Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Second Coming ❯ Beyond ( Chapter 16 )

Chapter Sixteen: Beyond

 

Shinji was recovered, of course, and taken to the medical wing for observation for a few days. We all visited him, including Asuka - though she mainly lurked outside the door and listened to the rest of us chatting with him. Once, I embarrassed myself by entering the room while the bed and the opposite couch were both occupied; the couch contained a recumbent, sleeping blue-haired girl, who startled awake as I stopped short in the room.

"Shit. Sorry, Rei, I didn't know you stayed over," I whispered to her.

"It is all right," she replied sleepily, rubbing her eyes and sitting up. "I should be leaving anyway."

"You don't have to," I said, noting Shinji's unconscious form. "I won't be staying if he's asleep, either."

"Don't worry," she said. "I have things to do."

I watched her get up and approach the door. For lack of anything better to say, I asked how Shinji was doing.

"He woke briefly during the night," she said, pausing beside me. Her eyes searched mine for a moment and she then said, "Calling for his mother."

I didn't know how to respond to that, given what I presumed about Rei's heritage. In the end, all I said was, "You're a good friend for staying with him, Rei."

"Thank you, Jill," was her reply, continuing her trek to the door. "I'm leaving now."

 

The ensuing week, while Shinji was in hospital for observation, was all about getting back to normal. Asuka and I were back at school the next day - Rei being absent, though the odds were she was with Gendo doing something to further his plans, if I had any grasp of his motives. Anyway, our classmates wanted to know as many of the details about the Angel attack as we could tell, and so we indulged them, to an extent. It was still forbidden to speak of much of the events that took place when we were in our Evas, but the actual happenings that occurred in public weren't much of a secret to begin with, so I related that in as much detail as I could without violating my employer's secrecy rules.

Asuka began her tales by pointing out how Shinji had caused his own capture, but soon, her stories slowed and ebbed, and she left out more and more details, until the point where she said she didn't want to talk about it any more. It didn't take a psychologist to tell that she was feeling guilt, or something similar, about all the things she'd said and felt that night about Shinji.

I think I need to break the ice soon, Rei, I found myself thinking, as I stared at a silenced Asuka sitting sullenly at her school desk, eyes riveted to the wooden top. I'd have to consult with Rei the next time I saw her, so I could prepare myself to take Asuka aside and help her deal.

That, though, I soon found, would have to wait. My cell phone chirped during the lunch break, on the third day back to school.

"I thought you kept that on silent," Asuka murmured.

"Oh hush," I said jovially, trying to inject humor into our conversation, to pick up Asuka's spirits. "We all make mistakes, you know."

She didn't say another word while I answered the telephone. I frowned inside at that turn of events; my response was likely taken as a stab at her, even though it wasn't meant that way.

"Fourth Child, this is Dr. Akagi's office," someone said on the line - it could have been a recording, for all I know. "Report to headquarters for testing at once."

This time my frown was on the outside as well, as I closed the phone confusedly, staring at it.

"What was that about?" asked Asuka distantly.

"Ritsuko wants me for tests," I said, puzzled. "Like right now."

"Better not keep her waiting, then," Asuka responded.

I looked down to her. "When I get back, you and I gotta have a talk, Second."

"Yeah, whatever," came her response.

I bade her and the other classmates farewell, and headed off towards headquarters, somewhat perplexed. Why was I being tested and not Asuka? Oh, crap - have they suspended her?

That thought exited my mind as swiftly as it'd come in. She hadn't done anything to warrant such treatment, and bad moods didn't count, as far as I knew.

Was it because of Shinji's being laid up? Or had Rei's testing - if that was indeed what she was doing - uncovered something that needed examination?

I had no concrete answer for the questions, and no idea why I was being summoned, other than the terse initial statement - 'for testing, at once'. So, without further ado, I just made my way to NERV, deciding to find out what the situation was when I got there.

 

Upon arrival, I was ordered to report to the command center, which was even more puzzling to me. What was I being drafted into doing? Was this the 'behind the scenes' setup of some event I already knew, or at least could predict, would happen?

Misato, Ritsuko, the primary techs, and Fuyutsuki and Gendo were all there, in their usual places, when I arrived. "Uhm. Pilot Thomson reporting in, sir," I directed to the commander on high, perched above the main command floor.

"Good," Ikari responded. "Doctor Akagi, you may begin."

"Jill, you are being taken off active duty for up to six weeks," Ritsuko said, activating a video display, showing a schematic of San. "Unit 03 will be offlined during the same time to undergo some modifications."

"What kind of modifications?" I finally managed to get in.

Ritsuko faced me again to explain, as images and schematics flashed across the screen. "As you're aware, the main Achilles heel in the Evangelions' current design is their reliance on a fixed power source. As it turns out, the Angels have within them a theoretically limitless engine, known as a Super Solenoid. We've been lucky enough to recover one from one of the nearly-complete Angel specimens from previous battles.. what are you doing? What's the matter?"

It wasn't until Ritsuko cut off her explanation that I realized I was trembling and shaking my head. "Are.. are you proposing putting parts of an Angel into 03?" I said, trying to mask my true fears by posing a related question.

"It's not a proposal, Pilot," Gendo said flatly. "Unit 03 is being fitted with the S2 organ as a test. If it proves functional, the other Evangelions will receive S2 organs as they become available. You will assist in testing and development."

I nervously turned back to Dr. Akagi. "Are you sure this is safe?" I asked, trying to think up a way to address the concerns I had, 'remembering' what happened to 04 - and NERV Nevada - in the fictional version of events.

"There's always some inherent risk," she said with an icy tone, as if she wanted to call me a wuss for being scared.

Misato chose that moment to speak up. "Jill, we wouldn't consider this with one of our front-line Eva units unless we were confident in the outcome," she said. "Considering how busy we are with Angel attacks, we can't afford to have anyone down for any great length of time. But the opportunity has presented itself to allow one of you to be able to function for long periods of time at a distance from the Geofront. There're no assurances that future battles will be able to be wrapped up in just five minutes. That's what this is about."

So why me, then? Why not 02 or even better yet 01? I wondered, but didn't say. As I looked back at Misato, it dawned on me that she was likely wondering the same thing herself.

Then it struck me. 02 and 01, with Asuka and Shinji aboard respectively, of course, each scored higher than I did on tests. Their skill level saved them from being a science experiment, because their prowess would be required on the battleground if an Angel attacked. The third-string Eva and its pilot could be taken down without compromising the safety of HQ - much. And as for why not 00 and Rei, well, 00 was the prototype, and they probably wanted a production model to test on, considering 03 was the template for the others, at least, for now.

"Do you understand, Pilot?" Gendo called out, bringing me back to reality.

"Y-yes," I said, "Though I still have some misgivings."

"Irrelevant," he declared, "but noted. The Magi agree that this can be accomplished without concern, and the modifications are underway. You will be summoned when testing is required. Dismissed."

 

Shit.

Shit, shit, shit!

"Shit!" I cursed aloud, without thinking. A couple of people on the sidewalk stopped to look at the gaijin girl making rude noises, but then carried on.

