0601 hrs. Undisclosed Date
Command Center, NERV Headquarters
Major Katsuragi walked into the command center humming to herself.
"You're early." Ritsuko said, being the only other person present.
"Huh?" she said, distracted.
"My, someone's in a good mood. What's with you?"
"A lady's got to have her secrets, Ritsuko."
"You had sex didn't you?"
"Ritsuko!" she yelled, blushing.
"So who was it? Do I know him?"
"Yyyes."
"Not Kaji."
"Oh GOD no! No no no!"
"Hmmmm... is it-" she was interrupted when CPT Lampright entered with a stack of papers.
"Here's the data you asked for, major."
"Thank you, captain." she said as he walked towards the door.
Ritsuko glanced back and forth between the major and the captain several times, noticing the way they looked at each other, her jaw dropping slightly. She waited until the door closed behind Lampright before speaking again.
"NO. Him?"
Misato blushed.
"I thought you hated him."
"I don't hate him. He's just...complicated."
"Yeah right. Whatever."
"Hey! He's better than your hump, Mr. I-Don't-Care-About-My-Son."
"Hey! Leave Gendo out of it! He's just-
"Complicated?" Misato finished.
Ritsuko sighed.
"You win. So, how was he? I heard those Army guys have a LOT of endurance."
"Well, let's just say he's good at push-ups."
They both giggled like school-girls.
Outside the Door of Command Center, NERV Headquarters
Cooper stood outside the door, his ear pressed against it, Lampright leaning against a wall on the other side of the corridor.
"Dude, I think they're fighting over you." Cooper said with a smirk.
"I want to stab you right now, but then I'd be short a man."
Cooper put his ear to the door again and listened for several seconds.
"Shit they're coming!"
The two began acting as if they hadn't been listening in.
"No shit there I was," Lampright said, began his story with the traditional opening for a verbal tale full of shit.
"pinned in an open field by two ZSU 23-4s-" Lampright continued as the door opened and the major stuck her head out.
"No way! What did-" Cooper started, pretending to be interested.
"Eric, I need to talk to you." she said before pulling her head back in.
"Sly dog. When did YOU get on a first-name basis with the maj?"
"I hate you." Lampright said before entering the room.
"Yes major?"
"We're testing a new Eva and a new pilot in a few days. You're coming with to provide security. It's four days. We're gonna be at the NERV-20, the Matsushiro base with a skeleton crew. I want you to oversee the security of the command center, okay?"
"Alright. When are we leaving?"
"1300, meet me on in the parking garage, we need to pick-up the new pilot.."
"Alright, it's a date. I'll brief my men and pack. See you at 1250."
0819 hrs.Undisclosed Date
N-FOG Offices, NERV Headquarters
"But Lampright, how will I survive without you?" Maloy yelled from the back.
"Look guys, just try not to blow the place up while I'm gone, alright?"
The hairs on the back of Lampright's neck stood up as he said this, although he wasn't sure why.
"I won't make any promises." Cooper said.
"Denisovich, keep his away from the C-4. And the grenades. And anything else I can't think of that explodes. Now, you won't be able to reach me by my motorola, but you can radio NERV-20 and they'll put you through to me if you need anything. Any questions?"
"Can we still torture the security guys?" Howard asked.
"What do I care? I don't know anything about what you're doing, I'm all the way at NERV-20."
"Can I-" Maloy started.
"No." Lampright and Jackson said together.
"Damn."
1251 hrs.Undisclosed Date
Parking Garage, NERV Headquarters
"You're late." Lampright said as the major walked up.
"Shut up." she said playfully.
"Alright, let's get this over with."
"Come on, this'll be like a vacation."
"Yeah, I guess. I just don't like leaving them by themselves. Especially Maloy and Howard. Those two need constant supervision."
"They're big boys, they can take care of themselves for four days."
"I guess you're right, at least I won't have to deal with Asuka. Mind if I drive?"
"Sure, why not."
"Alright, I should warn you, I'm American, so I drive like an asshole." he said as he pulled the bolt out of his M-4 and pocketing it before putting the rifle in the trunk.
1319 hrs.Undisclosed Date
Outside Suzuhara Residence
Lampright stopped the car and the two stepped out, Misato appeared slightly pale.
"You are never allowed to drive again. Ever." she said.
"What'd I do?"
"You mean other than running twelve red lights, cutting-off two semis, playing chicken with a cement truck, and flicking-off a cop?!"
Lampright shrugged.
"He wouldn't let me pass. Besides, I told you I drive like an asshole."
"Just go get him."
"Why do I have to get him? He's YOUR pilot."
"Fine, whatever." she said as she walked to the door.
Misato knocked, and was let in. She returned several minutes later, a very down looking Toji following with a suitcase.
"What's up, Toji?" Lampright said, beginning to get behind the wheel.
"There's no way you're doing that again."
Lampright muttered something about squirrel shits under his breath and moved to the backseat with Toji.
"Why so down, dude? I'd be psyched if they picked me to pilot an Eva."
"I-I dunno. It's jus dat... neva mind." he said, starring aimlessly out the window.
Lampright realized that whatever the problem was, Toji didn't want to talk about it.
"Alright then. So major, whatcha doin' tonight?" Eric asked.
1442 hrs.Undisclosed Date
Parking Area, NERV-20
"Oh, and I'm not allowed to drive?!" Lampright said, getting out of the car.
"Shut-up."
"At least I didn't get us a ticket!"
"Shut-up!"
