Big thanks to Steve Vader and my other mysterious friend for prereading for me.
Chapter 3 – Chain Reaction
The next day started pretty much the same way as the previous. The sun rose in the east casting its incandescent radiance upon the nation of Japan, chasing away the night time darkness and rousing the numerous sleeping creatures from their slumber. A cloudless blue sky greeted any who raised their gaze to the heavens and the temperature immediately began its steady climb to later achieve a level which would not have been out of place at the pre-second impact equator.
In the Katsuragi apartment things were much the same as usual. Shinji awoke just before his alarm was going to blare its incessant buzzing and shut the thing off before it had a chance. Rolling out of bed he immediately began his morning ritual and not half an hour later was seated at the table consuming his breakfast of green tea and toast. PenPen had already been fed and right on cue Misato's door slid open revealing the haggard NERV Captain dressed scantily in her pyjamas and holding her head in one hand as if her neck were incapable of supporting the weight. Shinji watched her stumble into the kitchen and retrieve a beer before collapsing into her chair and popping the top of the can.
She looks terrible he thought as he watched the obviously hung-over woman attempt to dull the pain of last nights drink fest with yet more alcohol.
"Good morning Misato. Are...are you alright?" he asked as she began to raise the can to her lips with a trembling hand.
"Fine" she grunted, unhappy at being interrupted before she could even get a sip. As if to make up for it she chugged down the entire contents of the can as though it were merely water and not alcohol.
"YEEEEEEEEEHAAAAAAAAA!" she wailed before slamming the can down on the table with a crushing force that shook Shinji's plate and cup. Her transformation from tired, hung over woman to fully awake guardian complete, she looked at Shinji with a big smile and bid him a cheerful good morning. Shinji's response was a frown and a shake of his head.
"What's wrong?" she asked whilst grabbing his remaining untouched piece of toast from in front of him.
"Nothing..." he mumbled before heading off to the kitchen to make more toast for the two of them. Misato was going to push him into giving her an answer but she already knew what the frown was for. There was no way he could possibly understand her reasons for why she acted the way she did so it was better to just leave it be. She waited patiently whilst he cooked up the toast and returned to the table. Misato narrowed her eyes at him as he put a cup down in front of her.
"What's this?" she inquired suspiciously whilst leaning forward to smell the aroma of the beverage.
"Tea" he said simply before picking up his piece of toast and taking a bite out of it. Misato glared openly at him but he refused to meet her gaze, much to her annoyance.
"I didn't ask for tea. You know that I need my morning beer to help me get ready for the day."
"You've had your morning beer. I just figured that tea would be much better this morning after the night you had" he said, still not meeting her gaze.
"Are you saying that I drink too much?" She asked indignantly. He paused to look up from his breakfast before answering.
"Yes" he said bluntly whilst holding her gaze. Misato narrowed her eyes menacingly at the accusation and several seconds passed in silence as the two stared at each other.
"Humph, well who asked you anyway?" she muttered as she hesitantly raised the cup of tea to her lips and took a cautious sip. It was actually pretty good, but the simple fact remained...it just wasn't beer.
"Actually you did" he stated casually lowering his eyes to his plate so that he could pick up his toast and take another bite. Misato lowered her cup and opened her mouth to retort him when she suddenly realised that he was right and she had just made a fool of herself.
"Leave me alone..." she groaned lamely knowing that she had just lost this discussion. Shinji seemed satisfied with himself at finally winning an argument with Misato and paused to remember the moment. The two finished the rest of their breakfast in silence and Shinji was pleased when Misato finished the tea he made her and didn't make a move to retrieve more beer.
"Is it true that you're coming to my school today?" he asked after minutes of silence.
"Yeah, it's your parent teacher interview and since I am your guardian it's my job to attend them." Shinji frowned thoughtfully at the statement. It should be his father that was attending, not Misato but he made it abundantly clear that he didn't care at all for Shinji. Misato sensing his change of attitude decided to interrupt his train of thought.
"Relax kiddo. Things will only get worse the more you dwell on them, that you can take my word for." Shinji considered her words carefully for a couple of seconds.
"Yeah, you're probably right" he sighed finally. "Oh well I guess I should be off then."
"Yeah you better. Have a good day at school Shinji" and with that he gathered his bag which he had already packed and made his lonely journey to school.
* * * * *
School was boring as usual. Their teacher kicked off the lesson with his usual boring recollection of life up until second impact and then how much everything changed after the catastrophe. Most of the class either fell asleep or let their minds wander as soon as the repetitive droning commenced and Shinji was no exception. He set his mind to the previous night and all that had transpired rather then dwell on unpleasant thoughts, like his father, which had bugged him the whole way to school. It sure seemed that everyone had enjoyed themselves and he held no delusions as to the teasing he was going to experience at lunch.
Touji and Kensuke made no secret of their love for Misato and seeing the way in which she acted around Shinji was quite surprising to them. Their jealousy was very obvious when she embraced him warmly and he knew that they would lecture him on how lucky he was every chance they had. More troubling however was when Maya granted him a farewell peck on the cheek. Shinji had never before been kissed by a girl, let alone a very attractive woman whom he worked with. He'd be blatantly lying to himself if he said that he didn't enjoy it but just what did it mean? Once the initial shock wore off he saw a very disconcerting glint in his friend's eyes and knew what they were going to say the first chance they got... Then there was the rumours Misato had drunkenly babbled about him and Rei...
Glancing around the room he noted that Ayanami was absent, not that he was surprised as she had told him the night before that she had tests. What kind of tests was a mystery to him. Her EVA was still a long way off being repaired and upgraded so it couldn't be anything requiring Unit 00. A simple harmonics test wouldn't last all day and in any case there was one scheduled for this afternoon so it couldn't be that. So just what the hell would require her to be at headquarters all day? This was yet another facet of the enigma that was Rei Ayanami, a puzzle that Shinji only had very few pieces for and no idea where to put them.
After an eternity of the teachers disconnected lecture the lunch time bell finally rang and Shinji sighed, though not so much in relief as defeat. He slowly packed up all his things and as sure as the sun still shined his two best friends quickly made their way over to his desk and looked at him in anticipation.
"Hey guys, did you have a good time last night?" Shinji asked whilst extracting his lunch from his bag and rising to his feet. The duo remained on their feet with their arms crossed over their chests and their heads cocked to one side.
"Apparently not as much as you" offered Kensuke with a playful gleam in his eyes and one eyebrow raised higher than the other.
"Err...umm...what do you mean?" Shinji asked innocently, his eyes darting back and forth trying to find an escape route.
