Chapter Twenty-Two Prime: Ecdysis.

Central Dogma, Tokyo-3 Special Administrative District, Japan.

September 5th, 2015.

Katsuragi Misato stared at the display over tented fingers. "They aren't communicating at all."

An Angel strode on wrought iron legs across the simulated marsh, kicking up a fine mist of ice crystals. Its bird-skull head bobbed on a long spindle—a heavy counterweight dangled on the other end of the shaft. The water froze into fractal snowflakes beneath its feet and covered its seventy meter tall shanks in furry rime.

A scarlet Evangelion pursued the monster along the riverbank. The sun blazed on its mirror-polished armor and glinted from the tether reeling out behind it. Unit-02 sprayed the Angel with pallet rifle fire. A round flew inches from the creature's head and ricocheted off an invisible barrier.

The Angel's eyes flashed. Asuka dove into the river a second before the bank exploded. A shower of burning mud and smoking pebbles rained from the sky, beneath a great fiery cross. Unit-02 emerged on the far shore, wreathed in steam. Asuka pulled the trigger of her pallet rifle…and nothing happened. Unit-02 tossed the rifle aside impatiently and drew her knife.

The monster took a step forward and paused, lifting its ivory mask skyward.

A thin thread of light flickered from a patch of dense brush into the Angel's shoulder. An AT-Field bloomed at the point of impact, millimeters over the Angel's carapace. The particle beam ricocheted off and plunged into the river, lighting it an eerie blue.

Unit-00 rose from the prone position, smoke billowing from the oversized rifle cradled in its arms. Rei cycled the bolt with a sharp clack; a minivan-sized casing crushed a patch of bushes. The Angel's neck snapped back over its shoulders, all four eyes staring Rei down. For a moment all was still, except for the slow grinding of the Angel's masks on its steel neck.

Asuka took a long stride and leapt at the monster's left knee, knife first. The blade slid between the lowest metallic struts and stuck. She threw a loop of her tether around the creature's thigh and hacked at the joint with her progressive knife. Showers of orange sparks rained from the blade, but the steely exoskeleton was untouched. The Angel redirected its rage on Unit-02. The creature stabbed its right foot deep into the mud and shook its other leg wildly; Asuka clung stubbornly to the joint. The Angel pecked angrily at Unit-02's head and shoulders. Asuka flung up her right hand to shield her head—she realized her mistake a moment too late. The Angel's razor beak came crashing down on Unit-02's left hand, shearing through the Evangelion's wrist. Blood spewed from the stump and froze into scarlet icicles dripping down the monster's leg. Unit-02 crashed into the reeking swamp head-first. The Angel shook the heavy power cable off its leg and fired a salvo at the Evangelion. Asuka took off at a run as several acres of trees erupted into flame. She spun on her heel as another fusillade blew a creek into boiling rain and went to ground in the far corner of the map. Rei's second shot connected with the Angel's shoulder—violet radiation shone around the red-hot metal, but the monster seemed to shrug it off. It resumed its slow patrol, blood dripping from its stained mask.

Misato tapped a button on the console. "Asuka's even worse than Shinji—she hasn't checked on Rei once."

The control room door slid open with a hiss. Misato heard familiar footsteps and grimaced.

Not again.

Kaji Ryoji draped an arm around the back of Misato's office chair—Misato felt her heart skip a beat. He bent down to look at the screen; Misato caught a whiff of his cologne, mingled with the smell of tobacco. A lock of hair fell loosely from his ponytail—she fought the sudden impulse to tuck it behind his ear.

"How are they doing?"

Bad Misato. Get a grip, damn it.

Misato scooted the chair away, nudging his arm off. "Sorry, but civilians aren't allowed in the simulation room."

Kaji's smirk widened. "That's cold, Katsuragi. I've missed you. Now that we're finally back together—"

Misato shot him a spine-chilling glare. "There is no 'we.' Don't make me call security."

