Chapter 06 - White Ice
Fifteen years ago:
"Fascinating..." Professor Katsuragi mumble and gave his binocular to the captain of the UN-
forces who stood to his left. "Look, Ikari!"
Gendo Ikari removed the dark glasses that protected his eyes from the blinding whiteness of
the antarctical snow, before taking the binoculars with thickly gloved hands. The antarctical
cold was biting into his exposed skin. He looked through the binocular into the direction the
professor was poining.
"What´s that...?"
In the distance, at their journey´s destination, was a large black wall that seemed to reach
for the sky.
Ikari wasn´t an expert for the antarctical environtment at the south-pole, but common sense
was telling him that something like that was completly unnatural.
Together they returned to the convoi of four armored track-laying vehicles and half a dozen
dog-sleds pulled by giant huskies that reminded Ikari more of wolves than of dogs. A week ago
they had left the basecamp at the coast for the heart of the white continent.
To the Katsuragi-expedition eight scientist and ten soldier under Gendo Ikari´s command belonged,
soldiers of the peacekeeping forces. And there also where three civil passengers on board of
mobile one: the twelve year old daughter of the professor - Ikari couldn´t understand the reasons
for having her come along -, a rather young blackhaired asian woman who seemed to have some skill
with firearms, and a young man with ashgrey hair, pale skin and red eyes, neither scientist nor
soldier or official of the UN, but still secret commander of the expedition.
"Did you see it?" the greyhaired asked when Ikari had closed the mobile´s hatch and was putting
off the thick parka.
"Like a wall of darkness."
Katsuragi climbed into the back of the vehicle to write it down.
A soldier sat behind the wheel, the greyhaired sat on the front-seat passenger´s seat and
had his head turned so that he was looking into the back of the vehicle, while between than
Katsuragi´s daughter Misato sat on a tip-up seat and looked with wide opened eyes at the
endless white waste in front of them, that endet in the distance at the dark wall.
"The satelite´s still transmissing the same picture, like the whole south-polar region wouldn´t
exist at the moment."
The greyhaired whose name was Thomas Shingen, pointed at one the screens.
The picture showed the Antarctica, but in the center was a large black spot.
Since two weeks the picture had been the same, the area of darkness neither grew nor did it
shrink. It had been there without warning, at the time a feint radiation had been sensed.
Two planes that had entered the region were crashed when all systems went dead.
So the UN had sent the expedition, led by Hiro Katsuragi, with Captain Ikari and his team to
protect the scientist. And Thomas Shigen was authorised to take over command if it was necessary.
They didn´t tell me, what this case would be... And what to protect the scientist against...
And the reasons for two of the vehicles being mobile gun emplacements... Gendo thought.
"Did you expect anything else?" he asked his ´superior´.
Shigen shook his head.
You know it, I bet!
"Six hours south, four hours rest... and tomorrow to the pole using the sleds", Shigen repeated
the plan.
They could not risk entering the region with the vehicles, it would be a long way home, should
they become useless.
Gendo nodded. He wished to be with his wife at Kyoto. Their first child would be born soon.
If it is a boy, we´ll call him Shinji, and if it is a girl, Rei...
***
They had left the vehicles behind and approached the polar region by sled.
They, that were Katsuragi and another scientist, Captain Ikari and four of his men and Shingen
and his companion Deiko Tamakura. While they all wore thick protection cloth against the cold,
the greyhaired only wore a headset, boots, jeans and a thick cotton shirt.
Gendo felt cold just by looking at him.
Thomas noticed Gendo´s questing gaze.
"I might have to able to move freely."
"You will freeze to death!"
"No."
Just a word, but full of determination.
Gendo didn´t say another word. His attention was caught by a crate on the same sled.
"You brought the N2-mine along..."
"We were ordered to inspect the phenomena and destroy it in case of danger."
"Yes."
He knows what to expect, or the security council would not have taken the risk of blowing up
earth´s magnetic field...
He spoke his thoughts.
"Captain Ikari, do you believe in god?"
Gendo blinked.
"Yes."
"So start praying that I am wrong..."
***
Now:
Shinji looked up to the swimming pool, where the girls of his class had sports, while he and
the other boys are at the racing track.
