Disclaimer: I do not own NGE.
Prologue
Dreams.
Red fire. A man standing over the small fire. The man's face is very sad. The man takes out a shoebox, filled with glossy pieces of paper. Pictures. Pictures of the man. Pictures of the man with a woman. And a small child. They are smiling. The man is smiling in the pictures, but he is very sad. Why is he sad? The sad man takes a look at the pictures. And he throws them into the fire. Stop! Do not throw them into the fire! I feel myself running, trying to stop one final picture from floating into the flames. I turn to the sad man. I am angry. Why am I angry? I do not know. I catch the last picture of the man with the woman and a child. I turn to him. But I am crying. Why am I crying?
"Gendou, what the hell are you doing!" Who is that? I recognize that voice. That voice is me.
"Ezekiel, the project's over. Yui is gone." the sad man talks to me. He does not look at me, but I know that he is talking to me.
"What are you talking about, Gendou. There's still a chance for her to come back, don't do this to yourself!" I hear myself again. Why do I care about the sad man so much?
"Ezekiel, you know what that means." he says to me.
"I know, that, but we can't give up just yet, Gendou, don't you see?" I know. What do I know? I see what I know. There is the woman again. She can come back and make the sad man happy. But to make her come back, I see myself in great pain. Very great pain.
The sad man looks at me now. He knows that I will be hurt to get the woman back.
"Ezekiel, no! Yui is important to me, but that is just a fool's risk. I cannot allow you to do it." he looks at me. I feel in his voice that he cares about that I will feel great pain also.
"Gendou, the three of us did this project together, but Yui was the one who started all of it. Without her, the angels might be stopped in the future. And there is not a snowball's chance in hell that she will not see the future. Not if I can help it." I say. What are the Angels? Why do I feel such anger towards them, but sadness also? I think I am an Angel. No, I am not an Angel. I am like an Angel, but I do not destroy like the angels. And also, if I try to destroy like an Angel, nothing can stop me. I am afraid. Why am I afraid?
The sad man looks at me and he cries. He cries to me. "I want her back so much, Ezekiel, but you'll suffer. And what about Shinji. God, what about Shinji? I can't take care of him like this."
I grab the man by the shoulders and shake him so that he will listen. "Ikari, snap out of it. Your future is more important than mine. I don't care what'll happen to me. I can't stand to see you like this."
The sad man looks at me, but he is not so sad anymore. He is still sad, but just not as much. "Thank you..." he tells me.
I see a big room. I think Gendou said it was a hangar? Yes, it is a hangar. I stand in the middle of the hangar, in a suit. It sticks to me very tight, but a good tight. I hear Gendou's voice in the intercom. "Ezekiel, are you ready?" I nod and give him a thumbs up. They lead me into a room. They put me in a glass tank. Then they go to another room, next door, but they can still see me through a glass window.
The tube fills with something. It smells like something familiar. I cannot say what, but it is very familiar, but I grow angry because of it. Why am I angry? Some red lights shine and someone says that I am "contaminated" I hear Gendou's voice in the intercom again. He is trying to calm me. To stop me from becoming an Angel. But I am not an Angel. I am something much worse. A lady is saying something called "Blue" pattern is recorded. Now I know why I was afraid. If I become an Angel, I will hurt them. I do not want to hurt them. They are saying something about putting me is stasis, putting me in lockdown. Gendou is trying to stop them. "No, there has to be another way. He can fight it. No!" they take Gendou away. I am angrier now. They are hurting my friend. Suddenly, I feel pain. The thing that they filled the tube with is hardening. I am angry with this also. Outside, they are talking about lockdown again. "Sir, the subject, the stasis was working a while ago, but he's resisting." "The pod can't take any more pressure". I look at them. But instead of feeling anger, I am afraid again. I am afraid to hurt them again. I stop fighting the thing inside the tube with me. It is hardening, and I am feeling the great pain that I knew I was going to feel. But I do not care. I will not hurt anyone again. Outside, Gendou has escaped the men that were holding him. He goes into the room I am in. He looks at me through the tube. He is attacking the tube. But the tube is strong. He cannot break it. "Ezekiel!" he tells me, and he is sad again. The men take him away again. I say something. The thing is almost completely hardened, but I talk to Gendou one last time. "Live on, Gendou. I'm sorry I couldn't get Yui back for you..." Gendou looks at me again as they take him out of the room. I am sure he heard me, and he is saying something to me also, but the thing is now hard everywhere. I do not hear what Gendou says. I am alone. I am alone with only the pain left.
Authors notes:
There, the prologue to "The Alternative". There was another important person in Gendou's life that was taken by the Angels, even though indirectly. This is his story. What is this person, anyway? He says he is an angel, but not an angel at the same time? And why does he say he could have gotten Yui back if he tried. What went wrong. Just wait, the answers will come.
