Black Hole: The Book of Iratus, Episode 44

Chapter 431

The thoughts still lingered as Iratus tried to run simulations in his head that could result in Clamor making it out of that underground room. Anytime he tried, the box came to mind. He blinked and watched Victoria open the box.

She pulled out a bundle of purple cloth. It looked and felt fine, though any further investigation would reveal its cheapness.

Victoria, "Woh, that's heavy."

Everyone crowded around the raccoon girl in anticipation of the reveal. She removed the cloth and set it aside, and in her hand was now a shiny, silvery-white, cylindrical cube of metal that had protrusions in the shape of a key along all four of its sides. From all the exploration and exposure from the Invaders like Venatio, Iratus had a hint of recognition for the metal.

Iratus thoughts, "It it aluminum or titanium?"

Victoria had a confused expression, and after a second, Venatio took the metal.

Venatio, "This weight..."

Her eyes widen a bit.

Venatio, "Impossible. The message sent is the message of planetary annihilation, a threat, rods from God. Yet here we are, a message of something else, a key—a key to what? What madness that we must understand here and now that a message of death from above is a keyhole, not planetbound." She paused for a few seconds. "I think I understand."

Iratus, "Sure." He nodded for a second. "How about telling us what this thing is?"

Venatio, "Tungsten. Super dense, weighs a lot, and takes a lot to melt. Where I come from, this is exactly what we use as a symbol of death—a threat. However, since this thing has ridges like a key, I assume it must be different. I will say that if this isn't a coincidence, then it could be a message to people like me, or maybe just to me."

Resonantia, "Quite the statement."

Aestus, "We have had help from a faction of summoners before; Venatio even worked for them."

Ignis, "Of all possibilities, why the box? Why the church? What are the odds it would even find itself in your hands or the hands of any Invader such as you?"

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Chapter 432

Venatio, "Look, we lack all the information. Clamor and that tigerfolk lady are the only ones who held the answers to anything, and they are gone now. I can only guess at where our next quest should begin."

Everyone started leaving the table and moving about, but they were still listining as they got to work.

Iratus, "Quest huh? Since when did any of this involve us?"

Venatio, "I recognize the key, not to what, but to meaning. I still have a job to do, whether or not I am taking orders."

The shark girl narrowed her eyes.

Resonantia, "Which job?"

Venatio quietly, "Data Error."

Ignis, "Disatisfaciton, distress. These were words you have used to describe your almost non-consentual relationship with the being."

Venatio, "What can I say? Everything has been getting so interesting. Even more so now that we have something that resonates with me."

Iratus, "You said you understood the message other than the threat?"

The old fox woman sat down and examined the tungsten key a bit more.

Venatio, "The tungsten rod is supposed to mean a threat from space. If this is a key, then it's not a threat, but a key to a place either off of this planet or something similar on this planet."

Iratus, "Similar to not being on a planet or being on a planet?"

Venatio, "Like a spacecraft or something."

Ignis, "Perhaps there is no meaning—a coincidence in earnest?"

Venatio, "Sure, a possibility."

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Chapter 433

Day 21 of the second year arrived, with the group getting their supplies around and loading them into a cart. Because their babies required mothers to stay alive, the group had to go in pairs with Iratus and Venatio, who traveled with them. The first group was Resonantia and Victoria, and they started by stopping at Commercium's and Abrasione's home first.

Abrasione, "And don't forget your daily crate of milk."

Victoria, "We can't drink all this so quickly."

Iratus, "Save some for yourself, sheesh."

The hyena woman leaned closer.

Abrasione, "Cows produce too much milk! We can't drink all of it."

Everyone gave a chuckle at that.

The group made it to the hunting lodge for the day before continuing to the church the next day. At the church, the priest had several torches lit around the collapsed hole.

Iratus, "Father Deficio, we have arrived for the funeral for Clamor."

Deficio, "Of course. I have already given the rite to that tigerfolk woman. Let's start with the rabbit."

A few plastic chairs were set up for the group.

Victoria, "It's happening, huh? It feels so unreal."

Resonantia, "He was in and out of our home many times, and now he actually has left us."

The ritual was swift, with words being given first from the priest, then the girls gave some of their own words.

Victoria, "-and that's how he inspired me to seek my faith better-"

And Resonantia,

Resonantia, "-he was just so stubborn, you know-"

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Chapter 434

The next group was Aestus and Ignis with the same thing going down at the funeral, but this time Fuligo joined them.

Aestus, "-he was like the angry grandpa-"

And Ignis,

Ignis, "-Clamor was diligent in being honest and open with us-"

The priest gathered some ash and offered it to the group.

Aestus, "We've already said our peace."

Venatio, "I can't say that I had that huge of an attachment."

