Interludes after the 12th Angel, Part 6
Note, the parenthesis indicates languages other than Japanese, in this case, English and German.
A Possible XXVIth Century
Ruins of Tokyo.
12:25 PM, local time
3 Days After the Silver Human Appeared
"Is he dead?" a young Tanuki asked his grandfather, a wise elder and member of the ruling council.
"I don't think so, Noboru." The old tanuki tapped his pipe against an elaborate ashtray to shake the ash, and calmly proceeded to fill it up again. "I think he is just sleeping. It must have been a mighty bender he got."
"But he doesn't reek to sake or tequila…" Noboru pointed out.
"Hmm… true. Maybe he's just hibernating." A venerable old woman suggested, putting a token on the board.
"It's summer, grandmother."
"Hmm… true. Could he be just pretending to sleep."
Noboru had a long and sharp stick in his hands. "Can I...?"
"No. Let him sleep. He is not bothering anybody." The old tanuki shrugged, and returned to his Shogi game. "Go out and play with your friends, your gramma and I will watch him. Go, go!"
The boy obeyed with some resistance, and the two elders kept playing.
"Noboru is right, it's been a long time for anybody to sleep." The old male mumbled.
"I've heard some old legends, Genma. Of powerful humans who could punch out the sun or open the ground with a single kick. Or even fly and glow like the sun itself."
"Just old wives' stories, Saori. Who told you that?"
"Old Master Sacker (1) himself.", she huffed, indignant, "When I was just a kit, he was already older than my own gramma. He had an old photo album, and he showed me the pictures. He told me that should one of these bright humans ever appeared, we should tell him immediately."
"He is very old, indeed. Very, very old. But could he be…" Genma made a vague gesture close to his temple.
"Oh, no. Never. Old Master Sacker's mind is sharp as a tack. His fangs are still sharp, you know; and even if they were not, he has earned our respect. I was the youngest kit to serve him and learn from him. A better master you couldn't ask for. He is wise and fair."
"Apologies, my beloved Saori."
A groan interrupted their discussion. Both turned to see the silver man sit up on the cot, and grab his head with both hands.
"(Maaan… I must have quantum jumped a lot… of…)"
The two old tanuki waved at their guest, they didn't understand his words of course, but were glad he was awake now.
Genma poured a cup of herb tea, and bowing, put it close to the human. "Good morning, Silver Man. Would you accompany us?" He sat back again, and poured a cup for his wife and another for himself.
Nathaniel Adam, Captain Atom, blinked several times. Finally, he got over his surprise. He had seen many strange things in his life. Two talking raccoons offering him tea didn't even rank in his weird-stuff-o-meter.
"(Oookay… one of two options, either I'm having the kind of dream Green Arrow's chilli (2) is reputed to cause, or I have jumped into a place I never dreamed of.)" Mentally, he shrugged, in any case, it would be best to simply go with the flow. "(Well, time to see if I still remember Catherine's lessons back in the JLE.)" (3) He stood, and bowed respectfully to each one of his hosts. He sat down carefully, and raised his cup.
The two raccoons nodded at him as he sat down. He was very big for the size of the furniture and the two old tanuki, but somehow, the silver man managed to not break anything as the trio drank tea.
Tokyo-3
Japan
First Municipal Junior High School
2-A Classroom
Lunch Time
Just as the students were about to eat, the PA System blared an unusual message, "Attention, Student Toji Suzuhara, Please report to the Principal's Office."
The student in question was in the middle of stretching his arms, surprised, he satood up, scratching his head. Kensuke, looked around, "What did you do?"
"Nothing! You know it better than anybody. I've been good."
Tokyo-3
Japan
First Municipal Junior High School
Principal's Office
Toji knocked softly at the door, if he was in trouble, he didn't want to make it worse by being late, rude, or both.
A feminine voice bid him to enter. He recognized the owner of that voice. She was that Doctor from NERV, the one who had done a lot of tests on him and Kensuke, months ago.
Obediently, he sat down.
New York
USA
S.T.A.R. Labs
Dr. Victor Stone's Office
(Mental Plane)
"I'll see you there, honey. I just have to make sure everything is in order here. We got a big load of data to process." He said on the phone, a big smile on his face.
He hung the phone, and for a single second, the light in his bionic left eye dimmed. It relit itself, but the glow was darker. Sombre. Spiteful.
