Sokila sighed with relief. "You made it..."
A strangely familiar woman chortled, running her gloved hands through the youngest girl's hair. "And you doubted the power of your Guest? For shame."
Another woman — slightly older, with longer hair the same silvery shade — shook her head. "Can you blame the little one for worrying?"
A different girl — with
longer hair, seeming far more mature than Sokila despite her small stature — tried to get the first woman from messing with Sokila's hair. "You know such a technique is vexing."
The first woman giggled mischievously. "Oh, my dear Lavenza...you protest only because you would wish someone else would ruffle your hair."
Sokila blinked. "What'cha talkin' about?"
"Nothing that you need to concern yourself with, little one," remarked the second woman.
"...okay!" Sokila looked back in his direction. "Well...try to better soon, okay?"
"He'll be back on his feet before long," remarked the other girl (Lavenza, apparently?) before adding, "after all...our Guests cannot stay out of trouble if their lives depended on it."
"Indeed," chorused the two women, looking meaningfully at him.
The faint haze of blue began to brighten-
xxxx
/Friday: July 17, 2015/
The four Wild Cards currently residing within Tokyo-3 woke up at the same time.
The youngest immediately went back to sleep, because it wasn't even five o'clock, and he still felt way too weary to even entertain the thought of getting up.
The other three did not. Biology called, demanding sustenance; and so they did.
They all ended up meeting at a place called Suemitsu Gurume, which offered a mixture of Western and Japanese dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. "...kind of have a hankering for curry, right now," muttered Ren Amamiya, picking at his pancakes.
"You always end up complaining about the curry at the places we go to though," casually remarked Yu Narukami at his omurice.
Minato Arisato noncommittally hummed as he sipped from an extra-large bowl of miso soup.
"...so, what did you two end up doing, yesterday?" asked Amamiya. "Sat by the western shores of Lake Ashi. Got a pretty neat view of the giant alien crystal thing crashing into reality."
"Same as always: kept the old lady company at Kobayakawa Memorial Hospital," answered Narukami.
"Still can't believe that fat bastard had a hospital named after him."
"I actually looked up a picture of him. He was actually quite thin, this time around," idly said Narukami. "I wonder what his workout regime was like...?"
The Trickster blinked dumbly at the Truth Seeker before shrugging. "...eh, too early in the morning to deal with this." Taking a giant bite of his pancakes, he gazed at their mutual senior. "How about you?"
Minato reached for his bottle of green tea, calmly answering, "I found out that the soul of my first girlfriend — technically my first wife, too — is bound into a giant shield. I then used a giant axe containing the soul of her older sister to kill an Acolyte." He nonchalantly sipped his tea, ignoring the piercing stares of his two comrades. "It was one of those days."
"...I thought we weren't supposed to establish any links," muttered Amamiya, looking suspiciously at Minato.
Narukami shook his head. "We'd know if it was. It was a partial connection, wasn't it?" Minato nodded in response. "Hmm. Must have been a dire situation to even warrant that."
"There was an Acolyte right in front of me. And I had to teach someone a very important lesson." Minato, with deliberately mechanical motions, continued to sip at his soup. "Given how quick it was...I doubt she'll 'remember' me for much longer than a day or two." (He wished it didn't have to be that way. But wishes didn't count for much.)
The black-haired Wild Card glanced around — the crowds were light, this morning — before asking, "what do you mean by partial connection?"
"Something you don't have a chance of doing," bluntly answered Minato.
Ren simply turned to Narukami, who had a more diplomatic response. "Bonds go both ways. But if you happen to know someone more intimately than they even know themselves...then you can establish a connection. A brief one, nothing akin to a true Social Link...but enough to do some nifty tricks." At Ren's unasked question, Narukami immediately added, "based on what you've told us about your experiences...you simply haven't lived long enough."
Amamiya huffed, rubbing at the bridge of his nose in the manner fully befitting a high school student worrying about exams. If only it were that simple. "Great. Being the 'new guy' sucks."
"Technically, you-know-who is newer than any of us," said Narukami, taking another bite of his omurice.
"You know what I mean," griped the Trickster.
