Grimoire: Ghost Fragment - Naoko Akagi 2
"FOR THE EYES OF COMMANDER IKARI ONLY"
As per your request, given the pending commencement of the Instrumentality Project, here is the current status of all Eva units:
Unit-00: UNKNOWN. Was last classified as DECOMMISSIONED due to extensive damage suffered against the Fiftieth Ahamkara. Last known location: Terminal Dogma. Pilot status: CLASSIFIED
Unit-01: UNKNOWN. Was last classified as ACTIVE during the battle against the Source of the Ahamkara. Last known location: Terminal Dogma. Pilot status: MISSING IN ACTION
Unit-02: ACTIVE. Current location: Ukraine, battling ANOMALOUS PHENOMENA. Pilot status: ACTIVE
Unit-03: DECOMMISSIONED. Was possessed by the Twentieth Ahamkara prior to Pilot Selection, then subsequently destroyed by Unit-00 and Unit-01. Last known location: Nerv-America. Pilot status: NOT APPLICABLE
Unit-04: UNKNOWN. Was last classified as IN VITRO prior to Initial Activation, then subsequently lost along with all hands due to the Nevada Incident. Last known location: Nerv-America. Pilot status: NOT APPLICABLE
Unit-05: INACTIVE. Was last classified as ACTIVE during the battle against the Four-Hundredth Ahamkara in Low Earth Orbit. The battle's conclusion resulted in Unit-05 reaching escape velocity. Last known location: the Kuiper Belt. Pilot status: ON STANDBY
Mass Production Units 01 - 09: ACTIVE. Current location: Azerbaijan, en route to the Traveler. Pilot status: NOT APPLICABLE
I don't know why you need this information, because we all know what's coming next. Perhaps you just wanted to remind yourself of how wasteful this has all been; for these past decades, only Unit-02 and the MP Units have held back the oncoming storm, and now the Committee is initiating their endgame. Had we been more careful or more insightful, the other Evangelions might have been able to make a difference. Then again, when dealing with time travel, it seems impossible to truly go off the proverbial script.
I know that when I next wake, it will be to a different world. And yet our 'game' will still be ongoing, because there are too many players to bow out now.
As odd as it seems...I miss the old days, back when I was just a mere metaphysical biologist and a specialist in autonomic computing. Back before the Traveler. Before LILITH. Before the Stranger. Before the Vex. Before Project E. Before the Cataclysm. And yet...I know that all of it...all of it...was necessary.
Though I wish our dear Ayanami wouldn't take so much after you. For all of her talk of duty and sacrifice, she has a plan of her own. I just know it!
...and now the ontological filter over my current safe house is breaking down. I do believe the Darkness is banging on my proverbial doorstep.
It'll be banging on yours soon as well. I do hope the Traveler won't be too upset at what you're about to do.
If you end up seeing Yui before I do, give her my best. And tell that cowardly daughter of mind to stop treating the Exo's reset button like a crutch! If you're going to go mad, then embrace the madness!
Hugs and kisses and miscellaneous erotic activities,
Dr. Naoko Akagi
xxxx
/The Long Hall, NERV-Japan/
Jaren Ward was resurrected into the midst of utter havoc.
Dredgen Yor was moving with purpose and finality, his every step a stomp, his every blow a titanic strike. The Betrayer's left fist slammed into the ground, sending a shockwave of fire that knocked a few Guardians away.
...well, this is a fine mess. Yor was a good deal more powerful than he had been all those years ago in Palamon.
'Not like we can do anything but fight.'
Too true Roland, agreed the Lone Gunman. Though, in all honesty...he wasn't alone at all. He raised the Last Word - layering his A.T. Field over the hand cannon - and opened fire. Glowing bullets smashed into shadowy voids, causing the dark shields to scatter.
Dredgen Yor swiftly turned, aiming his arm cannon at Jaren.
POW!
