Evangelion Fan Fiction

Evangelion 2021

By Kraven Ergeist

Chapter 2

Misato Katsuragi stared at a holographic map of Japan and its surrounding island chains. Off the coastline of Tokyo-3, a single blue targeting reticle lingered, with a timer counting down from 46:27. To the right of the map, two more timers, one black, one green, both counting down from 31:36 and 27:17 respectively, and on the left, a fourth timer, this one white and counting down from 45:31.

Central Dogma was a massive technological pyramid at the base of the Geo-Front, the vast underground bunker that was the stronghold for humanity itself. Here in the Command Center of NERV, presiding over a practical web-work of computer systems and monitoring stations and displays, Misato practically had the city at her fingertips. With a single command, she could sink the dozen or so skyscrapers into the ground, raise a turret defense system sufficient to stop the world's largest army in its tracks. NERV had two fully functioning Evangelion units, with a third in reserve, each one fully tested and equipped with advanced special armor, enough specialized weaponry to occupy a world nation - each - and an AT Field capable or repelling the deadliest weapons of mass destruction known to man with impunity.

And that wasn't even going into the cyber-defense capability of the MAGI super-computer system.

Per the Vatican Treaty, the other three existing Evangelion production models were being kept under the stewardship of NERV's other two branches in the USA and Germany. To mobilize their combined might, it took a joint effort by the governments of Japan, Germany AND the United States! Once all the political red-tape got sorted out every time action was needed, each Eva unit needed to be air-lifted to the site of the attack, a process that cost each respective country hundreds of thousands of dollars each way. Beyond that, each of the pilots had to be flown in with their own separate crews to oversee each Eva unit's operation. This made the cooperative effort of coordinating an effective defense utilizing all six units nearly impossible to pull off, particularly without advance warning of when an attack was going to take place.

Which made it all the more important that the Third Child be brought to Tokyo-3 as soon as possible.

"Captain," Hyuga, one of the three chief technical workers drew Misato's attention away from the holo-display. He was thin, had short hair and wore glasses, and would have been the most forgettable face at NERV if not for his affable demeanor. "We've just received confirmation that the Third Child is en route to Central Dogma. From the sound of it, the pilots ran into some trouble along the way, but all three of them will be here within the hour."

He adjusted his glasses as he looked at the printout in his hands.

"The exact phrasing was 'They put up about as much fight as gang of toddlers, next time give us a real challenge,'" Hyuga raised an eyebrow at the note. "And then there's just a drawing of a smiley face with some devil horns."

Misato nodded, a knowing smile on her face. "Very good, Lieutenant. Make sure that the clean-up crews are dispatched."

"Already on it," Hyuga nodded in response and returned to his seat.

Misato reached into her pocket and withdrew her ID card and slid it through the slot of a red telephone that was a direct line to the Commander of NERV.

"Captain," the Commander's voice answered expectantly. "I assume you have some good news for me."

"Yes Sir," Misato replied curtly. "The Third Child is on his way to Central Dogma."

"Tell me," the Commander mused. "What was your exact purpose in sending our only two functional pilots to personally escort him to headquarters?"

Misato pursed her lips. She had been anticipating this conversation.

"The threat to the Third Child's life was clear," she said simply. "I presume you've seen the report, Sir. I believe I was justified in sending those two as an extra precaution."

"Would it not have been more prudent to have Section Two take care of it?" Commander Ikari asked pointedly.

Misato suppressed a smirk. "How shall I put this delicately, Sir?"

She heard a snort of amusement on the other line. "By all means, I invite you to be frank."

Misato nodded, though he could not see, and cleared her throat.

"Then frankly, Sir, Rei and Asuka could run circles around Section Two," Misato said dryly. "They're the best trained operatives we have. Frankly, Sir, we made them too good."

"Your point?" the Commander asked.

"Something like this is well within their capacity," she elaborated. "And with all the tension accumulating from the impending attack, it's healthy for them to get out and loosen up. It will improve their morale and make them better at their real jobs, and more importantly, it will guarantee the safety of the Third Child - something that I was not entirely comfortable leaving to Section Two alone. And rightly so, as it seems the report would indicate."

