Disclaimer: Neon Genesis Evangelion is copyright and trademarked by Gainax. All characters created by them are used here without permission, and for entertainment purposes only. I don't mean to infringe, only to entertain. Please don't sue my poor ass.
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Seraphim
by the Loneshark
Chapter 1: Repologue
"That's it! I can't take it anymore!" The door slammed, causing most people in the office
to flinch. Misato crashed into the chair behind her desk, breathing heavily. She stared at the wall, her hands gripping the armrests. Her nails were digging into the vinyl. She stopped fighting the urge, and pulled the gun from her desk drawer. She aimed it at the wall, but her fingers wouldn't pull the trigger. She knew she shouldn't. She couldn't.
She couldn't afford to pay the repair bills. That's what she kept telling herself. She
couldn't afford to pay for the damages.
"Commander? Commander Katsuragi?" The timid voice came from outside. The door
opened without waiting for an answer. Yoshi Iwano was not a brave man. And while he was
considered one of the most brilliant technical minds of his generation, he was not a man that relied on forethought. He yelped when he saw the gun in Misato's hands.
She looked up at the young man, her face a picture of stress and anger. "What?" It
sounded like something Yoshi had heard in a nightmare long ago as a child. Something about
Satan and an evil Charlie Brown...
"Um, well, I think, maybe you should put the gun away, ma'am. Please. Don't point it at
me?" He could feel himself shrinking back behind the door.
Misato looked at the gun, then sighed, and shoved it back into its drawer. She leaned
forward on her desk, resting her head on her hands.
"Sorry, Yoshi. Come in, no need to stand in the damn doorway."
"Yes, ma'am." He closed the door, and tentatively walked to her desk. "So, I take it that
the budget negotiation didn't go well?"
She leaned back in her chair. "It never does. All those tight asses say that they want more
concrete results before they can approve such a budget."
"Well, ma'am, I'm trying, but there are holes in the research left behind by the Ikaris. And
figuring out the quirks in the Magi is enough for a team of programers to handle, let alone the few we have--"
Misato waved a hand. "I know, Yoshi, I know. I've been inside the thing, remember?"
She swivled the chair around to look directly at him. "The Eva's are power, Yoshi. Without a
pilot to direct it, an Eva is nothing more than an over-powered monster. You probably wouldn't
have been aware of that until you came here from Tokyo 2, of course."
Yoshi nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I know." God, did he know. His superior's favorite thing
to do when she was drunk was tell stories about 'the old days,' for all they were worth.
"Commander--"
"We're just in my office, Yoshi. You don't have to call me that."
"Sorry, it's... Well, I know things have been different around here ever since Fuyutski
retired... and Ikari disappeared, and the UN purchased the NERV charter from SEELE, but could
I ask you something? About my predecessor?"
Misato looked at the young man's eyes. They were inquisitive little brown orbs hidden
behind thin glasses. When he looked at her, she couldn't help but feel that those eyes really
belonged to...
"You mean Ritsuko Akagi?"
He nodded. "What happened to her, ma'am? It's the one thing you never talk about, and I
thought that if there was anyway of contacting her, I thought I may be able to put together more
of what we need to really upgrade the Eva's. I might be able to fully utilize the Magi."
That was the difference between them, she thought. Ritsuko had always been serious and
cynical. Yoshi was much different from her. He wasn't frightened by the Eva's. He saw only
bright possibilities where Ritsuko could only see cold probabilities.
Her eyes focused on the picture on her desk. "Ritsuko was committed. The Third Impact
didn't work for everyone. It was hard enough for Shinji to unravel it. Not everyone came out in
one piece. The damage that had been done to Ritsuko before Third Impact was something she
couldn't face, no matter what Ikari's intentions. She went insane. I'm afraid whatever information
you could have gotten out of her is long gone, Yoshi."
He leaned back, digesting the information. It was true; he'd heard that the Third Impact
had not worked for everyone. Whatever it was Gendo Ikari had done to try and change the
world, it didn't completely work. As in everything with life, nothing was one hundred percent.
"I'm sorry to bring it up, ma'am."
She shook her head. "Don't worry. It's ancient history, now." Her eyes widened, and she
looked at her watch. "Oh, damn! I almost forgot about it!" She stood, and gathered her personal things from the desk, and the papers she would be taking home tonight.
Yoshi watched her head for the door. "Um, Commander Katsuragi, where are you
going?"
"I have to leave a little early tonight. Don't worry, Yoshi, NERV can take care of itself
for a little while without me, can't it?"
He laughed a little. "Well, you are our fearless leader. And you still haven't finished those
reports on the latest synch tests, and--"
"All right, all right, I'll have it in the morning, okay? Just hold down the GeoFront for me
overnight, huh? Thanks." She walked out of her office, leaving Yoshi in the peace of silence.
He had to sit for a moment and enjoy it. Since he'd come to work for NERV, he had
quickly learned to enjoy such brief moments. The Commander's constant battles with UN
overseers, various missions that the Eva's somehow managed to find being thrown in their laps,
and the temperamental nature of the Evas themselves made the HQ a battlefield by itself.
He leaned forward, and turned the picture around. It was a group photograph of
Commander Katsuragi, along with the four original Eva pilots. It has been taken almost three
years ago, right after the UN had NERV recomissioned. They were all smiling, even Rei, which
was a rare thing. Misato and Asuka both held up their fingers in a "V", and Touji and Shinji stood with their arms crossed, back to back. Eva Team 01 was the official title. Yoshi couldn't help but think of them as heroes.
He'd been about their age now when the Angels came. The Third Impact changed all of
that. It hadn't ended the world, as Ikari had hoped. His own son had taken it and made it into
something else. He gave the human race a chance to shape its own destiny. For someone who
professed a dislike for fighting, he could certainly be counted on when he was needed.
Yoshi turned the picture back around, and quietly closed the door as he left.
***
Shinji resisted the urge. He shouldn't. He was in public, in a decent restaurant. How was
Misato even going to be able to afford this? She could never handle money. Her spending habits
were the one thing that could never change. She was probably the one who had changed the least
of all.
Shinji sighed, and gave in. So what if he was in public? Misato was half an hour late. He
was bored.
He picked up the dinner fork on the table, tilted his head back, and carefully began to try
and balance the fork on his nose. If he could look around, he would have seen that people were
starting to stare. He didn't think about, instead concentrating on the fork. After a moment, the maitre de approached, and asked him to stop juggling the silverware, again.
He took it off his nose, and started to drum his fingers on the table.
There was a small laugh behind him. "You never do change, you know?" Misato
wrapped her arms around him from behind in a quick hug, and then sat down.
"Hi, Misato. I was just getting bored."
"I know. Sometimes you're still the same boy you were when we first met."
"No. Asuka says I'm not so serious anymore. But then, she's still a pain sometimes."
Misato grinned. "Not that you mind, I bet?"
"Well, uh... So, anyway, what took you so long?"
"Sorry about that. I don't know why you didn't leave. I'd have never stuck around, as
slow as it was getting here."
"Working late and leaving early again?" He watched her face tighten. "Oh, I almost
forgot. Another budget meeting with the UN supervisors."
Misato opened up her menu as the waiter set it down. "Sometimes I don't know what the
hell they expect from us. How the hell are we going to protect their sorry butts if they don't give us the funding we need?" She sighed, and looked up. "I'm sorry, Shinji. I shouldn't be
complaining right now."
He shook his head. "It's all right, Misato. It's nothing I haven't heard before, right?" He
looked at his own menu. "I thought we were just going to try and have dinner like old friends do, and not talk about work?"
She sighed. "I know, I know." She looked over at Shinji. He'd gone through a growth
spurt two years ago. He was a little broader, but still rather wiry. His face still looked like the boy she'd known, but behind that was a strong young man. A leader of elite pilots. If anything had changed, Shinji and Asuka were the ones who had really experienced it. "We barely get to talk anymore outside work. Ever since you and Asuka moved out."
"Not that there was much left," Shinji added. "Anyway, how is reconstruction going on
that side of town?"
"It's ridiculous. These days we can construct a brand new Evangelion unit in seven
months, and they can't get one street done in eight. And it's not as if it's a very large development, anymore. Not like it was four years ago. I guess people are still afraid to come back, even after all that's happened. A lot of them still remember the battles. Of course it's not really something anyone could forget." She stopped, finally noticing the nervous look on Shinji's face. "Oh, damn it. I'm sorry."
"No, Misato, it's all right." Shinji cleared his head. "I was trying to avoid talking about it,
too. But there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about anyway, away from NERV. It's
about Eva. That's why you're trying to upgrade the old models anyway, right? To prove to the
UN and to the people that they can be more than just monsters in a cage. So that they'll be
stronger and more controllable. But, why? What would they be used for?"
She stared at space, thinking. "I don't know, Shinji. The Angels are all dead. But I...
well, I just have a feeling. There were so many questions left unanswered after the Impact, and
after Ikari disappeared. We never really know if it's over."
"Nothing's ever over, I think." Shinji took a deep breath, and smiled. "Well, I trust you.
You don't have to worry about that. So let's eat already. You know how to give a guy an
appetite."
Misato laughed, and looked over her menu. "You've grown up a lot since those old days.
But, to me, you're still the same Shinji-kun." The waiter came over and asked for their drink
orders. "A pitcher of beer for me, thanks."
"And you're still the same Misato-sensei. You're buying, right?" They gave their orders,
and relaxed. There was a pause as they sat and simply listened to the sounds of people around
them.
Finally, Misato asked, "So, how are you and Asuka getting along, anyway? You barely
speak to each other at work unless you're arguing or ordering each other around. Sorry, that's the same thing, isn't it?"
"Asuka says it's so I don't get a big head. We're fine, Misato, really. Every relationship is
supposed to have its arguments, right? She's not as bad as she was at fourteen, anyway."
"Sorry. I've just never seen 'dumkopf' as a term of endearment."
"Well, what else would you expect from Asuka?"
"I have to admit I'm a little jealous. Especially because of how much she likes to brag
about things you do."
Shinji's face reddened. "Um, what things, exactly?" He reached for a glass of water.
"Oh, you know. Just things girls brag about." She tried not to laugh. "Like where and
how long. And the way you squirm when she nibbles your ear."
His face was even brighter as he struggled to not spew water all over the table, and avoid
choking on it as the same time. Finally, he coughed out the words, "She told you about that?"
Water had squirted out of his mouth and onto his lap.
She laughed. "You're way too easy!"
After he dried his lap with a napkin, he said, "Misato, you are a wicked person."