There Rei sat, back to the chicken wire, somehow she seemed to be very far away.
"Eh, Ikari..."
Suddenly Shinji felt a heavy weight on his shoulders, when Touji leaned against him.
"What are you looking at? Ah... Akagi... Do you have a crush on her?"
Touji grinned broadly.
"What do you think is the most interesting part of her body? The bright white legs? Or her
breasts?"
"Her eyes..." Shinji whispered, partly ignoring Touji.
"Her eyes?" Touji repeated confused.
"Yes."
"Her eyes?"
The next moment Shinji clenched a fist and knocked with the knuckles at Touji´s forehead.
It sounded hollow.
"Somebody´s at home?"
"Eh... why her eyes? What´s interesting with a girl´s eyes?"
"Touji, sometimes I am really asking myself which bodypart you are using to think with..."
Shinji sighed and looked at Rei again, noticed her answering his gaze.
He waved, thought to see her smiling.
She waved back.
Asuka appeared at the wire screen and cast an angry look at Shinji before circling around and
moving out of his field of view."
"Oh, oh, trouble in paradise?" Touji asked. He didn´t sound mockingly.
"The two of them do not get along."
"Yeah, like fire and water."
Shinji looked at his friend surprised who had proven with the last two sentences more intellect
than during the last two years.
"Yesterday they would nearly have beaten up each other."
"When?"
"After I left your place."
"Damn, I´d like to watch."
The hopes Shinji just had had for him vaporised.
"Was this the reason for you being late today?"
"Yes, Asuka left without me."
He didn´t say that he not even had slept in but also missed Rei, he also didn´t mention that
he feared her being angry at him since she had barely spoken two words to him all day.
"She can be quite revancefull."
"Whom are you telling... and most times she doesn´t even need a reason to be angry..."
***
During lunchbreak Shinji moved up to the bench where Rei was sitting and eating her lunch.
"Rei, may I sit down?"
She nodded.
He cast an eye at her food, but somehow he already knew what it was.
"Vegetarian."
"Yes."
"Uhm, Rei, this morning... I didn´t want to miss you... I´ve overslept."
She looked at him for a moment before continuing to eat.
"I believe you... but you will have to make up for it."
He took a deep breath.
"Yes, of course."
In his mind he heard his father´s voice.
´Stay away from her, she means trouble´
Nonsense. Why should Rei mean trouble for me?
In reality he felt happy.
"Ah, Rei, Touji, Kensuke and I are going to the EVA-center, I wanted to ask you if you´d come
along since you are the best pilot of us, and..."
"Yes."
"You are coming along?"
"Yes."
The corners of her mouth twitched.
"Yes, I will come along."
"Ah, that´s nice, yes... and afterwards would you go with me for an ice-cream?"
She nodded.
"And don´t forget - you owe me something."
"Ah, yes."
He nodded hastely, thinking that she was talking about the morning.
***
In front of the EVA-center the three boys and the bluehaired girl nearly ran into Hikari and
Asuka who were waiting for them.
Asuka ignored Rei and looked at Shinji with anger.
"I thought, you´d come alone." Touji said to Hikari with low voice.
"Asuka´s part of the team", she replied not that sure anymore if it really was a good idea to
bring Asuka along.
When they entered the center the abyss gaping between the two girls was nearly visible.
Shinji looked at Asuka with sorrow who only replied by twisting her lower lip.
"One could think them to have been blood-enemies in another life." Kensuke whispered.
´You are the Commander´s darling´ Shinji thought to hear Asuka speaking, but her lips weren´t
moving.
She didn´t told me, but Rei... but when? And who´s the commander?
For a moment he saw a picture of his father before his mind´s eye, his face cold, his eyes
hidden behind dark-tinted glasses.
White gloves... father never wears gloves... why am I seeing this pictures?
He hid his face in his hands, closed his eyes.
In the darkness, he wasn´t seeing pictures...
A hand touched him at the shoulder softly.
"Shinji, are you alright?"
Ayanami! he thought. But he was unable to connect anything to the name. It just seemed to
suit Rei better than the name Akagi.
"Shinji-kun?" Rei asked again.
