And now, some explaining to do from the author: Hi everybody! Once again, sorry for the wait but I managed to type out this chapter! I intently looked at other Haruhi fan fiction around here and even re-read the first light novel to get my brain bitz moving enough to deliver! While I'm talking about the light novels, this will also afford me an opportunity to explain something I should've done a while back. I recall a review being left for Chapter 20 where Ryoko reappears, saying that Kyon should've been a lot less freaked out like he was when the same thing happened in the tenth light novel. First of all, thanks for telling me what happens further down the track! Secondly, I am NOT that far into the light novels at all. I'm still in the process of collecting them all. So I figured it was high time I give you all where abouts in the timeline this story takes place, or rather deviates from. Alternative is happening post-Disappearance since that's as far as I know in great detail of how events in the series unfold. In light of this, Alternative is, appropriately, an alternative storyline, but once I'm further into the light novels, any possible sequels or subsequent Haruhi stories I write should bear some more influence from later events :) anyways, I'll try to get the next chapter to you folks as soon as I can, provided uni and my brain's limited capacity to keep feeding me words to write don't delay us too much. Lastly, I'd like to specifically dedicate this chapter to Durandall, a fellow author on FF who has an extensive selection of stories and was kind of enough to leave several lovely reviews for Alternative. Sadly, while checking his stuff recently, I learned he's no longer with us. So while it may be a bit late on my part, here's to you, Durandall. There's even something of a reference to one of his Haruhi stories towards the end of this chapter. This is in your memory, Durandall. Shine On, You Crazy Diamond.

Disclaimer: I also dedicate the Pink Floyd song 'Shine On You Crazy Diamond' to Haruhi Suzumiya. She's my Crazy Diamond. She's your Crazy Diamond. She's OUR Crazy Diamond. 3

Chapter 25: Somewhere Over There-ish

I'm starting to see how Ryoko A can distinguish people from her dimension. While the Nagato before me seemed every bit as similar to the one I knew, there were a few aberrations that set her apart. For one, when she caught sight of Ryoko A, she stopped in her tracks and her mouth opened ever so slightly, as if in surprise. As for Ryoko…

She only needed a few seconds to verify that this was the very same Yuki from her universe before a look of utter joy crossed her features and she bolted from my side, running up to embrace Nagato. "Yuki!" she exclaimed. "You're alright!"

Nagato (A) was initially unresponsive for two seconds but surprisingly returned Ryoko's embrace. "Hai," she confirmed, still with the same, quiet robotic tone I know her for. "It is good to see you again too, Ryoko." They broke contact, with Ryoko A looking at Nagato A happily. "Have you made contact with the others?"

Ryoko's smile faltered a bit as she shook her head. "I'm afraid you're the first one I was able to find. As you can probably already tell, the Kyon over there isn't the one we know."

Nagato A's unblinking gaze shifted ever so slightly onto me. I gave a bit of a weak wave in response. "Despite possessing a slider profile like the Kyon of our world, his possesses a different signature, unique to his dimension of origin," she explained. Unexpectedly, she bowed toward me. "Yoroshiku."

I was at a bit of a loss, mainly because I wasn't used to this sort of behaviour from her. That might sound strange given all the different Nagato's I've encountered so far, but they've pretty much all been of the same stoic and reserved traits I know her for. After a brief moment of registering the differences between this Yuki and the others, I rise from my seat and return the bow.

Haruhi grinned at the reunion display but quickly got back to business. "Yuki A, this Kyon-we'll refer to him as Kyon 'B'-was just explaining to us his and Ryoko A's reason for being here." She nods towards me. "If you'd care to continue, Kyon?"

I take my seat again, with Ryoko A and Yuki A on either side of me. "As I explained to the others earlier, an artefact of vast dimensional power has gone missing. I don't know the hows or whys, just that it's imperative I retrieve the artefact before it has a chance to cause significant damage to the dimensional stability of other universes…as Tsuruya so helpfully summarised, basically find it before it causes the universe to explode or something." I leave a pause to let it sink in again, though I'm really just rehashing this for Yuki A's sake. "I've managed to narrow down its probable location to three dimensions, and this one appears to display the strongest 'signal'. The problem is trying to pinpoint the damn thing…I can't really narrow it down any further than that."

"What might this artefact look like?" inquires Asahina.

"It looks like a shard of metal, like it came off of a large machine…it DID come off of a large machine in fact." Though I'd probably best leave its origin out of the way since I don't know how much they're going to buy the concept of a giant Teddy robot. I'm also unsure if this Haruhi has the same powers as the one back home, and much as I'd love to help her realise it, there's a time for that and it has yet to come. And besides: this isn't the Haruhi I want to tell it to anyway.

