Tokyo-3 Arcana


Chapter 5

Walking Down the Hill / Asuka Soryu and the Sorceror's Lesson


Note, the parenthesis indicate languages other than Japanese, in this case, German.
Please Read and Review. I'd like to know what I'm doing right (to keep doing it), and what I'm I doing wrong (to correct it).


Tokyo-03, Katsuragi Apartment (Not Exactly),

Sunday, (Very) Early Morning

Shinji focused his thoughts inwards, looking for his center, his core, his magic. He breathed deeply, consciously controlling his rhythm. Meanwhile, he revised his spell list.

He doubted he would need to use Silence, as there were no other magic users on Earth. So he exchanged it for another Darkness spell. It would probably be of limited use against an Angel, but against humans...

'No other magic users on Earth.' He smirked. 'Not yet. Unless I can do something about it.'

He wasn't in much of a hurry to test if his magical powers could actually work on the Evangelion itself, or even better, from it. Escalla and Morag were almost sure, but… there was only one way to know.

The Last Test.

The Breaking test.

He sighed.

He missed his friends on Oerth. He missed Oerth.

No one there had ever asked him to do anything he wasn't ready for, nor able and willing to do. The Justicar not only had taught him to fight, to think, and to survive. The grim ranger had instilled in him a sense of WHEN it was better to run and fight later from an advantageous position, despite Polk's… um… badgering… Shinji had taken Jus' lessons to heart.

That had saved his life more than once, and his friends' too.

When he would had once stayed and fought to the bitter end, risking his life and others', now he would act in a very different way. The fight against the Fourth Angel, which he now knew was named Shamshel, would have been indeed very different.

A sharp voice brought him back to Earth. "So, when will I meet my apprentice, kid? You know very well I am not that patient. It's boring here, I hate to be all alone. I already spent a couple of centuries alone, and I'm itching to go back to fulfilling my purpose. I wasn't made to be bored. I want to teach again. Pass on the Knowledge of the Art."

Shinji kept his eyes closed . But still answered. "She's not ready. Not yet. I'm preparing her as fast as I dare."

Shinji opened his eyes, having felt something brush against his fingers. Reflexively, he opened and closed his fists. His knuckles were hard enough to break boards. His fingers could crush the larynx of a half-grown orc. He smiled sadly. 'It was me or him.'

"Hey, buddy, you okay?"

"Yes, I was just thinking."

"Well… I think you should hurry up. I need a good apprentice, full of fire! Full of life!"

"Oh, you don't have anything to worry about that. She's fire and life incarnate! You would have your hands full, if you had them."

"I like the way I am." There was mirth in the voice. "I would look funny with hands."

Shinji laughed. "Yes, I think you are right."

"You done?"

"For now, yes." Shinji stood in the center of the black, round, room. He looked up, seeing only a black space above him. 'Now, that's a familiar ceiling.' He appreciated the gift with all his heart.

He pushed against the wall. The black surface felt rubbery under his fingertips. He lowered his hands, and opened a waterproof chest. Yes, everything was there.

He knew there wouldn't be anything missing, not a single person on the world would enter here. Still, it was conforting just to see his bounty.

A wide grin parted his mouth. "Oh, how Escalla cried, remember?"

"Escalla? By the Great Maker! You cried more."

His smile grew sad in remembrance. "Yes, I did. That was the day I knew. I really knew." His fingers closed the lid of the chest. "I had a family that loved me. And I knew I was actually worthy of having a family, of being loved and to love them back."

"Well, okay, I'll admit it. If I could, I'd have cried too."

"Really?"

"No. But still, it was nice to watch you guys."

"No offence, but you happen to be a jerk."

"None taken, it comes with the territory and the shape. Just be glad all your breakables are safely stored. You know how I get when I'm bored."

"Remind me not to leave you alone in Misato's apartment."

"Where would the fun be in that?" Shinji snorted. "From what you have told me about this Misato girl, she's quite the slob. She might not even notice!"

"Trust me, if you shred her clothes, she will notice. Just relax and plan your first class." Shinji opened his pack, and brought a set of manga books on the floor. "I got you these yesterday. I think you might like to have something to read while you wait."

