Disclaimer in chapter 1, Please R&R.

3

Most of the crew in the command centre had seen some pretty strange things since they started their employment with NERV. A few had seen things that no one would even believe, but even those few were complete in awe of the sight that played out on the screen in front of them.

Rise
Throw away
The charade of your life
Let the flame of my heart
Burn away
Your complacence tonight
I command you to rise

Shinji had heard Misato scream his name through over the com line, but he didn't care. It was time for some pay back and he was going to have fun this time around.

He quickly covered the distance between himself and Sachiel, catching the confused angel with a massive body check that sent the angel flying into the air and towards the outskirts of the city.

Wash away
The decay of your life
Feel the light of your eyes
Find the way
Through the darkness tonight
Fearing no one

Do you really think I covet like you do?

"Ma'am!" Maya shouted "Sync ratio slowly climbing, current rate is 99.5."

Ritsuko just stared in complete and utter disbelief, "This isn't possible. Is it a berserker?" She asked the young woman.

Maya shook her head, "No Ma'am, no signs of the unit going berserk."

Come, take me away
Remove the fear from my eyes
Feel the flame of my heart
Burning away
All conversation tonight
Hearing no one

Sachiel could not believe he had been struck in such a way, and as he stood up was trying to decide how to properly deal with the new threat to his goal.

Unfortunately before he could come up with anything at all he was struck again, forcing him to skip none to elegantly across the fields lead further out of town.

Am I precious to you now?
Am I precious to you now?

"Alright, enough playing around with you little one." Shinji said as he engaged the prog knife in his shoulder pylon and began stalking towards the angel.

Now rise
Turn away
From the shame of your life
Feel the light from my eyes
Offering
Consolation tonight
Fearing no one

Do you really think I want it like you do?

"How did he know about the weapons system?" Misato asked dumbfounded.

"I…I have no idea, we didn't tell him before he launched." Ritsuko responded, clueless herself.

Come, take me away
Remove the fear from my eyes
Feel the flame of my heart
Burning away
All conversation tonight
Hearing no one

As Sachiel stood up once again he began to step back slowly, not liking the look of that giant glowing blade. As the purple behemoth stepped closer it was halted in it's tracks by a giant, barely visible wall.

Am I precious to you now?
Am I precious to you now?

Fearing no one

Saviors of my soul

Am I precious to you now?
Am I precious to you now?

"An AT Field?" Ritsuko questioned "How will he negate that?"

"Do we have anything to disrupt it?" Misato questioned on of the bridge crew, but was not pleased with the response she got.

"Wait, what's he doing?" Ritsuko asked as she looked at Maya's screen. "He's matching frequencies, he's canceling the angel's AT Field with his own."

"No, he's tearing through it." Misato stated.

Now, I cannot stop this
Pure emotion
Falling from my eyes
You are vindicating
Liberating
Saviors of my soul

Shinji grinned as he drew his fists back and plunged them into the angel's AT Field at the same point, the proceeded to tear the Field apart.

"That won't stop me, not this time." He spoke.

Rushing forward quickly, Unit-One dodged left and right hooks thrown by the Sachiel, merely toying with the being.

Now rise
Throw away
The charade of your life
Let the flame of my heart
Burn away
Your complacence tonight
Fearing no one

Sachiel was about to jump upon Unit-One, tired of these games, he would simply self-destruct himself upon his enemy, and take them both out.

However he had not expected to find his enemies weapons sticking out of his core. Just as he was about to rear back and make his final attack, Shinji had thrust his prog knife hilt deep into the angel's core.

"Now…. Die." Shinji said as he turned away from the collapsing Angel.


Shinji stood in the hallway of the hospital, over looking the lake within the Geofront.

'Damn that Ritsuko.' He thought to himself.

He no sooner got the Eva into the cage and Ritsuko had him dragged kicking and screaming into the hospital wing for tests.

'Maybe I went a bit too far.' He thought as a door down the hall opened.

The sounds of a gurney being wheeled down the hall caught his ears. 'Right on time.' He thought as he turned around. He walked slowly towards the men pushing the bed and motioned for them to stop.

"How you feeling Rei?" He asked the girl laying on the stretcher.

She only looked at him with her one good eye. Gentle breathes escaping her lips, nothing more.

"Well, I hope you get well soon." Shinji said before allowing the group to continue on it's way.

Misato was standing at the end of the hall as the previous actions finished out. 'What was that all about?' she thought as she headed towards the young man.

"Hey Shinji, you ready to go?" She asked smiling.

"Yeah, I just have to grab my stuff and I'll be ready to go." He replied as he went back into his room to gather up his duffle bag.


The pair stood outside the elevators waiting to ride down and leave when the door 'dinged' and opened. Inside stood the one, the only, the heartless bastard, Gendo Ikari. The two Ikaris looked at each other for a moment before Shinji stepped onto the elevator.

After a few floors the youngest Ikari spoke up.

"So, I figured since I'm going to be piloting the Eva for the foreseeable future, I think me and the other pilots should get some kind of monetary compensation." Shinji said towards his father.

