Happy Halloween Everyone! Okay so, originally this was supposed to be a double post (like last years) but I ran out of time. But expect the next chapter out in a week or so, and consider this my treat to every one of my fans on Halloween. Don't eat till you puke!
Unit 01 stood motionless in Tokyo-3, watching the Eva Series, waiting for them to make a move. If Shinji was honest with himself, he was rather anxious about the fight that he would be having with. If he attacked headlong at the closest one to him, then all of them would probably attack him at once. Even so though, it wasn't as though he could stay motionless forever.
'The Eva Series all have the S2 engine built into them, like Unit 01,' thought Shinji. 'So they can theoretically go indefinitely. And of course they were created with Kaoru's DNA...so it'll be like fighting twelve of him at once I suppose...'
Biting down on his lips, a small trickle of blood dribbled down, pausing at his chin and then fell into his lap.
'Here we go,' thought Shinji.
Unit 01 charged at the closest Eva Unit to it, sending out a shockwave that blew the cars on the block in several directions. Glass in the nearby offices buildings shattered, raining down on the pavement below.
Unit 01 drew back its fist quickly, and plowed it directly into the jaw of the first Eva Unit. Immediately the jaw shattered, spraying blood in several direction. The Eva Unit was sent flying backwards before crashing into an office building, The steel beams crumpled as the body of the Eva made contact with it. Red gore was poking out of the Eva Units mouth.
Seeing there ally incapacitated the other Eva Units started moving. Shinji spun around with Unit 01 and brought Unit 01's arms up just in time as what looked like a giant metal spear came crashing down on Unit 01's arms. Shinji immediately felt his own arms break as the bones in Unit 01 broke. Fighting back the scream that threatened to erupt from his mouth, Shinji had Unit 01 draw its leg back before kicking the Eva Unit square in the chest. The Eva Unit skidded backwards several feet before it came to a rest. Shinji now saw that each of the Eva Units had one of those strange looking spears and that it seemed to have been concealed behind the wings of the Eva Units.
'Lets try this then,' thought Shinji.
Quickly moving forward and breaking the sound barrier, Unit 01 crashed against the Eva Unit which had attacked it moments before. Not letting it have any chance of retaliating, Unit 01 quickly generated its AT-field and sliced horizontally into the soft flesh of the Eva Unit just below the rib cage. It wasn't a clean cut, since the AT-field hadn't sliced all the way through, but it had its desired affect. Blood spilled out out of the Eva Unit along with what looked like large organs.
Jumping backwards, Shinji quickly deduced what he had seen.
'They seem to be abnormally slower than Unit 01, and while they can function without a pilot, they don't seem to have much of a thought process.'
Turning to his left, he saw that the remaining Eva Units seemed to waiting for him to move, though if Shinji didn't know any better, it almost seemed as though they were slightly wary of him now.
'I suppose that after what I did to their allies though, it's to be expected.'
Smirking slightly, Shinji moved forward to the next one, thinking that it wouldn't be much trouble when he saw a brief blur from one of the Eva Units close to him. Next second he had to generate Unit 01's AT-fields as a flash of orange erupted from the Eva Unit.
'They can even create AT-fields?' thought Shinji. He hadn't counted on that.
Sensing movement behind him, he quickly pushed back the Eva's AT-field, breaking it in the process and spun around. Another Eva Unit was towering over him and was just swinging down the metal spear. Shinji was forced to make Unit 01 roll out of the way as it dodged the spear.
'Shit!'
The Eva Unit spun with him as he rolled, swinging the metal spear all the while. As it swung it again though, Unit 01 managed to grab that spear with its hands. Quickly generating Unit 01's AT-field, Shinji managed to slice off the arms of the Eva Unit, making a fountain of blood and bone marrow shoot out of the stub of an arm. The severed arms fell to the ground with a loud 'thud' creating a small indent in the ground. The Eva didn't seem to be done though, as its strange looking head suddenly lashed outward at Unit 01's outstretched arm, and bit down on it. Shinji did scream then, as it felt like teeth the size of a semi-truck were biting down on his broken arm which had just started to heal. A large chunk was taken out of Shinji's right arm, leaving nothing holding the flesh together except for a few small tendons. Though heavily dazed from the pain, Shinji still managed to have Unit 01 bring its left arm up and drive it directly into the side of the Eva Units head.
Blood and gore exploded out the other side of the Eva Unit's head, spraying the building next to it with brain matter. Both the eyeballs popped out, leaving eye sockets dark except for the red blood that was steadily flowing out. The teeth that had been clamped onto the arm of Unit 01 snapped off, still embedded into the arm of Unit 01.
Knowing that he didn't have long before another one attacked him, Unit 01 grabbed the teeth that were sunken into it arms with its left arm, and pulled them out. A small trickle of blood flowed out of the open wound. It didn't seem like it had effected Unit 01 much...only Shinji.
Looking down at the state of his own arm, Shinji thought, 'I've only managed to destroy three of these things, and already I'm being backed into a corner.'
Forcing Unit 01 to straighten up, Shinji dove forward as he sensed movement behind him. The building that Unit 01 had been leaning against had been split in two by one of the metal spears, which had sliced the building horizontally.
Crashing into another building, Unit 01 spun around and just barely managed to duck as the spear came close to impaling its right shoulder. With the Eva Unit in view now though, Unit quickly brought back its left fist and sunk into the Eva Units stomach, making it reel backwards slightly. Gaining enough leverage now, Unit 01 right leg shot out suddenly, catching the Eva Unit in the stomach again, this time sending it into the remaining ruins of the building that it had recently destroyed.
His arm still bleeding profusely, and his vision starting to grow foggy, Shinji quickly generated Unit 01's AT-field and brought it down mercilessly on top of the Eva Units head. It instantly crushed, splattering blood along the remaining concrete walls of the building behind it.
Moving away from the destroyed skull of the Eva Unit, Unit 01 went in the opposite direction, away from the other Eva Units. Shinji knew that he had to give his almost destroyed arm time to recover, and continuing the fight wasn't going to help.
Putting on a huge burst of speed, Unit 01 broke the sound barrier once again as it tore through the streets of Tokyo-3, destroying the exterior of the few remaining buildings. His arm had slowly started healing, but it was still going to be a while before he would be able to move properly again.
