Raising Hell
1.0
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A/n: Porting this over from SB. You can thank Sunshine Temple and RagnartheSemiGreen for inspiring this idea, and helping me write it, as well as a tone of help from the people on their discord servers.
Now, while this is taking place in NGE, primarily in the setting of the 1st anime, I'll be bending some things into what one might call a light AU for the purposes of creating a story I actually want to write.
With all that out of the way, here's the fic, hope you enjoy.
Tanya
As I watched the incoming helicopter approach, distaste for those aboard and what their arrival signified simmered in my gut. I was less than eager to welcome the new arrivals aboard, though I would, if pressed, admit to a degree of reluctant thankfulness that the other shoe had finally dropped. Besides, considering the magnitude of the task entrusted to me, any backup, no matter how dubious, was welcome.
Of course, the task at hand was only the most surface level of the reasons that had taken me on this Pacific voyage. I was also here as a symbol, and as a warning. While I had no illusions about those I served, and fully understood that I would likely be cast aside the moment such an action represented a greater net gain for the puppet masters pulling my strings, I also fully understood what my presence represented. By sending me, by sending a tool such as myself, they were making their displeasure with how things were running in Japan known.
Whether the new arrivals understood that message was unknown to me; I was certain that, either way, the message wasn't lost on its intended recipient.
"Are you ready to greet your new colleagues, Asuka?" I asked, breaking from my reverie and turning to my niece.
Asuka, standing beside me in a pale sundress, was doing an admirable job of not looking cold. Unfortunately for her, the windy deck of an aircraft carrier underway on the cold Pacific was a remarkably difficult venue for such a performance.
"Of course!" she smirked, her predictable response almost managing to hide her chattering teeth and her nerves.
It didn't exactly take a genius to figure out why the sheltered teenage girl had decided to wear a sundress out on the carrier's deck, with winds whipping about every which way, to meet her teenage male counterpart for the first time. I might not have been the best at deciphering interpersonal and unprofessional relations, but I wasn't blind.
I rolled my eyes and gave her my coat.
"A-Aunt Tanya!" Asuka sputtered, half-heartedly trying to reject it as her pride warred with the goosebumps rising on the skin of her bare arms.
I clicked my tongue. "I'll not see my niece suffer because you, in all your teenage wisdom, decided to try and be 'cool' when you got to meet your new friends."
"I-I wasn't-I mean-what about you?!" Panicked burbling spilled from her lips as I wrapped the jacket around her shivering form.
"I will be fine, given I had the foresight to wear layers," I replied, unphased as I 'helped' Asuka into my coat.
I can also keep up a basic warming spell easily enough. I thought to myself. It takes up some bandwidth in my head, but it's been a lifetime since I had an actual Orb to lean on. I doubt I'll ever reach the kind of lofty heights I managed with the Type 97, but I've learned to manage these minor cantrips easily enough.
"If nothing else, perhaps you can use this as a lesson for the next time you meet new people, hmm?" Years of caring for Asuka had taught me to push the advantage when she was off-balance; those were the times when her death-grip on her pride slackened just enough to pound a lesson into her head.
"...Yes, Aunt Tanya," Asuka replied, surrendering to inevitability. She sounded suitably chastened, but the way she wrapped the jacket so tightly around herself…
"It's fine if you want to impress your new friends, but there's many ways of doing so without risking your health and wellbeing. Even if it's about looking good," I explained, ignoring the way her eyes widened and pressing forwards over whatever objection she might try to raise. "Now, I can't say that I am a fashion expert myself, but I know a few people who certainly would call themselves as such.
"With their advice, and with your newly granted expense account, which trust me, young lady, is truly absurd, I'm sure we can find you a set of nice, fashionable coats or whatever to impress all the boys. No need to sacrifice beauty for warmth that way. Besides, I think I heard something about sweaters being a thing, no?"
Immediately, Asuka's face went as red as her hair. "A-Aunt Tanya, t-that's not-!"
I glared pointedly at the sundress, and then down at her bare knees, which were still visibly trembling in the cold wind, before meeting her eyes again, brow raised and entirely unimpressed.
"I-it's not like that!" Her objection was more of a wail than an argument.
"Mhm." I looked back up at the approaching helicopter and noticed the way her eyes followed the movement and lingered momentarily on the vehicle. A second later, she realized she'd been spotted and blushed, purposefully turning her back on the chopper.
"I promise!"
"I see. So…you would not like to go shopping?" I sighed, heavily and, perhaps, just a touch theatrically. "A shame. I had heard that the malls in Tokyo 3 were truly spectacular."
"Wha-hold on! I never said that!" Asuka barked back, eyes widening as she realized the trap she had so carelessly waltzed into.
