Third Incarnation - (4): The Black Goat of the Galaxy
Purple tentacle god? Cthulhu? Whatever it was, something was targeting the cluster my apostles belonged to. Should I just bring over the apostles I feel affection for? If I pulled them into this dimension, I could free them from all their problems. I could craft a suitable model planet for them, let them rule as kings there. Give them families and friends to live with. Hell, I could transplant an entire planet if needed. I could even transform their bodies into eternal immortals.
After killing that Cthulhu thing, I could offer a fair price to the Outer God over there and haul over a whole galaxy. Even if they developed mental issues like depression... I could tweak their memories or elevate them to divinity, right? The apostles would surely love it. Just cross the line a little, and they could have everything they wanted. No one could stop me. Even my kin on that side would turn a blind eye to something happening in a single galaxy.
Reluctant to step in directly? Why should I have to tiptoe around? Would my kin pick a fight with me over a speck of dust? Ah. Of course, I'd have to exclude the galaxy gods who are my kin. My resolve stirred. My hand moved on its own. The index finger and thumb of my left hand hooked halfway into the dimensional barrier of that other realm.
Well then. If I pierced the dimensional wall like this, grabbed that distant speck of dust, and pulled it over here—
A voice came from the AI information entity. The apostles in the other dimension were looking up at the sky, calling for me.
"Lord Constellation! We've finished sorting the paperwork, so we're about to have lunch. Would you come down and join us? We got some rare ingredients as an offering to you not long ago..."
"Requesting a meal from a god? Yuna, you can be so rude sometimes!"
"But this is an offering for the Lord Constellation. If we leave it, it'll all go bad?"
"That's true, but..."
[Constellation, Whispering Star Cluster says it's fine.]
"Ah. So we can eat it then? This is pretty rare stuff... Slurp."
"I still don't know if this is right-wa yo..."
Yeah. What harm would I ever do to such cute apostles? Yuna's getting a bit more familiar, maybe because her mutation is progressing. From what I've seen of their personalities, they're all affectionate types. Especially Beatrix, the princess of Balhar Planet—no need to mention her. Even Yuna feels deep attachment to Ratan Planet.
Ignoring their free will and dragging them here by force wouldn't be the ideal solution.
"Tsk. It'd be nice if the Lord Constellation joined us too."
"I know that humanoid incarnation bodies made by gods have taste buds almost identical to mortals-wa yo. But still..."
Suddenly, a thought struck me. I hesitate to personally crush a small animal eating bugs, but what if the bugs I raised crossed over and got involved in the fight? Wouldn't that be fine?
What if the mortals I created in this dimension crossed over and killed that purple deity? How would communication between different dimensions work? They might see fellow intelligent beings as enemies. If I raised a mortal cluster like the Super Galactic Empire Federation...
I glanced at the galaxy the size of a fingernail on my right palm, and a small thrill stirred in my heart. Thoughts of potential dangers to my apostles had already flown from my mind. What I felt now was curiosity. Excitement. Wonder at the unknown.
Tearing down the entire dimensional wall would be a huge nuisance. But striking a deal with the Outer God over there and poking a hole or two for exchange? That wouldn't be bad.
The lives in this dimension—like Naiserria the Galaxy Spirit—can't cross the dimensional barrier. But for an Outer God like me, it's no big constraint. Punching holes to grab galaxies or linking passages is easy.
Of course, if my main body crossed over, everything short of Outer Gods would get wiped out in the fallout.
"Oh? That Vivian's coming here, apparently. Says she'll arrive tomorrow or so."
"The director of the Central Avatar Research Institute can pick any constellation she wants, but since our Lord won't accept her, she's getting antsy-wa yo."
"But what does the Lord Constellation plan to do with info on living creatures?"
The possibility of that Cthulhu—no, purple tentacle monster god—killing my apostles. From a mortal's sense of time, that moment might be far in the future. But from the perspective of a god living eternity, it's just a short while.
So I decided to act with the future in mind, starting now. I was planning to create life in this dimension anyway...
