-HE SPEAKS-
There is a man standing on a stage. A lazy piano plays out a tired old jazz song behind him as a small audience begins to form, slowly settling into the tiny establishment. The man grins. His audience is not very large, but it will grow soon enough. That was the way things almost always worked. After all, if a performance was interesting enough, word soon traveled. He gently caresses his microphone, and then begins speaking.
"Welcome, my dear friends.
"The stage is set. Madoka Kaname awakes to her first dream. Only time will tell her the true nature of her nighttime visions. Elsewhere, plans are already in motion that will shape this unknowing world into something new, something of untold terror and limitless wonder.
"This is the Story of the beginning of the most important war that mankind will ever fight. This war will decide if Humanity stands strong against the uncaring winds of time, or if it will fall like the statue of Ozymandias, given an unmarked grave on a tiny ball of dirt orbiting an unremarkable star.
"So, let us begin the Story, and place the hands of this struggling world in the shaking hands of its valiant children."
-BEGIN-
"Second Impact occurred twenty five years ago, in the year 2000. A small asteroid, moving at a sizeable fraction of the speed of light, evaded detection until it hit the Earth near the south pole, completely eradicating the entire continent of Antarctica and causing seismic disturbances that rocked the oceans for months, killing most of the people living in the southern hemisphere. The ocean levels also rose as vaporized ice rained down across the globe, further flooding coastal cities and moving the shorelines significantly farther inland.
"Soon, refugee conflicts broke out between India and Pakistan, which led to a nuclear conflict. Only making matters worse, China and the United States blamed each other for the disaster, each claiming the other was performing secret weapons tests on Antarctica. The conflicts soon escalated, drawing in the European Union and a large number of North African and Middle Eastern nations as well. Eventually, the Valentine Treaty of 2007 ended the fighting, but not before more than one half of the remaining worldwide population was killed. This became known as the Post- Impact War. And Sayaka Ikari and Madoka Kaname had better have taken notes, because I'm not repeating what I just said."
The two girls looked up from their conversation as an awkward silence descended over the classroom.
Sayaka Ikari, fourteen year old student and resident troublemaker, glanced around at her classmates, all of whom silently refused to offer any help. She grinned. "Oops. Sorry, Ms. Saotome, it won't happen again."
"Good!" Kazuko Saotomoe, homeroom teacher, stood up straight with a huff. "I'm glad you'll be actually paying attention to my lessons from now on."
"Still," Sayaka said. "I think just about everybody knows about Second Impact, so what's the point of teaching us about it?"
"Because it is the largest disaster that has ever occurred! More people died in Second Impact than in both World Wars combined, plus the holocaust! We must not forget it, lest we forget how close we came to annihilation."
There was an uncomfortable murmur cycling through the classroom now. None of the students were young enough to have witnessed Second Impact or the Post-Impact War. However, every single father and mother alive was a veteran of one or both. All of them had heard the stories; the hundred foot waves, the fiery "wings" consisting of superheated debris thrown out into the atmosphere, the nuclear hellfire that rained on Old Tokyo, the list of horrors went on and on.
"But we also mustn't forget that we're still here thanks to the efforts of our forefathers!" Kazuko continued. "We still live, even if the seasons have changed. That's why we must not allow ourselves to grow complacent and die out. We must fight our way through the aftermath of Second Impact! So learn! Raise families! You are the generation who has to prove that it'll take more than a tiny rock to take the Human Race out of the fight!"
Kazuko actually got a scattered bit of applause, much to her own surprise. She recovered her composure quickly, smiling as she adjusted her glasses. "That's right! So you shouldn't let something as simple as how your eggs are cooked decide whether or not you want to keep dating someone!"
The clapping faded away as confusion set in. Keiichi Nakazawa, hapless student, raised his hand. "Teacher… what?"
"You should not let the way a woman cooks eggs determine whether the two of you are meant for each other!" Kazuko said. "It doesn't matter in the slightest, right Nakazawa?"
"Uh… I suppose..?" replied Keiichi, taken aback by the ferocity of the teacher's reply. He probably should have kept his mouth shut; there was already speculation that Miss Saotome's mysterious boyfriend was him, although where such rumors came from he could only guess.
