Sokila watched silently as Elizabeth tried a new recipe in the Velvet Room's kitchen.
"Hmm..."
There was a lot of fire, much to Theodore and Lavenza's concern.
"...HMM..."
Margaret looked rather despondent at the shenanigans.
"...I wonder..."
Elizabeth suddenly cried out with glee. "I've come up with a new recipe! Open wide, brother!"
Theo's eyes went wide. "Wait-!" A globule of some gelatinous substance erupted from the kitchen, landing on the man's head...promptly setting him alight. "AH! I'M ON FIRE!"
Sokila's eyes brightened with an epiphany. "Ah, I know what I want my next request to be! A guy with a fiery head..." As Theo promptly began running about in a panic, she added, "...and make sure he's really fast!"
Margaret huffed. "Enough of this." With a gesture, the eldest of the siblings unleashed a torrent of light that snuffed out the flames in the kitchen.
It also had the side effect of knocking Theo off of his feet. "Ow..." he mumbled, even as Lavenza tried to help him up.
"...but...maybe see if he's protected against those attacks which can take you down in an instant...what was it called?" Sokila's lips scrunched up with concentration. "Tetra...ga? Terraja? Teriyaki...?"
The faint haze of blue began to brighten-
xxxx
/Friday: August 29, 2015/
Shinji Ikari quietly walked away from Hakone Academy, wondering why he had a strange thought in his head upon waking up. I wonder...what in the world would go so fast while being on fire...? A scooter zoomed past along the road, drawing his attention. Hmm...I wonder...
He vowed to think about it some more as he made his way to NERV.
xxxx
/Training Room Seven, NERV/
Shinji looked around the blank chamber, feeling a sense of uncomfortable nostalgia. "...is there a reason we picked the same room from when I first summoned Unit-01?"
"Precisely for that reason," remarked Rei Ayanami, standing quietly on the other side of the room. The pale coloring of the reinforced tiles along the walls, floor, and ceiling only made her hair and eyes stand out all the more. "Even a lingering memory will assist with triggering your Ascended State."
Shinji briefly glanced towards the cameras that would be observing them from numerous angles. "...is it going to be anything like the first time I manifested an Evangelion?"
"That all depends on you."
xx
From the primary MAGI chamber, Ritsuko Akagi was calmly instructing several technicians to monitor the feeds from Training Room Seven. Kensuke Aida was among them.
"So...Doctor Akagi."
"What is it, Aida?"
"Is this 'Overdrive' going to be worth it?"
The blonde glanced curiously at him. "Mind elaborating?"
"Well...Shinji's been growing a lot. With his power, you know? I mean, with the battles against Sho Minazuki, against the Angel, against that crazy Minako lady and everything in-between...I'd say he's come a long way since when he got here at the beginning of June."
"And you would be a subject-matter expert?" asked Dr. Akagi, eyebrow quirked to show just the right amount of condescension that it wasn't overbearing.
Kensuke still found himself scowling. "Given that he had difficulty fighting my own berserk Shadow before Mister P arrived? I'd say so."
The doctor didn't seem that impressed. "I'm still waiting for you to elaborate."
Kensuke frowned, thinking back to the group meeting from Monday, where the brusque doctor had informed everyone about some of the particulars of the Ascended State. "If Shinji's been doing well...then is this Overdrive needed, in light of the drawbacks?"
"It's never a bad idea to have a trump card. Besides...you're missing an obvious caveat." At his look of confusion, she added, "had Ikari been capable of his Overdrive...would that anomalous Persona-user have been as troublesome? Would it have been enough to turn the tide?"
"...is it really that strong?" The thought seemed ludicrous.
"We'll just have to see."
"...didn't you say that the Ascended State shorts out the scanning equipment?"
Ritsuko rolled her eyes. "The Third Child's different enough that we might as well try. Besides, it won't stop us from getting audio and video."
xx
Within Operations, Misato Katsuragi stood at the ready, arms crossed. Ryuji Sakamoto, Toji Suzuhara, Mana Kirishima, and Mayumi Yamagishi were also present.
"This place gives a real 'corporate' kind of vibe," murmured Sakamoto, looking around the rows of monitors that displayed live footage from Training Room Seven. "Feh."
"What, you got a problem?" asked Misato.
The older Cognitive Freelancer huffed, leaning on his cane for balance as he settled down into an empty seat. "Doesn't look 'lived in' enough. Kinda soulless, in a way."
Can't exactly disagree, admitted Misato inwardly.
"So...is there a particular reason we need to be present?" asked Mayumi.
"If you guys are going to keep fighting alongside Shinji-kun, you should at least be aware of what an Evangelion-user can do when they've gone into Overdrive," explained Misato.