Gendo turned to stare down his child, but was slightly surprised to see that Shinji was standing firmly in place, apparently ready for a verbal argument should one arise.

"As long as you pilot, you will be paid accordingly." Gendo said, 'money is of no issue as long as my scenario goes unfaltered.' He thought. "Is there anything else?" Gendo said sternly.

"For now, no, but if I think of anything later I'll pop on by your office and let you know." Shinji said as the doors opened on their floor.

Shinji left the elevator, leaving a temporarily stunned Misato in his wake. She blinked a few times before leaving to catch up with the only person to stand up to the commander the way he had.

As the two headed out of the hospital and towards the nearby parking lot Misato couldn't get over what had just transpired.

"You know, I've never seen anyone stand up to him like that." She said.

"I kind of figured, but that wasn't the first nor the last time." He said with a slight smirk. "So, where will I be staying during my extended layover here?" he asked her.

"Oh, I've had it arranged so that you'll be staying with me." She said.

"Ah, and that wouldn't have to do with a pay increase for taking care of someone as important as myself correct?" he asked jokingly.

"Ah… Well…. Umm…." Misato stuttered before Shinji burst out laughing.

"It's alright Misato, I could use the company." He said as the crawled into the car.

Misato stood there for a minute, 'did he just play me?' she asked herself before getting into the car as well. "You know, your nothing like your profile says." She said.

"I'm sure you'll find that thing is wrong about a lot of stuff." Shinji said with a smirk.


Misato was sitting at the kitchen table sipping on a beer, wearing her trademark cutoff shorts and loose tee. They had already split up the list of chores, pretty even down the middle, though she was sure he knew she was cheating he never said anything.

Shinji was just about to enter the bathroom, to wash away the events of the day, and to try to relax a little. '3….2….1….' Shinji thought, just as the door opened revealing the warm water penguin fresh out of his own bath.

Shinji leaned over and grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, and turned back towards the kitchen. "Hey Misato." He said as he opened the door to the kitchen, "I think I found dinner." He joked, holding the helpless penguin up.

Misato spit her beer out as she choked on a laugh. "That's PenPen, he's not dinner, he's my pet." She said wiping her mouth off.

"Oh, alright then." He said as he put the bird on the ground and quickly closed the door to avoid the peck he knew was coming.


As Shinji sat in the bath he recalled the events of the day, as well of the last year that was yet to come.

'Hmm, I'd better explain things to mom next time I go in for a test.' He thought to himself as he sunk lower into the tub. 'She won't be happy, but I'm sure she'll understand.'

Meanwhile in the kitchen Misato sat, slowly sipping her beer, waiting for Shinji to leave the bath. 'Hmm I wonder if I should ask him about it.' she thought. She tossed her now empty can into the trash as she heard the bathroom door open.

"All yours." Shinji shouted as he walked down the hall to his room.

"Hey, Shinji…. Can I ask you a question really quick?" Misato said as she entered the hallway.

Shinji stopped in his tracks, 'she couldn't have figured it out, could she?', he turned around, "Yeah?"

"During the fight, you said 'This won't stop me, not this time.'… what did you mean this time?" She asked, her arms crossed just under her breasts.

"Umm… I'm…. I'm not sure." He said trying to hide his slipup. "Guess I just got caught up in the moment, ya know." He finished hoping she would accept this answer.

"Yeah, I understand." She said with a small smile, 'but that's not what really happened is it.' she thought to herself as she turned towards the bathroom.


Shinji lay in bed, his SDAT sitting on the table next to him. He stared at the ceiling, wondering if he really made the right decision. 'Of course you did. Soon you'll get to be back with her.' He told himself. Shinji slipped into peaceful sleep as the thoughts of a beautiful redhead danced in his mind.


On the other side of the world, news of the attack by the Third Angel, and it's subsequent defeat, had reached NERV-03 in Germany.

Kaji was sitting at his desk meddling around with some files when his young charge walked through the door.

"Hey, did you hear the news?" He asked.

"No, what about?" said the young woman.

"The Third Angel attacked Tokyo-3." The man said, judging her reaction.

"Oh yeah? Well, since we are all still alive, I take it the pilot won?" she asked.

"Oh yeah, he beat it. The most impressive thing was that he was synced at ninety-nine percent the whole time." He said, expecting an outburst.

Asuka humphed and turned to walk out, stopping only at the door for a minute. She wanted to be happy that Shinji was safe, but she remembered Joe's warning. 'you must not draw too much attention with a major personality change, try to remain as normal as you used to be. At least until you join up with him on the carrier again.'

She turned her head slightly before speaking "Guess beginners luck is true."

As she walked out of the room closing the door behind her, Kaji was looking at the now closed door with an eyebrow raised. "Did I miss something?" he asked himself. The Asuka he knew would have flown off the handle and probably thrown some of his paper work around.

'She hasn't been acting like herself since she got up.' He thought to himself as he turned back to his computer and continued reading an encrypted email.

Thanks to SithKnight-Galen for pre-reading the fight sequence. Hopefully I'll get around to updating quicker (I kind of ran into a brick wall with how to get this chapter going.)