Chapter 12: Reflection, For the Future

… The AT Field is responsible for many things, far beyond simply retaining individuality. For example, with the proper tools, one can strengthen an AT Field far past its regular limits, the resulting sympathetic connection with the body causing dramatic changes to strength, speed, perception, and memory, depending on the area.

However, with the right tools and a proper understanding of not only what an AT Field is, but what it is not, there are other effects that can be achieved…

- Confidential Report on the Theory and Application of Long-term AT-Field Manipulation, Section 2, "Manipulation of the AT-Field"

Commander's Office, NERV-HQ, Mid-August 2016

Commander Misato Katsuragi sat at the long, imposing desk that was still, she noted with no small amount of surprise, still hers, listening intently to Deputy-Commander Fuyutsuki as he gave his report, pausing to type notes every once in a while.

"... and as for the environmental conference, the League has promised to keep Russian crop fields in Siberia arable when Earth returns to its original axial tilt. Doctor Vinis put forth several fascinating proposals. In the end, the Russian diplomat decided we'll be seeing massive domes over the Siberian landscape in the coming years. The UN diplomat brought his own laundry list of environmental disasters to correct, of course, from drought issues in Africa and South America to radiation cleanup in India and Australia."

Misato looked up at Fuyutsuki from her notes. "I can imagine. And did you propose anything?"

Fuyutsuki sighed quietly. "Just reaffirming our desire to see the world restored to its former beauty."

Misato nodded. "Alright, then. That's the environmental conference. What's next?"

Fuyutsuki nodded in turn, cupping his chin thoughtfully. "Well, there's a rather worrying report in about the Lone World movement."

Misato's brow furrowed as she heard the name. "Great. What have they done now?"

"Well…" Fuyutsuki paused. "The home minister of England threw in his lot with the movement when it first started. And now, citing concerns to the economic stability of Great Britain, he's managed to get NERV-5 shut down far earlier than we predicted. And the movement is beginning to gain traction here. We've started hearing of NERV employees who are being harassed on their way to work, and we've started to see acts of vandalism at a few of the Geofront entrances."

Misato's brow furrowed a little deeper. "Well, I can't say that I'm entirely surprised that they used the budget as a lever. I almost had a heart attack when I saw the exact trillions we were using for the Evangelion."

Fuyutsuki smiled slightly. "There's a reason the Jet Alone project got as far as it did. Regardless of the almost numberless other projects that tried to replace the Evangelion."

"No need to remind me of that one." Misato replied with a grimace. "I got far too close a look at Jet Alone when I was trying to stop it from going nuclear."

Memories flashed by Misato's mind of a stocky, seemingly headless robot barreling towards a Tokyo-2 that could not be evacuated in time, the heart-pumping rush of trying to physically push the control rods for the nuclear core back into position before it shut down unexpectedly in Unit-01's arms. Japan Heavy Chemical Industries, its creator, had gone under in the intervening year.

Misato shook her head slightly as she shook herself mentally from her musing. "And there's something about this Lone World movement that bugs me. It feels like it's… building up to something. I'll have Ryoji keep an eye on them. He needs to stay busy anyway."

Fuyutsuki nodded. "I'm sure he'll appreciate the puzzle." he paused for a moment, then sighed. "And… there is one last thing you should know."

Misato's brow rose. "Oh? And what would that be?"

Fuyutsuki smiled softly. "This is among the last reports I will give as your Deputy Commander."

Misato's eyes widened as she straightened up, and Fuyutsuki chuckled. "It certainly won't be immediately. I'll give you time to consider a replacement. But my time in this position, I feel, is coming to a close."

Misato nodded after a moment. "Well, I can't say I entirely blame you for feeling like that. It'll be quite the loss when you leave."

"That's the thing. I may well not. At least, not entirely." Fuyutsuki said with a chuckle.

"How so?" Misato asked.

"Well, as oft-forgotten as the fact may be, I was a professor before Second Impact, and at the forefront of Metaphysical Biology." Fuyutsuki replied. "And with so much that has expanded the understanding of that field…" he smiled softly. "I think it may be time to brush up."

Misato chuckled. "Well, there's no time like the present."

It fell silent for a moment, then Misato sighed. "Who knows. Maybe we could all leave this behind at some point. Let NERV pass into history. Let the Children be… children."