"I am?" She tried to look hurt.
"Yes, you are."
She smiled satisfactorily. "Well, I am what I am." After a moment, she added, "Oh,
Shinji?"
"Hm?"
"I only guessed about the ear thing."
***
"Touji, I thought you asked me over so I could help you study?" Hikari squirmed a little
as her boyfriend touched a sensitive spot of her back.
"So? We did study."
"Five minutes doesn't--" She was cut off as he kissed her. She pulled away for a breath.
"All right, but... right here? On the couch? What if someone comes in?"
"Come on, no one's home. Shinji and Kensuke are both off doing something tonight. It's
just us." Unless, he privately thought, she decided to show up. No, she wouldn't unless Shinji
was here.
"Mein Gott! What the hell are you doing on the couch?"
Touji jumped, and lost his balance. His arms flailed out as he landed on the floor with a
loud thud. After thinking of every swear and curse he knew, Touji looked up. Like a vision out
of a bad, alcohol induced nightmare, Asuka Langley Soryu stood in the doorway between the
living room and the kitchen, scowling at him.
"W-what the hell are you doing here!" He attempted to push himself up, but his hand
slipped, and he fell back down.
Asuka rolled her eyes at him. "Idiot." She looked at her best friend. "Hikari, you know I
try to stay out of your relationship with this dumkopf, but do you really have to do that on the
couch?"
Hikari blushed, looking down. "Sorry, Asuka."
"What? You don't have to apologize to her!" Touji finally managed to upright himself,
and glared at Auska. "This isn't even your home, Asuka. And Shinji's not here, so you can go
away."
"I know he's not home." She went back into the kitchen, and began to put away the food
she'd bought for the Three Stooges. If it wasn't for Shinji, she thought, I swear I'd never set foot
in this place.
Rei poked her head out of the cupboard where she was putting cans away. "Well, at least
we found Hikari."
"Yes, but unfortunately I had to see a side of Touji that makes me want to gouge out my
eyes."
The girl blinked her huge red eyes, and went back to helping put the groceries away. She
never did quite figure out what it was Asuka had against Shinji's friends. True, they were
immature for humans of their age, but Rei simply conjectured that this was because of some
maladjustment experienced during puberty. They were harmless, and actually intimidated by
females to some extent. But then, Rei also knew that Asuka was not famed for her tolerance of
her fellow man.
Touji walked in, rubbing his head. "Well, if you know he's not here, then why are you...
Oh, hey! Food!" He reached for a packet of chocolate. Asuka immediately slapped his hand
away.
"No you don't, idiot! That's for Shinji." She stuffed it into the fridge.
"And the tequila?" He eyed the large bottle of clear liquid sitting on the counter.
"From Deutschland, with love. An old friend sent me a bottle. At least there they have
sane laws about the legal drinking age."
Touji managed to tear his eyes away from the bottle, and noticed the other person
standing in the kitchen. "Oh, heya, Rei."
"Suzihara." She helped Asuka with the last of the food. Asuka pulled a couple of beers
out of the back of the fridge, and handed one to her.
"Did Shinji tell you where he was going to be tonight?"
Asuka took a gulp of beer. "Yeah, he went to dinner with Misato."
"Lucky bastard. So why aren't you with him? Misato pay you to have Shinji to herself for
a night?" He grinned, and dodged Asuka's right hook.
"Ikari asked her not to come because he said that Commander Katsuragi wouldn't be able
to afford it," Rei said blankly. She took a sip of the beer, and sat down at the table.
Touji grinned wider, happy in the knowledge that Rei was a master at both honesty and
the poker face. She was also probably the only person alive who was immune to Asuka's glare.
She didn't even have to try very hard to glare back.
And they never could tell if she was bluffing. At least, not until it was too late and she
already had all their money.
Asuka sat down beside her at the table. "So, where is the Third Stooge?"
"One of his professors was having a lecture tonight as part of some extra credit. You
might as well try and stop him from jumping into an Eva, if he ever got the chance."
Hikari walked in, stretching. "Well, then clear the way. I'll make dinner."
Touji cheered. "Great! I was getting hungry."
"Yeah, and I bet it food isn't the only thing you'd like to have, you dirty hentai," Asuka
muttered from behind her beer. Touji and Hikari froze for a second. Even Rei blushed.
***
Shinji shifted Misato's weight as he carried her up the stairs. She was muttering something
that sounded like a song, but it was hard to be sure if the syllables belonged to any human
language. It was always a little frightening when Misato got drunk. She either began to talk
about the old days, or things that even Shinji had only seen as labels saying "Top Secret", or about how she really needed to get laid. Asuka and Rei once had to save her from some nameless John in a bar, against Misato's very loud and explicit protests. Shinji recalled the interesting
conversation between Asuka and Rei that ensued from that adventure.
He opened the door with one very practiced hand, and hit the light once inside. He
slipped his shoes off and managed to pull off Misato's. He knew the conversation in the morning
would be that he could have called a cab for her, but Misato was too far gone for that even before they'd left the restaurant. Besides, Misato was incapable of helping herself when she had a hangover.
Misato began to protest as he led her through the kitchen to the living room. "Hey, thiss
in't my 'par'ment. Sshhin-ji, here 'r we?"
"Come on, Misato. Couch time." Shinji noted the impressive collection of beer cans
littering the table. Asuka must have been miffed about being asked to miss a free meal.
"Nooo," she whined . "Couchies not comfy."
They found Rei already occupying it. She grumbled in her sleep.
Shinji sighed, and maneuvered Misato on down the hall. He opened to door to his room
with his foot.
"Sshhin-ji, 'r you takin me t'y'r room? Yer a naughty boy, Shinji."
"Yes, yes. Just keep it down. We don't want to attract any predators." He immediately
thought of the disastrous consequences if Touji or Kensuke were to see Shinji carrying a drunk
and... (well, when was she not that?) Misato to his room.
Asuka was asleep in his bed when he walked in. She had her own apartment with Hikari,
supposedly, but Shinji had never seen it (although Touji swore it existed), and she spent most of
her time here. That is, the apartment, not the bed. Well... never mind.
It still got on his nerves whenever Kensuke related Shinji and Asuka's sex life to wild
rabbits.
He helped Misato out of her jacket, nudged Asuka over, and laid Misato down next to
her.
He pulled a futon out of his closet, and went back into the living room. There was no cure
for it. This was his life.
He placed the futon down in the middle of the floor, and then noticed the Rei was sitting
up.
"Oh, Rei! Sorry, we didn't wake you up, I hope?" She shook her head. She stared out
the window, dazed. "Um, are you all right?"
"Ikari?" She didn't look at him. Only her mouth moved when she talked. "I had a
dream."
"People dream all the time, Rei."
She seemed confused, but Shinji could only tell this because she looked down instead of
up. "What is a dream called when you feel..." She tried to find the word, but the stronger her
emotions were, the more difficult they were for her to comprehend. "Terror." That was the
word. Fear wasn't strong enough.
Shinji paused. After the Impact, Rei talked a lot about her dreams, but she'd never seemed
to be affected by them like this. "It's called a nightmare."
"Then I've had a nightmare."
He slowly walked over to the couch, and sat down next to her. "Do you want to talk
about it?"
"I... I was in Central Dogma. In the room where I was born. There was someone laying
on the bed. She was like me, but she wasn't me."
Shinji sighed. He knew where this was going. "Rei, that's all over now. Instrumentality,
my father, Ritsuko... it's over, now. We have a chance to move on."
"No. That's not what it was about. She wasn't a clone. She was like me, but not me. She
said... she said she was the one that came from me. I told her that I can not have children. A
voice said that we were the same. I turned around, and Karou was there."
Shinji froze momentarily.
"Karou's dead, Rei. All the Angels are gone."
"I know that. But Karou said there was another way. He called..." She stopped, wincing.
"He said that I was..."
"Rei? What's wrong?"
Rei crumpled up, clutching her stomach. A small cry escaped through clenched teeth.
Shinji moved towards her, but she pushed him back, and jumped to her feet. She raced to the
bathroom. He followed her, already hearing her vomiting into the toilet. The smell kept him at
the doorway. It made his own gut quiver. He waited until she'd finished, and flushed the toilet. He helped her to her feet, and used a damp cloth to wipe her face.
"Are you all right, now?"
She nodded, weakly. "I'm sorry, Ikari. I felt a pain in my stomach, and..."
"Don't worry about it. It's not the first time I've had to clean something like this up.
Come on, I'll help you back to the couch."
After Rei had fallen asleep again, Shinji laid on the futon, staring up at the ceiling. He'd
come to terms with what happened to... no. He'd killed Karou. He knew that. Karou had
sacrificed himself for Shinji's sake. Karou was the enemy that allowed himself to be defeated.
But he accepted that. He knew now that both he and Misato had been wrong, then. Karou had
not been better, although he did not deserve to die. He had not believed in a false hope. He was the only Angel that hadn't wished to destroy Man.
But what did he mean when he'd said that he and Rei were the same? No, he didn't
actually say that. It was just Rei's nightmare. Her fear of losing herself to someone... something other than she. She feared it more than death.
Shinji fell asleep with the strange feeling that someone was watching him, but from where
he could not say.
***
He breathed in the night air. It was choked with the stench of industrial fumes and buried
waste. He could taste the sweat and blood of people long since disappeared who had stood on
this ground, and hear the ghosts of their voices. He felt it only fitting that he be here tonight, this demolished site where a handful of men had tried to manipulate prophecy to their whims, and control something that never belonged to them to begin with.
He turned to his companion and smiled. "This is where it was carried out. This is where
it should begin again."
His companion shifted in the shadows. "Are you sure we won't get caught? I mean, what
if someone else comes looking?"
"Don't be an idiot. This patch of dirt is of interest only to the dead. And to us, of course."
He spoke with no malice, but there was a quality to his voice which chilled his companion to the
core of his being.
"What if someone finds out?"
"Listen to me. All of them are dead. We made sure of that. SEELE is gone. All that is
left are those who are willing to pick up the pieces."
His companion shifted again. He didn't have a problem with murder. Done correctly, it
was a simple thing. Clean, methodical, and easy, so easy that he wondered how anyone could
ever get caught. One murder, two murders, even six were nothing in the grand scheme of things.
Meaningless little points of light could be snuffed out without anyone even noticing. And six
broken old men were even less so.
But this was something completely different. He could feel it, swelling up from the
ground, drilling into his skull, and teasing his brain. This was something buried because it was
never meant to be reawakened.
A shovel was pushed into his hands. "Tonight the future begins," the man said. "Now,
start digging."
