Gospel 1:1

"Unit 00 activation test complete," Maya announced over the loudspeaker. "You can go now Rei." After making sure that the shutdown process could continue without her supervision Maya hurried to the eighth cage where the final plates of armor were being installed on the new Evangelion. She wished that she had the skill to alter the Eva’s growth patterns, so that its face no longer resembled a grinning death’s head; she couldn’t look at it without shivering. At least its armor isn’t black this time.

She was surprised to find the Commander on the observation deck and hurriedly saluted. "Reconstruction of the Eva is ninety-eight percent complete."

The Commander nodded. "It's been decided that this Evangelion's designation will be Unit 06. Although Unit 03 provided the template it was not actually regrown. This is an entirely new Eva."

"Understood," Maya said then looked uneasily out into the cage. The armor plates were a deep forest green, but they failed to cover the aura of menace that the Eva seemed to project, merely veiling it instead.

With a sigh she looked at her watch. Initial synchronization tests for the 6^th child were scheduled to begin in ten minutes, and then she had to be back at the cage to supervise Unit 06's system tests. She wished that she knew how Ritsuko had managed to stay on top of things.

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Before Rei returned to the locker room to change out of her plug suit she went to the eighth cage to see Unit-06. The sight of the Eva left her strangely unmoved. Her security clearance allowed her full access to the reports concerning the incident with the 13^th angel. She knew what it had done to her Eva, what it had done to her, but she had no actual memory of the event, since she—as Rei— had not existed when it occurred. She knew what feelings she should bear towards the Eva, but she found herself unable to muster hatred, or anything else, for something that she'd really never seen.

She left the cage before anyone noticed her presence. There were too many firsts in her life, too many things that she had to guess at, things that she should've known, that she was expected to know. She felt that she was a stranger in her own life, felt that because she was.

It was painful to acknowledge that she was an imposter in her own life and the knowledge was awkward for her, knowing that she was not the first Rei, nor even the second.

She carefully folded her plug suit and put it back in its locker. She also found the knowledge that she was the last Rei awkward. Since Dr. Akagi had destroyed the dummy system there would be no replacement should she die again. For better or worse, she was now unique.

After she finished changing she went to the hospital ward. A battalion of machines stood guard around Shinji, keeping back the death that tried to possess him. She walked over to the chair by his bed and sat down.

He was a special problem for her. Her previous self had harbored some feelings towards him, but as with Unit 03, all that she felt when she looked at him was an aching emptiness where the emotion should've been. The way that Shinji had reacted to her when he'd encountered her in the hospital after Unit 00’s destruction, her body swathed in bandages so that the charade of Rei’s life could continue, had told her some of what had passed between them. It had helped her cover some of the gaps in her memory but there was still so many that she couldn't.

She sighed. It hardly mattered anymore. He'd avoided her ever since he'd learned what she really was, and his coma had only worsened. She doubted that he’d wake up again. Soon, she wouldn't have to worry about him.

She reached out and picked up his hand; his skin felt cold and clammy. She traced the vein running from his wrist to his elbow with a single finger, feeling the bulge of the IV needle lying beneath his skin. Whatever feelings her previous self had possessed for Shinji, Rei startled herself by experiencing an upsurge of emotion and the beginning of tears. A word rose up from the depth of her subconscious, a word that surprised her even more than the emotion. "Son," she whispered, confused.

Shinji gasped, his eyes shooting open. He panted harshly as if he'd just exerted himself, and sweat glistened on his forehead. He whispered something to himself, but the rising crescendos of the monitoring machines, screaming to tell the world about his change of condition, made it impossible to hear exactly what it was.

It took him several moments to notice Rei’s presence even though she was still holding his hand. He tried to sit up but could accomplish nothing more than to raise his head off of the pillow. "Ayanami…. It’s… good to see you."

"Likewise," she said as she set his hand back down on the bed. "It is… good to see that you are awake." She rose from the chair and started to leave.

