“I remember the day it came. It was world changing, nothing would ever be the same, after that day. The military tried to cover it up, but it was impossible, there was no way you could. The day the silver giant appeared in the Nevada desert. I don’t remember the details entirely, but it was reported that it was discovered by hikers. They found the perfect crater it was centered in. It was not from a meteor impact, it was too clean, well formed, and no scorch marks. It did not take long for the media to catch wind of such a story. And it took even less time for the military to learn of it. The military did their best, but it was already world news by the time they airlifted it away. The UN quickly tried to gain a grasp on the situation. America fought it all the way, but they soon succumbed to Global presser. Scientists from across the world gathered to study the strange structure. At first glance people assumed it was a machine of some sort. However, it did not take long for them to discover its outer shell was merely armour. A giant of flesh and blood of biblical proportions, the world could only pause in awe. The world has held its breath since the day this revelation was reported to the world. Now we wait for the next revelation.”


Images flashed across TV screens, rough images of the silver giant standing like a monolith across the Nevada desert, images of it being airlifted away well being wrapped in tarps. Alex stood in the middle of the apartment store watching on the LCD and plasma TV’s. Each mocking him, each pixel a reminder to him of something he would never be able to have. His clothing’s were ragged and unwashed, causing some to stare and whisper.

“It has been five years since the silver giant was discovered in the Nevada desert and still we are no closer to understanding its mysteries.” An elderly man said on the TV as images played across the screens.

“Can I help you find something?” The store manager said as he approached. The manager knew clearly that Alex would not be able to afford anything in the store; his question was just a means to humiliate him in to leaving.

“No. . . . I was just browsing.” Alex said as he turned away and moved towards the exit. It was the beginning of the winter season; the stores were always busy at this time. People like him could go unnoticed for the most part.  The frantic shoppers carelessly pushed and passed each other, crowded each other. Many paid little mind to such things, making it easy for Alex to make a quick and easy buck. As shoppers brushed up against him he would slip his hand in to their coat pockets. Most were smart enough to keep their wallets in their pants pockets, an impossible task for Alex to perform with out being caught. Alex would not call himself a skilled pick pocket; it was simply something he picked up in order to survive. After a few hours of brushing up against shoppers Alex was able to score a wallet. A tinge of guilt stabbed at Alex as he watched the man walk off with two young children in toe. He quickly attempted to justify his crime; those kids were most likely spoiled and did not need anything. He needed it more, he would starve to death with out it, and they would just not get a toy. Moving towards an exit, Alex began to rummage through the wallet. A few bills adding up to three hundred dollars, some credit cards that were useless to him, and some pictures. Emptying the wallet of bills, he deposited the wallet in a garbage can with a playful toss.

As Alex moved on to leave the mall, a hand grasped his collar. Turning his head, he was met with the stern eyes of a security guard. A million thoughts ran through Alex’s mind at that moment, but quickly focused on two. He could try and talk his way out of it, but the guards eyes told him that was not going to work. Deciding on his only course of action, Alex slipped out from his coat and fled through the doors. Met with the frigid bite of ice and snow, he could only curse the north Nevada weather. Taking a quick glance over his shoulder, Alex sprinted in to the parking lot, nearly avoiding being stuck by a car as he did so.  The security guard was not in the best of shape and had become winded half way through the parking lot. Darting out in to a busy street, Alex caused half a dozen cars to break suddenly. The sounds of skidding tires were soon followed by curses and insults flung his way. The security guard halted on the other side of the street, panting heavily he let an annoyed grunt escape him before heading back towards the mall’s entrance.

Withering in the cold, Alex managed to put some distance between him and the mall before entering a convenient store. Rummaging through the store, Alex grabbed handfuls of sugary and salty snacks. It was not the healthiest food, but it would give him enough energy to make it through the day at lest. As Alex pulled out a wad of bills from his pocket, the man behind the counter eyed him strangely, as if he had just done something wrong.

“It was a good day on the street.” Alex said to try and avoid the man’s suspicious stare.

