CHAPTER 08_A RESPITE (TO DEMONSTRATE MAN WILL NEVER UNDERSTAND WOMAN)

It had been some weeks since Shinji and the Summerisian delegation returned from Boldhold to much fanfare. He had been enjoying the fruits of his work in Boldhold, with everyone passing him on the street praising him for being a total hero. In any event, Shinji didn't really consider himself to be a hero. He was simply lucky.

Some of the female adventurers his age sometimes sauntered over to Shinji to talk to him too, but he wasn't sure what they meant by joining them at a tavern for a 'drink and chill'. He kept asking which tavern, and then they suddenly got very coy about the whole thing by playing with their hair and making to take off their chest armour pieces. Then he'd hear his name being yelled from somewhere in the Adventurers' Guild and have to get back to work at whatever commission he'd accepted from Joyce.

Shinji was probably close to paying off a significant part of the debt he owed to the crown given all the work he'd been putting in.

"Another commission completed for Sir Shinji Ikari!" yelled Joyce as she handed him his payment in a sizeable bag and hoisted his name on to the ranking board for the first time. "And, since it's his first time on the ranking board, a free round of drinks for all!"

Everyone shouted their approval of Shinji being elevated to ranked status, not just because they seemed to like him, but mostly because they now had free drinks.

"Joyce, how did I get up the rankings? I haven't done that many commissions, have I?"

Joyce did her signature eyelash flutter and brilliant smile while she handed him a big mug of fruit punch with his smorgasbord lunch of sliced cold meats, cheese and roast vegetables. Even looking at it made his mouth water. "By my records, you've completed quite a few commissions with us. Plus, you earned a lot of ranking points when you stopped two monster attacks against two cities."

"I see...how long does it take normally to get to ranked status?"

Joyce put her finger to her mouth and considered his question. "Hmmm...well, unless you accomplish great feats like yourself, you would normally get ranked status after completing a commission per week over say...ten years."

"Ten...years? But that's a lot of commissions."

"Yes," Joyce replied in her usual cheerful voice. "But sadly, most Adventurers don't make it past their first year. Either they are killed during a commission (which is very sad), or they get injured and can't continue. Strangely, the most common adventurer's injury is taking arrows to their knees. Very unfortunate."

The talk of death and permanently disfiguring injury put a downer on the conversation. Shinji thanked Joyce for bringing his food and started to eat.

The constant tide of movement and commotion in the tavern had become familiar to Shinji now. This was such a contrast to his quiet life in Japan. It wasn't that the existential dread had gone away from his thoughts. But its depressing siren sound was now deadened by having people in his life celebrating his successes, and he could even help celebrate theirs. His spirits were higher, he was smiling more, and he found he didn't want to stew in that glum attitude he carried with him pre-Summerise anymore.

Even if he returned to Tokoyo-3 by some means, he wanted to fight for his happiness, not allow life and others to simply drag him into whatever eddies formed in his path. At least, that's what he resolved. Shinji still felt like he needed some more practice at being assertive and owning any mistakes that resulted from his actions.

It was going to be a long journey.

As Shinji finished his lunch and downed the rest of his (and he was sure of this) non-alcoholic fruit punch, he made to leave, but Joyce stopped him by presenting a basket decorated with a cute red bow. "This is a congratulatory gift from the Guild in recognition of you being a ranked Adventurer!"

"Oh…uh, thanks Joyce, that was unexpected. What's in it?"

"Ah, this is the Journeyman's Hamper. It comes with a lot of dried seasonal fruits, nuts and preserved vegetables. There are also some fruit jams, which you can enjoy at any time before their expiry dates," Joyce fluttered her eyelashes prettily, which still somehow managed to fascinate Shinji, despite knowing it was her primary means of distraction. "Then, there are some smoked meats, jerkies and cheese. Oh, and there is a pack of ten Wanderlust Wishes." Joyce presented a cluster of ten gently glowing, bejewelled baubles to Shinji

"Thank you, I think I'll enjoy the food," said Shinji as he looked curiously through the hamper. "What is a Wanderlust Wish? I've never heard of them."

