- What?! B-but... - Misato was in shock and this is still a very mild definition of her condition.
"Humanity will perish, but at least for my son I want an easy and quick death," my smile grew wider.
"Liar," I said calmly, still not raising my voice, but everyone heard me nonetheless. "Tell me honestly that you want to take away the opportunity to admire your death and thus get the last pleasure in life. However, it doesn't matter," I smiled, a simple, calm and slightly tired smile. "Misato-san, really shoot me, this day has been very difficult, and dying from your hand is not so bad."
A ringing silence settled in the huge Evangelion hangar. Oh, this is not the kind of behavior you all expected from a fourteen-year-old boy, not like this. Misato is the worst of all, she looks at me with open horror, her skin has noticeably turned pale, and sweat has appeared on her forehead, her fingertips are slightly trembling. Akagi has frozen like a stunned statue, her eyes are wide and it is clear that the doctor, as they say, is "not here". Gendo is in shock, a mask of shock has frozen on his face and the Commander has not yet managed to pull himself together.
- B-but Shinji... Why did you come then? - the brunette whispered hesitantly.
"Did I have a choice?" I raised my eyebrows slightly. "Unfortunately, Misato-san, fourteen-year-olds have very few rights, especially when it comes to the wishes of a person like the NERV Commander."
There was an oppressive silence again, Katsuragi hugged herself and nervously crumpled the sides of her jacket, looking at me with a shudder. Akagi looked questioningly and lostly at the Commander, or even through him. And Gendo froze, boring into me with a heavy gaze. The situation returned to what it was a minute ago. But there was no repeated order to shoot me, instead, Ikari Sr. turned to the monitors invisible to us and, pressing something, ordered:
- Fuyutsuki... Wake up Rei! - a pleasant anticipation sucked inside. Ayanami Rei, a little more and I will see her. A calm, elderly voice came from the speakers:
- Can we use it?
- She's not dead.
- Indeed, - it's funny. Of course, the fact that internal negotiations are broadcast to the entire hangar is pure coincidence.
- Reconfigure Eva-01's system to Rei! Begin the restart! - Akagi immediately perked up and began to command, quickly heading in the opposite direction, apparently there was a passage to the command post.
"Shinji..." Misato, still pale and with a confused and frightened expression on her face, took a step towards me.
I chuckled quietly and, peeling myself off the wall, went to Eva. Passing by the frozen girl, I stop in front of the huge head and look into her eyes. Literally thirty seconds later, the door through which Akagi came out opened and two guys in white coats over black suits rolled a wide cot onto the platform in front of Eva. On it lay a petite girl with ash-colored, or no, I was mistaken, still, blue hair, her right eye was covered with a bandage, and her left was ruby-red. Rei was breathing heavily, sweat was running down her face, her right arm was in a cast, her left was simply wrapped in a bandage, and bandages were also peeking out from under the contact suit, by the way, the same white and blue as in the anime. And yet, Gendo is a scumbag. So I believed that she was taken from the hospital, in less than a minute, and the contact suit she was wearing was purely accidental. And of course, our orderlies now all wear strict black suits, dark glasses and the obligatory headset in their ear. The production is so talentless that it makes you want to spit. And most importantly - Rey! She is really in pain and hard, you don't need to have any empathy or compassion to feel it, and these creatures first stuffed her into a contact suit, with several fractures, and then made her wait who knows how long to go on stage, in order to put pressure on me. I bet they didn't even give her an anesthetic, so she would look more pitiful. Freaks!
The rage seemed to be reflected in my eyes, because when the red-eyed girl met my gaze, she noticeably shuddered and quickly looked away.
- Ray, the replacement was useless. All hope is on you - I will kill him, and destroy his soul. Maybe not now, but I will do it.
- Yes... - she began to get up. On her own. These degenerates in white coats, left the wheelchair and went to the exit! I will destroy! Rei desperately clenched her teeth and, closing her eyes in pain, breathing heavily, slowly rose from the bed. Leaning on her broken arm, Ayanami let out a painful groan, but did not stop moving, trying to sit up and lower her legs to the floor. And at that moment, a crash was heard from above.