I, too, continued towards home, though suitably embarrassed. That, though, was minor, compared to how I was feeling about the whole situation outlined back at HQ.

So is it my fate now to disappear in an anti-matter blast, or my own personal Dirac sea? I wondered. And would that be better than being crushed at the hands of Shogouki, my Eva infected by Bardiel?

If we were at that point in the timeline, then another Child was to be picked shortly. Was that even necessary now, though? Asuka wasn't in danger of sliding too far out of favor in her sync scores - yet - and Eva 04.. well, I hadn't heard anything about it, but that didn't really mean anything. They could have been building it in secret, without telling the rest of us its status. It was doubly interesting to think about 04, considering that I'd apparently just taken its place as sacrificial lamb to the S2.

The idea of testing a Super Solenoid in HQ gave me mixed feelings. On one hand, perhaps my fears were unfounded, and the S2 was stable enough that there was no risk to the various things Gendo had stored in his basement. If they were confident enough to not be concerned about damage to Lilith, the Spear of Longinus, etc., then maybe I was safe too. On the other hand, I hadn't had any confirmation that we'd remain in Tokyo-3 to do the testing and install. Maybe it would be moved to Matsushiro. Then I could be party to a double whammy: Not only would I evaporate in a Super Solenoid failure, but 03 would be invaded by the thirteenth Angel at the same time.

You're pathetic, I sighed to myself as I finally turned toward my housing complex. Quit worrying and just do your job. You have the power to keep things going right.

I found myself wishing I really believed my thoughts.

 

The next day, I was back to school, as usual. Rei had returned, too, though nothing was said of her absence or the reasons behind it. As for my time away, however, Asuka took interest in that.

"So. What was yesterday all about?" she asked during a lull in the class day, leaning over towards my desk.

"Um.. I've been taken off active duty," I explained. "They want to do something to 03."

"'Do something'?" Asuka asked, one eyebrow raised. "That sounds particularly spooky."

"Oh.. no, they told me what it is," I went on. "They have this thing called a Super Solenoid engine.."

"Yes, yes," Asuka nodded. "I remember hearing about it in Germany. The best scientists there were working at understanding its properties."

"They ...think they have a working one, here, in Japan," I told her. "And they want to put it in my Eva."

"What?!" she gasped. "And you're letting them??"

I shrugged. "It's not like I have a choice," I began, but she cut me off.

"Of course you have a choice! What are they going to do, take Eva away from you? You're the designated pilot. It's designed around your specific parameters!" She sighed. "Nothing is out of your control unless you let it be, Fourth. What you choose to do defines that."

I blinked and smiled, surprised at the unintentional parallels between the current conversation and the thoughts I'd had on the way home the night before. "True, I guess. Thanks," I said.

"I am surprised that they are doing this with you, instead of one of us, or even Miss Perfect's prototype, though," Asuka commented.

"Oh. Well, I figured it was because my sync scores are lower than yours, so I'm a little more expendable, sort of. If an Angel attacks, they probably want to have the best ready and able to fight. They can afford to put me on the bench for a while."

"Good point," Asuka said, with a hint of a smug smile, which faded slightly as she added, "Oh.. by the way.. I know what you wanted to talk to me about."

"You do?" I asked tentatively after a moment.

"Yeah. I know it was wrong to say what I did. I just couldn't help myself." She fixed me with a steady gaze, a serious expression on her face. "I can't tell you why. You'll just have to believe me."

I was taken aback by the last part. "Uhm, okay," I responded. "But you do know that Shinji just wanted to prove his worth to you, right--"

"Jill.. I really don't want to go there," Asuka said flatly.

My whole argument came to a grinding halt in my mind. As I'd rehearsed it time and time again in my head, my next line was to have been something like 'Tough, we need to talk about this', but something in her words and expression derailed me. I studied her face for a long moment while trying to figure out what to say next, and finally only managed a feeble "All right."

Suddenly, my courage returned and I found a way to say something - anything - that I figured would be useful and relevant. "Asuka, I do have something to say, though, and I intend for you to let me finish it."

She looked up at me again as I drew a deep breath, then declared, "There are things going on that I know about. I probably shouldn't, and there's no way to explain it to you adequately right now. But I want you to trust me that I would never steer you wrong. I like you, as a good friend, and I don't want to see something bad happen to you. Sometimes I might end up saying something which will go against your beliefs or attitude, but I want you to trust me. If I say something to you, it's not something hollow meant to bring you false cheer, or anything like that. Anything I say or do is meant to be helpful. Okay?"

Asuka was taken aback by the long-winded statement. "Pretentious much?" she muttered, but then regained her composure a little. "If you say so," she said, then added: "What is it you know?"

I shrugged slightly. "Nothing I can substantiate right now," I said. "Mainly theories. But let me put it this way: you can learn a tremendous amount just by observing."

Out of the corner of my eye, two rows to my left, I saw a blue-haired head nod up and down ever-so-slightly, as if in agreement.

 

Lunchtime brought a surprising moment.

"Hey, Fourth, move over," came Asuka's voice as I sat and munched on my traditional Western lunch meal.

I gasped facetiously. "Dining with the commoners, huh?" I said, sliding to one side on the bench.

Asuka tch'ed and set down her own tray of school-bought food. "Stupid Shinji didn't make anything for us for today," she said.

"Ohhh," I said, smiling. "Too bad you're completely inept and can't fend for yourself," I teased.

"Shut up," she said with a smirk, jostling my elbow just as I was about to pick up my milk.

I felt better now that things seemed to be returning to normal. Even as I thought that, I realized that not everything was as normal as I'd expected. "Hey.. where's Hikari?" I asked, looking around.

"Bah. She made lunch for one of the stooges today. Don't tell anyone, but they're up on the roof eating."

I blinked, surprised. "She and Toji have hit it off?"

Asuka looked at me with a sidelong glance. "You weren't kidding about being observant, huh?" she said.

"Well, anybody could see it coming," I shrugged. "It's not like it was being kept in secret. Though they were at each other's throats a lot of the time." Smirking, I added, "Like a lot of other folks."

Asuka nearly choked on her drink, which caused me to grin and hunker down over my meal. I didn't press the issue, but I knew it was telling of something I was suspecting.

 

Two days later, I was summoned again to NERV, to take some tests and learn about some of the modifications being done to 03. The testing was largely refresher work on emergency ejection and evacuation procedures, and theoretical redesign of parts of the control systems - mainly related to power control and consumption - to account for the fact the Eva would supposedly not have a limit to its power reserves.

I did my best to keep my mind off what might happen - which is how I was treating the chance of the Super Solenoid screwing up and wiping us all out. I was treating it like any other evolution of the Eva project, and I was hoping that my positive attitude would work in my favor.

The technicians and command officers forbade me from entering the Cage to check out what was happening with Sangouki. It wasn't that they were being secretive; the excuse I was given, which I pretty much believed without question, was that the Cage was essentially a construction zone, with parts of the Eva's armor removed, repositioned, and hanging in various positions; and to tell the truth, I had about as much desire to be close to the 'naked' S2 organ as any normal person would want to be in proximity to a functioning nuclear reactor.