Kaji grinned and drew himself up. He flashed a badge emblazoned with a UN insignia. "I'm here on official business, Captain. The Security Council wants to make sure NERV is abiding by the Vatican Treaty, and part of that is inspecting every inch of the Geofront."

Misato scoffed. "I'm not hiding an Evangelion under my skirt, Inspector Kaji, so you can move along."

He held up his hands. "I believe you, but just to be thorough…"

Her glare got colder. Kaji chuckled. "In any case, my ward is getting tested. I wanted to see how she was doing,"

Misato furrowed her brow. "Who told you Asuka was testing today?"

"A chickadee flew up to my windowsill. You should buy some birdseed, Katsuragi."

I need to warn Operations not to talk to him. Who knows what secrets Kaji's wormed out of them? Misato returned her gaze to the screen.

The Angel strode down the center of the map, crushing a patch of singed mangroves. Rei retreated towards the generator array. Asuka retrieved the spare pistol from the armory bunker and scaled a small hill a few hundred meters from the monster. The beast ignored them both, moving towards the central lagoon.

Kaji frowned. "Can Clockiel hit them from that range?"

"... Clockiel? "

Kaji shrugged. "That's what Asuka calls it."

Well, it does look a little like a clock.

" Zaphkiel has an effective range of five kilometers."

"And the hill? It's pretty solid cover."

Unit-02 wedged the pistol between its knees and cocked it. On the other side of the map, Unit-00 knelt behind a small cottage, positron ammo now exhausted. Rei loaded her rifle with high-impact rounds and stared down the sights of her rifle.

In the distance, Zaphkiel turned to face the Evangelions. The two masks ground to life, rotating like the hands of a clock. A star appeared at the tip of the Angel's beak.

Zaphkiel's eyes glowed with an inhuman malice. A brilliant flash of light; the hill exploded into a geyser of burning grass and molten rock. Unit-02 broke from cover and sprinted down the map at the Angel. The Angel took two steps west, dodging a round from Rei's rifle, and fired another shot. The beam flew narrowly past Unit-02…and plowed into the power transformer. A blazing cross shot up from the impact point; the severed Evangelion tethers spewed fountains of sparks. Two countdowns appeared on the simulator screen.

"They shouldn't have let it get so close to the power lines," Misato said. "Reckless."

They have five minutes left.

Asuka dumped a magazine into the Angel's hip, ducking the return volley. Three rapid blasts carved a smoldering dent into the Angel's shin—the flash cast a brilliant rainbow in the falling mist.

Unit-00 changed magazines and fired again. A wide beam of energy flew across the swamp and slammed into the Angel's temple—Zaphkiel's head spun drunkenly about its axis. As Rei cycled the bolt and adjusted her aim point, Asuka reloaded her pistol and opened fire. A volley of incendiary rounds burst against the Angel's belly. It turned to face Asuka; she rolled clear just in time to dodge a murderous stomp. Zaphkiel raised its leg again, seemed to lose interest mid-strike, and turned to face the house. The second shot from Unit-00 sparked off its AT-Field. The creature stretched its neck towards her, rear mask spinning wildly.

"Rei's vulnerable," Kaji muttered.

Misato nodded. "That house is a trap—she should have seen that."

The Angel charged, beak aimed inexorably at Unit-00's heart. The earth trembled under its mighty feet. Each thundering step kicked up an iridescent haze of ice crystals. The first energy blast reduced the cottage to matchwood and slag. Rei's third shot tore through the smoke, smashing into the Angel's pendulum.

They still haven't figured out where the core is.

Her fourth shot flew wild; Unit-00 backpedaled frantically, dodging a murderous thrust from the monster, and turned to run…straight into the simulation boundary. Rei turned, dropped to one knee, and aimed her last round up at Zaphkiel's pendulum.

Too late.

The Angel stabbed down at Unit-00, tearing through its AT-Field like toilet paper, and impaled it through the core. The simulated Evangelion flashed red and froze. Unit-00's rifle dropped from its nerveless hand and discharged, blowing down a line of trees.