Keeping his eyes on Alex, the man quickly rang up the food and placed it in a plastic bag. Making sure to get his change back, Alex swiftly exited the store. As he left the store, he found himself staring at a black van in the parking lot. Its windows were tinted and the passengers were only dark silhouettes, their movements like spectres behind the darkened glass. The van was easily seen by Alex as foreboding and dangerous. Taking a few extra steps he proceeded to give the van a wide berth. Tearing the wrapper of a candy bar, Alex braced himself as a cold wind blew through the street. Silently cursing the wind and the security guard, Alex took a violent bite from the candy bar before moving. Coming to the industrial distract of town, Alex took a quick look around him before entering an abandoned factory. The building was old, most likely dating back to world war two, if not later. The walls were made of red brick that had begun to loosen and crack. Almost all the windows were missing or broken, but they were set rather high in the building, giving the wind less ferocity. The interior was hollowed out, a massive open space that spanned the length of football fields. Alex liked the openness; it let him know what was going on. No one would be able to sneak up on him in such a place. Moving towards the center of the building, Alex kicked a burnt out metal drum sending a loud clang vibrating out. The metal had long turned black from the heat of flames and like the factory, it seemed hollow and empty with the odd hole in its side.

Grabbing a pallet on the floor, Alex dragged it across the floor till it rested a foot from the barrel. Jumping on the pallet, he began to kick and stomp pieces of it off until pieces small enough to fit in the barrel were broken loose. The factories and warehouses of the distract were wasteful to a fault. They would toss out wooden pallets if even the slightest defect was noticed. Simple repairs would have been enough, but they opted to toss them out and build whole new ones. Not that Alex could complain; it gave him an endless supply of fire food. As the barrel became full of wood, Alex removed a can of lighter fluid from the bag. Spraying half the contents on to the wood, Alex removed a package of matches from his pocket. He had meant to pay for them at the store, but as they say, bad habits die hard. Lighting a match, Alex took a step back before tossing it in to the barrel with a gentle flick of the wrist. He could not help but remember the time he tired the same thing with a lighter, it took three weeks for his eyebrows to grow back.  Sitting himself down on a sleeping bag, Alex began to empty the contents of the shopping bag on the floor.

Later that night the flames of the fire flickered, gently casting shadows across the floor and ceiling. Empty wrappers laid about Alex as he lay sleeping on his makeshift bed. His rest even went undisturbed as three shadowy figures approached his camp site. His eyes only opening as one of the figures stumbled on a piece of wood left on the floor. His eyes opening slowly, Alex only had enough time to raise his head before he was tackled. His attackers being almost double his size, Alex could only trash fruitlessly before a needle sank in to his neck. A warm feeling flowed in to his body before darkness over took his vision.


Vertigo was all Alex felt as he became aware. Sounds were like distant echoes, sight was blinded by even the slightest light. Raising his head became a feat he was not prepared to perform, his action simply became a roll of the head. Voices began to form in Alex’s mind as the fog enclosing him began to lift.

“Who is this test subject?” A feminine voice asked as he felt a sudden jerk, as if he had come to an abrupt stop.

“Midway, Alex.” A male voice replied in a matter of fact manner.

“Midway? . . .  What is it this time, another runaway? Or did you kidnap this one off the street?” The female voice asked in a disgusted tone. “Don’t answer that, I don’t want to know the answer.”

“Don’t get upset with me, I just sedate them and drop them off. If you are looking for someone to complain to, then go talk to the guys in the black suits.”

His vision blurring, Alex let his eyes fall as the darkness shadowed his vision once more. His next waking moment, Alex found he was much more alert and able. Rising on the hospital bed, Alex was surprised to find himself dressed in sterilized hospital attire. The room he found himself in was sterile white and was painful to stare directly at with his sleep ridden eyes. Throwing his legs over the edge of the bed, Alex quickly became aware of the monitoring devices taped to his chest as well as the intravenous connected to his arm. Pulling the I.V and monitoring tags from his body, he rose to his feet as he pushed him self off the bed. Noticing a door on the far side of the bed, he quickly made his way towards it, his palms damp and sweaty from nervousness.

