Once the Gulfstream was off the ground and at cruising altitude, Patrick and Erin got settled into their flight by getting a light dinner from the plane's galley. Erin quietly served the three of them instant ramen and sodas from the fridge, and together along with Zummy they ate in silence as the aircraft cruised towards the arctic circle on its way to Japan.

The twins let Zummy get in a shower first, cautioning him not to use up all the limited water supply on board. The boy complied and made his time in the rear bedroom compartment short, exiting in fifteen minutes wearing a grey sweatsuit with TNI's logo emblazoned on the chest. Patrick promptly went in and cleaned himself up with as lengthy of a shower he could manage. He deliberately set the water cold, partly to wash off any remaining blood and partly to save as much of the hot water as he could for Erin's use, but mostly to keep him awake as fatigue had now set up on him with a vengeance.

After the shower Patrick threw on some shorts and a t-shirt and plopped into the bed. Erin knocked on the outside door.

"It's unlocked," he murmured. Erin opened the door and went straight to the tiny bathroom, shutting the door behind her. The water ran for a while as Patrick lay motionless on the bed, face down in the sheets.

Upon finishing Erin came out, her body and hair wrapped in white towels and wearing nothing else. She slid onto the bed next to Patrick. She had no inhibitions in doing so as for her, Patrick was probably the one boy on the planet that she still trusted. Erin nudged next to him as he lay on the bed and rolled with his back away from her. They were on the bed for a while, both in silence, until Erin peeked over his shoulder and saw that Patrick's attention was on his watch. The time on the watch continued to count down and was now at 99:45: Rei had less than 100 hours to go before her LCL stabilizer failed.

She gently put her hand on his shoulder. "You okay?"

"I don't think so," he said with a low tone of voice. He didn't look back at her, and he didn't move either.

"It's gonna work out," she offered, trying to cheer him up. But Erin herself felt optimism fleeing.

"I killed a guy today," Patrick confessed to her. "Really killed him."

"Patrick…"

"This wasn't like at SEELE-2, you know, with bullets flying and all that. I saw his face, looked into his eyes. All I could think of was her, that this guy had his hands on her at some point. He touched her. And I saw that in my mind and then I pushed a steel knife straight into his windpipe."

"Bro, it's…"

"I didn't even feel bad about it at first," Patrick continued in a low, slow tone. "Just one less asshole in the world. But that look on his face…he really didn't think he was gonna die that day. Guess that must have been a big surprise."

Erin didn't wait for anything further, instead she grabbed Patrick by the shoulder and rolled him towards her. She saw tears coming from his reddened eyes. She took both of her hands and put them on his cheeks, and then brought her face forward.

"I know it's gonna work out," she whispered to him. "because it's you that's going to work it out. If anyone can do this, it's you."

"You really think so?" Patrick said to her. "I'm so afraid…I'm so afraid that we're not going to find her in time and I'm going to lose her."

"You won't," encouraged Erin.

"You didn't see her the way I did, right before she left," said Patrick. "That look in her eyes, she was so hopeless. It was like she had gone back to the way she was, back when I first saw her and she was living in that rathole apartment back in Tokyo-III. You don't think she did herself in…"

Erin became angry. "Don't say that!" she said, staring in Patrick's eyes. "She would never do that, Never. Not her."

"But maybe she just lost it somehow," answered Patrick. "I mean, she just walked away."

"Then you've got to get her back, no matter what it takes. Okay?"

"Yeah, I know."

The two of them remained silent for a while longer, just looking into each other's emerald-colored eyes. It was moments like this when they felt closest, like two sides of the same coin. His nightmares of the day finally abating, Patrick finally let himself relax and let out a deep breath. He put his arms around Erin and she snuggled close to him as he held her tight. He could tell Erin was nervous despite all of her attempts to cheer him up, and now it was his time to return the favor. Gently he kissed her on the forehead.

"Thank you," he whispered.

Erin didn't reply at first, but just nodded and leaned in closer on his chest. Then she said. "I guess they figured a way to get us back to Japan, didn't they?"

"Yup."

"If we're going back to Tokyo-3 do you think Toji will be there?" she asked.

"If they're calling an alert with the EVAs then Hikari will be there. And if Hikari's there, then Toji will be there too. You know that."

"I know," she said. "That's another mess that I made."

"You didn't do anything wrong at all, sis," Patrick told her, and squeezed her harder to reassure her.

Patrick slept soundly and surprisingly uneventfully, he had fully expected a rush of nightmares to occur and was either too exhausted or too distracted for his brain to provide the nightly horror show he had become used to on stressful occasions. He took it as a hidden blessing but knew he needed to press on. When he woke up he first looked at his watch which now displayed 89:42: ten hours had gone by in the air, ten fewer hours to find Rei and save her.

He pulled himself out of bed and immediately hit the floor for thirty pushups, a routine he had started after his first day at Camp X. The exercise woke him up fully and feeling at least energized opened the bedroom door to the main cabin of the aircraft. Seated in the cabin was Erin, who had woken up well earlier and had changed into a cotton t-shirt and a mid thigh-length blue denim skirt with black leggings underneath and worn with red high-top sneakers. Zummy was seated across from her, sipping on orange juice and eating a bagel, and still in his sleeping sweats.

Patrick grabbed himself an iced coffee from the galley and took the seat next to Erin. "How did you sleep last night?" he asked Zummy.

"Pretty good, really," he said. "Nice to have a whole airplane to yourself."

"Yeah, this is one of the few really cool perks we get," commented Patrick. "This jet is NERV's and they have only the one, but sometimes we're lucky enough to get a flight on it."

"So then," Zummy asked with trepidation, "you are pilots, really?"

The twins look at each other and then at Zummy. "I guess the gig's up," said Erin. Patrick grimaced and then leaned back in the chair. "Tell you what, David. I was pretty hard on you yesterday. I mean, we're in a crisis situation and there we saw you impersonating our friend laying in her bed. You have to admit it wasn't exactly a good position that you were in."

Zummy shrugged. "I honestly didn't know what Reiko was up to, but she asked me a favor and I did that for her. She's so nice, how could I refuse?"

"Right but I had to figure out who's side you were on," Patrick explained. "I mean, finding out that you were an admin for EvaChan didn't exactly help your case."

