Waves of LCL

by PhalanxCrusader

A new age is upon us. Parts of the earth are never heard from anymore. Everyone is enveloped in darkness and the world is covered in amber liquid. For the remnants there is struggle and confusion, calamities, chaos. Follow our heroes as they try to make sense of the bursting sounds echoing over their red horizons. What is really behind this Great Angelic Invasion?

21. Fear Not

"Fear not for your war-stricken, poverty-ridden planet…" The words resounded off of the wall-mounted monitor. It was time for the mandatory broadcast. On the background was a golden eagle perched with a red border around the banner. A clear mark of the Successors.

The Spaniard known as Sergio leaned back in the lush recliner. All of the luxuries were afforded to him here… all of them. Berlin was, after all, the wealthiest and most industrious city left on earth, bar Zion of course. Fine imported Cuban cigars were sprawled out by size on a tablecloth, which was on top of an ornate glass table within his reach. A sample of alcoholic beverages stood before him. A fine vintage bottle of wine from Italy as well as a rare Irish whiskey which was said to have been in the barrel for 70 years. Sergio brought his right hand to the table, apparently unsure of which to pick.

"You are not forgotten. Help is on the way…"

He finally settled on the fine vintage wine, unscrewed the cork, and drank straight from the bottle. His eyes darkened as he stared at the monitor. He would need alcohol tonight.

Sergio was a top-ranking United Nations councilman representing the centralized sector of Spain from its capital of Madrid, yet in truth his origins were down south in Córdoba. However, ever since the Third Impact, it was debatable if Sergio really represented much of anything anymore. The political structures of the world, in fact the very world itself had changed dramatically since that fateful day. The Great waters had reclaimed many portions of the earth. In fact, nearly three fourths of Spain was now claimed by that strange sea of LCL, as well as the entirety of Portugal. The Mediterranean had literally enlarged itself overnight, as well as the Atlantic to the west. Much of Italy was lost, in fact all the way up to the Alps… however, miraculously, Rome still stood. Many said it was a divine act of providence on God's behalf, saving that age-old city, where the Vatican stood. However, the city was a ghost-town. No-one was found or ever heard of again in old Rome. All of its inhabitants were considered gone, dead, or swallowed up by that mysterious sea…

"War is a liar. See what the ambition of the old world has brought down upon us all…"

And the sad thing was, there were so many places like that… the world was in chaos now. The waters had taken much of France, from both sides. Paris, as of yet remained, yet the constant violence and murders in the street, coupled with a severely diminished population, left nothing of its former prominence. Sergio could go on and on with the list in his head… Much of the Balkans had been reclaimed to the sea. The ever strife-ridden Eastern Europe to the southeast was either non-existent, reclaimed by the sea, or a haven for the lawless and pillagers. The dykes had burst forth in the Netherlands. It was a tragedy… it was horrendous. Sergio had not a home to return to, but it was like that everywhere in the world he imagined. So many places were dead, and so many places had lost contact. Even in Europe, in the UN nations states that had not received the brunt of the ravishing, whole towns and cities lay deserted across the maps… Nation's capitols were severely under populated. It was anyone's guess how many people were still out there in the world, let alone what nations remained with a governing body.

The estimate that Berlin had touted was that 4 billion people were gone overnight… however, somehow Sergio figured that it had to be much more somehow. He rose from the lush chair and walked over to his window to see the view of the brilliant skyline from his apartment building on the 52nd floor. The view was… breathtaking. The lights of old Berlin dotted the skyline, progress seemed to be resuming as normal.

But Sergio was not fooled.

It's all a lie… he thought solemnly.

Sergio, as many of the other UN councilman had done, was allowed to return to the UN alliance, however they were told that Berlin was their destination. When Sergio had landed here in Berlin, the last bastion of the UN states, the seat of power and the economic powerhouse of the European Union, he knew that they had done a tremendous job of cleaning up the streets and disposing of certain… angry masses. As he glanced out the window, there were many lights in the skyline, but what caught his attention even more was how dark most of the city looked. How… empty, deserted compared to the Berlin of old. Many buildings were vacant, and the ever-growing slums were where most resided now in the capital.

"But I am telling you, friends… look to the horizon. There is hope. A new age is coming…"

Sergio looked back to the monitor, the bottle of wine still in his hand and he took a long, hard swig of the stuff. There was now the outline of a person that could be seen in front of that banner, though his figure was cloaked in darkness. Yet, Sergio had a pretty good guess as to who it was…

Richard… he thought, as he had done so many times since that fateful day. The memory haunted him, it gnawed at him inside. He clenched his teeth and let those same emotions overtake his being. His eyes began to water.

Why did I do nothing! I did not even stand… none of us did. Oh Richard… I should be dead with you… Why am I still alive!?

At the end of the day, it would seem that Sergio had taken the route of a coward as opposed to standing up for what he believed in. He was forced, day after day, night after night, to re-live the death of perhaps the one man who could bring back order to the UN alliance… his friend. Yet what kind of friend would desert them in their hour of need? That girl… oh he had been so shocked, so terrified. He was going to stand up, he told himself that he was, but what had happened next… She had plunged the dagger straight into his throat and he... he…

He did nothing.

"Many of our family are gone… Our brothers, our sisters, our spouses… but the fact is that here we are today! We remain, we have survived the great turmoil!"

The tears came more freely now for Sergio, perhaps partly due to the alcohol, but more so from his all-consuming guilt. The draining words that were running from the monitor seemed to add to his self-torment.

Oh Richard… oh how I miss you… he thought as he closed his eyes.

In that moment Sergio felt like Judas… he literally felt as if he had betrayed the one most important to him.

"The age of the Angels is no more! We have torn them down from their lofty positions… we have withstood the invasion, my friends. We are victorious!"

Sergio felt numb all over. He took another long swig of the wine and let the warmth spread throughout his being, in a feeble attempt to sooth him.

No… I have to be strong… he thought. If only for his friend, there was something he still had to do as of yet. Somewhere he had to go.

"The old world, and all its hatred and misery has passed away. Look outside to the oceans my friends! And know… know that this suffering was the result of these greedy, war-mongering tyrants!"

At that point, the pictures of two men appeared on the screen. It was those of one Keel Lorenz and one Gendo Ikari.

Sergio looked at them with a serious look and continued to stew in his own thoughts.

"But lo, they are no more. And the work of their hands has passed away. Yes… there has been suffering, but we survive. In the end, the dawn is shining brightly upon our futures. My brothers, we are like the phoenix that rises out of the ashes… more glorious! Stronger! Brighter than ever before…"

Sergio took another drink, but finally could take it no more. He smashed the bottle against the wall, and its contents streamed down onto the floor below. It looked so much like blood.

But no more, Sergio was done. Just the act of doing… this of partaking in these pleasures was literally pissing on Richard's grave. The UN councilmen had been promised a life of prosperity, wealth, and pleasure if they decided to remain in Berlin, in that grand union.

"We are the Successors… and we have returned to this world in its hour of desperate need! The old ways are gone, and we are here for your future. My friends…"

The black silhouette of a person on the monitor picked up a special identification card and held it close to the camera for all to see.

"This is a dual-citizenship card. As a sign of trust from this Great Alliance that is to be penned in Berlin, every person… EVERY CITIZEN who has this will have all of their needs provided. Join this great new world of ours… You will have access to food, shelter, our highest institutions of learning, healthcare, riches, everything… EVERYTHING will be yours…"

At this point, Sergio was done with the man who would not reveal himself behind the silhouette. He held up his own UN/Successor citizenship card and looked at it intently.

"The wheels of progress are churning again... the Federal Reserve has been re-established in old Washington D.C. For those of us that survive… business is booming. We are making it happen. You need not survive in some pallor, squalid life in this ruined world… nay! For us who persist, we can live in abundance! We can live gloriously!"

Sergio looked at the lighter that was on the table next to the cigars.

"My friends… it does regret me to say that there are still some who hold to the old ways of the world… Those that would pursue war, misery, selfishness… they would thwart our great peace… they would choose to wage conflict as opposed to bring about aid…"

Sergio paused at this declaration and stared back at the monitor. It was known to him that various pockets of the United Nations were resisting… and indeed were de facto at war with the Successors and with the UN states that remained loyal to Berlin. Off the top of his head he thought of Moscow. Not much was heard of how Russia fared, but they had always retained a somewhat… strained relationship with the rest of the European Union. Supposedly communications were down in Russia and their EU delegate never showed up in Berlin, but much of this was all hearsay. Who could say what was true for sure anymore these days? He expected them to list various UN factions, though few there were, that were at odds with or had been suppressed by Berlin. However, what really shocked Sergio was what the veiled man said next…

"These EVA pilots remain at large, some wielding weapons of mass destruction that are dangerous. If you have any information of their whereabouts, please contact your closest authorities…"

The image of one Shinji Ikari appeared on the top left side with a diagram of the violet Unit-01. The image of Alexander was posted in the bottom left corner, without an EVA diagram. In the top right was a mug shot of one William, without an EVA diagram. In the bottom right was one Sofiya, pictured with a diagram of the crimson-black Unit-06.

"But do not be afraid… we have overcome the darkness in this world, the sins of the past…"

Sergio looked to the floor again, feeling the emptiness taking hold ever more.

Esteban… he thought. He was well-aware that the Spaniard pilot Esteban was not on that list, nor would he be… the boy was dead. He died caught up in this conflict, a victim of power gone mad beyond anyone's control. He was so young, all of these pilots were. He had spoken with Esteban several times in Barcelona. The boy had always seemed so vigorous, so full of life… truly a blessing to have around, and definitely someone trustworthy when it came to the Evangelion projects. Thankfully, Barcelona remained on the map, but it was a shell of its former self.

"The sun shines brightly over the horizon… the darkness is vanquished. Brothers, Sisters, walk with me! Take my hand! Let us step into this brilliant light together."

At that, Sergio reached for the lighter that was on the table, and picked it up. He held it beneath his dual-citizenship card.

"We have all lost loved ones. Before you go to bed, kiss one who is important to you. Be thankful that they are alive. Go to your neighbors who have lost someone and consol them. Help someone tonight that is in need. We are all in this together… we are one family."

The flames of the lighter burst forth.