My counterpart rubs his chin. "We're going to need a bit more detail than the fact that it's a shard of metal," he says. "You've seen for yourself-the 'Stalkers' we wage war with are giant war machines themselves. Every day, units on either side are damaged or destroyed. That's going to leave a lot of pieces behind…including fragments of the actual machines. Are you seeing where I'm going with this?"

Even if he wasn't me and didn't think in a similar way, I still got the message. Telling them I'm looking for a piece of metal is kind of like saying I'm looking for a certain ant among a colony of identical ants. I'll have to be more specific…the problem is, the shard wasn't really all that descript in its shape. The only distinguishing feature was how shiny it was, and how is that going to narrow down anything? It's just a small hunk of metal that served who knows what purpose in that hulking distortion of a child's toy.

As fortune would have it, Koizumi returned just as we hit that wall. Tucked under his arm were several files; no doubt the reports on strange phenomena that had been requested earlier. I've got to say, he works fast. Maybe these incidents are categorised or something.

"Apologies for the wait," he greets, with that smug smile on his face. One of these days, I'm going to punch him because of that. Whether it's the Koizumi I know or one of his alternates, I'm just going to get so fed up with that shit-eating grin that I'll smack it off his face. "These are all the files I could find regarding odd occurrences. They may provide insight into the location of Kyon's missing artefact."

"Thank you, Koizumi," replies Haruhi. "Bring them up on holo."

Koizumi nodded, before scanning the documents on some kind of device in the table. After some input to a set of controls, the various documents were displayed before us holographically via a special emitter on the table. Ryoko A and I were pretty astounded by it. Hey, just because I go visiting strange new worlds much more than I used to doesn't mean I still don't have a capacity to be impressed!

"If you wanna navigate through the docs, use this!" instructed Tsuruya. We both looked over to her and everyone else, noticing they were inputting commands to a personal terminal at each seat. The holo-displays were being projected before them individually as they brought up the details they wanted to see. Ryoko A and I got the hang of it pretty quickly and examined each of the documents in detail. Everyone was intently studying for some kind of indicator. This could take a while…

"I've got it!" announced Ryoko B.

We spent half an hour scouring the documents and running system checks for any similarities in words or places used. The phenomena were all wildly different, ranging from bizarre and terrible beasts large enough to oppose the Stalkers to hovering chunks of land suspended by some unknown gravitational field. One report even made mention of a damaged World War II era bomber mysteriously emerging from the sky and crashing, with no sign of any bodies and bizarre crystalline projections jutting from the hull. That one made me wonder if both came from the same dimension or the bomber was transported to another dimension or the crystals vice versa.

As interesting as all these events were, though-I'm sure Haruhi would absolutely love reading all these reports-we were all focused on finding a major similarity. Fortunately, it seemed Ryoko B had reached a breakthrough. Everyone turned to her as she began to manipulate the central display to illustrate her findings.

"I've been marking the locations of all the occurrences," she explained. A map of some territory appeared, with a series of red dots spotting it to indicate the site of the reports. It quickly became apparent what she'd found when a large cluster of them left a red stain on a particular area of the map. "A majority of them occurred in highly close proximity to one another. As you can see, the red cluster shows that most of the phenomena happened within this area."

"Where exactly is 'there' though?" asks my counterpart.

Ryoko B zooms out the map until we're looking at the Middle East. "Jebel al-Madhbah, in Jordan. Close to the ancient city of Petra."

I blinked. So did Ryoko A. Much as I loved the hell out of all these ancient locations which promised forbidden artefacts and supernatural curses, I'd never once heard of Petra. So, forgive my response, which was little more than an undignified "Huh?"

It was at this point Nagato B finally decided to speak up. "Petra is believed to have been constructed around the 5th Centruy, BCE. The entire city has been carved from the mountainside of Jebel al-Madhbah. A narrow gorge known as the Siq provides entry to the city. At the end of it lies Petra's most notable landmark, the Al Khazneh. It's considered an important world heritage site, but the instability of the Middle East area and the increasing abnormal activity are high threats to its preservation."

Spoken in true Nagato fashion; when she's got something to say, she lets it out in a torrent. That somewhat clears up where the hell we're looking. Though I am a bit surprised it wasn't Nagato A who filled us in on this, given her broad knowledge. I guess it goes to show that no matter where I go, Nagato's always a genius.

"So we're headed to Petra?" I inquire.

