The soft hum of the N2 reactor could be heard once more as it's pink glow filled the room. All in attendance stood with bathed breath as they waited to see if the framework would function. All had a mixture of expectation and terror in their faces,all but Takasaki Tashiro. His face was a cool as cucumber,his entire expression the very example of coolness and stoic grace.
"Begginnig activation phase number two,powering main leg hydraulics,success."
"Beginning N2 reactor cooling systems, cooling efficiency at 105%. Voltage is rising."
"Voltage has risen to 0.6 of activation threshold and rising,0.7,0.8"
"Power transfer to main arm hydraulics is go, no issues noted."
"Voltage has risen to 0.9 of threshold. Threshold cleared, Voltage is holding nominal for activation."
"Transferring power to ATF-00,main cockpit. Cockpit power is nominal, Pilot confirm you have control."
"I have control."A deep,raspy and raspy voice came from the other end, that of the mercenary known as Striker, a man know for taking all sorts of odd jobs,including this one.
"Good,we are proceeding with the primary movement tests." The man scoffed.
"This is all a bunch of crap, just let me at those over-grown mecha you call Evangelion and I'll kill them all." Striker said, seeming sure in his words.
"Is that man the best you could find?" Mo Wei said. "He is...obnoxious."
"Your opinion will change once you actually see him in combat,i tell it's scary." Travis said.
"It better make up for his personality defects."
It's not like your free of those either miss chairwoman...Travis commented inside the confines of his own mind, too afraid to speak out his mind to the scary woman.
Tashiro continued to look on,still still as statue and nearly mistakable for one If it were not for his blinking.
"Pilot,please close left fist."
The mecha did as it was told,it's complicated machinery taking a few moments to respond to the pilot's input.
"Point five second delay between input and movement proper,should not be an issue outside of battle scenarios,run diagnostics on all hydraulics."
"All hydraulics look ok!"
" Run full Type-79 diagnostic on the connections to Delphi."
"Diagnostic complete, arrays 1-62 all nominal in their connection to Delphi."
"That's good." The bridge member turns around to face the chairwoman and the two members of the secret society. "We are go for field test."
"Good, open the upper doors and let's take this girl for a spin."Travis said,a cocky smile crossing his face.
"Opening hangar-bay lower section door number one,rising unit ATF-00."
The mechanical titan was slowly moved up,rising from the underground in which it was being kept to the main hangar itself,it's gigantic frame reaching nearly to it's very top.
"Let's just give this baby a walking test,that should be enough,no?" Travis asked.
"It will do,but do not expect it to impress me." The chairwoman said with a sneer.
"Get her walking striker."Travis said.
"Would much prefer to get to kill someone with it,but I guess just walking will do for now."The man in question complained as he pushed the main two control sticks forward,his feet hitting the pedals below.
"Walking speed is 3 Km/H"
"Slower than an Eva." The chairwoman said snidely.
"Cheaper too."Travis shot back,trying to keep his tone polite.
"Not all 20 units." She said.
"So, anyone up for a weapon's test?" Travis asked, trying to change the topic of conversation.
"There is only a Dory type beam rifle on base."
"It will do."Travis said to the crew member.
"Roger, prepping for weapons test."
"We're all set for the magi's operational check-up in T-minus 5 minutes."Maya said.
"You've worked fast."Ritsuko said,no surprise in her voice. "But then again,you are Maya."
The woman in question gave a slight blush. "Well,it's to be expected, you were my teacher after all Doctor Akagi."
Maya resumed typing.
"Wait,for that part the A8 would be faster. Let me see." Ritsuko began typing at frankly superhuman speeds,causing Maya to look at her in awe.
"Wow, then again you did teach me after all." Maya commented.
Misato ascended up the elevator. "So,how's the magi's check up doing?"
"Nearly done,i did promise I would be finished before today's tests." Ritsuko said as Misato picked up a coffee cup.
"You really are something else aren't you Ritz?Three near-impossible tasks to do and you still manage to beat the schedule."She says,taking a sip of the cold coffee as she does.
"Careful,that one's cold."
"ugh,it's bad."Misato said,spitting out back at the mug.
"I tried to warn you,and be more hygienic would you?"
"Whatever you say Rits,just get ready for the test!"
Ritsuko splashed some water in her face.
"The magi's checked out fine, Mother is doing well as usual but...even so,is it just me who's getting older?"
"What,you want us to take our clothes off again?!"Asuka asked in indignant rage.
"Yes,the next chamber is a super sterilized environment,so it's important that you're as clean as possible,just a little scrub in the bath won't do." Ritsuko said over the comms.
"uggh,why do we have to through all of this because of a stupid test?" Asuka asked.
"As time advances so must the technology of Eva, we can't allow ourselves to fall behind." Ritsuko added. "Just get undressed and finish this as soon as possible."
"There,I'm butt-naked and I was run through the clean up cycle some 17 times,is that good enough for you?!" Asuka asked in anger.
"At least it wasn't 40 like in the days of the first tests." Shinji said with a shudder.
"Good,now you three will walk through the room and into the simulated plugs" Ritsuko said.
"what?!"Asuka shouted.
