A/N: So far, no reviews. But I got 70+ hits so far. That's gotta mean something. I'm gonna keep chugging along here. I've got ideas, and they are not about to go to waste. I also forgot to describe Mr. Zack Harper. He's got brown hair, green eyes, and has a build similar to Toji Suzahara.
Disclaimer: Bla bla. I don't own this series or its characters. But I do own the character Zack Harper and partially own Ivana Kharlamov.
Misato's Apartment at 8:00am.
It starts with a toaster popping freshly toasted bread. Shinji is eating the toast. Asuka is making tea. PenPen is eating fresh fish. And Zack is wondering where there's a coffee maker.
"Hey Shinji. Where's the coffee maker?" asked a somewhat tired Sixth Child.
"No one here drinks coffee," said Asuka.
"Then what does Misato drink in the morning?" Zack shot back.
Shinji sighed, "You'll see".
Just then Misato comes out of her room. Anyone can tell she's having another hangover. She goes to the fridge, takes out a can of beer, drinks down half of it and…
"YYYYEEEEAAAAAAHHHHHHH! That's the way to start your morning!"
"Oh my god…" said a horrified Zack. "How often does this happen?"
"All the time," Shinji replied. "We've gotten used to this."
Zack was disgusted. "Misato, do you think you're being responsible by getting piss-eyed drunk all the time?"
"And what of it? Don't you like the fact I let you kids have some free time while I have some free time?" retorted Misato.
"Never mind," Zack sighed. "Shinji. Asuka. Do you know where there's a Tim Horton's here in Tokyo-3?"
"That North American coffee shop?" said a surprised Asuka.
"Oh, that place," said Shinji. "We should go check it out sometime."
Zack was already getting his shoes on. "Well there's no time like the present. Let's go! To Tim Horton's!"
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NERV HQ
Ritsuko was overseeing the preparations on EVA Unit 04. It was white, like the EVA Series Units, but had a head similar to that of Unit 00's. Suddenly a technician came over to her.
"Doctor. We have a problem."
"And that problem is," she replied.
"Nobody in the crew can read English. We can't prepare Unit 05 because we don't know what it says."
The false-blonde doctor sighed. She could read some English. But not as well as an average Canadian could. "I'll be right over to see what I can do."
She knew NERV would have to cut their losses on this one. Political issues in Canada almost halted production several times during Unit 05's construction. Unit 05, was green, had a look similar to that ofUnit 01'sbut the head looked more like Unit 03's.They were lucky that Canada's government put world issues ahead of its own issues. On other notes, the kids would all come in for synch tests tomorrow. "Can Asuka manage to reactivate Unit 02?" she wondered. She remembered how Asuka's synch ratio got so low she couldn't even move the giant red behemoth. Then her sudden roar to life on the day of 3rd Impact although she died and came back.
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A Tim Horton's shop in Tokyo-3.
Zack felt good when he saw what felt to him like a piece of home. A Tim Horton's restaurant in Tokyo-3. Without a moment's notice, the four walked right in. They took a seat at a table. Since Zack knew this place best, he told the four what the place was likely to have, and thenasked them what they wanted.
Asuka went first. "BLT."
Shinji went next. "Same here."
Misato was after. "Do they have beer?"
Zack replied in monotone. "No. But they do have coffee."
"Then I'll pass," said Misato.
So Zack went up to the counter. The manager was on the cash today.
"Welcome to Tim Horton's. How can I help you?" Said the manager in Japanese.
"Do you speak English?" asked Zack.
"Wow. I never expected another English speaker here in Japan," replied the manager.
"Yeah," said Zack. "I come from Canada. I got my Tim Horton's mug to prove it." He takes out a brown 36oz mug with the restaurant's crest on it.
"Well, it's definitely a genuine mug," said the manager. "Just for you and your friends, this one's on the house. What'll it be?"
"I'll have this mug refilled. The brown haired boy will have a BLT. The redhead will have a BLT. And a dozen donuts for everyone."
"Okay. Coming right up," said the manager. He turns to the backroom and shouts. "Hey assholes! Did you hear that! We have a Canadian here! Get off your asses and get their food ready!
"Y-yes sir," came the weak reply from the back room.
