Tanjiro

It was nostalgic.

"We can take it! Why are we hiding?"

Inosuke struggled against Tanjiro's and Zenitsu's grip, trying to rush headlong into battle without a thought or consideration.

"Have you gotten stupider?" Zenitsu seethed. "Tanjiro's blind in one eye and one of his hands can't grip! Besides, every step we take out there will just lead to the city getting destroyed." Zenitsu's voice was exhausted and full of dread. "Are you trying to destroy this Tokyo, idiot?"

They were now pressed in a stone staircase, just beneath the rubble. Tanjiro had tried to tell Inosuke to World of Tranquility. The mirror thing in the sky didn't seem to notice him in that state, but Inosuke hadn't been listening. Instead, they'd dodged a few more attacks before running into a hatch that led underground.

The ground didn't shake, so it seemed safe to guess that the city wasn't being destroyed, at least not as quickly as it had been when they were on the surface.

"Shut up," Inosuke suddenly yelled at nobody.

Zenitsu mumbled. "You shut up." Though the orange-haired warrior was furious, Tanjiro noticed that his usual emotions were muted. The lightning swordsman was groaning annoyedly rather than yelling. "It's your fault the Angel obliterated so much of the city."

Inosuke stopped struggling. Both he and Tanjiro tilted their heads. "Obli-what?"

"Obliterated," Zenitsu rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I'm trying to learn words to help with the book. That's not important! There's no time. Give me that."

Zenitsu took off Inosuke's mask, reached inside, and pulled out the headset that had been attached within. Inosuke snarled and swore as he took the mask back. Tanjiro could only stare in wonder as Zenitsu put one end of the strange plastic device to his ear. He became doubly confused when Zenitsu started speaking into a curved extremity on the object.

"You're up for it, right?" Inosuke leaned to Tanjiro, mask freshly in place. His hands were twitching toward his sword hilts. "We can take out the Angel ourselves. Let's go."

"Just hang on a second, Inosuke. Even if I ignore all the questions I have, why weren't you using World of Tranquility? I could feel your killing intent from across the city. It's no wonder that floaty mirror thing was attacking you."

There was no judgment in Tanjiro's voice. He'd asked it with the same innocence with which a child might ask why the sky is blue. In response, Inosuke grabbed his good arm. The grip was strong and furious. "Come on," he sounded almost pleading. "We're monster hunters. There's a monster."

"I agree, but we can't just let it destroy this whole city. So, let's wait for Zenitsu to finish… whatever he's doing, then we'll use World of Tranquility. Okay?"

Inosuke shook his head and groaned beneath the mask. "Fine, I get it. I need to pay more attention to defence instead of just offence. Saving lives is more important than killing demons. I've heard the lecture."

"It's not a lecture. You seem really angry. What's wrong?"

"We can talk about this later," Zenitsu took off the headset and passed it to Tanjiro. "Listen, my friend." Tanjiro nearly pulled back in shock. Zenitsu's expression was serious. There wasn't a hint of the usual loud, cowardly enthusiasm which made his usual character. "We can't let this city get beat up too much. If we make the people in this city angry, they might not help me get back to Nezuko."

At this moment, two emotions arose in Tanjiro Kamado: a relief that his friend was his usual self, and a mild frustration with how obsessed the blond warrior was with his sister.

"I get it," Tanjiro said. "It's like Inosuke said. There's a monster. We fight monsters. It should be no problem, right?"

"Huh?" Zenitsu gaped. He stared at Tanjiro's withered left hand, then looked into his blind right eye. "You really think you can fight in that state?"

"Of course," Tanjiro smiled as he spoke.

A creeping, unfamiliar doubt rose in the back of his mind, but he quelled it. Tanjiro Kamado had always fought. There was no question. He charged into battle. He didn't refuse this kind of thing. It wasn't an option.

Zenitsu stared at him for a second, then, sighing, lifted the device to Tanjiro's ear. A woman's voice spoke to him, "Is this the boy with the scar on his face?"

"Yes," he replied quickly, astonished. "Where are—"

"I'll give the short version. The comms unit you're using let's me talk to you from far away. I, and many others, are beneath the city. That large prism-like structure in the sky is an Angel, and it wants to destroy us. Do you understand me so far?"