"Or actually CLIP another vehicle!"
"SHUT-UP!"
"Well, at least we know who's NOT driving back."
"You know I can remove your weapons privileges, right?" she growled.
"See? See how defensive she gets?" Eric whispered to Toji.
Toji just sighed.
"Jez, who shot YOUR dog?"
1534 hrs.Undisclosed Date +2
Control Room, NERV-20
Lampright stood in the back of the control room near the door, holding his M-4 at the low ready, as he'd done for the last two days.
'Maybe Misato won't drink herself unconscious like last night and the night before and I can actually get somewhere this time.' he though to himself.
The NERV technicians talked to each other, using their usual technical jargon. LCL, synch rates, circuit numbers, none of it meant anything to him. But it apparently meant something to them. Lampright watched as the Eva began to move on the screen in front of him. It just didn't sit right with him. Such a huge war machine. And the Japanese hated HIS people for inventing the bomb?! In the humble opinion of Eric the dog-face, such a monstrosity had no business existing, let alone being trusted to juveniles. But that was just his opinion.
"I wonder if it's a requirement that all Eva pilots be emotionally fucked, or just some happy coincidence." he quietly asked himself.
Suddenly the atmosphere in the room changed. Voiced were raised, and tinged with panic. Instinctually, Lampright checked the door first, then glanced at the CCTV screens. Clear. Only then did he look at the main screen, and realize what was wrong. The Eva was starring straight at them. Something was wrong, very wrong, Lampright could feel it.
"Oh shi-" Lampright began.
And then everything went black.
1556 hrs.Undisclosed Date +2
Lampright awoke, dazed and numb, lying on his back in a pile of rubble. His mouth was filled with dust, and his nostrils were assaulted with the combined scents of burnt wiring, ozone, and the concrete dust that covered everything, including Lampright, in a blanket of soft, gray soot-like particles almost a quarter-inch deep. The amount of dust everywhere was incredible, lowering visibility to about a hundred feet. Lampright heard absolutely nothing as he stood up, which bothered him. His helmet had cracked from front to back and fell from his head as he stood. Lampright clapped his hands. He noise was distant, barely audible at the edge of his hearing.
'Great. My eardrums are punctured. Again.'
Lampright turned up his radio, barely able to hear anything through his earpiece, certainly nothing he could understand.
"Captain Lampright, Commander of U.N. Task Force one-four-niner-six to all receiving stations!" he said over the NERV encrypted frequency.
He wasn't certain, but he was pretty sure he was yelling, with his hearing temporarily been snatched from he was unable to properly modulate his voice.
"NERV-20 has been destroyed! Eva-03 is rogue! Mass casualties! Unknown number, unknown condition! Requesting medevac! LZ is..."
Lampright looked around, unable to see a good spot through the dust. He wracked his brain.
"the parking lot on the edge of the facility!"
Lampright walked as he talked, nearly tripping over something soft. He looked down, squinting through the dust cloud. He had nearly tripped over the sprawled body of a NERV worker. He bent down and checked for the neck.
'Still got a good pulse.'
The man was too covered in dust for Lampright identify the male. Lampright picked him up in a fireman's carry and moved him to the parking lot. Lampright returned to the area, bringing out two more people. His hearing was beginning to return, the silence gradually replaced with a dull ringing. He thought he heard something, although he wasn't sure what, but he thought it was coming from under a concrete slab. He reached under it and lifted a few inches, catching a glimpse of a red jacket and major's insignia. Lampright called upon his last reserves of strength, aided by the adrenaline coursing through his veins. He managed to lift the piece of reinforced concrete, weighing in excess of a quarter ton, and move it out of the way, revealing a pocket underneath it. Inside the pocket lay the unconscious form of Major Misato Katsuragi.
"Major?! Misato?! Can you hear me?! Are you alright?!" he yelled as he felt her neck for a pulse.
'A little below normal, but still good.'
"Come on Major! Let's get back to the party!" he said as he said as he carried her to the parking lot.
As he arrived, the first responders were finally rolling on the scene. The first three injured people were already being treated as Lampright walked out of the dust cloud. A pair of medics ran up and took Misato from him, laying her on a near-by stretcher.
"You are right cap'n?" a third asked.
"I'm fine! There's some more out there! I gotta-"
"Sir, your pupils're dilated." the medic said, shining a penlight in his eyes.
"You've got a concussion. And I think your ears are fucked. You ain't goin' nowhere. Get in the helo."
"I ain't gonna-"
"Sir, you will get on the helo, or I will sedate you and put you on the helo. Clear?"
"Clear! How's, uh, how's the major?!"
"She looks alright. Probably a concussion and some minor scraps and bruises. Maybe a broken bone or two."
Lampright climbed on the helo and sat on the bench seats lining one side, next to the three or four other ambulatory casualties. He pulled off his body armour, feeling the SAPI plate broken into several pieces and the large bruise on his chest. He leaned back in the seat, feeling slightly dizzy, and felt a large wet spot on the back of his left leg. He put his hand to touch it and drew it back, covered in blood. He raised his bloody hand in the air.
"Attendant!" he said, his dizziness growing.
"What do you-" she said seeing his hand.
"My leg is-"
"Get on your back on the stretcher!" she said, cutting open the leg of his pants as he got comfortable.
"Holy shit! Did you know you have a major laceration?"
"No!" Lampright said, still shouting due to his punctured eardrums.
'Hmm. That would explain the dizziness.'
"Doesn't look like it hit anything major-stop moving!"