ship_manifesto

Title: A Reason For Our Existence
Author:

celemna - I signed up under a different name but stopped using that journal. I even asked if I could post it under this one but I got no response x:
Pairing: Allelujah Haptism/Marie Parfacy
Fandom: Gundam 00
Word count: 10,000
Spoilers: The entire anime series and the Side Story written for Allelujah.
Note/WARNING: First off this is horribly over the max and in such I'm splitting the post in half and making two posts- I hope that's okay. I've seen it done before. I am very long winded and destroyed the max last time too. This post is also VERY image heavy and very very long winded so grab a soda and be prepared to sit for a little while lol. Oh and also- I am writing for a canon pairing. The express point of this manifesto is not to proof canonz, but to instead explain why I love this pairing. I encourage anyone and everyone to read it :D

Table of Contents:

Section 1: Introduction
Section 2: Foreshadowing
Section 3: The Past
Section 4: The End Of Season 1
Section 5: Saving Marie
Section 6: Thank you for giving me a reason to live.
Section 7: Hallelujah
Section 8: Finding a Purpose…A Reason For Our Existence

Section 1: Introduction

The Characters:
Allelujah Haptism

Allelujah Haptism is introduced to the audience as a Gundam Meister for the group Celestial Being. Early on in the series he is shown to have a kind, gentle disposition. He also has interactions with himself that can be misinterpreted as a schizophrenic tendency; however, he actually is speaking to Hallelujah. Hallelujah is his ‘other’ personality. It is revealed that Allelujah is a super soldier, and thus has enhanced capabilities and modifications to his body. Hallelujah was ‘born’ as a result of the Super Soldier research facilities tests and experimentation. Hallelujah represents a baser, more feral and instinctive personality. He is completely motivated by the need to survive, and has murderous tendencies. In sum, he is the complete opposite of Allelujah, who is reluctant to take life and has no real motivation to survive. His survival depends more on Hallelujah, who is willing to do the unthinkable in battle to ensure they come out alive.

As a child, Allelujah was the subject of extensive tests and experiments at the Human Reform League's Superhuman facility. He was a failed subject, however, and was marked for "extermination". TO avoid death he escaped the facility with several other "failures". Unfortunately, their plan did not extend beyond escaping the colony, and once supplies ran out Hallelujah took over Allelujah's body and killed everyone on board. Allelujah curses his own existence at this point as well as the world he lives in. He goes on to become a member of Celestial Being. During the first season of the series, Hallelujah hints that Allelujah never had a normal life, even after escaping the Superhuman Institute.

It can be noted that the reason Allelujah was fighting with Celestial Being was to make the world answer for what happened to him and all the children in the Super Soldier research facility. Season 1 closes with Allelujah fighting Soma Peries on equal ground, teaming up with Hallelujah to become the ideal solider. HE claims then that his reason for existing is to make the world answer for what happened to him. In the end, he is captured, restrained and held captive for four years. During his captivity he focuses on two points: that he is receiving just punishment for his crimes and that he should be allowed to rot away in prison, and that he had finally "found" Marie Parfacy, the woman known by all as Soma Peries. During the end of Season 1 he is fighting Soma Peries on equal footing and teams up with Hallelujah saying that he wants to live to make the world answer for what happened to him. At the end of the battle he is captured and locked away for 4 years, and two things are revealed: He thought he deserved the punishment and allowed himself to rot away, all he thought of during his captivity was Marie Parfacy, the woman who was known as Soma Peries, who was his greatest nemesis as well as a Super Soldier.

B. Hallelujah Haptism:

Hallelujah Haptism is notable due in part to his significant role in Allelujah’s moral conflict and the mere fact that he is his other persona. Hallelujah’s motivations never seem to be deeper than sadistic desires and keeping himself alive. He has even stated that he would drink the blood of others if it meant he would survive when he otherwise wouldn’t. He is a stark contrast to Allelujah but there are some key things he does to contradict his own behavior in things that are beneficial to Allelujah as a person.

Marie Parfacy:

Marie Parfacy was another research specimen at the Super Human Institute. Her response to the procedure was that she lost all of her senses. In a sense the procedure had to be effective, because she had the ability to cry out with her quantum brainwaves. However her immobility eventually led to another personality being imprinted over her own. This personality was given another name and was conditioned to be the perfect Super Soldier. From then on she was known as Soma Peries.

