Chapter 01 - EVA-04
Tokio-3, at school, two weeks later
"Today EVA-04 will arrive", Shinji mumbled, trying to start a conversation.
"Yes." Rei answered monotonously, but at least this was some kind of success.
Asuka looked up to the clear blue sky.
Lets just hope that the pilot is no mutant like baka-Shinji or Wondergirl she thought.
They are sitting within a large tree´s shadow during lunch-break. A bit farther away Touji
and Hikari were sitting, holding hands. One of Touji´s legs was still bandaged, about a week
ago he had returned to school after having been amiss for quite a while, walking on crutches.
He had told them that he had fallen down the stairs, and classrepresentant Hikari Horaki had
felt the urge to help him.
Rei knew that the story was a lie, but she had no reason to talk about it.
Asuka was thinking of Kaji and sighed.
"What´s up?" Shinji asked.
"Nothing, baka."
"Gomen."
Yes, yes, gomen, gomen, gomen... always gomen. Sometimes he is the kind of doll Rei is.
Asuka suppressed another sighing. She had seen a part of the new pilot´s file at Kaji´s
bureau.
Wolf Larsen from Germany, finally somebody who speaks my motherlanguage. I thought
EVA-04 to come from the united states, but there seems to have been an incident...
***
NERV-HQ
"The transport with EVA-04 has started from the main land as planed", Maya Ibuki read the
last radio message.
"ETA?"
"As planed in about three hours, Major Katsuragi."
Misato Katsuragi, tactical offiver of NERV, nodded. After the destruction of the original
unit four together with the complete american branch another unit had been completly
assembled at the german branch and the only available pilot would arrive with it this
evening.
Lets just hope that there will be no problems.
Of course fate had planed other things than fulfilling Misato´s wishes...
***
Asuka and Shinji were on their way home, when their cellphones started beeping, telling
them to come to headquarters.
The two teenagers started running...
***
The angel´s form resembled a fastly rotating top, it had suddenly appeared at the city´s
western border, and moved through the lines of defense without problems.
Another line of defense was prepared at the city´s edge, but probably it was only able
to buy them some time.
The attack-record´s slow-motion showed that the angel had eight eyes, each of them firing
a concentrated energy beam, and a large main eye on the top, it´s fast rotation produced
a very effective defense.
Misato was already preparing a plan to stop the engel when was told about the children´
arrival. Immediatly she open a comlink to the hangar.
***
Asuka was just entering the entryplug of EVA-02. Of course Rei had already arrived at
headquarters before them, of course she had already worn her plugsuit...
Little miss perfect...
"The angel is passing the defenses at the city´s edge!" Misato´s voice came via radio.
"We will send all three units to intercept it. I am transmitting all available data to
your tactical computers."
"Pff... child´s play" Asuka commentated the picture appearing on her screen. But she
wasn´t feeling quite as sure as she acted.
How shall we get close enough to pierce the AT-field?
"All armories between the start-shafts and the angel are open."
"I suggest attack-pattern C." Rei said.
´I suggest attack-pattern C.´ - Wondergirl, when did you start to think with your own
brain?
"Accepted", Misato answered. "EVA-00 and EVA-02 will fire at the angel from the sides
and draw it´s attention, while Shinji does a frontal assault from above and neutralizes
the AT-field."
"Why can´t I..." Asuka protested.
"Because of Shinji having better reaction-times." Misato disrupted any further diskussions.
"Initiate start-sequenz."
On the screen the countdown started, when it reached ´0´ the EVAs were launched.
"You know, where a armories and maintenance-cables are. Good luck."
The three EVAs started moving westwards...
***
"The transport plane shall take course at Osaka-2", Gendo Ikari´s voice sounded through
the commandcenter.
"We can´t afford EVANGELION-04 damaged before it´s first mission."
And what about the pilot? If the plane gets damaged the only thing to come to the ground
in one piece would be the EVA.
Misato didn´t spoke her thoughts.
***
Above the clouds:
"We shall take course at another landingplace", the pilot told his passenger.
"Why?"
"An angel is attacking Tokio-3."
"Stay on this course."
"But the orders..." the pilot started.
"Ignore the orders, the radio is jammed. Stay on the original course but fly at an lower
height. Prepare to open the cargobay above the combat area." the other voice seemed to
be used to give orders.
