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Biting Chill ( 18 ) : The cold is strangely harsh, and even the still wind is vicious enough to sting. But the cold isn't the worst part of tonight--it's what comes with it. Out of a swirl of blowing snow, a massive, wispy wolf takes shape, enormous and snarling, with fur spiked like jagged icicles. Its eyes glow with a cold, wild intelligence, and before you can even react, it lunges as though you’ve trespassed deep into its territory. Every strike it makes feels like the bite of winter itself. Wherever its claws slash, wherever its jaws snap, frost cakes over. Even if you're lucky enough not to take massive damage, the cold seeps bone deep. When you manage to land a hit, the creature bleeds a strange, clear blood--icy water that freezes instantly into slush on the ground. The more damage it takes, the more its form flickers, shredded like wind-torn snow. The wolf fights with the relentless instinct of a dire beast, but it is not invulnerable. It will never run. It will fight until its body is broken and flickering, then--finally--a sudden gust will rip through the air and carry its dissolving body away. Howls echo on the wind. The rest of its pack probably isn't too far behind.
Note: This strange wolf is not a youma but can be used as a battle requirement for a character. It can only be used as a battle if there are two powered characters involved; you cannot write a solo and count this as a battle, and your character must be powered to meet battle requirements. You can use the prompt for as many characters as you like and it will count as a battle requirement, however if you repeat the prompt with the same character, only the first time will be usable as a battle.
Note: This strange wolf is not a youma but can be used as a battle requirement for a character. It can only be used as a battle if there are two powered characters involved; you cannot write a solo and count this as a battle, and your character must be powered to meet battle requirements. You can use the prompt for as many characters as you like and it will count as a battle requirement, however if you repeat the prompt with the same character, only the first time will be usable as a battle.
It was impossibly hard to get any actual research done.
If it wasn't the absolute frigid Earth winters, it was something else. Something worse.
Andreiya had only come out tonight because he'd been determined to find hardy plants, stubborn or resilient enough to survive the extreme temperature in winter. There were plenty of plants--natural, or otherwise--that fit the bill.
But he didn't have all the time in the world to figure these things out. He'd had some success--if you were willing to call it that--but as the evening dragged on, things began to feel more and more uncomfortable.
The greenhouse was well-insulated--it had to be--but it wasn't impenetrable, and something had been flagging the security system for a while. Andreiya had been on edge for the last hour. Something kept drifting close, and then backing off, and then coming back. He thought it might have been a youma, if only because of how heavy the air always seemed to get.
It never came close enough for him to see what it was, but its presence felt uncomfortable all the same.
The greenhouse was warm, safe.
Unless something attacked it.
It wasn't built to fortify from anything but the elements and pests, and the longer he was left alone, the more he found himself wondering just how much damage the greenhouse could take.
Even Dylas was unnerved; instead of being coiled underneath the heat lamp, he'd slithered into a nook under the nearest shelf.
If the greenhouse was damaged, everything inside was in danger. There was no way he could save everything. Dylas could not handle this weather.
Andreiya did not want to go outside. He did not want to confront whatever was prowling outside.
But he had to.
Rocks tumbled in his stomach. He didn't bother with a glamour but he did layer up. His uniform offered him plenty of protection against the cold but he wanted more. An extra pair of gloves. A puffy jacket. A hat.
Andreiya was pained to leave his experiments behind, but he'd have been even more pained to lose them.
He didn't want to risk fighting to unholster his weapon, or losing a battle of speed, so he prepared early. He exited the greenhouse and locked up quickly, blaster already in hand.
And something was already moving behind him.
The wind was cold--biting, painful. His face burned. The wind buffeted him with such force that he stumbled slightly. He didn't struggle against it; there were trees in the distance, and he thought it would be easier to get his footing when he had something to hide behind.
He thought wrong, though.
The further away from the greenhouse he got, the safer it was. But the less safe he was.
He was trembling, not from fear (probably) but cold (definitely). Something moved in the shadows. Snow covered the ground but the only footprints were his own.
Something howled--sharp, wicked. The noise was so shrill, so close, that his ears rang. It echoed through the trees so loudly that he didn't even know where to aim, but he raised his blaster anyway.