I happened across Hikari that evening, as I was visiting the convenience store on my way home. She was filling a basket with plenty of foodstuffs, picking items seemingly at random to add to the pile.

"There's our lost sheep," I quipped in greeting.

"Oh! Jillian," she responded when she realized who had spoken. She came over to me with a smile. "How are you doing?"

"Fine," I said with a shrug. "Work is a little nutty right now, but I'll surv.. I'll get through it. How about you? You've been pretty scarce lately except during class time."

The freckled face before me blushed bright red. "Welllll... I have a secret to tell you.."

"Forgive me, but it's not much of a secret, if it's what I think it is," I smiled. "Does it involve your lunch partner?"

Hikari smiled weakly. "Asuka's a horrible gossip," she replied.

"Congratulations," I told her. "It's about time you two got together!"

She blushed some more and said, "I'm just making him lunch.."

"Uh-huh. Yup. Suuuuure," I grinned. "That's how it starts, now.. Just you wait." After a second, I added, "Everyone could see it coming, you know. You two were the perfect match."

"Perfect match?" she queried.

"Oh hell yeah," I laughed. "Oil and water. Opposites attract, miss Horaki. You two belong together."

She giggled at that, and I took the lack of verbal reply as a chance to add another question in.

"Tell me something. Has he been to the principal's office lately? Has he seemed distant or withdrawn about anything in particular?"

Hikari looked puzzled. "No, not that I know of. Why do you ask?"

"No special reason," I smiled. "Just wondering. I thought there was a pattern among the stooges, that's all."

"Ohh.. Ikari," she nodded. "I did notice he seemed to be a little.. different."

"How do you mean?" I asked, interested in hearing her take on things.

"He has a greater presence than before," she said after a moment of mulling it over. "Less withdrawn, more involved in things around him.. he was even grinning and laughing with Toji and Aida the other day when I was coming to see Toji."

"Really," I said, filing that away for further consideration. "Well, I should be letting you go, by the looks of your basket. Looks like you have a lot of prep to do tonight."

She looked down and smiled, nodding as she looked back up to me. "I intend to.. how do you put it in English? 'Knock his socks off'!"

I laughed again. "Ganbatte, Hikari!" I waved as I moved on.

 

I woke up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat. The dream I'd just been having was etched into my mind: Rei came to my door, naked, and took me directly to Terminal Dogma, to the area I dubbed the 'Reiquarium' after some fanfics I'd read ages ago. There, along with multiple Rei-like 'vessels', were dozens of 'Jill-like' bodies as well. Rei explained, while I stared on, that the reason she knew that I knew stuff was because I was 'just like her'.

That was when I woke up.

I sat up and rubbed my temples, as if that would make the dream fade from memory. Getting up, I plodded the two meters from bedside to sink and poured myself a glass of water, downing it in one quick gulp.

Nothing else in my part of the world was conscious - at least, openly, from the looks of the street and the lack of lights in the apartment block. It was 3:34 AM, and the temperature was as low as it was going to get - a 'refreshing' 24 degrees C, which was still in the mid-70s F, and a welcome reprieve from the stifling heat of the day these days - though the weather wasn't the only thing preventing my return to slumber.

You need to get back to sleep. You have to be at the Cage at 8, I told myself.

Unfortunately, reminding myself that I had under four and a half hours to live - possibly - wasn't quite the incentive my body and mind needed at that moment. Lying back down, I couldn't do much more than stare at the dark ceiling.

I thought you weren't going to think like that any more.

My mind chased its tail for a while, figuratively speaking, and once my brain was finally exhausted, I passed out on the sweat-soaked sheets for another hour or two.

 

Morning came and I got a surprise when I stepped out of the apartment block, an hour ahead of anyone else, and found Rei Ayanami standing there at the gates.

"Uh.. good morning?" I said.

"Good morning," she replied. After a moment in which I just stared at her, she added, "I am heading to headquarters as well. I thought it would be appropriate to wait for you."

"Oh! Um, well, thanks, then," I said, forcing a smile and setting off towards the geofront.

"Did you sleep well?" Rei asked.

"Actually, not really," I confessed. "This whole thing has me nervous."

"Why is that?"

I had to pause and consider my answer. "I just don't like the idea of putting untested Angel bits in my Eva, or anyone's Eva for that matter."

"Strictly speaking, the Super Solenoid was tested by the fourth Angel and functioning properly up to its removal from the specimen sample," Rei contributed.

"Geh.. well, that's true, I guess, but still.."

"What is the real reason you are so concerned?"

I sighed, and worked the 'real reason' into a sort of a half-truth on the fly. (I was getting good at that.) "I had a dream, or vision or something, that Eva 04 was being tested at NERV-01 in Nevada, including installing an S2 organ. The test turned bad when the S2 went out of control and obliterated everything within an 89 kilometer radius."

"Why would it do that?" she asked.

"I don't know.. it was a dream, it doesn't have to be rational," I countered. "Something about a Dirac sea and an inverted AT field."

"If the events leading up to the incident are irrational, so should be worrying about it, should it not?"

It took me a moment to parse that one, and finally, I said, "I know, I know. I just let myself get carried away with all that could go wrong, and all that's been going on recently. I'm sorry."

"You should not be sorry," Rei stated. "It is in your nature to have doubt."

I was caught off guard by her use of the word 'your' instead of 'our' in that last sentence. I had opened my mouth to say something, to discuss what she meant by 'your', when she continued on.

"Besides, Unit 04 is not in the United States."

"What?" I said, my train of thought jumping the rails yet again.

"It is here, in Japan," Rei clarified. "At Matsushiro."

"When did that happen?" I asked.

"Last Tuesday," she replied. "Commander Ikari took me with him to oversee accepting the delivery."

I filed away discussing her relationship with Shinji's father for another time. "I wonder why it was moved here," I mused, hoping she would have an answer.

"Perhaps just common sense given that all but one of the Angel attacks have occurred on Japanese soil," Rei suggested.

"Oh.. yeah, maybe," I agreed. "Has a pilot been selected?"

"Not to my knowledge," she replied. "I believe they are waiting for the results of today's test first."

See if things catastrophically blow up; if they don't, replicate the process. Sounds like some business practices at places I used to know. "Gotcha."

We walked in silence the last couple of blocks, and as we rounded the corner to head for the NERV turnstiles, Rei spoke up again. "Jill? May I ask something?"

"You just did," I quipped, then added, "Sure, go ahead."

"Your 'talk' with Asuka, earlier this week; were you satisfied with the results?"

"Partly," I said after a moment's reflection. "It wasn't the out-and-out epiphany I was hoping for, but at least she didn't shut me out."

"Is that what is meant by 'any measurable result is success'?"

I didn't know where she got the phrase, but it sounded good. "Yeah, that about fits the bill."

Rei nodded, stopping at the gate to swipe her card. "Then let's hope for any measurable result today."

I chuckled, marveling at Rei's ability to segue. "Good plan, Pilot Ayanami. Thanks for the pep talk."

 

An hour later, I was inside the entry plug of 03, suited up, breathing LCL, and awaiting the dreaded moment.

