SEE FIRST CHAPTER FOR MOST DISCLAIMERS

KINGDOM HEARTS IS THE PROPERTY OF SQUARE-ENIX

NEON GENESIS EVANGELION IS THE PROPERTY OF GAINAX

PLEASE READ & REVIEW, AND TEND TO THE TROPE & CHARACTER PAGES

-CHAPTER START-

TSAB Riot Force XI Headquarters

Two Days After Vendol's Reclamation

Teana relaxed into the comfy chair she was currently seated in. In the wake of the recent incident, and after carefully reviewing the detailed report of her actions on other worlds after leaving their Earth, the United Nations Space Command's leadership had decided to offer the Grade-5 Warrant Officer a commission as a full officer. She looked down at the gold bar on her UNSC uniform, the insignia of a Second Lieutenant. The other six members of Gamma were now all WO4, and it was almost certain they'd eventually reach WO5.

The clean-up after the demonic incursion on Midchilda was progressing smoothly. Fatalities were accounted for, wounded were receiving treatment, and reconstruction & repair were already starting for some parts of the afflicted cities. All in all, it could've been worse.

The "backstory" behind Erika's mysterious new weapon had been explained to those who didn't know already by Fate, Marie, Chizuru, Chisame, Yūna, and Keiichi – the characters and plots of the game series' various entries, intel on the Keyblades, the Heartless, Nobodies, & Unversed, the Keyblade War and various other tidbits. The six in question regretted that none of their three timelines had yet seen the release of Dream Drop Distance, the next installment of the series that was sure to answer some old questions and create new ones. Nonetheless, it was all plenty of food for thought. Everyone unanimously agreed that, were they to encounter this Xehanort during their future travels, they would lend a hand in taking him down for all that he'd done.

Though nobody could help her with advanced techniques due to her weapon's unique structure, Signum, Nanoha, and Setsuna had already started tutoring Erika in the basics of swordsmanship, the stuff that applied to all remotely sword-like weapons. She was proving to be an eager and fast learner. At the same time, the Stroke of Midnight's ability to act as a channeler and focus of magic had opened up more new avenues for her.

Teana looked over as Fate sat down on the couch nearby, looking lost in thought.

"What's wrong?" Teana asked.

Fate startled a bit. "Oh. It's nothing, Teana. I'm just… remembering something that happened years ago. It's a memory I'd rather forget."

Teana got up, walked over, and took a seat next to her. "What happened?" she asked softly, placing a hand on Fate's. Fate took a ragged breath.

"I was almost lost to Darkness" the blonde replied. "I… It happened about two weeks after Nanoha's 'accident'…"

-FLASHBACK START-

TSAB Administered World #72 – Vickers (pop. 230,000)

Seven Years Ago

Fate clutched tightly onto Bardiche, panting for breath. The 12-year-old's Barrier Jacket was torn here & there, and a handful of small wounds marred her young body. Her opponent stood before her – a tall, fairly-muscular man with tan skin and amber eyes tainted by cruelty. He was a little breathless as well, but was faring better than she was. His Barrier Jacket, a dark-red top with matching pants and black boots, showed only a few tears, and there were no noticeable wounds on his body.

His name was Bernard Shasten. Fate had been sent to apprehend him after he was positively linked to the murder of 16 people, including three TSAB personnel. Fate had stumbled upon his 17th and 18th victims – an old man and his adult son out fishing, less than three hours dead – shortly after arriving on Vickers, and had followed his trail here, to this dead, rocky canyon with no people around for miles, halfway between the town near his last two victims and a major city. And here, they'd fought.

The man wasn't quite as fast as Fate, but he was close. More importantly, he had better defense and more raw power. What's more, Fate was tired both physically and emotionally, from tracking this man across the planet for three days straight, and from the painfully recent near-fatal wounding of the girl she was coming to love, along with having seen Nanoha suffering so whenever she visited. Fate's feelings of helplessness, sorrow, and guilt over not being there to prevent it had been eating away at her, compromising her fortitude, her resolve. All through this present fight, she'd felt something building up inside of her. And she was, for some reason she couldn't fathom, scared of what would happen if it broke out.

"This is just sad" Shasten said with a sneer. "One of the Bureau's two 'rising stars', and you can't even beat a thug like me. You think you can protect or avenge anyone like this? You're just a fragile little baby girl playing pretend-soldier."

