Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Power of comitment ❯ Power of Commitment part four: Shinji's Retalitation ( Chapter 4 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

Authors notes: This installment will go into Shinjis reaction to his fathers' actions. Shinji is understandably pissed off. So I think the Commander is in for a world of hurt. Any way this section is going to be all about Asukas breakdown and Shinjis near breakdown. We will also learn the truth behind Rei Ayanami. Also the first part of the fic will center around some really weird crap that happens between Shinji and Unit 01 which will all be explained at a later date.

One other thing. I don't like this chapter. Every time I read it I get the feeling that there is something missing. So if any of you bright readers out there happens to think of something please let me know. Also I still need a title for part one. DON"T YOU PEOPLE EVER READ THE AUTHORS NOTES!!!!!!?????

Also I must apologize to the DrunkenOtaku #2. He quite vocally expressed his opinion to have Gendo die in part Four, in some fairly uncomfortable methods. Gendo does NOT die in this fic. (At least not yet.) sorry man Maybe in part six.

If you think of a title please let me know and I will pick the best out of all the responses that I get. Thank you.

Power of Commitment Part Four:
Shinjis Retaliation

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"Major, Unit 01 is moving." Maya said.

"What?" On the screen everyone could see Unit 01 digging itself out of the ground.

"Oh my god!" Ritsuko breathed as she stared intently at her monitor.

"What is it?" Misato asked.

"Shinjis synch ratio has just skyrocketed in the last fifteen seconds. It's now up to... 267%. And rising."

"Is he heading for another 400% incident?" Misato asked, worry creeping into her voice.

"I'm not so sure that, that's what I would be worrying about right now." Ritsuko replied. "His synch ratio is rising at an exponential rate. That only happens when he is very angry. Since the Angel has been destroyed, I am more worried about who, or what Shinjis anger is going to lash out at."

Misato suddenly felt a cold shiver run down her spine. She jumped a foot as the speakers roared to life. Shinji was screaming in a rage.

"Father!" he screamed. "You son of a bitch. You did it again. You placed Asuka in danger. Do you remember what I told you I would do if you EVER did that again?"

A large crash was heard coming from the launch bay.

"What the hell was that?" Misato screamed.

"It was the launch catapult. Shinji destroyed it and dropped it down the shaft."

"He's entered the shaft." Maya screamed. "He should reach us within fifteen seconds.

"Eject the plug."

"The signals not being received, all links have been blocked from inside the plug." There was a second crash as the giant purple robot entered the launch bay.

"You will pay father!" Unit 01's massive fist pounded into the wall that seperated him from the command center. After only two hits the wall crumbled and Shinji burst through. Everyone on the platform scattered in fear.

Well almost everyone. Ritsuko, Misato, and the Commander all stayed.

"Shinji stop this right now!" Misato yelled.

"Misato. You know that I love you, but if you get in my way I will kill you!" She cringed back from the tone of his voice. It was not Shinjis voice. The voice that came from the speakers was dangerous and the owner of that voice was some one who had reached the end of their rope.

"I think Shinji has lost it." Misato said. No one answered her. Shinji stood before the platform. He saw Misato, and despite what he had said he didn't really want to hurt her. Knowing he could not use Unit 01 to get at his father without risking killing Misato, Shinji powered down the Unit.

He exited the entry plug and scrambled over the giant's neck till he reached a point where he could jump to the platform. As he landed Unit 01's eyes lit up with a cold fire.

"He's still linked to Unit 01!" Ritsuko screamed.

"What?" Indeed as Shinji walked forward Unit 01 also tried to walk ahead. However the platform was blocking its path. Shinji slowly stalked the Commander who had not even moved from his seat yet.

"Shinji what do you think you are doing?" the Commander yelled. As usual his voice was harsh and with out emotion. Even though his voice betrayed no emotion he was beginning to feel fear tugging at him.

"Shinji please stop this right now!" Misato cried as she stepped in front of him. Shinji's hand lashed out. His fist caught her a glancing blow across the jaw, and as she reeled back he swung his arm in an arc, catching her at the back of her neck with a Karate chop.

Misato slumped to the ground, unconscious. Shinji stepped over her and continued to make his way towards his father. Ritsuko wisely scrambled out of his way as he approached her. Her eyes were still locked on her computer monitor.

"My god, how could his synch ratio be rising like this."

