Sorry it took so long to get back to this. I need to streamline my schedule. But I'm back now, and ready to continue as we get to the final part of NERV's plan to deal with the citadel. Disclaimer: I don't own Jojo's Bizarre Adventure, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Evangelion, or Anarchy Reigns.

Cruel Angel's Thesis Chapter 22: Angel of Hail, Bardiel

As the four EVAs reached the sky citadel, Kaworu looked out at the nearby thunderstorm building up. "I can sense Bardiel's presence within the cloud. Luckily the new system is designed to reject him should he try to infect our EVAs, but in all likelihood he will focus on locating Father and releasing him." "What will his strategy be like?," Asuka asked. "He tends to spread himself as a fungal growth," Kaworu explained, "Infecting machines instead of organics, though if something organic is connected to a machine via cybernetics he can have some limited control over the being. His core will manifest in the central processor of whatever machine he's infecting."

"That cloud is right over the citadel," Shinji noted, "Meaning he'll likely reactivate some of the defenses. We should be on our guard." "Can you sense Adam within here somewhere?," Rei asked. Kaworu closed his eyes. "He's in the center of the facility. It seems they have him contained within some sort of lab. I think they've been using him to mass produce their own S2 engines." "By now they likely have a lot," Rei said, shaking her head, "Let's make sure they've made their last." They four EVAs walked into the facility, as the rainstorm caused a stringy mold to cover the top of the citadel.


"This whole time they were intending to breach the citadel!?," SEELE-02 said in shock. "With control of the citadel they will have control over most of the island," Lorenz said solemnly, "We do have the other two Rin sisters stationed at the base, but I think our best chance of repelling NERV's agents will be to leave things up to the Thirteenth Angel. We have set things up so we can eject Adam and retrieve him should it get too close. And Bardiel's power will no doubt restore some of the defenses of the citadel, which it will use to attack anything that tries to stop its mission." "Including the pilots," SEELE-04 noted, "It's a risk, Lorenz, but one we need to take."


Meanwhile, Bardiel finally found what he was looking for, the central computer core of the sky citadel. "Perfect. Now I can link myself to the entire defense system. When I noticed Iruel had landed far from the Geofront and stayed there a while, it made me realize that maybe Father was moved to a new prison. Sure enough, I'm seeing him on these monitors." He then noticed something. "Hello… It's those EVA machines modeled after father. And some of the wardens of father's prison. They'll no doubt be fighting each other, but I'll be getting attention one way or another once I start cracking this place open."


The four pilots soon encountered the two girls, one with a trident and the other with nunchaku. The trident wielding one blue pointed to Unit-03. "You there, the ugly half-breed who took out our sister!" Asuka's eye twitched, and Rei also didn't like how the term "half-breed" was used in a derogatory way. They both ignored the monologue the woman was spouting as they turned to their respective boyfriends. "Shinji, we need to deal with some girl issues," Asuka said. "Indeed," Rei said, "They need to be taught some serious manners." The boys looked at each other and shrugged. "Do what you gotta do," Shinji permitted.

Several auto-turrets appeared from nowhere, surprising the two sisters. "It seems we'll be having our hands full with Bardiel," Kaworu noted. Units 02 and 03 opened and the two girls jumped down. "Sorry, didn't really catch your names," Asuka said sarcastically. The blue-clad scoffed. "I am Fei Rin. This is my sister Ai Rin. And we- OOF!" She grunted as Asuka flew at her at blinding speed and punch her right under her bustline, hitting the solar plexus. "Are annoying as all hell," Asuka finished for Fei Rin. "Fei!," Ai Rin called out, only to find herself dodging attacks from Rei. "I don't appreciate people who deride someone for having mixed blood," Rei pointed out.

Ai Rin growled as she charged her nunchaku. "Huanglong!" Rei looked on as electricity crackled through the chain, and twin energy scythes emerged from the two sticks, making it more like a set of kama. Fei Rin got up and spat on the ground. "Fine then, let's do this! Zilong!" Her trident seemed to exude extreme cold. She swung the staff at Asuka, who simply blocked it, her arms crackling with Hamon. "Nice try using cold," she admitted, "But unless you're actually freezing me, ice is at best a shield." She grabbed the trident and flipped Fei Rin over her shoulder, slamming her on the ground.

