On 6/23/99 at 1:43 AM, rpm@thekeep.org (Rod M) wrote:
BETA - comments welcome
http://www.uh.edu/~rpm/eva
-*-
It was the usual piano bar that she and Ritsuko met
at, but tonight Misato was alone. Ritsuko was busy that
night, though Misato did have the option of being with Kaji.
Ha!
Lyra: Heh. Can't blame her.
Frito: Hey, ain't ya gonna tell 'em where we've been and how we're back?
<Leans back in his seat and pulls over his barrel of warehouse-variety
popcorn.>
Windir: Frito, if our 'esteemed' producer can perhaps find it in himself
to actually *finish* the review which we were undertaking, and which has
rested uncomfortably in limbo ere the passing of the year, such issues
will indeed be revealed to our audience. <Straightens his velvet smoking
jacket.> In the meantime, surely you would not wish any impediment upon
our producer, that well might leave us in limbo yet again?
Frito: Um... right.
o/~ We've got stars directing our fate o/~
o/~ And we're praying it's not too late o/~
o/~ Cos we know we're falling from grace o/~
o/~ Millennium o/~
Misato blinked. Something was nagging her,
something about that song...
Lyra: I have to admit, something usually nags me when I read songs in
prose stories; I always try to fit 'em to some kind of melody, usually
can't find one, and end up skimming the whole thing when i can't sing it
in my head.
Frito: Awww, it ain't dat hard! o/~ Ta dreeaaaammmmm... da impossible
dreeaaaammmmmm... o/~
Windir: Enough. <Stuffs a rubber ball in Frito's mouth and wraps a gag
around his jaw.> While one is hesitant to award the status of true Art
to any vocal work short of the great Verdi and compatriots, as performed
by Pavarotti, surely your singing falls very near the nadir of the
pantheon.
Lyra: Thanks.
Windir: Trust me. It gets worse. Pray that he never coerces you into
that horrible assault on the ears known as a 'lounge tour.' <Shudders>
Lyra: I do wonder, though, if the song's original or borrowed. It sounds
half-familiar, like it's something I should know.
Windir: Suggestive lyrics, to be sure.
Misato's brow wrinkled as she turned to see who was
on the piano. A rather ordinary lounge piano man sat, oddly
general in his physical appearance but with a hint of
perhaps middle eastern lineage in his features, casually
playing his song.
Windir: Awkward.
Frito: <Ripping off the gag> Takes one ta know one!
Windir: Hush. If you have nothing more cognizant than juvenile taunting
to contribute, pray spare us, and the rest of the audience, the burden
of listening.
Frito: Alright, so ya want meaning? Howzabout you try sayin' what's so
awkward about it, or give 'em something better?
Windir: ...
Lyra: Hm. How about 'A rather ordinary lounge player -- in fact, he
looked almost uncannily normal, though a hint of middle-eastern lineage
showed in his features -- sat playing his song.' Cuts out a lot of the
awkward qualifiers, and cleanly sets off the main descriptive bit.
Frito: Ain't bad.
Windir: I should hope not.
As the piano player ended his song, he paused a
moment and looked at her. Misato suddenly felt lightheaded,
a little dizzy, as she stared into his eyes, and she could
swear that she saw the stars in them.
With a playful grin, he winked at Misato, then left.
For a moment, Misato stared at the empty piano
chair, mental gears grinding. She had that _feeling_, like
something in the universe was trying to tell her of grander
things, or something like that.
Nah.
Frito: Ya think that ain't gonna come back ta haunt 'er?
Windir: In a competently-plotted story, one might certainly expect so;
do remember Chekov's dictum. To be sure, given both the nature of the
series being portrayed, and the nature of the authors, one might expect
such an event to be subtle, long-delayed, or both.
Frito: In other words, don't get yer hopes up dis ep. Sheesh.
As Misato watched the bartender mix her drink, she
asked, "Hey, who was the guy at the piano?"
"New guy we hired as a temp while Akio's on
vacation. Neil O'Tip, he calls himself."
"Neil O'Tip? The guy doesn't look Irish."
Lyra: Urgle. That one's worthy of you, Frito.
Frito: Hey, even *I* ain't gonna be touchin' nothin' like that with no
10-foot pole!
Windir: In any event, even those residual cretins who prefer to read at
your level would surely realize at this point that Things Are Not As
They Seem. Such a false name practically cries of a false identity, even
to those who share my good fortune in being completely unfamiliar with
the depraved works of Lovecraft and his sycophants.
Lyra: Um, Windy, it's not really polite to refer to someone's favorite
author/shared universe like that, especially if he doesn't deserve it --
Windir: And you can say this out of certain knowledge, having read the
canon despite your oft-mentioned aversion to horrific fiction?
Lyra: <rueful grin> You got me there.
As the bartender resumed mixing her drink, Misato
found herself humming the tune, then singing it quietly.
o/~ We've got stars directing our fate o/~
o/~ And we're praying it's not too late o/~
o/~ Cos we know we're falling from grace o/~
o/~ Millennium o/~
She had to admit, it was an awfully catchy tune.
Lyra: I don't like the looks of this...
John Biles & Rod M. Present
A Neon Genesis Evangelion Elseworlds
Children of an Elder God
Part 9
The King in Yellow
Windir: And at last we reach the title of our current segment.
Lyra: Hm. <Taps chin> That title sounds familiar... Frito, haven't you
read some of Lovecraft's stuff?
Frito: Well, nah, but I've heard a little bit 'bout it; I don't think
this is gonna be good, uh-uh, no way.
Namura-sensei whistled merrily as he walked through
the library, thumbing through the many volumes.
Windir: Is this, perhaps, the homeroom teacher of Shinji's class? I
admit, the name is familiar, but the mental image of that older and
rather stultifying personage 'whistling merrily' is --
Frito: Yeah, yah, it's bloody 'incongruous', now can't ya say it so's us
regular folk can understand it? Like, ain't no way a dried-up old stick
like that is gonna walk along whistlin'?
Lyra: Well, John and Rod have already dragged in cameos from other anime
series; he probably isn't the teacher from Eva. Sure wish I could
remember where he's from, though.
Romeo and Juliet had been done far too many times,
even though it was a classic. Shakespeare in general was
becoming a bit overexposed, he thought.
Frito: Hah! Overexposed? Ya ain't seen Shakespeare overexposed 'till
you've been to da Bazooka's version a' Tamin' of the Shrew...
Lyra: Um... I think I'll pass.
Frito: Hey, even Windy liked it!
Lyra: <eyebrows rising> Windir?
Gendo frowned at the report. Those fools in the UN hadn't
been able to stop a group of terrorists from making off with an
N2 bomb. To make matters worse, several of the bomb's guards
Windir: I think 'several of the guards' is nicely sufficient; given that
we were just discussing the theft of a bomb, 'guards' can safely be
assumed to refer to those guarding the bomb. As it stands, the sentence
is rather complicated and could stand a certain reduction in verbiage.
Frito snickers.
That could mean only one thing. He wished. At least
seven different groups were capable of doing that to someone,
and likely more if some damn fool had put the Pnakotic
Manuscripts on-line again.
Lyra: Heh. I *like* this. Nice reversal of the usual expectations.
Frito: Yah, but da 'He wished' part don't sound right. It ain't like
Gendo.
Windir: You mean that it bears a suspiciously remarkable resemblance to
your normal mode of speech?
Lyra: Well, I suppose a sarcastic 'Right.' instead of the slangy 'He
wished.' would be better. The slang is kinda distracting.
There were, however, other factors which inclined him to
believe that the same fools behind the Cherubim attack were
behind this attack. First of all, they were on his short list of
'people who can reduce guards to orange slime' list. Secondly,
it fit with the recent attempt to steal Stonehenge. Why the
fools didn't just buy some concrete and make some molds...he
didn't know. Then again, crazed cultists aren't noted for being
very smart. And finally, it was time. The prophecies indicated
their master would strike soon.
Lyra: 'Then again, crazed cultists...' is really a side note; it ought
to be set off in parentheses, or something.
"I hate hate hate hate hate research papers," said
Touji again, just to make the point clear. The pair reached
a table where Kensuke sat, Touji slumping into his seat,
Shinji spilling the load of books clumsily as he sat down.
Lyra: The last sentence needs work: 'The pair reached a table where
Kensuke was sitting and stopped, Touji slumping into a chair, Shinji
clumsily spilling the load of books as he sat down.'
"I hate hate hate hey... what'cha lookin' at?" asked
Touji. He peered over at the five books spread out in front
of Kensuke, along with the scattered notecards, one of which
Kensuke was currently scribbling on. One of the books
Lyra: Gah. 'He peered over at the five books spread out in front of
Kensuke; a bunch of notecards were scattered around them, and Kensuke
was scribbling on another card to add to the pile.'
Windir: Hardly perfect, but a significant improvement on the original --
Frito: Hey, it ain't like we got lotsa time ta be Mr. Perfection here;
this thing is more'n a hundred K, ya know?