A door hissed open. Asuka stepped through and onto the command deck. The sight before her was shocking to say the least. Unit 01 was walking forward, pushing against the command platform. The platforms supports were starting to give a little under the pressure and the whole thing was swaying from side to side.

Misato was passed out on the floor. Ritsuko was shrieking unintelligibly about a Synch Ratio. Directly in front of her was Shinji. Her eyes widened in fear as they landed on him. He was not just walking towards his father, but he seemed to be stalking him like some wild animal.

His blue eyes were narrowed in anger and his right hand was clenching and relaxing in a nervous fashion. His whole body was tense with anger.

"Father." He hissed. "You sent her out there today to die, didn't you. This was a part of your goddamn scenario wasn't it? Now Rei is dead! Do you hear me? She's dead!!" His voice rose in his throat as he screamed at the silent man.

Asukas eyes went flat. she thought.

Before she had any more time to consider this however Shinji suddenly clenched his fist for the last time and leaped at his father. The two came together in their struggle. Unit 01 was still mimicking Shinjis motions and after the first contact they backed away from each other and began circling warily.

Unit 01 was also circling an imaginary opponent. Fists began to fly as the two swung at each other. Shinji caught the older man with an uppercut to the jaw but as Gendo fell back he managed to lash out with one foot, catching Shinji behind the knee.

The two scrambled to their feet and again came together. The fight raged on for several more minutes until a chance blow to the jaw spun the commander to the floor. He quickly rose to his feet, scooping up a metal bar that had fallen from the ceiling. As Shinji stepped in to attack Gendo swung the bar up as hard as he could into Shinjis ribs. Shinji grunted in pain as three of his ribs cracked.

He ducked in under Gendos arm and grabbing the older man by the shoulders Shinji raised his knee forcefully into the mans gut. He reeled back in pain, gasping for breath, but Shinji did not give him a chance to recover.

He rushed in delivering blow after blow until Gendo fell to the ground then Shinji knelt over him and continued to pummel the mans face with his fists. Within minutes Gendo was reduced to a broken bleeding pile on the ground.

Satisfied Shinji straightened up and turned to look at Asuka. He began to stumble towards her. The light in his eyes was gone and he seemed weighed down by some heavy burden. Asuka thought. Shinji managed to take about a dozen steps before his eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the deck. Unit 01 had also gone silent.

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Shinjis eyes slowly opened. His whole body burned with pain. Every last one of his muscles protested his every movement.

"What happened?" he mumbled.

"You almost killed the commander. He is gonna need re-constructive surgery on his face, and you tore the new joint loose in his shoulder" He weakly turned his head to see Misato sitting next to him in a chair. "How you feeling kiddo?" she asked.

"Probably better than he is right about now." He said, his voice rasping out past dry, cracked lips. His memory started to come back "Rei!" he screamed and sat up in the hospital bed.

"She's gone Shinji." Misato whispered.

"Where is Asuka?" he asked. His eyes darted around the room nervously. "Where is she!?" he screamed as he reached out to grab a hold of Misatos' jacket. "Did Unit 02 survive the explosion?"

"Yes. You've been in here for about six days. Yesterday..." Misatos voice trailed off. "Yesterday she disappeared." Shinji sat back stunned.

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"She ran away Shinji. We don't know where she is or why she ran off." she thought. While she was mentally kicking herself, Shinji had gotten out of bed and was busy trying to pull his clothes on. "Shinji what are you doing?"

"I... have... to... find... her." He panted from between clenched teeth. He groaned and sank to his knees, arms wrapped around his chest in pain.

"Shinji!" Misato cried putting her hand on his shoulder. He angrily shrugged it off and finished dressing. He dug into his pocket and pulled the little velvet ring box out.

"Do you know what this is?" he shouted. He opened the box and held it in front of her face. "I bought this for her about a week ago. I was going to ask her to marry me! Now you come in here and try to tell me that she's left? I am going out there and I am going to find her!" He screamed in rage.

Misato shrank back from the enraged pilot, not really wanting to go against the mentally unstable boy again. After six days her neck was still sore from when he had hit her. She stepped aside and watched as he lurched out the door, one arm wrapped around his bandaged chest and the other one gripping the wall for support.

"Asuka," she whispered. "why did you leave."

