Angelus Retournen Incarnatus
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

by Florencio B. de la Merced, Jr. (fmerced@pworld.net.ph)

A fanfic inspired by the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion, copyrighted by
Gainax and no attempt had been made to state otherwise.
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

Chapter 3  The Sacred Life

=-=-=-=-=

Darkness, in the world between the living and the dead, is the solitude of
surrender, the vision of nothingness, and the cliff off the world's end .
This was her world.  Misato Katsuragi had seen this place many times before
in the past, her lifetime.  All things went bleak for her after that fateful
day in August, the day she last said "father" to him.  It wasn't the lost
she longed for, it was the chance she parted with.  She had screwed up so
many times in her past, she doesn't even know when or where to start
counting if she needed to.  The last person to see her this sad, she had
disappointed him as well.  She believed that he was dead, she didn't fight
the darkness of her soul, her memory.  For her, death of a love one came by
like the changing summer, the falling winter, in the whole cycle of life.
These things...these lonely memories, was her very being, the constitution
of her soul.  What made her fear it more was that, even how much she tried
to deny it, these nightmares made her strong and resilient to live on. These
reflections, though, were about to change for the fearless survivor of the
Second Impact.

"I always hated this darkness."

An alley, in the middle of the night, she staggered to walk in a straight
line.  She even convulsed right there and then, in front of him.  "I don't
feel so good."  She vanished within the void, pulled into the depression of
events long forgotten.

"I still hate the darkness.  It brings memories of nothing but horrible
things."

"Katsuragi, it's me...." Misato closed her eyes.  "I'm sorry..."  She
unwittingly blocked her senses, her mind though was unwilling, "Katsuragi,
the truth is with you.  Don't hesitate, move on!"  She felt anger, it
started rising and breaking through her grip of fear.

"BAKA!"

"It's two minutes past two..."

=-=-=-=-=

Dr. Ritsuko Akagi sat comfortably on a nearby chair, reading a magazine
while she waited for her patient to regain consciousness. Misato's vital
signs were all advancing normally. Soon, she would be again among the
living, instead of the dead.  Ritsuko flipped a page just as her patient's
readings rose past the borderline of consciousness.  "Ah, she's awake now."

Misato slowly opened her eyes, an unknown ceiling greeted her.  She noticed
the cross-like fluorescent lighting fixture and was easily intrigued by her
new surroundings.  "Is this Heaven?"

"Sort of."  Ritsuko answered as she laid down her magazine, "But you're not
dead, Misato."  She smiled to her, something she had not done in so many
years.  This was their first meeting since they last saw each other.  That
time, their parting was played out in the cruelest of manners.  SEELE had
abducted the two unceremoniously, but it was her that was spared from the
fate Misato endured.  "You've been to surgery, but I guess you're a tough
girl, aren't you?"  She heartily giggled, a mark of their friendship
blossoming again.

"Ritsuko?  It can't be." Misato looked at the face of Ritsuko, she had not
aged that much, and yet her belief of her death was being discredited by the
sight of Ritsuko, sitting by her side on the hospital bed.  Yes, I'm in a
hospital, Misato figured.  "How can you be alive?  I saw you..."

"Executed?  Yes, I was...something like that."  Ritsuko spoke as she stood
up, "But miraculously, I survived.  Apparently, news of my death had been
greatly exaggerated."  She laughed at the moment, seeing the surprise in
Misato's eyes.  "Do you like my hair?"

Misato realized that her eyes were not playing tricks on her, neither was
the dim lighting in the room responsible for the vague discoloration of
Ritsuko's hair from what she remembered.  Her friend now had a tinge of
brown, rather than her usual dyed blonde hair.  "You don't dye your hair
anymore, Ritsuko-san?"  Her voice was weak, but her breath held under the
heavy lingering pain, up on her head mostly.

"I see. So, you remember.  There hasn't been much time around here for those
sort of things."  Ritsuko glanced at some readings.  "Do you still feel
pain, Misato?"  She turned back to her patient.

"No."  Misato replied meekly.

"Don't lie to me, Katsuragi-san.  This is not the time to say bad things."
Ritsuko reached over towards a nearby keyboard and quickly punched in
several keys.  Immediately, though Misato still had no idea how, the slow
throbbing pain began to recede.  At first it left her head, then it soon
disappeared down her neck until it finally disappeared underneath the core
of her spinal nerves.  "There, how is that?"

