Sasaki led us. Her intent was to find a café or something for us to relax in, but she didn't seem to be very focused on the task. Although she did keep looking about for a place for us, she would also quite often sort of zone out and stare upwards contemplatively.

All of a sudden she stopped in her tracks and turned around to face us. "There's something I would like to discuss privately with Kyon, if you guys don't mind. The three of you can keep searching for a place without us. You have my number so just call me when you find it. Okay?"

Fujiwara stared sulkily at her and then at me, but nodded his head, even though it seemed like something he had to force himself to do. Tachibana Kyoko had a serious expression on her face, but she nodded swiftly. Kuyou didn't react in any way.

"Thank you," Sasaki said as she grabbed my hand and led me away.

When we were so far away from the others that I couldn't make them out in the crowds, I finally asked her what she wanted to talk about.

"I'm beginning to get worried, Kyon, really, I am. If Suzumiya Haruhi really is as unstable as they say, perhaps it would be best for everyone that I shouldered the responsibility."

My gut reflex was to say no immediately without any hesitation, but something stopped my mental gears in their tracks. I remembered everything Koizumi had said but an idealistic universe, where we might not be worth anything or free and then the drunken talk I'd had with Haruhi after that. 'In vino veritas', after all. It saddens me to admit it, but Haruhi's a very depressed girl deep down, not to mention a bit confused about what she wants. All that bluster she diffuses is something of a coping mechanism, I guess. The girl denies the world and a deeper part of her for some reason. That can't be healthy, can it? Then again, am I even close to understanding what she wants? Who knows... it seems the girl is constantly shifting, like a chameleon's skin, so how sure can I really be about what she wants and what she wants to get rid off?

Maybe things would be better with Sasaki, she is definitely more stable and mature than Haruhi, but there would be a significant difference if Haruhi's powers were transferred back to Sasaki, if that really was the case. For starters, she'd know that she had unlimited power. And what's that they say about power? Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. I don't think I'd even trust myself with that power if I could choose.

"Yes, you bring up quite a good point. It's the problem with the Ring of Gyges in a way… I'm not sure if anyone should have that power either, and I'm glad to hear that you would avoid even the temptation… but maybe I could dispose of it completely…"

What?

"If this truly is limitless omnipotence we are discussing, then surely disposing of that power should be in the realm of possibility. Of course, herein, we run into the old paradox of omnipotence. Can something that can be destroyed really be considered omnipotence? Shouldn't such a force be stronger than anything else? Of course, if that forces faces itself, they would be equal, wouldn't they? Like the unstoppable force meeting the unmovable object. Such a thing couldn't really happen in this reality, as the force would require an infinite amount of energy while the object would require infinite mass, but with Suzumiya-san's powers, such irregularities could supposedly be called into existence. However, I sincerely doubt our universe could handle such things. The infinite mass would probably crush us and the infinite energy might fry us. In the end, attempting to destroy omnipotence could result in a total cancellation of the universe as it puffs away in a cloud of logical paradox, because two equal opposites should not amount in either side winning."

Ah… yeah, sure, whatever you say. Poof... pop goes the weasel and all that jazz.

"If the power truly is omnipotence, it should have the power to destroy anything, but if it can be overcome by anything, then it wouldn't be the greatest force imaginable, a greater force should exist, but that force would be itself… hmm, very troubling indeed."

So you're worried that it might mean the end of the world if you tried to destroy that power.

"Yes, it certainly is a possibility. There's also the chance that these powers are the only things keeping the forces of nature functioning, maintaining reality. But there's something else. If I were to take that power… do you think I would use it wisely?"

Why are you asking me?

"Out of a significant amount of people, you are probably one of those who knows me best, and the only one of that group who understands the situation we are in. In fact, you know it better than I do currently. So, do you think it would be wise to take this power they are offering me? I think I might be tempted to use it, to change things, to make things better for everyone. And if this is true omnipotence, it should also grant me omniscience if I wished for it, so I should be able to make the right decisions easily. But what if humanity isn't right?"

'Isn't right'? What's that supposed to mean?