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Out on the streets of Tokyo-3 a certain red headed pilot was stumbling about among the wreckage. Much of the city had been destroyed by the explosion of Unit 00 and she had spent the last day hiding from NERV security. She found an abandoned building and walked into one of the bathrooms.

She took off her clothes and got into the tub that had a half-an-inch of dirty water in the bottom of it. Reaching into the pocket of her jacket she pulled out the pocketknife that she had purchased two days earlier. She looks down at her naked body. Thin, a little too thin due to the fact that she hadn't been eating much for the past few days.

Rounded breasts leading down to a flat stomach. Long smooth legs. Her eyes were dead. The normally vibrant young girl was now merely a shadow of her former self.

"Shinji doesn't love me. He fought with his father because of that doll." She mumbled to herself. The feelings of hopelessness and despair caused by that damn nightmare came down over her in a rush.

The knife's blade moved slowly closer to her wrists. "I'm coming mamma." She murmured. Soon she would join mamma in heaven, just like the dream said. The blade touched the tender flesh of her wrists and she drew it down sharply.

Bright red blood spurted from the wound pouring out over her breasts and down her stomach. She didn't even flinch when the blade bit into her flesh, she just sat there in the tub staring as her life poured out of her. Just as she began to black out from blood loss she thought she saw Shinji enter the bathroom. Then she sank into silent oblivion.



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Shinji had been walking for hours. The pain in his chest from some broken ribs that he did not remember receiving in the battle had eventually taken their toll on him. He was now no longer walking as much as stumbling blindly forward in his determined quest to find Asuka.

Suddenly ahead of him he thought he caught site of her entering an abandoned apartment building. He blinked and shook his head. When he looked back there was nothing but an empty doorway. he groaned and pulled himself up off of the wall that he was leaning on and stumbled in the direction he had seen her go.

He entered the building in time to see a door to one of the apartment's swing shut a ways down the long hallway. Too weak to cry out all he could do was slowly drag himself forward. After what seemed like an eternity he finally reached the door. Pushing it open he fell inside... literally.

He pitched forward and fell to the ground with a muffled thump. He lay there, gasping for breath for a few minutes before struggling to an upright position. He quickly noticed that Asuka was not in the room he was currently standing in. He also noticed that the layout of the apartment was almost exactly like Misatos. He stumbled down the hallway to what would have been Misatos room. Empty.

Moving on he stopped at his room. Also empty. Next came the room situated where Asukas would have been.

"Third time's a charm." He muttered under his breath. Empty. Then he saw the partially open door to the bathroom. The entire apartment was dim because outside the sun was beginning to set. But he could still see the shadow that was thrown onto the wall. "Asuka."

As he neared the door he heard a voice from inside.

"I'm coming mamma." He straightened up quickly in shock, and then instantly doubled over in pain. He gritted his teeth and his eyes squeezed tightly shut as he tried desperately to drawn in a ragged breath past his constricting throat. A wall of red filled his vision. Eventually the pain subsided enough for him to breathe.

Nearly five minutes had passed since he had heard the voice. So he slowly lurched forward. He leaned against the doorjamb for a moment before turning to look inside. There she was sitting in the tub, her clothes neatly folded on the floor.

She was staring off into space and suddenly Shinji saw that knife and the fact that her breasts and stomach were covered in blood. He could smell it, that light coppery smell that reminded him of the LCL they used in the Evas. His mind switched into overdrive. In the space of a second he realized what she must have done.

His suspicion was further proved when she suddenly slumped down in the tub. He could hear her labored breathing. Even though his mind was screaming at him to move, he couldn't get his feet to obey. He stood there in shock for another minute before the sound of the pocketknife dropping to the tile floor snapped him out of his daze.

He rushed forward ignoring the screaming pain in his ribs and gathered her into his arms. As he held her closely to his body he heard her murmur quietly, almost as if she were talking to herself.

"...I love you Shinji, even if you don't love me." He pulled her away from his body and looked at her face. Tears sprang to his eyes, temporarily blinding him.

"But I do love you Asuka." he cried bitterly. He gently stroked her cheek with one hand, the tears now free-falling down his face. "Asuka don't leave me." He threw back his head and cried out his anguish to the uncaring stars that could be seen through the hole in the roof. With trembling fingers he checked her pulse, and found it to be quick and erratic.

