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Chapter 318: At the Belly of the Beast
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The giant maw of closed, a snapping sound rung, and the eyes of the world burned that image on their minds like sunset.… for it was rare for a dragon to appear in Terroa, even rarer for one to be this large; rare even for a dragon to directly attack a city; and rarer, most, for a single man to battle this magnificent foe.
And yet they saw it, with the camera drones all focused on that creature, the sight of a man in a formal white polo shirt and black slacks, flying in the air without any gear…
…he willingly threw himself towards that salivating pit of a creature that once only exists in the Book of Legends.
A crackle of lightning followed the snapping of the dragon’s jaw.
The gaps on its mouth flashed with a bright light and it opened its mouth let out a cry of agony, as it slammed its head to the forest floor as if trying to minimize the pain.
[Deal it damage!!!]
On Cramer’s and FlowerLord’s communicators was Siva’s plea for assistance. The two exchange glances, nods, then flew to the air towards the open back with a large wound.
[Do it now before it uses Dragon Roar!]
While the dragon cried and slammed its head to the ground, Cramer and FlowerLord went on the back to deal it more agony.
Siva, however, in the throat of the dragon, went on to unleash one Plasma Screen Grenade after another and when ten have been unleashed, he would detonate them as soon as possible.
He went on to do this and he would complete this cycle every five seconds.
It was punishment.
“Cortana!”
[Four more minutes before evac! One minute before the strike!]
Time seems to go slow at these fleeting moments and Siva could feel the urgency and weight at every second that passed.
And like a lumberjack on the job, he clung himself on the pillar in the throat of the dragon and went on to chop at that seemingly precious tree.
Blood gushed out on the wound he made and he didn’t care how much the dragon slammed his head to the ground and tried to shake him; Siva was like a leech, using the new and improved Invention version of the [Berserker Claws] to cling on and chop down at the fleshly pillar.
Siva was literally bathing on the dragon’s blood at the moment as he continued to hammer its throat and aim to bleed it to death.
The sound of water came into his ears and there, in the darkness of its neck, came its light brown liquid gushing out with extreme momentum.
Red blood was also included on that lake of slimy liquid and cursing the fact that his senses were as real as it was in the real world, he could clearly smell that nauseating stench that almost caused him to lose balance.
“Curse you.”
He opened his right palm to the rising liquid and then threw one Plasma Smoke Screen Grenade after another until it had reached enough amount to his liking.
“Boom.”
He threw last a Stun E-Grenade.
Another explosion rung inside the neck of the dragon and its mouth exploded forth gushing bile mixed blood and pus… and smoke.
Then…
A change occurred.
ROOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAARRRR!!!!!
There was no warning. Mana erupted from the very depths of the dragon and its body became covered in a thick layer of Mana that healed all of its wounds and repairing what was broken.
[Dragon’s health… restored]
“WHAT?!”
[All plans’ success rate had dropped to zero]
“You’re not adjutant. Drop the act.”
(A/N: StarCraft reference)
“Sorry boss. I just want to emphasize that you’re now doomed to lose.”
“That’s not something you emphasize as well.”
As if Cortana had resigned to the fate, her voice became robotically monotone that every syllable spoken was as flat as Samara’s chests.
Siva tried to damage the inside of the dragon again but the weapon failed to scratch the insides of the dragon and this pissed him off greatly.
“This is just fucking unfair!”
Even with less 70% defense, the insides of the dragon felt as hard as its outer scaled skin.
Good thing that all this time, the left claws of the [Berserker Claws] whom he’d used to stab what seemed to be the uvula that dangled on its throat.
The healing of the dragon might have healed all other damages he had done so far and even put on some kind of barrier that prevented future damages, but the wound that he’d been using to support himself had been there and weren’t able to be healed.
“So that’s how its healing works.”
As he murmured, Siva tried to ‘electrify’ the claws that stabbed the inverted pillar and felt a reaction on the dragon as it tried to gargle again.
The strong shaking of the head and then the mad sound of its roar were deafening Siva. Good thing that there was the [new] mask he was wearing that had the effects of anti-glare and anti-sun impact.
“Cortana!”
“I’m on the last one!”
“Hurry!’
Siva could feel himself on his limits. The strong shaking and the roar may not affect him internally, but there were still the sonic concussion effects on his body.
With each roar, his muscles would shake, and he could feel his arm aching as he stayed there on the dragon’s uvula.
“Got it!”
“Get back asap!”
“I’m on it.”
Just then, the dragon made another crash with its head to the ground and the tremors unlatched Siva’s grip to the dragon’s uvula.
“Shit!”
“Shit!”
