So chapter 3 finally, apologies for being slow (If anyone really cares) I'm taking a bit longer to actually finish the chapters now but that does mean a hopeful increase in quality so yeah read and enjoy.

James's eyes snapped open, he watched Shinji stumble slowly past him and through the door in relative silence compared to the dream James had been in. Rolling off his futon and onto his feet James followed him quietly, sticking his head around the door he saw Shinji yawn as he entered the bathroom. Suitably aware of his roommates movements James slipped back into the room and stood up straight. Realising he wouldn't be able to sleep again now that he was awake and not really wanting to return to his dream anyway James dropped down and began his morning routine.

Shinji walked in when James was about halfway through his push ups.
"Are you exercising again?" Shinji asked slowly
"Yes." James replied curtly
"Why?" Shinji asked still standing in the doorway.
"Because you woke me up." James growled in reply.
"Oh I'm sorry." Shinji said hurrying past him to get back into bed.
James grunted in response.

James was quiet as he got ready for school and ate breakfast, he didn't say a word on their walk to school as his naturally long fast stride took him far ahead of Shinji, his only response was a grunt whenever someone tried to speak to him during class, he spoke his seventh word of the day when Touji introduced him to basketball. Recovering from his foul mood and even more so in their P.E lesson James actually smiled when Shinji told him they were going to go to NERV again.

James arrived at NERV just after Asuka who hmphed and tossed her hair over her shoulder.
Walking through the corridors and rooms James wanted to run ahead but had to stay with Shinji and Asuka as he didn't know the way. Before long they were intercepted by a blue-haired girl James hadn't met yet. She remained silent and didn't even glance at him, James shrugged and dismissed her.
Eventually arriving at the control room they waited patiently, or at least two of them did, as Ritsuko watched a monitor for a few seconds. Turning to them Ritsuko looked at them with a completely blank expression.
"We're getting another pilot they're doing a sync test now." She said blandly
"WHAT!?" Asuka exploded, before she could draw breath to fully vent her rage Misato interrupted her.
"This isn't an attack on your skill Asuka, it's simply the simple truth of the more the better, another pilot is another Eva and another Eva is what we need." Misato said her voice rising to counter Asuka's protests. Once Misato was done Asuka simply hmphed again and stared at the huge 3D display in front of them.
"Now that that's sorted we're conducting this test outside so we figured this would be a good time for some practice in teamwork." Ritsuko said putting significant stress on the last word causing Asuka to hmph again and James to frown.
They all filed out silently before hurrying to their respective change rooms.

Shinji couldn't help but stare as James took off his shirt to reveal a ripped upper torso as well as several scars the largest of which was a long jagged line down the right of his back.
"Where'd you get that from?" Shinji asked before he thought about the question.
"Huh? Oh was fighting a man and a friend of his came up behind me, I'm lucky he was completely idiotic and yelled just before he swung, gave me time to move." James said casually.
"Oh." Shinji said lamely trying to wrap his head around how casual James was about his injury, it was then Shinji noticed James unwrapping the bandage around his right hand.
"What about your hand? Did you hurt yourself punching that boy?" Shinji asked his confidence buoyed somewhat from James answering his earlier question
"No." James grunted in a tone that had Shinji quiet until he was in his entry plug and answering Ritsuko's questions.

"Ok we'll start off with working in pairs, Asuka and Rei you'll go up first and then Shinji and James." Ritsuko said calmly. Asuka's grumbling about working with "The Doll" and James's grunt of dissent came through the communicators clearly causing Ritsuko to sigh in frustration.
"Do you think we should tell them?" Misato asked from across the room.
"And let them know who they're going to be killing? No, if they knew they wouldn't do it and I don't want to use…that." Ritsuko replied
"James would." Misato said
"If I can help it James won't be anywhere near this fight." Ritsuko said while watching Unit-00 and Unit-02 step out onto the surface
"Why?" Misato asked genuinely confused
"Because we need him to work with the other children not have them shun him as a maniac." Ritsuko replied exasperated
"Is he really that bad?" Misato asked
"Did you not watch the videos Kaji sent us?" Ritsuko asked turning to look at Misato in disbelief
"…No" Misato said avoiding eye contact with Ritsuko. Ritsuko sighed and dropped the discussion leaving Misato wondering what she'd missed.