"I..." Misato's head was gaining the clearness she needed at the moment  "I
feel much better."  A knock came through the door and both women looked at
it instinctively.

"Ah, I guess you have some visitors, Misato."  Ritsuko tapped lightly on a
key and the door slid open instantaneously.  Misato was curious, who among
her old friends were coming to see her.  She wanted to be surprised, but in
her head she was enumerating those children she had shared her life with.
Bravely, she was even expecting the arrogant and spiteful second children to
greet her.  Though, somewhere in the back of her mind, she was almost sure
that the third children, Ikari Shinji, was the visitor.  She knew him more,
and he had known her more than she had wanted to.  In her wildest dreams
though, she never knew she'd see a ghost.

"Hello, I just thought I'd drop by to see if she's...oh," Ryouji Kaji had
entered unaware that Misato was already awake, "So you've risen from the
dead, I see that now.  How are you feeling, Katsuragi-san?"

"Kaji?!"  Her voice trembled under the strain of her emerging fear.  The old
flame she had thought was dead, the person she fervently believed was put
out by the strong winds of change and conspiracy of NERV, was in actuality
alive and well, shining brightly in front of her.  He was smiling at her, as
if nothing had ever came between them.  Death once did, but nothing like
that was present in the room.

Kaji took the available seat, opposite that of Ritsuko, still at Misato's
bedside.  "You look at me as if I was a ghost, Katsuragi."  His smile was
sincere, somehow he was at the same time forgiving a sin she had kept in the
recess of her mind for more than three years now.  "I'm here now, alive �
Thank God.  Anyway, I was saved...just like Ritsuko here."

Misato wanted to cry, her tears were building up a dam in her eyes.  "Kaji?
I'm..."

"Sorry? I know." Ryouji stroked Misato's blue dyed hair, "Don't worry about
the past.  It is the future that we must be cautious now, Misato."

She started to cry.

=-=-=-=-=

5th Branch NERV
Arizona desert, United States of America

Trisha Stevenson had finished changing from her plugsuit to her usual
everyday clothes.  Her blue denim pants were already faded, but she was
happy with them.  Her shirt had a huge NERV symbol in front, while behind
was only the words "Pilot of Unit 35" in bold letters.  Underneath, written
in some blue ink, was "I'm # 1!".  Obviously something she had added on her
own accord.

"See you later, Trisha." A voice said from the other side of the translucent
barrier that split the whole room into two.

"Oh, don't forget to pick me up later, Pilot 35 B." Trisha remembered just
in time as her backup was already at the other door of the room.

"I will." The doors opened and then closed.  Trisha was smiling
satisfyingly, her date plans were secure for the school dance later.  She
had just enough time to prepare, buy a nice dress, get her hair done, and
then finally�with a sigh in her heart, pass by her father's office to ask
his permission.  She now hated herself for delaying that little detail for
so long.  Maybe she just feared not being allowed to go, knowing her father.
Her plan was to appear in a very nice dress, with makeup and all, and show
her father that she was a growing woman now.  Sadly, she sat on the nearby
bench, her heart was heavy with a burden lingering at the back of her mind.

"He won't let me.  He never does."  Trisha whispered to herself.


=-=-=-=-=

SEELE Headquarters
Location Unknown

The room had a solitary light source, dropping down from an unknown ceiling.
The room had no dimensions, no visible wall, a floor than was not
indistinguisable from the roof, the wall and all...expect that there was a
chair in the middle.  And a solitary man, frail and hardly moving was
sitting in it.  The stonehenge monoliths surrounding the centerpiece were
alive, or in so many ways sound can be transmitted, they were audible.

"Wake up!"  A loud voice boomed around the in fanthomable room.  The man did
stir, meaning it was alive at least for the moment.

"Will you talk?"  Another stone-faced voice asked and shook the room.

"No."  Barely audible, but the answer was not forced under the man's breath.

"Will you tell us what have you done with our Unit-01?"  Again, no answer.

"What if we tell you that we've destroyed a clone of Unit-01 this morning?"
Silence.

The man moved his finger up his nose, but he wasn't wearing glasses.  "Then
you have to prepare."  A rush of voices rumbled around him, the room was in
chaos.

"For what, Gendou?"

"The End of EVA!"  His head fell, tired and weak that he'd faint spending
months worth of strength shouting at the top of his grazen and harsh voice.
The room fell stone silent again.

"That...will not happen."  The lone response from the stone-faced speaker
with two zeros etching on it's frontface.