"Look to the new dawn rising. Do not be afraid. And remember… we are always looking out for you." At that point the transmission ended and the monitor resumed a blank state.

As Sergio watched the flames begin to consume his citizenship card, a Bible verse that he had heard long ago came to the forefront of his mind.

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

The purging flames consumed his identification card, his access to riches and luxury, his future as a councilman, perhaps even his future in the United Nations… but how sweet it was. It was as if a burden had been lifted from the man and salvation had come.

Truly it was a sin to live this life of wealth while the earth burned… he would not desecrate the remains of his friend Richard any longer.

Sergio turned off all of the lights in the ornate and well-furnished room and headed out the door. It was the last time he would set foot in these lavish apartments. As he went down the elevator, the numbers went by quickly. He was going where he belonged: To the people, the masses. He was going to the slums of Berlin.

He exited the apartments and began walking downtown in the lights. Not a soul was out. There was an eerie, ominous feeling in that crisp night air… It was unnerving how little people there were these days. He walked for what seemed a good while, taking in the lights, the signs of wealth and prosperity, the banks, the lounges, until he came to a wall.

Some things never changed. He mused.

A makeshift concrete wall had been erected through parts of the city… it was strangely reminiscent of the Berlin Wall in his mind. It was being built mainly to separate various… undesirables that might tarnish the image of the city of progress. Before its construction, riots and violence from the masses had become the norm in this capital city, and the UN reigning Commander, as well as the official head of the European Union and the newly re-established NATO, deemed that it would make Berlin a more… UN and Successor friendly city.

It was despicable in his mind, simply a sort of class-barrier from the age old gap between the poor and wealthy.

He knew that often times people wanted in to the central part of the capital. The part where running water, electricity, and luxury abounded. It was rare that someone wanted out… however he was that someone. Thankfully, it was incomplete in several places, and if you simply followed it you would reach the end. Slums dominated the majority of this Berlin, and it was not long until you arrived there.

A UN guard gave him a strange look seeing the direction he was headed at this hour. Sergio merely waved and went on his way.

However, all this time something stuck out at Sergio from the fringes of his mind…

Asuka…

The girl… that assassin who had killed the one he held dear… How many times he relived that moment in his head, it was inescapable. And she did it to show loyalty to the man who sat the chair at the time… the one known as Michaels. In fact, if everything went as planned, he would get some… information on the girl that day.

Sergio finally reached a point where the street lights ended, and the roads began to crack. He was finally moving into low town. The streets became progressively worse, potholes, empty shell casings, signs of violence marred the pavement. Finally, the pavement ran out altogether and he was walking on dirt… Dirt in a major capital of the United Nations.

Everywhere seemed to be deserted. Apartment buildings appeared vacant, without any lights, and the further Sergio walked, the shorter the buildings and houses became, until he ended up in an area that insanely could be compared to more of a third-world setting. Squalid, cheap houses and he even spied some shacks. Finally, remnants of life could be seen in this setting. At this hour, a few people walked to and fro, eyeing him cautiously. They came from darkness and returned to darkness down another street. It was the perfect setting for a mugging. Insanely, there appeared to be an area that had electricity. That was very, very rare in the slums. Sergio wondered how the occupants were able to pull that off and what connections they may have had. Perhaps they had hacked into a generator somewhere? Regardless he had to proceed on his way.

He pulled out the paper that he kept in his trench coat pocket. He had finally arrived at the seemingly deserted address.

Sergio knocked three times on the iron gates, leaving five seconds between each knock. He then repeated the action again for clarity. The booms on the door rang out in a loud, metallic succession. What was once a dark and squalid brick house surrounded by bars suddenly bore a faint light coming from the inside. A pair of eyes were seen at the suddenly-open eye slot.

The eyes studied him momentarily.

"Who sent you and what are the coordinates?" the voice said hurriedly.

Sergio paused.

"Benjamin… and I believe he gave the coordinates 52 by 21."

Thankfully, there was still a group in the UN that were rather… dissatisfied with the way things were going, although they dare not show it publically. Sergio still had many friends and many connections.

The man inside nodded and opened the door.

"Good, come in."

Sergio followed the man inside the dark, dank house.

"You must understand those coordinate are for… security reasons." The man said inside.

"I knew who you were, but it was just to make sure nothing… was off." he said.

"Of course, I understand the security measures. Dieter I presume?" Sergio asked.

Dieter looked back at him and nodded. A candle was lit in the small room where the table was. Dieter disappeared to a basement below the floor panels, revved up his generator, and a moment later the internal lights came on in the house.

When he came back up to the living room, Sergio said

"I'd expect nothing less from a man of your caliber."

Dieter grinned.

"Now, Sergio, I understand that you are here for this information."

Dieter produced a picture from a file that he had in a dresser.

It was a black and white photograph of an employee that had been working at NERV-03, Germany's NERV branch at the time.

… Michaels?... Sergio thought with some shock and confusion.

He was not shocked at the face or at the fact that Michaels donned a NERV technician's suit, but rather at the name below the mug shot.

"Heinrich Schäfer?" Sergio read off the name, confused.

"But that's…" Sergio began, until Dieter him off.

"Yes… 'Michaels' as you call him, has done many… many things."

---

The boy examined the water-resistant Mossberg 500 pump-action shotgun, cleaned it, and emptied the contents as he had done several times previous. The weapon was a beauty, although to be truthful, any weapon was a welcome sight in the eyes of Shinji Ikari. It came lined with a water-resistant inner tube.

Shinji held the rounds in his hand. He had five rounds in total. One went in the chamber which meant the gun was loaded, while four spare rounds could be loaded into the tube. He simply had to pump the action on the 12-gauge, which would give him another round if necessary.

It was strange… the young Ikari had been obsessing over the fire-arm as of late. At times he felt it was his possession and he valued it. It was his and he deserved it… and no one could take that away from him.

Shinji looked at his surroundings from his vantage point near a minor hilly region, ripe with rocks, scattered with some brush, and overlooking the sea. The day prior Shinji had come upon these shores simply exhausted. How he managed to swim that great a distance in one sitting, let alone why he had thought it was an obtainable goal in the first place was ludicrous. Somehow he had been filled with a raw determination… a desire that he could not fail, that he needed to see the state of the world. Somehow he had found the strength to push on. Yet, that did not stop him from immediately collapsing from exhaustion once he reached these shores. His body could literally not move another inch. He had slept a long time, apparently some of the day and all of the night straight.

He had woken up sprawled on the beach, arms and legs outstretched in all directions.

Shinji loaded up his Mossberg 500 and turned to behold his surroundings.

Where is this? He thought. He was right next to the remains of some old city… Upon first seeing these ruins Shinji's gut told him Tokyo-3.

No that's not right… Shinji mused. It was all wrong. For one, from what he could see, it was a much smaller city and the layout was totally different.

Dilapidated buildings stood far off in a distance, and closer to Shinji's position, there were several smaller outer lying brick buildings, perhaps houses. Shinji thought he saw the remains of some old temple, built in ancient times further on in the city. It also appeared as if the sea had reclaimed much of the coast. Empty buildings stood in the water, many of which were lying on their sides.

Shinji Ikari slung the weapon onto his back, and turned to look at the great ocean one last time. The sunlight seemed to sparkle off of the amber tinted liquid, giving off a dazzling array of light. It truly was beautiful… yet it carried with it an overwhelming loneliness, a sadness.

Rei wait for me just a little longer… I will find a way, I promise… I just need to find out what happened.

As Shinji trekked towards the line of buildings, he decided that stealth would be a key asset. After all, one could only guess what kind of potentially hostile people lurked there… if any. As Shinji stood behind a tree with no leaves, he wondered if he really wanted to encounter people. A sort of mental debate raged within him. On the one hand, he wanted information. No, not just that… he wanted to see someone, anyone. He had been deserted on an island for so long, forced to suffer the emotionally draining experience of losing the one who was precious to him. He just wanted to see someone. However, on the other hand… Shinji un-slung the Mossberg 500 from his shoulder. He did not need trouble. He would not allow anyone or anything to impede his progress.

Shinji made his way towards the seemingly empty city.

Wait… Shinji thought. Something about this landscape, this terrain, seemed oddly… familiar.

As Shinji marched on, shotgun drawn, step after step on the mostly barren terrain, he looked around at the trees… they all lacked their leaves, all of them. How truly bare this forest was, he was walking next to presumably dead trees.

Then the memory hit him.

Shinji's eyes widened in recognition.

Ume trees… these were Ume trees.

Shinji had realized just where he was in Japan even before approaching the sign that read in giant Kanji

"Mito-shi."

There was no doubt in Shinji's mind. He was in Mito, meaning that he was further north of Tokyo-3 than expected. Images flashed before him from the recesses of his mind. In a rare sequence of events, Shinji had visited this small city before with his father many years ago, before he was in school. In his mind it had been a vacation of sorts, when in reality he had been dragged there by Gendo on one of his business trips since he had nowhere to go.

"These trees blossom this time of year." Shinji said aloud to no-one.

He recalled the feeling of being entranced by all the colors… how white melded with pink to produce such a flowered tree. Somehow it was empty looking at the rows upon rows of trees in their bareness… It was yet another grisly reminder of what the world had truly gone through since that fateful day. Shinji walked further towards the line of buildings.

"This place was famous for its gardens… and they had festivals in the summer…" Shinji proclaimed.

None of its former glory and festivities were present. Here… was simply a ghost town as far as Shinji could see. Shinji could not see a flower of any kind in sight. But he remembered how enthralled he had been as a child… even if it had been with.

Father… Shinji thought as he stared at the ground. His mood began to darken severely.

Even then he said nary a word to him as a child. It had always been that way. But that was then, before he knew the truth about Gendo Ikari… before he knew just what he had dirtied and bloodied his scheming hands in.

Shinji did not know the fate of his father, or of several people from the Third Impact. Shinji clutched at the gun tighter… ever tighter.

Good riddance to you. He thought of his father.