The only sound in my ears was the fans/pumps that circulated the LCL, as the rest of the Eva stood dormant. Somewhere dozens of feet below me, technicians in SCUBA gear were working on final checks of the Super Solenoid organ, its placement, the prepped-but-not-yet-hooked-up connections, etc.

All that was left was to throw the proverbial switch, and see if we blew out all the lights in the Hakone district, or didn't.

Rei, in 00, stood face-to-face with me in the Cage. It was a tight fit; I don't have any clue how they wrestled Zero in there past my Eva. Her purpose was to observe and possibly control - aka subdue, defeat, neutralize, terminate - San, if something went out of control.

"Unit 03," Dr. Akagi's voice rang out over the intercom. "The umbilical has been removed. Confirm batteries are ejected and jettisoned."

"Battery packs dumped, Doctor," I replied. "System shows only life support power available."

"Very good. T minus 180 seconds to S2 system startup."

Three minutes, I said to myself, shutting my eyes. San, even though you're shut down right now, if you can hear me, please get through this okay.

There was, of course, no response, verbal, sensory, or otherwise. I decided to try to appeal to a higher authority, for the first time in a long, long time.

I know I don't speak much with you, but I was wondering if I could ask a favor. Would you please see me through this all right? I promise I'll try to do better in return.

If there was a more pathetic attempt at a prayer to one's God, I don't know where to find it.

In any case, the voiced countdown began momentarily, at T minus 60 seconds. Sixty was voiced, then 45, and then every second from 30 on down was to be announced.

Somewhere in between the 45 and 30 mark, someone said, "Doctor, there's a surge in connections 2210 through 2570. It's threatening the A10 stability."

Oh, shit! I panicked, thinking this was the Angel appearing. Goodbye, mom!

"Jill?" came Ritsuko's voice over the intercom.

"Y-yes?" I replied shakily.

"Calm down," she said forcefully. "You're getting far too agitated - you're almost at the point where you won't be able to breach absolute barrier."

Fuck. I practiced my 'breathing exercises' - more mental than pulmonary in nature, designed more to let me calm myself and focus on maintaining sync. It was a procedure that Dr. Akagi and I had developed to help both myself and any other or future pilots avoid panic in the steps leading up to synchronization.

"That's better," the other voice - I now recognized it as Maya - declared. "A10 connection now within tolerances."

"Unit Zero, confirm your status," Akagi demanded.

"Unit Zero online and ready," Rei's soft voice replied.

"Fifteen seconds to S2 start," Maya announced. "Fourteen. Thirteen. Twelve. Eleven."

I closed my eyes and continued the breathing maneuvers, trying to force my hands to not squeeze the grips so hard. Whatever was going to happen was underway now; there was no turning back.

"S2 team reports connections on schedule," another voice contributed. "Final connection will be made at zero mark."

"Seven. Six. Five. Four."

Please.. pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease..

"One.. Zero."

There was a buzzing and humming in my senses that wouldn't go away. It wasn't until I felt my teeth grinding together so hard I was afraid I'd crack them that I realized I was still alive.

I opened my eyes tentatively. To my right, over my shoulder, the power display read 8:88.88, and yet the 'INTERNAL' legend was still lit up.

"Unit 03?" Akagi said for the third time. "Jillian, answer me, please."

"U-unit 03 here," I said, not only stammering, but using the 'U' word I so studiously had avoided so far in my time as an Eva pilot. "Everything seems to be.. working!"

"The S2 team reports that the organ is being accepted by the Eva," came yet another voice in the command center. "The splices are being repaired as if healed tissue."

Holy shit, I exulted. We did it!

At that outburst, a sensation of confusion came to me.

Oh, crap, sorry, I thought to Sangouki. Are you all right?

The response was a sense of general well-being and yet awareness of the new addition to the Eva's body. Also came concern for my ebbing sense of fear.

Don't worry about me, everything's all right now, I said, a broad smile spreading across my face. But I have a request. You have been given the power to stay active and.. 'conscious', I guess, indefinitely. Please promise me you will still work with me and not go.. 'berserk'. Don't do anything without me.

I got the strangest feeling I'd received to date from Sangouki at that moment. It was as close to words as any feedback I'd ever been given. If I had to put it into coherent sentences, it would be something like: 'I am never going to leave you. I will always be here.'

Dr. Akagi asked for my attention at that point, so I didn't get to explore that response further. The command center was in hysterics, essentially, considering the success of the startup test. Maya, wearing a surprised look, called Dr. Akagi over and pointed to something on her terminal.

"Jill, I have some more good news for you," Ritsuko said, looking to the camera feed with a smile.

"What?" I said, puzzled.

"You've just set a personal best sync score, and in fact, though I still have to check the other Children's most recent scores, I think it might be a group record. Eighty-eight point three percent."

"Wh-what??!" I gaped. My best previous to that had barely breached the 77 percent mark. "You can't be serious."

"I am," she nodded, still smiling.

"Confirmed," Maya told Ritsuko. "She's now the top scorer by zero point six over Asuka, and one point nine over Shinji."

"Congratulations, Jill," Dr. Akagi said.

"Congratulations," Maya added.

"Well done, Pilot Thomson," Rei supplied, in her usual monotone.

I stared at the video links in disbelief. I was.. the best? I had outscored everyone, on a day when I was worried I was going to die, and barely made it to the A10 connection on my first try?

The ramifications wouldn't hit me fully until later, but at that point, the elation of being alive, plus the gratification of being told I'd done well to boot, flooded over me and kept me on a mental high. I wanted to laugh and hug somebody; I did the former, but there was a dearth of other people inside my entry plug with which to do the latter.

Suddenly, I found a sense of warmth and comfort coming to me. I realized after a moment that it was the Eva's entity, responding to my joyous emotions. Pride joined the other responses fairly swiftly.

Thank you, San, I said. Today is indeed a very good day.

 

"Hi, neighbor!" Misato greeted me, intercepting me as I stepped off the elevator. "I hear we had some success today."

"Yeah," I laughed nervously, still unable to believe the whole thing had gone so well. "Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet," she grinned, leading me to her apartment door. "Wait till you see what we've got in store."

Before I could respond, she slid open the door, and through the apartment I could see out to the balcony, as usual; out upon the outdoor patio, Shinji was hunched over the little hibachi-style barbecue they had acquired some time before and rarely used.

"What's this?" I asked.

"A celebration, of course!" Asuka said, coming into the kitchen from the living room. "Congratulations on not getting blown up!"

I thought maybe I had somehow spilled my fears previously to Asuka, until I realized she was making a joke. "Uh, yeah," I smiled. "Thanks!"

"Though now that you have an advantage over us, we're going to leave the hard work for you from now on," she said, smiling evilly and putting her hands on her hips. She cast her voice over her shoulder, back towards the balcony. "Right, Shinji?"

"Wha? Uh, whatever you say," he called back, still trying to light the briquettes.

It took another minute to realize Asuka meant the S2 organ, not the sync score - I didn't even know if she was aware of that little tidbit. "Bah, lay it on me, I can take it," I joked.

"Come on in and sit down," Misato said, kicking off her boots and heading inside the apartment proper. I did as told and followed suit.

"So how was the day elsewhere?" I asked.

