Disclaimer: I don't own Neon Genesis Evangelion.
Author's Notes: Hooray, I finally finished Chapter 9, more than a month behind schedule. This chapter ended up being a lot longer than I had anticipated and as a result I have decided to split it into two parts so that it will be easier for you to read. Anyway, on with the story.
Heterochromia – A scientific term which describes the condition of having one iris coloured differently than the other one.
9. Third Impact Revisited: Part 1
(Nerv, Terminal Dogma)
Shinji stood in the center of the bare room which served as his temporary home. His eyes were closed and it seemed his mind was distance. Despite being so far underground he could sense and almost see the rising sun on the horizon above. The day had finally come. It had been exactly one year since Third Impact was adverted. Now it was time for it to return.
Rei stood beside Shinji, her eyes closed and her expression as distant as her companion's. She too could sense the rising sun above and she too knew what it meant. She could feel it, feel the power returning to the world. The power of the Third Impact.
Rei looked down at the baby girl clutched in her arms. Soon it would all be over and Naoki would be given a new life. A better life.
Shinji slowly opened his eyes and turned to Rei. "It's time Rei, let's go. You know where this must begin."
Rei opened her own eyes and nodded slightly. "Then we should go, before the commander has a chance to stop us."
(Same Time, Nerv, Commander's Office)
Gendo looked up at the grey haired boy who stood before his desk. "You know what I expect of you Nara. The question is will you do it."
A brief chuckle escaped from the boy's mouth. "Oh I will do it Gendo. But make no mistake. I'm not doing it out of any sense of duty towards you." A slight smile crossed his face and his eyes flashed. "We owe you nothing, Lilim." He turned to the silver haired girl who stood beside him. "Let's go, we don't have much time."
Xera didn't respond, she just followed the boy as he exited the office and headed for Terminal Dogma. It was all that she could do.
As soon as the two teens were out of earshot, Gendo turned to the only other remaining occupant of the room. "Watch them Shadow, you know what to do if they fail."
Shadow nodded, his grey eyes downcast. "Yes commander. I know what to do."
Gendo stood up. "Good. Go now. Soon the MAGI will launch the Evas, and then nothing will be able to stop me." He clenched his fists. "Nothing!"
Shadow departed the office and Gendo moved to follow him but stopped as a light on his desk began to blink. He activated the intercom embedded into the piece of furniture. "Yes?"
The voice of one of his Nerv agents came over the intercom. "Sir, Major Katsuragi and the 2nd, 4th and 7th children are no longer in their rooms. It appears that someone has disabled the security systems."
Gendo growled in the back of his throat. "Find them. Find them now!" He paused for a moment in thought. "Head for the Eva bays."
"Yes sir." The agent terminated the transmission.
Gendo stood in thought for a moment. He could guess what Misato and the children were doing. They were trying to get to the Evas. The Evas that were supposed to be inactive. But of course someone had to have disabled the security systems in their rooms. Someone who knew how to hack into the MAGI without being detected. The same person who had been ordered to shutdown Units 14, 16 and 17. The same person who had undoubtable told Misato all that she knew about what was going on. Doctor Ritsuko Akagi. Gendo made a sound that might have been interpreted as a sign by anyone who didn't know him and exited the office.
(Nerv, Eva Bays)
Asuka crouched in the shadow cast by the colossal form of Unit-14. The red Eva stood ready and waiting in its girth, a gantry across its back giving Asuka a perfect position to access its entry plug from. The problem though was that three pistol wielding Nerv agents stood on that gantry, guns drawn and ready. It would seem that their escape from their rooms had been discovered. Ritsuko had said shutting off the alarms would buy them a couple of minutes at most. Apparently those minutes were already up.
Asuka moved forward, crouching so low she was almost crawling. She made sure to keep as hidden as she could as she closed in on her Eva. The teen had woken this morning to the almost imperceptible sound of Misato opening her door. Upon seeing her awake the lavender haired women had muttered only two words. "It's time."
That had been all the fiery redhead needed to here. She had been out of bed and dressed in a flash, immediately heading for the Eva bays. Misato's plan was simple. Asuka would get to and activate Unit-14. She would then clear the Eva bays of any hostiles and protect Units 16 & 17 as Touji and Kensuke got into them. So far everything was going more or less on schedule.
As Asuka reached the metal frame that surrounded Unit-14 she stopped and waited for Misato to make her move. She didn't have to wait long.
The sound of a gunshot rang out and one of the agents suddenly clutched at his chest before falling backwards off the gantry. The other two agents immediately turned and fired on the location the shot had come from, the sound of their fellow agent hitting the ground drowned out by the gunfire. The bullets however hit nothing but air as their lavender haired assailant dived behind a nearby metal bulkhead. The barrel of Misato's pistol briefly appeared over the top of the bulkhead and fired a couple of wild shots at the agents. The shots were too inaccurate to actually hit the agents but they did succeed in causing the men to dive to the side and cut off their assault.
Asuka didn't wait to see how the battle turned out. If she was going to help Misato then she needed to act fast. With strength and speed borne of adrenaline she began to scale the frame surrounding the Eva. If she could just get into Unit-14's entry plug then nothing those agents could do would stop her.
On the gantry above Misato crouched behind the bulkhead and quickly reloaded her pistol, listening to the clang of the bullets colliding against the metal of her sanctuary. She couldn't stay put forever though. Asuka was counting on her to distract the goons on the gantry. She waited until she heard the click that told her one of the agents had used up his ammo clip then ran out from behind the bulkhead. She fired off four shots in rapid succession before diving behind another, slightly smaller bulkhead. One of the shots flew true, striking one of the agents between the eyes, and two more flew wide. The fourth buried itself in the right shoulder of the second agent, the agent who had a gun that was loaded and ready to fire. The man's arm jerked as his finger depressed on the trigger and his shot missed its intended target of Misato's chest, instead tearing through Misato's left leg.
Now safely behind the second bulkhead, Misato looked down at the bleeding wound in her leg and gritted her teeth against the pain. She wouldn't be able to move fast with that kind of injury.
There was no clanging sound ringing in Misato's ears, which meant the third agent wasn't firing, which meant he was likely trying to sneak up on her. That was both good and bad. Good because it gave Asuka an opportunity to get to Unit-14's entry plug. Bad because it lessened her own chances of survival.
Unaware of Misato's predicament, Asuka reached the gantry at the back of her Eva. With the only remaining agent running towards Misato's position there was no-one to stop her from leaping across onto the red Eva's back and she did so immediately, grasping at the few protruding parts of the Eva's armour in order to keep herself balanced. She scurried up the arched back until she reached the entry plug and immediately pulled on the manual release handle. There was a loud hiss as the internal pressure around the entry plug was released and the plug itself slid out of the Eva's back.
The remaining Nerv agent was almost upon Misato when he heard the sound of Unit-14's entry plug ejecting. He immediately whirled around and raised his pistol with his one remaining good arm. Upon noticing the young red head beginning to climb into the now open plug he quickly took aim and prepared to fire, a slight smirk appearing on his face. The arrogance of his expression was quickly replaced with one of shock as a gunshot rang out and a bullet tore through his heart. The resulting jolt that ran through his body caused his hands to grip reflexively, and the fingers of his left hand depressed on the trigger of his gun.
A second gunshot echoed throughout the Eva bays and the bullet whizzed through the air towards Asuka. Fortunately the girl had ducked instinctively when she heard the first gunshot and so was not in the same position she had been when the man took aim. She was not completely out of the bullets path though. It scraped across her right cheek, leaving a long shallow cut.
Asuka immediately pressed a hand to the wound, stifling a cry of pain. "Scheisse." She only dwelled on the wound for a second though before jumping into the plug and initiating the injection sequence.