"Yes," the technology amazed him. This wasn't like the magic or skills used during the fight in Muzan's Palace. He was speaking into a tool. A craftsman could make the thing he used. "Who are you?"

"My name is Dr. Ritsuko Akagi. That's not important right now. Please, listen to me. The Angel can detect anything threat that approaches it. We need to minimize the damage. Do you understand me so far?"

Inosuke punched the wall. "Let's get on with it already! Are you two warriors or not?"

Zenitsu snapped at him, "Shut up and let Tanjiro get his bearings. I don't want him to fight!"

Tanjiro replied to the voice in his ear, "Yes. The large thing detects killing intent, and you don't want any more of the city destroyed."

"That's right."

"Are there any swordsmen in this city?"

Silence followed. Slowly, Inosuke and Zenitsu turned to face him. The look of dread and shock on Zenitsu's face concerned Tanjiro. "Did I say something I shouldn't have?"

"No…" the voice replied on the other end. "We don't have any swordsmen. Our main method of defense is unavailable now. The only way to destroy the Angel – the thing in the sky – is to destroy its core. Please retreat and—"

The warrior had already made up his mind. "You said core, right? So, there's something at the centre that we need to destroy?"

His brain broke it down. A demon died when its head was removed. An Angel would die when tis core was destroyed.

"Yes, that's right. So, come back to our headquarters and we'll form a plan of att—"

"Sorry for all mess so far. I'll make sure all three of us help rebuild. We should have the Angel thing killed in under an hour."

"Wait—"

Tanjiro passed the comms unit back to Zenitsu, who was frozen in what seemed to be shock. His eyes were wide, and his jaw was falling toward the floor. He didn't react as Tanjiro passed him the unit.

To the man who defeated Muzan, it was instinct. There was an evil monster. He would fight it. There were people hiding under the city. This thing would create orphans, widows, widowers, and mourners of every kind. Tanjiro had dedicated himself to ridding the world of the beasts which would cause such grief.

Inosuke pumped his fist into the air. "Alright! Like old times! Let's show this thing who—"

Tanjiro calmly walked up the steps and looked Inosuke in the eye. "World of Tranquility. We want to do as little damage as possible."

Tanjiro stepped toward the surface. Suddenly, his shoulder jerked back. Tanjiro swirled on the unknown force that pulled him. Zenitsu stood beneath him, gripping the wrist. Tanjiro didn't feel it. The blond warrior said, "This is irresponsible."

Tanjiro shook the arm free. "Thanks for worrying about me, but this is our job, right? The woman on the plastic thing said there aren't any swordsmen here. So, we need to help."

"Damn right!" Inosuke charged upward.

"Hide your intent!" the other two screamed.

Inosuke

It was as if his own muscles were fighting him. The boar-masked warrior put all his focus into keeping pace with his allies. Much as he hated to admit it, it made sense to hide their intent. He'd been the one to argue with Zenitsu that they should fight to protect the people in this other Tokyo.

Yet, now, as they approached the huge reflective shape, his mind and body burned with anticipation. His friends could not see the how seldom his fixed eyes blinked as they stared at the prey. This would be the first real fight they'd had in a while. It was a new enemy.

It was frustrating. Most of the damage would be done to the city. Already, there was a field of charred asphalt and rubble where they'd first been attacked. Also, they only had their swords. The Angel could fire many times as they approached. It was reasonable to hide their intent.

That didn't mean Inosuke liked it. He preferred the days when they would charge against the enemy, sword in hand, on a clear battlefield.

Tanjiro's arm and eye didn't bother him. He ignored the hand that swayed in the wind, shrivelled and discoloured as if it belong to an elder. Inosuke only saw the man who slayed Muzan. The man in the checkered garb regularly did the impossible. In every instance, against every foe, Tanjiro did the impossible. Inosuke, without realizing it, considered his friend to be something beyond human.

So, they calmly approached the Angel.

"Amazing…" Tanjiro said. "You've fought two of these?"

"Each one looks different," Inosuke said. "They all do different things. The other ones didn't have ranged attacks. Also, Shinji and the purple thing did most of the work on the last two."

"Shinji?"

"Good kid," Inosuke said.

"Brat," Zenitsu said at the same time.

They glared at each other, then Zenitsu added, "We'll explain later."

