The Pools.
By Kevin McHorney
The Gehirn VSTOL landed on a small cliff overlooking
the mysterious valley. A wide cargo door opened in the back of
the aircraft and armored men leapt to the ground. They landed
in a crouch and scanned the surrounding terrain, their assault
rifles ready to eliminate anything that constituted a threat.
One of the men paused as he listened to his headset then
pointed to three men and motioned them towards a small, nearby
hut. The three men ran towards the hut and rushed inside.
The soldier who had signaled held his earpiece closer
to his head, then he tapped his throat and said, "This is
Sergeant Hanabishi. The area is secure, Sir. One male in
structure, no other humans detected."
A door on the side of the aircraft opened and swung to
the ground to form a ladder. Gendo Ikari stepped down the
ladder followed closely by Kozo Fuyutsuki. They stepped to the
edge of the small cliff and surveyed the valley.
"Interesting," Ikari said. "Every one of the pools has a
bamboo pole in it's center?"
"Yes, all of them. This valley was at one time a
martial arts training ground. However this supposed curse has
kept people away for decades now."
"Yet it survived the second impact and continues to
give off an unusual energy signature. Perhaps there is
something to this curse, Professor."
"Magic, Ikari? I didn't think that you would be one to
believe in it."
Ikari used his index finger to slide his glasses back
onto the bridge of his nose and smiled. "I don't. But after
all, there are more things on this Earth than are contained in
all your books and philosophies."
"Hamlet?" Fuyutsuki said as he raised an eyebrow. "An
odd time to be quoting Shakespeare."
Ikari let his comment pass and signaled to Sergeant
Hanabishi. "The Professor and I are going down to this
valley."
Sergeant Hanabishi saluted and said, "Yes, Sir." He
turned and started barking orders to his troops as Ikari and
Fuyutsuki walked down the narrow path to the valley floor,
followed by two soldiers.
At the edge of the field of pools Ikari signaled to the
soldiers to remain where they are as he and Fuyutsuki walked in
among the pools. Ikari stopped and stood besides one of the
pools, looking into it's depths. "What kind of curse was
placed on these pools?"
"Actually, we don't know." Fuyutsuki said. Ikari
looked up at him in surprise and Fuyutsuki continued, "We only
know that its name is the cursed training ground of Jusenkyo
and that it's the pools themselves that are cursed." He paused
as if weighing his words, then said, "Are you sure you want to
be sitting so close to it?"
"Curses, Professor? I didn't think that you would be
one to believe in it," Ikari said, throwing Fuyutsuki's own
words back at him. "I'm sure that..." Ikari's words were cut
off as the ground he was standing on crumbled, pitching him
into the pool. He came sputtering back to the surface and
grabbed onto the edge.
Fuyutsuki held out a hand to help Ikari out of the
water, then paused. Something about Ikari looked different.
His glasses hadn't changed, but they didn't make his face look
quite as omniscient as they usually did. There were other
changes in his expression and the way he stood as he got out of
the pool. There was othing Fuyutsuki could put his finger on,
however something had changed about his friend. "Ikari, are you
alright?"
"Never better, Fuyutsuki my friend, never better."
Professor Fuyutsuki's eyes nearly popped out of his head as
Ikari smiled. This wasn't his usual closed smirk, but the open
grin of a man who hid nothing. "Hmm, my son is almost five. I
need to get him back from that teacher and start training him
properly," Ikari said to himself as he walked back to the
VSTOL, Fuyutsuki trailing behind him. "A training trip should
turn him into a real man. Maybe I should arrange a marriage
for him, giver him something to look forward to after he
becomes a man. I think Professor Soryu has a daughter about
Shinji's age."
Inside the hut the Jusenkyo guide sighed and shook his
head. "Poor man, fall into spring of drowned martial arts
father."
End.
I was re-reading Kevin Hammel's 'Honor and Love' series when
I got the idea for this little story. Not much more to say
about it. As always, please send comments to
stormwalker628@usa.net
Disclaimer: this story is in no way a challenge to the
ownership of any ideas or characters from either Neon Genesis
Evangelion or Ranma 1/2 and was written for entertainment
purposes only.