Three minutes left .

Asuka fired a wild barrage from her handgun, sprinting straight at the Angel.

Asuka's pistol clicked empty. She discarded the gun and drew her knife, leaping over a grassy knoll…

Zaphkiel's laser caught her just under the ribs, punching a car-sized hole through the Evangelion's viscera. Unit-02 crashed face first into the shallows, splashing scarlet water everywhere.

Kaji winced. "Can she feel that?"

"We turned down the pain circuits, so it shouldn't be that bad. Like a baseball bat to the gut."

"That still hurts, you know…"

Sixty seconds left on the clock .

Zaphkiel's head bobbed lazily as it approached the maimed mecha. Steam rose from the smoking hole in the Evangelion's armor plate. The Angel stretched up to its full height, gloating its fallen foe.

The Evangelion moved.

Unit-02 lifted its bloody right arm just as Zaphkiel fired one last burst. A blazing AT-Field appeared around Unit-02. The energy blast struck Asuka's palm and ricocheted. A blinding white flash lit every inch of the swamp. Zaphkiel reeled, acrid smoke rising from the wound. It limped a few dozen meters before the damaged leg folded. The laser had carved a sizzling hole through the Angel's right shoulder, exposing the charred bone beneath.

"Impossible," Misato mumbled. "The Evangelion's AT-Field isn't strong enough—"

Asuka's AT-Field faded to a thin haze around the mecha's battered plating. The Angel raised its good leg and drove it through Unit-02's heart.

Kaji clapped her on the back. "She's just full of surprises, isn't she?"

Hyuga Makoto cleared his throat. "Ma'am, the Commander moved up the meeting."

Misato glanced over. "When did you get here?"

"A couple minutes ago. I didn't want to interrupt the training." Makoto glanced at Kaji and frowned. "Who is he? This is a restricted area."

That's what I was saying!

Kaji smiled. 'Hello, Hyuga-kun. Nice to finally meet Misato's right hand—"

"How do you know my name?" He looked at Misato. "Captain?"

Misato scratched her chin. How do they say it in English?

She turned to Kaji. " Make like a bee and buzz off ."

Silence. Kaji took a deep breath, making a valiant effort to retain his composure.

He failed. "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Misato's face burned. "Shut it, Kaji!"

Kaji made a sound like a rusty hand-pump. "Say it again," he wheezed. "Come on, one more time!"

Misato kicked him in the shin. "DIE!"

She shoved her belongings in a bag and stormed out. "Hyuga, take over the test."

Kaji wiped his eyes. "See ya, Katsuragi!"

I'm going to murder him.

Misato scanned her keycard at the armored door. The door hissed open and Misato walked into the offices of Project E. The room was at least a kilometer long, divided into segments by concrete partitions. Below the elevated walkway, the floor was covered in rows of cubicles to the right and a strip of offices to the left. A bald man in a ratty polo shirt and cargo shorts passed Misato, mug of steaming coffee in hand. Maybe I'll stop by the break room. She took a left down a side corridor, scanned her badge again, climbed a flight of stairs, and finally stood in front of Ritsuko's office.

Misato knocked on the door. "It's me. They moved the meeting up."

She heard footsteps from inside; the door opened to reveal Akagi Ritsuko. "I got the message."

Misato stuck her head through the doorway. Sheaves of paper were stacked on the floor, some bound nearly in twine and others loose. Ritsuko's lab coat was thrown over a stack of books. Unusually, there were no cigarette butts in the ashtray. Maya spun around in the office chair. "Hi, Katsuragi-san. How did the simulation go?"

Misato smiled internally. There's only one chair in here.

"Without a hitch," the Operations Director said. "Are you sure we can spare the compute power?"

Ritsuko nudged her inside and shut the door. "Not a problem. The MAGI has several circuits set aside for simulations—remember, this system was originally built to simulate win conditions for a world war."

Misato picked up one booklet and skimmed through the dense code. "What is all this?"

