Disclaimer: Neon Genesis Evangelion is copyright and trademarked by Gainax. All characters created by them are used here without permission, and for entertainment purposes only. I don't mean to infringe, only to entertain. Please don't sue my poor ass.
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Seraphim
by the Loneshark
Chapter 4: Looking for Blood
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Seraphim
Chapter 4: Looking for Blood
"You've got to be kidding me?" Misato looked at the report again. She'd expected this would be the case, but she really didn't want to be right. It was never a good thing when she was right. Touji and Kensuke had tried to fix this several times as a joke. Right now she wished that it was another one of their pranks, and they'd just gotten Yoshi and the NERV security staff to go along with it. That would be stretching it, of course, but it'd be better than this.
Of course, it wasn't. "It looks like the damage wasn't just random smashing, either," Yoshi said. "They knew exactly what they were looking for, and where to do the damage. There were no fingerprints, and no damage except in this area here, right to the communications circuits. We think it happened not too long before the Angel attack yesterday."
She looked over the photos. "This is too clean to be a simple sabotage. Someone who knew what they were looking for..."
"I'm having security checks run on all the communications personnel, janitors, and anyone else who could possibly have access."
"Basically the majority of our staff. The main purpose of sabotage is to create chaos, and this bastard just might succeed. Has anyone mentioned seeing anything strange, yet?" Again, she already knew the answer.
Yoshi shook his head. "Of course not. Nothing is ever easy."
Misato dropped the file on her desk. She might be just jumping to conclusions. The sudden return of the Angels was hardly an easily kept secret, not to say that it was a secret. There was also no shortage of people who wouldn't mind discrediting NERV, and the more extreme of those detractors wouldn't care about the cost. That they would have a saboteur amongst them right now was either a dangerously paranoid conclusion, or too convenient for coincidence.
"Whatever you're thinking, Commander, I've probably thought of it, already." Yoshi sat down in a chair in front of her desk. "It's just too much coincidence, right? And whoever would try something now, with the return of the Angels, would have to be, at the least, a very dangerous sociopath."
Misato sighed. "I know. Try seeing if you can check up on some of our former personnel, too."
"Anyone specific in mind?"
"The former Intelligence Department."
Yoshi stiffened a little. To him, that bunch were all expert in the arts of intimidation and keeping secrets. "You know that'll take some time, and you might have to get a few warrants approved."
"We're on constant alert status, these days. It shouldn't be too hard." She looked up when there was a knock at her door. "Come in."
Shinji walked in. "You wanted to see me, Misato?"
"Yeah, Shinji. Go ahead and sit, if you want."
He looked at their expressions. "Is something wrong?"
"No, it's all right," Yoshi said. "I just wanted to let you know that we're almost ready for testing the new progressive saber. That little episode with the Angel yesterday has got us working overtime to get it developed."
"I thought you said you'd already had it built?" He sat down.
"Well, mostly built. You know how prototypes are." He smiled, obviously trying to make up for something.
"It almost blew up the first time they activated it," Misato said.
Yoshi frowned at her. "You're sadistic, you know that?"
"That's what I keep telling her."
"Anyway, we're hoping to have it ready before next week. We've had to come up with a separate energy supply for it, so at first you'll have some balance problems, but I'm sure you can figure them out."
Shinji nodded, and then looked at the both of them. "So why did you really call me in here?"
Yoshi furrowed his brow. "When the hell did you become a mind reader?"
"I didn't. Misato's about to chew off her thumbnail."
Misato looked at her thumb, then rolled her eyes up. "Figures. Damn old habits. Anyway, you're right, that's not the only reason I called you in here. You haven't noticed anything unusual around here lately, have you?"
"You mean besides Kitari? No." Yoshi and Misato exchanged glances, and Misato handed the folder on her desk to Shinji. "What's this?" He opened it up, and skimmed the photos and the top of the report. His features deepened into a serious study. "So this is why the communications went out yesterday?"
"Yes." Yoshi looked out the window of Misato's office. "The most shameful thing about it is the way the saboteur went through our entire communications network from the inside. I've been able to track back to what terminals he used, but the communications circuits and data logs in each terminal have been destroyed. Whoever did this has a working knowledge of NERV's guts, and knows how to twist them." The others winced. "Sorry. Graphic analogy."
"No, it's fine." Misato turned back to Shinji, who handed the report back to her. "Tell the others about this, but make sure it doesn't go beyond you four, okay? We're going to run checks on everyone, and I'm planning on tracking down some of our old friends from the former Intelligence Department. This definitely seems like their kind of thing."
Shinji nodded, thinking. "Do you want me to ask Kensuke to come in and help out?"
"What?" Yoshi looked back. "You mean that friend of yours who's been applying to be a pilot for the past four years?"
Shinji smirked. "Heh. He told me he'd stopped doing that. Anyway, this is the kind of thing he could help out in, and you know he knows NERV's operating procedures better than any of us."
Misato bit her thumbnail, and then said, "All right, I'll get a pass for him before the end of the day. But make sure he understands how important it is to keep this quiet, okay? That especially includes Kitari. The last thing I need is another shouting match with the UN."
"What's the score on that, anyway? Twelve to fifteen, right?" Yoshi casually flipped the corners of a stack of papers, ignoring Misato's glare.
"No," Shinji said, "It's tied right now, by fifteen to fifteen."
"What, is there a pool going on?" Misato slapped the folder on her desk. "Go on and find something to do. You guys are supposed to be my friends, and here you are torturing me."
"Consider it payback for last night," Yoshi stood and quickly left.
Shinji looked at her. "What's that mean?"
"I'll tell you when you're older." She winked at him.
"Um, right. Anyway, I'll tell everyone to keep their eyes open, okay? Thanks, Misato."
"You are my Lieutenant, now. I can't keep you in the dark." Shinji started to leave, but she stopped him before he reached the door. "Oh, Shinji, there's just one other thing I need to ask you about." She picked up a newspaper sitting on the corner of her desk. "You haven't seen any adds for a decent apartment, have you?"
"Finally deciding to move?"
"Well, since you're living on your own, now, I decided I needed someplace a little smaller."
Shinji smiled. "Actually, there is a place available where I live. The people under us are moving out."
***
Asuka was probably going to kill him for that one. She enjoyed moving out on her own more than any of them. Having Misato so close again would probably make her feel uncomfortable, at least mildly. It didn't matter that she didn't actually live there, of course. Shinji could already imagine her saying, "That's not the point, dumbkopf!"
Taking a shower had been comforting, and let him forget about it. He tried not to think about the sabotage, but it kept pushing its way into his mind. Yoshi had been right. Whoever did it knew how NERV worked. Shinji could only think of three people outside of the former members of NERV Intelligence who knew the HQ that well, and all three had dropped off the face of the earth a long time ago.
When he finished changing, he headed for the cafeteria. Kitari turned the corner not far from there, and stopped Shinji. He smiled in a friendly manner.
"Lieutenant Ikari. Just the man I was thinking of."
"Um, hello, Mr. Kitari." He tried to look for a way out of the man's gaze, but there was really not place to go except the other way. He simply tried to avoid looking at the man's eyes. "Is there a reason you were looking for me?"
"Yes, I was just on my way to the cafeteria. Since you're going that way, why not join me?" He started walking as if he expected Shinji to come along anyway.
He did. He really didn't want to be near this guy. There was something about him that chilled Shinji's bones all the way down to the marrow. His gestures and stride was just too... fluid. Serpentine was a good word. Stalking was better.
But Misato had told them all to be respectful to him, if only because he represented NERV's funding. He could handle just talking to the guy for a few minutes.
They sat down at a table near the window, giving them a view of almost the entire GeoFront.
"It just seems to me," Kitari said, staring out at the GeoFront, "That you've been trying to avoid me ever since I got here."
Shinji tried to act surprised. "I'm sorry. I try to stay focused on my work here."
"Hmm. Like your Commander, I see. She's a... strong woman. You used to live with her, didn't you?"
"When I was a kid. Asuka and I lived with her while we were still in school. That was about six months ago."
"Pilot Asuka Langley Soryu. Age eighteen. From Germany, right?"
Shinji stared hard at the man. "How much do you know about us, anyway, Mr. Kitari?"
His eyes looked back, unphased by Shinji's stare. "The UN was given access to only basic files, mostly personnel records. I memorized them before I was transferred here. Don't worry, I'm used to suspicious looks."
Shinji looked out the window. "Sorry. I just have a lot on my mind at the moment."
