SURPRISE UPDATE!
This chapter was unfortunately the subject of another "Writer fatigue and got cut in half." It seems that 6000 words or more is my limit, there are times when I can do more of that but I have been busy with work and renovations on my floor and front porch.
Also as some of you may have noticed, I put Wrath of the Ultrabots and Gun Sonata on hiatus due to the aforementioned problems above and my slow pacing of writing. I honestly don't know when I'll get back to them, there's just so many things going on in my life. But this does not mean I have given up writing; I will get back to them eventually along with my Killing Bites/Hulk crossover.
Review Time!
StrongGuy159: Don't worry, this train ain't stopping!
Gojira Geek: No worries, I understand.
ChimaTigon: Very soon. Gamer will be featured and will be based on his 2016 version wich unfortunately never came to be.
Junior VB: They were stolen by drones that serve Rhizon, an extraterrestrial villain featured in Godzilla: Rulers of Earth.
Thanks. Those two have some good chemistry with each other, more so in this fic.
It will be a while but you will get it eventually!
Edboy4926: Thanks!
Hmmmmm…
That sounds plausible! We'll never know until the movie comes out, I cant wait!
Hercules8: Much appreciated, I think I made the right choice with going for Rhizon.
Harbinger of Kaos: Big yes to Space G and Orga! Sadly, I have no plans to add in Jet Jaguar or Ultraman. Gamera will be in this story, however!
Mythfan: Can't wait!
Captain Titus Invictus: Maybe, maybe not and yeah, Ritsuko's gonna eat her words when she sees the rest of them.
Quintain Apprentince of Alduin: Request accepted! Just let me think on what I want him to be featured as…
Kaiju Alpha: Nope, only Rhizon is in this fic.
G-Matt: It's REALLY good, believe me. Thanks you for the compliment, more history between them will be revealed in the future.
Gunman: You nailed the movie references! Thank you and great job!
NewbieRead13: I'm happy you discovered my story and enjoyed it but there will be no Ultraman.
Guest #1: You imagine whichever one you want, it's totally cool.
RaptorRapist: Thank you very much and I kinda went with Keith David.
Bzerk Red Hexx: Your compliments are very much appreciated!
Tardisdr323: Glad you think he's a badass, I'm using the Neo version of Gigan, and Titanosaurus and Gorgo will be featured!
Depredador: Thank you so much for the kind words and Rei will be a heavy focus in the next two chapters.
Optimisum Primus: Yes! He will be based on an older version of his Skull Island incarnation, maybe the one we'll get in Godzilla vs King Kong. Oh, I totally believe you!
Jiy: It can be a little annoying but hey, what're you gonna do?
Thunder Dragon: Easy, tiger. It'll happen soon!
Yikety566: Glad to see we share the same opinion.
Tto8: Interesting but probably won't happen.
Gold1992: Great to hear from you again! Your comments are always so helpful and hilarious! The Ace venture Reference was when Ishikawa sked for the password from Togusa.
Exactly. The designs and concepts are amazing but when it has to be in a movie format, there's not much time to go over every single one. I think if they converted it to an anime series with traditional 2D animation with very little CGI like the Attack on Titan anime, we would've had a much better Godzilla anime.
Godzilla and Evangelion belong to their respective owners. I do not own either of them.
Chapter 16
Rei Ayanami
NERV- ACTIVATION TEST CHAMBER
3 MONTHS EARLIER
Within a massive, stark-white room lined with metal padding on every corner stood the imposing form of Unit-00. The cyclopean Eva was bolted to the wall with high-tech locking clamps holding it in place. Across from it was an observation booth with orange tinted windows, housing several Nerv technicians working at their consoles as well as Gendo, Fuyutsuki, Ritsuko and Maya.
The Commander stared at the Eva for a few seconds before pushing up his glasses. "Commence Activation."
Ritsuko, Maya and the others immediately went to work while announcing different procedures.
"Connecting main power to all circuits."
"Main power supply connected. Commencing activation system."
A hum echoed through the chamber as the top part of Unit-00's head began to glow an emerald color.
"Activation voltage is approaching critical level. 0.5, 0.2. Rising."
"Begin the second phase of the activation system."
"Pilot has begun link-up."
"Start system Phase 2."
"Synapses inserted. Junctions connecting."
"Transmitting pulse. All circuits are operational."
"No problems with initial contact."
Gendo and Fuyutsuki stared at the Eva expressionlessly.
"Power supplied to brachial muscles in both arms."
The arms began to glow green as well.
"All nerve links checking out normal. Check list satisfactory up to 2550."
The head of Unit-00 slowly looked up to the booth, as if it was looking at them. Gendo stared back.
"Prepare for third stage connection."
