Vitmori POV

The rat snakes... Titanoboa rats? Hmm... How about I just call them borats, nobody here should have anything to say about a name like that. Anyways, with the surprise appearance of the borats, I'm suddenly flush with a fresh batch of what can be earnestly described as monsters that I'm not entirely sure what to do with. They're a bit odd to look at due to their fur-covered serpentine body, yet they're almost endearing in a way with their wide eyes and big ears. They also all bore the marks of my bond, having a green diamond take shape on their foreheads instead of a ring around their ear or shoulder. I wasn't sure if it was odd or not since the only ones to have that style of mark were reptiles like Oururu and Zasutir. I really should take some time to explore the whys and/or hows of the mark of my influence... Maybe it's different for each dungeon? I should check on the spiders and Orwis to see if there is a variety of what sorts of marks they have and where they are on them.

Regardless, while Oururu and I were both taken by surprise by the appearance of the borats, Frisby was ecstatic upon seeing them. I'm not sure how it works or what exactly happened but according to Frisby, despite their new and unique physical appearances, these borats are the same rats from her old brood; with the same minds and souls. Like Frisby, the borats lacked the memories of the lives they had during their service under Lichtdren, but what they do remember is Oururu consuming them all. You would think something like that would make people develop a grudge or at least harbor some kind of ill will toward the person who killed them.

But... Not these critters. Like Frisby when she first joined us, these borats idolized Oururu. In their minds and non-verbal communication, they call him The Great Devourer, or The Consumer of All; since he liberated them of their centuries of starvation with his own hunger by eating them all. The fact that they've been granted bodies with features of their idol only raised their fervor in their adoration of Oururu. They seem to respect me as well, in a way, recognizing me as their new dungeon core and the one who commands both their idol and their brood mother; however, I do get the feeling that they adore and respect Oururu much more than they do me, which I don't mind.

By the time the spawner stopped spitting out borats, the total headcount came up to a rather substantial thirty-four. According to Frisby, this is just under half of her total brood, which is quite frankly a lot of rats... Well, borats now. I couldn't help but regard Oururu in a new light after hearing that number. I did get impressions of how hard he had fought, but the idea that he fought off such a massive swarm of ravenous rats all on his own back when he was still an anxious and smaller serpent is rather impressive in its own right. It's no wonder he's been more confident in himself since then.

As for just how many borats there are scurrying or slithering about, I can't help but wonder why so many were spawned at once. I mean, the fuevimo's spawner only produced eight of those fire fawns when it was first activated. Did it have anything to do with my head feeling more full than usual? So far that's only been caused by the handler and sponsors. Now that I think about it, I did spot a purple light flash within the crack for a moment... Well, it's not like I'll be able to find the answer anytime soon, and it doesn't appear that any damage was done so I'll leave the matter to rest for now.

With the borats now in play, I'd say I have a considerable force of power built up around my territory. For the time being, they currently surpass Jack's scouts who haven't left for winter, and outnumber Dionyba's squirrels and Legosi's wolves by headcount alone. As for their combat prowess and effectiveness? I'm not sure how they would hold up on their own, but I have no doubts as to how intimidating they might be if they retained their swarming tactics.

It's only now coming to my attention how much I've been neglecting Frisby since she came into my service. Considering her background and circumstances, I had chosen to leave her mostly to her own devices while managing my cave greenhouse experiment. I figured she was content with herself since she asked for nothing and would often spend time with Oururu when she wasn't tending to the greenhouses, but even now I realized I barely know anything about her or what she was capable of.

Today I've learned that she is a skilled and mindful leader, making use of some sort of hivemind connection with some of her brood to guide and instruct half of them on how to tend to the various greenhouse rooms; even making sure to stop in with each borat that wasn't sure of themselves and offering a more direct guiding hand... Err... Paw? As for the other half, she sent them out from my mountain to explore the forest of their new home so they could better understand their surroundings, though they didn't ask nearly as many questions as the ones in the greenhouse rooms.

Regarding her apparent hivemind, I was aware of the fact that naked mole rats were one of the only mammals in my world to have a functional hivemind and actively serve a queen. But to think that Frisby, of all of my vassals or scions, was capable of such a feat was surprising, to say the least. Out of sheer curiosity, I tapped into her connection and was surprised by the sheer flow of information she had been processing. It felt very much like the direct bonds I have with others, receiving their thoughts at the minimum and being able to share their senses if I were to focus on it. As far as I know, Legosi, Jack, and Dionyba don't have this much of a direct and thorough connection with their subordinates, so it must be unique to Frisby herself.

As for Frisby in particular, I've come to learn that she has a deep affinity with water and earth magics. She apparently had a focus on the poison and venom paths of water magic, using her affinity with water to make her bite much more deadly. With that in mind, she has been using her magic to actually water the crops this whole time. I... I actually feel rather bad that I completely failed to consider that she would have to water the crops on a regular basis to maintain the greenhouse. If she didn't have that magic available to her, then would she have even brought it to my attention or would she have suffered in silence? I wonder if she thought I already knew and just trusted my judgment. In regards to her earth magic, she told me it had to do with just being great at digging. I knew rats were good at making burrows, but to think she would have a connection to it with magic as well? According to her, she had been using it to enrich the dirt and stimulate the growth of the crops, which I didn't even know was a possibility.

