In a continent that would soon cease to be a man carried a seemingly lifeless body within his arms. This body,however, was not yet dead,for the up and down of it's chest could be seen,though the sound of it's breathing was drowned out by the birth cries of a renewed god.
Shiro Katsuragi did not dare to look back, for to look at the face of god and not expect death was the most foolish decision of them all. And so he walked, he walked in spite of his wounds,he walked to make up for everything that he had failed to do as father.
He wondered what would have happened had he listening to Ikari's words, had he heeded the man's warnings...well,now it was too late and the god was tearing down all he loved apart...all but his daughter.
As he lowered her body onto the small capsule he took the cross pendant he kept around his neck at all times and lowered it toward her,allowing it to rest on her chest as he closed the capsule. Once the hiss of the capsule closing was heard he fell into it,his body limp and nearly lifeless as he drew his last breaths,his eyes turned backward,toward the wave of light and destruction that advanced from the point of the experiment and then all went white.
When Misato first awoke, scared and confused the very first thing she saw were wings, two great wings that seemed to pierce into the heavens with their radiant brilliance, and the cries of the awakening of the monster to which they belonged,it cried and cried,it's shrieks like a tornado as the light continued to grow,it's wings continued to spread.
And then,it,along with the continent in which it was in, exploded. Misato did not know how she survived,or how they had found her nearly three days later dying of thirst and starved half to death. All she knew, all she had, was the pendent on her neck. Her father's last and only memoir.
Back in the slightly less dreary and depressing present the same girl,now 15 years older, got dressed to work. Looking at herself in the mirror,her eyes attempting with little success to avoid the scar in the center of her chest.
"It hardly feels like it's been 15 years." Misato said. She still found it difficult to accept,that 15 years had truly passed...15 years and yet I'm still just as confused as I was then.
For a small child of five years of age,the hallways of the artificial evolution laboratory were a scary place indeed, they seemed unending and their white colors only served to remind the child of the room in which he had watched his mother die.
If such a child was scared of it's hallways,something else entirely was to be said about the half-finished mechanical face of the beast that the child did not yet know was called unit-01.
"You will pilot it."His father had said, convicted in his words.
"I can't! I won't, it killed mother,it killed mother and it'll kill me,i don't wanna die!" Even then, the child that was Shinji Ikari was too smart for his own good, smart enough to know that the machine that looked like a demon was far more dangerous than it would seem.
But in the end,his wishes had not mattered.
"If you will not pilot,you will leave." His father had said.
"You won't leave me alone,you can't!" The child had spoken while sobbing and crying.
"I will if I must." The gaze in his father's eyes,even for a child of five years like Shinji was, was enough to tell him that he meant those words completely.
Shinji awoke,once again in the couch of the pilot's quarters and brought a hand up to his face as the recollections of his subconscious' newest creation started to fade away. "That..that one's new."
Most of his dreams were from around that era,the old Gherin days in the artificial evolution laboratory,but still he had never dreamed about the first time his father had told him to pilot unit-01.
"Must be because I haven't been in it for a while." Shinji commented as he rolled off the couch and into a standing position,the clock on the wall telling him that the time was 6:30 AM. As he went to open the fridge,however, he quickly took notice of the fact that there was nothing left in it.
Makinami and Shoryu. Shinji remembered,the two seemed to eat enough together for an entire family. With a sigh Shinji left the quarters and moved up the geofront, grocery shopping time it was. As he reached the very top of the geofront,the automated train coming to a stop at one of it's many entrances Shinji took notice of the fact that it was down pouring.
"It's raining again uh?"Shinji commented with a sigh. "It's just this season but something more than hot weather rain would be nice."
But of course,hopping for anything that wasn't a hot rainy day in eternal summer was nothing but a fool's desire. Shinji considered making his way to the train, such was his preferred method of transport...or well,it had been.
He reached out toward his shoulder,it's wound having worsened with the battle against the last angel nearly a month before. Ever since the assassination attempt he'd just walked home, Asuka and Rei seemed to agree it was for the best as well.
All it took was a call to have a section two car wait for him outside the station,as he entered he told them to head toward a particular grocery store he often visited.
It was a bit too lavish for his taste,the car that was,a limousine was not for him. Even so,it was better than walking in the rain.
"Wait here,I'll be back in a few minutes." He told the two men that had escorted him to the store,one of them giving a nod as Shinji walked into the store.
"Good morning Mister Hideaki." Shinji greeted.
"Good morning Ikari-kun,come for the usual grocery run?"The man asked with a soft,if tired, smile.
"Yes,yes. I've got a few people over and they eat enough for a family of four." Shinji joked. "Sorry if I'm being bothersome this early in the morning."
"Nonsense boy!"The 54 year old man replied. "take all you need, I'll even give you a discount if you want it."
Shinji gave a small laugh. "No need, I've got my father's credit card with me."
"Are you sure you won't milk him dry with all the shopping you do here?" The shop-owner asked in a jovial tone.
"He wouldn't even notice, I'm pretty sure he's not checked his bank account in years!" Shinji answered.
Both gave a small laugh as Shinji went about doing his grocery shopping for the week.
