A dim-lit space.

  At first, I thought I was still atop that void-like sea, but there was no moon.

  Simply reminiscent light seeping from corners beyond my reach.

  As my eyes adjusted to the darkness, I found myself surrounded by shelves and tall stacks of books. In just that small area, I could tell there were more books than the library at school.

  Curious, I reached out and grabbed one of the books from the shelves.

  “Societal Studies Volume 2: Peer Pressure.” I said, reading the title. “Peer pressure…?”

  I opened the book up to take a look inside. The instant I opened it, however, information flooded by mind.

  I stumbled over, dropping the book as I quickly placed my hand on the shelf to steady myself.

  ~Peer pressure is direct or indirect influence from friends or acquaintances. It refers to the fact that people in a closeknit group can influence a person’s beliefs, behaviors, and values but it more-so refers to members of a group pushing their ways onto another who is unwilling…

  It was if everything in the book directly implanted itself into my brain. Every word, every sentence, every line, every page. I had memorized it all in an instant despite not even reading it.

  Coughing as I regained my balance, I leaned over to pick up the book once again.

  But when I opened it this time, its pages were blank.

  “Huh…?”

  Confused, I flipped through the pages of the book over and over. But it was all empty. There wasn’t even a dot or mark on any of the pages.

  Frustrated, I closed the book abruptly and took another look at its cover again.

  “Memory.” The title now read.

  Instantly, the book began to glow white and began to vanish from my hands.

  ~Memory. Memory. Memory. Mem-ory. Me-mo…

  The word echoed in my head again, resounding like a broken record.

  “Memory.” My voice called out, as if in response.

  But I had not spoken a word.

  A small figure walked by me holding a book. His physique and aura felt familiar.

  So I decided to follow him.

  “According to human psychology studies, memory is a composition of information recorded in the brain from the past. The brain naturally separates this into three categories.”

  The small figure’s voice was calm, steady, almost monotone — like someone reading aloud from a textbook they memorized long ago. It sounded very much like my own voice.

  But I froze. Looking at his backside closely, his height seemed identical to mine and his hair was also the same pure white. Not to mention…

  ~Three categories? I know this, don’t I? But… why can’t I remember…?

  The figure didn’t slow down.

  “Sensory memory, short-term memory, and long-term memory.”

  The words echoed through the dim space, bouncing off the shelves and books like they were being spoken by a hundred voices at once.

  “Sensory memory records immediate impressions from the environment. Normally, it only lasts only a fraction of a second.”

  He turned a corner between two stacks of books, I continued my silent pursuit. But—

  ~Doesn’t this place seem rather big? It’s like a labyrinth with all these books around.

  “Short-term memory holds information temporarily. It is limited in capacity and duration.”

  His footsteps made no sound. He turned a corner again.

  This time, I nearly bumped into him.

  He turned his head in my direction and first the first time I saw his face.

  It was me.

  In his hand, the title of the book read.

  “Cognitive Foundations: Memory Systems.”

  The other me turned away and continued to walk. I followed once again, a bit disoriented by the revelation.

  “And long-term memory stores information indefinitely. It is vast, durable, and shaped by repetition, emotion, and meaning.”

  The boy eventually sat at a large desk, curved like a crescent moon, surrounded and covered by books on all sides. He placed the book down in the center of the desk, sat up, and seemed to stare directly at me— or rather, through me.

  My body felt cold, frozen in place as his— my golden eyes pierced through me.

  “As someone named the ‘God of Memory’, our memory is evolving past human limitation.”

  I stood still, listening to his every word.

  “All our memory is quickly becoming long-term memory, sensory and short-term alike. Through the repetitive process of recall, rehearsal, and recollection, every memory we gain solidifies into long-term memories almost instantaneously as we re-experience those memories in endless second-long cycles.”

  The boy— the other me— stood to his feet. The books around him began to shift and stir, as if moving on their own.

  “Furthermore, mortals of this realm have come up with a philosophical theorem called the omniverse, where every action or inaction one does not take creates an alternate timeline where that action or inaction was taken. It would seem memories from every past, present, or future we’ve lived is seeping through and synchronizing across every iteration of the God of Memory.”

  Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

  The books shook violently, beginning to rise into the air and glow faintly with light.

  “Our ability may be too powerful for us to withstand, especially without understanding. The power of memory, I mean.”

  The books opened as they flew into the air, pages flipping rapidly.

  Information began to flood my brain.

  Histories.

  Places.

  People.

  Fantasies. .

  Futures.

  “As we may have already realized, we are able to wield and recreate anything within our memories. But there is more to it than that.”

  I began to cough. My body felt heavy. My consciousness began to waver.

  The books glew brightly, vanishing one by one as their information seeped into my very soul.

  “We are also able to build from those memories to create the nonexistent and cause the impossible.”

  I fell to my knees, my hands clasping at nothing on the ground as I looked up at the boy who now stood above me.

