Rei sat in shadows as she watched the forms of GekiWing and Grizzaka clash against each other. It would have been an inspirational battle were it not so terrifying and that GekiWing was losing. The GekiSabers were bent beyond repair, the GekiHammer shattered and useless, and the GekiFans torn to shreds. The weapons lay around the battlefield like trash, forcing GekiWing to battle hand to hand…a losing battle.
"You need better than that to beat me," Grizzaka snarled. Rei witnessed as a cloud-like violet aura surrounded Grizzaka, accompanied by bolts of lightings that seemed to slither around his form. He locked his eyes at the black-clad GekiRanger and charged, his claws out as he threw his attack at GekiWing.
Rei gasped as the blade-like claws ran GekiWing right through. The cruel RinJyuKen user then withdrew his claws and sent GekiWing flying with a powerful kick. In mid-air, GekiWing instantly exploded. What dropped out of the cloud of smoke and flames was none other than his cracked helmet…
Rei gasped as she sat abruptly awake. She panted and her body was slick with cold sweat. Her eyes were wide and wet with tears and her blue pyjamas were stuck to her wet skin. Her heart thundered in her chest as she felt incredible terror run through her from that terrifying night vision.
"Shinji!" Rei got out of her futon and ran out the room she shared with Asuka. She entered Shinji's room and was relieved to see him asleep in his futon. Panting in relief, she quickly made her way to Shinji's side and slipped underneath the futon covers with him. She had been told that such actions were improper between a male and a female, but Rei and Shinji were in an intimate relationship and this Rei felt she could at least share Shinji's bed, especially now in her time of emotional insecurity.
It had been a week since the summer festival and it'd been unforgettable in the worst possible way. Shinji, Kannami and Yamato had faced an enemy together and lost. No matter what they did, this Grizzaka had been able to overpower them from the very start. He had the advantage but never bothered to finish them off, as if they weren't worth his time. All three of the artists were battered and bruised with Yamato being the only one of the three who was conscious.
After Grizzaka left, Rei had called for assistance for all three of the fighters. Yamato, however, had disappeared by the time help came and took the two injured pilots/JyuKen artists to NERV's hospital wing. Rei had ridden into the ambulance that carried Shinji while Asuka rode in the other one with Kannami. Both girls fretted over the pair and worried themselves until Dr. Akagi reassured them that both Shini and Kannami would be okay.
The two had various injuries, all external. Thankfully, their armoured forms were able to protect them from severe injury or worse. The two were still being treated with bandages all over their upper bodies. They didn't regain consciousness until 4 days later where Kannami explained to them what Dorinki was…
-FLASHBACK-
Both Shinji and Kannami were covered in bandages, indicating just how badly injured they were. The medical team from NERV were astounded that for all the destruction caused according to witnesses, the boys had gotten off so lightly. Even more surprising to them was how Yamato managed to get away under his own power.
"Kannami, just what did that guy do?" asked Asuka, using the RinJyuKen user's actual name, indicating how serious she was being. "It looked kind of like Rinki but..." she trailed off, remembering how dark and just so...hateful, that aura seemed to be.
"Dorinki," Kannami and Shinji answered at the same time.
"What?" asked Rei.
Kannami explained, "Dorinki is power based on pure burning rage. You surrender everything. Happiness, love, until there is nothing left but rage and hate. You give up everything for power. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't tempted to undergo the training myself."
-END FLASHBACK-
Rei shivered at the thought of how Dorinki was achieved. How could someone reject all positive emotions and simply focus on their rage and hate like that until that was all they had? True, Grizzaka had been powerful but the price he paid was simply too high, at least in her honest opinion. Positive emotions like happiness and joy shouldn't be thrown away. Then there was love and she gazed down on Shinji's sleeping face.
