Chapter 44 - Tell Us About Rei!
Misato stared at the screen showing an overhead view of Lake Ashi, now somewhat larger in size. Unit-00's detonation had gouged a massive hole out of the earth, while the shockwave had devastated a good chunk of Tokyo-3. The civilian population had already started questioning NERV's ability to actually protect the city after the Fourteenth Angel had blown a massive hole right in the middle of it. Now people were starting to flee the city in droves for Tokyo-2. The Japanese government had had some... comments about the sudden influx of what amounted to refugees in their own country.
The pilots' friends and their families were among those that had opted to leave, which had only worsened Asuka's mood since she had to say goodbye to the Horaki girl. After some pointed words from the patriarch of the Suzuhara family, Hisae had been quickly evaluated and deemed recovered enough to no longer need the advanced facilities of NERV. After some more words, NERV had ensured a place for her in one of Tokyo-2's hospitals and would cover the bill for the rest of her treatments.
Misato had, with great reluctance, asked Asuka to request that Horaki take Pen-pen with her, and thankfully she had agreed. Things were just going to be too hectic now for Misato to have the time to go back home and feed him. Even if Pen-pen could somewhat look after himself if there was food he could access, it just wasn't fair for him to be left home alone. Genetically engineered though he might be, penguins were still social creatures.
Hisae had been rather... happy to learn that Hikari would be looking after Pen-pen, despite having never met him before.
For the nth time Misato raised a hand to her forehead to try and rub the ache away to no avail. To top everything off she had a splitting headache, she was sweating despite NERV's climate control, and her hands were shaking. The withdrawal was starting to hit her hard, but she couldn't let herself slip back into old habits. Something was rotten in NERV, and she needed to find out what was going on.
She tapped on the keyboard, banishing the sight of one of her charge's deaths with a low sigh, and continued digging. An hour later, she pulled Kaji's flash drive out of the computer, dropped it in an inner pocket of her jacket, and left the room without bothering to see if the corridor was empty. If there was someone out there, it would be far less suspicious to simply act as if she belonged here.
Misato got into an elevator and checked her watch. She glanced at the buttons, then back at her watch again, before making a decision on where to go next.
Perhaps what she really needed to do right now was have a chat with someone.
XXX
The steady beeping of the heart monitor did little to ease Asuka's concerns. Even a day later, Shinji's body was still suffering the effects of the Angel's attempt to... infest him? It was impossible to tell at the moment, but after being swiftly moved to quarantine after recovery from Unit-02, he had just as quickly been declared 'clean' and moved to the hospital room where Asuka was now sitting by his bed. And wondering why she couldn't bring herself to leave the room apart from dealing with her body's needs.
Oh, wait. It was because she was missing the synchronisation.
The veins on Shinji's body were still bulging like a steroid-abusing athlete across his entire body apart from his face. Shinji would very slightly twitch on occasion, a possible sign of nerve damage. Each time it happened Asuka would think he was about to wake up, only to be disappointed. There was apparently nothing the doctors could do besides wait and see if his body returned to normal.
A knock at the door, followed by the sound of it opening, caught part of Asuka's attention. Thinking that it was just a doctor or nurse, she paid it no mind until she felt a hand on her shoulder.
"Hope you're not planning on doing the same thing Shinji did for you."
Asuka snorted, looking up to the source of the voice. "No, Misato. I just don't have anything better I feel like doing right now."
Misato grinned weakly at her. "Just making sure. You two do have that synchronisation thing."
"Yeah, well, nothing's happening on that front right now, I can guarantee it," Asuka stonily replied.
The expression on Misato's face faded back to seriousness. "Asuka, I know we've already been through the debriefing but just between us... are you alright? Nothing happened to you during the fight?"
"No. I didn't even feel anything when the Angel pierced Unit-02's chest." Apart from shock at what was happening to Shinji. "And like I said, while Shinji was incapacitated it felt like I was at less than half my usual sync rate when I tried to move my Eva."
"Which Ritsuko said was likely due to interference from the Angel," said Misato. She sighed, rubbing a hand over her face. "These last few Angels have been really testing our ability to bounce back afterwards."
Asuka scowled and turned back to look at Shinji, muttering a curse under her breath. "That's an understatement. We've-" She stopped, quickly rubbing at her eyes. "We've just lost Wond- I mean Rei, and we'll probably lose Aida very soon. Even if you could bring another pilot in, we only have two Evas and one of them only accepts Shinji and myself."
Several tense seconds passed before Misato glumly replied, "...I'm sorry, but I don't really know what to say."
