Chapter 11 part 2: The Call of the Sky
Kael'thir stood at the peak of the canyon, his crimson eyes scanning the world beyond.
For the first time since his hatching, there was nothing above him.
No ceiling of stone.
No ruins trapping him beneath the earth.
Only open sky.
A sky that should have been his.
And yet—
He was still bound to the ground.
His wings twitched violently, the mana surging through them, demanding they spread, lift, fly.
But the moment he tried—
Pain.
A deep, aching strain in his muscles.
Kael'thir growled, his tail snapping against the rock beneath him.
Not yet.
He could feel it.
His body was almost there.
His wings were almost ready.
But he had not yet crossed that final threshold.
His instincts whispered.
He needed one more step.
One final kill.
One last push.
Then, and only then—
Would he finally rise.
The world stretched before him in ways he had never imagined.
The land was different now.
It was no longer the lifeless wasteland he had crawled from.
Ahead, rolling forests blanketed the valleys below, their emerald canopies stretching wide, filled with the distant sounds of hidden creatures.
Beyond them, mountains loomed, their peaks veiled in mist, their slopes carved with ancient paths and forgotten ruins.
There was life here.
More than he had ever sensed before.
And that meant—
Prey.
Kael'thir inhaled deeply, his nostrils flaring.
The scent of mana-rich beasts flooded his senses.
Not weak creatures like the shadowbeasts.
Not scavengers like the raptors.
Not horrors like the burrowing serpent.
Something greater.
Something worthy.
Kael'thir's tail flicked.
Perfect.
The hunt was not over.
Not yet.
And this time, he would take more than just strength.
He would take the sky itself.
The fox had followed him up the cliffs.
She stood just behind him, her golden eyes locked on the world beyond.
But this time—
She was not watching him.
She was watching what lay ahead.
For the first time, she looked attentive.
Focused.
She had known this place existed.
Kael'thir could feel it.
She had been waiting for him to get here.
Waiting for him to see this place.
Waiting for him to leave the wasteland behind.
Kael'thir did not speak.
Could not speak.
But if he could—
He would ask her why.
Why she had followed him this far.
Why she was still here.
Why she had never left his side.
Instead, he only met her eyes for a long moment.
She did not grin this time.
She only tilted her head slightly.
As if to say—
Keep going.
Kael'thir turned away.
There was nothing left behind them.
Everything lay ahead.
He would find his next prey.
And when he did—
He would never again be bound to the earth.
Kael'thir moved down the rocky slope, his claws pressing into the loose stone as he descended toward the valleys below.
The air was different here.
Thicker.
Richer.
Every breath filled his lungs with power.
The mana in this place was dense, wild, untamed.
A sign that this land had been left to the strong.
Beasts here would not be weak.
They had grown in an environment where only the strongest could survive.
Kael'thir's blood burned with excitement.
He would take everything this land had to offer.
And then, when he had absorbed all of it—
He would break past his limits.
His wings would finally lift him from the ground.
And then, for the first time—
He would fly.
As he moved deeper into the valley, the trees grew taller.
Their trunks were thick, their branches forming a dense canopy overhead.
The forest was silent.
Not the silence of emptiness.
The silence of watching.
Something knew he was here.
Kael'thir slowed his steps, his tail flicking in anticipation.
He inhaled again, his sharp senses pulling in every trace of scent on the wind.
There were many creatures here.
But one stood out above the rest.
A single, powerful presence.
Something larger.
Something territorial.
Something that had claimed this part of the forest as its own domain.
Kael'thir's instincts sharpened.
He was entering its territory.
And that meant only one thing.
One of them would leave alive.
Kael'thir's crimson eyes gleamed.
And it would not be the creature that had ruled here before.
He moved forward, his body low, silent, controlled.
Every movement was precise.
Every breath was slow and measured.
The scent was getting stronger.
The air was thick with the presence of something massive.
Then—
A rumble.
A deep, vibrating growl that rolled through the trees like distant thunder.
The ground shook.
Kael'thir stopped.
His pupils shrank to slits.
Something was moving ahead.
Something big.
Then, between the thick trees, he saw it.
A colossal beast stood in the heart of the valley.
It was covered in obsidian-black fur, its body lined with jagged, glowing scars of deep red.
A titanic predator, unlike anything Kael'thir had faced before.
Its head was crowned with twisted, bone-like horns, its fangs like massive daggers, its claws digging deep furrows into the earth as it prowled forward.
Its eyes were slitted like his own.
Not mindless.
Not a simple beast.
A ruler of the wild.
One that had never been challenged.
Until now.
The beast locked eyes with him.
And in that moment, Kael'thir understood—
This was the final step.
The final kill before his body would cross into its next stage.
His wings twitched violently, as if they already knew.
If he killed this thing—
If he devoured it—
Then he would finally rise.
Kael'thir exhaled.
The beast snarled.
Then, at the same time—
They charged.