As was not becoming so unusual Asuka woke up wanting to die,her mind screaming profanities at her for daring to have lived another day after her failure. Shinji had beaten her,he'd destroyed the Angel,he'd increased his sync ratio enough in the process to surpass her and he'd done it all in half the time it had taken her to get her Eva put out of commission.
"Worthless,you're worthless, this is why mama left." Her own voice shouted from inside her, those words causing her heart to clutch in her chest and making her feel like throwing up. She hated it,she hated feeling weak.
There was something to be said about the n2 reactor as it worked,it certainly looked oddly satisfying to watch,the pink liquid spinning a round a central cube.
"Reactor stability is holding at 98%. Cooling systems check out nominal."
"Good,proceed with the test as expected." A woman spoke. This was none other than the very head of the entire country of China,the imposing figure known as Mo wei. One of the very causes for the fall of the old order of China and the rise of the new regime,not that this one was any less brutal than the last.
The way of the world was the way of power after all and power could only come from weapons, no matter their nature. While China was denied it's pilot for their Eva number 6,it was utterly irrelevant. Nerv as well as Seele and it's band of fools were nothing else but another means to an end,an infiltration fifteen years in the making to ensure China's survival in a post impact world. For her,that was all that mattered,if it meant allying with the devilish Japanese or the insupportable Americans then she would do so,as long as it meant victory.
"Turning on N2 prototype reactor,power output is rising to 0.5 of necessary activation threshold and holding." The Chinese chairwoman grew an ugly frown,her head turning toward the Japanese man that stood behind her.
"You have not betrayed us,have you?"She asked,venom in her voice as her emerald green eyes pierced into the man's unshakable stoic facade.
"Of course not, I am not so foolish as to stick to old grudges. As I spoke earlier,it is simply a prototype for now." Tashiro spoke. Mo Wie's eyes drifting toward the American at his side. An unspoken question in her eyes.
"It's like he says." Jonathan backed the man up,much to the chairwoman's dismay. "It's just a prototype but give it a month or two and we'll have it running."
The woman scoffed as she rose from her seat,standing imposingly tall both from the high heels which she wore and her naturally large height.
"You and yours have promised me it would be finished in 'a month or two' an year ago,as it stands we still have 20 Atlas frames which seem to me like nothing but a waste of hard earned money." She said, her tone authoritative and aggressive. "I am not asking for a combat capable model to be delivered to my hands,i just want to know if it can even move."
"Well ma'am." Travis spoke, seeming for once in his life at a loss for words. "we will do our best."
"Good, I am not risking my position within the instrumentality committee for a machine that does not work. By next month I want a demonstration,no exceptions. If it doesn't move, it and every other waste of money of it's kind gets scrapped and all the information I have on your organization leaked into Seele's hand. Am I understood?" She asked,though it was clear that it wasn't really much of a question at all.
"Of course Ma'am." Jonathan Travis answered.
"Good."She said,tone her tone was not of someone who was pleased. "No,if you'll excuse me. I have a meeting to attend to,one I had to delay for this disappointing show of your so called 'evangelion killing machine.'"
And with that,she walked out. Tashiro cleared his throat.
"Well,that went well." The Japanese man said sarcastically.
"Don't even joke about that." Travis said,his usual casual coolness replaced with noticeable terror. "If we don't get it working in a month we're all dead men."
"So much for trustworthy allies, one would think an American would know not to ally with the eastern dragon." Tashiro spoke.
"We had no choice, China is the only nation powerful enough,large enough and disloyal to Seele enough to allow the first phase of the Atlas program to reach it's conclusion."
"I wonder how she'll react to the news that this thing has no means of defeating the Eva's 'AT field' as it is called." Tashiro mused aloud.
"Give a starving man a few crumbs and he'll eat them and ask for more." Travis said. "As long as China has something that's threatening and not under UN control they will keep giving us funding until we manage to crack an AT field,by sheer firepower if necessary." Jonathan said with a sigh as he ran a hand through his hair. "The problem's gonna be getting this thing to work in a month."
"The theoretical aspect functions,correct?" Tashiro asked to which he received a nod. "I have someone who might be of help, a man that worked in the JHCI's Jet alone."
"That failure?"Jonathan asked. "What's someone who worked on such a terrible machine even gonna do?"
"While the machine did fail, it's power systems were for the most part functional."Tashiro answered.
"For the most part? You want a for the most part on a 45,000 ton stupidly armed machine?"Travis asked.
"I believe you said we were desperate,no?" Tashiro said with a hint of humor. "Besides,it only needs to work while the chairwoman is here, after that we can use the funding we will no doubt receive to increase it's reliability."
"You sneaky son of a bitch." Travis said, sounding incredibly pleased. "I know there was a good reason to choose you!"
"One does not become Japan's most renowned general by being un-creative. Let us get to work shall we? I'll make the call."
As Shinji looked out of his window, a bag of groceries in his lap,his eyes settled into a few apartment complexes...something felt oddly familiar about them. Then he realize why that was. "Stop the car please,just pull over here."
The section two,as was their job, did exactly that, slowly halting the car into a steady stop.
