A/N: Remember when I said then next one would be out quickly? . . . Me nether.
July 9th 2015, about 1800 hours, ruins of district 2 Neo Kagoshima
BANG! BANG! Jain woke up, she tasted blood but that was normal. BANG! BANG! She sat up, all the screens in her entryplug said the same thing "CONNECTION ERROR" in bold kanji. BANG! BANG! Someone was trying to get in. She turned to face the hatch at the bottom of the plug. FUCK! A shooting pain flew through her left leg and she let out a whimper.
BANG! "I think… I got… it" said a muffled voice. Then the sounds of the hatch turning and liquid hitting the ground as the last LCL was drained from the cylinder. She looked for a place to hide but found none. Someone stuck their head in the hatch, she craned her neck to see who it was.
A voice shouted questioningly into the darkness "Hello?" it was a boy about her age maybe a little bit older, he was wearing a red plugsuit and had short brown hair and black eyes, not just dark eyes black which gave her chills. Then she remembered everything the battle, her getting punched out and her entryplug ejecting. The boy spotted her and offered a hand "Hello!" Which she swatted away.
"Keep your hands to yourself!" She tried climbed out of her entryplug but as soon as she put weight on her foot she felt a shooting pain up her leg which immobilized her. Damn it! I think I sprained my ankle. She turned to the boy and forced a smile. "On second thought I could use a little help."
"Right." He helped her out of the entryplug where she saw another pilot, this time a girl, wearing an olive green plugsuit to match the massive Evangelion behind her. It looked almost the same as her Unit 00 except for the paint job and the absence or a cranial horn. It was kneeling down with its back hunched so that it would be easier to climb out of. I'm guessing that one didn't have to eject. Then she looked past the Eva and saw what was left of the city.
"What the hell did you guys do?!" Jain gasped.
"We saved your life." Said the girl matter-of-factly.
"Yah but you destroyed half of District Two! Where am I going to buy my clothes now?!" She tried to take a step but let out a grunt of pain. The boy tried to catch her but Jain pushed him aside.
"You're injured." the girl said.
"No, I'm fine" she looked down at herself, still dripping with LCL, some of her snow white hair got into her eyes and she brushed it aside quickly.
"…Hospital!" the boy said loudly upon seeing another look of pain sprawled across her pale face.
"Slow down Caveman. They can fix me up back at NERV. Who are you guys anyway and what's his deal?"
This time the girl replied "We are the designated pilots of Units 01 and 02, I am the Third and he is the Fourth." Still deadpan.
"Hello… my name is… Alexander Cooper." Said the Fourth
"He doesn't speak Japanese very well." Said the Third
'Unit's 01 and 02'? "What gives? I thought Unit 02 was still in development in China? And Unit 01 was in transit to NERV 03?"
"When the observation post in Okinawa detected the angel we were redeployed." Their conversation was interrupted by the distant sound of helicopter blades. It was faint but unmistakable and caused all 3 pilots to turn their heads.
"Who… that… be?" Alexander asked
"I think I have an idea." Jain narrowed her eyes. That prick.
XXXXX
July 9th 2015, approximately 1800 hours, the skies above district 2 Neo Kagoshima.
Vice commander Hayato Kailash looked at his superior with concern, Commander Fujiyama was always a man of few words, though he had much to say, but he had never seen him so quiet. It was almost as if he was in a trance.
"Kailash, you know what this means don't you?" he spoke.
"The angels have returned?" Kailash answered quickly.
"That much is obvious. No, this means that Lilith is there target, not Adam"
Kailash raised a tricky eyebrow at this answer "Don't you think that's too early to determine."
"If they were at all interested in Adam then they would have attacked NERV 03. It's not as well defended, only having the half completed Unit 03 as sentry, which could be defeated quiet easily by the angel we have witnessed today." The commander did not take his eyes off the window. "My point being if they wanted Adam they would have him."
"You will have a hard time convincing SELEE of that." Kailash said with a smile.
