Disclaimer
The series, Neon Genesis Evangelion, from which this work of fiction is based, is owned by GAINAX. Characters presented in this document that come directly from the series are also owned by GAINAX. "Lady Pheaura" owns Madison Timlitt. I own all other original characters.

Evangelion: Primum Revelation
Chapter 21: Sun and Shadows
Written by T.S. a.k.a. "Kain Tempest"
German Translations by "Steve Vader"

"You've cleaned yourself up." Tristan observed, speaking in English.

"That's right. It's only temporary mind you."

"Temporary?"

"A short-lived image. No doubt I'll be dropping it soon after this talk. But there is no rush, we met halfway in order to keep this all a secret, right?" Tristan nodded.

"How long have you been smoking?" The man on the other side of the table took another drag, thinking.

"A few weeks ago... I know it's bad for my health..." He pointed to the menu.

"Let's not talk about the food. We have a lot to speak about."

"We do?"

"Well yes, of course we do. It has been more than a year."

"I didn't really notice. But you know that my trade doesn't allow me to tell anything of value."

"Of course, your secrets are safe. But what about the other parts. About the Commonwealth and your... Hobby." The smoker laughed.

"'Hobby', I like the name of that. Doesn't have fatality written all over it."

"So what had happened to you? How did you get here?"

"I took a plane... If you meant something else, well... I can't tell all of my secrets." Tristan shrugged. "So what is it you want to know?"

"Where is my pilot?"

"'Your pilot'? Possessive?"

"Scared for him." His lunch guest nodded.

"My comrade is with him right now. They're on the new side of the city." Tristan frowned.

"A hostage?" The man chuckled.

"No, they're old friends, so the fact that they're here too is rather benign."

"So what am I supposed to do to get him back?"

"There were a few inconsistencies I want to uncover and correct in my thesis. I got as much as I could as a member of UNIT, and as far as
they are concerned I died in the resulting destruction of the secondary Amazonian military base. It also means they will not catch the contact interference I left their Tridents with.""You tampered with them?"

"You're skilled, but remember that your machine is only limited extension, if their weapons worked properly, you would have lost." Tristan leaned back and crossed his arms.

"I was lying awake all night wondering why I didn't die." The man chuckled and leaned closer.

"Are you sure that Miss Sohryu wasn't keep you up?" Tristan cursed in German.

"N-nothing like that happened!"

"Two-thirds of a six-pack can addle someone's memory."

"Enough with the teasing! Let's just get down to business." Tristan growled. The man's mirth faded and he knitted his fingers.

"You have enough influence to get access to E-NERV headquarters."

"It's a waste, it'll take years to clear it out."

"The main shaft and the lower levels were never flooded."

"What!" Noticing that he was calling unneeded attention, Tristan sank down into his chair.

"I want you to give my 'friend' a tour of the lower facility. Shinji will be with you... Once you're done, you can both return."

"But how do I explain how Shinji is with me or that I was granted clearance?"

"The commander has already given it." Tristan frowned.

"More tricks?"

"No, no. The commander is completely aware of what it going on and is completely fine with it. He knows that he has to listen to my demands or else one of his pilots will be come forever."

"You wouldn't kill Shinji nor I."

"He doesn't know me that well, however, when I mentioned what I knew, he was wrapped around my little finger."

"What did you tell him?"

"I gave the names of all the pilots and their residences. He was especially respondent when I mentioned Asuka's name." He grinned.

"Course, the mention of accidents to several officers and pilots was the last straw."

"I never imagined you as one for threats."

"The situation and urgency of my research has lead to more drastic measures than what I was previously comfortable with. But after a certain grace of God, I got used to the job of killing again."

"Though I doubt bullets would be involved."

"Of course not. A bomb, a car crash, a doctor's error." Tristan's eyes narrowed.

"You plan to kill Madison?"

"Neither the commander, nor you, know enough about me to make heads or tails of that, Lieutenant. If it means knowing everything about my 'hobby' then so it must be." Tristan shook his head in disbelief. "I take it the conversation is over?"

"You'll be eating alone, good day." Tristan got up and immediately left his contact.

It seemed obvious that teenagers were not those to be eyed suspiciously anymore. Teenagers joining the workforce and being a part of the reconstruction effort was now the norm. The education system became limited, however the method with which higher education could be achieved was still debatable. Whatever the case, a cap and work jumpsuit was enough to convince the security guard at the front of the facility to allow Tristan, Shigeru, and Shinji inside.

