Black Hole: The Book of Iratus, Episode 42

Chapter 411

Standing like a panther with an insect-like hardened carapace that was slick and a grayish purple color. Some plates had a more faded look around the limbs, but other than that, it was mostly just one color of dark purple. The insect panther moved indistinguishably from a normal big cat, and its thick insect wings only allowed the creature to fall slowly. The four eyes were forward on its panther face. It stood on four legs, but it did have two vestige limbs on its side.

Off to the side Iratus, Commercium, and Venatio watched the adult insect panther guard the moth in a hollowed-out dirt mound. The mouse boy spoke up first.

Iratus, "I think this is as far as we can go."

The old fox woman shrugged.

Venatio, "The adults probably won't attack as long as we stay away from them."

The rabbitfolk scratched his chin.

Commercium, "What about killing the immature ones?"

Venatio, "They don't have that kind of bond with their kin. They are a common prey animal after all."

Commercium, "Didn't you say these things were invasive carnivore animals?"

Venatio, "Once their population spins out of control, an adult is also quite strong. These guys normally die before they finish growing, but once they get some adults roaming around, they normally start to outhunt and outfight the local predator populations. Actually, I should say the problems don't start until a female undergoes the queen life stage. That's when their population goes out of control."

Iratus, "But are they a threat to the farmhouse and cows?"

Venatio, "Maybe, but if they have a large population, then the answer is certainly yes. We honestly need to go inside their cave and cull their numbers."

Iratus, "Then let's set up a plan."

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Chapter 412

The group spent some time off before Day 264 came, and the same group was back in the dirt cave, armed and ready for a fight. Commercium looked a bit tired, and Iratus assumed it was from moving into the farmhouse and caring for the cows.

Iratus, "How are you holding up, bud?"

Commercium, "I don't know how these things survived without help. They drank all the water and went crazy over the hay. I've been wandering around trying to find sources of food and water for them. Luckily, their skittishness didn't last long."

Iratus, "As long as someone is there to feed them, I am sure the cows will throw their loyalty in with whoever."

Commercium, "Yeah, we will see."

Venatio, "Focus." She checked her rifle more time. "I will make sure you guys get your ear mufflers on before I fire this. Firing in a tunnel is sure to break anyone's ears."

They briefly talked before finally walking up to the entrance of the dirt mound. They started by gunning down the few insect panthers outside, guarding the entrance. Inside was dug out with walls covered in spit and waste, keeping the hole bonded. The group did their best to fight as few creatures as possible so as not to get overwhelmed. While they easily killed a few adults, one Panther actually got the jump on the group. From the shadows and with a mighty pounce, one actually pushed Iratus to the ground, with him doing his best to interpose his longsword and the beast's maw. His two allies used their spears to wound the creature and push it off.

Iratus, "Sheesh, that went from, I might die to, oh, that was nothing."

Venatio, "Alone, threats are grand in scale. Together, it's just another chore."

The group continued until the dirt cave entered a stone cave with several chambers spread out. The largest chamber housed many large eggs. The group looked around with their flashlights and did not see anything abnormal.

Venatio, "No queen. This is a good thing."

Commercium, "Even with all these eggs?"

Venatio, "As long as we keep their numbers down, the farmhouse will be fine. Just show them who their boss is, and they will back down. These eggs and these soon-to-be born insect panthers will be eaten out in the wild. A queen is a problem because they give live birth to larvae, which quickly grow into new insect panthers. The population growth is too fast, and it's even worse with multiple queens."

Iratus, "We killed a few adults and a dozen little ones. Is that good?"

Venatio, "Most certainly."

And with that, the group left the cave with their task complete.

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Chapter 413

Iratus and his family continued to live their lives. On day 271, Iratus borrowed some cattle to help plow the ground for the garden. On day 280, Ignis almost cried over how half her crops had died.

Ignis, "This is beyond the scope of what I imagine failure could have been. This is the worst."

Iratus, "Faming in the forest might not be the wisest decision. Luckily, the cobalts have a wide field to work with."

Ignis, "Should it be the cobalts with a name like Commercium Jade Blue Cobalt?"