He raised the head, looked into her crimson eyes, saw the alarm in her gaze. The way she stood
in front of him he was quite able to look right into her shirt. He blushed, turned his eyes away
and tryed thinking about anything else to prevent the thermical expansion of certain bodyparts.
"Gomen."
Rei frowned.
What does he mean?
She noticed that the upper buttons of her blouse were unbuttoned.
Oh...
She blushed.
Why do I feel shame? He touched me before... his touch was pleasant... but... when did this
happen? Why... why do I have these memories?
With a sound like drowing but gasping for air she let herself fall down to the bench next to
Shinji and pressed the hands against the temples. The pictures within her mind vanished.
"Ah... Rei, what´s up with you?" Shinji whispered.
She looked at him and recognized the truth.
"You have these visions, too..."
"I..."
´I don´t know what you are talking about´, he wanted to answer, to remove the impression of being
crazy, to prevent being returned to the holding cell at headquarters...
Holding cell...?
He shook his head to clear his thoughts.
"Rei, I can´t say... sometimes I have the feeling to have already experienced something...
but... it´s just like... like I took another choice... do you understand?"
"Yes... I have those... memories myself... where are you coming from?"
"Since when?"#
"Since I met you two days ago."
He thought about it, then he nodded.
"Yes, the same with me. But what´s the reason?"
She just shook her head.
"I don´t know. But these memories... they are showing an alternate reality... a worse reality..."
"Aya..." he started, swallowed the rest when her eyes widened with fear.
"I am in your memories."
"Yes... you, Asuka, Kensuke, Touji..."
His gaze stopped at Touji who was just getting a coke from the vending machine, but he saw him
laying on the bed under a white cover without an arm and a leg...
Shinji´s gaze blurred when his eyes filled with tears.
"Touji... it was my doing... my fault..."
He nearly did not notice Rei embracing him and pulling him close to her.
"Rei, why do I see this? Why do I know this? It can´t be real..."
"I can´t answer your questions... but you are in my memories, too. Together we might make it."
"Together?"
"Yes."
"Rei, I remember you, but you were also different..."
"Yes." she said monotonously, sending a shivver down his spine.
"Am I crazy?"
"No."
"Then... I don´t believe in reincarnation, but... could these memories come from another... a
past life?"
"No, that´s us, like we are now and today... but different..."
Touji came to them.
"May I disturb you two lovebirds? - We can use the plugs now... Eh, Ikari, sure, it´s great, but
no reason to cry... or shall I leave you alone? It´s not the most perfect place, but..."
He winked conspiriously.
Shinji wiped across his eyes.
"Touji, it´s not what you are thinking."
"It´s not? Well, could you speak then with Hikari on my behalf so she´ll embrace me, too?"
"We´ll coming in a moment." Rei said.
"Oh, take your time, Kensuke´s making sure that noone takes our place - and I am betting that
Asuka´s in the right mood to enforce this."
"Maybe she cools down..." Shinji mumbled unable to resist his own sarcasm.
"Hm, yes, maybe", Touji replied thoughtful, once again letting go of the idiot´s mask before
leaving the lobby.
"Rei, what shall I do?"
"I can´t give you an answer... Shinji-kun, but I can tell you what I´ll do."
"What?"
"Trying to think about something else. Those memories come and go without us being able to do
anything against it. We can only try to keep our calm... and hope to understand..."
"You are strong, Rei, stronger than I."
"You told me once already... the night, we..."
She swallowed, tried to play down her embaressment and surprise with a smile.
"I don´t think that I am stronger than you, or this wouldn´t happen to me."
"At the mountain... you did protect me there..." he whispered. "Rei, whatever happens... I think
we have a special bond, something that can´t be expressed with words...
"Yes..."
She took his hand, dragged him from the bench with her.
"Come, lets face reality... and Soryu... I mean Asuka..."
***
Within a large underground lab doctor Miyuki Takanawa watched the fruits of her labour from a
catwalk about five metres above the ground.
Two cage-like constructions were holding two humanoid giants, both submerged in a light pink
fluid up to the belt.
One of the giant was mainly coloured orange with white parts, it only had one eye on the middle
of its forehead. On the shoulderpieces of its armor was written: ´00´ and ´prototype´.
The other giant looked by far more dangerous compared to its brother, the main reason was its
bulkier armor and the horn protruding from the skull. It was of purple-green colouring, the
shoulderpieces were carrying the letters ´01 - testtype´.
