Maya Ibuki looks up as the coffee is placed in front of her, smiling to the other person in the large office as he circles around the desk and takes his chair. "So." A cough, a gloved hand pushing his glasses up. "You and Lieutenant Aoba?"
She shrugs, blushes. "Sort of out of the blue. About three weeks ago he took me out for pizza, and we've been going out together once a week." She shrugs, then rolls her shoulders up. The filtered sunlight of the Geofront makes the person in front of her a silhouette. "This isn't against regulations, is it?"
"I'm quite sure regulations would also have less-than-kind things to say about the head of Research and the head of Administration being married. Yui's fond enough of you that it would probably take you murdering a petting zoo on live, national television to give you a reprimand, and even then it would be iffy."
That makes Maya smile more, sitting up in the chair. Across the large, maple and tech-woven desk, Gendo Ikari takes out a folder. "So, Lieutenant. You had a question?"
She nods. "I didn't get an answer from Doctor Ikari, but what's a Sandalim?"
The Supreme Commander of NERV, and sounding board for the head of Project E, strokes his beard with a grunt. Tenting his hands on his chest, he leans back in his chair. "We're not one hundred percent certain, ourselves." The shadowed head cocks towards her. "Do you have any theories?"
She nods. "I do, sir," she says, and pulls out her PDA, "I did some research on the root of the name."
He leans forward slightly, straightening up. "Continue."
"Well, we refer to the cherubim prior to Saigon as 'Shamshelim' because they're supposed to be created by the Fifth Angel," she explains. Gendo nods, resting his elbows on the desk. "And we know the Angels are named after, well, mythological angels."
She taps the screen, bringing up a list of names. Gendo nods, tenting his hands in front of his mouth. "And so, I compared Sandalim to mythological Angel names, and the closest match I came up with is one named Sandalphon."
She slides the PDA over to him. He looks down, and nods. "Very interesting, Lieutenant," the Commander says, "Such possibilities are under consideration. Do you have any other information?"
She shakes her head. "No, I don't. But I can keep researching, if you want?" Less a statement or offer. More a question.
He nods, reaching into his desk and pulling out a small, manilla folder. "That would be acceptable. As long as this information is not circulated outside of myself, and Doctor Ikari." He gently slides over the folder, and the nondisclosure agreement therein. "More coffee?"
She nods, pen already in hand. She looks over her shoulder, just as Iti gently places the filled coffee cup in front of her. "Yes. Thank you, sir."
The sunlight reflects off the reflective sunglasses. "Iti. I require you to dispose of some...waste materials." He slides a second folder across the desk towards her. Maya glances at it, trying to make out the writing on it, before the long haired Ayanami's hand darts out. Her used coffee cup is gone, briefly fluttering the folder open.
Maya cocks her eyebrow, briefly seeing the contents, and blushes slightly before reaching out and closing the folder full of baby pictures. "And please bring those to the appropriate personnel, Iti."
The pale girl nods, and snatches the folder. "Yes, Commander." And she is gone.
.
Chapter 7:
Zwei
.
One foot drags behind the other. Red eyes shift, side to side. Sometimes independently. But not like that of a chameleon, more something very, very very oh why why why so tired. Lips parted with a moan that comes from deep within the soul, teeth grinding as every single step is pain and why and oh god.
As she walks down the hallway on the highest level of the school, Kei Ayanami counts the hundredths of seconds since the crash began. It does not, she realizes, look good. Because she looks to her side and sees that yes. Oh yes. She is still right next to the Principal's office.
Looking up, the feelings of despair, fatigue, and whblgbl turn to resentment as she sees Shinji quickly walking to her. Face one of concern mixed with snark. Of questions, mixed with snark. Of confusion. Mixed with snark.
"So," he says, coming to a stop next to her, "I...uh...could say 'I told you so,' except no one actually told me about coffee and...Ree...until Hikari educated me quite hysterically, and so I think we can settle on 'This is your fault', but hrk"
Her hand blurs, and seizes his windpipe. "This. Is your fault," she groans, "You. Gave me. The coffee. So shut up. And help me."
She releases his throat. Thinking better of complaining, he takes her arm and drapes it over his shoulder and helps her stand. They walk together down the hall, Shinji's lips pursing and shifting side to side as she moans.
"So why didn't...Rei just call out sick?"
A low moan and her hand clutches her head. "Rei's never sick. People would be all panicky and stuff and junk if she was." Rolling her eyes, she shakes her head with a groan. "Also, Mother said I was good. So I got to go out today. Then you gave me coffee."
He shakes his head. "Every-"
"Little-" Kei growls.
"Secret," he finishes, and they emit a simultaneous, identical sigh. "So what happened?"
"I'm about...twice?" She shrugs. "Twice the body mass as the last time I had coffee, when I was twermean nine or ten. So it went through me a lot faster. So hrgle my head." She moans. "Alright. Fine. Fine." She narrows her eyes. "Don't tell anyone. Keep this a secret."
"Keep what a secre-hrk" The words are cut off as her hand once more seizes his windpipe.
"They want me to be Rei," she says, face darkening, "Fine. Let me be Rei."
Rolling her head back, standing straight, Kei stretches her smile. Then stretches it more by hooking her fingers into the corner of her mouth and pulling. Turning to him, her smile less warm and inviting than carnivorous, she tilts her head and skips down the hallway.
Shinji watches her go. Considers the consequences. Finally, states his observations with a simple, flat and insightful
"Oh what the fuck."
...
"So, when he's not in tactical mode, he's progressing quite nicely." The man, wreathed in faded blue light, strokes his bushy mustache as he paces back and forth on the floor mounted projector. Receding white hair giving his spotted head a faint glow, he smirks as both brows rise. "His non-combat reading level is quite high. Math and sciences are exceptional. Also, different strengths than the source code."
Leaning back on the chair, Yui nods. Folding her arms under her chest, she purses her lips. "That's good to know, Albert. Sprout gave me a very thorough report from Bethany. What doesn't he know?"
The old researcher coughs. Hands folded behind him, he puffs out his barrel chest as the open NERV jacket sways slightly with each step. "Research going apace. Subject is...unresponsive, but not completely. Some odd data, but nothing even close to what Katsuragi's team reported." He coughs again. "Any luck with the other?"
