THE END - SPOILER: Show
THE END
As Asuka dragged him across the ravaged land, Shinji's mind whirled. "The world is being destroyed", he thought. "I tried to restore it, but it turned out to be impossible." He looked around: "I just made it worse; Asuka trying to stop me made it worse; Father's treatment of Rei made it worse."
They trudged on across the bare ground. "There's nothing left to hope for," he thought. "Why couldn't I just end it all?" He knew the answer - Kaworu had stopped him with the spears. It hadn't stopped immediately, but that was just the time it took for the spears to take effect; the impact had been more powerful than the previous time.
Finally he understood; Wille had been right to wonder whether he was still human. Ritsuko had seen the truth, but had not recognised what it meant. He could no longer synchronise with Unit-01 because he himself was now the spirit of Unit-01; the physical husk that Wille was using to power the Wunder was just a body containing an S2 engine - no more than that.
The spears that had pierced Unit-13 had pierced him as well - the real him, the spiritual him, not the human body that Asuka was dragging along. And although they had stopped the impact, now that he realised fully what he was he also knew that he was more powerful than they.
Humanity had made a mess of this world; there was nothing left worth saving. He felt a slight regret for the people he had known who still hoped against hope that they could make something of it, but he knew that in the end they would fail. Better to end it all. Maybe life would emerge elsewhere; maybe it would make a more worthwhile job of its existence.
"I'm sorry, Asuka; I'm sorry, Misato", he thought; and he concentrated, picturing the spears. "Mother, you understand, as we are now together - there's nothing else to be done." And as he concentrated, the spears were ejected from his body, his real, spiritual body, and the final impact began. This time there was no one who could stop it, or even understand its source.
As the world came to an end, and with it his consciousness faded and merged with the cosmos, his last thought was of Kaworu saying they would meet again: "I'm coming, Kaworu!"
As Asuka dragged him across the ravaged land, Shinji's mind whirled. "The world is being destroyed", he thought. "I tried to restore it, but it turned out to be impossible." He looked around: "I just made it worse; Asuka trying to stop me made it worse; Father's treatment of Rei made it worse."
They trudged on across the bare ground. "There's nothing left to hope for," he thought. "Why couldn't I just end it all?" He knew the answer - Kaworu had stopped him with the spears. It hadn't stopped immediately, but that was just the time it took for the spears to take effect; the impact had been more powerful than the previous time.
Finally he understood; Wille had been right to wonder whether he was still human. Ritsuko had seen the truth, but had not recognised what it meant. He could no longer synchronise with Unit-01 because he himself was now the spirit of Unit-01; the physical husk that Wille was using to power the Wunder was just a body containing an S2 engine - no more than that.
The spears that had pierced Unit-13 had pierced him as well - the real him, the spiritual him, not the human body that Asuka was dragging along. And although they had stopped the impact, now that he realised fully what he was he also knew that he was more powerful than they.
Humanity had made a mess of this world; there was nothing left worth saving. He felt a slight regret for the people he had known who still hoped against hope that they could make something of it, but he knew that in the end they would fail. Better to end it all. Maybe life would emerge elsewhere; maybe it would make a more worthwhile job of its existence.
"I'm sorry, Asuka; I'm sorry, Misato", he thought; and he concentrated, picturing the spears. "Mother, you understand, as we are now together - there's nothing else to be done." And as he concentrated, the spears were ejected from his body, his real, spiritual body, and the final impact began. This time there was no one who could stop it, or even understand its source.
As the world came to an end, and with it his consciousness faded and merged with the cosmos, his last thought was of Kaworu saying they would meet again: "I'm coming, Kaworu!"
