Hey guys, I'm back. Don't worry, Unravel will always update.
The long wait was for pacing issues, and just how 'much' to place into this chapter, and what needed to be moved around.
Here's chapter 39, "Ayanami II"
"My biggest regret in this new timeline is that I have to play on 'their' terms. Our enemies must believe that they are in control, always. There are moves I cannot make until the very end. Because of this, she has suffered… she has suffered more here in this world than she did in mine."
"I know. I'm sorry, it's my fault. It's hard… it's really hard."
"I understand."
"You've been patient with me. I appreciate that. I do."
"Hmm. Yes, it is your right. This is your life, not mine. Regardless, there are those who have suffered because of our conflict."
- The Broken Man and Shinji Ikari.
The private jet soared through the airspace at a leisure pace. The marvel of human engineering made its way down, settling into a descent over the city below. A runway had been cleared for its arrival, and below a small collection of staff and officials waited.
Kozo Fuyutsuki waited nervously as the jet landed. He kept his face a mask of calm akin to Gendo's, but alas he fell short of the Director.
He strode forward fighting down his anxiety as the Nerv car pulled up nearby along with various airport staff.
A symbol for the United Nations stood encrusted on the jet's doors, and when they opened, a single elderly man stepped into view.
The newcomer wore a humble suit that nonetheless did little to disguise the man's enormous wealth, along with a visor over his aged thin eyes. Technological advances afforded to the man to combat his age. Yet at his presence, Fuyutsuki felt a chill run down his spine and a stiffness worked its way throughout his body.
"Welcome to Tokyo-03… Mr. Lorenz."
The Envoy from the UN, sent to inspect Nerv after the Five Angel Crisis, had arrived.
Elsewhere
The lone figure sat in the corner of the room, clean and pristine, and moved the coloring pencil along the paper.
Single, precise, and careful strokes weaved an illustration together. Varying colors mixing and weaving to form the images from their mind, like half-forgotten dreams. The images were like stills from some foreign life outside their own. Strange things with little context.
The pictures came into shape on the paper. A series of figures standing on a stretch of land before an enormous luminous tree, with a deep unknown sky looming over them. Markings littered the grounds of where they stood, and further beyond this pale foreground lay a white ocean in the distance.
Stars… they were so few stars in the night sky. A fraction of what there should have been.
The figure set the paper aside, having little to no interest in what they had drawn. This was simply a gateway, a stepping stone that led to what they wanted. They set the illustration alongside a stack of more, a small handful of others.
Rei Ayanami began again, drawing on another fresh sheet of paper. The pale skinned girl reached down and pressed a command on the SDAT player that had been gifted to her. Another track played; music filled her ears once again.
She moved the color pencils and drew, focusing on the remains of what she had seen.
Two figures, cuddling together within a faded and worn out blanket atop a patch of grass. A forest of some kind? The woman, a young adult with white-blue hair and pale skin. The young man was the same height and age or so she thought, with brown hair and kind eyes. A single blemish marked the man's arm, an old wound. Perhaps the entry point of a bullet... a gunshot.
Her phone rang.
Rei paused, a color pencil held lightly in her hand, frozen in the act of illustration. The pale girl glanced at the phone.
Gendo Ikari – the caller ID indicated.
Rei felt herself moving to pick up the phone and then paused.
It is slipping away. The memory is fading. It will be gone soon.
Rei turned her gaze from the phone, ignoring the call. Her entire body shuddered in the act as the phone rang and rang.
She returned to her drawing. Where had she left off?
The couple... they were together under the blanket. Their fingers were interlinked, Rei thought struggling to remember.
Her phone rang and rang, the sound calling out to her, the echo of Commander Ikari's orders lingered. The call went dead, and the phone finally stopped its ringing.
Rei added the campfire next… had there been a campfire? Yes, yes… she had seen the two of them with the fire.
When she was done, Rei put the pencils down.
"… You're warm."
She whispered the words, dazed and weary, as if someone else was speaking them, an echo from a long-forgotten dream that belonged to another.
Her phone began to ring for a second time. Once again, the caller ID verified Gendo Ikari himself.
Acting quickly, and moving in a haste she did not know she possessed, Rei grabbed her illustrations and added them to the others. Two neatly stacked piles of her drawings from the past few days. The stepping stones, and the treasures.
She slid the drawings under her bed along with the coloring pencils and her pack of drawing paper and tucked the materials safely out of sight.
Rei did not know why she hid them, only that she had no desire to share or acknowledge them with anyone.
Footsteps thudded softly outside her door, and she knew the man was approaching the front door of the apartment.
Rei grabbed her school supplies, her backpack, and finally the SDAT player gifted to her.
She heard a key being inserted into the apartment's front door, the tinkering of the lock being undone, and she grabbed her phone just as the door swung open.
Gendo Ikari stood in the doorway, phone in hand, dressed in his usual black garb, his face an expressionless mask.
"Sir," Rei greeted calmly.
"You did not answer your phone."
"... I apologize, sir. I was getting ready for school. I did not hear the phone until you were already at the door," Rei said.
"Do not let it happen again," Gendo warned.
"Yes, sir," Rei answered.
Gendo closed the door behind him and pocketed his copy of the apartment key.
The Director of Nerv glanced around her apartment and took note of the state the place was in. Rei noted that it had been quite some time since he had stepped foot in the space assigned to her.
She watched him blankly, red eyes peering up at her master and creator as he paced through the apartment.
"You have done well for yourself. I admit that I had concerns that you could not maintain a household. I am... impressed," Gendo said softly.
Rei watched as her creator paced onward, reaching her bed where he ran a gloved hand across the sheets.
She felt her heartbeat increase at a rapid rate. Her master was literal inches away from that which she had hidden.
"Thank you, sir," Rei said getting the man's attention.
Gendo turned back to her, and inwardly Rei felt a sense of relief washing over her. Her heartbeat settled once again.
"Do you know why I came to see you today?" the Director of Nerv asked.
Rei tilted her head.
"You stated that you wanted to have a discussion," she answered.
Gendo breathed a heavy sigh, a feat she had never seen before. He gestured for her to sit at the breakfast table and took a seat for himself.
Rei sat across from him.
Gendo removed his glasses and placed them atop the table. He looked at her with strange unfamiliar eyes, almost filled with concern. The edges along the irises, softening.
"... There is a man coming to visit Nerv today," he said slowly.
"The Observer. The envoy for the United Nations in regard to Nerv's handling of the Five Angel Crisis," Rei continued on his behalf.
Gendo nodded.
"Yes. He is... a dangerous man. Do you understand this?" Gendo continued.
"I understand," Rei answered blankly.
"I would have wanted to clear your schedule for the day. But I believe that he would know, and he would hold certain suspicions towards me. The Observer… he wasn't supposed to be here today, he is early," Gendo explained.
Rei listened unblinkingly.
"You will follow your schedule for today. School and the sync test. I expect no troubles with the reformed Eva Team Zero."
Rei said nothing.
The Director of Nerv breathed out harshly and leaned forward.
"Under no circumstances are you to be alone with the Observer today. You are to avoid him. Should he find you, regardless of your efforts, you are to use an excuse and leave. I have briefed Dr. Akagi, do not hesitate to call upon her aid if needed," Gendo said.
The man spoke in a lowered voice, not the stern commanding tone that Rei had come to expect with him.
"Yes sir," Rei said.
"The Observer may force my hand and ask to interview you and the other pilots. In that case, you will provide only cleared information on our work. You will stick strictly to information pertaining to the Eva program."