"I must say," I mused aloud with an utterly innocent expression, "I am getting some very mixed messages."
"Aunt Tanya~" Her whine was pitiful, a masterpiece of adolescent emotional blackmail.
The effect was undermined by the ghost of a smile on her lips. I considered that a sign that my mission was accomplished.
Thankfully, it didn't take long for the helicopter to land on the deck, so Asuka was not forced to endure too much more sea air as we waited. As my niece and I looked on, several figures disembarked from the craft with the help of the Enterprise's sailors. I wasn't sure why NERV couldn't just wait for us to arrive in person, but they certainly hadn't wasted time getting to us. Presumably, much like my own attachment to this mission to Japan, someone was sending a message.
I recognized Major Katsuragi from the briefing on NERV leadership I had received before leaving Germany. As the third in command of the First Branch of NERV, she was almost at the top of the list of persons of interest. According to the bio provided in the briefing materials, Major Katsuragi was an accomplished leader whose military career during the Impact Wars had led to her appointment as NERV's Tactical Director. There was also a rumor that she'd also gained an in through previous family connections, given her late father's role in the parent organization, but there was no way to confirm that. She had led NERV's command staff during the recent crises and had apparently played an instrumental role during several of NERVs victories.
That being said, the quality of those victories left something to be desired, in two cases coming down to little more than Unit 01 going on a rampage and hoping for the best. Furthermore, NERV's reluctance to cooperate with outside organizations was all but legendary, and despite the major's past allegiance to the JSDF, the degree of cooperation I could expect from her was unknown, as was the depth of her personal loyalty to her new employer.
The presence of the so-called Third Child, Ikari Shinji, was also expected. Unless I was very much mistaken, his presence was the reason for Asuka's uncharacteristic decision to play dress-up on the job, even if she denied the charge at length. Indeed, the strength of her denials only strengthened my suspicion. The boy himself was something of an abnormality; technically the most accomplished Evangelion pilot, my briefing materials had been far from flattering in their description. Reading between the lines, my superiors had been quite displeased in their assessments of the only pilot to score a solo Angel kill, and from what I'd found I couldn't help but agree with their dismay.
Seeing the boy in person, however, put my mind at ease, if only barely. At first glance Mister Ikari seemed little more than a typical Japanese teenage boy. Likely an introverted one, given how quiet and shy he seemed despite the impressive scenery, but he didn't look like he was going to shatter if I poked him too hard. Mentally, at least. Physically, however?
A second glance revealed that the boy was a twig, lost and forgotten in the woods. Stick thin with barely any visible meat on his bones to speak of, let alone confidence in his posture. On the one hand, ideally a child shouldn't be forced to endure the rigorous training needed to turn them into a human weapon. Ideally we wouldn't be forced to use children to fight inhuman giants from beyond the stars at all.
If NERV has the gall to throw child soldiers at the Angels, the least they could do is make sure that their lambs are fully prepared and well cared for before the sacrifice. I resisted the urge to scowl. Are they even bothering to feed him? Socialize him? Look after his mental healthcare?
But I'm sure they like it like that, don't they? I ground my teeth. A weak, shy, pliable child? Too small to fight back, too young to know how? He looks like they just lock him up in a room and pull him out whenever they need him to fight titanic abominations.
Even worse, I could easily envision my own niece in a similar state, had her welfare been left in NERV's hands as the Ikari boy's apparently had been. Neglected at best, abused at worst… And all of that ill treatment inflicted on a literal one-in-a-million child, one of the few who could pilot the god machines upon whose shoulders the survival of humanity rested.
The incompetence of it all rankled. The dereliction of duty on all levels, parental, social, and professional, was unacceptable.
Heads would roll.
"Colonel Zeppelin," Katsuragi saluted, eyes flicking between myself and my niece.
"Major Katsuragi, it's a pleasure to meet you," I replied, cordially returning the salute.
After all, I might have my doubts about NERV, but it would cost me nothing to be polite.
"Same to you, though I have to admit it is something of a surprise to see a bird colonel out so far at sea," Katsuragi replied, salute falling and a cocksure smirk taking its place.
The act spoke volumes about her, presenting the major as a confident, perhaps even arrogant, officer. One who was so confident in her abilities and accomplishments that she felt the rules were a suggestion at most. As far as first impressions went, I was unimpressed, but I would wait a while longer before making a judgment.
"Happy to see you held on to Unit 02 and the Second Child for us." she continued "I'll be happy to take them off your hands now."
…Ah, I thought, hiding a grimace behind a professionally bland smile. So she doesn't know.