He nodded. "You're a bit like Commander Katsuragi. She seemed to care a great deal about the four of you at dinner last night, when I brought the topic up."
"You took Misato to dinner?"
"Yes, along with Dr. Iwano. I get to write it off as a business expense, it's one of the better things about being a diplomat. It's also an old trick. Some of the most important treaties and agreements are negotiated over brunch." He smiled, apparently finding a strange humor to it. Shinji just felt another chill fall down his spine. "People rarely want to start an international incident in the middle of a coffee shop. Although there is an old joke about a revolution that started over some bad tea."
"Have you been working... for the UN for a long time?" Shinji felt a little awkward, being the only one at the table who wasn't laughing. But there were only two people here. That must be another diplomatic secret. How to make the other party feel awkward.
"No, only about a year or so. I did various things before that. You've been a pilot for as long as there have been Evangelions, haven't you? That's almost four years."
"It feels a lot longer," he admitted. "It's coming on five years." He knew that wasn't totally true. The Evangelions had been around a lot longer than that.
"The Commander told me a little about what it was like here before the Impact. I can't say I was much affected by that event, myself. It was a much more subtle thing than its predecessor. Rather much like the man who instigated it, from what I've been told."
"You mean Gendo Ikari."
He raised an eyebrow. "Your father, yes." Shinji stared out the window. "I'm sorry. I've offended you."
"No, it's all right. You're just trying to make conversation. Yes, he was my father." Shinji's tone implied that there was nothing more to be said.
Kitari nodded. "I see. I'm not doing too well at being a diplomat right now, am I? Well, let me try asking you something that's not so personal."
Shinji looked at the man, and half nodded, half shrugged. "Go for it."
"Well, since you're now Katsuragi's Lieutenant, do you plan on staying on with NERV? After the Angels are all dead, I mean?"
"What?"
Kitari lit a cigarette. "Well, hopefully, you will win. I mean it'd be rather horrible if the Angels defeated you, right? So, assuming that, when this is all over, do you plan on staying with NERV?" There was a moment of silence.
"Well, it's not something I've ever really thought about."
A cloud of smoke escaped his mouth as he spoke. "Really? Not to be rude, but I would have thought it was something you've given a great deal of thought to. Your record shows that you tried to leave NERV twice in the first year you were here."
Shinji frowned. Maybe Kitari wasn't as sharp as he seemed. "I was just a kid, then. I'm not the same, now."
"Well, I'm sorry. I was just curious. You haven't continued on to university, like your friend Suzihara. After all, you can't fight Angels forever. One day, the fighting will stop. And then where will you be? Surely the Evangelions can't go on forever. And logically, you can't be a pilot forever."
Shinji stared at Kitari as he spoke. He didn't like where this was going. He didn't love Eva, but he knew that what he did was important. It wasn't just important to people beyond him. It was important to him. It was important because there was no one else who could decide it for him.
"What are you getting at?" He slammed his palms on the table.
Kitari looked up, his face calm and serene. He also seemed pleased with himself. "I'm saying that one day all the choices you make in life will never have mattered. Some day, NERV and the Evangelions will be useless. Obsolete. Defunct. If you win, the Angels will be dead, and everything you've worked at building will fade away."
Shinji sat back down, listening. Then he said, "You sound like you've already given up." He thought that Kitari sounded somewhat like himself, when he was young. Back when he was a boy, before he learned that he had to become a man in order to survive.
Kitari took a final drag on the cigarette. He buried it in an ashtray. "I'm just stating a fact. One day, even everything I've worked for will be meaningless. That's what the Impact taught me."
They stared at each other for a long moment. The entire cafeteria seemed empty and quiet. Shinji could feel the man's eyes boring into him. When he tried to stare back, he only felt foolish. Was Kitari trying to provoke him? If so, he was doing a good job at it.
"Hey, Shinji!" They looked over to see Touji walking towards them.
Kitari stood. "Well, I should be going. It was... interesting, talking with you, Lieutenant Ikari. I'll be seeing you around." He walked away as Touji approached.
Touji watched him walk off. "What was that all about?"
"Just trying not to offend the guy, I guess."
He sat down. "Heh, you look like the one who's been offended. What'd he say to you?"
"It was nothing," he lied.
"You know you're the worst liar on the planet, right?"
He nodded. "Yeah."
After a moment, Touji smacked him on the shoulder. "So? Out with it!"
Shinji realized he was smiling for a second, and then frowned as he remembered what Kitari said. "He told me that once the Angels are defeated, NERV won't have a purpose anymore. It'll just fade away. He asked me if what I wanted is to stay with NERV after all this is over."
"What a jerk! You don't believe him, do you?"
He shook his head. "No. No, I don't." He didn't think about the question for very long before coming up with the answer. How could he believe that? "If I did, then everything we've gone through wouldn't mean anything. And I will never believe that."
"Damn right!" He slammed his fist on the table.
"Touji, sit down, will ya? People are looking."
Touji looked around the cafeteria, giving everyone present a hard, angry look. Their heads quickly turned the other way. He sat back down, and smiled. "Heheh. So what?"
Shinji shook his head. "You're as bad as Asuka, you know that?"
"Ah, bite me," he laughed. "Anyway, you're more like Asuka."
"What's that mean?"
Before he could answer, the warning sirens blared. "Red Alert. All Evangelion pilots report to the Strategy Room immediately."
They sighed, and left the cafeteria. "No rest for the weary, I guess."
"It's our choice, Touji. Might as well owe up to it."
***
Misato entered Central Dogma. Yoshi was already there, looking at the main screen. She never understood how he always beat her here. Ritsuko had done the same thing, every time.
"What's the status?"
"Target has been identified as an Angel, even though it's giving the Magi a migraine. It's currently holding position in the northeast part of Tokyo 3. It hasn't moved since it got here." Right now, it was just a dot on a topographical map.
"All right, show me." The screen changed. This one seemed much like the first, in that it possessed a roughly humanoid shape. But it looked all wrong. The neck was a bare, lengthened muscle. It crouched on the ground, supporting much of its weight on its hands. The legs were long and bent like an animal. The head had a distended jaw, filled not with teeth, but gleaming silver plates.
"It looks like it's only half formed," Misato said.
"Yes. It's a bit gruesome." Yoshi felt someone staring at his back. He looked over his shoulder to see Kitari standing off to the side. The man watched the screen with an unusual intensity in his eyes. Yoshi turned back, unable to stand meeting Kitari's gaze. There was just something about it that wasn't... sane. Or possibly not human.
"Why isn't it moving?" Misato stared at the image.
"Maybe it's thinking about what it should do?"
"If they even think." What was it even doing here? Adam was gone, having been consumed in the Instrumentality Project. What purpose could the Angels possibly possess now? Their Armageddon was impossible.
"Are the communications channels back online?"
"Yep. I made them stay up all night fixing it. I also had new security locks put in."
"All right, Units 01 and 02 will take point. Units 00 and 03 will provide backup. Launch!"
***
It was waiting. Its brothers had fallen here. It could remember hearing their screams as they died. The sounds of battle and pain still hung in the air like a scar. Its last brother was unsuccessful before it had even come this far. It could only hope that this form it had chosen would enable it to survive.
It had to survive. Long enough to find the one who carried what it sought.
That was all it had. It knew that it should not exist. It was simply a contingency. It had been a dead soul with no purpose other than to wait until the day it could be part of a whole once again. It was never meant to be here.
That all changed when they were betrayed by the last. The one who had learned how to be human.
And then the demons had their way.
It could feel them coming, now. They were rising up out of the earth. They were bringing with them what it sought.
It would destroy them, or would cease to be.
It raised its head, and roared.
***
Shinji readied his progressive knife in one hand, and his pistol in the other. The way this Angel acted was making him nervous. The way it looked was making him sick. It looked only half-finished, with skin--or whatever passed for its skin-hanging off, leaving pulsing flesh bare. It roared at them as they had launched, and now it waited for them to make a move.
Asuka stood beside him holding a large axe. Behind them, Rei and Touji stood back several hundred yards with their rifles ready.
"I'll draw its attention while Asuka charges. Rei, Touji, be ready to fire if you get an opening, but watch out for Asuka."
"Just tell Frau Lucifer not to get in the way so much," Touji said.
Asuka tightened her grip on the axe. "Shut up, Stooge. On 3."
"3!" Shinji moved to the left, strafing the Angel. It moved toward Shinji, stupidly following him, and leaving itself open as Asuka ran forward. She brought the axe up, and swung. It sank deep into the Angel's side.