Two men approached the scientist, Thomas Shingen and Roderick Falk, the last one a large man
of seven feet height but still a dwarf compared to the giants. Befind them Deiko Tamakura
walked, one hand constantly close to her gun.
"Doc, will the clones be ready to be transported when the PROMETHEUS takes to sea?"
"Of course, Shigen-sama."
"Good."
Falk wore an UN-uniform with the insignias of a Lieutenant-Colonel.
"So, I will take them on board in four days, in six days we´ll take to sea. And next week we´ll
arrive at Tokio so the clones can be tested within the Geo-sector, before we send them to
Antarctica."
Thomas nodded.
"And the two series models?"
"Unit three´s still inside of the growth vat, the modifications had slowed down its growth a bit,
but with the ODYSSEUS taking to sea at Wilhelmshaven at the end of next week we´ll be within
schedule again. I am preparing a new growth solution for the next two clones at the moment, you´ll
just have to find suitable pilots."
"Leave it to me, we are already testing some candidats."
"Good. Alas, I have to run some tests on yourself, are you ready?"
"Of course, doctor Takanawa."
"So follow me. I need some additional spinal fluids."
"Oh, great..."
He rolled his eye.
"You weren´t that sensible before."
"I was having my full powers before, Doc."
He turned to his brother-in-law.
"I will fly to the mainland today, the chinese prime minister is waiting for me for a match of
Wei qi, so don´t expect me back this week."
"He´s good."
"Yes, but I´ve learned from the best."
Falk grinned.
"So we´ll meet at the great family gathering at Tokio."
Thomas laughed shortly.
"Prime Lau is a tough man to negotiate with, but we need the Chinese for the scenario not to
fail, or the American or the Russians will change their mind."
"Yes, we already talked about that. The Americans are at DEFCON-3 now, our warnings seems to
carry fruits."
The oneeyed nodded.
"And General Talbot finally has the change of pace he had hoped for so long."
"Yes... So, we´ll meet again next week."
**********************************************************************************************
Next: more about the expedition * and the teacher and the spy
Fifteen years ago:
"Fascinating..." Professor Katsuragi mumble and gave his binocular to the captain of the UN-
forces who stood to his left. "Look, Ikari!"
Gendo Ikari removed the dark glasses that protected his eyes from the blinding whiteness of
the antarctical snow, before taking the binoculars with thickly gloved hands. The antarctical
cold was biting into his exposed skin. He looked through the binocular into the direction the
professor was poining.
"What´s that...?"
In the distance, at their journey´s destination, was a large black wall that seemed to reach
for the sky.
Ikari wasn´t an expert for the antarctical environtment at the south-pole, but common sense
was telling him that something like that was completly unnatural.
Together they returned to the convoi of four armored track-laying vehicles and half a dozen
dog-sleds pulled by giant huskies that reminded Ikari more of wolves than of dogs. A week ago
they had left the basecamp at the coast for the heart of the white continent.
To the Katsuragi-expedition eight scientist and ten soldier under Gendo Ikari´s command belonged,
soldiers of the peacekeeping forces. And there also where three civil passengers on board of
mobile one: the twelve year old daughter of the professor - Ikari couldn´t understand the reasons
for having her come along -, a rather young blackhaired asian woman who seemed to have some skill
with firearms, and a young man with ashgrey hair, pale skin and red eyes, neither scientist nor
soldier or official of the UN, but still secret commander of the expedition.
"Did you see it?" the greyhaired asked when Ikari had closed the mobile´s hatch and was putting
off the thick parka.
"Like a wall of darkness."
Katsuragi climbed into the back of the vehicle to write it down.
A soldier sat behind the wheel, the greyhaired sat on the front-seat passenger´s seat and
had his head turned so that he was looking into the back of the vehicle, while between than
Katsuragi´s daughter Misato sat on a tip-up seat and looked with wide opened eyes at the
endless white waste in front of them, that endet in the distance at the dark wall.
"The satelite´s still transmissing the same picture, like the whole south-polar region wouldn´t
exist at the moment."
The greyhaired whose name was Thomas Shingen, pointed at one the screens.
