The following is a non-profit, fan work based off the respective works of Hideaki Anno and Guillermo del Toro
All rights belong to the original creators, Legend Pictures, LLC; and Gainax Company, Limited
The Bluefire Phoenix presents...
A Project: Apocrypha Story...
Evangelion 1: Today is (not) Lost
Chapter I: First Contact
"I can't say when or where the next strike will come from, but my research has concluded that Antarctica was just the beginning."
-Dr. Gendo Ikari, Private meeting with the UN Security Council, 7 January 2003
6 April 2016
Watch Station Bravo
Just outside Honolulu, Hawaii
A thick haze of cigarette smoke hung over the small main chamber of the watch station. The blonde operator named Benny blankly stared at the screen. His orange Hawaiian shirt looked like it had seen better days.
Benny pulled out a fresh pack of cigarettes and began to pop one out of the cardboard container. Something appeared on his monitor. He looked up to see the blip.
His eyes widened. He quickly began typing into his computer terminal. Data began popping up all over the screen.
A band of sweat began to form on his brow. Benny felt his heart heave as a pattern began to form in his mind.
He finally drew a conclusion. Benny jumped up from his seat and ran to a red, wired phone on the other side of the room.
He picked up the receiver. A call dialed out. There was the click. "Director Ikari, this is Watch Station Bravo. Code word: Hell's Gate! Location: the Pacific!" Benny shouted.
Across the ocean in an underground bunker below Hong Kong, Gendo Ikari coolly gripped his own phone. "Understood," he replied. He hung the phone up and it disappeared into a hidden compartment on top of his desk.
Gendo sighed. His off grey uniform rippled a bit as he leaned forward. He finally buzzed for someone on his intercom.
"Marshal Pentecost here," the man on the other side said. His voice was strong but weary. Gendo smirked.
"Stacker, it's Gendo. What's Rei's status?"
"She won't be fit for duty for another week, why?" Stacker asked.
"The gates are open old friend," Gendo stated. Stacker remained silent for a brief moment.
"What are we going to do?" He finally asked.
"Activate our agent in Japan and recover the Third Child. We still have time before a Nephilim comes through. Worst case scenario the UN can buy us some more time for us to get a pilot. Move us to yellow alert," Gendo ordered. He could hear Pentecost swallow.
"Yes sir."
Comfort seemed to come easy for the sprawled out Misato Katsuragi. The woman was barely dressed and her snores reverberated around her bedroom.
The smell of alcohol clung to her breath. Freshly emptied beer cans littered the floor around her futon. A stuffed penguin doll was sitting near her head.
Her cellphone began to vibrate and ring. Misato stirred from her slumber. She used her arm to sweep for the disturbance.
"Hello," she spoke.
"Major Katsuragi, this is the Marshal. We need you to recover the Third Child," Pentecost gruffly said. Misato immediately sat up.
"But sir—Marshal I—I don't know who the Third Child even is!" She complained.
"I have sent you the necessary information and passes to print out. We have taken the liberty of informing his school about his sudden departure. Get him and get to Hong Kong. ASAP," the Marshal commanded.
"Yes sir," Misato said. She tried to perform a salute. Her had missed her forehead and poked her eye.
"Ow."
A disappointed sigh entered Misato's ear. "And for the love of god, sober up a little first," the Marshal added.
Stacker hung up his phone. He brought his hands to his temples and started to rub them.
His office was small and Spartan save for a small number of pictures on his wall, the hallmarks of a military man. Even his black uniform was a reflection of his simple lifestyle. The only decor was a few ribbons and his eagle insignia that marked him as Pilot Marshal.
He finally stood and walked out of his office, towards the lift bank. Several security personnel straightened up as he past. Stacker held himself in such a way that he towered over the tallest of the guards.
The lifts were all busy at the moment, all except one. It had a security scanner instead of the traditional up and down buttons. He removed his ID card from around his neck and slid the magnetic strip down the receptor on the right side of the scanner.
English print started to appear. Pentecost, Stacker Position: Marshal, it read. Please Place hand on the Scanner for Finger Print Identification.
Stacker did as instructed. There was a brief flash.
A new message appeared: Access Granted.
The elevator doors parted. Stacker entered. The doors closed. No floor buttons could be found inside. Just the emergency buttons. The car began to slowly rise.
An ominous air gripped the ride. Stacker felt fine though. He knew this elevator better than any other person at the facility.