It screeched, and turned on Unit 02, ignoring the bullets that stuck its right flank. Asuka tried to pull the axe out, but the Angel's body tightened on the blade, holding it in itself. It raised an arm, and bashed Unit 02. The Eva stumbled, and then recovered as the Angel swung again. Unit 03 ducked under the blow, and slammed a fist into the Angel's chest. The flesh of the Angel was soft, and sank in under the blow. Asuka swung again, aiming for the head.
The Angel's neck stretched, and its head shot forward. The mouth clamped on Unit 02's shoulder. The plates in its mouth were sharp edged, and dug firmly into the Eva. Asuka screamed, feeling her Eva's armor and flesh being bitten.
Shinji froze for a second, horrified. Rei's voice broke his daze. "Ikari, move to your left." He shifted, and a beam of light from Rei's rifle passed by Unit 01's face, striking the Angel's neck. It let go of Unit 02, rearing back on its legs.
"Asuka? Asuka, answer!" Unit 02 fell back, clutching its shoulder. The Angel planted its foot on the Eva's chest. It looked in the direction the shot came from. Unit 02 struggled under its bulk. It slammed its foot down. Asuka cried out again.
"Get this damn thing off me!"
Rei fired another shot. The beam went strait through the Angel's chest. It looked directly at her.
Meeting its gaze, Rei froze. It had the same look as the one before. The eyes were not hollow. They were consuming voids, and she could see straight into its mind.
I have found you.
The Angel reached down, pulled the axe from its body, and tossed it aside. Touji aimed his rifle, and fired. The Angel moved too fast. It was already moving towards Unit 00 at an impossible speed. He followed it with his sights, firing, but it was just too damn fast.
Asuka heard Shinji's voice over the channel. It hurt to breathe. The Angel had nearly left a damn footprint in her Eva's chest. She'd felt every tremor of pain as if it were her own. It was times like this that she really hated her job.
"Asuka? Are you all right?"
She sucked in a breath through clenched teeth. "It's going for Rei. Just get that bastard!"
As the sounds of the battle raged around her, Asuka concentrated on breathing. A single question filled her mind. She had to be going insane to admit it.
Had she really heard it? Had it really spoken?
"Commander, Unit 02 is down. Major damage sustained to the breast and armor. The pilot has suffered neural feedback, but is still alive."
Misato watched the screen. Inside her mind was screaming. She always hated watching this. Why couldn't she be out there to help them? It wasn't fair.
"Target is advancing on Unit 00. Commander?"
"Unit 00, fall back. Units 01 and 03, assist Rei, now. Eliminate the target."
The Angel leapt into the air. Rei dropped her rifle, and Unit 00 spun around, bringing its right heel up to slam into the Angel. The monster fell to the ground, but its head shot out, latching on to Unit 00's arm. It dug deep, almost severing it. Rei grit her teeth, and pulled against the Angel. It pulled its body forward, and grabbed on to the Eva, trying to push it to the ground. Unit 00 resisted, but fell to its knees.
Unit 03 slammed its shoulder into the Angel, knocking it off of Unit 00. The head lashed out, snapping at Unit 03. The Eva stepped back, parrying with its knife. It was driving him back, even as he tried to counter. The Angel's jaw snapped shut on the blade, with the sound of steel. It tried to pull the knife from his hands. Touji struggled to maintain his grip.
"Rei! Shinji! Now, damn it! Kill it now!"
Rei pulled out her knife, and leapt on top of the Angel's body. Shinji aimed his pistol and fired at the neck, trying to sever the head. The core was not visible on its chest or belly. Rei stabbed her knife into its chest, and pulled down, vivisecting it. The Angel's body opened up like the petals of a flower, revealing inner tissues and organs that she could not begin to understand. This was not the biology of a living organism.
In the center of the chest sat the Angel's core, a red orb. Rei raised her knife, and slammed the blade into it. Light erupted from the wound. She pulled down, trying to cut the core open, but it resisted.
No, stop.
Rei froze for a second.
It's you. You're the one I'm here for. You carry the part of Him.
She yelled, and drove the knife deeper.
Please, stop. You must give me purpose. You are the-
The core released a final beam of light. From all around them, a scream echoed. It was not something that could have come from a mortal voice. The four Evangelion pilots stopped as they heard it. It demanded no less of them. It was loss and anger beyond anything they could know. It peeled through the air, rattling their souls.
And then it was gone.
Forever.
"The target has been destroyed, Commander."
"Good. Begin Eva retrieval. Mission successful."
Yoshi stared at the computer readout of the Eva pilots' psych patterns. This couldn't be right. He'd never seen it before.
He felt someone staring at him. He turned and met Kitari's gaze.
The man gave him a cool stare. "What's wrong, Dr. Iwano? You've won. You look a little pale."
Yoshi cleared his throat. "Oh, sorry. It's nothing, really. Just a head cold."
Kitari nodded. "You might want to get that cleared up. Oh, congratulations to you, Commander. It was an impressive battle, as always."
Misato thanked him, and then looked over at Yoshi. Something had grabbed his attention. He had a look of discovery in his eyes. A new mystery had opened itself up to him.
"Well," Kitari said, "I'll be going back to my office. You will remember to send me a full report of the operation for my superiors to review, yes?"
"Of course, Mr. Kitari. We always share our full information with the UN."
"Of course you do. Excuse me."
When Yoshi thought Kitari wasn't looking, he gave Misato a glance. It said: This is important. I know it.
Kitari turned his back, and left the control room.
He didn't understand whom they thought they were fooling. He could find out what they were doing at anytime. Of course he'd never resort to such crude actions himself. But it was nice to know that he could. He never understood why people underestimated him. He always proved them wrong.
It was a promise he would always keep.
Always.
***
"So we heard it scream," Touji said. "They all screamed before, right?"
The four of them sat around dinner, along with Kensuke and Hikari. They admitted to each other that they had heard something come from the Angel as it died. It sounded like a scream. But that was wrong.
"It's not that, Touji, and you know it." Shinji was beginning to lose interest in his own dinner.
"Yeah, I know." He frowned. He hated it when things got complicated like this.
"We didn't actually hear it. It was…"
"It spoke to us," Asuka said. She blinked, then shook her head. "Great, I've been with you guys for way too long. Now I'm acting weird."
Kensuke said, "Wait a minute. You mean you felt the Angel scream?"
"Dr. Iwano told us that there was a reaction with our psych patterns during the battle," Shinji explained. "It happened once with Asuka and once with Rei, and then all four of us."
Asuka looked over at Rei. She didn't touch her food, but it wasn't a surprise. None of them really felt hungry. They were only eating because they didn't want to upset Hikari. Rei sat there, as quiet as she had ever been. It made Asuka uncomfortable. Rei had actually turned into a somewhat likable person over the past few years. Seeing her like this only reminded Asuka of what it was like before.
Finally, she swallowed her fear. "What do you think happened, Rei?"
She looked up. "I'm not sure. It's happened to us before. I know that. The Angels tried to contact our minds once before. I can't remember very much of it, because I self-destructed Unit 00 after it happened to me."
The others stared at Rei, and then everyone lost their appetite.
"This is why I really hate this job, sometimes," Asuka muttered.
"Well, it doesn't get any better," Shinji said.
"What does that mean?"
"It means that the reason our communications failed yesterday was because someone found a way into NERV HQ without being detected, and sabotaged our communications network."
"What?"
"Just great."
"What's going on? Is Misato looking into it?"
"Two Angels in two days, and now this. I'm going to sleep."
Shinji slapped the table. "Just hold on a minute!" Everyone jumped, and then remained silent and still. Shinji looked at his friends, and sighed. "I'm sorry. I know we've all been through a lot. But this is what's happening. Misato needs us to keep our eyes open while she and Yoshi try to find out who did this. All right?"
They nodded. Touji poked at a ball of rice. "Sorry, man. It's been really hectic for all of us, I guess. I feel sorry for Misato for having to deal with all of this. Especially because she has to deal with us." He laughed.
Shinji smiled. "It's nothing Misato can't handle. Kensuke, do you think you could help out?"
Kensuke's mouth hung open, noodles halfway in. He stared not directly at Shinji, but at some point beyond Shinji, beyond the room. It wasn't even really a stare.
"Kensuke?" Hikari waved a hand in front of his face. His only response was a grunt. "Great, Shinji. Now you've put him in shock."
"I've got it," Asuka said. "Hey! Stooge!" She slapped him across the back of his head.
