By all accounts, it started as a normal day.
I woke up at about half past 6am, had a quick shower, got dressed, packed my work and lunch bags, and headed out the door around 7:05am. Stopped by that little coffee shop, as had become part of my routine since my first day, and continued on to the Geofront. I took the elevator down, parked my car in the subterranean lot, got my gear on at my locker, and clocked in.
But even with all that normalcy, today was different.
Today I had a job. Well, one of two jobs, but the second I'll get to in a moment.
Today, we were going on a little excursion. An excursion to the United Nation's Pacific Fleet. Myself, Commander Katsuragi, and young Shinji Ikari, would be heading out, via aerial transport, to meet with the fleet, and pick up an important package.
A package that will no doubt further bolster our current forces.
A new Evangelion unit.
Now…
About that second job…
I was requested by Dr. Akagi to meet her in her office about an hour before the designated time that we were to leave. A whole hour seemed like a strange amount of time to keep me aside, especially with a trip like that occurring, so I really had no idea what to expect.
Of course, last time I followed Dr. Akagi under peculiar circumstances, I was scarred for weeks, so you can understand I was feeling a tad ill as we walked in relative silence towards the HQ's top floor. Where Gendo Ikari was.
"You want me to WHAT!?"
At first, I was certain I had misheard, or it was a joke. Just Dr. Akagi pulling my leg, for some inconceivable reason, in front of the NERV head. But when I expressed my confusion, all I received in exchange were questionable looks.
"Do you not understand?" Dr. Akagi's voice was firm, relaying clearly that this was, in fact, no joking matter. "I'll repeat, for clarity:"
"Second Lieutenant Matsuo Hatsuyuki, on this day of June 25th 2015, you are asked to hold custody over Evangelion Unit-02's pilot, Asuka Langley Soryu, until further notice. Upon acceptance of this guardian role, you will be presented with the honorary rank of First Lieutenant, and all the perks that come with that rank, including a bonus salary increase, specifically for the care of your ward."
I was dumbfounded. Where did this come from? What part of me made it seem that I was capable of handling a child?
"Do you accept?" The rough voice of Gendo Ikari called across the room. I didn't know what to say. This was a huge thing to dump on me at 8 in the fucking morning. Pardon me if I needed a second to process this.
My mouth was dry, but I eventually managed to squeak out a question. "Wh-Why me?"
Dr. Akagi smirked. "Simply put, you were chosen by MAGI. There were a number of factors, of course, but the most notable were your teaching license, and your closest living relative being a younger sister whom you, at a point in time, took care of. With all of that, you ended up fitting the necessary criteria. That's all there is to it."
The super computer, MAGI, was made by Dr. Akagi's mother, a genius scientist in her own right. She crafted it after three distinct aspects of her personality. NERV uses its guidance for a multitude of different things; making decisions like this being one of them, I suppose.
I was still significantly confused. I had a teaching license, and a younger sister, sure, those were facts, but my path as a teacher wasn't one I had ever made clear I was interested in following through on, and my relationship with my sister was…
"I'm tired of waiting. Will you accept? Or will we move onto the next person?" Gendo sounded irritated, almost like he had expected this answer to be an easy one from me.
My heart throbbed loudly in my ears. This was an astronomic responsibility, more than I thought I could handle. Leaving it to someone else would be the smartest move for me, no question. I could continue to put my all into my work, worry only about myself, continue to have these normal, monotonous, repetitive mornings that I've become used to. I could keep enjoying this life I was trying to live, free from the hassle that could come from sharing my apartment with another human.
But if that was all true… If I honestly believed that's what I wanted…
Then why did I accept?
"Heya, you all ready to go?" Commander Katsuragi appeared suddenly at my side in the hallway, jabbing me in the side lightly with the back of a pen.
I jumped, quickly forcing a smile. "Uh, sure am!" I even followed it up with a fake sounding chuckle. She didn't even take a second before leaning in to start studying my face.
"...nope. No, no, no. Something's up with you." She kept staring holes through my face as I backed away, chuckling all the while, before the cogs in her head clicked into the right position. "Ah! I get it! MAGI decided on you for the job, eh? I guess it makes sense for that to be this morning, huh. Now we're both 'Guardians'!" She giggled and raised her hand for a high-five, but I just blankly stared at her. After a moment, I just took a deep breath and exhaled.
She took her hand down and folded her arms, giving me a look of what I can only assume was pity. "It's not so bad, really. I didn't think I was going to be able to look after Shinji, but here we are! I think I've been doing pretty well, too." I had a mind to tell her Shinji was probably spending more time looking after her, but I kept my mouth shut. I had no idea of their actual home life, after all.
"...so this kid, Asuka. What are they like, or do you know?" I said this, but the response Katsuragi returned with just exacerbated my discomfort.