The man smiled in the dark. If there was one thing that he'd learned from Gendo Ikari, is
was that the future belonged to those who were willing to make sure they held the deed.
***
Shinji was already awake when Asuka walked into the kitchen, a toothbrush hanging out
of her mouth. He smiled at her from his work at making breakfast. "Good morning."
She frowned. "I'm not happy with you."
"I expected as much. Sorry, but there was no way she could make it home on her own.
And Rei was gone on the couch."
"Why couldn't you put her in Touji's room?"
"I'd rather not make his wildest dreams come true."
"He wasn't there, dumkopf. He took Hikari home and stayed there for the night."
Kensuke poked his head in, looked at Asuka, and shouted. "Hey! Damn it, Shinji! I
thought you were going to ask her to stop using my toothbrush!"
"This is yours?" Asuka held it up, and then went back to brushing. Kensuke disappeared
back down the hall, grumbling darkly.
"I try to explain that I have no control over you," Shinji said, "But they never listen."
"That's because they don't listen to anyone. Immature morons." She disappeared into the
bathroom, and walked back in a few seconds later, finished with brushing her teeth. She walked
over to him, and punched him in the arm.
"Ow! What was that for?" He rubbed his arm.
"Because when I woke up last night and reached over all I got was a handful of Misato."
She rubbed the spot where she hit him, then shook her head and sat back down. "Oh, stop it, you
wimp. I didn't even leave a bruise."
"Well, and least someone enjoyed themselves last night."
"For your sake, I hope you're talking about Touji and Hikari."
Kensuke walked in a moment later, and sat down opposite from Asuka. "Hey, Shinji, you
could have sprayed some air freshener in the bathroom, you know? Geez, when Misato gets sick,
she really leaves a mess."
"Actually, that wasn't Misato."
Both of them looked at him strangely. "She didn't get you drinking, did she?"
Shinji turned his back on the breakfast for a moment. "No. It was Rei."
"Oh, come on!" Asuka furrowed her brow. "She didn't drink that much!"
"I know. She's never mentioned having nightmares to either of you, has she?"
"She talks to you more than us, Shinji. Except for that time she started having... well, you
know, those dreams. But that was years ago. I've never heard her say anything."
"She had a nightmare last night. It really frightened her." No, he thought, that wasn't the
word she used. "It terrified her."
Kensuke looked into the living room. Rei was still asleep, and drooling a little. "Did she
say what it was about?"
Shinji gave Asuka a hard, serious look, and then said, "No. Only that it scared her. Then
her stomach got upset, or something, and she threw up." Behind him the soup started to boil
over. He shouted, and turned the stove off and set the soup aside.
Asuka lost herself in private thought for a moment, while Shinji set out breakfast. She
knew what that look meant. They would have another one of those long talks later, probably with
Misato, maybe Yoshi. It always worried her when they had to talk about this. It brought too
many bad memories floating to the surface.
When he looked at her like that, it was always because it had something to do with the
Angels.
A loud, familiar moan came from down the hall. It sounded more like a warning siren. It
was ignored until Misato stumbled into the kitchen. Even then, her growling and moaning were
considered no special thing. Shinji placed a mug of coffee in front of her, along with a bottle of aspirin, and a glass of water fizzing with alka-seltzer.
He set out Rei's breakfast and his own last, and finally sat down. Rei was still asleep, and
they ate breakfast quietly after Misato asked them to shut up.
"Sorry, Misato. But you really should cut back a little more. It's not healthy." Shinji said
after five minutes of quiet.
"Shut up."
"That's what you deserve for not inviting me along and trying to keep Shinji all to
yourself," Asuka muttered.
"Why are you punishing me? I'm your Commander, for crying out loud." She took a
large gulp of coffee. They always did this to her. Every time. Why?
"And," Kensuke added, "As Commander, you should try and set a better example for the
young pilots of--"
"All right!" Misato yelled, and immediately regretted it. She crumpled into her chair,
holding her head.
Asuka sighed, and handed her the aspirin. "Go on, take it."
Rei finally shuffled in, rubbing her eyes. "Hm? Why is Commander Katsuragi shouting?"
"Hangover. Want breakfast?"
Rei sat down and joined them. "We're turning into slobs," she said. "We don't even
shower until after we eat, anymore."
"Well, no one else is complaining," Kensuke pointed out.
She thought about it, then shrugged and ate.
Then the warning sirens went off.
***
"Don't say it. I know I'm late. What the hell's going on?" Misato sat down in her chair in
the main chamber of Central Dogma.
Yoshi stood beside her. "We're... we're not sure. It only started five hours ago. At first
we thought it was just radiation, maybe an old N2 mine forgotten from the Angel battles that the
military had left behind." As he spoke, a satellite view of Tokyo-3 and the surrounding
countryside appeared on the main screen. The only thing wrong was a bright white light at the
south end of the map. "We quickly realized it was an energy reaction. Maybe someone had set
off another bomb, you know?"
Of course she knew. After the Angels, the Evangelions were only ever used against things
deemed too dangerous for the regular U.N. and Japan's SDF to tackle on its own. Terrorists with
bombs, giant mechs gone out of control, and things that were generally too damn big.
"And what did it turn out to be?" She knew she wasn't going to like this. She never did.
Yoshi swallowed. "We didn't recognize it right away because no one's seen it for so
long." The screen changed, showing the readings.
Misato felt an icy hand reach in inside her gut. "It's an AT field." She tried to stop staring, to make herself think clearly, but all she could hear inside her head was white noise. They were
supposed to be dead. They are dead. Shinji killed all of them. She'd watched him do it.
"It appears to be coming from somewhere beneath the surface, but it's been steadily
expanding upward, almost as if it was digging itself out. What do you want us to do, sir?"
Misato breathed again, and threw her brain into overdrive. "Set up a perimeter. Launch
all Eva units. We have to make sure that this isn't some kind of..." She didn't finish the sentence.
There was no way this could be a mistake. It was idiotic to even think that.
"Commander, all the Evas are on standby and ready for launch."
Now their worst nightmare had come true. "All Eva units, launch!"
***
Shinji looked at the map. They were supposed to surround the target, then wait for
further orders. This was completely wrong. They never went up against a target they didn't
know anything about. At least, they usually knew something about the target. The only time
they'd ever gone in so unprepared was years ago, when they were fighting the Angels.
"Misato," he opened a channel to the control room. "What's going on? Damn it, Misato,
what are we fighting?" His grip tightened on Eva's controls. He couldn't believe this. He knew
what the answer would be. Why was he so afraid?
"We've detected an AT field. That's all we have right now. No one move until I order, or
unless you have to. Is that understood?"
There was a small period of silence before anyone confirmed. The silence continued after
they were in place, pressing on them. The Eva felt like a trap. It made his gut sick. Eva was not a trap. It was his defense and his weapon. It was the only thing between him and the Angel.
That didn't give him any comfort.
"This is stupid," he heard Asuka mutter. "We should just go in and find out what the mess
is ourselves."
Rei started to say, "Commander Katsuragi ordered us to--"
"I know that!" She was yelling. She always yelled when she was afraid. She yelled more
when she was angry. It was a slight difference. "It doesn't mean I agree with it."
"But if we rush in without knowing what--"
"I said I know that! And we can just as easily set up a trap for something that we know is
coming."
"We don't understand what our enemy is. If we go in now, there's a possibility that--"
"Look, Wonder Girl, if you're just going to sit there and analyze everything I say, then--"
"That's enough," Shinji stopped her. "Damn it, Asuka, Misato told us to hold and wait."
"You of all people should be agreeing with me."
Shinji leaned back in his seat, rolling his eyes upward. "Yeah, my usual brilliant tactics."
"Well I was thinking someone who could get it right would be doing it."
He frowned at the image of her on his screen. "We're not going to argue right now,
Asuka. We can do that later. I just don't want to have to deal with Misato chewing us out."
"She'll probably punish you by forcing some of her coffee down your throat," Touji finally
spoke up. The tension eased a little bit, and they allowed themselves to laugh. Then Asuka
slumped in her seat, arms folded over her breasts. Pouting wasn't going to help her, but Shinji let it go. She was dead set on being stubborn.
Misato was pacing around the lower level of the control room. She hated sitting in the
Commander's chair. She thought better on her feet, and being down here felt different. She could see everything just fine from damn near any corner of the room, but up there she felt disconnected from everything. The mission just didn't seem as real when it was so far away.
She stopped and looked up at it. Even four years later, she could see his shadow staring
down at her, just as silent and disconnected as the man. That must have been how he could make
the decisions; disconnecting from it all, not feeling anything for the events around him.
"It doesn't make any sense."
Yoshi looked up. "Hm? Commander, what was that?"
"I said it doesn't make any sense." She looked back to the main screen. "The Angels'
target has always been Adam. It should be going down, not up. It just doesn't make any sense.
We don't even know where it's coming from."
"Well, where did the Angels come from before?"
She looked at him. "What do you mean?"
"In all the old files, there's never any mention of where the Angels come from. They just
appear. You want to talk about not making sense, Commander, then nothing they do makes
sense to us."
The computer blared a signal. "Commander, there appears to be seismic activity at the AT
field's point of origin."
Misato brought up the map. Nothing appeared to be changing.
"Misato," Shinji's voice came through. It was just above a whisper. "Misato, what the
hell are we going to do?"
"Shinji, what is it?" She turned on an operator. "Is it too much trouble to see what's
going on out there? Where the hell's a camera?"
The screen changed. The space in the area shifted, as if the air was burning. The ground
fountained upward as something rose from beneath it. The soil gave it a form as it fell away: the arch of a bent back, huge shoulders hunched forward. The head lifted itself up, straightening its posture to stand upright. Dirt fell away from its grey, twisted arms to reveal hands ending in talons. Its body was distorted, having limbs far too long for its body. A red orb sat in its chest. Its face had only black holes for eyes, but the teeth were plainly visible. It opened its mouth, and screamed.
"Hit it from behind, now!"
Units 02 and 00 ran forward, and then skidded to a halt. They aimed their rifles, and fired.
The bullets stopped before they reached it, exploding in midair. The area around the explosions
shimmered.
"An AT field. Then it's true. It's an Angel."
The Angel turned and faced its attackers. It screamed, and moved towards them. They
kept firing. Asuka threw down her rifle, and picked up the rocket launcher she had slung across
Unit 02's back. The rocket tore through the AT field, and hit the Angel's shoulder. A cloud of
flames and smoke obscured its face.
"Ha! I got him!"
