Patrick's last day of training was a considerable contrast to his first one. He had showed up to Canada three months earlier with only his travelling clothes and a small backpack, and had handed his mobile phone along with the rest of this gear when he was inducted with the only exception being his LCL stabilizer medication. The time after that had been a blur of bustle, pain, and freezing cold but he had run the course. Twenty-five selected candidates, about two thirds men and one third women, had started and he was among the final ten that had finished.
On the final day the graduates were treated to a formal dinner hosted by the vice director of Alliance intelligence, Peter Stephenson, who had travelled from Japan to congratulate the finalists and brief each of them on their future careers with the agency. Each agent, dressed in a finely-tailored suit that was also a gift for graduating, met with the number two leader in the agency and reviewed their performance as well as discussed what was next for each of them. In Patrick's case because of his young age and performance (at seventeen he was the youngest of the agent candidates, and had placed third in the final rankings of the graduates), the stated plan was that he continue his education but also be available for missions "as needed," and Patrick wasn't quite sure when "as needed" was going to be.
The following morning Patrick was given back his backpack and travel clothes, and found out that his old outfit jacket wore a little loose on him. He had lost about ten kilograms in three months, and what remained of him was muscle, much more than he had ever had before. He was really beginning to like the feeling of being strong and agile like he was now. Once he received his backpack Patrick immediately pulled out the mobile phone and charger, and after plugging it into a wall outlet in the agency office in Quebec (where he had been discharged) Patrick called Rei first but her phone didn't pick up, instead going straight to her voice mail. Patrick left a message that he was done with training and then called Erin. She picked up immediately.
"Hey!" Erin shouted. "You're out!"
"Yup. Finally made it."
"So, how's it feel?"
"It's good to be warm again. They dropped us off in Charlevoix City here in Quebec, so I'm just a few blocks from the rail station. I'll be on a train to you in about a half an hour, and I should be in Cambridge by tonight."
"Great!"
"How's Rei? She didn't pick up when I called."
"She's probably at the spa."
"The spa!?"
"Getting ready for you," answered Erin. "We got a message yesterday from Misato that you had graduated, so Rei started getting herself prettied up early this morning. You've got a big surprise waiting when you get into town."
"Oh, really?"
"Oh, yeah. I helped a bit too, the outfit is something I picked out so you can thank me later."
"I can't wait then. So I'm getting in about 8 o'clock…."
"Then I'll set up the arrangements, go straight to the Grand Hotel first. Don't come to the apartment. You know that French restaurant on the top floor? The really fancy one?"
"Bon Ami '16? Yeah, I scoped it out for a date until, well, you know."
"She'll be there waiting for you, and brother dear?"
"Yes?"
"I don't want to see you until the following morning. You get my meaning?"
I sure do. "Loud and clear."
"Thanks. Can't wait to see you. Bye!"
The train ride from Quebec to Cambridge was a nice, slowly-paced ten hours, which gave Patrick enough time to catch up on things after being in the deep isolation of Camp X. On the way, he used his phone to message several friends to reconnect, starting with the Vinson family and then working his way through. The Admiral sent his congratulations and gifted him a sidearm that he could pick up the next time Patrick was at the lake house. Kaji and Misato also sent separate congratulations, and Kaji's assistant Satsuki sent a much more business-like email with an attached set of official employment documents for his review. There was also a copy of a bank draft for US$30,000, which was his initial signing bonus and pay after completing the course and being inducted as a commissioned agent, which made him feel good as now he was earning what he hoped was honest money. Patrick also made contacts with the other remaining pilots to see how they were, although he didn't mention his training to any of them except for Mari. Within about an hour he got replies from most of them, happy to hear from him except for Asuka who was grumpy as usual and just sent a curt reply of "That's nice," and nothing more. But Mari didn't reply at all.
I wonder if they've got her on a mission, Patrick wondered. It was logical that Mari wouldn't get back to him if she was undercover or away on something important. Just hope she's okay wherever she is.
