This Chapter has been edited for your enjoyment!
(A/N And with lightening speed, another awesome chapter is revealed to the public. Crap, I'm starting to fall behind. Anyway, I should be able to keep up for a little while longer, at least until I completely run out of ideas. But man, the final battle I have planned out, you guys just won't believe. Well, enough's enough, on with the show. Also, this chapteris all in Shinji's viewpoint but you'll see plenty of characters, new and old. ENJOY!)
Discalimer: I do NOT own Evangelion, Halo, or Ace Combat. My armies have suffered some losses, but we're gaining ground...so soon my pretties, very soon!!!
Chapter 5
A Household Reformed
(POV: Shinji Ikari)
I step out into the sunlight, taking a seat on a bench that faces the street along the sidewalk. I have been officially discharged from the hospital, and after receiving some spare clothing, I vacated without a single word. The day before, they told me that NERV had contacted them and were going to send someone to pick me up today. That's why I'm sitting here, waiting for that ride…or at least that's what I'll keep telling myself.
Honestly, I'm sick of NERV, every damn bit of it. Honestly, I should just get up and walk away right now, live out my life somewhere else. But, just where would that get me? Everyone keeps telling me to move forward with my life, to give everyone who wants to be my friend a chance. So maybe that's why I'm really here, to give everyone a second chance…the one I didn't give Misato. Or maybe I'm the one who needs that chance.
The next time I see her, I'll give her that chance…maybe we can get started again, on the right foot this time.
"You Shinji Ikari?" Strong and demanding, a voice pulls me from my thoughts,
I raise my eyes to find a car sitting on the curb, with a man trying his best to lean out the passenger side window. The car is a small white Nissan Infiniti, not the sportiest car on the planet but a pretty decent one. I can't get a good look at the man inside, but I would probably see more if I actually got inside.
"I say again, are you Shinji Ikari?" He repeats the question with obvious irritation.
"Yes." I meekly return an answer.
"Good, NERV sent me to pick you up," He waves an invitation towards the car. "Though why they would ask me is still eluding."
I stay still, thinking it through on whether I should really go back or not. If I do go back, what exactly will be waiting for me? I have no friends left, Asuka's gone off to parts unknown, Misato's probably pissed, and both my parents are useless as they stand. Do I really have to go back?
"Hey! You just gonna' stand there all day or do I have to carry you." The man yells this time with full-fledged annoyance.
Slowly, I start to take a step forward, hesitating for a moment and still only half sure about doing this. Finally, I pick up a nerve from somewhere and take a step towards the passenger side door. I reach painstakingly for the door handle before actually prying it and letting myself into the car.
"Alright, glad you decided to get in! Now come on, we need to get moving!" The man shifts back into his seat, allowing me to fully climb in.
He shifts the car into drive and we're finally off. Now that I'm in the car, I take the time to get a look at the man. He wears a bleach white uniform, but one I had never seen before. None of the patches on his shoulders say which branch he's from. The patch that faces me reads as 'Razgriz Air Command Squadron'. He has fairly pale skin, short brown hair (And I mean SHORT), and facial hair all around outside his mouth. He also seems well built, but that's probably because he's a soldier of some kind. Before I'm done examining him, he turns and notices me looking at him. I turn quickly, praying in embarrassment that he didn't notice.
"So, I guess you must be closely involved with somebody at NERV if they wanted me to come get you." I don't know if he saw, but he makes no sign of it.
"What do you mean?" His question strikes as confusing.
"Well, for starters, you appear really young! Too young to work for pay or get any sort of real working job, so there's almost no chance you work for NERV." So begins a long winded analysis.
I sit still, listening with interest to his blank accusations. I can tell already that his assumption is going to be way off the mark, but I tune in just to see how far off the trail he travels.
He rants on confidently, "So, seeing as how you can't be employed with NERV, than that must mean you're related to someone who's high up in the rankings. You wouldn't happen to be related to the Commander or Sub-Commander in any way, since this order did come directly from them?"
Now I'm slightly surprised with his gently more accurate assumption, that is, if my father is still head commander at NERV. But after all he's done he should be dead, or at the very least gone forever. My blood begins to boil at thoughts of my father and all the terrible acts he's performed in the past. I notice that my right hand is in a fist and shaking violently.
I hide away my fist and the man talks once more, "So, am I close or am I wrong?"
I remain silent, since my father is one of the last things I want to talk about. I look back over to the man in silence as he continues driving. I look around and take note of the fact that we're no longer on the outskirts of Tokyo-3. Instead, we've entered some kind of forest, as countless trees are zooming past the window. According to the readings in his rear view mirror, we're heading north-east.