Well, that will undoubtedly be a pleasant conversation.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Asuka giving me a puzzled look, the spark of worry clearly visible in her eyes thanks to my familiarity with the girl's masks. I considered having it out right here, but there was no reason to go spewing sensitive information out in the open for all of the fleet to hear. I knew exactly how gossip-happy sailors and soldiers could be, after all. Instead, I reached out to give Asuka's hand a gentle squeeze to silently affirm my presence and support and turned my attention to the boy by Major Katsuragi's side.
"And Pilot Ikari, a pleasure to meet you as well," I said, extending a hand to the boy on reflex in turn.
For a moment, he looked uncertainly at my offered hand, shooting a quick glance up at his smiling guardian before carefully reaching out to take it. His hand was thin, but strong, with a cellist's calluses. He used none of that strength in his handshake, his hand almost limp in mine, the gesture unfocused and utterly lacking in anything approaching confidence. Given how his body language all but screamed his shyness and reluctance to interact to all the world, I couldn't say I was surprised.
"T-thank you, Colonel?" Somehow, Shinji managed to turn the formulaic reply into a question.
"From the sounds of it, it is I who should be thanking you, Pilot Ikari," I replied pointedly, ignoring the way he almost recoiled at my thanks, not letting him escape from the conversation that easily. "If not for your successes in piloting Unit 01, we might not be standing here right now."
Moving just slow enough to not spook the thin boy, I patted him firmly on the shoulder. With my hand on his shoulder, I could feel him quivering slightly, desperate to flee. "If nothing else, take pride in that. When monsters pounded on the gates of mankind, you did more than hold the line: You pushed them back."
If anything, the tension in his shoulder only increased. The boy seemed almost unnerved by my words, and I couldn't for the life of me figure out why.
Perhaps it's still a confidence issue? Or he doesn't like the implications of a colonel telling him he's got a bright career…good work being rewarded with more work and all. I suppose I can't blame him for that.
Or… Another corner of my mind supplied, remembering other children elsewhere, perhaps someone taught him to fear… fear what? Fear recognition? Fear physical contact? No shortage of things to fear in the shadow of the Impact Wars, I suppose.
Internally, I sighed. Building up the young Ikari's confidence to a point where he wouldn't collapse under a stiff breeze would clearly be hard work. It was also not my job, but I always found it tiring how difficult it was to get irrational people to take a compliment. Ironing out that particular personality quirk from the Third Child would be as much a stress reliever for me as a benefit to him.
Baby steps, Tanya. Baby steps.
"In addition, my niece, Pilot Asuka von Zeppelin, has been looking forward to meeting you," I said, releasing Shinji's shoulder to grasp the teenager by my side and pushing her forward.
"W-wha-Wait! No-I didn't say that, Aunt Tanya!" Asuka sputtered.
I rolled my eyes and gave Shinji a knowing look, which clearly only baffled him. "Asuka's a wonderful girl, but she could use more friends."
"I-I don't want to be friends with s-stupid Shinji!" Asuka pouted.
Which was a blatant lie.
I could have called her out for being rude, but my experience raising the girl had taught me that there was a far more productive tactic than outright confrontation when it came to wrangling the prickly redhead. Asuka, after all, excelled at the headlong charge, but had never quite gotten a firm hold on the ambush…
"Did you hear that, Pilot Ikari? She's already given you a nickname." I gave the boy an encouraging pat on the back. "You'll be friends in no time."
Asuka's blush truly was a sight to behold.
Just as planned.
Less planned for were the two other boys stepping out of the helicopter after the duo.
"...And who are these two?" I asked, giving them a cursory glance. I didn't recognize either from my pre-voyage briefing, and nothing about them stood out to me, either visually or magically. Shinji and Asuka, on the other hand, all but glowed with the latent radiance of being an Evangelion pilot in my mage's eye. "Are they prospective Evangelion pilots, or…?"
"Oh, they're Shinji's classmates!" Major Katsuragi all but chirped as she swung around and wrapped her arms around their necks.
The boys, being teenagers in close proximity to a woman of considerable physical fitness and aesthetic quality, reacted predictably.
Shinji tried, and failed, to look away with a blush on his face.
Asuka scowled.
I… was very confused.
"...Do you mean, as in his understudies in the Eva program?"
"Oh, nah, they're just his friends from school."
"...So you dragged a couple of random teenage civilians onto a high-priority and possibly very dangerous military mission because…?"
"They asked!"
…Is this how you plan on making me turn to religion, Being X? I thought. Rampant incompetence?
"...Let's just take this inside."
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Within the confines of the ship, the seven of us found cramped but adequate seating in a free briefing room. Asuka and I took one side of the table while Misato and Shinji sat opposite us. Captain Johnston, the commander of the ship and fleet, sat at the head, facing Lieutenant Colonels Dufrane and Macmillian.
