Gainax owns it all, much to my chagrin. Authored by Godsend777. All situations just happen. Contains sex, be warned. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Last Good Thing Part 2 Disbelief ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Gendo Ikari climbed into the entry plug of Unit-01. This was the second time he had been in this place, the second time his "science" had torn another away from him. Making one last check to make sure no one knew he was here, he sat down on the pilot's chair. Tilting his head back, he tried to clear his mind. The secret of the Evas was not the computers that ran them, nor the biological components that supported them, but the souls taken into them. Only certain cores containing a least a tiny bit of one's soul could synchronize properly with a person. And that person had to be of some importance to the soul inside, which was why their children were used. Eva-00 would have been an exception, were it not for part of Gendo's own soul inside. Yui's and Naoko's as well. Had Naoko's data only been inside, it would not have accepted Rei. It was the balance of his and Yui's soul that helped the young girl control the beast. Rei. How did she take this? He knew her and his son had become close to each other these past few months, but how did she feel? Like him, unable to express the emotion in the proper way? He thought he saw her cry a little when he told her the news. He would have to ask her about it, at the least she might become even more attached to him for his show of emotion. He needed her to fulfill his plans. HIS plans. Not SEELE's. HIS. He sighed. His plans were a mess. He needed Shinji to fight the last three battles, as well as to use against SEELE should they try something. He needed control over Rei. He needed to see Her. Yui. Before clearing his mind successfully, he thought about Her. His wife. The only love he needed. He needed to speak to Her, and needed her consolation. "Yui." He said aloud. "Please, we need to talk..." He remembered the first time he had done this. She had visited him, and told him of Her plans. She said She couldn't tell him while She was alive, because he would have objected. "This needed to be done." She had said. She had also warned him not to come back, or risk failure. And to watch over Shinji. Now he had failed Her, and came to tell Her. "Yui...please." He bit his lip in concentration, accidentally drawing blood. Unconsciously, he grabbed the levers at his side and squeezed them. While he was concentrating, the entry plug had turned into a dark room, much akin to the prison cells NERV kept in its various basements. "Yui...answer me..." He sounded a little more desperate. No answer. "Please!" He nearly yelled. Still nothing. "YUI!" "Mother is not here anymore." A voice responded. Gendo looked up to see who it was. Unbelievable to his eyes, it was Shinji Ikari. He was huddled in some dark corner of nothing, listening to his walkman. Slowly, he stood up, pulling the earphones from his head and gazed at him. "She's gone." He said. "Sh-shinji?" Gendo stammered out. This was one of the few times in Gendo's life that something had caught him by surprise. "Father." The boy said. He straightened out his school clothes. "Or is this how you want to see me?" Shinji was suddenly beside him, dressed in his plugsuit. "A tool for your plans." He sneered. "Where is Yui?" Gendo's icy tone snapped back. "What happened to her?" "She wanted to be one with me. Unfortunately, a vessel cannot hold two souls at once, so one was expelled. Hers." The boy said, walking away. Gendo could not believe that this 'character' that was his son could speak so bravely to him. "So she is- ?" "Lost. Like the hopes that you had for your plans. However, she gave me one final gift, father. I now have all the knowledge of your 'scenario.' I must say, I'm quite surprised." "You've suddenly become brave." "Dying does that to a person. I thought I was going to heaven, but instead fell to Hell. Trapped in a thing that I hate. This beast." Shinji looked down to where the "ground" was. "Why are you here?" he asked. "What?" "Why are you here? Answer me." "I came to talk to Yui." The elder Ikari stated. "She's not here. So leave. After what you've done to me, I don't want to see your face." Gendo was about to oblige the specter, then thought for a second. 