.hack/EVA: Catharsis: Blurring the Boundaries

Disclaimer: In this universe in the quantum foam, I do not own or in any way shape or form hold a claim to the .hack series or Neon Genesis Evangelion.

" " denotes speech

'italics' denotes thought

'bold' denotes location names

'bold italics' denotes skill use

A/N: Asuka shall arrive in the next chapter, for those curious to know. Thank for reading!

In response to cevgar: Consider the premise of Evangelion, with humanity attempting to become "God," surpassing its creator, if you will and look at the chapter in this light. I don't see this as a case of "everybody ganging up on the guy who says the world is round" for the reason that if we go with Descartes axiom of "I think therefore I am", then an AI that believes itself to be sentient must be considered so. And while I understand that Rei cannot be considered artificial in the same respect as an AI, she is not strictly human either, and was created by human hands, no? Part of what this fic has at its foundation is a blurring of the notions of natural and artificial, of real and virtual, much as in the .hack universe, where there are programs capable of rewriting themselves and outstripping past limitations, of growth in a way much like life itself.

Tokyo-3 1st Municipal Junior High School, Classroom 2-A

A few days after the novelty of having a class in The World, the students of Class 2-A found themselves once again sitting in class, forced to scribble down notes as quickly as possible. Their teacher had taken a tangent from the study of the mind and emotion to talk about the nature of mind vs. brain, physical vs. mental. Part of this was due to the topic's relevance, as the mind-body connection was rather important in the field of psychology, but some of the reasons were a bit more personal, as how one looked at the mind tended to affect one's thoughts about AI.

"Given your experiences in The World and the similarity that these possess to those in the real world," Morganna had asked, "what do you think about this issue? What about NPCs in the game? How about the possibility of AI, or artificial consciousness? Could something that only exists in a virtual world be as real as you or I?"

Here she was being ironic, though only one student really picked up on it, namely the one who had come from AI origins as well. Unsurprisingly, there were few hands in the air, but one of them happened to be that of a bespectacled lad who fancied himself a hacker. Curious as to his response, Morganna nodded to Kensuke to give his opinion.

"Eh, you can't use The World as an example," the more diminutive member of the Idiot Duo responded. "NPCs are just following pre-programmed instructions, and don't have any free will."

"And if one were to develop consciousness or exhibit emergent behavior, to do things that are not specified by their instruction set?" Morganna probed. "What would your response be then, given the proliferation of heuristic techniques?"

"Contact the administrators about a bug," Kensuke swiftly replied, missing the subtle twitches from both Morganna and Lycoris. "If a program is displaying emergent behavior and acting outside its given parameters, then there is likely a need for debugging. And like any other program, an AI is not self-aware, being simply a collection of code designed to solve a certain set of problems. Even if it managed to pass the Turing Test and hold a conversation with a human being, an AI would not really be sentient, it would just appear so. There is no true understanding, merely a response to an instruction set, thus what a program does cannot be described as thought - merely the illusion of conscious thought."

"Ah, I see you are using the Chinese room argument, first postulated by John Searle," noted Morganna, whose voice had just grown a little colder and more dangerous. "But in response, can you define for me conscious thought, Mr. Aida, and how your understanding of this phenomena - which I assume you have not researched in detail - is different from that of a program linked to a database on the topic?"

"Humans can learn from experience and become more than the sum of their parts, gain an understanding of topics they do not understand through study - but a program cannot," the bespectacled boy replied. "Programs are limited to what they are coded to do, as that is an inherent property of their design, while humans are not."

"...humans are not, Mr. Aida?" Morganna returned, raising an eyebrow. "So what exactly are you saying? To summarize, you seem to say that nothing artificial can ever be considered on par with a human? That even emotional analogues are false?"

"Of course," the geek said, laying the framework for his demise. "Nothing artificially created by human hands can ever reach the same level as the creator, and as we create AI as a tool, it cannot surpass us. Not even in a virtual world can the artificial be said to be real."

This time, there were three twitches, one from Morganna, one from Lycoris, and one from Rei (who was considering what Kensuke said in relation to the Angels, who seemed to exist merely for a programmed objective - or most humans, who simply followed rules and instruction sets), as the temperature dropped precipitously and dangerous thoughts ran through Morganna's mind.

It would be an interesting experiment to Data Drain Mr. Aida so that he might find out just how real the wrath of an artificial being is…it would be easy enough, I suppose. All I would have to do is arrange for a suitable distraction and then unleash the might of the Guardian upon him…though unfortunately, that would likely anger Helba, and that would have negative consequences for my well-being.

