June 22nd 2015
GDI Central Command – Hammerfest - Germany
The room stank of cigarette fumes and sweat, it was filled with bodies from wall to wall of every possible rank allowed within such a command centre from the guards at the doors to the generals and commanders embedded deeper within and surrounded with their intelligence operatives and aides. It was a beating heart worthy of the military industrial complex, and yet every single human being was worth less than dirt compared to the single 14 year old girl sat at the outskirts.
Asuka Langley Sohryu watched in utter horror on the main display screens as the evens of Tokyo 3 unfolded before her.
The first Angel attack since Second Impact, half a planet away with absolutely no chance for her to be able to intercept it.
The first Angel attack since Adam, with one active Evangelion and one half-active Evangelion unit but no pilot in the single place where their, or rather "her" training could be of use.
The first Angel attack would have been the chance for her to prove her worth, and here she was in the depths of the Earth, entombed within an underground bunker in the Hades like entrenchment of the second most guarded GDI base on the planet and yet there was utterly nothing she could do.
It was a feeling of being beyond helpless, all she could do was stand and watch as the apocalypse unfolded in front of her whilst she adjusted her A-10 clips and straightened out her GDI gold uniform above the plug suit she had taken to wearing at every waking moment and continued to watch as a beast that she was completely, utterly and assuredly convinced she could pin down and rip to shreds without breaking a sweat was ripping through the best forces that the UN and GDI could assemble before it as if they where made from nothing more than tissue paper.
It was kind of pathetic really, she thought to herself as the creature began to take its first tentative steps after being struck with the might of every single ION cannon in the southern hemisphere.
With her university level education under her belt she attempted to calculate the sheer pounding that monster had taken. At first in terms of how much raw energy an ION cannon could output, then the combined output and the residual heat that such a pinpoint assault would surely create.
The numbers where outright horrifying.
The fact that the thing could even stand . . . let alone walk after those blasts was proof enough of it's threat . . . but where the hell was the Tokyo-3 EVA? Asuka knew that Tokyo-3 had 2 EVA units ready for combat but only 1 pilot, but even that 1 pilot should have been enough.
So where the hell was she?
Asuka frowned to herself as she looked back on her lifetime of training and realised it all amounted to nothing. Trapped here in Hammerfest she could do absolutely nothing to stop the Angel.
With nothing to hold back her anger all she could do was fume, and watch as SACHIEL took a step forward, and another.
And another.
And another.
Hell had legs, and it was walking.
Deep within the Geofront, magrail systems where being moved into position in rapid succession – the simple fact of the matter being that GDI officials had insisted early on in the entire systems design that fast transportation systems for both Infil and Exfil-tration by friendly forces was a priority.
So even as Shinji watched the convoy on it's dedicated platform dive deeper into the earth it was covered by hundreds, if not thousands of weapon systems that protected both the insides and outsides of the Geofront as the Magi system, guided by an hands of an EVA artificial intelligence directed the highest priority passengers to their destinations.
Eventually however, the givings of rank, priority and the highest of possible designations had to give way to geography, and the platform had reached a point where it could simply go no further – it had ridden a full half length of the underground arcology before it had delved deeper into the ground into a series of both hand and machine dug tunnels lined with machine milled steel which had been dotted with hard bulkhead points, checkpoints and hidden weapon hardpoints that the visitors had bypassed to reach their halfway destination.
Shinji alongside Misato and the GDI soldiers that had been his impromptu guardians stood out of the armoured personnel carrier into a realm of steel and titanium that hid a deeper world of machinery, wires and pipework.
A world within a world built entirely for war. The few who reached that conclusion would never know how close to the mark their intuition had been.
Many of the insisted changes that had been brought to the table by the military-industrial complex however had been a fast transit system throughout the entire Evangelion hangar and launch system, and the guests had found themselves directed by both human and MAGI/E.V.A guidance to a series of trams that lead them through the concentric yet asymmetric rings that formed almost every layer of the facility.
Disguised minutes passed until the group reached a point where the fast transportation systems could take them no further, the outer limits of the primary Evangelion storage bays.
All in all, Shinji Ikari would never learn the catch all term for what he found himself within until many months later, a single word that would come to contain his entire world of residence.
"Megastructure"
Before the group, another door split vertically and then opened horizontally into a vast cavern like space which was swallowed by utter darkness.
Following Misato, and followed in turn by McNiel and the few members of the original pick-up team that had been given clearance to guide their charge to this point.
The space before them seemed to be a single bridge made of the same metals as the rest of the base, a single pathway above a strange, almost reddish brown lake. This place smelled distinctly like spilled blood . . . or perhaps even dried blood, and Shinji could tell that something deep within his hind-brain was screaming at him to "GET OUT" and to "GET OUT NOW".
Misato and the others however continued forward and stopped as if everything in the world and everything in this place was completely worried and there was no need to be alarmed.
For just a few seconds Shinji had enough time to wonder what on Earth he had been shanghaied into. The moment of contemplation however was broken by the sound of footsteps in the dark. One was calm and heavy footed, the sound of plastic soled work boots, the other was shrill and hurried – the half jog pace of high heels on metal.