The group became silent. As they walked, the only sound was the loud, harsh sound of the Angel's drill. As they stepped out into a new intersection, they got a clear view of the Angel. Inosuke almost stopped walking. This was his enemy? He wondered. It didn't seem to be a living thing. It didn't even seem like a force of nature. It was as if a god had thrown a bit of glass toward the earth. The high, ominous pitch that came from the thing only increased the spiritual effect.

As they approached it, Zenitsu spoke into the comms unit. "We've got a clear sight of it now. It looks like its drilling. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Ritsuko says that its directly above Nerv. It'll reach them in about twenty hours."

"Okay," Tanjiro nodded seriously.

Inosuke stared at the great pink-and-gold drill. It looked like the pillar of a flashy temple. The only thing grounding the scene was the sound of mechanical whirring as the drill turned. That made it wrong. The Angel was supposedly a living thing, but it looked holy and it sounded mechanical.

Zenitsu focused on his other conversation. "Uh-huh. Uh-huh. She says there's something called an AT field around this thing. It's some kind of invisible shield. Once we touch that thing, it might attack the point we hit, whether it senses killing intent or not."

"Oh, it has a shield." Tanjiro stared at it. The look impressed Inosuke. He hadn't seen that expression in some time. It was appraisal. Few hunters ever achieved such a level of calm. Tanjiro was looking at the Angel as if it were a simple problem. A farmer might wonder how to adapt to unfavorable weather. A merchant might wonder how to reach more customers. With the same professional detachment, Tanjiro could fight an enemy while wondering how to defeat it.

Inosuke admired this, but he didn't envy it. World of Tranquility was a harsh challenge for him, one which required him to focus on each muscle and motion. His focus was so strained on himself that the enemy became a part of the environment. It hurt to remain in that state.

He threw a look to Zenitsu. It was obvious why the Angel felt no killing from the lightning warrior. Zenitsu wanted to flee. There was no killing intent to notice. How could Zenitsu doubt Tanjiro, Inosuke, or himself? After all they'd done, the foe didn't matter. They were fighters. They fought.

That's all. To Inosuke, there was nothing else.

Still focused on Ritsuko's words, Zenitsu said, "She says that its impossible for us to do anything about it. The drill is too hard to pierce with swords, and it's too high in the air for us to attack."

"Really?" Tanjiro turned back, casually surprised. "Taking out the drill would be the easy part. For the core, I have a couple ideas."

Ritsuko

Misato was pushing herself. She wasn't the only one, either.

All around Nerv, countless people were running in all directions to get the Eva back in combat condition. Dr. Akagi, meanwhile, stayed in the main room. For better or worse, her fate had been tied to these strange warriors. She knew that she was supposed to be tending to the Eva, that this whole room should have been full of people analyzing the Angel and preparing the Eva for its next battle.

Instead, most were trying to prepare Shinji and the Eva while Ritsuko was left to monitor a handful of colourful teenagers.

One benefit of the strange circumstance is that it left few witnesses. As the others were preparing and planning in other rooms, Ritsuko stood beside Gendo, muting the microphone to speak with him.

"I think they can breach the AT field and destroy the drill," she said.

"The military is hounding us with questions about them. My answer will depend on how they act in this situation."

Zenitsu asked about the AT Field. Ritsuko explained as simply as she could, then muted her microphone again. "What if they successfully destroy the drill?"

"The army will think they're new experiments from Nerv."

"Will they believe that?"

She could barely hide her shock at what came next. Gendo Ikari gave her wry smile. "They already think we're creating demons. There'd be no way to make them trust us any less. This way, perhaps," he folded his arms in front of his face and returned to his usual composure, "the attention will stay on our strange friends while we focus on our primary research."

As usual, she thought, focused on tomorrow even as today unfolds.

"Um…" Zenitsu said into the headset. On one of the screens, she watched the three boys approach the Angel.

It was still beyond her understanding. They strolled toward the Angel as if it were nothing more than a wild animal. A thought passed through her mind: these three might defeat the Angels themselves. Everything she'd ever witnessed or studied in her life stated that this was impossible. Still, she'd learned not to trust that instinct in recent weeks.

The image of Inosuke staring down at her in the gym, unflinching and bleeding as the dumbbell struck his head, flickered in her mind.

Whatever happened on this day, Nerv, and perhaps all humanity, would adapt to the actions of those three boys.

