Evangelion Fan Fiction

Life After

By Kraven Ergeist

Chapter Four

Things never really got better after that.

The day was darker than it had ever been, and no one could think of anything to change this. Asuka and Misato left Shinji alone for a while, and were once again one their own with each other.

"It's really disquieting…to know that she's just…gone…" Asuka murmured.

"It's awful," Misato said, wiping tears from red eyes. "I know I've seen a lot of death these past years…but for some reason, I can't stop crying for her."

Asuka didn't say anything. She didn't cry. She didn't feel like crying. She didn't even feel sad. Deep down inside, she knew that what had just happened was a bad thing, but for some reason, she didn't feel sadness.

"Am I really…such a terrible person?" Asuka muttered to herself.

"Huh?" Misato murmured.

Asuka was silent. Why wasn't she sad? Why could she not make herself cry, even just so she could look sad? Did she really detest Rei that much? No…she wasn't friendly with her, but she hadn't hated her, did she? She was just this pest to her…just a nuisance. And just because a stray cat in the street bothers you, gets in your way, and trips you, it doesn't mean you don't feel sad when you see it get hit by the 4-by-4 afterwards.

So why was she not sad?

"About what I said, earlier…" Misato said, changing the subject. "I still need your help. Shinji may need some time…do you?"

Asuka looked up. "Do I what?"

"Need time to decide?"

Asuka bit her lip. Could someone like herself be trusted in combat? Could she still fight the way she used to think she could? Could her comrades trust her to make the right decisions? After all, who could possibly trust someone heartless enough not to cry when a girl they'd known for ten years died before them?

Asuka sniggered. She felt like Mersault from "The Stranger." Though she didn't consider herself an existentialist, she felt now that she could face the thought of every single person in her life dying, and not care. At least, not until it mattered.

Satisfied that if she were to have any tears it would be later, Asuka shook her head. "No, I don't need any time…I'll do it."

xxxxx

"I've worked out just about all the kinks from these things, so they should be field ready," Dr. Maya Ibuki said.

Asuka and Shinji were trying on their new and improved plug suits. Asuka's was the same red as before, with the same red neural transmitter in her hair. There was some thick armor added to the back, shoulders, calves and waist, but overall, it was the same one she wore ten years ago.

Shinji's was a little different. The same white and blue were there, with nostalgic blue neural emitters. But that's where the similarities ended. The entire suit was armor plated, even more so than Asuka's, with shoulder spikes similar to the Eva's. It even had a helmet that could slide over it, which had the familiar sheen of Unit 01, horn included.

He found that he couldn't move as quickly, though, when at his top speed, Maya assured him that he could outrun a triathlon champion. But she explained that it was built that way for a reason.

"After studying your style of combat, I developed the Type B suit, which is more based on long range offensive and close range defensive. It was designed to fight alongside the Type A that Asuka and Misato have. While their suits are designed for rapid, single attack melee, your suit is heavily armored, can repel almost any type of attack save for an S2 mine, and is designed to take on multiple enemies at once. But the exchange is you can't move as fast. The idea is that you launch a barrage of attacks at a large oncoming group of enemies in the distance, and when the enemies get too close, Asuka and Misato pick them off, while you act as their shield."

Shinji cringed. "I don't know if I like that idea."

Maya giggled. "Trust me, you'll be the safest."

Shinji shook his head. "I don't want to be the safest…I want Asuka and Misato to be the safest."

Maya smiled. "Well, you're the best equipped to make that happen, Shinji. If either of them gets into any real danger, it'll be up to you to save them."

"Why is that not comforting?"

Maya sighed. "Relax, Shinji. Just make sure you bring your munitions pack with you, and you'll be fine."

Shinji went to go get said munitions pack – which contained over a hundred lives rounds of machine gun artillery, numerous projectile detonators, dozens of impact grenades, a rocket launcher and a rifle with an additional sniper scope.

Asuka and Misato, contradictorily, were armed chiefly with melee weapons, mini-prog-knives, throwing knives, and a short sword, with a single energy shot pistol at the hip. To balance, Shinji was also armed with two mini-prog-knives in his shoulder blades.

As Shinji went to collect his yield, Maya leaned over to Misato.

"Wow…he's gotten really cute."

Misato smiled. "I know…it's everything I can do not to jump him sometimes. But he's really been through a lot, and that kind of attention will only make things worse."

Asuka just sneered. "Honestly, you two…"

Shinji turned around, looking like a miniature blue Unit 01. "Come on, you two…the longer we wait, the more danger Naomi's gonna be in. Dr. Ibuki, thank you again for your help."

Maya nodded, blushing. "It's my pleasure, Shinji…I only wish I could do more."