The parking area was a mess of vehicles, construction equipment, and dump trucks filled to the brim with ground down cryostatic fluid. Tristan moved at a brisk pace, clearly agitated, while Shigeru followed suit, becoming all business as soon as the Second Lieutenant had approached them. Shinji was afraid to look around for any length of time for fear of being left behind. Even though neither Tristan nor Shigeru would let the pilot out of their site.

It was only upon navigating to the core elevators that the silence was broken.

"Are you alright, Shinji?" The boy was shaken out of his former train of thought and wore a foolish expression of surprise for a few moments. It faded and he looked to Shigeru.

"I'm fine. Why are we here, anyway?"

"Paying to get you back." Tristan responded. Shigeru nodded.

"Shinji, I don't work for the NEC, nor do I work for UNIT. I'm under private obligation to do what I am doing. As far as I am concerned, my part with NERV is officially over."

"So you quit?" Tristan inquired.

"How can I resign from an organization that no longer exists?"

"Then what is the insignia on your jacket?"

"A farce that a nation has used in order to take advantage of peoples' feelings about NERV and improve the image of the NEC." Tristan let out a long sigh, regretting that he had asked.

"So what are we going to do here?" Tristan nodded over to the former lieutenant.

"Our 'friend' here wants to take a look at some of E-NERV's secrets pre-Third Impact. Considering it is top secret, understand that telling about what can and will transpire here cannot be made known to anyone else. It is far too dangerous. Understood?" The boy nodded and Tristan turned away to study and size up Shigeru.

The elevator finally stopped and the trio stepped out. Shinji looked around and felt a small sense of déja vu, the walls were darker and the smell was different, however these corridors reminded him of NERV headquarters back in Tokyo-3. Shinji shuddered, quickly reminded of the darker memories, and another time when he was brought to NERV to plumb its dark secrets. He caught Tristan making a similar shudder.

"You okay, Tristan." The Second Lieutenant gave a grunt.

"Bad memories."

"Same." Shigeru didn't heed the two and started down the corridor, pulling out a flashlight and turning out just as the illuminated elevator was called away. No other lies in the corridor were running. Shinji swallowed, seeing his perceptions shrink and even more memories and nightmares appearing and lurking in his mind at the corner of his imagination.

"Lets go." Shigeru ordered. The two boys followed. Tristan looked sidelong at Shinji and sensed his unease.

"Claustrophobia?" Shinji shook his head.

"It's just that..."

"People died here." Shigeru answered, looking over his shoulder. "The personnel in the upper levels were slaughtered like animals. The entire place was scrubbed of human life." Tristan lowered his head.

"They weren't even given the opportunity to fight back." Tristan growled. "We were lied to." Shinji wanted to know more, but he was pensive, deep down he knew he didn't want to hear more and that it seemed to bother Tristan quite a bit. He bit his lip.

"Every one of the NERV facilities was blind-sided, E-NERV was no different." Shigeru reminded Tristan. He stopped at a door and handing the flashlight to Shinji, motioned for Tristan to help him open the door. Considering these doors were meant to slide open, it took a concerted effort by both to yank it open.

Shigeru took the flashlight from Shinji and swung it across the room. Control terminals, chairs, and a large main screen at the front of the room. The panels glowed faintly, auxiliary electricity still being pumped through the lower levels as the commander had promised Tristan. The second lieutenant frowned and stepped into the middle of the room, scanning the floor and looking under his boot to notice the slick LCL and the bullet casings.

"Seven people, twelve rounds for six, two for the very first of them... Seventy four casings in total." Tristan ran off the morbid math. Shigeru pointed the light at Tristan who looked up with a sombre look on his face. "E-NERV had assumed that the troops were here to help reinforce the facility, considering the news we had received about J-NERV going rogue. We allowed them to use our MAGI for an electronic attack. But as soon as that failed... We were so stupid, they had spread out to every key point in the facility." Tristan walked to the back of the room where a lonely puddle of LCL had settled months ago, he knelt down and touched it, lifting it up to his face. Shinji winced, disgusted. He really didn't want to remember what people had become during Third Impact.