Narukami shifted his steely eyes towards Minato. And here comes the concern. "That being said...you're fine, right?"
He shrugged, taking another sip. "Don't know how she ended up like that. Can't do anything about it either." The cold flame that he had carried within his soul for so long simmered, waiting for the time it could finally burst free. "From what I could sense...what happened to her was monstrous. But she's managed to endure." Which is just like her.
"...but it's not going to cause us any problems, will it?" asked Amamiya.
"Maybe. Maybe or not." Minato sipped the last of his soup. "I'll play it by ear."
"Then you'll need bigger ears," idly remarked Narukami in his usual way. "...and why would we play by our ears?"
"Notwithstanding that that's actually a good question, I have one of my own. Out of 'professional' curiosity, more than anything else." Amamiya took another big bite of his pancakes, chewing methodically as he put his thoughts into order. "...how many times did it take for you to be able to make this 'partial connection'?"
"...can't say," he honestly answered. "I wasn't exactly counting."
"Your loss," remarked Narukami.
"Oh, and you kept count?" snarked Amamiya.
"Yes, actually...at least, since I became 'awake'. Can't speak for any hypothetical times I may have had before that," he said, intentionally cryptically. "This time...is number 2,457."
Amamiya actually boggled at having such a concrete number thrown into his face. "...seriously?"
"And now you know why it got to a point where I stopped trying to keep track," Minato said, mentally glossing over those dark and dreary years. "After a while, it gets depressing."
"Guess this is why they say 'different strokes for different folks'," said Narukami, finishing his omurice. "Keeping track of it, detailing the differences, observing the constants and variables...it gave me something to focus on. A goal, until I found out the truth behind our current dilemma."
"...speaking of dilemmas, yesterday was pretty wild," said Amamiya, intentionally derailing the conversation to something more contemporary. Pulling up his phone, he scrolled through various news stories being reported from throughout the world. "How do you think our intrepid kouhai will handle it?"
Minato shrugged. "We'll find out soon enough...in the meantime, we have 'exams' to prepare for." As if he couldn't do them in his sleep by now. "...you gonna finish your pancakes?" With a bit of lighthearted spite, Amamiya stuffed the last half of a pancake into his mouth. "...you could have said no."
"But this way is more entertaining," remarked Narukami. "Try not to choke."
xxxx
Shinji Ikari was trying not to choke...from sheer stress-induced hypoxia, to be exact.
There was something to be said for waking up in an entirely different room than the one he had fallen asleep in. (Apparently he and Ayanami had been sedated while they had been transferred from Kobayakawa Memorial Hospital to NERV HQ during the middle of the night.) There was also something to be said for his cot to be wheeled into a small room where Gendo Ikari was sitting quietly.
The man said nothing, even as Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi stood beside his and Ayanami's cots. Glancing at the clock on the nearby wall (7:33 AM, it read), Shinji looked nervously towards his father, sitting nonchalantly in a simple folding chair. On the wall behind him were several flatscreen monitors. What's going on?
"This is a debriefing room with medical equipment," explained Rei Ayanami, apparently seeing the question on his face. "There have been times where I was too injured to perform a normal debriefing, but the results had to be communicated as soon as possible. This place was built with that in mind."
"Indeed," coolly said Commander Ikari, his face angled such that his eyes could not be seen behind his orange shades. "We will now begin." As if by those words alone, three of the monitors behind him turned on, showing three adults. One was at least familiar: Director Takuto Maruki of NERV-01, who looked rather pale. The second was a man with long brown hair and slim eyeglasses, but the monitor display helpfully identified him as Director Shuji Ikutsuki of NERV-02. The last was of an elegant yet severe woman with hair the color of red wine, labelled as Director Mitsuru Kirijo of NERV-03. The monitors also displayed their local times: 6:33 PM, 3:33 PM, and 12:33 AM respectively (which went a long way towards explaining the dark bags under Kirijo's eyes).
"Ah, my first time seeing the Third Child face-to-face. So to speak," remarked Ikutsuki in a stilted manner. "I'm sure I'm not telling you anything new, Commander, but we are still dealing with the new moon in America. I still have over eight hours until I hit July 17."