"Say that she'll be remembered," Asuka retorted. "Say that her death won't be in vain. Say that you're doing everything you can to find out just what the absolute fuck is going on in NERV!"
"I am doing what I can," said Misato. "In fact I came here right after... well actually I think we better pause this topic before we get overheard."
Asuka glanced at Misato out of the corner of her eye for a moment, before turning to face her fully. She noticed there was a fine sheen of sweat on her guardian's face. Didn't Rei mention something about sweating as a possible symptom of quitting drinking cold turkey? "Fine," she said. "What else do you want to talk about?"
"Well... recently I've been really noticing how the two of you have been acting." Misato gestured at Shinji. "For instance, that wedding I went to earlier this year? You two remind me so much of those newlyweds. And hell, when I went into your apartment he was brushing your hair. That's a very close thing."
Asuka flushed slightly and her gaze darted to the side. "My hair was a mess, and we'd just worked out how to restore our synchronisation."
"Perhaps, but-" Misato stopped and looked at her watch. "Damn, gotta head back to my office. Okay... I have one question for you, and I want you to think on it." She walked over to the door and opened it, turning to look back at Asuka. "At this point in your relationship, if something were to happen to either of you, will there be any difference at all if you decide to go ahead and make things official?"
The door closed, but Asuka barely noticed as the question flooded her mind while she stared at the boy in the bed.
"...Damnit," she muttered, after an unknown amount of time had passed, and got to her feet. She stood next to the bed and slowly took one of Shinji's hands into her own. Without the synchronisation, the action didn't feel quite the same, but she felt like she had to do it anyway. "You damn well better wake up soon, Shinji. We need to get through this... together."
Asuka leaned down, and gently pressed her lips to Shinji's forehead. For a moment she thought she felt something, but soon dismissed it as a figment of her imagination. Her stomach chose that moment to grumble, reminding her that she hadn't eaten in a while. She reluctantly let go of Shinji's hand, and headed out of the room.
In the corridor, Asuka just barely caught sight of Misato and Doctor Akagi walking off together. Something about the way they were moving caught her attention. Setting aside her hunger for the moment, she headed off after them.
XXX
Misato looked back at the closed door. All she could do now was hope that her words had kicked something loose in Asuka's mind; that the poor young girl would finally grab onto that chance for happiness. She turned to leave... only to immediately stop in her tracks because of somebody standing in her way.
"Misato," said Ritsuko by way of greeting.
"...Rits," Misato replied with a slight tilt of her head.
"You could at least give some indication of where you are when you're not in your office, instead of dropping off the grid for an hour."
Misato blinked, then realisation dawned. "Oh. Right." She pulled out her phone and turned it back on. "Damnit, can't believe I forgot about that. Oh well, at least we have a P.A. system."
Ritsuko sighed and palmed her face. "That's not the point-... whatever. I've been looking for you because something's happened that I need to talk to you about."
"...What kind of 'something'?" asked Misato, eyes already starting to narrow in suspicion.
"The kind that's easiest to just show you. Follow me."
Without waiting to see if Misato would follow, Ritsuko turned and headed off down the corridor at a fast walk. Misato quickly hurried after her, trying to work out if she had already been caught snooping. Strangely, Ritsuko didn't even leave the medical ward. She simply turned a couple of corners, heading into the intensive care wing, then stopped outside just another door into a hospital room. The odds werenow fairly good that this wasn't about what she had been doing.
Misato stopped at the door, frowning at Ritsuko even as her friend gestured for her to enter first. She hesitantly opened the door and stepped in, steeling herself for whatever was to come. Yet, as it turned out, nothing could have prepared her for what was in the room.
A blue-haired girl lay in bed, with most of her face bandaged. A girl that Misato was sure had just recently sacrificed herself to save her friends. She rounded on Ritsuko, who was still standing out in the corridor. "What the hell?!"
"She just barely survived," said Ritsuko. "The entry plug ejected at the absolute last second and-"
"Cut the bullshit!" Misato shouted. "Don't try and tell me Ayanami survived her Eva exploding! What happened to those things being able to survive N2 mines when the pilots would still die?! Is this just a mannequin? Or perhaps you convinced someone to dress up like her?"
Ritsuko stared at her for a long time. Just as Misato was about to push past her and storm off, she sighed and put a hand to her forehead. "I knew this wasn't going to slip by you," she said. "Even distracted as you are with other things, and dealing with withdrawal, you're too sharp for this."
"...What are you saying?" Misato slowly asked.
"I'm saying that you're right." Ritsuko stepped into the room and closed the door, then stared at the girl on the bed. "If you want to get technical, this isn't the Rei Ayanami from a few days ago." Before Misato could speak up, Ritsuko turned her head towards her. "And I know you; you won't just let this rest."
