MAY 9th, 2015
SAI-KURU BASE, MATSUYAMA
10:27pm:
"I'm fucking bored to death, man!" Said Kensuke in his bunk, stretching and loudly yawning shortly after doing so. "Almost makes me wanna fight off those skinjobs again... haven't even heard a shot fired these past 2 weeks."
"Yer either deaf or a slob, then. Peeps are firin' shots all the time over at target practice, ya jus' haven't left the tent all week ya lazy fuck!" Toji joked, earning him a laugh from the rest of the unit. All, minus one.
Shinji was the only one in there actually trying to get some sleep, while the others were poking fun at one another, reading something, or even playing a handheld video game to tire themselves out. Shinji placed his pillow over his head, hoping that would shut out the noise coming from his peers.
His depressive attitude didn't go unnoticed by either of his friends. They had already offered to talk it out with him, whatever it was that was bothering him, just to be able to cheer him up. Shinji politely declined.
All they could do was watch as he lay in his bed, motionless. Waiting for this day to be over, knowing he'd dread the next one equally.
"Shin-man, yer startin' to worry me a bit." Toji said to him, shaking his shoulder to get his attention. "I know doin' nothin' for this long feels like shit, but ya gotta keep yerself busy somehow."
"Tried that already, just made everything worse." Shinji replied rather coldly, not looking his friend in the eyes.
Toji looked at Kensuke and pointed towards Shinji, mouthing 'What's his deal?' to Kensuke. He responded with a shrug, having already tried to motivate Shinji plenty of times throughout their 2 week stay at the camp.
"Y'know man, ya been real bummy since we got 'ere! Like, that's fine, but don't get all short-fused with us when we're jus' trynna help ya!" Toji snapped, having had enough of Shinji's sour attitude towards everyone around him.
"Sorry man, I guess I just don't know how to communicate very well when I'm like this. But it's not like it matters, anyway. I appreciate it, but you don't have to waste your time worrying about me." Shinji said, still not giving Toji any eye contact.
"Oh, fuck off Shinji! Y'know it ain't like that! We're jus' trynna lend ya a helpin' hand 'ere, but yer a real pain in the ass about it sometimes! Talk to me again whenever yer balls aren't in a twist, dickhead." Toji said as he turned away from him, tired of Shinji's rude behavior towards those who were just trying to help him.
"Cool." He replied flatly, having not moved an inch for the entirety of their conversation.
Kensuke had grown uncomfortable with the tension building up in the tent, not only between Shinji and Toji but a good chunk of the unit. Many of their troops had become more aggressive with each other, and sometimes the atmosphere got so heavy that some arguments had to be intervened by outsiders.
'Those two haven't been seeing eye to eye lately... maybe its because they're both so different by nature.' Mused Kensuke, as he watched Shinji remain in his position and Toji light another cigarette.
He turned to his nightstand to grab his canteen, but halted when he heard a distinct sound.
*BANG*
"You guys hear that?" Kensuke asked. Shinji perked his head up now, fully alert.
The sound had been muffled since it had come from the outside, but it was still very noticeable.
"Are those incoming rounds?" Shinji asked.
"Nah man, it's gotta be outgoing." Toji replied, knowing this base to be too secure for such a thing to happen.
Everyone stayed silent for some seconds, wanting to hear if there was commotion outside in reaction to the loud sound.
*BOOM*
"No, that's incoming!" Shouted Kensuke as he jumped from his bed. Everyone did the same, grabbing their utility gear and rifles as they left the tent in a rush. Shinji, Toji and Kensuke were now running towards their battle stations, the sirens of the camp blaring loudly to alert all the troops of the attack.
As they ran, Shinji felt the adrenaline begin to overtake his body again. He hated going into battle, but when he did he always felt more alive than ever. Right now, he didn't think about it. He just ran as fast as he could.
Each unit had a designated trench to themselves in case of an attack. Unit-01's trench faced Sai-Kuru's front gates.