"I swear to God EvaChan has nothing to do with spying or anything bad. We just like to trade stories and research EVA and stuff. We know that there's a lot the public doesn't get told about Evangelion, and it was a way to find out more."

Patrick turned to Erin. "Did you look into him a bit more?"

"I did," she said. "Spent some time this morning on it. He's completely clean, just another fanboy," Erin said as she looked at Zummy. The boy was embarrassed and looked away.

Patrick nodded in agreement. He had spent yesterday determining if David Zumwalt was a friend or foe, now he needed to win over his confidence. Zummy was the last person to see Rei alive, and to Patrick that made him quite important.

"So then David, or um, Zummy is it? Who gave you that name anyway?"

"It was my handle for my robotics team back in high school. State champions."

"Cool. Anyway, Zummy, I figure we owe it to you on account of nearly getting you killed while selling candy bars to terrorists, so we're going to give you a rather unprecedented opportunity." Zummy raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Erin clarified the matter for him. "We're gonna let you ask us questions about EVA. Anything you want to ask, we'll try to answer for you."

"Shit, seriously?!"

"But you can't post it on the internet or anything," admonished Erin. "You have to keep all of this quiet."

"Or else you'll shoot me, right?"

Patrick shook his head. "Naw, we're not going to shoot you." Zummy let out a breath in relief. "Oh, okay then."

"But you see that door?" Patrick pointed to the boarding door on the aircraft and smiled wide. Zummy had to think a bit to determine if Patrick was joking or not.

"Maybe I don't want to know more," Zummy said.

"We're going to Tokyo-3, and into the GeoFront," said Erin with a more serious tone. "You won't be able to ask questions when you get there, and I'm not even sure if they'll take you inside or not. But at least we'll give you a chance to satisfy your curiosity a bit."

"But in return you're not going to let me post any of this," Zumwalt concluded.

"Seems fair, right?," Patrick asked. "You mean well, and you kind of remind me of someone I knew once. Sort of ironic, really?"

"Why's that?"

"Because there probably wouldn't be an EvaChan without Warmaster, would there?"

Zummy's interest escalated. "You knew Warmaster?"

Patrick nodded. "Yes, I did. The guy you knew as Warmaster was a bit like you, very smart, good with computers, a bit on the short side, and very curious about EVA. He'd collect all this info and then post it anonymously and all. He was pretty good about it too. Then one day his dream came true."

"What was that?"

"He got his chance to be a pilot," said Patrick. Erin looked away from the two of them, it was still a hard memory of that day for her now years ago.

"And then what?"

Patrick looked right at David. "He died."

"Oh, wow," replied Zummy. "I always wondered what happened to him."

"But anyway, ask away. If you dare."

David Zumwalt took a deep breath. The opportunity in front of him was something he had always fantasized about, finding some inside track into knowing more and more about Evangelion. Now here he sat alone in a private airplane with two former EVA pilots who were giving him the chance to know more, but it came at a steep price.

"So I can't tell anyone then?" Zummy confirmed.

"Absolutely not," said Patrick. "We're not supposed to even be doing this but on account nearly getting you shot yesterday I figure I owe you at least a chance to fill that black hole inside your brain."

"What's going to happen to EvaChan?" Zummy asked the twins. "Are you going to shut it down for good?"

"If we find out that these bad guys were using EvaChan to spy on our friends, then yeah you can kiss it goodbye," said Erin. "But you and I both know that probably some people on that board made backups, and someone else will re-float it. Can't stop that, but we can make sure someone else doesn't get hurt."

"I see," said Zummy. He had to decide how far to go down the rabbit hole. Would he remain just an observer, or now become a player? Being a player might have its rewards but it wasn't exactly safe, and knowing more about EVA could even make him a target one day. But since he learned of Evangelion and what it was, David Zumwalt had always been fascinated by it and especially the fact that children much like himself were the ones who had operated the EVAs. He knew he needed to know why, and that was worth even the silence being asked of him.

"Okay," Zummy said. "I'm in."

"You're sure?" asked Patrick. "Last chance."

"What the hell else am I gonna say? Thanks for the plane ride, have a nice day? Yeah, I'm in."

Erin glanced at Patrick and gave him a half-smile, which Patrick returned. Then they both faced the new kid. "We're probably gonna land in about an hour," said Patrick. "So shoot away."

"Got it. Um, well then…" David took another deep breath and let it out. "What is it, anyway?"

"What do you mean?" asked Patrick.

"The Evangelion. Is it a robot? Is it something else? The Katsuragi book says EVAs are a semi-autonomous bio-mechanical all-purpose fighting unit. But that's basically a robot, right?"

"The answer is no," said Erin. "An EVA is definitely not a robot."

"Then what is it really?"

"It's a clone of an Angel," explained Patrick. "A bit modified."

"A bit? But what I'm getting at is that it's not mechanical with computers and stuff, right? It's biological."

Erin nodded. "Yes, that's true."

"So is it alive?"

"Without getting into a super metaphysical discussion about the meaning of 'alive' let's just say yes," answered Patrick.

"Alive like a beaver or alive like a person?"

"I think you mean can it think for itself," Erin clarified.

"Yeah, that."

The twins looked at each other again, knowing the difficulty of the answer. How to tell him without getting into what the heck a core is….

"Let's put it this way," Erin explained further. "EVAs have…personalities. Each EVA is built around the pilot and the pilot interfaces with the EVA and controls it. They obey your commands and they can sometimes even anticipate them or take actions that you would want them to."

"So they have brains then? I don't mean computers, they have actual brains."

Erin sighed. "Yup."

"Holy shit," said Zummy, his fear now quickly receding. "If they have personalities, does it mean they have names? Like can you talk to them?"

"It's not like that at all," Patrick tried to clarify. "The EVAs are like people in that they have brains and a nervous system that controls the unit. The pilot uses brain waves to interface, or sync, with the EVA. But for the most part they work like puppets without strings. We pilot and they do what we command. They don't talk back. " Usually.

"Brain waves," pondered Zummy. "that's why pilots have those headpieces, the A10s!"

"Yes."

"So there's really no controls inside? Not like joysticks or anything?"