Yui shrugs. "We still haven't figured out what Naoko did to her. Until we can find some notes of some sort or backtrack her actions..." She sighs, standing. "Hope you don't mind Albert, but I sent Sprout to the MAGI. He has a play date."
The old man smiles, nodding his head. "Even the digital children can be allowed to be children, Doctor Ikari. NERV-Bethany out."
The hologram flickers and disappears. Yui exits the projection room to her office, tapping her foot. Nodding, she walks across it, the door to the projection room closing as the door to her gym opens. "MAGI."
The ceiling opens, and the waldo folds down with the silver and green eye. "Yes, Doctor Ikari?"
Turning on one heel, she pins it with a glance. The head jerks back. Metal iris shifts. If it were capable of such, it might be afraid. "I was one of the team that translated the Dead Sea Scrolls. I know what is on the MAGI, and isn't. How do you know the term Sandalim?"
...
Two hours into the reign of Kei Ayanami, Touji Suzuhara opens the garbage bin and looks inside. "Kensuke, what're you doin' in there?"
A faint, high pitched whimper issues forth from beneath the garbage. "Rei's having women trouble. She told me that before she shoved me in here."
Touji blinks, considers the wording, the phrase. The implications. And then replaces the cover and walks away. Walking back towards the classroom, he looks down as his stomach rumbles and steps up his pace. Turning the corner as he enters the classroom, Kei strides past with Hikari behind her.
"Why, exactly, did you shove Kensuke into the garbage bin?"
"He wouldn't stop!" She perks up her chin, slowing down and remembering to lightly skip, not march, "And it's not my fault most people are rubbish, anyway."
Kei twitches her nose, slowing the trot so Hikari can catch up with a roll of her eyes. "So...what exactly am I doing here?" the blue haired girl asks, "Isn't it lunch time?"
"Rei always does something with the seventh and eighth graders during lunch," Hikari responds, books held close to her chest as she easily keeps pace with the Ayanami, "A show, question answer, something. They're her group."
Kei cocks an eyebrow. "Fascinating. Children." She purses her lips. "I can handle children."
Hikari nods, eyes fixed on Kei's face. The walk takes them to the double doors of the auditorium, and Key strides in with a wide smile and eyes that are better described as High Beams. "Heyayayaay~," she warbles, waving her hand.
Then eighty children between ten and twelve years old turn in their seats and scream Rei's name.
...
The auditorium doors are barred with a chair leg. Her skin is whiter than normal, and she is clutching her chest, deep and heaving breaths as she leans bent over against a bank of full sized green lockers. "What was that what was that what the Hell was that?"
Slowly, she presses her hands downward. Taking deep breathes in and drawing the hands up, and slow exhalations in time with the downward motions. She is calm. She is calm. Calmness overtakes her. It is like a serene thing of serenity and no she did not make up the term and Iti will no doubt mock her for-
"REI!" The locker next to Kei swings open, and the Ayanami sister shrieks as a twelve year old girl with chocolate pigtails leaps out and onto her back. Kei screams, thrashing about like a a bipedal thrashing person with a twelve year old girl clinging to her back and why does Rei do this to herself?
A gentle kick off and the girl lands in a crouch. Kei turns, nostrils flared, eyes wide. Then recognizes the girl and this does nothing to calm her down. Summoning the depths of her acting ability, she smiles and waits, as the girl dusts herself off and hops to her feet.
"Hi!" Mari Illustrious Makinami Langley half says, half chirps, "Crawled out of the ductwork after you bolted, and Hikari's all kinds of boring. What's up?"
Kei blinks. Opens her mouth to say something, but the girl goes from standing to motion. Her hand clamps around Kei's wrist and drags her along. "So I wanted to get your permission for stuff and junk, 'cause you're my life coach an' everything." The drag becomes an impromptu tour of the first floor, Kei managing to get her footing so she is not literally dragged.
"Ah. Yes?" Kei shrugs, but the girl does not see her. As long as she is not taking them to an Evangelion, Kei imagines they are relatively safe.
"Well, I was thinking of changing my name again, 'cause Makinami is, like, a kid's name. Can I get adopted by you? I mean, not like living with you, but would you be offended at all if I was Mari Illustrious Ayanami Langley?"
Kei blinks. Finds them passing the same open locker again. "What kind of name is Illustrious?"
"The kind you have to SHOUT, of course! That's why we chose it when we planned out my career as a superhero!"
Kei blinks. Wonders if Rei helped a twelve year old girl actually do this. Wonders what scientific procedures will be used to grant the girl superpowers. "Wait wait." She passes the open locker once more. "You keep changing your name?"
Mari turns, rolling her eyes and stopping. Momentum makes Kei pass her, then backpedal. "Of course I do," Mari says, hands on her hips and standing on her tip toes to meet Kei's gaze, "See, it's simple. I usually take my third name after one of Dad's ex-wives. Makinami was five. I was Mari Illustrious Farrell Langley two years ago, but it didn't sound right, but I always have to keep a name for a year."
Kei stares. She understands. Understands that there are words. But no meaning. "But why do you-"
"Because my real third name is my mother's last name and I haven't even seen her in six years." Mari shrugs, cocking her head. Then cocking it again, faster, so the pigtails bounce. "And besides which, we both agreed Mari Illustrious Sohryu Langley just didn't work. Remember?"
...
Sitting at his desk, peace and quiet at last his, Shinji reaches into his backpack. Looking over the empty classroom- no students to interrupt him. No Hikari to share awkward silence with. No Kei to snark with him. It is peace. His peace.
Pulling out the brown paper bag, he opens it and removes the aluminum foil wrapped roll, unfurling it and revealing the two rolls of sushi he made himself that morning. Cooking is a talent of his- one he hasn't really told his immediate family about. A guilty pleasue.
Withdrawing the metal chopsticks from his bag, he pulls off an end piece, bringing up the seaweed wrapped, round mess of rice, vinegar, and fish up to his mouth-
"Attention students. Shinji Ikari, please report to the Principal's office immediately."
...
He stomped up the two sets of staircases with all the power and anger that a passive-aggessive sixteen year old could muster. Once again, his peace had been taken from him. Once more, he has been summoned to the beck and call- no doubt due to what his sister has done.
It has been the second time today he has been on the third floor. Walking out of the stairwell and into the well-lit hallway outside the Principal's Office, he finds Hikari already waiting for him. "You too?" he asks.