Quickly he wiped his eyes. He took his shirt off and tore it into strips. One of these strips he wrapped tightly around her wrist trying to stem the flow of blood. He checked her other arm but apparently the one was all she had cut.

Moving frantically now completely oblivious to his own injuries he gathered her into his arms and shuffled out of the room as quickly as he could. Once outside he rested against a wall for a minute. He supported Asuka with one arm while he dug through his pocket with the other. After withdrawing his phone he hit the speed dial and waited impatiently for someone to answer.

" Hello."

"Misato! It's Shinji."

"Shinji? Where are you?"

"I don't have time to explain. Asuka has tried to kill herself."

"What!!?" Shinji winced and held the phone away from his ear.

"Get Dr. Akagi and get her to bring an ambulance. Have her home in on the tracer in my phone. I stopped the bleeding I think but she's passed out and her pulse is very erratic. I'm carrying her now I'll try and get her as close to the hospital as I can. Just get Ritsuko down here now!!" he screamed into the phone and then hung up without waiting for a reply.

He shoved the phone into his pocket and then hooked one arm under Asukas legs. He picked her up, grunting a bit in pain as he did. Then he began to walk.

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Shinji was pacing back and forth in the hospital waiting room, like a caged animal. The nurse on duty would sometimes cast puzzled glances in his direction. The reason was fairly obvious. He was dirty, due to his frequent falls in the muddy streets. His hair was wild and unkempt, his eyes were also a little wild.

(the closest description I can give to describe it would be the equivalent of me pulling an all niter writing this fic and downing several pots of coffee in the process, caffeine high!)

His arms were scraped, and bruised and the front of his shirt was covered in blood. Misato was sitting nearby staring at him thoughtfully. she thought. Indeed at that exact moment Shinjis right knee buckled and he barely caught himself from falling to the tile floor.

He cried out in pain and wrapped one of his arms around his chest. Misato stood and started towards him.

"Get the fuck away from me." He growled. Misato felt a shudder run down her spine at the enraged tone in his voice. She did not move any closer but she made no move to sit back down either. Shinji kneeled there on the floor for a few more minutes, his harsh breathing the only sound in the quiet room. Suddenly he grunted and pushed at a chair with his free arm. The muscles and tendons in his arms sharply visible for a few moments as he strained to push himself back to his feet.

He eventually struggled back to an upright position. Misato could tell that his breathing was worse and he was definitely more hunched over than usual. She walked over to the nurse.

"What kind of damage do you think he did?" Misato asked quietly. The nurse studied the sweating boy for a minute before answering.

"He appears to be in great amounts of pain, he can't straighten up completely and his chest appears to be the center of that pain. I would say that the ribs that he broke previously have broken again. Also... I think there might be a possibilty that one of the edges of those bones could be dangerously close to his lungs. He is twisting and moving around too much, I'm amazed he was even able to carry that poor girl in here." She said.

"By the way what's the word on the poor gentleman who came in here with you?" When the ambulance had pulled up next to Shinji, he had been too wasted to even notice, he just kept walking, holding Asuka closely to his chest. When one of the medics tried to take her from him, Shinji had snapped out of his daze.

All he saw was some man trying to take his love from him, so, he reacted accordingly. He punched the man, breaking his jaw. It took Ritsuko, Misato, and another of the medics to calm him down enough for him to realize what was happening.

He had reluctantly relinquished Asuka over to them, but when they had arrived at the hospital he had insisted on carrying her inside.

Misato was about to reply when the doctor suddenly appeared. Shinji rushed up to him as quickly as he was able to, due to his injuries.

"How is she?" he demanded.

"She will be all right. We managed to give her the transfusion in time and right now she is sleeping." Shinji sighed with relief. His body suddenly spasms and his breath came out with a distinctive gargling sound. He was caught by several pairs of hands just before he collapsed to the ground again.

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A large group of men are walking through a wooded section of the city. Suddenly a voice calls out:

"Doctor Akagi, over her, we've found the entry plug. Ritsuko approaches the twisted hunk of metal that can be recognized as having once been Unit 00's entry plug. She approaches slowly and looks inside the plug through one of the holes in its side.

"Classify everything as top secret. Clean out the plug and destroy everything."

____________________


Once again Shinji wakes up in the infirmary. Misato is sitting next to him. She looks up when she notices that he is awake.