"She's… a colorful one. You'll understand what she's all about at a single glance, I'm certain."
The sly smirk she gave me whilst saying this was the most damning piece. What does that even mean?
"You've met them before, I assume?" We both began walking down the hallway towards the elevator.
"Oh yeah, I worked with her for a bit during my time in Germany." We stepped into the elevator, and the doors shut silently behind us.
"Ah, I see…" There was silence for a bit before Katsuragi's words registered.
"SHE'S A GIRL!? A GERMAN GIRL!?"
Katsuragi had calmed me down before the elevator reached its destination, luckily.
As it turns out, yes, while it didn't click immediately, Asuka Langley Soryu was, in fact, a girl. She was also a quarter German, and she grew up in Germany, however, she was also a quarter Japanese, and could speak it quite well, so, good news: no language barriers for me to trip myself with.
I feel like this was information that Dr. Akagi should've given me, but I guess she thought the first impression would be enough. Katsuragi did say a first glance would tell me everything I needed to know, so… we'll just have to see how that goes. I still wanted to give Dr. Akagi a piece of my mind when we get back.
Shinji was already waiting for us at the top. He was sitting in a waiting chair next to the helipad exit, absorbed in his cassette player while looking at his feet. His head popped up as we passed next to him, he quickly removed the buds from his ears and looked between us. "Misato, a-are we leaving now?"
"You betcha! An adventure on the high seas!" Katsuragi giggled confidently, flicking her beret and giving the two of us a wink. "Onwards!" Pointing a folder of papers she held in her hand towards the sliding doors, we exited the building.
The whipping winds atop the highrise made my knees shake. I hated the feeling, like any moment I'd be swept up in the current, but I made it safely to the large, olive drab colored transport helicopter. While Katsuragi talked with the pilot, I helped Shinji strap into his seat.
"The belts are pretty confusing on these things, huh?" We both laughed softly. The young boy looked up at me after all the connectors had been fastened.
"Thank you, Lieutenant Hatsuyuki." Sheesh, maybe I do understand what Katsuragi meant by saying I made her feel like an old lady, calling her by rank and all.
"No problem."
The rotors began spinning faster as Katsuragi and I strapped in. After a couple hand signals from the pilot, the aerial transport began its ascent from the platform, and just a few moments later, we were soaring over the endless, blue ocean.
"Incredible. It's not everyday you get to see a sight like this…" I stared out the window, like a child window-shopping for toys, my eyes lapping up every detail. Shinji just nodded, staring out his window at the sea's expanse as well.
"You got that right." Katsuragi spoke softly, taking a sip from a flask she had hidden in her jacket.
"...Commander, we're still on duty." I informed her, knowing she was fully aware. She kicked me hard in the shin and took another sip.
We arrived on the deck of the Over The Rainbow at about quarter to 10. The sun was starting to beat down hard, but the wind of the open ocean took some of the bite off, making for a quite relaxing setting. Would probably be pretty easy to find a good napping spot, if I tried, I thought to myself, but a sudden sharp voice eclipsed that thought.
"Hallo, Misato! How have you been?"
I turned to face where the voice came from. About 6 feet in front of us stood a young woman, a little taller than Shinji. Her skin was fair, and her sharp, blue eyes were locked forward onto Katsuragi's. The yellow sun dress she was wearing whipped lightly in the wind, her long auburn hair flowing with it. She had both her hands planted firmly on her hips, and she wore a cocky grin with an impressive amount of deftness.
Could this be who I think it is...
"Oh, I've been fine, you've sure grown since I last saw you!"
"Danke! Though I haven't only gotten taller, my figure has filled out as well!~" The young girl beamed, proud of her achievements.
"Well." Commander Katsuragi turned to Shinji and myself. "It's time I introduce you both to the pilot of Evangelion Unit-02, the Second Child, Asuka Langley Soryu!" Asuka did a small curtsy before striding closer to us.
She looked closer at the two of us standing off to the side. "Ah, ich bin neugierig, this is the Third Child?" She stepped towards Shinji, with Shinji taking a cautious step back.
"Correct, that's Shinji Ikari, pilot of Evangelion Unit-01. Ah, we should get a move on to speak with the Captain. Shall we?" Katsuragi started walking towards the ship's bridge.
Before Asuka turned to join her, she squinted at Shinji, looking him up and down. "Mein Gott, du bist nicht sehr interessant." With a bored look on her face, she huffed a quick breath before trotting off. After a few moments, Shinji, looking quite bemused, cleared his throat.
"She, uh... seems like a handful, doesn't she."
All I could do was laugh softly in painful retrospection. "You hit the nail on the head, Ikari."
The bridge was far busier than Central Dogma was at any given time. I guess the pick up of Unit-02 really sent the fleet for a loop.