"Very nice on your part, kid. Ah! I guess staying here might not be that bad."

Shinji extended the ladder and began to climb out. "I'm planning on giving her the first actual lesson later today, as soon as I can speak to her in private."

"Sure, go ahead…" The voice responded dismissively, while the soft rustle of pages being turned filled the extra-dimensional space.


Sewer System Under Tokyo-03, ,

Sunday Morning

The giant amoeba had grown fat with the refuse that floated down in the sewers. It had scoured clean a long portion of the tunnel it had manifested originally. There was no more sewage, no more cockroaches, no more rats. Where it had passed, only clean water and stone remained. It had grown bigger and bigger.

Inside it, still floated some slowly disintegrating bits of chitin, bone, carthilague; and less identifiable bits.

The giant amoeba slowed its movements. It found a nice ledge of stone to rest and digest its meal.


Forest Near Tokyo-03,

Sunday Morning

"Well met, young manling! Can you tell me the name of the city? I'm a bit lost."

Kensuke Aida eyed cautiously the strange woman who came down the hill, carryng a big axe on her shoulder. Just by the appearance, the axe was quite heavy. And very sharp. "Uh, sure... That's Tokyo-3. " he answered, and adjusted the backpack on his shoulders, not wanting to provoke her; but getting ready ion case he had to flee.

The woman seemed very strong, her arms were very thick. Kensuke had no doubt that, had she wanted to, she could snap him like a twig.

"Thanks. Do you know of any good inn I could stay a few days?" The woman walked easily next to Kensuke, carefully mantaining a couple of steps between them.

Kensuke shrugged. "Um... no... But I guess there must be a hotel or something."

"Good." Seeing his expression, the woman smiled. "Sorry, where are my manners? I am Rusilka; Rusilka Burningforge." She tapped her right fist on her left shoulder.

"Uh... Kensuke Aida, nice to meet you.", he stopped to bow, very respectfully.

"Nice to meet you, Mr. Aida." Awkardly, Rusilka mimicked the bow. "Could I hire you as a guide, for today? I'm new around and I'd prefer to avoid any misunderstanding. I can pay you five gold coins or a small jeweled hair-ring." She shook her head, and several metallic rings tingled in her dark brown hair; it was braided in a very complicated pattern, and her braids were festooned with small abalories, some of them were simple metal rings, probably gold and silver, while others had small jewels.

Kensuke eyed her cautiously, half afraid and half curious. Finally, the curiosity won. "Deal, but I'd like to talk about the design of your axe."

"You like it?" she answered proudly, " Sure you do! I engraved it myself. Very sharp, perfectly balanced for work or combat." She put the axe head at the level of Kensuke's eyes. The engraving was even more delicate than he had thought at first. The bands that formed the knots had a fine filigree inside.

"It's beautiful." He whispered respectfully.

"Tell you what." She slapped Kensuke's arm, making him stumble. "If I like your city, once I'm established, I'll gladly accept a comission for a similar axe for you, at a very discounted price. What do you say?"

"Miss Rusilka, I'd very much like to have an axe like yours."

The dwarf smiled, "Lead the way then, Mr. Aida."

The pair walked down the mountain at a brisk pace, despite the weight of Kensuke's camping gear.

Tokyo-03, Abandoned Warehouse,

Sunday Morning

An alley cat prowled inside the deserted building. It was hungry, and the place had been a good hunting ground before, but today, it was strangely empty of rats or mice.

There was a strange smell in the air. Kinda spicy. Had the cat had access to a human vocabulary, it would have identified the smell as alike to cinnamon. Strange for a place that had been in disuse for several years. It should smell of dust, water damage, and rodents'droppings, not to a spice.

The cat wandered slowly, methodically checking the floors. After a while, it decided to look for its meal somewhere else.

Above it, waiting patiently, the eight shiny eyes of a giant black spider watched the cat. It wasn't really hungry at the moment, it had dined well on the rats and mice that populated the building.

Several minutes later, the hungry cat came out a hole in the wall, crossed the street, and decided to try its luck on the nearest park. Maybe it would have some luck and find a juicy squirrel or some food left from a picnic.


