Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion
Note: It seems Asuka's situation is causing some anger. Well, don't worry I'll resolve it soon...I just don't know how or which way ;)
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Part 12: Do I trust your lips? Or your words?
"How long until Unit 15's ready to launch?" Misato sipped her cup of coffee as she oversaw the work of the technicians on Kowaru's Evangelion
"It will be awhile. Unit 15's S2 engine was heavily damaged by the explosion and its frame was rocked in the battle afterwards" Ritsuko stood beside her friend, clipboard in hand, as she attempted to make sense of various calculations before her
"What about Unit 13 and 14?"
"Both Unit's should be ready to go by the end of today. By the way, how is your artificial family doing?" her voice is sly, as though she basks in the fact that Misato was having problems with her two charges
"I-I don't know what's wrong with them. I'd have to guess that Shinji found out about Asuka's new boyfriend and...Wasn't happy with it"
"Oh? Well, I guess it would be about time for Shinji's hormones to kick in so I wouldn't worry about it to much"
"Ha, of course you wouldn't. Your job doesn't rely on whether or not they can stand to be in the same room with one another"
"Well, that's true enough"
***
The 3rd child sat naked in the water, allowing the warm water to soothe his aches. His head leaned against the wall; his eyes were shut in a most peaceful manner.
'Asuka Langley Sohryu' The image of the red-headed vixen penetrated his peaceful rest
'She is...unattainable in every aspect and yet...she still seems to be in love with me' He opened his eyes, which revealed that his solitude had been broken
"Who is still in love with you?" Kowaru stood overtop his friend, his trademark smile did not bother Shinji, nor did the nakedness of them both
"Uh..." he immediately felt like brushing him off, but something about the 5th child made Shinji trust him all over again "A-Asuka"
"The 2nd child?"
"Y-yes"
"She is quite beautiful, it seems that most men would do anything for a chance at her love yet you, you say she is the one who still loves you?"
"T-that is true"
"Then why? It seems apparent in your voice that you in fact love her"
"I think I do...I've never felt this before, in my heart I mean"
Kowaru took a seat beside Shinji, his presence seemed to put the 3rd child at ease "Heh, neither have I"
"Then how can you know what love is?"
"Love. In itself, is just a word but it is the concept that matters. It is a simple concept, really. It's when you feel something for another, like their lives suddenly become important to you. I have never felt such a feeling, I have only heard of it"
"I...guess that's the way I feel but...when I'm with Asuka, I quite constantly in pain. It hurts, really"
"Well, love is not just based on your own feelings but the feelings of the other. Sometimes it is better to do something you do not want to do so that you may make another happy, as that should make you happy"
"I don't know...she never seemed to be happy, no matter what I did"
"Perhaps it is...that she simply does not know how to deal with happiness herself. It seems humans have a difficulty doing that"
"But it's not worth it, it's just not"
"Why is that?"
"My hopes, my dreams. Those are mine...but, I lose myself when I'm with someone else"
"Maybe that's because your not willing to give yourself, so you make them take it. If you were to let Miss Sohryu into your heart, perhaps, just perhaps, you two could bask in the joy of one another"
"...But, to what's the point? Just for me to have someone else say they know how fucked up I am? The more I show people, the more likely it is I'll be hurt. I don't think I'd survive being abandoned again..."
***
"Don't you like this one?" Kaji held the fabric of a red satin dress in his hand
"Ya, it's nice" Asuka seemed disinterested in shopping, even though it had been her suggestion to go
Kaji's face turned to concern, as Asuka had been like this all day "What's wrong? You don't want to shop right now?"
"I do Kaji, I really do. Especially since it's with you but..."
"C'mon, what's wrong? Is it about Shinji?"
"I dunno, I think so"
"Well, what is it about?"
"M-my heart hurts. It just hurts so much...I don't know what it is"
Kaji laughed slightly and patted Asuka on the shoulder "Don't worry, that's just heartache, everyone in love gets it"
"B-but I can't love him. There's nothing but hurt with him"
Kaji guided her to the change-room, as he knew from experience that Asuka was going to start crying.
"Well Asuka, hurt comes with love"
"B-but there, there wasn't any hurt with you!"