"I will cede the point with regard to the Second Child," the Commander allowed. "But not the First Child. Ayanami's psychological resilience is well above that of any of your operatives, and is absolutely none your concern, Captain."

Misato chewed on her lip. She forgot how sensitive the Commander was about Rei. "I know that, Sir. But she and Asuka make a great team. They keep each other in check. Sending in Asuka alone would have been a mistake."

"I will respect your judgement on the matter, Captain," the Commander Ikari finally resigned. "But do consult with me the next time you make decisions of this nature."

"Understood, Sir," Misato nodded, a satisfied smile on her face.

As she hung up the phone, she glanced up at the holographic map, before toggling a switch on her control panel that caused it too zoom in towards Tokyo-3, where a reticle following a red, white and blue point of light all moving in unison began to descend into the Geo-Front.

Misato laced her fingers and rested her chin on her hands. She hoped Shinji could forgive her.

The look on Shinji's face, Asuka decided with a smirk, was absolutely priceless.

"You want me to what?"

Asuka shrugged in a helpless manner, still wearing in her jeans and leather jacket, though her demeanor suggested anything but the desire to be helpful.

"Rules are rules, Mr. Ikari," she sighed. "All immigrants to Tokyo-3 are required to go through a level three sanitation and decontamination treatment before being allowed into Central Dogma."

Rei nodded in affirmation, arms crossed and eyes closed. She was still wearing her black tank top and cargo pants, guns still strapped to her shoulder holsters.

"Indeed," she said. "Those are the rules."

"And like it or not, you're not from Tokyo-3," Asuka wagged her manicured finger at him teasingly. "So get in there and strip down."

'There' in this case was NERV's industrial decontamination vessel, a massive receptacle built into the wall of Central Dogma's checkpoint. It had sixteen sanitation, rinse, air-dry, steam clean and heat treatment cycles, and was just about capable of turning raw sewage into fresh drinking water in a little under twenty minutes.

Shinji looked helplessly at the massive steel door and all the pipes and tubing lining the industrial white tile walls, floor and ceiling visible beyond it in the dim light. It looked like just about the last place on Earth he'd want to set foot into, least of all without his clothes.

"Do I really have to do this?" he asked, sounding completely crestfallen.

"Sorry, Mr. Ikari," Asuka smirked. "Them's the works. Just consider yourself fortunate that you can at least keep your underwear on. Rei and I got nothing but towels when we went through last time!"

Rei scratched her nose dismissively. "You will recall that we agreed never to discuss that again, Asuka?"

Asuka snickered. "Oh, did we agree on that?"

Shinji kicked off his shoes and walked dejectedly into the sanitation room, and looked around, uneasily.

"Where am I supposed to put my clothes?" he asked hesitantly, slowly unbuttoning his dress shirt.

Asuka had to stop herself from cackling with laughter as she glanced away. "Oh, just hang them anywhere. They'll get washed too."

Rei narrowed her eyes. "Do the words 'Dry Clean Only' mean nothing to you, Asuka?"

"What was that?" Shinji asked out loud.

"Nothing, nothing," Asuka giggled. "Almost done in there, hot stuff? Cause I am not coming in there to check on you."

Shinji sighed audibly. "Yeah, yeah, I'm ready."

Asuka closed the hatch, leaving only a single tiny porthole through which to view the spectacle that Shinji Ikari was about to become. She then threw the switch on the wash cycle, and the machinery kicked into gear, filling the chamber with vaporized sanitation fluid, first steaming hot, before another blast that was freezing cold. From within, Shinji's pitiful cries of displeasure could be heard as hot and cold liquid assaulted every inch of his unprotected skin.

Asuka didn't even bother peeking in through the porthole - she was just simply doubled over in laughter.

"Bahahahahahaha!" she cackled like a hyena. "Oh, that poor sap!"

Rei sighed and shook her head, giving Asuka a disapproving look.

"You are an evil woman, Asuka Soryu," Rei reported frankly, not sounding all that accusatory.

