For as long as I can remember, I have lived in darkness.
It wasn't always physical darkness. Always, I could see the sun, play outside, do things other kids could do... but I didn't have a home, no permanent place to stay, no sure source of food, and I couldn't ever remember having parents. I lived in the slums of the only prosperous city in Japan, and I lived on my own.
I met Tashi when I was around six years old. I was lost, tired and very very sick. I somehow wandered into his yard while he was playing outside and fell down at his feet. He ran to get his mother, and they took me in until I got better. Afterwards, I had to go back to the streets.
Tashi managed to sneak away every now and then, more often as we both got older. He brought me food and protected me from the various bullies that terrorized the children of the city. He took care of me whenever I was sick or was injured. He always snuck me into his house when it was stormy outside and let me stay in the basement for as long as he could get away with. His parents didn't approve of his association with me, though I could never figure out why.
He was always nice to me. When he let me stay in his basement, he always had a bed for me, even though it was lumpy and uncomfortable, had no pillows and only a small, thin blanket that didn't do much good. He came and stayed with me in the bed, letting me use him as a pillow and it was warmer that way too. He had treats for me always, usually a cookie or something similar. I always looked forward to seeing him.
Then one day, when I was perhaps eight or nine years old, Tashi was visiting me in the slums and was tending to my badly scraped knee when some men came through and rounded up all the children they could find, including me and Tashi. He couldn't get away, and I could tell that he was worried about getting home. But he took my hand and gave it a reassuring squeeze and kept us together as the men pressed more and more children in around us. Frightened though I was, Tashi was there by my side, and I had absolute trust in his ability to make things better for me.
The men seperated us after a time, and I was both sad and scared to be seperated from my only friend, but I knew he wouldn't approve of me if I was to break down and show weakness to these men, so I held up a brave front, though inside I was shaking like a leaf on a tree in a strong wind.
It was weeks before I saw him again. I had been taken to several different buildings and had been poked and prodded by piles of men and women in white coats with cold instruments and big needles. I had been tagged with a bracelet around my wrist which displayed my name, approximate age, blood type and a few other things, none of which I could read. I was illiterate, and had been for a long time.
When I was reunited with Tashi, it was at the City of Night, Tokyo-3 and I thought it was hell.
There was no sun, only the big black cloud that rumbled threateningly overhead. For some reason, that scared me more than anything I had ever been through could.
We were taken to some underground bunkers that were dark and cold and wet. I could hear the sound of small feet skittering, and several brushed against my bare feet and legs. I was shivering and cold, and I clung to Tashi in fear.
That night, as we lay in our bunks, the men came again, and they told us what we were doing here, and the next day, we began the hard task of excavating the city.
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Characters & concept: © 1997-2002 Katsura /\ Evangelion © Gainax