Disclaimer: No, I don't own Gainax or Evangelion. If I did, I'd be
getting letters from all of you about what you want in the live action Eva
movie. That, and I wouldn't be worrying about money.
[This is thought]
"This is speech"
{"This is flashback speech"}
*****************************************
Neon Genesis Evangelion: Child of Desperation
Chapter Two: Fighting the Past
By FinalMax
A Richter Scale Production
*****************************************
As Shinji headed to his locker room, he kept replaying Sub-Commander
Fuyutsuki's warning. {"This angel will be unlike the others in how it
attacks. Unit 01 is to be kept in stasis unless needed. If you feel that
you have to help them, do it. Do whatever you did to awaken your Eva, and
save her."} Shinji knew he had to help 'her', but he didn't know which of
the two remaining pilots 'she' would be. He also didn't know how the Angel
was going to attack 'her'. All he knew for certain was that he wasn't
going to run from this. [I'm never going to run away again, especially not
from him.]
He had someone he had to go through before he could change into his
plugsuit. Asuka. If there was anyone other than Gendo Ikari who could
bring a mixture of fear and anticipation to Shinji Ikari, it was Asuka
Langley Sohryu. She looked very pissed off. [Shit, what did I forget this
time?]
"Baka! What the hell took you so long?" the redhead demanded.
"Not that it's any of your business, but I was in a meeting with Sub-
Commander Fuyutsuki," Shinji said. "Now that you know, could you please
get out of my way?" The tone the young Ikari used made the request sound
more like a command.
"What!" Asuka bellowed. She was obviously shocked that her timid roommate
practically commanded her to get out of his way. [He never tells me what
to do. What's gotten into him? Wait a minute; he told me what to do!
That little . . .] Shock led to anger, and there was only one-way Asuka
Langley Sohryu handled anger. "Who do you think you are, trying to order
me around?" However, no one was around to hear her, as Shinji had gone
around her during her thought process. "Where'd he go? Oooh, when I get
my hands on him, I'm gonna . . . " With that, the red haired pilot of Unit
02 turned and headed for the women's locker room, muttering a string of
German obscenities as she went.
###########################################
As he changed, Shinji tried to remember how he made Unit 01 activate
without power. "The Sub-Commander told me that my Eva had its own S2 organ
and that it should now have unlimited power," Shinji said quietly. "If I
can figure out how to start Unit 01 without command's help, I can break the
freeze." He may have been quiet and cowardly before, but anyone could see
the advantage of starting an Evangelion without unneeded assistance.
[Perhaps if I focus on what I felt from Eva before I was absorbed . . .]
The young pilot's musings were cut short by the repeated request for all
pilots to report to the conference room. Sighing, Shinji sealed the
plugsuit and made his way to the room to be briefed. "I'll figure it out
while I'm in the plug."
Meanwhile, in the girls' locker room, Asuka was still fuming a little at
Shinji's attitude. "Damn baka-Shinji, I can't stand him. Figures that the
dork would get a spine now. It's not enough that he's passing me in the
synch tests, now he's got to order me around too." Since Rei rarely spoke,
especially to the red haired tornado, and since she already made her way to
the conference room, Asuka could yell as loud as she wanted as she changed
clothes. "Stupid Shinji and his stupid Unit 01. Why am I even bothering
with this? If things look like it's tough, they just send the Invincible
Baka-Shinji to save the day. They don't even need me anymore," she said as
she pressed the button on her left wrist, thus sealing her plugsuit.
###########################################
The conference room was not as big as one would expect for the organization
responsible for saving the world from the Angels. It could fit about
sixteen people around the long table, but often, not even half of those
seats were ever filled. Another thing about the room was, despite the
world climate, it was always cold inside. The Second and Third Children
often shivered there while awaiting orders. Even the Director of
Operations, Misato Katsuragi, found herself chilled, although it didn't
help that she usually wore a short skirt to work.
"The 15th Angel is currently in orbit over the city," Misato said tiredly.
Recent events had left her rather restless, and quite frankly, she was too
tired to care about the temperature. "Units 00 and 02 will be sortied,
where they will take up sniper positions and wait for the target to get
into range. Any questions?"
"Yes," Rei said, surprising most in the room. "Why is Unit 01 not joining
us to assist? Since it is the most effective against the Angels, it . . .
puzzles me as to why it is not being sent." Even Asuka had to agree that
it was unusual that Shinji wouldn't be going as well. To tell the truth,
both girls would feel more at ease if their male coworker were fighting
alongside them.
"Unit 01 is under combat freeze for the time being," a cold voice said, as
Gendo Ikari walked in the room. "It will remain in stasis unless needed.
Understood?" The way the Commander said the last word gave you the
impression of a statement rather than a question.
The reactions to the statement were varied among the four other people.
Misato lowered her head and mumbled a few choice words before nodding.
Asuka flinched a little before doing the same, remembering how cold the
owner of the voice was. Rei nodded, remaining impassive. Shinji's
reaction was quite the surprise and made all the girls flinch a little.
Shinji looked straight at the Commander with narrow eyes and glared at him.
The way Shinji glared at his father wasn't a normal 'pissed off' glare.
No, this was a glare that said, "I know your secret, you son of a bitch.
For your sake, you better let me out when I'm needed, or God won't even be
able to identify the body." Indeed, this was a glare born of all the
hatred Shinji bore towards Gendo.
The sheer emotive force in Shinji's hate-charged glare made the Commander
raise an eyebrow. To most, this wouldn't be considered important. To
those who knew Gendo, it indicated that he was confused and possibly a
little hesitant. It said, "Something is off here, and it isn't according
to the scenario."
Composing himself slightly, the Commander cleared his throat before
addressing his son. "Do you understand, pilot?" he asked, truly asked.
Again, only those who knew him could tell that he gave a question instead
of a statement.
Shinji wasn't one of those people, but he still answered. "Yes, sir," he
said with some venom in his voice while maintaining the glare for two more
seconds. Only five people knew when he spoke with just enough venom to get
his point across while avoiding conflict. One was in a hospital bed being
fitted for a new arm and leg. Another was either in a shelter, out of
town, or outside preparing to record the battle from a safe distance. Two
of them were in that very conference room, wondering how their timid
roommate found the strength to face his father like that. The fifth was
trapped within the inner workings of Evangelion Unit 01.
It took a little while before Misato composed herself to dismiss the
pilots. She was still surprised by Shinji's sudden yet carefully hidden
display of rage as she entered the secondary command center. She always
told her roommate to face his father, but she never expected this. The
last time she saw him like that was when he was about to leave after the
13th Angel.
"I can't believe it," Misato said as she walked in the command center.
"What can't you believe, Misato?" asked her old friend, Dr. Ritsuko Akagi.
"Shinji," said the perplexed purple haired Major. "He seemed angry when
the Commander told him that Unit 01 was in combat freeze."
"That does seem strange," said Ritsuko, genuinely curious. "Maybe I should
perform some tests on him later. It could be an aftereffect of his stay in
his Eva."
"Maybe," Misato pondered, "but I have a feeling that it's something else.
It's almost like he's angry at the Commander about something. I just can't
put my finger on it."
"Well then," the doctor mused, "you should just ask him. If his changed
attitude towards the Commander is any sign, he just might answer you."
Misato closed her eyes as she thought about it a little. Of course,
bringing up a sensitive issue like Shinji's father tended to lead her to
remember her own father, which reminded her of Kaji. "Kaji," she whispered
as a tear rolled down her cheek, "help me."
"Misato? Misato, wake up!" Ritsuko said. She knew things had been tough
on her best friend since Kaji's death. It was hard for her too, knowing
that she'd lost one of the few friends she'd ever had. She was also afraid
of losing Misato and more afraid that she just might not be able to do
anything about it.