=-=-=-=-=

An Evangelion Cage
Location Unknown

"Unit Bravo retrieved, automatic shutdown of reserve power in twenty
seconds."  A young woman announced from her station.  There were only a
handful of people inside the control room that was overlooking the docking
of the Evangelion that had just arrived.  "All systems are nominal.  Entry
plug ejection in five�"  Another controller announced.

A tall white-haired man was supervising, he looked pleased that the
Evangelion had returned unscathed.  He went over to one of the communication
stations and asked for a link with the person inside the entry plug.  "How
was your trip, Maya?"

Several static crackled was heard before the voice of a woman filled the
small room.  "Konnichiwa, Fuyutsuki-sensei.  Is that you?"

"Of course, it's me.  Who else were you expecting?"  Dr. Fuyutsuki grinned
as he glanced out the window and stared at the entry plug as it was being
taken out from the EVA.  "Ah, you must have been expecting Dr. Akagi.
She'll join us in a few minutes."  The communication link was closed and
Fuyutsuki gave compliments to everyone before he left the control room to
personally meet with his first guest in over a year.

=-=-=-=-=

"Hello, Professor."  Maya extended her hand, which was graciously received
by Kouzou.  "I'm surprised that you and Ritsuko-sempai had been working
together."  She had just stepped off the dry entry plug she had been riding
on.  Maya was getting her first look at the facility she had journeyed to,
and by her assumptions it closely resembled an Evangelion Cage.  By her
visual estimates, this particular cage was huge.  Three times than those she
was accustomed to.

"Yes, we've been working on this project for�" Kouzou paused, seeing Maya's
interest and amazement at her new surroundings, "almost ten years now, if
I'm not mistaken."

"Ten years?"  Maya was surprised at that revelation.  She had known Ritsuko
and Fuyutsuki for about that same amount of time, but they were all
connected with NERV then.  Now, it was only her that still had affiliations
with the United Nations.   "You mean that�"

"Yes."  Fuyutsuki turned to the single EVA that was present inside the cage.
"This is the HAVEN headquarters.  The sanctuary of the new generation of
Evangelions."  Maya stared back at the EVA Unit that had brought her to this
place.  Kouzou turned to her, knowing that she had a thousand questions in
her head now. "And, hopefully, the last as well,"  he added.  Before Maya
could ask her next question, the elevator door behind her swung open.

"Oh, There you are, Maya.  How are you doing?"  Dr. Ritsuko Akagi had
stepped off the elevator, accompanying her was Ryoji Kaji and a little dazed
Misato.  "I trust the ride was�bumpy?"  She smiled and laughed a bit before
hugging her old friend, the first in quite a long time.

"Ritsuko?"  Maya's eyes were blank with confusion.

"What is it?"  Ritsuko asked.  Behind them, Misato was being helped by Kaji
towards the railings.

"What is going on?"  Maya finally realized who the two persons that was also
in the elevator.  "Oh, my God!  Kaji-kun�" Maya took a second or two to
gather her wits, calm a bit, and to stop blinking when she recognize... "and
Katsuragi-san?"  She deftly raised a finger up, "Wait a second�?"  Kaji
waved at Maya, and Misato tried to do the same, but almost slipped
underneath Kaji's arm.  "How did this happen?"  Maya was totally awed by the
discoveries she's making every second of her stay in the strange new place.

Kouzou stepped into the elevator, leaving all the explanations for Ritsuko
to handle.  "I'll be at Dr. Ikari's laboratory, if you need me, Ritsuko."
The doors closed.

=-=-=-=-=

EVA-1 Laboratory
HAVEN Headquarters
Location Unknown

The room was a huge room, several storied high.  In the middle was a dark
monolith like edifice that was wrapped or draped in some sort of black
cloth.  A cascade of strong energy fields emanated from the core of the
room, up to several layers out.  The floor had distinguishing rings that
seemed to glow inside the already brightly lit room.  Several computer
terminals encircled the central piece, while the upper levels was a
collection of walkways that encircled the dome like roof.

A single woman was present, attending to some of the readouts on a nearby
terminal.  Her table had computer print-out stockpiled to several feet high,
and she was casually browsing through some of it.  There was also a tray of
food nearby, a jar of peanut butter and a loaf of bread and a glass of
orange juice.  She was already halfway with one sandwich when the sound of
doors sliding open interrupted her thoughts.

"Ah, Shinji-kun.  You're back already?"  The women threw the print-outs back
to the pile and swiveled around her chair, facing her visitor.  "Come here
and give your mother a big hug."  Her arms were waiting for him.