The building shook. Lighting fixtures fell down. Misato lay down, covering her head, Rei fell to the floor with a scream. I was the only one left standing. And a huge purple hand, having torn out the fastenings, covered me like an umbrella, and at the same time Rei, next to whom I was. Yui, for a moment, cast off sleep and protected her son, and the lack of power supply did not bother her at all.
Gendo's eyes widened in amazement behind his glasses, and Misato, needless to say, simply stared at me and the Eva with her mouth open. Akagi and the "orderlies" were no longer in the hangar, but I have no doubt that the entire command center is now in the same shock as the immediate witnesses, since there are probably surveillance cameras here.
Ignoring them and only casting a thoughtful, slightly interested glance at Eva, I sat down next to Rei. The girl was breathing heavily, no longer trying to get up or open her eyes. Putting my hand on her hot, sweaty forehead, I lightly pressed on her consciousness with the remnants of spiritual energy and she fell into a deep, dreamless sleep. Ayanami was not human, I felt it, her level of spiritual energy was much higher, and she felt almost like Eva, only lighter and softer. But at the same time, there was something in her... Something familiar... Something that made me want to protect and cherish her. Could it be Shinji's feelings? No, they are completely mine and Shinji has nothing to do with them. Hmm, but I really always liked her.
Misato came up from behind.
- Shinji-kun... Do you understand now? We really need you. But if you don't pilot the Eva...
"Who is she?" I coldly interrupted the captain.
- This is Ayanami Rei, the First Child, I told you about her.
- So it's her I look like, - spiritual energy was still spreading from my hand through the girl's body, removing pain and spurring regeneration, her body accepted my energy very willingly and there were practically no losses. - And where are her parents? - I didn't see Misato's face, but I still felt how confused she was. Yes, today was clearly a day rich in impressions for the beautiful captain.
- She has no parents, I am her guardian, - well, I thought I would have to use pliers to extract this information, but here he admitted it himself. Hero. I stood up and looked into Gendo's face.
- And why am I not surprised? So this girl is my half-sister?
- Yes. And if you refuse to pilot, she will sit in Eva.
- While unconscious. And of course, she will easily destroy the Angel, - only an idiot would not notice the irony and mockery in my voice. - What did you do to her that she, even in such a state, tries to follow your orders? - I asked, abruptly changing my tone, now there was only coldness and contempt in my voice.
– Piloting Eva and fighting the Angels is her duty as a pilot.
"It's funny that you started talking about debt, because you yourself don't know anything about it.
"I know more than you, boy!" Gendo growled, losing his self-control for the second time.
"Tell that to Mom when you die. Although I doubt that Hell allows for family visits," I pointedly turned away, looking at the other end of the hangar. A second rumble was heard above, although the building was no longer shaking.
"What do you want?" Gendo angrily broke the silence, clearly overstepping his bounds.
- What can you give me? Certainly not fatherly love, - I met Gendo's gaze again. He had lost. We both knew it. I had not been able to be made to work for nothing and all the psychological blows I had prepared had been useless. Moreover, it was I who had driven him crazy several times and now had forced the conversation to move to another plane. And we were back to the question: What will you do, Gendo?
- We don't have time for this. Tell me, what do you want to get for managing Eve?
- And if I ask for a harem, will you give it to me? - I asked ironically with a slight grin. - However, what difference does it make? No matter what you promise me now, as soon as the battle is over, I will become unnecessary and you will put a bullet in my forehead with a clear conscience. After everything I said today, for sure. Or am I mistaken, sir, Commander, Ikari?
- Shinji, what are you saying?! This is your father! - Misato. And I had already forgotten about her, unforgivable negligence. However, she is very useful.
- This man left me right after my mother died, the last time I saw him was three years ago, and he only called me here because he had no choice. So he is anyone to me, but definitely not my father.
- This is not a reason to condemn all of humanity to destruction!