Might as well make it strong enough to kill that purple tentacle monster god from the other dimension. Creating a mortal cluster here could one day lead to a civilization that crosses over. That sounds fun.
The supergalaxy on my right palm. Quite some time has passed here, but no life is detectable yet. From a human perspective, there might be viruses or microbes, but my current vision doesn't pick them up. Even zooming in closer, nothing shows.
It's like examining the entire galaxy under a microscope—only a thorough scan might reveal them. For now, this is fine. The galaxy, once mere dust, has grown beautiful at this size. It'd be perfect if only cute little lifeforms lived here. I wanted to create my own miniature garden planet and enjoy observing it.
Something like the Super Galactic Empire Federation in that dimension. And as a bonus, strong enough to oppose the god showing malice to mortals over there.
■■■!!
A star in my view collided with another, naturally annihilating. A supernova explosion occurred elsewhere too.
Suddenly, I thought it would be nice to have a manager for this galaxy. Same for when I create life later. An intermediate overseer would make things easier. Something like Naiserria, a Galaxy Spirit.
A deity I could chat with on equal terms might work too. No. Why not just hand it to Naiserria? Easier than creating a new Galaxy Spirit-level god from scratch.
[Naiserria.]
[Yes? What is it?]
[I'd like you to manage the galaxy I created.]
[Y-Yes?! Forgive me, but my abilities fall short. Even this tiny place overwhelms me...]
I focused my senses on her briefly. She claims her abilities are lacking, but as a Galaxy Spirit, she withstands my gaze unscathed. Last time, she grew from ant to soldier ant size. [Indeed. It might be a bit much.]
Still seems insufficient compared to her own galaxy. The one I made is vastly expansive. I can turn an ant into a soldier ant, but a hamster? Much harder. Easier to make a hamster from scratch.
Then I'll create a new one.
—■■■!
I know the trick to creating not ordinary mortals, but immortals. Apostles are creatures gradually approaching godhood anyway. Nurture them with divine power, and they'll reach divinity eventually.
[...Great One! What in the world are you doing?!]
[Nothing major, no need to be so surprised.]
[But...]
[Creating another deity to manage this galaxy.]
Constellations in that dimension specialize in one field—fire, water, plants, stone, and so on. But I have no reason to bother with such trivia. My body, called Cosmic Power, is the ultimate force.
—Gwooooong...
Concentrating power on the fingernail-sized galaxy atop my right hand, changes began.
The root of this dimension—a fragment of my body that forms the world—detaches and lingers in space. Granting the creation immortality. Dimensional awareness. Transcendent intellect. Reality anchoring. Timelessness. Self-repair... Processing a shard of myself and imbuing it with divinity creates a high-tier god. One a notch above those qualified to rule galaxies.
—Pwaaaah!!!
A blaze of light engulfed the galaxy, and a deity radiating presence in all directions was born.
I poured in considerable power, so its presence is vividly felt without much focus. Unlike Naiserria, who requires effort to detect, this newborn god was clearly visible.
The newly born entity sent its will: [You. Me. Created. Dignified. Being.]
Did I fail to grant proper language ability? Unlikely with divinity bestowed, but maybe I slipped up. Still, its power far surpassed a Galaxy Spirit. Incomparably so.
[O. Ooooh...! To create one like me so easily...!]
Naiserria's shocked reaction said it all.
[Yes. I created you. You know your role, right?]
[Of course. Manage. This place. Dimension.]
[But don't create life yet. I'll do it later.]
[Question. Me. Naming. Request. Expectation.]
A sense of goodwill like toward parents, and sparkling expectant eyes, transmitted over.
Hm. Eyes. Yeah, that fits. The entire galaxy had become one living deity, so calling parts "eyes" works. A name, though... Caught off guard, nothing comes to mind. Deities usually know their true name from birth.
[Hm...]
[Father. Daughter. Naming. Expectation.]
Father? Born from my fingernail, so parent-child makes sense. But "father" feels off. The voice too, and calling me that... Definitely female. What feminine names are there? Ah, got it. The Cthulhu Mythos has a goddess with a feminine name.
[Your true name shall be Shub-Niggurath.]