Timeline 882-Alpha - The Northern MountainsSeconds Later
The Wyrm thrashed, its missing leg cauterized but still steaming. It screamed, opening its massive jaws to unleash a desperation attack. Green light gathered deep in its throat—a breath weapon that would incinerate anything in front of it.
Dante stood his ground, the weapon he had visualized already heavy in his hands.
"Open wide."
He pulled the trigger.
THUMP.
It wasn't a beam of energy. A 40mm canister arced through the air, spiraling perfectly into the abyss of the monster's maw.
The Wyrm snapped its jaws shut, swallowing it instinctively just as it tried to fire its breath.
Dante lowered the weapon. "Digestion might be an issue."
Muffled BOOM.
The Wyrm froze.
Its eyes bulged. Smoke poured out of its nostrils. Its stomach expanded violently for a split second, then collapsed.
The tough, mana-hardened scales that could stop rockets held the pressure in. The shockwave bounced around inside the beast's ribcage, turning its heart, lungs, and stomach into soup.
The Wyrm swayed. It took one step, then collapsed face-first into the snow. Dead before it hit the ground.
[Target Eliminated: Radium Wyrm.][Combat Rating: S.]
Dante stood up, dusting the snow off his pants. He looked down at the six-cylinder drum launcher in his hands.
[Weapon Analysis: Milkor MGL (Rotary Grenade Launcher).][Ammo: 40mm High-Explosive Dual Purpose (HEDP).][Performance: Optimal.]
"Internal combustion," Dante said, dismissing the heavy launcher into red pixels. "Never fails."
He walked over to the corpse.
[System Update: Biomass Harvest Protocol.][New Feature: The Titan Forge can now process biological matter into System Rewards.][Harvest Target? (Y/N)]
"Harvest," Dante commanded.
Red light enveloped the massive dragon. The flesh, bone, and scales dissolved, sucked into the System interface.
[Harvest Complete.][Rewards:]1. 50kg Refined Uranium (From Scales).2. Wyrm Heart (Mana Catalyst).3. +2,000 Gold Coins (Converted Value).4. Attribute Point: +5 Strength.
Dante felt the surge of power hit him. His muscles knit tighter. He felt lighter, stronger.
Elara came running up the slope, breathless. She stopped, staring at the empty patch of bloody snow where a dragon used to be.
"It's... gone?" she gasped. "You turned a dragon into... nothing?"
Dante checked his inventory. The Uranium was the real prize.
Elara looked at him, shaking her head. "You look so young," she whispered, half to herself. "You can't be more than twenty-four. But you fight like a man who has lived a hundred years of war."
Dante paused. He caught his reflection in a piece of ice.
The face looking back was young—24 years old, handsome, with sharp aristocrat features. But the eyes were cold. They were the eyes of Ryan, the engineer who had seen too many weapons tests.
"I haven't been a boy since the first time I built a bomb," Dante said, turning away from the reflection. "This face is just camouflage."
He pointed to the open cave mouth. The green glow inside was pulsing.
"We have the mine. We have the Uranium. And now, thanks to the dragon, we have the initial funding."
He activated the Industrial Replication menu.
[Fabricate: Automated Mining Drone (Mk 1).][Quantity: 10.]
Ten metallic, spider-like robots materialized in the snow. They chirped, their red optical sensors scanning the cave.
"Go," Dante ordered. "Feed the machine."
The drones skittered into the dark.