Toji sat in a chair adjacent to his sensei, leaning back so he could get a wider view of the monitor. "Is it supposed to be a big deal?"
"...let's just wait and see," answered Misato, watching as Rei Ayanami spoke with Shinji Ikari. "Can't say I've had an occasion to see Ayanami-san or Asuka using this power, so I can only go by secondhand sources."
Mana remained standing, peering intently at a monitor so as to not miss a thing.
xx
Shinji looked up as static sounded from one of the unseen speakers. "Check, check...okay, Operations is actively monitoring. Feel free to begin at any time," said Misato's voice.
"...very well then." Ayanami reached for her abdomen, retrieving that familiar spark of blue. Crimson eyes turned yellow, as her white bodysuit manifested. "Do you remember the words I spoke to you, so long ago?" she asked, as Zerogoki's spectral form phased into being behind her.
As Shinji quietly (seamlessly, with paradoxically similar violence yet less carnage) withdrew the spark of Shogoki, his mind was cast back to that eventful day, more than two months ago.
(June the 13th: Ayanami had spoken with all the surety and firmness of a mountain. "A Shadow can seem to be an entity with a will of its own, loose and free...for the minds of man are varied and strange...and yet, to be an Evangelion-user is to have a mind and a soul that cooperate willingly with each other, to a degree no one else in this world can manage. Hence, our Shadows are always with us, and in us; our deepest selves are bound tightly, by necessity." As the formation of their Evangelions proceeded, and the heavy haze of wrath and rage began to cloud his senses, her voice remained constant. "It is one thing, to gaze within, and face the parts of us we may not like, or do not wish to accept...it is another to make them tangible. To open your heart is to let unpleasant things be known to more than just yourself. If you do not control it, you will be devoured...either here, or in the battles to come." The foul presence of the Beast slowly became more prominent: Ayanami's voice still remained. "It wants to break free. But for there to be control, you must accept the pain that comes with letting it out. Take hold, and set it free.")
"Yes," he admitted, feeling the presence of Unit-01 looming over his shoulder.
"That mingling of mind and soul, made manifest...that is something which you have become accustomed to. Yet there is another step: one that by its very nature will increase the power at your disposal." As she spoke, Unit-00 seemed to shrink, and...overshadow Ayanami?
"What...?"
She continued speaking, even as her very form seemed to shudder and vibrate. "Evangelion: a living shell forged from one's own A.T. Field and cognition...yet its distance from the body from which it came is an inherent limiter. To ignore that limit, spirit and thought must become one...with the flesh. Thus..." Rei's hands clenched into fists; a distinct outline of Unit-00 shimmered around her, giving her a strangely orange sheen. "...thus...your very being becomes exalted in its entirety..."
Shinji stared with wide eyes at the demonstration.
xxxx
The Beast of Shinji Ikari sneered.
"You are asking for the boy to burn alive...how amusing."
The Beast of Rei Ayanami stared back with a despondent gaze.
"So long as the flame is kept at bay...it can take a long time, for the fire to consume our flesh."
At this, Shinji's Beast could only laugh.
xxxx
"Ayanami-san...?!"
"You have taken hold of Evangelion, and set it free from the intrinsic bonds of your mind and spirit, allowing it to walk among the worlds of men...but to then take it, and constrain it with your physical form? To do so, without shackling it in the chains of nature?" There was a visible aura of heat emanating from her, which seemed all the more unnerving given the lack of sweat and sweat. "It is paradoxical. That paradox gives birth to power. But that paradox comes at the price of pain." She stepped forward-
"!" he wordlessly mouthed.
-and in a proverbial blink, she had grabbed him by the shoulders, pressing him against the hard yet permeable form of Unit-01. "Be willing to embrace the contradiction: that to be whole in such a fashion...you must carve away at yourself...to live as one in self-imposed shackles, yet with an unbound heart..."
Shinji grimaced, feeling more and more uncertainty as it seemed like he was sinking(?) into Unit-01. "Ayanami-!"
"...can you be a slave to yourself, without losing your freedom?" she asked, with a quiet finality.
xxxx
The Beast of Shinji Ikari grabbed at his head from behind.
"Let us see if you CAN."
xxxx
At that point, all awareness faded away.
The old sensation of lingering wrath and hatred — born from a forgotten age — rushed upon Shinji.
"I'll ask you once more: what has this world done for you?"
It was the voice of the Beast.
"This world of pain and strife is nothing but a figment of mankind's imagination; what do you owe anyone?"
However...he was not the same boy from June the 13th (a proverbial lifetime ago, it seemed). He was not the same person he had been yesterday...nor the day before that...nor the week prior...and on and on...and yet he was still nonetheless Shinji Ikari.
"Are you going to answer? Or will you simply let me accomplish the things that you truly desire?"
