Hey, I'm back again!

This is the sequel story to my previous story, Accidental Hack Into The Gate. If you want to know how Maxine weaved her way into the Steins Gate world lines or what their motivation is for Operation Signy, you should read that first.

Chaos;Head is a game that takes place in the same universe as Steins;Gate in 2009. It uses fundamentally different but compatible mechanics in its story. You don't have to read Chaos;Head to be able to understand the plot of this story, but if you were planning to: here's your spoiler warning.

TLDR: spoilers for Chaos;Head, Steins;Gate, and Steins;Gate 0.

AD 2012.06.24 18:35:26:34

%3.535470

"Now, let us begin Operation Signy!" I proclaim.

"Operation Sydney…?" Mayuri asks.

"To rebuild the time machine that just left us," I clarify confidently.

Unfortunately, this cool moment doesn't last. I am immediately struck with an overwhelming sense of nausea. Trying hard to maintain my cool stance I try to rationalize this feeling. Reading Steiner? No… it hasn't ever gotten this bad before. My vision seems to be fading…

Kurisu is the first to pick up on my crumbling façade. "Maxine… are you-"

Blackness… Awake, out of breath, breathing…

"Hah, hah, hah, hah… hah… hah… hah…" W-What just happened to me? Did I…?

"Maxine! Are you okay? Y-You…" Kurisu asks in a panicked tone.

"I… No… what happened to me?"

"You just fainted. When I got to you, you weren't breathing; I couldn't feel your heartbeat at all!" Kurisu quickly rambles.

"It looked like you were fine a little bit ago too," Mayuri adds.

"I didn't feel sick…" I'm almost afraid to ask, "…What was the divergence of this world line?"

"Don't worry, the world line didn't change," Okabe reassures me.

Now that the air has returned to my lungs, I take a look at my surroundings. I'm in the same place as before, except everyone's worried faces are surrounding me. Kurisu had even propped my head up on her kneeling legs in her attempts to get me to breathe again.

"…What happened to me?"

AD 2012.08.14 15:24:56:23

From that day onward I carry with me a copy of the copy of the last number on the divergence meter everywhere I go. It probably doesn't prove anything, but looking at it sure is reassuring. The nausea happens every now and again, but it seems like it's usually only when I'm around the labmems. After about a week I became able to retain consciousness through the crippling nausea, and as my body became more and more acclimated to it, it's been reduced to more or less me just losing the ability to stand for a second and a light headache.

Nobody can explain it though. I've seen the doctor a couple of times already, but nothing is out of the ordinary and it doesn't happen while I'm there. I am in good health, apparently. Reading Steiner was ruled out early, too, since it never happens to Okabe and since the world line never changes.

Despite my questionable state, Operation Signy continued on. Although we haven't actually been making much progress. The technology in 2012 doesn't seem to be good enough to physically transport a person physically though time yet.

"It's done!" Mayuri announces proudly.

"Really?" I ask eagerly.

"Yeah!"

"I can't wait to see it." Everything Mayuri has made so far has been of some of the highest quality I've seen, even though I don't really recognize a lot of the characters.

"You don't have to~" Mayuri points out.

"What?"

"This one is for you, silly."

"F-For me?" I ask. I had forgotten Mayuri was working on something for me in the other world lines. Also, the first day of Comima is actually tomorrow from what I've heard. Does this mean she's indirectly asking me to cosplay?

"Try it on!"

"Right now?" I ask shyly.

"Yeah!"

I nervously take the outfit and head into the washroom, silently reassuring myself that if it's made by Mayuri it's gonna be good. The outfit also looks familiar to me somehow, so I start putting it on.

I end up wearing a white V-neck with a foreign aesthetic, a puffy white miniskirt with seemingly impossible design put into the way it puffs, black leggings, and some stylized shoes. Oh, and also there's a sword to go with it.

"Oh, it's Kumiko," I say to myself, "from…" Where have I seen her before…?

"Oh, you've got it on!" Mayuri exclaims happily.

"W-Wait, how long have you been-"

"Now I just have to do your hair…"

I decide to just accept Mayuri's innocent seeming but strange actions having gotten used to them over the year. I'm not quite used to having all her attention on me yet, though.