"Don't worry,the video monitors were turned off,your privacy is our utmost concern for this test."The doctor said through the camera.
"That doesn't change the fact that stupid first and second have to see me naked!"Asuka said.
"It's a necessity for the plug test we're going to be doing." Ritsuko said.
"But but...i don't wanna!"She said,almost like a child.
"Asuka,that's an order!" Misato said.
"ugh...fine,but if you peep I'll kill you okay?!"
"All pilots are ready for plug insertion." A male operator reported as the images of the pilot's body heat appeared on their feed.
"Start the insertion on simulated units 0 through 2." Ritsuko said.
"Inserting simulation plugs." The same operator replied. "No problems detected."
"This feels weird."Asuka said,clutching her hand. "It feels like my right hand is clear and everything else is very fuzzy."
"We'll start with Shinji,please close your left fist." Ritsuko ordered,the pilot doing as asked. "It seems like everything is checking out alright."
"Data collection is proceeding normally."
"I see, then there are no issues."Ritsuko commented. "That much is good, return to Magi to their normal stage."
And then the machines started bickering.
"uh?"Misato asked. "A dilemma?"
"You can sure feel their creator's personality,can't you?"Ritsuko commented sarcastically.
"What do you mean by that,i thought you were the one who'd created the Magi."Misato said.
"You really are clueless,it's no surprise your plans are always so crazy."Ritsuko said,causing her friend to look away with crossed arms.
"It's not my fault you never speak about yourself,it's always other this others that, hedgehogs and all that crap!"Misato complained.
"I suppose that's true"Ritsuko admitted. "Well,while I created the Magi's up-links the basic theorems as well as the mainframes themselves are my mother's work."
"I see,sorry for that then." Misato said.
"It's not an issue. Well, Maya go ahead with the dummy enhancement system's activation." Ritsuko said.
"Are you sure that's wise Sempai,we're not still not sure that the basic theorem we have is correct." Maya said.
"It won't be an issue if its on the simulation units, one of these going berserk isn't really a problem."Ritsuko said.
"Roger that, DES going online." Maya said.
An immediate red 'ERROR' flowed through from the Magi's data dump. "What's the matter?"Ritsuko asked leaning in.
"It's as expected, Shinji Kun's ego barrier is too high. Asuka's is just below the impossibility borderline." Maya said.
"Lower simulated plug depth to his maximum and run the DES again, if we don't get this working commander Ikari will chew our asses out."Ritsuko said.
Maya did as instructed,once more another 'ERROR' message popping up.
"What is it this time?the ego barrier again?"Ritsuko asked.
"No,that one is holding below the threshold at the moment. The simulated personality data matrix within Eva-01 is what's rejecting the DES." Maya reported.
"Simulated personality?"Misato asked.
"The Evas use a simulated personality matrix to allow for their operation, it's how the pilots can pilot with nothing besides their mind and placebo effect. It seems like Unit-01's is rejecting us." Ritsuko said. In truth,it's you that's rejecting us,isn't it Yui-sama? Even your simulated soul is this good of a mom. But you should know I hold his best interests in mind as well. "Rerun it again Maya,this time with the old code."
"Running the DES system back with old code,still rejected." Maya reported.
"Unit-01's a bit of a moody one,isn't it?"Misato joked.
"yes,she's being bothersome. Just terminate the DES code for it,change the simulated environment to unit-02." Ritsuko said.
"There's never been a cross-synchronization test between Shinji and 02 though ma'am." Maya reminded the doctor.
"I'm well aware,but there was indeed synchronization at the over the rainbow,so I'm hopping 02 will be more receptive to the DES with Shinji."The doctor said.
"Roger that, switching simulation environment to unit-2. Running the DES again and..success!Simulated combat effectiveness 7.6% lower than in Unit-01 without the DES however." Maya reported.
"Well,it's better than nothing,at least we know it's not an issue with Shinji himself, run the tests for the other units and then the full diagnostic."
A lance of pink energy left the rifle within the Atlas' hands,piercing through an empty truck and causing it to explode into a shower of flames.
"That was the lowest available power setting for the Dory type rifle." A male crew member reported.
"Impressive, what you lack in mobility it seems you make do with in the firepower department."The Chinese chairwoman spoke. "I suppose for now this demonstration is sufficient."
"I see, we thank you for your opportunity at allowing us to create the framework." Travis said politely,Tashiro nearly laughing at how terrified of the Chinese woman the man was.
"Sir,we're detecting some abnormalities within the system." One of the crew members reproted, Jonathan moving up and leaning in to see just what such 'abnormalities' were all about.
Standing in front of him was a yellow hex grid,save for it's central hexagon which was pure white and one of the ones in the corner which was oddly black. "This is the connection to Delphi isn't it?"
"Correct sir,we have an unknown element in up-link O-1" The bridge member reported.
"That shouldn't be too much of a problem."Travis said. "It's just one up-link out of 61, just leave it be and recover the Atlas into the facility."
And then,as if urged by his words,the black portion started to move. "It's infecting the other uplinks,it's growing rapidly, O-1 to 0-6 infected, A-1 through A-3 are also showing signs of infection."
