Disclaimer- don't own it, EVA

A/N this is it, last chapter. All that's left is the Epilogue. It's been one heck of a ride. Thanks for the reviews and to all the readers, Thnak you

Shinji ZERO

Chapter 5

All Good Things part III

Of Love, War, and Angels

At 7am sharp the children, Kaoru, Kyoko, Yui and Rika arrived at HQ. Once they arrived Misato and Ritsuko along with Commander Fuyutsuki, who along with the staff had pulled an all nighter prepping for the SEELE attack, gathered them into the briefing room. The Commander then gave his briefing

"Ok, here is what we know. Our intelligence agents have confirmed that SEELE is indeed prepping for an assault on Tokyo 3. From those reports we can surmise that they will employ Evangelion units 5-13 in the attack"

Ritsuko stepped up

"Very little is known about these units, any information you can give will be helpful Mr. Nagisa"

Kaoru nodded

"I will tell all I know"

"Good, now in an hour Shinji, Rei, and Asuka will perform synchronization tests and training drills to prepare for the attack"

Yui spoke up

"Any chance they will employ the JSSDF in the attack"

Misato shook her head

"From what Kaji told me they are preparing to move against SEELE along with the UN"

Ritsuko sighed

"I hope so; if they do this battle could be over in a matter of minuets"

She paused befor continuing

"We've ordered a level 1 evacuation of all nonessential personnel, anyone who doesn't need to be here will evacuate to the shelters on the city outskirts with the civilians"

Kyoko looked at Ritsuko

"What about us, Me, Yui, and Rika"

"It's safer for you 3 on the bridge, anyway we could use your help"

Yui nodded

"Just tell me what you need me to do"

Kaoru nodded

"I will stay there as well; my skills would be invaluable should SEELE employ ground forces as well, and during the tests it may be helpful if I am present"

Ritsuko smiled a bit, having an Angel on the bridge during the attack couldn't hurt them at all

"Ok then, you guys know what you've do. Yui, Kyoko and Misato will go to the bridge and start configuring the MAGI to withstand outside interference such as attacks from other MAGI systems. Shinji, you Rei and Asuka will get ready for your tests which Maya Ibuki will conduct. I will be helping the tech crews sure up the defense systems inside of the Geo-Front as best we can. None of the in city defenses will be repaired as we expect to be hit with an N2 as a first volley"

The commander spoke again

"This will more than likely be done to open up the GeoFront to facilitate easier access for their Eva units"

Misato nodded

"We begin the Tests in 30 minuets Shinji, Asuka, Rei go to the lockers and get ready, everyone else, go to you designated stations and begin preparations our Intel has placed the likely attack time at 2pm tomorrow"

Shinji raised his hand

"Umm…Misato"

"Yes Shinji"

"What about the people in the shelters, will they be ok if an N2 goes off"

"Don't worry the shelters are far enough away, they'll be safe"

Kyoko slowly stood, her face showing worry

"Misato, What about Pen Pen"

Misato quickly caught on and mirrored her worry

"Oh god Pen Pen"

Misato and Kyoko bolted out the door to collect the water foul and bring him to HQ. The Commander just shook his head

"Can't live without that bird can they"

Ritsuko nodded

"Im not sure who's more mature, them, or the penguin"

Shinji, Asuka and Rei sat in the respective Evas awaiting activation. Eva 01 felt different than before. Asuka and Rei had said the same about their respective units. Maya's voice cant over the com

"Are you kids ready?"

"Yes ma'am"

"Leave it to us"

"I'm ready"

"Ok then, now beginning entry"

Shinji felt his entry plug descend into the Eva. After a few moments the screens came on

"All Eva activated"

"No problems detected"

The next voice Shinji herd over the com line was Kaoru's

"Shinji, Zeruel should be able to here you now, remember speak with your thoughts not your words"

"Umm…ok"

Shinji sat back and concentrated on Unit 01

Are you there?