Iratus, "Huh, I guess we should ask Resonantia about it."

On day 282, Commercium paid for some martial lessons. Some hand-to-hand, but mostly in armed combat.

Commercium, "Once Abrasione recovers from giving birth, she will be coming over for lessons too."

On day 296, Iratus came over to the farmhouse to help with various repairs, and when they both had free time, they explored the local area, finding a mountain filled with iron and an industrial building nearby the farmhouse as well.

On day 300, Resonantia hosted an archery contest to try to inspire people to get better at archery. At the end of the day, Venatio gave some educational points about a few topics, mostly metallurgy and metal alloys.

Venatio, "Bronze weapons are stronger than iron weapons, as they are easier to forge and don't rust like iron. Now once we get into carbonized iron, that's a different story."

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Chapter 414

Iratus lay in bed with Victoria, Aestus, Resonantia, and Ignis. There was still plenty of daylight left, but all five of them were quite exhausted.

Iratus, "Is there anything else we could add to our humble home?"

Victoria, "A proper loom would be nice."

Resonantia, "A training yard to practice would also do us well."

Ignis, "We have most items required to survive and thrive. Thus, I do not see any more expansion usable until our population grows considerably."

Aestus, "Well, I think we need to pilfer an anvil. We need to get onto blacksmithing soon."

Iratus sat up, with the four girls getting up to gather around him.

Iratus, "Isn't it nice to have some free time?"

Victoria, "We already had a lot of time for ourselves, but I assume you mean all of us have the opportunity to just stop."

Resonantia, "Things may get better now that we are able to work again."

With that, several cries rang out from the room below. Everyone sighed as they stood up and got around. It had now been one year since Iratus came to the Nexus Prime. Day 20 of the new year began with a flurry of work. Each girl had birthed one baby, with each one taking the species of the mother. Two girls were always on duty to care for the babies, while the other two would do the chores around the tower.

The boy, Negligere, looked around with curious eyes and, unlike his siblings, was commonly quiet. Resonantia said it was quite normal for sharkfolk babies to be quiet. The sharkfolk baby had steel gray skin and gold eyes, and even the otterfolk baby, Ruina, looked mostly like her mother, but her fur and hair were orange. Gula, the redpandafolk baby, had brown fur with dark brown hair and, of course, had gold eyes, as both his parents had them. Tenacitas was the raccoon baby with silver fur and dark brown blonde hair.

Aestus, "I don't think I've asked before, but why the name Tenacitas?"

Victoria, "It is the name of one of my sisters. It was important to me that I give the name to my first daughter."

Iratus, "And here I thought you just didn't like Providence names."

Iratus was always on the move, whether it was hunting, scavenging, or assisting the Cobalt family with their own work. Iratus got his loadout equipped and hugged each of his lovers before heading outside.

Iratus, "I'll be back soon. Hold down the home, my loves."

The four girls bid him farewell and gave various forms of good luck, saying, I love you.

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Chapter 415

Iratus was met by the fox boy, Studium, who ran up in excitement.

Studium stiffly, "My name is Studium of Winter Winds."

Iratus, "Eh, your learning. Hello, my name is Iratus of House Lionheart."

Studium giggled and ran away, heading back to Venatio's house. With Venatio leaving it.

Iratus, "I see he already has the basics down."

Venatio, "Give it a few more months; he'll know common folk better than you."

Iratus, "My people's months or yours?"

Venatio, "The only one that matters. Thirty days, twelve months. A far better statement for tracking time."

Iratus, "If you say so. Oh, hey, now that I think about it, what's your full name? Hearing Studium say his has me curious."

Venatio smiled and said,

Venatio, "Venatio of Wise Storms, Mother of House Black Jewel."

Iratus, "Woh, what's that all mean?"

Venatio, "Wise Storms is me, while Black Jewel is my breeding partner's family name. Black Jewel would be my public name, and Storm Winds is for friends and some family only."

Venatio grabbed her gear and wore her backpack.

Iratus, "Where are you going?"

Venatio, "You made plans to investigate the industrial building. Of course I am going as well because everyone here is but a dunce when it comes to real technology."

