Dragon Age - A Story

Note - This has absolutely nothing to do with the game. Just a story idea I've had for a while, and I thought of it before I knew the game existed. Coincidence in the titles.

Anyways, like I said, I've had this story going on in my head for a few years, actually. Thought I'd finally get it out there.

Yes, it's all text. I don't plan on any pictures for it. Though, if anybody wants to draw some up, feel free. I don't mind.

I'll update this when I can, which is most likely to be at random times. So, check back often.

Each chapter will be split into a couple of parts, cause the forum allows only so many words per post. And, it's easier for me that way.

I would greatly appreciate any comments you have on it, good or bad. If they're bad, could you at least be constructive with them? Please?

Table of Contents

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Prologue

Chapter 1

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Chapter 2

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Chapter 3
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Prologue

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Stories. Myths. Legends.

These things have been a part of human culture for as long as history has been recorded. Probably even longer than that.

They have entertained and informed, amazed and astounded. They have been passed down through generations, across continents, and through all means possible.

And almost everybody knows characters and creatures from the most common of these stories. Zeus and the Greek gods. Odin and the Norse gods. Ra and the Egyptian gods. Thunderbirds, abominable snowmen, sea serpents, mermaids, King Arthur, Saint George, witch doctors, and more.

With each of these stories, certain items seem to be repeated. Men rescuing their loved ones. Warriors destroying sources of evil. Clans waring against clans.

And there has been one kind of creature that has existed in all of the ancient cultures of these stories. From European, to Asian, to Aztec, and more, there is one creature that exists in each of the worlds of myths.

Dragons.

Every ancient culture that created these legends had some kind of creature that could be called a dragon. Many wonder why.

The easy answer would be the correct answer. Dragons exist.

Dragons have existed since before mankind. And in the early days of civilization, they lived peacefully with humans. Each merely kept to themselves.

But, during the Dark Ages, many humans started to hunt the dragons.

This was because dragons had a natural affinity to the different elements of the world. And, as such, they had many abilities tied to these elements.

Fire. Water. Ice. Wind. Nature. Earth. Lightning. Darkness.

And the humans grew to be jealous of this power. And they sought to grab this power for themselves.

Many groups formed, whose sole purpose was to obtain the power of the dragons. And they grew skilled in hunting dragons.

Near the end of the Dark Ages, only eight dragons remained. One of each element. They knew that they had to survive, and so they sought to research what means there were to hide themselves from the humans.

And the best way to hide was in plain sight.

The dragons discovered the magic necessary to change their shape. And so, they each took on human form, and hid themselves amongst those who hunted them.

Throughout the years, the dragons developed their shapeshifting abilities more, and were able to live amongst the humans.

Most humans forgot about the existence of dragons, though they lived on through myths and legends.

The dragons were able to rear young, and lived in hiding. They had found areas they could convene and take on their true forms. They continued their ancient traditions, and helped teach their young how to live amongst humans.

And in today's time, when there are more humans than ever, secrecy becomes more of an issue. Especially with dragons who are still learning to control themselves.

Chapter 1 - Part 1

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God, I hate Mondays.

John sat at his usual spot in the cafeteria, eating the school breakfast. Today's was called an omelet. In the most basic definition, it was. Made of egg, folded in half, cheese inside. John spiced it up by drowning it in ketchup. Helped a little.

At least the hash brown was okay.

The Hazel Park High School cafeteria wasn't filled at the moment. But, then, breakfast was never crowded. John scanned the room, seeing the usual groups the congregated here before classes started. The group of kids who played that weird monster card game; the kids who used this time to cram more for the coming finals; the kids who spent their mornings making a couple extra bucks by playing euchre.

"Hey, Johnny!"

John turned his head towards the source of the voice. A slightly lanky boy, average height, with a rather large nose. Short blond hair, and dark brown eyes. Today, he wore a blue shirt with the number "42" on it, and loose jeans.

"Hey, Pete," John replied with a wave.

Pete sat across the small square table and eyed John's plate. "How can you eat that stuff, man? Look like one of those Dr. Scholl's insole things."

John grinned. "Beats their excuse for bacon, at least."

Pete nodded sagely. "True, true. So, you ready for finals?"

John shudders. "Oh God no. I don't think anybody is." He stabs the egg and ketchup mess with his fork and takes a bite. Mmm...ketchup.