A trio of orange octagons smashed into the former Guardian. The monster grimaced, heels dragging large trenches into the floor. "Interesting..." With a harsh thwack, his palm shattered the A.T. Fields, as easily as breaking glass. "Moving beyond the Light. Seeking power from a new path." Yor sounded...satisfied. "To survive in this universe...that is what you have to do. What you must do!"
"And you talk too much!" yelled Sai Mota, firing her pulse rifle at the Betrayer.
Shadowy pools swallowed the bullets, and Yor aimed his arm cannon skyward. Five orbs green miasma were shot upward, shimmering malevolently; with sudden violence, they split into a downpour of poisonous thorns.
"STICK TOGETHER!" screamed Sakura, willing her soul to expand: a large A.T. Field bloomed, protecting her comrades from the torrent-
"And you have a particularly robust soul."
The girl paled, slowly turning to see a massive hand reaching for her face-!
A horrific howl split the air, and then the hand was blocked by burning steel. The force of the collision between Shinji's claymore and Yor's palm was enough to send Sakura tumbling end over end. "I won't let you touch her!" roared the young Hunter.
"Sound and fury is what I hear, but does your mouth have bite?" With contemptuous ease, Dredgen Yor backhanded Shinji across the face with his arm cannon. "A jaw which cannot chew is useless; a creature that cannot do what it takes to survive is ultimately worthless. So instead of screaming, back up your words with action!" Bullets smashed into his armor, prompting the Betrayer to turn. "You should follow this one's example." Eris kept firing Bane, even as he continued his advance. "I can see the chips and shards of Knights' blades on your rifle." With an outward sweep of the arm cannon, a wave of fire pushed her comrades back. "So similar to my old Rose, before it became something truly worthwhile..." In a flicker of movement, he was upon her. His giant hand wrapped around her throat, effortlessly lifting her up. "Tell me: are the whispers always present? Do they ever become the spoken word, or enraged screams?" The pale woman seemed to jolt within his grip, and he seemed to know. "Your path is very similar to my own...can you foresee where it leads?" Bullets and grenades splashed behind his back, all blocked by the same dark shield of a Knight. "Tell me, protege of Toland: do you look at me, and see your future?"
"...never..." snarled the pale Hunter. "There is a difference between you and me, Betrayer..." She ceased her struggles, and clutched tightly onto his wrist. "...unlike you...who ended up killing their own Ghost...I still have a friend to keep me from falling into that same abyss!" Growling, she pushed away; in the next instant, Dredgen Yor's hand was grasping air, as Eris had shifted into a human-shaped cloud of purple smoke. With that singular Shadestep, she had escaped his clutches; rolling back, Eris shifted back into reality, right as she loosed a Shadowshot on his face. "Take him down!"
Omar, Jaren, and Shin were arranged in a triad around the Betrayer; in a synchronized eruption of Light, they unveiled their Golden Guns and opened fire-
"Not enough," growled Dredgen Yor, pounded his arm cannon into the ground. His armor seemed to shimmer, and a wave of noxious energy pushed them all away. "You've shown me new things, and yet I fear it still won't be enough..." He sighed. "Will the answer end up being the same?"
Jaren Ward grimaced as he got back to his feet, trying to fight through the poison that had settled upon him like a blanket. Any idea what he's babbling on about?
'Don't know. Busy trying to cleanse you.'
Fair enough. That was definitely one thing he had to grant the Betrayer...
Yor growled, his left hand beginning to burn; he raised his fist, and pillars of emerald flame began to erupt from the floor in random intervals.
...he didn't seem to pull any punches.
xxxx
/The Moon/
Well. My life officially sucks right now, thought Asuka-2 beneath the rubble that had collapsed around her. Hmph...Mari.
'Yes?''
Can you try and take a look around? I think my radar is on the fritz.
'...it's not.'
...oh. So that wall of solid red wasn't a malfunction. Hmm...that's a problem.