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Chapter 416

Two hours later, Iratus and Venatio arrived at the farmhouse.

Commercium, "Shouldn't you be with your loves at this time?"

Iratus, "I could say the same to you. Besides, they have to hold down the fort."

Commercium, "Oh sure, I leave for work, but you're just galivanting and adventuring for fun."

Iratus, "Hey now, abandoned locations often hold food and useful tools. It's like, instead of raiding and pillaging, it's raiding abandoned or monster-infested places. It is a legitimate job."

Venatio, "He is clearly messing with you, Iratus."

The rabbit man just gave a bit of a laugh.

Venatio, "Enough; I have waited long enough. Let us..."

All three had their ears twitching as, in the distance, a vehicle could be heard. Iratus was the first to start jogging back to the road, with the other two following behind him.

A gray and roughly crafted car, factory-made, drove down the dirt road, bouncing along the rough path, and slowed as the trees dispersed and Iratus's group came into view. Iratus and the others stopped to look.

Venatio, "I sure hope this won't turn into a drive-by shooting. Seriously, it is very easy to die if someone has a gun."

Iratus, "You have a gun; he has a gun."

Commercium, "I appreciate the vote of confidence in my gunmanship ability."

The gray car stopped, and the passenger side door opened.

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Chapter 417

The otter girl wore pitch black jeans and a teal shirt with a cartoony cloud with a silly face on it. Her fur was black, her hair was blonde, and she had blue eyes.

At the same time:
Iratus, "Is that the otter girl?"
Commercium, "Fuligo?"
Venatio, "Isn't she..."

The group walked up to the car and greeted Fuligo properly.

Commercium, "What are you doing here? What, where are the others?"

The driver of the vehicle yelled out the window. It was a male human wearing a ridiculous amount of black leather with metal studs.

Leather Clad Human, "Hey yo, These your friends?"

Venatio, "It speaks the common tongue."

Leather Clad Human, "Common, my ass. I had to learn four languages just to... nevermind."

Fuligo, "Yes, these are the people I was looking for. Thanks for the ride."

Leather Clad Human, "Eh, yo, no problem."

Commercium, "Well?"

Fuligo, "Sorry. The RV group just wasn't the same with what happened. Sure, we found a few new souls that joined us, but I couldn't keep up with the group, and their demands kept increasing. I'm aware people younger than me were required to act like adults and do adult jobs, but I wasn't raised for it, and I couldn't do it. Pah, now imagine me leaving to travel back here."

She changed her posture to a more dire one.

Fuligo, "Look, a friend of ours has been captured by a really bad person, and we have to rescue him."

Iratus, "Our friend?"

Fuligo, "Clamor, what's his name?"

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Chapter 418

Fuligo, "You have to drive us back, Larry."

The black leather clad human nodded his head.

Larry, "You know what, I'll give you the freebie. Climb on in then my dudes."

Venatio, "Hold on, tell us the whole story."

Fuligo, "Not long after I left the RV group, I met with Clamor and hearing my experience with your group, led me back here. Back at the shop, the church I mean, we were ambushed and he was forced to surrender. I was hidden and escaped, but I heard their plan to use Clamor to delve into a monster infested area to recover their stuff. We need to rescue him because he helped me so much already and I am aware that you guys used to run with him."

Commercium, "The legendary Clamor Amethyst Cold Iron captured? I always thought he was too powerful for that."

Iratus, "He is a good fighter, but legendary?"

Commercium, "He slew a one third god."

Iratus, "Blasphemy, but Victorium did claim such a thing. Heck, his heart was stabbed and it didn't even slow him down. But, Clamor is just as vulnerable as anyone else."

Commercium, "Sure, but he still has one heck of a fighter from what I've heard."

Venatio after a sigh, "Let's see if any of the others are well enough to fight with us. If you don't mind human thing, we'd like to rent your services."

Larry, "Yeah, yeah. I'm down for all this."

Using the car to get around, Iratus was able to talk to the girls about the Clamor and Victoria volunteered to join in the rescue as everyone else was either busy or not fit to fight yet. Fuligo was forced to wait with Abrasione at their home, while the group went on ahead with Larry.