"Perhaps," I easily agreed, without changing my indifferent tone. "But I'm an egoist and I don't care about humanity. Moreover, as I already said, regardless of my actions now, there's a ninety-five percent chance that I won't live to see tomorrow. In the best case, they'll keep me alive until Ray recovers, and then, again, a bullet in the forehead or an accident. Those in power, they don't like it when their heads are dipped in what always comes up and what they essentially are, especially in front of their subordinates."
Katsuragi gritted her teeth in frustration, knowing full well that I could be more than right, especially after the order that Ikari Sr. had voiced at the beginning of the conversation. Gendo was silent. His knuckles were white, his fists clenched. Rhythmic blows were heard from above - the Angel was persistently pushing down, not too fast, but it was getting on my nerves wonderfully.
- I guarantee that after the operation is completed, I will not take any action against you. And I will not allow anyone else to do this. Also, I will fulfill your demands and give you what you ask for your participation in the operation. Naturally, if your demands are within reasonable limits. Whether to believe me or not is up to you, but if you refuse, you will definitely not get anything, and if you agree, the chances are fifty-fifty.
- Hmm... Okay, - I paused for a moment, looking into Gendo's eyes and collecting my thoughts. - Then I need all the data on Mom's death, I want to know how and why she died. Three million yen for killing the Angel and for you to disappear from my life forever. - Gendo was silent, looking carefully into my eyes.
- That's impossible. There will be other Angels besides this one, and there are too few pilots capable of operating the Eva, so I can't let you go. I need you, Shinji, - now it was my turn to pause.
- As I understand it, you have no objections to the other two points? - Silence. Of course he has objections, but there are no real reasons to refuse. Reasons that I would accept. - Then I want an officer's rank, a salary and the right to own, carry and use weapons.
- If you agree to become a pilot, then in any case, you will automatically receive the rank of junior lieutenant with everything that comes with it, such as privileges and salary.
- I want to be a lieutenant, you'll get a promotion for killing an Angel.
- Okay. Is that all?
- Yes, - and turning his gaze to the door through which Akagi had left, he added: - And get rid of these freaks who abandon a seriously wounded and especially valuable patient during a crisis situation. - I looked into Gendo's eyes again. - After all, there are so few of us pilots, - the man silently turned to an invisible panel and pressed something.
"Doctor Akagi, go to the hangar," and then to me: "They'll explain everything to you now, get ready."
I glanced at the unconscious Rei. Her wheelchair was overturned and lying next to the catwalk leading behind Eva, to where the contact capsule extends. Half a meter away from her lay several fallen lampshades and shards of broken lamps were scattered everywhere. The "orderlies" were in no hurry to return. Approaching the cot, I picked it up and put it in the correct position, after which I returned to Rei and, taking the girl in my arms, laid her in the wheelchair, feeling the Commander's gaze on my back. At that moment, the door finally opened and the doctors from earlier in strict, black suits, under white coats, headed towards Rei, followed by Akagi. Having given the "orderlies" a contemptuous and disgusted look, and also remembering them well, I turned my gaze to Akagi.
- So. Ahem... - the doctor faltered for a moment, meeting my eyes. But she quickly pulled herself together and spoke as if nothing had happened. - Here, Shinji, these are neurocontacts, - she handed me a plastic headband with two white patches of some devices slightly larger than a matchbox, exactly like the ones in Rei's hair, - attach them to your head, otherwise you won't be able to control them, and now let's go.
Rey was taken away, and I was seated in the entry capsule. A short metal tube, a futuristic-looking chair, without any hint of a seat belt, unless you count some V-shaped structure located above the hips and knees. And of course, a primitive control panel with two levers and a minimum of buttons. The hatch, with a slight hiss, closed and the capsule plunged into darkness for a moment, after which the lights came on.
- Right arm secured! - an unknown male voice sounded right in my head. I winced painfully. There was nothing in common with the mind speech I was used to, an extremely crude and clumsy intervention, all the sound from the command post was simply fed directly by an electromagnetic impulse to the brain, and it interpreted it as an audible sound. Disgusting.