It only took a painfully long minute for the car to stop. The doors parted to reveal a large chamber. It was onyx black, covered in a sheen of white light from the large window behind a large desk. Engraved on the ceiling was the Sephirot.
Stacker cocked an eyebrow. "That's new," he muttered. Gendo was looking out the window.
"Indeed. I use it to remind me that all is revealed to those willing to search for it," Gendo said. He swiveled around. "You don't usually come to see me here, Stacker."
"I have ordered the extraction of the Third Child," the Marshal said. Gendo raised an eyebrow.
"A simple call would have been fine. Why make a personal report?" Gendo inquired.
"Are you sure about this?" Stacker retorted point-blank.
He could see Gendo fidget. "We can't risk being without a pilot. Once the UN realizes they are useless, they will need us to clean up the mess. Right now I just need someone to sit in the cockpit. Everything else should work out."
"You are taking an awfully big risk, Ikari. Outside the fact that if you are planning what I think you are, the selection of the Third Child will raise questions about your judgment as NERV's Director," Stacker said.
"I don't think the world will care too much about who saves it and their relationship to me," Gendo dryly remarked.
Stacker stepped ever closer to his friend. "I agree. It's our other patrons that concern me. This might not go over well with them," he lamented. He placed his hands on Gendo's desk and leaned forward.
"I'll handle them, Stacker. You just prepare our battle strategy," Gendo said. His intercom buzzed. "This is the Director."
"Command and Control here. We have movement in the breech. DNA pattern blue. It's a Nephilim."
Gendo sat there for but a moment. "Understood. We are now at red alert. Bring Unit-01 out Bakelite containment. Start tracking the Nephilim," he said. He returned his attention to Stacker.
"Is that wise? We haven't tested Unit-01," Stacker commented. He withdrew his hands and crossed his arms.
"Trust me, Stacker."
"That, old friend," Stack brought himself up to his full height, "is how I landed this job."
"I know what I'm doing."
"I believe similar words were spoken not fifteen years ago."
Gendo turned around to stare out the window. "We made a mistake then. Now we are forced to send children to cleanse our sins. It isn't particularly optimal, but we have no choice."
Misato wasn't having a great evening. It started when she couldn't find her dress uniform. She instead had to use her duty uniform which consisted of a tight fitting black dress with a white collar under her red combat jacket with black boots. Then she couldn't find her rank insignia for a whole twenty minutes. The only thing she didn't have to scramble for was her cross pendant.
It was a small comfort now that she was lost for the third time already looking for her target's private school. Her attention was caught by a large sign near an imposing gate. She read the sign and released a sigh.
The school was an elite campus, built in a western style. Rain started to fall just as Misato past the gates. The woman groaned as her windshield wipers failed to do more than spread the water around a little.
She pulled her little sports car up to the administration building. A figure was waiting at the front door. His face was obscured by an umbrella. Misato parked right by the figure.
She fiddled to free her cellphone from her back pocket as the boy loaded his suitcase in the boot and joined her. The woman looked at her charge just as she retrieved her phone. "Hey I, oh sorry. It's my boss," Misato greeted as her phone went off.
"Yes Marshal."
"Yes Marshal, I have the Third Child right here."
"What?"
"Yes sir. We're on our way."
Misato hung up the phone. She slumped in her seat. "That is downright unfair," she growled. Her hand started to shake.
"I'm sorry miss?" Her companion said. His voice was barely audible.
The woman smacked her forehead. "Sorry, I'm Major Misato Katsuragi, but Misato is fine," she said as she retracted her hand. The woman eyed the boy. He had soft, almost girl like features. His collared shirt was rumpled in places but his black pants seemed fine.
"And you must be Shinji Ikari."
"Yes ma'am," Shinji quietly answered.
This is the kid they want to back up Rei? I hope the marshal know what he has coming. Misato thought as she put her car in gear. She drove out of the school and quickly made pace for the airport.
Shinji blankly stared out the rain covered window. He let out a sigh.
"You must be nervous, huh?" Misato asked. Shinji disinterestedly shrugged.
"I guess so," he mumbled. The boy seemed to close himself off further.
Oh my god, we just put fate of the world into this kids hands. Misato dreaded to herself. "How long has it been since you've seen him?" She asked.
"Eight years I think. Why do you care?" Shinji asked. It sounded more curious than antagonistic.
