Chapter 9: Newton's Third Law

Progress has been good these past few days. Better than I could have ever expected. Shinji is more and more positive, Asuka's harder edges are slowly, but surely being ground down, and Rei is… well, the closest thing she could be here is excited to rejoin her fellow pilots.

But for all my work here… what do I leave unattended elsewhere in the world? What lurks in the shadows of frozen giants and gleaming Corite, waiting to undo all the work that we've accomplished? How much time do I have before outside forces finally react to my actions?

I've wondered that every day I haven't woken up to the Mark.09 snatching away Shinji. And I've wondered what I'll do then. But only a little.

- Personal journal of Daniel Theisman

NERV HQ, Geofront Ruins, Tokyo-3

Deputy-Commander Ryoji Kaji of WILLE walked the decrepit halls of the depths of the Geofront, taking in the layout of the space as he ambled along. It was rusted and bare, and he walked along in the darkness with a flashlight, both things not uncommon after 14 years of disuse.

This, though, was not a hallway he had been in before in all his time having been here in the HQ. It was becoming rarer and rarer as time went on, though there were still places he didn't tread for fear of bumping into Commander Ikari. But even still, that left a lot of the base to be able to roam in and explore.

The walk, as enjoyable as it might have been, also held a purpose, however. Because far beyond just being a long stretch of hallway, it broke out onto the surface as well. Not too close to the core material that had steadily begun to encroach upon the ACC Pillars, but just far enough away from the HQ building that it was more likely than not that he wouldn't be noticed.

'Then… freedom. Misato and little Ryoshi, after all this time.'

He couldn't help but smile at the thought. How old would his son be now? Nearly 13, 14?

'The pilot's ages.' he shook his head as he recalled them, strange but fun little kids, even with all that was happening around them. 'I wonder how they get along? At least, all of them but Shinji.'

He would have asked Misato when he saw her again. Hell, he should have asked anyway, ages ago, secrecy be damned. But if he'd made a transmission to the Wunder… who knows who else could listen in and find the dead man walking, and make sure that the job would stay finished? However, if he somehow found a way to make a link to the ship's systems without being detected now…

'A tall order, by any stretch of the imagination. But, with Balthazar nearly out of rehab and now likely actually able to help, who knows? Maybe it's actually probable now.'

He turned the flashlight off as the hallway slowly grew brighter and brighter, and he soon stopped at the edge of a rather jagged, but still traversable slope down into the open Geofront proper. The green and blue of the space had taken on a more untamed look in the decade and a half since Near-Third Impact, and the near completion of Third Impact had done little to diminish it.

It wasn't his preferred exit, but it was a way out nonetheless. He took a moment to take in the beautiful scene before him before his focus shifted to the large bags that were situated by the entrance, covered by a few strategically placed wall panels to protect them from the elements should the need arise.

As he had for years since he'd started this, he went over the gear inside with practiced ease, checking over it to ensure that it was still in good repair. Environment suit for the core material. Maps. Flares. Filtered water that was probably now stale. Emergency survival rations that were probably even more so. Ropes. Ammo for a pistol and a submachine gun, both packed away with a gun-cleaning kit that had come from the armory.

"How many is this now?"

Ryoji jumped slightly at the now familiar voice in what was supposed to be a rather unfamiliar place for it as he stood and turned to look at Commander Kaworu Nagisa. "Commander," he said rather flippantly. "It's… what, 12 now that you've found?"

Nagisa seemed vaguely impressed. Then again, there wasn't much about the boy he served beside that wasn't vague in some fashion. "I see. It seems rather extreme to have so many caches in such spots. One might think that you were, in fact, preparing for something."

"Well, I am." Ryoji shrugged. "After all, there's going to be some point where I get out of this place. Whichever point I chose to leave from, I've got to be prepared."

Kaworu nodded slightly. "Perhaps. But you still have your duty to consider."

"Yeah, I know that, kid." Ryoji looked back out at the Geofront. "But unlike you, I'm still trucking along and getting older. Maybe a little more slowly than most from the looks of it, but…"

He paused, then sighed quietly. "I've got a kid out there. A kid who barely knows his dad. That… that isn't right."