Misato lowered her gun as she watched the body of the last agent fall to the floor. She was glad to see that Asuka had not been seriously hurt by the man's bullet but she had no more time to dwell on the girl's wellbeing. She had no doubt that more Nerv agents would be arriving any second.
Misato had just enough time to turn around as the closest door to her burst open and three Nerv agents came running out, their guns raised and ready to fire. She immediately fired at the three men, felling two of them and only narrowly missing the third.
Two more agents quickly replaced those who had fallen and all three agents fired on Misato. The athletic major immediately rolled to the right but with her injured left leg she couldn't quite move fast enough. One bullet raked across the left side of her chest, leaving a long and painfully deep cut. A second bullet buried itself in her left forearm, lodging itself in the bone. Despite herself Misato cried out in pain and lost her grip on her gun, the weapon skittering away along the ground.
Two of the black clothed men lowered their guns, confident that the stricken women was at there mercy. The third steeped forward, his weapon trained on Misato's forehead. "Sorry major but the commander has ordered us to eliminate all opposition, and that includes you."
Misato glared up at the man, knowing that she'd never be able to reach her pistol in time to save her life. "Why are you blinding following orders. You must know that something is wrong with the commander."
The man allowed a small smile to show on his face. "Perhaps but it's not my job to question orders. Only to carry them out." With barely a hint of emotion he prepared himself to execute Misato, as ordered.
The shot never came however. The horrendous sound of metal bending and snapping heralded the forced release of Unit-14 from its steel prison. As soon as the Eva had finished activating Asuka had simply pushed on the steel frame surrounding the red behemoth, snapping the thick metal in less than a second.
All three Nerv agents turned to look towards the commotion but none of them even had time to make a sound before a hand the size of a tank came crashing down on top of them, crushing them and the gantry they stood upon.
Misato breathed a sign of relief as she realised her life had been saved. She noticed quickly however that Asuka had yet to move Unit-14's hand from where it had landed. When she looked up she saw that the massive Eva was staring at the hand and at the damage it had caused. It took her a moment to figure out what was wrong. Asuka had never killed anyone before, she'd destroyed Angels but she'd never before taken the life of another human being. Misato half opened her mouth to say something before she realised that Asuka would not be able to hear her.
Slowly, very slowly, Unit-14's hand lifted and returned to the Eva's side. Asuka's voice rang out from the Eva's loud speakers, quiet despite the strength of the speakers. "Get the stooges to their Evas Misato. I've…I've got your back."
(Nerv, Control Room)
Ritsuko was crouched below one of the long tables on the edge of the control room, with her laptop plugged into the closest computer terminal. As always she was typing furiously. The MAGI had detected Unit-14's activation and as a result had uncovered the program Ritsuko had installed to fool them. They were now preparing to launch the IDPS Evas in retaliation. Ritsuko was trying to stop them.
Unfortunately for Ritsuko it was a down hill battle. Together the MAGI were simply too fast and too powerful for her, there was nothing she could do to stop them. She tried her best regardless but in this case the victory of the MAGI was a forgone conclusion.
Barely a minute after the three supercomputers had detected the activation of Unit-14 they had activated all five of the ex-Seele Evas and had given them the commands to ascend to Central Dogma and destroy all enemy Evas.
Signing Ritsuko activated a program she'd only recently installed onto her laptop, one that allowed her a direct link to Unit-14's communication system. The laptop's screen went blurry for a second and then an image of Asuka's faced appeared on it.
Ritsuko pressed a button on her laptop to open an audio link. "You have incoming Asuka, Units A to E are heading up the central shaft from Terminal Dogma."
Asuka's eyes shifted slightly so that she was looking directly at Ritsuko. "Alright, I'm on my way. I just have to make one stop first." She cut the connection.
(Meanwhile, Nerv, Terminal Dogma)
Shinji walked down one of the many corridors of Terminal Dogma, his eyes trained ahead, alert for any sign of danger. Beside him walked Rei, her arms wrapped around the sleeping form of Naoki. She too scanned the path ahead, preparing herself for the attack that was inevitable coming.
The two winged teens had been tempted to simply run all the way to the LCL Chamber and get this over with as quickly as possible. But the commander undoubtedly had some sort of trap laying in wait for them and they both wanted to see it coming, as opposed to blindly charging into it.
Shinji suddenly stopped. He could sense…something. He couldn't quite figure out what it was but in was definitely something. And whatever it was…it was dark. Rei stopped beside Shinji and turned her head slightly to look at him. That was a mistake.
As soon as Rei turned her attention to Shinji two arms shot out of the shadows at the end of the corridor and rushed towards her. Shinji saw them but he couldn't quite move fast enough. Before Rei even knew what was happening the arms had wrapped themselves around Naoki and torn the baby girl from her mother's arms. They immediately retracted back into the shadows, taking Naoki with them.
Rei immediately cried out in horror and went to run after her daughter. Shinji though reached out an arm and stopped her. Rei was about to push his arm out of the way and continue regardless but refrained when she saw two figures step out of the darkness.
Rei's eyes widened slightly as she saw that one of the figures was Nara and that he was holding Naoki up by her neck. The now very much awake baby was struggling to free herself from the boy's grip. Nara's grip tightened and the little girl cried out in pain.
Rei's eyes immediately narrowed in anger. "Nara! Give me back my baby!"
Nara smiled coldly. "No I don't think I'll be doing that, it would sort of defeat the purpose of taking her in the first place." He looked down at the squirming child. "However, there's no reason for me to hold onto her any longer." With that he threw the baby to the side in an almost careless manner.
Xera caught Naoki in mid-flight, postponing any thoughts Rei might have had of retrieving her child. The baby itself had had enough of such treatment and began to cry loudly.
A growl rose from the back of Xera's throat and she clamped the little girl's mouth shut with her hand. "Shut up you wretch, or I'll blow your head off. You don't need it to live."
Rei's face was now twisted in anger, her eyes blazing. She began to focus her AT field around her, her hair standing on end as the power built. "Leave my baby alone!"
Nara continued to smile coldly, seemingly unfazed by the girl's display. He turned his attention to the stoic Shinji. "If you want your daughter back Adam, then you're going to have to fight me for her."
Shinji merely looked back at Nara then nodded slowly. He had known this would be the case since he realised that the presence he could sense was Nara. As soon as Naoki had been taken, he had realised the fight was unavoidable. He would never let any harm come to his daughter. Even if it meant killing the boy he had once considered his friend. "Okay Nara, we'll fight, but I want your guarantee that neither Naoki nor Rei will be harmed."
Once Shinji would have trusted Nara not to hurt them without a guarantee but this was no longer the Nara he had known. This was someone significantly darker. The chosen name of reference was all the proof he needed. The fact that the boy now sported a blue left eye only strengthened the conclusion.
Nara's smile widened. "But of course Adam. They won't be harmed. That is, until you lose." His smile became a smirk. "They won't outlive you for long."
By now Rei was shaking with rage and the air around her shimmered with the strength of her AT field. "Don't think you can just ignore me Nara. If you fight Shinji then you must fight me as well."
Xera stepped up beside Nara, moving her free hand to Naoki's chest. "Make one wrong move Rei and your daughter dies." Her hand began to glow slightly.
Nara's eyes flitted to Rei. "This battle has nothing to do with you Lilith. It is between me and Adam alone. Neither you nor Xera will interfere. Any attempt to do so will result in the death of all three of you."
Rei didn't appear to take any note of Nara's words, though she certainly took note of the position of Xera's hand. It appeared she was on the verge of attacking but could not do so for fear of any harm coming to her child. She was startled slightly as Shinji's hand came to rest on her shoulder, and looked up into his eyes.
Shinji held Rei's eyes and transmitted as much calmness as he could across their link. "Calm down Rei. Do not worry. I will fight Nara, and I will win. Naoki will be fine."