Dropping into the trench, the troops put their gear on quickly. Shinji placed his helmet on his head, having forgotten just how heavy these things were after not having used it for a while. Kensuke manned the MG while Toji aimed at the area of the attack with his sniper, Shinji doing the same with his ADV rifle.
The female half of Unit-01 arrived at the trench, also dropping into it and aiming their rifles forward.
"What happened? Did anyone see anything?" Asuka asked loudly to the unit, everyone replying with a no.
"NERV HQ, this is Lieutenant Soryu speaking! Sai-Kuru base is under attack, we need support!"
"An attack? At Sai-Kuru?" Maya asked in shock.
"Yeah, a bad one! We currently have no visual on the enemy, Unit-32 is being sent over to investigate!" Asuka detailed.
"Sending three Watcher drones your way, Lieutenant. Hang in there!" Maya said.
Unit-01 continued to stand their ground in the trench. They eyed the area of the bombing to try to spot them in the dark. Ahead of them, Unit-32 moved towards the gates in hopes of luring them out.
Unit-01 watched as the other unit carefully made their way forth, waiting for the enemy to make a move.
"Ya still bored to death, Ken?" Toji asked, slapping the back of Kensuke's helmet in reminder of what he said back at the tent.
"Point made." He replied.
Unit-32 slowed their pace just a bit more, scouting the perimeter for the enemy. The gate faced a cross street, where any person standing in the middle of the street would be easily visible. But there were no signs of movement anywhere, making the soldiers tense up more as they continued to approach the enemy.
The Angels suddenly fired at the vulnerable unit, a cacophony of overwhelming pops and bangs reverberating throughout the city now.
Before they could even react, the ones who survived the hail of bullets had to fall back immediately. Back at the trenches, Unit-01 tried to provide covering fire aimed at where the sounds of gunfire were coming from.
Shinji continued to fire at the enemies, not entirely sure he was actually hitting any of them, but determined to take them down if he was to survive out here. Rei did the same, and occasionally fired a round from her grenade launcher. Every once in a while, Shinji had to duck in order to reload. Every time he did, he looked over at Rei to make sure she was fine. He was still very confused about what was going on in between them, but he had bigger things to worry about. At the moment, he was just happy she was safe.
Shinji never even got to notice Rei doing the same when she had to reload her weapon.
The Angels were finally spotted in the distance taking cover behind the surrounding buildings, some of them even taking positions in the windows of the structures. They were there, but they were keeping an extreme amount of distance and doing a surprising amount of damage.
At first, there was no sense of where each troop should shoot. Some fired at the ones in the street, while others fired at the ones in the windows. After a while, it became apparent that they were quite vulnerable themselves.
"Cease fire and take cover!" She ordered. Before ducking in the trenches herself, she sent a hand signal to the nearby unit's C.O to tell them they needed to re-strategize. In the trench, all soldiers were looking at Asuka for direction.
"We're not getting shit done, here! We need to have each third of this unit to focus on separate locations specifically. Troops in the middle, focus on the streets! Right and left, you guys eye the windows. Got it?" She shouted.
"Yes ma'am!" The unit replied.
"Alright! Prepare for some heavy fire! Readyyy... Go!"
All at once, the unit rose from the trench and shot at the spots they were just ordered to fire at. Though only one or two Angels had been struck, it did force them to take cover. Asuka's idea was working so far, and momentarily gave them the upper hand.
"Lieutenant Soryu to HQ, what are the drones' status?" She asked.
"Still on their way! Should be there in less than 10 minutes!" Replied Maya.
"Scheiße!" Asuka yelled in frustration, having already clicked her earpiece off. "Keep firing! Our backup's gonna take a little while!"
Shinji was closer to the middle of the trenches, so he did as Asuka told him to and focused his shots on the streets. It was far, but still close enough to force enemy to take cover at times.
As he continued to shoot, he noticed a powerful bullet ricochet inching closer to their trench, shot after shot.
