The Dark Rebirth of Pandora: Revenge of the Abyss

Chapter 755: Maternal Planning

"Hmmm... that’s an interesting concept, and very well executed too. I think I like this result, even though the egg is a bit large to hold a baby of the style I’m hoping for, so I’ll have to make the ’baby’ be born physically mature already." I say this to Pandora, who has been teaching me how to create eggs. It’s far more interesting than I expected. Honestly, I wasn’t expecting much, but the form is so precise.

"Were you a goddess in your universe? These eggs you’re teaching me about are way too well adapted to the kind of generation they hold." I ask her as we draw a base map of an egg together and adapt everything to be made with magic and mana instead of using that strange energy she has.

"No, I was just a parasite of worlds, but I’ve always been good with everything involving biology." She speaks while holding the papers and looking them over.

"Why do you want to make the egg so hard? Your children could die without being able to get out of it because they can’t break the shell." She asks, confused by my choice.

"Because I have no need for useless children. If a child is incapable of breaking their own egg and fighting for their life, then they don’t deserve it. Besides, the egg becomes somewhat more fragile after a time, so children who break it prematurely will demonstrate their talent right off the bat." When I say this, she becomes extremely pensive.

"An... interesting method. I never thought about testing strength. To me, quantity surpasses quality when the quantity is high, so even the weakest children can be useful."

"I don’t need quantity, I need quality. If I were to use a child, they would have to be strong enough to be useful to me. Having billions of children that can be obliterated by a single spell is of no use to me." I roll my eyes at her for following such a fragile logic.

Any goddess or monster above level 1 billion can easily overcome any number of low-level enemies.

"Your choice, Goddess Echidna. I’m just a survivor wanting to leave. If you don’t like the results of this choice, then you’ll already know it was your choice to make their birth difficult." She tries to absolve herself of any blame or responsibility.

"I understand it would be my fault. Don’t worry, I’m convinced of my choices. Now I just need to base myself on some other races of the abyss."

"You seem dedicated to this for someone who said they didn’t want to. Do you have some idea?"

"I don’t want children now, but because of the amount of magic and abilities I want my children to have, I know I’ll need a lot of magic for a single one of them, so it’s better I prepare as soon as possible..."

"What could be so costly that it would use a large part of your magic?" I ponder whether I should answer this question. What I want is simple: a child with the potential to defeat the goddesses, should I decide to have children.

"I want a race capable of adapting to everything and having its power grow infinitely as it goes through challenges and extreme situations. That requires a very unique body and physiology so that this race breaks any level limit and can always grow stronger without dying from its own power."

"Adapt to everything?"

"Everything." She seems very uncomfortable when I voice this small ambition, but if it’s not that, a child would be practically useless in my view, since without being a goddess you can’t have a level of 100 billion, and this child would theoretically reach that level.

"...That’s impossible, it doesn’t make sense. A race that adapts to everything would have adaptations that create defects or deformities... that is, if it’s even possible to make such a race."

"I don’t care. That’s an acceptable risk. I already imagined such a race could gain defects as it lived, that’s obvious since not every adaptation is useful after overcoming a defect." I take the project from her hand and store it within the shadows.

"Adaptation... you know that creating a being that adapts means creating something that will surpass you in the future, right?"

"...I’ll find my own way to deal with the adaptation. There are certain things an adaptation wouldn’t remove, like specific emotions, for example. I just need to force a unique sentimental loyalty inside each one, should I make them, or something similar, and make it so that is not seen in any way as a trait to be removed."

"Now I think it’s time to send you away." I will teach her how to leave. It’s quite simple for someone who is from the outside. It’s harder to leave a universe you were born in, but leaving one you entered and aren’t native to ends up being simple.

"W-Wait, now? But it hasn’t even been—"

"..." Upon seeing my gaze, she shrinks back a little.

"I understand... it seems I’m not welcome... I guess this means I’ve paid what was due... I’ll get ready to leave. Can I at least grab something to eat first?"

"...Go."

"...Why did you want to expel me so soon?"

"Because I realized you were planning to place your children in the abyss, betting that maybe they’d survive. If they did, they’d start multiplying and infest my home. I won’t allow that. You’re not the only treacherous monster here."

"...I’m sorry for overstepping. I ended up slipping in the mud... I don’t want to eat anything else, Echidna. I want to leave before you decide this is too grave an offense, greater than the small help I gave."

"...Perfect. At least you’re smart. I’ll tell you where a contact point is. The way to cross the veil of reality that makes a bubble protecting the universe is simple: find its most fragile point."

"After finding this point, you can open it easily with spatial magic strong enough, something I saw you have since you entered here previously. The contact point is at the gate of the kingdom down below. Enter it and you should be able to leave the abyss on your own, just as you entered." She gives a nod.

"Thank you for the help—"

"Leave now, Pandora. Time is ticking and my patience is very limited." I smile at her, and she quickly leaps out of my castle window and begins to fly as if fleeing.

"Not bad... she would have been a good servant. She knows when she’s hitting her limits and stops before overstepping them too much. Unfortunately, she’s a parasite, and I don’t need a parasite living where I live. There are too many parasites in the abyss already." So many things in the abyss live by parasitism. I really don’t want another one here.

"At least she captivated me... Pandora, huh... I think... I’ll use that name if I have a daughter. Yes... a little Pandora would be interesting."