2022-09-09: The Animus Fruit

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<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

It's not the brightest mood on Orbit Base at the moment. GGG is an organization relentlessly dedicated to courage, but that doesn't mean every day is sunshine and roses. A few weeks ago, Kikuho Eir, Orbit Cafe's beloved lunchmatron, succumbed to an Algernon-induced craze that nearly saw her cleave Mamoru Amami's head open, not to mention causing chaos with miraculously-not-actually-that-dangerous food experiments. And of course, not that long after, the miraculously returned King of Braves faced its last battle, as the first deployment of Mecha-Ghoulghilas saw GaoFighGar torn apart, and Guy Shishioh nearly killed.

Threads converge. Guy Shishioh is currently in a powered wheelchair. Perhaps it's a shock to see the bold and brash Superhuman Evoluder cruising the halls in such a way. Visitors find Guy not in his room, because he has made his way to the room where Kikuho Eir has been in sedation and being studied.

Sadly, the time has come. Guy's outside her room, speaking with GGG's Algernon expert and Research operator, Hinoki Sai. A brunette with a tricolor bang, she wears the GGG researcher uniform, a minidress under a coat that extends down in the style of a lab coat. "We did what we could, but ultimately..." she says.

Guy tsks, unhappily. "....every case is a chance to study it further, Hinoki," he says, and manages a smile. "Don't feel too bad." 

<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.

        As a Super AI who was explicitly created to act as a nurse and a counsellor to sufferers of Algernon disease, Minae is acutely aware of the graph that records the number of cases in recent years. It isn't exactly hard to picture; it's been a flat line for the last eight or nine years, and suddenly the bar has jumped infinitely upwards to a grand total of one.

        She isn't one for feeling terror, let alone quiet and creeping terror. She's not built for it. But hearts don't necessarily work that way, and ever since hearing about it she can't stop her thoughts rolling back around to that single digit. The explainer that the GGG put out hasn't left the corner of her desktop monitor.

        Still, she is a professional. It's been a long time since she found herself in this infirmary, but old habits die hard, and it's not like anyone's been moving the blankets around. As one of the people on base functionally immune to Algernon, and with past experience of handling it, it doesn't take her any time at all to slip back into the role of caregiver. If there's any marked difference from nine years ago, it's the core of self-confidence that she's found along with her sense of identity - the her from back then would never have been quite so insistent about helping out in whatever way she can.

        When she leaves the infirmary it's with a placid smile on her face. Schooling her emotions is a little harder than it used to be, she's finding - possibly thanks to her slowly learning to connect with her heart - but she still has a groundwell of patience to work with. Most importantly, the robot still does not exude any kind of presence or pressure, the better to ensure that she doesn't trigger Algernon's defence mechanism and cause further memetic changes.

        Closing the door carefully behind her, the Super AI bows her head to Guy and then to Hinoki. For a moment she looks exactly like the Minae of old, quiet and reserved-- and then she draws in a breath and it flickers away. "... I've done what I can to make her comfortable," she reports, and pauses as her attention splits elsewhere. "I'm also sending along the research I worked through in the intervening years. It's all theoretical and extrapolated, given there were no cases, but..."

        She trails off into a helpless shrug towards the both of them, which says it all: she never expected to need it again. 

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        Kaworu was not present for when the original Algernon incident with poor Kikuho Eir went down--but Rei Ayanami was, and even for a seemingly emotionless girl like her, it was a harrowing experience. That's why she'd asked Kaworu and Shinji to come with her up to the GGG Base to check in on Guy and... well, everything that's happening since then. Kaworu had been more than willing to agree--he has a few injured people to check in on, and Guy's on that list--and so the three of them had come up to base.
        
        Two of them right now, actually. Rei is lagging behind a bit. Still, Kaworu sees no harm in tracking Guy down for her while they're waiting. One of the local workers tells him that Guy's been whooshing around on a wheelchair and was last seen heading towards the infirmary--the infirmary where the Algernon patient is--and Kaworu heads that way with hands tucked into the pockets of his administrator uniform.
        
