Chapter 10: Follow Me

Disclaimer: I don't own Neon Genesis Evangelion. It belongs to Hideaki Anno, Gainax, and Tatsunoko Productions. I only own the characters I made up.

I jerk the controller around to avoid my opponent's constant barrage of attacks. The multiple strikes were quick, but it was nothing I couldn't handle. Besides, now my opponent's wide open. Inputting the correct commands, my character does a flying spinning kick, ranking up a ton of damage against my enemy. Tired of being pushed around, the guy gets back up and rushes me, throwing an uppercut. A smile makes its way onto my face, knowing full well of that fatal error. I block the attack perfectly, stunning my opponent. Seeing my opportunity, I unleash a barrage of kicks and punches, not allowing time for the other guy to breathe. I then unleash my finishing move, causing my character to shoot a ball of destructive energy. The attack hits my opponent creating a massive explosion. The word "K.O." appears on the screen as I silently celebrate my victory.

"It appears I have lost once again," says Rei while staring at the game's screen.

"You're getting better," I encourage her. "The only reason I win most of the time is because I know like, five moves in this game."

I was never good at remembering combos in fighting games. They just seemed needlessly complicated. You input like twelve different commands just to unleash one move which might not even hit the opponent. Ironically, using simple moves seem more effective than using combos.

I put my hands behind my head while smiling. "But if you wanna get better, then you'll need to play this game more. Got it?"

Rei releases her hands from the controls then nods. She then turns to me. "Understood. I will be sure to improve my performance."

I hold back my urge to laugh. "Alright, tone down the seriousness. *Pfft* It's just a game."

Rei's cheeks turn slightly pink as she looks to the floor, hair covering her face. "Understood."

Okay, I can't help but chuckle at that. Does that make be a bad person?

"Alright, let's go back to your place. I hadn't started on my homework and this food ain't gonna cook itself." I lift one of the grocery bags off the floor to emphasize my point.

Rei nods then grabs the other grocery bags. We leave the arcade, making our way to the train station. I can't help but be slightly proud of how far Rei has come. Once a week we would go to the arcade and play a few games. At first, she just seemed bored there. But the more we went to the arcade, the more effort she put into playing the games there. I'd go as far as to say she was actually enjoying herself. Though, I might just be reading too far into things.

When the train arrives at Rei's neighborhood, we begin our walk to her apartment. I can't help but groan at all the homework I'm gonna have to do. But, it does get me thinking. Do I still need Rei to tutor me? I understand so much of the language now I could do the homework on my own. Sure, it'd probably take me longer to do the work without Rei's help, but I could get it done. Guess I answered my own question, so why bother going home with Rei everyday? I mean, it's not like I don't wanna walk with her. Can't really imagine not doing so. Guess I've gotten. . .attached to her. Heh, I must be really dense to only now realize I consider her a friend. Though, I'm not sure if Rei feels the same way. Sure she sticks around, but I think it's due to her passive attitude. She doesn't seem able to say no to me.

. . .

Here I go again, overthinking things. When I do that, doubt starts to set in. Should probably stop doing that. I've been told it's a bad habit.

We make it back to Rei's place. When there, we put all the food in their proper places and begin working on the homework. Unlike the first time we've begun studying together, I actually have something to bring to the plate. When Rei doesn't know something, which is rare, I help her out. In other words, we both shared the workload. Recently, I felt the need to help Rei out more. She's constantly taking time out of her day to help me out, and I can't help but feel like I've been a burden on her. She always has something for me to do when we're done with our homework. Something for me to study or look over. Something to always keep me busy. I know that can't be easy for her, and I know I can be hard to work with (even though she won't admit it). So, I have to work harder so her life can be easier.

About an hour passes before Rei and I take a break. I can't help but feel slightly frustrated. Despite all the time Rei spent teaching me to read and write, it still takes me forever to do a simple word problem! That's just pathetic! I need to do better. Perhaps when I'm back at Misato's, I should stay up to study a bit.

"How has your time with Captain Katsuragi fared?"

Rei's question snaps me out of my thoughts.

Asking about my personal life? She hasn't done that in a while.

"It's been fine," I tell her. "The Captain can act like a huge kid sometimes. Especially when she's drinking something with alcohol in it every single day. But, I really can't complain."

"And pilot Soryu?"

I let out a scoff. "She's been a real pain. She always has something to complain or yell at me about. It's like she enjoys pissing me off! For example, there was this one time I was walking around the living room, when suddenly, Asuka jumps out of the bathroom butt ass naked. Apparently, Pen Pen got in the bathroom and Asuka, being the first time she saw that bird, freaked out! I saw the whole thing, being at the wrong place at the wrong time. You know what she did? The bitch tried to beat me up! Like somehow that whole situation was my fault! Lucky for her, she only succeeded at slipping and falling on her ass."

"So your time with the Second has been unpleasant?" asks Rei.

