Chances Taken
Part 6
Ricochet
By Random1377
"Don't you think this is a bit much?"
Gendou continued to stare at the calm Child standing in front of his desk, feeling a certain amount of grudging respect as she met his eyes levelly. "The codes," he said quietly, "who gave them to you?"
"Found 'em," Asuka said flatly, trying to scratch her nose with her triple-cuffed hands. "They were just lying around, Commander – very poor security if you ask me, you might want to-"
"I'm glad you find this so entertaining," Gendou cut in coolly, "unauthorized use of an Evangelion… possession of restricted access codes… Absent Without Leave… should I continue?"
"Can you?" Asuka returned belligerently. "So far everything you've said has been utter crap – why not make up some more?" she wet her lips, waiting for him to interrupt. "Absent without leave? I was in Unit 02. Unauthorized use of an EVA? Killing angels is what they're for. Possession-"
"Tell me where you got the lockout codes," Gendou cut in, now sounding faintly annoyed, "and I might be lenient with you."
"Lenient…" Asuka whispered, her voice losing some of its fire. "Do you honestly think that after sitting in LCL for three days, waiting for that kid – the one YOU let in here – to make his move that I would just start crying and throwing myself at your feet, begging you to forgive me for doing what I felt was necessary to beat him?"
Gendou's right eye twitched slightly. "There is an order to things here, pilot," he said dangerously, "a chain of command to follow."
"I thought killing angels was the bottom line," Asuka said sarcastically, "or maybe I missed a memo."
"Very amusing," the Commander grunted, "I will give you one last chance, pilot Souryu – where did you get the MAGI lockout codes?"
Asuka shrugged. "From a cat," she grinned suddenly, "a little calico cat with blue eyes and-"
"Security," Gendou said softly, pushing a button on his desk, "please escort Miss Souryu to a holding cell. She is to remain there until such time as she is feeling more cooperative." He leaned back in his chair, folding his hands in front of his face. "Consider yourself stripped of your status," he said coldly, "and if you see Doctor Akagi, give her my regards."
Asuka looked a bit pale, but managed to keep her voice from trembling as she muttered, "I hope the cell I have has a window so I can watch your world crumbling around you, you heartless bastard."
Gendou smiled as the guards came in and took the girl by the upper arms to lead her away, and his reply followed her down the hall, echoing with his amusement and anger.
"It doesn't."
**
Consciousness returned to Shinji very slowly, mingling with his dreams and making him question whether or not he was truly awake. One particularly vivid image was that of Asuka, her features contorted into a mask of pleading agony, looking up into his face as he (for reasons he could not fathom) slowly destroyed everything she valued.
-Horrible…- he shivered, opening his eyes to find the ceiling of a hospital room waiting patiently for him. –Thank god that's just my imagination…-
"The troubles of a pained sleeper are betrayed by his unhappy expressions," a soft voice at his side whispered, "were your dreams unpleasant, Ikari?"
Shinji continued to stare upwards. "They were… scary, Ayanami," he replied quietly, feeling no real surprise to have her at his side, "people I cared for were… hurt, by me."
"I see," Rei said softly.
"Where's Maya?"
Rei's voice sounded faintly amused. "She is on the command deck… fulfilling her duty."
"Oh," Shinji sighed.
"I am sure that she would rather be with you," the blue-haired girl assured him, putting a hand on his and leaning into his line of sight, "but your room has been designated off-limits until you awaken."
Shinji frowned, glancing at the girl out of the corner of his eye. "Then… how come you're here?" he asked curiously. "Aren't you disobeying orders?"
His jaw dropped open as she nodded an affirmative. "Yes," she said carefully, "but it was imperative that I speak to you – regardless of the cost." She averted her eyes. "Somehow, it has become more important to me to see you happy than to follow orders that do not make sense…"
"Ayanami…" Shinji breathed. "That's… thank you…" He averted his eyes, "Then… what's so important?"
"There are… details of my past that I felt you should be made aware of," the girl said reluctantly, "as well as-"
"I already know."
Rei blinked. "I don't understand."
Shinji shrugged slightly, too tired and overwhelmed with all that had happened in the last few days to feel any true sense of disgust or anger at what the girl was. "Maya found out," he sighed, "when your… ummm… others were destroyed."
The First Child glanced down, straightening her skirt and blushing faintly as she whispered, "I wanted to tell you a long time ago, Shinji…"
"It doesn't really matter, Ayanami," he replied softly, "I'm leaving NERV now that the angels are all gone." He closed his eyes. "But… I'm not angry at you, or anything, I'm just… I'm just so tired… of everything – I want to take Maya and leave this place…"
Rei continued smoothing her skirt. It should be me that you are taking, she thought sadly. Pushing away at the pointlessly pining thought, she sat up in her chair, studying the boy carefully for a moment.