"Sorry about that, Ritsu," the once lively director of field operations
said quietly. "I don't know if I can ask him. It seems that my little
family is falling apart, and I don't know what to do."
"That's okay," Ritsuko said while rubbing her friend's back. "I know you
well enough to tell when you're having second thoughts." She thought very
carefully before she spoke again. "Tell you what. After we're all done
today, let's have dinner. We'll get Shinji to fix it, okay?"
Misato thought about the offer a little, and while she wanted to search for
the truth Kaji had spoken of before his death, she appreciated the fact
that Ritsuko was willing to take some time off for her. "I think," she
hesitated, "I'd like that. I'll tell the kids later."
"Ma'am," Lieutenant Shigeru Aoba spoke, "the pilots are ready and awaiting
orders." He didn't really want to break up the moment, but Angels waited
for nobody.
"Thank you, Lieutenant," Misato said after she composed herself. She
walked over to a console, where the pilots' current synch rates were
displayed. "Listen up. Rei will take point with the new positron rifle.
Asuka, you'll back her up with the old long range rifle."
"What!" exclaimed Asuka, enraged that she was to back up Rei. "Like hell
am I going to be HER back up! Unit 02, launch!" she shouted as she reached
the catapult.
"Why that insolent little . . ." began Ritsuko. She was positively furious
that the redheaded pilot of Unit 02 would deliberately disobey a direct
order.
"Fine, let her go out," Misato indignantly said. "But if she screws this
up, that's it."
"You mean it's her last chance?" asked Lieutenant Maya Ibuki. She knew
that the fiery German's scores were slipping fast, but she didn't expect
her superiors to be willing to fire one of their few pilots.
"Prepare to find a replacement," Ritsuko whispered to her protégé. She
always knew this was a possibility. Since Unit 02 was the first production
model Evangelion, it was possible to find another pilot who could synch
with it.
###########################################
"Asuka's taking point!" exclaimed Shinji from inside his Eva. "Damn it!
Although it's not fair to Rei, I hope the Angel doesn't attack Asuka."
Shinji turned on a private channel to Unit 02. "Asuka! Can you hear me?"
"What is it, baka?" the German snapped. "I haven't got all day."
"Be careful," Shinji said softly. "I have a bad feeling about this."
Asuka's expression softened a little at that, and for a few moments, there
was a calm, comfortable silence between the two roommates. Then, her pride
kicked in. "Don't tell me how to do my job, Third Child," she said
bitterly. "Asuka out."
"Oh, well," Shinji sighed, "guess all I can do now is hope for the best."
He couldn't deny that he had feelings for the hot-tempered German, although
he didn't know exactly what they were. Those same feelings made him fight
like a god of war against the 14th and dive into a volcano to save her
after the 8th. She may have thought the young man to be spineless, but
Shinji would arise to the occasion either when she provoked him or when she
or anyone else he cared for was in danger.
*******************************************
Meanwhile, as Unit 02 rose to the surface, Asuka was a bit worried by
herself. She knew that this was her last chance. [I have to get this
Angel, or I can't pilot. If I can't pilot, then I can't stay. If I can't
stay, then all my training was for nothing. I'll be nothing . . .]
Her train of thought was disrupted by a familiar voice. "Asuka! Can you
hear me?" Shinji asked.
If there is one thing Asuka doesn't like, it's having her thoughts
interrupted. "What is it, baka?" she snapped. "I haven't got all day."
Shinji gently looked at Asuka as he said, "Be careful. I have a bad
feeling about this." His voice was calm and gentle with a touch of fear.
Shinji's voice had a soothing effect on the fiery German, as did his words.
Asuka's facial expression softened when she heard his concern. [Sometimes
I wonder why I ever yell at him, especially when he's worried. I guess the
idiot grew on me or something.] She shook her head. [Why am I thinking
about him at a time like this, when I should be concentrating on fighting
the Angel?] "Don't tell me how to do my job, Third Child," Asuka said
bitterly to mask her confused emotions. "Asuka out." And with that, she
turned of the private channel between Units 01 and 02.
*******************************************
Unknown to the two pilots, their third teammate heard the entire exchange.
Shinji may have thought that his communication with Asuka was private, but
that only kept Central Dogma from knowing what was said. It didn't keep
Rei Ayanami from hearing anything.
Each Evangelion had a different setup, as well as a different body design.
Unit 01 had a newly acquired S2 organ and a berserker mode; Unit 02 had a
progressive knife with a retracting blade and was more compatible with some
of the specialized equipment for the production models. Rei's Unit 00,
despite being the prototype and having one eye, had more advanced
communications array and surveillance gear.
As such, it came as no surprise that Rei was able to listen in on Shinji's
conversation with Asuka. She was concerned by Pilot Ikari's actions when
they were briefed on the Angel. [Ikari almost seemed ready to bring harm
to the Commander. Why is that? Somehow, I think that it would be
justified.]
What did come as a surprise, however, was that she was also monitoring her
teammates synch rates at the same time. She noted that the Second Child's
synch rate had been dropping gradually before Shinji spoke to her, and that
the German's rate peaked shortly after Shinji had warned her. Distantly,
Rei also noted that the rate dropped again when Asuka made her ending
comment before cutting the communication. [The Second isn't opening
herself up to Unit 02. She was close, very close. It must have been a
result of Ikari's warning. Ikari, something about his voice was different.
It was calm, caring, and not laced with the fear he always projects. I
will think about this later. Now, there are more important matters to
attend to.] And with that, Rei was launched up to the surface to backup
Asuka.
###########################################
To say it was raining outside would be an understatement. It was
practically a deluge. Rain came down in sheets throughout Tokyo-3. Even
the Geofront was getting rained on. Obviously, not even a month of work
could completely patch the hole left by the 14th Angel's assault on NERV.
So, it rained on. Most of the rain fell on a little known, but often cared
for, melon patch.
It hadn't been even three days since the original planter of that
particular melon patch was murdered. Poor man. Killed in his pursuit of
the truth. Maybe, the heavens felt the pain within the heart of the
victim's lover and grieved the only way it could. It could be true, but
then again, maybe it couldn't. No one knew for sure, but it didn't matter.
To Asuka Langley Sohryu, the rain was just an obstacle. She couldn't see a
thing. It reminded her of the visibility she had during the retrieval of
the 8th and subsequent battle, just . . . gray. She really didn't want to
remember that battle, because it reminded her that Shinji saved her life
that day. She didn't want to owe anybody anything. She especially didn't
want to owe her life to Shinji.
Despite comments to the contrary, Asuka felt a degree of respect towards
Shinji. He fought most of the Angels by himself. He kept a humble
attitude about it. And finally, he had beaten her synch rate when she was
at her best. It took her a while, but she inevitably came to accept that
very fact. Shinji did have the most combat experience of the three pilots,
despite three of the battles were won with a berserk Unit 01.
His last victory had hit Asuka pretty hard. She couldn't understand why
Shinji had returned to fight after he had decided to leave. It hadn't
helped her that before Unit 01 went berserk, Shinji had been fighting the
14th Angel like a man possessed. The way he had fought surprised Asuka.
She had always considered him to be weak, but his ability to push back the
Angel, and nearly defeat it himself, had shown her that he wasn't weak at
all. He truly was, at least in his Eva, stronger than her.
So now, she had to prove that she was strong. She had to be stronger than
anyone else, even Shinji. She had to prove to herself that her victory
over the 8th wasn't a fluke, and the only way she could do that was to face
this Angel by herself.
"Damn it," Asuka yelled to the heavens, "show yourself, you monster." She
had been waiting for fifteen minutes for the targeting computer to lock on
the Angel, and her patience finally wore out.