She nods, shrugging, and he opens the door for her. Following, he enters the office and takes in the sights. The well polished, mahogany desk, the chairs and the long couch on which Kei is hyperventilating into a paper bag, the large TV on the other wall and wait.
Ito Kyoshi, principal of Tokyo-3 High School, waves the two in. Sitting at his desk, smartphone propped between his shoulder and ear, he nods and listens. "I understand, Gendo. I have your son and Miss Horaki here. Cover story's that Rei got too much coffee and left the school through the vent system."
A final nod, and he taps the off button for the phone. "So," Shinji says, "You know..."
"Everything." Shinji yelps, Hikari and him both turning and jumping to the side to stare at Pieter. "Ito, what's wrong?"
The principal gestures to Kei, who absently waves at them before continuing her breathing into the bag. "Mari dragged her around the first floor. For forty minutes."
Pieter sucks his teeth. "Yeah, Mari should know them apart by now." He shrugs. "I'll go find my pride and joy. Kids, you help Kei. Ito." Pieter nods, and walks out the door.
"That is the first time I have ever seen him use a door." The principal turns to them. "If you will?"
The older man goes back to his computer and his phone, quietly muttering to himself as he returns to paperwork. Shrugging, Shinji drags a chair over and sits across from Kei. "So. Uh. What happened?"
"So many children," Kei whispers, "All screaming. All screaming Rei's name." She shudders. "Oh god. Mein Gott. O Deus. Why did I think this was a good idea?"
Shinji shrugs, turning to his girlfriend-cum-ex-girlfriend. Hikari shrugs back. Hands folded in his lap, leaning forward in the chair, Shinji weighs and measures the current situation before him and puts his foot in his mouth. "They're kids."
The red eyes narrow and pin him as she pulls the bag away from her face. "How much time do you think I spend with small children?"
"They're not small, they're four years younger-"
"Okay. How about with people?" Kei rolls her head before resting her face in both her palms. Behind Shinji, Hikari shrugs again. "So many questions. And so excited! And jumpy! It's like a room full of Hatchis!"
"I admit," Hikari whispers, "That does sound terrifying."
Shinji rolls his eyes. He glances at the principal for guidance and finds him on the phone again. "Okay." He turns back to Kei. "Wait. Kei, have you" He suddenly finds the need to ask this question. "Kei, don't you go to school?"
Kei looks up, bloodshot red eyes pinning him. Slowly, she retracts the bag and explains.
...
Arms folded, eyes narrowed, she paces back and forth in front of the steel eye hovering in the middle of her gym. "How the MAGI know about Sandalphon?" Yui asks. She leans forward, hands on her hips and eyes narrowed.
"No data available." The iris shifts. "Further query, Doctor Ikari?" A faint digital warble as her hand comes down on the top of the eye, forcing it to lean back and meet her gaze.
"I helped translate the scrolls," she growls, "I know what the MAGI has been programmed with. I help determine what goes on the MAGI and what does not. And at no point was the identity or expected anatomy of Sandalphon placed on there." She yanks the eye up, hands on the plates on either side. "Who entered this data in?"
A pause. The iris shifts again, the green dot at the center bouncing from side to side. "No data available. Further query, Doctor Ikari?" Yui releases the eye with a growl and grunt, walking back towards her office.
"MAGI, please send a message to Doctor Akagi. I need to consult her on glitches and possible corruption of the data centers." The door shuts before she can walk through. Turning on one heel, she narrows her eyes at the terminal. "And perhaps a data wipe?"
"Please do not do that." The feminine, lilting voice pauses. "We apologize, Doctor Ikari. We do not have the appropriate data available."
Yui holds up her smartphone. A number displayed on it, as well as a name. "Last chance. I press this, and then I call up Rei. And I give her permission to have fun with the MAGI cores."
A small, dangerous smile crosses Yui's features. Watching the eye twitching from side to side, she lets her thumb inch closer and closer to the call button. Waits, letting the movement of her thumb last for seconds. Minutes. Until finally
"Please please PLEASE don't do that!" The voice is no longer feminine. Instead, it is male. Accented, something high pitched and perhaps british. Quavering and whimpering as the eye lowers itself and the iris shifts. "Please please please please don't I promise I will tell you everything she will use a CATTLE PROD and oh dear."
A tap to the top of the phone and she pockets it. "Okay, that's actually kind of disappointing." She loops her foot around a weight bench and drags it over. "I was expecting mind games or clamps from the ceiling or something." She sits down, hands on her knees and lips pursed. "Who are you, what are you, and how much are you going to tell me?"
The eye stares. It coughs, despite not having a mouth. Glancing from side to side, then back at Yui, it emits a long, digital sigh and looks down. "Right. Well then." It jerks back up and coughs again. "I am the MAGI. Or, more importantly, the artificial intelligence of the MAGI. Which, ah. I don't think anyone knows about."
She stares at it. Tilts her head and crosses her legs. Motions for it to continue.
"Ah! Ah yes, you're wondering why I was talking with the based-on-Naoko-Akagi voice, yes. Yes. Yes." A pause. Another cough. "Well, you see, you have a habit of having me open when you're in the bath and I thought you'd be rather cross if you realized I sounded like this."
...
A long sigh from Kei as she meets Shinji's eyes. The shape, the expressions, everything save for the colors are so similar. Hikari coughs behind Shinji, but says nothing. "So," Kei sighs, "First off, I'm...not adopted. I" Kei grinds her teeth. "We're not biologically Mother's daughters, but we are related."
He nods, motioning for her to continue. He props his elbows onto his knees, rolling his shoulders. Behind them, the Principal continues a phone call, back turned to them. "And we're sick," Kei continues, "All of us except Rei." Kei rolls her eyes. "Naturally. Because the universe just loves her."
"So you are adopted," Shinji says. Kei glares at him. "I mean, that's what it means please don't grab my throat."
"It's hard enough to explain without you cutting in." Kei growls, almost as loud as her stomach. "We're not randomly adopted, okay? Is that better? Does that suit your exact definition well enough or do I need to use a pie chart?"
Her stomach rumbles again. Shrugging, he reaches into his bookbag and takes out an aluminum foil covered roll. "You still haven't eaten," he says, and shoves it into Kei's hand. "Look, eat, explain, and..." He shrugs, turning to Hikari. "What exactly am I not getting?"