"This the primary fluid control room. The entire facility was building like a complex hydraulic machine. But why?" Shigeru murmured.

"Over fifteen of the upper levels were designed to be a buffer to be flooded, a trap or method to slow down an Angel attack. The engineers here didn't even realize that started up the procedure merely sealed us off from the rest of the outside world. The central shaft was the only way out, and they were all over it."

"H-how do you know all this?" Shinji finally asked. Tristan looked up at him and then down at the puddle.

"This was my father. The chief engineer of the facility. E-NERV was like a child to him... The only one he felt he had left." Tristan pursed his lips for a moment, his face twisting as he fought back any sort of emotion. "After he started the procedure, he was executed and so was the rest of his team."

"Cradle and grave." Shigeru remarked. Tristan slowly nodded and got up. "You managed to get out okay." The spy observed.

"A collection of technicians and I fought our way out of the cages. It was all cat and mouse throughout the facility. Having to kill guards just to get more ammunition so that we could keep going. The troops were already gone when I got here. The only place they may not have gotten to was the comm-" Tristan was interrupted when Shigeru exited the room, and forced the two boys to hurry back into the hallway. They headed back to the elevator and proceeded lower. During the trip, there was no other mention of what occurred during the take over, but the look on Tristan's face said it all.

While Shinji hadn't seen the true carnage of his NERV, seeing the aftermath of E-NERV was almost overpowering. Executions and bitter betrayals. Tristan went from a test pilot to a soldier in moments. The boy had seen more than he should have. The reminder of what transpired here had also brought greater gravity to Tristan's movements. The boy stayed quiet and licked his lips.

The elevator stopped deeper now in the facility. Shigeru led the way, this time at a greater pace, as if excited by what they were about to find next. They came to another set of doors and once again started working them open. However, Tristan did not move. Shigeru looked up.

"Help me."

"This is the commander's room." Tristan commented.

"And this is where we're going, not help me." Shigeru growled, quickly beginning to lose his patience. Tristan stepped forward and assisted the spy in open the chamber. The soft blue glow from beyond was enough that Shigeru turned off the flashlight and stepped inside. The ceiling was low, in this rectangular room. The farthest half was made up glass walls illuminated by a blue light beyond, casting shadows on white walls and faux marble. A large desk dominated the far end of the chamber and a high backed chair.

Shigeru headed directly to the desk, meanwhile the two boys stopped directly in front of a collection of LCL puddles. Tristan gave an audible shudder and looked away.

"Tristan?" Shinji was now very worried about how much more of this his friend could take before having mental breakdown. Even then, the boy was also feeling sick to his stomach. Shigeru seemed oblivious, standing over the open laptop on the desk and frantically typing on the keyboard.

"I-I'm fine." He grated. "It's just..."

Leaning over, the former NERV officer scanned the information he summoned up on the screen. Another session of typing and his brow furrowed. He looked up at Tristan.

"This is where you died." Shinji looked up at Shigeru and then Tristan, shocked. The former captain shook his head.

"Wounded. I lost all memory of what happened after the three remaining technicians were gunned down and I collapsed. I saw..." Tristan scrubbed his face. "I don't remember."

"That's typical." Shigeru responded, returning to the keyboard. "It seems to be the case for everyone. However, I hear that some people manage to retain some of their memories of the event and whatever occurred between Third Impact and their 'rebirth'. They're as fragile as dreams, and sometimes haunting like nightmares." Shinji slowly nodded in agreement. Shigeru returned to the keyboard, typing in a few more things before folding the laptop down.

Shigeru stopped next to the two boys and placed a hand of Tristan's shoulder.

"Don't worry. There is just one place I have to go, now." The Second Lieutenant wearily shook off the spy's touch. Seeing how humanizing himself was failing, Shigeru continued out of the room, Shinji quickly following behind. Tristan lingered for several more moments, looking at the desk where the shots were fired. He never knew who his commander was, neither did Asuka, all things were delegated to lesser soldiers and the commander's seconds. But here, he was supposed to get a glimpse of the man who knew the truth and who betrayed the entire staff of E-NERV in order to save his own neck. The commander was the one who gunned down Tristan, but here he was again. He breathed an insult at the ghost of the former E-NERV commander and followed after Shigeru and Shinji, back into the elevator.
As soon as the car reached the lowest level of the facility, Shinji was overcome with foreboding. Even when the doors opened into darkness and Shigeru and Tristan were already halfway down the corridor, he was still lingering in the car.

