From the author: Shinji travels through Unit 01's core. Can't be that awkward right ?
don't own Neon Genesis Evangelion and Akira
Neon Genesis Evangelion belongs to Studio GAINAX and Hideaki Anno
Akira belongs to Kōdansha and Katsuhiro Ōtomo
"this" is speech
'this' is thought
NEON GENESIS EVANGELION HIGHWAY STAR : THE BALLAD OF SHINJI IKARI
Chapter: Leliel part 2
"Hello? Hello?"-Shinji continued to scream into the white abyss that was surrounding him for the last several hours, he didn't know if it was hours or minutes. 'Goddamn, either this is my personal hell and the world has ended. Or I'm the world's first necronaut and somehow tapped into death, well, best I can do is to walk'-he thought as he began to walk, and walk, and walk before lighting up another cigarette before nonchalantly beginning to whistle. And it continued for a while before he felt his face hit something. As Shinji looked at his blockade his confusement only continued to grow, an invisible wall blocking his way from going further
"Really?! At least allow me to go further!"-Shinji screamed as he took out both of his pistols and began to shoot at the wall. Of course it didn't do anything as Shinji was growing more and more annoyed
"Damn it !"-he screamed before slowly descending to the ground feeling completely hopeless
"You know that shooting at the wall won't help you right?"-A voice called out as Shinji turned around before his face went pale before grabbing another cigarette and igniting it. The figure only snatched the freshly ignited Marlboro before stomping on it
"STOP SMOKING! You know how hard it is to LCL-purify lungs?! My liar should've kept checking your pockets!"-the figure said as Shinji realised who was standing in front of him. It was his mother. Yui Ikari, who was dead for the last 11 years, was looking at him disappointed. Shinji only could look in shame before he finally managed to stutter something out of himself
"M-Mom? Or am I just seeing things?"-Shinji asked as Yui smiled at her son before caressing his scarred cheek
"Shinji, what has this world done to you? You were the softest boy on the planet"-Yui said, hugging her son as Shinji felt something that was buried deep within himself ignite to life. For the first time in many years a feeling that didn't revolve around either killing, saving yourself or being cruel for the sake of pettiness itself. It reminded him kinda of Asuka. But it was different. It was probably the first time that Shinji felt safe in years
"It made me stronger, hell we could argue that it prepared me for this whole war"-Shinji said as Yui sighed
"It was supposed to be your father! Not some hobos from the street that put you in danger! Fine Bosozoku is one thing but telling you about a conspiracy that could get you killed!"-Yui exclaimed as Shinji frowned
"They are like a family to me, well most of them. But don't call them hobos. We all had to survive"-Shinji said as Yui continued to be annoyed
"YOU WEREN'T SUPPOSED TO!"-Yui exclaimed as the whole abyss began to shake with Shinji holding barely onto it. 'So she controls it. That's interesting'-he thought as Yui continued to talk
"YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO BE SAFE! I SPECIFICALLY TOLD YOUR FATHER TO TAKE CARE OF YOU IF ANYTHING HAPPENED TO ME! AND MY BROTHER SHOULD'VE KNEW THAT INSTEAD OF TURNING YOU INTO THIS! YOU WERE ONLY SIX!''-Yui exclaimed as the whole abyss changed into an alleyway in Neogoya. And Shinji realised what she meant to show him. He turned around to see his uncle Katsuhiro Ikari and the six year old Shinji walking through an alleyway
"Wait, is that-"-Shinji asked as Yui nodded
"Yes, the first time you took away a life"-Yui said as they continued to watch the scene
"So, a ramen joint for dinner?"-Katsuhiro asked as little 6-year old Shinji nodded
"Yupee! Tantanmen!"-the little boy said as several shadow's in the second part of the alleyway, Katsuhiro immediately showed Shinji to stay behind him as 14-year old Shinji scratched his neck with Yui gripping her hand and trying to calm herself down.