I let out a sigh. "It's. . .complicated." I look out the window, spotting a few stars in the sky. This gets me to smile slightly. It's not often you get to see stars in the city. "There are times when I wanna strangle the girl. She constantly insults me and calls me a pervert for things out of my control, so I can't help but feel that way. But there are times when I can tolerate her brash attitude. Like when she lets me play some of the games she brought over or when she compliments me on my cooking. Well. . .not really complimenting, just saying the food isn't shit."

My smile becomes a bit bigger. "You know when she first moved in, she tried to kick me out of my room? *Chuckles* I didn't take too kindly to that. I got all her stuff out of my room and practically yelled at her. But, after the seventh Angel was killed, I let her have my room. At the time, I reasoned Asuka needed a bigger room because she had a lot of stuff, so it makes sense for her to have the room. But, now that I think about it, I think I gave her the room because I felt she deserved it since she helped kill the Angel. Weird, right?"

Rei doesn't say anything. I'm not looking at her, though I imagine she's just staring at me questioningly. I couldn't blame her for doing so, even I'm not one-hundred percent sure I understood what I just said. Words just seemed to flow out of my mouth and I don't know if they made sense when put together. Eventually, Rei does speak up.

"What are you looking for?"

I glance at the blue haired girl to see she's also staring out the window. Curiosity is painted all over her face which I found both endearing and amusing.

"Stars," I say while bringing my attention back outside. "I'm looking for stars."

Before she could ask, I decide to elaborate. "You don't get to see a lot of stars in a city. Hell, you'd have a hard time seeing stars anywhere close to civilization due the light pollution. Even the suburbs can't escape this fact. Which is why, when I do see a star, I try to figure out if it's really there. I try to find out if that light in the sky is either a plane, a helicopter, or even a satellite reflecting the sun's light. When I can discern it's none of those things, I start to play a little game."

I start laughing. Simply talking about this is bringing up old memories. "I would create a picture out of what little stars I saw. Like a large version of connect the dots. When I was younger, my brother and I would always play that game. We would look out the car's window, or simply look up when we happen to be outside at night, and start connecting the dots. Shane and I would try to create family members, cartoon characters, or monsters from what we saw. We even tried to create constellations out of those little dots in the sky. Of course, we didn't know constellation were made of specific groups of stars at different parts of the year, but that didn't stop us from trying to create those images. It was so much fun."

It really was. For some reason, it was those nights that felt special, even though they consisted of my brother and I playing a stupid game. They just made me feel. . .safe.

Rei pauses for a moment. "Have you ever seen the night sky without city lights?"

My smile becomes wider as I recall a memory. "Yes. Once."

She asks me what I remember of the experience. I close my eyes so I could get a clear picture in my head.

"It was. . .nice," I start. "And. . .it reminded me of a dream."

"Come on!"

"No."

"Pleease!"

"No."

"Will you just think ab-"

"For the last time Kensuke, no!" I glare at him to emphasize my point. "I won't ask Misato to make you a pilot!"

"But whyyy?"

I raise an eyebrow as I take a bite out of the sandwich I brought to school. "Because it's stupid. Like I told you so many times before, you don't want to pilot an Eva."

"Yes I do! I really do!" says Kensuke. The way he's talking honestly reminds me of a toddler.

I place a hand on my forehead while also shaking my head. I never understood why he's so obsessed with Eva. I knew he was tech nerd, but I never expected him to actually keep bothering me about being a pilot. He seems to have the wrong idea of what it actually means to be a pilot.

"No you don't," I repeat myself. "You don't get paid, piloting is exhausting, and your life's constantly at risk! Being a pilot is literally the worst."

"But you get to pilot an actual mech!" The brunette's eyes seem to sparkle when he said that. I can't help being slightly amused by his enthusiasm. "Besides, you get to fight giant monsters and save the city. It's like you're a real-life superhero!"

I've. . .never really thought of it like that. Is that how people see me?

"That's nice of you to say," I start. "But I'm no superhero, and you're not going to pilot. Besides, no more Evangelions are being produced."

The guy becomes crestfallen. "Are. . .are you sure?"

I nod.

Kensuke lets out a long sigh as he looks to the ground. You can practically see the rain cloud over his head.

"You both are still talkin' about this?" asks Toji while taking a bite out of a granola bar.

"He's the one who keeps bringing it up!" I tell Toji.

Kensuke's still dealing with his rain cloud, so he doesn't say anything. Toji lets out a chuckle.

"Well, now that that's done, it's time we start askin' the real questions." Toji reveals a toothy grin.

A frown makes its way onto my face. "Don't you dare!"

"Why aren't you an' Rei dating?"

I deadpan. "Why do you do this?"

Toji continues to wear his grin while shrugging. "Hey, it's a legitimate question. The whole class sees how you are around her. Right Kensuke?"

