Levia entered the room Kali had led her to, unsure of what exactly awaited her. And, to her surprise, there was nothing out of the ordinary about the room at all, it was just a normal living room.

A human woman, who was reading a book in one of the chairs, looked up. “Levia, thanks for coming.” She said warmly. “I’m Judy, Lilith’s aunt and Kali’s apprentice. Lilith’s asleep at the moment,” she motioned to a couch, where Lilith was laying, “but don’t worry too much about it, we always have her sleep when we’re making a new Parallel.”

“I…I see.” Levia said. “How does this usually go?”

“I come in, work the mental magic on her, and then once I’m done, we wake her up and the magic happens, so to speak.” Kali said. “Expect the process to take ten to fifteen minutes; I like to be thorough when making the new personality, and that takes time.”

“Why don’t you come sit and we’ll have a chat while Kali works?” Judy suggested.

Levia hesitantly walked over, and took a seat in a chair next to Judy’s. “Um…it’s nice to meet you, Judy.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you as well!” Judy said. “So, I’ve heard a bit about you from Lilith, but I’d like to get to know you myself as well. Still, I understand it’s not fair for you to be the only one sharing, so if you would like I can tell you a bit about myself as well. Of course, if you’re not comfortable with either of those, then I’m more than happy to let the topic drop and we can do whatever you want.”

“Oh, um…no, that’s fine.” Levia said. “If you don’t mind, would you tell me a bit about yourself first?”

“Of course I don’t mind!” Judy replied. “What would you like to know about first?”

“Umm…I’m guessing that you’re a bit more…involved with the whole situation than the rest of Lilith’s family.” Levia said. “How did that happen?”

“You know, I’m not quite sure myself.” Judy admitted. “But, I’m not really that much more involved than her parents are, they just don’t live here. Though, I guess, with the eldritch stuff…” Judy trailed off, frowning slightly. “Come to think of it, did we check them?”

Kali, who hadn’t quite started work on Lilith, jumped. “No, actually, good catch.” She said. “They sort of slipped my mind as candidates because they don’t live here anymore. I’ll check them when they come over for dinner tomorrow. That being said…I’m going to start on Lilith now, and I’m going to cast a sound dampener on myself so I can’t hear you. If you really, really need me for something, come wave your hand in front of my face or something, but only do that if it legitimately is a matter of life and death.”

“Will do.” Judy said, then turned back to Levia. “Anyway, it all goes back to when Lilith was growing up. Right around when she was born, back when she was only a month or so old, my husband and I got into a car crash. I was pregnant, and…well, of the three of us, only I lived. I had lost everything, and Lilith’s parents, worried about me and what I might do if left alone, invited me to live with them for a while.

“And, so, while they worked, I would watch Lilith, and over time, my depression started to recede, and my love for her grew, to the point where she felt like my own child. And, as I started to regain my confidence and take control of my life back, I invested in property, and ended up pretty well-off. I was the owner of the house Lilith was living in when everything happened, and I was there with her in the early days.

“One thing led to another, and by the time I was here, I felt like I wanted to do more. So, I asked Kali to make me her apprentice, and she agreed. I asked her to make me something more than just human, because I felt that wouldn’t cut it in these situations, and I ended up not dissimilar to the swarm you’re a part of.”

Judy held her palm out in front of her, and a number of insects emerged from within it. The insects arranged themselves into a smiley face on Judy’s palm, then retreated back within her. “The main difference is that the swarm is all me, there’s no autonomy for the members. I control millions of insects, and thousands of larger animals, and I use them to keep tabs on everything important that’s happening.”

“How do you handle that?” Levia asked curiously. “Surely that must tax your mind?”

“It should, but it doesn’t, and I’d bet good money that whatever eldritch ability I have helps with it.” Judy said. “That being said, no more than an infinitesimal fraction of my attention is given to any individual part of my swarm unless I’m consciously choosing to focus on them.

“Otherwise, I basically have certain triggers that will cause my swarm to alert me that something is going on, at which point I can shift my focus to them And, if you’re wondering, I can pay attention to around ten perspectives before I start losing detail on any of them, but I generally only have two or three up including my own; it’s just not necessary most of the time. But, I’ve gotten off track, did that answer your question well enough or do you want more info?”

“No, that’s plenty.” Levia replied. “Um, did Lilith and Kali tell you about their, um, proposal regarding me?”

“No.” Judy said, shaking her head. “What proposal?”