The Angel stepped forward, still moving slowly towards them. Asuka cursed, and fired
another rocket.
Unit 01 pulled its sonic knife from the sheath. "Touji, arm your knife. We hit it while it's
distracted."
"Right." He mimicked Unit 01, and drew his knife. The AT field shimmered with each
bullet and rocket strike, but the Angel was still advancing slowly. "Why isn't it running?"
"I don't know. Maybe it doesn't think it's threatened." That was stupid. He knew Angels
didn't have reasons for killing. Maybe because it had just awoken?
"Oh, thanks for the credit!" Asuka dropped the now empty launcher, and drew her pistol.
"So shut up and do it, already!"
"Right. Let's go!" Units 01 and 03 charged the Angel. The AT field shimmered in front
of them, growing in strength as they approached. Shinji lunged forward, Touji following, and
they plunged their knives into the AT field. Light flashed in front of their eyes as they strained to pierce it.
The Angel turned, and reached out. Its arm passed through its own AT field, and
wrapped around Unit 01's wrist. Before Shinji could act, it pulled him forward, it's AT field
weakening. It twisted Unit 01's arm, trying to tear it from the socket. Shinji screamed, and
brought his knife around into the monster's body. He missed the core, and buried it to the hilt.
Touji swiped at it, but it dodged aside without even looking at him. Still gripping Shinji's
arm, it twisted to face him, and slashed at Unit 03 with it's free hand. It caught Unit 03 across the chest, and Touji stumbled back. The talons opened up large scars in Eva's armor. Touji gritted his teeth, and slashed back.
Shinji screamed as it continued to twist his arm. Finally, there was a wet snap, and Unit
01's right arm hung limp in the Angel's grip.
"Let him go, damn you!" Asuka slammed the Angel from behind, throwing it to the
ground. Unit 01 stepped back, freed from its talons. Unit 02 leveled its gun at the Angel, and
fired.
The bullets tore into its back. Then the Angels body twisted in on itself, folding and
bulging as its front switched places with it back. It leaped at her, growling and tearing. Asuka fell back under the assault.
Touji advanced again, cutting into the Angel. It turned to face him, and a hail of bullets
hit its back. It turned and saw Unit 00, its rifle firing bullets into its face. The bullets didn't seem to affect it, even as it was now apparently bleeding from the wounds. Its face twisted, and Touji was frozen for a moment as he swore it was smiling.
The Angel's arm shot out, and it impaled Unit 03. It kicked Unit 01 to the ground as
Shinji tried to get back up. It lowered its arm, and let Unit 03 slide off and collapse to the
ground.
Rei locked eyes with its empty black slits.
"Misato... Ikari... Asuka... someone, help me."
"Commander, Unit 02 and Unit 03 are incapacitated!"
"What about the pilots?"
"Life signs of both pilots confirmed. Unit 01's right arm is disabled. The pilot's
connections are failing due to trauma. Unit 00 and the target both appear to be holding."
Misato stared at the screen. It was just standing there, looking at Unit 00. It was
bleeding, but kept going. What the hell kind of Angel bleeds?
This is what she hated most. She wished she was out there with them, helping them. All
she could do was sit here and watch.
"Misato, help me, please." Rei's voice came over the channel. Misato had never heard
this before. Rei was afraid.
"Rei, you've got move! Now, before it--!"
She was cut off by Rei's scream.
"Rei!"
The Angel perched on Unit 00's chest. It had moved so fast, Rei hardly had time to blink
before it was on her. The rifle was torn into pieces. Unit 00 lifted its head a little, even as the Angel's face stared straight down at it. She could see Shinji's knife, right under its core. He'd just barely missed. If she could just reach it...
The Angel pressed Unit 00's head back to the ground, and raised its other hand. The
talons wrapped themselves around each other, creating a single spike on the end of its arm. Rei
braced herself for the pain.
The Angel's hand exploded. It shrieked, and turned. Unit 01 sat up, holding a pistol.
Shinji fired again, scoring a shot into the Angel's neck and chest. It hissed at him, once again
raising its AT field.
Unit 00 reached up and grabbed the knife. It pulled upward, striking the core. Rei
screamed, feeling her Eva's arm strain. The knife continued to dig through the core. Rei set her jaw, and pressed into it. The knife broke through the dense resistance of the core, cutting up the Angel's chest, and splitting it's neck and head. Light and fire exploded from the gash in the core,and Rei could hear the scream of Angel and metal.
The Angel's body shuddered, and then fell against Unit 00, a sagging mass of flesh and
blood. She pushed it off of her with a grunt, and tried to catch her breath.
"Target," she gasped, "Has been terminated."
She heard Misato sigh over the channel. "Well done, Rei. All right, initiate pilot retrieval.
Get them out there now, damn it!"
She laid back for a minute, teaching herself to breath again. After a moment, she said,
"Pilot Suzihara, are you all right?" There was no answer. "Suzihara?"
Shinji persisted, "Touji? Touji, are you there?"
There was a moan. "It feels like there's a hole in my chest."
Shinji laughed a little. "That's because there is."
"Oh, good. Then it's not just me."
Rei smiled. "Ikari, thank you."
"No problem. Next time I'll just hand you my knife." His image on the screen smiled
back.
"Is Asuka all right?"
"I'm fine, Wonder girl." Asuka's channel opened. Her Eva remained immobile. "That
bastard tore my Eva's chest open. Oh, my poor baby!"
Shinji rubbed his sore arm. "Gee, thanks for showing you care."
"You big wimp. Why the hell do you think I tried to save you?"
Touji groaned. "Great, the married couple's fighting now, of all times."
"Oh, you'll get yours Touji, just wait."
"Yes, mein Furher." He grinned wide at her.
Asuka blushed. "That's it! I'm going to finish what that Angel started. I swear it!"
Touji laughed at her. "You guys should learn to be a little more quiet, then. The
moaning's bad enough. It's worse when you talk to him."
***
Shinji was sprawled on the couch in Misato's office. An ice pack sat on his shoulder. Dr. Iwano had told him that his synch ratio was very high at the time when the Angel tore Eva's arm from its socket. It didn't make him feel any better. It was sure as hell of no use to his arm.
Misato walked in, taking only a cursory glance at him, then sitting down with her coffee.
She smiled. "You look like hell. What's with you? You act like you've never piloted an Eva
before."
"What is it about you and revenge?" He sat up, pressing the pack to himself.
"Oh, I don't know. It's just fun."
"You're in a good mood, all things considered."
"I know. I must have caught a little of it from Yoshi. He's going to have a field day with
that thing. I think he's actually very happy about it." She frowned at her coffee.
"I'm glad someone's enjoying it."
"I know. It's like our worst nightmare finally came true. Everything we've tried to get
over for so long... it all just keeps coming back."
"Actually, that's why I was here. Could you get Asuka to come up? She should still be in
the shower." He paused, then spoke again as she reached for the phone. "Um... without Rei
knowing."
Misato froze for half a second, and then picked up her phone, and asked for someone to
privately inform pilot Soryu that she was wanted in the Commander's office.
Misato leaned back and sipped her coffee after putting the phone down. "Is she always so
cranky when she wakes up?"
"Yeah. She just had an excuse this morning." Shinji realized that he probably shouldn't
say much more if he wanted to live.
"I should be the cranky one," she mumbled. "She kicks in her sleep."
"How's Touji?"
"He's fine. They're just keeping him in the hospital for a little bit. He'll be out in a few
hours, hopefully. He did pretty well for his first fight against an Angel."
Asuka was there more quickly than expected. She sat down next to Shinji without saying
a word.
"Asuka? Are you okay?"
She looked at him, and sighed. "Go on. Get it over with."
"What's this all about, Shinji?"
"Last night, after I put you to bed, Rei woke up. She said she had a nightmare. We
started talking about it, but then she ran to the bathroom, and got sick."
"So what was it about?"
"She said that she was in the room where she was born. She was looking at someone,
who was supposed to be from her, but not her. She said that she couldn't have children. Then
someone said that there was another way. She saw... she said it was Karou. He told her that they were the same."
Misato and Asuka were quiet for a long time. Rei never talked about the Angels, least of
all Karou. Shinji avoided that topic entirely if he could get away with it. They didn't know if he'd come to terms with it, and wanted to move on, or if he still had guilt. Shinji would only ever say what had to be done was done.
"What did he mean by that? Rei's nothing like Karou."
Shinji only shrugged. "I don't know. It was her dream."
"Typical," Asuka said. "She has a dream, and an Angel appears. Maybe it has something
to do with her being the First Child?"
"What? Rei being connected to the Angel appearing? That's stretching it, Asuka."
Misato leaned forward on her desk.
"Maybe." Shinji looked up. "Misato, are we sure that the Dummy Plug System is
destroyed? Ritsuko said... it was the whole reason Rei was born."
She nodded. "It's gone, Shinji. The Eva's are dangerous enough without turning them
into mindless killers. I made sure it was taken out the second we got our charter."
"Why the hell does this have to happen all over again?" Asuka slammed her heel against
the couch. "Why? They're all supposed to be dead."
"Asuka." Shinji let go of his ice pack, and put his arm around her. He didn't say anything
more, knowing how much of an idiot he'd sound like.
She looked at him, and smiled a little. "I just think it's a pain in the ass that we have to kill more of them. You'd think seventeen kills would be enough to teach them to leave us alone."
"Some things are never over," Misato said. They looked to her, and she sighed. "Go
home and get some rest. There's nothing left here to do. We can talk later tonight."
They nodded, and then stood to leave. Shinji was halfway out the door when Misato
stopped him.
"Shinji, I know you don't talk about Karou. It's your choice. I just want to know, do you
still blame yourself for his death?"
He looked at her for a long moment. "No, Misato. It was just what had to be done. If I
hadn't, we'd all be dead. That's all there is to it." He closed the door.
End Part 1
Author's Notes: Well, here we go! I know not everyone enjoys these little fire-side chats at the end of a decent fic, but I go through this to make sure you guys aren't totally lost. Yes, my view of the end of Evangelion and the Third Impact is somewhat optomistic, and probably not even that new of an idea, but here it is. Not to worry, I will reveal all mysteries in time, including resolving certain continuity inconsistencies (Hey, Misato, shouldn't you be dead, or something?). I hope you've found that I've tried to remain as true to the characters as possible, granted this is my view of them after four years of growth (What the hell? Asuka should be strangling Shinji's neck, not his... nevermind). All c&c can be sent to loneshark707@hotmail.com. And please do not complain about formatting... I've tried very hard to get wordwrap and fanfiction.net's own formatting to work together, but if it's totally unreadable, I'll work to make it so, I promise! Sort of.