"An infection?!" Travis asked dumbfounded. "Get Lumiese on call, do whatever you can to stop this."
"We're trying to quarantine the infection,it's not working!" The bridge member reported.
"It's spreading toward the center,it's aiming for Delphi!" Another bridge member commented.
"For the Delphi?!"Travis asked. "Whatever it is,don't allow it!"
"Sir there's no way to contain it,the only way we could do that was if we cut the up-link connections!"
"Then do so, the Delphi is a bigger priority!"
"We'll loose control of the ATF-00!" The man in question was promptly slapped.
"I TOLD YOU TO CUT THEM THEM DIDN'T I?!"Travis shouted.
"U-uh..y-yes sir!" The man said. "Cutting the uplink connections. Successfully cut!"
The central hexagon representing the connection to the Delphi faded away, the black hexagons however,continued to spread.
"It's growing faster. It's spreading out to other systems!"
"Cut the connection then,stop the reactor!" Travis demanded.
" It's not accepting our readings,not even the escape hatches are working,it's out of our control!" The bridge member reported. "The Atlas is heading westward,it's speed has increased massively!"
Mo Wei rose from her chair with a shake of the head.
"As of now this is under my jurisdiction..consider yourselves failed." The chairwoman said.
"Sir,we've received a report. From the long range wavelength scanners. An Angel's just been detected!"Hyuga said.
"An Angel,what's the probability?" Fuyutsuki asked.
"Magi says there's a 99.9999% possibility that it's a true report with a 0.00001% chance of it being an equipment malfunction." Aoba said.
"Very well,all personnel go into stage one alert, get the commander here as soon as possible and get the pilots into their units as well."
"Roger sir."
As Shinji,Asuka and Rei sat in the test plugs for the last hour they were quite quickly being used to the sensation of virtual nonexistence that such a state afforded,in a way it was peaceful,a small reprieve from their usually chaotic lives and a moment of peace and quiet.
"Shinji,Rei,Asuka. We've got an emergency." Misato's voice could be heard coming from the communications system.
"What's the matter Misato?"Shinji asked in a worry.
"We've detected the newest angel in western China,their government has made an official request for us to act before it reaches their more inhabited areas." Misato said.
"The Chinese gave us access to their mainland?"Shinji asked incredulous.
"After using roughly 12 N2 mines to no effect."Misato clarified, Shinji nodded, that made much more sense.
"Gott, why do the angels always have this kind of timing!"Asuka complained.
"Well, we must fulfill our duty." Rei said.
"We're gonna get you guys out of there and into your units in no time." Misato said.
In a small hotel room in Shangai,Travis Jonathan paced from one end of the room to the other,breathing nervously as he waited for the inevitability that would be Seele's goons knocking down his door at any moment, he wasn't even armed, he would go out with dignity,not trying to take down 50 men by himself and ending up all bloody and broken,he'd take a bullet to the chest and be done with it.
As he heard the knock on the door he was sure that it was them.
"Welcome gentlemen."He said,trying to sound as polite as possible. However, in truth, there were no gentlemen there,only a slightly under-height woman with headphones slung around her neck and a laptop in her hands. "Lumiese?!"
"You sound surprised for someone who called for me."The black haired woman said. "May I come in or will you gawk at me for another hour?"
Travis took a step to the side,allowing the girl to enter,immediately she went about finding an acceptable corner of the room and sat down there,starting up her laptop as she did.
"I-i thought you were in Greece?" Travis asked.
"I was,until someone called for me."She said,glaring at him. " What's the matter."
"The ATF-00 has been infected with some sort of Virus." Travis said. "It went from the up-links and tired to get into contact with Delphi before taking over the unit itself,we have no idea what's going on with it now."
"..."The woman just stared at him with an annoyed expression.
"What's the matter Lumiese,speak,say something!" Travis demanded.
"My name's Cecile,use it. And a virus?All you had to do was quarantine the primary infection point and shut off the unit before replacing the hardware,it shouldn't be that hard, how could you fail this much?" She asked,unceasing in her brutal honesty.
"We tried,it just broke through the quarantine processes like it was nothing,besides that it was going for the Delphi,no normal Virus could do that!"Travis said.
"It was randomly infecting software and hardware it was in contact with,it's got nothing to do with Delphi. It's probably a coincidence so stop being a retard,will you?" Cecile said, starting to type in her computer as she did.
"Well that's just offensive." Travis muttered.
"What's the password." Cecile asked.
"What?"
"The password for accessing the machine dumb-ass!" Cecile shouted, causing him to flinch back as he ran a hand through his hair.
"Kosmos,i think." Travis said.
"That's the weakest password I've ever heard,no wonder you got infected with a virus." Cecile said as she typed away, Travis moving around to her back to see what she was doing. "Like seriously,I'm pretty sure you could crack it just by guessing words."
The same hexagonal grid pattern of earlier appeared,this time fully black,a red lettered message saying 'Infection percentage:100%' was clear on it.
"This should be easy,all I need to do is delete all the data inside it's systems and it should stop moving. It'll be a few billion dollars down the drain but better than this." She typed away, 15 seconds later an error message appearing before her. "It's refusing the access code?!"
