Evangelion: The Guardian Forces
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Disclaimer: Once again, I don't own the worlds nor characters of Eva and Final Fantasy.
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A/N: Umm… would anybody want to pre-read this story? Please? I need someone to catch all the stupid mistakes I made… I've uploaded this document several times already, only to notice some stupid little mistake I made. =(
Anyways, on with the story!
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Chapter 1.0: First Steps
Usually the myriad paths of the Balamb Training Area would be crawling with Garden students seeking a suitable monster to practice on.
Today, however, it was empty.
Except for three Children. In a non-existent state of dress. One of whom was attacking another with a stick, while the third watched impassively, the corners of her mouth occasionally twitching and mirth evident in her eyes.
Definitely not your average day at Garden.
Through wall-mounted speakers a scratchy rendition of Misato's voice crackled through just in time to stop Asuka from knocking Shinji out.
"Ohayo Shinji-kun! So how're you enjoying fun time with - OW!" There were the sounds of muffled argument then a loud, sustained burst of static forced the pilots to clap their hands to the sides of their heads.
When the noise cleared, it was Ritsuko's voice that broke through the ringing in their ears. "Training mission 2. An Elnoyle will be dispatched for you to eliminate in five minutes. You have only your natural reserves, do not use any items."
The reactions were as varied as the personalities of the pilots.
Shinji's eyes opened wide. "U-uh…" No items? That would give them less than five minutes of fighting to dispatch the target!
"Psssh. As if we were carrying any items to use. Why don't you give us a real challenge next time Ritsuko?" demanded the redhead, who had fortunately forgotten all about her previous grudge against the dark headed boy.
"Understood" was all Rei had to say, although her eyes suddenly lost the amusement that had played there before.
The blond scientist chose to respond to the last comment first. "Good. And Asuka?"
"What?!"
"Next time it'll be a Red Dragon…" There was a click as Ritsuko terminated the connection.
Asuka turned just a little paler.
"A-a red dragon?" Shinji swallowed against the lump in his throat. "Uhh… Asuka…?" he said without turning his head.
The redheaded girl quickly regained her composure, and was glad that nobody saw her momentary lapse. "What, the great Third Child is afraid of a Red Dragon?"
"N-no! Of course not! I was just, surprised, that's all!" Shinji stammered quickly, this time remembering not to look left. He was afraid of Red Dragons, of course. They were the kind of creatures that killed young, rash heroes. Shinji had heard them mentioned, and a few of the kids in Deling had even compared them to tonberries, the boogey-men of children everywhere.
Rei's slender neck turned so she could level a cool stare at her fellow pilots. "Ikari-kun has nothing to be ashamed of. It is right to fear that which is fearsome."
"Ehh? Fearsome? Ha! I'll bet I could kill more Reds than you could, Wondergir-" the golden light streaming in from the ceiling dome suddenly found itself shining on a giant orange behemoth. Completely ignoring the Galbadian girl- although she spared one glance for the boy beside her- Rei headed for her Eva with confident strides. Shinji took one look at her backside and immediately looked away, trying his hardest not to die of a nosebleed.
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Meanwhile the commotion on the 'bridge' downstairs was much subdued by the entrance of the Commander and sub-Commander.
The two men stood there for several moments listening to Asuka yell insults at Rei's back, Gendo quiet and motionless, Fuyutsuki with his brow buried in one hand as he shook his head slowly.
"Doctor Akagi," Gendo's deep voice somehow cut through the screech of Asuka's voice, "Is the Elnoyle ready?"
Ritsuko, who until then had been just staring blankly at the Commander, quickly snapped back into reality. "Y-yes sir!"
"Release it."
"What?! They're not in their Eva-" Misato began angrily, but was silenced by a glare from the commander.
"Lieutenant Katsuragi, I suggest you remember your place." That said, Gendo climbed a set of darkened stairs to an elevated platform, followed closely by the sub-Commander. From besdie Makoto's station the purple-headed lieutenant simmered. While many people hated the Nerv commander for the self-important way in which Nerv carried itself, Misato's hatred was born of what she knew of the man.
That he had abandoned his only child. Ordered hundreds killed without a second thought. And because of the rumours of even worse, rumours not at all impossible.
Ritsuko gave an apologetic look to her purple-haired friend, then turned to Maya. "Commence the exercise.