"The official story was that it was a raid on
bootleggers, but this guy who wrote this was one of the
soldiers on the raid and he published this book about what
really happened. They found an underwater city of fish-men
and blew it up!"
"Uh huh," Touji said. "I suppose the Creature from
the Black Lagoon was ruling it."
Shinji listened. It was probably just a silly
story, but after seeing Mu, he had to admit there might be
some truth to it. "Does he have any pictures of the city?"
Windir: Hmmm, yes. One might have wondered why, given the fact that
these documents apparently do exist in the world of the story, our
Children have not made connections between said publically-available
material and their prior exploits; it is gratifying to see such a
connection finally drawn.
Asuka snorted. "The Creature from the Black Lagoon
was leading the fishmen, eh?"
Shinji blinked. "That's just what Touji said."
Touji and Asuka stared blankly at each other, then
turned to Kensuke. "You're nuts."
Lyra: Heh.
Winder: Eh?
Frito: Huh?
Lyra: <Grins evilly> Sounds a lot like you two. Though they really
should do that last comment in stereo for best effect...
The doctor sighed. All these years, and all the
training they'd given her, they always thought of her as a
pilot, and never as a person. As a result, nobody had ever
prepared her for things like this.
Windir: The second sentence above does not particularly make sense from
a grammatical standpoint. An alternate phrasing might be, 'In all these
years, and all the training they'd given her, they'd always thought of
her as a pilot and never a person.'
Frito: Are ya gonna nitpick every little stinkin' grammar error in dis
thing, Windy? If dat's what you're gonna do, I'm outa here. <Stands up>
Lyra: Sit DOWN. We aren't finished, not by any stretch of the
imagination.
Windir: Indeed. And I must point out that we are hardly planning on
correcting every minor typographical error; merely the more egregious
mechanical errors.
"As Maya said, you are not to kill anyone. Check in
with Maya every other day, make arrangements with her on
what time. And..."
And what?
Ritsuko felt there should be something more, but she
was absolutely clueless what that would be.
"... and that's it."
Lyra: Well, given her history, that's hardly surprising. <wry g> Nice
point.
Tired from the day, Shinji had went to bed intending
to skip the usual 'dream training' that he'd been undergoing
lately.
What dreams may come, let them be.
Lyra: A challenge?
Frito: Ya just *know* them spiders are gonna come out and eat his brain
now -- can we see it? Huh? Huh? Can we?
Windir: Fortunately for us all, the authors have shown considerably more
taste than you customarily exhibit.
Lyra: In other words... <grins> No, this isn't going to turn into Attack
of the Mutant Ninja Sex-Kittens From NERV, Frito.
Frito: Waaah! Why ain't it gonna? I mean, he's da guy who wrote Lemon
Sherbet, and *he's* da guy who created Ryo Muhoshin... I mean, what more
could ya ask for! <Pouts> You guys ain't no fun. When we gonna get more
blood 'n guts?
Windir: <Sighs> Given some of the events in prior episodes, I have
little doubt that such will be forthcoming. Unfortunately.
As Shinji's eyes opened in the dreaming, a single
pink cherry blossom floated down before him.
A breeze blew, and suddenly the air was filled with
the sight of endless cherry blossoms swirling in a perfect
blue sky.
He finally regained enough presence of mind to look
around, and found himself in a forest full of cherry trees.
The air around him was fresh and cool, and the breeze had
calmed to a gentle sigh.
Lyra: <Smiles> And you do know what cherry blossoms signify, mmmm?
Windir: Er... no. Perhaps it has simply slipped my mind... <embarrassed
look>
Lyra: What, and you the expert on symbolism in Art? <Grins wickedly> Or
perhaps you're just suppressing it, ne?
Windir: I do not know *what* you are referring to.
Frito: Yah, yah, it's romance and all dat lovey-dovey stuff. When are we
gonna get some nookie? Or hey, how 'bout at least some fan service? Ya
gotta dream sequence, howsabout showin' her naked? Huh?
"Oh, um, Springtime Cherry Blossoms?"
Rei nodded again.
"I... wish to understand people," said Rei. "To
understand you."
Lyra: 'she said' I think would work better than 'said Rei'; you just
gave her name in the sentence above.
Frito: Brother, get yer butt outa there! When some lady starts wantin'
ta 'understand' ya, she's got somethin' on her mind -- if you ain't gone
you're gonna be wearin' dem leg chains before too long!
Lyra: Oh, grow up. Maybe a little fresh air will cool you down? Boot to
the head!
Frito: Hey, but it's rainin' out -- <THUD> Ahhhhhhhh! <Crash> <thud>
<tinkle>
Windir: <dubious look> Well, if he is going to bring the smell of wet
garments back inside with him, perhaps he will at least be cleaner.
Lyra: The way it's raining out there? It'd be hard not to.
"Oh." Shinji blinked. "So... what do we do now?"
Rei shrugged. Seemed it was up to Shinji to take
the initiative, something entirely alien to him.
Lyra: Another nice point. It's *exactly* what he'd do. <smiles>
"Why do you want to know me?"
"Because," she said again, her voice still a soft
whisper. "I wish to be with you."
Having a girl express such intense desire for him
was something entirely alien to Shinji.
Frito: <from a distance> Ha! Ya call *dat* intense desire? <schlop,
schlop> I mean, yah, it's Rei and all, but where's da 'tryin' ta mold
her body to his' bit? <SQUELORCH>
Frito shakes himself as he plops back into his seat.
Lyra: Hey!
Frito: I hope you're satisfied.
His first reaction
was to run away, but it only held sway for a moment. He
couldn't run anyway, with Rei latched unto his arm like
that.
Windir: Heh.
Then again, was it so bad having Rei feel that way?
Thinking it over, Shinji realized it might not be such a bad
thing, no.
Wait, this was just a dream.
It didn't matter anyway.
Lyra: So you think. <evil grin> Did your father tell you about the
brainwave monitors he installed in Rei's quarters?
The girl looked uncertain again, taking a look at
her surroundings. "In the movie," she said slowly, as if
thinking about every word, "I did not understand."
Shinji blinked. "Didn't understand?"
Rei nodded. "This," she said, and Shinji realized
she was slowly moving her lips to his for a kiss.
"Rei..."
"WAAAAAAAAAAAKE UUUUUUUUUUUP DUMMMMKOOOOOOOOOOOOPF!!!"
"Yaaaagh!"
Lyra: Hah!
Frito: Good'un! You GO, Asuka! Now just lean over a little more in dat
cute nighty of yours...
Lyra: Are you looking for another bath? <raised eyebrow>
Frito: Alright, alright, sheesh. Between you and Wind-bag it's like
havin' Jerry Falwell lookin' over yer shoulder. <Looks up at the screen>
Oh, and ya need a blank line 'tween Shinji and Rei's statements, ya
know?
Asuka's commanding, booming voice jolted him
further into alertness. "C'mon, we're gonna be late!"
Windir: 'jolted him further into alertness'? Dear Ghu. Perhaps 'brought
him to full alert with a jolt'?
"He's rude as hell! He may care about his sister,
but not anyone else!"
Hikari's eyes narrowed. "I haven't exactly seen you
feeding the hungry."
Lyra: Um. Interesting comeback. Um.
This time, Asuka picked the wrong battle to fight,
or so Touji thought.
Windir: Is this intended to represent Touji's inner thoughts at one
remove, or a narratorial interjection? As written, it would suggest the
latter, but the next paragraph sounds rather more like the former.
With grim determination, he strode through the
school's halls, basketball in hand, shoes laced up tight.
The German kraut-eating bitch clashed with him again today,
and it ended with her challenging him to a one-on-one game
of basketball.
Lyra: Um... 'had clashed', I think.
HA!
Touji Suzuhara, star of the basketball team, beaten
in a one-on-one game? Never happened before, wasn't gonna
happen now.
Frito: Yah, bro! Dat's tellin' 'er! Go for it!
Lyra: Weren't you just cheering her on?
Frito: Look, she's a babe, right? But ain't no way she's gonna act all
high-and-mighty on no basketball court, got it?
HAHA!
Oh yeah, this time she picked the wrong battlefield.
"Touji?"
He was gonna crush her to the ground, lay down some
thunderous dunks, he-
"Suzuhara!"
Touji's line of thought came to a crashing halt as
he suddenly found himself facing Hikari.
Lyra: Whoops! Hehehe.
"Um, wha, er, hey," he managed to say. "Aheh, did I
do something wrong again?"
Lyra: Ah, the old deer-in-the-headlights look. <smiles> How appropriate.
"Er, no," said Hikari. "I just... I..."
"Um, Hikari, you okay?" asked Touji.
"Er, I just... doyouwanttogoonadatewithme?"
Touji blinked.
"Date?"
Hikari blushed deeply, fidgeting in place, and
nodded.
Frito: Whoo, I can feel dat from here! <Holds out arms> Nice rays.
With an extra spring in her step, Hikari skipped
away. The grin on her face was hard to ignore. Meanwhile,
Touji was still a bit dazed, uncertain about exactly what
had just happened.
He apparently had a date.
With Hikari.
That was cool.
Er.