Hopefully, Gendo Ikari had died by his own doing, and taken his many sins with him to the grave. Yet, if there was a chance he was alive… and he ever had the displeasure of running into Shinji…

Shinji aimed the shotgun and nothing and felt a severe anger… a very-consuming anger. It even took him by surprise. Carelessly, he pointed the gun at the sign and thought of letting off a round. Somehow the thought was… tempting. He did need some stress relief, no? Perhaps he could picture the face of his old man there and…

Shinji's eyes widened and he breathed.

"Why would I do that?" he exclaimed to no-one, shocked that his mind had just gone there. He was not about to waste any precious ammunition, nor alert anyone of his presence jus that easily.

Shinji reached the line of small housing complexes and rushed to one of the walls in a crouching position, hoping to stay out of sight and be able to peek around the nearest corner…

Mito was also famous…

Shinji's stomach growled at that moment and he clutched it with one hand.

For its food.

Shinji Ikari finally realized just how hungry he really was. He had been ignoring the basic urge this whole time and focused on the traveling aspect… but now that he thought about it, Shinji felt absolutely famished. He had a ravenous hunger, and longed to fulfill that vital appetite.

It made sense, seeing how far he had swam previously… but still. Shinji had experienced hunger before. He had even gone a day or two without eating… yet somehow this was different. He felt as if he needed nourishment or else he may not be able to go on.

Shinji walked into the clearing between the short housing complexes made of brick. There was simply no-one in sight. It was definitely an eerie feeling.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his eye he saw it.

There!

It was the outline of a person in the distance, walking on a sidewalk that had seen better days. They had just crossed an intersection. Apparently they were staying near the buildings, yet they hurried across the street.

Shinji Ikari instinctively took off in their direction. He would not lose this person. Shinji rushed along at a brisk pace, but he made sure to stick to the shadows of the buildings. If anytime was he grateful for such sunshine, it was now. The shadows were very long at this time of day.

Shinji ran up to the intersection and turned the corner to the left. He had closed in somewhat on their position. At this distance…

A woman? He thought, somewhat shocked.

She was several houses down from his position, yet she turned into some alleyway. Shinji darted after her position, gun still drawn in his hands. As he finally reached the alleyway and peered down, he had caught up some considerable distance on her position.

At this point, he made brief eye contact with the woman. The look on her face… she immediately ran up to gated housing complex.

"Hey." Shinji called.

He began to move in on her position. She seemed to be scrambling, fumbling with some keys at the door. As he approached her, she woman frantically opened the door and made as if to dash inside.

She's… afraid. He realized.

"Wait!" Shinji proclaimed. He caught the door with his right hand just as she was about to slam it in his face.

The woman looked at him as one who was terrified.

"Please… Please don't hurt them!" she exclaimed.

Shinji looked at her, momentarily confused.

"What…" he began, when he noticed the two small children seated at the table in the darkness. They stared at him with scared eyes. They both ran to the woman's side and hugged her, burying their faces in her dress that looked like it had seen better days.

"Mom!" one of them yelled.

"Please… you can take anything, do anything… just don't take them!"

The way she said do anything, as she stared down towards her own body. The girl was… comely and only slightly older than himself.

Where did that come from? He thought, as he shook his head.

Suddenly Shinji stared at all of them huddled there, that family. Something stirred within him. What his eyes saw was truly a tragic and pitiable sight.

"No, no don't worry. I… I just got here and I was wondering if anyone had some food…"

Shinji saw that the woman was on the verge of tears, and the children looked to be in a state of panic… that's when he came to and realized that he was still holding a gun in their direction.

Shinji quickly slung it back onto his back and waved his hands apologetically.

"Ahh sorry I'm not… I wasn't… I mean I didn't see anyone around the city and…" he exclaimed somewhat dumbfounded as to what to say.

Shinji assumed that it might be slightly difficult to believe him, coming from the man with the gun and all. He mentally chastised himself for the errs in introduction.

"I'm not going to hurt you." He said.

The woman breathed in deeply in a sigh of relief.

"Oh… t-thank you" she replied.

There was a moment of silence as she composed herself, and she tended to her children. She told them something, and they both gave Shinji a look. Then they ran into another room of the house.

She turned around and looked at Shinji again, and momentarily her eyes seemed to widen. She seemed to be eyeing him from head to toe and she looked visibly… unnerved again.

"I'm sorry…You… frightened me. You see there are some gangs around here… These streets can be dangerous…"

Gangs… Shinji thought. It would seem that the more he discovered about the state of the world, the less he was like to appreciate the news.

"Gangs you say? Are there many people here? I didn't see anyone around and…" Shinji paused.

He thought of his stomach again. That ravenous yearning.

Why am I so hungry? He thought out of nowhere.

"Um… did you say there was food here again? I haven't… eaten in a long time." Shinji said.

She blinked at him with a surprised look on her face.

"We… have some. You're welcome to join us for dinner." She said, as she beckoned him inside.

Although from the way she looked at him, Shinji felt a pang of guilt. The woman had composed herself, but she still reserved some of her trust it would seem. The situation seemed to be more like he was here, and he had a gun, and he was hungry so of course they would eat… as opposed to necessarily wanting to help him.

I… have to look less threatening Shinji thought, wondering how this was going to play out.

It was truly a strange turn of events. Shinji could not recall a time in his life where he would have considered himself to look threatening in a situation with another person. For most of his life it had always been… the other way around, he felt very threatened by others. So why…

Why did Shinji sort of… not mind that idea somehow? He was now the one on the other end. He shook off that thought.

The young lady gave him another look. She seemed to be eyeing his EVA Plugsuit.

"W-Well welcome… mister…?" she let the question hang in the air.

"I'm Shinji." He said as he attempted to muster a smile, if only to take away the aura of danger.

"What's your name?" He returned the question in kind.

She looked at him with a strange look again… She seemed to be eyeing him from head to toe, than she suddenly looked nervous again, if only for a moment.

"I'm…Ayame."

She keeps looking at me… she's still scared. Why? Shinji thought.

It did not escape his attention that the woman kept staring at his attire.

Does she know something about… the thought nagged at his mind.

"Ayame. Thank you for having me over." He said as he walked over towards the table.

The children returned bearing some cans and some meager vegetables. Ayame walked over to the stove and put on a fire.

"It's not a problem… you know we're lucky to be able to use this stove here… We don't have much food, but what is ours is yours…"

Shinji seated himself and stared at Ayame.

"You said there were gangs here… who…" Shinji stopped himself.

How should I word it? He thought.

"Ayame who runs this city now?" he finally said.

Shinji was in a mood to discover the truth.

Ayame looked back at him and quickly looked away.

She's avoiding eye contact…

"Um… I… don't know much about politics… you don't see many of them around here these days… but this is Zion and the UN territory I suppose…" she answered softly.

Shinji shot her a look.

Zion… He did not recognize the phrase… and it didn't sound exactly comforting either. Shinji was beginning to realize that his worst fears had become a reality.

"Zion…" he echoed, deep in thought.

What is that…

"If I could be so bold… what is the state of Tokyo-3 at this time."

The woman stirred the stew that was mostly broth and some chunks of meat from the can quickly. She looked back at him with a glance.

"Um… Tokyo-3 doesn't exist. That's… the old name… they don't like that word…" she trailed off as if lost in thought.

It must be the Successors… so they are in control now. Shinji mused. He could only wonder what sort of changes had been done at the hands of the Successors. The more he found out the more he was taken aback, it would seem. Although he wasn't exactly in contact with anyone for a long time…

She gave him that strange look again and he decided to respond. It was a look as if to convey 'where have you been?' as if that was some piece of common knowledge.

"I have… not seen people in a long time. I… don't know much about the world now…" he said allowed, not sure what kind of response it would evoke.

The woman brought the pot over to the table. One of her children passed around the vegetables.

There was beef stew, some turnips, and some lettuce. All in all it did not appear to be the most appetizing, but Shinji was not exactly complaining in this situation.

He took a bite of the turnip in front of him while they all stared at him in fascination. They really did not get much visitors around here…

"This is… delicious." He said.

When his mouth feasted on that savory fleshy meat, although it was old… his ravenous hunger took in. He ate it in a few bites and reached for the next one.

They watched him as he gorged on the morsels. He had eaten several turnips and was downing the brothy beef stew.

"You know, when I got here I realized that I had visited this place a long time ago…" Shinji proclaimed between bites.

"This used to be quite the city…" he reflected, as he finished his portion.

That… hunger what was it? It was insatiable…

I need more. Shinji thought.

He reached over and tore half of a lettuce plant for himself.

"Um… you have quite the appetite Shinji." Ayame said as she stared at him. One of the kids looked with wide eyes.

What… what am I doing? Shinji thought.

Again, he mentally chastised himself. Not only was he a guest in their home, but here he was eating most of their meal… from the looks of it they probably didn't even have enough food to survive for much longer.

Shinji had been bred for politeness, especially in these types of situations. Perhaps the times… the world itself had changed but still… it left Shinji feeling strange. Why did he think that had been okay?

"Ahh I'm very sorry… Your cooking is so good." He said apologetically.

At that Ayame couldn't help but to smile and chuckle slightly.

"I'm glad you think so." She said as she looked into his eyes.

"Yeah…" Shinji Ikari said in a 'I'm not sure what to say next' sort of way.

Then…

What… what is going on?

Shinji had already consumed so much food, yet still he wanted more.

I need more. He thought… But how? His body still felt like it needed more calories, more, more… He couldn't quell the urge.

"Hey, you don't mind if I have a refill on that stew…" he said as he reached over to the main pot and grabbed a huge portion for himself.

"Not… at all." Ayame said, amazed at his appetite.

He was downing the meat in a splendid fashion, not even concerned about his appearance. His mouth was salivating.

This meat… it's so good… so good. That thought rang out in his mind. He cared not for his gluttonous appearance. He had such a… desire. A longing.

"So Ayame… how long have you…"

At that point the woman looked extremely distraught.

"What's wrong?" Shinji asked.

For the umpteenth time he mentally chastised himself. He was taking all their food that's what was wrong!

"Ah… mister Shinji? Are you…" she looked hesitant, scared again. She reached down and told her kids to clear their places and go off to another room.

"Are you… a bad person?" she finally asked, as she looked at him with scarred eyes… Eyes that had seen much in their time. Eyes that were untrusting. He could tell of her great care for her children.

What… Shinji was literally taken aback at the strange question.