"Well, at least band won't be so bad." Pete leans back and places his hands behind his head. "Just a couple of pieces, nothing too bad."

"Speak for yourself, Mr. First Chair."

Pete grins. "Aw, Johnny get hurt?"

John nods. "Yeah. Stupid broken hand..."

"I told you that catching a watermelon from a roof was a bad idea."

"Didn't stop you from dropping it."

"What can I say? I thought you should learn a lesson." Pete gives an innocent smile.

John was about to say something, but then the first bell rang.

"See you in band!" Pete grins, gets up, and takes off for his locker.

John grumbles a little to himself, tosses the remains of his creation into the trash, and heads to English.

Chapter 1 - Part 2

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God, I hate English.

John sat with his head held in one hand, elbow on his desk. His other hand held his pencil, which he frequently tapped on the desk. He stared at the test sheet, occasionally marking the circles on the Scantron.

Mrs. Rosenberg, the English teacher, sat at her desk, going over her papers. She was a very short woman, standing just over four feet. She had short, dark hair, and her Spanish background defined her facial features.

John liked her. She was a teacher who'd make fun of you with ease, and throw things at you if you fell asleep. She even hit a sleeping guy with a rubber chicken once. That was hilarious.

After an hour and a half, the bell sounded for the first final to end. John breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't get in all the answers, but he felt he got enough to pass.

He handed in the test, told Mrs. Rosenberg goodbye, and headed towards the band room.

In the commons, Pete caught up to him.

"Hey, how'd you do?"

John shrugged. "Good enough, I guess."

Pete shook his head a little. "I still don't get how you could possibly fail English. I mean, you speak it!"

John chuckled.

"Hey John, ready for the tests?"

John looked over his shoulder to the source of the new voice. A boy that was a little bigger, much more built. He had longer brown hair and green eyes. He was wearing an "Ozzy" shirt and black cargo pants.

"Yeah Marc. Just can't wait to take it." The sarcasm was obvious enough for a dog to get it.

Marc grinned. "Come on. Broken hand can't hurt ya too bad. I mean, trombones don't even need fingers!"

John shook his head. "Marc, Marc, Marc..." He grinned a little. "Sometimes, you just don't get it. Just cause I don't need the fingers doesn't mean I don't want the fingers"

Marc laughed a little. "Yeah, yeah, complain, complain. Come on. Let's go before we're late."

Chapter 1 - Part 3

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The three of them walked down the hall that was connected to the auditorium, the choir room, and the band room.

When they stepped in, John saw that Mr. Bradenstone had left the main area open for people to practice. The tests were going to be in the four individual practice rooms.

John and Pete went to the left to the instrument locker room, while Marc headed for the percussion room in the back.

Pete got his baritone ready, while John fumbled with his lock.

"Stupid cast..."

"Hey John, need some help?"

John looked up and saw the source of such a wonderful voice. Ashley Landur. She was a sophomore, just a year behind him. She had bright blue eyes and shoulder length blond hair. Her saxaphone hung from the strap around her neck as she looked at him, smiling.

"Oh, uh, yeah, thanks." John's face went a little red.

As Ashley works on the lock, Pete hisses to John. John turns to catch Pete grinning and giving both thumbs up. John replies by raising his middle finger at Pete, who laughs.

The lock clicks open. "There you go."

"Thanks."

"No problem. I remember when Marc broke his hand. Mom made me do all sorts of stuff for him. Kind of sucked, actually." She shrugs a little, then heads out of the room to practice.

Pete walks over as John gets his instrument ready. "Well, that went well. Wouldn't you agree?"

"Shut up, Pete."

Pete chuckles. "Hey, summer's almost here man."

"Yeah, but it's not like I'm gonna be able to do anything, remember?"

Pete slaps his forehead. "Oh yeah! That's this summer?"

John nods. Pete gives a heavy sigh. "So many plans ruined."

John pats Pete on the back. "Don't worry, buddy. It should be fun anyways." He walks out of the room, to prep himself for his test.

Chapter 1 - Part 4

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An hour and a half later, John and company left the band room. His hand was sore, but he felt he did well enough.

"To Taco Bell?" Marc sounded from the back of the group.

"To Taco Bell!" Pete yelled and thrust a fist into the air.