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Seraphim
by the Loneshark
Chapter 1: Repologue
"That's it! I can't take it anymore!" The door slammed, causing most people in the office
to flinch. Misato crashed into the chair behind her desk, breathing heavily. She stared at the wall, her hands gripping the armrests. Her nails were digging into the vinyl. She stopped fighting the urge, and pulled the gun from her desk drawer. She aimed it at the wall, but her fingers wouldn't pull the trigger. She knew she shouldn't. She couldn't.
She couldn't afford to pay the repair bills. That's what she kept telling herself. She
couldn't afford to pay for the damages.
"Commander? Commander Katsuragi?" The timid voice came from outside. The door
opened without waiting for an answer. Yoshi Iwano was not a brave man. And while he was
considered one of the most brilliant technical minds of his generation, he was not a man that relied on forethought. He yelped when he saw the gun in Misato's hands.
She looked up at the young man, her face a picture of stress and anger. "What?" It
sounded like something Yoshi had heard in a nightmare long ago as a child. Something about
Satan and an evil Charlie Brown...
"Um, well, I think, maybe you should put the gun away, ma'am. Please. Don't point it at
me?" He could feel himself shrinking back behind the door.
Misato looked at the gun, then sighed, and shoved it back into its drawer. She leaned
forward on her desk, resting her head on her hands.
"Sorry, Yoshi. Come in, no need to stand in the damn doorway."
"Yes, ma'am." He closed the door, and tentatively walked to her desk. "So, I take it that
the budget negotiation didn't go well?"
She leaned back in her chair. "It never does. All those tight asses say that they want more
concrete results before they can approve such a budget."
"Well, ma'am, I'm trying, but there are holes in the research left behind by the Ikaris. And
figuring out the quirks in the Magi is enough for a team of programers to handle, let alone the few we have--"
Misato waved a hand. "I know, Yoshi, I know. I've been inside the thing, remember?"
She swivled the chair around to look directly at him. "The Eva's are power, Yoshi. Without a
pilot to direct it, an Eva is nothing more than an over-powered monster. You probably wouldn't
have been aware of that until you came here from Tokyo 2, of course."
Yoshi nodded. "Yes, ma'am. I know." God, did he know. His superior's favorite thing
to do when she was drunk was tell stories about 'the old days,' for all they were worth.
"Commander--"
"We're just in my office, Yoshi. You don't have to call me that."
"Sorry, it's... Well, I know things have been different around here ever since Fuyutski
retired... and Ikari disappeared, and the UN purchased the NERV charter from SEELE, but could
I ask you something? About my predecessor?"
Misato looked at the young man's eyes. They were inquisitive little brown orbs hidden
behind thin glasses. When he looked at her, she couldn't help but feel that those eyes really
belonged to...
"You mean Ritsuko Akagi?"
He nodded. "What happened to her, ma'am? It's the one thing you never talk about, and I
thought that if there was anyway of contacting her, I thought I may be able to put together more
of what we need to really upgrade the Eva's. I might be able to fully utilize the Magi."
That was the difference between them, she thought. Ritsuko had always been serious and
cynical. Yoshi was much different from her. He wasn't frightened by the Eva's. He saw only
bright possibilities where Ritsuko could only see cold probabilities.
Her eyes focused on the picture on her desk. "Ritsuko was committed. The Third Impact
didn't work for everyone. It was hard enough for Shinji to unravel it. Not everyone came out in
one piece. The damage that had been done to Ritsuko before Third Impact was something she
couldn't face, no matter what Ikari's intentions. She went insane. I'm afraid whatever information
you could have gotten out of her is long gone, Yoshi."
He leaned back, digesting the information. It was true; he'd heard that the Third Impact
had not worked for everyone. Whatever it was Gendo Ikari had done to try and change the
world, it didn't completely work. As in everything with life, nothing was one hundred percent.
"I'm sorry to bring it up, ma'am."
She shook her head. "Don't worry. It's ancient history, now." Her eyes widened, and she
looked at her watch. "Oh, damn! I almost forgot about it!" She stood, and gathered her personal things from the desk, and the papers she would be taking home tonight.
Yoshi watched her head for the door. "Um, Commander Katsuragi, where are you
going?"
"I have to leave a little early tonight. Don't worry, Yoshi, NERV can take care of itself
for a little while without me, can't it?"
He laughed a little. "Well, you are our fearless leader. And you still haven't finished those
reports on the latest synch tests, and--"
"All right, all right, I'll have it in the morning, okay? Just hold down the GeoFront for me
overnight, huh? Thanks." She walked out of her office, leaving Yoshi in the peace of silence.
He had to sit for a moment and enjoy it. Since he'd come to work for NERV, he had
quickly learned to enjoy such brief moments. The Commander's constant battles with UN
overseers, various missions that the Eva's somehow managed to find being thrown in their laps,
and the temperamental nature of the Evas themselves made the HQ a battlefield by itself.
He leaned forward, and turned the picture around. It was a group photograph of
Commander Katsuragi, along with the four original Eva pilots. It has been taken almost three
years ago, right after the UN had NERV recomissioned. They were all smiling, even Rei, which
was a rare thing. Misato and Asuka both held up their fingers in a "V", and Touji and Shinji stood with their arms crossed, back to back. Eva Team 01 was the official title. Yoshi couldn't help but think of them as heroes.
He'd been about their age now when the Angels came. The Third Impact changed all of
that. It hadn't ended the world, as Ikari had hoped. His own son had taken it and made it into
something else. He gave the human race a chance to shape its own destiny. For someone who
professed a dislike for fighting, he could certainly be counted on when he was needed.
Yoshi turned the picture back around, and quietly closed the door as he left.
***
Shinji resisted the urge. He shouldn't. He was in public, in a decent restaurant. How was
Misato even going to be able to afford this? She could never handle money. Her spending habits
were the one thing that could never change. She was probably the one who had changed the least
of all.
Shinji sighed, and gave in. So what if he was in public? Misato was half an hour late. He
was bored.
He picked up the dinner fork on the table, tilted his head back, and carefully began to try
and balance the fork on his nose. If he could look around, he would have seen that people were
starting to stare. He didn't think about, instead concentrating on the fork. After a moment, the maitre de approached, and asked him to stop juggling the silverware, again.
He took it off his nose, and started to drum his fingers on the table.
There was a small laugh behind him. "You never do change, you know?" Misato
wrapped her arms around him from behind in a quick hug, and then sat down.
"Hi, Misato. I was just getting bored."
"I know. Sometimes you're still the same boy you were when we first met."
"No. Asuka says I'm not so serious anymore. But then, she's still a pain sometimes."
Misato grinned. "Not that you mind, I bet?"
"Well, uh... So, anyway, what took you so long?"
"Sorry about that. I don't know why you didn't leave. I'd have never stuck around, as
slow as it was getting here."
"Working late and leaving early again?" He watched her face tighten. "Oh, I almost
forgot. Another budget meeting with the UN supervisors."
Misato opened up her menu as the waiter set it down. "Sometimes I don't know what the
hell they expect from us. How the hell are we going to protect their sorry butts if they don't give us the funding we need?" She sighed, and looked up. "I'm sorry, Shinji. I shouldn't be
complaining right now."
He shook his head. "It's all right, Misato. It's nothing I haven't heard before, right?" He
looked at his own menu. "I thought we were just going to try and have dinner like old friends do, and not talk about work?"
She sighed. "I know, I know." She looked over at Shinji. He'd gone through a growth
spurt two years ago. He was a little broader, but still rather wiry. His face still looked like the boy she'd known, but behind that was a strong young man. A leader of elite pilots. If anything had changed, Shinji and Asuka were the ones who had really experienced it. "We barely get to talk anymore outside work. Ever since you and Asuka moved out."
"Not that there was much left," Shinji added. "Anyway, how is reconstruction going on
that side of town?"
"It's ridiculous. These days we can construct a brand new Evangelion unit in seven
months, and they can't get one street done in eight. And it's not as if it's a very large development, anymore. Not like it was four years ago. I guess people are still afraid to come back, even after all that's happened. A lot of them still remember the battles. Of course it's not really something anyone could forget." She stopped, finally noticing the nervous look on Shinji's face. "Oh, damn it. I'm sorry."
"No, Misato, it's all right." Shinji cleared his head. "I was trying to avoid talking about it,
too. But there's something I've been wanting to talk to you about anyway, away from NERV. It's
about Eva. That's why you're trying to upgrade the old models anyway, right? To prove to the
UN and to the people that they can be more than just monsters in a cage. So that they'll be
stronger and more controllable. But, why? What would they be used for?"
She stared at space, thinking. "I don't know, Shinji. The Angels are all dead. But I...
well, I just have a feeling. There were so many questions left unanswered after the Impact, and
after Ikari disappeared. We never really know if it's over."
"Nothing's ever over, I think." Shinji took a deep breath, and smiled. "Well, I trust you.
You don't have to worry about that. So let's eat already. You know how to give a guy an
appetite."
Misato laughed, and looked over her menu. "You've grown up a lot since those old days.
But, to me, you're still the same Shinji-kun." The waiter came over and asked for their drink
orders. "A pitcher of beer for me, thanks."
"And you're still the same Misato-sensei. You're buying, right?" They gave their orders,
and relaxed. There was a pause as they sat and simply listened to the sounds of people around
them.
Finally, Misato asked, "So, how are you and Asuka getting along, anyway? You barely
speak to each other at work unless you're arguing or ordering each other around. Sorry, that's the same thing, isn't it?"
"Asuka says it's so I don't get a big head. We're fine, Misato, really. Every relationship is
supposed to have its arguments, right? She's not as bad as she was at fourteen, anyway."
"Sorry. I've just never seen 'dumkopf' as a term of endearment."
"Well, what else would you expect from Asuka?"
"I have to admit I'm a little jealous. Especially because of how much she likes to brag
about things you do."
Shinji's face reddened. "Um, what things, exactly?" He reached for a glass of water.
"Oh, you know. Just things girls brag about." She tried not to laugh. "Like where and
how long. And the way you squirm when she nibbles your ear."
His face was even brighter as he struggled to not spew water all over the table, and avoid
choking on it as the same time. Finally, he coughed out the words, "She told you about that?"
Water had squirted out of his mouth and onto his lap.
She laughed. "You're way too easy!"
After he dried his lap with a napkin, he said, "Misato, you are a wicked person."
"I am?" She tried to look hurt.
"Yes, you are."