"Clear up to 2580. Counting down to the absolute Borderline. 0.9…0.7…0.5…0.4…0.3-"
KIZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZTTTT
The monitors began to short out as warning notifications appeared on them and sirens sounded throughout the room!
"The pulses are flowing backward!"
"HRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRNNNNNNNNGGGGGGGGGGG!" The Eva moaned as it thrashed around, attempting to wrest itself away from the bindings.
"Somethings wrong in the third state! Rejection occurring in the nerve center elements!"
Unit-00 began to pull itself harder and harder from the clamps as the wall behind it began to crack. It wouldn't be long before the out of control Evangelion would free itself!
"Cease contact! Break all circuits through number six!" Ritsuko shouted to Maya.
"I can't! The signal's not being received!" Maya replied, sweat running down her face.
"HRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGG!"
SKKKKRRRRRRRRRRRUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCHHHHHKKKKK
With a mighty heave the Eva tore itself free from its shackles, ripping the clamps straight out of the wall!
"RRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" It howled as it grabbed the sides of its head in apparent agony.
"Unit-00 is out of control!" Maya exclaimed in terror.
"Abort the experiment! Shut off the power supply!" Gendo ordered.
"Yes, sir!" Ritsuko ran towards the emergency shutdown panel, smashed the glass with her bare fist and yanked back on the red handle. The Umbilical Cable dislodged itself from the back of Unit-00 and the Eva stopped instantaneously, standing still like a giant statue. A minute passed and the occupants within the booth breathed a sigh of relief.
"OWWWWWAAARRRRGGGG!" Their relief was cut short when the Eva suddenly started moving again, this time making a beeline right towards them!
"Unit-00 has switched to back up power!" Maya panicked as everyone, sans Gendo, started to frantically back away from the windows.
"35 seconds until it comes to a complete stop!" Another technician announced as Unit-00 began punching the side of its head, visibly denting its helmet. But then it focused its fury on the observation booth as it began to viscously hammer away at the windows! The reinforced glass provided little resistance as they bended inwards and finally shattered, sending orange tinted shards flying across the room. Everyone ducked behind their consoles to avoid the broken glass but Gendo stood rooted to where he stood, miraculously unharmed!
"Ikari, it's too dangerous! Get back!" Fuyutsuki warned but Gendo ignored him.
"NYYRRRRRAAAAARRRRRRR!" Unit-00 bellowed as it stopped punching the glass and gripped its head once again. Suddenly, it's back opened up and the Entry Plug began to automatically unscrew itself from the Eva.
"The automatic ejection system is activating!" Maya read on her console.
"NO!" Gendo shouted as his stoic demeanor crumbled. But it was too late as the plug rocketed out of the Unit-00's back and slammed right into the ceiling! It didn't stop there as it's propulsion system caused it to scrape along the ceiling until it smashed into the other end of the wall and finally lodged itself into a corner.
As the berserk Eva stumbled around, an announcement system began to countdown to Unit-00's automatic shutdown. Seeing that the Eva was no longer attacking them, Ritsuko turned to the technicians and shouted, "Activate the Bakelite countermeasures, hurry!"
It was at that moment that the fuel for the Entry Plug's propulsion system finally ran out and the plug plummeted to the floor!
"REI!" Gendo exclaimed in horror. The plug slammed to the ground as Gendo bolted out of the room. When he left, several ports all around the walls of the chamber began opening up to reveal small nozzles that started to douse Unit-00's legs with a red colored adhesive gel. The effect was immediate; the Bakelite dried up quicker than cement and completely glued the Evangelion right on the spot. But this only served to enrage Unit-00 further as it began smashing the walls with its fists and then started to use the pointed end of its helmet to peck away at the nozzles like a woodpecker on PCP! The announcement system finally counted down to zero and the Eva powered down, its rampage brought to a grinding halt as it froze.
At that time, Gendo ran into the room towards the Entry Plug while avoiding the growing pool of hardened Bakelite. He spotted the hatch and grabbed the handles to open it-
TSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS
Gendo grunted in pain as the sensation of touching white-hot steel burned his hands, causing him to jerk them away and drop his glasses which broke as they clattered to the ground. But that didn't stop him and he tightly gripped the handles and turned them with all of his might while ignoring the searing pain in his hands as well as the smell of cooked flesh!
Gritting his teeth, Gendo finally opened the hatch but was met with a torrent of LCL into his face which knocked him down on the ground. He quickly got up and looked into the plug to see the horribly battered form of Rei. She was bleeding heavily from the side of her head; her left eye was bloodied and her right arm hung limply. He clambered into the plug, waded through the LCL and carefully cradled Rei's body.
"Rei! Are you okay?!" Gendo pleaded. The girl creaked open her other eye and looked up at him. She wearily nodded. Gendo smiled in relief and sympathy, an act which was shockingly rare for him. "Good."