"Where exactly are we going," I ask him.
"Well, according to the orders the UN sent to the commander, we are to confine those directly involved with the Third Impact into a single, pre-designated spot for the duration of their investigation. I'm taking you to that location now." His voice sounds official, and what 'friendliness' that had been in his voice before has vanished without a trace.
"Oh…I see." Even I can tell that was a weak reply, but right now I just can't find the strength in my voice. "Is anyone else there already?"
"Hmm?" He peers over in curiosity, probably wondering how I could possibly know anybody else at NERV. "All I know is that there is another person already waiting at the residence. Most of NERV has been officially disbanded by now and will probably never return to full-time duty again."
"Do you know who that other person is?" I ask in hopes that it's the person I want it to be. This could be my chance to explain everything that happened and maybe she'll understand!
"I don't know the person…exactly. They did tell me she's the former Combat Director at NERV." He pauses, rubbing the stubble on his chin while thinking out loud, muttering something indistinguishable. "There is another person supposed to board with you but Section 2 has completely lost track of her. We're hoping to locate her soon so that the investigation can proceed.
I sigh in disappointment, but the man doesn't notice, as he continues to face the road ahead and drive. A whole 2 hours seems to pass by in our newly found silence, with no form of conversing passing between us. I use the time too look out the passenger window, facing trees as they flash by the window in a predictable and repetitive cycle. This goes on for the remainder of the ride, up until we pass a sign saying Tokyo-2 city limit. I peak out the front windshield to see a whole city lying out on the highway in front of us.
Just as we start passing by the larger skyscrapers, the man starts up again, "Okay, I'm going to have to lay down some ground rules from the U.N., which will apply for the entire duration of this investigation. You listening?"
I nod in affirmation.
"Good! First off, you are not to leave the residence without alerting the section 2 agency assigned here. Here's their number." He hands me a piece of paper with a phone number listed on it.
"Second, you are not to leave the city for any circumstance. If you are caught you will be dealt with as if AWOL from active NERV duty…" His speech winds down as he suddenly drawls in confusion at the spreadsheet he's reading from. "…With penalty of jail time? Why would they give a kid jail time? It's not like he's an actual NERV employee, right?"
He seems to forget that I'm sitting right next to him, but he continues to look back between the road and the piece of paper he holds in his hand, mumbling about my NERV status.
"Okay, enough's enough, what do you do at NERV anyway? You've been silent this whole trip and there's no way that they'd give this sort of punishment to someone outside of the NERV employment ring. Spill it, who are you and what do you do!!?"
I ignore the question, turning my face out toward the window and avoiding the reality of telling this man what I actually did for NERV. The man takes a breath as if to ask me again before catching it and stopping, apparently giving up. I look over to find him staring back out the windshield again.
The car begins to decelerate, and finally stops on the outskirts of the city. "Looks like we've arrived safely! Alright little man, I doubt we're ever going to see each other again, so I'm only going to say this once, you got it.."
I look back to him in curiosity, wondering about whatever it is he might say. He holds out his finger to my face before taking a deep breath. This is going to be a while…
"Okay, so I've never met this woman before, but I've heard a lot of recent rumors that pertain to her. I've heard that she's usually a heavy drinker and that she didn't start up again until recently. I was also told it was because she had a bad encounter with one of NERV's Evangelion pilots and now she's completely off her rocker!" He pauses, looking me straight in the eye, checking for something that I fail to catch. "So listen, I don't know what's rumor and what's fact around here. Section-2 is worried that she might do something really drastic, and THAT is a full blown fact. Now, are we both on the same page?"
I nod again telling him yes, but in reality, I think he's the one of his rocker.
"Good! Now if you'll excuse me, you need to get used to your new living arrangements and I've got another person to track down." He states this very matter-of-factly.
I slowly step outside the car and stare at the house in front of me. It's decently sized one-story house with some shrubbery planted out in front. I begin shuffling up the driveway as the car behind me takes off down the road. The trudge seems to take an eternity and the house seems to slide further and further away.
Who was that man talking about? This woman can't be as bad a drunk as Misato was. But than again, Misato was the Combat Director, so this must be her. Oh god, it is, what will I say to her? I completely flipped her off at the hospital and she seemed to fall into a slump after that. And…oh shit, here's the door.
I stare at the doorknob, half of me wanting to grasp and turn it, while the other half wants to bolt down the street and run myself to anywhere but here. Swallowing the lump in my throat, I stick my hand to the golden metal surface of the doorknob and slowly rotate my wrist. It knob comes with and the door slides open revealing a…less than encouraging interior. The floor, couch, all the chairs, carpet, kitchen counter and every surface within immediate sight from the front doorway are completely and utterly covered in…
"Beer cans?" The familiarity of the scene takes only a quarter-second before it hits home. This is definitely Misato's mess…but if she already drank this much, than maybe she's passed out somewhere, which will allow me to delay any contact with her for the whole day…or at least until I can come up with an explanation that doesn't end with my immediate funeral.