Fuyutsuki's slight smile dimmed. "I'm afraid it's far too late for that last one. We have stolen their childhood so they could defend the world from us. The only way to cleanse that sin… would be to let them move on from the Evangelions."

His look became serious. "Speaking of the Children and the Evangelions, I can tell you still haven't told them yet. They'll need to know soon."

"And they will." Misato replied, her tone equally serious. "Once we've completed the Frame Evas. Then we can replace the current Evangelions, train adults to use them." she paused for a moment, then sighed. "They deserve being able to feel useful here. Even if it is just sitting around waiting for the MP-Evas to come back around."

"Perhaps." Fuyutsuki said after a moment. "But they deserve a moment's rest, too. To be free of the burdens of the Evangelion. Something that the order you withhold from them can help with."

It was silent again. Then, Misato sighed quietly. "I'll let them know when we do the Frame Eva test in the next… week if I recall. Then, they'll be able to take it better, I think."

Fuyutsuki snorted softly. "And to think that is, perhaps, the best reasoning I've heard for withholding information coming from a person sitting in that chair."

They chuckled for a moment, and the room perhaps seemed at its warmest for when NERV's Commander and their right-hand man occupied it.

"Thank you, Deputy Commander." Misato said after the chuckling trailed off into silence. "Thank you for caring. For being here."

"Oh, no, Commander Katsuragi." Fuyutsuki replied. "I should be the one thanking you. Without your help…" he looked around the office slowly. "We both know this would have ended far differently."

. . .

Test Plug Area

"So, you can do it, right?" Asuka asked a waiting Ritsuko, Shinji, Hikari and Toji in tow.

Ritsuko shrugged. "It'll take a few hours to sort out the coding, make sure replicated movements and reactions are exact, but you'll have your person-to-person Evangelion sparing by the end of the day, at most."

Asuka nodded sharply. "Good. I'd hate to be unprepared for whenever the MP-Evas make another pass at getting past us. To say nothing of this Marlowe chick."

Ritsuko pursed her lips. She had nearly forgotten about the name that seemed to cast a shadow over them. Another Child, and no paper trail for mother to really follow. They had only gotten two other names in the months that they'd spent looking: Mana Kirishima and Mayumi Yamagishi. If they were at the same skill level Kaworu had purported this Marlowe child to be… then they were in far greater danger than even the other Children might have expected.

"Very good point. We'll expedite the programming. Get ready in about 4 hours, and the Test Plugs will be waiting for all of you."

Asuka nodded, then looked over at the other. "Alright. See you guys then?"

Toji and Hikari nodded. "Of course." Toji said. "We've been needing to get some practice in any way."

Toji and Hikari turned and left, and Shinji turned to follow them. Then, he looked back at Asuka. "Not coming along?" he asked.

"I'll be leaving soon." Asuka assured Shinji as she looked over at Ritsuko. "I just have a few words I want to say to the good doctor."

It was silent for a moment, then Shinji nodded. "Alright then. See you in a few minutes."

Shinji passed through the doorway and out of sight, leaving Ritsuko and Asuka alone to look at each other intently.

It was a somewhat tense silence that sat between them, almost felt, almost seeming to push them back from each other.

"So," Asuka said, finally breaking the silence, "I hear Rei forgave you for drugging her."

Ritsuko blinked, then sighed as she nodded. "Yes. It was more than I expected. More than I deserved, really."

"Yeah. It is." Asuka said frankly. "You'd never have gotten that out of me. I'm still angry about what you did to her. Making her into a… a doll." her lips twisted with the disgust that entered her voice with the last words.

"All I'll ask is… would you have done the same to the rest of us?" Asuka asked after a moment, seeming to stab into Ritsuko with her stare.

"No." Ritsuko answered immediately. "I had no reason to, and…" she looked down and to the side. "The reasons I had for doing it to Rei were… complicated. Messy."

It was silent again. The silence was different this time, though, as Asuka processed what little about Ritsuko she had gleaned from her time watching the show, and from Rei. It was complicated. And very, very messy. Ridiculously so.

"Alright, then." Asuka finally said. "Well, I guess I'll be seeing you in about 4 hours."

"I'll let you know when it's ready." Ritsuko replied.

As Asuka turned away and walked towards the door, Ritsuko raised a hand. "And…"

As Asuka turned back to look at her, Ritsuko lowered her hand as she sighed quietly. "I'm sorry. As head of Project E. For… everything we've put you through. I know it isn't much, but…"

She trailed off, and Asuka regarded her with a strange look.

