The next battle is against Israfel, the Angel of Music, right? I hope to see a better battle plan than "Dance if you want to win!" (If I was Misato, and I just found out that the N2 bomb successfully forced the Angel to end his attack for several days, days which it needed to regenerate from its wounds, I'd ask that more bombs be dropped on the Angel to cause further damage, before sending the Evas to finish it off.)
And is Asuka going to force Rei to shower?
“The first rule of scheming is ‘always have a backup plan’.”
Does the plan involve playing Shinji and Seele against each other? It would certainly be interesting to see Shinji attempt to manipulate Keel Lorenz, and vice versa.
Those gun nuts do not understand the meaning of "overkill," and will simply use weapon after weapon of mass destruction (WMD) until the monster is dead, or until they run out of weapons.
They have more WMD than there are monsters for us to fight. (More insanity here.)
Yeah, that whole DDR thing never really made a whole lot of sense in the context of training for a battle, although from the point of view of forcing them to synchronize and work together it was a bit more sensible, although only as a part of a larger training regimen.
Anyway, Shinji won't stand for that crap this time around. He had the maxim "No plan survives contact with the enemy" drilled into him at like age 5. Besides, with his martial arts training, keeping pace with a bunch of flashing lights would be trivially easy for him. He would, quite frankly be insulted by the whole affair if it were carried out like in the OTL.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
He starts writing a brilliant fic that you can't get enough of, but it cuts into the time he has for his other brilliant brilliant works that you really want to read more of.
"If it's true that our species is alone in the universe, then I'd have to say that the universe aimed rather low and settled for very little." -George Carlin (1937-2008)
"Have some of you Americans actually seen Football? Of course there are 0-0 draws but that doesn't make them any less exciting." -Dr Roberts, with quite possibly the dumbest thing ever said in 10 years of SDNet.
I know, I know. I have writer's ADHD. But with this one there is a clear end point, at which point I'll get back to Shadow of the Tyrant. Hell, I've got winter break coming up so I'll have a couple of weeks of peace and quiet so I might be able to have this fic mostly finished by the end of the month, although end of January is more likely.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
Academia Nut wrote:I know, I know. I have writer's ADHD. But with this one there is a clear end point, at which point I'll get back to Shadow of the Tyrant. Hell, I've got winter break coming up so I'll have a couple of weeks of peace and quiet so I might be able to have this fic mostly finished by the end of the month, although end of January is more likely.
Hey man i'm not saying its a bad thing, This has been a welcome addition to your profile if you ask me.
"If it's true that our species is alone in the universe, then I'd have to say that the universe aimed rather low and settled for very little." -George Carlin (1937-2008)
"Have some of you Americans actually seen Football? Of course there are 0-0 draws but that doesn't make them any less exciting." -Dr Roberts, with quite possibly the dumbest thing ever said in 10 years of SDNet.
Yeah, I was in a bit of a creative rut (I think SotT may be a bit of a summer fic in that it's really hard to focus on a tropical Cretaceous environment when living through a Canadian winter) and I was batting around all sorts of ideas. At one point I was considering resurrecting this one idea that never got posted anywhere called Sailor Cthulhu, but that probably would have caused excessive SAN loss. Then I considered something I probably would have called Angels and the White Devil, because magical girl beam spam is funny.
Then I read Shinji and Warhammer40k and I knew what I had to write.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
I just wanted to say how absolutely fantastic a take this is on NGE. It was actually your story that convinced me to finish the series, and I realized that the sole redeeming value of the show was to allow people to improve on it so completely as you do with this story. Now I'll have to figure out all the background of the WH40k side of it...
Heh... yeah, just be warned that while NGE is fertile ground for the imagination, there are very obvious reasons for why so many people seek to "improve" upon it, especially the last several episodes...
Here's the most succinct description of the series I can find. I basically imploded, and then the fans pissed off the director so the movie wasn't exactly happy.
As for 40k... well, let's just say that the 40k fluff is a combination of "pure Awesome" and "the End of Evangelion occuring on a yearly basis".
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
Oh I've already made it through the whole series, and I think that picture perfectly encapsulates how I felt by the end. I think you've already stated it well, but I definitely was teased by the notion of Shinji growing a pair right up until the final Angel. Ah well, my disappointment with official material is inversely proportional to the awesomeness of your writing.
Academia Nut wrote:Heh... yeah, just be warned that while NGE is fertile ground for the imagination, there are very obvious reasons for why so many people seek to "improve" upon it, especially the last several episodes...
I'm one of the people who would very much like to erase episodes 22 through 'The End of Evangelion' from canon. Anyone else feel the same way?
As for "improving" Shinji, you seem to have the same idea I have, which is to give the Third Child a father figure that'll teach him how to be a man, i.e., do what Gendo should've done after Yui's death.
<snip>
Here's the most succinct description of the series I can find.
Those gun nuts do not understand the meaning of "overkill," and will simply use weapon after weapon of mass destruction (WMD) until the monster is dead, or until they run out of weapons.
They have more WMD than there are monsters for us to fight. (More insanity here.)
Well, I've uploaded everything to FF.net, and it's somewhat better editted than here, although for authour interaction and faster updates, definitely keep watching this thread.
And while I don't think 22 and 23 were quite bad enough to warrant expulsion from canon, my biggest beef was that they were pretty much hitting the reset buttons on the characters, which I think a lot of people share. Asuka's very character has always been bit of a hot headed bitch, but she showed some positive character development before 22, at which point they were all like "We're going to keep her a bitch, but take away all the good reasons she had for feeling superior and just leave her a broken pathetic shell". Then with Rei, when she had been expressing more emotion and showing more character they were all like "Nope! Back to hollowed out doll Rei!". And we of course know what they were doing to Shinji.
I've said it before, maybe not on here, but I know I've said it, that sometimes realistic isn't good drama. We want to see interesting, dynamic characters grow and change and become better, even if "better" is learning a lesson at the end like in a tragedy along the lines of Macbeth or Hamlet. By the End of Eva we feel that no lessons have truly been learned, despite the fact that the characters had been learning earlier in the series. The creators just sort of arbitrarily and unfairly broke the characters, which is why the fans got so pissed off. Sure, unfair and arbitrary happens in real life, but we don't watch shows to see real life, we watch them to be entertained, and being entertaining and meaningful are not mutual exclusive concepts.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
There was an Angel approaching from the ocean, which was reasonable as every one of the bastards had approached from the ocean. Unfortunately for NERV, and somewhat fortunately for anyone owning property in Tokyo-3, the city was still being repaired after the last battle had left it in a state best described as “not fit for another damn battle”.
So Units 01 and 02 were being deployed for intercept. Unit 00 was being left behind as reserve, partly because it was still being repaired, partly because they didn’t have any spare lifting craft after crashing their primary one into Ramiel to act as cover for Shinji’s assault on the octahedral Angel.
