City of Fallen Souls: A LitRPG Adventure (UnderVerse Book 3) Jez Cajiao (best color ebook reader txt) 📖

read it aloud, then looked up to Augustus, relieved at the sight of him nodding thoughtfully.

“It’s as good as we could have hoped; he acknowledges your orders and accepts them, while being careful not to reveal too much, just in case the messenger is taken. The ring gives you a way to authenticate any messages you send to him, as well. What he doesn’t say is that there are codewords that can be included in the letter to authenticate it. These are a closely guarded secret, and only known to certain Legionnaires. Both Yen and I included those in our own letters, which is why your own was accepted so easily.”

“And the Oath?” I asked, eliciting a grin.

“Well, yes, that probably helped as well. Actually, experiencing the Oath become live is a hell of an experience, I can tell you. Despite the fact that we’ve all lived with our Oaths since giving them when we joined the Legion, without you to breathe life into them, they were cold and uncomfortable things.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“Hmm, consider a sandwich… strange I know, but go with it...” He said catching the look I gave him. “Say you’ve always eaten cold, fatty ham with plain bread. Then imagine your first taste of a hot bacon sandwich… lashings of cheese, bread dipped in butter and toasted, tomatoes and lettuce in a ratio of one to three, in comparison to the bacon.”

“Damn, Augustus, you’re a man after my own heart there.” I fought to ignore my hunger as my stomach rumbled.

“You see what I mean?” he asked, grinning. “The difference between the Oath as it was, and as it is, might seem minor to an outsider. They’re both Oaths, or sandwiches, but to the person who receives it? They’re worlds apart.”

“Okay, I get it.” I said, patting my stomach. “Now I need a goddamn bacon sandwich.”

“Unfortunately, I think we finished the last one about ten minutes ago,” Augustus said, painting a look of sadness on his face that didn’t reach his eyes.

“You utter bastard.” I glared at him with the kind of fury that only comes from bacon deprivation.

“It’s been said before,” he agreed, a smile tugging at the edges of his lips.

“I could grow to hate you; you do realize this?” I persisted, and his smile simply grew wider. “Bastard.” I repeated.

“Look on the bright side, Jax,” he laughed, gesturing to a platter on a nearby table. “There’s some cold ham left…”

“Seriously, I could stab you,” I threatened, getting another laugh.

“I’m sure that Mal can arrange for some more bacon,” he reassured me, still smiling.

“I damn well hope so,” I said. Shifting my thoughts, I regarded Barrett, who seemed content to lean against the wall at the back of the garden, watching and smiling. He looked healthy and happy, considering I’d not seen him for days.

“Is that a black eye?” I asked him, surprised to see him go red and turn his face to the side to hide it.

“Uhhh, no?” he said, attempting to sound nonchalant. My gaze snapped to Lydia as she started to laugh, having come up behind me to lean against the doorway into the common area.

“Ask him who gave it to him!” she suggested, grinning widely, and I turned my attention back to him, one eyebrow raised.

“Come on, dude, what happened?” I pressed, and he sighed heavily before turning to face me. His eye was definitely blackened and swollen, now that I saw it properly, and his lip looked like it’d been busted at some point. “Man, are you okay?” I asked, lifting my hand in preparation to cast a healing spell.

“I’m fine!” he protested, shaking his head and gesturing to lower my hand. “No healing needed, okay?”

“If you’re sure, dude; but seriously, what happened?” I was becoming less worried, and more curious, the longer he drew it out.

“Nothing happened, okay? I just… fell… sort of.”

“Yeah, ‘fell’ into bed with Joya,” Lydia snorted.

“What?” I asked, looking around for the Legionnaire.

“Joya… look, she came to see me last night after you went on your little trip. We kinda sorted things out, and maybe we were a bit too energetic in our… discussion… that’s all.” Barrett refused to meet my eyes, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

“You mean it was rough sex that left you looking like this?” I beamed, and he looked even more embarrassed.

“I can’t wait to hear what Oren says when he hears about this, not to mention the rest of your crew!” I said, not even bothering to hide my amusement. “What does she look like?” I asked Lydia, and she shook her head.

“Joya’s at least six an' a half feet tall. Pretty lass, but she do look like she’s half ogre, she’s that big. An' the way she staggered out of his room… weavin' an' stumblin' down the hall a couple o' hours ago! She looked battered and bruised, but judgin' from the smile on her face an' the way she was walkin', she wasn’t going to be complainin'…”

I saw Augustus lift a hand, and a subtle ‘high-five’ was exchanged with Barrett, deepening my grin.

“Okay, moving on… Is everything sorted? Barrett, I know I haven’t seen you lately; you’ve been running around seeing the ship’s families since we got here, but did you manage it?” I asked, my change of tone a clear indication of how important this was. He straightened and answered soberly.

“I think so; I made the rounds to all of the crew’s families, and I told a trusted group to spread the word to a select few more I couldn’t reach. My sister and her bairn are camped out in one of Mal’s warehouses now, so I tell you that’s a weight off my mind.”

“I bet. Is there anything else we need to do?” I received a round of head shakes from the group, except for Augustus.

“Well, there is one point…”

“Oh?”

“Why have you got a giant red and black spider following you around, and why is Arrin intent on trying to get