I’m just glad that Frisby is such a mature and self-sufficient rat. I've been giving her so much space and independence that I may as well have been neglecting her. Since getting some of her brood back, it's like a fire has been lit in her heart and she’s been that much happier and has an air of confidence I haven’t seen from her before.

I had spent the day finishing the spawners themselves, getting Legosi, Jack, and Dionyba attuned before setting up the cubs with their own individual spawners just in case. All that was left was Basti, but she was currently a little preoccupied with stealing someone’s identity to set her up with a spawner at this point.

Before long, all that was left was to make the statues that I had gotten started with; first finishing up with a coiled Oururu in his serpent form, biting his tail with a stone Frisby resting safely in the center of the coil. Up next was Legosi, proudly sitting tall with his sword’s hilt held prominently between his teeth. After him I prepared a stone Jack, the charismatic bird in the midst of his flourishing bow with a cocky look on his face despite only having a beak. Finally I made up a statue featuring Basti and the cubs all together on a single pedestal, Basti sitting tall and looking rather regal while the statues representing the cubs play at her feet. All that’s left are statues for Pratemis and Dionyba, but I hold off on making ones for them for now; afterall, I don’t feel like I know them well enough to portray them accurately enough with a statue.

The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

As I’m setting up twin stone sconces around each alcove in the spawner room, setting a ball of self-sustaining light in each one, I’m hit with a distinct wave of mana. It wasn’t all that much, but it was different from the usual ambient mana that keeps my reserves topped off. Focusing on the flow as best I can, I can feel the mana building up as a little more than what I received is taken with it before heading for the spawner tree in its alcove. I kept an eye on the tree for now but went back to what I was doing, I guess one of the fuevimo was just killed and is slowly being spawned again.

A good ten minutes go by as I finish the lighting for the spawner room when I feel a shift in the air as a hoof emerges from the crack in the tree. One of the nameless fuevimo stumble out before shaking itself, looking rather cheerful despite being recently killed. “Hey there little one, are you alright?” I ask while making my way over to him, reaching out and gently patting his head as they look up to me and lean into my touch.

He doesn’t verbally respond, but I get the impression that they’re rather happy considering the circumstances. He was playing with one of the people from the Haven and they caught him after giving them a good chase. I could tell he was planning on not letting them catch him so easily next time; yet Pratemis already told them to not make it too hard on the people because they need to catch the fuevimo for the sake of their futures. As he thinks more on it while still nuzzling my hand, I get the feeling that he doesn’t want me to tell Pratemis what they were thinking, suddenly feeling more than a little mischievous as his gray tail waggles with delight. .

I smiled a little as I chuckled at their rapid fire thoughts and unfiltered cheer. “Sure, I’ll keep it to myself. Run along then.” I suggest to them before pulling away. I could tell he was vaguely disappointed the petting had stopped but he quickly made his way out, pronking with playful delight as he made his way down the hall.

Following the fawn out, I’m greeted by the morning sun just barely cresting the horizon. I must have really lost track of time if I didn’t realize that yesterday had even ended until now. Well, at least I managed to keep myself busy which is always a plus.

As I’m contemplating what I should do for the day, I suddenly remember that I technically had an assignment that I never reported back on. With that in mind, I suppose I could spend some time around the Haven today.

A quick jog down the mountain and through the woods and I find myself in the clearing soon enough. The sun was still barely cresting over the horizon as I entered the clearing and the Haven was mostly quiet for the moment. There were a dozen people going here and there, a couple hunters skinning some kills at an edge of the clearing behind the longhouse while a few others were collecting baskets and discussing what part of the forest they should try foraging around. A few people greet me with a polite air around them and I could tell that while they generally consider me an oddity, they at least appreciate what I’ve done. That’s fine by me at the end of the day, I don’t need people to like me for me to help them.

Making my way inside the longhouse I spot Luna, Remi, Mina, and Hephtio working around the kitchen. I could smell the scent of dough for some kind of bread, a dry rub of herbs on uncooked meats, and fresh fruits that were perhaps crushed or cut.

Making my way over but not making myself known just yet; I watch as Remi and Mina work side by side, talking about this and that. I was more than satisfied to see that Mina was blossoming around the others of the Haven, becoming sincerely more cheerful and animated. While I may not have absorbed her memories, I had seen some of what she endured through Rita’s perspective and it was never pretty. Remi is a good young man… rat? He’s a good person as far as I’ve seen, and I can tell he’s got feelings for Mina and she has feelings for him.

