AN: This is obviously part 2. Obviously.
No, seriously. It's part 2. You know... the one that comes after part 1. Really... really. I'm not kidding you. This is part 2.
well, at least, I think it is... or it was supposed to be.
/priest/
/0.5 on the run Part 2/
Morning came like a sledge hammer, slamming into my slumbering mind with the patience of a angry rhino that was freakishly reminiscent of Unit 1, horn and all.
The overly bright light that filtered through my window blinded my still sensitive eyes as the annoying ringing of my alarm clock blared through the fog that was my sleep incrusted mind somewhere to my left.
I briefly had a vision of getting up, grabbing the pistol I had stored under my pillow the night before, in my attempt to hide it from Misato, and unloading on the damn time keeping device, but that would have been foolish, so I ignored it and throw my other pillow over my head to block the noise.
That never does anything, does it? If anything, the blasted thing seemed to blare even louder, screaming its infernal message to the sleeping world that 'it was time the wake up and if you don't get up now I'll guarantee that by the time you do get up you'll be so pissed off you'll wish you had just taken that small amount of energy and just GOTTEN UP AND TURNED ME THE FUCK OFF!'
And believe me, the message had gotten through, but I was far more annoyed than that. I mean I had been out all night getting chased and shot at. So it wasn't that much of a surprise when I did leaped out of bed with that pistol I was talking about earlier aimed dead at the stupid machine, but it 'was' a surprise when I noticed Asuka staring between me and the gun in my hand from the doorway.
"Uh... it's not what you think." I said in reflex as I tried and failed to hide the weapon behind my back as the alarm clock continued to spew its toxic into the airwaves in the background.
Strangely, the German girl said not a word and had been unusually quiet at breakfast and most of the way to school, which had me worried a bit. I couldn't tell if she had been mad, afraid, weirded out or what?
Silence was not a term that fit well in a description of Asuka Langley Sohryu.
Clouds hung overhead that day like nice fluffy marsh-mellows. The kind that you see in the art books and post cards, all big and puffy, gliding through the sea of pale blue and the hungry yellow, the perfect type. It was a scene to make any one of those over zealously kawaii people you always meet on the street at the wrong time go into ecstatic seizures of joy.
You know those type of people right, you've met them? They've got those wide open eyes and that huge, it's got to be bordering on sadistically blissful, smile. The ones who are just a little 'too' happy at times, and for no explainable reason either. They're merely getting high on life and all that bullshit.
And besides just the usual unease that you get from being around anyone else who's happier than you for more than two minutes when your life has been riding on the bullet train to sucksville for sometime lately, these 'extra kawaii' types come along and give you that 'o...k... I think I need to either start running or ask for a hit of whatever they're smoking' feeling.
It was just one of those days
The clouds over head should have been an omen. And I guess I did sorta take it as one as I tried to keep an extra eye out for the those fantastically kawaii weirdos. I'm sorry, but I always get this weird, almost uncontrollable urge to kick them in the balls when they come around. It took all of my concentration, hands clenching and unclenching while my feet gave a little twitch, just to keep myself under control while they rattled on and on about how GREAT! the world was that day.
Maybe that's just me, I don't know.
Weirdos aside, I should have been paying more attention to the heavens. Never say god doesn't give you clues. Just like the Angel Alarm, the deep grays forming beneath the underbellies of the clouds belied the perfect picture.
I should have been paying more attention... but between Asuka, the clouds, my troubled mind, worry for the weirdos and about another half dozen other useless bits of info that didn't deserve the brain power it took to bring up them up.
Except maybe that high school girl who just walked by who decided to were her shorter skirt on this windy day with those thighs, and that those calves. Hmm... maybe that one was worth it... or I had been spending too much time with Kensuke and Toji than I needed to... maybe a bit of both.
A frown found it's way to my face though as we continued on our way in silence. I knew that if it had Asuka in that skirt, heads would have turned, lips would have curled, whistles would have been heard and there'd be enough paramedics in the area to service three hospitals when she was done with them.
I was still stumped as to why she hadn't acted up until then. It wasn't her way. I knew that my German room mate would eventually act out and no doubt give me hell for that morning, but when? Where? And how much was it going to hurt?