The brunette dispatches of his rain cloud and displays a smirk. "Yeah. Everyone including the teachers are wondering why you two aren't a thing. I mean, it's obvious you like her."

First of all, what?! Even the teachers are trying to play matchmaker? What the actual fuck?! Second, I do like Rei. I just don't like her that way.

I'm about to explain myself when a hand slams itself against my desk. This shocks Toji, Kensuke, and I. Looking to see what the hand's attached to, I find Asuka glaring at me. I respond with a scowl.

"What is it this time?" I ask the girl.

The intensity of her glare increases. "Lunch."

I roll my eyes. "You're still mad about that? Get over it."

"Uh. . .should we leave or. . ."

"Shut it four eyes!" Asuka snaps at Kensuke. She then returns her attention to me. "As for you, of course I'm still upset! You didn't even try to make me breakfast or today's lunch! Now I have nothing to eat!"

I scoff at her rant. "Learn to cook, because I'm not your servant. It's your own fault you're in school with nothing to eat. Be glad I do make you something once in a while."

"It's just like you to leave me to starve then avoid taking responsibility!"

"Oh shut up! I don't have to do shit for you! And your "starvation" is not my responsibility!"

"I bet if Rei asked you'd make her something in a heartbeat!"

"She's got you there," Toji chimes in.

"Shut up!" Asuka and I yell at him. We then bring our attention back to each other and continue our argument. We only stop when Hikari decides to temper Asuka's rage by offering her food. Asuka graciously accepts, but not before giving me the stink eye. The rest of the class is staring at me. Crap! They must've heard the entire thing! Embarrassed, I pull my hoodie over my head.

After lunch, class started. As usual, nothing of interest happened in school. I've long gotten use to everyone worshiping the ground Asuka walks on, so it no longer annoys me. On the bright side, the redhead keeps the rest of the student body away from me. When class ends, me and the other pilots make our way to the Geofront's surface entrance. We had to take a bus instead of taking our usual ride, the trains. For some reason, they weren't working.

When the bus arrives at our destination, I'm the first to get off. Asuka's still pissed about me not making her anything to eat, and she let me know it. So I walked quickly to the Geofront's gate to avoid the redhead. When at the entrance, I swipe my card through the reader. Nothing happens.

"Hmm?"

I swipe my card again, and again nothing happens. Weird. Rei walks past me and swipes her card through the reader. Same result.

"Think it might be broken," I tell Rei.

"What's taking you both so long?!" I hear Asuka ask impatiently.

I turn to the redhead. "This thing's broken."

The girl just rolls her eyes as she walks toward the entrance. "Don't be ridiculous, you're probably just doing something wrong." She then swipes her card through the reader and is surprised when nothing happens. "What?!" She repeats this action several times and it yields the same result.

"It's not working," says Rei.

"Of course it's not working!" responds the redhead.

I shake my head while trying to open some of the other entrances to the Geofront. The readers there don't work either.

"No luck here, how about you guys?"

The sound of something smashing against a door, followed by a curse, is my only response. Figured Asuka would try to use brute force to open a metal door. I lean against a wall and try to figure out what's going on.

"It appears everything in the facility is not working. Odd." says Rei.

"What happened here?" responds Asuka.

That's when something hits me. "Remember how the trains weren't working, like they were out of power?"

There's a moment of silence before Asuka speaks up. "Yeah, what about it?"

I continue. "When on the bus, I overheard a bunch of people saying something about electronics not working or whatnot. Maybe there's a city wide power outage and that's affecting the Geofront."

"What?! But that's impossible!" says Asuka. "Even if the city no longer had power the Geofront is self sustaining! No way it could run out of power!"

"It's the only explanation which makes sense. Why else won't the gate open?"

During me and Asuka's conversation, I spot Rei digging into her bag. Asuka, also noticing this action, digs into her bag as well. I'm slightly confused on what's going on but decide to keep it to myself. Asuka would probably just insult me for voicing my confusion.

Rei eventually pulls out a red pamphlet from her bag and begins reading. Guess the pamphlet has instructions on what to do in situations like this.

"It says we should go to headquarters ourselves," says Rei. Though, I see her face twist into something resembling a frown. Almost like she was disappointed in the information she just read.

"Is that all it says," I ask.

She nods.

Seriously? Who made those instructions? We can't get into the Geofront so the protocol is to get into the Geofront?! Someone needs to get fired.

Asuka, reading her own pamphlet, wears an irritated expression before producing a smirk.

"Well, let's get going shall we," says Asuka. "But first we need to choose a leader."

"Let me guess. You wanna volunteer." I deadpan.

"Well who else is more qualified than I?" she retorts while pointing her nose in the air. She then puts her hands on her waist and leans forward, displaying a cocky grin. "Any objections?"