The Commander climbed out of the Entry plug with Rei in his arms as emergency medicals crews entered the room with first aid kits and a stretcher. Ritsuko was busy checking up on Maya since the poor girl was rattled by what happened and was on the verge of tears. After calming her down, Ritsuko went over to the broken window and watched Gendo accompany the medical team with Rei laid across a stretcher.
ACTIVATION TEST CHAMBER-PRESENT DAY
Looking back on that day, Ritsuko was thankful that Misato wasn't there to see any of that.
The head of Project E was in the observation booth, looking out the still-shattered windows as workers repaired the room and the computers. More workers were located in the chamber, spraying the Bakelite around Unit-00's legs with a specialized retardant designed to melt it. The Eva still remained frozen in an aggressive posture while the black cross remained slotted into its back. Ritsuko noted that the Eva hadn't budged an inch since the rod was installed and that was a good thing. But there was something else on her mind.
Ever since she revisited this area to oversee the recovery of Unit-00, the same thought she had a few days after that incident came back to gnaw away at her brain. Why did the Eva go berserk? Rei was brought up since birth to become the perfect Eva pilot so what went wrong? There weren't any abnormalities in Rei's brainwaves so that ruled out the possibility of mental instability.
She looked at Unit-00 and began to wonder if the problem came from the Eva itself…
NERV-ANGEL DISPOSAL AREA
2 DAYS LATER
Shinji stared down as the barbequed remains of the 4th Angel from a gantry above it. Several workers and scientist below worked around the corpse, taking samples from it and the like. It was a fairly large, hanger-esque area with other gantries and booths located above the remains. Shinji was in his usual attire but had a white hardhat on his head and wore a gasmask. Misato came over to him, wearing a black t shirt and orange cargo pants. She wore a hardhat and gasmask as well.
"I gotta tell ya, the MSC really knows how to clean house with the Angels." Misato commented.
"I like to think he's thorough." Shinji added. "So how exactly do we dispose of the body?"
"We use the same method like we used for the last Angel: acid. Lots and lots of acid." Misato answered.
"Really?"
"Yup. Once we clear everybody out of here, we flood the whole room with a metric gallon of boric and sulfuric acid and the whole thing is dissolved in no time flat."
"Huh. I dint think it would be that simple."
"I thought the same thing when I first heard it. Come on, let's go see if Ritsuko found out any new info on the Angels."
They headed over to a booth were Ritsuko was busy working on a computer with a mug of coffee in her free hand. The automatic door opened and the two of them stepped inside, taking off their gasmasks when it closed behind them.
"Whew! That's much better." Misato breathed in relief as she hung her mask on a nearby rack.
"I'm guessing they smell bad when they're dead?" Shinji guessed he pointed his thumb over to the dead Angel outside the booth window.
"God, if you only knew." Misato mumbled as she shook her head. "So, Rits, any news?"
Ritsuko shook her head. "We scanned the 4th Angel's blood samples and we didn't get much in terms of information." She pressed a key on her computer and the screen showed-
60 1
"Soooooooo….what does this mean?" Shinji asked, raising an eyebrow as Misato shared the same look of confusion.
"That's the code number for 'cannot be analyzed.'" Ritsuko informed.
"You mean we haven't been able to find out anything?" Misato dismayed.
"Unfortunately, no." Ritsuko sighed. "Until we have a perfectly intact sample of an Angel, we're not learning anything about them any time soon."
Misato stared at the screen in disappointment. She was really hoping that they would find something to learn from the Angels after the MSC's blood had been stolen. "Have we literally tried everything to analyze its blood?" Misato asked.
"Well, we started off with a rather simple procedure…" Ritsuko began as she explained how her team used different methods to study the samples. Misato was absorbing the info given to her while Shinji seemed to space out a little, finding it hard to keep up with Ritsuko's technobabble.
That's when he noticed Gendo, along with Fuyutsuki and another scientist, walk past the booth window. Shinji watched them head down the other side of the gantry where another scientist was pushing a cart that had a slab of some dark red material that had been noticeably singed. Seeing as how it had an almost gem-like sheen to it, Shinji presumed that it was most likely what remained of the 4th Angel's S2 Engine. Gendo and Fuyutsuki began to inspect it with Gendo taking off his gloves and feeling the core. He rubbed some of the material between his fingertips and merely flicked it away. Motioning the scientists to take away the sample, he turned his head to converse with Fuyutsuki and folded his hands behind his back. To Shinji's shock, he saw horrific burn wounds on his palms! He couldn't help but keep his gaze locked onto the sight of horribly marred skin on his father's hands.
"Something wrong, Shinji?" Misato asked out of the blue, causing Shinji to jump a little.
Startled, Shinji instantly whirled around and hastily replied, "Uh, nothing!"
