Prompt 11 (Snowball Mini-Game Tie In): What would winter be without snowball fights? Maybe you were just out walking, maybe you were looking for trouble, maybe it was all your idea--but a snowball fight has started, and you're in the middle of it. Are you an innocent bystander who now has to flee? Do you decide to join in and participate? Or, were you the one lying in wait, preparing to attack someone? Maybe it was random, maybe the target was selected--either way, snow is flying and you need to react, fast.
Janggunite had no idea what he was doing out here.
His general had been very patient in explaining what to do and how to do it, but he hadn't given the same care toward why. It had been impressed upon Janggunite that he didn't need to know why. If he wanted to keep his and his brother's secret just that- secret- the why didn't matter. Just do what he was told and don't worry about anything else.
He was just supposed to gather energy from civilians. It didn't hurt them. They would be fine. And he needed that energy if he wanted to keep using these abilities. And he needed these abilities to gather energy and make his general happy. So the way his general said it, it was kind of a no brainer. Janggunite just couldn't shake this unwelcome sense of discomfort that came with all this... new information and magic.
The world was difficult enough without him needing to be part of some magical war.
He had enough on his plate without having to go out every few days searching for victims in the dark of night. He'd been told he didn't need to do it all the time. It didn't need to be an egregious commitment. Just every other night for an hour or two, when he was bored. Surely January got bored sometimes and needed something to occupy himself with?
This wouldn't have been it, but a coil of anxiety that wrapped around his gut made him feel like this wasn't really a great time to argue. And his general probably wasn't a man worth arguing with.
Just do what he was told. There didn't need to be more trouble than that-
Except there did, because apparently he also needed to keep his eye out for people who would try to stop him. In the sort of flippant way his general gave information, Janggunite had been told that sometimes these others- senshi and knights with abilities not terribly dissimilar to Jan's own- would ask nicely. And sometimes they would straight up try to kill him. It was a toss-up which happened. He should be on guard.
Janggunite had decided he probably didn't want anything to do with anyone else while he was powered up. He really just wanted to be left alone. Quickly do his chores and go home. That was it.
Especially when he went alone. Sometimes his brother would go with him, but Sepiolite had an actual work schedule that required him to be at a specific place at a specific time, and usually during the night, at that. January had the occasional meeting during the day, but so long as his projects got done on time, he didn't have a particularly strict clock-in-clock-out time... So it wasn't like he needed to spend all night sleeping so he could be at work in the morning. He could go and get things done alone. He just needed to be careful.
The night was cold. Delicate flakes fell from the sky, making even the dark night look hazy and foggy. His boots crunched down the sidewalk as Janggunite folded his arms around himself and rubbed chilly fingers up and down his arms. Even though being powered offered some protection from the elements, he still felt the n** and the wind- lord, the wind was awful.
It looked like he wasn't even going to get anything from being out here... It was too cold for most civilians. No energy for his troubles, even...
But something prickled to life in an instant nearby. It was a peculiar sensation that Janggunite wasn't familiar with. Something was nearby, but not anything he recognized. And frankly, at this point, he didn't think he was interested in investigating things he couldn't identify.
He folded his arms and began to move in the opposite direction.
---
Maikoh appeared in Destiny City from the Rift in a flurry of kicked up snow. Being a youma with nothing but free time on her hands, she made it a point to hunt almost daily. It was of course an activity for her to do to keep from feeling bored. But feasting upon energy was also the only way for her to feel truly satiated. The agents didn't need it to quell their hunger...
But she did.
The snow had barely settled around her when she felt the prickle of a weak signature. It wasn't the senshi or knights she would usually go after, but it was still diminutive and alone and one of her own, of sorts.
It could surely use her company!
Maikoh gave chase, and though she had the peculiar impression that the aura was trying to stay away from her, that only made the hunt more entertaining. Of course, catching up to a single lieutenant was hardly a task for her, and when she finally craned her head over the side of a rooftop and looked down to spot the man below, she bared her teeth in a wide grin.
"Look at this," she crooned, righting herself to her full height and strolling leisurely along the very edge of the building, with her hooves making heavy sounds as she kicked snow from her path. Clop. "It's an ickle-" Clop. "itty, bitty, baby-" Clop. "Agent." She leapt from the roof, landing in front of the man and sending up a spray of snowflakes as she did. He recoiled instantly, but she craned closer. "I can practically smell the green on you. Not one of the youngest by the standards of human years, bit it feels like the chaos has barely settled on you. What are you, a week?" She leaned in to give him a sniff. "Maybe two? And you're alone at such a tender stage! So brave."