After hearing no objections, Asuka takes the lead in our little expedition. At least, she attempted to until Rei pointed out the redhead was going in the wrong direction. Asuka, in an attempt to seem competent, brushes off her mistake, claiming she was just testing our knowledge. Like she's fooling anyone. Why does she feel the need to be right about everything?

We find a door which could be opened manually that leads to an underground passage. Opening the portal, we bore witness to the passage itself. The place looked like you'd expect. It's a large open area made completely of metal. The place looks well maintained, no sign of rust. There are pipes sticking out of the walls in some places and metal grates on the ceiling. The air is warm, which I sorta disliked, but it was far from uncomfortable. Due to there being no power, the place is covered in darkness. Specks of light shine through the ceiling, resembling snowflakes. But the place always remained dark.

I always loved dark places, never fully understood why. I guess I kinda enjoy the isolation it can create. When you can't see anything around you, it can make you feel like you're the only person in the world. Some might find that frightening, but I find it comforting.

We spend a good few minutes walking deeper into the passage. Asuka's leading us in the wrong direction. I know this because we're heading up not down.

"You don't know where you're going."

"Can you quit saying that!" responds Asuka, back still turned to me.

"The Geofront is under Tokyo-3. So why are we going up?" I say, trying to reason with her.

This time she turns to me. "If you know so much then why don't you lead?!"

"I don't know how to get to the Geofront, but maybe if you-"

"I don't wanna hear it!" She interrupts as her back turns to me. She continues walking in the wrong direction, expecting us to follow. I look to Rei and she just follows Asuka. Letting out a sigh, I do the same.

We eventually come across a door which Asuka's confident is the entrance to the Geofront. Since the redhead's feeling dramatic, she kicks the door open. Bit surprised she's able to do that but I don't question it. Only a few seconds pass before I feel the ground shaking, nearly knocking me off balance. Asuka screams then rushes to close the door.

"What was that?!" I ask.

"Well *cough* it was Angel!" she says, trying to act like she wasn't scared.

Surprised, but also curious, I push past Asuka and open the door. She's yelling at me, asking what I'm doing, but I ignore her.

The Angel looks like a giant bug. It has four insect-like legs extending from a small, saucer shaped body. Each leg seems to be the size of a skyscraper, and the body is covered completely in eyes. Though, those eyes seem like they're painted on. The only working eye is located at the bottom of this creature's body. This creature was extremely close, I was almost tempted to touch it. I've never encountered an Angel outside of an Eva, so it was a stimulating experience. But, for some reason, I wasn't afraid. I just stared at the thing with a big smile on my face.

"Idiot! Close the door!" yells Asuka.

"What's the matter, scared?" I mock the redhead. She huffs in response. "The thing isn't even looking at us. But if it'll make you feel better, I'll close the door."

After sealing the portal, I spot Asuka glaring at me. Seems she didn't take too kindly to me mocking her.

"We mustn't waste anymore time," Rei says suddenly. "I know a shortcut." The blue haired girl starts walking, not bothering to wait for Asuka and I.

"Hey! Don't forget I'm the leader!" yells Asuka, but Rei says nothing and continues walking. I walk after Rei and Asuka, eventually, follows suite.

Moments later, our little group head deeper into the underground passage. With Rei leading the way, I feel confident we'll reach the Geofront before the Angel. But, there's a slight problem of what we'll actually do when we get to the place. If Nerv really is out of power, which I have no doubt it is, then how will we pilot the Evas? Without the Evas, there's no chance of us beating the Angel. Okay, maybe heading to the Geofront is a terrible idea.

Asuka's stomping takes me out of my thoughts. The girl wasn't too happy with Rei taking the position of leader. I really can't understand the girl. Why is she making a big deal about this? Rei obviously knows where to go, so we just need to follow her. I'm just glad Asuka kept her displeasure to herself. I don't want her going on a rant.

"How close are we to the Geofront?" I ask.

"We are close," responds Rei.

I hear a scoff. "Of course the Commander's favorite would know where to go."

My muscles tense momentarily before I manage to calm myself down.

"I am not the Commander's favorite," responds Rei.

"Don't deny it!" Asuka snaps. "Everyone knows Commander Ikari gives you special treatment!"

"Asuka. . ."I warn the girl.

"Don't act all superior just because the Commander likes you!" Asuka continues.

"I do not act superior," says Rei, not even bothering to look at the raging redhead.

Rei's answer only serves to piss off Asuka even further. She blocks Rei's path and gets in her face.

"Don't make me laugh!" yells Asuka. "You never look at me when I'm talking to you, and when you do, you just look through me! As if I were made of glass! Like you're too good to acknowledge I even exist!"

Rei says nothing in response, only offering a blank stare.

"I bet Ikari only likes you because you do everything he says," claims the redhead. "You do every little thing asked of you like a good little doll! I wouldn't be surprised if you were sleeping with him!"

I move between the two girls, my body acting like a wall. My body feels like it's gonna explode. I glare at the redhead, as if it were enough to set the girl on fire. I think I'm shaking. Need to get that under control.

