Continued from last chapter…
"Shinji's injured? What happened?" asked Ruby.
"Another angel," replied Misato, "And this one packed a wallop." Ruby sat back in her bed. She wondered what kind of angel could be powerful enough to severely injure someone like that. "What does this angel look like?" asked Ruby.
"It's a large, blue octahedron. It's main method of attack is a high-power energy beam."
"And that's what hurt Shinji?"
"Yeah. He was in unit-01, but the beam was too strong. He was nearly boiled to death, and it was a miracle we got him out alive." Misato blushed for a moment and nervously stared at the floor. "Ruby, why did you decide to become a huntress?" she asked
"That's easy," replied Ruby, "Because I want to help people."
"But, isn't it dangerous? Couldn't you…die?"
"Well, yeah. I mean my mom died on a mission so…" Misato's eyes widened and brimmed with tears. She had no idea that Ruby had lost her mother. "Aren't you scared?" she asked. Ruby sat still for a moment. Misato's face was laden with worry and heartache. Ruby had never seen anyone show such concern, except for maybe her dad. She made a solemn face, "Of course I'm scared. I know that there will be danger. I know that I might lose the people I'm closest too. I know that I might not make it back to see my friends." A smile came to Ruby's face, "…but I still want to make the world a better place. When I think of my mom, I don't think about how she died. I think about how she lived. She was so fearless in life; ready for any challenge, whether it was hunting grimm or raising her two daughters. It's what made it so hard when she was gone. When I was old enough to understand what happened to her, I decided I wanted to be just like her. Of course, now that I'm older, I've decided that I don't want to be exactly like her, but I still want to have her spirit; the kind of spirit that fights on, even when things are at their worst." Ruby frowned with determination, "That's the kind of person I want to be." Misato took a seat next to Ruby's bedside, "You're strong, you know that?" asked Misato. Now it was Ruby's turned to blush, "Well, I don't know about that. If you really want to talk to a strong person, you should ask my sister."
"Yang?"
"Yeah. She had to grow up pretty much on her own. Her mom left her when she was born, her foster mom was killed, her dad was always busy with school, and I was too young to offer any comfort to her. It's incredible that she grew up to be as strong as she is."
"Hmmm…"pondered Misato, "It sounds like she's quite the woman." Misato stood up to leave, "Well, I'm going to see how Shinji's doing. You'll be released pretty soon. I'm glad this wasn't more serious, and I'm glad that the damage wasn't permanent. Let's make sure something like this never happens again."
"Can do!" said Ruby cheerfully. Misato left and Weiss sat down next to Blake and Yang. "How are you feeling?" she asked.
"Better," said Ruby. Weiss smiled, "That's good to hear. Look, I'm sure Yang and Blake have already told you how I reacted after the incident. I really am sorry. It's just that…I never really had any friends growing up. The closest thing I had to a real friend was my butler, Klein. Everyone else was, well…"
"Was…what?" asked Blake. Weiss sighed, "Exactly like me before I came to Beacon." She smiled sadly, "I guess it's true what they say; the apple doesn't fall far from the tree." Yang gently put her hand on Weiss' shoulder, "Hey, that's what friends are for. We bring out the best in each other." Weiss' smile brightened. For someone who had been nicknamed 'The Ice Queen' she had the most adorable smile. Presently, a doctor came in and gave Ruby the go-ahead to be released. Ruby thanked the doctor and got out of bed. She groaned as she stretched her legs. "Let's get out of here," said Yang. Everyone else nodded in agreement. As the four girls made their way through the hallway, Ruby suddenly felt someone grab her by the back. A group of darkly dressed men surrounded her. Before she could scream, one of them clamped a damp cloth over her mouth. Her eyelids began to get heavy and her body began to fall forward. As her head began to spin, she could hear her sister calling out her name. She felt herself falling into a bottomless darkness. She couldn't remember anything else.
Ruby awoke in a large office. It was pretty bare, save for a desk and some creepy writing and symbols that adorned the floor and ceiling. Sitting across from Ruby was an older gentleman. He had short, brown hair and thin-rimmed glasses. His hands were folded in front of his mouth. Ruby instantly recognized him as the commander. She paled at the thought of what he might do to her. She hadn't done anything wrong; at least, not as far as she knew. Still, this was a brand new place, which meant new rules. If she did do something wrong, she might be punished. An execution might not be so bad, if it was quick and painless. Then again, that would leave her team without a leader. There was no telling what might happen. Ruby found herself starting to tremble. She clutched her skirt nervously, sweat pouring down her face. She took a deep breath, and looked the commander in the eye. "What do you want?" she asked. The commander, never moving from his calm, collected stance, simply replied, "I want to know your secret."
