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

as bones fractured, then locked into place and formed a protective ribcage. The calcified structure was layered over and over again, surrounding something that glowed with a deep red light. The right arm began to grow, long and thick, ending with a huge mass of bones studded with teeth. There was no hand; instead it had become a mace of terrifying proportions, jagged and evil-looking.

The left arm, which continued to grow, was entirely made of spines fused together, flicking and twitching. The very end formed into a thick stinger, which leaked a red liquid that hissed and spat when it dripped onto the sand below.

Last of all formed the head. It was short, thick, and decidedly inhuman, with long, pointed spines that ringed the crown, enormous eye sockets, and a thick, triangular beak. The eyes were hypnotic red pools that appeared to grow deeper and deeper in the center, falling away into the distance.

“What the hell is that thing!” Arrin screamed from somewhere behind me. I shook myself out of the fugue, shocked, then dove aside, grunting as I ploughed a line in the sand. The Bone Golem’s whip arm slammed down and tore up the sand where I’d been a second before. Leaving long furrows as it righted itself, the body tilted in its effort to swung its mace at Lydia.

She dug her feet in, then changed direction, running to the left and ducking as the bony protrusion came whistling after her. Arrows and Firebolts smashed harmlessly into the Golem and shattering.

“Get that fucking Lich!” I shouted, rolling to my feet and stabbing out. I missed the whip-arm as it flashed past me, then jumped aside as it swung for me again.

“It’s too big to destroy easily…” Oracle said in my mind. “It’s like Bob, too heavily armored to take down.”

“It’ll have a weak spot; we’ve just got to find it. For now, though, get that fucking Lich! If he’s down, then it’ll die…right?” I asked, getting a sense of agreement from Oracle.

My mana dipped, and a second Fireball flashed across the intervening distance to the Lich. This time, however, it was intercepted by a disc of bone that lifted into the air at the Lich’s direction. The Fireball exploded, flames washing around the disc but barely touching its shield, which had darkened to a dull red hue.

Arrows whistled through the air. One was stopped by the disc, but the other slammed into the shield and ricocheted off, tearing a scream of pain from someone in the crowd, followed by cruel laughter from others.

Arrin was firing Firebolt after Firebolt, and Oracle was hammering out the Fireballs, while Lydia and I jumped and dove, running from side to side and desperately trying to not be crushed while doing a pathetic amount of blunt force damage to the behemoth.

“It’s conjuring more shields!” Arrin shouted, frustration clear in his voice as his Firebolt slammed into a fresh barrier. It was clear that he’d expected the old one to be on the verge of giving out.

I rolled aside to avoid the whip again, then dug my right foot in and kicked out. Pushing myself back upright, I stabbed out with my naginata, grunting with the effort as the tip of the blade punched into the upper thigh of the construction. It wasn’t the most vulnerable area, but it was the only part within reach at the time.

I’d channeled my Firebolt spell into the naginata, and as it crunched through the outer bones, it unleashed a wash of power into the red mist that seemed to fill the creation.

It screamed, a mixture of pain and fury at the temerity of my daring to injure it, and before I could get clear, it lashed out with a solid kick that hit me in the chest and sent me flying.

I landed hard, the wind knocked out of me. I groaned as I tried to get up, having to drop the naginata for a second to brace myself. The damn tower shield was firmly strapped to my arm, making things much harder, especially in full damn armor.

I got to my knees, shoving my helmet back so I could see properly. My guts twisted with panic in the split second before the whip arm lashed around me, yanking me from my feet and pulling me screaming through the air.

I was whipped from one side to the other, then slammed into the ground. Before I could writhe myself free, it changed its grip and swung me around twice to build up momentum, then hurled me across the arena and into the wall.

I hit with a crunch, feeling several bones breaking, and I crumpled to the floor. Pain filled my mind. My left arm was broken, having been at a bad angle when I’d hit the wall. The shield had slammed flat, yanking the elbow out of place. Gritting my teeth against the pain, I slammed my gauntleted right fist into the sandy floor and shoved myself upright. Splintered bones grated inside my limbs, pain flaring and clouding my thoughts.

Thick black tendrils of power erupted from the ground and smashed Bane backward through the air, catching him mid-leap at the Lich. In the same moment, the behemoth slammed its mace down into Lydia’s shield, crushing her into the sand with a scream of pain.

Arrows bounded off the shield around the Lich, and Arrin desperately downed potion after potion, trying to make a difference with his limited spells.

I bit down hard against the pain and fear of my people being hurt, and I struggled the rest of the way to my feet, my fury rising uncontrollably. I’d held off on overt magic until now, at Mal’s recommendation, but I wasn’t going to let my people die; not a fucking chance. I dropped the shield. Defense was all well and good, but I was better at offense, anyway.

“Oracle!” I called. “Cleansing Fire!” I felt her acknowledgement, and I searched for my naginata. The weapon lay a dozen feet away, and I set