Kaji bent down to look her in the eyes "Asuka, there also wasn't love. I was just a girlhood crush you had"
"No Kaji! I did love you...I really did" she couldn't bare to look at him as the tears began stinging her eyes
Kaji smiled at her, thinking it much easier to just accept that fact then to defy it "But that's just it, you did. Or maybe you still do, but you have to admit to yourself that it's not plausible. You'll always just be Asuka to me"
"But what about, when I'm older? As old as Misato"
"You'll still be Asuka to me...Listen, I'm not who you should be looking for love from. And maybe it's not from Shinji either, but listen Asuka: You need to find someone who can and will return your feelings in full, it might be Shinji, it might not be. But I know you'll find that person eventually, you're to great not to"
Asuka's eyes welled up with tears, but quickly she wiped them away. She smiled at Kaji a happy smile and dashed out of the change-room.
"Well, my job's done for today" he leaned against the doorway and smiled, it was at this time that he realized he was around a women's change-room "Um...hello ladies..."
***
"Aren't you going to eat anything Kowaru?" Shinji himself had only a small serving of rice, but Kowaru had nothing but water before him
"I really don't eat that much, and most of the food served here is meat; which I dislike" the 5th child almost had an aura around him, he looked somewhat out of place
"Oh, I'm sorry. I should have asked before bringing you here"
Kowaru smiled his gentle smile, it comforted Shinji "Don't worry about it. I probably wouldn't eat anything as it is"
"No, I really am sorry"
Kowaru focused his eyes on Shinji, his hand resting on his unused chopsticks "Why do you feel the need to apologize for everything?"
Shinji was taken aback by the question, Kowaru's incentive usually wasn't so bold "I-it stops people from being mad at me"
"So you do it because you're afraid?"
"I'm not sure anymore...I do it because, because, I do it because..."
"Or is it because you don't want to hurt?"
***
Asuka ran and ran, searching the entire district around their apartment.
"Tokyo-3 is too big" she was beginning to lose her hope, but still she ran
'I should just wait back at home' the thought had been recurring to her for some time but she continued to press on
"No, I can't. I need to tell him now"
There must have been an angel watching over her, for she got her wish.
***
"I think it's time we part ways" said the seemingly omnipotent Kowaru, he held a gleam in his eyes with an almost higher purpose in them
Shinji thought it odd that their conversation was rather abruptly ended, but slowly walked back as he pondered whether he was afraid of being hurt or he didn't want to hurt. He was greatly startled when someone gripped his shoulders to stop his advances.
He quickly went back, tripping over his heels onto the ground. Asuka bent down to help him up, asking if he was okay.
"Uh, um, I-I'm glad I ran into you Shinji"
"Y-yes Asuka?"
"I know, I know you think I did some bad stuff w-with Fama b-but, but, um..."
Shinji was unsure of what to do or what to say in this situation, so he simply stood there, wondering what the next words Asuka would spew out would be.
"I-it's not true, I didn't do anything with him. He was a jerk"
"Oh, that's...good, Asuka"
"Also...uh, also, I, um,...I l-l, I love you Shinji!"
Shinji stood there, his expression etched into his face, frozen like a stone as the words began sinking in.
***
Shinji was alone in the cold desolate existence. He looked around frantically, but to no avail. A way out, any way out, but none presented itself. He heard voices, voices echoing around, but they were too distant. He couldn't hear them, but they neared him eventually until they were pounding in his ears.
"I don't like you"
"You sicken me"
"Get away from me"
"How about we never see each other"
"Just fuck off"
"You're ah, not my type"
"We're not even friends"
"I hate you"
"Hahahaha, are you serious?"
"You think you're even worth it?"
"Don't call me"
Each voice was of a different girl, each word blended together in a collage of sound. Shinji crumpled down to the ground, holding his head as the girls insulted him. Twin Asuka's seemed to appear over him, one to comfort him and the other standing over ready to scorn him.
"What are you, stupid?!"
"Hey Shinji, you idiot"
"Look, If I warm up my breasts with my hands, do you think they'll get bigger or smaller?"
"What in the hell are you talking about?!?"
"I know you tried to kiss me while I was sleeping!"
"Hey Shinji! Wanna kiss me? I got nothin else to do"
"Blaaa! I should never kiss to pass time!"
"That's your viewing fee. Quite a bargain, neh?"
"Dummkopf!"
"You're thinking in Japanese! If you must think, do it in German!"
"AH! I didn't mean to get THAT up, you pervert!!"
"EW! Don't point it at me!!"
"If you dare look up my dress, I swear I'm going to kill you"
"I'm Asuka Langley Sohryu! Charmed, huh?"
"Why do all boys have to be perverted jerks?!"
"And you call yourselves men - where are your balls?"