"You're goddamn right I won't!" Misato retorted. "I want some answers!"
"Before that, I need you to calm down," Ritsuko stolidly replied. "I know aggression is a symptom of alcohol withdrawal but this is uncalled for."
"What?" Misato blinked several times, then realised that she and Ritsuko were face to face. And she was holding her friend by the collar. She quickly let go and backed away a few steps. "...Oh. Er... sorry?" Damnit. The withdrawal had to really be getting to her if she was lashing out without even being aware of it.
Ritsuko gave her the slightest of smirks as she readjusted her collar. "I'll let it slide for now, since I know you've got a lot on your mind. It's just a shame I'll soon be adding to that."
"Just what the hell are you talking about?"
Ritsuko shook her head, then gestured towards the door. "Honestly, it would be far easier to just show you. Come with me; we're going for a walk."
Misato raised an eyebrow as Ritsuko once again quickly took off. This time however, they ended up at the elevator. When they stepped inside, Ritsuko pressed one of the lowest floor buttons, not all that far away from the one Misato had used to follow Kaji back when she'd discovered what was lurking in NERV's basement. As the door began to close, Misato thought she caught a flash of familiar red.
The descent was uncomfortably long; Misato knew Ritsuko wouldn't bother answering any questions yet, so the journey was made in silence. After what felt like an eternity, the elevator finally came to a halt and Ritsuko stepped out into a corridor illuminated by weak lighting, putting a hand into her labcoat's pocket. Already suspicious, Misato was slower to follow. Just before she exited the elevator, she quickly pressed a couple of buttons on the panel and stepped out just as the doors were about to close on her.
"So have I been brought down here to make it easier to hide my body?" Misato joked, making a show of pausing and looking around. The corridor was short, with a rather plain-looking security door not far away from the elevator
Ritsuko snorted and turned to face her. "Well I'm not planning anything of the sort," she remarked. "I rather like having my best friend still among the living, even if you're making my job harder."
"Sorry, but there's too much going on that directly affects me and-" Misato cut herself off before she could accidentally reveal too much. "...and I'm not just going to do nothing," she carefully continued.
Ritsuko at least had the decency to look sad. "Yeah... I know. I kinda miss him too, even if he was a womanising asshole at times. I really hate to say it, but it was almost a guarantee that he'd die, considering what he was doing."
Misato didn't want to comment on it; she was having a hard enough time trying to keep her mind on what she needed to do while her mind insisted on recalling every tiny detail about Ryoji Kaji. "Well anyway... let's just keep going."
"In a bit," said Ritsuko, taking her hand out of her pocket and bringing with it her tablet. "We just need to wait for the elevator to come back down with the last member of our little expedition."
"What?" Instantly on the alert, Misato took a step back and to the side to keep both her friend and the elevator in view.
"Despite all the time you spent with Kaji, you apparently didn't pick up any of his subtlety." Ritsuko waved the tablet. "Access down this far is restricted and monitored. I knew the moment you pressed that button."
"...So then you know who's coming down here," said Misato.
"Actually, I felt like being surprised by who you planned to bring down here. I'll find out when the door opens." Ritsuko leaned against the wall of the corridor. "So let's wait."
More minutes passed. Ritsuko seemed content to just stay where she was, staring at the panel showing the elevator descending through the floors, while Misato was on edge, headache steadily pulsing away inside her skull. The flash drive in her jacket pocket felt like it was burning a hole straight through the lining.
The elevator dinged, and the doors opened. Misato looked over to see that the elevator car was empty... seemingly. Ritsuko sighed. "Come on out, we know you're in there."
Hesitantly, a certain young redhead poked her head around the corner from where she had likely been hoping to hide. Seeing the two women staring back at her, she glared at them as if it was their fault, then stomped over to them.
"...I can't say I was expecting you," Ritsuko remarked. She glanced questioningly at Misato.
"Rei was their friend and fellow pilot, she deserves to know as well." said Misato, giving Ritsuko a look that dared her to find some issue with her explanation.
Surprisingly, Ritsuko simply shrugged. "Fine with me. She should at least understand the concept of operational security."
"Misato? Doctor?" Asuka folded her arms and alternated her gaze between them. "Mind telling me what's happening?"
"As I said to Misato, it'll be easier just to show you," replied Ritsuko. She took one step down the corridor then stopped, glancing over her shoulder. "Last chance to head back. I can easily arrange things so this never happened." Misato and Asuka looked at each other for a moment, then back at her. Neither made a move towards the elevator. Ritsuko shrugged again. "Just making sure. There's no going back after this."