"What if we're a sort of mistake, messing everything up? It seems to me that the space-time continuum is in peril, possibly simply because of one person like Suzumiya-san, but it could also be the time travellers' fault. What if I were to see that removing humans and their destructive capabilities was the right thing to do for the whole universe, or even humans themselves?" Sasaki was starting to sound a little anxious. Her ridiculously long sentences were coming out a bit faster than usual. I had a hard enough time following them as it was without them slowly accelerating.

Okay, stop right there. We're getting nowhere with this.

"I know, that's exactly my point," she said, inclining her head slightly, pinching the small bridge of her nose with her right hand. She also closed her eyes, clearly straining to put her overwhelming and complex thoughts to words, for my sake most likely. "I don't know what to do. No option seems better than the other. Do I take control? But what if I mess up? And to leave the world in unsafe hands where anything could happen and destroy us all just because of the childish desires of a girl… I mean, what if one day she subconsciously wills something dangerous into existence or thinks it'd be cool if everyone could fly and gravity disappears and everyone floats off into space…"

Hey, don't think like that. Who's been filling your head with this nonsense?

I put my hand on her shoulder, trying to transmute my unnecessary physical support into a possibly more needed moral kind. But Sasaki barely reacted to my invasion of her personal space at all, only lifting her head to look me in the eyes. She stared at my with such an invasive look that it was me who was actually starting to feel uncomfortable with the whole situation rather than her.

Sasaki's brows furrowed some more as she continued thinking. Her slender jaw was set firmly as her mind continued racing, going over who knows how many possibilities and options. She tilted her head, almost like hoping some of them would spill out. She gave an exasperated sigh as she looked away and muttered rather pensively, "…It's too much… There's just too much to consider..."

I really didn't know what to do in this situation. In fact, I wasn't even sure if Sasaki was even in need of any kind of help. She certainly didn't really look like it, more like she was considering how to start writing an essay with a very ambiguous leading question with a limited amount of time simply to understand what it was that needed to be answered. Even so, I felt I should say something to help, even if it might not be necessary. In a way, I felt slightly at fault for the troubling thoughts in her head.

"Hey, look, it's okay, don't worry. Nothing like that would happen. You're thinking way too much, just slow down. I can barely follow." I gave the shoulder I'd been holding what I hoped was a comforting and reassuring tap. I really didn't know what to do with Sasaki. She just seemed so... beyond me.

Sasaki looked upwards reflectively, her lips moving a little, like she was going through some mental notes. "I… I don't know what to do. Why exactly have I been given this role to decide? I'm just one person… how do I know what to do to save the universe? How do I know what's right thing to do? What gives me the right to decide at all? How could one person ever be held accountable for so much?" Sasaki muttered in a hushed voice, more to herself than anything.

"I know… I think I know how you feel… I feel like that way too often myself."

Sasaki gave a little sigh. I could feel her shoulder slag a little as she started to relax a bit in against my hand before she looked at me with a face I thought looked like it was uncertain of whether to go ahead and show a glum expression or not. "How do you deal with all the stress, Kyon?" she asked, still sounding as calm and collected as always, although perhaps a tad curious as well.

I thought about this for a moment, and to my surprise, something that actually felt poignant, at least from me, popped up into my head.

"Just one day at a time," I said as I shrugged, letting go of Sasaki's shoulder, realizing only now how long I'd persisted in that useless show of support.

It was true, after all. I really didn't like to think too much about these things, they were too depressing when you got right down to it. I cross my bridges when I get to them; that idiom's served me pretty well so far.

"Thank you, Kyon, it's comforting to know I'm not alone with these dilemmas," Sasaki said, giving me a little smile as she looked back at me in the eyes again.

"Uhm... no problem..." I hadn't even realized I had helped.

Sasaki sighed sullenly, before she continued, "In any case, I'm sorry you had to see that little… outburst. I really should have better control over myself. I apologise. I guess this was just my… just my little personal 'dark night of the soul'." She smirked with knowing affection at this, like she'd just heard a joke a long lost grandparent had once told her, bringing up warm fuzzy feelings of nostalgia. Then she shook her head, ridding it of useless things, the sharp focus returning into her eyes I had become comfortable with in all my time knowing her.