"Mama.  I'm seventeen years old.  Do you think I�" Shinji muttered as he
slowly approached his mother.

"Stop talking nonsense." Shinji had to bend down, as Yui hugged him with so
much vigor and excitement, it always embarrassed Shinji.  "I just miss you,
that's all."  She finally let go of him.

"Mama.  Please, let's not do this anymore."  Shinji said as he pulled up a
chair.  Yui looked at her son with disappointment, but her mood soon
changed, realizing the changes in Shinji.

"Is this because Asuka finally said, yes?"  Yui was only teasing, but the
effect on Shinji was too instantaneous not to take notice.  "Ah, so it is
true."  She clasped her hands excitedly.  "Oh, my.  And your father is not
here to enjoy this!"  She didn't notice her son's aggraviated look.
"Anyway, how did your trip go, Shinji-kun?"  She swung her chair around and
picked up the last half of the sandwich, and the same print-outs.

Shinji calmed down, he pulled up a chair and started making his own
peanut-butter spread.  "I did not see father.  There was another woman
in-charge of NERV."  Yui briefly looked at him with concern, realizing his
dissapointment.  "I guess I should have expected that."  He took a bite,
smiling approvingly was his mother.

"Any word?"  Yui gave Shinji her orange juice.

"Arigato."  He nearly emptied the contents in one drink.  "Yes, I believe
Rei knows where he is."  Shinji returned the glass back, Yui looked at the
nearly empty container scournfully.  "Oops, Gomen."  Shinji took the glass
again and walked over to the dispenser for a refill.

"So, you talked with your sister?" Yui was curious about her daughter, a
child she never knew of till about two years ago.  "How was she?  Is she
alright?  Does she have a boyfriend already?  Well...?"  She didn't notice
Shinji's silence.

Shinji came back, he was troubled and it showed in his facial expression, or
the lack of it.  Yui could only guess, it was the most disturbing trait she
had discovered from her son she had abandoned, but never forgotten.  "Mom,"
Shinji finally spoke when he sat down again, "I...kissed...I mean, she..."
Shinji struggled with the words.

"Oh?  She likes you then?"  Yui almost touched a nerve with that question.

"Arrggh!  Mom, you're not helping!"  Shinji bolted off his chair and walked
away.  If he had looked back he would have seen his mother giggling at his
expense.  He hurriedly walked out the doorway, just as Kouzou was arriiving.

"Oh, Shinji.  I'm sorry."  Yui exclaimed as her son dissappeared out the
door.  "Oh, Fuyutsuki-sensei.  Have you heard anything?"  Kouzou hesitated
in entering, seeing Shinji rushing out in some sort of obvious uneasiness
with Yui.  "Oh, don't worry about him, Fuyutsuki-sensei."

"I see.  You should be a little bit easy on your son, Ikari-san.  He's been
through a lot."  Kouzou closed the door behind him.  Yui turned in her seat,
she looked far ahead, staring at the black as midnight monilith in the
center of the room.  Kouzou walked up behind her, he stood and stared as
well.  "I hear Asuka is already inside the 5th Branch."

"That is good.  All our efforts will now depend on her."  Yui took a sip
from her glass.  Just then, the central figure started glowing.  Yui reached
for a button on the nearby terminal, but Kouzou beat her to it.  "Thank you,
sensei."

Kouzou and Yui stared at the clock displaying on the terminal, it read three
o'clock.  Slowly, the energy fields around the monolith started to receed
and fade away, like curtains being raised open to reveal a big secret.  The
room started to dim, as each of the lighting segments, from the top tiers
slowly downward to ground level lost their power.  Only the circular
segments etched on the floor remained brightly lit, giving a stalwart and
spotlight luminous brillance to the emerging star of the show.  The dark
blanket started to fade, slowly revealing what had been hiding underneath.

A human-like figure was outlined, underneath the covers was a being almost
sixty feet tall.  This was, of course, EVA Unit 01, the original one.
Though, now with no armor and any cybernetic implant, it was hardly any
similar to its original figure.  It was now in its true form, naked and
sacred to Man's sights.  Yui and Kouzou were always amazed seeing the clone
of the Lilith this way.

"Hello, Professor."  The voice came through as a computer-like translated
speech, rather than what would normally be conceived as human speech.  Who
was talking though could not be compared to as human though, more of an
angel, perhaps.  Kouzou looked at Yui, obviously the clone of Lilith was
talking about his compatriot.