In the end Fuligo took a handful of ash to toss it into the hole where Iratus took the rest of the bowl and tossed it into the hole.

Deficio, "This has to be the strangest funeral I've done. I simply didn't have any of my tools and stuff."

Iratus, "We thank you non-the-less."

The lion man nodded his head.

Iratus, "Where will you go now?"

Deficio, "I don't know. Maybe I'll just find another church to live in."

Iratus, "Well, I have some candidates."

Once they arrived home, Iratus would show Deficio to the church at Last Mistake.

Deficio, "Goodness, this town is a mess."

Iratus, "Eh, I'm sure you can fix it up."

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Chapter 435

The next few days were peaceful, with Iratus and the four girls going down to Deficio's new church to officially get married.

Deficio seemed mildly concerned about Iratus having four wives but shrugged when he lit the candles, and the group sat in a chalk-drawn circle for the ritual. They had their collars off so that they could collar each other during this event to show their mutual ownership of each other. The girls belonged to Iratus, and he belonged to them.

Once the group thanked the priest, Aestus spoke up.

Aestus, "Mister, why does my fur stand up whenever I'm near you?"

Deficio, "Ah, a common occurrence, I assure you. You may not see it, but I am quite heavily armed."

Resonantia, "Is that how Providence priests roll?"

He smiled.

Deficio, "Being armed is important enough that in more troubling times, priests were commanded to buy a sword for themselves even if they had to sell their cloak to do so."

Iratus, "Are you going to be fine alone?"

Deficio playfully, "Dangerously armed! I'm just full of blades and guns all packed into me."

Iratus, "Alright, goodbye for now."

Deficio, "Now that I have a proper church, make sure you come by once a week."

Iratus, "Whose week?"

Deficio, "Ah, uh, actually, I'll send you messages when I am capable of doing mass."

After the chat, the group headed home. Venatio gave her congratulations, saying that she was happy that they were able to find a priest to officially marry them.
 
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Chapter 436

Iratus tried to find time to snuggle with his wives as well as spend more time with them. It started with making homemade cheese, and then the girls got into making flour to use for pancakes.

Iratus, "It's been forever since I've last had pancakes."

Ignis, "Rice pancakes, no doubt. We must try some of the other grains to find our perfect match for flavor."

Resonantia, "Sorghum, Buckwheat, and Soybeans?"

Victoria, "Buckwheat flour has my vote."

She pointed at the plant with its broad, triangular leaves and small white flowers. The group tested each pancake batch to see which one was made from the best flour. The rice pancakes had a mild, sweet flavor with a hint of nuttiness. They moved to the sorghum pancakes and found their taste to be slightly earthy and slightly sweet. With the buckwheat pancakes, it had the taste of a rich, nutty flavor with a hint of bitterness. Finally, the soybean pancakes weren't too different, with a distinct nutty taste and a subtle sweetness. In the end, no one could decide which flour was the best.

In their downtime, the towerfolk tried to make some songs and dance with only their hands as instruments. The group would clap in a steady rhythm while an individual tried to either improvise out a song or a dance.

There was even a time when the girls insisted Iratus take them to the hot springs, one at a time. Iratus was, of course, fine spending most of that day in the hot springs cave. Another day saw the group practice swimming and then set up a running route for exercising. With the girls becoming more capable again, they would also help Iratus build the wooden wall.

The days would pass, and monsters would rarely be seen, with only various beasts giving a reason to sweat.

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Chapter 437

Day 44 came with Iratus looking over the yard while Venatio walked outside to greet him.

Venatio, "Yo."

Iratus, "Hey. You're up early."

Venatio, "Yeah, I was hoping to hire someone to do a patrol with me."

Iratus, "Patrol, where?"

Venatio, "Around. The tracks up north. Greet the Kobolds to the east, check out the smoldering pile of city across the river, and maybe travel to the coast."

Iratus, "Afraid of someone or something moving in?"

Venatio, "We have been lagging behind in keeping our overall area patrolled."

Iratus, "Hm, I guess I have been slacking in that area. Everyone has been so busy that the satellite places have been out of mind. Alright, how about I spend the day making sure everything is on the up and up?"

Venatio, "I'll walk part of the way too."

Iratus told the others about the patrol, with each girl wanting to join him. Northbound saw Ignis and Venatio, with Ignis taking every moment to talk to Iratus. For the east, Aestus switched with Ignis, and they went to grab more milk from their neighbors while Ignis traveled to the rice fields.

Iratus, "Here is a ton of flour. Now you can't complain about having too much milk."

Commercium and Abrasione gave a chuckle.

Commercium, "Look at this. Each jar here is a gallon; just one cow can fill five a day."

Abrasione, "We don't have enough jars for this, so we really need you guys to drink this stuff, please!"

Aestus, "Ha."

