Disclaimer: See the Prologue


Chapter 12: Third Impact is Nigh


Gordon walked up to the wrecked mobile command post, crowbar in hand. He climbed up to the top of it, where the door was, where he begun tear it open with his crowbar, driving it through the slightly melted metal. He stopped when he heard pleading from within it.

"Please…you gotta help me. Freeman's outside my door…you've gotta deploy it NOW! Destroy this god-forsaken place!"

Gordon finally tore it open, where he jumped into the post. What greeted him were smashed terminals, dead technicians, officers…and the Commander himself who was cowering in a corner, holding a radio.

Gordon moved up to him, pistol in hand, where he pointed it at his head.

"No please," the Commander begun, "I was just following orders from…"

Gordon grabbed him by the collar of his uniform and held him against the wall.

"Alright JSSDF," Gordon begun, glaring, "You're going to answer me these few questions. Number 1: Who sent you?"

The Commander gulped, "SEELE ordered gave us orders from behalf of the United Nation. It was over the security of the planet."

"All right," Gordon said loosing his hold on the Commander, then pushing him onto the ground, "Question number 2: Why are you here in the first place? Is it more than containing the alien infestation here?"

The Commander shook his head, "No, no…we were sent here to stop Gendo Ikari from initiating Third Impact. They said nothing about an alien invasion.

Gordon's mind stopped. Gendo's going to start Third Impact? The Commander of NERV was going to destroy the Earth for God-knows what reasons? He should have gotten wind of all this earlier.

'Oh my God,' he thought, his grip on his gun loosening, 'My objective was here all along.'

The JSSDF commander seized this opportunity. He charged at Gordon, knocking the gun of his hand, before punching him in the face, knocking his glasses off.

The Commander smiled maniacally, "You should have let the JSSDF do their job, Freeman. Now you've doomed the whole planet."

The Commander reached for the Desert Eagle and pointed it at Gordon's head.

"DIE SCIENTIST!" the Commander cried for the last time.

One gunshot later, the Commander rolled off Freeman and lay on the ground, dead. Gordon looked up and saw Misato, her gun pointing down at him.

Gordon nodded in thanks, before bending over and picking up his glasses. He examined them, before putting them back on.

After helping Gordon get out of the vehicle, he was quick to explain the current situation.

"WHAT?" Asuka cried.

"Gendo's going to start Third Impact!" Gordon moaned, "I should have taken care of him when I had the f#$#ing chance!"

He held his head in his hands in despair.

"This is probably got to do with that Angel stored in Terminal Dogma," Misato said.

Gordon looked up at her, blankly.

"There's a Angel in the complex?" Gordon asked.

"Yeah," Misato said, "It's Lilith."

Gordon's mind flashed. He smiled.

"There's still time!" he cried, picking up an assault rifle from a dead Grunt, "If we kill the Angel, then Third Impact won't happen."

Asuka stared at Gordon as if he was crazy, "How the hell are you gonna do that?"

Gordon, still smiling, said, "I have my ways. I'm going down there while you guys stay put. If I'm not back in half and hour, get as far away from the city as you can."

Misato eyes softened, "But…"

Gordon stared back sadly, still smiling, "I've got to stop Gendo, or this planet is doomed."

Misato nodded, then said, "Try to find Rei as well. She's probably with Gendo as well."

"I will," Gordon said.

As he turned to run back to the facility, Shinji spoke up, "Hey Dr. Freeman-san?"

Gordon turned his head toward him.

Shinji smiled lightly, "Thank you for saving us."

Gordon smiled, "You're welcome."

Gordon ran up to the service elevator hatch. The lift was destroyed.

'It's gonna be a long climb down,' he thought.

He carefully lowered himself onto the ladder, where he begun his painful descent down.

'Jeez. Why does super secret research facilities have to half a mile underground,' he thought, 'I just don't know!'

Meanwhile in the facility, Kouzou walked through the bloodied hallways of NERV, gun in hand. He knew Gendo would be heading for Terminal Dogma with Ayanami.

"Where are you hiding?" he said to himself as he made his way to Gendo's office.

Gordon soon reached the facility, where he jumped on the wrecked elevator car. He climbed in and stepped through the shattered door, carbine at the ready.

He surveyed the scene before the elevator: An almost alien habitat, complete with blood and bodies of NERV and JSSDF personnel.

He stepped forward slowly.

'It's quiet,' he thought, thinking on the cliche where any moment now creatures would flood the facility.

He then stepped on one of those Xenian cockroaches.

As if on cue the aliens would sought refuge at the lower levels of the facility to avoid the JSSDF, attacked. Zombies busted through the walls and floors around him.

'Here we go,' Gordon thought.

He begun firing, picking his shots while running. He had to find a way to reach Gendo, and fast. He rifle-clubbed this one zombie, knocking the crab off and leaving a partially destroyed head, whose face was that of a silent scream.

Zombies began to crowd. Gritting his teeth and reaching for his crowbar, dropping his assault rifle, he begun to hack his way through the hordes of Xenian undead.

Gordon reached for a grenade, and pulled the pin. He pushed his way through and dived, avoiding the explosion, which scattered parts of zombie around the place, adding yellow to the red splattered walls.

He begun sprinting towards the office, jumping over bodies of human and alien alike. He was near Gendo's office when…

"Oh shit."

He saw Kouzou, lying against the wall near the door into Gendo's office. He was still alive and holding his side. He looked up at Gordon, and smiled painfully.

"Still alive I see, Freeman?"

Gordon nodded and bent down.

"God, I'm such a fool," Kouzou said, "I should have killed Ikari when I had the chance. But him and me, we had history.

"That understandable," Gordon said, "Listen, there's still time to stop Third Impact. If I can get down there I can destroy Lilith and prevent whatever plan Gendo has."

"I see Katsuragi told you about Lilith," Kouzou said sitting up, but pain brought him down, "Gendo plans to merge Rei with Lilith and with the Third Impact will begin."

Gordon looked at him, confused, "Merge Ayanami with the Angel? He can he do that?"

"It's complicated," Kouzou explained, "You've got to down there and stop Gendo. Ritsuko went down there earlier and she may need your help."

'Dr. Akagi?' Gordon thought. He had only seen he for a couple of minutes, before she disappeared when the aliens struck.

Gordon stood up, "How do I get down to Terminal Dogma?"

"There's a secret elevator in the office. The button for it is under Gendo's desk," Kouzou explained, then added, "Before you go…"

"Yeah!"

"He sent you, didn't he?"

Gordon looked down at him, eyebrows crossed.

"We both work for him. We're all pawns in his game, but I made the mistake of undermining his authority and siding with Gendo and his benefactors," Kouzou sighed, knowing the situation he's in.

"The man in the suit?" Gordon asked.

Kouzou nodded, "He told me you would come. After Black Mesa was destroyed, he contacted me and told everything that would happen, that you would be able to save humanity from Third Impact and the Union."

Gordon had no time. He didn't catch that last bit: Union.

"I'll be back for you," Gordon said, "Just sit tight."

Kouzou nodded, "I'm not going anywhere."

Gordon nodded, and stepped into the office, pistol in hand.