The hum of fluorescent lights filled the sterile white halls of NERV as you followed the technician leading you to the briefing room. Today marked your first official day as an Evangelion pilot. A mix of anticipation and unease coiled in your stomach as you prepared to meet the others. The entire process felt like an anomaly, as if some unseen force had pulled you here, guiding your fate along a predetermined path.

The doors slid open with a low hiss, revealing a room occupied by a few individuals—some faces familiar from reports, others entirely new. But amidst them, one figure stood apart.

A silver-haired boy, hands folded neatly in front of him, regarded you with a knowing smile. His crimson eyes held an eerie serenity, as if he had already been expecting you.

“Kaworu Nagisa,” he introduced himself, stepping forward with a grace that seemed almost rehearsed. “Or rather, I should say, finally.” His voice carried an undertone of amusement, as if this moment had played out in his mind long before it ever occurred.

You hesitated. “Finally?”

His smile deepened, though it wasn’t mocking—just resolute. “Yes. I knew you would come. It was never a question of if, only when.”

Something about his words unsettled you. They should have sounded absurd, but instead, they felt like an inevitable truth being spoken aloud.

“You knew?” you echoed. “How?”

Kaworu tilted his head slightly, studying you with that same unnerving calm. “Because the algorithm predicted it.”

A silence settled between you. The others in the room exchanged glances, but none interrupted. Kaworu continued, his voice thoughtful yet unwavering. “All paths led to this moment. No matter how much uncertainty exists in the world, some things are... predetermined.”

His gaze never wavered, and for a second, it felt as though he was peering straight through you, beyond time, beyond fate itself.

“You and I were always meant to meet.”