Disclaimer: See Prologue

Evangelion: Any place can be Heaven, if you let it (A sequel to Random1377's Crimson and Azure)

Chapter 16

Rei Ayanami stood just outside the entrance to the Command Center. As she walked towards her destination, the words of her unruly subordinate resonated in her ears. Despite her husband's claim to the contrary and the assurances she received from her superiors, as well as the pilot whose life was currently hanging in the balance, she could not shake the feeling that Pamela Jackson was correct in her assessment. But now she knew what she had to do.

She wiped her eyes one last time, then lightly slapped her palms to her cheeks and took three deep breaths. 'You have a job to do and a pilot who is depending upon you to do that job correctly.' She steeled her expression, erasing any hint of emotion from her face. Then she reached for the door handle and proceeded to enter.

As the Operations Director took her position, she instantly assumed command of the situation.

"Systems Operator, how much more time before depressurization?"

"Depressurization is scheduled to take place in 10 minutes, 42 seconds," answered Lieutenant Kei-ichi

"Oklahoma Base, we will handle depressurization on our end," she said.

Her pronouncement caused heads to turn, as the Sub-Commander stepped forward and looked over at her superior with an expression of mild shock.

"Captain Ayanami, what reason do you have for wanting to control depressurization on this end?" the Commander inquired.

Turning around to face her boss, she answered, "We have the Magi here, Commander. There is less chance of delay on our end. And based on the simulations we ran, even a fraction of a second could prove critical."

The Commander considered his subordinate's reason for a few moments, then said, "Oklahoma Base, Doctor Akagi, depressurization will be controlled on our end as the Operations Director has stated."

After a brief moment, Ritsuko's voice came over the communication system. "Very well, Commander. We shall be standing by to commence reentry procedures."

"Very good, Doctor." The Commander replied. "It is in your hands, Captain."

Rei nodded and turned back toward the monitors, but not before stealing a glance at her husband. In the instant their eyes met she could see the concern and fear etched in his face, but she saw something else as well. 'Despite his fears, he still believes in me. I recognize that expression. He believes I will take the correct action.' She drew in a breath and hardened her expression.

"Systems Operator, continue to provide status on the time before depressurization. Controls Operator, provide us with the status of the pilot as well."

"Yes, Ma'am." The two operators replied.

"Time to depressurization, 8 minutes, 45 seconds."

"Pilot remains unconscious with respiration and heart rate nominal."

'Was the Magi correct? Did I error in any way during the simulations? Please, if there is a god in heaven, let Nabiki come out of this alright.' A visibly tense Maya did her best to control her breathing as sweat beaded up on her forehead, dripping down her temples, across her cheeks, and down to her chin, where it beaded back up and dripped onto her keypad.

"Huh?" she whispered as she looked down to see the drops of moisture. She quickly wiped her chin and the sides of her face with the back of her hand.

"Here," came a gentle voice.

Looking to her right she saw a hand holding a handkerchief. Looking up, she saw Shinji's sober expression.

After a moment's hesitation, she took the piece of cloth. "Th-thank you."

He nodded and went back to staring at the monitors, which showed both the interior and exterior of Unit 00.

"Time to depressurization, 7 minutes 25 seconds."

"The pilot's status remains unchanged."

Misato's lips quivered as she remembered interviewing Nabiki Matsumura.

"Don't think just because you're the niece of the Minister of Justice that it in any way enhances your chances at becoming an Eva pilot, Miss Matsumura. We have many highly qualified candidates seeking to fill this 5th and final position," Misato said sternly, taking some small pleasure in seeing the young girl fidget slightly in her seat.

"I-I understand that, Colonel Katsuragi. I don't expect, nor do I desire, any special treatment in any way. I'll admit, my Aunt Yurika has been like a mother to me since my parents died, but if there is anything she's taught me, it's to stand on my own two feet and not rely on handouts from others. I believe my test results and school records stand on their own, Ma'am," she answered, trying to sound as confident as possible, but succumbing to the growing tension in the pit of her stomach as the last five words she spoke came out as barely a whisper.

"Yes, well. While your test results are impressive, as well as your school record, you do have a spotty health history. Piloting an Evangelion can be very grueling. We can't afford to have a pilot in the hospital every few weeks."