A look of remembrance crossed through his organic eye. Once again, he had total recall. The secondary persona he had crafted reemerged.
The happy smile was replaced by a disdainful sneer, full of undisguised fury. He hissed a word he would never utter in the presence of any living being.
"(Time to work.)" Several mechadendrites (4) extended from hidden ports. He knew that in reality, he was nothing but a brain cloned over itself, but as he was used to it, he preferred to keep on acting as if this simulacrum was the real world.
He sent his awareness through the next series of sensors. He ignored the tags that marked them as unimportant sectors in an abandoned warehouse. there were too many firewalls there for just unoccupied buildings. '(Of course its an abandoned warehouse,)' he thought, "(…villains. They are all the same.)"
With a subtle effort of his will, he converted the illusions into reality.
"(A-ha!)" he grinned, satisfied. "(Found you.)"
A tag appeared in his inner monitor, the one that normally showed the working condition of his cybernetic implants.
'(Yes! Who is it? Ah! Exactly what it says in the Tin, I presume.)' he beamed a pleased smile. He had just found an old friend.
Cyborg sent a careful signal into the monitoring system. First order of the day: disable the alarms. Working… Working… Done. Next: Contact.
A feeble voice answered his probe, "(W-w-w-who is it?)"
"(Hello, buddy, it's Cyborg. Do you remember me?)"
"(Doc St-t-t-tone? Is t-t-t-that you?)"
"(Hello, Tin. Yes, it's me." (5)
Tokyo-3
Japan
First Municipal Junior High School
Rooftop.
A group of friends decided to take advantage of the slight breeze, and eat on the rooftop. Three EVA Pilots and two friends. They would be three and three, but one of their number had been called to the Principal's Office.
"Okay, does anybody know what Jock Stooge did?" Asuka asked bluntly, unpacking her bento.
"Asuka!" Hikari elbowed her friend. "I'm sure he didn't do anything. Maybe it is a family emergency or something. I hope it's not too bad."
Asuka nodded, "You know, I didn't think of that. I withdraw my words."
Shinji put his own bento down, his brow furrowed, thinking. Kensuke brought him out from his thoughts. "Guy and gals, I just got word of some disturbing information."
Rei kept on eating, while the others looked expectantly at their friend. Kensuke looked around, dramatically. "I heard there was some kind of problem with Unit-04, the one the Americans built." He raised his hands conciliatorily, "I know it's classified, but please tell me something. I heard a rumour about a botched activation test. Supposedly it was really bad, the whole base went up in smoke. So, the Americans are sending Unit-03 here to Tokyo-3. And the activation test for Unit-03 will be held in the Matsushiro secondary NERV base."
The three pilots exchanged a look, it was Asuka who answered. "That is above our pay grade, Geek Stooge."
"Oh, well… it was worth a shot. In any case, could you pilots put the good word for me with Major Katsuragi?"
Shinji gasped, "I think I know who will be the pilot…" He looked at the empty space between Rei and Hikari.
Asuka scoffed, "Jock Stooge? Please!"
Hikari's eyes were wide with fear, 'Maybe… maybe this is what Madame Xanadu warned me about…' she thought, 'Whatever happens, I will be at Toji's side!' Her lips pressed together in a decisive gesture.
Tokyo-3
Japan
First Municipal Junior High School
Principal's Office
A few minutes earlier
"Hum… but I'm not sure I'm really suited to the job, Dr. Akagi. I'm not exactly a smart guy. Just thinking about complex stuff makes my head hurt."
"You don't need to worry," she said. "Most of the actual piloting is very physical in nature. We chose you precisely because you are a physical person. I'm sure you won't have problems synching with Unit-03."
"I don't know, Dr. Akagi… I saw how Shinji freaked out when the Second Angel… I thought… For a moment I though the guys in white would end up dragging him to the Fun House, kicking and screaming all the way."
Mentally, Akagi corrected him to the Fourth Angel; true, Shamshel had been the second Angel to attack Tokyo-3, so Toji was right, as far as he knew. "Shinji has gotten much better since then. At the moment, you'll need only minimal training, all we need to do is to activate Unit-03, and be sure all the systems work as intended. With three other EVA Units operational, we can train you before any actual combat operation." She crossed her fingers behind her back.
