Chapter 6 – Angels
October 15, 2017
Mana walked down the corridors of the Geofront, quiet and somewhat subdued. She hadn't slept well the night before. She passed by other Nerv workers, trying to get to her test. Her stomach felt unwell; she wasn't sure if it was because she hadn't eaten anything that day, or if eating would just make it worse. She stopped at a T-intersection, and leaned against the wall, enjoying the first flash of cool metal against her cheek. She stood there for a few moments, tuning out the world around her.
"H-hey, Mana."
Mana opened her eyes and turned around when she heard the voice.
"Hey there, Asuka," she said, "what are you up to?"
Asuka held her PDA with both hands, her fingers playing across the back of it. "W-well, I've got a quick test to run with Zwei, b-but after that I'll be there for your test with the Ree-tron."
Mana smiled, "Cool."
"What a-about you? You're kind of early."
Mana scratched behind her ear. "I don't know. I think I might go and get something to eat, first."
They stood there for a moment. Besides them, there was no one nearby.
"Say, Asuka," Mana started, trying to put her thoughts into words, "uhh, about the whole 'fighting you for your boyfriend' thing, no hard feelings, right?" Mana tried to read Asuka's face to see what she should say, but decided to just keep going. "It's just, you're... you're a good friend of mine, and- and I'd hate to lose that. I won't actually try and break him in."
Asuka smiled at Mana. "D-don't worry about it. I t-trust you and Shinji. A-and if anyone is going to break him in," she smiled evilly at this, "it's going to be me."
Mana broke out in a grin, and hooked her arm around Asuka's shoulders. "Now that's what I'm talking about!" Mana tapped her finger against her lips. "You know, I've still yet to see your little sex tape." Asuka blushed while Mana laughed. "I wouldn't have thought you two would go through with it. But once Rei told me, I was floored. Good initiative, there!"
"I-it w-w-was mutual, I-I'd say."
"You're one of the best-looking girls in T-3, Asuka, of course it was."
Asuka got out of Mana's arm, still blushing. "O-ok, I need t-to run now."
"Alright then, I'll see you later Asuka." Mana waved as the redhead took the branching path. Mana decided to head straight, towards the cafeteria, hoping that maybe it was just hunger.
That was the last time Mana saw her.
"Have I ever mentioned that you're amazing, Mana?" General Beck said, "I mean really, this is wonderful. This contract'll be the easiest sell I've ever made to the Armed Forces Committee."
Mana was listening again to a recording left on her phone overnight.
"I swear, I pointed it out to Obadiah, and he just about blew his top off! Haha! When you get back we need to celebrate." There was a pause. "Alright now, I've got to start compiling reports for the Services Review, but don't be afraid to give me a call. I hope you're having a great time now, and Lara sends you her love. We'll have a dinner when you get back. Bye now!"
Mana clicked off the phone, and fell backwards onto her bed. She had spent the day after her night out with Athene wandering the city. Just like before, it had felt strange. The university was completely new to her, and she had been surprised walking around its fairly nice campus. Much more of the city was occupied, with only a small number of buildings still able to retract into the Geofront. The little noodle shacks and favorite places were gone, though, run over by the growing city.
Tokyo-3 wasn't her place anymore. It had moved on.
But Mana had to put that out of her thoughts for the day; it was the day. October 15, 2037. 20 years since... a lot of things, really.
She wondered if the graves had changed at all since she had last seen them. That had to have been in 2019. Or was it 2018? She ran over it in her mind. The last time she was there was 2019, but it had been the 2018 gathering that had stuck in her mind.
Mana was sitting in the Nerv cafeteria, one of only a few other patrons, slowly pecking away at the meal in front of her. She wasn't very hungry. She hadn't known what to expect from the anniversary a few days earlier, but what had happened was not what she had expected.
'Where have you taken her? Where have you taken her?'
She shuddered at the memory of Pieter's voice. He had always seemed so strong to her, like an older version of some of her old comrades, able to bear any weight. She had always admired their fortitude, wanting it for herself, so that all her problems would just crash on her implacable will. To see Pieter crumple to his knees had set a weight in her stomach. She had been even more surprised to see Dr. Sohryu pull him from the ground – the woman had always seemed averse to any kind of public physical contact.
Maybe that was why she had been apprehensive to go, because although she had gone to funerals before, she had never gone back to the markers afterward. What was she supposed to do there? Hadn't she mourned? Couldn't she move on with her life now? Especially now that the war looked like it was over?
Her thoughts were broken when Mari sat down across the table from her. The other girl's eyes were focused on Mana.
"Hey Mari, what's up?" she said.
Mari examined Mana, then looked around the room. Satisfied that the others were far enough away, she leaned over the table partway.
"I'm going to seduce Uri this weekend."
Mana began coughing on the bite of rice she had just eaten. After a few moments to regain her composure, she looked at Mari, trying to catch a sign she was messing with her.