John chuckled a little, and the group made their way out the front doors.

"Dude, what do you think the camp's gonna be like?" Pete was in front of John and Marc, and was walking backwards so he could face them.

John shrugged. "I would guess in a big area. Kinda hard to do all that in a small place."

"Maybe it's in a state park?" Marc offered.

Pete shook his head. "Man, I meant the people. The people! I mean, there's bound to be a few ladies there."

Marc grinned. "Yeah, didn't think of that. All the more to look forward to."

They rounded the corner of the wall around Taco Bell's parking lot and headed for the door.

"Hey," Pete stopped walking for a moment. "You guys ever wonder what it'll be like when we're older?"

The other two stopped for a moment. Then John sighed a little and Marc shook his head.

"Good point." Pete smiled, then continued the walk.

The group ate their lunch at Taco Bell, discussing what they thought their summer trip was going to be like. Once lunch was done, they went their way home, each living a different direction from the restaurant.

John walked into his house, shut the door behind him, and went to go upstairs.

"John, can you come here please?" His mother called from the kitchen.

John sighed, then made his way to the kitchen. Once there, he saw his mother standing with an older man in a business suit.

"John, this is Mr. Drant. He's here to give us the final info on your trip."

The man held out his hand and John shook it. "A pleasure to meet you, John. I wanted to wait until you were here to give the information."

"You are expected to arrive at your school at the normal time tomorrow morning. There will be a bus to take you and your fellow classmate that are going to the camp's location, which is in Alger. You will be there for several weeks, so I advise you to pack accordingly."

"Um, what about the rest of my exams?" John asked.

"Your school will be informed of the situation, and you will receive a passing grade on the rest of your finals."

"Really?"

The man nods. "Now, if you will excuse me, I have some business to take care of. I will be seeing you soon enough. Good day." The man walked himself out of the kitchen, and a moment later John heard the sound of him shutting the front door.

John's mom smiled at her son. "Well, going to the camp. You've grown up so fast."

John rolled his eyes. "Sheesh mom. Way to be cliché."

She smirked. "I have to do it once in a while. Now, go get packed. Gotta have everything ready by the morning."

John headed up to his room, grabbed his suitcase from his closet, and started loading it up with everything he thought he'd need.

About an hour later, John laid on his bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking about what his summer now held.

His life as a dragon was starting to begin.

Chapter 2 - Part 1

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John was waiting by the receiving area behind the school the next morning. A handful of others were with him, all looking like they were going on a trip. Some of the other students question them as they went in. The generic answer became "Club trip". Of course, nobody asked what club.

John saw Pete walking down the sidewalk and waved to him. Pete was dragging one of those rolling luggage racks behind him.

"Hey John. Seen Marc yet?"

John shook his head. "Nope. Bus should be here any minute, too."

"Maybe he's getting some other ride?"

John shrugged. "Maybe." Then he squinted at the far end of the parking lot for a moment. "Well, there's our ride."

It wasn't a school bus, which was what John was expecting. Instead, it was a tour bus.

It pulled up to the curb and signified its stop with the traditional hiss of the brakes. The doors opened, and people started pilling inside.

When John stepped in, he let out a whistle. Pete followed him in. "Damn."

The walls, ceiling, and floor were carpeted, and each seat was a full, cloth seat. There were cargo holds above the seats, where some people were sticking their luggage. Small monitors were placed underneath the holds, one for each seat.

John and Pete headed for two seats in the back. Once seated, John saw that the monitors had DVD players and headphones.

Once everybody was on board, Mr. Drant stepped onto the bus.

"Good morning everybody. As most of you know, I am Mr. Drant. Now, the bus ride is going to be about three hours, so, please, make yourselves comfortable. The monitors have been set up for you to watch movies in peace, and you may talk amongst yourselves as you please."

He did a silent head count. Satisfied, he turned around and stepped into the driver's compartment, shutting the door behind him. With some loud squeaks and another hiss of air, the bus started moving.

Pete turned to John. "He must be getting a ride, then. I mean, he wouldn't miss this. I don't think anybody in their right mind would miss it."

John nods his agreement, curious about why Marc didn't show.

Chapter 2 - Part 2

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As Mr. Drant said, the ride lasted three hours. Everybody started looking out the windows as they pulled into their destination.

