Okay, so it took a little longer than the last two. Hopefully that will
reflect _well_ on its quality. Comments of any sort are welcome, and always
appreciated.
I'd like to thank Bart Kelsey and Glazius Falconar for prereading for this,
as well as for their help with previous chapters. Thanks also goes to
Stuart Ferguson for listening to me bang my head against walls, and for
frequently providing the solution to the problem. More thanks goes to
everyone who replied to the last chapters, especially to DB Sommer for his
comments on chapter two.
Shutting up now.
Kichigai
-- Attached file included as plaintext by Listar --
-- File: xgp3.txt
Frantic orders and running footsteps filled the air,
frequently punctuated by the sounds of large objects rolling by.
In one of many full hospital rooms inside Nerv, a young man lay
strapped in a bed. Heavy plastic straps strained over his body,
pulled taught near to the point of breaking. Several IVs and
electrical patches ran from his body to the monitors, while others
had been scraped off as he twisted and fought.
Fei's eyes snapped open, staring into the face of the
startled nurse who had been trying to hold him still.
"He's awake!" she called over her shoulder, not letting up
on her grip.
"Angels!" Fei moaned, trying to sit up. Despite being much
stronger than the nurse, he was unable to move more than a few
inches. "What, let me go!" he protested franticly.
"Calm down!" his nurse replied, a note of fear in her voice.
"They're dead, now just stop!"
Her pale attempts to sooth him failed to penetrate his
fogged mind, and Fei continued to strain at the straps he now
could feel holding him down.
"Stop it!" she shrieked, shaking him roughly. "Be still!
Be still! Be still! It's your fault!" she continued to scream,
punctuating each yell with a slap or a punch.
Fei's head jerked roughly, blearily focusing on her wild-
eyed face, even as she continued to hit him. He barely heard the
running footsteps over her screams, but he did see the orderly
that stepped up behind her with a pressure injector.
After a short hiss she settled to the ground, supported by
the arms of the orderly who promptly dragged her out the door,
leaving it wide. A loud buzz of noise filled the room, full of
the sounds of activity throughout the complex.
Saved from the now hysterical nurse, Fei was able to snap
out of his own terrible dreams. A wave of exhaustion hit him when
he stopped struggling, nearly sending him back into
unconsciousness. Blinking furiously, Fei turned his head to and
fro, trying to assess his situation.
For all he knew he was in the same hospital room that he had
been in the last time at Nerv, although he doubted it. He soon
realized that something was wrong.
"Hey!" he yelled. "What happened?"
No one answered, although he could hear other screams and
shouts all around him.
Several more yells failed to gain anyone's attention, so he
began searching for a way to get out of bed. He tested the
straps, determining the amount of slack he had to work with. He
was unpleasantly surprised by the amount of pain that caused, as
the straps rubbed over already bleeding patches on his wrists and
ankles.
Somewhere close by, he could hear a woman screaming for her
children, a heart wrenching wail that tore at her throat.
Fei began to panic himself, fearing the angels would break
through the walls at any moment. He redoubled his attempts to get
free.
The woman continued to sob, and Fei was finally able to
determine that she was across the hall from him, possibly down a
few doors.
Gathering his strength, he lunged at the straps, the muscles
in his stomach straining to the point of pain. Giving it up for a
moment, he lay back and tried again, bouncing the hospital bed
with the force.
Gasping for breath, he noticed the woman was now silent.
Whether it was from damage done to her throat or outside
intervention, he wasn't sure.
Fei tried a different track, attempting to pull his knees to
his chest, but the straps over his ankles cut too deeply into his
flesh for him to keep that up for long. "Help me!" he yelled,
adrenaline flooding his body.
A single gunshot startled him, driving him deeper into
panic. Focusing all his desire to escape, he wrenched his arms,
tearing his tendons and muscles as he stretched the plastic to the
limit, then with a soft, gradual tear they separated, freeing his
arms.
It took several moments for his shaking, bleeding hands to
undo the rest of the straps, allowing him to set up. He ripped
the wires and IVs from himself as he shakily stood and walked into
the hall. Behind him, the monitors beeped alarms.
Out in the hall he could see commotion at the administrative
desk at the end as several people hurried into and out of view.
As he stumbled closer he could see a spreading red pool on the
floor, with thick trails of red footprints leading from it.