Backing up against a nearby building, Shinji paused but didn't sense any of the enemies AT-fields around him. Breathing a sigh of relief, he looked down at the state of his ragged arm. The sinews had started to reform and rejoin the damaged tissue, but his arm still looked as though a large dog had almost bitten it off.
The density of the LCL fluid seemed to change particularly around his arm, as though it was speeding up the process of the regeneration, which Shinji reminded himself, it probably was; he vaguely remembered what Asuka had told him before.
Frowning slightly at the thought of her, he shook his head briefly and gripped the controls of Unit 01 tighter, straining his arm more than he should, but the pain helped him forget.
"Another few minutes and everything should be back to normal," whispered Shinji in the orange darkness of Unit 01's entry plug.
Asuka wasn't sure how long she had spent pacing back and forth inside the elevator as she waited for it to take her into Central Dogma, but she was almost certain she had worn a permanent track in the floor.
As she reached the top of the elevator though, she heard what sounded like shouts and sporadic gunfire. Tensing up slightly, she briefly had second thoughts about her actions, but pushed them quickly away. It was too late to turn back now, too late along time ago for that matter.
As the elevator doors opened though, Asuka got her first glimpse of the horrors in which human beings could inflict on each other.
A female soldier directly in front of her, who seemed to have been running backwards with a gun in her hand, was shot cleanly in the back. The bullet surged through her spinal cord, splintering the bone and shearing out the other side of her breastplate. She immediately toppled to the ground, blood pooling around her until she looked like a rag doll that had been dipped in ketchup.
Asuka stood there for several seconds, unable to think as her mind replayed the image of the woman in front of her dying a sudden death. It had happened so suddenly. Who was she? Did she have a husband? Kids? What was her life like? Asuka would never know, but it was her first time seeing the killing of a human by another human, and it was somehow more grotesque than the Angels which they had been fighting before now.
Stepping back into the elevator, she pushed herself against the far wall and sank down to her knees. What would happen if she herself went out there? Would she meet the same fate as the body in front of her? She really didn't want to find out.
But then she heard several voices from the direction the woman had been running away from, and she recognized one of them.
"Misato?" she mumbled under her breath.
Getting up from her kneeling position, she slowly walked over to the elevator door and peered around the door to the far side of the corridor. Misato was hurrying towards the elevator with Kaji and several other people which Asuka guessed to be Nerv security guards. Feeling rather hesitant after seeing humans kill each other, Asuka cringed slightly as she saw the drawn gun that Misato had in her hand. But she had known Misato since she had decided to join Nerv, and knew that she would never hurt her.
Stepping out in the white corridor, she was careful to not look at the body behind her and hurriedly walked forward. Misato seemed to have seen Asuka, because she shouted instructions at the security guards with her who seemed to assume position along the corridor as though they were guarding something. Misato then holstered her pistol and ran forward towards Asuka who was standing still just outside the elevator doors; Kaji was a few steps behind her.
Asuka, who had expected scorn from Misato, was therefore rather surprised when Misato drew her into a comforting hug when she reached her.
"Asuka," mumbled Misato, "what are doing up here? You should still be in Terminal Dogma with Rei."
"Rei left with the commander," muttered Asuka as she looked over Misato's shoulder to Kaji who was watch them silently, but keeping the corridor in his peripheral vision all the while.
"What?" asked Misato startled. "What do you mean Rei left with the commander?"
"Just that," replied Asuka, "the commander came to get Rei for something, and the both of them disappeared afterwards. I left the room, but didn't see any of the guards that had been posted."
Misato narrowed her eyes, briefly wondering where the commander and Rei had gone, but it had really got out of her area of expertise. She'd just have to hope for the best.
"But then...why are you up here? I mean...I can understand you wondering whats going on above, but-"
"Misato, I want you to help me get to the Evangelions chamber," said Asuka cutting Misato off curtly.
"What? Asuka, why would you want to go there?"
"I'm going to help out Shinji," replied Asuka, "he can't do this on his own."
"Asuka...you're Evangelion can't even fight, nor have you even piloted it since your...accident with the angel."
"But Shinji is fighting out there all by himself!"
"Asuka you-"
"I what Misato?" asked Asuka rather snappishly. "Is there something you want to say."
"Yes there is actually; there is no way I can't let you enter Unit 02."
"You're not my mother!"
"No, but I am your guardian."
"Don't you even care what happens to Shinji?"
"Of course I do! But having you out there and fighting is the worse thing that could possibly happen. If Shinji knew that you were-"
But Misato cut herself off before she finished that particular sentence. But it seemed that Asuka was still determined to get past her.
"I don't care whether you're my guardian or not. I'm fifteen years old; I can look after myself."
"Asuka-"
"I don't know what happened between me and Shinji, but I can't stand by and do nothing while everyone else is putting their lives in danger."
Misato stared at her for a moment before she turned to Kaji and asked him, "Aren't you going to say anything?"
Without bothering to look over his shoulder, Kaji replied, "She has her mind set on what she wants to do. Whether it's the right thing to do though remains to be seen. But whatever you decide Misato, you should decided it quick. We can't stay in one place for too long."
"I know, but-"
"Misato, take me there!" yelled Asuka.
Misato bit down on her lip painfully. Asuka wanted to help at any cost, even if it harmed her in some way. If Shinji was here, he would have definitely forbade her, though how she wasn't sure.
"I can't, none of the elevators are working. Before Shinji left, he destroyed all the elevators."
"Why did he do that?"
Misato thought it wrong to tell her that he did it to prevent her from doing exactly what she was trying to do.
"Because I told him too," she said after a moments pause.
"What about the ventilation ducts?" asked Asuka quickly.
'Damn it,' thought Misato.
"Well, it is possible, but going to such lengths just to-"
"Don't say that," mumbled Asuka, "don't act as if it doesn't matter, because it does. You understand that too Misato, but you don't want to acknowledge it. I said before...that I don't know what happened between me and Shinji, and I don't rightfully know if I care anymore to know about my broken memory. But I do care to know about him."
"Misato," mumbled Kaji, interjecting his own voice into the conversation as though telling them to hurry.
"I know," snapped Misato.
Glancing at Asuka again, Misato briefly thought about the many changes that Asuka had gone through, all thanks to Shinji when she really thought about it. But likely, everything buried deep within Asuka always wanted to spring forth, and Shinji was match that did that. Misato supposed that Asuka had really grown up, no, they had grown up. They didn't need her anymore.
"...Are you sure about this?" asked Misato one final time.