"Thank you." she said tonelessly. Then, she stepped out the door and left Ritsuko alone.

. . .

Theisman Residence

Shinji sat at the dinner table silently, Daniel sitting across from him as the setting sun shone its last rays through the veranda window, throwing their shadows onto the wall behind them as they regarded each other.

"So," Daniel began quietly, "what did you want to talk about?"

Shinji leaned back in his chair, taking a deep breath, then sighing. "Do you… do you remember what it was like for you to feel normal?"

Daniel was silent for a moment as he pondered the question, looking down at the table with what slowly became a forlorn stare. "Honestly, it takes some thinking. But… I do."

He smiled slightly as he looked back up at Shinji. "You'd probably be surprised at how much of that normal has stayed with me. My guitars, my music, a few too many video games and movies sitting on the Val…"

Shinji chuckled softly. "Yeah. Makes sense. But…" a sad look crossed his face. "What did you leave behind? When you got into the Worldsea?"

Daniel's smile vanished as he considered the question. It was a long moment before he answered, barely above a whisper. "My family."

"What were they like?" Shinji asked.

Daniel looked down. "Well, I had a mom and dad. A brother and a sister. Alex was into sports and movies, Ayanna was into books. Dad was an insurance agent, and Mom was a publisher." he said quietly.

"And I…" Daniel gave a choked chuckle. "I was a dishwasher. Paying my way through college, dating Eleanor… it really was as close to normal I think I've ever had."

It was silent again for a moment. "Do you think… you can ever go back?" Shinji asked slowly.

Daniel shook his head slowly. "I've changed too much for that to work. Or at least work well. And… even with the Narnia effect, life has surely moved on from when I left. So…"

Daniel took a deep breath even as a tear rolled down one cheek. "This is my normal now." it was a statement filled with an old resignation, a finality that could never fully be argued against.

He looked at Shinji and smiled slightly. "And honestly… I wouldn't give it up for the world."

Shinji smiled slightly. "That's good to hear." he said quietly. Then, he looked at the clock. "Asuka's probably going to want me for virtual Eva sparring tonight. We've got it set up now, and..."

Shinji paused, then sighed. "And this is my normal for now. Getting into the Eva and saving the world. Not even worrying about schoolwork much anymore. After all," Shinji said, chuckling slightly, "who needs school when I have Asuka to learn from?"

Shinji sighed quietly as Daniel nodded. "I assume I wouldn't be wrong to say Asuka already talked to you about making normal where you can?"

As Shinji nodded, Daniel smiled. "Good. I gave her that same talk after a rather soul-searching developmental psychology lecture. So, I won't belabor the point. But…"

Daniel reached out and put a hand on Shinji's shoulder, squeezing gently. "Let's make our normal the best it can be. How about it?"

Shinji smiled slightly as he nodded. "Yes." he said, simply and with conviction.

Daniel's smile widened as he patted Shinji's arm. "Good. Now," he said, standing up, "let's not keep Asuka waiting too long, shall we?"

. . .

Test Plugs, NERV-HQ

Asuka sat back in the seat of the Test Plug, gripping the controls in her hands and almost savoring the slight squeak of the Plugsuit. As much as she enjoyed spending her time away from a Plug—or, more accurately, how she spent her time—she was most comfortable here, holding the controls of an Evangelion, digital though it may be.

She looked out across the stunningly detailed view of the Geofront interior, rendered by the most powerful computer in the world. She especially noted the three Evas standing across the way from her, Unit-03, Unit-04, and another Unit-03 looking back at Unit-00, Unit-01, and her digital Unit-02.

"Not bad, eh?"

Asuka jumped slightly as she heard a voice eerily similar to Ritsuko's in her Plug. A screen to her right appeared, showing a woman with shorter brunette hair, wearing a green turtleneck and a white coat as she stood against a blank background. "It helps when the Magi has something that's actually seen what something looks like in order to properly render it."

Another screen popped up beside it, showing a clearly puzzled Shinji "Uh… I'm terribly sorry. Are you a new scientist here?"

The woman chuckled. "I guess some introductions are in order. I'm Doctor Naoko Akagi. I'm Ritsuko's mother, and I also happened to create the Magi that allows you to not have to physically pummel each other in your Evas."

