She's... a Cosmic God?
I shot Anathasia a glance immediately, waiting.
She nodded.
Slowly, my gaze drifted back to the white-haired girl sitting across from us, her messy bun slightly undone as she looked down at her hands.
I knew she was some kind of Deity... but a Cosmic God...
[Not a Deity, yeah.] Anathasia's voice echoed in my head.
[They're more like... eldritch abominations labeled as gods.]
[Some of them are actually intelligent...?] I asked, glancing between Egrathiel and Lena.
[Some... yes. Others develop a 'self' over time. Like Egrathiel.]
[That sounds... complicated.]
[It is.]
Her fingers tugged lightly at my sleeve, her attention flickering toward Lena.
"A Cosmic God..." I murmured, resting my chin against my finger.
Egrathiel hummed softly, fidgeting with her hands.
Then she took a breath.
Straightened.
Lifted her gaze.
"While... I cannot be certain about what I'm about to say, since I have only met Lena a few aeons ago..."
"But I think-"
"Egrathiel."
Lena's voice cut through.
Calm.
Steady.
All of us turned.
Her eyes were darker now, fixed on Egrathiel.
"Mom and Dad. They don't need to-"
"Don't need to know?"
Anathasia cut in smoothly.
Lena froze.
Her eyes widened slightly before softening as she looked away.
Anathasia's grip on my sleeve tightened, crumpling the fabric.
"Lena..." she said softly.
A pause.
"What's bothering you...?"
She swallowed.
"Please... just tell us something... we just want to be there for our daughter."
Egrathiel went completely still, withdrawing her hand.
Lena didn't respond.
Her gaze stayed lowered.
Anathasia's eyes shimmered faintly.
"...It's not that we want to invade," she continued quietly, her hand sliding down to hold mine.
"But we're your parents."
She gestured faintly toward me.
"Your dad and I... we've noticed."
A breath.
"The way you steer conversations away from yourself... the vague answers whenever we check on you..."
Her lips pressed together.
"We're not trying to guilt you."
"We just... want to understand."
Her grip tightened.
"You're our daughter, Lena. Our eldest."
Her voice softened further.
"And not just because of that... but because you matter to us."
A pause.
"We're family."
Another.
"And we're your parents."
Her fingers tightened around mine.
"...We just want to know what's going on."
Her voice trembled, just slightly.
"If we're starting to lose you..."
"...or if there's something you're carrying that you feel like you can't tell anyone else."
A breath.
"If you need help..."
Her thumb brushed lightly against my hand.
"You'll always have us waiting for you at home."
Lena stayed silent.
Her fingers absentmindedly wrapped around the ends of her hair as she stared down.
Then slowly-
She lifted her head, and smiled. Forcing herself.
"It's nothing serious," she said, shaking her head lightly.
"It's just... something I've had since back then."
Her head tilted slightly.
"But it's not something Mom and Dad should worry about..."
Her smile softened.
Then settled into something smoother, practiced.
"Okay? I'm really fine."
Silence followed.
Before I could react, Anathasia was already on her feet.
She walked over to Lena without hesitation. Then pulled her in, wrapping her arms around her.
"...Silly girl... you don't need to hide anything from us," she murmured softly, her hand stroking through Lena's hair.
"We love you... okay?"
She slowly pulled back, cupping Lena's cheeks and meeting her eyes.
"Don't forget that."
A pause.
"You're my daughter..."
Her voice lowered.
"...and I won't fail you again."
Anathasia leaned down slightly as Lena wrapped her arms around her in return, burying her face against her shoulder.
"Mhm..." Lena whispered, just enough for us to hear.
"Thanks... Mom..."
-
Roughly eighteen billion years ago
Not long after a condensed point of energy expanded within milliseconds-
A white-haired woman drifted through the newborn fabric of space-time.
Her crimson eyes swept across the cosmos.
Disks collapsed into blazing spheres of plasma.
Stars being born.
She watched them in silence.
Detached.
Unmoved.
Until-
Something brighter appeared.
Far brighter than anything else around her.
A small, flickering sphere drifted toward her.
She paused.
Tilted her head slightly.
Then opened her palm.
The sphere settled into it.
"...Strange."
Her voice was quiet.
But she didn't discard it.
Instead, she carried it with her as she continued to observe the forming universe.
Time passed and the sphere cracked.