They were on a dirt road lined with a short, wooden fence. The road passed under a wooden arch. A sign hung from the arch. It had been there for a little while, as it looked weather beaten. However, the words, painted yellow, were still visible.

"Welcome to Cole Canoe Base."

Just past the arch, on the right, there was a small shed that looked to be used for storage. Through the open door they could see a lot of blue and yellow paddles. Not far past the shed was a shallow river.

The bus continued on, and the road became surrounded by many trees. When they opened again, there was a small open field on the left. The edges of the field held a couple of wooden climbing structures. Then the trees returned to claim the view.

A couple of paths could be seen leaving the road, delving into the trees.

After another couple of minutes, the trees opened again to reveal a parking lot on the left. There were a couple of buildings set a ways from the lot.

The bus pulled into the lot. There were a couple of other buses here already.

Once the bus stopped, the doors opened, and people began pouring out. John and Pete grabbed their stuff and followed.

Mr. Drant was waiting outside. "Welcome to Cole Canoe Base. This property is normally a Scout camp, but they allow us to use it for a few weeks each year. So, for the next three weeks, this will be your home."

A hand shot up from the crowd, and Mr. Drant pointed to it. "Yes? Question?"

It was a girl with brown hair and a bright yellow shirt. "Um, yeah, where's the hotel?"

Mr. Drant chuckled. "No, no, there is no hotel." There was a groan from a few people. "You will be sleeping in tents. They have all been set up already, and once we are done here, I will tell you where they are."

"Now then!" He claps his hands together. "This lot will be used for any camp-wide meetings we have. That building over there is the administrative building. Any problems with other campers should be taken there. That building is the medical office, and that one is the main pavilion and camp store."

"And, if you will all form up a line, I'll hand out maps and tell you where you will be staying."

Chapter 2 - Part 3

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Fifteen minutes later, John and Pete were walking down the road, the opposite way the bus came in. Everybody had a map of the campground, and everybody was dragging their luggage behind them.

"Seriously, who needs that much stuff for camping?" Pete nods toward a girl who had three suitcases on wheels behind her. She looked like she was having a little trouble.

John shakes his head. "I have no idea, man."


The camp held a total of 6 tent sites. John and Pete were assigned to the largest, and furthest from the entrance. Silver Creek.

When the group of twenty walked to the tent site, they saw that it was split into two areas, with a patch of trees separating it down the middle. The area to the right was a little smaller, mostly level, and had rows of bright orange, dome shaped tents. The area to the left was larger and seemed to follow a hill. This area had the firepit, and a long canopy that held several picnic tables. In the middle, right where the two areas joined together, was a small wooden building that seemed to be the latrine.

The group kind of hovered in the entrance for a moment, unsure of what to do. Then, a girl's voice spoke to everybody.

"I call that tent!"

A brown-haired figure dashed from the group to the very first tent. And with that, the rest of the group followed suit, picking their tents. The slow ones got the tents furthest from the entrance.

There were enough tents for each person to have one. As such, John and Pete grabbed tents right next to each other. They tossed their stuff in, planning on setting everything up later.

"So," Pete looked towards the other area. "When's lunch?"

John grinned. "Drant said lunch was at the pavilion today." He looked at his watch. "Still got about an hour."

Pete rubbed his stomach. "An hour? Don't know if I can make it, man."

John shook his head. "Come on. Let's check out the place."

Chapter 2 - Part 4

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An hour later, John and Pete joined the line forming outside of the main building at the parking lot. Here, everybody was being served their food. Then they went to the nearby pavillion to grab a seat and eat.

Their plates loaded with a couple of burgers, fries, chips, and a pop each, the pair set out to find a table. Seems most people were seated in groups. Mostly by people they recognized.

John and Pete grabbed a seat at the end of one of the emptier tables. John was looking around as he sat.

"Still no sign of him, huh?" asked Pete as he loaded up on ketchup.

John shook his head. "Nope. Kinda sucks, really. He should be here."

Pete shrugs a little. "Maybe he didn't wanna come?" Then he catches John rolling his eyes. "Hey, just a thought."

"What's a thought?" Asks a girl who stopped right by them. "The seat taken?"

John shook his head. As she sat next to him, he realized it was the girl at their camp who called her tent first. She had short, brown hair, hazel eyes, and was wearing jeans and a t-shirt. "we were just wondering why our friend isn't here."