The three of them headed towards the door, which quietly opened when Doctor Akagi waved her tablet at the panel next to it. The room on the other side of the door was almost pitch black, with only a control panel and some kind of tube visible from the corridor. Doctor Akagi strode into the room, with Misato on her heels; Asuka, on the other hand, proceeded much more cautiously.
"Misato, you wanted to know what the deal with Rei is," said Doctor Akagi as she reached the control panel. She held a hand over a button. "You, and you as well Pilot Soryu, most likely have been wondering for some time why she is how she is."
"Wait, this is about Rei?" Asuka interjected.
Misato nodded grimly. "My dear friend Ritsuko here told me that she managed to survive her Eva self-destructing."
"Rei's alive?!" Relief filled Asuka's chest, but it was quickly tempered by a single burning question. "...How?!"
"Well Ritsuko started off explaining that to me by trying to lie directly to my face," Misato replied, side-eyeing Doctor Akagi. "I, of course, called bullshit on that, and now we're here."
"And for what it's worth," said Doctor Akagi. "I'm sorry for what you're about to see." She pressed the button, light flooded the room, and Misato and Asuka were stunned into complete silence as they beheld the sight before them.
A massive aquarium tank, like something from a zoo, occupied half of the room. It was filled with what looked to be LCL, and swimming around inside the tank were dozens of naked young girls. Asuka slapped a hand over her mouth in horror when she realised who they resembled.
Each and every one of them was the spitting image of Rei.
"W-what the hell is this?!" Asuka shouted, reverting to German in pure shock.
"Ritsuko! What have you- what is NERV doing?!" exclaimed Misato, one hand reaching under her jacket.
Doctor Akagi didn't respond for a long time, staring at the tank full of Rei clones. They appeared mindlessly happy, smiling as they idly swam or floated through the LCL; even bumping into each other didn't appear to register to them at all.
"This... is the truth of Rei Ayanami," she finally said, not turning around. "Just one clone among many, replaceable at any time. The only difference between these ones and the one upstairs... is that these ones are soulless. The Ayanami that you knew was the one that had a soul, up until she sacrificed herself. Then the soul drifted back down here, where it was placed into another shell. We prepared the new host, bandaged it up, and sent it to the medical ward to try and keep the charade going."
"But why?" Misato pressed. "Why do these clones exist?!"
"Disposable Eva pilots," Asuka spat. "I remember something Re-..." She paused, then shook her head in frustration. "Something she said a while ago: 'If I die, I can be replaced.' Shinji and I didn't understand what she meant at the time, but... seeing this..."
Doctor Akagi nodded. "That is part of who she really is. A big part, yes, but not the full story." She turned around to look at Misato, who glared back with gritted teeth. "I'm sure I don't need to remind you of what's further down from here? A certain... white giant?"
Misato frowned. Sweat was beading on her forehead and her arms were shaking. "What do you mean? What could Adam possibly have to do with Rei?"
"...Adam?" Asuka echoed, her hands clenched tightly at her sides.
"Adam?" Doctor Akagi also repeated. "Who told you that was Adam?" She stopped, blinked a few times, then sighed. "Damnit, Kaji. I thought you were wiser than that."
She rubbed a hand down her face then stared up at the ceiling. "Adam is the First Angel. He is the one that you saw during the Katsuragi Expedition. He is the one responsible for Second Impact... partially." Misato began to speak, but Doctor Akagi raised a hand. "I'm sure you'll soon be finding out about that. Anyway, Adam is not the one down below. That one... is Lilith."
"Adam, the First Angel," said Asuka. "Then I suppose Lilith is the Second Angel. Nobody ever said why the Third Angel was called that."
"Not many people bothered to ask," said Doctor Akagi. "Any who did were just given the runaround. Yes, Lilith is the Second Angel. We don't know much about-" She cut herself off and peered at Misato. "...Are you alright? You're sweating and shaking a lot now."
"That's not important right now!" Misato's hand came out of her jacket holding her gun. While she pointed it at the ground, she made a point of thumbing the safety off. "Tell us about Rei!"
"Alright, alright, I'll cut right to the chase." Doctor Akagi glanced back at the tank full of clones for a few seconds. "Rei Ayanami is not a mere human. She was created from a fusion of Lilith's DNA and... a certain human woman."
"A human woman..." said Misato. "Who would be crazy enough to offer up their DNA for something?"
"Hang on..." Asuka interrupted. Something was jumping up and down in the back of her mind, waving its hands to try and get her attention. She moved closer to the tank, staring curiously at one of the clones as it seemed to notice her. It drifted towards the glass, staring vacantly back as Asuka approached it. She tilted her head to one side, and was only mildly surprised when the clone did the same.