Ritsuko tugged the program out of her hands. "May—Ibuki-san was trying to clear out some of the muck in the MAGI memory banks. AIs can't forget the way we can, so over time storage gets crammed with junk data. She asked me for a consult."

Misato pushed some pages aside and sat on the desk. "Isn't there a system that does that?"

"Nidhogg, yes. It's an isolated server below Central Dogma that prunes the memory banks. It isn't under MAGI control—we interface to it through another computer named Ratatoskr."

"Until it went down," Maya said. "We still don't know why, but Nidhogg hasn't worked properly for the last six months. Casper finally crashed yesterday and I figured out the pruning system was down."

Ritsuko snorted. "This is why intelligent systems shouldn't be put in charge of crucial functions. There's always a chance it chooses not to cooperate."

Maya scratched her head. "No, but that's the weirdest part. Ratatoskr should've caught that error, but the reporting system was disabled. There's no record of who did it because the access log to Ratatoskr got overwritten with nonsense. We have no idea who logged into Nidhogg this month."

Sounds like sabotage. She glanced at Ritsuko, who was tidying up a stack of papers. No. This is supposed to look like sabotage. She needs to keep something in the MAGI network from getting deleted.

"So," Misato said. "Has Kaji come by recently?"

Ritsuko nodded. "He was poking around here a few hours ago."

"Ibuki-san, what about your department?"

Maya shook her head. "I haven't seen him yet. Should I be worried?"

"No, but be careful. Kaji Ryoji is—"

"Both a Judas and a lying snake," Ritsuko finished. "Honestly, I don't know which is worse."

"He's an inspector," Misato said. "A particularly nosy, aggravating, infuriating arms control inspector who likes to show up without a warning and mess with people's personal lives."

Ritsuko smirked. "And Captain Katsuragi's college ex, but what's a week between friends?"

Misato tossed a cat-shaped eraser at Ritsuko. "Can it. Anyway, I wanted to warn you two. He's going to use the chaos to penetrate NERV, and without Gendo he might well pull it off."

Maya retrieved the eraser. "Why is that a bad thing? He's not going to find anything; Captain Powell's already turned my department upside down. He would have caught anything illegal."

Misato and Ritsuko exchanged a look.

"Well," Misato said carefully. "We have our idea of legal, and Metarmscom has their idea. A lot of Gendo's old enemies want to sink NERV at any cost. Now that he's dead, they're coming out of the woodwork."

"We can't stop Kaji-san, then. He can just demand access from the Commander with his UN credentials."

"We can't outright stop him, but we can slow him down." Ritsuko said. "NERV is obligated to let the Meta-Armaments Control Committee inspect them on behalf of the Security Council, but we don't have to give him anything he doesn't ask for."

Misato reached over and locked the door. "This is how Commander Ikari kept them away for so long. We called it the Sakoku Doctrine: the heads of the NERV departments would quietly obstruct the inspections by obeying every order to the letter and no further. "

Maya frowned. "Couldn't they complain to the Security Council that you weren't cooperating?"

Ritsuko smiled mirthlessly. "What would they report? 'NERV is cooperating with our orders…but not how I want them to.' Some of them would ask broad questions to try to get a coherent answer—that's when you give them a pile of raw files without metadata and let them sort it out. None of these Inspectors can sort the grain from the chaff."

She laid a hand on Maya's shoulder. "The UN is a relic of an ideology that died after the Second Impact, the belief that powers could sit at a table and talk out their problems. Commander Ikari kept them at bay while he was in charge, but now they smell blood around Allard. He's the kind of weak leader who actually believes in 'transparency' and 'oversight.' "

Maya glanced at the door. She'll do it. Just one more push.

Misato moved closer, meeting Ibuki's eyes. "Ibuki-san, you know she's right. If we let Kaji interfere today, that's the end of our independence. The Americans, Russians, and Chinese will carve NERV up into their own national Manhattan Projects, and then they'll use the Evangelions to refight the Great Pacific War. For the sake of our mission, we need to do whatever it takes to keep NERV safe. The stakes are too high to trust outsiders."