"Most of my health problems were related to an intestinal ailment that has since been corrected, Ma'am. I haven't had the need to go to the hospital for nearly seven months now, and I've never felt better." She forced a smile.

Setting the girl's application and test results down, the Sub-Commander clasped her hands together, set her elbows on the desk, and leaned forward until her hands were just in front of her mouth. "What I don't really understand is why someone with such a checkered health history would want to risk what good health they now have doing something so very dangerous?" She waited for an answer.

Nabiki looked down at her lap for what felt like an eternity as she debated answering the question truthfully or not. As a tear escaped her eye and rolled down her cheek, she slowly looked up at the intimidating looking woman in front of her. Then she spoke. "I know you've probably heard stories like this one hundreds of times already, but… it was about three years ago when my aunt took me to a banquet in honor of Miss Rei Ayanami. Because of her position, we got to sit very close to the podium. I remember watching Miss Ayanami during dinner. She ate very little. She spent most of her time taking notes while conversing with her fiancé and the Prime Minister. When she went up to the podium to speak, I was taken back by how softly she spoke. It was barely above a whisper, and yet I hung on every word she said. She thanked everyone for coming. She said how she didn't feel as if she had done anything to warrant such honor. Everyone laughed at that idea, but she was very serious. She talked about the importance of what NERV was doing. How securing man's place in the heavens was ensuring our future here on earth." Tears began running down her face as she spoke. "I remember… I remember her saying, 'It is our duty as citizens of this world, this solar system, this galaxy, and this universe, to expand our horizons and seek out new challenges, wherever they may take us.' I decided then and there I wanted to be just like her. I wanted to see the vision of the future that Miss Ayanami spoke of come true." She turned her head away and wiped her eyes. "I'm sorry, Colonel Katsuragi."

'You made my decision easy that day, Nabiki.' A tear escaped Misato's left eye as she stared at the monitors.

"Are you alright, Colonel?" The Commander asked.

Brushing away the tear quickly, she replied, "Yes sir. The air is just a bit dry in here for me, that's all."

"Yes… dry." He turned back towards the monitors. 'It's dry in here for me as well.'

"Time to depressurization, 4 minutes 35 seconds."

"The pilot's status remains unchanged."

The three operators looked from one to the other, each seeing the same nervous perspiration that covered their own face. Their hands trembled slightly over their keyboards as they waited for the zero hour.

As she waited, a thought occurred to Rei as she worked out the numbers in her head quickly, finally asking, "Time to depressurization please."

"Depressurization in 2 minutes 5 seconds." Kei-ichi replied.

The Operations Director stepped up directly behind and slightly to the left of her systems operator. Watching the timer count down on the screen, she quickly recalculated the values once again. As the time counted down to less then a minute and a half, Rei took another step forward.

Feeling a little uncomfortable having his superior standing so close to him, Kei-ichi's voice cracked when he announced, "Time to depressurization, 1 minute 22 seconds."

"The pilot's status remains unchanged."

Without a moments hesitation, Rei stated, "Lieutenant, stand down."

"Ma'am?" Kei-ichi turned and stared at her with a look of total shock.

"Stand down now, Lieutenant." She stared at him with eyes that pierced his very soul.

"Y-yes, ma'am." He got up quickly and stepped away from the console.

Rei took his seat as she stared at the monitor.

"Captain, what are you doing?" The Commander demanded as he jumped up from his seat.

Ignoring her commanding officer, Rei began entering the command sequence to depressurize the entry plug. When the countdown hit 53 seconds, she executed the command, and three seconds later Nabiki began to stir, her eyes opening and closing several times.

"The pilot's heart rate and respiration have returned to normal. She is awake and alert," reported the controls officer.

Rei rose from the seat, turning towards Kei-ichi, who was staring at her with a look of complete shock, and said, "You may resume your post, Lieutenant." Then she stepped back to her normal position.

The Commander was still standing, staring in utter disbelief at his subordinate's actions, as was everyone else.

Thinking quickly, Misato called out, "Ritsuko, commence re-entry procedures."

"Re-entry procedures commencing," the doctor replied.

The Commander waited a moment until he was certain the doctor had everything under control. Once he was certain of this, he commanded, "Captain Rei Ayanami, go to my office and wait for me there."