'If it is him...I can still use him...' "Actually, Shinji, if you're in here, then my plans haven't gone totally to waste." "What do you mean?" Shinji asked angrily. "Perhaps Pilot Sohryuu should be moved to Unit-01. She's not of much use in Unit-02. Actually, she's not much use at all." He gave a slightly evil smile. "Don't you dare." "Perhaps I should reinstate Mr. Suzuhara as an Eva pilot. Or another of your classmates." "Wh-" "An Eva only needs someone who the person cares for to sit in it. Even Misato could work in this case." "Then why children?" "Because children are easily manipulated." "You can't make me. I'll refuse you." "You are now essentially a machine. You will do as I command, or perhaps others will suffer." He gazed at his son to reinforce his point. After a minute, Shinji looked away. "Mother told me you cared for me. I see she was wrong." Shinji said coldly. "On the contrary, I will do whatever it takes for us to be a family again." Shinji looked at his father, then finally relented. "Fine, but a warning." Gendo blinked at his son's bold statement, when the 'room' was suddenly filled with dozens of Shinji Ikaris. A feeling of déjà vu overcame Gendo, as well as slight nausea. Simultaneously, all of the Shinji's opened their eyes and stared at him. "If you hurt them, any of them, I will show you HELL." The 'room' then disappeared, and the entry plug resumed its normal state. The machinery on the Eva's back hummed, and nearly spat the plug out of its' socket. Crawling out of the white cylinder, Gendo thought about the conversation that had just taken place. The thought of Yui no longer being there saddened him, but his son was still alive. As long as he could be used, he could get Yui back. Then they could be a family again. He just wished that Shinji could be directly used. The dozens of Shinjis staring at him flooded through his mind. Wait. Dozens of Shinjis? Gendo quickly made his way back to his office. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Asuka wrapped her arms around Shinji's neck. She bit her lip as Shinji moved steadily between her legs, his rising and falling filling her body with pleasure. His warmth surrounded her, completing her fully. She never wanted this moment to end. Kissing him passionately, she felt her body shudder under his weight as she orgasmed. She closed her eyes to savor the moment, and felt him around her. She called his name and told him she loved him, and that she was glad he was alive and back. Then he stopped, and she opened her eyes to see why. Only the dark ceiling in her room greeted her. She could still feel his warmth, and his soft touch, even the pleasure between her thighs. She could still feel Him. "A dream?" she asked the darkness. It didn't respond. Looking over at her clock, she saw it read 2:36 a.m. She cried until dawn. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Misato tried her hardest to focus on the beer in front of her. Her vision was blurred immensely, and any attempt at coherent thought made her feel nauseous. However, as any person in a drunken state knows, it is at these moments that thought comes. "Shinji..." she moaned. She tried not to think of him, of the fact he was gone, of the fact that she had to live without him. She tried not to think of how much she loved him and cared for him or how she thought she had failed him. Grasping the beer before her, she slugged it back, its contents joining the others she had previously downed, and threw the can into the large pile next to her. Sitting as straight up as she could muster, she listened to the sounds of life in the apartment without him. Dead. Silence. As a tear rolled down her cheek, she heard Asuka cry out his name in pleasure. A glimmer of hope passed through her alcohol-fogged mind, and she quickly and gracelessly got up from her seat. Rushing as fast as she could to the young girls' room while trying not to vomit on the carpet, she made it, but collapsed against the door. Using the last bit of her strength, she slid it open a little to catch sight of the one she considered a son, a brother, a possible lover, and mostly, a friend. Instead, she saw her young charge crying helplessly to herself. Unable to take any more mental stress, she passed out and slid to the floor, remaining there until Asuka found her the next morning. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rei stared endlessly at the ceiling of her apartment. Sleep did not seem to come as easily as it used to. Never before did she have to ponder such an event in her life. She had never lost anyone close to her before. Close to her? She would now have to admit it. He had been the one who asked her smile, and she had done so. He had been the one who talked with her when no one else would. He had been the one to stand up for her when the Second Children insulted and chastised her. He had been the one to extend a hand in kindness, and caused her to say the words she had never said to anyone before. Not even Him. She glanced to the glasses sitting on the chest of drawers across the room. How did He feel? Could He help her? He didn't seem to show any emotion when His son died. She found that...disturbing. She had cried when He told her about how His son was not coming back. It had only been a few tears, but it was enough to make her question herself, her emotions. She wanted, no, needed someone to talk to about this feeling. But the only one who she could talk to about it was gone. She supposed she