"I'll be back in a minute,just going to see a friend." Shinji said as he left the groceries inside the car,the rain having thankfully faded by then. As he approached the particular floor and door number he breathed in and knocked on the door.
"Who's there." Misato asked as her door swung open. "Shinji?"
"The one and only,i hope."The boy in question joked, Misato giving him a weird look before looking down at herself, she wasn't indecent by any margin but certainly not as finely dressed as she was while at Nerv. It didn't' really seem like she much cared though. As long as she's not in her underwear I'm pretty sure she's cool with it. Shinji joked inside his own head.
"What brings you to my humblest of abodes, did something happen?"The Major asked, Shinji shaking his head in the negative.
"Nothing at all actually,i was just passing by when I went shopping and I saw your apartment,i decided to pay a visit." Shinji said.
"You remembered where I lived." The woman said,a soft smile crossing her face as she gave him a head-pat. He had to admit it felt..nice,no wonder Rei liked them so much. "Thanks kiddo! Come inside. Sorry for the mess."
As Shinji walked in, excusing himself for entering and taking off his shoes as per proper Japanese custom, he took notice of the state of the apartment. Talking about a mess...Shinji's earlier worries about what her apartment had looked like in the one week she had come to live with them were quickly made realized,the whole place felt like a war zone of some sort, just one fought with cans of beer and instant food instead of bullets and weapons of war.
Shinji brought a hand to his face as he shook his head. "This really is a mess."
"Sorry sorry!"Misato said as she pressed her hands against each-other. "I wasn't expecting visitors."
"It's fine Misato,i just wonder how you can live with this much stuff cluttering up everything." Shinji joked.
"If something ever gets in my way I put it in the trash!" Misato declared with far too much joy and glee for someone who had just declared their own laziness.
"You wouldn't have to do that if you put in the trash in the first place, but that's besides the point,thank you for welcoming into your home Misato." Shinji said with a smile.
"Well yeah,it's only natural since we've known each other for so long,i trust you completely Shinji-kun." Shinji was taken aback by the purple haired woman's words,his eyes widening ever so slightly.
"You..do?"
"Yes, ever since you were a kid you've been the sweetest,you couldn't hurt a fly." Shinji raised an eyebrow at that particular statement,turning his head toward the two lakes he'd created and the still under removal mortal remains of Ramiel. Misato does have a pretty nice view of the city from her windows.
"Well, you couldn't hurt a fly unless it was an angel,that okay with you?"Misato joked.
"Just fine Misato-san."Shinji said. "Do you want me to make something for breakfast,maybe just a coffee?"
"I wouldn't want to force you Shinji buuuuuuut,if you wanna.."Misato trailed off, causing Shinji to roll his eyes as he observed her kitchen,quickly finding his way to her coffee-maker.
"You know you're like those slob older sisters in manga." Shinji commented , finding the comparison particularly apt as to how the major acted as an individual.
"An older sister...that would be nice." Misato commented. "I have no siblings so I guess you are indeed kind of the closest thing I have to one,sadly I have no baby pictures of you though."
"And you never will!"Shinji replied to her joke with an equally joking tone,though he did decide to mentally make a note to ensure those never fell within Misato's hands.
"Aww,don't be so mean to Nēchan now Shinji-kun." She jokingly whined, Shinji giving her a smile and a laugh in response.
"If you were my older sister you would certainly be the least responsible of the bunch, rits would have taken all the responsibility meant for you."
"Hey,i can be responsible,sometimes." Misato complained.
"No,Major Katsuragi can be responsible, Misato's terrible at it." Shinji answered in a joking tone,to which the major gave a low whine as her coffee was put down in front of her. "Careful,it's hot."
"Thanks Shinji,you're the best you know?" Misato said.
"I try.."Shinji said,a smile growing on his lips as he took a sip of his coffee and,despite the bitterness of the brew,he felt a sweet feeling inside his heart
Rei Ayanami liked to draw,this much was not news to anyone who actually knew her well,those being a very limited group of people. But it was also not information she tried to hide, she liked to display too publicly. One would think such a creative art would mean that it would be one that would push Rei away,but in the end it did not. Because what she most liked to draw were things,real things,recreations of the world around her.
Her theory was that if she could recreate them,even if in some small superficial manner,she might be able to understand them at a deeper level. That theory had proved itself both correct and wrong on different occasions and for varying reasons.
But now,now she was drawing something she had never seen,something based on reality but something she had never directly observed, and this time for a more practical purpose.
"Hi icicle!" She heard the bombastic and upbeat voice of Mari said as she threw her arms around Rei's neck,leaning in to see what it was the girl was doing. "You're drawing again,what is it this time."
"...one could call it an illustration,i suppose." Rei said in her usual deadpan.
"Ooooh,what of?" Mari asked.
"That is a secret."Rei answered seriously, causing Mari to give her a pout.
"come on,you know I can keep a secret right?"Mari asked while making her best puppy dog eyes at the blue haired girl.
"The very first thing you said to me after accidentally touching my breast was the fact you were the fifth child."Rei said.