She smiled satisfactorily. "Well, I am what I am." After a moment, she added, "Oh,
Shinji?"
"Hm?"
"I only guessed about the ear thing."
***
"Touji, I thought you asked me over so I could help you study?" Hikari squirmed a little
as her boyfriend touched a sensitive spot of her back.
"So? We did study."
"Five minutes doesn't--" She was cut off as he kissed her. She pulled away for a breath.
"All right, but... right here? On the couch? What if someone comes in?"
"Come on, no one's home. Shinji and Kensuke are both off doing something tonight. It's
just us." Unless, he privately thought, she decided to show up. No, she wouldn't unless Shinji
was here.
"Mein Gott! What the hell are you doing on the couch?"
Touji jumped, and lost his balance. His arms flailed out as he landed on the floor with a
loud thud. After thinking of every swear and curse he knew, Touji looked up. Like a vision out
of a bad, alcohol induced nightmare, Asuka Langley Soryu stood in the doorway between the
living room and the kitchen, scowling at him.
"W-what the hell are you doing here!" He attempted to push himself up, but his hand
slipped, and he fell back down.
Asuka rolled her eyes at him. "Idiot." She looked at her best friend. "Hikari, you know I
try to stay out of your relationship with this dumkopf, but do you really have to do that on the
couch?"
Hikari blushed, looking down. "Sorry, Asuka."
"What? You don't have to apologize to her!" Touji finally managed to upright himself,
and glared at Auska. "This isn't even your home, Asuka. And Shinji's not here, so you can go
away."
"I know he's not home." She went back into the kitchen, and began to put away the food
she'd bought for the Three Stooges. If it wasn't for Shinji, she thought, I swear I'd never set foot
in this place.
Rei poked her head out of the cupboard where she was putting cans away. "Well, at least
we found Hikari."
"Yes, but unfortunately I had to see a side of Touji that makes me want to gouge out my
eyes."
The girl blinked her huge red eyes, and went back to helping put the groceries away. She
never did quite figure out what it was Asuka had against Shinji's friends. True, they were
immature for humans of their age, but Rei simply conjectured that this was because of some
maladjustment experienced during puberty. They were harmless, and actually intimidated by
females to some extent. But then, Rei also knew that Asuka was not famed for her tolerance of
her fellow man.
Touji walked in, rubbing his head. "Well, if you know he's not here, then why are you...
Oh, hey! Food!" He reached for a packet of chocolate. Asuka immediately slapped his hand
away.
"No you don't, idiot! That's for Shinji." She stuffed it into the fridge.
"And the tequila?" He eyed the large bottle of clear liquid sitting on the counter.
"From Deutschland, with love. An old friend sent me a bottle. At least there they have
sane laws about the legal drinking age."
Touji managed to tear his eyes away from the bottle, and noticed the other person
standing in the kitchen. "Oh, heya, Rei."
"Suzihara." She helped Asuka with the last of the food. Asuka pulled a couple of beers
out of the back of the fridge, and handed one to her.
"Did Shinji tell you where he was going to be tonight?"
Asuka took a gulp of beer. "Yeah, he went to dinner with Misato."
"Lucky bastard. So why aren't you with him? Misato pay you to have Shinji to herself for
a night?" He grinned, and dodged Asuka's right hook.
"Ikari asked her not to come because he said that Commander Katsuragi wouldn't be able
to afford it," Rei said blankly. She took a sip of the beer, and sat down at the table.
Touji grinned wider, happy in the knowledge that Rei was a master at both honesty and
the poker face. She was also probably the only person alive who was immune to Asuka's glare.
She didn't even have to try very hard to glare back.
And they never could tell if she was bluffing. At least, not until it was too late and she
already had all their money.
Asuka sat down beside her at the table. "So, where is the Third Stooge?"
"One of his professors was having a lecture tonight as part of some extra credit. You
might as well try and stop him from jumping into an Eva, if he ever got the chance."
Hikari walked in, stretching. "Well, then clear the way. I'll make dinner."
Touji cheered. "Great! I was getting hungry."
"Yeah, and I bet it food isn't the only thing you'd like to have, you dirty hentai," Asuka
muttered from behind her beer. Touji and Hikari froze for a second. Even Rei blushed.
***
Shinji shifted Misato's weight as he carried her up the stairs. She was muttering something
that sounded like a song, but it was hard to be sure if the syllables belonged to any human
language. It was always a little frightening when Misato got drunk. She either began to talk
about the old days, or things that even Shinji had only seen as labels saying "Top Secret", or about how she really needed to get laid. Asuka and Rei once had to save her from some nameless John in a bar, against Misato's very loud and explicit protests. Shinji recalled the interesting
conversation between Asuka and Rei that ensued from that adventure.
He opened the door with one very practiced hand, and hit the light once inside. He
slipped his shoes off and managed to pull off Misato's. He knew the conversation in the morning
would be that he could have called a cab for her, but Misato was too far gone for that even before they'd left the restaurant. Besides, Misato was incapable of helping herself when she had a hangover.
Misato began to protest as he led her through the kitchen to the living room. "Hey, thiss
in't my 'par'ment. Sshhin-ji, here 'r we?"
"Come on, Misato. Couch time." Shinji noted the impressive collection of beer cans
littering the table. Asuka must have been miffed about being asked to miss a free meal.
"Nooo," she whined . "Couchies not comfy."
They found Rei already occupying it. She grumbled in her sleep.
Shinji sighed, and maneuvered Misato on down the hall. He opened to door to his room
with his foot.
"Sshhin-ji, 'r you takin me t'y'r room? Yer a naughty boy, Shinji."
"Yes, yes. Just keep it down. We don't want to attract any predators." He immediately
thought of the disastrous consequences if Touji or Kensuke were to see Shinji carrying a drunk
and... (well, when was she not that?) Misato to his room.
Asuka was asleep in his bed when he walked in. She had her own apartment with Hikari,
supposedly, but Shinji had never seen it (although Touji swore it existed), and she spent most of
her time here. That is, the apartment, not the bed. Well... never mind.
It still got on his nerves whenever Kensuke related Shinji and Asuka's sex life to wild
rabbits.
He helped Misato out of her jacket, nudged Asuka over, and laid Misato down next to
her.
He pulled a futon out of his closet, and went back into the living room. There was no cure
for it. This was his life.
He placed the futon down in the middle of the floor, and then noticed the Rei was sitting
up.
"Oh, Rei! Sorry, we didn't wake you up, I hope?" She shook her head. She stared out
the window, dazed. "Um, are you all right?"
"Ikari?" She didn't look at him. Only her mouth moved when she talked. "I had a
dream."
"People dream all the time, Rei."
She seemed confused, but Shinji could only tell this because she looked down instead of
up. "What is a dream called when you feel..." She tried to find the word, but the stronger her
emotions were, the more difficult they were for her to comprehend. "Terror." That was the
word. Fear wasn't strong enough.
Shinji paused. After the Impact, Rei talked a lot about her dreams, but she'd never seemed
to be affected by them like this. "It's called a nightmare."
"Then I've had a nightmare."
He slowly walked over to the couch, and sat down next to her. "Do you want to talk
about it?"
"I... I was in Central Dogma. In the room where I was born. There was someone laying
on the bed. She was like me, but she wasn't me."
Shinji sighed. He knew where this was going. "Rei, that's all over now. Instrumentality,
my father, Ritsuko... it's over, now. We have a chance to move on."
"No. That's not what it was about. She wasn't a clone. She was like me, but not me. She
said... she said she was the one that came from me. I told her that I can not have children. A
voice said that we were the same. I turned around, and Karou was there."
Shinji froze momentarily.
"Karou's dead, Rei. All the Angels are gone."
"I know that. But Karou said there was another way. He called..." She stopped, wincing.
"He said that I was..."
"Rei? What's wrong?"
Rei crumpled up, clutching her stomach. A small cry escaped through clenched teeth.
Shinji moved towards her, but she pushed him back, and jumped to her feet. She raced to the
bathroom. He followed her, already hearing her vomiting into the toilet. The smell kept him at
the doorway. It made his own gut quiver. He waited until she'd finished, and flushed the toilet. He helped her to her feet, and used a damp cloth to wipe her face.
"Are you all right, now?"
She nodded, weakly. "I'm sorry, Ikari. I felt a pain in my stomach, and..."
"Don't worry about it. It's not the first time I've had to clean something like this up.
Come on, I'll help you back to the couch."
After Rei had fallen asleep again, Shinji laid on the futon, staring up at the ceiling. He'd
come to terms with what happened to... no. He'd killed Karou. He knew that. Karou had
sacrificed himself for Shinji's sake. Karou was the enemy that allowed himself to be defeated.
But he accepted that. He knew now that both he and Misato had been wrong, then. Karou had
not been better, although he did not deserve to die. He had not believed in a false hope. He was the only Angel that hadn't wished to destroy Man.
But what did he mean when he'd said that he and Rei were the same? No, he didn't
actually say that. It was just Rei's nightmare. Her fear of losing herself to someone... something other than she. She feared it more than death.
Shinji fell asleep with the strange feeling that someone was watching him, but from where
he could not say.
***
He breathed in the night air. It was choked with the stench of industrial fumes and buried
waste. He could taste the sweat and blood of people long since disappeared who had stood on
this ground, and hear the ghosts of their voices. He felt it only fitting that he be here tonight, this demolished site where a handful of men had tried to manipulate prophecy to their whims, and control something that never belonged to them to begin with.
He turned to his companion and smiled. "This is where it was carried out. This is where
it should begin again."
His companion shifted in the shadows. "Are you sure we won't get caught? I mean, what
if someone else comes looking?"
"Don't be an idiot. This patch of dirt is of interest only to the dead. And to us, of course."
He spoke with no malice, but there was a quality to his voice which chilled his companion to the
core of his being.
"What if someone finds out?"
"Listen to me. All of them are dead. We made sure of that. SEELE is gone. All that is
left are those who are willing to pick up the pieces."
His companion shifted again. He didn't have a problem with murder. Done correctly, it
was a simple thing. Clean, methodical, and easy, so easy that he wondered how anyone could
ever get caught. One murder, two murders, even six were nothing in the grand scheme of things.
Meaningless little points of light could be snuffed out without anyone even noticing. And six
broken old men were even less so.
But this was something completely different. He could feel it, swelling up from the
ground, drilling into his skull, and teasing his brain. This was something buried because it was
never meant to be reawakened.
A shovel was pushed into his hands. "Tonight the future begins," the man said. "Now,
start digging."