"See,i told it wasn't that easy."Travis said with a smile.
"This shouldn't be possible."She murmured. "There's nothing to refuse the code, even if the uplinks are infected they should still be receiving data. Unless this virus has re-written all the code inside the machine..."
"So any idea on what's going on yet?"He asked,She shook her head.
"I'm trying to access it's onboard logs,if I can see the data before the incident I might a able to discover just what's causing this problem." A few seconds of typing later and her eyes widened as she looked a the data.
"What's the matter?" Travis asked.
"These are manual inputs,they came from inside the Atlas itself." Cecile said.
"Strike betrayed us then..."Travis said as he bit his lip.
"No,the inputs are going at a rate of 12,000 per second. It's physically impossible." Cecile said.
"Then how are they being delivered?"Travis asked.
"It seems whatever this is it's infecting the cockpit as well,physically that is."Cecile said. "Fucking bothersome is what this thing is, give me an hour I'll figure out what it is."
"We have visual confirmation of the Angel's position!"Hyuga reported.
"Put it onscreen!"Misato ordered as the image of a weird mechanical looking machine with yellow lines running all along it's body appeared infront of them. "That thing...is an Angel?"
"As far as the Magi are concerned at least,yes." Ritsuko reported. "Thought they've also said that it's make up is 98% artificial and only 00.6% angelic in nature."
"That math doesn't seem to check out ritz."Misato commented,fearing the worse.
"It's likely that there was a pilot onboard when the incident happened,we believe this might have been the corruption of pre-existing hardware."Ritsuko said.
"Something like the Jet alone...but it looks much scarier somehow." Misato said.
"And unlike the former,it has an AT field,not a negligible one either." Ritsuko said.
"It seems like we're in a tricky situation."
XXXXXXXXXX
In his office, Gendo Ikari looked at the information on the holographic screen in front of him,his expression that of a displeased man. "This was not within the scenarios expectations."
"Yes."Fuyutsuki said. "To think that the Atlas would become such a large issue this early on, all because of an angel."
"The angel is irrelevant,what truly matters is that the society will gain critical knowledge on the nature of the AT field from these events." Gendo said. "This will catapult their own plans into action further than we had presumed."
"Are they a higher priority target than Seele?"Fuyutsuki asked.
"As it stands not yet,but they might become more bothersome than the initial scenario envisioned." Gendo said. "They were meant to be no more than a minor nuisance."
"Well Gendo,i suppose this is one opportunity for us change our plans into something more flexible." Fuyutsuki spoke.
"That is not necessary,the plan may continue,only the order of events will be changed." Gendo said.
"Is that wise,allowing those without a name to gain such a lead?"
"We have no choice, Nerv cannot prosper in a world controlled by the society,our end goal is much the same but the methods through which we will achieve it wildly different." Gendo said.
"The society is not yet awoken to the truth, that in of itself is a dangerous fact,they do not know of what is off-limits. There are rumors they possess the location of one of the nails." Fuyutsuki commented.
"Irrelevant,the nails are not part of our plans." Gendo answered.
"Even so, is it not wise to take a possible weapon off their hands?"Fuyutsuki asked,to which the commander shook his head.
"We cannot be everywhere,you most of all should know this Sensei. In the end we must make our priorities clear, and at the moment the fate of unit-01 is our largest concern." Gendo said.
"What about the other units?"Fuyutsuki asked.
"Irrelevant,00 will be destroyed, 02's soul is too passive for the plan to work with it,that leaves us only with 01."
"I'm sure the nature of who resides within Eva-01 has nothing to do with it." Fuyutsuki said, irony dripping from his statement.
"I will not lie and say it does not. However, even if this is not taken into account,unit-01 is the most wise choice." Gendo said.
"Of course,i will follow your lead. But you need to remember,the second might become more important than you envisioned."
"Unlikely."
Tashiro walked into a messy hotel room,cans of energy drinks littered about as two disheveled looking individuals huddle next to a laptop.
"I'm guessing I would be wrong in assuming you called me for leisure?"The general asked,Travis' eyes snapping up toward him as they did.
"Ah, General. Welcome,this is Cecile Lumiese,the society's head for engineering and sciences,as well as our greatest computer expert." The girl in question barely spared the general a look as she typed away at inhuman speeds.
"I would greet you but every second counts,Sorry for that." She said,her eyes glued to her computer screen and the tips of her fingers having lost their color from the repeated pressing against the keyboard.
"Not to worry miss Lumiese,i am not bothered." The general spoke.
"Call me cecile,add the miss if you want just not Lumiese,i hate it."She said,giving him an annoyed glance before returning her eyes toward the screen.
"My apologies,why is it that you wished to see me now?"Tashiro asked, giving Travis a curious look.
"We've discovered what was wrong." The woman in the room gave him an annoyed look. "She discovered what was wrong."
"Wavelength patterns,do you know what they are?" Cecile asked.
"I've heard they can be used to identify the nature of Evas." The General said. "But much more than that,no."
"Wavelenght patterns as dictated by metaphysical science are basically the metaphysical´make up of something,an inherent wave pattern. Nerv uses multiple codes to classify different patterns,for it's Evas Orange,for unidentified targets Red,for Angels blue." She said.