"Meanie." Mari complained,taking her weight off Rei's shoulders and crossing her arms.
"I simply speak the truth."Rei answered. Mari decided to lean in and observe the drawing closer,but in it's early stages all she saw was the figure of a girl whose identity she could not properly guess.
"Okay okay,keep your secrets icicle" Mari said in a jovial tone. "So do you wanna speak about something."
"What exactly?"
"I dunno,just something I guess. I'm bored." Mari said as she walked over to the couch and threw herself haphazardly at it,tilting her head so she could still see Rei.
"I suppose we could speak about art." Rei said. "Have you ever pursued an artistic endeavor?"
"Art uh...well I sing." Mari replied. "Or used to."
"You do not anymore?"
"No,not anymore." Mari answered in a somewhat sadder tone of voice.
"That is a shame,i believe you would have a good singing voice."
"You mean it Icicle?" Mari asked,somewhat hesitant.
"I simply speak the truth,do I not?" Rei asked,a somewhat more humorous tone to her voice as she spoke.
"Hmmm.."Mari hummed as she thought. "Maybe I should try singing again one day."
"I would like to hear you sing pilot Makinami." Rei said.
"Yeah...if I ever do so,you'll be the first to hear for sure!" Mari answered assuredly.
I simply hope I am still there to hear it. Rei thought mournfully.
"Hey, Shinji."Misato spoke up. The boy in question turning his head from the amusing penguin she called a pet to the woman herself.
"Yes Misato?"He asked.
"When I arrived...why did you speak to me?"Misato asked. "I wasn't a friendly person,i spoke to no one and tried to push others away,but you still tried to speak to me."
"At first it was for Ritsuko's sake but...after that I suppose I saw something in you that reminded me of a friend I used to have." Shinji admitted, his mind flashing back to a particular brown haired girl.
"My father and I were there when the impact happened...in Antarctica." Misato said.
"I know, Shiro Katsuragi,your father was the head of the Adam revival project." Shinji said.
"He wasn't a very good father,he used his work as a means to escape his reality,the reality that was his family,Me and my mother. When my parents got divorced and my father started to cry I think I laughed at his face..i thought he'd deserved it." Misato said,her head on the table as she looked ahead,thought Shinji could tell that she wasn't looking at him as much as she was,in a way,looking inside her own mind, her memories if you will. "But then,when the day of the impact came,he sacrificed himself to save my life...i didn't know whether I hated him or loved him."
"You hated him for what he'd done,but you couldn't help but love him because he was your father." Shinji said,as if retelling his own experience, which,in a way, he was.
" Ritsuko once asked me why it was I'd joined Nerv,i told her it was for the greater good,to help others. But that was a lie..i suppose all I want to rid myself of this guilt." Misato said.
"Guilt is a powerful emotion, it can make you do truly crazy things." Again,the same brown haired girl and the destroyed wreckage of the Artificial Evolution laboratory.
"You're right Shinji,but in the end I guess it's for the best. It's how I met you and Ritz and I guess even Kaji in a way." Misato said.
"Maybe you could give him a second chance." Shinji answered,taking a sip of his coffee.
"Don't say stupid things...the one who needs to be given a second chance is me."
Misato watched the four different splits on the screen,showing the first,second,third and fifth child and their respective synch ratios. "Shinji's caught up to Asuka."
"His plug depth can go deeper actually,he might surpass her." Ritsuko said.
"Shouldn't we lower it then Sempai?" Maya asked, the doctor looked intently at the screen.
"For now I see no reason to,this is only a test and Shinji won't be piloting for the next mission anyway, check the fifth's plug depth." Ritsuko said.
"It's holding stable at 0.8, her ego barrier is about 300% stronger than Shinji-kun's." Maya reported.
"That must be why she's got such a low synchronization ratio,even so 49% isn't bad,it's surpassed Rei."
"Still thirty points behind Asuka and Shinji though,isn't she?" Misato asked.
"Aye, Shinji is holding at 71% synchronization ratio,same with Asuka,though Shinji could probably reach 75% if he did his best. His combat synch ratio has already surpassed hers when he fought the last angel,soon enough he might outdo her in tests." Ritsuko answered.
"That would be a heavy blow for Asuka's pride,wouldn't it?" Misato said.
"Of course,it's only natural that it would be painful for her,especially since her ratio has been below her average lately,Shinji might even surpass that once he's healed." Ritsuko took a sip of her coffee.
"Even below her best she's still good,i don't' see why we should take her out of unit-02, all it does is piss her off."
"Well,it's the commanders orders, we can't just refuse them now can we?" Ritsuko said.
"Talking about the commander,where is that conniving bastard right about now?" Misato asked jokingly.
"Luckily for you he's in the south pole,otherwise he'd probably demote you for calling him that." Ritsuko answered.
"Good,i guess I'm in charge then." Misato said with a sigh. "Which means more paperwork for me."
A fleet of ships moved through a sea red as blood,or perhaps it really was blood,few knew and few cared to know, all they knew was that this was once a great continent,not one inhabited or loved by many but one none the less,and now it was nothing. Not even a single portion of the landmass remained unsubmerged.