        "Are you all right, Shinji?" Kaworu wonders over to his friend as they approach. He's as calm as he ever is, but Shinji already had a bad scare the other day at the haunted apartment complex. Given how Algernon spreads, it might be dangerous to have him join. He doesn't say that much though, instead offering, "If you'd rather wait for the First, I can go on ahead by myself. It wouldn't do for her to get lost once she catches up."
        
        He glances forward down the hall as someone else--someone he recognizes--heads into the infirmary ahead of them. Minae... Interesting. What's her involvement?

<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.


Every time any of them climb inside their machines, it could be the last day they do anything. Shinji feels that tension with each sortie, even as those around him shout about togetherness and victory. He wonders if they truly feel that security deep in their bones, or if they're simply braver than he'll ever be, or both. Because even with that optimism, even with the bright lights and miracles of courage, Shinji thought for a dreadful moment he was about to witness the worst happen to someone on the battlefield.

Normally, Shinji might not have his own courage to offer support afterward. What could he provide, really, besides being in the way? But a request from Rei isn't something he drags his feet with, and the excuse is almost a relief to see for himself that a win was still a win. ...Even if it comes with confronting new horrors.

He comes with Kaworu, unable, as usual, to hide his nervous energy. Kaworu picks up on it, like he always does. "I'm worried about Ayanami," he admits, glancing over his shoulder as if he's expecting (or hoping) she'll catch up soon. It's unusual for her to make this sort of direct request... This must be important to her.

At the suggestion, he hesitates. "Let's not split up further." Perhaps the haunted apartment complex incident is still lingering? But Rei's less likely to get lost than he himself is, Shinji thinks.

He glances up to see Minea going the same way they are. A nurse...? This is one of those moments where one sees an emergency vehicle and hopes it doesn't turn down a familiar street. He glances toward Kaworu with a frown.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

Hinoki and Guy both nod to Minae. "Thanks, Minae. Sorry you had to come up for this."

Hinoki sighs. "From the last reports, should be any moment now..."

This little gathering of sunshine is what Kaworu and Shinji come upon, and Guy rotates his chair to look at the two oncoming Children, giving both a wave. "Kaworu, Shinji, good to see you. I thought I heard you'd come aboard." Not much escapes the Superhuman Evoluder's connection to his home base network! "Rei's probably down with ShouRyu right now, if I know them." ... HIs smile goes a bit stiff, though. "It's...probably good timing, actually. It might be best if you all see this."

<Pose Tracker> Lamia has posed.

         Another flower of Algernon blooms. The question Lamia asks however, is how many more? The number of those affected drop every passing year. The defense mechanism for humankind is also the food that fuels his people, but with the ever increasing rate at which humanity progresses to fight its own threat, the more this mechanism is seemingly redundant. This is why he must defeat the King of Ruin and bring about the Age of Patria. For that to happen however, he must harvest.

         The lights in GGG Orbit Base's hallway flicker for the briefest second, casting them in darkness before suddenly turning back on. A man who was not there before now looms in front of the Algernon expert, red eyes peering into her before flicking around to catch glimpses of those around him. His gazing pauses for a moment, once on the Evoluder, the other being Kaworu, before returning his sights back on Hinoki.

         There are no spoken words, just a deafening silence. It is assumed, after all, that everyone in Orbit Base knows he would be here, and why it is so.

<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.

        The young woman who is standing alongside Guy and Hinoki certainly doesn't look like a robot at first glance. Significantly smaller and less-- angular than the vast majority of GGG Super AI, she essentially looks like an average-sized human with a kind of unruly mess of long green hair. She's even wearing casual clothes rather than scrubs, a white sleeveless vest and a long blue skirt. It's only when you look at the little things that it becomes more clear - the mechanical light in her eyes, the unnatural lack of a presence, the way she doesn't breathe or tic as humans do.

        "Not at all," she insists towards Guy with an assured smile; she's not hotblooded, but she can still get a good light in her eyes every so often. "This is what I'm made for, after all."

        Turning towards the pair as they arrive, the robot blinks in recognition, and bows her head in greeting. "Ah... I suppose we haven't met in this capacity," she notes a little sheepishly as she straightens up. "Prior to my assignment as a guidance counsellor on the Ra Mari, I started here in Orbit Base - as a caregiver for those recovering from zondarization and Algernon," she supplies, before turning to Shinji with another nod of her head. "My name is Minae."