"They're Canadian," said the manager. "I hired English speakers only so I could berate them while the Japanese customers are here. By the way, is that redhead your girlfriend?"
"No, and I mean hell no," came Zack's reply. "From what I hear, she's the Devil-Incarnate. And I don't dare go near her without getting my face burned off. I'm a ladies man, so I'm trying to put that spineless wimp together with the devil, and find me another pretty lady."
"I see," said the manager. "Good luck to you." Just then the employee came out with the BLTs.
The manager looked at them with disgust. "You call those BLTs? I could pull shit out of my ass and get the same result? Get those things out of my sight and do them right!"
The employees walked back trying to keep their dignity. The manager then said: "Don't worry about those idiots. It takes them a few tries sometimes, but eventually they'll get it right."
Eventually, they got them right, on the third try. They were berated once more, and the manager threatened their jobs at Tim Horton's. Zack got his coffee filled up. (He takes a double double) And he walked back to where his companions were waiting.
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Shinji, Asuka and Misato were dumbfounded at whatever Zack and the manager were talking about. Zack and the manager were speaking in English. The manager, from the looks of had made some outbursts at his employees for what they guessed were jobs not well done. Eventually Zack had gotten their orders, and some donuts, and sat back down.
"Sorry about the wait," said Zack. "Incompetent employees."
Shinji and Asuka began to eat their BLTs. One could judge from the looks on their faces was that they were good. And when they got into the donuts, their faces lit up with delight. Misato decided to speak some more. "Oh Zack, I got you a school uniform. You'll be attending school with Shinji and Asuka tomorrow."
"WHHHHAAAAATTTT? A SCHOOL UNIFORM? PREPPY CLOTHES? FORGET IT! I'D RATHER GO IN MY UNDERWEAR!"
"Well, as I always say: When in Rome, do as the Romans do," came Misato's smirked reply.
"Sigh."
Misato spoke once more. "Shinji. Asuka. I'll be counting on you two to show him around."
"Let Shinji do that," retorted Asuka. "He doesn't do anything anyways."
"Whatever," Shinji said. "By the way, aren't we supposed to go in sync tests?"
"Yup. Let's go."
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NERV
The 4 made it to the base. So they went inside. When they went in, two females were waiting for them. Shinji looked in shock. It was Rei Ayanami. And another black haired girl about their age.
Shinji was still surprised. "Rei. Is that you?"
The blue haired girl turned to look at him. Her face showed no emotion. "Yes, I am Rei. You are Shinji Ikari."
Shinji didn't know what to say next. He knew all of the dummy Reis were destroyed and the last one was the one that merged with Lillith to form the super angel Reilith. This Rei was likely the fourth one made. "But where were they able to make another one?" he thought to himself.
No one really noticed, but Asuka did not like the fact that Shinji was looking at/speaking to Rei.
Zack decided to hit on these two apparentlylovely women. First he approached Rei. "My, my, my. Your beautiful red eyes glow with a fire that radiates beauty!"
Apparently, the compliment must have shot right over her head according to Zack, because she did not change her expression at all. "Bummer," he thought. Surprised, but not discouraged, he went up to the black-haired girl. "Hello and what might your name be?"
"Ivana Kharlamov," came her monotone reply.
"I'm Zack Harper," he seductively says while walking towards her. "I bet we could…"
He was suddenly interrupted by Ivana grabbing his arm, flipping him over her shoulder and landing him flat on his back.
"Oww. Shit," came Zack's mumbled response.
"Don't do that," came another monotone reply from Ivana.
"Casanova is dowwwwwnnnnnn!" chanted a celebrating Asuka. "Wow Ivana, you got quite the power and quite the accent. Are you also from Germany?"
"Russia," replied Ivana.
"RUSSIA? Grrrrr." Asuka stormed off deeper into the NERV base. Everyone knew about World War II in the 1940's. Germany at one point tried to invade Russia, but Russia managed to stop them and push them back into Germany and defeat them. A black spot in Asuka's German heritage. And a gold spot in Ivana's Russian heritage.
After getting Zack to his feet, the rest of them walked into the base.
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NERV HQ- In the Sync Test Room.
