"[Welcome to the 104th train of the Third New Tokyo City Loop Line 6. This train is expected to run for 6 hours and 24 minutes and circle the city for 5 times.]"
"Uh...we're going to ride this?"
"right."
"Where to get off?"
"uncertain."
"……All right."
Shinji Ikari looked at the people riding the train in twos and threes around him. Without saying anything, he followed Rei Ayanami into the circle train and found a seat to sit down.
After Rei Ayanami revealed his identity, Shinji Ikari, who was shocked, asked sincerely, "Then what should we do next?", and unexpectedly received the answer "To improve the synchronization rate."
——“I mean, what can we do to save humanity when humanity faces such a powerful threat and only a few of us know the truth?”
——"To improve the synchronization rate."
At first glance, it sounds a bit like just focusing on the immediate feelings, but if you think about it carefully, there seems to be nothing else that can be done. The apostles cannot communicate, Eve is in a sealed state, and the "Consultation Integrated Thought Body" is just a function that operates according to fixed logic.
database, as for Zero himself, although he is a humanoid apostle, he has almost no combat effectiveness when not piloting an EVA.
If some fancy work led to the apostle coming into contact with Eve and restarting the "Planet Life Reshaping Program," then no matter what meaningful, long-term goals, it would be nothing more than empty talk.
At that time, I must have lost my mind and actually asked, "Since you are also considered an apostle, why don't you have any objection to the elimination of other apostles?"
Rei Ayanami answered without any hesitation: "The degree of individual differences between apostles is even greater than that between humans and bananas. It is difficult to call them the same kind. In contrast, humans not only have no objection to killing their own kind, but some even enjoy it."
.”
How does it feel to be refuted by a girl who is almost speechless?
Others don't know what Shinji Ikari says, so he can only listen to her honestly and improve the synchronization rate.
Originally, he thought that after Rei Ayanami spoke so much when she told her identity, future communication would become more normal. However, she turned back to her original taciturn appearance and her words were difficult to understand. Therefore, she was actually speaking
Do you want to read the manuscript obtained from that "information integrated thought body"?
"As long as I sit here all the time, can I improve the synchronization rate?" After sitting for two stops, Shinji Ikari asked.
"No, you still have to listen." Ayanami Rei responded.
"What are you listening to?" Shinji Ikari asked doubtfully.
Except for the noisy voices of people and the sound of the train announcing the station, nothing could be heard on the city-circling train.
"..." Ayanami Rei blinked, took out a Walkman from the handbag he carried, put on one earphone himself, and then handed the other one over: "Put it on."
Isn't this inappropriate? Only couples would do this.
But Zero doesn't care about this.
It's not a matter of whether she cares or not, there are so many people on the train watching.
No one knows us.
Shinji Ikari hesitated for two seconds before taking the earphone and putting it on the other ear that was different from Rei Ayanami's.
"[Beautiful angel~calling you from afar~]"
"[Brave young man~ Go and create a miracle~]"
...What kind of song is this?
——
The reason why noise is noise is because it is mixed with too much unnecessary information. After being received by the human ear and central nervous system, it is all discarded.
After putting on the headphones Rei Ayanami gave him, Shinji Ikari could only hear the singing in his ears, but when the song paused briefly, the content of the chats of passers-by became extremely clear.
"[The warm wind blows in my face, gently knocking my heart~]"
——"Hey, did you know? The one who protects New Tokyo City 3 and defeats the apostles is not the Ground Forces, but a very large and handsome robot!"
--"Really?"
——"A friend of mine from the south saw it with his own eyes! The apostle who could shoot lasers was torn in half by a robot!"
——"Wow~"
"[There is a smile on your face, staring at me secretly~]"
——"I am ready to leave New Tokyo City 3."
——"So sudden?"
——"I encountered the apostles twice in a month. I heard that there was a big explosion in the war zone, destroying many houses. If it is our turn one day, we will be in trouble."
——"Although there has been a lot of noise, the current number of casualties in New Tokyo City is zero. Can you guarantee that the place you go to will be safer than here?"
--"……Well."
"[You face everything calmly, it's all in my eyes~]"
——"Hey, have you seen the video of Eva fighting the apostles that leaked recently?"
