Disclaimer: See the Prologue


Chapter 13 – Terminal Dogma


Gordon stepped into the office, it's darkness the first to greet him. Pistol in hand, he scanned the room as he walked up to the desk. He noticed a remote on it. He picked it up.

'Curious,' he thought, 'Wonder if…?'

He pushed a button and a secret door opened, revealing a lift. Gordon smiled and stepped up to it. He then looked back at the desk and it's drawers.

'Oh…why not?' he thought.

He begun going through the drawers.

'Nothing, nothing,' he thought as he checked the first two, 'Hey, what's this?'

He was holding some paperwork that had the Black Mesa logo stamped on it. Having no time to go through them, he stored them in his suit, before stepping into the lift, where he pushed the only button in it, which he assumed it leads to Terminal Dogma.

The elevator hummed as it made it's decent.

As he travelled down, he thought about the people he met…

There was Misato Katsuragi: She had fought alongside him all this time. Determined and fearless, if it wasn't for her, he wouldn't have made it this far.

Shinji Ikari: A really nice, if not angst-ridden teenage boy. Gordon had wished he had gotten to know him better, or at least have seen him pilot Unit-01.

Rei Ayanami: He had only met her briefly, but sensed there was something peculiar about this girl. Now he was going to try and save her.

Asuka Langley Sohryu: It was official that she was clearly a bitch.

He shook himself out of his thoughts and concentrated at the task at hand: Stopping Third Impact and Instrumentality.

His target was Commander Ikari. He hated the guy the minute he met him, because that he views him and everyone at NERV as mere tools in his ploys, including his own son Shinji.

'Poor kid,' he thought sympathetically, 'He's worse off than I was.'

The elevator stopped and the doors opened. He loaded his 9mm pistol. He had a bullet for Gendo.

If fact, he was going to stop Instrumentality one bullet at time.

What greeted him outside the lift was darkness, he switched on his flashlight. The air was thin and misty. He didn't let that bother him, as he stepped out of the elevator, gun at the ready. He was in Terminal Dogma, and the last place in the world.

He walked slowly through the mist, it separating as he tread through it.

'It's always a dank, dark area,' Gordon throughout, pondering this cliched scenario of the good guy confronting the bad guy in a final showdown deep in the bowels of the enemy fortress.

He walked through Terminal Dogma, taking in it's mind-screwing environment.

'What the hell built this place?' he thought, 'It can't be human.'

He stopped before something that made his blood run cold. He loosened the grip on his pistol for the second time.

'Of God,' he thought, 'This can't be!'

It was Rei Ayanami. It was about 5 of them; they were within glass tubes, either dead or in stasis. They were numbered. The sight sickened him that humans have tried to create life.

He looked closer at one of the Rei's. Her face was peaceful, as if she was sleeping., and was in death. But what caught her eye was what was tatooed above her left breast:

The Black Mesa Research Facility logo.

He knew from the start that he would not escape from that forsaken place completely. The name itself would linger with him for the rest of his life. Not just the truth that Rei was a clone but that Black Mesa is involved with everything here in NERV.

Gordon heard noises and voices around the corner.

'Game time!' he thought.

Gordon ran through the mists, gun in hand as he moved to the source of the sounds he heard.

Sure enough, he found them near some strange machines, Gendo with Ritsuko and Rei. Rei was stripped naked and she was standing behind the Commander, who was holding a Desert Eagle and pointing it at Ritsuko. Gordon ducked behind a pillar as he watched. He noticed Rei wasn't didn't have the Black Mesa logo on her; he then looked away from her and focused on the action ahead.

"Why Gendo?" Ritsuko cried, "Why all this?"

"Because," Gendo replied calmly, "Because this world is about to be destroyed and it's salvation lies in Rei."

"What about Freeman?" Ritsuko shot back, "He was our only hope and you get him killed by the JSSDF. And your own son, Shinji…"

"The Third Child was weak," Gendo said, "I had no more use for him. As for Freeman, he should not have come here."

Ritsuko couldn't stand it any more. She dove at Gendo, who smacked her across the face with his gun, sending her onto the ground. He aimed it at her, clicking it.

"Yui awaits me, doctor," Gendo said glaring down at her, "As for you, it was fun while it lasted."

Gordon decided to act. He dove from his hiding place and fired into the air, stopping him as all heads turned to him.

"Dr. Freeman-san," Rei greeted, "You have survived."

Gordon smiled at her, "Thanks."

He then turned to Gendo, gun pointing at him. "This has gone far enough, Ikari."

"You're wrong Freeman!" Gendo exclaimed, "Not enough."

Gordon helped Ritsuko onto her feet; his gun still trained on him.

"Why Ikari?" Gordon asked, "Why cause another Impact? She's gone and is not coming back."

Gordon mind crashed.

'What did I just say?' he thought.

Gendo gritted his teeth, "You've interfered in my affairs for too long. You should not have come here."

"You should be saying that to Fuyutsuki," Gordon said, "He arranged to bring me here to stop Instrumentality. And that is what I am going to do!"

"You cannot stop Instrumentality, Freeman," Gendo warned, "Only be killing Rei could you prevent it. You do have the courage to point your gun at a child."

Gordon blinked. This guy was a psycho.

"Maybe not," Gordon replied glaring, "But I can kill you!"

"Wrong!" Gendo smiled, pointing his gun at Gordon.

"NO!" Ritsuko cried, throwing herself in front of Gordon.

"AKAGI!" Gordon cried.

Gendo fired and hit Ritsuko in the chest. Gordon caught her in his arms, her blood on his already stained Hazard Suit. Gordon stared into her fading eyes.

"Why did you do that?" Gordon asked her softly, his eyes softening.

Ritsuko just smiled lightly before speaking softly which made Gordon's heart melt...

"Mother, I'm coming…"

She then grew lax. Gordon let her fall from him onto the misty ground.