For a moment, the rains seemed to recede, as if they were considering her
request. Some of the clouds parted as the computer finally locked onto the
15th Angel. Asuka was about to fire the positron rifle when a light shone
upon her, followed by the music of the Hallelujah Chorus.
As the light descended on her, Asuka began to see her darkest memories in
their entirety. Everything from the day her mother had been hospitalized
to the day she had found her mother hanging from the hospital room's
ceiling was shown repeatedly, as was her father's actions during and after
that year. The Angel was truly sick to use such joyful, celebratory music
as Händel's Hallelujah Chorus as the soundtrack for the most haunting and
most disturbing memories in Asuka's life.
As her memories replayed themselves for the umpteenth time within six
seconds of the Angel's attack, Asuka started to scream.
As Asuka screamed in pain, she fired the positron rifle. Unfortunately,
because of the Angel's assault on the pilot's mind, Unit 02's aim was
slightly below the optimum angle, thus making the shot fall short of
hitting her assailant. If anything, it made the Angel probe deeper into
Asuka's mind.
Her screams continued as she depleted the remaining ammunition in the rifle
in a reflex. By this time though, there was no chance of hitting the
Angel, as the rifle was pointed towards the city. The shots tore several
buildings and one emergency shelter. The shelter was empty, fortunately,
since most of the people from that district had already moved away from the
fighting.
"Get out!" Asuka screamed as she clutched her head in her hands. "Get out
of my mind!" Her Eva spasmed as the torment continued with no signs of
slowing down. The attack was interrupting her synch with Unit 02 so much
that it did the opposite of what she wanted.
She thought she heard Misato order her to retreat, but the pain was
blurring everything. She could neither hear Rei's sniper rifle firing, nor
the declaration that the shot didn't breach the Angel's AT Field. She
could only make one chilling plea, "No! Stop! Don't rape my mind!"
###########################################
"No! Stop! Don't rape my mind!" Asuka's words made everyone in the
command center silent. How could they have known that the Angels were
capable of THAT? It was impossible to know, and at this point, maybe
impossible to stop it. Fuyutsuki had a pained expression on his face, one
of a man haunted by the past. He didn't think that history might repeat
itself, not like that. A tear slid down his face as he made a silent wish
for a miracle.
The words uttered by the German pilot had a different effect on Unit 01 and
Shinji. Deep within the core, the words reawakened the soul of Yui Ikari,
and they made her remember her experience. Asuka's words had triggered a
response that any real mother would have: pure, primal, awe-inspiring
rage.
Yui may have been enraged beyond anything people ever expected of her, but
her rage was second to her son's. He knew what had happened to his mother,
and the thought of anything like that happening to his friends, especially
at the hands of an Angel, made his blood boil.
His regrets further fueled his anger as he spoke to himself with his head
held down. "I failed to protect Touji and his sister. I failed to help
Hikari. I've failed Mr. Kaji. I've even failed to comfort Misato when she
needed me. I didn't even try to help her, and that's where I failed. No
more," he said as he raised his head to gaze at the command center. "I've
failed too many people, too many times, and it's time to stop. I shouldn't
fail, I mustn't fail, I can't fail, and I won't fail." He smiled, for he
knew what he had to do.
###########################################
"Misato, Commander, let me go!" the young man shouted. Everyone turned to
see something they never expected: Shinji was ready to fight, and by the
look in his eyes, only a fool would deny his request. He was calm, but
determined.
Misato was about to ready Unit 01 for combat, when Gendo interrupted.
"Request denied. Unit 01 will remain in combat freeze." Silence reigned
in the command center.
Everyone knew that Unit 01 and its pilot were, for the most part,
unpredictable, but they always came through when push came to shove.
Internally, many of the technicians and researchers were wondering exactly
what miracle those two would pull off this time. As such, the command
center was in a silent uproar, furious that Gendo would still refuse to
send Unit 01. All were hoping that Shinji's determination wouldn't falter
as they've seen one too many times.
It seemed that this time, their hopes would be fulfilled. "No," Shinji
said calmly, although his carefully hidden rage was beginning to show. "I
am going to help Asuka fight this monster. Now let me go." The command
center was again alive with activity, as the crew was starting to prepare
for Shinji's inevitable departure.
"Again, request denied," said Gendo in a voice that made the temperature
drop ten degrees throughout the Geofront. He turned towards the screen
displaying Rei's countenance before speaking again. "Rei, go retrieve the
Lan-"
"NO!" Shinji screamed out, no longer holding back the rage. "I'm not going
to stand back and watch another person I care about get hurt. You heard
Asuka; you should know what that thing is doing to her." Murmurs of
agreement quietly filled the cages.
"What does that have to do with anything?" the Commander asked.
"I mean that I won't let that monster rape Asuka's mind like you raped MY
MOTHER!" Shinji bellowed. Again, the command center was filled with deadly
silence.
Inside Unit 01, Yui smiled in pride at her son briefly, before focusing all
her stored anger on two targets: Gendo and the 15th Angel.
The outside silence was broken by a scream. However, it wasn't one of
Asuka's, but the scream of Unit 01. The Eva had glowing red eyes,
something not seen since the 13th Angel's attack. If anything, those eyes
were what frightened the crew most as everyone watched the Eva's restraints
unlock as it headed towards the catapult.
"Disconnect Unit 01's power," Gendo commanded. Some of the techs, still in
shock over the current events, blindly obeyed the order. They started the
sequence to disconnect Unit 01's power cable, as well as prepared the
bakelite to capture the rogue Evangelion.
"Sir," one of the technicians began, "Unit 01 doesn't even have its power
cable installed. What do we do?" Indeed, Unit 01 was running under its
own power, courtesy of the 14th Angel. It made no sense; how could Unit 01
start up the S2 organ?
"Increase LCL pressure in the entry plug," Gendo barked. "If we can't take
away the Eva's power, then we'll incapacitate the pilot." Such a maneuver
had worked before, shortly after the destruction of the 13th Angel. Why
shouldn't it work again?
"Sir, the MAGI aren't acknowledging the request!" Lieutenant Ibuki gasped.
No one, not even Dr. Ritsuko Akagi, could figure out why the MAGI said no.
As Unit 01 approached the catapult, Shinji wondered what exactly he was
going to do once he got out there. Sure, he wanted to help Asuka, but how
can he stop an Angel in orbit from attacking someone's mind? It wasn't
like NERV had an Eva sized space shuttle in case of emergency or anything
like that.
"Unit 01, launch!" declared the pilot of said Eva as the catapult sent it
to the surface. Shinji wished he had some way of reaching his adversary
and making it pay. But for now, he could at least try to take the brunt of
the Angel's attack for Asuka.
As soon as he reached the surface, Shinji charged towards Unit 02 and the
unholy light shining upon it. He stood directly in the path of the beam as
he tried to pick up the fallen Eva and take it to safety. Memories
suddenly flooded his mind as he walked, memories that Shinji thought he had
buried long ago as well as recent regrets.
FLASH! {Mother's synch test}
FLASH! {Father leaving}
FLASH! {Being alone}
FLASH! {Unit 01 crushing Touji's entry plug}
FLASH! {Misato's tears as she learned of Kaji's fate}
Unit 01 stumbled, as new memories entered Shinji's thoughts; memories that
he knew were not his. But whose memories were they?
FLASH! {Mama ignoring me, talking to that stupid doll again}
FLASH! {Going to see Mama in the hospital}
FLASH! {"Mama, Mama. I'm not going to be lonely anymore."}
FLASH! {A female form hanging from the ceiling of a hospital room,
smiling}
Slowly, Shinji came to realize that these must be Asuka's memories. "Oh
God, Asuka. I didn't know. How did you live through all that?" he said to
himself.