——"Looking at it, that robot seemed a bit cruel. It just dug out the apostle's heart."
——"Don't be stupid, that's not a heart, but a self-destruct mechanism. It's the same as the one on the last apostle. In order to prevent it from detonating in the city, the Eva was bruised all over and dragged it off."
——"That's too dangerous. Drivers should pay attention to safety."
"[I know you are fearless, I know you are extremely determined~]"
——“According to reliable gossip, Eva’s driver is a child of the ‘Gathering Garden’!”
——"What? Really?"
——"Of course, only the 'qualified' can control that kind of large robot, right? The secret department that created EVA originally planned to train them systematically before participating in the battle, but the apostles came too quickly, and many of them
This is their first time participating in a battle."
——"Damn it, we can't let the children compete. We have to work harder next time!"
"[One day you will find that your power is extremely powerful~]"
"[One day you will find that you can create miracles~]"
Bang, the song looped three times, and after letting Shinji Ikari listen to more than a dozen different conversations, Ayanami Rei took off Shinji Ikari's headphones.
"Any ideas?" she asked.
"Well..." Shinji Ikari thought about his wording: "Although they have various problems, their own little thoughts, prejudices, and malicious speculations, [human beings should continue to exist]."
"Yes, I will remember it." Ayanami Rei replied.
Oops, I subconsciously thought of her as an apostle or "Eve". It was my fault that the news was too violent before.
"Well, about the synchronization rate..." Shinji Ikari thought of business.
"It's up 13%," Rei Ayanami replied, "Get ready to get off."
Where did that number come from? Get off the bus? Where to go?
————
"[Is it really impossible to detect?]"
"[Yes, something with a diameter of tens of millimeters hit the Antarctic at a speed equivalent to 30% of the speed of light.]"
"[With our technology, we cannot predict and take any preventive measures...]"
“[It’s simply hell outside!]”
"Uh..." Shinji Ikari lowered his head and looked at the movie ticket in his hand under the shining light.
"The Melting of Antarctica" is a documentary film based on the theme of the "Second Impact" 15 years ago. It was originally an educational film to encourage survivors to continue their struggle because of its authenticity and credibility, but now it seems a bit cliché.
The movie theater looked empty.
Moreover, when he already knew clearly that the so-called "meteor hitting the Antarctic" was a lie, watching this movie would only give rise to a sense of absurdity.
However, since Ayanami Rei brought him to see it, maybe there is some profound meaning? Maybe looking at the above picture will become the real situation in Antarctica fifteen years ago?
Shinji Ikari glanced at the girl who was sitting next to him, watching the movie intently but with an expressionless face. He stuffed a handful of the popcorn she didn't want into his mouth and continued watching the movie.
"Any ideas?"
After the movie ended, Rei Ayanami asked.
"It was not without reason that it became popular in the first place. The screenwriter is very good at mobilizing the audience's emotions," Shinji Ikari commented: "The heroine's disgusting father for half the movie pushed his daughter into the shelter when the impact came, but he was annihilated by the shock wave.
, leaving only one pendant, and then the heroine used this pendant to find out how great a job her father had done, which was very touching - the male protagonist who did the same job as the heroine's father was a bit redundant."
"Well, I'll remember that."
Why this sentence again?
If you think about it carefully, since the whole movie has been played and the scene has not turned into the real second impact scene, it means that the movie itself is not important. She should want to observe "people" as much as she did on the train?
The impression is a bit blurry. It seems that there was an old uncle occupying a row of seats and sleeping, a drunk man fell in the corner of the back row, and there was a couple in the front row who also kissed each other during the kissing scene between the male and female protagonists of the movie... eh.
What was I doing at that time... By the way, I ate two mouthfuls of popcorn, drank a sip of Coke, and then whistled loudly, completely forgetting that there was a female companion beside me.
Bang! Shinji Ikari slapped his forehead hard: "Um...synchronization rate?"
"33%, keep working hard." Ayanami Rei replied.
Still increased by 20%?
——
"Hey? Shinji? And Ayanami-san?"
Suzuhara Toji looked at Shinji Ikari and then at Rei Ayanami, with a surprised look on his face.
I also want to know why Ayanami Rei brought herself to the amusement park.