I am to never acknowledge the lowest levels of Nerv nor my role, Rei thought
"Yes sir," she repeated.
"In addition, the experiments for the week have been postponed. Certain sections of Nerv have been 'remodeled' and rooms have been cleared. A safety precaution I took recently. As always, such experiments are not to be mentioned. If questioned, you will treat the information as classified. Even from the UN Observer. You understand this?" Gendo continued.
"I understand this," Rei answered flatly, her expression blank.
"Good," Gendo said. He rose to his feet, returned his tinted glasses to his face, and gestured for her to follow him.
Rei rose from her seat and trailed after her creator wordlessly.
"You may be late to school today. Unfortunate, but it could not be helped. The briefing was too important. I have prepared a driver for you. They are waiting outside," Gendo said.
It seemed she would have a ride to school today.
Tokyo-03
School
The driver dropped her off without speaking to her. Rei considered this an optimal outcome, she had little to offer in conversation.
"First day back? How are you feeling?"
Those were the first words Hikari had spoken when the girl had spotted her.
"I am well," Rei answered, before continuing, "I have missed a large number of days. I am prepared to catch up."
"… hey… uh… the music player… isn't that Shinji's?" Hikari asked eying her up and down.
"It was a gift," Rei said simply, her voice plain and deadpan.
She glanced at the music player and pulled the headphones from her ears. School was not the time to be listening to media of any kind.
Hikari seemed surprised but didn't question it further. The class representative gave her a list of chapters to read up on, and Rei found her seat.
Again, she noticed the empty seats. More than half the students had been pulled from school with their families choosing to leave the city after the first breach of Nerv. Now, after the second breach, it seemed more students had followed suit.
Only a third of the class remained from the original.
Rei was surprised to see Shinji was missing as well. She looked ahead to find Asuka sitting beside her friend Hikari at their usual spot. The girls were speaking, and Rei noticed that Hikari seemed relieved, as if a weight had been pulled free of her chest, chatting with the red-haired girl.
Toji sank into his seat far off to her side, and she noted he seemed bored and distant. With his other friend Ken having left the city with his family, and Shinji missing for the day, the boy was alone.
Where is Shinji?
Rei wondered if there was a sync test for the morning, but considered that as Eva Team Zero had been reformed then she most likely would have been brought in as well. She and her original partner had already run individual tests, and they were scheduled to start testing together later today.
The teacher stepped into class and the remaining students grew silent. The teacher began writing on the chalkboard and started his lecture.
…
When they were released for lunch, Rei found that she did not know where to sit. She selected a table at random outside where she could breathe the fresh air. The school seemed so empty these days, rows and rows of tables and seats left unoccupied.
She ate her lunch alone and in silence, a feat she was used too. There had been a time when she had joined others, a time when she had sat with three boys. Two that she would have called acquaintances, and one a friend. Her only friend, but they had grown distant as time had gone on it seemed.
"Hey," a voice called.
Rei tilted her head, surprised at the interruption from her thoughts.
Toji stood off to the side looking more bored than curious. The boy seemed almost sad there, standing in the school courtyard and wandering the grounds.
"Hello," Rei responded plainly.
The two had never truly been friends. Only speaking on rare occasions.
"… it's good. That you're better… Shinji said you ended up in the hospital for a bit," the boy said obviously trying to think of something to say.
Rei only blinked at him.
"You… alright?" Toji said awkwardly.
"I am in reasonable health," she answered.
Toji nodded, still with that same bored look about him.
What was there to say between them? What did they converse over? Nothing, that was the answer Rei came to. She supposed that was cold, and yet it was true.
Toji seemed to sense that too. The boy shifted uncomfortably.
"Hey, when you see Shinji, tell him… tell him I said 'hi' I guess. Not much to do anymore," Toji said finally coming up with words for her.
He sighed and turned to go.
Rei tilted her head at him.
"You have not seen Shinji?"
Toji paused, he turned to look at her. A frown emerged on his face and Rei felt an unusual flicker of annoyance, a strange thing that stirred in her. Like he was pitying her and knew something that she did not.
She found this annoying and did not know why.
"You don't know?" Toji asked suddenly.
"… I do not know what you are speaking of? You have not seen Shinji? At school or otherwise?" Rei questioned, her voice flat and controlled.
She had no valid reason to be annoyed with Toji, and so she paid him no disrespect.
"… Shinji dropped out of school," the boy said.
The words took Rei several seconds to process. Toji watched her as she paused, her mind wandered. Was this some form of joke? A comedy that she was not versed in? No, that was not right.
Why would Shinji drop out? she thought. That was against the rules. Nerv had ordered an education for all the Eva pilots.
"Did… did he not tell you?"
"Excuse me."
Rei stood and walked off with her lunch forgotten. She felt Toji's gaze on her as she left, he tried to call out to her, to tell her about her abandoned food but she did not return.
…
She found the two sitting a table with a few other girls their age. Observation told her that these school children had been brought closer together in the aftermath of so many classmates leaving.
Asuka sat chatting with Hikari and another girl. Hikari beamed at Asuka, unusually happy at the sight of her friend.
The girl stopped mid-conversation as Rei approached.
"Oh? Hello, um did you want to join us?" Hikari said. The girl was trying to be nice, and Rei noted that she had surprised her.
"No thank you. Pilot Sohryu, may I speak with you?" Rei asked.
Asuka raised an eyebrow.
A negative or offensive response. Ignore. Ask again. Never discovered what about me bothered her so much, Rei thought.
To Rei's surprise, Asuka nodded.
The German girl spoke saying, "what's up?" Her voice bore the barest hint of a strain as if there was a conscious effort being put in to remain civil.
Rei tilted her head. She had not expected that of the Second Child.
Hikari watched the two Eva pilots along with the other girls.
"… Have you seen Shinji?" Rei asked at last.
Asuka blinked in surprise.
"Yeah. We're roommates," the German girl said.
"I have been told that he dropped out of school… is this true? Your lunch, it was made by Shinji," Rei continued observing the group's table.
Again, Asuka looked at her with a conscious effort. An inner strain on her part.
"He did. It's what he wanted. Misato threw a fit. Humph, I get it… but it's his choice. I think the idiot- I think that Shinji knows what he's doing," Asuka answered.
Rei stared at her fellow Eva pilot uncomprehendingly. Red eyes that contrasted her white skin did not blink, so lost in thought was the girl.
"… thank you for telling me," she whispered.
She turned to go; the other girls watched her perplexed. She got several steps until a voice called out to her, and again the Second Child surprised her.
"Wait," Asuka called.
Rei turned to find Asuka following after her. Hikari and the other girls didn't know what to make of them.
"Yes?" She whispered softly.
Asuka breathed in hard, steeling herself as if she was preparing for a heavy work out. Rei considered that the German girl was in no condition to do so, the school uniforms were not designed for such activities. In addition, this seemed an ill place to exercise.
"I'm sorry…"
The words stunned Rei.
Rei faltered, her expression slipping as she opened her mouth unsure of what to say.
Asuka gulped, again steeling herself for a monumental task.
"I'm sorry for snapping at you the other day. I was being a bitc- I was being a brat," Asuka said breathing easier as the words left her.
Rei frowned.
"… you were recovering. Mental trauma has been known to-" the pale girl began, speaking as if she was reading from a textbook.
"Don't excuse it," Asuka cut in harshly. Almost upset.
Rei frowned again, unsure of what had caused the change in the girl. Had she said something wrong?