This caused Fujiyama to turn quickly revealing his face to Kailash for the first time since there flight began. He was a man of 55 but his hair was greyer and his face had more wrinkles than a person of his age should have. This gave the appearance of a much older man . . . A much angrier man.
Instantly knowing what provoked this reaction Kailash pointed to his headset. "Were on a closed channel, we can hear the pilot but he can't hear us."
Upon hearing this Fujiyama discernibly calmed. "Even still, I will need Evangelions to defend Lilith." He paused for a moment as if to ponder something "Units 01 and 02 will remain in Neo Kagoshima."
"You're going to have to go to Europe to smooth things over with NERV 03, they were expecting Unit 01 and Director Ikari doesn't give up without a fight."
"They can't fight me. Now that the angels have returned. As Commander of NERV I have been granted emergency powers by the UN, one of which is absolute authority over NERV resources. It would take a very powerful person indeed to defy me."
Kailash smirked knowingly "Even still, you're going to be much more mobile now. You can't put it off any longer, you will have to appoint an Operations Director for NERV 00."
"I anticipated this and I have already appointed a candidate." The Commander spoke without batting an eye, his composure impeccable.
The Vice Commander sighed "I think I know who you mean but unfortunately Mr. Kaji has been missing for 2 days now, the authorities in Hamburg have yet to turn up anything."
"Unfortunate as that may be, Ryoji Kaji was not who I was referring too." Kailash raised a tricky eyebrow to this. "In my briefcase there's a file labeled Green. It contains her dossier. Kailash reached under his seat and pulled out a silver briefcase. After undoing the locks and skimming the dossier he replied.
"She's a bit young don't you think? For the last 4 years she has been the guardian of the fourth child, no combat experience."
"If I wanted someone with combat experience I would have chosen Clark. She graduated top of her class at West Point and showed an exceptional understanding of large scale battlefield tactics and logistical management. Her inexperience will only make her that much easier to control."
The Vice Commander leaned back in his seat "Have you cleared this with SELEE?"
"I have there full support." Knowing that he had gotten all the information out of the Commander he would get. Kailash turned to face the window and once again gazed with quiet awe at the fallen giant and the sphere of destruction surrounding it.
Just as the scrolls predicted. The craftsman is dead.
XXXXX
July 11 2015, about 0300 hours, Neo Kagoshima district 7, Hotel Sakura
The Hotel Sakura had a reputation not just for being the only four star hotel in Neo Kagoshima but also for its close ties with the UN. It was NERV's favorite place to stick visiting officers and officials because the persuasive power of complementary massages and silk sheets. Despite this Alex couldn't sleep, he lay flat on his back staring at his arm.
It had been mangled by the angel 2 days earlier and he felt the worst pain he ever felt in his life. Yet when he left his entryplug he felt nothing. During training he was told that he would 'feel the Evas injuries as if they were his own' but he had never experienced it himself. It was unnerving how real it felt. Was this what he was going to have to deal with from now on? What was the point of the 4 feet of armor plating if he was just going to get hurt anyway?
The hotel room door slid open and Abby yawned at him lazily. "Are you still awake do you know what time it is?" She peeled off her jean jacket and tossed it on the bed.
"Do you? You're only just now getting home?" questioned Alex
"Don't call this home just yet." Replied Abby sleepily as she collapsed in a pile over her completely undisturbed duvet, seeming content to make it her 'nest' for the night. "We're moving out of here tomorr- er" she looked at the clock "-today."
Alex sighed with relief "Good, I've been wondering when we would get back to Nevada."
"I'm sorry Alex." Abby turned serious "I should have called you when I first heard the news." This caught Alex's attention. Completely forgetting about his arm, he sat up. "We're going to be staying in Neo Kagoshima with Unit 02 and-" She paused not quite sure how to cushion the blow for the next part. "-I've been promoted, we just finished filling out the paperwork. I won't be able to be your guardian anymore."
Alex was dumbfounded and questions raced through his mind. Promoted to what? How? By who? Where will we stay if we're leaving the hotel today? Will I ever go back to NERV 02? He silenced these questions and asked the important one. "… The angels, will I have to fight them again?"