The man smiled in the dark. If there was one thing that he'd learned from Gendo Ikari, is
was that the future belonged to those who were willing to make sure they held the deed.
***
Shinji was already awake when Asuka walked into the kitchen, a toothbrush hanging out
of her mouth. He smiled at her from his work at making breakfast. "Good morning."
She frowned. "I'm not happy with you."
"I expected as much. Sorry, but there was no way she could make it home on her own.
And Rei was gone on the couch."
"Why couldn't you put her in Touji's room?"
"I'd rather not make his wildest dreams come true."
"He wasn't there, dumkopf. He took Hikari home and stayed there for the night."
Kensuke poked his head in, looked at Asuka, and shouted. "Hey! Damn it, Shinji! I
thought you were going to ask her to stop using my toothbrush!"
"This is yours?" Asuka held it up, and then went back to brushing. Kensuke disappeared
back down the hall, grumbling darkly.
"I try to explain that I have no control over you," Shinji said, "But they never listen."
"That's because they don't listen to anyone. Immature morons." She disappeared into the
bathroom, and walked back in a few seconds later, finished with brushing her teeth. She walked
over to him, and punched him in the arm.
"Ow! What was that for?" He rubbed his arm.
"Because when I woke up last night and reached over all I got was a handful of Misato."
She rubbed the spot where she hit him, then shook her head and sat back down. "Oh, stop it, you
wimp. I didn't even leave a bruise."
"Well, and least someone enjoyed themselves last night."
"For your sake, I hope you're talking about Touji and Hikari."
Kensuke walked in a moment later, and sat down opposite from Asuka. "Hey, Shinji, you
could have sprayed some air freshener in the bathroom, you know? Geez, when Misato gets sick,
she really leaves a mess."
"Actually, that wasn't Misato."
Both of them looked at him strangely. "She didn't get you drinking, did she?"
Shinji turned his back on the breakfast for a moment. "No. It was Rei."
"Oh, come on!" Asuka furrowed her brow. "She didn't drink that much!"
"I know. She's never mentioned having nightmares to either of you, has she?"
"She talks to you more than us, Shinji. Except for that time she started having... well, you
know, those dreams. But that was years ago. I've never heard her say anything."
"She had a nightmare last night. It really frightened her." No, he thought, that wasn't the
word she used. "It terrified her."
Kensuke looked into the living room. Rei was still asleep, and drooling a little. "Did she
say what it was about?"
Shinji gave Asuka a hard, serious look, and then said, "No. Only that it scared her. Then
her stomach got upset, or something, and she threw up." Behind him the soup started to boil
over. He shouted, and turned the stove off and set the soup aside.
Asuka lost herself in private thought for a moment, while Shinji set out breakfast. She
knew what that look meant. They would have another one of those long talks later, probably with
Misato, maybe Yoshi. It always worried her when they had to talk about this. It brought too
many bad memories floating to the surface.
When he looked at her like that, it was always because it had something to do with the
Angels.
A loud, familiar moan came from down the hall. It sounded more like a warning siren. It
was ignored until Misato stumbled into the kitchen. Even then, her growling and moaning were
considered no special thing. Shinji placed a mug of coffee in front of her, along with a bottle of aspirin, and a glass of water fizzing with alka-seltzer.
He set out Rei's breakfast and his own last, and finally sat down. Rei was still asleep, and
they ate breakfast quietly after Misato asked them to shut up.
"Sorry, Misato. But you really should cut back a little more. It's not healthy." Shinji said
after five minutes of quiet.
"Shut up."
"That's what you deserve for not inviting me along and trying to keep Shinji all to
yourself," Asuka muttered.
"Why are you punishing me? I'm your Commander, for crying out loud." She took a
large gulp of coffee. They always did this to her. Every time. Why?
"And," Kensuke added, "As Commander, you should try and set a better example for the
young pilots of--"
"All right!" Misato yelled, and immediately regretted it. She crumpled into her chair,
holding her head.
Asuka sighed, and handed her the aspirin. "Go on, take it."
Rei finally shuffled in, rubbing her eyes. "Hm? Why is Commander Katsuragi shouting?"
"Hangover. Want breakfast?"
Rei sat down and joined them. "We're turning into slobs," she said. "We don't even
shower until after we eat, anymore."
"Well, no one else is complaining," Kensuke pointed out.
She thought about it, then shrugged and ate.
Then the warning sirens went off.
***
"Don't say it. I know I'm late. What the hell's going on?" Misato sat down in her chair in
the main chamber of Central Dogma.
Yoshi stood beside her. "We're... we're not sure. It only started five hours ago. At first
we thought it was just radiation, maybe an old N2 mine forgotten from the Angel battles that the
military had left behind." As he spoke, a satellite view of Tokyo-3 and the surrounding
countryside appeared on the main screen. The only thing wrong was a bright white light at the
south end of the map. "We quickly realized it was an energy reaction. Maybe someone had set
off another bomb, you know?"
Of course she knew. After the Angels, the Evangelions were only ever used against things
deemed too dangerous for the regular U.N. and Japan's SDF to tackle on its own. Terrorists with
bombs, giant mechs gone out of control, and things that were generally too damn big.
"And what did it turn out to be?" She knew she wasn't going to like this. She never did.
Yoshi swallowed. "We didn't recognize it right away because no one's seen it for so
long." The screen changed, showing the readings.
Misato felt an icy hand reach in inside her gut. "It's an AT field." She tried to stop staring, to make herself think clearly, but all she could hear inside her head was white noise. They were
supposed to be dead. They are dead. Shinji killed all of them. She'd watched him do it.
"It appears to be coming from somewhere beneath the surface, but it's been steadily
expanding upward, almost as if it was digging itself out. What do you want us to do, sir?"
Misato breathed again, and threw her brain into overdrive. "Set up a perimeter. Launch
all Eva units. We have to make sure that this isn't some kind of..." She didn't finish the sentence.
There was no way this could be a mistake. It was idiotic to even think that.
"Commander, all the Evas are on standby and ready for launch."
Now their worst nightmare had come true. "All Eva units, launch!"
***
Shinji looked at the map. They were supposed to surround the target, then wait for
further orders. This was completely wrong. They never went up against a target they didn't
know anything about. At least, they usually knew something about the target. The only time
they'd ever gone in so unprepared was years ago, when they were fighting the Angels.
"Misato," he opened a channel to the control room. "What's going on? Damn it, Misato,
what are we fighting?" His grip tightened on Eva's controls. He couldn't believe this. He knew
what the answer would be. Why was he so afraid?
"We've detected an AT field. That's all we have right now. No one move until I order, or
unless you have to. Is that understood?"
There was a small period of silence before anyone confirmed. The silence continued after
they were in place, pressing on them. The Eva felt like a trap. It made his gut sick. Eva was not a trap. It was his defense and his weapon. It was the only thing between him and the Angel.
That didn't give him any comfort.
"This is stupid," he heard Asuka mutter. "We should just go in and find out what the mess
is ourselves."
Rei started to say, "Commander Katsuragi ordered us to--"
"I know that!" She was yelling. She always yelled when she was afraid. She yelled more
when she was angry. It was a slight difference. "It doesn't mean I agree with it."
"But if we rush in without knowing what--"
"I said I know that! And we can just as easily set up a trap for something that we know is
coming."
"We don't understand what our enemy is. If we go in now, there's a possibility that--"
"Look, Wonder Girl, if you're just going to sit there and analyze everything I say, then--"
"That's enough," Shinji stopped her. "Damn it, Asuka, Misato told us to hold and wait."
"You of all people should be agreeing with me."
Shinji leaned back in his seat, rolling his eyes upward. "Yeah, my usual brilliant tactics."
"Well I was thinking someone who could get it right would be doing it."
He frowned at the image of her on his screen. "We're not going to argue right now,
Asuka. We can do that later. I just don't want to have to deal with Misato chewing us out."
"She'll probably punish you by forcing some of her coffee down your throat," Touji finally
spoke up. The tension eased a little bit, and they allowed themselves to laugh. Then Asuka
slumped in her seat, arms folded over her breasts. Pouting wasn't going to help her, but Shinji let it go. She was dead set on being stubborn.
Misato was pacing around the lower level of the control room. She hated sitting in the
Commander's chair. She thought better on her feet, and being down here felt different. She could see everything just fine from damn near any corner of the room, but up there she felt disconnected from everything. The mission just didn't seem as real when it was so far away.
She stopped and looked up at it. Even four years later, she could see his shadow staring
down at her, just as silent and disconnected as the man. That must have been how he could make
the decisions; disconnecting from it all, not feeling anything for the events around him.
"It doesn't make any sense."
Yoshi looked up. "Hm? Commander, what was that?"
"I said it doesn't make any sense." She looked back to the main screen. "The Angels'
target has always been Adam. It should be going down, not up. It just doesn't make any sense.
We don't even know where it's coming from."
"Well, where did the Angels come from before?"
She looked at him. "What do you mean?"
"In all the old files, there's never any mention of where the Angels come from. They just
appear. You want to talk about not making sense, Commander, then nothing they do makes
sense to us."
The computer blared a signal. "Commander, there appears to be seismic activity at the AT
field's point of origin."
Misato brought up the map. Nothing appeared to be changing.
"Misato," Shinji's voice came through. It was just above a whisper. "Misato, what the
hell are we going to do?"
"Shinji, what is it?" She turned on an operator. "Is it too much trouble to see what's
going on out there? Where the hell's a camera?"
The screen changed. The space in the area shifted, as if the air was burning. The ground
fountained upward as something rose from beneath it. The soil gave it a form as it fell away: the arch of a bent back, huge shoulders hunched forward. The head lifted itself up, straightening its posture to stand upright. Dirt fell away from its grey, twisted arms to reveal hands ending in talons. Its body was distorted, having limbs far too long for its body. A red orb sat in its chest. Its face had only black holes for eyes, but the teeth were plainly visible. It opened its mouth, and screamed.
"Hit it from behind, now!"
Units 02 and 00 ran forward, and then skidded to a halt. They aimed their rifles, and fired.
The bullets stopped before they reached it, exploding in midair. The area around the explosions
shimmered.
"An AT field. Then it's true. It's an Angel."
The Angel turned and faced its attackers. It screamed, and moved towards them. They
kept firing. Asuka threw down her rifle, and picked up the rocket launcher she had slung across
Unit 02's back. The rocket tore through the AT field, and hit the Angel's shoulder. A cloud of
flames and smoke obscured its face.
"Ha! I got him!"
The Angel stepped forward, still moving slowly towards them. Asuka cursed, and fired
another rocket.