It still felt as if he forced an icy dagger through her heart. "Sorry, I—I just wanted to have a conversation. If you don't want to talk, there is a file by your feet that you need to read," Misato dejectedly said. Shinji looked over at the woman. An all too easy frown fell across his face.
"Oh, no it's me who should apologize. Nobody at school wanted to talk to me. There was a rumor that my father is head of some secret organization. I guess they must have been scared or something."
"And what did your instructors tell you?"
"That he is important to the survival of humanity."
Gendo Ikari sat in a massive chamber with a virtual representation of the capital of the Philippians, Manila popping out of the entirety of his desk. He watched the city succumb to a massive humanoid form.
It stood on two webbed feet. The creature had a long reptilian tail that lashed out at nearby buildings like lightning. Two clawed hands swatted down helicopters and threw tanks across the city. Its head was massive and looked like a crab removed of its limbs. The creature's huge bony jaws outside of its head smashed open tanks. Slick tendrils grew from the back of head that reached down to its waste. At the center of its chest was a huge red orb.
Fighter jets zoomed through the air. Ground forces retreated and gunship laid down covering fire.
To his left was Stacker. The military man watched the battle with weary eyes. None of the human forces could land a blow. Their ammunition was halted in midair just a few meters out of reach. The explosions seemed to bounce off an invisible barrier.
Below the terrace where the head officers watched was Command and Control. Dozens of technicians scurried about as officers watched screens or reports flash by. In front of all of them was a massive television screen.
It kept switching between various feeds. But a HUD system on the perimeter gave general updates.
An officer stood up. Fear gripped his eyes. "Director, the Secretary General just cleared US forces to deploy an N2 Missile!" He shouted. Gendo merely adjusted his glasses as the last human forces disappeared from the map.
A single rod appeared near the top of the hologram. It rammed right into the creature. The hologram started to glitch and scramble. The television feeds turned to static.
Stacker took in a breath. Gendo just raised hand before any words escaped the other man. The images finally stabilized. Manila now had a giant smoking crater in the middle. Inside the hole, the creature stood unaffected.
A ringing red phone rose out of Gendo's desk. He picked it up. "Yes, Mr. Secretary General?" he said. "Yes sir. Give us two hours." Gendo put down the phone.
"Two hours is not a lot of time," Stacker commented. He crossed his arms.
"Maybe for the average military commander. That's why you're here. Start the Siren Song and prepare the city for ground assault. Whatever we do, we cannot let that thing get back into the water," Gendo commanded. He stood up and walked to the exit.
"You are in command here, Marshal," he said as he past Stacker.
"Aye sir. What are you going to do?"
"To make sure Unit-01 is ready for combat," Gendo said. The lift door opened and the man disappeared.
Stacker walked to the intercom station and opened up a facility wide channel. "Listen up, this is Marshal Pentecost," he said. All around headquarters, men and women paused to listen. "NERV has gotten the green light…."
"We all hoped this day would never come. But it has. It seems like this is the worse situation to start in. That doesn't matter. Right now I want you to think only of your job, alright? All hands to battle stations. Raise the Primary Containment Walls. This is not a drill."
The city of Hong Kong began to shift. Dozens of skyscrapers began to retract underground, leaving only smaller buildings behind. Massive, one hundred meters high panels began to rise out of the ground around the city limits.
A few dozen kilometers away, Shinji looked out the window of a small private plane. Why would dad want me to work for him? What does NERV even do? He thought to himself. The files Misato had given him were clutched in his hands.
He looked over at his escort. Her hands were restlessly tapping against her arm. "Is something wrong?" Shinji asked.
Misato looked over at him. Shinji could see the terror in her eyes. "What's wrong? Nothing's wrong! Why would you say something's wrong?" Misato chattered.
"Are you afraid of flying?" Shinji inquired.
"I," Misato started. Shinji didn't look amused. "I have issues with planes. Let's leave it at that, okay?"
"Okay," Shinji responded. He started to rummage through his file once again. He barely got into the papers when the PA crackled to life.
"Attention passengers, please fasten your seat belts. We will be landing shortly," the pilot said. The plane began to descend onto a runway near a group of isolated building.
Misato gripped her seat hard enough that veins popped out of her hand. Shinji thought he heard her whisper something as the cabin bounced on touchdown. But he couldn't turn away from the city of Hong Kong.
Murky clouds hung overhead. But the city was bright and glistening in the primordial night.