It didn't take much time for him to catch up socially so after being served breakfast on the train Patrick allowed himself to relax in the First Class car and enjoy the leisurely ride through the Adirondack mountains, still covered in snow. In his seat he leaned back and let his mind slowly drift for the first time in months.
I don't want to see you until the morning, Erin said. When I left Cambridge Rei was still in therapy with Doctor Foch. Was that successful? If she got the ovary transplant or whatever they were doing then maybe everything else is working as well by now. Which means….
Patrick loosened this necktie and as he looked out at the snowy mountains in the window of the train car let himself give in to flights of fancy with dreams about spending the night with his beautiful swan.
The train arrived into Cambridge station about ten minutes behind schedule and Patrick stepped out with his suitcase into the city illuminated by the bright lights of the station and the city around it. The full moon hung up in the sky on a clear evening that was just a tad chilly for a February in Massachusetts.
Dressed in his gifted grey business suit, Patrick didn't take long to find the Grand Hotel as it was the tallest building in Cambridge Station square at over twenty stories high. It was very close as well, just across the street from the station, and Patrick rolled his suitcase and entered the hotel through the front doors.
After checking the bag with the bell captain, he found the elevators and pushed the button for the top floor. He wasn't alone in the elevator car, as there were at least two other couples dressed in their finery on their way to what was Cambridge's finest dinner establishment.
After a minute-long ride the elevator opened at Mon Ami '16, a French haute cuisine house started by two brothers who saw that Cambridge was booming with the coming of The New Institute and knew it needed a five-star restaurant next door. While neither of the brothers was themselves a chef, they had been managing and owning French restaurants both in Europe and the USA for decades and put their care and energy into the new establishment. The place was well decorated in the style of 19th Century Art Nouveau and had a prime position at the top of the Grand Hotel with large glass windows giving a broad view of Boston Harbor (including the half-sunken remains of The Old City) as well as the lively lit up new Cambridge just below.
Patrick approached the front podium of the restaurant and saw a middle-aged man with balding head and a waxed moustache wearing a tuxedo shirt and black vest. Before he could say anything, the man addressed him.
"Bon soir, monsieur! How may we help you tonight?"
He was unsure as to what to do next. "Um, I think my party is already here, actually. Has there been a young lady with blue hair and red eyes who's come by?"
The matre d' thought for a second. "Do you have a name, perhaps? We only take reservations so it would have to be under a name."
"Try Kaji, please."
The man looked at his tablet and searched for a moment, then found something that seemed to suit. "Ah, yes! We have a party of two for that name that's been seated already. Please come this way." The matre d' promptly picked up a menu and walked inside of the restaurant with Patrick close behind. A din of hushed voices and the sounds of glass and silverware clinking were heard everywhere as they made their way to the edge of dining area, where the restaurant's giant windows looked out over the city and harbor. Nearly there, Patrick caught a glimpse of his party waiting at a small table by the window and his heart skipped several beats.
Rei was sitting at the table waiting patiently for him to show up. Erin had told Patrick to expect a big surprise and that was definitely what he received, as Rei's appearance had been dramatically transformed.
The Black Swan, she's come out tonight!
She wore a strapless black dress that trailed long in behind and was short-hemmed in front, only going to about mid-thigh. Her legs were wrapped in black-tinted fishnet hose, and she wore black stilettos along with them. Her hair was done up and held back with a decorative tie, but with little whisps of blue-colored curls dangling out by the ears. The cross she normally wore around her neck was gone that evening, replaced with a blue-colored choker. Rei had full makeup on her face, with bright red lipstick and stunning violet eye shadow along with long black lashes to catch Patrick's attention, as well as bright red nail polish on her fingernails. Despite all of this, or because of it Rei stood up by the table with her hands clasped in front of her, embarrassed by the stunned looks Patrick was giving her as he arrived at the table.
"Wow." was the only thing Patrick could get out of his mouth.
