W00T! You got to my chapter!

Man, Seldon really left me at a hard place to keep writing. This one is basically setting the scene for the next few chapters, so no real exciting things happening here.

Figures.

Aw well. Enjoy!

-Dorian

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The Children's Crusade: Oceans of Darkness

Chapter Three: Reprieve

**********

No matter which war in history, no matter the victor or the loser, the greatest victims are always the children. The Children's Crusade, The Holocaust, all wars. Even now, in war-torn countries around the world, children walk the streets alone. Searching for a long-dead parent, simply trying to find enough food to eat, or going to the pile of rubble they now call their home.

-Dorian

**********

Darkness. Sweet, blissful darkness.

He could stay like this forever...

It was not his decision to make.

"Get up!" the Section 2 agent growled, kicking Shinji in the ribs. When there was no response other than Shinji rolling over, he repeated the action. "I said, GET UP!"

Shinji, weary from the memories that tormented his sleep, finally started to sit up. The Section 2 agent roughly grabbed him under the arms, and forcefully pulled him up.

"Yeah, yeah, just wait..." He headed towards the door. It slid open on his approach, revealing two more agents.

The one furthest from the door looked down at a clipboard. "You have a meeting with the Commander at Oh-Seven Hundred hours, in regard to your actions after the defeat of the most recent angel. You have fifteen minutes to make yourself presentable. The agent gave Shinji a rough push forward.

Shinji, still half-asleep, heard only half. "Whatever..."

**********

You manipulative bastard... Kouzo thought, as he watched the Third Child being dragged into the room. You wake them up at an ungodly hour, and you give them no warning whatsoever, then you put them in a meeting as important as this.

Agents dragged Shinji to the cheap metal chair in the middle of the room, and bound him to it with chains around the arms and ankles. He had obviously not used the time given to make himself more presentable. His hair was wild and untamed, his clothes were dirty and wrinkled, and his body was red from sleeping on the cold metal floor.

His expression was downcast and broken.

He treats his own son like a dog...

"Pilot Ikari." Gendo remained as ever, impassive. "You have been charged with Treason against Special Organization NERV; including, but not limited to, destruction of NERV infrastructure, misuse of Evangelion Unit One, and the planned destruction of the Geofront and the assassination of its Commander." He paused.

"What have you to say in your defence?"

Shinji remained silent.

"As consequence to-"

"I don't want to pilot." Shinji broke through.

Gendo paused. "You no longer wish to be the pilot of Evangelion Unit One?"

Pause.

"I don't want to pilot. I don't want to be part of NERV anymore."

"You have decided?" Gendo remained unfazed.

Pause.

"Yes."

"Your decision is final."

"I know."

"Very well." Gendo took some forms from his desk. "Unshackle the prisoner."

Section 2 agents undid the chains around his limbs. He shakily stood up, the effort of standing seeming to be too much for him. One of the agents pushed him closer to the desk.

The push was too great for Shinji's weakened state. He fell to the floor, making no attempt to catch himself.

He again pulled himself up.

Gendo hadn't moved. "Sign here,' he said, holding out a pen."

Shinji, hands shaking unbearably, took the pen and signed his name at the bottom of the forms. He ignored the blood
dripping from his nose.

Gendo took back the pen and paper, signing it calmly. "Identification card."

When Shinji didn't move, the Section 2 agent forcibly ripped the wallet out of his pocket, again pushing Shinji to the floor with his brutal movements.

The Commander accepted the wallet, removed the card, and carelessly threw the wallet back to his son. Shinji, prying himself up from the floor for the third time that morning, barely caught it.

Face blank, Gendo tore the card in half.

"Shinji Ikari, you are no longer a member of the Special Organization NERV. You will gather your belongings and vacate this complex immediately. Revealing any confidential information you have learnt during your time in NERV's employ is punishable by death. Premises for living will be arranged, until such time as we are able to have you disposed." With a barely-noticeable wave of his hand, Section 2 agents grabbed Shinji and dragged him out of the room.

Gendo spun his chair to face Fuyutsuki, purposely turning his back on his son.

"Disposed...he speaks of his own son as if he is but a tool, to be discarded with when broken."

"You knew he was going to do something like that, didn't you?" he said out loud.

Gendo smiled. "Of course. At least, this way, he can blame only himself for any hardships that result from his decision."

Fuyutsuki's expression didn't change, but his thoughts grew colder. You manipulative bastard...

**********

Shinji slowly walked out of the NERV complex, focusing on the ground. Misato jumped in front of him.

"Come on Shinji, let's go home." She moved to lead him to the car.

He snached his hand back. "This isn't my home any more."

"Uh...?" pined Misato, before Asuka called out from her place in the car.

"Come on, it's hot in here! Shinji, you can whine later."

"I told you, this isn't my home anymore."

"Uh...?" Asuka echoed. Shinji shuffled the green bag on his back to a more comfortable position, then began walking in another direction.

"Shinji...where are you going?"

He didn't stop. "I need to go someplace."