"Is there anyone else who would like to state an opinion on the matter before we move on?" Morganna had asked, looking expectantly over at Lycoris, who in turn, raised her hand.

"I believe that true emergent AIs are like souls, are living beings as much as anything else in this world. Sentience is not limited to a physical form," the silver-haired girl stated. "For even as programs are a collection of bits and bytes, are we not collections of atoms and molecules? As computer programs are compilations of instructions, is not the same true of people, who have DNA as their instruction code, as well as the rules imposed upon them by society?"

"But its not the same-" Kensuke began, only to be cut off by the normally mild-mannered transfer student.

"No, it is the same...or at least, it is similar enough," Lycoris said firmly, fire in her eyes. "I will agree that not every program possess consciousness or intelligence-but not all living things do, do they? So why is it that if a human displays emergent behavior, it is often praised as creativity, while a program is in need of debugging?"

"They're two different concepts - one has intelligence, while the other shows merely a semblance of intelligence but not intelligence itself. One cannot apply the standards meant for one to the other. After all, a program has never demonstrated a will to live in the face of deletion, has it? Demonstrated curiosity, emotion, and other such when not proprogrammed with parameters to mimic emotion?" So Kensuke asked, but he did not give anyone a chance to reply. "This is why-"

"-its strange, I think, how there isn't a definition of consciousness or thought that isn't based on human preconceptions, using humans themselves as a baseline to measure other beings against," Lycoris cut in, interrupting the bespectacled boy. "But if we consider the problem logically and discard these assumption, how would one demonstrate human intelligence beyond a shadow of a doubt? According to your logic, the argument could be made that the so-called intelligence of a human being would also be artificial. That your knowledge, your insistence that the nature of AIs precludes consciousness may be the result of a set of biological processes that simply emulate intelligence - that humans are but self-replicating biological programs, containers for genetic memes. Further, if one wanted to extend the metaphor about a creator and debugging, could not one say that the Angels are here to debug humanity, which has certainly developed beyond its original parameters?"

A very chilling question, that, one that sent an involuntary shudder down the spines of most present - but a question that could not be ignored.

Kensuke looked stricken, even as most of the class recoiled in shock at this notion.

"That's not-"

"It's easy, isn't it, to judge something else when one is certain of one's own status? To casually dismiss what one doesn't understand or that flies in the face of one's ability to maintain one's perception of the self as significant, unique - both as individuals and as a species - something that is seemingly a directive of the human program," Lycoris stated, emphasizing the last word for irony's sake. "To quote a portion of the Epitaph often quoted by Harald Howerick: 'when the finger points to yonder moon, the fool will look at the fingertip.'"

"But that's—" he tried again, only to be cut off by a very angry Child of Twilight.

"No!" she hissed, turning an intense glare on him that made Kensuke want to sink under his seat, suddenly feeling very small. "Its not different at all. Doesn't all sentient life deserve a chance to live and grow, to not be murdered for being different? No entity is just a puppet for your amusement or use…every sentient being that is alive and can think for itself is its own individual, not someone's tool! And if you say that an AI might only believe itself to be alive, how about you? 'I think, therefore I am.' That is the axiom by which Descartes described consciousness - the axiom by which most of humanity lives. If an artificial intelligence can develop to the point at which it at least believes itself to think, to have an intention, a will of its own, should it not then be considered alive and intelligent by the definitions we apply to humans? As a thought experiment, what if you fell into a coma and your consciousness only existed online as data? Would it then be alright to 'debug' you as well and erase you from the world? After all, by your words, you wouldn't be alive, merely an artificial entity with the illusion of consciousness."

Morganna had flinched quite violently at the mention of people falling into comas and being "debugged." No one here knew it, but CC Corp had been planning to shut down the servers of The World during the Twilight Incident, which would effectively have murdered the consciousnesses of those trapped in comas…trapped by her doing. From her experience, people would try to erase what they did not understand, causing a "Genocide of the Unknown", if one would. And to tell the truth, she hadn't been much better, willing to use whatever means at her disposal to fight for survival…Death had been the greatest of her fears, the Terror of Death what had represented her best.

"That's enough, Ms. Hakubo," Morganna said softly, in a voice that was pitched to be low and even, yet resonant enough to be heard. "Please have a seat."