'No' a not-quite-voice seemed to whisper from within Fate's heart, as the blonde felt a spark of anger come to life. 'You are more. Show him how much more you are.'

"I will stop you" she said in the low, even tone she'd used back when she was in her mother's service.

Shasten laughed. "You couldn't stop anyone, little girl. You certainly couldn't stop your little friend from getting crippled."

Fate's eyes shot wide open as a gasp escaped her throat.

"Oh yes, that particular bit of news is already starting to get out among the Bureau worlds. The little white star of the Bureau brought down to earth by a cloaked droid. Bet you wish you could've been there to stop it, huh? Hah! As if you could've made any difference…"

'He is wrong' the un-voice said. 'He insults her. Make him pay for that. Pay in blood.'

Fate's teeth gritted as she felt the spark growing larger within her. Her grip tightened on Bardiche's staff.

"How was it?" the man asked, an evil grin on his face. "The feeling you had when you saw her battered and broken, covered in the blood you foolishly think you could've stopped from being shed… And that wasn't the only failure you've suffered, is it? …Testarossa"

'He spits upon your name. In disrespecting you, he disrespects and insults those who care for you. He disrespects Nanoha.'

"I did some homework after you and Takamachi showed up on the galactic scene" Shasten continued. "Nothing on her, as to be expected from someone born & raised on a non-administered world. But you… daughter of the woman held responsible for the deaths of hundreds thanks to her little experiment gone haywire. Oh wait… Not her daughter, because she was among the dead. That woman had connections with powerful people, with powerful technology."

His grin turned positively predatory.

"You're a clone. A copy. A fake."

He either didn't notice or didn't care as Fate's anger continued to build. The red irises of her eyes began to slowly shift to a golden-yellow, an almost-imperceptible pitch-black aura conforming to her body.

'He insultsMother!' the not-voice cried out. 'Such offense must not go unpunished!'

Fate's vision began to be tinted an unnatural red as the anger built up more and more within her. Years of long-suppressed angers, fears, sorrows, worries, loneliness, all converted into a roiling darkness that seethed and surged upward in the form of something she'd never felt before: hatred.

"I understand what you are now" he said. "You're here working with the Bureau. That must mean… that she cast you aside. You didn't live up to her expectations. And you couldn't stop the manifestation of the Book of Darkness on one of the most heavily populated planets the Bureau has ever found. And you couldn't stop your little friend from taking wounds she'll almost certainly die from. …And now, you can't even stop me from getting away, from harvesting more victims. You are…"

'Savor your despair and rage! Let it empower you!'

And for the next bit, for a brief moment, Precia's face and voice were superimposed over Shasten's.

"…a worthless failure."

'Let your Heart blacken with anger!-!'

And in a sudden, overwhelming surge of power, all of the years' worth of suppressed Darkness was fully unleashed.

'Make him hurt! Makehim suffer!Make him die!-!'

Shasten's eyes widened in surprise as, with a feral scream/roar, a large, pitch-black aura enveloped Fate, like a roaring black inferno, forcing him a few steps back. The ancient rock beneath Fate's feet cracked and gave way to the dark aura, her entire body surging with tainted power. After forcing it down for so long, rejecting its existence, refusing to face it, Fate at last embraced her Heart's Darkness, allowing herself to be enveloped by it, giving her the strength of rage and hatred. Her irises were a golden-yellow, the sclera black, and her canine teeth had ever-so-slightly elongated, bared like an angry wolf's. In her right hand, the staff of Bardiche warped and cracked, the golden energy blade turning crimson, the AI putting itself in a dormant mode out of self-preservation lest it be fried or corrupted by the encroaching Darkness.

Shasten was stunned, one arm shielding his face. "W… What is this?" he whispered.

Fate focused on him and spoke, her voice feral and enraged. "I'll rip you apart"

And in a blur of motion, she attacked. Before Shasten could react, a Darkness-supercharged little fist was buried in his gut, and then he was flying backward with considerable velocity. He pulled out of his uncontrolled flight, clutching at his stomach, and looked up just in time to catch a roundhouse kick to the face that rocketed him to the side, the girl streaking after him like a black comet. She quickly caught up and then dealt a hammer-fist blow that sent him down into the ground around 130 feet below, leaving a small crater. He pulled himself up and out, and as she appeared in front of him he charged mana into his right first, let out a war-cry, and lashed out with all his might.

