A cell. Somber. Lonely. Silent.
Inside, a fourteen years old kid. Somber. Lonely. Silent.
His silence was the silence of a helpless creature, hiding from a predator. Hoping to not be noticed.
Locked inside for two days, with no other company but his thoughts.
He had defeated his enemy. The enemy of all mankind. But he had done so by disobeying orders. Risking death. And with his own death, the death of two other kids in the plug. And then, maybe, the rest of the world.
His mood went round melancholy, anger, and guilt.
Although he didn't like to be alone, it was better than being hurt by others.
He had beaten the Angel! That was the whole point! Wasn't it?
He should not have disobeyed Misato. She's trained for this sort of thing.
His thoughts went from one of these extremes to the other, constantly.
A sound distracted him. Footsteps. Somebody was coming through the long hall. But those weren't the heavy footsteps of the guards, with their military boots. Nor the agile walk of Misato, with her high heels. These where the steps of someone with a purpose. Almost like his Father's.
But they lacked something. These were deliberate steps. And at the same time... doubtful, lacking that rigid certainty. They stopped in front of his cell. A few seconds later, the locks opened. He had been in the dark for so long, the light hurt his eyes.
A short while later, he was getting used to the light again. There was someone at the door of the cell, standing in silence. Not a guard. Nor Misato. Nor Father.
The stranger wasn´t in uniform, not NERV´s, nor a guard´s. Shinji only saw a black silhouette, sharply defined by the light from outside. It was a tall man, wearing a hat; strangely, he wore a long, high collared cloak. The brim of the cloak almost touched the floor. But the weirdest thing of all was that, someway, despite being in the shadow, Shinji could see the man´s eyes. They were completely white, without iris or pupil. He felt like the stranger was looking right into his soul.
"Follow me," said the man, and without waiting, turned around, leaving the door open. His cloak flared for a moment, and fell heavily around him.
Shinji discovered that he had no fear of this man. His voice was soft, almost melancholic, but determined. Shinji followed after him.
In the hall, Shinji saw more details. The stranger´s cloak and hat were dark blue, his black shoes shone with elegance. The little he could see of his hair was completely white. The purest white. Didn´t look like the hair of an old man, nor the fragile hair of an albino.
A few steps ahead, Shinji was at the stranger´s side. The man had a strong profile. His features and the color of his skin were of western ascent. Although… he could not see the eyes of the man. The brim of his fedora projected a shadow so deep it was disturbing. The nose was long and straight. His mouth was a sharp line above a square and decisive chin .
The stranger walked without looking at his sides. Shinji didn´t dare to talk. He just walked alongside the man; watching him carefully, trying to find out something about him. He was dressed in a sharp dark blue suit, so dark it almost seemed black. Curiously, instead of a shirt, he wore a white turtle-neck jersey. A golden medallion hung from his neck. A gold chain and clasps held his cloak in place over his shoulders. His hands were covered with white gloves that almost seemed a second skin.
The boy gathered his courage. "Uh… Sir..?" the man stopped suddenly, turning around towards Shinji. His face held no visible emotion. "Who… who are you?"
"Just a Stranger, Shinji. I have come because a heavy load has been put upon your shoulders. An impossible task. And because those who did it, know you will fail."
Shinji felt like the ground had opened below him. "..I know… I´m weak. Useless." His voice cracked.
The Stranger put his hands on the boy´s shoulders. "You are wrong. You are stronger than you think. But you have been chained with doubts and fears. They want you to fail."
"What? Who? Why?"
"Come with me, I will show you. It won´t be an easy journey. But you will find the strength you need." They walked towards the EVA cages. To the observation deck. There was no one there.
Professor Fujutsuki came in, accompanied by Shinji´s father, holding on his arms a boy, three or four years old.
But… Gendo Ikari was …smiling. Shinji couldn´t remember having seen him smile. Ever. And Professor Fujutsuki seemed younger.
"Watch," the Stranger was standing at the windows, looking down.
Shinji came closer. Down there, he could see the EVA-01´s head. Behind it, a plug, waiting to be inserted into the giant´s body. A brown-haired woman, wearing a tight plugsuit, was about to get in the plug.
Seeing her, Shinji´s blood froze in his veins. He turned around, and saw the boy standing by the window, waving his little hand at the woman. Shinji looked at the boy intensely, recognizing himself.
"Mom! That´s my Mother!" Desperate, he hit repeatedly the thick bullet-proof glass. Trying to get his mother´s attention, to keep her from entering that plug. To keep her from… dying. Everything had come back to his memory; he knew what would happen in a few seconds.