'You can probably just stay here, and wait for backup.'
Is Unit-02 okay?
'...I don't know.'
Then I can't just stick around. The Exo growled, slowly shifting and gathering the Light within her. At any rate...now that I'm paying attention...they're trying to dig through at me as is. So might as well meet them head on!
'...welp, guess that's what we're doing. Es geht um die Wurst?'
Es geht um die Wurst! agreed Asuka-2 as her Light blazed.
BOOM!
Fire incinerated the boulders above her, sending the charred remnants flying. The residual inferno incinerated the nearest Hive, but hundreds more remained with the cavernous abyss. The nearest Thralls shrieked at her, whilst distant Acolytes and Knights roared a challenge.
Asuka-2 gripped twin Hammers of Sol, eyes burning with fire. "COME GET SOME!"
And then the horde descended upon her.
xxxx
/The Long Hall, NERV-Japan/
Dredgen Vale's false Thorn fired fervently at the being whose path he had once followed. The needles seemed to penetrate his shadowy veils, but the hulking monster seemed uncaring of their taint. Had he truly become so removed from humanity?
The Betrayer continued his mad rampage, moving with unnerving speed throughout the chamber. The other Guardians were barely utilizing their abilities and A.T. Fields to avoid or block the former Titan's blows, and that monstrous arm cannon fired with abandon. Ghosts who tried to resurrect their fallen partners were specifically targeted by Yor.
("We know that this path we walk is a harrowing one, and that many will suffer as a result," said the man who now bore the title of Dredgen Bane. "But my brothers, my sister...that power discovered by Yor is one that we can attain, without the sacrifices that he endured. We will make certain of it.")
Well, there's certainly something to be said for aiming too high, darkly through Vale as he moved for another angle. Sai had fallen into the blade trance, slashing madly at the Betrayer, who was warding off her strikes with the palm of his left hand. A thick boot slammed into her sternum, sending her flying. We were delusional...no power can be obtained without sacrifice.
(Three days. Three days he had spent under the self-penetrating gaze of the Sage's Introspection. He did not like what he saw within himself...but he would have to make due.)
Everything had a cost. Everything. And in the end...the cost of this power was too high. So is this it? Yor seemed unbeatable; only their A.T. Fields were keeping the fight from being an absolute massacre, and even then, the Betrayer could smash through those metaphysical shields with enough focus. Is this where it ends?
There was a deafening crack that echoed through the air; Yor's backhanded swipe had shattered Shinji Ikari's rib cage. The young Hunter gurgled in agony, the force sending him tumbling end over end. "Useless," said Yor with a snort, stampeding towards the fallen Guardian.
"I WON'T LET YOU HURT HIM!" screamed Sakura Suzuhara, landing in front of her incapacitated friend. Her A.T. Field flared wide and thick.
It wouldn't be enough.
("...Suzuhara..." He sighed, looking ahead at his young companion. "I mean...Sakura." She looked quizzically at him, standing atop a small rocky outcropping. The morning mist made this whole event seem...needlessly poignant. But it had to be said. "What my companions and I did...for killing your Ghost...I'm sorry.")
...well...maybe it's an end for one thing. Dredgen Vale girded himself, and propelled himself with a spiritual catapult of sorts. In the blink of an eye, he found himself between Sakura and a glowing arm cannon.
There was an audible crack, and the spray of blood.
xxxx
/The Last City, Earth/
The nearest Cabal warships opened fire at the incoming meteor with everything they had, for Crota was a proverbial meteor: a ball of fire and green power, dropping at high speed towards Earth.
Saint-14 watched the descending Hive god with something akin to terror. "...damnation." He smashed his shield of Void energy into the body of the quivering Mataraelus at his feet, pulverizing into smithereens. He quickly took off at a run towards the Barrier, opening an emergency communication line. "Attention all Guardians! If you are not assisting with evacuating the civilians or protecting them directly, head for the eastern Barrier! Halt all unnecessary combat with the Cabal and the Fallen; we must turn all of our attention to Crota!"