"What's wrong Shinji?" Tristan asked.

"There is something wrong... I- I don't know." Shigeru gave a growl of frustration. "This is starting to feel too much like when Ritsuko brought me to the lowest level of NERV." The spy looked back at Shinji intrigued.

"What did she tell you?" He asked. Tristan frowned at Shigeru, immediately suspicious; however, Shinji was more than willing to speak.

"She showed me what she called the 'truth' behind the Evangelions. There was more than one prototype, each of which she called a failure. And then..." Shinji trailed off, slowly shaking his head.

"Shinji has been through enough, let him go back up. I'll stick with you." Tristan offered.

"No. You are both coming with me, as per the agreement. That or else only one of us will be going to be leaving this place." Tristan grit his teeth and stepped in front of Shinji, expecting Shigeru to pull out a gun.

"My Evangelion is the only one we have, Shinji is of no military value... I am. You have your access to the base. Let Shinji go. Remember, that you both need me to leave this place without suspicion. Shinji can stay in the upper levels until we come back. Don't put him through anymore than he has to." Tension was pulled to the point of breaking between the two, and Shinji's worry was now stacked up against the possibility that Tristan was going to be killed. The hardness in Shigeru's had completely replaced the kind young man who had accompanied he and Asuka so many months ago. What had happened to change him so drastically? To take on such a rough and cruel disposition.

"Go then, Shinji." Shigeru stated. "Hurry up." Tristan looked over his shoulder and nodded to Shinji, confirming it. The boy backed up and called the car back and stepped inside.

"We won't be gone long." Tristan assured him. Shinji nodded and the doors closed. As soon as they did, Tristan heard the flashlight shut off and was hit hard into the stomach and then into the back of the neck. He growled, curling up on the floor after the assault. Shigeru turned the light back on.

"You had your time to be a hero, brat, now get the Hell up and ahead of me... Now!" Shigeru barked. Tristan rose and did what he was told, the flashlight coming on as soon as he had gotten to his feet. Tristan started down the corridor with Shigeru close behind.

"So what happened back there?" Tristan looked way from the bus window and looked at Shinji, sitting next to him.

"Shigeru found what he wanted to find and we came back up to the surface." Shinji frowned, regarding the dark bruise on the back of his neck. Tristan was quickly aware of the look and lifted up his collar. Shinji slowly looked away.

"What happens when we get back to Hamburg? Isn't everyone worried?"

"Everyone is... Especially Asuka."

"What?" Tristan looked out the window.

"She may not look it, but she is trying to not look upset after everything that had went on during that bad operation."

"What happened?" The second lieutenant sighed.

"While you and Asuka were captured, we managed to acquire one of their pilots and question her."

"Her?"

"That's right... They threatened to have both of you executed if their pilot wasn't returned and we didn't surrender Unit-08 to them. First we were to trade their pilot for Asuka. Apparently, they didn't want to give her up so easily and tried to kill her with a sharpshooter."

"Is she alright?" Shinji had turned around and panic was on his face. Tristan slowly nodded.

"I'm not sure about Madison, though?"

"Why? W-what's happened to her."

"She's in the hospital after taking the round that was meant for Asuka." Tristan closed his eyes and collected himself. "We managed to recover all that we could and fled after getting Asuka. It was decided that we would cut our losses, even if they meant leaving you to die. I guess in that way, we owe your rescuers." He gave a weak chuckle, which Shinji didn't respond to.

"Is Madison going to make it?" Tristan looked back at the window, a little embarrassed how he tried to turn away from such a serious subject. He considered his answer for several long moments, watching the scenery breeze past. Finally, he looked back at his roommate.

"I don't know." The conversation went dead for several minutes; Shinji stared down at his shoes, while Tristan lost himself in watching the landscape.

"You've been checking on her, haven't you?" Tristan looked back at Shinji in surprise, but expression quickly became dourer.

"No."

"Why not? You are your friend, aren't you?"

"There's no sense in worrying. Either she lives or dies. My being there doesn't change that fact."

"How can you say that?"