"Hey, you're guilty by association!" Asuka stuck her chin out at her. "You could have stopped me at any time, and you didn't."

"True," Rei allowed as Shinji let out a particularly shrill yelp from behind the door. "Though only because I did not think he would actually believe you."

"Pilots!" Misato's voice called out as she strode down the hallway towards them in her red jacket and beret.

Rei and Asuka instinctively stood at attention by the door to the decontamination vessel.

"Yes Ma'am!" both pilots responded crisply, though both were seemingly struggling to maintain a straight face.

"I expected you both in the briefing room half an hour ago," Misato admonished as she strode in front of them, giving them both an appraising look. "Where the hell have you two been? And is somebody going to tell me just where the Third Child is?"

Asuka threw Rei an innocent look. "Does she mean that guy we were with? Wasn't it your turn to watch him, Rei?"

Rei shrugged, feigning ignorance. "I assumed he was with you."

Asuka threw up her arms in mock agitation. "Damn it, Rei, you had one job!"

"I had about twenty-seven jobs, by last count," Rei retorted.

Misato rolled her eyes. As well as they worked together in the field, the two of them could be absolutely incorrigible when they got like this.

"Ladies, I have precisely zero patience for this right now!" Misato raised her voice above the ruckus the machinery around her was making. "I want the Third Child in the briefing room in five minutes, or so help me-!"

That was when Shinji let out another yelp of discomfort from behind the sealed hatch, and Misato slowly clenched her eyes shut.

"He's in the sanitation unit, isn't he?"

Rei clasped her hands behind her back. "Per NERV safety protocol 26-A-"

That's when Asuka lost all control and burst into a fit of chortling laughter, as Rei gave her a disdainful look for interrupting her.

Misato let out an exasperated sigh as she slammed her fist against the decontamination unit's kill switch.

"You two are real pieces of work, you know that?" Misato growled in frustration as she yanked the door open, eyes pointed at the ceiling as she leaned impatiently towards the opening. "Alright, party's over! Hurry up and get dressed in there!"

As Shinji scrambled to find a towel amidst curses and sputtering, Misato crossed her arms as she gave the two women in front of her a chiding stare.

"Care to explain this?" she asked.

"Per NERV safety protocol 26-A," Rei continued. "All immigrants to Tokyo-3 must undergo a level three sanitation and decontamination before entering Terminal Dogma."

Misato rolled her eyes. "Yeah. Level three. Otherwise known as a shower. You two had this thing cranked up to level seven!"

"Level what!?" Shinji's voice croaked as he emerged through the door to the sanitation unit. He was carrying his white dress shirt in his hands, which was now about four sizes too small. So all he wore were his black pants and gray undershirt, his hair still wet.

Misato cast a sideways glance at him as he stepped out. He was not out of shape.

Asuka was still rapt in a fit of laughter, and Shinji's eyes narrowed into a scowl.

"Oh, that's real cute, you two," he snorted in derision. "Let's all prank the new guy. Real mature."

Rei tilted her head to the side. "Would it help if we said that we just being thorough?"

Misato massaged the bridge of her nose. "Alright, alright, enough of all this. I need the three of you to come with me, right now."

She turned on her heels and strode off at a brisk pace down the hallway into Central Dogma.

Shinji threw his now toddler-sized dress shirt at Asuka, which she caught easily.

"You two owe me a shirt, by the way," he glowered in a huff before turning to go.

Asuka could only snicker as he stormed off after Misato, before exchanging a glance with Rei. The blue haired girl just shook her head, but Asuka knew her fellow pilot well enough that she could not hide the amused smile on her face.

"Perhaps we went just a little bit overboard with that one, Asuka," Rei sighed.

"Yeah, maybe," Asuka allowed. "But hazing's all part of building up team morale."

Rei nodded in resignation. "As you say."

Asuka smiled in affirmation, tossing Shinji's ruined shirt in the disposal, before glancing at Shinji's retreating form as they followed behind him, letting him stubbornly keep his distance.