Her gaze sharpened.
"...What... is happening?"
Light spilled outward.
Brilliant.
Blinding.
Then-
It condensed.
Forming into a girl.
Small.
Fragile.
With long black hair.
And crimson eyes, just like hers.
For the first time-
The woman felt something.
Her lips curved slightly.
"I see..." she murmured.
"So this is one of the features you chose..."
A pause.
"...just like before."
The little girl looked up at her.
Their eyes met.
She tilted her head.
"...Mom?"
Anathasia froze.
Her body went completely still at the child's words.
But instead of answering-
She simply nodded.
Then reached out, brushing a strand of hair away from the girl's face.
"Resonance... I see..."
Her gaze lingered on the child before her.
"My first daughter with him..."
Silence stretched between them.
Her expression tightened slightly, lost in thought.
Then-
"Your name..."
A pause.
"It shall be..."
"Carthanalenia Veridielle Augthoria."
The girl simply stared at her.
Eyes bright.
Innocent.
Unquestioning.
Anathasia continued to stroke her hair for a moment longer before slowly pulling her hand back.
"...But for now, your father is my utmost priority."
She leaned away slightly.
"So for now... you may observe how I manage my duties."
Anathasia turned, already drifting forward. Expecting the girl to follow.
"Perhaps you'll become capable of carrying out the same feats I do."
A brief pause.
"Including the burdens that come with them."
She glanced back over her shoulder.
The girl floated after her. Awkward, but obedient.
Nodding at every word.
"Mhm... good."
"You will become an excellent guide and ruler in time."
She turned forward again.
"You are free to follow as you wish. I do not mind."
"And perhaps... you will learn much."
A faint pause.
"I am quite confident in my ability to guide those who seek to learn."
Anathasia turned once more and began to fade.
Her form dissolving before the little girl as she took her leave.
From that moment on, she brought the child with her across the universe.
To every corner.
Every system.
Every unfolding reality.
And through it all-
Her attitude never changed.
"Mortals are flawed, yes. There is no real reason for beings like us to intervene," she said, her gaze fixed on a distant system.
Two stars revolved around one another, locked in an endless dance, holding the system together.
A pale world orbited nearby.
She glanced back.
The girl was no longer a child.
Now grown.
Bearing striking similarities to her.
Not just in her eyes.
But even in the way she dressed.
"Maintaining the fundamental pillars of a universe like this... that is the true priority."
She looked forward again.
"Petty squabbles between races... or among themselves..."
"They are nothing more than inconveniences."
Her voice remained calm.
Unmoved.
"They argue over who owns the universe..."
A pause.
"...when none of them can even comprehend a fraction of it."
Her gaze returned to the pale world.
A massive purple gas giant loomed behind it, casting a quiet shadow.
"However..."
She spoke again.
"It is your choice whether you involve yourself."
A brief pause.
"Or simply let them be."
Her tone didn't change.
"Though I would not recommend it."
"Most of their kind are narrow-minded."
"Still bound by the natural laws I set long before existence took form."
Anathasia fell silent.
Her gaze remained fixed on the planet below.
Then-
Luminous spots began to appear across its surface.
Faint at first.
Then it spread.
Faster
Wider.
Until the pale world was completely consumed.
A brief silence followed.
"What happened?" Carthanalenia asked softly, her eyes widening just slightly.
"Self-extinction," Anathasia replied simply.
"Irreconcilable differences in perspective."
"A conflict that led to their own eradication."
She turned away.
"They are free to do as they like."
"Free will exists for a reason, after all."
Her gaze drifted, distant now, as she watched the two stars continue to revolve around one another.
"Their existence is their own responsibility."
"As are the consequences of their choices."
Anathasia folded her arms loosely across her chest.
"And... I have never claimed to be omnibenevolent."
A pause.
"Perfection cannot exist."
"A perfect world. Perfect beings."
Her voice remained steady.
"Free will cannot coexist with perfection."
She stopped.
Then added, quieter-
"And I refuse... to turn every being into an extension of myself."
Silence settled between them.
And so-
They continued.
Maintaining the local universe.
While everything else was left to run on its own.
Until-
"Mother."
Carthanalenia's voice broke through the stillness.
She stood just behind her, as she always did.
Anathasia paused, gently flicking another star into existence before turning slightly.
"What is it...?"
"...Carthanalenia?"