"I think you know what we mean Mr bigshot. Or should we call you Casanova Ikari?" Touji said with both his eyebrows raised.
"Heh...oh that...uh...it...it isn't what you think..." Shinji mumbled lamely as he tried to sidestep the two boys who were blocking his exit. The two simply mirrored his movements and Shinji paled with the realisation that he had no escape.
"Then exactly what was it?" they asked in unison. Shinji took a step back as they leaned towards him but still he couldn't seem to avoid the two persistent youths.
"It was just a...a friendly goodbye..." he offered hopefully but knowing that they wouldn't accept it as a legitimate answer.
"Like hell Ikari, you were kissed by a gorgeous older woman!" yelled Kensuke loud enough for the other students still in the room to hear. The room quickly became deathly silent as everyone wanted to hear the rest of the story.
"Sure she may not be Misato but she was still something" Touji thought out loud. Shinji for his part blushed like he had never blushed before and if it was physically possible to pass out from the amount of blood that flooded to his cheeks then he would have. He stuttered incoherently for almost half a minute before Touji held his hand up to silence him.
"All right Mr Bigshot, you're gonna come clean and tell us everything!"
"Yeah, how long have you and that NERV chick...what was her name again?"
"M-Maya" Shinji informed without thinking.
"Yeah that's it! How long have you and Maya been seeing each other?" asked Kensuke eagerly. Shinji shrank before the determined inquisition and for the first time he noticed the camera in Kensuke's hand and paled.
"It's...it's n-not like that! We...we just work together and...and she was just being kind...that's all!" Things were getting worse by the minute and more people had entered the room to listen into the conversation. Shinji wished that he could just shrink away and disappear. Sure he may be an EVA pilot who had faced and defeated three angels, two of them by himself but never before had he been forced to face this. He found himself wishing for the angel alarm to sound but unsurprisingly his wish went ungranted.
"Suuuuuuure Ikari. You can't fool us. So have you two...you know, done anything else yet?" Touji asked with a twisted grin as he leaned even closer to Shinji whose face was expressing his dread and embarrassment for all to see.
"Yeah, and what about Ayanami. What does she think about it?" Several shocked gasps were heard by the bystanders at this latest question.
"Ayanami? What...what do you mean?" he asked though he knew full well what was going to be said.
"Misato told us how she interrupted you and Ayanami before you could do anything...inappropriate" Kensuke said with a wink. Hushed whispers quickly began circulating around the room and before the end of the day everyone would no doubt think that Shinji and Rei were involved. Though going out with Ayanami couldn't be a bad thing, this was just more attention he didn't need.
"Look I told you...there's nothing going on between me and Maya...or me and Ayanami...we're just friends...that's all I swear!" he pleaded desperately. The naked desperation in his eyes was enough to halt any further questions from his friends and for the first time they noticed the throng of eavesdroppers who crowded the room. Both looked at each other uneasily before turning away from Shinji.
"Hey what the hell is wrong with you people?" Touji yelled at the assembled children. "Get the hell outa here before I forcefully remove every last one of you!" he growled whilst brandishing his fist for all to see. The reaction was immediate. In record time the classroom was empty save for the three friends as none doubted Touji's threat. Shinji sighed in relief and collapsed into a vacant chair and closed his eyes.
"Err...sorry Shinji...I didn't realise that there were all those people there..." Touji muttered as he stared at his feet. Kensuke just shifted his weight from one leg to the other uneasily and he quietly agreed with Touji.
"It's fine" Shinji sighed after a long moment of silence. "Let's just go and eat our lunch eh?" The damage was done and it just wasn't in Shinji's character to hold grudges against people...especially his two best friends. The only exception to this rule would be his father of course.
"Lunch! What a great idea!" Touji yelled with heart felt excitement. Turning about he quickly left the room telling the other two that he'd meet them on the roof after he bought his lunch from the cafeteria.
* * * * *
Deep down in the bowels of the Geofront in a part of Central Dogma which only a handful of people knew about stood two figures. One was enclosed in a clear glass tube which was filled to the brim with an orange liquid easily identifiable as LCL. The occupant seemed completely content with her current situation and had her eyes closed in concentration so that she could complete the test efficiently. The other figure stood with his hands clasped behind his back and a blank expression on his face as he studied the smaller figure before him.
The room they were in was quite large and poorly lit. The walls could not be seen through the veil of darkness and the only illumination seemed to come from the tube itself. This fact didn't seem to bother either occupant.
"How are you Rei?" the man asked in an emotionless baritone voice. Rei Ayanami opened her eyes to look at the Commander of NERV before responding in her own emotionless though somewhat softer voice.
"There are no problems."
"I understand you were at the Katsuragi apartment last night. Tell me, how is the third child?" he asked, his voice and features still betraying no emotion whatsoever.
"The third child seemed slightly more subdued than normal but apart from that he seems the same as he was when he arrived."
"I see. And how did the others react towards him?" Rei hesitated for only a fraction of a second before responding.
"Everyone present seemed genuinely concerned for his well being." Since he asked how they reacted towards Shinji and not his imprisonment Rei decided that it was not necessary to recount the numerous derogatory comments made towards her Commander. She had always thought of Commander Ikari as somewhat of a father to her though recent events had made her question her degree of loyalty. She wouldn't go against him but she found herself questioning his actions...an act she wouldn't have dreamed of committing before she met the third child.
Interesting. It seems that the third child has become quite popular amongst the command staff. This will have to be monitored carefully lest it interfere with the scenario he thought to himself after hearing the words from the young girl before him. The two stared at each other blankly for several more minutes before Gendo moved his hands to his sides and relaxed imperceptibly.
"The experiment is over now. You should rest before your harmonics test this afternoon."
"Yes sir" and with that the orange liquid was drained from the tube and Ikari handed her a towel so that she could dry herself off before dressing. There wasn't much point in showering since she would be submerged in LCL in a short time anyway, so she dressed and followed the Commander out of the secret chamber.
* * * * *
Later that afternoon back across town at the Tokyo III Municipal High School the third child again found himself the topic of discussion; though this time he was well aware of the fact. Since returning from lunch he found his laptop inundated with messages about the conversation at lunch and he immediately found himself blushing again. He had just managed to push those thoughts aside before returning from lunch and now things were getting even worse than they were. He had been expecting something bad to happen today since he woke up but this was beyond his worst case scenario.
