Taming the Beast
Summary: An error in the Space Bridge Project sends Coby, Lori, and the Convoys into the Eva Universe. Why are the Rumbles that Coby and Lori pilot so similar to the Evas? Is there a connection between the Angels and the Transformers? Will they survive?
Disclaimer: I don't own Evangelion or Transformers Galaxy Force, but they are interesting stories.
Author's Note: I do not like Kaji, so if anyone has any ideas on how to bash him, let me know. I don't like him because he's a real jerk in many ways, especially in the manga.
Oh, and just out of curiosity, can anyone guess what Rei is in this fanfic? (Do you have a Plan C?)
Chapter 11
My mind. Your mind. Our mind. One mind.
Who is the Will? We are the Will. Who is the Mind? I am the Mind.
I am Rei. We are Rei.
I exist here, and in them.
Here, I am active. There, I am not. My Will is not that strong.
They are me, and I am them.
I also exist there, in Unit 00.
I am the result of many experiments.
I exist, born from nothing. At one time, I wished to return to nothing.
But now, I believe I am seeing a new path; one that will free me of my burden.
From nothing the universes were made, like me. They live on, and so should I.
I will bear my burden, and fulfill my purpose.
My purpose is Eva. It is also with the boy named Shinji Ikari.
My first purpose was chosen by Commander Ikari, but I chose the second.
I made the choice; I will protect Shinji Ikari.
But what of Unit 01? Does it protect Ikari-kun?
What do you want from me when the Angels are gone, Commander Ikari?
What are you, Unit 01?
Who are you, Commander Ikari?
Rei heard Commander Ikari enter the Room of Guaf and talk to Ritsuko, but she paid no attention. Instead, she concentrated on the task at hand, reaching out with her mind as she floated in the tube.
She knew what was behind those walls. Sometimes, she wondered if the Commander knew what he had created using her.
"Rei, we're done here," Gendo said.
Relieved, she smiled at him, but it was a fake smile. She wondered if she really could trust him.
He has made this room because he wants me to do something after the Angels are gone. I must find out what it is.
As she was exiting the tube, Rei thought she heard someone softly whisper.
Sister.
"Can't you let me sit inside the cockpit when we land?" Kensuke begged.
"NO!" Shinji yelled. "Rumble would probably spit you out anyway."
"Aw!" Kensuke pouted. When he was invited to go meet the Second Child, he accepted just so he could see Unit 02. When he found out that Coby and Lori were the pilots of the Symbiocons, he immediately began begging Coby to let him try to pilot one.
"Our Symbiocons are just as sentient as you or me, Kensuke," Lori said. "Don't try and treat them like machines, because they aren't. And don't even think about trying to get inside one when we're not looking."
"I still don't see why you insisted on bringing them," Misato said, looking out the window of the helicopter to watch the two Symbiocons. There wasn't enough room on the chopper itself, so two lines were tied to the aircraft's skis. The Symbiocons were hanging on to these lines as they water skied across the ocean below.
"They've been stuck in the Eva Cages for a while, Misato," Coby said. "They need some time out of that place, or it's like locking a person in their house for too long."
"I have to admit, it's impressive that they haven't fallen once," Toji said. He had been watching the Symbiocons the entire trip.
"Misato," Shinji called, "I can see the ships."
Kensuke grabbed his camera, "Wow! Look at all of them! Look! That one there is Over the Rainbow, the pride of the entire fleet."
"And ready for the museum," Coby muttered. "That thing is a technological error. It's longer than is should be for its width. One emergency turn will capsize the whole thing."
Asuka Langely Soryu, the Second Child and pilot of Unit 02 watched as the chopper approached. She had expected Misato to come with the Third Child, as well as the pilots of the two smaller mechs. She didn't expect to see said mechs water skiing. As the chopper slowed to land, the two mechs jumped into the air, flipping over to land on the deck. Several crewmen braced themselves, but were impressed when the mechs landed without shaking the ship at all. They didn't even dent the deck, in spite of how high up they were when they jumped.
She turned toward the mechs as the chopper landed behind her, "Are you two going to stay in those things forever? I can't believe you two would do something as stupid as water ski here!"
Rumble tilted his head to the side in confusion before guessing that the Second Child thought his partner was inside him. So he opened his cockpit, showing that no one was at the controls.
Asuka backed away in shock. "Das ist… Das ist…"
"Unmöglich? Unglaublich? Fiktiven?" asked a voice. Asuka turned to see a boy and girl a few years older than her wearing matching silver-white uniforms with red emblems that looked like a robot face, helmets tucked under their arms. The boy stepped forward and spoke again, "Guten Tag. Ich heisse Coby Hanson, Symbiocon Partner, Mitglied des Cybertron Army. Sie ist Lori Sakura, meinen Freundin und Kollegen Pilot. Gerne Fleisch."
"You pilot those things?" Asuka asked, pointing at the Symbiocons behind her.