"Ah, good question," said Joyce, cocking her head to one side. "Most Adventurers never make it to ranked status, so we don't really want to give them any false hope with the allure of hampers and wishes and any other bonuses. Basically, it's a raffle to get random new equipment. Every ten tickets exchanged is guaranteed to get you a powerful magic item!"

"But if the items I get are random, then shouldn't they be called 'hopes' at best?"

There was that eyelash flutter again. It never got old. "Perhaps, but we all wish for things, even if we might never see that wish come true. In that sense, calling them 'wishes' is still correct."

"Alright, fine. Can I use the ten wishes now?"

"Of course you can. They are redeemable at any time, so now's as good a time as any."

Shinji nodded, and the ten baubles shone brightly before flying off into - no through – the roof of the tavern and in their place, a large treasure chest appeared on the previously cleared table as if magic was involved. Well, it most definitely was, since things didn't just conjure themselves out of thin air. He opened the chest and looked at the items contained within; a couple of wooden clubs with nails haphazardly arranged along their lengths, some swords adorned with jewels that on closure inspection were just badly coloured glass blobs, tarnished with slivers of rust on their blades. There was even a bow that looked like it was built from roughly wrapped up twigs. One item though, shimmered brilliantly from within the chest.

"Ooh, that looks like a great weapon," sang Joyce, while the rest of the tavern joined in with their own sounds of awe. She was looking through a catalogue or something, though Shinji couldn't say exactly where it had come from. "It's Lightning Engulfed! Let's see here… background story… It chooses its wielder for life…when wielder dies, it chooses a new one… yada, yada, yada… legendary weapon… stores energy…increases ultimate attack damage by energy stored… gain energy recharge rate and storage capacity..."

"Uh…i-is any of what you said good?" asked Shinji innocently.

Everybody in the tavern just stared at him with mouths agape. Joyce said, slowly and steadily: "Shinji this is one of the most powerful weapons in the world, forged by powers unknown. And you are now its wielder. It seems to have chosen you."

He picked up the weapon, a tall halberd standing almost twice his height, made from cool silver metal adorned with purple runes and a short, curved blade at the top that looked sharp enough to slice through mountains. At its bottom was a spiked ball made of the darkest purple stone. Despite its size, it felt light and manoeuvrable. Shinji felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up straight, as if it infused him with power…unlimited power! "Yes, Shinji it's very good. It's a unique, legendary weapon that any warrior would be proud of wielding."

"So…I should keep it right?"

Everybody nodded.

"Alright. Then these other weapons I'll leave here for anyone who needs them." And with that, Shinji Ikari picked up Lightning Engulfed and walked out of the tavern.

/

It was early evening by the time Shinji returned to the barracks. He finished some errands and bought some small things with his latest earnings, and deposited the rest with the Summerise Bank.

"Welcome home Shinji," said Marcus absently as he read through some reports on the dining table. Renee was next to him and peeked up quickly as she ate dinner. Though what she intended to be a quick glance at Shinji quickly turned into a wide-eyed stare.

"Shinji…is…is that what I think it is?" she asked him nervously. "Is that…really Lightning Engulfed?!"

Shinji looked a bit embarrassed. Marcus even looked up from what he was doing. Shinji wasn't entirely sure what he was supposed to do with it. He wasn't a great fighter in person; the only time he was remotely competent was in Evangelion Unit One. "Oh, yeah. I spent my bonus Wishes at the Guild and this appeared in the chest. I was hoping Marcus could teach me how to use it?"

"That can be arranged, though I think we'd better start with something a little...less sharp," Marcus replied. He walked over to Shinji and inspected the weapon closely. "Yes, definitely something less... dangerous to start out."

Shinji nodded. It made sense. Dr Akagi had put him through a bazillion simulations when he first started training with Unit One (which, from experience, never actually helped fight any subsequent Angels), though he never did understand why they never had him do any training before the Third Angel showed up. It wasn't as if NERV couldn't have done it. After all, Asuka kept bragging about how long she'd been training with Unit Two and Rei had been doing whatever she'd been doing for however long she'd been doing it.

And that, dear readers, is why one should hire competent project managers who understand risk management. You never know when you need a backup pilot to control a giant biomechanical beast cloned from a horrible Lovecraftian space monster.