        The anxiety is clear on the boy's face; she doesn't need her counselling skills to pick that up. Her voice softens as she offers over a gentle smile. "We're doing what we can to make her comfortable. I know it must be difficult, but it's important to try not to panic. The best way to help is to keep yourself as steady as you can."

        Of course this is when the lights go out, and when they receive a sudden visitor. When they come back on again-- Minae is left to realize that the person she was nine years ago never really understood the 'why' behind Algernon. She could provide all manner of information on how best to treat someone under its effects, but she'd been too focused on her patients to look beyond that and dig deeper. Part of her thinks it might be the right time to. "... hello," is not the best ever start, but her voice is held steady and cautious.

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        Kaworu gazes in unexpressed agreement when Shinji says he's worried about Rei. It is indeed unusual--though less so as time goes on, this time around--for her to make a direct request. Still, when Shinji says that he'll stay, that it's better not to split up further, Kaworu gives him a fond smile and nods. "Very well. Let's keep going, then."
        
        Hinoki's talking about something being 'any moment now' when the two Eva pilots enter. All the same, it's Guy who greets them. Kaworu gives him a smile of greeting too, hands still tucked in his pockets, as he walks in far enough for Shinji--and later Rei, when she arrives--to have space to follow.
        
        "Good to see you too, Acting Chief. It seems you're already informed," he notes. His own smile fades as Guy's turns stiff when he talks of them being here to see this. He glances over at the still form of Kikuho Eir--and then up at Lamia as he phases into the room from nowhere. Kaworu isn't surprised to see him, anymore than someone would be surprised to walk into a room through the door. Instead, he gives him a long, assessing look.
        
        But then Minae introduces herself in her current capacity, and Kaworu smiles at her. "Ah, I see," he says simply. "I'd been wondering." As she gives her advice to Shinji, he glances again at his fellow Child... and then he slips a hand out of his pocket to offer it very gently, by way of brushing it against Shinji's, for his friend to hold if he wishes.
[Coordination] Emilia Eschonbach> Hey folks, any pageant contestants who haven't yet, please read post 240
[Coordination] Emilia Eschonbach> Also anyone who wants to watch the pageant

<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.

Shinji enters with the start of a mostly aborted bow, his instinct for polite formality feeling overwhelmed by the atmosphere. Guy is... all right. In a wheelcheer, but alive and whole and it is a relief, even if the state he's in isn't entirely as uplifting as Shinji hoped. He tries to think of something to say. Something encouraging, or good. His mouth is too dry.

He nearly asks what it is they'll see instead, but fear holds his tongue there, too. And he'll see soon enough either way.

"Ah... Shinji Ikari. Nice to meet you," Shinji offers Minea quietly, finding it easier to speak with it part of a social script. She offers her advice: be steady and don't panic. He's trying, but all this warning is making everything more unnerving...

Unsurprisingly, he remains gravitated close to Kaworu, but never stepping ahead of him within the room. Which is certainly close enough for Kaworu to brush his hand to Shinji's, who unconsciously ends up taking it.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

Hinoki's words. 'Any moment now.' A doctor's assessment of a patient nearing the end of their life, but also...a certainty, from a person who has seen this pattern before.

The lights go dark.

When they come up again, Betterman has arrived.

Guy tenses in his seat, a thrill of aggression racing through him, tamed by skill and presence. "Lamia," he says. "...Nice trick. I suppose they call to you."

He looks to Shinji and Kaworu. "I'm sorry," he says. "I'm glad you came, both of you. But, this will be a little rough. The patient in this room is the one who Rei had a run-in with the last time she was here. The victim of Algernon. If Lamia's here, that means I'm afraid she's just passed."

He pushes his chair in, while Hinoki holds Lamia's gaze for a long several seconds. Searching, maybe his face or her own thoughts. She doesn't speak it. But she does nod. "It's time, then," she says, and steps over, away from him and Minae, and to the curtain around Kikuho's bed. This she pulls aside.