It was a painful decision, one that Saint-14 intrinsically felt revulsion for; however, letting the Fallen and the Cabal run wild could very realistically result in the City being destroyed.
Crota could very easily destroy the City and the Traveler as well.
It was an easy choice.
xxxx
Crota landed harshly in the plains to the east of the Barrier, creating an impact crater that rumbled and quaked. His very presence caused foliage to burn, caused flora to shrivel up and die. His eyes fell upon the City - the scorch marks on the wall, the glowing red machines embedded into the Barrier, the legion of floating crystals and their shattered brethren coating the earth - and the Traveler.
The Prince of the Hive opened his mouth, and spoke in tongues that could be understood by all, and thus come to fear him in fullness. "Slaves of the Light! Servants of a broken god! Your death has been decreed!" He raised his right hand high, its palm shimmering blue. "Hail, those who used my power! But it was not truly taken, merely borrowed; that which is mine, I REFUSE TO GIVE!" His hand clenched into a fist.
xxxx
/The Hall of Consensus, the Core/
Voryas, Kell of House Matarael, joined the Cabal and the human thieves in the sudden halt of combat; the arrival of Crota had taken precedence.
Then, the Hive Prince's voice had echoed throughout the entire City.
The Sword in his hand suddenly began to burn. Why-?!
The Mataraelix suddenly screamed in agony, and his entire form flash-fried to a crisp. Ashes were all that remained, collapsing into a pile; the Sword of Crota was still floating, blazing with emerald flame; with a sudden flicker, it vanished from their sight.
The Cabal and the Guardians all stared at this phenomenon with bewilderment. The Fallen of House Matarael, seeing the sudden death of their leader, promptly shrieked and fled.
"...couldn't have happened to a nicer guy," muttered Cayde-6.
xxxx
Power was power, and Crota's belonged to him alone: physical separation was no obstacle.
So when his Sword rematerialized in his hand, it swiftly grew and burst to a size that was in proper proportion to his current form. "And now it all ends." He pointed the tip of his blade at the Traveler's distant form. "I shall crack you open like an egg!"
And so Crota began his advance towards the City.
xxxx
/The Long Hall, NERV-Japan/
Susan released a stream of Light over Shin Malphur's corpse, fully resurrecting him. "Are you okay?"
"...so that's death," he said, slowly getting back to his feet. "And this is rising back into life...it feels odd."
"...so, you're okay?"
Shin's eyes slowly focused back, and he wiggled his jaw; the last he recalled, an errant jab from Dredgen Yor had snapped his neck. "...well, I'm up."
"That's the spirit," chirped his Ghost, merging back with his body. "But things have taken a turn for the worse."
...right. The only reason he had even gotten close to Yor was because he had tried to keep him from attacking Sakura Suzuhara...and then Dredgen Vale had suddenly been there. What's happened...oh. His eyes fell upon Vale, who was being tended to by young Sakura; his left arm was completely gone, reduced to a smoking stump. A field of orange octagons pressed over the stump, preventing him from bleeding out. Shinji - no longer incapacitated - was swinging his claymore wildly, but the Betrayer was avoiding his frenzied attacks with ease. Eris, Sai, Omar, and his teacher were firing upon the monstrosity, but they couldn't penetrate the pools of shadow that manifested around him. This...this isn't going well.
How were they going to triumph?
"The long grind of history is a testament to those who survive," said Dredgen Yor, his left hand grabbing Shinji by the wrist. With contemptuous ease, he tossed him away. "And already, you're beginning to falter; this is where your story will end."
"NEVER!" roared Eris in defiance, flinging a Vortex Grenade at him.
"Your Light is fading," taunted Yor, stepping beyond the pull of the swirling mass of Void energy. "And when it is gone, what will be left for you?"