"Rei?" She stopped at the sound of Shinji’s voice. "Is it really you?"

She resumed walking but paused as she reached the door. "No," she said, but too softly for him to hear.

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Rei’s skirt fluttered slightly in the air currents as the escalator carried her upwards. She tried to use the monotony of the ride to blank her mind. To think brought pain and the discomfort brought by pain was… awkward.

She got off of the escalator and headed for the security gate. She walked with her head down, her attention focused inwards, and so failed to see the boy barreling towards her until it was too late.

"Yes," she said stiffly. He was obviously familiar with her but she failed to find any memory of him. Was this someone else who'd been lost in the transition between the second and the third?

"Oh, wow! I’m so glad to meet you!" He stuck out his arm. "I’m Terrence St. John."

"The 6^th child," Rei said, ignoring the proffered hand. She felt a momentary ease of mind when he identified himself. He only knew of her and so would not expect her to recall anything of importance. The charade would be maintained.

"Right, that’s me. Umm… wow. I’m really sorry about that. Would you like to go somewhere, get something to eat? Maybe exchange some job gossip? I’ve had trouble finding other people who share my profession. Imagine that." He forced a laugh, which quickly died when Rei’s face remained unchanged.

"I must go," she said quietly, stepping around Terrence and heading towards the exit.

"Right. Don’t let me keep you. I’ll see you later." Terrence turned and watched her leave, waiting until she'd gone through the gate before beating his hand against his forehead. "Stupid stupid stupid! I finally meet the Rei Ayanami and I totally blow it." He sighed as he stepped onto the escalator, sitting on the step as he rode downward. "I finally got to meet her and… oh jeez, she must think I’m a complete idiot."

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Misato yawned, trying to shake off the effects of a less than a full night’s sleep.

"If you’re bored, Major, I can find someone else to supervise Unit 06’s field test," Commander Ikari said from the upper level of the command center.

Misato straightened, attempting to compose her face. "That won’t be necessary, sir." "What’s the status of Unit 00?" she asked, turning towards Shigeru.

"The absolute borderline has been passed, all systems nominal. Unit 00 is ready for launch."

Misato opened a channel to the Eva’s pilot. "Rei, once you reached the surface we’ll send you a rifle. When you get it proceed to your assigned position and target Unit 06’s lift rail. After Unit 06 has been launched you are to keep your rifle sighted on the entry plug until the Eva has been retrieved. If at any time during the test—"

"She knows what she has to do," the Commander interrupted, and Misato had to force herself to bite back a retort. She'd favored delaying the test until Asuka was fully recovered. Rei was the only active pilot in their possession and if Unit 06 went rogue and proved too much for her to handle, she wouldn't have any backup. The Commander, however, had overridden all of her protests, ordering the test to commence as soon as possible.

"Dr. Ibuki, what's the status of Unit 06?" Misato asked, turning away from the Commander.

"The entry plug has just been inserted. LCL injection is commencing," Maya responded, stifling a yawn.

She sounds tired too, Misato thought. Everyone has had to push themselves too hard to meet with the Commander’s demands.

"Absolute borderline has been passed. All of Unit 06’s systems are nominal. Unit 06 is ready for launch."

"Unit 00 launch," Misato ordered and watched the indicator trace the Eva’s path up the lift tube. "Send up the rifle."

She waited until Rei had retrieved the weapon and taken up her position before opening a channel to the sixth Eva. "Are you ready to launch, Terrence?"

"Ulp, a y-yes. I’m, ugh, ready," he replied unsteadily.

"Is there a problem?"

The 6^th Child’s voice sank to an embarrassed whisper. "I, um, accidentally swallowed some of the LCL. It seems to have unsettled my stomach a bit."

"Will you be able to complete the field test?"

"No problem ma’am. I’ll be fine. I think."

"Launch Unit 06," Misato ordered.