Despite herself, it was kind of cute how riled up he got over the whole ordeal, and she was actually rather surprised how well he was taking things, given how his day had gone. Any other civilian would have probably broken down by now, but Mr. Ikari seemed to be taking this in stride. If she was being perfectly honest, he was nothing like what she'd expected.

Also, while their intel painted him as little more than a scrawny nerd, from the back with his arms bared, Asuka had to admit, the guy wasn't badly built.

She glanced back at Rei and smirked. "You admiring the view as much as I am?"

Rei's cheeks actually colored slightly as she looked away. "It is not...unpleasant..."

Asuka chuckled playfully. "It's going to be interesting, huh? Working with Mr. Ikari from now on?"

Rei nodded in agreement. "Yes, I do believe it will be."

Shinji sat with his arms crossed, still in his gray undershirt, as Misato finished her briefing, a sullen look on his face.

"Any questions?" she asked pertly.

The briefing room they were in had a floor to ceiling window that provided an extraordinary view of the Eva cages adjacent to them. The massive purple Unit 01 and the bright red 02 were both in their locked and ready positions, with all kinds of maintenance equipment all around making last minute adjustments and touch-ups, sparks flying everywhere as they worked. All sorts of compounding announcements could be heard muffled over the loudspeakers, even from within the sealed room.

Rei and Asuka were leaning by the door as they watched as Mr. Ikari took this all in. Misato had gone over the Evangelions, and their combat effectiveness, but she had yet to mention anything regarding the threat that they were designed to contend with. Still, Shinji was being briefed on some highly need-to-know material, and although neither said a word, both pilots were wondering just how he would react to seeing the sheer scale of their operation.

Shinji stood up from his folding chair, a challenging look on his face.

"Yeah, here's a question Miss Katsuragi," he asked, still seemingly in a sour mood. "Why exactly did you go to all the trouble of warning me in person about someone threatening my life, only to have me board a train to Tokyo-3 by myself?"

Misato blinked, surprised at the direction of his inquiry.

"You weren't on the train by yourself," she said, avoiding the question. "We had Ayanami there with you every step of the way."

"You came all the way out to Tokyo-2 to deliver the message in person," Shinji shot back. "You could have taken me into protective custody there and then. Why didn't you?"

Misato hesitated. She hadn't counted on Shinji asking her about this.

"We didn't have enough intel about the enemy's movements," she admitted, glancing away. "We needed to-"

"To what?" Shinji demanded indignantly. "Use me as bait?"

Misato's eyes widened in surprise. "What? No, we just..."

She trailed off, and Shinji's eyes narrowed.

"You don't even know who was coming after me, do you?" he demanded, sounding angry.

Asuka's eyebrows raised. For a college intern, the guy was perceptive.

"Tell me I'm wrong," Shinji pressed.

"Now hold on..." Misato said, holding her hands up. "That's classified intelligence."

"So are the two Category-5 super-weapons you just showed me!" Shinji blared, gesturing towards the Eva units. "This isn't protective custody, this is a fortress! You've brought me neck-deep into the makings of an all-out war, Miss Katsuragi. And I sure as hell didn't sign up for it!"

Misato scratched the back of her neck, closing her eyes in consternation. This wasn't going the way she'd hoped at all.

"You're not even a little surprised by the two massive bio-weapons over there?" Asuka asked, incredulously.

"Not really," Shinji said, looking back at the redhead. "I worked for one of NERV's subsidiary corporations. Stuff gets through the grapevine. They're certainly impressive, I'll grant you, but I've never really been that big a fan of military hardware. Didn't expect NERV to borrow so much from old Kaiju movies though. But did I forget to mention the part where my father's the one running this whole operation? I don't care what you've got going on here, I don't want any part of it."

Shinji returned his gaze to Misato.

"Not after all the shit I've put up with."

Misato threw a dirty look towards Asuka. Asuka gestured back with a rhetorical 'what?' look.

"Look..." Misato sighed, looking back at Shinji. "If this is about your father..."

"If that man wants to go start a war somewhere, that's his business," Shinji snorted. "He's played absolutely no role in where I got to today. I got to New Todai on my own! I got that position at Virotronic on my own! And I'm not giving that up just because he has some sort of use for me!"