Throughout Season 1 of the series, Soma Peries believes that the only part of her she should acknowledge is her duty as a Super Soldier. Regardless of circumstance, her number one priority was success on the battlefield and fulfilling her obligations as the ace of the HRL. She actually becomes Allelujah’s greatest nemesis as their quantum brainwaves react to each other on a dangerous level. Their reaction to each other’s brainwaves is so intense that at one point Soma is driven past the point of reason and causes a space station accident, nearly killing those inside. To prevent further accidents, she is given a specialized suit which blocks out incoming quantum brainwaves, allowing her to become a dangerous weapon against Celestial Being.

Soma herself learns to become more human and less like a Super Soldier- even sacrificing the opportunity to kill Allelujah, whom she calls by his specimen number, to save Colonel Smirnov who has become like a father to her. She is shown with him during the four year period between seasons and has shown a more docile and kind side to her personality.

B. Soma Peries:
Some Peries is a lot harder to separate from Marie-being that she is the one most disconnected from Allelujah. Not only that but she appears first in the story as opposed to Marie who appears later. Even though Marie is a character who can be explained on her own it is important to note that she and Soma have always shown considerably large differences. Not only that, but some of her later actions also play a part in developing who the dominant persona is and developing Marie’s relationship with Allelujah.

The Characters Together:

Naturally there is a lot left to be said about these two that needs to be brought to light- but it’s important that it bought forth together. Alone the characters are intriguing but nearly blank slates. Allelujah is a morally stressed individual who is forced to do things he doesn’t like and has a kind heart. Marie is little more than a comatose girl who became Soma Peries. So what is it that needs to be further explored?

Allelujah's earliest memories after waking up from the experiments done on his body involve hearing someone calling out 'in his head'. The person was, of course, Marie, whose only form of communication was through quantum brainwaves. It is interesting to note that Allelujah was the only person who responded to her call. In Allelujah’s childhood the first thing he awoke to after his surgery was the sound of someone calling out with their quantum brainwaves. This was Marie Parfacy- who had all her senses stripped of her. Allelujah went to find her and was able to communicate with her thanks to her quantum brainwaves (which are seen later in the series as Hallelujah tells her he’ll kill her and she hears it all the way in space while he is in a space station). She introduces herself as Marie and when he says he has no name she says she’ll give him a name. She names him Allelujah in thanks to God because she is alive and able to finally speak with someone. Allelujah later refers to this as his actual baptism.

Both in the anime and the side story (and a minor part in the manga) there are instances shown where they are talking. The reoccurring memories in the side story and in the canon, though temporary and shorter, can easily show that the two support the idea of how they were important to each other. Allelujah came ‘whenever he could’, and there’s something to be said for the fact that the doctors in the facility observed and allowed this to occur, and he is shown doing everything from simply talking to her to reading stories to her. Eventually when Allelujah had to escape he is shown with a look of remorse that he has to leave her and in the side story it goes further by showing Marie herself being upset when he has to go, even stating that to her, Allelujah was 'everything.'

At the end of Season 1, after disabling Allelujah's Gundam, Soma exits her cockpit for the first time in his presence, to assist the injured Colonel Smirnov. Allelujah, seeing her for the first time, recognizes her instantly as the child he doted on during his time in the Institute. He even asks Hallelujah if he knew Soma's identity and Hallelujah merely stated that ‘he wouldn’t fight if he knew, he’d just die.’ Allelujah is captured by the Federation and spends four years captive. Season 2 of the series opens with Soma being admitted to his cell to confirm his identity. When allowed to speak, Allelujah expresses his feelings of relief that she is alive. Soma is taken aback by this man calling her 'Marie', and vehemently denies being called that name despite Allelujah's insistence.

There is a lot more to be said about these characters, but this is the basic information needed to be able to understand the manifesto.

Section 2: Foreshadowing

The first time we see Allelujah is pretty simple, he is just another pilot (minus the talking to himself issues) for Celestial Being. However around episode 5 we finally see Allelujah himself being developed and it’s because of Soma Peries. While preparing to board a shuttle, he comes in contact with Soma's brainwaves and collapses under the immense pain. Soma reacts in a similar fashion, and is further upset when Hallelujah emerges and threatens to kill her for interfering with his brainwaves. In her panic, she causes the station accident and nearly kills thousands. However, Allelujah goes against his mission plan to save them. This is the first time we see Allelujah’s kindness come out for real. He sacrifices the advantage Neil’s Gundam has just to save a bunch of people- because that is simply his nature.

When we next come across development with Allelujah he is almost taken captive. Soma is no longer affected by his quantum brainwaves and so only he is given the bad effects. He passes out and then Hallelujah awakens- we see that Hallelujah has a sinister and sadistic view of things. What he desires isn’t necessary- when he cannot kill Soma he tortures the soldier that stayed behind to buy them time. Allelujah is morally traumatized by his other half and even cries- asking if that’s how he’s supposed to be. It is this incident that prompts Hallelujah and Allelujah to decide to take out the Super Soldier research facility.