"This couldn't wait," Gendo stoically answered. "Given the events that have already occurred, it was imperative that we receive insight from the First and Third Children as soon as possible."
...what happened while I was asleep?
"Though I wouldn't mind postponing this until we're more well-rested, I'm already getting a lot of angry calls demanding answers," wearily said Maruki.
...seriously, what happened?
"Perhaps we should enlighten Ayanami and Ikari as to what has transpired since their victory," said Kirijo. "The boy in particular looks rather befuddled."
"Very well." Another monitor turned on, this time displaying a globe. "Major Katsuragi."
At Gendo's words, Misato stepped forward, holding a clicker; apparently, she had expected being asked to make some sort of presentation for this. "Yesterday had only two bright spots, as far as I'm concerned." With two clicks, two areas on the globe were highlighted: Japan, and Germany. "Yesterday, the three Evangelion-users managed to destroy two more Angels. Furthermore, it was apparently done in a fashion that, for the very first time, left physical evidence behind." Click; the image changed to two stills taken from yesterday's news, showing images via helicopter of the Angels' corpses. One was the broken form of Ramiel, now a lifeless gray; the other was from an unfamiliar city, showing a gargantuan four-legged bug that had expired amidst the rubble of some kind of stone temple (one of those old European churches, maybe?). "As great a victory as these were...other places did not fare so well." Click; this time it showed footage from a place that rang familiar to Shinji's mind: it was of the monolithic Sullivan Shadow Tower to the east of the American city of Atlanta, within the Metaverse. "At approximately 6:15 AM local time on July 16, or a quarter after 7 PM yesterday in Japan Time, cognitive surveillance in the Metaverse captured this."
There was no sound as the footage played; all Shinji could see were the various bolts of emptiness that rained haphazardly from the red and black sky...but as the seconds rolled on, they suddenly parted. "What...what is that...?"
"An Angel, presumably," wearily answered Dr. Akagi.
A massive orange creature — bearing a yellow eye with a green iris and crimson pupil in its center, connected to what appeared to be gooey three-fingered hands on each side — descended from the proverbial heavens, falling (aiming?) towards the tower. It was dawning horror that Shinji understood what was happening before it transpired; it collided with the tower, unleashing a massive explosion that caused interference in the footage. "Fast forward by ninety-four seconds, and we have this," grimly said Misato, clicking and speeding through the static. When the image became clear...there was nothing but a great, spherical void where the tower had once stood. At its event horizon, flaming pieces of the building could be seen; the crater formed by the blast burned with a noxious and thought-eating smoke. They could barely see the Angel — smoking, singed, yet seemingly unharmed — arise back into the sky, before fading away. "With one fell swoop, that Angel caused a mental shutdown in over one million people...and consequently, almost every single person in the Atlanta metropolitan area dropped where they stood."
Shinji could barely fathom those numbers. (Was this...what it felt like to live through Second Impact...?) He could barely think, such was his horror.
Alas, the horror had just begun. "That city was not the only one that was attacked in such a manner," calmly said Gendo Ikari.
Shinji's eyes kept on widening as more images and footage were displayed, showcasing the unfortunate fates of various A.T. Task Force facilities within the Metaverse.
"Sydney, Australia." An underwater fortress under the harbor was utterly pulverized by a gargantuan fish — a strange, alien-looking cross of a shark and a whale — ramming into it. "Outskirts of Semarang, on the island of Java in Indonesia." A spherical base was suspended by thick, unbreakable tethers within the cone of a volcanic mountain; however, a scaly limb reached out from the magma, dragging it under to a fiery doom. "Xiangfan, Hubei Province of China." A great tower sat upon an island in the middle of the adjacent Hanshui River; a glowing double helix ring surrounded it, sinking into its surface. Lights flashed...and the whole thing promptly crumbled. "Patna, state of Bahar in India." A floating fortress, deliberately fashioned after the country's many Hindu temples; a sphere colored black and white slowly phased in existence around it...only to flicker away, leaving a cognitive void in its wake. "Kerman, southeast Iran." An adobe castle stood tall; however, a lance of light shot down from the heavens, painting a stark contrast and casting dark shadows; when the light faded minutes later, the walls burst forth with thousands upon thousands of corrupted Shadows. "Dire Dawa, Ethiopia." A walled desert town stood within thick, impenetrable walls; it did nothing against a creeping contagion of blue fungus that swarmed over the walls, consuming everything in its path. "Debrecen, Hungary." A neoclassical church was systematically torn to pieces by two twin humanoids, one colored gray and one colored orange. "Natal, northeastern Brazil." A tall skyscraper stood amidst the coastal waters, but it looked plagued by a swarm of what looked like glowing dust. "Aside from the standard outbreaks of Ghosts and Acolytes worldwide that we normally see during the new moon, this was the first time that the Angels have manifested in so blatant a fashion," explained Gendo. "Striking at the A.T. Task Force's Shadow retention facilities in various countries, they either destroyed or corrupted scores of Shadows in one fell swoop."
