Asuka awoke in another Medical Ward room, but there was a curtain dividing her from someone else. Her limbs felt alright, but her stomach hurt. "Ach, ich bin nur hungrig." She couldn't help but smile. We did it.
Hearing a groan from her left on the other side of the curtain, the Redhead drew herself from the bed. She didn't register the hospital gown as she stalked over and drew the curtain back. Asuka smiled softly at what she found, "Shinji..."
He slowly opened his eyes, "A.. Asuka."
She crawled up beside him and sat down resting her left hand on his forehead, "Good to see you again, Wonder Boy." Asuka felt her bodily tension go away as soon as her skin touched his, one could swear her very soul was smiling.
Shinji turned his head to his right to glimpse her face, but his eyes caught sight of the shadow on her crotch cast by the hospital gown. He couldn't help but swallow before turning his eyes up to her face, "You hit a grand slam." They shared a quiet chuckle.
He then turned his body to face her and placed his left hand on her right knee. Asuka's eyes darted to the new contact and when he didn't move a muscle, she looked at his face. Shinji said to her just above a whisper, "It's great to see you again."
A smiling Asuka just slumped forward, tackling Wonder Boy, but mostly hugging him.
It wasn't long before a nurse came by to check on them, only to find them in the same bed. At least they're just sleeping. As she went about cleaning up Asuka's bed area, she looked them over. They do make a cute couple, but what an insane task to give children.
As she turned to leave, Shinji's voice stopped her, "Would you mind bringing us some food? It feels like I've been living on intravenous sustenance for days now..."
"Uh, sure hon. Anything specific?"
Asuka lifted her voice now, "Got any steak?"
The nurse let out a giggle, "I'll see what we have. How about you, sir?"
"Steak sounds kinda awesome for some reason."
The nurse left and closed the door. She didn't hear Shinji and Asuka whispering to one another, "Steak huh?"
"Uh-huh."
"Sure you wouldn't rather have ... pork?"
The nurse did hear the two laughing, to which she couldn't help but smile, "Kids these days... my word."
Sitting in the front of class, Asuka and Shinji arbitrarily moved their desks together. For a moment, the woman teaching the class looked as if she was going to say something, then remembered who the two were and shut her mouth. Asuka looped her left hand around Shinji's elbow as the class settled down to start the day's lesson.
"Normally, you would have Mr. Takahashi for Histroy. However, with the most recent attack in the area, many more have simply given up trying to live here. Some of your classmates have gone as well."
She didn't stop her train of thought long, "I'm Miss Saitama." She strolled over before Shinji and Asuka, pausing for a moment, "With everything that's been going on, it's an honor to meet two, modern, REAL heroes." Bowing before the two, the few others in the class sat stunned.
Miss Saitama straightened herself and practically glared at the other students, "Don't tell me you don't KNOW about all this?"
That's when Kensuke lifted his hand.
"Yes, Mr. Aida?"
He took a moment to push his glasses back onto his nose, "Of course Toji and I know. We were THERE for one of the battles."
The teacher held herself still, but her face paled a shade or three, "... there?"
"We've been ordered not to discuss details, but we can at least admit where we were up to a certain time."
"Thank you, Mr. Aida."
Slinking back to the whiteboard at the head of the classroom, she began the lesson, "NERV has, oddly enough, released information pertaining to Second Impact. Do any of you recall what the public story has been all this time?"
This time, Hikari Horaki raised her hand.
"Miss Horaki." The teacher acknowledged the pig-tailed girl sitting two seats before Toji Suzahara.
Hikari stood and recited from memory, "Governments around the world claimed an asteroid impacted the South Pole, beginning a shift in climate that ultimately killed more than half the known population of humanity."
"Very good..."
The teacher was cut off by the girl's continuation, "Multiple news agencies at the time delivered evidence to the contrary. Including numerous reports of known and possible asteroid orbits. Not to mention the fact that a few images leaked from NERV itself five years ago showed an oddly blood-colored ocean surrounding the Antarctic continent."
Asuka shifted her eyes to Shinji, who merely tugged at the right corner of his mouth in a smidgeon of a smirk. The redhead merely returned her attention to the teacher. That's that, I guess.
Obviously impressed with the girl's information, Miss Saitama gestured for Hikari to sit, "Very, very good. The information released yesterday does contradict the formerly 'official' story."
Pulling a map down from above the whiteboard, she continued:
"Nearly fifteen years ago, something, they omitted what, was found in Antarctica by an expedition led by a Dr. Katsuragi. Whatever experiment they attempted failed so miserably that a sizable portion of humanity itself was killed immediately following what appeared to be a pair of wings sprouting from a now blood-red body of water."