The Captain of the Over The Rainbow was a stern looking man of his early 60s, complete with a bushy white moustache and an admittedly cool hat. He made no attempt to disguise his look of displeasure at the sight of us. "I really must thank NERV for sending me more children to look after here today." He growled, his sight directed towards myself and Shinji.
Katsuragi kept her smile with ease. "Trust me, we do appreciate your assistance in this matter greatly."
"Hmph." The older man blew air out of his nose loudly, centering his eyes on the lady. "Yes, transporting an oversized toy! What a fantastic use of our resources!"
I saw Katsuragi's eye twitch, but only for a moment. "In any case, considering the Eva's importance, I do have forms here I'd like you to sign as soon as possible." She held out the folder she had held under her arm since we left the HQ. The older man didn't break eye contact with her.
"I will not be signing anything until we dock at Shin-Yokosuka and unload this cargo, not a moment sooner. The 3rd branch in Germany requested that Unit-02 and its pilot remain in our custody until then. You will not do as you please out here!" He spoke his defiant words quite loudly, he must really like his own voice. However, I could tell Katsuragi had something up her sleeve.
Her smile still hadn't dropped. "That's all well and good, but you should be aware by now that, under the current laws laid out by the UN, in an emergency, NERV's authority exceeds your own. Forms?" She flapped the folder in her hand towards him again in reiteration.
The Captain's face began turning red with rage, and he opened his mouth to say something (likely expletives), but was cut off by a younger, smoother sounding voice coming from the door next to us.
"My, my. You're as gallant as ever." A tall, scruffy-looking man in casual business wear stood smiling from the nearby entryway. He flashed a smile straight at Katsuragi, who looked like she was… about to puke. Pretty clear to say they know each other.
Asuka had been relatively reserved the entire time on the bridge, absentmindedly playing with her hair, or sizing Shinji up with disapproving looks, but at the sight of this man, she lit up and ran over near him. "Oh, Kaji!~"
"Kaji, may I ask you, again, to not invite yourself onto the bridge?" The Captain turned his frustration towards the new guy, as he scratched at the back of his neck and offered a quick apology, still keeping his eyes trained on Katsuragi. Commander Katsuragi dropped the folder in the Captain's lap and started pushing the lot of us out into the entryway Kaji had come from. We nearly all toppled down the stairwell just outside it.
"Well, if you'll excuse us, Captain!" She called back to the bridge, as we descended hurriedly, deeper into the ship.
After a terribly crowded elevator ride down, we all found places to sit around a table in the dining area. I kept trying to get a read on Asuka, but I was like a ghost to her, I don't think she intentionally made eye contact with me once since we arrived. That didn't bode well. Katsuragi angrily ripped the tab off a soda can, her face scrunched as she tore the relaxed, smiling face of Kaji apart with her eyes. "What are you doing here, anyway?"
Kaji leaned forward in his chair. "Well, I have some business to attend to, and I was watching out for Ms. Soryu. Pretty simple, really." He turned his attention to Shinji. "Anyway, to talk about something other than work, I hear you've been living with Misato, eh?"
The young boy shuffled in his seat a bit. "Um, yes, That's right." Asuka raised an eyebrow.
"Wonderful! Does she have a boyfriend yet?"
Shinji was about to say something when Katsuragi butted it. "Last I checked, that was none of your business, mister!" She rocked her chair back and took a sip of her drink.
"Oh, well, then let me ask a different question: is she still crazy in bed?"
Asuka let out a shocked yelp, staring at Kaji with a horrified look on her face. Meanwhile, Katsuragi spit her drink, peppering the floor next to the table. Shinji didn't look too bothered, but I couldn't help but feel I was a bit out of place here, so I just chuckled lightly, feeling my ears turning hot.
"JUST WHAT ARE YOU TRYING TO IMPLY, HUH!?" The Commander was standing now, leaning over the table into Kaji's face, but he kept his grin and shot a look at Shinji.
"I suppose she hasn't changed at all, wouldn't you say, Shinji Ikari?" Kaji chuckled.
Shinji chuckled in agreement, but his face began to look a bit puzzled. "H-How do you know my name, Mr…"
"Kaji. Ryoji Kaji, and it's no surprise I know who you are. You've become quite famous in the defense industry, you know." I noticed Asuka's face starting to turn a bit sour, but Kaji continued. "The Third Child; the kid who piloted an Evangelion without any training, and made it back safely no less!"
Shinji began shuffling again. "Ah, I-I was just lucky, is all."
