I BEAT YOU COLD

Ashlee arrived in Sakura in the evening, but she still felt full of energy. Sure, she was sore, but she hardly felt it; her exhilaration took precedence. The tournament here in Sakura was starting soon, and she and Sparwire were as ready as ever. Well, they hadn't ever had a battle before, but this was a beginners tournament. Although she didn't want to be overconfident, she had a feeling that she would do well, and maybe even challenge the Elite Triumvirate one day. After all, everyone started somewhere, including Ashlee's aunt Aiex. If she could become one of the best trainers in Nerta, why couldn't Ashlee? Her conscious mind quelled these thoughts, though. Why would she be better than anyone else? Everyone else was just as eager as her, and it wasn't as if Natrelmon battling was a precisely hereditary trait.

Only the tournament would decide, though, and that wouldn't begin until the next day. Ashlee had to channel this energy somewhere, though, so after stopping by her hotel room to drop off some stuff, she went into the town looking for some sort of store. It was strange being in such a rural village, having grown up in Armkfish. Stuff wasn't as clearly marked, and there were cherry blossoms covering the floor. Ashlee enjoyed the atmosphere, still, although perhaps it was just because it was a refreshing change of pace.

Finally, Ashlee found a store that looked like it was about to close soon. Upon entering, she was immediately greeted by a shelf with a variety of relics on it, though many of the rows were empty. Obviously the store was enjoying the crowd of newcomers from the upcoming tournament. She was vaguely familiar with the Relic types already, so she bought one Relic F and one Relic E. She probably wouldn't need any better Relics for the strength of Natrelmon she expected to encounter.

With that all finished, Ashlee placed the Relics in her bag and left the city, heading for the forests nearby. Just before entering it, she called out her Sparwire, expecting to find some wild Natrelmon soon. Hopefully not too many other trainers were searching in the area.

Rolling...

The member 'Bree' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 80, 81, 21, 45

In the forests, Ashlee would find not a Natrelmon, but instead another person looking for a Natrelmon. This girl, Valerie, seemed to have been out here for a while, or at least seemed really comfortable in a forest. She moved soundlessly, checking the foliage and such around the area, looking for tracks or anything that would help her find a Natrelmon that would be hiding around in this area. Every little thing would help, after all...

Perched on her shoulder was a Sparwire, silent as Valerie was, occasionally flapping its wings to pull away unnecessary tension from staying still for so long. It was nearing sunset; some of the smaller creatures would be around, while the larger ones would be looking for those returning to their nests; it was a good time to search, it seemed. She too had purchased relics: two Fs and 2 Es, in accordance with what she might find in the forest.

Valerie took no note of Ashlee, as she noticed a sudden rustling of the bushes; her head turned to that direction slowly, Valerie giving a nod to Sparwire, as if letting it get on the ready, as Valerie crept closer, inch by inch. The forest seemed dead silent; either something was ready to pounce, or it was merely the breeze that made the bush move...

The silence mounted...

The member 'The Science Freak' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 75, 43, 58, 36

Capture opportunity:

Roll 1 is F.
Roll 2 is F.
Roll 3 is E.
Roll 4 is E.


Earliest roll that results in a catch is used.

All before are wasted. All after are conseved.

F success: 66 or below
E success: 76 or below.

ROLLING

The member 'The Science Freak' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 35, 36, 53, 51

Key had recently arrived in Sakura for the beginner's tournament. It was a very different environment from the much colder parts of Relin. It being fall, the cherry trees that made Sakura the spring tourist attraction were not in bloom and there was a chill bordering on that of Relin's in the air. It did make Key a bit more comfortable. Since there were still many trainers arriving, Key's first order of business was to stop by a shop and purchase some relics.

They were all shaped like keys, something Key was slightly obsessed with. He had a silver key around his neck on a chain that only a few people knew what it was for. It was something Key never took off, ever. It was only fitting that his relics would shape like a key. He moved towards the forest to address this second part of his agenda - catching a wild Natrelmon. He already had his starter, a Kohitsuji. It was a very fitting Natrelmon for him.