"Aye, aye, Lieutenant-Commander."
Behind him the cockpit´s door was opened and closed, then the screens showed the hatch
of the cargobay had been opened and closed.
Good luck...
***
EVA-00 und -02 were armed with positronriffles, they had already arrived with unit one
at the city´s edge where angel just crushed the final defensebatteries.
"Damned... it´s so big..." Shinji mumbled.
The angel was as large as an EVA but hovered above the ground.
"Stop cursing and take your position, baka!" Asuka shouted.
"Yes." Shinji answered with a hint of submission.
Why do I let her do this do me?
Shinji made his EVA climb a house, careful watching out of stay out of the angel´s sight.
The building moved under the EVAs weight a bit, when Shinji finally cowered on the top
and drew the progressive-knife, preparing for the jump.
Meanwhile Rei and Asuka were firing at the angel from two sides, the positronbullets
destroying anything within their path, finally hitting the angel´s AT-field.
Lightning danced an the field´s surface, but it wasn´t pierced.
The angel slowed down, suddenly it moved very fast into Rei´s direction, for a moment
the energybeams seemed to become one when it increased it´s rotation, hitting EVA-00 with
all it´s might.
Rei sceamed...
EVA-00 stumbled backwards, crashing into a building, pulling it down.
"Ayanami... REI!" Shinji screamed.
Bloody bastad... if she´s got hurt again...
His EVA reacted at his anger and gave a loud challenging shout.
Shinji jumped from the roof of the building towards the angel, the knife readied to deliever
the deathstroke.
But during the jump the maintenance cable snapped, robbing some of the jump´s strenght.
As a result the jump was shorter than planed, the knife´s blade scratched over the AT-
field´s surface, finally pierced it, when the EVA´s AT-field came into contact with the
angel´s, but missed the maineye, hitting one of the other eyes instead.
Shinji tried to gain a hold on the still rotating angel to escape the energybeams.
His scream ended in a gargle when he started to fight with his lunch.
***
Misato hit her forehead with the open hand.
Damned, damned, damned... No radio-connection with unit one anymore... What now?
"Asuka..."
"I can´t fire, or I will hit unit one... let it go, Shinji!"
"Major, EVA-04 is on the screens...!"
"What?"
Then she saw it herself, coming from the northwest the transport approached, it´s cargo
clearly visible in the holding clamsps - a deep black EVA unit with red stripes running
down by the sides on it´s body and red marks on the joints. Another screen showed the
pilot´s lifesigns.
Didn´t they got the order to change course?
"Transport is descending!"
The holding clasps were opened...
The internal-energy downdown started at three minutes.
EVA-04 fell...
... spread it´s arms, pulled up the knees...
... it´s two pairs of eyes started glowing...
... from within each hand three progressive blades came...
... with activated jetpacks it moved into position...
... attacked the angel...
... missed...
***
"Larsen..." Gendo Ikari whispered with anger. But he couldn´t tunr his gaze from the
main screen and the EVA unit with his son within.
***
EVA-04 hadn´t hit the main eyes with it´s claws, but it had pierced the angel´s AT-field,
that has been weakened by EVA-01´s presence, slid down the angel´s side, but didn´t try
to gain a hold like unit one.
Shortly before touching the gound with it´s feet it attack once again, carving the claws
of both hands into through the angel´s armored skin.
Blue fluids, not unlike blood, came from the wounds.
EVA-04 pressed the feet against the ground to slow down the rotation...
***
Shinji regained consciousness, the world was still moving before his eyes, his stomach
revolted, within the entryplug it stank and his lunch was moving within the LCL.
That´s embaressing...
He looked at the internal energy countdown. Just a minute of activity left...
The angel stood still.
Shinji pulled the knife out of the minor eyes and slashed out against the main eyes,
once, twice, three times...
Die! Die! Die!
He still heard Rei screaming.
... until the EVA ran out of energy.
It had been enough, the angel burst.
Suddenly Asuka´s red EVA appeared, grabbed unit one and four and pushed them away.
Behind them the angel´s remains exploded.
A comlink from unit four was opened, but no picture appeared on the screen.
"Thanks for the rescue."
Asuka didn´t know the voice, she only knew that it had to be the new pilot´s.