Drying his hands on his pant leg, Alex grasped the stainless steel handle only to find it locked. The hinges whined as he rattled the door violently by the knob. Pulling away from the door, Alex rose his foot and struck the door with a firm kick, but only caused the door to rattle as the hinges and lock held. Taking three steps back, he threw his shoulder in to the door, but only succeeded in hurting himself. The door had been bolted tightly and was specifically designed to hold against such abuse.

Spending nearly an hour attempting to escape the room, Alex had sat himself down in front of the door. It looked flimsy and hardly formidable, but it was as the wall of Jericho to him.

“They make it look so easy in all the action movies.” He said to himself in frustration.

A small almost inaudible click rose form the door drawing Alex’s attention from his own inner musings. The handle turned slowly before the door was gently pulled open. Stepping in to the room, a woman of Japanese’s decent stepped through the door with a look and atmosphere of utmost seriousness. Her hair was cropped short and styled, she wore a simple white blouse and skirt which was all covered by a white lab coat. The woman had not even taken three steps in to the room before two armed guards entered behind her.  Alex cursed under his breath; his only chance of escape was ruined before he had even contemplated it.

“Alex Midway, that is your name, correct?” The woman inquired, only to receive a confused look from Alex. “Mother’s location unknown, Father deceased, no known relatives. Was entered in to the foster care program at age 12, ran away seven times before present. You would rather live on the street then live with a foster family?”

“I don’t really see how that is any of your business . . . let me guess, you are giving me a check up before you send me to the next foster family, I’m just going to run away again.” Alex replied; his expression and tone filled with arrogance.

A soft chuckle escaped the woman, causing Alex’s grin to fade from his face. “You are going to wish that is what we were doing, I soon expect. No, we have something a little more worthwhile in stored for you.”

“If this is not about foster care, than let me the hell out of here, you have no right to hold me here.” Alex shouted as he climbed to his feet, his expression and stance clearly set in an offensive posture. However, he quickly crumbled as the guards stepped forward. Holding her hand up to keep the two dogs at bay, the woman smiled half heartedly before glancing at the PDA in her hand.

“You were caught stealing a dozen times, most of the times you have been able to get away and avoid punishment. But, these are just the cases that we know of; who knows how many other crimes you have committed. You should be in juvey, just think of this as time spent well you are with us.”

“What!? You can’t do that, I have not even had a trail. I have to have a trail before I-“ Alex began before the woman turned her back to him.

“My name is Dr Akagi, you should remember it, we will be seeing a lot of each other.”

The following day they had subjected Alex through a slew of tests. Most just being a means to test his health and over all well being. But some tests left Alex bewildered and asking questions that were left unanswered. Dr Akagi remained silent other than to instruct him. Such things as say awe, take a deep breath, and strip. The whole ordeal left Alex humiliated worse than any shop keep could ever manage. Coupled with Dr Akagi’s indifferent personality Alex was left feeling oddly inadequate. When all was said and done, Alex was presented with plane white and blue clothing that seemed crossed between hospital scrubs and a prison jump suit, to his eyes. When he was fully clothed he was lead by Dr Akagi and two soldiers, two different ones then from before.

“So where’s moe?” Alex asked mockingly as he turned his head to one of the soldiers.

The soldier remained silent, but Alex could not help but notice a vein on his neck bulge and his face tighten. Alex wisely determined it was not a good idea to make small talk or crack anymore bad jokes. Alex was soon lead through twin doors, the type you would find in any medical building. As Alex entered the room, he found it filled with carbon copy tables and chairs. It did not take long for Alex to notice the countless eyes staring at him. Children, no older or younger than himself, stood and sat scattered about the room. Some sat at tables, some stood at a counter on the far right of the room, where what trays of food appeared to be laid out. The children soon went back to what they were doing. But, their reactions made it clear that new additions were a common occurrence.

“Get something to eat, if you refuse to eat you will be force fed.” Dr Akagi stated before stepping aside to allow Alex to move in to the cafeteria.