“Well, um, we met Aria, and then we were talking about Mai and they said that Mai would probably want to make me her sister and that I shouldn’t feel pressured to say yes to her and that if –”

“Slow down, Levia.” Judy said, a faint smile on her face. “I’m not quite understanding you. You were talking about the twins, and Mai, right? And what you should do if Mai asks to make you her sister?”

“Um, yeah.” Levia said. “And, um, they said that if I, um, wanted, they wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of me accepting Mai’s offer.”

Judy’s face stayed neutral as she looked at Levia. “And, what are your thoughts on the matter?”

“I, um, said yes?” Levia ventured, unsure how exactly Judy was taking this. “I was unsure at first, but then the more we talked the more that I felt that I…I wanted to know what a family was like, and they seemed like the kind of parents I always wanted. They want me to wait until morning to make sure it’s not just the heat of the moment, but I know myself, and it’s not.

“I don’t have all my memories of my life as a person, but I know it wasn’t easy or pleasant, and I didn’t have people to rely on. And Levi didn’t either, so…yeah, I want this. It’s an opportunity I’ve always dreamed of, you know? I just…I wonder if everyone else will be alright with me barging into your lives like this.”

“Levia, they are going to adore you.” Judy said, giving her an encouraging smile. “Everyone came around to Mai and Aria pretty quickly, and they were infinitely more worrying than you are. Most of the people who live here lived through the world as we know it changing forever; we learned to become pretty adaptable after that.”

“You really think so?” Levia asked hopefully. “They won’t be mad that I just inserted myself without asking?”

Judy waved a hand dismissively. “Not at all. The twins will be overjoyed to have another sister, and Lilith’s parents have already said how they’d love to have another grandkid. As for everyone else…well, I don’t think there’s a huge difference between you now and you as Lilith’s kid.”

“And what about you?” Levia said quietly. “How do you feel?”

Judy blinked in surprise. “Oh, sorry, I thought I had said. I’m all for it, if that’s what you think will make you the happiest. To me, it doesn’t really matter either way; if you join our family, it’ll feel like you’ve always been there, if you don’t, you don’t, we’ve got plenty of people staying here who aren’t directly related to us.”

“It’ll…feel like I was always there?” Levia asked.

“One of Lilith’s Skills, one that is probably eldritch related in some way.” Judy said. “Basically, when someone joins our family, everyone’s perceptions of them gets updated to that of their role in the family. So, the twins feel like they were Lilith’s kids from the start, and one of Lilith’s mothers joined their relationship late, but it feels like her and Lilith’s other parents all married each other at the same time. That sort of a thing. It’s weird and abnormal, we know, but it works for us, so we don’t worry about it.”

Judy paused, studying Levia’s face. “If that makes you uncomfortable, it’s not too late to say no.” She said. “It’s not something that everyone is okay with.”

Levia was silent for a moment. “That’s…fine.” She said eventually. “I mean…it’s just a shortcut, right? The swarm on Jerry’s planes has something similar built in, and that wasn’t too bad, so I imagine this won’t be bad either.”

“Yeah, basically.” Judy confirmed. “As someone who went through it myself, I can confirm that it really doesn’t feel like a big deal. Just see it as insurance that you won’t be treated any differently in the slightest; even Lilith and Kali aren’t immune to it.”

“Really?” Levia asked. “That’s…powerful.”

A thoughtful expression crossed Judy’s face as she considered that. “Well, perhaps Lilith would be able to resist, theoretically. She’s the source of the ability, after all. And Kali might as well, since Administrators are tough with regards to mental manipulation, but…neither have tried, so we can’t say for sure.”

“I see.” Levia replied. And from there, the conversation sort of died for a while, until Judy spoke again.

“Is there anything you remember about yourself that you’d like to share?” Judy asked. “If not, that’s fine, I’m just curious.”

“No, it’s fine.” Levia said. “To tell you the truth, I don’t remember much that I haven’t told you. It’s only been a day or since I was reincarnated, and though things are coming back faster than I was told they should be, I’m only getting flashes when something comes up. I was told my memories would get fuzzy after…whatever you call the process, but that they would come back over time, so I haven’t been trying too hard to remember things ever since I made that decision.”

Judy nodded. “That must be strange, being without most of your memories but still being so…functional. No one would ever know if you didn’t mention it.”

“It’s a bit weird.” Levia admitted. “But it’s just a matter of time, so it’s no big deal. I can’t control what I can’t control, and worrying about that would be a waste of brainpower when I have other things I need to focus on.”

“An admirable mindset.” Judy said. “I wish I could be the same. It’s just…so hard to ignore some things, you know?”

