Chapter 4 - A Tale of Suspense
The black, steel-and-glass pyramid that was NERV HQ stood out from the rest of the architecture in downtown Tokyo-3, due to its placement towards the center of the city and also it being normally underground most of the time. Since the end of the Angel-SEELE conflict, it had been strictly on the surface as U.N. investigative teams came through day in and day out and the decommissioning efforts began.
Today, NERV HQ was abuzz with activity by the time Misato and the others arrived; the bridge alone had technicians under Makoto and Shigeru's direction analyzing the strange phenomenon that had just begun moments before. Ritsuko, Maya, Hitomi, and the size-shifters had gotten here before them and were adding their own brainpower to the efforts. Fuyutsuki was helping to supervise them, his curiosity spurred on by just how bizarre the phenomena seemed. Among the rest of NERV's soon to be former staff, the identities of the superwomen had become something of an open secret, which they helped to keep safe from the U.N. inspectors, so no one batted an eye while they had two She-Hulks, three size-changing techs, or a woman with spider powers, etc., working among them, to say nothing of the superpowered teenage girls they supported as EVA pilots.
"Sitrep!" Misato barked out, her command instincts not showing any sign of rust.
"Satellite imagery's got the same thing worldwide," Shigeru reported as he brought up the multi-monitor display, which sure enough showed feeds of the same phenomenon being seen around the world: space debris in the atmosphere, seeming to have appeared out of thin air. "All civilians are reported to be in the shelters at this time, and the chatter on the global frequency confirms same."
"The debris so far hasn't moved any further than its current position," Makoto added.
"Anything else stick out?" Yui asked as she stepped off of Rei's board, just as Mari, Mana and the rest of the girls joined everyone on the bridge, having gone full-costume once they reached the building.
"It's what we're not getting from the debris that's puzzling us," Maya answered as she cycled through a number of filters. "We're not picking up any radioactivity or mineral content of any kind."
"If we want any concrete data, we'd need to fly up and get a closer look at the debris itself," Ritsuko stated.
"That shouldn't be a problem," Kyoko put forward. "My Darkhawk form permits me to move about in the upper atmosphere without the need to breathe."
"Let me join you, Dr. Sohryu," Mana chimed in, now clad in her Iron Maiden armor. "My latest upgrade includes the ability to withstand trans-atmospheric conditions, and with S.I.D., we can feed whatever data we find back to the bridge easily."
"Good enough for me," Kyoko replied. "Just follow my lead and be extremely cautious."
"Understood," Mana said, and with that, the two flew towards one of the outer balconies of the building and were soon sky-bound. In no time at all, the two armored superwomen had reached the upper atmosphere in close proximity to the space debris. The two flew in closer to one of the asteroids, until Mana opened a compartment on her right gauntlet to extend a probe into a hole in the rock's surface. Kyoko, meanwhile, was running her own scans using one of her Darkhawk form's built-in sensor arrays.
"S.I.D., get ready," Mana instructed.
"Roger that-primed for analysis, whenever," the AI girl replied.
It was then that once the probe reached the hole in the rock surface, contact caused the asteroid to briefly flicker, to the great astonishment of Mana, Kyoko, and S.I.D.
"D-did you just see that?" the young prodigy asked.
"I did-and I don't believe it," the ebon-clad older woman affirmed. Testing to make sure this wasn't a trick of the eye, Kyoko deliberately flew through a smaller asteroid, and found none of her onboard warning sensors going off as she passed right through the object, further surprising herself and her airborne companion.
"Guys, did you get all this?" Mana asked the bridge via her long-range comms.
The bridge...
"We did, and we second Kyoko on this one," Aoi replied.
"So, wait," Mari started to ask, "are you saying what we're looking at...?"
"Is a planetwide holographic illusion?" Satsuki finished inquisitively.
"Looks like it," Ritsuko surmised.
"Begs the question-where's the projector?" Kaede posed.
Upper atmosphere...
"I'm on it," Mana answered. "S.I.D., can you detect any large-scale electronic equipment in the area?"
"Searching...searching..." S.I.D. replied, before her eyes lit up. "Found something! Large object, several meters at twelve o'clock!"
Kyoko turned where S.I.D. indicated, her own scans picking up the same thing. "I see it-it's hidden within one of the 'holo-rocks'," she reported.