Kaji smiled. "You call it luck, I call it destiny." I turned my attention to the Commander, who had been mumbling to herself with her head in her hand for the past minute. Kaji noticed and poked in my direction next. "You better pick her up if you're planning to, because if not, I'll be the next one in her ar-"
Her hand slapped down hard on the table, making all of us jump. "DON'T you have SOMEWHERE else you can be?". The scruffy man looked at his watch.
"Ah, yes, I suppose we should get going." He looked at me again, locking eyes with me. "I feel like I'll be talking to you again pretty soon." He glanced towards Asuka before shooting me another look. The two got up from their seats and headed off through the same entryway we came in from. Katsuragi let out an exasperated groan and deflated onto the table.
"This is a nightmare. It has to be." She spit her muffled words as Shinji and I exchanged worried looks.
"...it may not be my place to ask, Commander, but who exactly was that guy?" I didn't want to upset her again, but that seemed impossible.
She bolted up onto her feet, tossing her soda can across the room. It bounced off the wall with a light ping and fell into a bin (an impressive shot). "A jerk, that's who!"
After that… ordeal, the three of us began touring around the ship. I engaged in small talk with the Commander to keep her mind off of Kaji, who seemed to be giving her a lot of troubles, but it really did seem like a hopeless battle.
Before long, Asuka appeared again out of nowhere in front of us. She walked straight up to Shinji, taking him roughly by the arm. "Third Child!" She yanked him along. "I have something to show you." They disappeared around a corner, with Shinji's words of confusion fading quickly into the distance, before either Katsuragi or I could get a word in, leaving the two of us alone in this corridor.
"That's Asuka for you. She can be a flighty one, but she's usually pretty well behaved. Honest." The Commander smiled at me, but I just scratched the back of my head.
"I don't know." Inside, I was still unsure of the whole thing. "Who knows if we're even going to get along?" Misato frowned as we continued walking.
"Thinking like that certainly isn't going to help it work out, that's for sure."
"I know, but it's hard not to think that way. It's a big change to my life, thinking about how it'll all work out is only natural." She shrugged slightly as the two of us exited onto the deck, Katsuragi stretched her arms and leaned over the railing, soaking in the sun and breeze.
"Hey, I have a question." This was curious.
"What about?"
"Why you never call me Misato, even after I've ordered you to. What gives?"
I let out a sheepish laugh. "I'm sorry, I just didn't take any of those orders seriously."
She turned around to face me, opening her mouth in shock. "How dare you, all of my orders should be taken to the… highest amount of seriousness!" She puffed her cheek out, crossing her arms, and leaned back against the railing, giving me a very judgmental look. "I'll order you again. Call me by my first name."
"...so you're serious now?"
"Dead serious, duh."
I hesitated. It felt strange to even think about referring to her in such a casual way. How much she reminded me of my own sister made the strangeness even worse. Was it really that big of a deal, calling her by her first name? Would that make us… friends, then? Why was I so hesitant? Her finger began tapping on her arm, like I was on a timer. I closed my eyes and cleared my throat.
BOOM
An explosion ripped through the air, sending waves crashing against the side of the ship. As I struggled to keep my balance, I looked in the direction it sounded from. I saw flames and smoke off in the distance. One of the fleet's ships must've been hit by… something.
"Well, save it for later, Lieutenant, we got a fleet to save!" She popped past me with a grin on her face. I rushed after her. She was heading towards the bridge.
"Special delivery! Incoming from NERV, all the strategies you could ask for on this unknown enemy, at your service!~" Even with the bridge in chaos, trying to find out just what had happened to one of the fleet's ships, Katsuragi stood just as she did at Central Dogma, like she was ready to bark orders to the Eva. It was good to see the Captain's face hadn't gotten any less red since we left last.
"What the hell are you doing here, can't you see we're engaging in combat!? Authorized personnel only!" The Captain spat his words into Katsuragi's face, but she just flashed her NERV ID and winked. He looked like he was about to start punching something, when Katsuragi walked toward the windows.
"Seems like it is an Angel…"
The Captain ignored her, calling out to the officers on the bridge. "ALL HANDS, FIRE AT WILL!"
I spoke up. "Pardon me, Captain, but if this is an Angel, regular ammunition won't pierce its AT-field. You'll just agitate it." His head pivoted to glare at me as another ship went down, causing our own to shake violently. I noticed Katsuragi scratching the side of her head.
"...why would an Angel be here… Have they started seeing the Evas as threats, or...?"
Another ship went up in flames.
The Captain banged his hand on the armrest of his seat. "Why won't this thing die!?"
If they were easy to kill with guns, we wouldn't need the Evangelions, I thought to myself. I almost said it aloud, but I held back.
With the noises, I could tell the creature was getting closer. Not that it was subtle about it, considering the ship carcasses it was leaving in its path. I walked up to the glass to see if I could get a better look at it, but there was nothing but smoke and flames topping the water's surface at this point.