Yeah, that was cool.
Lyra: Nice sequence. Captures him very well, I think.
He idly dribbled the basketball as he walked down
the hallway, wondering exactly what it was he was going to
do...
Windir: 'he had been going to do', if one may ignore the barbaric way in
which 'go' has been abused.
"Your men ready to move?" asked Misato.
//"Ye- com---der."//
"Take prisoners if you can, but the priority is
recovering the N2-"
"Wait," echoed Gendo's voice from above. "Do we
have the codes?"
"Codes?" asked Misato.
"I believe we do," replied Fuyutsuki.
Gendo nodded. "Captain, have the team clear out.
Send the detonation codes in five minutes. There will be no
prisoners."
Misato looked up at her boss, stunned. "S-sir?"
"There are to be no survivors," said Gendo calmly.
Lyra: <Shudder> Just when I think he can't get any more ruthless...
Frito: Dis Gendo is a real cold fish. Yah, yah, I know, so's da real
one, but dis guy really takes da cream puff.
"Bravo team, what's happening?!" yelled Misato.
//"---re under at---k! I can't s-- --em!"//
//"G--E OVER, -AN! GA-- --ER! -HIT!"//
Lyra stares at the letters for a moment, muttering to herself, until she
smacks herself in the forhead.
Lyra: Bad. Baaaaad. <sticks out her tongue at the screen>
"Good," said Gendo, rising from his chair. "The
mission is a success. Those fools who worship Baraquiel
won't unleash him that way. Fuyutsuki and I will be on our
way to Antarctica. I'll trust you to keep things in order."
"Yes sir."
And with that, Gendo and Fuyutsuki left the room.
Misato sighed. "If it's a success, why do I feel so
shitty?"
"It's not your fault," said Makoto. "We're in a
war, there's going to be casualties."
"Yeah, I know," said Misato, not sounding any
happier. "I know."
"At least," said Maya, "it didn't end like the last
mission."
Aoba shuddered. "Orange goo."
Windir: It is interesting to see this look at NERV and its missions,
outside of the activities of the Evas and their pilots. The original
series concentrated on fighting Angels with Evas, which is
understandable given that Angels were the major threats and could only
be defeated with Evas; this variant of the war apparently has a much
broader scale, and can be fought on many levels; given this, it is
appropriate to see such a departure from the canon, where we can see
NERV conducting missions without the pilots.
Frito: Um, yeah. Riiiight. If you say so.
Lyra: Well, it *is* nice to see the folks in the control room able to
show their stuff without having the Children being involved and drawing
the attention to themselves.
She laughed, then sighed. "Okay, I guess," she
said. "I'll be okay. I'll find something to do tonight.
Maybe whoop Shinji at one of my wargames or something. I'll
be okay, really."
Then she heard a woman's voice faintly over the
line. "Kaji, who are you talking to? We need to get
going!"
Asuka felt the bottom of her heart plunge towards
her feet.
"Gotta go, liebchen. Talk to you later!" He hung
up.
He...he's with another woman, Asuka thought. She
struggled to keep her face calm; Shinji was watching her.
Still, her body trembled and it was an extreme struggle to
keep whatever shards of dignity she had left. He...wouldn't
even tell me, she thought. I never thought he'd start
hiding things from me.
She quietly hung up and drifted away from the phone.
There were no tears until she was safely hidden in her room.
Lyra: All right, so *this* is contrived...
Frito: Huh?
Windir: One must admit that it was a remarkably convenient event, having
the woman utter such an incriminating phrase just at the moment when
Asuka would be most disillusioned...
Lyra: Well, it's not *that* bad, really. I mean, it's not that
unreasonable for one of Kaji's co-workers to come in if he's supposed to
be working on a project, and Asuka's reaction really isn't that
overblown for her, really... It's just that it seems a little too
convenient for it to happen just like that.
Kaji sighed. Kid's gonna get the wrong idea. Not
that she doesn't need to move on to someone her own age,
but...I wonder if Misato taught her the 'I'm okay, don't
mind me, but really you need to baste in your own guilt'
thing.
Lyra: Heh. Hmmm... I wonder if she gives open lessons?
Windir: <Shudder> I think... that is hardly necessary, n'est-ce pas?
"Done talking to your little friend?" Dr. Phelps
asked sweetly, with only the tiniest bit of acid in her
voice as she put the pile of documents down on his desk.
"Or would you like to keep me stuck here a while longer
while you call all your preadolescent girlfriends?"
"Asuka is hardly preadolescent."
"Speaking from experience?"
Lyra: Heh. Past coming back to haunt you, Kaji?
Asuka wasn't the sort of person who moped in his
experience. He didn't like to see her moping, although he
couldn't have explained clearly why.
Lyra: Oh, *you'll* find out. <grins evilly>
Frito: Hey, Shinji! Jellyfish-boy! Get a hold of yerself, buddy! You
ain't gonna wanna get there, trust me!
It stirred him from his
homework when he couldn't take it anymore. Cheering others
up was something that was entirely alien to Shinji, but he
guessed that some upbeat music would perk her up.
Unfortunately, he didn't HAVE any cheery CDs.
Frito: Cheery DAT's, I think ya mean; he don't have a CD player. Might
be a Minidisc player, but I think it's a DAT.
His sheet music collection, on the other hand, did
have some uplifting selections. While the cello is not the
world's most chipper instrument, it's not the saddest
either. He found a polka and started to play it. Hearing
the music, Pen Pen began to prance about the room, which
Shinji couldn't help but laugh at, if only a little.
Windir: 'Hearing the music, Pen Pen began to prance around the room;
Shinji couldn't help but laugh, if only a little.'
Asuka looked up from playing 'I Crush Your Head' on
her Sega Octopus game machine. "..."
"Am I doing this right?" Shinji asked. "I haven't
played this piece in a while."
Asuka stared at Pen Pen. "He's trying to..."
"I know I don't have an accordion, which is what I
really need, but..." Shinji said sheepishly. "Or sausages.
And it's not October yet, but..."
"Are you trying to cheer me up?" She asked. "Or
have you gone mad?"
"Er, yes?" he answered.
Lyra: <Snerch>
Windir: Heh.
Frito: Hey, he's tryin' ta cheer up *Asuka*; whatta *you* think?
Lyra: Oh, minor note -- should be "'Are you trying to cheer me up?' she
asked."
"Well, if we're going to polka..." She got up and
sprinted to her room, then returned with a CD. "Let's do
this right." She put it in the CD player, and a properly
done polka started up. She came over to Shinji. "Lose the
cello."
He blinked. "What?"
"I'm gonna teach you to polka."
Beginning to sweat, he said, "Urr...I'm not much of
a dancer."
"You can learn." She stared at him intently. "You
WILL learn."
"..."
Frito: RUN, Jellyfish-boy! Don't let 'er take ya alive!
"Okay," said Asuka, "step over here."
"Okaaay..."
"Now put your right arm around me," commanded Asuka.
"Um, like this?" he asked, moving his arm around her
side uneasily.
Asuka noticed his discomfort and smirked. "We're
dancing, not dating, so take it easy. Besides, I only have
eyes for Kaji," she said in mock tease with a grin.
Frito: Yah, like I've heard *dat* one before; don't trust 'er!
He held his right arm out to the side, and a moment
later Asuka extended her own arm and entwined his fingers
with hers.
Asuka frowned. Shinji was a sweaty-palms type.
Lyra: I can't say I'm surprised. Too bad.
"Yeah. That must be it," Asuka said, sounding
distracted. "Helping him do the reports. Of course." She
sighed. "Have you ever been dumped, Shinji?"
"I've never had a girlfriend."
She nodded. "Well, once I root out your secret
admirer, you will have one."
"It could be someone playing a joke on me," he said
faintly. "Happened to me once last year, with a valentine's
day card."
"That's AWFUL! If it's someone just toying with
you, I'll...I'll make them regret it." Her voice was grim
for a moment. "Toying with people is just WRONG. If Kaji's
been just toying with me..." she growled.
Lyra: Hmmm. Just angry about being toyed with in general, or being
protective of Shinji for other reasons?
Windir: Surely it is obvious that she holds romantic feelings for him?
Note the gradual softening of her attitude towards him, her increasingly
frequent protective impulses --
Frito: Romantic my a**! She's just goin' after 'im ta mess with 'im,
suck 'im in, then chew 'im up and spit 'im out! Ya think she actually
*likes* Jellyfish-boy, there?
Windir: I must admit, I find myself surprised by the position you
espouse, Frito. By arguing that Asuka is motivated by possesive
instincts, and has no romantic interest in him, you suggest she is
adopting the same attitude she has just proclaimed that she despises.
While I can certainly grant that you are intimately familiar with that
attitude, from personal experience, and thus might have a certain edge
in detecting it --
Frito: WHAT!?! Ya think *I* like toying with people? Why, you
self-righteous, stuck-up... <Blue aura> BOOT TA THE HEAD! <THUD>
Windir: Aieeeeee... <CRASH>
Lyra: Um, Frito, wasn't that a little excessive? I mean, you aren't
usually the most protective --
Frito: <Snarling> Ya sayin' ya want some, too?