Thus, Shinji Ikari answered.
"I...have people counting on me..."
"What do they matter?"
"...they give my life meaning..."
"What empty altruism: doomed to be cast aside!"
"Let me finish...they give my life meaning...because they help me know more about myself..."
"And you would still retain them, you say?"
"...I have to try."
"We will see if you have the strength to maintain such feeble things..."
"If I was the person I was when I first arrived in Tokyo-3...I don't think I would have been strong enough to even try..."
The Beast grinned. "It'll be interesting...to see the moment where that resolve fails..."
"...you sound just like my father."
The Beast laughed. "Oh, is that what you think? That man may be convinced of your failure...but only because he is motivated by spite, and hatred..."
"...and you?"
"It's quite simple: you are nothing without me...and your attempts to change will only guarantee more pain...in the end, your greatest happiness is with ME. After all..." The voice of the Beast began to recede. "...it is why you still hold onto me...because you know, deep down, that I am thou...and thou art I..."
Shinji felt the tide recede: soaked to the bone and burned by passing flames, he still remained standing.
"...you are still on your feet..."
That was Rei Ayanami's voice. "Ayanami-san?!" Shinji looked around, trying to find her amidst the nonexistent murk. "What's going on...?! Where are you?!"
"Can you control it?"
"I...I don't know how! I don't know what I'm supposed to be controlling...!"
"Think of it...as though you're holding handles...handles to control a monstrous creature..." Her voice echoed from everywhere and nowhere. "And yet...that creature is also you. Comprehend that contradiction..."
It was a strange sort of instruction (yet it rang a chord, somehow...); hesitantly, he reached out with his hands, feeling an unease that was both nostalgic yet nausea-inducing.
His Other gazed upon the wasteland.
"Your vow...will one day be the key to full recollection."
He placed his hands upon rigid handlebars.
"But for now...a mere inkling will suffice...if you have the strength."
Grimacing, he gingerly stretched out his fingers (reaching for a sword; pressing 'stop' on an SDAT; pulling the trigger) and clutched onto handles that were suddenly there.
With wide eyes, Shinji found himself sitting in...a strange cockpit of sorts, that was both there yet not. He stared through screens, through the eyes of a beast, simultaneously such that there was no separation. He was a mere boy, holding onto feeble reins, yet standing as a giant over the forests of Japan (forests that grew under a beautiful blue sky; forests that were blasted down to nothing underneath a crimson expanse). He heard the voice of his Persona within his mind, yet felt the mantle of Hamlet's cloak upon his shoulders.
"...do you understand this feeling...?"
Shinji looked up, staring across the hilly landscape; his eyes saw Zerogoki, looming tall in orange armor; his soul witnessed Rei Ayanami, standing in her familiar white bodysuit; his mind perceived the wings and pale flesh of Lilith; all at once, with no sense of contradiction or paradox. "Ayanami-san...?"
Ayanami suddenly charged, lashing out with an immense punch; Shinji caught it within his hands, feeling the ground crumble beneath his feet. "You must be willing to fight in all circumstances...do not hold back against me."
"But-"
"If you do, then how will you be able to keep hold of the Beast's reins? It is in my nature to withstand all things...it is why I exist."
The utter stoicism somehow made her words even sadder, for all the melancholy they should have had; it was akin to a thunderous storm, rumbling with tumult and power...only to pass by without letting a single drop of soothing rain fall. "...that sounds so sad."
"Sadness cannot be an excuse...not now, and not ever."
"...alright." With a pained grimace, Shinji yanked Ayanami's arm and tossed her over his shoulder.
With a tumultuous crash, Unit-00 landed amidst the tiny trees, crushing them into splinters; Unit-01 advanced, engaging in furious fisticuffs with the giant. The air quivered from the force of their blows, as the world itself seemed to quake under the force of their fury.
xxxx
Far away, Kaworu Nagisa looked up with alarm. "What...a familiar feeling..." he murmured.
xxxx
Further away, within the Metaverse, Mister P looked up with curiosity. "Oh ho...so the boy was ready for this step...?"
xxxx
Even further away, in an unseen realm where a hopeful Angel and a tireless slave continued their endless duel...
The One Who Sat Upon the Throne looked up.
"Oh? You are continuing to grow...that is very good."
Satisfied, they turned their attention back to Minako Arisato.
"So long as you continue in that vein, I can keep my attention on this..."
xxxx
Each blow from Rei Ayanami hurt, in a way that was impossible to ignore. Flesh, soul, and mind: all of them seemed to feel the sting. Yet...he was able to endure, and keep on going. As such, he was able to give as good as he got.