Maya stared at the floor, clenching the eraser in a white-knuckled grip. Slowly, she looked up at Ritsuko. "Alright. I'll tell my subordinates to keep Kaji-san out of the MAGI."

Misato let out a breath. "Thank you, Captain Ibuki."
Ritsuko checked the clock. "We should get going. The meeting is in ten minutes."

Misato switched off the lights and let the door shut behind them. Ritsuko and Maya were chatting about some arcane computer topic a few meters ahead; Misato looked at Maya's shy smile and felt a strange pang of guilt. I'm doing this because Kaji is associated with SEELE, not because I enjoy tugging Maya along. We can't let them into the MAGI.

Ritsuko laughed at one of Maya's jokes; the younger woman blushed and turned away.

How do you keep getting away with it, Ritsuko?

Misato stifled a yawn. Just two more meetings, then I can go home.

She took a sip of her coffee and glanced around the conference room. Ise's not here yet. The only thing reliable about that man is his unreliability.

Misato glanced to her left. Benedikt Lukyanovich Lavrentiy checked his pager for the third time in five minutes, muttered something in Russian, and returned it to his pocket. Claude Allard sorted through a pile of notes at the head of the table. Henry Powell leaned back in his seat opposite Lukyanovich with his eyes closed. He wore an expression of Buddha-like serenity. Ibuki Maya sat two seats down from the spy chief, visibly leaning away from him. Akagi Ritsuko took the last chair next to Maya, as far from Benedikt as possible. Her expression promised bloody retribution. Finally, Mizuko Kentarou sat at Misato's right. The press chief was an elderly man with bristly white hair and thick bifocal glasses. He sipped his cup of green tea, blissfully indifferent to the tense atmosphere.

Misato leaned towards Benedikt. "Sir, where is Captain Ise? We were supposed to start ten minutes ago."

"How am I supposed to know?" Benedikt grumbled. "He said he was filing some—"

The door crashed open. The Subcommander flinched violently. "And there he is."

Ise Minato marched into the room and sank into the chair between Powell and Maya, directly opposite Misato. He dropped an overstuffed briefcase onto the table with a loud thud. "Sorry I'm late. There was a complication in the—well, it's a long story. Someone misplaced last month's report on Section 6's readiness."

Ritsuko sneered. "I think we are all well aware of your readiness, Captain Ise."

He made an irritated gesture. "Most of our surprise orders come from Project E. At least Operations submits their requisition orders in advance—"

Misato felt her blood pressure rising. "Don't pin this on us, Ise-san. I've had to go without replacement parts for a month because Logistics won't supply them."

"We don't have them in stock yet, because—"

Commander Allard cleared his throat. "If you're quite finished, Captain. We have a lot to get through today."

Ise nodded curtly. "Yes, sir."

He shot Misato a resentful glare. She clenched her fists under the table. He isn't worth the aneurysm.

Allard stood up. "First item: The UN has sent an inspector from Metarmscom to verify NERV is in compliance with the Vatican Treaty. We have nothing to fear; NERV has a long history of transparency and accountability."

Misato and Ritsuko exchanged a smirk. So the old man has a sense of humor.

He continued. "The inspector's name is Kaji Ryoji. As NERV's principal officers, each of you will receive a visit from Mr. Kaji. Please answer any question he asks to the letter. He has top-level security clearance and is entitled to request access to any NERV file. He is, however, a very busy official. Don't waste his time with information he didn't ask for. This includes unnecessary metadata, additional files, and any loose talk about your coworkers or operational conditions. If he wishes to tour your section, make sure to escort him personally to make sure he doesn't get lost. Instruct your subordinates to continue working as if he isn't there, and above all be courteous. Mr. Kaji can be…difficult to work with, but he is a representative of the Security Council."

Misato caught his eye. "Sir, if I may?"

Allard nodded. "Go ahead."