Fei Rin got up and slammed Zilong into the ground, causing a wave of ice to start forming. Asuka increased her body's temperature, allowing a few flames to sprout in the air. "Scarlet Overdrive!" She punched right through a growing ice block, smashing through it and continuing on as she nailed Fei Rin right in the face. "Oh, you will pay for that…," Fei Rin muttered, taking great pride in her natural beauty. She wound up for a major strike, as Asuka noticed the previous attack had caused multiple floor panels to come loose. "If it works for leaves…," she muttered, and channeled her Hamon in the ground. "Life Magnetism Overdrive!"

The magnetic energy hit the panels, causing them to float up and create a magnetically charged shield, blocking the strike. Asuka leapt over the shield and spun in mid-air. "Tornado Overdrive!" A small whirlwind kicked up around Asuka's body as she slammed into Fei Rin, finally knocking her out. Meanwhile, Rei had her lightning mode active, using the charge from her nerves to block Ai Rin's attacks, delivering a few shocking counterattacks in exchange. Ai Rin was getting more and more frustrated with each failed assault.

Finally, she came in with both scythes, causing Rei to use both hands to block the attack. "Ha!," Ai Rin said, "Now you cannot shock me!" Rei smirked. "Quick biology lesson, little girl… Nerves are all over the body!" Several nerves burst out of Rei's legs, crackling with electricity as they wrapped around Ai Rin's legs, delivering a massive electrical shock. Ai Rin stumbled a bit before shaking her head. "Damn it… I thought Stand users could match Gigans…" "Like you're a real Stand user," Rei pointed out, "You're just a phony wielding a piece of tech that just happens to use the same energy."

She charged up as her spine emerged from her body, creating a surge of storm energy. "Grand Judgement!" Ai Rin screamed in shock and pain and a massive lightning bolt struck through her body, causing her to fall unconscious. "That's these two dealt with," Asuka noted, "Let's hope the boys can deal with Bardiel. We never really tested the new armor's capacity to reject his physical form." "We'll know soon enough," Rei said, "But they've come out on top before. Of course, we could always provide backup if needed."


Getting to where Bardiel's core wasn't easy, given he had full access to the citadel's defenses, but luckily Shinji and Kaworu were able to reach it just as Bardiel was getting ready to access the central lab. "Ah ah, brother," Kaworu said, grabbing the core and yanking it free from the mold, "Father isn't quite ready just yet." "Wait…," Bardiel said as his body dissolved into goo, "You came here to retrieve him?" "We need his help to defeat Lilith," Shinji explained, "What we know from the Dead Sea Scrolls suggests her power can only be matched by someone similar in origin, like Adam."

"Then my reason for coming her was redundant. But Father's presence will still draw the others." "We'll treat them the same," Kaworu replied, "Especially since Father can reconstruct your bodies. SEELE is planning something terrible, and some extra firepower would be greatly appreciated." Bardiel's core shifted, indicating something like a nod. "It seems the Lilim… No, the humans, are the ones meant to win this war. Hopefully Father will awaken before that monster Lilith can be unleashed. I was in the system long enough to know SEELE intends to create an awakening to bring her into this world." Shinji and Kaworu looked at each other in concern.


"So NERV has taken seventy-one percent of the island," Lorenz noted, "We have but two holdings left, and the remaining Angels will be arriving soon." "Then perhaps the time has come to put our true plan into motion," SEELE-03 suggested. Lorenz nodded. "Indeed. Everything has been building up to this point. And Speedwagon does not have eyes everywhere. Robert EO Speedwagon spoke of the human spirit, but I think he underestimated human greed." He smiled. "Our forces are much larger than anyone could have anticipated…"

Yep… SEELE is all done playing around. We'll be seeing their true plans unfold in the coming chapters. Read and review.