"So when do I start?" asked Shinji.

"Start what?" Marcus answered. "Oh, right sorry. The training. Hmm...how about tomorrow?"

"Is there anything I can do today to prepare?"

"Actually, no," Marcus said apologetically. "But there is something very important that you need to do. Queen Greendrake wants to see you about something today. Her messenger said it was urgent."

"But...I haven't had dinner yet," protested Shinji. And he'd need all the energy he could get if he was to climb an innumerable number of steps again.

"Sorry Shinji, orders are orders." Marcus was even more apologetic. Shinji could never say no to orders, even if they came from his estranged father. It was no different here, but at least they weren't coming from the pointy end of a gun and nor was he being blackmailed with a seriously injured Rei Ayanami.

He sighed. "Alright Marcus, I'll head up to see Queen Greendrake. I'll see you when I get back."

"Thanks Shinji," Renee chimed in. "While you're out, I'll see what I can do to make Lightning Engulfed usable with your colossus. It might come in handy."

"Ok Renee, Marcus. I guess I'll be seeing you later."

And so began another long climb to the summit of Castle Summerise.

/

It occurred to Shinji about halfway up his climb that security was very lax in Summerise. The Queen was well protected by men and women wielding many sharp and/or pointy things, and there were plenty of them along the route. Despite the protection, there didn't seem to be many secrets in this place. This made him wonder, just what was NERV and his father hiding? He thought about all the security cards and need-to-know basis answers to questions that any reasonable person could be expected to ask.

Of course, he was Shinji, and everybody in Summerise knew him now. Wherever he went in the city, and even the surrounding villages, people just seemed to make way. It was not something he wanted, and he was not sure he'd ever get used to it. He had inconvenienced everyone after all, by blowing up a good part of town. But despite the destruction he sowed – which by now was largely repaired – there was a reverence of Shinji that he just did not feel comfortable with.

It took him some time to get up to the level where Queen Greendrake lived. And by that stage, Shinji was famished and thirsty, which was not a good condition to be in for a growing boy. He staggered into what he remembered was the dining room, hoping there was still something to eat. He was surprised that Queen Greendrake was there eating gracefully, but alone, at the head of a table long and wide enough to seat dozens. There wasn't even a servant or member of staff in sight. She was dressed simply in a white shirt and long dark skirt, with her hair loosened and only a bow remaining on the side of hair. Shinji wondered whether it was her way to look less royal, and more relatable. Or maybe she'd just had a very long day.

She was evidently as surprised as Shinji, but it only showed on her face for a split second. She signalled with her hand to have Shinji sit next to her, which he gladly did after bowing. He'd barely sat down when a plate of steaming hot food appeared in front of him and his stomach made its state and desire known by growling as aggressively as a two-headed wolf.

Queen Greendrake laughed prettily. As she was bathed in the soft but generous candlelight in the room, Shinji could not think of any other word to describe Annabella Laurel Greendrake aside from beautiful. Her smile was beautiful. Her laugh was beautiful. She was just…beautiful. He remembered feeling like that about someone else. And, he realised, he still very much did.

"Thanks for coming, Shinji," she said as he sat down. He grew a little pink with embarrassment caused by his stomach, but since this didn't seem to be a formal occasion, he stopped worrying so much about it.

"Not a problem. Sorry, about…the stomach, and the thing…"

She waved him off and kept eating. Shinji, not knowing what else to say or do, dutifully started to eat the portion placed in front of him.

"So, Sir Shinji Ikari, have you ever thought about marriage?" she posed to Shinji just as he was drinking from his cup of fruit punch.

Unsurprisingly, he was not expecting that kind of question and swallowed some of the drink down the wrong passage. He coughed a few times, trying to clear out the offending liquid.

"U-uh, um…I'm sorry," said Shinji, trying to understand whether he'd misheard what she said. "Marriage? I-I've never thought about it. I'm only 14 years old, and that's too young where I'm from. M-my parents…they…well, it's complicated."

That, dear reader, is what is known as an understatement.

"I see. Well, I think you're lucky then, if 14 is too young. I'm the same age as you and the pressure to get me married to a suitable man is unbearable."

"I thought you were the Queen, Anna?" asked Shinji innocently. "Can't you just…do whatever you want?"