He replied to the first few messages but more and more kept coming his way and in an act of final frustration and defeat he shut off his computer and lowered his head to the desk, a state which he planned to remain in until the final bell rang. Some time later the sound of a roaring engine followed quickly by a deafening screech of tyres was heard outside the window as a car flew at breakneck speed through the sparsely populated visitor's car park and executed an impressive 180° handbrake skid, sliding perfectly into one of the empty spaces. Shinji raised his head at the sound but knew that there could only be one person who would drive that recklessly.
Every single boy in the class leapt from their seat (following Touji and Kensuke's lead of course) and amassed at the window to witness the spectacle.
"She really came!" yelled Touji in unbridled joy as he stuck his head out the window and was unable to contain the smile that spread across his face. Kensuke's camera materialised in his hand and was already centred on the now stationary vehicle before the others managed to crowd around. The car door opened and Misato Katsuragi stepped out before closing the door and locking the vehicle. A barrage of wolf whistles and adoring sighs were directed her way and she looked up at class 2-A, raising her hand and giving the love-struck boys a victory sign and a blinding smile which they all returned instantly.
"She is soooooooo gorgeous" said one boy in awe and all the others nodded their heads in agreement.
"So she's Ikari's guardian?"
"How did he score a babe like that?"
"Are the rumours true?" Whilst every boy with the exception of Shinji was gathered at the window watching the Operations Director of NERV walk towards the office, the girls were all still seated sending hard glares towards the gathering and muttering about how immature boys were. Shinji sighed at their antics and couldn't be bothered getting up just yet. He packed his things away silently and felt a presence beside him. Glancing over he was greeted by the pretty face of Ayumi, one of his fellow classmates and a good friend of Hikari.
"At least there's one guy in this school who has his hormones under control" she said with a half smile. Shinji smiled shyly back before lowering his gaze.
"Unless you believe all the rumours that are no doubt circulating" he muttered almost under his breath. She put a hand on his shoulder and he involuntarily flinched as he wasn't expecting the contact.
"Not everyone is gullible enough to believe in rumours. Besides, judging by the fact that you're the only one who isn't drooling at the window I think it's safe to assume that there isn't much truth to them." Shinji considered her words before turning back to look at her. She was definitely quite pretty with emerald eyes and long brown hair pulled back into a single braid popular of many girls at the school. Her small frame was matched by her height which would have been a couple of inches shorter than Shinji and her face seemed to be relaxed into a perpetual smile. Shinji found himself smiling back at her and relaxed under her touch.
"Well I've been living with Misato since I moved here so I guess I'm just used to her now" he offered with a shrug. The bell rang soon after his statement and the teacher was finally jolted out of his ramblings. How he remained oblivious to everything that happened in the room when he was giving one of his lectures was a mystery and the only thing that seemed to interrupt him was the bell. Hikari, after much yelling managed to regain control of the situation and she sent Touji a dark glare which he shrank away from before dismissing the class.
Everyone filed out of the classroom and Shinji said his farewells as he left for the Geofront for the scheduled harmonics test. He could have waited around for Misato to finish the interview and take him but he decided against it as that would mean receiving more attention from his inquisitive classmates. Besides, Touji and Kensuke would relish the chance to wait around and tell her that he had already left. He'd had far too much attention today, especially of the negative type and he really needed some time to himself to clear his mind before the test. With the decision made he slowly made his way to the nearest entry point and down into the secret base of NERV Central.
* * * * *
Deep down in the heavily fortified base two giant monstrosities stood rigidly across from each other with several thousand tonnes of reinforced high grade metal holding them against a wall thicker than most nuclear bunkers. To an untrained observer the massive restraints looked like overkill, but to anyone who had ever seen an EVA in action it was still not enough for peace of mind. The two massive killing machines faced each other and seemed to glare at each other dispassionately. The demonic visage of the horned Unit 01 seemed to be frowning at its cyclopean counterpart whilst the debilitated mono-eyed monster appeared to be glaring maliciously at the purple engine of destruction.
Maybe it was just Maya's imagination but she could have sworn that they were trying to kill each other with intense gazes. She shivered at the thought before turning back to her portable terminal and scanning through the data. Unit 01 was fully repaired and was just awaiting the moment when it was called forth to do righteous battle once again but Unit 00 was quite the opposite. Ritsuko's estimate of at least a months worth of hard work was looking very accurate as Maya scanned over the upgrades that they were going to perform in order to get the prototype more on par with the test type's abilities. She was so engrossed in the information on her screen that she didn't notice the person approaching her.
"Are you ready?" inquired a voice from behind her. Confused, the young technician turned around to see her superior and mentor standing behind her waiting patiently. Maya looked at her curiously and Ritsuko tapped her watch getting the desired result. Maya checked her own timepiece and her eyes widened with realisation.
"Sorry ma'am. I must have lost track of time" she said sheepishly before turning around and shutting down the terminal.
"There's no rush Maya. Rei won't mind and Shinji's too polite to complain if we start the test a couple of minutes late."
"Right, uh...I'll just be a minute" she said whilst waiting impatiently for the terminal to go blank signifying that it was no longer active. Ritsuko shifted her weight distractedly as she thought about how best to ask the question on her mind.
"Uh Maya..." she started and her protégé turned around and raised an eyebrow at the indecision she saw in her mentor's normally confident gaze.
"Is...is something wrong ma'am?"
"Uh about last night...I didn't do anything...embarrassing did I?" she asked shyly. Maya was taken back. She had never before seen Ritsuko so embarrassed. She always projected an aura of confidence and seemed to be in control 100% of the time, seeing her like this was a shock to Maya. So she is human after all...
"Not at all Dr Akagi. You had a fair bit to drink but aside from having Aoba carry you to the car there was nothing really you should be worried about." The older woman visibly relaxed at the statement.
"Well that's good to hear. I guess I enjoyed myself a little too much." Maya smiled as she remembered the evening.
"There's nothing wrong with that, everyone needs to relax and let loose every now and then. Even you." Ritsuko considered the comment in silence for a moment before nodding her head slowly.
"Yeah, I guess you're right. It's just a shame that we never seem to have time for such indulgences" she sighed regretfully.
"We can always make time every once in a while" Maya said hopefully.
"Humph, like the Commander would allow something like that. I had a good night I must say and I'm glad that you were there to stop me from embarrassing myself." Maya smiled warmly at the statement.
"Yeah, I had a good time too. Even Shinji seemed to enjoy himself and since that was the reason for the party we can't call it a waste of time can we?"
"You're right." A moment of silence prevailed as the two were both lost in their thoughts of the said evening.
"Well we better be off. I want to run an extra test on Shinji so we should get started now so that we won't be here all night" Ritsuko said finally.