"Is it looking for something?" Katsuragi seemed pretty deep in thought, studying the waves.
The PA system on the bridge clicked on, and a frantic voice on the other side began yelling. "Captain, Unit-02 is activating!" The Captain jumped to his feet.
"Gah! STOP ITS START-UP, NOW!" He screamed into his microphone, but Katsuragi's hands were fast, yanking it from him.
"Nevermind them! Go get it, Asuka!" She yelled. She seemed almost giddy, wrestling with the Captain for control of the mic.
"This ship is under MY jurisdiction! I won't have you disgracing my authority today!"
"Who gives a damn about your authority! This is an emergency!" The two continued to fight as Unit-02 stood up, a couple ships over. I pressed myself up against the glass to get a better look. Its sleek, red skull poking out from a heavy, brown tarp, like a cloak on a superhero.
"So that's Asuka's Eva?" I called back to Katsuragi, who was still trying to yank the mic out of the Captain's hands. Before she could answer, a voice from the PA system answered for me.
"It sure is!~ Impressive, right?" It was the voice of Asuka Langley Soryu. Technically this was the first time she had acknowledged me, but there were other cases of priority right now. For one, Unit-02 wasn't equipped with the diving loadout, it just had its basic B-type weapon set. I reached between the two still-squabbling adults behind me and grabbed the mic myself.
"With that equipment loadout, you'll sink to the ocean floor if you're careless."
"Ugh, I'm aware!" The young girl's voice barked back. "All I have to do is not fall in, right? Easy."
"I-Is it really going to be easy, though?" I wasn't expecting to hear Shinji's voice coming from the other line too.
"Wait, Ikari? You're in Unit-02 as well?"
"Yessir. Somehow." That was worrying. I remembered back to when Shinji had to take those two boys into his Entry Plug during his second battle. The interference with his mind made Unit-01 almost unusable. This could be…
Katsuragi broke away from the Captain and grabbed the mic from me. "TAKE OFF, ASUKA!"
That was that.
Unit-02 shot into the sky, just as the ship it was standing on was turned into a flaming wreckage by the Angel that still lurked beneath the waves. It came down to perch on another nearby ship, nearly tearing through it itself just by landing. Asuka's voice crackled back through the PA. "Misato, can you get the emergency power supply ready? I'm almost out of juice here!"
"You leave it to me!" Katsuragi tossed me the mic again and began calling orders to the crew around her.
"How are we going to get over there?" I heard Shinji's voice coming through.
"How else, we're going to play a little game of hopscotch."
"H-HopscAUGHH!?" Unit-02 stood upright, and with little room to prep, it began bounding across the tops of the fleet's vessels. After a few hops, it tore it's cloak off to reveal it's lithe, bright red and orange body. It certainly made an impact, visually. It was also coming straight for us.
An officer called across the bridge. "Brace for impact!"
"This is insane!" The Captain put a hand over his face and sank to the floor. Unit-02 crashed onto the flight deck of the Over The Rainbow, nearly tipping us into the water. We all held on for our lives, and luckily, Unit-02, using its weight to counteract, pulled the other side of the ship back to proper level. The Captain wasn't pleased with any of this, but at least he had quieted down.
"We need to hurry, it's coming straight for us!" Shinji sounded panicked, though luckily, Asuka was cool as a cucumber.
"Switching to emergency power source." She spoke calmly, attaching the plug to the back of Unit-02. "The Progessive Knife should be enough to handle this job." The Evangelion reached up to its shoulder holster, removing the knife and extending the blade. It was a different design than Unit-01's knife, but I suppose that was to be expected.
Wait, was she planning on shanking an underwater Angel to death? Didn't she hear me when I told her to watch out about getting in the water? Should I just trust her judgement on this?
It was heading straight towards Unit-02, but the Eva stood still, looking for its opening. The Angel broke the surface, revealing a portion of its body. More ivory bone-like material, but that was all I could make out from here. The most notable aspect right now was its speed. It was closing on Asuka, and doing so quickly.
As the creature launched itself from the ocean, Unit-02 swiveled on its heel, dropping the knife in the process, catching the giant thing by its head. Or, at least, what I think was its head. It was gigantic, almost the size of the ship's entire flight deck, with the back half of a fish, and a nearly indescribable front half. The side of the ship began to give way to the weight of the combatants, and they both plummeted into the deep. Shinji's scream came loudly across the PA, but nothing from Asuka.
I yelled into the mic. "What's your plan!? I said fighting it underwater is suicide!"
"Well, you know what they say: you never know until you try!" Cocky girl. I watched helplessly as the emergency power cable loosed itself more and more off the side of the ship. The cable began pulling in the opposite direction then, whipping across the flight deck of the ship, taking the remaining jets that were onboard into the ocean with it.
