*Candidate Story*
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*Stats & Dragons*
Nathaniel
Daniel
Reggie
Ravenna

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Nathaniel led his brother to the bar in the center of the dancing. It had the shape of a two squares intertwined, like a geometric star with purple light flashing on and off above it. Nathanel wondered if the barkeepers got headaches from the light.
"Two Smirnoff please." he said.
"Smirnoff?" Daniel asked, "Nathaniel, you know..."
"You can't hold your liquor? One glass won't hurt."
Daniel shut up. His brother knew darn well what he meant. He was under the legal drinking age. Getting into the club was more than enough excitement for one evening. Drinking would be fun for another one.
As they stepped away Nathaniel said "Don't ever say you're underage in this club. they'll kick you out before you can say 'kindergarten'." 
Daniel wisely didn't answer that statement and sipped from his Smirnoff. 
"Like it?" Nathaniel asked.
"It isn't bad." Daniel said, of course some apple juice would have been better... How he wished he had eaten properly this evening in stead of having just one slice of bread.

Reggie closed of the entrance and went inside. The club wouldn't let more visitors in until at least a hundred had left it. That could take hours, Reggie knew from experience. In the mean time he was free to enjoy his club.
This night however things turned out different. When he entered the big dancing all was fine. The purple neon lights were flickering throughout the whole studio, making every move look like a set of disconnected poses. The bartenders were busy, but not swamped and the temperature was still bearable.
Then Reggie saw some commotion near the stage. Someone was pushing himself through groups of people dancing...without trying to avoid them. The man just bumped right into them and walked on.
Reggie did all he could to get to the stage in time, but he was a lot further away from it than the possible safety hazard. Maybe the man was just trying to get to his girlfriend or something. You never knew when people had had a few drinks. It would be best for all however to remove him from the club.
With renewed determination Reggie inched forward through the crowd. He was close, real close when he heard a scream. Ravenna he knew. Startled Reggie looked up and saw the man waving around a microphone like a lasso. Apparently the projectile had hit Ravenna in the face because she was holding her hands to her head, some dark matter oozing down. Oozing, not running. The cut couldn't be deep. Yet.
Reggie jumped on stage. At the same time one of the other bouncers had also noticed the commotion and was only a few metres away from the stage. The man or safety hazard as he know had fully become a threat to the club knew his 15 minutes of fame were over. He willingly dropped to the floor.
"Tyrone. Will you take him out? I'll help Ravenna."
"Sure." The rather big bouncer replied. People always felt safer when Tyrone was around to throw troublemakers out of the club. It was different when they met him alone in a dark alley though. Reggie didn't envy the man. No woman had ever ran away in fear from him.
"Ravenna can you stand?" Reggie asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine, I just need to get this cut disinfected."
"I'll take you. Easy." 

Nathaniel was standing outside the cubicle where his brother was being sick.
"Feeling better?" he asked.
"A bit." Daniel replied.
"I should have never brought you here."
"You should have never bought me Smirnoff."
"True." Suddenly Nathaniel laughed," This will be one of those brother things we'll do mysterious about when we're old and married."
Daniel laughed. He was starting to feel better. Maybe they'd still enjoy a little part of the evening.
"How did you find this bathroom?" Daniel asked.
"Draca showed me. She knows everything here."
"She's, ehm... interesting."
"Isn't she? I liked her from the moment she first talked to me. She's very friendly."
Suddenly the bathroom door opened and a young woman and man walked through. The girl staggering and leaning on the man.
"Hey. What are you ding here? You're trespassing!" the man said.
"Ehm... my brother got sick and someone showed us this place for us to be alone and not chase away any other visitors." Nathaniel tried.
"Leave them." Ravenna said. 
Quickly she opened up a small cabinet hanging from the wall and took out some bandages. Only know did Nathaniel notice that the girl was bleeding from her head.
Daniel came out of the cubicle. he still looked pale, but better than before.
"Maybe we should go..." he started.
"No you're not going." A familiar voice suddenly said.
"Draca?" Nathaniel asked.
"I've worked too hard to get you both here and now these two come ruining my work. I won't have it." There she was, Daniel thought, his brother's 'friendly' girlfriend.
"Who are you and what are you doing here?" Reggie asked.
"You should not have been here. That wasn't in the great plan of things. Something must have gone wrong, or someone must have thought it would be funny. And maybe, just maybe someone thought I could use the extra money.
"You are going to harvest our organs aren't you?" Daniel asked.
"Don't be silly." Draca said, "Reggie, you better tend to Ravenna."
"How did you know my name?" Reggie asked.
"Don't ask, that is easier. I just do."
Reggie returned to Ravenna and helped her with her head. For a moment it was silent in the bathroom. No-one dared say a word to disturb the fury Draca. After Ravenna was patched up and Daniel had cleaned himself up, Draca sat down on one of the benches and started speaking.
"I am what you could call a freelance searcher. But in stead of searching new trends and stuff, I search people. It took me a while to find the right people this time. And thus I had to move fast. The people who are paying me can't wait any longer. We're running late as it is. I suggest you all hop on and do what I say without questioning me."
"Hop on what?" Nathaniel asked sarcastically.
"Me of course."
As Draca said that, no longer stood there a girl half his size. in stead there stood a dragon, four times his size, long and slender with wings folded back.
"Hurry." she said, "It's rather cramped in here."
They all could see that. The silvery-purple dragon had to squeeze herself in all kinds of corners to fit in the small room.
"I'm not getting on." Reggie said, "Someone must have done something with my drink."
"Silence!!" Draca thundered, "You shall get on... and fast. or else!"
In the small bathroom the voice echoed on the walls, multiplying in volume until it was unbearable. Some smoke arose from the dragon's nose. Finally Daniel took a step forward and got on the dragon's back. 'I'm blaming it all on the alcohol" he thought to himself...'Why not enjoy the ride?'
"Daniel.." Nathaniel said.
"Oh, come on, I doubt this is going to be true in the morning. I'm probably just dreaming this whole thing up."
"Then why do I know it too?"
"Because you're a figment of my imagination?"
Not long after they all were on the dragon's back. A thing so absurd none of them actually dared to think about it. They all felt they were dreaming it. Daniel had the alcohol, Ravenna the bump on her head, Nathaniel and Reggie both suspected someone adding something to their drink... In all no-one thought this just might really be happening. And then the dragon took them into between...

Continue

Nathaniel and Daniel are candidates at Darkling Dawn
Reggie and Ravenna are Candidates at Ryslen