Frail Mortals
"Ugh... urgh..."
"Uuuugh..."
Leus and Allegros came to their senses, clutching their throbbing heads as they sat up. Pssshhh─ The treatment incubators they'd been lying in hissed open.
"What... why am I...?"
"What the hell."
Still groggy, they couldn't remember why they were in the base's medical incubators. The two scanned their surroundings with blank expressions. It was a standard treatment room in a Union base—quiet, with no other patients around.
"Oh, you're awake."
Just then, Yupiter entered the room and spotted the pair stirring.
"Elder Yupiter...?"
"Ugh, my head..."
Seeing Yupiter made their headaches spike again, and fragments of memory began flooding back.
"Right, we came here to investigate some Terra called Yujin..."
"Then suddenly there was an explosion from a machine malfunction in the base..."
They'd confirmed Yupiter was sheltering this guy named Yujin and hauled him in for questioning. But they'd found nothing suspicious. He'd turned out to have no connection to the massive entity suspected to be an Outer God that had abruptly appeared in Galaxy B-02345. His identity had been erased after being declared dead as a Terra, so he was a blank slate—no real issues there. Just as they were about to leave empty-handed, the explosion rocked the base, knocking them out.
"The medics say there's no major damage to your bodies. You should be good to go."
"...Hmph, got it."
Allegros grumbled internally as he replied. They'd come in all high and mighty to investigate, only to turn up nothing.
"Tch, how the hell does HQ manage this base? A machine glitch causing an explosion like that?"
Not just any blast—it had wrecked part of the building and knocked out two Rubaran in nano-suits with enhanced physiques. No casualties was a miracle, they thought.
Anyway, cleared to leave, Leus and Allegros headed out of the treatment room. Yupiter followed to see them off.
"Elder Yupiter. Regardless, we'll be convening a disciplinary committee soon about registering an erased identity without clearance."
"It's... not a big deal, so no heavy punishment. Don't worry about it."
"...Understood."
Yupiter's eyes flickered with an odd unease at the words. Leus and Allegros smirked inwardly.
Hmph, putting on a front, but he's just an elder after all? Worried about getting demoted if they pin something on him?
Acting tough, but he's tasted power and doesn't want to lose it.
They figured he was scared of the discipline. But Yupiter's fear wasn't about that.
No sense of dissonance. Their memories perfectly altered, as if it really happened...
What chilled Yupiter was Yujin—no, the true body that had created the avatar Yujin.
Their memories had been tampered with, but no other staff were around. Yupiter and Rowi, as parties to the incident, hadn't needed alterations. That's how he'd spotted it.
Outer Gods defied all cosmic laws and common sense. Touch them, and matter disintegrated at the atomic level; minds shattered from contamination; they birthed impossible phenomena and new life. Tampering with mortal memories? Trivial.
Yupiter had never witnessed it firsthand, so the sheer abnormality terrified him. What if he'd been altered too, without noticing? What if his current memories were already twisted by an Outer God? His very existence distorted now—or later? Pure horror.
What if his fondness for Yujin was fabricated? The thought gnawed relentlessly.
No, don't suspect. He helped me. Even altered their memories to shield me from heavy discipline.
That much was real, right there in front of him. No choice. A frail mortal could only judge by what he saw, heard, felt—even if all distorted.
No way to detect or counter it.
Good, if I leave it like this, HQ will handle the report just fine. Tweaked their behavior a bit to ensure it.
Hmm, but to be safe, move the main body somewhere no one will go. There was that massive void in Universe B sector.
Yeah... right between these superclusters, a totally empty stretch. Closest galaxy in the void is 5 million light-years away—no interference possible.
Shift the main body there. The Union will just assume it wandered off into empty space. Perfect.
"...Wait."
Hold on. Better idea. From what I knew of Nyarlathotep and Shub-Niggurath, upper- and supreme-level beings punch through dimensions freely. Mid-level could too, but it took time.
Info on upper+ Outer Gods was fuzzy in my head... but probably same for me?
Heading to another realm might spare the universe trouble.
With that, I tore open the space before the main body.
Riiip─
Ah, but if I cross dimensions, what happens to my avatar Yujin? Connection snap since different universes? Or restrictions from the dimensional shift?
Answers came instantly from my knowledge.
Link doesn't fully sever, but abilities get limited. No instant memory tweaks or material creation like before.
...Fine. Here's the plan: Load Yujin with powers first, then go interdimensional. Those'll be innate to him, not linked to me, so usable.
Downside: Like creating life, powers can't defy physics too hard. Yujin stays Terra-bound, within cosmic order.
Hmm, body enhancement... oh, add mana aptitude, have Yupiter teach him. Perfect. Learn real magic firsthand.
Could make him a magic genius with all my spells, but boring. Too OP, no fun. Keep it moderate.
Safety net: Backup personality for autonomy if link cuts. Prepped... let's go.
Whoosh─ The main body slipped into the massive dimensional rift.
What emerged was astonishing.
Oh... this is wild. The interdimension. A 'dimensional crevice' where universes float. Will it, and hop worlds.
No physics—no light, sound, matter, color. Pure void, only twisting distortion wrapping my form.
Mortals last a second. Even Rubaran aces in ultimate ships? Useless. Their 'strongest' is universe-bound.
Here, all ceases to exist.
Yet... presences stir in this impossible place.
Duh. Crevice dwellers like me. Lawless, nonexistent... Outer Gods.
They sense me, curiosity drawing some near.
Crap. Expected encounters, but not ready. What if they're gross? Same kind, so no instant madness, but mental hit...
Someone addressed me. Not sound— no medium or concept here. Direct mind-link, system-like.
The speaker: a writhing mass of twisted tentacles. Indefinable, grotesque.
I knew it. No details, but its name in that universe: culprit behind shattering dozens of planets and Union base minds in 10 minutes. 'Crawling Chaos,' presumed upper-level Outer God.
Union codename: Nyarlathotep.