"No."

"Cool. Always wondered how that worked. I've got another question! How do you get chosen as a pilot?"

The twins took a deep breath. "You want to take this one?" Patrick asked Erin.

"I got it," she said, using eye contact with Patrick to assure him she'd be careful with the answer. "Everyone who's ever been a pilot is tied in with NERV," she told Zummy. "While there was this big cover story about a worldwide search for children who could pilot, it's all make-believe. You can't be born as a pilot."

"So how do you get to be a pilot, then?"

"Easy," answered Patrick. "Have relatives that are high up in the NERV ranks. The commander of NERV's own son was one of them."

"They just pick their own kids? That's it?"

"It's like I said earlier," Erin explained. "EVAs are built around the pilot themselves. My dad built Unit 04 around me, and around Patrick. It's tied to us personally, so no one else can pilot it without a lot of changes."

"Unit 04? You're the pilots of Unit 04? The one that vaporized Nevada?"

"It didn't 'vaporize' Nevada," said Patrick, trying to be patient. "It 'accidentally' reacted and created a Dirac Sea using an S2 organ hotwired from an Angel. The singularity took in everything fifty miles in radius from NERV-2, and then threw us back out a month or so later."

"Wait, you mean the current Unit 04's not a rebuilt unit? It's the same one that disappeared?"

"See," Patrick told Zummy. "That's why you can't tell anyone about this."

"So what happened to NERV-2?" Patrick shook his head while Erin sat in silence. "We still don't know," Patrick said.

"But they told everyone that they were dead, like it was blown up," Zummy stated.

"Hey, kid," said Patrick, "I was there and I don't know what the hell happened even now."

"What else can you tell people?" Erin added with resignation. "I knew most everyone who disappeared that day, lucky for me I wasn't there myself. Do you tell people that some giant black hole sucked up the base and put it somewhere else like in another dimension, or even another time period? Or do you just tell them they died? Personally I feel awful about it, all of those people on the base had families who miss them and who want answers. I hope one that that NERV-2 just pops right back there just like Patrick and Unit 04 did. But there's no way to know for sure and giving them what could be a false hope just makes it worse."

"So they just tell relatives and everyone else that they died then. But it's a lie."

"Zummy, half of what you hear about EVA is a lie," Patrick told him. "It has to be."

"Why? Why not just tell people the truth about it? The whole world almost ended, shouldn't people know what really happened?"

"Trust me, kid, you really, really don't want to know everything about EVA. There is shit involved with piloting EVA I would not wish on my worst enemy."

"Such as?"

"Such as this: imaging being inside of a twelve-foot long cylinder filled with liquid that you breathe. You're all alone, you're responsible for piloting this gigantic one hundred and twenty foot monster that can crush you in its hand like flattening a soda can. Then you get attacked by these ginormous other creatures that don't have any mercy or any concern for any kind of life other than their own, and they're out to kill you with their bare hands and these gigantic teeth and rip your EVA and you into tiny little pieces. The only thing you've got to defend yourself is an AT Field, a gun, and some melee weapons and it's a fight to the death. Or imagine this: you're inside your EVA and your base gets attacked by hundreds of missiles armed with N2 warheads, and if you let even one of them through thousands of people will die. So you have no choice but to use yourself as a shield when these things explode. And if one did the heat comes right through your entry plug and boils it so hot that your skin literally…melts…off. THAT'S WHAT IT'S LIKE TO PILOT AN EVA!" By the time he finished his statement Patrick's face was six inches away from Zummys, and as Patrick stared right into the boy's eyes Zummy was again trembling.

"Patrick!" Erin shouted, "Calm down! You're scaring him."

"Good."

"Your skin melts off?" Zummy asked. "Are you serious?"

Instead of answering Zummy's question, Patrick grabbed his wrist and pulled Zummy's hand towards his face, allowing the boy to feel the skin.

"Your face is really soft," Zummy observed.

"It's my third one," Patrick told him coldly. "Miracle of science I still look as good as I do. I can't shave either."

"Why not?"

"No beard hairs. Small price to pay, I suppose."

Zummy now leaned back in his seat, taking all of this in. "I…I guess I never really thought about how dangerous this could all be. But pilots have died, right?"

"Yes," said Patrick. "And those who didn't have the scars to prove they were pilots."

The boy continued with the questions. "How much is really true about EVA? I mean, there's the Katsuragi book, isn't that all true?"

Erin took the answer this time. "Misato's book covers the Angel wars for the most part. Mostly all of that stuff actually happened."

"And then the Japanese SDF and SEELE invaded Tokyo-3 and there was this big battle."

"Right," Erin said.

"And then what? They don't talk much about what happened after Tokyo-3."

"I guess that's were we come in," Patrick added. "The second half of the war was about the Alliance and SEELE fighting it out. The Alliance still runs what's left of NERV, and of EVA, and the Alliance doesn't want anything to get out about what it does with EVA, so practically everything the public knows is the Angel Wars part of it. The other half is still pretty secret."

"How many EVA units were there? I mean really?"

"Let's see," Patrick counted on his fingers. "00, 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, and then there was 06 in China but it got hijacked by SEELE. And then there was 07, 08, and then 09, those were rebuilt from captured Mass Production units. And that doesn't count SEELE's own mass production EVAs, which must have been a dozen or more all told."

"How many are still around?"

Patrick smiled while feigning shock. "Gosh, you're nozy!"

"I'm just curious!" Zummy defended. "I mean there's still operational EVAs, right?"

"Out of all of those maybe four are left, and not all of those in operating condition. That's all I'm going to say."

"But then that means there's more pilots. The Katsuragi book only identifies five pilots, and one of them was an Angel in disguise. So how many were there?"

"At least one per unit," said Erin, "plus the two of us."

"Do you have to pilot together to make your EVA work?"

"Nope, works with just one pilot," answered Erin. "We've only double-piloted once."

"Any more questions?" asked Patrick as he looked out the window and saw the Japanese coastline, "We're landing soon."

"Yeah, just one more: What does LCL stand for?"

"Hell if I know," said Patrick.

"Wait, you don't know?"

Patrick nodded his head, "Correct." Zummy looked at Erin. "Do you?"