Asuka came over and sat diagonally across from me, sliding a bottle of Coke my way as she did so. "Oh, nothing much exciting happened. The military otaku stooge was away today, and Tooooji was infatuated with his new plaything, so things were pretty quiet."

"Plaything?" I said, arching an eyebrow. "I have half a mind to tell Hikari you said that."

"Do it and I set Pen2 loose in your closet while you're in the shower," Asuka replied calmly, taking a sip of her own drink.

I laughed, enjoying the camaraderie of the group. This is how I figured things were supposed to go, as I saw it; friends and colleagues alike, with no petty squabbles or screwed-up mental states. Just a bunch of friends having fun.

Shinji finally got the barbecue lit, and surprised me by bringing out a plate of home-made beef patties. Someone (two guesses who) must have told them that my favorite Western meal involved meat inside a bun, and they decided to accommodate that. I felt a little intrusive being the guest of honor yet again, but none of them were accepting any feedback in that regard.

While the food was cooking, I found myself unable to keep quiet any longer. I blurted out, "So, exactly how much did you hear about my test results today?"

Misato looked to Asuka, who I'd directed the question to. Asuka simply replied, "What do you mean?"

I bit my lip, wondering if I should even bring it up. I couldn't help myself, and despite the regret I knew I'd have, began to say, "Dr. Akagi told me that my synchronization score was--"

"So! What exactly happened with the S2 thing?" Asuka interrupted me, with a clearly forced smile.

I frowned, feeling defeated. "Asuka.."

"I want to know everything," she went on. "Seeing's how I'm likely next to get one. Right?"

I relented, and described the light buzzing sensation that had entered the back of my mind, as if it were some odd harmonic from the 'engine' invading the synchronization pattern. I told them of the higher level of energy, as it were, I felt from the Eva, but stopped short of describing the actual contact with the entity within.

What the hell, I then found myself saying. Screw it.

"You ever get a feeling that something's in your Eva, watching you?" I said, playing my cards close to my chest to start.

Misato stopped drinking her beer and darted her eyes over to Asuka to watch the response.

Asuka shrugged. "A little, sometimes," she acknowledged. "You, too, I gather?"

"Yes," I nodded. "Like a presence that surrounds me and.. well, sort of talks to me."

Asuka scoffed. "A tool shouldn't have a voice," she replied. "My father's car talks to him. It's irritating."

"Your father's car doesn't have a soul," Misato contributed.

Asuka turned to stare at Misato at that point, who was finishing off the can of beer. "What do you mean?"

"All the Evas have souls in them," Misato said in a serious tone. "That is what you sync with."

"How long have you known this?" I asked, curious if Misato too knew far more than she let on.

"It just became obvious to me not long ago," she explained. "That's beside the point, though. If you learn to co-exist with your Evas, you will find the results quite rewarding."

Asuka snorted derisively again. "I need no help to excel," she declared. "Not from people or machines."

Misato said nothing more, and I wished I'd never opened my mouth in the first place. Shinji came in with the cooked hamburgers, and stared bewilderedly at the table full of sullen faces.

 

Two weeks passed during which I was out of school more often than not, tasked to testing 03 in all kinds of situations and environments, including in vacuum and undersea. It appeared that the Super Solenoid organ was accepted by the Evangelion quite comfortably, and the tests proved that 03 was nigh-unstoppable now; I tired out physically long before the biomech even broke a proverbial sweat.

My sync scores remained in the mid-to-high-80s, and to my dismay, Asuka refused to discuss either my or her scores - the latter of which dropped a handful of points in response to my surge. I feared I was going to have to confront her at some point when there was no way for her to run away, or change the subject, but finding such a situation was indescribably difficult.

One of the exercises dealt to me during the longevity tests was to walk the Eva to Matsushiro and back. While at Matsushiro, the technicians there plugged in and did some telemetry downloads just for their own educational purposes. While the Eva was at a standstill, I was face to face with Evangelion 04.

Much as I expected, the fifth Eva, third production type, was a near-clone of my own, though its primary color was silver instead of dark blue. It made sense that production models would be similar in design and stature.

The biomech was completely dormant, stood up on its feet but unpowered and still, all the time I was docked at Matsushiro. The one thing that resonated in my mind all that time was that the delivery and testing of 04 meant there had to be a Fifth Child soon to be 'discovered'. I couldn't help but wonder who it would be, and what their fate would become.

 

I finally caught up with Asuka one day after having returned to school. Shinji had been sidetracked by Kensuke for something, and so Asuka and I walked home together, with no one else alongside us.

"Asuka, I need to talk with you," I declared as we waited for the elevator on the ground floor of the apartments.

She didn't say anything for a moment; then, as the doors parted, bit out, "You have 12 stories to say it," and stepped inside.

I hurried into the lift car as well, and barely made it inside before the doors shut and the machine began its ascent. "Why are you so upset?" I said bluntly. "It's just a sco--"

"It is not," Asuka cut me off, fire in her eyes as she stared me down. "It's a measure of my skill and prowess! And you have no business marching in and taking my rightful spot."

I had intended to keep things civil; honestly, I did. Instead, I threw my arms wide. "What the fuck do you want me to do, do a worse job syncing up?!"

Even as the words left my lips, I knew they were wrong. Asuka steamed on them for a moment, then said slowly and evenly, "No. I don't want you to do a worse job. But where does it say that I have to suffer when you improve?"

"I don't know!" I shot back. "I never asked to surpass you! Don't make this my fault."

"Then whose fault is it?!"

"Well, who's the one whose score is slipping, huh??!"

The words echoed like a gunshot in the confines of the lift, and wounded just as much. Asuka stared at me red-faced for a long moment, hand quivering as if she couldn't decide whether or not to strike me. Her chin was tilted up ever-so-slightly, giving her a contemptuous lean to her glaring expression.

The elevator interrupted the scene and dinged the doors open on the twelfth floor. Asuka stood there for a heartbeat longer, then turned, lowering her head and uttering a few words in a low growl:

"Go fuck yourself, Fourth Child."

She stomped off toward her apartment, and I stood there watching her go, unwilling to call out to her because I had no idea what I could say that would help. Thirty angry paces later, she slammed the door marked Katsuragi closed behind her.

I numbly made my way to my own apartment and stumbled inside, shedding my book bag and other such stuff at the doorway. Throwing myself face-first on my bed, I did something I hadn't done in decades.

I cried, a huge, bawling cry, all but shrieking into the pillows piled at the head of the bed. My wailing was being muffled by the bedclothes, but to me it sounded like the entire world could hear it.

What I didn't know is that I couldn't even be heard in the next suite over, where the lone occupant had retreated into the bathroom and huddled herself down in a fetal position, back to the door, much less emotional than I was, but sobbing openly nonetheless.

 

"Jill? What's the matter? ...Can she hear me?"

I jerked back out of my sullen, indrawn state, focusing on the screens inside the entry plug. It was the next day, and testing of the Super Solenoid continued. I'd been distracted, thinking of Asuka, when Dr. Akagi tried to get my attention.

"Sorry," I mumbled an apology. "I was thinking of something else."