"You were recovering too. We all are… so it was wrong," Asuka continued, a sharp steel in her eye. A strength that Rei had not seen in the girl since the Crisis.
Only now it was different, not the fiery emotions laid bare for all the world to see behind those eyes. No, Rei observed that this was quieter, more refined than the standoffish and competitive Asuka that she had associated with before.
"I've been mean to you. To Shinji too… and that was stupid. Not that I'm stupid, just that it was wrong," Asuka clarified quickly.
Rei stared ahead unsure of how to respond.
Asuka put her hands on her hips and looked Rei up and down.
"So, I'm sorry," the German girl said.
Rei paused. A string of unfamiliar emotions dancing around her chest, feelings that she only ever associated with one other. A tangential warmth to the one she had felt once before, coupled with perplexed caution.
It only confused her more, the German girl was increasingly acting differently than expected.
"… thank you. Forgive me, I have to go," Rei said nodding respectfully.
She left and Asuka watched her go.
Hospital
"She actually signed the papers?"
"No… she's in denial. Wants me to go to school. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be."
"She yell?"
"Uh-hum. But it was over pretty quickly. Misato is… she's doing her best, just like all of us," Shinji said.
The boy spoke with his back to her in the hospital room, fidgeting with the window.
Mari watched him, her face lowered and downcast, ashamed of the scars along her face.
His girlfriend spoke easier with each passing day it seemed. And while her voice wasn't quite what it had been, he was glad to see that she was recovering. Her voice was raspy, but not as gravelly as before. Clearer every day.
She sounded strained, more than anything else. Her eyes were healing too, the bloodshot pink fading into healthy white.
"… Momma Misato," Mari mumbled with the barest hint of a chuckle. She lay crestfallen in the hospital bed, glum and fighting to be upbeat and bright for his sake.
Shinji noticed her wince at the expression, the facial muscles hadn't completely healed and when she wasn't on painkillers, she seemed to get twinges of pain.
He frowned and had to fight the urge to fuss over her.
"Asuka's got her Eva back. Operational sync and all. They gave her training privileges again and took her off probation," Shinji said changing topic.
"Knew she'd do it. She's tough," Mari rasped from her bed.
"Yeah. She's got some catching up to do, but she'll get there. You should have seen her face when they told her she was being placed as a 'reserve'. That's Asuka for you," he said doing his best to keep the mood light.
The boy fidgeted with the window locks and beamed as he undid them.
"Hey, I got it!" Shinji said as he pushed the glass up, the afternoon air breezed came in and with it, the faint sounds of the city and the chirping of birds.
The window didn't open all the way, safety protocol it seemed, but it was enough just to have a bit of the outside world. A piece of what lay beyond the stale and lifeless white rooms that Shinji and Mari had grown to dislike.
He stepped away from the window and pulled up a chair to sit beside her.
Mari glanced up at the open window and breathed in slowly as the wind blew by.
"… thanks," she rasped.
He got her a cup of water and made sure to let her handle it herself. Not allowing himself to fuss and remove that small dignity from her, a lesson he had learned from his Other.
"Are they treating you okay?" he asked his girlfriend carefully.
Mari tried to shrug then decided against it. She shook her head, slowly and gently, saying "it's a hospital. The docs do their jobs."
Shinji tried to think of something to say, something else he could do to brighten her day, but he couldn't come up with anything. So, he sat there by her bedside and watched as she turned to look out through the window again.
I'm sorry… I wish I knew what to do. I can act like an adult all I want, but I'm still just a kid. The boy thought glumly.
He briefly considered consulting his Other for advice, the Broken Man had been unusually quiet as of late, but before he could, Mari moved.
She reached a lightly bandaged hand out to him, and he took it. He ran his thumb over the palm of her hand, and he noticed that she leaned her face to the side these days. She tried to hide the burn mark, the faded rough reddish skin that ran down from her left cheek to her lower jaw, the scar that reached to the midpoint of her neck.
"It gets so boring here," Mari whispered suddenly.
Shinji looked up at her.
"I wish I was out there with you. Training, piloting, and my bike… I miss my bike. Here, I just lay in bed all day," Mari said crestfallen.
The words were on the tip of her tongue, he knew her well enough to know that, but they never left her mouth.
'This is my punishment. Life getting its revenge for being so wild and free. My payment for being so careless.'
No… that's not it at all. Oh, Mari… it wasn't your fault. It was mine… I wasn't fast enough. I had all the power in the world… and I still failed.
The boy felt the first glimmers of tears in his eyes, but he wiped them away. It wasn't healthy to dwell on his failure for long, it helped no one.
Shinji glanced at the tv remote the nurses had left on the cupboard.
"… Why don't we put something on TV?" he said trying to break up the mood.
Mari shifted in the hospital bed saying, "and watch the talking heads all day? Nah, they're always so negative about every damned thing."
At least she's talking more and more. That's good, that has to mean something right? Shinji thought.
"That reminds me. I wanted to wait until later, but it doesn't matter. I picked up something for you," Shinji said suddenly.
Mari turned her gaze from the window and blinked in surprise as he stood and reached for his backpack.
His girlfriend observed him, perplexed, as Shinji pulled out a bag filled with an assortment of novels fresh from a bookstore.
Mari would have raised an eyebrow at him, but she stopped herself. He wished she wouldn't do things like that, he'd already said that the scars didn't bother him. Some troubles were more internal it seemed.
"Books? You brought me books?"
"What's wrong with books?" Shinji whined with a frown. He sounded like such a kid there that Mari actually chuckled, and he beamed.
"… can just get a movie," his girlfriend mumbled.
"Books are different. They have a way of… uh… of drawing you in. You let your imagination run wild, and they can take you into another world," Shinji said thinking it over.
Mari gave him a curious glance.
"… when did you start reading books?" she asked.
"Back in… before I met you. My teacher would leave them for me, and I could already read at the level of a young adult," Shinji explained with a small grin.
"Why did you stop?"
"… I met you. Didn't need them after that."
Mari snorted, a raspy little thing, and rolled her eyes.
"Don't let Misato hear you. Another strike that I'm a bad influence on you," his girlfriend joked.
Shinji's grin widened.
"How does she know I'm not a good influence on you?" he countered. It was a common light banter between them that was good to revisit. A running joke that they breathed life into again, a phrase repeated that never lost its weight.
"… smooth talker," Mari croaked. The strain on her voice returned, but she took a drink of water and breathed slowly.
He got an idea in his head just then.
"What are you doing?" Mari chuckled softly, as Shinji took one of the books and slipped into the hospital bed beside his girlfriend.
Shinji was careful not to brush against her bandages and laid beside her on the bed with a chuckle of his own.
He popped open the book and began to read to her softly. He felt her eyes on him and heard her breathe easier. They made an interesting sight, a contrasting image of the sterile lifelessness of the hospital, and the warmth of the couple lying in bed together.
Shinji read aloud for quite some time, listening to his girlfriend's soft breathing.
"You're falling asleep," he chuckled after a time.
"Keep going. I… I like the sound of your voice," she mumbled, her eyes closed.
He felt her move beside him, and the next moment she had rested her head on his shoulder.
Shinji continued to read, tilting his head to rest gently on hers. He had missed this, these small moments of contact and intimacy. It made him content, a sensation that spread through his body and he knew she felt it too.
Knock
Knock
Knock
The sound of tapping on the door briefly got Shinji's attention. He decided that it must have been a nurse come to check up on Mari, or else to deliver a lunch tray. He lazily called out for them to, "come in."
The door to the hospital room opened, and someone stepped inside silently.