**********

Father Sanders calmly walked through the Eva Cages, barely glancing to the sides.

He knew exactly where he was going.

If anyone stopped to ask why he was there, as he was certain someone would, he was there to perform a wedding, which was indeed true. He had gotten 'lost', and had walked around until he found a helpful soul that could direct him back to where he should be.

Just as anticipated, a technician in orange stopped him on his approach to the Entry Plug. "I'm sorry Sir, this is a restricted area. I'm going to have to ask you to leave immediately-"

"Forgive this old man, my son," Father Sanders apologised. "I was here to perform a wedding, but the directions the security guard at the entrance gave me must have been mistaken. Would YOU know where it is to be held...?"

The technician visibly relaxed, and lowered his handgun. "So THAT'S what they were doing on level Seventeen..." he laughed. "It was absolute mayhem before, people in suits running to and fro. Why anyone would want to be married HERE, of all places..." He shook his head. "Sorry, rambling. You just keep going along this path and eventually you'll hit a series of elevators on your left. You need to go to level Seventeen. Someone up there will know where to take you from there."

Sanders smiled. "My thanks, my son."

"No problem." The technician continued on his way.

Still smiling, Sanders waited until the man had passed, before withdrawing a handgun from his own pocket and shooting the technician in the back.

"Bloody fool..."

Continuing on his way, Sanders finally stopped at the red-and-white entry plug, only recently used, for the first time in ten years.

The technician had left it open.

Smiling, the Priest went in.

**********

Battle.

'They killed Touji, they killed my best friend, theykilledhimtheyshallpaytheyshallsuffertheyshalldie THEYSHALLPAYFORTAKINGHISLIFETHEYSHALLPAYTHEYSHALLPAYINBLOODANDAGONYANDPAIN!'

Laughter.

"We saw you lo-oking!"

"At Rei's mammaries... her silky thighs...her calves...her-"

"NAUGHTY BITS!"

Blood.

Blood red was the colour of the sun and sky. Blood red was the colour of the waters as they lay in their pools. Blood red was the colour of Unit 01's eye, as Kensuke unleashed his rage.

"YOU KILLED MY FRIEND!"

The Eva reared back its hand, fingers curling into a fist. Aimed directly at the two staring eyes of silvery-white. The fist came down, and the head liquefied. Blood, the same red as the sun and the sky and the waters, flew across the roadway that cut through the mountain and lathered itself across both fields, tree, and man's creation alike.

Laughter.

"You can handle keeping the Earth safe, and the two of us will take care of Misato!"

Blood.

The fist reared up again, blood trailing in thick streams as it pulled up. Then it came down upon the breast of the beast. Another fountain of blood and ichor erupted across the landscape. Then the other hand raised up and ripped free one remaining section of armour plating. The plate went sailing into a nearby housing complex. Shattering both glass, concrete, and steel like it were a cherry bomb let off inside a sand castle. Then up went the fist again, and down it traversed.

Blood coated the streets. Blood flew through the trees. Blood mirrored the sky. Blood ran in the rivers. Again, and again, and again.

Blood.

So much blood.

He was swimming.

And drowning.

In blood.

"I'm drowning I'm drowning in blood and I can't get out and I'm suffocating someone help me someone get me out of here someone anyone please do something you gotta help me YOU GOTTA HELP ME!!!!!"

Kensuke's eyes flashed open, wide awake. He slowly disentangled himself from his twisted sheets and sat up. His bed, not to mention his body, was drenched with sweat.

He rubbed his eyes and lay back down.

"What the hell is happening to me?"

So it goes.

**********

"Just two more cables...yes...done. That should finish it."

The Priest calmly jumped out of the second entry plug, idly wiping his hands with an old rag. The slight 'modifications' he had made to the entry plug would keep the old men at SEELE happy.

He looked at his watch. "Good. Ten minutes until I'm expected for the wedding."

Whistling, he went on.

**********

Shinji scrambled over fallen electricity towers, bits of concrete and other refuse from the attack until he came to the building.

The museum's lights were off, the doorway glass smashed, but still locked.

Shinji bent his arm around, unlocked the door and went in. He only wanted to see one thing.

He found 'The Children's Crusade' and sat down.

So much war, so many tears, so much bloodshed. Is it really worth it? Weren't the angels meant to be the messengers of
God? Why should they attack God's messengers?

His eyes bored into the eyes of one of the children in the painting. The child, probably no older than nine or ten, simply stood in his ragged, grey clothes, waiting. His eyes were not filled with anger, or sadness, or fear over his executioners. They were filled with, simple...

...acceptance.

Shinji's eyes moved to the cold eyes of the warrior bearing the crooked cross on his arm. His eyes were cold, themselves mercilessly condemning the prisoners to their fate.

He sat there, he did not know how long, simply staring and watching the painting.

Finally, he stood. He would no longer be part of the Crusade.

At that moment, the alarms rang. An angel had been spotted.

So it goes.

Even without him, the Crusade raged on.