"As sure as I know that I'm an Evangelion Pilot," replied Asuka, breaking into somewhat of a smile.
Sighing heavily, Misato relented.
"Okay, if this is what you really want."
"It is," said Asuka.
Misato gazed at Asuka for a minute before she said, "You've grown up you know...both you and Shinji...together, and I got to watch everything as it unfolded...so I suppose I should be grateful that I got to witness your changes."
Asuka's eyes widened slightly at Misato's words as she asked, "Misato...what do you mean by together?"
Misato smiled slightly as she said, "Nothing, forget I said anything."
Asuka frowned slightly, but knew she was going to get any further with this conversation, that and Kaji was pointedly getting anxious about being there. They had been stationary for at least ten minutes.
"We need to move," said Kaji to Misato, while simultaneously motioning to the other security guards.
"Right," said Misato. Turning towards the security guards standing there, she told them all, "This here is Asuka Langley Soryu, though you probably know her better as the pilot of Unit 02."
At the mention of her name, and the fact that she's the pilot of an Evangelion, Asuka seemed to shrink, as though she was slightly embarrassed.
"I don't need to tell you how important she is to Nerv, and the world as a whole. Protect her with your life!"
Asuka was rather shocked at how ferocious Misato sounded when she said this, but was rather touched when the security guards gathered around nodded their heads as though they accepted what their life meant right now.
"Good," said Misato. "I'm glad we're level with each other. We need to reach the ventilation ducts so that Asuka can make her way into the Evangelions chamber."
"The ducts are a few floors above where we are," said Kaji. "We wont be able to use any of the elevators, so we'll have to use an emergency stairway. There should be one a few corridors down."
"Lead the way then," said Misato.
Kaji passed Misato and Asuka then and walked in front of them with the security guards trailing behind everybody, checking over their shoulders occasionally.
As the continued on there way, all the while getting closer to the Evangelions chamber, Asuka thought.
"Wait for me Shinji!"
"That should be good," muttered Shinji inside the entry plug of Unit 01 as he clenched the fist of his right hand. His right arm had repaired itself, leaving the arm exactly as Shinji remembered it, though admittedly, the regeneration process seemed to have sped up once again, though that may have had something to do with the LCL fluid. He didn't think that anybody besides himself could survive more than a few seconds inside the entry plug of Unit 01.
The LCL had reached such a density that Shinji could almost feel it constricting and slowing his movement. The orange color had almost completely been replaced by a bright red that was the color of his blood. Shinji was completely linked with Unit 01. He could feel the nerve pulses of Unit 01 through his own body. Unit 01's heart was his, its brain was his, and its anger was his.
He was furious that Seele could do such a thing, those monsters, the Eva Series. He was furious that other nations had so willingly joined in the slaughter of an entire city, purposely seeking out humanoid targets to eradicate. He was furious that the Japanese government had stood aside, even after everything that Nerv had done to protect them, protect the world.
"Its inexcusable," muttered Shinji.
Making Unit 01 stand up to its full height, Shinji made it move away from the building that it had been crouching behind.
'Where are they?' he thought.
He had been rather surprised when they hadn't pursued him, surprised that he hadn't even gotten a brief glimpse of an AT-field.
'Are they waiting for me back there?' he wondered.
Taking several tentative steps forward, Shinji paused for a minute, listening and feeling for any sign of movement. Nothing whatsoever came from in front, behind, or to his sides.
But something did come from above.
All at once, Shinji felt the AT-fields of the remaining Eva Units and looked up into the sky. The had taken flight again, and were diving towards him, each of them caring one of those oddly shaped spears. Dodging backwards, just as one of the spears almost impaled Unit 01's right foot, he crashed into a building directly behind him, leveling it to the ground.
"Damn it! Move!"
Responding to his command, Unit 01 pressed off against the ground with its feet, shooting itself backwards several feet just as another spear threatened to impale its chest. Using its back as a spring, it forced itself upward, just in time as an Eva Unit soared right at it, a spear clutched in its hand. Barely managing to dodge the blow which had been seconds away from piercing the shoulder, Unit 01 grabbed the spear with its left hand, securing the Eva Unit in front of itself, and brought its right fist around, striking it in the side of the head. Like a balloon popping, the head of the Eva Unit exploded, showering Unit 01 in blood and gore.
Shaking off the dead body, Unit 01 turned to the remaining Eva Units. Only seven remained.
"...Damn it Kaoru," he muttered. "If you had actually tried to kill me, would things have ended up like this?"
Throwing away his thoughts, he dashed at the closest Eva Unit, generating his AT-field as he went, but moments later was forced to jump upwards as two of the Eva Units flew towards him, skidding across the ground and kicking up dust. As the Eva Units reached the spot where he had jumped, they flew in a vertical line straight upward towards him. It was almost like a World War II dogfight.
Twisting around in mid-air so that Unit 01 was now facing towards the oncoming Eva Units, they met in midair. The two Eva Units thrust both of the spears forward, one of them clipping Unit 01 in the side, but not drawing blood. Inside the entry plug Shinji felt as though an airbag had just been discharged directly into his side, likely creating a bruise, but compared to earlier, it was nothing.
Grabbing both of the spears, Unit 01 twisted them around, breaking them out of the grips of the Eva Units. Attempting to throw them at Eva Units, they both skillfully dodged as they flew to each side, their wings flapping backwards and forwards like a birds. Closing in on Unit 01's side they both generated their AT-fields, attempting to crush Unit 01 with the ensuing weight. Knowing that he didn't have time to decide what to do, Shinji quickly generated both his and Unit 01's AT-field.
The four AT-fields crashed against each other, sending out a bright flash of orange light that was seen from as far away as South Korea. Sparks flew as the separate AT-fields clashed against each other, raining down on the other Eva Units below. Before Shinji had even generated his AT-field, he had assumed that it would be nowhere near as powerful as the Eva Series. He right in assuming.
They were of course created from the DNA of Tabris, the seventeenth angel, so the strength of their AT-field was already great. Shinji on the other hand, had thought his own AT-field might have been stronger inside the entry plug of Unit 01, but it didn't feel any more powerful that it had been recently. Already feeling the strain in his body, and the slow cracking of his own AT-field, his attention turned to Unit 01.
Unit 01 was having no difficulties maintaining its own AT-field, and even seemed to be pushing the Eva Units AT-field back. Cracks started to develop in the enemies AT-field, just as Shinji's own started to deteriorate. He could start to feel the contamination from the Eva Unit starting at his finger tips. Forcing Unit 01 to push forward, the enemies AT-field shattered, forcing it to flying backwards for a second.
