Kintoki Temple

Tokyo-3, Japan

31 October 2015

Riana held the bow at arm's length, aimed down the arrow, let out her breath slowly, and let fly. The arrow shot from the bow, flew towards the target…and missed it by at least five feet. It did hit a tree straight on, however. The monk underneath the tree straightened up and gave her an expression of equal parts contempt and fear.

"Uh…gomen nasai!" Riana called out. The monk said nothing, finished watering the flower at the base of the tree, and moved on—well out of range.

"That was terrible," Kazuko Bishamon sighed.

"I told you I was no good at this," Riana said. "My depth perception isn't all that good. It's why my doctor back home said I'll probably need glasses soon." She shrugged. "Besides, at least I fired the damn thing. Better than what I was doing yesterday."

Kazuko gave a grunt in response. Flawlessly, she nocked the arrow, brought it up to her ear, held the fletching with three fingers, and shot. The arrow sank into the center of the target. Riana shook her head. "Other than making me feel even dumber, what was the purpose of that?"

"How did I do that?" Kazuko asked.

"You've already asked me that five times—"

"How did I do that?" Kazuko pinned Riana with a stare. Riana frowned and said dully, "You were able to do that because you can feel the target. Mind and body are one. You can feel the bow, feel the arrow, and feel the wind. It's what you called muga."

"Exactly. Very good. Now why can't you do it?"

Riana sat down dejectedly on the steps of the temple, put her bow across her legs, and jammed her elbows into her knees. "I don't know. I'm not Japanese?"

Kazuko lightly tapped her forehead with the bow. "Race and ethnicity have nothing to do with it."

"Says you." Riana leaned back. It was another beautiful day, warm and with just enough clouds to be comfortable. About three miles below and south of them was Tokyo-3, its skyscrapers sparkling in the dawn sun. She could pick out the junior high school, where her peers would be starting class. Kazuko was taking mornings off for Riana's training, and somehow convinced Ritsuko Akagi to do the same for Riana. It meant another two hours tacked onto her training in the Geofront in the early evening, but the morning sessions would be worth it, Kazuko reassured her. So far, it was not. "If I'm supposed to be this super magic user or whatever," Riana grumped, "then you'd think I'd be feeling something."

Kazuko sat down next to her and took a drink from a water bottle. "And as I told you yesterday, it's not going to just happen instantly. Do I think my ability to shoot came in a day? It took months of practice and training. You want things to happen quickly, Riana—which is understandable. You're young. Everything has to move fast. But I am telling you to move slowly. As we used to say in your grandmother's team, slow is fast."

"I don't have time to move slowly!" Riana exclaimed. She lowered her voice. "Kazuko, the Angels are supposed to be ready to attack again by tomorrow! I mean, I know I can't stop them or anything, but I still have to be ready…"

"For what?"

"I don't know. Something." She grabbed the bow and fought down the urge to break it over her knee. "Just so frustrated! I supposedly have these powers, and I can't use them!"

"You can. You're trying too hard." Kazuko poured some of the water on the ground. "The water doesn't try to turn the dirt into mud, it simply does."

Riana rolled her eyes. "Kazuko, with respect…I don't buy into all that Buddhist sutra philosophy stuff."

Kazuko took another drink and handed the bottle to Riana. "All right, then. Since you don't buy into the 'Buddhist sutra' stuff, what about your own Christian faith? By that measure, God has granted you a gift much greater than that given to other human beings. You are, in your own way, an angel. If He has granted that, then has he not also granted you the ability to learn and control them? Have faith in God and in yourself."

Riana chuckled. "'Fear God and dread nought.'"

Kazuko nodded. "Good saying."

"Mother Superior says it a lot." Riana finished off the water. "And what about yesterday? You had me sweeping the front of this temple and cleaning the floors—by hand!"

"We have to repay the monks for allowing us to use the facilities."

"Sure, and that's fine, but you called it training."

Kazuko nodded again. "And what did it teach you?"

"I already knew how to clean," Riana replied shrewishly.

Kazuko ignored that. "It reinforced your patience. You already have that. It's good to know that the good sisters of the Order of St. Joan did instill some of their teachings in you. I doubt I could keep Aida or Suzuhara on task that long. And the monks said you did a good job."