Lyra: Um... <makes calming motions> No, no, I trust you.
Frito: Damn straight.
Windir: <sits back down> Itai...
TO: AgentX42@Users.Mizunonet.Net
Windir: <groaning> So, now Ami has her own internet provider?
Lyra: Huh?
Windir: Examine the domain. 'Mizunonet'? As in Ami Mizuno, Sailor
Mercury?
Lyra groans.
Frito: Hey, I thought ya said ya ain't readin' Sailor Moon no more? Just
wait'll I tell da guys at -- Mmmmph!
Windir: <removing hands from Frito's mouth> Ah, there is truly no need
to, er, advertise this little lapse, is there?
Frito: Only if ya take us out ta 'Phantom Menace' again, right?
Windir: <Sigh> If you insist.
__________________________________________________
Want free email at the price of your privacy, your soul, and
your first born child? Oh wait, that wouldn't be very free...
http://cold.mail.com
Lyra: Heh. My, but that .sig must gain them business...
Kensuke opened the first file, laughing faintly.
Probably another set of doctored pictures; the last set had
'proven' that all of the EVA battles were actually created
using computer graphics and the EVA toys being sold by
<snip>
Kensuke blinked. Funky. Probably he made this up
and put a monolith picture in the next file, so I'll panic.
He opened the next file.
The video clip was grainy and badly digitized, but
he could see what was happening. Men in NERV uniforms were
busily slaughtering a group of scantily clad and rather
hapless people who had things painted on their bodies, or
possibly tattooed.
Two things caught his attention. First, one of the
victims pointed a short basalt rod at one of the NERV
agents, who collapsed into a puddle of goo in about five
seconds. Secondly, as the man collapsed, you could see him
standing next to a monolith. It was a five sided cylinder,
painted in orange-brown and blue with strange runes. Most
were unfamiliar to Kensuke, but he could see one clearly;
the astrological symbol for Jupiter was marked on each side,
just below the top. The footage ended just as a blurry claw
dropped down into the image, landing on the pillar.
Kensuke frowned. There was no way Keiichi could
have faked this. Not unless he'd gotten his own film studio
recently. And the NERV uniforms looked authentic. So was
the hardware they had been toting; even with this lousy
film, he could identify all the models.
Frito: So even a stopped clock is right twice a day? Yeesh. Break out da
black choppers, boys, we gotta live one here...
Sae Tamagotchi shook her pretty little orange haired
head. "Why of course, Namura-Sensei! I'd be happy to get
you some coffee!" She bounced off the stage as if fetching
and carrying made her happier than anything else in the
universe.
Windir: And so, we see the return of our incompetent cultists, borrowed
from that refuge for whining incompetents, Maho Tsukai Tai --
Lyra: <innocent look> I thought that was Sailor Moon?
Windir: Ahem. Surely our intrepid authors could have picked someone who
could actually produce a certain atmosphere of menace, as opposed to a
set of inept magic users in costumes with a fictitious southwestern
flavor.
Frito: Hey, she's got a nice butt!
Lyra: <muttering> Like we can't tell, the way she keeps waving it in our
faces.
"Five will get you ten they're having an affair,"
Touji muttered to Kensuke and Shinji.
Shinji looked up from his script, still trying to
figure out why he had accepted the lead. For that matter,
he wasn't sure WHY he had been cast as the lead.
Lyra: Cue ominous music.
He was no
great actor, yet he had been cast in the lead role by
Namura-Sensei. "Then why isn't she in a lead role? She's
only playing my mother.
Frito: Oooh, ya gonna go for the Oedipus complex, little boy?
While they were busy being nonplused, Hikari began
to declaim the opening monologue from the middle of the
stage. "Yhtill has fallen. Only I have survived to tell
the awful tale of how Yhtill by the Lake of Hali, the
Kingdom of Joy, was brought to ruin by a stranger in a
Pallid Mask. My name is Yhbb, squire to Lady Uoht, who was
the champion of King Alar of Yhtill. I come before you now
that I might warn you, the people of Celeano, so that your
fate might not be the same as ours. Heed my warning and you
will live. Fail to listen, and it may be that you will
share our fate."
Frito: Wow, she got through all da names without messin' any of 'em up!
Windir: It does strike one as rather a mouthful for those used to
speaking Japanese names, perhaps.
Everyone scampered into position. Shinji suddenly
noticed that Rei, Kozue, and Souichi were all wearing green.
It made an interesting visual effect. Everyone on Asuka's
side was wearing red. I wonder if I missed some note
telling me what to wear, he thought. He glanced over at
Sae, who was wearing a red blouse and a green skirt, and
increasingly suspected this.
Frito: So why ain't ya doin' more with this?
"It began in the year of the Snowflake, the
eightieth year of the eightieth cycle since our history
began. During the Saturnalia, King Genji of Yhtill died
while sating his lust upon one of his many concubines, of
whom it was whispered that several of them were made to wear
masks cast in the image of his first wife. It was a rumor
fiercely denied by his son, Alar and by Genji's new wife,
Lyra: Um, I'm not sure we're supposed to be making grammar corrections
in the play text... but there should be a comma after 'Alar'.
Asuka felt confused; she couldn't remember how she
had gotten into her EVA, but she had to be in it, unless
someone had flooded her bedroom with LCL and lined the
walls, ceiling, and floor with view screens. On the other
Lyra: Well, with Gendo, anything's possible, ne? <grins wryly>
A fear of looking at herself formed in her mind, but
she forced herself to look down at her own body. Her plug
suit shifted constantly with lumps and knots forming under
it, suggestive of a change in the body it contained, as if
only it held that body in a human form. She could not see
her face. She did not want to see her face. She grabbed a
strand of her hair. It was red, normal. Then it wove
together into a rope and became a tentacle with a knob on
the end. The knob opened, revealing it was an eye.
She saw herself and screamed, the shout rising ever
higher until the world shattered.
Frito: Ew.
Windir: <raised eyebrow> I was under the impression that you liked
horror, depraved person that you are.
Frito: Bite me, Windy.
Windir: In any event, there are places where the phrasing could be more
felicitous; in particular, the repetition of 'herself' is rather
redundant.
Lyra: Anyway, I thought she was the one with dream-control training?
"No. No. Yes." Asuka said, sighing. "I dreamed I
turned into some kind of monster, and so did my EVA."
"Well, I had a nightmare about turning into my
grandmother once, so it's nothing to worry about," Misato
said.
Asuka tried to follow the logic and failed. "Your
grandmother wasn't a monster."
"You never met my grandmother," Misato said flatly.
"If she showed up as the next Angel, it would not surprise
me at all."
Lyra: Heh.
Shinji laughed. "Joined by someone I knew at my old
school, I suppose."
"And Oscar," Asuka said. "With his cat."
Windir: Aargh.
Lyra: Huh?
Windir: Oh, were you not here during the visit by that... person?
Frito: You're givin' dat thing too much credit, Windy. Anyway, she was
here, wasn't she? I think she's just repressin' da memory.
Windir: In any event, the major issue is the unfortunate incestuous
nature of the humor here. While indeed, many people on the FanFic
Mailing List will recognize this personage and its unfortunate role in
the mailing list history, those not so clannish will undoubtedly miss
the point.
Frito: Aw, comeon, it ain't like it's gonna give 'em hives if they ain't
catchin' da joke!
She dug out her script and tried to find a good
scene without too many other characters in it. Ahh...the
one where Uoht tries to follow the King in Yellow, but
stumbles on just the King instead, she thought. Perfect.
Lyra: Mmmmm... for what, eh? <mysterious smile>
Frito: And just what are ya hintin'?
Asuka snapped back around, feeling a bit proud of
finally remembering this little bit of character business.
"You really...think of me like that?" She tried to give it
the proper breathiness.
Frito: Hah! Good luck, babs; I ain't gonna hold my breath, not 'nless ya
get Urd ta tutor ya or somethin'.
my mind." She turned, half-looking at Shinji, half gazing upwards
at ' the sky'. "Half the time when she does speak to me, it's to
Windir: 'the sky'.
He nervously reached over and took her hand,
wondering why he was so scared to do this. They were just
acting, and it was just a hand, not a poisonous snake. For
Frito: It's 'cause it's gonna get ya in *trouble*, ya dip!
Asuka looked at the script, glanced over at Shinji,
then stepped next to him, putting an arm around his waist.
He jumped slightly like he always did in rehearsal and she
smiled faintly. "The stars are beautiful," she said. "You can
see the Muses tonight," then pointed up at a point that would
be over the audience. "A good omen." She leaned over on
him, hoping he wouldn't collapse like he had the last time. To
her surprise, he simply leaned towards her.
For a while they stood and stared at the ceiling, feeling
the warmth of each other's bodies and listening to each other
breathe while Asuka continued to point. The silence grew, and
Asuka wondered if Shinji had forgotten his lines.
Lyra: So, what's it matter, eh? <Looks around> Why, Windir... you're
blushing.
Windir: <frostily> Indeed?