Misato sighed. "Alright, you don't get along with your father. I get it. I really do. But Shinji-"

"This isn't about him, though," he cut her off. "This is about all of you, and your complete disregard for my wishes! I didn't ask for any of this. And I don't want to be here!"

"Mr. Ikari," Rei finally spoke up. "I apologize for the situation we've put you in. We did not intend to put your life in danger, but there are circumstances beyond our control that are at work here."

Asuka nodded. "Yeah. Like it or not, you need our help, big guy. And as it so happens, we need your help too."

Shinji raised an eyebrow. "What exactly do you need me for?"

Misato crossed her arms. "Well, to start with, it turns out you're a viable candidate for an Evangelion pilot."

Shinji blinked in stupefaction, as if completely unable to believe what he was hearing.

"You're kidding, right?" he demanded, gesturing to himself incredulously. "I'm a research analyst! A pencil pusher! I crunch numbers for a living! Are you seriously trying to tell me you want me to sign up to be a soldier?"

Misato let out a sigh.

"No," she said simply. "Not if we can help it. But you're still a candidate, and that means that you're a target as well. Any country even thinking of developing Evangelion technology of their own will pay through the nose to get their hands on someone like you, and that kind of incentive brings out some of the worst criminals imaginable."

Shinji sat back down. "Great..."

"More importantly," Misato said, thumbing a control switch on the wall, rendering the transparent glass window into a digital screen, displaying a map of the Japanese coastline, and a blinking targeting reticle just off the coast. "Your research may have led to a breakthrough that has given us a tactical edge that we didn't think possible."

That got Shinji's attention. "My research? What are you talking about?"

"As I said, Virotronic is a subsidiary corporation of NERV, and we've been monitoring your research for some time," Misato raised an eyebrow and smiled. "Interested now?"

Shinji crossed his arms. "I don't appreciate having my work re-appropriated, Miss Katsuragi. What have you done with my research?"

Misato shook her head. "Mr. Ikari, you signed a non-disclosure agreement when you took your job at Virotronic. Any and all information you collect while working there belongs to NERV."

Shinji pursed his lips, but he realized that there really wasn't anything he could say to that.

"Now, I'll let the Doctor explain what's been going on with your research," Misato elaborated. "Suffice it to say, your work has not gone unnoticed. Not by us. And not by the enemy."

"What enemy?" Shinji demanded, looking more alarmed than angry. "Who have I been inadvertently picking fights with?"

Misato stared bitterly at the floor.

"We don't know who they are," she breathed in resignation. "It's true. We used your reassignment as bait to draw them out of the woodwork."

Shinji slowly clenched his hand into a fist.

"But I promise you," Misato held a hand up. "We had everything under control. Your life was never in any real danger. You were in the best hands possible for..."

Misato trailed off as Shinji abruptly stood up with grunt and marched towards the door.

"Forget this," he said gruffly. "I'm leaving."

Rei and Asuka stood up straight, completely caught off guard as he stormed past them, and looked to Misato as if wondering what they should do about it.

"Mr. Ikari!" Misato blurted, as she moved to follow him.

Before Shinji even made it to the door, however, the door opened from outside, and Shinji ran headlong into a blonde-haired woman in a white lab-coat over a blue blouse and black skirt.

"Whoa!" he gasped, throwing his hands up to shoulder-height, too late to catch whatever was hitting him.

"Oh!" the woman cried out as she stumbled awkwardly on her black heels and fell back onto the floor, dropping a handful of files and papers all around her.

Shinji took a step back from the impact, shaking his head and looking down to see the pretty blond on the floor. He quickly felt like a jerk for being so careless, and decided to kneel down to help the woman, whoever she was.

"Um...sorry about that..." he stammered, offering his hand politely. "Are you alright?"

The woman, appearing to be somewhere in her thirties, readjusted her glasses and gazed up at the lithe young man, before blinking in recognition.

"Oh," she said, staring awkwardly. "You must be Shinji Ikari."

She accepted Shinji's hand as he helped her up, and was surprised how strong he was.