So manly, like Kaji´s.
She blushed.
"Is Rei okay?" Shinji asked without addressing anybody in particular.
At the commandcenter Misato looked once again at the still unreadable data from unit zero´s
entryplug, but just before she started to answer, EVA-00 rose from the rumble.
"Light damaged... and a bit of dizzyness." Rei´s voice came from the loudspeaker, not as
monotonous as usual but still far away from being that of an ordinary human.
Ikari-kun was angry at the angel... He was worried... because of me... Do I mean something
for him?
The same moment EVA-04´s energy countdown reached 00:00:00.
And within the entryplug the pilot shut down all systems manuelly...
***
The scavaging of the four EVAs didn´t take a lot of time, since Asuka and Rei were still
connected with maintenance and now connected the cables to EVA-01 and -04, too.
One after one the four giants moved through the empty streets of Tokio-3 towards the
launching-bays and were carried into the geofront.
Shinji left his entryplug as fast as he could to look after his comrades-in-arms.
Next to him Rei was climbing out of the hatch, still staggering, a large bruise on her
forehead. At once he was by her side to support her, nearly pushing a medic and a tech
from the catwalk.
"Are you okay, Rei?"
She looked at him with her red eyes.
"You called me Rei... not Ayanami...?!"
"I... gomen, Ayanami..."
"No, it´s okay. I like it... Shinji..."
She blinked. And smiled... Just a moment and specificly only the corners of her mouth
twitched a little bit, but he was able to read it.
"Thank you. Thank you for thinking of me."
And who thinks of me? Asuka thought angryly and with a bit of jealousy. Maybe if I
bang my head against my EVA´s surface, just a little...
Then she looked at unit four where two techs had opened the hatch of the not completly
ejected entryplug and the pilot was climbing out of the hatch.
And her jaw dropped.
***
Somewhere
(the typical secret headquarter, it´s nearly completly dark, only the silhuetts of the
some people can be seen within the light emanating from a large screen.)
"It seems that Agent Seraph has reached the NERV-headquarter", a man´s voice commentated
the pictures of EVA-04 slowly disappearing in a launch-shaft.
"His mission must succeed. Prepare for stage two."
Tokio-3, at school, two weeks later
"Today EVA-04 will arrive", Shinji mumbled, trying to start a conversation.
"Yes." Rei answered monotonously, but at least this was some kind of success.
Asuka looked up to the clear blue sky.
Lets just hope that the pilot is no mutant like baka-Shinji or Wondergirl she thought.
They are sitting within a large tree´s shadow during lunch-break. A bit farther away Touji
and Hikari were sitting, holding hands. One of Touji´s legs was still bandaged, about a week
ago he had returned to school after having been amiss for quite a while, walking on crutches.
He had told them that he had fallen down the stairs, and classrepresentant Hikari Horaki had
felt the urge to help him.
Rei knew that the story was a lie, but she had no reason to talk about it.
Asuka was thinking of Kaji and sighed.
"What´s up?" Shinji asked.
"Nothing, baka."
"Gomen."
Yes, yes, gomen, gomen, gomen... always gomen. Sometimes he is the kind of doll Rei is.
Asuka suppressed another sighing. She had seen a part of the new pilot´s file at Kaji´s
bureau.
Wolf Larsen from Germany, finally somebody who speaks my motherlanguage. I thought
EVA-04 to come from the united states, but there seems to have been an incident...
***
NERV-HQ
"The transport with EVA-04 has started from the main land as planed", Maya Ibuki read the
last radio message.
"ETA?"
"As planed in about three hours, Major Katsuragi."
Misato Katsuragi, tactical offiver of NERV, nodded. After the destruction of the original
unit four together with the complete american branch another unit had been completly
assembled at the german branch and the only available pilot would arrive with it this
evening.
Lets just hope that there will be no problems.
Of course fate had planed other things than fulfilling Misato´s wishes...
***
Asuka and Shinji were on their way home, when their cellphones started beeping, telling
them to come to headquarters.
The two teenagers started running...
***
The angel´s form resembled a fastly rotating top, it had suddenly appeared at the city´s
western border, and moved through the lines of defense without problems.
Another line of defense was prepared at the city´s edge, but probably it was only able
to buy them some time.