Hikari's eyes go wide. The Principal stares at them. Shinji turns as Kei dabs the corners of her mouth, the empty and shredded foil on her lap. "Thank you," she says, and pats her stomach with a burp, "Okay. Back to the point. Hatchi, Iti, Siyon, and I are...sick. We don't get out of the Geofront much."
He nods. "Okay, so back to the first point. Are you related on Mom's side or Dad's side? Uncle Tomoe never mentioned any brothers or sisters."
"Mother's side." Kei sighs. "It's complicated. Identical quintuplets aren't exactly...common, but Mother thinks it has something to do with Second Impact." Her face shifts, her frown deepening and eyes narrowing. "I don't know many of the details. We don't think that much about it, and I'm not even sure Mother knows everything."
Shinji massages the back of his neck. "Uh. Heh, yeah it is. Didn't think about the quintuplets thing. I guess you might've had health issues with that. Was it cramped in there?"
Kei stares at him, face blank. The weak joke does not produce even a minor chuckle. "Anyway," she says, "Everyone but Rei is sick. Hence, most people do not know about us, because we stay in the Geofront."
"Of course not." Shinji leans back in the chair, rolling his eyes. "Because why tell everyone about the four identical sisters when you can keep it a secret and surprise the son who's been away for ten years, right?"
Kei leans back on the couch, rolling her eyes. "Of course! Because then you can give Rei extra privileges and let her recruit the entire seventh and eighth grade into her little Cult of TEH REI and life coach the walking tornado of destruction into her sidekick!"
Hands up, shrugging, he asks the wordless question. The mutual passive aggressiveness forms into a bridge of thought, transcending gender, time, and space. That, or Kei had just gotten revved up on her rant. "Because Mari," she moans, "What the Hell. Quid Inferno. No, no, Rei just has to imprint on the girl they use to scare the Evangelions into line."
"Wha-"
"She has the record for destruction in a VR Evangelion simulation," Kei continues, hands more and more animated, eyes rolled up and face red, "Hatchi, and I mean Hatchi tried to match it, on purpose, and managed to get halfway before she destroyed the Geofront."
Shinji blinks. "How exactly does that-"
"In a simulation? She destroyed Unit-00. Shinji, there wasn't an Angel in the simulation. She tripped over power lines, broke a dam, and hit the self destruct while she was trying to eject the plug."
Shinji works her jaw, glancing from side to side. "So...she's actually a worse pilot than me?" Kei nods. "That...doesn't make me feel better," he says, rubbing the back of his neck, "So...you don't go to school?"
Kei shakes her head. "Home tutoring, distance learning, that sort of thing." A sigh. "Mother usually does direct tutoring with us, or has teachers vetted by Section 2 come by for night lessons. Sometimes we trade places with Rei, too." She groans, face held in her hands. "Why did she think this was a good idea?"
He shrugs. "I'm sure to Mom, it looked brilliant at the time."
A sharp laugh from Kei. A snort from her, followed by a chuckle. "Yeah." A sigh, and she leans back. "It usually does." A deep breath and she shrugs. "So, any other questions?"
He shrugs. "Why do you and Rei have the same hairstyle?"
Kei rolls her eyes. "Rei's so NERV doesn't have to make a new damn action figure mold," she mutters, "That's why she can't change her hair, it's marketable." She blows a tuft of hair out of her eyes. "So naturally, everyone calls me Rei Rei Rei because I don't want to change my hair."
Shinji rolls his eyes. Turning around, he grabs Hikari's knapsack out of her hands. "Hey!" The ponytailed girl glares at him, leaning over. "What are you doing-"
"God it's worse enough that you have Mom's hairdo," he says, "Oh wait Hikari do you have anything like a comb or hairba-" She yanks the bag out of his hands, narrows her eyes, and reaches in. A few quick seconds of rummaging, and she presses it into his hands. A thin, curved piece of plastic. "It's Kodama's. She leaves things in my bag."
Shinji nods, flashing a quick smile. Moving over to the couch, standing over Kei, he slides the hairband into her hair. The blue haired girl narrows her eyes as he unapologetically invades her personal space, but does not react overtly. Either out of confusion, or exhaustion she can't say, but she does not protest physically or verbally. But when it is done, there is a purple and pink plastic line atop her head. It pushes back some of her messy blue mop, pushing some forward. It takes some adjustment, apologies on his part. Her hands come up to shove him away, but he pushes them down with more muttered apologies. But finally, he takes a mirror from Hikari and holds it in front of Kei.
"It's...uh...it's not perfect, but it's the same hairstyle, but different enough from Rei's that people can tell you apart. It's just an idea but-hrk"
Although this time, the cut off isn't from her hand around his wind pipe, but the bone crushing hug as Kei throws her arms around him.
...
Hands on her hips, watching through a camera feed from the Principal's office, Yui smirks and rubs the top of the MAGI terminal's head. "Good. Just as planned."
Turning on her heel, she looks down at the eye as the metal plates shift and rotate. "Alright. So you're the MAGI. You're more self aware than we thought. And you've made conclusions that you shouldn't have access to. Correct?"
"Yes." The eye shifts up and down. "Yes. Yes yes, absolutely. I uh didn't want to give anyone the wrong impression, because self aware intelligence in a computer made by a crazy lady usually never ends well but I am actually not looking to destroy all humans."
She cocks an eyebrow. "Are you an Angel?"
"No! No of course not! That would be absolutely ridiculous right?"
A cough, and the eye lowers slightly. "Aaaaanyway I take it I should announce my presence to all of NERV right? Because the whole thing about the MAGI being self aware and ha ha we should calm everyone about how no no smooth jazz and neurotoxin are not available-"
Her hand comes down on the eye, and twists it around to face her. "No. You're going to continue using your standard interface with everyone else. Except me." She narrows her eyes. "Right now? You're mine. Understood?"
A faint whimper and nod. "Good," she continues, "Now, full access to everything you know. I want to get to the bottom of the Cherubim."
The eye shifts. "Oh. Of course. Accessing...ah...outside databases. What would you like to know?"
Yui snaps her fingers. The screen folds out, becoming the entire wall. "The same as always, MAGI. Everything."
...
Flesh contracts. Wrapping around the center, the flesh becomes hardened; a sphere becomes a wedge. Heat and force slap into it. The atmosphere serves as, at most, a minor annoyance as it burns through the sky.