My hands unconsciously covered my crotch out of reflex. My crotch was on very familiar terms with the red head's foot. Not good terms, but terms none the less.
We were half way there before she acted. And acted she did. One minute I was giving side long looks at the girl, while casting quick yet discrete looks out for those people with the huge smiles, and the next thing I knew she was in my face dragging me into an alley with one hand stretched out to the side of my head to block my escape as her crystal blues stared hard into my Ocean blues.
'Not again' I couldn't help but think as we entered the narrow path. Me and alleys ways just didn't have good history.
Honestly I had no idea what the hell was going on and apparently I wasn't the only one.
"What the hell is going on Third?"
See what I mean?
"Um... what are you...?"
"Don't! Don't. I don't what to hear any bullshit, Ikari. Three nights ago you looked like you saw your mothers killer, got some S2 guy pissed off and then ran off looking for Miss Ibuki, who hasn't shown up for work either in two days and now, here you are this morning with a gun ready to blow the mechanical brains out of a stupid alarm clock. So tell me Mister Ikari, you tell me right now, what the hell is going on here?"
She said all of this with that same fierce expression on her face as she stared me in the eyes. And then in a quieter voice that left me stunned she asked what was really on her mind.
"What is the Matrix Shinji? What does it all mean and why do I keep having these weird dreams about it?" Her head dropped a bit, her eyes shaded by her reddish auburn mane.
"D-Dreams?"
I was stunned for a moment. 'Dreams...' I had been having weird flashes and sometimes dreams of people and places that didn't make sense either, but could they have been about the Matrix? Neo aside, could the others have been related as well? They all seemed so similar as if they were Neo, or someone(s) like him. I had never had the chance to ask miss Trinity back when they were explaining things, so I couldn't know for sure.
"I... I don't know about your dreams Asuka. I can barely figure out my own." I finished in a quieter voice.
"But what about the Matrix? I know you know what it is. You gave away as much before you departed that day Misato called."
"...departed, Asuka?" since when did she talk like that?
"Shut up! That just.. slipped out. I was studying for the English class's test ok. Agghhh, whatever! Disappeared, I meant to say disappeared that day Misato called."
"You didn't tell her did you?" I voiced, my manner all serious all of a sudden, throwing her off a bit.
"Umm, no... I didn't know what to say about it so Hikari and I decided to kept it to ourselves."
"Good. In this case the less you know the..."
"NO! You are going to tell me Ikari, so you can keep that load of crap to yourself. Now spill it!"
I took a moment to think it through as I put all of the pieces together. The Matrix was dangerous, that was a fact. And knowing about it was too, but not knowing could be worse. I knew that the Agents would eventually come for me and probably before I ever got back in contact with the people from Zion again, so the odds of me ever being able to protect Misato and Asuka .. and the class rep too, from them was slim to none.
'But maybe if she knew she could... No, it wouldn't matter, the outcome would be the same.'
But as I noticed the look in the red head's eyes I knew that I wouldn't be able to refuse her because I could see the same desperate, haunted look that I had had before when I was trying to figure it all out on my own.
Asuka didn't have even near enough of the angst in her eyes that I had gained in the weeks before I had meet Miss Ibuki on that street corner, but it was the same and I couldn't let her go the same route that I had.
'Damnit I'm weak!'
"Fine Asuka, fine Asuka, but not now." I gave in with my head down, praying to an angry god that I wasn't making a huge mistake.
"It had better be now, Third or I'll..."
"You don't get it, if we don't hurry we'll be late for school."
"Oh..." and with a quick check of her watch the German girl grabbed my hand and nearly dragged me all the way there.
/WRW/
We spotted Hikari in the halls who was in the process of making her way to class. I say in the process because of the absently slow pace she was taking, which was not like her at all. Asuka even had called out to her, but Hikari didn't respond.
We were fast catching up to her... ok, Asuka was catching up, I, like I said before, was being dragged.
Even when we had reached her side the girl still didn't respond. I could see the distracted look in her gaze as she moved on auto, her blank gaze signaling that her inner mind was in full control. There were a few rings under her eyes from lack of sleep and I barely suppressed a sigh out of knowing the cause.
