Changes In Tempo
CHAPTER 6: Learning Together
April 14, 2015 - Test Chamber 01, NERV HQ - 8:30 AM
Test day. Shinji had been practicing for years to reach this point. Today would determine the fate of humanity. If Shinji couldn't pilot, finding a new pilot would be more difficult as the deadline for the Dead Sea Scrolls neared.
"All systems are ready. Activate on command." A NERV officer repeated.
"Thank you, First Lt. Maya Ibuki. Begin the test." Gendo repeated back.
"Maya, Connect the main power and circuits," Ritsuko repeated.
"Now attaching main power supply and circuits," Maya said. "Main power supply is now connected. Now beginning the activation system and passing controls to First Lt. Hyuga Makoto."
'Voltage rising to the critical point: 0.5, 0.2, higher," Makoto said, adjusting numbers to prevent a blowout.
"First Lt. Shigeru Aoba, begin the second phase of the activation system," Ritsuko said.
"Pilot has now commenced the joining," Shigeru repeated back. A few seconds went by before the screens turned green.
"Begin system phase two," Ritsuko repeated, continuing to look at her clipboard. A few seconds went by as the synapses inserted into Eva-00.
"Synapses have been inserted. Junction started." Shigeru yelled. A few more seconds came before the MAGI system blinked green, notifying the command deck that all systems were operational.
"Pulses have been transmitted. All circuits are now operational," Maya repeated as she continued to monitor her screens.
"No problems with initial contacts. Now starting power to muscles." Maya yelled.
"Power has been transmitted to brachial muscles in both arms. No problems with nerve links." Shigeru yelled back.
"Checked. Up to 2550 on the list have been satisfied," Maya yelled back.
"Begin to arrange for the third connection," Ritsuko said to the command deck, flipping a page on her clipboard.
"Contacts up to 2580 have been satisfied, pulses flowing back until absolute borderline: 0.9, 0.7, 0.5, 0.4, 0.3," Maya repeated as contacts continued making connections.
"Problems have been found in the third stage. Rejection is now setting in on the nerve center elements." Shigeru yelled, beginning to try and mitigate the problems.
"Stop contacts! Break all circuits up to the sixth!" Gendo commanded. His mind began to pace into a frenzy as the worst was unfolding.
"Negative! Contact shutdown signal not received. Eva-00 has lost control! Pilot vitals offline," Maya yelled back.
Eva-00 began to yell a furious roar, causing echoes within the chamber.
"Turn the power supply to standby mode!" Gendo yelled as Eva-00 began to punch at the control center.
"Now turning power supply into standby mode. Power shutting down in 35 seconds." Maya said as the command deck window began to bend.
"Evacuate the room! It is not safe." Ritsuko yelled.
"Auto-ejection system now engaging!" Maya repeated. The entry plug flew out of Eva-00, flying into a corner until falling to the floor.
"GOD DAMNIT!" Gendo yelled, freaking out further as the entry plug hit the floor.
"Standstill time: 10, 9, 8, 7," Maya said as she began counting down.
"Release special bakelite! Hurry!" Ritsuko yelled as she backed away
"SHINJI!" Gendo yelled again.
"6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0. Eva-00 has gone offline." Maya repeated, sighing in relief as Eva-00's punches slowed.
Gendo ran out of the command deck, rushing to the test chamber floor. His mind paced, worrying that Shinji was gravely injured or, at worst, dead. Reaching the entry plug, he grabbed the handles, burning his hands. The entry plug opened, showing Shinji limp in his entry plug.
"SHINJI, ARE YOU ALL RIGHT? SHINJI!" Gendo yelled as emergency crews arrived at the scene.
Present Day, May 20, 2015 - School Yard, Tokyo-III Municipal High School - 9:36 AM
Ogling. It's been a big problem since the school opened in 2011. While most boys would ogle the group of girls higher up the hill, today was different. All the boys had their focus on Rei due to her much slimmer and more mature adult-like figure, causing Rei to be very nervous. Rei had gone through puberty at an early age, except she had never gone under any physical damage, only getting off with small amounts of emotional damage.
"Can those boys just stop looking at us? Don't they know it makes us uncomfortable?" Hikari remarked as boys lined up along the fence.
As Rei listened to Hikari complain, she looked at Shinji sitting alone. She wondered why he was always alone. Aside from having no humanity, he never had friends aside from Rei. Hikari took notice of Rei looking at him and spoke up.
"Ogling at Shinji, I see?"
"N- No! It's not like that!" Rei said as she panicked, a blush forming quickly before fading away.
"You're okay. Although, I do wonder, why are you looking at Shinji?" Hikari asked curiously.
"H- He seems so lonely no matter where he is. We only became friends after he moved in with me, but I've never seen him be social with anyone else. Has he always been like this?" Rei answered, blushing again as she thought of him.
"Yeah. Since Shinji started coming here a year ago, he has been quiet and cold. Most people here call him 'Icy Shinji' due to his emotionless nature." Hikari answered back. She then noticed the blush on Rei's face. "Say, do you have feelings for him?"
"Wh- What?" Rei asked, blushing even heavier.
"You always seem so flustered around him, usually blushing when you're in his vicinity," Hikari said.
"Maybe… I'm not entirely sure myself," Rei answered, blushing till her cheeks were cherry red.
"What do you like about him?" Hikari curiously asked.
"W- Well, he is cute looking. Aside from that, I feel it's his personality that I like the most. He may seem cold, but I feel he has more potential on the inside," Rei answered, looking back at Shinji.