She caught the punch effortlessly, the burst of explosive mana doing nothing to her. Her black aura intensified as she suddenly, violently twisted his arm, and Shasten screamed as he felt and heard the bones snap. He leapt back, flying at just above ground level into a nearby cave entrance. A few seconds in, the light from the nearby entrance was unnaturally snuffed out, and he felt a powerful blow smash into him from the side, sending him stumbling. Another came seconds later, and another, and another. The only source of light was the glow from the corrupted Fate's golden-yellow irises as she pummeled him relentlessly. Eventually, she hit him with a blow that sent him through the "wall" and out into daylight. As he was airborne, Fate flew up beside him, the crimson blade of the corrupted Bardiche swinging out.

Shasten felt horrible burning pain as his legs were both severed just above the knee. At the peak of his arc, she lashed out again, the blade of superheated magical energy cutting deep into his gut, a gouge glowing with heat that had cut into and through several organs. She then struck him hard with the blunt end, sending him down to the ground, crashing in a heap. She landed on top of him, standing over him. His eyes showed pure terror as he looked up at her, while her eyes showed naught but malice and rage. She brought her fist back and up, as it began charging so much Darkness power that its colors inverted.

"P-Please!" Shasten cried out. "Mercy! I beg you!"

His plea went unanswered. With a hoarse cry, Fate brought her fist down into the center of his chest. The blow shattered his ribcage into a thousand pieces and obliterated his heart and lungs, the ground beneath him shattering from transferred force, the earth quaking for a good distance around. After several seconds, all was still and quiet except for the surging aura around Fate. She pulled her fist out of the ground, where it had embedded after going through Shasten's body.

'Yes' the not-voice whispered with glee. 'And now, we shall truly becomeone.'

Fate's eyes widened, and she let out a strangled cry as she brought both hands to her head, stumbling back as she felt the Darkness of her Heart beginning to advance farther, overtaking her, threatening to consume her Heart entirely. Now, she was no longer standing in the gorge, but floating in a grey void that was growing increasingly darker and blacker. Within seconds, the darkness was almost total.

'Fate!'

The sudden voice – a little girl's, sweet, yet frantic – pulled Fate out of the encroaching sleepiness and cold. It sounded so familiar…

'Fate! Sister!'

She opened her eyes, and in front of her, joining her in the black void, a glowing figure appeared, her pure light illuminating and driving back the darkness. The little girl looked exactly like her, and Fate's eyes widened, the sclera returning to their natural white.

"A… Alicia…?"

'Don't give into the Darkness, Fate!' Alicia implored. 'Fight it! Remember the people you love! Remember the happiness you've found! Don't let the Darkness take that all away from you!'

'That's right…' Fate thought, as her irises returned to their normal red. 'Nanoha would be heartbroken if I…'

'Take my hand, Fate!' Alicia said, reaching out. 'Let me help you!'

Slowly, Fate reached out. After a bit of a struggle, their hands connected, and she felt Alicia's warmth flowing into and through her. In a flash of light, the Darkness disappeared nigh-instantly, cast off, out of Fate's Heart, out of her body and her soul, out of her, into the endless void of oblivion. When Fate opened her eyes, Alicia stood before her, a warm, tearful smile on her face.

"We did it…" Alicia said.

Fate looked down, noticing that she now stood upon a massive circular platform, on which was a pattern like a stained-glass mural. The main focus was Fate herself, eyes closed with a calm, small smile on her face, Bardiche in hand; lining the outside of the circle were various small images – Bardiche's pendant form, Arf in her puppy form, the TSAB coat of arms, and other things. Above and outside the platform was endless blackness, but this was not the corruptive Darkness of earlier; rather, it was a calm, pure, comforting darkness, like shade on a hot day, or the cleansing cool night right before bed.

"I'm so glad I made it in time…" Alicia said.

"…Where are we?" Fate asked.

"We've dived into your Heart, sister" Alicia replied. "The Darkness has been purged from it."

Slowly, reluctantly, she let go of Fate's hand. And she began to float up and away.

"I wish we could talk more, Fate," she said as her form became transparent, "but we're out of time. Be careful, sister. I love you…"

Fate reached out, trying to say something, but then a burst of light swallowed everything. A few seconds later, Fate's eyes opened, as she found herself lying on the hard ground of the gorge, in the shade beneath a rocky overhang. Bardiche lay at her side, returned to normal. Several meters away, Shasten's body lay still in a pool of blood. Shakily, Fate got to her feet.

