Disclaimer: I do not own Evangelion or Scrapped Princess. Those shows are owned by Gainax and BONES respectively. I do not profit from writing this story.


Yui tracked Rei until she was alone. That part was easy since she spent no time with any one. Around 9 p.m., Yui indicated that she was headed for the ship's racquetball courts alone. Shinji decided to make his move. He tossed on a pair of gym shorts, a white t-shirt, and some tennis shoes. Ship personnel weren't allowed into the recreation areas without proper attire.

Shinji arrived at the courts in time to spot Rei take over a court from a sweaty couple. To Shinji's annoyance, the couple stood outside of the court for several minutes chatting. When the couple finally left, Shinji gathered up his nerve and walked to the court's doorway. He peeked in through the door's window expecting Rei to be engrossed in a game. However, he found Rei standing in the middle of the court. Her arms were crossed and her icy red eyes stared right at him.

'I'm in for it,' Shinji thought as he walked in.

As Shinji closed the door behind him, Rei spoke, "There is something you seek, Lieutenant Ikari."

"Y-Yes, Miss Ayanami," was Shinji's stuttered response.

"Please show me the proper decorum. Call me Captain Ayanami."

Shinji's heart sank. He wasn't going to get much out of this conversation. "Yes, Captain."

"Lieutenant, I can sense that you are troubled. Therefore, you may speak freely."

"Aya-… I mean, Captain, I'm troubled by this operation. This is my father's plan, isn't it?"

"That is correct. Your father planned this operation six months ago."

"There's something wrong with this operation, isn't there? That girl, Asuka. She knows something is wrong. Please, Captain, tell me what's wrong."

Rei shook her head. "I cannot tell you anything. All information regarding the Vega campaign is classified. As your superior officer, I forbid you from inquiring further. The other pilots are under orders not to talk. Please, think about the mission ahead. If that is all, I bid you a good evening."

Shinji turned to walk away, but he stopped for a moment as he remembered his dream. "Captain?"

"Yes?"

"Have we met before? I remember you from somewhere."

Rei took a while to respond. Shinji had struck a chord. "Perhaps we have, Lieutenant Ikari."

Shinji's spirits rose when he heard this. "Really? Where?"

Rei responded curtly, "Please leave."

Shinji reluctantly did what he was told.


Shinji arrived at the bar a little early. The bar was packed with a large number of patrons, but Shinji managed to find a lonely booth in the far corner. A waitress arrived to take his order. Shinji asked for orange juice. He didn't feel like drinking alcohol.

The waitress returned just as Shinji spotted Touji and Hikari entering the bar together. He waved until they spotted him. As the couple approached, Touji said, "I'm glad you found a private place for us, Shinji."

"I feel like one of those spies depicted in 20th century movies," Hikari commented.

Shinji pointed to his juice and said, "You guys want something?"

The both shook their heads. "No," Touji answered, "I'd prefer we get our business done now with since we have a busy day ahead of us. Now, who wants to start?"

Shinji was the first to speak. "I will. I caught up with Ayanami a couple of hours after we met in the mess hall. She's a real 'by the book' person. She refused to tell me anything, except that my father is in command."

"Hmmm," Touji intoned. "That means this operation was planned by your father. At least you were able to confirm that. In my case, I talked with Mana. She was more open with her information. She didn't get a chance to see what happened to the Valkyries because she was held in reserved for the first part of the Vega operation. She also said that the present operation isn't set to begin for at least another three days. She said that we're waiting for a new shipment of Valkyries from Earth. What did you find out Hikari?"

Hikari pursed her lips as she said, "I found Asuka in the bar. She was hitting the beer pretty hard…"

"Did you find anything out?" Touji asked.

"I hate taking advantage of people when they're not doing well. But, she did say some things that may interest you."

"Go on," Touji said.

"She told me that she was fighting the HI around the principle jump point in the Vega system with these Valkyries when the they froze. They refused to move and Admiral Ikari was forced to commit all of his Dragon and Gigas units to the fight. But, the HI brought up reinforcements through the gate and nearly overwhelmed the 15th Fleet."

"Did she say why they froze?" Shinji asked.

Hikari shook her head. "No, she said she wasn't sure why. She said that Kaoru Nagisa and a Dr. Akagi were looking at the Valkyrie's AI system to see what went wrong, but they hadn't found anything out."

Shinji was about to comment when he thought he spotted a familiar mop of grayish hair. When he looked again, the mop was gone. "You all right, Shinji? Did you see something?" Touji asked

"I thought I saw that Nagisa guy," Shinji explained, "But, I guess I'm just seeing things."

"Yeah, you that must be some strong juice you got there," Touji joked.

"Stop it," Shinji said forcefully, "I'm not drunk."

Touji grinned as he got up from the booth. "I don't know about you, but I'm tired. See you guys tomorrow at 0800 in the training sims."

Hikari followed Touji's example and also left the bar. Shinji was alone as he finished his orange juice. Just as Shinji was ready to pay and leave he heard Kaoru's voice call to him, "You D-Knights really are a curious bunch, Lieutenant Ikari."

Shinji swallowed hard. "These are our lives you're taking about, Mr. Nagisa."

"Please, call me Kaoru. I've never really been much for military decorum, Lieutenant. May I sit?"

Shinji motioned for Kaoru to sit at the booth. "Yes, you may. And, call me Shinji."