"Welcome home," Rei said to him, and approached. Patrick wanted to grab her right at that moment and squeeze her as hard as he could but the public setting of the restaurant restrained him. Instead he contented himself with a hold of her hand and kiss on her lips, which felt like water from an oasis after crossing a desert for months on end. Rei gave him a gentle smile in response.
"Please sit," she beckoned, and Patrick took the seat oppose her at the dining table.
"Um, how long were you waiting?"
"Not long. I asked Forri-chan to make sure you made it here on time."
"Sorry, the train was late." Patrick took a deep breath and looked at Rei again. "You are gorgeous! Did you do all of that yourself?"
"Forri-chan bought me the clothes, and Misato-san gave me some advice on the hair and accessories."
"I'll remember to thank them later."
"I had never been to a spa before, but Forri-chan suggested going before coming here. It was a nice experience."
"Well, it's so good to see you again."
Rei looked at him curiously. "Forri-kun, you look….larger."
"Larger? You mean bigger? I'm pretty sure I'm not fat after these last three months."
"You fit the suit you're wearing very well."
"Yeah, that," answered Patrick as he looked at his own appearance. "This is a pretty nice gift from the agency, yes? I guess they figured we need these sort of clothes now that I'm official and everything."
"So you are a full agent now?"
"Yup, badge and everything," said Patrick, quickly flashing his wallet to Rei that showed a silver-plated oval badge with the Alliance logo imprinted on it. "I'm still considered on probation and they want me to continue in school but be available for jobs and stuff. So I guess it all starts now. How is school, by the way?"
Rei was able to relax just a little with the small talk between them. "Everything is good, mostly the same as before."
"That's good." Patrick took another deep breath. "You know, I'm really hungry actually. We didn't get proper food until that last day so could we get some menus and…"
"I've already ordered for you," Rei cut in.
"Oh, really? Had you been here before?"
"No, although Foch-sensei has come here many times and he suggested a few things. Do you mind?"
"No, no, not at all. I trust you." That expression she's wearing, it seems so unlike her as if she's really trying to please. I guess she's grateful to have me back after such a long time, but she seems actually nervous for once.
"So, anyway I…" Patrick was again interrupted, this time by the waiter to came with a bottle that he then popped the cork off. "Welcome to our humble restaurant, we have some very special plans for our guests here. I hope you don't mind a little bubbly to start things off with, monsieur?"
"Oh, no, I…" the waiter proceeded to pour the sparking beverage into each of their wine glasses. "Please enjoy and we'll be back soon with the first course." The waiter then left with the bottle, and Patrick immediately went for the wine glass, tasting the contents.
"Champagne," he recognized by sniffing the glass. He winced a little at Rei, who already had her glass up. "Did they change the law on alcohol while I was away?" Patrick whispered to Rei.
"Not that I know of," she told him. "But I don't think anyone bothers them about this here."
"Well, let's take advantage while we can." Patrick replied and then offered his glass. "To…a very beautiful rose tonight," he told Rei. Rei blushed a little more and then raised her glass, clinking with Patrick's. They both then drank, with Rei managing a slight hicckup from the drink while Patrick smoothly downed his. He couldn't help but smile.
"Remember the last time you had champagne at a dinner like this?" he asked her.
She smiled a little. "I could not forget. It put me in the hospital."
"Are you sure you're okay this time?"
"I'll be more careful this time," she replied. "Foch-sensei serves wine at his house so I've been slowly getting used to drinking libations."
This piqued Patrick's curiosity about just what Rei was up to while he was gone. "You have dinner with him a lot?"
"You are not here, and Forri-chan has been busy up until recently," explained Rei, "so often I accept his invitation to dine at his home with him and his wife."
"What's Erin been up to while I've been out?"
"She did not tell you?"
"Um, no, although I haven't heard the name 'Diego' come up since I got back so I'm assuming that he's not around anymore?"
"There was some trouble and they broke off the relationship," Rei told him factually.