Quickly turning to the other, he quickly overlapped his own AT-field with Unit 01's just as his own was about to break. Shattering the others AT-field, it also retreated backwards for a second, but Unit 01 started rocketing backwards towards the earth.
With Unit 01 in free fall now, the other Eva Units which had remained on earth gathered where they projected Unit 01 would land. Seeing this, Shinji quickly generated his own AT-field, projecting it at a spot behind the Eva Units. His AT-field sliced into the many layers of dust, creating something only seen during the Dust Bowl in America. The dust flew in the air in all directions, making it look like a miniature tornado.
Unit 01 landed in the middle of the dust storm, and instantly froze, knowing that the slightest bit of movement could set off the Eva Units. From what Shinji had seen, they didn't have the ability to sense an AT-field like he did, so as long as he didn't move, and avoid the proximity of an nearby AT-fields, he should be-
All at once, the dust that had been circling overhead was blown away, as the Eva Units that had been above him used their wings to blow the dust away.
"Damn it!"
Twisting around, Shinji saw that one of the Units had thrown one of the spears at him. Shifting Unit 01's legs to his right, he swerved out of the way as the spear went soaring past the side of Unit 01's head. Quickly projecting Unit 01's AT-field, he sent it upwards towards the Eva Units which were still in the air, managing to slice into one of the wings. Losing the aerodynamic wing, the Eva Unit lopsided in mid air as it went crashing back to the ground, its back pointed towards the ground.
Knowing that he couldn't miss this chance, Shinji made Unit 01 run forward so that he could destroy the falling Eva Unit. Dodging another spear that was thrown at him, Shinji generated his own AT-field as another one flew at him, skimming the ground ever so slightly. Though his AT-field didn't have the power that Unit 01's did, he managed to stop the Eva Unit for a few seconds, before Unit 01 ground its left fist into the Eva Unit's chest.
Slamming Unit 01's feet into the ground, it skidded forward several feet until it was directly beneath the falling Eva Unit. Unit 01 threw both its arm up into the air, the ends of its fingers pointed upwards, ready to catch the Eva Unit. The Eva Unit tried turning around in the air at the last minute, but the mangled wing prevent it from flipping over properly.
Like the sound of rubber being slapped against skin, Unit 01's fingers pierced directly through the back of the Eva Unit, its fingers entwining around the spinal cord of the enemy. Raising its arms even further up into the air, Unit 01 projected its AT-field between the spot where its fingers had sunk in.
The flesh of the enemy was torn asunder, splitting in between the gap that separated Unit 01's fingers. The body was ripped open, spilling organs and blood over the head of Unit 01, bathing it in a dark reddish color, making it look almost like Unit 02. Unit 01 pulled its fingers out of the Eva Unit, making the severed body fall on either side of itself.
"Five more," mumbled Shinji as he looked at the remaining Eva Units.
The seven of them reached the top of the stairway and were met with a grizzly scene. What looked like a bloodied handprint was plastered on the other side of the doors window. It was smeared towards the bottom, making it apparent that the person had slid to the floor likely after dying.
Kaji nodded to Misato once before walking up the remaining stairs and crouched down next to the door. From his position he could see Misato watching him worriedly and Asuka behind her who looked positively frightened. Taking a deep breath, and grasping the drawn pistol tightly in his hands, he poked his head upwards and looked through the window briefly.
Looking past the bloodied handprint, a body was slumped against the opposite wall, an employee of Nerv. The face was completely disfigured, looking as though it had met a baseball bat. Beside him lay a standard issue 9mm pistol that all personal of Nerv that stayed behind during the assault were given. Blood was smeared all around the spot where the body lay, and Kaji suspected that the bloodied handprint had been this persons. Kaji couldn't imagine the suffering that this person had gone through, just because of the selfish actions of several individuals.
Turning back to Misato, he nodded his head once and waved them over to him. They walked slowly up the stairs, being careful not to let their feet catch on the metal steps. As Misato reached the stairs, with Asuka and the security behind her, she asked him, "Whats it like out there?"
"I'm not sure since I cant see very far out that window. There way be nothing out there...but there may also be the enemy."
Misato bit down on her lip and then looked behind her at the security personal gathered there. Nodding once, they understood what she was talking about.
Couching low to the ground, the four walked towards before one in front motioned to the others surrounding him. Giving several signs that Asuka didn't understand, the one in front eventually grasped the door knob of the emergency door, and trust it open, walking out into the hallway.
All too suddenly, an eruption of gunfire sounded from either end of the hallway. The leader of the team went down almost instantly, a bullet ripping through his trachea and out the other side, creating geyser of blood. Seeing there partner fall to the floor, the others opened fire on one side of the hallway, using the door that swung outwards as a guard from the other side of the hallway. Though lightly armed with 9mm pistols, the security guards of Nerv had been trained well. They could hit an egg from fifty yards out, so a human head from only ten yards was nothing.
The three soldiers on the other side of the hallway were met by a furious rain of bullets. One of them instantly dropped dead after the security guard had fallen, his head exploding like a watermelon. The other took a bullet in his leg and shuffled off to the side, radioing his fellow soldiers on the other side of the hallway. He was apparently the leader of the group, because he told them to move in on the door and take out the security guard.
The four soldiers on the other side of the hallway started moving forward, inching slowly towards the door with their guns drawn. The in front waved to the others, and the three behind him took out three grenades, intending to lob them over the door. That was when they were met by a few grenades, courtesy of Kaji. He had given them to the security guards, so that when a lapse in the fire happened, they were able to lob them over the door. The soldiers immediately seeing, started scampering backwards, but they were too late.
The grenade exploded, instantly disfiguring the soldiers and burning most of their skin charcoal. They looked as though they had acquired leprosy.
With the soldiers on the one side of the hallway killed, the security team pressed harder against the right side. The leader, having lost more than half the strength of his small company, was forced to retreat, leaving Misato and the others a clear field.
The security team inched out further into the hallway, making sure that there weren't any secondaries, when the motioned for the other to follow them.
"Good work," mumbled Misato as she passed the security guards. "I'm glad that their are still some people that are loyal to Nerv." Looking down at the body of the fallen leader, Misato briefly saluted him, along with the other security guards and Kaji. Asuka didn't really understand the purpose of doing this, but she bowed her head nonetheless. Normally it wouldn't have been something she would have considered, but this person had just given his life to help her. He deserved this much at least.