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"GO ALREADY BAKA!" Asuka screeched as she vigorously rubbed her arms. With three Evas blocking the light it had quickly become quite dark and cold.
"W-why me?"
"Because I'm not a hentai!" she answered as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
Shinji was about to argue his case when they both heard the hissing of hydraulics.
"Huh?"
The purple and red Evas prevented their pilots from seeing the Elnoyle that had just been released into the training center. The orange one, however, began moving.
"Gah! She'll kill it before we get a chance to even see it! Come on Third!" With that she grabbed his arm and ran forward. "If you tell anyone about this Shinji…" she yelled back, her light blue eyes sneaking just one peek before turning to the business at hand.
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Shinji scurried up the ladder- one of the many man-made parts of the Evas- and toward the entry hatch. To his left Asuka swung open her hatch and literally dove into the cockpit. Shinji turned just in time to see her feet disappearing into the Eva, and then the red hatch swung closed.
His own hands opened the entry to Unit 01.
For a long moment the boy just stood there, staring into the dark depths of the beast, remembering how it would feel.
The first few moments would be dark, and utterly frightening.
The stuff that filled the cockpit would be warm and wet with a taste and smell that always reminded Shinji of blood, even though the young boy had never tasted the actual substance.
LCL, Ritsuko had called the substance inside the purple Guardian Force. And it was apparently what kept him alive inside the Evangelion.
Then a warm, pleasant tingling would bring with it replacements to the sensations inside the cockpit. And of course he would feel the slight disorientation that inevitably accompanied suddenly growing six times taller.
After all that came what Shinji regarded as the best part- that feeling of connectedness, that one was part of something great. That one was loved, deeply and unselfishly, by another being. It made him feel that, somehow, the Augment GF had at least a primitive mind and soul of its own.
Forcing himself to focus on that last bit, Shinji crawled into the entryway. Behind him the hatch slammed shut, sending the boy into darkness…
Suddenly Shinji was very afraid. In the dark, enclosed space of the Eva cockpit, just before he and the GF connected, it was as if all his darkest nightmares could be and, indeed, would be.
Thoughts of horrible deaths and, worse, being trapped forever in the unending darkness that smelled like blood…
Then a soothing tingle passed through his entire body like a mother's caress and man was one with beast.
At first it was strange experiencing the world through the GF's perspective.
But gradually Shinji's mind began to accept the neural stimulations from the Eva's senses.
Through the giant eyes he could see a red giant move toward an orange one that looked like it was pummeling something, both with their backs facing him.
Through the Eva's auditory receptors he could hear heavy footsteps, and the smacking of Eva fist on monster flesh. Somewhere off in the background there was the roar of some T-Rexaur, the buzzing of a swarm of grats and the faintest hint of human conversation.
Through the creature's nose he could smell the pleasant aroma of the outdoors mingling with the curious stench of the Elnoyle and tinged, as always, with a hint of blood.
One of his gargantuan legs lifted and stepped forward, and the boy could feel a tree bending then breaking under the unnatural strength of the Evangelion.
A split second later the GF took its second crashing step.
The battle had begun.
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Interlude: Calm Before the Storm
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Galahad.
That was his name.
He was dressed in white armour that obscured every part of him. Sheathed on his left side was the undecorated leather handle of a greatsword, occasionally hidden by the billowing folds of his red cape.
Kneeling before the knight was a man with long dark hair who had obviously not shaven in a long time.
The unlikely pair stood on a windy cliff, surrounded by the stormy sky above and turbulent waters below. The brightest source of light, save for the lightning that crackled in the background, was Galahad. His armour gave off an unnaturally holy glow that bespoke immense power.
"Are you willing to sacrifice that much?" One could not see Galahad's lips move, but one could feel the majestic sound of his voice emanating from the mighty form.
There was a long pause, then the kneeling man, without raising his head, said, "I am prepared."
The knight's white helmet bobbed up and down once with a squeak of metal grating against metal. "You are honorable, and worthy. I will grant to you your request human."
The greatsword made a soft scratching sound as it was pulled from its halberd.
In an imperious voice that echoed into the darkened heavens the knight proclaimed"I, Galahad, dub thee, Kaji Ryouji, my Ward, to protect from harm so long as there is strength in mine flesh." The flat of the greatsword ceremoniously tapped each of the man's shoulders.
That done, the knight bowed once to his newest Lord, and the red folds of his cape extended to surround his armoured form. Moments later the cape was blown away by the wind. With Kaji felt like a part of himself had taken away, and rightfully so.
