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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 24, 2022 16:46:34 GMT -6
Sasha improved from there. Not quickly or easily, and not to the extent that Fiera had seen some of her other pets improve, but it was there. Besides, there was only so much Fiera could expect from Sasha anyway. Her body wasn't exactly designed for running and she was just a baby, after all. But there was improvement, and that was all Fiera was asking for. Her stumbling grew less frequent and her coordination got better, if just through trial and error and encouraged by a large number of berries. Near the end though she was trotting along like nobody's business, bearing a couple new bumps but still chipper and bright. Fiera was spending so much quality time with her that it was clearly raising her spirits. After a few hours of this, Fiera decided to finally call it quits. She was nearly out of berries, and Sasha was tired. Not to mention she was pretty sure the young fossil had improved about as much as Fiera could have possible expected from her this trip. The progress had been steady, and Sasha had reaped the fruits of her labor- literally. Fiera gave a small wave to the receptionist as she left- albeit with her pet tucked under her arm this time instead of walking alongside her.
Fiera 10 Sasha 22.0/22.0 10
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 12:46:31 GMT -6
Mango had finally gotten to a point where Fiera felt he was ready to start gym training. He had started out as a trembly-legged baby, for multiple reasons. Both being small and helpless, but also being terrified of his surroundings. By this point though, he had been trained and socialized well enough that she could take him out for walks and training sessions easily without worrying about his stress levels. He was still a shy little creature, but he had improved massively over the past couple of months. Now she could afford to get more in depth with his training, and hopefully getting him in even better fighting shape for the upcoming tournament. It was going to be rough to be sure, but that only meant that it was her responsibility to prepare him for it. Luckily, he had quite a few natural tricks up his theoretical sleeves for it as well. Fiera 1 Mango 65.1/17.1 Dexterity 1
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 12:53:31 GMT -6
That meant that all Fiera had to do was increase his physical capabilities. Repointe were supposed to be quite fast, especially wild repointe like Mango. Being partially deer they were supposed to be able to dodge and dash with the best of them, carefully dancing around all of their opponents attacks. Mango was... not capable of that for the time being. She would never say never though. He was still just a baby right now after all, so it was up to her to nurture those tendencies to their full potential. Hence coming to the training gym- there was no doubt they'd have the right equipment to help build him up into top form. As the doors to the training gym slid open, she stepped into the warmer air. Mango snapped to attention instantly, sniffing at his surroundings. She was sure it was very interesting for him- all sorts of creatures came in here.
Fiera 2 Mango 65.1/17.2 Dexterity 2
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 12:57:36 GMT -6
Many of them were a fair sight larger and stronger than him too, and she watched as he pressed his tail against his legs nervously. "Don't worry Mango, you won't be meeting any of them today." She said with a chuckle- though he probably would be meeting them in the future in the fighting pit. But by then he would be ready for it. She got through the check in process quickly- she didn't want to dawdle and waste her time here. Sometimes it could take a while for a creature to get the picture when training, so she'd like to be able to wrap this up relatively quickly. As she pushed off from the desk and started leading Mango down the halls of the gym, she thought about what she was going to train Mango in today. She needed him to get faster, more nimble. To improve his dexterity.
Fiera 3 Mango 65.3/17.3 Dexterity 3
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 13:02:36 GMT -6
Luckily they had plenty of options for that here, she thought as she glanced into a few different rooms. Mango peered into them as well, though quickly shuffled off down the hallway when he saw that they were occupied. He didn't want to meet the source of any of those strange smells face to face, after all. Fiera was happy to acquiesce to his desires- she didn't want to train side by side with anyone either. Different rooms had different equipment for training, but there was one in particular that she was looking for- ah, there it was. She had seen this one a couple times while training but had been wanting to try it for a bit. She pulled open the weighty metal door with one arm, leading Mango through with the other and let it shut. This room didn't need any specialized construction- just the contents of its floor.