"All right...lets go," said Kaji after a few moments of silence. The others nodded and started down the right side of the hallway, passing the burned bodies of the soldiers.
Suddenly, the sound of bullets was heard all around them as the soldiers from earlier returned with reinforcements. The leader in charge was now furious that his earlier efforts had been thwarted by a mere group security guards. Even the kid who was with them wouldn't be shown mercy.
As the rain of bullets hit them again, one of the security guards immediately went down, catching a bullet in his upper thigh. Whipping around, the remaining two security guards started firing at the enemy, but the were grievously outnumbered. Knowing that they didn't have any other options, one of the security guards yelled to Misato over the sound of flying metal and said, "Let us deal with these guys. You continue on with Kaji and get the pilot of Unit 02 to the ventilation ducts.
Misato opened her mouth as though she didn't think very much of this plan, but Kaji put a hand on her shoulder and shook his head, indicting that they understood what they were getting themselves into when they stayed behind.
Nodding once, Misato quickly saluted them before turning to Asuka, grabbing her upper arm in a vice like grip and steering towards the direction of the ducts; Kaji was right behind them.
After many more minutes of running, during which they had to briefly pause as Asuka was complaining about a stitch in her side, they finally made it to the ventilation ducts. It was just big enough to admit Asuka, but Misato and Kaji had no chance of squeezing through the small hole in the side of the metal plating. But then again, they never intended to follow her any farther than here.
"Is this it?" asked Asuka after she saw the inside of it. Her voice held disgust, as it looked like the ducts hadn't been cleaned out in a while.
"Not having seconds thoughts, are you?" asked Misato with a slight smile.
"No...but," mumbled Asuka as she got on her hands and knees to look inside the duct. "I imagined it being a little more...cleaner."
"Can't be picky about it, and its a bit late to turn back."
"I know," sighed Asuka, as she stood up and looked at Misato and Kaji.
"You are coming with me...aren't you?"
Misato and Kaji simply smiled back at her. Somewhere deep down, Asuka had expected this, but it didn't make it any easier to accept.
"So you're not...huh..."
"I'm sorry Asuka, but we can't even fit through the duct," said Kaji.
"Then we'll just find another way and-"
"Asuka, you've already made up your mind on this. I also made up my mind to trust you, so don't worry what happens to us."
"But-"
"No more. Get going. You said before that Shinji needs help, and I think he does, but from you, and I also think you know that."
Asuka shrugged, not quite knowing yet one way or another.
"But what are you two going to do?" she asked hesitantly, unsure of whether she wanted to know the answer or not.
"We'll manage somehow," said Misato with something that looked like a forced smile.
"After all this, we'll meet up again and go out for dinner, how does that sound?" asked Kaji.
Asuka thought about this for a moment, before smiling slightly, the features of her face changing significantly.
"Yeah, that does sound nice," she said
"Alright then, its a promise," said Misato. "Now hurry up. Shinji started fighting the massed produced Eva Units a while ago."
"I know," mumbled Asuka as she turned away from Kaji and Misato, but just as she was about to enter the duct, she turned and told Misato, "I'm glad that I was able to live with you for this short time. It was...almost like having a mother again..."
Misato couldn't let on how deeply Asuka's words affected her, because if she did, she might hold Asuka back.
"Thank you Asuka...now hurry! Go!"
Asuka nodded once before ducking down in the ventilation ducts and crawling slowly through it. Slowly, the shape of her form was lost to Misato and Kaji as she crawled into the depths of Nerv.
"I suppose we should cover this up," said Kaji first to speak since Asuka left.
"...Right," said Misato meekly. She had now not only lost Shinji, but Asuka too. She was no longer in control of their lives, if she ever had been. They had grown up together in her apartment, and she had been able to witness the changes in them sprout. It had happened all so fast, that she wished that it had never happened, that they would have stayed young and oblivious forever. But everyone must grow up at one point in their lives, and it was no different for her.
"I wonder what will happen to those two," mumbled Misato after her and Kaji fixed the metal plating that they had taken off back on the duct. It blended in so well with the wall, only somebody that knew the layout of Nerv would be able to find it.
"No clue," mumbled Kaji as he started lighting a cigarette but looked at it distastefully suddenly and threw it to the floor. "What ever their futures are though, I don't think that we'll have a part in it."
"Its not very likely," sighed Misato.
"Should we get on with it then?" asked Kaji.
"I suppose," replied Misato.
Together, the two of them turn towards the way they had come from, certain that the soldiers would eventually reach there position. It was too much to hope that they wouldn't discover the ventilation duct and try to find a way to break through it. Therefore, they had to hold off the enemy long enough for Asuka to escape with Unit 02.
"I didn't think things would be like this...this end," mumbled Misato dejectedly.
"Its not so bad," said Kaji, "we're together...aren't we?"
Misato turned to him and looked him in the eyes before smiling slightly and entwining her fingers in his.
"Yeah, I suppose that is something."
Passing out of depth of knowledge, the two waited for there eventual ending.
All around Asuka was darkness, but that wasn't all. There was a certain sense of claustrophobia, being captured, your wings and freedom broken. It reminder her of her repulsive years spent under her father's roof. But the thoughts of Misato and Kaji's sacrifice, and her own determination kept her will strong, until eventually she could see a small light at the end of what felt like a long tunnel.
As she reached the light, she realized that there was some sort of grate at the end of the duct. Kicking out with both her feet, she managed to pop the grate off until the light was shinning fully into the mouth of the duct. Poking her head out of the duct, she could see the entirety of the Evangelion chamber, or what was left of it. Both sides of the chamber where the elevators had been were completely buried with twisted pieces of metal. The barriers that had held Unit 01 in place were twisted and flung all over the place like the playthings of a toddler. Her eyes though went to her own Eva Unit, first and foremost.
It was of course still in its damaged state that had happened when Shinji had fought it, but she had been rather hopeful that it would have somehow repaired itself, much like Unit 02. But it seemed that her Unit didn't have any such special powers.
Lowering herself down onto the metal ladder that was used as an emergency access, she slowly starting climbing down until she landed on the central walkway. Much of it had been destroyed when Unit 01 had left, so Asuka had to be careful she didn't fall off the rickety rail. Moving carefully along the right side of it, she eventually came to a bit of a problem. The gangway that her Unit 02 was positioned on was impossible to get to, because the intersection of the two walkways had been destroyed. Asuka wondered if Shinji hadn't purposefully done that when he left.