I continue my journey into the lion's den, tip-toeing my way past countless shifting beer cans and bottles, trying ever so hard not to step on any and potentially disturb the beast that dwells nearby. I pass into what I believe to be the living room, judging by the just barely visible couch and TV, and that's where I see her. Unconscious, out cold on the couch, breathing deeply, and aimed face first into the cushions is my former guardian. Misato Katsuragi!
Okay, now this is definitely NOT a good place to be. Sneaking by as slowly and quietly as possible, I make for the hallway situated off behind the couch Misato remains still on. I creep over every bottle and can, so as not to step on any and face the many dire consequences that would result from an unexpected noise. I make it into the hallway but am discouraged to find that even more cans and bottles litter the way to any of the doors. I slowly move debris out of my way with my toes, just before making a step, but the rustling I make might just disturb Misato.
Oh boy…so close and yet so far, just a little more. I pray my efforts won't go in vain. Holding my breath, I move for the next step and slowly proceed to a door, one that appears to lead into a completely unoccupied bedroom. Taking my last step, I sigh in relief, knowing that I just made it to safety. Now taking one normal step and with full confidence in mind that I'll make it through this, I find a string strewn out across the entry way. Too late to take back my step, it pulls tight and time stops as I fall ever so audibly towards the ground. Hitting the floor and praying with all my might that I didn't wake up Misato, I feel another string pull tight beneath me, under my weight, causing something to be pulled along with it. I look up to see that a bunch of empty bottles had been laid up on a shelf above. But, now that the string has pulled the shelf from beneath the bottles, they proceed to fall right next to me, each with its own deafening crash against the hardwood floor.
Oh god…oh god…oh no…oh shit!
A rustling noise comes from the couch as light treaded footsteps make their way across the hall, each step becoming more audible than the last, as I can only assume that those footsteps are coming for me. The crunching of cans and moving of bottles is mixed in with the sounds of movement, growing unbearably loud until…it stops with one solid vibration directly behind me. I slowly rotate my head, raising my eyes up to see a dark, tall, shadowy figure staring down at me with blank and empty eyes.
Misato just continues to stand still, groaning and moaning, still glaring into my eyes…or at least I think she is. Maybe she's too drunk to realize what just happen, I may just get out of this yet!
"Kaji?"
Huh? Why the hell did she just call out Kaji??? My thoughts run ecstatic as she suddenly swoops over and lifts me off the ground in some sort of bear hug.
"Oh Kaji, I missed you…eh…ah…where have you been?" She starts to walk, carrying me into another room, swaying all the while in her drunken stupor. I quickly scan the room, which, judging by the certain number of cans and bottles, I can only assume is Misato's room. She lays me on the bed, to which she sits at the foot of and than just stares off into the darkness of the room…which has no light on and the blinds are shut to boot.
"So Kaji…since you're here now…why don't we continue where we left off." She speaks in a thoroughly seductive voice. This raises the alarm level in my head up to the rooftop, for now she's leaning over my body…licking her lips! I decide that facing her now would be a lot better than dealing with whatever may happen next!
"No…MISATO…it's me…uh…Shinji…not…Kaji!!!" I plead desperately as she tries to swoon over me. Just inches in front of my face, her full weight across my entire body, she now stops to quickly examine it as she scans it over. She immediately pulls back, pausing for a moment only to go running out the door, sobbing all the way out. I, on the other hand, get left in the dark room with a mixed feeling of sorrow and confusion.
I get up to chase after her, running out the door to try and catch up to her. Preparing to head her off at the door, as well as taking extra care not to cut myself on any glass bottles still lying around, I quickly stop to find her just sitting on the couch. Her face rests in her hands, laying on her lap as she continues to sob into her legs. I slowly walk up to her, looking down to her, now feeling sorry for what I had said. But worst of all, I don't know what to say to make her feel any better.
She raises her head, staring up at me. "Why did you come back?"
"What?" Why she would ask me is confusing, why wouldn't I come back? After all, I was the one who averted humanity's destruction, so why shouldn't I come home. She of all people should know that…or at least I'd expect her to know that seeing as how she put me into the center of it all.
"Why wouldn't I come back…you should know why." I respond, hoping she comes to an understanding herself. I'm no good at these sort of things…I couldn't even keep Asuka from running out the door that day.