"Pfft," laughed Anna derisively. Shinji could pick up hints of sadness in her tone though. "Anyone who thinks that being a leader means you can do whatever you want are dreaming. Power isn't a plaything. People depend on you to do the right thing, and even if you do the right thing, they complain about it."

Shinji thought about his own experiences and the people he knew. He had to pilot Evangelion Unit One against the Third Angel because Rei was injured. His father knew it. Misato knew it. They had no choice. But he hated it at the time. Though now that he knew his mother was with him in there, had been there the whole time, the equation had very much been turned on to its head.

Still, making hard choices in such moments didn't make the situation any better.

"I guess I don't really understand what you do. I-I'm -," he was about to apologise again, but he figured he should try and say something else for a change. " – ready to listen, if you don't mind sharing."

"Alright, I'll tell you, but after dinner. I know you're hungry!" she smiled again, that pretty smile. He smiled back too, not sure if anything else needed to be said. The two of them are the rest of the meal in silence but with a new sense of camaraderie.

/

Meanwhile, faraway from Summerise, and the dramas of a mopey and oblivious young man…

"Winterlune, report," said Gerard the Unhinged. The two men stood in a dungeon deep underground lit by many smoky torches and filled with the ear-piercing screams of prisoners being aggressively interrogated, or the moans and groans of those who had given up hope of ever attaining freedom after their regularly scheduled interrogation session.

"Of course, my liege," responded Winterlune sharply. The lower ranked man stood pencil straight before his superior, likely trying his best to hide his fear of punishment. "As you know, the Colossus of Summerise was able to nullify our latest scheme. Gemini Lupus was unsuccessful in destroying Boldhold, and his supporting army of kobolds broke and ran soon after the battle began."

"What is your view on the scheme itself?" enquired Gerard.

"Well, I thought it sound, my liege. We could not have expected the Colossus to be so effective at making friends with Gemini Lupus just by... scratching its stomach."

"Hmph. It appears we have underestimated the resourcefulness of Greendrake, Sergevague and the Colossus' rider. I will consider our next steps. You may leave now."

"Of course, my Master. Your Grand Design must come to fruition. For peace. For prosperity. For the future. You are the foundation rock upon which our..."

"Yes, thank you for your kind words, Winterlune. Please, I must return to my work."

Winterlune bowed, realising his love for lofty exposition and dramatic monologues might get him in trouble. "Of course, I will be at your service." Winterlune promptly left the scene.

With his subordinate out of the room, Gerard turned back to what was occupying him previously. A kobold, yellow skinned and with a snowy white beard, lay restrained on a flat bench. A look of resignation was plastered on the poor creature's face.

"Chief Kokobo," said Gerard gently. "I apologise for the interruption before. I am so grateful to you for your attendance at this very important meeting. It is a performance review of our recent special military operation."

"Master Gerard," started the little creature. "My people bled for you. Many lost their lives to the Colossus of Summerise, not to mention Gemini Lupus. It was completely out of control!"

"Ah, my dear chief," Gerard responded patiently. "My problem with your people is resolve. They lack a certain joie-de-vive, or a piece-de-resistance, to truly shine as they lay down their livelihoods, lives and everything else they might possess for my Grand Design. It is imperative, nay, critical, for the success of the Grand Design that your people are truly…committed."

"Master Gerard, we would happily lay down our lives for you, but in this battle, there was no hope of success once the siege weapons had been destroyed. We lost more than half our starting soldiers and we could not scale the walls…"

"And then your people turned tail and ran off." It wasn't a question asked by Gerard. Merely a statement of fact.

Kokobo knew that when he was strapped into this contraption, there would not be a fun ride to follow. But he was here to represent and defend his people, who had already suffered greatly under the thumb of Gerard the Unhinged. He had no choice but to acquiesce to the madman's every whim.

"My Master, isn't it better to have half your soldiers return to fight another day instead of losing them all in a doomed attack?" the kobold pleaded. Gerard had to have some military sense surely. Just because he was a bit mad (possibly an understatement) it didn't mean he was always irrational, right?