Alex took a glance back at the soldiers and then at Akagi before doing what he was told. Alex had gathered a plate of food and filled it with what he could recognize. What he ended up with was chicken covered in a mystery sauce and half a plate of dry rice. Some watched Alex as he stepped in to the crop of tables. Some of the children had gathered together about tables, others stood off from the groups by themselves. Deciding to avoid the groups, Alex dropped his tray lazily on an empty table. Grains of rice flew off the plate and made a small mess. At that moment, Alex realized just how deafly silent it was in the room. The sound of the tray falling on the table was like a gunshot in an empty warehouse. Once again, eyes fell on Alex. Ignoring their stares, Alex sat down at the table and took his plastic spork in hand. Not ready to brave the mysteries of the chicken, Alex took a mouth full of rice and began to chew it slowly.

Before Alex could even swallow his mediocre tasting food, a figure sat down on the opposite side of his table. As he glanced up, he was greeted by a smiling pale face of a boy his own age. Alex quickly took note of his shaggy grey hair before lowering his gaze to the boy’s eyes. His smile seemed honest enough, he truly seemed to be in a happy mood, this annoyed Alex for some reason that he could not put his finger on.

“What are you so happy about?” Alex said as he took a quick glance about the room at the other children. Was it some kind of game? Were they planning on pulling a prank on him? The idea that his fellow prisoners were planning to pull a prank on him was completely preposterous, but it did not keep Alex from thinking it.

“I’m Kaworu Nagisa, what’s your name?” Kaworu asked, completely ignoring Alex’s question and rude tone.

“Kaworu Nagisa?” Alex repeated, not to insure he heard correctly, the name simply sounded alien to his western trained sensibility. However, Kaworu did not notice this or simply ignored it as he nodded in reinsurance.

“Eh. . .I’m Alex, Alex Midway.” Alex replied, not bothering to offer a handshake or any formal greeting.

“I’m sure you have a lot of questions about what’s going on, I can fill you in on a few things if you-“

Kaworu, however, was cut off before he could finish as Alex raised his head from his meal “Not really, there’s food, that’s all I’m concerned with at the moment.”

Kaworu paused, his eyes a little wider, perhaps from surprise or maybe simply from humour at the apathetic replies he was receiving. “Don’t you want to know what’s going on?”

Alex had just worked up enough courage to place the first bite of chicken in his mouth as he raised his head once more. “Do you have an escape plan?”

“What?”

“Do you have an escape plan? You know a way out.”

“No” Kaworu replied with a shake of his head.

“Do you know what they are going to do with us?”

“Not entirely”

“Then we don’t have anything to talk about. When you can come to me with answers to those two questions, then we can talk . . . why the hell are your eyes red?”

Kaworu paused in surprise before he let a soft chuckle escape him. With out noticing Alex was soon drawn in to a conversation with Kaworu that lasted until soldiers came to round them up. The group quickly lined up and did as they were told.  There was at lest twenty four children from Alex’s count as he followed their lead and lined up. As the line began to move, Alex kept his pace with theirs. Soon he found himself walking down corridors that all appeared the same. How the soldiers knew where they were going completely mystified Alex as he found himself hopelessly lost in three turns. There was no way he would be able to find his way back to the cafeteria on his own. Alex found himself wondering if the building was purposely designed to confuse or if it was just a coincidence. As his train of thought grew farther and farther away from the line he inhabited, Alex found himself bumping in to the person in front of him as the line came to a halt. Jarred back in to reality, Alex noticed the person in front of him was a girl with dark hair. Her harsh gaze fell on Alex, making his blood run cold for a moment.

“What the hell was that? Real mature! Did you get a nice feel!? You’re hear for one day and you are already trying things?!” She shouted as she turned to face Alex.

“Wh..wh?” Alex began before confusion and embarrassment began to cloud his mind, making it impossible to focus on words.

“Get back in line.” A voice shouted from the head of the line. The voice was much older and was clearly one of the soldiers, causing everyone to tense up. The sound of doors opening caused Alex to jump. To the right and left of Alex, doors had slid open, revealing small rooms. The children said nothing as they slipped in to the rooms like shadows. Taking a mount of pause, Alex glanced down both ends of the hall way. Soldiers watched him with stern eyes before one pointed towards the door with a quick jabbing motion. Looking in to the room, Alex lowered his shoulders before entering. The door swiftly shut behind him, locking him in. At that moment it was painfully clear it was a cell. However, for a cell it was very comfortable and roomy. The room was well furnished and even had an LCD television, completed with a double mattress bed. With further inspection, Alex found a video library as well as a paperback library. Sitting down on the bed, Alex bounced on it lightly as he tested its comfort. Falling back on to the bed, he could not help but smile.