"I know this seems like a rehash of old tests and experiments, Jillian, but we need to know exactly how the Eva reacts with the S2 on board, before we can deploy them to the other Evas. Please bear with us."

"Right," I said quietly, keeping my attention on the task at hand again.

I was a tumult of emotion at that point; overjoyed that I'd made it through the S2 incident alive, but in the process, had alienated myself from the one person I considered a close friend in all this. To make matters worse, unless something major happened that I couldn't foresee, there could be no apology, and there would be no mending of fences. I couldn't atone for something that was beyond my control. Asuka was being irrational. There was nothing I could do about it. She'd come to her senses eventually.

..That, or she'd spiral into a deep depression and be found in a bombed-out house having tried to end herself in a bathtub..

"Jillian."

Shit. I blinked and gripped the controls tighter, trying to sound like I was alert and attentive. "Yes, Doctor?"

"Should we postpone this afternoon's testing, perhaps?"

"N-no, Doctor. I'm good now, I promise."

"All right, then. Prepare for moving to the launch platform."

I confirmed that San was locked against the rails at her back, held firmly upright, and waited for the lurching movement to begin. When it did, I caught a glimpse through the gaps in the Cage bulkheads of another Eva being prepped.

"Doctor.. is there an alert?" I asked.

"Negative, Pilot," she responded. "Just sit tight and we'll explain once you're topside."

 

It was a sunny day in Tokyo-3, contrasting my disposition almost mockingly. The launch path I'd been assigned put me well out of the urban part of the city itself, into the unpopulated area between it and Ashinoko.

I didn't have to wait long for my partner. Zerogouki slid into view a half-kilometer away and disengaged from its rails, standing tall and still in the light breeze.

"Can you both hear me?" Akagi called out.

"Yes," Rei said.

"I'm here," I replied.

"All right. Rei, you are to be the antagonist for this test. Your goal is to be as challenging as possible to Jill. Jill, you are the defender. The purpose is to ensure that the S2 will withstand the stress of prolonged physical exertion, and/or hand-to-hand combat. Keep fighting Unit 00 as long as you can. No weapons are allowed, and no damage is to be done.. just treat it like a wrestling match. All right?"

"Understood," answered Rei.

"Got it," I said. The wrestling match - real wrestling, not 'sports entertainment' - was a good analogy in my mind. And this was finally a test with a point, instead of random walking and other motions.

"Begin when you're ready. Oh, one more thing - stay 1500 meters away from the city at all times."

That made sense; it'd be hard to explain to someone why their apartment block was smashed to bits during a testing run. Rei started walking toward me, and I spread my stance for better stability, raised my hands to a grappling position, and waited for her.

She closed the gap in no time, and without any pithy one-liners or pointless talking, took up 03's challenge and locked hands together with her. I instantly felt the strain as Zero began applying pressure and trying to take me down to my knees.

No way. I pushed back, and evened out the battle for a moment. After a few seconds, the muscles in my legs began to burn, as Rei was clearly pushing against me and the ground, looking for leverage anywhere.

I fought back, feet slipping in the gravel beneath me at one point, but regaining traction fast. A quick lunge gave me the upper hand for a second - long enough to break one hand free of Rei's grip and grab Zero's wrist. My goal was to get both of Zero's hands behind the back and try to pin them - a skilled pugilist I'm not - and try to get Rei to submit from that position.

The one wrist was all I had for the moment, though. Rei had one thing going for her - a fierce perseverance - and given the nature of the Eva, that was all that she needed. We were completely deadlocked.

Come on, I chided myself. If you can't gain the high ground against one Eva, how are you going to fare against the MPs?

That was an interesting thought, I decided, considering that I had no idea if I would make it that far, or if the mass-production Evas would be sent to deal with us. At that point in time, though, it was a valid point.

You're thinking of this in too complete of terms, I realized. My brain wanted to find a way to take Rei out and gain a pin right away. All I really had to do was break her hold, and let the battle begin anew.

I had been avoiding doing any kind of attack with my - sorry, the Eva's - legs, because I was concerned I would fall down as a result, and be unable to maintain the upper hand, so to speak. Now I remembered that the point was not to score a quick win, but to last in a lengthy battle.

Lifting up my leg, I did a sweep at Zero's, at the same time pushing against her with all my might. The result was as expected: Rei tumbled to the side on which I'd taken out the leg. The impact caused her to lose her grip on my other hand, and while I was on the ground with her, it did allow me to start the fight over again - as was the intended result.

Flipping Zero over, I transferred the grip on her wrist from my left to my right hand, and tried to grab for the other arm. I was able to do that, and with a knee in the 'small' of Zero's back, had the Eva face down in the dirt.

"I'm immobilized," Rei declared over the comm link.

"All right! Break it off, Unit 03," Akagi said, and I relented, releasing Rei, standing up, and offering the Eva's hand as Rei turned her Eva back over. "And when you're both ready, let's begin again."

 

The afternoon continued on in the same way. I made a bunch of pins, and Rei won a number of times as well. My performance was just as strong with the S2 as Rei's with the umbilical was. I got the feeling that Ritsuko was overjoyed at the results.

On the next day, more longevity tests were scheduled, but Rei wasn't the one who was suited up and ready for me that morning. In her place, I found Asuka in the locker room.

I didn't know what to say to her, or if it would just cause an emotional explosion - from either side - so, while Asuka stood in her plugsuit, leaning against the lockers, arms folded in front of her, I silently went to my locker and began to change.

Almost two whole minutes later, after I'd rid myself of my street clothes and wrestled my way into my plugsuit, Asuka spoke up.

"Good morning to you too," she said sourly.

"Good morning," I murmured apologetically. "How are you?"

"Just peachy," Asuka retorted. "After all, I get to support the highest-scoring pilot today, and help her improve even further."

I sighed and dropped my chin to my chest. "Asuka.."

"It's fine, really," she said, her words being betrayed by the tone they carried. "You should be happy. I should be happy. It's a significant thing to be known as the best. I should know."

I sealed the plugsuit and got up, turning to face Asuka. "What makes you think I consciously did this to hurt you?" I said to her. "Of all the people I know here, you I've known the longest, and care about the most. Why would I do anything that might cause you grief?"

Oddly enough, she let me get all that out, instead of cutting me off with an upset comment, or worse, a slap. Studying me for a moment, eyes darting back and forth across my face, she finally said, "Shut up and let's settle this out there."

I followed the raised, red-suited arm, finger pointing towards the location of the Cages. She was calling me out. Asking me to 'take this outside'.

I sighed again. "Suit yourself, Asuka," I said tiredly. "If it's that important to you."

She snapped some kind of remark about how she'd want to come up with a new name for Ayanami, as I might be granted the moniker of Miss Perfect. I was kind of phasing it out of my mind, because I was trying to decide if it was possible to consciously lower my sync ratio just a fraction or two, enough to allow Asuka to surpass me - which, if she concentrated as hard as her mood implied she would, was a possibility.

The two Evas were launched into the same general area that Rei and I had fought the day before. Asuka squared off against me from a distance away, saying nothing, listening to Misato's commands.