Misato stepped up to Asuka and the walking tank – Shinji – and nodded. "Okay, you two…the VTOL's ready. They've located one of ZELLE's primary outposts. It's in Japan…ironically, it's located within the urban graveyard of Tokyo-3."

Shinji and Asuka both cringed.

Misato nodded. "I know…this is gonna bring back some memories…some that we might just as well forget. But we've got a job to do. Are you ready?"

Shinji and Asuka both nodded.

Misato smiled. "Then let's go."

xxxxx

Tokyo-3 was never restored after 3rd Impact failed in 2015. Ten years later, it was still basically a giant crater. Scattered about were remains of buildings and establishments. The true threat, however, lay beneath the ruin, underneath the original Geo-Front. The bedrock of NERV.

"This place makes my skin crawl," Shinji observed, as they passed over the crater in the VERSTAND VTOL.

"I can't say I'm particularly thrilled with this either, Shinji," Asuka labored. "But don't forget…we're going in there because for your little maid, you know."

Misato glared. "You're mistaken, Asuka. This is an established mission directive from KERN."

Asuka just glared back; the first show of any kind of hostility towards Misato in ten years.

"Don't get me wrong, Misato – I don't give a damn about your little organization. I'm in this for Shinji's sake, and that's all there is to it."

Shinji smiled and Misato just frowned. "Well…you ought to give a damn…it exists primarily for your benefit."

Asuka snuffed. "Yeah, yeah, so does every other schlock organization ever established supposedly, but that doesn't mean I actually benefit from them."

Misato let it drop, realizing she wasn't getting anywhere. "We're going to land in what's left of the Geo-Front. It's ruinous, cavernous, and structurally and geologically unstable. It'll be dangerous enough, even without any human opposition, so be ready."

Shinji blinked. "What do you mean by 'geologically unstable?'"

Misato smiled, ironically. "It means that the Geo-Front is basically a big hole in the ground, and it just so happens to exist on the notorious Ring of Fire around the Pacific Rim. You've lived in Japan long enough to realize that earthquakes and volcanoes are not a rarity."

Asuka rolled her eyes. "Great. So not only do we have to worry about ZELLE soldier's trying to kill us, but we have to worry about earthquakes and volcanoes too?"

Misato smiled. "Look at it this way: if either of those situations were to occur, it would end this mission real quickly."

Shinji cringed. He remembered, quite suddenly, why he had never been too fond of Misato's sense of humor.

The VTOL hovered about half a kilometer above the city, when Misato left her seat and threw open the door.

"Misato!" Asuka hollered. "What are you doing?"

"This is where we get off!" Misato yelled above the roar of the air outside. "If we descend any lower, they'll spot us. We're trying to be as covert as possible here."

Asuka and Shinji gave no end of complaints as Misato shoved them out the door (Actually, "dragged" would be a better word, particularly in Shinji's case) and descended smoothly down to the crater.

Misato expertly maneuvered through the air and snagged Asuka in mind-air and placed her on her back, and grabbed Shinji by the shoulders. When they were about a hundred meters above the ground, Misato pressed a switch on the back of Shinji's suit that activated the compressed air jets that slowed their fall to a minimum. Once they reached solid ground, they were hovering safely over the ground, before dropping.

"Next time," Asuka muttered. "You could at least tell us before shoving us outside a helicopter a thousand meters above the ground!"

Misato winced. "Sorry." Looking at Shinji, she nodded. "Ditch the flight pack. We won't be needing it."

Shinji ejected the backpack that contained the air jets.

"From here on out, we're on foot," Misato said, militantly. "I want you all to follow me. This may get bumpy."

For the next hour and a half, the three of them trekked, climbed, hiked, and rappelled their way into the depths of the husk of the Geo-Front. Three times, the girls had to climb onto Shinji's back as he climbed down the steep rocky face. His suit, though slow, also provided him with immense power, down to Hulk-sized hands, which gave him a granite grip that clung to ledges better than an expert rock climber.

Along their way, they ran across a few stray articles left over from NERV; pieces of hallway, desks, chairs, uniforms, chunks of Bakelite, and heaps and heaps of twisted metal. Then they found something that truly disturbed them.

"Oh…my…god…" Shinji whispered.

The other two could only agree as they all stared at what they saw:

Heads.

They were heads from the test models of Unit 00. There were dozens, maybe hundreds of them, yellow, with spinal columns trailing downwards, with nerves leading to the occasional pair of hands here and there. But mostly, just the sheer number of heads…

"It's like…a cemetery…" Shinji cringed.

"More like a massacre site," Asuka furled her lip. "What's truly disturbing is that these things were here before it all went down…back when the people at NERV were the good guys."

