Disclaimer: See previous chapters
Neferius – Yes she is. But it wouldn't be Asuka any other way.
Chargone – I'll take your word for it on the sanity bit. But then again, madness can be fun at times.
Chapter 6 - Figuring
'First rule of an assassination; Kill the assassin.'
That was Misato's thought as she read over the report given to her by Section 8. As if this day hadn't already gone to hell. It was bad enough that the guy had managed to get in to NERV completely undetected, but that he took a shot at the Secretary General of the UN during his visit here. That alone told Misato that this was a planned attack. What made it unnerving was how easily it was done. The shooter had not only infiltrated NERV, but knew an exit out that she didn't even know about. It meant that whoever this guy was, they knew the layout of the geofront. How much of it, she didn't know.
And with the shooter was now dead, she would never know.
It also didn't help that she was unable to learn the identity of the second assassin, the one who took out the first. Even with all the cameras and surveillance, there was nothing to show or reveal his identity. He had been fully covered from head to toe and his height and build was average; nothing distinguishing whatsoever, not even the weapon he used.
…Frustrating her further.
This is just about what she feared would happen, more or less; that someone would use this time to discredit NERV and add greater pressure to its stability. 'And to my skull' she thought bitterly as she began to massage the side of her forehead. The only thing that prevented her head from pretty much exploding was the quick actions of the Children in saving the Secretary General.
If anything, that was more than a silver of good news. Halberd had been amazed and impressed by their swift actions, even though he didn't understand just how they did it. And to be honest, Misato wasn't looking forward to explaining it to him, especially since she didn't fully understand it herself. It had been difficult enough to keep her commander persona when she had debriefed them, especially in regard to those few moments of the shooting.
"So let me get this straight." Misato began once they had finished telling her their actions. "Shinji, you spotted the shooter and you... warned Rei, who… pushed the secretary general out of harms way. At the same time, Asuka, you exited your Eva and went after the assassin and managed to subdue him before he could escape. Does that just about cover it?"
The three looked over at each other briefly in a silent exchange. Finally Asuka answered simply.
"Just about, Commander."
With everything that had happen in the invasion, it was still amazing how Misato could still be in disbelief over their abilities. Heck, hearing that Asuka chased the assassin on foot and unarmed practically gave her a heart attack. But that brought about an idea that she had never considered. Or rather, decided not to consider. With their abilities, the Children could do things that could go well beyond the Eva project. On instinct alone, they were able to save a high-ranking diplomat and bring down a shooter unarmed (unless you count Asuka's attack with the 02) within a few minutes. Coupled with their Eva training, they could…
She stopped her thoughts right there. There was a reason why she didn't want to think along those lines. Normalcy... She wanted them to have as normal a life as possible. It was the primary reason why she took up command of NERV to begin with. Sure, she also wanted to keep Tokyo-3 from falling apart, but more so for the sake of the Children. They saved the world and whether they liked it or not, agreed with her or not, she owed them for it. For every single battle she sent them in, for every scar and injury they suffered, both physically and mentally.
She owed them a chance.
Shaking her head, the Commander brought her thoughts back to the present. She already knew why she was doing what she was doing. Glossing over it wouldn't change anything. Now she had matters to attend to; assassins to find and bring down, and most of all, discover the plot behind their attack. She knew well enough that what happened today was only the beginning of something bigger on the horizon. And whatever it was, she wanted to be ready for it
...Which reminded her…
Reaching into a side draw of the desk, Misato picked out a phone and placed it to her ear after dialing a number. It didn't take long for the recipient on the other end to pick up and respond.
-"Hey, sweetheart. Please tell me this is a social call."-
"I'm afraid not."
-"Didn't think it would be."- was the sighing reply. -"I heard what happened."-
"I figured you would have. I don't suppose you can shed some light on the situation."
-"Already working on it. My partner and I are working on a lead now."-
"Then I'll let you get back to it."
The voice softened. -"It's nice to hear your voice, Misato."-
"Yours too."
-"Don't work too hard."-
Misato gave a light sigh as she hung up. 'Too late for that.'
Hanging up, Kaji gave a wistful smile. Hearing Misato's voice always did make him smile, whether she was yelling at him or not. But at the same time, hearing the light stress in her voice made worry. His smile waned as he thought of what her position was putting her through, but it was her choice. A surprise to be sure, but after thinking it over, he guessed that she was probably doing it for the Children. If there was any driving force in that woman's life now that had been stronger than her desire for revenge against the Angels it was those three.
Well, far be it for him to get in the way of that.
Bringing his mind back to the job at hand, Kaji's mind went to work. As he told Misato, he was aware of the attempt on the life on James Halberd. That was plenty to make him worry. Given how the shooter knew not only how to enter the geofront, but knew of an escape route as well, it meant that he had a intricate knowledge of its layout, and that knowledge wasn't exactly easy to come by.
One or two names popped in his head.