"How are you feeling Shinji." She asks. Her voice was soft and kind.

"Like shit." He murmurs. "What happened?"

"Your broken ribs broke again. They didn't have time to heal properly before you went out after Asuka then with carrying her and the falls you took just walking around the city, the breaks were more sever then the last time."

"When the doctor told us about Asuka you finally calmed down a little then your body went into shock from the injuries and the fact that one of the broken ribs punctured you right lung." Shinji groaned and turned his head to the side closing his eyes. Suddenly they snapped open again.

"How is Asuka?" he asked. Misato looked down and didn't respond. "Misato the doctor said she was OK how is she doing?" Shinjis panic was slowly beginning to rise.

"She isn't dead if that's what you mean. Actually at this moment you are in greater danger of dying than she is. Your lung still has to heal and you will not be getting out of that bed anytime soon."

"The hell I won't." he cried. "I'm going to see Asuka." Shinji tried to sit up but found that he couldn't. Not because he was too weak, or injured to do so, but because he was strapped to the bed. "What the fuck is going on?"

"I didn't want you running around again until you healed up so I had them tie you down. Face it Shinji you aren't going anywhere." Misato rose and turned to leave.

"Misato wait. What happened to Asuka? Please tell me." Shinji begged tears coming to his eyes. She slowly turned to look at him, and he could see the great sadness in her eyes.

"She is in a coma Shinji. After the transfusion she just wouldn't wake up. The doctors don't know when she'll wake up, or if she ever will." Shinji was too stunned to speak he just closed his eyes and wept silently. Misato left the grieving boy. She walked out into the hallway.

she thought. Wearily she dragged herself to her office to look over some reports.

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We found ourselves on a familiar barren landscape. The beginning of Asukas suicide nightmare. The dream has repeated over and over since she had descended into that black pit.

"So am I dead now?" she whispers to the darkness around her. She didn't really expect an answer, but, even so she wasn't too surprised when she got one.

"No. You are not dead. Shinji saved you." She turned to find a woman standing behind her. Her eyes widened and she stumbled back.

"M... mo... mother?" she stammered. The woman was standing before her dressed in a plugsuit exactly like Asukas.

"Yes sweetheart, it's me." She smiled warmly. She stepped forward and gently embraced her daughter. After a minute or so she pulled back and looked sternly at Asuka.
"Asuka, honey, why did you try to kill yourself?"

"Shinji doesn't love me." Asuka said.

"That's not true. He saved your life. He pulled you out of that stinking tub and got you to a hospital. Shinji is very much in love with you."
"If he loves me than why did he fight with the Commander over Rei? He didn't even mention me at all."

"I'm not entirely sure but I think it would have something to do with the fact that Shinji is very concerned with human life. He was enraged that his father seemed to possibly know that this was going to happen and she was going to do that."

"How do you know this? You're just a dream."

"Not exactly. You could call me your conscience. I am here to reason with you. You're in a coma in the hospital. Shinji loves you and this is most likely tearing him up inside. You will wake up when you are ready, but I am here to try and wake you up faster. He needs you Asuka."

Not wanting to believe it Asuka covered her ears with her hands and pretended that she couldn't hear. Her mother continued to talk and Asuka slowly sank to her knees, the darkness closing in on her. She fell to the floor and cried.

____________________

Dr. Ritsuko Akagi sits at her desk. She is currently trying to smoke out all her troubles. And she is partially succeeding. The thick haze of cigarette smoke over her head has done wonders for her disposition, meaning she is now pleasantly light headed.

She reaches over to the phone and dials a number.

"Misato." She says actually managing to sound like she's excited. "The found Rei, she's alive." The resulting scream on the other end of the phone forced the doctor to hold the receiver far away from her ear. she thinks as she places the phone back in its cradle.

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"Shinji!" Misato screams as she bursts into his hospital room. "Rei's alive!" All Shinji can do is stare dumbfounded at his guardian as his mind attempt to assimilate this information.

"Where is she?" he yells leaping out of bed, or at least he would have leapt out of bed if he wasn't still tied down. "Where is she? How bad is it? Is she gonna be ok?"

"She's in the hospital ER right now. Ritsuko said she's gonna make it." Misato was almost giddy with happiness. Shinji too was very happy, then his face darkened as his thoughts returned to Asuka. Misato left and Shinji was once again alone with his questions.