"Nothing can exist in the world of death we used to call Antarctica. Or I suppose now we should call it hell?" Fuyutsuki commented.
"Nothing living can exist in this place and yet mankind is here. We who are living beings are alive in this so called hell." Gendo spoke,a hand in his pocket as he watched the blood red sea.
"That is because we are under the protection of technology,take a swim in that sea and see how alive you return."Fuyutsuki joked.
"Science is the power of man,as angels have the power to ignore the physical laws we took for granted we have the power to bend them to our will."
"It is that hubris that lead to the disaster 15 years ago."Fuyutsuki said. "The second impact, when man thought it was above god."
"Man was foolish. Our gift is of knowledge,not power. We tried to bind a god with power and it failed and yet we proved that knowledge too could bind a god,that gave us Eva." Gendo said.
"And it will be knowledge that will cleanse this place of it's perfection,we will pollute it once again with the original sin." Fuyutsuki spoke In an assured tone.
"Yes,the sin that mankind calls life will return to this place,that is the nature of what I saw within the guidestone." Gendo spoke.
"Even so, you cannot let yourself fall into the delusion that what you saw was an absolute future."
Gendo shook his head. "No,it must be I that ensures such a future comes to be with all available means."
An alert rang out.
"Message from the bridge, A telegram was received from Nerv headquarters. An angel has been detected above the Indian ocean."
"Less than the month after the last." Fuyutsuki commented with a bothered tone.
"Three weeks is more than enough time. Have some faith in your fellow man Fuyutsuki-sensei."
"The Angel appeared suddenly two minutes ago."Hyuga reported.
"We've got a visual on it from an observation satellite nearby, putting it onscreen." Aoba said.
"Woah" Nearly all the bridge said at once.
"That thing's really huge." Hyuga commented.
"Of course they just seem to be getting bigger."Misato commented in a bitter tone.
"One of the JSSDF's military satellites is approaching the target. It's fired an N2 missile!" Aoba reported as the visual on the screen showed the bright pink explosion engulfing a portion of the angel's body.
"It's at times like this that the outer space treaty having been revoked comes in handy."Hyuga commented.
"No damage noticed on the angel."Ritsuko said as the flash from the explosion grew dimmer. "It's AT field is strong enough to ignore an N2 mine. How bothersome."
"It's doing something!"Hyuga reported as suddenly their satellite feed went dead.
"What's going on?"Misato reported.
"We've lost contact with all satellites within 200 kilometers of the target,it seems like it's used an EMP wave." Aoba reported.
"Using the AT field to create an EMP wave strong enough to bypass the shielding of our satellites, it seems that besides becoming physically bigger they become a bigger threat as well." Ritsuko said.
A few hours after initial contact Misato and the rest of the necessary bridge crew were in the Specialized strategic command room, watching as the footage of the Angel dropping a part of itself and impacting the pacific played out.
"What incredible destructive potential,that's an AT field alright." Misato commented.
"It's worse actually."Ritsuko spoke. " It's only using it's AT field to affect it's reentry trajectory,everything else is kinetic force."
"It's like the Angel itself is a huge bomb."Maya added onto Ritsuko's explanation.
"In any case,it seems like it's fine tuning of the AT field is limited,it's first blast missed the target and hit the pacific ocean, two hours later it hit 300 km off the coast of Japan,the third strike hit the Japanese mainland,thankfully in an inhabited exclusion zone. In any case it's steadily been correcting it's error margin with all indications being that it plans to strike the headquarters next." Ritsuko explained.
"So it's learning." Misato said.
"Not only that, but continued N2 bombardment has had no effect on it." Hyuga reported. "Not to say that we lost visual contact with it an hour ago."
"It's coming here,no doubt." Misato said.
"Yes,and the next time it might drop itself,otherwise it wouldn't be able to go through all 28 layers of reinforced armor." Ritsuko commented taking a sip of her coffee. "It seems we are in a precarious situation indeed."
"A third Ashinoko lake for us?" Misato joked.
"All five Fuji lakes will be fused into a single body linked to the pacific,destroying this headquarters."
"Do we have contact with the commander?" Misato asked.
"As of 2 hours ago we lost all methods of long range communication due to the jamming caused by the angel's powerful AT field." Aoba said.
"Magi's judgment?"Misato asked.
"97% probability of a mass extinction even if the target hits it's mark." Maya said.
"It would be an impact akin to the K-T extinction event." Ritsuko reported. "Not only would the headquarters be destroyed but also an estimated 85% of all living species. Mankind included. It would be even worse for earth's life than second impact."
"Worse than second impact uh?"Misato asked. "Well,let's make sure that doesn't happen,give an evacuation order, it's better to keep up appearances."
"Are you serious?" Ritsuko asked as she and Misato stood in one of the ladies washroom for Nerv headquarters. "You'll risk not only all three Evas but also their pilots for your own irresponsible selfishness? It's a 0,000001% chance of success."
"That's not zero, I trust the Evas." Misato said.
"Major Katsuragi!"
"I'm in charge here." Misato said. "And destroying angels is my duty."