"Such a boring little boy"
"When I didn't win with my Eva, I lost whatever value I might have had. I hate . . . everything. And I hate myself the most. I don't care about anything anymore. There's no point"
"My Unit Two is the world's first Evangelion, created for actual combat conditions, it's the final production model"
"Well, what did you think of that? A fight should be clean and elegant without waste"
"Hey, why so gloomy? I'm the most popular girl in school! You should appreciate your good fortune!"
"No way! A boy and a girl should never sleep under one roof after the age of seven!"
"Get it out of my mind! Please God, it's changing my mind!"
"How can it get any worse?"
"It's about time you got up, you idiot!"
"I've really hit rock bottom when I get sympathy from a loser like YOU!"
Then there was silence. He seemed to live out his life with Asuka in nothing more then a moment. He sat there in the silence, huddled in the arms of Asuka. His eyes clenched tight, afraid of what he would see should he open them.
"I love you Shinji!"
His eyes opened, and there was only a light. And then he was back.
***
Commander Gendo Ikari folded his hands in front of his mouth. His back leaned forward so slightly, as he went to listen to Keel Lorenz of SEELE terminal 1.
"We have received a report that your 2nd and 3rd child are having personal problems with one another, and that it is affecting their performance"
"We are currently taking actions to deal with that" his words were tight and his voice strong, he wondered where such a report would come from, as he did not authorize it
"And how would you be doing that I wonder? You better not give us any of your lies Ikari" number 7 said through his harsh accent
"As you recall, I asked that you make Cast-2 clones of Ryoji Kaji and Kowaru Nagisa"
"How does the clone of the 5th child and a spy help resolve the problems in your internal affairs?" Lorenz demanded again
"The 2nd child is greatly unbalanced without any male contact. At first, during the child's coma, I had conceived a plan to use the 3rd child, who was unbalanced from the loss of pilot Kowaru Nagisa, to balance the both of them out"
"And how did you go about orchestrating such an event? The emotions of people can be somewhat difficult to manipulate" 9 doubted Ikari's claim
"The synch ratio's of the 2nd child not a week ago were pathetic. By having R-the 3rd child act as a medium, I could decelerate the 2nd child's confidence; thereby ensuring she would stay home in depression...as long as no one else was there. By making Major Katsuragi work a night shift and delaying the 4th child I could ensure that the 3rd child would take time to get to his residence..."
"Is that why you had us save the 4th child? This council does not like to be used Ikari" the angered voice of 4 rang throughout the black room, demanding a suitable reason and explanation
"Apologies, but I required him for the battle and my plan, so I could submit no such request"
"Enough of that, continue Ikari" Lorenz urged him on, quietly evaluating whether Ikari was manipulative enough to beat him to Impact
"Luckily, due to the 2nd child's low self-esteem, the two were able to elope. Which brought us our solution"
"If the problem was solved, why did you re-think the formula?"
"Unfortunately, their personalities contrast too greatly and after the 3rd child's request in a change of housing it became necessary to draw a hatred between the two so that they would not yearn for one another. To this end, I hired a male capable of filling the 2nd child's demanding ideals"
"And this would be Kojira Fama?"
"Indeed"
"Then why were the Cast-2 clones created?"
"Unfortunately, Mr. Kojira forgot that he was being paid to balance out the 2nd child, and so he seemed to instigate their split...for that measure, he has been dealt with"
"And you believe the Cast-2 clones will be able to balance out the synch scores of the pilots?"
"It already hass, Mr. Kaji has since balanced the emotions of the 2nd child, which is seen the synch scores you received. And the 3rd child, himself, seems ha-balanced at the appearance of the 5th child"
"Very good Ikari. It seems you have found a stable solution to this problem...however, if it should arise again we would like it...dealt with in a more permanent manner"
"Understood"
The terminals faded out, leaving Commander Ikari alone in his office "And who, would dare to undermine me for the gain of SEELE?"
***
"S-stop..." Shinji backed slightly
"S-Shinji" she felt hurt that he hadn't responded yet, but reached her hand out to console him
"Stop toying with my feelings!" Shinji quickly sprinted back, his eyes stinging from his tears
And Asuka stood there. Her heart laid on the line. And she was rejected.
***
Note: Whoa, this is like the 3rd time I've re-written this chapter. Anyhow, for those still reading please review :), and I think I explained why some of the characters were brought back, but there's a bit more to it then that...i think, I haven't really planned the whole thing out lol. Oh ya, and I may adopt a format where the Oni battles are not described unless it is crucial to the story. Part of the reason I stopped writing was cuz it was getting tiring writing those out.