“They should have kidnapped me sooner.”

The next few days Alex spent going about the motions of life with in the compound. Awoken at an unknown hour and escorted by armed guards to another meeting with Dr Akagi. Under go tests, most of which that seemed insignificant. Alex cooperated with out protest; there was no point in arguing about it. He would simply be forced to take part if he showed any sign of resistance. However, Alex raised his voice in protest once, when they clipped his hair so they could attach sensors to his skull. The tests had turned to his brain, something Dr Akagi referred to as the A10 nerve. Alex had grown fond of his visits to Dr Akagi’s lab. Even though she appeared to be the head of what was keeping him there, he could not help but notice her beauty. He had even become comfortable enough to attempt to converse lightly with her during his visits. Though most of the time she was not very talkative, but he did manage to learn her first name.

“Ritsuko . . . I suppose you can’t tell me what all this is about?” Alex asked in a sombre tone as he proceeded to dress himself in fresh garments. His clipped ashen blonde hair hung loosely over his brow, his hair finely growing back.

Ritsuko raised her head from her monitor, taken off guard by Alex’s sudden interest in the tests. “I can’t tell you that. . . . You will find out if you are deemed acceptable for the project.”

“How do my chances look?”

Ritsuko only met his question with silence as she turned her attention back to the monitor. His eyes hardening, Alex stepped to the desk and placed his palms firmly on its surface. A small ceramic cat upon the desk trembled before tipping over. A soldier posted at the door took a step forward as he gripped a cow prod. However, he came to a stop as Ritsuko raised her hand in his direction. Lowering her hand, Ritsuko stared up at Alex, matching his stern eyes.

“You can’t just keep treating us like were less than human, we have a right to know what this is all about!”

“We can treat you however we see fit. We decided to let you live in comfort during your time with us. We give you what you need to survive, which is much better than how you were living.”

“That’s bullshit! I would rather live that crappy life then lose my freedom! I never signed anything or agreed to anything. And with that in mind I think I have acted pretty damn well. I have not tried to instigate anything or tried to escape.”

Ritsuko only smiled in amusement at Alex’s words. It quickly dawned upon Alex nothing about what he was saying mattered to her, her smile was nothing but mockery. His anger rising, Alex felt his temper begin to slip. Before he could act upon his more primitive instincts a firm hand grasped his shoulder. He did not have to turn to know it was the hand of the soldier, the soldier knew Alex was becoming far too temperamental.

“I want an Mp3 player, I’m sick of watching the same old movies over and over, I want to listen to some music.”

Her mocking smile still crossing her lips, Ritsuko pushed an intercom button before speaking a few words in Japanese’s. “Done.” She said as she raised her head to Alex.

Feeling he had won a slight, if not insignificant, victory, Alex left the room with the soldier following close behind.


“How are you doing today, Midway.” Kaworu inquired as he set his tray down on the opposite end of the table from Alex

“I told you to stop calling me that, just call me Alex.” Alex rebuked as he pointed his spork lazily towards him. Alex had not bothered to become acquainted with the other children being held along side him. Kaworu had proven to be all the friendship he needed.

“Oh, how are you doing today, Alex.” Kaworu corrected to appease Him.

“Nothing, just the same thing as always. Do you have any idea what this is?” Alex asked as he poked at a mystery pasta.” Alex paused in his light jabs as he looked up as if he had just realized something. “Why do you think they allow us to eat together? I mean they lock us in penthouse rooms when they don’t need us. Why not just feed us in there as well?”

“Maybe they think we need the human contact. Just soldiers and scientist that don’t talk to us, other than to order us around, does not really count for much.”

“Maybe” Alex said, not entirely convinced by Kaworu’s theory. “You’re Japanese, right?”

Kaworu nodded his head as he gave Alex the same smile he always did. “Was it really that obvious?”