  “No wonder Ener warned us not to enter the mortal realm. We are Outer Gods, after all. We don’t belong on this plane of existence. It’s too dangerous… for everyone.”

  He kneeled down. Small bursts of light flashing behind him as each book disappeared.

  “We can feel it, too. The memories consuming us, the need to fight for dominance as we merge into together into that endless sea. I’m sure it’s alot harder on the original.”

  The shelves shuddered again.

  More books rose into the air.

  More pages flipped.

  More knowledge seeped into me without end.

  “Soon it will consume me too. So in hopes to help my other self, I have compiled and absorbed all the knowledge on this place called Earth to the best of my ability with the time that I had. To assist me in this pursuit, I have implanted and sealed these memories within books for better management. All for the day I would meet the original.”

  My head throbbed as I struggled to stand back up.

  My vision fractured into overlapping images— worlds I didn’t know, faces I’ve never met, events I never lived.

  “I hope this will be of help to you and I apologize for the pain. But—”

  The boy glanced behind him. The number of books had begun to diminish. There were only a few left. Looking down at himself, he took had begun to glow and fade.

  “Looks like my time is almost up. Remember this, Noki:”

  He gave me a stern look.

  “Not every iteration is as compassionate and thoughtful as I am. This is only the beginning.”

  And those were his last words as both him and the last of the books vanished from sight.

  Crack. The sound of rupture screamed out like lightning.

  The sound tore through the air like a lightning strike splitting stone.

  Another crack followed.

  Then another.

  Each one louder, sharper, more violent than the last.

  The floor beneath me fractured like glass under pressure.

  Hairline fissures spread outward in every direction, glowing with blinding white light.

  ~N-no… not again…!

  I staggered backward, but there was nowhere to run.

  The shelves split down the middle.

  Bookshelves toppled.

  Stacks of books collapsed into the widening void.

  The entire world was breaking apart.

  The dim light overhead flickered wildly, then burst into shards of brilliance that rained down like falling stars.

  My breath caught in my throat.

  The cracks converged beneath my feet.

  The ground gave way.

  I fell.

  The library shattered completely, exploding into a storm of pages, letters, and fragments of memories that spiraled around me like a cyclone.

  I reached out instinctively—

  for something,

  for anything,

  for a hand,

  for a surface,

  for a memory that wasn’t slipping away.

  But there was nothing to grab.

  Only the endless white void swallowing everything.

  The voice of the other me echoed faintly as I plummeted:

  “This is only the beginning.”

  The last remnants of the library dissolved into dust.

  The world inverted.

  And then—

  …

  I gasped out for air.

  My consciousness had slammed back into my body.

  I coughed a few times and began to look around in a panic.

  ~Wh-where am I?

  I found myself in a small space, on a bed with curtains around it.

  The ceiling light’s fluorescent glow spread above me with inviting warmth.

  ~Isn’t this…?

  “Yoiya!”

  The curtain flew open and there stood two girls with faces filled with worry.

  I recognized them immediately: Ake Mori and Mia Yuruichi. My classmate and sister.

  Mia threw herself at me and hugged me as quickly as she possibly could.

  “I was so worried!” Mia cried out.

  Mia continued to hug me intensely, her eyes weeping. I nervously pat her on the back, trying to comfort her.

  I looked over to Ake for an explanation.

  “I called the teacher and we brought you here to the nurse’s office. She said you were just exhausted but… you wouldn’t wake up.” Ake said, clasping her hands together and pressing them against her chest. “You really gave me a scare there, Yoiya. Don’t do that to me again, alright?”

  “R-right… I’ll try my best not to…”

  Peeping out from behind them were five others: Yoshito Morita, my teacher; and the members of the Tea Time Book Club; Raneko, Mashiro, Eliba, and Rea.

  “You guys are here too…?” I said, looking at the club members.

  “Oho! So the legendary transfer decided to woke up, did he?” Mashiro said with a grin.

  Raneko chopped her on the hand with his hand then smiled at me. “We heard you fainted, so we came to check up on you.”

  “Huh…? But… what about classes?”

  “Huehuehue. The school day’s already over, Yuru-kun! We’ve been waiting her for a whole hour, ya know! Show a little appreciation to your amazing leader.”

  Eliba just let out a small sigh and looked away from me the moment we made eye contact.

  “...Glad you’re… okay.” Rea said, her voice soft but stuttering.

  I looked away, embarrassed. “Yeah… I’m good now. Thanks…”

  Still tired, I plopped back down onto the bed, shielding my eyes from the light with my hand as I closed them.

  And in that momentary darkness, I saw the half-moon.

  It pulsed.

  Slow.

  Deliberate.

  As if waiting.

  I exhaled shakily as the words of the other me— or I guess I could call them the librarian doppelganger— echoed once more in my head.

  ~”This is only the beginning.”