“We’re going to do this by the book okay? Shinji, you have the lower synch ratio, so you’re assigned to fire support. Engage at range so that we can ascertain its capacities. Asuka, with your higher synch ratio and more thorough training, you’re assigned to close range combat. Wait for Shinji to finish his ranged strike then if appropriate close in to engage. Be prepared to break off if things get too hot,” Misato instructs the pilots from the command van while they fly overhead towards the intercept point.
“Damn it, my debut battle over Japan, and instead of being allowed to do it solo I’m stuck with you,” Asuka complains.
Popping up a holographic display, Shinji stares at Asuka coldly and responds, “Our mission is not to fight the enemy, it is to kill the enemy, quickly, cleanly, and efficiently. Two Evas can achieve all three better than one.”
“Just stay out of my way Third Child,” Asuka growls at the projection.
“Considering that I’ll be the one behind you with the heavy weaponry, it would be smarter for you to stay out of my way,” Shinji replies just as the Evas were dropped clear of their transports, the massive flying wings jumping into the sky with the sudden loss in mass.
The drop was a smooth one in comparison to the rocket jump against Shamshel or the sub-orbital death dive against Ramiel. Controlled and with no enemy fire to worry about, both Evas fell serenely from the sky before firing their temporary boosters a hundred metres off the ground and then landing relatively softly at the edge of the beach where the Angel was predicted to emerge.
Ejecting the spent boosters, both Evas waited as service vehicles brought them umbilical cables and their weaponry. Shinji picked up a bolter and several magazines of spare ammo while the missile pods on Unit 01’s shoulders were loaded up with a selection of missiles, primarily oversized variants of the Hellfire anti-tank missiles and a nasty thing that detonated into a cone of white phosphorous flechettes that would have been banned by international treaty in any other use. He also had two thermobaric missiles in case he needed to cause a really big explosion.
The new “headdress” was actually a sophisticated targeting suite that also served as a shield against the back blast of the missiles. It limited the motion of the head, especially with the missile pods attached, but it also gave near 360 degree sensor coverage, so this was an acceptable loss.
Asuka already had a set of retractable prog claws equipped as a back-up weapon, but from one of the service vehicles she picked up a sleek looking prog spear. With her now well decorated Eva, she truly did look like some Bronze Age Titan ready to open a can of whoop ass on anyone who doubted her divinity. That or a World Eater ready to open a can of “BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD!” on anything she was pointed at. With Asuka the delineation between the two was a bit fuzzy since everything seemed to doubt her divinity.
Out in the water, the Angel emerged, wading forward through the surf, flanked on either side by ruined buildings. It was a dull grey colour, somewhat similar in shape to Sachiel, if significantly more simian in the build of its arms and legs, and much more of a barrel chest. Instead of the plague mask or the crimson core, it had a strange ying-yang symbol off to one side.
Shinji immediately narrowed his eyes as his senses tested the Angel. Something… something was wrong with this one. It was… it was not right.
“Cover me Third Child!” Asuka suddenly announced as she launched forward, screaming “Charge!”
“Son of a!” Shinji cries out before opening up with his bolter to give Asuka some covering fire. The enormous munitions streak forward… and impact against its AT-field.
I neutralized that! Unless…
Leaping from building to building, Asuka took one final leap through the air to neatly bisect the Seventh Angel from head to groin, splitting it in two.
“There! Combat should be clean, simple, and elegant, don’t you think?” Asuka says.
“You didn’t hit the core! It could still be alive,” Shinji cries out while trying to probe at the creature with his mind and AT-field. It was strange… almost as if…
Asuka did not have time to respond as the two halves abruptly transformed into two smaller versions of the Angel, one green with orange highlights and the other orange with green highlights, each with its own core.
Fuck!
Shinji opened up with his bolter and a several Hellfire missiles on the one Angel he had a good bead on, but the opposite one threw up an AT-field and the weapons exploded harmlessly. The one Shinji had been targeting used the confusion to leap upon Asuka, its claws slicing through her spear in a single stroke.
It really wasn’t a fair fight, two against one when they covered their backs so perfectly. Shinji decided to change the tune of the dance a little.
“Asuka, get on the building to your right,” Shinji orders.
“Busy here!” Asuka shouts out.
“Damn it! Okay, listen to me! Get on the building to your left then! I need to break their formation before they cut you apart,” Shinji cries out.
For just a second Asuka was about to ignore him again, but he was using that voice that demanded attention and compliance. Before she had even fully thought about it, she was moving. Shinji then screamed, “JUMP NOW!”
Asuka leapt off the abandoned building almost as quickly as she had arrived, and the green half of the Angel leapt up after her, just in time for both of Unit 01’s thermobaric missiles to punch through the outer walls and detonate. The fifteen year old wreck exploded in a shower of shrapnel and collapsed beneath the Angel’s feet, toppling it over.
The other half had been using Asuka as a shield from Shinji while covering its partner with its AT-field. The sudden change in the battlefield caused it to suddenly be under the sights of Unit 01 and the incoming barrage of bolter rounds and missiles. One arm was sawn off by explosions, its entire front side was set ablaze by the white phosphorous missiles, and best of all, and its core was blown to scrap by the concentrated fire.
“YOU SHOT AT ME!” Asuka cried out. This unfortunately gave the second half enough time to recover from the rubble and assume a defensive position while its core flashed brilliantly for a moment.
There was an explosion of tumorous activity upon the silent half, and before a proper response could be mounted it had a fresh, intact core.
Shinji could see what was coming. Not because of precognition, or even pattern recognition though. He could see what was coming because somehow the Angel had managed to twist its masks into a look of extreme annoyance, or at least that was the impression Shinji got, although he couldn’t quite confirm that they had actually changed at all.
This… this was going to hurt.
Asuka was very, very quiet right now. This was because even with half his face wrapped in bandages, Shinji had a glare that would make the Death Star back off. He did not get angry easily, and he could control it very well as evidenced by his cool competence during the battle, but now that the immediate danger had passed, he let his infinite displeasure be known without saying a word.
The Vice Commander had been planning on chewing them out, but just looking at Shinji made him back off. Fuyutsuki had heard of the confrontation between father and son at the hospital when he had first arrived, and he knew that the boy was not one who would back down from his word lightly. So long as he was in a military situation, he would act with the utmost professionalism. He knew what had gone wrong, and who had screwed up, but he wasn’t going to point fingers, not now.
Sighing, Fuyutsuki just lets the pictures speak for him, of both Evas implanted in the earth by the Angel, then of the UN engaging with an N2 mine, and finally of the now reunited Angel looking half dead at the centre of the crater.