Outburst? That wasn't really an outburst at all. Maybe just a little bit of venting. I mean, sure, you were talking a bit faster than usual, looking like you were trying to solve a really difficult test question in 3 seconds, but an outburst? No way. I've seen plenty of outbursts, (how could I not with Haruhi around?), and that was as far away from one as possible. It's the decibel of your words that matters, the raw emotion in the words, not the speed the relative speed they're unleashed at. If anything, now that I think about it, your words could just as easily have been taken as excitement or nervousness. I'm not sure if it was one or the other or both or maybe even neither one at all. Sasaki's almost harder to read than the likes of Nagato and Haruhi combined for some reason.

"I think we should head back," Sasaki said, brushing away some of her hair away from her face, only to have it gently swish back to an almost exact place from which the hair had started its short lived expedition across her head.

Yeah. I looked around and noticed that we were very close to a familiar looking restroom. My eyes quickly swivelled around and spotted what I had been afraid to find. The circus tent was way too close. And guessing by the crowds filing out, we didn't have any time to waste at all.

"Come on, we gotta go. Now." I grabbed her hand and pulled her away.

"Huh? What?" Sasaki asked, looking genuinely shocked.

"Trust me!" I said, picking up the pace.

"I – okay," Sasaki said, joining me in a swift trot as I led us quickly back to where we had left the three suspicious 'friends' of hers. The place was empty of them, but packed with passing crowds just as the rest of the carnival.

"What was that about?" Sasaki asked when she was certain I wouldn't suddenly pull her along again.

I gave her a look, wondering just how much I really could trust her in the end. I settled on a compromise: nothing too revealing but informative enough anyway. The reaction could tell me a lot about Sasaki and where I stood with her. "Future stuff."

"Ah, I see..."

Good reaction, I guess...

"I'm sure you'll tell me more when the time is right."

A really good reaction. Maybe a bit too good...

Stop being so paranoid.

It's served me pretty well so far.

Good point.

Sasaki looked around, no doubt trying spot her comrades.

"Why do you hang around with them?" I asked, wondering why I hadn't really done so before. "You're not really friends with them, are you?"

"They're interesting." Sasaki turned around to look at me. "They're aliens, time travellers and espers after all, why wouldn't I be interested in them?"

So, it's just business, really. Sounds like Sasaki; she always kept an objective distance to everything.

"I guess it's something like that. I don't see what's so wrong about them, like you do."

"It's that obvious?"

"Heh, well, yeah. They don't seem all that different from your friends in that – Brigade was it?"

"Hmm, yeah... I guess. I just don't trust them."

"Well, I prefer a lie from an honest face than a lie from dishonest face."

"What?"

"Sorry. What I mean is... well, look at it this way: those three 'friends' of mine came to me with no pretence. They are as they appear, their personalities aren't artificial constructs. If they were, they (mainly Fujiwara and Suou Kuyou) would be far more approachable. Unlike your club mates who seem all to fit certain stereotypical social roles. You didn't get to really know them until after Suzumiya Haruhi introduced them to you, did you?"

Uhm, let me see, it's been a while... Yeah, I think that's how it went. What of it?

"They probably had to fill some sort of criteria for her, and not just the supernatural facets she's not even fully aware of, but personality-wise as well. They had to set up a pretence, a functionality in order to work within the club. They wear masks, bigger ones than most people on average do because they have to fit into her little club, it's their job after all. If they are wise, they won't reveal to you the full extent of their possible personality discrepancies within the club setting and without. It could cause too much disharmony if you for example knew how different they are around Suzumiya and with others."

"And I thought I was paranoid." Although, Koizumi had said he was a different guy in reality...

Sasaki chuckled. "Yes, I suppose that's some reasonable criticism. Of course, I face even what I am told by the others with a grain of salt. It seems to me that everyone has their own agenda in this, so I'm careful not to take any single person's word completely in confidence. I carefully compare everything with what all the others say as well."

"... Sasaki..."

"Yes?" she asked expectantly.

"Can I trust you?"