Everyone in the class was bright-eyed in awe of this new information, even Shinji peered at the teacher in a questioning manner. Asuka looked at him again, "Did you know anything of this?"
Shinji turned to Asuka with surprise and confusion, "No, well, the image of wings I did see, but the rest... nuh-uh."
"Katsuragi? Isn't that...?"
Asuka's words were cut short by Shinji's answer, "We'll have to ask, privately."
The redhead simply nodded in agreement.
Miss Saitama spoke louder than before at the pair, "Are you done interrupting?"
In unison they replied, "Yes, ma'am."
"Good. Now..." She lifted a remote, turning off the lights and initiating the computer-driven projector.
"NERV evolved from Gehirn, a secret research organization dedicated to advancing humanity by any means possible. Genetics, energy-physics, and even day-to-day behavior were their primary projects."
"Whatever the experiment in Antarctica, it is clear that humanity's hardship of life is far from over. We rebuild and restore, but there is now a new enemy. One that wishes to destroy us all."
She tapped the button to advance the picture. Several images together displayed now, with names for each Angel. "Sachiel, Shamshel and Ramiel, Gaghiel, and finally we have Israfel."
"NERV did note that there are more to come, number unknown."
Toji spoke up now, "Those things are crazy-big. You wouldn't believe the it! I sure didn't."
Kensuke added, "Me either. Then to find out that the pilot is a kid, just like any of us?"
Shinji and Asuka both turned around, Wonder Boy stated, "Someone has to. Apparently the only ones who can connect to the machines Gehirn built are ..." He trailed off, staring into Asuka's eyes, "Children whose mothers are dead."
Kensuke looked around the classroom, "Wait a minute..."
The scant few other children in the classroom looked around in horror at the realization, "All of us?" and, "..the fuck is going on here?"
"Alright everyone. Enough." The class settled down. Many stared into their terminals with blank expressions. Shinji and Asuka just gave one another a reassuring hug.
Taking a deep breath, Miss Saitama continued, "Doctor Katsuragi had written a paper on a perpetual energy device, now referred to as an S2 engine. It would appear that his Super Solenoid theory was entirely true, much to the horror of his research team. They were all killed in Antarctica. Whatever experiment they did, even took, as NERV has released, and I quote "a significant portion of the life energies of all of human kind..." end quote."
She lowered her thin nose and stared at the class over the minimal rim of her glasses, "Whatever happened, we have a responsibility to continue living. World hunger has been neutralized with world-wide effort, war over resources is now a mere pipe dream. The days when we had too much and threw away the excess are over. We must now take heed of all threats to survival."
Miss Saitama gestured again to Shinji and Asuka, "You two and your fellow pilot Miss Ayanami have at least my thanks, for all you've done."
The bell rang for the end of class, sparing the pair further embarrassment. They were the first out the door, even having shifted their desks back to the original layout.
Gendo spoke to the monoliths, Fuyutski at his side, "NERV will not serve you any longer. We, ... I... hold all the best cards."
Seele 01, Chairman Keele was angry, "You disseminated the truth to the world! You should be put to death!"
Gendo reaffirmed his position, "Go ahead and try something. Who has the Lance, Lillith, Adam, and three Evangelions?"
Seele 04 interjected, "You corrupt your task! Our scenario-"
"Will not happen as you want it to." Gendo brought his hands before his face and grinned like a maniac, "My son opened my eyes, the Evas have reminded me of something, and the Magi..."
He pulled a thin, black remote control from his pocket and pressed a button, "... gave your locations this very morning."
One by one, the monoliths winked out. All that was left was the room and the two friends, and total control of NERV.
::: I did love the idea in EoE that Gendo burned all his bridges with thermite. Now he just has a LOT more incentive to start
::: early. I still think Shinji/Asuka was a better way to have gone, but I still love the original series... minus the final two
::: episodes and the movie: Death and Rebirth. EoE was enough for me, even if it raised more questions than it answered.
::: I really don't want to even see Rebuild. I know, I know, it's new and I'm probably paranoid about a few changes and
::: additions, here and there, but I just can't wrap my head around introducing ANOTHER pilot that's just as emotionally
::: crippled as everyone else. Three was enough for me. But with this story? Who the fick knows where I'll go with it!
::: I'll do what I can Sunday. Tomorrow will, undoubtedly, be a magnificent headache. Two new roommates. I doubt they'll
::: be my age, either. Kids these days, I tell ya. What with their X-Box 360s and their headsets for fireteams. Been there,
::: when it was Teamspeak and/or VoiceChat keyboard commands and text, done that. This time around with school,
::: I want to study. :