“I was like that for a while too, I think. But I learned pretty quickly to prioritize things. You have to do what you have to do to survive, you know?”

The conversation died for good that time, but fortunately they didn’t have to wait very long. Levia wasn’t keeping track of the time or anything, but it only felt like a few minutes before Kali stopped her ministrations and turned to face Judy and Levia. “All done. I’m going to wake her up, okay?”

Judy nodded. “I’m ready.”

“Um, me too.” Levia said.

“Alright. Waking her up in three…two…one…”

Kali snapped her fingers, and Lilith began to stir. She sat up, looking around her, then stopped moving for a moment. Then, to Levia’s shock, a clone of Lilith appeared in the room with them, standing only a few feet away from the couch where Lilith was laying. “Hey.” She said. “I’m the new Parallel. Gimme a few minutes, I needa think up a name and appearance.”

“You’re not going with that one?” Judy asked.

“I could, but it’s just kinda boring, you know? And it’s also a little confusing, having two people who look so similar around. I mean, there are some obvious differences, thanks to Mae,” the new Parallel said, cupping her chest, “but it’ll still be annoying. It works for Mae and Nuwa since they don’t use the spare avatar much, but I fully intend to use my own body, so I want it to be mine. Anyway, I’m out, be back in a few minutes.”

The new Parallel disappeared before Levia could quite process everything that had happened. “Um…is it always this…” Levia paused, searching for the right word, “abrupt, when new Parallels are made?”

“Basically, but some more than others.” Kali said. “Mae and Nuwa were relatively tame, but there was a lot of…excitement with Eve. This falls somewhere between the two of them.”

“To be fair, you were half the reason there was that excitement in the first place.” Lilith said, smiling faintly.

“You and I both know she was just playing it up.” Kali replied, waving a hand dismissively. “If she had actually been against it, she would have resisted way harder. She barely even put up a fight, and she never actually seriously told me no.”

“But…that means she said no, then, right?” Levia asked. “Are you sure she wasn’t being serious?”

She wasn’t. Nuwa said. You haven’t met her yet, but she’s a bit of a…special case. Normally, you would be totally right and you should always listen when someone says no, but Kali and Eve both knew that if Eve actually wanted to say no, she would have been very, very clear that she wasn’t kidding around. Eve likes to pretend to be all edgy, but she’s a softie on the inside, and almost always likes that kind of stuff.

The door was thrown open, and Levia whirled to face it. Standing in the doorway was what appeared to be an angel child, a very annoyed expression on her face. “Oi!” she said. “Stop telling the new girl things she doesn’t need to know!”

Yeah, but if she’s gonna be part of our family she should know. Nuwa protested.

“She’s right, Eve.” Lilith said. “It wouldn’t do for her to get the wrong idea. Anyway, Levia, this is Eve, the other Parallel that uses her own body. She works as the Lord of Monsters for this universe, and she likes to play into the role.”

“Nice to meet you.” Eve said. “I’d go with something more grandiose, but apparently everyone wants to ruin my fun.”

“Um, nice to meet you too?” Levia ventured. “Sorry if I ruined something.”

“You didn’t!” Eve said quickly. “They’re right, I just like to grumble.”

Levia’s attention was pulled away as the new Parallel sudden reappeared. “I’m back.” She said. “What do you think?”

The new Parallel had, to Levia’s surprise, decided to take the form of an arachne. From the waist up she looked much the same as Lilith, though she lacked wings, and from the waist down her body was that of a giant spider, a black widow if the red hourglass on the abdomen was any indicator.

“Looking good, but…isn’t the hourglass supposed to be on the underside of the abdomen?” Kali asked, smirking.

The new Parallel shrugged. “Eh, I thought it looked better this way.” She said. “I mean, who’s gonna see it if it’s on the bottom? It’s not like I’m gonna be hanging out on webs or other places where you can see the underside. That being said, the plan is to mix it up every once in a while, try out new forms every few months until I find one I really like.”

“I approve.” Eve said. “What’d you decide for your name?”

“Pandora.” The new Parallel replied. “It seems fitting.”

“I can see it.” Judy said. “Nice to meet you, Pandora.”

As the others began their greetings, Levia leaned over to Judy. “Why is Pandora a fitting name?” She whispered. “Does it mean something?”

“Yes.” Judy whispered back. “One of the ancient cultures on Earth had a legend about a woman named Pandora. She had been given a container that contained all sorts of evils without being told what was inside, and was told not to open it. Eventually, she opened it out of curiosity and released all those evils into the world, and though she closed it quickly, the only thing she could keep inside was the container was hope.