"That's some good optimism. Why don't you try having lunch with Shinji later today? It seems like a good start." Hikari advised Rei.
"O- Okay. I can try." Rei said.
"Well, let's begin the next formation," Hikari told Rei as they stood up to get in the pool.
Class 2-A - 11:23 AM
Rei walked towards Shinji with two small bento boxes in hand, blushing heavily. Her body felt jittery, thinking Shinji would decline her on the spot. Walking up to Shinji, she spoke up.
"H- Hello, Shinji. W- W- Would you l- like to have l- lunch with m- me?" Rei asked, stuttering.
"I would not mind your presence, Ikari," Shinji responded. Rei grabbed her desk and moved it next to Shinji.
"I made these bento boxes back at home before we left. Would you like one?" Rei asked softly, looking to the side as she held the bento box towards Shinji. He nodded and grabbed the box. Opening the box, he stared blankly at it before commenting.
"I do not eat meat. I am sorry." Shinji responded.
Rei felt rejected. She hadn't thought to ask if he ate meat or not. She looked down before an idea struck her head.
"Do you mind if I do something?" Rei asked.
"I do not mind," Shinji answered.
Rei reached for the bento box and took the meat from the noodles and other meals. Once she finished, she handed it back over to Shinji.
"I took out some of the meat in the food. I- I hope you like it." Rei said as she blushed. Shinji nodded and began to eat, only to widen his eyes at the taste, albeit basic ramen.
"This is… good. Can you teach me how to make this?" Shinji asked.
"I- I- Yes! I can!" Rei answered, shocked but excited at his question.
In the background, Hikari hid behind the door, listening to Shinji and Rei. She smiled, finally knowing Rei was the solution to opening up to Shinji. It would only be a matter of time before Shinji was human. Two other eyes lurked quietly, Toji and Kensuke. They could only look in confusion that Rei somehow got through to Shinji while Kensuke filmed it on his camera.
Misato's Apartment - 3:27 PM
"So what you next want to do is to stir the noodles gently so you can separate the strands," Rei added. Shinji followed suit. However, Rei noticed that his pace was slow. Grabbing his hand, she began to speak, except her sudden movement caused water to splash on Rei's right arm, causing her to yelp in pain.
"Are you okay?" Shinji asked. Grabbing her arm, he checked where the water hit. Rei could only grunt and whimper in pain.
"Let me get you bandaged," Shinji inquired. Going to the bathroom, he looked around for gauze, remembering a medical class from years ago.
Rei sat down and waited on Shinji. A second later, Shinji came out with a roll of bandages and a bottle of aloe vera. Grabbing a cloth from the kitchen, he wet it with cold water and soaked soap onto the rag.
"Let me get your burn cleaned up," Shinji said. Grabbing her arm, he slowly cleaned her arm. Next, he took the aloe vera and rubbed it on the burn. After finishing rubbing her arm, he wrapped her arm in bandages. Misato walked in a second later.
"I see you're getting patched up by your boyfriend. How sweet!" Misato barged in. Rei blushed quite heavily at her statement.
6:48 PM
Rei was getting prepared to take a shower. Taking her clothes, she went to the bathroom and opened the door, not realizing Shinji was still inside.
"Oh- I am so sorry!" Rei said as she blushed heavily. She had just walked in on Shinji naked. She then closed the door and ran to her room.
May 21, 2015 - Pacific Coast of Japan - 12:37 PM
A series of large splashes formed, causing small tsunamis. Out from the ocean rose a crystalline octahedron, moving towards the land.
"Finally, the Earth let me out of my cage. It's time I avenge my fallen brothers." Ramiel said to himself, making a choral voice.
NERV HQ
"There haven't been any angels in a while. Have we defeated all of them?" Shigeru asked.
"Doubtful. All this waiting has put me on edge." Makoto answered, continuing to read his manga. He was shortly disturbed by a loud beeping sound, quickly getting to his post. "An angel has been spotted, establishing feed."
"Great timing." Shigeru groaned in annoyance. Almost the entire command deck slammed their heads on their desks, confused about the recent angels' shapes.
"Who the hell lost the diamond to their wedding ring?" Shigeru asked, causing Makoto and Maya to laugh and a little chuckle from Fuyutsuki.
"I believe it would be Misato. Jokes aside, prepare Unit-01 for deployment." Ritsuko barged in suddenly. Misato, in the background, was fuming steam at Ritsuko's joke.
つづく
To be Continued
-
Been a while, hasn't it? Well, I worked my fucking ass off on this sorta. A new college class started and this is the only place where I don't have to go about my grammar so yeah. I do hope you enjoyed this chapter. Numero 7 should be coming soon as it was also a dual project with this too so yeah. Enormous progress so far on that as of this chapter. Imma write some stuff below.
Asuka and Mari
They will arrive soon, don't worry. There will also be a different character coming soon. Not an original bc I suck at original characters, but rather a certain Mana Kirishima. That's right FUCKERS, she is gonna be in the cast. Maybe in chapter 8 or 9 since those MIGHT be fillers. I have a dedicated calendar for this to keep track of events.
Will there be a sorta prelude to Eva in the series later on?
Yes. It will be placed before the first chapter maybe??? Considering it will contain events from before, during, and after the Second Impact. Events such as Fuyutsuki with Yui, 9/11 (maybe? Leave a comment if you think that it might sound offensive), the War on Afghanistan and Iraq, Second Impact, creation of Gehirn. All that shit.