He got his response a moment later

So you are the warrior who defeated me in combat

I'm sorry about that

Do not be, you should be proud of your skills, they are most impressive. I look forward to joining with you in battle against our common foe

Shinji smiled, mabe this wasn't going to be so bad after all

Asuka sat in her plug, trying her best to talk to the Angel's soul in her Eva

"Hey anybody home"

The reaction wasn't what she expected

"Hi there, who are you"

It sounded like a little boy

"Im Asuka Langley Soryu, who are you"

"I'm Sachiel, have you seen any of my brothers or sisters"

"Huh"

"You know Tabris or Zeruel"

"Oh I get what you mean, Kaoru right"

"I think that's the name he goes by"

"He's in the control room right now, I'll tell him you said hi ok"

"Thanks, will we be fighting today"

"No, tomorrow"

"Ok, I'm going to sleep ok, I'll see you tomorrow, bye"

Asuka could only smile; she hadn't expected the angel to be this, well, perky

"Ok bye"

In unit 00 Rei was having a much easier time in talking to Lilith since she already know what to expect

"It seems the others have bonded well Rei"

"Yes it would seem so"

"I'm glad you have finally become the person you wanted to be"

"Yes, I have a family, I am finally happy"

"Good, so how does it feel to be human now?"

"Much better"

"Good, listen I know that you no longer carry a part of me with in you, however, I was wondering, if you would still call me mother"

"Of course I will, as will Rika. Yui Ikari is our human mother, you are our Angel mother"

"Thank you for that, my daughter"

After a hard day the children were finally able to rest. They were all give quarters inside of Nerv for safety reasons. Agents from section two had packed everyone's belongings and brought them to HQ, even Kaoru. Asuka and Shinji decided to go for a walk about inside the GeoFront to help take their minds off of tomorrows coming battle.

"So baka nervous"

"Yeah a bit, but, Zeruel is a fighter by nature, I'll be fine"

"Good"

As they walked Asuka slowly slid her hand into Shinji's. The pair walked on towards the lake, hand in hand. Shinji finally turned to Asuka

"How's Unit 02"

"You mean Sachiel"

"Yes"

"He's ok, more like a 4 year old than an angel, but ok"

"Good"

"Hay Shinji"

"Yeah Asuka"

"Can I sleep in your room tonight?"

He was a bit taken back to say the least

"What…"

"Don't get any perverted thoughts third, one of us might not come back tomorrow, I just want to be near you"

"I'm not going to die Asuka, and I know you won't either, but if you want to you can"

"Thanks baka, you better not tell a soul about this though"

"I won't"

"Good boy"

Else ware in Nerv Misato, Yui, Ritsuko, and Kyoko sat on the bridge going over the last of the preparations. They traded stories of collage life and Misato brought Yui up to date on her son

"So he's really that timid huh"

Misato nodded

"Yeah, but ever since he came back I've been noticing little things bout him"

"Like what"

"Well he's more confident now, he's harder to tease"

Yui shook her head

"That's a matter of opinion, you just gota push the right button"

"Well anyway, he's developed a lot, especially where Asuka is concerned. But I think part of that is her opening up to him. Not just his opening up, which he has"

Yui smiled

"Thank you for taking care of him for me"

"Don't worry about it; I doubt I'll ever have any, so these kids are as close as I'll ever get to having my own"

"Still, Gendo abandoned him; I should never have tested Unit 01. I shouldn't have left him alone like that. If I had know, I wouldn't have"

Kyoko just shook her head

"He doesn't blame you, he told you that remember"

"Yeah I know, so on a lighter note, how does it feel for your daughter to be dating my son"

"It's not so bad; Asuka could use a gentleman like Shinji in her life. Who knows maybe they'll get married and have kids some day"

Ritsuko added

"That may be more possible than you know"

Misato tilter her head a bit

"What do you mean Ritz?"

"well, a while back I had the MAGI chew some numbers and according to my results the drop in the birthrate will actually stop soon and level out at around even one death per birth, so we will have an even world population of about 2 billion"

Yui smiled and nodded

"That's good to hear, I wonder if Rei and Rika will ever have kids"

Misato shook her head

"We'll worry about that later, right now girls its time for an all nighter"

They groaned and went back to work

Rei and Rika had just settled into their room Nerv had provided for them. Rika was nervous about the next day

"Do you think we'll make it sister?"