Katsuragi yelled to the Captain "How much cable is left?"
The Captain stayed quiet, huddled in the corner, clearly defeated by the circumstances. His first mate answered instead "About… 1200 meters."
"We'll just have to make that work."
Shinji's voice came back over the PA "We're not gonna last much longer if we don't do something!"
"Verdammt!" Asuka grumbled under her breath.
I looked down at the cable's spool. "Shit, it's about to run out! Hang on to something!" I barely got the warning out before the ship jolted forward, knocking half the crew to the floor, and the mic from my hand.
There was stillness for a moment. The Angel must've let Unit-02 go. As I pulled myself to my feet, the two pilots began squabbling.
"You just sit there and watch, I'll finish this thing no problem!"
"But you have B-type equipment, the Eva isn't going to have an easy time moving down here."
"Well if you're so knowledgeable, then come up with a plan!"
"M-Me!?"
"Of course! You are the famous Third Child, aren't you!?"
"I- HERE IT COMES!"
The cable tugged at the ship hard again, lurching it forward. One of the crewmates called out that Unit-02's signal seemed to now be directly inside the Angel's.
"It… ate them?" The cable zig-zagged over the side, rocking the boat. I grabbed the mic up off the floor where I had dropped it a moment ago. "Hey, you two are okay down there, right!?" Asuka's snippy voice shot back, which gave me a rush of relief.
"Oh yeah, we're just wonderful. All snug and cozy BETWEEN ITS TEETH, der schwachkopf."
Shinji piped up. "It does seem like we're stuck here. I'm moving the controls and all we're doing i-"
"Hey! Get out of my lap, pervert! Don't you have any respect!?"
I heard some shuffling from their end. I scratched my head. "Damn it, we may as well just be fishing at this point!"
"Fishing…?"
I wasn't expecting Katsuragi to pick up on my comment, but her expression shifted to one of joy. "There's an idea!" She yanked the mic back from me. "Asuka! Don't let go of it! I've got a plan!"
"Huh!? Fine, but you ask that like I have any control over what it does right now!"
"A point-blank assault by the two surviving battleships!?" The Captain was appalled by the notion of Katsuragi's ballsy plan.
"Correct. We send out the two remaining battleships, evacuated, of course, to sink next to the Eva's power supply cable. As soon as they're in position, Unit-02 will force the Angel's mouth wide open, in goes the battleships, and we remote activate every gun they have on offer before we switch on their self-destruct sequences, hopefully blowing the Angel sky high, just like blast fishing!" Commander Katsuragi sure was impressive, she came up with this entire plan in just a few minutes, off a single prompt from my dumb comment.
The Captain, however, was less than impressed. "That's absurd! You're out of your tree!"
She flashed him a grin. "Absurd? Yes. But it's a game plan where we have a shot at actually winning. You don't need to be a genius to understand that a 1% chance to succeed is better than a 100% chance of losing, right?" The Captain clenched his fists tight and bared his teeth, before relaxing slightly.
"...fine. Do what you need to do."
The signal was launched for all hands to evacuate the two remaining battleships, and the remote function set them both in line with the power cable.
"You understand the plan, you two?" Katsuragi spoke quickly through the mic. It was soon showtime.
"All we have to do is open its mouth, right? Piece of cake!" Even at a time like this, Asuka had her eyes on the prize, with nary a bit of pessimism in her voice. She and Shinji were like day and night. I couldn't help but smile to myself. Maybe it won't be that bad afterall, living with her.
The two battleships began descending into the sea.
This was the moment of truth.
"Reverse the cable!" Shouted Katsuragi across the bridge. She had taken command of the entire operation with surprising gusto. Even after her plan of rerouting Japan's energy to a positron cannon, I was surprised with her ability to plan these attacks with such accuracy and foresight. She really was amazing. Far more amazing than me.
As the power cable was forcibly reeled back onto the ship, the Evangelion, along with the Angel attached to it, were yanked from the depths towards the descending battleships.
"Asuka, we need to open its mouth, hurry!"
"I know, I know! Meine güte, do you ever shut up!? The sooner we're out of here, the better!"
"Works for me!"
At the last possible moment, the two pilots yelled out, working in tandem to force the Angel's jaw wide open. The bows of both battleships crashed into its gaping maw.
Katsuragi took a deep breath.
"FIRE!"
A moment of silence caught me off-guard, before a split second of rumbling preceded an explosion of seawater and blood, splattering down across the decks of the remaining ships in the fleet, and with it, Unit-02 landed triumphantly on the Over The Rainbow.
For just a brief period, that is, before crumpling into a pile.
The Angel had been exterminated, and the Evangelion had made it back safely.
An overwhelming success.