Misato bit her lip. "It's something that I never wanted you to see…I guess you're older now, but it's still something that no one should have to witness in their lifetime."

"Let's get out of here," Shinji urged. "This place is making me sick."

The idea was warmly reciprocated.

Unfortunately, in order to push onward, they had to go through the trench of heads.

"Tell me again why I let you talk me into this Misato," Asuka droned.

They had passed the heads, but were still nowhere near to anything someone might have called hospitable, when Shinji called the party to a standstill.

"Stop!" he called, halting everyone in their tracks.

"What?" Asuka demanded.

"What is it, Shinji?" Misato asked.

Shinji sniffed the air, making sure to confirm what he had discovered, before returning his gaze to the others.

"It smells like Ayanami."

That's when all hell broke loose.

xxxxx

"Sir, we have an intruder," one of the many officers of ZELLE below ground said to their commanding officer.

"On screen," the commanding officer ordered.

A screen popped up, displaying Shinji, Asuka and Misato all fighting off ZELLE soldiers.

The commander's mouth curved into a grin. "He's here…"

xxxxx

"We have to move!" Misato commanded to the other two, as they dispatched with the remaining enemies.

"So much for a covert approach," Asuka mumbled, as they followed Misato deeper into the catacombs of NERV. The caverns were becoming less cavernous and more and more into structured establishments. As if someone had entered years prior and refurbished most of NERV.

"Something's not right, here," Shinji muttered, as they ran. "Something just doesn't feel right…"

They came before an entryway that led unquestionably into an underground facility. Shinji burst through the door effortlessly. Behind the door, they encountered more shock troops, which Misato and Asuka quickly overwhelmed before they could react.

"Quick!" Misato commanded, as she took off again.

Misato halted before their path crossed with another. She snuck a glance around the corner, and saw a line of oncoming guards. She threw a look at Shinji, who nodded. Removing two pistols from his holsters, he sidestepped out in front of the hall, launching a barrage of gunfire towards the ZELLE soldiers. They returned fire, and he quickly rolled back behind cover.

"There's too many of them," he announced, holstering his guns.

"So what do we do?" Asuka demanded.

"We improvise," Misato said. "Shinji, Maya said you had a missile launcher?"

Moments later, Misato cart wheeled out from behind the corner, and launched an impact grenade at the soldiers, leaving a deafening boom in her wake.

"Now! Move!" She hissed.

The three of them went on.

Before long, they stopped outside a door with the simple titles of "Biological Research Facility."

"This doesn't look good," Misato said.

But Shinji pushed ahead. "There's something back there. Something behind this door. I can feel it."

Misato placed a hand on his, as he gripped the door handle. "Shinji, are you sure you know what you're doing?"

Shinji shook his head. "I haven't known what I was doing since my father asked me to pilot Eva once upon a time. All I've been doing is hoping for the best."

Misato nodded. "Then let's go.

They entered, and their world fell apart.

"Maya?"

Doctor Ibuki, standing in front of an LCL tube, just gasped. "Oh my God! It's you! No, no, no, no, no, you can't be here! Oh, you just can't be here! Oh, this is not good! He'll kill me for sure!"

Misato grabbed the doctor by the shoulders. "Maya, what is the meaning of this? Why are you working for Zelle?"

Maya was on the verge of tears. "He promised, Mrs. Katsuragi! He promised me he'd bring her back!"

"Who?" Misato demanded. "Bring back who?"

"Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God…" she just rambled on, terror stricken in her voice.

"Oh my God…" Shinji repeated.

Misato turned to look at what he saw, and dropped the Doctor on the floor.

"What in God's name…"

"NAOMI!"

Floating in the vat of LCL was the young Ikari's bodyguard, prone, still, and oblivious.

Shinji ran to Maya, and grabbed her by the shoulders. "What is she doing in there? What have you done with her?"

Maya just cried. "I didn't want to! I thought it was a horrible thing to do. But he was so forceful…"

Shinji left he doctor where she was and ran over the vat, punching through the glass. LCL spilled everywhere, and Naomi drifted into Shinji's arms.

"NAOMI!" he screamed. Setting her on the ground, he felt for a pulse. "She's still alive! Naomi! Say something!"

The bodyguard's eyes slowly drifted open. "…M…Master…is…is that…you…?"

Shinji held her in his arms. "Yes, Naomi, it's me."

Naomi's eyes focused on him. "I'm…I'm so…sorry…"

Shinji wiped tears from his eyes. "Baka! Why did you come here? Why did you have to do things by yourself? Why did you have to be so brave?"

Naomi's breath caught in her throat. "Be…be…cause…" she coughed, loudly.

"Naomi, hang on!"

"Because…" Naomi stuttered. "I…love…"

Her eyes faded to black.