Shinji's friends had wanted to join us, but the Captain and I had vetoed that idea immediately. I could already tell that the man was displeased with the imposition NERV was making on his fleet and sensed that any further irritations would only lead to intransigence. It would be only too easy for him to stick to the bare letter of his orders, refusing to go beyond the bare minimum, if pushed much further. Pilot Ikari seemed to take that presence of ill-temper about as well as a damp sheet in a stiff breeze and looked very nearly ready to collapse in on himself on the spot.
"So, what's this all about, Colonel?" Misato started, lounging in her chair. "You wanted to keep this hush hush enough to keep the boys out, so…?"
"About the transfer" I said, and instantly I felt my niece tense up beside me. "Unit 02 will be placed into NERV HQ's custody when we arrive. Asuka von Zeppelin, however, will not."
At that, Misato's relaxed air disappeared, taking her languorous smile with it as her brow furrowed in consternation. "Will not? Wha-...Are you saying you won't be handing the Second Child over to us?"
"The Second Child is my niece, and my ward," I said firmly, a measure of heat slipping into my voice, "and I do not intend on relinquishing her custody any time soon, especially to a secretive research organization cum quasi-military group."
"What good is Unit 02 without its pilot?"
"Asuka may still pilot Unit 02," I replied, nodding towards Asuka. "But only with my supervision and authorization as her legal guardian."
Misato frowned. "So… will you just be hanging around town, acting as her chaperone, or will you be signing on with NERV? Lord knows we could always use more people to fight the Angels."
"Neither, I'm afraid." I tipped my head. "My presence represents something like killing two birds with one stone, at least for my superiors."
"Your superiors? What, the Bundeswehr?" Misato looked puzzled. "What do they have anything to do with this?"
"Other than Asuka being a German citizen and Unit 02 being built on German soil?" I prodded. "A limited amount, admittedly. However, NERV answers to the UN, of which Germany is a member state."
"Of which Germany is one of many member states," Misato pointed out. "Just because an Eva was built in your backyard doesn't give you special treatment. The German government gets just as much of a voice as anyone else."
"True," I admitted. "However, unlike NERV, the German government understands the importance of cultivating friendships."
I pointedly nodded towards Captain Johnston and the pair of lieutenant colonels.
It took Misato a moment to put the pieces together, but once she recognized the different uniforms, I could see them snap into place.
"The Western Bloc?" She hissed, incredulous. "You're all coming together to throw a hissy fit over the Evas when the Angels are trying to kill us all?!"
I sent Lt. Colonel Macmillian a look, one he reciprocated with an eager grin. "Well, we'd rather do it while we're still alive than after you've bungled it and we're all dead."
Misato scowled. "I think our track record speaks for itself. Three dead Angels, which is a damn sight more than anyone else in the world could hope to manage!"
"Indeed, three dead Angels," I agreed. "Of which, only one was killed in accordance with a NERV plan. The first of the three was killed by Unit 01 in a berserker rampage after Pilot Ikari took debilitating damage. Perhaps more notably, in the second battle, Pilot Ikari barely managed to kill the Angel with a desperate last ditch attack using his backup weapon, and only after you yourself ordered him to retreat after every other NERV defense measure failed."
"And even the one time NERV's plan actually worked, said plan was critically hinged upon resources taken from other organizations. Organizations such as the JSDF." I leveled the Major a stern look. "The UN is not funding NERV so that it can steal the fruits of others labor and gild themselves in glory for it."
That earned me a fiery glare from Misato, but I'd seen worse. I ignored her for a moment and instead turned to Pilot Ikari, who'd all but shrunken in on himself in his clear desire to not get involved with the heated conversation.
"Shinji," I began softly, "do you feel that you are properly prepared for your missions?"
"What?" He jerked, glancing around with wild eyes. "I-I mean, I guess? I don't know… it… works?"
"Does it?" I questioned. "Because, based on the reports, it sounds as though you have been thrown into situations you barely understood, with minimal training at best, and only managed to survive thanks to little more than blind luck and Unit 01's nature as an Evangelion."
I turned my glare back on the major. "Which is, I must stress, an extreme concern for the United Nations. Sachiel shrugged off nearly every form of conventional firepower with its AT field, and once Unit 01 went berserk it not only tore through that field as if it wasn't even there, it shrugged off a blast that rivals some of our most potent N2 bombs."
"Should Unit 01 go berserk again and decide to turn its wrath on mankind this time instead of the Angels, what, exactly, could we do to stop it?"
"I-it wouldn't do that," Shinji spoke up, a terrified look in his eye. "It w-wouldn't do that, r-right, Ms. Misato?"