The woman in the bed was a good, loving woman, once. Death has brought pallor to her flesh, but more than that, the face that once smiled at the people of Orbit Base has been transformed. Tendrils growing from the ears and nose and eyes have gathered together - vines, gathering together to form a green bed for their precious cargo of a single peculiar fruit, almost more like a fist-sized nut.

"...the Animus Fruit," Guy says. "The fruit of the seedbed created by Algernon."
Rei Ayanami teleports in. 

<Pose Tracker> Rei Ayanami has posed.


Every time they climb into their machines, it could be the last day they live...

At least, that's generally the case.

Rei Ayanami had separated from Kaworu and Shinji despite a common journey upwards. Clad in her full-fledged summer uniform for school, Rei is recognizable and easily found.

'Your gift... it was kind.'
'I hated that place.'
'I'm somewhere else now. It's worse, I think, but I don't hate it.'
'... different? Is that so?'
'I should join them.'
'?'
'Yes. Email me whenever you wish.'

And now--

The lights flicker.

Someone is standing in the doorway.

"Then," Rei says, "she died," as she steps inwards. It is a short enough sentence to lack emotional freighting.

<Pose Tracker> Lamia has posed.

         It is hard to tell if Lamia is actually acknowledging any of the attention he is getting, or if he is just choosingly ignoring it. However, once the room is open to him, he strides in. Now standing over the body of the deceased, the Betterman pauses, currently focused on the Animus Fruit that blooms before him.

         "During mankind's infancy, we arrived. The Animus Fruit before you is a sign that the pact made during that time still persists. This woman, willingly or not, has given her life to protect this Earth."

         Lamia's lips don't move, but his voice rings loudly and clearly through the heads of everyone in the room. As he speaks, he reaches forward for the ripened fruit, plucking it from the strange plant that blooms from the lunch lady's head. Its purpose served, it slowly begins to wilt away. He turns the fruit in hand around to inspect it for a moment, before pocketing it away in his jacket.

         "The longer you wait to deal with the King of Ruin, the more casualties like this will occur, Evoluder Guy."

         With his job here done, one would have assumed the Somnium would leave, he however, is quick to turn his attention to Guy, surprising probably no one. 

<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.

        Minae barely dares move at first after Lamia appears before them, and her quiet greeting is all that hangs in the air for several tense moments. She knows from GGG files what exactly it means when a Betterman appears before an Algernon sufferer-- though crucially it's not something she has any personal experience with. Her role previously was much more one of rehabilitation, of working with patients who had passed the nadir with the help of the rest of the GGG, and who were on their way to recovery.

        It's the first time a patient has truly died under her watch, is the thought that flickers through her mind together with a stab of regret and guilt she's not even sure how to fully process. She knows on one level that that sort of thinking is unfair, both to her and to her patient. Algernon isn't a normal disease, and it's not as if it's part of her duty or even in her power to unfailingly see every case through to recovery. Nor is it fair to Kikuho for Minae to apply that label to her, to focus inwards on herself and not outwards to her memory.

        ... still, it's not a thought she can let go of that easily, either, and it twists around the heart she's ever more sure she has.

        Following the Doctor in, she gazes at the prone and now lifeless figure on the bed, the tendrils writing up from the body. She's not sure what she's thinking as her pause stretches longer; errant bits and pieces of thoughts flicker through her mind, before she lets out a quiet sigh and bows her head in a silence tribute. She has yet to figure out where she stands on religion, but part of her can at least wish her spirit well.

        What she doesn't do is make any move towards Lamia just yet, even as he plucks away the fruit. Partly because she is absolutely not a combatant - but also because she's firmly of the opinion that this isn't something that can just be solved with fighting. Maybe, something says inside of her, she has to approach those connected to Algernon the same way she would Algernon itself.

        Her job is all about listening, and so she listens now, straining to pick out any inflection in the man's voice. There's scarce there to actually pick out, which she can't help but feel is important - because the way she sees it, the warning given to Guy could veer between overt threat to urgent encouragement, all depending on who's listening to it. 

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        "I know," Kaworu tells Guy--not with arrogance, not with impatience, simply a statement that he knew the woman on the bed had just died. He doesn't explain how he knows, in typical Kaworu fashion. Suffice to say he has a sensitivity to these things.
        