Sasaki smiled coyly at this. "Probably. No promises though."

I wonder why I'm smiling at something like this.

Sasaki's phone rang. She answered it and had a brief talk with the person on the other side.

"Well, they found a place, a quiet one, but it's on the other side of the carnival. But that only means we can keep on talking together in private, right? Preferably about some lighter topics than the earlier ones."

Yeah, that'd be nice.

Sasaki pointed in a direction and took the lead for the beginning, but I soon drifted to her side.

"Hmm, all this fantastic stuff we're surrounded by, really makes me wonder, what's it all about?"

All of it?

"All of it." Sasaki turned her head levelly to look at me as we continued walking. "Not just the plans of all the groups around us, but in a more... cosmic sense. Why now? Why us? Where are we going with this? You know, all sorts of questions about Life, the Universe and Everything, and even abstract things like fatalism and spiritual things as well."

"Yeah, I guess something like divine plans and gods would fit into all of this."

Sasaki sighed, stretching her neck a little bit before she returned her focus back to me. "You know, I don't understand why everyone always equates spirituality with religious thoughts. Sure, they're related to an extent, but so are a lot of things with spirituality. Prayer, meditation and deep thought aren't really all that different, are they? You can achieve spiritual growth through various ways and experiences as well. It's all just a matter of... depth. It's not about the target of the focus, but the very process itself. Another thing that's always struck me as weird is how surprisingly many people always think someone is essentially a nihilist if they don't believe in something supernatural. There are things far more worth believing in that have greater and more direct relationships with our lives. Things that ultimately matter a lot more than the supernatural, which is a rather silly concept to be honest; if something exists, it's a part of the universe, a natural part of it."

Then what should one spend their time believing in?

"Justice, peace, morality," Sasaki said sternly. "Things like that. All the really important things."

But... you don't need to believe in those things, they just sort of... are.

"Hardly. Justice only works when people believe in it strongly, so strongly that they decide to serve it. I know this will come off as rather relativist, but I think it's close to the truth. Morality and such are purely human constructs; they don't really exist in the universe without humans, humans who believe in them. But I think morality isn't really that relative, because the concept of right and wrong will always essentially lead to the same conclusions if followed logically. The terms are kind of self defining and as many philologists have pointed out, there is a very large linguistic problem of association with the concept of 'good'. Good doesn't just mean morally right in most languages, as it has many other connotations, and if viewed from a naturalistic view like that of Aristotle's, the things that allow humans to naturally flourish would be deemed good and then be seen as being morally superior through possibly fallacious logic."

Uhmm, okay... apparently I have no idea what 'good' means.

"The problem with such naturalistic ethics is of course that how things ought to be does not necessarily follow from how things are. More importantly, what allows a species, any species, to flourish is dependent on the environment and the species' adaptability. That's why morality can't really be 'natural', but is in fact something that is unnatural. But just because justice and morality are unnatural, that doesn't mean they're wrong in any way. Things like that enrich our lives, they don't detract from them in any way. What is right is just as unnatural as medicine. I can't stand people who say something is wrong, sometimes even in a moral sense, on the grounds that it's unnatural when they themselves enjoy plenty of unnatural things like clothing, health care, cooked food, electricity, housing etc. A fully natural life would have us back in the wild, at the mercy of natural selection once again. Right and wrong aren't a part of nature. Nature is merely about survival, it's brutal. Our unnatural lives are far better."

"Hmm, I never thought of it like that."

"Most people don't think of such things much at all, and yet they still have huge debates about such matters, even if they're presumptions and basic arguments aren't even consistent and sound. But enough about meta-ethics, it's not something I really enjoy discussing."

Really? You could have fooled me. But whatever would you like to discuss? A change in subject would be nice. I don't think I can contribute much to conversation on this level.

"Something a bit more abstract, speculative... Something we really don't know about one way or another... Something like..."

Sasaki looked around. Her head stopped turning when she saw a game of cards that looked a lot like a surprisingly well working experiment in swindling. I had half a mind to go over there and warn the young looking kids losing their money for nothing when Sasaki said, "Freedom of will. Fate. Predestination."