Abby lifted her head. "Yes, you will"
But I'm afraid "But I'm not qualified. Have you seen what those things can do? I was useless in the last battle."
It was Abby's turn now to lean forward. "You're one of the most qualified people on the planet. You're a Spartan Legacy, one of only three in the world, you've been training for this since you were 7."
"That's still no excuse for being useless." Alex whispered "If anything it just means I'm more of a failure. I wasn't even supposed to be a Spartan Legacy, I had the lowest sync ratio out of all the American candidates, I'm just here because they're all dead."
Abby crossed the room and sat next to Alex she thought for a moment then spoke "I've known you longer than anyone, you can fight the angels and you can pilot the Eva. If you have any trouble just talk to the other pilots they can help you out." She put her hand on his shoulder. "Hey it's gunna be alright, I promise."
This calmed him down. "Thanks Abby." The two sat there a moment and the window of the hotel room was open letting in the first rays of morning. Alex could see the large military structure that was the entrance to the Geofront. That's where I'll be living I guess. He thought. "Hey Abby, what are they gunna do with the angels body?"
"Study it I suppose. Dr. Kimura says that its scales are as hard as diamonds. That sounds pretty interesting." Abby said.
"I meant about the smell."
XXXXX
July 11 2015, approximately 1700 hours, Mt. Sakurajima Geofront
Natasha walked with her hands at her sides. She looked around at her fellow pilots. The Fourth was yawning, he had been half asleep the whole tour, almost as if he missed an entire night's sleep. The Second was complaining about having to take a tour at all. Occasionally she would stop to take a breath and blow her long white hair out of her face.
"I've lived at NREV 00 since I was 4! I know my way around." The Second yelled, her arms folded in the most dissatisfied way possible.
"Now Jain..." Their guide spoke. He wore the rank of Captain on the collar of his black NERV officer's uniform and a union jack patched on its sleeve. He looked to be in his mid-30s, his hair was cut short, dark and his stubble unshaven." You're not here for the tour you're here to spend time with your fellow pilots." His Japanese was heavily accented. "If you are to become an effective fighting force you have to know each other inside and out. That means spending as much time with each other as possible."
She shot him a hostile glare with her purple eyes which he returned with gusto.
They all stepped out the doorway onto a moving sidewalk atop a bridge. At the end they just came from what was an octagonal spire which stood 0.3 kilometers from base to peak and functioned as the entrance to NERV HQ. At the other end was a parking lot and an asphalt road which led out to the wide open fields and forests of the Geofront.
The walkway carried them across the chasm which Natasha had noticed was a concave dome terminating at the base of the spire. It was about 0.1 kilometers down at its deepest point and suddenly she was thankful for the railing.
When they reached the end of the bridge there was a car and a man in a khaki NERV uniform and a blue beret waiting for them. Their guide went ahead of them and spoke to the man. "Pvt. Benson you're dismissed." He said firmly.
"But… sir I was… ordered by the new… operations… director to show the… pilots to their… barracks." He obviously had trouble speaking Japanese
Their guide smiled. "Actually, I was hoping to do that myself."
"…Sir?"
"These pilots will be the ones fighting the angels, not us. Their actions will determine the future of humanity. They have been made my responsibility and I intend to make their first impressions of their new home a positive one. I trust this job to no one but myself. Now I say again Pvt. Benson you are dismissed." He continued to smile.
"Yes… Sir Captain Clark… Sir." The private sputtered then walked quickly in the direction the group had just came from.
By this time all the pilots were watching with great interest, even Alex seemed to be more awake. They watched the khaki clad man speed walk away, once he was out of earshot Jain spoke. "Hey Fourth that guy speaks worse than you do." Alex shot her a look but didn't say anything.
While the other two pilots were eyeing each other Natasha examined Captain Clark. He was not like the other military officers she had scene, he was more informal, his face was unshaven and his uniform unkempt. Despite this he still appeared to run a tight ship and all his subordinates seemed to regard him with fear, respect or some combination of the two. He also smiled allot which unnerved her. She watched him get into the driver's seat with great suspicion.
