The Explosion, the Wolf, and the Wounded Dragon
The air in Leo's lungs felt forcibly ripped away. Moments before, he had just pressed 'enter' on his old laptop, finishing the final lines of code before the deadline.
But then came a flash of light, followed by an explosion that instantly bleached his vision white.
It wasn't sound, but sensation. Like his entire being was being pulled through a blazing needle's eye, atom by atom dismantled and reassembled. His consciousness was flung, shattered into fragments, before finally...
Crash!
Leo landed hard on a layer of rotting leaves and broken branches. He gasped for air, his chest feeling crushed by an elephant. He opened his eyes, hoping to see the leaky ceiling of his rented room, or at least the asphalt street. Instead, he saw the canopy of giant trees, their leaves a purplish-grey, filtering light from twin suns blazing in a blue-green sky. The air felt heavy, smelling of damp earth, moss, and something foreign… like burning metal.
"Wh… where am I?" His voice was hoarse, more like a groan. He tried to get up, but his whole body protested. His muscles, unused to exercise like any programmer's, screamed in pain.
A torturous thirst burned his throat. Water. He needed water. Now.
Trembling, Leo forced himself into a sitting position. The forest around him was silent, unnervingly so. Only a strange wind rustled, singing eerie notes through the purple leaves. No bird calls, no familiar insect chirps. Fear began to creep in, cold, momentarily replacing the thirst.
Survive. Find shelter. Water.
That was the only coherent thought he could hold onto. Painfully, he crawled towards the nearest large tree trunk, trying to lean against it. He needed to orient himself, needed to find water. His eyes scanned the surroundings for signs of a stream or a puddle. Nothing. Only this suffocating, alien forest.
Suddenly, a rustling sound.
It was soft. Very soft. But enough to make the hairs on Leo's neck stand on end.
He froze, his breath catching. From behind broadsword-like bushes, a pair of glowing yellow eyes appeared. Eyes filled with primal hunger and terrifying predatory intelligence. A wolf-like creature crept out, its body lean but muscular, covered in coarse steel-grey fur. Its claws, as long as Leo's fingers, dug into the damp soil. Its maw gaped, revealing rows of dagger-like teeth that gleamed. On its forehead, strange writing shimmered faintly... [Rank F - Ironfang Scavenger].
A wolf? But... that's no ordinary wolf! Leo's thoughts were chaotic. Rank F? What was that?
The Ironfang Scavenger snorted, scenting the fear and fresh blood from Leo, who must have been injured in the fall. Its yellow eyes locked onto Leo. No hesitation. With a deadly, agile movement, the beast lunged, jaws wide open, aiming for Leo's exposed neck.
"NO!" Leo screamed, terror peaking. Instinct screamed at him to run, but his legs felt rooted. He could only raise his weak arm, trying to shield his face, squeezing his eyes shut, waiting for the sharp teeth to tear into his flesh.
BZZZT!
The sound didn't come from outside. It was a roar inside his own head. Like a giant electrical circuit suddenly connecting. A transparent blue window, made of pure light, exploded before his mind's eye, blocking the image of the lunging wolf.
[System Activation Detected!]
[Host Identity Confirmed: Leo - Status: F-Rank Human]
[Initializing Monarch's Taming Codex...]
The words appeared rapidly, cold, and mechanical. Leo was stunned, even on the brink of death. System? Taming Codex? What the hell? A game?
[Initialization Complete!]
[Welcome, Tamer Leo.]
[Scanning Environment for Suitable Taming Target...]
The Ironfang Scavenger was already airborne, its foul breath stinging Leo's nose. Drool dripped from its teeth.
[Nearest Target Detected: Ironfang Scavenger (Rank F). Threat Level: Low.]
[Alternative Target Detected: ??? (Rank S). Threat Level: Critical! (Status: Severely Wounded)]
Rank S? Leo's mind barely registered it. He only saw the gaping maw full of teeth getting closer.
[Prioritizing Emergency Taming!]
[Diverting System Resources...]
[Selecting Target: ??? (Rank S). Reason: Maximum Strategic Value Potential.]
[Initiating Forced Taming Protocol!]
"No! Not that! The wolf! Stop the wolf!" Leo screamed in his mind, panicking. He didn't want to get near something Rank S and severely wounded! He just wanted this wolf gone!
But the system ignored him. The blue window flashed violently.
[Channeling Taming Energy...]
[Scanning for Weakness in S-Rank Target... Found! (Status: Extreme Vulnerability)]
[Establishing Psychic Compulsion...]