"You are happy with Miss Ibuki, then?"
Shinji nodded, keeping his eyes closed. "I am," he confirmed calmly, "very happy. Someday… when she's ready… I'll marry her."
Rei considered this for a moment, then sighed, very softly. "I would like to be there," she said quietly, managing a small smile, "as I said before, Shinji, your happiness-"
Shinji frowned and opened his eyes as the girl cut herself off. "What is it?" he asked, watching with curiosity as she rose to her feet and tilted her head to the side, regarding him closely.
"You are… still weak…" she said slowly.
The boy touched his throat, grimacing slightly as he recalled the feeling of Unit 02's progressive knife hitting Unit 01. "Well, not THAT weak," he said with some confusion. "I mean… it hurts, but I should be ok."
"This place," Rei said softly, shaking her head from side to side, "is not safe, Shinji…"
"What do you mean?"
The blue-haired girl closed her eyes, the odd feeling of something joining with her soul repeating itself two, then three more times. It is begun…
"Get dressed and come with me," she said quietly, "or you will die."
The boy stared at her for a minute before slipping out of bed and dressing, seemingly convinced by the tension in her voice. I will do my best, Miss Ibuki, she thought grimly, bracing herself as another five souls joined hers at the same time.
"Come," she whispered, gesturing for him to follow.
She opened the hospital room door and immediately turned right, heading for the secured elevator that would lead her to Terminal Dogma… for no matter how much she wished to flee from her destiny, she knew it was inescapable.
He will be safe there, she thought, wishing it was more of a certainty, at least until…
Closing her eyes and shaking her head to clear it, Rei Ayanami led Shinji Ikari into the depths of NERV… where the future of mankind was to be decided.
Neither of them noticed the small, carefully folded piece of paper tucked carefully under Shinji's pillow.
**
Maya sighed and leaned back in her seat, lacing her fingers behind her head. -Just a few more hours,- she thought happily, -and with the last angel down, maybe Major Katsuragi will consider my request for a weekend off.-
She glanced up at the woman, frowning as she found her pacing back and forth in front of the command dais. "Is something wrong, ma'am?" she inquired cautiously.
Misato continued pacing. "Nothing you can help with," she muttered, "unless you can tell me why we're still on full alert when the angels are all dead."
Maya blinked. "Well," she said reluctantly, "I guess it doesn't hurt to be prepared…"
"Prepared for what?" Misato returned immediately, coming to a stop in front of the younger woman. "And don't you think the sub-commander looks a bit too grim for having just won the war?"
They both looked up to where the gray-haired man stood stiffly at attention, his eyes fixed on the bank of monitors that dominated the far wall.
"I… I don't know," Maya shrugged, "I just… oh never mind…"
She thought briefly of asking for the weekend off, just to change the subject… but reconsidered as the operations director began pacing once more. -They'd tell us if there was something to be worried about, right?- She thought uncertainly, -I mean, the angels are gone, and—
"I have something I want to take care of," Misato announced suddenly, striding towards the door.
Before Maya could reply, a soft ping sounded on her computer. She glanced down, blinking in surprise as she found the simple message, 'Terminal' blinking on her screen.
"Who… is… this…?" she typed back, glancing around to see if anyone else was getting the odd signal.
'Terminal…' came the quick reply, 'Get out now, Maya. Too dangerous. Go to Terminal.'
"Dogma?" the brown-haired woman typed back, feeling a deep sense of unease as she waited for an answer.
'Yes,' popped up on the screen, 'go now. Shinji is in danger.'
Maya shot to her feet, frantically typing, "Is he there? What kind of danger?"
She slammed her fist down on the desk as the internal messenger window winked out of existence.
"You ok, Ibuki?" Makoto asked quietly. "Shift's over in a couple hours you know," his lips curved up into a smile, "you can wait that long to see your little boyfriend, can't you?"
Maya frowned and shook her head. –Danger,- she thought frantically, -Shinji's in danger… in Terminal…- She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, and when she opened them, her face was set into a mask of bold determination.
Turning on her heel, she strode from the command deck, ignoring the chorus of calls that followed her out and heading straight for one of the elevators that would lead her to her destination.
**
Asuka groaned as light spilled across her face. "Do you mind?" she growled, rolling onto her side. "It's only been four hours! Come back in a few weeks – with cable – and maybe I'll give you a hint."
"Now I KNOW," a soft voice whispered, "that you don't wonder WHY you're in here."
The redhead sat up, blinking as she found the harsh light from the open doorway outlining a very familiar figure. "M-Misato…?"