        Whether it's unthinking or not, Shinji still clutches his offered hand. Kaworu holds it in return, firm and as reassuring as he can. Rei appears in the doorway, stating a fact as vines sprout from the lump of flesh that was once Kikuho. Kaworu watches, expression impassive as the Animus Fruit blooms, and states back just as matter-of-factly, "Yes."
        
        His gaze flicks to Lamia as he speaks, then plucks the Animus Fruit. He doesn't address him or try to stop him, and when Lamia addresses Guy, he, like Minae, continues to merely watch and listen.

<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.

Shinji flinches at Lamia's arrival, reluctant to glance away even as Guy speaks. The patient Rei ran into. 'Just passed.' Oh, no -- Almost instinctively, his eyes are then at the door. Rei is there, and somehow it's not a surprise at all.

"Ayanami..."

For all he was beginning to feel moments ago he did not belong in this space, in its quiet, fragile darkness and grim intimacy, Shinji suddenly hates the idea he might not have been present.

The curtain is away, and Shinji looks over the body that was once a woman. Dead. Pale. A nightmare of vines grown through her like an infestation. But the horror of such particulars dies in the hollow reality of what it all means. It's death. She's gone. Bitterness rises in Shinji's throat as Lamia mentions her life was given to protect Earth.

It's not fair. It isn't. It's not saved for her.

No one is moving yet when the fruit is taken, so Shinji doesn't either. Shinji's gaze is back on Rei. He watches, not knowing what to do.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

Minae spots the fuzzy truth of the matter: It's kind of both.

Guy stands by, for his own part. Stopping Lamia would achieve nothing at this stage. Once the fruit ripens, that's it. Perhaps earlier...well. That war is Hinoki's to fight, and she knows the field of it better than he does. Rei speaks, and Guy rotates his wheelchair to see her. "...yes. Sorry," he says. 'Willing or not', Lamia puts it, and he finds his teeth grinding. Yes ,that is how you'd need to see it.

He thinks back to Urchin Prickle, weeping open, bitter tears at finding out his brother's fate. 'Reduced to food for Betterman!!', Urchin had wailed. Guy knows it's more complicated than that. Still...

Still, there's a bitterness in his heart. Two different systems of this universe bent on taking people from him, now. His voice is clipped in reply to Lamia. "So it is them," he says.

His eyes turn up to Lamia. "We've lost GaoFighGar," he admits. Not a plea or a complaint. In a way, simply telling an ally of the state of affairs. Inasmuch as either of them considers the other an ally. "...But I'll find a way."
[Coordination] Emilia Eschonbach> Oh, also, signups are live for the Millympic Games! +scene 159 for details and the sign up sheet!
[Coordination] Koji Kabuto> That's the pageant!
[Coordination] Emilia Eschonbach> gh sorry
[Coordination] Emilia Eschonbach> 164!!
[Coordination] Emilia Eschonbach> I am very sleepy

<Pose Tracker> Rei Ayanami has posed.


Rei looks at the Betterman.

He harvests the fruit.
A life. A woman, older than Dr. Akagi.
Old woman. But not so old.

Rei looks at the mortal remains. Still.

<Pose Tracker> Lamia has posed.

         "Are you upset? Do you all find this unfair?"

         The way Lamia asks this question feels extremely antagonistic, like he's trying to get a violent response from someone in the room.

         "It... is unfair. All of this."

         He however, answers his own question before anyone else has the chance to.

         "Yet, without the fruit of Animus, my kind will cease to exist. Humanity, however, is desperately trying to find a way to rid of it, leaving the Age of Patria as our only recourse."

         There's no longer a need for Lamia to stay here. For many reasons outside of the fact that he has collected what he came here for. With that in mind, he moves towards the door, though he stops before fully heading out to address Guy again.

         "You must reclaim what you've lost, Evoluder Guy. If you cannot find a way, perhaps we can."

<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.

        Minae doesn't need to breathe - but it's not the necessity of breathing that makes her draw in and let out a sound of air. Even she needs to calm her nerves sometimes, especially here as they watch a victim of Algernon fade away. Like it or not, the best defence that she knows is to stay calm, even if that means having to take a moment at a time like this.