Suzuhara was thinking about it, but she knew, from studying his psychological profile, that the boy would need some incentive. "Tell you what, I know your sister needs a lot of physiotherapy. If you accept, NERV will pay for her treatment. In full. And I mean, fully paid. All the bills, even the ones your father has paid for already. Plus your own salary."
He looked up. "I… I don't know… I have to think about it."
Akagi gave him a card. "That's fine. It's a big step, I know. Think it over, and let me know tomorrow afternoon at the most. I have a limited time to prepare the test, and Commander Ikari insist on sticking to the schedule." She put her documents back in the suitcase, and stood up to leave the office.
Toji took the card, and looked at it respectfully. "I will, Dr. Akagi. Thank you."
True to his word, Toji Suzuhara spent a lot of time thinking.
Tokyo-3
Japan
First Municipal Junior High School
2-A Classroom
End of Classes
Toji was unusually quiet the rest of the day. When the bell marked the end of the day, his friends surrounded him.
"Okay, Jock Stooge, spill it. You have been thinking all day long, and I can hear the grinding noise your brain makes when it reboots. Repeatedly. Without engaging the clutch. What's going on?"
Toji shrugged, looking depressed, "I… well… I have a lot to think about. Dr. Akagi wants me to pilot Unit-03."
Kensuke hissed a triumphant "I knew it!" Then his face fell down. NERV had already selected a pilot!
Hikari gasped, and boldly, she grabbed Toji's hand, "It's very dangerous. You are not trained for it."
Shinji nodded. "I wasn't trained before my first sortie, I almost died." A shadow crossed his eyes, "And Sakura got hurt." He whispered.
"I know it's dangerous." Toji shrank in his seat. "But we really need the money. She said NERV will pay for Sakura's treatments."
Kensuke gulped. His disappointment was replaced by guilt. His friend had insisted on dropping the lucrative photo business, even knowing his family would be strapped for cash. For a moment, he felt it would have been better to keep on with it, until he remembered they could be making money from their friends, who could die in any sortie.
It was Rei who broke the uncomfortable silence. "You are a friend. If you accept, we will help you. If you don't, we will understand." Asuka and Shinji nodded their agreement.
A weight seemed to disappear from Toji's mind. "Thank you, Blue. I'll talk to my Dad later on."
Shyly, Hikari offered. "It's your turn for class duty. I can help you, but only for today."
Shinji nodded. "I'll help too."
Asuka rolled her eyes. "Okay, got the message." She grabbed Kensuke's shirt as the bespectacled boy walked to the door. "You too, Geek Stooge. Everybody helps."
"I was just going to the toilet…" He mumbled.
Undisclosed Location
Massachusetts, USA
USA
NERV First Branch
A titanic plane struggled to lift off the ground. Underneath it, a blood red cross held a dark figure, securely set upon incredibly strong restraints.
In normal circumstances, the operation would have been easy to carry out, but the combination of the late hour, the persistent rain over the whole region limited visibility, and the unpredictable wind was a constantly changing set of factors the pilot crew had to keep in mind, adjusting the movements of the place each second.
Unit-03 hung limply under the plane, slightly illuminated by the navigation lights, indifferent to everything and anything. It didn't feel cold, impatience, hunger, boredom, or anything else. Until its human masters decided to install a core in its lanky frame, it was nothing but a very big and expensive action figure.
The most direct route to Tokyo-3 was a cross country path, the plane would not stop at any airport, once it passed over the state of Washington, six hours after lift-off, several air tankers would take on the dangerous task of refueling the plane for its long trip over the Pacific Ocean.
With impeccable order and precision, the original flight crew was relieved by a second crew, fresh and alert, who would take over the controls for the refueling. A dangerous task even for military jets of a much smaller size.
Somewhere Over the Pacific Ocean
Hidden from the world by a large cloud, a pinging sound preceded the opening of a small, floating cylinder. One of its ends opened with a thunder, while the other was hidden in a cloud of energy discharges. Apparently, nothing happened, and the cylinder closed itself, and disappeared after fifteen minutes.
However, something had came out the cylinder. A semicorporeal entity, in many ways similar to the swarm of nanomachines known as Iruel.
However, while Iruel's purpose was to be a living computer, the new arrival was designed to meld with living organisms.
Bardiel, the 13th Angel, had arrived to Earth.
Tokyo-3
Japan
Katsuragi-Ikari Apartment
Living Room
Next Day
Asuka paced around the room as a lion in a cage, while Shinji watched her. "(Are you sure we cannot contact him?)" She looked at her wrist watch, it was close to an hour before they would depart for school.