Tanjiro

"Okay, so we're agreed on the plan?" Tanjiro Kamado hoped his smile wasn't inappropriate for the situation. It was serious, and they might die. He knew that. Still, it was exciting. He'd never been able to coordinate an attack against a foe like this.

"Yep," Inosuke unsheathed his serrated blades. "Let's do this."

"Alright, Zenitsu?"

He expected his friend to scream. This was the moment where Zenitsu was supposed to yell about how foolish and crazy it was. Instead, Zenitsu sighed. "Tanjiro, promise me you won't get yourself killed. Please don't die trying to save a Japan that isn't even ours."

Inosuke spoke an angrier version of Tanjiro's own thoughts. "Do you have shit in your brain? Who cares who's Japan this is or even if it's Japan! We fight monsters to save people. So long as there's a monster to fight or a person to save, that's what we do."

Tanjiro nodded. "That's right."

Zenitsu looked between the two. His eyes rested on Tanjiro's left arm for several seconds before he spoke into the comms unit again. "Um, Ritsuko. I'm gonna put this thing down now. We need to focus on the battle. Just… keep watch, I guess." He knelt and placed the device gingerly on the ground.

Tanjiro looked between the two, then nodded.

Instantly, Tanjiro and Inosuke bounded toward the Angel, Zenitsu close behind. Tanjiro unsheathed his blade. Inosuke jumped forward, "Beast Breathing technique, Sudden Throwing Strike." He threw both of his blades. They shot out faster than arrows from a bow.

A loud crack echoed through the air as the swords bounced off the invisible shield, sending orange ripples across the empty air around where it had struck. Immediately, the Angel responded. It did not detect an enemy, but it knew one was near.

"Flame Breath technique, Dance."

Inosuke snatched his swords from the ground as they clattered. Immediately, he lunged at the still rippling orange lines.

"Beast Breathing, Second Fang, Rip and Tear."

The light of day dimmed, collecting on Tanjiro's black blade. With one hand, Tanjiro raised the sword skyward. Embers began to dance along the metal. Soon, the light erupted into a shimmering crimson flame. With a battle cry, he brought it down.

The blade of refined beauty struck the AT Field. Simultaneously, the harsh swords of the self-trained warrior slashed the invisible shield. With a metallic clang and a shattering crash, orange ripples spread from the points of impact. It felt like the shield was pushing their blade away, yet, they pushed. Like reeds carving through water, the swords chased the ripples they created.

With a deafening crash, they tore through the AT Field.

The universe seemed to heave as the Angel unleashed a fresh attack. The beam shot out to them.

Tanjiro and Inosuke leapt away from each other, dodging the beam.

Rushing beneath the attack, a blink before the ground was ripped asunder, something like a bolt of lightning shot through the destroyed shield. "Thunder Breathing," a cold voice stated. "First Form: thunderclap and flash."

A sword left its sheath as a flash of yellow passed through the celestial drill.

As the electricity hummed, the beam of the Angel's attack halted. The street was still being upturned, the last ripples of the invisible shield were still disappearing, as blood gushed from the drill. Above the cut, the drill continued to turn. All beneath was still.

"Hey!" Tanjiro proclaimed. He stretched his hands apart and allowed fury to enter his soul. This beast would destroy this city, and all who lived in it. Tanjiro Kamado, the slayer of Muzan, proud member of the Demon Slayer Corps., master of Sun Breathing, would slay this beast.

The air pulled and pushed like the tide. A white beam of pure destruction, the spear of an angry god, struck out.

Images flashed.

His heartbeat was a song. His muscles sang as adrenaline coursed through him.

The black sword lifted high as his body spun. "Water Breathing, Whirlpool: Flow." The blue head of a dragon appeared at the tip of his blade as he weaved away from the attack. Tanjiro's body jumped, twisted, and bent as the dragon descended. As the white spear reached the space beside him, a hair's breadth from his cloak, Tanjiro danced. The dragon of water, flying astride the white beam, flew around him, taking the tip of the beam with it.

The great white spear of energy twisted around Tanjiro, encircling him as it followed the arc of the blade. Energy pulsated out from the beam, rattling his bones and making the air itself seem ready to crush him. Though his vision blurred and his muscles numbed, he did not lose focus as his body followed the steps. Despite the agony that spread through his right arm, he continued the dance.