"Figures. He was sort of a jerk anyway, just hope he didn't do anything really stupid first."
Before they could continue the waiter returned to the table with a large plate, on which were a dozen opened-up white and grey oysters mounted on ice. Patrick looked up in astonishment.
"What's this?"
"Oysters on the half-shell, monsieur," the waiter informed him. "Bon appetite!" The waiter placed the plate on the table and then again left.
Oysters?! How the heck do you even eat these? "You ordered these?" Patrick asked Rei, and she nodded affirmatively. Now he was very confused.
"You eat these now?"
"No," she told him. "They're for you."
How to eat this? I don't want to embarrass myself, especially here but I have no frigging clue how you do this. Patrick looked at the raw seafood and saw the tools at hand: tiny forks, a liquid dip that smelled like watermelons, and Tabasco Sauce.
"I think these go like this." Patrick took one oyster on his hand and then gently dug at it with the mini-fork, then once scooping it he dunked it into the dip and then ate it, chewing it first. The taste came out very salty and slimy.
"Weird," he said after his first one. "Did Foch-sensei recommend this?"
"Yes," replied Rei. "He said it's known to improve male virility." Patrick was in the middle of his second oyster when he heard that and dropped the oyster on the plate, making a loud clanging sound.
"Was that why you ordered this?"
"Yes," Rei replied calmly.
"Um, Angel?" Patrick asked nervously. "Did, um, anything else happen while I was away?"
"I had an operation."
Patrick was about to say something and then remembered what Rei mentioned before he had left for training, and what she whispered in his year. The ovary transplant. The therapies. Had something changed?
"Successful?"
"Yes, I think so."
"Oh, um, well…"
"I had my period recently."
"Really?!" Patrick said out loud, then looked around as the eyes of other diners briefly looked in their direction, then turned back to their own tables. "Really?" he whispered again to Rei across the table. Rei again nodded.
"So, um, is everything else, um….functioning?"
Rei again nodded.
Patrick looked at her and saw her eyes, giant red pools that were just staring into him. She wants to say more, a lot more, but doesn't know how. Honestly I'm not even sure I know what to say either.
"Well, um, anyway let's enjoy dinner and then maybe we can, you know, talk over desert about this."
"Forri-kun?"
"Yeah?"
"I'm wet."
"Oh, goodness! Here, use my napkin!" Patrick offered him his own napkin but Rei didn't take it.
"No, I mean I'm wet." It took about a second for that to register in Patrick's mind.
"You…you mean right now?" Rei nodded again.
"Has that ever happened before?"
"Not like this. I think it is because you are here."
The balloon just went up. Patrick marshalled up all of his confidence. "I think we should do something about this, perhaps sooner than later. Unfortunately I didn't book a room here…" Rei then reached into her handbag and showed Patrick a key card.
That's it. "Then no time like the present." Patrick waived his hand until the waiter arrived at their table.
"Yes, monsieur, can I help you?"
"Check, please." The waiter looked aghast.
"But monsieur! We have only just begun the dinner! You cannot leave now!"
"Um, well we have a pressing engagement and unfortunately need to get going a bit early, so if you don't mind…"
"I absolutely mind!" the waiter admonished. "Just what kind of establishment do you think this is?"
"Look, Garcon, um, something's come up…."
"This is disgraceful! I am shocked that you would simply leave so early without even trying out the rest of the meal."
Patrick tried being nice to wrangle them out of this situation. "I'm sure it's wonderful, and truthfully I really wanted to eat all of it tonight but we're having a sort of emergency here and need to sort of jump on this as quickly as I can. Hey, I'll pay the check for the full meal no problem! If that's what you're worried about."
The waiter was indignant. "This is not about money, good sir. This is about the reputation of the finest French restaurant in New England, and in perhaps all of America. Do you realize how much effort we have put into this place? Do you know that we have been running restaurants here for thirty years and have never closed? Even during the period after Second Impact we kept the doors open! You have absolutely no idea how difficult that was and then you just decided to, um, walk out of here without even tasting anything…"
This guy seriously goes to extremes. "Look, this is really important."