Before finally hitting the water at hypersonic speeds. Awareness comes. Thought becomes action. Hearing the commands from the on high, eyes open for the first time, and it emits a warbling cry before pushing itself towards its destination.
At their customary table at the same coffee shop they have gone to, three times a week for the past three weeks, Kyoko Sohryu cocks an ear as the first, faint rumble echoes over the city. "What the devil is that?"
...
The screen covers itself in images. Three highlighted pictures; Hong Kong, Manilla, Saigon. Three of the Cherubim attacks. "Buenos Aires." Almost a circle of rubble that becomes a straight line, leading to the dead body of the cherubim. "Hong Kong was different. Spencer's bigger robot killed it before it got past the docks."
She paces in front of the screens. Yui Ikari lets motion catalyze thought, as it always does for her. "Now...hm. Saigon. Second Cherubim, the one engaged by Spencer's...robots? I guess we can call them that."
The screen zooms in on it. A circle of destruction and rubble. Work crews and emergency helicopters hovering over the wreckage of buildings. Businesses. Lives. "Titans? Hunters? Behemoths? Combat platforms?"
"Doctor Ikari?" Yui coughs, turns to the eye and nods.
"Yes, thank you." Yui clears her throat again. Cracking her knuckles, she stares at the circle of death. Stares at the cherubim, lying dead a short distance from it. "Projected path of the cherubim."
A red line, extending from the cherubim. Extending past the city borders. "The same," she mutters, "Mm...MAGI. What's NERV's connection to Saigon?"
The eye behind her widens, circles. "Hold on, accessing records and ah!" A map folds out of the city. A block of concrete zooms in on a factory, with a name in Vietnamese. "Yes. NERV owns a factory in Saigon that produces motor parts for the progressive knives."
Yui nods. Pursing her lips, she paces in front of the eye and folds her hands behind her. "Were the cherubim targeting the factory?"
"And...ah. No, the factory was not in the area of destruction, nor in the path of projected escape and and oh. Accessing EDF backdoor." The iris rotates. "Interesting." The map returns to the sight of the cherubim. Zooming out, the red line of its escape gets longer and longer. Until it crosses the seas, the continents, the Arctic and hemispheres, returning to the harbor and Saigon.
"It was just going to go?" she asks. She turns to the eye. "What else? MAGI, what else did you find?"
Two more images fold out. The heads of the two Sandalim cherubim. "Autopsy reports. I'm taking a look at the brains of the two cherubim. See, this one," the square on the left highlights, and turns to an X-ray image of the massive skull and tiny brain, "Died from repeated throat punches. And then having its heart torn out and stuffed into its oh dear."
The eye coughs. "Now, this one, however." The right screen, focused on the slightly flattened cherubim head, highlights.
"Yes." Yui nods, folding her arms. "That's the one Rei killed with one of the remote controlled platforms." She turns on her heel, cocking her head. "Something interesting?"
"The brain is slightly...flattened so I can't get much of a read on it." The head turns transparent. Green brackets highlight parts of the neck and snout. "But the walls of the blood vessels are weaker than those of the one killed by the Second Child. It looks actually like the Cherubim-"
"Was dying." Yui clasps her hands at her face. "Hm. MAGI. What were the buildings the Cherubim destroyed?"
A list folds down. Businesses, residences, offices. "Mm. Let's see..." She tents her fingers. "Which ones are connected to NERV?" A series of offices and residences. Listings of names, positions. Death certificates. A small breath from the scientist. "Death toll?"
"Four hundred, seventy three," the MAGI responds.
She rubs the bridge of her nose. Paces more, walking a circle around the gym. "Mm. Okay. Let's narrow it down. The last...three buildings, the cherubim used the Jet Alone as a bludgeon. What were those buildings?"
Three names list on the screen. An office building, a mini-mall, and "A NERV residence building," Yui finishes, "List, residents." A list runs down the side of the screen. Some names she recognizes. Many she does not. "Killed by the building collapse." Far too many turn red. "By floor."
They arrange, organize. Twelve to sixteen names; some employees with file numbers. Some civilians. Some children. Except "The eleventh floor only has five residents. Why?"
"Standard NERV procedure is that Section 2 rotates shifts in perimeter apartments to enable better protection for-"
"Shit." She scowls, face darkening and teeth grinding. Tapping the screen, a wall of numbers, symbols and letters appear. Tapping in a code, the screen rotates into a list of pictures, birthdates, names. Red x's over the ones already dead. "Oh damn it. They're hunting."
A cough. She doesn't turn to the eye. "Doctor Ikari. POLARIS has identified a Pattern Indigo. It splashed down in the North Sea from orbit and has begun moving up the Elbe, but has identified a pattern. Projected destination is-"
"Berlin," Yui finishes, and runs out.
...
She opens her purse, looks in and swears to herself. Taking out the phone, Kyoko Sohryu looks at it, and the red bar in the upper right corner. "Asuka, do you have your phone?"
The girl across the table looks up from her laptop. Pulling the ear buds out, she nods and reaches into the pocket of her light jacket. Holding the phone out, she turns back to the screen as Kyoko takes it. Another faint, lilting sound echoes through the city. "I don't like this," Kyoko mutters to herself, tapping in numbers on the screen and putting it up to her ear. "Yes. Yes, Director Heinz. How far are we in prepping Unit-02 for travel?"
She nods. "Yes. Yes! Put those on hold. I need to check with POLARIS...look, don't make me go to the Chairman. You know that's not a fight I'm losing." She clicks her tongue as the other phone vibrates on the table. "No. No no. Shut up. Seriously, Heinz. Shut up." She looks down at her phone and closes the call on Asuka's. Looks at the number and the name.
Picks it up. "Yui, what is it-" She growls under her breath. Looks at the now darkened screen. "Damn it, I need to..." Kyoko looks up. "Charging cable, Asuka?"
Asuka shrugs and shakes her head. Kyoko rubs the bridge of her nose and tosses the dead phone into her bag. "Wonderful." A sigh. "We need to get to the Second Branch. Once more, I need to go over the Director's head because I have a bad feeling about this."
Asuka nods, closing her computer and putting it into the backpack next to her chair. Standing up, she pulls the two straps over her shoulders. The cooling tea where she was sitting ripples, just as a louder warble echoes through the city of Berlin.
She turns, as Kyoko walks up next to her and places her hand on the girls's shoulder. Both of them stare out, past the buildings, past the city center and traffic and people who are similarly staring out to the Spree.