Fiera 4 Mango 65.4/17.4 Dexterity 4
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 13:36:24 GMT -6
Specifically, the floor was covered in a huge number of colorful foam balls. Each one of them was about the size of Fiera's palm, so maybe a third of the size of Mango's head. He sniffed at one curiously, and Fiera couldn't help but smile as he started to play, kicking them around and up into the air. He was a baby, it was only natural- plus those kicks would come in handy some day. But she didn't want him to go to the balls- she wanted the balls to go to him. "Mango, think fast!" She called, and lobbed one of the balls at him. It sailed right over his head- she wasn't aiming well to start with, and they were weighted a little oddly, which made it difficult. She would get used to it- but Mango would too, as she needed him to dodge these to learn how to be more dexterous.
Fiera 5 Mango 66.0/18.0 Dexterity 5
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:22:38 GMT -6
Mango watched as the ball landed on the other side, bounced twice, and slowly rolled to a stop. He flicked an ear, confused. Then he turned to look at Fiera, as if she would have an answer for what just happened. Well, she did. Technically. She WAS the reason that just happened, and she was already winding up for another go. Both of his ears perked up as she raised an arm with another ball in her hand. "Mango, dodge this!" She said. Granted, she had never taught him any such command, but it wasn't difficult to figure out. Very few creatures would just sit there and take it. Mango's hooves scrambled against the polished concrete floor as she whipped her arm forward. The environment here was, Fiera had to admit, not in his favor. Hooves were difficult to work with in an environment with no grip, but she was confident he could learn to work around it.
Fiera 6 Mango 66.1/18.1 Dexterity 6
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:28:05 GMT -6
...Eventually, at least. The ball smacked right into the young repointe's side, bouncing off before falling to the ground. Mango tumbled over too, out of shock as opposed to any force conveyed by the projectile. These balls were far too soft to actually be harmful- Fiera could easily completely squeeze the air out of one with a single hand, the spongey material yielding easily to her touch. She turned to find Mango staring at her angrily, his little ears pressed back. "Well, learn to avoid it!" Fiera said, outstretching her arms. "Anything you fight in the future isn't going to hesitate for you, why should I?" She said with a laugh, and reached down to grab another ball. As she did so, Mango scrambled back to his feet, not wanting to get caught off guard yet again. By the time she had straightened up again, he was also standing once more.
Fiera 7 Mango 66.2/18.2 Dexterity 7
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:30:31 GMT -6
Fiera looked at him. His stance was... well, terrible, but he was at least trying to look confident. He would likely adjust it over time as he learned how his own body moved and functioned. "Ready Mango? Dodge it!" She said, and threw the foam ball at him again. He managed to actually push off from the concrete floor with his hooves this time, apparently figuring out the angle needed to get his body to move against it. But he didn't seem to send that same memo to his front feet, and he stumbled over before the ball could even connect. To his credit (what little Fiera was willing to give him), him falling over meant that the ball DID sail right over his head, landing somehwere in the room beyond. "Mango... dude. Come on." She said, and he looked up at her with big, sad eyes. "Okay, maybe I'm starting you off at too high a difficulty..." She said to herself.
Fiera 8 Mango 66.3/18.3 Dexterity 8
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:33:03 GMT -6
She had to adapt to where he was, not where she wanted him to be. Fiera grabbed another ball as Mango got himself situated, but this time she stayed crouching near the ground. "Ready Mango? Dodge!" She said, but instead of throwing it this time, she gently rolled it towards him along the ground. He only had two dimensions to worry about instead of three, and it moved a lot more slowly than the balls coming at him through the air. Sure enough, the baby repointe was easily able to sidestep the ball, watching as it rolled past him. Fiera sighed with relief- finally a bit of success. "Good job, Mango!" She said, and tossed him a small meat treat for his trouble- the first she had managed to give him this whole session. He happily ate it, excited to finally be doing something right. Hopefully he'd keep it up- they both needed a win right now.