Jaren Ward snorted. "All this talk of survival, of doing whatever it takes...you remind me of a certain mayor." The Lone Gunman quietly moved forward, gripping tightly onto the Last Word. "Did the thought of losing really bring you this far?"
(Magistrate Loken ranted and raved at Jaren, screaming about how Palamon was his, and his alone! The sheer possessiveness of a sad man, who was paranoid and frightened; but by the end, the Last Word had spoken, and Loken had spoken his last.)
"You speak of individual loss as though they count; in the end, all that you've built will crumble, and your strength will fail." The fingers in Yor's left hand curled. "How much of your life was spent on me, a mere shadow of something greater? That continued focus on minor threats, on bit players in a truly cosmic war...that, more than anything else, is why the City was always destined to fall."
"Maybe. And yet here we are."
Armored fingers glowed with fire. "Defiant to the point of insanity."
"More like you're someone who just needed to die. And I figured I had what it took to pull it off."
SPLURCH.
Yor's left arm was embedded into Jaren's chest, straight through the heart. On the other side, clutched in an ethereal grip, was Jaren's Ghost. The swiftness of the Betrayer's attack had stunned everyone into silence. "And you're not strong enough to kill me." Fingers tightened, crushing Roland.
'ROLAND!' screamed Susan.
Shin stared, dumbfounded by this turn of events. What...but...? It didn't compute. How...how could it end like this?
"Hmph. Your adopted son watches your death throes in shock, knowing that he cannot triumph. No rage, no fury; he will never ripen. Such a waste!" With a furious shout, he swung his arm; with a meaty thunk, Jaren landed and slid along the ground, slowing to a stop near Sakura and Vale. The streak of blood was eye-catching. "If despair won't open their eyes to the finality of it all, then perhaps I should just annihilate you all and be done with it!"
"...heh..." Jaren gurgled, slowly getting to his feet. The hole where his heart had been was leaking Light. "...you know, they called me the Lone Gunman...but I was never alone. Not truly. That's the thing about Light...it's all connected. Or so people smarter than me have figured." He looked down meaningfully at Dredgen Vale.
Vale looked back up...and nodded, as though acknowledging a grim purpose, but one with greater meaning. "...the theory of Ulan-Tan. There's...merit to it." Vale struggled to his feet, letting his A.T. Field fade away from his shoulder. The pooled blood splattered to the ground, even as the wound leaked with a Light long unused. "...but either way...shadows require a light to be formed." He looked with a quiet intent at Dredgen Yor, the one he had so studiously studied. "And if you are a 'mere shadow of something greater'...then what is the light that casts your shadow? The shadow that you pursue: which light casts that one?"
Dredgen Yor snorted. "I have yet to find a Light strong enough to create the Darkness I've seen."
"...maybe you haven't looked hard enough." Jaren glanced in Shin's direction.
(The Ghost had showed up one day, saying that I was hers. When I went to Jaren...he simply appraised me, with that same discerning look. Then, with a knowing nod, he said, "I'll teach you all that I know.")
What are you doing? wondered Shin.
"...Zyre-san?" asked Sakura, her voice quivering with dread and worry.
Jaren looked down at the Last Word. With a quiet breath, he let it fall, never to touch it again. "...you're strong, Yor...but the man you used to be once knew something very important: to use something well, you gotta know its nature. Same with the Light."
"...yes..." Dredgen Vale - or, perhaps more appropriately in his last moments, Zyre Orsa - spoke with something akin to an epiphany. His breathing was labored. "The Traveler gave so much to us, such was its power...and the Light is no different..."
Jaren removed his helmet, revealing a tanned and stubbly face, lined with wrinkles; his bloody lips were cracked into a wry grin. "The Light is strongest...when it is freely given, to shine..."
Thus did Jaren Ward and Zyre Orsa give up the proverbial ghost; with their last breath, they released what Light remained within them.