And then something almost audibly went 'click' in her head.
She had seen this face just recently, and not because it was a clone of her fellow pilot. In fact, the face bore an uncanny likeness to...
"Yui Ikari?!" Asuka exclaimed, rounding on Doctor Akagi.
Doctor Akagi gave a small cough. "I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised that you worked it out," she remarked. "I did suspect there would be some memory sharing happening between you and the Third Child. Yes, Rei's human half came from Yui Ikari, Shinji's mother."
"Didn't she die back during the first Contact Experiment with Unit-01?" asked Misato. "Wait... Rei's file said she was... born in 2001."
"A lie," said Doctor Akagi. "Rei was actually born after Yui's death. Tell me, Asuka. How much do you actually know of Shinji's mother?"
Asuka narrowed her eyes. "I know what happened." Misato stared at Asuka, her expression clearly stating that she wanted to know too, so she sighed and began to fill her in. "Yui Ikari was the test pilot for Unit-01's Contact Experiment. During the test the Eva... absorbed her. She's now essentially the core of Unit-01, and the reason why the Eva's so picky about anyone besides Shinji -or me- piloting it. The same is true of my mother and Unit-02, although in that case... my mother was simply rendered insane by the test."
Asuka glared at Doctor Akagi. "And I think NERV had a hand in ensuring that happened."
Doctor Akagi put her hands up. "That was not something I knew about until afterwards. Anyway, yes, Yui Ikari was absorbed by Unit-01. Commander Ikari was rather... upset at that and tried to recover her. Unfortunately nothing worked, almost like what happened with you, Asuka. The only thing that NERV got was genetic material that ended up being used for... well... this." She indicated the tank full of clones.
Out of the corner of her eye, Asuka noticed Misato rapidly shake her head and bring up a hand to rub at her eyes. She looked to be only a step away from falling over. "This is ridiculous!" Misato shouted. "Why is this all happening?! What does NERV hope to gain by committing these kinds of atrocities?!"
Doctor Akagi began to slowly back away from the control panel towards some kind of alcove to one side of the tank. "Misato, calm down," she said. "Withdrawal's hitting you hard now. Maybe you should go and rest."
"You-" Misato suddenly stopped, her eyes widening as she stared at the tank. Asuka turned to check, but saw nothing out of the ordinary. She was therefore confused when Misato brought her gun up to aim at the tank and immediately got well out of the woman's line of fire. Ritsuko spun around and began to run towards the alcove just as Misato pulled the trigger, screaming in fear as she wildly emptied the magazine.
The tank's glass shattered on the first shot. Its contents flooded out, sending LCL and clones rushing to all corners of the room. Asuka was knocked over by the rushing liquid and was instantly soaked from head to toe. When the tide stopped, she wiped the LCL out of her eyes and rolled to the side to push herself back up, only to freeze as she came face to face with one of the clones laying on the ground next to her. When the clone tilted its head at her, Asuka shrieked and scrambled back to her feet, hindered by the slippery floor.
"Shit, shit, shit!" Doctor Akagi cursed, returning at almost a sprint with a needle in her hand. Misato was still pulling the trigger of her gun even as it clicked at her, and didn't notice the syringe when it jabbed into her arm. Even as Misato began to stagger back and forth, she continued trying to fire her weapon right up until she collapsed to the ground.
Doctor Akagi knelt over Misato, checking that her friend was still breathing before removing the gun from her hands and stowing it in a pocket of her labcoat. She stood up, took one look at the carnage, and put her hands over her face. "Fuck, Ikari's going to kill me..."
Asuka tiptoed through the LCL, over and around the clones who were lazily flopping and rolling about, until she reached the two women. "What the hell was that all about?!" she exclaimed, trying to hide her shock behind anger.
Peering at Asuka through her fingers, Doctor Akagi groaned and said, "I'm not a hundred percent sure, but I believe Misato was one of the unfortunate few who got one of the rare symptoms of alcohol withdrawal: hallucinations. And considering where we are..."
Asuka looked around at the clones. "...She thought they were coming for her or something?"
"Probably." Doctor Akagi shrugged and let her hands flop back to her sides. "Damnit. At least this happened after we decanted a new clone, but... things are going to be hell for Misato and I now." She stared at Asuka and sarcastically added, "Is your curiosity sated now?"
Asuka stared right back. "If anything, this has just given me further questions. And by the way, you know I'm going to share all this with Shinji, right?"
"Wouldn't he already know? The two of you share memories after all."