Looking to the other end of the kitchen, Luna was kneading some dough, wearing some gloves that went up past her forearm while talking to Hephtio who sat on a counter nearby. She was sincerely instructing him on how to prepare bread, showing him how to knead the dough and flour it when necessary. Hephtio, for his part, was following the kneading motions with his paws and kneading the counter while intently watching Luna’s hands; his ears perked and clearly listening to what she had to say.

“Good morning y’all, how’s it going today?” I call out with a little more cheer than usual, flashing a smile as I made myself known while vaguely relishing in the little jolts of surprise that came from their tails and ears.

Hephtio was the first to act, springing from the counter and scampering over to me as he mrowled with delight. He quickly leapt for my legs, his nails digging into the wood to find purchase as he began to scale my body. I helped him the rest of the way, gently grabbing him with both hands as I brought him up and set him on my shoulders where he perched and settled, nuzzling his fluffy red head into my throat and jawline. It was only then that I noticed my left hand had finally grown back at some point since yesterday; I probably should have paid more attention to when it actually happened, but at least I know I can passively repair limbs if the need were to ever arise.

“Good morning, oh great Vitmori. It’s so good to see you! Do you need another bottle of wine?” Mina asked with enthusiastic reverence, even going so far as to curtsy before looking up with her vibrant pink eyes.

I chuckled a bit before shaking my head. “No no, I’m just stopping by for a visit and checking in is all. How’s everything going, do you need anything?” I ask, looking at Luna and Remi before looking down to Mina in particular.

Mina shakes her head, her round ears wiggling a little as she just offered me a cheerful smile. “You’ve already done so much for me Vitmori, I couldn’t possibly ask for more from you.”

I tilt my head a little, smiling but quirking my brow a bit. “Oh really? Nothing at all? You of all people could afford to be a little more greedy Mina. Regardless, if you do need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

At that, Mina looked a little bashful, but bobbed her head cheerfully as she went back to work.

Luna piped up next, scratching her chin against her shoulder for a moment before actually speaking up. “If it’s not too much trouble, I actually overheard some of the others talking about trying to cross the river to look for more foraging opportunities and maybe set up some more traps. Could you possibly help out with that somehow?”

The river eh? I remember that it was supposedly rather deep with a surprisingly strong undercurrent according to Jack’s more aquatic birds. Now that I think about it, I’ve got a whole half of the forest that only Jack and his birds are able to monitor because of the river in question… “Well, I was hoping to help out with more immediate concerns like helping cook breakfast or something… But sure, I’ll see what I can do.” I mused kindly.

Luna flashed a wolfish grin at that but shrugged a bit. “I suppose I’ll have to keep that in mind the next time you’re offering your help, oh well.” She mused in response before looking to Hephtio. “Come along cub, your lessons aren’t done yet.”

Heptio did look a little hesitant, glancing between myself and Luna. Though after a moment he just gently headbutted my cheek before making his way down my side and hurrying back over to her. With that, I looked to Remi and offered him a bit of a smile as well. “And how about you? Do you need anything at all?”

His ears flicked thoughtfully as he hummed for a moment, currently scoring shallow cuts into various pieces of meat before looking back up to me. “I can’t think of anything myself, but I certainly appreciate the offer.” He said with a bit of a smile before getting back to the meal prep.

With a simple bob of my head I look among the cooks once more before taking a step back. “Well alright then, I’ll go see what I can do about that river then.” I say before dismissing myself and making my way out of the longhouse. I could sense movement around the longhouse as the others started to wake, but I figured I could go deal with this river thing first and come back after breakfast once everyone’s a little more awake.

Another quick jog through the woods I come across the small clearing by the riverside. The trees and brush still had signs of fire damage and scorch marks, but all in all it looked alright as far as I could tell. Approaching the riverside I decided to take a seat and just listen to the running water for a while. Sure it was a quiet moment where I’m alone with my thoughts, but… Well… I hardly ever got to do this back in my home world after it all went to shit. I forgot just how nice just listening to the sounds of nature could be, even now I’ve hardly taken the time to just stop and enjoy my surroundings without feeling the near constant need to be busy and productive.

I suppose at the end of the day I just need to remind myself that I don’t need to do everything all on my own anymore. I’m not fighting for survival with every waking moment anymore… And maybe sometimes I can just allow myself to enjoy the quiet moments and little things without feeling guilty.

It isn’t long though until I feel eyes on me. I don’t sense that they’re a threat, so I just choose not to acknowledge them just yet and force myself to enjoy the moment for at least a few minutes longer.

Isaak eventually comes up beside me, sitting by the riverside as well and just taking in the sounds of nature with me.

As much as I could appreciate the tact and consideration the teen was having for me, I know that I promised him a talk and it wouldn’t be polite to ignore him for too long after he’s been this patient. “Hey Isaak… What’s up? Are you ready for that talk?” I ask, looking over at him now and offering a small smile.

He met my gaze before suddenly feeling sheepish as he started to rub his neck, though after another quiet moment he bobbed his head once and spoke up. “Yeah… I think I’m ready.”