"Did you hear anything I said back in Berlin? I've seen people die before me and I know for a fact that I cannot bring them back from the dead. One day Shinji, you will realize that we..." Tristan took a breath and stared up at the ceiling of the bus. "You will realize that even with the Evangelions, there are things that we simply cannot change." He tapped the glass, indicated the dark line across the sky, the universal symbol of their new world. "We are powerful but we are not gods."

"That doesn't explain why you would abandon why you would abandon Madison like that."

"I didn't abandon her. They are more things that I have to deal with over the life of one foolish girl." Shinji slowly shook his head in disbelief, but Tristan didn't falter.

"Why would you say something like that?" Tristan considered the question for a few moments.

"A long time ago, before the NEC was formed, this nation was nothing more than a few camps of people combing the beach looking for more people being reborn. Madison was one person who didn't seem to stand a chance. Almost drowning in salt water, shock, and trauma that must have carried over from just before Third Impact. I kept watch over her every minute I could. At that time I had chosen to forget all the misfortune that had happened so recently in my memory.

"She pulled through, and I was so glad. But when I discovered that she had chosen to join NERV..." He shook his head. "I was furious. All this effort and hope I had invested and she was going to throw it away."

"What is wrong with trying to help others?"

"NERV's role has changed, you know that, Shinji. We are no longer about saving the world. We're about war, something I had believed that we had put far behind us after Second Impact. Now Madison has joined us and is dying, which is the last thing I ever wanted for her. I wanted her to live on beyond this time of troubles...

"All she's done now is reminded me how futile it is to protect others. All we can really do is try and live on our own terms. I think that is the other reason why I am piloting an Evangelion now."

"To live? What is your other reason?"

"I spent my entire life to become an Evangelion pilot. I wasn't about to allow fourteen years of my life go up in smoke."

"You sound a lot like, Asuka, in why she had hated me."

"I'm not concerned with who is better, really. Just that I get to do what I was born to do is enough for me."

"Born to do?" Tristan lowered his head, but the look on his face was serene.

"Even though my father was supposed to have custody over me, he refused to take me and allowed me to be taken by the state. Then the
Marduk Institute came in... And so I was fated to become a pilot.""It's not my place in asking, but why didn't your father want you?" The peace escaped and Tristan's face fell into the storm of emotions.

"My three older siblings died during Second Impact and my mother died in childbirth only a few months after. My father's world was shattered, when I finally met him, all I found was a shell of a man, someone who I never wanted to be." Shinji slowly nodded, empathizing with his commanding officer. "I never really knew him, the only thing that connected us was blood. Other than that we were simply strangers who worked in the same place." He gave a faint smile at Shinji. "And what about you? You are the son of the commander of Tokyo-3's NERV base."

"Well... As far as I was concerned, my father had abandoned me. I always hated him for what he did to me, especially when he finally brought me to him only to pilot the Evangelion. I felt like he regarded me as only a tool and not an actual person. Even worse when he put me in horrible scenarios, like having to fight my own friend... I- I can never forgive him for that." Shinji swallowed.

"Sounds like our fathers should have had a beer with one another." Shinji laughed a little and smiled. He nodded in agreement, and Tristan was relieved that he could remove that air of gravity that was passing between them.

"So what is going to happen once we get to Hamburg?"

"The commander has already given us a story to go by in order to cover your return."

"The commander was in on this?" Tristan nodded.

"Simply put, a covert team was sent in and recovered you, I was to retrieve you from Berlin in plain clothes."

"A half-lie then." Tristan nodded once more.

"Everything that happened in Berlin however, stays between us, Shinji. No one needs to know what occurred, not Septerra, not Misato, not Asuka, no one."

"I understand."

"Good." The Second Lieutenant looked at his watch and sighed. More than an hour was left in the trip. He looked out the window again. "I spy with my little eye..."

"What are you talking about?"

"I Spy... It's a game, haven't you heard of it?"

"Yeah..."

"Well we still have a lot of time to kill. So why don't we just do that. Besides, our conversations have a penchant of becoming rather sombre. A game of I Spy might change that a little. Okay?" Shinji nodded. "Okay, I'll go first..."

"Asuka? You're still here?" Tristan's face was a mixture of surprise and dread, Asuka stood at the doorway, hands on her hips like the wife that was waiting up for him. The scenario could best be described as getting caught going bowling on an anniversary. Looking over Tristan's shoulder however, Asuka's anger subsided into confusion and surprise.