Coby nodded, "Yes. Rumble is my Symbiocon, my Partner. We're bonded on a mental level. Same with Lori and Hitomi. And by the way, you probably shouldn't wear a dress on any type of watercraft." He walked away with Lori to check on their Symbiocons, who were transforming to entertain some of the crew members. Asuka shook her head, turning to the task on hand.
"Hello, Misato," she said cheerfully.
"Hello, Auska," Misato replied. "You've grown quite a bit."
"Not just that, I've filled out nicely too," Asuka said, grinning.
Misato turned to the three boys, "Let me introduce you to Asuka Langely Soryu, the Second Child."
Shinji suddenly felt an urge to look away quickly. He did so, and was glad for it as he felt the wind pick up and two loud slaps. The wind must have blown her dress up. By the way those slaps sounded, she probably has more strength than…who?
Cyborus sighed in relief. He almost finished my train of thought.
"What was that for?" Toji yelled.
"The viewing fee. Quite the bargain, isn't it?" Asuka replied.
"It's overpriced. Here's your change!"
Shinji was very glad he had not turned back around.
Coby walked up to a yellow and blue helicopter and placed his hand on the side. "Live Convoy, is that you?"
"Hhoaaahhh!" the chopper seemed to yawn. "Coby? You woke me up."
"Sorry," Coby apologized. "I didn't know you were asleep. What are you doing here?"
"I was flying over the ocean, taking scans and doing reconnaissance for Galaxy Convoy. A lot of this universe's Earth is different from the one in our universe, so I was basically making a temporary update," Live Convoy answered. "I saw them loading Unit 02 into the freighter, and told Galaxy Convoy. He told me to stay hidden, but to stay nearby in case of an emergency."
"It's nice to know you're here," Coby smiled, patting the door affectionately. "Looks like the others are leaving. I'll talk to you later."
"It's nice to know you and Lori are here too," Live Convoy answered. "Between the two of you, there should be no problem if we run into an Angel."
The Admiral scowled, "I thought you were the leader of this Boy Scout Troop. Obviously, I was mistaken."
"Thank you for understanding, Admiral," Misato replied, trying to keep a professional appearance.
"Oh no," the Admiral continued sarcastically, "Thank you for bringing more children on board for me to baby-sit."
"Here are the requirements for the power supply," Misato handed him a folder, ignoring his sarcasm.
"I will never activate that toy at sea," the Admiral spat. "The Ocean is our jurisdiction. You will do as we say. I am not handing over that toy until we get to port."
Misato opened her mouth to reply, but Coby beat her to it. "Don't worry, Misato. If an Angel attacks, Lori and I can hold it off long enough for you to Court Marshal this arrogant fool." Coby's glare silenced the Admiral as he continued, "Admiral, conventional weapons are useless against an Angel. Even the Plasma Cannons on the Symbiocons can't penetrate the AT Fields they use. The UN Fleet can guard Unit 02 against anything else, but if an Angel attacks, you will have to rely on Unit 02 and its pilot in order to survive." Coby then walked away, leaving the Admiral beet red. As the Admiral opened his mouth yet again, Coby turned and silenced him, "Lori and I are never under the jurisdiction of anyone but our Soushireikan, unless he orders otherwise. If you want our respect, don't act like you just were."
Completely ignoring the Admiral now, Coby stepped up to the Captain of Over the Rainbow. "Sir," he said, bowing politely, "May my companion and I have your permission to use the sparring room on your ship?"
The Captain smiled, "Of course. So long as you're on this ship, all of you, you are allowed to use any facility you need to." He lowered his voice to a whisper so only Coby could hear and said, "And thanks for getting the Admiral of his high horse. He's more annoying than the Second Child. Don't tell anyone I said that."
Coby gave the Captain his thanks and left, with Lori, but not before stopping to grab Kensuke's camera and toss it out an open window, where it smashed on the deck far below. "Kensuke, what did I tell you about filming my girl's ass?"
Several people on the bridge sighed in relief, as Kensuke's camera and filming had quickly gotten on their nerves. Kensuke would wonder how he got caught for years.
In the ship's cafeteria, Lori was wondering how much longer they'd have to endure Asuka's constant comments on how good of a pilot she was. She has a really big ego. Reminds me of Flame Convoy before I gave him a dressing down. What's sad is that if I were to introduce the two, they'd probably get married.
"Well, looks like I get to see more than one familiar face," a voice said, breaking her out of her thoughts.
"Kaji!" Asuka squealed in delight. Lori immediately noticed Misato's face.
This can't be good. Either he's a relative she doesn't like, or a former lover, Lori thought. She didn't even consider the idea of Kaji being only Misato's boyfriend, judging by the state of her room.
"What are you doing here?" Misato growled.
"Taking care of the Second Child, since I'm her guardian," the unshaven newcomer answered as said Child continued to hang on his arm. "So, I finally get to meet Shinji Ikari, the famous Third Child."
"Famous?" the red eyed boy asked.
"Of course," Kaji chuckled. "Defeating three Angels, and no previous training; you've made a name for yourself among those of us involved with NERV."