Since the second impact, all parts of the world have been trying their best to resume production, and almost no one has paid attention to entertainment projects and venues. The design of various facilities in this amusement park seems quite old, but there are still many tourists.
"Um..." Shinji Ikari tried to make up an excuse.
"Social activities," Rei Ayanami replied expressionlessly, "Going out to collect materials."
"Hmm, does the literary club need to go out to collect materials? And there are club activities during the holidays... well, let's just treat it like this..." Suzuhara Touji looked at Shinji Ikari and then at Rei Ayanami, as if he wanted to make a joke, but was stopped by Ayanami again.
His aura was calmed: "Well, thank you very much before. I will definitely repay you if I have the chance."
"It's okay, it should be, and you actually didn't cause much trouble." Shinji Ikari shook his head.
There's no need to let him know the synchronization rate or anything like that, since he can't possibly drive Eva anyway.
Speaking of which, this was the first time the two met after defeating the Fourth Apostle. It is said that Suzuhara Toji and Aida Kensuke were severely punished by the school for running around during martial law, and then were taken away by NERV and signed.
A lot of confidentiality agreements were required before it was released.
This is a public place after all, so as long as the relevant topics are discussed, everyone knows what it means.
"What about you? You didn't come here by yourself, right?" Shinji Ikari took the initiative to change the topic.
"Ah, no, weren't the apostles coming before? All elementary schools have been closed. I think it's quite pitiful for Sakura to stay at home all the time. I took advantage of the temporary lifting of restrictions and took her out to play." Suzuhara Touji replied.
Well, I did hear that he has a sister who is in the third grade of elementary school, named Suzuhara Sakura. This guy always brags that his sister is the cutest in the world. Of course, no one will refute this.
"Brother Toya~"
Just as Shinji Ikari was about to say something, a little girl carrying a backpack, a black sailor suit, and a white pleated skirt ran over from a stall not far away.
"Your sister?" Shinji Ikari raised his eyebrows: "I'm not telling you, you don't look alike at all, right?"
Touji Suzuhara is tall and thin, with black hair and eyes, and a slender face, and looks very vicious, while the girl who should be named Sakura Suzuhara has brown hair, green eyes, and a round face with a little baby fat, and looks quite cute.
"It's not 'Momoya', it's 'Touji'," Suzuhara Touji ignored Shinji Ikari and turned around to pick up the little girl: "They are..."
"Yukito-nii~" The girl ignored Suzuhara Touji and ran to Shinji Ikari and opened her hands for a hug.
"Um..." Shinji Ikari looked at Suzuhara Touji, whose eyes were burning, and just squatted down and touched the girl's head: "My name is Shinji Ikari, not 'Snow Rabbit'."
"Huh?" Suzuhara Sakura tilted her head with an incomprehensible expression, then turned to look at Ayanami Rei: "Musashi-nee!"
"Yeah." Ayanami Rei picked up the girl naturally.
"Let me tell you, does your sister have the habit of giving people random nicknames?" Shinji Ikari looked at the girl giggling in Ayanami Rei's arms, and then turned to Suzuhara Touji.
"Hey," Suzuhara Touji, who was very happy because his sister was not close to Shinji Ikari, moved closer and lowered his voice, "I suspect that she may be awakening as a 'second batch of qualified people'."
The so-called "second batch of qualified people" is a theory that has been circulating since the appearance of the third apostle last month. Many children who were not born fifteen years ago also show the characteristics of "qualified people". NERV
The relevant information has indeed been received internally, but the initial inference is that it is the influence of something that escaped when the apostles were destroyed. However, because it cannot be compared with the scale of "Adam", at most it will only cause some cognitive confusion in children.
"I hope so..." Shinji Ikari didn't intend to correct him. Rather than having cognitive problems with the child, it would be better to be about to awaken his superpower.
However, it was an unexpected discovery that Ayanami actually liked children.
——
NERV headquarters, EVA test site.
"[The synchronization rate rose from 0 to 59% in one day?! How was this done?]" Misato Katsuragi's voice almost broke.
"Don't ask me." Shinji Ikari sat in the insertion plug and pretended to be innocent.
[Kuri Kuri!] Chestnut Ball raised his little paws downward to express his contempt.