Dredgen Yor watched quietly as the two Guardians dissipated into a wave of Light, which swept through the room as motes of glowing particles. "And thus ends their tales..."
And then there were six pillars of Light, burning and searing brightly, all centered on Yor's remaining foes. Even little Sakura, deprived of her Ghost, was glowing. "Whoa..." muttered the youthful girl.
"...interesting," muttered the Betrayer, eyeing this new development warily.
Shin Malphur stared at his hands in amazement; his entire body was suffused with a familiar warmth.
'This...this is the last of Jaren's Light,' whispered Susan.
"...yes..." His hands clenched tightly. He understood. He understood. "I see."
'...don't hold anything back.'
I won't.
"Everyone!" Eris Morn's hands clenched into fists. "Their sacrifice had meaning and weight; do not let it be for nothing!"
And every Guardian to the last activated their Supers.
xxxx
Dredgen Yor growled, body flaring with green flame and black shadow-
Sakura Suzuhara was suddenly in front of him, tiny body overflowing with Light. For the first time in years, she indulged in her powers as a Titan: lightning crackled around her form, mouth unleashing an enraged scream. The fist plowed through his ethereal barriers, smashing into his torso and sending him tumbling.
Such an outflow of power, thought the Betrayer with something approaching respect. He aimed his arm cannon, which belched forth a toxic ray of miasma-
Heaviness overtook him, dragging his right arm down. Yor looked at the Shadowshot tether that was anchoring him down; more were joining it, fired with abandon by a shimmering Eris. So much Light! Bound down as he was, he couldn't avoid the fiery bolts of the Golden Gun unleashed by Omar Agah and Shin Malphur; each shot blasted off more and more of his armor, revealing pale skin with blackened veins. "This won't be enough!" He roared, swelling with power, ready to blast the ground beneath his feet in a cataclysmic eruption-PAIN! A ragged howl slipped out of his throat; an A.T. Field-enhanced Arc Blade had sliced off his right arm at the shoulder, while another had cut off his left arm at the elbow. The two Bladedancers responsible - Shinji and Sai - leapt away, using their electric swords to launch waves of crackling energy along the ground. His body jolted and twitched from the Arc, burned and blistered from the Solar, was slowed and dulled by the Void...it was an onslaught the likes of which he had never endured.
The enraged scream was back. He barely managed to raise his head in time to see the knuckles of Sakura Suzuhara - Fists of Havoc covered by overlapping fields of orange octagons - smash into his face.
The impact from the back of his head hitting the floor left a massive indent in the metal floor. The power behind that blow had been suffocating; he couldn't even feel anything below his legs now. All of the power that he had accrued felt out of reach, barely within the grasp of his fingertips.
A throaty chuckle burbled past his lips as Shin Malphur stood over him; the Last Word was now in his hands. "Hah...so it seems you were able to answer the Question this time...an impressive display..." Something within him writhed, aching to be released. He ignored it. "...but as you run out of allies...as the universe draws down around you in all its cruelty, and there is no one left to provide you that spark...how will you answer it then? When it is only you, what will you turn to in order to survive?"
"...it's not just about survival," said Shin, an oddly resigned tone in his voice. Perhaps there was also pity.
"Anyone can survive if they're desperate enough." Eris Morn joined Shin's side, staring down at him as if with contempt. "But...it takes a greater strength to live. The animal in us all wants to survive...but to live, there must be meaning. Tell me this, Betrayer: when was the last time that you actually lived?"
...how interesting. "So that is your Question, then..."
(He looked down at the ruins of North Channel with a grimace. "Come on Azzir," said Asuka-2, slapping his back vigorously. "Those survivors aren't gonna make it on their own." He watched her leave, wondering just how much longer she could stomach these sorts of small victories; the Fallen had been repelled, but not truly defeated; they had found more people to take to the City, but only because their home had been destroyed. In the long run, what difference was any of this going to make? There needed to be a game changer...or perhaps, he needed to ask a different question altogether.)