Several of his tears were scattered by the wind. ['Forgive me, Misato. I… must.']
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Chapter 1.5: Beast Unleashed
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The Elnoyle looked like any other Elnoyle.
A duck-billed monstrosity whose legless thorax floated several feet from the air. It was currently using both its arms to defend itself against Rei's pummel.
The orange Evangelion had broken off a significant portion of the creature's beak, and there were numerous dents on its carapace covered with frozen rivulets of blue.
From the side the hulking form of Asuka's red Unit 02 charged into the fray, landing a single punch to the side of the Elnoyle's head that sent the beast flying through the air.
With a loud boom the monster fell to the ground twenty feet away, crushing a tree and the grats resting on it. The crater created by Unit 02's fist was literally smoking, and blue scabs had formed where the heat from the Eva's fist had cauterised the wound.
Even though the pilots were not wearing their communication devices, Rei could pretty well imagine Asuka taunting her about being weak. But her opinion was not of any importance.
Unconsciously Rei's eyebrows furrowed- albeit slightly- as she advanced toward the motionless target.
The stench of burnt flesh mingled with the other scents… And suddenly Rei could hear a roar from behind her.
Whirling around, the orange Eva moved in time to see a black cloud envelop Asuka's GF.
['What… is going on?']
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A slightly distorted and jumpy rendition of this was played out on a telescreen in the sub-basement.
Misato's eyes went wide. Despite her low rank she was familiar with this form of attack.
"Pain…" ['But such a weak Elnoyle shouldn't be able to use it… Wait, the pilots feel what the Eva does! Oh my god, Asuka!'] Her eyes opened wide.
Indeed even before the dark cloud cleared the roars of the Eva could be heard- 'pain' it seemed to scream, 'so much pain.' Misato's eyes lost focus as they stared at the screen. Old memories of her own first encounter with an Elnoyle passed through her mind. Invariably, as with all old memories, they led to thoughts of Kaji…
"What?! Guardian Forces cannot be subject to status effects!" Ritsuko said.
From the raised platform Gendo asked his subordinate "How much is known about these beings, Doctor Akagi?"
"N-not much…"
"Then we will have to accept this as a possibility. Allow the simulation to continue."
"I'll have the techs cast Esuna on the-" Maya began.
"No."
"What?!" Misato snapped out of a pleasant memory in time to object. "You can't let her suffer like this!" Asuka, whether the girl liked it or not, was the Lieutenant's ward, and the purple-haired woman felt as much affection for the redhead as she did for the younger Ikari.
And even if she didn't know the redhead Misato would've demanded she be healed- she had gone through a pain attack once. Nobody deserved such treatment.
"Let us see how the pilots handle this new situation."
Well, almost nobody.
The Lieutenant grit her teeth but said nothing further. She had come to think of the Second and Third Children as her own, and thus her position as Guardian was not something she'd give up like some useless rank.
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"ASUKA!" Shinji shouted into the LCL.
Nobody heard him.
But anybody listening would have heard the hastening of Unit 01's pace as it charged forward, crushing anything foolish enough to stand between a twenty five-foot tall Guardian Force and its intended victim.
As he ran he glanced at Unit 02, still crouching with its hands covering its four eyes. Shinji noted the green boils covering what few pieces of the Eva's flesh could be seen beyond the armor. Roars thundered from the poisoned Guardian Force's throat, each deafening growl conveying the extreme pain the girl/GF was feeling.
Rei was closer, so she got to the Elnoyle first.
Inwardly the girl thought to herself that without her gun she could not do enough damage. A flaw in the Evangelion design? Or a flaw in herself…? Asuka had done quite well with just her fists, as those were the weapons she was trained in. Perhaps…
She decided to talk to Commander Ikari about this later.
One freezing cold Eva hand picked up the still prone form of the Elnoyle and the other commenced smashing the limp monster's face.
The orange fist had only landed four times before a searing hot bolt of pain lanced through Rei's entire consciousness.
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Shinji had almost gotten to Rei and the Elnoyle when a huge bolt of lightning streaked from the sky, shocking both Elnoyle and Evangelion.
Unit 00 flew backwards in the air so quickly that were Shinji's ears still connected to the Eva's he would have heard the air being shredded by the massive beast.
Light from the attack blinded the young boy temporarily, and although the Eva's eyes recovered quickly, Shinji's mind did not.