"If the Commander would allow, I would like to remain until Unit 00 has safely landed," she replied.

"You have your orders, Captain," the old man said firmly.

"Yes, Commander." With that Rei turned and walked out of the Command Center.

Deafening silence filled the room, save for the occasional instructions and information relayed to Unit 00 from Oklahoma Base. As re-entry proceeded as normal, Shinji made his way over to Maya and crouched down on one knee, whispering, "Maya, can you calculate the difference normalizing the LCL pressure 50 seconds early had on the pilot?"

Maya nodded both her compliance and understanding as she turned towards her keyboard and allowed her fingers to dance over it.

Shinji remained crouched down next to her, waiting patiently for her results.

~~~

Assuming the young pilot would be experiencing some disorientation after being forced unconscious for several hours, Doctor Akagi chose to perform most of the re-entry commands remotely, only requiring Nabiki to execute the steps that could not be performed from Earth.

As the Evangelion prepared to enter the communications blackout phase, the Doctor informed the young pilot, "Now Nabiki, communications will be interrupted for precisely three minutes, but just in case we fail to reestablish communication after that time, I am programming this clock." At that moment a large holographic clock appeared in the pilot's field of vision. "When this timer runs down to zero, open the parachutes, understood, Lieutenant?"

"Yes Doctor, I understand." The dark-haired teen replied, trying her very best to hide her fear.

After a brief pause, one of the operational technicians counted down. "Communications blackout will occur in 5, 4, 3, 2…"

~~~

"Hurry men, we don't have a moment to waste!" The Entry Plug Extraction Team Chief barked out loudly as his men made their way up the transportable ladder to the ejected entry plug.

Two burly men grabbed hold of the emergency release handle and turned it as quickly as they could. In a matter of seconds, the hatch was opened and LCL came pouring out, coating the two men from the waist down, but they paid no attention to the warm orange liquid. Instead, the taller of the two men rushed inside the tube and a few seconds later came out with the young girl in his arms. As she gasping for breath, the shorter man placed an oxygen mask over the pilot's mouth.

"Try to breathe normally," he instructed.

Nabiki tilted her head towards him, cupping her ear to better hear him.

"Try to breathe normally!" the shorter man repeated more loudly.

Nabiki nodded her understanding and did her best to take normal breaths. After about a minute, she said, "I'm all right now. I can breathe again."

"Are you sure?" the man asked in a loud voice, hesitating to take the mask off her.

She smiled and gave him two thumbs up.

He returned the smile and removed the mask.

"Thank you." She smiled even wider.

Assured that the pilot of Unit 00 was now breathing normally on her own, they started making their way down the ladder, Nabiki still cradled in the taller man's arms.

"Umm, I think I can walk down," she assured him.

"That's alright, Lieutenant! You're not heavy at all!" He smiled at her.

She gave a soft giggle, straining to see the expression on the man's face.

"Perhaps you could give a reassuring wave to all your well wishers!" he suggested.

"Well wishers?" she asked, wrinkling her brow.

He nodded towards the grandstands.

Looking over in that direction, she squinted as hard as she could, but had difficulty making out anything that far away. "How many people are out there?"

"Must be a couple hundred thousand, easy!" he answered.

"Oh my god." Her face flushed at the thought that so many people came to see her landing.

"They came to pray for your safe return, Lieutenant! I know you can't hear them, but try and give a listen, and maybe you can make out the cheering!" He stopped just a few steps from the ground to give her a chance to listen carefully.

Slowly the blank look on her face changed as tears of joy streamed down her cheeks, and she waved enthusiastically towards the crowd. Taking the last few steps down to the ground, the tall man lifted her up high and placed her on his shoulder. Nabiki let out a scream of surprise, but smiled down at him, then returned to waving at the crowds. All the workers around her also cheered and applauded the pilot's safe return. The man slowly made his way to the waiting ambulance. The cheers continued for several long minutes as he held the petite young pilot on his shoulder. She continued to wave and thank all her well wishers.

Finally, Doctor Akagi appeared and said, "All right now, we need to get Miss Matsumura to the hospital to run some tests. Set her down on the gurney."

Frowning just slightly, the tall man did as he was told as he gently set the young pilot on the gurney.