Note: It seems Asuka's situation is causing some anger. Well, don't worry I'll resolve it soon...I just don't know how or which way ;)
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Part 12: Do I trust your lips? Or your words?
"How long until Unit 15's ready to launch?" Misato sipped her cup of coffee as she oversaw the work of the technicians on Kowaru's Evangelion
"It will be awhile. Unit 15's S2 engine was heavily damaged by the explosion and its frame was rocked in the battle afterwards" Ritsuko stood beside her friend, clipboard in hand, as she attempted to make sense of various calculations before her
"What about Unit 13 and 14?"
"Both Unit's should be ready to go by the end of today. By the way, how is your artificial family doing?" her voice is sly, as though she basks in the fact that Misato was having problems with her two charges
"I-I don't know what's wrong with them. I'd have to guess that Shinji found out about Asuka's new boyfriend and...Wasn't happy with it"
"Oh? Well, I guess it would be about time for Shinji's hormones to kick in so I wouldn't worry about it to much"
"Ha, of course you wouldn't. Your job doesn't rely on whether or not they can stand to be in the same room with one another"
"Well, that's true enough"
***
The 3rd child sat naked in the water, allowing the warm water to soothe his aches. His head leaned against the wall; his eyes were shut in a most peaceful manner.
'Asuka Langley Sohryu' The image of the red-headed vixen penetrated his peaceful rest
'She is...unattainable in every aspect and yet...she still seems to be in love with me' He opened his eyes, which revealed that his solitude had been broken
"Who is still in love with you?" Kowaru stood overtop his friend, his trademark smile did not bother Shinji, nor did the nakedness of them both
"Uh..." he immediately felt like brushing him off, but something about the 5th child made Shinji trust him all over again "A-Asuka"
"The 2nd child?"
"Y-yes"
"She is quite beautiful, it seems that most men would do anything for a chance at her love yet you, you say she is the one who still loves you?"
"T-that is true"
"Then why? It seems apparent in your voice that you in fact love her"
"I think I do...I've never felt this before, in my heart I mean"
Kowaru took a seat beside Shinji, his presence seemed to put the 3rd child at ease "Heh, neither have I"
"Then how can you know what love is?"
"Love. In itself, is just a word but it is the concept that matters. It is a simple concept, really. It's when you feel something for another, like their lives suddenly become important to you. I have never felt such a feeling, I have only heard of it"
"I...guess that's the way I feel but...when I'm with Asuka, I quite constantly in pain. It hurts, really"
"Well, love is not just based on your own feelings but the feelings of the other. Sometimes it is better to do something you do not want to do so that you may make another happy, as that should make you happy"
"I don't know...she never seemed to be happy, no matter what I did"
"Perhaps it is...that she simply does not know how to deal with happiness herself. It seems humans have a difficulty doing that"
"But it's not worth it, it's just not"
"Why is that?"
"My hopes, my dreams. Those are mine...but, I lose myself when I'm with someone else"
"Maybe that's because your not willing to give yourself, so you make them take it. If you were to let Miss Sohryu into your heart, perhaps, just perhaps, you two could bask in the joy of one another"
"...But, to what's the point? Just for me to have someone else say they know how fucked up I am? The more I show people, the more likely it is I'll be hurt. I don't think I'd survive being abandoned again..."
***
"Don't you like this one?" Kaji held the fabric of a red satin dress in his hand
"Ya, it's nice" Asuka seemed disinterested in shopping, even though it had been her suggestion to go
Kaji's face turned to concern, as Asuka had been like this all day "What's wrong? You don't want to shop right now?"
"I do Kaji, I really do. Especially since it's with you but..."
"C'mon, what's wrong? Is it about Shinji?"
"I dunno, I think so"
"Well, what is it about?"
"M-my heart hurts. It just hurts so much...I don't know what it is"
Kaji laughed slightly and patted Asuka on the shoulder "Don't worry, that's just heartache, everyone in love gets it"
"B-but I can't love him. There's nothing but hurt with him"
Kaji guided her to the change-room, as he knew from experience that Asuka was going to start crying.
"Well Asuka, hurt comes with love"
"B-but there, there wasn't any hurt with you!"