Riana stood. "Next thing I know, you'll be having me wax your car."

"Don't tempt me." Kazuko also got to her feet. "Shall we try again?"

Three hours and no bullseyes later, Riana was riding the elevator down into the bowels of NERV, alone. Kazuko dropped her off at one of the main entrances. The guard swiped Riana's red ID card, and cleared her through. They were getting used to her now, but Riana noticed that they no longer greeted her in English, but spoke in Japanese. Ritsuko Akagi kept her promise: from the moment Riana entered the facility, the only words she heard were in that language. Even if she cursed in her Eva, Dr. Akagi would snap at her to curse in Japanese. Riana had to admit that it did help, however: she was improving her language skills quite a bit. Since the dream, understanding the foreign language seemed much easier. Maybe Kazuko's right, Riana thought as she leaned against the elevator. Just wish I could unlock my hidden levels a lot faster…just wish I knew some damn cheat codes. At least the instrumentation in the Eva was still in English.

The elevator slowed, but Riana saw it was not her floor. The doors dinged open, and Commander Gendo Ikari stepped in. The doors closed, and it was just the two of them.

Gendo at first paid Riana no attention. Then he glanced over his shoulder at her. "Miss Arashikaze."

Riana abruptly remembered her status and bowed to him. "Commander Ikari. I apologize for my poor manners."

"I was not offended." Another pause. "Doctor Akagi has been keeping me informed about your training. You have noticeably improved, particularly in your understanding of our language."

"Thank you, sir."

"Your shooting still leaves much to be desired. I understand you have been training with the principal of your school? I am surprised she is showing such interest in a single student."

Riana felt the danger. She could not reveal Kazuko's secret; she could not even hint at it. "She…knows I am an Eva pilot, Commander. And that I'm…" Riana tried to remember the Japanese word, failed, and said it in English. "Unique." Gendo raised an eyebrow. "In that I'm an American. That I'm unfamiliar with Japanese training and culture. She wanted to help." Riana put a smile on it, and was absolutely sure Gendo could see through her lie. "After all, if we fail as pilots, she'll die too, neh?"

"Very true. What kind of training is Miss Bishamon giving you?" Riana told him, and Gendo slowly nodded. "Interesting. A very traditional approach indeed. Still, there is something to the old ways." The elevator came to a stop and dinged. Gendo stepped out of the elevator and turned to face her. "Good luck, Miss Arashikaze."

Riana was taken aback by the admonition, and almost forgot to bow. From what she knew about Gendo Ikari, wishing someone luck was not something he did. "T-Thank you, sir," she said, but the elevator doors were already closed.

As the elevator went to the Eva bay floor, she picked apart the conversation in her mind. The Commander had been gracious, even friendly—as friendly as he could get, anyway. She tried to find the hidden meaning in her words and could not. Maybe…he likes me? Of the pilots, Riana knew that Rei was Gendo's favorite. It made sense: Rei Ayanami obeyed orders instantly and made very few mistakes. Asuka was next, though Riana believed—or wanted to believe—that Asuka's attitude neither impressed nor pleased the Commander. As for Shinji, it was an open secret in NERV that father and son did not get along. Riana could not begin to guess why; she liked Shinji and she respected Gendo Ikari. Maybe Gramma was wrong about him?

The elevator opened and Riana headed for the locker room. It was empty, and she changed quickly into her plugsuit. Like the Japanese language, it was getting easier every day. She still felt a little on the naked side, but at least it did not feel like she was being squeezed. The LCL was still frustrating, however. Riana had learned to drink it down and even got used to the weird taste, but vomiting it back up after every session was no fun and never would be. The day before, she had gagged so hard LCL came out her nose, which rather felt like someone sandblasting her sinuses. She wanted to ask Rei or Shinji how they got used to it, but she had seen neither of them for five days.

As she headed for the bays, she nearly collided with Ryoji Kaji. "Hey there, Riana!"

"Good afternoon, Mr. Kaji."

Kaji laughed. "So formal! I see Ritsuko's got you trained." Riana said nothing to that, so Kaji continued, "Speaking of our illustrious doctor, she's currently in a synch test with Rei in EVA-00. She told me to tell you to have some lunch and she'll see you in an hour."