She hadn't eaten nor slept and stayed at his bedside until he awoke. She just wanted to hear his voice again and make her smile once more. As Shinji was recovering, having not yet regained consciousness, the commander had ordered Rei to give a report. In the past, Rei had been quite fond of the commander for his role in raising her, but after meeting Shinji that faded into a kind of disillusionment, seeing first hand the kinds of effects his manipulations had on others. During that report though, it turned to solid disgust since the man didn't seem to care one bit about what had happened to his own son. In fact, he seemed more interested in who had done it.
-FLASHBACK-
Rei didn't want to do it, but she didn't have much of a choice but to report what had occurred during the festival. Dutifully, even if not happily reporting the efforts of the JyuKen fighters to battle Grizzika and ended up failing. Gendo was especially interested in her description of the Dorinki and how it seemed to boost Grizzika's power. The elder Ikari didn't even bat an eye as Rei listed the injuries the three fighters received and instead listened more intently to how the fighters failed.
"I see, so this Grizzaka creature was able to defeat the 3rd and 4th Children along with that snake martial artist," said Gendo after listening.
Rei didn't even have to guess that Gendo was beginning to plan something. She knew him too well. Grizzika had managed to achieve his interest and now he was going to do something about it. Rei was simply glad when the commander dismissed her, fearing she might have snapped if she had to watch the calculating eyes any longer.
-END FLASHBACK-
She'd given the commander a cold glare before she dismissed herself from his office. She just wanted to be with Shinji and wait for him so she could feel the warmth of his love again. A few tears fell from her eyes and they dripped upon Shinji's fskin. He twitched a little and he slowly opened his eyes to see Rei, crying. "Rei?" He slowly sat up. "What's wrong?" He still had bandages around his forearms and around his neck. He had worn a neck brace until recently and had to wear an eye patch to cover his bruised eye. Now, he just had the bandages to cover his bruises body. He put his hands gently on her shoulders and grunted when she suddenly buried her face into his chest, arms wrapped tightly around him. "Rei?"
"Shinji, don't ever leave me!" she demanded. "Promise me!"
"Rei…I promise," he told her. He could tell just how badly shaken she still was over the Grizzika incident. Asuka had reported that Rei had trouble sleeping some nights, no doubt because of nightmares she had been dealing with concerning the incident. From a girl who had never had a dream in her life before, the nightmares must have been especially terrifying.
"Promise me one other thing," she requested, catching Shinji's attention.
"Anything."
"If you ever see that Grizzaka again, just run away. Don't fight him, just run away. I don't want to see you getting hurt like that again!"
-FLASHBACK-
Shinji and Kannami had been taken to NERV's hospital wing to be treated for their injuries. Yamato had mysteriously vanished after the battle. When Asuka and Rei were allowed to go see them, Rei saw that Shinji had endured injuries similar to her own when they first met, with bandages wrapped around their bodies.
"Miraculously, despite the bruising showing they took hard hits, they didn't break any bones," said Dr. Akagi. "Although in some cases it may have been better if they did. I swear if they were hit any harder we would have to deal with internal bleeding and ruptured organs."
It was all Rei could do not to burst out crying. Only Asuka clenching her hand, unconsciously seeking strength from her kept her from doing so.
-END FLASHBACK-
Kannami was in his apartment, hitting a punching bag. Ever since he'd woken up, he'd done nothing but train. Asuka had barely heard from him and she was getting worried. He'd allowed her into his apartment, but aside from letting her in, he hadn't stopped. She sat bac on one of his benches and watched him train himself. While she had to admit that his training clothes gave off a nice view of his muscles, the look on his face didn't suit him at all. It was intense and filled with anger, something she found that she didn't want to see on his face…ever.
The redheaded German decided that she had seen enough of her man working out and went to distract him.
"Hey, Kannami, let's go out!"
"Can't, gotta train, gotta get stronger," replied Kannami, almost like a machine. "Can't let that bastard beat me again..."
"But you can't do nothing but train," she protested.