"What me? No… I would never do anything…why, why do you ask?" He replied.

Does she… know me somehow?

"Um… they said on the monitor that…" she trailed off, apparently lacking the strength to finish.

They said!? What?

At this Shinji's mood began to turn south.

"Wait, they said? Who said, who are you talking about? Do you know me?"

"Th… They said on the broadcast… the… the Successors… that you're dangerous."

That was the word he had been waiting for.

The Successors…

At that utterance, a certain… rage, a resounding fury began to well up within Shinji. He stood up and looked at the woman with serious eyes.

"I'm not a bad person! I'm not dangerous, okay?" Shinji said in a harsh tone, yet even he was surprised at the edge that it carried.

"O… Okay…" the woman said helplessly and she averted his gaze.

Shinji walked over to her, the Mossberg 500 still hanging off of his back.

"Look at me… I'm not bad! Whatever they told you were lies… LIES!" Shinji proclaimed loudly.

"Alright…. Please…." Ayame said feebly, unable to hold his gaze. She stared at the floor and began to tear up slightly.

Shinji realized just how ridiculous the predicament was. Here he was, saying he wasn't dangerous while he had a loaded weapon in this woman's house and was getting up in her face… but that thing, the thing she had said… it filled him with rage.

"What else… What else did they say!?" Shinji said in a resounding voice. He was now very close to the woman.

"They said… they said to contact the authorities if… if you were seen…" Ayame trembled slightly.

The fury that welled within him!

"Don't… listen to me. Don't tell them I was here, DON'T TELL THEM OKAY!?" Shinji said. In his anger he drew the gun again, pointed at the girl.

What am I doing… the voice of reason seemed to echo throughout his mind.

"Okay, I won't… I won't!" tears began to stream down Ayame's face.

How could I… Shinji thought, horrified at himself, but he paid that voice no heed.

"I'm… not a bad person…" Shinji said again, in a more quiet tone.

"Yes… Yes you're a good man Shinji… you're good!" Ayame repeated, obviously frightful of him.

Shinji realized that his gun was still drawn, as if he was not through intimidated the poor soul. At that point Ayame stared at him through tear-stained eyes. And put her hand on the buttons near her neck.

"You… you're very good and… you can have…me…" She replied quietly, as she stared into his eyes.

Ayame began to undo the buttons on her collar, slowly revealing her breasts before him. It was as if he was free to do whatever he pleased with her.

What… What am I!? I would never… Shinji thought, however at seeing the woman undress before his eyes… he felt something else.

Was it that raging appetite that he had suffered earlier? Something… some kind of… desire began to rage within him. It's the kind of desire that starts as embers, but once it is ignited, the fire begins full force.

I want more… came the voice of his ever unquenchable hunger.

But no… this was wrong, this was so wrong on so many levels.

Shinji stared at her for a while, saying nothing, until he finally uttered.

"I'm… I'm not like that okay? You don't have to…"

Suddenly, the whole house vibrated. Shinji snapped back into reality. The sensation was similar to… an earthquake?

Ayame looked around terrified and called for her children.

What is… Shinji thought, but somehow, deep down he knew… He knew what these vibrations were. He had felt them, experienced them many a time before. At this point a certain darkness began to fill his mind, and reality had just gone from bad to worse. It would seem that the worst possible case scenario was unfolding all around him.

The resounding thunderous shock came every few seconds or so… and each time it hit, the earthquake seemed to have more force. Things were shaking in the small, decrepit brick house.

It has to be…

"Ayame, stay here… I'm going outside to check it out…"

An EVA!

The resounding crashes came harder now, and they were louder. Whatever was making the noise was closer… it had to be closer.

Shinji peered outside cautiously, grabbing onto the door frame to prop himself up from the monstrous shocks.

No… Not here, not now. he thought, expecting the worse. Of all the times… he could not run into an EVA now… Yet, there was another thought that Shinji Ikari entertained simultaneously...

All you cowards… You traitors…

Shinji stepped outside, staying in the shadows of that alleyway and looked up.

And lo, he saw the enormous beast!

The Green Eva Unit passed by him, extremely close… frighteningly close at some point off in the city. Shinji held his breath and lay down on the floor.

That's… the Green Beast!

Shinji was sure that the green monstrosity which bore great Progressive swords was that of Unit-05… the one piloted by the French girl Alice.

At one point she came so close to their position that he feared that she had somehow made eye contact with him with the EVA's incredible sensory perception capabilities.

Time stood still for Shinji Ikari as he lay there in that alleyway, daring not to move a muscle.

Unit-05 paused. After glancing around a bit, it began to move towards another part of the city, far away. With a resounding burst of energy, the great behemoth leapt into the skies, and how high it went!

That brought about the largest earth-quake Shinji had felt in a while. He rolled a few feet from the horrendous impact on the surrounding houses. Yet, when he glanced it in the air, a strange vision of beauty… a memory of the deadly Green Beast performing her dance… Shinji thought

Where… Where is her power chord?

The Green Beast appeared out of sight from Shinji's vantage point beyond the buildings, a far distance away.

Shinji was stunned… Had they somehow completed an internal engine battery source that enabled the EVA Units to go longer distances? But how… how was that possible?

The world began to seem bleaker and bleaker by the minute.

Yet Shinji was slightly stunned at the… intensity of his next thought.

You bitch… I'll kill you! I'll catch up to you, Green Beast and when I do…

Shinji felt that rising desire in him again. It was unquenchable, it was an appetite of sorts but it… came with rage... A terrible rage. The fury was rising.

The lot of you! TRAITORS! I will find you!

Shinji shook his head again, dismayed over the reaction. Dismayed from seeing an enemy EVA Unit… dismayed from feeling that murderous intent… Dismayed that he was apparently a wanted man now.

The world was truly bleak.

Shinji returned to Ayame's meager abode and stood in the doorway.

"Thank you for your hospitality… but I must go now."

Shinji turned as if to walk away, yet he paused briefly and beheld Ayame and her children again in the kitchen.

"And I'm not a bad person, okay!?" those were his final words as he turned and left.

Shinji began to wander throughout that city… the resounding footsteps of the EVA could be felt dimmer and dimmer… fainter and fainter until the earthquakes disappeared entirely and he supposed that she had left. The shining day slowly began to turn to a crisp, cold nightfall.

I… I just couldn't stay there… I couldn't trouble them after that. Shinji thought, guilt-laden.

Shinji wandered the ghost streets of Mito in the former country of Japan… the sense of isolation added to his somber mood, but did he really want to see other people in this city… this place that formerly was beautiful? After all, Ayame told him that gangs were on the loose.

Somberness and weariness were Shinji's constant companions. He was restless, as he moved from house to house, scanning the area. No one was there that he could see, not a soul. He finally found a broken down door on a very small house that almost resembled more of a large shack that was fairly close to the ocean. Perhaps someone homeless used to take up residence here… The wooden beams supporting it to the ground were wearing, the bricks were chipping, the aluminum roof had holes in it.

But Shinji Ikari was weary… so weary. He just wanted to rest, to empty his mind of the events of the day.

But why… why could Shinji not get rid of these troublesome thoughts that so robbed him of his peace? Where was the peace, the hope that came when he thought of Rei? Somehow his beloved had been far from his mind that day. The rage, the anger, the appetite… none of it was satisfied and Shinji began to fall into a restless sleep.

Father…

William…

Kaworu…

All of them appeared before him as if in the form of some apparitions in his sleep. Oh he hated… how he hated these people! He hated all of the traitors, everyone that had a hand in manipulation… Shinji did not recall the dream much, but he awoke extremely angry… and confused.

"W… what?" Shinji said, when suddenly he found himself choking.

Shinji began to cough uncontrollably, when recognition came to him.

What am I… doing here?

He was… wet?

Shinji found himself lying face down in the shallows of the Great Sea of LCL… his throat tasted of salt water and some other substance.

Was I… drinking this!?

He sat up, coughing heavily and spitting out that salty tasting amber-liquid. He stared around in disbelief; the horror of what he had done unsolved. Shinji Ikari remembered not how he got there.

---

The heaven's poured down their rains on that dark, dismal night.

The young man walked on, caring not that the water was soaking him to the bone.

William walked near the coast, the MP443 Grach semi-automatic pistol clutched lazily in his right hand. It swung back and forth with his steps through the mud.

It seems that… I'm really abandoned after all.

His eyes were red, glazed over where tears had previously fallen.

---

The dark, crimson-stained sky that lay before him seemed to echo the amber-colored waters.

William sat near a deserted outcropping on the chipping remains of some old railway route that was near the ocean. Several tracks were missing and many of the overhead electrical contact wires and electric transmitter poles that powered the machine while it was in transit were downed.

'They're not coming' he thought, resigned to what was probably obvious by then.

For some reason, the American had… delayed his long foray south to see the remains of Tokyo-3. Several times he wondered if he should return to that cabin. Instead, he waited a good deal of time, hours in fact, on that deserted highway that was the likely route of choice southward.

Yet a stranger thought was why he decided to linger around so long… as if… as if they would follow him. But why did he care? It was obvious they were no true friends… in fact they were traitors. So why had he found some small… comfort in his thought that they now had a common enemy?

William sighed and began marching south. He possessed not a geographical knowledge of old Japan. The only battered sign that he saw on that route he had seen so far said 'Japan Railways Green.' He had no knowledge of the routes and it had no meaning for him. However, if he had to make an estimated guess, this went towards the old Tokyo capital, which meant that at some point he had to diverge from the railway… It appears that it had not been used in a long time, possibly even before the Angels' crisis. All he knew was he was heading south, and somewhere lay Tokyo-3.

As it chanced on his travels, He came upon a faint glimmer of light in the distance.

'A campfire…' He mused.

It was a faint speck of light in the distance, practically enveloped by the night, but it was unmistakable. It lay off the tracks on an area that was dominated by rocks.

William drew the MP443 Grach… after all these were troubled times indeed. He slunk next to a rocky outcropping and stuck close to the dried and withered underbrush.

As he drew ever nigh, he froze in place. Voices soon became audible. He held his breath, not making a sound. As if by instinct he reached towards the strap on his thigh where the dagger had been… only to reveal that nothing was there.

