Thank you for taking the time to read my first fic; this will mostly be the same story with a wildly different Shinji and some universe changes. I primarily want to focus on Shinji's PTSD and how he and other characters handle it, and how it affects the story.

The noteworthy changes so far are as follows:

Shinji and his fellow pilots are 16, The second impact happened in 1998, and the incident that "killed" Yui Ikari happened in Germany.

Shinji Ikari escaped the shells, rockets, and bullets that threatened his life daily. Despite receiving a summon from his father, which allows him to escape the fighting he was thrust into, he'll never be free of the screaming of rockets and men.

As the loud VTOL took 16-year-old Shinji Ikari out of the ruins of Belarus, he tried to sleep. Per the norm, when he slept, he thought of how he managed to get himself here.

2004.

At five years old, Shinji witnesses the supposed death of his mother; a little less than a year later, his father, unable to stand the sight of him, sends him as far away as possible. Gendo Ikari leaves his son in Germany while returning to Gerhin-Japan. Shinji, taken in by the EU foster care service, moves around the continent.

2012.

Now thirteen, Shinji is being moved to Russia after his most recent family gives him back. During a crossing through Belarus, and caught in the crossfire of the raging conflict left over after the Valentine treaty. Being taken in by a young Лейтэнант (Lieutenant), who does his best to care for the boy and school him, training being priority one.

2012-2015

The men of Русінская свабода (Ruthenian Freedom Force) accepted him as one of their own, the boy finally having a sense of family. Of course, being in a warzone, he saw combat; he watched the death of comrades; and did some killing himself, something Shinji wished he could forget. He receives a letter from his father, containing only "Come.", along with a NERV ID and instructions to wait for transportation to NERV-Russia; where he would rendezvous with Captain Katsuragi.

Initially, Shinji was infuriated, refusing to go, but his Лейтэнант ordered him to, as he didn't want to see him fighting anymore. So here he was, sitting inside a noisy NERV VTOL between sleep and awareness.

Two hours earlier, NERV-Russia.

Misato Katsuragi stepped off the VTOL that had just arrived at the NERV base just outside the ruins of old Moscow, dressed in a heavy red coat with a beret to match. Her purple head of hair is put into a bun as it is a windy day, different from the forever summers of Japan. The winter wear is finished with a nice pair of snow goggles and black snow boots to go with her black dress pants.

"Captain!" A guard yelled before saluting along with three others of similar rank and disposition, wearing heavy grey coats and black ushankas embroidered with NERV insignia. "At ease," Misato replied. 'Very formal; these Russians. Bit of a bore, but I shouldn't be here for more than a day at most.' "What's the status of the retrieval mission to acquire the third child?"

The guards stood at parade rest, the lead answering swiftly. "The VTOL took off as soon as you arrived, ETA two hours. Approximately 30 minutes until they have the child, and another two-hour flight back." The soldier responded. "Affirmative. Now, let's head inside; it's freezing!" She started to go for a more casual attitude, hoping it might rub off on the guards. The men nodded and led her inside.

Compared to NERV HQ back in Tokyo-3, the place was cramped; little more than a barracks, laboratory, cafeteria, and landing zone. 'At least it's warmer in here..' Misato thought, cursing the Commander for sending her out here. She attempted to get comfortable and make some conversation with the staff, but most didn't speak a lick of Japanese. "Great.." she mumbled to herself.

While waiting, she was able to """ tactically acquire """ some Russian vodka, quietly celebrating her little score by exploring the base. 'Not much to look at..' she thought as she looked at the grey metal walls with scratched-up insignia. She sighed and resigned to her boredom, distracting herself with the primitive preinstalled games on her phone.

Two hours later, somewhere in the ruins of Minsk.

Shinji began packing the small number of things he could call 'his'; after getting a lucky shower, removing the smell of death and debris, if only temporarily. He grabbed a picture he had taken with his unit nearly three years ago, a GoPro with some footage on it, his SDAT player; the stock of batteries for it had run out a year ago, a holster, a Makarov pistol, and the few clothes he had. He stuffed all of it into a large backpack and stepped into the main barracks.

"Are you ready to leave?" his Лейтэнант asked with his rough and deep voice, his care for Shinji evident in his voice. "I don't think I ever will be." He answered truthfully. "You need to do this. A place like this isn't fit for you; if I could've gotten you out sooner I would've." The Лейтэнант said, his voice having a tinge of sadness. "I know... you're family. You understand." The Лейтэнант pulled him into a bear hug, his thick brown beard brushing against Shinji's neck.

"You were always a good kid... your tender heart never should've been put in this situation." Shinji held back tears as he hugged him back. He was his father, not Gendo. They held each other for a while before the Лейтэнант spoke up. "Do you have your vest on? I'm not letting you die so close to escaping this hellhole." Shinji only nodded.

The Лейтэнант let go of him; as Shinji and his comrades- no, his family, exchanged goodbyes. The VTOL finally landed outside, allowing him to run to it.

Two Hours later, NERV-Russia.

The VTOL's crew chief nudged the barely conscious boy back to full awareness, who began looking around while rubbing his eyes after being startled half to death. 'This is it then; no going back now.' he thought.

The VTOL powered off as he stepped off; in front of him was Captain Katsuragi. Even with her rather conservative outfit, caused by the weather, she was undeniably gorgeous. A shade of pink painted his cheeks as he stood at attention and saluted. "Captain!"

"At ease," she looked him up and down, taking note of his weird mix of various European accents; he was wearing some worn greyish urban camo "uniform" that was a bit too large for him, with a green combat vest with a Makarov holstered on his left side. He shivered in the cold, clearly underdressed. "So you're Shinji Ikari?" she asked with a slightly playful tone 'He looks adorable in that uniform!'

"Yes, Captain!" He answered back. She frowned a little. "Please, call me Misato." He nodded toward her, giving her a small smile. "We better be going soon; your father expects us tomorrow." He nodded, his smile disappearing at the mention of his father.

He followed her to a landing pad at the other side of the base; the VTOL parked there clearly was in much better condition than the one he arrived in.

Shinji stepped inside, offering his hand to help Misato inside. She accepted and smirked at him. "My, My. What a gentleman." She teased. His face went red as he looked away, quickly taking his seat.

"We've got a long flight ahead of us Shinji-Kun; I hope you're ready to spend some quality time." She teased again, causing more blush on the young man's face.