Koros45 doesn't own Mazinkaiser, Getter Robo, or Neon Genesis Evangelion

Stage 34: [The Time is Now! - Ima Ga Sono Toki Da!]

"Expecting some desperate send off?" Misato asked as she finished dressing, putting on her jacket. Kaji grinned as he propped his head up in the palm of his hand. He lay on the bed and shook his head.

"As far am I'm concerned, that's what we just did. But I suppose I'd like to say good luck to you." The man said and Misato frowned, turning to him.

"Kaji. I know that we have things to work out but - "

"But we have to save the universe first, yeah? Then go, Captain! I'll be waiting for you to do just that." He said the words with the same lazy smirk on his face. Misato wished she could stay longer, but she supposed seeing him again would be reward enough for surviving the battle ahead.

"At least get dressed. It could be a bumpy ride. In fact, I'm going to request anyone not on combat duty to take shelter. Now excuse me – I have to get us all battle ready." Misato stated.

"Yes ma'am." Kaji said. Then she left his small and rather plain quarters and walked down the hall as fast as she could. Thankfully their latest meet up hadn't ended with her struggling to walk. It still relieved her of any immediate stress and at the moment that was a blessing.

/

"Say your last words to anyone who matters! It's now or never!" Misato had said hours ago. Time had seemed to go by too fast since then. Shin Dragon would exit the warp in around twenty minutes.

Given the gravity of the situation, that prompted Maya to grab Ritsuko by the arm and drag her away from the bridge. That had been minutes ago. Now Ritsuko turned to her, wondering why she'd had to drag them down the ship's long halls.

"Maya? What's the matter?" Ritsuko asked.

"Sempai. We might all die – I have to let you know how I feel about you." Maya said with steel in her eyes.

"Maya? You care about me?" Ritsuko guessed. It would certainly fit what she saw in Instrumentality.

The younger woman looked away, her resolve waning at Ritsuko's reaction.

"Yeah. I really do. I really love you. Even during Instrumentality – you were the one that Lilith used to make me calm down before we all – stopped being alive."

"I'm . . . flattered." Ritsuko said. Then she stopped and realized it might be the improper response. She'd have to try again right away.

"Maya – assuming we survive this – can I buy you lunch?" The scientist asked and Maya blushed.

"You mean it?"

"Sure. I – given my history with Commander Ikari – perhaps its' best if I take things slow. Especially when they involve a person I actually care about." Ritsuko said, feeling the tension in the air.

"I'm sorry, Maya. I'm not in the right state to give you my full attention. But after this – I promise you that will change." The blonde scientist said.

/

"Well – are we all ready?" Shinji asked. The other Children nodded as they had all donned their plugsuits again, walking towards the hangar. They had shared a final meal together in mostly silence. There was nothing to say at the time. Or rather – they were all too exhausted to say much. Misato was elsewhere, likely performing her duties as Captain right before a major battle took place.

"I don't want to lose either of you, got it?!" Asuka said, an edge in her voice.

The hangar was open, and the three entered to find Dr. Yumi looking up from the ground level.

"Easy, Kouji. We just recharged Kaiser Scrander. That should give you full power." He said to the pilot.

"Ah, I see everyone's here then!" Kouji yelled from the repaired catwalk with a wave. He was once again in his uniform, his helmet under the crook of his arm.

"That's right, Kabuto! The EVA team is ready for combat!" Asuka said back, keeping her hands on her hips as she had to look up at the other pilot.

"Then let us begin." Rei whispered, walking in front of Asuka and Shinji before turning around.

"I am glad that we are all here." Was all Rei said, opening her arms out.

"Well I'm not going anywhere." Asuka said, stepping over to Rei and putting an arm around her while she turned to look at Shinji. What about you, Shinji?"

To Asuka's question, Shinji smiled. "I don't have any plans. Whoops. Misato wanted me to have a goal but – right now it's just surviving. If I died, Asuka would never forgive me." He stepped forward and embraced both of them.

The three had a group hug and Rei squeezed tightest of all.

"I will fight as hard as I can. Naoko's rage will be more than enough to keep Unit 00 alive."

"And after getting Mama back, I'm not losing her either! Not a chance in Hell!"

"And I still need to talk to Mother as well. About a lot of things." Shinji finished.

The three ended the hug and Asuka chuckled. "I'm not used to this - and besides I don't want anybody yelling about regulations! Why don't we finish this when we get back?" She whispered. She had a slight blush.

