Well after finally getting the idea train rolling again (a big thanks to Rahhel once more for the help) I've been able to finish chapter 6. An important note for the story: from here on out any dialogue outside of a dream sequence that is quoted and italicised is someone speaking in English as opposed to Japanese. Anyways, hope you enjoy.
The rough condition of the roads caused the old Honda that Aoba had found earlier that day to jostle the three survivors uncomfortably. Asuka was relieved to have finally found an auto, but the ride was just so damn uncomfortable. There'd better be some damn grateful survivors wherever it is that we're going. Asuka yelled out in pain as Aoba drove over a rather large rock, causing her head to thud against the passenger window.
"Where the hell did you learn to drive Shigeru!" she yelled.
"Sorry, but it's not like these roads are very easy right now," Aoba answered. "Anyways, we should be ok once we get out of the Tokyo 3 area. It looks like the roads are clearer up ahead."
"Well they'd better be," Asuka grumbled.
Asuka looked back at Shinji as he giggled at her words, balling up her fist and threatening to slug him if he didn't shut his trap. Shinji laughed a little more and nodded, throwing in a quick apology at the end.
Asuka crossed her arms and looked out towards the glistening amber that was the ocean. As relieved as she was to have found the car, finally get out of the Tokyo 3 ruins, and have both Shinji and Aoba there, she just could not shake the thoughts of that nightmare out of her head. This is stupid…it was just a dream, it didn't mean anything, she told herself. Come on Asuka, be rational. A giant of white light is going to come destroy what remains of humanity when all signs of life other than the three of us are gone, sure.
She tried time and time again to quell the thoughts in her head, but no matter how hard she tried to reason with herself, the images remained vivid in her mind and the feeling that something was lurking refused to leave her. Eventually she became so entwined inside her own thoughts that she didn't even notice that they had completely left sight of the remnants of Tokyo 3.
"Hey, Asuka," Shinji began, "Are you alright?"
"Huh?"
"It's just that you look a little pale, and you're beginning to sweat."
"Oh, don't worry, I'm fine," she said. She knew that Shinji wouldn't believe her though, her voice sounded shaky even to herself.
"Asuka…"
"Don't worry about it Shinji. Jeez, you're such a worry wart."
Shinji merely nodded in response as Asuka turned to face the ocean again. She was certain that he would know exactly what was wrong, exactly what she was thinking about. He could probably feel something similar to what she felt in the back of her mind, that same lingering sensation that something was there, lying in wait. She wanted to tell him what was wrong, but she wanted to be alone with him when she did. She just had a feeling that if Aoba found out it might lead to trouble, especially since he had no idea that they were able to feel the consciousness of beings within their own minds. Shinji, I wish I could tell you what was wrong…I wish I could just get rid of this feeling, get rid of this lingering sensation… Once again, Asuka had lost herself in thought, so much so that she didn't notice when Shinji began trying to retrieve her attention.
"Asuka!" he said while tapping her shoulder.
"What? What is it?"
"Look there, on the beach."
Asuka looked in the direction that Shinji was pointing and couldn't believe her eyes. "Is that what I think it is?" she asked, stepping out of the car Aoba brought it to a stop at the side of the road.
"There's no mistake about it," Aoba began, "It's a cruise liner, probably beached during the Third Impact. And look there," he continued, pointing towards the ships bow, where a collection of neatly organized supplies were laid out. "It looks like we may have found more survivors."
"Well then what're we standing around for?" Asuka asked as she began heading down the hillside to the ship that ran ashore. Shinji and Aoba quickly followed, and the three of them reached the ship within a matter of a couple minutes.
"Looks like it may have been abandoned," Aoba said as he examined the supply crates. "See? All of these crates have already been emptied."
"But that means that there were people here at one point, so they might come back right?" Shinji asked.
"Makes sense to me," Aoba answered. "Lets take a look around and see if we can find anything else."
Shinji and Asuka nodded and the three of them split up, looking around the perimeter of the beached vessel. Even though it was a cruise liner, it wasn't very big so it didn't take long to completely circle the area. Asuka hadn't really found anything of interest in her search, but Shinji seemed to be deeply interested in something along the side of the ship.