I wanted to ask where Ritsuko was, but I feared it would be seen by Asuka as favoritism, as if I was on a first-name basis with the boss. (Never mind the fact that she lived under the same roof as our other boss, and that Misato most likely had a lot to do with the fact that Asuka was here; perhaps Asuka had told her what had transpired between us.)

Asuka leapt aggressively into the fray as soon as Misato gave the permission to begin. I steeled myself to catch her, but was still thrown a little by the force of the impact. Asuka was fighting like her life was on the line, drawing many parallels in my mind to how I figured her fight with the Mass Production units would go. She wasn't doing any serious damage, but San and I would definitely have some significant bruises by day's end.

I honestly didn't even begin to consider 'pulling my punches' so early in things, so to speak, but Asuka won the first two pins, grinding me excessively into the ground after the first one, and not helping me up either time. I didn't dare ask how our sync ratios were holding up, but I sure was curious.

Misato was about to let us begin a third bout when someone distracted her with a comment. "What?" she said to them, off screen, her expression going pale. The identity of who she was conversing with was left without doubt by her response: "Yes, sir, at once."

She turned back to face us, or at least, the camera sending her picture our way. "Units 02 and 03, you are both going into battle. The test is canceled. The thirteenth Angel has arrived."

"What? Where?" Asuka asked energetically, as if her beef with me was forgotten.

"Matsushiro," Misato said flatly, then turning to the techs with her to add, "Summon Shinji and Rei and prepare the other Evas for launch."

As the techs acknowledged her, it dawned on me that Maya Ibuki was not there. That was probably where Ritsuko and Maya had gone.. to Matsushiro, for the activation test on 04. We were going to fight another Eva, quite possibly with another pilot.

I have to get there before Shinji does, I decided.

"Asuka!" I called out. I chose my words carefully before saying anything more. "Let's get moving. Lead the way, okay?"

It wasn't what I'd hoped I could say, but it would do, judging by Asuka's response. "Right!" came her eager response. "Follow me, Fourth!"

She dumped her umbilical cable and marched off toward the secondary test site. I turned that way and headed out as well, and decided to ask Misato a question.

"Major," I said. "Is there a test going on today in Matsushiro? Is this related to.."

Misato nodded as I trailed off. "Just do what you have to, Pilot," she said flatly.

"Understood," I nodded.

"What? What are you saying?" Asuka cut in.

"There was a malfunction with the activation test of Unit 04," Misato declared. "It has been abandoned and re-classified as the thirteenth Angel. It is to be destroyed."

"Mein Gott," Asuka breathed.

Abandoned, I repeated in my head. They weren't likely to be using that word in the same meaning as I hoped. To me, abandoned meant the ejected entry plug was lying in a field outside Matsushiro, the LCL drained and the pilot standing outside it waiting for a helicopter to pick him (or her) up. To Ikari, it probably meant that they were going to write off 04 - Eva, pilot, and all - and wanted the whole thing incinerated.

"Unit 00 and Unit 01 will be almost fifteen minutes behind you. I need to count on you two to at least hold the Angel until they arrive. Understood?" Misato asked.

"Got it," I responded.

"I'll take care of things!" Asuka replied.

"Unit 02, you will find a power coupling at grid ref 1422-A-5," Misato added. "And I hope both of you have your little squabble out of your systems. There's no time for that now."

I waited to hear what Asuka had to say, but all she responded with was, "1422-A-5, roger!"

"Eva 03 acknowledges, Major," I declared, following Asuka up the valley.

 

Asuka was within her last minute of power reserves by the time we got to grid 1422. We'd remained silent for the short walk (short by Eva standards, of course; several dozen miles in actuality), but I found the power coupling first, and spoke up and waved Asuka over. "Here it is!"

"Good," Asuka said, lumbering over my way. I picked up the plug end and held it out. "I'll hook you up, if you want."

"I can do it mys--" Asuka began as she closed the last few Eva-steps' distance, then she started over. "All right, Unit 03, fine."

Asuka turned around and I pushed the connector home against the jack on the lower back of the Eva unit. "How's that?" I asked.

"Volle energie," Asuka replied. "Let's get moving!"

"Unit 02, take the lead. Unit 03, prepare to back her up," Misato said.

"Of course!" Asuka responded, as if it was absurd to consider any other option. I was thinking Misato's reasoning was more along the lines of Asuka being tethered to her power source, but I could chase the Angel all over the countryside if need be.

Or perhaps it had something to do with letting Asuka prove her superiority and raise her sync level.

Stop thinking about that, I demanded of myself, squeezing my eyes shut and shaking my head back and forth. Let that stupid issue die already.

"Angel should be coming into range now," Misato called out. "Shinji and Rei are eight minutes behind you."

"They can come pick up the pieces," Asuka grinned, orienting her Eva towards the projected path of the Eva-turned-Angel. For a moment, we both stood in silence, watching the horizon.

"There it is!" Asuka said, as a glint of sunlight flared across our screens. "Ach! It's bright.."

As I'd figured, even the dull silver sheen on 04's armor was quite reflective when given the day star to mirror. The creature in the distance almost looked like it was glowing.

"Be careful, Asuka," I said warily.

"Don't worry, miss number-one team leader," Asuka sneered back. "I'll do fine."

We charged on ahead, Gendo Ikari in our ears reminding us that the target was to no longer be considered an Eva. My query of whether or not the pilot had been recovered was met with an irritated reiteration of the same reminder.

I was going to try to appeal to Asuka's humanity and see if she would listen to reason, when I realized she was already preparing to grapple with the beast. Somehow, 04 had covered the distance at least twice as fast as both of us, without alerting us to that fact.

The Second Child threw down with fervor, standing toe-to-toe with the possessed Eva and throwing punch after punch. Unlike the 'original' battle, the one that happened with 03 in the fictional version of events, Nigouki wasn't defeated with one blow, and Asuka was able to hold her own. I mainly stood on the sidelines, circling to keep 04 in my sights and preparing to dive in if Asuka needed help.

If she'd stoop to asking for it, that is.

"Scheiße!" she cursed at one point. "Fourth, you're right - there's still an entry plug in this thing!"

"Control! Eject it!" I called out.

"We tried," Misato said. "So did Matsushiro. You're going to have to work around it!"

"We're coming," Shinji declared. "We're four minutes out!"

Fuck, I thought to myself. Come on, Asuka, get this dealt with before Shinji gets here.

Asuka wasn't exactly lazing around, of course; like her earlier play-fight with me, her brawl with the thirteenth Angel rivaled all the footage I'd seen of her fictional fight with the MPs. She was kicking serious ass, but the only problem was, the Angel had no intentions of going down; it took all the punishment that would have laid out a human opponent, and then some.

"Asuka, let me help!" I pleaded.

"Whatever," she said through gritted teeth, trying to wrestle 04 to the ground. "Get in here!"

I dove into the fray and tried to take the Eva's head and neck in a sleeper hold, of sorts, from behind. I was able to make the hold, but would an Eva - much less one possessed by an Angel - succumb to such a maneuver?

Asuka released her grip on the Angel's arms and repositioned, grabbing it in the midsection with clear intent to bodyslam the beast into the ground. I let go just in time to have 04 and 02 fly past me, hitting the earth with a bladder-loosening thud. Seeing no better option, I jumped on top of the two and drove an elbow into the neck of the Eva, trying to choke it into submission.