"…So, who is this one based on, Mayuri?"

"Huh? I thought you recognized who it was…" Mayuri responds in confusion.

"I was right?" I ask a little surprised. "It does look like Kumiko, but… I couldn't remember what series she's from…"

"Ooh, she's from Run Home!. It's an obscure isekai web novel from a kind of unknown writer. I'm kinda surprised you heard of it."

"Me too," I respond. It turned out to be a series I've never heard of before. Maybe I saw her in a magazine or on a bill board somewhere? Although it doesn't seem all that likely since she's from some obscure web novel. Ah, Daru probably showed her off to me at some point as one of his wives. That's probably it.

We continue light-heartedly chatting with each other until, before I know it, my hair is styled. Looking in the mirror I'm once again stunned. It's near perfect copy of the character I don't know; Kumiko.

"Uwoaaaagh! Kumiko-tan please be my wife foreveeer!" Daru loudly proclaims as soon as I walk out.

"No."

"Haaaugh! To be rejected by Kumiko-tan is an honor that will never be surpassed!"

With all Daru's yelling grabbing everyone's attention, they follow his gaze to me. "M-Maxine?" Kurisu asks surprised. She must have just gotten here.

"It's me," Kyouma whips out his phone, "The organization seems to have sent a Kumiko imposter to the lab… Yeah… Yeah, I know. This must be the choice of Steins Gate. El, Psy, Kongaroo~"

"Another masterpiece. As expected from Mayuri," Kyouma says, quickly pocketing his phone. Mayuri beams happily in response to this praise.

"What do you think, Kurisu?" I ask. She was the only one who hadn't yet given a response.

"I-Isn't that a little revealing?" she asks.

I look over myself for a second, before shrugging and returning my eyes to her. "Maybe, but it feels nice. You should try it with me," I suggest.

"Oh, well… maybe if we're both doing it together," Kurisu says shyly.

"Oooh, Assis-tat-tat-tah!" Sensing that Okabe would ruin the moment along with the chances of her doing this with me I had positioned my hand so that I could pinch him when the time comes without anyone noticing.

"Wheeeeh? Kuris-chan wants to cosplay too?" Mayuri's eyes light up with pure joy at what Kurisu just said.

Luckily Mayuri has everyone distracted, including herself, or they would have seen me stumble and bump into Okabe. There it was again; the phantom nausea. So that's your revenge for me pinching you, huh? At least I didn't fall over this time. Checking the number to be sure… yep, didn't change.

"Ah, w-well… only if Maxine is doing it too…" It seems like Kurisu can't handle Mayuri's full attention either.

"Mayushii's so happy! I can't believe it! Oh, but what will Kuris-chan wear?" Mayuri thinks out loud.

"Oh… sorry. I guess I didn't give you any time to prepare," Kurisu says with a slightly relieved look.

Mayuri looks like she's deep in thought for a few more moments before she springs back to life. "Ah, I think I have just the thing!"

"You do…?" Kurisu asks with her hopes of being given an out shattered.

"Yeah. Mayushii's gonna go home for today and look through the spare outfits she made," Mayuri announces before dashing out the door.

"Bring back something good!" I yell after her.

AD 2012.08.15 08:37:36:42

"How did I end up with the most revealing cosplay!?" Kurisu yells, hiding her face in embarrassment.

"But it looks great on you, Kurisu!" Yuki reassures her.

"I think so too," I say unable to hold back a slight smirk at her situation.

Mayuri actually showed up a few minutes after Comima started, so Kurisu thought she would just come with me in her normal clothes. The whole reason Mayuri was late though was because she was finishing the adjustments on Kurisu's cosplay so it would fit her better. The spare that she brought just so happened to be one she had originally made for Rukako two years earlier. The thing is: it was originally designed to be worn by a guy. Soo…

With my comment, Kurisu turns to look up at me with unsure eyes.

"You'll be fine," I reassure her, "It's not like you're the only one here showing off a little skin."

"Th-That's not-" Kurisu tries to refute.

