Darkness, Part 5
Note, the parenthesis indicate languages other than Japanese, in this case, 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).
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Evangelion Unit-01 Cage
Shinji tapped his fingers on the control yoke to signal Deadman he was ready for the first stage of the plan. From then on, he had until Unit-01 was deployed on the surface to talk to his mother and get her to cooperate with the plan.
'Mom? Are you there?' he sent into the Evangelion core. A feeling of Recognition and Acceptance enveloped him.
'Listen, I don't have much time. I'll explain fast and I need you to help me.'
Surprise. Questioning. Agreement.
'There is a ghost who will occupy my body for a little while. Please work with him as you would with me. It is very important that he pilots Unit-01 for a few minutes.'
Outrage. EVA-01's throat began to growl.
Shinji sent his next thoughts frantically, trying to calm EVA-01 before it began to trash in its cage. 'No, Mom! Listen to me. I agreed with him. We need to do this. It will be only for a couple of minutes, then he will go and I will continue. No one in NERV should even realize it! He won't be fighting!'
Dr. Akagi's alarmed voice interrupted them. "Shinji, what's going on there?"
"S-sorry, Dr. Akagi. Unit-01 is getting temperamental again. Give me a second and I'll have it back under control."
"Make sure of that, Shinji; I don't want a berzerker EVA again. Especially inside the GeoFront!"
Shinji held his breath for a moment, exerting his will to calm the biomechanoid. The growling receded.
Doubt. Questioning. Doubt.
'He is a friend, ' Shinji continued. 'He has helped us before. The Phantom Stranger vouches for him. His name is Boston Brand. If he doesn't pilot for a couple of minutes, Asuka won't be allowed to keep on fighting. I'll explain everything later, please, help me.'
Surprise. Recognition. Surprise. Questioning. Aquiescence. Resignement.
Shinji could have sworn that Unit-01 even sighed a little.
"That's better, Shinji. As soon as Rei and Unit-00 are in the lift, we will launch you both. "
"Thanks, Dr. Akagi."
Misato added, "I'm sending you the route the Angel is following, and the likely point of interception for you and Wonder Girl, now."
"Roger, Control. Misato? What's the plan?"
"Start with medium range weapons, Robin. The pallet rifle will be available once you get to the surface. Wonder Girl will use the sniper rifle while you get closer in case you have to get personal. If shooting it isn't enough, then you advance for close range combat. She will continue on a support role." The Op Chief's voice answered, there was a frosty, professional tone in Misato's voice. Shinji knew the coldness in her voice was not directed at him, but at Commander Ikari. Misato wouldn't want to risk being demoted or thrown to the brig during combat.
"Roger, Control. Do we have visual on the enemy?"
Lt. Ibuki answered. "Yes, Robin, sending image to both Units." Shinji heard a few clacks from her keyboard. A moment later, an image opened on his display. It seemed to be from a security camera somewhere in the commercial section of the city. He gasped. The image showed a titanic four-legged... thing. It was like a spider with a body full of eyes.
"I'm gonna need a bigger boot..." He mumbled. Nervous laughter rang from Central Dogma.
"Good one, Robin! Squash that monster!" That was Lt. Aoba.
"Lt. Aoba. Unless you have anything useful to contribute with, Cut. The. Chatter." Commander Ikari's dry and cold voice drained off all the fleeting good mood Shinji had accidentally created.
"Yes, Sir. Sorry."
Misato turned her head fractionally towards Aoba, smirking a bit. The long haired bridge bunny had actually paled. She would have to talk to him later.
"Unit-00 at the platform." Rei reported.
"Launch the EVAs!"
Both Aoba and Hyuga tapped the launch signals on their consoles. A tremendous lurch flattened both pilots against their seats, as the biomechs were lifted by a combination of high pressure pneumatic pistons for the initial impulse and magnetic impulses in sequence for the rest of the trip.
Just as the Evangelions were halfway into the tunnels, darkness enveloped the area. Both launch platforms kept going up due to their enormous inertia, but they stopped just a few hundreds of meters inside the individual shafts that would convey them to their designated deployment places. The safety gears kicked in as soon as the upwards magnetic impulses ceased, to keep the platforms from crashing down into the cages.
"What..?" Shinji mumbled.
Surprise. Alarm. Questioning. Came from the EVA-01's core.
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Evangelion Units Deployment Shaft
EVA-01's Control Plug
Spiritual Plane
"Now what? Just as we were getting ready! Damn! I should be used to this kind of thing to happen by now!" Deadman looked around, seeing only darkness outside the EVA. The only light around was in the EVA-s cockpit. Next to him, the energy counter began it's dizzing countdown towards 0:00:00. "Oh, damn!"