Riana hesitated. Was this another test? Was she supposed to report to the Eva bays in any case, and ignore Kaji? He was not her superior officer, after all—Riana had no idea what exactly Kaji did around NERV besides pick up new Eva pilots. Then again, her arms ached with the exertion of holding taut bowstrings for four hours, and an hour break would be welcome. Riana decided to compromise: she would listen to Kaji, but she would not eat lunch. Besides, if throwing up LCL was bad, adding the remains of her lunch was much worse. "You wouldn't lie to me, would you, Mr. Kaji?"

Kaji grinned. "Who, me? Never. I don't lie to pretty girls."

Riana blushed at the compliment. He's smooth. Handsome, too. Way too old for me, though. Riana mentally crushed those thoughts. Dammit. Not supposed to be thinking about guys! She knew part of it was just the natural part of puberty—girls were supposed to notice cute guys, after all—but the thoughts had gotten worse since she came to Tokyo-3. Toji looked good sometimes. Kensuke looked good sometimes. Feeling like a hormone-addled idiot, she waved as Kaji headed off down the corridor.

Now that she had an hour to kill, Riana wasn't exactly sure what to do. Lunch was out, though her stomach protested the idea. She wasn't going to sit in the locker room, and she really did not want to go to the Eva bay and stand around until Ritsuko showed up. A sign caught her eye, and Riana decided to follow it.

Just inside the Geofront was a little garden. Riana had been there once before. It looked out of place among the technological sterility of NERV, and its Roman-style décor would have looked out of place in the city above. Still, the tinkling of the fountain and the soft coolness of the water would be comforting. Kazuko had advised Riana to "center" herself—more of her Buddhist weirdness, Riana mused, but centering oneself was also part of her martial arts training. Back at the convent, and in sparring sessions with her grandmother, Riana learned never to lose her temper, because then she became easily exploited. She still did, but the idea, at least, was to try. The mountains around the convent always helped her calm down, so maybe the fountain would do the same. Riana opened the door and stepped out.

She realized she was not alone. Shinji and Asuka were in the garden, under the gazebo.

Riana quickly ducked behind one of the huge potted plants that surrounded the garden. It was hard to hear Shinji—he was always so soft spoken—but the entire Geofront could probably hear Asuka. "Shut up!" she shouted, three times. "You have no right to say that to me! Who do you think you are?" I see Asuka is still in Permanent Bitch mode, Riana thought. Poor Shinji. To be stuck with her for the past four days…he's going to apologize, I bet. Right on cue, Shinji did exactly that. Riana didn't expect him to keep talking: "It's just that…I used to be like that too. So I understand."

"You? Understand me?" Asuka shrilled. "What a laugh!"

There was silence. "Sorry," Shinji repeated. "I'll go back now." He turned his back on her, walked past Riana, and went back into the facility. Riana noticed he was wearing some sort of spandex suit with a halter top marked with musical notes. Good to know I'm not the only one being humiliated around here.

Asuka stared after the boy for a long time, then sat down hard on the bench under the gazebo. Riana considered also making a retreat, but her curiosity won her over. She got out from behind the potted plant and walked towards Asuka. "I could have sworn they had you training at Misato's apartment now." It was the first thing that came to mind, and Riana had the pleasure of watching Asuka nearly leap through the gazebo roof.

"Who the hell—oh. It's you." Asuka contemptuously turned her back on Riana. "Surprised you're still here. At NERV, I mean."

Riana walked past her and sat at the edge of the fountain, dipping her feet in. Even through the plugsuit, the water felt good. "Not getting rid of me that easy."

"Guess not. You're like a bad credit card—everywhere I don't want to be."

"Door's over there," Riana pointed. "I have an hour to relax, and you're not going to ruin it."

It was quiet again. To Riana's surprise, Asuka got up and sat at the edge of the fountain, took off the ballet slippers she was wearing, and dipped her feet in as well. She wore the same sort of outfit Shinji did, cut in a much more revealing bikini-style that showed far too much skin for Riana's taste. Asuka did not seem to notice.