Anger began to overcome him as more of Asuka's childhood was shown to him,
alongside his own. "How dare it make us relive our worst memories? Why
must these things toy with us like this? I won't stand for this. I will
make . . . it . . . PAY!!"
As Shinji spoke, a change began in his Eva. Some of the armor on Unit 01's
back bulged and glowed. And then it happened. Eight luminous wings
emerged from its back, stretching out for several city blocks before
wrapping around Units 01 and 02.
###########################################
The command staff was in awe at the sight. The wings of Shinji's Eva
appeared to be embracing Unit 02 before they spread once more. With a leap
and a majestic sweep of its wings, Unit 01 took to the heavens to find its
adversary.
"What's the pilots' status?" Ritsuko asked loudly.
"Asuka's psychograph readings are still fluctuating, but not as much as
before," Maya stated. "Shinji's status is . . . what the hell?"
"What is it?" Misato worried.
"Let me see," Ritsuko ordered as she looked over Maya's shoulder. "My god!
Shinji's synchronization rate is holding at 150%!"
"Mmm," murmured Gendo, obviously displeased with this situation.
"I assume that," Fuyutsuki offered with a smirk, "this was not in the
scenario?"
###########################################
As Unit 01 approached the looming form of the 15th, it interfered with the
Angel's attack even more. Every meter gained meant one less cycle of pain
for Asuka. The 15th tried to reassert its attack on the pilot of Unit 02,
but it met increasing resistance from the rapidly advancing Pilot Ikari and
his Eva.
Inside Unit 01, Shinji held strong as the Angel's psychic attack was making
him relive the painful pasts of both him and Asuka. Little did he know,
but the soul of Yui Ikari was also reliving the Children's memories,
alongside her own. It took all she had to keep her memories from bleeding
over to her son and Asuka, but it also lessened the burden for them.
Finally, Unit 01 left the atmosphere and reached the Angel with both arms
reaching out. The Angel brought its psychic attack to full strength in
desperation. Yui Ikari's memories of her rape bled into her son's mind as
a result of the attack, giving him an understanding no one had ever or
should ever gain. Shinji screamed in horror as he felt every moment of his
mother's fear, anguish, sorrow, and pain.
The Angel was given a slight reprieve from the Eva's advance, and used the
brief time to erect its AT field while putting some distance between the
two. It didn't have much time, however, as every emotion fuelled Shinji
and Yui's wrath. The Angel didn't have a chance.
Shinji's wrath was based on two things, the attack on Asuka, and the attack
on his mother. The Angel appeared to him now the personification of pain
and suffering, the personification of rape. Thus, it became a symbol of
pure evil in his young mind and deserving of a fate worse than death. Even
SEELE would've quaked with fear if they had known what he had planned for
that monster.
Yui's wrath was the combined effects of remembering Gendo's attack, her
wish that no one ever would know what that was like, and the sorrow of the
two Children's lives. To her, killing the Angel was her way of protecting
her son and the people he cared for as well as a 'therapeutic' release of
ten years worth of anger. It would be frightening for those who knew her
to think of what she wanted to do to the 15th.
Evangelion Unit 01 charged the Angel in space once more, experiencing the
first space battle between Eva and Angel. It had to be more cautious with
its movements, as there was no resistance to limit it. One wrong move is
all it would take for the massive Eva to spin out of control into the
depths of space.
As Unit 01 reached the Angels AT field, it extended its own to cancel it
out. However, there was a major difference between the fields for once.
The Angel's orange barrier of light was shattered by the blood red anger of
two human souls: one with the knowledge to do so, and a young man who
didn't even notice.
The Eva grabbed the now-defenseless 15th Angel before spinning to throw it
down to the earth. Facing outer space, the Angel could no longer attack
Asuka. After the humanoid fighting machine launched the Angel, it used its
newly grown wings to stop the spin. Then the wings cocooned Unit 01 as it
went into a reverse roll. With all the leftover communication satellites
orbiting the earth, it was easy for the Eva to touch off of one to propel
it back towards the enemy.
As the Angel tried to erect its AT field again to stop its descent towards
the planet's surface, Unit 01 unfurled its wings to give it a further boost
in speed. At the steep angle of descent, the 15th now had two options:
erect its field and be at the mercy of the Eva when it caught up, or risk
reentry and hope Unit 01 was incinerated. It dropped its field.
The hulking purple giant slammed into the snowflake-like form of the 15th
Angel as the two adversaries began reentry. The inertial forces alone
should have made the pilot of Unit 01 faint, but the LCL in his entry plug
acted like a buffer for the tremendous forces. As the two falling bodies
began their dive through the earth's atmosphere, Unit 01 grabbed the Angel
near the base of its wings with the left arm, while the right one grabbed a
progressive knife from the left shoulder pylon.
Now the Angel couldn't stop its descent, even if it wanted to. Shinji's
Eva was using the 15th Angel as a heat shield, and if the white monster
tried to slow its descent, the vibrating knife would pierce its core. No
matter what, this beast was going to die, and there was no question that it
would hurt.
Hurtling towards the ground below, the Angel felt its 'wings' begin to
incinerate. Each tendril-like 'feather' was slowly, but surely, breaking
apart. As the wings continued to disintegrate, the mighty Angel mentally
screamed in pain. Deep within Unit 01, Yui Ikari smirked in triumph.
Once the Angel's 'wings' were completely destroyed, Unit 01 began to encase
itself in its own wings in preparation. The face of the purple Eva
twisted itself into a wicked grin as it brought the knife, now red hot,
away from the Angel's core. The 15th gave a mental sigh of relief before
feeling one more moment of excruciating pain as it met its end at an
altitude of 17,000 feet.
*******************
"What happened?" one might ask. Well, let's just say that if the Angel
didn't have one already, Unit 01 gave the 15th Angel a new orifice and
shoved a burning hot, vibrating knife through it before the blade went
straight to its core. Needless to say, the pain was more than it could
bear.
*******************
The explosion from the 15th Angel's destruction could have harmed Unit 01,
if the purple beast hadn't erected its AT field and spread its wings. The
field deflected most of the force, and the wings harnessed the rest to
dramatically slow the Eva's descent, much like opening a parachute. The
overheating Eva headed for the ocean to cool off before making its final
approach towards Tokyo-3. As it brushed the surface of the Pacific, Shinji
and Yui finally felt the impact of what they had done, and they knew that
the day wasn't over.
As Unit 01 and its pilot reached the raining city of Tokyo-3, its wings
began to fade, returning to the depths from whence they came. The Eva
touched down in front of Unit 02 and knelt before it. It gathered the red
giant in its arms before doing something no one could have ever imagined.
###########################################
In the command center, despite their amazement at the battle, everyone was
shocked as the jaw of Unit 01 opened and a sound came out. It cried along
with its pilot and the pilot of Unit 02. The crew stood in silent awe as a
tear formed on the face of Unit 01 and fell to the ground, followed by
another from Unit 02.
*****************************************
TO BE CONTINUED
*****************************************
Author's notes (4-6-04): This is the chapter I had planned from the
beginning folks, although it didn't turn out how I originally thought. I
can't even remember what I was going to have Unit 01 do to the 15th when it
finally reached it, but I know I didn't plan on Yui's memories bleed over
to Shinji like that. It just happened, but I hope it brings things into
perspective for them. Same thing goes for the end of the chapter. I was
going to have it end in the same scene as the episode, but make enough of a
change so Shinji wouldn't just leave. I would have done that, but as I
wrote the fight, this ending appeared. It fits much better. I guess I'll
start the third chapter with the original scene. I knew when I started
this chapter that things would begin to really change. One of these
changes will be the 17th Angel. I can't imagine Kaworu as the 17th in this
story, but I don't know what I'm going to do.