Shinji stood and waited for Asuka to continue. He was
less nervous than he had expected to be; this scene always
made him jumpy. Instead, it just felt kind of nice, especially
Lyra: 'He was less nervous than he had expected to be. This scene always
made him jumpy, but tonight it just felt kind of nice, especially'
"We could get Misato to come do her lines," Shinji
suggested.
"Do you really think that's a good idea?"
"No."
Frito: <sarcastically> Aw, ain't da two lovebirds wanna show off?
"I'll do them," Asuka said. She said, as flatly
and emotionlessly as possible, "Sire, look." She pointed
off in another direction.
Shinji looked. "What's that?"
"The ceiling," Asuka said flatly, then began to
giggle.
Windir: Heh.
Asuka and Touji glared at each other a moment long,
Lyra: 'longer'
their weapons wavering between them dangerously. A moment
Windir: 'waving' (or perhaps 'weaving') dangerously between them.
'Wavering' is what a voice or a beam of light would do; a sword is too
solid to 'waver'.
"Fancy that," said Asuka. "You are playing the
title character you know! C'mon, schnell, let's go." She
Windir: 'title character, you know!'
What Shinji had to do next was to portray anger;
this wasn't his specialty. He summoned up all his memories
of people yelling at him and tried to imitate it. "You have
come into my kingdom!" he said loudly, pointing a finger at
Kensuke. He took a step closer, remembering the time one of
his foster parents had yelled at him for stealing a bike,
when really he had just found it. He still had moments of
bitterness about that, and now it welled up. "You have
turned my people against each other!"
Lyra: Interesting technique.
Windir: But does it work?
Frito: Works for me!
Lyra: Brings back a lot of memories...
"They already hated each other," Kensuke sneered.
"I merely helped them do what they already wanted to do.
Humanity is divided against itself, and that is why it
always falls. Every society is but a fragile veneer over
the beasts inside every man. It is the nature of beasts to
fight and struggle and hurt one another."
Shinji took another step forward, and bellowed as
best he could, remembering the gang that had beaten him up
and stolen his lunch money every day for a month when he was
in the fifth grade, and how the school hadn't done anything
about it because it happened off the school grounds. "I AM
NOT A BEAST! I am the king and I take care of my people!"
"By hiding behind two women and sending them to do
battle for you. Now they have fallen, and you do nothing,
for you fear me." Kensuke sneered. "It matters not. The
armies are on the march, and Yhtill will be destroyed.
Thale is dead and his followers rise in revolt as we speak."
He pointed out across the auditorium. "And the storm that
is coming will scourge this land. My work is done."
The lights flickered, and Hikari jumped. Touji
muttered to her, "That twit Uoht never would have gotten me
if it wasn't written into the script."
There was a feeling of static in the air as Kensuke
smirked at the glowering Shinji. Shinji took another step
foward, his face red, his eyes dark. "You will not get away
with this!" He could see the lights flickering on Kensuke's
glasses, hiding Kensuke's eyes. For a moment, he remembered
his father looking like that when he sent him away, so long
ago. Damn you, father, he thought, and the fires within him
rose up another step. "You're the coward, hiding behind a
mask! Show your true face!"
His hand came around; it was supposed to be a slap
that would strike off the mask that Kensuke would be wearing
once they started dress rehearsals. He had been drilled a
good dozen times by Namura- Sensei on how to make it look
real AND not hit Kensuke. Unfortunately, Shinji wasn't
thinking in those terms anymore. The slap struck Kensuke
squarely on the cheek and sent him sprawling. "Damn you!"
Lyra: This is a very effective scene -- the way Shinji gets into his
role, the way they both fall into their roles, to the point where Shinji
hits Kensuke for real. I like it a lot.
Frito: Well, yah -- I mean, ya could take it further, an' get ta da
*good* stuff, but... well, OK, they're friends and all, but dey still
coulda gone further with it!
Windir: <Sighs> Frito, when will you ever learn the dramatic value of
restraint?
The ship cruised through the Antarctic waters,
unseasonably warm, as they had been ever since the Second
Impact. Fuuyutsuki looked out across the waters. "I never
thought I'd be able to use a battleship as a taxi one
day."
"I did," Gendo replied.
"Liar."
Gendo smiled a tiny smile. He did have a sense of
humor, although it was rarely seen. "I can hardly believe
Frito: Rarely. Uh-huh.
Kensuke shivered; he couldn't get the words out of
his brain. The more he read of these books, the less he
wanted to know what they said, yet he couldn't stop. He had
to get to the truth. No time for games. "I'm sorry, but I
REALLY have to work on this. Go have fun with Shinji while
you can." He hung up and turned to his computer, flipping
through his sheaves of printouts, making more notes as he
read.
Frito: Brrr.
-*-
Namura-Sensei held up the blade. It was fairly crude, but
it only had to look like a sword from a distance. "I can
hardly believe the school shop has so many resources," he
said to Sae, who was helping him. She was hard at work on
the hilts over at another machine. "You'd think they were
planning to turn this school into a weapons plant or
something. Or a car factory."
Windir: She can make a sword? Successfully? Miracles will never cease.
Megumi Kunzama strolled through the streets of
Tokyo-3, hoping to catch some inspiration.
After a nice start in Tokyo-3, things were slowing
down to a painful degree for the ambitious reporter.
Windir: This was another disappointment. Although we do see our reporter
briefly at the play, the authors spend an inordinate amount of time with
her viewpoint for the rather brief payoff we get during the play.
Lyra: And showing the advertising banner for the play, and the first
foreshadowing of the Sigil isn't enough?
Frito: Aaah, it goes on too long for dat; ya don't need ta go into all
her life history ta do dat!
The ground dropped away below him, and he rose to
join them, suspended on invisible threads. He began to
dance as they crooned unknowable words to him. Joy and
terror ran through him, the desire to join them, to become a
warrior giant filled him. They would stride across the
Earth in glory, doing battle for eternity at his command,
for he was their leader. And beyond Earth were the stars, a
million worlds to conquer.
Windir: This... bodes.
World after world passed before his gaze, each an
exercise in warfare to conquer, an exercise that could be
his if he accepted his destiny. All he need do was to open
his mouth and speak the words they chanted, join the music,
the endless dance, the music of the spheres, a song of war
and glory and power.
Frito: Brrrrr. <shudders>
Humanity is doomed, the song replied. You have read
the prophecies of the Final Fall, and seen them being
fulfilled.
Frito: Um... be careful a' what ya read?
Windir: Frito, that was... er...
Frito: Lame? Yah, ya better believe it, cause I can't think a' nothin'
better! This bit gives me da creeps.
What a nightmare, he told himself. Reading those
books is just giving me the creeps. Still, they held much
truth, and he had seen too many things they said come true
to discount the rest. I have to hurry, he thought. Time
was running out. Such a reprieve as he had received does
not come twice.
Lyra: Um, you think it's smart to read *more* of that? That way lies
madness.
Ritsuko frowned. Something was wrong. Well, not so
much wrong as unexpected. For the last week or two, the
captive Cherubim had been in a coma, or a reasonable
facsimile. Now it was awake, and moving about, though
sluggishly. Its flesh had stopped turning grey and was
beginning to regain its color. And as it paced, it hummed,
a deep throbbing beat, mixed with occasional cries that
sounded joyful.
Windir: And another voice joins the chorus. Truly, we are on a voyage to
the spirit of the damned, it would appear.
"Hey, I just don't want to mess up in front of
everyone!" whined Asuka. "And I can't seem to rest anyway.
Lyra: Asuka... whining? Perhaps their world is coming to an end.
Misato raised an eyebrow. She chugged her beer,
wiped her mouth, took a deep breath, then straightened her
posture. She had a somber and contemplative expression on
her face, something Shinji and Asuka had rarely ever seen
from their commanding officer.
"The Lady Uoht, or the Lady Cassilda? Bitter
indecision plagues my heart. Two women of more opposite
natures, I know not: Uoht with her fiery passion, Cassilda
with her serene and gentle nature. Cursed by fortune, I
am."
Frito: See? She ain't just a babe, right?
Asuka and Shinji watched her, surprised at the
incredible display of acting. Misato broke the spell by
suddenly smiling and leaning towards Shinji. "So, who do
you prefer," she asked whimsically. "Fiery Uoht over here,
or Cool Cassilda?"
Windir: <wistful> It is nice to see a truly competent, lovely lady in
action --
Lyra: And is this a rare occasion for you?
Windir: Er, well, I --
Lyra: Think carefully.
Shinji's eyes widened in shock, a bright blush
quickly settling in on his face. "I- it's not- er-"
Misato laughed and tousled his hair playfully. "Ah,
Shinji, you're too fun to tease." She put her serious face
on once more and faced them both. "Now get some rest, you
two. It's already late. Don't worry about it so much, and
you'll feel better about it. Okay?"
Lyra: I really do like her in this scene, though.
"Hey, Shinji?"
"Yes?"
"Just curious," Asuka asked, trying to sound casual.
"If you were King Alar..."
"Hm?"