"Yes ma'am."
* * * * *
Several minutes later in the Pribnow box.
"Hmmm...it's as I suspected..." Ritsuko said mostly to herself as a frown etched its way across her face. She was standing behind Maya with a clipboard in her hands and reading the data from the young techs terminal.
"Is there a problem?" asked Misato as she approached her oldest friend and made to look at the data herself.
"Shinji's synch ratio is down 2 points. It's been rising at a phenomenal rate ever since he first hopped in Unit 01 but after what he went through after the last battle it seems that he is slipping."
"I'm not surprised" growled Misato with a hard edge to her words. "He's a fragile boy, what the Commander did to him was completely inappropriate and it was always going to do some damage." Her frown twisted into a mask of anger as she pictured the Commander of NERV berating Shinji and ordering his incarceration. She clenched her fists tightly at her side in an effort to calm herself but the action failed and she felt herself growing even angrier instead until she looked at the monitor displaying Shinji's relaxed form in the entry plug. Somehow seeing him calmed her down and after a couple a deep breaths she managed to get herself under control again.
"Shinji, you're slipping. I need you to concentrate harder" ordered Ritsuko.
"Yes ma'am" he said monotonously. If only it were that simple... he thought bitterly. Purging one's mind of all thoughts was quite a difficult thing to do at the best of times but at the moment it was nigh on impossible for the young warrior. Images of his father kept tormenting him along with his harsh comments. After half an hour with no change Ritsuko sighed and ordered the end of the tests.
"Alright you two we're finished. Rei you may go but Shinji I want you to head to the cage. I'd like to perform one more test with you in Unit 01." The request surprised Misato who turned to look at her friend curiously. Shinji confirmed her request and after he was released from the plug he headed straight to the EVA cages and Unit 01.
"What are you doing?"
"I just want to test Shinji in Unit 01 to see if his synch ratio is the same as in this test. Call it a hunch but there's something about Unit 01 and Shinji, and I'd like to find out why they can do the things they do." Misato just nodded her head. She too was curious about the strange events that Shinji and the test type were constantly at the centre of and every little test would help to shed some light on the matter.
* * * * *
Shinji sat in the command seat of the entry plug and watched impassively as it was filled with LCL. He was used to the warm liquid now and exhaled as the level rose above his head and completely filled the large entry plug. He continued to wait patiently as the first and second stage connections were made. A myriad of flashing lights erupted throughout the plug and his A-10 neural connectors finally linked him with the EVA as the third stage was achieved. His view instantly changed from the enclosed cylinder to that which Unit 01 could see and he felt the familiar warm presence of being connected to the EVA.
This must be what it feels like to be in the womb. The thought surprised him and yet it seemed to fit quite accurately. He didn't have long to ponder this revelation before Dr Akagi's voice interrupted his thoughts.
"O.k. Shinji, just try and concentrate. You'll be out of here in no time" she said reassuringly.
"Yes ma'am" he replied and closed his eyes to concentrate on clearing his mind. The images appeared almost instantly. His father telling him to leave, his father telling him he was incompetent, his father abandoning him as a young child... Shinji frowned in concentration as he tried to purge the images from his mind with no success.
"Hmmm...it's the same as in the test plug. We'll give him another 10 minutes and if there's no change then we'll let him go."
Shinji was about to growl in frustration at the repetitive images cycling through his mind before they suddenly vanished. He opened his eyes in surprise but saw everything as it should be. Not being one to look a gift horse in the mouth, he closed his eyes again to focus on synchronising and was relieved to find his mind cleared of the hated images.
"Ma'am? His synch rate is climbing. It's now 3 points above his last recorded rate during the battle with the 5th angel" Maya said over her shoulder. Ritsuko and Misato both leaned in closer to study the results for themselves.
"Interesting" Ritsuko said in her scientific tone of voice.
"But what does it mean? Is he more relaxed in the EVA or is it the EVA itself?" Misato asked no one in particular.
"I don't know, but this is interesting data. We'll keep him in there for a little longer to see if he can maintain this level."
Another 10 minutes passed in silence for Shinji and he was feeling more relaxed than he had all week. For some unfathomable reason his mind wandered to the scene he witnessed at the park the day before. The two children running around chasing each other whilst their parents watched on with happy, loving expressions. An expression that's never been directed at me...he thought with a mental sigh.
The scene changed slightly all of a sudden and he now found himself looking at a different pair of kids playing together. They couldn't have been older than four years of age, or so Shinji thought. There was a brown haired boy with vivid blue eyes and he was running for his life by the look of him, from his companion, a young girl with a serious expression on her face. She was very cute with her long mane of flame red hair tied back into a ponytail and piercing blue eyes narrowed in determination as she chased the boy. Shinji couldn't help but smile as they ran through a large park and he could just make out two figures sitting on a distant bench. They were definitely female, one with blazing red hair much like the young girls and other with shoulder length brown hair. They seemed to be engaged in a conversation of some sort whilst they watched the children play but they were too far away to hear so he decided to focus his attention back on the youngsters.
"Ma'am? Shinji's synch ratio is climbing again. It just jumped up another 7 points..." Maya reported in confusion.
"It what?" asked Ritsuko in shock. Misato turned to look at the image of Shinji and was surprised to see that he was smiling serenely and looking much more relaxed.
"What's going on here?" she wondered out loud.
The girl in Shinji's memory was slowly catching the boy and she was just about to grab him when he suddenly changed directions with a surprising display of agility for one so young and managed to put some more distance between himself and his pursuer. A look of anger seemed to cross the young girls face at missing her chance to ensnare her quarry and she redoubled her efforts to catch him.
"Come back here Shinji!" she screamed before diving forward and tackling the youngster to the ground. Shinji sat bolt upright in his seat and his eyes flew open at what he had just witnessed. His heart was pounding like a jackhammer and he took in rapid shallow breaths as he tried to figure out if he just heard what he thought he heard. Come back here Shinji? Was that me? Was that my memory? Though his eyes were open he wasn't seeing anything in front of him. His attention was focussed on the strange event which had transpired in his mind. Couldn't be...
"My God! His synch ratio just jumped another 15 points!" Maya whispered in awe. Misato was still watching the screen showing Shinji and gasped as he suddenly jerked upright from his slouched position and his eyes flew open in shock.
"Shinji!" she yelled, instantly afraid that something had gone wrong.
"M-Misato?" he mumbled, surprised at hearing her outburst.
"Are you alright?" she asked with concern written all over her face. He blinked a couple of times and looked around the plug which still displayed a view from Unit 01s vantage point.
