Synchronicity, Part 3
Note, the parenthesis indicate languages other than Japanese, in this case, English and German.
Please Read and Review. I'd like to know what I'm doing right (to keep doing it), and what I'm I doing wrong (to correct it).
GeoFront, NERV
Central Dogma
Shigeru Aoba reported with a calm he didn't really felt. "We just got this report from the battle cruiser Haruna. 'Huge submerged objet detected off Ki'i peninsula. Sending data.'"
Under the watchful eyes of Sub-Commander Kozo Fujutzuki (and an always unseen Deadman) Makoto Hyuga added. "The data has been collated and examined". He felt a little uncomfortable, as if somebody was reading over his shoulder. He though it was due to the presence of the Sub-Commander, how could he know it was the ghost of an acrobat murdered before Makoto had even been born? "Wavelenght pattern, Blue. Confirmed to be an Angel."
Fujutsuki didn't waste any time and ordered a full first stage alert.
Suruga Bay
From two super carrier planes, the two Evangelions had dropped like a pair of meteors, impacting the Suruga Bay beach. It was a miracle the shockwave of their landing didn't topple any of the abandoned buildings that still stood, half submerged by the shallow waters of the bay.
Even before the sand and dust had settled back on the ground, mobile umbilical cables set up behind them, their operators inserted them into the giants' power sockets.
Shinji watched intently at the sea, waiting for the arrival of the next Angel. He paid some distant attention to Asuka's ego fueled ranting. Tense minutes passed. The pilot felt a wave of worry pass over him, followed by a ghostly feeling of hands over his shoulders. He sent a thought into EVA-01's core, "Don't worry, Mom; we will beat this Angel too.", A feeling of determination filled him. 'I hope we will get a synch test soon, there are many things I want to tell you.' A feeling of eager acceptance answered, and then the ghostly connection ended. Yui Ikari had returned to the core, ready to guide the Evangelion in case Shinji was incapacitated.
A huge plume of water rose into the sky. The Seventh Angel had arrived. Shinji gripped the control yoke tightly, wondering if the Phantom Stranger would make an appearance. The pilot shook his head. 'No, I have to be ready to do this without his help. I can't expect him to be saving me all the time.' He shifted his inner focus, calling on his inner Robin once again. 'Okay, let's see if we can find a weak point before it attacks.' He waited for the water to fall back down on the sea.
The Angel was about as tall as an Evangelion, for some unknown reason, its arms were pointing at the sky, it made Shinji think of a tuning fork or that old anime character about to throw a ball of energy collected from willing living beings. The "face" of the Angel was split like a Yin-Yang symbol. "Weird... is that the core?" he asked softly.
"Commence attack!" shouted Misato from the mobile HQ, several kilometers away.
"I'll handle this Angel, Third Child. You cover me." Asuka spoke with that supreme confidence in herself Shinji envied.
"Roger. Give it hell, Second!" He gripped tightly his pallet rifle, and squeezed the trigger. A surprised Asuka sent a hurried "(Right)!" back.
Shells the size of fridges fell to the beach. Shinji aimed directly at the Yin-Yang. As he half expected, the titanic bullets were stopped by the Angel's AT Field. Remembering the hard lesson he had learned from the Fourth Angel, Shinji interrupted his shooting spree for a couple of seconds, allowing the smoke to dissipate in the breeze, before renewing his attack. The Angel had planted its feet between two submerged buildings.
"Charge!" EVA-02 jumped several hundreds of feet in the air. Her Progressive Glaive descended in a powerful arc, cleaving the Angel in two sections.
"Well done, Asuka!" Misato's voice came through the comm link. Shinji should have felt relieved, but something was nagging at the back of his head. Something wasn't right.
"What do you think of that, Third Child?" Asuka's voice was full of pride, of vindication.
"Impressive!" Remembering the Stranger's advice, he added. "I think my kill count is in serious danger."
"Of course it is!" the smile of the German pilot was heard on her voice. "A fight should be clean, elegant, and without waste."