It's not a nurse. The Broken Man stirred suddenly.
Huh? The boy thought.
Mari looked up first, and Shinji knew something was wrong when she stilled, and her breath caught in her throat.
He lowered the book he'd been reading and was utterly shocked to see Rei Ayanami standing feet from the room's entrance.
It was like someone had sucked all the oxygen from the room, and time itself froze to a standstill. A strange new reality stood in place of the one they had all previously inhabited.
Mari lay in the bed, stiff as ice, her eyes wide and adding another layer of tragedy to the scars that littered her face and the amputated limb.
Rei tilted her head, looked over Mari's damaged body once, the missing leg, the burn mark, and the facial scars, then lowered her eyes, gazed welded to the floor.
Shinji looked between the girls, his own eyes growing wide as he lost his voice. What an unfortunate way for Eva Team Two to reunite.
"I do not mean to intrude. I only wanted to find Shinji," Rei said quietly.
"Rei, what-" Shinji began.
"Get out," the words left Mari's throat in a low hiss, a guttural raspy that hinged with danger and fear.
"I am sorry... I did not want this. I was ordered to stop the Angel-" Rei whispered, speaking to the floor.
"Get the fuck out!"
Rei flinched, red eyes blinking in surprise at the older girl's profanity.
Shinji slid out of the hospital bed, speechless at the former Eva partners. He stood open-mouthed, glancing between them and no words came to him.
Mari was shaking from within her bed, eyes staring unblinkingly at the person who had put her in here. The girl that had taken a limb from her.
Shinji saw his girlfriend's hands shiver, a tremor, and he saw her leg shift. The muscles in what remained of her amputated leg spasmed.
Rei froze, like a machine that had encountered an unexpected issue. A runtime error that halted all current processes. The pale girl hid her face from the world, eyes downcast, then without another word, the girl left. Her footsteps echoed softly across the hall as the door closed behind her.
The Broken Man stirred from inside him, he could feel his Other shifting within him. The Shinji(s) stood frozen for a moment, conflicting thoughts running through their minds.
Shinji held out a hand to… what? To stop her? To call after her? And for what?
...
Deep from within the Other Place, Old Man Shinji watched through the boy's eyes.
His gaze transfixed on the door, ears hyper-focusing on the pale girl's departing footsteps. Wordlessly, the old man observed. Struggling with himself whether or not to act.
...
Young Shinji turned back to Mari with an uncertain expression and found her huddled in bed. She had wrapped the sheets around herself and sat clutching at the covered stump that had once been her right leg.
Phantom pain? It must have come back, the boy thought. He felt his own heart ache at the sight.
"I- I'll get the nurses. Painkillers," Shinji stammered.
He whirled already planning the fastest route when Mari called out to him.
"No. Don't leave," she pleaded with him.
Shinji froze.
"Please, I don't want to be alone," Mari stammered, tears trailing down her scar-marked face.
"Okay," he breathed softly.
He joined her on the bed, and he reached over to hold her. She shuddered against him, leaning into his embrace as the phantom pain rippled through what remained of her missing limb.
Outside
Rei stormed her way out of the room. She found it hard to breathe as if the world around her had started to close in threatening to snuff the life from her. Her chest and lungs felt heavy, and her vision distorted as she found herself almost running through the hall.
Her body moved and moved until she found herself outside the hospital, eyes downcast. She nearly walked into a street sign and stopped herself at the last moment.
"Excuse me," she whispered to no one. A mistake that escaped her lips, an error in the judgment of her surroundings.
Rei found herself panting, never quite understanding why. The weight in her body never left, it stayed and dragged its way down further into her heart.
Her hand was twitching.
The hand that had pulled the trigger on Mari. The same hand that had brought the Spear of Longinus down on the infected Eva Unit. The death of Bardiel… and the disfiguring of the girl that had saved her life more than once, the girl that, despite their differences, had visited her in the hospital along with Shinji. Her partner in Eva Team Two.
"Rei. Finish it."
The words straight from Gendo Ikari himself played in her mind. The towering figure of her creator. His plan to stop the fall of Nerv.
Rei shuddered as her symptoms got worse, the distortions in her perception increased. The weight upon her internal organs became crushing, and her vision deteriorated even more.
The pale girl stumbled and reached into her backpack for the SDAT player and pair of headphones.
Rei slipped and her movements, usually graceful and precise, became clumsy and misjudged. She fell to her knees on the cold pavement of the street walk, the simple device clutched in her hands.
Not caring that she had scraped her knees, a light trickle of blood emerged from the wound, she inserted the headphones into her ears and hit the 'play' command on the SDAT player.
Music filled her ears, and she breathed ignoring everything else. Slowly, her symptoms faded into a background process that demanded less and less attention over time.
Once she had calmed herself, Rei looked up to find a pair of nurses that were returning to the hospital entrance giving her concerned looks.
"Shouldn't you be at school? Are you okay?" one of the nurses called.
"I am fine," Rei lied getting to her feet.
She left before the adults could question her further, the SDAT player never stopping its playback.
…
Rei found herself back at her apartment as if on autopilot. The music helped her distance herself from the sensations that threatened to overwhelm her at times. Their only drawback was that it lowered her cognitive abilities for a time, it left her prone to mistakes and lapses of judgment.
She paced the small studio apartment that was her 'home' for lack of a better word.
The dwelling was bear with little to no personal items. Clean, but lifeless and empty despite its lone occupant.
Rei glanced down at her knees remembering the injury she had sustained. Dr. Akagi, in an unusual display of interest in her status, had taken to stocking her home with supplies, and so the pale girl reached into her pantry for anti-biotics and bandages.
Once she had finished dressing her wounds, she sat in the middle of her apartment. Her now usual spot on the floor, the SDAT player still looping through its playback.
A memory emerged in her mind's eye. A moment from long ago, the only friendly visitor to her apartment that she could ever recall.
…
During the events of Chapter 7:
The two teens stood in her unkempt apartment. The boy looked it over clearly planning on how to go about cleaning.
Rei considered that this was a failure on her part. She had never deemed the apartment as vital, had never made a proper effort to maintain it.
'You will live and sleep here.' – Gendo had told her. The man had assigned her the place with little to no instructions and explained that supplies would be forwarded once a week.
"It's not hard. Cleaning just takes time," Shinji said to her, breaking her thoughts.
The boy offered her a smile. He did not comment on her failure to maintain her living quarters, in fact, he did not seem to care.
Rei tilted her head at him, a heavy-duty sponge held awkwardly in her hand.
"Like this, watch me okay? My uh teacher, sort of like my caretaker, showed me how to do this," Shinji said going over the basics.
Rei watched him and followed suit. She learned quickly and discovered that the boy did not give orders as expected.
It was so strange… to be trained without a lecture. The boy instructed her by working alongside her, and never reprimanded her for any mistakes or lack in knowledge. It was infinitely different than any lessons she'd received from Gendo or public school.
When they were done, Shinji brought out the food he had prepared for them. They ate together on the freshly cleared breakfast table.
"It's getting late, I have to get back to Misato's," Shinji said glancing at his phone.
Rei nodded, unsure of how to say goodbye.
The boy got to his feet, and she noticed the stiffness in his movements. Perhaps, he did not know the proper words either.
"Ikari…"
"Hey… uh… you can call me 'Shinji', remember?" the boy interrupted softly.
"Shinji," Rei corrected before continuing, "will we eat together at school again? I… I enjoyed our lunch last time."
The boy's face grew red to a slightly visible degree, and she considered that he was possibly contracting an illness. Perhaps she would seek medical aid for him.