"Blood..." he said, realizing what that must be. "Blood, so
much blood..." Everything felt unreal to him, even the pain in his
arms. He looked down to see several drops of his own blood
splatter into the floor beneath his wrists. Looking back up, he
noticed the dripping spray across the wall opposite the desk.
So distracted was he by the gore, the doctor rushing his way
caught him by surprise.
"You're not supposed to be out of your room!" the doctor
admonished, bringing out a capped syringe.
"What's going on?" Fei asked groggily. "Are the angels
breaking in?"
"No no no," the doctor said calmly, "the angels are all
dead. You killed them. Now," he said, holding up the uncapped
syringe and squirting it slightly, "why don't you take a nice-"
****************
This time, Fei awoke calmly. There was a person sitting in
his room.
Blinking several times, he sat up in bed, noticing that he
was back in his hospital room he'd first woken up in. "Doc! What
happened?"
Citan stood slowly, as if he was very tired. "Good, you're
awake now. There were emergency demands on our personnel and we
were forced to keep you sedated for several days."
Fully awake now, Fei winced in remembrance of some of his
dreams. "Emergencies? The angels! Doc, what happened?"
Citan sighed and slid his glasses back up on his nose,
preparing his emotions, if not his words. "Fei, you fought
valiantly, and in the end you did destroy all of the seraphs." He
paused. "Fei, you did the best you could, but the angels
destroyed much of Tokyo-3. We're being forced to relocate to
America within the month."
Fei gaped in astonishment. "America?! Doc, you can't be
serious!"
Citan nodded grimly. "I'm afraid so, Fei. Nerv has been
too badly damaged to be repaired in time for another angel attack,
and with the fall of this base Japan is no longer safe for
humans."
"What about everyone outside the city? Are you going to
just leave them here?" Fei protested, getting angry. "You're
just going to quit and abandon them?"
Citan's face creased in anger, but he calmed himself. "We
are making provisions for a mass evacuation, and with the
casualties from disease and angel attacks, we will be able to move
everyone that is willing. If we stay, everyone will die," he
replied with a hint of steel in his voice. "It is a hard
decision. Be glad you did not have to make it."
Fei sat quietly, studying his commander's face. In a very
small voice, he asked one question burning in his mind. "How many
people died?"
Citan didn't immediately answer.
"Doc, where are my parents? My friends?"
Citan wiped at his eyes with one long, slim finger. "I'm
sorry, Fei. Half of the civilian bunkers were destroyed during
the battle, including the ones that were for your neighborhood."
Fei stared, unseeing, one word on his lips. "Dead."
Citan walked over and put his arm around him, crouching so
he would be at the same level. "I'm sorry, Fei. I grieve for
them too."
Shock and horror clouded Fei's mind. "They're all dead. I
didn't save them. I... I failed them..."
"_Couldn't_ save them. Fei, it's not your fault," Citan
corrected gently.
Fei's eyes brimmed with tears, and he pushed Citan away.
"Doc, if you don't mind..."
Citan stood and stepped away. "I understand. You need
time. Remember, Fei, there is always a place for you in my home.
You still have family, and friends, and we must prevent this from
happening again." With one final backwards look, Citan left the
room. He felt the pressing need to spend some time with his own
family, lest they be ripped from him in a similar fashion.
****************
"Good God! What the hell happened here?!" Bart exclaimed in
his throat microphone as he walked his own red Eva at the
forefront of the convoy into Tokyo-3.
"Reports were that they suffered an attack by a new type of
angel, a much more powerful one. I guess it didn't go very well,"
Sigurd replied, carefully keeping the astonishment out of his own
voice.
Tokyo-3 looked much like a punctured balloon, with a huge
section removed from one side of the armored dome that protected
the internal levels. As Bart got close enough to see down inside,
he noticed that the hole had been incredibly deep, but was now
somewhat shallower as the upper levels had collapsed in on it.
Following the designated routes, Bart carefully avoided the
obviously unstable portions of the surface city. Entire square
blocks had sunken in tens of meters.
"I don't want to meet what can do this," Bart commented,
nervously eyeing the sixty-foot diameter hole that had angled up
from inside the geofront, exiting and taking a chunk from the side
of an apartment building. Rubble was mostly absent, a side effect
familiar to him.
"You're quite right, Bart. And from what I hear they only
had a third generation Eva as defense."