From what he could make out there were three… mayhaps four people? William stood at a vantage point a mere fifteen feet away. He heard the sound of a man.

"That's all we have left for the night… We have enough for tomorrow but we must scavenge soon."

Suddenly, the voice of a young girl came piping up.

"So we get to eat now!? I can't wait!"

That brought a few murmurs.

Another voice of an old man could be heard. His tone seemed to be… tender, caring.

"Yes, Hamako dearest… you can have what I don't finish as well. At my age, I don't need the nourishment like you."

At that the girl seemed to brim up.

"Thanks Grandpa!"

William stared at the floor that cold, dismal night. From what he could gather it was a small group of people who were about to engage in a meal… and from the sound of things they were going hungry. A stroke of sympathy echoed with him in that moment.

'They're hungry…' he thought.

William had been there and experienced that struggle all-to-well back on the other side of the Pacific Ocean.

'I've only come for information…' he assured himself. Throwing caution to the wind, William holstered the pistol, deciding it was best to not present himself as a threat… He did not wish to be perceived as a bandit moving out of the darkness. He was scared… petrified in fact, but he knew that this was something he had to do.

William took a deep breath, hoping he had made the right decision. He decided to announce his presence, lest they be alarmed.

He took a few steps back from his vantage point and began to walk over the barren earth.

"Hello! Hello!" William called as he walked towards their position.

At once, the people gathered around the camp fire looked towards his position in alarm, rushing into distress mode.

The old man ran to his granddaughter's side, holding her close to him and backing away from the intruder.

One of the other man stared at him with shock and backed up slightly.

The other man…

Instantly a Standard Beretta 92 was pointed in his direction. The man before him looked dangerous and not afraid to use it.

"What do you want?" He said hurriedly.

"We have nothing here for you."

'Easy…' William thought, hiding his own distress.

William walked up to the gathering with his arms raised up in the air, a sign of surrender and that he bore them no ill.

"I don't want any trouble… I just heard voices and saw your campfire and…" William began, but he was cut off by the armed man.

"What are you doing here? Who are you with?" proclaimed the man.

The man seemed to be relentless.

The old man looked towards the man who was pointing the gun at William.

"Tatsuhiko… let him speak. He seems to be alone…"

"That's the point." The man known as Tatsuhiko retorted.

"You don't see people wandering alone these days… let alone people at all along this route."

He turned back to William.

"Speak, and make it quick."

"I'm…" William began, wondering how he should proceed.

"I'm alone don't worry… I came from up north and I'm making my way south… Please, I haven't seen anyone in a long while…" William claimed.

The girl, Hamako, seemed to be staring at him wide-eyed with a great interest.

The old man noticed her reaction and said.

"Ah yes, we don't see many people around these parts… You startled us is all. We don't have much food, but we would be willing to share some with you."

At that Tatsuhiko shot him a look, at which point the old man shot him back a look of his own.

Tatsuhiko, it would seem, took back control of the conversation.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

At this point, William began to feel the uncertainty raging within him. He still did not know who these people were… What faction were they with? Were they UN? Successors? Civilians? He could only pray that they were civilians… Yet what answer would they… not like to hear?

He was also becoming increasingly aware that this man Tatsuhiko was eyeing his plug suit… and from the looks of it he was donning a frown.

William did not move his hand, seeing as how the Beretta was pointed dead at him… yet he clenched his fist, so that in the case he may have to draw his weapon…

"I'm heading south to T…" William mentally checked himself. If these people were with them…

"Zion." He finally said, resigning his fate to those words.

The girl's eyes gleamed with wonder, and she seemed to be eyeing his plug suit. Tatsuhiko's expression of anger grew by the second.

"Mister are you… are you…" the girl said as her eyes gleamed.

"Look what he's wearing." Tatsuhiko said, as he addressed the whole group.

"He's an EVA pilot!" At that point, William could tell a certain… anger came out at the mention of the last few words.

William looked to the floor.

"I…" he began, unsure of what to say.

"No, I know who this is, I knew when I saw him… You're that American, right? The one that everyone called hero?" said the man wielding the weapon.

William continued staring at the ground. He said nothing.

"Yes, I remember… well where were you at the end? Huh hero? Word has it you turned tail and ran. You failed…" the man known as Tatsuhiko claimed in a rage.

"YOU FAILED!"

At that point he pulled back to the hammer on his Beretta.

The old man looked to Tatsuhiko as if to say something, but the man continued.

"Eva pilots… you Eva pilots are all the same! You walk around in your machines without a care for anyone else while we suffer. You… People like you hold power now. Cutthroats, traitors…You are… You are a blight on us all!"

It seemed as if he was ready to shoot at any second.

The girl covered her face in fear and the old man wrapped his arms around her.

'Why…' William thought, as his eyes began to water.

Why did it hurt so much hearing that from this man?

'You failed.' The words echoed throughout his mind.

And deep down, William knew that he was right. William felt his own rage beginning to surge, but he knew that he could not refute what he had said. He… had failed. He had let everyone down in the end. He had valued his own life… He could not stand to face the one who looked down on him so.

"Tatsuhiko, please…" the old man beckoned, but he was having none of it.

The man began to take steps towards William's position, aiming the pistol at his head the entire time.

William raised an arm feebly in front of his face, as if to erect some sort of barrier… something to block the reality that was before him, but it was all for naught.

"Leave us to dry?... You damn Eva pilots!" the man said in his anger.

At that point he was standing right in front of William, the barrel a mere inches from his forehead… the young man did nothing to stop it.

"I… I know." William said through clenched teeth.

At that point the tears came streaming down his cheeks as he fell to the ground and punched the earth.

"It's my fault… In the end I couldn't do anything…" William said, dejected.

There was a heavy, drawn-out silence in the air for what seemed like a long time.

Finally, the murmurs of the old man could be heard.

"Tatsuhiko! Even though he's an EVA pilot… we can't… we can't kill anyone. Please… put it down."

Hamako seemed to have tears of her own. Her whole face was pressed into her Grandpa's body for comfort, she could not stomach to look at the predicament unfolding before them all, and she let out a gasp of terror.

"Eva pilot huh?" The other man gave William a look of disgust, yet looked at Tatsuhiko, unsure how far this situation would escalate.

"And now you're heading back to Zion… you're probably with them, you all are!" Tatsuhiko claimed.

William just stayed in that position, clutching at the ground, staring down. The barren earth was his closest companion at this time, and he felt he deserved to be put low. All of his time piloting EVA? Everything he had done? It had all come to nothing in the end. Everything paled in the judging eyes of this sincere man who was speaking the truth… The shame was simply suffocating.

Yet, at that point, one face came to his mind… the face of someone he had wronged. William spoke up, not of his own merit, but for the fact that if there was anything he could do… he had to make it right.

"I'm… I'm sorry…" he murmured feebly. He paused for a time.

"But Shinji… I'm looking for Shinji Ikari. Please, do you know where he is?" William finished.

"You should just leave, if you value your life… EVA pilot. We want nothing to do with you." The other man said with contempt.

However, the old man appeared to be pensive.

"Shinji… Gendo's son if I recall… We haven't seen him, but …" the old man began, yet he was cut off.

"We don't know where your Shinji is… and quite frankly we don't care. You're all the same…" Tatsuhiko exclaimed.

At that point, William felt the cold kiss of steel directly on his forehead as the barrel touched his skin. Mayhaps this was penance in the end. Did he really think that he could change things?

"You know who we did see in the distance several days ago?" the man let the question hang in the air.

"We saw a blue EVA… The size of which I'd never heard of. That monstrous, horrible thing was prowling these lands! Looking for more people to trouble no doubt…"

'Kaworu…' William thought. It could be none other than the crimson-eyed one. He squeezed his hands together in anger. So it would seem that the glaring image of his failure had been here before. Yet the tears kept falling, streaming down his face onto the earth below.

"Kaworu…" William mentioned under his breath. The man looked at him with a surprised glance. The way he ushered that name… the American seemed to have some uncontrollable fury, some uncontrollable anger beneath the surface. He was sobbing at this point.

"I'M SORRY!" William finally let out, in a pained voice.

"I… don't deserve to pilot EVA… and I'll leave just please… Please! I have to find Shinji… I have to… I have to see him!" William exclaimed.

The old man glanced at Tatsuhiko, and he glanced back. 'Don't do this' the old man seemed to convey with that look, that knowing, telling glance. He did not wish to see another person ended in this cruel world, let alone a world where people were scarce.

Tatsuhiko sighed out of respect for the old man. He took the gun off of William's head and turned away.

"Leave… your kind isn't welcome here."

William arose slowly, averting the man's gaze, and sauntered off back the way he had come.

The dull pain… the isolation… all of it was calling. He began to walk slowly, yet that walk became a run. Off he flew, into the night. The young man had turned his back on them and ran off into the darkness, feeling the weight of his failure. He wept. His one desire at that moment was to escape this twisted fate of his.

---

William had long left the abandoned railway tracks, and had made his way back closer to the beach. He knew not why he clutched at that pistol of his, but it had happened. Perhaps it was a feeble attempt to console himself, to give him the air of control of his own fate.

But the young man was completely spent that night.

With a final look at the dash of crimson red that dominated the night sky, and a look out towards the waters, those amber colored waters.

With all of his burdens weighing heavy upon his heart, the knowledge of his failure, the knowledge of his fate, he collapsed into a deep sleep.

And there was darkness before his eyes.

Did you think that this would relieve you of your burden? A voice called out from the depths.

William stared into the gloom where the voice had spoken. He instinctively reached towards his dagger.

It's gone! He realized in shock.

The outline of a person became visible. The figure slowly stepped out of the darkness into his view. His extremities were shrouded by darkness, but somehow William knew… He knew!

"No… anything but this! Please! No!" William called out, but to no avail.

The assailant began attacking him. William fended off the strikes, but could tell that he lacked the strength to overcome. The more he defended from the relentless assault, the stronger the attacks came.

This doesn't change who you are… what you've done came the voice again. It seemed to be further still in the darkness, out of reach.

William was having trouble guarding now, and the assailant hit him violently in the face, sending him back. But he knew there was no place to retreat to. Desperately, he called out to the voice behind the assailant.