'Are those sniper rounds?' Shinji wondered. As he discarded his empty magazine, he reached into his ammo pouch to grab another. As he looked down at the pouch, one of the bullets struck the dirt wall in front of Shinji. A small chunk of rock flew directly into his face, cutting him on his left cheek.
"Argh! Motherfucker!" He exclaimed, rubbing some of the blood off his face. "Lieutenant! I think we got a sniper up there!"
"A sniper? You sure?" She asked, just as the trench wall above Shinji burst from another precise shot coming from said sniper. Shinji pointed at the spot where the bullet had just struck.
"I'm positive!" He replied facetiously.
'Damn it, we're practically sitting ducks out here...' Asuka thought. "Lieutenant Ibuki, have the drones concentrate on the building's windows as soon as they get here! I've been informed there's a sniper, maybe multiple out there!"
"Affirmative, Lieutenant. They should arrive shortly." Maya replied.
Over at the right side, Toji was focused on finding the snipers specifically. He kept himself at a lower angle to avoid being visible to the snipers of the opposing side. The barrel of his sniper was almost touching the top of the trench wall, but he kept the rifle almost perfectly still.
His visual of the enemy buildings was clear, save for the flying rocks and clouds of dust coming from the ricocheting of the bullets on the dirt floor. A surprising amount of the windows were taken up by machine gunners, while others were taken up by snipers and RPG wielders.
"Spotted one! I'm takin' the shot!" He stated.
Toji took one deep breath and held his rifle as still as he could. His index finger delicately positioned itself on the trigger, he needed this shot to really count. Another breath and slow exhale. His right index finger applied more pressure to the trigger, and the mechanism went off.
The sound of his rifle's gunshot stood out against all the other guns being fired.
Though he didn't hit at exactly the angle he had planned for, he still managed to take an Angel out. He aimed for their head, but the bullet went right through the window sill. It hit his target anyway, so the slight miss he made was no real issue.
"Got one!" He yelled triumphantly.
"Scout the other ones!" Asuka ordered, not aware that Toji was already on it.
NERV HQ, COMMAND CENTER:
Ritsuko stormed over to the Command Center as soon as the elevator opened its doors. This kind of surprise attack wasn't ever expected in that sector of the city, which was under constant surveillance. Whatever they did to get past all the drones and infantries, Ritsuko was going to have to find out.
'If this tactic of theirs proves effective against us, I can foresee them utilizing it to catch us off guard wherever they please...' The Doctor mused. '...maybe even the Geo Front.'
"Lieutenant Ibuki, what's Unit-01's status? Are they holding up out there?" Ritsuko asked as she arrived at the Command Center.
Maya had taken the late shift at the Command Center that night along with Shigeru, Makoto having been let off early that day.
"Barely, the enemy is dispersing heavy fire at the front of the camp." She replied. "The units defending that gate are extremely vulnerable. We've sent three Watcher drones to assist them."
"Shit, they're choking out there... Have either of you contacted Katsuragi yet?" Asked Ritsuko, to which Shigeru replied.
"I have, Doctor! She's on her way as we speak."
"Good, we'll need her. She's got the best battle strategies when it comes to hairy situations like this. I just hope she can get here in time." She stated, her foot tapping with impatience.
Maya was tracking the drones, which were moving at incredible speeds due to their small size. They formed a small V-formation and focused their cameras on the battle zone.
"Lieutenant Soryu, the drones have arrived! Which structures do we fire at?" Maya asked.
"Over at the cross street, opposite the gates! Anywhere there's a window, assume an Angel is there!" Asuka replied.
"Affirmative, firing now."
Three muffled boom sounds rang directly above the unit, the buildings in front of them being blasted by explosive rounds only seconds after. As the drones reloaded, the Angels took cover in case any more rounds were fired at them, effectively stunning them.
"Ibuki, re-position a drone directly above the enemy! They're hogging up those streets!" Asuka ordered.