Misato narrowed her eyes at him suspiciously. "You do know that when you say 'nothing' that way, it's the same as asking others to pay attention to you?"
Shinji blinked. "Well I certainly didn't mean it to sound like that but…" He looked behind him to see his father and Fuyutsuki walk away before turning back to Misato. "Are you aware that my dad has some nasty looking burns on his hands?"
"Burns? On his hands?" Misato repeated.
"Yeah, like he stuck them in a fireplace or something. What happened?"
"I can answer that." Ritsuko said, getting up from her computer. "I take it you've no doubt heard of the incident with Unit-00?"
"The one where Rei was injured in? Yeah." He answered.
"Rei was trapped inside the Entry Plug when the Eva went berserk. It was Commander Ikari who rescued her. Your father opened up a super-heated hat with his bare hands to rescue her." Ritsuko told him.
"He really did that?" Misato gasped in amazement.
"He seriously did that?" Shinji incredulously asked.
Ritsuko held up her hands." I know this all seems very hard to believe, given your history between you and Gendo, but I saw it happen before my eyes."
Shinji was left completely speechless. His father suffered near 3rd Degree burns just to save Rei? But why? The man was an uncaring jerk who disappeared from his life for ten years so why would he go out of his way just to rescue someone? It didn't make sense!
"Anyhow, we have a synchronization test soon so you should probably go get changed." Ritsuko informed, bringing him back to reality.
"R-right." He replied as he put his gasmask back on and headed out the door. "And hey, don't feel too bad about the Angel's blood samples. There was some leftover from the MSC so we should be able to get some info on him." He encouraged as he left.
Misato and Ritsuko were left with uncomfortable expressions.
"Did you tell him about what happened?"
"Not yet. I don't think he should know about the deaths but eventually he'll have to know."
NERV-EVA CAGES
1 HOUR LATER
"Great work as usual Shinji. Your synchronization rate was stable with no fluctuations. We'll wrap this up for today."
"Roger that, Doc."
Shinji opened up his holographic menu and began to activate the manual shutdown procedure for Unit-01. It had been another successful synchronization test with no hiccups at all, something that he was thankful for since he was had gotten the hang of it a while ago. He was just about to turn his Eva off for today when he saw something in the Evangelion's vision. He could see Rei and his father talking to each other in front of Unit-00 and, letting his curiosity get the best of him, activated his Eva's magnification function and zoomed in on the two.
What he saw made his jaw drop.
The two of them were smiling as they talked. But more importantly, Gendo was smiling. It was the most surreal thing he had ever witnessed in his entire life. His father never smiled. For as long as he could remember, Shinji never once saw his father so much as crack a grin. Yet here he was, witnessing the impossible. One other thing he took into account was that Rei was smiling too, the first time he saw her express different emotions other than that completely vacant look she had 90% of the time. But why did they look so happy together?
Shinji leaned back in his seat as he stared at them in confusion. What in blazes was going on?
"Shinji? Is everything okay in there?" He heard Misato ask over the comlink.
"Just doing some last minute checkups before I shut er' down for today." Shinji said as he went back to his screen and activated the shutdown. The Eva powered down and his plug began to automatically unscrew itself from the Eva.
The hatch opened and Shinji climbed out, spitting out the LCL in his mouth. He looked over his shoulder just in time to see Rei and Gendo walk out of the Eva Cages together.
TOKYO-3 JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL-SPORTS FIELD
THE NEXT DAY
The hot, eternal summer sun shone down on the school grounds as several classes participated in outdoor sports. The back of the school had a track and field course as well as a basketball court right next to it. On an elevated hill, near the track and partially obscured by trees, there was a pool area that was currently used by the girls.
Shinji sat on the grass outside the rack for a breather after he and the other boys did several laps. They were all dressed in their gym clothes and resting underneath the shade of the trees. Shinji lid back on the grass, enjoying the cool breeze and the chirping of nearby birds-
"Kyaaaa! They're looking at us!
"Perverts!"
"They're so dirty!"
"Touji, you moron!" He heard Hikari shout.
Shinji looked to his left to see the boys, his friends included, gawking up at the girls who were in the pool area on the upper left side of the track and field. Shinji shook his head at them in disapproval and looked the other way. Didn't these idiots know the first thing about decency or respect?
"Hey, Shin-man! You're missing the show! What's up?" Touji called to him as he and Kensuke scooted up closer.
"I'd rather not be labeled as a lecher for the rest of the school year, thank you very much." Shinji said, matter-of-factly as he continued to look away from the pool area. He didn't want to offend the girls.
"Aw, c'mon! You know you wanna have a look at their thighs!" Kensuke pressured.
"And their sweet legs!" Touji added, blushing at the thought.
"Not to mention their soft, round-"Kensuke and Touji's ramblings were abruptly cut short and Shinji shot them a deadly glare.