“hardy har har smart ass. That doctor, Ritsuko, I think she is Japanese too.”

“Ritsuko?”

“You know, Dr Akagi.”

“I believe I met her a few times. There are a few doctors here; they split us up in to groups to work on.”

“Really? I have only ever seen Ritsuko. Anyways, I wanted you to teach me some Japanese. She speaks Japanese sometimes and I got a feeling I’m missing out on something important.”

“So you want to ease drop? . . . what makes you think I speak Japanese, maybe I lived in America my whole life.”

“Yeah . . . that is possible . . . but then I take in to account every time you say Alex it sounds more like Arex.”

“That was unnecessarily racist.” Kaworu said still sporting his friendly smile.

“Your accent is thicker than molasses.” Alex said mockingly before laughing jokingly. “Can you teach me or not?”

“It’s not like you can learn it in a few days.”

“I’m a fast learner, and anyways, it’s not like I have anything else on my hands but time.”




Days passed as regularly as all the days before them, the routine of being awoken and carted off for testing before being dumped in the cafeteria. It had all become second nature to Alex. He would often find himself awake before the morning wake up call. Which rang out in all cells in an annoying buzzing sound that reminded Alex of an old alarm clock, only set much higher on the decibel scale. As Alex entered the cafeteria, he proceeded to earphones of his MP3 player in to his ears before moving towards an empty table. He was not particularly hungry at that time. He had more than enough time to gather a meal and eat; they always left them in the dinning hall much longer than what was needed to eat.  

Fingering the slim Mp3 player in his hand, Alex could still hardly believe he had been granted his request. It was state of the art, slimmer than a highlighter marker and half the length .It was coloured silver with an OLED display. The words Sony were neatly stencilled along the back, the only draw back in Alex’s mind. Its drive had come with an assortment of songs, most were from the present music, and some were in other languages. But Alex tended to stick to the oldies section of the drive. Losing track of time as he listened to music, Alex raised his head as he spotted motion in his peripheral vision. Turning his head, to the motion, he found himself surprised as he watched the children rise to leave. The guards had already come and ordered the group to move. That’s when it dawned on Alex, Kaworu had not been present. Pulling the ear phones from his ears, Alex found the closest child and inquired upon Kaworu’s where a bout’s, but only received a half hearted shrug. Alex had continued to inquire about Kaworu until a soldier let his annoyance known with a rude comment.


Three days passed with out any sign of Kaworu. Had he been let go? Had they killed him in one of their tests? Questions plagued Alex as he sat alone in his room, listening to tracks of music over and over. He had even begun to listen to Japanese’s tracks with out even noticing. It was all white noise to him at that time. On the fourth day, Alex was lead to a strange part of the compound, a part that had been sealed from sight by cold, metal doors. As the doors slid open, Alex found himself standing in a hanger filled with vehicles. Alex was lead to a large army truck used to transport troops. As he approached the truck, Alex noticed Ritsuko standing beside a ramp used to allow the loading of heavy equipment.

“So this is him?” A man in a lab coat asked as he peered out from the back of the truck.

“Yes, he will be the test subject for today.” Ritsuko replied as she watched Alex with cold calculating eyes.

“I hope he does better than the last kid.” The man swiftly received a harsh look from Ritsuko, as if she was questioning his intelligence and manhood all at once.  

“Wait . . . last kid? What the hell does that mean?!” Alex shouted in response, only to have the man laugh nervously before disappearing in to the rear of the truck.

“You will be briefed on the way to the site, get in the back.” Ritsuko stated before returning to supervising the loading of the transport.

As the transports engine roared to life, Alex was jarred forward as it roughly came in to motion. The cabin was filled with personal that Alex had never seen before. Most were in a drab mood and said little. All seemed preoccupied with adjusting equipment or simply resting. The tension in the truck was almost enough to drown in. Alex found himself short of breath before positioning himself near the end of the truck. Dust flew up from the back of the truck as the desert landscape rolled by at thirty miles pre hour. For once he had an idea of where he was, even if it was just a desert. There was a chance he was still in Nevada, but taking a moment to let the realization sink in, Alex knew escape was simply futile. If they did not catch him trying to escape the desert would kill him. Before he could bring himself out of his bout of disappointment a rubber suit was dropped in to Alex’s lap. Standing over Alex, Ritsuko swiftly sat herself on the opposite side of him.

