City of Fallen Souls: A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Book 3) by Jez Cajiao (fb2 epub reader .txt) 📕

which extend back to protect the neck with a spiked frill, and the larger primary arms. These primary arms are divided into a ‘gripping’ and ‘crushing’ pair, much as is seen in crustaceans.

Weaknesses: This Teradon has been kept in a magically induced sleep for many months, during which its musculature has atrophied, leaving it vulnerable to slicing and crushing damage.

Resistances: Teradon’s have thick skin, resulting in resistances to piercing damage.

Level: 39

HP: 87,000

Mana: 100

The Teradon was a six-limbed monstrosity. Now that it stood fully upright, it was clear the beast was as comfortable walking upright as using its legs and larger, upper arms to run. It was heavily muscled and covered in mottled grey-brown skin with darker patches. The upper arms ended in heavy short hands that were a mix of paw and true hands, the right being much heavier muscled than the left, while the left had longer, more numerous fingers. The significant difference in limbs made me think that  the left hand restrained the Teradon’s victim, while the right grabbed on and crushed it. A secondary, smaller pair of arms were tucked in close to its chest, like those of a T-Rex. The head, with its impressive, armored frill that made me think of a Ceratops, added another five foot in height, resulting in a 17-foot-tall behemoth roaring at us.

“Well, fuck…” I muttered. “Looks like a bad time to be an archer!” I called out to the team. “Teradon’s have really thick skin; that’s why it’s just getting pissed off with the arrows! We need to crush or slice it. This thing has an insane amount of Health!”

“Great!” Grizz said, grunting as he hauled back on his bow and let loose, shouting ‘Pierce!’.

The arrow flashed across the space and sank into the creature’s stomach almost all the way up to the fletching.

“What the hell was that?” Stephanos gaped at him, shocked.

“Class skill! Join the Legion, and I’ll teach you when we get out of here!” Grizz called, a big smile breaking his bearded face as he released arrow after arrow.

“Think that’s good?” Arrin shouted, his hands weaving in arcane patterns as his face lit with glee. “Watch this!” Instead of the usual three, a full spread of six ‘Magic Missiles’ appeared before him, spreading out and flashing across the intervening distance with a shrill whine of displaced air. They hit hard, less than a second apart, and exploded, sending blood flying from the Teradon’s belly. Unfortunately, the missiles didn’t penetrate deep, and it seemed like we’d had all the free hits we were going to get. The beast slammed forward, the impact of its change from two legs to four rumbling through the sand.

It screamed and rushed us, head down and frill up, using it to deflect another arrow from Grizz and Stephanos each  and send them clattering into the sand, broken and useless.

Oracle flashed to the side, hands blurring as she built her spell, having been momentarily lost in amazement at the creature. I sprinted to the right, Lydia running to the left as the Teradon slammed into the door we’d just entered through.

A loud ‘boom’ shattered the air as a red magical dome flashed to life, throwing the Teradon back. The dome appeared to surround the arena, keeping those of us inside from damaging it, but it had a secondary effect that made me grin…

When it flared into existence, a particularly acerbic spectator, who’d reached through the bars all the way to his shoulder and had been trying to grab at Oracle, screamed as his arm was cut off by the shield at the elbow. His forearm and hand dropped limply to the sand, twitching.

The Teradon screamed at the red dome as it died away, then sniffed and ran over to the severed forearm. The lower secondary arms reached out and scooped it up, passing it up to the jaws. The creature bit down, filling the air with the snapping of bones as it greedily fed.

The injured spectator screamed, falling from the bars and disappearing into the crowd. The surrounding spectators jeered and laughed, throwing things into the pit at the Teradon and us, until the announcer spoke up.

“Remember, fans, putting anything through the bars and into the arena is done at your own risk; hell… as is attending!” he said in his best ‘sports announcer’ voice. I spat on the sand as I cautiously watched the Teradon. It seemed annoyed by the arrows, but beyond that, even the arrow buried deep in its gut was ignored as an irritation, rather than an injury. A second barrage of ‘Magic Missiles’ flashed through the air and hammered into its side, only making it grunt, and Arrin swore, swaying slightly on his feet.

Lydia rushed in, slamming her mace down into its left leg at the knee, then darting back as it turned to face her. In the same moment, Oracle finished her casting, dropping our mana at a hell of a rate as she released a ‘Stunning Lightning Bolt’ that crackled and bathed the Arena in blue-white luminosity as it covered the distance between her and the creature.

The lightning crackled across its skin, dancing from the tips of the horns and bone protrusions. The creature screamed in fury. Turning and facing Oracle full-on, it took a deep breath and locked its mouth shut, slamming the air out through what I’d taken to be its nose.

A gap opened wide on its face, and the air shook, people suddenly falling from the bars, screaming and holding their heads. I staggered, seeing the rest of the team doing the same, our weapons forgotten as we tried to cover ears and heads. As Oracle fell from the air, stunned, I pitched onto the sand, landing on all fours. Grunting, I forced my eyes up, finding the creature still locked in place and feeling the air quake as it continued its sonic attack.

You have been Stunned!

Teradon’s Stunning Scream has hit you for 30 points of damage, plus another 10 points per second. You are