"No, I've changed… I now have people I want to protect, I…"

A figure began to come into view, emerging from the darkness, from whence the assailant came. William was losing strength fast and the assailant was merciless.

"I can change... Please!"

At this point William was being pummeled, yet he looked on at the other figure that was coming into light. It was… massive, enormous. It was the dagger that he had on his leg until recently, but the size of it… It was the size of some monstrous beast.

William's eyes widened in fear.

"No! I'm different now! I…"

You are too far gone… It is too late for you. You have taken your part. The dagger seemed to say somehow.

At that point, the dagger was in full view, coming closer, ever closer to him.

"No… NO!" William let out in a yell.

His assailant grabbed his body as it came closer, and the assailant sent his arm through him.

William awoke, drenched from the rain that had been pouring, yet also from a cold sweat that had emerged on his body. He sad up, weary, breathing heavy from the dream.

That sense… that sense of terror would not leave his mind.

William arose and walked closer to the ocean, clutching, willing for anything else, anything.

As he looked out over those waters, Rei appeared in his thoughts briefly…

It was Rei. She looked at him with those deep, crimson eyes of hers… She was so much like...

William thought of that girl standing by the highway, from another time, from another life… He thought of one that he would never see again.

Maybe you were right… He thought.

William shivered slightly, his eyes scanning that strange glow of the sea.

Am I finally coming undone?

---

The fiery-tempered German girl took a deep breath as she swirled about in that all-encompassing capsule of LCL.

Immediately as the oxygenated liquid reached her lungs, Asuka let out a sigh as energy began to course through her veins.

It had been a long time since she had graced her old entry plug… far too long. And the girl had forgotten just how good it felt to feel those controls in her arms.

The tightness of that plug suit around her curves… the warmth of the LCL, the sheer excitement she felt welling within her was tremendous.

"I'm in." She said.

The man on the other end of the monitor coughed

"Right then… it's been a while, your body may have to acclimate to the exerted mental conditions of synchronization. Let's start off having you breathe slowly and focusing on a blank state…"

Asuka nodded, and looked around the room to the great viewing glass that sat towering above her. It was the place where everyone sat fixated on her. She was the center of attention. It was strange how… intimidating that room could be in that aspect.

Asuka looked at the man in that all-too-familiar cavernous room. It was the same place where she and several of her former comrades had performed this simple, yet highly significant exercise countless times before. If memory served her, this man's name was Ryker. Although it was sort of strange seeing this new… lineup of faces up above staring down at her. Where was Ritsuko who had always been tasked with communicating to the pilots directly? Where was Commander Gendo Ikari? Perhaps those were, ultimately, merely rhetorical questions, but it was strange seeing the new ensemble before her.

"Now we are not expecting you to reach a certain goal, but judging from your past performance, and given time to accommodate your absence… We think that a 75% synchronization rate is a reasonable goal…" Ryker rambled on.

75 per cent? Really that's it? Thought Asuka with a hint of annoyance… And she was supposed to be clearing her mind, not letting anger flare up. She took another breath.

This scene looked so familiar yet so foreign to her at the same time… In fact, the only face she recognized was that of Maya Ibuki. That was one of the very few faces from the former NERV employees that she recognized still lurking the premises… well hers and that other guy with glasses, who perhaps was spared due to his skills as a technician and seeing as how he practically designed and installed the surveillance system around NERV. The one known as Makoto.

Briefly Asuka wondered what Maya thought of her now, the one that held the title of 2nd amongst the Successor pilots.

She probably hates me now… she reflected. After all, was not a servant of Zion a traitor to NERV?

"You know, we're running the diagnostics, Asuka… we were originally set for the LCL supply to be routed through the original mainframe wire G-6, but I believe that we can change up some target destination points around the entry plug… just a moment, we are working on routing the power to give an optimum performance to mainframe E-77, the secondary cable… bear with us it will give you a tad more oxygen…" The man, Ryker, just babbled on and on.

Asuka simply gave him a smile and another nod, deftly concealing her inner desire to roll her eyes and burst forth with angry impatience.

I'm fine, let's go already…

Those faces… To Asuka, they all very well could have been anonymous faces, shadow people that she cared not for nor cared not to meet. They were faces that, doubtlessly, had first doubted the loyalty of the former talented pilot of NERV. But no more… it brought Asuka some satisfaction knowing that she had been building a certain… reputation here amongst the Successors and UN delegates. A reputation of fear, perhaps regarding her last incident with the United Nations councilmen? A reputation of devout loyalty? Yes, that suited her well. She would further cement their trust and her loyalty to the Successors by a display of strength.

"Preparations are complete…Err are you ready Asuka?" Ryker exclaimed, letting the question hang in the air.

Asuka blinked. Perhaps she had lost herself in thought for a second there…partly because she could not take his incessant chattering. Also he had been explaining the procedure to her as if she was a child learning to ride a bike for the first time. It irritated her. Yet she relished the chance to surpass their expectations.

It seems he doesn't have faith in my abilities… I'll show you how it's done. The German girl mused.

Asuka grinned.

Finally!

"Let's do this!" she proclaimed.

Asuka closed her eyes, gripped the controls, and basked in that graceful liquid substance. The girl began the process of emptying her mind. She breathed deeply.

Yet, try as she may, one person was plastered across her mind.

She shook her head and tried to focus on the task at hand.

Michaels…

As of late, the man seemed somewhat… distant from her. Sure, he had been around her recently, but their conversation started to seem one-sided. Michaels had replied to her inquiries, yet had seemed… absent in a sense. He had spent the day as he said he would with her, but his mind seemed elsewhere.

She would be lying if she told herself that it rattled her not, that she felt not a tinge of sadness at the thought.

She opened her eyes, and the her synchronization remained at zero.

She shook her head and grit her teeth momentarily.

Damn it, you can do this… Come on…

This was her time to prove herself… her time to show her strength, her capabilities…

Ryker stared at the procession and coughed again.

"Do you…" he began, but he was cut off by a fuming Asuka.

"I got this." She muttered.

But Michaels… Michaels had been there for her. She recalled the last time she had been in this husk of an entry plug. She recalled the look of concern on his face as he had saved her from a certain death. Blood had been everywhere, she had been fading in and out of consciousness… but that man was in her vision.

Michaels…

She recalled that night… oh that night. So many barriers had been broken between them in her mind. Something simply had resonated with her… something had drawn her to him, and she was madly in his clutches. The experience had not only been physical for the young girl, but something else… what was it? Was it spiritual? Emotional perhaps? Something… but she experienced things that she had never imagined possible.

I want to prove myself… for you…

"Wait… we're getting something…" Ryker said.

After a few seconds, Asuka opened her eyes in shock.

"Yes… your synchronization rate is beginning to rise…"

Michaels… yes. She thought.

She wanted nothing more than to rise in the ranks… nothing more than to prove herself worthy. Somehow, at that moment when she remembered that night, things just seemed to make sense for the German girl. Suddenly, it felt like she was born to pilot EVA. She recalled the sensation of synching previously… but this… this was simply unbelievable…

We're… syncing this quickly? She thought, baffled.

"Good, you're at 40%... and rising" Ryker chimed in.

She recalled that previously, upon being under mental stress, something as simple as a synchronization test could become quite the challenge. Without a focused mind, emotions could cloud a pilot's judgment, and they could not synchronize to a great degree. Her previous experience with death should be a distraction, the mental duress all the previous times she piloted should have been at the forefront, and yet…

"55%... and rising? Wow… 65% rising exponentially!"

Asuka felt the energy surge through her being. It was literally as if she was meant for Unit-02 at this time. In fact… had she ever felt so calm at this time? So sure of herself before? This synchronization had a whole different atmosphere to it… a whole different energy if she was to describe the sensation.

I can keep rising… she thought, aware that she wasn't anywhere near her limits.

"You've cleared 75 % target destination reached… and rising, rising! 85% This is amazing…" Ryker proclaimed.

The image of Michaels was emblazoned in her mind, etched across her horizons.

The one who had evoked such feelings in her… the one who had saved her from the clutches of death… the one who believed in her when no-one else would…

"You've cleared 100% This is… unbelievable… and rising!"

Asuka grinned, feeling a sensation akin to ecstasy.

Not yet… she was nowhere near done.

"120… 130%..." came the voice of a stunned Ryker.

She clutched her arms, swatting at invisible foes. Never had she felt so alive in the cockpit.

Michaels… I'm ready.

"160%... and no signs of bodily strain…"

I'm going to take the plunge! She thought, triumphantly.

As of late, she had prodded Michaels for her calling… her time to truly become a Successor, yet he had not given her more information. Perhaps he did not think she was ready… but she could feel it. She would take the plunge soon. The sky was the limit for Asuka. Wait until he saw her now…

"175%... and settling… 177%..." Ryker gasped.

Asuka opened her eyes, feeling complete control surging through her.

"She… has stabilized at 177%..." Ryker said. From the looks of everyone in the observation deck, disbelief abounded.

It was as if a part of her mind had been unlocked, a consciousness of sorts… She felt closer to Unit-02 than she ever had before. Colors of all different hues filled the fringes of her mind. She fought an invisible battle with a foe then and there, ducking and weaving while lunging with a frightening tenacity. The fluidity of her motions was unheard of. A slight tremor was felt in the room near her entry plug that was suspended fifty feet in the air, as if the EVA that wasn't there had moved.

And Asuka knew, that had she the need, she could easily spike more, she could get closer in an emergency… but to stabilize at 177% as a baseline? That was truly remarkable.

The technicians gaped in awe at the sight before them while Asuka looked on triumphantly.

At that moment, the image of Jacob appeared on a large monitor near the observation deck.

"Excellent… Excellent" came the voice of the Grand Master of the Successors. He clapped several times in unison with a grin plastered across his face.

Asuka looked up at the image with wide-eyes.

Jacob?... The Grand Master… She felt an excitement, an energy welling within her. So he was tracking her progress after all. She merely stared at the monitor, unsure of how to react.

"I would consider this test a success. Asuka Langley Soryu you have truly performed… hence you are being summoned to my chambers. My standard bearer will be there shortly to escort you. The rest of you are dismissed."

At that moment the transmission ended and the monitor went back to black.