"And how did you gain access to information not even the JSSDF has?"Tashiro asked in genuine curiosity.
"I hacked into the magi of Nerv-6,they're utterly incompetent at that base but even so we can expect it won't take them more than a day to realize they've gotten their data stolen,i made sure to cover my tracks but they'll know someone did it even if not who. Back into blood type,as wavelength patterns are also called. When I checked the Atlas' mainframe,what did I notice,lo and behold; A weird discrepancy that wasn't possible to be done by a human, after a little bit of checking I managed to confirm that it's metaphysical blood pattern does indeed match what Nerv calls pattern blue."
"So it wasn't a programming error but instead an Angelic infection..perhaps the chairwoman will be kinder to us in such a situation." Tashiro said.
"That is if she hasn't sold us out yet,the whore."Travis said.
"Anyways, since we know the Evas are gonna get deployed,most likely to destroy the ATF-00,I'm deleting as much data as I can remotely to ensure they don't get access to it,I'm also getting as much info on the Angel's internal functionality as possible while I'm at it."She said,not taking her eyes off the screen her fingers off the keyboard. "If we can recreate an AT field,even if one that is significantly weaker than the Eva's then we'll have a fighting chance using our numeric superiority."
"Let's just hope that Seele doesn't discover us just yet then..."Tashiro commented.
"Eta until arrival is 20 minutes Shinji,how are you feeling?" Ritsuko asked Shinji as they overflew the Chinese mainland,the clouds seemingly fading from view as they entered one of the driest areas on the planet.
"I'm ready,my wound's mostly healed up and I've actually been missing getting into an Eva oddly enough" Shinji said.
"Well,you're a natural Eva pilot so it doesn't surprise me at all."Ritsuko said. "It's like my mother said,you were born to pilot Eva."
"Your mother was also obsessed over me,i wouldn't take her words about me for granted." Shinji joked.
"As a mother,yes. But as a scientist her fixation for you was for a completely different reason." Ritsuko said. Shinji looking out toward the window for a second.
"Do you resent me?" Shinji asked.
"What?"Ritsuko looked at him in confusion.
"For what happened with your mother,do you resent me?" Shinji asked,twiddling his thumbs.
"A bit when it happened,but not to the amount you might expect, what I felt most of all was guilt." She said. Shinji looked at her in surprise.
"Guilt?"He asked.
"Yes,that I had allowed things to go to that point,that I allowed her to become so deluded." Ritsuko said. "Sometimes I'm actually afraid I'm going down the same path she did."
Shinji his head. "You're not..she wanted to be my mother by force and that didn't work out for her because her love wasn't for me but for my father,you're different. You care about me,or at least I like to think you do."Shinji said.
"Are you saying you think of me as a mother Shinji?" The woman asked,somewhat serious.
"Yeah..in a way I guess that's it." Shinji said with a soft smile. " I know it's stupid, but you were there for me when no one else was."
"It's not stupid at all Shinji,if I didn't say I didn't feel something akin to motherly love for you I would be lying." Ritsuko said. Shinji gave a soft chuckle.
"Behind that cold exterior you're a really soft person,aren't you rits?" Shinji asked.
"Isn't everyone?" The woman asked,somewhat joking.
"Not everyone,not my father."Shinji admitted. "He cares,but even then,he is still cold."
"Don't resent him for that,he works for your sake as well." Ritsuko said.
"I Know he does, I don't resent him but...even so,sometimes a little affection would be nice." Shinji admitted.
The doctor got up and sat down next to him,bringing him into a soft hug.
"Ritsuko..."Shinji whispered.
"I know I'm not your real mother and much less your father,but I hope this can help." She said. Shinji sniffed slightly,nearly brought to tears. He hugged her back
"Thank you...thank you."
"It's okay Shinji...as your surrogate mother,it's my duty after all."
Loneliness,that was an emotion Asuka Langely Sohryu had chosen,she had chosen to embrace loneliness,from the start she had chosen to be alone,to rely on no one else but her own self. But even she, despite her best attempts at burying it, knew the truth.
Being alone hurt,it sucked in a way few things could and it made her feel even more utterly worthless. But no one cared for her,not Kaji,not Misato,not the commander or her father or the stupid doctor or anyone,not even the first chi-
"Please, Asuka, stay safe!" Those words,those words that haunted even her dreams played back once again in the depths of her mind. They were so earnest,so pure,his blue eyes showed the very truth of his soul to her,that despite how much she verbally abused him,and hell was that a lot,he still earnestly,deeply, truly didn't want her to die.
It confused her. No one had ever looked at her like that,like she mattered the world to them in that moment, not Kaji,not Misato,not her father and most certainly not her step-mother. She tried to bring up memories of her mother,to see if she had ever looked at her like that but that too brought up nothing.
It made her feel confused in a way nothing else had,three weeks ago those words had been said and yet they hadn't left her mind,neither had the way his blue eyes had locked onto her,neither had the slight tilt in his lips as he looked at her with the most honest smile he could muster, all of that was burned into not only her active thoughts but even her very subconscious.