Really? Now that's a bit surprising, considering how relevant those things have suddenly come in my life. These still aren't things I like reflecting on too much, but maybe Sasaki could offer a new, fresh, and hopefully better perspective on these matters.

"Hmm, yes, Suzumiya's presence does throw a lot of things to doubt, if even half of what I have been told is true, but... You know, free will is a rather suspect thing even without god-like creatures about."

Okay, what the hell are you talking about now? If you remove God and other highflying ideas like fate from the equation, aren't we practically 'condemned to be free'?

"Well, science, really. Science is all about taking different factors and forming a hypothesis in order to predict results. The core of science is to discover regularity. It reduces the complexities of life into understandable parts (but definitely not simpler as opponents of science would have you believe). And as these little parts start to become clearer, we see that beautiful patterns start to emerge. Predictable patterns."

So what you're saying is, even without fate or God, we still might not actually be free at all?

"Yes, exactly. Although the debate on nature versus nurture still rages, we can see certain trends emerge. I think the two contribute equally, in a restricting manner, really, although the two methods give us the essential tools to learn. Genes probably have a rather large effect on a person's personality, regarding aggressiveness and passiveness at least. I mean, why not? Some chemical compounds are used to sedate us, other drugs excite us; genes are essentially chemicals as well, and they affect how are brains are structured. It all seems to be very physically dependant."

That makes sense. Haruhi probably has an overdose of some chemical in her body… or maybe lack of something. I wonder if common sense has a gene for it?

"Parents, teachers, preachers, friends, culture, everything around us in societies affects us. Schemas are installed. We always approach something from a similar perspective, applying stereotypes. It aides in the decision making process, makes it more efficient. If something works, don't fix it. But those schemas aren't always equipped for all situations, only the environment it has worked in, so when something changes, confusion and fear arise. But I'm not going to get into xenophobia now or other forms of prejudice. These schemas, in a way, are a form of brainwashing, although essentially, it's just a matter of installing stereotypes.

People like to act like they despise stereotypes, yet most of the time they themselves are extremely busy trying to fit into one or another. It's understandable. Stereotypes give us a sense of normality. Humans are always seeking regularity in the world, hence the rising popularity in scientific studies, where we discover the 'stereotypes' of nature so we can predict outcomes. This goes for everyday life as well. Stereotypes help us deal with casual acquaintances. Forming differing and detailed opinions of everyone we meet would be foolhardy and time consuming. Stereotypes facilitate easier social conduct. This is why people also assume a certain role to act when they come into contact with other people, so that they too can be understood easier and communication can be established, for the most part, this is merely adopting a polite smile when meeting other people. Many social groups function with people performing a certain identifiable role, like an alpha male or even a class clown, yet they can act completely differently with other people, like their parents for example. There's nothing wrong with it, just with the hypocrisy involved, which I sometimes find tiresome. It's simply necessary considering our limitations to function using these prescribed scripts instead of actually thinking too much."

What scripts? I'm not an actor on the stage of the world... I'm not sure I really get what you're saying, but I really don't know much about philosophy or psychology, so I'm probably responding out of ignorance.

"People like to file other people into simple and easy to understand compartments; it just makes life less demanding. But because of this behaviour, they too often lose the ability to fully understand people, as in their minds the other people are reduced into one-dimensional characters that perform according to a script they expect. And when they see something that slightly diverges from the known and safe views they have, they respond with the typical protocols associated with incapability to understand. Nothing is really out of character for anyone, it only seems so because we never see past the roles we give, support and use ourselves. The self is indefinable. Humans aren't two-faced, no, that would be too easy; we're multi-faced. We adapt. Under all the tribal face paint of society, there is no telling what is really going on. We don't really understand another. How could we as we all live subjective lives? Separated not only by physical distances but mental ones as well.

This is how someone taken for a lazy coward can one day display immense courage in the face of a disaster, taking everyone by surprise with unfamiliar bravery. How an upstanding citizen might one day do something that startles and shocks a community. How a perfectly normal school boy everyone knows to be such with absolute certainty, can suddenly one day go and get a gun with which to shoot everyone they know, without anyone even suspecting anything. And yet people always insist that they know another person, when they are only familiar with one facet of that person, the person that has been constructed for their benefit and is further warped by their own perception. The situational masks we use… they hold us apart, but because we couldn't possibly handle everything that's behind them. It's a double edged sword. We lose either way."