The bridge...
"All right-the two of you, find some way to shut it off and bring it back here so we can get a good look at it," Misato commanded.
"Right!" both Mana and Kyoko sounded as they flew towards the object's position. Looking at it through filtered optics that ignored the holographic ruse, they soon saw a large, rectangular object about the size of a small barge covered in strange greebles, a number of discs on its surface glowing to indicate the active status of the holograms. It took a sweep of every inch of the object's surface before they found what looked to be the power source. Kyoko swiftly used her claws to sever the cable feeding power into the object, which had the effect of not only shutting off the hologram (which Hitomi reported had disappeared across the globe), but also rendering the antigravity tech holding the projector aloft inoperative. Mana and Kyoko each caught the projector at either end before it could fall any faster.
"The projector's off," Mana reported in, "bringing it back via speedy delivery."
Back on the bridge, Misato acknowledged Mana's confirmation before turning to the rest of the bridge crew. "Call off the general alert, and have the civilians escorted out of the shelters, but let them know to be ready to return in case something happens."
Main lab, Central Dogma, NERV HQ...
Moments later, the more scientifically-minded superwomen and a number of NERV technicians had disassembled the large projector and were examining nearly every component. Maya had summoned her synthezoid clone, H.I.T.O.M.I. (practically Maya's twin save for a few cybernetic embellishments and pink-colored hair), to assist in the efforts as well as back up S.I.D. A number of the younger superwomen watched, with Asuka, Maria, and Mana occasionally chipping in. (Kensuke, with some reluctance on the part of certain members of the adult staff, gave some assistance of his own.)
"This is amazing..." Hitomi (as in Kaga) noted. "Compared to some of the tech I glimpsed when I was on S.W.O.R.D.'s space station, this is beyond anything built by mortal hands, human or extraterrestrial."
"In other words," Maria started to say, "this isn't anything Kree-or-Skrull-made."
"So, if not the intergalactic Hatfields and McCoys..." Mari began to ponder.
"Who in the universe actually built this, and why?" Misato asked, speaking for a number of those present.
"I can provide an explanation, Misato Katsuragi," a deep voice echoed throughout the lab, startling some of those present while causing the others to get themselves on-guard.
"Okay, show yourself, whoever you are!" Misato said firmly, but warily. At that instant, the owner of the voice made his presence known, appearing in a brief flash of light before multiple surprised eyes.
The newcomer stood about ten feet high above the people gathered in the lab, and had an abnormally-large, bald head with blank white eyes, and a barely-visible goatee gracing the lower half of his face. He wore white robes, topped with a golden belt, and partial armor on his neck, mid-torso, and forearms, with his hands wearing blue gloves and golden boots on his lower legs and feet. Hanging at his back was a blue cloak fastened at both his shoulders and at one point of his torso, the collar extending high and stiff behind his head.
Yui recognized the being immediately. "You-you're a Watcher!"
Shinji regarded his mother curiously. "Watcher?" he asked.
Yui nodded. "When I was still in Unit-01's core, the Phoenix and I talked a great deal about the wonders of the universe. They told me about a number of notable alien races and civilizations that scientists and writers could only dream about; one of them was the Watchers. They're one of the oldest species, committed to observe and compile knowledge on all aspects of the universe, with the only major law they follow being to never interfere with other civilizations."
"You are correct in your assessment, Yui Ikari," the Watcher stated. "My name is Aahno. I am the Watcher assigned to observe your universe, among others in this specific cluster. I am also the one who built the object that lies disassembled before you at this moment."
Hikari regarded said object briefly before turning her focus back to Aahno. "Why'd you put this in the sky? Why was it projecting asteroids all over the world?"
"Whatever you had in mind," Rei started to say in a rare annoyed tone, "you have caused quite a panic, especially considering what this city went through last year."
"I assure you, Rei Ikari, that my intentions were noble," Aahno affirmed.
"Well, coming from my experience, you know what the road to Hell's paved with, right?" Asuka said with a glare, just on the cusp of going flaming ghost.
"I am well aware of that particular colloquialism, Asuka Langley-Sohryu," Aahno stated. "My device-what is called a matter mobilizer-was meant to help your world. When I saw that my false fire-shield instilled fear among the human populace, I switched to inorganic space detritus. I had hoped that in this way, I could conceal your world's presence from a great danger headed here. But with your disconnecting of the device's power source, you took away your hope for evasion."