Kensuke dropped his noodles, and blinked. "Huh? Wha... you mean... Shinji, you mean NERV wants me to help?"
Shinji was now holding his head in his hands. "No, I want you to help. You'd know more about this than we would. Between the computer and war strategies, this is the kind of thing you go in for. I was hoping you could pick up on something NERV's security hasn't, yet."
Asuka raised an eyebrow. "And Yoshi doesn't have a problem with this? You know how territorial he gets when someone starts messing with the technical stuff."
"Misato's already handled everything. All I need to do is give you your..." Shinji felt his pockets. "Damn it!"
"Looking for this?" Misato held the security pass in front of him.
"Oh, thanks, Misato." He paused, and then looked up at Misato. "Wha!"
Everyone at the table jumped in surprise. No one had seen her come in, or heard the door open, or even a knock. No one remembered getting up to answer the door. The gap in the logical course of events left them paralyzed for a moment. Misato just stood there, smiling.
"What, no 'Hello, Misato. How the hell did you get in here?'?" She looked around at them. "Where do you get this many chairs?"
Asuka was the first to say it. "What the hell are you doing here, Misato?"
"I just stopped by to drop off Kensuke's security pass for tomorrow when I realized Shinji had forgotten about it."
"That's not what I mean!" Asuka stood up. "What are you doing in here?
Misato looked around for another chair. "Oh, the key the landlord gave me works both for the apartment downstairs and this one. I didn't know until I just tried it out. Funny, huh?"
"What are you talking about? Your apartment is on the other side of town!"
"Asuka, you don't have to yell. I'm moving out of there, anyway. Shinji told me that there was a place available right below you guys, so I called up earlier. I just stopped by to sign the lease. You wouldn't believe how uptight these people are about a credit check." She struggled to keep a straight face. She didn't mean to get Shinji in trouble, but seeing Asuka get this upset over something so trivial was pretty funny. Maybe she really was just sadistic?
Asuka glared at Shinji. He cringed. "Shinji? You told her about that?"
"Touji, help me."
"She's your girlfriend, man. You handle it."
"Kensuke?"
"Sorry, Shinji, but I'm not suicidal."
"Hikari, please, she's your friend."
"Exactly. I'm not on your side to begin with."
"Rei?"
Rei would have responded if the humor of the entire situation hadn't overloaded and paralyzed her.
Misato headed for the fridge. "I need a drink. Anyone else want one?"
"Yes," Shinji said. "A beer. Please. Before she hurts me."
***
He was enjoying himself. Seeing it in battle today had given him a glimpse of something he'd missed. The terror, the savagery, it was all unmatched by anything else that had ever existed. The pure drive of it all had given him a rush.
Most importantly, it had shown him what he was looking for. He had found her. He'd suspected, but it was the one thing that he couldn't quite figure out. NERV had been one puzzle after another, even to those who had made the pieces. Ikari had been greedy with his secrets, and unraveling one meant being rewarded with another.
But now he had it!
His companion sat in the corner, nervously smoking a cigarette. "You can't really be sure, can you? I mean, if there's even one little mistake..."
The man looked at him. "You've become increasingly difficult, you know? Any more of these concerns, and I'll begin to question your usefulness to this." He spoke without regret or fear. He knew exactly what he had to do, now. "You got it, of course?"
"Yeah. It's all here. Right where you said it would be." He tapped the disks lying on the table. "Are you still serious about this? I mean, this is..." He stopped.
The man wasn't listening. He picked up the disks, looking at them. "You've done your job. That's all you need to care about. Although I must say that knocking out their communications was a nice touch. You timed it perfectly." His companion suddenly seemed more nervous than usual. "What is it?"
"They're gone."
"Of course they're gone. That's part of what they're meant to do. They must move in order to avoid discovery."
"I mean that all the others are gone! The fourth one is still there, but... it's... I went to check it out. There were only a few pieces left of the others. The fourth one is already out there!"
"You're saying the fourth is growing. That's good. It will need all the strength it can get."
He stared at the man. This couldn't be the way it was supposed to happen. This wasn't what he'd said it would be. "You bastard. You knew, didn't you?"
"No. But I had an idea."
"An idea? It fucking ate them! It just cannibalized your 'back ups'! What the hell do you expect it to do now, huh? Or do you just have another idea?"
There was a golden flash to the man's eyes. "If you don't stop your hysterics right now, I will silence you." His companion stared at him for a long, tense moment, then sat back down. The man's eyes wandered over the table, and settled on the fake security pass. "Why are you going back in?"
His companion jammed the cigarette into an ashtray, and lit another one. "There's something I missed. Something I have to take care of. They probably won't find it, but I have to make sure."
"What are you talking about?"
"What the hell do you think I'm talking about? The Magi remember us, you idiot. They've still got our files. If some wise-ass goes poking around, trying to find out what I was after, they'll come across 'em. I know it."
The man sighed. "Very well. Maybe you'll finally start doing your job." He looked at the disks again.
It didn't matter. None of that mattered. Now there was only this.
And the mother.
***
"Are you sure you didn't hurt him?"
"He'll be fine. Trust me. He's stubborn." Asuka looked out the window of the train.
"You seemed pretty mad at him."
She sighed. "I guess I'm not really mad at him. It's just... too much has been going on right now. The last thing I need is Misato trying to act like a parent to us all over again."
Hikari smiled. "Well, at least you're only angry. It's better than you being depressed." She worried about Asuka. True, her friend was different, now, much different from the girl she had been. But Hikari still worried. She couldn't help it.
"Don't remind me, please." She stretched out her legs. "I only wish he hadn't gone and done it without me knowing. If Misato's going to be around more often again, I think I have a right to know."
"Well, it's not as if she's going to live with us or the Stooges."
"That's not the point. What are we getting out on our own for if Misato's just going to move in next door?"
"She's moving in next to Shinji, Asuka. It would be different if you spent a little more time at our apartment."
"Oh, would you stop being difficult."
"My point is that Misato's a friend. She's not your guardian anymore."
"Yeah, I know." She sighed. "She's always been like this, anyway. Well, at least we're not in school, anymore. Back then she was our friend until she got our report cards."
They laughed at that, letting the tension ease. Finally, Hikari said, "So, what's really bothering you?"
Asuka looked back to the window. "These damn Angels, that's what. They're making Rei act like the Wonder Girl, again. That just reminds me of how things used to be, is all. I don't' like remembering that part of my life."
"You don't have to go back to that, Asuka."
"I know that. I'm not afraid of it. I just can't remember now how I could rationalize being so hateful. I even turned on you, in the end. Sitting there in your house..." She shook her head. "Damn it all. I don't even know what's bothering me, anymore." That was only half true, she thought to herself. She knew what it was. She just didn't really want to admit it. She had a reputation to keep, after all.
Hikari smiled, and leaned back. "You know, I think it's really comforting that even after the Instrumentality, and everything else that's happened, we can still get confused."
Asuka looked at her with an eyebrow raised. "Great, the weirdness is infecting us all."
She laughed. "You just enjoy being stubborn."
"No, that's Shinji's job. Ever since Misato made him Lieutenant, he's been a real pain."
"Heh. The two of you were made for each other. You're both too much alike."
"What the hell's that supposed to mean? We don't act anything alike!"
"Okay. Sorry. What ever you say." She tried not to laugh.
"Hikari, I swear, if you don't wipe that grin off your face right now..."
Somehow, the two had remained friends even through the Impact, and Instrumentality, and all the changes it had wrought. Hikari didn't seem to have been overly affected, as seemed to be the case of much of the population. She noticed the changes from Instrumentality as they had affected Asuka. Her friend's personality didn't seem terribly changed, to her. She was only a little more open and confident than she had been. Much like the way Shinji had changed. Neither one of them accepted that they could not control their destiny, now.
Having them as friends kept Hikari's faith that Man always seemed to pull through in the end, no matter what. And that's all that really mattered, wasn't it?
End Part 4
Author's Notes: Well, another fine chapter thrown together at the last minute. Why the hell does all my best stuff come at two thirty in the morning when I've got a class at eight? Well, at least it's finished. I meant to put more in this one, but that'll have to wait 'till next chapter. Ain't it great to see a plot fall to all to hell? Maybe I'll actually try to resolve one of the mysteries I've come up with before introducing a new one?! Don't bet on it. Maybe I'll learn the names of those two guys who sat in the control room all the time?! (the only one I can remember is Maya. Pathetic, aint it?) See you in chapter 5, same bat time, same bat channel! All C,C&C, flames, and death threats can be sent to loneshark707@hotmail.com, or just posted in a review here on fanfiction.net (HINT! HINT!).