Yet...the battle would come to an abrupt end, instead of a meaningful conclusion. "I have seen enough." Rei Ayanami suddenly stepped back; Lilith's wings flapped, providing greater lift; Unit-00's gargantuan feet landed amidst a ruined expanse. "Remember this feeling; do not forget the line you must straddle in order to withstand the Ascended State."
Shinji blinked, feeling the cloak of Hamlet flutter in an unreal wind; the weary fingers of Unit-01 slowly uncurled. "Ayanami-san..."
"...however...this brings you into closer contact with you at your fullest; your heart will be at its most susceptible to that which brings you the most pain. You have...my sincerest apologies."
"...what do you mean-?"
The fatigue was finally too much; esoteric visions of a higher reality were snuffed out in an instant. Shinji didn't even have time to perceive the ruined state of Training Room Seven before unconsciousness took him.
xxxx
There was...a distinct haziness, to everything.
Yet there was also clarity, stinging like cold water in a morning shower; it was a knife, cutting away at the ambiguities Shinji felt in his body, thought in his mind, and witnessed in his soul.
(Was this what she had been referring to?)
Scenes were drawn into sharp focus, with no apparent rhyme or reason.
Sachiel's amethyst lance pierced his eye, driving him back against a building(?).
Shamshel's energy whips wiggled through his torso, even as his knife pushed further into a crystalline core.
Ramiel's cry echoed through his ears, even as his body burned under its blazing deluge.
Armisael was drawn within Ayanami(?), before they both exploded(?!).
Some were grainy, like old film reels.
A gargantuan fish plowed into his (her?) body, driving him (her?) into the ocean; there was the babbling of a foreign tongue...?
Acid poured down a tunnel from a great eye...but something crimson protected him from the deluge. Ayanami(?) threw a rifle up towards him, which he used to deliver the killing blow against the enemy.
Others...were smudged, without definition that he could decipher.
Two acrobats(?) throttled him senseless, driving him into the ground.
He dove into liquid hellfire to save a sinking comrade(?).
The sky fell(?), yet he held it up with his bare hands(?).
He sat naked, within a blood-filled tube(?), waiting for a distant battle to conclude.
He sat clothed, within a blood-filled tube (again?), curling up to fall asleep (forever?) amidst the darkness...until, with sudden violence, he broke free into the light.
With agonized cries, he brutalized the body of his friend(?!), acting according to a will not his own.
With a snarling howl, he brutalized the body of Death Incarnate, crushing their skull and taking its life(?) for himself.
He was forced to stand aside, listening to angelic hallelujahs and the anguish of his comrade(?); then, with sudden violence, a brilliant bird was pierced by a spear, thrown by Ayanami(?). The utter force of her throw scattered the rain, leaving a clear sky.
A white figure smiled sadly, staring quietly at him as he grappled with a crimson beast; a song of Beethoven's(?) played mournfully as he held their life in his hands.
Yet they carried a sense of pain, of uncertainty, of anxiety and loss, swirling together into a toxic soup that threatened to drown him.
He watched nine birds carry away a ravaged body, a body the belonged to...to...
Screaming. Screaming. SCREAMING.
A world unmade.
However...one scene, in particular, struck him with a horror that was utterly unique, and all the more frightening because of it.
The red sea parted.
A hand emerged from the depths.
It dragged down...someone...precious...
There was a wretched scream.
xxxx
Shinji Ikari cried with terror, rising up from a hospital cot. "What...what...?!"
"You're awake."
Shinji warily turned his head; Dr. Ritsuko Akagi was sitting besides him, quietly writing in a weathered notebook. "Dr. Akagi...?"
Without missing a beat, she asked, "Did you have any nightmares? Bad dreams?"
"...I..." His flesh felt clammy. "I..." Without hesitation, Ritsuko was holding up tiny trash bin, its plastic liner crinkling from the movement. His body recognized the invitation for what it was, as he promptly proceeded to vomit and dry heave.
Ritsuko huffed, pulling the bucket away once he had expelled all of his sickness. "I'll take that as a yes. For what it's worth, the First and Second Children documented similar reactions the first time they successfully triggered Overdrive."
"...what..." He wearily recognized the intravenous drip in his arm, and felt the sensors stuck to his chest. "What happened...?"
"You've been out for several hours." Dr. Akagi aimed a remote towards the opposite wall, where he recognized a familiar display of flatscreen monitors; he was in the same room that had been used for debriefing following the July battle against Ramiel. "Unfortunately, we were unable to scan your spiriology or your brain whilst you were out. It continues the trend established by Ayanami and Sohryu, so at least it's consistent." Turning on several monitors, she proceeded to play footage taken from Training Room Seven, filmed at various angles. "Fortunately, you were able to activate and fight in your Ascended State."