"I am sorry, Shinji," said the Stranger softly. "This is the past, you cannot change it. Only learn from it."
"Do something! Stop her, please! I beg you… don´t let her die…" Shinji fell on his knees, still beating weakly at the glass, his face soaked by his tears.
"We can´t do anything." There was a deep sadness in the Stranger´s voice. "Your mother is sacrificing herself on your behalf. And her sacrifice will be defiled in the name of ambition and pride."
He turned around, and went back out before the plug closed itself and entered the EVA´s body. Shinji looked at the smiling face of his mother for the last time; and said goodbye, as he hadn't done ten years before… He ran out before… it happened.
The Stranger waited for him at the other end of the hall. Once close by, Shinji realized the man´s fists were closed, with a lot of strength, but his face was still as blank as Rei Ayanami´s.
Shinji dried his tears. He tried to speak, but couldn´t. The Stranger rested a hand on his shoulder, in silence, waiting.
Finally, Shinji found his voice. "Why? Why her?"
"Because she once believed in the words of those who are willing to sacrifice the whole world."
Shnji stared at him. The Stranger opened a heavily reinforced door, and his cloak flared at a blast of freezing air. He crossed the threshold. Shinji followed him.
At the other side, Shinji felt another blast of cold air, it smelled like the sea, but his own breath didn´t form a cloud before his face, nor the Stranger´s. It wasn´t actual cold, more like the memory of cold. He was thinking about that when a girl passed him by. She was wrapped on heavy clothing, and very angry.
She went right into a cabin, a short man followed her closely. It looked like he was trying to apologize. The girl simply ignored him, and locked herself inside the cabin. The man knocked helplessly at the door, until he gave up a few minutes later.
Another man came close, they spoke for a short while. Despite the heavy hooded parkas, Shinji recognized the second man. Gendo Ikari. Both men went away.
"What´s he doing here? Where are we?"
The Stranger didn´t answer for several unconfortable seconds. "We are at the sacrificial shrine for half of Mankind. At this place, the most monstrous betrayal in history will take place. And only its engineers will know about it."
Shinji didn´t know what to say.
The Stranger and Shinji followed the two men to an office. Gendo Ikari received a lot of folders, notebooks full of data, and a box of computer files. He put everything in a suitcase. And then took another box, it looked like an ice-box. Both men came out the office, shaked hands, and went each his own way.
Gendo to a waiting helicopter.
The little man went to a big chamber. It looked like a hangar. The floor was a big expanse of ice. From their vantage point, Shinji could see a colossal silhouette under the frozen surface. It looked like a giant, with something long and narrow near his hand. Where his head should be, somebody had been chipping the ice off. There were several workers there, they looked like ants. Hours seemed to pass. The little man shouted instruction at the workers. Curious, Shinji got closer to him. He noticed the patch on the left sleeve of the man, and read the writing. "Katsuragi Expedition. 2000-2001" Fifteen years back… Katsuragi! Back in 2000, Misato would have been about fourteen years old.
"Yes. That girl is Misato Katsuragi. Only survivor of the Katsuragi Expedition…" The Stranger´s voice jarred Shinji out of his thoughts. A horrible sound filled the air. "Adam has awoken."
Before Shinji could say something, a powerful light came from below. The ice cracked, and the workers started to run. They couldn´t get to the stairs before the ice blew up, and a giant made of light stood slowly. Horrified, the little man broke into a run, Shinji and the Stranger followed him closely. Behind them, the hangar fell to pieces.
At Misato´s cabin, the girl had opened the door, alarmed by the noise. The little man took her brusquely by the arm, and both ran towards a group of tubes on the floor. An explosion made them fall, the girl was stunned, and the man was bleeding. A lot.
The little man dragged the girl, opened one of the cylinders, and dropped her inside. Clumsily, he took off a silver cross from his neck, putting it into hers. Blood stained the girl´s parka, it had been ripped open in the explosion. The man closed the capsule, and covered it with his own body. It was his last conscious act.
Behind them, the giant of light had come out of the hangar. His eyes looked like two wells to the deepest and coldest abyss in the whole universe. A howl pierced their ears, and a silent explosion of light covered them.
In the deafening silence, the Stranger whispered, "Second Impact."
When Shinji´s vision cleared, he realized they were back at the EVA cages, but instead of Units Zero or One, they were looking at a different EVA. It was blood red, and it had two sets of eyes, one over the other. All four eyes were round and green.
By the EVA´s side, a woman was writing data on a tablet. Her long blond hair fell behind her, over her white labcoat.
"Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu," said the Stranger. "Part of the team that took the remains of a god to create their own gods, made at their own likeness."
Soryu went away, and came back a few minutes later, dressed with a plugsuit. Shinji knew instantly what would happen. "S-she… She doesn´t know what happened to my mother?"
"She does. She has modified the systems, with safeguards to keep the EVA from absorbing her body."
Relieved, Shinji sighed, until the Stranger spoke again. "It won´t be enough."
Shinji followed the Stranger out from the observation chamber. They walked through a long hall. Shinji recognized the aseptic smell. A hospital. A small child overtook them, she was about four years old, her long red hair was tied up in two long pigtails. A grim looking man was with her. The girl went ahead, and opened the door of a room. The man remained outside.
A blond woman was sitting on the bed. Legs crossed. Her dead hair fell over her face. Shinji barely recognized her as Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu. She held a ragdoll on her hands. It had red string hair, button eyes, and a simple dress; on it, the name "Asuka" had been written with shaky hands.
Slowly, the girl got closer to the woman, trying to get her attention, but she turned around, with her back to the girl, caressing the doll´s hair, whispering. The girl cried and screamed, but the woman just tuned her out.
"She has lost a part of the soul, she can´t recognize her daughter anymore, and pours her motherly love into an inert object." Seeing the girl´s tears, Shinji´s heart broke.
"Can we do something?"
"No. Not yet." They went back to the hall. For a moment, darkness surrounded them.
When the light came back, the girl, a bit bigger, ran by their side. A big smile on her face. She went directly to the room, opened the door, and stood paralyzed on the threshold. Her smile broke like a crystal.
Behind her, Shinji looked horrified into the room. A body hanged from the ceiling. He didn´t dare to look at her face. Turning his eyes, he saw another object hanging beside her. The doll. Its head hanging loosely from a small noose.
Shinji would have given anything to comfort the girl. But he couldn´t do anything but cry for her. "Let´s leave, Stranger. Please."
The Stranger nodded, and walked to the stairs. As they went down, he looked at Shinji from the shadow that hid his eyes. "Asuka Langley Soryu will build a wall around her heart, to keep the pain away. That wall will be her prison. When your path and hers cross, you will see a young woman; proud, haughty, condescending. Her anger will flare at the littlest things. She will despise weakness in others as a way to keep her own weaknesses hidden and safe. All of that will be nothing but a mask, the way her wall is shown to the world. You have seen the fragile girl behind that mask. Only you can free her."
"M-me? Why me? I´m useless…"
"Because only you know what is like to stand prisoner behind such a wall. Because you know the same pain she does. Because you don´t want anybody to suffer." The Stranger stared at Shinji. "Not when you can do something about it."
They crossed another door, this time, to an office. Inside, his Father was sitting on a sofa, playing with a blue-haired girl with scarlet eyes. She could not be anybody but Rei Ayanami. Shinji felt betrayed, even more so than when he had been cruelly abandoned at a train station, when he was four years old.
But there was something weird here. Rei was… laughing…
Gendo Ikari whispered something at the girl´s ear. She smiled, and went out, skipping away. A cruel smile oozed from Gendo Ikari´s lips. He picked up the phone, dialing a number.
The Stranger and Shinji followed Rei to the outside. A little while later, they found her, she was with a thirty something years old woman. She inclined towards Rei with a condescence barely disguised as courtesy. After a brief talk, her brow furrowed, first with irritation, and after a few words more from the girl, annoyance, and then, anger.
The Stranger whispered, "Doctor Naoko Akagi, Chief of Project E, Creator of the MAGI. Mother of Ritsuko Akagi. Lover of Gendo Ikari. Murderer. Victim."
Shinji looked back at the woman. Her furious hands squeezed Rei Ayanami´s neck. The girl´s eyes showed only the whites, her pale face was purple, and her tongue protruded from her lips.
"…It can´t be… Rei…"
"She is dead, Shinji. And yet, she will live."
Horrified, Naoko Akagi looked at her hands. Rei´s limp body fell on the floor like a ragdoll. Naoko covered her mouth with her hands, stifling a scream. Shaking, she stood, ran to the handrail. And jumped.
The wet crack heard a few seconds later made Shinji feel sick. He felt the hand of the Stranger over his shoulder. The door opened, and a group of orderlies came in, followed by Gendo Ikari. He took Rei´s pulse, smiled satisfied, and made a gesture to his companions. The orderlies put Rei´s body on a stretcher, and hurried it away.
Gendo looked over the handrail with a mocking smile, and went after the others. Shinji went towards the handrail. The Stranger stopped him before he could look. They stared silently at each other for a moment.