Shinji had kept an eye on the bisected remains of the Angel, so, when the unearthly flesh began to bubble, he shouted a warning "It's still alive!" Surprised, Asuka mumbled a single "Was?"
"Asuka, gat away from it!" Shinji feared the Angel would explode, so he dropped his pallet rifle, and grabbed Unit-02's umbilical cable as hard as he could. The German pilot was paralyzed by the surprise. Seeing her immobile, Shinji yanked Unit-02 with a sudden pull on the cable, dragging it back like a fishing lure. "Damn! Sorry, Asuka!" It was a miracle EVA-02 didn't stumble and fall.
From the Angel's halves, two new behemoths surged, the grey 'cores' turned around, revealing twin faces, set above the real cores, red spheres set in the twin Angels'chests.
At the mobile HQ, several kilometers away, Misato crushed the mic with her bare hand. "What is this crap?"
GeoFront,
NERV Debriefing Room.
"Today, at 10;58:15 am," Maya Ibuki's voice read from the report she had compiled for the after-battle debriefing, while a set of stills was projected on the screen. "Unit-01 was attacked by Target Alpha, which separated from the target submerged 2 km off Suruga Bay." The still picture showed Unit-01's legs, up to the sky, in the middle of the ocean.
"At the same time, Unit-02 was attacked by Target Beta, we have a comment from E-Project chairperson."
"This was pathetic." The voice of Dr. Akagi was heard. It sounded like a recording made from the comms-net.
"This is all your fault!" the redhead pilot shouted at her colleague. "You totally screwed up my debut battle when you yanked me away!"
"I thought it was about to explode! That would have been the third time I'm in one of those. And your second time too. That's something I don't want to go through again, thank you very much. And you are not the only one who ended up in an undignified position." Shinji stood up, angrily pointing at the screen. "That Angel took us all by surprise. And don't you ever accuse me of trying to make you look bad." Shinji poked his own chest with his thumb. "If it depended on me, I'd happily stay in a support role."
"Was?"
"You heard me. I'm not in this because I want glory. I want the Angels dead and buried as much as anybody else here and then go on with my life!" He sat again, leaving Asuka stammering. After a few seconds, she sat again, in a whirlwind of contradictory emotions.
Maya continued with her report. "At 11:03 am, NERV abandoned the operation, and transferred command to the UN Secondary Force."
Sub-Commander Fujutsuki grumbled. "We've been humilliated."
The still changed, and Maya kept on. "At 11;05, the UN forces made an attack with an N2 mine."
Fujutsuki added an indignant, "We'll have to re-draw the map again."
GeoFront,
NERV Debriefing Room
Spiritual Plane
Sitting cross-legged over the projector, resting his chin on the palm of his right hand, Deadman put his two cents to the discussion. "(That's the least of your worries, old man. But if that's how you wanna see it, I won't stop you.)"
He turned around, towards his companion, sitting to his left. "(Hey, Stranger, I have a question...)" For some reason, as soon as the Phantom Stranger had taken his seat, Lt. Ibuki had started to squirm, until she picked up her things and moved one seat away.
The Stranger was watching the debriefing behind tented fingers, in an eerie echo of Commander Ikari's favorite pose. He turned back at the ghost, watching him from the shadows that always hid his eyes, even without his hat. "(We didn't intervene for a reason. At this point, Shinji and Asuka are two individuals, not a team. They need to learn how to work together to defeat the Angels and save themselves. This is the best chance they have.)"
"(Oookay...)" Deadman raised his hands conciliatorily. "(You're the boss. Are we going to do something?)"
"(Yes, observe.)" He pointed at the screen.
Deadman shrugged, and wished he had a bowl of popcorn. It had been one of his favorite snacks back when he was alive, and now the only way he had to sample those flavors was to hijack somebody and eat it with another person's mouth. It rarely tasted 'right'.
GeoFront,
NERV Debriefing Room.
Meanwhile, Maya had continued her report. In short, the Angel had been damaged by the N2 Mine, and according to Dr. Akagi's estimates, it would take several days to regenerate. Complicating matters, it was protected by an AT Field, so another N2 mine would be wasted if they tried to repeat the tactic.