Rei smiled and walked over to where her sister was preparing her bed. She gently wrapped her arms around her from behind

"Of course I do, we will have everyone looking out for us. Kaoru will be on the bridge, stay near him and the others and you will be fine"

He sister turned to face her

"I worry about you sister, you will be on the field of battle not I"

Rika put her arms around Rei. Rei felt it ironic that she was the one giving emotional support while only a short time ago she had no clue of them.

"Don't worry, mother Lilith will be with me. Shinji and Asuka will also be with me, I am not afraid"

Shinji had just settled down to bed. He knew he would have to let Asuka in soon so he decided to wait by the door. After a few minuets a gentle taping alerted him. He got up and went to the door, there he found Asuka in her PJs carrying a pillow. He let her in without hesitation and closed the door. Befor he could take another step he found himself pushed back against it with Asuka's lips pressed to his own.

After a moment she pulled away

"I've been waiting to do that all day"

"I'm glad you did"

The pair walked over to the bed, Shinji pulled back the covers and allowed Asuka to lay down first befor climbing in him self. He then pulled up the covers up over them and rolled over to face Asuka. She laid her head on his shoulder and snuggled up to him.

"Goodnight Shinji"

He gently kissed her on the forehead.

"Goodnight Asuka"

He hesitated for just a moment

"I love you Asuka"

She smiled and snuggled closer

"I love you to, my baka Shinji"

Asuka nodded of to sleep after a few moments. Shinji just looked at his girlfriend; he had never seen a girl so beautiful. He never thought this would happen, here he was holding Asuka Langley Soryu of all girls, watching her sleep. But their hardest trial would come tomorrow, SEELE's attack.

Yui decided to check on her son befor bed. As she approached his door she saw Kyoko standing out side of it

"What's up Kyoko?"

"Shh"

Yui walked over to her and looked in the door. There lay Asuka cuddled up next to Shinji as they slept. As a mother this made her feel two things. Joy that Shinji had found some one he loved, and dread ant what the pair could have already done

"Kyoko they didn't, did they"

"No I followed Asuka here, I was going to say goodnight and saw her going down the hall. What do you say we leave these two love birds alone for the night, and if nothing happens, maybe we'll let this become normal?"

"I don't know Kyoko"

"Come on Yui have you ever seen his that happy, I know Asuka hasn't been"

Yui had to relent that fact

"Well see"

At 11am sharp Nerv began its preparations. The children changed into their plug suits and awaited the order to go. On the main bridge everyone sat ready, all necessary preparations had been made the previous night. Kaoru had informed then that SEELE would probably employ the MP Type Eva unit in this attack and that they were probably operating under the assumption that Lilith was still where she was suppose to be. And thus they waited.

At 12 noon the city was evacuated as were all nonessential Nerv personnel

At 1 o clock the Eva's were readied for launch

At 1:30 the pilots boarded their entry plugs and began what they would later describe as the longest 30 min of their lives.

Then at 2PM the entire complex was rocked by a massive explosion. An N2 bomb had been droped. The resulting blast ripped the top from the GeoFront and destroyed what was left of Tokyo 3. After the heat had dissipated the Eva's got the order to launch.

Upon reaching the surface the three Eva's saw a sight that would strike fear into anyone.

Nine vultures like Eva's circling overhead, Shinji contacted Kaoru on the bridge.

"Kaoru, how much do you know of these things"

He shook his head

"All I know is that if you do not destroy the core they will regenerate"

Asuka chimed in

"Just like an angel right"

Kaoru nodded

"More a less"

Shinji readied himself as each of the three Nerv Eva's pick up a progressive sword.

"Ok here we go"

Shinji then began to concentrate on Unit 01 as the locking clamps released

"Zeruel are you there"

"I am young warrior"

"Its time, we have to pierce their cores or they'll regenerate"

"I know, then let us do so"

"Yeah, let's do this"

Each of the MP Types landed in turn, surrounding the three Nerv Eva's. Asuka got a good look at them as they all retracted their wings

"God their ugly, Misato do they have pilots"

"Just a second, nope, dummy plugs take them out"

"As good as done"

The MP Types broke into groups of three. Each group going after a Nerv Eva, Shinji contacted the girls over the com.