Rei maintained eye contact for a moment and then hung her head in defeat, her shoulders relaxing and the shimmer around her disappearing. "Be careful Shinji. You must not underestimate Nara. He has changed so much. We cannot be certain of his power." She looked up and met his eyes once again. "If you die then all will be lost."
Shinji smiled reassuringly. "I won't die Rei. I promise. Everything's going to be okay."
Unable to restrain herself Rei embraced him and Shinji willingly returned the embrace, placing a light kiss on her forehead. That wasn't enough for Rei and she pulled Shinji down into a heated kiss.
Nara watched the exchange between the two without a hint of emotion. He had no reason to hurry Shinji. He knew he would not have to wait long to fight with the boy and he could handle the wait.
Shinji soon stepped away from Rei, who seemed somewhat reluctant to let him go. Coming to a stop in front of Nara he began to focus his AT field around him, prompting Nara to do the same. Barely three meters divided the two. It was time for their battle to begin.
(Nerv, Central Dogma)
Stopping just short of the shaft leading to Terminal Dogma, Unit-14 turned and faced the wall to its right. It appeared to be nothing more than a featureless metal wall, but Asuka knew better. Behind this wall lay an Eva weapon dump.
Bringing back Unit-14's right arm Asuka swung forward and punched the thick metal bulkhead with all her Eva's might. For a moment it looked like the metal might hold, but that moment was short lived. The section of wall in front of the Eva's fist cracked and broke, allowing the hand to pass through into the weapon dump beyond. Once inside the hand immediately closed on the familiar haft of Asuka's weapon of choice and retracted back through its entry hole.
The weapon of course was trapped by the still largely intact wall but that didn't slow it down for long. There was a loud creaking sound and then the entire wall caved in, freeing the long black form of Asuka's favourite weapon. The progressive battle axe.
The redheaded teen took a moment to admire the weapon before turning to the nearby shaft. She was just in time to see one of the white IDPS Evas fly out of the hole and land on the edge right in front of her, its white wings immediately retracting into its back. Before Asuka had time to react it was joined by its four replicas, all five of them armed with Longinus Spears and clearly ready for combat.
Asuka didn't make a sound she just launched herself forward, swinging her giant axe and charging the lead Eva. She had been training for days in anticipation of this moment and she wasn't going to back down now.
(Nerv, Eva Bays)
Touji gripped the handles of his piloting seat as Unit-16 came to life around him. As soon as the colours around him faded he lifted the white arms of his Eva and began to push on the scaffolding that surrounded it. Beside him Unit-17 was doing the same.
He had hoped to get into his Eva's entry plug sooner, but unfortunately two Nerv agents had turned up to stop them. Misato had been able to take down both men without suffering any injury but it had caused a considerable delay. Now, with Unit-14 long since departed to battle the IDPS Evas, Touji was eager to catch up. After all no matter how good she was, he didn't believe that Asuka could take out all the enemy Evas by herself. Well okay, maybe he did think she could beat all of them but that didn't mean she wouldn't still be able to use his help. Right?
(Nerv, Central Dogma)
Asuka was now fully engaged with the five ex-Seele Evas. Dodging a kick from Unit-D aimed at her midriff she swung her battle axe around and blocked a spear thrust from Unit-B. Continuing through with the swing she attempted to cut Unit-A in half but was thwarted when the white Eva nimbly jumped out of the road. The jump however brought Unit-A's back up against the wall and Asuka took the chance to try and decapitate it. She would have succeeded if Unit-C hadn't swung its Longinus Spear around and deflected the attack.
Back flipping over the head of Unit-D, Asuka put some distance between herself and the five enemy Evas. These Evas were definitely better fighters than the last time she fought them. Before they had used only basic fighting moves but now they were using much more advanced stuff.
Asuka wasn't really surprised. After all, the IDPS could utilise the combined skill and knowledge of Shinji, Rei and Nara. While Asuka considered herself to be more skilled than any of her friends she had to admit that those three were close to being as good as her, especially Shinji. Combined they were difficult opponents indeed.
Asuka watched as the five Evas arrayed against her got ready to attack, spreading out as much as they could in the narrow corridor. If there was one thing those three had always been better at than her it was definitely teamwork, and the wide-mouthed Evas were using that knowledge effectively. Right now the greatest advantage Asuka had was that her enemies could not properly bring their numbers to bear in such tight quarters.
One of the five Evas finally broke away from its colleagues and charged forward, the letter on its shoulder proclaiming it as Unit-E. It was quickly followed by the other Evas.
Unit-14 stood still and unmoving until Unit-E was almost upon it then it swung its battle axe down and around, attempting to cut off the enemy Eva's legs at the knee. Unit-E jumped over the attack but this left it vulnerable to the other end of the axe, which gouged a deep wound in the Eva's right shoulder. Asuka finished off the attack by planting her foot in the white Eva's stomach, propelling it backwards into Unit-C which was knocked to the ground by the impact.
Unit-A and Unit-B then attempted a simultaneous attack but were overwhelmed by the speed of their red nemesis. With incredible speed Unit-14 swung its battle axe up and around, cutting off the top half of Unit-A's head. The red Eva then immediately dropped to the ground, narrowly avoiding a spear thrust from Unit-B. Asuka swung out with her Eva's leg, knocking Unit-B's legs out from under it and sending it crashing back against the wall. She would have finished the stricken Eva off but had to leap backwards to avoid a swing from Unit-D's Longinus Spear that was aimed at her abdomen.
Throwing its battle axe into the air, Unit-14 landed on its hands and launched itself into a rapid spin kick, kicking Unit-D twice across the face and sending it stumbling backwards. Bringing her Eva back onto its feet, Asuka caught the now falling battle axe and prepared herself for another attack.
The five white Evas stayed back and watched. The Internal Dummy Plug System was linked directly to the MAGI and they were currently receiving instructions from the three super computers. Quite clearly they had underestimated the skill and power of their opponent. Perhaps most importantly, they had not expected Unit-14 to be armed with anything more than a progressive knife. The progressive battle axe was unexpected, significantly increasing the red Eva's offensive power and reach.
The best strategy would undoubtable be a coordinated assault but such an attack was not possible in such tight quarters. The MAGI quickly calculated the best possible course of action. There was a metallic clanking sound as the locks on the upper portion of the shaft behind the Evas released, followed by a loud groaning as the massive armour plates slid back into recesses in the wall. Each armour plate had four separate shutters, one pair of them above and at right angles to the other pair. Meaning that when opening and closing they made a diamond shape at their center.
A shower of dirt and several large boulders that had been resting on the top armour plate fell down the shaft, falling all the way to Terminal Dogma below. These plates had never before been opened, opening the base as they did to attack, but the MAGI had decided a quick route to the surface was exactly what was needed now.
Before Asuka could stop them the five ex-Seele Evas had extended their wings and took off up the open shaft, heading straight for the ruined surface of Tokyo-3. The MAGI had reviewed the records of Asuka psych tests. They knew what she would do. Sure enough, Unit-14's red wings extended and it took of in pursuit of the five soulless Evas, seemingly uncaring of the danger of such an action.
The MAGI saw a chance to destroy Unit-14 right then.
As the red Eva began to fly up the shaft, the armour plates began to close, the process was slow and Asuka passed the first few plates without a problem. Nevertheless, as she got higher, the plates got closer to closing completely. Unit-14 began to fly faster. The light above that heralded the top of the shaft grew closer and closer, but so did the armour plates.
As Unit-14 passed the second last plate, the closing bulkhead grazed the Eva's shoulder armour. The minor damage was immediately repaired by the Eva's powerful S2 organ but the impact of the event was not lost on Asuka. Unit-14 was not going to be able to pass the last armour plate. The air around the Eva began to shimmer.