Yes,even in her dreams the first child haunted her,her usual nightmares having been replaced by a different kind of 'nightmare',one where after he'd said those words the first child and she did unspeakable things together,waking up from those 'nightmares' was particularly embarrassing and made her thankful for the fact she had her own room.
How can this be happening...She thought,clutching at her head to try and push off the intrusive thoughts that inevitably came from remembering those dreams,no,nightmares!They were nightmares for sure! The only man for me is Kaji-san,not some stupid boy like Ikari!
"I hate this.."
Rei sat silently drawing in one of the many hallways of the gigantic air-carrier that overflew the Chinese mainland, the image in her lap was greatly detailed, it displayed the emotion she wished to put out and yet...and yet it bothered her,something about it simply seemed like it wasn't working.
"Hey Rei,watcha doing?" Misato asked as she walked by her,the girl in question sparing the Major a passing glance before looking back at the image she was drawing on her lap.
"I am drawing." Rei answered in her usually cold intonation,the Major replying with a slight chuckle.
"I Know that,i have eyes Rei."She joked. "I mean more what you are drawing."
"If you will not tell pilot Makinami,you may see." Rei spoke,serious in her words.
"My lips shall not utter a word to her." Misato said, Rei being able to tell that the major was sincere and showing her the picture.
"What...is this?"Misato asked. "It looks so sad."
"It is my attempt at capturing what resides inside the mind of pilot Makinami."Rei said. "She is hurt."
"How do you know that? If you don't mind be asking that is."Misato asked. Rei looked away,pondering her answer for a few seconds.
"I have a bond." Rei answered cryptically but apparently this was enough for the major to mistake her intentions.
"oh.."She said,going a bit red. " I didn't know you liked girls Rei,no that there's anything wrong with that or anything!"
Rei smile at this ,causing Misato's confusion to only grow.
"I did not refer to a special bond with pilot Makinami but rather to one with all of humanity."Rei answered. "And in that other matter,i believe the correct term for my preferences would be 'playing for both sides'."
"Did you just..."Misato said with an incredulous look. "make a joke?"
"Hmm...did I?"Rei's smile widened. "Perhaps I did."
Mari looked off into the distance, whistling as she watched the beautiful surroundings of the city known as Tokyo-3.
"Well, I wasn't expecting you to be here." A voice spoke from behind her. Mari turning her head around to face it, none other than Ryoji Kaji looking back at her. "Isn't Nerv in a level one alert."
"Aye,but since I'm technically missing I can't really go all the way to China, it was easy enough to fake the last battle but all the way there it would be too hard, besides puppy's healing up fine so it wasn't really necessary anyway." Mari said.
"Well,how are you enjoying your little vacation to Tokyo-3?"Kaji asked.
"Not being able to leave the geofront without a disguise sucks but besides that it's not really that bad, the other pilots are nice, especially Icicle." She said.
"Ayanami Rei?"Kaji asked. Mari nodding. "That's certainly not how I would describe her,she's been said to be a very cold person."
"The way I see it she isn't cold,just reserved."Mari said. "Reminds me of someone I used to know."
"Careful,trying to replace a hole in your heart with someone who acts much the same is bound to end in disaster." Kaji said, his tone dropping a bit as if sorrowful.
"I know..."Mari said. "But you most of all should know that it's hard to live with a broken heart as well,shouldn't you?"
The man nodded. "Of course, it's no doubt difficult, but replacing that person won't help you any. Just make you notice how much you truly needed them in the first place."
"But in your case it's not lost yet,your hope that is. My chances with Anastasia are gone."Mari said,her voice filled with uncharacteristic sorrow.
"I wouldn't say I really have a chance."Kaji commented.
"You say you don't,but that's just because you focus so much on your job,whether you want to focus on it or on that hottie of a major is your choice to make. I didn't get to make it." Mari said.
"I suppose that's the difficult of being an adult,the amount of decisions you get to make aren't liberating at all." Kaji commented. "How I would love to return to simpler times."
"Well,now there's nothing you can do so I guess you might as well try to bring back the feelings even if you can't bring back those same times." Mari said.
"Not replacing them but creating the same feeling from something new,is that what you want to do with Rei?" Kaji asked.
"Maybe,maybe not. I don't even know if she would be interested, it's not like I'm great at the relationship stuff." Mari admitted.
"Well,you never know." Kaji said.
"Yeah,i guess. But enough talking about me . What about you?"
"Me?"He asked. "I suppose I'm at a sort of dilemma in my life, I don't know where to go from here."
"Why's that?"Mari asked.
"I have a choice. Between choosing to pursue my affections for Katsuragi or choosing to unveil the truth I've been searching all this time,I've decided to keep it on hold for now,but I know I can't do it forever." Kaji said. "And I don't want to give Misato false hopes,she deserves better than that."
"You adults are so silly."Mari commented,causing Kaji to raise an eyebrow. "What's to say you have to choose one or another?"
Kaji looked at the horizon as well,thinking for a few seconds before giving a sort of amused huff.
"You've got a weird outlook you know that Makinami?" He asked.
"Yeah,i do. That's what makes my life so interesting!"She said.
"Maybe yours is the right outlook...what's to say I can't have both?"