"How many?" quietly asked Rei.
"From those attacks alone, we have an upper bound of ten million casualties," said Dr. Akagi with an air of forced detachment. "Though the vast majority are simply due to mental shutdowns, there were a not insignificant number who became Acolytes. Given the imminent danger and the sheer numbers disadvantage faced by the A.T. Agents in Kerman, Dire Dawa, and Natal, local militaries have resorted to using heavy ordnance in the real world to cull with extreme prejudice."
The numbers were hard to put into something real, so great were they. "What...?" whispered Shinji.
"July 16 was the worst outbreak of Angel Syndrome since Second Impact," said Mitsuru Kirijo, her face set into a fiercely grim expression. "Needless to say, people are demanding answers."
Takuto Maruki looked glum as he added, "some have even gone so far as to blame the Cognitive Protection Center model for making Shadows so easy to target...but this had never happened before, on such a scale!"
"Indeed. One can't help but wonder what exactly changed," remarked Shuji Ikutsuki. "Such a change in tactics, and with such devastating effects...why didn't the Angels do this sooner?"
"A question we've all been wondering...until the following message was broadcast a half hour ago," darkly said Misato, her eyes hardening. "We haven't been able to find the source, but it hijacked the major news channels all over the world, seamlessly subtitled into each area's major language." With another click, the horrific images faded away into a simple white background, featuring English text in a Gothic font. The word displayed was simply Strega. "This word should be familiar to you, Shinji-kun."
"...Stu-ray-guh?" he purposefully enunciated, wracking his brain...
("The name's Jin. Who I am...really isn't that important. All I can say is that I'm here to send the message of Strega." The man with blue hair and square glasses glared at them as he readjusted his glasses.)
...until it clicked.
("I'm simply a messenger...for the Angels. Strega's message is simple: we're going to finish what Second Impact started.")
"That man we saw in Atlanta...on July 8..." Shinji murmured.
"Based on the after-action report delivered by Miss Sohryu, we were under the impression that Jin's group was simply targeting the MAGI out of some foolishly cultish devotion to the Angels," explained Kirijo. "But this message provided some...unwelcome clarity on that matter."
With another click, Misato played the broadcast.
"Humans. Mankind. Humanity. A wretched existence that should have long since faded away." It was unmistakably Jin's voice. "In the eyes of the Angels, we're nothing but vermin, worthy only of extermination. You've seen just what they think of our paltry methods of survival, and how little they truly mean. So why now, you may be wondering? Why wait so long, letting us think we had a chance?" The voice was filled with disdain. "In the end...the only things of interest to them are those abominations known as Evangelion: a blasphemous existence, deserving nothing but wrath and hatred. From this day forward, Evangelion has been marked: the Angels will target you wherever you may be. Those who shun you...will earn at least some respite. But know that our days are numbered. You can either fight and die in vain, struggling to no avail...or you can accept it peacefully. Choose wisely."
"That's where the broadcast ended," said Misato.
"It goes without saying that NERV started getting a lot of questions thrown its way," dryly said Commander Ikari.
"...what kind of questions?" Shinji asked.
"What exactly is Evangelion? What is the nature of these Angels? Why couldn't we find more people to be Evangelion-users? What did you do to make the Angels despise Evangelion so much?" blithely answered his father. "Inane questions such as these, among others."