"No, that's not how it works!" Asuka spat. "First of all, Shinji's still unconscious. Secondly, the link isn't permanent. And thirdly, we only sense what the other person does at the moment it happens."
Doctor Akagi blinked several times. "Well, that is... intriguing. I wish I could study you two further but I suppose I need to try and sort this mess out. Starting with Misato."
Together, Asuka and Doctor Akagi somehow managed to awkwardly drag Misato back to the elevator. After a quiet return to the medical ward, they passed her off to some orderlies that Doctor Akagi had contacted to receive Misato.
With Misato being wheeled away -cuffed to the bed- and Doctor Akagi heading back down to that abominable place, Asuka was left on her own. With nothing to do and nowhere else to go, she headed back to Shinji's room where she was dismayed to see that he still hadn't woken up. She slumped back in the chair next to the bed and stared at him for a while, hoping for him to hurry up and regain consciousness.
Asuka blinked, and suddenly she was staring at its face again, grinning back at her. She leapt out of the chair and backed up against the wall, only to realise it was just her imagination; it was still Shinji in that bed, not a freakish naked half-clone of his mother. Cautiously, she returned to the chair and laid her head down on the bed, her hands tightly gripping the sheets.
"You need to wake up soon, Shinji," she quietly said. "I need you by my-... need you backing me up again..."
XXX
Gendo looked around at the Dummy Plug Plant, taking in the mess. The tank was smashed, its contents all over the floor meaning that he had to be careful with his steps, and the clones were already beginning to degrade. Even if there was somewhere else to put them, they were no longer viable.
At least one had been activated before this disaster.
"This is my fault sir," said Ritsuko from behind him. "I shouldn't have brought Misato down here."
Gendo looked at one of the clones, still smiling and rolling on the ground even as its skin was sloughing off. "A mistake, certainly," he remarked. "But at this stage, it is one we can handle. With the loss of Unit-00, there is little to no risk of losing Rei before the time comes." He turned away as the clone's eyes began to cloud over. "There is no point trying to clean this up; it would take you too long. We'll shut everything off and lock the floor down. Soon it won't matter anymore anyway."
"...Yes sir," said Ritsuko. She didn't move, looking somewhat hesitant.
"What is it, Doctor?"
"Sir, it's just..." She glanced around at the room. "That's it? Shut down and lock up? My decision led to this and you're just... letting it go?"
"Would you prefer I have you confined to the brig instead of ensuring the MAGI are prepared for what will soon come our way?"
"Well, no, but..."
Gendo walked over to the console in the middle of the room and began to initiate the shutdown sequence. "Major Katsuragi is currently confined to a hospital bed. When she is recovered she will continue the late Special Inspector's mission, and she will uncover SEELE's machinations before anything that will impede us. She will want to dig further into that so she has as much proof as possible before attempting to deliver it. As for the Second Child, she only has Katsuragi and the Third Child to turn to now, especially since she is effectively on permanent standby and cannot easily leave the Geofront."
Ritsuko stepped up beside him. "So you're saying that since neither of them can talk about what happened here, it just... doesn't matter?"
"Essentially, yes."
Around them, a hum that had just barely been on the edge of hearing began to die down. Gendo headed for the door as the overhead lights turned off one by one. Out in the corridor he glanced at Ritsuko, who nodded and used the panel beside the door to lock it.
"We have another, much more immediate concern too," said Ritsuko as they proceeded towards the elevator.
"Yes, the Fourth," Gendo replied. "Supposedly reawakened after the biomass died out or was successfully fought off by his immune system."
"I don't believe either of those for a second," Ritsuko remarked. "This is an Angel that managed to perfectly hide inside Unit-03 and attack at the worst possible moment. If that really is the Aida boy in there, I'll eat my damn tablet." As the elevator headed back up to Central Dogma, she studied the device in question, tapping out a few commands to change its view to that of the security camera in the quarantine chamber. "Honestly, I want to just hit the button and purge the room. We're the only ones who know about this aside from the men on watch duty. Better to euthanize him as an Angel than risk it breaking free at the worst moment again."
"Then why haven't you?" Gendo asked, already knowing the answer.
"Well officially, it's your decision to make, not mine. Really though..." Ritsuko's thumb hovered over the button that would initiate an emergency purge of the quarantine room. Whoever was currently on duty there would experience a few brief seconds of pain before dying along with the Fourth Child as the entire chamber was cleansed with fire. "...Part of me doesn't want to kill a kid just for being unlucky."
"And, of course, there is the slim chance that he has managed to fight off the Angel one way or another."
Ritsuko nodded absently, still staring at the tablet. "In which case we could examine him and see what we can learn."