"You, uh..." she cleared her throat as she looked away, somewhat flustered by his sparse attire. "You have your father's eyes..."

"Yeah..." Shinji said, looking back at the other women standing behind him. "I get that a lot."

"Hey, Ritsu," Misato said weakly as she and the other two filed out of the briefing room. "You alright?"

"Fine, fine," she said, turning her attention back to the young man and smiled. "So, you're the genius behind the Harmonic Convergence program?"

Shinji blinked in surprise. No one had ever called him a genius before.

"Genius?" he asked. "I'd...hardly call it that, but..."

"Are you kidding me?" Ritsuko asked, practically beaming. "The data that you've uncovered has allowed us to make sense of everything we've been tracking for the last eight years!"

Shinji's eyes widened. He was not used to anyone putting any kind of value in his work.

"It...it has?" he stuttered.

The Doctor smiled. "It has! How did you possibly manage to sift through that much data on your own? It would take the MAGI months just to sort through it all!"

Shinji blushed slightly. All these compliments were beginning to overwhelm him.

"Well," he muttered. "I...developed a program that converted the data into an audio format, and I just listened to..."

Then he shook his head as something finally clicked in his head.

"Wait a minute, you work with the MAGI computer system!?" he gasped. "The super computer that basically runs the entire system of government in this country?"

Ritsuko smiled proud. "Well, yes. My mother was the one who created it."

Shinji's eyes widened. "You're Doctor Ritsuko Akagi!? Oh my gosh! I had to research your findings on bio-informatics for my entrance exam at New Todai!"

The Doctor blinked in surprise. "Oh...I had no idea I was being taught in textbooks these days."

Misato stiffled a laugh while Ritsuko let out a breath.

"Christ, I feel old now," the blonde said.

"Not at all!" Shinji blurted, before blushing and holding his hand over his mouth. "I mean...uh...that is...oh, here, let me help you with these..."

He bent down to retrieve her fallen papers and files.

Asuka rolled her eyes. "Smooth."

"Oh, no, that's alright, I've got it," Ritsuko said politely as she bent down to help him. "Anyway, is that really how you manage to process all that data? By listening to it? You must have really keen ears."

"That's what people tell me," Shinji admitted, still blushing. "Nobody at Virotronics could ever get the hang of it, so I figured I must have been barking up the wrong tree all this time."

"Well, maybe I could help you out with that," Ritsuko said, accepting the last of the fallen papers. "NERV has an anti-vibration sound-chamber with noise-cancelling walls that we use for microscopic detail work on highly unstable compounds. With a bit of rigging, and some of my technicians' optimized audio equipment, I'm sure you could use it to get the absolute best listening environment you could ask for."

Shinji's eyes lit up at that. "Really? That would be awesome! Could you show me?"

Ritsuko smiled, gesturing down the hallway. "Sure! Let's just get you squared away in the system, and I'll get you started. We're all very interested in letting you get on with your work."

Shinji nodded and followed along as Ritsuko lead him down farther into Central Dogma.

Misato, Rei and Asuka all just sort of blinked in astonishment.

"Um...what just happened?" Asuka asked, flabbergasted.

"I think they just had a 'nerd moment,'" Misato scratched her head.

"Great minds do tend to think alike, I suppose," Rei offered.

Misato crossed her arms. "Huh...well, as long as he's on board with us, then I guess there's no problem."

She turned to the other two girls.

"As for you two, I want a full report on my desk by the end of the day," she said, her feathers still ruffled from their earlier prank. "And you've both got sync tests to make up for from yesterday, so get to it."

Both girls saluted, though Asuka rolled her eyes as she did.

"Aye-aye, ma'am."

Shinji blinked, the flashbulb from the camera leaving a dull blotch in his vision, as Ritsuko handed him his freshly printed ID card. One of her lab technicians had mercifully loaned him a shirt, so now he was at least fully clothed.

"There you go," she said as he took the card and frowned dubiously at his photograph, absently wondering if it would look better if he had smiled more. "Now that you're in NERV's system, you can feel free to make use of any of NERV's technical equipment available at security clearance level D."

Shinji glanced at the large letter D on his card.