Asuka shook her head. "No, nevermind. G'nite,
Shinji."
Frito: Whew. And ain't dat a close one?
Shinji was King Alar, the indecisive king of Yhtill.
Asuka was one of his potential wives and also the Royal
Champion, Uoht. Rei played the other love interest,
Cassilda, the High Priestess of Lenilda the Moon Goddess,
the Lady of the Lake. They were all putting in good
performances, although the director had apparently done his
casting by finding people whose personalities already fit
the characters. Not that Misato thought that was
necessarily a bad thing.
Windir: Indeed, though to some degree it might depend on what your
intentions are in the performance. If you simply wish to entertain, then
it can indeed be an advantage to cast characters with people who can
resonate with them immediately; however, if the intent is to teach and
expand a student's horizons through drama, casting against type is often
preferable.
Lyra: Umm....
Windir: Eh?
Lyra: I just thought of another reason to cast someone whose personality
fits the part. Suppose you're trying to get them to live the part.
Remember Kensuke and Shinji?
A few of them seemed to be a bit too enraptured;
some people over in one corner seemed to be having an
argument on the verge of blows, and another couple was
starting to strip and make out. She turned her head away
Windir: <Dryly> What, no 'woo, woo'?
Frito: I ain't sayin' nothin'. Dis bit *really* gives me da creeps.
from that, only to see someone staring in horror at the
stage, their mouth frozen in a mask of fear. She looked at
the stage, and all she saw was the Stranger whispering
something to the Queen in a private audience.
She glanced back, and the man had crumpled, burying
his face in his lap and weeping. Indeed, a fair number of
people were starting to weep, or cry, or shout. It was
getting harder to hear the dialogue on the stage over the
din, and now Misato was getting goosepimples. I hope this
doesn't always happen at these plays, she thought.
Frito: Hey, Babs! Get yer head in gear and PAY ATTENTION! THIS DON'T
ALWAYS HAPPEN, AND YA NEED TA DO SOMETHIN' BEFORE IT ALL GOES BOOM!
KAPISH!?! <Jumps up on stage and tries to shake the Misato on-screen>
Backstage, Shinji leaned against the wall, breathing
deeply. The play was intense, too intense.
Frito: <grimly> You ain't kiddin'.
He ran over his next lines; they came far more
easily to him now than they had before. Being Alar felt
natural, so natural he almost felt swallowed up by Alar when
he was on stage.
Lyra: <Quietly> Uh-oh.
She stared at him, though it was a gentle stare, and he
gazed back at her. Then she nodded and stepped onto the stage.
He followed her, feeling Alars slide into place, letting the
Windir: 'Alar'.
memorized words and actions tell him what to do. And the
play went on.
Frito: <suspiciously> You sayin' dat's a *good* thing?
Looking around at the developing orgy, she began to
wonder if someone had put drugs in the air conditioning. A
Frito: Hey, sweetheart! WAKE THE #!$~!% UP AND SMELL DA COFFEE! USE DAT
BRAIN 'A YOURS AND GET SOME BACKUP!
Then Maya suddenly stood and tossed Shigeru halfway
across the theatre. He flew down eight rows, and landed on
a couple making out, one of whom hefted him and threw him
again. She screamed, "RAPE!!!!!"
Windir: Did Maya scream, or did one of the couple?
Across the theatre, a blonde woman suddenly stood up
and shouted, "NERV is concealing evidence about the true
origins of the Angels! Two of the EVA pilots are dating,
and I've got pictures of them dating! You people can't
handle the Truth, but I can! And I'm going to tell it ALL!"
She began to laugh maniacally.
Lyra: All right, this bit is... well, kinda funny, and kinda scary, and
it's effective, but it's not enough payoff for the time we spent with
her earlier.
She'd known some college parties that were almost as
wild as this.
Almost.
"Misato-chaaan!"
"Shit!" She ducked from Kaji's lunging grab, then
drove a knee to his stomach, and finally knocked him out
with an elbow to the back of his head.
And then her phone rang.
Lyra: Heh. That's how it goes, yup.
Misato's eyes widened in disbelief, grimacing at the
great timing of it all. She dodged a piece of flying chair,
whipping the phone out as she rolled on the ground, and put
it to her ear as she jumped over an overly-amorous couple.
//"Captain Katsuragi!//
"I'm kinda BUSY!" she yelled, spinning and dodging
another set of wildly flying bodies.
//"We've got an Angel power signature in the city!
It's at the Tokyo-3 High School!"//
"Yeah, I noticed, I'm right in the middle of it!"
Frito: Well, it's about freakin' TIME! Sheesh.
//"The play isn't called 'The King in Yellow', is
it?"//
"Yeah, it is."
//"Damn. Listen, this is important: stop the
play."//
"Waitasec."
Misato dodged and scrambled yet again, finally
making it to the auditorium doors, which she quickly went
through.
"Okay, now what was that?"
//"The King in Yellow isn't just a play, it's a...I suppose
the word 'spell' comes closest to expressing it. It's going to
unleash the Angel Baraquiel.."//
"Really?"
//"Yes."//
"Shit."
Frito: You ain't kiddin'.
Lyra: Oh, BTW, you needed a blank line between this paragraph and the
next one. There was another one a few 'graphs back, too.
//"That's a good question,"// replied Ritsuko.
//"We'll look in on that."//
Windir: 'Look into that,' I believe.
His face obscured by a grotesque, pallid yellow
mask. Merely standing there, he radiated an aura of menace.
Windir: And this should be 'His face was obscured', as well.
"We invited it in," Misato said, finishing her
search, then slapping herself. "I'll just...oh dammit, she
won't be carrying her phone!"
Windir: Eh? This makes little sense. If shouting at her fails to bring
her to herself, how would a cellular phone call?
The fact that she ignored him was less surprising
for her than it would have been with most people. He tried
Frito: Huh? Run dat by me again.
Rei stirred slightly, and Shinji tried shaking her
again. However, instead of responding to him, she started
to head onto the stage. Desperation drove him to an idea.
"Cassilda, it is I, your liege Alars."
Lyra: Um, you use 'Alars' here several times, and 'Alar' elsewhere.
Which is it?
She suddenly turned to him, her face sliding from
utter blankness to simple calm. "Alars." A sudden warmth
washed over it, and her voice lost its usual calm, sliding
into a range that would denote happiness for most people.
"You came to see me."
Frito: Aww, how sweet.
Windir: Indeed? Frito, there are times when I tire of your incessant
urges to smear and slander that which is gentle and good.
Frito: Hey, I'm *serious*! She really *is* cute here, and it's sweet. I
just wish da situation ain't so bad; da way it's happenin', it ain't no
good thing ta be respondin' like dat.
Now what, Shinji thought. He tried desperately to
think of something that would evoke Rei-ness. His flesh
began to goosepimple, and he could feel some- thing coming.
Something he didn't want to encounter.
Lyra: 'something', not 'some- thing'.
Misato was getting desperate; she couldn't slap
Asuka, not while Asuka was carrying two feet of sharp steel.
"I heard she was a total coward."
Uoht's face darkened. "She is not."
Bingo, Misato thought. Badmouth her enough to make
her switch back.
Lyra: Good thought... just hope she doesn't stick you with that two feet
of sharp steel.
"I heard this guy Touji was a much better
EVA pilot than her. She ran off with the delusion she was
some knight from a magical kingdom, so they gave him her
EVA."
Frito: Hah. Serves ya right.
"They...THEY WOULDN'T DARE!" Uoht shouted, and her
face changed in an instant. "You've got to be...what the
hell..." Asuka looked around confusedly, then said, "DOWN!"
Misato hit the deck just in time to avoid getting
stabbed by Thale in the back. For a moment, she heard
Windir: 'stabbed in the back by Thale.'
mocking laughter from somewhere backstage. Thale shouted,
"Interfering wench! Thou shalt be punished for thy
transgression against me!"
Cassilda turned and looked at the stage. "I always
knew Thale would come to a bad end."
Lyra: Another missing space between paragraphs... they seem to be
getting more frequent as we hit the climax.
Shinji took her shoulders and turned her to face
him. "Rei, everyone's under some kind of mind control!
There's an Angel attack going on!"
"Lenilda foretold this. We must aid Uoht. You will
need her." She started to turn again.
Frito: Wow. She actually ain't wantin' ta kill her now?
Dammit, face reality, he thought. There had to be
some way to get her to snap back to normal. Something that
would...the movie. She'd been trying to understand that
movie, he thought. "Do you remember the movie? When they
stood among the cherry blossoms?"
Lyra: Oho, so this is the memory that's going to wake Rei? Oooh, you
devil Shinji, you. <grins>
"And then we went to the arcade and you beat up
Asuka, remember?"
Rei seemed to smile at that, slightly. "Beat...
Asuka..."
Frito: Heh.
He nodded, apologetically, and that seemed to elicit
from her a little, melancholy smile.
Frito: Awww. <smiles gently>
It vanished a second
later as she cocked her head, and seemed to sniff the air.