By Kevin McHorney
The Gehirn VSTOL landed on a small cliff overlooking
the mysterious valley. A wide cargo door opened in the back of
the aircraft and armored men leapt to the ground. They landed
in a crouch and scanned the surrounding terrain, their assault
rifles ready to eliminate anything that constituted a threat.
One of the men paused as he listened to his headset then
pointed to three men and motioned them towards a small, nearby
hut. The three men ran towards the hut and rushed inside.
The soldier who had signaled held his earpiece closer
to his head, then he tapped his throat and said, "This is
Sergeant Hanabishi. The area is secure, Sir. One male in
structure, no other humans detected."
A door on the side of the aircraft opened and swung to
the ground to form a ladder. Gendo Ikari stepped down the
ladder followed closely by Kozo Fuyutsuki. They stepped to the
edge of the small cliff and surveyed the valley.
"Interesting," Ikari said. "Every one of the pools has a
bamboo pole in it's center?"
"Yes, all of them. This valley was at one time a
martial arts training ground. However this supposed curse has
kept people away for decades now."
"Yet it survived the second impact and continues to
give off an unusual energy signature. Perhaps there is
something to this curse, Professor."
"Magic, Ikari? I didn't think that you would be one to
believe in it."
Ikari used his index finger to slide his glasses back
onto the bridge of his nose and smiled. "I don't. But after
all, there are more things on this Earth than are contained in
all your books and philosophies."
"Hamlet?" Fuyutsuki said as he raised an eyebrow. "An
odd time to be quoting Shakespeare."
Ikari let his comment pass and signaled to Sergeant
Hanabishi. "The Professor and I are going down to this
valley."
Sergeant Hanabishi saluted and said, "Yes, Sir." He
turned and started barking orders to his troops as Ikari and
Fuyutsuki walked down the narrow path to the valley floor,
followed by two soldiers.
At the edge of the field of pools Ikari signaled to the
soldiers to remain where they are as he and Fuyutsuki walked in
among the pools. Ikari stopped and stood besides one of the
pools, looking into it's depths. "What kind of curse was
placed on these pools?"
"Actually, we don't know." Fuyutsuki said. Ikari
looked up at him in surprise and Fuyutsuki continued, "We only
know that its name is the cursed training ground of Jusenkyo
and that it's the pools themselves that are cursed." He paused
as if weighing his words, then said, "Are you sure you want to
be sitting so close to it?"
"Curses, Professor? I didn't think that you would be
one to believe in it," Ikari said, throwing Fuyutsuki's own
words back at him. "I'm sure that..." Ikari's words were cut
off as the ground he was standing on crumbled, pitching him
into the pool. He came sputtering back to the surface and
grabbed onto the edge.
Fuyutsuki held out a hand to help Ikari out of the
water, then paused. Something about Ikari looked different.
His glasses hadn't changed, but they didn't make his face look
quite as omniscient as they usually did. There were other
changes in his expression and the way he stood as he got out of
the pool. There was othing Fuyutsuki could put his finger on,
however something had changed about his friend. "Ikari, are you
alright?"
"Never better, Fuyutsuki my friend, never better."
Professor Fuyutsuki's eyes nearly popped out of his head as
Ikari smiled. This wasn't his usual closed smirk, but the open
grin of a man who hid nothing. "Hmm, my son is almost five. I
need to get him back from that teacher and start training him
properly," Ikari said to himself as he walked back to the
VSTOL, Fuyutsuki trailing behind him. "A training trip should
turn him into a real man. Maybe I should arrange a marriage
for him, giver him something to look forward to after he
becomes a man. I think Professor Soryu has a daughter about
Shinji's age."
Inside the hut the Jusenkyo guide sighed and shook his
head. "Poor man, fall into spring of drowned martial arts
father."
End.
I was re-reading Kevin Hammel's 'Honor and Love' series when
I got the idea for this little story. Not much more to say
about it. As always, please send comments to
stormwalker628@usa.net
Disclaimer: this story is in no way a challenge to the
ownership of any ideas or characters from either Neon Genesis
Evangelion or Ranma 1/2 and was written for entertainment
purposes only.