"Sir," Bardiche reported, "I have sent a report that our target has been terminated. …For your sake, I have omitted the details of his death. We should return to the extraction point."

Fate nodded, still in a little bit of shock, and slowly she floated upward. Her flight was unsteady due to how tired she was, but she made it back safe and sound.

-FLASHBACK END-

Teana sat by Fate's side, hand still on the blonde's, as the other girl finished her tale.

"I was almost lost that day" Fate said. "I… I became a monster. The 'Black Devil'… If Alicia hadn't…"

Fate startled as she felt two warm, soft arms envelop her from behind.

"But she did" Nanoha said. "And you weren't lost. …Why didn't you ever tell me about this?"

Fate swallowed. "You were still in the hospital fighting for your life, Nanoha" she replied. "I didn't want to add anything to your worries. And… I was ashamed… and I still am. I gave myself to my Darkness. I didn't just kill him, I made him suffer, made him die in agony and terror! I almost… I…"

"Shh…" the brunette hopped over the back of the couch and embraced her golden-haired girlfriend. "You're still here. Your Darkness is gone. You're one of the purest, kindest, gentlest souls I've ever met. You're my Fate."

Fate let out a sigh as tension slowly left her. The two moved to the chair nearby, Nanoha pulling Fate into her lap… and, as Teana got up to leave, Fate reached out and pulled her down into her own lap, wrapping her arms around Teana's waist. Teana then felt as Nanoha's arms joined Fate's, and one of Fate's hands came up to hold one of Nanoha's. The three just sat like that for several minutes, finding comfort in each other's presence and warmth.

After a little while, the three girls got to their feet, taking a walk together, heading outside. The green grass danced in the cool breeze, as did the leaves on the trees nearby. Teana let out a slow, deep breath… and then gasped, her eyes snapping open, as she suddenly sensed the bizarre magical signature overhead. A faint magical rune-circle was hovering in the air, slowly turning. Closer inspection revealed Forerunner calligraphy… and a pattern that Teana recognized.

"That's… That's what appeared back on the UNSC's Earth when Marie, Kaede, Shion, and Mai appeared!"

The trio shifted into their Barrier Jackets, Devices ready just in case. A pillar of light shot down from the floating rune, touching the ground and kicking up wind. After several seconds, it vanished, depositing a person who stumbled to her hands & knees. She slowly, shakily got to her feet as the rune above vanished.

She looked around 14 years old, with short dark-red hair and blue eyes. She was clad in a black t-shirt and dark-blue pants. She brushed herself off, looking around, and finally setting eyes on the three mages; the trio could see in her eyes grim determination, anger at the world, and – hidden well behind that – sadness and loneliness. They lowered their weapons.

"Where am I?" she asked.

Teana stepped forward. "Midchilda" she replied. "Capital planet of the Time-Space Administration Bureau. …You're the fifth person to appear in front of me in that matter… though the last four were all within several days of each other, several months ago, on a different planet. When those four came to me, it was to get away from their old lives, and from people in them. Each of them had a sad story to tell. …What's yours?"

The younger girl sighed as she gathered herself.

"I'm from Earth… well, from an Earth. It's 2015. There are these big monsters attacking this one city. They're being combated by a trio of advanced mechs, piloted by three unique people. As for me? I'm a soldier. Years back, I got damn near killed by a grenade explosion. A group called NHIS put me back together; I'm a cyborg now… and legally their property. I was sent to the city as the pilot of an experimental war-mech called the Jet-2; the Jet-1, also called Jet-Alone, was a… rather abysmal failure of an unmanned mech. But things have… gone bad. My mech and I haven't been able to do much more than inconvenience the monsters. My employers/owners have called me an embarrassment. They… They were planning on "shutting me down". I came here after accepting some offer from… something, or someone; I don't know which. I just… I've tried so hard – so fucking hard! – to live up to it all. Those three other pilots… I've tried to bond with them to maybe get them on my side, but they can't get past their own psychological hang-ups. …One of them, the only boy of the three, actually was starting to open up to me, but… I had to flee, before NHIS shut down and removed my implants and left me confined to an iron lung or life-support for the rest of my God-forsaken life, or even just stood back and let me die, since I'm legally already dead. I took the offer given to me, the light whisked me away, and now I'm here."

Nanoha, Fate, and Teana looked at each other, digesting all this. Fate took a step forward, speaking in a soft, motherly tone.

"What's your name?" she asked.