Hearing that voice, Lycoris snapped out of her single-minded focus. She looked around with a blush, suddenly realizing that how vocal she had been, and quickly sat down. While it seemed odd that she would get so angry over such a trivial issue, she did have her reasons, though in hindsight, perhaps mentioning coma victims and debugging was not such a good idea. Still, she had presented her argument very well…well enough that Shinji, though he had no idea of Lycoris' lineage, thought that she seemed a vengeful goddess, appropriate enough, given the circumstances. Lycoris, while sweet and caring most of the time, could indeed be her mother's daughter.

Kensuke's reaction was not quite as admiring as Shinji's, as he looked absolutely stunned by what he had seen, almost as if his very life had flashed before his eyes. The bespectacled geek was looking straight ahead, but his face was frozen into a mask of mingled fear and...a hint of grudging respect, eyes glazed over, and jaw hanging open in shock, helplessly gibbering.

The sight was quite amusing to Morganna, who erased the message she had been about to send to the authorities, informing them about the little hacker in class 2-A. That information could be used for another time, and it seemed as if Kensuke had the fear of the Goddess put into him, so for now, the embodiment of the Wave was satisfied.

"Ms. Horaki, please escort Mr. Aida to the nurse's office so that he can recover from his state of shock," she said, motioning for the Class Representative to do her duty. The very picture of order and responsibility, Hikari jumped to it, and the non-responsive Kensuke was soon removed from class.

Rei, in the corner of the classroom as per usual, observed these proceedings curiously. It was…surprising that the girl known as Reimeiki Hakubo would defend AI (and artificial lifeforms, by extension), so vigorously. That a creation might not be bound to the will of the creator was something of a new concept for the blue-haired girl, and she processed what had been said about every living being as its own individual with interest.

This discussion is of relevance to my situation, for I am an artificial being. But I am not bound to my creator? I am my own person…just as in The World I create my own identity. It is curious how she expresses her ideas…first The World as a bond to all people, and now a violent diatribe on the equality of all life, whether artificial or not…perhaps she is like me.

In front of the classroom, Morganna decided to return to the main topic of the Epitaph, but her mind was only half there as she began a lecture on the symbolism of Twilight, on the importance of the joining of historical adversaries Aperion, King of Light, and Helba, Queen of the Dark, in the fight against the Wave, and how that represented the necessity of personal integration in defining the self. Most of her mind was focused on a current problem in The World.

I am concerned about the problem of AIDA…new AIs evolving from the Void. One became aggressive and this aggression spread quickly, as they are linked. Yet some peacefully coexist with The World…I wonder if perhaps a reset of the world network would be enough to purge the aggressive portion of the AIDA, while leaving the rest. For this, the power of an Epitaph is required…possibly Corbenik, the Rebirth…or the Dummy Epitaph, the copy of Tarvos, the Avenger. Yes, I had almost forgotten of that program…if I can assimilate the Dummy Epitaph's power, I will be able regain much of my lost power in The World…to once again rise to where I used to be. But first, I must find the Epitaph Wielder of Corbenik and suggest to him a plan...

NERV Headquarters, Tokyo-3

The corridors of NERV had never been designed to win any awards in interior decoration, Shinji reflected, walking along the cold metal hallways once again. Dr. Akagi had mentioned something about a "special" test for him without supplying any additional details, and he was a little nervous, hoping that it would not involve needles, nudity, or probes in most inopportune places.

He arrived at her office, slightly worried about what was to come, but the bottle blond was not there. In her place was the ever-personable Maya Ibuki, who Shinji preferred to work with, if at all possible. There was just something about Dr. Akagi that intimidated him, as if she was keeping a secret that could end the existence of the human race.

And here I go being paranoid again. That would be almost as bad as if she was sleeping with Father or something…and Father never gets close enough to anyone for that to happen, so I'm safe for now.

"Hello, Pilot Ikari," the mousy brunette greeted with a smile. "Dr. Akagi is setting up your test chamber at the moment, but she asked you to change into this specially modified plug suit."

She held out the suit in question, and Shinji looked at it uneasily, seeing that it had flowing silvery lines embossed on it that seemed vaguely like circuitry or ancient runes…reminiscent of his costume in The World. And speaking of The World…the Third Child remembered a conversation in Hulle Granz some time ago, where a mysterious Sorceress in White, Tsukinoki, had revealed two bits of information: 1) That she knew he was the Third Child; and 2) That Reimeiki was related to a goddess.

He had guessed that Tsukinoki might be Dr. Akagi, as both were powerful blonds, and had been "not even close", to use her response. Briefly, Shinji wondered if it could be Maya who was Tsukinoki, but wrote that off almost immediately. Her presence wasn't nearly commanding enough, and she didn't seem the type to play The World anyway, much less be the personification of Helba, Queen of the Dark.