Cortana was evolving. Fast. Siva doesn’t even know if he’d laugh or cry because of it. The two of them shouted the same reaction at the same time.
“Boss, your survival rate had gone down to the negative side…”
“Don’t dampen my spirits!”
It was around a 40m fall and whether it was a good thing or not that he fell on something that felt soft but full of mucus was left only on his sub-mind because right now, the dragon had already raised its head and made a gulping motion.
“Holy—“ Siva wasn’t able to finish his cursing as he was already sliding down the dragon’s throat.
The dragon’s saliva felt hot and slimy and if there was a woman with him right now, she’d be screaming like, er, Cortana……..
“Eeeeeewwwwwwww…..”
“Stop acting! You’re not the one bathing in goo!”
“Boss, you’re disgusti—WAAAA!! In your mouth, it’s in your mouth! Ewwwwww….”
“Pweh! Stop earning useless things on the Net!!!”
Siva continued to slide down the dragon’s throat for a few seconds until he fell on what can only be called a “sea of bile and liquid nutrients”.
“Boss, that’s acid! Cling on the walls!”
“Oh shit!”
Siva used the claws on his hands to embed a wound on the dragons stomach and unlike the sturdy properties of the dragon’s throat’s insides, the stomach wall where he was at is soft and not that hard to pierce.
Also, contrary to a healthy dragon who eats food to live… “When’s the last time this creature have eaten anything?”
“More importantly, boss, why is this dragon’s inside glowing?”
“This heat… it’s Mana!”
There was nothing on its stomach but a lake of its searing hot acidic stomach juices. Aside from that, there was nothing. The light that illuminated every corner and inch of the insides of the Dragon had the resplendent glow of Mana into it. That’s why Siva was immediately able to tell.
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
“Boss, it would be better if you’re on the left wall.”
“Where are you?”
“The Master Puppets are directly 600m below you right now, on the dragon’s stomach, but it can’t get in because of the dragon’s defenses.”
“Drill through it!”
“Then leave it to me.”
Siva activated the Killing Zone.
Right after that, he asked himself, “Will the same trick work in here?”
“Boss, the properties of the Plasma Smoke Screen is cold… if you disturb the PH-balance of the dragon’s stomach, these juices will splash all over you and will melt you in no time.”
“God damn it. And I don’t have any other weapons left in me as well aside from the [Sparrow Rapier] and the [Land Sword of Monalisa] from Raven.”
“Didn’t you edit a few weapons back in the base?”
“This [Claw] is the current strongest in my arsenal and even with it, it can’t deal too deep a wound on this dragon’s insides…”
“You really are pathetically weak, Boss.”
“…”
Siva felt dejected.
The dragon had a body of a cross between a panther and a dog, a streamlined, yet, spiky back, four legged, winged mammal-looking creature.
Its head was a real dragon, but not those eastern dragons that looked like serpents, but more like the firedrakes of the north, without the whiskers, and instead of a macho face. Its broad wings were connected to what seemed to be an arm-looking bone and muscle assembly and it had spikes on its tail with bony protrusions that can be used to whip the walls of any walled city.
When it roared this time, it also expanded its huge wings that spanned an easy 12km from tip to tip.
Every soul felt frightened by the sight of it.
This roar was a roar of victory, a declaration to the world that it exists here and now and will be here for as long as these people’s eyes that’re looking at it right now, are living.
Scion was in a praying gesture and the crew in the Floating Fortress all looked with apprehension at the dragon who is announcing its existence to the world around it.
“Rex… please… you can do it…”
Scion’s silent prayer became the only audio in the silent room in the castle. Because of the silence that permeated the air, if someone farts, then it was easy to point the finger of its origination.
….unfortunately, that feature exists in the game.
*****
Outside, Cramer and FlowerLord continued to pound their way towards the now small wound on its back.
It was 100+ meters wide earlier but now, after its healing magic, the large wound —or bruise— that two fleets of warship dealt with it had just been reduced to a mere 20m–wide injury. Apparently, its healing magic still had a certain limit to it… or it may be because it wasn’t a real True Dragon that its healing magic was weak.
“God damn this thing is a cheating monster!”
“How are we supposed to beat this thing?!!”
The two of them continued to pound the wound but despite their efforts, all they could do was to penetrate the healed scale and slightly wound its skin underneath its scale mail.
No matter their efforts and despite FlowerLord’s enhanced destructive ability with an [Overdrive] + [Elemental Affinity], the two of them were still not able to actually deal the dragon any significant kind of damage.
“It was different when Siva was attacking…”
“That’s because that cheat’s a cheat too!”