"Your duty is to defend humanity Misato, as well as our pilots. This isn't about duty this about your own stupid revenge."
"Ehhhh?! Catch it with our hands?" Asuka asked,clutching her hand for effect as she did.
"That's right,we'll be putting your Evas in the estimated drop zone of the Angel. You'll have to catch it while maintaining your AT field at full strength." Misato said.
"What if the angel doesn't land where we're predicting?"Shinji asked.
"We're screwed." Misato said.
"What if the Evas can't withstand the impact shock?"Asuka asked.
"We're screwed too."
"What's the probability of success for the operation?"Shinji asked.
"god only knows. I have no idea." Misato said,not encouraging words to come from the person in charge.
"So we're just hopping on a miracle?!"Asuka asked in indignant rage.
"Doing our best efforts for the sake of creating a miracle is better than hopping one comes." Misato said.
"By that you mean we should be willing to sacrifice ourselves!"Asuka shouted.
"If there was any other way to proceed with the operation,we would." Misato said.
"How can you call this an operation?!"
"I hate to agree with the princess but it does seem more like a suicide mission to me." Mari said.
"I suppose you're right."Misato admitted with a heavy heart. "You may refuse it if you wish, Shinji can pilot, even if it's not advisable."
"No way! A suicide mission is right up my alley."
"Crazy bitch."Asuka murmured.
"Regulation says you should write a will,have you done so yet?" Misato asked.
"What's the point,I'm not dying just yet!"Asuka declared.
"There is no use for it." Rei said.
"It's pointless,if we fail everyone will be dead anyway. Besides,I'm not even going out there." Shinji said.
"I'm with them." Mari said. "All it would do is distract from the awesome battle we're about to have!"
"Again,i really am sorry. But once this is all over I'll treat you all to a steak dinner." Misato said.
"What,really?"Asuka asked in seemingly genuine surprise.
"I promise."Misato said with a smile.
"Great!"Shinji said,a false smile crossing his lips. "Don't forget it Misato."
"You can count on it."Misato said.
"Is that supposed to be impressive or something?"Shinji asked once the major was out of earshot.
"I think she thinks it's supposed to be impressive...the second impact generation is really cheap,isn't it?"Asuka asked, Shinji nodding his head in agreement.
"Couldn't even take us to a nice restaurant." Shinji complained.
"Well, since she'll treat us I might as well choose where we're going." Asuka said,pulling out a tattered and worn out travel guide from her bag. "You've got to join as well second."
"Of course we'll join you."Mari said excitedly as she wrapped her arm around Rei's neck,who didn't seem all too surprised at the sudden gesture.
"No one asked you anything thunder tits." Asuka said in a sudden deadpan.
"come on,you can't be planning to exclude me,can you princess?"Mari asked making her best puppy dog eyes.
"That was the plan yes. But knowing you,you'll just tag along anyway so you might as well come." Asuka said, finding herself tackle-hugged by a pleased brit a moment later.
"Oh,thank you princess you're just the best!"
"Get off me thunder tits, help me out here first!"Asuka shouted as she tried to push the fifth child away from her.
"Dumbasses,the both of you." Shinji said as he shook his head with a smile.
An hour later, after their briefing as to what would happen in the battle, Shinji approached Sohryu as she was about to step into the elevator leading the three active pilots up into the Eva.
"Hey,Sohryu. Do you have a minute?" Shinji asked,the girl in question turning toward him with an annoyed look.
"What's the matter first,why are you even in your plugsuit?you're not entering combat." Asuka said,Shinji chuckled slightly.
"It makes me feel more at ease I guess. I just wanted to speak with you." Shinji said, Asuka rose an eyebrow.
"Is that it?"She asked,confusion in her face.
"Yeah,that's about it. I mean we could all be dead by tomorrow so I thought we might as well get to speak to each-other before then,no?" Shinji asked.
"One would think you'd be speaking to wondergirl." Asuka commented sarcastically.
"Rei's already accepted that she could die while piloting Eva. She already knows what I would say to her in such a situation, so there's no point in wasting my breath with more words."
"So, what is it that you want to tell me first?" Asuka asked.
"Please,do your best." Shinji said.
"What's that supposed to mean!?"Asuka asked in irritation. "Do you think I wasn't this far? Not everyone can be as privileged as you first!"
Shinji looked down and shook his head. "That's not what I meant at all. It's just that I'm not gonna be out there to help you."
"I don't need your protection first!"Asuka told him as her fist clenched in anger.
"I know that...but it still makes me uneasy,just thinking that you could get hurt and there's nothing I can do stop it from happening..it makes my chest hurt." Shinji said. "While you might think otherwise of me,i care for you Sohryu, you're a friend."
Asuka looked away,her face slightly red as she did,her anger quickly becoming replaced by embarrassment.
"Don't say things like that as if we were going to die,I'm gonna do my best and that Angel's as good as dead!" Asuka declared.
"I know you will, you're the best pilot out of us all after all." Shinji said.
"Admitting defeat this early first?"She asked.
"Of course not, for now you're the best pilot but once my wounds are healed you better bet I'll surpass you!" Shinji declared.