The sense of wonder dissipated with a massive yank on his shirt collar right as the plane stopped. His papers nearly fell out of his hands. Misato dragged him towards the exit and down the steps onto the Tarmac.
A blonde haired woman was waiting for them. She wore a white lab coat over a blue blouse and white skirt. Her arms were locked across her chest. Misato nonchalantly rubbed the back of her head.
"He—hey Ritsuko, what's up?" Misato asked.
Ritsuko just glared. "You're late, Major," she looked to Shinji, "is this the Third Child?"
"Yeah it's him," Misato answered. Ritsuko reached out her hand.
"Dr. Ritsuko Akagi, head of NERV's R-and-D," she introduced herself. Shinji tentatively reached out to shake it.
"Um—I am—I am Shinji Ikari. Could you tell me why I'm—uh—here?" He asked. He weakly took the woman's hand.
A massive deafening roar followed by a flying ball of fire arcing across the sky from the south gave everyone pause. Ritsuko gave a half smile. "In short Mr. Ikari, that is why you are here," she said. She pointed southward.
I don't like the sound of that. Shinji thought. He reluctantly turned around to where she was pointing. A true hell-spawn rampaged through the buildings. The boy started to tremble. A reassuring hand gripped his shoulder.
"It will be okay," Misato reassured. "But now we need to get going."
Ritsuko nodded and walked towards the hanger. Misato and a worried Shinji followed her into the hanger. She led them to a tucked away corner. An air train was waiting. The trio entered the transport.
The train dropped down a floor then started to advance. It dipped deeper and deeper into a massive artificial chamber beneath the city. It was filled with trees and a lake fed by synthetic sunlight.
On the far side of the valley was a pyramid partially built into a lake. At the center was a huge station with various mag-train rails coming out of it on the ground. Most of rails ran to small launchers that aimed towards the ceiling. Other rails went to other facilities throughout the complex. Several other air train routs connected with the central station. A dozen or so elevators that led to the surface were scattered around the area.
"Welcome to the GeoFront kids. Humanity's greatest fortress," Ritsuko announced. Shinji couldn't tear himself away from the sights of the place. Misato was able to maintain an air of professionalism.
"This place is amazing!" Shinji declared.
"Sorry I can't give you the full tour yet. But right now we have to stay at the Cage," Ritsuko said as the train parked in the central facility. They departed the craft. Ritsuko led the other two away from the train station. She opened a highly secure door.
It parted to reveal a dark room. Just as Shinji slipped in the door rushed closed, leaving them in total darkness. He felt the floor move forward. It stopped with a hydraulic hiss followed by a lock.
"Shinji Ikari," Ritsuko said, "do you want to know why you are really here?"
Floodlights suddenly burst on. Shinji was staring straight at a purple, horned monster. Its void black eyes peered into the essence of Shinji. "Wha—what is this?" He stammered out. He began to flip through the pages of his files.
"I am afraid you won't find this listed in there," a man said from an observation deck above the machine. The cold voice made the hair on the back of his neck stand up and sent his heart beat into overdrive. Shinji looked up at the deck.
"Father," he whispered. The boy lowered his head back down.
Gendo glared down on his son. "Dr. Akagi if you'd cut to the chase," he said. The facility started to shake. "Before this place comes crashing down please."
Ritsuko nodded. "This, Shinji, is humanity's greatest weapon, code named Evangelion," she said. She locked eyes with Shinji. "And you will pilot it into battle."
The boy felt his heart trying to burst from his chest. He started backpedaling. Misato prevented him from walking off the edge into the chasm below.
"You—you're kidding right?" Shinji sputtered out. He looked up at his father. "I can't. I mean I don't even know how."
"You will receive instruction," Gendo coldly assured.
Shinji began to quiver. Only Misato's grip kept him from falling over. "Director, you can't just demand something like this of a kid!" The Major shouted.
The chamber shook again. "We don't have time to debate this Major. He either will or will not pilot. So what say you Shinji?" Gendo asked.
His son dropped to his knees. "Why? Why me?" He quietly asked.
"Because at the moment, we don't have anyone else," Gendo calmly admitted.
"Come on Shinji. We need you, the world needs. I promise you that I'll be here rooting for you!" Misato whispered. The boy looked up at the woman. All she could do was give him a reassuring smile just as the ground shook once more.
"What will it be, Shinji?" Gendo growled. Shinji stared at the purple creature. Something struck him like a jolt of electricity. He couldn't place the feeling it awoke.