The picture showed the Antarctica, but in the center was a large black spot.
Since two weeks the picture had been the same, the area of darkness neither grew nor did it
shrink. It had been there without warning, at the time a feint radiation had been sensed.
Two planes that had entered the region were crashed when all systems went dead.
So the UN had sent the expedition, led by Hiro Katsuragi, with Captain Ikari and his team to
protect the scientist. And Thomas Shigen was authorised to take over command if it was necessary.
They didn´t tell me, what this case would be... And what to protect the scientist against...
And the reasons for two of the vehicles being mobile gun emplacements... Gendo thought.
"Did you expect anything else?" he asked his ´superior´.
Shigen shook his head.
You know it, I bet!
"Six hours south, four hours rest... and tomorrow to the pole using the sleds", Shigen repeated
the plan.
They could not risk entering the region with the vehicles, it would be a long way home, should
they become useless.
Gendo nodded. He wished to be with his wife at Kyoto. Their first child would be born soon.
If it is a boy, we´ll call him Shinji, and if it is a girl, Rei...
***
They had left the vehicles behind and approached the polar region by sled.
They, that were Katsuragi and another scientist, Captain Ikari and four of his men and Shingen
and his companion Deiko Tamakura. While they all wore thick protection cloth against the cold,
the greyhaired only wore a headset, boots, jeans and a thick cotton shirt.
Gendo felt cold just by looking at him.
Thomas noticed Gendo´s questing gaze.
"I might have to able to move freely."
"You will freeze to death!"
"No."
Just a word, but full of determination.
Gendo didn´t say another word. His attention was caught by a crate on the same sled.
"You brought the N2-mine along..."
"We were ordered to inspect the phenomena and destroy it in case of danger."
"Yes."
He knows what to expect, or the security council would not have taken the risk of blowing up
earth´s magnetic field...
He spoke his thoughts.
"Captain Ikari, do you believe in god?"
Gendo blinked.
"Yes."
"So start praying that I am wrong..."
***
Now:
Shinji looked up to the swimming pool, where the girls of his class had sports, while he and
the other boys are at the racing track.
There Rei sat, back to the chicken wire, somehow she seemed to be very far away.
"Eh, Ikari..."
Suddenly Shinji felt a heavy weight on his shoulders, when Touji leaned against him.
"What are you looking at? Ah... Akagi... Do you have a crush on her?"
Touji grinned broadly.
"What do you think is the most interesting part of her body? The bright white legs? Or her
breasts?"
"Her eyes..." Shinji whispered, partly ignoring Touji.
"Her eyes?" Touji repeated confused.
"Yes."
"Her eyes?"
The next moment Shinji clenched a fist and knocked with the knuckles at Touji´s forehead.
It sounded hollow.
"Somebody´s at home?"
"Eh... why her eyes? What´s interesting with a girl´s eyes?"
"Touji, sometimes I am really asking myself which bodypart you are using to think with..."
Shinji sighed and looked at Rei again, noticed her answering his gaze.
He waved, thought to see her smiling.
She waved back.
Asuka appeared at the wire screen and cast an angry look at Shinji before circling around and
moving out of his field of view."
"Oh, oh, trouble in paradise?" Touji asked. He didn´t sound mockingly.
"The two of them do not get along."
"Yeah, like fire and water."
Shinji looked at his friend surprised who had proven with the last two sentences more intellect
than during the last two years.
"Yesterday they would nearly have beaten up each other."
"When?"
"After I left your place."
"Damn, I´d like to watch."
The hopes Shinji just had had for him vaporised.
"Was this the reason for you being late today?"
"Yes, Asuka left without me."
He didn´t say that he not even had slept in but also missed Rei, he also didn´t mention that
he feared her being angry at him since she had barely spoken two words to him all day.
"She can be quite revancefull."
"Whom are you telling... and most times she doesn´t even need a reason to be angry..."
***
During lunchbreak Shinji moved up to the bench where Rei was sitting and eating her lunch.
"Rei, may I sit down?"
She nodded.
He cast an eye at her food, but somehow he already knew what it was.
"Vegetarian."
"Yes."
"Uhm, Rei, this morning... I didn´t want to miss you... I´ve overslept."
She looked at him for a moment before continuing to eat.