"Good evening Ikari, you know you didn't pleased us during that last drug bust with you and your Kichirou friends"-one of them said as Katsuhiro lit up a cigarette
"And instead of waiting for me to take out trash and stab me in the back you decide to scare a 6-year old boy"-Katsuhiro said before taking out his gun and put a bullet through one of the Yakuza's head
"Shinji hide yourself! And don't come out until i tell you!"-Katsuhiro exclaimed as Shinji hid himself under the nearest trash container
"That irresponsible buffoon, he could've told you to run"-Yui said as 14-year old Shinji knew what would happen in a few seconds. Meanwhile 6-year Shinji continued to crawl under the trash container before a little string of blood emerging from the down Yakuza's head reached Shinji's little hands as the sound of gunfire continued to resonance throughout the alleyway as another Yakuza was downed by Shinji's uncle before he got shot in the arm.
"So Ikari, you downed four of us. At least everyone will know that you put up a good fight"-The man said as 6-year old Shinji noticed the gun that the corpse was holding. Yui only turned away as the little boy grabbed the gun and sneaked up towards the two adults trying to keep himself silent
BANG!
Shinji pulled the trigger as the bullet pierced the man's chest. Shinji continued shooting, emptying the entire magazine before he fell down to the ground. Katsuhiro turned around towards the little Shinji and smiled
"Good job kid"-Katsuhiro said as the whole scene froze with 14-year old Shinji walking towards the man touching the frozen blood spurts from the numerous holes his 6-year old self made
"Wow, looking at the retrospective. I could've put a one single bullet into his head"-Shinji said as he continued to touch the frozen blood with Yui facepalming
"This is the exact thing I'm trying to tell you is wrong! You became cruel, and addicted"-Yui said as Shinji was getting more and more annoyed what should be impossible considering his mother was dead
"Listen, if you only want to talk about how evil I became, just send me back to the living world so I can get rid of the angel. Or at least let's use our time to answer some of the questions"-Shinji said sitting down on the corpse as Yui got confused 'At least he is still smart, and my god i can definitely say i'm proud of him. Chemistry, physics, material engineering, engineering itself. If only he wasn't, himself'-she thought as she sat down
"Im listening"-Yui said as Shinji nodded
"Fine, question number one. How the hell are you here and talking with me instead of hanging out with whoever is running the afterlife. And second, what do you know about SELLE, Third Impact, etcetera etcetera"-Shinji said as Yui raised an eyebrow. 'How can he talk to me with such a nonchalant tone?'
"Ok, but only if you apologize to me for your rude behavior"-Yui said as Shinji frowned
"Let it be damned, I may have been a bit over the top with our conversation. It's just been a long time since I talked with a family member, especially someone like my own mom. So rightfully I'll admit. I am sorry for how rude I have been towards you, ok now can we get through it?"-Shinji asked as Yui nodded before the entire place transformed, turning from an alleyway into some sort of a lab. The corpses also disappeared as someone who looked like a younger version of Fuyutsuki and younger version of Yui stood between them
"This is where it all began? Doesn't really put me closer to the centre of the case does it?"-Shinji asked as Yui sighed willing the whole conversation to begin
"I've read the report. I'm not so sure about a few of the points. But it is an interesting lecture"-Fuyutsuki said as Shinji only raised an eyebrow
"Thank you sir"-younger Yui replied as Shinji then had the occasion to look closely at how his mother looked. And that she looked exactly like Rei
"Yui Ikari if i remember correctly?"-Fuyutsuki asked as Yui nodded
"What do you want to do after college? Work on a regular post? Or perhaps in our lab?"-Fuyustuki continued
"I haven't thought about it so far, but there is always the third option, right? I could also form a family if i find the right person"-Yui said as Shinji gestured for older Yui to pause
"Wait wait wait wait, first of all how the hell could you think that this trash and waste of space of a man would be the right party? I mean you're, or were smart i don't know the terminology. And designed probably the only working variation of an anime mecha in real life with it somehow or presumably not breaking the laws of physics. Got with quoting my uncle a 'street hobo with parental issues' who is also a bastard and worse father than Darkseid"-Shinji asked as his face was fuming before lighting up a cigarette with Yui only letting out yawn. Somehow with her spending time with her delinquent of a son. Even though she knew it was just a rough outside hiding a soft inside. Made her tired for the first time of more than last 11 years since she was absorbed