Revised notes (4-14-04): Thanks to Puddle of LCL and ladyxkodomo for their
help. This chapter would still have too many errors if they didn't preread
the chapter.
getting letters from all of you about what you want in the live action Eva
movie. That, and I wouldn't be worrying about money.
[This is thought]
"This is speech"
{"This is flashback speech"}
*****************************************
Neon Genesis Evangelion: Child of Desperation
Chapter Two: Fighting the Past
By FinalMax
A Richter Scale Production
*****************************************
As Shinji headed to his locker room, he kept replaying Sub-Commander
Fuyutsuki's warning. {"This angel will be unlike the others in how it
attacks. Unit 01 is to be kept in stasis unless needed. If you feel that
you have to help them, do it. Do whatever you did to awaken your Eva, and
save her."} Shinji knew he had to help 'her', but he didn't know which of
the two remaining pilots 'she' would be. He also didn't know how the Angel
was going to attack 'her'. All he knew for certain was that he wasn't
going to run from this. [I'm never going to run away again, especially not
from him.]
He had someone he had to go through before he could change into his
plugsuit. Asuka. If there was anyone other than Gendo Ikari who could
bring a mixture of fear and anticipation to Shinji Ikari, it was Asuka
Langley Sohryu. She looked very pissed off. [Shit, what did I forget this
time?]
"Baka! What the hell took you so long?" the redhead demanded.
"Not that it's any of your business, but I was in a meeting with Sub-
Commander Fuyutsuki," Shinji said. "Now that you know, could you please
get out of my way?" The tone the young Ikari used made the request sound
more like a command.
"What!" Asuka bellowed. She was obviously shocked that her timid roommate
practically commanded her to get out of his way. [He never tells me what
to do. What's gotten into him? Wait a minute; he told me what to do!
That little . . .] Shock led to anger, and there was only one-way Asuka
Langley Sohryu handled anger. "Who do you think you are, trying to order
me around?" However, no one was around to hear her, as Shinji had gone
around her during her thought process. "Where'd he go? Oooh, when I get
my hands on him, I'm gonna . . . " With that, the red haired pilot of Unit
02 turned and headed for the women's locker room, muttering a string of
German obscenities as she went.
###########################################
As he changed, Shinji tried to remember how he made Unit 01 activate
without power. "The Sub-Commander told me that my Eva had its own S2 organ
and that it should now have unlimited power," Shinji said quietly. "If I
can figure out how to start Unit 01 without command's help, I can break the
freeze." He may have been quiet and cowardly before, but anyone could see
the advantage of starting an Evangelion without unneeded assistance.
[Perhaps if I focus on what I felt from Eva before I was absorbed . . .]
The young pilot's musings were cut short by the repeated request for all
pilots to report to the conference room. Sighing, Shinji sealed the
plugsuit and made his way to the room to be briefed. "I'll figure it out
while I'm in the plug."
Meanwhile, in the girls' locker room, Asuka was still fuming a little at
Shinji's attitude. "Damn baka-Shinji, I can't stand him. Figures that the
dork would get a spine now. It's not enough that he's passing me in the
synch tests, now he's got to order me around too." Since Rei rarely spoke,
especially to the red haired tornado, and since she already made her way to
the conference room, Asuka could yell as loud as she wanted as she changed
clothes. "Stupid Shinji and his stupid Unit 01. Why am I even bothering
with this? If things look like it's tough, they just send the Invincible
Baka-Shinji to save the day. They don't even need me anymore," she said as
she pressed the button on her left wrist, thus sealing her plugsuit.
###########################################
The conference room was not as big as one would expect for the organization
responsible for saving the world from the Angels. It could fit about
sixteen people around the long table, but often, not even half of those
seats were ever filled. Another thing about the room was, despite the
world climate, it was always cold inside. The Second and Third Children
often shivered there while awaiting orders. Even the Director of
Operations, Misato Katsuragi, found herself chilled, although it didn't
help that she usually wore a short skirt to work.
"The 15th Angel is currently in orbit over the city," Misato said tiredly.
Recent events had left her rather restless, and quite frankly, she was too
tired to care about the temperature. "Units 00 and 02 will be sortied,
where they will take up sniper positions and wait for the target to get
into range. Any questions?"
"Yes," Rei said, surprising most in the room. "Why is Unit 01 not joining
us to assist? Since it is the most effective against the Angels, it . . .
puzzles me as to why it is not being sent." Even Asuka had to agree that
it was unusual that Shinji wouldn't be going as well. To tell the truth,
both girls would feel more at ease if their male coworker were fighting
alongside them.
"Unit 01 is under combat freeze for the time being," a cold voice said, as
Gendo Ikari walked in the room. "It will remain in stasis unless needed.
Understood?" The way the Commander said the last word gave you the
impression of a statement rather than a question.
The reactions to the statement were varied among the four other people.
Misato lowered her head and mumbled a few choice words before nodding.
Asuka flinched a little before doing the same, remembering how cold the
owner of the voice was. Rei nodded, remaining impassive. Shinji's
reaction was quite the surprise and made all the girls flinch a little.
Shinji looked straight at the Commander with narrow eyes and glared at him.
The way Shinji glared at his father wasn't a normal 'pissed off' glare.
No, this was a glare that said, "I know your secret, you son of a bitch.
For your sake, you better let me out when I'm needed, or God won't even be
able to identify the body." Indeed, this was a glare born of all the
hatred Shinji bore towards Gendo.
The sheer emotive force in Shinji's hate-charged glare made the Commander
raise an eyebrow. To most, this wouldn't be considered important. To
those who knew Gendo, it indicated that he was confused and possibly a
little hesitant. It said, "Something is off here, and it isn't according
to the scenario."
Composing himself slightly, the Commander cleared his throat before
addressing his son. "Do you understand, pilot?" he asked, truly asked.
Again, only those who knew him could tell that he gave a question instead
of a statement.
Shinji wasn't one of those people, but he still answered. "Yes, sir," he
said with some venom in his voice while maintaining the glare for two more
seconds. Only five people knew when he spoke with just enough venom to get
his point across while avoiding conflict. One was in a hospital bed being
fitted for a new arm and leg. Another was either in a shelter, out of
town, or outside preparing to record the battle from a safe distance. Two
of them were in that very conference room, wondering how their timid
roommate found the strength to face his father like that. The fifth was
trapped within the inner workings of Evangelion Unit 01.
It took a little while before Misato composed herself to dismiss the
pilots. She was still surprised by Shinji's sudden yet carefully hidden
display of rage as she entered the secondary command center. She always
told her roommate to face his father, but she never expected this. The
last time she saw him like that was when he was about to leave after the
13th Angel.
"I can't believe it," Misato said as she walked in the command center.
"What can't you believe, Misato?" asked her old friend, Dr. Ritsuko Akagi.
"Shinji," said the perplexed purple haired Major. "He seemed angry when
the Commander told him that Unit 01 was in combat freeze."
"That does seem strange," said Ritsuko, genuinely curious. "Maybe I should
perform some tests on him later. It could be an aftereffect of his stay in
his Eva."
"Maybe," Misato pondered, "but I have a feeling that it's something else.
It's almost like he's angry at the Commander about something. I just can't
put my finger on it."
"Well then," the doctor mused, "you should just ask him. If his changed
attitude towards the Commander is any sign, he just might answer you."
Misato closed her eyes as she thought about it a little. Of course,
bringing up a sensitive issue like Shinji's father tended to lead her to
remember her own father, which reminded her of Kaji. "Kaji," she whispered
as a tear rolled down her cheek, "help me."
"Misato? Misato, wake up!" Ritsuko said. She knew things had been tough
on her best friend since Kaji's death. It was hard for her too, knowing
that she'd lost one of the few friends she'd ever had. She was also afraid
of losing Misato and more afraid that she just might not be able to do
anything about it.