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Chapter 419

Once the group drove to the town, Larry stopped as several mannequins were stationed around the road and area.

Larry, "Alright, this is far enough."

Venatio, "Excuse me?"

Larry, "I don't know if the otter furry told you, but this town was taken over by the Sin Lord of Envy, Buba."

Iratus, "Another Sin Lord? Just how many are there?"

Larry, "Too many. But I ain't getting caught up in their plots."

Venatio, "Wait, can you tell us about sin lords? We have no information on them."

Larry, "They are the main bad guys in the Nexus Prime. I don't know how many planets are in here, but they have infected them all. The only thing I know is that they are the ones in charge of Nexus Prime these days. When I came through here and whisked Fuligo out of here, I was under assault by Buba. She spoke through these things, and I know sin lords are bad news, so I ain't going back in."

Iratus, "Understandable. I will not hold it against you, even more so since you drove us here."

Iratus gave the human two gold coins, and the group dispersed from his vehicle.

As the car drove off back down the road, the group readied their weapons and headed for the town. The mannequins stood like statues, not moving a bit.

Commercium, "Creepy."

Iratus, "and bizarre."

Victoria aimed her crossbow and fired a bolt at one of the mannequins, which hit and knocked it down. These wooden things stood like bipeds and had various figures, mostly lithe, so that the weight wouldn't let them stand. There were no other features other than a bumped chest for females, just smooth wood, mostly oak, with the heads being human-like, though again, no features whatsoever.

With no reaction from the mannequins, the party shrugged and continued forward.

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Chapter 420

Even inside the town, there were many mannequins lined up and spread everywhere.

Victoria, "I'm just waiting for this Buba to speak at us through these things."

Venatio, "Which makes no sense. Perhaps we should tear one apart to see how they work."

The group moved past the repair shop and continued up the road where the mannequins would actually end. Everyone at this point had their senses on high alert, as they knew that a group of some sort had to be around. They got to the church that they fought the Ebony at. Its body was gone, but the ancient iron lantern was still there.

Iratus, "Oops, I forgot to grab my trophy."

Before they could sneak up to the church, they saw several bodies outside. Examining them, they were strange tan-skinned creatures, almost lizard-looking, but clearly not reptiles in nature. They had large, thick tails, and their clothes made Iratus remember something. He imagined the clothes from the stone city next to his tower, and they were an exact match: white wool togas.

Iratus, "What are they?"

At the same time:
Venatio, "Eelkind."
Commercium, "Eelkind!"

Iratus, "Eels? Like what, Eelfolk?"

Venatio, "By religious standards, man was born from clay, folk was born from blood, and egg layers or kind are born from stone."

Commercium, "And I have never met a non-hostile Eelkind."

Venatio, "Luckily, they have not made it into space as far as the galaxy is concerned. From our studies, these guys have a low level of empathy for other people. Actually, let's not talk about their culture and blood. We have a friend in trouble."

They lined up at the church door before running in, weapons drawn and guns out, only to see the church draped in blood from a recent fight. Standing near the alter was a lionfolk dressed as a priest. He was clean-cut with a light build and rich gray hair and fur.

Lionfolk, "Hm?"

He turned to look at the party; his gaze wasn't threatening, but it had a weight to it, making the fur on Iratus and Commercium stand on end.

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EPISDOE 42: END

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Episode 42 End Character Sheet
Name: Iratus Lionheart
Species: Mousefolk
Age: 14
Coverings: blonde fur, white gambeson (many repairs, some leather patchwork), leather gloves, tactical vest, tailorcraft backpack, leather plate helmet, delicate gold chain with a small pendant shaped like a lion's glare, flashlight
Weapons: Long Sword, 3x Knifes, Short Sword
Equipment: belt, belt bag, water skin, leathercraft backpack, 2 bags, 29 oval copper coins, 6 small silver bricks, 20 fine silver coins,15 fine gold coins, metal keycard