Maya watched with trepidation as Unit 06 ascended the launch rail. She'd strongly advised waiting a few more days before running the field test. There hadn’t been enough time to allow an activation test of the Eva’s S² engine and the safety precautions that were being taken with this test were a joke. The geofront would've been a smoking crater if Unit 03’s field test had been run the same way. When we activate the S² engine, the entire geofront could be swallowed by a Sea of Dirac, just like Unit 04 and the Second Branch. The Commander is taking too many risks.

"Unit 06 has arrived at the surface. Power source is secure," Makoto reported.

Misato mentally crossed her fingers before giving the order: "Begin field activation test."

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Terrence St. John tried to take several deep breaths to calm his racing heart as his Eva ascended. Unfortunately, all that he managed to accomplish was to swallow even more LCL, sending his stomach into another bout of nausea. Although he had to admit that LCL was only half the reason he for his unsettled stomach.

It'd been two weeks since he'd arrived in Tokyo-3 and nothing had gone quite as he'd expected. Instead of hopping into an Evangelion and immediately joining the fight to save the world he'd spent seemingly endless hours sitting in a test plug while every wrinkle and nuance of his brain was broken down and analyzed. Instead of sweeping the 1^st Child off her feet with charm and grace, he'd bowled her over, literally.

The lift stopped with a jolt as it hit the surface and he took another deep breath, managing to avoid swallowing more LCL this time, and let his gaze drift over the displays. Everything appeared normal as he set his hand on the butterfly grip of the control sticks. "Beginning field activation test," he stated calmly, checking one last time to make sure his power supply was secure before he initiated the walk sequence.

The Eva shifted, then took a giant stride forward. A tingle of elation swept through Terrence’s body. I’m doing it! I’m piloting an Eva! The Eva shifted its weight again, bringing its other foot forward.

He knew that Rei’s Eva was out there and he understood the reason for its presence. He'd only seen her a couple of times since their first disastrous encounter and he hadn't gotten an opportunity to actually speak to her and atone for their first meeting. He realized that there could be no better time than now. What better image could he present of himself than successfully piloting an Eva?

Trying to keep his elation from showing on his face, he opened a link her entry plug. "Hey Rei, what—!" Unit 06’s foot snagged on an uneven patch of ground and Terry found the terrain racing up towards his cockpit. He cut off the video link and attempted to put the Eva’s arms out so that it could catch itself, but the left tangled in the trailing power cable and the Eva landed on its chin with a bone rattling crash.

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Rei had the rifle pointed at Unit 06 as soon as it reached the surface and it had only taken a slight adjustment of her arm to center the targeting recticle squarely on its entry plug. If anything went wrong the control system would be destroyed before the Eva could wreak too much destruction. It was unfortunate that the control system included the pilot.

The 6^th Child reported the start of the field test and she watched as his Eva took one step forward, then another. She twitched in surprise when her communications screen snapped on, displaying the 6^th Child’s ecstatically beaming face, "Hey Rei, what—!" His image vanished and Unit 06 lurched forward, dropping to the ground. Swiftly, Rei dropped her Eva to one knee, steadying the rifle, her finger darting to the trigger.

"Are you all right, Terrence?" Rei heard Misato ask.

"Yeah, I’m fine," he responded, sounding embarrassed. "I tripped."

Rei let go a breath she hadn’t known she was holding and let her finger fall from the trigger. Unit 06 stood back up then resumed walking, finishing the test without further incident.

"All right, Terrence we’re sending you up a rifle. Retrieve it and proceed with the weapons test."

Instead of live rounds, the rifle that Terrence took fired a light beam, and all of his targets would be simulated. Rei’s display screen had been programmed so that she could see the images as well, allowing her to observe Terrence’s progress.