"At least we have some time to regroup," Ryoji Kaji put on, "You can't ask for more than that."
Fujutsuki stood up, angry at the results of the operation. "Listen up, you two. Do you know what your job is?"
"Piloting EVA?" Asuka offered.
"No." Answered the old professor. "Your job is to defeat the Angels." The still changed on the screen, showing a colossal inflatable ring, recovering EVA-01, hanging pathetically from high tensile cables like a discarded puppet. "NERV does not exist to make grotesque displays like these." The image changed back, to show Unit-02's legs sticking up from the ground. "Therefore, you two must cooperate."
Asuka retorted with an angry "Why should we?" while Shinji answered with a level "Understood, Sir."
The redhead looked aside at him, not believing the pilot would meekly submit to the scolding.
Fukutsuki's seat sank down into the next level at the push of a button. "Enough already."
Asuka sat back. Before she could add anything, Shinji asked Kaji about Misato. The captain in charge of the operation hadn't been able to attend the debriefing, swamped in internal protest, damage reports, and all the other stuff the higher levels of NERV didn't want to take care of. The captain would have to pull serious overtime to get rid of the mountain of papers that covered her desk...
GeoFront,
Mess Hall.
Shinji had showered quickly. Once he had rid himself of the dried LCL, he changed into his school uniform and went looking for Ryoji Kaji. He found him in the mess hall, eating with Asuka. Shinji hesitated for a moment, but a familiar nagging feeling had started while he replayed the battle in his mind, during the six boring hours that had passed while the recovery crew extracted him from the plug.
He had learned to respect that nagging feeling since the Jet Alone incident. It had taken him a while, but he had finally recognized what his subconscious mind was trying to tell him.
"Can I talk to you, Mr. Kaji, Asuka?" He chose to ignore the glare Asuka directed at him.
"Sure, Shinji; but just call me Kaji. What's on your mind?"
Shinji nodded and sat at the other side of the table. "It's about the Angel. I think I know something that might help us."
"Go ahead, I'm all ears." He smiled condescendingly, before sipping at his coffee.
Shinji exhaled, closed his fist, and said, "Multiplex."
"This is no time to go to the movies, Third!" Asuka slammed her hand on the table. "We have an Angel to kill!"
"Whut?" Shinji shook his head. "No, it doesn't have anything to do with movies. Multiplex, was a person. A metahuman. His power was to multiply himself. I think the Angel does something similar. I thought you or Asuka could think of something to neutralize it. I haven't had the chance to speak with Misato, she locked herself in her office and I don't have the clearance to go there anyway…"
Kaji's face went all business. He put the coffee back on the table. "Right. The name rings a bell. Let me see what can I dig about him."
"I have some info at hand. Back home. It's not much, but it can point us in the right direction."
"Ok. Give me a minute and I'll take you there." He dialed a number on his cell. "Lieutenant Ibuki? Hi, Kaji here. Could you do me a favor? No, just a quick search in old files. Yes, I know, run it by her then. It might help against the Angel. No, of course you're busy, ask one of your junior techs. Ok, thank you. The name is," he looked at Shinji, who mouthed the name clearly, Kaji nodded, "'Multiplex.' He was a metahuman in the USA, pre-Second Impact. Whatever you can find. Thanks."
He stood and put his plates in the recycler, grabbing the chocolate cookies for later. "Let's go."
Asuka ran after them, yelling "Shotgun!" She wouldn't miss a chance to ride in Kaji's sports car with him. So, even if they had to go with the Third Child, she would be with Kaji at the front.
GeoFront,
Captain Katsuragi's Office.
Some hours later.
Dr. Akagi took a certain glee at her friend's predicament, that was for sure.
"You are lucky Commander Ikari isn't around. He would have fired you before he even saw all of these. By the way, Shinji sent you this." She put a bag with containers on a side desk. "I swear that kid is a better guardian to you than you to him."