“After the N2 mine hit, 28% of the Seventh Angel’s mass was burned off, but unfortunately it has now erected an AT-field sufficiently strong to repel further such attacks. The power expenditure is slowing its regeneration, but we estimate that within six days it will be fully healed and restored,” Fuyutsuki says.
“Then within six days we had best sort out our coordination problems,” Shinji replies coldly, having deigned to speak for the first time since he was taken out of his entry plug, his body covered in bruises.
“YOU SHOT AT ME!” Asuka shouted, pulling out the only thing she could use against him.
“I shot at a position where you were located at the time the missiles left their tubes, yes. However, I trusted you to heed my warning, just as you should have trusted me to know what I was doing,” Shinji says bitterly.
“Silence both of you,” Fuyutsuki says angrily but without raising his voice. Raising his voice would probably unnecessarily escalate the situation. “What is your mission?”
“Piloting Eva?” Asuka asks in confusion.
“Wrong,” Shinji states with absolute certainty. “Our mission is to kill the Angels. We are to do it with maximum prejudice. We are to maim and eviscerate and impale and take their heads as trophies. We are to do all sorts of horrible things to them. But they are all incidental to the fact that the reason we do such things is to make the enemy dead. Dead, dead, dead! Piloting the Evas are the same concept, that we pilot them is a means to an end, with that end being the crucified, torched bodies of our enemies with their heads on pikes, if necessary to ensure they will not stand back up.”
A deathly quiet settled over the room at Shinji’s announcement. The words coming out of his mouth were barbaric, but they were utterly true. This was a struggle for survival against inhuman forces. Any and all measures against them were justified. Including sticking adolescents in giant cybernetic organisms that caused physical and mental strain and then shoving them head first onto the frontlines.
Asuka looked hurt, but she could tell that Shinji wasn’t joking around anymore. She had screwed up and cost them the battle and everyone was mad at her… she… she…
She ran from the room.
Shinji arrived back at the apartment before the movers arrived and well before Misato retrieved the distraught Asuka, who had holed up in one of the change rooms in a state of severe emotional distress.
When the two women arrived back, he was deep in meditation, plotting his next moves. He was furious and on the edge of control, something he wasn’t used to dealing with. He was used to letting his grievances simmer, he was used to being calm, the eye of the storm.
When they had retrieved him from his Eva, he was one comment away from grabbing Asuka by her throat, lifting her off her feet, and screaming at her. It would have been so easy too… but he had held off. The situation was not unsalvageable, and truth be told he had not being managing it well. He had let himself be caught up in his own scenario, gaining short term satisfaction at pushing Asuka’s buttons while neglecting the more long term shaping of her psyche into a more useful instrument.
Annoying her still had its place, but Shinji needed to be more careful. He kept over-estimating her emotional resilience because he had done insufficient observation of her person.
And worst of all, he had thus far neglected to try to convert her to Chaos. She would be incredible no matter what god she followed, but if she could be taught to properly channel and control all of her wrath, she would be magnificent as a follower of Khorne. She just needed to be taught the other aspects of the war god or she would be useless. She needed to learn honour, discipline, and martial pride in addition to her anger.
But first Shinji needed to learn the source of her anger. He needed to find the root of that raw nerve of emotion.
When the two of them arrived at the apartment, Shinji did not rise from his position, but rather simply asked from his room, “She will be living with us, won’t she?”
“Yes, you two need to learn to work together as a team,” Misato says.
“What?” Asuka cries out. “After the age of seven boys and girls should not be living under the same roof!”
Gritting his teeth, Shinji swallows his anger with her and rises from his meditative position and picks up a duffel bag and leaves his room to confront Asuka in the hallway, grabbing her by the wrist and hauling her off, saying with arctic chill, “Come, we must talk.”
Asuka was suddenly too terrified to protest.
Misato just sighed and shook her head. There had been a fight brewing all day, and she trusted Shinji not to do something stupid. They had to get it out in the open now, before things had time to fester and rot and then explode in a shower of vitriol at the worst possible moment.
Misato did the only thing she could. She grabbed a beer.
Meanwhile, up on the roof of the apartment, Shinji had a large open space marked out that he typically used for training. Throwing the duffel bag to the side, he lets go of Asuka’s hand and unzips it and pulls out two wooden practice weapons. Specifically, they were wooden practice axes.
Tossing one at Asuka’s feet, Shinji says, “We’re going to play a little game Asuka, called Ten to One. If I can beat you ten times in a row, you owe me a favour, but if can beat me once then I owe you a favour. So go ahead, pick up the axe and test your strength against mine.”
Asuka just gaped at him. This was what he brought her up here for? What was he, stu…?
Asuka’s train of thought was derailed by Shinji abruptly closing the distance between the two of them, the “blade” of his weapon resting upon her throat. Despite the injuries that covered his body and the lack of depth perception, he seemed to be barely slowed down.
“One,” he says simply.
“Hey! I wasn’t ready!” Asuka cries out.
“Do the Angels care?” Shinji asks while withdrawing and letting her pick up the weapon at her feet.
Once again he exploded into action, knocking the axe out of her hand with one swipe and then resting the blade against her throat again, this time on the opposite side as before.
“Two.”
“I wasn’t ready!” Asuka screeches, tears in her eyes.
Shinji just stares at her.
“Forget this!” Asuka screams before trying to run off, only to be intercepted by Shinji, one leg hooked by his axe such that she was suddenly on her back, the blade once again at her throat.
“Three. We’re not done yet,” Shinji replies.
“Leave me alone!” Asuka screams, trying to crawl away.
“Why should I?” Shinji says, staring contemptuously down at her. “Did the Angels let me escape the fight?”
Silence.
“Four.”
Silence.
“Five. You’re pathetic. Ayanami would still be fighting at this point. She does not give up,” Shinji states.
Silence.
“Six. What are you? Are you a doll, an inanimate object shaped like a human being?” Shinji asks her contemptuously.
Snap.
Asuka screamed and hurled herself at him, Germanic obscenities spilling from her lips while tears tumbled from her eyes. For her trouble she got whacked in the gut and then shoved back to the ground, the wooden edge resting against her neck once more.
“Seven.”
But this time she would not accept it lying down. Scrambling away, she picked up the other axe and clutching it in a two handed death grip, charged. In her blind rage, she would probably break bones if she actually connected. Not that she would.
Effortlessly side-stepping her charge, Shinji dodges her wild swipes before punching her in the solar plexus, knocking her to the ground with the wind taken from her. Once more the axe rested on her neck.
“Eight.”
Once she had her breath back, Asuka growls at him, “You cheated.”
“Who ever said that this fight was just with axes?” Shinji asks mockingly.
The next time she attacked, he didn’t even use his axe, instead he just flowed around her defences and slapped her across the face, then tossed her, then kicked her in the right kidney when she was down, then flipped her onto her stomach when she curled up in pain, before pinning her to the ground with a knee on her back. The axe finally rested on the back of her neck.