They walked back to the observation deck. Gendo shouted orders at a microphone, starting up the controls. In the cage, the one eye of Unit-00 watched impassibly as the orderlies put Rei´s body in the plug.
"Are they… going.. to..?"
"Yes." The Stranger´s fists were trembling. "The EVAs are not simply machines. To work, they require something else. A soul. Or at least, part of one." Although he still spoke softly, Shinji could guess at the fury the Stranger felt. It was the same rage that invaded him.
The plug entered the Evangelion´s body. Ikari checked the dials, and started to push buttons. Unit-00´s eye flashed for a moment, and then went dark. A rumbling sound crossed the cage. It was like the growl of a savage beast…
The plug came out. The orderlies took the inert body out, and without any ceremony, dropped it into a metal box, taking it with them. Ikari turned off the controls, and left the deck. Shinji and the Stranger followed him to a lift. They entered behind him.
It was a long way down. No one spoke during the long minutes the lift took to arrive to its destination.
They walked along a long hall, lighted by a series of lamps too far apart one from the other. Behind a heavy door, full of electronic locks, awaited a cold room, with walls of glass at each side, and a dais at the center. Gendo pushed a couple buttons on the dais, and a long transparent cylinder rose from the floor. It filled with a clear, ambarine fluid Shinji knew very well. LCL.
Behind the walls of glass, lights were turned on. A group of small bodies floated in the liquid. Rei Ayanami looked at them from each one of those smiling faces. But their eyes were hideously empty. There was nothing behind those scarlet eyes.
"Clones," said the Stranger. "Copies without a soul. Made from an Angel and a woman." Shinji rested his hands on the glass, looking at the clones. He didn´t know what to say.
"The Rei Ayanami you know was created at this lab. Cloned from cells taken from an alien creature, known as Lilith, the Second Angel, a prisoner here in the Geo-front; and Yui Ikari."
Shinji chocked on his own breath. "…Then… Rei is… my… mother..?"
"No, Rei is Rei. No one else. In a way, she is family to you. But she has been maimed. The clones you see floating in those tanks horrify you because you can feel they have no soul. They are nothing but spares for Rei Ayanami´s soul."
A body descended into the LCL cylinder. "That body now contains a part of Rei´s soul. The rest is in Unit-00."
Solemly, the Stranger looked down. "Unit-01 took you mother´s life. She is a prisoner inside it. She can barely sense the exterior world. The only thing she can feel is your presence. When Unit-01 goes berserk, that´s your mother acting to protect you."
"C-can we get her out..?"
"No. She is so integrated into the EVA she cannot be separated from it."
Meanwhile, Gendo was adjusting the controls in the dais.
The Stranger kept talking, "Unit-02 took part of Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu´s soul. Her motherly love. Without it, her mind fractured. That is the reason she could not recognize her daughter. When she died, her soul was reunited inside Unit-02. She is in the same condition as Yui Ikari."
Shinji nodded weakly, the Stranger kept talking. "Unit-00 took Rei Ayanami´s emotions. Her fear, her despair, are the predominant emotions in the EVA. That is the reason she has such a hard time synchronizing with it."
"And that´s why she´s so… cold." Shinji whispered."In part. Rei is still capable of feeling emotions. But they are very weak. During the next years, Rei will grow up isolated. Gendo Ikari wants a pilot who is absolutely obedient, one that won´t hesitate to die when he gives the order."
"WHY?" Shinji was surprised of his own anger, "WHAT COULD BE SO IMPORTANT TO JUSTIFY ALL OF THIS?"
"Apotheosis. The Ascent to Divinity."
They left the lab behind. Crossed another door. They arrived to a dark and cold room. Gendo Ikari and Professor Fujutsuki entered. Gendo sat down behind a heavy desk, while Fujutsuki stood behind him.
One by one, lights turned on. Each one shone over a desk, each occupied by a person. Each light had a different color.
"This is the Comitee for the Human Instrumentalization. A name that reveals nothing. As dark as the intentions of its members."
Shinji saw the men talking; all of them exuded an aura of power and desperation. The one in the end of the room opposite to Gendo Ikari had a weird thing over his eyes. And from the deference the others showed him, Shinji guessed he was the leader.
In the center of the room, floated the image of a series of stone tablets. "The Dead Sea Scrolls. Not the version released to archaeologists, believed to be drafts or commentaries of apocryphal Scriptures. These are documents that precede Humanity, and even life itself, on this planet. They contain a series of prophecies. Detailing the Second Impact. The Coming of the Angels. And the Apocalypse. These men are the Inner Circle of a secret organization called SEELE; a cabal that has guided the world from the shadows, ever since the texts were deciphered."