"It's all I can do," said Kannami, increasing the power of his punches. "That guy beat me, beat us, and I can't let that happen again. I won't let it happen again. Being strong is all I've got. If I'm not the strongest guy around, I'm nothing."
Asuka listened and was shown once again just how much she and Kannami had in common. To her, Eva and being a pilot was everything. If she couldn't be a pilot, she was nothing. Kannami valued his power and strength. Neither of them found much worth in themselves outside of what they held highest of all. Still, Asuka liked to think she had found something else to care about outside of Eva…
"Then you can't train alone," said Asuka. "NERV has a training facility with state of the art equipment and you can ask Shinji to help." She grinned. "Heck, I'll even use Unit 02 to stomp on that guy if you want."
"No!" roared Kannami. He punched the bag, knocking it off the chain and sending it flying. The sight made Asuka gulp, not expecting such an explosive show of strength. "It has to be me! I need to be the one to beat him! It won't mean a thing if I don't beat him with my own fists! I swear, next time I fight him, I'm either going to kill him, or I'm not walking away…"
"You can't just get yourself killed for this!"
"Doesn't matter," replied Kannami. "It's not like I can do much else."
"Actually…" began Asuka, blushing. "We could…sleep together."
Kannami gave her a surprised stare. It certainly made the anger vanish from his face as a blush and look of surprise replaced it. Asuka knew she was probably having her face match her hair, but she had already said it. So now she would just have to follow through.
"Nothing serious!" she insisted. "Not sex! Just…sleeping together, that's all." Rei had told her that sleeping with Shinji calmed her. Maybe that was true for Kannami as well.
"I'll think about it," he replied, although he really couldn't see himself turning down his fraulein.
That night, Asuka called Misato and told her that she was staying at Kannami's. After giving the standardized adult lecture of being responsible and the whole nine yards, Misato teased Asuka mercilessly of attempting to seduce the 4th child so that she could officially claim her man. The spiel of German which Shinji could hear through the phone clear across the room indicated that Misato got to the fiery pilot. It gave the purple-haired major a good laugh for the night as she filled up on booze.
In the night, Rei instantly paid Shinji a visit and snuggled under the covers with him. She held him tightly and seemed to be breathing easily, his presence making any and all nightmares go away. Shinji didn't mind the company. He loved Rei and being with her for any length of time was a treasure to him.
As much as he wanted to enjoy her presence though, he just couldn't. Not with Grizzika still on his mind. The man was a menace, using the old RinJyuKen Akugata to attack them and use the screams of misery from the people to make himself stronger. How he managed to revive the rinshi, Shinji had no idea, but that wasn't the main point. Grizzika was on a level higher than either Kannami, Shinji, or even Yamato were on. He was capable of taking all three of them down with what seemed to be minimal effort. He couldn't let that continue.
In his own apartment, Kannami lay back with Asuka cuddling close. She seemed to be having a restful sleep for a change and not one filled with nightmares about her mother. As he lay awake, he idly played with Asuka's hair, one of his favourite parts of her body. He'd either play with a strand of it or run his fingers gently through it, drawing lines on her back at the same time which seemed to make her hum in her sleep. As peaceful as he looked though, he was still mad. Grizzika had demolished him and made him look weak. Kannami refused to let the Bear-ken user get away with that insult. He didn't train himself up the level he was at for nothing dammit!
With that common thought in mind, both JyuKen artists made a decision.
One morning, when Rei went to wake Shinji up, she saw that his futon was empty and all that he left was a note. "Shinji?" She picked up the note and read it. Her eyes widened.
"VERDAMMIT!"
Asuka's enraged scream which echoed across the building indicated that she had received similar notice.