"Of course it wouldn't," said Misato, attempting to placate him. "NERV has done everything in its power to ensure the Evangelions are safe."
I knew perfectly well she was lying. Far more than most.
Your damn experiments ate my sister, I fumed, doing all I could to reign in my temper, and they almost stole my niece too. Who are you to call it safe?
"We have no guarantees of that." I countered, maintaining my calm demeanor through decades of practice. "NERV has been frighteningly tight-lipped about what, exactly, an Evangelion is. What we do know is that they are organic entities with cybernetic control mechanisms integrated into their flesh, and capable of generating powerful AT fields. Man-made Angels, effectively, and whatever those control mechanisms are, Unit 01 clearly proves that they are not enough.
"The fact is that Unit 01 made its debut by defeating an otherwise unstoppable monster by going completely rogue. If it should do so again, and not deign to turn itself off when the Angel is defeated, what will NERVs response be?"
Misato bit her lip, clearly on the defensive. "...At the moment, to start, we'd have Unit 00 attempt to restrain it."
"...Unit 01 under Pilot control was barely able to handle any of the Angels in direct combat, and Unit 00 is the experimental prototype before it. When Unit 01 went berserk, it displayed combat proficiency far in excess of either, and tore apart an Angel in moments," I said slowly, trying to meet her gaze to see if she truly understood what she was saying. "What makes you think Unit 00 would last any longer?"
Misato opened her mouth, but hesitated, words failing her.
Suddenly, there was a retching sound in the corner.
I quickly turned to see Shinji bent over, hands clamped over his mouth, looking absolutely disgusted and horrified, like-
Well… like someone had just vividly painted the picture of him being forced to rip his own colleague apart limb from limb, I chastised myself. Splendidly done, Tanya. The boy could already barely stand to look at you, and you've decided to stab him directly in his trauma.
I sighed, going through a set of high-end computational arrays to re-center my mind as I let out a deep breath.
"Apologies, Pilot Ikari," I said to the boy, who still looked deeply unnerved, though to his credit he seemed to have gulped his bile back somewhat. "I did not mean to unsettle you. I merely wanted to point out several of the problems that the Western Bloc takes issue with, especially if we are to send our own children into this program."
"You don't trust us." Misato scowled, eyes darting between myself and Shinji.
"Not entirely," I admitted. "You have proven that NERV is capable of dealing with the Angels, yes, but the methods leave something to be desired. Hence, I shall be arriving as part of an oversight team."
"An oversight team?" Misato growled. "Just how many of you are there?"
"For the moment? Just myself and my staff, which will include Lt Colonel Macmillian, representing the United Kingdom, and Lt Colonel Dufrane, a representative of the Republic of France," I explained. "Unit 03's pilot will be Russian, and Unit 04's American, to help maintain a balance in power between the Eastern and Western blocs. As those units are brought online, their respective host nations will be bringing their own observers in."
"We haven't even found the Children who will pilot those Evas yet!" the Operations Director exclaimed.
"Then according to the new UN proclamation, you will begin your search in those countries," I replied.
"That's not how any of this works." Misato groaned.
"As NERV hasn't seen fit to enlighten the UN on how the selection process does work, we will have to do the best with what we have to maintain the tenuous balance of power," I said, unmoved by her protestation. "The last thing any of us wants is to re-ignite the Impact Wars, and NERV has just proven that the Evangelions have the potential to be the most revolutionary weapon put on the battlefield since the Atom Bomb."
Misato sighed, an exhausted look washing over her face. She sent an apologetic look Shinji's way, the pilot still looking decidedly green about the gills.
"...We don't really have a choice in this, do we?"
"The decision has already been made by the UN Security Council."
"Isn't NERV supposed to be administered by the Human Instrumentality Committee?"
"It's-"
"Politics, right, right." She cut me off the moment she realized the answer to her own question.
"Just so," I nodded.
I glanced towards Asuka, who in turn was fixated on Shinji with a worried look.
"I think that's enough debate for one day, don't you?" I proposed. "I don't know about yourself, but I believe I could do with some lunch."
Misato snorted, "Good enough for me."
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Asuka
As I examined the meal options layed out buffet-style in the carrier's wardroom, I couldn't help but shoot Aunt Tanya a nervous glance.
I loved her, I trusted her, and I knew she'd always be there for me, something she'd made abundantly clear over the years, but there were times when she could be downright scary.
This was one of those times. Fortunately, I wasn't on the receiving end of things and hadn't been since the Frog Incident. Still…
"Aunt Tanya did… did you really mean all that?" I prodded in German, hoping to give us some semblance of privacy as I idly picked up a slice of institutional pizza from the buffet.