Tokyo-03, Katsuragi Apartment,

Sunday Morning; Breakfast Time

"Well, I must say I'm quite disappointed, Shinji. Your grades really dropped since you returned."

Shinji shrugged, "I'm going to need a little while to recover, Misato. I guess I'm still a bit... um... shocked..."

"Yeah, I guess... Just put some extra effort for this month, Okay?"

The pilot nodded firmly. "I will, Misato."

From the corner of his eye, Shinji felt Asuka's stare. Something worried her. Misato continued.

"Now, you, Asuka, have done much better in your asignements. Congratulations, keep up the good work."

Asuka smiled in satisfaction. The Third Child might have been able to get ahead of her in the synch tests (a temporal event, no doubt; especially now she knew he was cheating by using magic to synch), but in school? Once she had learned to better read the kanji? No chance. "Hey, college graduate, remember? This stuff is kid's play!"

Misato yawned and stretched. "oohhhh... Well. I'm falling asleep here. Stupid double shifts two stupid days in a row…" She mumbled, and yawned again. "I'd better get back to my room before I drop. See you two later. Please wake me up around 3'O clock."

She yawned by the third time, almost like a lioness, and dragged her feet back to her room, sliding the door closed. Asuka opened her mouth to say something, but Shinji stopped her by the simple expedient of raising his index finger.

She looked at him as if he had grown a third eye. Shinji tapped his ear and pointed at Misato's door. Asuka nodded, getting the message. They waited for a couple of minutes. Once they heard Misato's roaring snores, the German-raised pilot hissed a question, "What the Hell is going on, Third? Why the drop?"

Shinji leaned back on his chair. "Could you honestly say you can pass all your tests from five years ago?"

Her brow knotted for a moment. "Riiight... I see the problem. You haven't studied in five years, that's it?"

"Nope. Not Earth studies, at least. I could tell you a lot about many creatures from Oerth, both strange and normal; how to track them, what to do with them, how to recognize when and why they are dangerous or not, and even what kind of treasure you can expect to find on their lairs, if they have them. But about recent Japanese History? Not so much. I'm gonna need a lot of help to cram for the next test." He smiled ruefully.

"Ha! So Mighty Magical Shinji can't solve this with a spell?"

"Well... I might have some way to help me memorize stuff... But true understanding? Need help."

"Hmm... Tell you what, I'll help you with school;" she poked at the table with hey fingertip. "but only if you teach me magic."

"Deal, but... actually, I won't be teaching you magic myself. I am a Sorcerer, meaning I use a particular kind of magic because I was subject to a magical... Um... event. My teacher said I was soaked in interdimensional energy, and that's why I get to do magic. It's in my blood."

"So what? Did you get a transfusion or what?"

"I don't think it would work like that, no. There is another path. I think you have potential to be a Wizardess. However, that needs a somewhat different approach. I can give you tips on how to start, but the actual work is in your hands."

"Details, Third. Give me the details."

Shinji leaned forward, resting both his forearms on the table. "You will have to learn your spells from a book. You'll have to write your own spell book. I brought a good library from Oerth, which you can use to learn. How good are you with a quill and ink?"

"Like in Harry Potter?" A strange shadow passed over Asuka's face, but she recovered in a second. Shinji only saw it because he was used to look for behavioral clues.

Shinji raised an eyebrow. "um… I hate to say it, but I didn't get the reference."

"Ah.. It's a-a series of books. In a very small nutshell, the hero is a bullied introverted kid who goes to a magic school and learns to do magic, while the bad guy is trying to kill him due to a prophecy. Hrm..." She shifted uncomfortably on her seat. "The kids take notes and do their homework with ink and quills on parchment. They would be a cool movie series, if done well."

"Wait. Are you a fan?"

Asuka's face paled, and she averted her eyes. "N-no. They were very popular before Second Impact. My m-mother used to read them to me back when..."

"Say no more. I get it." He covered her hand with his, in a mute gesture of support, and squeezed once, releasing it immediately after.

"Do I have to learn fake latin and wave a magic wand?" She dropped the uncomfortable subject like a hot potato.