How amusing. "I wonder..." At least that little boy from Palamon had grown into something that could be refined. Such a shame that he wouldn't see it come to fruition...and that boy with the claymore carried an entirely different presence, one that felt so intertwined with the shackled Giant in violet armor; if only there had been more time. If only he had been stronger. "...what answer will you come to, when you face the totality of the Darkness? If I became this...then your demise will unleash something truly spectacular."
Eris sneered at him. Shin simply raised Jaren's cannon, now his own; every last speck of the Lone Gunman's Light trickled down his arm, imbuing the Last Word with a hot and angry glow. "Yours...not mine," he said, as though offering a eulogy. The cannon spewed bullet after bullet, and searing fire roared through Yor's body, consuming every last speck of him: Thorn, Worm, and all.
Thus fell Dredgen Yor.
xxxx
The fiery barrier summoned by the Betrayer simmered and died; the Long Hall was quiet once more, Unit-01 was visible, and the gateway to Terminal Dogma was once more accessible. Shinji Ikari observed all of this, and felt a strange sense of foreboding.
Shin Malphur sighed, stepping away from the ashes of Dredgen Yor's body. "...it's done."
"And good riddance," spat Eris Morn, bearing a distinctly satisfied tone. "Now we get what we came for." She turned towards him, slowly moving towards the bound Evangelion. "Ikari...are you able to activate Unit-01?"
"...I don't know." Was it wrong to say that he hoped he couldn't? "...but I can try."
"Well, we need to hurry!" exclaimed Omar, looking warily back the way they came. "Because if Crota really is awake, then we can't afford to dilly-dally!"
"...dilly-dally?" incredulously asked Sai.
"It's a valid phrase!"
"But first...we must determine the status of LILITH." Eris tightly clutched Bane, turning her gaze towards the broken gate leading into the chamber beyond. "Last I saw her...she was still silent, and her dread power had yet to be claimed by Crota's spawn. That may have changed."
"...and what are you asking us to do?" quietly asked Shin.
"Whatever we must do." Their fireteam leader slowly moved forward, bravely and without hesitation.
Shinji was about to follow them, but he couldn't; he had to tend to an old friend first. "...Sakura-chan?"
The young girl was cradling Dredgen Vale's hand cannon, the only thing of his that had survived. The false Thorn looked out of place in her hands, and yet she held it with steady assurance. "...that stupid jerk." She wiped at her eyes before meeting his gaze, smearing tears across her face. "He still thought he had to make up for what he did, you know? I'd already forgiven him...so why?"
"...well..." Shinji sighed. "I guess...it's just something that he felt he had to do."
"...that's stupid." She poked him in the stomach angrily. "You better not be stupid too, okay?!"
He nodded dumbly. He had no intention of dying.
Thus did the two rejoin the other four Guardians, crossing the threshold into Terminal Dogma.
Ancient lamps seemed to respond to their presence, lighting up along the walls. Bones of great beasts and giant humanoids lined the walls and the floor, all leading up to a massive throne fashioned from a dark and shimmering metal; sitting upon it was a white Giant, surrounded by dozens of Wizards.
"So that's LILITH, eh?" asked Sai.
"Yes. The Source of the Ahamkara," said Eris.
All of the Wizards shrieked, roaring defiantly at them-
"Cease."
With that single word, all of the Hive witches were vaporized. That single word carried power, and authority.
Eris suddenly went still, which didn't escape Omar's notice. "...you okay, Eris?"
"The whispers...what are they saying...?" she said, seemingly dumbfounded by a new and horrific epiphany.
"You have come far, children of the Traveler."
That voice was centered on LILITH. Her head slowly rose; quietly, her triad of eyes opened, glowing with blue fire.