"As if,you'll take a thousand years!"Asuka said jokingly.
"Stay safe Sohryu." Shinji said.
"Don't call me that if you actually think we're gonna die!"She complained.
"Oh...sorry,i guess I got used to it." Shinji rose his head and looked her straight in the eyes,for the first time truly taking notice of how beautiful they truly were. "Please, Asuka, stay safe!"
She looked away. "Baka..."
As the three pilots ascended the elevator leading them to their possible doom,there was an unusual and tense silence in the air, exactly the kind of thing Asuka expected before a mission that would almost surely lead to their doom.
And then,of course, thunder tits broke the silence. "I can't wait for this to happen,I'm so excited!"
Asuka glared at her,Azure eyes piercing into the brunette's soul. "Learn how to read a room will you Thunder tits?"
"What's the matter? Just because everyone else is so gloom and doom doesn't mean I have to be."Mari said.
"Everyone's so 'gloom and doom' as you call it because we're going to die!" Asuka said.
"That's not what you said to puppy now was it,now I wonder why you didn't tell him the truth." Mari spoke in a somewhat teasing tone.
But that was an important question,wasn't it? Why had she told him everything would be alright?There was no reason to,she was sure that they were all going to die and hurting his feelings wouldn't change anything in the long run because there wouldn't be one.
Even so she didn't like to see him hurt, even though she should hate and resent him for daring to go for her number one spot she simply couldn't. She didn't resent the first child, she didn't hate him.
"Please, Asuka, stay safe!" Those words echoed within her mind. The first child, much like herself, often wore a mask,but in that moment,when he looked into her eyes and declared those words she had not been seeing a mask,but rather the real Shinji Ikari. The Shinji Ikari that the whole world was not allowed to see and,for a moment,she had seen him.
As Asuka brought a hand to her quickly beating heart she was sure of one thing. I'll live for sure,just to show you that I am the best!
"I Suppose this is it."Misato said as she looked out at the screen infront of her,the three evas spread out all over the possible impact region.
"We're putting all of mankind's hopes in our ability to defeat this foe, on the shoulders of the evas." Ritsuko said.
"Well,it's why we created them after all,wasn't it?" The major asked.
"I suppose it was,a weapon to rival the gods that seek to destroy us,that is the nature of Eva,now they must quite literally support the weight of the gods." Ritsuko said. "Well,if we die at least that means no more work."
"I wouldn't be so sure of that."Hyuga said in a joking manner. "We don't know what the afterlife has in store for us."
"I suppose not,but it can't be more stressful than working here." Ritsuko said in a joking manner.
"Well,let's begin this operation shall we,the fate of the world depends on us." Misato said.
Asuka stood in the plug of Unit-01,it's warm and seemingly familiar embrace flowing all around her. The silence was her only companion as she waited for the mission to start.
"I wonder why it feels so nice...unit-01."She asked herself,knowing full well that there would be no answer coming her way.
It was warm,friendly,it made her feel at ease,just like...She shook her head. Stop thinking about that idiot Sohryu,the only man for you is Kaji!
It didn't matter,all that mattered was the unit would help her fight,that it would protect her even. Even so,she could not ignore that feeling.
"So warm..."Asuka whispered. It reminded her of something,of someone. As her eyes closed she could almost remember the happy times she had spent with her mother,this same feeling was much like the one she had felt back then,a motherly dotting. A feeling that should have no place inside a machine of war such as Eva but that no doubt was there.
Asuka closed her eyes and shook her head,she wouldn't cry,not from this. She hadn't cried since then and she never would again. Never again.
"The target has been sighted at maximum magnification"Aoba reported
"Distance is approximately 25,000!"Hyuga said as well.
"Here it is,it's do or die."Misato said. "All Evas,prepare yourselves."
The three great titans all prepared to get into a running position.
"All we have is a rough estimated trajectory from optical sightings. The magi will be able to guide you until a distance of 10,000 meters after which you'll have to use your own judgment." Misato said. "I'm putting all my trust in you."
"Angel has breached the 2,000 kilometer mark!"Hyuga reported.
"ALL EVAS...LAUNCH!"Misato ordered.
"MOVE!" Asuka shouted. The cement below her feet gave way to her movement,cracking under the might of the Eva's advance.
Her eyes marked themselves on the target as it breached the clouds, that was her enemy,that was mankind's enemy. It would die, it did not matter what the cost may be,it would die.
Cement gave way to trees,those too effortlessly stomped underfoot by the advance of the bio-mechanical machine that was her,no his,eva.
I will win,i will win,i will win. She repeated inside her own head. Defeat was not an option, loosing again was not an option,she wouldn't be defeated by that thing,she wouldn't allow herself to. Even if it meant death,nothing would stop her.
"Target has passed 1,000 meters!" She could hear the bridge report. Still far away,too far away.
CAN'T YOU MOVE ANY FASTER YOU OUTDATED PIECE OF CRAP?!
Almost as if answering her maddened cry the Evangelion accelerated, orange light shot behind it as it's AT field pulsed outward,the sound barrier being broken with a resounding boom.