The man had lurched away from her, backpedaling through the snow as he tried to avoid standing too close. She stalked closer, tail waving and eyes gleaming.
"What are you?"
His voice was nearly stolen by the wind, and his pink eyes were impossibly wide as they stared at her. He was afraid; she could smell it.
"Very new!" Maikoh yipped in delight. Fresh off the corruption, and hers for influencing. "No one told you about things like me? You don't have to be afraid, dear. The likes of little ole me won't even lay a claw on you. We youma work with you agents. My name is Maikoh."
She thought she saw a hesitant flicker of recognition flutter through his eyes, though he still leaned away. Good. Perhaps he'd heard the word youma before, but simply never seen one. "Though you are quite privileged to meet me first, of all those that exist. Most wouldn't bother sharing this info, like I will. They're a bit... low-class, you see. Not like me."
He scoffed. Her smile broadened.
"Do you have a name, Newbie-dear? I think it's awfully convenient we've run into each other like this on such an unwelcoming night. I could use a pack to keep me company, and I'm sure someone so fresh could use a hand?"
It took him several seconds to respond. Maikoh could practically see him judging her, weighing his options. But finally, with a tiny dip of his head, he answered, "I'm Janggunite."
"How lovely to meet you, darling! Don't worry. Maikoh will show you the way. Maikoh will show you how to hunt even when the prey hides itself." Her tail lashed, but she still smiled. "You're out trying to meet your quota, aren't you? But the pickings are scarce tonight..."
"That's right," Janggunite agreed, eyeing her warily. "I don't come out like this very often, but I probably should've known no one would be out in this weather. It's too late. And too cold."
Maikoh blinked. She scuffed a hoof in the snow and gave a shake, shaking out the long fur on her tail and shoulders. The cold nipped her bare skin, but she barely registered it. She shrugged. "All the more reason to learn how to pull people to you. Youma can be very good at that. The weaker ones cause a scene wherever they go. They disrupt shops or bust into bars. People will usually appear to check out the commotion, and even if they don't, sometimes the police are called. They're as easy targets as any civilian, though someone like you should be careful going for them. They have weapons."
She set off down the sidewalk, beckoning a hand for Janggunite to follow. When he hesitated, she tossed a, "You don't want to be out all night in the cold, do you? Come on!"
He trailed after her. "Weaker youma?"
Maikoh lifted her nose to the air, sniffing for anything that might be populated. She knew of a cookie place that was open and a pizza place. They might see some foot traffic in. But even if they didn't, there would still be workers inside they could coax out...
"That's right. The more animal-minded ones just barrel forth without much thought. They may get the snack they're looking for, but they might also get dusted, in the White Moon catches wind of them. We'll keep a bit more quiet than that, though. If we're looking for energy," 'And not starseeds,' "we just need to find one human who will come out to the bait-"
"Bait?"
"Junggunite, be patient," Maikoh admonished. "I'm trying to explain. We can hit up any old convenience store that still has a worker in it. It doesn't really matter if I get caught on a camera, but you'll want to avoid that. That's why it's so terrific that there's two of us. I can chase them away, and you can do your draining. How convenient!"
The alley behind the cookie place was dark, with rows of trashcans lining the walls from the various shops on either side. She listened. She tasted the air by parting her maw. There may be more than one person in these buildings, but she didn't think there were any senshi nearby to interfere with this new lieutenant.
She didn't give him much warning before she dropped to all fours and started scrabbling through the snow, tearing at the concrete beneath with her claws and flinging bits of white powder in every direction: toward Janggunite, where he yipped in alarm; toward the walls, where it landed with a dull thud; and toward the trash cans, where it clattered with the sound of metal clanking.
"What are you doing!" Janggunite demanded as he guarded himself against her assault.
Maikoh curled a ball of snow in her hand and chucked it at the agent. It collided with him with enough force to knock him over, and he grunted at the impact before falling backwards into a pile. He scrambled away.
"Keep your distance," she rumbled quietly. "The workers here will think some animal has gotten into the trash, and they'll come out to investigate. I'll chase them away from the door and toward you, and once we're clear of any cameras, you can take it from there. Look, be quiet. Animals don't talk."
Janggunite eyed her but stayed carefully out of her designated security zone. He did lob a quick retaliation shot at her, to which she nearly laughed, but the door opened, and a man holding a broom emerged, speaking loudly and telling anything in the darkness to scat!
What he didn't know was that it wasn't a raccoon raiding his dumpsters. It was going to be a fun chase.