"Well done Asuka…" Ryker exclaimed, as he input some digits on the computer before him.

"That was… phenomenal. You can terminate the link when ready." He finished.

With that, a host of people began filing out of the room. Technicians, mechanics, UN and Successor military personnel, they all filed suit, however many gave each other strange glances at their abrupt dismissal. Maya glanced once more at Asuka before leaving the room.

Jacob is… summoning me?

Somehow a blush began to creep over her face. This was… this was what she had been striving for. Could… could this possibly mean that she was going to take the plunge? So many questions ran through her mind, so many possibilities.

Surely now Michaels would have to acknowledge that the time was ripe.

However, another question surfaced in her mind as well from the brief transmission.

His standard bearer…?... Who's that?

She thought not much of it as she supposed she was soon to find out,

Asuka began to terminate the synchronization link, but she stopped. On the one hand, she did not want to leave this feeling of ecstasy that she had just so recently obtained… it was otherworldly, she felt utterly victorious.

Yet… Jacob had summoned her. Personally.

After a time, the synchronization ratio terminated, and Asuka momentarily felt the sensation of great loss… how could she go back to normalcy after that? Her mind had been… it was simply bliss. However, she swam out towards the back of the long capsule, and exited by means of crawling out of the hatch door.

She was now confident, certain that she would be inducted formally as a Successor this day.

Asuka made the descent down that ladder, and headed towards the door across the large cavernous room with a renewed sense of vigor.

Michaels, I can't wait to tell you. She thought.

If only you were here… Asuka sighed. She would have appreciated him being present.

She opened the door to the deserted metallic hallway outside.

Standard Bearer…she thought again.

Suddenly, something caught her attention from her peripherals.

Her eyes widened.

There a mere few feet away from the door, stood Michaels leaning against the wall with arms crossed. He donned all-black military regalia, complete with a pea jacket.

"M-Michaels!?" Asuka proclaimed both with shock and excitement.

Did he… see the test?

"Were you… sent to meet me?" the girl asked with anticipation.

Michaels looked into her eyes with a serious expression.

"Asuka, you did really good in there…" he said, ignoring the question.

Asuka's confidence was practically brimming at that point.

"Michaels I've never felt so alive in the entry plug before." She said, a huge grin plastered across her face.

She came closer to his position.

Say it Michaels… you know I'm ready! Say it she thought, knowing that he had no choice but to tell her more now.

"Michaels, I think I'm ready for the plunge." She exclaimed.

When she uttered those words, she noticed that Michael's demeanor, his mood began to turn south somewhat. His eyes widened, if only for an instant. His calm, cool exterior gave way to a sudden hint of fury. Something apparently tugged at his mind.

"Asuka listen to me… if it comes up with Jacob…" He looked at the floor momentarily.

Asuka expected to feel hopeful, to add to that feeling of bliss she had sustained… yet was there a hint of… doubt in his voice?

Asuka looked at the man that mattered so much to her with a concerned look.

"Request to be sent to the front lines. We have a brigade present in Siberia, our F-22 Raptors and our B-2's make incursions further as we speak… There is a regiment landing near the Himalayas sniffing out potential rebels. There are options for you child… Our men are scouring South Africa for resources. If you're lucky you may even be sent back to my homeland …"

Asuka looked at him questioningly, and a bit confused. Apparently he thought much of her skills as an EVA pilot… but something seemed off.

Does he… want to send me away?

"Michaels, why are you telling me this?" she asked, fearful of what the answer may be.

Michaels stared at her.

"Asuka… you are not ready for the plunge."

Asuka stared at him in disbelief, lost for words.

How can you say that? She thought.

"What? Michaels, my performance in there… I'm ready… I know I'm ready to take the plunge!"

Asuka couldn't believe that he uttered those words. After she had worked so hard… after she had proven herself time and time again to this man, she still wasn't ready in his eyes?

Michaels looked to the floor momentarily and said nothing.

"I'm strong, I'm ready Michaels… I can do this. The Grand Master called me to his chambers. I know I can do this." The German girl proclaimed in a heavy voice.

Michael's eyes seemed to darken once more.

"Asuka… I think it would be best if you were away from Zion for a time…" Michaels said.

Asuka's eyes widened.

No… how can this be? After all this you still don't believe in my abilities?... After all we've been through together?

"Michaels, I've waited long enough… I'm ready to be inducted. I… I want Jacob to offer it to me."

Michaels looked back up at her, resigned to the girls answer. His mind once again seemed to be elsewhere, and beneath the surface he seemed to be seething… That strange, far-away look that he put on as of late came back to his features.

"Jacob summons you personally…" he muttered under his breath with a look that was perhaps contempt mixed with sadness. He looked back and Asuka and began to walk down the hallway.

"As you wish Asuka." He said.

Asuka watched as he turned to walk away. She could barely comprehend the exchange they just had.

"Michaels, wait." The girl called after him as he walked down the hallway of Zion.

Don't you get it… It was because of you that I've made it this far…

Michaels rounded a corner at the far end, never looking back at the girl. Now Asuka walked after him and began to job to catch up to his position.

"Michaels, I…"

She turned the corner and the hallway was empty. No-one was there.

"W…what?" the girl said, confused.

It was as if he had vanished into thin air… She ran further up the hallway. There were no corners or doorways where he could have gone.

"Michaels!" she called out, but to no avail.

How…Where are you? The girl thought, looking left and right

Come to think of it, it had always been strange the way that Michaels would find her as of late… He definitely had always been a mysterious persona, the girl figured. She would be minding her business and it was as if he would just appear next to her somewhere in Zion, but this… Asuka looked left and right, thoroughly confused, yet saddened.

Michaels, why aren't you happy for me?

Asuka glanced about again. She sighed and began walking back towards the room where she had emerged.

You may not think so, but I KNOW I'm ready Michaels… just wait Asuka thought, letting the tint of sadness began to turn to anger. She WOULD prove herself, beyond any shadow of a doubt, and he would be forced to see.

Asuka returned to the cavernous room from whence she had emerged.

I guess he wasn't the one Jacob sent after all… she wondered, slightly dismayed.

After a time, the sound of metallic clanking could be heard coming down the corridors of Zion, somewhere off in the distance.

Asuka looked out the door way, the opposite direction from where Michaels had walked off.

The Standard-Bearer… she thought, as a man could be seen coming towards her position far in the distance.

That hallway was long, somewhat dimly lit save for flashes of neon and the two strange ornate statues that stood midway down… but the footsteps could be heard as the man approached.

The man stepped out of the shadows. From a distance the man wore what appeared to be some all-white military garb, perhaps reminiscent of the old US Navy seaman attire. There also appeared to be a long banner of sorts streaming down his chest, loosely connected around the neck it went down to his feet practically… It was bizarre to say the least, but one thing stuck out about the man above all else.

Doe he… have one arm? Asuka thought as her eyes narrowed in curiosity.

The man's left arm swung back and forth in unison with his walk cycle, but at the right side there was… nothing, not even a stump or bulge.

As the man came closer still, Asuka, trying not to be rude, tried not to stare at his right side. She stared at his face from a distance and could not help but notice how… haggardly this person's head looked from a distance. His hair was extremely long, shaggy, and unkempt. It hung down over much of his face, obscuring some of the features. Patches of course hair lined the man's jaw in some thick beard that gave the appearance of having not shaved for months.

"Um… are you the Standard-Bearer?" Asuka asked as he stood a mere ten feet in front of her now.

The one-armed man looked at Asuka and came closer to where he was only three feet away.

Hmmm. Asuka thought. Something seemed remotely recognizable about this man, but she couldn't exactly put a finger on it.

"Asuka… it has been a while" the man said formally.

Asuka stared at the… strange-looking man before her for a second. Was she supposed to know him?

"I'm sorry but… who are…" Asuka stopped the sentence short. Asuka's eyes widened with recognition.

Wait… was it just me or does his voice sound… familiar?

She took a step closer and started to intently focus on his face, beneath that sea of hair…

Asuka trembled slightly. She wouldn't have believed it if she had seen it in person… yet here she was seeing him before her own eyes. She gaped up at the man, unable to contain her shock.

That's… impossible…

His eyes looked sleep-deprived, and somewhat more bloodshot than she remembered… but it was unmistakable.

"KAJI!?" she announced, unable to contain herself.

"Yes… I was instructed to bring you to the Grand Master." He said.

"You're… alive…" Asuka murmured, barely believing the phantom that stood before her very eyes.

But he…

Ryoji Kaji began walking down the hallway toward their target destination, beckoning back to her as if to follow.

She blinked and moved to his left side… staring at him in awe all-the-while.

Kaji… what on earth happened to you?

This man… this man used to be an object of Asuka's affection… He used to be quite charming… everything he did, everything he said. The way he used to look at her. How many times had she thought of beckoning to him? She often wondered if he was merely teasing her, wanting her… He truly had captivated her back then.

But this man… just the expression in his eyes… it was akin to someone being dead, lifeless… There was no warmth in those eyes. His disheveled physical appearance made him look like a shell of his former self, perhaps.

Yet still, Asuka saw the small semblance of himself on his face, beneath all that hair. Just that familiarity was enough, just that small semblance… Truly she had been infatuated with the older man.

"Kaji! Hey Kaji wait. What happened to you? We all thought you were…" she let that thought trail off.

Kaji walked slightly ahead of her, turning the corner in front of her that approached the stairwell.

For a time he did not answer, yet he merely led the way.

"… I have graciously been adopted into the Master's service." Was all he had to say on the matter.

Asuka looked at his back. There was an identical banner to the one that streamed down his body on the front. When he walked, they sort of… swayed. The back banner swayed quite a ways behind him, as if they were outside and it was a windy day. On closer inspection, the banner had a golden eagle on a field of red that was perched on some high place, a clear symbol of the Successors. And strange… the eagle's eye seemed to be encapsulated in a pyramidal structure. At the top of the banner read the words "Annuit cœptis" and on the bottom was the phrase, "Novus Ordo Seclorum"… whatever those words meant.

Why isn't he saying more… Asuka wondered. You would think an old acquaintance like this would have something… anything to say to her.