- Cooling complete! Everything is ready for docking! - now a female voice, but again unknown. I carefully cut off the negative feelings in my head and put filters, otherwise, at any moment, home-grown enthusiastic scientists would burn something to me.
- Received! Insert the contact capsule! - I felt movement, and then a light click.
- The capsule is secured!
- Fill the capsule... - orange liquid began to flow inside, quickly, and there was a distinct smell of blood. A thought flashed through the back of my mind: "If I drown in blood, no one will understand me." And another old saying: "The most terrible death is from hunger, and the most shameful from gluttony." I swallowed nervously.
- Ahem... - I cleared my throat, and in order to distract myself from nervous thoughts, and also obeying the need to play a role, I said melancholically: - I don't want to distract anyone, but is the orange, blood-smelling liquid in the cabin normal? If not, then I'm going to drown now... - Akagi answered me:
- Don't worry! It's LCL. It will fill your lungs and supply you with oxygen, while reducing the risk of injury due to its greater density than air, and will also allow you to synchronize.
- I see, - when the liquid reached my chin, I exhaled and held my breath. A second, two, three, the LCL closed over my head. A couple more seconds to let my eyes get used to it, but there were no unpleasant sensations, not even a slight sting. And finally, a slow breath through my nose, I'm used to breathing in water. Hmm... Indeed, I can breathe. I sucked some LCL into my mouth and rolled it around on my tongue. And the taste is not so bad, although it's a bit of a pity that the human body cannot fully taste it. And why did all the pilots in the anime grimace? As for me, many of the drinks popular with young people are worse.
The walls of the contact capsule flickered with colored spots and went out, and an unfamiliar female voice sounded in my head again:
- Power is connected! All systems are working properly!
- Shinji, can you hear me? - Akagi's voice rang out. - I'm speaking to you via a thought link. To answer, clearly pronounce the phrase to yourself, - otherwise I didn't notice, although, in principle, I could, with their communication system it is difficult for an ordinary person to determine where he hears a sound from, or rather he will be sure that he hears with his ears.
- I hear.
- Okay, now relax, - and without any transition: - Start the synchronization procedure!
- Yes! Connection to nerve A-10 is in working order! First contact was successful!
- Opening bidirectional contours!
I leaned back in the cradle and closed my eyes. I had to adjust my consciousness and energy shell to the Eva, and of course disguise myself as Shinji, although that was the easiest thing to do, I had been doing that since I got into his body. And he himself was present, even if he was not active.
– Let's proceed to the second stage of synchronization. Set the interface language to Japanese!
The capsule walls were painted with an intense, rainbow glow, a second and it was replaced by a picture of the hangar, coming straight from Eva's eyes. A wave of tremors rolled through my body. A moment of disorientation and I felt the entire body of Evangelion as a part of myself. How much power is hidden in it... So much spiritual energy... Amazing! This pathetic Angel doesn't even come close. And Eva's Core isn't even active... It's just hard to get to this power, Yui's personal participation is needed, but never mind, I'll manage somehow.
"Unbelievable..." Akagi's shocked voice reached me.
- The contact was normal... - another female voice. - All neural connections were successfully established. The pilot made normal contact with Evangelion-01. Synchronization level is 72%. All harmonics are normal. Incredible... - she finished, equally shocked.
- Eva-01, preparing for launch! - Oh, and here comes Misato.
– Removing the first locking pins!
- Done! Shifting the central bridge! - the platform, in front of Eva, began to move away.
– Removing the first and second limiters!
– Remove fuses one through fifteen!
- Internal power supply is fully charged! Connection to external power supply is normal!
- Move Eva-01 to the launch pad! Gate number five! - Eva jerked, and then began to move, backwards. About twenty seconds of movement and I felt the biomechanoid's body being secured again.
- The mine is free! Preparations for launch are complete!
– LAUNCH!
"Misato, why are you yelling like that?... But they never asked about my readiness, and there was no briefing either..." I thought distantly, while my body was being pressed into the cradle by inertia. "And the fact that there are no seat belts here is an omission... A serious omission." I mentally noted, a little less distantly, rubbing the top of my head, which had crashed into the ceiling of the entry capsule when the Eva suddenly stopped. If I hadn't grabbed the control handles, the chance of the pilot dying, even before the battle, would have been very real.