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Seraphim
by the Loneshark
Chapter 4: Looking for Blood
Neon Genesis Evangelion
Seraphim
Chapter 4: Looking for Blood
"You've got to be kidding me?" Misato looked at the report again. She'd expected this would be the case, but she really didn't want to be right. It was never a good thing when she was right. Touji and Kensuke had tried to fix this several times as a joke. Right now she wished that it was another one of their pranks, and they'd just gotten Yoshi and the NERV security staff to go along with it. That would be stretching it, of course, but it'd be better than this.
Of course, it wasn't. "It looks like the damage wasn't just random smashing, either," Yoshi said. "They knew exactly what they were looking for, and where to do the damage. There were no fingerprints, and no damage except in this area here, right to the communications circuits. We think it happened not too long before the Angel attack yesterday."
She looked over the photos. "This is too clean to be a simple sabotage. Someone who knew what they were looking for..."
"I'm having security checks run on all the communications personnel, janitors, and anyone else who could possibly have access."
"Basically the majority of our staff. The main purpose of sabotage is to create chaos, and this bastard just might succeed. Has anyone mentioned seeing anything strange, yet?" Again, she already knew the answer.
Yoshi shook his head. "Of course not. Nothing is ever easy."
Misato dropped the file on her desk. She might be just jumping to conclusions. The sudden return of the Angels was hardly an easily kept secret, not to say that it was a secret. There was also no shortage of people who wouldn't mind discrediting NERV, and the more extreme of those detractors wouldn't care about the cost. That they would have a saboteur amongst them right now was either a dangerously paranoid conclusion, or too convenient for coincidence.
"Whatever you're thinking, Commander, I've probably thought of it, already." Yoshi sat down in a chair in front of her desk. "It's just too much coincidence, right? And whoever would try something now, with the return of the Angels, would have to be, at the least, a very dangerous sociopath."
Misato sighed. "I know. Try seeing if you can check up on some of our former personnel, too."
"Anyone specific in mind?"
"The former Intelligence Department."
Yoshi stiffened a little. To him, that bunch were all expert in the arts of intimidation and keeping secrets. "You know that'll take some time, and you might have to get a few warrants approved."
"We're on constant alert status, these days. It shouldn't be too hard." She looked up when there was a knock at her door. "Come in."
Shinji walked in. "You wanted to see me, Misato?"
"Yeah, Shinji. Go ahead and sit, if you want."
He looked at their expressions. "Is something wrong?"
"No, it's all right," Yoshi said. "I just wanted to let you know that we're almost ready for testing the new progressive saber. That little episode with the Angel yesterday has got us working overtime to get it developed."
"I thought you said you'd already had it built?" He sat down.
"Well, mostly built. You know how prototypes are." He smiled, obviously trying to make up for something.
"It almost blew up the first time they activated it," Misato said.
Yoshi frowned at her. "You're sadistic, you know that?"
"That's what I keep telling her."
"Anyway, we're hoping to have it ready before next week. We've had to come up with a separate energy supply for it, so at first you'll have some balance problems, but I'm sure you can figure them out."
Shinji nodded, and then looked at the both of them. "So why did you really call me in here?"
Yoshi furrowed his brow. "When the hell did you become a mind reader?"
"I didn't. Misato's about to chew off her thumbnail."
Misato looked at her thumb, then rolled her eyes up. "Figures. Damn old habits. Anyway, you're right, that's not the only reason I called you in here. You haven't noticed anything unusual around here lately, have you?"
"You mean besides Kitari? No." Yoshi and Misato exchanged glances, and Misato handed the folder on her desk to Shinji. "What's this?" He opened it up, and skimmed the photos and the top of the report. His features deepened into a serious study. "So this is why the communications went out yesterday?"
"Yes." Yoshi looked out the window of Misato's office. "The most shameful thing about it is the way the saboteur went through our entire communications network from the inside. I've been able to track back to what terminals he used, but the communications circuits and data logs in each terminal have been destroyed. Whoever did this has a working knowledge of NERV's guts, and knows how to twist them." The others winced. "Sorry. Graphic analogy."
"No, it's fine." Misato turned back to Shinji, who handed the report back to her. "Tell the others about this, but make sure it doesn't go beyond you four, okay? We're going to run checks on everyone, and I'm planning on tracking down some of our old friends from the former Intelligence Department. This definitely seems like their kind of thing."
Shinji nodded, thinking. "Do you want me to ask Kensuke to come in and help out?"
"What?" Yoshi looked back. "You mean that friend of yours who's been applying to be a pilot for the past four years?"
Shinji smirked. "Heh. He told me he'd stopped doing that. Anyway, this is the kind of thing he could help out in, and you know he knows NERV's operating procedures better than any of us."
Misato bit her thumbnail, and then said, "All right, I'll get a pass for him before the end of the day. But make sure he understands how important it is to keep this quiet, okay? That especially includes Kitari. The last thing I need is another shouting match with the UN."
"What's the score on that, anyway? Twelve to fifteen, right?" Yoshi casually flipped the corners of a stack of papers, ignoring Misato's glare.
"No," Shinji said, "It's tied right now, by fifteen to fifteen."
"What, is there a pool going on?" Misato slapped the folder on her desk. "Go on and find something to do. You guys are supposed to be my friends, and here you are torturing me."
"Consider it payback for last night," Yoshi stood and quickly left.
Shinji looked at her. "What's that mean?"
"I'll tell you when you're older." She winked at him.
"Um, right. Anyway, I'll tell everyone to keep their eyes open, okay? Thanks, Misato."
"You are my Lieutenant, now. I can't keep you in the dark." Shinji started to leave, but she stopped him before he reached the door. "Oh, Shinji, there's just one other thing I need to ask you about." She picked up a newspaper sitting on the corner of her desk. "You haven't seen any adds for a decent apartment, have you?"
"Finally deciding to move?"
"Well, since you're living on your own, now, I decided I needed someplace a little smaller."
Shinji smiled. "Actually, there is a place available where I live. The people under us are moving out."
***
Asuka was probably going to kill him for that one. She enjoyed moving out on her own more than any of them. Having Misato so close again would probably make her feel uncomfortable, at least mildly. It didn't matter that she didn't actually live there, of course. Shinji could already imagine her saying, "That's not the point, dumbkopf!"
Taking a shower had been comforting, and let him forget about it. He tried not to think about the sabotage, but it kept pushing its way into his mind. Yoshi had been right. Whoever did it knew how NERV worked. Shinji could only think of three people outside of the former members of NERV Intelligence who knew the HQ that well, and all three had dropped off the face of the earth a long time ago.
When he finished changing, he headed for the cafeteria. Kitari turned the corner not far from there, and stopped Shinji. He smiled in a friendly manner.
"Lieutenant Ikari. Just the man I was thinking of."
"Um, hello, Mr. Kitari." He tried to look for a way out of the man's gaze, but there was really not place to go except the other way. He simply tried to avoid looking at the man's eyes. "Is there a reason you were looking for me?"
"Yes, I was just on my way to the cafeteria. Since you're going that way, why not join me?" He started walking as if he expected Shinji to come along anyway.
He did. He really didn't want to be near this guy. There was something about him that chilled Shinji's bones all the way down to the marrow. His gestures and stride was just too... fluid. Serpentine was a good word. Stalking was better.
But Misato had told them all to be respectful to him, if only because he represented NERV's funding. He could handle just talking to the guy for a few minutes.
They sat down at a table near the window, giving them a view of almost the entire GeoFront.
"It just seems to me," Kitari said, staring out at the GeoFront, "That you've been trying to avoid me ever since I got here."
Shinji tried to act surprised. "I'm sorry. I try to stay focused on my work here."
"Hmm. Like your Commander, I see. She's a... strong woman. You used to live with her, didn't you?"
"When I was a kid. Asuka and I lived with her while we were still in school. That was about six months ago."
"Pilot Asuka Langley Soryu. Age eighteen. From Germany, right?"
Shinji stared hard at the man. "How much do you know about us, anyway, Mr. Kitari?"
His eyes looked back, unphased by Shinji's stare. "The UN was given access to only basic files, mostly personnel records. I memorized them before I was transferred here. Don't worry, I'm used to suspicious looks."
Shinji looked out the window. "Sorry. I just have a lot on my mind at the moment."
He nodded. "You're a bit like Commander Katsuragi. She seemed to care a great deal about the four of you at dinner last night, when I brought the topic up."