"Shinji! What? How?" She turned back to Tristan.

"The reason why I wasn't here in the morning."

"What are you talking about?"

"Spec ops got me out of UNIT." Shinji responded, just before Tristan could answer the same thing. The boy smiled to himself, he knew how to spin a story so that it was true, after all, they were agreeing on.

"What?"

"The commander sent me to get Shinji from Berlin where the special operatives who got him out of the enemy lines is stationed."

"That sounds fishy."

"Well Shinji is here now, and that is at most what we needed to worry about at the moment. We're back together." Asuka looked away from Tristan and at Shinji. She gave him a faint smile.

"I'm glad to see you are safe." She then turned and went to the kitchen. Tristan gave Shinji a kind look and a small smile. The boy blushed and looked down at his feet. The Second Lieutenant left him and headed after Asuka to find out what she was up to.

"Why are you sticking around?" Asuka looked at Tristan, rather surprised. "Sorry. That didn't come out right." Asuka shrugged.

"Pen-Pen seemed like he could use the company and I didn't want to be alone."

"Well you had done so earlier."

"I have, but I really don't want to go back to my home, it just feels to empty. Besides, the only reason I was living some place else was because of the misunderstanding between Shinji and I. But really, it is prudent to have all the pilots in one place."

"Are you suggesting you want to move in with us?"

"Move in?" Shinji stuck his head into the kitchen. Asuka nodded. "I'm alright with that." Tristan sighed.

"I'd like to say the same thing, however this apartment was only intended for two people."

"Well there is the hide-away under the couch." Asuka offered.

"If you're suggesting that you're going to sleep on the couch, then you can take my room."

"After you've used it? Yuck!" She teased, sticking her tongue out and smiling.

"You're both gun-ho about this whole thing." The second lieutenant shook his head. "Well, then I am going to have to speak to administration in order to get everything straightened out, meanwhile we all have to figure out who is sleeping where." A mischievous grin swept across the German girl's face at Tristan's mention of the subject.

"Well I found Tristan's bed to be exceedingly comfortable." She said in the most suggestive voice possible. The comment caused both of the boys to begin reeling. Tristan began sputtering as he tried to explain to Shinji that it wasn't what he was thinking off. Asuka grinned to herself; boys were so easy to get a reaction out of.

Despite the fright that Asuka had given the two of them, Shinji felt a lot better about things. Even though the morning was so dark and gruesome, it seemed as though Tristan had truly made peace with his life. In fact, it seemed they all, in that they were all smiling, laughing, and talking, like good friends. But in the back of his mind, Shinji couldn't help but be bothered by the questions still surrounding NEC and UNIT.

Shigeru, Hikari, and E-NERV. Shinji wanted to know what they were all about. He knew that they had something to with himself, Tristan, and their newest roommate, but also with the Evangelions. They were almost artefacts now of an age that had only recently occurred, but was now a distant memory, farther gone than even Second Impact had been.

To Be Continued...

Author's Notes
Looking back at the chapter and the original series, I kind of feel aware that Tristan has taken over the position that Misato had, once upon a time. Tristan owns the apartment, the original caretaker of Pen-Pen in this new age, the mentor and emotional rock for both Asuka and Shinji, and also is getting involved with the mysteries of NERV. In fact, the similarities seem downright absurd.
Of course, even with the still nameless commander's cover up, Misato will probably start sniffing around, as is her nature. Expect Misato to make more appearances as she starts her sleuthing. And don't worry, I haven't forgotten about the bad situation that the NEC is in nor the fates of Rei and Hikari, their connection to things is probably going to be much farther in the future however, depending on what the next angle of UNIT and NEC's senseless war.

And unfortunately, I had indeed written myself into a corner last chapter concerning the battle. I needed the situation to seem extremely bad for NEC, all the more to reflect how bad their position has become after a botched operation. However, I think the first section of this chapter is a way of explaining and/or patching the trouble with the "Invincible EVA".

I am also very glad how well taken an ACC like Tristan been by my readers. In a series where ACCs are often seriously frowned upon, to have such a positive reaction is very promising. I could go on about the origins of Tristan's creation, but you seem more interested in where he's going rather than where he's been which makes me very happy.

I hope you enjoy the chapter and look forward to the next one.