James sat still, forcing himself to remain quiet as he waited impatiently for his turn to access the surface, he longed to take more than two steps in either direction, he wanted to swing the might axes he'd been given, he just wanted to move. He took a slow deep breath before breaking his vigil and flexing his fingers around Mächtige Zuschlags controls. Deciding he'd give it a shot James opened his mouth to ask if he could go outside just to practice walking when he was assaulted by the voices of everyone in the control room spouting rapid fire Japanese that went right over his head. Quickly turning off the communicator James sighed and braced himself before turning it back on just in time to hear Misato yell
"Shinji, Asuka and Rei need help, get up there."
"What about me?" James asked angrily as Unit-01 moved past him
"Not yet James, you'll get your chance one day." Misato replied in a strained voice
"The fuck is that bullshit? I should get my chance now you stupid fucking-" James stopped when he realised he'd simply been muted.
Throwing himself back into his seat angrily he muttered a few more choice insults before returning to his previous vigil in an attempt to calm down.

"I still think we should send him in now." Misato said to Ritsuko as they watched Unit-00 get thrown against a hill.
"Not yet, we'll use the dummy plug before we send him in." Ritsuko retorted calmly but with a tightness to her voice that betrayed her frustration.
"That's not your call to make Dr Akagi." Said a male voice from the back of the room.
"I understand that Commander just in my professional opinion James isn't ready to pilot his Eva in a combat scenario." Ritsuko turned to face the voice as she spoke
"Shinji was sent into a combat scenario with no piloting experience, if the first, second and third fail you will send in the fourth and only if he fails will we activate the dummy plug." Gendo said harshly allowing no argument.
"Yes Commander." Ritsuko replied tightly.

James's eyes snapped open as Misato's voice came through the communicator
"Ok James you're getting you're chance today, get topside and kill…destroy the black Eva currently engaging Unit-01." Misato almost spat the words
"I thought the Eva were on our side." James replied ignoring the venom in her words as he took a lumbering step forward
"This one has been…possessed by an Angel, it's no longer an Eva." Misato with slightly less poison lacing her words. James just nodded and grinned as he flexed Mächtige's fingers around the handles of his axes.

"Senpai his sync rate is climbing." Maya yelled out as James entered the Eva lift that would take him to the surface.
"By only five percent again?" Ritsuko asked walking over to lean over Maya's shoulder to look at the screen.
"No its still rising, 15 percent, 20 percent, holding steady at 70 percent." Maya struggled to keep up with the rapidly changing numbers
"When did he get a sync rate of 70? I thought he could only get up to 45?" Misato burst out incredulously
"I have some ideas." Misato said blandly as Mächtige Zuschlag arrived at the surface.

James grinned as the battlefield came into his view, flexing his fingers around the handles of his axes James took a massive step forward as he began to run. He could feel the massive thumps of his footsteps in the entry plug as he closed with the black Eva with its hand around Unit-01's throat. James didn't slow as he hit the enemy Eva, instead using his size and weight to throw it off of Shinji, sliding to a halt James turned on the ball of his foot and resumed his charge at the enemy which was hurriedly climbing to its feet.
Stepping around the foundering Eva James spun and sent an axe deep into the shoulder of the enemy. He rolled as his forward momentum carried him past the enemy without time to stop himself, righting himself he charged forward second axe raised high, swinging it down hard he cleaved the enemy's head diagonally causing it to totter and then fall.
Breathing heavily he grinned, it was the best fight he'd had since leaving South Africa, not that it was a good fight but at least he'd actually had to move.
"James you need to destroy the core." Ritsuko's voice cut through his post battle high.
"The what?" James snapped
"The glowing red orb in its chest." Ritsuko said flatly. Looking down James saw the orb in question
"Oh." He said before raising both axes high above his head before bring them down with all the strength in Mächtige Zuschlags arms, the curve of the orb caused both axes to bounce off to either side cutting straight through the armour and deep into the flesh of the Eva.
"Gah dumbass fucking…thing." James swore as pulled one axe out and raised it with both hands, setting himself properly he positioned the axe directly above the center of the orb before bringing it down hard, the orb gave way with an audible crunch before the escaping energy blew the axe out of James's hands and the black Eva into multiple pieces. Righting himself after a particularly large chunk of Eva had almost taken his legs out from under him James blinked several times.
"The fuck was that?" He asked surprised, annoyed and a little impressed at the force of the explosion
"The core powers the Angel so when you break it all that energy suddenly has somewhere to go." Ritsuko replied calmly while almost everyone else in the control room had to look away as James wiped blood and gore of the frontal armour plates of his Eva.
"Could've warned me." James muttered as he searched for both axes his adrenaline rush fading rapidly, finding each buried deep into separate hills he sighed before pulling them out.
"Now what?" He asked not entirely sure what to do.
"If you can, make sure Shinji is alright, if he is help him up and come back down, we have teams retrieving Asuka and Rei right now." Misato's icy voice came through the intercom.
Wondering what he'd done to piss her off before deciding he didn't really care he walked over to Unit-01 and pulled it to its feet, it would have fallen over again if he hadn't caught it.
"Hey, Shinji…Shinji…WAKE THE FUCK UP." James punctuated the last bit with a slap to the back of Unit-01's head.
"I'm awake James." Shinji said through the intercom his voice clearly showing he was still shell-shocked from the fight.
"Good, if you weren't listening they want us back." James said moving away now that Unit-01 was standing on its own.
"What about Rei, and Asuka?" Shinji asked
"They have people getting them." James said walking away.
"Wait what about the Eva? What about the pilot?" Shinji yelled grabbing Mächtige's arm.
James stopped walking.
"Didn't know there was a pilot…they're dead now." He said slowly before shaking off Shinji's grip and walking back to the Eva hangar.