The purple-haired woman stepped quickly into the cell, producing a pair of coveralls and a large hat. "Put these on," she whispered urgently, "the guard was sitting down when I tazed him, so I'm hoping it will look like he just fell asleep… but we have to hurry."
"What's going on?" Asuka asked, picking up on the woman's nervousness – and the fact that she was essentially breaking her out of prison. "Where are we going? Is Shinji ok? Are-"
"Damn it," Misato hissed, cutting her off, "why are you so freaking curious all of the sudden! We're getting the hell out of here…"
Asuka nodded, slipping the coverall on over her plugsuit, which she had not been given the chance to change out of before her incarceration. "What do you need me to do?" she asked, her nerves suddenly humming with excitement.
Misato pulled out a laptop and offered it to the girl. "Lock out the cameras on this floor and get us a safe exit," she said, her voice shaking slightly and betraying her fear. "We're never coming back, Asuka… ok?"
"Shinji," the redhead said immediately, "he's coming with us, right?"
"I left a note for him," the woman said tensely, ducking out of the cell and taking a quick look around, "I told him to bring Maya and meet us at his favorite place…"
"So you're serious," Asuka murmured, slipping out of the cell and kneeling by a data access port. "It's about time."
"Yeah, yeah," Misato muttered, wetting her lips and looking around as the girl began entering codes, "Just hurry up and-"
She was cut off as the general alarm began sounding.
"Damn it!" Asuka swore, "System lock down…" Her eyes widened in shock. "Intruder alert," she read slowly, "first seventeen levels occupied – what the hell??"
"Did you secure us a route?" Misato asked, sweat breaking out on her forehead as she drew her service pistol.
"There IS no secure route," Asuka pointed out irritably, "we're cut off – we're ALL cut off, don't you get it!? We're under ATTACK!"
Misato took a deep breath. "There's one route that's secure…" she said softly, giving the collar of the girl's red plugsuit a meaningful glance.
Asuka shook her head, grinning softly as she consulted the laptop. "I like you, Misato…" she chuckled quietly, "have I ever told you that?" She looked up, meeting the older woman's eyes as she informed her, "There are fifteen levels between us and Unit 02…"
Misato nodded and pulled the slide on her gun, chambering a round. "Let's do it."
**
Things, Rei decided, were not going well.
"How much further?" Shinji asked as they jogged briskly through Terminal Dogma. "And… and can we stop so I can get in touch with Maya? Those alarms-"
"No," Rei said softly, cutting him off, "there is no way to get in touch with the command deck until we arrive."
Shinji nodded. "Ok…"
And there may not be time once we get there, Rei added mentally, slowing as they reached the vast portal known as Heaven's Door. She was on the verge of triggering the doors when a tall figure stepped out of the shadows.
"I see you've heard the call…"
Rei tensed slightly. "Yes… Commander," she whispered.
At her side, Shinji went rigid.
"You brought him… why?" Gendou asked, reaching into his pocket and pulling out an access card.
The Third Child winced as if struck, but Rei's voice was calm and collected as she answered, "He was in danger… I have sworn to protect him…"
"How… interesting," the Commander muttered, sounding as if he found the situation anything but. "Come then… it is time…"
"Time for what?" Shinji whispered, watching in confusion as his father slid the access card through the reader.
Rei kept her eyes forward, stepping through the massive doors after the black-coated man and murmuring, "Impact."
**
Maya put her hands on her knees, gasping for breath as she came to a halt outside of the most secure location in NERV. "M-made it…" she panted, inhaling deeply and straightening as she approached the huge doors.
"Stop."
The technician froze immediately as a coldly commanding voice whispered from the shadows. Instinctively, she raised her hands. "I'm… not armed…" she managed.
"I'm glad you got here ok," the voice said honestly, "but you shouldn't go in there, Maya…"
"Sempai?"
Turning cautiously, she found that the voice from the shadows did indeed belong to her superior.
"Shinji?" she called, "Shinji are you-"
"He's inside," Ritsuko murmured, "talking to his father…" her lips curled into a sneer, "and that miserable First Child."
Maya paled at the cold, slightly mad tone in the blonde's voice. "I need to… to make sure he's ok…" she managed, stepping carefully past the woman and starting into the huge open space beyond.
Ritsuko shrugged.
"Suit yourself…"
**
Shinji's mouth was altogether too dry as his father slowly reached out and pressed his hand against Rei's chest. –Stop it…- he tried to say, but his throat would not cooperate.
It had been only five minutes since they had entered Terminal Dogma proper, but in that time, Shinji had found his entire concept of reality shattered. He knew Rei was a clone of his mother… and he knew that Third Impact was what they had been TRYING to avoid… but to find out that Rei was somehow key to everything – and that his FATHER was trying to start an alternate version of Third Impact.