The attack-record´s slow-motion showed that the angel had eight eyes, each of them firing
a concentrated energy beam, and a large main eye on the top, it´s fast rotation produced
a very effective defense.
Misato was already preparing a plan to stop the engel when was told about the children´
arrival. Immediatly she open a comlink to the hangar.
***
Asuka was just entering the entryplug of EVA-02. Of course Rei had already arrived at
headquarters before them, of course she had already worn her plugsuit...
Little miss perfect...
"The angel is passing the defenses at the city´s edge!" Misato´s voice came via radio.
"We will send all three units to intercept it. I am transmitting all available data to
your tactical computers."
"Pff... child´s play" Asuka commentated the picture appearing on her screen. But she
wasn´t feeling quite as sure as she acted.
How shall we get close enough to pierce the AT-field?
"All armories between the start-shafts and the angel are open."
"I suggest attack-pattern C." Rei said.
´I suggest attack-pattern C.´ - Wondergirl, when did you start to think with your own
brain?
"Accepted", Misato answered. "EVA-00 and EVA-02 will fire at the angel from the sides
and draw it´s attention, while Shinji does a frontal assault from above and neutralizes
the AT-field."
"Why can´t I..." Asuka protested.
"Because of Shinji having better reaction-times." Misato disrupted any further diskussions.
"Initiate start-sequenz."
On the screen the countdown started, when it reached ´0´ the EVAs were launched.
"You know, where a armories and maintenance-cables are. Good luck."
The three EVAs started moving westwards...
***
"The transport plane shall take course at Osaka-2", Gendo Ikari´s voice sounded through
the commandcenter.
"We can´t afford EVANGELION-04 damaged before it´s first mission."
And what about the pilot? If the plane gets damaged the only thing to come to the ground
in one piece would be the EVA.
Misato didn´t spoke her thoughts.
***
Above the clouds:
"We shall take course at another landingplace", the pilot told his passenger.
"Why?"
"An angel is attacking Tokio-3."
"Stay on this course."
"But the orders..." the pilot started.
"Ignore the orders, the radio is jammed. Stay on the original course but fly at an lower
height. Prepare to open the cargobay above the combat area." the other voice seemed to
be used to give orders.
"Aye, aye, Lieutenant-Commander."
Behind him the cockpit´s door was opened and closed, then the screens showed the hatch
of the cargobay had been opened and closed.
Good luck...
***
EVA-00 und -02 were armed with positronriffles, they had already arrived with unit one
at the city´s edge where angel just crushed the final defensebatteries.
"Damned... it´s so big..." Shinji mumbled.
The angel was as large as an EVA but hovered above the ground.
"Stop cursing and take your position, baka!" Asuka shouted.
"Yes." Shinji answered with a hint of submission.
Why do I let her do this do me?
Shinji made his EVA climb a house, careful watching out of stay out of the angel´s sight.
The building moved under the EVAs weight a bit, when Shinji finally cowered on the top
and drew the progressive-knife, preparing for the jump.
Meanwhile Rei and Asuka were firing at the angel from two sides, the positronbullets
destroying anything within their path, finally hitting the angel´s AT-field.
Lightning danced an the field´s surface, but it wasn´t pierced.
The angel slowed down, suddenly it moved very fast into Rei´s direction, for a moment
the energybeams seemed to become one when it increased it´s rotation, hitting EVA-00 with
all it´s might.
Rei sceamed...
EVA-00 stumbled backwards, crashing into a building, pulling it down.
"Ayanami... REI!" Shinji screamed.
Bloody bastad... if she´s got hurt again...
His EVA reacted at his anger and gave a loud challenging shout.
Shinji jumped from the roof of the building towards the angel, the knife readied to deliever
the deathstroke.
But during the jump the maintenance cable snapped, robbing some of the jump´s strenght.
As a result the jump was shorter than planed, the knife´s blade scratched over the AT-
field´s surface, finally pierced it, when the EVA´s AT-field came into contact with the
angel´s, but missed the maineye, hitting one of the other eyes instead.
Shinji tried to gain a hold on the still rotating angel to escape the energybeams.
His scream ended in a gargle when he started to fight with his lunch.
***
Misato hit her forehead with the open hand.
Damned, damned, damned... No radio-connection with unit one anymore... What now?
"Asuka..."