Shinji looked away to the far side of the hangar. Shin Getter was ready, the three Get Machines fully repaired and ready to launch. Beside them, Great Mazinger was completely rejuvenated with a full Chogokin New Z finish. And beside that, the three EVAs stood by the launch pad. Beyond even that was Mazinkaiser, waiting for the Pilder to dock with its body.

/

Above the EVA pilots, Kouji was about to board Kaiser Pilder. He stopped as Sayaka ran out to greet him on the catwalk.

"Kouji. I don't want to say a lot. I just ask that you be careful." She said, her hands clasped in rare worry. It was a side of herself she didn't like showing to anyone.

"Sayaka – I - " Kouji started, knowing how badly it could end for both of them if he said anything wrong. Still – considering they would be fighting for the fate of the universe he figured he'd better say something.

" - I really love you. I just – with your Dad around – and with the world at stake – I haven't exactly been as available to you as I should."

She hugged him and grinned. "You big dummy. Of course I know that. But I also know that you'll always come back. As long as you have Mazinkaiser, Kabuto Kouji will never - "

"OK. Then after this – I want to spend more time with you. I don't care what your old man thinks!" Kouji whispered, cutting her off as he glanced down to see Dr. Yumi was directing his attention to Shin Getter as the Getter Team approached their machines.

Sayaka laughed. "You know he's rooting for us too, right? He just doesn't want us to – he wants us to be traditional about it."

"R-right." Kouji said, returning the hug.

"Well - do you want to kiss?" Sayaka asked and Kouji felt heat in his face.

"I – of course." He said.

The moment felt like it took forever but finally their lips touched.

Rei and the other EVA pilots just arrived at the catwalk via elevator. And Jun, Tetsuya, and Gai were standing close by. It was awkward as everyone could see them, but it wasn't about to stop Kouji Kabuto. He put a hand behind her head and deepened the kiss, not breaking contact until he could feel they both were short for breath.

Then they ended it and both inhaled.

"About time." Tetsuya remarked as both the teens glared at him.

"Tetsuya!" Jun half chastised, half teased.

"All right. Just glad for you two. Seriously, I was wondering when you two would make it obvious." Tetsuya said.

"I see you two are kissing. Perhaps you can explain the importance of this to me once we return?" Rei asked.

Her statement prompted Kouji and Sayaka to blush.

"Well Rei - why don't you ask Shinji and Asuka to demonstrate?" Kouji asked with a grin as the pair of EVA pilots tensed.

"I do not see what this would accomplish. Asuka wanted me to deliver a kiss to Shinji. However I was . . . nervous about it. Although I know what is required to perform a kiss, I do not quite understand the intent behind it." Rei said, looking to Asuka.

"Don't worry about it! I just wanted you to be supportive of him is all! You know? Show some support while Commander Ikari had you both isolated?" Asuka whispered blushing heavily as she fought back the urge to slap Kouji silly.

"In any case – here you all can be more open about things." Sayaka said, stepping away from Kouji to address the EVA team. "With your father in charge of NERV, we were always worried about you three."

"Hmph. We managed it just fine. Although - I'm glad we had your help." Asuka admitted.

"I'm glad we're all part of the same group now. It makes teamwork much smoother – even if we haven't had an official battle as a united group yet." Tetsuya pointed out.

"Plus it means the maintenance crew can look at all of our machines at once. It really helps keep you all combat ready." Gai added.

"Speaking of that - Shinji, are you ready to fly for real this time?" Kouji asked.

The Third Child responded with a short nod. "Yeah. It wasn't so bad when we trained. I just think about where Unit 01 wants to go and Mother does the rest."

"Then I think you're all ready. As long as Unit 00 stays in Rei's control you'll be able to handle whatever the Invaders have waiting for us." Jun said.

"Then we are ready. Let us all prepare for combat." Rei said as the EVA and Mazinger teams all put their hands together.

/

Misato walked down the hall at a brisk pace. Go notified her that the Super Robot Army was ready to go as they were almost through the warp.

She walked onto the bridge and was saluted by Aoba, Mikoto, and Maya. Ritsuko smiled coolly as Misato took her station, feeling strange that Fuyutsuki had volunteered to serve under her. Right to the side of her, just as he had done with Commander Ikari in the past.

Dr. Yumi was at a station next to Ritsuko's, Sho assisting him with calculations.

"Ready to exit the warp. Getter Ray barrier at maximum." Go said as the space around them distorted.

/

Shin Dragon burst back into regular space, the area now visible to the ship's crew. The area was radically different from what they were expecting. The darkness of space was expected, yet the amount of light illuminating the area was wrong.