"If anyone knew, they never told us," she answered. "Good luck getting an answer. Even the people at NERV don't know and I asked everyone I knew."

Patrick leaned back in his seat again and smiled slightly. "Zumwalt, I'm really surprised at you! All those questions and you totally forgot about the one reason why you're here."

"What's that….oh, wait. You mean about Reiko? What about her? Is she a pilot too?"

"I don't believe this," Patrick groaned and face-palmed, while Erin actually got out a giggle.

"What, what's so funny?"

Erin explained it to him. "You ran the EvaChan board and you couldn't figure out who Reiko actually was?"

"Well, oh, okay, I get she's a pilot. I mean she said she lived in Hakone and saw the EVA's up close and all."

"Dude," Patrick told him with a smile. "You didn't connect Rei-ko with a pilot named Rei?"

"Rei?" Zumwalt said in astonishment. "You mean like Rei Ayanami Rei?" The twins burst out in laughter.

"That was her?!"

"Yup," said Patrick. "You were study buddies with The First Child and didn't even know it."

"She totally didn't give anything away," said Zummy. "I had no idea."

Erin smiled at him. "That's just like her. It's good, I think she would have been happy to have a friend that had nothing to do with EVA."

"Then I hope we can find her," he said, smiling for perhaps the first time since he boarded the airplane. "And I'll do whatever I can to help."

As their Gulfstream came in on approach to Tokyo-3 the three of them looked out the windows to get a look at NERV's home. The Geofront was still visible from the air, a giant-gaping round crater where the top of the dome had been blown off after successive attacks, and the insides of the Geofront were visible. It had been cleaned up much in the last few years, with the interior lake restored and expanded and the greenery restored. All of the damaged above-ground buildings had been cleared out many months earlier and the few left were extensively remodeled to remove battle damage. The airfield had long ago been rebuilt and so had the train depot next to the welcoming annex above ground. As the students looked towards the Geofront, a new addition was visible from the air.

"What's that?" Erin asked, pointing out something to Patrick. He took a careful look from the airplane window.

"It looks like a bullet train," he told her. "But in Unit 01's colors." Indeed the train was painted purple and green throughout its entire length in a pattern evocative of EVA-01.

"New train service to Tokyo-3?" Erin speculated. "Maybe for the tourists?"

"I didn't know they were opening up NERV for tours yet" said Patrick, "but nothing would surprise me anymore."

Zummy pointed out something else. "What's that?" he asked. The twins saw it and wondered also.

"Large pool of water with something in the middle wrapped up it seems," said Patrick.

"That thing in the middle is huge, whatever it is," observed Erin. "It looks about thirty feet tall."

The pilot of the aircraft came on the speakers instructing the three of them to fasten seatbelts and be prepared to land shortly. The twins and Zummy complied and after a smooth and uneventful landing they were on the ground at Airfield One within five minutes.

As the Gulfstream taxied towards a set of hangars near the runway, Zummy anxiously sat in his seat not sure what to expect next. "Now what?" he asked the twins.

"Well, you are going to have a talk with some friends of mine," Patrick told him as he unbuckled his seatbelt. "They wont hurt you, but please answer any questions they ask, no matter how embarrassing or stupid they are. Anything could be important."

"Will I get to see the Geofront?" Zummy asked.

"Don't know. Alliance Intelligence has its HQ in the city wreckage of Tokyo-3 that still stands outside of here. Not sure if they'll let you come to NERV or not."

Erin put a hand on Zummy's shoulder as he got out of the airline seat. "Just try to cooperate, okay?" She encouraged. "You'll be fine."

"Okay, then. Um, thanks for today, letting me ask questions and all."

"Sure, and hey remember that's under your hat. I don't want to see that stuff online somewhere when all of this is over."

"Yeah, I got it," said Zummy. "I think EvaChan is pretty fried anyway after what happened."

Patrick had changed into a pair of grey slacks and a white button down shirt, accompanied by a sports coat. It was more overdressed than he usually did after a flight, but now he was also working in his capacity as an agent and knew he needed to appear more professional in his appearance. Just before exiting Patrick pulled out his satellite phone and called into Kaji to let him know he had arrived. However it was Satsuki who actually answered.

"Hello, Forrestal-kun," said Satsuki cheerfully. "How was your flight?"

"Good," Patrick replied and then in a low voice. "Any news at all?"

"You'll meet the director and myself at NERV, they'll send a driver to pick you up and we'll collect your witness at the same time."

"Confirmed. Any news about Rei at all? Were they able to track any kind of incoming aircraft that she could have been in?"

"Unfortunately no," said Satsuki. "The Japanese national air defense radar system is currently down."

"Down? The whole country?"

"Correct. JA is causing a lot of trouble. You'll be briefed once you get to NERV, so I'll see you there."

The bulkhead door swung open and the three of them saw a set of stairs that led down to the runway. Waiting below were two utility vehicles, one with two tall Japanese men in dark suits and sunglasses standing by, and another with a young Japanese woman of about twenty years of age, wearing a blue sweater over a white blouse and a blue skirt, with black flats and black hose. She had glasses and long brown hair, and notable freckles on her face, and a large NERV ID hung from her neck with a red lanyard.

"Hello!" shouted Kodama Horaki to the twins. "Over here!"

Patrick gave her a good wave as he got out first, followed by Erin and Zummy trailing behind, who had just before landing threw on a pair of blue jeans and sneakers, and wore a blue athletic polyester jacket. Patrick got to the bottom of the stairway and quickly put Kodama, Hikari's older sister and a staff member at NERV, in an embrace.

"It's so good to see you, both of you!" she said loudly over the aircraft noise, hugging Patrick first and then Erin. "Did you have a good flight?"

"More or less," replied Patrick. "We have a guest with us."

"Ah, yes." Kodama approached Zummy. "Hello, you're David Zumwalt, correct," she said in accented English.

"Yes, that's right."

"My name is Kodama Horaki. Welcome to NERV. You'll be going with these two gentlemen," Kodama motioned to the two large men, one of whom had already ran up the stairs and fetched the luggage of the passengers from the aircraft. "Don't worry, I don't think they'll bite."