Shinji watched dumbly as Ayanami's glowing form pressed him against and into the form of Unit-01; the outline of his Evangelion slowly shrank, conforming to his physical body...until all that remained was a violet outline evoking Shogoki's silhouette, overshadowing him. His eyes — glowing a piercing yellow — seemed doubly unnerving when Unit-01's distinct horn extended from his forehead.
Then there was movement that he could barely keep track of; the white tiles of Training Room Seven shattered from their movements, as he and Ayanami sparred in their empowered states. Rei's face was set into stoic determination, whilst his slowly morphed from a snarling grimace to a grim frown. Shinji could barely believe the utter speed with which he and Ayanami had fought; the documentary evidence, ironically enough, made it seem more unreal. "Is...this for real...?"
(Elsewhere, Ryuji Sakamoto suddenly sneezed.)
"Your body would have literally fallen to pieces if you had tried this two months ago," dryly remarked Ritsuko Akagi, idly crossing her legs as she wrote some additional notes down. "Suffice to say, it's a power that would be useful to have in a pinch, if necessary."
Shinji quietly watched as the battle suddenly came to an end; Ayanami leapt away without warning as Unit-01's aura flickered away. The yellow glow in his eyes faded to nothing as he collapsed into unconsciousness. Right as Ayanami's own orange aura disappeared, the footage came to an end. "...is Ayanami okay?"
"I am fine," came a voice from the other side of his cot.
Shinji yelped with fright, looking with bewilderment at Rei Ayanami. Clad in her school uniform, she would have seemed pristine were it not for the dark circles under her eyes. "H-how long have you been there?!"
"Ever since you were placed into this room."
"...you're so quiet."
"So I've been told," she dryly remarked.
Dr. Akagi took the opportunity to rise to her feet, brushing at her lab coat and skirt absentmindedly. "Mandatory bedrest until tomorrow. Then it's back to the grind for both of you." Without another word, Ritsuko turned the monitors off and left the room.
Shinji looked back towards Rei, inwardly wondering why she looked so utterly exhausted. "Um...where are the others...?"
"Your peers were inclined to wait for you, but there was an outbreak of Angel Syndrome in numerous parts of the Bōsō Peninsula," she said, referring to the part of Chiba Prefecture that bordered Tokyo Bay from the east. "I believe Misato Katsuragi and Ryuji Sakamoto took them to the city of Kamogawa."
xxxx
/Meanwhile, in the Metaverse/
'It'll charge in my direction in five seconds!' mentally exclaimed Mayumi via Armisael. Right as the Acolyte's Shadow swatted Ozymandias away, it turned towards her Persona as predicted. Right as it began its charge...
"SEITEN TAISEI!"
"GILGAMESH!"
...it tripped over the extended polearm of Ryuji's Persona, simultaneously getting smashed in the back by the shoulder charge of Toji's Persona. Slamming into the ground with an immense thud, the Acolyte barely got its hands down before Kensuke's Persona was back in position. "Dormina!" As the giant 'Z' hit the corrupted Shadow, putting it into a temporary slumber...
xx
/Meanwhile, in Reality, on the Shores of Kamogawa/
...the movements of the Acolyte in the real world suddenly became noticeably more sluggish.
"FLASHBANG OUT!" cried Misato, pulling out a small cylinder from a satchel resting on her hips; she tossed it towards the bewildered woman's face.
BOOM!
Noise and light flashed in an instant, disorienting the berserk woman even more.
Mana, safe from the blinding light behind AIGIS, quickly charged; holding LABRYS in two hands, she sliced vertically with a glowing edge. The woman's A.T. Field was split in twain, and the Acolyte was likewise dealt a fatal blow.
(Simultaneously, in the Metaverse, the Acolyte's Shadow violently dissipated.)
"Good job, Mana-chan!" exclaimed Misato, scanning further along the shoreline. "...next target, half a kilo that way!"
"On it!" replied Mana, resting both axe and shield on her back before taking off with great leaps.
xxxx
"...I see," murmured Shinji, hoping that they would be fine. "Um...Ayanami-san-"
"What did you dream about?" she suddenly asked.
Way to get to the point, he mused, wondering precisely what had formulated those dreams of his. "I...I saw the Angels that I had previously fought. There were other scenes that I wasn't quite sure what was happening at all. But it all felt...intimidating. Like I was there."
"That is normal," she admitted, folding her hands in her lap. "That is a small blessing."
"Why?"
"Because being reminded of that which you dread is unpleasant," she bluntly answered.
Shinji slowly looked at her — taking in her tired expression, and her exhausted slouch; contrasting that with her dutiful demeanor and her prior words regarding atonement — and wondered what her dreams were like. "Do...they have anything to do with other lives? Or with the things you remember...?" She quietly turned towards him, looking at (through) him with unnerving intensity. "...Ayanami-san?"