"A third?" he replied in disbelief. "And they won?"
"I'd hardly call this _winning_," Sigurd replied. "There is
the lift platform now. Get ready to descend."
After settling his Eva into his designated bay and exiting,
Bart was ushered by a uniformed technician to the showers.
He cleaned the LCL off and dressed in the clothes he found
waiting in the locker area, apparently left by Sigurd. The black
pants were definitely his, as were the shoes, but the white shirt
was a little too short for his tastes.
Deciding to worry about it later, Bart hurried to meet with
his new superiors.
"Pilot Fatima reporting, Ma'am," he said formally upon
entering the briefing room where Misato and Sigurd were sitting,
discussing recent events. Then he smiled. "Hi, Misato, long time
no see."
In retrospect, maybe he shouldn't have been surprised at her
haggard appearance, but it was still a shock to see the normally
exuberant woman looking so worn down.
"Hey, Bart," she said, waving him to sit down in one of the
chairs close to Sigurd. "You missed the fun."
"Misato has been explaining the situation, Bart. It's very
grim," Sigurd explained, turning to him.
Misato picked up a briefcase from the floor beside her and
rummaged through it. Producing a thin manila folder, she slid it
to Bart and set her briefcase back down. "There's your schedule,
as well as a temporary room assignment. You'll be using your Eva
to assist in the move."
"Move?" Bart asked. "What, again?"
Sigurd nodded. "I'm afraid so, Bart. It's back to lifting
50 ton boxes."
Bart sighed. "You know, this isn't exactly what I had in
mind when I signed up to be an Eva pilot."
"Tough luck, kid," Misato grinned tiredly. "Tokyo-3 is too
badly damaged to be repaired with our current resources. We're
moving to America."
****************
Low grunts and dull thuds echoed through the gym as Fei
unleashed a barrage of punches and kicks at a large punching bag
before switching to a steady rhythm. His muscles already ached,
and the burst ruins of two other bags attested to how long he'd
been at it.
The soft plastic covering of the punching bag started
growing thin and no longer sprang back into place when he hit it,
giving it a slightly lumpy look.
Fei blinked as sweat ran in his eyes, stinging and further
driving the rage that he felt. (I was too strong,) he thought,
(and I nearly killed my friend. Too weak, and he died anyway.)
"HYAH!" he shouted, slamming home a powerful fingertip
strike. The covering of the punching bag gave way, leaving him
with a handful of foam stuffing.
Fei stood for several moments, then jerked his hand back and
turned away.
Nerv's gym facilities had been first rate, having been used
to both keep its personnel in shape and to train field operatives.
Having been located closer to the outside than the more vital
areas, however, it had been severely damaged. Parts were
completely collapsed, and others were sectioned off to keep people
out of dangerous areas.
Fei left the personal combat room and walked down the hall
to a much larger room that showed damage from the battle. Large
cracks showed in the ceiling and floor, and one corner had been
completely crushed, spilling rubble out into the floor. Many of
the lights were either broken or cut off from a power source, and
now there were only several pools of direct light from the few
remaining fluorescent lights, and many of those no longer had a
cover.
An obstacle course had circled the room, with three and
four-meter walls, hurdles, and two thin rope bridges over foam
filled pits. Now many of the ropes had snapped, and two walls had
been crushed by chunks of concrete. Farther to the inside was a
standard track, treacherous only in the lose debris that made
footing uncertain on several parts.
It was onto this inner track that Fei stepped, settling into
an efficient distance run. He would run, and train, and fight
until he dropped. And then he would get up and destroy the
angels.
****************
Bart stifled a yawn as he jogged down the halls with a towel
slung over his shoulder and clothes balled under one arm. Pausing
to look at a map on the wall, he traced his progress with one
finger. "Three more junctions and a left," he commented.
"They've got to have a hot tub there."
Upon arriving in the gym area, he started searching for a
Jacuzzi or hot tub. Even though he'd actually done little of the
physical work the day before, moving thirty million people in one
month was a hard task. His muscles still ached from the
sympathetic strain on the Eva.
Rounding a corner, he nearly ran into someone else.
Although he'd stopped in plenty of time, the other guy, a black-
haired guy about his own age, flinched too much and fell
backwards.