Wounds: none

Relevant Community Stash: a fire starter, whetstone, several leather items, 2 glass jar, 12 empty bottles, 1 fish net, primitive sewing kit, a bunch of small wooden figures, wooden dice, metal scrap, lots of rusted metal, several small fish nets, sextant, some bedrolls, a tent, a large barrel, writing material, 73 cloaks and other clothing materials, some fabrics, 5 carts, 8 tattered tents, skin drum, beautiful arts of tropical scenery, floatation devices, wildlife figures, lots of tropical clothing, ancient era hyenafolk clothes

Armory: 10 wooden spears, 47 short swords, 48 knifes, 23 daggers, 33 metal spears, 21 rusted weapons, many armor pieces, ruined metal armor, semi-automatic rifle (no ammo), 3 hunting traps, 3 snares, 4 backpacks
Aestus: leather vest, leather helmet, metal spear, short sword
Victoria: scrap metal breastplate, leather helmet, metal spear, short sword, crossbow, flashlight
Resonanita: breastplate, metal helmet, metal spear, short sword, compound bow, flashlight
Ignis: leather helmet, metal spear, crowbar

Treasure: 52 oval copper coins, 19 oval silver coins 44 ancient metal coins, 8 fine silver coins, a tarnished silver brooch, a small ornamental figurine, a handful of sparkling glass beads, a few antfolk tapestries, some antfolk art, 46 copper lion coins, 5 silver lion coins, 2 gold lion coins, 57 wolfen metal coins, bronze lantern, bronze idol, some jewled trinkets

Home Base, Tower: Large Storage Area (many crates, clay pots, and wooden chests), Basic Workshop Area (lots of tools, woodcarving tools, glue, sandpaper), Kitchen Area (many tools, many cutlery items, pots&pans, makeshift grill), Library, Armory, Infirmary Room (surgery tools, first aid kit, plenty of medicine and equipment), Guest Quarters, Master Bedroom (proper bedding, sensual antfolk sculpture), Six Bedrooms (proper bedding)

Outside Base: Butchering Hut (modern butchery kit, smoking rack), Tannery Hut, Underground Storage Area, Garden Area (fenced in), Tool Shed (fishing gear and supplies, trowel, woodcutting axe, woodworking tools, lots of rope, rope ladder, plows, hoes, sickles, rakes, shovels, scythes, chisels, anvils), Partially Built Wall, Small Cabin

Books: 3x woodworking books, weathered leather-bound journal, war game booklet, sketch book (from warband), Bathhouse Reviewers (entire 80 book series), cards, Fractura's Notes, Tempestas's Notes

Year 1, Day 20

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Iratus of House Lionheart
mouse, male, blonde fur, blonde hair, gold eyes, 6'4 (193cm), age: 15
-
Victoria
raccoon, female, gray fur, black hair, brown eyes, 6'2 (188cm), age: 15
-
Aestus of clan Riversinger
otter, female, red fur, red hair, blue eyes, 5'11 (180cm), age: 14
-
Ignis Yang
red panda, female, reddish-brown/white fur, black hair, golden eye, 6'3 (190cm), age: 15
-
Resonantia Diamond Heart Steel
shark, female, blue-gray hue skin, white hair, blue eyes, 6'3 (191cm), age: 15
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Negligere
shark, male, steel gray skin, white hair, gold eyes, age: 0
-
Ruina
otter, female, orange fur, vibrant orange hair, blue eyes, age: 0
-
Gula
red panda, male, brown fur, dark brown hair, gold eyes, age: 0
-
Tenacitas
raccoon, female, silver fur, dark blonde hair, amber eyes, age: 0

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Venatio of Wise Storms, Mother of House Black Jewel
fox, female, red fur, red hair, brown eyes, 6'6 (198cm), age: 71

Studium of Winter Winds
fox, male, gray fur, black hair, blue eyes, 5'6, age 12

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Commercium Jade Blue Cobalt
rabbit, male, white fur, black hair, gray eyes, 6'8(203cm), age: 24
-
Abrasione
hyena, female, tan fur, blonde hair, gold eyes, 6'5(196cm), age: 20
-
Kuxatura
hyena, male, tan fur, black hair, gold eyes, age: 0

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