The Matrix did a fine job of toying with the mind. But we were only middle school kids, this shouldn't have been how it was for us. But of course the Angel war itself shouldn't have been how it was for us either.
"Oh look its Toji with that tramp Keiko." The red head said at my said in a overly excited voice causing me to turn and look for my jock friend.
"No, he's not... mmggh mmgh." the hand clamped over my mouth did a fine job of stifling my protest and my air supple as well.
"What! Where? I'll smack the sense out of that whore if she even thinks of... huh?" The pig tailed girl said with such a vehemence I could almost taste the venom dripping from her lips. But don't get the wrong idea, alright. It's not like I dream -I mean think, yes think, that's a better word, think about the taste of Hikari Horaki lips or anything. It's just a figure of speech, you know. Hehe ... um... cough.
"Sorry to destroy your berserker daydreams Horaki, but lets focus a little more on the Real World, ok?" Asuka was saying to the still confused Class Rep.
"That's not funny Asuka! I wouldn't do that to you and Ikar.. I mean Kaji." The girl switched up at the narrowing of the German's eyes.
"Mmmghh!"
"Huh, oh yeah. Forgot I was still holding you." the evil girl said with a laugh.
"gasp... Damnit Asuka! Are you trying to suffocate me?" It was always something with that girl.
"Naw, you'll have to answer my question before I do that, Third."
"Oh, Ikari, I didn't see you there. Are you all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine Incho."
"Um... ok, well..." Now this was a strange sight. As long as I have known Hikari, I've rarely ever seem her so flustered and hardly over something like this, especially considering some of the nastier things Asuka has done in the past. So what was the ... and then I saw it and remembered the rings. That look, it was the same... the same as Asuka's, the same as mines.
"You want to know too, don't you?" my voice was quiet, my words steady, yet resigned. I already knew what her answer would be.
Her almost desperate "Hai..." confirmed my fears.
We three stood like that for a bit in silence, each thinking of what it would mean to know the truth and a possible end to the haunting doubts and images that plagued our minds.
I didn't want to disappoint them and I didn't want to get them involved, but evidently the choice wasn't mind to make.
"I can't promise anything more than the truth or at least as much of it as I know. Whether it solves your problems is not something I can guarantee. Hell, I'm damn positive it'll only give you more questions and more trouble." I said to the both of them as they stood there calmly, but with hopelessly eager looks in their eyes.
"Just as long as I get some answers, I hate this not knowing." That was from Asuka of course.
"I'm not sure what good it'll do, but it's driving me crazy not knowing as well. I need this Shinji." The freckled girls words seemed to echo my thoughts from before Maya's timely rescue.
"We should get going now."
"You're right Hikari, class is about to start. Alright Third, let's go."
"Hey, wait! That's my arm, damnit! Aghh... quick. dragging meee!"
/WRW/
"Well, look who it is. The great Third Child returns!" was the greeting I got as we came into the classroom.
"Too bad he couldn't have left his side kick at home though." Aida answered back after Toji's initial remark.
"SIDE KICK! DID YOU JUST CALL ME THAT DUMMKOPF'S SIDE KICK!" it was just the start of another day in class 2A as Asuka went into it with the other two Stooges. "I'll show you a side kick, and don't worry, I'll throw in the roundhouse for free. It'll be a bargain."
"Calm yourself miss Sohryu. You can deal with those two later."
"Ahh Sensei!" Toji and Ken cried from the floor but the professor wasn't listening as he continued on.
"It seems we have a surprise for you all. I'd like everyone to meet your new class mate, please state your name for us miss."
"Hello class. My name is Mana, Mana Kirishima and it's a pleasure to meet you."
I really hadn't been paying attention. There hadn't been an Angel attack in sometime, so it wasn't all that unusual for a new student to join the class, but for anyone with that name to show up, well, unusual did a poor job of fitting the bill, but it was all I had.
I was almost afraid to look up, but when I did my fears were all confirmed. The professor was telling the young girl with the pink hair and the huge smile to find a place to sit, but once again I wasn't listening. I was too much in shock.
'Of all of the people to end up in class 2-A.'