"Roger, re-positioning Watcher 2." She replied.
The drone's attack on the snipers bought Unit-01 some time to shoot more and take cover less often. This meant they were successfully pushing some of the Angels back, giving Watcher 2 the perfect angle to strike. The Angels were bunched up, taking cover behind one of the building's walls. Watcher 2 locked its aim, and fired.
None of them could react as the explosion wiped out about a platoon's worth of Angels. Those that did survive the blast were critically injured.
Watchers 1 and 3 fired at the undamaged windows in the buildings the Angels took up, covering the streets below with a cloud of debris. Though they couldn't see the enemy clearly anymore, they continued to fire at the streets in order to keep stalling them.
Just as it seemed the battle was turning around, Asuka received a message through her earpiece.
"Lieutenant Soryu!" The C.O of Unit-57, a Corporal, yelled in panic. "A company of Angels is attacking from the southeastern end of the camp! We need assistance!"
"We're defending the front gates, Corporal! That's opposite of where we are, we can't leave our position just yet!" The Lieutenant explained. "If we leave now, we hand them this camp on a silver platter! Get Unit-32 on it!"
"32 is defending the medical tent with 61, no other units are responsive!" The other C.O explained.
'Where the fuck are they coming from?' Asuka mused. 'They're not just attacking us from the front anymore, they're coming from all ends... surrounding us.'
"Stand your ground, 57! I'll get air support on its w-"
*POP* "..."
"Corporal! Do you read me? Is everything alright?" Asuka asked. No response, all she could hear were the sounds of distant yelling and gunfire.
"Are you with me, Corporal? Hello?!" She yelled in hopes of getting a response. 'Fuck! We're losing souls left and right here...' She thought.
"Lieutenant Ibuki, Unit-57's C.O is down! I repeat, Unit-57's C.O is down! The Angels are surrounding the camp, and we still don't know where they're coming from! Get us air support and backup immediately!"
"Roger, Soryu. We're sending air support from the next camp over. Backup will be transported over as well." Maya replied.
"Affirmative!" Asuke responded, firing her rifle towards the enemy shortly after.
As the cloud of debris began to clear, Toji was once again eyeing the enemy with his sniper.
The elevator door opened, followed by a sound of loud boots clacking against the floor as Misato stormed to the front of the Command Center.
"I'm here! How's Unit-01 doing?" She asked.
"They're struggling real bad out there... the whole camp is. We actually had to send backup, which should be arriving right about now." Ritsuko explained. "What we believed was a small surprise attack, might just be a meticulously planned widespread attack. They're surrounding the whole camp, and we have no clue where they're coming from."
"Sai-Kuru is smack-dab in the middle of our most secured sector... How'd they get through the whole sector unharmed?" Asked Misato.
"That's what we're trying to find out. I'm afraid they'll keep coming if we don't sort it out, but we don't even know where to begin." Ritsuko said.
Misato watched the monitors that displayed the drone footage. Wherever it was they were coming from, there had to be some kind of indicator of where their access to this part of the city was.
"Lieutenant Ibuki, get Watcher 3 to follow the arriving Angels." She ordered.
"Arriving Angels? What do you mean?" A puzzled Maya asked.
"They have to be coming from somewhere, right? We keep taking Angels down and somehow they keep showing up, right? We have to go backwards; find where it is they rendezvous with their companies, and follow the line back. We should find where it is that their access point lies that way." Misato explained.
"That's true." Ritsuko added. "We can keep the Angels back with Watchers 1 and 2. Watcher 3 just has to keep a low profile when following them back, which isn't hard to do."
Maya nodded and began to control the drone through voice command. Misato was given an earpiece by Ritsuko and spoke to Unit-01 with it.
"Unit-01, this is Major Katsuragi speaking! Do you read me?"
"Major! The camp is being surrounded, where the hell's our backup?" Asuka asked desperately, focusing on talking to Misato while having to fire at the enemy.