"Well," started the girl. "Is he a half-blood? Human parent?"

Pete nodded. "Yeah. His dad."

She waves a hand. "Well, there you go. Half-bloods aren't invited."

John tilts his head. "What? Why not?"

She shrugs. "I don't know. The council is very uptight about that stuff."

"How do you know?"

"Easy. My dad's on the council."

Pete scoffs a little. "Aren't council members all old and wrinkly and stuff?"

The girl smirks a little. "My dad's one of the younger members."

John shakes his head. "Man, that's just not fair. Marc's one of us, even if he's got a human dad. That shouldn't matter."

The girl shrugs again. "Like I said, the council's uptight."

At this point, their conversation gets cut short. Mr. Drant had gotten everybody's attention to where he was standing, at the head of the pavillion.

"Well, now that we are settled here, and you have had some time to mingle, we must say goodnight. Because tomorrow, we start the training. So, a good night to everybody."

The crowd rose and slowly trickled out, headed back to their tents. They'd need all the sleep they could get.

((Sorry bout the lapse in posting here. Probably won't happen again. At least, not for a little while.))

Chapter 3 - Part 1

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John is woken in the morning by the sound of a trumpet over a loudspeaker. He groans a little, not really wanting to get up at all. Slowly, he crawls out of his sleeping bag, pulls on some clothes, and steps out of his tent.

Most of the people at the site were at about the same level of alertness as he was. Then, there were a few people like Pete. Pete was already doing laps around the site, a huge grin across his face. He waved when he saw John and ran over to him.

"Morning sunshine!"

John gives a grumble in response. Pete laughs. "Aw, come on man! Today's the day we start training!"

The two started walking to the main pavilion for breakfast. Most of the Silver Creek site was with them.


Breakfast today was eggs and toast. John eyed them suspiciously.

Pete chuckled. "Come on. They can't be worse than what they pass for eggs at school." John couldn't argue with that. So, he takes a bite, and finds that they're actually pretty good.

Once finished, the campers lined up at the main building to get their schedules. John and Pete looked over theirs.

"'Form-Shifting' first then. Over at the Pioneering area." John checks the map to see where that is.

"Wonder what that's normally used for." Pete leads the way down the road, back towards the main entrance.

((Okay, not making anymore promises on posting frequency. Stupid RL.))

Chapter 3 - Part 2

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Pete question is answered when they arrive. The Pioneering area consists of a large field, almost as big as a football field. At the end closest to the road sits a small pavilion. At the other end sits several wooden structures, including a climbing wall and a tower.

"Huh. That's actually kinda awesome."

The pair join the group waiting for the session to begin. They find the girl from the night before is already here. She waves them over to her.

"Hey guys. Ready to get this stuff going?"

John nods. "Yep. This'll be the first time I've Shifted."

She tilts her head a little. "Really? Huh. I've Shifted a few times already." She shrugs. "Oh, my name's Tracy, by the way." She holds out a hand to shake.

John takes it. "I'm John, and that's Pete." John gets cut off by the sound of their instructor clearing her throat.

She's a middle aged woman, no more that 40 by her looks. She has shoulder length blond hair and deep gray eyes. She wears a pale blue sweater and khaki colored pants. John found the sweater odd, because it had to be at least 80 degrees out.

"Welcome to your first lesson in Shifting." The woman places her hands behind her back and begins to pace a little as she talks. "My name is Lynda Randler, but you can just call me Lynda. Now, Shifting is an ancient technique first discovered by our ancestors hundreds of years ago, back when-"

"You know, she's on the council, too," Tracy whispers to John. "My dad and her talk with each other all the time."

"What's she in charge of? Or, your dad, for that matter."

"My dad works in the Concealment Department. Helps cover up accidents and stuff. She's in R&D."

"-some of you have probably Shifted by now, but, for the sake of those who haven't, let's assume this is all your first time." Lynda walks over to a more open area of the field as all of the kids watch her.

Hey, um, to anybody actually reading this stuff, could you leave comments? I'd really appreciate it! :smallbiggrin:

I like this, I really do. It takes a sort of basic concept, "Camp Half-Blood but with X", X being dragons, and seems to have so far made it genuinely its own.
Needs moar writings. I is very likes.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Beans

I like this, I really do. It takes a sort of basic concept, "Camp Half-Blood but with X", X being dragons, and seems to have so far made it genuinely its own.
Needs moar writings. I is very likes.