'And even after all this… how do I manage to tell them I'm not dead, after nearly a decade?'

He shook his head. "I've seen what that does to a kid," he said quietly. "I saw what it did to Shinji."

"Yes," Kaworu said quietly, and Ryoji, not for the first time, wondered what Kaworu's interest, vested as it appeared to be, was in Shinji Ikari.

"It is the entire reason that we stand against Commander Ikari and NERV." Kaworu continued. "So that no other being can experience such sorrow. That when the world comes back to some sense of order, that all can experience happiness."

'How high-minded of you, Commander.' Ryoji said, rolling his eyes before he turned to face Kaworu, nodding wordlessly. 'Seeing as you seem as driven to find Shinji as Commander Ikari does to retrieve his wife. Why?'

The answer still eluded him as he set everything back in place and they began to walk down the hallway together.

"So, Commander," Ryoji began, "I have an idea that might help us better keep an eye on the Wunder and its movements."

Kaworu arched an eyebrow, barely seen in the rapidly encroaching darkness even as Ryoji turned on his flashlight again. "And what would that be, Deputy-Commander?"

"So, with our little rehabilitation of the Magi node Balthazar making good progress, perhaps we can use it to connect to the Magi Achiral system of the Wunder. It would certainly make relaying any orders or warnings we might have for them easier."

He waited as Kaworu considered this for long moments, the only sound between them their steps echoing through the long halls.

"Perhaps this is not unwise." the boy finally said. "It would allow us to ascertain the current status of the pilots as well as simplify the chain within which we pass them their information from the satellite system we currently use."

"However… I do not know when we might be able to implement such a link. For as much as we have been able to nurture the Magi node back to regular operation, it still has quite a way to go before its self-repair systems allow us to attempt such a task."

Ryoji nodded, thankful for the notes that Akagi the elder had left within the system's files that he'd been able to retrieve. He was no hacker by any means, but the notes had been easy enough to follow, and the self-repair and sub-sectioning systems simple to activate.

"How long do you think it might take before that point?" Ryoji asked as they emerged into a more well-lit area of their territory, flicking off his flashlight as he looked over at Kaworu.

The boy cupped his chin for a moment, looking out into the distance in thought. "Perhaps… two more weeks?"

Ryoji shrugged. "I can't ask for much more than that, I suppose."

With that, they eventually went their separate ways, Ryoji making his way to his quarters, as it were, here in the depths, and wondering what a peek inside the Wunder might look like.

. . .

Black Mesa Herald Site, Former New Mexico

Tavis sat in the commander's office of the Black Mesa facility and pondered, not for the first time, where the hell the other 6 Herald Units were. They'd spend years combing out from the Safe Zones, hopping from one site to the next after having found one in Argentina that held the location of the other two. There were a few willing converts that they'd picked up along the way, some that were even helpful in their search, but conversion was a secondary concern for the moment.

'Even still…' he shook his head in exasperation as his mind circled back to the problem. 'We're missing the other 6 that we need to complete another Impact and initiate Instrumentality.'

And, he realized as he clenched a fist, something to initiate that Instrumentality.

Lilith was an unknown quantity at this point, as likely to be a dud as it was to have the necessary power to initiate Instrumentality. With 14 years of having had the Doors thrown open, as it were, and with being under NERV's lock and key, reaching it and using it as he wished might be close to impossible, even with the tools presented to him.

'Unit-01, on the other hand…'

He thought back to Near-Third Impact, so long ago now, and to the sight of the Frames of Unit-01 in the air, drawing in a storm of souls from Lilith. Even in the last Echo that he'd come from, Unit-01 was a viable alternative to start Instrumentality.

That, of course, was no easy task to retrieve either, sequestered in the core of the Wunder as it was. There, however, he had people on the inside, the thought with a slight, slowly growing smile. There, when the time was right, he could perhaps commandeer the ship, stride aboard with the Herald Units, and at last, do what he'd set out to do from the start: prepare a world for the Guides to use as a base to begin again what had been repulsed before.

'Worry not, poor world.' he thought in his reverie. 'Your suffering has been long. But it will be over soon.'