"The backup isn't there?" Misato asked in a panic, looking over at Ritsuko and Maya. "I was told they should have arrived by now!"
"Negative! Haven't seen a single aircraft come by-" *PEW* "Shit! Gimme a sec, Major!"
Asuka just narrowly avoided a shot to the face, the bullet striking one of the trench's sandbag only inches away from her face. She poked her head out once again and fired rounds at the faraway Angels.
"Verdammt noch mal STERBEN!" Asuka yelled in a rage.
Kensuke continued to fire at the enemy with the MG, also taking notice at the sniper rounds striking the ground around him.
"Toji! Snipers are at it again, can you get them off of us?" Kensuke asked.
"On it!" Toji replied, looking through his scope once again. He made sure to survey the street level too, just in case there were snipers there too. What caught his attention was one of the enemy troops preparing a mortar round.
'Oh shit...' He thought. 'They got mortars pointed at us.'
"Mortar rounds! They got mortar rounds!" He yelled.
"What?!" Asuka shouted at him, not having heard him from how far apart in the trenches they were.
"I said they got mor-"
*BOOM*
A huge blast only about 20 feet away from the their trench caught Unit-01 off-guard. Toji looked over at the mortar-wielding troop and fired a round at him, missing by only a few inches.
'Shit...' Thought Asuka, realizing the Angels had the upper hand again. 'That mortar round was too close a call. If we stay here any longer, we're fucked.'
"Unit-01, displace!" She yelled.
Without delay, all troops climbed out in a rush and ran off. The bullet strikes surrounding the trench increased, as Unit-01 were now out in the open like helpless prey. Another round blew up not too far from where the other mortar round had just exploded.
"Split and regroup, Unit-01! We meet at the center of the camp, got it? Go!" Asuka added.
Shinji, Toji and Kensuke hopped out of the trench immediately, accompanying each other as they ran deeper into the camp.
As Rei climbed out from the trench and followed Unit-01, a bullet grazed the right side of her thigh. She yelped loudly, her voice cutting through the cacophonous sounds of war. Shinji caught this and turned to the direction he heard the scream from, knowing it was Rei that was in need of help.
"Rei!" He yelled as soon as he spotted her fallen by the trench, running back to her as fast as possible.
Her bulletproof helmet dropped and rolled into the trench, exposing her head to the snipers. Her wound caused her leg muscles to ache badly, hindering her ability to run and even walk properly.
She had an extremely hard time trying to stand up as she attempted to get away from the trench, where she now lay on the floor all by herself, exposed to the enemy. As she continued to struggle, the ground around her continued to burst from bullet strikes.
"Rei!" Shinji yelled again, her head perking up as she finally heard him call her name. Upon reaching her, he grabbed her by the hand and pulled her up, wrapping her arm behind his neck to aide her to safety. He ran away from the emptied trench with Rei, who's limping made running difficult for the both of them. Shinji was surprised neither of them were struck, having seen how many bullets were impacting the ground they were running through.
Rei tightened her grip on his hand, the warmth of his palms being all she could think of. It made her feel a small sense of safety, even in their current situation.
Shinji knew he'd have to find somewhere secure for Rei to rest in while he watched her back. He couldn't just leave her alone out there, so he eyed the nearby bungalow some machine gunners were nesting at. He had to be sure to approach with caution, as any sudden movements might've lead the troops to shoot at them.
"Friendly!" Shinji shouted, identifying himself to the other troops in case they were fired at. Despite the loud gunfire and explosions, they were able to hear him and peeked out the window.
"Private Miura of Unit-77 speaking!" One of the troops, a male, said. "Who goes there?"
"Private Ikari and Ayanami of Unit-01! Requesting permission to enter; I have a wounded soldier here with me who needs cover!" Shinji reasoned. The Private saw no reason as to not let them in and directed both of them to the backdoor, which was out of the Angels' sight. The two could enter safely.