"It is no surprise that the Angels would hate Evangelion; they are thus far the only proven countermeasure," pointed out Kirijo in a no-nonsense manner. "Why wouldn't the Angels despise those who have been the only thing to fight them and win?"
"Honestly, our questions should be geared towards Shadow management," said Maruki. "The A.T. Task Force has already been receiving very incisive questions regarding how they're going to Angel-proof the CPC model...which is going to mean a lot of extra work for the First Branch," he trailed off, loosing an exhausted sigh. "Though I've also been hearing that some political figures from Europe and Asia have already begun calling for the release of all Shadows from the jurisdiction of the A.T. Task Force, to prevent these sorts of mass casualties from happening again."
"Ridiculous," bluntly said the Director of NERV-03. "Second Impact was far worse before we had these measures in place. They would pretend as if the last several years of success didn't happen."
"Some people have varying definitions of success, it would seem," cautioned Ikutsuki. "After all, with all of their great expectations, even a little disappointment would seem wretched...much less the likes of yesterday."
"The attentions and sentiments of the world are a fickle thing," said Gendo, looking intently towards Katsuragi. "I trust that the A.T. Task Force finally saw reason and publicly disclosed the identity of this 'Jin'?"
Misato grimly nodded, glancing towards Shinji. "Based on yours and Asuka's description of the man, the Governing Board of the Task Force actually narrowed down his identity...but it wasn't until this broadcast that they decided to confirm it. To come clean, as it were." Pushing on the clicker, the still image of Strega gave way to an old profile shot of a familiar man with parted blue hair and square eyeglasses...except he was years younger, and clad in the distinctive black garb of an A.T. Agent. "Jin Shirato. Signed up with the Anti-Terror Task Force in 2006, and was apprenticed to one Ryuji Sakamoto. During a mission in 2008, he apparently disappeared, and was considered AWOL, then MIA. As far as the Task Force was concerned, he was practically dead until he showed up in Atlanta earlier this month."
Shinji couldn't really move past the fact that this man had apparently been apprenticed to Toji's current sensei.
His Other sighed.
"It is a very small world."
The Beast traced a finger around a globe.
"Far too small for the likes of us..."
"A lot can change in seven years," murmured Dr. Akagi.
"The circumstances that led to Shirato's alliance with the Angels is irrelevant for now," sternly said Gendo. "However, if incidents of Angel Syndrome truly do begin to concentrate in areas frequented by Evangelion-users, then I would not be surprised if there are calls to concentrate the Children into one area to...minimize collateral damage."
"What, like send them to Antarctica or Siberia?" impulsively snarked Misato.
"Deprive mankind of its best defense at the cost of temporary safety, even if it meant depriving the Evangelion-users of all logistical support? I would not be surprised."
Director Kirijo actually bristled at the Commander's suggestion. "Over my dead body."
"Moving on," said Gendo, turning his steely gaze back towards the bedridden Evangelion-users. "You will tell us about your experiences in the battle against the Angel. Be as succinct as possible."
"...very well. I will go first," volunteered Ayanami (which he was grateful for, because the Shamshel debrief with Dr. Akagi and Kensuke had been far less stressful than the prospect of doing the same in front of his father).
She spoke of her initial morning patrol, keeping an eye out for the Angel while Shinji maintained watch from atop the CPC.
He (with some initial fumbling) spoke of how the Angel had suddenly manifested and struck without warning, forcing him into the defensive.
She spoke of her immediate retaliation, and her pursuit of the Angel into the seat of its power.
He spoke of how he had followed her. From there, they both spoke (as best as they could apparently remember) of the Angel's capabilities, of how it had taunted them (with Ayanami adding nothing in particular beyond what he said), and how it had eventually forced them out of its realm.
She had spoke of their plan to break through the Angel's defenses in one shot (glossing over, Shinji couldn't help but note, the rather emotional conversation they had had...which was fine, because he doubted his father would have cared about that piece), and the successful implementation of said plan.
"A fascinating display of an Evangelion's power," said Ikutsuki, an interested smile on his face. "Commander, I trust that what we discussed previously is still on the table?"