Naoko's smile faltered slightly. "Rei…" it was the briefest of pauses. "Already knows me, somewhat."

"Oh." Asuka said. "Well, it's nice to meet you, then." she tilted her hair. "I thought you would be more… blonde."

Ritsuko's face popped into existence. "It's a personal preference." she said levelly.

Asuka squinted somewhat at the image of Ritsuko and began to pick out the brunette roots. "Ohhh. Okay." she said as she nodded slowly. "Well, Mrs. Akagi… nice to meet you, I guess."

"But!" she continued as she opened up the channels to the other Children, "we've got work to do. After all, we can be sure that this Mariah chick, and whatever friends she has, would certainly be training their butts off if they're going to plan on coming up against us."

"So..." she said, looking between the two Unit-03s and squinting after a moment. "Uh… which one is Kaworu?"

The Unit-03 to Toji's left calmly raised its hand. "That would be me. My apologies. It seems I'll need to distinguish myself in some way in the future. Perhaps a visual indicator of some kind."

"Or maybe you could get a different Eva, like that one from your vision that you said was yours?" Shinji chimed in.

"Wait a minute." Ritsuko interrupted. "Kaworu is having visions?"

"We'll discuss that later, I promise." Asuka replied quickly. "Right now," she said to Kaworu, "I'm going to take you on first. I wanna get a good gauge on how skilled Mariah is."

Kaworu smiled slightly. "And she is quite skilled indeed."

Asuka rolled her eyes. "She can't be that much better than me, can she?" she said flippantly.

Kaworu's smile widened slightly, but he said nothing more.

"Alright. While we're doing that, Shinji, you can go against Toji, and Hikari can go against Rei. We'll switch off every so often. Simple as can be." Asuka said, a satisfied tone creeping into her voice.

Nods and agreements presaged the two pairs began to move away from Asuka and Kaworu. "So," Asuka began, "what did Mariah usually have you go to whenever she trained you?"

"First one to shatter the other's core was the winner of the spar." Kaworu replied as his Unit-03 settled into a ready stance.

"Oh, good." Asuka said as she settled into a ready stance of her own. "I thought this was going to be boring."

. . .

Daniel walked into the Test Plug chamber, looking over at a large screen that showed an overhead view of the pilot's current sparring. Labels for clarity hovered over the different Units as Daniel came to a stop beside Ritsuko and studied them.

It was a familiar sight, elements of the Children's martial arts training under him on display as they pushed the digital Evangelions to their theoretical limits.

Asuka and Kaworu in particular went full tilt, the simulated ground shaking as they fell to it tangled together for the briefest of seconds, then one or the other kicked their opponent off as they stood looking at each other.

"You did a good job training them." Ritsuko said simply. "It's clear that physical training is going to have to figure into the training regimen for the Frame Evas."

"I'm not surprised in the slightest." Daniel replied. Idly, he manifested his Grip, the hum of the soul within it a soothing thing as Daniel began to twirl it in his fingers.

"How's Kaworu holding up?" Daniel asked after a moment of watching Unit-02 and the copy of Unit-03 that the boy in question piloted go to the ground again as Asuka pulled Unit-03 through an expertly done judo flip.

"Like he was made to pilot an Evangelion." Ritsuko replied as they watched Kaworu shove Unit-02 off with an octagonal wall of prismatic light, deploying its Progressive Knife as it flipped onto its feet. "Which, in a sense, he was."

It was a silent moment as they watched Kaworu charge across the distance between him and Unit-02, closing it breathtakingly quickly as he rammed the Prog Knife into the chest of Unit-02, the Unit spasming before going limp as a buzzer sounded over a string of annoyed German.

"Speaking of Kaworu," Ritsuko continued as she gave him a questioning glance, "he apparently has visions now?"

Daniel looked back over at Ritsuko as he blinked, missing Asuka standing back up and deploying her own Prog Knife. "Yes, actually. It's part of his Angelic nature, to see potential futures. Other universes." he looked back at the screen. "Why do you ask?"

"Because apparently there's a universe where Kaworu has an Evangelion of his own. One unique enough to stand out from the others." Ritsuko said, shaking her head slightly.

Daniel looked back over at Ritsuko with no small amount of surprise. "You mean he's seeing into a Rebuild Echo?" he asked.