"Why?"
"Because I'm attracted to him, that's why. And that little bitch has been leading him on for the past few months."
"You mean Annette?" Mana said. Mari's face scrunched at the mention of her name, and her gaze lowered to the side. "I dunno," Mana continued, "it looks like Uri's been going after her. Are you sure this is a good idea?"
Mari shot back to Mana. "She's worthless! What does she have that I don't? If that idiot isn't going to notice me on his own, then I will strap him down and ride him like a horse until he can't see straight!"
Mana could see the far off look in Mari's eyes as she spoke. "Look, Mari, why don't we have a... Girl's night out instead. Like we usually do?"
"You mean go to shitty bars and get wasted until I drag you to a club and you shoot everyone down by saying you have a boyfriend? Yeah, that sounds like a lot of fun." Mari sat back down and crossed her arms over her chest.
Mana felt a little wounded. She had thought Mari had liked hanging out with her those nights. Mari had certainly found enough to do while Mana paid far too much for bad mixed drinks. Though she had heard a few of the screaming matches Mari had had with her father about their nights out.
"I don't think this is a good idea, Mari," Mana said after a few seconds.
"Why not?"
Mana was sick of trying to be nice. "Well for one, didn't you ask him about something like this a few months ago? And didn't he shoot you down then? And secondly, you think he's going to be in the mood to fuck less than two weeks after the memorial? You think that's appropriate at all?"
Mari slammed her fists on the table, causing small sparks to dance on the surface and shock Mana.
"First of all, you did the same damn thing with your little boy toy, only you did it before her body was cold, so don't you try and lecture me about what's appropriate. And second, she was my goddamn sister too. So fuck you!" She shouted the last at the top of her voice. The other Nerv workers gave glances over to the two.
Mana was clenching and unclenching her fists under the table. "That... that's not what happened," Mana said. Mari didn't reply, as she got up, and stormed off.
That had not gone well.
Two weeks later Mari apologized to Mana, but they never did have another Girl's night out together.
Mana looked at herself again in the mirror. She hadn't expected to wear her full dress uniform, but habit had made her pack it as well, and it had turned out for the best.
As she was about to leave her apartment, her hand hovered over the handle. She threw a glance back at the liquor cabinet, but shook her head sharply and walked out towards her car.
At the Tokyo-3 graveyard, just outside the city, it was just another day. One of the legacies of the vast casualties of Second Impact, it spread like a stain across a huge area. Various persons silently made their way through the forest of black memorials, not seeing anyone else, each lost in their own thoughts, their own memories.
Mana wandered through the field, trying to remember where the markers were. She checked the time – she had about half an hour. She stopped, and tried to get her bearings. To her left she could see a family of five (she noticed that the spouses looked younger than her) putting some flowers on two markers. She wondered what their story was, and how they had been connected to those graves. Grandparents? Other relatives?
"Mana," she heard from behind her. She turned around and saw Shinji, carrying in his arms a large collection of varied bouquets.
"Hey there," she said, "you're early."
He chuckled, "I tend to be." He motioned to the distance with his shoulders, "shall we?"
The two walked between the silent rows, with the sun beginning to set the horizon on fire. As they did, Mana looked Shinji over – he worse just a simple black ensemble, and Mana could see the slight brown dull that had settled on his shoes. He had 8 bouquets, each of them different, but all vital with color. Seeing them, Mana hoped she hadn't somehow forgotten that she was supposed to bring something herself.
After a few minutes, they got to the row. Mana picked out of the group the nine markers they were there for. There were already a few people there – a collection of adults and children.
More families. Mana wondered if there was some kind of aphrodisiac in the water.
"Mana?" one of them asked. A woman, about her age with brown hair, and the voice was really familiar...
"Hikari?" Mana replied. Before she could say another word she was having the air squeezed out of her in a hug. After awkwardly patting the other woman on the back, Mana was released.
"Uhh, long time no see, huh?" she said.
"Shinji had told me you were in town, but I guess I didn't really expect you to come." Hikari seemed to realize what she had said. "It's really great to have you here, though!"
Mana gave an unenthusiastic smile, "Thanks." A cry was heard in one of the families, and both looked over.
"Sorry Mana, I need to help Touji for a second. But we'll talk after this, alright?" With that, she was off.
Mana could see Kei and Kaworu with their pair of adolescents, and looked over at Hikari's loud brood, reaching from young man to child.
'God, family life is strange.'
At 5 PM, more people showed up. Misato & Kaji, the Doctors Ikari, and the Sohryu clan including, to Mana's surprise, Uriel and his family. She also saw Mari, but she didn't look a day over 18. It unsettled her. With the Ikaris was a young woman Mana hadn't seen before.
People milled for a few moments, shaking hands and giving small greetings, until the elder Sohryu patriarch cleared his throat. At that the gathering was quiet. As well as they could they made a tight semi-circle in front of the 8 markers, with Pieter in front. Kyoko held his left hand.