"What's up Shinji?"
"Look here," he said, pointing out a sign along the side of the ship. "The ship is from Hong Kong."
"OK, so what does that mean?"
"It means that there's a possibility that more people survived outside of Japan."
"Hey guys," Aoba called out, "I found the way into the ship's hull!"
Shinji and Asuka ran over to where Aoba was standing and the three of them entered the supply room of the ship, which was still pretty full even though a lot of them were removed. There were supplies of all sorts too, from food to medical supplies to different changes of clothing. Almost everything they'd need was there for the taking.
"Who in the hell are you three?" a strange voice called out from behind them. The three of them quickly spun around to see a middle aged man standing there. Whoever he was, it was apparent that he wasn't Japanese or from the continent. His sandy blonde hair, somewhat stocky build, and deep, gruff voice suggested otherwise, along with the fact that he didn't speak Japanese.
"Well?" he demanded.
"It's alright Richard," another voice came, this one clearly that of a Japanese man. "I'm terribly sorry about him, he's just being safe is all."
"Excuse me, but are you two the only other survivors here?" Shinji asked.
"No, we are not. I'm sorry, I should introduce myself. I am doctor Nobuo Serizawa. Richard and I were aboard this ship when that strange incident that turned the ocean gold took place. He and I, along with a Chinese woman, were the only survivors aboard the ship."
"So it's just the two of you and the woman then?" Aoba asked.
"No, we're actually with a group of about ten survivors, including the two of us. Most of the other survivors were just wandering around the wilderness trying to find shelter, so we decided to aid them. Tell me, are you three by any chance from Tokyo 3?"
"We are. We'd been searching the city for others that survived the incident, but it seems like we're the only ones."
"I see. I had a feeling you were from the city since you seemed to be well kempt for this situation. In any case, you're all welcome to come with us back to our camp, we could always use some more help."
"Doctor, mind filling me in here? I don't speak Japanese in case you forgot," Richard said.
"It's alright, Richard, they're Tokyo 3 survivors. I've offered for them to come back to camp with us to help out. The way things are now, I figure we need as much help as we can get if we're going to try and make it to America."
Richard nodded, glancing quickly at the three new additions to their camp. "I suppose you've got a point there, Serizawa. I'll get these supplies back to the camp and we'll see what we can do about working on that boat."
Serizawa nodded, turning back to face the three of them. "I'm very sorry about that, Richard doesn't speak any Japanese."
"I can tell. Is he American?" Aoba asked.
"He is. He thinks that if we can make it back to America and find more survivors we might be able to rebuild and start setting things right again. Personally, I've got my doubts about the idea but it's the best we could come up with."
"What was that he said about a boat?" Asuka asked.
"Well I see you're a very attentive young lady, and with a mastery of the English language to boot," Serizawa replied.
"It's not that surprising. I'm half German and spent most of my life in Germany and English is something we're all required to learn there."
"I see. Well, yes, we are trying to use the parts from the cruiser to make a boat sturdy enough to sail from here back to America, but the problem is that even though Richard is a skilled mechanic and is able to oversee the construction of the boat, we haven't been able to find some of the necessary parts to construct the boat."
"What is it that you need?" Shinji asked.
"A suitable power source is the most difficult thing to find so far. The liner's generator is too large to use and we haven't been able to find a way to create a successful generator yet."
"Aoba, do you know anything about that sort of thing?" Shinji asked.
Aoba shrugged. "I don't have a clue for this one."
"That's quite alright," Serizawa said. "It's nothing to worry about right now. For the time being let's get you three situated within the camp. Follow me."
As Serizawa led them out of the ship towards the campsite, Asuka paused, turning to look back at the amber ocean that glistened under the midday sun. Slowly, she turned, beginning to walk in the direction of the golden seas as if in a trance. After about three steps, she began to feel woozy, the tugging sensation at the back of her mind becoming stronger. Her vision began to blur, and before she knew it she had fallen to the sandy ground. The blurred image of Shinji kneeling over her was the last thing she saw before finally blacking out.