"Good afternoon, Lilith."  Yui spoke monotonous, directly towards a
unidirectional microphone in front of her terminal.  The computer would take
a second of two to properly transcribe the message for Lilith.   "We have
news."

Kouzou knew his cue from Yui's looking at him, that it was his turn to tell
the report.  "Lilith, this is Professor Fuyutsuki."  He waited for the
customary acknowledgement before continuing.  "I'm fine, thank you.  To
continue, We have successfully flight tested both Evangelion Alpha and Bravo
today.  They did superbly well during actual field conditions, especially
Asuka's Unit Bravo."

"I know they would."  The cryptic voice said over the speakers.  "What about
Ikari?"

Yui told the truth and Lilith took some time before responding.  "What are
you thinking, Lilith?"  Yui asked as she and Kouzou could only stare at each




other and wait.

"Yui, you know that I would not continue unless your husband is in safe
hands, correct?"  Lilith's tone was perfectly conveyed by the translation,
"But I feel the time is not on our side anymore."  Yui was disheartened.

Kouzou felt he had to say something.  "Lilith, how long do we have?"

"I already feel Adam, he's very angry now."  Lilith fell silent, the room
was glowing some more.  "Our mother can not stop him now.  And I feel, those
responsible for the first time would let him free again."  Kouzou knew what
Lilith was trying to say, even though it spoke in riddles that no layman
with little knowledge at what had happened the past twenty years would know
how to answer them.

"I see."  Kouzou turned to Yui, she had been crying silently.  "Lilith, can
we defeat him with the help of the EVAs?"

Lilith's glow started to receed, a misunderstanding, Kouzou thought.  "Why
do you want to experience bad things again?"  Lilith question was echoed
throughout the whole room, trembling the very foundations with the hint of
anger and dissapointment.

"No, its not that.  The comittee holds all the cards.  They have Adam, they
have the Spear of Longinus, they have the remains of all the Angels, and
they have Rei."  Kouzou felt a hand gripping on his sleeve.  He knew he
wasn't suppose to speak in such a tone to Lilith, but ... desperate times
call for desperate measures.  "They also have their own EVAs and may proceed
with the re-awakening of Adam even if we do succeed in destroying the
technology."  Yui had stopped her grieving and was standing behind Kouzou
and was holding on his sleeve.

"I see."  Lilith's shroud started appearing again.  "The continuance of
mankind is more important, I see."  The black curtain returned and was
covering Lilith once again.   "Very well, Fuyutsuki-sensei.  Adam and the
unknown Angels will have to be stopped first.  I trust you to do the rest
after."  The room started to relight again, the shields were powering up
again.  "Sayonara."

=-=-=-=-=

Evangelion Cage

"You mean to tell me," Misato seemed to have recovered quite well from her
surgery, " this is not the real, Unit-01?"  She was pointing at the purple
EVA that was inside the rather huge cage.  Maya, too, was curious at what
Ritsuko had to say about the EVA unit she had ridden to get here.

"Yes, that is the second generation.  A child of the first one, if you want
to call it that way."  Ritsuko gave an order, and a confirmation was heard
through the public announcement system.  "Here's the other one."  The roof
on the other side of the huge cage swung open, and slowly another
Evangelion, similar looking to the first one, was brought inside the cage.
Misato and Maya was amazed at seeing two identical EVAs.

"That is of course, Shinji-kun's EVA."  Kaji spoke.  "That's the real purple
EVA.  Asuka's EVA is actually colored red, just like her old Evangelion."
Kaji paused a moment, seeing the blank faces from the two guest.  "Eh, yes
it's true.  This one," he pointed to the nearer EVA, " is actually red."

"Which reminds me, if you were alive these past three years..." Misato was
glaring at Kaji, "why didn't you tell me!?"  Kaji was short for words.

"He did, many times actually."  Ritsuko gave some orders to a personnel.
"But, that implant inside of you made you...unreacheable, Misato."  The
personnel asked Ritsuko something, "Yes, return Unit Bravo back into it's
original color.  We won't need the disguise again."

"Implant?"  Maya asked.  Misato was feeling the back of her head, touching
the new scar of her body.

"Katsuragi, you don't really remember, do you?"  Kaji massaged Misato's
neck, but was deftly fended off.