"Well, if i told you you would see me as a cruel person. Perhaps that's because he had what now you do"-Yui said chuckling as Shinji was growing angry
"In what regard?"-Shinji asked as Yui turned towards him
"A sharp punk with a soft interior who wants to feel loved. And as a scientist in her early 20s, i think i kinda felt the same"-Yui said as Shinji then looked towards Fuyutsuki
"And do you see how this pervert looks at you? He probably thinks what's under that pink shirt and wants to pull down your skirt"-Shinji said as Yui nodded
"And now you realised that? I knew that for years! And it probably helped me a lot"-Yui said as Shinji raised his eyebrow
"And you say I'm cruel?"-Shinji asked as Yui only willed the scene to again transform, this time they were on a mountain road as Shinji with amazement looked at the trees
"Wow, autumn. And it looks so real"-Shinji said touching one of the trees as Yui looked at him sadly
"It looks nice does it? There is more in the world than that new Nagoya you lived in"-Yui said as Shinji turned back to his mom
"Mom, you know that i was literally broke and had to do anything to get a quick buck to buy myself ingredients for dinner and to pay for the bills so i don't die a quick death?"-Shinji asked as Yui kneeled down in front of her son
"You could've just reported yourself to the authorities and gone to an orphanage. I'm sure that Hiei woman would adopt you and take you from that destructive environment. You're skills both physical and intellectual would allow you a scholarship and in the future a good future job"-Yui said as Shinji frowned
"I'll have a good job, only after i'll kick SELLE's ass"-Shinji said as Yui raised an eyebrow
"Racing motorcycles isn't a job. You're broken sense of meaning makes you think that only risking your life makes you feel alive"-Yui said as Shinji frowned at her
"And now you're doing the exact thing your parents did to uncle Katsuhiro, you're cutting down my wings. At least i'm not depended on you both in out of the cockpit"-Shinji said as Yui was also losing patience
"Your grandfather is currently taking part in a world-ending conspiracy! Can you imagine someone like him agreeing on making an embarrassment of himself seeing that his son makes his living as a Grand Prix 500cc racer?!"-Yui exclaimed as Shinji was slowly running out of patience
"Technically it's now called MotoGP. Second, what do you mean a part of a world ending conspiracy? Holy shit he is also a member of SELLE isn't he?"-Shinji asked as Yui didn't do anything but nod. He only facepalmed before pointing towards the younger Yui and Fuyutsuki
"Fine, please just play the video"-Shinji said as Yui agreed and the whole scene begun to play out
"Really?"-Fuyutsuki asked turning around towards younger Yui
"Yes, I'm in a relationship with Rokubungi"-Younger Yui replied as Fuyutsuki continued to walk. Shinji meanwhile couldn't hold back his chuckles
"Its weird, that you get along"-Fuyutsuki replied not even turning back towards his student
"Professor, he is a loving man. Only no one knows about it"-Younger Yui said as Shinji raised his eyebrow
"I would prefer it stayed that way"-Fuyutsuki replied
"Professor, is it bad that i made him meet you?"-Younger Yui asked
"No, I admit that he is an interesting man. But personally i didn't like him"-Fuyutsuki said as everything froze
"So, it still doesn't bring me anywhere closer. Why show me that? Because probably right now my body is deteriorating due to lack of power in the filters?"-Shinji asked as Yui frowned
"Well excuse me from saving you from having to talk with an angel"-Yui said as Shinji then turned around to the horizon
"Maybe you would actually show me the truth? Any semblance of truth?"-Shinji asked as Yui decided to show him the core memory. He would be angry and call her out, but she was ready. Her son would probably find out sooner or later so it would be better to show it herself. The entire scene changed. Now Shinji was standing somewhere in the Geofront thanks to the artificial lake serving as an orientation point. He also noticed a tree and the younger version of Yui and a stroller and Fuyutsuki looking over the horizon
"Wait, is that-"-Shinji was cut off by Yui
"Yep, this is baby you. My only son"-Yui said as it was now that confusement hit Shinji like a truck
"What about Rei? Isn't she my younger sister? Speaking of which, why was this fact such a secret? Nothing is wrong with getting pregnant with a newborn already? Hell Kaneda has a kid"-Shinji said as Yui felt like she was stuck in a dead end, but it wouldn't be the only thing that would shock him so she rolled with it