"I can´t fire, or I will hit unit one... let it go, Shinji!"
"Major, EVA-04 is on the screens...!"
"What?"
Then she saw it herself, coming from the northwest the transport approached, it´s cargo
clearly visible in the holding clamsps - a deep black EVA unit with red stripes running
down by the sides on it´s body and red marks on the joints. Another screen showed the
pilot´s lifesigns.
Didn´t they got the order to change course?
"Transport is descending!"
The holding clasps were opened...
The internal-energy downdown started at three minutes.
EVA-04 fell...
... spread it´s arms, pulled up the knees...
... it´s two pairs of eyes started glowing...
... from within each hand three progressive blades came...
... with activated jetpacks it moved into position...
... attacked the angel...
... missed...
***
"Larsen..." Gendo Ikari whispered with anger. But he couldn´t tunr his gaze from the
main screen and the EVA unit with his son within.
***
EVA-04 hadn´t hit the main eyes with it´s claws, but it had pierced the angel´s AT-field,
that has been weakened by EVA-01´s presence, slid down the angel´s side, but didn´t try
to gain a hold like unit one.
Shortly before touching the gound with it´s feet it attack once again, carving the claws
of both hands into through the angel´s armored skin.
Blue fluids, not unlike blood, came from the wounds.
EVA-04 pressed the feet against the ground to slow down the rotation...
***
Shinji regained consciousness, the world was still moving before his eyes, his stomach
revolted, within the entryplug it stank and his lunch was moving within the LCL.
That´s embaressing...
He looked at the internal energy countdown. Just a minute of activity left...
The angel stood still.
Shinji pulled the knife out of the minor eyes and slashed out against the main eyes,
once, twice, three times...
Die! Die! Die!
He still heard Rei screaming.
... until the EVA ran out of energy.
It had been enough, the angel burst.
Suddenly Asuka´s red EVA appeared, grabbed unit one and four and pushed them away.
Behind them the angel´s remains exploded.
A comlink from unit four was opened, but no picture appeared on the screen.
"Thanks for the rescue."
Asuka didn´t know the voice, she only knew that it had to be the new pilot´s.
So manly, like Kaji´s.
She blushed.
"Is Rei okay?" Shinji asked without addressing anybody in particular.
At the commandcenter Misato looked once again at the still unreadable data from unit zero´s
entryplug, but just before she started to answer, EVA-00 rose from the rumble.
"Light damaged... and a bit of dizzyness." Rei´s voice came from the loudspeaker, not as
monotonous as usual but still far away from being that of an ordinary human.
Ikari-kun was angry at the angel... He was worried... because of me... Do I mean something
for him?
The same moment EVA-04´s energy countdown reached 00:00:00.
And within the entryplug the pilot shut down all systems manuelly...
***
The scavaging of the four EVAs didn´t take a lot of time, since Asuka and Rei were still
connected with maintenance and now connected the cables to EVA-01 and -04, too.
One after one the four giants moved through the empty streets of Tokio-3 towards the
launching-bays and were carried into the geofront.
Shinji left his entryplug as fast as he could to look after his comrades-in-arms.
Next to him Rei was climbing out of the hatch, still staggering, a large bruise on her
forehead. At once he was by her side to support her, nearly pushing a medic and a tech
from the catwalk.
"Are you okay, Rei?"
She looked at him with her red eyes.
"You called me Rei... not Ayanami...?!"
"I... gomen, Ayanami..."
"No, it´s okay. I like it... Shinji..."
She blinked. And smiled... Just a moment and specificly only the corners of her mouth
twitched a little bit, but he was able to read it.
"Thank you. Thank you for thinking of me."
And who thinks of me? Asuka thought angryly and with a bit of jealousy. Maybe if I
bang my head against my EVA´s surface, just a little...
Then she looked at unit four where two techs had opened the hatch of the not completly
ejected entryplug and the pilot was climbing out of the hatch.
And her jaw dropped.
***
Somewhere
(the typical secret headquarter, it´s nearly completly dark, only the silhuetts of the
some people can be seen within the light emanating from a large screen.)
"It seems that Agent Seraph has reached the NERV-headquarter", a man´s voice commentated
the pictures of EVA-04 slowly disappearing in a launch-shaft.
"His mission must succeed. Prepare for stage two."