A/N:
Here we are again, always such a pleasure.
Starting ANOTHER project. Yes, I know I have 4 others ongoing, but I also…Uh, do not care. The time will pass anyway. I'll write what I want :P
So! Eva fic. I've written one before, and eventually a couple chapters of this fic are gonna be a rewrite of that one. To put it in gaming industry terms, the last fic was a sort of vertical slice demo! If that, uh, makes sense.
I'm rambling.
Okay, so, this fic is gonna involve a lot of cheesy romance between Mari and Rei. Small disclaimer, this is a broad-strokes version of the Eva canon. Primarily based on the original anime, but - well, with heavy influence from the Rebuilds. Don't take it too seriously, we're all here for fun.
Also, all characters are portrayed as adults. None of that 'Curse of Eva' bollocks. I don't intend to write anything lewd, though. We'll get more into the timeline as the fic goes on, this is just chapter 1 after all.
—-
"Think about it, there must be higher love.
Down in the heart or hidden in the stars above.
Without it, Life is wasted time!
Look inside your heart, I'll look inside mine…"
"Oh, good lord, are you…Singing?" Came a voice over the Comm Lines of Evangelion Provisional Prototype Unit-03. The pilot, Mari Makinami Illustrious, didn't even register the sound. Probably just her commander or some shit, but - singing helped her get into that euphoric flow state you needed for piloting.
She needed all the control she could have over the hunk of junk she was piloting. NERV Britian had fought so hard to get the rights to build this damn thing, but when it was time to shine they flopped like a dead flounder. It didn't help that they essentially threw out the schematics and notes from NERV Japan's Doctor Akagi, who - only pioneered these damn things.
For one, it didn't have any sort of display installed. The 'cheaper' option was to use a rudimentary AR headset, one that felt like a facehugger in action. It also had what could best be described as 4 legs and wheels for feet. The engineer said it was for 'balance', which probably meant it was the only way they could get the damn thing to stand up.
They didn't even have any LCL! The entry-plug was a metal coffin with fuck all air circulation!
Whatever. None of that mattered. All it had to do was work - and win a singular battle. For that was the reason that Unit-03 even existed. You could compare Mari to a sort of fire extinguisher. There to put out the flames before they caused too much damage.
Deep below NERV Britian's Bethany Base, they held a dark secret. The corpse of an Angel lay just below, discovered just underneath the earth's crust. In fact, popular speculation was that the base was built around it! They studied it near endlessly, and presumed it was dead…But, improbably - it woke up, and oh boy was it pissed.
Like a wild animal, it decimated the base. Through sheer size, strength, and power. Though, Mari was absolutely delighted! That meant she could finally pilot. She'd fantasized about this moment for months.
"GO!" Mari was commanded, to which she obliged. Chasing down the Angel with her Eva's strange spiderlike appendages. One thing very quickly became apparent…This damn thing was not fast. So slow that the Angel was actually getting away. So, that meant she had to think outside the box.
'Things look so bad everywhere
In this whole world, what is fair?
We walk blind and we try to see,
Falling behind in what could be!"
It was a good thing they were running past an armory-post. Grabbing ahold of an energy pistol - she shot in the Angel's direction. Missing, though this was intentional - the shot hit a support pillar further back, Causing the ceiling to collapse in on itself. Blocking the Angel's intended escape route. Backing it up against the wall.
Throwing that gun to the side, she wasn't a savage. Built into the Eva's right arm was a lance-type weapon that claimed to have the power to pierce AT Fields. She hoisted her arm in the air, and lunged - with the Angel dodging at the last second. Causing the lance to wedge itself into the wall.
The Angel had realized that it needed to fight. So, pounced when it's foe momentarily incapacitated itself.
Mari grit her teeth, angrily grumbling "Motherfucker!" The distraction caused her synch ratio to drop, a glass cannon she was. Her commander barked orders for her to 'Focus!' to which she just took a deep breath and kept on singing.
"Bring me a higher love!"
With the arm severed, she went to a different strategy. That being, just holding the remnants of its arm as if it was a regular weapon! She thrust the lance into the Angel's AT Field.
It was like trying to pierce a blocked nozzle with a bobby pin. It was difficult, but - extremely satisfying when it finally just went through!
"Bring me a higher love, oh!"
The Angel struggled, of course. It fought back ruthlessly. Slashing with it's claws, Landing several savage scratches that tore through the Eva's armor like paper. But Mari didn't even feel it! She was so high on the pure adrenaline and euphoria of the moment, that nothing could break her out of it.
"Bring me a higher love!"
Perhaps she went a bit too far. She pierced her lance straight through the Angel's core, which killed it nearly immediately. She expected a shower of blood, but instead it crumbled like a mummy. It turned to dust, as if it was never even there.
"Where's that higher love I keep thinking of?"
–
One of the many people watching this battle was a man named Ryoji Kaji. People liked to describe him as NERV's Liason. He'd done work for all three of the main branches - Japan, UK, and Germany. He spoke all 3 languages fluently, and basically all communications between the branches was filtered through him.
What concerning news, he'd heard. With the amount of damage the Eva sustained, it could bankrupt the branch. With that, the pilot would inevitably be let go as well…
So he launched a plan. Transfer the Eva and it's pilot to NERV Japan.
Putting together a proposal, and presenting it to the head of the company. While initially there was a little bit of hesitancy, due to that endless English pride, It was a no-brainer that it would soon be accepted.
Except for one point that they wanted to argue about….
"Are you sure you want the pilot? She's, uh…A liability, in our eyes." Said a nameless higher-up.
"What do you mean by that?" Replied Kaji, playing dumb.
"As she's shown during her battle against the Angel, she is extremely reckless."
Kaji laughed, and nodded. "I will admit, a very fair judgement. But - it's a flaw, that with enough time and training, I'm sure we can iron it out. Or even use that negative as a positive."
Not like they hadn't done this before. NERV Germany's very own Asuka wass also decently reckless - and she'd improved tremendously.
"Very well. We'll notify the pilot right away."
Here it was. The big time.