"Sorry about that, Ritsu," the once lively director of field operations
said quietly. "I don't know if I can ask him. It seems that my little
family is falling apart, and I don't know what to do."
"That's okay," Ritsuko said while rubbing her friend's back. "I know you
well enough to tell when you're having second thoughts." She thought very
carefully before she spoke again. "Tell you what. After we're all done
today, let's have dinner. We'll get Shinji to fix it, okay?"
Misato thought about the offer a little, and while she wanted to search for
the truth Kaji had spoken of before his death, she appreciated the fact
that Ritsuko was willing to take some time off for her. "I think," she
hesitated, "I'd like that. I'll tell the kids later."
"Ma'am," Lieutenant Shigeru Aoba spoke, "the pilots are ready and awaiting
orders." He didn't really want to break up the moment, but Angels waited
for nobody.
"Thank you, Lieutenant," Misato said after she composed herself. She
walked over to a console, where the pilots' current synch rates were
displayed. "Listen up. Rei will take point with the new positron rifle.
Asuka, you'll back her up with the old long range rifle."
"What!" exclaimed Asuka, enraged that she was to back up Rei. "Like hell
am I going to be HER back up! Unit 02, launch!" she shouted as she reached
the catapult.
"Why that insolent little . . ." began Ritsuko. She was positively furious
that the redheaded pilot of Unit 02 would deliberately disobey a direct
order.
"Fine, let her go out," Misato indignantly said. "But if she screws this
up, that's it."
"You mean it's her last chance?" asked Lieutenant Maya Ibuki. She knew
that the fiery German's scores were slipping fast, but she didn't expect
her superiors to be willing to fire one of their few pilots.
"Prepare to find a replacement," Ritsuko whispered to her protégé. She
always knew this was a possibility. Since Unit 02 was the first production
model Evangelion, it was possible to find another pilot who could synch
with it.
###########################################
"Asuka's taking point!" exclaimed Shinji from inside his Eva. "Damn it!
Although it's not fair to Rei, I hope the Angel doesn't attack Asuka."
Shinji turned on a private channel to Unit 02. "Asuka! Can you hear me?"
"What is it, baka?" the German snapped. "I haven't got all day."
"Be careful," Shinji said softly. "I have a bad feeling about this."
Asuka's expression softened a little at that, and for a few moments, there
was a calm, comfortable silence between the two roommates. Then, her pride
kicked in. "Don't tell me how to do my job, Third Child," she said
bitterly. "Asuka out."
"Oh, well," Shinji sighed, "guess all I can do now is hope for the best."
He couldn't deny that he had feelings for the hot-tempered German, although
he didn't know exactly what they were. Those same feelings made him fight
like a god of war against the 14th and dive into a volcano to save her
after the 8th. She may have thought the young man to be spineless, but
Shinji would arise to the occasion either when she provoked him or when she
or anyone else he cared for was in danger.
*******************************************
Meanwhile, as Unit 02 rose to the surface, Asuka was a bit worried by
herself. She knew that this was her last chance. [I have to get this
Angel, or I can't pilot. If I can't pilot, then I can't stay. If I can't
stay, then all my training was for nothing. I'll be nothing . . .]
Her train of thought was disrupted by a familiar voice. "Asuka! Can you
hear me?" Shinji asked.
If there is one thing Asuka doesn't like, it's having her thoughts
interrupted. "What is it, baka?" she snapped. "I haven't got all day."
Shinji gently looked at Asuka as he said, "Be careful. I have a bad
feeling about this." His voice was calm and gentle with a touch of fear.
Shinji's voice had a soothing effect on the fiery German, as did his words.
Asuka's facial expression softened when she heard his concern. [Sometimes
I wonder why I ever yell at him, especially when he's worried. I guess the
idiot grew on me or something.] She shook her head. [Why am I thinking
about him at a time like this, when I should be concentrating on fighting
the Angel?] "Don't tell me how to do my job, Third Child," Asuka said
bitterly to mask her confused emotions. "Asuka out." And with that, she
turned of the private channel between Units 01 and 02.
*******************************************
Unknown to the two pilots, their third teammate heard the entire exchange.
Shinji may have thought that his communication with Asuka was private, but
that only kept Central Dogma from knowing what was said. It didn't keep
Rei Ayanami from hearing anything.
Each Evangelion had a different setup, as well as a different body design.
Unit 01 had a newly acquired S2 organ and a berserker mode; Unit 02 had a
progressive knife with a retracting blade and was more compatible with some
of the specialized equipment for the production models. Rei's Unit 00,
despite being the prototype and having one eye, had more advanced
communications array and surveillance gear.
As such, it came as no surprise that Rei was able to listen in on Shinji's
conversation with Asuka. She was concerned by Pilot Ikari's actions when
they were briefed on the Angel. [Ikari almost seemed ready to bring harm
to the Commander. Why is that? Somehow, I think that it would be
justified.]
What did come as a surprise, however, was that she was also monitoring her
teammates synch rates at the same time. She noted that the Second Child's
synch rate had been dropping gradually before Shinji spoke to her, and that
the German's rate peaked shortly after Shinji had warned her. Distantly,
Rei also noted that the rate dropped again when Asuka made her ending
comment before cutting the communication. [The Second isn't opening
herself up to Unit 02. She was close, very close. It must have been a
result of Ikari's warning. Ikari, something about his voice was different.
It was calm, caring, and not laced with the fear he always projects. I
will think about this later. Now, there are more important matters to
attend to.] And with that, Rei was launched up to the surface to backup
Asuka.
###########################################
To say it was raining outside would be an understatement. It was
practically a deluge. Rain came down in sheets throughout Tokyo-3. Even
the Geofront was getting rained on. Obviously, not even a month of work
could completely patch the hole left by the 14th Angel's assault on NERV.
So, it rained on. Most of the rain fell on a little known, but often cared
for, melon patch.
It hadn't been even three days since the original planter of that
particular melon patch was murdered. Poor man. Killed in his pursuit of
the truth. Maybe, the heavens felt the pain within the heart of the
victim's lover and grieved the only way it could. It could be true, but
then again, maybe it couldn't. No one knew for sure, but it didn't matter.
To Asuka Langley Sohryu, the rain was just an obstacle. She couldn't see a
thing. It reminded her of the visibility she had during the retrieval of
the 8th and subsequent battle, just . . . gray. She really didn't want to
remember that battle, because it reminded her that Shinji saved her life
that day. She didn't want to owe anybody anything. She especially didn't
want to owe her life to Shinji.
Despite comments to the contrary, Asuka felt a degree of respect towards
Shinji. He fought most of the Angels by himself. He kept a humble
attitude about it. And finally, he had beaten her synch rate when she was
at her best. It took her a while, but she inevitably came to accept that
very fact. Shinji did have the most combat experience of the three pilots,
despite three of the battles were won with a berserk Unit 01.
His last victory had hit Asuka pretty hard. She couldn't understand why
Shinji had returned to fight after he had decided to leave. It hadn't
helped her that before Unit 01 went berserk, Shinji had been fighting the
14th Angel like a man possessed. The way he had fought surprised Asuka.
She had always considered him to be weak, but his ability to push back the
Angel, and nearly defeat it himself, had shown her that he wasn't weak at
all. He truly was, at least in his Eva, stronger than her.
So now, she had to prove that she was strong. She had to be stronger than
anyone else, even Shinji. She had to prove to herself that her victory
over the 8th wasn't a fluke, and the only way she could do that was to face
this Angel by herself.
"Damn it," Asuka yelled to the heavens, "show yourself, you monster." She
had been waiting for fifteen minutes for the targeting computer to lock on
the Angel, and her patience finally wore out.
