boyfriend, who she loved and cared for with all her heart, would end up like this. She thought it was impossible.
Lilith smiled victoriously before she glanced at Emily mockingly. The protector had yet another urge to punch her across the face as well. "Looks like you've finally gotten to your senses."
Jin smiled, this time one that was full of mischief and deceit. Each moment made Emily even more stunned because these sights were foreign to her. The golden koi gently caressed the princess' cheek with his hand, the sight more disgusting than soft for the protector. "Why don't we make an alliance? Pretend that I defeated you, then reverse the attack and have Tranen all to ourselves. We koi will forever reign. Those idiotic wonders and their guardian won't even know what's coming."
"I like the way you think, Kim Seokjin," Lilith spoke slowly and flirtatiously, pressing both her hands on Jin's bare chest and leaning in to kiss him. Thankfully, she paused and glanced at a very irritated Emily instead. "What about your girlfriend?"
"What about her?," Jin replied in a heartbreak, Emily's heart completely shattering at his words. He glanced at her with the most evil glint in his eyes, which doubled the pain for her, before looking back at Lilith and cupping her cheek with his hand. "I've got my eyes on more important things now."
Emily turned away as Lilith giggled and she didn't need to look to know that she and Jin were about to kiss. However, contrary to what her mind was telling her, she turned and saw the princess and her boyfriend's lips merely inches apart. She was about to scream angrily at the two, until there was a light jingle and Jin leaned in to whisper into Lilith's ear.
"And that isn't you, princess."
Emily's eyes widened as Jin harshly pushed Lilith away, the princess grunting in pain as her back hit the rocky wall. He raised his hand, holding the keys to her cell, and smirked victoriously.
"You— you little neuken!," Lilith hissed as the seahorse guards helped her up but she slapped their arms away before furiously pointing at a still cocky Jin. "How dare you fool me?! Guards, attack him!"
Jin swiped his hand upwards, creating a strong current of water that literally swept Lilith and some of the guards away. Emily had to hold onto the bars to keep her balance. "Alec! Now!"
"For Tranen!"
There were loud cheers that came from outside Emily's line of sight and less than a minute later, a group of villager rebels appeared and started attacking the seahorse soldiers, her friends amongst the crowd.
"I knew that he was on our side!," Hoseok cheered with both arms raised in the air.
"You could have given us a hint before pulling off some crap like that?!," Yoongi appeared with his shoulders rising and falling, water around him heating up. Jin backed away, the keys jingling in his hands.
"I, uh," Jin gulped loudly, Yoongi's appearance scaring him a bit. "Didn't think you'd approve so—"
"I was so close to stabbing you, you know," You said with a smile, katana's blade pointing towards Jin. Again, he backed away.
Emily was snapped out of her trance when a shadow casted on her face, then there was a click, and the bars before her rose for her freedom. She was silent as Jin swam inside and unclasped her tail before healing it.
Noticing the thick tension in the water and feeling the burning glare boring into his skull, Jin rubbed his nape before he chuckled awkwardly. "Listen, Em, before you say anything... I just want to explai—"
Jin was cut off by a punch across the face, courtesy of Emily. He tumbled outside the cell and held his swollen cheek, eyes widened with a mixture of shock and disbelief. She raised an eyebrow at him, fist still balled tightly. "Why are you looking at me like that? Don't you remember? My first instinct is to punch when I feel pain."
"Em, I'm sorry," Jin sighed loudly and held both of Emily's shoulders, still receiving a glare from the protector. "It was part of my plan. I was just acting. You know that I'd never cheat on you, right?"
"I know that but you're a pretty good actor," Emily scoffed and rolled her eyes. "But I swear, if you do that again, I won't hesitate to end both you and our relationship."
"I'll never do it again, I promise," Jin pleaded and cupped both of Emily's cheeks in his hands. "I love you, Em. Please, forgive me."
Emily glanced at a very desperate Jin with a slight pout, contemplating. Then, she huffed, before wrapping both her hands around his nape and pulling him into a kiss. Their lips moved in sync passionately and she felt two hands on her waist. When she pulled away, they were both panting for breath.
"Is that an apology accepted?," Jin smirked as he pressed their foreheads together, fingers intertwined.
Emily huffed, although she was smiling now. "Shut up."
"Uh, guys?!," Jimin peaked into the cave, mouth slightly open to reveal his sharp teeth. He was holding a spear, the tip of the blade bloody. "I know that you two are happy to see each other right now but we kind of need your help."
Emily glanced at Jin before nodding and swimming outside. The two were greeted by chaos. Rebels and soldiers were fighting, the sound of clashing blades filling the area. The mutant soldiers were going against all her friends because it was tossing around rebels like they were rags.
"Watch out!," Jin suddenly tackled Emily before he yelped loudly, a large gash on his arm. Lilith was staring at them angrily, bloody knife in hand and eyes wild.
Emily narrowed her eyes at Lilith before asking for Jin's axe. She watched him heal himself for a moment before shifting into an offensive stance, eyes burning with rage. "Jinnie, go and help the others. I have some unfinished business."