'He's still not stopping me though,' she thought
Grabbing ahold of the metal railing, she hoisted her right foot onto the top of the railing and then swung her left leg up also, being sure to hold onto the railing with her hands all the while. It looked as though she was about to do a high dive into a pool, and was just bending her knees to get ready. Though in reality, what she was doing wasn't very smart.
Bracing herself for the jump, she gave a brief silent prayer before she leapt. Though not seeming to care what others thought, Asuka was fairly athletic, so it was probably this single thing that saved her. During her brief time at the middle school she attended here in Tokyo-3, she was always top in her P.E. class.
She jumped a good five feet out into the unknown without a running start or anything, just complete stationary jump. She didn't look down, which was probably for the best, because then she may have not made it.
Both her hands fastened onto the railing on the opposite side, clinging to it for dear life until she managed to hoist herself up, and swing her legs over the other side. Sliding down to the ground, she let out a sigh of relief over what she had done.
'I must be crazy...doing something like this,' she thought.
Tilting her head upward, she looked up into the face of Unit 02.
"Hey...its been a while..." she said to it as though expecting it to respond. It didn't of course.
Standing up, she turned to it and said, "I'm going to be relying on you again...so I need you to work for me..."
'Dear God, am I actually talking to my Eva Unit?' She thought she was becoming insane.
Walking over to the side of it, she briefly thought about searching for a plug suit, any for that matter, but disregarded it in the end. She didn't have time for that, and she should be able to pilot it without one anyway.
Climbing the ladder that led to the entry plug, she paused for a moment outside the entry plug. If she was honest with herself, she was not looking forward to entering Unit 02. She had gotten used to not piloting and could hardly remember even doing it now. But she made a promise to herself and Misato that she would see this through.
So, taking a deep breath, Asuka entered the entry plug for what would be the last time in her life.
Nothing felt as it once had, of which she could barely remember. She was cold, dark, and all alone; there was nothing in there that would comfort her. Unit 02 had completely shut itself off to her because it didn't recognize her. She was different than the Asuka of the past, the one that had needed the sanctuary of Unit 02.
"Please work," she mumbled inside the entry plug of Unit 02. "Even if you just walk a little...It'll be fine. Please, I need this. I've finally found something of worth in my life, and I don't want to lose it. At least, I think I've found it. Just this last time...please help me..."
Unit 02 continued its silence, not relenting as the fifteen year old girl pleaded for help.
"I don't know what happened before, I can't remember it, and something happened to you when I wasn't around. I'm sorry for all that. I'm sorry for the way I treated you, but I've learned the importance of having friends, and I even enjoy spending time with them. I don't want to go back to what I was! I don't want that kind sadness to envelope me like it used!"
Unit 02 continued its silence, its soul closed off to Asuka.
"I don't care about anything else. I don't care if I discover the missing pieces of my memories. I don't care if I learn the significance of those I earrings that comfort me so. Just right now, I want to help the person that is fighting all alone, like me. I don't know how, but I want to help him. I don't want him to die! He's-"
Asuka suddenly felt a chill travel down her spine as the inside of the entry plug flashed white for a brief instance. When Asuka opened her eyes that she had closed when the flash of white happened, she was looking down at a much younger version of herself. She had to be only about four. But slowly, Asuka's eyes traveled to the woman was crouching low above her four year old self. She was patting her on the head while wearing a smile on her face. She had long flowing hair that was similar to her own, and it reached just above her waist. Her eyes were the same color of blue, and when she stood up, Asuka noticed that there features were somewhat similar.
"Mother?" she whispered.
The woman smiled back at Asuka before saying, "Yes, Asuka...I'm glad to see you, even if its for a short while."
"What are you doing here...I mean-" Asuka started frantically, but her mother held up a hand to silence her. Asuka couldn't remember her mother very well, but she did remember the hand, and the stern expression that followed. But her mother was still smiling.
"Its fine Asuka. You don't need to get so tense."
"But what are you-"
"As for what I'm doing here, you should be able to figure that out already."
Asuka gaped openly for a few seconds before she asked, "Are you...the soul of my Unit 02?"
"Correct. After Yui's accident, I was asked to run a similar experiment, though I told them I wouldn't, I didn't want to leave you behind with only your father incase something happened to me."
"But you still did. Were you forced!"
"No, I wasn't. In the end, it was my own decision that did it, and I suppose a little of Yui also."
"Yui? You mean Shinji's mother?"
"I'm glad you know about her, and him of course. I assume you know about his connection with the angels."
Asuka paused for a minute before she said, "I do...but, you're making it sound as though you know him."
"I do, I met him several times when me and his mother were working together, but I met him recently also."
"What? When?"
"When he fought me while I was under the influence of the seventeenth angel. I broke out of Tabris's control though, and fought him with my own will. I wanted to see what kind of man he was growing into because you see, Yui told me when Shinji was only two years old about his real father. I was one of the very few who knew her secret."
"But...why were you curious about him?"
Asuka's mother watched her for a few seconds before she said, "Because I wanted to know what you saw in him."
Asuka spluttered a little at that.
"What I saw in hi...what are you talking about!"
Asuka's mother frowned for a few seconds before she said, "I forgot, you don't remember everything yet, not clearly enough at least."
"What do you mean what I saw in him? That idiot is self centered, cynical, rude, and an all around ass!"
Asuka's mother shook her head at that.
"Shinji is very different than that, though admittedly his angel half has changed a good portion of who he was, but he is essentially still the same person."
"Mother, I don't-"
"Who is Shinji to you Asuka? Why do you care what happens to him when you've never cared about anyone else so strongly, and trust me, I know. Through the eyes of Unit 02, I've watched you as you've grown, and I'm mostly pleased with what I saw. But you were too closed off from everyone else, you hated people."
"But thats because-"
"Because nobody loved you," mumbled Asuka's mother, "and I blame myself for that, because I wasn't around for you...and your father..."
She paused there, unsure how she should continue. Asuka still had no idea about how Shinji had completely crippled her father when he had arrived at Misato's apartment to take her away.