They sat like that for ten minutes, and Riana closed her eyes. She tried to center herself, tried to hear just the sounds of the Geofront—it was remarkably quiet for such a facility—and tried to breathe slowly, remembering the lessons her grandmother, the sisters, and now Kazuko taught. It was impossible. The knowledge that Asuka Langley-Soryu sat three feet away made it so. Instead of calming herself, Riana replayed the fight over and over in her head. Riana thought of scenarios, how she could have reversed Asuka's holds, how she could have hit the other girl harder, how she could have avoided being hit herself.

"What are you doing?" Asuka's voice suddenly broke into an ugly vision of Riana snapping her neck.

"Trying to meditate." Go away, Riana added to herself.

"Well, you're doing it wrong. You're getting all red in the face." Riana opened her eyes. Asuka was smirking at her. "Have to say one thing," Asuka said. "You haven't quit yet. I figured you would."

"Fuck off," Riana snapped.

Asuka was silent for a moment. "At least you don't lurch around like a battleship with a bent screw like Shinji does. I'll give you that." She shook her head. "I really don't know what you're trying to prove here, Riana. Your toy Eva doesn't have—"

"—an AT Field. Yes, I know. Dr. Akagi reminds me of that every day. I really don't feel like restarting our fight, Asuka. Neither one of us can afford it right now."

Asuka stared at her. "I've honestly never met someone with a death wish before—"

"What were you and Shinji arguing about?" Riana asked, to change the subject. Any more of that line of questioning and one of them was going to bleed.

The other girl's face darkened and she turned away. "None of your business."

Riana motioned at the dance outfit. "What are they having you do? I know about Mr. Kaji's idea, but I didn't realize they were going to make you actually dance to it." Riana leaned back. "I guess it could be worse. At least you don't have Dr. Akagi making you do situps until you puke."

"At least you get to wear your plugsuit." Asuka plucked at the halter top. "Shinji is so slow," she abruptly said. "He's always a half beat behind. He can't jump. He's a klutz."

"Maybe you're a half beat too fast. Ever think of that? That the problem might be you?"

"Fuck off." Asuka grinned savagely. "Too bad you don't have your real Eva yet. They could pair you with him. You're both klutzes."

The battle flags were raised. "Surprised they didn't just pair up Rei with him. She'd be a hell of a lot better than Jet Alone Asuka." Riana shot back. If Asuka could press her buttons, she would by all that was holy press hers. Asuka's grin faded, and Riana kept up the attack. "That sounds like a good idea, actually. Let Ayanami and Shinji do it. You can watch them fight the Angel, back in the rear with me." She remembered her dream. "Just quit, Asuka. That's what you want me to do, neh? Shinji's too hard to dance with? Just quit!"

They stared daggers at each other for a moment. Fists balled in silence. Both of them tensed up. Then suddenly, without warning, Asuka began to laugh. Riana blinked. Asuka began to laugh so hard she kicked her feet out of the water, splashing them both. "Oh God!" Asuka giggled. "I don't believe you! Misato put you up to this, didn't she?"

"What…what are you talking about?"

"You!" Asuka caught her breath, wiped her eyes. "I get it. 'Get her mad, Riana,' Misato said. 'Piss her off. You two hate each other, right? Get her so mad that she'll come back her and show us all. She and Shinji will synch up just fine. Do it, Riana! Push her buttons!'" Asuka laughed again. "That's so rich!"

Riana was now the one who was a half beat behind. "What…you think…"

Asuka cut her off by getting out of the water. She put the slippers back on. "Well, you know what, Riana? It kind of worked. I am pissed off. I'm going to go back and get Shinji on the same page with me if it kills him. I'm going to show you, the First, and that old bitch Misato. Just to see what happens. When we're done with that fucking Angel tomorrow, you're going to know what a real Eva pilot can do." To Riana's surprise, Asuka playfully punched her shoulder. "You know, I really do hate you, Sister Riana. Well done." Asuka practically skipped out of the garden.

Riana sat in shock for a long few minutes after Asuka was gone. "What the hell just happened?" she said aloud.

She did not have much time to think about it, as the PA system began calling for her to report to the Eva bay.