Gendo thought for a moment. It would be prudent to neutralise the Fourth Child now, before there was a risk of him being an Angel and breaking free. On the other hand... things were starting to draw to a close. He did not want to destroy a potential piece just on a suspicion. "For now, my decision is that we simply observe," he finally said. "Analyse the Fourth Child as thoroughly as you can without entering the chamber. Do not inform anybody of his awakening yet. There will be little point in it if it turns out he is an Angel."
"Of course," Ritsuko agreed. "That would tank morale even further among the pilots and command staff." The elevator opened on her floor. She stepped out and turned to Gendo. "I'll do what I can to find out one way or the other, but I don't expect to get an answer in the next day or two."
"Of course." Gendo stared at her. "Now then, consider this a warning. Nothing will stand in the way of the scenario. Not Katsuragi, not SEELE, not you. Consider your future actions carefully." He pressed the button to close the elevator doors, leaving Ritsuko in the corridor as the elevator continued upwards.
Upon returning to his office, Gendo closed the door and leaned against it. He removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes, trying to banish the sight of her face slowly disintegrating, repeated a dozen times over. The deathly chill in his chest was slowly growing stronger every day, but very soon he would be reunited with Yui. Whether or not that would dispel the chill, heal his shredded soul, it didn't matter. He would endure anything if it meant being with her again.
XXX
At this point it was no longer a surprise to Shinji whenever he woke up in NERV's hospital with no memory of being brought there. What was a surprise was just how much pain his entire body was in. It was as if somebody had worked him over with a metal baseball bat while taking just enough care not to break any bones. Lifting his head off the pillow was out of the question; all he accomplished was getting a sledgehammer in the back of his skull.
At least, that was what it felt like.
Thankfully his eyes didn't hurt -much- and eventually he was able to crack them open to look up at the sterile white ceiling above him. He tried to grumble something about being back here again, but all that came out of his mouth was a small groan. A worried face topped by red hair almost instantly entered his field of vision.
"Shinji?!" said Asuka, quickly looking him over. He tried to respond but could only get another groan out. "Blink twice if you can see and hear me."
Oh good. Something he could actually do. Shinji blinked twice.
Asuka sighed in relief. "Damnit, don't worry m- us like that again. You've been out for two days. And on top of that..." She paused, looking away for a moment. "Just to make sure, you remember everything that happened in the last battle right?"
Shinji checked his memories. Nothing seemed to be missing; they had fought a giant double helix Angel, it had attacked him specifically, and then...
Apparently his expression had changed as he remembered, because Asuka grimaced and nodded. "Yeah. Rei sacrificed herself. But... I learned some things not long ago about her. Stuff NERV kept secret for a long time, but you of all people deserve to know." Her face turned dark and somewhat angry. "Do you want to hear it now?"
Two blinks, almost before she could finish talking.
"Alright then." Asuka rubbed her eyes with the heels of her hands. "Ugh. Okay, everything I'm about to say is true. I wouldn't make this crap up even as a joke. So, first of all... Rei isn't really dead."
Shinji stared at her in shock, unable to believe Asuka's words despite her having just promised to speak the truth. If it wasn't for the fact that he could barely feel anything besides pain in his body, he would have sat bolt upright.
"The how is complicated," Asuka continued. "And by that I mean... hell, there's no easy way to say this... Rei is a cloned person. She did actually die, but then NERV resurrected her. In a manner of speaking. Right now she's in another part of the hospital, bandaged up to look like she just barely survived."
Shinji cursed his body for refusing to respond. The best he could manage was some vague twitching of his extremities. Asuka saw this and, after hovering a hand over his, gingerly latched onto it.
"I also found out why she looks the way she does. Half of her DNA comes from an Angel NERV has locked up in the basement." Asuka paused, squeezing Shinji's hand as he again tried to move. "And the other half is... your mother."
Pain flared in Shinji's body as he heard a scream fill the room. It took him a few seconds to realise he had actually managed to sit up, and it was him doing the screaming. He slammed his jaw shut, took several deep breaths, and stared at Asuka.
Thankfully she seemed to know what he was thinking, despite a lack of synchronisation. "I know it sounds incredible, but it all makes sense now. When we saw each other's memories, I was able to see your mother's face, and she looked almost exactly like you andRei. And now, after what I've learned, when I look at you I can see some of Rei's face in yours."
Was Rei... his mother? What did this mean for them? Did this... new Rei still remember everything? What if she had forgotten everything and their friendship no longer existed? And what about his actual mother, entombed within Unit-01?
"Shinji?"
What was NERV... what was his father doing?!
"Shinji!"
A slap on the back of his head knocked Shinji out of his thoughts. He gingerly turned his head to look at Asuka.