        Instead, she carefully steps forwards. The tendrils are slowly withering away, but some of them are still tall enough to make it difficult to fit a blanket over the body. She doesn't dare try to snap or bend them away, though, and it takes some careful work before she and Hinoki manage to get Kikuho covered up. At the end, she's silent as she gingerly closes the woman's eyes.

        Rei asks her a question, and it takes Minae a moment to parse through what she's being asked, and another to determine what she should say in return. She knows 'what' the Animus Fruit is, but revealing it as a seed of specialised amino acids is probably not going to be the most graceful and helpful answer around, even if Lamia has already alluded to it. Even the Minae of nine years ago had a lot more tact than that.

        "... it's not," she whispers back as she steps away from the bed. She still feels a little out of depth, because metaphysics and religion are not her forte. Her experiences with Arriety, some of Kamille's stories, the information she knows about Newtypes as a whole - she can't dismiss the idea of what happened after death, but she also can't interface with it in a meaningful manner. Whether she will someday, she's not sure.

        But she can try. "The Fruit is... from part of her body. Her soul is somewhere more peaceful," she tries in what she hopes is quiet reassurance. "It's alright to feel sad, of course... but I'm sure she'd want you to look forwards. She was always looking after people like that."

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        Is it unfair? To Kaworu, it's a somewhat absurd question. Death is inevitable to all living things. Is the fact that Kikuho Eir died in this way more unfair than the fate of one who dies of a physical disease? Is it more unfair than one who dies in an accident? In childbirth? Of murder? As Rei says, there is a sadness to it--she is still a person, and those who love her will grieve her passing--but to call it unfair is strange indeed.
        
        He keeps these thoughts to himself. He's long since learned that this is the sort of thing one shouldn't share with Lilim. Nor, apparently, with a so-called Betterman, given that he too claims to find it unfair, despite his hostility. (This, too, confuses Kaworu. Why does he want to start a fight over something he thinks is true?)
        
        He glances over at Guy when he speaks, clipped and short. He glances at Lamia as he speaks of this Age of Patria, of his kind dying without this Animus Fruit. (And would that be unfair, if Algernon were eradicated once and for all, and an entire race starving to death as a result?) He glances at Minae as she shrouds Kikuho's body with Hinoki, as she explains what the Animus Fruit is and what it is not.
        
        He rubs his thumb along the back of Shinji's hand in another attempt at comfort. If anyone's going to think it's unfair, it's him. He's always been... so kind like that.

<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.

Lamia's provocation wins a dark look from Shinji that answers for him, but any anger that may be in it is undercut by the heaviness of everything. Of everyone. Shinji hates the words being said, but his gaze flits over, listening to Guy and Lamia until Lamia is gone. It's important. Somewhere he knows that.

An ongoing fight. Guy's role in it. That's not fair, either... It's unfair to have to fight fight. But more unfair things happen when they don't.

Right now, Rei is what matters. Shinji does not know what to do. There should be words, he thinks. All of them sound stupid in his head. Useless. Engulfed by the atmosphere. There's a stroke against his hand: Kaworu. Shinji startles softly, as if only noticing it all now. He glances down, then to Kaworu, and he does not pull away. Back to Rei, and he attempts the same thing -- his hand against hers, almost recoiling at first on reflex, but holding firm in his shy offer. (Be steady. Don't panic.)

"...It is sad," is all he ends up able to say.

Minea is able to explain whether the fruit is a soul, and maybe that the soul is somewhere peaceful. Shinji wonders what he believes.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

Is it her soul? Guy finds the question piercing. GGG knows a thing or two about what lasts into eternity, but even they...

Well. Probably better to let Minae's explanation stand.

He's stewing in his chair as Minae handles the final responsibilities to Kikuho's body. And it is stewing - visibly frustrated, something from Lamia's provocation striking home somewhere deep, deep in his heart. The Age of Patria...the dearth of Animus Fruits...the schemes of Betterman.

And the King of Ruin.

Guy sucks in a long breath. He's not sure he believes Lamia will be there when he speaks. "I won't put myself at your mercy. I trust this team. But we don't have time for pride, either. If you've got a trick up your sleeve...I'll accept it."

