The trial had heard his answer.
The figures of his parents smiled as the wind shimmered around them. Even the dragon seemed startled by their sudden appearance. Its great head tilted slightly, eyes widening with something close to curiosity.
Zal took a step closer. His voice trembled. "It's really you, isn't it?"
His father knelt and placed a hand on his shoulder. The warmth was real, or at least it felt real enough for Zal to believe it.
"You have grown, Zaly," his father said softly. "Be brave. The wind is harsh, but it never forgets those who chase it."
Zal's throat ached. "You two… you never came back."
His mother smiled faintly. "We had to go where the sky no longer reached. We wanted to open the gates for everyone. But now, it is your turn."
He wanted to say more, but the light around them began to flicker. The wind tugged at their outlines like threads unraveling.
"Wait!" Zal shouted, reaching out.
His father's voice echoed one last time. "Remember, the sky does not test strength. It tests will. Keep rising, Zaly."
Then, they were gone.
Zal stood silently for a long time. His heart felt heavy, but not in the way it once did. It was filled with something bright.
He turned toward the tornado again. The feather now floated so high that it looked like a star.
He clenched his fists. "I have to do this."
He thought of Lumini. His sister's smile when she gave him her share of food, her hands shaking from hunger while pretending she was full. She had kept him alive when everything around them crumbled.
Now, it was his turn to repay that kindness.
The dragon finally spoke. Its voice was deep and echoed like the sky itself. "Human, are you insane? That storm will tear you apart."
Zal glanced up. "Probably."
The dragon blinked, clearly not expecting that answer. "You are not even denying it?"
He stayed silent, cracking his fingers as the wind picked up around him. His hair whipped against his face.
"Let's do this," he said quietly.
Before the dragon could stop him, Zal grabbed one of its long whiskers and jumped off the cliff.
"Hey! What are you doi–"
The dragon roared in disbelief, twisting in the air as the boy shouted, "Come on, fly!"
The dragon's expression turned blank. "I cannot fly."
Zal's eyes widened. "What!? You useless dragon!"
The dragon sighed, almost offended. "I said I cannot fly yet. But wings can grow if the one who bears me perseveres."
Its tone shifted, now steady and serious.
"Tell me, child of wind. Why do you chase this dream so desperately? Why reach for something that could crush you?"
Zal's grip tightened. He looked at the storm below, then at the distant feather. The answer came without hesitation.
"For the people," he said firmly.
"Because everyone below deserves to see the sky again. They deserve more than broken towns and empty plates. I'll open those gates so they can breathe again, so they can dream again."
The dragon looked at him quietly. Its eyes glowed brighter, and its body began to shimmer.
"That is a foolish reason," it said softly.
Zal smiled. "Then I guess I'll be the world's biggest fool."
The wind exploded around them. The dragon's body unfolded into pure light, wrapping him in green flame. The storm below began to twist, pulling him toward it.
The trial had truly begun.
The wind screamed as they fell through the clouds. Islands blurred past them, their cliffs flashing by like memories.
The green dragon's body shimmered brighter with every second, and its voice echoed through the storm.
"I can feel it," the dragon said. "The power is awakening."
Zal held on tightly, eyes wide as the air whipped across his face. "Then use it!"
The dragon's laughter rolled through the sky. "Before that, child of wind, tell me your name."
Zal grinned despite the chaos around him. "Zagorzaly Tempa. But you can call me Zal."
The dragon's gaze softened slightly. "And I am Severus Von Seraphis, the Wind that Dreams."
Zal's grin widened. "Then let's do this, Severus!"
The dragon threw its head back and roared, a sound that split the clouds apart.
"AHHHHH!"
A blinding green light burst from its spine. Two great wings erupted outward, each one stretching wide enough to blot out the falling islands above. Wind wrapped around them like a living flame.
"Now!" Zal shouted. "Fly!"
The dragon's wings flared, and the world turned upward. The fall became flight. The wind no longer screamed, it sang.
They soared toward the tornado, rising higher and higher until the storm was a spiral beneath them.
In the heart of that raging current, the feather glimmered. Zal reached forward, his fingers trembling as the air bent around them.
And in one swift motion, he caught it.
He caught it.
For a moment, the world was silent. The tornado faded into calm, and the clouds opened above them. The green glow around Severus pulsed like a heartbeat.
Zal stared at the feather in his hand, laughing breathlessly. "I got it. I actually got it!"
Severus turned his massive head toward him, eyes bright with pride. "Well done, child of wind. The sky has heard your heart, and it has accepted you."
Zal's laughter softened into a smile. "Thanks, Severus."
The dragon's wings beat once more, carrying them toward the light above.
---
The world blinked.
The wind, the storm, and even the light vanished all at once. Silence fell so heavy it felt alive. When Zal opened his eyes again, everything around him was white.
No sky, no ground, just endless space that shimmered faintly like mist.
In front of him stood Severus. The dragon was smaller now, about the size of a man, his green scales glowing softly in the pale light.
Zal looked around in awe. "Where are we?"
Severus's voice echoed calmly. "This is the realm between our breaths. The place where our bond takes shape."
Zal blinked slowly. "Our bond?"
The dragon nodded. "From this day forth, you and I are partners. Your will has awakened me. Your heart has chosen the wind."
Zal stared at him, the words slowly sinking in. Then he smiled. "So that means you're stuck with me now."
Severus huffed quietly, almost like a laugh. "It seems so."
There was a pause, then the dragon lowered his head slightly, his expression turning solemn. "Zagorzaly Tempa, my dream is to free my kin. The dragons once soared beside humankind, but the people of the Top Sky grew afraid of us. They captured us, used our power to build their cities, and called it progress."
His eyes burned with quiet anger. "I want to free them from that cruelty. To remind the sky that we were never meant to serve."
Zal listened, his chest tightening. The story felt too familiar, as if the world's pain had the same voice as his own.
"My dream," Zal said softly, "is to open the gates to the Top Sky. I want everyone to see what waits above. I want people to dream again without being crushed for it."
The dragon regarded him quietly. "Then our dreams share the same wind."
Zal nodded firmly. "Yeah. From now on, we rise together."
He extended his hand.
Severus looked at it for a moment, then reached forward with a clawed hand that shimmered with green light.
Their hands met.
The realm around them pulsed like a heartbeat. Wind gathered at their feet, swirling upward in a slow spiral.
Their partnership was sealed.
Zal grinned. "Let's make the sky ours, partner."
Severus smiled faintly.
"Together, child of wind."