Ah, finally. I have been able to kickstart my writing ability, using the stress of my schoolwork to rip apart the writer's block that I have been suffering for the past few months. In the time that has passed since my last update, I've written and posted two chapters of a brand-new story, begun the third chapter, and started three more stories! But now, ATSKNF is back, with the second (or third) last chapter. Trust me on this, the grand finale will be something you won't want to miss, so stay tuned!

I would like to take this time to give a big thanks to Matt Coates (author of the only other worthwhile EVA/40k crossover that I am aware of, Reborn Warriors) for giving me the inspiration to do this chapter. I may have written this chapter, but some of the ideas were his. Thanks, mate.

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Greetings, Inquisitor

File Reference: Psychers

Humanity, like all mortal races, is naturally psychic. However, this ability is so weak in most cases that the sensitivity of the vast majority of people is practically zero. However, in a few select individuals, the power of the Warp can manifest itself, creating a human able to bend the winds of the Empyrean to their will. Such individuals are dangerous, as they act as a lodestone to the denizens of the Warp – Daemons. It is the duty of the Inquisition to seek out such mutants and deliver the Emperor's justice on such individuals who betray His trust. Most of those who are found to have latent psychic powers are rounded up, and their essence is used to power the life-giving machinery of the Golden Throne, where the God-Emperor himself resides on Holy Terra. Those few who are strong enough in mind and body, however, will be trained rigorously, and their powers are an absolute boon to the armies of the Imperium. Such battle psychers can tear apart tanks and boil the very blood of those who oppose the Emperor's will with the power of the Warp, and battles are often won or lost before they even begin with the uncanny prescience such advisors are capable of. To be a psycher in the service of the Imperium is to walk a fine path indeed, as the line between true power and utter damnation is a fine one, and is often difficult to define.

Chapter Eight: Heroes

As the first ray of sunlight burst from beyond the horizon, the Forgeworld of Mars seemed to rejoice silently in its own existence. As the sky slowly brightened, flowing smoothly from the speckled blackness of night through to a dull ochre, giving way to a bright, rusty orange patched in places with the light blue of the upper atmosphere. The polished statues seemed to glow with their own inner light when caressed by the creeping flood of the early morning sun, and the whole planet seemed to simply enjoy sitting silently, watching the spectacle.

In a room situated high above the ground level, two women were in the process of awakening. One, her purple hair in disarray, groaned softly as she stumbled into the kitchen, where her friend waited. The other woman seemed to be more machine than human, with her hooded, tired organic eye contrasting sharply with the unchanging metal and glass of her bionic one. The purple-haired woman stumbled over to the refrigerator, pulling out a cylindrical object. She made her way over to the table where the blond Techpriest was seated, nursing a cup of steaming coffee. Dropping heavily into her own chair, the Inquisitor opened the can with a practiced ease, and threw the contents down her throat in one single, drawn-out chug.

"YEE-HAH!" she yelled out suddenly, after the liquid had been consumed, throwing the can over her shoulder. The Techpriest winced slightly at the headache that had been aggravated by her old friend, remembering the morning ritual that seemed to be completely at odds with the purple-haired woman's public behavior. The burp that followed was also an indication of how relaxed the Inquisitor was in the morning.

"By the Throne, Misato. Must you do that every morning?" Ritsuko growled, her voice still gravelly from the all-night binge that the two had done together.

"Hey, you got a problem with tradition?" Misato slurred, obviously still in high spirits. "Didn't you know that a traditional breakfast consists of boiled grain, Grox soup and a little alcohol?

"Your tradition maybe. No wonder an Inquisitor like you has such trouble finding a retinue."

Misato's eye twitched as she scowled slightly at her companion. "Are you saying that I'm lazy?"

"And sloppy, too." Ritsuko joked, amused at the notion that she could banter lightly with an Inquisitor in such a manner without repercussion.

"Oh, just leave me alone. On a different note, we have the activation today."

Ritsuko groaned, holding her still-throbbing head in her hands.

"Then remind me again why we had to get drunk last night?"

Misato shrugged, and just laughed. "Well, why not?"

The Techpriest simply muttered darkly, as Misato continued to laugh.

xxx

Hikari stood uneasily. She, along with the rest of the small group, was waiting outside the blast doors that marked the entrance of the Evangelion chamber. And after ten minutes of waiting, even their guards seemed to be growing bored. Remembering the last time she had seen the Inquisitor, Hikari allowed herself a small smile. She is probably lost again.

Immediately as the thought crossed her mind, she could hear the growing stamp of booted feet marching in time. As the noise grew closer, the sound of voices became mixed with the repetitive mantra of leather on steel. Hikari was quick to identify the voice of both Inquisitor Katsuragi and Techpriest Akagi, however the words were unable to be made out. As the two turned the corner into plain sight, flanked by the Techpriest's assistant and the Inquisitor's guards, Hikari made the sign of the Aquila over her chest, bowing slightly. Her companions followed suit, crossing their palms flat over their heart and intertwining their thumbs.

The Inquisitor nodded in greeting, and waited silently as Techpriest Akagi gave the appropriate prayer to open the door. As soon as the heavy barrier of adamantine slid open, Inquisitor Katsuragi strode into the room, leaving everyone to follow. Steeping into the chamber, Hikari saw that the suits were each lying open, as if inviting the teenagers to try their power. It was a frightening thought.

