Oh Grunt, you make me laugh.
Here's how I see this all starting. Be prepared for SRS BSNS.
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"Rei."
"Commander Ikari."
In the depths of Terminal Dogma there is a cross upon which is crucified the second Angel, codenamed "Lilith". Standing in front of the giant is the lonely, naked figure of Rei Ayanami. Behind her, exiting the small elevator that had brought him down from NERVs command center is Gendo Ikari.
This is his day of triumph. For ten years he has worked to deafeat the Angels, and to bring together the first Angel Adam and Lilith, to bring about the Third Impact that will uplift humanity to the next stage of evolution, and in the process reunite him with his wife, Yui Ikari.
Before her loss he served SEELE beside her, working to protect humanity, to give it an eternal legacy in the form of the Evangelion.
And now it all ends. Rei, born from Lilith will bond with the first Angel, then the second, bringing about a controlled Third Impact. He speaks.
"It's time."
"No."
Rei's response destroys his decade of planning.
Her backhand when he tries to force the issue destroys most of his chest cavity.
Ritsuko Akagi, ex-Chairsperson of Project E shuddered from her hiding place as Rei walked by. She had planned to interrupt Gendo's plan, to destroy his dream as he had destroyed hers, but Rei had done it with more viciousness than she could have ever hoped for.
"Doctor Akagi?"
The monotone voice turned her blood to ice. Raising her head, Ritsuko met the red eyes of the First. She had expected to see her own death in those eyes, but instead she saw a pair of eyes. Because you can't actually see what someone's feeling just by looking at their eyes, and if you say you can you're either a liar or a bad writer, or you've never actually looked someone in the eye.
For the first time, Ritsuko Akagi looked Rei Ayanami in the eye and saw Rei Ayanami.
"Doctor Akagi?"
Rei's voice snapped Ritsuko out of her trance. Blinking rapidly, she fought to regain control over her adrenaline pumping body. "Yes, Rei?"
"May I have your lab coat? I require clothing."
Ritsuko wordlessly handed over the labcoat. Rei put it on, then started moving towards the elevator.
"Rei? Where are you going?"
Rei paused and glanced over her shoulder. "I am going to Ikari's side."
Although she knew she shouldn't, Ritsuko glanced at the gory mess sliding down the wall. "Umm... do you mean..."
Rei blinked. "Who else? Shinji is waiting for me."
As Ritsuko hurried to catch up, the body slumped against the wall in a slowly spreading pool of blood and other fluids twitched.
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To say that the fight against the MP series was a clusterfuck would be an gross understatement.
It was FUCKING INSANE
Asuka Langley Soryu, proud Evangelion pilot had recently awoken from catatonia. She had been less than amused to find herself in the cockpit of Evangelino Unit 02 and under several thousand liters of water, and incensed to find that the Japanese Special Self Defense Forces had decided while she was unconscious that everyone in NERV needed to die.
She made her displeasure known by activating Unit 02 and annihilating most of the JSSDF surface troops with extreme prejudice.
Then things got difficult. Unit 02 had lost its umbilical cable, switching over to a limited internal battery when SEELE played its final hand. Nine winged beasts, the Mass Production Evangelion series descended onto the battlefield. A Super Solenoid engine granted each Unit complete freedom of movement, a Dummy Plug freed each from the weakness of requiring a human pilot. Their large bladed weapons granted them considerable reach and their wings gave them a considerable advantage in air superiority.
They never stood a chance.
Asuka stormed the battlefield like the Lady of War, bisecting one with its own sword, stabbing another and in one particularly memorable kill lifting an Eva over her head and squeezing until it exploded. Well within the time limit, all of the MP Evas lay dead at her feet.
Unfortunately, it really was too good to be true. Not a moment after the last dropped to the ground, the fallen Evas stood back up, flesh warping around open wounds, new limbs replacing the lost, new blood flowing through the monsters veins.
In another universe, this would be the end. The white Evangelion Units would cast their swords, which would transform into imitation Lancea Longini, all of which would puncture the A.T. Field of the Second Child. Then they would feed.
In this universe, an explosion heralded the arrival of a demon to the battlefield.
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Shinji Ikari was a very lucky boy.
In another universe, he had visited Asuka Langley Soryu in the hospital. In that universe, he had given in to despair over her condition and violated her, then promptly sat down in a corner and cried about it. Seriously, you'd think the kid would at least have the balls to...nevermind.
In this universe, on his way to Ms. Soryu's room and his descent into suicidal depression, he was accosted by Rei Ayanami. Certain pieces of information about Rei having been revealed to him, Shinji was reluctant to engage the girl in sort of contact. Rei refused to give him the choice.