“Nine.”
Shinji then stood up and walked several paces away, before dropping his axe in front of him, taking a step away, and then dropping to one knee, hands to the side and on the ground, his head bowed and neck exposed.
Coughing, Asuka struggled to her feet and then looked at him kneeling there before her. She asked, “What are you doing?”
“We are now both one fight away from victory. All you have to do is rest your axe upon my neck and you win. You can request that we never do this again. In fact, you could probably strike me hard enough that I might die in an ‘accident’ and then your problems would be solved, no? No more taunting, no more humiliation, no more me upstaging you, and no one would make you pay for it. They need you too badly, especially with me out of the picture. It could all end here, and your life would be back to perfect the way it was before,” Shinji says invitingly.
Asuka hesitated. On the one hand, she did indeed wanted to lash out, to strike him down, but she also…
“Ten.”
She had not even seen him move, and yet somehow he had picked up his axe, stood up, and cleared the distance between them in an instant. Asuka fell down in shock and surprise.
In the waning light of the day, Shinji was haloed from behind by the setting sun, his face shadowed into total obscurity, but his hair burned like some sort of terrible demon as he gazed down at her.
“But your life was not perfect before, was it? I am not the monster that comes charging in to destroy your idyllic world, to replace it with one filled with pain and ruin. I am the monster that tears down your idyllic illusion, to remind you that you live in a world of pain and ruin. Life is pain. Life is suffering. Who we are is defined by how we deal with it,” Shinji tells her angrily.
Asuka could only stare up at him in mute horror.
“Rei… Rei was practically inanimate when I first met her. I do not know what abuses were heaped upon her, she would not tell me, but she has grown to accept all that pain in her life. She has learned to simply endure all the slings and arrows life has to throw at her, shrug it off, and live the way she wishes.
“Misato has pain in her life too; you can see it in the way she drinks, the way she acts. She distracts herself from her pain. She throws herself into activities to forget what it is that hurts her. Sometimes it is alcohol and sex; sometimes it is being a military commander.”
Shinji takes a deep breath and then says, “But you and I are not like either of them, and that is why we do not get along. When something causes us pain, we seek to change the situation. You… you get angry. You seek to dominate, intimidate, or destroy those things around you that cause you pain through sheer force of will and strength, and it must be done immediately. I get even. I manipulate, control, and convert at my own pace, once I have full control over the situation. I will ruin something only if it suits me, if I feel the pain inflicted upon me is worth it.
“And I have such pain Asuka, such pain, but I will keep it for now. For you though, you owe me a favour for my victory. Tell me of your pain Asuka. Tell me honestly, tell me fully,” Shinji demands, crouching down to fill her vision.
“I… I… never agreed to this,” Asuka says in terror. Terror of Shinji, terror of telling her secrets.
“We rarely agree to the things that hurt us. So either defeat me, prove that you are worthy of keeping your pain secret, or show some honour in defeat and give me that which I ask,” Shinji says at just above a whisper.
Only the wind and their breathing answered him.
“TELL ME!” Shinji roared next to her face.
“Momma died!” Asuka shrieked, clutching her head in agony and shame.
There is a pause before Shinji says, “So? Everyone in our class at school has a dead mother. Including me.”
This revelation was like a slap in the face to Asuka, who looked up at Shinji through tear stained eyes, seeing him in a new light.
“So that cannot be all of your pain. Tell me everything, tell me the how and the why,” Shinji says softly.
“Momma… momma worked for GEHIRN… they… they were the group before… before… before NERV. She… she… she was in an… an… an… accident,” Asuka sobs out.
Shinji twitched at that, but even he didn’t know why really. There was an old memory in there somewhere, inaccessible like a chunk of metal embedded in his flesh that had become trapped there as a scar formed over it. It would take major surgery to extract, something he could not do at the moment.
And Asuka was not done speaking.
“She… she… she… she went… went… crazy! She didn’t… didn’t… die… right away. She… she… she… she… she… she thought a… a… doll was me! She didn’t see me as her daughter! She hung herself and I was the one who found her!” Asuka screams
Shinji went deathly silent for a moment before he demanded, “What division was she in?”
“She… she was one of… one of… the primary designers… designers of the Evas,” Asuka stutters out.
There was a flash of pain in Shinji’s head as the suppressed memory scratched against his mind, that piece of embedded metal grinding against bone now. He suppressed his own suffering for the moment and simply held Asuka as she cried. As she settled down, Shinji asked quietly, “So what happened next?”
“I… I had to prove I wasn’t a doll… that I was good enough… I… I threw myself into piloting Eva… it’s everything… it’s all I have! And… and… and you’re taking it away!” Asuka cries out.
Still holding her close, Shinji says, “No… no. I cannot take that away from you, only you can. I made a mistake earlier today. You and I, we are different. I am cast from the mould of a soldier. For me, fighting is a living, a means to an end. You… you are a warrior, for whom fighting is life. You carry conflict with you wherever you go.”
He kissed her on the forehead and she did not flinch away from the contact, and then said, “We must learn to work together. You must learn to accept my brutal, sneaky, underhanded ways, and I must learn to accept your passionate, headstrong ways. We can complement one another wonderfully and make the battlefield our dance floor. The Evas were made to fight the Angels, so your mother died fighting them. If not for them, you would be home in Germany, going to school like a normal girl and your mother would still be around tuck you in at night. Hate them. Hate them for all they have stolen from you. Let all your sorrow turn to wrath, and if your breast be a cannon, shoot your burning heart at them. We shall make their blood flow, and we shall stack their skulls into a grand throne that shall let all know of your victory over your pain.”
Rising, Shinji offers a hand for Asuka to take, to symbolically rise from her sorrow. For so many years, she had been raging against a cruel fate, pushing others away to keep from being hurt while simultaneously demanding attention. And now the one person she had ever feared would take away everything she had was telling her to keep raging, to keep fighting, and he would stand with her. He would stand with her and make all that had pained her suffer for their offences.
She took his hand.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
Wow. I could see Asuka being even more scary then her handling of the MP Evas in EoE. That is, if she first proves more resilient than in the OTL and doesn't break down as Chaos-Shinji forces her to confront her past.
Yes, I too look forward with *great* anticipation to the final showdown.
I'm sure SEELE will take the time to upgrade their own EVA's to some extent...
But I don't think its going to do them any good somehow...Asuka, pissed off managed to come rather close to killing all of them...
Asuka as a *pissed off Khornite Berserker* against them....well....
Says the guy who plotted out a trailer for his own fic based off of the Return of the King.