"Mean what?" She asked, her tone absentminded and expression empty as her gaze locked on the dessert table across the way, but I could still feel a shard of her attention focused intently on me.
"I just…" I bit down a shiver. I was not a child anymore, and if Shinji had faced those things… "Is NERV really that bad?"
"NERV stole your mother from us, Asuka," Aunt Tanya reminded me, and I could barely hide the wince at the blunt reminder.
"Yeah, but… they aren't all bad. Mom was a part of them, right?" I pressed. "And Camila's support crew… they're pretty cool, right?"
Aunt Tanya let out a weary sigh, her eyes turning away from the array of desserts and towards me. Her blue eyes, identical to mine, were hard and guarded, but still just as emotive as they always were when the topic of Mom came up. "She was, and… they aren't. I might disagree with some of their methods and command decisions, but the people…No, no you are correct, Camila's support crew is indeed… 'cool'."
Her lip twitched.
I felt an impending sense of doom.
"One might even say they are the Cat's Pajamas," She said, speaking in perfect English as a sickeningly sweet smile pulled at her lips, all while an evil twinkle shone in her eye.
I cringed in almost physical pain at the outright ancient expression.
God, Aunt Tanya can be so old sometimes. It's like she came out of the 1920s.
Then I heard stuttered laughter behind me.
Turning, I saw the Shinji standing there, tray in hand, with his two friends who were trying, and failing, to hide their laughter.
"The Cat's Pajamas?" one muttered.
The other snickered.
I felt my soul die.
So uncool.
"Come on, Asuka," Aunt Tanya gently tugged at my shoulder. "You're going to catch flies if you keep looking like that."
I shot her a dark look, which only seemed to amuse her, but followed along nonetheless.
"Mean," I pouted.
"What kind of aunt would I be if I wasn't?" she teased lightly.
I rolled my eyes and grabbed a slice of chocolate cake.
Aunt Tanya grabbed a matching one and shot me a more sober look. "You do, however, have a point about NERV. And, if we are to be working with them, may as well mend bridges."
"So…?" I asked, leadingly.
"Why don't we join your new friends for a simple chat?" She gestured towards where Shinji and his friends had sat.
I froze.
"Unless, of course, you'd rather if your 'uncool' aunt didn't join you," she added.
I sent her a tortured look.
She had the audacity to look both smug and innocent.
"Betrayed by my own aunt…"
"I've betrayed nothing. It's entirely up to you, I'll support you either way." Then she looked me in the eye, and with a straight face, raised a fist and said. "Ganbatte."
I did my best to set her on fire through force of will alone. Failing that, myself.
"Fine!" I did not pout. "I'll show stupid Shinji and his stupid friends!
I snatched up a bottle of water and stomped off to meet my fellow pilot. I arrived at the table to a company of stares, which I pointedly ignored in favor of slamming my tray onto the table top and forcing myself into my seat. When the stares continued, I glared back.
"What?" I growled in Japanese.
I looked each and every one of them in the eye, daring them to say something.
None of them did.
Good. I nodded internally, mildly appeased.
I turned my frustrations on my food, letting it wipe away my annoyance. Given our guests, the cooks had brought out the more palatable meals, hence pizza being on the menu today. Napoli's best it definitely wasn't, but it was pizza, and it was decent, and right now that was good enough for me. Washing it down with a long pull of water, I finally resurfaced back into the rest of the world, ready to attempt to socialize with my peers.
Something I'd never done before.
Don't panic Asuka! You've got this! I told myself as the spike of fear took hold. You're a super awesome Evangelion pilot trained by the coolest German soldier who ever lived! You're not going to let three teenagers stop you!
"Hi!" I forced a smile.
Smiles were how you were supposed to greet people, right?
Though given the looks on the three boy's faces, I got the impression I'd done something wrong. They were all just staring at me, wide eyed and jaws slack like my face was on inside out.
Did I already mess it up? I'm doing something wrong, aren't I? I thought. Then I pushed it down. No, no, confidence, Asuka! You can't give up now! And remember what Aunt Tanya says! Even failure is a lesson if you keep your head on straight!
…Although maybe I should tone down the cheer?
"I am Asuka von Zeppelin, the Second Child, and pilot of Unit 02, Camila." I greeted my fellow pilot. "It's good to finally meet you."
"Uh… it's good to meet you too?" Shinji eventually blinked. "And… Camila?"
"My Evangelion." I shrugged, already feeling more comfortable now that we were sliding onto a topic close to my heart. "Officially, NERV refers to her as Unit 02, but that's so… impersonal, you know? And something like her… she deserves a proper name, I think."
"Why do you keep calling it her?" One of the boys asked."I mean, it's just a machine, right?"