For a moment, the rains seemed to recede, as if they were considering her
request. Some of the clouds parted as the computer finally locked onto the
15th Angel. Asuka was about to fire the positron rifle when a light shone
upon her, followed by the music of the Hallelujah Chorus.
As the light descended on her, Asuka began to see her darkest memories in
their entirety. Everything from the day her mother had been hospitalized
to the day she had found her mother hanging from the hospital room's
ceiling was shown repeatedly, as was her father's actions during and after
that year. The Angel was truly sick to use such joyful, celebratory music
as Händel's Hallelujah Chorus as the soundtrack for the most haunting and
most disturbing memories in Asuka's life.
As her memories replayed themselves for the umpteenth time within six
seconds of the Angel's attack, Asuka started to scream.
As Asuka screamed in pain, she fired the positron rifle. Unfortunately,
because of the Angel's assault on the pilot's mind, Unit 02's aim was
slightly below the optimum angle, thus making the shot fall short of
hitting her assailant. If anything, it made the Angel probe deeper into
Asuka's mind.
Her screams continued as she depleted the remaining ammunition in the rifle
in a reflex. By this time though, there was no chance of hitting the
Angel, as the rifle was pointed towards the city. The shots tore several
buildings and one emergency shelter. The shelter was empty, fortunately,
since most of the people from that district had already moved away from the
fighting.
"Get out!" Asuka screamed as she clutched her head in her hands. "Get out
of my mind!" Her Eva spasmed as the torment continued with no signs of
slowing down. The attack was interrupting her synch with Unit 02 so much
that it did the opposite of what she wanted.
She thought she heard Misato order her to retreat, but the pain was
blurring everything. She could neither hear Rei's sniper rifle firing, nor
the declaration that the shot didn't breach the Angel's AT Field. She
could only make one chilling plea, "No! Stop! Don't rape my mind!"
###########################################
"No! Stop! Don't rape my mind!" Asuka's words made everyone in the
command center silent. How could they have known that the Angels were
capable of THAT? It was impossible to know, and at this point, maybe
impossible to stop it. Fuyutsuki had a pained expression on his face, one
of a man haunted by the past. He didn't think that history might repeat
itself, not like that. A tear slid down his face as he made a silent wish
for a miracle.
The words uttered by the German pilot had a different effect on Unit 01 and
Shinji. Deep within the core, the words reawakened the soul of Yui Ikari,
and they made her remember her experience. Asuka's words had triggered a
response that any real mother would have: pure, primal, awe-inspiring
rage.
Yui may have been enraged beyond anything people ever expected of her, but
her rage was second to her son's. He knew what had happened to his mother,
and the thought of anything like that happening to his friends, especially
at the hands of an Angel, made his blood boil.
His regrets further fueled his anger as he spoke to himself with his head
held down. "I failed to protect Touji and his sister. I failed to help
Hikari. I've failed Mr. Kaji. I've even failed to comfort Misato when she
needed me. I didn't even try to help her, and that's where I failed. No
more," he said as he raised his head to gaze at the command center. "I've
failed too many people, too many times, and it's time to stop. I shouldn't
fail, I mustn't fail, I can't fail, and I won't fail." He smiled, for he
knew what he had to do.
###########################################
"Misato, Commander, let me go!" the young man shouted. Everyone turned to
see something they never expected: Shinji was ready to fight, and by the
look in his eyes, only a fool would deny his request. He was calm, but
determined.
Misato was about to ready Unit 01 for combat, when Gendo interrupted.
"Request denied. Unit 01 will remain in combat freeze." Silence reigned
in the command center.
Everyone knew that Unit 01 and its pilot were, for the most part,
unpredictable, but they always came through when push came to shove.
Internally, many of the technicians and researchers were wondering exactly
what miracle those two would pull off this time. As such, the command
center was in a silent uproar, furious that Gendo would still refuse to
send Unit 01. All were hoping that Shinji's determination wouldn't falter
as they've seen one too many times.
It seemed that this time, their hopes would be fulfilled. "No," Shinji
said calmly, although his carefully hidden rage was beginning to show. "I
am going to help Asuka fight this monster. Now let me go." The command
center was again alive with activity, as the crew was starting to prepare
for Shinji's inevitable departure.
"Again, request denied," said Gendo in a voice that made the temperature
drop ten degrees throughout the Geofront. He turned towards the screen
displaying Rei's countenance before speaking again. "Rei, go retrieve the
Lan-"
"NO!" Shinji screamed out, no longer holding back the rage. "I'm not going
to stand back and watch another person I care about get hurt. You heard
Asuka; you should know what that thing is doing to her." Murmurs of
agreement quietly filled the cages.
"What does that have to do with anything?" the Commander asked.
"I mean that I won't let that monster rape Asuka's mind like you raped MY
MOTHER!" Shinji bellowed. Again, the command center was filled with deadly
silence.
Inside Unit 01, Yui smiled in pride at her son briefly, before focusing all
her stored anger on two targets: Gendo and the 15th Angel.
The outside silence was broken by a scream. However, it wasn't one of
Asuka's, but the scream of Unit 01. The Eva had glowing red eyes,
something not seen since the 13th Angel's attack. If anything, those eyes
were what frightened the crew most as everyone watched the Eva's restraints
unlock as it headed towards the catapult.
"Disconnect Unit 01's power," Gendo commanded. Some of the techs, still in
shock over the current events, blindly obeyed the order. They started the
sequence to disconnect Unit 01's power cable, as well as prepared the
bakelite to capture the rogue Evangelion.
"Sir," one of the technicians began, "Unit 01 doesn't even have its power
cable installed. What do we do?" Indeed, Unit 01 was running under its
own power, courtesy of the 14th Angel. It made no sense; how could Unit 01
start up the S2 organ?
"Increase LCL pressure in the entry plug," Gendo barked. "If we can't take
away the Eva's power, then we'll incapacitate the pilot." Such a maneuver
had worked before, shortly after the destruction of the 13th Angel. Why
shouldn't it work again?
"Sir, the MAGI aren't acknowledging the request!" Lieutenant Ibuki gasped.
No one, not even Dr. Ritsuko Akagi, could figure out why the MAGI said no.
As Unit 01 approached the catapult, Shinji wondered what exactly he was
going to do once he got out there. Sure, he wanted to help Asuka, but how
can he stop an Angel in orbit from attacking someone's mind? It wasn't
like NERV had an Eva sized space shuttle in case of emergency or anything
like that.
"Unit 01, launch!" declared the pilot of said Eva as the catapult sent it
to the surface. Shinji wished he had some way of reaching his adversary
and making it pay. But for now, he could at least try to take the brunt of
the Angel's attack for Asuka.
As soon as he reached the surface, Shinji charged towards Unit 02 and the
unholy light shining upon it. He stood directly in the path of the beam as
he tried to pick up the fallen Eva and take it to safety. Memories
suddenly flooded his mind as he walked, memories that Shinji thought he had
buried long ago as well as recent regrets.
FLASH! {Mother's synch test}
FLASH! {Father leaving}
FLASH! {Being alone}
FLASH! {Unit 01 crushing Touji's entry plug}
FLASH! {Misato's tears as she learned of Kaji's fate}
Unit 01 stumbled, as new memories entered Shinji's thoughts; memories that
he knew were not his. But whose memories were they?
FLASH! {Mama ignoring me, talking to that stupid doll again}
FLASH! {Going to see Mama in the hospital}
FLASH! {"Mama, Mama. I'm not going to be lonely anymore."}
FLASH! {A female form hanging from the ceiling of a hospital room,
smiling}
Slowly, Shinji came to realize that these must be Asuka's memories. "Oh
God, Asuka. I didn't know. How did you live through all that?" he said to
himself.
Anger began to overcome him as more of Asuka's childhood was shown to him,
alongside his own. "How dare it make us relive our worst memories? Why
must these things toy with us like this? I won't stand for this. I will
make . . . it . . . PAY!!"