The surface above Tokyo-3 was relatively still and quite, peaceful even. That peace was soon broken. With a resounding bang four large pieces of armour suddenly exploded from the ground and were flung high into the air. The armour pieces were soon followed by the unmistakable form of Unit-14.
As Unit-14 came to a stop hovering in midair, Asuka surveyed her surroundings. Arrayed around her Eva, in a pentagram formation, were the five ex-Seele Evas. "So, you have me surrounded." Unit-14's right hand tightened its grip on the progressive battle axe's haft. "Well, it makes no difference. You're still going to LOSE!!"
(Nerv, Control Room)
Ritsuko was still typing on her keyboard, her fingers seemingly gliding across the keys, pressing so lightly and quickly it was somewhat surprising that the miniature computer even received her commands.
Ritsuko was currently trying to find a way to get Units 16 & 17 to the surface. The MAGI had securely closed the main shaft leading to the surface. The only conceivable way to open it would be to activate the manual release on each armour plate and then pry them open one-by-one, something that would take far too long. Ritsuko had instead decided to try to use the catapult system to take the two Evas to the surface.
The MAGI of course were aware of her objective and were blocking her every step of the way. No matter what she did the catapults refused to turn on and the armour shutters at the heads of the shafts refused to open.
The doctor was on the verge of giving up when she realised there was one thing she could do. She began to type a new series of codes into the laptop, hoping more Nerv agents didn't arrive as she did so.
So far only one Nerv agent had come to try and kill her. Fortunately Ritsuko had heard the door sliding open and had stoped typing. Without the sound of her typing to guide him the agent had been unable to find her, hidden as she was below one of the tables. As soon as he had turned his back on her she had pulled her pistol and shot him in the back. She was surprised the MAGI had not summoned more. Perhaps they didn't consider her a threat. Well, she'd just have to prove them wrong.
She typed in the last few commands and smiled to herself. The override codes had worked. The MAGI had not quite been fast enough to stop the sub-program she had activated. She had won. It was a small victory but a victory nonetheless.
Ritsuko quickly pulled out her cell phone and used her speed dial function to call Misato. The phone only rang once before being picked up.
"Yeah." Misato was breathing hard and there was a trace of pain in her voice.
Ritsuko didn't have time to worry about Misato's health, as long as she was still able to move she'd be able to do what was needed of her. "Misato, I've enabled the manual launch for catapults two and three. I'll order Touji and Kensuke to get their Evas hooked up but you're going to need to activate the manual launch from the Catapult Control Station. I need to stay here and keep trying to shutdown the MAGI so it's up to you to get the job done."
Misato almost groaned but she just managed to hold it in, she needed to ignore the pain right now and get back to work. The children were counting on her. "Okay Ritsuko, I'm on my way."
Ritsuko nodded, then remembered that Misato couldn't see her. "Good. Remember you have to open the armour shutters at the top of each shaft before launching the Evas."
"Right." Misato disconnected the call.
Ritsuko put the phone away and turned to her laptop, simultaneously activating the two programs that would link her to Units 16 and 17. Touji's face appeared on one half of the screen and Kensuke's face appeared on the other.
Ritsuko waited until both boys had turned to look at her before speaking. "Okay you two, I need you to get yourselves hooked up to Eva catapults two and three. Misato is going to activate the manual launch and send you to the surface."
Both boys nodded in understanding and Ritsuko cut the connection, closing and unplugging the laptop.
As soon as she had put her laptop away Ritsuko got up and walked towards the control room's door. She couldn't stop the MAGI but that didn't mean she was going to just sit back and do nothing.
(Nerv, Central Dogma)
Unit-16 stalked down one of the Eva sized corridors of Central Dogma, heading for the catapult that was to take it to the surface. Unit-17 followed in the white Eva's footsteps, the black Eva walked lethargically, its pilot's mind distracted.
Both Touji and Kensuke had been informed that Ritsuko had had her link to Unit-14 cut so the scientist didn't even know if Asuka was still alive. The young redhead had been antagonistic towards both boys but they still considered her to be their friend and they wanted her to survive.
The plan was for them to use the catapults to get to the surface then relieve some of the pressure from Asuka by attacking the five enemy Evas which had already be deployed to the surface. Ritsuko would try to delay the launching of the two IDPS Evas remaining in Terminal Dogma and it was hoped that the last two IDPS Evas would not be arriving for some time.
(Elsewhere, Nerv, Central Dogma)
Misato tried her best to catch her breath as she leant against the wall outside the Eva Catapult Control Station. She had just seen two men enter the room. Undoubtedly to take up positions within the room and wait for her imminent arrival. It was a good plan and it would have worked if she hadn't come around the corner when she did. Even know that she knew what they were doing it was still going to be hard to manually activate the catapults without getting killed.
Fortunately for Misato she had a trump card. Reaching down to her belt she detached a small metal cylinder. This had been given to her by Makoto, who had taken it from a security locker. It was a well known device among armies around the world. A flash-bang grenade. Activating the three second timer on the grenade, Misato threw it into the room.
The grenade flew gracefully through the air and through the open doorway to the control station. The two agents did what anyone would do. They looked at it. The grenade went off, generating a blinding flash of light.
As soon as the glare had faded Misato stepped into the room, firing on the temporarily blinded agents. Both men fell with bullets lodged in their brains. Misato gritted her teeth as she looked down at her left leg. All this moving around was not helping her wounds. The wound in her side was bleeding profusely and she was beginning to feel numb. She had tightly tied a strip of her jacket around her leg in an attempt to stop the bleeding but blood was still flowing down the limb. Her injured arm wasn't in much better shape, every time she moved it the bullet grated against the bone, causing her a considerable amount of pain.
Forcing herself to ignore the wounds Misato walked resolutely up to room's control panel. A computerised screen declared in large yellow letters that the manual launch system had been activated for catapults two and three. Next to the screen was a switch marked 'Shutter Control' which was currently in the 'Closed' position. Below the screen was a large grey button marked 'Launch'.
Misato flicked the switch and looked out the observation window before her. Units 16 and 17 were standing ready at the catapults. The lavender haired woman slammed her hand down on the button, sending the two Evas hurtling towards the surface.
Misato signed loudly and turned to leave. She was delayed however by a large beeping. Turning she saw another, larger computerised screen in the very center of the control panel light up. The screen proclaimed that catapults one and four were activating. For a moment this confused Misato but then she remembered that those two catapults could go all the way down to Terminal Dogma. Sure enough the base of both catapults slid away and tracks from deeper down came up to join those above.
Misato's worst fears were confirmed when the screen proclaimed 'Evas Launched'. Less than a second later two blurs shot up the catapult tracks, one blue, the other green.
Reaching for her jacket pocket, Misato fully intended to take out her phone and call Ritsuko but instead she collapsed against the console before her, her hand moving from her pocket to brace her fall. It took her a moment to figure out what was happening but soon she came to an obvious conclusion. She had lost too much blood, her body needed to rest. If she tried to keep on going then she would almost certainly die.
(Meanwhile, Nerv, Terminal Dogma)
Shinji and Nara stood facing off, each of them silently staring at the other. They were waiting to see who would strike first, who would begin the fight on which hung the fate of the world.
Rei and Xera stood to the side, the latter still holding the daughter of the former and making no attempt to be gentle at it. Wether she was feeling the tension from her parents or had simply run out of tears, Naoki was still and silent. Rei appeared anxious, while Xera had what could best be described as a look of resignation on her face.
Nara smiled slightly and then launched himself towards Shinji, propelling himself towards his opponent with one thrust of his powerful legs. Swinging his entire body into the blow, Nara attempted to slam his right fist into Shinji's chest.
