14

My eyes opened slowly as hunger made my guts twist painfully. I didn't understand anything about the white room I was in right now. I stood up slowly, and looked around the room only to see fresh deer ready for me to eat. I leapt after the delicious meal, and wolfed it down before its heart even stopped beating. It was only after I finished, and was licking my talons clean that I realized that Savannah, and the white woman was there watching me.

I licked the blood off my face right quick, and laid down all stretched out so that I could digest my meal properly. I looked at Savannah first than the white spirit lady. Than a flashing notification in the corner of my vision. I focused on it for a second before it maximized so that I could read it.

Jax has forcefully formed bond with user. Would user like to terminate this bond?

Jax? That earth mage guy. How did that happen?

Bonded Jax took a piece of user's mind into his own mind. Forming a lesser rider bond.

He skipped a whole step. I shook my head, and opened my connection to him. Jax flinched away from my intrusion mentally.

{Stop it} I snorted {Come here so we can talk.}

Jax would be hearing about his mistake. I wouldn't take no for an answer. I tilted my head, and focused on Savannah. Ethan was sleeping deeply right now so I let him keep sleeping. My muscles still felt weak, but my hunger was sated for now, and I could think clearly for the moment.

"What happened?" I asked.

"I answered your call," the white woman answered first, "And I brought you here to dragon hold."

"So you're the one I summoned?" I looked her over slowly, "I remember most of that. What happened after I passed out?"

"She brought us here," Savannah stood up while nursing her half asleep legs, "And has been taking of us ever since." Savannah let her suspicion cross our link to me, "She seems to want to become your familiar as a reward for all her hard work."

"You're more powerful than me both physically, and magically," I stated, "Why would you want to become my familiar?"

"You're a dragon prince aren't you?" she formed a crown atop her head with the white material that made her body, "One day you'll become a dragon king."

I winced at Savannah's confusion since I hadn't had a chance to tell them anything since my last evolution.

"One day you'll be strong enough to summon me as your familiar to your side anywhere in the universe," she continued as if she hadn't just dropped a info bomb, "I cannot leave this planet otherwise. The dragon queen that ruled before you showed me so many wonders of this universe that I'd never seen before." She spun as she floated back up in the air about six inches off the ground, "I would like to see those wonders again. She promised me that you would have the strength to do that for me one day." she looked at me with her practically formless face, "But I needed proof. Proof that you would be capable of even half of what she believed you would be all those years ago. So I tested you. The first dragon that has walked this world in countless centuries. And you didn't leave me disappointed."

"How will I benefit from contracting you as my familiar?" I tried to ignore the information she'd just dumped on me since most of it was useless to me.

"She might take you over once you contract her," Savannah held her hand out when Jax entered the room to signal him not to interrupt.

"That would stunt his growth," the white spirit answered mechanically, "And extend the amount of time that I stay stuck on earth in dragon hold."

"Why would you stay in dragon hold?" Jax asked quietly without realizing he'd said it out loud.

"Because," she dropped to the ground once again, "Earth is unstable right now. I am acting as her life support system. If I leave before she regains her health she will die."

"You're the one that's been redirecting the mana I release," I perked up suddenly forgetting my exhaustion.

She nodded slowly, "Yes. Without a strong enough presence of origin species a planet will effectively starve over time. Once a planet dies it becomes cold, and barren. I cannot leave until earth starts recovering, and that won't happen until there are more dragons on her surface."

"So dragons are earths food source?" Jax looked completely lost.

"In a way," the white spirit walked toward us from where she'd been standing in the center of the massive room, "Earth amplifies the life energy given to her, and sends it outward, but origin species are the only types of magical creatures that give mana freely." she stopped about twenty feet away, "But living planets cannot take just any energy. They need a specific type so they create the species that gives them the correct type of energy while they're young, and everything that comes after is a branch off of the original species they created to both nurture, and sustain them. But many of the creatures that branch off from the original do not retain this ability to help the world maintain the cycle thus the importance of species that do maintain the cycle comes to light. Earth only has dragons to maintain the cycle."

"And the dragons died out so earth has been dying," I tapped my talons on the floor in irritation.

Deafening silence filled the large chamber, but none of us noticed since we were all so deep in thought.

"How do we know you're not lying?" Jax broke the silence.

"I am the mother of all spirits," the white spirit turned red as pure rage pummeled all of us in waves of mana, "I don't have any reason to lie to such weak beings that I could crush like ants. It would only take the tiniest raindrop of my power to kill you all. Why would I waste my time lying to such weaklings?"