"You will have your samples from the Angels' corpses," casually said Gendo. "The need for results has become more...pressing."
"But of course," replied the Director of the Second Branch with a grin.
"Director Maruki," Gendo said, now addressing the Director of the First Branch. "The era of the CPC model may be coming to a premature end, but that does not mean it's become useless. Continue seeking measures to Angel-proof them."
"Yes sir."
"Director Kirijo...I trust that you'll employ the full weight of your political and business acumen to ensure that cooler heads will prevail in the matter regarding Evangelion assignments."
"I'll do my best, Commander."
"Then you're all dismissed." With those words, the monitors displaying the heads of the other three Branch Directors went blank. Gendo quietly rose, stuffing his right hand into his pocket. "That concludes our debriefing. As you were." Without ceremony, the man promptly walked out, leaving Shinji, Rei, Misato, and Ritsuko behind.
Shinji blinked at his abrupt departure. "Is...is that it...?"
"And you complain about my bedside manner," griped Dr. Akagi.
"Just because he's rude doesn't let you off the hook," retorted Misato.
"...I believe we will be resting and recuperating in the interim?" inquired Rei.
The Major nodded, saying, "right now, with everyone scrambling to pick up the pieces after yesterday...it's going to be a hot minute until we have some clear direction. In the meantime, barring any Ghost or Acolyte emergencies, you two are on bedrest."
"Understood," calmly said Rei.
Shinji sighed, leaning back against his cot with a tired expression. The sheer devastation unleashed by the Angels; the public 'declaration of war' (so to speak) communicated by Strega on their behalf; the political angle, which flew over his head entirely...all that and more.
He had a lot to think about.
xxxx
/Class 2-A, Junior High Branch, Hakone Academy/
As cleaning period ended, capping off the school day, Hikari Horaki walked over towards Kensuke Aida and Toji Suzuhara. The two boys were in the midst of a conversation. "-come on Ken, you're overreacting. We did good yesterday, didn't we?"
"Seriously Toji, yesterday was bad."
"But we made it through, didn't we?"
"Just because we survived and made a contribution doesn't mean it still wasn't bad."
"...you hearing the words coming out of your mouth, mister 'Gotta be the Hero?'"
"Yes, I realize that, thank you for pointing out the incongruity-"
Hikari cleared her throat; the sound made the two boys yelp with shock and surprise. "Hello boys," she diplomatically said, ignoring the grim air. (An impossibility; she had already heard from a few of the other class representatives that some students hadn't shown up today, due to 'deaths in their family'. It didn't take a genius to connect the dots.) "Have you heard from Ayanami-san or Ikari-san?"
Kensuke shook his head. "Last I heard, they're still on the mend. After Toji and I had our debrief yesterday, we were told we wouldn't be needed today."
"You know, now that I've been involved on the other side of the whole 'thinking world battle' stuff, ain't it weird how we just start up with school the day after the new moon like nothing happened?" remarked Toji, looking critically at the classroom.
She followed his gaze; not a few students had haunted looks in their eyes. (Maybe someone got torn apart by an Acolyte right before their eyes. She made a mental note to submit a bulletin recommending that affected students seek out private consultation if needed; no need for more stress before the first trimester finals.) Hikari quickly said, "habits are stable. Schedules are stable. Stability is a good thing."
"Basic cognitive engineering," added Kensuke with a nodd. "Stable thoughts make life easier for our Metaverse protectors."
Toji grimaced, scratching at his hair. "Still, it just seems...like we're putting a bandaid over a broken leg."
Kensuke gave a halfhearted shrug. "Well, what can be done other than what we can do? Whatever decisions are gonna be made are above our paygrade."
(As though the truth were limited by such paltry things as rank, class, or paygrade.) "But we can still do something," she solemnly said. "If you see Ikari-san or Ayanami-san before I do...advise them to not be alone at school. Ikari-san especially."
"What for?" asked Toji, a dark expression clouding his face. "Don't tell me people are actually buying the crap from that Strega group, are they?"