As Shinji spoke, a change began in his Eva. Some of the armor on Unit 01's
back bulged and glowed. And then it happened. Eight luminous wings
emerged from its back, stretching out for several city blocks before
wrapping around Units 01 and 02.
###########################################
The command staff was in awe at the sight. The wings of Shinji's Eva
appeared to be embracing Unit 02 before they spread once more. With a leap
and a majestic sweep of its wings, Unit 01 took to the heavens to find its
adversary.
"What's the pilots' status?" Ritsuko asked loudly.
"Asuka's psychograph readings are still fluctuating, but not as much as
before," Maya stated. "Shinji's status is . . . what the hell?"
"What is it?" Misato worried.
"Let me see," Ritsuko ordered as she looked over Maya's shoulder. "My god!
Shinji's synchronization rate is holding at 150%!"
"Mmm," murmured Gendo, obviously displeased with this situation.
"I assume that," Fuyutsuki offered with a smirk, "this was not in the
scenario?"
###########################################
As Unit 01 approached the looming form of the 15th, it interfered with the
Angel's attack even more. Every meter gained meant one less cycle of pain
for Asuka. The 15th tried to reassert its attack on the pilot of Unit 02,
but it met increasing resistance from the rapidly advancing Pilot Ikari and
his Eva.
Inside Unit 01, Shinji held strong as the Angel's psychic attack was making
him relive the painful pasts of both him and Asuka. Little did he know,
but the soul of Yui Ikari was also reliving the Children's memories,
alongside her own. It took all she had to keep her memories from bleeding
over to her son and Asuka, but it also lessened the burden for them.
Finally, Unit 01 left the atmosphere and reached the Angel with both arms
reaching out. The Angel brought its psychic attack to full strength in
desperation. Yui Ikari's memories of her rape bled into her son's mind as
a result of the attack, giving him an understanding no one had ever or
should ever gain. Shinji screamed in horror as he felt every moment of his
mother's fear, anguish, sorrow, and pain.
The Angel was given a slight reprieve from the Eva's advance, and used the
brief time to erect its AT field while putting some distance between the
two. It didn't have much time, however, as every emotion fuelled Shinji
and Yui's wrath. The Angel didn't have a chance.
Shinji's wrath was based on two things, the attack on Asuka, and the attack
on his mother. The Angel appeared to him now the personification of pain
and suffering, the personification of rape. Thus, it became a symbol of
pure evil in his young mind and deserving of a fate worse than death. Even
SEELE would've quaked with fear if they had known what he had planned for
that monster.
Yui's wrath was the combined effects of remembering Gendo's attack, her
wish that no one ever would know what that was like, and the sorrow of the
two Children's lives. To her, killing the Angel was her way of protecting
her son and the people he cared for as well as a 'therapeutic' release of
ten years worth of anger. It would be frightening for those who knew her
to think of what she wanted to do to the 15th.
Evangelion Unit 01 charged the Angel in space once more, experiencing the
first space battle between Eva and Angel. It had to be more cautious with
its movements, as there was no resistance to limit it. One wrong move is
all it would take for the massive Eva to spin out of control into the
depths of space.
As Unit 01 reached the Angels AT field, it extended its own to cancel it
out. However, there was a major difference between the fields for once.
The Angel's orange barrier of light was shattered by the blood red anger of
two human souls: one with the knowledge to do so, and a young man who
didn't even notice.
The Eva grabbed the now-defenseless 15th Angel before spinning to throw it
down to the earth. Facing outer space, the Angel could no longer attack
Asuka. After the humanoid fighting machine launched the Angel, it used its
newly grown wings to stop the spin. Then the wings cocooned Unit 01 as it
went into a reverse roll. With all the leftover communication satellites
orbiting the earth, it was easy for the Eva to touch off of one to propel
it back towards the enemy.
As the Angel tried to erect its AT field again to stop its descent towards
the planet's surface, Unit 01 unfurled its wings to give it a further boost
in speed. At the steep angle of descent, the 15th now had two options:
erect its field and be at the mercy of the Eva when it caught up, or risk
reentry and hope Unit 01 was incinerated. It dropped its field.
The hulking purple giant slammed into the snowflake-like form of the 15th
Angel as the two adversaries began reentry. The inertial forces alone
should have made the pilot of Unit 01 faint, but the LCL in his entry plug
acted like a buffer for the tremendous forces. As the two falling bodies
began their dive through the earth's atmosphere, Unit 01 grabbed the Angel
near the base of its wings with the left arm, while the right one grabbed a
progressive knife from the left shoulder pylon.
Now the Angel couldn't stop its descent, even if it wanted to. Shinji's
Eva was using the 15th Angel as a heat shield, and if the white monster
tried to slow its descent, the vibrating knife would pierce its core. No
matter what, this beast was going to die, and there was no question that it
would hurt.
Hurtling towards the ground below, the Angel felt its 'wings' begin to
incinerate. Each tendril-like 'feather' was slowly, but surely, breaking
apart. As the wings continued to disintegrate, the mighty Angel mentally
screamed in pain. Deep within Unit 01, Yui Ikari smirked in triumph.
Once the Angel's 'wings' were completely destroyed, Unit 01 began to encase
itself in its own wings in preparation. The face of the purple Eva
twisted itself into a wicked grin as it brought the knife, now red hot,
away from the Angel's core. The 15th gave a mental sigh of relief before
feeling one more moment of excruciating pain as it met its end at an
altitude of 17,000 feet.
*******************
"What happened?" one might ask. Well, let's just say that if the Angel
didn't have one already, Unit 01 gave the 15th Angel a new orifice and
shoved a burning hot, vibrating knife through it before the blade went
straight to its core. Needless to say, the pain was more than it could
bear.
*******************
The explosion from the 15th Angel's destruction could have harmed Unit 01,
if the purple beast hadn't erected its AT field and spread its wings. The
field deflected most of the force, and the wings harnessed the rest to
dramatically slow the Eva's descent, much like opening a parachute. The
overheating Eva headed for the ocean to cool off before making its final
approach towards Tokyo-3. As it brushed the surface of the Pacific, Shinji
and Yui finally felt the impact of what they had done, and they knew that
the day wasn't over.
As Unit 01 and its pilot reached the raining city of Tokyo-3, its wings
began to fade, returning to the depths from whence they came. The Eva
touched down in front of Unit 02 and knelt before it. It gathered the red
giant in its arms before doing something no one could have ever imagined.
###########################################
In the command center, despite their amazement at the battle, everyone was
shocked as the jaw of Unit 01 opened and a sound came out. It cried along
with its pilot and the pilot of Unit 02. The crew stood in silent awe as a
tear formed on the face of Unit 01 and fell to the ground, followed by
another from Unit 02.
*****************************************
TO BE CONTINUED
*****************************************
Author's notes (4-6-04): This is the chapter I had planned from the
beginning folks, although it didn't turn out how I originally thought. I
can't even remember what I was going to have Unit 01 do to the 15th when it
finally reached it, but I know I didn't plan on Yui's memories bleed over
to Shinji like that. It just happened, but I hope it brings things into
perspective for them. Same thing goes for the end of the chapter. I was
going to have it end in the same scene as the episode, but make enough of a
change so Shinji wouldn't just leave. I would have done that, but as I
wrote the fight, this ending appeared. It fits much better. I guess I'll
start the third chapter with the original scene. I knew when I started
this chapter that things would begin to really change. One of these
changes will be the 17th Angel. I can't imagine Kaworu as the 17th in this
story, but I don't know what I'm going to do.
Revised notes (4-14-04): Thanks to Puddle of LCL and ladyxkodomo for their
help. This chapter would still have too many errors if they didn't preread
the chapter.