"My dear Chief Kokobo, it is naive for you to think that turning tail is anything but cowardice. But I do agree that having half your soldiers return to fight another day is good. So in that sense, I will only mete out a punishment to you, personally for your people's dismal performance..."

Kokobo steeled himself for what was to come while Gerard fiddled with some implements on a small tray table beside him. No doubt the end for him was near, but at least he was old and considered his life well lived. Kokobo silently wept, and wondered what could have been. If only his tribe had settled further from Rotesland. If only they had fought against Gerard's madness and not taken the easy route. If only, if only. Kokobo was no fool, he knew he would not leave this place the moment he entered. He only hoped that his anointed heir could dig his people out of the hole into which they'd fallen.

"Now, we will begin the punishment. Are you comfortable, Chief?"

/

Dinner continued to be a quiet affair between the young Queen and Shinji. There was polite chit-chat about the goings on around the realm. But the small talk seemed to fade away after a few short, shy answers. Shinji had never been much of a conversationalist, and he found that he missed his cello right there and then. He might have been able to express his feelings that way. He also wasn't sure how many courses were served to them, though dessert was particularly memorable.

After the plates were cleaned away, and his stomach started to tell his brain to fire off endorphins of satisfaction, Greendrake (he hadn't quite gotten used to calling her Anna yet) excused herself, and asked him to wait for her in the courtyard.

So, Shinji dutifully went outside to the courtyard and sat down on the small wooden outdoor bench and enjoyed the view whilst slowly sipping his tankard of juice. Below them, Summerise was still well lit by the torches of patrolling soldiers and merchants plying their trade in the markets. He thought he could hear the touting and competitive, low, low prices of each merchant.

A cool, gentle breeze blew through the courtyard, rustling the bushes and flowers which had already closed for the night. It reminded him a little of the Japanese countryside's tranquillity. The peace and quiet allowed him to hear the quiet padding of slippers approach him. Shinji turned and saw Annabella Laurel Greendrake walking shyly towards him, dressed in an elegant orange and red silken dress decorated with flowers.

"Your Grace…" Shinji tried to say, but there was suddenly a lot of cotton wool in his mouth, and it came out as a hot mess of grunts.

Queen Greendrake smiled and chuckled at Shinji's fumbling. "I'm glad you seem to like it, Sir Ikari."

There was something in the way she spoke to him that Shinji couldn't quite place. But then her face quickly got contemplative as she joined him on the courtyard bench. "You know, before my parents died, I think I was a terror. I would demand everything and anything and the poor servants would scurry off. I had my choice of dress, my choice of food, my choice of toys… I was a spoilt brat. I thought that I had all the power then."

Shinji simply nodded. That reminded him of someone he knew. But that someone had never ever just opened up to him like this. It was a nice change, to have someone confide in him, though he wasn't sure why. He was a damaged person too.

"But then my parents died fighting Gerard the Unhinged in the Qalone Wars, as did a lot of other people's parents. They were just people after all, and fancy titles don't protect you against arrows or swords. Suddenly, my choices were all taken away from me, even how I spent most of my time. But all this power was thrust upon me without any guidance on how to wield it. I had to do a lot of growing up, very quickly."

"I-I'm sorry to hear that A-Anna," Shinji said softly. "M-my mother. She…left us when I was three, and then my father abandoned me. He said that he had 'too much work to do' and then walked away. He didn't even say goodbye."

Summarising one's life into such a small, neat package made it feel as if someone else had inhabited his body and Shinji had simply watched, totally detached, the last ten years unfold in slow motion. This was less than ideal, he knew. And Shinji wanted to do what Annabella had done; to grow and accept life's challenges, imperfections, and annoyances.

"I'm sorry to hear that too," Anna replied, also softly and full of understanding. "It looks like both of us have problems that we can't solve."

"I don't think I know how to solve the problem. Before I came here, I just…ran away from them. I drowned them in music, whether by playing, or by listening to it, or I kept busy doing other things."

Shinji looked at Anna whilst she drew a little closer. "Heh. At least you knew you had a problem. I know how keeping busy helps to deal with it. But at night, when I'm all alone and there's nobody else around, they just rush into my head all at once."

Anna looked at Shinji intently in the eye. "It's hard. I wish that someone could help me, even if it's just to listen."