"Let's continue this conversation at the cafeteria, won't we?" Ritsuko
stepped into the elevator with Maya following suit.  Kaji stepped inside the
elevator but Misato was still staring at the twin Evangelions, apparently
still in disbelief at the sudden turn of events and revelations.

"Evangelion Unit One, is this another one of your mystery?" Misato was still
by the railings, unnoticing the buzz of activity just above her head.
Whistles were blowing, hoses and pipes started jutting out the sides of the
cage. Just then, she felt the drops of water hitting her.  "Aiyee!!  Wait
for me!"

=-=-=-=-=

NERV Headquarters
Tokyo-3, Japan

Commander Maria Usagi had just come off the elevators and was heading back
to her office when she noticed a familiar face sitting just outside the
infirmary.  "Well, hello there, Rei.  What brings you all the way out here
at the medical wing?"  She stopped in front of the somewhat surprised First
Children.

"Um, hello there, Commander." Rei stared at the doorway leading inside the
medical facilities briefly, "I just accompanied my friend here."  She bit
her lip, hoping against any further questions she'd be forced to lie to.

Maria also stared at the doors, thinking for a moment who it could be.  Just
then, she remembered who it was.  "Ah, I see.  You better tell Major
Katsuragi to cut down on her beer rations.  Understood?"  Rei blinked a few
times before realizing her luck.  She nodded at her superior.

"I will, Commander."  Rei said as Commander Usagi continued on her way.  Rei
slumped on the bench, quite relieved at the case of mistaken identity the
Commander of NERV had made.  The doorway soon opened a few minutes later and
out came two young teens.  It was obvious that these two pilots were arguing
again.

"I told you to take this seriously, Suzahara.  But, what?  You completely
ignored me!"  Hikari shouted at her companion.

"Oh, come on.  I just missed two rehab session.  I won't die if I just
missed two.  Besides, the doctor said so himself that I'm almost near full
recovery."  Touji remarked as he picked up his backpack that he had left
with Rei on the bench.

"You should be thankful that I'm making sure you complete your
rehabilitation, Touji."  Hikari said as the three started off towards the
nearby elevators.  "You've got one more session left, and then you don't
have to wear those mechanical implants anymore."  She pushed the elevator
button and the door swung open almost instantaneously.

Touji stared at his left arm and leg, both were biological-mechanical
appendages given to him.  "Yeah, I'll be glad to finally move these things
without the extra weight on them."

"I'm sure someone else will be happy to see that you're back to normal,
Touji-kun."  Rei mused to both of her friends.  Touji and Hikari just stared
at each other, with Hikari blushing at the same time.

=-=-=-=-=

5th Branch, NERV
Arizona desert, United States of America

Asuka walked on the moving conveyor belt down to the second level of the
headquarters.  She noted the numerous changes she saw within the base.
Walking into and out the facility had been lax than when it was when she was
last here.  The use of the passcards were no longer necessary in some of the
more inconspicuous places, especially outside at the Geofront.  It would
seem like the outer facility had turned into some kind of amusement park,
since a lot of the more less important facilities were open to the general
public. She was suprise to see numerous civilians walking around, they were
taking snapshots and were having picnics on the fringes of the lake.

She reached the second level and was about to come off the conveyor when she
noticed a younger girl getting on it just ahead of her.  She wasn't all that
familiar to her, but what struck her was the writing on the back of this
girl's shirt.  "Pilot 35?"  The girl turned around, apparently hearing her
name somehow.  "Ulk.  Um, hello."

"Yes, what do you want?"  Trisha looked cross and was obviously in a bad
mood.  She had just come from her father's office, and from her apparent
foul mood, anyone can deduce that something bad must have happened.

"Eh, nothing really.  I just noticed what was written on your back."  Asuka
smiled, hoping to come off their discussion without arousing too much
suspicion.

"That's my designation, all EVA pilots have it."  Trisha stared intently at
this young woman who was harrassing her.  She wasn't being harrassed,
really.  It's just that she was really angry at the moment, and it would
seem that this was her time to vent off some steam.  "And I'm really the
number one pilot, you know."  Asuka couldn't help giggle.  "What's so
funny?!"

"Nothing, nothing at all."  Asuka walked away towards the elevators, still
gigling, thus irking Trisha further.  "Geez, these newbies should really
have their heads checked or something."  she said to no one particular, as
she waited for the elevator door to open.  She didn't notice that the young
pilot had followed her and she was really fuming now.  When the elevator
doors open, Asuka was surprised to be pushed inside.