So he couldn't even see the orange Eva flying toward him.
Shinji could feel the pain as something huge smashed into his chest though. And even greater pain as a poorly placed concrete beam, part of the perpetual state of reconstruction the Training Area was in, stabbed through the Evangelion's lower back. Fortunately for the boy the beam had narrowly missed the Eva's vertebrae.
Still his mind had recoiled partially from the sudden overflow of sensory stimulation. For what seemed like an eternity Shinji was back in the foreboding darkness while the Eva sought to re-establish complete connection with its pilot's mind.
The boy's nose filled with the scent of charred flesh.
Then an almost mechanical shiver passed through his body as he was again one with the beast.
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"What's wrong Squall? Afraid? Fight me!"
"…"
"Come on!"
Trying his best to ignore the behemoths duking it out near them, Squall squared his broad shoulders and held out his gunblade.
Seifer's lips twisted into a leer as the young man charged forward with his own blade…
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Shinji winced from the scorching pain in his lower back. Gently he pushed Ayanami's Eva off his. "Ow…" he muttered.
['It's not my pain. It's not my pain. It's not my pain.'] The boy's silent mantra seemed to help. A little.
The Eva got shakily to its legs. It was so… unnaturally quiet. Apparently the Eva's sense of hearing had been totalled by thunder.
Clouds had obscured the sun during the time that Shinji had partially lost connection, and in the glass dome above there was a huge hole where the Elnoyle's Thundaga attack had entered the Garden.
Unit 01 took a step forward and almost tripped on the orange Eva.
['Ayanami…'] Shinji looked down. The Evangelion's front chest plate had been completely destroyed by the Thundaga, and where it used to be the flesh sizzled. The glowing yellow eyes no longer glowed. Rei's strength must have been really sapped by that attack.
Shinji suddenly realised how tired he was. ['No! I must not give up… Must not… run away…']
Every wound to the Evangelion made it so much harder to hold on to the giant. Any moment now Ayanami's GF would disappear, leaving its pilot naked against the elements…
He happened to look up and saw the Elnoyle. Its entire front had been blackened by lightning. The duck-billed face had been completely eradicated, nothing but a mound of charred flesh remained. Yet the creature was still floating.
['Asuka…'] He glanced left and saw that Unit 02 was still there, curled up in pain. Looked like Shinji would have to finish this alone…
The purple Eva lurched forward…
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Through cameras hidden in the Training Area canopy the bridge watched the First Child's Evangelion waver and disappear.
Gendo, normally very protective of Rei, seemed quite unperturbed by this.
The Lieutenant's eyes narrowed. ['What's going on?']
Sitting at her console Maya discreetly ran a blood-analysis on the Elnoyle, which was definitely looking weird, while everyone else stared at the telescreen.
['Blood pattern… Teal?!'] The young tech's eyes opened wide and she quickly closed the program. What the hell? Everything had a blood pattern! GF's were orange. Monsters were green. Humans were red… ['What… is that thing?']
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['First blood…'] Squall was surprised. Normally it was Seifer who landed the first blow, and Squall who retaliated. But today…
The other man had been temporarily distracted by the battling giants, and his guard had slipped just a fraction of an inch for a fraction of a second. It was enough for Squall to curve in with his gunblade to slice at the bridge of Seifer's nose.
Before he could bring his blade down in a follow through there was a large explosion and both duellers were tossed aside by a wave of searing heat.
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Shinji had only taken four steps before the Elnoyle had raised its arms, separating the flesh that had been charred together as it did so.
The explosion radiated out from the monster, but even seeing it didn't help as the boy had no time to escape…
For a long moment Shinji felt his entire body burn and melt…
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Asuka was scared. The pain attack had severed her connections to Unit 02, and she hadn't been able to recapture it. She wasn't even sure if she was in the Evangelion any more. If she was enveloped by protective LCL Asuka couldn't feel it. And if she was alone…
['NO! I-I won't…'] adamantly Asuka refused to allow it. Being with the Evangelion made her feel… Powerful. As if nothing in the world could possibly hurt her.
Obviously now that was wrong.
Yet still Asuka always felt comfortable inside the Eva. Far more than she was outside it.
In there she didn't need anyone.
Not some wimpy little boy, not Kaji- a single tear escaped at the thought of the 'traitor'-, not Misato and definitely not Wondergirl!