No need to paint such a grim picture for even someone as dense as me to get the point this time.

Sasaki continued, shifting into the next gear. "Psychological studies have revealed that we make many decisions subconsciously before we're even fully aware of them. In a test, neurons and synapses for moving a hand would start firing before the decision was consciously even made. Maybe it wasn't even made at all, perhaps the conscious mind is only rationalizing acts it doesn't really choose, creating a delusion of control. The brain is like a computer, with complex responses. In a way, even our talk of this matter is only a response to something that happened earlier, merely a piece in a chain. Taking the reductive nature of science and applying it to these findings, perhaps we could find a way to predict human behaviour. Right now, it wouldn't work because there are just too many unknown and unquantifiable factors, but in theory, I think it could be done. I wish we had an answer to it; then we could probably tell for certain if we truly are free. Now, if everything could be predicted, how could we explain occasional unpredictable events? Well the Universe will provide. Have you ever heard of Brownian motion?"

Does it have something to do with swilling tea?

"Ha, no. Like some behavioural 'irregularities' are due to differences in genes and chemical imbalances in the brain, this randomness has its roots somewhere, it's not truly 'random' in a true sense of the word, as there's a reason for it. In nature, as in a physics level nature, some particles really do move in random and unpredictable manners. The randomness of particle movement is due to collisions with other particles. I'm not sure, but if you could somehow account for all the particles in some sort of simulation, I think you might be able to predict the movement's course. It seems that we simply can't just see the factors affecting it yet with our current technology, nor even hope to track it all, there's just too much to account for (you'd have to account for all the particles in the air to make this work). But let's assume the movement of these particles really is random. Well, what is a functioning brain if not particles, electrical charges, moving through it?

Perhaps the only reason we have differing thoughts and inspirations is because something goes 'wrong' on the fundamental level with the particles, causing a sort of chain reaction within the mind that results in alternative behaviour, as one accidental action potential occurs and sends a message across synapses. I mean, after all, our physical appearances are mainly different through slight mutations in the genes over generations; perhaps something similar is going on in our brains? Occasional randomness, like once in a while making a wrong decision or something unexpected, would create the illusion of free will, especially when our conscious mind would then rationalize it as a free choice. The apparent learning experience occurring is also added programming that will allow us to give the proper response the next time, creating new synaptic connections, barring anything 'random' happening again. This is all highly speculative of course, but it's fun to consider things like that."

It seems we have really different ideas on what constitutes fun. Then again, I'm not sure if there's exactly anyone I know that really shares my ideas on fun.

"According to some fairly recent ideas in physics," Sasaki said, still as enthusiastic as she had been when she'd started, opening up a new conversation (or maybe she was simply continuing the last one. I honestly can't really say. I'm a monkey out of the trees in all of this). "The universe as we know it now might not have been the first reality to exist. Recent ideas like quantum gravity and string theory seem to suggest that the Big Bang –"

– I can't believe serious scientists actually came up with that innuendo laden name –

"– was merely the forming of the universe as we know it. Now, I'm certainly no expert in these areas, so you should take what I have to say with some reservation. These concepts are supposedly hard to grasp even by experts and I'm nowhere near their level. Anyway, there have also been findings that seem to have revealed some background radiation that is older than the Big Bang estimates. Suggesting that either the Big Bang Theory is faulty or that time existed before the Universe as we know it, instead of beginning along with the birth of our Universe. Then again, time is relative depending on velocities of the observer and the radiation's source, so the measurements might be flawed. Or… I might just have read some outdated info, but it's exciting in any case, isn't?"

Huh, what? Yeah, ancient radiation. Should we get inside a shelter or something to avoid the fallout?