The Over The Rainbow was still a couple hours from port. With the crews of the remaining vessels working tirelessly to repair the necessary functions of the damaged areas, I was given leave by Katsuragi.
While it felt like it took forever, the battle with the Angel only lasted about an hour. Luckily, that is. Any longer, and Unit-02's cable could've been severed, or the Angel might've gotten bored and went searching for a new toy to turn into a wreckage. We got off easy, and it was all thanks to Commander Katsuragi's quick thinking, and the piloting skills of Asuka and Shinji.
Why was I here?
I had started aimlessly walking the tight corridors of the ship to relax, and it was working, kind of. I guess I was only here to inform Asuka of her new living situation, but was that really all? I didn't feel like I contributed much. A deep sigh left my lungs, as a voice called out behind me.
"Hey kid, fancy meeting you here." The arm of Mr. Kaji draped itself around my shoulder as he removed a smoke from his mouth.
"H-Huh? Mr. Kaji?"
"Please, just Kaji is fine." He winked at me as he guided me around a corner. Up ahead seemed to be an exit onto the flight deck. "So, I heard about Misato's little stunt. Good thing it worked, eh? She's always been a bit of a spitfire, which ended up making her perfect for getting things done right in tense situations."
I opened my mouth to comment, but he quickly followed up on that.
"I also heard from a little birdie about how Asuka will be living with you from today on." He took a puff of his smoke. "That should be exciting, you should feel honored."
"Honored?"
"Oh, of course. She's a delightful young lady, as long as you stay on her good side, of course, much like any woman. How old are you, anyway?" Another puff. I hated the smell of cigarette smoke. It reminded me of my uncle.
"Uh, 22, sir."
"Sure, you're just a spring chicken in your own right." He gave a small chuckle as we reached the exit. His arm around my shoulders lifted, but his hand placed itself on the small of my back, giving me a light push over the bottom of the exit door. I was a bit shocked, to say the least, and I was going to turn around and say something to him, but I quickly understood why he did it.
Standing about 20 feet away, leaning against the railing, was Asuka. Absentmindedly kicking her feet underneath the rail, I noticed she was back in the yellow sundress she had been wearing earlier. I gazed at her for a minute, not really sure of how to approach her.
"Yeowch! Hey!" I heard Kaji's voice behind me and dodged at the last second as he tripped forward, nearly wiping us both out on the deck. Commander Katsuragi stood in the doorway with a devilish smile painting her face, lowering her leg from, what I assume was, a kick.
Asuka spun to see what the commotion was behind her, her face screwed up into a confused look as she walked over. Kaji brushed himself off and began reaching down to pick up his smoke, but Katsuragi's foot was faster, crushing it into the deck. She pointed backwards to a "No Smoking" sign near the door and Kaji's face dropped. Then, nonchalantly, with a smile, she walked over to Asuka, a clipboard in hand.
"Hey, Asuka. You did really well out there today."
Asuka beamed. "Right? I had to pull out all the stops so Kaji could see me at my best in real combat! Any mistakes, I blame on stupid Shinji's interferance."
Katsuragi tapped the clipboard. "The data you gave us will really come in handy for the future." She began to hesitate. Turning quickly towards me, she nodded, then turned back to face Asuka. "So, Asuka, honey. I have some news for you about your, uh… living situation in Tokyo-3."
Asuka's face returned to the confused look again. "Living situation? I just assumed I would be staying with Kaji."
Kaji raised his hand. "Sorry, kiddo, no can do. I'm going to be jumping around from place to place still, so I can't be around to look after you. Oh, and I can't just leave you alone in my apartment or anything." He chuckled a bit, and Katsuragi shot him an unamused look.
The young girl scratched her head. "Well, if I'm not living with Kaji, then I guess I'll just be staying with you, right Misato?" Misato let out a nervous giggle.
"Well, that... would be complicated. Shinji is already living with me right now. Has been for the past month and a bit. "
Asuka clenched her fists. "So what, because you can't kick him out, you're gonna tell me I have to live on the streets or something, is that it?"
"Oh, no, we have a place for you to live." Kaji winked as he and Katsuragi turned to me.
I could feel my face getting warm. Asuka looked back and forth at the two adults on either side of her before her eyes settled on me in the middle.
One second.
Two seconds.
Three seconds, it felt like an eternity.
"WHO THE HELL IS THIS GUY!?"
She nearly shattered by eardrums with the yell, but she continued. "Wait, so now you're just pawning me off on some mechanic or whatever? I thought you said I did good today! Doesn't that get me any say in this at all!?" Yup, just what I had feared.
Katsuragi sighed "Well, why don't you just introduce yourselves to each other. That's how any good relationship starts, right?" She put her hands on both of our shoulders.