"But now you've met people who genuinely care for you," she said, glossing over the brief mention of her father. "And I'm glad of that, but at the same time sad, because you no longer need the comfort of Unit 02. The feeling you had before, the warmth, was my warmth. The warmth of a mother. But as your thoughts and feelings drifted and grew stronger, the warmth diminished as a new warmth sprung forth and started to blossom."
"I'm not abandoning you!"
"No, you're not, but you're moving on, and I'm proud of you Asuka. You've grown into a beautiful woman who can handle herself. I can hardly think of what you will look like in five years, but I imagine it will be something like a younger version of myself."
"...That wouldn't be so bad," said Asuka. She had always wondered what she would look like older, and this was as clear an example as any.
Asuka stared at her four year old self who was now curled up in a ball and sleeping at mothers feet when she thought of something.
"You said you fought Shinji before...you must have talked with him."
"I did, and at first he mistook me for you...and older version if you will. I was actually rather...rough with him, testing what he was capable of. After he found out it was me though, he couldn't bring himself to destroy Unit 02, knowing how much it meant to you. Even earlier, when Misato told him to destroy me, he refused, saying that it was something he could never do."
"...Why...why does he care about me so much?"
Asuka's mother looked at her evenly for a few seconds before she said, "Thats something you'll have to ask him yourself, but whether he decides to reply is entirely up to him. He still has a say in this after all."
"But how am I even supposed to help him with Unit 02 in this state?"
"Leave that to me, a hundred percent sync ratio will be easy now that you've learned I'm here, and Unit 02 isn't as crippled as one might think. It is after all the combat model."
"Mom?"
"Yeah?"
"After this...after everything...will I see you again?"
Asuka's mother stood their for a minute before shaking her head and said, "I don't know. Probably not, but only Lilith at this point would know. Yui and I are tied to the Evangelions now, and even if we had a body to return to, I don't think are souls would."
"So this is...goodbye?"
Asuka's mother smiled at that.
"Of course not silly. Just remember, that whenever you're lonely, or sad, and the person you care for is not beside you, remember that I'm always here."
At the word here, Asuka's mother placed her right hand over Asuka's heart before embracing her strongly, her hands wrapping around Asuka's back.
"I'm gonna miss you Asuka," she said.
"I'm gonna miss you too mother," replied Asuka.
Slowly the whiteness started to disappear, but not before Asuka saw her four year old self grasping the hand over her mother and waving eagerly at her own retreating self.
'Me as a kid huh?' thought Asuka suddenly as she watched them fade into the distance. 'I've never thought about it much, but when I'm older, will I want children of my own?'
But before that thought could take hold in her mind, she was returned to reality.
Asuka opened her eyes in the entry plug of Unit 02 except that it wasn't dark anymore, it was positively bright. Blinking several times, she looked around remembering bits and pieces of the conversation she had had with her mother, but she couldn't remember all of it. But she felt amazing, like she could do anything right.
'My mother is right beside me...always,' she thought.
Looking ahead, towards the elevator shaft made for the Evangelion Units, she knew that she had to get Unit 02 out of here somehow, and that the elevators were the best bet. Almost at her very thought, Unit 02 responded to her commands and used its working arm to forcefully break the binders holding it in place. Though heavily damaged, and bits of bone and gore poking out of many places of the Eva Unit, Asuka still moved forward in it.
'Who is Shinji to me?' Asuka mouthed the words that her mother had asked her not long ago.
'Who is he to me?' she wondered
Shinji let out a sigh to clear his mind as he stood in the middle of the circle the five remaining Eva Units had created around him. Only five more, and it seemed like an eternity until they would all be defeated.
Crouching low to the ground, Unit 01 suddenly kicked off against it, splintering the ground that its feet had been placed on. Charging towards the nearest Eva Unit, Unit 01 let out an earsplitting roar just before it sunk its fist into the Eva Units chest. Next second, blood and gore exploded out the back of the Eva Unit as Unit 01's AT-field ripped open a hole in its chest.
Quickly turning to the other Eva Units, Unit 01 was forced to dodge out of the way, as one of them thrust a spear towards him. Shifting around the one that had tried to stab him, Unit 01 quickly projected its AT-field as the fists of another came to smashed Unit 01's head open. The clash of flesh against AT-field sent out a discharge of energy, creating a small explosion in the vicinity which kicked of dust and debris.
Skidding backwards from the explosion, just as Unit 01 looked up, it was forced to project its AT-field again as one of Eva Units thrust the spear towards him. But at the last second, Shinji made Unit 01 drop the AT-field and instead grabbed the spear with its hands. It was a wise choice on his part, as next second, the shape of the spear changed shape, into something he had seen before. But it was different, a blackish color instead of the red one he could remember.
"The Lance of Longinus? But how is it here and not still in space?" he wondered. But all the same, he could feel the power that radiated from it now, whether it was the same or different one as before. He knew that if he were pierced by that, no amount of time would fix his battered body.
Dodging several thrust of the spear, he shifted around the side of the Eva Unit and struck it where the kidney should have been. Almost immediately, the Eva Unit became limp and its grasp on the lance was slackened. Taking this chance, Shinji made Unit 01 drive its fist into the side of the Eva Unit's head, blowing its brains out the other side of its head in the process.
Seeing another one of their brothers being killed at Unit 01's hands, the remaining Eva Units became furious. Each of their spears turned into an individual Lance of Longinus, and they all soared into the air above Unit 01.
"Shit..." mumbled Shinji just as the three Eva Units threw the three lances at him.
Flipping backwards with Unit 01, Shinji dodged the three lances, but as he looked up, he saw that the three Eva Units were almost on top of him. Kicking outward, he managed to push one of them backwards, but as he saw a blur of movement, he was forced to roll out of the way as one of their AT-fields sliced into the ground where he had just been.
Flipping back up, Unit 01 caught one of their heads just as it was about to bite into its armor again. Twisting it viscously, Shinji felt the bones snap in the Eva Units neck and let it fall flat to the ground.
The remaining two grabbed the spears which had been sunk into the ground and charged at Unit 01, attempting to stab him multiple times. Managing to dodge all of them, Shinji made Unit 01 bend its back almost all the way to the ground as a spear just passed above his head. Acting quickly, Shinji made Unit 01 thrust its right hand forward and project its AT-field directly through the Eva Units abdomen. A fountain of blood exploded out the back of the Eva Unit as it collapsed on top of Unit 01, pinning him to the ground.
'Damn,' thought Shinji. 'This thing is crushing me.' It felt like he was being crushed by thousands of pillows and blankets.