"Hello again, Shinji-kun." The voice of my distress said as she took a seat to the left of me.
"Um hello, miss Kirishima was it?"
"Yes, I must say you are looking better than last time we met." I wanted to roll my eyes. Of course I looked better. Last time I had been wet, bruised, dirtied and not to mention exhausted.
"Yeah... well, so do you." Last time she had been a real bitch, but it seemed she was in Kawaii mode today. Weird girl.
Of course this perked everyone's interest after hearing our little conversation. The Rumor Mill was going to have a blast with this one judging from the fierce whispers going around. And with the speed at which Kensuke was trying to shove film into his camera and that excited gleam in Toji's eye, I knew that the Mill's top reporters were on the case.
"Class will you be seated, it's time for today's lesson."
There was a collective groan throughout the class that only a select few refrained from joining. Asuka and Rei were at the head of that list as each gave me and the new girl strange looks. I was more than surprised to see Rei actually looking at something other than outside and with that look on her face. I couldn't really describe it then, but the word jealously briefly flashed through my head.
'Like that's even possible.'
Whatever the look meant, it didn't last long and as for Asuka... I didn't know what was going on there, so I just let it be. That there was going to be more than one interrogation coming from her later that day was obvious though.
...sigh.
Just another 'normal' day in class 2-A.
/WRW/
It was lunch time and all of the other kids had already left to find a place to eat. I knew Ken and Toji would be on the roof waiting for me and Asuka was probably waiting to drag me into a hallway to find out about the Matrix, and Rei... Rei was gone to ...where ever Rei goes for lunch.
So that left me alone... if standing in a room with a young, pretty, pink haired girl staring me hard in the eyes could be considered alone.
"I'm going to take a wild guess and say that you're not just here for the excellent education, now are you?" my sarcastic question filled the silence and distracted me from my nervousness.
"Of course not, I know all that I need to know." she said with a shrug.
"Sure... so you're supposed to be my what, watch dog?"
"Something like that. We can't just leave you out here on your own, now can we?" that smile of her's was back again and in the dim light of the empty class room it seemed to have a hungry gleam to it.
"Humpf, whatever." I knew it. Father was keeping an eye on me and now so were the resistance and the Agents . It made sense I guess. I was what could tip the balance in either of their favors.
It slightly made me wonder if the Angels had someone on the job as well. That'd be something now wouldn't it?
"Did you take the red pill?" the new girl asked suddenly, catching me off guard, forcing my mind back to that night before.
"Um.. no. Why should I?"
"Didn't Ibuki explain it to you?" I shook my head. We didn't actually have a lot of time back then.
"Well, it works as a sort of blocking program." She must have seen the confused look on my face. "Let's just say that it keeps you off of the Agent's radar and the harder you will it it'll temporary keep you out of their sights."
"You mean I'll be invisible?"
"No! That's impossible."
Whatever... this girl was still talking about impossible when the world was made up of some super advanced computer code. If anything, I'd say anything was possible in the Matrix, but like I said, whatever. Kinda made me wish I had took that stupid thing when I first had the chance.
"About Ibuki-san, how is she?" I was still worried about her. Things had gotten pretty hairy back at the safe house and she really hadn't been in the best of shapes when I got there, so...
"She's fine. She wants you to meet her again in two days. We haven't set up a time and place yet, but I'll give it to you when we do. Now if you'll excuse me, the new girl is going out for lunch." She said with one of those super kawaii smiles I was talking about earlier. I was going to have to watch out for Ms. Kirishima. Her types were always trouble.
And with that she left me to my lonesome to ponder my fate. Once again thing's were starting to look up. Of course there was still a lot that didn't make sense, but my world was heading in a better direction for once. I didn't know how I was going to meet up with Maya with Misato mad at me the way she was, but... I'd do what I had to do.
"You done day-dreaming?"
"Huh? Oh... uh... Asuka, Hikari?"
"What was all that about 'Agents' and Red pills, you doing drugs or something?"
"What? No!" the pure outrage on my face was almost comical.
"That's a relief. You had me worried there for a minute Shinji." the Class Rep gave a sigh while her friend said nothing, her attention never wavering.
and she had that look again, I knew that look very well. Very well.