With the only source of light far above Shinji, Misato and McNiel in the room – the sounds of those approaching was accompanied by the sounds of chemical lights being snapped by the soldiers around them. The space dissolved into an obscure green glow.
Which is precisely when Shinji was startled by the glow bouncing off of the face which loomed over the entire group from one side of the bridge.
"This is Misato Kitsuragi, Code phrase "KINGUNDERTHEMOUNTAIN"" Shinji turned around and saw Misato call out loud to the oncoming footsteps.
"Ritsuko Akagi, Code phrase "GODISINHISHEAVEN" A feminine voice Shinji only just recognised replied
"Ignatio Mobius, Code phrase "POSSIBILITIESAREENDLESS" Came a male voice which again Shinji could have sworn he had heard before finished.
Then he realised – the other voices where the scientists from the video on the tablet computer – but before he even had time to ask any more questions. Two lights suddenly illuminated the space, followed by many more.
He looked up into the face of the gold and purple giant before him – the horn atop it's head, the RADOME which covered the left eye, the angular armour which had tapered to cover thick, heavy slabs of composite ablative/ballistic battle plates.
"Welcome Shinji Ikari, I'm sorry we could not have met sooner – but before you stands the ultimate man-made multipurpose fighting machine. The artificial combat cyborg system, Evangelion." Ritsuko barrelled off in front of him, as if she was reading from a script she had long ago prepared.
"The unit before you is Unit Zero One, Provisional Test Type" she finished with a note of proud flourish at the end before she continued "one of Mankind's many trump cards"
"This is my fathers work?" Shinji managed to reply.
"Correct" The voice he had not heard in many years said flatly. Above them all, in a far better lit gantry stood Gendo Ikari, with a slight frown upon his face.
"It has been a while" Gendo finished.
"Father . . . " Shinji managed to exclaim. His Aunt and Uncle had for many, many years been his carers, but not his parents. Before him, almost atop an indescribable distance was one of his real, biological parents – the man who had pushed him away without a word of explanation all those years ago.
Shinji couldn't help but look aside, the symbolism was obvious. The height, the weight of the reunion, the gravitas of the situation. Gendo Ikari had place himself atop his son in a position to dominate his every reaction.
The smirk that crossed one crease of his lip was unseen below.
"Prepare to sortie" Gendo Ikari said aloud, as if his word was law.
"Sortie?!" Mobius replied, the scientist had been working on everything within and without this very room for over a decade – but the thought of throwing a child into combat caused a gut punch reaction.
Misato Kitsuragi had the same reaction, only her many years of GDI training prevented her from saying it out loud.
Micheal McNeil also had a shot below the belt. He knew what he had to do, he knew why he had to bring Shinji here. He had the intellectual intelligence to separate what was happening here and why from the same experiences he had as a child when NOD had abducted him and his brother. The emotional intelligence however . . . ever fibre of his moral being was screaming at him to pull his service pistol and put a round clean between Gendo Ikari's eyes.
"What about Unit Zero Zero and it's pilot?!" Mobius pleaded. "You already know I despise having to use children even if we don't have a choice! But we've had years of training and testing, at least with her we don't have to go in blind!"
"There is no other choice" Ritsuko said beside him, his fellow scientist had obviously been included in the list of "need to know" information that he had not. The German scientist clenched as if he had been punched in the gut.
"Ikari Shinji-Kun?" Ritsuko addressed him directly "You must. No. You will pilot unit Zero One"
The tone of her voice left little room for argument.
He stared ahead, his gaze meeting one angular eye and one large, impersonal metal dais. The face of EVA-01 remained utterly impassive.
"Father, why did you call me here?" Shinji managed to utter at almost a whisper, unaware of the directional microphones currently picking up his very word, and even his heartbeat.
"For the same reason you are thinking" Gendo replied.
"So I'm supposed to pilot this thing? And fight the thing that's coming outside?"
"Correct"
"What in the hell?" Shinji managed for a split second of defiance "I haven't been trained! I don't know how to fight! I barely know how to fight off school yard bullies! Somehow a video on a tablet on the way here is meant to train me? I thought you didn't need me! That's why you sent me away!"
"I need you now. So I sent for you." was the flat reply Gendo gave him, no room for impertinence or argument in that statement.
"Why me?"
"Because no one else can" Gendo shifted his tactic, give to room for retort, give his son flat and simple facts.
"I . . . don't know if I can do this . . . " Shinji said aloud, not caring for who saw or heard "Up until today I had never seen or heard of this thing. Even the video was useless. I . . . DON'T KNOW IF I CAN!"
"We will explain it too you" A shift of tone and tactic on Gendo's part, not trying to meet the teen half way, but an attempt to get him to agree.
"No . . . I just don't know if I can do it!"
"If you are going to pilot it, do it now. If not . . . Leave!"
The military personnel in the room held their places, their impassive poses and facial expressions. Even if everyone in the room hated or wanted to fill Gendo Ikari full of holes, Shinji Ikari would never have known.