"Ready to begin weapons test," he stated, snapping the rifle to Unit 06’s shoulder and whipping it around as the first projected target arced through the sky. The Eva fired three times before the target faded from view: the closest shot missed by more than five meters. His aim wasn't any closer with the second, and Unit 06 tripped over its power cable as it shot at the third. Terrence managed to hit the fourth, firing from one knee as he tried to rise.

"Damn it!" he swore angrily. "How the hell am I supposed to hit those bloody things! I don’t remember any of the Angels that looked like clay pigeons! Why can’t I shoot at something more realistic—and bigger."

Misato sounded exasperated when she responded. "The weapons that we equip the Evas with pack a strong enough punch to level a city block and the majority of the confrontations with the Angels occured in or around Tokyo-3. If you can’t hit the broad side of a barn then we're sure as hell not going to hand you that kind of firepower with just a wink and a pat."

"That was cold," he muttered, missing another target.

"Your accuracy is terrible!" Misato howled. "I don’t think you could do any worse if you just turned off the targeting system and shot from the hip!"

"Oh." Terrence sounded embarrassed. "Oops."

"Your targeting system is on, isn’t it?" Misato asked, her voice holding an exasperated edge.

There was a long silence from the Eva. "Umm… It is now."

Rei heard an annoyed sigh from Misato.

"Plans to impress Rei: 0-3," Terrence muttered. "Oh crap! My radio’s still on!" The line cut out with a snap.

Unit 06 resumed the weapons test. Although his accuracy still wasn’t stupendous, he usually managed to place his shots within the immediate vicinity of the target and hit each one at least once.

"His synch ratio is lower than expected," Maya commented as she watched the test, "but still within acceptable limits, considering that aside from the 3^rd Child, he's had the least previous training out of all the pilots.

Misato nodded in agreement. "Okay, that’s the end of the weapons test," she said as the last target faded from the screen. "Prepare to disengage external power and switch over to your S² engine."

Terrence placed the rifle in its retrieval lift then turned his back towards Unit 00’s position, giving Rei a clean shot at his entry plug. He had to force himself to grasp the manual release lever for the Eva's power cable. It had been during the start up sequence for the S² engine that Unit 03 had gone berserk and both Unit 04 the Second Branch vanished. It was hard for him not to think about them as he prepared to do the same thing..

"Preparing to disengage external power," he announced.

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An uncomfortable silence descended over the command center. At the front of everyone's mind was the knowledge that it had been upon the activation of the S² engine that Unit 04 and the Second Branch had disappeared into a Sea of Dirac and Unit 03 had transformed into the 13^th Angel.

Misato didn't want to think about what was going through either Rei or Terrence’s head. They both knew what the consequences would be if control of Unit 06 was lost.

"Disconnecting external power… now!" Terrence yelled as the plug slipped out of Unit 06’s back, retro jets firing to ease its descent to the ground.

Both inside the entry plug and in the command center, the power readout screen suddenly flashed red. "ACTIVATION TIME REMAINING: 00:32.02.00" appeared on the screens and began to count down.

"Dr. Ibuki," Commander Ikari said severely "the purpose of the S² engine was to provide the Evangelions with unlimited power without the restraint of having to rely upon an stationary power source. One half of an hour is not what I would call unlimited."

"I’m sorry, sir," Maya said edgily. "In case you haven’t read them, Dr. Akagi’s notes clearly state that our technology is insufficient to perfectly replicate an Angel’s S² organ and that if the S² engine operated at all, less than optimal functionality was to be expected. I can include a copy of them in my report if you so wish."

"That will not be necessary, Doctor. I am quite familiar with the material in question. However, that does not mean that I will accept excuses."

Maya bristled at the statement but wisely kept her peace.

Misato broke in before the situation could degrade any further. "I believe that we've covered all of the parameters of the field test. With the Commander’s permission I would like to retrieve the Evas."

"Granted," the Commander said, then rose and walked towards the lift from the command center.