'Sigh... preparing for Asuka's patented 'I'm going to get what I want if I have to dissect you, twist it, pull it and yank it out of your useless body like a rag doll' look. Round 436 Commencing.'
'Lets try to make it through this one with minimum injury this time, eh Ikari?'
"So..." her majesty Queen Sohryu commenced the first bout of verbal questioning with an eloquent start while leaving the competition breathless.
"Um... so what?"
"It's later, and I believe you owe me an explanation."
"Oh... that."
"So come on, tell me what happened."
"Please do, Shinji." Hikari added a bit more politely.
I sighed... "Where do I begin..."
"The beginning is the must likely place Ikari-kun." ...that voice. Oh shit!
"You! What do you want Wondergirl?" With the appearance of her arch nemesis Asuka's voice took on its usual imposing edge and annoyance at the interruption.
"The same as you, it appears, Second."
"Please don't start a fight you two. We all want to know what happened, so can we just get through this and listen to what Shinji has to say?"
"Humpft. Fine, just as long as Blue over here keeps here dumb questions to herself." Asuka gave a toss of her hair as she turned her nose up.
"I'll ask the same of you." Rei had to have known that statement was going to cause problems. But from her disinterested look I doubted that she cared.
"Hey! You keep your mouth sh..."
"Enough! We don't have all day you know!"
"Ms. Horaki is correct. Please continue Ikari-kun." This left Asuka mumbling in the background, but at least everything was calmer now.
As if...
I was surprised that Rei was there. Should have guessed that she would be waiting as well from the look she gave me earlier. The blue haired girl was if anything, and usually at the wrong times, curious about the strange wonders of life and society. I guess she had a right to know as well.
Asuka may have been angry, but her eyes held a desperate eagerness for knowledge. Once again I couldn't help but think of how I had been in the beginning and I was starting to wonder just how long had Asuka been feeling the same. But the red head had had enough of my zoning out and so I told her my story so she would stop shaking me like some rag doll of hers.
And if I remember correctly, Asuka didn't like dolls.
It was different this time than with Maya. That had been like letting go of a heavy burden, this felt like I was exchanging it for another, possibly heavier one. All the while the girls just stood there quiet like, Asuka with her eyes focused on the far wall while I explained what really happened that day at the apartment and why I had ran out looking for Miss Ibuki.
Of course I had to back up a bit to explain all of that too, so really I ended up going back to the 12th and Rei's cup, who raised a seemingly perfectly manicured blue eyebrow at that and the others just looked shocked.
Presently...
"And you expect me to believe you beat up three guys twice your size like some pro Martial Artist out for some fun. Whatever, Ikari. So, what happened after you fought those Agent guys?"
"Uh... well. It kinda got weird after that..."
"Only after that... " Hikari throw in sarcastically while Asuka finished with... "Please, I'd say it got weird the moment you fell in that Angel."
"I must agree with pilot Sohryu. The 12 was obviously the initiator of these new phenomenon."
"Of course you agree with. I am a genius you know. The 12th Started it all."
"We know that Asuka, you don't have to keep repeating it."
"Indeed. That was clearly unnecessary."
"Shut up you."
I was quiet for a bit, blocking out the girls chattered in the background, as I remembered the distinct feeling of dying, of slowly losing my life to an enemy that I couldn't fight and with no hope of any out side help.
Hikari and Rei must have sensed my mindset because they both looked abashed for a few brief second there, which was a sight to remember, especially Rei, while Asuka tried to hurry up and change the subject.
"So... uh.. what... happened. Yeah! What happened Third Child?" She tried to get back into her bossy mode, using her 'supposed' anger to cover up her embarrassment. I didn't say anything about it and just went on with my story with a slight smirk.
"Like I said, it got weirder and then..."
/WRW/ three nights prior
I was lost.
And hopelessly so.
The sheer volume of twist and turns we had made had left me with a dizzying headache and absolutely no clue where we were, or where we were going. The pouring rain had not helped either, further impairing my senses.