Asuka stared at me angrily for another few moments before also sighing. "Fine, if this is just another challenge I need to face, then I'll do it." She looked me up and down, taking a step forward when she was finished. She was barely up to my chest in height, but her personality made me feel like I was the small one. "Asuka Langley Soryu. That's my name."
I gave her the most honest smile I could muster. "First Lieutenant Matsuo Hatsuyuki. It's a pleasure to finally meet you properly, Asuka." I held out my hand. She gave a small grin and clasped my hand in hers, shaking it firmly.
"Ah, wie langweilig, you're not much to look at either." She sounded annoyed, but still had a smirk, so she was probably just testing me for a reaction. I kept my smile, albeit through clenching my teeth.
After a moment Misato cleared her throat. "You'll also be interested to hear that Matsuo was in communications with you during the Angel fight earlier!"
Asuka's face soured a tad. "Ugh, so you're the jerk who wouldn't get off my back about underwater fighting." I gave Misato a look and she just shrugged, looking down at her clipboard.
"Uh, great success! Now, Asuka, just so you know, all your stuff has already been moved into Matsuo's apartment while he was out here." Katsuragi placed her clipboard under her arm with another nonchalant smile.
...wait, WHAT!?
"Now hang on a second, no one told me about th-!" I started, but Katsuragi shushed me. I really, really have to learn to read between the lines.
Asuka giggled and gave me a playfully sly look. "Wow, and I have a lot of luggage too! Hope you have a big place.~"
I don't.
The ship docked. The cargo unloaded. The Evangelion was transported back to NERV headquarters by Katsuragi and Dr. Akagi.
I was left with a quiet taxi ride back to my apartment with my new housemate.
She just stared out the window, a slightly disconcerting look across her face. I understand this wasn't the best of circumstances for her, she expected to be in the care of Kaji or Katsuragi. She's unfamiliar with me, and I'm not really too sure on how to breach a conversation with her yet. We both rode out the trip in silence.
"So, which floor are we going to?"
"Third, uh, fifth door down."
"Ugh, wie lästig." I had no idea what that meant, but she didn't sound too happy.
I opened the apartment door and flicked on the lights, only to be greeted by the wondrous sight of about 30 sealed cardboard boxes of varying sizes covering my floor. Asuka's face, however, lit up.
"Oh wow! Misato wasn't kidding, they really did just break in and drop it all off in your living room. If I were you, I'd be pissed." She chuckled, stepping around every box on her way to my hallway. "Hey, if you could put some of these in my room, I'd really appreciate it, danke~." I heard my bathroom door slide shut and the shower turn on.
Unbelievable.
Well, no use crying over it, may as well get started. It was only fair. I lifted the boxes, one by one, into the spare bedroom. It was a bare room, only a single bed-frame and mattress, with a small side-table next to it. White walls, grey carpet, one window, ceiling fan. Not that my own room was immaculate or anything, but still. It took about a half hour, but eventually, they all fit in neatly.
"Ahh, das fühlte sich großartig.~" I turned to find myself facing a steaming, towel-wrapped Asuka, who was patting her hair dry with a second towel. She peered in and surveyed the room. "Oho, you finished faster than I thought you would've. It'll need a lot of work, for sure, but you can take me shopping tomorrow to pick up what else I need, right? Oh, and your hot water's out." She walked past me into the room, slamming the sliding door of her room shut behind her. She cursed in German before starting a mini-tirade. "Why do the doors here always have to slide!? Do the Japanese feel the need to get rid of privacy altogether for some reason!? Are locks such a foreign concept!?"
I took a cold shower and contemplated what exactly happened today. It felt like I had ridden a rollercoaster. Or twelve, and now I had a short girl with a short temper living in my tiny apartment. So much for laying low, I was responsible for one of our three Evangelion pilots now. Keeping her safe, fed, educated and happy was my job now, along with my maintenance work. At least Misato told me NERV handled getting her info setup for joining the local school, so there shouldn't be any problems there, I just had to be sure to get her in on time tomorrow morning...
...Misato?
That was the first time since I met her that I had referred to her by her first name, even in my head. I chuckled to myself. I must be tired as hell.
Or maybe I was finally starting to move on from feeling empty all the time...
Author's Note: Asuka arrives! This chapter was a lot of fun, I hope you all enjoyed it. It was originally going to be two chapters, but I decided to keep it as a single one as to not mess up the flow of the story.
From here on, there'll be a significant amount of downtime just focusing on Asuka and Matsuo, so really, now's when the real story begins. You'll also notice I cut Toji and Kensuke from this part of the story. That is, unfortunately, a result of semi-adapting Raising Project, as neither are present during the battle there. Apologies to the fans of them (I like them too!), but alas, that's just how it be sometimes.
I'll be back before long with the next chapter, stay tuned!