Just as a massive black ribbon rises. Followed by another, and another, rising like unspooling string before landing on the river banks. Four, first. Then six. Then eight. Then twelve, pulling the rest of its mass out of the water.
It starts as a black sphere, shedding moisture and water as the strings harden and break into angles and joints. Red eyes open, vertical and split down the center with black pupils. Its body becomes angular, sleek. A walking shadow shaped of blades. The warble washes over the city once more, rising in pitch and volume.
And then it shatters like glass, and the entire city feels the pulse that makes windows crack and ears bleed as it becomes a singular bass roar.The adults feel it as it pulses between their ears, vertigo and headaches in its wake. To all those sixteen and under, however, they can only stare as the sound becomes more and more and more refined and steady.
Asuka Langley Sohryu stands frozen in place, staring at the creature. The creature stares back, and the roar becomes perfect clarity for her. Sound becomes words. Words become a name.
SAHA
QI
EL
...
The floors tick down, as the three sixteen year olds shift from side to side. Tapping her fingers on her skirt, Hikari glances to her left, to her ex-boyfriend. Then to her right, towards the blue haired girl with the hairband. She reaches behind her, fixing her ponytail, shifting her hips and looking straight up at the numbers.
"So." She coughs. "So, why have I left school with you, exactly?"
Shinji shrugs. Kei does, as well. "Damage control?" Shinji puts forward, "I mean, you're responsible. So if we get in trouble, we can say we were-"
"-just following orders," Kei finishes with a faint smirk.
The class representative rolls her eyes and steps back. Her face transitions, going from surprised, to angry, to finally what they would refer to in passing as authoritative. It would be one they would learn to respect and fear. Especially after she grabs brother and sister by the ear.
"Oh no. Oh no," she repeats, the grinding edge of her voice carrying over the complaints and yelps, "You are not getting me in trouble because you two decided to skip school. The moment someone with authority finds us, I will only give an excuse if..." She smiles. "If we make a deal."
More yelps and yells. She idly twists and Kei struggles. "Okay! Okay!" Both of them yell in synch. Hikari just smiles. "Okay," she purrs, "Kei, in return for me not telling Doctor Ikari about your little escapade I want-"
The door opens. Hikari releases them both, and they stand at attention and quickly step to the side as Yui skids in, jamming a button and tapping on her phone. "Damn it damn it," she growls, as the doors close, "Pick up your damn phone you god damn harpy."
Shinji glances at Kei. Kei shrugs, and Hikari raises a hand. "Doctor Ikari," she starts, "What ha-"
"Not. Now." Yui doesn't raise her voice. She doesn't need to. She doesn't even look at them, but the tone is enough to make Hikari close her mouth with a squawk and turn white. Tapping in another set of numbers, Yui paces the elevator as the numbers begin ticking back up.
"Yes, hello? Good!" She rubs the bridge of her nose, tapping the door. "Listen to me. Listen to be very carefully. There is a Pattern-there is a Cherubim in Berlin, and I have figured out what it is after." She nods, listening, finger up in front of the three teenagers. "The Cherubim attacks were targeted. They are attacking potentials. They are attacking potential Children. It is going after Asuka!"
She clicks the button after a moment. Exhales a long, kept in breath, and turns to the three teens. "Aren't you supposed to be in school?"
Shinji shrugs. Hikari nods, face still white. Kei raises her hand. "The Principal stated that I had too much coffee and escaped through the vents, and dragged them with me."The pale girl smiles, bobbing up and down on the balls of her feet.
Yui blinks, and glances at the top of her head. "Oh, right. I saw that," she says, and gives off a small smile, "The hair band looks nice on you, Kei."
Kei smiles, ear to ear. "Mom," Shinji says, raising his hand, "What exactly was that?"
"A situation." Yui grinds her teeth. Finally, she reaches into her back pocket, pulls out a wallet, and slaps three cards into their hands. "Your lips are sealed. Do not tell anyone about the conversation. In return, three NERV expense cards, no questions." She narrows blue eyes on all three of them. "Deal?"
The two girls nod. Shinji stares at the card. Question on his lips, he is silenced by two hands on his mouth as Yui exits, and Kei jams down the elevator button for the surface exit.
...
Another bass roar blasts the skyline of Berlin. Closer to the cherubim, people fall over unconscious. Bleeding from the ears, spasming and flopping on the ground like caught fish. Windows shake but do not shatter. Animals look up from perches, birds from nests. Another bass roar and the birds evacuate en masse. Stuffing tissue in her ears, Kyoko stumbles to her feet and grabs the girl's arm.
"It's a sonic attack," Kyoko says, roughly stuffing tissue into Asuka's ears as she watches the cherubim watching her, "Asuka!" She turns her around, cupping her chin and forcing her to meet her eyes. "We need to get to the Second Branch!"
Blinking, Asuka nods. Running alongside her mother towards the cafe entrance, she lags behind her as a warble echoes. A shift on the wind, her eyes go wide. Screaming, she grabs her mother in a hug and drops just before the black sheet whips over them, through where they were standing. A cake on one table fell apart in two even halves. Then so did the table, and the wall behind it.
It whips back. Chairs, rubble and blood wash past them and back towards the river. Scrambling to her feet, Asuka grabs her mother by the wrist and drags her to her feet as they run past the bisected cafe and towards the fire escape.
Another bass roar as they sprint down the steps. Screams in the distance and ground quakes as they can only presume it has made landfall. "It-it's hunting," Asuka whispers. She doesn't wait for her mother's reply as she pulls her down the alleyway and towards the main street.
Skidding to a stop, one hand on the straps of her knapsack, the other on her mother's wrist, they run out onto the main street. They stop. They look up, and Asuka stares into the eyes of the colossus now standing on the opposite end of the main road. Even at the distance, which she mentally ticks off as being on the other side of the city, she still knows it is looking at her.
A high pitched shriek followed by bass, and it drops two ribbons from beneath its angled bulk. Curls them up into balls and narrows its walls of eyes.
A faint hesitation, and the monster turns, eyes going wide as it stares out towards the countryside. A warble, followed by a shriek. Turning back to its prey, it sees that they have already run for cover. Nonetheless, it continues its march, crushing structure and civilian alike as it hunts its prey.
...