Jin nodded and whispered a be careful before he assisted the others against the mutated soldier. Emily faced Lilith, aiming the blade of her axe towards her. "So? Are you just going to stand there or are we going to dance?"
"You bitch!," Lilith screamed, composure completely lost as she charged forward with her knife. Emily simply moved to the side to dodge and elbowed the princess' back, causing her to scream.
This seemed to agitate Lilith because she started attacking blindly but Emily took no time in slapping the knife from her webbed hands. She then pinned the princess' neck with her arm and pointed the blade of her axe to her throat. But, she had no intentions to kill Lilith at all, so she turned around, spotting Taehyung shielding the others with forcefields as they went against the mutated soldier. "Hey, Taehyung! I'm leaving the princess to you!"
"What?!," Taehyung hissed but when he turned around and saw Emily, he got the message. As soon as Lilith was released he materialized purple mist in his hands, turning it into a lasso and tying up the princess. He mumbled something under his breath but the protector could still hear it. "I don't get paid enough for this."
"Why won't this thing just die?!," Yoongi screamed in frustration as he barely swam away from the mutated soldier's spiky bat.
"We need to separate the kern from its host!," Jungkook was shooting out beams of lights from his palms, temporarily blinding the soldier to give the others opportunities to attack.
"And how exactly do we do that?!," Jin screeched as he controlled the water around the soldier, trying to make him lose his balance. He was failing.
Emily swam into the scene, observing everyone else. Namjoon was making rock walls rise from the ground but they were merely getting shattered by the mutant soldier. Yoongi was trying to burn the soldier with his palms but ended up getting tossed. Hoseok was throwing spears he was getting from the knocked out soldiers but they were constantly getting deflected. You were swinging your katana around, defending the others whilst attacking. Jimin was located a few feet away, clutching his spear and staring ahead with regret.
And seeing Jimin gave Emily an idea. She swam upwards, in a location where she was sure that everyone would hear her. "We need to use Jimin!"
"What?!," Almost everyone in the group screamed in unison.
"Emily, if I produce electricity, everyone will get hurt," Jimin spoke softly, as if he was guilty of having his powers.
"Not unless... he's inside a forcefield," Namjoon said slowly, his eyes meeting with Hoseok, who seemed gotten the idea as well.
"A forcefield nobody can penetrate through," Hoseok spoke with a nod before facing Taehyung, who was already scowling.
"You guys do know that there's a possibility of that thing gobbling up Jimin, right? And none of us will be able to help," Taehyung rolled his eyes, making him sound like he actually didn't want to do it. Emily knew that he was just worried. She could tell based on the small bunny smile on Jungkook's face.
"I'm willing to take the risk," Everyone faced Jimin, who now had an extremely determined expression on his face. He tossed the spear away, his hands balling into fists. "If I can help then I'll do it."
Emily glanced at Jin, who nodded in approval. Jimin swam forward, facing the mutant soldier, eyes burning with a glare that pierced through everyone. Jungkook held the rope that had Lilith tied up whilst Taehyung raised both of his palms, a forcefield forming. She helped you pull the others away before the forcefield fully formed. The princess was squirming in her place, mouth gagged with materialized mist.
"Jimin, hurry!," You screamed after noticing that Taehyung's nose was bleeding.
Jimin glanced behind worriedly before screaming loudly, which was soundless because he was inside the forcefield. The mutant soldier stared in confusion as the thunder gem bearer started producing electricity, his limbs sparking as his eyes glowed yellow. He then lunged towards the soldier with bared teeth, grabbing his throat as a bright light came from inside the forcefield. Emily closed her eyes.
When Emily opened them, the forcefield was gone and Taehyung was wobbling, only upright because Jungkook was assisting him. Jimin was panting deeply, holding his head as his eyes turned back to their regular brown color. The mutant soldier was on the ground, body charred with no signs of life.
"Wonders," Alec swam into the scene, wounds all over him, and bowed deeply to Jin, who was tightly clutching Emily's hand. "I thank you for your help. We have taken care of all the soldiers. What next, my king?"
My king. Jin was obviously stunned by those words but when he saw the rest of the rebels bowing to him as well, he smiled, shifting his hand to Emily's waist. Glancing behind him, he saw a still tied up Lilith glaring at him. "We still have the queen to take care of, don't we? We return to the castle, this time to reclaim the throne."
Emily loved how that sounded and smirked. "Let's go and kick some koi ass."
-
A/N - (unedited) how did I survive seeing Park Hyung Sik live and continue this chap idek
Anyways Jin/Emily's arc is close to ending! I dropped major clues regarding Emily's backstory here! Can y'all guess who her mom is oho
And I loved writing Jin's part! Him honeypotting is the concept omg
Next week is a full week of no classes so I'll try my best to double update! No promises tho cos I have lots of homework too ;; I'll still try tho!
Please anticipate the next chapter, which will most probably seal off Tranen's arc! Thank you so much for supporting and enjoying The Seven Wonders! See y'all in the next chap!
Also! Here is the super late announced winners of the fan art contest! Congratulations!
RUNNER-UP
WINNER
Thank you for all the entries! Winner, please contact me for the prize! See y'all!