But yeah, the Mass Produced ones are definitely going to be upgraded. SEELE is probably looking over the numbers and going, "Nine's not going to be enough!" Of course, there is the fact that no matter what is said, Asuka cut one of the bastard in half and somehow it got back up. There's got to be some regeneration involved there. Which, combined with the total cheapness of them all having Lances of Longinus was really the only reason she lost the damn battle in the first place.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
Academia Nut wrote:Says the guy who plotted out a trailer for his own fic based off of the Return of the King.
Hey, it was HALF a trailer...and Howard Shore just rocks
But yeah, the Mass Produced ones are definitely going to be upgraded. SEELE is probably looking over the numbers and going, "Nine's not going to be enough!"
Well I guess its more pork for the Evangelion construction teams at the other NERV's
My impression of the Mass Production models was that they were done 'on the cheap' compared with the other units, very much 'no frills' models, with the exception of NERV's copy of an S2 engine in place of batteries and the copy of the Lance as a weapon. Of course its your universe so you can do whatever you want, but upgrading the final model AND building more of them might be a little hard, relativly speaking.
Of course, there is the fact that no matter what is said, Asuka cut one of the bastard in half and somehow it got back up.
Yeah. THAT I never understood. The rest of them clearly retained the huge damage Asuka inflicted on them and didn't regenerate...yet some of the stuff Asuka did to them, like crushing the spine of one and causing all its bodily fluids to gush out all over her...
But its also true Asuka didn't go for their weak points really, she just went beserk and tried to rip them all apart...she needs the guidance of a master of the Changer of Ways to direct her rage
There's got to be some regeneration involved there. Which, combined with the total cheapness of them all having Lances of Longinus was really the only reason she lost the damn battle in the first place.
Well that and the fact SHE didn't have an S2 engine or Duracell batteries.
Well, the whole getting back up after suffering gross physical damage that should have compromised the capacity for motion had to have been caused by the whole S2 engine thing, because only a couple could have conceivably picked themselves up after what she did to them. Maybe some of the ones with head wounds could have taken her out after her batteries ran out, but that whole battle ended with a "You've got to be shitting me" moment.
And if I were to have a trailer for my version of End of Eva it would probably have to be modelled after Aliens or something with lots of screaming and panic.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
Who's to say Shinji won't benefit if Seele upgrades the Mass Production Evas? If he finds out about the dummy plugs, he's likely to reprogram them so the Mass Production Evas will obey HIS commands instead of Seele's.
In fact, that would be an excellent ending for the series. Seele sends the Mass Production Evas to destroy NERV HQ and initiate Third Impact, only for their Evas to turn around and attack its pawns and, when Shinji finds out where the Seele Committee members live, Seele itself.
Those gun nuts do not understand the meaning of "overkill," and will simply use weapon after weapon of mass destruction (WMD) until the monster is dead, or until they run out of weapons.
They have more WMD than there are monsters for us to fight. (More insanity here.)
The original plan had called for the two pilots learning to synchronize with each other through close associated living and coordinated motion drills, with the ultimate plan being a well timed and planned assault on the Angel.
Shinji more or less shot that down as soon as Misato told them. The plan was too rigid, and the first maxim of military planning was that no plan survives contact with the enemy. Any sort of planning required a certain fluidity to allow for adaptation to changing circumstances, and it could not have just a single path to success, but rather required multiple paths that could be taken at certain junctures depending on previous successes or failures.
It was actually rather stunning for Misato and Asuka watch him work. He plotted out an eighty-eight node map that had two hundred eighty-three possible outcomes, with eighty-five percent of them ending in victory and all but one of the remaining outcomes ending with the Evas retreating intact from the battle to fight again. There was even one bizarre, but logical, path that ended in victory but required losses at every single node.
The entire demonstration of course was that this sort of thing couldn’t be kept track of in the midst of combat, and to rely on rigid battle plans was asking for trouble. Rather, he pointed out the fact that the closest they got to success was when he had fired upon the building Asuka was standing on.
Simply put, if they could learn to know the other’s movements intimately and to trust the other in combat, then they could make the kind of narrow margin attacks that would allow them to engage opposite partners. Each half of the Angel shielded and covered the other, so they would simply attack from vectors not expected.
To that end their training quickly became a series of non-stop sparring matches between the two pilots as they learned each other’s motions and tell-tale signs. The objective was to come as close to striking the other without actually making contact. They started out slow and with lots of bumps and accidental hits, but they very quickly moved up the pace.
And Asuka demonstrated that when she wasn’t an emotional wreck a decade of combat training really paid off. She couldn’t touch Shinji in staff fighting, he was far too well trained there, but once she was centred emotionally she could fight him almost at parity with axes, and with other forms of melee weapons she had the advantage due to familiarity.
For the past two days they had done nothing apart unless it involved the bathroom. They tried to do everything but the sparring in stereo, so much that it soon became a competition between them to see who could more perfectly track the motions of the other. Asuka went at it full bore, always watching, always correcting, while Shinji preferred to try and slip her up by throwing in chaotic motions at unexpected times. The whole psychic powers bit made it rather easy for him to predict Asuka’s movement, so it was more important for her to figure out his motions.
By the time their classmates had shown up to find out what was going on, their muscles were aching from the non-stop drills they were being put through, but the two were displaying a mastery of martial arts that would not have been expected from two fourteen-year olds. So intent on their drills were they that they did not even bother to pause when the doorbell rang, instead letting Misato answer it.
Wooden practice weapons cut the air, making whirring noises as they fought to not touch the other. Shinji was using a wooden staff, his own regular one considered too dangerous to use, while Asuka was using a practice battle axe. Wood striking wood rang out through the apartment and the two danced and rolled about one another in a series of attacks, parries, feints, and counter-feints that looked choreographed but was merely a product of incredibly focused practice.
When they noticed their friends staring in awe of them, they both paused and as one bowed before saying in stereo, “Hello.”
Kensuke and Toji were in total shock at their friend so readily associating with Asuka, and synchronizing with her no less, while Hikari was in a total state of confusion about what this meant from the standpoint of what was proper.
Each getting a sly look on their faces and said in unison, “This is part of our training. Our enemy has two bodies that act as one, so we must do the same.”
Smiling at the confusion written on the non-pilots faces, Misato explains and then says, “Okay, that’s probably enough for now, you two can cool down while I make some lunch.”
The two glance nervously at each other before saying, “Perhaps Hikari-san would like to cook.”
“Nah! They’re guests here, I should cook,” Misato says dismissively while taking a sip from her beer.
Shinji and Asuka shot Hikari a look that screamed “For the love of all that is holy do not let this woman into the kitchen.”
“Uh… I like cooking, it would be my pleasure to… uh… help you Misato-san,” Hikari says tentatively.
“Well… I suppose you could help if you really wanted to,” Misato says.
Half an hour later and everyone was sitting down to a nice meal while Hikari was glad she had been volunteered. She shuddered to think what Misato would have created without proper supervision. Some sort of unholy abomination of curry and instant ramen probably.