"Come in, hurry!" He urged both troops.
Upon entering the bungalow, Shinji carefully sat Rei down on the floor. She winced a tad, her wound still feeling very tender from the bullet that caused it in the first place. It pained Shinji to see her like this, but at least she was still alive.
Shinji searched through his mini-first aid kit and took some gauze and alcohol out to treat her wound, not wanting to risk an infection from leaving it so exposed. Rei assisted him in cleaning out the blood, while he took care of the rest.
"Where's your helmet?" He asked, concerned with how noticeable her bright blue hair would be in the darkness of the night.
"It fell off at the trench, I think... along with my rifle." She answered.
"You still have your pistol?" He asked, to which Rei answered by nodding her head. "Okay, good..."
Shinji finished applying the gauze to her wound and put his first-aid gear back in his utility pouch.
Her eyes focused on Shinji's hand, which still held onto hers. Had they not been in this battle, Shinji would have turned bright red and been extremely self-conscious for doing such a thing. But out there, he was just looking out for her. In the midst of a chaotic battle, and under the constant threat of losing the life of a loved one, this was when all troops genuinely cared about each other. Her thoughts stopped as they both just sat there, her sight still lingering on his hand.
"Ikari! Where the fuck are you?!" Asuka screamed as she communicated through her earpiece to Shinji.
"Sorry, Lieutenant! Ayanami was wounded and I'm watching over her, since she lost her main weapons. We're sheltering at bungalow-83 with a few of Unit-77's troops!" He explained.
"You're not trying to run away again, are you?" She asked aggressively.
"N-No! Ayanami almost died out there, I was just trying to help!" He tried explaining.
"Ugh, just get your ass over here!" The Lieutenant ordered.
"But what about Ayana-"
"You mentioned you guys are with 77, didn't you?" Asuka asked impatiently. "They can watch over her! Now hurry up! Over and out."
Shinji sighed, now having to leave Rei behind and go through the chaos happening outside. Just as he began to think of a less-dangerous route around the camp to take, a loud bang caught his attention.
It came from an explosion outside, having gone off next to the trench that once belonged to Unit-01. Shinji looked out one of the windows and witnessed a large cloud of dust expanding outwards and upwards into the air, realizing that it might provide him sufficient cover from the Angels should he run to find Unit-01.
"I- I've got to go back, Rei." He said to her, looking her in the eyes. "Please, stay safe."
"I will." She replied. "Please do the same for yourself."
Shinji nodded, then proceeded to let go of her hand, running out of the bungalow and back into the field as fast as he could.
He now had to find Unit-01 in the chaos of the camp. Sai-kuru was now full of damage; large amounts of dirt and rock scattered across the grounds, burning tents and a hazardous amount of smoke in the air. He continued to frantically look for his unit as he ran through the campgrounds.
"Shinjaaay!" Toji yelled, taking cover behind a pile of sandbags. "Over 'ere!"
Shinji quickly looked over at Toji's direction and ran towards him, worried about being alone and out in the open for so long.
"Toji! Where are the others?" He asked as he reached his friend and took cover with him.
"Over by the Top's tent... Soryu ordered us to guard 'em in case those skinjobs reach- LOOK OUT!" Toji shouted just as he spotted three Angels run by them.
"Wha- Shit!" Shinji exclaimed as he realized what was happening. Both boys quickly dropped for cover as the Angels fired at the two boys. The wall behind them was then riddled with bullets as they desperately planned their retaliation.
"Gimme me some covering fire, I got a lil' somethin' for 'em." Toji said quietly, pulling out a grenade and showing it to Shinji. "On my mark, alright?"
Shinji nodded and readied his rifle. The enemy stopped firing at the two by this point, trying to conserve their ammo since the two were still taking cover behind the sandbags. Toji held three fingers up to Shinji and mouthed a countdown.
"3...2...1... NOW!"