"You were staring off into space for a while there," she said unapologetically. "Had to make sure you were still alright."
Shinji shakily nodded, then glanced at the door leading out of the room. He wanted nothing more than to-
"You want to go see her, don't you?"
Another nod, a little more sure this time. The pain finally seemed to be starting to fade away; now he could at least start to turn his head around.
Asuka sighed. "I'm not going to say you shouldn't. What I will say is this: can you even make it there right now?" Shinji stared at her. "Of course, stupid question," she said with a small chuckle. "Fine, I'll make sure you get there and back, but afterwards you're going to damn well rest and recover. Understood?"
"Y's, 'suka," Shinji mumbled, feeling the corners of his mouth tilt upwards.
"Good." Asuka stood up, standing next to the bed. "If you don't, I'll kick your ass so hard it'll make what that Angel did to you feel like a damn massage."
As she removed the bedsheets covering Shinji, he suddenly recoiled in shock as the state of his body became clear. The veins of his body were standing out just as they had done while the Angel was attacking. He gingerly lifted his arms, staring closely at them as he tried to understand what was going on.
"...Yeah, you don't look great right now," Asuka remarked. "The doctor said you should return to normal in a few days, but he's never seen anything like this. Normally veins like that-" she pointed at his arms and legs, "-would be a sign of something like thrombophlebitis or deep vein thrombosis, but as far as they can tell there's nothing actually wrong with you."
Shinji tried to speak, but his mouth was dry. Noting this, Asuka picked up a glass of water that had been sitting next to his bed and held it to his lips. He took a few small sips of the water, but some of it simply spilled out of his mouth. Eventually though, he was able to take in enough to let him talk.
"It's... the same as when I was... confronted by the Angel," he murmured. "My veins were sticking out even through my plugsuit. I thought that was just the Angel messing with me."
Asuka shook her head. "That damn Angel targeted you specifically. I didn't feel a thing, and nothing much happened to Unit-02 besides some damaged armour." She frowned. "Wait a minute... confronted? Did the Angel actually talk to you?!"
With some effort, and a hand on his back helping to keep him sitting upright, Shinji began to speak of how the Angel had tried to coax him into allowing it to merge with him, then had given up on asking and started demanding. Trying to force itself into him. He wrapped his arms around himself, shivering involuntarily at the memory of how his very being had been violated.
Seeing his reaction, Asuka immediately put the glass down and put her hands on his shoulders. "It's alright Shinji," she said. "The Angel is dead. You're safe now."
The warmth of her hands leeching through the thin material of the hospital gown helped pull Shinji back to the present. He gave her a weak smile of thanks as he let his arms drop back to his sides. "T-thanks Asuka."
Asuka reddened slightly and looked away. "Yeah, don't mention it. Anyway, let's just forget about the Angel completely now. Let's get you up on your feet."
With some effort, Shinji found he could actually get out of bed, but his legs quickly became so shaky that he had to lean on her to be able to stay upright for more than a few seconds. She gave no sign of complaint though; instead she seemed infinitely patient as the two of them slowly made their way out of the room and into the corridor. Not a single member of the hospital staff so much as batted an eye at the two teenagers as they made their way through the hospital.
It felt like several hours before she brought them both to a stop in front of a door. The room that she saw Misato and Akagi come out of before they went down the elevator. She hadn't looked inside, because she was more curious as to where they were going, especially since Misato had had a face like thunder.
He nodded. It was time for them both to see.
She opened the door, and they headed in. The room looked almost exactly the same as the one they had come from, and yet there seemed to be an aura of trepidation filling it. The only thing in the room that stood out was that there was a blue-haired girl who was supposedly not the one they both knew, sitting up in bed and staring at the far wall. She had bandages covering half of her face, with some even disappearing under the collar of her hospital gown, and her left arm was in a cast.
Despite their attempts to mentally prepare for this meeting, they found that they were still stunned into silence. Rei continued staring at the wall for a little while, before slowly turning her head towards them. The instant she saw them, her eyes narrowed dangerously.
"What are you?" she coldly asked after a few seconds of glaring at them.
That... was not how they were expecting Rei to greet them.
"Uh, Rei?" they hesitantly asked together. "Are you alright?"
Rei looked between them, seemingly puzzled by them talking at the same time. Concern began to creep over them; their fellow pilot was acting like she didn't know who they were. Was it because she was a clone? Did their friendship not exist anymore?
Rei abruptly got out of bed and strode towards them. "I will ask again. What are you?" she demanded. Her red eyes began to subtly glow. "Answer me, or I will be forced to eliminate you."
