I eventually woke up, still laying on the rock in which I had fallen onto. My body still was sore and ached. It still needed time to recover. I was scared to leave where I was. I didn't know if the sand around me would collapse and give way to the area down below. I summoned up the mana from within and let it surround me and help my body recover and heal. It allowed me to feel better, but now I have less water to use, and as far as I can see. There was none around me. Over here it is really dry, and full of earth mana. I can feel a hint of fire, but me and fire never got along.

I sighed, knowing if I wanted to improve my situation I would need to take to the air, so the use of my water to restore myself was needed. I got myself up on my feet. After some looking I realized that there was nowhere of noticeability in any direction. No distinct landmarks. Just sand in every direction. If I wanted a good picture of the land I would need to take to the air and get high up, and see if I can find anything that way.

With a small shove off the ground I flapped my wings and took to the air. Gaining height I just saw more and more sand as I looked around. So I picked a direction which I felt had the most water mana and started flying hoping I was going in a direction which might get me water.

Flying through the air I was able to pass over the sink hole which had opened up under where I had landed. I noticed it wasn't a hole, but rather the sand had created some crust over a vast open area underneath it. The sand acts like a lid, which covers it. I lowered myself into and looked around. It really is dark under it, and very open. I couldn't see the bottom from here, but the vastness of this place is huge. Tall pillars of stone seemed to support the sand in some way that makes it just enough to stop it from caving down on itself. It really is beautiful in its own way. This vast nature supported structure is enough to make me, a dragon, feel small.

“Maybe I can explore just a little bit.” I said as I allowed myself to sink into the hole a bit to look around more.

It is indescribably big. Mountains could hide under this and not be seen from the surface. I felt a deep coldness from down below rush up at me. It was enough to make my body shiver. It was not anything dark or evil but just something that made my soul run cold. Something old was down there. I lowered myself more wanting to see what was doing that. I didn't feel in danger so I only had a little apprehension. I continued to go down and the temperature continued to drop more. It took some diving to get what appeared to be ground level. The ground was covered in frost. It was bone chilling cold down here. It all seemed to be coming from a direction.

Heading in the direction of where the cold was radiating from I started seeing ruins. Human ruins of some kind. Ancient for sure. Looking them over seems to depict dragons and gods being worshiped by the mortals, but there is none here now. I wonder what this could be. Can planets be swallowed by the void sucked dry of all gods and dragons then be released? If that's the case then how do mortals live here? Are mortal planes affected by things like the void or lack of mana? It appears it might not.

Trying to be careful I kept walking around the ruins trying not to step on or destroy anything when I saw the biggest building of all of them and from its massive door, radiated all the cold. I slowly creeped up to the door, it radiated a powerful presence. The door seemed to have rotted away a long time ago, so I walked through the empty doorway.

Looking around I noticed how massive the room is. Clearly big enough for a fair few dragons to live in, but no remnants remain. Except one. Sitting on a throne, is a frozen human skeleton, but that's not what's radiating the coldness behind it. A smaller dragon’s skeleton seemed to have been frozen to protect itself. I approached this dragon's remains, it radiated a lot of power, but my curiosity drove my steps forward. I needed to get a closer look.

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As I approached it, I felt something stir, then I was suddenly washed up in a storm. The wind howling and raging threatening to blow me over. I was standing on ice, but I was still being assaulted by freezing water, it made it hard to open my eyes or look anywhere. The flashes of lightning did little to illuminate through such a violent storm. I had to use my claws to dig into the ice to try to walk forward without losing my grip. I dared not open my wings, the wind was much too strong.

The air was so cold, it felt like it was biting at me. I tried pushing back, but all the mana refused to listen. Lightning and wind I could not even ask to move, but the water wasn't even hearing me. No matter how hard I pushed and tried to force my will onto the mana it changed nothing. My body was shivering, starting to ache from being pelted and struggling against the wind. I was starting to get tired of this. I tried harder, reaching deep. I tried forcing my will over this mana but it refused.

The howling wind rushed harder against me. I was not making any progress, I could not resist this great power. I can't understand, I know I am not weak, but this is too much. I feel completely swallowed up in someone else’s powers.

“So, you have survived this long, you must not be a human. No indeed, you're a dragon. Rather young. Impressive you have resisted.” A voice talked through the storm.

“Who are you?!” I tried to shout into the storm, as I looked around trying to find who spoke.

“I am, the great storm! Unyielding.” The voice spoke back. It seemed male, it had a gravel to the voice. It was clear and spoke through the storm easily, but for some reason did not strike me as a big dragon was speaking. Very powerful, but not big.

“I am Lost! Who are you?” I shouted out.

To my surprise the storm cleared up so it's not so bad. It mostly now is just fairly windy, but now I feel like I can move around a lot more freely. I take the chance to look around, I am not in the castle anymore, or underground. I look at the sky full of thunder and storm clouds, while the wind mana is restless and keeps moving, and what I am standing on is frozen water mana, with a large reservoir of water mana below it.

“Ah, that is a very unique dragon name. Lost.” The voice responded.

I looked around when I saw a dragon less than half my size become visible through the snow. It was very small, but the aura that radiated from this dragon was deadly. If he wanted me dead, it would not have been hard.

“My name is Cataegis. I was known as the Great Storm! My power was great enough to freeze planets over! You should bow before your elder.” He said.

I bowed quickly, fearing if he would attack me if I did not. I had my pride but the bloodlust which radiated from his piercing icy eyes said to not even try to test my luck. He was looking for a fight. Something to entertain him.

“Ah, a young dragon who knows their place? This is a first. Most would try something. You are smart, or have lucky instincts. I see you have quite the affinity for ice.” He remarked.