David wasn't so sure and looked nervously at his escorts as his duffle bag was sorted out. One agent nodded to another and the other opened the rear door of the vehicle, motioning for Zummy to get inside. Sheepishly, Zummy looked towards the twins and after another reassurance from them that he'd be okay, got inside. The agent slammed the door behind him and got into the vehicle, and as the twins waived at Zummy they drove off with him. The boy still looked worried, and worriedly stared right at them as the car drove down the tarmac and towards the base exit.

"So what did he do?" Kodama asked after the vehicle was out of sight.

"You ever heard of Eva-Chan?" Patrick asked.

"Oh, that. Yeah, I go on there every now and then when I need a good laugh."
"Is anyone else here?" asked Erin.

"They're all on their way in. Oh look!" said Kodama as she pointed up in the air. "There's Sis now!"

The three of them looked upward and watched as a small-sized tilt-rotor aircraft sped over NERV's airfield at perhaps five hundred feet in altitude. The aircraft was clearly a civilian model, marked with a red and white color scheme over its fuselage and it's two large wing-mounted engines. After buzzing the group of them the tilt-rotor made a sharp hairpin turn and then flipped its engines upward to allow it to hover. Within another minute it had made a soft landing on the airfield not far from where Kodama's vehicle was parked.

A door opened from the side of the tilt-rotor and a small staircase unfolded towards the ground. Out came Hikari, Kodama's younger sister and one of the Evangelion pilots. She was wearing a light-blue shirt dress with black flats, and put on a brimmed hat as soon as she was down the steps and on the ground. Notably, Hikari's hair was now considerably shorter than it had been in the past, as she sported a shorter neck-length hair cut.

Following Hikari out of the aircraft was Toji Suzahara, Hikari's boyfriend and another of the pilots. Toji had been the one at the controls and he removed his headset as he climbed down the steps. Patrick noticed that Toji sported a green-and-white patterned vinyl windsuit with sneakers and smiled: some habits just never changed with people.

Kodama waived at the couple and Toji waived back, and the two of them fetched backpacks from a small compartment under the aircraft. Patrick heard Erin take a deep breath behind him and he turned around, giving her a smile to try and reassure her. Erin smiled back but it was forced, memories of the prior summer no doubt having their effect.

"Dude!" Toji called out to Patrick and they at first hit a high five, and then went into an embrace.

"Good seeing you again!" Patrick said to him in Japanese. He pointed to the tilt-rotor. "Is that yours?"

"Yup," Toji said as he smiled broadly. "Dad gave it to me for my birthday a few months ago. I guess I'm a pilot again."

"Shit, you were really hot-dogging that thing!"

"I like it! Really flies smooth, and I took it all the way from Osaka-2 to here." Hikari caught up to the group and then put her hand around Toji's arm. "How are you?" she asked the twins.

"I guess we're okay," Patrick replied for the both of them. "You cut your hair?"

"Yes, I did," Hikari answered with a little embarrassment. "I just decided that it worked a bit better being shorter. Still getting used to it."

As the others talked, Toji looked at Erin and gave her a slight smile and Erin smiled back for just a moment, then turned away. Patrick saw the exchange and saw that Hikari was doing her best to put up a good front as well, politely greeting Erin.

"How are you, how is the new school?" Hikari asked her.

"Oh, it's fine!" said Erin, smiling broader. "Maybe a little too exciting at times. You guys are still in high school, right?"

"Still in our second year, although we're both planning on taking the early graduation test and just jumping to university in the spring. That is if I can keep Toji focused on his studies."

"What?" Toji defended. "I'm focused!"

Hikari looked up and smirked. "Of course you are. When you're not flying that big toy or playing basketball." There was laughter among the group.

"Hey," Toji said to Patrick in a softer, more serious tone. "We heard about Rei-chan. Have you guys found her yet?"

With that Patrick snapped back to reality. "No," he said to the others. "But she's probably back here, in Japan. I just need to pick up the trail and find her before she gets into any danger."

"I really hope she's okay," said Hikari. "I spoke with Misato and she's so worried!"

"Everyone is, and now suddenly NERV needs pilots again too."

Kodama chimed in. "When it rains, it pours. I've got everyone's IDs so let's get inside and I'll drive you in."

Toji and Patrick packed all of the luggage into the back of Kodama's vehicle and everyone piled in, with Kodama driving, the twins up front with her and Toji and Hikari in the back. As she drove towards the Geo-front the group continued to get caught up with current events.

"Ane-san," Hikari asked Kodama, "Did Nozomi-chan and Sakura-chan make it in yet?"

"They did," Kodama answered as she drove. "Their train pulled in just a few minutes before the jet landed."

"What…what was that bullet train?" Patrick asked.

"Oh, that. That's the Evangelion Type 500," Kodama declared.

"That's an EVA?" Erin exclaimed.

"Sort of. It's one of father's projects for NERV, uses the EVA control technology for piloting the train. Don't worry," Kodama told them. "it doesn't transform into a fighting machine or anything. Not yet anyway."

Patrick tried to grasp what exactly the EVA Train was. "So, it has a pilot then? And an entry plug?"

"Um hmm," Kodama nodded. "The pilot is Train Boy. You'll probably meet him while you're here."

Patrick and Erin looked at each other, wondering what else had changed since they left Japan the previous year. As the vehicle approached the terminal, Patrick noticed that right of them was the giant wrapped object standing in a pool of water. The object looked bulky from ground level, draped to cover it entirely with grey-colored fabrics that were strapped to the ground. "What's that?" he pointed.

"The Third Impact Memorial," answered Kodama. "Almost completed."

"About time," Toji commented from the rear.

As two Alliance Marines opened up a steel gate for them, Kodama drove through the gap and then into a opening that led to an underground garage. Knowing the way well, she moved through the garage until reaching a car-sized elevator and drove inside. The doorway came down as the SUV fit snugly into the well-lit elevator itself. The way down was lengthy enough for the passengers to feel the air pressure change.

"Have they fixed up the Geofront by now?" Erin asked Kodama.

"A lot of it's cleaned up now but there's still lots of places that are off limits. I'm taking you to the new staff facilities, I don't think they've got the command center ready for us yet."

