Yay for fast updating! I guess you count on me not to leave you in the dark for too long! Enjoy!

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Something about my current predicament this was reminding me of a sci-fi flick I had seen some time ago. It was one of those cheesy B-movies; where the special effects were so bad that they make want to kill yourself by shoving your head into the television. In this specific, badly made movie; the main character ends up getting killed by the one girl who he never paid any attention to. She was psychotically in love with him; but he never gave her a chance.

So she kills him. With a sledgehammer. I stopped watching after that. The movie freaked me out; to tell the truth.

Was I in a similar situation? Of course I was.

There was a girl walking towards me. Her name was Ryoko Asakura; and she was a human interface that had tried to kill me only a few months ago. Yuki Nagato, another human interface, had narrowly prevented my demise. She wiped Asakura-san's data signature from this world. I had watched the blue-haired human interface evaporate in front of me.

But now she was back. And she had the same overly cheerful smile on her face; as she approached me with the grace of a swan. But I wasn't admiring her looks or anything like that. I was more scared than ever. Because the first thought that went through my mind was as such.

I'm going to die. There's no running away from it this time. There was no Yuki Nagato to defend me now.

And so; I had no choice but to kneel in defeat. I closed my eyes and let my arms fall to my sides. I guess I lived a good life. Was there much left to say?

"Just make it painless, Asakura-san. If you can do that; I'll be able to get through dying much more easily."

In the back of my mind; I hope Ryoko had enough mercy to at least grant me the right to a quick and possibly painless end. I always thought that whenever the day I did die came; it would be a death in which I might painlessly pass away in my sleep. An ideal way to die; I might say.

But nothing ideal really ever comes to me, does it?

And so; I waited. I waited for the knife blade to come cutting right into my jugular vein. I waited to feel my blood splash out in front of me like someone had spilled a pitcher of dark red fruit punch. I waited; but the sensations of pain and agony never came. The feeling of a blade cutting into my skin never came. I only heard Asakura-san's voice again.

"Kill you? Why would I do that? Killing you isn't really on my agenda."

My eyes snapped open as if they had been held shut by rubber bands. Asakura-san stood in front of me without a weapon in either of her hands. It was easy for anyone to notice that she had all the beauty that Taniguchi kept talking about. She was no Haruhi; however.

"Wait a second…you're not going to slice off my head? What the hell are you keeping me against my will for! I want some an-"

I only stopped talking when I felt Ryoko put a single finger on my lips to silence me. I was staring right into her shimmering, azure eyes now, and they had a strange unearthly sense to them. To me; it was easy to tell that she wasn't human. The smile on her face wasn't plastic like Itsuki's; but it had something to it that seemed inherently evil. Even though from afar Ryoko might just seem like a nice school girl; I would always know what she really was. I would always know what she hid from everyone else. But I guess you expect knowing that information after the same girl tries to kill you.

"I don't need to kill you. If I needed to kill you; the said action would be done already. No; I'm here to inform you of forthcoming data. Or as you humans might call; future events." Ryoko told me; her voice brimming with a cheerfulness that could nearly match Suzumiya-san's.

What? She's not here to kill me…but to just tell me stuff? That doesn't make any sense! Can someone please tell me what the hell is going on here!?!

"If you're not here to kill me…why are you here then?" I asked this human interface; slightly backing away from her in the process. Though I was on the ground and couldn't actually crawl backwards very far; I couldn't help but not want to be so close to her.

Ryoko smiled at me; fully standing up so that she was now looking down at me. To anyone else; it could have been described as many things. Sweet, cute, genuine and possibly even attractive might have been words that Taniguchi or any other equally ignorant person might use. I think I prefer "untrustworthy."

"There is much you do not know. For a human; you seem to be remarkably ignorant. Suzumiya has so much going on around her that you have no idea of. She has so much potential. And it continues to stay untapped."

I'm ignorant? You mean I'm always left in the dark all the time! I'm the one who ends up never being told anything! I just hear exactly the amount that's required; and nothing more! If anything; I try to stay far from ignorant!

Nevertheless; Ryoko continued to speak; her back facing me and her voice overflowing with cheerfulness. Where Yuki showed no emotion in her manner of speaking; Ryoko showed happiness in excess.

"It wasn't hard to reassemble myself. While Nagato-san might have managed to cause my deconstruction; she failed to eliminate me completely. Data isn't hard to manipulate, so it only took me a few months to finally reassemble myself. I have to commend her; she separated me well."

So she was just telling me her whole life story? Why reveal your secrets to your enemies? This sounded not only stupid; but not at all productive. I always thought that the real villains in fiction never told anyone of their plots and schemes. Monologues are utterly useless; if you ask me.

"It's so easy to manipulate the way Suzumiya thinks. She can be so impulsive. It's very interesting to observe her reaction to everything. Especially when things don't go her way."