"I think he is an active danger to our operations. Kaji has a habit of overstepping his bounds—I don't trust the Inspector around critical systems. Can't you ask for a different one?"

Ritsuko nodded. "I agree. Kaji Ryoji cannot be allowed access to the MAGI. He could do tremendous damage to our security with a few minutes of unsupervised access."

Lavrentiy smiled bitterly. "The UN knows that Kaji will be more thorough than the others. They also know that the presence of a known Adamite is an insult to NERV's mission—not to mention the hundreds of innocents murdered by the first three Angels."

A ripple passed through the room. That's his angle, huh? He can't admit SEELE exists, but he can pin their agents and attacks on the Adamite Parish.

Misato watched as Maya glanced to her right…only to find Powell staring at her. The color drained from her face as she quickly looked away. Ritsuko tapped a pen against the wooden table, looking supremely uninterested. Ise met Misato's gaze for a moment and scowled.

Mizuko raised his hand. "Sir, Kaji-san is an Adamite? Why was he even allowed into the Geofront?"

Benedikt shrugged. "Why would they care? The Adamites have never targeted the United Nations directly—I have it on good authority that several members of Metarmscom's executive committee have been initiated into the sect. The Security Council wants to see us humiliated so the UN can take the Evangelions for themselves."

Powell coughed. "We've purged the recognized Adamite radicals from NERV over the last two months, although I suspect quite a few are still hidden. My proposal to expel all members of the Universal Tabernacle from Tokyo-3 was rejected, however—"

Allard cut across him. "NERV may have the authority to detain security threats, but we will not violate the freedom of religion. They have the right to worship the Angels, treasonous as it may be."

The more interesting question is, 'when did we get the authority to arrest people?' Why do we need Powell's secret police to fight giant space aliens?

Benedikt's expression soured, but he held his peace.

Mizuko jotted down a quick note. "Public Relations has made some progress on the Universal Tabernacle front. If I may give my report—"

Benedikt and Powell's pockets buzzed at the same moment. Benedikt snatched his pager from his coat. He read the message and smirked. "Before your report, Captain Mizuko, I believe Section 2 has some news?"

The Security Chief rose from his seat. "Three employees of Section 7 were just arrested for espionage. Section 2 has been tracking them for a while, and today we caught them in the act. The suspects will be turned over to the Japanese government for trial once the state of emergency has passed."

Misato fought to keep her poker face. Three employees…the intermediaries! They didn't get Mr. X. They wouldn't arrest someone that dangerous, they'd just put a bullet in him.

Ritsuko's face froze for an instant, before settling into a scornful grin. "Brilliant. Excellent work, Major Powell. You harassed my department for two months, sent agents to go through my apartment, and locked us out of the MAGI. Those three arrests cost us millions in lost time."

"The security restrictions on Section 7 will be relaxed in short order. Thank you for your cooperation, Captain Akagi."

Ritsuko chuckled. "Glad I could be of assistance. If you need anything else, Major, feel free to ask."

Misato kept her eyes safely on a scratch on the table. She didn't know they got to her plants. I can tell; Benedikt is sending a warning. He can have her thrown in a cell too, if she ever misbehaves.

Mizuko launched into his status report.

That's right, I have to give my report today. She retrieved her bag from under her seat and rummaged through its contents.

You'll get your answers soon enough.

Misato poured herself a cup of coffee and took a sip, doing her best to ignore the other officer in the Subcommander's study. The room was neater than last time, with the books now actually sitting in the bookshelves.

Why does Lavrentiy keep bringing his pet psycho to these meetings?

Powell turned the page of his magazine. "The Subcommander's running late, isn't he?"

"The Section 3 meeting must have gone over time. The Nidhogg situation is probably what they're working on."

"Captain Ibuki's new to command, so mistakes like these are inevitable. She was a member of the bridge crew, yes?"

Misato recognized the insinuation and smiled thinly. "Ibuki-san was still the second ranked officer in the computing department. She is perfectly qualified for her position."

Not today, jackass.