He continued his strategizing for time untold before he felt in his soul the pulse of someone contacting him through his earring. The long-range connector informed him that it was Tomomi calling him, and his smile widened. 'Ah, my lovely wife. Now's not a good time for foreplay, but needs must, I suppose, if such is the case.'

He connected, savoring the now intimately familiar understanding of Tomomi's soul. "Hello, dear. How goes it aboard the Wunder?"

"It's… an interesting time, to say the least."

he heard her sigh quietly. "I'm disappointed in Ymris, I must admit. I thought she'd be more… dedicated to the Great Cause."

Tavis sighed quietly. "She has her moments, but she's proven able to pull us out of the fire when needed. We wouldn't be here without her."

"I know that much now,"

Tomomi said, Tavis blinking as he heard a surprising sullenness in her voice.

"What is it?"

"I learned that we aren't the first world like this you've been to. That this is your 'fallback position'."

Tavis sighed again, far more wearily now. "Yes, I'll admit that. I had one of those times when I got in over my head trying to reach for something that was further away than I expected. I suspect that Ymris told you that much as well."

He felt the confirmation at the other end of the link and nodded slightly. "I'd like to hope that I've learned my lesson at least somewhat. There is a measure of caution that I take now. And look at where it has gotten us. So close to our goal here, dear."

"So it would seem."

They simply took in each other's presence for a little while after that before Tomomi seemed to recall something. "There was something interesting I saw a few days ago. Apparently, something like Interfacing was here on this world, from nearly a century ago."

Tavis found himself confused, his brows rising as he took in the seemingly impossible statement. "Why do you say that? We're the only ones here that have Interfacing."

In response, Tomomi pushed through a memory that was a few days old now, Tavis closing his eyes as he began to see it play out as if he'd been there himself.

Tomomi had been on the Arm Bar, working on replacing muscle strands, when one had snapped suddenly, going wild with live currents of energy as it flailed. She could feel Ymris preparing to step in and stop it, risking exposing the secret she'd been so strident to protect in order to keep the people around them from getting seriously injured. At that moment, she couldn't help but finally be somewhat impressed with her superior.

But someone stepped in before her. And the sight of the man who took hold of the writhing muscle strand, able to lift anyone else into the air with contemptuous ease, somehow made Tavis' blood simultaneously freeze over and boil.

The man who had introduced himself to her as Vice-Chief Theisman, Daniel, the heretic, had even gone so far as to have the gall to admonish her about her beliefs.

"Tavis…" Tomomi was utterly afraid now, having realized who, exactly, this was. "What do we do? Ymris told me about how powerful he is."

Tavis took a moment to marshal his emotion, taking several deep breaths before replying. He was on his feet now, having had no clue how he'd gotten up. "First things first. I'm going to talk to Ymris and ask her why, exactly, this man is in the position that he's in. Then, I want you and the others prepared to move against him. Do you think you're ready for that?"

"I… I don't know…"

"Aaminata's gift will be your first line of attack. I promise you'll make it out of this if I have to come over there and kill him myself."

He was reassured by the comfort that sentence had given her. "Alright. Tavis… I love you."

"And I love you. Take care of yourself and the others."

With that, he disconnected from Tomomi and prepared himself for his talk with Ymris, the fear in his veins beginning to melt away from the fire of that damned heretic having been there for this long. And Ymris having done seemingly nothing about it.

He connected to Ymris and felt her resignation before he even began speaking. "Why didn't you tell me immediately that the heretic was here? Moreover, why is he still breathing, and your second in command?"

"Because this is exactly what you would have been like regardless of me telling you or not," Ymris replied, a cool, hard edge to her voice. "I've kept a close eye on him, kept him as close to me as I can, to ensure that he doesn't get up to anything that would harm our cause. He knows that our wrath will come down on him if he tries anything."

"That's not enough! You and I know his power! What can you do against him, even with all the acolytes at your disposal?"

It was silent as they considered the obvious answer to that question. "And he's not alone, is he?"

"He's here with his wife, and he has four others with him. I don't know who they are."