"And so is this establishment, you can't just walk out of here and refuse our cuisine at the drop of a hat."
What do I do here, just flash my brand new badge and then just impose my way out? Or maybe I just appeal to this guy's vanity.
Patrick turned to Rei. "Angel? Do you have a pen and paper handy?"
"I have a pen." Patrick then leaned over the table and whispered something in Rei's ear.
"Which one?" she asked for clarification. "Your real one," Patrick answered quietly, and then Rei promptly reached into her pocketbook and took out a ball point pen as the waiter continued his tirade.
"Look, look," Patrick said to him, trying to calm him down. "I get it. You guys are great! Believe me, we know about this place and have it on good reference that your food is good. The truth is, however, that we're here on very important business. Angel, can you show me please?" Rei put down her pen after writing on one of the dinner napkins on the table, and Patrick took it and showed the waiter.
"Do you see this?" he told the waiter in hushed tones. "This is the authentic signature of the First Child, Miss Rei Ayanami herself. Here, have a look?" Rei had indeed autographed the napkin with her name, written both in Japanese characters and in English. The waiter was skeptical at first, but then took a good look at Rei herself as Patrick went on.
"So we're here on very important business and we've just run into some, well, critical issue that we have to take care of immediately. And believe me, your restaurant is terrific. If we had the time I would order escargot and chateaubriand and beef wellington and all of that and douse it all down with a whole bottle of Dom Perigion but right now we have to go. Now Rei here doesn't give out autographs for security reasons, so what you're holding there is pretty rare, and I'd also have to think worth a lot of money, yes?"
The water took another good look at the napkin and then also again studied Rei, noting that she was calmly standing in front of him clutching her handbag. He wondered just how real this was but the two young adults in front of him seemed too poised and too well dressed for the children of rich parents out for a dinner who just wanted to ditch early. Still he was unsure until the Matre d' came by and gladly took the napkin out of the waiter's hands.
"Monsieur, it will be our pleasure to receive this," the matre d' told Patrick with a smile. "Don't worry about anything else, please just go and enjoy the rest of your evening and we will see you back another time."
"Great, thanks!" replied Patrick excitedly, taking the matre d's hand and vigorously shaking it. "Gotta go! Adieu and all that, goodbye!" Patrick then let go and took Rei's hand and the two of them made a quick pace out of the restaurant, with the curious glances of most of the diners following them out the doorway.
The water was left standing by the table next to a half-eaten plate of raw oysters. "What was that about?"
"Do you remember the old doctor with the cane?" The matre d' asked. "The one with the pretty wife with blonde hair?"
"Yes, of course. Frequent customer. Always orders Cognac after dinner."
The Matre d' showed his brother, the waiter, a business card that pulled out from his jacket. "NERV," he told his brother. The waiter read the official business card of Dr. Bernard Foch from his days at NERV's Second Branch, something that the matre d' had kept when he had realized the importance of what the doctor was involved in.
"You, my dear brother, have just brushed with history."
Hands joined together, Rei and Patrick ran out of the restaurant and into the elevator across from it. They weren't alone, as there was a middle-aged Asian woman dressed in expensive clothes already standing there. Without letting go of Patrick, Rei quietly selected the floor of her room and then the two of them leaned back against the elevator car and waited.
There was a palatable, awkward silence as the doors closed and the elevator car zoomed downward. Patrick and Rei both glanced around the car and the other passenger, who ignored them in boredom and waited for the car to arrive at her floor. At the sixteenth floor the doors opened and the woman left, and the couple waited anxiously for the doors to close.
Once shut Patrick swung Rei into his arms and she immediately put her hands to his face, holding him and giving him a deep kiss. Patrick held her tighter and continued the kisses, each one of them being deeper and wetter and releasing the passions of the two of them. He looked at her in her eyes, not saying it but thinking the words Finally. She knew what he meant and gently nodded, and the two of them went back to kissing.