The back door of the Sudan popped open as if by magic and the captain's voice could be heard from inside. "Pile in, there's plenty of room." Jain was the first to enter followed hesitantly by Alex and finally by Natasha who closed the door behind her.
'Plenty of room' my ass Natasha thought
It was a tight fit Alex nearly elbowed Jain in the face putting on his seatbelt. "Hey! Watch it bozo!"
"…Sorry"
"Next stop pilot barracks." Said the Captain as the car started to move.
This is ridiculous "Capitan wouldn't it be better if one of us sits in the front passenger seat?" Natasha asked.
"Can't, were picking up a fare-" He was cut off by the commotion coming from the back seat but didn't take his eyes off the road. Natasha looked to her left at her fellow pilots angrily. The Second was berating the Fourth for almost striking her and 'almost messing up her pretty face' while the Fourth was muttering apologies in clumsy Japanese. They were creating quite a ruckus and making it hard have a conversation.
Natasha could not believe what she was seeing. Their lack of discipline is astounding! How could this be? The Fourth is a Spartan Legacy just like I am and the Second says she has been at NERV since she was 4! How could they both interrupt a superior officer like that?! If the Capitan won't say anything to quiet them I will! But she didn't have to say anything for as soon as she opened her mouth to speak the front passenger door popped open and in sat a woman with dyed black hair. She wore a lab coat with a NERV ID which read Doctor Honoka Kimura.
Her presence seemed to immediately silence everyone in the car. "Doctor Kimura!" accept Jain who greeted her with a smile.
"Jain darling how have you been?" she replied in turn. She looked to be in her early forties and had several small scars, like scrapes or scratches, on her palms and forearms which Natasha noticed when she waved hello.
"Doctor Kimura what are you doing here?" The Captain asked with an eyebrow raised.
"Doctor Bright couldn't make it. He's in his lab doing unimportant things. So he pawned it off to me, just be glad that I, Chief Medical officer and NERV's most valuable employ, had nothing better to do on a Saturday afternoon." She waited for a response when none came she continued. "Anyway here are the files you asked for." She shook the stack of papers in her hand gesturing for him to take them.
Seeing this, Captain Clark released the brake and pushed the accelerator incrementally forward. "Can't, I'm driving." The Doctor furrower her brow. Seeing this Clark reassured her "They're just the Pilots schedules until the schools open back up again. There should be 3 copy's, pass them out. Don't worry I've got them memorized." He tapped his temple.
"Hold on a second why do we need schedules? I didn't have a schedule before." Jain said in annoyance.
"The angels have returned, your time isn't your own anymore. The public schools should open in about a month or so, I intend to use this period to turn you three into an effective fighting force." Both Alex and Jain gulped.
Natasha looked through the papers. I don't see what their problem is? I've been on a schedule similar to this almost all my life? She thought to herself. Hold on a sec? "Excuse me sir?"
"Go ahead"
"Why do we need psychological counseling? Wouldn't that time be better spent in combat simulators?"
He took his eyes off the road for a second to look at her. "Piloting the Evas takes a toll on both the body and mind if either one is damaged then it will severely impact your ability to function as pilots." He looked back at the road. "If you can't pilot your Eva you're worse than useless you're a liability."
After a long pause Jain broke the silence. "Why do we need firearms training? If we get in a fight don't we have Giant robots?"
This time Doctor Kimura answered "Not every threat to NERV will be an angel. There are some people out there that might want to hurt NERV by killing its pilots. After all it takes the Marduk Institute awhile to find a replacement. And in the meantime that would leave us vulnerable to an angel attack. Also Jain the Evas aren't robots they're living beings just like you or I."
"Sorry Doctor Kimura" Jain said sheepishly
Did Jain just apologies!? Natasha and Alexander gave each other confused looks not believing what they just heard. In the short time the three had known each other they had scarcely heard Jain be quiet let alone apologize for something.