"What?!" Asuka snaps at me.

"Stop it," I say in a dangerously calm voice.

"Why should I?! You know I'm right!"

"No you're not!" I yell at her. "Everything you said about her is just wrong! Don't pretend you know jack shit about Rei or what she has to go through!"

"What she has to go through?!" Asuka says in disbelieve. "She literally does nothing all day everyday, yet everyone treats her like a princess!"

"That is not remotely true and you know it!"

A smirk makes it way onto Asuka's face. "Why are you so eager to defend 'Wondergirl'? What, do you get off on being her 'Knight in Shining Armor?" She then pretends she's in shock and awe witnessing my "heroics". "Oh, how noble."

"What is wrong with you?!" I continue yelling at her. "You always do this! You turn everything into some kind of competition, and when you start 'losing' you start attacking people! What the hell do you have to prove?!"

"I have nothing to prove to anyone!" Asuka yells back, insulted that I would suggest such a thing. "I'm naturally better than both of you idiots combined, so I won't let that blue haired bitch walk over me!"

"There you go again! Claiming you're superior while putting everyone else down!" I get closer to Asuka. "Fine. You can do that all you want. But you leave Rei alone! I won't have you push her around!"

Asuka gets closer to me, a challenging smirk on her face. "What are you gonna do about it?"

I'm sick and tired of this girl! I thought I'd eventually get along with her. That if I just put aside our differences for a while, we would at least be able to tolerate each other. I was wrong! This bitch doesn't want cooperation! She just wants everyone and everything under her foot. This is the same person who spoke ill of a dead pilot just because she could! Now she's trying to pick on Rei. Someone who already has to deal with a ton of shit! No! I won't let that happen!

Both of my fists tighten as I bare my teeth. I no longer care about the Angel heading to the Geofront. I just want to make Asuka hurt! I want her to hurt!

Rei puts her hand on my shoulder. I initially keep glaring at Asuka but eventually look at Rei when she tightens her grip. The girl refuses to break eye contact with me and I immediately got the message. "Asuka isn't worth it". Letting out a sigh, I backed away from the redhead. She still displays that annoying smile, interpreting my action as a sign of weakness. Rei wipes that smile off Asuka's face by getting closer to the redhead and displaying what may have been a glare.

"Soryu," starts Rei. "I do not intend to continue this pointless argument. The Angel will be heading to the Geofront, and I intend to be there to prevent it from causing extensive damage. If you want to find your own way to our destination, then do so. Just do not waste anymore of our time."

Asuka looks dumbfounded. I'm kind shocked myself. Rei never spoke back to anyone before. To see her do so almost makes me. . .proud? Is that the right word?

Rei walks past Asuka and beckons me to follow, which I do. Eventually, Asuka gets over herself and follows suite.

Moments later we come across a path which is completely blocked by debris. Rei walks closer to the blocked area, digging around the rubble. I continue to stare at the debris.

"Anyway around this?" I ask.

"The ventilation shafts," responds Rei while looking at an air vent. "We will have to crawl, but it will be the quickest path to the Geofront."

I brace myself for Asuka's eventual complaint, but none comes. Rei grabs a pipe and uses it to open a vent. I let Rei enter the vent first since she knows her way around the place. I enter second (I know Asuka will accuse me of looking up her skirt if I go last) and Asuka enters last. The next few minutes are spent in silence. The only sounds come from me or the other pilots' limbs bumping against the metal. There's barely any light and the area is so small. I hate crawling in these vents, but I keep my complaints to myself. Just hope Rei gets us to the Geofront as quickly as possible.

"Ugh, the silence is killing me," I hear Asuka mumble.

"No one cares," I respond.

She remains silent for a moment before huffing. "What? You're still mad?"

"What do you think?"

". . ."

I think five more minutes pass before she speaks up again. "Where are you from?"

"What?" I ask, annoyance changing to confusion.

"What country are you from?" she clarifies.

"I'm from the U.S., you already know this," I tell her. "Besides, why do you care?"

"I don't! It's just. . .I hate how quiet this place is," she responds. "Also. . .I only asked because of your accent."

I raise an eyebrow at that. "Accent? I don't have an accent."

"That's what I'm talking about," she says. "You don't have an accent, despite Japanese not being your first language."

"You don't have an accent either," I point out.

"That's because I'm good at hiding it," she responds. "Even then, it slips out once in a while."

I roll my eyes. What's the point in all of this? "Whatever. Is that all you want to talk about?"

"No!" she pauses. "Just. . .I don't know. I'm slightly curious about who you were before coming to Nerv."

". . ."

"Kaji says you're something special. Apparently, nobody but Nerv knows a thing about you. Nobody knows how you got to Japan or who your parents are. Not that I care! I really couldn't care less! But, the lack of information bothers me a little. Like an annoying itch."