“It turned into an idiom, and when people say that someone has ‘opened Pandora’s box’, it means they’ve caused a bunch of trouble or problems, often unknowingly. In this case, though, I suppose we’re aligning more with the original myth; we don’t know exactly what we’re getting into with these eldritch abilities, and though we could possibly be opening Pandora’s box by doing so, we have to know.”

“Basically that.” Pandora added. “I mean, I don’t think that just knowing could do us more harm than being totally unaware of what we’ve got within us, but maybe I’ll accidentally uncover some secret of how the universe works that we would rather not know or something. Hopefully the legend will turn out better this time, but…well, who can say for sure?”

“Y-you could hear that?” Levia asked. “Um, sorry for talking behind your back.”

“It’s fine.” Pandora laughed. “It’s not like you were badmouthing me, you were just looking for context on something you had no way of knowing about before.”

“Oh, um, thanks.” Levia said. “Um, it’s good to meet you.”

“Pleasure meeting you as well!” Pandora said. “Oh, and just in case you weren’t aware, I do have all of Lilith’s memories, as well as those of the other Parallels, so you don’t need to worry about reintroducing yourself or anything, I already know everything you’ve told them. I know it’s a little hard getting used to someone who looks totally different knowing everything you told someone else, but you’ll get used to it after a bit.”

“I…did sort of forget.” Levia admitted. “I guess I just sort of figured you were like me, without memories but with basic knowledge.”

“Like I said, hard to get used to.” Pandora replied. “But, yeah, any questions you have for me before I go introduce myself to everyone else?”

Levia shook her head. “No, thanks for asking. Um…see you tomorrow?”

“See you tomorrow!” Pandora said cheerfully, giving her a wave.

“Do you need a guide back to your room?” Eve asked. “I know it’s kind of a maze sometimes.”

“That would be great.” Levia replied. “Thank you.”

“Right, just follow me then.” Eve said, walking towards the room’s exit.

Levia followed, hurriedly catching up to the young-looking woman.

“You know, it’s a brave thing you’re doing.” Eve said once they were out of earshot of the room. “Not many people would be willing to try something like this.”

“What?” Levia asked. “Oh, um, the whole kid thing, right?”

“Yeah. I know you were talking with Judy about it a bit, and let me say that I promise we will do our best to raise you with the most love and care we can if you do decide to go through with it.”

“I will.” Levia said resolutely. “My mind doesn’t change so easily for things like this.”

“I suppose it doesn’t.” Eve replied, turning and giving her a smile. “I can respect that.”

“Um, thanks.”

Eve gave a nod in reply, then continued leading Levia down the halls, eventually stopping next to the door to the room where Levia had been staying. “Here you are.” She said, then reached into a pocket and pulled out a button, which she handed to Levia. “When you wake up, just press this, it’ll let us know you’re awake and one of us will come and pick you up so you don’t have to wander around aimlessly looking for someone.”

Levia took the button gratefully, then opened the door to the room. “I’ll, um, see you tomorrow.”

“Right, see you tomorrow. “Eve said cheerfully. “Have a good sleep.”

And with that, Levia closed the door and sat down on the bed. She looked at the book she had been reading, considered picking it back up, then decided against it. It had been a long day, and she was getting tired, so she tucked herself into the covers, and let herself drift off to sleep.

Fighterman481

So, unfortunately, if you're reading this as the chapter comes out, we have caught up to the proper length behind Patreon, and chapters will no longer be releasing daily. In the future, expect chapters once every other week, on the Sundays where The Outlands doesn't come out. The first chapter of the bunch will be out this week, then next week will be a "break" as I post the holiday special (which goes to all of my current series, each with a different PoV), and the week after that will be The Outlands, then one more break week as I move houses, and then we'll finally be back to normal releases. Anyway, that's all from me for now, here's the original author's note:

The only thing I really have to say about this chapter is that the first half ended up going a lot longer than I intended, but it was what felt right in the situation so I just sort of rolled with it.

Oh, and fun fact I learned while doing a bit of research to make sure my recollection of the tale of Pandora's box was correct: it seems that in the original Greek it wasn't actually a box, it was a jar of sorts (I would assume an amphora but I'm not sure), and it sort of turned into a box like 300-400 years ago due to a mistranslation or the translator getting confused or something.

Anyway, that's all I have to say for now, next time we'll probably be getting a bit more from Pandora and then going to the morning after and what'll happen there, so...look forward to it!

And, as always, thanks for reading!