"I believe you... but you will have to make up for it."
He took a deep breath.
"Yes, of course."
In his mind he heard his father´s voice.
´Stay away from her, she means trouble´
Nonsense. Why should Rei mean trouble for me?
In reality he felt happy.
"Ah, Rei, Touji, Kensuke and I are going to the EVA-center, I wanted to ask you if you´d come
along since you are the best pilot of us, and..."
"Yes."
"You are coming along?"
"Yes."
The corners of her mouth twitched.
"Yes, I will come along."
"Ah, that´s nice, yes... and afterwards would you go with me for an ice-cream?"
She nodded.
"And don´t forget - you owe me something."
"Ah, yes."
He nodded hastely, thinking that she was talking about the morning.
***
In front of the EVA-center the three boys and the bluehaired girl nearly ran into Hikari and
Asuka who were waiting for them.
Asuka ignored Rei and looked at Shinji with anger.
"I thought, you´d come alone." Touji said to Hikari with low voice.
"Asuka´s part of the team", she replied not that sure anymore if it really was a good idea to
bring Asuka along.
When they entered the center the abyss gaping between the two girls was nearly visible.
Shinji looked at Asuka with sorrow who only replied by twisting her lower lip.
"One could think them to have been blood-enemies in another life." Kensuke whispered.
´You are the Commander´s darling´ Shinji thought to hear Asuka speaking, but her lips weren´t
moving.
She didn´t told me, but Rei... but when? And who´s the commander?
For a moment he saw a picture of his father before his mind´s eye, his face cold, his eyes
hidden behind dark-tinted glasses.
White gloves... father never wears gloves... why am I seeing this pictures?
He hid his face in his hands, closed his eyes.
In the darkness, he wasn´t seeing pictures...
A hand touched him at the shoulder softly.
"Shinji, are you alright?"
Ayanami! he thought. But he was unable to connect anything to the name. It just seemed to
suit Rei better than the name Akagi.
"Shinji-kun?" Rei asked again.
He raised the head, looked into her crimson eyes, saw the alarm in her gaze. The way she stood
in front of him he was quite able to look right into her shirt. He blushed, turned his eyes away
and tryed thinking about anything else to prevent the thermical expansion of certain bodyparts.
"Gomen."
Rei frowned.
What does he mean?
She noticed that the upper buttons of her blouse were unbuttoned.
Oh...
She blushed.
Why do I feel shame? He touched me before... his touch was pleasant... but... when did this
happen? Why... why do I have these memories?
With a sound like drowing but gasping for air she let herself fall down to the bench next to
Shinji and pressed the hands against the temples. The pictures within her mind vanished.
"Ah... Rei, what´s up with you?" Shinji whispered.
She looked at him and recognized the truth.
"You have these visions, too..."
"I..."
´I don´t know what you are talking about´, he wanted to answer, to remove the impression of being
crazy, to prevent being returned to the holding cell at headquarters...
Holding cell...?
He shook his head to clear his thoughts.
"Rei, I can´t say... sometimes I have the feeling to have already experienced something...
but... it´s just like... like I took another choice... do you understand?"
"Yes... I have those... memories myself... where are you coming from?"
"Since when?"#
"Since I met you two days ago."
He thought about it, then he nodded.
"Yes, the same with me. But what´s the reason?"
She just shook her head.
"I don´t know. But these memories... they are showing an alternate reality... a worse reality..."
"Aya..." he started, swallowed the rest when her eyes widened with fear.
"I am in your memories."
"Yes... you, Asuka, Kensuke, Touji..."
His gaze stopped at Touji who was just getting a coke from the vending machine, but he saw him
laying on the bed under a white cover without an arm and a leg...
Shinji´s gaze blurred when his eyes filled with tears.
"Touji... it was my doing... my fault..."
He nearly did not notice Rei embracing him and pulling him close to her.
"Rei, why do I see this? Why do I know this? It can´t be real..."
"I can´t answer your questions... but you are in my memories, too. Together we might make it."
"Together?"
"Yes."
"Rei, I remember you, but you were also different..."
"Yes." she said monotonously, sending a shivver down his spine.
"Am I crazy?"
"No."
"Then... I don´t believe in reincarnation, but... could these memories come from another... a
past life?"