Kaji bent down to look her in the eyes "Asuka, there also wasn't love. I was just a girlhood crush you had"
"No Kaji! I did love you...I really did" she couldn't bare to look at him as the tears began stinging her eyes
Kaji smiled at her, thinking it much easier to just accept that fact then to defy it "But that's just it, you did. Or maybe you still do, but you have to admit to yourself that it's not plausible. You'll always just be Asuka to me"
"But what about, when I'm older? As old as Misato"
"You'll still be Asuka to me...Listen, I'm not who you should be looking for love from. And maybe it's not from Shinji either, but listen Asuka: You need to find someone who can and will return your feelings in full, it might be Shinji, it might not be. But I know you'll find that person eventually, you're to great not to"
Asuka's eyes welled up with tears, but quickly she wiped them away. She smiled at Kaji a happy smile and dashed out of the change-room.
"Well, my job's done for today" he leaned against the doorway and smiled, it was at this time that he realized he was around a women's change-room "Um...hello ladies..."
***
"Aren't you going to eat anything Kowaru?" Shinji himself had only a small serving of rice, but Kowaru had nothing but water before him
"I really don't eat that much, and most of the food served here is meat; which I dislike" the 5th child almost had an aura around him, he looked somewhat out of place
"Oh, I'm sorry. I should have asked before bringing you here"
Kowaru smiled his gentle smile, it comforted Shinji "Don't worry about it. I probably wouldn't eat anything as it is"
"No, I really am sorry"
Kowaru focused his eyes on Shinji, his hand resting on his unused chopsticks "Why do you feel the need to apologize for everything?"
Shinji was taken aback by the question, Kowaru's incentive usually wasn't so bold "I-it stops people from being mad at me"
"So you do it because you're afraid?"
"I'm not sure anymore...I do it because, because, I do it because..."
"Or is it because you don't want to hurt?"
***
Asuka ran and ran, searching the entire district around their apartment.
"Tokyo-3 is too big" she was beginning to lose her hope, but still she ran
'I should just wait back at home' the thought had been recurring to her for some time but she continued to press on
"No, I can't. I need to tell him now"
There must have been an angel watching over her, for she got her wish.
***
"I think it's time we part ways" said the seemingly omnipotent Kowaru, he held a gleam in his eyes with an almost higher purpose in them
Shinji thought it odd that their conversation was rather abruptly ended, but slowly walked back as he pondered whether he was afraid of being hurt or he didn't want to hurt. He was greatly startled when someone gripped his shoulders to stop his advances.
He quickly went back, tripping over his heels onto the ground. Asuka bent down to help him up, asking if he was okay.
"Uh, um, I-I'm glad I ran into you Shinji"
"Y-yes Asuka?"
"I know, I know you think I did some bad stuff w-with Fama b-but, but, um..."
Shinji was unsure of what to do or what to say in this situation, so he simply stood there, wondering what the next words Asuka would spew out would be.
"I-it's not true, I didn't do anything with him. He was a jerk"
"Oh, that's...good, Asuka"
"Also...uh, also, I, um,...I l-l, I love you Shinji!"
Shinji stood there, his expression etched into his face, frozen like a stone as the words began sinking in.
***
Shinji was alone in the cold desolate existence. He looked around frantically, but to no avail. A way out, any way out, but none presented itself. He heard voices, voices echoing around, but they were too distant. He couldn't hear them, but they neared him eventually until they were pounding in his ears.
"I don't like you"
"You sicken me"
"Get away from me"
"How about we never see each other"
"Just fuck off"
"You're ah, not my type"
"We're not even friends"
"I hate you"
"Hahahaha, are you serious?"
"You think you're even worth it?"
"Don't call me"
Each voice was of a different girl, each word blended together in a collage of sound. Shinji crumpled down to the ground, holding his head as the girls insulted him. Twin Asuka's seemed to appear over him, one to comfort him and the other standing over ready to scorn him.
"What are you, stupid?!"
"Hey Shinji, you idiot"
"Look, If I warm up my breasts with my hands, do you think they'll get bigger or smaller?"
"What in the hell are you talking about?!?"
"I know you tried to kiss me while I was sleeping!"
"Hey Shinji! Wanna kiss me? I got nothin else to do"
"Blaaa! I should never kiss to pass time!"
"That's your viewing fee. Quite a bargain, neh?"
"Dummkopf!"
"You're thinking in Japanese! If you must think, do it in German!"
"AH! I didn't mean to get THAT up, you pervert!!"
"EW! Don't point it at me!!"
"If you dare look up my dress, I swear I'm going to kill you"
"I'm Asuka Langley Sohryu! Charmed, huh?"
"Why do all boys have to be perverted jerks?!"
"And you call yourselves men - where are your balls?"