"It was just luck," Shinji said, wishing the guy would leave him alone. Something about his dress just screamed playboy and traitor.
"Luck is part of your destiny, it's your talent," Kaji said.
"Luck is not a part of destiny, nor is it a talent," Shinji interrupted. "Destiny is created, not pre-defined, and natural ability is a talent. Luck is just an expression."
Kaji frowned slightly, annoyed that this kid would cut into his pep talk. "I suppose you're one of the pilots of those two uncontrollable robots?"
"He's Coby, I'm Lori," Lori said. "Our Symbiocons are not uncontrollable, just beings like you or me."
Misato grinned as she added, "And unlike you, those two and their Symbiocons don't walk around with their flies down."
Blushing, Kaji turned and corrected the problem before turning to Shinji, "I hear you are in the same apartment as Coby, Lori, and Misato?" Shinji nodded, and Kaji asked, "So, is Misato still wild in bed, or do the other two moan too loud?"
Everyone except Misato's three roommates yelled in surprise. Coby and Lori blushed, but chose to say nothing. Shinji suddenly acted as he heard someone telling him what to say. "She tosses and turns, occasionally laughing as she mutters something about making a guy pee his pants. Coby and Lori were legally married from where they came from, so I see know problem with them, especially since I can't ever hear them. They love each other, unlike you, whose unshaven beard, messy clothes, and bad taste in cologne suggest you change girls more than underwear." Where the hell did that come form? Shinji asked himself as everyone except Kaji and Asuka burst out laughing. Asuka looked ready to kill, and Kaji looked like he just had his whole life story exposed to the world. Coby and Lori didn't care that Shinji had revealed that they were married, as the entire school had known since their rings were spotted after the Fifth Angel. Lori now went by Lori Hanson at school, and the only other thing that had changed was that they were often allowed to ditch the occasional Heath class.
Cyborus smiled at his handiwork.
Looks like you're not such a klutz anymore.
Thanks, Lilith-chan.
Don't call me that! I'm still mad.
Would it help if I said sorry?
The last 2,341,233,542 times didn't. Stop saying it, and start showing it.
Yes, dear. I can't believe she's counting!
"So, what do you think of the Third Child?" Kaji asked.
"He's an idiot!" Asuka answered, glad everyone else had left. "So are the other two. How could they possibly be married? It's not right!"
"Well, there is the rumor floating around that they age slower than normal Humans because of what they do," Kaji said. "Their appearance, and the fact that they can't prove their age for some reason, is the only reason they have to go to school. They also say that the Third Child has a sync ratio of 80, but I doubt that. He did get over 40 the first time he piloted though."
"What?! That's impossible! Das Dumkopf…" Asuka's rant quickly became nothing more than various German curses.
I sense… I sense… NO! Destroyer! I destroy you! Will not have me! I destroy! Eat! KILL!
Resistance is futile, Child of Cyborus.
No! I resist! I reject! I Kill! Kill! KILL!
Toji watched with Kensuke, Misato, and Shinji as Coby and Lori sparred. His eyes were wide as they pulled of maneuvers, attacks, and acrobatics that would have killed a normal Human. "They're good," he whistled.
"Do you think they could build me a Symbiocon?" Kensuke asked.
Misato shook her head, "The Symbiocons were built from the remains of two separate parasite swarms form their universe. Rumble got his name from the name of the species. According to Coby and Lori, the Rumble Swarms were parasitic Transformers that ate everything in their path, Human, Transformer, and even entire planets. One swarm attacked the planet they call Seibertron, but were killed off by the Cybertron Army. Coby took pieces left over and created Rumble – kind of like Frankenstein's monster, except using mechanical parts – and an AI program he had been developing for years as a hobby. The AI eventually evolved to the point where it developed a Spark, or a Transformer Soul, and mentally bonded itself to Coby. Coby eventually built another one for Lori after a rather large swarm attacked the Earth in their universe and was fought off by both Transformers and Humans. Lori named her Symbiocon Hitomi, once it had evolved far enough to develop a Spark."
"So, Transformers reproduce by building themselves? Am I safe in assuming that Transformer mothers carry only the Sparks of their children?" Toji asked.
"Correct on both accounts; good reasoning," Misato nodded. "Coby told me that Transformers can't bear live young, and the bodies have to be built outside the mother for the unborn child, so they often recycle their own bodies after they die so that the next generation can live. It's a cultural thing from their universe, but not too far off from people who donate their organs after they die."
"Their universe sounds so cool!" Kensuke began to drool.
"They warned me that there are plenty of evil Transformers with more power than any of the Angels we've seen so far," Shinji said. "And personally, I'd feel out of place in that universe. I want to stay here, that's why I pilot the Eva, to protect my home, and this universe."
"What do you mean?" Misato asked.
"Galaxy Convoy told me that if Third Impact happens, not only will humanity die, but this universe will eventually cease to exist," Shinji answered.
"Hey! Third Child!"
Shinji turned, "My name is Shinji Ikari."
Asuka ignored what he said, "You're coming with me."