Kaoru chuckled as he sat down. "I see that you dislike the military decorum as well. Then, that will make it easier to talk to you."

"So you dislike the military, Kaoru?"

"Let's just say the military is a part of my career. I'm a computer programmer, you see. I work for the good Dr. Akagi."

"Dr. Akagi?"

"She does all of the science for your father's projects. I can tell you that this Valkyrie project has been on the drawing for years. Your father really believes in the Valkyries. He thinks they're going to be the salvation of mankind."

"What kind of salvation is this Valkyrie if it doesn't work?"

Kaoru didn't answer the question. He only smiled. Shinji got up from the booth and reached into his pocket. He pulled out some credit chips to pay for his juice and tossed them down on the table. The credit chips landed with a metallic clang.


Shinji's first look at the vaunted Valkyrie mecha was in one of Misato's programs. They were as powerful as Colonel Kaji and Kaoru had claimed. Misato told the pilots that best way to learn about the Valkyrie was to fight one. So, there he was, fighting one of the red monstrosities.

He jinxed and brought his Dragon around for a clear shot. But, the Valkyrie was faster. The flak it put up wasn't accurate and it didn't need to be. All the Valkyrie had to do was prevent Shinji from getting a shot off. "Yui!" Shinji called for his Dragon, "Fire a laser burst, full spread!"

Shinji knew that there was a low probability that he would hit the Valkyrie, but he needed to buy himself some time. The Valkyrie dodged the laser burst, curled its 'wings', and activated a strange looking force field. Shinji dodged the force field and move in quickly. He activated his saber dispatched the Valkyrie with a swing. The Valkyrie dissolved away.

Shinji closed his eyes and removed head set. The machinery around him died away and the lights inside the simulator brighten. A voice over the radio commanded, "Lieutenant Ikari, please exit the simulator." Shinji did as he was told.

As he exited, he was surprised to see Misato waiting for him. She was beaming. "Lieutenant Ikari," she began, "You are the only pilot to beat these Valkyries in the simulator. If you don't mind, I'd like you to debrief the entire Dragon squadron this afternoon…" Misato trailed off as she stared at the Shinji. 'He's not himself,' she thought. "Is there something wrong Lieutenant?"

"Well…" Shinji thought about the night before and his encounter with the strange Kaoru Nagisa. "Colonel, I was wondering. Just kind of machines are these Valkyries are."

"They are the most advanced weapon we have…"

Shinji ask, "No, I mean can they be trusted?" Shinji had chosen his words carefully. He didn't want Misato to know that he had been prying into the secretive results of the recent Vega campaign.

"According to the developers, it is an utterly reliable machine. It'll get the job done."

"I see," was all Shinji could muster. He turned his eyes away from Misato, not wanting to reveal his knowledge to her.

Misato pursed her lips and stared down at Shinji. Something was wrong and she knew it.


"I apologize for being late," Kaoru said as he walked into the conference room. The mood of the room was cool. Misato and Kaji were already there. Kaoru took the seat nearest to the door and looked at the two officers, trying to read their thoughts.

Misato was the first to speak, "Mr. Nagisa, I understand that you have been in communication with Dr. Akagi concerning the glitch. Is this correct?"

Kaoru put on his best poker face. He didn't want to betray any telling emotion. "That is correct, Colonel Katsuragi. I have communicated with Dr. Akagi on this matter. In fact, I will be returning to the Concordia this afternoon to consult on this matter. I am told that a new version of the AI software will be uploaded onto the Valkyries we have on hand. The Valkyries we're getting from Earth already has this software. It should fix the glitch."

Misato nodded thoughtfully. "Uh-huh. And, what was the nature of this glitch?"

"I'm afraid that I can not discuss that matter."

Misato looked over at Kaji before turning back to Kaoru, "I'm a Colonel of the TDF and a member of Admiral Ikari's staff. I order you to tell me about the nature of this glitch."

Kaoru smiled. "You can't pull rank on me, Colonel. I'm a civilian contractor for the TDF and I answer only to my superior, Dr. Akagi. As for you being a member of Ikari's staff, it is my understanding that it is only a temporary appointment. Now, if that's all, I will leave now."

Kaoru got up and left the room. The doors closed in behind him. Misato sighed.

"I told you it was hopless, Katsuragi. He's only here to make sure you behave yourself."

Misato laughed. "And, I could have said the same thing about you, Kaji."

"Indeed."

"I've talked with my D-Knights and mecha engineer today and they all seemed a little out of it. Now, if I know those three, they've been probing these Valkyrie machines of yours."

"I can assure you that our D-Knights were ordered not to discuss the Vega operation. However, with the way things are going in this war, even orders are far from certain."

Misato agreed, "Yeah, even if one of your D-Knights did talk, you can't lock her up just because she slipped. We need those kids."

The two colonels got up from their seats and headed for the door. "I'm headed over to the Concordia as well, Katsuragi. Admiral Ikari wants a report about you."

Misato shot Kaji a dirty look. Kaji lifted his hands in defense. "Don't worry. I won't tell him anything bad. In fact, while I'm there I'll try and pick up some information about the glitch. Deal?"

"I suppose that's the best you can do," Misato answered. Laughter filled the corridor as Kaoru stepped out from the shadows of an adjacent corridor and watched the two colonels walk away.