"Sure. I'd like that," the boy said.
He left and she watched him go.
Rei's eyes lingered on the door for quite some time, the apartment quiet and empty, clean but lifeless now that she was alone again. Yet she felt something stirring within her, a new sensation she could not clarify. One that swam through her body down to her toes.
"I have a friend," she whispered.
…
Rei was snapped out of her thoughts when the SDAT finished its current track, the little machine jumping ahead to the next song in the playlist. She glanced down at the time, and discovered it was well past noon by now. There would be no point in returning to school.
I have missed a school day when I did not need to. I fell. I am... making mistakes. Gendo will not be pleased... she considered.
She should not have gone to the hospital. It had been a rash decision made in haste, a desire to correct a decision that her friend had made.
Again, many conflicting emotions and sensations flooded her. They mixed together and clashed, threatening to overwhelm her, a concoction of inputs that she could not classify. She recognized some and hypothesized about others. Feelings of guilt, sadness, fleeting hints of something she had never felt before, something that left a bitter taste in her mouth, as well as 'pain' of a non-physical kind. The strange pain left an ache in her.
She wished she still had her friend. The stirrings within her heart had been unfamiliar but not entirely unwelcomed when the boy had arrived in Tokyo-03 so long ago.
It had felt good to have a friend. To explore the world around her in a way she had never considered. And then the Fourth Child had arrived, and things had changed.
The Fourth Child, she had made Shinji happy. Rei had not understood that at first, and only by observation and contemplation did she reach that conclusion. That is how she knows that her friend is lost to her.
I had my orders. That is my reason for being. I am... a tool. I am... replaceable.
BOOM.
The memory of the explosion plays back in her mind, the image of the Infected Eva Unit disappearing among a cloud of fiery devastation, a lone silhouette that was etched in her memories.
In her mind, she imagines Mari screaming. She imagines Shinji weeping as he holds the body of his girlfriend in his arms, though she did not witness it herself. Then, at last, she imagines Gendo himself standing over them.
"Your name is Rei Ayanami. You will be an Eva Pilot and my agent. Everything else is secondary," - some of the earliest words that Rei can remember. Words from her creator.
At times, she wishes she didn't feel at all. Anything to escape this world that surrounds her. Other times, she wants to feel more. To connect the way that she sees other people do.
And finally, she wishes she had never existed at all. Her life has only caused pain upon others.
She ponders if Gendo had known this is what would become of her.
Elsewhere
Nerv
Two men walked the halls of Nerv and in their wake tension followed.
Kaji watched them, he went about his day trying to keep busy and appearing to look buried in his work. In reality, he was watching the two men as they moved throughout the complex.
The Director of Nerv was giving the 'guest' a tour of the compound himself. The Envoy sent by the United Nations, the Observer.
Ritsuko… why did you want me to avoid him? A rich man, wealthy beyond belief and with many powerful friends. Apparently, he works for the United Nations when called upon… or is he the one calling the shots? Kaji considered.
The spy caught a glimpse of Ritsuko looking at him as she walked down the hall, crossing paths with Gendo along the way.
Nerv's head scientist met Kaji's gaze, and ever so slightly shook her head at him. 'No, back off,' Ritsuko seemed to say.
Kaji frowned. Why are you helping me? What changed?
The spy moved on with his folder of useless paperwork, he would have to investigate more on his own, from a distance.
…
Mr. Keel Lorenz walked at his own pace, his cane in hand. An elderly man approaching his nineties, yet sharp as ever. His body, though well covered, had mostly fallen apart. His eyes had been worn down by age, and he wore a visor to supplement that fact.
He dressed in a simple business coat and adorn on one of the sleeves was an armlet with markings of the UN. A visitor's pass was hung around his neck.
Gendo escorted the visitor through Nerv. Taking him to see the various officers, to see the hangar and look upon the Eva Units.
Mr. Keel shook Misato's hand in greeting as Units 00, 01, and 02 loomed over them.
"Captain Katsuragi, it is a pleasure. I've heard many things about you," the elderly man said.
"I- have you?" Misato asked, not sure what she had expected. Certainly not this kindly old man. Whatever the case, Commander Ikari was being even colder than usual.
"Oh, yes. I hear you have taken in the Second and Third Child. That you look after them. I must say, such an act of charity is unexpected. You have my respect," Mr. Keel said pleasantly.
Misato nodded, more surprised than anything, and began answering questions about her experience with Nerv.
Gendo was silent, giving them space for their interview, almost forcibly disinterested.
Misato gave honest answers, about the stress and hardships that face Nerv. Of the troubles that the pilots themselves face. Mr. Keel listened to her, so sympathetic and kind. So understanding.
"I believe the Director chose the right person for this role," Mr. Keel tells her as he leaves to continue his inspection.
…
Next, he interviews Dr. Akagi in her lab. The assistants were given tasks to keep them busy and leave the room without a fuss.
"The Evas are not fully understood. We have to run simulations and analyze mountains of data on a daily basis. We work quickly, and perform tests on the pilots every week," Ritsuko explained.
The good doctor went over several tasks that her job entailed, from working with the Magi supercomputers, going over each pilot's sync data, to configuring the software inside the entry plugs, and in truth, most of it went over Mr. Keel's head.
Still, the UN Observer nodded along as Ritsuko lectured and lectured. He waited patiently until she was done, respectful and courteous.
"Fascinating. I will need to watch one of these sync tests and simulations. I'm sure you understand. The UN has concerns and I would be happy to alleviate them," Keel said.
Ritsuko paused at that, sparing a glance at the Director of Nerv standing coolly in the back.
"There is a test within the hour. I believe that should be sufficient," Gendo said, speaking up for the first time in several hours.
"Wonderful. Dr. Akagi, I assure you; you won't even know that I'm here," Keel said gently.
The man turned to Gendo and continued, "one more thing. Before the Pilots arrive, I wish to speak with one of the Children in particular."
Shinji Ikari walked the halls of Nerv, dressed in his plugsuit, and going about his routine. Today was the official reunion of Eva Team Zero.
Unfortunate, that the events at the hospital had complicated matters. Even now, the boy wasn't sure how things stood with his friend. Should he have gone after her?
The Broken Man had wanted to, Shinji could tell. Yet his Other had let him stay with his girlfriend.
What could I have done? Mari… Rei... ah, Young Shinji thought.
He turned a corner and headed for the designated testing lab, lost in his own thoughts.
Pay attention, boy. 'He' is here. The Broken Man stirred.
Shinji froze as two men emerged onto the hallway and he knew it was by no accident. The men, they blocked the only path forward.
"Hold. A moment, if you will, young pilot," the UN Observer said calmly.
Keel strode towards him.
Young Shinji felt his heart race. He felt himself going on edge upon facing the man who had set everything in motion, a man who had helped his parents kill 2 billion people. The man who had initiated the Angel War, all for a wish, a dream in which he cheated death.
His vision came into hyperfocus, time itself seemed to slow as elements of the power given to him kicked in. Nervously, he felt the urge to double check that his contact lenses were still on.
Misato's dad... Asuka's mom... how many others? How many people have you sacrificed for your project?!
Easy. Be calm.
Right.
Gendo was watching him, an unreadable expression planted on his face.
For perhaps the first time in Shinji's memory of his father... the man's composure broke and he faltered at the words Mr. Keel spoke.
"Shinji, my boy. You've gotten taller. What a surprise."
"Not really. I was a growing boy even then."