The elevator reached the bottom and the front door slid quickly upwards, allowing Kodama to drive out and into the underground areas of the Geofront. After about five hundred meters the tunnels gave way to open space and the SUV sped through the interior of the Geofront's dome space, lit by sunlight coming from above. Alongside the road were greenery of grass and small trees. The lake had been re-constructed and was clearly visible from the roadside, with the sparkles of sunlight catching off the surface of the water.

"How much further, Kodama?" asked Toji. "I gotta pee!"

"Almost there," she said cheerfully. Within another minute of driving she parked the van into an open-air parking lot at the very edge of the greenery and against the wall of the GeoFront. Everyone got out and after grabbing luggage went through a doorway guarded by two well-armed Alliance Marines dressed in camouflage uniforms. Each of the kids had their ID checked by the security guards, making sure it corresponded to one displayed on their own tablets, and then let them inside the secure area of the GeoFront.

It was another five minutes of walking followed by another elevator ride that eventually led the group to the new command post set up in what was once a communications post for NERV. As the majority of the GeoFront was either damaged or inoperable, and the old command centers were very large and expensive to operate on a daily basis, NERV had configured a smaller set of rooms for emergency use until the command center could be re-commissioned. As such they were crowded with staff and electronics of all kinds, with LCD displays covering nearly all of the available wall space.

Standing in the middle of the control center and giving instructions to the staff was Makoto Hyuga. Hyuga looked much the same as he did in his earlier control days, with slicked back black hair and black-framed glasses. He was one of the few in the room that wore a military uniform, in his case the cobalt blue and black uniform of the Alliance Space Force and had the rank insignia of a major on his collars.

"We're here, Major," Kodama announced as the group arrived in the control room, and Major Hyuga smiled. "Wonderful, just who we were waiting for." He walked over to greet the pilots, shaking hands with the boys and embracing the ladies. "I hope your travels were safe getting here."

"No trouble," said Toji. "I flew myself here."

"I heard that you dad gave you that new plane! I admit I'm pretty jealous, you'll have to let me take a spin in it when things calm down. In the meantime, we've got a mess on our hands, so if you want to go in the conference room I'll call the others to let them know you've arrived. Kodama-san?"

"Yes, major?"

"Go and find Misato-san, she was on the phone outside. Let her know the rest of the pilots are here."

"Will do," she replied and immediately left to go find Misato. The rest of the kids took a look at the chaos of the new control center as someone else approached them. "Well, hello!" Standing in front was Doctor Maya Hyuga PhD, the former Maya Hibiki, who was the current scientific affairs director at NERV. She was wearing a white lab coat over a blue and purple maternity dress and appeared very pregnant. "It's good to see all of you again!"

"Hello again, Hyuga-san," said Hikari for the group. "How's the baby coming?"

"Almost due," she said. "This one's more trouble than the first one was. Hikari-chan? I know I probably shouldn't bother you, but Akemi-chan is in my office outside and Misato's brought Akira-chan with her. Can you possibly watch over those two during the conference?"

"Well," Hikari said reluctantly, knowing her own responsibilities. "I probably should attend the briefing though."

Toji perked up. "Don't worry, I'll go in your place," he told Hikari. "I'll brief you on everyone once were' done."

Hikari nodded at Toiji and smiled a little, appreciating the help. "Then I guess that's fine!"

"Here, I'll take you to my office. Makoto?" she called for her husband, who came out of meeting with a group of technicians at her call. "Yes, dear?"

"Hikari's going to watch the babies," said Maya as Hikari followed her. "Did the commander make it in, yet?"

"Aoi-san's bringing him in now," he said.

Patrick looked for where the conference room entry door was but as he scanned the communications room standing to the back and leaning against the wall was Ryoki Kaji, wearing a black suit without a necktie. Patrick broke from the group and met up with him.

"Hello, sir!" he reported in.

"Good to see you," Kaji welcomed him with a handshake. "I see you brought a guest with you."

"Yeah, we gave him to interrogation when we got here. Go easy on him, he's gone through enough already."

"As the last person to see Rei, I'm sure that boy can help us fill in some of the gaps in our information. Please attend the meeting here and then see me privately afterwards, we need to discuss a few things."

"Yes, sir."

Outside the room was another NERV officer leaning on another wall and listening on a mobile phone as Kodama found her. Misato was wearing her red leather NERV operations jacket from her earlier days, over a black civilian blouse, slacks, and open-toe heels. Kodama motioned to her that she was needed in the conference room and Misato flashed back five fingers, indicating she'd be there in five minutes once she finished her phone call. Kodama nodded and then left her alone in the hallway.

"Sorry, Shinji," Misato said. "We're getting assembled now, so things are about to get going. I'm glad you made it back to Japan okay but we won't be able to attend the concert again."

"Misato, about that," Shinji asked over the phone. "I was thinking, being as Rei can't be found right now, do you need me?"

"Need you for what?"

"Piloting, of course."

"No."

"No? You're sure?"

"No," Misato confirmed. "I thought we made that clear before. We can do this without you."

"But Misato," Shinji interjected. "Who else is going to pilot? You need someone, right?"

"We have someone, as you already know. Also we called back the Forrestal twins, and one of them can pilot Unit 04. NERV just needs to get the Japanese government to approve breaking the seal on '04's containment so we can trade it with Unit 01. We'll be okay."

"I see. I just feel…"

"…guilty? That someone else has to do this and it should be you."

"Yeah, that's it."

"Now Shinji, I told you before. You did plenty, and when there was no one else that could pilot you were there. But all that is done now for you. Trust us to take care of it."

"I still think that I should be there."

"But don't you have a concert engagement in New Kagoshima City?" Misato asked. "People will be expecting Shinjiro Kaji to be there to play for them. If you don't show up there and if you do show up here instead, word might get out that you and him are the same guy. And that would wreck this whole new identity that you've worked so hard to create. You like the freedom of that, right? Being able to put all of this behind you?'

"Yeah, it's true. But…"

"No buts. That's it, it's settled. Go and play do your job and let us do our jobs. We got this. Really."

Shinji let out a sigh. "Okay, Misato. I got it."

"Good. Now I can't make the concert but I still want to see the two of you, so afterwards give us a call and hopefully we have this runaway robot thing back in its cage again."