"Shinji, I'm sorry to tell you this. Rei isn't your sister, at least not in a normal way"-Yui said as Shinji froze letting go of a Marlboro he had in his mouth. Falling down on the ground before vanishing
"What?"-Was the only thing he could say. Yui took a long breath in before beginning to explain
"Rei was created by accident. Your father was so keen on bringing me back, while it was impossible if I didn't want to. Instead he used my DNA and mixed with the second angel Lilith that was residing under the Geofront and probably still resides there. He harvested himself a vessel using my genes and samples of Lilith. As a tool to use to begin the Third Impact"-Yui explained as Shinji sat down on the ground confused. So his sister, that he grow to love and care for so much. Was grown like plant, Yui noticed that and sat beside him
"But I do respect that you agreed on diving into danger for your sister that you just met piloting a death machine that for certain would probably kill you if it weren't for your "skills" ,and me"-Yui said as Shinji frowned in his knees
"Shut up, please just roll the footage"-Shinji said as Yui nodded
"I don't know how much I miss different seasons. According to the scenario in the Dead Sea Scrolls the Third Impact should happen in 10 years or so from now"-Fuyutsuki said as younger Yui played with baby Shinji
"The tragedy is supposed to be stopped by two organizations. SELLE and Gehirn"-Yui replied
"I know that i hold your side, not SELLE's"-Fuyutsuki replied as Shinji slipped a little "simp" from behind his lips
"Breaking this seal will be dangerous professor Fuyutsuki"-Yui replied her focus still kept on little Shinji
"I passed everything to Ikari, this is too much for only one person"-Fuyutsuki said, slightly looking at Yui. And most notably at her breasts. And it was at this moment that Shinji's slight depression was broken as he pointed right at it with Yui nodding
"And you really allowed that old perv to do that? Didn't he see the age difference between you and her?!"-Shinji asked as Yui nodded
"Like i said it was obvious since the beginning"-Yui replied as they continued to watch
"I won't be digging any further into it. They made sure I wouldn't want to. They can also get rid of me without any problem
"We all survived a tragedy. We know how easy it is to end a life prematurely"-Yui said looking onto baby Shinji
"I still don't want to you partake in the test"-Fuyutsuki said as Yui picked up little Shinji
"I was always going with the flow, this is why I joined SELLE. And for Shinji"-Yui said as Shinji blushed with Yui smiling at him as the footage ended
"Excuse me, but how in the right mind killing the entire planet would help me in any way?!"-Shinji got up angry as Yui also got up with a sad expression on her face
"Shinji, just know I did it for you. Wouldn't you want a world where you could be happy?"-Yui asked as Shinji turned his head
"How would I be happy as an orange goo?! I have a good thing right now. I have a girlfriend, I have a sister, I have friends, I have a career starting! The world may be shit but you say it yourself right?! As long as Earth, Sun and Moon exists it will all be fine!?"-Shinji asked as Yui only was giving him a sad look
"I understand that! But it's the whole reason I'm here! They would do it without me anyways! And it's my whole plan! They want it to be a one-way trip! I wanted to only give them a way back if they wanted to!"-Yui exclaimed as it didn't help with her case
"You, how can you say it with a straight face? You selfish bitch! You abandoned me, manipulated everyone, even my old man. You want to cause a tragedy bigger than Hiroshima, Nagasaki, the leap forward, the holocaust and the Second Impact combined! For your stupid sense of godhood you want to pause and destroy everyone's hopes and dreams?! I know Rei will die from it! You make want to puke, i even feel ashamed of being your son!"-Shinji exclaimed as the whole place begun to crumble
"Shinji! Please wait, allow me to explain myself!"-Yui exclaimed as Shinji begun to vanish
"You have nothing to explain to me. You've said enough, and after I win I'll make sure Unit 01 will be scrapped with you inside"-Shinji said as Yui tried to hug her son before he vanished. Unbeknownst to him she took control of Unit 01 to get him out as he wanted. There was no reason in keeping him here against his own will. But Yui still felt hurt and sat down in the middle of the abyss. Alone once again, her baby boy now didn't want to even breathe the same air as she would if she was alive.
"Shinji, don't leave alone, please don't go"-Yui sobbed as she willed a little infant Shinji to appear in her arms giggling. But Yui simply continued to cry, for the first time in 11 year
A/N: Yep, still not done with the angel! Next time will see what the others were doing while Shinji was on his integration trip with his mom