"Hmm? Oh, no. No latin, and the wands are specialized items. I have a few stashed, but they only work with a particular spell. The invocations are in a kind of a secret language, you also need to have some specific items or substances to cast a spell, and to make the proper gestures." He smiled, looking at the ceiling, scratching the back of his head. "I guess that might be your first actual lesson. The components of a spell."

Asuka's eyes sparkled. "From the beginning, Third."

Shinji raised his right index finger. "First, we need to set a few rules. I don't want any misunderstandings later." He began counting with his fingers. "Respect. Both to me and the Art. You will always use your magic for a purpose. Not to show off, not to bully anybody, no silly stuff. And you will call me Sempai when I am showing you the basics."

She arched an eyebrow. "Not Sensei?"

"No. I will just show you the basics. Once I know you're on your way, I'll grant you access to a better source."

"Okay, agreed."

"Two. Secrecy. Not a single word of this to any other person, without my express and unequivocal approval. That includes Hikari and Misato. Understood? The only exception is a case of life or death. Nothing less."

"As if they would believe me." Asuka blew a lock of hair from her face.

"Three. Dedication. Once you start, you must keep on working and improving. The best magic users develop their own spells and magical items."

Her eyes sparkled. "Like the ring you gave me? Did you make it?"

"Hum... No. My friends and I got it from a treasure hoard." A flicker of disappointment flashed in her eyes.

"Fourth. Discretion. This is a power no one else has on this planet, as far as I can tell. We must be extremely discreet whenever we use magic. I have no desire of being vivisected. Especially by You Know Who."

"So you have read the books!"

"What?"

She laughed. "The Harry Potter books! That's how the villain in the books is called! You-Know-Who."

Shinji waved a hand. "Kinda dumb name, but then, I hadn't even heard of the books until today." He cleared his throat. "Anyway, I meant Commander Ikari and/or Dr. Akagi."

"Your Father?" Her eyes opened wide in surprise.

"Only biological." Anger flashed on Shinji's eyes, and his right fist snapped close. "The bastard dumped me on a train station just after my mother van-... after she died. I was barely four years old. I still have nightmares about that. I will keep calling him Father when in public." His voice was cold. Scary, even. "But I will never acknowledge him as my blood anymore. That visit to my mother's grave was the last one I looked for him."

For some reason, that angry look thrilled Asuka in the deepest of her heart. But also chilled her blood.

Shinji recovered his cool. He closed his eyes and breathed deeply a couple of time before he relaxed again. "Sorry. Sensitive subject. I guess it's the same for you."

She nodded minutely. "You know? About my mother? " There was both anger and fear in her voice.

"No, but I can guess a lot. The way you never talk about your family. How you clam up when people at school talks about their fathers. Your expression when you told me your mother used to read you those books. And..." He stared at the ceiling and sighed, there was a sad look in his eyes as he spoke. "You talk in your sleep. Back when we were on the synch training to fight the Seventh Angel. You had a nightmare, and... I heard you."

"I don't want to talk about that. B-back to the lesson, Th-... Sempai?"

He breathed deeply, again, "Right. Back to the lesson. Fifth, Obedience. Obey my orders whenever it concerns to magical training. There's a potential danger to magic. I don't want any magical accidents we can avoid. You will practice on your free time only if you can obey all the rules and I tell you it is safe to do so. For your and others' well being. Agreed?"

"Agreed."

"This is potentially a game changer for us. I think I can use my magic from the entry plug. I haven't tested it yet. But if I," he shook his head, correcting himself, looking deeply into her eyes, "and eventually, We, are able to do so; we will have a great advantage."

The redheaded pilot snorted. "I just imagined Unit-01 pulling plushie rabbits from a top hat."

Shinji smiled back at her. "By the Abyss! You got me imagining it too!" He facepalmed as he laughed, dissipating the tension. "And boinking the Angels on the head with it!"

A few moments later, he composed himself, "Ahem." He coughed into his fist. "Okay, Components. There are three kinds of components to a spell. Not all spells need all three, and some magic users can cast spells without one or the other, but it is very hard to do."

"Can you give me an example? Now?"

He looked around. "Sure, just give me a minute. Let me get the components first." He lit a paper on the stove, and let it burn on one of Misato's ashtrays, while keeping another in the way of the smoke. "You're aware I only know Japanese and a little bit of English, right?" She nodded, curious about what he would do. "There's a spell that lets the user to understand any language, both spoken and written, for a while. Comprehend Languages."