Ritsuko's brow furled as she looked back over at him, her gaze sweeping away from the close-up, knockdown fight between Asuka and Kaworu. "Rebuild Echo?" she asked. "There's a different kind of universe than the usual Echo?"

Daniel blinked, then nodded slowly. "Yes. Something happened at some point in time to the World Engine for this place, something that split the different kinds of Echoes that could be produced. Some are like this general timeline of things, the timeline you've watched in the television show."

Ritsuko suppressed a shudder. "No need to remind me of that."

"I didn't think so." Daniel replied. "And now, there are universes that follow a different series of events. But that isn't important right now."

"What is," Daniel continued as he looked back at the screen, "is making sure that the kids are ready to face whatever comes next."

Ritsuko nodded after a moment, glancing at Shinji and Toji's spar, then Rei and Hikari's fight, before finally focusing back on Kaworu and Asuka.

They circled each other slowly now, their glowing Prog Knives slowly waving back and forth as they sized each other up. Nicks and cuts adorned the arms and torsos of the Units, all just barely missing the ever vital core of the Unit.

Asuka stepped forward, slicing at Kaworu as she advanced. Kaworu met blade with blade as he stepped back, a star flashing into existence and vanishing as the Prog Knives collided.

Suddenly, Kaworu stepped forward, his off-hand coming up suddenly and batting Asuka's knife hand aside as he stabbed at Unit-02's chest. Unit-02 stepped back, gripping Unit-03's forearm with her own off-hand as her knife flashed down towards Unit-03's wrist.

In an instant, Kaworu's off-hand flashed up, catching the downward swing and stopping the knife as it shuddered inches from his wrist.

The two interlocked Units stepped back and forth, back and forth, until Unit-02 began to kick savagely at Unit-03's shins. The kicks forced Unit-03 back one step, then another, then another.

As Asuka's fourth kick came flying towards Unit-03's right leg, Kaworu surprised everyone as he raised it up, wrapping it behind Asuka's leg as he shifted his body, sending the two Units to the ground again as Kaworu forced Unit-02's Prog Knife into Unit-02's neck, Asuka yelping slightly as Kaworu plunged his knife into Unit-02's chest, the crack of the digital core preceding a harsh buzzer and yet another stream of rapid, angry German.

Daniel smiled slightly as he keyed up Asuka's Test Plug. "So, how's it going?"

[Whoever this Marlowe witch is that trained our scribble, I will wipe the floor with her, I swear it!] Asuka replied in German. [Kaworu also happens to be a hell of a ground-fighter in his Eva compared to out of it. Real risk-taker, too. More than I would have ever expected.]

Daniel's smile became a smirk. [At least you know that much now,] he replied in German, [and that should tell you something about who trained him, too.]

Asuka nodded slowly as she rubbed at her sternum and Unit-02 got to its feet again. "True, true." Asuka said in Japanese. She looked over at Kaworu. "Kritzeln, I think it's time to switch up dance partners. Let the others get a taste of Marlowe die Hexen von Evangelion's training."

Shinji and the others began to appear on screens, nodding as they began to disengage and make their way back towards Asuka and Kaworu.

"Indeed. All of us are going to need to experience at least what she taught me. To say nothing of what she might not have taught me in our all too brief time together." Kaworu said. "And… perhaps I should have a more distinct Evangelion."

"And maybe some more weapons in these things." Toji interjected. "I'm all for hand to hand, but I'm not exactly raring to go charging in with just these Prog Knives, y'know?"

Ritsuko nodded. "True. That might take a few minutes if you want access to as vast an armory as I think you want, but you'll be able to get at whatever we can program in. While we work on that…" she paused as she thought. "Go ahead and take the night, stretch out and get anything stiff worked out. We'll be ready for you tomorrow."

. . .

Theisman Residence

The dining room of the Theisman's was far busier than it was a few hours ago. The quiet clanging of pots and pans, the scrape of chairs, and the low murmur of conversation filled the air, as Shinji and Eleanor prepared dinner for the rest of the Children. Ichigo and Kensuke also sat at the now extended table, the length added to it a project of Toji testing the precision of his woodworking Interfacing. It now also had a few more completely natural wooden chairs, twisting in interesting patterns even as they offered what some considered a more comfortable seat than the chairs that originally came with the table.