(The boy brushed off most rumors, a likely consequence of being acquainted with Nagisa for so long. An enviable skill.) "Some people are...impressionable. Given how often those two have had to leave class due to their work-"
"No, that's a bunch of bull," interrupted Toji, getting some righteously angry dander up. "If it weren't for those two, we'd all probably be dead. Hell, you can see the fruits of their labor to the east of the city!" Namely, the gigantic hunk of crystal that was taller than most buildings in Tokyo-3, which was even now being excavated and disassembled piece by piece. "That makes them proper heroes. They sure as hell did more than Ken and I did."
"...people are still coming to grips with the idea that Angel Syndrome are caused by actual monsters," said Kensuke with a look of dawning comprehension. His lips curdled with frustration. "And Ikari and Ayanami are both strong enough to kill those monsters. That has to be...intimidating, even if they don't look it."
(Aida appreciated rumors more for their social impact than Toji did.) "Ayanami-san's reputation...it speaks for itself, after she's been here for so long." Most people avoided the aloof and stoic blunette by habit, now. Ikari...well, he honestly looked a bit wormy, most of the time. "Ikari-san's doesn't. I just don't want anything...untoward, to happen. That's all."
"If anything does happen, it ain't Ikari you have to worry about," grimly said Toji. "I've seen him use that Evangelion of his. He doesn't need our protection."
"I know. Truthfully...I'm trying to make sure we avoid a situation where he may be provoked," she honestly said.
Both boys opened their mouths to protest, until they stopped. (She did not know that Aida was thinking of a training session from weeks ago, where he first saw Shinji manifest Unit-01, and tried to tear apart Ayanami in his sudden rage. She did not know that Toji was thinking of the last new moon, where Ikari stood with fiercely glowing eyes amidst a torrent of Ghosts.) Whatever it was they thought of, they seemed to accept her foreboding words. "...good idea," admitted Kensuke.
She nodded, handing a packet of notes to Toji. "Please give these to Ikari-san. They cover today's classes."
"Thanks, Class Rep," said Toji. "...where you off to?"
She ignored the traitorous flutter in her heart. He's just being polite. (Why can't I say what I want to say?) "To pick up my little sister, then we'll be going home."
"For all the time you spend at this school, I thought this place was your home," joked Kensuke as he waved her off. "See ya!"
Hikari lightly bowed before turning away, mulling over the truth of Kensuke's words, lightheartedly said but no less insightful. In many ways, this school was home to her.
(Her actual home hadn't felt like one in years.)
(At least here I can make a difference.)
xxxx
Shinji Ikari felt rather quiet as he phased into existence near the Izanagi Dorms (if nothing else, being able to 'fast travel' was one undeniable perk of being an Evangelion-user), subtly glancing around as best as he could. No witnesses to his sudden appearance. Maybe they're all studying for finals next week...
Studying. Finals. It all felt so...mundane. Yet there was something to be said for a bit of the mundane, in light of all the craziness that was his life.
Ayanami had yet to be discharged from NERV, seeing as how her wounds had been more...extensive. Misato had summarily told him to keep an eye on his phone for any future updates, but until then...he was free to do 'whatever'. Dr. Akagi had notified him to come back on Sunday for more scans and tests. (Yay. Man, his inner monologue was getting more and more sarcastic these days.)
Bzzt.
Already? Shinji impulsively pulled out his phone, opening up the message app. He had...a few messages. One was somewhat welcome:
M. Yamagishi: I hope you're OK
M. Yamagishi: stuff's been weird since the broadcast
M. Yamagishi: take care
The other, not so much:
HEROD: WE HAVE ANOTHER QUERY FOR YOU.
HEROD: SUPPOSE YOU WERE A NORMAL HUMAN WITHOUT EVANGELION OR A PERSONA; YOU ARE TASKED TO VENTURE ALONE ON A QUEST THAT PROMISED A GREAT DEAL OF BODILY HARM. YOUR GOAL ON THIS QUEST INVOLVES SAVING A COUNTRY AND THE LIVES OF MANY PEOPLE.
HEROD: OF THE FOLLOWING, WHAT WOULD YOU TAKE AT THE EXCLUSION OF ALL OTHERS?