"Why, Asuka. Why did you do it?" he whispered to the silent room. He began to quietly weep.

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Two weeks after Shinji had been readmitted to the hospital Misato brought Rei in to talk to him. She sat in a chair next to his bed, as cold and silent as she had ever been. Shinji took a few moments to think of what to say.

Despite the bandages over Rei's arms and the one over her eye she did not seem to actually be in any pain.

"Thank you Rei."

"For what?" came the small monotone.

"You saved my life, and warned us about the commander." He said.

"Did I? I do not remember." Shinji frowned. There was something different about Rei. He shrugged it off and was about to speak when a cryptic comment from Rei stopped him. "I do not remember, but... I... I think I am... the third." With that she stood and exited the room.

Shinji stared at the closed door in shock.

"What the hell was that about?" he asked.

____________________

"Shinji you are being released today." Misato told him.

"Can I see Asuka?" he asked. He was still slightly puzzled over Rei's comment when she had visited him three days before.

"Sure. I'll take you to her as soon as you finish dressing." Misato left the hospital to give him some privacy as he dressed. Ritsuko was waiting outside.

"I have something that I think you and Shinji should see." The blonde scientist said.

"Can it wait until after Shinji gets a chance to visit Asuka?" Ritsuko shook her head.

"This can't wait." At that moment Shinji stepped through the doorway to see the women facing off. Something seemed to pass between them. Misato turned to look at Shinji

"Sorry kiddo. We won't be going to see Asuka right away. Ritsuko has something to show us." Shinji had a sudden sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

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Darkness surrounds the three of them. Ritsuko, Misato, and Shinji are standing on a lift. It has been descending for over twenty minute all ready and doesn't show any signs of stopping anytime soon. They were going down into the depths of the Geofront, where NERV kept all of its darkest secrets.

"How much longer is this going to take?" Misato asked, getting impatient.

"Just a few more seconds." The lift suddenly came to a jerking halt, almost throwing Shinji, and Misato off of their feet. Ritsuko didn't even seem to notice. "This way." She said.

Ritsuko stepped off of the lift and started walking down a long corridor. Shinji cast his glance around him while Misato stared straight ahead, her gun in hand.

"This is part of what I wanted to show you." Ritsuko said stopping at a set of huge double doors. She slid a keycard through a slot next to the door and then punched in a password. The doors slid open to reveal a massive, dimly lit room.

"My god. It's an Eva graveyard!" Shinji gasped.

"Nothing so elaborate. More like a dumping ground. It took ten years and dozens of failures before we finally figured out how to build the Evas. Come on, you still have a lot more to see."

Ritsuko turned and led them further down the hall. Stopping at another, almost identical set of doors, she repeated the key card, password procedure and the doors slid open. The room beyond was an almost exact replica of the test center where they did all of their harmonics tests.

Except that the room was dark and everything was covered with a thick layer of dust.
"Shinji. Do you remember this room?" Ritsuko asked him.

"No, should I?"

Yes. You were here when it happened, the first activation test of Unit 01. You were standing there looking out the window. Your mother insisted on being the test pilot for the first activation. You stood right there at that window and watched as she reached 400% synchronization with the Eva. She was absorbed into it just as you were, but unlike you she was not recovered.

"So she's still..." Shinji stammered his eyes wide with shock.

"Yes. Your mother is still inside of Unit 01. Every time it has gone berserk that is because she was trying to protect you. Your mother seems to have gained some control over the Eva." Shinji slowly sank to his knees as long buried memories began to resurface. Memories so deep that not even the 15th angel had been able to reach them.

In his mind he saw a woman wearing a plugsuit like his, waving at him and smiling before climbing into an entry plug. His mother. He looked up at Ritsuko and when he spoke his voice came out as a trembling whisper.

"Is this all you wanted to show me? Can I go now?" Ritsuko shook her head sadly.

"No Shinji this is only the beginning of what you have to see tonight. You must now face the truth about Rei Ayanami."

"What about Rei?" Misato asked. Speaking for the first time since they had gotten off the lift. Ritsuko didn't answer she just turned and continued to walk deeper into the building.

"This looks like Reis apartment." Shinji said looking around the third room in awe. They were standing in a room that was indeed an almost exact replica of the apartment of Rei Ayanami.

