02 - Welp (backdated to the 24th)

[agelostdoll]

((ooc: had meant to put this up a few days ago but I had to clean a virus off my PC; sorry about that!))

[Asuka - the eyepatch'd one - comes onto the screen... and looking none too good. Pale, bags under her eye and shivering despite a blanket and a heavy jacket. Yeah. Even her voice is hoarse:]

Anyone wondering about that side effects thing... well, it's pretty fucking confirmed. I'm about three weeks in; haven't touched anybody. Said I would a while ago; experiment.

Fever, headaches, sleep disruption... I think I'm starting to hallucinate. I'm calling it off.

They're not lying about that.

Private text to greenteengenius

you want your scans make it quick

Private text to favored_four_eyes

could use a hand

Comments

[forevalone]

...Why wake him up?

_{[Begging to fight? That didn't exactly sound like himself at all. The last thing at this point that Shinji wanted to do was fight anything.]}

If he was such a threat why was he kept alive in the first place? Why didn't you just keep him asleep?

[agelostdoll]

[Asuka laughs dryly]

You sound like Akagi.

Misato. Misato's why. We wanted to give you a chance. The operation was more to recover Unit 01 anyway. If you had the boy that triggered Third Impact as well, wouldn't you want to say something?

Besides, we had to test if it had affected you or not. We don't age. I have contaminant crap under my eyepatch. There's too many scientific unknowns when it comes to piloting. Every one of us is a valuable specimen.

[forevalone]

_{[Give him a chance? It doesn't exactly sound like much of a chance.]}

So he became simply a test subject. _{[Not 'I' - he doesn't want to think of it that way. The more he can detach himself from the situation the easier it is to swallow. It's always been about Unit 01. He knew that, sure, but he doesn't like being reminded of it.]} Did anyone properly explain things to him when he woke up?

[agelostdoll]

[to be fair, they just needed it for the Wunder's engine. They didn't need to stick him in it. It was more a case of studying the long term effects of piloting as a comparative against Asuka and Mari and figuring out if NERV had done anything to him over the fourteen years]

...We would have, given the chance. We were attacked almost as soon as he'd been recovered.

Bastard sent a Rei clone, so naturally he thinks its the one he's saved and we're all lying to his face.

[forevalone]

_{[The mention of a clone of Ayanami triggers causes him to freeze up slightly. Reiquarium flashbacks aren't exactly a pretty thing to recall.]}

Would you have, though? Explained it all? No one has ever explained anything to me straightforward and without bias my whole life. Never. Not my Father, not Misato-san, not Kaji-san or even Kaworu-kun. Everyone is always talking in what feels like riddles to me. Maybe I'm just stupid...but that's what it feels like.

I'm not...I'm not defending his choice. He made a terrible one. But if I woke up after fourteen years of being asleep and the last thing I remembered was trying to save Ayanami...or anyone for that matter...and I remembered people not hating me but I'm suddenly faced with hostile faces and tempers...I would believe the person who is most familiar to me and doesn't want to immediately strangle me, even if that person is just a copy of the original.

_{[He pauses slightly.]}

If you can even call Ayanami 'original'...

[agelostdoll]

Perhaps. But given the fleet was under attack, we had more important concerns at the time. Once we were free from that they sat him down. They were quite literally briefing him when the Ayanami showed up. Should we apologise for being angry? It's only human nature.

As for Ayanami... no idea. Technically speaking, her original is probably your mother, Yui Ayanami, but in terms of personality there are considerable differences.

The one that lived the longest was the second one back when we were teenagers. She was around for 10 to 12 years, according to Akagi. I'd call that one the original 'Rei'.

[forevalone]

_{[Give him a moment, he feels like he's going to be sick. A hand reaches up to cover over his mouth as he turns his eyes away. It's a bit traumatizing to have your suspicious confirmed 100%. To hear, once again, that your dead mom has been used as a base to make clones from. It sends a shiver down his spine and bile up his throat.]}

...I hope she never comes here.

[agelostdoll]

[Asuka only shrugs]

It doesn't particularly matter either way. If they lose one, they only drag another one out anyway. They definitely feel emotions; it'd be interesting to see what one's like when your dad's not around teaching it to just be a tool.

[forevalone]

Of course she feels emotions...Ayanami wasn't soulless, Asuka.

_{[But he can't help but shake his head at the second part. It's just...too much for him at the moment.]}

I don't...I couldn't face her now.

[agelostdoll]

[actually, technically speaking she is, it's just that not having a soul doesn't really matter all that much. But that's beside the point right now]

If one does show up, me and Mari will handle it.

[forevalone]

...What will you do with her?

[agelostdoll]

[another shrug]

Keep an eye on her, really. She'd be about as useless as the rest of us here, anyway.

[forevalone]

I suppose that's true...