Titan: A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Book 4) by Jez Cajiao (free ebooks for android .TXT) 📕

the bloodstained clothing, and the weary looks in their eyes. “So if any of you want to take a step back after this, I’ll understand. As things stand now, I need you for the next few days, at least. You’re all outfitted with armor that we cobbled together, bits of gear we’ve looted from practically half the land, at this rate.” The mismatching, battered, and scruffy group that stood with me was mute testament to the fact.

“My own’s not much better; even my damn belt is falling apart, so…” I said, glancing over at Romanus, who nodded to a trio of men led by a single woman as they walked out onto the deck from below. “So…” I repeated, “I’ve asked Romanus to send up his armorers. They won’t have time to make us gear from scratch, obviously, but they’re highly skilled, and as such, I’m hoping they can alter some existing gear to give us at least a bit more protection than we currently have?” I turned my hopeful attention to the four armorers.

The woman was the first half orc I’d seen yet, or at least I assumed she was, judging from the size of her. She stood nearly seven feet tall, with arms that made my thighs look scrawny. Her black hair was twisted into a myriad of dreadlocks and tied back, and apart from the slightly protruding lower jaw, tusks, and green-tinted skin, I’d have pinned her as simply a massive human woman back on earth.

“Lord Jax… it will be an honor to serve you,” she said, clapping a massive fist to her chest in salute. “Me and mine stand ready.”

“Excellent!” I smiled gratefully. “What’s your name?” I asked, remembering at the last second that it was considered rude to cast spells, even ‘Identify’ ones, on people you weren’t actively fighting.

“Thornapple,” she offered, nodding her head in greeting, then gesturing to each of her companions in turn. “This is Manny, Terr, and Oloutai.”

“Then it’s great to meet you… Thornapple,” I said, wondering at the name. “My team and I are going into the Sunken City tomorrow, so any armor you could fit us with would be gratefully appreciated.”

“Tomorrow?” she asked apprehensively. “My lord, we will do our best, but even with all of us working around the clock, there is no way we could do our best work to armor even one of you fully in that time. I mean…”

“I know,” I said, cutting her off. “I don’t mean for you to make us unique armor fitted to our individual specifications, but do you have spares, perhaps, that you could alter to fit us? Or replacements for the most ruined sections we have? Essentially, we have spent our time fighting, and never had the chance to gain a cohesive set of gear. As you can see, we’ve made do with whatever we could scrounge.” I gestured at my team’s ragged state, ending with my own sorry gear.

“I can see that, my lord.” She smiled with ease, now that she knew we didn’t expect wonders. “As for available armor, we do have spares; few, as we haven’t set the forge up yet, and we have limited supplies, but we have enough to outfit your group and to replace the damaged pieces that the Legion has returned over the last few days. First, I need to know about you and what you need, though. Judging from your armor, you are a front-line fighter?”

“I am,” I confirmed. “I’m most comfortable being mobile, flowing back and forth with the battle, as opposed to being at the back, though sometimes, I function as a tank.”

“A ‘tank’?” Thornapple asked, lifting one eyebrow.

“Me,” Lydia said, stepping forward. “I be th’ tank for our party. It means I be needin’ heavy armor, and solid. I tend t’ pull as many in towards me as possible, getting’ hit and dishin’ out th’ pain, while lettin’ the others take ‘em out.”

“Ah! I get it,” the armorer said, nodding thoughtfully. “Okay, let me explain the Legion armor types for you, as I think that’ll make things a little easier to understand. First, you have the ‘standard’ Legion armor, which is a mix of ‘heavy’ and ‘medium,’ as outsiders would understand it. It’s heavy, because it’s composed plate and chainmail, with leather banding and more, but because it’s designed to ‘lock’ together, it reduces the overall weight and makes it more mobile through a lot of little tricks that the Legion armorers have developed over the centuries. We have the Legion Scouts next; they wear a mix of ‘light’ and ‘medium’ armor, specially treated to assist them in hiding, with movement as silent as is physically possible in the field. Next, we have the Speculatores Praetoriae armor, for the Elite scouts. The Speculatores Praetoriae are considered outside the standard chain of command, and while there are few of them, they have each earned the right to be the Elite. In the days of the Empire, a single team would have been responsible for everything from assassinations to monster hunting, to ‘questioning’ any nobility that might have stepped out of line. As such, their armor is of a higher quality than the standard or scout variants. It is both quiet, and strong, although we have lost the knowledge of most of the Enchantments that once made it the masterwork that it was. The wearers of that armor are generally accepted to be far more in need of protection and our aid in surviving.” Thornapple nodded over at an armor stand in one corner that was being carefully assembled, before going on. “Then last and most important of all, we have the Praetorian Guard armor. This is the ultimate Legion armor; each set must be crafted to mark the passage of an armorer from Journeyman to Master, even if only within our own ranks. The Praetorian suit is far stronger, heavier, and yet more flexible than even the scout and standard variants, forged of rare metals and heavily enchanted, even if