Misato pulled the lid off from a container, and inhaled the steam deeply into her lungs. "That's probably true, but you shouldn't say it. Oh, look, he put some of my special curry on it!" Gleefully, she attacked the food her roommate had sent.
Between mouthfuls, Misato asked. "So, have you brought me an idea to help me save my job?"
"Just one," she pulled a memory stick from a pocket. "With Kaji's compliments. He said Shinji put him on the track."
Misato's face lit up. "Gimme that." She had seen the label on the memory stick, "To my dearest friend." it read. She smiled dreamily.
Ritsuko realized there was still hope for a reconciliation. Silently, she hoped they would have some time of happiness before Commander Ikari's plan was enacted.
Tokyo-3
Katsuragi/Ikari Apartment
Next Day, During Breakfast
Misato had arrived to her apartment late in the night, she had slept like a log. So, she was surprisingly alert as she addressed the pilot corps under her command. Especially seeing that their superior officer had passed on her usual beer with the breakfast. Pen Pen hugged protectively his own can.
All three pilots were sitting at the table, once they had finished breakfast; Misato had explained the basics of the plan Kaji and Akagi had concocted.
"That's ludicrous! Even if Kaji thought it up, there's no way it could work!" Asuka fumed at the very idea.
"I think it could work," added Shinji, "but how can we do that synching you say, Misato."
"That's the beauty of the plan, you are already synched!"
"What? Explain yourself, Misato." Asuka growled.
"Sure, once your boyfriend…"
"He's not my boyfriend!"
"She's not my girlfriend!"
Both looked at each other. Utterly confused.
Misato continued, with a predatory smile on her lips. "You two have been doing that without even realizing it, since the first time you saw each other. The trick is to do it intentionally. And that's where Kaji's idea comes in."
Rei watched the pair, somewhat amused by their synchronized blush.
"You will practice with the equipment Kaji will bring here later on. The plan is that both EVA-01 and 02 attack the Angel simultaneously. The bastard does a nice trick with its cores." Misato put a memory stick in the laptop, and replayed the short battle. "Pay attention; Shinji, when you struck your Angel, codenamed Alpha; it healed almost instantly, you see?" The long gash Unit-01 had inflicted on the target had closed almost as soon as the progressive knife had inflicted it.
Shinji nodded. Misato rewinded the image, "Now, look at Beta's core."
The image replayed itself, "Hey! It glowed!"
Misato froze the image, "Ritsuko thinks that each Angel's core actually belongs to the other. Every time one half is damaged, the core takes energy from the other half, and uses it to repair the damage. Keep watching."
The image moved again, in slow motion. This time, it was Unit-02 that used the progressive glaive on Beta, and Alpha's core glowed brightly for a second.
Shinji looked down. "I thought one of them was the original, once we had knocked the original down, the other would disintegrate… That was how Firestorm dealt with Multiplex, at least one time."
"Don't underestimate yourself, Shinji. You put Kaji and Rits on the right track. Rits used your info to compare it to the Angel's and found the way it works."
Shinji looked up. "So it did help."
Misato smiled at him, and Rei put a hand over his. "You did well, Shinji. Sometimes, discarding erroneous data is more valuable than jumping to the right conclusion before time. Rits is very impressed by your insight. She wants to talk to you later."
"Okay, we get it; Shinji is a super extra smart Stooge." Asuka huffed again, "Now, get to the important part, Misato; how do we deal with this sucker?" she poked at the screen with her index finger, punctuating her words.
"I'm so glad you asked that." Misato said, taking a couple of boxes from a shopping bag. "I got these last night. I had to drag the owner of the shop out of her bed for a special trip to the mall."
Without knowing the reason, a chill passed down the backs of both selected pilots. They looked at each other, apprehensively.
Author Notes
A shout-out to ranchboy1, for deducing correctly just who were talking about Shinji and Asuka in an unnamed dimensional plane, back in episode xx! (And what I'm planning to do with that particular plot point!)
Well spotted!
Yes, Shinji es eloquent when he´s angry. His self-consciousness filter gets turned off.