Iratus, "We are trying our best."

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Chapter 438

West and beyond the river was the burned-down city, and Iratus and Victoria checked it out while Venatio, at this point, stayed home. At the rice fields, Ignis, Studium, and Fuligo were stopping for the day with some barrels of rice stacked in a cart. Back at the tower, Resonantia convinced the two kids to join them on the patrol. The party headed for the beach with the curious kids in tow.

Fuligo, "You know, outside of the games, I don't think we have had the chance to talk."

Iratus, "Please, talk away."

The otter girl bounced around the road, with the fox boy being more subtle and paying attention.

Fuligo, "So did you kill the ebony monster thing?"

Iratus, "Which one?"

Fuligo, "Oh, right, you've killed a billion of them! I mean, the one that was stalking us."

Iratus, "Technically, both Venatio and I killed it. Honestly, I don't know how your group didn't when a few shots from the rifle seemed to do the trick."

Fuligo, "I've seen that creature take multiple headshots and shrug it off. Are you sure your shots did a bunch of damage?"

The conversation continued with Fuligo talking a lot and the fox boy speaking very little.

Studium, "I don't, uh, like all the pancakes."

Fuligo, "Which makes no sense because they are delicious!"

Resonantia, "Maybe we should try to filter the flour better."

Iratus, "Yeah, our improvised flour and pancakes don't taste like they do at my home."

Resonantia, "Technically, these grains are from a multitude of planets. They may not have evolved that similarly."

Iratus, "Similar to look and mostly taste the same."

Fuligo, "And that stuff has always been weird. How do we have rice on every planet?"

Studium, "Venatio says, uh, said, uh...one path that all things travel. It makes no sense with randomly evolving, but when, uh, something seems to make everything follow the one evolution path."

Iratus, "Wow, he has been getting proficient fast."

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Chapter 439

The two kids ran on the beach, Resonantia and Iratus embracing as they watched them go.

Resonantia, "One day it will be our kids out here."

Iratus, "Yeah."

After a minute, Iratus's view shifted to the left and towards the military base in the distance.

Iratus, "Hold on, I think I saw something."

Resonantia looked over and blinked in surprise.

Resonantia, "Woh, what's going on over there?"

There appeared to be several figures wandering in and out of the base.

Iratus, "Let's get a better view. Shoot, we really should have searched this place out."

Resonantia, "You still have the industrial building back east to explore too."

The shark girl turned to the two kids.

Resonantia, "We'll be right back. Stay alert and be mindful of threats."

Fuligo, "So the norm?"

Iratus, "By silver chains, it is truly sad that it is."

Fuligo, "Where are you two going?"

Iratus, "We see people or something over there by that base. We will just be scouting it out. If you hear gunshots, get back to the tower."

Fuligo, "Yes, sir."

Studium, "I will do too."

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Chapter 440

From the trees and bushes, Iratus and Resonantia looked out at the base. The base was old, with many walls being weathered and worn, with rust spreading across its surface. Some camouflage netting still clung to the structures as the barbed wire fences were broken in multiple places. Some graffiti was still readable, with pictures, messages, and other things written down, all in another language. The ground was littered with long-since-melted and destroyed guns, with many vehicles in a similar state, their bodies fused into the ground by extreme heat.

The desolation and silence would be oppressive if not for the embers and light coming from the ashborn, with these ones mostly being the ash being in the rough shape of a lizard, but there were a few ashborn that were more like scaleborn, with tan, thick, and almost cartoonish-looking scales covering their body. Each scaleborn had a permeant wide grin filled with triangle-sharp teeth, and these creatures also dragged around their weapons, various-sized great clubs made of metal.

Resonantia, "I don't know if we could get in. How about we cause a little chaos?"

Iratus, "Those ashborn, or scaleborn, I guess, are wielding weapons like that alligator thing."

Resonantia fired an arrow at one of the creatures, which landed in the back of its head, dropping it instantly. Iratus gave a quizzical look to his love.

Resonantia, "I didn't hear no."

She took three more out as the ashborn began to move towards the two. Iratus moved out and prepared to intercept them, but then a scaleborn gave a moan-like howl, and the monsters turned and ran inside the base where they took cover, moving faster and more agilely than when they were lumbering towards Iratus and Resonantia.

The two tried to get a better look inside, but they both started to walk back as more scaleborns arrived with javelins.

Iratus, "Ok, tactical retreat."

The two managed to fade back into the foliage before more combat happened.