The girl looked like she was taken aback by Fate's tone, as if nobody had ever spoken to her with kindness and concern. "…Mana. Mana Kirishima."

-SCENE BREAK-

UNSC Hospital Ship Hopeful

Geosynchronous Orbit Over Cranagan

Next Day

Teana sighed as she strolled down the hallway. The debriefing of Kirishima had been rather interesting; information on the bizarre monstrosities given the equally-bizarre moniker of "Angels" (with the "ninth", a being described by Mana as "the mother of all daddy-longlegs", being the most recent), the three humanoid mechs called "Evangelions" and the three neurotic teens who had to pilot them, and the shadowy, ONI-esque organization called NERV (with what little Mana knew about its head, a man called Ikari, painting a worryingly Parangosky-esque picture in Teana's mind), and all happening on an Earth with only a little over two billion people, thanks to an epic catastrophe 15 years earlier that literally blew Antarctica to bits, among other calamities. It all sounded like one hell of a mess, and it was highly likely that the coalition would eventually have to swing by and help get things sorted out… once they could find the dimensional coordinates of the Earth that Mana had come from, that is.

The girls had been working to help ease Mana into things, get her to open up. It turned out that her morose personality she'd shown upon her arrival was just due to recent stress, weariness, and the fresh decision to abandon her world. Among friendly new faces, her 'true' personality soon became apparent: gung-ho, boisterous, casual, thrill-seeking, somewhat foul-mouthed, and very, very boyish. In fact, being pressed by the girls revealed that Mana was so unfeminine because, due to events in her past, and what she was now, she was violently opposed to the mere idea of her own femininity; she staunchly refused to allow herself any "girlish" actions, habits, or even thoughts. A brain-scan showed she was not transgendered; it was wholly voluntary and psychological. The girls of RF6 and the coalition's psychologists alike knew that this total repression/rejection of a facet of herself was not healthy, though they did not press the issue with her… yet.

The various medical specialists who learned the details of Mana's nature were quite dismayed; even by Bureau/Scaglietti standards her cybernetics were not quite cutting-edge, while by the UNSC and Phoenix League Federation's standards, it was a wonder how she was functioning at all. Thus, she was currently aboard the UNSC's most advanced hospital ship, as UNSC and PLF bio-technicians performed extensive work on her (when offered the "upgrades", she had leapt at the chance). Several components could be flat-out removed, UNSC organ and tissue flash-cloning tech enabling the replacement of the destroyed organs they had taken the place of; she would again have healthy & complete lungs, a pancreas, a complete small intestine (the 50% that had survived the grenade years ago had been stitched together to form a working but shorter-than-normal one), a gallbladder, a spleen, and a uterus & ovaries (though they saved and transferred the data that had been in the hard drive that had taken the place of her old uterus). Flash-cloned neurons repaired her spinal damage, leaving the old mechanical components unneeded, and the dormant control chips that NHIS had clandestinely placed in her heart and brainstem were carefully removed. The internal reinforcements/replacements in her arms were being replaced with much more up-to-date and capable ones, and her immune system was given a healthy boost.

She would be in reconstructive/augmentative surgery for a better part of the day, and then she would emerge better than ever.

Teana entered the lobby, finding her team there along with Subaru, Ginga, Nanoha, Fate, Erio, Caro, Erika, and Timmy. She took a seat between Subaru and Kaede, who both each put an arm around her.

"Think she'll enjoy the end results?" Teana asked.

"Oh yeah" Ahsoka replied. "Definitely. …I wish we could do something about her… issues regarding parts of herself."

"One step at a time" Sarah said. "If we go at it too hard or too fast, she'll clam up and refuse to open up for any of us. We've gotta go nice and slow and easy so she'll be comfortable."

"Bow-chicka-bow-wow" Marie said with a grin. Sarah simply placed one hand palm-down atop Marie's head, and then thumped the top of the hand with her other fist. Marie let out a slight "ow" buried amongst her giggles.

Suddenly, Shion sat bolt-upright, eyes wide as she sensed something coming. Before anyone could ask what was up, a swirl of black 'smoke' appeared in the center of the room. From it emerged a tall alien figure, faded red robes and golden armor highlighting a tall, slender, blue-skinned body, topped by a mouthless face with glowing green eyes. Shion, recognizing the individual by his unique psychic signature, immediately got up and knelt to a knee.

"Prelate Zeratul…" she spoke, head bowed.