The forest was even cooler than the city streets of Sakura. And, he could already hear a couple of trainers moving nearby. There were some distinct difference in sound from the Natrelmon that were in the area. Not that it was important, but he didn't want to intrude on their search, or have them disrupt his. But, he also didn't want to come across as anti-social. So, Key stayed in visual distance of the other trainers, through the gaps in the trees, but stayed out of much of their range of 'disruption'. He was hoping for a particular Natrelmon...

Rolling....

The member 'Innue' has done the following action : Dice

#1 'Percentile' : 15

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#2 'Percentile' : 38

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#3 'Percentile' : 2

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#4 'Percentile' : 35

Wow; I guess I picked a busy area, thought Ashlee. She had expected other trainers to be near, but this was a bit much. Valerie had walked right in front of her without saying a word, and Ashlee saw another trainer in her peripheral vision. She didn't mind too much; there were plenty of Natrelmon in the forests, it seemed, and maybe they could work together. Now she would have to distinguish the sounds the people and their Natrelmon were making from those of the wild Natrelmon, and being unfamiliar with both Natrelmon and the wilderness, she wasn't very good at that.

So, Ashlee decided to distance herself from the other trainers a bit. She didn't want to be rude, but Valerie had walked right past her without even introducing herself, and Key hadn't come near either of them. Clearly the other two had their minds set on catching Natrelmon, but friends or even traveling companions could be just as valuable. Ashlee didn't realize it yet, but she was a little afraid of the loneliness journeying would entail, having been surrounded by friends and family all her life.

Ashlee turned to her left, more towards the edge of the forest than the center. Initially one would think that there would be more Natrelmon further within the forest, but maybe some Natrelmon spent their days in the plains and were coming back to the forest at night. Ashlee was very unfamiliar with Natrelmon behavior, but it made sense to her, and it was also good to distance herself from the others for now. She could talk to them after she found a Natrelmon... or gave up. She also considered sending Sparwire out to search, since she could fly faster than Ashlee could walk, but compassion prevented her. Sparwire, having been domesticated for all of her life, was just as new to this as Ashlee, and she almost seemed a little afraid too from her perch on Ashlee's shoulder. No need to separate the two.

Still, thought Ashlee, she's going to need to learn to fight sometime. It's better if she has me there for it, though. I'm her trainer. I'm supposed to instruct her.

At that moment, Ashlee thought she heard a rustling sound to her right...

The member 'Bree' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 4, 28, 40, 87

Capture roll...

The member 'Innue' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 97

Valerie remained still as the blue, kind cat stumbled into her relic, forming into a skull-adorned ring, the eye-stone gems now sparking blue in color. Sparwire chirped, but was soon shushed by Valerie, as she looked over and found that the area was more populated than before. She noted that Ashlee was giving her a weird look, and the boy that had been through here... well, he didn't pay either of them much attention.

Shrugging, she knew this was to happen in such a prime time. And, though she wouldn't like to admit it, traveling along would be dangerous in this world. She would have to make friends at some point, but wanted to finish this simple walk in the forest before anything else. Multitasking was not something that Valerie liked to do. She merely wanted to focus on the task at hand, and search for another particular Natrelmon... though anything good would be nice.

She stumbled upon tracks in the dirt, and got on her knees, looking down to examine them. They led behind a tall tree on her right... could her luck be this good? The tracks seemed somewhat dry, but it was a dry day; it could have dried on its own merit. Following these tracks of unknown age, she moved forward and took a look behind the tree, Sparwire getting at the ready in case it was something that would put his trainer in danger. Still, Valerie did not feel this danger... this was merely a walk inside her own home, at least from her perspective.

The member 'The Science Freak' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 74, 12, 33, 36

The first Natrelmon that appeared was a Metosune. It wasn't a bad Natrelmon, but it wasn't something that Key really wanted. His first attempt to capture it failed, resulting in a shattering relic. But he hoped this second attempt would prove better. Even better would be if it was followed up by another Natrelmon. He had bought 5 F Ranked relics, so he had another few attempts. Of course, he wouldn't spend too much on this Metosune. There were better Natrelmon out there.