There was no retractable box imitating a building the size of Eva in the space I could see. Eva-01 was on the same platform it was attached to in the hangar, with futuristic-looking darkened buildings rising on both sides. Apparently, they couldn't hide underground, which means I'm a little away from the Geofront, well, at least that's good, because I remember in canon they were smart enough to put Eva right in front of the Angel. Although, it's more likely that the Angel went further, since I was breaking down much longer than the original Shinji. A nearby explosion was heard, the earth shook. Yes, it looks like that's it.
- Remove the last fuses! Release Eva-01! - Misato seemed agitated, there was obvious nervousness in the voice with which she gave orders. Funny, she wasn't that nervous under the N2 bomb. The fastenings behind my back clicked and I felt freedom. - Shinji, are you ready?
"It's funny that you're asking about this only now," I responded with cold laziness. Misato, in response, muttered something under her breath. "By the way, Dr. Akagi, make a note to install safety belts here, otherwise you risk losing all the pilots before the battle, using this lift. For example, I almost cracked my head and that's despite the fact that I held on pretty tightly."
"Okay, we'll take that into account," Akagi, unlike Misato, maintained her outward calm and answered in a more than confident voice. "Now, Shinji-kun, concentrate. Imagine that you're walking, you have to imagine the process itself."
- So? - I took a step, causing the cars on the ground to jump slightly and leaving a dent in the asphalt. Controlling the body of Evangelion was fun, something similar to what you experience when you remotely take control of golems or some undead. Although the sensations are still different, more pleasant or something. Still, I wonder how they managed to achieve such an effect?
Joyful and surprised exclamations were heard from the command post, such as: "He's coming!", "He did it!", "Incredible!"
– Judging by your exclamations, everything is correct.
- Uh... Yes! Well done, Shinji-kun, - Akagi quickly pulled herself together, although I had clearly heard her voice among the others before. - The angel is to your left, about seven hundred meters away...
- Sorry for interrupting, but maybe you could give me a briefing? Or should I just run and kill the Angel? By the way, a weapon wouldn't hurt either, at least a knife or something similar, - Akagi was confused, this was clearly audible in the silence that followed for a couple of seconds.
- Yes, sorry. The angel has...
"I saw the Angel's capabilities, I'm interested in this robot," Akagi clearly gritted her teeth, clearly angry that I interrupted her again.
– Evangelion has approximately the same abilities as Angel, that is, it can generate an AT field, this is a shield that protects Angel from attacks and, accordingly, Eva can neutralize Angel's field. You have a knife, it is in the left pylon, on the shoulder, if you want to get it, just wish, just as you took a step. Unfortunately, there are no other weapons. Be sure to watch the power cable that is attached to your back and do not let it get damaged, otherwise Eva will only have enough energy for five minutes of combat. Otherwise, Evangelion is actually a large man with good armor, so you will have to destroy Angel hand-to-hand. And yes, theoretically, you will feel all the wounds received by Eva, but do not be afraid, these will only be phantom pains, you yourself will not suffer. Unfortunately, we can not say anything about the vulnerable spots of the Angel, so you will have to look for them yourself, although presumably they can be a mask and a ball in the center of the body.
- I see, - a mental command and the tall, thin shoulder pad opens like an envelope, a rough knife handle comes out of it. I pull it out with my right hand, feeling how it softly comes out of the clamps. On the handle there is a button in the form of a protrusion, pressing it I watch how the blade begins to glow slightly and tremble. I stretch my shoulders a little, turn my head, squat slightly and move my hands, finally getting used to the controls and relaxing, after which I headed in the direction from where rhythmic blows and muffled explosions were coming.
- ...Synchronization 76% and growing! - a female voice came from the bridge. I smiled slightly and quickened my pace.