Shinji gulped, both at the impromptu entreaty, and noticed just how close her body was to his. She was very pretty, and smelled nice, and a lot of things he lacked the eloquence to put into words. And he knew he shouldn't do anything because for some reason an equally beautiful girl who'd already captured his imagination the day he met her had murmured 'mama' in his mind.

"Maybe not all problems can be solved easily," she said quietly, turning her head to look at the landscape in front of them. There was a quiet contemplative mood between the two, which Shinji could not help but spoil.

"U-uh, Anna, you asked me before about marriage," Shinji asked tentatively. "What was that about?"

"Oh, I was just thinking about it. As a queen without a consort, I'm unlikely to bear any heirs to the throne, so I'm being pressured by the court to find a suitor. There happens to be a few so I'm supposed to hold a grand ball and see which one I like best." Anna gave him a piercing look. Shinji was absolutely sure that she meant something by it, but nonetheless left it alone since he didn't know how to approach it.

"So-so you just find someone you like and get married? Is it that simple?" he asked innocently. And probably stupidly.

She let out another one of her laughs which helped to brighten the serious mood. "I was going to say it's not that simple, but maybe it is. My mother and father were always showing how in love with each other they were. If only there was someone around here I liked the look of..."

She trailed of again but not before looking intently at Shinji. He was now certain that there was some hidden meaning behind the whole affair now, but given his experience with people of the opposite sex was an angry volcano, a plain of permafrost and a slurry of booze, Shinji thought it best to leave the question unanswered for the moment.

"I-is there anything I can do to help?"

Anna smiled that pretty smile again. It was the kind of smile that could melt any boy into a puddle of compliance. "In fact, there is something you can do. I want you to be my partner at the ball that we're holding."

"I…I'd be honoured!" said Shinji, probably a little too quickly. "But, uh, isn't the point of the ball to find someone for you to marry? I-I would be in the way, right?"

"My dear Shinji, I do want you to get in the way," she purred. "The suitors will likely all be boars and bores, instead of brave warriors like you."

I'm sure that emphasis means something, but I'm still not sure what. But if Anna needs my help, then I'll do my best. She's done so much to help me feel comfortable here, it seems like the least I could do.

"O-oh, I'm flattered, Anna. It would be an honour to accompany you."

"Yes, it is an honour to accompany me!" She laughed again, and Shinji was happy once more at the mood now becoming much lighter. "So, since you've agreed, I need to ask you something important. Can you dance? It is a ball after all."

"Um, well…" Shinji's entire experience with dance of course was with Asuka in a special synchronised battle against an Angel. He'd never just learned how to dance for the sake of dancing. "I…have danced, but I fell over right at the end of the routine on top of my partner…and then we yelled at each other, and I'm going to stop talking now."

"You fell on…never mind. I won't ask. Fine. You will learn to dance, and then we will learn how to dance together. You'll stay here with me until the ball so we can prepare and not waste time with you going back and forth to Marcus and Renee's quarters."

"But, I have some commissions…" Shinji tried to protest meekly. She really was taking charge, and that there was no way he would win any argument.

"Nonsense. Do you think some guild commissions are more important than me?"

He shrunk against her accusation. "No. Not at all. It would be an honour…"

"Yes! It is an honour to be sleeping in such proximity to me!"

Shinji's eyes widened, his cheeks reddened and after a split second, Anna also realised just what she was insinuating. Her cheeks also reddened substantially. "Um, I-I mean…that you will be sleeping, over there – " she waved vaguely in the direction of the sleeping quarters " – and very few people are allowed to stay at this level."

He could only nod in agreement.

"In that case, Sir Ikari, I bid you a good night." And with that, Queen Annabella Laurel Greendrake turned dramatically and walked towards her quarters, leaving a very bewildered Shinji standing there, still holding half a mug of juice.

A/N

Well howdy folks, Author here. Hope you've been having a lovely time, and thanks to all the readers who have stopped by my little tale. Really means a lot to see people enjoying my writing. As always, likes, follows and comments are always appreciated from you.

EPISODE PREVIEW

In the next episode of Mopey Boi:

Shinji dances!

Shinji admires someone!

Shinji dances some more!