“You will put that on when we arrive at the site.”

“What is this all about?” Alex replied as he lifted the black suit from his lap. The suit was similar to a dive suit, complete with a mask with large shaded eye sockets that remind him of a popular alien described by abductees.  

“You have heard of the silver giant incident from five years ago, correct?” The question was unnecessary and almost insulting, but Alex nodded his head in reply. “I suppose you would have. We have been working on the giant, code named Wendigo. We have determined that it is in fact a controlled instrument that requires a pilot to function.”

“You’re serious?”

With out even pausing at Alex’s disbelief, Ritsuko handed him a clipboard containing images of the giant and an opening at the back of its neck. “We have managed to make headway and producing a means of connecting with the bio-machine in order to control it. However, when we attempted to use a test pilot from the USAF, he was completely rejected from the system and had to be hospitalized.”

“Ookkkay . . .  and what does this have to do with me?” Alex asked, even though he had a very good idea on how the matter concerned him.

“We kept attempting to use test pilots, but each test ended with the same results. We were finally able to determine that a child subject could make a connection. But, the connection would not last long enough to be practical. We assumed it was a problem with the A10 nerve connection device we were using. We soon realized it was the pilot.”

‘So, this . . . thing, picks and choices its pilot?”

“We have not noticed any mental activity, it is merely a machine made of flesh. We believe the brain is simply in place as a control system for connection of the pilot and body control.”

“So it’s just the control system of the thing.”

“Yes, that is correct. When we arrive you will take your position in the cockpit and wait for orders.”

“I have a question, is this the reason why Kaworu disappeared?” A long pause followed before Ritsuko took the clipboard from Alex’s grasp.

“Subject Nagisa was proven to be an unsuitable subject for the project and released.” Alex was swiftly over taken by conflicting emotions. All he would have to do is fail the test and he would be set free. He would surely be watched for a good while, but at lest he would be free. However, on the other hand he had a chance to play a major part in world history. Alex only remained silent as the truck continued down the rough desert road.

After half an hour of driving the truck came to a stop causing all with in the rear of the truck to jolt forward. As things came to rest, the truck was quickly unloaded with soldiers and men in white lab coats buzzing about. As Alex exited the truck he took a moment to stumble about unsure of himself and his responsibilities. His gaze was soon directed towards a large building rising in to the sky. The building was makeshift and quickly put up. It almost seemed flimsy and unstable despite the strong steel supports crisscrossing its length. Large cables ran in to the building from hulking generator trucks parked a short distance from the building. The roar of diesel engines caused Alex’s ears to ring before he was shuffled in to the building by a soldier. As he entered the building the roar of engines died down, but was soon replaced with the sound of heavy equipment as workers attempted to get everything ready for the test. Still in a daze from the events happening about him, Alex completely neglected the massive silver foot protruding through scaffolding. Or maybe his brain could not comprehend such an impossible sight. Lead on to a lift, Alex and half a dozen scientists began to rise to the top of the building. Alex remained in a melancholy state as the lift slowly rose to the top, to what could be his very end. Peering up, Alex’s eyes grew wide as the lift rose past a large hand. The hand was held open, it appeared frozen, almost like a man that had been grasping something at the moment of death. Upon seeing the impossible sight, Alex felt as if he had opened a door way in to another world as the whole silver giant came in to his frame of vision.

As the lift came to a stop Alex found himself completely unaware of this as his attention was completely transfixed on the giant. A soft nudge from Ritsuko brought Alex back and he quickly stepped from the lift.

“Is that it? That’s the giant?” He said in wonderment. Appearing like a small child to the seasoned scientist, chuckles began to carry about them in an amusing fashion.

“Yes, this is the giant recovered five years ago.” Ritsuko replied with an amused smile.

“I new it was big . . . but I never imagined it was so. . .Huge! Who made this? Do you know?”

‘We have no ideas as of yet, its one of the more perplexing questions. But, everything it’s made of can be found on earth. The technology is not even that far advanced. It’s just the genetic engineering that is amazing.”