"Y-yeah, I'm fine. I just...I don't know" he said obviously confused by whatever happened.
"Shinji, what just happened?" asked Ritsuko with great interest. He took a couple of moments to organise his thoughts before he just shrugged his shoulders at the chairperson of E project.
"I don't know."
"Ma'am? His synch ratio has returned to its previous level of just before it spiked."
"This just gets stranger by the minute" mumbled Misato.
"Alright, that was unexpected...Let's give him another twenty minutes. I want to know if this will happen again."
Twenty minutes passed by quickly for Shinji as he found himself analysing the strange occurrence. He had no memories of before he was abandoned by his father and he hadn't had a single friend before he moved to Tokyo III. He sure as hell didn't' have any red-headed girlfriends anywhere along the line so the only logical conclusion was that it wasn't his memory. Sighing in disappointment he cleared the memory from his mind and focussed on the EVA once again in order to finish this test and have a nice shower.
This memory is yours my dear though you obviously don't remember. Do not doubt yourself. The past is not entirely painful. Shinji's breath caught in his throat as the unannounced voice projected itself in his mind. That's the same voice I heard during the last battle! He realised suddenly. He felt the familiar peace and warmth that he felt when he last heard the voice and he could have sworn he heard a soft feminine chuckle at his realisation. I know that voice but... The answer was on the edge of his consciousness and he felt that he was just about to grasp it when a different voice shattered his reverie.
"Alright Shinji, that'll do for today. You can shutdown Unit 01 now." Shinji cursed mentally as he was certain that he was just about to identify the voice. Clenching and unclenching his fist in frustration he took several deep breaths of LCL before he nodded his head and terminated his link with the EVA. So close... he thought, exasperated at being denied this revelation. Things sure are getting strange and with that the entry plug was ejected and he was brought back out into the real world where he desperately needed some time to think.
* * * * *
After the test three people were gathered in the large, dark office of Gendo Ikari. Ikari himself was seated behind his desk with a neutral expression on his face and his fingers interlinked just under his nose in the standard 'Gendo position.' Fuyutsuki stood impassively behind the supreme Commander with his hands clasped behind his back and his face betraying no thoughts or emotions. Dr Akagi, the third person in the room stood just before the desk with a folder in her hands and a thoughtful expression on her face.
"What have you to report?" asked Ikari impatiently.
"The first child has maintained her synch ratio and there doesn't seem to be any signs of residual mental contamination. The third child's synch ratio however dropped two points from the last recorded value."
"I see. Do you foresee this to be a continuing problem?"
"Well...no sir. I took the liberty of running another test with the third child after the harmonics test, this time in Unit 01. The results were...interesting."
"Explain."
"Well, his synch ratio remained the same as in the test plug for the first 10 minutes but then it rose 5 points and remained slightly above the last recorded value for most of the test."
"You said most of the test, there were other changes?" asked Fuyutsuki, speaking for the first time.
"Yes sir. At two other points his synch ratio jumped. The first increase was 7 points and the second was 15. Neither value remained for long and he quickly settled back down to the previous level."
"Interesting. To what do you attribute this irregularity?" Gendo asked, his interest piqued.
"I am uncertain sir." The three remained in silence for a good 20 seconds whilst they each pondered the strange readings.
"This will have to be monitored closely."
"Yes sir."
"Is everything set for the event?" Ikari asked, changing subjects.
"I believe so sir" Ritsuko replied, fully aware of the event he was referring to.
"Good, then I expect only good news. You are dismissed."
"Yes sir." Ritsuko left the room quickly after depositing the folders on the desk. Neither of the two men moved from their positions.
"Do you think that she could be behind these strange readings?" asked Fuyutsuki after a moment of silence. Gendo remained as still as a statue.
"It seems the most likely answer" he said evenly.
"But why now? Has she become aware?" the older man asked with slight apprehension.
"It's possible, but unlikely."
"Afraid you'll have to rewrite your scenario Ikari?" Fuyutsuki asked with a hint of amusement.
"Not at all. Everything has been taken into account."
* * * * *
Shinji knew that something was wrong the moment Misato's door slid open. Instead of the normal groaning and mumbling which accompanied her trip across the kitchen for her morning beer there was only dead silence. Looking up from his breakfast Shinji's jaw fell open and the hand raising a cup to his lips froze. On the floor beside him a similar reaction could be observed by the resident penguin as his mind failed to comprehend the scene before him. Misato stood resolutely before her two roommates dressed impeccably in her full dress uniform and a decidedly awake expression.
"Good morning" she said in a dull monotone.
"G-g-g-good...good morning M-Misato" Shinji stuttered still in shock at witnessing this unprecedented occurrence. Misato for her part walked casually across the room to gather the few things she would need for her trip.
"I have to go out of town on business and probably won't be home till late. There's money on the counter for you to get something for dinner. Bye" she continued in the same dull tone. Shinji could only nod his head slowly as she strolled out the door. A full minute passed before either roommate so much as blinked. In unison they turned to look at each other with the same shocked expressions. Seeing not even a trace of understanding in the others bewildered gaze they both set about finishing their breakfast in silence.
Several days had passed since the party and much to Shinji's relief most of the teasing he had been receiving at school had died down. The last few days had been awkward for him as he wanted to talk to Ayanami again but couldn't do so without receiving another barrage of teasing. Now that things seemed to have quieted down he decided that he could talk to her at lunch without too much threat of others intervention. Fate it seems has a strange sense of humour since just as he had reached his decision his cellular phone began to ring, its loud tone startling him and most of the others in the class.
"Uh...hello, Shinji Ikari speaking."
"Shinji? It's Hyuga. You're needed at headquarters A.S.A.P. There's a car already on the way to pick you up so be ready out the front for them." A cold dread began to permeate his being as there could only be one reason that he would be summoned to headquarters like this wasn't there?
"Is...is it an...angel?" he whispered apprehensively.
"No, but it's just as urgent. You'll be briefed when you get here."
"What about Ayanami?"
"Uh Misato only asked for you."
"I see..." and with that the phone went dead. Shinji breathed a sigh of relief and quickly packed up his gear, oblivious to the fearful looks he was receiving. He finally looked up once he had finished and found the gaze of every student upon him.
"Uh...don't worry it's...it's not an angel" he informed them before turning to look at Ayanami. She looked at him questioningly and he shook his head at her unasked question. Nodding once in understanding she returned her gaze out of the window, just as curious as Shinji as to what the emergency was. Shinji quickly made his way to the door. A collective sigh could be heard for the rest of the class and his teacher just nodded to him as he departed. If it's not an angel then what the hell am I needed for? And why didn't they ask for Ayanami as well? The answer was not quite what he had expected...