Powell dropped the magazine, abandoning his ruse. "My doubts lie not in her performance, but her loyalty. Her uncle and cousin are both members of the Universal Tabernacle—she may have a soft corner towards the Adamite terrorists."

Misato raised her voice. "Ibuki-san has served NERV with honor, and I will not tolerate aspersions against her character. We don't choose our relatives, Major."

Silence.

Oops, I might have gone too far.

She bowed slightly. "I apologize—"

Powell interrupted her. "Mr. X's intrusions also began a month after Ibuki took control of the MAGI. If the Adamites didn't get to her, SEELE might have."

"There's no way Captain Ibuki is working with SEELE. She's loyal to NERV, and loyal to her superior officers. If anything, the fact that SEELE has to sneak around in the MAGI proves her innocence; SEELE would've just walked in the front door if they controlled the head of the project."

"Or she's working with Akagi to give her indirect access to the MAGI."

Misato shook her head. "If she is, then she hasn't handed anything of value over. There hasn't been any sabotage or interference detected; I'd be more worried about Mr. X rummaging through our files."

Maya is definitely working with Ritsuko and SEELE, but there's no way I'm telling Powell that. It'd be the same thing as killing her myself.

Sometimes I hate my job.

Powell opened his mouth to answer—at that moment, Benedikt walked in. His heavy coat was wet with condensation. "Just got back from Náströnd. The repairs are going to take a while." He hung his coat on the hook and sat down behind the oaken desk. "You were right, Katsuragi-san. Akagi was using the Adamites as a go-between. Leaving the Revelation of Tabris in her bag was a careless mistake."

"Those UT missionaries give those out to everyone. I'm surprised she didn't toss it straightaway."

Powell shrugged. "Probably worried she'd be caught on the CCTV cameras. She knew she couldn't toss it at work, since we're looking through her trash. I suspect she planned to slip it into one of the incinerators after her shift. NERV is lucky that Captain Katsuragi had the foresight to go through her briefcase."

Actually, I was looking for chocolate. Ritsuko imports the good stuff from Belgium…but they don't need to know that.

Misato put on her best innocent look. "She was clinging to the bag all day, so I figured she was hiding something important."

Another total lie. I thought she brought those rum chocolates I like and was trying to keep me away.

Powell chuckled. "I might have believed she got religion, if Katsuragi found a Bible or Koran. There's no chance a scientist would fall for the Tabernacle's bullshit."

Benedikt scowled. "They think that the Second Impact was divine punishment for…premarital sex or something. The IQ of Japan would go up ten points if we deported them all."

"NERV's UT employees perform to standard," Misato interjected. "They aren't intellectually or morally inferior to their peers."

Benedikt arched an eyebrow. "I'm surprised you're defending them, Misato. They worship the same Angels that killed our families."

Misato shrugged. "A lot of people believe strange things. Between the Angels and NERV, only one of them cares about human lives."

Benedikt poured himself a cup of coffee. "Anyway, we've severed Akagi's link to SEELE for now. Katsuragi-san, do you think she'll try to establish contact with Kaji?"
"Absolutely not. Nobody in their right mind would use him for anything important."

Benedikt stirred a sugar cube into his cup and took a sip. "Interesting. I get the feeling Akagi won't try too hard to restore ties. Right now she is free of her SEELE obligations."

"What's going to happen to the three spies you caught? You can't mention SEELE in a courtroom."

"Administrative detention," Powell said. "We'll hold them until the war's over, then turn them over to a tribunal."

"The more important problem is containing SEELE." Benedikt said. "We can defend our systems and arrest their spies, but we can't win as long as we are purely reactive. HERZ is now preparing for our first grand offensive: Case Ararat."

He's trying to be dramatic. It's really pissing me off.

Misato played along. "Case Ararat?"

Benedikt steepled his fingers. "We're going to retrieve Adam's carcass from Ground Zero. There's enough material there to build a hundred Evangelions."