So, here he is. He stands with his back to me and with both hands he pounds the ground with retractable, shining, purple spears, generating an energy strike every few seconds, producing an explosion. The AT field is active, now, thanks to Eve, I can feel it very clearly, and it also protects the Angel from his own strikes. But still, it was not in vain that I came here, the first time I see such a shield based on spiritual energy, an interesting configuration, universal and practical. Although in this case it is somewhat amorphous, it is clear that the structure is not complete, if he were an ordinary spirit mage, I would say that he lacks experience and energy, but here something else. It is a pity there is no time to figure it out, and you can't get into his mind, it is generally unclear what this Angel is, something like an artificially created construct, a kind of chimera with a built-in behavior program. Well, yes, that was clear anyway, but his soul... Damn, I can't. Eve does not have the ability to see souls.
When I was about three hundred meters away, he froze and turned to me. Misato's worried voice came from the headquarters, for some reason demanding that I be careful. We stand and wait. We look at each other. The Angel doesn't move, and I'm in no hurry either. Upon closer inspection, it turned out that the Angel has more than one mask, although I clearly remember that it used to be different. Now, the one that was made in the form of a bird's skull is folded to the side and looks to the right and up, and underneath it is another one, almost perfectly round, slightly narrowed towards the bottom and with a vertical hump in the middle, well, and with two round eye holes, where would we be without them.
Suddenly, the Angel is enveloped in a familiar golden glow, sharply soars into the air and lands right in front of me. Flash. A powerful stream of destructive energy rushes from the mask towards me, much stronger than those he used to pierce armor plates. They are shouting something at headquarters, but I do not pay attention. I managed to deploy my own AT-field, it was easy, it feels like the entire energy structure of Eve is tuned specifically to work with it, but I will hardly be able to repeat the Angel's beam. The beam crashed into an invisible wall. Explosion. We are thrown in different directions, a wave of heat and pain rolled through the body, after all, the AT-field could not absorb all the impact power, and the Angel got it too.
Damn cable! It's in the way! Angel manages to get up first and rushes towards me, raising his right hand. I manage to slightly saturate Eve's muscles with spiritual energy and block the blow... He's a weakling! Holding the hand is no problem at all, and I barely poured in any. He hits with his left, I rise sharply and fix it with my elbow, pressing it to myself. In response, Angel's hands swell, building up muscles... Idiot. It became a little more difficult to hold, but not much, it would have been much worse if he had spent the same amount of energy on strengthening, and not on a stupid increase in volume. I increase the pressure with my elbow, turn it a little and hear a crunch, immediately release and thrust the knife under the upper mask, the one with the beak. The knife rips open Angel's flesh, and the upper mask falls to the asphalt. The eye sockets of the second one flash and I am thrown back as if by a hammer. The chest is burned, in the center there is a large melted dent, the metal of the armor is flowing. On the edge of consciousness I notice that in the corner the timer has turned on counting down five minutes, which means the cable is damaged, I get up and give Eve the command to shoot it off. They are shouting something at headquarters, a female voice reports synchronization at 80%. I roll away from the second explosion, my side is burning, my right arm is broken, but it seems not torn off. I wonder, before he could not shoot so often, and most importantly powerfully, or is it because he turned off the AT-field? Although it does not matter. Okay, and now the main action of this production. I quickly reduce the distance to the Angel and rip open his side with a knife, his flesh is soft, there is practically no resistance. The wound heals almost immediately, and most importantly he "manages" to grab my head. Got it! Well, now it will hurt, I will have to endure a little. Strike! With difficulty I suppress the reflexive desire to break his arm. Another blow. The third. I've already cut off all my own pain receptors, but the signals from Eva are still coming in and I can't ignore them, otherwise the synchronization will be broken. The LCL, before my eyes, started to darken, so much for phantom pains, Doctor Akagi. Damn, they have good armor after all... IMPACT! My eyes darkened, Eva was thrown back, a long purple spear goes from the Angel's hand to her head. The skull is pierced. That's it. We're cutting off communication with headquarters, our pilot has lost consciousness and won't remember anything further. And now... "Sorry Yui, but you'll have to get some sleep."