The elevator door slid open at the seventh floor, and still holding hands the two of them ran out.
"Which room is it?" Patrick asked Rei. She didn't give him the number but instead led him by the hand at a jog. "This way."
As they went down one of the hallways Patrick saw Dylan standing there, dressed in a black suit with his earpiece on. So this was all planned, then. I hope they weren't listening in on us.
"'Evening, Dylan," Patrick said in a quick breath as he hurried. Dylan just gave him a slight wave, knowing the boy had more important things to attend to.
"Good seeing you, kid. Have a nice night!"
It took a few more steps and then they were at the room, and Rei quickly pulled out her key again and waived it at the door. The locked opened and she grabbed Patrick by the hand and pulled him inside.
The room was dark except for the sliver of city lights that were reflected from the main window through the drawn curtains, but in the shadows he could see Rei close to him and again drew her tight against him. The two of them kissed and kissed again, and Patrick didn't really have a plan for what would happen next but only hoped it would happen soon.
Rei broke off the last kiss and gently put her hand on Patrick's chest. "Go slow," she whispered and Patrick took a deep breath as she took a few steps back. Patrick's vision adjusted to the darkness and he could see her more clearly now as Rei stepped back from him and let him glance at her in the shadows of the room.
"Forri," she spoke to him softly, "come here, please." Patrick slowly walked over to where she was, kicking off his shoes as he did so. Rei's heels had already come off and she then pivoted to face the outside window, showing her back to him.
"Can you unzip this please?"
Patrick was happy to do so, and gently took the zipper of Rei's dress and slid it downward. A second later her clothes dropped to the floor. Rei's strapless bra was now visible, and without being asked Patrick gently undid the hooks in the bra, unfastening them with just a little trouble with one clatch. The black lace brassiere then dropped to the floor and he was looking and touching Rei's bare back.
She turned around, and Patrick could see her breasts. Shapely and firm and sized "just right" he figured, with her nipples erect in the cool air of the room. Rei looked up at him and using her fingers gently removed his sportscoat, then went after his necktie. Patrick helped her untie it, and after she undid it she started to slowly unbutton his shirt as Patrick gently caressed the soft skin of her arms. It didn't take her long to have the full shirt off and it too glided to the floor. Rei took a deep breath and let her hands feel Patrick's chest, and then she put herself against him as he held her tightly.
"I missed you," she told him.
"Me too," he replied at a whisper.
"You are bigger now," Rei commented.
"Yeah, I got quite the workout these last few months." Rei held a thought to herself and confided that she had picked the best time to do this. Again, she gently pushed away and glided backwards just a few steps. She was more light on her feet this time, and Patrick could see her as the Swan, beckoning to her lover. Rei's movements gave that impression as well, as her hands gently floated in the air and then she stood in front of Patrick and looked straight at him. With one push she slid off her fishnet tights, revealing only the smallest sign of black lace remaining on her. Patrick didn't come to her at first but seeing that this was all a mating dance he too dropped his pants to the floor. Then there was the snap of elastic and her panties slid to the floor, and then Patrick saw all of her.
This is going to happen after all. Patrick followed suit, removing the rest of his own clothes, although taking off his socks proved awkward. Note to self: don't wear socks on nights like this. But within another half-minute he was finally stripped and ready.
Rei gently moved forward and towards him and now Patrick let his passions slip. He went for a kiss again, and this time let his hands travel all over her body, lingering on her breasts and gliding down her back and around her trim buttocks. Rei put her hands over his neck and gave him kiss after kiss, and then let her own hands feel his chest, gently touching Patrick's nipples and giving him a sudden sensation from her touch. He could see how hard he had become, and that part was now pressing against her own skin. Patrick just hoped that he wouldn't explode before they reached the bed.
