Cataclysm: Undead Dragons and Zero Empire

"He has left."

The expedition fleet, belonging to the Boros Space Foundation, sailed slowly into this lifeless galaxy, like a group of belated mourners.

The star field that was once illuminated by the light of the City of a Thousand Stars is now nothing but boundless desolation. The darkness is like solidified ink on an oil painting, staining every inch of space with a deep hue. The faint glow emitted by the fleet engines leaves a few fleeting traces in this desolate landscape, appearing exceptionally small and abrupt.

The star map observed by the lead ship was vastly different from the data they had retrieved before their departure. The planets that once revolved around the City of a Thousand Stars, providing energy, transporting supplies, and providing shelter for its inhabitants, had all vanished without a trace, as if they had never been born in this galaxy.

The gravitational field, which was originally designed to be perfectly balanced, has become chaotic. The dust belts in the star system are being torn apart by disordered gravity, and have become crooked and twisted, like a hideous scar on the body of this galaxy, telling the story of the devastating disaster that happened not long ago.

"The gravitational disturbance is beyond expectations, and all planetary orbits have collapsed," the observer repeatedly adjusted the detection instruments, hoping that the scene before him was just his imagination.

However, everything was chaotic and disordered, with no planetary debris or even residual energy, as if it had been wiped out out of thin air. The expedition team, which was known for its scientific literacy, could not accept this situation for a while.

The commander silently gazed at the scene outside the porthole. He had led his team to this star system countless times for transit and rest. Back then, the City of a Thousand Stars was like a dazzling pearl suspended in the center of the star system. Countless ships shuttled between the City of a Thousand Stars and the surrounding planets. The city was brightly lit and bustling with activity. Even in the distant space, one could feel the vibrant life and prosperity of the city.

But now, looking around, apart from their lonely fleet, there is no trace of civilization, only cold darkness and disordered dust, signifying the desolation of the end.

"Continue forward, target: City of a Thousand Stars... original site. Be careful to avoid gravitational turbulence," the commander broke the silence in the cabin. "All detection instruments are running at full power. We need to record all the data, no matter how outrageous the values ​​are."

The fleet slowly adjusted its course, carefully navigating the chaotic gravitational field and dust belts, heading towards the City of a Thousand Stars at the center of the galaxy.

The closer they got, the stronger the oppressive feeling brought by the deathly silence became. The expedition fleet was shrouded in an atmosphere of sorrow and fear. Even when they had ventured into ancient ruins at unknown risks, they had never had such an eerie feeling.

The pirate warships and Foundation fleets that once fought fiercely here have vanished without a trace, just like those lost planets. No wreckage has been found, as if the battle had never happened. Only the fragmented data transmitted back from the City of a Thousand Planets in the last moments proves the reality of that disaster.

The commander had reviewed the data many times. The optical images were chaotic and glaring, the energy curves fluctuated like a broken ball of yarn, and the shouts from the Foundation soldiers before their deaths revealed the brutality of the life-or-death struggle.

Until one instant, all sounds ceased abruptly, as if cut off by an invisible hand, leaving only a low, lingering tremor, like the lament of a planet. Then, an unprecedented energy peak suddenly erupted, instantly breaking through the range of all detection instruments, and the curve on the screen turned into a desperate straight line.

The commander could imagine the scene: the sudden attack from the pirate alliance caught everyone off guard. In the heat of battle, the undead dragon unleashed unprecedented energy, extinguishing all the noise, the fighting, and the hatred, along with all life, leaving him, the newcomer, with a chill that seeped into his bones.

The fleet finally arrived at the City of a Thousand Stars, a planetary megastructure painstakingly built by the Boros Space Foundation. It was supposed to be an eternally dazzling miracle in the galaxy, but the scene before them told them that nothing in this world lasts forever, and no feast lasts forever.

The alloy dome with adjustable light transmittance is broken, riddled with holes, and filled with huge, penetrating cracks. Its interior replicates regions of the natural ecological environment of various star systems, from scorching lava deserts to frigid polar glaciers, from misty rainforests to deep, tranquil underwater realms... Those paradises that could sustain all known life have been destroyed beyond recognition.