Unit 01 pulled its sonic knife from the sheath. "Touji, arm your knife. We hit it while it's
distracted."
"Right." He mimicked Unit 01, and drew his knife. The AT field shimmered with each
bullet and rocket strike, but the Angel was still advancing slowly. "Why isn't it running?"
"I don't know. Maybe it doesn't think it's threatened." That was stupid. He knew Angels
didn't have reasons for killing. Maybe because it had just awoken?
"Oh, thanks for the credit!" Asuka dropped the now empty launcher, and drew her pistol.
"So shut up and do it, already!"
"Right. Let's go!" Units 01 and 03 charged the Angel. The AT field shimmered in front
of them, growing in strength as they approached. Shinji lunged forward, Touji following, and
they plunged their knives into the AT field. Light flashed in front of their eyes as they strained to pierce it.
The Angel turned, and reached out. Its arm passed through its own AT field, and
wrapped around Unit 01's wrist. Before Shinji could act, it pulled him forward, it's AT field
weakening. It twisted Unit 01's arm, trying to tear it from the socket. Shinji screamed, and
brought his knife around into the monster's body. He missed the core, and buried it to the hilt.
Touji swiped at it, but it dodged aside without even looking at him. Still gripping Shinji's
arm, it twisted to face him, and slashed at Unit 03 with it's free hand. It caught Unit 03 across the chest, and Touji stumbled back. The talons opened up large scars in Eva's armor. Touji gritted his teeth, and slashed back.
Shinji screamed as it continued to twist his arm. Finally, there was a wet snap, and Unit
01's right arm hung limp in the Angel's grip.
"Let him go, damn you!" Asuka slammed the Angel from behind, throwing it to the
ground. Unit 01 stepped back, freed from its talons. Unit 02 leveled its gun at the Angel, and
fired.
The bullets tore into its back. Then the Angels body twisted in on itself, folding and
bulging as its front switched places with it back. It leaped at her, growling and tearing. Asuka fell back under the assault.
Touji advanced again, cutting into the Angel. It turned to face him, and a hail of bullets
hit its back. It turned and saw Unit 00, its rifle firing bullets into its face. The bullets didn't seem to affect it, even as it was now apparently bleeding from the wounds. Its face twisted, and Touji was frozen for a moment as he swore it was smiling.
The Angel's arm shot out, and it impaled Unit 03. It kicked Unit 01 to the ground as
Shinji tried to get back up. It lowered its arm, and let Unit 03 slide off and collapse to the
ground.
Rei locked eyes with its empty black slits.
"Misato... Ikari... Asuka... someone, help me."
"Commander, Unit 02 and Unit 03 are incapacitated!"
"What about the pilots?"
"Life signs of both pilots confirmed. Unit 01's right arm is disabled. The pilot's
connections are failing due to trauma. Unit 00 and the target both appear to be holding."
Misato stared at the screen. It was just standing there, looking at Unit 00. It was
bleeding, but kept going. What the hell kind of Angel bleeds?
This is what she hated most. She wished she was out there with them, helping them. All
she could do was sit here and watch.
"Misato, help me, please." Rei's voice came over the channel. Misato had never heard
this before. Rei was afraid.
"Rei, you've got move! Now, before it--!"
She was cut off by Rei's scream.
"Rei!"
The Angel perched on Unit 00's chest. It had moved so fast, Rei hardly had time to blink
before it was on her. The rifle was torn into pieces. Unit 00 lifted its head a little, even as the Angel's face stared straight down at it. She could see Shinji's knife, right under its core. He'd just barely missed. If she could just reach it...
The Angel pressed Unit 00's head back to the ground, and raised its other hand. The
talons wrapped themselves around each other, creating a single spike on the end of its arm. Rei
braced herself for the pain.
The Angel's hand exploded. It shrieked, and turned. Unit 01 sat up, holding a pistol.
Shinji fired again, scoring a shot into the Angel's neck and chest. It hissed at him, once again
raising its AT field.
Unit 00 reached up and grabbed the knife. It pulled upward, striking the core. Rei
screamed, feeling her Eva's arm strain. The knife continued to dig through the core. Rei set her jaw, and pressed into it. The knife broke through the dense resistance of the core, cutting up the Angel's chest, and splitting it's neck and head. Light and fire exploded from the gash in the core,and Rei could hear the scream of Angel and metal.
The Angel's body shuddered, and then fell against Unit 00, a sagging mass of flesh and
blood. She pushed it off of her with a grunt, and tried to catch her breath.
"Target," she gasped, "Has been terminated."
She heard Misato sigh over the channel. "Well done, Rei. All right, initiate pilot retrieval.
Get them out there now, damn it!"
She laid back for a minute, teaching herself to breath again. After a moment, she said,
"Pilot Suzihara, are you all right?" There was no answer. "Suzihara?"
Shinji persisted, "Touji? Touji, are you there?"
There was a moan. "It feels like there's a hole in my chest."
Shinji laughed a little. "That's because there is."
"Oh, good. Then it's not just me."
Rei smiled. "Ikari, thank you."
"No problem. Next time I'll just hand you my knife." His image on the screen smiled
back.
"Is Asuka all right?"
"I'm fine, Wonder girl." Asuka's channel opened. Her Eva remained immobile. "That
bastard tore my Eva's chest open. Oh, my poor baby!"
Shinji rubbed his sore arm. "Gee, thanks for showing you care."
"You big wimp. Why the hell do you think I tried to save you?"
Touji groaned. "Great, the married couple's fighting now, of all times."
"Oh, you'll get yours Touji, just wait."
"Yes, mein Furher." He grinned wide at her.
Asuka blushed. "That's it! I'm going to finish what that Angel started. I swear it!"
Touji laughed at her. "You guys should learn to be a little more quiet, then. The
moaning's bad enough. It's worse when you talk to him."
***
Shinji was sprawled on the couch in Misato's office. An ice pack sat on his shoulder. Dr. Iwano had told him that his synch ratio was very high at the time when the Angel tore Eva's arm from its socket. It didn't make him feel any better. It was sure as hell of no use to his arm.
Misato walked in, taking only a cursory glance at him, then sitting down with her coffee.
She smiled. "You look like hell. What's with you? You act like you've never piloted an Eva
before."
"What is it about you and revenge?" He sat up, pressing the pack to himself.
"Oh, I don't know. It's just fun."
"You're in a good mood, all things considered."
"I know. I must have caught a little of it from Yoshi. He's going to have a field day with
that thing. I think he's actually very happy about it." She frowned at her coffee.
"I'm glad someone's enjoying it."
"I know. It's like our worst nightmare finally came true. Everything we've tried to get
over for so long... it all just keeps coming back."
"Actually, that's why I was here. Could you get Asuka to come up? She should still be in
the shower." He paused, then spoke again as she reached for the phone. "Um... without Rei
knowing."
Misato froze for half a second, and then picked up her phone, and asked for someone to
privately inform pilot Soryu that she was wanted in the Commander's office.
Misato leaned back and sipped her coffee after putting the phone down. "Is she always so
cranky when she wakes up?"
"Yeah. She just had an excuse this morning." Shinji realized that he probably shouldn't
say much more if he wanted to live.
"I should be the cranky one," she mumbled. "She kicks in her sleep."
"How's Touji?"
"He's fine. They're just keeping him in the hospital for a little bit. He'll be out in a few
hours, hopefully. He did pretty well for his first fight against an Angel."
Asuka was there more quickly than expected. She sat down next to Shinji without saying
a word.
"Asuka? Are you okay?"
She looked at him, and sighed. "Go on. Get it over with."
"What's this all about, Shinji?"
"Last night, after I put you to bed, Rei woke up. She said she had a nightmare. We
started talking about it, but then she ran to the bathroom, and got sick."
"So what was it about?"
"She said that she was in the room where she was born. She was looking at someone,
who was supposed to be from her, but not her. She said that she couldn't have children. Then
someone said that there was another way. She saw... she said it was Karou. He told her that they were the same."
Misato and Asuka were quiet for a long time. Rei never talked about the Angels, least of
all Karou. Shinji avoided that topic entirely if he could get away with it. They didn't know if he'd come to terms with it, and wanted to move on, or if he still had guilt. Shinji would only ever say what had to be done was done.
"What did he mean by that? Rei's nothing like Karou."
Shinji only shrugged. "I don't know. It was her dream."
"Typical," Asuka said. "She has a dream, and an Angel appears. Maybe it has something
to do with her being the First Child?"
"What? Rei being connected to the Angel appearing? That's stretching it, Asuka."
Misato leaned forward on her desk.
"Maybe." Shinji looked up. "Misato, are we sure that the Dummy Plug System is
destroyed? Ritsuko said... it was the whole reason Rei was born."
She nodded. "It's gone, Shinji. The Eva's are dangerous enough without turning them
into mindless killers. I made sure it was taken out the second we got our charter."
"Why the hell does this have to happen all over again?" Asuka slammed her heel against
the couch. "Why? They're all supposed to be dead."
"Asuka." Shinji let go of his ice pack, and put his arm around her. He didn't say anything
more, knowing how much of an idiot he'd sound like.
She looked at him, and smiled a little. "I just think it's a pain in the ass that we have to kill more of them. You'd think seventeen kills would be enough to teach them to leave us alone."
"Some things are never over," Misato said. They looked to her, and she sighed. "Go
home and get some rest. There's nothing left here to do. We can talk later tonight."
They nodded, and then stood to leave. Shinji was halfway out the door when Misato
stopped him.
"Shinji, I know you don't talk about Karou. It's your choice. I just want to know, do you
still blame yourself for his death?"
He looked at her for a long moment. "No, Misato. It was just what had to be done. If I
hadn't, we'd all be dead. That's all there is to it." He closed the door.
End Part 1
Author's Notes: Well, here we go! I know not everyone enjoys these little fire-side chats at the end of a decent fic, but I go through this to make sure you guys aren't totally lost. Yes, my view of the end of Evangelion and the Third Impact is somewhat optomistic, and probably not even that new of an idea, but here it is. Not to worry, I will reveal all mysteries in time, including resolving certain continuity inconsistencies (Hey, Misato, shouldn't you be dead, or something?). I hope you've found that I've tried to remain as true to the characters as possible, granted this is my view of them after four years of growth (What the hell? Asuka should be strangling Shinji's neck, not his... nevermind). All c&c can be sent to loneshark707@hotmail.com. And please do not complain about formatting... I've tried very hard to get wordwrap and fanfiction.net's own formatting to work together, but if it's totally unreadable, I'll work to make it so, I promise! Sort of.