Shinji jumped up and sprayed bullets at the Angels, swaying his aim side to side in case they were scattered. The enemy tried to fire back, but opted for cover instead. Toji looked up and removed the grenade pin, making sure he had a good idea of where to throw it.
He threw it forward, it having landed a few feet away from the three Angels. One of them saw what was happening and made a run for it just as the other two were obliterated by the blast.
Shinji shot and killed the runaway Angel before they could escape his line of fire. He felt his hand shake from the adrenaline in his blood as he watched the Angel collapse before him. Another life, taken by Shinji Ikari. His third kill.
"Well well well... good kill, Shin! Yer finally gettin' used to this!" Said Toji.
"Yeah, I-I guess..." Shinji replied, not sounding nearly as thrilled as his friend.
"C'mon, let's find the rest of Unit-01 before this place gets too hairy..."
Shinji followed Toji's lead while staying completely alert. The Angels had grown more feisty each time they entered another battle with NERV, so in their minds another small group of Angels could be right around the corner.
All the while, surrounding gunfire and explosions continued to echo through the city streets.
*ZIP*
"Gah!" Shinji let out, reacting to the sound of a passing bullet.
*ZOOP*
"More sniper rounds! Keep runnin'!" Toji exclaimed. The two now ran as fast as either of them could, the stakes having been raised even higher. The Angels they managed to take out were in plain sight, while this new threat was practically invisible to them. Neither of them knew where the shots were coming from; a sharpshooting Angel laying on the floor just behind the fences of Sai-Kuru.
This Angel, a female, began to fire at the floor just a few feet in front of them in order to disorient their running and to take at least one of them out.
Shinji and Toji continued to run desperately as the floor continued to burst violently from bullet strikes. One of the strikes kicked up so much dirt that Shinji was almost blinded by the dirt particles. He wobbled a bit, but continued to run forth.
Then, a shot missed Shinji's foot by just a few inches, causing him to stumble a bit. Just as he regained his balance, he felt a sudden sharp pain dominate his back. Before he knew it, blood burst through his chest and the pain he felt had quadrupled in less than a second.
"AARRGH!" He screamed in agony, tiny drops of his own blood splatting on his face.
Toji turned his head around just in time to see what had happened, seeing Shinji collapse on the ground as he rolled and landed on his back. No doubt about it, he had just been shot.
"SHINJI!" Toji yelled in a panic, running back to save his endangered friend. As he made his way back to Shinji, he heard another bullet zip by.
"Shit!" He let out as he dropped for cover, having almost forgotten about the sniper that had been eyeing the two with great focus.
He looked over to where Shinji lay in great pain, being just a few feet away from him. From Toji's crouched position and Shinji laying on the floor, the Angel had no sight of either of them. But if they were to run out of there, they'd have to stand up and run.
On the floor, Shinji couldn't tell what was happening anymore. The pain was still unbearable, yet he felt like it was going away gradually, replaced by a numbness. His vision began to blur, and light taste of blood arose in his mouth. Even the loud battle surrounding the camp started to fade away, as if reverberating inside an echo chamber.
"Ugh... Agh- Toj-" He coughed, the sudden jolt in reaction to said cough intensifying the pain for a short moment as he struggled on the floor. "Agh! H-Help, please..."
"Hang in there, man! Don't you fuckin' die on me!" Toji yelled. "I'mma get us outta this!"
Shinji looked up at the polluted night sky, paying no attention to what Toji had just told him. He couldn't focus on anything if he had tried at that very moment, the pain and loss of blood wearing his body and mind down. As he continued to watch the dull night sky, he truly believed this would be his last sight in life.
Smoke, and the sounds of war. He felt his head get lighter and lighter as the pain only continued to get worse.
'Is this it?' He pondered. 'This is what it's like to be killed? Is this what death feels like? Is it my time to die? My place to die? How I die?'
Tears rolled down his cheeks as he tried to make sense of his situation, not ready to accept his fate.
'And all for what?'