"That's right!" Kazuko nodded indignantly. "And don't forget it, any of you!" With that, Kazuko Saotome was once again back to being a teacher. "Now, students, allow me to introduce you to a new transfer student! Please come in, Akemi!"
"Wait a second…" Sayaka said. "You had a transfer student to introduce and you decided to do half the lesson first? For that matter, this is a math class, not a history class…" Ms. Saotome completely ignored her, which struck Madoka Kaname as slightly odd. Sayaka did have a valid point…
The door opened, and Madoka watched as a girl walked in. The very girl who had been the subject of Madoka's dream the night before. The illogicality of Kazuko's teaching plan seemed to stop mattering. Scattered gasps traveled through the class. The girl was tall, dark, and beautiful, but where she walked it seemed as if she left a trail of ice cold indifference behind her. Her almost black (but to close inspection extremely dark purple) hung past her hips, perfect and straight. Everything about her seemed perfect, almost calculated. The boys in the class instantly had a new object for their love letters and fantasies, (which suited Hitomi Shizuki, "most-desirable-girl-in-class," just fine) and a good percentage of the girls found themselves questioning their alignments.
None however, were more surprised than Madoka. "No way…" she breathed. "It's… her?"
Sayaka noticed her friend's confusion. "Hey, what's wrong Madoka?"
"It's just that…" Madoka fought for words. "I don't know how to say this… but I think I've seen her before."
"Please write your name for the class, Akemi." Kazuko held out the chalk to the new student, who wrote out her name. 暁美 ほむら (Homura Akemi). Madoka knew that name. She couldn't place it, but she knew that she had heard it before. Sayaka was trying to get her attention, but Madoka was fixated on Homura as the class began to clap for her. Then, Homura looked right into Madoka's eyes.
Madoka shivered. Homura Akemi's gaze was cold, harsh… but there was something else, a sort of suppressed sadness. Madoka knew there must be a reason for it, but Homura's eyes betrayed so very little, just an eerie impression of hidden depths into which you could sink and never return.
Homura's gaze turned away, and without a single word to the class, she sat down and the lesson began anew.
-SEQUENCE ENGAGE-
Homura was a genius It was immediately obvious when she started performing equations that stumped her instructors. In her head. She actually had to be asked to write out the mathematics so the rest of the class could follow her. Her status as a prodigy was only made more apparent when she started breaking academic records without apparently even trying. And yet, all through the day, Madoka and Homura watched each other.
It wasn't until lunch period that Homura and Madoka finally spoke.
Sayaka, Madoka, and the aforementioned Hitomi, their friend, were having a conversation regarding a certain letter received by the latter.
"So, do you know who sent it?" Sayaka said, eyes narrowed in untrustworthy glee.
"No, there was no name on it," Hitomi replied. "I don't know who it's from."
Sayaka sighed. "Really… well, you told your mom about it, right Madoka?"
Madoka sighed. "Yeah, she said not to consider boys who can't man up and meet you face to face."
Sayaka nodded. "Wise words from the great Junko Kaname herself."
Junko Kaname was renowned for her seemingly infinite insights into the troublesome existence of the teenage girl, at least to Madoka and her closest friends. Still, to Madoka, where her mother had lived before the move to Tokyo-3, how she and Tomohisa, Madoka's father, had met, and what her mother actually did for a living were all completely unknown to her. She supposed it had just never come up, but lately curiosity had been tugging at her thoughts.
Sayaka had grown quiet, and seemed to be deeply thinking about something. "I wonder… Madoka, you said before that you knew Akemi. Do you remember where from?"
"I don't know exactly. This is going to sound crazy, but-"
She was cut off by the sudden approach of the very subject of the conversation. Homura Akemi stared down at Madoka, her eyes cold and impassive. "Madoka Kaname, you are the class medical representative." It was a statement, not a question.
Madoka was taken aback. "Yes, but how did you-"
"Ms. Saotome told me."
"Ah, well what do-"
"I am not feeling well; please show me to the nurse's office." An order, not a request.
Madoka shivered again. If Homura seemed cold at a distance, then the space around her was absolute zero. Almost as if the laws of thermodynamics decided that trying to warm up Homura Akemi was too much trouble.
Regardless, Madoka was in fact the medical representative. She nodded, and led Homura out the door.