Ritsuko glanced over the computer that produced the results. First came Rei Ayanami's test results. As always, they showed a good score of 75. Next came Asuka's. Her sync scores rose to 22. Good enough to make the EVA move, but decided she wasn't cleared for battle yet. Before 3rd Impact, her depression dropped her sync levels to zero. After her was Shinji's results. Despite the hell his life had been, he could maintain a score of 84.
"So how's everyone doing?" asked Misato who suddenly came in.
"Well, Rei and Shinji are doing good," said Ritsuko. And good news for Asuka. Her sync ratio has gone back up. But until she gets past 30, she's not cleared to pilot because of fears it may drop again.
"And Shinji?"
Shinji sync scores could dumbfound anyone, including Ritsuko "I don't know how he does it, but he's maintaining an 84."
"Impressive," thought Misato. "And the others?"
"Toji is still very nervous. His scores are 38. Ivana is doing very well. She's at 68. And Casanova AKA Zack has a 71."
"So we have four ready to go. One not so sure about. And one not cleared."
"Yes," said the doctor. Suddenly she looked surprised. "What's this? Zack's sync ratio has dropped to zero!"
"What?" Misato turned on the comlink. "Zack? Are you okay? What's going on?"
Over the comlink, everyone in the room could hear an odd sound. The sound of snoring! Misato brought up the visual of Unit 05's entry plug on screen. What she saw shocked her and then angered her. The reason Zack's sync ratio dropped to zero was because he was sound asleep! The next noise that was heard was deafening.
"ZACK HARPER! WAKE UP THIS INSTANT!"
Zack was startled by the sound. "What the fuck! Daddy! Keep it down! I wanna sleep! Oh it's you Misato."
"Zack sync ratio has climbed back up to 71," reported a technician on Ritsuko's crew.
"Zack don't you ever fall asleep during a sync test again," said a very angered Misato.
"Yyyeessss ma'am," replied Zack with a mock salute.
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Boy's changeroom
Toji Suzahara had never though he'd end up back here. He had lost his leg when the 13th Angel possessed his EVA Unit and Gendo forced Shinji to destroy his EVA to destroy the Angel. But somehow, during 3rd Impact, he had gotten it back. Hikari Horaki, the class president at school was sure happy he was back in top form. He wasn't sure yet, but he suspected the class rep had something of a crush on him. He wouldn't tell his best friend Kensuke Aida or Shinji either. They would bug him till the Angels came back. Then there was that Zack guy who moved into Shinji's apartment. And that Russian chick who managed to take out someone as big as he was. He did not have time to worry about that. School was tomorrow and they had to be ready.
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Misato's apartment
Asuka was hustling Shinji to hurry up so they wouldn't be late. "Hurry up you idiot! We're gonna be late again!"
Shinji had just finished their lunches. Zack was relatively quiet this morning. The two assumed it was the school uniform he was wearing. He had said something about not wearing one when he was back in Canada.
Eventually the trio made it to the school. And entered the classroom. When the teacher came in, the class rep made everyone rise, bow, and sit back down. Then the teacher got into his mega-boring lectures on 2nd Impact.
Asuka knew it was same-old, same-old. She had heard these lectures so many times, she could recite the lectures by heart. Suddenly, someone was sending her an instant message. It was Hikari.
A/N: I know script format is not recommended. But it's only for conversations over the computers the students use.
Hikari: Hey Asuka. How's the new guy?
Asuka: Oh, Casanova? He's nothing to get excited about. Just another pervert.
Hikari: Is he an EVA pilot?
Asuka: Unfortunately, yes he is. But once I'm cleared to pilot again, I'll show him who's the best EVA pilot of them all! ME!
Hikari: It's good to see you're doing better. How's Shinji?
Asuka: That spineless wimp is doing fine for one with no balls.
Hikari: Are you sure you won't reconsider going out with him?
Asuka: That guy's head is as thick as lead too. And we do nothing but fight when he suddenlygets balls!
Hikari: They say when two people fight, they really care about each other.
Asuka: WHAT?
Just then, the bell had gone. It was time for the morning recess.
Out on the basketball court, Zack and Toji were making quick work of their opponents in a two-on-two game.
"And you LOSE!" said Zack in a booming and obnoxious voice.
The boy Zack was talking to became enraged. He was the best in the school until this Canadian guy came along. "I'll show you," he yelled with his fists clenched.