"Aahhhh! Mayushii's gonna miss the limited edition Upa!" Mayuri blurts out while checking her pocket watch. She then starts to sprint in a random direction.

"Mayuri? Wait up," Yuki says starting the chase after her.

"Mayuri! The Upa is this way!" I yell after her while pointing in nearly the opposite direction.

"Ah! Thanks, Maxe-chan!"

They run past us again, and I see them off with a smile forming on my— Intense dizziness. My now jelly legs give way, causing me to stumble into Kurisu.

"M-Maxine?" Kurisu yelps.

"S-Sorry… I-"

"Woooah! Yuri role play!" A bystander yells.

With this, many of the Otaku passing by turn our direction to see what's up. Then there's an audible snap, followed by many more; every snap adding to the nausea, causing my body to become even more limp as I hold on to her shoulders. Pictures, it's the pictures…?

Meanwhile Kurisu is in shock, unable to handle all of the attention being thrown her way. She has frozen still with her face is as red as a tomato.

"I'm really sorry, Kurisu," I whisper to her. "Be strong for me, okay? We're both going down if your legs give out, and then they'll never stop."

She looks down at me in confusion as I look back with a calm expression. Then everything clicks together in her head and a look of understanding washes over her face. She looks back and forth between me and the crowd of people for a moment before deciding how to handle this. Kurisu sweeps me off my feet and begins the mad dash in the general direction Mayuri left in while trying to lose our fans in the crowds.

"It happened again, didn't it?" Kurisu asks.

"Yeah," I confirm. "Sorry…"

"N-No, don't apologize; you didn't do it on purpose. Although you should have gotten off me eventually."

"I... couldn't. I think the pictures were making my head get worse and worse back there," I admit.

"The pictures…?" Kurisu repeats. This apparently is enough of a distraction to her that she runs into someone, causing both of them to fall over.

"Noooo! The limited-edition exclusive Rai-Net manga got folded!" He screams. "Kumiko-tan, why do you hate me so!"

"Daru?" Kurisu asks.

"Makise-shi?" Daru asks in response.

"I thought you would be at the vendors right now…" Kurisu says pushing me off of her.

"I was actually looking for you guys," Daru admits. "Where's Yuki? Wasn't she with you?"

"She went with Mayuri to where they were selling the limited-edition Upas," I explain.

"Okey-dokie. Let's head over there," Daru suggests.

He then waits for me to get up myself, but I'm still not strong enough to stand on my own so it gets awkward fast. Kurisu sighs a little and helps me up.

"Mayuri!" I call out through the crowds once I spot her.

"Maxe-chan?" she recognizes. "And Daru-kun too!"

"Did you find that Upa?" I ask.

"Yeah, it was the last one they had! Mayushii would have missed it if you didn't tell me where to go…"

"Ah, well-" That can't be right. I didn't even know there was a limited edition Upa before she told me. How did I know where it was? I must have been so distracted earlier I didn't even notice anything was wrong. I don't think she mentioned it to me before…

"It's a good thing you got there in time," I say while trying to ignore these discrepancies.

"Yeah."

"Mayushii, have you seen Yuki?" Daru asks after taking a quick look at who's with us now.

"Oh, Yuki-chan went…"

While those two are chatting, I give in to my worries and reach for a certain folded index card. As always, the world line changed… Wait, it changed!?

「Future Divergence – %3.535468」

But I didn't even do anything! No time leap, no D-Mail, but a changed world line. Kurisu, noticing the look of shock on my face, moves to look over my shoulder to see what's so surprising.

"What's wrong?" She asks. "It's the same as always, isn't it?"

"No… it changed."

Kurisu's eyes widen at this revelation. "But that's impossible, right? You said that you have to be the one to make the change for your Reading Steiner to activate…"

"Yeah, but this divergence definitely ended in a zero before."

Kurisu takes a little while to respond to this. She's probably playing through a lot of scenarios in her head. "…Maybe you're just imagining it. You did get hit pretty bad this time," Kurisu suggests.

"…I guess we'll find out eventually," I say hoping she's right. If anyone would back me up on a change of world line, it would be Okabe.