"I don't care who they are. If they're with him, they're going to get in our way. Tell Tomomi and the others to activate Palimpsest. They'll know what I mean. And the next time either you or I call, I want to hear that the bodies of him and his conspirators have been dumped off the ship and that you have their souls in custody. Is that clear?"

It was silent for a moment, then he felt the ghost of a nod. "Yes, Tavis."

"Good." was his clipped reply. "The Guides expect results. The Guide of War especially, having spoken to me personally. Actual results, instead of the mess that we had last time. So don't screw this up."

He disconnected from Ymris without another word, found himself in the hallway, stalking down it as the rage began to ebb, and anxiety and fear began to return.

He was here. Guides damn it all, he was here. Why didn't the Guide of War tell him in their conversations? Was this a test, somehow? Was he supposed to overcome him here?

He had the means to. The Herald Units were at his disposal, ready to go at nearly a moment's notice. Except…

His mind tumbled back to Terminal Dogma an Echo away. So close to triumph, nearly literally snatched out of his hands, then… the giant of night. An Evangelion made manifest only by the will of Daniel's soul.

How could he fight against such a beast if the heretic decided to conjure it again? How could he expect mere Spirits, much as Aaminata would protest, to stand against such a power when even the novices from that Echo which they had retreated from had bested Revenants?

He paused, physically and mentally, as he found himself in the gantry for what was designated as Herald-6, looking up at it and the pale, eyeless snake of a face that seemed to leer back at him, its silent grin seeming to mock him. He found himself breathing deeply. How quickly had he gotten here, to look up at this thing?

As he continued to stare at it, however, the fire within his soul began to fade a little, rage slowly becoming curiosity. 'I wonder…'

He made his way up the scaffolding surrounding the Unit, his pace far more measured as he made his way toward the back, looking for something in particular to confirm its presence.

In time, he looked down at the nape of the thing's neck and saw the nodule sticking out. Just as it had in the last Echo, and in the Receptor records he'd watched so long ago.

'It might just work…'

He walked away, stretching a Frame out to seek Kauri somewhere in the base and finding him after a moment. "Kauri," he said as he connected. "We're going to go looking for something important. I've got an idea I want to try to engineer."

. . .

Geofront Ruins

Kaworu Nagisa, of SEELE, of NERV, of WILLE, played the piano that he had managed to get into the wide space that had been made in front of what had been the gantry for Unit-01, his eyes closed as he played a song that had been seemingly etched into his memory. One that he had played long before this instance of this world existed, and would likely play long after its end.

But the song, as beautiful as it still sounded, was… incomplete. Another player was needed. He was needed.

The playing slowed and came to a stop. Of course, he needed Shinji Ikari. He had figured him out long before this point, his sensitive strength and the heart that could carry him through the worst of what he could face before it shattered completely. What had made up the last several centuries of his momentary life was his dedication to protecting Shinji, now that he knew him. To preserve that heart of glass so that it would never shatter again.

'I will save Shinji Ikari.' the words, like the music, had been etched into his soul. They were the words he lived by. The words he died by. However many times it would take for them to be fulfilled.

He rose from the piano, turning to face, to his surprise, the Ayanami clone that Commander Ikari kept, the only one in this entire base. She regarded him with a distant, vacant expression as he approached, her clothing a school uniform like the one he'd seen her wear so many times before.

"Hello, Ayanami," he said, his head tilted slightly. "I must admit, it is… somewhat odd to see you here."

"I have been ordered by the Commander to remain physically active. Thus, I have taken after the only example I have, being yourself, and have begun to walk the halls of the base. My path simply led here this time." she replied, her voice equally level and toneless.

"I see," Kaworu said quietly. Such activities could prove dangerous, should she wander into the wrong hallway and meet with Deputy-Commander Kaji. He would have to dispose of her then. An action that would leave Commander Ikari as displeased as he could perhaps get still.

"Perhaps I should escort you back to your quarters. I imagine you require rest." he continued.

"Is that an order?"

Kaworu sighed quietly. He had little reason to interact with her as of yet, beyond their first time piloting together to complete Third Impact. But even still, as Commander Ikari had informed him then, he was to be considered her commanding officer. "Yes," he finally said. "Come along."