Prologue
Dreams.
Red fire. A man standing over the small fire. The man's face is very sad. The man takes out a shoebox, filled with glossy pieces of paper. Pictures. Pictures of the man. Pictures of the man with a woman. And a small child. They are smiling. The man is smiling in the pictures, but he is very sad. Why is he sad? The sad man takes a look at the pictures. And he throws them into the fire. Stop! Do not throw them into the fire! I feel myself running, trying to stop one final picture from floating into the flames. I turn to the sad man. I am angry. Why am I angry? I do not know. I catch the last picture of the man with the woman and a child. I turn to him. But I am crying. Why am I crying?
"Gendou, what the hell are you doing!" Who is that? I recognize that voice. That voice is me.
"Ezekiel, the project's over. Yui is gone." the sad man talks to me. He does not look at me, but I know that he is talking to me.
"What are you talking about, Gendou. There's still a chance for her to come back, don't do this to yourself!" I hear myself again. Why do I care about the sad man so much?
"Ezekiel, you know what that means." he says to me.
"I know, that, but we can't give up just yet, Gendou, don't you see?" I know. What do I know? I see what I know. There is the woman again. She can come back and make the sad man happy. But to make her come back, I see myself in great pain. Very great pain.
The sad man looks at me now. He knows that I will be hurt to get the woman back.
"Ezekiel, no! Yui is important to me, but that is just a fool's risk. I cannot allow you to do it." he looks at me. I feel in his voice that he cares about that I will feel great pain also.
"Gendou, the three of us did this project together, but Yui was the one who started all of it. Without her, the angels might be stopped in the future. And there is not a snowball's chance in hell that she will not see the future. Not if I can help it." I say. What are the Angels? Why do I feel such anger towards them, but sadness also? I think I am an Angel. No, I am not an Angel. I am like an Angel, but I do not destroy like the angels. And also, if I try to destroy like an Angel, nothing can stop me. I am afraid. Why am I afraid?
The sad man looks at me and he cries. He cries to me. "I want her back so much, Ezekiel, but you'll suffer. And what about Shinji. God, what about Shinji? I can't take care of him like this."
I grab the man by the shoulders and shake him so that he will listen. "Ikari, snap out of it. Your future is more important than mine. I don't care what'll happen to me. I can't stand to see you like this."
The sad man looks at me, but he is not so sad anymore. He is still sad, but just not as much. "Thank you..." he tells me.
I see a big room. I think Gendou said it was a hangar? Yes, it is a hangar. I stand in the middle of the hangar, in a suit. It sticks to me very tight, but a good tight. I hear Gendou's voice in the intercom. "Ezekiel, are you ready?" I nod and give him a thumbs up. They lead me into a room. They put me in a glass tank. Then they go to another room, next door, but they can still see me through a glass window.
The tube fills with something. It smells like something familiar. I cannot say what, but it is very familiar, but I grow angry because of it. Why am I angry? Some red lights shine and someone says that I am "contaminated" I hear Gendou's voice in the intercom again. He is trying to calm me. To stop me from becoming an Angel. But I am not an Angel. I am something much worse. A lady is saying something called "Blue" pattern is recorded. Now I know why I was afraid. If I become an Angel, I will hurt them. I do not want to hurt them. They are saying something about putting me is stasis, putting me in lockdown. Gendou is trying to stop them. "No, there has to be another way. He can fight it. No!" they take Gendou away. I am angrier now. They are hurting my friend. Suddenly, I feel pain. The thing that they filled the tube with is hardening. I am angry with this also. Outside, they are talking about lockdown again. "Sir, the subject, the stasis was working a while ago, but he's resisting." "The pod can't take any more pressure". I look at them. But instead of feeling anger, I am afraid again. I am afraid to hurt them again. I stop fighting the thing inside the tube with me. It is hardening, and I am feeling the great pain that I knew I was going to feel. But I do not care. I will not hurt anyone again. Outside, Gendou has escaped the men that were holding him. He goes into the room I am in. He looks at me through the tube. He is attacking the tube. But the tube is strong. He cannot break it. "Ezekiel!" he tells me, and he is sad again. The men take him away again. I say something. The thing is almost completely hardened, but I talk to Gendou one last time. "Live on, Gendou. I'm sorry I couldn't get Yui back for you..." Gendou looks at me again as they take him out of the room. I am sure he heard me, and he is saying something to me also, but the thing is now hard everywhere. I do not hear what Gendou says. I am alone. I am alone with only the pain left.
Authors notes:
There, the prologue to "The Alternative". There was another important person in Gendou's life that was taken by the Angels, even though indirectly. This is his story. What is this person, anyway? He says he is an angel, but not an angel at the same time? And why does he say he could have gotten Yui back if he tried. What went wrong. Just wait, the answers will come.