Terrence managed to keep his pace to a walk as he got out of the entry plug and left the cage. Once he was out of sight he raced towards the locker room. He made it to a toilet just before the LCL erupted from his mouth, then he vomited again, expunging more of the amber liquid.

He felt a presence behind him but was to busy throwing up to see who it was.

"You need to make sure you that you only inhale the LCL when the entry plug is filled and not swallow it," Rei said quietly.

"Of course," Rei said as she left.

"0-4," he said, resting his head against the cool porcelain of the wall. "Oh god, she must think that I’m such an idiot."

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Misato caught up with Terrence as he stepped into the elevator. He faced the door, unwilling to face the Director of Operations after such a poor showing. For a while the only sound in the elevator was the steady click of the floor display.

Misato spoke first. "Terrence, could I ask you a favor?"

"You’re not upset about the test?"

Misato shook her head and smiled. "It’s no problem, Terrence. You’re not expected to synch perfectly with the Eva the very first time you pilot it. "

"Please, call me Terry. I hate Terrence. What favor do you need?"

"Shinji's being released from the recovery ward today. I was hoping that he could stay with you until he’s fully recuperated. Asuka is… a pretty lousy roommate now. It’s her… you know, right now, among other things. I don’t think it would do Shinji any good to force him to have to deal with her until he’s back on his feet."

Terry snorted, "I didn’t know it was possible for anything to make that girl any more unpleasant than she already is. It’s no problem for me to have Shinji stay at my apartment. Besides, I wouldn’t wish that girl’s presence on anybody, especially the sick."

Misato gave him an odd look before continuing. "You can transfer his things over to your apartment when you get back. If my door is locked, just knock and Pen-Pen will let you in."

"Pen-Pen?" Terry asked. He’d heard some pretty strange Japanese names, but noe quite as odd as that one.

"Just wait until you meet him," she said and quickly changed the subject. "You do know that school is resuming in two weeks, don’t you? Enough of Tokyo-3’s infrastructure has been rebuilt that people are being allowed to move back. Shinji and As—, I mean Shinji can show you around when it starts." She paused, unsure of the wisdom in asking the next question. "Terry, is there something I should know about between you and Asuka?"

The elevator stopped and Terry got off. "It’s nothing," he said, the elevator doors closing before Misato could press the matter further.

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Terry tried the lock on Misato’s door before knocking three times. He waited, and hearing no sounds from within the apartment he started to knock again, just as the door opened and he found himself face to face with the 2^nd Child.

"What are you doing here?" Asuka demanded.

"Nothing you need to know about."

"Fine, then go," Asuka said, and started to close the door but Terry wedged his foot between the door and the frame before she could fully shut it. "Hey, get your foot out of there!"

Terry grunted as the pressure on his foot increased. "Misato told me to get some stuff. She also told me that Pen-Pen was going to answer the door."

Asuka relented, letting the door slide open again. "He didn’t want to put his paper down, so I had to."

"How pleasant," Terry replied, "you two sound perfect for each other."

Asuka glowered but didn’t say anything else as Terry entered the apartment. He noticed a paper standing seemingly of its own volition in the middle of the floor but didn’t see anyone else. "So where is he?" he asked.

"Dummkopf," Asuka muttered under her breath.

Terry glared at her, then cleared his throat. "Mr. Pen-Pen, are you here?"

The newspaper lowered itself and Terry realized that it wasn’t standing up on its own but had been held up by a penguin. "That’s Pen-Pen?"

"Of course it is," Asuka said smugly, "what were you expecting?"

"Never mind," Terry said, nonplussed. "I’m going to collect some of Shinji’s belongings and take them over to my apartment."

For a moment Asuka’s expression slipped and he could’ve sworn that he saw a look of apprehension cross her face. Then she regained control and he couldn’t be sure that he didn’t imagine the whole thing. "Shinji’s moving out?" she asked. He couldn’t be sure, but he thought he heard a note of worry in her voice.

