Ladies and Gentlemen, boys and girls, bakas of all ages, I present to you the Chapter Four disclaimer!!! I, B.M. Gang do not own the characters of Neon Genesis Evangelion, nor do I own the places, mechas, situations, or anything else you could ever relate to the Evangelion brand name. Furthermore, I ask that the kind people of GAINAX do not sue my sorry arse, for I am but a fanboy showing my appreciation for your great work of art.

Also, if you are reading this anywhere other than the Dark Vault or the GFA webpage, it has been pirated. Please notify me if this is the case. My e-mail is linked at the bottom.

And now, without further ado...


Chapter 4 - Inner Reflections
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Part I



~*~*~*~*~*~


There was a cold silence in the air. Tokyo 3 had now been all but annihilated. Beyond the gaping hole from Unit 00's destruction, the few buildings that were left had become rubble in the last battle. The repair crews didn't even repair anymore, they simply surveyed the damage.


* * * * *


"The damage to Tokyo 3 is total..." Dr. Akagi said quietly, gazing at the eyes that were staring at her. Major Katsuragi sat beside her at the table, along with Commander Ikari and Sub-Commander Fuyutsuki. "The Geofront is all that remains, and only barely."

"What do you suggest is the next course of action, Dr. Akagi?" Commander Ikari asked coldly, staring at her, his eyes full of cold resentment at the downfall of his former mistress.

"We can re-build, but I don't know why we should if there will be more Angels attacking. We should wait until we are vic-"

"We cannot wait in fear." Sub-Commander Fuyutsuki said softly yet sternly. "We are humanity's hope, against all odds. We must re-build Tokyo 3 and we must fight the Angels."

"That's not logical, why build what we know will only be destroyed?!" Dr. Akagi said softly, in a defeated tone. Behind his folded hands, Commander Ikari smirked at her with contempt.

"What about you Major Katsuragi?" The Commander said coldly, looking at Misato.

"What was that sir?" Misato said as if just awoken from a daydream.

"You have been very quiet since the last battle Major. The question is whether or not to re-build Tokyo-3" Fuyutsuki quipped impatiently.

"Well I think we should re-build. It will give strength to the world at least, if not us." She responded solidly, looking to the other three at the conference table.

"Then we shall." Gendo quietly replied. "Fuyutsuki, see that the we get the added budget to rebuild the city."

"Yes."

"Dr. Akagi, what about the pilots?"

"The First Child is ready to go, however the regeneration of Unit 00 are behind schedule, and we don’t even know if she can sync with Unit 02 The Third Child is also ready, but I'm not too confident in his state of mind right now... He has never reacted as he did before the last battle..."



* * * * *


Shinji sat in his room quietly, listening to his SDAT, thinking. He reflected back on the battle, and then back on going before SEELE...


* * * * *


"We are SEELE, and that is all you need to know for the time being. Don't be a fool like your father and oppose us, or it will lead to your downfall, as it has led to his."

He sat there in silence, thinking. I hate piloting the Eva, I hate this relentless cycle of pain, I hate this endless war, and I hate being a tool for everyone. I need acceptance. I hate my father. They hate my father. Maybe I'm is wrong; maybe it is my father I hate, not piloting. I'm confused... I should listen...

"Any who would act against my father can understand me, I think. Maybe I'll listen to you a little longer." Shinji replied coldly. He wasn't sure what was going on, but he felt the need to listen to this voice.

"Your father is single-handedly destroying the world. He thinks he is a God. He is not." The main voice called out determinedly.

"O-okay." Shinji replied quietly, not exactly getting the point, but trying to be accepted.

"He is playing God, and we cannot have that." Another, different voice called out. "Not only is he doing this, but-"

"He is disgracing the memory of your mother." Yet another voice called out

"My mother?"

The voices stopped a minute, as if conferring silently before going on. They had pushed the right button. Shinji knew that his father didn't care about him. Hell, his father acted as though he disliked, even hated him. He used him, but that was okay. He couldn't, however, take anything against his mother.

"Go on, what about my mother?"

"It is of no importance now, what is important is-"

"NO! Tell me about my mother, tell me what he has done against her!" Shinji interrupted, nearly enraged.

"Your father queered the work your mother began. Your mother worked to save humanity. Your father, on the other hand, uses her work to further his own selfish ends. Does that explain it for you, Third Child?" The main voice inquired.


* * * * *


Shinji's SDAT player clicked loudly as it reached the end. He took off his headset and put the SDAT on his bedstand and reclined back, resting and slowly falling asleep.


* * * * *


Asuka sat in bed silently, going over everything in her mind. It may have been the thought of Shinji that brought her out of her coma, but she'd be damned if she let him see that. She had to be strong. She no longer had the desire to pilot, but, something deep inside of her told her that she needed to pilot, that she needed to be strong, that she needed to be better than him.

She stood carefully, unsure of her first steps. She walked out of the room and into the hallway and looked around. It was very bright. The light surprised her a bit and she leaned against the wall for support. She quickly stood back up however, not willing to give in to her own weakness.

"You should be careful you know." A voice came up from behind her. She spun around quickly (too quickly so as that she got dizzy and nearly fell again) and saw Misato walking up to her. "How are you doing?" She asked genuinely concerned for her welfare.

"Fine." Asuka said shortly, residually jealous (though she would never admit it) from when she awoke and saw Misato in Shinji's arms. "And you?"

"Oh, I'm fine, I guess. We were lucky, our apartment wasn't destroyed in the battle."

"That's good." She replied coldly

"Ritsuko said you should be able to go home soon."

"Whatever..."


* * * * *


"It's unusually cold out." Fuyutsuki said to himself as he stood outside the entrance to NERV's First Branch. He was right. It was cold out, at least for post Second Impact Japan. He didn't even know why he was outside. He just needed to get out of there.

He paced around slowly, his hands in his pockets, simply walking around. He thought. He thought about the Dead Sea Scrolls, and about the newest Angel. It didn't make sense. There was no explanation for this turn of events. Kaworu Nagisa should have been the final Angel. It didn't make sense that there were more Angels. It not only went against what the Dead Sea Scrolls had predicted, but also against the committee's plans.

He turned quickly and walked back in, shaking his head.


* * * * *


Shinji awoke in a cold sweat. He sat bolt upright and looked around his room. He looked over to the bedstand beside him and took note of the time. It was 7:30. He stood and looked out the window. It was dark, so he knew he had slept only two hours.

He walked out of his room to see if Misato was home. She wasn't. Shinji slipped on his shoes and opened the door. He noticed that it was cool out and shook his head. He walked out of the apartment and headed away from the apartment, not sure exactly where he was going.

To Be Continued