FlowerLord was really grumbling every time the talk was about Siva.
She was really bitter with that [Killing Zone] of his.
No player could ever have a chance to win against him if he uses that ability alongside his puppets.
“And he still had that large axe with him.”
She really hated his resources.
Very few are aware that Siva had a personal PNF with him and only Thorn, Volt, Coralline, and the marshal are aware that he had gotten himself a few resources from Alexandria.
She didn’t know what kind of material his armor and all of his current equipment are made of, but she knew that since Siva was able to treat her damage rate in passing, even after a direct hit; it was enough to tell that it was a sturdy material.
“And he actually dared to test it on us!”
“I don’t actually mind since I get to battle a lot to my heart’s content, although we were interrupted in the end.”
FlowerLord glared at the battlefreak and resigned on retorting, imagining the dragon as Siva so her attacks increased in intensity and even in might.
Thankfully, their attacks weren’t that strong or the dragon would have tried to crush the two of them off as if they were mosquitoes.
“Die. Die! DIE! DIIIIEEEE!!!”
“Ahahahaha…”
*****
“Unbelievable!”
“What is?”
Back in the Miranda, Newgate’s sudden exclaim made Rafaela glance at him with trepidation.
It should be noted that Willard Newgate is a really high-leveled Battle-AI that Rafaela got from when the Panorama Corporation was still in control of the game.
With her intellect and monetary resources, it was easy for her to acquire the resources to build her own warship and train her own crew, set up her own base, establish her fame, and eventually enter the Imperial Court of Western Continent of Flowerion’s only empire where she improved even further and built her own fleet.
There are a few things that will alarm her and one of those is the few times when the always calm and composed Newgate is being surprised.
“This Siva… he’s using the Communication’ Link to control a weapon.”
“Oh?”
[Communications Link] is an ability granted to all Battle-AI as a means for their owners to add one additional layer of security to their calls, so of course she was aware of Newgate’s abilities.
“I never noticed it earlier but now I am sure that it is a complex weapon made of Black Ironwood Alloy!”
Now, Rafaela was also surprised. Black Ironwood Alloy is a very expensive and very rare; rare as in strictly regulated–rare kind of material.
It was a product introduced by the Terran-Human Alliance in Jeremiah and only City Lords and very select individuals who had both money, capability, and authority are permitted to possess it.
There are times when shipments of said materials are pirated midway, that’s why there are those so called ‘colorum’ warships that used unregistered alloys on their designs. Practically, there’s not much difference between them; it’s just that on the bodies of officially registered warships, is a serial number that registers the warship on the list of warranted access on some restricted airspaces.
And that’s where [border issues] comes in. Any and all unregistered warships entering official national airspaces are all labeled pirates, unless they are recognized or have been registered on the list.
This is the reason why the Miranda had to stop and ask permission to enter the battlefield back then during the War of Two Powers.
And that’s where the surprising part comes in.
Perhaps it was only Siva who would have the grit and the sand to ‘waste’ a warship-grade material into creating a weapon. And besides, there lays the problem in itself.
“You mean to say he can lift —no, he can wear— that weapon made up of Black Ironwood Alloy?”
The problem was weight.
—Black Ironwood Alloy is too heavy for practical weaponized usage. Yes it was sturdy and hard, but it’s too heavy and the ‘Weight Limits’ required to even just lift it would be tremendously high, let alone actually wear a full armor and weapon set.
“Not only that… but it seems he had incorporated some sort of network that enables him to integrate anything made up of the same material to move freely as if alive on a particular range… just like a personal domain… what’s unbelievable is that he’s able to control it to remotely!”
The meaning behind these words was heavy.
If Siva can ‘control’ that [weapon] remotely and even to the point that there are multiple of that so called [weapon], then it meant that against any and perhaps all players and NPCs, he would be an indisputable dominator.
As painful for this fact is to the other players, she couldn’t help but blush when she imagines just how much the world would fear Siva’s might and power.
He would be able to stand tall and proud above all players in the world.
“Ah, isn’t that a good thing?”
“For you, perhaps; but for him… once the world became aware of this power in his hands, he will become the target of envy and hate of everybody, and there will be certain people and organizations that will not let him rest until they get their hands on his items and equipments.”
“I see…” Rafaela gripped the armrest of her chair a little tighter.
Newgate was her confidant both in the game and the real world. He was aware of the world she was living in and knew a thing or two about the many different organizations that dwells in the shadows of the real world.
One of them are the Terrorists.
“That is indeed a thing to worry.” The hands that gripped her armrests tightened then relaxed at the next moment, then she looked at the pop up window on her vision before frowning and issuing an order to the man beside her. “Captain.”