Immediately, Homura passed Madoka. "You need to turn-" Madoka started, but Homura was already rounding the appropriate corner. More nervous than ever, Madoka smiled unconvincingly. "That's funny, it seems like you already… know where it is..."
Homura didn't respond, merely continuing down the deserted hallway.
-AWAKE, ANGELS-
Sachiel awoke. Although, perhaps it was not so much an awakening as a birth. He knew who he was. He knew what he was. Yet, these physical sensations, having a physical form that responded to his commands… this was new.
Regardless, he knew what his directive was to be. He could feel the signal calling to him. It was muted, indistinct, but he recognized it. Adam, the Father, God, the Progenitor. He had to seek it out. The others agreed, and they deliberated over who should be the one to go. Ramiel was insistent that they not be too hasty. After all, they had just been born into this world, and they did not know what lay between them and Adam. Certainly, this was not how it should have been. They should have been born with Adam by their sides.
If Sachiel had a nose, he would have snorted in disgust. Ramiel was too cautious, always with his reasoning and his logic. Sachiel had only known him for moments and yet he already disliked his brother.
Shamshel, however, shared his sentiments. She argued that they must seek out Adam and discover what had transpired to upset the natural path. Sachiel rather liked his sister. She was impulsive, but she seemed to genuinely care about the rest of them. She also agreed that Adam must be recovered quickly. After all, it wouldn't do to leave him to this unintentional sleep any longer.
Strange though, that they had been asleep at all. It must have had to do with the second seed.
Yes, Sachiel recalled it now. Fire and smoke, they had reigned over this world for a time, but the other seed had landed and forced them from their thrones. Strange indeed, and why exactly had the second seed fallen on their world?
Perhaps Sachiel was overthinking this. Leave Ramiel to do the calculations and rationalizations. Sachiel was an Angel who valued action.
And action he would take.
-CONFLICTING DATA-
Madoka glanced about as Homura led her down the hallway. They were in a part of the building that was no longer in use, not since Second Impact had removed the need for such a large educational facility. Now, this section of the building was consigned to house that which could no longer be used by the rest of the school. Desks, textbooks, even a few old computers could be found tucked away in the empty classrooms.
They had long since passed the nurse's office, but Homura had ignored Madoka's objections, and had grabbed her hand when Madoka tried to turn away. Homura's iron grip was unnerving, not what one would expect of a quiet–if forceful–high school girl. Madoka was beginning to fear for her safety, when Homura finally led her to a room from which a light cast into the hallway.
Inside… Madoka's apprehension was greeted by four people she had never seen before.
They were all about twenty years old. The first, a woman with an extremely well toned physique, long auburn hair cascading down her back, and a pair of very deep blue eyes (Madoka even subconsciously started referring to her as "Blue Eyes") looked Madoka in the eye. "That's her? Really?"
The second, a thin, plain, fragile looking man with short black hair and just a trace of a beard ("Plain Man") sized her up as well. "She's not all that impressive looking, Akemi. It's really her?"
Homura's face showed little emotion normally, but Madoka could see something flicker in her eyes; just the slightest flame of anger. "I assure you, this is Madoka Kaname."
"Okay, seriously," spoke the third, an athletic man whose rugged features conveyed a state of irritated boredom. ("Angry Eyes") "This is just fuckin' creepy, guys. Just look at her face, we've scared the shit out of her!"
Madoka would have agreed with that statement, and was about to voice a protest when her eyes locked onto the fourth and final person in the room. She was thin and frail, with unnaturally pale skin, hair the color of ice, and eyes as red as blood.
Something about her was so very familiar. Madoka felt a chill roll up her spine. The eyes… Madoka found herself trapped in those eyes. She saw them widen in fear, and realized that someone was screaming.
She realized it was her.
Homura had released her hand, but she couldn't look away, she couldn't move. She could only stare into those eyes and scream. A stabbing pain in her head did nothing to alleviate the terror that rocked through every fiber of her body. She was vaguely aware of the fact that she was on the ground, that her eyelids were closed, but she could still see those eyes.
She was vaguely aware of some sort of commotion happened around her. Then, Madoka found herself being carried Sayaka and Hitomi. She just barely registered that Homura, her nose bleeding profusely, was watching them at the end of the hall before she blacked out.