* * * * *
In record time Unit 01 was outfitted with the F type equipment and catapulted to the surface where it was loaded and secured on the largest plane Shinji had ever seen. Using a phenomenal amount of runway the EVA transporter finally managed to lift its enormous bulk off the tarmac and they were soon soaring low over the ground towards the former capitol. The situation had been explained to Shinji whilst the EVA was being prepared...and he didn't like it one bit.
"That's crazy!" he protested as Misato informed him of her plan. Dressed in a hostile environment suit, Misato just looked at him with a half smile.
"Yeah well we don't have much choice in the matter. If we don't stop that thing then its reactor is going to redline and a lot of people are going to die when it melts down."
"I know that but there's got to be a better way! This is too dangerous!" he begged.
"Unit 01 will be fine, its armour can survive the blast and the F type equipment can deal with the radiation..."
"Not for EVA, for you!" he interrupted with a worried expression firmly planted on his face. Misato smiled sadly at him and ran a hand through his hair.
"As long as you get me on that thing then everything will be o.k. I have the password to delete all programming and once that's done it'll shut down" she said reassuringly. Shinji continued to look at her as if it were the last time he would ever see her again. Misato again tried to comfort him.
"Look Shinji everything will work out fine. Unit 01 can easily catch up to it and as long as you hold it still I can disable it. There's not that much risk. It won't be fighting back or anything so please just trust me."
"It's almost time Misato" Hyuga informed from the front of the small compartment.
"Please, be careful" Shinji whispered and Misato pulled him into a hug which was quite awkward considering the suit she was wearing.
"I will. Hyuga?"
"Yes ma'am?"
"As soon as you've dropped Unit 01 take this thing up to a safe height and await further orders."
"Yes ma'am."
"Come on Shinji. We can do this."
"I hope you're right" he replied with some trepidation.
* * * * *
After Unit 01s entry plug was inserted the external power socket was ejected and the EVA slid back on the launch rails in preparation for its drop. Hyuga counted down from 5 and on zero the massive restraints holding the flightless EVA to the aircraft retracted and Unit 01 glided backwards before plummeting towards the ground. The EVA fell from the sky like a comet and it took mere seconds for it to achieve terminal velocity.
Reacting like he had in training, Shinji adjusted his position so that the massive legs of Unit 01 were facing the ground and he spread them marginally in order to better balance once he impacted. The jarring impact of the multi kilo tonne war machine hitting the ground could be felt for miles around. Shinji grunted as pain shot up through his legs but his focus remained on keeping the EVA upright and balanced until it ground to a halt. Sliding for several hundred metres Shinji skilfully balanced his steed and checked to make sure he hadn't crushed Misato who was riding precariously in Unit 01s right hand, before taking off at a sprint to where he could see the Jet Alone robot in the distance.
Though it had picked up some speed since it went rogue, the ponderous robot was no match for the speed and grace of Unit 01. Shinji quickly covered the distance between the two and reached out with his left hand to grab the conveniently placed handle on the back of the robot when the unforseen occurred. The Jet Alone abruptly pivoted to its left and dug in its foot to arrest its momentum before spinning around rapidly to face Unit 01. Shinji had no time to react before he felt a jarring impact between his shoulder blades and Unit 01 was propelled forward. The ground rushed up to meet the now horizontal EVA and fortunately Shinji had enough presence of mind to throw his arms out above his head and take the impact on his chest, rather than crush Misato underneath the bulk of his EVA.
The force of the impact combined with the considerable speed he was running at made for a slide of several hundred metres on the hard ground. Shinji winced as he felt the burning sensation of friction all the way up his stomach, chest and face, and groaned in relief when he finally came to a halt. Eyes widening in fear he quickly checked his right hand and let out the breath he was holding as he noticed Misato still alive although quite clearly shaken.
"Misato are you o.k?" He asked desperately. The older woman took in several deep breaths before facing Unit 01s face and giving Shinji a thumbs up. Her arm fell away almost instantly and her face contorted in fear when she saw the shadow looming behind the fallen EVA.
"Shinji get up!" she screamed over the suits communication system and Shinji's eyes widened in realisation at the predicament he was in. Leaning heavily on his left arm he managed to get the massive EVA to a kneeling position before the familiar shape of the rogue nuclear powered robot stood before him. Shinji moved his right arm behind his back protectively and found himself at a serious disadvantage in close combat. As if to demonstrate its superiority the Jet Alone reached forward and wrapped its right hand around Unit 01s left wrist whilst its left hand grasped the purple EVAs throat in a death grip. Hauling the EVA to its feet with unnatural strength, the mindless robot then proceeded to pull in opposite directions with its massive arms. Shinji found himself in a terrifyingly familiar position as his left arm was being bent at a most unnatural angle and his head turned as far as the neck would allow. He would have screamed in pain if his breath wasn't stolen by the chokehold the larger robot had over him. The pain continued to intensify as even more pressure was applied by the Jet Alone and Shinji knew that neither he nor Unit 01 could take much more of this punishment.
Misato could only watch on in horror from her vantage point as the Jet Alone performed an identical attack on Shinji as did the 3rd Angel months ago. The fingers of Unit 01s left hand began to spasm as armour plates were crumpled in the vice like grip and finger shaped indents could clearly be seen on the bright orange neck armour. Unit 01 was now fully off the ground, suspended in the air by the sheer strength of the unmanned enemy before it.
Reacting in desperation, Shinji lashed out with a forceful kick aimed at the robots thigh. The impact left a large dent in the massively armoured leg but the pressure on Unit 01 didn't decrease in the slightest. Shinji swung again and again ramming his massive foot into the same point and just as his world was turning black the Jet Alone hurled his EVA to the side and sent it sliding on the ground for a couple of hundred metres. Gasping desperately for air Shinji could do nothing for the next few moments and without hesitation the Jet Alone moved to follow up its initial assault. Like a street brawler the machine kicked savagely at Unit 01, catching it in the stomach and causing it to slide further away.
Shinji groaned in pain and out of the corner of his eye he saw the timer displaying 04:11:16 minutes of power remaining. Struggling to regain his feet he was pounded by another kick and found himself rolling over from the impact. Cursing the relentless machine, he finally saw the opportunity he needed and struck out with a wide leg sweep which knocked the Jet Alone heavily to the ground. Wasting no time Shinji tenderly brought Unit 01 to its feet but to his dismay he saw his opponent do the same. Normally the EVA would have leaped to its feet far quicker than its ponderous opponent but Shinji was still feeling the effects of the ruthless assault he had suffered from mere seconds ago and was not at his best.