"ETA until target T-minus 5 minutes." Hyuga reported. Misato looked at the feed to Rei's unit.
"Rei, Units-01 and 02 are running a few minutes late, you'll be deployed now and they'll join you later." The major said. "Think you can hold it off that long?"
Rei nodded. "I will do my best."
"Got it, Eva-00 drop!"
Soaring through the air,flying,or rather falling, there was something so odd about the feeling,it was much like being submerged in water and yet not.
The feet of the blue titan dug into the ground as it landed in a kneeling position,slowly rising,it's singular red eye marking itself on the target as the countdown clock started marking down to 5 minutes.
Slowly,perhaps more slowly than it could afford with the 5 minutes it was allowed the Eva rose to a standing position, this was a human foe, this was not just an Angel,but there was a living soul inside it. To Rei Ayanami who did not think she was worthy of the lives of animals, the reason as to why she did not eat meat, to this Rei Ayanami the life of a human was worth much,much more.
And yet she had to face a human opponent. For just not her own sake but the sake of the whole world as well, perhaps there was family awaiting this pilot home,perhaps not. Well,it didn't matter, ever since the moment he had been infected with the Angel he had become nothing more than a target. Even if it pained her.
The rifle in the blue Eva's hands rose as the Atlas slowly advanced toward it, the trigger seeming heavier than it ever had...and yet, she pulled it. Yellow danced across the sky,an unseen field causing the rounds to come to an abrupt halt.
"Do not deny us" The angel spoke inside the confines of her mind as their souls overlapped with each-other. "Man must live."
"Yes...and for that you must be perished." Rei answered within the confines of the Angel's mind,removing the knife from her left pylon as she did.
Her Evangelion advanced, the hybrid of machine and angel tossing aside it's rifle as it braced for the incoming attack,it cut into the mech's arm, sparks flying off as it dug into it's armor. The other arm moved backward and then forward,digging into the armor of the Eva and causing it to bulge inward. Rei made a desperate gasp for air as the fist connected, the knife in her hand loosing it's strength as she let go. And then,another strike,this one to the chin,sending the Eva upward and several hundred meters away,the blue titan that was the prototype unit rolling on the ground before finally coming to a stop with it's face on the ground.
"Unit two is already on the way,just hold on a little while longer!" Misato said over the coms,desperation in her voice as she had no doubt just seen Rei's unit be flung several meters away in a single attack.
As Rei willed her unit to rise she noticed the yellow fluorescent lines within the angel start to grow,spreading into it's arms as they did. Rei looked behind her,the sprinting form of unit-02 was already approaching. As the Angel grabbed it's rifle from the ground it opened fire against Rei.
A beam of pink light left the barrel,piercing into the chest of unit-00 and causing it to be flung backward as the power struck 0 seconds.
"Unit-00 has been defeated,it's synchronization ratio has fallen to 0%!" Hyuga reported to Misato as the woman in question looked at the far off advancing form of Eva-02 from the window of the plane.
"Got it."She said before turning on the comm systems and leaning in to speak into them. "Asuka, you need to be careful, we don't know what this machine and the Angel can do!"
Asuka willed her unit to move even faster, frustrated that she could not recreate the speeds she had while inside the test type unit.
She had heard Misato's words of warning but had opted to ignore them, if the stupid doll had been defeated so what? It wasn't as if the stupid girl was even a third as skilled as Asuka was,she'd probably just done some rookie mistake and gotten herself nearly killed.
'Like jumping into an angel and helping it breach into the geofront?' The self-loathing part of herself asked. Asuka shook her head,banishing that annoying little voice into the depths of her mind.
That wouldn't happen this time, this time she would win, she didn't need him to save her. She would prove that she was better than him.
The angel rose it's rifle,the same pink beam that had just felled Ayanami traveled toward her, Asuka stepping to the side to avoid the concentrated beam of energy. Her rifle rose, the trigger was pulled without a second's hesitation, a rain of lead and copper flew through the air,piercing into the great machine, blue coolant liquid flew out of it's 'wounds' as pipes were pierced,but soon the enemy fired back,once again the lance of pink light breaking through the air in her direction.
Asuka willed her unit into a sideways roll, the beam carving a trench through the ground as it's greatest power output was put to the test, as Asuka rose her rifle to fire once again the beam curved, giving her barely enough time to react. But react she did, ditching her rifle as she made her unit move into a somersault.
"Damn you!" Asuka cursed as her Eva's feet pressed against the ground,accelerating toward the angel at great speeds,she pulled back her fist for a mighty punch.
As she delivered the attack all she felt was metal giving way as the armor of Eva and Atlas met. She looked to see the damage,her eyes widening as she saw that her attack had been stopped by the Atlas' open palm.
"That's impossible!"Asuka shouted as the other hand of the Atlas grabbed on to her wrist, slamming her eva into the ground through it.
She screamed in pain as the sympathetic damage carried through to her,assaulting her nerves. The Angel then lowered it's foot onto the Eva's spine,stomping it with inhuman strength. Then,the fluorescent yellow lines that had come to fill across it's arm began to seep into unit-02.