Somewhere not far, perhaps only a few dozen meters behind Leo, a deep roar of pain, resonant like muffled thunder, split the air. It was filled with rage, agony, and... surprise.
The Ironfang Scavenger, mid-air, suddenly whimpered in terror. Its yellow eyes bulged, staring at something behind Leo. Its sharp survival instinct screamed danger. The Rank F beast twisted impossibly in the air, hind legs scrabbling the dirt, and fled as fast as possible, vanishing into the undergrowth without a backward glance.
Leo, braced for death, stumbled forward as his target disappeared. He spun around, his heart pounding wildly, following the direction the wolf had looked and the source of the terrifying roar.
Behind a giant fallen log, in a depression of earth shattered by a hard impact, lay the source of the roar.
Leo drew a sharp breath.
A dragon.
Not some plump, friendly fairy-tale dragon. This was a creature that, even in its death throes, radiated an aura of terrifying authority.
Its size was still large, perhaps the length of a small bus, but clearly diminished. Its hide was scaled like cracked, bleeding blue-grey steel, especially on its torn wings and one hind leg bent unnaturally. Its noble head, with horns curving backward like frozen lightning, hung limp. Its eyes, as large as Leo's fist, were a golden yellow like miniature suns, half-closed, yet radiating undeniable intelligence and arrogance.
Above its majestic yet grievously wounded body, fiery writing flickered with pure energy.
[Rank S - Stormfang Drake].
The Drake groaned again, weaker this time. Thin smoke curled from its nostrils. Its half-open eyes fixed on Leo. Not the fierce glare of a predator like the wolf, but the gaze of a trapped, wounded, and extremely dangerous creature that had just felt something alien – the system's energy piercing its fading awareness.
[Forced Taming Protocol: 75%...]
[Target Resisting! Resistance Level: High (Weakened by Injuries)]
[Increasing Energy Output...]
Leo felt a strange heat in his chest, like an electric current flowing into his hands. He watched in horror as thin strands of electric blue light snaked from his own palms, unbidden. The strands shot out like serpents, lancing towards the wounded Stormfang Drake.
The Drake opened its eyes fully. Flashes of anger and fear crossed its golden orbs. It tried to lift its head, snarling, gathering a breath of fire or lightning in its throat. But only small sparks emerged, and the snarl turned into a painful cough. Its wounds were too severe.
The blue light strands touched the Drake's forehead. For a moment, the blue energy and the Drake's fading golden aura clashed. Leo saw the dragon's body tense, fighting against this foreign invasion. He could *feel* the Drake's desire to burn him to ash, a desire only held back by its extreme physical weakness.
[Forced Taming: 95%...]
[Target Weakening! Exploiting Vulnerability!]
The blue light suddenly flared brightly, engulfing the Stormfang Drake's head completely. Leo heard, or rather *felt*, a mental scream filled with rage and utter despair pierce his soul. He saw the Drake's golden eyes widen fully, then squeeze shut tightly, as if enduring unbearable agony.
[Forced Contract Established!]
[Target: Stormfang Drake (Rank S) has been added to the Monarch's Taming Codex.]
[Monster Status: Severely Wounded (Critical). Power Locked: Rank F (Aligned with Tamer).]
[Warning: Emergency Bond. Low Stability. Immediate Care Required.]
The blue window faded. The hot energy in Leo's chest vanished, replaced by sudden, profound exhaustion. He staggered, his vision swimming. Before him, the Stormfang Drake groaned weakly, its powerful body trembling. Now, amidst the cracks in its scales, Leo could see something faint, like chains of blue light coiling around the dragon's body, compressing its immense aura into something small and constrained. A strange symbol, like a crown crossed with chains, glowed faintly on its forehead, beneath the still-present but now mist-obscured Rank S designation.
Leo slumped to the ground, helpless. He looked at his own hand. A small, faint blue tattoo, similar to the symbol on the Drake's forehead, had appeared on his wrist.
I... tamed... a dragon? Rank S? The thought was insane. But the accumulated exhaustion and shock were too great. His thirst returned with a vengeance, accompanied by unbearable nausea and dizziness. His vision blurred. The last image he saw before darkness swallowed him was a pair of half-open golden eyes belonging to the Stormfang Drake. They held confusion, suppressed fury, and exhaustion as deep as his own, watching him through a haze growing thicker.
Leo passed out, his body limp on the rotting leaves. The bound S-Rank Drake could only growl weakly, its breath ragged, its once-bright golden eyes now dimmed by the bond and its wounds. It kept watching the helpless human who had suddenly become its master. The cruel world of Etheria had just introduced itself with a devastating blow.