Though just as he was pushing the dead Eva Unit off him, he felt the presence of the last one above him. It had the Lance of Longinus in its hand. Seeing the look in the Eva's eyes, Shinji knew he had half a second to prevent a fatale blow as the Eva Unit stabbed downward with the Lance of Longinus. The blow which had been intended for the heart, was shifted slightly by Unit 01's arm, so that instead it pierced the bone just bellow the shoulder of the right arm.
Pain exploded where the blow had pierced Unit 01's arm and was transferred to Shinji. The lance had pierced straight through Unit 01's arm, meaning that the same thing had happened to Shinji's arm; his right arm was a bloody mess. The hole was so large that you could see right through it and out the other side. The bone had completely been sheared through, completely splintering it and making yellow bone marrow flow out. Shinji had never felt so much agony it his life. But the Eva Unit wasn't done with him yet.
Yanking the spear roughly out of Unit 01's arm it brought the spear backwards again was just about ready to thrust it forward. Shinji saw the things tongue perturb out of its mouth as though it was smiling over what it was doing. Throwing its head back into the air, it let out a strange screech before plunging the lance downwards towards Unit 01's and Shinji's heart. Though Shinji attempted to block the attack again, he knew that the attempt would be futile and that this time he would really die. He even welcomed it in a way, he would finally free at least.
But no such thing happened.
A flash over orange from somewhere behind suddenly erupted into the vicinity of the Eva Unit which had been about to pierce him. As the brightness vanished though, Shinji saw that the arm which had been surging towards him was completely gone, it had disintegrated. Just as he was about to move though, the Eva Unit dove towards him with its mouth, intending to bite at the jugular and attempting to silence him for good. That was when the second flash of orange erupted, incasing the head of the Eva Unit until the skull exploded, showering Unit 01 its bits of bone and brain matter.
Blinking stupidly for several seconds, Shinji finally got a hold of himself and pushed the dead body of the Eva Unit that had been pinning him to the ground to the side and made Unit 01 stand up, all the way conscious of the gaping wound in his right arm. As he turned around to see what had saved him though, he heard a garbled voice suddenly come over the intercom.
"What the hell do you think you're doing idiot!"
Though Shinji only caught about half of what was spoken, he instantly knew who it was. Spinning around fully now, he saw that Unit 02 was standing there with its battered body and its arm outstretched towards him.
"Asu...ka..." Shinji mumbled quietly inside the entry plug of Unit 01.
Asuka let an indignant 'humph' escape her lips, but she was still smiling ever so slightly.
"I think a word of thanks would be appreciated, since I did just save your butt-"
"You fool! Get out of here now! This is no place for somebody who doesn't even have a functioning Evangelion and hasn't even piloted one in almost a month."
"Big deal," scoffed Asuka as she made Unit 02 slowly walk forward towards Unit 01.
"Why are you being so stupid!"
"Me? I'm being stupid! Look at yourself moron. Who's the one thats taken everything upon themselves without asking for help?"
"I don't need help, and certainly not from yo-"
"Did you ever think about what everyone else would think if you died! What about Misato? What about me!"
"Stop it..."
"No I won't, Shinji. I don't care what you say or do, nor will I listen to you. I'm staying here because of my own will, because I want to. I want to stay here and help you!"
"Stop it Asuka, you're-"
"I spoke with my mother," Asuka blurted out, cutting off Shinji instantly. "She told me that you two talked."
Shinji was silent as he heard her words, but his hands tensed up slightly.
"What did she tell you?"
"Does it matter?"
"...I don't know," said Shinji slowly. "How do you feel about it?"
Asuka hesitated for a second before she said, "I-I don't know. I lot of it I don't understand, still don't understand even after talking with her. But you...and me...something, I don't know-"
"You're just imagining it," said Shinji.
"Am I?" asked Asuka. "I don't think so, and I don't think you believe what you yourself are saying anymore than I do."
"This isn't the place for you."
"And it is for you?"
"I am different than you."
"No you're not!" shouted Asuka, catching Shinji off guard. "How can you not realize it! You and I are the same. I don't care about all the shit about you being part angel or whatever. Its the other stuff that I care about."
"Don't you understand though!" retorted Shinji just as angrily. "Just by being near me you could die at any minute."
"Do you think I don't know that? Do you really think I would even be here without having considered all of that. I know thats its dangerous for me to be here, and I know that I could die if I'm close to you. But I'm past all that, because I couldn't live with myself if I had abandoned you. Just now, if not for me, you would have died. What then? What would have happened to Nerv with that thing still alive?"
"Thats-" started Shinji.
"I'm not budging! Not for you, not for Misato, not for my mother. I'm staying by your side whether you want me to or not."
"...Asuka..."
"Something happened between us, what I don't know, though I can certainly guess. I'm different than how I used to be, whether thats because of you, or something else, I don't know. What I do know is that I'm glad that I was able to meet you, even in this day and age, I'm glad that we could be friends."
Unit 02 stopped a few feet away from Unit 01 waiting for any sign of movement from the Evangelion Unit. Everything Asuka had told him was floating around in Shinji's mind, and he didn't like it. He never would have thought that she would manage to enter the Evangelion chamber and secure her Eva Unit. Misato must have had something to do with that. But here she was, stubborn as always and refusing to leave him. He hated it, hated the fact that he was tied down because of such a reason. He couldn't refuse her, but he couldn't agree with her either.
"Do what you want then, just don't get in my way," he finally said.
"I was planning to anyway," said Asuka as Unit 02 walked past Unit 01, solidifying the fact that they were in this together. Though as Unit 02 continued walking forward Asuka turned and asked Shinji-
"What am I to you?"
Shinji immediately knew the answer, because it had been on his mind for a long time now.
"A distant memory," was his reply.
"I see," mumbled Asuka as she turned away from Unit 01 and Shinji, not wanting him to see the slight smile which parted her lips.
Deep beneath the foundations of Nerv, at the very core of Terminal Dogma where the being Lilith resided, a man and a young girl stood looking up at this giant life like figure.
"It is time, Rei," said Gendo Ikari as he looked up into the face of Lilith.
Rei simply nodded her head in acknowledgement, but above all of them the being known as Lilith watched in silent patience as everything continued to unfold.
Simultaneously, far above Terminal Dogma, in the ruins of Tokyo-3, the Mass Produced Eva Units slowly started regenerating...