Shinji however was prepared for Nara's attack. Sidestepping the blow he swung out with his right leg and attempted to land a blow to the grey haired boy's abdomen. Nara back flipped onto his hands to avoid the attack and then propelled himself into the air. Swinging around, the mentally unstable teen attempted to hit his opponents head with a roundhouse kick. Shinji just barely managed to duck under the attack and his follow up punch caught Nara in the chest, knocking the teenage boy backwards.
Nara landed easily and dropped into a crouch, spreading his arms wide and waiting for another chance to attack. He waited for only a handful of seconds before launching himself forward again, attempting to catch Shinji by surprise with the speed of the follow-up attack. He ran towards the other boy at such a high velocity that he was little more than a blur.
Just as Nara came within range he clenched his left hand and generated a black blade, with which he attempted a swipe that would had decapitated Shinji had he stayed where he was. Shinji jumped backwards just far enough to avoid the razor-sharp blade but was them forced to contend with a second blade, this time from Nara's right hand, driving towards his chest. A subtle manipulation of the black haired boy's AT field was enough to deflect the attack but the distraction allowed Nara to plunge the entire length of his left blade through Shinji's right shoulder.
Gritting his teeth against the pain, Shinji jumped backwards, swinging out with his left foot to keep Nara at bay. The movement ripped Nara's blade from his shoulder, causing even more damage to the injured body part.
Nara smiled, even as he saw his opponent's shoulder begin to regenerate. "Your feet and fists won't be enough to protect you from my blades Adam. Perhaps you should generate your own."
Shinji kept his face expressionless, aware that although his shoulder had now fully regenerated he did indeed need something to counter Nara's blades. Blades of his own however, were not his planed response.
Raising his right arm up in front of him, Shinji half clenched the hand and concentrated. Black light began to shine from between his fingers then exploded from either side of his hand. Spreading out a meter to either side, the light formed into a long black staff. The left end of the staff continued to grow, splitting into a vicious looking double-prong lance head, each prong razor-edged and wickedly pointed. When the light finally dimmed the winged teen was left holding a miniature version of the black Lancea Longini.
Nara raised an eyebrow slightly. "An interesting ability, though it won't be enough to save you." The smile on his face turned cold. "It is time for you to die." Quick as a flash he raised both arms, dispersing his blades and firing two thin beams of energy, sending them racing towards Shinji.
Concentrating his AT field Shinji used it to deflect one of the beams, sending it careening into a nearby wall. Grabbing his miniature Lancea in both hands he unleashed a powerful overhead swing that struck the head of the second beam. Such was the power of the swing that it cleaved the energy beam in two, the two halves passing to either side of the red eyed teen.
The beams though were never meant to hit. They were only the distraction. As soon as the second beam was split, Shinji found himself confronted by the double-blade-wielding Nara. The Heterochromia suffering boy launched into a rapid series of blade strikes.
Using the superior length of his Lancea, Shinji was able to block all of the strikes but was battered backwards by the sheer intensity of the onslaught. The attack was performed at such high speeds that the arms and weapons of both boys were almost invisible, the faintest blur all that gave away their presence.
Dodging a double-bladed swing aimed at his chest, Shinji swung his black Lancea down in an overhead swing, aiming for Nara's head. His grey haired opponent brought his blades back just in time though and managed to catch the Lancea between them, forming a cross that stopped the weapon's downwards momentum.
Nara grunted at the strain of keeping the Lancea at bay. "Most impressive Adam. Still, it won't be enough." He began to focus his AT field into his blades, causing them to glow with a dark light. He began to slowly push the Lancea away from him, keeping it held between his blades. "You will fail Adam. And when you do, your family will die."
Shinji fought to keep his face expressionless, only just managing to keep his anger suppressed. If he let himself become consumed by his rage than he would be no better than Nara. He would become what he was fighting. Gathering all the strength he could muster the winged boy pushed back against Nara's blades.
Nara grimaced as he once again struggled to keep the Lancea at bay. Shinji was pushing down from above, giving him the weight advantage and making it difficult for Nara to keep the stalemate going. He was surprised therefore when Shinji suddenly released his grip on the long weapon and it was sent flying by Nara's blades. Surprise quickly changed to shock as Shinji held up his right hand and fired a powerful energy beam from his palm.
Nara brought his bladed arms down just in time to put them between himself and the blast. The impact against them though still had enough force to blast the grey haired boy back through the wall behind him. The beam continued to push him through another two walls before he finally emerged in the central chamber of Terminal Dogma. His backwards momentum was only halted when he crashed into a large boulder, which had fallen from the surface when the MAGI had fully opened the central shaft. The boulder collapsed on top of the teen and he was soon buried in the rubble.
Shinji flew into the chamber behind Nara, having already retrieved his miniature Lancea. He witnessed the boy's collision with the boulder and took off towards the fallen rock. Rei and Xera entered the chamber behind him, Naoki still held in the engineered female's arms.
As Shinji dived towards the rocky wreckage, several pieces of rock shifted and then fell to the side. The rocks' movement revealed the hunched over form of Nara, who once freed quickly rose to his full height and spread his wings wide. When he noticed Shinji falling towards him he pushed off the ground with his AT field and flew up to meet the other boy halfway.
Narrowing his eyes at Nara's approach, Shinji raised his black Lancea above his head and brought himself to a halt. He noticed that his pale skinned opponent had not yet generated the twin blades he was so fond of. As such this was probable Shinji's best chance to defeat Nara, and he planned to take full advantage of it.
Seemingly heedless of the danger, Nara continued his rapid approach, his eyes visibly glowing with power as he prepared for battle.
As soon as the grey winged teen came within range Shinji swung down with his deadly weapon. Even as he did so though, he knew his aim was off. He had been meaning to cut Nara perfectly in half and destroy the boy's S2 organ in the process, but instead realised that his swing would fall too far to Nara's left. It would probably sever the boys left arm and chest but would miss the S2 organ. Regardless, it was too late to stop the swing now. It was already in motion and would have to be stopped completely in order to re-aim.
Nara didn't appear bothered by the weapon's approach, in fact he smiled, a maniacal smile. Then he did the last thing that Shinji expected, he moved to the left.
Now lined up perfectly, Shinji's Lancea cut Nara perfectly in two, splitting the grey haired teen apart from head to hip and cutting his S2 organ into two symmetrical halves. For a heartbeat the two halves stayed together than a torrent of blood sprayed out from the cut and the two halves began to drift to the side, slowly falling towards the floor.
Shinji stared at the remains of what had once been his friend. The mismatched eyes had become foggy and unfocused but the same maniacal smile was still evident on the boy's face, though now each half sported only half a smile. "Is this it Nara? Did you just want to die?"
Rei too stared at Nara's remains. He had been the second person she ever truly considered a friend and although he had attacked them she was still sad that he was dead. Perhaps he had been controlled somehow, turned against them against his will. Regardless of whether or not that was true, Rei shed a silent tear for her dead friend.
Turning her head the blue haired girl looked across at Xera. The other girl floated nearby, out of arm's reach but close enough that Rei could see the expression on her face. She had expected to see some sort of reaction to Nara's death, shock perhaps or maybe sadness. She was certain the silver haired girl had to feel something for her companion of the last few days but all she saw on the teen's face was that same look of resignation she had worn the entire fight.
A sudden feeling of dread overwhelming her, Rei looked back to Nara's remains. The first thing she noticed was that they were no longer falling towards the ground, the second was that they were no longer moving away from each other.
Shinji was too busy lamenting his friend's death to notice that the halves had stopped moving. He did notice however when both eyes suddenly became focused and swiveled to look at him. "What the…?"
Before Shinji could say another word the two halves began to glow with an iridescent light. The light spread along each halves severed side and then began to grow outwards. Forming first into a blob of light then slowly hardening and taking form.
