It was a bright, sunny day. Not a cloud in the sky. The day seemed to be going great for everyone... except Marle. Kasumi Otomeno, "Marle" for short, was training in the forest of Ibutsuville.

Ibutsuville was a town seperated into two parts. One being dense forest, the other being a technology-oriented city. Marle's home was in the city. Why was she in the forest? To train. Her life was martial arts and magic. Train, train, train, get better. She was a black belt seventh dan in Taekwon-do, and mastered the element of Ice. She prefered to use her martial arts skills in battles, however, because using magic drained her of her strength.

Positioning a 2 by 4 cedar board between two branches on a tree, Marle concentrated her strength into her heel, ran towards the tree, and leapt in a flying spin to do a 360 side piercing kick. The board shattered in half instantly. Content for the day, Marle picked up the remains of the board and lit them on fire, creating some more warmth on the chilly day. It was just then that she saw a light in the distance...

Funny... what could *that* be?
She thought to herself, stomping out the fire with her bare foot and walking towards the light.