She glanced up at his eyes…

Those eyes…

She remembered how much she had wanted to approach him before… His calm, his cool, his demeanor, everything had been so… enticing… seducing, perhaps? But these eyes…

His eyes dashed left to right, as if in some paranoid fashion. He glanced at a security camera, he glanced at the wall…When they passed the image of some brazen beast wrought in bronze, Kaji's eyes widened slightly, and Asuka beheld a dash of fear spread across them.

They quickly walked past the Successor's statue and into the stairwell.

They walked up, and Kaji was silent. The giant neon letters in that side-stairwell indicated what floor they were on, and the dim neon lights lit up the gloom somewhat. Yet Asuka paid it no heed.

Kaji… I can only imagine what happened…

Also, the glaringly obvious had been before her the whole time: his arm, or rather lack thereof of his right one.

Suddenly, she remembered what she had been called to do in the first place… she was going to Jacob's private chambers.

Did Jacob save or help Kaji somehow?

She had no idea.

Or… maybe…

No, she would not let her mind go there. Anyways this Kaji did not seem to be one for much conversation.

In silence they walked, the questions adding up in Asuka's mind, yet also her emotions welled within her. She was walking this close to Kaji… in a past day she would have murdered to have this opportunity.

Yet why did this feel… so different now that she was next to him in person?

After a few floors, they surfaced back onto the main hallway where that lead to Michael's own veranda, although it was quite a ways down. At this branch, several hallways and corridors intersected.

Kaji lead the way. Asuka noticed that as they passed various Successor personnel, they gave him strange looks.

To one of the men that stood in front of them, Kaji raised his remaining arm and held up his middle and index fingers, while the latter two remained down connected to his thumb. It looked akin to what a priest might do when issuing a blessing. They proceeded on their way.

They arrived at the end of that long, lengthy corridor after a good while of walking. Asuka stared at Kaji all the while, longing, hoping for conversation… For anything. They finally arrived at the far end with what looked like a great door wrought of bronze.

Asuka held her breath.

The elevator to Jacob's abode… I've only heard of it.

As if reading her mind, Kaji proclaimed.

"This is the first level… the ground if you will. It leads to great heights… at the top resides my master."

Kaji withdrew a special high-access Zion security keycard and inserted it into the door. The hinges unwound and the door slid open, revealing a very ornate elevator. They began to rise.

Asuka looked at him… deep into those eyes. He seemed to look over her, beyond her.

"Kaji, is something… wrong…" Asuka finally said. It had been eating at her. After seeing Kaji, who she assumed was dead long ago at the bidding of Gendo Ikari, the least reaction she would have expected was a hug or something…

He did not respond.

They kept rising. There was a different numbering system with this elevator apparently. The numbers flashed faster and faster. This elevator was very powerful apparently, they ascended at a tremendous speed.

Suddenly, Asuka beheld all of the Geofront passing beneath their feet.

See-through? Asuka thought amazed. She looked out at the core of Zion that lay below. She saw the underground sky, saw the blue air… It was strangely beautiful this view. She saw Michael's veranda below them a ways off in the distance, yet it was growing smaller, smaller…

Michaels… you will see. This was the right decision. She thought, letting her mind wander to the Vicar of the Successors.

The metallic casing of Zion seemed to pass away and… was it possible? Were they above Zion at this point? But what about the surface…

They finally arrived at the top. It was… hard to describe for the girl. Somehow they were above all of Zion, open air lay before them, but they were still at the peak of Zion. The metallic bastion of Zion lay below.

I never imagined this…

Kaji inserted the keycard again and opened another set of ornate doors.

They slid open with grace.

Asuka's breath was taken away at the sights that lay before her. A complete tunnel that was see-through on all sides. She took a hesitant step out ever following the Standard-Bearer.

It was as if she was walking on air.

Kaji raised is one arm in the direction at what lay ahead at the end of that magnificent hallway.

"Lo and behold… this is the Eagle's Perch. Therein is the domain of my master."

Wordlessly, Asuka followed him, yet took in the sights all around her. She truly felt… on top of Zion here, nay… on top of the world. The sight was awe-inspiring.

They made the long walk, literally walking on nothing until they reached some lavish, ornate doors that seemed to be bronze with hints of gold around them.

The doors opened as if in anticipation of their arrival.

Asuka looked inside, dumbfounded. Inside, she only saw darkness and the darkness seemed very… intense as a way to describe the sensation. She didn't see anyone at first, but she heard a voice.

"Welcome…" came the words of Jacob, who was seated at a private study table inside.

"G-Grand Master…" Asuka nearly fumbled for the words. What an honor… to be invited here personally and to be in his presence. Just the sight of him, the way he said that single word… it seemed to reek of power. His very presence seemed to exude some vast strength.

"I trust Kaji was a… favorable guide to you?" Jacob asked with a grin.

"Ahh… yes I was… glad to see him." Asuka said.

Jacob beckoned towards them.

"Please come inside."

Asuka stepped into that darkness. It seemed to… cover her body somehow. The room was very dimly lit, but she could make out some of the surroundings.

Jacob looked at Kaji with a smile and motioned to a small stand that was set up near his large table.

Kaji understood and went to his master's side. Jacob picked up the large cigar.

"You know… this tobacco comes from the finest fields of Virginia. I prefer, American-made delicacies." Jacob said with a mischievous glint in his eye.

Kaji looked… devoted to the task at hand. With his arm he clutched at the lighter that was perched on that delicately carved stand. It had been his own lighter, in fact.

Kaji fumbled with the lighter, attempting to bring forth flame. It would seem his hand was… badly bruised and lacked the strength. The nervousness re-appeared written upon his face.

He dropped the lighter on the floor.

Jacob looked at him, and for a brief second Asuka saw a look of… impatience. The look was frightening to say the least, but it passed and she could not ignore that grin that was plastered all across his face.

Kaji's eyes widened. Hurriedly, Kaji bent down on his knees and picked it up again. This time he was successful. The top snapped open on that old vintage chrome lighter that appeared to be from the 1950s.

"Grand Master…" Kaji proclaimed, as he held the lighter to Jacob's cigar.

Jacob took a puff of the thing and let the smoke flow out of his mouth slowly.

"Ahh thank you, Kaji." He turned to look at Asuka.

"You know, I've taken quite the liking to this one…" he pointed towards Kaji. Kaji's eyes stared on, lifeless.

"He used to be in the clutches of the madman Gendo Ikari. He even was sent as a spy to our facility in Nevada… but this man you see before you, Kaji… He is truly a testament of success. I have brought him under my wing, and now he is completely devoted to our cause."

He took another puff and continued.

"He is what everyone can aspire to be with the Successors: an outsider who was given a second chance. Now he flourishes here, as my personal Standard-Bearer. He proudly displays our emblem."

Kaji bowed before him.

"I am always grateful… you have raised me up Grand-Master."

Jacob chuckled slightly.

"Now then, do you know why I have summoned you here, miss Asuka Langley Soryu?"

Asuka stared at him.

Such… power… his very presence… she thought. It seemed to be an even greater… presence if she could describe that word than Michaels exuded. It was something suffocating, all-empowering… but enticing all the while.

"Um… were you perhaps pleased with my… results?" she said, albeit a bit timidly.

Jacob smiled.

"Yes, good girl. Your results speak volumes to your… capabilities. And just like this man that you see before you, I am giving you the opportunity for something new… a new life, a new beginning. Asuka, I believe that it is time to sever the chords to your former self once and for all."

Jacob stared deeply into her eyes. Asuka could not help but blush slightly and aver the gaze.

"You have demonstrated your loyalty to us, but we both know that something is still missing. Asuka… I believe that you are ready to take the plunge."

Asuka's heart fluttered in her chest at the utterance of those words and the breath caught in her throat.

The Plunge…

How she had longed for someone to say those words in her presence.

"Will you do this… for me?" Jacob looked at her with a certain look in his eye.

Asuka briefly thought back to Michaels words.

I'll show you… she thought, though how she was able to think of Michaels in this man's presence was beyond her.

"Yes…" she said.

Jacob's grin extended across the entirety of his face in this moment, and he cackled slightly.

"Excellent…"

The great ornate doors slid shut to Jacob's private study.

---

The Commander took a final swig of what remained to him in his scotch bottle. He tossed the empty thing into the snow.

He walked through the thick snow on R-152, on that desolate iceberg. In his hand he clutched a wireless mouth-piece that was reminiscent of the old Electro Voice microphone that had been linked to the radio frequency of every location on the island.

"Attention my subjects. Your Commander thanks you for your diligent service on R-152…"

The message was relayed into every UN/NERV room on the island, but not a soul was around to hear it.

"But if I could… I would ask that you follow me one last time."

Great Lockheed airplanes soared above the sky, the jets and the helicopters drew nigh. He saw that some soldiers were already being lowered near the Main Hall.

"Fight, every last one of you… defend your posts. We will not let them have this island of ours. My friends, I know you may not make it through the day…"

A loud explosion was heard in the distance, as their recreation room was demolished to pieces.

"But know, that your actions will speak volumes in the next life."

The Commander walked by the joint UN/NERV monument to peace and all those flags… All those flags waving in the breeze that day.

"It was a privilege to be your Commander. Thank you for following me to the very end… Now I ask that you follow me once more. God speed."

The Commander chucked the microphone piece into the snow.

Suddenly, he felt a massive thud. The Commander looked towards the sea and the waters seemed to rise. The sensation of that impact was one of an earthquake… the whole island shook.

The Commander narrowed his eyes. An enormous transport plane flew off into the distance overhead… and in the distance, standing there in those waters…

An Eva… he thought, as he grit his teeth in rage.

The Commander quickened his pace towards the elevator shaft that lead down into the ice, under the sea.

He frowned at the menacing behemoth… It was larger than he knew EVA's to be from his limited knowledge. The thing was enormous. It would seek to take away everything wrought by his hands... everything he had worked for. He knew it would seek to end him here, to blot out his right.

How dare you...

"This is my island you're impeding on!" The Commander yelled in its menacing direction.

But lo… the Commander's mind was somewhere else. As he made his way towards the elevator, the Commander's sights were already there… they were already down in the deep depths. It was down there... that thing, down in the abyss.

The crazed Commander would not let them take his prize.

"You can't have it!"