Eris gagged, collapsing to her knees with shock. "No...fingertips on the surface of my mind..." As Sai and Omar rushed to her side, she gasped, "It can't be...no, IMPOSSIBLE! The voices...!"
"What voices?!" demanded Shin.
"What's going on?" asked a worried Sakura.
Shinji wanted to help his comrade, but the sight of LILITH was triggering yet another memory.
(Deep beneath the Geofront, in this dread chamber of bone and ruin, two Giants clashed. Darkness and black shadow swirled from the white Giant...and it was laughing. It was pleased. It was not curved and pasty, but jagged and harsh; he was facing the Giant in its true form.)
"They say a name...forgotten and reviled, but one of undeniable power..." Eris could barely bring her head up to face the white Giant; with every passing second, the awakened creature's power continued to morph and twist, as self-imposed shackles fell away; white skin twisted and sharpened, unveiling the true shape of its hardness. In a matter of moments, the white Giant, formless and void, had taken on features of both a Knight and a Wizard, a fusion so seamless that it seemed like they owed their shapes to her. "...that name...is Nokris...!"
"Aiat, learned one! I am Nokris, the Bride of Oryx. And I am here to witness the rise of true perfection."
LILITH - nay, Nokris - raised her right hand, palm glistening with bluish-green fire.
Deep below in the pit of bones, something stirred.
With sudden force, a hand clad in blue armor grabbed onto the ledge that the Guardians stood upon; the power in that grip bent rock and metal. A dreadful groan echoed through the chamber as the new Giant arose.
Shinji paled, jaw dropping out of sheer shock and terror. "Unit...Unit-00?!"
The Evangelion - clad in ruined armor, scorched and cracked, its blue color long faded and worn - stood tall, glaring at them with a single blazing eye. The helmet's restraints around the jaw shattered, revealing a maw of razor-sharp teeth. Its veins seemed to burn, a sign of the power that now animated it.
"...uh...are we gonna have to fight that?" asked Omar.
The cyclops roared in defiance at them; the ensuing shockwave knocked them over.
"That answer it for you?!" yelled Sai.
"A new age is upon us all; so fight, children of the Traveler! Fight, and die!"
xxxx
Grimoire: Ossified Fragments - Divergence
"A New Testament"
Dearest Oryx, father of my spawn; my beloved, the Taken King: you are a fool.
I have seen the course of events, the long march of history since our departure from Fundament; we Hive have killed many, and have proven our existence over and over again. And yet we have not plumbed the depths of everything. Right now, our son and our daughters are battling strange machines in your Throne World. This is their tenth year of warfare against the Vex; a cheerful and cancerous pox be upon Savathûn the Cunning!
There is more that we do not know. There are possibilities that I must determine. My Worm is in agreement, so long as it is fed.
Dearly beloved, you continuously seek to ally yourself with a singular concept, to become synonymous with the very philosophy you follow, to become indistinguishable from death itself. A laudable goal, and one that I wholeheartedly support. Yet all three of your eyes are blinded to alternatives, much like your sisters; if, in the end, you are the only one standing, then the means are irrelevant. If the means are successful, then what does it matter if they are repulsive or repugnant? Victory at any costs is a virtue all its own, and is befitting of the Worm our God.
I have made my preparations. While you are communing with the Deep, I have copied the Tablets of Ruin; even if I have not the strength to use them myself (for I know if I call upon that fullness, that unyielding abyss, I will be consumed), they provide me leverage. While our children are fighting these bewildering machines, I will withdraw all support, and leave them alone to sharpen themselves. Such is my love, this sweet betrayal! If you hate me for this, I would treasure it like the finest wine.
I cut the chain of my tithe, oh King of mine, and will establish my own dynasty. If you chase me, then you will see the new path I have forged, and grow in understanding; if you do not, then this new power will mature and ripen, and become a truly worthy adversary, one that will force you to be an even better King.
Thus do I mount my warbound steed, my dark star, this Black Moon; thus do I delve into parts unknown.