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Central Dogma
"What the Hell?" Misato yelled on her mike, but her voice was only heard on Central Dogma. A few emergency lights went on line here and there, but they were not enough to light adequately the cavernous space of Central Dogma.
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Next to EVA-02 Cage.
"(What the Hell?)" Asuka mumbled when the images on her screen vanished, followed by all the lights in EVA-02's cage. She stood up from her chair, gritting her teeth. "(If this is somebody's idea of a fucking joke, they are gonna pay with skin!)"
Asuka knew where the emergency kits were stored, and located the nearest one by touch. Soon, she had a miner's helmet on her head, and the light on. It was enough to see where she was going to. Angrily, she stomped her way towards Central Dogma.
Tokyo-3, GeoFront
Elevator Shaft Nr 34.
"Now, what?" Ryoji Kaji pushed the buttons on the elevator. No response, not even from the Alarm button. "Damn… No power. This is bad."
The red emergency light kicked in. He awaited for a few minutes, listening carefully, with his ear on the door. Nothing.
Kaji looked at his hands for a moment. "I'm no use if I just stay here. I must get out." He looked around, there was a maintenance hatch over him, but it was too high to get there jumping.
He sat on the floor, and emptied his pockets, looking for something he could use to get back to Central Dogma. He put the gun and spare ammo, along with a half eaten pack of chocolate cookies, back in his pocket; and went through his belongings. "Ah, yes; my Swiss Army Knife; Made in USA., and a pocket flashlight, with a long cord. This should be enough." Kaji put everything else back in his pockets, and began to work.
With the screwdriver included with the knife, he began to twist open the screws that held the control panel in place. There wasn't anything he could do about the lack of electricity to operate the elevator; but with a little luck, he could use the opening to reach the maintenance hatch and get out of this hanging metal coffin.
A few minutes later, he had pried open the cover. Putting the pocket knife back into his pocket, he rolled his shoulders a couple of times, and made a couple of exercises to warm the muscles on his legs and arms. Then, he put a foot on the decorative rail, and in a single bound, he lifted himself up. In a fluid movement, he put the other foot inside the control panel, taking care of not touching any wires inside. He lifted his body to the ceiling, and hit the hatch with a hand, testing where the hinges were. He noted their position, and allowed himself to land back on the elevator floor, crouching to reduce the impact. He loosened his muscles again, and repeated the movement; this time, opening the hatch with a sound like a gunshot in the confined space of the elevator.
"Okay, Third time is the charm! Up, up, and away!"
This time, he grabbed the edge of the hatch, and with a grunt, lifted his body up.
A moment later, he stood on the grimy surface on top of the elevator. He wiped his hands on his pants to get rid of the dust. Using the little flashlight to look around, he located the maintenance ladder on the wall. He put the cord around his neck, and the flashlight on his mouth; adjusting the included bead to make sure the cord wouldn't slid off. It wouldn't do if he lost the only source of light around. He switched off the flashlight, and waited for his eyes to get used to the darkness. Covering the top of the flashlight with a hand, to maintain his nocturnal vision for as long as possible, he looked around, "Of course, " he said, feeling a twinge of disappointment. "There's no maintenance door on sight." He sighed.
"The things I have to do in this job…" he mumbled to himself, and began to climb. "I hope there's one closer up than down…"
Somewhere in the GeoFront Maintenance Tunnels
The three trucks rolled steadily towards the Garden of Eden, oblivious to the events above them. When they were plunged into darkness, the drivers simply turned on their lights, and put a little extra distance between them.
Occasionally, they had to stop to manually open a hatch. It was relatively easy, unlike the access hatches on the surface, these were designed to open easily. A fatal design flaw.
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Central Dogma
"Why the Hell are you putting up candles, people!?"
"Asuka! What are you doing here?" asked Misato, who up to that point was busy trying to find a way to get the EVAs to the surface before the Angel invaded the GeoFront. Up on The Perch, as some of the bridge bunnies called the raised level Commander Ikari watched the events from, Asuka could see both Commander Ikari and Vice-Commander Fujutsuki working on big sheets of paper. With a severe case of lack of intimidation, thanks to her anger and frustration, Asuka started a very nice rant.
"I decided to come here and find out what is going on! If I can't fight, then at least I have to do something better than cooling my heels on the dark! Now, are you going to let me help?"
Misato thought about it for a couple of seconds. 'The Commander can go to Hell and stay there for all I care. This is an emergency!' She thought. "Okay, Lt. Ibuki will fill you in on the situation. Then you come here and see if you can find another angle to work."