-EVACUATE-
Sayaka had decided to follow Madoka and Homura on a whim. Something about Homura's demeanor just unsettled her. She prided herself on her extreme otaku tendencies, and Homura fit uncannily into the role of Fate Testarossa, the "dark magical girl" to Nanoha's (perhaps Madoka's?) "light magical girl."
It was silly and she knew it. Still, the idea took root too fast for common sense to catch up, and curiosity was tugging her toward the mysterious transfer student anyway. So, she pulled Hitomi away from her meal and followed Madoka and Homura.
Sayaka didn't really see any problems until they passed the nurse's office. She became genuinely worried when Homura grabbed Madoka's hand.
But it wasn't until Homura walked Madoka into a meeting with four strange (and somewhat disreputable looking) adults that Sayaka decided to get Madoka out of whatever Homura was trying to pull her into.
Hushing Hitomi's concerned protests, Sayaka found two emergency fire extinguishers. She recalled seeing a scene in a show once where a fire extinguisher was used in a hasty rescue attempt. If it worked there, why not here?
That was probably one of the dumbest things Sayaka had ever thought. She realized this, and promptly gave the offending cluster of brain cells a metaphorical slap. Still, there was no reason it shouldn't work, so she decided the plan was worth a shot.
Sayaka was trying to convince Hitomi that Madoka could be in serious danger, when Madoka started screaming. The two charged in and hosed down the startled occupants of the room. Sayaka realized that one of the adults was screaming too, and that both she and Madoka were lying on the floor. While the others were still distracted, Sayaka and Hitomi grabbed Madoka and lifted her between them.
It was then that Homura Akemi made a mistake; she tried to stop Sayaka Ikari.
Sayaka didn't know exactly why Homura had brought Madoka here. She didn't know what had happened that hurt Madoka enough to make her scream like she was. She just knew that Homura was involved, and that she was trying to block the door. And that a closed fist punch to the nose was very painful. Homura reeled from the blow, and her composure broke. The look on her face was one of complete shock as she stumbled back into the corridor, a steady flow of blood running down her face. By the time she had recovered her emotionless mask, the three girls had made it a good way down the hall.
They were lucky they weren't followed.
-PREPARE-
Misato Katsuragi sat in her car outside Sayaka's high school. It was a lovely day, with a pleasant breeze blowing through to mitigate the high Post-Impact temperature. That was probably the only reason Misato hadn't simply decided to ignore her orders and grab Sayaka out of her class.
She'd been ordered to retrieve Sayaka after she was let out, and then proceed directly to NERV HQ. Of course, the timing of this order had been just slightly inconvenient. After all, she was ordered out quite early in the morning, and thus had been waiting four hours for Sayaka to get out of school.
Granted, to sit outside the school the entire time would have been a waste, so she did her grocery shopping in the interim. Then she amused herself by playing Tetris on her phone for about an hour. Once that got old, she started contemplating how much she hated Sayaka's father.
Gendo Ikari had many, many who despised him. Among them were a number of clandestine organizations, at least three UN member government leaders, and most of the staff working for him. That included Misato Katsuragi. Of course, the man just projected an aura that made people distrust/hate him. But even without that, he was the one who probably gave the order to wait outside for so long.
She was debating what to do next to pass the time when she heard the first evacuation siren go off.
It was too early. This wasn't supposed to happen until the evening. Misato swore loudly and slammed her hand against the horn. The students were beginning to stream out of the school doors. She tried to pick out Sayaka against the swarm, but blue hair had become surprisingly common following Second Impact. She finally spotted her, coming out of a side entrance. Misato blinked in surprise. Sayaka and another girl, who Misato vaguely recognized as Sayaka's friend from her personnel file, were carrying an unconscious girl that Misato recognized. That was Junko's daughter, Madoka, wasn't it? It had been a long time since Misato had encountered the Kaname family, and back then it had been Madoka's father, Tomohisa, doing the carrying.
She shook off the vague feeling of nostalgia. She needed to get Sayaka to NERV. Her annoyance with the mission in question was only superficial; she knew just how important that girl was going to be.
Then, the Angel arrived.