Shinji, Kensuke, Asuka, Ivana (Also a new student) and Hikari could only watch in awe. They watched as Zack seemed to step effortlessly around the boy's punches. This carried on for about 15 seconds and about 25 punches until Zack stepped behind him and knocked him out with a quick karate chop to the back of his head, rendering the angry boy unconscious.
"Sheer poetry in motion," said Zack.
Later in the cafeteria at lunchtime, Zack's performance on the court, and with a few skills he learned from his father, had all the ladies except Asuka, Hikari,Ivana, and Reisurrounding him.
"You are so cool!"
"So strong!"
"Come live with me instead!"
"No he's coming with me!"
"Settle down my beauties. There is more than enough Zack to go around," said Zack easing the tensions of the women fighting for his affections.
"Man people like him get all the luck," sulked Toji as he ate his lunch with Shinji and Kensuke.
"Why are you complaining?" replied Kensuke. "Why don't you go ask Hikari out?"
"Uh, uh, maybe later," said a blushing Toji.
"Hahahaha! Toji's embarrassed," chuckled Kensuke.
Shinji began laughing too. Then Toji glared at Shinji. "What about you? Don't you have a wife already?"
Then Kensuke and Toji began laughing at Shinji. Shinji's face only got redder as the stooges chanted: "Shinji and Asuka sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G! First comes love! Then comes marriage! Then comes Shinji pushing a baby carriage!"
Next Toji suddenly got hit by Hikari's schoolbag, and then Asuka leveled Kensuke with her fists.
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So the three began walking home after school. Zack decided it was time to make another obnoxious comment. "Wow Shinji. I never expected you and Asuka were married," said Zack.
"What do you mean by that?" shouted Asuka.
Zack replied. "Exactly what it sounds like. Everyone's saying you two are newlyweds. So I'll take this time to say congratulations!"
Asuka and Shinji both blushed at the comment. "SHUT UP!" said Asuka and Shinji in unison.
Suddenly, a large siren began blaring over all of Tokyo. "All civilians must evacuate to the shelters immediately," a loudspeaker shouted.
"What the hell was that?" Zack asked.
"Emergency," Shinji replied. "We gotta go to NERV now!"
"Roger!"
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NERV HQ-Battle Station
Maya, one of Ritsuko's staff, made the first report. "I don't know what that thing is. It looks like a tank with half a body coming out of it. It's sitting on the outskirts of Tokyo-3."
Hyuga made the next report. "AT Field detected. But there's no Blue Wave Pattern. So it can't be an Angel. Could it be someone else's version of an EVA."
"Or just a robot that can project an artificial AT Field?" pondered Ritsuko. "The MAGI haven't made any confirmations on what that thing isyet."
"Go to First Stage Alert," replied Commander Ikari who was sitting in a seat and table up above the others. Gendo then picked up a phone. "Are the pilots ready Major Katsuragi? Good. Launch Units 00, 03, 04, and 05. Keep Units 01 and 02 on standby."
Fuyutski interjected at this moment. "Do you think these are terrorists?"
Gendo replied. "Absolutely. And without a doubt, on SEELE's payroll."
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NERV- EVA launching bay
Misato was giving the battle plans to the pilots. "Okay. We're not sure what that thing is, but we can't be too careful."
Shinji asked a question. "Is it the an Angel."
"No," said Misato. "From the looks of it, someone put together EVA-like technology and means to destroy us. Rei, Toji, Ivana and Zack. You four will pilot you're respective EVAs. And wait for further notice. Shinji, your EVA will kept in cryo-stasis. You will only be launched if we have to go to Third Stage Alert. Asuka, you haven't been cleared to pilot yet. You will only be launched in the same situation. Did you all get that?"
"Yes ma'am," they all said.
In the next few minutes, all the pilots were in their respective EVAs.
Misato shouted, "EVAS, LAUNCH!"
With that, Evangelion Units 00, 03, 04, 05 launched, beginning the start of a new battle against a new enemy.
Disclaimer: I don't own Tim Horton's either. But hell it rocks! If you see a Timmy's in your area, you owe it to yourself to go in and get a coffee or a donut!
A/N: And soon the battle will begin next chapter! R&R! I think I'm the first to have a new pilot come from Canada! If not tell me.