They walked together in silence, for the most part, weaving through hallways that were mostly clear still. "I would recommend that you remain close to your quarters. Ranging far from them could be potentially dangerous." Kaworu warned as they got close to the LCL tank facility.

Ayanami nodded slightly. "Yes, sir."

Soon enough, they reached the cavernous room, and the paltry curtained room that sat near the edge of the pit the tank sat in. Kaworu slowed to a stop, while Ayanami continued onward. "Farewell, Ayanami," Kaworu said, not waiting for a reply that would never come as he turned and walked away.

Soon, he wandered the halls again, a flight of fancy turning his path towards a meeting room only the command staff here in the Geofront knew about.

He reached the door of the meeting room, stepping into a pillar of utter darkness. As he looked up, he saw the dim lights, a circle of six, up above him.

As he stepped forward once more, he found himself caught in the gravity suspension field, the only one of its kind here on Earth, and drifted upwards towards the council of SEELE.

'Such a wonder wasted on theatrics. How like the old men.' he mused as he slowed to a stop in the middle of the circle of pillars, the sigil of SEELE etched on their faces above the numbers of their positions. He faced 01 and smiled slightly as he felt their attention slowly come to focus on him.

"Why do you disturb us, Tabris?" SEELE-01 asked the only one he'd heard speak in decades.

"I simply wish to converse for a moment," Kaworu replied. "Lorenz Kihl."

As he'd expected, he felt some consternation from SEELE-01 at the name that he'd just heard. "That… is a name I have not heard in an age."

'That is far more accurate than you think.' Kaworu mused with a smile. "Do you so easily forget the last name that you took on yourself, quiet guide of humanity's path?"

"We have concerned ourselves with our task of uniting the souls of mankind peacefully. The bodies of this council, great and small, granted to us by our great mother, have been set aside so that we may progress to the next step of humanity's evolution, and be reunited with Lilith."

"How the last 14 years must burn at you then." Kaworu chuckled softly.

He felt SEELE-01 bristle at the words. "A momentary setback. Our mother yet waits for us. She will accept our souls when the time is right, and Instrumentality has begun."

'And yet you do not know her body rots beneath you. How little you pay attention.' Kaworu mused.

"Ikari is prepared to enact his plans to bring Instrumentality to fruition," he said aloud. "All he needs is the correct pieces to fall into place, and you will be reunited with Lilith. And humanity will know true happiness at last."

How little they knew that, by taking the Key of Nebuchadnezzar's will within himself, he had set himself in an ancient enmity against them. Then again, how often had their goals truly converged?

It was silent for long moments, then he felt a resignation from the soul within the plinth. "Very well. Remember your part in this. Your destined death."

"I do," Kaworu replied. 'Far more than you could ever imagine.'

With that, he began to gently float down to the floor again, his feet touching the ground just before the door as it opened.

'Now…' he thought as he stepped through the door. 'I begin to wait again for when Shinji shall come.'

. . .

Deputy Commander Kozo Fuyutsuki sat in a chair beside the massive desk in the Commander's office, now open to the air from the attack of the 10th Angel and the years that had come after, and set up a well-worn shogi set, the tiles clacking quiet with the walls, and even in some places the floor, exposed to a brilliant sky for the first time since their constructions.

He was alone here for the moment, able to ponder to himself in peace about the utter mess everything had become.

What was Gendo thinking? So much hinged on that single question. What had driven him to use the Key of Nebuchadnezzar, and take the terrible power that it had held within? What, exactly, was this 'Imagination' or 'Minus Space' he'd now hoped to reach with this power? How much of the Gendo that he knew was truly gone, now?

He did not know, he summarized with a weary sigh as he placed the last piece on the board, looking up at the empty chair that would have held the opponent that never played him.

What he could guess, however, was that Gendo was getting closer to when he wanted this whole business of attempting another Impact quite soon. Closer and closer to retrieving young Shinji.

'And Gendo will be the same as he always was.' Kozo thought, a mournful air about the words. 'Expecting a tool that will comply with him now that distance has supposedly made the boy's heart grow fonder.'

But the heart could not change that easily. Not the boy's. And not Gendo's.