In a forest outside of Tokyo-3, Shinji, Yamato and Kannami were setting up camp. The area had been used by Yamato as a spot for him to live since he didn't have much taste for Tokyo-3 itself but close enough for him to see any serious action since Angels were pretty hard to miss. It had enough space to train and feel like they were in wide open spaces. It likewise had enough tree cover to hide from the odd overhead flyby which would come in or out of Tokyo-3. Kannami and Shinji had tracked down the GenJyuKen user to his campsite, both sporting heavy packs filled with camping gear and supplies. Both GekiJyuKen and RinJyuKen martial artists had a common request to make of the golden serpent.
"Why should I train together with you two?" asked Yamato. "Last I heard you both made it rather clear what your opinion was of me. I would think that being separate from you two would have been a smarter choice considering our history."
"Look, I don't like you and I know the feeling's mutual," Kannami said to Yamato, "But Ikari-kun and I talked about this and we think that we should all work together. Grizzika is a huge threat right now and we need to prepare to take him down."
"A most reasonable offer," said Yamato, nodding.
"The original GekiRangers are a team," said Shinji. "So we have to be a team as well, a Triangle, a Trinity."
"The Kenma were a Trinity as well," said Kannami. "As much as they wanted to get away from the founding principles of JyuKen which developed into GekiJyuKen, they couldn't do it completely. The link is still there. The Kenma knew this and stuck with being a trio."
"And the original GekiRangers began as a trio as well," added Shinji.
"Your point is made," Yamato nodded. "I'm not so blinded by my pride to refuse admitting that Grizzika is beyond my current level either. I accept the offer and you both can use my living space to help train. I propose we begin immediately though. There's no telling when Grizzika or an Angel are going to make an appearance."
"The Angels are easy to handle, they've got Red and Blue," Kannami shrugged, slipping his pack off of his back.
"Speaking of them, you told Asuka what you were planning to do, right?" asked Shinji.
"I left a note," Kannami answered. "Told her what I was going to do and then packed and left. You?"
"I did the same with Rei," Shinji nodded. "I didn't say where we were going to be though. I don't want Section 2 to interrupt our training so to drag us back to Tokyo-3."
"I'd honestly like to see them try that," Yamato chuckled.
"Damn it, Shinji," Misato cursed. Shinji had just gone AWOL and according to the note he was not alone. Kannami was with him. "What are you thinking?"
Asuka had tried to call Kannami and got no answer. She was angry at Kannami or leaving without telling her. Rei was also upset but not angry at Shinji. She understood.
"They want to become stronger so they can defeat Grizzaka," reasoned Rei.
"Well, they can just train in NERV's gym!" shouted Asuka, scowling. "We got the equipment!"
"Shinji once told me that JyuKen artists need to be close to nature so their animal spirits can feel at home," Rei informed the 2nd Child. "That's why they can't train in the gym. Not enough nature."
Asuka still didn't like it.
It was a three-way spar between the three JyuKen Artists as their respective battle aura flared around them. Shinji's aura was violet while Kannami was a darkish red and Yamato's was gold. They clashed with explosive force, using the moves they'd been trained to execute. The sounds of limbs connecting sounded like thunderclaps as they collided with such force, causing birds to fly into the air in surprise upon hearing them.
They were not only sparing, but studying each other. After this session, weaknesses in their techniques would be discussed. Kannami still didn't like his weaknesses, which he denied vehemently having, being pointed out by Shinji and even more by Yamato but they needed to do this and work together to beat Grizzaka.
Speaking of Grizzaka, he stood atop a tall building as he overlooked the city of Tokyo-3. He'd heard tales of Angels. Supposedly they were messengers of God who came to annihilate the corruption of humanity. He heard it from enough fanatic cults already. He didn't believe it. He did believe that Angels were pure power given shape and form, not unlike Rinki and Dorinki. He wondered if an Angel could be tamed and controlled?
Standing behind Grizzaka was a Rinrinshi, an evolved Rinshi. It wore no mask and had a talisman signifying its beast-fist style on its forehead. However, revived Rinrisnhi were just mindless slaves to his will as he controlled them like puppets. When released into their Beast-Man forms, they would become mindless berserkers, filled with rage, hatred and the urge to destroy.