He could hear ragged and strained breathing over the communications link and gasped in horror as he realised that it could only be one person. Back peddling in order to buy some time he brought Unit 01s right hand up before him and saw Misato still clutched in its fingers. By some miracle she hadn't been completely crushed when the EVA was forcefully rolled but she had been uncomfortably close to that grisly fate. Shinji's lower lip trembled at the brush with death his guardian went through and he knew that he couldn't continue on like this, not if he wanted to keep Misato alive. His options however were extremely limited as was his time. The Jet Alone limped over towards him, the near crippling dent it its left thigh clearly visible and Shinji continued to back peddle so that both he and Misato had more time to recover.
"Shinji..." she gasped weakly from her position in Unit 01s hand. "Shinji...you've got to...to put me down. You can't fight...with me...here."
"No!" he screamed in horror at her order. "It's too dangerous to put you down and besides it's still gonna melt down if we don't stop it soon!"
"Shinji...this wasn't supposed to...to be like this. Something has...gone wrong." The Jet Alone had finally closed the distance between the two giants and was again reaching out to grab Unit 01 when Shinji suddenly had an idea. He cursed himself for not thinking of it earlier as he brought Unit 01 to a halt and unfolded his AT field. The air shimmered around the stationary EVA as the field unfolded and a fraction of a second later the massive robot slammed into the orange field and was knocked back a step from the unexpected resistance.
"Try and get me now you bastard!" he yelled at the oblivious prototype. Taking shallow breaths due to the intense pain in her chest, Misato silently praised Shinji's move and started to weigh up her options. Whilst the AT field made it impossible for the Jet Alone to get near Unit 01 it also made it impossible for Unit 01 to get closer to it. She needed desperately to get onboard the rogue machine but time it seemed was running out rapidly. One thing was certain though. As long as she remained in her current position Shinji would be unable to fight the robot effectively. Perhaps it was time to come up with plan B...
Shinji narrowed his eyes as his enemy reached forward with both hands and attempted to thrust them through his AT Field. Failing that, the mindless machine backed up some distance before barrelling towards Unit 01 in a lumbering shoulder charge. Shinji didn't bother to move as the larger machine crashed into the AT Field with terrible force and was hurled backwards by the inertia of the impact. Unit 01 didn't even flinch.
"Misato. What do I do?" he asked desperately as the timer ticked down to 02:53:66. A geyser of steam suddenly erupted from the chest of the Jet Alone and both Shinji and Misato knew what that meant...they were running out of time.
"Shinji...I think it's too late. We...we won't be able to stop the...Jet Alone. We can't get me inside...whilst it fights back" she uttered through clenched teeth.
"I can...I can immobilise it. With the progressive knife" he suggested eagerly, trying to ignore the pain she was obviously in.
"No, with only one arm it still...still has the advantage...and might turn the...knife against you. We've got to...to get it away from here. You remember that lake we...passed just before you dropped?" Shinji strained his mind to recall the landmark and nodded rapidly once he pictured it.
"If we can get the Jet Alone there...and force it to the bottom of the lake then...we can minimise the blast when its reactor goes...critical."
"And I can use my AT Field to help contain it as well" he added, excited at finally having a new plan of action.
"Exactly. So you've got to...put me down and drag that thing over...to the lake." Shinji's smile fell at her words.
"No!" he begged desperately.
"We don't have time Shinji...it's the only way" she said in her Operations Director voice, or at least as best as she could manage with the amount of pain she was in. Shinji closed his eyes in concentration.
"No Misato, there's another way. You're coming in here with me." Misato was startled at the authoritive tone he directed at her. There was no hesitation in his voice and with time running out she just nodded in agreement.
"Hold on Misato" he said as he raised his right hand to the side of his head and allowed Misato to cling onto the end of the purple neck guard. With his right hand free he flexed his fingers and waited as the Jet Alone again attempted to attack Unit 01. Another geyser of steam erupted from its chest and several parts of its armour were beginning to glow red. The Jet Alone lunged at Unit 01, again trying to grab hold of its wrist and neck but was thwarted by the AT Field. As soon as it reeled from the impact Shinji lowered the field and made a lunge of his own, grasping the wrists of the overheating robot with his hands. The two humanoid machines struggled mightily as one attempted to break free of the others grasp but Unit 01 seemed to hold its own...for now.
Halting the EVA on its current commands Shinji ejected the entry plug and opened the manual access hatch. Poking his head out he waved to Misato and she quickly dropped from her precarious position and using the armour plates for handholds, managed to slide her way down to the entry plug. She secured the hatch once she was inside and Shinji triggered the plugs insertion. Misato collapsed into unconsciousness as the pain from her recent exertion became too much for her to bear.
The instant Shinji resynched with his EVA he knew something was wrong. The normally crisp link between man and biomachine was fuzzy and he felt a dull pain bouncing around his head. He clenched his teeth against the pain and focused on the connection but everything felt...disconnected. Much to his horror he felt the hostile robot begin to overpower his EVA and he suddenly wondered if he had made a critical mistake. He remembered what Ritsuko said when Misato ordered him to pick up Touji and Kensuke during the battle with the 4th angel. - Thought noise. Foreign bodies in the matrix. - This did feel a little like the end of his battle with the 4th angel...only to a much greater degree.
The Jet Alone began to force Unit 01 backwards, step by ponderous step and it was all Shinji could do to maintain his balance. Yet another geyser of steam pierced the thick armour near the reactor but still the machine just wouldn't relent. The internal battery timer now read 01:17:43 but the Jet Alone would never survive that long. Shinji attempted to pivot Unit 01 to the left and force his opponent the other way but the sluggish movements of Unit 01 made it quite difficult. Concentrating like he had in the latter stages of his last engagement he managed to feebly pull off the manoeuvre and free himself from the wrestling match he had been engaged in. Reacting quickly he willed his AT Field into existence in order to keep the other bipedal war machine off his back until he had a better feel for his EVA, but it didn't unfold. Cursing violently he instead engaged the progressive knife and held it out defensively before him. The Jet Alone didn't hesitate and attempted to swat the knife away but Shinji managed to angle the blade so that it sliced across the attacking limb of the Jet Alone, cutting through it with sickening ease.