HEROD: A SWORD THAT WOULD NEVER BREAK; A POTION THAT COULD HEAL ANY WOUND BUT WITH LIMITED USES; A GUIDE WITH ALL THE KNOWLEDGE YOU'D NEED TO COMPLETE YOUR QUEST.
HEROD: THERE IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG ANSWER.
HEROD: PLEASE RESPOND WITHIN 96 HOURS.
The last, well...
JT: Greetings, you lucky rascal!
JT: Dealing with crunch time? Lacking energy to get that last bit of study prep in?
JT: SAY NO MORE! At Tanaka's Portable Commodities, we have all the caffeine you need!
JT: We have a new selection of premium coffee, shipped directly from overseas!
JT: Oh, the aroma! The smell! I can't BELIEVE the wonderfulness!
JT: Arabica? Robusta? Liberica? Excelsa? WE'VE GOT THEM ALL!
JT: Click this malware-free, Tanaka-certified secured link, and start browsing our deals today!
JT: Quantities are limited, so buy, buy, BUY!
...yeah. (Why did the song play when I opened the message? I had to click a link last time.) Still, the thought of some variety in his coffee was actually a little appealing (at least the URL looked legitimate...). He briefly shelved that thought, pulling back up Mayumi's message to at least let her know that he was doing okay. He had finished typing up his responses by the time he made it back to Room 23 on the second floor.
He entered to the sound of Kaworu Nagisa in mid-conversation. "-awfully heroic of you two, it would seem."
"Trust me, Toji's exaggerating," remarked Kensuke.
"Nuh uh!" protested the track jock. "I totally suplexed that Shadow!"
"Yeah, after I had put it to sleep, and practically seconds before it disintegrated. That doesn't count!"
"Bullcrap it does! That means I had a finishing blow!"
"That kind of disintegration meant the Acolyte had been killed in the real world. Your target was already dead, and the mind was trying to catch up!"
Toji and Kensuke — apparently recounting their trials from yesterday — were both at their desks, while Kaworu was sitting atop his bunk, quietly squeezing two hand grips. From here, he could make out the numbers on the side of the grips; right then, he decided that he must still be tired, because there was no way Nagisa-kun was casually squeezing fifty kilos in each hand. "Ah, welcome back Shinji-kun," said Kaworu, a pleased smile on his face. "What is the phrase? 'Hail, the conquering hero'?"
He blinked. "But I haven't conquered anything."
"Nothing but an overgrown piece of geometry homework!" boasted Toji, a big grin on his face. "Nobody's given you any guff, have they?"
"...no?" Why would they?
"Good," the dark-haired boy said with a nod. "Just point me at em' if they do, though."
"...okay?" He suddenly felt tired again, and his bunk bed suddenly looked really appealing. "I'm going to sleep now."
Kensuke's response was muffled by the sound of his head hitting the pillow. Moments later, in the corner of his vision, he saw Kaworu poke his head down from the top bunk. "Shinji-kun, I don't believe you've had the pleasure of seeing me box before, have you." It was not a question.
"...no?"
"I have practice tomorrow after class. Would you like to attend?"
"...sure, why not." It's not like he had anything better to do.
The red-eyed boy smiled with glee. "Excellent! Then it's a date!"
(...wait, what?)
"Nagisa, I don't think that's what you meant," griped Toji from across the room.
"Tomorrow is a date though: July the 18th, to be precise!"
"...sometimes I honestly can't tell if you're joking or not, and that concerns me," said Kensuke.
"But we've had dates all the time. At least, judging by what I hear our peers say about us."
Toji snorted. "And those rumors can go suck a-"
It was at that point that Shinji's conscious chalked the whole thing up to 'Kaworu being Kaworu' and decided to call it a night.
If nothing else, the relative zaniness of his roommates was reliable in its consistency.
xxxx
END OF 7/17/2015
xxxx
Author's Note: ...so. The other Angels certainly didn't play around. The fallout of July 16 is still rippling.
But more importantly, Shinji's going to be hanging out with Kaworu tomorrow! I'm sure nothing important will happen.
/and for those no wondering
/no, Hikari definitely isn't getting background hinted at
/that's preposterous
/like she's a future party member or something
/pffft