Shinji stood transfixed, unable to move from the sheer shock of what he was witnessing. When the light finally finished forming and condensing he was left facing two copies of Nara, both still glowing with the iridescent light. Slowly the light began to fade and the two copies began to take on a pale flesh tone. As the light faded from their heads the difference between the two was revealed. One of them sported two red eyes and orange hair. The second was contrasting, with two blue eyes and pale, tan hair. The feathers of their wings matched the colour of their hair.
Both halves smiled at Shinji with the same maniacal smile that the original Nara had wore when he was split in half. They spoke, their voices perfectly harmonious. "No Adam, I have no intention of dieing."
(Tokyo-3 Surface)
Asuka let out a shriek of rage as she charged Unit-D, swinging the progressive battle axe around to strike at the enemy Eva. The white behemoth brought up its Longinus Spear to protect itself and the hafts of the two weapons clashed in a shower of sparks. Since Unit-14 was charging there was more force behind the battle axe than the spear and while the Longinus Spear did not break, Unit-D was driven to its knees by the impact. Asuka would have finished it off there and then but was instead forced to spread her wings and take to the sky in order to avoid a spear lunge from Unit-B.
Unfortunately as soon as Unit-14 was airborne it was attacked by Units A, C and E, all of which had already been airborne and circling above the battling Evas. A quick mid-air kick knocked Unit-A's Longinus spear aside and the following back-flip planted both of the red Eva's feet on Unit-E's head, an audible snap announcing the breaking of the white Eva's neck.
Raising its battle axe, Unit-14 was just able to block the downwards swing of Unit-C's Longinus Spear, the pointed weapon sliding along the axe's hafts before being knocked to the side by a punch from the red behemoth. Following up with a swing from one of the axe-heads, Asuka severed Unit-C's left wing, sending the enemy Eva plummeting to the ground below.
Asuka didn't have time to celebrate the victory however as Units A, D and B all came for her at once. Flying higher to avoid their first attacks, she delivered a powerful roundhouse kick to Unit-B's back, sending the ex-Seele Eva slamming into the rocky surface. The attack though left Unit-14 exposed and Unit-D scored a hit to the Eva's right side, leaving a large and gaping wound. Crying out in pain, Asuka brought one end of her battle axe down on the attacking Eva's arm. Such was the force behind the attack that it not only cleaved off Unit-D's left arm at the elbow but continued through to cut its spear in two, the bladed half spinning off into the distance.
Whirling around, Asuka came face to face with the still partially deformed face of Unit-A. The IDPS Eva had its spear held high above its head and was no doubt preparing to skewer Unit-14 on the end of the red weapon. It was distracted however by several small boulders being thrown into the air in the distance. Its distraction did not last long but it was long enough for Asuka to put some distance between herself and the five ex-Seele Evas.
The source of the boulders' disturbance was soon revealed as a pair of iron rails shot out of the ground at two separate locations. For a moment they just stood there but then their significance became apparent when two Evas rocketed up from beneath them and came to stand on the surface, their shoulders attached to the iron rails.
Casting a glance over her Eva's shoulder, Asuka looked at the two new arrivals. She recognised the two tri-eyed Evas instantly. "It's about time you showed up bakas. I could use a h…" She was cut off as more boulders were suddenly thrown into the air and two more sets of rails appeared. The redhead's expression blanched, she knew what was about to happen.
Sure enough two more Evas rocketed to the surface. While Asuka was familiar with these two Evas, in her opinion they were far from welcome. Units 15 and 18 were now her enemies and she would like nothing better than to see them destroyed.
As the teenage girl watched the two new arrivals moved to intercept Units 16 and 17. "I guess I won't be getting that backup anytime soon." She immediately forced herself to ignore the plight of her friends and focus on her own fight. After all she was the one outnumbered five to one. Noting that Unit-14's side had finished regenerating and ignoring the still bleeding wound on her cheek, Asuka charged towards her now regrouped opponents.
(Elsewhere, Tokyo-3 Surface)
Not too far from Asuka, Units 16 and 17 were in a standoff against Units 15 and 18. Touji and Kensuke found themselves back-to-back as what had previously been their own Evas circled around them. The two enemy Evas finally came to a stop with Unit-15 standing directly in front of Unit-16 and Unit-18 in the same position with Unit-17.
In the rush to get to the surface neither Touji nor Kensuke had been able to grab a weapon to use in this battle. But of course with the only remaining Longinus Spear locked in Terminal Dogma and the progressive axe in use by Unit-14 there wouldn't have been much to choose from anyway.
Touji and Kensuke however were far from defenseless. Reaching up to their shoulder baffles both of the piloted Evas drew there progressive knives and then charged towards there respective opponents. Seemingly heedless of the Longinus Spears held by the two IDPS Evas.
The mouth of Unit-15 opened in a hideous replica of a smile as it watched Unit-16 charge towards it. It knew that the pitiful progressive knife the approaching Eva held in its hand was no match for the reach and power of the Longinus Spear it itself hold. The smile on its face widening, the Eva started to swing its spear in a wide arc, one that would cut its opponent in two should it continue on its current course. It was surprised therefore when the white Eva jumped up and over its spear, performing a mid-air somersault over the blue Eva's head and landing in a crouch behind it. Whirling around, the soulless Eva was only just fast enough to block a stab from Unit-16's progressive knife with the haft of its spear.
Unit-18 was similarly surprised when its attempt to behead Unit-17 was thwarted by the black Eva rolling under the massive spear then lashing out with a kick at the green Eva's kneecaps. The longheaded Eva was able to avoid the kick but it was surprised the attack had happened in the first place. Neither of the two IDPS Evas would be underestimating their opponents now.
(Meanwhile, Nerv, Terminal Dogma)
Shinji could do little but stare at the two Nara halves floating in front of him. He had thought that there was nothing that could surprise him these days but this was definitely a surprise. He had expected that attack to end the threat posed by Nara, not to double his problems.
The two Nara halves on the other hand seemed completely at ease with the current situation. They had not yet attacked Shinji, instead preferring to witness their opponent's surprise and wait for him to recover from his shock.
Shinji finally found the words to speak. "Na…Nara, what has happened to you? What exactly is going on?"
The orange haired Nara smiled viciously. "We are the embodiment of your destruction Adam. We are your doom."
The tan haired Nara nodded in agreement. "We will take our revenge on you and then we will destroy the Lilim. All of them."
Shinji was now certain that this was not the Nara he had known. "You're not Nara. Who are you?"
The two Naras frowned for a moment and then their eyes began to glow. They spoke simultaneously, their voices a hideous fusion of several different voices. None of which Shinji recognised. "We are those who came before, those who were destroyed. And now we live again." The smiles reappeared on their faces. "You have betrayed us father, and so you must die."
Shinji blinked. "Father?" His eyes widened in realisation. "You…you are the Angels. You have taken control of Nara."
The Naras' smiles turned viscous. "Yes, we are the Angels Adam. We are your children. But you have betrayed us and become one with our enemy. And so you must die." Their eyes flitted to Rei then back to Shinji. "Both you and Lilith must die for betraying us. And once you are dead…the Lilim will feel our wrath."
Shinji signed. He signed for the death of the friend he once knew, the friend who had been replaced by the monsters who now floated before him. Slowly, the black haired teen raised his miniature Lancea and held it before him. "I cannot let you do that Nara. No matter how powerful you have become, I promise you. I will defeat you."
(Author's Notes: From this point on the orange haired/red eyed Nara will be referred to as Nara-1 and the tan haired/blue eyed Nara will be referred to as Nara-2.)
Nara-1 generated a blade from each wrist, while Nara-2 held both hands up in front of him. They did not speak but it was clear that they were more than ready to fight.
