DISCLAIMER: I don't own Evangelion yet.
Shinji situated himself as Misato sat down across from him, exchanging pleasantries. As they take off, he sets his backpack beside him; Lack of sleep over the last three years causes him to slip into a slumber caused by a rare feeling of peace. Misato eyes him, wondering how one could sleep in such a noisy craft. 'His file did mention that the last three years of his life were in Minsk... Judging by the outfit, I sense he wasn't a refugee; and certainly not a fan of the government.' She thought, taking note of the Ruthenian flag on his left shoulder. 'I don't know how he could've gotten caught up in all this; his file clearly states he spent the first six years of his life in Japan... so why would he join some eastern European militia?'
She thought about asking him but didn't want to disturb his sleep; if the bags under his eyes were any indicator, he didn't get much.
Approximately eight hours later: one hour from Tokyo-3.
By now, Misato had taken off the Coat in exchange for her bright red jacket and black dress, letting her hair down. She noticed that the boy in front of her was sweating heavily. She got up to try and remove his jacket to make him more comfortable in the Japanese heat.
As she put her hand on his jacket to remove it, she was startled as his hand tightly gripped her wrist, his sweaty face looking towards her, eyes full of fear. After a couple of uncomfortable seconds, he let go of her and sat upright before speaking. "I- I'm sorry, I get startled easily." She sighed. "A light sleeper, I take it?" He only nodded in response.
'Not many things cause someone to have that reaction to being woken up... I hope the kid isn't that messed up; we need him to pilot, after all.' She thought to herself, wondering how such a cute kid could seem so fearful and distant. Contrary to Misato's belief, he looked nothing like a kid, a bit under six foot tall, and looked rough; defined. He had a bit of stubble, and his dark brown hair was medium-length. He had a bit of a sad look about him, in the romanticized way that girls would try and "fix him."
He didn't sleep much for the remaining hour; the sleep he got previously was uncomfortable and did little to remedy the bags under his eyes. Silence fell between the two, and Shinji hated it.
Old Tokyo: 30 minutes later.
A massive dark entity swims through the blue waters off the coast of Japan, moving in between the buildings that once comprised a bustling city...
NERV HQ - Same Time.
Several JSSDF Generals watch the beast through a UAV, accompanied by the bridge staff and being watched over by one Gendo Ikari and Sub-Commander Fuyutsuki. "The messengers of god have finally arrived... and at the worst possible time," Fuyutsuki spoke up, eyeing the large screen in front of the command bridge intently. "So they have. What is the status of the Third Child and Captain Katsuragi?" Responded Ikari. "30 minutes out." The Sub-Commander replied. "Very well."
The Commander observed the scene below him, hands tented in front of his mouth, tinted glasses obscuring his eyes. "As soon as the bastard surfaces, fire with everything we have!" One of the generals yelled. The screen switched to a camera observing UN tanks and VTOLs headed for their positions. The black mass emerged suddenly; it was skyscraper-sized with a skinny appearance, having incredibly long arms and legs with a red orb at its center. Massive rib-like bones protruded from its chest near the sphere, accompanied by bone-like shoulder pauldrons and spikes at the elbows. To finish off its look, what could only be a bird's mask sat above the orb, possibly the face, as it lacked a head. Fire came from aircraft and tanks but had little effect as it seemed to bounce off some forcefield.
"An AT field." The Sub-Commander commented, earning no reply from his superior. "Keep firing! Kill that bastard!" One of the generals shouted into a radio. But to no avail; VTOLs swatted out of the sky like nats, and tanks crushed like insects. The bridge techs and generals could only listen in horror as crews screamed for their lives.
Approximately 30 minutes later: Geofront landing pad.
The VTOL landed quickly, the crew ushering one Shinji Ikari and Misato Katsuragi out before taking off. "What the hell is that thing?" Shinji softly asked as he pointed at the massive creature. "That is the third angel, Sachiel." They quietly observed the battle, both noticing as the VTOLs quickly sped away from Sachiel. "What the hell... They're using an N2 mine! Get down!" Misato yelled as they both hit the deck.
Shii forced his eyes shut and covered his ears as a massive explosion painted the area in an intense white glow. The shockwave knocked out his breath and nearly threw him off the ground. After a couple of seconds, the two got up as Misato shouted for them to get into an elevator. Shinji barely heard her but followed her into it anyway, ears still ringing.
"That was a close one," Misato said, sighing before grimacing at her still-ringing ears. Shinji nodded and observed the logo on the side of the elevator; it was half a maple leaf with NERV taking up the other half, underlined with the slogan "GOD IS IN HEAVEN ALL'S RIGHT IN THE WORLD." "A bit full of themselves, huh?" He commented to Misato, pointing at the logo. She chuckled a bit at this and his apparent lack of shyness, a far cry from the earlier blushing teen. 'Perhaps getting nuked with someone makes you more comfortable around them.' She joked to herself.
In silence, they waited as the elevator went down, clicking as they passed floor after floor. Suddenly the elevator came to a stop, doors opening to a face Misato knew all too well. A short-haired blonde woman stepped inside, dressed in a lab coat and a blue one-piece bathing suit. The woman looked at Shinji with her greenish-brown eyes; Shinji felt like he was being studied, like some attraction. He stared back at her, their eyes clashing for a moment, green on blue.
She then looked toward Misato as the elevator resumed moving. "Aha... Hi Rits. Did you come looking for me? I didn't think we were that late." She chuckled awkwardly under the woman's cold gaze. Ritsuko softened and spoke. "No, you're on time, for once." She teased. Misato huffed before Ritsuko returned her eyes to Shinji. "Is this the third child?" Ritsuko asked; Misato responded with her normally cheery voice. "In the flesh!"
"Shinji Ikari; a pleasure to meet you, ma'am." He reached out to shake her hand while speaking; she took it and smiled. "My name is Doctor Ritsuko Akagi. I am in charge of project E, so you'll be working closely with me." Shinji scoffed and replied sarcastically. "And here I was, thinking my father just wanted to see me." Even through the layers of Sarcasm Ritsuko could detect the hurt in the man's voice. "You have an important job now; he knows you're the only one who can." She replied.
"And do I get a say in this?" Anger seeped into his tone as he raised his voice. "If you don't, humanity will perish." She replied, now lacking a smile. "After everything I've seen humanity do, I'm not sure that's so bad." She couldn't help but silently agree.
Before they could continue, the elevator doors opened to a pitch-black room. Dr. Akagi led them onto what sounded like a catwalk; Shinji thought of the darkness. 'I hate the dark.' He decided.
I'm leaving it off here now; I hope you enjoyed this! I know it's a bit of a cliffhanger, but I got a positive reception, so I wanted to give you guys something more to read while you waited! If you notice a change in character, I've decided who Shinji will be. I changed the rating because it's more appropriate, not because I plan on writing on Smut. There will be some more explicit scenes, but no lemons. While I have decided on how Shinji will be, there's a lot of stuff that I haven't decided on; either way, suggestions are always appreciated!
As for ships, I haven't decided on one because I don't think any of them will work well with Shinji at the moment, at least. But that's not to say there won't be some stuff, but nothing too solid. I am considering Kensuke/Shinji primarily because I haven't seen much of it, and I think it might fit.