If possible, Kevin truly wanted to perish alongside this psychotic goddess, but unfortunately, he couldn't defeat her.
"Can the ship's name be changed?" Kevin looked at Raven 12345 with a last glimmer of hope, only to receive the expected negative response: "No, I've already registered it with the workbook and the Air Traffic Control Bureau. If you want to change the name, go through the formalities yourself. I don't have the time."
Kevin sighed deeply. It looked like he'd be stuck saving the world from now on in a ship that translated as "Wang Ba Tuo Zi"...
Raven 12345 watched Kevin's daze, seemingly aware that her naming skills had failed her again. She stiffly changed the subject: "Let's not talk about the ship anymore, let's talk about the egg. Who has the new guy?"
Kevin felt that Raven 12345's change of subject was worse than not: it was just a diversion from one embarrassing incident to another! Speaking of that magical egg, there's a whole world of lawsuits going on...
Nangong Wuyue opened her suitcase and pulled out the strange, carefully protected white egg from a pile of soft cloth wrappings. "Here, this is it. What kind of egg is this?"
Raven 12345 took the strange egg, a flicker of compassion crossing his face. "A mermaid's egg, from another world."
"Mermaid?!" Kevin and the other three exclaimed in unison. "Yes, a merman, and the last of their species," Raven 12345 sighed. "A remote universe experienced an apocalypse. That universe was flawed from its very beginning, a freak. Its rapid growth and unstable fundamental constants caused it to show signs of collapse before any advanced civilization emerged. Until the apocalypse, only a single planet had complex life. When the patrol arrived, they discovered the only planet with life was being devoured by its own star. This egg, found in a tightly sealed underwater cave, is the last remnant of life on the entire planet. It should have been sent elsewhere, but I sent it to you. You have a siren here who should know how to deal with such a thing, or at least ensure it hatches safely."
Kevin felt as if he were hearing a story far, far away. Something about the apocalypse, the extinction of civilization, the collapse of the entire universe, planets being devoured by stars... These things sounded so far away to him that he could barely comprehend them. He only knew that the white egg before him held immense significance: it was the last remaining individual of a merman race from a certain world, a burden he had never imagined. "You want me to take care of this?" Kevin carefully took the strange egg from Raven's hands. "...I have no experience with this. What if I can't take good care of it?"
"I'll do my best," Raven 12345 shrugged. "This egg hasn't reached the standards of a spark of civilization, so it can't be reported to higher authorities. I can only hand it over to an examiner who has some time. Just be careful not to break it."
"I have a question," Nangong Wuyue suddenly raised her hand. "Are you mistaken? I'm a siren, not a mermaid! And even if I were a mermaid, I wouldn't know how to take care of an egg, okay? I was born on land!"
"Oh, is that so?" Raven 12345 looked curious. "Is there a difference?"
"A huge difference!" Nangong Wuyue pointed at Kevin. "He's seen me in my siren form. I can only take on the appearance of a mermaid, but my race is a siren. I can also transform into a mantis shrimp. You're still asking me to take care of shrimp?"
"I know you're a siren," Raven 12345 nodded. "From what I understand, the sirens of this world share similarities with mermaids from other worlds. At the very least, you all lay eggs. I thought you knew how to care for them."
Nangong Wuyue's expression was peculiar. "That's why I said I was born on land. I'm a mixed-race, okay? I've never been to the deep sea since I was a child. How would I know what a siren born from an egg looks like..."
Kevin's mind suddenly clicked. He looked at Nangong Wuyue in amazement. "So you can lay eggs?"
Nangong Wuyue's face immediately flushed. "...I haven't tried it, but it seems possible..."
"Ahem," Kevin realized, realizing that if he continued the conversation, it would end up on Animal World, so he quickly cut it short. He stared at the egg with considerable embarrassment. "Even Nangong Wuyue doesn't know how to take care of it. What am I supposed to do?"
"Young man, do your best," Raven 12345 patted Kevin on the shoulder. "I received an analysis report from above. Perhaps this merman species is born to survive in harsh environments. Their eggs can survive and hatch in quite harsh conditions. I firmly believe that as long as you don't boil it, it will hatch successfully..."
Kevin: "..."
The three sane people present thought this was unrealistic, but the one who had the final say was a psychopathic woman who was insane in every sense of the word. Raven 12345 happily made the decision before anyone could object. Kevin now had to find a way to hatch this precious egg...
"Alright, alright. Put the egg away now. Let's get off the ground," Raven 12345 clapped her hands, urging them to hurry. She seemed even more anxious to get back than Kevin. "Where's the data terminal? Start the engines. Let's see how fast this thing goes once it's officially running!" The data terminal had been stuck in the mainframe's external slot for ages, itching to become a battleship's mainframe. Its biggest dream, ever since it was on the production line, had been to become a battleship's mainframe. Of course, everyone knew it ultimately became a PDA, but that didn't dampen its ambition. It felt like its life had found a new purpose: while it couldn't become a battleship's mainframe, it could at least temporarily pretend to be one for a government vessel. As the commands from its core were received one by one by the powerful devices on the ship, the surging power from the energy core made the data terminal leap with joy. It barked orders with overwhelming force: "My command, battleship, set sail!"
"Why does this thing feel more powerful than me?" Kevin glanced at the data terminal in surprise, then continued to curiously study the dazzling data on the control panel with Raven 12345. "Go back and study the operating manual yourself," Raven said, giving up on trying to understand what she considered to be too complex questions. "Try to figure out how to control this ship yourself within three years."
The spaceship ascended at an incredible speed. Although the acceleration was imperceptible from within, it had already reached the edge of the atmosphere. The data terminal activated several external monitors, and the silver-white walls at the front of the control room immediately became transparent, revealing the curved horizon. Raven 12345 looked at the vibrant planet and couldn't help but sigh. "I actually built this planet for fun. Thousands of years ago, I added the ecosystem here. Back then, it was barren. Now look at it... nature is truly a marvel of craftsmanship."
"You built a planet yourself, and you're still sighing about this?" Kevin looked at Raven 12345 in surprise. "Oh, I'm truly a master craftsman."
Everyone: "..."
"I suggest you save the coordinates of this planet," Raven 12345 patted Kevin on the shoulder. "The ecological environment here has evolved perfectly. Your tenants can survive here. Saving the coordinates would be a good idea for a future tourist attraction, just in case they need it."
Kevin gave Raven a curious look. She didn't seem like the type to offer such trivial advice. This goddess-like sister had a thick skin. How could she have the leisure to pay attention to the daily life and entertainment of Kevin and his family's superhumans? So, he instinctively felt that Raven 12345 was setting him up for something.
But Raven 12345 had a point. This interstellar journey was Kevin's first step into the stars, so he had to leave something behind. Since he had discovered such an exotic, Earth-like planet, he might as well keep its coordinates.
Maybe he could bring Lily here someday. She'd definitely love the open beach and the chewy sticks. Kevin asked the data terminal to choose a suitable location to leave the coordinates. The data terminal then flew the spacecraft to the gravitational equilibrium point between the planet and the local star. "Leave the relative coordinates here. Using the gravitational equilibrium point between the planet and the star as a reference, we'll calculate them instantly during transmission. This will prevent us from crashing into the sun next time we come."
Gazing out into space from this equilibrium point, the sun was a blindingly large fireball, while the nameless planet had already vanished in the brilliant sunlight. Kevin stared blankly in the fading sunlight for a moment, then let out a soft breath: "Let's go back."
A flash of blue light flashed across space, and the patrol ship, the Giant Turtle Rock Platform, left this remote, nameless star system.