Humanity's Last Hope

Tokyo-3, on the underground road leading to NERV headquarters.

"Shinji, how was your first day at your new school? Settling in okay? Nobody bullied you, did they?"

Misato Katsuragi drove her Renault, which still had twelve loan payments left, and glanced at Shinji Ikari in the passenger seat. Despite his slicked-back hair, his face was far too delicate.

He certainly looked like an easy target, and that showy hairstyle only made him look more deserving of a beating. No matter how she looked at him, though, he seemed like the frail, timid type.

Only Misato Katsuragi knew how terrifying Shinji Ikari's fighting prowess was, because she had experienced it firsthand.

"No. I just accidentally knocked out a couple of classmates' teeth." Shinji Ikari expertly found the soda and snacks in the car and dug right in.

Misato Katsuragi froze at his words. It took her a while to recover. "...That's one hell of an accident!"

"Didn't the school tell you?"

"I'm not your guardian. Why would they tell me? They probably reported it straight to headquarters. If they wanted to tattle, they should go to the commander. You really are a handful, getting into a fight on your very first day."

"They wanted to beat me up. I couldn't just let them, could I?"

"Then you were right to fight. What started it?"

"The battle a few days ago caught one classmate's little sister in the crossfire. Apparently, she's in the hospital with injuries. Then he said he was going to hit me, so I gave that idiotic sinner and his accomplice a little punishment."

Misato Katsuragi fell silent for a moment. Even hearing about it left her cold. There really were all kinds of people out there.

"Good job."

Other than acknowledging that Shinji Ikari had done nothing wrong, she had nothing to say. She even thought he deserved praise.

"A hero who saved the world, getting bullied at school. Nobody would believe it." Misato Katsuragi pursed her lips. She was entirely on Shinji Ikari's side.

"The Angels are strong, but can they really wipe out humanity? They don't seem capable of anything like that," Shinji Ikari asked.

The hero who had saved the world, as Misato Katsuragi called him, did not even know why his actions had saved it.

Rather than answer directly, Misato Katsuragi asked, "Do you know what a neutron bomb is?"

"I've heard of them. They're a kind of nuclear weapon, right?"

"Right. And when a neutron bomb is built, a miniature atomic bomb is installed inside to detonate it."

"You mean the Angels are like the miniature atomic bomb that sets off the neutron bomb."

"Exactly." Misato Katsuragi paused and glanced around, as though checking whether it was safe before revealing a major secret. In the end, she still kept her explanation vague.

"The Angels' target... is something hidden beneath Tokyo-3. If they come into contact with it, they'll trigger the Third Impact."

That made sense to Shinji Ikari. The Second Impact had already wiped out well over half the world's population. Another Impact would probably mean humanity's extinction.

"Why not destroy the thing that'll wipe out humanity?"

"I don't know either. Maybe we can't. After all, humanity's already giving everything it has just to defeat the Angels."

Misato Katsuragi shrugged. She was no researcher like Ritsuko Akagi. Researching neutron bombs was not her job; she was only responsible for deploying those weapons.

"That's why we need you. You're humanity's last hope right now."

"Making you an operations commander was a waste of your talents. You should work in publicity," Shinji Ikari said with a chuckle.

He recalled his encounter with the Fourth Angel. Back then, he had received no formal training whatsoever. It had even been his first time seeing that supposed ultimate weapon for humanity's decisive battle.

He had been a complete and utter novice.

And who knew what the people at NERV had been thinking, entrusting humanity's hopes to an unknown, unremarkable boy.

No wonder it was always teenage boys and girls saving the world in manga. Without them, the world really would be doomed.

Teenage boys and girls

Inside the Technical Division 1 laboratory at NERV headquarters, the atmosphere was tense and busy.

Shinji Ikari stood beside an enormous glass window. Behind him, a group of technicians worked at the consoles. On the other side of the window was a huge biological head packed with all kinds of electronic equipment.

"The simulation training system is being calibrated." Ritsuko Akagi walked up behind the boy and stopped. "It'll be ready in ten minutes."

It went without saying that not every EVA could shoot lasers from its eyes. That could not possibly be a common phenomenon; it occurred only with Unit-01 when Shinji Ikari piloted it.

Shinji Ikari was the only one capable of manifesting an ability the unit did not possess. His AT Field had allowed him to accomplish the impossible.

"Only starting training now? You people really are laid-back." Shinji Ikari turned his gaze toward the simulator in front of him, particularly its exposed biological organs.

This was his first detailed look at an EVA's true form beneath its heavy armor. Rather than a mobile suit, it looked more like a biological weapon concealed inside armor.

"It's not as simple as you think. Your synchronization rate, the strength of your AT Field, your potential under a wide range of conditions-we have to take all of that into account."

Ritsuko Akagi's attention was entirely absorbed by the document in her hands. She sat down beside Shinji Ikari while carefully reading its contents.

"You used an AT Field at school today? When did you first become able to deploy an AT Field with your human body?"

"Uh... I've always been able to." Shinji Ikari looked puzzled as he answered, "Isn't that perfectly normal?"

"Of course it isn't! Compared to an Angel's, a human's AT Field is extremely weak. Beyond maintaining our existence as individuals, it serves almost no other function, let alone being used directly the way you use yours."

"So mine is a special case?" Shinji Ikari was pleasantly surprised. He had thought that, even if his divine power was not commonplace, quite a few people must have it.

"It certainly is. Would you like to run a test while we have time? The data would give you a clearer, more detailed understanding of your abilities," Ritsuko Akagi said.

"A test? No need. I can try out something that simple myself." Shinji Ikari was actually tempted, mainly because he really did lack a clear understanding of his divine power.

Seeing that Shinji Ikari was unwilling, Ritsuko Akagi did not press him, though she did not know what he was worried about.

Piloting an EVA already affected a chosen pilot's mind and body. With Shinji Ikari's exceptionally high synchronization rate with Unit-01, those effects would only be greater.

Shinji Ikari's value as a research subject was secondary. What mattered was keeping him piloting Unit-01.

Misato Katsuragi walked over from the console. "The simulation training setup is almost ready, Shinji. You can get into Unit-01's cockpit and prepare now."

"You've always done an excellent job, but you mustn't get careless. Otherwise, someone might just catch up and overtake you one day!"

"Oh, overtake me? Who?" Shinji Ikari looked curious.