I didn't like what Ryoko was alluding to. I began to think back. The crane. The island. The Kongamato…

I was starting to question exactly what we had seen. Could it be that…….we never saw the Kongamato at all? Perhaps…

My thinking stopped. I looked back for a second. Then I looked forward. Ryoko still wasn't facing me. Realizing this might be my only chance; I stood up, and made a run for it.

It would be a lie to say I made it very far. After running for only a few feet, I hit something in front of me; hard. Whatever it was; it stopped my progress, and caused me to fall right backwards into the asphalt. And falling on your head is not the best thing in the world. I could already see stars flashing in front of my eyes as I lay on the ground; disoriented.

"I told you that you shouldn't try to run. There's no escape from this data space."

Ryoko's face was now right over mine as she looked down at me. I was lying on the ground as I looked up into her eyes. Something was telling me she was annoyed, but the expression on her face didn't show it at all. Her blue hair slightly bounced as she looked down at me. She was still smiling. I beginning to think her smile was far worse than Itsuki's.

"You don't understand the gravity of this situation. Something of great observational merit is going to occur soon. Causing Suzumiya to believe that she had failed in finding her monster was just the trigger. The precursor to the final outcome." Ryoko told me; her eyes glaring into mine even though they seemed like they were carefree rather than angry.

So she's saying that the whole monster thing was a fake? We hadn't actually seen a Kongamato at all. This was reminding me of the act Itsuki put up, where he "created" a fake Agency member with his esper abilities. Damn it! I really hate all these illusions! Why can't everything just be guaranteed real for once?

"That creature you and Suzumiya saw; that was just me. The island Suzumiya chose just happened to be the very same one in which I was able to reconstruct myself. I don't know if it was blind luck or fate; but it was certainly helpful. It wasn't hard to make her start disbelieving. All it took was turning into a monster one minute; and then becoming a crane the next. If you knew what data manipulation was like, you'd realize what I was talking about."

Ugh. Even the human interface finds the need to talk down to me. Isn't there a point to all this ranting? Something about Haruhi? It's always something about Haruhi.

"And your point is…" I said; already beginning to feel more bored than threatened. It seemed that if Ryoko wanted to actually kill me, she wouldn't be wasting time with the things she was telling me.

"The point is simple. My purpose has been re-established upon my reconstruction. Nagato-san had no knowledge of my existence, and the fact she is becoming human herself only helps my situation. Perhaps I'll just kill her when I find the time. But there's only one thing important to me now."

Unless I was crazy; it seemed that Ryoko was basically telling me everything that I needed to or wanted to know. I was getting the entire breadth of her plans. She was literally revealing it all.

"And that might be?"

I couldn't help but ask a question like that. Asakura was practically begging me to ask her more about all this. I think the fact she had started her monologue in the beginning was my first hint.

"The largest output of data that has ever been recorded. Simply put; the destruction of the omniverse."

The words that came out of Ryoko's mouth came to me as clear as crystal. I had heard the word "omniverse" multiple times before; and Yuki had explained it as "the ensemble of all universes that encompass reality." But when Ryoko mentioned the fact that there was going to be a destruction of the omniverse; my mind couldn't help but immediately start worrying. I was worrying to the max now.

"I don't believe you." I replied; trying to sound unsure. This was all mostly done so that I could get Asakura-san to reveal more. If I could find out anymore information that could be relayed to Itsuki, Yuki or Mikuru; then I just might be able to prevent whatever event Ryoko was talking about.

"You should, human. Suzumiya is slowly beginning to lose her faith. And with her faith goes her ability to manipulate data. Once she's completely lost it; the omniverse will just collapse on itself. It will be the largest data explosion to ever be seen. It's a shame you won't be able to observe it." Ryoko replied to me; the same smile still on her face as she spoke with an almost genuine sense of excitement at the concept of reality ending.

I wasn't too excited about it. And I doubt that anyone else would be too excited if they knew this. There's not much excitement to the end of all reality.

"Why are you telling me all this? How do you know I'm not going to find a way to stop it all? I could easily tell….certain people." I asked; finally getting the courage to stand up. There was still an apparent nervousness in my voice; mostly because I was deathly afraid of the fact this exclamation could very well get me killed.

"The people you think you'll be telling won't know what you're speaking of. The fact that Suzumiya is losing her abilities is affecting much more than you know. It's already affected memories. We don't have long before everything ends. It's going to be so beautiful….I can't wait."

I have to say that the way Ryoko said the last part was far creepier than any smile that Koizumi has ever given me. Yuki Nagato was a human interface like Ryoko; but she didn't seem like she wanted everything to end. From what I could see; Asakura-san was getting a kick out of the whole concept.

"I don't give up that easily. For all you know; I have powers that I can use against you!" I answered back; making my voice sound as threatening as possible; even though what I was saying was in fact a really, really big lie. And to top it all off; I was scared to hell. I was just good at hiding it.