"Hey!  What the hell..." Asuka realized it was the EVA pilot who had pushed
her, "do you think you're doing?!"  She never backed down from a fight
before, and she wasn't about to do that now, even if she was facing a kid
four years younger than her.

"What did you mean by that?" Trisha raised an accusing finger at Asuka, the
elevator had not moved since no one had bothered to push a button.  "You
should know that I topped the EVA pilot competion for two years in a row
now."

"Oh, yeah?  I heard you weren't even able to bring down one EVA today."
Asuka smirked, recalling the EVANGELION she had to face this morning.  They
stared and eyeballed each other, they moved around, Asuka was near the doors
now.

Trisha was pissed.  "That was not an EVA unit.  That was an Angel, you...you
fool!"

"Hey, that's my line!"  Asuka blurted without really thinking.  "I
mean...eh...Really? An Angel, now that I didn't know." She was obviously
lying.  "So, what's your name, kid?"  Asuka toned down, realizing her
curiosity about the girl was more than what she had first thought.  She
pushed a button.  The elevator started moving, in front of her the young
girl was still glaring and angry.

"Stevenson, Trisha...EVA pilot..."  Asuka waved her hand before Trisha could
continue, "huh?"

"Yeah, I know...Unit 35 A Pilot...I read your back, missy."  Asuka realize
the elevator had not started, neither descending or ascending.  She reached
behind and pushed one of the buttons.  "So, what's bugging you, eh?
Trisha...Steve..."  Asuka looked surprised a bit, something in her thoughts
preoccupied her.

"Stevenson, as in Major Stevenson...Base Commander....remember?"  Trisha
crossed her arms, a smirk grew on her face...waiting for the apologies from
the other girl inside the elevator.  Unfortunately, she never heard of
Asuka.

"Oh, yeah."  Asuka stared curiously now at Trisha, "So you are Major
Stevenson's daughter, right?"  Just then the counter stopped at eight, "Ah!
My floor...nice meeting you Pilot 35...Trisha," Asuka stepped out the
elevator doors before Trisha could react.  She pushed a row of buttons in
the inside console and pushed for the doors to close.  "Have a nice trip!"
She waved as the doors quickly closed, leaving the young EVA pilot inside.
She turned around and walked away, happily chuckling at her recent triumph.
She looked back upon hearing the wails of a young girl trapped inside a very
small space.  "Yeah, right?!".

=-=-=-=-=

NERV Headquarters
Tokyo-3, Japan

Commander Usagi was going over the department reports she had ordered for
just after the incident that had happened this morning.  Unit 01 had
appeared out of nowhere, and the worst thing was that they were caught flat
footed.  A real embarassment, for now, a real dangerous faux pas if
something of a different nature was on the renegade's mind.  "What were you
doing here, Unit 01? " Maria asked herself, looking strangely at the few
surveilance photos they manage to take before the EVA disappeared again.

A knock came through her door, and the same suspicious man came in.  "Are
you going to leave...so soon?"  Her voice betrayed her enthusiasm.

"This just came in from the UN Council."  He handed a brown Manila envelop
still sealed.  "We are to raise all bases awareness to combat readiness,
level red I pressume."  Maria stared at the man as she quickly tore up the
seal.  She just browsed through the pre-made document, but she was already
told of her new orders.

"Is the comitee expecting anything?"  Maria picked up her phone, soon she'll
be talking to her second in command.

"Yes, " The man opened the door for himself, "Unit 01."  Somehow, the answer
didn't surprise the NERV commander.  "I'll be on my way to the 5th Branch."
The doors closed behind him.

"Shigeru, raise alert level to code red."  Maria took one more look at the
reports she had in her hands, the first time she had ordered a complete
facility report in years.  "Yes, I'm not joking.  Place all Evangelions on
full alert, with two by two parties on patrol."  Maria replaced the
receiver.  A short time later, horns and alarms started sounding off all of
the headquarters of NERV.

=-=-=-=-=

5th Branch of NERV
Arizona desert, US

Asuka found her way inside one of the Evangelion cages, and she was alone
with some of the technical crews.  They didn't seem to notice her slid into
one of the ferry boats, so she quietly rode towards the nearest docked EVA.
She cut off the boat's engine and guided her craft down the centerling of
the EVA, feeling the side of the huge beast inside the dark cage.  She towed
her craft behind the head, searching for a control panel like box.  She
reached the small of the EVA's neck.  "Finally!"  She muttered as she pulled
her craft closer.  The neck had several armor plates nested one over the
other, so Asuka had to reach under the primary armor plate to get to the
control panel she needed.