But a dreadful thought came bubbling up to his brain and Patrick blurted it out. "Oh, gosh!" he said out loud. "I didn't bring a…"
Rei immediately knew what he meant and before he could finish the sentence, she pounded him not so gently on the arm.
"Baka!" she said to him in sudden frustration. "I want to get pregnant!"
Lucky me. The confidence came back to his face. "Then let's get started!" Patrick gathered Rei up in his muscular arms and carried her over to the bed, which was only a few steps away. Gone were all of the worries and frustrations of the complications of Rei's physical nature, now all had finally been set right and it was just a time for themselves.
Patrick lay her on the bed and let his hands glide over her body as she looked at him. She was beautiful naked, he decided, and he wanted to explore that body and she was more than willing to let him do it. He touched her on he breasts and gently kissed her nipples as Rei closed her eyes and felt the sensation reach deep in her like lightening. Her breaths became short and deep as she was aroused by Patrick's touch. His hands went further down her body, finally reaching that spot he had longed to touch. Her skin was very soft and supple, with no trace of hair, and Rei quivered as he gently caressed her there.
"Is that okay?" he whispered to her. Rei nodded and smiled, and he touched her some more and felt the heat and moisture inside of her.
It's time. Patrick put his knees on the bed and faced her. Rei looked up at him and took his hands into hers. She wanted this too, he knew.
"I love you," Patrick whispered to her.
"I love you too," she replied.
Patrick leaned over and kissed her again, preparing himself for the big moment. She smiled at him but then suddenly there was a change in her expression.
"What is it?"
Rei didn't answer right away but instead look at him fearfully. Her hands began to shake.
"Something is wrong," she said.
Patrick was about to ask what but Rei suddenly let out a cry, pulling her hands away and moving them towards her midsection. She cried again and Patrick touched her and noticed that her body was quivering and felt cold.
"What's going on?"
"The implants, they're…" Rei cried out again in pain.
For a half-second Patrick worked to reduce the panic in his mind. He had been trained how to handle such things in the prior three months and had to find a way to take what he was now facing and make something work out of it. But this was Rei, his living treasure, nothing was more important than what happened to her. That thought gave him purpose enough.
He rushed to his suit coat and pulled out his mobile phone. It was still turned on, switched to silent mode but he quickly ran down the speed dial numbers to reach the security detail's call in line, hoping that they hadn't switch the phone number in the last three months. As he waited for the line to ring Patrick rushed over to Rei and found a blanket on the bed, and immediately covered her with it.
"Lifeguard," the voice came on at the other end.
"Medical Emergency. Grand Hotel room 707. Need Medevac now!"
"On the way," the voice calmly replied.
Patrick kept the line open but tossed the phone down on the bed. He knew the alert would call in Rei's security detail down the hall and around the hotel, so he went to grab his slacks and drag them on. He was still getting his belt on when Dylan burst through the front door followed by a female agent.
"What's going on?" asked the agent.
"She's having a seizure of some kind from her implants," Patrick told him as he finished putting on his slacks. "I need to get her to Dr. Foch right away."
"Got it." Dylan then spoke on his radio earpiece. "Medevac for ANGEL stat." He paused for a moment and then relayed the answer to Patrick while he put his coat on.
"They're already on the way, ETA two minutes on the roof."
Patrick rushed to Rei and after making her the blanket wrapped around her was secure lifted her up in his arms. Her skin was much more pale than normal, sheet white to be precise. And her face was contorted in pain with sweat dripping down her brow.
"Angel, we're getting you help, okay. Hang in there!" Dylan then led the way out of the hotel room as Patrick followed barefoot with Rei in his arms, while the remaining agent picked up their items in the hotel room.
Jogging towards the elevators, Dylan keyed the "UP" button and then the group waited very impatiently for an elevator car to appear, Patrick all the while focused on Rei who was now barely conscious. The doors slid open and Dylan quickly went to the controls, taking out a firefighters' key and using it to gain control, then pushing the button for roof access. The three of them climbed up to the top floor in the next minute and a half.