The smile became a snarl, and Shinji jumped back, feeling a
pang of primal terror. She spun on one foot, staring off
across the darkened backstage area, where Shinji could see a
figure lurking in the darkness. Its face was lighter than
the rest of it, though still shadowed. "Get Langely. Now."
Frito: WOOO! She's back, and she's *baaad*! Go get 'em, Rei!
Before he could reply, she was gone, streaking
across the backstage, from dead stop to lightning bolt
instantly. The shadowy figure simply awaited her onslaught.
Leaving a trail of icy footprints behind, she charged right
into him. But there was nothing there, and she passed
through him as if he had never been.
Lyra: <uncertainly> Icy footprints? I'm not sure I like the sound of
that...
They could hear the play continuing, as characters
came and went, and a new plot took shape. Asuka glanced
out, and some people from the audience had come onto the
stage and were taking on roles. The crowd itself was in
full riot, a wild orgy of violence and sex, though they
didn't have any drugs to work with.
This had better not go on my permanent record, she
thought.
Windir: Asuka's permanent record?
Lyra: It's supposed to be Misato, ne?
Windir: Indeed, one might suspect so, but the pronoun's antecedent is
'Asuka'; the authors need to use Misato's name if that is who is
intended.
Across Tokyo-3, it began. Slow and subtle at first,
with the speaking of harsh words, petty fights at bars,
couples making love on rooftops, lonely men and women in
black fleeing the cruelty of a harsh world, moments of
maternal anger at home. And it grew, a roar, a cacophony of
shouting that crushed out the normal sounds of the city, a
pulsing throbbing beat of rage and lust and fear and
despair.
Not everyone was affected; some of its denizens had
a quiet night in front of the TV set, watching Nick
Hatchett: Robot Hunter, or ESPN3, or a rented movie. But
those were the lucky ones, who had not gazed upon the Yellow
Sign and fallen under its sway. For those who had, the
night was full of terror and ecstasy, for their lord and
master was coming, with none to bar his way.
The Carnivale of the King had begun.
Lyra: Hooboy. <covers eyes>
Windir: Yes. But... 'Nick Hatchett: Robot Hunter'? <blinks>
It had begun to sing at the very moment when the
play had started, though she hadn't realized it at the time.
Like a reverse mining canary, she thought. A very ugly one.
Lyra: *reverse* mining canary?
Windir: The point was remarked upon in one of the semiprivate C&C
sessions we had the privilege to observe; I think we need not belabor
the point here.
Frito: <muttered> That'd be a first.
She should have gone up to the bridge, but the
workstation here was adequate, and she wanted to keep an eye
on the thing. Deep down at the instinctive level, she knew
it was going to do something, and she needed to be ready to
stop it.
Lyra: Hm. Was this followed up on either?
Misato fingered her necklace nervously, and felt her
tension soothe. "Unless it was my lucky pendant..."
Shinji turned and looked at it. "Maybe it was."
"What?" Misato blinked.
"That thing...there was one like it painted on that
house underwater."
Everyone stared at him blankly, except Rei, who was
still watching the door.
He stepped over and touched it. It felt warm to
him, almost hot, like the one underwater, but stronger.
"Maybe we can turn him with it, like a cross for a vampire."
Windir: And so the solution is, as it were, at hand; how convenient.
Frito: Hey, I don't know what you're insinuatin', but it ain't like it
was a big coinkidink, ya know? Like 'e said, they found one in da
underwater city, and it really did somethin' so it ain't like he's
draggin it up outa da blue, right?
Misato looked at her necklace and frowned. "I'll
call Ritsuko and see what she thinks." She flipped open her
cellular and dialed the number.
"Misato, are you wearing your necklace?" Ritsuko
asked before Misato could even say hello.
Misato blinked. "Yes."
Frito: Great, so now she's gettin' psychic?
Lyra: Nice moment, though. <Grins>
Misato looked around the shop. There was some metal
working equipment in one corner, which had been dragged in
when they'd been making the prop swords a few days ago, and
not moved back to the regular shop yet. In fact, there was
another door, one TO the other shop, which she hadn't
noticed before, and felt like an idiot for not seeing.
Windir: And in what manner is this significant? If this is important,
the authors should note why, by specifying (for example) that there is
an exit from that room to the outside.
"I can do this." Rei said. She hefted the foot and
a half across, incredibly crude star with an eye of flame in
the middle.
Windir: 'She hefted the incredibly crude star, a foot and a half across,
with an eye of flame in the middle.'
A chain closed into a loop with a padlock ran through the top of the
star to use to 'bell the cat'.
Windir: "A chain, closed into a loop with a padlock, ran through the top
of the star; it would be used to 'bell the cat'."
And through the darkness of the backstage, mocking
laughter echoed. Shinji cocked his head; he could hear
music, though he couldn't tell where it was coming from. He
could see Asuka looked slightly distracted as well. Glancing
over at Rei, he could see she had vanished into the shadows.
Lyra: 'he could,' 'he could', 'he could' -- try varying these a little.
She leveled her pistol at him. "Stop this or I'll
blow your brains out."
"And kill the one whose flesh I wear? I think not."
The gun came up, and Shinji stared in shock as
Misato leveled it. "Try me," she said. "It may not kill
you, but if your host body is dead, your little game comes
to an end. And I bet that won't be any more fun for you
than an abortion is for the baby."
"You can't shoot Kensuke!"
"Kensuke's gone, Shinji. And I can't let this
bastard destroy humanity."
Lyra: Yes, she can be ruthless at times. <Sighs, looking unhappy>
Sometimes it's just gotta be done.
"Now, now," he said jovially. "I'm not the one you
should be shooting. Do you really think this play could
have been staged without someone in NERV noticing? It's not
like the slightest effort was made to hide it going on. And
yet, the ever paranoid Commander Ikari saw no evil, heard no
evil, and spoke no warning."
She frowned. "You're claiming he knew this would
happen?"
"How could he not? Ask yourself...how did your
friend Ritsuko know what was going on here? How did she
know the PLAY did it?"
Lyra: Good question. <hard look>
Frito: Yah, but it ain't da time for it, ne? Take care a' him first,
*den* start findin' da guy ta stake out on da anthill.
Shinji frowned. It was a trap. Everything the King
in Yellow said was intended to turn people against each
other. "Maybe she looked it up. You won't trick us that
easily!"
Lyra: Good for you, Shinji!
Frito: Jellyfish boy actually did somethin' *right*, for a change!
Even as he looked up, there was a blur and the sound
of feet pounding against boards, and then Rei came out of
the darkness. She didn't put the Elder Sign around his
neck; she slammed him full force in the back of the skull
with it. It didn't affect him as much as it should have;
most people would have had a broken skull, but he simply
staggered, though his scream of pain was certainly
predictable. "BITCH!" he shouted.
"Commander Ikari would not betray humanity," Rei
said. "Not like you betrayed your race." She struck again,
knocking him to the floor. "You turned the Byakhee into
devils." Her voice sounded different, as if she was
becoming Cassilda again.
Frito: Eep. <quietly> I think we're in trouble.
"Rei, stop playing around! Put it on him!" Misato
shouted.
"I am not Rei. And this is no game," she said. The
third blow broke his nose by driving his head into the
ground. "You laughed when the City of Joy burned. You gave
yourself to the Crawling Chaos for revenge and power. You
forsook your name, so that you could not be bound. But this
story binds you. It gives you power to control others, but
you become part of the story. And every story has many
different endings."
Lyra: Or maybe not...
"Cassilda?" Shinji asked faintly, staring in shock.
"You're dead! You're dead and gone! I am a god and
you are a mortal! YOU CAN'T DO THIS!"
"You have taken on flesh, you fool, and now I have
you," Cassilda snarled. "Only in this way can you walk
another world freely, and go where you will, but you wear
mortal flesh, and mortal flesh is weak." She struck him
again, breaking his legs. "And even a god may die! Have
you not seen what happened to your brethren? Ungoliant will
spin no more webs. Kanser sleeps eternally. Medusa is no
more. The Wind Walker's storms have dissipated. Did you
think you would escape your fate? That you and your
brothers could ravage the universe as you will? In the end,
the wheel of fortune turns, and now it throws you into
Gehenna to burn like the trash you are."
Lyra: Good one.
Frito: <quietly> Get 'im. Take 'im *out*.
"I will leave this flesh and..." His voice turned
from anger to panic. "I cannot get out!"
"Not while the play continues, any more than a baby
can decide to crawl back in the womb once it is half out."
Her voice had a mocking, cruel edge to it, mixed with anger.
Frito: Uh-oh.
Lyra: Well, maybe she'll control it. Maybe.
Windir: ...
Cassilda turned and looked at Misato, then smiled.
"Yes, to leave you to rot away in the flesh you have taken,
trapped by those for whom you had only contempt." Shinji
shuddered at the savageness of her smile. What had playing
out the destruction of her home done to her? If this was,
somehow, really a woman named Cassilda. Had she been human?