"Beep.  Beep."

Asuka grimaced, reaching for her communicator in disgust.  She looked
around, but fortunately the tones fell in deaf ears, or she would have beend
caught.  "Damn it!  Who's calling me at this hour?"  Asuka had already
reached the control panel buried underneath several retracting plates when
she finally heard the voice on the line.

"Asuka, are you there?"

"Shinji?  What are you doing?"  Asuka looked at her communicator, about to
blow off a shout at it, but realized her present condition of covertness
just in time.  She whispered.  "Shinji-BAKA, I can't talk right now?"  Asuka
was about to shut her phone permanently when she heard Shinji beg.  "What is
it now?"

"I...I..." His voice was staggared, a bit fearing of dread or so Asuka felt.
"Asuka, I met Rei today..."

"Sheeze, that's the big surprised you're telling me?  We'll take later, Ok."
Asuka reached forward and inserted some sort of keycard into a slot.  Soon
afterwards, a small keyboard like panel uncovered itself.  "I  said we'll
take later, Ok."  She invoked out of the diagnostic programs that were built
into the EVA.

"But, but..."

"Stop butting me, Shinji-kun.  I'm hanging up now."  Asuka reached one of
the menus that was asking for a password that would initiate a specic stored
program.  "I don't care what happened."

"But, but..."

Asuka smiled, realizing she and Shinji were playing hard to get again.  She
always loved it, especially that it was Shinji that preoccupied her.  "Type
in password..."  She muttered to herself, "Yui, Ikari."  A few short beeps
followed shortly and the panel receeded back within the EVA.  "There..."

"She kissed me!"  The words flooded across Asuka's senses, freezing her at
the instant.

"Asuka?  Asuka...click..."  The line went dead, Asuka held the phone down.
Her shocked eyes still staring at the dark outline of her communicator.  Her
breathing was inconsistent, her eyes were dimming, closing, flowing out the
tears she thought she'd never had to bear again.  The phone rang again.

She wiped her eyes clean, she composed herself.  "Yes?"  Hoping it wasn't
Shinji again, but that possibility was far off from her mind.

"Asuka, this is Ritsuko."  Asuka was surprised and elated a bit, hearing her
mentor's voice instead of Shinji's.  Inside of her the opposite was the
same.  Somehow she could flip herself into a full 360 degree turn in mood
swings.  She only wondered how she could get back to her self again, after
hearing those words from Shinji.  "Asuka?  Asuka?"  She realized she wasn't
paying attention.

"Yes, what is it now?  I'm trying to do a misson, here, remember?"  Asuka
took out her special passcard and quickly close the armor panel she had
opened.

"Cancel the misson, Asuka.  We'll be needing those EVANGELIONs after all."

"What?"  A shock fell on Asuka, "I've been training for weeks getting
this....this...grope in the dark technique of yours down to the minute
detail, and now you're telling me that we're not going through with it?"  A
'um' came as the response.  "Thought so....What happened?"

"We'll debrief you later, right now you stay low for a while.  We'll be
returning Maya back very soon.  Certain parameters were changed for the
total mission, so we'll be needing all the help we can get....even from
NERV, and the hundred or more EVANGELIONS around."  Asuka was sorely
disappointed.

"Make that less than one, Ritsuko-san."  Asuka finally shut off her
communicator, a mix of emotions was within her.  She just rowed out of the
purplish waters, quiet and still.  Her thoughts were in chaos and a
goodnight rest would probably help her...get away from it all.  She could
only hope the coming dawn shows her the answer to her troubles.

=-=-=-=-=

End of Chapter

=-=-=-=-=

Please C&C, MST, the works....

This was lost in my HD, now it took me a whole day to find it, and finish
this chapter....so make my Birthday submission a worthwhile one to
remember....

Yes, today is my birthday....Thank God.

=-=-=-=-=

"Keiichi, please.  You do it much better than Asuka does."
"Ok, one last time, Bell."
"Thank you."

"Fly me to the moon..."

Florencio B. de la Merced, Jr.
E-mail: fmerced@pworld.net.ph
Homepage: http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Temple/3641
Member:   FFML   FFIRC   FFML Synopses List Team
Author of some of the most entertaining fanfics of these animes...
Ranma 1/2, Oh My Goddess!, Tenchi Muyo!, El Hazard, Neon Genesis Evangelion
If you don't believe me...who cares? ^_^