I scoffed, a smirk splitting my lips. "Just a machine? Hardly! An Evangelion is-!"
I stopped, remembering my audience. Namely, the fact that two of them almost certainly weren't cleared to hear the technical details let alone the… arcane details.
"Er, well, mostly classified," I admitted lamely. "But it is an 80m tall biosynthetic superweapon designed to defeat alien superweapons beyond human comprehension. If nothing else, that alone is deserving of enough respect to call it more than merely a machine."
My smirk returned as I met Shinji's gaze. "As I'm sure my fellow pilot can agree, when you're in an Evangelion, it's a feeling unlike anything in the world. It's something… more."
"Makes sense to me," The boy in glasses shrugged. "I mean, treating war machines as something more isn't exactly new. We've been calling ships ladies and giving them names for ages. Why not a giant robot?"
I nodded fervently in agreement. Perhaps this "socializing" thing wouldn't be too bad? Shinji, though, didn't look quite comfortable with the subject.
Probably because he just got done hearing about how his psycho Eva might go berserk and kill everyone, idiot, I chastised myself. Does he even like his Eva?
…I mean, he'd have to, right? If he can still get a decent enough synch rate to pilot it, right?
Right?
It was at that moment that I was once again reminded of how frighteningly little I truly knew about the massive weapon I piloted.
"What about Unit 01, Shinji?" I attempted a kind of peace offering, hoping that he did actually at least kind of like his Eva. "What's your name for them?"
"I… uh… they don't have a name," he admitted. "It's always just been Unit 01."
Nice going Asuka.
"W-well, we could think up a name!" I tried. "I mean, you've already taken down three Angels with Unit 01, if nothing else, that deserves a name, don't you think?"
"I guess." Shinji replied with all the vibrant energy of tap water.
For a moment, I felt the conversation die a slow, cold, death.
Think, Asuka. Even if he doesn't like his Eva for some reason, there has to be something you can talk about with him. I scrambled for anything I could talk about with my fellow pilot. I felt like my attempt to finally have some friends, someone who really understood, was slipping through my fingers, and I didn't know why. Maybe… maybe if he doesn't like that, I can focus on that? Aunt Tanya and her friends always like complaining about stuff together…
"So how's your Eva training been?" I attempted from another angle. "Have your 'tests' been as dumb as mine?"
"Eh?" He gave me a weird look, caught off guard by my words.
"You know, the training for the Evangelion," I explained. "I don't know about you, but NERV has some pretty dumb ideas for training, and their experiments?" I gagged theatrically. "If they aren't mind numbingly boring, they're either a pain or just plain gross! And that's not even getting into how useful they are, which is to say, not!"
"Oh…" Shinji relaxed a bit. "Er… well they've been training me on the Pallet Rifle a bunch."
"The Pallet Rifle?!" I exclaimed. "What the hell are they having you use the Pallet Rifle for?"
"What's wrong with the Pallet Rifle?" The boy with glasses said defensively. "It's got as much firepower as an entire tank formation!"
Oh, Glasses, I had so much hope for you.
"And how many tanks did the JSDF go through trying to take down Sachiel before they gave up?" I pointed out with an arched brow. "With an Angel's AT field, you're never going to be able to scratch them with anything as piddly as that. Besides, if all it took to kill an Angel was a Pallet Rifle, we could just put some on giant tanks and use those to fight them, no black hole budget for giant robots required."
"Yeah…" A hesitant smile slowly crawled onto Shinji's face. "I don't know why they always want me to use it, it never does anything."
"That's right." the other boy frowned, "You used the Progressive Knife on that one Angel, didn't you?"
"The knife? Ugh." I scowled, then shot Shinji an apologetic look. "I mean, it's pretty impressive that you managed to down an Angel with your knife. That's totally some cool as hell stuff, Ikari. It's just, well… you're running around in a who-knows-how-expensive-war-machine and the best weapon they gave you was the knife?"
"I don't think Ms. Misato expected me to need it, to be honest," Shinji admitted. "The training never went over it before."
"Never went over it? The hell are those clowns doing?!" I fumed. "First they can't even give you a decent weapon, then they can't even be bothered to train you on the one that actually works?"
"W-well, what kind of stuff have you been training on, Ms. Zeppelin?" Shinji asked.
"The Sonic Glaive," I preened. "It's based on the same vibro-blade principles of the Progressive Knife, but mounted on a polearm, making it far superior as a melee weapon."
"I've even been practicing the historical European martial arts to make the best use of it! Working with expert trainers, spending hundreds of hours in and out of the Eva exercising, making sure I know how to use the Sonic Glaive like an extension of my own body," I rattled off, fond memories filling me with warm pride. "I even won a few trophies from some of the junior tournaments in Germany, if you want to see!"