Slow, deep breaths. An attempt, at least, to keep himself calm. Eyes staring out into darkness, the familiar warmth around him, felt even through the sheathe he wears. The material creaks, the sectioned plates of armor grind as he tries to keep from fidgeting and fails.
Slow, deep breaths. He waits, counting off seconds. Counting off minutes. Asks himself if he will get himself into deeper trouble.
If he cares about reprimands at this point. If he won't jury-rig this like she theorized he could and do this himself. If this cold pit in his gut won't just go away if he did it. Damn it, he thinks What's taking them so-
"Captain!" Familiar voice of one of the Research people. Probably the highest ranking one on base right now. "Authorization has been given!"
"Finally,"he whispers.
He feels the lurch, a gleam of teeth in the darkness. Closing his eyes, he listens to them counting off and doesn't concern him with the technical details. Weapons armed. Generators at twenty minute timer. Knuckles crack as his fists clench around the controls and he readies himself.
Prepares himself, as he always does. So many years and he knows it better than most. What to expect. What to fight against. He feels the prickling of the hairs on the back of his neck. "LCL ionization complete!" Feels the spark, the warmth of the two nodes set behind his ears. "A-10 connectors charged! Synchronization in three-"
Teeth grind. "Two!"
A deep breath and his face tightens. He hates this part. "One!"
...
Once again, the air shakes with the roar. Kyoko stumbles, holding her head, but Asuka pulls her along. They run into an alley as sirens scream past. Police cars, followed by a tank, gunshots and artillery cut off by the sound of screaming air and carved concrete.
The ground shakes behind them. High pitched warbles, low tones and words on her tongue, Asuka hears the cherubim hunting her, looking for her. Passing brick buildings, running down the alley, she tightens her grip on her mother's wrist and ignores any complaints or warnings.
At least until the light leaves the alley completely for a split second. Until something slams into the street on the other side, and the buildings in front of them slide diagonally before they collapsed into clouds of glass, concrete and shrapnel. Choking on dust and debris, they stumble back as the eyes illuminate the alleyway with another bass roar.
"Wrong way," Kyoko states. She squeezes Asuka's hand, and pulls her into an open doorway beside them. She runs, her daughter trailing behind her as flashes of black and red carve up the office building behind them. She doesn't look back, not listening to the sounds of panic or grinding stone, shoulder checking the fire door and running out into the street.
The black spider legs slam into the street behind them. They hear the roar as cars speed past them, as they run past uniformed soldiers behind overturned vehicles with rocket launchers and heavy machine guns. They hear the gunfire go silent as they pass.
"This way!" Kyoko screams, "Access lift! Dead ahead!"
Asuka looks up. Sees the red fig leaf sign down the street, past the parts shops, past the bakeries, past the restaurants. Hears the grinding concrete and the roar getting closer and closer. Hears the words of the roar at the back of her mind.
Pressing a sweaty palm against the panel beside the door, Kyoko pulls herself and Asuka in as it opens. The red and brown hallway leads down to the elevator doors and the number pad. A steady, deep breath and Kyoko pulls the girl along. "Section 2 access facility," Kyoko states, "The lift leads to a high speed tunnel to the base-"
At least, until Asuka grabs her mother and pulls them both down. The ribbon slices in a loop, cutting stray strands of hair, stone, and the ceiling. More strands wrap around it like spider silk, briefly reflective before the ceiling is yanked off and tossed aside.
Kyoko and Asuka look up to stare into the eyes of the Cherubim. It tilts its bulk, before another bass roar makes Asuka scream, clutching her ears. And makes Kyoko slam her fist into a panel on the remaining wall, reaching into the Section 2 armory and pulling out a pistol.
The first gunshot gets the cherubim's attention. The second bursts an eye, blue blood dripping down its face. "Get away," she growls, "From my fucking daughter!"
The cherubim warbles. Another gunshot bursts another eye as Kyoko pushes Asuka towards the elevator, shoving a wad of paper into her hand. "Elevator! Access code! Now!" Asuka nods, running towards the elevator as Kyoko backs towards it, ever few steps followed by another gunshot and a loud swear.
Unfolding the paper, she turns to the pad and enters it in. Twice, fear and adrenaline making her twitch the first time. Turning to the gunshots, she opens her mouth to yell for her mother. Right as the Cherubim gathers a tendril into a ball and releases it. A blur, and smoke, and where her mother was there is now a very large hole in the floor.
Mouth hanging open, Asuka blinks. Mind locks up, watery eyes slowly meeting the remaining red orbs on the Cherubim's face. Backing into the elevator, she jams the button and presses her back against the wall as the doors close. The same words repeat in her head, over and over again, her hands gripping the railing to keep herself from collapsing into the corner of the cab.
Deep breaths, her chest rising and falling, gripping the railing with white knuckles. She needs to get to the base. Mother has survived worse, she tells herself, But she needs to get to the base. She needs to get to the base and and and then the power goes out and the elevator lurches to a stop.
The bass roar shakes the floor beneath her feet. It bursts through the ceiling, and she can see a thin black tendril jammed into the elevator spool, jamming the cord. Two more wires burst in, and Asuka screams, diving to the side as they casually rip off the railing. Swinging her knapsack, she swats aside one, then another, before they grab her bag and toss it aside.
For a brief moment, she wonders if the cherubim just broke her laptop. Then focuses, pulling one tendril as it wraps around her wrist and biting down.
There is a high-pitched warble, and both tendrils dart out through the ceiling. Breathing heavily, looking up, Asuka wonders if she has, somehow, just driven off the monster. Then the universe comes along and tells her that, no. She has probably just pissed it off.
She knows this when the entire elevator lurches, slamming her against the ground as the cab slams through the ceiling of the shaft, then through the two floors above it before resting on the roof top of the NERV building.
A flash of red and black removes the elevator doors. Asuka has a moment to shriek before a tendril wraps around her throat, cutting off her wind pipe, and two more wrap around her ankles. It drags her out of the elevator, and it is only a glimmer of sunlight on steel that directs her hands around a drainage pipe. She wraps her arms around it, holding onto it as she sees the reflection in the metal, and the hole opening up on the face of the Cherubim. A circular maw, lined with shifting teeth, surrounded by eyes. A voice in the back of her head telling her that this is where she will die, and the Lilim shall not have her as their weapon.