"Alright, Misato. Good luck, then!"

"And good luck to you. Love you kid! Bye!" With that Misato hung up the phone and turned around to see Kaji standing there. "That was Shinji. He was volunteering to pilot."

"Of course he would," said Kaji.

"But I'm not going to let someone with a 6% sync get into an EVA, even though I didn't tell him that. We got this, right?"

"Barring any further bumps, I think so." He stepped a bit closer to Misato. "The Forrestals and the Horakis are here, so we can get started."

"Any word on Rei?"

"No, I'm afraid and that's troubling."

"It is," Misato mused.

Next to the communications room was a conference room with a long, oval-shaped table that had twelve seats around it. There were several screens on the walls including a very large LCD that took up one entire wall and that currently showed a multimedia display for the NERV Research Center, which was the new name of NERV facilities at the GeoFront.

Within a couple of minutes the conference room was filled with people, as Misato, Kaji, the Hyugas, both Forrestal twins, and Kodama all took seats along with Toji. Also there was Satsuki Ooi, who would lead off the meeting with the latest intelligence on the Jet Alone situation. Everyone looked to the doorway as the NERV's current commander, Alliance Brigadier General Adam Burke, dressed in a khaki military uniform, entered his bulky frame through the relatively small doorway followed by Aoi Mogami, who was another former NERV controller now working as Burke's assistant. Aoi looked much the same as before, with short-cropped auburn hair and rectangular eye glasses, and she made a quick wave to Satsuki as she entered the room. The two had been close friends during their earlier time at NERV.

"Okay, I'm here," said Burke as he addressed the others in English. "Did the Japanese representative show up yet?"

Others looked around and no one had an answer. "No one's heard from them," Major Hyuga replied. "Did they get the invitation to be here?"

"They did," said Kodama. "I sent it twice to the liaison's office. Although with the new government changeover maybe there's a new person."

"Well during the campaign they weren't all that crazy about NERV being here," Misato noted. "There were proposals to change the hosting agreement."

"As if we don't pay them enough from the monetary residuals from the technology transfers we do," spat Makoto. He was not a fan of the new political party now in power in Japan.

"They should still at least respond to invitations to manage a crisis," Burke said. "We're doing them a favor by offering to help with Jet Alone, they could at least admit they're having some trouble with that." Burke looked at the others. "Then let's get started. If their rep shows up late we'll just brief them afterwards." The general took a seat at the head of the conference table and glanced over at Kaji. "I believe Alliance Intelligence has an update on the latest situation with JA."

"We do," Kaji replied. "Satsuki-san, would you please fill everyone in."

"Yes, sir." Satsuki took her tablet and controlled a video presentation on the large screen in front of the group. "The latest update on JA's location came just under an hour ago. We have this video from Misawa Air Base, in Hokkaido." Satsuki then showed the video recording on the screen, and everyone watched as Jet Alone marched towards yet another Japanese Air Force base as fighters and attack aircraft attempted to stop it.

"Hokkaido?" Makoto exclaimed. "Wasn't JA just in Kasuga, in Kyushu? That's over a thousand kilometers away!"

"How fast is JA's land speed?" Misato asked.

"It was never confirmed by JHCI but it's believed to be capable up to 500 kilometers an hour at a full run," said Kaji. "However it was never tested at that speed while it was active years ago."

Patrick chimed in. "And no one saw a giant robot running across the full length of Japan?"

"Apparently not," Kaji answered. "Satsuki?"

"I'll continue," she said and then proceeded with the remaining video. "JA made another attack on a JAF air defense facility, only this time didn't use the lasers that we saw in the first attack." This fact was displayed as various combat aircraft made diving runs with their missiles and cannon at JA, and JA didn't shoot them down as it did before in the earlier Kasuga raid. "However, it did use it's Electromagnetic Spectrum Weapons this time and this is what happened." She used a laser pointer to show in the video how attack VSTOLs tried to get up-close to JA but were instead suddenly paralyzed by an invisible force, then crashed to the ground below. There were a dozen such explosions trailing the path where JA marched. The giant robot then proceeded to do what it did before, use its gigantic body to crush buildings and radar domes below it. Within a few minutes the airbase was engulfed in flames.

"Attempts to re-acquire JA after the attack also failed. Right now the JAF has no idea where it is."

"Fuck!" said Toji from the back of the room.

"My sentiments exactly," quipped Misato. "So what do we do now?"

"Well, we don't do anything until the Japanese government gives us the go-ahead," said the general, "per the agreement we have with them. That doesn't stop us from preparing, however. Major? How is the staff recall going?"

Makoto Hyuga now reported. "The good news is that we have most of our pilots, save one. If we can get Unit 04 released we'll be able to operate two EVA units at once. The bad news is that personnel are still trickling in, we only have about thirty percent of operations staff and even less of the technical staff."

"The same goes for the scientific team," said Maya Hyuga. "While we have a good core of scientists right here, we have recalls out for all of the associated specialists and they've been slow to come in. Everyone has a life outside of NERV now, it seems."

"Can we operate with what we have on hand now?" asked the commander.

"Barely," said the major. "And probably only in defense of our perimeter. We'll need a full crew in order to deploy an EVA out of area and go on the offensive."

"And we can't expect that JA would just show up here, although I would think that we'd make an enticing target," said Burke. "So start up with a defensive plan and get ready for an incoming assault. I'll ask the Alliance for reinforcements for the defense zone, although based on what we've seen of JA I think we know better than to try and come after it with gunships and fighters." Burke turned again to Kaji. "Does Alliance intel have any idea on where JA might go?"

"JA has now destroyed two of the three main air defense centers of the Japanese Air Force," said Kaji, "so the Ministry of Defense is making a stand at Nagano where the third one is. However there's no real telling where it could show up, especially as it seems to have some sort of stealth movement ability. It could show up practically anywhere in Japan."

"How did we stop it the last time?" Burke asked.

"With an EVA," Misato answered. "And Yours Truly got to get inside of it and mess with its brain."

"Then we have to assume that's the best course of action this time as well. Last question: who is controlling JA? Or is anyone?"