For a minute, he was silent. But then he began speaking, more to himself than to the people around him. As he spoke, Mana read the markers. Only lightly weathered, she could easily read the words on them.
"Unser Vater in dem Himmel,"
Nana Ayanami, 2000 - 2017
"dein Name werde geheiligt."
Hatchi Ayanami, 2000 - 2017
"dein Reich komme."
Siyon Ayanami, 2000 - 2017
"dein Wille geschehe,"
Kiko Ayanami, 2000 - 2017
"auf Erden, wie im Himmel."
Zyuu Ayanami, 2000 - 2017
"Unser täglich Brot gib uns heute,
und vergib uns unsere Schulden,"
Iti Ayanami, 2000 - 2017
"wie wir unsern Schuldigern vergeben.
Und führe uns nicht in Versuchung,
sondern erlöse uns von dem Übel."
Rei Ayanami, 2000 - 2017
"Denn Dein ist das Reich und die Kraft
und die Herrlichkeit in Ewigkeit."
Asuka Langley Sohryu, 2001 - 2017
"Amen."
With that said, Uriel handed Pieter & Kyoko a calla lily, which they placed at the foot of Asuka's marker. Others followed their lead, placing their gifts at each. Mana tried to make sure no one noticed that she hadn't brought anything.
A few minutes passed with little said. Mana could understand silence.
A few more passed before the gathering began to break up. Mana looked around and saw Shinji talking with Kaworu, Hikari with Misato, and so on. She realized that this was one of the few times everyone was in the same hemisphere, if what Uriel had told her was true.
"Colonel Kirishima," she heard. She looked for the voice and saw Gendo. She instantly snapped to a salute.
"Sir."
He waved her off. "No need for that, Colonel. It's been quite a while since I was your commander." Mana lowered her arm. He turned so that they stood side to side, looking at the group of old Nerv hands. She noticed his beard was almost all gray, and to a lesser extent than Pieter, lines had been cleft onto his face by age.
"Force of habit, sir."
"It's a good habit to have."
The two stood quiet for a time, just watching.
"It's a little weird to see everyone," Mana said.
"I can imagine. The U.S. has been good? How is General Beck?"
"Yeah it has been. And Beck's fine, he's been getting grandfatherly with his kids and I think he might retire soon, however much he denies it. How do you know him?"
Gendo nodded. "We met when I traveled to set up the first Gehirn bases in the U.S., back in the early 2000's. We worked closely together to lobby their Congress. He's a good man, and a fine officer to serve under."
"Very true, sir."
They were quiet again. More time passed, and Yui came by to collect her husband. She smiled and greeted Mana, but said there was an important banquet the two were guests of honor at that evening. The groups were dispersing now, and Shinji came walking up after his parents had left.
"Hey Mana, we're planning on getting some dinner later at this little restaurant Hikari found, care to join us?"
Mana nodded her head. "Sure, that sounds fine. Where is it?"
"It's called the Lakeside Cafe, it's- aw, do you mind just following me? It's not a terribly complicated drive."
Mana let out a small yawn. "Yeah, though from what I recall you weren't the best driver..."
Shinji looked confused for a moment, until he remembered what Mana was referencing. "Hey now! That only happened once, and he was perfectly fine afterward! No harm, no foul, right?"
Mana smiled. "Tell that to his bike."
The two went back and forth on the subject as they walked away.
The memorials for the dead were silent.
October 15, 2019
Two years after it.
When she thought about it, Mana was intrigued about how certain events were the pivots that lives were defined around. For her, it was her maiming; for Shinji, the day he saw Unit-01; for Kaji, the day he married Misato.
And for so many people connected to Nerv, the day that Lilith carved her way through the facility was one of those events.
Now she and Shinji were walking away from the markers as rain poured down around them. The small group hadn't stayed long when they had noticed the weather. Shinji had sought out her hand as they had walked, but she had kept a little distance.
For some stupid reason she had felt guilty as she had looked at Asuka's marker. Here she was, getting ready to leave Japan, and she still hadn't told Shinji. The young man that her friend had been so stupidly in love with, it had made her jealous. And now she felt stupid and hateful for having felt such spite, now that she had the man, and was still planning on leaving.
Can the dead accuse the living?
Mana felt her clothes cling to her body, not just from the rain, but from the heat as well. The dirt was rapidly becoming a soggy quagmire, and each step from the two was accompanied by wet slurping sounds.
Thunder rolled across the hills, and Mana slipped on the mud. She fell on her ass, and her umbrella went flying with the wind. She sat there for a few moments as Shinji offered her his hand. She knocked it away, and pulled herself up with one of the metal posts.
A few more minutes and they were in Shinji's (still-new-to-him) car. The two sat in silence.
"Let's just go home," Mana said. Shinji nodded.
It was quiet all the way back.