"What exactly is it that you remember, Ikari-kun?" she calmly asked.
(She used 'kun' again.) She only ever used that honorific when no one else was around. "...I learned about Third Impact: about how the souls of man returned to the Chamber of Guf; how God fell into despair, and left their Throne; how the Chamber of Guf became the Sea of Souls that our world was born from." Her eyes were soulful, yet piercing; a chilling effect, given how her face didn't twitch at all. "I...know that you know about the War in Heaven...so I wonder how much you remember."
"...is anyone else aware of this truth?" she calmly asked. Her hands were tightly gripping her knees, belying her outward tranquility.
Shinji wondered if her exhaustion was the only reason that her normal paranoia about those terms had yet to arise. "...Aida-san, Suzuhara-san, Kirishima-san, and Yamagishi-san learned about it at the same time I did," he quietly admitted. "The fight between LILITH, the Mother of Humanity...and ADAM, the Father of the Angels...you remember those days, don't you?"
Rei didn't answer; not for a long time. Finally: with a quiet sigh — muttering "It was never going to last forever" under her breath — she said, "Yes."
"Since your Persona is Lilith...is there a connection between you and the Progenitor of Man?"
"...there is," she admitted.
"...then you remember what life was like in the real world: before Third Impact?"
"...yes."
Imperceptibly leaning forward, he asked, "Then...how did it go down? How did Third Impact happen...?" With dry lips, he added, "is Third Impact...what you have bad dreams about?"
Rei Ayanami blinked with genuine and almost uncharacteristic surprise; then, with a quiet huff, she replied, "I can only wish it were that simple; those memories are ingrained deeply. I have lived them so often that the pain from those times is an old friend, at this point."
How morbid, Shinji thought but didn't say.
"I was barely removed from a puppet, in reality," she relented. "Acting according to a higher knowledge with a body and mind that possessed little to no wisdom...the ramifications of my decisions in reality are a source of great regret...but it is hard to feel true sorrow for a time where feeling itself was a great and terrible luxury. No...my nightmares are centered on my gravest sin: a sin I can never take back."
Shinji could only fathom what she could have been referring to. "What is it...?"
"...it is inconsequential," she said. "We both have more important things to deal with." Looking away, she firmly said, "Even if the Usurper's eyes may be drawn away by events elsewhere...it would be wise to be prudent about who you share these revelations with. Focus on defeating Strega and the Angels...and hopefully, we'll be strong enough to face our ultimate enemy at the end."
Shinji grimaced, leaning back against his uncomfortable hospital pillow; his mind was aswirl with odd thoughts and uncomfortable emotions. Ayanami-san...what sin could outweigh Third Impact...? "Ayanami-san...?" No answer. "Ayanami-san?" Slowly looking towards her, he blinked with surprise: the girl had fallen asleep in her chair. "...oh." How tired was she, he wondered, staring at where her dainty chin was resting upon her chest. That...can't be comfortable. Thus, with slow and steady movements, an empathetic Shinji quietly crept out of his cot, scooping Ayanami up — marvelling at how light she felt in his arms — and gently depositing her into an adjacent cot. "...sleep well..." He sincerely hoped that she would, he pondered as he crawled back into his own cot; if his dreams had been so unsettling as to drive him to vomit...then what did Rei Ayanami dream of...?
xxxx
Shinji Ikari had no way of knowing what Rei Ayanami dreamed of.
If it were up to her, it would stay that way.
To remember the days of the true reality...of her old life, where existence itself had been an exercise of barely understood frustration and endless pain, punctuated by a few points of pleasure (eating dinner with Gendo Ikari; becoming closer with Shinji Ikari; understanding what it meant to have comrades on the field of battle...)...
Remembering those days was an old habit by now, and hence she had become numb.
However, remembering the end of the War in Heaven...where, after untold lives fighting to keep the Throne of God empty, she had achieved hope unlike any she had ever felt before...only for it all to fall away?
Truly, truly...the aftermath of those days had given her nothing but despair...
xxxx
After their meeting with the Time Count, Rei Ayanami and her comrades had settled on new objectives, which they were going to tackle separately.
Naoya Toudou and Tatsuya Suou would be taking point on an investigation into someone called 'Joker', whose group — known only as 'Masked Circle' — had allegedly originated from the Other Side: defeating them would apparently provide the keys needed in order to finally make it across the dimensional threshold separating this 'world' from the other.
She, on the other hand...would be looking into a power that was apparently necessary on the Other Side, as their A.T. Fields would be rendered useless...at least, according to the Time Count.
That had been a very unpleasant revelation for most of their group, which is why she had chosen to look into this matter personally.