We see a pattern here- it’s Soma’s direct effect on Allelujah that always prompts some sort of direct character growth for Allelujah. It does not mean that it is romantic, necessarily, nor does it mean it’s some divine sign. Even Soma does not know she is Marie and merely wanted to capture his Gundam and kill or take Allelujah captive. It does however show something significant, these two have had a deep foreshadowing the entire season. Their quantum brainwaves affect each other deeply- yet when Allelujah is at the Super Soldier research facility the only thing that hinders him is his own emotions. While their connection does not make for a romantic pairing, it does connect the two characters suspiciously. Allelujah’s main character development always happened due mostly in part to Soma, even if other characters were involved.

Now why is this important to note? Mostly because even Allelujah states “Only Marie’s quantum brainwaves could affect me so much.” He even states the significance in their quantum brainwaves and it shows us that while their foreshadowing may not have been the most romantic nor the most conclusive, it definitely shows they’ve been connected since they came near each other. Furthermore, while only a fun thing to consider, it can be seen as a parallel to the entire story itself. Allelujah is not developed unless Soma does something near him- and it isn’t until he has Marie to motivate him that he is willing to develop himself. To further that point the real idea of the manifesto has to be directed.

Marie and Allelujah themselves are individuals that we have to consider have developed around each other even when they weren’t directly themselves nor believing the other to be the person they cared for so much. Again, this is merely to state that the ideas of the pairing started since the very beginning, starting with the characters physical (quantum brainwaves) connection and then delving deeper into their emotional connection. The pairing itself can’t be established on what could be passed off as coincidences, however, so one must examine the character interactions to fully support that there was anything foreshadowed in the first place.

Section 3: The Past

Ever since Season 1 one of the deciding factors in Allelujah’s entire character was the facility. One might be able to say he is a character trapped by his past. While Neil is haunted by his, at times he is still able to move forward and think of others, even protecting Tieria Erde at the cost of one of his eyes. However, Allelujah has a constant reminder of his past: Hallelujah. As a specimen at the Super Soldier facility the procedure left him to develop his alter ego who is the one who tended to take over and do bad things he could not will himself to do. Hallelujah never went away and never had a reason to, as Allelujah cursed his own existence. He was absorbed by his mistakes and what he had done and so not only is he emotionally trapped in this time but he refuses to believe in his own self worth because of it.
It is important to note that Allelujah dwells on himself as the villain. While the other characters demonize themselves to an extent, Allelujah blames no one in his past and does not focus on the past other than how bad it made him or how unfortunate it was. Even though destroying the Super Soldier facility was the best thing to do for other children as well as for himself to rid the world of the corrupt doctors he can only think about himself being the bearer of sin. It is important to note this as we go on to talk about one of the most significant events he experienced in the super soldier research facility.

When Allelujah first awoke in the facility the first thing he heard was the cries of Marie Parfacy. Marie Parfacy had been robbed of all her senses by the procedure and only had the ability to call out with her quantum brain waves. He finds her by following her cries and once he meets up with her she states she can’t even tell where he is because she has none of her senses. She introduces herself and asks him his name, but he cannot remember. At this point Allelujah is given his name. She gives him the name Allelujah to thank God and he is unsure why, what should he be thankful for? She tells him ‘for being alive, of course’! There is a special emphasis placed on this scene as the entire scene had been black and white but once she says this his entire world goes into color. He refers to this event in the future as his baptism.

A nice continuation of events occurs here acknowledged, as I stated before, in many canonical sources. Marie and Allelujah talk and Allelujah comes to visit her chamber whenever he is able to. He is seen sleeping there and even reading to her. When Soma is being forced to remember her identity as Marie she directly refers to these events, which in their manga form indicated her line of thought to be “You were everything to me, nakama, friends, family…and….” These were two children who had no real knowledge of an outside world and found solace in each other’s company. Allelujah showed remorse for leaving and Marie was shown crying out for him as he left.
At this point, I’d like to address a few things about Allelujah’s maturity. We have established that Allelujah is a character hung up on his past and finds himself to be someone who is unforgivable. We have also established that Marie is one of the only good thoughts in his mind. What is important to note here about Allelujah, is that before he saw her alive at the end of season 1 Allelujah never harped on Marie’s memory for comfort. She had been a source of hope for him and he cared about her, perhaps even loved her, but Allelujah never thought of her until he knew she was alive for sure. Hallelujah never guilt tripped him about her and he never used her as a crutch for comfort.