Shinji's hand caught in her vice-like grip, she marched him into an empty room in the hospital wing and closed the door. Then she put her fist through the electronic lock. Then she sat him down on a chair and grabbed another one, sitting in front of him. Leaning forward, she spoke.
"Talk."
With great reluctance and hesitation, awkward pauses and stuttering, Shinji Ikari talked. Shinji started by talking about missing his friends from school. He told Rei about his suspicion that his mother resided in Unit 01, and whispered his confusions about his father. Speaking with greater confidence and a steadier voice, he talked about his guilt over Asuka's unconsciousness, and his weakness in dealing with the 13th Angel. He talked about Kaworu Nagisa, his enemy who had said to him "I love you". He talked about Misato's callous words, and how he regretted the divide that there was between them; and Rei's sacrifice to destroy the 16th.
He told Rei that he knew her secret: that she was a genetic amalgamation of the second Angel and his own mother's DNA. He explained that he had felt he no longer knew Rei, that he felt betrayed by her nature and confused over how to act towards her.
Rei stayed quiet as he spoke, making encouraging noises at the appropriate times, taking his hand when he stumbled over his words when he talked about his mother. She held his hand for the duration, giving it a squeeze if he faltered, silently reminding him, 'I will protect you.' She stopped him only once, when he spoke about failing Asuka, when his emotions finally got the better of him. His head staring at the ground, she reached out with her free hand and wiped away the tear that slipped down his cheek. He pressed against that hand, taking comfort in its warmth.
He cried without reservation as he needed from then, knowing she would never make light of his tears.
Finally he was done, his tears spent, his sorrows gone. He felt, for the first time in a very long time, content and at peace.
Rei regretted the necessity of destroying that peace. She told him her purpose.
Her story cracked his calm, and he jerked away from her hand. It pained her, but she continued in the soft voice to explain his fathers intentions. When she was done she found she could not meet his gaze, instead choosing the face the ground as he so often did. She did not expect him to accept her any longer--
But she expected his embrace even less.
For the first time in this body's life, Rei Ayanami felt her eyes moisten.
No. Later there will be enough time to cry, and to enjoy his embrace. For now, I have to tell Ikari my plan.
It was a long moment before she pushed him back to his chair. When she cleared her eyes, she told him what he should do: Get to the Eva cages, hide somewhere nearby. When the invasion came, he should enter the Eva, proceed to the surface and do his best to hinder the influx of soldiers into the Geofront.
"But what about Asuka? And Misato and everyone else?" His objection was one of several that had been expected, and she had a counter ready:
"If you are successful in destroying enough of the inbound troops, NERVs own defenses should be sufficient to stop the attackers. The Second is likely to be placed in Unit 02. If she is unsynchronized, then damage dealt to the Eva is unlikely to harm her."
He accepted her words, though his reservations remained apparent in the twist of lip and the wrinkle on his forehead. She was surprised--she had expected that he would be concerned about harming other humans. Two possibilities occurred to her: that he had made the decision that those people he had to protect mattered more than those who would try and hurt them, or that he had not fully understood the ramifications of what he would have to do to stop the soldiers. Somehow she thought it was the second.
As they stood up to leave, Shinji surprised her again by whispering "I trust you," and squeezing her hand. She had not expected that. Wasn't his acceptance of her plan enough? But no, she realized, it wasn't enough. It was one thing to do what someone told you to do because it would keep you alive, or because you were following orders.
It was another thing entirely to do something because you believed in that person, believed in the necessity of doing what that person said needed to be done, regardless of consequences or pain, just because it was you who said it. At any other time, Rei might have been awed in the responsibility that trust held, and marveled at the strength of the bond between them that made Shinji willing to kill other people.
But she trusted him as well. He had listened to her plan here, and understood the ramifications, and why it needed to be done. And before too, they had supported each other, saved one anothers lives. She was starting to remember, distantly, the reason why she had detonated Unit 00 to save Shinji (which should be impossible, she was the Third!).
Yes, she thought, smiling at his words. I was right to trust myself to him.
Then she kicked the sliding door into the opposite wall.
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Ta da. Stage=set, we know why things are different (seriously, talking with someone is the most cathartic thing you can do) and as soon as I finish dinner and some homework I'll regale you with how Shinji smashes the MP Evas.
Kinda serious for a story that's supposed to be funny, huh? It's really, really hard to make the later episodes of Evangelion funny at all without seriously messing it up, which is why this segment is dealing with the SRS BSNS of EoE and the last few episodes of Eva.
And a quick question: is Rei likely to be aware of the existence of the MP series? It's not really important, but it might change some dialogue and reactions in this segment and later on.