"I will break my foot off in both of your asses. Keep it in your pants." He warned in a no-nonsense tone.
The pair nodded in terror and scooted away, deciding to keep their eyes glued to the school in front of them. They saw what Shinji was capable of in an Eva; they did NOT want to see what he could do out of it.
Up near the swimming area, as the girls were gossiping about how shy Shinji was, Rei had sat in the exact same spot with her back up against the fence. She slowly looked down at the field just in time to see the students run laps around the track, her eyes solely focused on Shinji.
What she didn't know was that Mayumi was looking at her from the other side of the pool as well…
TOKYO-3 OUTSKIRTS-MISATO'S APARTMENT
SEVERAL HOURS LATER
"You didn't add anything else into the mix at all?"
"Cut me slack, I read the instructions down to the letter."
It was around dinnertime when Ritsuko stopped by for a visit while Shinji was teaching Misato how to cook Shogayaki. Seeing this as her one chance to prove to Ritsuko that she truly was learning how to cook, opted to cook the meal for her. The scientist was admittedly very hesitant to try, given the fact that Misato had a near obsessive desire to add curry into anything remotely edible, not to mention that she was a terrible cook. But since Shinji had more experience and he was teaching her how to properly make a meal, then maybe it wouldn't turn out so bad.
Now she sat with Shinji and Misato, the trio all dressed in casual wear, looking down at the steaming bowl of thin pork slices dressed in ginger with a serving of hot rice and shredded cabbage. Picking up a slice with her chopsticks, Ritsuko was about to take a bite when she noticed the look Misato had. She had her eyes glued to the table with a sheepish look as she twiddled her thumbs with a light blush forming on her cheeks. Ritsuko could understand why since Misato had mainly subsisted on those abominable TV Dinners for nearly her whole life and this was her first time cooking.
Not wanting to keep her in suspense any longer, Ritsuko ate the slice and chewed for several seconds. Her eyes widened.
"This is…"
"Terrible?"
"Great! This is actually edible!" Ritsuko said enthusiastically.
"Really? For real?"
"I mean it. And coming from me, that's saying a lot." Ritsuko answered as she went for another bite.
Breathing a sigh of relief, Misato bushed as she rubbed the back of her head. "Well, I can't take all of the credit. Shinji helped out."
"Actually, I helped out a little; you were able to catch on to the rest and did it yourself." Shinji complimented. "By the looks of it, it came out great."
"You guys have no idea how much this means to me." Misato said with heartfelt smile.
"I can say without a doubt that you've really turned everything around here, Shinji" Ritsuko said to him as she ate her meal.
"Pretty much. I don't think I would want to imagine what would happen if I moved out of here." Shinji joked, inciting a worried look from Misato.
"Please don't!" She begged while shaking her head. "It would be hard enough with all the red tape you would have to go through. You just got your permanent security card in the mail, you know."
"Oh, I almost forgot!" Ritsuko remembered as she stopped eating her Shogayaki and began to search around insider her purse. "Shinji, could you do me a favor?"
"Sure. What is it?"
She handed Shinji an ID card with Rei's portrait photo on it. "This is Rei's renewed security card. I keep forgetting to give this to her. Is there any way you could deliver it to her at headquarters tomorrow?"
"I have school tomorrow but I should be able to give to her when I see her in class."
"About that, she has a checkup at headquarters so she'll be out. But she does get out around the same time school ends so you might be able to meet with her then. Her address should be on the card."
"No problem, Doc. I'll make sure she gets it." Shinji assured her as he looked at Rei's picture.
Misato grinned mischievously. "Well now, looks who's playing the role of the gallant knight!"
"What?!"
"I see the way you're looking at her. You're infatuated, aren't you? Luckily you got an official excuse to go Rei's place now." Misato snickered.
"Will you stop teasing me already?" Shinji huffed.
"I can't help it! You always go ballistic when I do." Misato answered.
"Same thing you did to me when we were in college." Ritsuko sighed dismissively.
Misato laughed nervously before noticing her beer can was empty. "Shinji, be a dear and get me another beer, won't you?"
"No."
"What?!"
"You had 5 cans today already, you're tapped out."
"Awwwwwwww! Don't be like thaaaaaaat!" She moaned as she slumped over the table.
"You know, I just find it a little bit strange that I know so little about Ayanami even though we're both Eva pilots." Shinji remarked as he looked at the card again.
"She's a very nice girl but she's like your father." Ritsuko said while brushing aside her hair. "She's not very adept at…"
"Not adept at what?"
"…Living."
TOKYO-3 JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL
THE NEXT DAY
Shinji took his book bag out of his locker as students walked through the halls to go home. He dug out Rei's security card and looked at the address imprinted on it. It would probably just be a simple walk over to her place, give her the card and maybe learn a little bit more about her. But Ritsuko's words about Rei from yesterday kept bugging him.