"Nagiu of the RinJyu Eel-Ken," said Grizzaka. "Transform, grow and attack!"
Nagiu spoke, "Jujin Jashin Hen. Jashin Goten Hen."
When the alarms blared, it wasn't because of an Angel but the threat was still massive. They saw it on the screen. It was a humanoid creature that was mostly blue with an eel's head stretched across his chest.
"Are you sure it's not an Angel?" Misato asked.
"It doesn't have the same energy pattern," Ritsuko confirmed, "But it's still a huge threat like them. At this rate, it'll destroy Tokyo-3."
"And none of us want that. Guess we have no choice. Launch the Evangelions!"
Asuka and Rei were in Units 02 and 00 respectively, gripping the controls with nothing but determination. As the two biomechanical giants were launched, they focused on the task at hand. They had been informed that the threat they were facing was no Angel. However, that didn't make it any less dangerous as it was tearing up the city, not to mention it was sliming up the place.
As the two Evas faced their opponent, Asuka scowled in disgust. She then shouted, "LET'S MAKE SUSHI!"
Unit 02 ran ahead and with a straight punch at Nagiu's head, she attempted to knock him onto his ass. However, her fist just slid off as it made contact. "THE HELL!" she screamed. Nagiu then sent her Eva falling backwards as it slipped on some slime on the ground.
"It would appear that this creature has been coated with a lubricant," Rei informed Asuka.
"Tell me something I don't know Wondergirl!" snapped Asuka.
Meanwhile, at the training camp, Yamato, Shinji and Kannami looked up as they sensed a high amount of Ki. Kannami recognised it instantly. He murmured," RinJyuKen…Rinki…"
"And it's a huge one too," said Yamato. "Like it came from a giant."
"Looks like we have to stop training," said Shinji. "Rukawa-dono, let's go."
"Alright, Ikari-kun."
"Rai Rai Jyu!"
"Shorai Jyu!"
The two Evas were down and covered in slime. Asuka couldn't believe she was being humiliated by an overgrown sushi platter. It couldn't get any worse.
Actually, it just got worse as she looked at her energy gauges.
Nagiu continued his rampage but shouted as blades of compressed air slashed against him. This was followed by a golden beam of energy that knocked him off his feet.
A roar and screech was heard and Asuka looked up to see a gigantic mechanical lion come charging towards her. Flying above the lion was mechanical bat of near equal size.
"JYUKEN BUSOU!" QB-Rukawa and GekiWing announced.
RinLion combined with Eva-02 as GekiBat combined with Eva-00. The pilots of both Beasts then teleported into the plugs of the Evas. However, since the plugs weren't the ones made for two, QB-Rukawa and GekiWing ended up falling right on top of the girls. QB-Rukawa's face was in her chest.
"Get off me, you jerk!" she shouted at him, blushing red.
"Sorry, Red!" Kannami knew he had a lot of apologizing to do. Asuka was mad and when she got mad she got pretty creative when it came to punishments. He didn't look forward to what she had in store for him.
In Unit 00, Rei was staring at GekiWing impassively. He gulped, frightened. Was she mad about him leaving? He did leave without warning, and with a note no less. She definitely felt hurt he didn't have the nerve to tell her face-to-face.
"You and I will speak after we've dealt with the threat," said Rei. The threat had been spoken in her usual monotone but carried an edge to it.
GekiWing gulped again. Rei was mad. He'd rather face an army of Rinshi than an angry Rei. At least he knew he'd survive the former rather than the latter.
"Where were you two!" Misato shouted, her face appearing on the screens of both plugs.
"Can we talk about this later, Misato?" GekiWing requested as he readjusted his seating, now with Rei in his lap. "We've got an eel to peel."
"That's right," said QB-Rukawa "We'll talk right after this!"
"Do it quick. The Evas are losing power!" said Ritsuko.