"Thank you…" Nabiki extended her hand toward the man. "Mister?"

"Simons," he answered, "Roger Simons." He took her hand into his and continued. "And thank you, Miss Matsumura. Your courage is an inspiration to us all."

"Okay, we need to get you to the hospital now." Ritsuko gestured to the EMTs who were standing on either side of the gurney. They nodded their understanding and loaded the stretcher into the ambulance. The doctor then got in, they closed the doors, and it sped away, sirens blaring, led by a police escort.

People continued to cheer as the vehicles left the base.

Everyone at the NERV Command Center breathed a sigh of relief after seeing the successful landing of Unit 00 and what seemed to be a perfectly healthy pilot leaving the Oklahoma Base.

Commander Fuyutsuki sat back in his chair for the first time since returning to the Command Center. Speaking softly, he said, "Good work everyone. I'll see to it that you all receive a commendation for your fine work during this crisis."

"What about Rei, Commander?" his second in command asked. "If it weren't for her, Nabiki might very well be dead now."

The Commander stood up and looked down to where his Operations Director usually stood. The space was vacant now because she was waiting for him in his office. She still didn't know the status of the pilot, and this thought caused the old man's heart to ache. "Contact Minato and tell her to inform Captain Ayanami that Nabiki landed safely and appears to be in good health. And that I will be there in a few moments." Then he proceeded to leave the Command Center.

"Yes, Commander." Misato quickly pulled out her phone and made the call.

"Thank God. I'll do that right now. Yes, thank you, Miss Katsuragi." Minato got up from behind her desk and entered the Commander's office.

She saw Rei sitting perfectly still, looking straight ahead. The young woman didn't turn or even flinch when the door opened, or when she hear the Commander's secretary approach, her heels clattering on the hard marble floor.

"Captain Ayanami," she said softly as she came to a stop next to the young captain.

The azure-haired woman looked up at Minato.

"I just received a call from Sub-Commander Katsuragi. She wanted me to tell you that Unit 00 landed safely, and Pilot Matsumura appears to be in good health." She smiled. "That's good news, isn't it, ma'am?"

Rei simply started at the buxom secretary for a moment before replying in a detached voice, "Yes, thank you, Miss Haruka"

Feeling quite uncomfortable all of a sudden, Minato shifted from one foot to the other. Finally clearing her throat, she added, "Well, Commander Fuyutsuki should be here shortly." Then she turned and started walking toward the door.

'Man, I can't believe anyone can be so cold. I always thought she cared so much about them,' she thought sadly, but just before she reached the door she heard a faint sound and turned to see what it was. To her surprise, she saw the young captain hunched over with her hands over her face, sobbing softly. Tears instantly welled up in her eyes as her first instinct told her to go to the young woman and comfort her, but she hesitated. 'No, this is why she restrained herself before. I'll just embarrass her if I go to her now.' She quietly walked out the door. Sitting at her desk, she reached for a tissue to dry her eyes. A moment later the Commander entered the outer doors and headed straight for his office.

"Oh, Commander," she said.

"Yes, Miss Haruka," he replied, his hand on the doorknob.

"You may want to wait a moment longer, Sir," she informed him.

A look of confusion crossed his brow. "Why is that?"

"There's a young woman in there trying her hardest to compose herself." Tears welled up in her eyes again. "She puts such a heavy burden upon herself. She cares so much for her young pilots. She just needs a moment, Sir. Please," she pleaded.

Looking into the earnest eyes of his secretary, the elderly man's expression softened as he released the doorknob. Walking over to her desk, he leaned against it and allowed his shoulders to slump low as he hung his head. "I don't believe I've ever had as hard a day as Commander of this facility as I've had today."

Minato rose from her chair and stood in front of her boss. "You know, Commander…" He looked up at her, and she continued. "Sometimes even the strongest and bravest need to be held, if just for a moment."

Without changing his expression, he stood up straight and took her into his arms. She returned his embrace as she rested her cheek against his chest. They stayed like this for a few moments before Kouzou gradually released her. "Thank you, Minato"

"You're welcome, Sir." She smiled softly up at him.

He returned her smile, then walked to his office door.