There were absences, of course. Misato's duties as Commander meant that she would be home late again tonight. Ryoji was out of town, likely something to do with his duties as an intelligence agent. But tonight would still be warm. Tonight, even for only a moment, things could be somewhat normal.

Daniel idly continued to spin his Grip, chatting idly with Kaworu and Rei as Kaworu explained the process of how he helped make the Mark.06, the name that Kaworu gleaned from scraps and flashes of further vision, into a digital representation, sending the image into Ritsuko and Naoko Akagi's souls as they worked to model the Evangelion.

After a few moments, their attention turned elsewhere, and Daniel leaned back in his chair, alone with his thoughts, as he stopped spinning his Grip, looking at the handle for a moment.

'Oh, Nynrya. Whoever you were… I think you'd probably like this. Happiness and calm, even in the midst of uncertainty.'

He looked back up, glancing around the table at the Children laughing softly and smiling. He smiled slightly at the sight. 'I wish I could have protected you like I have them.' he thought as his smile dimmed. It was an old, well-traveled line of words that tumbled through his mind and into the bare crystal in his hands. 'I wish we could have gone our own ways without this madness connecting us.'

'I'm sorry.'

he thought, the words seeming worn with their use and uselessness. He looked at the Grip for a moment, then sighed quietly.

"Thank you."

A dull thunk as the Grip hit the table, Daniel's fingers and face numb with shock as the room went silent and looked at him. The silence held for a moment as Daniel picked up the Grip, studying it intently.

"Daniel?" Asuka said, causing him to jump slightly. "Is something wrong?"

Daniel looked down at the Grip, then back at the Children.

Before he could answer, Ichigo spoke up. "It's the soul within your Grip, isn't it? Nynrya, if I remember correctly." she said softly.

"Wait a minute." Toji said. "A soul? In your Grip?"

Daniel nodded after a moment. "Yes. An old sin from my days as the Hollow Saint." he said quietly.

All eyes turned to him as he began to speak. "I wasn't simply singularly chosen for the position. I was among a large group of "candidates". Test subjects."

"The things we saw… that we felt…" Daniel said in a whisper. He shook his head after a moment of haunted silence. "Anyways. We were whittled down, slowly but surely. Eventually, it was just me and one other woman. She was… a stern sort, with a proud bearing. Obviously a warrior."

Daniel chuckled slightly as he shrugged. "Other than that, I knew little else. She seemed to have taken a vow of silence before coming into the care of the Scions. All I ever got was a single word from her. Her name. Nynrya."

"We survived together." Daniel continued. "Right up until the very end. We went through one last trial together. Even without being able to communicate, we did exceptionally well. Made it to the end with barely a scratch."

Daniel paused for a moment before he shook his head. "But the rest of the story is a very poor dinner topic." he looked over at Shinji and Eleanor. "It smells delicious, Shinji!"

"Delicious and ready!" Eleanor replied as the food came to rest on the tabletop, the Children digging in with no small amount of gusto. And for a moment more, it was normal again. A family eating dinner.

But the moment passed all too soon, as the remains of dinner were swept off the table and a contented silence fell over everyone. The silence was broken after a moment when Shinji looked over at Daniel with a curious, somewhat somber expression. "So… what happened to Nynrya to have her soul be in your Grip? Or…"

"No, it's ok, Shinji." Daniel replied. "I've needed to actually talk about what happened then. This is… a start."

He took a deep breath. "We went through a gauntlet of different combat trials, ranged weapons, melee weapons, hand to hand combat. Had each other's backs. An unspoken bond. We were the last two left after all. And I promised…" his breath hitched for a moment before he chuckled grimly. "I promised that, whatever happened, we'd both make it out."

"And, we did. We survived to the end of the trial. It had become a race at the end. One that… I happened to finish first."

Daniel's smile, slight as it now was, vanished. "I was declared the Vessel for the Guide of War. To be hollowed out fully, down to my soul, and the room made for the will of the Guides. And to start… I had to kill Nynrya."

Daniel looked down at the table. "I don't care to remember the moments that happened next. But what I'll never forget was her eyes. For the first time since I had met her however long ago our internment started, there was fear in them. Fear in those eyes like melted chocolate… until the light went out from them."

It was silent again for a moment as Daniel called his Grip back into existence, the quiet hum that everyone had gotten used to filling the air again and taking on new meaning. "Before I lost myself, I did one last thing. I drew her soul into the Grip." he scoffed. "Some way to fulfill my promise. But, in a way… I did."