Fiera 9 Mango 66.4/18.4 Dexterity 9
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:35:04 GMT -6
So Fiera kept going like that. She'd pick up a ball, give Mango a little bit of warning, and would roll it towards him. And in return the repointe would keep an eye on it and dodge out of the way of it before it could connect. Each time, Fiera was careful to give him another little meat treat as a reward for a job well done. Over time, she sped up the balls, and sometimes would do them one right after the other, requiring him to dodge left and right before they could connect. As he moved, he seemed more confident too- his steps were less shaky, and he didn't have the same trouble as before with getting his footing on the floor. Sometimes a leg would slip out from under him, but he'd quickly move it back into the correct position needed to get traction on the floor. He was learning.
Fiera 10 Mango 67.0/19.0 Dexterity 10
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:41:51 GMT -6
Fiera was quick to take advantage of that, and grabbed as many balls as she could in her arms, circling around Mango to toss them at the floor from different angles and at different speeds. Some of them even bounced a couple times, leading to him having to carefully track it while staying aware of his surroundings- including the other balls that were still coming. To her delight however, he had begun performing well. Sometimes he would still mess up and get hit by a ball, but he wasn't laying on the ground and crying about it anymore. Instead he was moving away from it as quickly as possible, reevaluating, and repositioning so it didn't happen again. That was a sign of progress to Fiera more than any actual show of dexterity. A sign that he could actually hold his own in a fight and keep going after getting hit instead of laying down and giving up.
Fiera 1 Mango 67.1/19.1 Dexterity 11
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:47:01 GMT -6
She smiled and picked up some more balls, ready to keep at it. Mango eyed her, adjusting his stance slightly, ready for action. She figured he was ready to go back to her original tactic- simply throwing the balls at him. She tossed one up in the air a couple times to let him take a good look at it, before lobbing it at him with a 'battle cry'. He did his best to dodge it, but it still brushed his shoulder. Still, a glancing blow was better than nothing. "Good job, Mango!" She said, and tossed him another treat. They could work up to dodging it entirely. Even after he ate it, Mango seemed ready to go again right away- perhaps he knew the rules of the game by now, or perhaps he was just enjoying himself. Either way, they weren't slowing down now and that was just how Fiera liked it.
Fiera 2 Mango 67.2/19.2 Dexterity 12
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:50:57 GMT -6
Now she wasn't even telegraphing her moves, ordering him to dodge or letting out a cry. His opponents would be a lot more sneaky than her, and would have more tricks up their sleeves to keep him from guessing when they were going to strike. She didn't need to order him to dodge it now though- he got the idea on his own. He instead kept an eye on her hands, her feet, the number of balls in her arms, and would jump away nimbly when she let one loose. By this point the floor around him was littered with the balls, and he had to step carefully to keep himself from tripping over them, an extra obstacle he had to learn to deal with. He was taking to it admirably though. Sometimes he would trip over one that he hadn't seen, but would quickly correct himself before she was able to let off another ball.
Fiera 3 Mango 67.3/19.3 Dexterity 13
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Post by Fiera Ferella on Mar 9, 2024 15:53:42 GMT -6
Soon she noticed how quickly his eyes were moving too- he wasn't just watching the balls, but watching HER and her actions. He was watching to see when she might be planning on throwing a ball and reacting to that instead of what was necessarily in the air. A small smile crept across Fiera's face- that was perfect. He had all of the key ideas of staying quick and nimble, of dodging and weaving around his foes' attacks. Now they just had to polish it off. Fiera kept up with the barrage of balls, migrating around the room to pick up more (As she was constantly running out in her immediate area). Mango kept up with her too, moving closer or further away based on how quickly she was throwing them and how many obstacles he would have to step around to get out of her way. It was almost like a carefully coordinated dance.
Fiera 4 Mango 67.4/19.4 Dexterity 14
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