At that very moment the car skidded to a halt and everyone lurched forward. "We're here!" The Captain said then looked back at his young passengers then at the woman sitting next to him.
"Where did you learn to break?" She said angrily "I nearly broke my nose on the dashboard!"
They all exited the car at the same time and Natasha caught her first glimpse of their destination. That's the barracks? It was unlike any barracks she had ever seen and a far cry from her old accommodation at NERV 07. It was a lakeside two story ranch style house complete with a porch.
Sitting on the porch steps was an angry looking blonde woman with green eyes wearing a uniform similar to the Captain's but tailored for a woman. "Pvt. Benson you're late!" She paused when she saw the Captain who snapped a salute when he heard her voice. "Captain Clark? What are…? Doctor Kimura?" The look on her face shifted from anger to confusion.
"Major Green I didn't expect you to be here." The Captain said. Upon hearing the name Alex perked up and shifted his attention away from the shimmering waters of the lake on the other side of the road.
"Abby!" he let out a large grin.
Clark looked at him amazed at his informality. Then down at his own unkempt uniform and winced. He clearly wasn't expecting to run into any superior officers today. Natasha thought to herself.
She grinned back at him then looked to Clark "At ease Capitan." He let his hand fall to his side.
"I wasn't expecting anyone to be here. I was just going to give the pilots a tour of their new barracks." This made the blonde woman frown.
"Does this look like a barracks to you?" She asked rhetorically. "I've read your file Capitan. Your very G.I. pardon the expression." She looked him up and down. "Except for your uniform." Clark cursed quietly in English. Doctor Kimura snickered which captured the attention of the other woman. "Doctor Kimura don't you have better things to do than just standing there?"
The Doctor touched a hand to her face. "You'd think so but no, I don't," She said still half-smiling.
This act of insubordination clearly angered the Major and the pilots could see it on her face for a second before she steeled herself. She smiled back at the Doctor and said "Are you sure? I could have sworn that you had a heap of paperwork back at your office."
"It wasn't that much I finished it all this…" catching her meaning she narrowed her eyes. "Clark I have work to do back at the base, can you drive me?"
He looked to the Major who gave him a nod. "Sure I can."
After they pulled out of the driveway and took off down the road the Operations Director turned her attention to the pilots who were quite stunned. Seeing this she clapped her hands together. "Ok everyone who wants to see inside?" She said with a smile, gesturing them to follow her.
The three followed her hesitantly at first but soon changed pace when they saw the inside. The house wasn't overly big but it seemed all the more spacious thanks to a lack of furniture, carpeting, wall decoration or anything else that might make a home feel like a home.
Jain ran ahead while the rest took off their shoes. "How long has this place been here?!" she half shouted. "I've never seen it before in my life."
"It was built on the orders of the Commander of NERV before Fujiyama. It was purposely built out of the way so it wouldn't interfere if they ever wanted to expand NERV HQ." Abby answered, "I noticed the blueprints when I was getting acquainted with the geofront for my new position.
Alex followed the two hesitantly, inspecting every detail of his new home. He seemed to have woken up at this point. He was saying something to the Operations Director in English. They seemed very happy to see each other.
The interior was simple. To the left was a hallway branching into individual bedrooms, to the right was stairs to the attic. In the middle of this was a communal room with kitchen nook. The entire building was completely devoid of furniture and carpeting. A fine film of dust covered every surface like the fuzz on a peach.
The blonde woman pointed down the hallway "The 3 doors on the left will be your rooms the one next to the turn will be mine" she said with an energetic grin. This caused a confused reaction from the pilots.
"You're living with us?!" Jain said appalled at the very idea "I… we don't need supervision we're Trained Evangelion Pilots!"
Abby looked at Jain and walked up to her bending over and staring her dead in the face. "You may be Eva pilots, have advanced combat training and be humanity's last line of defense against the angels but you're still hormonal teenagers and I'll be damned if I left you alone in a house unsupervised!" flames appeared in the blond woman's eyes.
Jain let out a small "eep."