"Such a boring little boy"
"When I didn't win with my Eva, I lost whatever value I might have had. I hate . . . everything. And I hate myself the most. I don't care about anything anymore. There's no point"
"My Unit Two is the world's first Evangelion, created for actual combat conditions, it's the final production model"
"Well, what did you think of that? A fight should be clean and elegant without waste"
"Hey, why so gloomy? I'm the most popular girl in school! You should appreciate your good fortune!"
"No way! A boy and a girl should never sleep under one roof after the age of seven!"
"Get it out of my mind! Please God, it's changing my mind!"
"How can it get any worse?"
"It's about time you got up, you idiot!"
"I've really hit rock bottom when I get sympathy from a loser like YOU!"
Then there was silence. He seemed to live out his life with Asuka in nothing more then a moment. He sat there in the silence, huddled in the arms of Asuka. His eyes clenched tight, afraid of what he would see should he open them.
"I love you Shinji!"
His eyes opened, and there was only a light. And then he was back.
***
Commander Gendo Ikari folded his hands in front of his mouth. His back leaned forward so slightly, as he went to listen to Keel Lorenz of SEELE terminal 1.
"We have received a report that your 2nd and 3rd child are having personal problems with one another, and that it is affecting their performance"
"We are currently taking actions to deal with that" his words were tight and his voice strong, he wondered where such a report would come from, as he did not authorize it
"And how would you be doing that I wonder? You better not give us any of your lies Ikari" number 7 said through his harsh accent
"As you recall, I asked that you make Cast-2 clones of Ryoji Kaji and Kowaru Nagisa"
"How does the clone of the 5th child and a spy help resolve the problems in your internal affairs?" Lorenz demanded again
"The 2nd child is greatly unbalanced without any male contact. At first, during the child's coma, I had conceived a plan to use the 3rd child, who was unbalanced from the loss of pilot Kowaru Nagisa, to balance the both of them out"
"And how did you go about orchestrating such an event? The emotions of people can be somewhat difficult to manipulate" 9 doubted Ikari's claim
"The synch ratio's of the 2nd child not a week ago were pathetic. By having R-the 3rd child act as a medium, I could decelerate the 2nd child's confidence; thereby ensuring she would stay home in depression...as long as no one else was there. By making Major Katsuragi work a night shift and delaying the 4th child I could ensure that the 3rd child would take time to get to his residence..."
"Is that why you had us save the 4th child? This council does not like to be used Ikari" the angered voice of 4 rang throughout the black room, demanding a suitable reason and explanation
"Apologies, but I required him for the battle and my plan, so I could submit no such request"
"Enough of that, continue Ikari" Lorenz urged him on, quietly evaluating whether Ikari was manipulative enough to beat him to Impact
"Luckily, due to the 2nd child's low self-esteem, the two were able to elope. Which brought us our solution"
"If the problem was solved, why did you re-think the formula?"
"Unfortunately, their personalities contrast too greatly and after the 3rd child's request in a change of housing it became necessary to draw a hatred between the two so that they would not yearn for one another. To this end, I hired a male capable of filling the 2nd child's demanding ideals"
"And this would be Kojira Fama?"
"Indeed"
"Then why were the Cast-2 clones created?"
"Unfortunately, Mr. Kojira forgot that he was being paid to balance out the 2nd child, and so he seemed to instigate their split...for that measure, he has been dealt with"
"And you believe the Cast-2 clones will be able to balance out the synch scores of the pilots?"
"It already hass, Mr. Kaji has since balanced the emotions of the 2nd child, which is seen the synch scores you received. And the 3rd child, himself, seems ha-balanced at the appearance of the 5th child"
"Very good Ikari. It seems you have found a stable solution to this problem...however, if it should arise again we would like it...dealt with in a more permanent manner"
"Understood"
The terminals faded out, leaving Commander Ikari alone in his office "And who, would dare to undermine me for the gain of SEELE?"
***
"S-stop..." Shinji backed slightly
"S-Shinji" she felt hurt that he hadn't responded yet, but reached her hand out to console him
"Stop toying with my feelings!" Shinji quickly sprinted back, his eyes stinging from his tears
And Asuka stood there. Her heart laid on the line. And she was rejected.
***
Note: Whoa, this is like the 3rd time I've re-written this chapter. Anyhow, for those still reading please review :), and I think I explained why some of the characters were brought back, but there's a bit more to it then that...i think, I haven't really planned the whole thing out lol. Oh ya, and I may adopt a format where the Oni battles are not described unless it is crucial to the story. Part of the reason I stopped writing was cuz it was getting tiring writing those out.