Some alien? What was going on? Was the King in Yellow a
true story? She wrapped the chain around his neck, then
smiled darkly as she pressed the sign to his flesh, ripping
off his mask. For just a moment, Shinji expected her to
announce he was old Mr. Crowley who ran the carnival. But
only Kensuke's face was revealed, and she said, "Uoht was
right. We should have killed you the second you arrived."
Frito: Damn straight. Even if it means agreeing with her.
Lyra: Not sure where the 'old Mr. Crowley' came from... yes, I know,
Alistair and co., but it still breaks up the flow a little. <shudders>
Not that that's necessarily a *bad* thing...
"The Crawling Chaos will devour you all!" The King
shouted. "The Outer Gods cannot be mocked! I have gazed
upon the Throne of Azathoth! I have..."
"You have failed. And the Herald of the Outer Gods
has no patience for those who fail him." The sound of
battle faded from the stage, as people began to come out of
their trance. Cries of pain took the place of shouts of
Windir: Whimpers of pain, perhaps? 'Cries' implies an immediate hurt,
while it seems here that the people are realizing the pain of wounds
already received.
anger. Sirens began to sound outside the school. "Perhaps
he will come down from the limitless void to mock you, but
that's all you can hope for. Goodbye, and good riddance."
She turned to Shinji, Asuka, and Misato. "And thus ends the
tale of the King in Yellow, good people of Tokyo-3. The
last words are spoke, and this play is ended. If perhaps we
have offended, let this be our amends." Her voice rang out
clearly across the auditorium, sad and wise.
"No!" The king shouted feebly, his voice fading.
"I can sense the power within you! You have the potential
to be one of us! To walk among the gods! Cast out this
shade and set me free and I will show you the way."
For a moment, Rei's voice rang out clearly in place
of Casilda's. "I will not betray Ikari-kun." And then
Cassilda's voice, which was Rei's voice, but older and more
emotional. "The curtain is closed. Farewell, and may your
world not meet the fate of mine."
"You're from another world?" Asuka asked. "They
attacked you too? And he betrayed you to them?"
"This story is done." Cassilda sagged, and so did
the King in Yellow, who quietly collapsed. When she stood
straight once more, she was Rei, calm and impassive. She
stepped over the King and walked over to them. "It is
over."
Windir: And a most impressive ending it was, to be sure.
"This is only the beginning," Misato muttered.
Lyra: Not that she's wrong. The beginning of the end, or the end of the
beginning? Or just a whole lot of cleanup to do?
Medics and police covered the auditorium, checking
on the wounded of body and soul. Misato looked at the
devastation with sadness.
They were at war, and every war has its casualties.
Lyra nods sadly.
As Shinji and Touji talked to Misato, Asuka made her
way inside the NERV transport and sat next to the screaming
thing that was once Kensuke.
"I think you were on to something," she told him.
"I'll find it, Kensuke. Just you wait."
Lyra: Oh, dear.
Frito: Yah, even she don't deserve dat.
"Couldn't sleep?" asked Asuka. She sat down next to
Shinji on the balcony floor, and dangled her legs between
the rails, swinging them slowly in the air.
"No, I... I never thought this could happen."
"I know," she whispered.
"I mean... they were always big monsters, like
Godzilla. Not... not like this. Kensuke... Touji...
Hikari... everyone almost died..."
Asuka nodded. There wasn't much more to say,
really. They both began to cry, and consoled each other in
an embrace borne of fear and despair.
Lyra: ... There are a lot of bits here at the end that would be funny,
or sweet, if they didn't come after so much pain and sadness. This was
very well done, even if it hurts.
The scene in the medical ward of NERV would've been
funny if it hadn't followed such a dire moment.
Frito: Yep.
"I know... but... sorry." He tried desperately to
sink into his bed, far more embarrassed than he'd ever been.
"Aheh..." he laughed nervously, "I guess, er, this
kills any chance I have of a date, huh?"
Windir: This should most likely go with the preceding paragraph, since
it is the same speaker in each paragraph.
To his surprise, Maya actually smiled. "Sorry," she
said quietly. "I... I love someone else."
Frito: Well, at least she broke it ta 'im gently.
Shinji was dreaming.
By now, with all his dream training, he knew the
difference between reality and dreams, and when he was in
one or the other.
He was sitting under the shade of a cherry blossom
tree, high atop a hill overlooking a valley in the forest.
Two pale arms wrapped themselves around him from
behind, and he felt a delicate face rest itself on his
shoulder.
"Rei?" he asked.
"I'm here," she whispered in his ear.
Frito sighs.
Windir: What, you are not complaining about a sugar overdose? No
witticisms about diabetes?
Frito: Shut UP, Wind-bag.
Gendo watched through a monitor camera, shaking his
head. "To see Hastur, one of the 'lords of creation',
brought to this." He pushed a button, and a gas began to
flood the cell, which was no ordinary prison cell. Its
inhabitant would sink into slumber soon, and then the room
would slowly chill, putting him 'on ice' in a very literal
sense. He'd already been injected with the special
chemicals which would enable him to survive this.
"Makes you laugh." Fuyuutsuki smirked.
Windir: There is a certain satisfaction, to be sure. However, I would
question whether laughter is an appropriate response.
Lyra: Remember the casualties. <sad look>
"Or we will die horribly and our souls will slowly
roast over an open fire. Assuming they can't find a worse
fate for us."
"They can find much worse than that. But I would
never have dared this if I did not think I would win. For
all their power, they are not gods, only very powerful
mortals. They cannot see everything, do everything, or know
everything. They are merely incredibly powerful. And there
is one thing that power does to people. It makes them
underestimate anyone weaker. They forget that a horde of
army ants can pull down a wolf and devour it, though the
wolf is far more powerful than they, that a horde of piranha
can kill a cow which is hundreds of pounds heavier and has
powers they could not comprehend, like breathing outside
water. A single spider bite can kill a human, who is as far
above the spider as the one bound in that flesh is above
us."
Windir: Ah, yes, and the Gendo arrogance raises its ugly head again.
Lyra: Though he's got a point; that kind of arrogance comes with the
territory. Wonderfully ironic that Mr. I-Can-Handle-It is the one making
it, too.
Jimmy yawned as he cleaned some of the glasses that
had piled up during the evening. It had been a boring
night; everyone had been gone for some reason. Even the
piano player had taken most of the evening off to do
something or another. A few listless people drank
quietly or watched a rerun of a soccer game on ESPN5.
Windir: Mmm, for once we have an extra line rather than a missing one.
Looking perky, Neil finally returned, humming one of
his usual tunes. "Good evening, Jimmy."
"Hiya, Neil. It's been a boring night. How was
the...the play. That's where you went, right?" Why on
earth a grown man went to a high school play, Jimmy had no
idea. He wasn't even sure what the play had been. Jimmy
didn't get out much.
"It was interesting. They did a twist on the usual
ending. Puts me in the mood to do a little improvising
myself later."
"They changed the ending? Why not just write their
own play then?"
Neil smiled as he sat down at the piano. "Everyone
thinks they're writing their own ending, but usually they're
just playing the role given them by someone else. And those
who break the script are usually punished by those who stick
to it."
Frito: Um, ya think ya can be any more obscure? I mean, Windy's bad
enough, but this is right up with the classics.
He stretched his fingers, then said to the
audience, "This one is for a friend of mine who's fallen on
hard times. The wheel of fortune has turned unexpectedly,
and he has fallen from grace." He smiled, flashing perfect
white teeth, then began to sing as he played.
Lyra: Maybe I'm just tired, but I can't figure out if he's glad or
sorry.
o/~ We've got stars directing our fate o/~
o/~ And we're praying it's not too late o/~
o/~ Cos we know we're falling from grace o/~
o/~ Millennium o/~
And the piano player smiled, for in the city of the
blind, the one eyed man is king.
Frito: Um... say WHAT?
DISCLAIMER:
Neon Genesis Evangelion owned by Gainax.
Cthulhu mythos created by H.P. Lovecraft.
"Millenium" sung by Robbie Williams
Windir: Ah, here we have the attribution for the song. Of course, it is
still unfamiliar, but at least one can research it.
Frito: So, what'ja think?
Lyra: Well, if it seemed like we were skimming a lot towards the end, we
were; the prose seemed a lot cleaner there. This was a very powerful
episode, and the entire last half built very strongly; there really
wasn't much you could say about so much of it, because it was uniformly
good. Some of the lead-in was weak, but there's very little I'd change
towards the end.
Windir: Indeed. Has our resident 'blood, guts and gore' artist any
comments to make?
Frito: Listen, Wind-bag, just 'cause I enjoy fluff don't mean I don't
like good drama when I read it. This bit was creepy, an' chilling, and I
thought it got really good towards the end, all right? <Glares at
Windir> Ya wanna make somethin' of it?
Lyra: So... looking forward to the next chapter?
Frito: I dunno. It's good, so I don't really wanna give up on it... but
it's so creepy that I don't always feel good after readin' it.
Windir: <bemused look> And I thought you liked horror?
Frito: Well, I'm waitin' for da next part. I ain't sayin I'm lookin'
forward to it, though.
Travis Butler
tbutler@tfs.net
...Cats are the proof of a higher purpose to the universe.