The dragon finished its simple dance. Tanjiro stretched his blade toward the Angel, forcing himself to be still as the pressure enveloped him. The shot out where it was directed. It shot back up to the Angel. As he watched, the redirected beam pierced cleanly through the Angel's centre.

The white spear vanished. Blood flowed from both ends of the wound like geysers. Slowly, the upper part of the drill ceased to move. Slowly, the Angel drifted toward the ground.

As Tanjiro heaved for air, overwhelmed with relief, Inosuke leaped onto the bloody stump of the drill and howled. Zenitsu trembled as he watched the Angel descend. With a smile, Tanjiro sighed in relief as he sat down.

Suddenly, the sun seemed brighter.

He heard the clack of sandals approach him. "You've still got it, Gonpachiro!" Inosuke yelled. "I'm kinda pissed you and Zenitsu did all the flashy stuff, but that felt incredible!"

Tanjiro could hear the smile in his friend's voice. They had won. Besides, there was another important issue on his mind. "Can you tell me where I am now?"

Misato

Out of context, Misato thought, everyone's expressions could have been of horror. Normally stolid employees covered their mouths. Eyes were agape in the desperate confusion that comes with having the world reshaped. A few eyes watered with complex emotions.

This footage might be the defining moment of their history. More than the building of the Evangelion. More than its first successful mission.

"Play it again," she forced her hands to her sides. Her chest felt tight. Her lungs felt restrained. Nothing seemed right. "Everyone," she spoke with more authority than usual, "watch it again."

The footage looped.

A trio of colourful warriors strolled toward the Angel. They talked for a little while. After a shared nod, they charged. In a flash, two of them disabled the AT field, while simultaneously dodging an energy beam that moved nearly as fast as a bullet. The third warrior became severed the Angel's drill-like appendage with a single cut that flashed like lightning. Finally, the newest swordsman redirected a beam of energy which he provoked.

The actual attack lasted fewer than fifteen seconds. Misato imagined that analysts would be unpacking this footage for years.

"Did…" one of them spoke. "Did his sword change colour?"

"Nope." One of the others crossed his arms and shook his head violently. "Nope. Impossible. There was no wave. There was no dragon."

Several employees turned to him and said a dozen variants of "You saw it, too?"

Misato's thoughts turned to her roommate. The fate of the world had been put on the shoulders of Rei and Shinji. Now… she didn't know. Nothing made sense. Shinji would wake up soon. The Angel was defeated. The results were mainly positive. Yet, she felt no comfort as she stared at the three swordsmen.

What were they?

She stared at the screen, fists clenched. There must be something to say in this situation. All those under her command needed something to latch onto. The fact that these three were from another universe just became real in a tangible, undeniable way. Captain Katsuragi needed to ground these people again. Yet, her mind was blank. All she had were questions and an overwhelming sense of shock.

"Well, then everyone," she said, injecting some cheerfulness into her voice that she hoped didn't sound too forced. "Let's prepare to greet our heroes, shall we?"

Tanjiro

Tanjiro wasn't certain he'd ever seen Zenitsu stay serious for so long. At least, he'd never been this quiet after a battle. Rather than the usual screams of "I could have died!" or "That was too close!", he clung to Tanjiro's side as he tried to explain the situation.

"So…" Tanjiro said, staring at the remains of the Angel, which had crashed into a large building. "This is Japan. Just… not our Japan."

"Yes."

"That part can wait," Inosuke said. "You should be ready for when you step into Nerv."

"Nerv?" Tanjiro asked.

Zenitsu sighed. "We actually agree here. There's no real way to explain it. People in this Japan don't feel or hear things like we do. Nerv, the organization that's fighting the Angels, is… sick. There's something rotten in their headquarters. Most of the people don't seem to know it, though." Suddenly, Zenitsu stopped walking. "Actually, this might be a really good chance."

"For what?" the other two asked in unison.

Zenitsu stepped forward. "Everyone is going to want to ask Tanjiro a lot of questions. You're new. You dealt the killing blow to the Angel. I can keep the attention on the two of us. While Nerv people are focusing on us, Inosuke can try to explore the depths of Nerv."

"You think I haven't tried before? There are heavy metal doors blocking off all the interesting areas."

"You only tried using the doors? What about the vents?"

Inosuke tilted his head. "Vents?"

"Yeah, listen."