Asuka nodded quickly, crossing her arms for a moment. "Right, then. Let's do it. Ibuki! The executive summary." The redhead pilot stomped her way towards Lt. Ibuki's console. Maya wasn't quite ready for the seriousness Asuka took the situation with. Finally, she reacted and began to relay the data she had.
Tokyo-3
Matarael arrived unopposed into the fortress city, most of the buildings had already been lowered into the Geofront, so she could walk with relative ease. She stopped for a couple of minutes, getting her bearings, and studying the terrain, looking for a good point to make her own door towards the signal that called her irrevocably.
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Evangelion Units Deployment Shaft
EVA-01's Control Plug
After the surprise blackout, and unable to ask his ghostly ally, Shinji had consulted with Inner Robin for the best course of action. He flipped the comms switch, as there had been no answer from Central Dogma, there was only one person he could talk with.
"Wonder Girl, do you copy?"
"Yes, Robin. Comm units in the Evangelions are operational."
"Good. Look, we don't have much time. We only have our onboard energy supply, and we will be stuck here for who knows how long. We have to save energy. Turn everything off, except for life support."
"Understood. Shutting systems now."
The holoimage blinked off, and Shinji started his own deactivation process, not without sending a last communication to the EVA core, and tapping a signal on his control yoke.
Basically, both messages were the same. "We have to wait and see what happens."
Agreement. From the EVA's core.
From the spiritual plane, Deadman answered, most for himself than for Shinji. "Sure, kid. I'll be here when you need me."
He laid down over the control yoke, crossed his arms over his chest, and readied himself for the waiting.
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Central Dogma
"So, basically, out biggest problem is how to get the emergency batteries to Robin and Wonder Girl?"
"It is, Miss Soryu. We don't have the means to move them into the tunnels. Conceivably, we could use some of the electric vehicles to get the batteries to the launching area, but raising the batteries to where the EVAs are is far beyond our current capabilities." Vice-Commander Fujutsuki laid the facts on the table.
Asuka smirked. "Really? That's all?"
Misato studied Asuka's smug facial expression. And a moment later, a big smile made its way on her own face. Asuka nodded in complicity.
"Sir. We do have the means. However, I'll need Commander Ikari's permission."
"Granted." Was the short and dry answer. "What do you need?"
"I need to move six EVA batteries into Unit-02's cage, and a way to get Asuka into the plug."
"The Second Child is not cleared for combat operations." Commander Ikari's voice was cold as a grave.
"I won't be fighting. …Sir." Asuka swallowed a bit of her pride, if she could contribute to the battle, she would do it. "All I will do is get the batteries to Units 00 and 01. Then I will stand down and get EVA-02 back into the cage."
"It is our best bet, Sir." Misato added. "Once EVA-02 has been fitted with the batteries, we will have the means to recharge both Units."
Dr. Akagi intervened. "I think it is feasible, Sir. We have no other way. Disabling the launch platforms to get the EVAs back down would cause catastrophic damage to the mechanical systems. The damage Unit-02 would cause to the structures would be relatively minor." Inside, she still had some apprehension, but compared to what would happen if, or better said, when, the Angel penetrated into the Geofront, it was very minor indeed.
Somewhere in the GeoFront Maintenance Tunnels
The three trucks stopped fow a few minutes, to confirm they were following the right route. It turned out they had taken a wrong branch, and had to continue to a ventilation shaft, where they coud turn around and retrace their way.
"Damn!." The leader mumbled through clenched teeth. "We better get good time on the rest of the operation. The black-out will ruin NERV's chances to detect us, but the longer we stay down here, the longer they have to locate the sabotage and repair it!."
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
EVA-02 Cage.
"Okay, people! We only have a shot at this, so pay attention and do your part!" Misato shouted on the megaphone. She and Lt. Hyuga had coordinated the transport of the six enormous external batteries the EVA Units could be fitted with, allowing them an operational time of 15 minutes, instead of the 5 minutes they could manage with their internal bateries. The biomechs didn't use them all the time because they took a very long time to charge, they were too big for the EVAs to move freely once they had been fitted with them, and were vulnerable to attacks. All in all, only good for emergencies. Such as this one.
Another team, lead by Lt. Aoba, had dragged a set of diesel generators to the cage, along with a good amount of fuel for them. Currently, the generators were busy, charging EVA-02's internal battery. The machines provided a humming background noise, covering the grunts and puffs the third team provided. They were in charge of manning an improvised rig to move the plug into position, so Asuka could pilot the titan for the next part of the plan.
Asuka was somewhat impressed that the cold and distant Commander Ikari was down on the lines, pulling ropes just like any other grunt. She would have thought the cold man would have stayed up on the perch, watching everybody work... The sight did moderate her temper a bit. She was still angry abut him sidelining her. As EVA-02's pilot, it was her duty and privilege to fight the Angels. She wasn't one to stay back and cheer for anybody else.