“That was pretty cool what you guys were doing back there… but… uh… how exactly will not hitting each other help you fight the Angel?” Kensuke asks.
“Tomorrow…”
“…we…”
“…go…”
“…to…”
“…train…”
“…with…”
“…the…”
“…Evas.”
The switch off effect leaves the others speechless, causing them both to break down into laughter before Shinji breaks off and says alone, “Really what we’re trying to do is learn to predict and react to each other’s movements and actions so that we can fight as one coordinated entity. For the rest of the time we will be focusing on Eva combat simulations.”
“Hopefully you should get to train with the new weapons tomorrow as well… or well, the simulated versions anyway,” Misato adds on.
“New weapons?” The pilots ask in synch.
“Yeah, we were planning on introducing them about now anyway, but the Angel merely sped up our timetable a little. Don’t worry, they’re both fully tested and there is nothing theoretical about them,” Misato assures.
“It’s a nuclear weapon!” Shinji says from the cockpit of Unit 01 while being instructed about the UDPIDTEPW, or Unidirectional Positron Initiated Deuterium-Tritium Enhanced Plasma Weapon.
“Technically yes, but it’s perfectly safe to use,” Misato tells him.
“It’s a thermonuclear weapon!” Shinji expands upon. “And how the hell do they know this is safe? How long ago did they even come up with the theory for this thing?”
“It’s a thirty year old design based off a bomb,” Misato replies.
“Excuse me, but did I hear that last part right? Did you say it was based off a bomb?” Shinji demands.
“The theory was! The US developed a series of shaped charge nuclear weapons during the late stages of the Cold War and continued experimentation afterwards. After Second Impact they perfected the design, but we reworked into something that wouldn’t use the barrel as a fuel source, didn’t use a fission weapon as an initiator, and wouldn’t be destroyed while firing. We’ve tested fired the design a couple times,” Misato explains.
Somewhat more mollified, Shinji asks, “So there is no chance of this thing turning into a mushroom cloud in my hands?”
“Just point it away from civilized areas and you should be okay. You might want to have an AT-field up while firing it too. Oh, and while the current model of the boom gun is designed to be fitted with this new weapon, the recoil is a little much, so make sure you brace it properly,” Misato says.
Shaking his head, Shinji just says, “So this model is good for one shot?”
“Yes. That’s why it was designed to be slung under the boom gun as a supplement rather than as an independent weapons system,” Misato explains.
“It’s called the Wave Motion Gun by the build team, isn’t it?” Shinji suddenly asks.
“Err… yeah,” Misato admits.
“How long does it take to charge?” Shinji asks dryly.
“It takes ten seconds to go from a cold start to a firing ready, which is recommended to do right before firing as the system is a little touchy once the plasma has been primed and rather unstable once the positrons are moved to the firing position,” Misato explains.
“Ten seconds! Do you have any idea how long that is in combat?” Shinji asks in horror.
“A long time, I’m a soldier, I know. But that’s the price paid for getting something this small and manoeuvrable. To get equivalent instantaneous power would be impossible with a traditional design and would require massive capacitor banks. This system sacrifices a degree of safety for enormous firepower, and then sacrifices some readiness of use to gain back some safety. I mean, if you want to carry around an armed nuclear bomb, go right ahead and prime and ready it before battle,” Misato points out.
Shaking his head, Shinji replies, “No, it’s far too useful, if it works, to abandon. So if this is my combat upgrade, what is Asuka’s?”
“Well, there’s the boom pistol, or rather the APHEGSRB-PV, or Pistol Variant. It was developed along with the carbine version you’re using, but as the name suggests it is smaller and has a somewhat shorter range. And then of course there is the RCPTCCW,” Misato says.
“What is with all the acronyms?” Shinji asks in annoyance.
“It’s a military organization, live with it,” Misato says with a shrug.
Punching in a few codes in his entry plug, Shinji examines the meaning of the acronym before saying, “Rotary Chain Progressive Tooth Close Combat Weapon… you made a giant chainsaw!”
“Well… technically they were originally trying to make a chainsaw sword but they couldn’t fit all the components in properly, so they settled for a chainsaw axe. It should cause tremendous tissue damage to the Angels,” Misato explains.
“Sweet…” Shinji notes with a grin. “Okay, let’s see what we’ve learned.”
Asuka was annoyed at Shinji, although he couldn’t really blame her considering the fact that he kept accidentally shooting her in the simulations against the Seventh Angel. He was getting better, and their coordination was significantly up, but after several days of practice, he was still having trouble with the melta, as he liked to call the fusion weapon strapped to his bolter.
The thing kicked like a mule! And it didn’t have a targeting icon so much as it had a cone where everything ceased to exist in a flash of light and plasma. So far he had vaporized Unit 02 twice, although the second time wasn’t entirely his fault as Target Beta got wise to him powering up the gun and hit him with a beam weapon, triggering the burst early.
Tomorrow was it, the day where they would have their rematch with Israfel. The plan was to intercept well outside of Tokyo-3 and then launch a coordinated assault using everything they had learned. It was going to be tough, but Shinji was confident they could pull it off.
Asuka was bathing while he practiced his cello, Metallica’s “Master of Puppets”, a perennial favourite for obvious reasons, flowed from his strings, although it was a pity he didn’t have any other cello players for accompaniment. Music could be so cathartic for him. Helped him centre, to bleed off pressure and empty his mind.
Exiting the bathroom dressed in her night clothes of a loose yellow t-shirt and short pants, Asuka asks, “Where’s Misato-san?”
Pausing, Shinji says, “She called while you were in the bathroom to say that she would be at work all night, and, to quote ‘I had better not find out about any hanky-panky when I get home’.”
Rolling her eyes, Asuka says, “Please.”
“Yeah, I mean, it’s like she doesn’t trust me to be smart enough to properly dispose of the evidence,” Shinji says cheekily.
Glaring at him, Asuka opens her mouth to say something before asking, “Are you going to be playing much longer? I want to go to bed now.”
“No problem,” Shinji says while packing away his cello and taking it back to his room. Setting it away, he then kneels before his shrine and begins his nightly prayers.
Asuka watched him for a time before commenting, “Your god has a funny name, even by Japanese standards.”
“It’s obscure and I do not believe that it is of Japanese origin,” Shinji replies. He then asks, “Would you like to learn more about Tzeentch, or any of the other gods in the pantheon?”
“No thanks, not interested in your crazy cults,” Asuka says while walking off.
Every day her rejection becomes less enthusiastic. She sees the strength I gain from my faith, and she wonders if it is the secret to my strength. She will accept my offer… eventually.
Leaving his room, Shinji goes to the main living area where Asuka is gathering up her sleeping bag and pillow, obviously intent on not having to sleep in the same room as Shinji.
Shinji looks at her and says, “That’s a bad idea.”