And Jupiter was gone

Instead of large planet they faced a miniature sun. Around them were scores of Invaders, in various shapes and sizes. The organic fleet stared at them with hungry eyes. And beyond that was the ruin of the battle damaged Getter Dragon floating above the sun.

"What the hell?! What happened to Jupiter?" Misato asked.

"I see. The Invaders are using Getter Rays to begin nuclear fusion!" Ritsuko responded.

The screen magnified to zoom in on the damaged Getter Dragon. In the machine's palm the screen showed the forms of Cohen and Stinger. The two were floating in space above the new sun, grinning as they looked at Shin Dragon.

"There they are! I'm ready to tear them to shreds!" Ryoma yelled from Shin Getter's comm.

"I see! They want to make a false Sun and throw off the the balance of our universe!" Dr. Yumi said.

"They're not done yet though! We should have enough time to stop them if we act now." Ritsuko said as she began typing. "Misato, we need a plan!"

The Captain wasted no time giving her orders to address the situation.

"Battle stations! Launch all available machines! Getter Team, EVA Team, Mazinger Army! Show me the best you can do!" Misato yelled.

"ROGER!" The majority of the pilots yelled back.

The bay doors opened and the EVA series were the first to launch, each equipped with thruster packs that operated on Photon Power and Getter Rays. They also gave each EVA a limited supply of power outside of the umbilical cable.

"Evangelion unit! Concentrate on keeping Shin Dragon clear of Invaders!" Misato ordered.

Next, two red streaks passed the front of Shin Getter Dragon as the crimson on Great and Mazinkaiser's scranders stuck out in the darkness of space. A third trail of red followed as Shin Getter was beside them.

"Getter and Mazinger Teams, give Stinger and Cohen the best distraction you can think of." Misato directed.

"As for Go, keep up moving Shin Dragon towards that false Sun. Slowly."

Shin Dragon moved as the Invaders turned to regarded them all.

/

"Hmph. Getter Robo has arrived with the remains of humanity I see." Stinger said, his voice echoing throughout the space around Shin Dragon.

"Then you've arrived just in time to witness the destruction of your species!" Cohen said as swarms of Invaders charged at the ship and allied forces.

Photon Beam, Thunder Break, and Getter Beam ignited the earliest attackers, the initial wave falling to Great Mazinger, and Mazinkaiser's attacks.

The Getter Rays only made the Invaders evolve further, so Ryoma improvised with Getter Razor arm blades, slicing the nearest Invader in half.

Meanwhile the EVA trio stayed in a tight formation around Shin Dragon, firing their Pallet Rifles. There was a NERV issue weapons rack the EVAs could arm themselves with close at hand.

All three Evangelions fired at the same groups of Invaders. The bullets hit true and kept the swarm at bay so Shin Getter Dragon could fire beam after beam at scores of far away foes. After each blast the space around them glew green for a moment.

In Shin Getter Dragon's case, the Getter Beam from the forehead had enough raw power to incinerate the majority of the attackers. Yet the swarm continued to advance.

"Hmph. If that's all humanity can do than I'm glad I picked the winning side!" A voice yelled.

Baron Ashura's machine looked down from above the battle as they continued to speak.

"The Invaders will destroy you all! A fitting revenge for my dead civilization!"

"Ashura! Just what are you talking about?!" Kouji asked as Mazinkaiser freed itself from the swarm of Invaders to boost at his foe.

"Getter Team, Tetsuya, can you handle them?" Kouji asked.

"Kabuto! Just finish off Ashura for good this time! We'll handle some Invaders no problem!" Tetsuya yelled as he dispatched more of them with Thunder Break.

"Just make sure you deal with Ashura quick! There's a lot going on here!" Hayato said as Shin Getter formed its' signature poleaxe. Ryoma screamed as he used it to tear through a large crab-like Invader.

/

Mazinkaiser approached Ashura as Kouji screamed, nearing his target. The asymmetrical Mechanical Beast form of Ashura seemed to goad him on with its' stylized grin.

The pilot certainly did as Ashura taunted him."Approach me at your peril, Kouji Kabuto! You face your doom in the form of Mechanical Beast Baron Ashura!"

"Oh please! I beat Dr. Hell! His lap dog won't stand a chance!"

Kouji retorted. The remnant of Dr. Hell's forces only made Kouji impatient that his personal battle wasn't over yet.