Not adept at living? What on earth did that mean? But the biggest puzzler was her relationship with Gendo. Why were they so happy tighter? Either way, he wasn't going to get his answers by just standing around. It was time to go to Rei's and maybe get some mysteries solved.
"Yo Shinji! You wanna hit the arcade?" Touji greeted as he and Kensuke came up to him.
"Sorry, man. I gotta hand this over to Rei." He said as he held up her card.
"Ayanami? You're heading over to her place?" Hikari inquired, who just so happened to be passing by.
"Yeah, its Nerv related business." Shinji replied with a shrug.
"Really? Can we come too?!" Kensuke eagerly asked.
"You just want to know more about the Nerv and the Evas, don't you?" Shinji rolled his eyes.
"What? No….okay maybe a little." Kensuke admitted.
"Typical." Touji dryly commented.
"Acutally, that sounds like a good idea." Hikari agreed. Shinji and Touji looked at her with confusion; Kensuke had a huge smile on his face. "No, no, that's not what I meant." She corrected.
"What I meant is that we should all go over. That poor girl doesn't have anybody to talk to, nor has she even tried to. I think we should at least get her to open up and maybe interact with other students more." Hikari suggested.
"You bring up a good point." Shinji nodded as he turned to Touji. "You mentioned before that the first time she ever spoke to us was right before the Angel incident weeks ago, right?"
"Yeah, the only time she ever did speak was when she introduced herself to the class when she first came here. Our classmates have tried to talk to her since then but they pretty much gave up when they could barely get anything out of her." Touji explained.
"Everyone just figured she wasn't the talkative type and just left her alone. There was just something about her that made it hard to strike up a conversation with her." Kensuke guessed.
"Misato did say that she's socially awkward…" Shinji thought back.
"I feel so bad that i wasn't able to help her out sooner. That's why I think we should all meet and get to know her better. After all…" She looked around to see if anybody was listening in on them before continuing. "We are the only ones in this school who know she's an Eva pilot."
"I can't see any way I can object to that idea. We'll get her to see she's not completely alone in life. What do you guys say?" Shinji agreed, looking towards Touji and Kensuke.
"I'll text my dad that I'll be home a little late to help you out with something. He won't mind." Touji assured him.
"Same for my dad too. Count me in!" Kensuke said.
"I'll do the same with my sisters." Hikari added.
"Alright then!" Shinji declared with a clap from his hands. "Let's go over to Rei's place and have a friendly chat."
Hikari nodded but then she saw her classmate Mayumi walking down the hallway they were in. "Could you give me a second?" She told the boys as she went over to her. "Hey ,Mayumi? Something came up and I don't think I'll be able to print out copies for our school news pamphlets today. Is there any way you could make the copies?"
"Oh, of course! In fact, I think I have the pamphlet right here…" She said as she began to dig around in her backpack. As she did, a science fiction novel fell out and slid across the floor to Kensuke, who picked it up.
"Oh, you dropped this-"That's when he saw that the book he was holding had been autographed by someone he knew very well. "Oh. My. God. You met ADAM SHADOWCHILD!?"
Mayumi looked like a deer in the headlights as she blushed heavily.
"Kensuke!" Hikari scolded.
"Wait, who the hell is Adam Shadowchild?" Touji asked, confused.
Kensuke looked at him incredulously. "Adam Shadowchild? Greatest science fiction writer in recent history? 10-time winner of the Hugo Award and 8-time winner of the Nebula Awards? Wrote Jupiter Praxus? Jenny Starpepper and the Huge White Gibbon? Night of the Moths? The Sky Farm trilogy? The Venusian Pragenesis? Moon Whisperer? Prison Hulk 441? Planet Fall: Book 3: Fluxing Uranus? The Robot's Mistress? Broadside at Cassiopeia?"
Touji looked at him in bewilderment.
"I swear he's not using real words." Shinji said to Touji as he shook his head.
Ignoring Shinji, Kensuke zipped up to Mayumi who was now as red as a tomato. "What was he like?! Was he mysterious and cool-headed?! How many of his works did you read?!"
"I-i-i-i-i-i!" Mayumi stammered. She suddenly swiped the book out of Kensuke's hands and bowed. "Pleaseexcuseme!" She squeaked as she bolted the other way down the hall, leaving Kensuke confused.
"Smooth. Real smooth." Hikari said sarcastically.
TOKYO-3 SLUMS
"This can't be right…" Shinji muttered, looking at the address on Rei's security card.
He, along with his friends, had to ask for directions to where her residence was. Some people gave them what they needed but seemed hesitant to do so, with one warning them not to go near that area. Thirty minutes later, they could see why.