"Yes. How long has it been? Two years, I'd say. I was so pleased when you were released from the ward. Although I must admit, I never expected you would end up piloting an Eva," Mr. Keel said.
Gendo flinched. A subtle moment that was there and gone in the blink of an eye. The Director of Nerv struggled to maintain his composure in that single second that spanned a lifetime, an eternity, an instance where the sense of doubt and uncertainty took hold of the man.
The Shinji(s) watched their father in his struggle, this one moment of weakness and surprise, and inwardly they felt a bittersweet pleasure in it.
"You have... spoken before?" Gendo called suddenly, his voice stiff and emotionless. He stood off to the back, his mask of calm having resealed itself.
Mr. Keel turned to face the Director of Nerv, an easy smirk working its way on the man's elderly face.
"Oh, once or twice. Surely, you are not surprised, Mr. Ikari? My ward opened its doors to your family after the tragedy all those years ago. Yes, Yui was quite a remarkable woman. To lose her... why, of course, her poor child would have need of support. And what is a favor among friends?" the UN Observer said.
"... I did not expect you to take such a personal interest in the boy. I thank you for the resources you devoted to my son's... unique case," Gendo said.
The Shinji(s) watched the adults speak, and the younger of the two found himself scowling inwardly at these two so-called great men.
The leader of SEELE, one of, if not the, most powerful people in the world. And here he is playing games with our father. I don't know what I expected... but...
Keel is human. A man, a power-hungry man. His ego and pride is his weakness. He likes to watch Gendo bleed. Their alliance is as fragile as it has ever been.
"Now then, Shinji my boy, the UN sent me here to investigate Nerv. To report on how well they handle their mission. So tell me, how do you find piloting?" Keel asked suddenly.
The man's words brought Shinji out of his thoughts, and the boy paused before glancing at his father.
The leader of SEELE raised an eyebrow and waved a hand dismissively at Gendo. "Wait for me inside. I wish to speak with your boy, alone."
The Director of Nerv left them. If Gendo was insulted he did not show it. Gendo disappeared into the observation room of the testing chamber, joining the likes of Ritsuko and Misato.
Keel turned back to Shinji. "Speak your mind," he said.
"Piloting is hard. The Angel War takes a toll on everyone. We do what we can, all of Nerv."
The Shinji(s) spoke together, the younger taking the reins so they could meet Keel's eyes directly.
"I see. I have heard things about you... Shinji. That you spent quite a lot of time absorbed into Eva Unit 01. About your overexposure to LCL. May I see?"
Young Shinji froze, time slowed for him once again. He had not expected that.
Old man... I... should I show him? Is that safe?
Show him.
I don't like this. He-
Show him. He already knows.
Young Shinji raised a hand and slowly, carefully, he plucked his contact lenses off. The gift from his girlfriend.
Deep red eyes stared out into the world and met the leader of SEELE's gaze. The eyes that the boy had emerged with after his journey through the memories of the Broken Man.
Mr. Keel studied him carefully, and though Shinji couldn't see it, he imagined withered old eyes behind the visor staring deep into his soul.
The boy did not like it. He felt an urge to flee.
"Remarkable," Keel said.
"I came out with them. They don't hurt... I try not to think about them too much," Shinji stammered.
The boy put his contact lenses back on, covering up the deep red and replacing it with the closest approximation of what his old eyes had looked like.
Mr. Keel nodded understandingly.
"Go on then. Your sync test is waiting. I will be watching," the leader of SEELE said.
Shinji nodded, breathing a sigh of relief inwardly.
Testing chambers
Shinji entered the lab to find Rei already sitting in her entry plug, the testing cockpit that allowed pilots to run simulations and gather sync data with their Eva Units.
She looked his way, but couldn't bring herself to hold his gaze.
"Hey..." the boy called hesitantly.
He glanced at the observation glass.
Gendo and Mr. Keel are there, watching, listening to everything we say.
Yes, they are. We can't help Rei just yet.
Distantly, Shinji heard his Other grunt. Whatever frustrations the man had, he knew better than to air it here and now.
"Take your place. The test is about to begin," Ritsuko's voice called on the intercom.
Shinji did as he was told, he took his place in the entry plug set up for him. He went on auto-pilot, going through the motions as he synced up with Unit 01 from the safety of the lab.
In the simulation being run by the Magi Supercomputers, Units 00 and 01 appeared on a simple battlefield, rifles in hand, with a series of targets.
He felt like he should say something, maybe a 'just like old times, eh?'. Nothing came, though. The two pilots stood apart, not speaking.
What a way for Eva Team Zero to reform.
"Syncs holding at 67% and 88%. Rei, you're improving. Shinji, good work," Ritsuko called on the intercom.
They went through the simulation, speaking only when necessary.
Shinji held back anything he wanted to say, knowing that they were being watched by more than Ritsuko.
Rei... he wasn't sure why she didn't talk. She had always been quiet, but this was something more. She did her job, she piloted Unit 00 even in the simulation, and that was all she did.
"We're sending in a target. A recreation of an earlier Angel. The Magi has a lot of data to work with, so it'll be pretty close to the original," Ritsuko called. No doubt explaining for the UN Observer.
In the simulation, Shinji and Rei backed up creating space for themselves as their enemy came into virtual existence.
Armaros, the Beast Angel stood before them. The hairless ape armored in black scales.
"Him again?" Shinji said thinking aloud.
"This Angel has appeared multiple times. It is an anomaly, but one that has provided the Magi with sufficient data to accurately recreate," Rei said.
The Beast Angel came for them, moving on all fours before leaping towards them. It's mouth twisted mid-jump, the flesh tearing apart to reveal a series of teeth.
Rei raised her rifle but Shinji moved the Eva in front of her.
An AT Field erupted into existence and the Beast Angel collided with the shield of solid light.
"Rei! Just like on our first piloting run. Together," Shinji breathed, he panted from the strain of holding the Beast Angel back.
"... understood," Rei said, her voice flat.
The recreated Angel fought against the AT Field and found a wall of sheer will that it could not break.
Shinji shoved forward slamming into the Beast Angel and sending it stumbling back, before letting the shield fade away into nothing, Rei moved just as the enemy regained its footing.
The simulated Angel tried to counter them, but Eva Team Zero worked together, each grabbing an arm and tugging.
The Evas hauled the Angel forward and flung the creature to the virtual ground. Shinji placed his boot over its torso, pinning the titan. Rei withdrew her prog knife, and acting quickly she brought it down upon the Angel's faceplate. A close reenactment of their first piloting run together.
"Good work," Ritsuko's voice called on the intercom.
The simulation ended. The Angel disappeared. The entry plugs disengaged and the virtual environment gave way to reality.
…
"Impressive," Keel said. The elderly man's gaze lingered on Shinji.
Gendo stood beside him wordlessly. The two watched from the observation window.
Ritsuko did a quick glance over of the data, before speaking into the intercom one final time.
"That's enough for today. You're free."
Shinji nodded, thankful for Ritsuko's words.
He unstrapped himself and got out of the entry plug. He turned to find Rei, to get her to speak to him. To get her to even look at him.
Only she wasn't there.
Shinji blinked in surprise. He hurried out of the labs and found the image of the pale girl in the white plugsuit leaving him behind. She hadn't even waited for the order to leave, she had just gone.
"Hey, wait up," Shinji called awkwardly.
He felt the Broken man stirring inside him, and he strode forward chasing after Rei into the hallway.
Rei ignored him, walking off into the distance.
Shinji broke into a run. The sound of his footsteps surprised the pale girl, and she slowed just as he passed her up.