"I'm not stupid, human. I know you're not special at all. You're just like the rest of your race. Absorbed in your own insignificant lives. You humans are all the same. I don't see why Nagato-san has any interest in you at all." Ryoko responded; a smile still on her face, but her voice showing signs of doubt. I'm guessing she didn't really believe what I said.

"I've said what I needed to say. There isn't much time left. You might as well do the things you need to do. I doubt I'll be seeing you again."

With that; I watched as Ryoko looked at me curiously. It was almost as if I was some sort of new toy, and I watched one of her hands start coming close to my face. I didn't know what she planned on doing; but I didn't want to be around to find out.

But when I tried to move; it felt like my legs were stuck in cement. I couldn't move a muscle. And Ryoko's single finger was now approaching my forehead. I felt multiple beads of sweat. I guess my time really has come.

I've lived a good life, right? Being with Suzumiya-san is pretty great. The fact she's been able to spice up my life all this time has just been great in general. I'm pretty sure I'd like to see her again. Tell her I'm sorry for the way I act sometimes. Tell her that I l-….

I think you get the point.

But now; I close my eyes. All that was left was to wait for the inevitable.

When Ryoko Asakura's single finger touched my forehead; I felt like someone had just flushed me down a toilet. My eyes remained closed shut as my body felt like it was being tossed around left and right. I didn't know where I was; but I certainly could tell that I was feeling moved. The sound in my ears was deafening. I was just waiting for my head to explode already. I expected this to be quick.

But before I could think another thought; it all suddenly stopped.

Everything had just become calm. I wearily opened my eyes.

I looked up to see a ceiling. It was a ceiling I had always been familiar with. It was the ceiling to my room. I groaned to myself; sitting up in my bed. The sun was already up outside, and my clock signified that it was the usual time I might get up for school.

I guess I didn't die yet. And even I wasn't stupid enough to think that I had just had another crazy dream. No; that was very real. And there was only one person I wanted to see now.

The process of getting to school involved me sprinting with the speed of a track runner along my usual hiking route. It was not something I did often; but it was necessary. All that was important to me now was seeing Haruhi. I needed to try and convince her in some way that the world wasn't as boring as she was thinking. If I was lucky; Itsuki might even be able to assist me. I should warn Yuki too. Ryoko had said she planned on possibly killing Nagato-san in her now human state. Come to think of it; I have to warn them all.

There was no time to lose. I felt like a god all of a sudden as my legs carried me towards North High with speed that even I didn't think I had. Sure, I probably looked ridiculous. In fact; this high speed running seemed more like something Suzumiya-san would do.

But it wasn't important right now. What was important was getting to Haruhi. I wanted to get to her as quickly as possible.

Needless to say; my running probably allowed me to evade Taniguchi this morning. I ran up the stairs to my classroom with vigor. Everything in my mind revolved around Suzumiya-san. In truth; I didn't even know what I was going to say to her. I had barely any idea what I was going to say to anyone. But none of that mattered. The point was to get to her.

I couldn't help but wonder what Haruhi was thinking when she watched me run into the class room; sweat on my brow. I was heaving as I approached her. It seemed that she had been looking through the window as usual; but now I had become her new interest as I speedily walked towards her.

"Kyon? What's all the running for?" she asked me as I approached, but I ignored her question. My breath came and went in sharp intervals. I was tired as hell; but there was a lot that needed to be said.

And without even a second thought; I sat right in front of Suzumiya-san; taking her by the hand as I faced her. My expression was a mixture of exhaustion and seriousness. I didn't even have the strength to sigh. But I did happen to notice that Haruhi was beginning to blush more than I've ever seen her blush.

"What do you think you're doing!?!?" she exclaimed at me; suddenly standing up from her chair as she disconnected her hand from mine. Her face was looking partially beet red, not to mention confused.

What did I do this time?

"What gives you the right to just suddenly take your Brigade Chief's hand, Kyon? Since when did you get the impression that something like that was okay?" Haruhi asked me; her voice dead serious and her hands at her hips as she spoke. At this point; the entire class had noticed our situation. The stares were quite unnerving.

"Since…."

I couldn't finish my reply. That was mostly due to the fact that I already knew why this was happening. I could barely believe it; but it as happening.

Haruhi had forgotten everything. She's forgotten all the things that happened between us. She's forgotten what she said to me.

A few weeks ago; I might have been thrilled by something like this. I might have been glad that I could finally forget about dealing with Suzumiya-san. I could finally stop having these weird feelings for her.

But I did not. In fact; I couldn't help but just put my head down on my desk in total defeat. Because I wasn't feeling so good all of a sudden. Not so good at all….

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No; the story isn't ending soon. I'm just saying that the next update will occur in the next three or four days. Just so you all know; so you don't accuse me of giving up on this, which I would never do.

Hey; even I need a break sometimes. You guys will just have to wait. :)