"Evasion? Of what?" Ritsuko asked, a skeptical, yet curious, look on her face.
"Of he whose hunger knows no bounds," Aahno grimly answered. "The mighty devourer of worlds...the great Galactus."
Yui's eyes widened considerably as a look of horror appeared on her face. "No..." she said in a near-whisper, before assuming a more commanding tone. "Misato, get the others in here. They need to know-you all need to know about this."
A few minutes later, the others had joined them in the lab, just as Yui began her explanation. "As I said earlier," she recounted, "the Phoenix told me about the wonders of this universe; they also told me about some of its terrors. And of all of them, Galactus is one of the most frightening." Using a small disc-like projector, Aahno provided visual aid to Yui's words. "Originally, the being who'd become Galactus was an explorer named Galan, from the planet Taa; it was a world that existed in the universe that preceded this one, which is a story for another day, I'm afraid. When a great cosmic calamity began destroying all life, Galan led a number of survivors off Taa, only for them to be engulfed in what's known as the 'Big Crunch'. Only Galan survived, temporarily bonding with Eternity, the very sentience of the universe..."
The more scientifically-minded among those listening in were gobsmacked by the details of the finer workings of the universe being revealed to them.
"For the billions of years that followed what later was dubbed the 'Big Bang', Galan changed, gestating in an 'egg' made of the remains of his ship, and reemerged as Galactus. He gained mastery over what the Phoenix called the 'Power Cosmic', but at a cost." Her expression became grimmer. "Galactus, in order to survive, must consume the energy, the very life force, of a planet, and thus travels around the universe in his mobile space station, the "Taa II", with four heralds of his own creation scouting ahead to locate suitable worlds for sustenance."
"Wait, so you're saying Galactus...eats planets?!" Kaede asked worriedly. "And we're next?!"
"I'm afraid so," Yui answered solemnly.
A look of recognition suddenly dawned on Hitomi. "Wait, now I know I've heard of this!" she said. "That same time I was at S.W.O.R.D. Command, I noticed a couple of agents escorting a Skrull detainee who was raving about...something coming to devour the worlds in this sector of space, that it'd already done so to theirs! I thought I'd forgotten the name he'd said, but this just brought it back to me-he was talking about Galactus!"
"That is very much the case, Hitomi Kaga," Aahno affirmed. "Some time before you resolved your crisis with the 'Angels' and SEELE, Galactus and his heralds had successfully wiped out a Skrull colony world."
"And we just ruined our chance to stay off the menu..." Mayumi said with a somber realization.
"No, no way, no the HELL way," Asuka said with angry defiance. "We did not just save everyone on this planet from being turned into orange goo just so they could see Earth wind up as the main course for some space god with the universe's worst eating disorder!"
It was then that something occurred to Shinji, who stepped forward to address Aahno. "Hold on-why are you telling us all this? I thought you Watchers were forbidden to help those you, well, watch."
A solemn look appeared on Aahno's face as he answered the boy. "As Watcher to the cluster of universes yours resides in, I've borne witness to your entire history, up to the point where the battle with the Angels reached its climax. In most of these universes, the outcome was mostly the same: Third Impact, or a near-Third Impact, occurs, with the minute hope for humanity to return." Hearing this greatly shocked those listening, as Aahno continued. "Because of this, I became filled with a great sorrow, and due to our sacred oath, I could do nothing to prevent this, let alone warn your kind in time. To me, it seemed as if this was to be some sort of cycle that played out across the cluster..." Suddenly, Aahno's expression brightened a bit. "But then, something truly amazing began to happen. I watched as a number of universes began to display outcomes that broke my previous assumption-worlds where the conspiracies to bring about Third Impact were thwarted successfully. On a number of these worlds, the explanation for this phenomenon was simple." He looked specifically at the superwomen gathered in the room. "The manifestation of special powers and abilities, or the mere change in specific circumstances, which gave you the means to truly fight back and change the fate of your world-it is all this that has begun to revive the hope within my heart. Seeing this play out, and on across other successive worlds, I knew I could no longer stand by and merely watch. Therefore, at great personal risk, I have chosen to break the vow upheld by my species and aid you. You all proved that you could protect your planet both from forces without and within; right now, it is my greatest hope that you can do it again, and I will see to it you have more of a fighting chance, albeit indirectly."