He turned around and found her unable to meet his gaze.
"Rei... hold on."
"... Okay."
"Can't we just talk?"
"We are talking,"
It was like watching a regression, a film being rewound to its origin. The deadpan expression, the flat voice... and something worse. When he had first met the girl, she could look at him. She would stare and focus on him when he got her attention, her expression deadpanned with the barest hints of the girl underneath the stiff exterior she wore.
Now... now there was nothing. She had buried herself so deep that there didn't seem to be a person in there at all.
I haven't been there for you... it's hard for me.
"You have dropped out of school. I did not believe Captain Katsuragi would sign the forms," Rei said flatly.
Is that why she wanted to see me? She... she wanted me to go back to school? Oh... Rei...
"Misato hasn't signed the forms... not yet. It's... complicated. Messy. We argued about it. It's better this way. You and Asuka should still go," Shinji said softly.
"You should go to school too," Rei deadpanned, her eyes glued to the boots of her plugsuit.
Shinji sighed. This wasn't how he imagined doing things.
"I can't. Not anymore," the boy said.
Rei did not respond. She tilted her head as if considering that.
Shinji let out a frustrated groan, an audible rumble that his first friend in Tokyo-03 didn't seem to notice.
"I'm sorry about what happened today. Mari is..."
Shinji struggled to find the words. What could he say? He sighed harshly, feeling like he'd just aged twenty years in as many seconds.
Taking a deep breath, he continued, "Mari needs time. She's been through a lot and... she's not herself yet. Not 100%. It's complicated and you shouldn't-"
"Your girlfriend is right to be angry."
Rei spoke the words and raised her head, deep red eyes facing his at long last. Cold stone-like eyes stared out at him, and something more. Something fragile, just barely hanging on by a thread. A piece of glass on the verge of shattering.
"Mari is right to hate me. I... I understand. You... you too," Rei said, and it was like she was on the verge of tears.
Her voice cracked and her eyes wavered, yet never looked away... not anymore. He had her complete unadulterated attention now, the sole focus of her entire world.
Shinji winced as if struck.
No... that's not true.
"I already said that I didn't hate you," Shinji stammered, his voice uneven.
Rei tilted her head at him.
"How can that be true? I... I do not believe you."
Shinji made to speak, to tell her to stop that, but she wouldn't let him.
"At times, I believe I have grown to dislike myself as well. I am... flawed. Corrupted."
Shinji blinked back at a loss for words. This wasn't Rei. His or his Other's. This was someone else, someone he'd never seen before.
"I do not enjoy this. There are moments where I do not want to 'feel' anymore. I want it to stop. Then, there are instances where I want it to continue. It is a paradox. Regardless and irrelevant to my intentions, I fired the shot. I followed orders."
Shinji flinched at the words. The imagery that played in his head left him reeling, the memory of holding his girlfriend's limp form in his arms.
"That is my purpose. I am a tool. I am a weapon," the pale girl whispered.
I am replaceable, and perhaps I should be replaced. - the words played across her face but never emerged. Even here, even now, Gendo's programming forbid her from speaking of her true nature.
"Goodbye... Ikari," Rei said.
The First Child walked past him heading for the exit.
A hand reached out and grabbed her by the wrist. Firm but gentle, almost tender, and tugged at her to stop.
Rei froze, a shiver working its way through her skin even through the plugsuit at the contact.
"You're not a weapon."
Rei stared ahead, head downcast and unmoving, expression hidden by short bluish hair.
The Broken Man tugged on her arm gently, turning her to face him and she chose to let him.
"You are Rei Ayanami. You are a person; you have a soul," Old Man Shinji said, a tremor weighing down his voice.
Rei tilted her head at his words, and she shook as the boy placed a hand on her face. A soft touch upon her cheek, and gently she let him lift her gaze.
What she found in the boy's face surprised her, hollow damaged eyes, with more bleeding into the weariness. Compassion, a feeling that she had always struggled with… along with a longing that she had never seen in a person before. Not sexual, not the various mating rituals she had seen men and women play, no this was deeper.
It took her breath away, it filled her lungs and ran through her body, and when the boy spoke she almost missed the words.
"It's not your fault."
Rei shook her head saying "she was my partner, she saved my life twice... and I still pulled the trigger-"
"It was Gendo. He is a vile, evil man. He no longer knows what it means to be human. He is a monster, one who ordered you to kill your own partner. He…"
The Broken Man took a deep breath, a low grumble filled with weariness and sorrow.
"He has done things. Unspeakable things. To you and to me. Unforgivable."
Rei blinked at him, utterly confused.
"Shinji… you should not speak of him that way. He is your father-" Rei began, a soft whisper escaping the pale girl.
"I have no father."
The words startled the pale girl, she watched him amazed and awestruck despite her watery eyes.
"He created me. Yes, but he does not get to decide my fate. He does not choose who and what I am. Only 'I' decide that. You see? That is the greatest gift we have… free will," the Broken Man said firmly, his hand shook at the words.
Rei leaned into his touch, staring unblinkingly at him. Slowly, with trembling fingers of her own, she reached a hand to his upon her cheek.
Their fingers brushed together, and the pale girl found herself overwhelmed with a sensation that she had only found once, discovered when she had drawn her dreams. A warmth, beyond compassion, a feeling that she did not have the words to qualify or define.
Distant as the stars above, with a fading light that brushed her skin. It enveloped her, spreading throughout her, foreign, hers and yet not hers. Echoes from a forgotten dream that lingered.
She closed her eyes, basking in it. Only to open them once again as the boy spoke.
"I have failed you. I haven't been there. And I am sorry for that. I should have done more… ahhh… I should have let you know that you weren't alone. There are…"
The Broken Man took another heavy breath, one that Rei thought looked odd on someone so young. Another low rumble from the boy, one that belonged to a man much his elder.
"There are things I've wanted to tell you. I can't. Not yet. There are people out there, watching and playing their games. But I promise you… one day… the Angels will be gone. The Evas will be gone. And even him, even Gendo, will be gone-"
"That scares me," Rei whispered.
"No. It shouldn't. One day, you'll be free. All of us will be. Our lives will be what we make them. That, I promise you."
Rei leaned further in, stepping closer to the boy.
"That day… will you be there?"
"I… yes,"
The two of them were so close, faces inches from each other. Rei lingered in that moment, never daring to reach further, hovering in that feeling of bliss and wanting. Part of her told her to take one more step, to reach out with her lips, another part of her stood frozen, unsure and lost among her feelings.
"… what am I to you?" the pale girl asked, her voice a whispery little thing.
The Broken Man blinked and suddenly stepped back, the boy's fingers leaving the girl's.
"… a friend."
Rei closed her eyes, a lone tear emerging. A sliver that trailed down her face. She smiled in spite of it, mixtures of relief, joy, and sadness bled together within her heart. She ran her thumb through her other fingers, remembering the boy's touch.
"Rei… "
"… You are a good friend, Shinji. The only one I have ever had. Thank you… for that," the pale girl said. She opened her eyes and wiped the tear away.
She turned before the boy could continue. Today had been trying in ways she could barely understand, pleasant and unpleasant all in one.
Shinji stepped forward trying to stop her one last time.
"I wish to be alone, now. Please, do not follow me," Rei said flatly.
When the boy did not answer, Rei took the silence as confirmation and headed off towards the girl's locker-room and disappeared from sight.
…
Young Shinji watched the pale girl leave, and he gasped as control was suddenly and almost violently given back to him.