The district they were looking at could best be described as "The Bad Side of Town." Before them was a long row of gray, dilapidated apartment buildings that all looked the same, along with overgrown grass popping up between the unkempt sidewalks, litter blowing around in the streets and the sounds of heavy construction equipment loudly demolishing one of the apartments in the distance.
"Rei lives here?" Hikari observed incredulously.
"Are you sure you got that address right?" Touji asked Shinji.
"Pretty sure. The address is right here but I'm starting to have my doubts." Shinji admitted as he pointed to the card.
"But why would an Eva pilot like her live in this dump?" Kensuke pondered.
"Only one way to find out." Shinji said as he and the others walked through the slums. As they went through the derelict streets, they became more and more unnerved by the deplorable state of the area. Garbage bags were piled on top of each other on street corners, abandoned or stripped down cars were left in perpetually vacant parking lots, traffic lights flickered sporadically, hobos rummaged around in garbage cans, drug dealers kept a lookout for potential customers and shady-looking hoodlums camped out in alleyways while giving anyone who passed by a surly glare.
"This is messed up, man. This is so messed up." Kensuke said fearfully as he tried to avoid eye contact with anybody who looked their way. Touji discreetly positioned himself near Hikari in case anything bad happened. Shinji followed the street signs as best as he could but since most of them were almost completely rusted over, it was difficult.
Finally, they came upon Rei's apartment complex which looked just as rundown as every other apartment. Hikari shook her head. "Shinji, there has to be a mistake. Nobody would ever live in there! This building was clearly meant to be condemned a long time ago!"
"I gotta side with Hikari on this one, man." Touji agreed, pointing his thumb at the apartment. "This place is obviously a friggin crack house."
"Maybe Nerv screwed up on her address?" Kensuke suggested.
"Guys, I'm just as confused and shocked as you are but if Rei does live here, then we're going to do everything we can to get her out of this place." Shinji affirmed. "I don't know why she lives here but I'm going to find out."
They entered the main lobby and were greeted with the sight of dust everywhere, cracks in the walls, the ceiling caving in and a homeless man sleeping under a slab of cardboard. Shinji looked at the card again before speaking. "Okay, she's on the 6th floor so we're gonna have to take the elevator."
They went over to the elevator and Touji pressed the call button but nothing happened. Touji pressed the button again but still nothing. It was clear that the elevator was out of order and there was no electricity supplied to the building.
"Looks like we're taking the stairs." Touji sighed. And so the group began the begrudging task of climbing up six flights of stairs and well as seeing mounting evidence that this place was unsafe for Rei. The windows were broken, the walls were dirty, exposed wires dangled from the ceiling, used needles lying about the stairs and signs on doors that said, "UNFIT FOR HABITATION."
After several minutes, they finally arrived at the 6th floor and began to search for Rei's apartment room. They finally came upon her room, labeled 402 with her name next to it. Touji noticed that her mail slot was overflowing with mail to the point it spilled out on the ground.
"Doesn't she even bother to check her mail?" Touji commented.
Shinji picked up a bundle on the ground an observed them. "No need. Most of this is junk mail."
"Her parents better have a good excuse for having to live in this hovel." Hikari fumed.
"Let's just focus on helping out Rei, 'kay?" Kensuke calmed Hikari down. Shinji pressed the doorbell button but there was no chime. He tried again and it became apparent that it was busted just like the elevator. He knocked on the door but when he did, the door opened slightly.
"Is the lock busted?" Touji asked, somewhat worried that Rei's apartment had been broken into.
Shinji checked the lock. "It's not broken, she forgot to lock it."
"Doesn't she even realize the kind of neighborhood she lives in?!" Hikari exasperated. Shinji opened the door and was appalled by what he saw. The room they were in was dimly lit and dusty. There was a sink and stove on the left wall but they were terribly rusted. There was also a small room on the right side but was covered up by filthy-looking drapes.
"Good God…this is horrible!" Shinji gasped as he looked at his surroundings. Touji, Kensuke and Hikari were just as stunned as Shinji. How long had Rei been living like this?! Hikari looked down to her right and saw Rei's shoes; an indication that she was home.
"Hello? Rei? Are you home?" Hikari called out. No answer. They took off their shoes and slowly walked through the room towards the adjacent one across from them. Kensuke looked at the drab, concrete walls and noticed multiple green blotches on them.
"Geez, the painters didn't even bother to do the rest of the walls. They just left it unfinished!" He scoffed.
Touji took a closer look and wrinkled his nose. "I think that's mold, Ken."
Kensuke instantly backed away from the wall in disgust. They finally entered the main room and it was not an improvement in the slightest. There was only a single bed in the left corner of the room with a cardboard box sitting next to it. It didn't look very comfortable at all. To the right was a small dresser with assorted items on top, a mini fridge and several bags of garbage next to it. The only source of light came from the window with its blinds closed. There was no overhead light.