The sky rumbled its annoyance, roaring its call of challenge to the arrogance of the ground below in believing itself safe from the wrath of the heavens above. Lightning forked in numerous directions as the winged soldiers of the clouds began their assault on the unprotect fortresses of the earth.
Their scouts, the Rain, had already reported back that even steel and stone were no match for the heaven's might. And so once again the roaring of the thunder crashed in the background, sounding its horn in time to the steady fall of the rain's battle drums.
Through it all my female accomplice lead me by hand through the misty shadows of the city's back ways as we moved in and out of alleys and down deserted streets with broken street lamps, leaving only the hazy and not so reliable moonlight as a guide when it felt that it was safe to peek through angry clouds above to catch a glimpse of the battle waging below. Its infrequent appearances were the only help we got while we traveled through the seemingly haphazard path.
For most of the trip her limp hadn't been as noticeable as I would have thought for any regular girl in her position. I probably would have forgotten about it if she hadn't begun to breathe harder with each step she took, her body unconsciously spending more time to rest for that foot than she would have normally.
Even then she said nothing, neither complaining nor asking for help. And the stern expression she would give me when she caught me trying to check out the extent of her injuries made me keep my inquires to myself, but with every step my worries grew even if hidden.
In the end, time, blood loss, shock and wariness added up until the girl practically fell into my arms. Now, I'm not the strongest person in the world, so it was a bit of a struggle keeping her off the ground, but I managed somehow.
Luckily, she didn't really weigh all that much so it wasn't that much of a problem.
Why do some people only look relaxed when they're asleep? The unnamed girl in my arms who, not minutes before, held a look of such resolve and purpose... and strain, could then lay here with her dark black shortly cut shoulder length hair matted against her pale wet skin and seem completely peaceful, the tranquility of her slumber emphasized by the slow rise and fall of her chest.
"She's American?" I guess with all that had been going on I didn't take notice until now, but indeed she was American. It wasn't uncommon to find foreigners in Tokyo three, but I wondered if this whole Matrix thing had anything to do with it.
It didn't matter in the end because I was too lost in watching her rest. Her slight frame fit easy in my hands now for some reason. The dark and hopelessly wet clothes she wore only served to highlight the beauty of her peaceful form.
... I had to catch myself for a moment there. I didn't even know this girl and I was well on my way to falling for her. But with the Angels, Agents, Asuka and Father, I had enough problems to deal with to even consider matters of the heart.
(I didn't actually say that part out load, though. I'm not that dumb.)
Fortunately for me, or maybe not, my possibly romantic musings were cut short after a while when she recovered a bit, enough to rise on her own, but with a steady hand to help hold her, and we went on from there together with me helping to keep her up while she guided with her soft yet determined voice giving me directions.
I barely caught the slightly embarrassed look she had when she found herself in my arms. The small blush on her cheeks reminded me of another quiet, pale skinned, shy young woman. But the moment wasn't to last and soon the red tint in her cheeks was replaced by her earlier determined one.
I sighed at the loss.
Eventually we made it to 'some' warehouse or another, a safe house of some sort. I couldn't really tell if this was the place but the girl had knocked on a door that I hadn't even notice was there at first. There had been a pass code, but I didn't hear it, the surprise that we had made it took precedence.
Her limp had gotten better by then and she no longer needed my hand or my help. Frankly I just think that she didn't want her people looking down on her because of her injury.
In any case, soon we were inside and passing by a number of rooms filled with people, weapons, and desperation. You could feel it in the air, almost smell it. But it also held a sense of purpose. In any case the not so pleasant militant environment combined with my numerous brushes with death and the biting cold of my soaked clothes only made me more nervous than usual, so I could have just been jumpy.
At that time I still didn't know the girl leading me's name and the atmosphere didn't seem to encourage speaking so I kept my questions to myself once again.
I didn't have to wait long before I was led into a sort of meeting room with a number of people already waiting within. I'm sure the others were all interesting people considering their dress and from what I could guess of their attitudes when I stepped in, but I was only interested in one of them.
"Maya-san!" I cried out the moment I saw her.
"Shinji-kun! I'm so glad you're alright. I had hoped the Agents didn't get to you." the image of bubbling beauty with her hands over her mouth trying to hide her relief and the huge smile on her face before me settled the unfocused ache in my chest that had formed there unknowingly the moment I had called her house and didn't receive an answer.