“Why? Because ‘it will break our synchronization’ or some bullshit like that?” Asuka asks sarcastically.
Smiling, Shinji says, “Because you will be cold and uncomfortable in the morning.”
Looking at him strangely, Asuka says, “Are you stupid? I have everything I need right here.”
Shaking his head, Shinji says, “Mark my words, you won’t by the end of the night.”
Staring at him suspiciously, Asuka drops her stuff and says, “Whatever. This is the impenetrable wall of Jericho. Cross it and you will suffer instant death.” She then closed the door between them.
Turning off the lights, Shinji settles down into his own blankets and smiling to himself whispers, “…and the walls of Jericho came tumbling down.”
About an hour or two later, Asuka emerged from her room and went straight to the bathroom. There was the sound of running water and a light from under the doorway.
And then Asuka plunked down next to Shinji.
His eyes still closed, he said, “I told you.”
Asuka bolted upright as she realized Shinji was still awake.
Lifting up his sheets, Shinji says, “Do not be angry at me or yourself, be angry at the Angels. They were the ones who ultimately left you this way. Left you lonely.”
Asuka was about to leave angrily when Shinji said, “You are strong Asuka. Seize what you want. I know I’m a poor substitute for your dream man Kaji, but do not deny yourself what you want when you can take it. I offer warmth and a refuge against the lonely night, are you scared to take it?”
“You’re just a pervert trying to rub up against me,” Asuka says.
“You trust me to point a thermonuclear weapon at your back and yet you don’t trust me to behave honourably. You should know me better than that. You’ve been to the school; you’ve seen the fan girls. If I wanted to, I could have as much ass as I wanted at a snap of my fingers,” Shinji says, snapping his fingers for emphasis. “But I’m not interested in that sort of thing. Pawing over a woman like that is so… juvenile.”
“What are you, gay?” Asuka asks. She was quite noticeably not leaving.
“The same principle would apply. I bet I could get Kensuke to blow me if I let him into the entry plug of Unit 01,” Shinji suggests.
Giggling, Asuka says, “Yeah, I bet.”
“So what will it be? Me or the night?” Shinji asks.
There was a moment of silence and then Asuka slid in next to him, muttering, “One wayward limb and I will make the stomping Israfel gave you look like a boisterous tussle.”
“I wouldn’t dare,” Shinji says before adding on, “Just don’t you toss about in your sleep. I can only keep track of my own limbs.” Shinji then crossed his arms over his chest like an Egyptian mummy.
After a few minutes, Shinji felt Asuka’s face press against his shoulder and he could feel the tears on her cheeks. He said nothing and finally Asuka asked, “How can you be such a bastard and so kind at the same time?”
“Because kindness serves my purposes best. Traps are best laid with something tempting rather than something repulsive,” Shinji admits.
“Bastard,” Asuka says.
“I know. But if I snare your heart, will you complain? If I am there to fill the hollows left by the losses in your life, will you resent your completion?” Shinji asks.
“And why do you want my heart?” Asuka asks.
“If I answered in a way other than ‘control’ would you believe me, even if I spoke the truth?” Shinji asks quietly.
“Tell me,” Asuka asks.
Sighing, Shinji says, “I have holes in my heart too. I have hopes and desires, and I must admit that you are very warm and your skin is very soft, and it is incredibly pleasant to have such a beautiful, confident, wondrous woman lying next to me.”
“How incredible?” Asuka asks, her face still pressed against his shoulder so he could feel her smile.
Thinking for a moment, Shinji says, “Do you want the honest answer or the poetic one?”
“I would be amused to hear a straight answer out of you,” Asuka says.
“Well then you would be disappointed, because there is a difference between an honest answer and a straight one. If you want the honest answer, then I shall say that if you were to begin groping me you would find yourself highly ‘complimented’,” Shinji replies.
It took Asuka a second to figure that one out, but before she could scream in outrage Shinji says, “It’s biological in nature, and as I said, you should feel ‘complimented’.”
Frowning, Asuka asks angrily, “You’re not going to jerk off over my comatose body now are you?”
“Please, that would be pathetic. And if you were that deeply asleep I chose to only do something like that, well that reflects poorly on my part, now doesn’t it?” Shinji notes.
“Yeah… yeah… I guess you do have better standards than that,” Asuka admits before snuggling in closer. This however brought her breasts into contact with Shinji’s side.
After a moment she says with a giggle, “So that’s how I control the thermostat.”
It was zero hour. Israfel, having reformed during its regeneration, was up and about again. The UN had observed it during its rest, but had now pulled back to let the Evas have their second shot at the binary Angel.
Armed with a bolt pistol and a chain axe, Asuka was to lead the assault while Shinji delivered close fire support. They were to mix it up with the two halves, switching targets spontaneously as the situation warranted and acting in perfect synchronization.
Tightening her fist about the butterfly grips, Asuka wondered if Shinji could provide the support he was supposed to. Even after days of training he still hit her on occasion with his boom gun. How could she trust him when…?
It suddenly dawned at her that she had been at fault. Last night, he had been a perfect gentleman and had demonstrated that her trust in him was not wasted. He kept her secrets, and did not use them against her. He cared for her, cared to soothe her pain, to take away the intense loneliness that had gnawed at her for the past ten years.
He trusted her to trust him. He knew what she was going to do, and he trusted her to act. When he pulled the trigger, he had to know that she would be elsewhere when the rounds arrived on target. If she hesitated, then she would not be where she should be.
So she would trust him. She would not hesitate, she would simply act. Shinji would do what he needed to do, and she would do what she needed to do. It was as simple as that. The hesitation and confusion from just a moment before faded away, and Asuka saw only the Angel. And she began to see red.
Mother died building Unit 02.
Unit 02 was built to fight the Angels.
Mother died fighting the Angels.
The Angels took mother from her.
And they would take everyone else from her if she failed. Suddenly she understood what Shinji had been talking about nearly a week ago. Piloting the Evas was incidental to the mission of killing the Angels. If she could, if she had to, she would fight them on foot. They would take everyone from her if she failed. They would take Kaji. They would take Misato. They would take Hikari. They would take Shinji…
Asuka felt hate, purest hate well up in her breast and when the orders to attack were given, she let out a roar of absolute fury escape her lips, and suddenly time ceased to have meaning. She existed from moment to moment with the clarity of a mind focused entirely on a single goal: to fight. To make war and bring conflict with her wherever she went. She touched the essence of the warrior and she fought.
The individual teeth humming with ultrasonic vibrations and the entire chain assembly roaring, Asuka advanced on the Angel, pumping out rounds from her pistol. In the periphery of her awareness, she knew that rounds from Shinji’s gun were whipping past her Eva’s head and shoulders, but she paid them no heed. Shinji knew what he was doing, and so did she.