Tanjiro didn't even pretend to follow the conversation. More and more, he was confused. The simple desire to go home now seemed like a fantasy. The imperative to kill monsters remained straightforward enough, as did the goal of helping people. Now, though, the way his friends talked, he was unsure if this Nerv group was their ally.

The blond warrior talked and talked all the way to the main gate of Nerv, his volume and gestures becoming wilder as he spoke.

Eventually, they made it to Nerv HQ.

Tanjiro was floored by the staircase that moved on its own. He was laughing and marvelling at this technology as the first smells hit. Gasping, he covered his nose. Inosuke shook his head. "Just let it happen. It only gets worse as you get deeper."

"Hey," Zenitsu said. "That's too harsh."

Tanjiro tried to release his nose and breath the air, but the stench struck him. Something tightened in his chest. It all came to him. Blood and rust, gore and metal. As the stairs brought him down, he sensed the hope, terror, and determination of a thousand people. He sensed guilt and fear. Several things that smelled almost human formed the outline of the scent.

His stomach clenched. He forced a hand over his mouth as bile rose within his throat.

"We've got a crowd," Inosuke said a few steps below.

"Sounds like cheering," Zenitsu added. "It'll be nice to get real fanfare for once." He smiled and crossed his arms. "I think this is the first battle we've had where all of us came out uninjured."

They descended. A sea of people appeared. Uniforms of all sorts were gathered to meet them in cheers. Yet, some of the applause seemed forced. There was confusion, maybe even fear, behind some of the shouts. A couple hesitated as Tanjiro's eye and arm became visible.

As the three reached the bottom, a man stepped forth from the crowd. Tanjiro's body became like ice as his senses focused on this stranger. "Welcome to Nerv," he said with a dry voice. The eyes behind the orange-tinted glasses were enigmatic, almost dead. The man offered a white-gloved hand. "My name is Gendo Ikari. On behalf of Nerv, thank you for your cooperation."

Trembling and silent, Tanjiro reached up for the hand.

As he touched the glove, Tanjiro felt as if he were reading him. The stench was overpowering. Grief, arrogance, ambition, evil, and callousness mixed together. To Tanjiro, it was like some of the more tragic demons.

For the first time, he felt that the world would be better if a normal human were not in it.

Zenitsu gave Tanjiro a gentle prod on the back. "My friend's got a lot of questions. Maybe we can let him now what's going on?"

"Of course," Gendo gestured toward the crowd, where a blond woman in a lab coat stepped forward. "Please, follow me."

Tanjiro moved to comply. As he did, Zenitsu whispered, "Only trust the woman with the purple hair."

Inosuke

"How was I supposed to know about vents?" the warrior grumbled as he crawled. "What kind of warrior crawls around inside a building like this? Why would anyone even try? This is stupid. It's like I'm stuck in the building's veins." He stopped crawling. "Oh, I like that. I'm a drop of poison flowing through Nerv's veins. That's cool. I can do that."

The vents turned at harsh angles, often narrowing until most people would not fit through them. The ever-flexible Inosuke slunk through this without much trouble. Though he needed dislocate his shoulders at some junctures, he found little trouble his instincts. He knew there was something wrong in the building, so he went toward the place that felt most wrong.

It still shocked him that he'd been able to sneak away so easily. All he'd had to do was ask about Shinji. They'd let him move toward the medical ward without worry. The kid was still unconscious, apparently. The boar-headed warrior felt bad for him, but right now, the search was more important. They needed to know more about Nerv.

So, he traversed the narrow vents.

"They took all the good attacks," Inosuke mused. His role in the battle had still been important, but there was a strange dissatisfaction in it. If he hadn't thrown his swords, they would never have known the location of the invisible shield. He'd even helped tear down that shield. So, why didn't it feel like enough? There'd been an intense rush when he leapt away from the attack. The short attack felt too short.

"It's good we defeated it quickly," he muttered. A quick defeat means fewer deaths. Less destruction is good. All of this is a good thing.

Why didn't he feel content?

Eventually, the vents narrowed until they were too small for him to enter. This happened as he felt the 'wrongness' most intensely. There was a room nearby. Red light was coming through. If he forced his head sideways, he could barely seen a small grate as tall as an envelope. He could see nothing except an orange light from beyond it.