He was right in striking range of Ashura's machine when the mechanical beast separated down the front, both halves flying in opposite directions. Mazinkaiser kept flying straight through space, Kouji looking at his instruments to track where Ashura's halves were now.

"Now, Professors!" Ashura's voice was heard.

Stinger and Cohen each extended a hand and suddenly the area Mazinkaiser hovered in was overcome with a tremendous pressure.

Then a dark vortex appeared around Mazinkaiser, sucking in the machine as the vortex slightly expanded. Kouji's scream was drowned out as he and his machine vanished.

Cohen chuckled as Ashura's machine joined together once again.

"A miniaturized black hole. A byproduct of nuclear fusion. We aim to crush you all with it, but first - we'll test just how 'invincible' this Mazinkaiser of yours' really is!"

Stinger finished his statement as Shin Dragon struggled to advance, even with assistance from the Evangelion unit.

"And now you have to come to the realization that this is a losing battle. Death is the only gift you will receive coming here!"

/

"KOUJI! NO!" Sayaka yelled from the bridge.

Her worry and frustration was echoed by the EVA team.

"Kouji's in there! We have to go after him!" Shinji urged.

"I agree! That hothead can't do anything without someone bailing him out!" Asuka seconded.

"However our ship requires protection." Rei pointed out, firing her Pallet Rifle and using her AT Field to keep Invaders away.

"Sayaka, EVA Team, calm down!" Benkei said. "I have a feeling Kouji will be fine for now! Focus on what's in front of you! Ashura and the Invaders want us to rush things and ruin our teamwork! If we panic then its' already over for us!"

"That's right! The sooner we kill Stinger and Cohen, the sooner we save Kouji!" Tetsuya yelled as his Mazinger Blade struck true, cutting an Invader in half.

"Then what do we do? Just kill Invaders forever?!" Asuka retorted, expanding her AT Field to cut nearby Invaders to ribbons. "I don't care if it goes against our strategy! Kouji helped us before, so now we're going to help him!"

"Shinji, Unit 01 doesn't need a cord. Why don't you try to get Kouji out? Wonder-girl and I can hold down the ship!"

" . . . Shinji, as much as I want Kouji safe, Benkei is right. We can't afford to break formation now." Misato said. "Stay there and keep covering each other. We need all three of you like this."

Shinji's next words were full of anger at the order. "All right. Just make sure we're not going to abandon Kouji."

"Professor Yumi's already working on some plans to help him out. Just keep doing what you're doing!" Maya said.

/

"Once this wave of Invaders passes, we'll Get-Change. Kei, can you handle Shin Liger?" Go asked. Hearing this, Kei grinned from ear to ear.

"I was hoping you'd ask me that!" She said, approaching the metal pod next to Go's very own. It was very sophisticated and was linked to the control center of Shin Dragon.

Outside Shin Getter had changed to its' second formation, Shin Getter 2 fired off Plasma Drill Hurricane, the vortex knocking away a starfish shaped Invader's energy waves to clear a path for Shin Dragon. The EVA Team and Great Mazinger had wiped out any other Invaders that could stop them.

"You're in the clear! Now!" Hayato directed.

"CHANGE! SHIN LIGER!" Kei yelled, pulling the lever as the battleship they were in shifted drastically.

First the dragon head and neck on the creature's lower body spun around and warped in size until it was a large drill. Then the upper body of Dragon folded down and merged with the main ship. Now it resembled submarine of sorts, with a drill tip and a large version of Getter Liger's head looking out from the body of the vessel.

"EVA team, you're free to engage those Angels! Now Liger – Charge!" Misato yelled.

Kei accelerated rapidly, screaming as Liger's thrusters carried the ship forward. The Liger ship rammed through a slew of larger invaders with little effort as Kei grinned from the thrill of operating the huge Getter.

"Aim for Stinger and Cohen! If we kill them, we can end this now!" Misato ordered.

Liger spun around for another pass as it neared the two Invaders.

/

"Missile Storm!" Benkei yelled as Shin Getter 3's missiles wiped out several Invaders trying to move in the way of the ship. They were joined by the EVA team, the Evangelions all using new armaments they'd equipped from the supply rack on the exterior of the ship.

Unit 01 was now armed with a large katana while Unit 02 had an single bladed axe. Unit 00 stuck with the Pallet Rifle but the ship had deployed a Bulwark shield for Rei to use as well.

Then they heard a scream and a massive beam of energy struck the ship. Three AT Fields waned as the blast pushed the ship to the side, as Shin Liger had stopped moving, stunned from the attack.

