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

visible as it moved, its camouflage Ability occluding the faint light that occasionally lit the far end of the corridor where it jinked to the right. My spell changed that, flaring with light as it hurled itself down the inky hallway.

It covered the hundred or so yards to the creature in less than two seconds, the acceleration causing the air to shake. Unerringly, it slammed into the back-right leg just as the appendage bunched up, lifting to propel the Leviathan forward.

Instead of its leg slamming down and pushing it further along to power its frantic, injured retreat, the spell punched into the back of the leg, burying itself deep before detonating.

The flesh was shredded a split second before the rest of the back end of the wolf-squid thing, peeling the dark skin, veins, and muscle from the skeleton just before the bones fractured and exploded in fragments.

I’d compressed the spell even more than the last time, forcing it to cover a smaller area as it unfurled, and this time, it was far more horrific for its victim.

Rather than spreading out over a dozen feet, hurling things outward with flames and violence, then pulling them back in to compress them into a tiny area, it all happened in a space the size of an average windowpane.

The back end of the body was smashed outwards, shattering bones and pulverizing flesh, tearing the joints apart, before suddenly reversing and pulling back in. The implosion generated the same amount of power, maybe more, but due to being confined to a smaller space, it dragged the surrounding air and body materials into the rapidly forming tiny marble of compressed flesh at the center of the spell.

The effect from where we stood was impressive, as a flash of light blurred away, smashing into the back end of the fleeing creature before detonating. The flare of light exposed the back third of the Leviathan being blown apart; then the flames spread, compressing down and yanking the creature back into a single point, filling the corridor with frantic, ear-shredding screeches of pain and snapping bones.

As the light died, so did the second Leviathan, and the corridor went quiet as the first fell forward onto its face. Grizz yanked his blade free and stepped back, flicking the blade to clean it of blood.

“Well, that was… messy,” Yen commented quietly from just behind me. “Out of curiosity, that spell you just used… what’s it called?”

“Explosive Compression,” I replied shortly, reaching up to wipe at one ear and frowning at my bloody gauntlets in annoyance.

“And where did you get it?” she asked carefully.

“We made it up,” I said, glancing at her curiously. “It’s a bit rough, but it does the job.”

“Yeah… it really does,” she agreed wistfully. “Feel free to teach me that one when you get the chance.”

“You teach me the ‘Flaming Spear’ spell, and I will,” I promised, moving past her and heading back down the corridor to check on the others.

Bane was finally standing, slipping the blades back into their sheathes and nodding to me as I came to a stop.

“You alright, mate?” I asked him, and he nodded again.

“I am, Jax. It seems some of the old tales of Leviathans being an anathema to my race are true, though. I wasn’t much help in that fight, sorry.”

“Don’t be daft,” I scoffed incredulously. “You managed to kick the Skyking’s ass thanks to your abilities; sods law that it’s a weakness here.” I clapped him on the shoulder and searched around for the others. “Everyone okay”? I asked, getting a round of nods and shrugs.

The next few seconds were a mess of health and mana potions, healing spells, and people wiping blood away from noses, mouths, and ears. I shifted uncomfortably, feeling my guts still twisting, and resolved that I’d need a good, long shower when the chance came up again next. Followed by a week of sleep and a good meal to set me right.

“Jax!” a call rose from Yen, and I turned sharply, glancing up the corridor at her. She was gesturing further into the darkness. “Tang’s scouting ahead,” she said in a low voice that carried, and I nodded in acknowledgement before turning back and staring down with concern at the gnome that still thrashed and shuddered on the floor.

“We can’t carry him…” I said, scanning the corridor. “And he’s probably safer here than with us, to be fair. We can’t strip the bodies, as they apparently might have traps on them.” Sighing heavily, I came to a decision I didn’t like. “I’m sorry, Grizz, Oracle, but we can’t spare the time to carry him, and we can’t trust him until he’s taken the Oath, so it’s for the best that we leave him here. Hopefully, he will be okay, and… I guess we can come back once we’ve secured the area a bit.”

“I…” Merin faltered, gazing sadly at the gnome where he thrashed and growled. “Should one of us stay with him?”

“No,” I said flatly. “If we can, we will come back for him, but he’s likely lived his whole life down here. He can find his way about; hell, he’s going to be either far more intelligent, or he’s going to be dead. He can figure out where we’ve gone.” I frowned, scanning the dimly lit corridor. “You’ve got two minutes; gather up whatever you need, then we’re moving on.”

People moved quickly, collecting anything they’d dropped; any interesting bits they wanted went into the bags, and Bane and I examined the remains of the mobile shield, amazed at both its simplicity and its effectiveness.

If it had needed a bigger manastone to power it, or had been able to recharge, we’d have been screwed. I examined it again, seeing it from a different angle this time and admiring the simple yet cunning design. It was as I’d first noted, essentially a massive walking shield at the front, but behind it, a series of small seats had been fitted, as well as a cargo hopper and