"Ahhh," he grunted.
The boy had forgotten how strong his Other could be. He panted, not sure if they had helped things or made them worse.
Later that night
Lowest levels of Nerv
Gendo escorted the man through the forbidden floors of the compound, and upon reaching the doors of the secret lab… he paused for the fraction of a second. He felt his composure waiver for a second time before he steadied himself and opened the door.
Mr. Keel stepped inside.
The leader of SEELE paced back and forth, looking over the various crates and unused equipment, as well as a series of LCL containers.
Gone were the Rei clones and their tanker, gone was the life-support system keeping all of the girls breathing and suspended in hibernation, never allowed to become fully 'alive' until needed.
Neatly stacked on a desk lay a pile of paperwork, various designs for the Eva Units, reports marked for the director's eyes only. A replacement that stood in place of a computer system that had been there just days ago.
Dr. Akagi has done well. Everything of value has been moved, Gendo thought.
"The office is kept for security purposes. So close to the end, I find less use of it these days," he said simply.
"Indeed," Keel countered.
The elderly man's expression was indecipherable behind the visor, ancient decrepit eyes feebly clinging to life lay behind the machinery.
Inwardly, Gendo felt a small sense of pleasure. When SEELE had given him the resources to build the complex, he had made his own additions. Additions that even those who funded the project were unaware of.
He let SEELE see what they wanted to see, a faithful servant who kept their secrets from the outside world.
"One last thing. We need to see our prisoner," Keel said.
Gendo stilled, a stiffness entering his joints, but he nodded.
Together, the two left the former lab. The place which had once held the Rei clones and Gendo's private research into the 'creature' that he had created in the image of his wife.
They descended the levels into the very bottom of Nerv itself. Gendo personally entered his information into the console, and the heavy metal doors opened with a screech.
Down here, in the bottom of Nerv, stood a massive chamber with a lone prisoner hidden from the world.
Lilith loomed above. The Second Angel lay crucified and shackled, with half of her torso missing, and with ghost white skin. Vaguely humanoid, and with a faceplate, the lone piece of armor the God-like being wore.
Except the Spear of Longinus was missing, no longer impaled upon the Second Angel's chest. Another item that had had to be relocated for this 'inspection' by SEELE.
It seems Dr. Akagi truly is one of my best assets, Gendo pondered.
Mr. Keel strode forward to inspect the prisoner. The source of Nerv's LCL, and one-half of the various tissue samples used to create the Evangelion Units.
"How close did Bardiel get to her?" Keel asked coldly.
"Two levels above here. The Angel was dealt with before getting any closer," Gendo answered simply.
Keel whirled, surprisingly agile for a man in his nineties, and radiated cold unforgiving distaste.
"Too close. Mr. Ikari, I had worried that I may have misplaced my trust in you. If not for your wife's recommendation… you would not be standing here."
Ah. You enjoy this. Aiming low, taunting me about Yui. Spiteful man. How dare you even mention her, Gendo thought.
"Twice, under your watch, the compound has been breached. Zeruel, and then Bardiel. Events which shake our confidence in you. Not to mention the Mount Asama incident, when you let the JSSDF threaten our plans," Keel continued.
"Yet in spite of it all, in spite of the anomalies, we are here. All according to schedule. The Human Instrumentality Project… continues," Gendo said.
He shrunk before SEELE's leader, letting the vengeful old man take his position in power, allowing the elderly fool to bask in his deluded feelings of strength.
"Hmm. I installed you here to do a job. Never forget that," Mr. Keel hissed quietly, a bone-chilling cold working its way into his voice.
"Of course," Gendo said.
"And then there is your boy, the Freak. Your handling of him has been disappointing. I am aware that you tried to strike him. Tsk, tsk, mishandling of an asset is in poor taste," Keel said suddenly.
Gendo scowled inwardly, a moment of weakness that left a bitter taste in his mouth. He fought the urge to ball his hand into a fist.
Keel leaned in close, saying, "Shinji Ikari has his role to play. The 'overexposure to LCL' is an interesting ploy, I commend you for that if nothing else. Project Tabris has been an unconventional investment."
Gendo stood still as a statue, tinted glasses meeting the intricate glass of a visor. He did not back down, not this time, he had played the lapdog enough for the day.
"I understand. The boy will play his part according to your design. Not before or after, but at the right moment," Gendo said.
Keel nodded.
"The Freak and his drawings, combined with the Dead Sea Scrolls, point to only one remaining child of Adam. Armisael. You will handle this threat along with any anomalies that may join him."
"Yes, sir," Gendo answered.
The number of Angels was wrong and had been for some time. That had been observed and agreed upon months ago, and SEELE had concluded that the pattern was more important.
"The world governments will quiet their concerns. I will see to that. The UN will receive a glowing report on your operations. I will call in favors for you. They will not be a hindrance," Keel continued.
"Thank you, sir-" Gendo began.
Keel raised a wrinkled hand to stop him mid-speech.
"We have a timetable. Keep to it," SEELE's leader said.
The man strode forward heading for the exit, cane echoing across the floor, and leaving the imprisoned Second Angel behind.
"Do not mistake my generosity, for generosity," Keel said.
The words oozed quiet cold venom. Gendo readjusted his glasses and made to follow after his 'superior'. Only a curious sight caught his eye.
Lilith was watching him. Framed within the faceplate, gargantuan red eyes were looking out onto the scene below. Gendo saw the sliver of something sliding down Lilith's face, a liquid that seeped down from underneath the faceplate, barely visible.
The Second Angel had shed a single tear.
Perhaps our prisoner requires another weakening… she has been allowed to recover for far too long, Gendo mused.
The Director of Nerv turned to go, following in the footsteps of SEELE's leader.
The apartment given to Rei
Rei closed the door behind her and locked it. It was a force of habit more than anything else, Gendo had his own key and could come in at any time.
She moved through the mostly empty apartment, barely remembering to turn on the lights. Reaching underneath her bed, she pulled free the illustrations she'd made over the course of several days.
It had been a close call this morning, Gendo had been literal inches away from her secret. In truth, she did not fully understand why she hid them. They were… deeply private, an aspect of hers that she had trouble putting into words.
Rei sat in the bed assigned to her, the drawings scattered around her. She looked them over, the two piles of strange imagery, brief glimpses of the things she had seen in her dreams.
The couple… she pondered at today's drawing.
The reality around her was strained, difficult to process, and filled with conflicting emotions that left her with highs and lows. So she chose to look away from it. To flee from the world as a lonely lost soul who had decided to disengage when she was not needed.
In this place, she found a comfort 'here'… in this false reality brought to life with color pencils.
Echoes from a life she knew to be false. Her escapism was brought to an abrupt halt as a voice emerged into the room, foreign and unfamiliar.
Child… child…
Rei blinked, a frown working its way onto her face. The pale girl stiffened and rose from the bed looking for who had spoken.
She found no one else but her. The apartment was empty. She looked and looked, and found no answers.
How strange. No one there, Rei thought.
I tried to have a balance between the plot advancement with Gendo and SEELE, etc, and the character interactions between the Eva pilots. I want the plot to continue, but I don't want to lose character moments either.
Keel and the reveal is something that's been 'under the covers' for a while now. Did that surprise any readers? It's not been outright said until this chapter, and the whole picture hasn't been revealed.
Were you surprised at Eva Team Two's reunion?
What did you think of Keel and the Ikaris (Gendo and Shinji)? The interactions between Rei and Asuka, Mari, Shinji, and... the Broken Man.
Thanks for Reading and please Review!