Opening it slowly but firmly, so as to give the room's occupant time to compose herself if she hadn't already done so, the Commander walked in and headed directly towards her, choosing not to sit behind his desk. Turning to face his young captain, the Commander leaned against his large desk and looked sadly down at her.

During the short time he waited in the outer office, Rei managed to compose herself and wipe away any hint of tears she may have shed. She looked up at him with the same serious expression he had grown accustomed to over the years.

"Rei, just answer me this. Why did you depressurize the entry plug fifty seconds early without saying anything?" he asked in a sympathetic voice.

"I kept running through the equations in my head, Commander. The more times I did, the more I was certain I needed to depressurize the entry plug fifty seconds early. I did not say anything, because by the time I came to my conclusion, the opportunity for discussion had passed. To debate its merits at that point would have meant losing the opportunity to save Nabiki. I could not take that risk, Commander," she explained in her normal soft, almost monotone, voice.

The Commander rubbed his temples as he let out a long breath.

"Am I terminated, Commander?" she asked.

"No." Kouzou looked up quickly. "No, of course not. You've always performed at the highest level of competency, and your fast thinking today saved Pilot Matsumura's life. I would never even consider terminating you, Rei."

"Then am I placed on suspension?" she asked.

This time the Commander paused. "I-I don't know yet." He paused for a moment, then continued. "As the Commander of NERV, I understand the necessity of making split second decisions and acting upon them. But more and more often I am called upon to be a diplomat and a politician. As our budget continues to grow, so does the scrutiny with which we are watched. There will be many questions, not the least of which will be why did my Operations Director override the recommendation provided by the Magi without offering any form of explanation for her actions?" Kouzou rubbed his temples and sighed. "When did I stop being a scientist and became a politician?"

"Perhaps I can make your burden easier to bear, Commander," Rei offered.

Looking up, Fuyutsuki gave his subordinate a very stern glare. "Don't you go offering me your resignation. I told you already, I would never consider terminating you, and I will never accept your resignation."

"Then perhaps allow me to take a leave of absence for an undetermined length of time. I would imagine that further flights will be delayed until we can determine the exact cause of the failed plating and our emergency procedures are re-evaluated," the captain stated.

"But don't you want to take part in the re-evaluation process?" the elderly man asked.

"I have every confidence in Doctor Akagi and Captain Ibuki to develop new more stringent emergency procedures. And I am certain that Captain Ayanami will properly instruct the pilots in those procedures," she reasoned.

"Rei, you don't have to do this," the Commander stated firmly.

"Commander, today I questioned my judgment, not once, but multiple times. And while Pilot Matsumura may be alive, there is no guarantee that she will be able to pilot again." She paused momentarily, looking down at her lap, then back up at her Commander. "I understand the dangers of working in space. I understand there are no guarantees, but I cannot help but think… feel that there was more I could have done, and until I resolve this issue for myself, I will not be able to function confidently as NERV's Director of Operations."

Kouzou pressed his eyes closed and nodded, keeping his head hung low afterwards.

Rei stood up and added, "Thank you Commander, for everything." Then she turned and walked across the room and out the door.

The elderly gentleman opened his eyes long enough to watch the woman he thought of as his granddaughter walk out of the room. Softly, he whispered to himself, "Why does it feel like you just said goodbye forever, Rei?"

~~~~~~~~~~~

AN: I am so very sorry for taking so long to update this story. When I decided to extend the story by adding an additional dramatic element, I never imagined I would go seven months between updates. I had five additional pages to this chapter, but I realized that to complete the direction I was taking the story at that point would require probably another ten pages, so I decided it was best to stop this chapter here and post it already. I hope I haven't lost too many of you because of my long delay. As of right now, I suspect I will need at least two more chapters to finish this story. I hope you will stay with me long enough to see it to the end. I should be able to get the next chapter posted much, much sooner than it's taken me to post this one.

I'd like to offer a big thanks to my new beta-reader, Janice, who has done a wonderful job for me. I don't know how I ever managed without her. Thank you so very much, Janice.

A. Amishi

PS: I'll be one of the panelists at this year's ACEN Fanfiction Panel. I hope any of you who plan on attending ACEN will stop by the panel and say HI. ^_^ I'd love to meet some of my wonderful readers. ^_~