Shinji saw a closet next to the entrance of the room and looked inside to see that it was filled with her school uniforms and nothing else. It was all she had to wear. Kensuke looked into the cardboard box next to Rei's bed and recoiled when he saw bloodied bandages within it. Touji went over to the fridge and looked inside to see that it was completely empty.
Everyone stood in silence as they took all of this in. To live in such squalid conditions…it was inhuman. Judging from how sparse and cramped it was, Rei lived all alone by herself and did not live with her parents.
Hikari felt tears welling up in her eyes as she sniffled, garnering the attention of the boys. "Why? Why is she living all alone like this?! Why didn't she tell us anything about this?!"
"Hikari there was no way we could've known that she was living like this!" Shinji reasoned. "She never spoke to anybody so how could we have known? For now we should focus on finding-WOAH!"
Touji, Kensuke and Hikari turned around to see Rei…completely nude.
Rei, having just gotten out of the shower, had a brown towel dropped round her shoulders that was too small to cover anything else; she didn't even bother to cover herself up at all, just opting to stare at the group blankly.
Hikari gasped, Shinji quickly turned around while Touji and Kensuke stared slack jawed with thin lines of blood coming from their nostrils.
"STOP LOOKING YOU PERVERTS!" Hikari shouted as she clonked the two of them over the head, forcing them to turn around. She frantically ran over to Rei's bed and grabbed her clothes.
"Rei, we're sorry, we are so sorry!" Shinji pleaded as he continued to look away. "We didn't know you were home, we're sorry!"
"What he said!" Touji and Kensuke blurted out as they nursed the lumps on their heads.
Hikari handed Rei her clothes. "We're so sorry for this intrusion, Ms. Ayanami. We'll wait out here while you go get changed-"
Rei took the cloths but instead of going into the bathroom to change, she began to put on her clothes right there and now. Hikari was left confused and a little uncomfortable. Wasn't Rei even the slightest bit embarrassed?
Rei finally put the rest of her cloths on and Hikari tapped Shinji on the shoulder to let him know it was okay to look now. Shinji fumbled around in his pocket and got out Rei's security card. "Uh…This is your renewed security card. Dr. Akagi kept forgetting about it to you so she asked me to give it to you."
Rei took the card and deposited it in her pocket without saying a word. She made her way to the fridge and looked inside.
"So are you…um...okay?" Touji hesitantly asked, unsure if the albino was angry or not.
"I am fine." She replied without a hint of emotion. After looking at the sparse interior of the fridge, she closed the door and went over to her dresser to get her wallet. "I am out of food. I must reacquire more." Without even looking at the others, she started to walk over to the entrance. The others were left confused as to what to do about Rei's disturbing emotional detachment to…pretty much everything.
"Rei, wait!" Shinji called out. Rei stopped and turned around to face him. "Rei, do you seriously live here?"
"This is my current domicile, yes." Rei confirmed.
"Rei, this is no way to live!" Hikari exclaimed, hoping to get through to Rei.
"Why?" She replied emotionlessly.
"Look around you! This room is a freakin gulag!" Kensuke said, throwing up his hands.
"You can't live here for one more second! You living in an extremely dangerous neighborhood, this building is probably gonna collapse from the slightest breeze, there's dust everywhere, there's no electricity, this whole room is unsanitary, there's-"
"A DEAD MOUSE!" Hikari shrieked, cutting Shinji off. Everyone looked to where she was looking as saw that there was indeed a dead mouse curled up in the corner of the room.
"And a dead mouse to further illustrate my point!" Shinji balked.
"It has been there for approximately three weeks." Rei confirmed, drawing incredulous looks from the group.
"And you didn't even bother to throw it away?!" Kensuke gasped.
"Why?" Rei said again. They all blinked.
"Are you okay up here? Like, mentally?" Touji asked as he pointed to his head.
"Touji!" Hikari elbowed him in the ribs.
"My mental state is within acceptable parameters." Rei replied as she headed out the door. The group was left standing there in confusion until they snapped out of it and followed Rei. As Shinji followed his friends, he never noticed his father's glasses sitting on Rei's dresser…
To be continued…
I greatly enjoyed making this chapter so much different from canon by omitting or adding in different events. I really wanted Shinji and his classmates to have tighter friendship, hence why I had them all go over to Rei's place.
Did I go a little bit overboard on the details about Rei's terrible living arrangements? I kinda wanted to emphasize how much of a cesspit she lived in. Will the others be able to help her and find her a safer place to live in? Get psyched for the next chapter, since it will mark the arrival of Ramiel!
Don't forget to review but please don't flame.
P.S. if none of you got the movie reference then I am going to flip so many tables.