It was strange to Key that this Natrelmon was semi-popular, so he figured it could be traded or sold away at a later time. Or, he could always just use it for some breeding program. He just wasn't sure how it would fit in. Maybe one of the other trainers nearby would be interested in it, but neither of them had said anything to Key. Being the type of person he was, he really didn't want to be the one the initiate the conversation. He wasn't a very assertive personality.

This time though, he was confident he would capture the Metosune. He would maybe then be able to talk a bit more with the other Natrelmon trainers. The one girl, Ashlee, didn't seem to be having much luck in her search. If he had any luck, he might consider giving her the Metosune, since he didn't really want it. Of course, he didn't know if she was the type of trainer that focused on particular types or certain rarity of Natrelmon. But, he could at least make the offer.

The member 'Innue' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 91, 29, 49, 72, 91

Capture roll.

The member 'Innue' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 38

Ashlee sighed. The Natrelmon she had thought she had heard was really just Valerie. But what did she have to be disappointed about? She had only been out here for a few minutes, and this was her first day looking for a Natrelmon. Should she really expect to catch something she liked on the first try? Probably not, but she wished she could at least find something. She also noticed that Valerie had caught a Natrelmon, some sort of Water cat thing. If only I had gotten here a little sooner...

What kind of Natrelmon did she even want? She hadn't put a lot of thought into it. Earth Natrelmon could really wreck Sparwire, so maybe something that covered that weakness could be good. Ashlee was pretty sure Water and Ice Natrelmon would do the trick, but she wasn't completely sure. She'd definitely try to study Natrelmon when she got back to her hotel. She definitely wouldn't make it if she didn't even know the types of Natrelmon well. The thought made her laugh a little, though. She had never been the type to pay much attention to nature, and while she did enjoy studying, she mostly focused on math and physics. Maybe those could help her too.

"Sparwire, fly up a little; maybe you'll be able to see something!" Ashlee tried to put some authority into her voice without sounding upset or anything, but she didn't think she accomplished that very well. Still, Sparwire carried out her command, taking off from Ashlee's shoulder and rising about five feet above her head. The two wouldn't get separated if Sparwire was only a little above her, but this position would still give Sparwire a wider viewing angle.

Once she was above Ashlee, Sparwire started circling to get an even wider viewing angle than before, being careful to avoid trees. She may not have been in the wilderness much or even been in a real battle, but she still enjoyed flying a lot and had a good amount of practice. Ashlee also enjoyed watching her fly. When she was little, she had wondered what it would feel like to fly; now, however, that thought made her feel silly.

Forgot to roll

The member 'Bree' has done the following action : Dice

'Percentile' : 38, 11, 61, 57

((Passing Izold))

Valerie stopped, seeing that the latter tracks were frozen, and doubled back. They were lizard tracks, upon further inspection, and, concluding from the evidence at hand, the Natrelmon she was pursuing and did not want to pursue was an Izold, a natural predator of bird type Natrelmon such as Sparwire. Well, that, and Izold are known as some of the weakest Ice or Fighting types in existence, unable to evolve and without any kind of special power. To each their own, she figured.

Beginning to think the Hydrus find was a sheer lucky fluke, she proceeded onward, looking up towards the treetops as if in random hope, before looking into the underbrush. She stopped, eyes level with the environment: the Natrelmon she was seeking would love this type of environment. Looking over at Sparwire, it gave a small chirp, which she nodded to, creeping closer to the brush, but stopping before the edge. It would be trickier here, far too easy to create a lot of noise.

She waded slowly through the brush, keeping here eyes open, and more importantly, her ears alert, Sparwire being a second pair of eyes for anything in the air. She was careful as before, but also somewhat eager... if there was something here, it was very likely to be another one of the sprites, at least she figured. More than likely, she was falling victim to a bit of fantasy... though it wasn't shown in her expression. Another silent moment would be held, Valerie noticing a disturbance in the grass...

Bree's post interrupted my roll.