"Is that so," I say while looking back to Asuka. The redhead nods her head. I then look forward and let out a sigh. I'm technically not from anywhere, but I don't want to think about it. Not right now. Thinking about anything related to home only serves to make me slightly depressed. But. . .when did I decide not thinking about home was a good thing?

"I was nobody before coming here," I tell Asuka, attempting to end the conversation. The redhead says nothing in response.

Our group continues pushing forward until something worrying happens. The vents begin creaking and moaning, as if they could no longer hold our weight.

"Rei. . .I thin-"

There's a moment of weightlessness before gravity decides to remind me of its presence. Asuka, Rei, and I fall from the now broken vent, the ground quickly approaching us. I close my eyes and prepare for impact.

The fall didn't hurt as much as I thought it would. Sure I got the wind knocked out of me, but nothing felt broken. Though, it feels like something broke my landing. Something soft. I open my eyes and immediately felt a mixture of regret and annoyance. Somehow, I landed on Asuka in the most compromising position. The girl's face is completely red and it looks like she's gonna scream. Before that could happen, I get to my feet as quickly as possible, looking at anything except her. I'm never gonna hear the end of this.

Scanning the area, I spot Rei standing as if nothing happened, Asuka slowly getting to her feet while displaying a glare, and a bunch of Nerv staff staring at us. Ritsuko's also here, staring at us with a mix of relief and amusement.

So we landed in the Eva cages. That's nice.

Misato, runs to where we are and quickly leads us to our Evas. When I ask her how the Evas are gonna run without power, she said for me not to worry about it. I put on my plugsuit and enter Unit-01. Somehow, I'm able to activate the mecha despite there not being any power in the Geofront. The other pilots activate their Evas as well while Misato gives us our orders. The Angel got into the Geofront and is crawling around the maintenance shafts. We have to chase after the Angel and kill it, obviously. We'll have to do so quickly, because we'll only have five minutes of power.

"Push off the restraints," orders Misato. I command my Eva to do just that as I prepare for launch. The pads use what little power they had left to launch me to a maintenance shaft. When there, I command my Eva to crawl inside. The area's the size of a jet hangar (perhaps even larger), but it's still too small for Unit-01. I have to force it crawl in order to get around. It's like I'm in the air vents again.

Asuka and Rei eventually join me, so we begin crawling to our destination. Asuka's complaining about having to crawl through something again, but it sounded more playful than anything else.

"Vertical shaft insight," reports Rei.

Asuka somehow crawls in front of Rei, kicks open the vent and climbs up the shaft. Rei climbs up next and I'm the last up. I dig my Evas fingers into the surrounding metal so it wouldn't fall. We all climb up a few stories, searching for our target.

"Are you sure the Angel's in here?" I ask no one in particular.

"This is where it was last detected," responds Rei.

"There it is!" reports Asuka.

I have to take her word for it because both her Eva and Rei's are blocking my view. Don't know how we're gonna fight the Angel in such an odd location.

I see something green drop on my Eva's left arm. As soon as the liquid made contact, a burning sensation radiated from that point. The pain wasn't overwhelming, but it was quite a shock.

"What is this stuff?!" asks Asuka, apparently hit by the same liquid.

"It's acid, don't let it touch you!" commands Rei.

"Crap!" says Asuka as more acid pours over Unit-02. It causes her to lose her grip, making her Eva to fall. The robot crashes into Unit-00 and is heading to me!

"Son of a-"

The impact nearly knocks the wind out of me! I lose my grip so we're all falling down a few stories. I manage to stop our descent by tearing into the walls to keep my grip.

"Crap! You guys are heavy!" I complain.

"There's more coming!" reports Rei.

"Get back in the vents!" commands Asuka.

Seeing no flaw in that plan, I swing myself into a vent. Asuka and Rei follow suite, and not a moment too soon. A cascade of green acid falls past the vent's entrance. When the stream stops, I take a peek out of the shaft. Looking down, I see there's a large hole in the ground. Next to the hole is all our rifles. We had to drop them so we could quickly get into the vent. Crap!

"It appears the Angel's primary method of attack is acid," states Rei.

"Oh! You don't say," Asuka responds sarcastically.

"This isn't the time for you to be a bitch," I admonish the redhead. "We need to find a way to kill the Angel."

I take a look at how much power the Eva has left. "And we need to do it fast. We have about three minutes of power left."

Everyone's quiet for a moment before Asuka speaks up. "I have an idea."

This should be good.

"There will be three positions," she explains. "Offense, Defense, and Support! Defense will protect Offense from an acid bath while Support retrieves a rifle from the bottom of the shaft. Support will then pass the rifle to Offense who will fire a volley at the Angel. Any questions?"

"More like concerns," I deadpan. "The rifle literally hasn't killed a single Angel so far. What makes you think this time will be any different?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

I say nothing. Despite me not liking this plan, I have none of my own.