An unfathomable disdain was clear in the stranger´s voice. "These are the architects of Second Impact. Aspirants to godhood. Architects of the complete annihilation of the human race."
The image changed, replaced by a series of pictures. Yui Ikari, Naoko Akagi, Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu. Then, they were replaced by the images of three children, Rei Ayanami, Asuka Langley Soryu, and Shinji Ikari. And then, by the Evangelions.
"At this moment, they are fine tuning their plans. They want to cause a Third Impact, controlling it so the whole of humankind cease to exist. Their souls will combine into a single consciousness, under SEELE´s control. According to the prophecies, they must defeat the Eighteen Angels. Four of them have been defeated. Adam, almost destroyed at Antarctic by his own awakening. Lilith, crucified at a secret chamber deep below the Geo-front. Sachiel and Shamshel, destroyed by Shinji Ikari."
The images changed again. Crude images of Adam, Lilith, Sachiel, Shamshel, and other bizarre creatures appeared.
"Each Angel will be harder to defeat than the previous ones. For their own power and the obstacles SEELE and Gendo Ikari will put in your path. They want the last pilot standing at the last battle be so destroyed spiritually, that his only wish be death, taking the whole world to the tomb. That way, SEELE will be reborn as the consciousness controlling a composite being, made from the souls of the whole human race. This is the end towards which SEELE has manipulated the governments of the world, NERV, Professor Katsuragi, Yui Ikari, Kyoko Zeppelin Soryu, Asuka Langley Soryu."
Shinji´s legs buckled under him. He leaned against a wall for support. "Gendo Ikari doesn´t plan to follow SEELE´s lead." Shinji looked at the Stranger. "He will betray them and take control of Third Impact. To be reunited with Yui Ikari."
"That is the reason why he has manipulated your whole life. The life, death and resurrection of Rei Ayanami. The love and death of Naoko Akagi. The life and love of Ritsuko Akagi. The life and loyalty of Kozo Fujutsuki. The life and revenge of Misato Katsuragi. The lifes of all your schoolmates, all of them potential pilots. All pawns he will sacrifice to recover Yui Ikari. Nothing else matters to him."
"HE IS A MONSTER! ALL OF THEM ARE MONSTERS!"
"Yes. They are."
Vehemently, Shinji slammed his fist against the wall. "NO! I won´t allow it!" His eyes were full of tears, but also of a fury and strength capable of turning mountains into dust.
A slight smile danced at the Stranger´s lips. "The road that now opens before you will be full of hardships.""
"I don´t care." He wiped his tears with the back of his hand. "I don't know how, but I will stop them."
"You won´t be able to do so." The Stranger turned his back to Shinji, walking away to the center of the room.
"THEN, WHY DID YOU SHOW ME ALL OF THIS!?"
"You can´t defeat SEELE. That is a task no one can do."
The Stranger raised his hand at SEELEs hologram. The other lights went out as one. In the column of light, new images appeared, the faces of Rei, Asuka, now a teenager; Toji, Kensuke, Hikari, Misato, Maya, Makoto, Shigeru, a badly shaved man he didn´t recognize, Ritsuko."
"On the other hand… ALL of you…"
"A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, a net without knots is just a group of threads. You, Shinji Ikari, are alone. And alone, you can´t face this task. Your friends are alone too, not knowing they are pawns in a deadly game."
"It´s up to you to break your chains of doubt, fear, loneliness. And to replace them with bonds of friendship, respect, and companionship. Only then will you be able to save yourself and save the world."
Shinji nodded.
The Stranger and Shinji walked back to the cell. The kid seemed taller now. He stood straight, with his head high.
"Captain Katsuragi will be here in a few minutes. She will reprimand you, and ask you a few questions; then will offer you the chance to leave Tokyo-3 behind and go back to your previous life. She fears that, if you keep piloting like you did in the last fight, you will die in battle."
"I understand. I´ll stay." He entered the cell, and sat at the bench inside.
Outside the cell, the Stranger nodded back. Once again, his eyes seemed to glow in the dark. He was about to close the door when he heard Shinji´s voice. "Will I see you again?"
"Our paths will cross again, Shinji Ikari."
The door of the cell closed. Once again, darkness surrounded Shinji.
Once again, the cell was somber. Lonely. Silent.
But the young man inside wasn´t somber nor lonely anymore.
And his silence was the silence of a hunter, sharpening his knife. Planning for the hunt.