Asuka herself had cooperated with the design of the rig to move the plug, and was now keeping a nervous watch on the energy counter for EVA-02's on-board battery. They had to charge the battery enough for the EVA to have time to put its own set of two external batteries on.
To save time, she and Misato had prepared a second rig, this one to raise one of the batteries to a point it would be easier for EVA-02 to maneuver its body and snap the battery on its place on one of the shoulder pylons.
"Hello?" A dirty and battered Kaji appeared through the main door of the cage, eliciting a happy squee from the German-raised pilot, who ran to him. She had almost hugged the scruffy man when he raised a hand to stop her. "Wait, Asuka! I'm all dirty and you'd just contaminate the LCL."
The pilot stopped, her arms still ready for a hug, looking dejected for a moment, until she actually looked at him. He really was dirty. Like he had dragged himself through a grease pit. "Kaji! What happened to you? Where have you been?"
Kaji steered clear from the bunch of candles that illuminated the place, and wiped his hands on his pants. They were ruined anyway, so a little more grease, dirt, and grime wouldn't be even noticed. "I got stuck on an elevator. I had to climb up the shaft until I got to a maintenance door, and I' been looking for anybody for a while. And let me tell you, that place is a dirt trap. Not that I expected anything else. Anyway, I went to Central Dogma, found it empty, I though it would be better to check on the cages, heard noise in here, and here I am. Now, say, what can I do to help? I guess things are bad if you're trying to launch an EVA manually, right?" He clapped twice to rid himself of some dust.
"Ding! Ding! Ding! We have a winner!" Sarcastically, Misato cut in with her megaphone, from the upper level. "Get your ass up there and pull the ropes with the rest of the team!" She pointed at a group of men, Kaji nodded and went to join them. "I'll see you later, Asuka. I better do as our beautiful boss tells us." He grinned at Misato.
"I can hear you, you cad! You'll get no cookie from me until we are out of the woods! We have an Angel on its way, and we need to get this show on the road as soon as possible! Now! Move! Move! Move!"
"Hmm... cookie." He answered cheekily.
Somewhere in the GeoFront Maintenance Tunnels
The Drone infiltration teams had finally found a place they could turn around and right their way towards the Garden of Eden. The convoy maneuvered in a tight circle, until they could go back to the correct junction. Many levels above them, Matareael kept her silent walk, unopposed by any human agent.
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
EVA-02 Cage.
"We have done our part, Asuka, now it' your turn!" Misato shouted in the megaphone.
The redheaded pilot nodded. "Will do, Misato!" Asuka had put on an overall and leather gloves, to protect the plugsuit fron the friction with the rough rope. She pulled herself up, climbling expertly, putting her gymnasium exercises to good use. She took care to wrap the hanging end of the rope around her ankle, giving herself a steady support as she went up. Once on place, a group of men pulled the rope to get her next to the plug. With a graceful move, she boarded the capsule. Once she had discarded the overall and gloves, sitting on the cockpit, the white cylinder was pushed into its place, and the armor pieces at the Evangelion's back slid into place.
Not losing a moment, she started the activation sequence. A green light spread through the place, as the EVA-02 's four green eyes lit up with inner fire. She waited for Misato to signal that all the restraints that kept EVA-02 firmly on its mooring had been releases. She couldn' smell the hydraulic fluid spilled from high pressure hoses, roughly cut with fire axes, to release the giant.
On the ground, Kaji was one of the men charged with making sure the fluid didn't come near the candles. Personally, he wasn't sure if it would either lit up in flames, or douse the candles. He and his group had put a series of sandbags around the candles.
EVA-02 external speapers blared to life. "Huntress here, all systems nominal. I have two minutes time on my battery." Carefully, she released the last moorings, and slowly, she turned the EVA around; walking back towards where she knew the battery awaited, hanging from a rope rig. She slowed her movements even more, allowing the rope teams time for placing the battery on the right place, and stabilizing it.
Misato, using a pair of chemical lights, and following Lt. Ibuki's instructions from her place at the back of Unit-02, guided Asuka in position. Misato's forehead was covered by shining beads of sweat. Leaving apart the stress of the moment, the temperature inside EVA-02's cage had been steadily rising, due to the generators , the people inside, the candles, and the lack of ventilation. Resisting the impulse to wipe her forehead clean, Misato shook her head and concentrated on the work. "Steady back, steady back." She whispered, more to herself than Asuka. The girl was doing a text book example of maneuvering the huge machine in tightly controlled moves.