"Just what I thought! I will be Defense, Rei will be Support and you will be Offense!"

She wants to be defense?! That's the most dangerous position! If I somehow screw up, it'll be Asuka who'll pay for it. Just because I don't like her doesn't mean I want her dead.

"You sure you don't want Rei for Offense and me for Su-"

"Stop overthinking things, we don't have all day!" she tells me firmly.

I pause for a moment then nod.

"Alright, let's go!" Unit-02 jumps out of the shaft and spreads its whole body to act as a shield between us and the Angel. I jump out and cling to the wall while Rei jumps to the bottom of the shaft to retrieve the rifles.

At this position, I got a better look at the Angel. It's not looking good. The creature's single eye begins pouring acid. The liquid hits Unit-02, creating steam.

"Aggg!" Asuka moans in pain.

"Rei! The rifle!" I call out to her.

At my call, Unit-00 tosses the rifle to my Eva and I command it to catch the weapon. With weapon in hand, I take a deep breath as I take aim.

"Move!" I command Asuka.

Unit-02 gets out of the way as I fire a few rounds into the Angel. Much to my surprise, the shots actually damaged the creature. I didn't stop shooting until the clip ran empty. The Angel shrivels up, signaling its death.

Unit-02 beings to fall but I catch the Eva, slowing its descent.

"There," starts Asuka. "Now we're even."

Even? What is she even talking abou-

. . .

Is she talking about the time I saved her from the volcano? She decided to defend me just to get even?"

"Wow," I let out a chuckle. "Dumbass."

Right after the mission ended, Misato decided to take me and the other pilots somewhere. She was in such a hurry to take us somewhere we didn't have time to change out of our plugsuits. Due to that, the smell of LCL permeated throughout Misato's vehicle. Anyway, Misato drove us across the city, but I fell asleep when I realized we were heading outside of Tokyo-3.

I feel something gently nudging me awake. I initially ignore it until the nudging continues. I grumpily open my eyes.

My head is lying on. . .something. Looking to my left slightly, my cheeks become red hot when I realize I'm sleeping on Rei's shoulder. How in the hell did that happen?! I wasn't that tired! Rei looks at me, but isn't the least bit disturbed by this situation. Dammit! She probably thinks it's normal for me to do this! Looking to the front of the car, I see Misato wearing an amused expression while Asuka only displaying annoyance.

"Come on love birds, we're here," says Misato.

I didn't even bother trying to defend myself. I just let out a defeated sigh and got out the car. What I saw nearly made me do a double take. We're all standing on a hill, overlooking a Tokyo-3 without power. This gives the stars a chance to shine. It's the clearest I've seen the night sky in a long time.

"Why did you bring us in the middle of nowhere?" Asuka asks Misato, not particularly impressed.

"Well, I thought it would be nice for you guys to get to see the city like this," Misato stares at the city with a smile on her face. "After all, it's not everyday you get a view like this."

I see Asuka's holding back her urge to roll her eyes as she thanks Misato for taking us out here. Misato goes back to the car, saying she needs to call someone. Meanwhile, she encourages us to enjoy the view.

We all lie on the ground, looking at the sky. There are so many stars out. I almost forgot the night could look this. . .beautiful. I'm so used to it being a bland black sky with dots of light that seeing more than one color is almost startling. Streams of blue and purple blend into the black sky. Stars, too numerous to count, almost cover every inch of the area. It's almost like I'm looking at a painting. Seeing the sky like this, is nearly overwhelming. I'm reminded of how small this world is compared to things on a universal scale. This planet is just dust compared to other things in the universe, and I'm less than that. I'm almost afraid that the sky will consume me somehow. I know that might sound silly, but I know there are others who feel the same way. Besides, awe is more prominent at this moment than fear. Heh, all these thoughts make me feel like a little kid.

"You know, the sky's actually nice to look at," admits Asuka.

"Yeah," I respond.

"Still, I prefer this place with the lights on," she says.

I'm slightly surprised by this. I tear my gaze away from the sky to look to Asuka. "Seriously?

She nods. "Don't get me wrong, the sky looks amazing. But without the city's lights, the place looks abandoned."

I nod as I look back to the sky. "Guess you're right about that."

"Man fears the darkness," Rei says out of the blue. "So he scrapes away at the edges of it with fire."

"Heh. Looks like 'Wondergirl's' also a philosopher," says Asuka. Though, she didn't seem to mean it as an insult.

"Did you make that up?" I ask Rei.

She nods.

"It's nice," I tell her. "Makes a person think."

I stare back at the sky, which brings up a memory. It was the only time I saw a night similar to this one. It was during a field trip in fourth grade. We were going to this place to see some giant telescope, and the people there, did a presentation at night. Since we were far from the nearest city, we were able to see the stars. The presenter pointed out the different constellation and helped us identify certain planets. Hell, there were telescopes located around the area, and the whole class were allowed to look through them. I remember being so happy when I was able to see Mars through a telescope. I know Shane would've enjoyed going there. Too bad he never got a chance to. Hey, maybe when I get back home, I can take him to a place similar to the one I went to. I don't know how I'll get him there, but I should try. I can already imagine how much fun we'll have there!