Of course, Newgate, as the one in complete control of her charge’s communication, knew the contents of that message.
The sender was named [Olaf].
He frowned for a moment but still issued his next commands, “Warn our allied parties and start the preparations for another barrage! Set target to the same location.”
“Yes, sir!”
On her seat, Rafaela was reading the missive. As she finished reading it, her frown deepened further.
“Just what is that guy planning to Siva?”
“Requesting us to connect him to Panorama… is this not going to fuel a fire of hatred from him?”
Rafaela was torn between a rock and a truck; she knew two things or three about The Father’s plan, and even AG’s plans, and with that, she became aware of a few secrets the Panorama Corp. is hiding that has a connection with Rex Kingsley.
Though she can’t tell these secrets to anybody, it doesn’t mean she can just ignore it.
“No, Rex isn’t aware of it yet… because if he is, he would have exploded long ago.”
“What do you plan then, My Lady?”
“Since it’s official business, we will conduct it. We are mercenaries after all and since Olaf is also not aware who we are yet, we can pretend to watch on the sidelines with their talk as third parties.”
Newgate looked at the spherical display in front of them and then said coldly, “That is, if he survive.”
Rafaela charmingly smiled and giggled, “My taste is absolutely perfect, Captain. My darling will be able to survive… trust me.”
Newgate shut his lips and never spoke again.
*****
“Boss, the Miranda is on its final preparation for another attack.”
“How many seconds more before my mark?”
“Twenty seconds.”
“Okay. Wait for my mark. Tell the marshal to attack with the same manner as before. Cramer, Alice… we’re going to attack with the cannons again. You have to evacuate the area.”
[Hot chick, let’s go!]
[Don’t call me names!]
*****
At the belly of the dragon, there was a spider… or to be precise, a parasite.
While the Master Puppets, the Faceless included, are not able to freely change form because of the armaments they’re carrying, the main body of the BMA itself, however, are able to do it.
Right now, it had changed [form] into a drill with a very distinctive shape: a spider, or rather, like the alien offspring that jumps out of an alien egg, it had six long arms to lock itself in place and a drill-shaped head that kept on digging at the belly of the dragon.
The other puppets, weren’t standing by as well. A single glance was enough to tell that the melee fighters were manually widening the wound by hacking it with their weapons while the cannon-holders were all doing their best to bombard the opening the drill was making.
Killing Zone in effect, since this [weapon] was still in the scope of being Siva’s equipment item, and is indeed under his control, the ability’s effectivity is stacked since the 2.5km distance from him and his puppets were connected through his Orbiter Bracelet’s [Orbiter Control] function.
With 70% of its defenses down, the parasite was able to dig in a small wound until the skin, wide enough for all Master Puppets to dive into it.
“Ten seconds!” Cortana began the countdown for the bombardment.
“Time-in on the impact to enter the dragon’s stomach! We will wreck this piece of flesh from within!”
Eight…
Seven…
Six…
The marshal from the Rewloola punched out and a vortex began to appear at the back of the True Dragon.
Newgate, from the Miranda mothership, gave the orders and only upon his mark right after the last moment of the Rewloola Fleet’s bombardment will they be maximizing the damage of this attack.
Four…
Three…
Two…
The dragon roared as soon as he noticed the vortex that had formed behind it. But as much as it wanted to react, it was too late.
One.
The bombardment commenced once again.
GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA…..
Its loud cry of agony rung once again and the dragon’s back arched as it squarely received the concentrated firepower of the Rewloola’s [Bloody Mary Cannons] as well the Lambda-Class Fleet’s focused fire from all of their [Longhorn Cannons].
A spectacular display of warship power occurred and the dazzling lights flashed and go, burned and seared the bone, scales, skin, and then flesh of the invading translucently shining bluish-white ghost-like scaled, True Dragon.
And not even the last moment of the Rewloola’s bombardment, another series of bombardments came from the southern side of the city where the Miranda Fleet’s [Azeroth Cannons] and [Longhorn Cannons] focused their firepower on the same location where the Rewloola Fleet had attacked.
Not only that, the Miranda even went on to add a bombardment of physical bombs that fell from the Cyclones that flew fast in their aerial formations.
The bombs were tactical placed on the same spot the bombardment had hit and there were over hundreds of them bombs that sent shockwaves and explosions rattling the entire city.
From the distance, the world saw the dragon fell on its knees, as it received the full brunt of the bombardments.
“Cortana, on the last moment…” Siva ordered.
“Leave it to me boss.”
“How much more time to teleport?”
“Three point five minutes!”
.
.
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Is the dragon finally falling down?
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