With both Evas AT-fields unfolded, the armour piercing high explosive rounds struck exposed flesh, digging in for a few milliseconds before detonating, blowing enormous holes in the alien abomination. Already it was regenerating, faster than before, but then Asuka got to close combat range and swung her axe. With the enormous momentum built up by her charge and swing, the super sharp cutting teeth ripped all the way through the Angel’s flesh before striking its core and sending off sparks.
Rather than risk further damage to its body, the Angel immediately split into its two halves, the momentum transfer knocking both aside like baseballs struck by a Major League batter. One Angel clearly had a crack in its core, so Asuka booted it in the chest before it even hit the ground, sending it flying into a hillside.
She then ignored it. As best they could tell, Angels could not regenerate damage to their cores on their own; they needed an outside input of something, data most likely. That meant that the other half would have to pause for a brief second in order to affect repairs on its partner.
Shinji had already blown off a leg by the time Asuka got to the target, jumping on its before it could recover, her mass crushing its back while she hacked away at its head and fired more shells into it. In response, the Angel took a move from Shinji’s playbook and fired point blank into the ground, blowing both itself and Asuka into the ground.
Crashing into a hillside, Asuka rolled and pistol whipped the other half, which had recovered as best it could with a cracked core. There was a flash and it regained its strength, the wounds to the crimson sphere on its chest disappearing. Asuka blew off its face with a burst from her pistol.
Shinji’s fire patterns suddenly shifted and Asuka knew that the other half was behind her. Trusting that Shinji’s aim was true, she swung her axe blindly about and was satisfied to feel and hear the pitch of the saw change to something meatier. Spinning about, she fired the last three rounds in her magazine into the gut of the beast, showering her Eva in tens of thousands of litres of purple-blue blood.
Asuka laughed like it was a warm spring rain before smoothly holstering the weapon and using her now free hand to pick up the stunned and wounded Angel so as to toss it over her towards the other. They collided and merged back into one being, confused by the forced integration.
With Asuka safely out of the way, Shinji began the process of arming his melta. Gaseous tritium and deuterium flooded the barrel and was confined and excited by incredibly powerful magnets and high energy RF waves. Within a few seconds the inside of the barrel was a swirling chamber of blue light, while the outside ironically frosted over as super cooled liquids flooded the superconducting materials.
The Angel detected the energy build-up and turned its battered face towards Unit 01.
Asuka threw herself between the Angel and Shinji, taking the particle blast dead centre to her chest. It was incredibly powerful, but with the damage sustained, it was not full strength, so it merely dented Asuka’s armour rather than punching right through. Still, it also propelled her backwards, the momentum transfer threatening to do what the beam could not directly do.
Asuka hurled herself backwards, throwing her Eva into a back flip that took her just barely clear of Unit 01, which had dropped into a crouched position to better brace the weapon. Asuka was upside-down and facing the Angel when Shinji pulled the trigger.
A packet of positrons, brought into the final firing position, was injected into the electron rich section of the plasma at the back of the barrel. As dictated by the laws of physics, they annihilated, releasing a burst of gamma rays. These rays went off in a straight line until they struck the barrel, which was specially designed to reflect light at such small wavelengths back upon the interior.
These gamma rays collided with the charged plasma and compressed it until at the very heart of the barrel the hydrogen isotopes slammed together with enough energy that they suddenly became helium atoms, releasing more gamma rays and neutrons, which were also reflected back to initiate further fusion. The temperature inside the barrel quickly jumped to a ludicrous value, causing the liquid nitrogen cooling down the outer barrel to boil away and the superconductors to stop superconducting. This produced a massive magnetic flux that began to push the plasma out the barrel along with the impulse from the gamma rays and neutrons reflected off the back of the barrel.
It all took about less than a thousandth of a second for the wave of fusing plasma to reach the end of the barrel. A torrent of ravenous plasma and ionizing gamma and x-rays swept out of the melta. Still disoriented and with its AT-field down, the Angel barely had time to realize its own doom before it was annihilated in a cone of thermonuclear fury, the detonation of its core adding to the storm of destruction.
A storm that threw Asuka’s jump off course as it caught her Eva and Shinji’s and picked them up, causing them both to crash into the ground a distance away, their Evas tangled together at the edge of a molten crater.
Climbing out of their Evas, the battle over, they could now engage in a bit of unprofessional behaviour, such as verbally abusing one another.
“Nice landing twinkle toes!” Shinji shouts out at Asuka.
“Nice landing? My landing would have been perfect if you hadn’t been in the way,” Asuka screams back.
“Oh yeah, blame the guy who was stationary! Look before you leap bitch!” Shinji replies.
“Oh! ‘Stationary!’ Yeah, you were real ‘stationary’ getting blown on your ass by your own gun there! Learn to shoot idiot!”
“Arrogant, stuck up, incompetent bitch!”
“Scrawny, short, little puffed up jerk with a Napoleon complex!”
“Oh! So the barbarian Amazon queen knows a little culture and history, the beer swilling slack jawed expression hides it so well!”
“Come over here and say that Dummkopf!”
“I think I will!”
“Then do it!”
“Well, unlike you, I understand that when something is glowing when it shouldn’t be glowing it’s a good idea to wait a little while for it to cool off. I’m sure kept burning your fingers on the stove as a child, never quite getting the concept of hot!”
“Coward!”
“Dumb ass!”
From there it degenerated into one or two word name calling, much to the annoyance of the Vice Commander and the amusement of everyone else. There was still passion in their insults, but there was far less vitriol than when they first met.
---
I know the physics of the melta are messed up and it shouldn't really work, and there were probably easier ways to do that, but damn it, I wanted a huge freaking fusion gun.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
Those gun nuts do not understand the meaning of "overkill," and will simply use weapon after weapon of mass destruction (WMD) until the monster is dead, or until they run out of weapons.
They have more WMD than there are monsters for us to fight. (More insanity here.)
Yeah, Unit 02 was upgraded to the new armour, it was mentioned in a previous chapter, so it now looks something like this:
Only about 20 times larger, with fewer skulls and there isn't any bare flesh, hair or a chain loincloth for some incomprehensible reason... and it has four eyes and the faceplate is a little different and...
Well, you get the point. Blend Kharn and an Eva together and you'll roughly get what Unit 02 looks like now.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
This has turned into some sort of bizarre race between the two of us, hasn't it? Neither one of us wants to lag far behind the other despite the fact that we're writting radically different stories and thus there should be little worry of contamination.
Ah well, the Once More with Feeling fans must be happy, although the Derelict fans are probably a bit bummed. As a fan of both I can that this is a win-win situation for me.
I love learning. Teach me. I will listen. You know, if Christian dogma included a ten-foot tall Jesus walking around in battle armor and smashing retarded cultists with a gaint mace, I might just convert - Noble Ire on Jesus smashing Scientologists