Misato sat up straighter. "Adam…the glowing giant? Its body is still down there?"

The Subcommander rummaged through a desk drawer and withdrew a small piece of paper; "We went digging," Benedikt said softly, "and we struck gold. It was right under our noses the whole time."

He slid the grainy photograph over to Misato. She picked it up and felt her stomach drop into her shoes.

An incomprehensibly large corpse lay curled into the fetal position amidst the ruins of South Pole Station. Adam's flesh was rotted away in places, revealing mossy bones coated in organic slime, and the tissue that remained was puffy and grossly deformed. A layer of rubble and rusted beams lay atop the carcass, sticking out of the shallow water in places.

Benedikt interlaced his fingers on the worn walnut desktop. "When SEELE unleashed Adam, it set off the Second Impact and killed two billion people. Now HERZ is going to use Adam to destroy SEELE. We've already begun looking for more pilot candidates—we expect to have fifty combat-ready Evangelions by next year."

Misato put the photo down. "How are you going to raise the carcass without breaking it up?"

"The Americans have agreed to provide a crane and security, and Solomon Parker is currently working on the lift mechanism. The exact specs haven't been determined."

Misato glanced at the grandfather clock standing in the corner. I told Shinji-kun that I'd be home thirty minutes ago.

"Is there anything else you need, sir?"
"One more thing. I want you to get closer to Kaji Ryoji."

Misato made a face. "Seriously?"

"We have a rare opportunity while he's here, Captain. If we can figure out what Kaji's price is, we can turn him. We could use his information to strike SEELE where it hurts."

"So you want me to spy on him? He's not going to fall for it."

Powell smiled slightly. "I recognize a honey trap when I see it. Kaji Ryoji seems to think he can seduce you into passing information to SEELE. Judging by your little spectacle in the simulation room, his assumption has some merit."

Misato's face turned brick red. "You were watching that?!"

"Of course I was," he replied. "What kind of security chief lets a spy wander around unsupervised?"

"For your information," Misato said stiffly, "I was feigning interest to pump Kaji for information. That was all a ruse."

Powell's smirk widened; it took all of her willpower to not throttle him. "That was excellent acting then, Captain."

Benedikt scratched his stubbly chin. "All you have to do is play the game. Let him think his tactics are working, and he'll get overconfident soon enough. I have faith in you, Katsuragi-san. You can leave now; we'll keep you updated on Ararat."

Misato unlocked her office door and stepped inside. Where did I leave my water bottle? She rummaged through a pile of invoices, all marked REJECTED in large red letters.

"Captain, can you sign off on a delivery? Logistics just got them processed."

A chill ran up Misato's spine. She straightened and turned to face the stranger, a tall, smiling man wearing round spectacles and an ensign's rank badge. He was pushing a dolly stacked with cardboard boxes.

Misato sighed. "I'm off the clock right now. Can't this wait until morning?"

He shrugged. "Captain Ise thought you'd prefer the parts delivered 'as soon as possible.'"

Misato gritted her teeth. "Of course he did. Fine, I'll put it in storage myself. Where's the form?"

The ensign handed her a clipboard. "Sign here, please."

She signed on the line and passed the board back. The man tucked the clipboard under his right arm; Misato noticed for the first time that he had only three fingers on his right hand. "This is the last time I'm doing this. Make sure Captain Ise knows that, Ensign…"

"Harada. Will do, Ma'am." The logistics officer bowed slightly and slipped out the door. Misato tilted the dolly and rolled it out into the darkened office floor.

PREVIEW:
Yo, Ryoji here with your preview. The son of Adam sets his own plans in motion. An Angel in the shape of a boy and a boy with the heart of a beast; which is the monster, and which is the man? Next time on Herz und Seele, Chapter 23: The Fruit of Man. Don't worry, there'll be plenty of fanservice!

The releases of Herz und Seele have now caught up to the AO3 releases. From now on new chapters will be published simultaneously to both platforms biweekly, although chapters may sometimes be delayed by unavoidable circumstance.