Creation began on 09-05-15
Creation ended on 09-05-15
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Digital Redemption: Dishonesty
Due to the reign of the Dark Masters, the natural weather patterns in the Digital World were thrown out of order, causing a lack of nighttime to be present. And while Shinji had been informed of the DigiDestined's victory over one of the masters by the name of MetalSeadramon, that still left three members to be dealt with, and they would be just as difficult to face because of their power levels. But Shinji found it hard to believe that everything that was happening to these kids was all part of some predestined act or supernatural phenomena that was beyond their control. And in all his honesty, he didn't want to believe any of it.
So, while they were resting from what they claimed to him was an earlier skirmish between Tai and T.K.'s elder brother, Matt, the Third Child got up and left the group. He just couldn't believe that there was any truth to what he was told. But as much as he wanted to walk away from it all, there was one aspect of this he couldn't get away from: Evamon, who followed him from a distance, no matter how far he ran or tried to hide.
She had to be connected to him in a way similar to Unit-01, being that she just wouldn't keep away from him.
I can't believe any of this is happening, he thought, running through the forest again after he had rested for about five minutes. It's gotta be a bad dream or something, and I'm still in the Eva somewhere else.
"Shinji, why are you running?" Evamon asked, sounding close enough to be right behind him, but was still a considerable distance from him, as if to give him his space. "Has nothing you've been informed of sunk into your mind?"
But Shinji didn't answer her, as he just wanted to get away.
-x-
Unbeknownst to the Third Child, he was being observed through the monitor of Piedmon, who somewhat intimidated by his presence within the Digital World.
"I was warned that he would be here," he uttered, turning away from the monitor and towards a small display case that held a small object. "A stranger from a world in need of an absolution that never comes to those of innocence because of their predecessors of guilt. But so long as he's trying to get away, he's no threat to us at all. And his foreign Digimon partner is powerless without his cooperation in combat."
The object in the display case was a Tag with a Crest inside it. This Tag, however, was different from the ones Piedmon had stolen earlier in his existence in the Digital World, for it was a silver coloration rather than the golden ones. And the Crest itself, for some reason that even Piedmon couldn't understand, was blank, leaving its designation and very power virtually unknown.
"If he ever got ahold of this, our plans to rule the Real World would become jeopardized," he reminded himself. "While he may not be a threat to us now, I'm not willing to risk that he will become one later. He must be dealt with quickly."
-x-
"…We're waiting for an explanation, Ikari," SEELE 01 told Gendo during the next meeting concerning the lost of Unit-01 and the appearance of a creature that may not have been an Angel.
"We have no idea what this creature is," he explained to the council. "It appeared out of the pool and escaped into the sky."
"And has appeared in various sightings!" SEELE 11 shouted. "Military forces are unable to stop it, and the N² arsenal is nonexistent because the operation to destroy the last Angel! Conventional weaponry is insufficient!"
And as the meeting went on, on the other side of the planet, located in the desert area of Nevada, the flying serpent had found the NERV base stationed there and began unleashing attacks upon the facility, causing several of the personnel to run for their lives.
"Ha-ha-ha! Run!" It cackled, firing energy blasts from its head. "Run like the weaklings you are! There's nothing you can do to stop me! Ha-ha-ha!"
"And we don't know if it's an Angel or not," said SEELE 04 in the meeting.
"None of the previous Angels were capable of speech," SEELE 07 added.
"You will deal with this matter, Ikari," SEELE 01 demanded of Gendo, and the meeting ended.
-x-
By a stroke of a miracle, Shinji found himself out of the forest and on a vast road heading down somewhere. He had to remove his jacket due to the heat caused by the digital sun that heated up the tarmac.
"Are you really willing to turn away from such a responsibility, Shinji?" He heard Evamon say to him, walking several feet behind him.
"Stop!" He shouted at her, turning to face her. "Stop trying to convince me to do something I'm tired of doing!"
Evamon tilted her head to the left side and asked, "What are you tired of?"