"Ok, we are moving the schedule forward, as there is a situation in the galactic North," Explained Inquisitor Katsuragi, turning to face the group. "And the Inquisition has seen fit to order you into action. Pilot Hokari, you will be first." She indicated to the trio of Techpriests standing beside one of the armour suits, and they began to pray over each part. Hikari stepped forward, her mouth suddenly feeling dry, and the contents of her stomach threatening to come back up. She closed her eyes, forcing the rising bile to subside, and muttered a small prayer of her own as she mounted the low pedestal. She stood silently with her eyes glued shut as the various plates of adamantine and ceramite were placed onto her body and fitted together, hoping that the sweat lining her brow wouldn't be seen in the candlelight, and that the tears threatening to burst out would stay back until she was alone. She was unsure why, but the EVA battlesuit scared her. It almost feels… alive…

Hikari quickly banished that thought, and risked opening her eyes. The last components of the suit were being fixed, and a set of power cables were being connected to various places of the suit.

All too quickly, the job was done. The Techpriests backed away, bowing as they finished their final prayers of activation, and Techpriest Akagi stepped forward, brandishing her power axe.

"I call on the machine spirit of this holy artifact," she intoned, touching each shoulder of the armour with the axe. "To awaken, and feel the call to war once more." Hikari trembled as the woman touched the centre of her chest with the implement, then backed away. Seemingly satisfied, the head of the project handed the artifact back to her assistant, a boy the same age as Hikari who seemed delighted to once again be holding the weapon.

"Initiate power supply." She ordered, sweeping her arm in a wide arc towards the group of her underlings.

"Power has been supplied, internal generator has been activated successfully." A disembodied female voice reported from somewhere above Hikari, who was shaking harder than ever.

"Begin Synchronization sequence." Replied Techpriest Akagi, who seemed to be barely containing her excitement.

"Neuro-links stable. Reaching absolute borderline in 0.05." The voice continued. Hikari frowned slightly, as a slight buzzing filled her ears.

"0.04"

The buzzing grew louder, and Hikari winced at the feeling.

"0.03"

The noise was sawing at her brain, and tears began to flow unheeded down Hikari's face. Please…Please just make it… make it stop… she mentally pleaded, as the pressure on her mind seemed to intensify.

"0.02"

She clenched her teeth, attempting to use her own powers to block out the pain, but failing miserably.

"0.01….. absolute borderline…..reached…."

A wave of pain exploded through her body, and Hikari screamed, a continuing pitch that reverberated around the high chamber. Once again, she lifted off the ground, two pearly-white wings of energy sprouting from her back as the air around her crackled with power. She grated her teeth and arched her body as power coursed throughout her, gnawing at her very soul and shaking the foundations of the bunker. Faintly, she could hear the panicking cries of the crew.

"Signal pulses flowing backwards! We're losing control!"

With a sick feeling of horror, Hikari knew that she was not alone in the suit. She could feel the soul of another human, another psycher residing in the very essence of the armour, and it was angry at her intrusion. She mentally began to pray to the Emperor, begging for salvation.

And the soul responded.

The fury and anger became a sense of confusion, and finally acceptance. As the pain subsided, Hikari felt herself fall to the ground, and she collapsed face-first on the cold, metallic floor.

She slowly pushed herself up, coughing up blood and bile as she held onto the floor, so as to not fall off the spinning world around her. As her vision began to right itself, Hikari slowly looked up.

And was met with the business end of a bolt pistol.

After staring cross-eyed at the large barrel, she glanced upwards, and her eyes met with those of the icy gaze of the Inquisitor.

"Who do you serve?" the woman whispered, her finger curled around the trigger.

"The Emperor." Hikari whispered back.

Immediately, the Inquisitor stepped back, dropping the weapon and falling to her knees in front of Hikari.

Cupping the teen's face in her hands, she whispered again.

"Your powers… they are greater than any witch I have ever encountered. Will you use them in His service?"

With a rush of gratitude to the God-Emperor, Hikari almost shouted her reply.

"I will serve!"

xxx

Many light years away, on the war-torn planet of Sayda IV, Captain Idaeus halted his charge, and his entourage followed suit. In the distance, a great roar of fury could be heard, echoing around the broken buildings of the city. It was a sound that could rip the heart out of even the bravest of mortals, and the young Captain trembled. Long after the echo died, the squad stood still, trying to regain their courage.

"Come on, Brothers," said Idaeus, his voice conveying a strength he wished he felt. "Forward, in the name of the Emperor. Remember," he continued, while methodically reloading his combi-plasmagun, "That we are Space Marines. And what do we know?"

The rest of the squad shouted their reply, as if trying to rid the sound of the inhuman scream from their minds.

"WE ARE THE SPACE MARINES! WE DO NOT KNOW PAIN! WE DO NOT KNOW SORROW! AND WE KNOW NO FEAR!"

Idaeus raised his shining power sword above his head, pointing it towards the direction where the scream had come from.

"Then, Brothers…ONWARD!"

With a shout of bloodlust, the squad rushed further through the city.

xxx

A/N: Wooot! And there we have it folks, the EVA finally brought into the story! In the next episode, our heroes (and heroines) travel to the Sayda system to do battle with their mysterious foe, the monstrous Tabris! There's going to be blood, guts, and non-stop action once they get on the ground, and the vast army of Daemons standing between the Chosen and their foe may yet prove to be more than a match for the brave pilots.

Note: I have reposted all of the previous chapters, to deal with typos and changing tags that don't show up on Hopefully, this should make the previous chapters a little easier to read, but the story has not been changed whatsoever.