Terry nodded. "Misato decided that he should stay in my apartment for a few days, until he recuperates."

Asuka’s smile seemed forced. "That’s great. It’ll be nice to actually have some room in here." She led him down the hall to Shinji’s room. "He’s just so sloppy. It’s almost impossible to get around with the mess he makes."

Terry doubted her words upon seeing the nearly immaculate condition of Shinji's room, and it only took him two trips to carry over what he thought Shinji would need. It was on the third trip that he noticed the cello sitting in the corner of the room. "He plays?" Terry asked, nodding towards the instrument.

"No, dummkopf, that’s the door stop," Asuka said sarcastically. "Of course he plays. Why don’t you take that too? He can bother you with its shrieking instead of me for a while."

Terry shrugged. "I won’t mind," he said, juggling the load in his arms so that he could pick the instrument up. However as he rose, its neck slipped through his fingers.

"SHEISSKOPF!" Asuka shouted at him and grabbed the cello before it could hit the floor. "Be careful with that."

"Watch your mouth," Terry said angrily. "Besides, I thought that you didn’t like it. Why should you care what happens to it?"

She blushed furiously. "Well, I don’t, but if it gets broken Shinji'll blame me."

"Fine," he said, reaching out to take the instrument from her, "I’ll be more careful with it."

Instead of letting him take it, she twisted, keeping it out of his reach. "Forget it. You think I’m going to trust a lobotomized klutz like you? I’ll carry it myself." She marched towards the door, forcing Terry to follow. They deposited Shinji’s things inside his apartment and Asuka left just in time to meet Misato as she wheeled Shinji out of the elevator and over towards Terry’s apartment.

"Hi Asuka!" Misato shouted cheerfully and Asuka muttered a half-cordial greeting in return as she retreated back into the apartment. Terry held his door open for them, shooting one last glance at where Asuka had been standing before closing it.

"Terry, I’d like you to meet Shinji Ikari. Shinji, meet Terry St. John."

Terry extended his hand. "It’s good to meet you, Shinji Ikari."

Shinji looked at the other boy for a moment, "You’re the 6^th Child?" he asked, reaching out and shaking Terry’s hand.

As he shook, Terry noticed that Shinji’s hand felt frail in his and that the boy's grip was weak. "Yes indeed. Proud pilot of a certain Evangelion Unit 06. Can I get you two anything to drink?" he asked. "Cup o’ tea?"

"I’d love too, but I need to get back to the geofront," Misato said. "I’ll be back later, bye!"

"I’ll have some tea, please," Shinji said as Misato left.

"Just give me one second," Terry said as he headed into the kitchen. Shinji could hear the sounds of cupboards opening and shutting. "I don’t have any green tea or stuff like that," Terry called out. "Just what I brought with me from home. Would black currant be okay?"

"Anything is fine," Shinji replied. He pushed his wheel chair towards the extra bedroom and was surprised to find his cello resting against the bed.

Terry came up behind him, a thick porcelain mug in each hand. "Asuka seemed pretty desperate to get rid of it," he said, noting Shinji’s gaze, "she practically threw it out the door."

"Oh," Shinji said quietly.

"Don’t let that girl get to you. She’s a bitch and isn't happy unless she’s making everyone else miserable, too."

"She’s not a bitch," Shinji said, a note of anger in his voice.

Terry backed up a step. "Whoa, sorry. I didn’t mean to hit a nerve." He changed the subject. "How about I start on dinner? I have a bunch of interesting stuff in the fridge."

"I’m not really that hungry."

Terry shrugged. "That’s not a problem. Whatever we don’t eat tonight shall contribute to the great Australian art of leftovers. I can throw some beef stroganoff together, no problem."

"Is that an Australian dish?"

Terry shook his head. "French I think, or maybe Russian. It's a beef dish over noodles. It’s really good."