On a positive note, he had also heard of the actions of the Children. He was surprised to say the least, especially upon learning that Asuka had personally chased down and managed to subdue the assassin, at least before he was killed by another one. 'Misato must have had a heart-attack on that one' he chuckled mentally.
Oddly enough, Qui-Gon didn't seem at all surprised at hearing this. Or maybe not so oddly enough seeing as how he was the one who taught them how to do all that stuff to begin with. Kaji had seen firsthand a few of the tricks the Jedi Master was capable of and this naturally aroused his curiosity. He tried to get some background info on the man, but there was nothing of any note. The guy was subtle, that was for sure. Even with his unique abilities, he didn't do anything to be noticed.
"Still trying to figure me out?"
Blinking, Kaji looked over at his partner. The two men were seated in a diner restaurant awaiting a contact. Qui-Gon currently was currently nursing a warm drink in his hands and had been quiet when Misato had called them earlier, but somehow managed to speak as though he knew where his thoughts were going. With a slight grin, Kaji returned.
"What gave me away?"
Qui-Gon shut his eyes briefly as he took a sip of his beverage. His eyes were still closed when he answer. "Your eyes; you have the look of a man trying to solve a puzzle."
"Well, isn't that what you are; A puzzle?" Kaji challenged.
"Perhaps; or perhaps I am just what you see."
Kaji gave a humorous snort. Since they started working together, their conversations would always end up this way. From the start, Qui-Gon had seen through Kaji to realize that he was curious about him; about his abilities as a Jedi. The spy had started with some sidelong questions, but Qui-Gon simply answered them all the same way, all the while letting Kaji know that he was on to him. Personally, Kaji believed the Jedi Master enjoyed messing with him.
"And what is it that I see?"
"Only you can answer that."
Kaji groaned; Qui-Gon smiled.
"What a day, huh sempai?"
With a heavy sigh, Ritsuko slumped into a seat. Maya's words were definitely an understatement. The visit of the both the Japanese representative and the secretary general of the UN was stressing enough. But add to the fact that she had been shot at (she wasn't the target, she knew, but she was in the same room and that was close enough) made it worse. Then you count in the actions of the Children soon afterward (especially Asuka) and Ritsuko wondered how she was on her feet a long as she was.
"That's one way to put it."
Moving beside her, the head of the science department folded her arms. "Lucky the Children acted when they did."
Risuko shook her head. "I don't think luck has anything to do with it."
Moving the seat over to one of the computer terminals, Ritsuko began bringing up the data feed as well as the video feed from the events before. She was present during the Children's debriefing and couldn't help the stunned expression that came on her face. While she had seen the few remarkable changes Shinji had undergone during the Angel Wars, she hadn't witnessed what all three had done during the invasion. So upon seeing the video recordings were, she was left in awe. Shaking her head, she shifted her gaze to the second monitor, where the readings recorded from the Children's plugsuits were being displayed.
" Look at their bio-readings. It just like when they synch in the Evas. But the readings don't stop there." Her gaze switched back and forth from one screen to another. "They kept up even after Asuka exited her Eva."
Beside her, Maya's eyes narrowed in thought as she took in this information. "Maybe we should look deeper. How about checking on the cellular level?"
'Hm. Never thought of that.' Out loud, the science advisor nodded. "Guess it's worth a look."
Sitting down, Maya went about in and went to work in adjusting the bio-readings on the plugsuits, allowing for a look on the cellular level, all the while feeling a bit nostalgic at being on a computer terminal like this. 'When I was the assistant…' Finally, the screen popped up with the desired image and both women were shocked by what they saw.
"My god… Look at all this. It's incredible."
"It's like their cells are in a state of hyperactivity." Ritsuko added, her eyes taking in the details of what she saw. "I've never seen anything like this."
This surprised Maya, who blurted out "Really?"
"I rarely had to analyze the Children at this level."
That was true. The main use for the plugsuits the Children wore showed a generalization of their body functions in lieu with the Evangelions. As such, it wasn't really necessary to narrow down to cell functions and activity; those were generally compiled and inputted as figures by the Magi supercomputer. But this may be the first tangible evidence they've discovered in relation to the abilities of the Children. And for the first time in a long while, Ritsuko felt the thrill and excitement of discovery.
"We'll have to check the past data records to confer with this, but we may be onto something here."
"Then it looks like we have we have an all-nighter then." Maya smiled, her own excitement filtering through.
"I'll get the coffee."
"The rest of your pay as agreed. "
"…."
"You should know that your employer was pleased with your work. He may call upon your services again in the near future."
"…If he can afford it."
"No need to worry on that end. We'll be in touch if necessary."
"…."
This took too long for me to get up, I believe. Sorry about that, but with a slight change to work hours, I missed my general dosage of insomnia to drive me faster. *sigh* But as the saying goes, onward, ever upward. Now if I can just remember who said that…