The reactions around the table were irritatingly tepid. The boy in the jacket seemed mildly interested, Shinji looked away, and the boy with glasses looked openly dismissive, the ass.
Of course they don't care.
"Sonic Glaive, huh? That sounds nice, but where's the firepower?" Glasses argued. "Angels can shoot particle beams of their own, right? What, are you just going to try and weave around all their lasers to stab them in the face? "
I tried not to bristle at the argument. Given how little he knew, he had something of a point. That doesn't mean he had to be so rude about it.
"I thought you were all over that Progressive Knife Shinji had?" the boy in the jacket remarked, with the flat tone and dull air of someone making the minimum contribution required to a conversation he didn't care about.
"That's cool, too," Glasses shrugged, "But that was before I saw Shinji nearly get disemboweled trying to use it. Not to mention Ramiel."
Shinji grimaced at that.
I, meanwhile, struggled to bite back a harsh retort and a bitter scowl. Nothing said I had to respond, I could just say "it's classified" and move on. It'd even be true, to an extent.
But I can't just let that go, I thought, wracking my mind to try and think over what I could and couldn't say given the company.
"Hmm…" I rolled some thoughts around. "Really, the Glaive's more of a defensive weapon for me. Most of what I'll be doing with Camila will be using advanced AT Field Manipulation."
"AT Field Manipulation?" Shinji asked as if he'd never heard of it.
"Yeah, you know," I rolled my wrist at him like it was obvious, "the whole reason we're using Evangelions in the first place? An Angel's AT field makes them basically invincible to all but the strongest weapons, and close range attacks that can push past it. Evangelions were designed to create their own AT field. That way they could not only fight on level ground to an Angel but also use their own to counter the Angel's, thus making them vulnerable."
"I… think I remember Ms.-er… Dr. Ritsuko mentioning that," Shinji stumbled hesitantly, as if he was trying to remember something he'd only heard once in passing. "She said something about me using my AT field to… disrupt the Angel's, then following it up with volley fire from the Pallet Rifle?"
I twisted my mouth around unpleasantly. "Hrm… I mean… that could work, but projecting an AT field is usually some more advanced AT field manipulation stuff. I recently nailed down the basics of technique myself. Are you even trained for that yet?"
"I, uh…" he glanced away, suddenly very interested in the remains of his lunch. "I haven't had any AT field training yet."
"You what?" I said, voice dead.
I take back anything nice I ever said about NERV.
Any further argument was cut down when an alarm ripped through the room. Red lights flashed and an announcement blared on all the speakers.
"-General Quarters, General Quarters. All hands man your battle stations. An Angel has been spotted. Repeat-"
Everywhere around me, the wardroom was suddenly filled with organized chaos. I felt a frenzied grip of panic snatch at my heart for a moment, my breath tight and vision narrowing as fear flooded my veins. That was normal, Aunt Tanya had told me. I'd heard it from her and all her friends from the military, that even the bravest souls felt fear.
So what was this other feeling thundering in my chest alongside it?
"Asuka."
I jerked up to see Aunt Tanya standing over me, her hand on my shoulder. "Are you ready?"
To my surprise, the answer was already on my smiling lips. "I was born ready."
She sighed and shook her head, but Aunt Tanya didn't even try to hide the matching smile of her own.
"Good girl."
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A/n: Alright, and that's the 1st chapter.
The Overarching plans are to basically deviate from NGE canon, as I have no love for NGE's endgame. If you liked the heart of canon NGE, more power to you, RagnartheSemiGreen is certainly a fan and he's the primary reason I had this entire plot bunny in the first place. I, however, want more giant robot fights, teamwork, and wholesome vibes.
NGE may certainly be lacking in the latter, but I'm forcing it to have them anyways, because this is fanfiction and I can do whatever the hell I want.
And fuck you, people deserve to be happy.
As for the giant robot fights, well...rewatching the series has shown me that NGE didn't actually put as much emphasis in the giant robot fights as I'd thought, so expect me to take a page out a favorite of mine, the VS The World-type quests. If any of you've read those, you might be able to expect some of the kind of shenanigans I have planned in the future.
Hence the AU-light description. NGE canon is both vague and unforgiving on a lot of stuff, like the new world order and SEELE, so I'm basically reshaping it as necessary to make it more dynamic, less "all powerful shadow illuminati" + "everything must end in depressing", and something I'm more interested in writing, but all while trying to keep it reasonably within the bounds of at least the general setting of NGE canon.
Anyways, there'll be a second chapter I already have written on the way soon, and I'm currently working on Chapter 3.
Hopefully you enjoyed this.