"So what exactly is the Rumor associated with Karukozaka High School?" asked Maya Amano, walking confidently along the sidewalk. With a two-piece ensemble consisting of a two-tone brown jacket with distinctive pink hearts on the chest, and a matching skirt trimmed in metallic silver paired with knee-high brown boots, finished off with a long navy necktie...she certainly stood out. "I'm...trying to remember exactly if Karukozaka even existed to begin with," the journalist admitted, fiddling with her dark, shoulder-length hair.
Yukino Mayuzumi, wearing the long-skirted version of St. Hermelin's gray uniform, scratched at her short dark hair, still bearing the spiky locks that were a remnant of her days as a delinquent. "...not sure...I don't recall them being a rival of St. Hermelin..."
"Come on, get that noggin going!" exclaimed Maya, cheering along the amateur photographer that she had more or less taken under her wing. "Let's think positive!" she chanted in perfect English.
"...ah, I remember now!" remarked the last member of their group: another girl from St. Hermelin's, with hair — colored a shade of dark purple close to black — wrapped into a high and immaculate ponytail, with feathery bangs framing the rest of her face. With subtle lipstick and a orange neckerchief with red and white floral patterns, Eriko Kirishima was definitely the most feminine of the four. "According to the 'City Ghost Sighting' message boards, the Karukozaka High School has been a legendary haunting site for decades!" It certainly contrasted with her fascination with the occult, but many teens had...questionable hobbies.
Maya nodded. "Hmm...we have differing data sets. Definitely a sign of a Rumor having taken root! Keep this in mind, Yuki-chan: never turn down a source, no matter how unusual they may seem!"
"I beg your pardon?" murmured Eriko, even as Yukino diligently wrote down Maya's words in a small notepad.
Ayanami, smiling slightly at their banter, suddenly looked ahead as they rounded a city block. "...I believe we're here," she said, looking at the dilapidated cluster of block academic buildings. "It certainly looks the part for a haunting."
"What can we expect?" asked Yukino.
Eriko smiled cherubically. "Specters, poltergeists...ooh, maybe even demons!"
"You are way too jazzed about some of this stuff, Eri-chan," murmured Maya with a raised eyebrow.
"...keep your A.T. Fields at the ready," warned Ayanami. "Just in case-" Her speech suddenly halted, as her eyes witnessed a grand unmaking occur. "What...?"
Like breaking glass, the veil over the decrepit high school shattered, followed by a subtle transformation akin to a curtain being pulled back. Suddenly, there were dozens upon dozens of students in blue uniforms with distinctive white and turquoise horizontal stripes along their pants and skirts; some were moving about in a daze; some were on the ground, wounded...or worse.
"...so, mission accomplished?" wondered a bewildered Maya.
Rei's gaze shifted towards one particular girl, leaning on her knees and standing over the body of a dark-haired boy clad in white. She stood out amongst the other female students by virtue of the bulky bracer on her left forearm, connecting via wires to a complicated goggle/visor combo that rested around her neck. As Rei walked over with purpose towards the brunette, she took in some additional details: her short reddish-brown hair was matted with sweat; she was holding herself as though injured; fragments of a spiky crown lay beside the head of the fallen boy, who looked utterly defeated. "-and that's...that," she said, finishing off a speech of some sorts to the boy.
"Excuse me." The girl tiredly looked towards Rei. "I believe something of great importance just happened. Would you mind coming with us so we can get some answers?"
"...oh hey, we're back in the real world," deliriously murmured the girl, looking around her with confusion. "...will there be food? Because I just fought, like, a lot of monsters."
"Yes."
"...can I pick the place?"
And that was how, several minutes later, the four girls escorted the girl towards a place called Ramen Shiraishi, where they all ate their fill. "Ah, now I can think again!" exclaimed the peppy girl, leaning her elbows on the table. "The name's Tamaki Uchida. How can I help you?"
"I like the cut of her jib," mused Maya with a grin.
"We're part of a group investigating the numerous Rumors affecting Sumaru City," explained Rei, lightly sipping from her vegetable ramen between sentences. "Your school was recently plagued by one."
"It's so fascinating how they work," mused Eriko with a dainty smile. "Just last week, Karukozaka was a normal high school...then, once the Rumor took hold, it was common knowledge that the school had been abandoned for decades due to a dark summoning ritual gone wrong, leaving it fit only for hauntings by ghosts...but now that the Rumor's gone, I can remember stories about how all the students and faculty of Karukozaka have been missing for days."
"It's crazy, is what it is," grumbled Yukino.