Once at the top they raced towards the helicopter, a European-made EC-135 air medevac. The rear doors were swung open with a paramedic standing by as they carried Rei over. Patrick handed her over to the paramedic who then laid her down the bottom of two gurneys and immediately started checking her vital signs. Patrick and Dylan then piled into the chopper.
"We'll take her to Alliance Base hospital!" Dylan shouted to Patrick over the rotor and engine noise.
"No!" he protested. "Go to the Artificial Evolution Lab at NIT! Foch will need to see her there!"
"Patrick, it's protocol. She'll be okay at the hospital."
"It's an EVA thing, Dylan," was Patrick's reply and that was all he needed.
"I get it, then. Okay, we divert. Get strapped in." Patrick found a seat opposite the gurney with harnesses and then strapped in while Dylan closed the rear doors of the chopper.
"How is she?"
The paramedic looked concerned. "BP is way down, we got to get her stabilized soon." Patrick glared at Dylan.
"Fuck it, kid, I know." Dylan then gave the thumbs up to the pilot and the chopper immediately lifted off as he strapped in the co-pilot's seat. "NIT Labs, now please." He instructed over the headset and the pilot maneuvered towards the New Institute campus close by.
Patrick looked at Rei, her face still in anguish. "Hang on there, Angel," he encouraged in a soft voice as he caressed her hair. Dear God please let Foch save her from whatever this is.
The Artificial Evolution Laboratory was located several stories down from the ground floor, and the helicopter needed to be landed next to the front door of the building to access it. Together the paramedic, Dylan, and Patrick lifted Rei onto a wheeled gurney and then ran her from the helicopter towards the front doors of the building.
After moving through corridors they found a secondary access door that was normally hidden from public view. Standing there was Doctor Foch and his wife Beatrix, both of them in overcoats worn over sleeping clothes. As soon as the gurney reached Foch he took out a penlight and shone it in Rei's eyes.
"What happened?" he asked Patrick.
"She just suddenly went cold and into chills and then screaming out in pain," he explained.
"Oh, dear. Let's get her down." Foch then led the way through the open doorway and into a cargo elevator as Patrick and the others followed him in.
I spent a little longer on this chapter as this is something of a pivotal moment, and know that a lot of readers really wanted to see this happen. Of course, there's complications and what should be a happy moment gets turned into a very dark one in a snap.
In writing the Blue Rose stories, I've never taken Rei's sexuality lightly and have always tried to have considerable respect for the character while being realistic about the circumstances of her origin and creation. While the original EVA work gives us little to go on, we're informed that Rei is infertile, perhaps made deliberately so by her creators. There's a certain logic to that: why would you want to enable Evangelions to be capable of getting pregnant? That seems like a rather dangerous path. Yet Rei is not simply a "mini-copy" of an EVA but rather a young woman becoming increasingly independent and self-aware. And like many women she has a strong will towards motherhood and wishes a way to fulfill it.
So Rei faces this contradiction between spirit and flesh and to a large extent this drives the conflict within her. She wants to be a mother, but she's stuck with this synthetic body that's not quite completely human. It's also no accident that Rei, as the clone of Yui Ikari (the ideal mother figure of EVA herself) inherits much of Yui's own drive in this regard. I think this lends a pretty strong extra dimension to her character, no?
I did a fair amount of research into infertility and physical disfunctions to see what had some basis in real-world medicine, to at least give this a more grounded approach than simply using anime physics (or biology) to come up with the answer. Also, while it may seem unusual for someone quite young to deliberately seek out a pregnancy, the truth is that if the opportunity is limited you take it at the best possible chance. This happens in the real world too, as young women with dangerous medical conditions such as cancer often seek out ways to get pregnant while they possibly can, even if they're in their teens, because they may simply not have the opportunity to do it later. Perhaps that's natural drive or evolution in action, but it happens despite what we would think would be "common sense."
I'll be sure to not wait too long on the next chapter. Enjoy.