Disclaimer: I exist in the space between laughter and sorrow, which is why I laugh at tragedies and frown at comedies.
Author note: It's chapter 10 yo. Israfel ran away but the Angel, like Heroes, comes back. It's gonna be a wild ride, so strap in.
The Reprint and Repackaging of Evangelion
Chapter 10 Cry Me a Future, Where the Revelations Run Amok
by Marik Kurakashi
"So Ritsuko, what you're saying is.." Misato shook her head, refusing to believe what she was hearing.
"What I am saying is that most likely, the Angel ran because it had been expecting just two Evangelion." Ritsuko sighed, having explained this in detail before.
"Who knew they were so sensitive?" Asuka commented from the side, looking at Shinji, who had fought the most.
"The first two were crybabies." Shinji shrugged, looking not at all surprised at Israfel's sudden cowardice.
"So logically, we should have two units engage the Angel." Rei added, looking out at the screen as they received word of the UN and JSSDF began to mobilize in accordance to the Hunter protocol.
"Overlord, this is Hunter-1, we are moving to form a defensive barrier around Tokyo-3 as agreed." One of the UN commanders radioed in to inform NERV. "Our mission isn't to try and kill the target, just delay it, correct?"
"That is correct Hunter-1. Keep your men safe and good hunting." Misato answered, sighing as they went back to the drawing board on how to kill Israfel.
"How long do you think they can hold out?" Shinji was just a tiny bit concerned by the idea of chucking the normals to the fire against the Angel.
"Indefinitely as long as they stick to the plan in the protocol." Misato answered easily. "If they're smart, when they see the Angel, they'll stick to the Predator drones first. The missiles won't do shit, but if the drones are shot down, there's no loss of lives."
"As soon as we have a capable plan, we'll call them off and come in." Ritsuko decided to help Misato placate the worrying pilots.
"Okay, so what do we do about the Angel?" Shinji nodded and put it from his mind for now.
/-\ /-\ /-\
"Keep an eye out for the target, we need to keep it busy for NERV. No manned vessels for the opening engagement, follow the protocol's safety measures at all costs." Hunter-1 radioed to all of his troops, a large number of which were personnel who were controlling the Predator drones.
"Roger that sir." This was the general response.
"Hunter-1, this is Recon-6, we have visual confirmation of the target, uploading coordinates and evacuating." And like that, it was on.
The first missile did little damage, but served to annoy the Angel. Left looked around as Right stalked from the smoke cloud left by the explosion. The second one missed as the two halves moved in an uncanny fashion, only to walk right into the third. Now, they were mad, the two halves stampeding about like wild cattle.
A fourth attack was thwarted by an AT-field, and a fifth got punched out of the air. Israfel wasn't taking this shit lying down, much the same of which could be said for the UN/JSSDF super forces, which responded with seven simultaneous missile strikes. While it did little damage and only served to infuriate the target all the more, they were doing their job perfectly.
Israfel wasn't moving any closer to Tokyo-3.
No matter how they looked at it, all they could do was delay the Angel, hell that was the entire point of the operation. But it hurts your pride a little, knowing that you were less than fodder, because at least cannon fodder had a point of being there. These combined forces, more than enough to conquer most any army, were nothing but helpless children before Israfel.
But did they sit back and cry? Hell no! They let the Angel have it with whatever they could manage. Missiles continued to rain in as gunships began making their way to the fight. So they couldn't kill it, nor could they damage it severely without using an N2 mine. But did they despair and give in to the urge to fling big bombs at it until the land was glass?
Of course not, because NERV was here and they would save the day, and so they held on, believing in the organization created to kill this beast.
/-\ /-\ /-\
"So we have to send two Evangelion out to meet the Angel?" Misato wasn't sure she liked this idea, but it sounded better than any other suggestion that was made. They were not going to glass the area around Tokyo-3 damn it.
"Ideally, as a quick bit of variable crunching shows the Angel will keep running from all three." Ritsuko was beginning to wish they would just start chucking N2 mines at the blasted thing. It'd be faster than relying on a duel of some kind.
"I'll go." Shinji volunteered immediately. "I'm not letting it play keep away with us."