While it would be easy to brush off Allelujah’s feelings as immature if he spent the entirety of Season 1 whining about his long lost Marie who was a child, it is important we note that even as Allelujah struggles to want to live, he never thinks about Marie. Allelujah is a character hung up on the past but he is not so selfish and immature a character that his only belief and happiness in life comes from the past. Rather, Allelujah uses the past only as a symbol to prove he is worthless in his own eyes. Allelujah is not the self pitying type, nor the lovesick obsessive, he simply remembered all the bad he did as a person and clung onto it as a reason to forsake his own life and demand answers from the world. It is important for his character that we note how he thinks of the past and how he doesn’t. He is not so naïve that he is a young child who clings onto a girl who could be dead, but he is a 19 year old young man who believes he has no worth because of the sins he has committed.

Another final note before moving on is to note that while Allelujah seemed to not use her as a crutch and was able to function on a decent level and never thought of her- it is obvious he still remembered her and cared about her and should not be mistaken for his lack of remembrance of who she was. The only solid evidence needed to be presented to acknowledge this point is that while he never thought of her he still kept the name that she gave him. This is significant to show that Allelujah was able to establish a realistic balance of remembering Marie and obsessing over Marie.

To add a small note for future reference, one might say that when she reappears he uses her as a crutch. To explore this and retort it we need to get further down the line and establish Allelujah’s future actions.

Section 4: The End of Season 1

As we reached Season 1’s end something important happened in Allelujah- he had grown somewhat as a character and while he had not forgiven himself, he wanted the world to answer for what had happened to him. When he is captured at the end of Season 1 a few things have transpired but what compliments this fact is that his initial reaction to being captured was that he should rot. While Allelujah seemingly found a temporary reason to live it was based on his past as well. He wanted the world to acknowledge the wrong doing done to him, and he was unable to keep this resolve when he was captured, he wanted to pay off the debt of blood he had collected as a Meister. He did not have the ability to keep a goal because there was nothing making him want to live when all he had was self hatred. He is still stuck in his bad past actions.
One of the other noticeable things aside from his temporary desire to live is that once he is defeated he discovers the woman he had been fighting and just tried to kill is none other than Marie Parfacy, the girl who gave him his name and helped him cope with who he was while in the facility. What’s interesting is that he never noticed and then questions Hallelujah “Did you know Hallelujah?”. It’s interesting how little Allelujah knew and then he catches on to how obvious it probably was, to the extent his alter ego knew. It’s interesting that he further never obsessed over Marie to the extent he didn’t keep her in his thoughts consistently, even to the extent that he didn’t notice something which was obvious to Hallelujah and even to the dormant Marie herself, which she later revealed. (As a minor note to clarify when she knew it was Allelujah, he has quantum brainwaves so it had to be during her dormant period for her to be able to recognize him with quantum brainwaves, which signifies she was aware while dormant)

When Season 1 ends he is captured and locked away for four years. The first line he says in Season 2 is “Marie”. Allelujah had forsaken himself to rot away forever but he also had many thoughts of Marie. One could say this is where he clings and begins to immature in regards to her, but he does not seem to use her as a crutch. She has to identify him as Season 2 begins and she denies that she is Marie once he confronts her. Rather than throw an immature fit the starved captive who’d been tied away for four years simply states that she is in fact Marie. He keeps amazing wits about himself until he is rescued and has to leave her. Once rescued by his comrades, Allelujah goes through a pained moment when he realizes that he cannot save Marie just yet. He must first return and fight alongside his fellow Meisters in order to get her back. You see Allelujah has not spent four years thinking about being with Marie, or being forgiven by Marie for his transgressions. The first thing we see in fact is that he doubts she’d ever forgive him, but he still wants to save her. This is how season 1 ends and season 2 begins, and yet Allelujah is showing an astounding level of maturity. He has a new reason to fight; he is remaining calm and collected. He just states the simple truth- he is going to save Marie.

This makes an important point for Allelujah. He is still the kind composed person he is but he no longer has Hallelujah or his quantum brainwaves, yet he is determined to save Marie. There is a purpose in his life because of this. Thus, he transitions as a character into a person who went from drifting through a life of guilt to a person with purpose and a conviction. But as it was shown before, Allelujah isn’t doing it for his personal self gratification. Allelujah is doing it because he wants to save Marie. He has made a 180 from fighting against her, the only thing that matters when it comes to Marie is that he wants to save her.

To be continued in part 2!