The facility shook again. Bits of rock fell from the ceiling. "I'll—I'll do it," Shinji finally said. He hung his head. Oh man, what have I gotten into? He moaned to himself.
Ritsuko let out a sigh of relief. "Get Unit-01's Entry Plug prepped then move it to the dispatch tracks," she ordered.
The place came alive with mechanics. A huge tube lowered from the ceiling and a platform extended to it. Ritsuko led Shinji up to the tube. Misato slipped away to Command and Control.
Shinji was given two hair clips then helped into a seat in the tube. The tube sealed shut. A strange orange liquid filled the tiny chamber. "Gah! What is this stuff?" He shouted.
"It's called LCL, it will oxygenate your blood directly," Ritsuko said via the mech's communicator.
The doctor turned to one of her technicians. He brought up a window on his monitor. "The Third Child is ready for neural handshake."
"Listen up Shinji, what happens next is critical. I need you to clear your mind, okay?" She requested.
"Alright I'll try," the boy answered.
"Initialize handshake!" Ritsuko ordered. The technician pushed a button.
Shinji felt his body go numb. It felt like he was flying. Memories started to flash before his eyes. His body began to quiver.
Alarms rang out over the Cage. "He's rejecting the handshake! We need to cut the link!" the technician screamed.
"No, he can do this," Ritsuko said. He has to do this. She mentally amended.
Everything Shinji had buried deep inside now surrounded him. The loneliness, the pain, the doubt all swirled in his mind. It moved over his mind, applying needles over every bit of it.
Something warm and calming suddenly wrapped around his shoulders. His heart rate slowed and the world came into focus. He felt like he was safe.
"Link established! He's in the Drift, Synch Ratio at thirty percent and rising!" The technician enthusiastically shouted. Ritsuko smirked.
"Alright, Shinji I'm transferring you over to the Marshal. Good luck." Shinji heard an ominous click.
Command and Control was a mess. Operators were shouting stats and conditions. Stacker watched the hologram of the city. The monster was ripping it to pieces. His personal comm went off. It was a feed from Unit-01 with the Second Child as its pilot. Misato Katsuragi appeared out of the corner of his eye.
He hooked it up to his headset and picked up the line. "Shinji, I'm Marshal Pentecost. I'll be your commanding officer during your tenure at NERV. How are you?" He asked.
"Uh, not sure," Shinji answered. A green light appeared on Gendo's control pad.
"It will be alright, kid. Just listen to my orders and everything will be fine," Pentecost said. He pointed at Misato, getting her attention then gave her a thumbs-up.
Misato nodded. She walked to the railing. "What's our launch status?" She shouted down to the staff.
"Unit-01 is now at lift three and ready to go!" Someone shouted.
"Launch EVA!" Misato shouted. The room grew quiet. All eyes eagerly drifted up to the main screen.
To Be Continued...
A/N: Hello and thank you for reading my first foray into this site. I appreciate all constructive criticism and comments that you have. I plan to us this space in future chapters as a sort of blog. I'll answer FAQs, comment on what's going on in the story, and talk about fan fiction in general.
Okay, formalities over with? Alright, so the goal of Project: Apocrypha is to create something in the vein of the Rebuild Movies using elements of Pacific Rim and a few of my own ideas.
So first chapter. Pretty standard EVA fair save for a few changes to bring it in line with Pacific Rim. Except the Nephilim, that's new. Yes it is my observant friends. I felt that Nephilim allowed me to capture the bestial forms of the Kaiju and the Lovecraftian nature of the Angels. Plus it ties into the project name well. Do not mistake that for lazy symbolism.
Expect plenty of perspective shifts in the chapters. It may make the story a bit harder to follow. But I think it flows with Pacific Rim's theme of "we are all in this together." I also tried to make them as organically integrated as possible while making them blatantly obvious. If this is a problem for a lot of you, I'll improve it for you as we go along. However I really didn't want to litter each chapter with a million time stamps.
I read comics and watch Linkara, so continuity is very important to me. But if I use too many time stamps, I'd go insane trying to keep track of my own story. And no, "Meanwhile" and "Later" cuts will not work for me. Whenever I read those transitions, I always feel like I'm being taken out of the story just a little. That's just me.
Be on the look out for a couple of Easter Eggs in this chapter. They should be relatively easy to spot, but I was the one who put them there.
Until next time, this is The Bluefire Phoenix signing off.