Suffice it to say he was well-founded in feeling a little thunderstruck.
Things only grew more complicated when Maya and Ritsuko stepped into the room, walking slowly over to where the trio was standing.
"Doctor Akagi," Gendou began, reaching into his pocket with his free hand, "Honestly, I-"
Shinji's eyes widened as Ritsuko whipped her right arm up, firing with the small pistol clutched in it and catching the Commander at the wrist.
To his credit, Gendou did not scream. He simply gasped, staggering back as his hand was forcibly detached from his arm, slowly sinking into Rei's body. He clutched at his injured limb, the gun he had been pulling from his pocket dropping to the floor and bouncing into the LCL as he stared in horror at the blue-haired girl.
"R-Rei…" he managed, falling to his knees, "don't… leave me like this…"
The First Child looked down as the man collapsed to the ground, his eyes rolling closed. "I am not planning to proceed," she whispered, shaking her head for emphasis, "that was your dream, Commander…"
"W-why?" Maya stammered, looking at her superior with horror as the woman re-cocked the pistol. "Sempai, why are you doing-"
"I thought about reprogramming the MAGI to self-destruct," Ritsuko cut in acidly, "but someone locked them down – and besides, that was so impersonal… this is much more satisfying."
"Please don't kill him," her understudy begged, "please, ma'am? I… I know he's done bad things, and…" she swallowed, "maybe he deserves what happens, but don't… please don't kill him, ok?" She bowed her head. "There's been too much death already…"
"Oh he won't die," the blonde said cruelly, "Death is too good for him… so I'll make sure he lives – in constant pain!"
"Sempai," Maya said cautiously, "maybe we should-"
"You stay out of this, Maya!" Ritsuko shouted, cutting her off, "I don't want to hurt you, but I will, do you hear me?"
Maya stepped to the side, moving as discretely as she could closer to where Shinji and Rei stood.
"You…" Ritsuko whispered, swinging the gun slowly over towards Rei, "he always chose you over me…"
"That is not my fault," Rei said quietly, "I was merely his tool."
"SHUT UP!" the blonde screamed, "That doesn't make it ok!" She cocked the hammer back, taking careful aim.
"Shinji," Rei said softly, "you must stop Doctor Akagi… I cannot guarantee your safety if she attempts to fire."
Shinji met her eyes, remembering the conversation between her and his father… and all that was implied, but never spoken. His eyes went wide as he turned to Ritsuko. "NO!" he yelled, trying to close the distance between them.
He was too late.
The crack of the firing cap going off seemed small and somehow hollow in the enormous space of Terminal Dogma, like a small firecracker set off in an empty auditorium… but small or large, the sound of the shot did not matter – the results did.
The space in front of the First Child burst into the colored octagon shape of an AT field, and the bullet ricocheted off of it, finding another target with deadly accuracy.
Maya gasped as the bullet slammed into her body, crushing bone and tearing through tissues… spattering her blood across the floor. Shinji watched in horror as the woman he loved collapsed to the floor, holding her chest and struggling to draw breath with her undamaged lung.
"Maya?" Ritsuko whispered. "Oh God…" the gun fell from her hand, clattering to the ground. She stared at her shaking hands as if they were someone else's.
Shinji ignored her and ran to Maya's side, pressing his hands against the wound. "Maya!" he yelled, "Maya, hang on!"
Maya stared at him with pained eyes. "Shinji…" she gasped, struggling to sit up, "it… h-hurts…" her eyes rolled back into her head and she slumped to the ground as darkness filled her vision.
"MAYA!" Shinji screamed, holding her up against him, "No… no no no no!!!!" he began to sob. "PLEASE!" he cried, "Please!! Someone help!!"
But there was no reply to his frantic cry, only stunned, disbelieving silence…
To be concluded…
Author's Notes: ohhh you wanted a FAST update. Yeah, sorry… I don't do that. _ Ok, ok… sorry it took so long to get this one done, I just had a serious lack of inspiration that finally lifted when I thought of how Asuka would react to being cuffed after beating Kaworu. I just figured she's beaten the last angel, come to grips with who she is, and endured days of wet, slimy LCL to do what she thought was right – so what kind of intimidation could the Commander REALLY have? After I got that taken care of, the rest just fell into place. ^_^ Should you look for the next chapter anytime soon? Well… I hope so. I think I've got a pretty good idea of how it'll go – but don't quote me on that. -_- I'll try not to keep you waiting too long, and thanks for sticking with me this far… we're almost there.
Pre-read was done by Ryoma, LeperMessiah, and Ta-kun. Thanks y'all.
Feedback is always welcome at random1377@yahoo.com