<Pose Tracker> Rei Ayanami has posed.


'Do you all find this unfair?'

"Yes," Rei answers Lamia, in her usual voice.

He raises a topic. The fruit of animus. Vital to his kind; and yet, in threat of suppression, thanks to...

To the power of humanity.

Humans.
The ancient pact.
Humans.
They have other names. Miclone.
Lilim.
The analogy. A body contains myriad cells.
The world contains myriad humans, on Earth and in space.
Why does it matter if a few should die, to feed those in shadows?

Rei feels something tighten in her stomach. The brushing of the thought feels abhorrent; like taking a bite of a reasonably likely fruit and finding the inside rotten.

Something better happens. Her head turns a little, and she turns her head to take Shinji's. Something about the pressure tells her that the Administrator is also--

?

Rei looks up, to Minae, who is speaking words of comfort and hope. Rei does not seem convinced at Minae's words, but she does nod her head once, very slightly. (She keeps holding Shinji's hand.)

The age of Patria.

<Pose Tracker> Lamia has posed.

         "I see. Your responses were expected... Though, if it is unfair, you fight to change it. That is how humanity has made it this far, has it not?"

         Still facing the door, Lamia asks the group a question one last time, this time without answering it himself. That said, it doesn't seem he wants an immediate answer from them either, given that walks out of the room after asking.

         "I hope to see you soon, Evoluder Guy"

         The Somnium's footsteps can be heard walking down the hall, before mysteriously fading out after a bit.

         Lamia is gone. 

<Pose Tracker> BC-001 Minae has posed.

        Minae finds it difficult to make a judgement on a scale as big as 'one race versus another'. She's not especially built for it in the general sense; most of her day-to-day work is much smaller, dealing with individuals much more than universal systems. She might be part of Londo Bell, but it's not a designation that really means much to her in terms of the Federation and her loyalty to it. When it comes down to it, she's really just looking out for her friends.

        Besides, she's not part of any standard food cycle.

        In pursuit of that thought, she looks more towards the individuals in the room rather than the situation as a whole. Kaworu's glance gets a nod in return; she's spotted the quiet and thoughtful approach that mirrors her own, and senses there might be some picking of her brain later. Shinji's gone silent in the wake of what she said; that's okay. It's not something with an easy answer, and she's deliberately sugarcoating it a little. Rei nods back at her, and she feels some relief in that in turn, especially at the way the three of them are staying connected. That part's important, she thinks.

        Her gaze glances towards Guy and the tics that he's making, and then back up to Hinoki. "I think... it would be best to take a moment," she recommends as gently as she dares.

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        The victim of Algernon and the Animus Fruit may be unpleasant things, but this quiet touch he shares now with Shinji--the glance they give each other, Kaworu's muted smile--is a balm all the same. Looking past him, he sees that Rei has offered Shinji the same comfort, and it's almost enough to make him laugh. Almost, but not quiet.
        
        He looks over at Guy, palpably the most affected of all of them. But then, this is part of his own universe, it seems. When the worlds untangle and everyone goes back to their own setting, this is something that will follow him back.
        
        All that aside, it is curious. The Somnium appeared in a blink, but leaves through the door. The question itself gets a low, ironic chuckle. Fair or unfair, it's certainly true that humanity will do anything to ensure their collective survival.
        
        When Lamia is gone, Kaworu quietly wonders, "Is there anything we can help you with, Acting Chief Shishioh?" (It's broad, what he means by "we." That's intentional.) Minae suggests they take a moment. "That seems wise. I don't know if you care to discuss what just happened or not just now, but it's clear it was distressing."

<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.


Rei also thinks it's unfair. How do they make it fair...? Shinji keeps watching her more than he watches anything else. He doesn't know if taking her hand is helping. If she can feel him there and Kaworu, too, or if it just hurts more because there used to be a person here who isn't anymore.

She doesn't pull away, and that's going to have to be good enough. And if it helps Rei, then maybe souls are somewhere peaceful when they die. For right now, and for today, Shinji can believe that, too. A deep breath, and there's no doubt in his eyes.