"You know it, then."

He smirked. "Oh, yes. Very useful. And you can cast it discreetly if you already have the material components at hand. They are very easy to obtain, just a pinch of soot and another of simple salt." With his fingers, he collected the soot accumulated on the ashtray on the palm of his left hand. Then he took the salt shaker and added a little amount, mixing it with the soot. "and before you ask, I have absolutely no idea of why these particular components let you understands other language."

Once he was satisfied with the mix, he said, "I'll need you to say anything you want in German. Actually, if you have any written stuff in German at hand it would be helpful."

"Wait a minute." She almost ran to her bedroom, and returned with a book.

Shinji examined the thick book she handed him. "Good. I have no idea of what's written there. And the illustrations are quite… beyond my knowledge. Even better. " He whispered some strange words, contorted the fingers of his right hand in a weird gesture, and the soot and salt mix on his hand vanished in a little puff of smoke. There was no residue left. "Go ahead."

"(There is a little hammer flying around your fishes.)"

"That makes absolutely no sense. There's a little hammer flying around my fishes? What does that even means?"

"(It means I went for the most non-sensical thing I could think of.)" She laughed.

"Oh, I see. Good thinking. Now, something written."

"(Here you go.)" She pushed the book at him. He examined the cover.

"Variants in Dispersion of Mutagenic Agents in a Liquid Medium, According to Temperature? What is this?"

"(My college thesis.)"

"Okay, I understand the words, but I have no idea of what they mean!" He laughed.

"(And don't you forget it, I AM a genius, Sempai!)" She put a hand on her chest, preening self-importantly. She reminded Shinji of Enid, whenever the sphinx had stumped the party with a particularly clever riddle.

He smiled warmly at her. "Well. Back to the actual lesson. Comprehend Languages is a very basic spell. Level 1, in fact. It has Verbal, Somatic and Material components. That means that to cast it, you need an invocation, a gesture or a series of gestures, and physical ingredients. As you saw, soot and salt."

"(Can you teach it to me? I still cannot read all the kanji.)"

"Let's start with something easier. A level 0 spell. How about Light?" Shinji took a little box out from his pocket. He handed an insect to Asuka. She took it with some reluctance.

"What do I do with that bug?"

"The Material Component for Light is a firefly. They are easy to get."

"Ugh... Well..." she gulped. "I guess I can handle this... little... dead... bug..."

They spent the next forty minutes on the lesson.


An Incomplete Subway Tunnel

Early Afternoon

Six short figures huddled together in a corner. It was a good place to stay. It was warm and dry.

The goblins collected some junk the day before, and wer busy hitting, folding and sharpening the pieces. By the end of the day, the Tunnel Sneakers would have several nice, new dogslicers to use. The longshanks had been to many for them to dare attacking them without an overwhelming numeric superiority and sharp weapons on their side.

They giggled when they alloted their work. Yes! There was a dogslicer for each of them, and even two more!


Author Notes:

The Harry Potter books began to be published back in 1997, the series went on until the final book was published in 2007. For my purposes, the series of books was actually completed in the EVAverse, although delayed several years by Second Impact. Say, three years. So Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows would have been published in 2010, instead of 2007. The movies do not exist in the EVAverse, as the first one was released back in 2001, the production would probably had been interrupted by Second Impact.

Kyoko would have had access to the series in the German translations, (Harry Potter and The Sorceror's Stone was published in German in 1998), and read them to Asuka until her accident in Unit-02. Meaning that the last one Asuka remembers is Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, published in German in 2000. (If I'm reading the German Wikipedia articles correctly. If not, please excuse my error.)

By the time Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was published in Gernamy, Kyoko had already had her accident in Unit-02.

Also, the plushie bunny being used to boink somebody in the head was inspired by Once More with Feeling, By Crazy-88; one of my favorite Evangelion fanfics. However, in that story, it was Asuka hitting Shinji on the head with his own stuffed animal (it's not mentioned what kind of animal it is), back when they were still a pair of toddlers.

Although incomplete, Once More with Feeling is a great read.