On the other side, Kaji and Commander Ikari did the same, guiding the battery teams, until they had placed the battery as close to its position as possible. Now, everything depended on Asuka's skill. If the redhead pilot was even an iota less able than she liked to boast, all their effort would be wasted.
"A bit to the right. Half a meter, people." Kaji shouted.
The team obeyed instantly. The battery was finally in position. He signalled Misato, so she could, in turn, signal Asuka to move back.
"Back, back, back."
A series of clicks and snaps rewarded them. The first battery was on place!
"Battery time increased to eight minutes. We are ready to go!" Asuka's jubilant shout was followed by a cheer from all the NERV staff at hand. Even the Vice-Commander joined in. The only exception was, not surprisingly, Commander Ikari. The man just wiped his brow, and glared at the teams. "Captain Katsuragi. Good job, now, direct the Second child on putting the second battery on Unit-02."
"Yes, sir." Misato aknowledged the order. This time, they didn't have the dwindling energy on the EVA to add pressure to the work.
Under Misato's guidance, EVA-02 simply took the other battery, and with a little twisting around, was able to snap it on place without more help.
"Yes! Well done, Asuka!"
"I'm ready for the next phase, Misato."
"Grab the other batteries, I'll wait for you at the launch platforms!"
"Roger."
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Evangelion Units Deployment Shaft
EVA-01's Control Plug
Shinji felt tempted to tap his fingers on the control yoke, but held on. He was so busy trying to think of a way to accomplish the mission, that he missed the strange, scrapping noises that came from the outside. Then, a gong-like sound cut through the cockpit. "What?"
"Hey, Robin! The cavalry is here! Turn your EVA on!"
"Asuka?" He mumbled, not too coherently. He realized she had no way to hear him, and turned the comm system on, hailing Unit-02. The image of Asuka appeared a moment later. "Huntress? How?"
"Team work and a lot of brains, now, listen. I have a set of emergency batteries with me, and this shaft is kinda narrow. So listen carefully."
Several unconfortable moments later, due to the strange contorsions EVA-01 had to go through so it could put the batteries on, he had enough energy available.
"Okay, Robin, now I need you to put Unit-01 on stand-by. I have to go back down for a set of batteries for Wonder Girl. Keep your comm open, when Misato gives the go signal, get up and kill that Engel, right?"
"Roger, Huntress, and thank you."
A pleased expression crossed Asuka's face on the holoscreen, but it disappeared as soon as he noticed, being replaced by a professional mask.
Tokyo-3
Matarael walked leisurely towards the point she had chosen for her entry into the GeoFront. Her senses had located a ventilation shaft, below which there was a tunnel that ended up right in the place the Call originated from. She just had to gain entrance there, and she could accomplish her mission.
Her largest eye looked down. At the bottom of the shaft, she could see three little, inconsequential, easily disposed of, vehicles. With the equivalent of a mental shrug, Matarael began to cry.
GeoFront Maintenance Tunnels
Ventilation Shaft
(Exactly Under Matarael)
"This is the place, Drones. We only have to cross that hatch, and it's easy riding to the Garden of Eden." The leader consulted his maps, confirming their place in the complex. "Uh? We had light from above just a moment ago. What happened?"
He looked up just in time to see the last sliver of light from outside being eclipsed by a massive form, leaving them in almost absolute darkness. A moment later, an acrid smeel assaulted his nose. Orange colored liquid fell from above, a rain of an strange liquid fell from the sky!
Everything it touched hissed as it turned into corrosive steam. He and his team had no time to do anything, except scream.
Their remains would be found later, while the construction crews repaired the damage cuased by Matarael, but no one could even recognize them, practically dissolved into atoms by the Angel´s acid tears.
Their remains would be dumped into a waste disposal unit, to be neutralized and recycled into bricks.
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Evangelion Units Deployment Shaft
EVA-00's Control Plug
"Energy levels satisfactory, Huntress. "
"That's what I wanted to hear, Wonder Girl. Misato? Do you copy?"
"Control here, Huntress. The relay chain works nicely. Patch me through to Robin and Wonder Girl."
"We are here, Control." Shinji answered. Rei followed him a moment later. There was a slight delay on Misato's answers, due to the signal being passed from a walkie-talkie unit to another.
"Good, at my signal, release the EVAs from the platforms and climb up the shafts. Your exit points are next to weapon depot buildings. Use the Progressive knifes to open them and retrieve your weapons. The rest of the plan is still on."
"Roger, Control. I will attack at medium range with the Pallet Rifle, while Wonder Girl supports on long range with the sniper rifle. Confirm."
"Confirmed. Now, Go back to full operational status!"
"Confirmed." Both pilots answered.