Shinji knew that this fight was going to be hard. It was going to take everything he had to defeat both Naras and as yet he was still not certain of their abilities. Regardless, this was a battle he had to fight. Holding his Lancea out in front of him he charged towards the two waiting Naras.
Nara-2 immediately fired twin energy beams at the approaching teen. Shinji dodged one and knocked the other aside with his Lancea. He was then immediately forced to contend with the slashing blades of Nara-1, who seemed fully intent on cutting him into ribbons. Using the haft of his weapon, the teenage boy managed to fend of the attack and put some distance between himself and his assailant. He was then immediately forced to dive towards the ground to avoid his head being taken off by an energy beam from the second Nara. The red eyed Nara followed Shinji's dissent, while his blue eyed copy fired off another energy beam in pursuit.
This continued for some time, with Shinji always on the defensive against the two attackers, forced to dodge energy beams while fending off deadly blade attacks. So far he had managed to avoid any form of fatal or crippling attack but he had not survived unscathed. An energy beam from Nara-2 incinerated his left hand, and although his retaliatory blast forced the tan haired boy to stop attacking, he was forced to drop his Lancea to fire it. This left him open to Nara-1's attack. Managing to split open Shinji's stomach with his left blade, the red eyed teen attempted to skewer his unarmed opponent with his second blade. He was foiled however when Shinji blasted out with his concentrated AT field, forcing him to break off the assault.
Touching down on the chamber's floor, Shinji reached down and retrieved his black Lancea with his now regenerated left hand. He glanced down briefly to witness the wound on his stomach heal over and the blood flow evaporate. Hefting his weapon, he looked up at the two Naras floating above him. "You two are powerful, I'll give you that. But…" He raised his right arm high above his head. "It doesn't mean I won't win." His slashed downwards with his arm, sending out his AT field in a wide arc.
Nara-1 prepared to defend himself from the razor-sharp extension of Shinji's AT field, raising his arms up in front of him and concentrating his AT field around his body. Nara-2 however just smiled. Shadows began to spread out from his back, forming into a large circle behind him. Just as Shinji's AT field was about to reach him the blue eyed boy propelled himself back through the circle. As soon as he was in the circle disappeared, taking Nara-2 along with it.
Even with Nara-2's escape, the AT field attack still had a target. Moving at unbelievable speeds it slammed into Nara-1's arms. For a short moment the orange haired boy was able to hold the attack off but he could not keep up the defense. With all the strength he could muster, the teen brought his blades down on the glowing energy, attempting to split it apart. He succeeded, to a degree. While the attack did indeed break apart, part of it still connected with the red eyed boy, severing his left arm at the shoulder and sending the unfortunate limb falling to the floor below.
While glad to see that he managed to damage Nara-1, Shinji was worried greatly by Nara-2's escape, more specifically by the manner of his escape. That portal he had escaped through could only have been one thing. A Sea of Dirac. Which meant that the boy could generate them at will. Which made him a very dangerous opponent indeed. That Nara-1 had not escaped the same way suggested that he did not share this ability, a small mercy if nothing else.
Shinji suddenly felt some sort of darkness below him and, looking down, realised that a black shadow was spreading from beneath his feet. He immediately propelled himself into the air but he did not quite move fast enough. A pale skinned hand shot out from the shadow and grabbed hold of Shinji's left ankle, attempting to pull the boy into the darkness. When the black winged boy resisted, a second hand rose from the shadow and joined its companion on the teen's ankle.
Struggling to keep himself above the shadow, Shinji hefted his Lancea. The elongated teen intended to bring the weapon down on Nara-2's hands, severing his own foot if necessary.
Before the blow could fall however, a bright light from above drew Shinji's attention away from the shadow. Looking up he saw Nara-1 floating near the chamber ceiling. The boy had clearly regenerated his left arm as he now held both out before him, a glowing bubble forming in front of them. Bits of the red eyed teen's skin began to break off and fuse themselves with the bubble, along with a steady stream of the boy's blood. The more that flowed into the bubble, the brighter it became.
Still held by Nara-2's pale hands, Shinji realised that Nara-1 had intentionally allowed himself to be hit. Due to the boy's injury Shinji had made the mistake of ignoring him in favour of his double. The orange haired Nara had used the time he was given affectively. The basketball sized orb before him was proof of that.
Nara-1 smiled widely as his AT field bubble reached the desired power, enough power to destroy his opponent. "And now Adam, you die!" Bringing his arms back slightly, he thrust them forward, sending the glowing orb streaking through the air towards Shinji.
Although he did not recognise this attack, Shinji had no doubt that it was destructively powerful and would most likely prove deadly should it connect. He came to a quick decision and swung down with his miniature Lancea, cleaving through Nara-2's fingers and his own ankle. A hiss of pain could be heard rising from the shadow as the two hands vanished back into the darkness. This sound was ignored by Shinji as he propelled himself high into the air.
The AT field bubble shot by just below the teenage boy, continuing through to slam into the ground where Shinji had previously stood. A blinding flash of light obscured everything in the chamber from view.
The light washed over Shinji, followed by an unbearable wave of heat. Fighting against the urge to blackout, the winged teen focused his AT field as much as he could around his body.
The wave of heat spread throughout the rest of the chamber, though it lessened in intensity the further it spread. By the time it had reached Rei and Xera it contained nowhere near enough energy to injure either girl. Xera extended her AT field around Naoki, protecting the child from the heat. The baby was the only thing keeping Rei out of this fight. She could not be allowed to die.
Slowly the light began to recede, taking the heat along with it. It shrunk back towards its point of origin before eventually disappearing altogether. As soon as the light had vanished the damage the AT field bubble had caused became apparent. A large crater, some hundred meters across and almost half as deep had been gouged out of the chamber's floor. A section of wall that had been caught within the explosive radius had vanished entirely. The now unstable wall was badly cracked, with small pieces continually falling to the floor. Of the Sea of Dirac there was no sign. It had vanished, taking Nara-2 along with it.
Shinji floated above the crater's center, his body scarred and bloodied. Second and third degree burns marked his entire form and his eyes had been seared shut. His damaged body was already beginning to regenerate and his S2 organ had remained undamaged but he could feel the pain permeating throughout his being. He had survived, but for a moment he almost wished he hadn't.
The pain soon diminished however and Shinji's senses returned. He could not allow himself to die. He needed to stay alive for the sake of the world, and, more importantly, for the sake of Rei and Naoki. Slowly, Shinji opened his eyes. And dodged the blade plunging towards his chest.
Nara-1's eyes widened in surprise, he had not expected Shinji to recover so soon. He had underestimated Shinji's resolve to live, and overextended himself as a result. As such, he was unable to defend himself when his opponent swung downwards with the still largely undamaged Lancea in his left hand. The weapon severed the orange haired boy's right arm and continued through to carve a deep wound in his side.
Nara-1 cried out in agony, and, through the powerful bond they shared, Nara-2 heard. A Sea of Dirac opened directly behind Shinji and two arms reached out to grab him. They grabbed only air however as the winged boy flew up and out of their reach.
Growling in anger and pain, Nara-1 raised his left arm and pointed it at Shinji. The arm began to elongate and went racing through the air towards its intended target, a glowing black blade still extending from its wrist.
Shinji was not bothered by the arms approach. He was merely surprised that Nara-1 would try such a pointless attack. With a single swing of his Lancea he severed the limb below the wrist, ignoring the spurt of blood that flowed over him. The calmness of his expression vanished however as he looked down and saw what Nara-1 was really up to. The red eyed teen had already regenerate his right arm and a now all too familiar AT field bubble floated before it. A slight smile crossed the winged boy's face, and then the bubble was launched towards Shinji.
This bubble did not appear as bright as the last one and so it was safe to assume it was less powerful, but Shinji still had no doubt it could do some serious damage if it connected. Thinking fast, he dived to the right and out of the orb's path. Exactly what the Naras wanted him to do.