Feeling no pain the soulless machine lashed out with its good arm and smashed Unit 01 in the head, knocking it sprawling. Through sheer force of will Shinji kept the EVA on its feet and flailed its arms out in a feeble attempt to ward off the next blow. With brute strength the armoured fist of his attacker smashed past his pathetic defences and again Unit 01 was struck in the head but this time Shinji was unable to keep it on its feet. Like a felled tree, the building sized construct toppled and bounced heavily off the ground before settling in a prone position. No! It can't end like this! Shinji thought desperately and struggled mightily to right the fallen EVA.
The Jet Alone loomed above him menacingly but didn't press up its advantage. Shinji watched on in amazement as its good arm started twitching and missed Unit 01 by a good three metres with its attempted grab. What the hell? wondered Shinji at the sudden change of attitude of his attacker. Hesitating for only a second he leaned forward and jammed his progressive knife through the hip joint of his enemy. His strike found its mark and in little more than a second the limb had been amputated with surgical precision. The now crippled machine toppled to the ground like a K.O.ed boxer, the impact tearing a large section of superheated armour off its side. With less than a minute left on the battery clock Shinji amputated the other leg before awkwardly willing Unit 01 to its feet. Dropping the knife he used both hands to heave the paraplegic time bomb above his head and stumble as fast as he could manage towards the designated lake.
He was a long way from the lake though and the sight of Unit 01 hefting a legless Robot over its head whilst staggering in a drunken manner would have looked hilarious were the situation not so grim. Seconds continued to tick away and Shinji drew slowly but inexorably closer to his objective. He could feel the heat of the near critical reactor through what was left of its dorsal armour and it seemed to get hotter by the second. The timer passed 00:30:00 and Shinji struggled for all he was worth to increase his pace. He was getting somewhat used to the sluggish movements now and managed to move marginally faster but the lake seemed like a mirage that kept receding. Looking around desperately for other options he was dismayed to find none and in a final act of desperation he twisted Unit 01s torso and hurled what was left of his combatant shot put style towards the lake. The legless war machine sailed through the air as gracefully as a boulder and then there was an explosive splash as the massive machine struck water and sunk like the proverbial stone. Water was flashing into steam at an alarming rate and Shinji finally made it the rest of the distance with less than 10 seconds on his timer.
"Please, you've got to work" he begged as he attempted to unfold his AT Field. He focussed every iota of will he had left in an effort to summon the protective barrier but it was not enough.
"No please!" he screamed as a bright light erupted from the middle of the lake only to be followed an instant later by the unholy wrath of a catastrophic nuclear meltdown.
Only for you whispered a familiar voice as the air shimmered around Unit 01 and the blinding light stole everything from view.
* * * * *
Several hours' later three figures were once again gathered in the office of one Gendo Ikari. They assumed pretty much the same positions as they had last time they were in council and the atmosphere of the normally cold office was tense with anticipation.
"Report" Ikari ordered gruffly.
"Well things didn't go exactly to plan. Once they lost control of their beast Misato took it upon herself to stop it before it could reach a populated area and melt down. Unit 01 was sent in so that Misato could board the machine and delete the programming from the main computer but it seems that someone had a nasty surprise for us" Ritsuko informed with a frown.
"And that would be?" inquired Fuyutsuki from his position behind Gendo. Ritsuko frowned more deeply at the ramifications of what she was about to report.
"It seems that someone altered the programming of the Jet Alone from our original plan. The machine attacked Unit 01 the instant it was close enough." A gasp escaped from Fuyutsuki's lips as the full impact of such an action was rammed home in his conscience. Gendo gave no reaction at all.
"So what happened?" asked Fuyutsuki.
"Well Shinji did his best to disable the target but in the end he was unable to get Misato on board and so attempted to contain the blast with Unit 01. Our code to shut the machine down was not accepted and in the end a catastrophic meltdown was unavoidable."
"What was the damage to Unit 01?" asked Gendo, speaking for only the second time so far.
"Well, the F type equipment took a beating but thankfully managed to keep most of the radiation out. As it is, Unit 01 is clean enough and we will finish sterilising it once it is back in its cage. Its armour however was stripped of the first layer the entire body over and will likely take a couple of days to replace. All in all it could have been a lot worse."
"What of Unit 01s pilot and Captain Katsuragi?" inquired Fuyutsuki.
"The third child is fine but Captain Katsuragi sustained some internal injuries after being nearly crushed during the battle. As long as she takes it easy for a week or so she should fully recover will no ill effects."
"Have you anything else to report?" asked Ikari.
"Actually yes. It seems that after studying Unit 01s recording of the battle that the Jet Alone was fighting using a very familiar style. Almost all of its combat moves were used by either Unit 01 or the third angel during the first battle for Tokyo III. Someone not only managed to edit the programming of the Jet Alone but they also hacked into our files of the battle in order to make it into a decent combat machine."
"Can you identify the source of this intrusion?"
"I believe so yes."
"Then do so. You are dismissed."
"Yes sir." After she had left the room the two remaining occupants remained still for many moments.
"This was an unexpected event" growled Fuyutsuki after a period of silence.
"Indeed. It seems that someone wishes to interfere with the scenario. I want to know who it is and how they managed to do so without being noticed" he said with a hint of anger entering his normally emotionless voice.
"As you wish" and with that Fuyutsuki left the supreme Commander of NERV to ponder this disturbing event.
Author's notes: Hmmm...still no subtlety. I'm working on it but I guess it just doesn't naturally to me...oh well. This chapter really seemed to flow and I actually wrote just about the entire thing in one eight hour sitting! Kinda sad perhaps but I confess that I have no life and far too much time to kill so at least I'm doing something constructive... And if others enjoy what I'm doing then that's enough justification to keep going.
Well I promised more EVA action and there it is. I've never read any fics which involved an actual fight with the Jet Alone and since I love writing battle scenes I just couldn't pass up this opportunity. Hopefully it came across as realistic considering the nature of the two combatants. Heh, I was tempted to have Shinji stuff Misato into the shoulder pylon with his progressive knife but that just seemed a little too crazy and I can't see Shinji being that callous!
I've started the forth chapter but have only written a couple of thousand words so far. "Only a couple of thousand?" I hear you cry... Well whilst that may be an entire chapter for many a writer I (as you have no doubt noticed) am quite long winded as I try to write in detail and I don't like leaving people hanging in suspense. As long as inspiration continues to be abundant it should be out in a week or so as I like to wait about a week to receive as many reviews as possible. Although the chapters have so far been written before receiving any reviews that probably won't continue for too much longer and I like being able to make changes according to what feedback you guys give me. Besides with over ten thousand words a chapter I'm sure you guys need a short break in between!
Ezstarius.