Terry disappeared back into the kitchen and Shinji wheeled into the main room. He turned on the TV but didn't pay attention to what was on the screen. Instead, his thoughts centered on the 6^th Child. He’s so different from Kaworu, from Touji. Will that make him any safer?

An image flashed through Shinji’s head of Kaworu smiling up at him from Unit 01's hand. He shuddered. "It doesn’t matter," he whispered to himself, "I’m never going to get in that monster again."

"Here’s dinner," Terry announced, carrying a steaming pot from the kitchen. He put generous helpings of thick, flat noodles on two plates, then ladled a beef sauce on top of them.

Shinji had to admit that the stroganoff was tasty but after only three forkfuls he'd had enough and resorted to pushing the rest around on his plate while Terry finished eating.

Terry declined Shinji’s offer to help as he cleared off the table and washed the dishes. "Did Misato tell you that school was starting again in a couple of weeks?" He asked as he entered the main room, drying his hands off on the legs of his pants.

Shinji nodded. "It'll be nice to see Kensuke again."

"Just one person? Isn’t there anyone else you’ve missed?" Terry pressed.

"There are others," Shinji said, in a tone that made Terry realize he’d committed some sort of faux pas.

He decided to change the subject before he managed to screw up any further. "Can you tell me what happened with the 16^th Angel? I mean," he gestured towards the city outside, "when Rei detonated Unit 00’s core, an explosion like that, well, some of the big wigs back in Australia were crossing the 1^st Child off their lists. How'd she survive?"

"She was… lucky."

"Too bad everybody can’t have her luck."

"Yes, too bad."

An uncomfortable silence descended on the apartment as Terry realized he'd managed to screw up again and he tried to think of another topic. "Did the 17^th Angel really get inside the geofront? All the files concerning it are top secret, so I haven't been able to get any real information about it. It must've been something really nasty, since all the data is under lock and key, plus it sure put you through the wringer, without even doing any physical damage."

A long moment passed before Shinji answered. "I think it would be best if I went to bed now." He began to wheel himself towards his room, refusing Terry's offer to help.

Terry sat in the main room, waiting until the sounds of movement ceased to issue from within Shinji’s room before he got up, opened the doors to the balcony and walked out into the cool night air. He sighed as he leaned against the railing, massaging his temple with one hand. "God damn, I really screwed the pooch with that," he told the night. "Every time I opened my mouth I managed to ram my foot deeper down my own throat. The king of conversational grace; that's me."

He looked towards Misato’s balcony, the only other one besides his own in the entire building that displayed any sign of habitation. "Why do I get the feeling that there's so much that I don’t know?"

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Commander Ikari leaned back in his chair, only half-listening to what the Deputy Commander was saying.

"What you did was insane! It was irresponsible! You know what the consequences will be if what you did is discovered!"

Gendo smiled smugly. "Calm down. It isn't like I walked into a bank with a ski mask and a handgun."

"You’re right, it’s not," Fuyutsuki said grimly. "What you did was an entire magnitudes worse."

"It will pass unnoticed. Rebuilding Tokyo-3 is the UN’s effort to boost worldwide morale. How much the reconstruction costs is irrelevant to them. I only siphoned off a little of that flow to pad NERV’s coffers. Even with as close as humanity came to absolute destruction, the UN still refuses to recognize just how essential we really are and the budget we're allocated is grossly insufficient for our needs. The amount of money that the UN throws into Tokyo-3 each week is easily ten times what I took. If the deficit is noticed, which I sincerely doubt, there will no trail leading back to NERV. The money will have simply vanished. Its disappearance will probably end up being blamed on a simple, albeit expensive, clerical error."

"To pad NERV’s coffers? You must be kidding. What on earth does NERV, or, more to the point, what do you need ten billion dollars for?"

Gendo leaned back, bridging his hands in front of his face. The fading light streaming into the office reflected off of the lenses of his glasses, rendering them opaque. His smile deepened. "Certain projects."