“Genetic . . . engineering?”

“Never mind, you need to suit up, do you still have the suit with you?” Ritsuko’s question was soon visually answered as Alex held his empty hands up.

“I. . I must have forgotten it.”

“Can someone go retrieve the pilot’s suit?” Ritsuko’s voice was filled with frustration causing Alex to break out in a cold sweat.


The dressing room was small and cramped; Alex could tell not a whole lot of thought went in to its design. It seemed almost last minute, like someone had suddenly brought it up half way through construction. Alex laughed silently at the thought of such a under sight. Slipping the black suit on, Alex took a moment to stare in to the mask. Its black eyes stared at him with inky darkness. Would he even be able to see through such dark lenses he wondered before slipping the mask over his face. Making an airtight seal with the mask and the neck of the suit, Alex took little time in plugging the life support system in to the front of the mask. The suit looked like a space age flight suit with it completely on. A tube ran down from the mouth of the suit to a small suitcase sized life support unit. It hissed as it filtered air and pumped it back in to the pilots lungs. It took a moment for Alex to adjust himself to the suit before he left the room, completely unsure of what to expect.  As he left the room a soldier showed him the path to a fiendish looking device. It appeared like a monstrously large robotic arm used in car construction, but on its end a large cylinder had been set in place of the welding torch. The whole device had been attached to the ceiling and could swivel a full three hundred and sixty degrees. Opening a turn wheel hatch on the side of the cylinder, a soldier motioned for Alex to enter, who did so in a careful manor.

“Just stay calm, kid, I’ll be here to let you out if anything goes wrong.” The soldier told Alex, who only nodded in surprise. It was the first time he heard a soldier say anything reassuring to him. Smiling lightly the stubble faced soldier closed the hatch before sealing it.

Alex fumbled in the darkened cockpit until his hands soon found two joysticks that he grasped tightly. Only the sound of his quickening breath filled the cockpit before it reared to life. Sifting to the right sharply, Alex let out a soft grunt as it came to a sudden halt. A pause followed before the cockpit dropped swiftly, causing butterflies to rise in Alex’s stomach. It was at that moment Alex realized he really had to use the wash room.

“The plug is inserted.” A scientist said to Ritsuko as he sat at his post. From her vantage point, Ritsuko could view the whole scene. The cockpit had been inserted in to the back of the giant’s neck, almost appearing as if the building its self was trying to copulate with the giant.  

“Begin the start up program. Keep an eye on the power source; I don’t want any mistakes this time.”

“You don’t think this one will disappear like the last kid do you?”

“I don’t know, we have no idea why that happened last time.”

As Alex was beginning to grow concerned the cockpit suddenly rose to life in a brilliant display of colors and sounds. Alex nearly choked on his breath as he witnessed the display before him.

“Were crossing the boarder line! Everything looks green!” a voice shouted out from the control room. A smile crept to Ritsuko’s lips as she watched her work come to fruition.

In the cockpit Alex let his eyes adjust as the images beheld by the giant sprang to life on the screens. A feeling of relief filled Alex before his eyes fell on something standing before the giant.

“Kaworu?” Alex said as he stared in to the face of the smiling boy posed in front of the giant. “I thought they let you go!” He shouted, but no one could hear him, save the people in the control room.

“What are you saying? What do you see?” Ritsuko asked as she attempted to make sense of Alex’s outburst.

“We have a problem! The core is producing a casimir effect!”
“What? How can that be?”

“exotic particles are forming in the core, this is bad!”

“Shut it down, eject the test plug! Shut it down!” Ritsuko yelled in a panic as she leaned over a technicians shoulder.

“It denied the signal to eject! It’s locked the arm in place” The robotic arm groaned and jerked as it attempted to break free from the giant. “I can’t stop it! There’s a chain reaction in the core!”

“This can’t be. . .” Ritsuko said softly as defeat loomed over head.

Alex could tell something had gone horribly wrong as the cockpit began to shake with a strange vibration. The images on the screen began to blur and distort.

“Kaworu!” Alex shouted before a blinding light filled the cockpits screens.