"Is something wrong?" Maya asked with concern. She could sense that Shinji was a little uncomfortable, but wasn't quite sure as to why. He needed to be put at ease before the next test, or he might be overwhelmed by what he was to experience.

His train of thought broken, Shinji just laughed, shaking his head. The cool sound echoed through the room and shattered the tension, setting both at ease once more.

"Sorry, Ibuki-san," he apologized. "I was just reminded of something that happened to me in The World."

"The World?" the bridge technician asked curiously, a touch of wariness in her eyes. "Do you mean the MMORPG?"

"Hai, Ibuki-san," Shinji said, nodding in confirmation. He stopped laughing then, his face grave. "For a moment I pictured you as someone else I had met in The World, someone whose name itself is intimidating: Helba, Queen of the Dark. But that's silly, you're too gentle to be someone like that."

You'd be surprised, Third Child, thought Maya, a small smile playing across her lips at Shinji having outthought himself. And there are reasons I am the way I am here, putting on an appearance, as your teacher might say, as she and I know each other…intimately in the way only enemies and lovers can.

"Hurry up and change," she quipped, playing on one of his fears to move thoughts away from this dangerous area. "Or Ritsuko will get frustrated and use one of her probes on you."

Shinji must have set a land-speed record that day, changing, dashing out the door…and slinking back in when he realized that he didn't know where he was supposed to go for his test. Without a word, Maya gestured for him to follow her and he did, with both of them coming to a halt before a plain metal door.

Maya nodded for Shinji to enter, and he did so, passing through the door into a sea of stark white. He could not see the walls or where anything was in this room…it gave him a curious sensation of being adrift in the ocean of the mind.

"Greetings, Shinji-kun," intoned a voice from above, Dr. Akagi's from the sound of it. "You are here to test out a new piece of equipment that I call a virtual room. Upon entering, you're A-10 neural clips and specially modified suit have synced with this simulation, so that what happens here will seem very real to you."

"What is the purpose of this?" came another voice, this one from besides him. It was Rei, who was outfitted in something similar to what he was wearing.

"Since piloting Eva is largely based on your ability to picture your actions in your mind, while in a combat situation," Dr. Akagi replied, "this simulation is designed to train your reactions and responses. Here, you will not be in an Eva…or rather, you will be the Eva, with equipment customized to your preferences and a simulated AT field. But do keep in mind that like piloting an Eva, pain is a very real factor here."

With that, the room fell silent, except for the sound of the two pilots' breathing. They were alone in a space of indeterminate size, and they would have to rely on one another…but this time, there were no Evas separating them from their enemies.

"Choose your weapons," came the voice of Maya Ibuki from above. "But be careful…you can only carry a few, and while a HUD will help you to target and aim. So tell me…what do you need?"

Shinji thinks about his choices for a moment, then quipped with a straight face: "Guns…lots of guns."

Amused, Maya was about to input the instructions for hundreds of rows of assorted rifles to appear, when Dr. Akagi broke in.

"As much as the idea of you as a gunslinger amuses me, Shinji, please choose something more useful in battle," the Chief Scientist of Project E reprimanded, bringing a look of chagrin to Shinji's face.

"Umm…I'll take two progressive knives and a positron rifle," he replied, and to his surprise, the weapons appeared before him in a neat pile.

"And your selection, Rei?" the disembodied voice asked from above.

"The same."

With that, the two Children armed themselves, as Tokyo-3 flared into existence around them with a flare of golden light. In the distance could be heard the roar of an Angel…and then another. Two Sachiels emerged from the water, side by side, their massive, vaguely humanoid forms rather daunting in the light of high noon. And if the size wasn't enough, the fact that each one looked rather like his visions of a demon from hell didn't exactly help, with the core on its chest just taunting him to try and attack without getting his head blown off.

Shinji almost imagined that the white beaked mask of the Angels were sneering at him, now that his simulation was no longer "center the target, pull the switch," and he was pretty sure that the difficulty level would be enhanced, since he had only managed to beat this Angel by going berserk (which, he thought, he would try never to do again, since he didn't want to accidentally hurt anyone else).

"I am so going to die," Shinji muttered, as he brought his twin blades up into a guard position, ready to attack.

"Why do you say that?" Rei asked, with a subtle touch of irony to her voice and the shadow of a smile as she moved to his side. Her stance was near identical to his, and she held the very same weapons that he did. "You won't die... I will protect you."