"What secret?" asked Ruby.
"You don't know?"
"No, I don't." The commander pushed up his glasses and sat back in his chair. "I heard from my subordinates that something rather peculiar happened while you were in unit-01," he said, "Evangelions don't usually shoot beams of light from their eyes." Ruby's eyes widened, and her mouth dropped open, "What? You think I did that?"
"Perhaps, not intentionally, but I was curious to know if you had any idea why the EVA reacted the way it did. The EVAs are…unique creatures and not always predictable. What happened while you were in the cockpit may have just been an isolated incident; however, I must ask that you not board an EVA again. Understand?"
"OK," said Ruby. The commander rose, "Then you may go now. I thank you for your cooperation." Cooperation? She had been kidnapped; forced against her will. Ruby wondered what would have happened if she hadn't cooperated, and what was this about having a secret? Was Ruby special somehow? If the commander really wanted to know what had happened, why didn't he just ask. Ruby found herself beginning to dislike this whole place. She wanted to go home; to somewhere safe and secure, but she knew that she couldn't. She still cared about Shinji and Misato. She wanted to help them in whatever way she could. She knew that once she graduated, no place would be safe or secure. So this is why, Ruby thought to herself, This is why our professors gave us this assignment, because it's what life will be like when we graduate. She made her way out of the office. Upon leaving the room, she found the rest of her team waiting for her. All of them rushed to her and embraced her, nearly knocking her over. "Are you alright?" asked Yang through tears.
"I'm fine," said Ruby, "Just…confused." Everyone pulled back. "Confused about what?" asked Weiss.
"Well…the commander thinks I did something inside the EVA." Misato, who was standing behind the others, winced. She knew what Ruby did. She also knew it was done accidentally. Qrow had said not to tell her, but what was she supposed to do now? Obviously, the commander was suspicious. Misato would have to speak with Qrow again on this matter. She approached Ruby carefully, "Did he want you tested at all?" she asked.
"I don't think so," said Ruby.
"Good. I don't want you being subjected to such treatment." Misato sighed, "Look, I'm sorry this happened. Believe me when I say it makes me sick and disgusted that the commander would resort to such tactics. I'll have a word with him and I will make sure this doesn't happen again. However, until that time, I believe that the best course of action would be just to go home. We should all get rest." Everyone made their way out from NERV. Ruby looked at the demeanor of her teammates. She could tell that none of them were happy, and it wasn't hard for her to guess why. No one had ever done this to her before; held her against her will. The other must have been worried sick about her. She would have to have a serious talk with all of them, once they got home. Upon arriving back at Misato's apartment, Ruby turned to Misato, "If you don't mind…I'd like some time alone, with my teammates."
She and her teammates went into their room. Shutting the door behind her, Ruby took a deep breath, and spoke, "Do you want to leave?" she asked. The rest of her team all glanced at each other. "You're …saying you want to leave?" asked Weiss. Ruby tapped her fingers together nervously, "Well, part of me does, and part of me doesn't. I hated what the commander did to me. I don't ever want to go through it again!" A tear rolled down Ruby's cheek. "But," she continued, "I want to help Shinji…and Misato…and, well…as much as I don't appreciate the way he treated me, I would like to know why the commander is so distant from his son." She paused briefly to catch a few sobs. Yang eyed her with concern, and Blake and Weiss both looked at each other with equal anxiety. "Besides," Ruby continued, "If we're going to be true huntresses, then what we want must come second, right?" Everyone looked at each other once more. "Well, that still doesn't excuse what he did," said Weiss.
"I know," said Ruby, "Misato said she was going to talk to him, but all of us are going to have to give up things that we want. For some of us…it might be our security." Yang went over and looked her sister right in the eye, "Tell me, how scared were you?" she asked. Ruby's eyes watered. With a shaky voice, she replied, "I'd rather die than go through that again!" Tears instantly sprang to Yang's eyes. She hugged her sister tightly, sobbing into her shoulder. Tears began to escape Blake's eyes as well, and although she would never admit it to someone's face, Weiss found herself shedding a few tears of her own. To see their leader so broken and crestfallen; it was almost too much to bear. Both Weiss and Blake put their hands on their leader's shoulder. Ruby eventually calmed down. "Hey, we're here for you," said Yang. Weiss hugged Ruby, "We're all here for you." Ruby smiled. Having teammates like this…she had to be the luckiest girl in the world. Ruby's smile vanished as she heard a knock on the door. She opened it to find Misato, now sober, and with a concerned expression on her face. "Hey, you OK?" she asked. Ruby smiled, "I will be. Thank you."
"Good, because you need your rest. Tomorrow, we're going to be executing Operation Yashima!"
To be continued…