Lava and glaciers collided and melted, steam billowed into another layer of sky, rainforests were still being flooded by seawater, as if this torrential rain would never end, vast grasslands turned into abysses, moss on the soil withered, caves collapsed, pipes twisted like dark blood vessels, and crystals were exposed and broken...

The assembly plants and energy zones built for inorganic life were blown up, and high-energy radiation leaked everywhere. The readings were so dangerous that the expedition team had to wear protective suits to walk through them, and they also had to worry about the next round of explosions.

The paradise of the rich and powerful, the most extravagant utopia in the galaxy, has been reduced to ruins, devoid of its former prosperity and vitality, like a torn-up behemoth lying dejectedly in space.

The alloy surface was eroded by unknown high-intensity energy, making it extremely fragile. Every step made a creaking sound, as if the floor was about to shatter and collapse at any moment, causing the expedition team to fall into the next level of the world.

The area is devastated; the ruins of what were once neatly planned areas are intertwined and stretch endlessly to the horizon.

The giant crane on the automated production line in the port area hangs helplessly in the ruins like a broken wing. The broken metal supports and the fragments of the broken eco-cabins overlap, as if countless withered arms are reaching into space, as if accusing the galaxy of that merciless disaster.

As the gas dissipated, the air pressure dropped lower and lower, and a faint, strange smell permeated the environment. It was not the acrid smell of burning colloids, nor the stench of rotting flesh, but a cold, silent atmosphere, as if every inch of the air here had been tainted, and even the filtration system could not purify it.

Various miscellaneous items were scattered on the ground. Valuable items that once bore traces of a luxurious lifestyle, and items that the expedition team could not even scrape together a fraction of with their entire lifetime income, had become worthless, just like this ruin, and were indifferently trampled over.

Corpses were scattered throughout the planet. This was perhaps the first time since the City of a Thousand Stars was built that a census could be conducted. The expedition team also saw many unregistered aliens breeding in the "Bottom Nest".

Regardless of their posture in life, these corpses all share a common characteristic: they have no external wounds, their clothes are intact, as if they had simply fallen asleep, lying there quietly, never to wake up again.

These corpses became empty shells, devoid of any pain, their postures serene. This eerie sight always reminded the expedition members of those abandoned ships that had drifted in space for countless years, their crews dying mysteriously in the same way.

The City of a Thousand Stars became a giant space graveyard, burying countless lives and glories, burying the Foundation's pride and hope, leaving only boundless despair and silence.

Envoy Karen stepped directly onto the cold ruins, her gaze slowly sweeping over the collapsed buildings before her. Familiar scenes flooded back like a tide; she even had a private office on this planet, where she could always see the dazzling lights outside through the window.

He recalled bringing his children here once and ordering a customized extreme experience service, where the children would ride in a rowboat from the top of a waterfall on the planet's surface, following the artificial waterfall passage that runs through the entire planet and leads directly to the Earth's core.

The rapid descent, traversing different ecosystems, and experiencing the extreme contrast between aurora-filled skies and lava fields, still echoes in his ears with the child's excited laughter.

"How is the situation?" Karen asked the expedition team, and the commander quickly stepped forward and respectfully reported, "Your Excellency, we have conducted a preliminary investigation and review, and the situation is more serious than we anticipated."

"We reconstructed the initial scene and confirmed that hostile members were lurking inside the City of a Thousand Stars, working together from within and without to detonate bombs first, directly shaking the critical supporting structure of the entire planet and triggering the initial turmoil and collapse. Secondly, none of the corpses showed any signs of trauma, suggesting that they were corroded by unknown high-intensity energy released by the Undead Dragon."

Karen took the terminal and examined the information compiled by the commander. Her brows furrowed, and the seriousness in her eyes deepened.

"Initiate remote communication and contact the board of directors in my name," Karen began slowly.