"If this really is the case, that our Universe merely came about from the collapse of a previous one (and further studying must be carried out), it would nicely conform with some philosophical theories on our Universe's origins. Nothing can come out of nothing, right? Unless you subscribe to the more imaginative theories on our origins, of course. I've always assumed that matter must have existed before our Universe as we know it as was formed. Matter is finite, there is never more or less of it, it's all a matter of a fixed amount of particles, just changing form. So, in order for us to be here, there must have been something before. But! Here we run into another classic philosophical problem. What came before that? And before that? The easy way out is God of course, for the intellectually lazy or those who see these matters as a case of idiot scepticism. After all, it does get kind of silly if there is an infinite chain of Universes, but this is where causality leads us, and I think most people would agree that causality governs the Universe. It's really an arbitrary thing where you place the alpha and omega of existence, some put it at God, some with the Universe itself, and some don't put it anywhere.

I think I would probably fall in with the latter crowd on this matter, it just seems to make sense to me, it's where the logic of causality leads, as ridiculous as it may sound from a common sense perspective. It's essentially as foolishly arbitrary as the others, but time keeping has always been an arbitrary thing, even without relativity. I rather prefer the idea of Eternal Resurgence. It's kind of like reincarnation, in a way, I suppose, but not really at all. In Eternal Resurgence, the Universe is repeated forever. This is probably because the factors at the end of the Universe are pretty much the same as in the beginning, you know, because there's still the same amount of matter and energy, coming together once again. In effect, this repetition would mean we only live one life.

Of course, this brings to mind various ideas on predestination and the true nature of time, that is, if it's all 'happened' already and we are only capable seeing a small part of it. I think the data entities might work in a way that allows them to see a wider scale of time than we can and you'd think the time travellers would know about it as well, which begs the question, why would such fatalistic beings bother doing anything when everything has already happened, or been predetermined, depending on your perspective. (Not that they'd have a choice in the matter, but if you knew what happened to you from the very beginning... hmmm)"

I sighed. "You really should discuss matters like this with Ko... with someone else."

Sasaki raised a dignified eyebrow at me. "I see... I'm not boring you, am I?"

But before I could answer: "You have something on your mind... Your own problems, of course. Just what is going to happen? It must be something... very drastic."

I gave her a questioning look she met fearlessly.

"Just a matter of simple deductions, really. If you'd like, I could tell you my theory on what's been – sorry, will happen."

Go right ahead. As long as it's not more heavy talk like before that just seems to go on and on forever and ever and ever and ever and ever...

"Something will happen to the Brigade, something that will shake your trust in them. This I know, because you arrived here alone, despite already knowing what would happen in the future, and instead of seeking out your compatriots who have – I've heard – always helped you with problems associated with time travel before. But you came to us, even if it wasn't entirely done willingly on your part. Furthermore, just like now, you were about to mention one of them, weren't you? Koizumi, the 'philosopher' of your group. You've been rather closemouthed about details concerning the Brigade so far, but I had assumed this was out of a sense of security and distrust towards the others. But your hesitancy to mention Koizumi by name makes me think he is somehow involved with the 'crisis' Fujiwara and the others warned us about. It would seem your secrecy might merely have been a means of avoiding your hurt feelings."

I could only gape at Sasaki, the cute little female Sherlock Holmes I knew.

"I'd like to hear more, but we should probably wait and tell everyone else at the same time. Ah, seems like we've arrived just in time anyway," Sasaki said, smiling brightly as she pointed at a shaded and peaceful looking cafe. I could actually spot the silhouettes of the three others under the large tarpaulin that covered a great deal of tables. I don't know why, but they were the cafe's only customers, although a lot of parched looking people were about. For some reason, they seemed to be unable to see the cafe, gravitating towards the other culinary establishments.

I still wasn't really sure if this was the right thing to do. I don't think I can really trust them, but they might be able to help, so it's worth the risk, I suppose. They might not be on our side, but our goals could coincide this time. 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend' sort of thing, considering future developments, although this was more of a 'my still possible enemy wanting to be friends with me so they could hurt my old friends/new possible enemies'.

"Right, let's get down to business," Sasaki said, rubbing her hands together theatrically before she took the still lingering choice of alliances out of my hands and pulled me into the dark shade.