"Fighting!" He yelled at her. "I'm tired of fighting! I'm tired of people keeping me in the dark about what's going on! I'm tired of being used! I've had enough! I'm not going to fight again! Don't try to exploit me! I've had enough!"
"But then the others may not be able to defeat the Dark Masters on their own."
"I don't care!" Shinji yelled at her. "It's not my fight! It's not my concern! Just leave me alone!"
Then, he ran further down the road, leaving her alone.
-x-
"…So, if either of you see this child," went Piedmon to Puppetmon and Machinedramon through the monitor system, informing them of Shinji, "destroy him. If necessary, concentrate on him to the exclusion of the other children. He might not be a threat now, but we can't risk him becoming one later."
"Additional objective," went Machinedramon, transferring this order into his hard drive. "Destroy the boy if encountered. Destroy boy if encountered. Order confirmed. If encountered, boy will be destroyed."
"Very well, then," added Puppetmon. "If I see him, I will crush him."
Piedmon then frowned as the monitor in front of him turned off. Even if the boy with the foreign Digimon was not a threat now, with the loss of MetalSeadramon, they couldn't take any chances that he would become their greatest adversary.
"You called for me?" A female voice asked in the darkness.
"It's always good to be cautious," he told the voice. "Keep watch over the wasteland with the Vilemon. If you find the boy, destroy him."
-x-
"…But why did he run?" Sora asked Evamon, who had returned to the others when they were unable to find Shinji.
"It's complicated," Evamon answered her. "He doesn't feel that anyone is ever truly honest with him whenever an explanation is given."
"He doesn't like it when people lie to him?" Tai questioned.
"Lie, deceive, exploit, abandon," Evamon expressed. "He's had a traumatic childhood, you see. His mother died when he was little, and his father abandoned him soon afterward. It was because of this, and any lack of real relationships, that left him an emotionally-damaged child."
"That's awful," said Izzy, almost able to sympathize with Shinji.
"But how do you know about his past?" Joe asked her.
"Because I was copied from the very perversion of creation he was forced to operate," Evamon revealed, "so I know as much as I possibly can about Shinji. His past, his parents, his pain. It sickens me to know that even his life is just a mockery of a life that has no happiness, no happy ending, and it's all his parents' fault."
"But…that can't be true," uttered Kari. "I mean, surely, his parents didn't mean for any of this to happen to him."
"If they didn't mean for any of it to happen, then why abandon him when he needed them? Why would his mother perform an experiment that she knew would displace her soul? Why would his father dump him at some stranger's home and commit absolutely no time to his son? Why see him as an asset and not as a person in need? Can you answer those questions for me? For Shinji? Can you answer those questions?"
"I don't think any of us can," went T.K. to her.
"He doesn't know it, but he does need your help if he wants to survive here and find his way back to his world, and he needs me to protect him."
"Do you know where he is?" Izzy asked her.
"Yes," she answered him. "He's on a road in the middle of a desert that leads to urban grounds under the control of Machinedramon. I fear the remaining Dark Masters will treat him as a higher priority than the rest of you, as they fear him."
"But…if he doesn't want anything to do with fighting the Dark Masters, then won't they just ignore him?" Tai asked her.
"I wish they would, but would you ignore what you initially thought of as a small problem, but was actually a big problem?"
None of the children or their Digimon could find the answer to such a question, but Evamon could only assume that they probably wouldn't ignore a potential threat.
"The Dark Masters won't ignore him. Not while there's a chance that he will become a danger to them. I need your help to convince him that he's in more danger on his own than in the presence of those that will hurt him."
"What makes you think he'll listen to us if he wouldn't listen to you?" Joe asked.
"I don't," she answered him. "But I have to take a leap of faith. Who's gonna look out for him if I don't? He's either someone that needs to be watched over or an insignificant pawn in some twisted game."
In her eyes, hidden beneath the armored helmet, she saw Shinji still walking down the road in the road in the desert.
To be continued…