"Relax, we know how to deal with this guy," said QB-Rukawa. "Ikari, let's go!"
"Hai, Rukawa!"
The two Evas then reached behind their backs and pulled out what appeared to be towels, as in the fluffy kind one used to dry oneself after a shower.
"Towels? You're going to beat him with towels?" Asuka asked incredulously.
"Everything is training, Asuka!" said GekiWing. "Sides, this guy needs to be dried up!"
The two Beast-equipped Evas then charged. Unit 00 was actually gliding with its new wings. The two giant mechas dodged globs of slime. Unit 02 was actually sliding along the slime on the ground and when he got close it smacked Nagiu in the face with a towel.
"Take this!"
SMACK!
SMACK!
SMACK!
Nagiu was being slapped around by a giant towel.
Back at the bridge in NERV, everyone gawked.
"Reminds me of the towel fights in the showers," said one of the bridge bunnies.
The two Evas then wrapped their towels around Nagiu and started to rub him down. While it didn't look like they were actually fighting, the two rival JyuKen artists had a plan.
They then tossed the towels away, showing that Nagiu was dry and powerless.
"Now we can finish him off!" Rukawa and GekiWing shouted.
POW!
An uppercut from Unit 02 sent Nagiu skyward. "Ikari, you're up!"
The bat wings on Unit 00 spread out and the Eva launched itself into the air. "Time to make sushi!" said GekiWing. "Gekiwaza: Dai Bun Bun Sen!" Unit 00 started spinning around and around, straight towards Nagiu. The wings then sliced the gigantic Beast Man to pieces, which turned to dust seconds later.
They had won. Unfortunately, the two Beast Fist martial artists were about to meet a most terrifying opponent yet…female wrath.
Shinji and Kannaki dismissed their constructs before leaping onto the catwalk around the Evas, their suits vanishing as they did so. Only a few moments later, the entry plugs were removed, allowing Asuka and Rei to exit. The crew and technicians knew what was going to happen next and wanted to stay a fair distance away.
"BAKA!"
WHAM!
"Shinji..."
"Rei."
SMACK!
"Punishment delivered."
The crew members winched as the blows were made. They also made sure not to be near when the stream of angry German and Japanese words came spewing out of the redhead's mouth.
"I think we deserved that," said Kannami.
"So, is it over?" Shinji asked hopefully, rubbing his cheek.
"Ikari-kun, prepare yourself for something humiliating," Kannami cautioned his old friend and rival.
"This is humiliating…" murmured Kannami.
"Rukawa-dono…" replied Shinji.
"What? It is!"
"Shut up and keep rubbing!" ordered Asuka.
"Yes…" murmured Kannami.
"Yes, what?" Asuka glared.
"Yes, Mistress."
Both Asuka and Rei were lying face down on massage tables while Kannami and Shinji were massaging their respective girlfriends. Both JyuKen artists were topless, showing their muscular (Kannami) and athletic (Shinji) physique. It was good eye candy for the two girls.
Shinji considered this punishment fair for making the girls upset. They had gone off on a training trip without giving proper goodbyes. No wonder Asuka and Rei got pissed. They thought the two boys had abandoned them. At least they came back to help fight Nagiu.
"Hey!" shouted Asuka. Kannami's hand had traveled a bit further south than she had intended and he was now grabbing her rear.
"What?" smiled Kannami. "You said you wanted a full-body massage."
Gendo really wasn't pleased. On one hand the pilots' performance against this monster showed the rest of the world what NERV was capable of. On the other hand, these monsters were sure to jeopardize the scenario. The 3rd Child and 4th Child seemed to possess knowledge of this creature. They were familiar with the method to defeat it, as unorthodox it may seem. Towels. They had used gigantic towels.
He would need to have words with the two JyuKen artists as soon as possible. His scenario was already shot out of the water so he might as well adapt to it.
Kamen Rider Chrome: OK, sorry for taking so long to update. Anyway, I hope you like what I've done so far.