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EPISDOE 44: END

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Episode 44 End Character Sheet
Name: Iratus Lionheart
Species: Mousefolk
Age: 15
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: numerous cuts on limbs (mostly healed), cut on face (mostly healed)

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, iron lantern

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 44

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(Extra Stories)

Extra Story 1

(a long time ago) The hyena boy looked around the burning building. He turned to look at his driver, who seemed to have disappeared, and at that, he just sighed and finished his venison egg roll. Afterwards, he got out of the vehicle, revealing his black hair, spotted brown hyena fur, fit physique, and hardy work clothes, complete with a safety vest. He left the truck behind and examined the whole thing to see that he was in a skyscraper.

(later)

The hyena boy wondered out of the city with the wailing of something massive in the background. Out in the plains, he saw a cheetah person, a cheetahfolk. With no care and a shrug, the hyena walked up to the cheetah person. Up close, he saw this cheetah with red hair, a small frame, and a ridiculously fit build, as well as being naked.

Hyena, "Uh, excuse me? Can you tell me where I am?"

Cheetah, "Tell you? Tell me, bud."

Hyena, "Oh cool, you speak my language. Classic fantasy trope."

Cheetah, "Incorrect, you are speaking my language."

The hyena noticed a few words were off, like they were speaking the same language but some words were new.

Hyena, "So...what happened to you?"

Cheetah, "Got lost in the mountains. What's with those colors? Are you part of a mercenary company or something?"

Hyena, "Uh, technically. Perhaps I should say I am part of a mercenary group of laborers."

(days later)

The hyena boy walked up.

Sepsis, "I'm Sepsis, and this is Superbia."

Wolffolk, "Did we ask you for your name, boy? Shut up and give us your backpacks and empty out your pockets, or we are going to break you."

Sepsis, the hyena boy, readied his maul, while Superbia, the cheetahfolk, now wearing proper and lightweight clothes, readied his fists.

The lead wolf stepped up to cut Superbia with his short sword, but the cheetah was agile enough to toss out a punch with such speed that everyone had to stop because of what happened. The large wolffolk dropped his sword, so he tried to brawl Superbia, who moved with speed—not speed as agility, but speed that came with strength. Despite his smaller build, Superbia would dominate the fist fight with rapid punching and positioning.

(half a year later)

Sepsis and Superbia now wore proper armor, or gambeson, and metal breastplates. However, their armor wasn't holding up well and was slightly damaged from their recent combat. They saw the carnage that they just fought with, with dozens of Buba's puppets scattered around and destroyed with one of her dolls in front of them, smashed to pieces with long, thin metal fibers scattered all over the ground.

Sepsis, "Any idea what that was?"

Superbia, "Another kind of monster, I guess. Though, one that can talk is quite unnerving."

Suddenly, the metal wires came to life and reformed into a new being. The pair got back into their combat stances while the wires conglomerated into a pillar of wires with something like a single eye etched into the head of the wire bundle.

Data Error, "Ah, greetings. I am Data Error, and I am making contact to thank you for removing Buba's influence from this area."

There was a pause.

Sepsis, "Uh, yeah. Anytime."

Superbia, "Hold on, if those wires were the monster, then what are you?"

Data Error, "You have purged the mind from this platform, which has given me the room to take it over. Now, let me tell you why I have made contact with the two of you."

Superbia, "Once again, hold on. Who are you?"

There was another pause.

Data Error, "Have you heard of the summoners?"

The shock on the pair's faces was a clear yes.

Data Error, "I am but one, and I am the one responsible for your younger forms."

Sepsis, "What?"

Data Error, "The loser with no love and no future. The man who trained every day of his life without ever living. I assumed the two of you would like to be young again to live for once."

Superbia angerly, "So it's true that your kind summoned us to this place?"

Data Error, "Hardly. We, the summoners, have long since lost our control over this station. The summoning too is lost to us, beyond our regulating control. However, we have not been exterminated yet, and like the rats we are, we scurry from the shadows and holes of our ancient home to make some...alterations to what happens."

Superbia, "What? I am so confused."

Sepsis, "No, this is just a classic sci-fi plot."

Data Error, "Now then. I may not have brought you here, but I did give your youth and your lives back to you, and I'd like to...wait, there should be three of you."

Sepsis, "It has been only the two of us."

Data Error, "That does happen a lot. Anyway, I'd like the two of you to repay the favor."

The two friends looked at each other with doubtful looks.

Data Error, "In the house over there." He pointed to a modern-like house with half the roof caved in. "There is a box that has a key. There is a lot of information lost since our fall, and even many of our items are scattered. I don't know what the key is for, but I need to get it away from all the monsters. I'll be sending an agent to pick it up, and I need you two to travel to a secure location until you meet up with them."

Inside the building was a metal box that would soon be in the hands of Iratus.

(21 days before Clamor's death)

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TOWER FOLK:
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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CHILDREN:
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
---

NEIGHBORS:
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

Fuligo
otter, female, black fur, blonde hair, blue eyes, 5'4, age 12

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THE COBALTS:
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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