"It should be. This is where Rei was born. The visions of water and light that stream through Reis consciousness are merely reflections of this place" Ritsuko said. She turned and led them to the end of the hallway. It was block by a massive set of doors, doors almost big enough for an Eva to walk through. Inside was a large room.

A mass of metal pipes and tubes led down from the ceiling to a large plastic tank. The tank was empty.

"This is the center for the Dummy Plug System." Ritsuko said.

"You mean..."

"Yes Misato this is where it was created based on Reis brain patterns."

"What do you mean?" Shinji asked.

"The Evas work when they think there is a human mind interfacing with them. The dummy plug is like an electronic recording of Reis mind." She pulled a remote out of her pocket. "And these are the backups." She said as she pressed a button. The black walls suddenly lit up and they could see that they were filled with an orange liquid.

And hundreds of floating, nude, bodies. All, wearing the same mindless smile.

"Oh my god it's Rei!" Shinji cried stumbling back as hundreds of blood red eyes turned to look at him at the sound of his voice.

"They're all Rei. You mean the dummy plugs are-"

"Uh huh," Ritsuko said, cutting Misato off in mid-sentence. "These are the cores of the dummy plugs, they're what makes the system work.

"Who are they?" Misato asked, her voice filled with fear, and disgust.

"These? These are empty vessels, nothing but spare parts, spare Reis. Ha ha ha." She laughed. Shinji tore his eyes from the naked bodies before him to stare at her. There was a wild insane look in her eyes that chilled him to the bone.

"Mankind found a god," she said. "and man, in his folly, tried to make the god his toy. For that arrogance mankind was punished. That happened fifteen years ago. And the god that man found, was lost."

"But man continues to attempt to resurrect the god. And from that god... Adam... man attempted to make a man who was like a god himself, and that was Eva."

"What?" Shinji stammered. "Evas are human?"

"Yes. Inside the empty shell of each Eva is a human soul. But the only vessel which can hold a soul, is Rei. These things are... empty husks. They have no souls, no right to live." With that Ritsuko pushed another button on the controller. "The room of god is empty."

The LCL that all the Rei were floating in turned red, like blood, and the bodies began to disintegrate.

"The room of god is empty." As they fell apart they could be heard laughing, and giggling, as they were destroyed. Misato gasped.

"Stop this, do you have any idea what you're doing?" Misato raised her gun and pointed it at the insane doctor.

"Yes, I know. I'm destroying them!" She screamed. "These aren't human just things with human form!" Her next words were forced past her tears.

"But even so, I lost to these things. To these soulless dolls. I couldn't win... I could have suffered any humiliation, endured any torture. But he had all ready chosen."

"God! I'm a fool!" By this time her shoulders were hunched over in defeat and the tears were streaming down her face in full force. "Like mother like daughter, fools to the end."

Shinji could only gaze with pity at the broken woman before him.

"You wanna kill me, go ahead and do it! I welcome death." Finally, she was crying to hard to speak anymore, her whole body shacking with her sobs.

"If that's what you want then you really are a fool." Misato said. Ritsuko sank to her knees, the remote falling from her hands.

Misato thought as she stared at the crying woman whom she had once considered to be her best friend.

Without another word Shinji and Misato turned and left Ritsuko there with her grief.

End

Ok let the hate mail pour in. I know you all want to kill me for doing that to Asuka. Well tough. It is all a part of my master plan. I hope you all paid close attention to that part. Remember the engagement ring that Shinji bought in the last part? That becomes an important piece later on so watch out for it.

Also for those of you who were wondering about that weird spike that was on Asukas synchro graph in part three there will be an explanation about that in part five.

All right I really hate writing the darker stuff. Don't mind reading it but I hate to write it. Any way in the next Installment we meet the Fifth Child. Yes Tabris the 17th Angel arrives to destroy what is left of Shinjis all ready shattered life/sanity.

Asukas situation pushes Shinji to the brink of suicide himself but Kowaru pulls him back to reality in the nick of time, only to turn around and betray him. Meanwhile SEELE is preparing for their attack on NERV. The time is close at hand for Shinjis decision regarding the events foretold in the Dead Sea scrolls.

Till next time
See you on the other side.

Written by
Ryan T Nelson

Any comment and criticism can be sent to my address at shinjikatsuragi@hotmail.com or at neongenisis51857@compuserve.com