Shinji was met by Misato at the exit to the Eva hangars.
"Hey Shinji there was nothing you could have…" Misato was cut off by Shinji
"I don't care, I just want to know who the pilot was." Shinji snapped out
"Well you're going to find out tomorrow anyway. It…It was your friend Touji." Misato looked up to look at Shinji's expression only for him to sprint past her.
"SHINJI WAIT!" Misato yelled after him as she followed him.

James stepped out of the change rooms to find an infuriated Shinji sprinting towards him.
"YOU BASTARD!" Shinji screamed as he raised a fist and swung hard at James's face. Deflecting and sidestepping the clumsy blow James adopted an angry and confused expression
"What the fuck Shinji? If this is for accidentally killing the pilot I didn't fucking know and people die in war and I've been told that's what this is." James growled
"He was my friend you piece of shit!" Shinji yelled his hands still curled into fists but his rage somewhat tempered by James's imposing figure.
"Oh…Shit I'm sorry Shinji I didn't…" James's apology was cut off by Shinji
"Don't fucking apologise to me you have no idea what it's…" Shinji was cut off in turn by James;s hand wrapping around his throat before he was slammed against a wall.
"Don't you fucking dare. If you so much as start that sentence again I will tear you apart, no one, not Misato, not Ritsuko not fucking NERV itself will stop me from ripping your limbs off your pathetic body before snapping your scrawny neck." James's roared into Shinji's face his grip slowly tightening with each word until Shinji was going blue in the face and struggling to free himself.
"James. Let him go." Misato's voice rang out from the end of the corridor her pistol pointed at James.
Sneering James spat in her direction before throwing Shinji to the ground and walking away.

Stalking along the long corridors of NERV James didn't meet anybody until he was at the exit where Ritsuko was waiting for him. Sighing she stood up from where she was leaning against a wall.
"Did you really have to almost kill Shinji?" She asked looking straight at him
"He started it." James said dropping his gaze and scuffing his foot under a gaze that reminded him a little too much of his mother.
"Well its happened now. For obvious reasons you'll no longer be staying with Misato. Instead you'll be moving into an apartment next to Rei." Ritsuko said as three men in suits walked up to stand behind James.
"If you'll come with us." One of the men said in a tone that brooked no argument.
James still sneered at him as they escorted him to a waiting car.

As he stepped out the car James couldn't help but notice the three men surround him again.
"If you'll follow us." One of the men said in the same tone used earlier.
James growled softly and refused to move. One of the men grabbed his arm causing James to spin around and slug him in the gut hard enough to send him to the ground. James swept around in a low spin with his leg out to trip up the man in front of him before rising in the same spin to kick the third man in the head. Standing over the man he'd tripped James waited until he'd gotten to his knees before grabbing his head and slamming his knee into his face. Sneering at him James failed to notice the man he'd punched stand up and rush him, falling to the ground James struggled to spin around to trade blows with the man now sitting on him.
Standing up with a bruised face and bloodied fists James stood over the three prone men before spitting on the ground and leaving to find his new home.