Daniel shook his head. "And now, she's begun to speak again. Why, I'm unsure, but… she is."

Daniel took a deep breath as he leaned forward and dismissed his Grip yet again. "So, that's what's been going on on that front. Thank you for listening. I… I feel I don't say that often enough."

"Don't sweat it, Daniel," Asuka piped up, "it's the least we can do at this point, after what you've done for some of us. We broken toys have to look out for each other, after all. Fix each other up as best we can."

Daniel nodded slightly as a small smile appeared. "That we do. That we do."

. . .

Test Plugs, 3 Days Later

Shinji took a deep breath, still readjusting to the familiar smell of LCL as he adjusted his grip on a Lance copy as he eyed the Mark.06 across from him.

It was a striking figure, a deep navy blue with yellow-orange accents, its curving shoulder pylons framing a head with two crests above a red visor, a split horn not entirely unlike Unit-01's showing its profile from time to time as it tested its grip on the Spear of Cassius, now a bright crimson like the true Lance of Longinus.

The others had already started the next round of sparring as Shinji glanced around, the harsh reality of what one had to do to beat an Evangelion having settled on all of them as it drove them to both greater risks and greater lengths of protection.

Asuka and Hikari went at each other with longsword and glaive, Asuka's greater skill winning the day most of the time, but Hikari's sheer tenacity had surprised her more than once. Rei and Toji, on the other hand, were, in the beginning at least, a study of contrasts. Rei had begun with her trademark sniper rifle, pelting at Unit-04 from a great distance. Toji had stood fast, using his AT Field to deflect away the shots. Now, Rei had engaged at far closer range, as they traded blows with Lance copies transformed into their heavy double-ended blades.

"Are you ready, Shinji?" Kaworu asked, causing him to turn his focus back to the waiting Mark.06.

"Yeah." Shinji replied, shaking his head slightly. "Just had my mind wander for a moment."

"Very well." Kaworu said with a slight smile as he brandished the Spear. "En garde!"

Shinji chuckled softly at the cinematic jab as he readied his own Lance copy without another word.

Kaworu surged forward, and Shinji stepped back on instinct, batting the oncoming strike to the side before jabbing back at the Mark.06's core. Kaworu maneuvered the handle of the Spear, the base of the Lance copy's tines clanging against it even as the tips of the blades stopped inches away from the Eva's chest.

Kaworu stepped to the side, the handle of the Spear throwing up sparks as the Lance slid up its length, the twisting short blade of the Spear's base swinging towards his arm. Shinji disengaged, the point of the Lance copy coming up slightly before he slammed it into the blade, driving both into the ground as he used the Lance copy's handle to batter the Mark.06 back, swiping up at it as it stumbled back.

Kaworu deftly dodged the strike, the Spear clashing with the Lance yet again as he maneuvered the Lance away before jabbing at Unit-01's core, Shinji ducking and tilting to the side as the Spear scraped over his armor and dangerously close to his face.

Shinji grabbed at the Spear with one hand, a tight grip keeping it in place as he shifted his grip on the Lance copy closer to the blade, striking wildly at the Mark.06's chest once again.

A sigh of relief gusted past Shinji's lips as he heard the crack of the core and the buzzer, his eyes flicking down to a counter with his name and Kaworu's divided by a line, a number underneath his changing from a 3 to a 4 to stand against the 6 under Kaworu's name.

"Well done, Shinji." Kaworu said with no small amount of satisfaction in his voice as he smiled, stretching out a hand after a moment as Shinji took it to help the Mark.06 back to its feet. "You may have lost to me in the end, but you've definitely shown improvement."

"Thanks." Shinji replied as he looked around. "I guess we got done a little faster than everyone else." he checked the other scoreboards and found everyone still had a few points to go until that 6 point limit.

"Indeed. We have at least a little time to relax, it seems." Kaworu replied, sitting back in his seat and purposefully putting his hands behind his head, something that Rei had shown him, which Asuka had shown her.

It was a companionable silence as they watched Asuka and Hikari start their next spar. Then, Shinji looked over at Kaworu with a questioning glance. "So, Kaworu?"

Kaworu looked back over. "Yes, Shinji?"

"So… this Eva you're… in, technically." Shinji started after a moment. "Would you actually pilot it if it existed?"