Awed by Aahno's altruism, the gathered group looked to one another, briefly contemplating the Watcher's words. Before long, an unspoken affirmation passed between them, newly-determined looks on their faces as they soon went about their tasks, planning as they went.
"Everyone, let's head back to the bridge," Misato implored. "Ritsuko was right-this is definitely an all-hands-on-deck situation. Like it or not, we've got another apocalypse to cancel."
Mari, echoing Misato's sentiments, then said to the others, "If you know somebody or somebodies ready, willing, and able, put out the call-we're gonna need all the help we can get."
To be continued...
**Author's Note(s)**
And now, the threat's revealed! Unless Orion originally had the (other) big G in mind for his Maya-centric SWOE story "The Fourth Degree", I envisioned Galactus as being a possible foe that would bring the SWOE Avengers together, and it's that which forms the basis of this story. For my take on events, I've blended elements of a number of Galactus-centric tales, from the original 60s "Galactus Trilogy" in the pages of Fantastic Four, to the "When Calls Galactus" episode of the 1994 Fantastic Four cartoon series, to the series finale of The Avengers: Earth's Mightiest Heroes titled "Avengers Assemble!". But there'll be a few surprises along the way, I guarantee. Aahno, the Watcher I created for this story, is meant to be a takeoff on Evangelion creator Hideaki Anno.
-The Watchers-Uatu, the most famous one, in particular-debuted in 1963's
Fantastic Four #13 by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby.
-The Skrulls debuted all the way back in 1962's Fantastic Four #2, while their longtime rivals the Kree first appeared in 1967's issue #65, both by Lee and Kirby. Mari calling them the 'intergalactic Hatfields and McCoys' refers to a conflict between two American rural families that lasted from 1863-1891.
-Of course, Galactus himself debuted in 1966's Fantastic Four #48, while his origin was revealed in 1969's The Mighty Thor #168-169, all (yet again) by Lee and Kirby.
-And lastly, Eternity debuted first in passing in 1965's Strange Tales #134, followed by a full-on appearance in issue #138 that same year, both issues by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.
And now, the first bit of fun for this story!
OMAKE 1 - Borderline Voyeurism?
Yui recognized the being immediately. "You-you're a Watcher!"
Shinji regarded his mother curiously. "Watcher?" he asked.
Yui nodded. "When I was still in Unit-01's core, the Phoenix and I talked a great deal about the wonders of the universe. They told me about a number of notable alien races and civilizations that scientists and writers could only dream about; one of them was the Watchers. They're one of the oldest species, committed to observe and compile knowledge on all aspects of the universe, with the only major law they follow being to never interfere with other civilizations."
"You are correct in your assessment, Yui Ikari," the Watcher stated. "My name is Aahno. I am the Watcher assigned to observe anything and everything in your universe, among others in this specific cluster."
Maya's hand quickly shot up. "Hold on-by 'anything and everything'..." she started to ask as her face took on a more fearful, worrisome countenance. "Does that mean even our most private moments?!"
"That is the truth, Maya Ibuki," Aahno confirmed.
On hearing this, the moods of the gathered superwomen went from shocked, to embarrassed, to downright furious as they began to advance on the Watcher.
"BAKA-HENTAI!" they all shouted before ganging up on the surprised Aahno and wailing on him, the scene conveniently covered up by what TVTropes has termed a "big ball of violence". Those on the sidelines winced at each cry of pain from the Watcher, doing their best to turn away, but unable to stop looking, like one would do with a train wreck.
Yui, on the other hand, gave herself a facepalm full of embarrassment. "Oh, for crying out loud-ladies, ladies, will you cut it out already?! They're Watchers, not Peeping Toms!"
Meanwhile, at an observation post in a far corner of the universe, a decidedly different Watcher was, fittingly, watching this all play out. He wore clothing similar to Aahno, but what distinguished this Watcher from the rest of its brethren was an impish grin and a large cleft chin.
"Heh-heh, that's what you think, sister!" Glenquag the Watcher amusedly said with a pelvic thrust. "OOH! Giggity-giggity-giggity-giggty-AAAALLLL RIGHT!"
*I own nothing of FOX.*