"You took Misato to dinner?"
"Yes, along with Dr. Iwano. I get to write it off as a business expense, it's one of the better things about being a diplomat. It's also an old trick. Some of the most important treaties and agreements are negotiated over brunch." He smiled, apparently finding a strange humor to it. Shinji just felt another chill fall down his spine. "People rarely want to start an international incident in the middle of a coffee shop. Although there is an old joke about a revolution that started over some bad tea."
"Have you been working... for the UN for a long time?" Shinji felt a little awkward, being the only one at the table who wasn't laughing. But there were only two people here. That must be another diplomatic secret. How to make the other party feel awkward.
"No, only about a year or so. I did various things before that. You've been a pilot for as long as there have been Evangelions, haven't you? That's almost four years."
"It feels a lot longer," he admitted. "It's coming on five years." He knew that wasn't totally true. The Evangelions had been around a lot longer than that.
"The Commander told me a little about what it was like here before the Impact. I can't say I was much affected by that event, myself. It was a much more subtle thing than its predecessor. Rather much like the man who instigated it, from what I've been told."
"You mean Gendo Ikari."
He raised an eyebrow. "Your father, yes." Shinji stared out the window. "I'm sorry. I've offended you."
"No, it's all right. You're just trying to make conversation. Yes, he was my father." Shinji's tone implied that there was nothing more to be said.
Kitari nodded. "I see. I'm not doing too well at being a diplomat right now, am I? Well, let me try asking you something that's not so personal."
Shinji looked at the man, and half nodded, half shrugged. "Go for it."
"Well, since you're now Katsuragi's Lieutenant, do you plan on staying on with NERV? After the Angels are all dead, I mean?"
"What?"
Kitari lit a cigarette. "Well, hopefully, you will win. I mean it'd be rather horrible if the Angels defeated you, right? So, assuming that, when this is all over, do you plan on staying with NERV?" There was a moment of silence.
"Well, it's not something I've ever really thought about."
A cloud of smoke escaped his mouth as he spoke. "Really? Not to be rude, but I would have thought it was something you've given a great deal of thought to. Your record shows that you tried to leave NERV twice in the first year you were here."
Shinji frowned. Maybe Kitari wasn't as sharp as he seemed. "I was just a kid, then. I'm not the same, now."
"Well, I'm sorry. I was just curious. You haven't continued on to university, like your friend Suzihara. After all, you can't fight Angels forever. One day, the fighting will stop. And then where will you be? Surely the Evangelions can't go on forever. And logically, you can't be a pilot forever."
Shinji stared at Kitari as he spoke. He didn't like where this was going. He didn't love Eva, but he knew that what he did was important. It wasn't just important to people beyond him. It was important to him. It was important because there was no one else who could decide it for him.
"What are you getting at?" He slammed his palms on the table.
Kitari looked up, his face calm and serene. He also seemed pleased with himself. "I'm saying that one day all the choices you make in life will never have mattered. Some day, NERV and the Evangelions will be useless. Obsolete. Defunct. If you win, the Angels will be dead, and everything you've worked at building will fade away."
Shinji sat back down, listening. Then he said, "You sound like you've already given up." He thought that Kitari sounded somewhat like himself, when he was young. Back when he was a boy, before he learned that he had to become a man in order to survive.
Kitari took a final drag on the cigarette. He buried it in an ashtray. "I'm just stating a fact. One day, even everything I've worked for will be meaningless. That's what the Impact taught me."
They stared at each other for a long moment. The entire cafeteria seemed empty and quiet. Shinji could feel the man's eyes boring into him. When he tried to stare back, he only felt foolish. Was Kitari trying to provoke him? If so, he was doing a good job at it.
"Hey, Shinji!" They looked over to see Touji walking towards them.
Kitari stood. "Well, I should be going. It was... interesting, talking with you, Lieutenant Ikari. I'll be seeing you around." He walked away as Touji approached.
Touji watched him walk off. "What was that all about?"
"Just trying not to offend the guy, I guess."
He sat down. "Heh, you look like the one who's been offended. What'd he say to you?"
"It was nothing," he lied.
"You know you're the worst liar on the planet, right?"
He nodded. "Yeah."
After a moment, Touji smacked him on the shoulder. "So? Out with it!"
Shinji realized he was smiling for a second, and then frowned as he remembered what Kitari said. "He told me that once the Angels are defeated, NERV won't have a purpose anymore. It'll just fade away. He asked me if what I wanted is to stay with NERV after all this is over."
"What a jerk! You don't believe him, do you?"
He shook his head. "No. No, I don't." He didn't think about the question for very long before coming up with the answer. How could he believe that? "If I did, then everything we've gone through wouldn't mean anything. And I will never believe that."
"Damn right!" He slammed his fist on the table.
"Touji, sit down, will ya? People are looking."
Touji looked around the cafeteria, giving everyone present a hard, angry look. Their heads quickly turned the other way. He sat back down, and smiled. "Heheh. So what?"
Shinji shook his head. "You're as bad as Asuka, you know that?"
"Ah, bite me," he laughed. "Anyway, you're more like Asuka."
"What's that mean?"
Before he could answer, the warning sirens blared. "Red Alert. All Evangelion pilots report to the Strategy Room immediately."
They sighed, and left the cafeteria. "No rest for the weary, I guess."
"It's our choice, Touji. Might as well owe up to it."
***
Misato entered Central Dogma. Yoshi was already there, looking at the main screen. She never understood how he always beat her here. Ritsuko had done the same thing, every time.
"What's the status?"
"Target has been identified as an Angel, even though it's giving the Magi a migraine. It's currently holding position in the northeast part of Tokyo 3. It hasn't moved since it got here." Right now, it was just a dot on a topographical map.
"All right, show me." The screen changed. This one seemed much like the first, in that it possessed a roughly humanoid shape. But it looked all wrong. The neck was a bare, lengthened muscle. It crouched on the ground, supporting much of its weight on its hands. The legs were long and bent like an animal. The head had a distended jaw, filled not with teeth, but gleaming silver plates.
"It looks like it's only half formed," Misato said.
"Yes. It's a bit gruesome." Yoshi felt someone staring at his back. He looked over his shoulder to see Kitari standing off to the side. The man watched the screen with an unusual intensity in his eyes. Yoshi turned back, unable to stand meeting Kitari's gaze. There was just something about it that wasn't... sane. Or possibly not human.
"Why isn't it moving?" Misato stared at the image.
"Maybe it's thinking about what it should do?"
"If they even think." What was it even doing here? Adam was gone, having been consumed in the Instrumentality Project. What purpose could the Angels possibly possess now? Their Armageddon was impossible.
"Are the communications channels back online?"
"Yep. I made them stay up all night fixing it. I also had new security locks put in."
"All right, Units 01 and 02 will take point. Units 00 and 03 will provide backup. Launch!"
***
It was waiting. Its brothers had fallen here. It could remember hearing their screams as they died. The sounds of battle and pain still hung in the air like a scar. Its last brother was unsuccessful before it had even come this far. It could only hope that this form it had chosen would enable it to survive.
It had to survive. Long enough to find the one who carried what it sought.
That was all it had. It knew that it should not exist. It was simply a contingency. It had been a dead soul with no purpose other than to wait until the day it could be part of a whole once again. It was never meant to be here.
That all changed when they were betrayed by the last. The one who had learned how to be human.
And then the demons had their way.
It could feel them coming, now. They were rising up out of the earth. They were bringing with them what it sought.
It would destroy them, or would cease to be.
It raised its head, and roared.
***
Shinji readied his progressive knife in one hand, and his pistol in the other. The way this Angel acted was making him nervous. The way it looked was making him sick. It looked only half-finished, with skin--or whatever passed for its skin-hanging off, leaving pulsing flesh bare. It roared at them as they had launched, and now it waited for them to make a move.
Asuka stood beside him holding a large axe. Behind them, Rei and Touji stood back several hundred yards with their rifles ready.
"I'll draw its attention while Asuka charges. Rei, Touji, be ready to fire if you get an opening, but watch out for Asuka."
"Just tell Frau Lucifer not to get in the way so much," Touji said.
Asuka tightened her grip on the axe. "Shut up, Stooge. On 3."
"3!" Shinji moved to the left, strafing the Angel. It moved toward Shinji, stupidly following him, and leaving itself open as Asuka ran forward. She brought the axe up, and swung. It sank deep into the Angel's side.