"Undoubtedly, Shinji." Kaworu replied without hesitation. "I made a promise to Rei to protect you. If it meant getting into this Eva and going into battle by your side, I would do it without a moment's thought."

Shinji nodded after a moment. "Is that all that motivates you, though?" he paused as he gathered his thoughts as best he could. "I know you consider me a friend, at least somewhat. And we both watched what we did all those months ago." he blushed as he paused again. "So… do you… do you…"

"Do I love you? Is that what you ask?" Kaworu replied patiently.

Shinji answered with a silent nod as Kaworu sighed. "Well… yes. But I do understand that your heart lies with Asuka. Just as mine now is given to Rei. There are other worlds I've seen, though. Most are like the series that we watched. Some reflect our current situation to some extent. And some few see us together."

Kaworu seemed to stare off into the middle distance as he continued. "But there is always one constant. I care for you. Deeply. As soon as I learn of you, I wish to help. To make you happy. You fascinate me, Shinji Ikari. Like few ever will."

Kaworu focused back on Shinji as he smiled slightly. "And yet, even knowing all that, you still managed to surprise me. Even if I do not play the part I think most universes wish I play, I am still thankful that you are my friend. Thank you."

Shinji smiled back at Kaworu. "You're welcome, Kaworu."

. . .

As the Children talked and fought, Daniel, Ritsuko, and Misato watched from within the observation room quietly. It was a silent watch, the quiet occasionally pierced by a quiet tone as a digital core shattered.

"So…" Misato said, causing Daniel and Ritsuko to look over at her. "I've been thinking."

"I would certainly hope so, seeing as you are our commander." Ritsuko said, a deadpan voice hindered slightly by a wan smile.

Misato rolled her eyes as a smile tugged at a corner of Daniel's mouth. "Thank you for your vote of confidence." she replied sardonically. Then she paused as her expression became thoughtful. "I've been thinking… about moving on. What that means."

Ritsuko and Daniel's expressions grew serious. "And what does that mean, Misato?" Daniel asked quietly.

Misato took a deep breath. "I've been thinking about the Evangelions, and the Frame Plug, and calling it a Frame Eva."

"I mean," Misato continued after a moment, "why do we call the thing that's supposed to replace the Evangelions an Evangelion?"

"Well," Ritsuko replied, "because they are a copy of the Evangelion platform, simply created using a means that isn't one of the Progenitors."

"Well, is that really an Evangelion, then?" Misato shot back. "I mean, like you said, it isn't made out of Lilith or Adam, it isn't powered by a human soul in a core…"

She looked over at Ritsuko with narrowed eyes. "You did solve that issue, right?"

Ritsuko nodded patiently. "It turns out that cutting down on the Frames that made it up was the easiest solution, so yes, we did, in fact, solve that."

"Good." Misato said. "And like I was saying, if it doesn't have those two core traits… is it really an Evangelion?"

The question hung in the air for a silent moment as those in the room pondered it.

"Well… I can't say you're wrong." Ritsuko finally said with a sigh. "Maybe… it's time to move on from the Evangelion."

"With that lofty goal in mind," Ritsuko continued after a moment, "what should we even call the Frame Evangelion instead?"

It was an altogether different silence that now filled the air, as names were silently considered and discarded, some more ridiculous than others.

"How about Frame Titan?" Daniel said. "It's a little on the nose, but…"

"Perhaps." Ritsuko replied. "Even so, that doesn't make it any less… fitting. We'll probably need a special designation for it, just in case we run into any more 'Titans' out there."

"Maybe…" Misato said, her brow furrowed in concentration. "E-Type?"

Ritsuko shrugged. "Sounds good to me." she sighed quietly as she rolled her eyes. "Well, 2 days before a presentation isn't the latest I've had to change file naming conventions."

"Speaking of 2 days to go," Misato piped up, "do you have a test pilot in mind?"

"You're looking at him." Ritsuko replied as Daniel gave a knowing smirk. "He was the one to give us the inspiration to start this whole thing in the first place." she shook her head slightly as she smiled. "We even have a new Plugsuit design ready to go."

"With some notable changes." Daniel interjected.

Misato smiled slightly. "Good. Good."

They all looked back at the screen after a slightly awkward end to the conversation, and watched the Children as they prepared themselves.

Misato smirked slightly after a moment. "I wonder what Shinji's been blushing about."