The third asteroid was the most intact of the three, and on its northern pole, a large temple had been constructed, in a ziggurat style. Steps extended up towards the horizon, miles wide. In the center was a pit that extended into the asteroid’s depths. Wafts of gas drifted out of it every now and again, hinting at something deep within the rough sphere of rock.
Hovering over it on a pillar of the Dao, Sam could see nothing, so he let gravity take him down into its depths, again noticing the strange strength of attraction that the asteroids in this system had. A quick scan told him the answer, and he nearly facepalmed. They were made out of F Rank rock, which, while not much more durable than normal rock, relative to his strength, was denser.
As the walls of the borehole whipped by, Sam charged up his hammer, bringing his Dao towards its shining head. A cloud of red and blue formed around it, tugging on the air around it as it went.
A few moments later, he slammed onto the ground, standing in a vast cavern, lit faintly by a few flickering lights high above. What looked like a lab took pride of place in the center of the floor, vastly larger than any Earthly counterpart. Beakers the size of hot tubs stood on top of tables as large as tennis courts, while all manner of glassware lay strewn across the ground, in various states of disarray. Judging by the shape of some of the handles, they had been crafted for a beast rather than a human. Sam knew exactly who that beast was.
In the very center of the cavern, surrounded by broken glass, was a massive vat, filled with a bubbling green liquid. Tubes and wires connected it to a generator nearby, pumping regular bursts of energy into it. Rather than electricity, it was raw elemental energy. Life, if Sam was correct in his analysis.
Within the vat, a vast, scarred body floated, that of a dragon. Unlike the clones from the other crypts, though, it was free of tumors. Instead, parts of its body were misshapen, with one leg far shorter than the others, and another far longer. Two of its wings were nothing more than ragged sheets of flesh, while its face was missing half the scales on one side, pink flesh visible beneath.
Sam took a few steps forwards, but there was no response. Other than the dragon, the cavern was empty. Shrugging, he lifted Terra’s Will up with one hand, and wreathed it in the raw might of his Dao, expanding the weapon as he did so. The hammer grew to its maximum size, dwarfing him in comparison. A swirling core of elemental energy, mana and the Dao gathered within it, birthing a tiny star in the center of the hammer. Sam let out a roar, and brought it down, aiming for the vat.
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A pulse of danger rippled through his mind, a strange wave of foreboding sweeping across the cavern. Sam halted the attack, and teleported away, just before the vat ruptured, liquid spilling out like a flood. Within it, the dragon let out a keening cry, and set its eyes on him, one glowing brightly, with the other blind and milky white.
Behind it, a shadowy figure appeared, that of a true dragon, healthy and whole. It sank into the disfigured monster, and a moment later, the beast let out a roar that shook the ground. Then it fixed Sam in its gaze, running a forked tongue over rows of uneven teeth.
“There you are. The nuisance running around, killing my failed projects. Who do you think you are?” The Dao itself coated the beast’s words, allowing them to travel through space.
Sam stared the dragon down. “Abrinadus, I presume? You can’t even come to fight me yourself?” He did the same thing with his voice, a surprisingly easy task.
“I have better things to do than hunting down a wastrel brat who is barely out of the shoals of E Rank. It is fortunate that you came here, though, where I can deal with you.”
“If you’ve really been watching me, you’d know how strong I really am,” Sam retorted. “Though, I’ve heard that you’re almost dead. Is your mind slipping away with your life?”
The dragon hissed in reply, and opened his gullet wide, revealing a molten orb of intertwined lighting, casting light across the entire cavern. Abrinadus took a single step forwards and then expelled the projectile from his mouth, and into the air. A wave of destruction jetted out in all directions from the dragon’s mouth, disintegrating the labware and stone floor. Sam, still holding his hammer above his head, slammed it down on the ground, expelling a cone of devastation before him. A wave of light ate through the asteroid like acid, only stopping once it struck the orb of lightning. The nest of crackling strands exploded outwards into a wall, blocking Sam’s own attack.
Shockwaves blasted through the asteroid, its surface beginning to fracture before them. Sam advanced behind his own technique, watching carefully as the clone that Abrinadus had possessed did the same. The dragon watched him warily, before enveloping himself in lightning, warping through reality to reach Sam.
He attempted to lock down space, but was unable to, as the teleport was a product of elemental energy, rather than the Dao. Instead, he felt a pillar of force bear down upon his shoulders as the dragon loosed his own Dao. Befitting a beast who had lived for millenia, Abrinadus’ Dao, even used through a proxy, was much stronger than Sam’s. Though, the Dao wasn’t everything. Where Sam really shone in comparison were his stats, which he used to full effect, leaping forwards like a rocket, his hammer leading the way.