"NAOMI!"

Misato and Asuka just watched in horror.

"No…" Asuka breathed, more for Shinji's sake than for Naomi. Misato placed her arm around her, and held Asuka's prone form close to her.

"You gave everything for me…" Shinji cried, clutching her dead form. "You were always there for me… You were…you were…"

"A failed experiment."

Shinji, Misato, Asuka and Maya all turned to see the owner of the voice.

"F…father…?"

Gendo Ikari stood facing them all, a look of quiet dissatisfaction in his face. "She would have died anyway. There was nothing you could have done."

"Commander!" Misato yelled. "What's going on here?"

Gendo sighed. "Really, Mrs. Katsuragi…I would have thought you would have been able to pick it up. The leader of the foundation you work for…is none other than the founder of ZELLE."

Misato gasped. "No…than…you…"

Asuka broke from Misato's grasp. "All those attacks against Shinji and me…they were your doing?"

Gendo nodded.

"Why? Auska demanded.

"It was necessary to test the stability of the new plug suits. It was part of my agreement with SEELE. They want the suits in prime condition when they're put to use."

"Put to use? What for?" Misato demanded.

"Whatever it is that SEELE might want," Gendo shrugged. "To be honest, I don't really care. Oh, don't worry, you were never in any real harm during these tests. I was confident that the suits would be your salvation. And they were. Aside from one failed incident with the Aoba girl –"

"YOU MONSTER!" Shinji suddenly shouted, charging the man he once knew as father.

He got no more than five steps before Gendo pressed a button on the suit's dead man switch in his pocket. Shinji's suit froze, his momentum carrying forward enough to land flat on his face.

"Don't behave so rashly, Shinji," Gendo smiled. "That goes for the rest of you too. Now come…there's someone here you will want to meet."

Gendo pressed another switch, and Shinji's suit reactivated. Enraged and betrayed, it took all of Shinji's effort not to make another attempt. Instead, he followed his father as he continued on through the lab, Asuka, Misato, and Maya following behind.

"How are things coming, Professor?" Gendo asked into the darkness.

"Everything is in order, Sir. The procedure is nearly ready."

All heads turned to see who spoke.

Misato gasped. "R-Ritsuko?"

"Sempai!" Doctor Ibuki wailed, running up to her.

Ritsuko was wearing another combat suit, this one a deep shade of green.

"C-Commander? What in heaven's name is going on here? Ritsuko is dead!"

The Commander nodded. "Indeed. And she still is."

"Then what the hell is this?"

"Her body," Gendo said. "When she died, the last remnant of her soul was preserved in the LCL that surrounded Lillith. Our scientists were able to harbor some of it and infuse it into this special combat suit."

"So, what, you just…revived her?"

"Close enough," the Commander smiled. "It would seem to be an accurate enough replica for our resident VERSTAND insider."

Misato watched in awe, as Maya held her long lost friend in a sick semblance of love.

"Maya, wake up!" Misato screamed. "That's not Ritsuko! Ritsuko is dead, Maya! Accept it!"

Maya held her even closer, giving back a look of contempt. "You're lying! Sempai is right here!" she buried her face in Ritsuko arms. "You'll never leave me again, will you Sempai?"

Ritsuko pet the girl's head. "Never, Maya."

Misato spat in disgust. "So is this what you wanted us to see? This sick puppet show?"

Gendo smiled. "No…this is."

That's when the lights turned on.

The first thing that came into view was something that shocked everyone beyond comparison.

"It's…Unit-01!" Shinji gasped.

"It…it can't be…"

Crucified upon the same red cross that bore Lillith, Eva Unit-01 lay with its arms open, its skin around its stomach peeled back, revealing its core, surrounded by a mess of bloody ribs.

"How…what is…what are you doing with my Eva?" Shinji screamed.

That's when Shinji noticed something else.

Or rather, someone else.

Standing at the foot of Unit 01, staring up at the Eva in wonder, was a lone figure in a familiar white plug suit.

"No…" Shinji gasped, his knees giving out from underneath him. "You kill Naomi…you kill Ayanami…you bring back Ritsuko…and now…"

"Oh my God…" Misato gasped in disbelief.

"You can't be serious!" Asuka gawked.

Standing below Unit-01 was Ayanami.

xxxxx

A/N: Well, this will either be clever or predictable, depending on your take. Hopefully, it will be the former.

Things will continue to get more unbelievable later on. But for those of you who have still kept reading up until now, thanks for your loyalty. It really means a lot to me.

I'm still enjoying this. I like drawing out the character interactions, but I'm afraid it's detaching from the story. What's important to me is the actions and the drama the actions inflect.

Anyway, keep reading.

I'm out.