"Unit 01 has breached the sound barrier,approaching mach 2!" One of the bridge's members reported.
The angel continued to fall,seeming so very close yet so far away.
FASTER,FASTE,FASTER! The unit took her commands to heart.
"Unit one has reached mach 2,mach 3!"
Pain filled Asuka's entire body,a humanoid was never supposed to reach such speeds, the link between her and the Eva made her feel every little bit of pain the gigantic beast did as it advanced at three times the speed of sound,three times faster than any living thing had any right to move.
And then as she approached it's position the reverse had to happen,decelerating her from that speed in half a second, even inside the plug-suit the whining of the the armor plates as they bent from the effort could be heard. Asuka cringed as pain wracked her entire body once again.
"AT FIELD, MAXIUM EXTENSION!" She shouted out toward the heavens,a wave of purple shooting outward and leveling everything it's way as she extended her hands upwards.
The Angel made impact with the AT field, it's own crashing against hers as she struggled to keep the weight of the beast supported in her arms. She was ready to give up,the pain was greater than anything she had ever felt in her life before, it felt as if she was holding up the weight of the world in her arms, it felt as if they would burst at any moment.
This was a pain unlike any she had felt before, it was a pain that seemed to reach down into the depths of her soul,the very core of her entire being. It hurt in a way no pain had ever hurt,no physical one at least.
She had to give in, her arms demanded it,they told her with certainty that they would not hold and that she must let go. Even her spirit was fading from the pain, her lofty excuses of glory and power stripped away from the sheer amount of pain.
Now,she no longer wanted victory,just for the pain to end.
"Please, Asuka, stay safe!" His words came to the forefront of her mind.
"...damn it!" Asuka cursed out as a renewed wave of strength filled her body,her arms pushing up against the Angel. "Please, Asuka, stay safe!" "DAMN YOU!"
"I'm approaching,Makinami spread out your AT field!" Rei said.
"I'm on it!"The annoying Brit declared as their two respective units approached, Asuka once more feeling the strength in her arms loosen.
"Please, Asuka, stay safe!"
"AGHHHHH!" Words could no longer describe the emotion she felt, and so Asuka pushed upward,the last of her strength being used to ensure that his request came true.
Unit-00's hands joined those of her own Unit a moment later,ripping apart the AT field of the Angel and making way for Makinami's advance.
"LET'S DO THIS!" The girl in question shouted out in English as she struck the knife into the Angel's body with all the strength unit-02 could manage. The core cracked and then broke, it's red hue fading away as the angel's body went limp.
"good.."Asuka whispered as her eyes started to come shut.
"Pilot Shoryu has fallen unconscious!" Hyuga reported.
"Damn it,what happened was she hurt?!" Misato asked as she leaned in to view Hyuga's screen.
"It doesn't appear so,her harmonics were all over the place during the battle,she must have been exerting herself a lot,we'll get her a medical team ASAP." Hyuga said.
"Good...good. It seems we've won." Misato said,a smile crossing her face.
"Yeah,that it seems we have. Do you want to tell Shinji the operation is over?"Ritsuko asked.
"No,you can deal with that. I'll go check up on Asuka."Misato said. Ritsuko nodded.
As Asuka woke up in a hospital bed,her surroundings completely white and her memories somewhat fuzzy all she could do was slowly rise into a sitting position,which quickly allowed her to take notice of the fact Shinji was there,sitting in a chair by her side with his SDAT on, seeming to take note of her moment he turned off the music player,looking at her.
"You're awake Shoryu."He said, a smile crossing his lips.
"What happened,did I die?...is this heaven?"She asked him.
"No,this is Nerv's medical hospital. But I'm glad to know that I would be in your heaven." Shinji said in a joking fashion.
"Yeah..i should have figured that if you were here it would be hell." Asuka said,sarcasm dripping from her tone. "So,what were you doing while I was asleep? thinking dirty thoughts about me first child?"
Shinji shook his head,a slight reddening noticeable in his cheeks. "Don't say things like that Sohryu,of course I wasn't. I just came to make sure you were okay!"Shinji said with a somewhat panicked expression.
"It was just a joke first."Asuka said with a roll of the eyes. "So, got anything to say about my battle performance?"
"You did amazing out there Asuka,it really was something else. I guess you really are the better pilot,maybe I should just give up."Shinji said,the last part sounding only half serious.
"Of course you should!"She declared,herself trying to sound as fake as possible. "You are truly no match for the great Asuka Langely Shoryu!"
Shinji laughed,in turn causing her to laugh herself. After they were both finished laughing a comfortable silence filled the room as they looked at each other silently.
"I'm glad you heard my request, Asuka." Shinji said. "Please, Asuka, stay safe!"
"humph, don't get ideas of grandeur In your heard,it wasn't like I was gonna give up even if you hadn't said that!"
"I know but,even so. I'm glad." He said,a stupid smile crossing his face and causing Asuka to blush.
"You really are stupid you know?" She asked
"Of course I do. By the way,we have a steak dinner to attend."
AN:8k words in a chapter, making this the longest one to date. Hope you enjoyed and,if you have anything to say,leave a review and I'll try to answer it!