The sky was an endless ocean, vast and boundless, stretching beyond sight.
Kael'thir soared through it, his wings cutting clean lines through the clouds, each powerful beat sending tremors of mana through the air.
But this wasn't just flight.
This was freedom.
The ground, with its limitations and boundaries, was beneath him now—just a distant memory.
The sky belonged to him.
It always had.
He just needed to earn it.
And now, he had.
Kael'thir tilted his wings, rolling sharply into a dive.
The wind roared around him, pulling at his scales, but he welcomed it.
Every shift of his body was instinctive, every movement perfect.
When he reached the treetops, he twisted sharply, skimming just above the canopy, his claws trailing through the leaves.
His tail flicked, sending a burst of wind that scattered the forest floor below.
Then—
He shot upward again, breaking through the clouds with a deafening roar, his wings fully extended as if to embrace the heavens themselves.
The sky answered with silence, vast and infinite, as if acknowledging him.
Kael'thir wasn't just flying.
He was claiming his domain.
But even in the sky, hunger remained.
Not for food.
Not even for mana.
For more.
More strength.
More power.
More realms to conquer.
The sky was vast, but Kael'thir could feel it—there was more beyond it.
Other realms, layered like veils, hidden just out of reach.
His wings were strong now.
But soon, they would carry him beyond this world.
Kael'thir banked sharply, his keen eyes catching movement far below—a cluster of beasts grazing near a river.
Weak.
Unworthy.
But still prey.
And every hunt was a chance to sharpen his instincts.
His wings folded—
And he dove.
The air screamed past him, the ground rushing up to meet him like an eager adversary.
But Kael'thir was faster.
Stronger.
The moment he reached the clearing, he unleashed his first true aerial strike.
His wings snapped open, sending a shockwave of compressed wind crashing down like a blade, slicing through the herd below.
Beasts scattered, screaming in panic—
But it was already over.
Kael'thir landed with a thunderous impact, his claws tearing through the largest of the creatures with effortless precision.
His movements were fluid, graceful, deadly.
Within moments, the clearing was silent again, littered with the remains of his prey.
Kael'thir stood amidst the carnage, his chest rising and falling with steady breaths.
But he wasn't tired.
Not even close.
He devoured the mana without hesitation.
Not because he needed it.
But because that's what dragons do.
They consume.
They grow.
Always.
And Kael'thir was still growing.
As he rose back into the sky, his gaze drifted eastward.
There was something there.
Something… different.
A pulse in the mana currents, faint but undeniable.
Not prey.
Not a beast.
Something greater.
Something worthy.
Kael'thir's tail flicked.
His wings beat once—
And he was gone, a streak of black against the vast blue sky.
The hunt wasn't over.
It would never be over.
Not until he had devoured everything this world had to offer—
And everything beyond it.
Far below, the fox watched him disappear into the horizon.
Her golden eyes narrowed slightly, a faint shimmer of mana flickering around her.
She wasn't just following anymore.
She was waiting.
For him to realize something.
For something to awaken.
And soon—
It would.
Because Kael'thir's ascent had only just begun.