It screeched, and turned on Unit 02, ignoring the bullets that stuck its right flank. Asuka tried to pull the axe out, but the Angel's body tightened on the blade, holding it in itself. It raised an arm, and bashed Unit 02. The Eva stumbled, and then recovered as the Angel swung again. Unit 03 ducked under the blow, and slammed a fist into the Angel's chest. The flesh of the Angel was soft, and sank in under the blow. Asuka swung again, aiming for the head.
The Angel's neck stretched, and its head shot forward. The mouth clamped on Unit 02's shoulder. The plates in its mouth were sharp edged, and dug firmly into the Eva. Asuka screamed, feeling her Eva's armor and flesh being bitten.
Shinji froze for a second, horrified. Rei's voice broke his daze. "Ikari, move to your left." He shifted, and a beam of light from Rei's rifle passed by Unit 01's face, striking the Angel's neck. It let go of Unit 02, rearing back on its legs.
"Asuka? Asuka, answer!" Unit 02 fell back, clutching its shoulder. The Angel planted its foot on the Eva's chest. It looked in the direction the shot came from. Unit 02 struggled under its bulk. It slammed its foot down. Asuka cried out again.
"Get this damn thing off me!"
Rei fired another shot. The beam went strait through the Angel's chest. It looked directly at her.
Meeting its gaze, Rei froze. It had the same look as the one before. The eyes were not hollow. They were consuming voids, and she could see straight into its mind.
I have found you.
The Angel reached down, pulled the axe from its body, and tossed it aside. Touji aimed his rifle, and fired. The Angel moved too fast. It was already moving towards Unit 00 at an impossible speed. He followed it with his sights, firing, but it was just too damn fast.
Asuka heard Shinji's voice over the channel. It hurt to breathe. The Angel had nearly left a damn footprint in her Eva's chest. She'd felt every tremor of pain as if it were her own. It was times like this that she really hated her job.
"Asuka? Are you all right?"
She sucked in a breath through clenched teeth. "It's going for Rei. Just get that bastard!"
As the sounds of the battle raged around her, Asuka concentrated on breathing. A single question filled her mind. She had to be going insane to admit it.
Had she really heard it? Had it really spoken?
"Commander, Unit 02 is down. Major damage sustained to the breast and armor. The pilot has suffered neural feedback, but is still alive."
Misato watched the screen. Inside her mind was screaming. She always hated watching this. Why couldn't she be out there to help them? It wasn't fair.
"Target is advancing on Unit 00. Commander?"
"Unit 00, fall back. Units 01 and 03, assist Rei, now. Eliminate the target."
The Angel leapt into the air. Rei dropped her rifle, and Unit 00 spun around, bringing its right heel up to slam into the Angel. The monster fell to the ground, but its head shot out, latching on to Unit 00's arm. It dug deep, almost severing it. Rei grit her teeth, and pulled against the Angel. It pulled its body forward, and grabbed on to the Eva, trying to push it to the ground. Unit 00 resisted, but fell to its knees.
Unit 03 slammed its shoulder into the Angel, knocking it off of Unit 00. The head lashed out, snapping at Unit 03. The Eva stepped back, parrying with its knife. It was driving him back, even as he tried to counter. The Angel's jaw snapped shut on the blade, with the sound of steel. It tried to pull the knife from his hands. Touji struggled to maintain his grip.
"Rei! Shinji! Now, damn it! Kill it now!"
Rei pulled out her knife, and leapt on top of the Angel's body. Shinji aimed his pistol and fired at the neck, trying to sever the head. The core was not visible on its chest or belly. Rei stabbed her knife into its chest, and pulled down, vivisecting it. The Angel's body opened up like the petals of a flower, revealing inner tissues and organs that she could not begin to understand. This was not the biology of a living organism.
In the center of the chest sat the Angel's core, a red orb. Rei raised her knife, and slammed the blade into it. Light erupted from the wound. She pulled down, trying to cut the core open, but it resisted.
No, stop.
Rei froze for a second.
It's you. You're the one I'm here for. You carry the part of Him.
She yelled, and drove the knife deeper.
Please, stop. You must give me purpose. You are the-
The core released a final beam of light. From all around them, a scream echoed. It was not something that could have come from a mortal voice. The four Evangelion pilots stopped as they heard it. It demanded no less of them. It was loss and anger beyond anything they could know. It peeled through the air, rattling their souls.
And then it was gone.
Forever.
"The target has been destroyed, Commander."
"Good. Begin Eva retrieval. Mission successful."
Yoshi stared at the computer readout of the Eva pilots' psych patterns. This couldn't be right. He'd never seen it before.
He felt someone staring at him. He turned and met Kitari's gaze.
The man gave him a cool stare. "What's wrong, Dr. Iwano? You've won. You look a little pale."
Yoshi cleared his throat. "Oh, sorry. It's nothing, really. Just a head cold."
Kitari nodded. "You might want to get that cleared up. Oh, congratulations to you, Commander. It was an impressive battle, as always."
Misato thanked him, and then looked over at Yoshi. Something had grabbed his attention. He had a look of discovery in his eyes. A new mystery had opened itself up to him.
"Well," Kitari said, "I'll be going back to my office. You will remember to send me a full report of the operation for my superiors to review, yes?"
"Of course, Mr. Kitari. We always share our full information with the UN."
"Of course you do. Excuse me."
When Yoshi thought Kitari wasn't looking, he gave Misato a glance. It said: This is important. I know it.
Kitari turned his back, and left the control room.
He didn't understand whom they thought they were fooling. He could find out what they were doing at anytime. Of course he'd never resort to such crude actions himself. But it was nice to know that he could. He never understood why people underestimated him. He always proved them wrong.
It was a promise he would always keep.
Always.
***
"So we heard it scream," Touji said. "They all screamed before, right?"
The four of them sat around dinner, along with Kensuke and Hikari. They admitted to each other that they had heard something come from the Angel as it died. It sounded like a scream. But that was wrong.
"It's not that, Touji, and you know it." Shinji was beginning to lose interest in his own dinner.
"Yeah, I know." He frowned. He hated it when things got complicated like this.
"We didn't actually hear it. It was…"
"It spoke to us," Asuka said. She blinked, then shook her head. "Great, I've been with you guys for way too long. Now I'm acting weird."
Kensuke said, "Wait a minute. You mean you felt the Angel scream?"
"Dr. Iwano told us that there was a reaction with our psych patterns during the battle," Shinji explained. "It happened once with Asuka and once with Rei, and then all four of us."
Asuka looked over at Rei. She didn't touch her food, but it wasn't a surprise. None of them really felt hungry. They were only eating because they didn't want to upset Hikari. Rei sat there, as quiet as she had ever been. It made Asuka uncomfortable. Rei had actually turned into a somewhat likable person over the past few years. Seeing her like this only reminded Asuka of what it was like before.
Finally, she swallowed her fear. "What do you think happened, Rei?"
She looked up. "I'm not sure. It's happened to us before. I know that. The Angels tried to contact our minds once before. I can't remember very much of it, because I self-destructed Unit 00 after it happened to me."
The others stared at Rei, and then everyone lost their appetite.
"This is why I really hate this job, sometimes," Asuka muttered.
"Well, it doesn't get any better," Shinji said.
"What does that mean?"
"It means that the reason our communications failed yesterday was because someone found a way into NERV HQ without being detected, and sabotaged our communications network."
"What?"
"Just great."
"What's going on? Is Misato looking into it?"
"Two Angels in two days, and now this. I'm going to sleep."
Shinji slapped the table. "Just hold on a minute!" Everyone jumped, and then remained silent and still. Shinji looked at his friends, and sighed. "I'm sorry. I know we've all been through a lot. But this is what's happening. Misato needs us to keep our eyes open while she and Yoshi try to find out who did this. All right?"
They nodded. Touji poked at a ball of rice. "Sorry, man. It's been really hectic for all of us, I guess. I feel sorry for Misato for having to deal with all of this. Especially because she has to deal with us." He laughed.
Shinji smiled. "It's nothing Misato can't handle. Kensuke, do you think you could help out?"
Kensuke's mouth hung open, noodles halfway in. He stared not directly at Shinji, but at some point beyond Shinji, beyond the room. It wasn't even really a stare.
"Kensuke?" Hikari waved a hand in front of his face. His only response was a grunt. "Great, Shinji. Now you've put him in shock."
"I've got it," Asuka said. "Hey! Stooge!" She slapped him across the back of his head.
Kensuke dropped his noodles, and blinked. "Huh? Wha... you mean... Shinji, you mean NERV wants me to help?"