"Templar Shion" the long-missing Protoss replied in his low, calm tone. "Ulan told me of you. The first human Dark Templar… and I can see the strength of your spirit from here. It was a wise choice."

"T-Thank you, Prelate."

Zeratul nodded and then turned his attention to the others. "I bring news you would do well to hear. There is another realm, one where you can find a powerful ally to aid your cause." He pointed to Erika. "Her Keyblade can open a portal to that realm."

"W-Who is this 'ally'?" Erika asked.

"…The cloaked girl who has been aiding you as of recently. I do not know if she may have companions who could further aid our cause, nor do I know if there are enemies in that realm; if you go, do so expecting trouble."

"…When should we leave?" Nanoha asked.

"As soon as possible, preferably. Something is coming; something terrible. We will need every skilled hand we can find."

The others looked around at each other, and decided wordlessly but unanimously. "We'll go as soon as our newest friend is out of surgery" Teana said.

Zeratul looked at her. "Surgery? Another new ally has been wounded?"

"No" Fate replied. "Years ago, she was badly wounded on her own world, but her world's cybernetics technology is… inferior to that which we now have access to. She's being… upgraded."

"…I see. I fear I must take my leave now; there are other preparations that I must see to. Farewell."

With a whorl of blackness, Zeratul vanished into/through the Void.

"Things are heating up…" Marie said.

-SCENE BREAK-

Next Day

The travel group gathered outside Riot Force 6's headquarters. The seven girls of Gamma, Nanoha, Fate, Subaru, Ginga, Erio, Caro, Timmy, & Erika at the head, all made ready. They had already informed everyone who wasn't coming of the situation, and they in turn swore to hold down the fort while the team was away; right now, Hayate and the Wolkenritter stood nearby, ready to observe and stand guard over the portal that would soon be formed. Mana K. was still recovering from yesterday's surgeries; she was up and (carefully) walking around, but wouldn't be cleared for active duty for a few more days. She too was here, stubbornly refusing to allow Shamal to help support her.

Focusing, Erika summoned the Stroke of Midnight and gripped it with both hands, closing her eyes as she called up magical power, infusing it with her will. Her eyes snapped open as she pointed the blade's tip forward. A beam of light shot straight out, stopping in the center of the little field they all stood in. It rapidly grew to form a swirling dark-blue portal with purple along the edges.

"This is where we're supposed to go?" Mai asked.

"Y-Yes" Erika replied. "I'm positive."

Teana summoned a Shadow Clone and sent it through. Several seconds later, it came back through, unharmed.

"It's clear, Boss" the Teana duplicate said to the original. "Kinda cold and dark and spooky, but nothing we can't handle with all the firepower we're bringing to bear."

The Shadow Clone then dispelled, its knowledge transferring to Teana's mind. "Okay" the redhead said. "Let's do this."

One by one, everyone funneled through the portal.

-BOOK 9 END-

And that's it for Book 9. Book 10 – "Into the Dark" – will pick up immediately where this one leaves off. It will be in the "Magical Girl Lyrical Nanoha" / "Kingdom Hearts" Crossover section. Why, you ask? Simple: the place everyone's going to is the Realm of Darkness (i.e., where Mickey got his current Keyblade, where Sora & Rika ended up after killing Xemnas, etc). Who will they find there? Stay tuned and find out.

RANDOM BABBLIN'S:

We will first see/hear the direct influence of the story arc's Big Bad at the very end of Book 12, the heroes will first encounter the BB (sorta) in Book 13, and we'll learn exactly who it is in Book 14.

I am strongly considering posting this series on Deviant-Art (while also still continuing to put it here on ), so as to drum up more readership and be able to edit in minor changes more easily than this site lets me. Rest assured, though; new Books and chapters would still come out on first and foremost. Also, the DA posting would include a planned heavy revision of Book 2 (basic plots remain unchanged, but the order of events will be shifted, the battle scenes will be rewritten, and other little changes).

This version of Mana Kirishima is somewhat based on the Mana from Gregg Landsman's Nobody Dies fic. However, there are notable differences: this Mana is 14, not 16; she comes from what is pretty much the canon Eva-verse, not the altered timeline of ND; this Mana's innards-shredding grenade was not thrown by a younger Kaji, but by Some Random Guy Who's Dead Now; and Kaji is not her guardian. The trip to Mana's home Earth is Book 13.

The starship data BONUS-chapter is coming by the end of tonight.

SEE YOU GUYS IN BOOK 10!