"Me too." Asuka jumped in before Rei, who looked both angry and despondent at the same time. "Shinji and I have worked together to sync Unit-02, we'd be the best choice to fight two-on-two with the Angel."
"I suppose so. Unless one of you wants to step aside for Rei, we'll begin prepping Unit-01 and 02 for launch." Misato looked at Rei, biting her lip as the other two simply turned to get ready.
"Misato." Ritsuko started, only to be silenced by an upraised hand.
"I know, I'll take care of her." Misato then walked over to Rei. "I'm sorry you got passed over Rei, but they volunteered first and they made a good case for themselves. I would have kept it open but we can't afford to wait any more than we already have."
"It's... it's fine. Don't worry about it." Rei didn't sound very convincing.
"No, it's not fine or I wouldn't have to be saying this to you." Misato sighed, before saying what she didn't really want to. "Look, Rei, I don't think I should say this, but your emotions have been spiraling out of control since you met Shinji. They haven't affected your sync ratio or your performances, but they are making you whiplash from mood to mood more than before. I don't have any reason to say this other than as a friend, I want to make sure you're in good mental health. As such, I'm ordering you to take a vacation from piloting for a bit and get yourself under control before it does become an issue. I want to be able to put full faith in you and not wonder if this battle is the one you snap." Finally saying her piece, she turned away from the hurt, almost profoundly aching look on the face of the First Child. She accepted the slap to the face without complaint, nor did she try and stop the girl from running away, feeling horrible for essentially removing her from duty over the conjecture that Rei would snap.
"You did a brave thing, Captain." Gendo appeared as if summoned by something, promptly scaring Misato horribly. "It takes a great leader to care about their followers. I was right to place Project E in your hands."
"I wish I had a better way of saying it." Her cheek stung, but not as much as her conscience.
"Do not fret, as I will go and explain it to her. I will make her understand that it is for the best that she get herself under control." Gendo looked ahead, past Misato and all the walls. "She'll be at my office, crying under the desk. It's what she did when she first failed her sync test with 00. Fear not, she is made of stronger stuff than she has shown. She will recover, maybe not for the next operation, but for the next one."
"Tell her I'm sorry, would you?" Misato turned to get back to work and killing Israfel.
"I will, though you have no need to be." Gendo almost smiled, his face twitching into a warm smirk. It creeped Misato out big time. "This to, shall pass. Go forth Captain, there is work to be done."
/-\ /-\ /-\
"This is Hunter-1 to all troops, be advised, NERV is redeploying the Evangelion. As such, our job here is finished. Once they have engaged the Angel again, we will withdraw from the battlefield. I repeat, once the target has been engaged by NERV, we will be withdrawing. Is that understood?" Hunter-1 gritted his teeth, they had survived a full twenty minutes against Israfel without sustaining a casualty beyond a few drones.
"Sir yes sir!" This was the general response to the order.
"This is Shinji Ikari in Unit-01, just hopping on to say thanks Hunter-1, you did your job well." Shinji wasn't trying to patronize the man, they had fought the Angel to a standstill without the Evangelion. "As much as I'd like you to continue until you kill it, I'd rather take a guaranteed win over any other."
"This is Hunter-1, saying good luck pilot. Kick its ass for us would you?" Hunter-1 managed a smile, despite everything that should have made him frown.
"You got it." Not that he needed to say it, but damn it, he was gonna be a badass for once.
"We're almost there Ikari, look sharp." Asuka wasn't raining on his parade, just letting him know that the battle was about to be joined.
"I hear you, Soryu. Let's get this bastard and go home." Shinji hefted the Maglock once, just to remind himself it was there. "So how do we do this?"
"Hit 'em fast, hit 'em hard, make sure they die." Asuka tapped the Sonic Glaive once, just to show she was thinking, always thinking. "But let's not get sloppy now and make sure to watch each other's backs."
"Got it, we're reaching the battlefield." The Evangelion roared forth, clashing with each half of Israfel in a display of power that shook the area. The tag team match of the millennium, short as it was, was on.