"Go!" Both Units deployed their Progressive Knifes, and with swift, sharp movements, cut the hydraulic hoses that kept closed their last moorings, Unit-02 had used its own Progressive Knife to cut the leg braces. Immediately, both Evangelions began to climb the shafts, dislodging pieces of reinforced concrete and steel on their way up. It would take them around seven minutes to get to the surface. One minute to open the surface hatch... With a little luck, they would destroy the Angel before their back-up batteries were empty of charge.
For a moment, Unit-02 seemed to be ready to follow them. But Asuka desisted. Disobeying now would only serve to prove Commander Ikari she couldn't be relied on. And she had already proved the contrary.
"Good luck, you two." She whispered. Then, with her normal, self-assured voice, she added. "I'll stay here to relay transmissions."
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Evangelion Units Deployment Shaft
EVA-01's Control Plug
Spiritual Plane
Deadman grabbed the back of Shinji's control chair. "That's it, kid! Wooooohoooo!" He pumped his fist, cheering for the pilot. "Just don' forget the plan!"
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
EVA-02 Cage.
"They are on their way, Control."
Misato sighed with some relief. Next to her, Kaji stood, a worried look on his face. "Wait, Asuka is not with them?"
"No, she's out the active roster, Commander's orders." She answered with a tinge of sadness on her voice. Kaji nodded. There was another mystery to investigate now. He added it to the list.
Tokyo-3, Surface
A terrible screeching noise broke the silence on the city. Two sets of purple fingers appeared between the two slabs covering the exit hatch. The metal groaned under the strenght of those fingers, and eventually, it broke open. A hand shot out, grabbing the edge of the hatch, then the other, both slowly pulling a gigantic body outside.
Cautiosly, Unit-01 peeked out, looking around, until its eyes located the long legs of the enemy."Angel on sight, Control. I can't see the main body, but the legs are visible. I don't think it has seen me. Wonder Girl? Are you out yet?"
Rei's level voice answered. "I am." Fom the distance, Shinji heard the crunching sound of a depot building forcibly open. Rei continued.
"Weaponry obtained, Robin. Moving into designated position."
"Roger. Obtaining Pallet Rifle." Shinji stopped. This would be a good time to enact their plan. He tapped the signal on the control yoke.
Tokyo-3, Surface
EVA-01's Control Plug
Spiritual Plane
"Thought you had forgotten about me, kid! Here we go!" Deadman hijacked Shinji's body. As expected, there was a moment of resistance. Not from Shinji himself. None of his hosts even realized he had occupied their bodies. No, it was the soul inside Unit-01 who resisted.
Outrage. Contained Anger. Aquiescence.
'Good day, Mrs. Ikari! I am Deadman. Me and my pal, the Phantom Stranger, are friends of Shinji's; he told you about me coming here, I expect.' Deadman sent into the EVA's core.
Grumbling Agreement.
'Okay, I get it. It's not the best situation, but I'll be here just for a couple of minutes. Then I' go.'
Unit-01 settled down into a reluctant synch. The synch rate dropped down to 54%, lower than usual; but still, a reasonably high enough synch to work with. Deadman weighted the progressive knife on Unit-01's hand for a moment, threw it up, making it spin end over end several times, and caught it deftly by the handle. With a swift movement, he stabbed the weapon depot, opening it like a can.
Once he had open the depot building containing the Pallet Rifle, he sent a message to the EVA's core. "That's it, Mrs. Ikari. I'll go now, okay? No hard feelings, please. Oh, I will be around, just in case Shinji needs me." And he released Shinji.
The boy had expected a moment of disorientation, but Boston had left him in a god point to see what was going on, and he simply retrieved the weapon. 'I guess everything went according to the plan.' He thought, 'I'm back, Mom. Now, the Angel.'
Relief. Relief. Relief. Agreement. The synch rate shot back up to the normal level.
Putting the Progressive Knife back into its place in the pylon, Unit-01 grabbed the Rifle, and cautiously, walked towards the point he would attack. Pausing only to call Rei, he arrived without incident.
"Robin in position. Wonder Girl, confirm."
"In position, ready to support you on your signal, Robin."
"Control? We are ready."
"Attack!"
Both Evangelions opened fire simultaneously. Depleted uranium bullets, each one as big as a fridge, crossed the air towards Matarael, while a concentrated pulse of energy flew out the Sniper Rifle muzzle.
The projectiles flew true towards their target.
Orange octagonal shapes appeared momentarily on the air.
And broke immediately.
"What?"
The projectiles and energy pulse went through the Angel like if it was made of air. For a moment, the titanic creature stood on its long spider-like legs. Then, with apparent slowness, it fell down to the ground, one leg even fell down further, leaning on a building.