---

Yeah, I update when I can. I can tell you that the camp part is most definitely not going to be the major part of the story.

I like it.
Its original.

Chapter 3 - Part 3

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"Now, I want all of you to watch me carefully as I shift." Lynda closes her eyes for a moment, and then her body starts to grow. Her height is what's immediately noticeable. Her neck lengthens, as well as her back. Her face gets longer, and a tail starts to form. Oddly enough, her clothes seem to meld into her as she becomes covered in pale scales, almost the same color as her sweater. From where her shoulders would have been, a pair of wings sprout and grow.

In about fifteen seconds, where Lynda once stood, there is now a dragon. from head to tail, it's about twenty feet long. It's a pale, slightly bluish color. Scales around the joints have formed into spikes. These, combined with the color, give it the look of being covered in a layer of frost. It's eyes are a dark gray color, and it has five horns crowning its head.

Most of the kids stare in amazement, "ooo"-ing and "aahhh"-ing.

John joins them. "Wow. Actually haven't seen anybody in dragon form this close before."

Tracy snorts a little. "Really? Never?" John shakes his head. "Wow. That's kinda sad, really."

"So, she's an Ice Dragon, right?" Pete looks at the other two. Tracy nods. Pete lets out a low whistle. "Damn...They're kinda mean looking."

"Alright kids, settle down." Lynda's voice is hidden beneath the rumble of her dragon form. Though, it's still evident enough to tell it's her. "Now, as many of you have probably guessed, I am an Ice Dragon. Which means, those of you who are also Ice Dragons, will look similar to me."

"Now, I want you all to separate into groups of three," Lynda starts walking towards the kids, shifting back into her human form as she does. "I will give you further instructions from there."

John, Pete, and Tracy all eye each other, smirk, and go find an area away from the others.

Chapter 3 - Part 4

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Once the kids have grouped themselves, Lynda addresses them.

"Alright. Each member in the group will take turns shifting. You will practice until you have no problem with this task. Remember, you must concentrate on what your dragon form looks like. This will take some getting used to."

Pete looks at the other two. "That make sense to anybody else? How are we supposed to do that when we don't know what our dragon forms look like?" John shrugs, while Tracy just smirks. "Trust me, you'll know. Here, I'll go first."

She takes a step back and closes her eyes. Her body starts to stretch out and morph, like Lynda's did. She becomes much more narrow than an ice dragon, though, and longer. Her hind limbs are shorter, while her front limbs start to grow extra skin that stretch towards her body. Her faces lengthens to almost a point, and she becomes covered in dull gray scales.

After a moment, the shifting stops, and she looks between John and Pete.

"Well? Told you guys it was easy." Her voice isn't as deep as Lynda's was.

"But...how did you know you were gonna look like that?" Pete seems confused.

Tracy smiles. As much as a dragon can, anyway. "It's hard to explain. You just...do." She shifts back to her human form. "And that, gentleman, is what a proper Wind Dragon looks like."

John smiles. "Alright, my turn, I guess." He closes his eyes and starts to think of himself as a dragon. And, to his surprise, he gets an extremely clear mental picture of it. He hesitates for a moment, then concentrates even more.

Tracy smirks as John's body begins to shift. He is built similar to an Ice Dragon, if a little bit leaner. His scales are black, and his claws look to be bronze-like. His eyes are bright yellow. He has only two horns on his head, the same color as his claws. Bronze spikes run down his spine to his tail, the tip of which has a flare of sorts. The inner skin of his wings are almost yellow, while the outer side is as black as his scales.

Pete lets out a low whistle. "Damn. That's sharp, man."

John looks down at himself. "Huh. That was...odd...kind of..." His voice seems to crackle. Tracy nods a little. "Told ya. You just know. Now concentrate on your human self."

John nods and does so. A moment later, he is back in his human form.

"Never seen a Lightning Dragon before. My dad told me what they generally look like, but I've never actually seen one." Tracy looks to Pete. "Your turn."

Pete grins. "Alright ladies! Step back and watch as I become an ultimate Fire Dragon!" Tracy shakes her head a little as Pete shifts.