Left immediately swarmed Unit-01, targeting the Maglock in an effort to disarm his foe. This wasn't the blind charging of before, but a series of calculated attacks that pushed Shinji back on his heels. In contrast to the first battle, the Angel was now playing divide and conquer against the Evangelion. No words were exchanged between the pilots as they fought off the vicious assault.
Right, working her way around the reach of Unit-02's weapon, seemed to be the faster of the halves. Unlike Sachiel and Shamshel, Israfel held a secret cunning that rivaled the intelligence shown by both Gahgiel and Ramiel. They were no match for the three Evangelion, so they convinced them to come with just two.
Misato felt sick, seeing the trap begin to form in front of her eyes.
"Soryu, drop your weapon, they're targeting them." Shinji cried as he let go of the Maglock and locked hands with Left.
"Right!" Asuka followed suit and began exchanging punches with Right.
"It's broken down into a tag team match." Maya exclaimed, as Fuyutsuki and Gendo entered the bridge.
"It takes you back, doesn't it Ikari?" Fuyutsuki waxed nostalgically, smiling as he watched the battle progress.
"That it does, Sensei. Those were some wild times in Osaka weren't they?" Gendo looked on sternly, memories flashing back to a time before Second Impact. The world championship was it? Ah, good times.
"You were a beast." Still are, but Fuyutsuki decided to be polite. For now.
"The match appears to be even." Hyuga interrupted, as Unit-02 kicked Right in the face. Unit-01 was grappling as best it could with Left, the stalemate looking to go unresolved.
"It doesn't appear that either pilot is exerting much energy." Aoba added in, monitoring the vitals very dutifully. "If they pace themselves, stamina won't become much of a factor."
"They weren't pacing themselves before, after all." Maya put in, covering the earlier battle.
"That's good," Misato said, before realizing. "Couldn't we have just had them pace themselves earlier?"
"No, because the Angel ran away. We still don't know how to kill it anyways." Ritsuko entered in to the discussion with some facts.
"Let's hope they figure it out." Misato tried not to sound worried. She succeeded, mostly anyways.
/-\ /-\ /-\
Unit-01 kneed Left in the face, following this up with a right cross to the same area. The Angel stumbled, but blocked the left hook before coming with a left uppercut. Shinji managed to pull out of the way but was pushed off his offensive. Left came surging forward with a series of punches, none of which came close to hitting but served to keep Unit-01 off balance.
Right took a kick to the chest and responded with a punch of her own, but the damage was minimal at best. Neither combatant seemed to be doing all that much to the other, save for shaking the earth beneath them with every titanic strike. Asuka nailed Right with a right straight, left upper combo, followed by a stinging backfist that sent it tumbling away.
It was breaking down into a slugfest here outside Tokyo-3.
"We're getting nowhere." Shinji groused as he elbowed Left in the face to force it back.
"If we knew how to kill them, this would be so much simpler." Asuka wasn't exactly complaining, she was having a ball really. She kicked Right again, following with a palm strike that dropped it.
"Maybe, maybe not." Shinji was beginning to think even with the knowledge to kill this pest, that it wouldn't be as easy as they might think. This Angel was a slick customer, despite their first impression of it. He locked Unit-01 up with Left again, the epic test-of-strength ending in yet another stalemate.
"Then suggest something or keep quiet and fight." Asuka wasn't in the mood for a debate about whether they were stinking the joint up or not. Not while fighting for her life, which Right reminded her of with a crazy headbutt.
"I'm working on it." Unit-01 slammed Left down, shattering the ground for what seemed like miles.
"Work faster then." Unit-02 returned the headbutt before the two started exchanging strikes some more.
"Be quiet, I'm thinking." He didn't really mean that, but it was the first thing that popped into his head.
"Well, how about this? We stop fighting individually and start working as a team?" Asuka turned Unit-02 towards Unit-01, which held out a hand. Asuka took the extended hand used it to pull Unit-02 into a flying high kick on Left while Unit-01 yanked itself into a front high kick that dropped Right down. The Evangelion turned and grabbed the opposite hand from before and twisted into a spinning sweep kick that sent the two halves of Israfel into the air.