could have asked Captain Katsuragi to talk, but the woman did not seem like she was ready to deal with talking to another person about him. Dr. Akagi seemed to have something against her, so she was also out of the question. Also, they both would have reported this to Commander Ikari. She sighed, another thing that seemed unfamiliar. What about the Second Children? She seemed distraught, but it was hard to tell under her façade of strength and bravado. Rei knew she had feelings for him, even though she tried to hide it. The Second Children seemed to hate her, but she was the only person she could talk to who might understand, and not alert the Commander. The Commander. For the first time in her life, she felt she could not trust Him. Not about...Shinji... The tears came again. At first she tried to fight them, but soon let them flow. Her lips turned into a frown, followed by a sniffle. Soon, she turned on her side and quietly cried herself to sleep. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "They didn't come again today..." Kensuke said, camera in hand. The classroom was practically empty to begin with, and the lack of three students had dwindled it down to almost nothing. "Well, Asuka's taking this pretty hard. And Rei's always absent..." "And Touji's still in the hospital. I wonder how he's doing?" "You mean you haven't seen him?" "I haven't been there since he asked me to tape the funeral. I just can't bear to show it to him..." "Hmmm..." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Misato?" Asuka asked her guardian as they drove on their way to NERV. "What is it, Asuka?" "Where's Shinji's body?" Misato's eyes widened ever so slightly. "I went to the marker again yesterday, and realized that there was no freshly dug dirt. I just wanted to know if they buried it someplace else. I just don't feel like he's there when I..." "When you what?" Misato asked, wanting to know what Asuka did at Shinji's grave. "...when I talk to him." The younger girl gave a slight sniffle. Misato gave a quick glance to her roommate. She thought of how much she seemed like Shinji these past few days, always introverted and quiet. She resumed her normal attitude when others were around, but when alone or with her, Asuka was just like him. She even listened to his SDAT, and carried it with her wherever she went. "Do you know?" Asuka asked. Misato realized she had been silent for over a minute. "Huh? Oh. Well..." "Please tell me, Misato." The girl was calm, although sad. No fire, no brimstone, none of the 'Demon' as Touji and Kensuke called it emerged. Just a worried and scared little girl. Misato turned the answer over in her head a bit, then decided to tell Asuka the truth. "Okay, but this is classified information, do you understand?" She turned into her commanding tone to reinforce her point. "Yes." Asuka responded. "Okay, but listen carefully..." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The minute Misato's car pulled into its space at NERV's parking garage, Asuka flew out the door and towards the gate. Sliding her card through the gatekey, she tapped her foot impatiently. When there was just enough room for her, she jumped through the entrance and ran to the nearest elevator. After a ride that seemed an eternity, the doors finally opened and she ran through it to the 7th cage where Eva-01 was held. "Asuka, Dr Akagi wants to-" Maya began, but was knocked aside by the rushing Redhead. She finally came to a stop in front of the purple giant, gasping for breath. Gently touching its mask, she suddenly knew Misato was right. He was in here. This is where he died. This thing had killed him. She hated it. Before she knew it, she was punching and kicking and screaming at it. A few technicians grabbed a hold of her, but could barely restrain her. She didn't stop until Dr. Akagi spoke. "What is the meaning of this!?" The scientist screamed. Misato rushed in to see what was going on. "This thing..." Asuka said between sobs of anger and sadness "took away MY Shinji!! I HATE THIS THING!!! IT TOOK HIM AWAY FROM ME!!!!" breaking free of the technicians, she swung wide and hard at its unmoving face. There was a large !KLANG! as her fist hit the metal plating. She howled in pain, clutching at her hand, before attempting a kick. But the lack of sleep that had plagued her in the past week caught up with her, and she fell to the ground. She thought she heard Misato say to take her to the infirmary as she blacked out from exhaustion. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Asuka slowly opened her eyes. Above her was the ceiling of her room. When she first came to Tokyo-3, it had seemed unfamiliar, even scary. It offered her a direct challenge to her comfort, and she accepted it. The Great Asuka Langley Sohryuu never refused a challenge. After a month, she had become used to the ceiling, and even considered it her first real home. This was mainly due to three important people in her life. Misato, her guardian. Hikari, her best, (although she would never tell anyone) first real friend. And Shinji. He had made this place home most of all. He cooked, he cleaned, and he even did all of their laundry. She felt cared for. It was probably the most pleasant feeling she had ever known. She sincerely regretted treating him badly, always insulting him and hitting him. Hitting? The last thing she remembered was hitting Unit-01. How did she get here? Venturing a look down at her right hand, she saw it was bandaged up. It was a little sloppy, but effective. She also found she was dressed in her shorts and tank top. Who had changed her while she was sleeping? Misato? A doctor? "It's nice to see you awake, Asuka." She turned to the voice, not believing her ears. Shinji Ikari stood there wearing his apron, and holding a spatula. "Breakfast is almost ready. What do you want to drink?" He asked in his typical shy and reserved manner. "SHINJI!" She screamed as she bolted upright. This startled Rei, who was sitting next to her hospital bed. Asuka became dimly aware that it had all been a dream. She was wearing a hospital gown, and instead of the sloppy bandaging job she thought she had seen, this one was expertly done. She was about to break down into tears, when she saw someone out of the corner of her eye. "Pilot Sohryuu." Rei said. She wore her typical unemotional face. However, something seemed a little different in her eyes. "What do you want!?" Asuka nearly screamed at her. "To talk." "Why should I talk to a doll like you?" Rei's head snapped back a little, as if hurt. "Have you come to make fun of me for hurting my hand? Or did Misato or the Commander put you up to this?" "I came of my own free will." Rei stated. "I need to talk to someone about a...problem I have been having lately." The idea of discussing possible feminine hygiene with Rei did not appeal to the Second Children. "Go ask Misato!" she snapped. "Please...I need someone who understands these...feelings." Asuka looked back and saw what had been different in Rei's eyes. She saw sadness, and a hint of despair. "Will you help me?" she asked again. To help or not to help? This was Rei, the doll. The one who obeyed every order given her. The person who was soooo perfect, no one could get mad at her. The person whom she caught Shinji staring at numerous times. She was a doll, a tease, and when Shinji was alive...a possible rival. Asuka never understood what he had seen in her. "Please?" She was nearly begging, those scared, red eyes near tears. Asuka felt pity towards this girl. Had she grown weak these past few days, weak enough to want to help this girl? Better to worry about it later. For now, help the girl. She could always lord it over her later. "Oh...alright." Asuka reluctantly agreed. "What's the problem?" "Shinji." The blue-haired girl simply said. Asuka's mind, taken aback by Rei's answer, began to reel. "W-what about him!?" "I...do not know how I should feel. It is...strange." Her eyes began to water. Asuka simply sat on her bed, unable to move. "I do not know how to express these emotions I feel. I do not know whether to cry, or to get angry, or to feel depressed." Asuka suddenly understood Rei's position. She wasn't the doll she had made her out to be, but rather someone who didn't know how to react to the world around her. Shinji had been a lot like that when she had first met him. "What do I do? Can you tell me, Sohryuu-san?" Again, Asuka was taken aback. If Rei was being polite, then she must be sincere about needing help. Any thoughts of Rei making fun of her were thrown out the window, and she decided to help her...co-worker. Thinking back to her Psychology 101 class in college, she began to speak. "For starters, since we're obviously going to talk about this subject for a while, you might as well call me Asuka." "Alright, Asuka-san." "Nonono! Just Asuka! I hate those terms you Japanese use on each other. Do you know how long it took me to break Shinji of that habit?" Rei slowly shook her head. "It was a rhetorical question, First Children." "Oh." "As for an answer to your question, I suppose you should be feeling all three of the emotions you mentioned. It's part of the grieving process." "Grieving Process? There is an actual system people go through when others die?" Asuka sighed. This was going to be a long talk. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "What are we doing here Ikari?" Ritsuko said as she and the commander walked towards Terminal Dogma. "We are retrieving a pilot that has been lost to us." "What!? You mean there is a way to get Shinji back?!" She yelled, mostly out of surprise. "It is possible, yet untested." Ritsuko quickly ran in front of the man to stop his walk. "Gendo, I'm sorry, but he's gone! He's gone, Yui's gone, and they're NOT coming back! Do you understand!! THEY'RE NOT COMING BACK!!!!" "On the contrary, Doctor Akagi, Shinji is still trapped within the Eva." "WHAT!? How do you know?!" "Remember how I told you about that time I sat in Unit-01 and saw Yui?" "Yes..." "Last night, I sat in Unit-01 again and saw Shinji." Ritsuko's face turned to a look of shock. "But how!?" "Did you run the tests on the core today as I asked?" "Well, yes sir, but..." "Do you have the results with you?" "Yes, though I haven't looked at them yet." "Hand them here." He commanded. She followed his orders, and reached into the file she was carrying. "Here." She said coldly. "Well, what do they say?" "See for yourself." He allowed a small grin to pass on his face. Ritsuko read the findings, and nearly dropped the report when she realized what they meant. "The core...it's changed..." "Yes." "What does it mean?" "Have you not been listening? It means that Shinji is inside Unit-01. That means, if he has the will to come back, he can." "H-how?" "Observe." Gendo walked to a keypad installed in the wall of the hallway. He typed in a code, then stood back as the door slowly swung open. The lights turned on to reveal several LCL-filled containers. "You are aware that they are called 'Children' due to their ability to be cloned successfully, correct?" "Of course. Pilots are chosen on how well they synchronize with their respective cores, and how well their genetic material can be replicated and processed." She looked at containers, and saw what was inside them. She suddenly felt sick. "When the Rei Dummy Plug System was first started, there were some...failures." He turned to one of the creatures in the test tube. It had a perfect young girl's body, but the head was terribly malformed. "A similar project was underway in Germany, but this one fused man with Adam. Soon, they will have their own dummy plugs." "But what does this have to do with Shinji?" "Look here." Gendo stopped in front of the far wall of the room. Pushing a button in the center, the two halves separated themselves and slid away. Behind it was another tube. Gendo gently placed his left hand on it, and began caressing it. His eyes suddenly looked a bit wild. "Oh my lord..." Ritsuko whispered. "Yes. Inspired by their project, I had a backup created just in case. Except I used Lillith again, and combined it with male genes. A few behind you are the failures to this project, but most are from the Rei Dummy System. Before us is the only success to my little...experiment." "But, why him?" "Rei is cloned from Yui. Therefore, she could be considered his sister. Or his very young mother." "But-" "Besides, it only seemed natural. It was the most readily available genetic data to me." "But-" "Enough. Using this, you will bring Shinji back. Then my plans will be back on track." Ritsuko gave a slight nod, before staring again at the container. She tried very hard, but just couldn't take her eyes off of it. It had gray hair, red eyes... And looked exactly like Shinji Ikari. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Author's notes: Well, here's part two of this series. I know that some people are thinking that the characters are out of character, but with Shinji gone (the focus of Eva, the person whose perspective we see the world of Eva from), these people can start to be seen from a different light. For instance, my take on Gendo Ikari: Someone who will use his family in order to make it whole. He misses Shinji, but fully intends to use him until everything is 'right.' Because Shinji is gone, he's driven a little insane, losing someone he cares for, as well as his plans being a mess. Asuka: I love Asuka, really. And since this story is about her and Shinji, it makes sense that they will change the most. Death has that way of ripping your mental barriers to shreds, leaving you to rebuild them from ground up. Asuka is now in a very vulnerable state, and no matter how hard she tries, she can't seem to regain that 'fire' she normally has. Perhaps she will start to open up to others? She has started already with Misato. As for the whole thing with Rei, bear in mind that Asuka can gloat over her, now that 'Wondergirl' needs help. She can also relieve stress this way. Also, the 'sex dream' was to show how much she missed Shinji, as well as to show her and Misato's disbelief in his death. In the end, in my mind, I think that they're acting quite close to character. Next up: Compatibility experiments between Evas, Asuka 'meets' Shinji in the throne of the souls, we find out just why Asuka is being so open, and how will Misato act to Kaji's treachery? Special thanks to: Alain Gravel - The One I Love Is... (hopefully Asuka. I know, I'm a freak. Oh, well) Axel Terizaki - The Child of Love (Asuka and Shinji about to become parents, and bastard-boy Gendo with his own plans) Toh E. Loong - HERZ (One of the best, if not the best, fics out there!) And of course, to my pre-readers Mirei Ikari and Greg Thomas. Thanks for the input!