Pete is a dark shade of red, with scales built up around joints that kind of look like embers. Looking at him from any angle makes one think that his edges are glowing slightly. His wings are a lighter shade than the rest of his body, and seem a little bigger than those of an Ice or Lightning Dragon. His tail also flares out, though wider than a Lightning Dragon's.

Pete grins slightly. "Aw, yeah. Look at the big bad Fire Dragon." Smoke slowly pours from his mouth as he talks.

John laughs a little. "Pete, you're such a goof."

Yay more story!

It's good, if I haven't said that before. Shall be reading.

Yay! First part of the new year!

Chapter 3 - Part 5

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The rest of the time in that class was spent shifting between forms some more. John and Pete both got the hang of it fairly quick. And it was obvious that Tracy knew what she was doing.

When they left, Lynda told them that the next class would be spent learnig how to do partial shifts.

"Alright, what's next on the list?" Pete asks. John checks his while he mumbles something about Pete having eyes.

"'Elemental Control'. Well, that sounds interesting."

Tracy nods a little. "Yeah, that's the basics of using your powers."

John looks up from his map. "Really? They're doing that here? Not some, like, indoor, steel reinforced gun range or something?" Pete laughs.

"Heh, no. They got ways of keeping people from burning the forest down."

John shrugs a little, then goes back to the map. "Well, it says it's up at the archery range. At least it'll be an open area."

When the group arrives, they find that the archery range is near the entrance to the camp. It's also right by the canoe launching point, placing it right next to the main river that runs through the camp. The Rifle River, as the map calls it.

The archery range has a small building with a pavillion connected to it at the entrance. Then a wide open area that would normally hold the targets. Today, that field is empty.

The group finds Mr. Drant standing there smiling, waiting for them.

Chapter 3 - Part 6

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Mr. Drant waits for everbody to take a seat at the picnic tables under the pavillion before speaking. "Hello, everybody. As you know, I am Mr. Drant. And, in this time period, I will be instructing you in how to not only use, but control your powers."

"Now, I know that most of you would like this class to be filled with explosions and other such chaos." John and Pete grin at each other. "But, that is not the point of this class. I am here to teach you control. Focus. Precision. Not blowing up buildings."

Mr. Drant lined them all up at the fence seperating the range from the building. John had Pete to his left, and Tracy to his right.

"Now, how many here have channeled their energy before?" Mr. Drant looks up and down the line, seeing that a few hands rise into the air. "Good. You can help with showing others. As for the rest of you, I want you all to close your eyes and focus on your power. Focus on your specific elemental energy."

John closes his eyes and concentrates. Just like with the form shifitng, he inexplicably knows what his power feels like. How it runs through his body. It's an odd feeling. It gives him energy.

"Good, good. When you have a feeling for your power, I want you to hold out an arm in front of you." Mr. Drant's voice comes from behind them now. He had to smart idea of getting out of range of any energy bursts. "And then I want you to try to channel your energy through that arm."

John is a little wary at first. Shouldn't they be doing this seperate from each other? Then again, they've probably been doing this for years and years now. They have everything thought of.

He raises his hand, takes a breath, and concentrates. He can feel the energy moving through his arm, collecting at his hand. He hears a loud burst of sound. Somebody's fired something off already. He shakes the distraction away, and focuses.

And he feels a sudden release as a bolt of lightning shoots forward from his open hand, striking the hillside at the end of the range. He blinks in surprise. It felt...good. Really good, actually.

Just finished reading it. So far I'm liking it. Though, if I was one of those dragon kids I would be trying to learn how to turn into my dragon form as soon as I could. It seems pretty easy, too. Anyways, I'll be reading this.

I like the story it is unique in a different way...

It is original too!!!

Chapter 3 - Part 7

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John stares at his hand for a moment, amazed. His hand shows no sign of damage, no signs of it having just shot out a bolt of lightning. He turns his hand over a couple of times, still in shock.

Then he hears Pete give a shout and turns to look. Pete's doing some kind of odd dance. John glances to the hillside in front of Pete and finds out why. There's a large burn mark, probably ten feet wide.

John grins. "Good job, Pete. Way to burn a hole in a hill." Pete laughs.

John turns to Tracy, who seems to be having a little difficulty. she keeps thrusting her arm forward, towards the hill. Not much happens. She gets frustrated. "Stupid wind powers."