"What the hell?!" Asuka yelled as she turned to the source of the attack and felt her stomach drop as the EVA responded with anger.

"Please tell me that's not what I think it is." She managed to say as her other EVA pilots were silent.

/

"Pattern Blue detected! That was – an Angel!" Aoba yelled from the bridge.

"Ramiel to be exact." Mikoto confirmed, cameras on Shin Dragon turning to reveal the blue, geometric Angel hovering in space.

"What did you do?!" Misato yelled as Shin Liger's systems projected her question to Stinger and Cohen.

"Easy! We had enough tissue leftover from Adam to recreate Ramiel. As well as some other Angels you may recognize." Stinger said with a grin.

"What do you think we were doing with all the time you humans gave us?" Cohen seconded. "The evolutionary stages of Angels are fascinating. Despite the similarities they have to humans, they are unique in a sense.

"They're not lying. I'm detecting more of them. Signatures identical to Sachiel and Bardiel!" Maya warned.

"What are we going to do?! Against that many Angels we -" Shigeru began as Ryoma cut him off.

"We don't have time for this! If Mazinkaiser can surpass God and kill the Devil, Shin Getter can sure as hell kill some damned Angels!" Ryoma yelled as Shin Getter- 1 flew on the scene.

"TAKE THIS - ! STONER! SUN! SHINE!"Ryoma screamed as Shin Getter – 1 hurled the ball of plasma towards Ramiel.

The attack sped towards it's target but was halted as Bardiel lept in the way. The EVA mimic's AT Field held for a moment, but the sheer power of Stoner Sunshine could not be denied as the attack incinerated it instantly

"How's that for our answer?!" Ryoma asked with a cocky grin.

Ramiel's retaliation was another tremendous blast of power that singed Shin Getter's wings, the Super Robot barely able to dodge the massive laser.

"Shit! At this rate we'll have to save Kabuto after dealing with these guys!" Ryoma yelled as Shin Getter neared the blue Angel.

"If it fired again so quickly – that means they're not just Angels – The Invaders are using Getter Rays to increase their combat output!" Ritsuko warned.

"They still have to deal with us! THUNDER BREAK!" Tetsuya roared.

Great Mazinger flew towards Sachiel, the Mazinger's attack managing to wear down the AT Field enough so that Great Mazinger could engage the Angel in a flying tackle.

"Great Mazinger is also a Mazinger – worthy to be a God or Devil! I'll face any Angel that opposes us!" Tetsuya said as Knee Impulse Kick slammed into the Angel's body.

"If it can keep firing, we need to deal with Ramiel now!" Misato said. "Go! Can you use the Getter Beam!?"

"We need to Get- Change and turn Shin Dragon around to do that. Captain, I believe that's another diversion. We have to stop the false sun as soon as possible." Go responded.

"Let Great Mazinger and the EVA Team deal with the Angels! Ryoma! Get Shin Getter back to flank Dragon! If they can trap Mazinkaiser, I don't want to know what they plan to do with Shin Dragon!" Misato directed.

"Roger!" Tetsuya said, even as a shot of Thunder Break was deflected off of the Angel's AT Field.

Shin Getter transformed into Shin Getter 2 once again, the golden drill spinning as it began to glow green with power.

"Drill Hurricane!" Hayato yelled as the vortex left the drill and hit Ramiel, knocking the Angel back even as it fired its' beam, barely missing Shin Liger by a hair.

"Hmm. It looks like we'll have to use our secret weapon to finish you off." Stinger said as he snapped his fingers.

"Secret weapon?" Hayato asked. "Is it Zeruel again?"

"Guys! Be careful!" Shigeru warned. "It's a new signature, approaching fast!"

The man's warning was suddenly cut off. A white blur slammed into Shin Getter 2, the form slamming the Getter into a large asteroid.

Benkei managed to pose a question as he recovered. "What the hell - is that?!"

Ryoma grunted as Shin Getter shoved the opponent backwards, it's cameras focused on the attacker.

"Another hybrid - part Angel, part Getter." Hayato said, his face grim as he took in the fusion's details.

While the first model was made in the image of Getter Dragon, this one was clearly based off of Shin Getter Robo. Organic and mostly white, with dark brown highlights. The hybrid flew on feathered wings, and had imposing proportions.

The Getter Team was silent as a comm came on from this new machine and addressed them.

"We meet again, Mr. Nagare."

At the pilot's words, everyone halted.

The voice in question belonged to Gendo Ikari.