TOKYO-3
The day the angels returned Day 1
Shinji looked at the angel and then he screamed for mercy.
"Are you sure we should be here, St. Pierre?" Colin asked.
"Of course," St. Pierre replied.
"Okay."
Silence.
"Are we allowed to be here?"
"Oh, I'm rather certain we'd be shot if they found us."
"I see."
The four continued on in silence. Metal walls lined the small, quiet corridors.
"Where the hell are we, St. Pierre?" asked Chris finally.
"Chris," St. Pierre adjusted his glasses, "this is the headquarters of NERV. I believe I've already told you this."
"Well, yeah, but…I'm still a little confused."
"Okay. Let me try this: Around fifteen years ago, a catastrophic incident in Antarctica – "
"Yeah, we know what Second Impact is, St. Pierre," Colin interrupted, "but what does it have to do with this place?"
St. Pierre adjusted his glasses.
"My young friends, you know of the reported meteor that struck the Antarctic?"
"Of course."
"Then you should know that, in fact, no meteor ever truly came close to our planet."
St. Pierre stopped, for they were now in front of a large set of double doors.
"Breathe deeply," he said, "and prepare yourself for a world beyond your wildest dreams."
"Shinji!" Misato yelled.
Shinji stopped screaming. The monster – the angel – watched him, watched the Evangelion, and watched as it sank to the street below.
"Oh, Ritsuko, this was so extremely stupid. I just can't watch! We're gonna kill that kid!"
Dr. Akagi watched helplessly. Behind them, on his high and mighty perch, Commander Ikari watched his son writhe in terror.
Suddenly, a door burst open on the control center below.
"Wha-?"
A tall, terrifying man stood in the inky shadows, three silhouetted figures behind him. Victorious, majestic music was playing in everyone's mind as they watched this new terror enter the command center.
"Well, vice commander," said Ikari, "this is not something I can explain."
The vice commander looked down at the figures.
"Ikari, I don't recall a door being there ever."
"Neither do I."
Below them, the shapes moved into the light.
"Commander Ikari! I have returned!"
Gendo looked down.
"Well, Jimmy, I knew you'd come back."
"Commander Ikari," St. Pierre said, "there appears to be far too much watching in this center. Shouldn't you be focused on the battle?"
"Oh my God!" Misato cried, "Shinji! Shinji!"
"Finally!" Shinji's voice echoed, "I've been waiting for someone to answer me.
His voice sounded perfectly calm.
"Are you alright?" Misato asked.
"I'm fine, Captain Katsuragi, but where is the angel?"
"I – huh?"
All eyes were on the monitors.
"The angel! It just kind of gurgled and vanished."
"Well…" Misato looked around. NERV was full of people, all of who were staring at her, and at the monitor, wondering what in bloody hell was happening. "I guess, Shinji, just stay there for a few more minutes and then, maybe, if it really is gone, we'll bring you down."
"Um…o-okay, Captain."
St. Pierre looked up at Gendo Ikari and adjusted his glasses.
"I desire a word, Commander, when you can."
"It can be arranged, James."
"Thank you, Gendo. Incidentally, let me introduce to you my new assistants."
Chris, Colin, and Cruts stood uneasily in front of St. Pierre.
"This is Chris. He will be assisting with my operations. Next to him is Colin, my technology assistant, and this one is Cruts. He is here in case of…unforeseen events."
"Your return may assist us." Gendo said tightly, then he left the room.
St. Pierre looked at Misato.
"Sorry to interrupt your operation, Captain Katsuragi."
"It's alright…er…"
"St. Pierre will do."
"Then it's alright, St. Pierre-sama. Frankly, I'm glad to see that the angel has left. I'd be glad if it didn't return."
"That shall be arranged then. You may call of your mission."
And without another word, he left.
Misato smiled at Shinji as they rode home.
"You really don't have to do this," Shinji said.
"It's way too late now! Besides, we can have a party, Shinji! It'll be fun!"
I don't know if I really want to live with her, Shinji thought, but I suppose I'll have to now. Maybe it won't be so bad.
Ten minutes later, when Shinji opened the fridge to find only beer, he decided perhaps it would be so bad after all.
"Alright, Shinji, we'll divide the chores fairly – rock, paper, scissors, shoot! Ha! Paper beats…um…whatever the heck you were doing!"
"I wasn't ready!" Shinji protested, but Misato wasn't listening. After several hours of this, Misato, in a drunken stupor, collapsed on her bed. Shinji took his two boxes of stuff and wandered into his room, a spare room that had clearly never been used. He sat on his bed.
"Wow, this is really comfortable," he though aloud, "and kind of squishy."
"Thank you," the bed replied, "but I'd like you to get off now."
"Ah!"
Shinji jumped at and turned on the light. A huge, middle-aged fat man got off his bed and stood up.
"You must be Shinji Ikari," he yawned.
"Um…yes…I'm sorry, Misato didn't say anything about other guests and I thought this room was mine and – "
"That's okay, you are right, this is your room and I'm not another guest. I'll just be going now, and kindly don't tell Misato that old Dave spent the night."
Shinji stared as he left.
"What the devil?"
Shinji didn't know this, but, ten minutes later, Dave was in the back of a rather seedy looking bar talking to a rather tired looking Chris and Colin.
"Alright, Dave," Chris said, "what did you need?"
Dave's old eyes found Chris's tired ones.
"I've heard you're working at NERV."
"How come you know about NERV?" Colin asked, "we didn't even know."
"I'm a forty-six year old English teacher," Dave replied, "I know everything."
"I see."
A few feet away, a musician gathered people and started to play a song.
"Let me warn you," said Dave, "that NERV can be a scary place. Little is known about it or its predecessor, GEHRIN, not even by people like myself."
"We have St. Pierre with us, and we'll have you – "
"Oh, I can't stay."
Chris and Colin looked at him, startled.
"Why not?"
"I'm not exactly a friend here."
"What did you – " Chris began, but the musician, who began his song just then, interrupted him.
And it caused them all great pain.
"Dave!" he began, "The man they call Dave! Well the meteor came and we thought we would die, and everyone thought the bad moon would rise but then, look, it's Dave, we're so happy we'll cry, the hero of Tokyo-3, the man we call Dave…"
"Um, Dave…"
"Yes, Chris?"
"Any light you'd like to shed on this development?"
"…No, Chris."
