Stray Children

IKARI SHINJI -- A Fatal Disease
A cowardly soul. A wanting heart. The desire to be loved.

Shinji Ikari.

By curious coincidence, he arrived at the place of his fate simultaneously with an Angel attack -- the first in 15 years. His father's orders. The expectations of adults. An injured young girl. "I mustn't run away."
Repeating these words like an incantation, Shinji boarded the Eva.

Sortie. Berserking. Battle. Defense. Strategy. Defeat. Interception. Defeat of the enemy. Desertion. Berserking. Destruction.

As the battles against the Angels continue, Shinji encounters various people.

Rei Ayanami -- Bandages. Mysteries. Indifference. An object of interest. Mother.

Sohryu Asuka Langley -- Girl. Perplexing. Formidable. Indecipherable. Sex.

Misato Katsuragi -- Adult. Superior. Meddlesome. Soldier. Family.

Gendou Ikari -- Harsh. Commander. Hatred. Anger. Father. Father. Father....

Various words, eyes and emotions are directed toward Shinji.
But he shuts himself away in the dark depths of his heart, and does not show his true self easily. He merely stares out timidly from the depths of the darkness....
But the word "like" swept away his darkness.

Kaworu Nagisa.
The Fifth Children.
A gentle boy.

The first person to whom Shinji ever opened his heart.
But Kaworu's true identity was that of an Angel. The enemy of humankind. A being to be shunned and feared.

Betrayal. Despair. Remorse. Anger.

Piloting Eva-01, Shinji strains under these complex emotions, and kills Kaworu.
The first person to ever tell him he "liked" him.
The first person to whom he ever opened his heart.

By his own hand....

SOHRYU ASUKA LANGLEY --
A Sullied Heart

A high but fragile wall. A tightly stretched thread. The fear of not being needed.

Sohryu Asuka Langley.

She lost her mother at a tender age.
Her mother killed her within her heart by giving her love to a doll instead.
So, she sought after strength.
The strength to beat anyone.
The strength to be able to live alone.
The strength that could become her raison d'être.

Then in 2015, the time came for her to proclaim this strength to those around her.

The stage: New Tokyo-3. The mission: to defeat the Angels.
But there were already others before her.
Shinji Ikari. And Rei Ayanami.

These two must be beneath her.

Sortie. Soaring. Victory. Action. Military prowess. Achievement. Defeat of the enemy. Mistakes. Defeat. Rear guard. Dismissal.

"I lost to stupid Shinji..."

Her pride collapsed, and she ran away.
But the organization found her and brought her back, confining her in a white solitary cell called a sickroom. Asuka slumbers amidst the sheets, but her heart is shut away.

Nein... Stop... Tod... Pain... Schmach... Mother... erhängen...

Her dreams within that white darkness are bitter...

AYANAMI REI --Tears

An expressionless "Noh" mask. A girl who does not dream.
A faithful performer. One out of many.

Rei Ayanami.

A Children (qualified person) from the day she was born.
Living together with Eva for 14 years, her life was one with the Project.
And then, the promised year. She meets the first Children other than herself.

Shinji Ikari. The Third Children.

A boy her same age. That person's child.
Shinji's appearance heralded the simultaneous attack of an Angel.

Orders... Execution... Orders... Execution... Orders... Execution... Orders... Execution... As the scenario progresses, he changes her.

Smiles. Worrying. Words of thanks.

These were all for him.
Smiles directed toward him. Worrying about him.

"Thank you" said to him.
And with her first tears, she finally realized.
"This is my heart. I want to be with Ikari."
But death engulfed her before she could convey her heart.
Reproduction and reunion came swiftly.
And she appeared once again before Shinji.

But this third Rei knew naught.

About Shinji.

About her own heart.

Or about the reason for her tears....

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