Tamaki frowned, fiddling with the blocky device on her forearm. "...feels like it was a lot longer than that." She proceeded to give an explanation about everything that had happened: a fellow student named Ideo Hazama had completed a ritual to transport the school to an alternate dimension called the 'Expanse', where he ruled as the Deity Emperor, subjecting the student body to numerous torments as retribution for his own sufferings over the years; Tamaki had then found devices within an old treasure chest that allowed people to summon numerous spirits to fight the demons within the Expanse. "Some people tried to escape...some wanted vengeance on Hazama...at least one person wanted to save him..." Clenching her chopsticks tightly, Tamaki added, "Yumi Shirakawa, 'Charlie' Kuroi, Reiko Akanezawa, Akira Miyamoto...they were by my side at one point or another during my journey, but..." The way she trailed off said plenty; apparently, they hadn't made it. "...by the time I finally made it to Mister 'Deity Emperor', I just wanted to kick his ass and go home."
"...you've been through a lot," commented Rei.
Eriko, meanwhile, stared with a bewildered expression at the device Tamaki was wearing. "A computer that runs...a Demon Summoning Program? That sounds fascinating...but way too sci-fi! How can a computer summon an otherworldly monster?"
Tamaki shrugged. "I'm just going by what the instruction guide for the COMP said."
"...do you mind if I put my hand on your COMP?" asked Rei. When Tamaki nodded, Rei placed her fingers along the surface of the gauntlet, feeling the inherent contours of imagination and thought that the device seemingly relied upon. "...I see...I think I understand..." This had to be what the Time Count had been referring to. "...we truly live in a fantastic world of sorts, but summoning demons with a computer is somewhat beyond our ken. This is something else."
"Like what?" asked Maya.
"Rumors take effect based on the collective cognition of humans: this much we know. If a device like this is necessary to fight on the Other Side...then the mind is the connection between the two. For if the soul cannot be our sword and shield, then the mind must help defend the body."
Tamaki blinked. "I'm...not quite following...?"
"This device does not summon devils or spirits: rather, it plays off a localized Rumor that seemingly 'summons demons' because people think it does. And therein lies the truth: this device manifests aspects of human thought — the archetypal manifestations of human emotion and ideas that span across cultures in various forms — into a form that can be manipulated and weaponized." Rei marvelled at the subtle ingenuity of it, and wondered who precisely had crafted such a Rumor to begin with. "In other words, those monsters you fought...and the demons you summoned...were likely influenced by the cognition of Ideo Hazama, since an entirely separate Rumor allowed him to become this Deity Emperor."
"A Rumor to hide the school from the outside world, and a separate Rumor that gave Hazama power to rule within his little realm," elaborated Yukino with a frown. "How devious..."
"So if it's not really a 'Demon Summoning Program', what would you call it then?" asked Tamaki.
Rei thought about it for a moment. "...using different facets of human thought to protect yourself from the wild thoughts of others...a Persona, of sorts..."
Eriko huffed. "Sounds too Jungian for me."
Maya stared flatly at Eriko. "How in the world do you know about Carl Jung?"
"Any occultist worth their salt has at least some knowledge of psychoanalysts like Freud and Jung," retorted Eriko, crossing her arms. "Wanting to reduce everything to mere emanations of the human mind...how droll! Demons, ghosts, fairies, spirits from beyond, creatures of myth and folklore...why not let them be that instead of figments of the imagination?"
If only she knew the truth of the world she lives in, thought Ayanami with grim amusement. "Uchida-san: my comrades and I want to stop the Rumors at their source...and it looks like we'll need your help to do it."
"If it means preventing more crap like what I just went through, then I'm game," she said with a grin.
As Rei and Tamaki shook hands, Maya couldn't help but pump her fist with excitement. "We didn't exactly stop the Rumor ourselves, but we got a new party member!"
Ayanami couldn't help but smile at the impulsive burst of camaraderie...
xxxx
Rei successfully resisted the subconscious urge to whimper, as she dreamed of a life long gone.
(To know where it all of that led to...to know how that story ended so wretchedly...was just another layer of cruelty...)
(You deserve nothing less.)
xxxx
END OF 8/28/2022
xxxx
Author's Note: Rei's eventual Sidestory is gonna be a treat.
Quick recap!
- Sokila wants a Hell Biker with Tetraja. Consider the fact that his head will be on fire as an SMT V-esque redesign to more closely mirror the original. ;)
- Shinji's got himself a new Limit Break! It has no negatives or downsides whatsoever. /s
- His Priestess Social Link with Rei is now at Rank 6!
- Rei's little dream unveiled that P1 and P2 aren't the only entries Rei interacted with during the climax of the War in Heaven; she also interacted with the protagonist of "Shin Megami Tensei: if", namely Tamaki Uchida!
"SMT: if" is considered the precursor of the Persona series. Although Tamaki Uchida could be either male or female based on player choice, Tamaki shows up in P1/P2 as a female, so I'm taking that as the canonical variant.
Next time...it's time for Kensuke to go home and face the music.