"Having a little trouble?" Mr. Drant snuck up behind her and surprised her, making her jump a little. She nods. "Yeah, a little." He gives a warm smile. "Close your eyes and hold out your hand." She does so. "Now, take a deep breath, and concentrate. Focus on the wind. The air around you. How it feels when it blows."

Tracy takes a breath and does so. And, after a moment, a burst of wind suddenly shoots from her hand. She opens her eyes and gets excited. She turns to John, grinning. "I did it! I got it to work!"

John smiles and nods. "Awesome."

After another hour, the group heads back to the pavillion for lunch. They're very excited by this point. Pete's actually skipping a little as he walks. Which Tracy notices. And points and laughs at him for it.

Holy crap...since January? Damn.

Chapter 4 - Part 1

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The young dragons spend the next few weeks learning how to control the various aspects of their dragon halves. Mostly what was covered was Shifting and basic control of their powers, as well as some flying lessons.

Tracy excelled in the flying area. That was partially due to her being a Wind Dragon. But, Pete and John caught on to it quick enough, and were decent fliers themselves. John really got the hang on controlling his lightning abilities. Tracy seemed to have trouble in that area. She had difficulties calling up her powers. Pete could call up his fire just fine, though he had difficulty with any sort of finesse.

The three of them spent a lot of their free time hanging out and exploring the woods in the campgrounds. John and Pete learned that Tracy only lived a couple miles from them, in the next city north of them. They decided they should hang out a few times before school begins again.

The day quickly came for them to leave. The night before, the camp staff had a huge dinner set up at the pavilion. A sort of going home ceremony.

Tracy, John, and Pete were seated together, discussing their plans for the rest of the summer. At that point, Mr. Drant stood up and cleared his throat to get everybody's attention.

"Well, here we are, at the end of another wonderful training year. Please, join me in applauding the efforts of our staff, who volunteered their free time to help train all of you." Mr. Drant starts clapping, and everybody joins in.

"Now, some things I wish to share. Before you leave, you will be given an envelope. This has the contact info of various council members in your area. Do not lose this. It may prove very useful to you in the future. Should you have any problems, please contact somebody from that list."

"And now, it is time for bed. You all need to be up early so you can pack and be ready to leave."

The young dragons slowly cleaned up their trays and headed to their tents for the final night.

"Yes, time to go home!" Pete gave a fist pump as he caught up with John and Tracy.

John shakes his head a little. "Eh, I kind of liked it out here. Plus, we'll have to explain everything to Marc."

Pete's smile disappeared. "Oh, yeah. That's gonna suck."

"I can come with you guys, if you want. Help explain it," Tracy offered.

John nods a little. "Thanks. That might help."

Hey, glad to see you back. :smalltongue:

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Originally Posted by Tydude

Hey, glad to see you back. :smalltongue:

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Took me long enough. :smallbiggrin:

I blame work and school and stuff.

I just read it and I like it, but I want to mention is that it seems a little too perfect. I can't believe all those teenagers spent all that time at camp, and didn't cause any serious problems. Also how long was camp? Time was not referred to much at all, which tends to confuse readers trying to imagine the story. Still, I feel like its a great idea, keep writing!

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Originally Posted by Omeganaut

I just read it and I like it, but I want to mention is that it seems a little too perfect. I can't believe all those teenagers spent all that time at camp, and didn't cause any serious problems. Also how long was camp? Time was not referred to much at all, which tends to confuse readers trying to imagine the story. Still, I feel like its a great idea, keep writing!

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The main reason I didn't do too much with the camp is because it's just kind of an intro part. Not really important to the main story.

But, yeah, thanks for the info. If I ever go back and rework stuff, I'll take you comments in consideration.

Nice job!!

i've only read the first couple lines of the prologue and it already sounds really good. however, there are some editing things that bother me, and so i would be willing to go through and edit your writing, and send it back to you so you can decide whether or not to keep the change. if you agree, i'll do it in Microsoft Word, and track changes so you can see exactly what i did.... it sounds really cool.... :smallbiggrin:

I like the story, I'll second that the pacing may need some work but other than that it seems like a lot of fun. I'm kinda curious to have it explained what its like to know you are gonna grow up to be a dragon.