"Girls be careful"

"Why wouldn't we be baka, im not gona die on you"

"I will be fine brother"

They readied themselves as the MP Types stood motionless. Then they attacked.

Shinji managed to hold off the three MP Types for a few moments, following Zeruel's advice to look for an opening, which he saw as one of them missed a swing. He grabbed hold of it and shoved his sword through its chest, fracturing its core, silencing it. As the next one tried to decapitate him he shoved its now dead partner in the way. The MP Eva's sword jammed into the dead one giving Shinji another chance; he quickly pulled his sword from the first one and impaled the second, the Progressive sword breaking off at the hilt after silencing the second one. He then picked up its weapon only to have it instantly transform into the Lance of Longinus. Rei sees this and immediately advises her teammates to drop their swords and grab a lance, which they do.

Unit 01s remaining MP Eva opponent attacks, foolishly it tried to slice unit 01 in two. The Eva merely drops to one knee and ducks the attack. Unit 01 then thrusts its lance into its last opponent, silencing it. Shinji hears a familiar voice call over the radio

"Shinji, help"

"Asuka"

He turns unit 01 toward Unit 02 and sees the last Eva she was fighting about to impale her with its lance. Shinji directed Unit 01 to save Asuka, he drew back to throw his lance hoping to hit the MP Type and save Asuka. As the MP Type was about to thrust down a volley of missiles struck its head disorientating it, on the bridge everyone was in awe, there coming over the lip of the now exposed GeoFront were JSSDF VTOL's and UN fighter aircraft. Misato was ecstatic

"The JSSDF and the UN came through, thank you Kaji"

The VTOL's surrounded the MP Evas and unloaded their ordinance into them while the fighters went for the SEELE drop craft. Asuka took the indicative and picked up her lance, however befor she could throw another lance struck the MP dead in the chest silencing it. The same Lance unit 01 had held

"Thanks baka"

"Anything for my Asuka"

As the two Evas surveyed the area Rei finished her last opponent, she turned Unit 00 toward the others

"It seems this is finished"

Her brother nodded

"We'll stay out here for a bit though"

Asuka agreed

Back on the bridge the Techs were celebrating along with Kaoru, Yui, Kyoko, Misato, Ritsuko and Rika. One of the techs monitored an incoming transmission; it was from the secretary general of the UN. The bridge became quiet as the line was patched through

"Commander Fuyutsuki"

"General"

"I must say Nerv has impressed me, beating such long odds like this. I have good news"

"Yes general"

"The 12 members of SEELE have been either rounded up or killed"

Everyone broke out into cheers, even the pilots. Commander Fuyutsuki quieted them

"Anything else general"

"Yes, unfortunately Committee chairman Keel managed to transmit the plans for their Evas on an open channel, anyone on earth who may have been listening could have received them. Hell the fax machines in UN HQ here in New York have been printing them out"

Everyone turned somber; this meant that any two bit dictator with enough money and recourses could get their hands on an Eva

"That is…distressing to say the least"

"Exactly, which is why as of 0400 hours tomorrow Nerv will be officially reorganized, its mission not longer to stop the angels, but to protect against misuse of Eva technology by parties around the world"

Everyone in Nerv was shocked, but the world still need them.

Shinji, Asuka and Rei stayed on with Nerv, as did their mothers and Kaoru.

Tokyo 3 was rebuilt around the now exposed GeoFront.

Kaji retired from the JSSDF and rejoined Nerv as the head of Section 2, he and Misato married some months later though the impromptu families still live in the same flat.

Hikari, Toji Kensuke and all of Tokyo 3's former residence returned to the former fortress city and life returned to normal, well as normal as things get in Tokyo 3.

A/N Whew that was tiring. Well now I only have the Epilogue left.

Thanks to all of my readers and those who reviewed, this has been a blast. Good night and Good luck