"What does that give me, exactly?" he asked, curiously.

Ritsuko nodded. "If you'll follow me..."

Ritsuko lead him through a series of security doors, all of which they both had to swipe there cards to get through. While he had not meant to snoop, he did notice the letter E on her security card, and he wondered how many security levels there were at NERV.

When he asked her about it, he saw a glint of approval in her eyes as she continued to step at a lively pace, her heels clacking on the linoleum floors, a leather briefcase in her hand as they passed by security, technicians and other personnel.

"You're quite observant," she remarked. "I wonder if the Captain even realizes how much so. Anyway, I'm the head of NERV's technical unit. Due to the sensitivity of the research you will be conducting, you'll be reporting directly to me. As such, you'll have access to quite a few resources that the vast majority of the technical crew here do not have access to, such as our particle accelerator, as well as intel that the entire JSDF is not privy to, such as the movement of factions like the one that attacked you."

Shinji furrowed his brow as Ritsuko lead him into a secluded office space.

"Who were they exactly?" he asked, suspiciously.

"Mercenaries, in all likelihood," she said distractedly as she punched a six-digit code into a wall panel. "Or terrorists. People who want the power that NERV has, or to sell it to someone who does. But to be perfectly honest, Shinji, they are the small fry compared to what you'll be tracking down for us."

Shinji was about to delve further when a large steel door slid open, leading to a dimly lit lab with various signs saying 'Quiet Please - Testing in Process.' Ritsuko stepped inside, and as Shinji followed her in, he saw a young man in a Hawaiian shirt, glasses and a ponytail, wearing a pair of large headphones, who looked to be about Shinji's age, typing at a computer.

"Look sharp, Aida," Ritsuko casually called out as they entered, flicking the lights on to get his attention. "You've got some new help."

The young man turned and removed his headphones, before adopting a friendly smirk.

"Oh, hey Doctor," he smiled lackadaisically. "This the new guy you were telling me about?"

Ritsuko nodded as Shinji stepped forward, bowing politely. "Ikari Shinji. Nice to meet you."

Kensuke didn't return the bow, but rolled forward in his swivel chair and offered his hand in a very western fashion. "Aida Kensuke. So, you're the genius everyone's been talking about?"

Shinji shook his hand, a flabbergasted expression on his face. "Why does everyone keep calling me that!?"

Ritsuko could tell that Kensuke was about to go off on a similar diatribe about Shinji's findings as she had, and cut him off.

"Never mind that," she said, reaching into the briefcase she was carrying and pulling out the bullet-riddled husk that had once been Shinji's laptop and offering it to Kensuke. "Here - we need what's on here, and we need it soon."

Shinji withered as he watched the remains of his poor, decrepit machine get passed around. Kensuke, upon receiving the remains, rolled his chair over to the metal table at the center of the room, set the hunk of junk on the table, adjusted his glasses and crossed his arms as he stared at the hardware, a look of disquiet on his face.

"I don't know, Doctor," he said thoughtfully as he scratched his chin. "I mean I'm good, but I'm not a miracle worker. This thing looks like it's been through a war zone."

"Just see if you can salvage anything on the hard drive," Ritsuko replied. "Put anything you can recover onto an external and have it sent to my office. Oh, and Mr. Ikari is going to be needing a new computer to work on. Something optimized for high quality sound processing and heavy data transfer."

Kensuke looked up from the grim task the ruined laptop foretold, and smiled at the much more engaging prospect of requisitioning computer parts.

"I've got just the thing!" he said, eagerly as he kicked his swivel chair back over to his computer and began typing furious as he browsed through available hardware.

"Don't worry," Ritsuko gave Shinji a reassuring smile. "Apart from our MAGI specialists, Aida's the best computer technician we have. If anyone can recover your research data, it's him. Now, how about we check out that sound chamber?"

Shinji perked up at that. "Yes Ma'am!"