"Robin! Report!"
"Um... Control? You are not going to believe this..."
"Report, Robin!"
"The Angel seems to be dead."
Several seconds of silence followed. "Are you sure?"
"No, not really, Control. I'll get close and confirm the kill."
"Step on it from orbit, Robin, it's the only way to be sure."
"Asuka! Out of the line!"
"Can't, I'm the last relay point, Misato."
"You know what I mean! Robin, confirm the kill. Be careful."
"Understood, Control."
Unit-01 closed the distance to the 9th Angel. The eerie creature was absolutely immobile, its many eyes still disturbingly open. Just for good measure, Shinji shot it again,five rounds, rapid fire. This time, there was no AT-Field flaring. The bullets simply riddled the body with more holes.
"Well... That was strange. It is dead."
Hills Near Tokyo-3
Sunset time.
"That was strangely anti-climactic." Asuka lay face up on the grass, hands on the back of her neck, her left ankle resting over her right knee, her foot bouncing rythmically up and down. The tree pilots still wearing their plugsuits. "I mean, the Army could have done it!"
"I don't think they were in any hurry to repeat their past performances." Shinji added.
"Anyway, I guess you two get new kill-marks, don't you?"
"I told Misato about that. Rei and me will refuse them unless you get yours. Without your help, we would still be stuck in the launch shafts."
"Really, Boy Wonder? Quite the gentleman." She rose on her elbow, and kissed Shinji on the cheek, enjoying the red blush spreading on his face. He tried to say something, but could only emit garbled sounds. Asuka smiled to herself. 'He may be a pervert, but he really is a gentleman.'
Rei observed. "Look. The lights are coming back."
By sections, the lights of Tokyo-3 were returning.
"Good, I need to get rid of this LCL, and I don' t like to shower in the dark. Let's go home, people. Dibs on the first shower!"
Tokyo-3, NERV HQ
Garden of Eden
Spiritual Plane
(Before the Battle)
The soft sound of steps was the only thing that disturbed the silence that had reigned supreme in the Garden of Eden, an enormous warehouse in the lower levels of the GeoFront.
A shadow walked between the discarded projects, relics from another ages, misunderstood technologies. Looking for whatever the Drones from H.I.V.E. had come to Tokyo-3 in search of.
Unknown to the drones, the Phantom Stranger had watched them ever since they had entered the maintenance tunnels.
By listening to their hushed talks, the Phantom Stranger had pieced together a posibility, a chance for help later on.
It never hurt to find more help. Not when the very existance of Humankind was at stake.
The black-out H.I.V.E. had caused was a gift in disguise. Until then, the Garden of Eden had been hidden to his senses, but without power, whatever means NERV used for that purpose, had failed. Still, once NERV restored power to the GeoFront, the place would once again be opaque to him; so, he had to confirm his suspicions now.
The Phantom Stranger walked purposefully, letting his senses guide him. Finally, he stopped, his blue cloak flared around him for a moment.
He stood in front of a series of metal coffin-like containers, with a plexiglass window; each containing a humanoid figure, each figure made of a different metal.
Each figure perfectly sculpted with individual features, there was no way to confuse one of them with another.
Each coffin clearly labeled with the name of the metal in question.
Mercury. Tin. Iron. Platinum. Lead. Veridium. The Phantom Stranger knew of them. The Metal Men. Thought to be simply robots with incredibly life-like programming, giving them human-like personalities. Actually, they were mechanical shells housing human souls. For a fleeting moment, the Stranger's face betrayed a hint of anger. He looked beyon the six coffins.
There were two more coffins, labeled Gold and Copper.
Gold had been destroyed years before. Before Second Impact, the original field leader of the Metal Men had been destroyed, not in body, but in soul. He was gone forever, but his body had been recovered, and reverted to its anonymous, original state. Now it looked like a store manequinn. His place had been taken by Doctor William Magnus, creator of the little device that housed the souls of the Metal Men in its computerized innards. In a desperate moment, after Gold's destruction, Doc Magnus had placed his own soul in a responsometer, animating a shell made of a green alien alloy, renaming himself Veridium.
Copper never had been activated, lacking a soul to animate the body. It waited patiently for that single spark of life.
The Phantom Stranger turned around, and walked away from the Garden of Eden.
Author Notes
Kaji gets to work fast here, but that's more because he isn't getting distracted trying to seduce Misato than any other thing.
Wow... My muse was really busy this time. She had me working on a double lenght chapter for this story, plus a chapter each for Tokyo-3 Arcana and A Whole New Universe (of Problems). I hadn't written so many words in so little time for my stories.
