#mark nicht

[apostaterevolutionary]

Shot up out of bed to make this

[digitaldevildiary]

oh look who's here

[evetheindecisive]

This follows the Day 1 Existence theme right Either way, day 1 of seinnicht week with a picture of sein meeting a younger nicht fron Time’s Eyes AU that I’ll hopefully get around to finishing for this week at some point soon

[lady-byleth]

Every piece of canon ever: uniting with your Fafner and becoming one in body and mind is key, if you can't become one you can't use it to its full potential

Soushi, looking at Mark Nicht: ...yeah lets not do that

[incorrectfafner]

Soushi: Nicht is a good dog.

Koyo: Uhm??

Soushi: Nicht.

Nicht: -barks-

Soushi: A good dog.

[apostaterevolutionary]

I hired this Nicht to stare at you

[lady-byleth]

I cannot believe it took me this fucking long to realise this and that I needed to re-read the novel as well is embarrassing but I finally figured out why Soushi is the only pilot who talks to his Fafner.

The novel elaborates on the unification between pilot and machine a little, in that it explains that one has to fully accept that the Fafner is one’s body to actually be able to move it effectively. Meaning, if you start doubting yourself - I can’t jump that high, I’m not that strong, my arms aren’t that long, etc. - you become unable to pilot it and it turns into nothing more than another clunky machine. 

Kazuki was such a good pilot from the get-go because becoming one with Mark Elf came naturally to him. He didn’t care if he was human or not - he didn’t care if he would lose himself or not - because he didn’t care whether he lived or not in the first place. He lost that sense of self, that will to be someone, when he hurt Soushi and so it was especially easy for him to unite with Mark Elf and later Sein. 

Every pilot who wasn’t able to accept the Fafner as themselves was kicked out of the program immediately. 

This made me realise...Soushi actively avoids complete unification with Mark Nicht. 

That’s why he keeps talking to it. He distances himself from his unit, draws a distinct line between himself and Mark Nicht to keep them as two individuals instead of one being as Kazuki does with Mark Elf and Mark Sein.

Why does he do that? Why does he impose a handicap on himself that effectively cripples him in combat?

Because Mark Nicht is literally a vessel of hatred.

Idun assimilated the damn thing years ago, learned hatred through it and internalised that as his first actual emotion. He then used it to assimilate ever more people who felt that emotion, turning it into a walk, breathing cluster of Hatred.

If Soushi actually became one with this thing, really became one with it like Kazuki and the rest with theirs, he’d be swallowed by that hatred. He would probably lose control of it and attack everything in sight, killing his allies and enemies alike, innocent people.

He imposes a handicap on himself, keeps himself separated from his unit, and fights with that additional strain on mind and body to keep everyone safe. Not only from the Festum, but from himself as well.

And I don’t know about you but to me, that is at once amazing and fucking terrifying.

[digitaldevildiary]

brain: be a little more serious with posing the nicht its the literal omnidestroying child of nothingness in the anime

me: how can i when the pilot is being absolutely moe in my headset T.T (listening to 太陽と月)