-RUN-
Sayaka heard the evacuation sirens. She didn't know what they foretold any better than the few hundred students who stood up from their classes and began moving to the subterranean bunkers that every citizen of Tokyo-3 knew existed. It was just one of many oddities surrounding the hyper-technological city that they made their home.
Sayaka and Hitomi still had Madoka in their arms. She wasn't hurt, as far as Sayaka could tell, but she wasn't waking up either. Sayaka directed Hitomi to an emergency exit. She momentarily wondered if Akemi and her companions were involved in the evacuation, but she didn't have long to think.
The students, to their credit, were proceeding in an orderly fashion. The teachers shepherded any stragglers along as they left the building. Then the thing came out from behind the hill.
It was humanoid, two arms, two legs, a body, and a white mask with holes that suggested two eyes. That was where its humanity ended. It's skin was black as pitch, except where bone white armor sprouted through. The aforementioned mask was positioned where a human being's sternum would have been. There was no head. Finally, centered on its belly was a large, blood colored sphere that glowed faintly as the giant marched across the city on legs that were far too thin to support it size.
There were aircraft hovering all around it, military VTOL gunships, actually. Sayaka recognized them; she didn't know their names, but they were supposed to be the most heavily armed (not to mention expensive) aircraft in the entire Japan Strategic Self Defense Force arsenal, which was saying something.
The gunships fired, and every single missile hit the target… or at least they should have. Instead, they met an orange transparent octagon that appeared in front of them. Then the giant started swatting the gunships out of the sky.
The first crashed into a skyscraper deeper within the city. Glass began to rain down from shattered windows, and smoke billowed out. The structure remained standing, however.
The next gunship spun, its engine trailing smoke from where the giant's finger had smashed into it. It hit the ground, rolled, and bounced as the engine pod snapped off. Sayaka was vaguely aware of screams, and she saw the students and teachers scatter. The gunship descended towards them, trailing fire and smoke.
And then it stopped. The shattered aircraft crumpled against the air two meters above the students' heads. A transparent yellow circle was briefly visible supporting it, and then the VTOL's crushed remains reversed their direction, rising away and crashing into an empty patch of grass in front of the school.
Sayaka could see the shelter entrance from the school lawn. Most of her classmates were already inside. If she and Hitomi could carry Madoka over there, then there should be a doctor inside who could take care of her…
A giant robotic foot crashed into the ground in front of them. Sayaka looked up and saw, yes, a giant robotic leg, connected to a giant robotic torso, with a pair of giant robotic arms and a giant robotic rifle. (Well, the rifle wasn't robotic, but the wording fit the theme.) Yes, that was what she thought it was. She shook her head, trying to clear the giddy haze from her brain, which was helpfully supplying a mental remix of "Sorairo Days" from Gurren Lagann.
Sayaka blinked. Still there, as was the giant monster. The mecha raised its rifle and started firing. Sayaka realized that it didn't actually have a head, although those were definitely fingers on its hand. A flurry of missiles fired from a pod on its shoulder, and the giant turned towards it.
That was when the car swerved around the mecha's foot. It was a blue car, Sayaka vaguely realized, and it was heading straight towards her.
The car swerved again, coming to a stop less than a meter from where Sayaka and Hitomi were standing. A window rolled down, and a woman's smiling face emerged. "Hello there!" she greeted the startled students. "Sayaka Ikari, I presume?"
Sayaka nodded. She gripped Madoka tightly. "And who are you?"
"My name is Misato Katsuragi," the woman replied, "and I'm here to pick you up."
An explosion broke up the conversation. The giant had reached the schoolyard, and had just grappled with the much smaller robot. Actually, the fight had consisted of the Angel trying to stomp on the knee-high non-threat, the robot blocking with its rifle, and holding in that position for a few seconds before an escape pod ejected from the robot's back and the Angel's thin foot cleaved the entire machine in half.
When Sayaka turned back, Misato Katsuragi was no longer smiling. "I'll make this as simple as I can; come with me if you want to live."
Sayaka normally would have had no argument, but this was not a time for "normally". "My friends come with me. Otherwise, you can just leave me here."
"Fair enough," Misato said. "The car's a two-seater though; it'll be a bit cramped."
"I don't think cramped is going to bother us at this point" Sayaka replied.
As if to emphasize that final point, the Angel roared.