With an eclipse of unseen light and a blast from far, far above SACHIEL was starting to burn it's way through the levels of special armour in the city far above as a cross shaped explosion ripped it's way into the sky.
In the depths of the EVA pit all Gendo could utter was "So, we have been found at last" as the ground shuddered.
On ground level SACHIEL gave another blast, and another. The expulsion of it's hatred from deep within it's soul was given form as it burned away the city before it.
"Shinji-Kun, there isn't much time" Ritsuko cut in, as various status alarms went off and a voice Shinji did not know rattled off alerts about armoured bulkheads and fires.
"Pilot it" Misato told him, in a flat even tone. Shinji turned to face her and was met with a glare of pure hate. Again, the same hindsight of "megastructures" would fill in his gaps, she hated the angels with the very core of her being.
At the time however, Shinji Ikari simply didn't know this – and thought her hatred was directed entirely at him.
So he recoiled under her glare.
" . . . No . . . " He uttered as his head dipped and he shut his eyes to shut them out.
"Misato . . . I came all this way, but this is impossible!" He said as he continued to force his eyes shut to shut out the rest of existence.
"Listen. Shinji-Kun. We have been nothing but open with you." Misato said aloud as she lowered herself to a crouch "Why did you choose to come here?" The irony of the situation of course, was that he was conscripted and everyone in the room knew it. But if she didn't attempt to get through to him, everyone in the room and the rest of the planet may or may not be dead in the next half hour.
He opened his eyes and looked across to her, and then looked aside.
"Don't run away, Don't look away from me. I know it's hard, but you have to face your father . . . " Misato pleaded with him " . . . and more importantly, you have to face yourself."
"I know that! . . . I just don't know if I can do this! I'm not sure I can do this!" Shinji spat with vile self-hatred into his shoulder.
Barely a second passed as no one spoke, then Gendo broke the silence,
"Fuyutsuki, wake up another Rei"
"Can we use them?" The elderly man replied.
"So long as we have the latest backup and she's not dead"
"Understood"
One sound only connection closed, and another one immediately opened.
"Rei . . . the current backup is useless. We need you once more." Gendo spoke aloud.
"Sir" was the single word reply from an almost silent voice.
"Switch Unit Zero One's core to the L-Zero Zero type and reactivate it" Ritsuko yelled aloud, knowing full well she was under observation from the bridge command staff.
"Run the units Liquid Tiberium batteries through a half-cycle and ensure the system is ready for combat!" Mobius called out in unison.
"Roger, suspending current tasks and reactivating!" a feminine voice replied "Cycling Tiberium cells"
"Re-inserting command codes!" a third voice called through the intercom system.
"I knew it . . ." Shinji muttered to himself "all this effort and I was never needed" as the all too familiar images of his being left behind on the train station platform flung themselves into his mind once more.
His self-loathing was cut short however, by a distant rattling and the call of voices that where in person rather than through a speaker system.
From the same entrance Shinji's party had entered from a medical team came running with a gurney. Upon that gurney was a thin, gaunt but female figure in some kind of white and gold skintight suit, smothered from almost head to toe in bandages.
They barely slowed as they passed Shinji and the group, and for a split second he was the girls face – bandaged around the head and right eye, the remaining eye stared into the nothingness above. Stopping just past the head of the Evangelion as a set of retractable ladders lowered and met the storage tanks bridge, the girl rolled as best she could on the gurney and pushed herself upwards with shaking tension behind every breath as pain racked her muscles, and deeper pains joined from her very bones.
"Evangelion Pilot, Rei Zero Four. Reporting for duty" She hissed out through gritted teeth as she managed to push herself into sitting on the gurney through the pain.
The expanse rocked around them once again. Another blast from SACHIEL shook Tokyo 3's foundations. The gurney was caught in the artificial earthquake and Rei was sent tumbling to the ground, barely whimpering through the pain.
"Are you alright?!" Shinji exclaimed, running towards the stranger who was sprawled across the floor who was taking ragged breaths.
"Reporting . . . for . . du-" was all she managed to reply before the fire from her muscles and bones finally managed to break her will and she passed out in Shinji Ikari's arms.
He looked across to the gold and purple giant, and then to the girl in his arms as the thought processes failed and by pure instinct he drew a hand to see why it was wet.
The hand was covered in warm, crimson blood.
"What the hell do I do? I mustn't run away, I want to run away, Why shouldn't I run away?" his mind raced at what felt like a thousand miles a minute.
Resolve suddenly overtook the fear, he had no idea what he was doing or why – but he simply knew he should.
"Alright, I'll do it! I will pilot it!"
A moment from Scythe himself.
Oh shit this took too long to write, because alongside Arbiters and Harbingers I knew where I wanted the story to go, but no idea how to get there. Then we had multiple trailers for Thrice upon a time, and then it was due to release and didn't . . . and mass effect was announced to have a remaster, and Chimera squad came out and Covid 19 happened.
Well . . . you guys know the rest. So I'm taking this new chapter finally being finished as a win.
So until next time.
. . . Tarrah for now.