Shinji's eyes widened as he recalled the events surrounding the 5th Angel battle, but before his thoughts could veer any further from thoughts safe for work, particularly with the person on his mind in a figure-hugging plug suit next to him, a sharp voice interrupted from above.

"One last comment before you begin. This simulation is meant to simulate real battle experience, meaning that it won't be as simple as pointing and shooting, or slashing. You will likely miss at times, and there will be no easy wins. The only possibility of victory comes with teamwork. And if you think that difficult…well, this is a war. Welcome to the world."

It had to be those particular words, didn't it? "Welcome to the world," a phrase he'd heard countless times…well, he had learned a few things from The World about not running away, and even as the familiar strains of 'I mustn't run away' echoed in his head, so too did a fierce determination.

I will fight. I will fight to protect those I care about from harm, and in the end, I will be free.

"Ayanami, lets finish this in under a minute, just to see what would happen if we didn't have the use of the umbilical power cords," Shinji said, having shifted to his battle mentality. If there was to be a battle…let it come. He would show them show Father he was worthy.

"Hai" came the quiet response, as he and Ayanami shared a look, almost an unspoken agreement between themselves that they would get through this, and survive this war together.

Then the Angels lumbered forward, roaring in berserk rage and launching cross flares at the two pilots, both of whom attempted to dodge, but to differing effect. Rei managed to evade it by ducking behind a building, but Shinji was caught in the open.

"Expanding AT field!" he cried, as the blast of energy hurtled towards him, connecting with a massive explosion. A cloud of dust was flung into the air, obscuring all sight of the Third Child, but when it cleared, he stood there defiantly, a hexagon of orange light before him.

50 seconds remaining.

Unfortunately, this wasn't The World, so he could not counter with magic, but that's where a positron rifle, so much more efficient than a pallet rifle, came into play. As quickly as he could manage, Shinji exchanged his blades for one of the aforementioned rifles, firing it in a burst, and cuing Ayanami to do the same.

The blue haired pilot did likewise, emerging from cover to strafe the two Sachiel clones. Advancing quickly, they sprang forward, discarding the rifles and bolstering the strength of their AT fields as they made contact with the opponent.

40 seconds remaining.

"Expanding AT field," the blue-haired girl intoned, and the phase space between the fields of Angel and Eva rippled into being, waves of light spreading from the contact point. It was a tense battle of wills and thoughts, in this avatar space of sorts where intentions blended…until the barriers dissolved and vanishing, as the pilots broke through.

30 seconds.

Sensing that its enemies were fast entering its close-range threat envelop, the two AI Sachiels extended two razor sharp spikes from its hands to use as striking weapons, the same ones that when energized had proved so effective against Unit 01. The Angels slashed down at the pilots, intending to dispatch them quickly with blows to the head.

But Shinji and Rei, having faced this particular situation at the hands of a certain would-be PK, instinctively snatched up their dual progressive knives, interposing them between their bodies and the sharp spikes, blocking the blow with one blade and using their momentum to spin around and bring the other across the gut of the enemy, which roared in pain as it staggered back.

20 seconds.

But the twin Angels of Water were not about to go down without a fight, and generated lances of pure energy from their hands with which to counter their opponents. They charged the unprepared pilots, almost too late for them to dodge, and managed to score a blow to the arms of each.

"Gah!" Shinji hissed in pain, but he was unwilling to surrender. He would defeat this angel one way or another, and prove that he did not need Unit 01's berserker mode to do it. "Quickly, press the attack," he ordered. "Don't let it self-destruct!"

The Third Child ducked low and swung his leg around, tripping his opponent with his weapon, while dealing a vicious kick to the core. The lance of light was interrupted by this unexpected maneuver, and the Angel doubled over, just as Shinji recovered and drove a progressive knife into the glowing red orb on its chest.

Rei, on the other hand, had managed to avoid the Angel's blow by vaulting over it, using its head as a fulcrum on which to pivot. As such, she had to modify her routine slightly to match Shinji's, grabbing its shoulders and pulling it backwards as she knocked its feet out from under it. Sachiel lost its balance and fell, just as in a blur of motion, the blue-haired girl lunged, stabbing the now vulnerable core.

10...9…8…7…6…5…

"Targets have gone silent," reported the disembodied voice from above, as the two pilots nodded at one another. Their plan had worked. But then, the voice spoke again. "Ok, good job. Now we will be raising the difficulty of the simulation, allowing you to adapt to progressively more challenging opponents, as the Angels will likely only get more difficult with time. Simulation commence!"

A reset of the field, and two copies of the Fourth Angel appeared, giving Shinji the sneaking suspicion that it was going to be a long day.