But it was alright now, Maya was alright.
"No, they didn't.. well...ok, that's not exactly true, but it doesn't matter. When I made it to your apartment I almost thought that... that..."
"It's alright Shinji. I'm fine." And indeed she looked fine, her wide smile helped reassure me, but I noticed that she had a few patches of bandages soaked in blood on her arm and that she walked with a slight limp as well.
"Ibuki-san?"
"Oh, it's nothing, just a few scratches." The older woman said through gritted teeth, the lie easily pointed out.
"I'm afraid we'll have to cut your reunion short, Vision."
"Vision?" I asked a bit confused. Maya just gave me one of those 'I'll explain later' looks.
It was then that I took the time out to really notice my surroundings and the voice that had interrupted us. The room was old and stark, like a type of dilapidated greeting room from a few decades before 2nd Impact. Besides the numerous computer equipment nearby and the strange brown leather arm chair, which seemed to be the only few items from our time period, the rest of the place looked as if it could have been taken from some post modern apocalyptic punk flick that seemed to be popular back in Misato's day. It all had the look of a place where anything and everything could be taken down at any moment.
Luxury was surely a pricey commodity, but the people around me didn't seem too bothered by it. They had that same feel to them... as if they could be out of this place in any number of ways in the amount of time it would take for us to reach the surface in one of our EVA's during an Angel attack.
The leader of the group appeared to be an American woman by the looks of her. Her slim figure, slick back dark pony tailed hair and all black skin tight leather tights and trench coat fit well with the no nonsense attitude she seemed to exhibit. (There's a comma somewhere in that sentence, I swear though, seriously.) The high collar of her coat gave her a sort of majestic feel about her, as if she were the Queen of this here hive and all within knew it without a doubt.
Strangely... she reminded me of father.
The lady in question began after she had gestured for us to sit in one of the surrounding chairs gathered around her strange brown one. There was something about that chair that I couldn't place. It just seemed... familiar to me for some reason, but I wasn't sure if it was in a good way.
"So, you're the one." The leader said. Some of the others in the room snickered a bit while some held slight smiles. The leader held neither. Her mouth was tight and the dark sunglasses she wore didn't help the picture, but I got the impression that the word choice didn't exhibit the best of memories.
"Vision here tells me that you're an EVA pilot. I find that hard to believe, but the truth usually is. You most likely have questions?" I nodded. I wanted to say more, but my mind was in a haze. There was something about this woman... something... familiar as well.
"Tell me, what do you know about the Matrix?"
I took a quick glance at Maya, and she gave me another reassuring smile so I continued on.
"The Matrix is ... a powerful force that binds us to this world and the rules... that we have believed to... limit us." I ended hesitantly. The Others around nodded approvingly and I suddenly felt like I was in the middle of an oral exam trying to explain the effects of 2nd Impact on real world economy.
"It holds the same qualities of a computer program, but far more powerful and advanced, able to span the whole... world?" I guessed at the end.
"Correct Mr. Ikari. You are quite correct. I believe you have seen the truth of this for yourself?"
I just nodded. Oh, I had seen it alright.
"Then let me fill in some of the blanks for you. First of my name is..."
"Trinity!" I yelled out and suddenly felt foolish for it. The others looked surprised and a bit alarmed. I thought that I had done something wrong but the lady just continued on as if nothing was afoot.
"Yes, my name is Trinity. And could you tell me how you know that?" She inquired, her stern face seeming to stare into my soul.
"I... don't... you just seem... I know you. I .. know you. I keep having these dreams and sometimes they aren't dreams, but you're in them and there are other people but mainly just you and... you and him." I finished off quietly.
"Him?" One of the others to my left asked. His light brown leather jacket in stark contrast to the others in their apparently uniform black.
"Oh, the name's Cascade" his Korean accent barely audible.
"Cascade?" I asked, they had called Maya by a weird name too.
"Yeah, you know, like a waterfall. My enemies fall all around me." he looked up over at one of the other ladies in the group and winked. "The lady's too." His smirk was just like Kaji's, wayyy too assured.
