The Festival of Fire. Nate Woodland never really understood what the big fuse was about. He just saw it as an insult to the other dragoons, seeing as how they help battle the "Great Evil." (As the elders put it.) So why didn't they get festivals named in their honor?

"NATE, Stop screwing around and get out there!" Like always his bosses yelling at him interrupted Nate's thoughts.

You see Nate worked at the festival every year since he was 12. This being his fourth year here he got to go sparring against the paying chumps…err…um…"Customers"

He walked into his changing room and began changing into his sparring outfit. It was red armor with a matching bandana…truth be told, the only reason he got this position is because he knew how to fight with a sword. (And the fact that he had blonde hair and blue eyes like the Elders said Dragoon Dart had…thanks Elders) He stopped in front of the mirror to make last minute corrections, since he stands slightly above a normal mans height he has to bend at the knees so that he can see all his face.

"Ok" he said softly as he walks toward the entrance. "Just give them a show like they want."

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David rushes through the crowded streets that the festival is settled on. Ducking under arms and dodging random men's arms as they reach for him in drunken celebration.

"David, slow down…David are you listening to me?" Ashley yelled over the crowd as she fought the failing battle against them. David paid her no mind. He just kept bobin' and weavin'.

Suddenly David notices something out the corner of his eye. Turning his head he notices a man staring at him. He was slightly taller then David with blonde hair and blue eyes. There was something very unsettling about those eyes, they where cold and lifeless. Suddenly it hit him like a ton of bricks. He to takes a step back and bumps into Ashley.

"Jeez David what the hell is wrong with you?" Asked Ashley as she shoved David off her.

David points a shaking finger at the man staring at him and mutters softly. "Dragoon Dart." Ashley looks in the direction he's pointing and smiles; turning to him she begins to speak to him as if he was slow.

"No sweetie that a man in a costume." Her smile widens when she sees the look he gives her.

David opens his mouth to cuss his sister out but notices that darts attention has shifted from him to a boy standing in the middle of a crowd. Dart begins walking toward him.

"Oh hell!" was all he says before following him.

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Nate stood over his defeated opponent brimming with confidence. "Come on." Nate said holding up his sword. "Is there no one who wishes to challenge me, I promise ill go easy on the next one." He laughs when the crowd backs away from him.

He stops as Dart steps forward, and draws a very real looking broad sword from its sheath. (Nate had been fighting with fake wooden sword).

"Hey buddy." Nate says a little nervous. Someone every year tried to start trouble at the festival and this dude looked like a real freak, although he did have the "Dart" look down.

"This is for fun, it's not real." Nate says barley getting to finish his sentence as the blade flew past him. THIS FREAK HAD JUST THROWN IT AT HIM!

Nate jumped back as Dart ran and began punching wildly at him. Nate defended the best he could with that sorry wooden sword of his. Until it was finally reduced to splinters and he is punched in his face.

"Ouch." Was all Nate could say as he falls backwards and watched helplessly at Dart as he retrieved his sword and began stalking toward Nate.

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David Finally managed to push through the crowd in time to see Dart getting ready to strike the boy down.

THAT'S MY VESSEL!" The dragon roared in his head making him flinch. "Hurry give him this." With that David felt a weight in his right pocket. He reaches into it and pulls out a dragon spirit.

"Hey kid." David yells at the Nate making him and every one else look. "Catch!"

With that David threw the spirit at him.

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Nate couldn't believe this he was about to be shish kabob and this kid was throwing marbles at him. But acting on instinct he reached over and caught it.

As soon he caught it there was a flash and he was engulfed by an inferno of hellfire. It swirled around him making sphere that grew tighter and tighter around him until with a yell from Nate caused it to explode outward and hit Dart knocking him backward to the ground.

Nate stood…well more or less hovered a few inches of the ground were he once had been lying. Suspended in the air by a pair of crimson-scaled dragon wings. Crimson battle armor clad his body from the bottom of his spiked boots to the circlet that held his hair out of his eyes. His eyes were no longer his; the pupils were silted like a lizard's and below the outlining his cheekbones a single row of scales that matched his armor. In his right hand he held a katana, the blade was four-feet long with a leather hilt.

Nate looked himself over and spoke with a voice that was slightly reptilian but lacked the stressing of the S's. "Nice."

Nate looked up to see dart had already changed into his dragoon armor and was flying at him. He held up his Katana and blocked Darts first two attacks before returning a few himself, pushing Dart back.

"Flame Strike!" Nate yelled. Pulling back his katana that had erupted in flames and he then began thrusting it forward at a blinding speed. Dart held up his broad sword to block, but was rewarded by sharp Clang and his sword snapped in half. Darts screamed in pain as the sword struck him in the chest piercing through his armor; he then falls to the ground clutching his chest. He was struck 30 times in the blink of an eye.

Nate doesn't skip a beat; he flies up into the air in a spiral holding out his katana in both hands. "SuperNova!" He roars and a large ball of white fire the sizes of a beach ball forms on the end of his sword. With that he stops spinning and reeling back hurls ball at dart.

As soon as the ball hits Dart a blood-curtailing scream of pain echoes the street of the festival. The white ball engulfs Dart but doesn't grow any bigger so as not to hurt the crowd. (Who are standing there with dumbfounded looks on their faces.)

The ball dies down leaving a creature were Dart had once been, it resembled a black anaconda with bullhorns and wings. It hisses at Nate and flies at him, teeth bared.

Nate Smiles raveling a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth. "Wildfire Tsunami!" He bellows throwing his katana to the ground where it is embedded in the ground and he stretches his wings to their full length and slams them tighter causing a wave of fire in the shape of a dragon to form, It flies at the snake-thing hitting it head on and with a shriek it is defeated leaving only a smoldering pile of ash.

Nate lowers slowly to the ground where in a flash of red light he changes back in normal. With a thunderous applause from the crowd. " Wow." Said one woman to her husband. "What great effects, I didn't even see the wires."

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David runs up to Nate fallowed by his gawking sister. "That was great I had no idea the new dragons could be that powerful."

Nate looks at David with a look that could only be described as pure confusion. "What the hell was that, and that the hell am I?"

David just smiles and responds. "That was a Changling an evolutionary mutation of the Virage And you my friend are the new warrior of fire. The Flame Dragoon.