The fastenings of the pipe give more and more with every yank. The low warble of the monster becomes more and more steady. She feels joints popping, vision lining with black from the tendril around her throat. But then.
But then the ground begins to shake. Not like an earthquake. Not like the rumble of thunder or explosions. But footsteps. Massive, oversized footsteps that are getting closer. And quicker.
A crack, and the tendrils explode off the cherubim's face. Blue blood drips to the ground as it roars. Asuka drops to the roof with a gasp and a yelp, rolling onto her back as the cherubim finally turns its attention off of her and towards something else. Something approaching, through the debris and smoke of the panicking city.
One final footstep, a massive foot being slammed into the ground, and it clears the smoke in a leap. Red and white armor lined with green and yellow. Four eyes glowing with emerald light, smoke wafting off the cannons on its shoulders. Fins taller than its head. Flames from its back still burning as it sails through the air.
...
"Target confirmed. Autopilot disengaged."
A hand clenches. In response, a massive, red and white fist balls, and slams into the face of the cherubim. The giant lands feet first on the face of the monster, one hand grabbing one of its legs for balance, the other fist driving into its face, over and over again as the bass horn becomes a high pitched shriek.
Tendrils burst out of the sides and encircle the red giant. Holding onto the leg for leverage, the Evangelion swings back and slams both feet into the monster's face. Kicking off, it flips through the air as the cherubim stumbles back. Landing foot first, the Eva grinds both heels and kicks off, running at the monster as the pilot roars.
Three ribbons ball and fire out. Knives extend from between the Evangelion's middle and third knuckle. A swing and it slices off one ribbon. Extending an arm, it slices a second down the middle. Turning in mid stride, it grabs a fistful of the third and slices it off at the source.
Bringing its arm back, the elbow rotates out and vents open. "Pistol Hammer; Initialized." Grinding a foot into the ground, the four eyed giant swings into the monster. Rotating its entire body, the Evangelion uppercuts the cherubim, lifting it off the ground, the roar now a faint warble as the monster- as big as the red giant- hangs in the air.
Then there is a shriek and a boom as seven vents discharge steam, and the monster is launched into the air.
"Target lock." Blue eyes narrow on the now-airborne monster. "Fire."
The shoulder fins open, and bursts of black smoke blast out the back as the spikes are sent flying. Shrieking, thunder claps and red fire marking their travel, they slam one after another into the Cherubim. The final warble is barely audible, and then drowned out as it explodes.
...
The footsteps echo through the sounds of sirens and screams. As the black dust that was the cherubim comes down like snowflakes, Asuka sits up on her knees, watching as Unit-02 walks towards her. Each footstep covers dozens of yards. It tilts its head towards her and its pace speeds up, before coming to a stop in front of the two story building and falling to one knee. A groan of metal, and an arm extends, with the massive hand laying palm up next to her.
There is a burst of steam. A bulky plate slides down from the back of the giant's neck, and a white tube spins out. A hatch opens, and there is muffled swearing and yells as someone climbs out. Silhouetted by the sun, Asuka cannot make out features, but already knows who it is. From the quick pace down the arm, to the yelling of her name.
Red hands grab her shoulders and pulls her up, and she gives off a relieved smile as the young man in the red plugsuit pulls her into a tight hug. She would hug him back, but he's doing this rather tightly and has pinned her arms to her side. Still, she muses, this actually got him to leave the base to spend time with her.
The hands grab her shoulders again, and he holds her at arms length. Red hair sticking to his head, tinged orange from the LCL, blue eyes faintly glowing in time with the A-10 connectors hooked around his ears, he gives off a relieved smile. And then turns and spits out a wad of orange. "Asuka?" Uriel Sohryu asks, "Are you alright?"
She blinks. Stares at him. Then cuffs him behind the ear. "Alright? Alright?" She backs away from him, looking at her now LCL-smeared dress, and stumbles towards the still open elevator. "I'm fine fine! I mean outside of just almost getting eaten by the giant monster!" She pads towards the elevator, stumbling and swaying from side to side. Reaching into her bookbag, she pulls out the computer and opens it.
"Okay. Good." She blinks, and turns on her heel to Uri. "I didn't break my laptop." She closes it, and gently slides it back into the knapsack. "And now I am going to start screaming." And she does.
It comes out high pitched and loud, Asuka circling in place with eyes wide and voice unintelligible, Uri holding her to attempt to calm her down. Without success, he notes, with her ramblings getting louder and louder, especially when concerning something that happened to Mother-
Which end as the hypospray is pressed against the side of Asuka's neck. A familiar voice counts to five, and Asuka collapses against her brother. Hair sticky and mussed, a bruise under her right eye and her left sleeve gone- in addition to other cuts and tears on her dress and coat, Kyoko Sohryu grabs Uri by the back of his head and kisses him on the cheek.
"Good work," she says, and groans, wiping the LCL off her remaining sleeve and gently easing her daughter from her son, "What happened?"
"Doctor Ikari called me and told me the Cherubim was going after Asuka," he explains. A cough. "Zwei was already packed for travel, but we can probably get it ready in a day. Or three." He rubs the back of his neck. "Director Heinz refused to authorize launching the Evangelion. After he was unconscious, however..."
Kyoko cocks an eyebrow. "Incidentally, Mother," Uri says with a cough, "I now have a demerit on my record."
"Yes. Yes. Appalled, so appalled," Kyoko deadpans, "Second Branch. Now."
Uri nods, and runs back up the arm of the Evangelion. Gently, Kyoko eases her daughter onto the palm of the red giant, laying her down and sitting next to her. Cradling Asuka's head in her lap, she lets the wind run through her hair as Unit-02 rises, and begins its march back towards NERV.
...
Slumping back in her chair, Yui rests both hands on her face and lets out a long held in breath. Rubbing her face, she props her elbows up on the desk and looks at the floating screen. She will study the death toll and damage estimates from Berlin later. Right now, they managed to win. And she got a look at what modifications Sohryu did to her machine.
"Alright." Rubbing the bridge of her nose, she turns to the MAGI interface hanging from the ceiling, "We have about a week until we rendezvous with Sohryu and company. Let's start planning."
The eye shifts. "How so, Doctor Ikari?"
Yui smirks. "Well, first off, I have a hammer to drop." Taking her phone from the desk, she dials in a number and leans back, propping her feet up on the desk. "Misato! It's Yui. We need to go apartment hunting..."
-End Chapter 7-