"Yeah, from your breath." The lady in question joked and the others laughed as well.
"But really, who's 'him'?" Cascade asked seriously, even though he still had that smile on.
"I... don't really know his name, but... I know what he looks like. I think... I think some one once called him... what was it 'Mr. Anderson' or something. I really wasn't paying much attention to that."
It was then that I noticed the dead silence in the room. Even Maya was quiet and everyone was looking at Miss Trinity. Strangely... she was the only one smiling.
"That Mr. Ikari was Neo." she said the name with endearment, so I figured that they had been close before. What I could remember of those hazy images seemed to agree.
"The man you saw was known as The One. He was one of us and fought against the Agents. Hell, he was the only one who really could."
"Are you sure, cause I'm pretty sure I made certain that they wouldn't be getting up when we fought earlier?" Now I had thought that they had been surprise before, but now, hell they were well and truly stunned. All except the girl from before who had led me here.
One of the others in the room was helping her with her arm but she spared time enough to give me another one of those piercing glares of hers, but I didn't get the point. They were 'down for the count' as Touji would say. I wouldn't say that they were dead or anything like that. They didn't seem... weak enough for death. Not after what they had done and the hits they had taken.
Strange, me contemplating the death of someone without worry or aversion. It was just like with the Angels. Their deaths didn't matter. 'But those were men, real men. ... I think?'
"I think you need to explain what happened before we continue." Trinity was saying and then she gave the girl at my side a look that made her bow her head a bit in shame. "It seems that we don't know the whole story."
I sighed again for who knew how many times that day. It seemed to becoming a habit, one that I'm not too fond of. In any case all of these questions and the scant amount of answers I was getting in return wasn't putting me in the best of moods. I was tempted to tell them so, but I guess my narrowed eyes gave me away and Miss Trinity set in before I could.
"I understand that you feel stressed, Mr, Ikari and that your life has turned upside down..."
"You have no idea." I interrupted.
"but I'm asking you to trust us. There's a lot going on it and we are rather used to people knowing what this is all about, but you are new here. So, I'll ask that you tell us what happened tonight and then we'll give you a place to change out of those wet clothes. We'll try to explain the situation to you tomorrow. I understand that you have had a rough night."
I guess I gave my acknowledgement or something, I'm not sure. Everything seemed to run together around then. I remember telling them about the Agents chasing me on the street to meeting Miss Ibuki and what happened at the apartment. I left out that Asuka and Hikari were there. I didn't think they needed to know that and I really didn't want to get them involved.
I told them about the phone call and Maya's number being disconnected in the middle. Then my trip over there, without the little scene with the puddle and then all the way to the fighting to here.
They had been quiet throughout the whole session leaving me with only their expressions to go by. Many of had winced a couple of times during the fighting and a few smiled at the part where I pushed the girl out the window head first, she, on the other hand, smacked me in the arm, claiming it was pay back.
Maya just had this sad expression on her face the whole time. She looked as if she blamed herself for what happened, but I didn't hold it against her. How could she have known?
All Trinity said was a simple "I see." and then asked Devine, the girl at my side, if she would show me to a room. I could hear the others talking quietly about what I had said as we left but it was Devine who held my attention.
It was around then as she led me to some hole in the wall room that I noticed the resemblance. Her soft brown eyes, though they contrasted with her stern face, was what first tipped me off. I knew those eyes, the images running in and out of my head were a testament to that, but it was her face that sealed the deal.
During all of the running and fighting I had never really gotten a chance to really get a good look at her, but it was obvious now that we were so close.
"You're Miss Trinity's daughter aren't you? You're Neo's daughter?" She gave me a side long glace but that was it, making me feel foolish for my outburst.
Obviously she wasn't the talkative type or that just wasn't the best subject. Either way we eventually ended up at a community shower that was surprisingly in good shape compared to the rest of the place.
"You can take a hot shower here. There will be some clothes left out for you when you're done." And with that she was gone. Heading towards a the company of a girl that I could have sworn had pinkish, brownish hair, but I was probably just seeing things.
There was nothing to it but to do as she said and I wasn't in mind to catch a cold.