"And here we go!" Shinji shouted as the Units leaped after the Angel and slammed the pair down with stereo German suplexes. Not stopping there, the Evangelion rolled to their feet, turned Left and Right around before hefting them into stereo power bombs. Still not down, but Units grabbed a leg and rolled their adversaries up into stereo half-nelson suplexes.
"It appears they've overtaken the Angel with some weird form of synchronized wrestling!" Maya reported, shaking her head at the display. "Whatever it is, it seems to be working."
"It's time to finish this, Shinji!" Asuka cracked her knuckles as they prepared to take it to the Angel even further.
"Right, let's go with 'that', Asuka!" Shinji raised Unit-01's left arm and began projecting an AT-field from the elbow. Strangely, the AT-field pulled Left from the ground and started dragging it towards Unit-01.
"Oh ho ho, going for 'that' are we? Hmhmhm! Very well, let's send them to Hell!" Asuka raised Unit-02's right arm and like Shinji before, started projecting the AT-field from the elbow as well. Like Left before, Right found itself floating towards Unit-02.
"ORAAAAAAH!" Shinji yelled, slamming Unit-01's left arm into his captive foe with tremendous force in one massive lariat. Capturing it, he spun and flung Left at Unit-02.
"TOH!" Asuka slammed a palm into Right, rocketing it back into Left, the two halves of Israfel bouncing off and flying back towards the Evangelion that sent them flying. Shinji caught Left and dumped it in a double leg suplex. Asuka met right with another palm thrust, doubling it over before double underhooking the arms and leaping into the air. Midway through a butterfly suplex, Asuka somehow stopped and back flipped without moving Right at all, placing Unit-02 foot to foot with the Angel. The Evangelion rode the right half of Israfel into the ground, another large crater forming from the violent maneuver.
"And now the finish!" Shinji and Asuka yelled in unison, both retaking their earlier stances, though Shinji now had Unit-01's right arm raised instead. AT-fields at full flicker, the pattern spread warping to the point it looked like a giant hand extending out to yank each half out of the ground and pull them towards the Evangelion.
"CROOOOOOSSSSSS BOMMMMMBBAAAAAAAH!" the two pilots roared, charging forward and clotheslining each half of Israfel, dragging it along until they met, slamming both halves into one another in a violent collision that somehow reunited Israfel into one being. The Evangelion backed away as the Angel reeled, both cores exposed for all the world to see.
"Asuka!" Shinji yelled, picking up the discarded Sonic Glaive and tossing it to her.
"On it!" Asuka twirled it once before running forwards and brute force ramming it through both cores. Israfel gave no scream and just pathetically collapsed over dead.
"Blue signal has ceased entirely, the Angel is dead." Hyuga said, breathing a sigh of relief.
"So, I guess it was already dead before they skewered it?" Aoba hazarded, wondering why he was getting funny looks all of a sudden.
"Seems to be." Misato breathed a sigh of relief. "And with this, another successful operation is complete!"
End Chapter 10
Teaser for chapter 11 "It's Time to Burn It Down":
"So Rei is on vacation?" Shinji asked, it had been a small number of hours after Israfel when a JSSDF field research crew came across increased volcanic activity in Mount Asama. While no blue signal was recorded, they were paranoid enough to call in NERV.
"Right, Ritsuko and others expressed concern over her rapidly changing emotional states." Misato shook her head. "I wouldn't have said anything, but it seems her getting passed over for last op didn't sit too well and I decided to nip any future problems in the bud."
"Well, alright then I guess." Shinji didn't care, but found it wasn't motivated by any malicious intent or stupid idea to test them. "It's not like you want us to only have two Evangelion right?"
"Duh. Hell, I'd rather have an army of the fucking things if I could." Misato really did hate having to leave everything to the kids.
"That's nice, but Mount Asama?" Asuka politely interrupted the proceedings so they could get down to brass tacks.
"The JSSDF think they've found an Angel egg."
Author note: And that's 10. See ya soon for 11 and Sandalphon. Who knows, maybe we'll see that drill that's being worked on? Also, yes, Rei's vacation is a terrible plot device, but let's see where it goes okay? Bye now.