But perhaps he could set one of them on a better path. Young Shinji's heart might be set on undoing what he had done, a feeling which Gendo could use to twist the boy as he had before, but perhaps he could warn him in some fashion, allowing him to see what the consequences of his actions might be. But how, without putting himself at risk of Gendo's ire…

He then recalled the Ayanami clone that Gendo kept close at hand, the poor doll. More than likely, the boy would think that she was the Ayanami he'd so desperately tried to save. Perhaps…

'Yui's story should be told. He should know what goes into Rei Ayanami. If nothing else, the past could inform him of the possible future, should he be as dogged as Gendo is.'

He could do that much, at least. But even still, it seemed so little in the face of what was coming, he thought with a sigh as he put a finger on one of the pawns, sliding it forward to allow the rook to begin its attack.

'Perhaps I should contact Iscariot.' Kozo mused, a slight smile coming to his face as he recalled the rather… excitable person to whom the codename belonged.

He should have seen that energy back then. Or perhaps something about what had happened in the aftermath of the Contact Experiment had changed her mind as much as it had her body. Either way, he was at least familiar with her, in a world where such familiarity was dwindling quickly.

He looked down at the game that he had set up, and pondered on the one he lived in. One much further along than the one that sat in front of him.

How much longer will this be worth it, Yui?' he asked the open air, wherever Unit-01 might be. 'How much more until you realize the lengths he's gone to to get you back?'

But, for Yui to answer that question… he would have to continue on. Just this little bit longer.

. . .

Commander Gendo Ikari stood in the ruined command center of Central Dogma, looking up at the severed head of Lilith. It had taken on a familiar form as its body had nearly burst from the power that thrummed within it, the souls within her carrying her head up and away into its current resting place as they became beings made of core material, shaped into the form of that being that had taken their brothers and sisters, almost possessing the Fruit of Life, the gift of Infinity. But they had fallen short. They had failed, and now all only reached for the sky, utterly still.

Much of this was due to Inspector Kaji having stopped it all, leaving the massive facsimile of Rei's decapitated body rotting in the cage that he had placed over the hole to Terminal Dogma in his all too temporary power. A nigh unbreakable barrier, for any who did not possess the power of Adam at least.

But, he thought as he turned away from the familiar sight, walking towards the shaft that led towards the barrier in question. As he stopped at its edge, the walls surrounded by those that had been stopped by Lilith's death while crawling up them, he looked down, far into the depths where light almost could not touch, and saw the barrier, gleaming a dull purple in his visor's enhanced imaging.

He simply looked down at it for a moment, then took a deliberate step forward, walking off the edge.

He tapped into his power, floating gently towards the floor that waited for him silently, the writhing, twisted forms of the Failures of Infinity mere wall decorations that he passed by.

Finally, he touched the seal over Terminal Dogma, a slight chiming sound echoing through the room as he planted his feet on the surface, and looked down upon it, his reflection peering back at him.

If he'd had even a sliver more of the power he'd taken from the Key, that now lay in the forms of the Mark.09 and Unit-13 close at hand, he could open this himself. Sweep aside all other concerns, and become the god of this world without the trifling of the boy Shinji, or the danger of Nagisa, or Tabris, the name that sliver whispered to him. But to take from either would be to lose his goals, lose his mind to the intelligence that lay just beneath the surface of that sliver buried within his soul.

So, for now, he abided the annoyance of such ease of achievement out of reach. But… if he focused…

'I can feel the Spears below me.' Gendo mused, the lines of power thrumming in his head as he reached out with that power that had become his. 'I can…'

He focused, his full attention falling on the one that he knew was the Spear of Cassius. 'What is it that SEELE's boy calls that one? The spear of hope.'

He took the Spear in his mental grasp, and the sliver in his soul acted, twisting the energy of the Spear to match its twin buried in Lilith's body.

'Why…' he paused as he considered what had just happened. 'I see. The next Impact is at hand. The second Gate to Imagination stands ready to be unlocked.'

He continued to observe for a moment, then looked up, floating back up the shaft without a sound. The trap had been laid. Now all that was needed was to gather what would spring it.