Ritsuko watched with a small amount of delight as lead Shinji to the other end of the ante-chamber they were currently in, and into the main sound chamber. They both had to take their shoes off before entering, as a soft layer of sound-dampening foam extended across the floor, as it did the walls and ceiling. A single light shone from the very center of the ceiling down to a small depression in the foam where evidently the occupant was meant to sit, a set of top of the line noise-cancelling headphones laying with its cord neatly folded and running off to the end of the room where it plugged into a soundboard behind the foam.

Shinji looked around in fascinated awe.

"This is..." he began, before his voice trailed off. His voice sounded dead, like he was speaking into a fog bank. "Wow...this is interesting! My voice sounds completely muffled."

Ritsuko nodded. "A result of the sound dampening effect. No echo whatsoever. The walls absorb 90% of the sound that hits them, and we keep the temperature and humidity carefully regulated for optimal results."

Shinji watched her curiously as she spoke. She sounded like she was shouting at him from across a chasm, even though she was standing right next to him.

"Now then, while Aida gets your computer set up, how about we do a quick sound test?" Ritsuko offered.

Shinji nodded, eager to test the equipment. "Just tell me what to do!"

After just a minute, Shinji was sitting cross-legged in the divot at the center of the room, headphones on his head, and his eyes closed. Ritsuko had instructed him to keep his breathing slow and steady. With the headphones and sound dampening walls, the only residual noises would be his breathing and his heartbeat, which meant that he needed to relax his body for optimal results.

"Can you hear me?" Ritsuko's voice came from what sounded like right next to him.

Shinji's eyes shot open and looked to his left, but the room was empty. Ritsuko had stepped outside to run the sound board, leaving Shinji as the room's sole occupant.

"Dr. Akagi?" he asked out loud, wondering if he was hearing things.

"Yes, can you hear me?" she asked once more, and again Shinji could swear that the voice sounded like she was right next to him.

"Yeah," Shinji asked curiously. "Wow, it sounds like you're right here in the room."

Ritsuko let out a warm chuckle, and Shinji felt like he was being teased.

"Yes, it would," she said. "Are you keeping your eyes closed and your breathing steady?"

Shinji quickly shut his eyes and took a deep breath. "Yeah..."

"Alright then," Ritsuko said. "Now this is going to be just like a Doctor's exam. I'm going to play several tones for you at various volumes and pitches, and I just need you to raise your right or left arm as it corresponds to your right or left ear. Sound simple enough?"

Shinji nodded. "Got it."

"Good, let's begin," she said.

Shinji relaxed and listened for the beeps. They came soon enough, starting at medium pitches and slowly getting higher and higher, as well as softer in volume. He raised his arms accordingly, until there was a pause in the tones before a medium pitch sounded once again, this time growing progressively lower in tone.

As Ritsuko watched Shinji through the video screen in the ante-chamber, she was surprised to see him raise his hand for every tone without fail. The test was only designed to reach the limits of human hearing, but thus far, he had surpassed what most of the staff could hear.

She gestured for Aida to increase the benchmark, and as he tapped the up arrow key on his keyboard, Shinji still kept raising his hands after each note. It seemed that his audio range was much broader than the average human being. He might have even set a new world record; he was picking up on sounds usually only perceptible to canines.

It was a medical curiosity to be sure. Ritsuko made a mental note to investigate this further, when she saw Shinji's sitting form fall to the side, clutching at his ears.

"Mr. Ikari?" Ritsuko spoke into the microphone in alarm. "Are you alright?"

There was no response. Kensuke looked up from his computer in concern.

"Stop the test!" Ritsuko ordered. "Unseal the chamber!"

As Kensuke aborted the sound test, Ritsuko hurried to the door and yanked it open. She rushed inside, not even bothering to take her shoes off, her heels poking holes in the foam as she ran over to where the young man lay.

He had already yanked the headphones off, and she gasped when she saw blood trickling out his ears down the side of his face.

"Mr. Ikari!" she cried in alarm as she quickly checked his vitals. His heart was racing, and he had broken out into a cold sweat, and he was already hyperventilating. He actually looked like he was going into shock!

Ritsuko reached into her lab coat pocket and pulled out a walkie-talkie.

"I need a medical team in the sound chamber!" she yelled. "Now!"

To be continued...