When Kaworu offers help, Shinji reflexively looks up toward Guy -- an implicit assumption he is a part of 'we', and no apparent argument with it. He wishes someone could tell him what to do in this scenario that meant anything.

He already kind of knows that's not how it works.

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

How to make it fair. Guy Shishioh is a man who avoids the ugly, needling questions of the era, questions of place and origin and righteousness; partly this is because he has found a place that is best served by being a friend to all, as best that he can. Partly it is because below the hero's smile is a fiery temper that struggles mightily to match such delicate questions to his own passion for justice.

...but those kinds of questions aren't too obvious. The antagonism that silently boils between him and Lamia slowly fades as Lamia steps through the door and retreats. Guy raises his left hand, using his Evoluder powers to silently send an all-clear to the security teams who will have been alerted to a human-mass's unplanned arrival.

Then he settles back in his wheelchair. "I apologize that you all had to see that. But...it's probably good that you did."

"Lamia is an ally of humanity. But he's not an ally of any particular human." ....with one possible exception he decides not to go into. "We'll be seeing him more, as battles for the sake of human survival continue."

His eyes turn to the sheet now covering Kikuho's body, and finally sinks into his seat, looking tired in a way he rarely lets himself show. "Yeah. Let's all take a breather, for now," he agrees.

<Pose Tracker> Rei Ayanami has posed.


'Your responses were expected'

Rei wonders wordlessly, without image, for a moment.

And then he is gone.

Rei breathes out something she didn't know she'd held. She looks to her left, past Shinji, towards Kaworu. Minae advises that they take a moment.

Why?, Rei thinks, but she knows enough now to not say such thoughts. Besides; it would disturb them to say. She knows that much.

Rei's attention turns past where Hinoki stands near the dead woman, towards Guy Shishioh. Her grasp on Shinji's hand becomes firmer - not tight, but not diffident, either. If nothing else she is not in any sense checked out at this moment.

Her attention settles on Guy. Guy, in his wheelchair, but not unbowed. A wounded lion. But healing. Perhaps.

Rei watches for long moments; then she looks towards the now-covered body. "... What happens now?"

<Pose Tracker> Kaworu Nagisa has posed.

        It wouldn't disturb Kaworu. But that would probably only disturb the others that much more. Standards differ from person to person, and it's good to be aware of them even if you don't understand them.
        
        In a similar way, if coming from the other direction, he didn't weigh in on the matter of Kikuho's soul and its whereabouts. That is something he could have answered, but some things are better left unsaid.
        
        Rei asks what happens now. Kaworu looks curiously over at Guy. His gaze flicks downwards as he describes Lamia as an ally of humanity but not of any particular human. That's the reverse of him, isn't it...
        
        What does happen now, though? Guy and Minae can probably explain. But they've already reported about Algernon and the Animus Fruit, and Guy doesn't actually accept an offer of having anything done for him. It makes sense for him, Kaworu supposes. For now, he looks over at Shinji and Rei with tender eyes. "Why don't we sit?" he suggests. There should be enough chairs in the infirmary for them, at least.
        
        And from there, they can all take that breather. 

<Pose Tracker> Shinji Ikari has posed.

Good to see it... Shinji nods, though he isn't sure yet why it was good. If not for Rei's hand in his while she notes how sad this all was, he'd have felt like an intruder.

Shinji can't help being occasionally befuddled by some of Rei's -- and Kaworu's -- words and behaviors, but he'd be used to enough now, even in a moment this heavy. Why might have been a good question, for anything. Why any of this...?

Will a breather be enough? ...It's more than they're often afforded.

Kaworu suggests they sit, and Shinji regards Rei for a moment. She's always been difficult to read. He glances to the chairs and back to her, nodding once. They can sit, all of them still here. ...For now. 

<Pose Tracker> Guy Shishioh has posed.

Guy takes in a long, deep breath. "Let's step outside and let Hinoki handle...some final tasks," he says, deciding on the euphemism in the moment. He navigates his chair to the door and out, looking down the direction Lamia went. Nothing.

Some inscrutable thought flashes through him. He quiets it with a breath. "...I really am grateful that you all came," he says. "There's a lounge, nearby. Let's head there, and we can catch up and relax a bit."

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