Shinji was now holding his head in his hands. "No, I want you to help. You'd know more about this than we would. Between the computer and war strategies, this is the kind of thing you go in for. I was hoping you could pick up on something NERV's security hasn't, yet."
Asuka raised an eyebrow. "And Yoshi doesn't have a problem with this? You know how territorial he gets when someone starts messing with the technical stuff."
"Misato's already handled everything. All I need to do is give you your..." Shinji felt his pockets. "Damn it!"
"Looking for this?" Misato held the security pass in front of him.
"Oh, thanks, Misato." He paused, and then looked up at Misato. "Wha!"
Everyone at the table jumped in surprise. No one had seen her come in, or heard the door open, or even a knock. No one remembered getting up to answer the door. The gap in the logical course of events left them paralyzed for a moment. Misato just stood there, smiling.
"What, no 'Hello, Misato. How the hell did you get in here?'?" She looked around at them. "Where do you get this many chairs?"
Asuka was the first to say it. "What the hell are you doing here, Misato?"
"I just stopped by to drop off Kensuke's security pass for tomorrow when I realized Shinji had forgotten about it."
"That's not what I mean!" Asuka stood up. "What are you doing in here?
Misato looked around for another chair. "Oh, the key the landlord gave me works both for the apartment downstairs and this one. I didn't know until I just tried it out. Funny, huh?"
"What are you talking about? Your apartment is on the other side of town!"
"Asuka, you don't have to yell. I'm moving out of there, anyway. Shinji told me that there was a place available right below you guys, so I called up earlier. I just stopped by to sign the lease. You wouldn't believe how uptight these people are about a credit check." She struggled to keep a straight face. She didn't mean to get Shinji in trouble, but seeing Asuka get this upset over something so trivial was pretty funny. Maybe she really was just sadistic?
Asuka glared at Shinji. He cringed. "Shinji? You told her about that?"
"Touji, help me."
"She's your girlfriend, man. You handle it."
"Kensuke?"
"Sorry, Shinji, but I'm not suicidal."
"Hikari, please, she's your friend."
"Exactly. I'm not on your side to begin with."
"Rei?"
Rei would have responded if the humor of the entire situation hadn't overloaded and paralyzed her.
Misato headed for the fridge. "I need a drink. Anyone else want one?"
"Yes," Shinji said. "A beer. Please. Before she hurts me."
***
He was enjoying himself. Seeing it in battle today had given him a glimpse of something he'd missed. The terror, the savagery, it was all unmatched by anything else that had ever existed. The pure drive of it all had given him a rush.
Most importantly, it had shown him what he was looking for. He had found her. He'd suspected, but it was the one thing that he couldn't quite figure out. NERV had been one puzzle after another, even to those who had made the pieces. Ikari had been greedy with his secrets, and unraveling one meant being rewarded with another.
But now he had it!
His companion sat in the corner, nervously smoking a cigarette. "You can't really be sure, can you? I mean, if there's even one little mistake..."
The man looked at him. "You've become increasingly difficult, you know? Any more of these concerns, and I'll begin to question your usefulness to this." He spoke without regret or fear. He knew exactly what he had to do, now. "You got it, of course?"
"Yeah. It's all here. Right where you said it would be." He tapped the disks lying on the table. "Are you still serious about this? I mean, this is..." He stopped.
The man wasn't listening. He picked up the disks, looking at them. "You've done your job. That's all you need to care about. Although I must say that knocking out their communications was a nice touch. You timed it perfectly." His companion suddenly seemed more nervous than usual. "What is it?"
"They're gone."
"Of course they're gone. That's part of what they're meant to do. They must move in order to avoid discovery."
"I mean that all the others are gone! The fourth one is still there, but... it's... I went to check it out. There were only a few pieces left of the others. The fourth one is already out there!"
"You're saying the fourth is growing. That's good. It will need all the strength it can get."
He stared at the man. This couldn't be the way it was supposed to happen. This wasn't what he'd said it would be. "You bastard. You knew, didn't you?"
"No. But I had an idea."
"An idea? It fucking ate them! It just cannibalized your 'back ups'! What the hell do you expect it to do now, huh? Or do you just have another idea?"
There was a golden flash to the man's eyes. "If you don't stop your hysterics right now, I will silence you." His companion stared at him for a long, tense moment, then sat back down. The man's eyes wandered over the table, and settled on the fake security pass. "Why are you going back in?"
His companion jammed the cigarette into an ashtray, and lit another one. "There's something I missed. Something I have to take care of. They probably won't find it, but I have to make sure."
"What are you talking about?"
"What the hell do you think I'm talking about? The Magi remember us, you idiot. They've still got our files. If some wise-ass goes poking around, trying to find out what I was after, they'll come across 'em. I know it."
The man sighed. "Very well. Maybe you'll finally start doing your job." He looked at the disks again.
It didn't matter. None of that mattered. Now there was only this.
And the mother.
***
"Are you sure you didn't hurt him?"
"He'll be fine. Trust me. He's stubborn." Asuka looked out the window of the train.
"You seemed pretty mad at him."
She sighed. "I guess I'm not really mad at him. It's just... too much has been going on right now. The last thing I need is Misato trying to act like a parent to us all over again."
Hikari smiled. "Well, at least you're only angry. It's better than you being depressed." She worried about Asuka. True, her friend was different, now, much different from the girl she had been. But Hikari still worried. She couldn't help it.
"Don't remind me, please." She stretched out her legs. "I only wish he hadn't gone and done it without me knowing. If Misato's going to be around more often again, I think I have a right to know."
"Well, it's not as if she's going to live with us or the Stooges."
"That's not the point. What are we getting out on our own for if Misato's just going to move in next door?"
"She's moving in next to Shinji, Asuka. It would be different if you spent a little more time at our apartment."
"Oh, would you stop being difficult."
"My point is that Misato's a friend. She's not your guardian anymore."
"Yeah, I know." She sighed. "She's always been like this, anyway. Well, at least we're not in school, anymore. Back then she was our friend until she got our report cards."
They laughed at that, letting the tension ease. Finally, Hikari said, "So, what's really bothering you?"
Asuka looked back to the window. "These damn Angels, that's what. They're making Rei act like the Wonder Girl, again. That just reminds me of how things used to be, is all. I don't' like remembering that part of my life."
"You don't have to go back to that, Asuka."
"I know that. I'm not afraid of it. I just can't remember now how I could rationalize being so hateful. I even turned on you, in the end. Sitting there in your house..." She shook her head. "Damn it all. I don't even know what's bothering me, anymore." That was only half true, she thought to herself. She knew what it was. She just didn't really want to admit it. She had a reputation to keep, after all.
Hikari smiled, and leaned back. "You know, I think it's really comforting that even after the Instrumentality, and everything else that's happened, we can still get confused."
Asuka looked at her with an eyebrow raised. "Great, the weirdness is infecting us all."
She laughed. "You just enjoy being stubborn."
"No, that's Shinji's job. Ever since Misato made him Lieutenant, he's been a real pain."
"Heh. The two of you were made for each other. You're both too much alike."
"What the hell's that supposed to mean? We don't act anything alike!"
"Okay. Sorry. What ever you say." She tried not to laugh.
"Hikari, I swear, if you don't wipe that grin off your face right now..."
Somehow, the two had remained friends even through the Impact, and Instrumentality, and all the changes it had wrought. Hikari didn't seem to have been overly affected, as seemed to be the case of much of the population. She noticed the changes from Instrumentality as they had affected Asuka. Her friend's personality didn't seem terribly changed, to her. She was only a little more open and confident than she had been. Much like the way Shinji had changed. Neither one of them accepted that they could not control their destiny, now.
Having them as friends kept Hikari's faith that Man always seemed to pull through in the end, no matter what. And that's all that really mattered, wasn't it?
End Part 4
Author's Notes: Well, another fine chapter thrown together at the last minute. Why the hell does all my best stuff come at two thirty in the morning when I've got a class at eight? Well, at least it's finished. I meant to put more in this one, but that'll have to wait 'till next chapter. Ain't it great to see a plot fall to all to hell? Maybe I'll actually try to resolve one of the mysteries I've come up with before introducing a new one?! Don't bet on it. Maybe I'll learn the names of those two guys who sat in the control room all the time?! (the only one I can remember is Maya. Pathetic, aint it?) See you in chapter 5, same bat time, same bat channel! All C,C&C, flames, and death threats can be sent to loneshark707@hotmail.com, or just posted in a review here on fanfiction.net (HINT! HINT!).