"Unknown," said Kaji. "According to specifications JA was able to be controlled via VHF radio from a ground station, but the range was under a hundred kilometers. It seems from its current course of action that it's Artificial Intelligence brain is pre-empting against it's likely opponents by attacking air bases."

"Why do that?" asked Makoto. "Why not just walk into a big city and just go all Kaiju on it? Or is JA thinking this on its own?"

"I think that would be the most frightening part of this," said Maya. "What if no one's in charge of it?"

"We need a plan to stop it, one way or another," Burke concluded. "Doctor Hyuga, can you work on a way to remotely contact and crack JA's control system computer should the need arise."

"I've already started on it, " replied Maya. "The lack of a satellite feed means we'll have to get physically close to have any chance of contacting it."

"I see. Please give that effort as high as priority as you can. I know that you've got your hands full with taking the EVA's combat capabilities out of mothballs but we'll need something when the time comes."

"I'll put every effort into it."

"Very well. You've all got your jobs, so meeting adjourn…" At that moment the conference door slammed open and a dour faced Japanese woman with a bowl haircut and dressed in a dark suit came through the doorway. "I'm here," the woman said curtly as she marched towards the only open seat left at the conference room table.

"And you are…" asked Burke.

"I'm Yuna Watanabe," the woman said. "I'm your new government liaison."

Burke tried to put as friendly of a face as he could, but the woman's demeanor emitted strong negativity such was her body language. Rushed, pushy, and impatient, Burke sensed that Watanabe could be trouble.

"We're pleased to have you here. I can have Mogami-san fill you in…"

"Why did you start without me?" Watanabe said, cutting Burke off. "You were instructed not to conduct any meeting without my presence. Why did you go ahead?"

"Ahem, we had no such instruction. We issued several invitations with no confirmation and…"

"As you can see there's already a communication malfunction, which strongly indicates the sort of casual and permissive relationship you had with the previous government. Not to mention a considerable lack of respect for your hosts."

"With all due respect, Ms. Watanabe," Burke said, "There's a crisis and NERV is responding…"

"NERV is not responding because NERV has not been asked for help as of yet," said Watanabe, again cutting Burke off.

"Ms. Watanabe," said Burke, "You have a giant, runaway robot powered by a nuclear reactor that has blown up two air force bases so far. You need options to rectify this situation and we can provide those."

"I assure you that the government and the Ministry of Defense has the matter completely in hand," replied Watanabe curtly. "If help is needed we will request it if and when becomes necessary."

At this point Misato, her patience already wearing much thinner since the new liaison entered the room, faced off with Watanabe. "By the time you get around to asking for help there's going to be a dozen cities raised to the ground. Do you really think you're going to stop Jet Alone with fighter jets and tanks? I would have thought after seeing Angels and EVAs kick the Army's ass a few times you'd understand what kind of operation this is."

Watanabe glared at Misato. "And I suppose NERV has a convenient solution to all of this?"

"Better yet," said Misato smugly. "We've actually done it before, which is more I can say for the Ministry the last time there was a runaway robot." Burke then interjected, trying to calm the situation down. "All we're trying to do is be prepared for the eventually NERV will need to employ the Evangelions. Per the current agreement with the Japanese government, we're not going to employ them out of our area of responsibility until authorized but it takes time and effort to prepare for what we might have to do."

"Let me make something immediately clear, Brigadier," declared Watanabe as she wagged her fist at the commander. "NERV is absolutely not to get involved in this matter until formally requested, and furthermore" she said as she looked at Misato, "don't think this is a 'break the rules now and ask for forgiveness later' type of an event. I assure you we will be very intolerant of any willful misinterpretations of the hosting agreement."

Burke put his hands in the air in mock surrender, wondering to himself what the heck got into this bitch? "All we're gonna do is get prepared for action should it be necessary. Now that you've made your point all we need from the government is permission to break the seals on Unit 04's suspension and we'll keep out of your way."

"Break the seals?!" Watanabe said in surprise. "Whatever for? You're allow to have two active units per the treaty. What do you need a third unit active for?"

"The pilot of Unit 01 is currently unavailable," said Major Hyuga, who was following along the conversation. "We need to activate Unit 04 so that we can have two units. Right now we only have one."

"Your pilot is unavailable?" repeated the liaison.

"Correct," said Misato. "So we need '04 reactivated, and we'll put '01 in status for the time being."

"What about the other pilot?" asked Watanabe.

"What other pilot?" said Misato

"The one that currently in Japan giving musical concerts. Surely if this is such an emergency he's available."

How did she know Shinji's even here? He's using his alias, not his real name. "Pilot Ikari is no longer affiliated with NERV, he's incapable of piloting the unit."

"According to our own information," Watanabe addressed Misato, stepping closer to her as she did so, "it's quite impossible that he's incapable. He may have a low sync ratio, but that doesn't mean he cannot pilot. Even NERV employed pilots with zero sync ratios while in action."

What the hell? "NERV did that only as a last-ditch measure and not to properly operate a unit," explained Misato in exasperation. "Basically Unit 01 cannot currently be used, we're willing to put it in stasis and swap it out for a unit which is functional and that we have another pilot for. What's wrong with doing that?"

"Denied," ordered the liaison.

At this point Misato completely lost her temper. "DENIED!? WHAT THE HELL FOR!?" Despite facing a furious Misato, Watanabe remained completely calm. "I said denied. As long as you have a pilot for the unit available in the country, you will use that pilot. We are not going to give NERV an excuse to violate the host agreement by releasing a third EVA unit."

Misato leaned even further into the liaison, her eyes bulging with emotion. "Just how many people are you going to get killed with your latent, bureaucratic stupidity?"

"It's just this sort of attitude that we're going to seek to correct, Colonel Kaji," said the liaison, who didn't even bat an eye at Misato's furious demeaner. "Perhaps in years past Japan has been at the beck and call of NERV but that will no longer be the case. If there's any culpability in this situation, it's because NERV interfered with Jet Alone's initial trial evaluation three years ago, so consider our actions a remedy to a problem that your organization created," said Watanabe coldly. That was more than enough to provoke Misato.

"We didn't fucking do this!" Misato shouted, lunging for the liaison until both Kaji and Makoto held her back by the arms. "YOU IDIOT!"