At that point, the Eva - sorry, the Angel - began to reach into its bag of tricks, and started with the arms. Defying physical limitations, 04's arms went rubbery and stretchable, reaching around Asuka to first bear-hug her, then grab her Eva and bodily fling her across the countryside.

I did what I could to remain atop the writhing biomech, calling out to find out if Asuka was all right.

"I'm fine!" she yelled. "Hold that bastard down so I can come stomp on its head!"

I was holding on to the Eva as tightly as I could, but then it threw its second curve ball, and I hate to admit it, but I fell for it. The Angel began spreading from 04 to 03, threatening to infect San and take her over. I first recognized this when a shock of fear ran through the Eva, and then it physically manifested as large, veinous growths spreading up my own flesh-and-blood arms from the control grips.

I shrieked and threw myself backwards, away from the Angel. Once I was clear, I had to yank my hands away from the controls and wring them together, running each over the other to prove the manifestation had disappeared when contact with the Angel was lost.

"Dammit, Fourth!" Asuka hollered. Suddenly, a blue-and-white blur zipped past me.

Zerogouki threw herself on the Eva-turned-Angel like an American football tackle, a none-too-melodious crash of metallic sounds rising up. Shinji, in Shogouki, arrived on the scene seconds later.

"Th-thanks, Rei!" I called out. Momentarily, Nigouki rose up from the adjacent valley she'd been tossed into.

"Hold it there, Unit Zero!" Asuka called out.

"Trying," Rei said, with a strained voice. It was clear that she was fighting for all she was worth, and the Angel was trying the same thing with her that it had with me.

"Get clear if it's threatening you!" I told her.

"I cannot," she struggled to say. "I will not let it harm anyone else.."

"The Angel is contaminating Unit 00's right arm!" one of the backup techs in HQ declared. The reply wasn't audible, but I could imagine what it said from the stunned response: "But.. the pilot.. her nerve connections are still active.."

"Rei! Get out of there!" I shouted, seconds too late; some kind of explosive charge blew 00's right arm completely off, armor and all, right at the shoulder. Rei's cry of agony pierced the comm channel like the sound of a million breaking glasses, and she rolled off the Angel to lie writhing in pain.

Then Gendo was on the comm channel, demanding that Shinji get in there and fight the Angel. Shinji was, of course, balking, having already spotted the entry plug half-ejected from the spinal column of 04.

Asuka closed in on the other side of the Angel, which had now stood on its feet, and was facing Shinji, with Asuka and I flanking it on either side, Rei virtually at my feet. Asuka said, "Let's take this thing down all at once!"

Ignoring us, the Angel rushed Shogouki and began wringing her neck, giving rise to choking sounds from Shinji within the entry plug. He managed to get 01's hands up onto the Angel's biceps, but it was like the scrawny guy from the old comic book ads, trying to deal with the big bully on the beach.

"Shinji! You have to fight!" I told him. "Asuka and I will back you up and try to rescue the plug!"

If Asuka agreed with the plan, she didn't verbalize it; instead, she made a diving tackle at the waist of the Angel, trying to take its legs out from under it. She succeeded in knocking it and 01 over, but the two - Shinji and the Angel - kept their death grips on one another.

"Rei - get to safety," I said, having ducked to let Asuka et al pass over me.

"Don't worry about me," she grunted, getting the Eva to its knees and then pushing it upright with the one remaining arm.

I turned and went to join the fray once more, helping Asuka distract enough of the Angel's attention to let Shinji have a fighting chance. Asuka, to my disbelief, managed to snap one of the Angel's thigh bones - which, if it followed human physique, was the strongest bone in the entire body - but it barely slowed the Angel down. I wouldn't have been surprised if it would have swiftly healed it, given the chance.

I pulled out my prog knife and started pounding away at the armor surrounding the spine. Of course, the Evas had been constructed to withstand their own weapons, to an extent, to avoid 'mistakes' causing costly damage. So, my prog knife attack ended up being largely ineffective.

All this time, Shinji and Gendo had been arguing, while Shinji was deadlocked with 04. Suddenly, Shinji's comms changed their tone; he no longer sounded like he was in the struggle of his life. Moreover, he sounded puzzled and worried.

Oh, shit, I realized. The dummy plug's active.

Even if I had thought Asuka would heed my warning to fall back, I didn't have time to give it; both of us were thrown off 04 as 01, now on 'autopilot', picked up the Angel and flung it, much as it had done with Asuka earlier.

I got up and hurried after Shogouki, who was charging after the Angel, making a flying leap to come down hard on the possessed Eva. Armor was torn off and cast aside, bones were broken, and soon enough, flesh was rent from bone, drenching the countryside and all the rest of us in hundreds of gallons of blood.

Shinji screamed in terror all the while, and Asuka, for a moment, stood there in shock. As 01 ripped 04 limb from limb, I knew the battle was over, but perhaps something could still be done about the final outcome.

"Asuka," I said, hoping she was done with her crankiness with me. "I'll take out 01. You go and salvage the entry plug from 04. Okay?"

"Right," she agreed. Clearly she'd come to accept that there was another person like us trapped inside 04, and deserved to be rescued, even if seriously physically injured in the process.

On the count of two (I never, ever went on three - going on two catches people off guard and beats the stereotype), I lunged for Shogouki and knocked her clear of the remnants of 04's torso. Asuka dove towards the former Eva and flipped it over, trying to find a way to extract the entry plug.

"Jill! Stop it! What are you doing?" Shinji cried, his voice full of terror. "My father.. he's done something! I can't control this bloody thing!"

"Ikari!" I hollered, my words directed to the senior of the two, not the one with whose Eva I was currently grappling. "It's over! The Angel is defeated!"

I was straining under the incredible strength of Eva 01, its power no longer restricted by the sync rate of its pilot. I was worried I wouldn't be able to last much longer. Shinji was still pleading with his father over the comm channel, hollering and sobbing, and Asuka was shouting something too.

"--Eva 04--mean, --teenth Angel-- is inert," I managed to hear her say.

"Hear that?!" I belted out, trying to be heard over the din. "It's done! End this now, or I will engage Mode D! I mean it!!"

The struggle continued for another quarter of a minute or so, and then finally, the resistance suddenly dissipated. Eva 01 had been shut down.

I waited for the LCL around me to increase pressure and all but incapacitate me, but that never came. I gingerly released 01, thankfully leaving it in a position in which it could balance on its own, and turned to find 02 kneeling beside the shredded torso of 04, cradling a long, thin white cylinder.

The hatch on the entry plug was open, and the LCL was spilling out like a waterfall. I zoomed in to see if I could catch a glimpse of the pilot inside the capsule, berating myself for not having asked Asuka if Toji or Hikari were at school the past few days.

Finally, as the light balance stabilized and the cameras focused, I could see a definite outline of an unconscious form. A fairly nondescript, but male form.

A male form with a mop of short, greyish-silver hair.

"Unit 03 has confirmed," a tech evidently monitoring my video feed declared. "Fifth Child is alive."