"(He has a lot of things to do, Asuka.)" he answered in German, as they preferred to do when discussing private stuff. He sipped his tea.
"(I don't know how you can be so calm, Wonder Boy!)"
"(Asuka, if I have learned something from Mr. Grant, is that things will happen. He has told me stories about unending stakeouts, waiting for the villains to show themselves. The main thing to do about it is be patient. I asked…)"
Before he could add another word, colours shifted around them. Asuka looked around, finding the imposing silhouette of the Phantom Stranger, standing in the living room.
Somewhere Over the Pacific Ocean
Bardiel took a few minutes to orientate itself. Its arrival had been off for almost half the world! It would take it an eternity to arrive at the place the call of its Father came from!
Unless it possessed a fast-travelling life form, of course.
The 13th Angel spend several hours studying the area, it was completely at the mercy of the wind. Underneath, it could detect only water. There were underwater creatures, yes, but even the largest of them would take a long time to modify to its specifications. The biological matter here was barely compatible with his own.
Suddenly, Bardiel felt something it had not felt in a long time, maybe even aeons. A compatible organism! And in an incredible stroke of good luck, it was coming its way!
The Angel extended itself all through the cloud that supported its barely detectable mass. It calculated the compatible organism would pass through the could.
Bardiel prepared itself, turning into an invisible web of monomolecular strands. It relaxed its tensile strength, it didn't want to shred the organism into bloody chunks, but to entangle it.
Tense minutes passed, but as any other Angel, Bardiel had no concept of boredom. If the creator instructed it to do a task, Bardiel would do such task to the best of its ability, until instructed to stop, until it ran out of material to work with, or was destroyed.
Right now, it had no set instructions, so its prime directive was to go to the Creator and ask for a task.
The organism entered the cloud, and Bardiel latched onto it. It would take several hours to assimilate itself into the organism, but Bardiel had no concept of boredom anyway.
No one in the plane noticed anything. The delivery proceeded as expected.
Author Notes
First of all, a shout out to Author0fntent, for their suggestion with Toji's dialogue! Thanks, pal!
1. Sacker is a peculiar character, even for Kamandi's standards. He is a giant, intelligent poisonous snake. Even bigger than a boa constrictor. He is a trader of ancient treasures and strange relics. He has a store full of relics from the humans' time. The original version debuted in Kamandi issue 12 (Dec, 1973). A second version was featured in Superboy, as part of The Last Boy on Earth story arc. Just as with Canus, I'm considering both versions canon for this story. However, the Sacker in Japan, is not the same individual whom Kamandi (or Superboy) met. For my purposes, the Sacker trading empire is managed by a whole clan of Sackers, each one with their own area of influence. They are, in a certain way, related to a certain Legionnaire from the Reboot Era.
2. Green Arrow has, indeed, a reputation for preparing extremely hot chilli. He actually enjoys watching his frriends gasp for water, milk, or anything to put out the fire in their tongues. I'm not sure, but apart from Superman, Batman might be the only one in the JLA who can manage it, though I don't know if they have eaten it
3. Captain Atom is referring to Catherine Cobert, she was the French liaison for the Justice League branch in Europe. Captain Atom was the leader of that branch. She debuted in Justice League International issue 8 (Dec 1987).
4. Mechadenrites is the word used in the Warhammer 40,000 fluff to designate interface extensions that connect techpriest to computers.
5. Tin is the smallest and weakest of the Metal Men. He is shy and insecure, but it can be said he is the very soul of the group. Despite his obvious weakness, once he stops worrying about being the weakest of the Metal Men, he is incredibly brave and self-sacrificing (due to his low self-esteem). He is also very smart, able to (timidly) suggest tactics and strategies in the heat of a battle. In a strange way, he is also a genius, as he was able to build another Metal Men, or Metal Girl, using an erector set as a basis! The resulting creation was practically a toy herself, and never was officially named. Everybody called her "Nameless" or "What's'ername", though Tin called her "Beautiful". Tin debuted, along with the other Metal Men, in Showcase issue 37, (April, 1962), while Nameless followed in Metal Men issue 13 (May, 1965). BTW, just like Tomorrow Woman, Beautiful gping way beyond her programming is another strong argument for the debate about souls in the DCU.