The moment Shinji had begun to move a Sea of Dirac had opened directly in his path. By the time Shinji had seen it he had only two choices. Fly through the portal or take the AT field bubble head on. Even if the bubble didn't kill him, he knew it would at least leave him vulnerable to an attack from either Nara. He chose to travel through the portal.
Nara-1 had followed in the wake of his projectile and smiled wickedly upon seeing Shinji dive through the Sea of Dirac. Ignoring the orb's detonation against the far wall, he himself flew through the portal. As soon as the winged boy had passed through completely the portal closed, the shadow vanishing in the light from the nearby explosion.
Rei ignored the AT field bubble's explosion. Her eyes were glued on the spot where the portal had once been. The portal which had taken her Shin-chan. A tear rolled down her cheek. "Shinji, please come back. You promised."
Beside the blue haired girl Xera cast a glance down at the baby girl still held in her arms. Even she did not know why Nara was doing this, except that it had something to do with the Angel's within him. She wished this could be different, but it wasn't and she accepted that. She would stand by Nara to the end. Because…because he was the one who taught her that her life was worth something.
(Tokyo-3 Surface)
Ducking under a swing from Unit-E's Longinus Spear, Asuka whirled around and planted her foot in the white Eva's stomach, propelling it backwards to land in a crouch some distance away. Swinging the progressive battle axe around, she cut a deep wound across Unit-B's chest, causing the enemy Eva to stumble backwards and break off its attack.
Noticing the approach of Unit-A to her right and Unit-C to her left Asuka spread her Eva's red wings and prepared to take to the sky. Unit-E had come at her once again though and with one swing from its spear, tore Unit-14's wings from its back.
Although Asuka herself lacked such appendages, she felt the pain of their removal and cried out in agony. Though her wings had been removed she was not completely grounded. Pushing off the ground with her Eva's powerful legs she back flipped over Unit-E's head. Landing behind the massive Eva, she buried one head of her axe in its back, destroying the Internal Dummy Plug System that controlled it. Without anything to command its body to move, the white Eva slumped forward, standing motionless among its comrades.
Smiling in triumph, Asuka ripped her weapon from the motionless Eva's back and prepared herself for the IDPS Evas' inevitable counterattack. Said counterattack came in the form of a three-pronged attack from Units A, C and B, two charging from either side, the third diving down from above.
Unit-A was felled by a quick sweep kick to its legs and Unit-C was knocked backwards when Unit-14's immense fist collided with its face, the following scissor kick knocking the Eva's weapon from its hand. Back flipping, Unit-14 was just able to avoid being skewered by Unit-B's spear thrust from above. The spear did however leave a long wound along the red Eva's right leg.
Landing on its feet, Unit-14 stumbled slightly on its damaged leg. Within the cockpit Asuka glared at the four white Eva's arrayed against her. It appeared that the previously disarmed Unit-D had taken Unit-E's disused spear and now held it as its own.
(Elsewhere, Tokyo-3 Surface)
Touji jabbed at Unit-15's stomach with his Eva's progressive knife. He failed to bury the knife to the hilt in the blue Eva's stomach as he had wished, but he did manage to leave a deep cut across his opponent's abdomen. Extending his Eva's white wings, he took to the sky to avoid the retaliatory spear swing from Unit-15. Extending its own wings, the IDPS Eva followed him into the air.
Touji had been expecting as much and used his superior altitude to kick at the enemy Eva's head. The attack connected but failed to slow down Unit-15, which hefted its Longinus Spear and drove the tip towards Unit-16's chest.
Nimble moving out of the way off the dangerous spear, Touji hurled his knife at the blue Eva's neck. Not expecting such an attack, Unit-15 failed to move in time and the entire blade-length vanished into its throat. The Eva immediately lifted one hand from its spear to clutch at the knife's handle.
Touji made his move. Swinging out with Unit-16's left arm he landed a powerful punch against the damaged Eva's chest, distracting it from his real goal. Before Unit-15 could react, the white Eva's right hand had closed on the haft of the Longinus Spear and was attempting to pull the large weapon from its owner's hands. The blue Eva immediately tightened its grip on the weapon and brought its second hand back to the haft. At the same time though Unit-16's left hand also closed on the long weapon and a tug of war began. A tug of war that would decide possession of the Longinus Spear.
At first the two Evas seemed evenly matched but then, ever so slowly, the spear began to edge towards Unit-16. The strength of the two behemoths should have been equal and yet it was clear that the white Eva was the stronger. Slowly, inch by inch, the Longinus Spear began to be pulled from Unit-15's grasp.
At the same time the AT fields of both Evas flared out, the air around them shimmering and clouds of dust and rocks being kicked up below. If Unit-15 thought such a show of power would help it reclaim its weapon it was sadly mistaken.
With one last tug Touji tore the Longinus Spear free of the enemy Eva's grasp. He allowed a slight smile to show on his face, knowing he had won.
Realising its chances of victory had substantially decreased, Unit-15 deployed its progressive knife and dived towards the ground. Its latest command from the MAGI was to avoid Unit-16 as much as possible and await reinforcement.
Touji however wasn't prepared to waste time chasing after the blue Eva, bringing back his Eva's arm he let fly with the Longinus Spear, hurling it at the retreating Eva's back. Streaking through the air, the spear collided with the Eva's back and nailed it to the ground, passing straight through its S2 organ.
(Elsewhere, Tokyo-3 Surface)
Kensuke warily circled Unit-18, staying just out of range of the green Eva's Longinus Spear. The enemy Eva might have underestimated Kensuke at first but it was not about to make that same mistake again.
Whirling around, Kensuke attempted to kick the Longinus Spear aside but was unable to do so when Unit-18 raised the spear, carrying it over his Eva's foot. He next attempted a sweeping spin kick but the green Eva simply deployed its wings and flew above his reach. Kensuke took a moment to consider his next move, bending down and picking up a small boulder in his Eva's left hand for no apparent reason.
Deciding on a course of action the glasses-wearing boy deployed his Eva's black wings and took to the sky, heading straight for Unit-18. Just outside of the green Eva's reach Kensuke brought his left arm slashing down, sending the boulder he still held racing towards Unit-18's chest. The IDPS Eva knocked the rock aside with a swing from its Longinus Spear but in doing so allowed Unit-17 to get closer. Bringing its colossal spear back around, the massive Eva plunged it into the black Eva's left shoulder and ripped upwards, tearing off the entire arm.
Kensuke cried out in pain but nevertheless remembered his goal. Strengthening his Eva's grip on its progressive knife he plunged it into the enemy Eva's chest, feeling the S2 organ crack.
(Airspace over Tokyo-3)
Two angular jets circled high above the battling Eva's below. They had each only just arrived in the last few seconds and their pilots were wondering what they were meant to do now. The last thing they expected to see upon arrival was a bunch of Evas fighting each other.
One of the jets had come from Nerv-03 in America and the clamps on its underbelly held an Eva identical in shape to Unit-15, though it was coloured silver and brown in a style reminiscent of Unit-19. The writing on its forearm proclaimed it as Unit-21
The second jet had come from Nerv-02 in Germany. The clamps on its underbelly held an Eva which's form matched that of Unit-14 and which shared the same colouring as Unit-21. Its forearm proclaimed it to be Unit-20.
Before either pilot could come to a decision, they found their piloting systems remotely hacked and overridden by an outside source. The aircrafts' ejection seats were activated and the hapless men were launched out of their vessels. There was a single loud click as the clamps on both jets disengaged and the final two IDPS Evas went plummeting towards the ground.
End Notes: Not much to say here, review if you have anything to say, otherwise go ahead and read part 2. As always, constructive criticism is welcome.