Her eyes and skin felt like they were on fire. It was preposterous that she could be actually damaged while inside the GF but… But they didn't really know all that much about the Evas.
['It's not your fault'] Asuka thought to the Eva even though she knew it was foolish- Evangelions didn't have minds.
['Reconnect damn it!']
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Groaning Shinji struggled to his feet.
['It's still… here?'] He would have expected the Eva to have vanished with that last assault…
The purple Eva shakily got to its feet.
['I've got to… I've got to end this…']
Off in the corner of his eye he saw a red blur.
['Asuka!']
Unit 02 ran toward the Elnoyle…
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"Let me go! Damn it! I have to- LET GO OF ME!" Misato struggled futilely against the vise-like grips of two Section-2 agents.
Gendo Ikari glanced at her one then returned his attention to the telescreen. This was most interesting.
['The old men will be pleased.'] Inwardly Gendo was as well. The Evangelions were standing up to the test. This 'modified' Elnoyle that SEELE had given him was supposed to have been nearly unstoppable, for the pilots to kill it even once… It was regrettable that Rei had failed, of course, but the girl was back to being replaceable. A second batch had finally been completed.
Agent Ryouji had been a fool to give in to kindness. He should not have let the Children live.
There was a smack and Misato finally managed to break free of her captors. She made a dash for the door…
And was swallowed by a large ball of darkness.
The Section-2 agent's Demi attack, the third one cast on Misato in the past two minutes, did a good job of stopping the Lieutenant in her tracks. After the ball faded away she collapsed to the ground unconscious as the techies watched helplessly. No doubt they were having dark thoughts about their commander.
It didn't matter to Gendo.
White gloved hands clasped before his face, he continued watching the battle unfold…
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It hurt. The entire left side of his face burned like hell. His left hand felt like it was going to drop off his hand any second. The rest of him had been burned pretty badly by the shockwave too, but Squall couldn't feel them over the pain from his left side.
Squall got to one knee and looked toward the source of the explosion. An entire section of the Training Area was in flames. He was lucky that he was on one of the rocky parts, and even though the stone beneath him seared to the touch, it was much better than being caught in the inferno that consumed other places.
Through the smoke he could see the purple giant had getting to its feet, and the red one running toward the Elnoyle.
Suddenly the Elnoyle thrust a badly burnt arm at the red. Three blue, twirling streams of energy burst from the monster's fingers, curling around one another as they shot toward the approaching beast. They carved a path through the smoke that recoiled away from the blast as if burned.
The attack hit… And at the same time Squall felt a spreading pain on the bridge of his nose.
Blood splattered to the hot stones and sizzled.
Through the red haze the young man could see Seifer, his gunblade held high with sizzling blood on the hot metal.
Squall screamed in more rage than pain…
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"ASUKA!" Shinji yelled for the second time that day as the three streaks of blue smashed simultaneously into the red Eva's chest.
And through…
"NOOOO!"
For a moment the red Evangelion stood there, a gaping hole in its chest. Then it collapsed to the burning ground with a deep thwump.
All sensation began to fade.
He ran through the crackling flames, feeling himself crush small burning trees and smash aside larger ones in a blind need to rip the Elnoyle apart.
The flames should have hurt… But they didn't.
He couldn't smell the smoke either. Or feel the Eva's now mostly unarmored hands wrap around the badly burnt meat of the Elnoyle.
Yet he could see himself throwing the creature toward a rocky plain. And with horror he could see two people standing on the rocks, outlined by the light of the flames.
Overhead thunder rumbled.
And inside Evangelion Unit 01, everything went dark…
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To be continued…
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A/N: So, whaddya think? Please R&R… I got the Elnoyle's last attack from a trailer for FFVII: Advent Children. =D
Next chapter: Awakening/Memories
I will be relegating the roles of FFVIII characters, as this story is about Evangelion. But they will be playing parts.
I've decided that this story will run parallel to FFVIII's main plot, to allow for some of the things I'll be doing later…
And Unit 00 is orange here because it is still the prototype model. It will 'evolve' eventually, but for now it remains orange.
I'm going to try not to fudge up the character personalities- Rei is still quiet and reserved, although markedly less so (after all, her life and origins have been different), Asuka still acts tough and picks on Shinji, who I've tried to model after the AU toward the end of the TV series.
Oh and I'm only 16 so please excuse any lapses in writing style- still haven't hammered mine down yet.
R&R ! !