"Nearby," corrected Asahina. "That's where most of the phenomena is concentrated. Will you be able to track it down once we're there?"

I put a hand to my chin in thought. "Not sure. Like I said, I've only been able to narrow it down to this dimension. I've no idea if getting closer to the source of the signature will make it more apparent to me."

Haruhi smiled. "Well, fortunately, we might have some help on that." She looks toward Nagato A. "Yuki, do you think you could bolster Kyon's sensory capabilities or otherwise pick up the signature he's looking for?"

Nagato A is silent for only a few seconds. Most likely, she's processing the viability of either plan. Eventually, her eyes focus on Haruhi. "I can perform both functions. It is possible for Kyon B to utilise me as a conduit for his detection of the dimensional signature. Additionally, by synchronising with his sensory abilities, I can determine the signature he's tracking and be more helpful in pinpointing its location."

With a nod, Haruhi turns her attention to the SOS Brigade of this world. "I want a task force assembled and ready for transport to Jordan in 8 hours. Make sure we have some appropriate equipment for our two guests as well."

"Hold on…there's three of us!" protests Ryoko A. "You're not thinking of leaving me behind, are you?!"

"We should only take who's necessary, Ryoko-chan," Haruhi calmly states. "I don't want to risk your life if there's no reason to. You'd be safer staying back here." She smiles to Ryoko. "Daijobu! I'll take good care of Kyon and Yuki! I'll do everything I have to get them back alive!"

"I can't just sit idly by! The whole reason I accompanied Kyon-kun to this dimension was to help him! If I can't do that much at least, I may as well have stayed home!" There's a bit of a pause at her outburst. After calming down, Ryoko A sighs. "I knew the dangers that would be involved. Kyon warned me about them beforehand. I'm prepared to accept the danger and do what I can! I've already found Yuki…" She places her hand on Nagato A's shoulder. "So if there's even any chance of finding anyone else from my world, I HAVE to go!"

Now the SOS Brigade is a bit conflicted. Haruhi looks to the other members only to receive indecisive responses. Might as well try to break the stalemate. "I believe she's ready for whatever lies ahead. If I didn't think she could handle it, I wouldn't have brought her with me. She'll be my responsibility, and Nagato A's should she be willing." Yuki gives me a nod in confirmation. Ryoko A gives me a warm smile and mouths 'thank you'.

"Hmmm…if the three of you are certain, then I guess we can allow it," concludes Haruhi. She nods and rises from her seat. "It's settled! Scratch the request of gear for two-make it three instead!"

"Suzumiya-san," speaks Ryoko B. "I'd like to volunteer for the duty of protecting and guarding the VIPs. Under any other circumstances, this may sound a bit egocentric, but…" She shoots a friendly smile to Ryoko A. "I think it'd be important to 'look out for myself', wouldn't you agree?"

Haruhi smirks. "As long as you're ready and willing, Ryoko! I'll assign the security of our guests to you." Ryoko A stands and salutes Haruhi before sitting back down. "By the way, Yuki A. Might be a good idea to do that whole 'synchronising' thing with Kyon before we leave."

"Understood." With barely a sound, Nagato A leaves her seat and approaches mine. I take this as a cue to get up myself. "Hold still please," she instructs. No sooner have I nodded than a pair of hands are now grabbing either side of my face gently and pulling head down towards…Nagato's?! Wait a minute! What are you trying to do?! I'm not interested in you like that, Nagato!

Ultimately, my panic was unnecessary, as all she did was touch her forehead to mine, closing her eyes like they were in concentration for a few seconds. Soon enough, she'd released my head and pulled back, separating our brief contact. I stood there still a bit flustered while Nagato was her usual, stoic self. "Synchronisation complete," she announced. "I'll be able to detect the desired signature when you focus on it, allowing me to identify the wavelength and detect it myself. Additionally, I shall bolster your ability to perceive the signature."

Everyone else in the room had been watching, obviously expecting the same thing I was. Ryoko A and B were giving awkward glances. Asahina was still blushing over what she thought was going to happen. Tsuruya was…well, laughing as she would in situations like this. Koizumi had that annoying as hell grin on his face, obviously amused by my confusion. Nagato B was like Nagato A, betraying no emotion. What caught me off guard was the glare Haruhi was giving behind a jealous blush while my counterpart looked like he was trying to supress laughter.

"What's the matter, Haruhi?" he teased, giggling slightly. "Jealous? Were you imagining our dear Nagato putting the moves on me like that?"

"S-shut up!" shouts Haruhi. "It isn't like that all!"

Yare yare…