"Unit-02 is getting corrupted,the Angel's spreading itself into it's left arm!" Maya reported with worry in her face to doctor Akagi,who leaned in to the microphone to speak.
"Shinji,you need to stop it. If it gains access to the Eva's life support system it will kill Asuka!" The doctor said.
"Acknowledged." Shinji said in a cold tone of voice,his eyes seeping pure focus and determination.
Asuka would be hurt,she would be injured. That was the one thing that ran through Ikari Shinji's mind as he willed his unit to move ever faster,the sound barrier being broken by it's advance. Asuka would be hurt..no,she wouldn't just be hur, she would die. That wasn't acceptable, maybe to his father, maybe to Nerv but not to him.
The wound in his shoulder flared in pain as he willed the unit into a jump,loosing speed quickly as the last 500 meters of it's voyage were spent in the air, even the Angel seemed surprised at his chosen method of attack.
Shinji held out his leg, it struck the head of the Atlas, breaking it apart into a thousand pieces. Using the now headless Atlas as a platform he jumped landing behind where the broken Atlas now stood.
For most it was a given that without a head the machine would stop working,but not for Shinji,he wasn't so naive.
As expected the Atlas rose once again,it's mechanical body taking a weirdly bestial stance as it turned toward him. Shinji didn't know how it saw him but he knew it did.
The countdown clock for his Eva running out of power struck the 2 minute mark, Shinji feared the worse,that he would have to aim for the core of the machine itself,the explosion here would be harmless to the population at large but...it would kill the Atlas' pilot,without doubt.
The feet of Shinji's unit crashed into the ground as he willed it toward the angel, as it swung it's fist to hit Shinji's eva he ducked under this attack,delivering a quick jab to the angel's stomach. Metal gave away to the Eva's fist but it seemed like this wouldn't be enough to damage the angelic beast. It's other arm reached out,grabbing the head of Shinji's unit and tossing him several dozen meters, his Eva falling on it's back.
The Angel commenced it's slow gait toward him,Shinji rolling on the ground as he made a tiny hop to get back on his feet. 1 minute 30 seconds of power remained.
Shinji removed the knife from his shoulder pylon. He advanced forward, slashing down at the Angel,the marks caused by Unit-00's own prog knife still clear on it, Shinji put the full weight of his Eva's body into the assault,sparks flying every-which way as he attempted to cut the arm off the mechanical angel hybrid.
"AGHHH!" With one last cry the knife broke through the arm,coolant flowing from the wound much like blood as it's arm was severed, with it's other arm the angel attempted to attack Shinji once again,the boy simply stabbing his knife into the Atlas' elbow and causing it's movement to be locked. With a heavy push Shinji caused the Unit to fall,moving atop it as he started to rip of it's central armor plates.
Need to get to the pilot,need to get to the pilot. Shinji repeated in his he had to do was get to the pilot and take them out,then he could kill the machine.
In a last act of desperation,the angel pulled back the stump of it's cut off arm and rammed it into the Evangelion's head. The shock alone being enough to cause Shinji to hesitate in his assault for a moment, a moment too long,using the stump of it's arm it brute forced the knife out of it's elbow before delivering a punch that sent the Eva flying.
Slowly it moved toward the now fallen Eva, as Shinji attempted to rise up again he was once more struck in the head,sending it rocketing back to the ground as Shinji cried in pain. The Angel continued it's assault, each strike causing the Eva's armor to become ever weaker,the pain increasing and Shinji loosing his grasp on consciousness.
His eyes drifted toward the hole in the armor,if he struck there,even with the measily power he could put into his knee in such a state,the reactor would no dobut explode,killing both angel and it's poor pilot.
"Shinji!"He heard Misato's voice cry out through the coms.
There was no other choice,not anymore. It was either that pilot,that innocent's life or Shinji's own,and thought it hurt Shinji he closed his eyes and rammed his knee into the hole within the armor.
"N2 detonation at the battle site!"Hyuga reported. "The reactor must have been damaged!"
"What,how's shinji?!"Misato asked in clear worry.
"We don't know,the interference from the explosion is still there, wait I'll lower us closer and get us a better visual!"Hyuga said as he gave the order for the pilot to move closer to the site of battle. "We've got a visual reading."
Misato leaned in, the only thing that could be seen the silhouette of Unit-01 as it walked out of the explosion, looking more like a demon than mankind's protector, it's gait was slow and heavy as it dragged the other two Evas through the ground alone with it.
"Mission...accomplished." Shinji said in a broken tone.
In a mansion within the Austrian alps a man with a pure white beard,large and equally white eyebrows and hair that reached until his shoulders despite his age looked at a painting,one of the most prized pieces of art of the 20th century,the work of Pablo Picasso.
"Sire."One of his servants spoke as he walked up to him, the older man's eyes drifting toward the finely dressed servant of his with a look of boredom.
"Yes?"He asked.
"We've received a notice from Shanghai,the Atlas project sir..it's been accepted." The servant said, a soft smile crossing his master's features.
"Good,the day of our plans will be soon then." He took a sip of the wine in his hand. "To cleanse this world of the foolish grasp of the UN and all others like them."
AN: A somewhat sadder chapter this time around, poor Shinji.