"No, that´s us, like we are now and today... but different..."
Touji came to them.
"May I disturb you two lovebirds? - We can use the plugs now... Eh, Ikari, sure, it´s great, but
no reason to cry... or shall I leave you alone? It´s not the most perfect place, but..."
He winked conspiriously.
Shinji wiped across his eyes.
"Touji, it´s not what you are thinking."
"It´s not? Well, could you speak then with Hikari on my behalf so she´ll embrace me, too?"
"We´ll coming in a moment." Rei said.
"Oh, take your time, Kensuke´s making sure that noone takes our place - and I am betting that
Asuka´s in the right mood to enforce this."
"Maybe she cools down..." Shinji mumbled unable to resist his own sarcasm.
"Hm, yes, maybe", Touji replied thoughtful, once again letting go of the idiot´s mask before
leaving the lobby.
"Rei, what shall I do?"
"I can´t give you an answer... Shinji-kun, but I can tell you what I´ll do."
"What?"
"Trying to think about something else. Those memories come and go without us being able to do
anything against it. We can only try to keep our calm... and hope to understand..."
"You are strong, Rei, stronger than I."
"You told me once already... the night, we..."
She swallowed, tried to play down her embaressment and surprise with a smile.
"I don´t think that I am stronger than you, or this wouldn´t happen to me."
"At the mountain... you did protect me there..." he whispered. "Rei, whatever happens... I think
we have a special bond, something that can´t be expressed with words...
"Yes..."
She took his hand, dragged him from the bench with her.
"Come, lets face reality... and Soryu... I mean Asuka..."
***
Within a large underground lab doctor Miyuki Takanawa watched the fruits of her labour from a
catwalk about five metres above the ground.
Two cage-like constructions were holding two humanoid giants, both submerged in a light pink
fluid up to the belt.
One of the giant was mainly coloured orange with white parts, it only had one eye on the middle
of its forehead. On the shoulderpieces of its armor was written: ´00´ and ´prototype´.
The other giant looked by far more dangerous compared to its brother, the main reason was its
bulkier armor and the horn protruding from the skull. It was of purple-green colouring, the
shoulderpieces were carrying the letters ´01 - testtype´.
Two men approached the scientist, Thomas Shingen and Roderick Falk, the last one a large man
of seven feet height but still a dwarf compared to the giants. Befind them Deiko Tamakura
walked, one hand constantly close to her gun.
"Doc, will the clones be ready to be transported when the PROMETHEUS takes to sea?"
"Of course, Shigen-sama."
"Good."
Falk wore an UN-uniform with the insignias of a Lieutenant-Colonel.
"So, I will take them on board in four days, in six days we´ll take to sea. And next week we´ll
arrive at Tokio so the clones can be tested within the Geo-sector, before we send them to
Antarctica."
Thomas nodded.
"And the two series models?"
"Unit three´s still inside of the growth vat, the modifications had slowed down its growth a bit,
but with the ODYSSEUS taking to sea at Wilhelmshaven at the end of next week we´ll be within
schedule again. I am preparing a new growth solution for the next two clones at the moment, you´ll
just have to find suitable pilots."
"Leave it to me, we are already testing some candidats."
"Good. Alas, I have to run some tests on yourself, are you ready?"
"Of course, doctor Takanawa."
"So follow me. I need some additional spinal fluids."
"Oh, great..."
He rolled his eye.
"You weren´t that sensible before."
"I was having my full powers before, Doc."
He turned to his brother-in-law.
"I will fly to the mainland today, the chinese prime minister is waiting for me for a match of
Wei qi, so don´t expect me back this week."
"He´s good."
"Yes, but I´ve learned from the best."
Falk grinned.
"So we´ll meet at the great family gathering at Tokio."
Thomas laughed shortly.
"Prime Lau is a tough man to negotiate with, but we need the Chinese for the scenario not to
fail, or the American or the Russians will change their mind."
"Yes, we already talked about that. The Americans are at DEFCON-3 now, our warnings seems to
carry fruits."
The oneeyed nodded.
"And General Talbot finally has the change of pace he had hoped for so long."
"Yes... So, we´ll meet again next week."
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Next: more about the expedition * and the teacher and the spy