. . .

But. . .what if there's no way to get home?

The city lights come back on, blotting out the starlight.

"That's much better," says Asuka. "Looks like the power's back on."

I get up and start walking back to Misato's car.

"Where are you going?" asks Asuka.

"I'm gonna check on Misato," I tell her.

I also need to go back to Nerv. I need to take care of a few things.

When back at Nerv, me and the other pilots remove our plugsuits and take a shower. Afterward, I told Misato I wanted to stay here for a while. When she asked why, I simply told her I need to talk to Ritsuko about something. The captain bid me farewell, driving off with Asuka and Rei, taking them home. I begin my journey to Ritsuko's office. It's been a while since I've been there, so I have to walk around a bit before I clearly remembering its location.

I never liked Ritsuko. From day one she was only interested in treating me like a science experiment. So getting Misato to have the doctor to ease up on the testing was the greatest thing to happen to me at the time. Sure, the doc would stick a needle in me once in a while, but it wasn't as bad as the first few weeks of being here. Still, despite me not liking Ritsuko, I still need her help.

I finally find her office and hesitantly knock a few times on her door.

"It's open," says a tired voice.

Opening the door, I spot Ritsuko sitting at her desk, looking over a bunch of paperwork. Don't think she recognizes it's me so I cough loudly. She looks away from the stacks of paper and finally sees me.

"Oh! Michael! What an unexpected surprise."

"Yeah," I say while scratching the back of my head. "Don't get too excited, I'm only here because I need something."

"Well, take a seat," she gestures to a chair while smiling. As I take a seat she continues speaking. "So, what do you need?"

I shift my weight in the chair, almost too scared to ask. "I need to know if. . .if you found a way for me to get home."

The smile she had fades away. She takes off her reading glasses and lets out a sigh. "No. . .no I haven't."

I run my hand through my hair, something I do sometimes when nervous or frustrated.

"You need to understand how. . .unusual your situation is," the blonde explains. "Nothing like this has ever happened before. Inter-dimensional travel is still just a theory. The only physical prove that it's even possible is you. So finding a way for you to get home is a monumental task."

"So. . .you can't get me home?" I ask hesitantly.

"I didn't say that," she corrects me. "It will just take a while for me and other Nerv employees to make some progress on that front. But rest assured, my staff and I are doing the best we can to get you home."

I close my eyes as I breathe in deeply through my nose. "What do I need to do?"

My question causes her eyes to widen slightly. "What do you mean?"

"What do I need to do to hasten up the process?" I clarify. "There must be something about me which can give you a clue on getting me home? Some traces of energy in my body that only the machines can pick up, or something?"

Ritsuko puts on a thoughtful expression. "Perhaps."

"Then tell me what I need to do," I tell her. "You need hair, saliva or whatever, I'll do it! I'll participate in whatever test you got for me, just as long as it brings me closer to home!"

She pauses for a moment. "Are you sure?"

I nod.

A smile slowly makes its way onto her face. "Well, there are a few tests you could do to help me learn more about you. Meet me in the lab in around. . .five minutes."

I nod and she leaves the office. I let out a long sigh as I prepare myself for what's yet to come.

Let's get this over with.

Author's Notes: Computer: Why did it take you more than two weeks to finish this chapter? You were already halfway done with it in two days.

Me: Sorry, just had an existential crisis and spent most of my time soul searching.

Computer: Really? That's what you're going with?

Me: . . .

Computer: You just got lazy didn't you?

Me: No!

Computer: Is this gonna be a regular thing, you and I?

Me: Naw, just got bored.

Computer: Good, cause I do not wish to be associated with a crazy person.

Me: Eh?!

Computer: You're literally talking to your computer.

Me: Fuck you! You're the one who's crazy!

Computer: . . .

Me: Now you're just being childish.

Computer: [says nothing for it's an inanimate object]

Me: Don't bring my mother into this! ! !

Anyway, I'm finally done with chapter 10! I honestly didn't know how I was gonna make walking to the Geofront interesting, but I believe I managed to do so. Don't got much to say because my brain is fried for some reason. Don't ask me why, I honestly couldn't tell you. As for the guessing game for chapter 9, Thomas Drovin once again got the correct answer. I'm gonna try to make names of the bands and songs harder to guess as the story continues. Why? Because I demand entertainment! God, my brain is so fried! I think I'm starting to ramble.

Chapter 10 Hint: This band's initials are BB. They're known for their post-grunge and alternative-metal musical styles. The name of the song's in the title of this chapter.

Next chapter should appear in a month. I'm gonna fall asleep now.