"Five Rounds, Rapid." In Doctor Who, this was the standard operational procedure for the Brigadier, during the Third Doctor's era, whenever confronted by an alien menace. Usually it did not work...
The Metal Men still have a part to play in Evangelion. Eventually they will come out to play.
Why are they in NERV's hands? There is a very good reason for it!
To Guest (review for Chapter 24): Indeed; Shinji will eventually get powers, it's already been foreshadowed from whom exactly. Shinji doesn't have the metagene or cosmic ancestry, but he has been chosen by a cosmic level entity. Just not a New God. Although I have thought about how to do that, with Shinji as Highfather's son in a story I'd like to call New Genesis Evangelion. I think he would do a good Mr. Miracle. (The irony of having the kid who admonished himself to not escape being the ultimate escape artist/god just appeals to me.) Being a human, Shinji could have become one of the Forever People had he been found by someone from New Genesis... I'll have to think about that one, I'm not that knowledgeable on them except for the Kirby series and their appearances in Young Justice.
Back to the point, Shinji's easy-going, pacifist, orderly, and compassionate nature will be boosted. By a Lady (hint, hint), or is it a Lord? There is conflicting data about these entities… He and one other will be avatars of two high level cosmic entities. But that will happen much, much later in the story, I have already planned when and how they will get their powers.
Meanwhile, the pilots will have to fight the Angels (and the Instrumentality Project) without any powers, just the help from the Phantom Stranger and Deadman. Rei and Asuka will get their own powers too. Rei's hasn't been foreshadowed yet, but I already know who will be her descendant in the Legion of Superheroes.
The Spectre, especially in the extremely capable hands of John Ostrander and Tom Mandrake, is one of my favorite characters. I have plans for ol'Moonface in this fic, and one of my other stories (Vengeful Spirit) features Misato as a new Spectre, the Onrÿo (a japanese tipe of ghost). I haven't finished that one yet, due to a case of writer's block, but I think you'll like it; it was great fun to set a Spectre on Gendo and SEELE's butts, with both the playful and nasty sides of Misato thrown in for good measure.
Shinji as a Green Lantern could work, his will is second to none when he doesn't have time to doubt himself; otherwise, the AT Field would have not protected him and Unit-01 in the volcano; as a Blue Lantern, he would probably need a Green one around to enhance. He doesn't have what's needed to become an Indigo Tribe member,as he hasn't commited any great sin that would need him to be forced into redemption (now, Gendo, on the other hand...).
However, the scene I think Shinji would become a Lantern in, really gave me the chills. Watching Rebuild, when he threatens to flatten NERV, he is literally seeing red. So, I got the line: "Shinji Ikari from Earth, you have great rage in your heart. You belong to the Red Lantern Corps." I think that would be a short story...
There is a great Green Lantern/Eva fic called Superwomen of Eva 2: Emerald Courage, by Mike313, he and OrionPax09 have been working on giving all the Evangelion women superpowers from characters from both DC (Mike313) and Marvel (OrionPax09). In Emerald Courage, Misato is selected by a dying Abin Sur to replace him as the Green Lantern for Sector 2814. It is a great read!
To Guest (review for Chapter 30):
Personally, my problem with that particular plot is that there is no way in the original story for that to work. Simply put, there is no time for Lex to get the info in time to enact the trade of Wesfield's DNA for his own, and I seriously doubt he even had the chance to do it. Back then Lex was still at the "I'm deceiving everybody into thinking I'm Lex Jr." And that took a lot of his time.
Sure, I do think it was a fanficcy idea by Geoff Johns; usually I do like his plot twists, but that one just didn't work for me. It's like Alien3 in a way. The whole plot of that trainwreck depends on having two Xenomorph eggs in the Sulaco. There is no moment in Aliens when those eggs could have been brought into the ship.
But I digress. Back to the point. I really have no intention of having Superboy Prime around. As reviled Shinji is in many circles due to him being such a whiny and self-centered coward, Prime was even worse. Shinji assumed guilt for things he had no control over and got broken for that. Prime tried to shift the blame onto anybody else.
If there is a character who I can see some positive parallels with Shinji, is Harry Potter. Traumatic childhood, lack of parental figures, emotional abuse, being kept in the dark by authority figures, difficulty making friends, etc. There is a very cool fic by Quatermass, called Harry Potter and the Blue Haired Angel, in which Harry is sent to Tokyo-3 by a combo of the portkey at the end of Goblet of Fire and Leliel's extradimensional properties. It's still unfinished, but having most NERV staff in Hogwarts is great fun.
Just having Misato advising Dumbledore on proper military tactics is worth the ticket! Of course, when two big egos clash, it is quite the spectacle. (Asuka vs Draco! Result: Total pwnage!)