"NO, I don't understand! Why the hell would you come here after what you said! You didn't want to deal with ME of all people, so why would you come back now? We're you expecting some sort of warm welcome!!?" She speaks her mind and all while sobbing the entire time.
"Because I don't want to be afraid anymore! I want to stop running…and I…I." I try to spurt out the end but I can't seem to do it. These are all things I've said before and she knows very well this is a repetition of the past. But what can I say that will change that?
"You can stop with your bitching." She silently mumbles the phrase, sending both shock and fear into the very marrow of my bones. I really want to say that this is her drunken side talking…but deep down, I know that this must be the real Misato, clawing its way out her mouth, trying to grasp at my throat!
"But…I came back, I'm going to try and make things right!" I try to retort with, but that just gets her to look up at me…and she points an accusing finger at my chest.
"HA! You always do seem to come back. But all that happens to the rest of us is more pain. Why don't you just make your decision right HERE, right NOW!!? Stay here and stand up to your problems or just LEAVE…leave and never come back. Just spare us all you're suffering." She catches her breath from this recent speech, the rage escaping with each breath and half-sob.
"I…I can't…I'm no good at making those kinds of decisions. Just look at what I've done to you and Asuka. And I couldn't help anyone that day, the day they took yours and Asuka's lives." I plead for forgiveness, out of pure sorrow and desperation. Why can't things ever go back to the way they were before all this started?
"I don't believe you." she looks at me with contempt, her impatience growing. "If you were so incapable of making decisions, than how was it that you could play out humanity's fate? What was so different than that it no longer applies now!!?"
"But…how did you…?" I try to ask but only end up stuttering.
"Know." She finishes my sentence, the cold look returning to her eyes. "I know all about third impact! How it worked and why things turned up as they did. You see Shinji, before NERV retired me I took a little going away present of my own."
With that, she pulls a single disc from her pocket. She throws the disc out onto a coffee table, allowing it to sit out in plain sight.
"You see Shinji, I may be old, but I'm not stupid. Now acknowledge your decisions, past present and future. Take responsibility for what you told me the other day! Or you can run out that door and never look back. It's your call." She yells with fire, crossing her arms and waiting for me to say or do something.
"But I…I." I try to retaliate, but only end up making the situation more hopeless. I pray now that something will happen, anything to let me prove to Misato that I'm here to stay. I just need for something to save me…ANYTHING!
The phone rings over in the kitchen begins to chime. I start to walk over but Misato is up and all over it before I can even protest. She wipes her eyes and picks up the receiver.
"Hello, new Katsuragi residence, Misato speaking…Yes…uh huh…yes, I understand…yes I'll tell him…okay…yeah…alright, bye.
And with a click, she hangs up the phone and walks over to me. She stops right in front of my face, still towering over me with her age and height. I feel small and insignificant within the shadow she casts, while she looks down right back into my face. Quivering in fear and unable to speak, she notices this of me and starts talking for me instead.
"They found Asuka." She speaks, calm, cool, and simple, yet devoid of any emotion whatsoever. "Section 2 has received a tip that she's holding up in Germany.
" Germany! Why there? And how did she even get there?"
Misato walks back into the kitchen and looks out the window. "I don't know how or why she's there. All we know is where she is and that section 2 is going to be the ones to retrieve her. And…"
I begin to walk towards what I had assumed to be my room. I wager that if they had been planning to move me in here in the first place, they must have transferred all of my stuff here too. I begin to go through drawer after drawer, looking for anything that may belong to me. After tearing out every other drawer, I finally find one that has all of my shirts and pants. Apparently Misato has been planning to have me here for some time, right up to when I sent her into depression. Digging it all out, I start laying all of my clothes out on the bed. I hear Misato walk into the room from the hall behind me.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" It seems that she's not quite through with me, but that's of no concern to me right now.
"Packing," I state shallowly.
"Packing? Packing for what if I may ask." She strikes back just as darkly.
"Packing for Germany." I fire off my final decisive statement before heading into another room to look for a suitable suitcase.
"And why the hell would you go there?" I doubt she's going to like the answer.
"To talk with Asuka!" Or at least I hope so…if she'll even allow it. I locate the suitcase, clicking it open to check the inside. Misato walks out the doorway, hopefully leaving me to pack my luggage in privacy. Nothing will stop me from accomplishing my impending goal.
(A/N So, another chapter is done. I don't know if I hit the emotion center just right but meh...this isn't going to be the saddest chapter, I have plenty more darkness to share. But this isn't to say the story won't have its fluffy waffy moments...eh bleh. Well, before I reveal too much, I will give Brownie points to whoever can guess the man in the car. I my even give the rights to name my first OC in the story so E-Mail me!)