Part of him wanted to bash the vent until he could break his way into the room. Unfortunately, he didn't know how long that would take, or if he'd accidentally kill someone in the process. Maybe the glow was more of that LCL stuff, and he'd drown because he broken open a pool of the stuff.

"Dammit."

There wasn't enough room to grab his swords. Still, this vent was designed to help air flow.

"Breath of the Beast," he said. "Seventh Form, Spatial Awareness."

His skin seemed to merge with the metal. The air that flowed from the room moved through the small vent. The room was empty. Nothing disturbed the air. There was something in there, but not a person. It was as if something was in the walls. He could not tell what it was.

"Dammit!"

He began moving backwards. As he approached an intersection turn, he went a new direction. Soon, the vent sharply curved down. He poked his head over the edge and focused. There was something faint down there, but he could not tell what.

Some small voice within him warned that this could be a trap. Something irreversible may happen if he went down this way. The thought held no sway. To his mind, Inosuke had come too far to return with nothing. He fell over the edge, carefully climbing down with his hands and feet on either side of the vent.

As he descended, he found a grate to one side. Looking through it, he saw a long, square, vertical drop. He punched open the grate and poked his torso into the space. After a few moments, he understood. "The elevator isn't a portal…" he mused. It must have been raised and lowered in vertical halls like this.

Looking up, he realized how far he'd descended into Nerv. A look to the other direction showed that the bottom was close. He hoped so, at least. He climbed out and, using the patterns in the metal, descended to the bottom. Once there, with only a little open space below it, was a set of elevator doors.

Curiosity was stronger than all else. Inosuke lifted his swords, drove them into the space between them, and pulled them open.

He entered an impossibly large room. A polished white floor was surrounded by a lake of red. That didn't matter. Inosuke's skin crawled. Every instinct and impulse told him to flee, but he denied them. Fury, confusion, and fear rose up within him.

"Liars…" he seethed.

At the far end of the room, a white giant was pinned to a cross. His legs ended in hideous stumps. Nails were in his wrists. A mask of many eyes covered his face. A huge lance was driven into its chest. The flesh wasn't reacting right. It stretched oddly around the nails and the lance.

Inosuke approached it, gripping his swords. His first thought was this this was an Angel. Why did Nerv have one like this? How old was it? Why was it here?

Was it connected to the Evas? If so, how?

A nagging feeling pulled at him. His steps halted. His next realization only made him more confused, "It's not dead."

Shinji

Slowly, the Third Child's eyes opened. The hospital room was empty.

His chest ached. Right where Unit-01 had taken the brunt of the Angel's blast, he felt a burning ache. His chest seemed hollow. The leftover pain on the outside seemed to highlight the emptiness within. Every time he stepped into the Eva, he felt worse after.

He felt like a lie. His body was a lie. He was just skin thrown over empty air. He didn't really exist. He was fooling all of them. Shinji Ikari didn't exist, but they kept forcing him to fight. To enter the Eva. To drown in the LCL fluid and be reborn in the womb of the entry plug.

He hated it. It hurt.

A pitchless, formless screaming filled his mind, but he felt nothing. He wanted to feel something, anything. Desperately, he wanted some emotion to rise from within him. He tried, but there was nothing. Even the fear and anger from this lack of feeling was empty; it was perfunctory.

What was real was the desperation. He needed something. Whatever he felt next, whether it be joy, sorrow, or rage, he would wallow in it as if it'd be the last emotion he'd ever experience.

Eventually, Rei Ayanami entered the room, pushing a food cart. "You're awake," she said.

"Yeah," he said quickly. "What's happening with the Angel?"

"It was defeated by Inosuke, Zenitsu, and the third swordsman."

"There's a third now? Wait, the Angel's defeated?" He wasn't sure what he felt as he asked the question.

"Yes. They destroyed its core."

Shinji stared. "So… I really didn't need to get in the Eva."

Rei said nothing.

Shinji continued, "So, if they can kill the Angels, does that mean I don't need to pilot Unit-01 anymore?"

Rei showed no emotion as she replied. "That's short-sighted. They're trying to leave. Also, we don't know what abilities the next Angels may hold. They may not be able to battle the next."

Shinji blinked. "Oh…"

She turned and left. "Be sure to eat. Dr. Akagi wants to resume Evangelion tests as soon as your recovered."

Shinji didn't answer.