"Man, I'm sorry," Bart apologized, offering his hand to Fei
and getting a good look at him. His hair was wildly disarrayed,
plastered to the sides of his face and clinging to the top of his
loose white shirt. His clothes were torn and dirty, and he reeked
of sweat. Most startling were his eyes, sunken and hollow, almost
devoid of life. (Oh, crap,) he thought. (I know that look. He
probably hasn't slept since the city was destroyed. Probably one
of the officer's kids or something.)
"My fault," Fei replied, accepting the help in rising. He
shook his head and tried to focus on Bart's heavier frame and
blond hair, as his face was little more than a blur to Fei.
Bart had to use a little more strength than he expected, as
Fei's legs nearly gave way halfway up. "Uhg, you're heavy," he
complained. "My name's Bart Fatima," he said, turning the helping
hand into a handshake.
"Fei Wong," Fei replied. "Nice to meet you."
"I'm here looking for the jacuzzi, or hot tub, umm," Bart
trailed off, searching for the right word. His Japanese was fair,
but his vocabulary was still small. "Furo! That's it! I need a
bath, and quiet frankly, you do too. You reek."
Fei was too tired to be insulted. "I think I saw one back
there in the showers."
"Great! Lets go," he said, grabbing Fei and marching him in
that direction.
Offering little but feeble protests, Fei finally relented as
they entered the shower and found a small jacuzzi in the back.
Fei grabbed a towel from one of the lockers and left his clothes
on the bench. Bart had already undressed and hopped in, sighing
in relaxation.
Fei gingerly slid in opposite him, wincing as the hot water
encountered scrapes and bruises. Apparently someone had dissolved
Epsom salts in the water, giving it an additional sting.
"Rough night?" Bart inquired innocently, not opening his
eyes from where he was leaned back on the side.
"Yes." Fei did not elaborate.
Bart nodded slightly. "Yep, yesterday wasn't too fun
either. Move this, carry this, don't drop that..."
Fei remained silent.
"I mean, I know that it's not me doing the work, but my
muscles still hurt."
Fei showed a little more interest. "Are you a pilot?"
Bart nodded smugly opening his eyes. "Yup, but not of gears
or planes."
Realizing what he was talking about, Fei lost interest and
went silent again.
Bart frowned. That wasn't how that was supposed to go. "I
pilot an Eva, you know. Killed a bunch of angels in Europe."
"Why aren't you still there?"
Bart frowned even deeper. "I, umm, lost. That is, we lost
the Nerv base. We were supposed to come here, but it looks like
we're moving again."
Fei gritted his teeth and clenched one fist. "Angels." The
very word was a curse.
Bart nodded. "Yeah. And there's too damned many of them.
You fight and you fight, and the next day you fight some more.
Not that I mind, I like to kill angels."
Fei nodded, slowly, almost imperceptibly. "They killed my
family."
Bart frowned. He'd suspected as much. "They do that pretty
often. Kill families, I mean."
Fei tightened his fist even more, but his nails were worn
down too far to leave an impression.
"Hey, listen, pal," Bart began, leaning over to lay one hand
on Fei's shoulder. "We're going to beat them. I'll personally
send every one I can back to hell, heaven or where ever the
bastards come from."
Fei looked up at him, startling him with the intensity in
his eyes. "You're right. We will beat them."
Bart snatched his hand back, surprised by the sudden heat
radiating from Fei's skin. "Yeoow! What the hell! Did you do
that?"
Fei nodded slowly. "It happens, sometimes."
"Ah! �ther power!" Bart nodded knowingly. "You'll learn
to control it. I did in less than three months," he bragged.
Fei had a sudden thought. "Could you show me how? I wasn't
prepared when the angels arrived. Next time, it's going to be
different."
"You weren't prepared? You mean you were the guy that
killed that new angel?" Bart asked curiously, a little awe in his
voice.
"Not before it killed everyone," he replied quietly.
"Shit!" Bart exclaimed. "They stuck you, a raw recruit, in
a _third generation_ Eva, sent you against five angels on your
first time out, and you WON?" Bart got excited, causing little
splashes as he gestured.
"I didn't win, I just survived."
Bart got indignant. "Listen, Fei, maybe they didn't explain
this to you, but where I come from, surviving IS winning. You've
got a pathetic Eva, no experience, and an angel capable of
blasting huge holes through the entire city! And you killed it!
That's the kicker! It's dead! The city is still here, mostly,
and so is most of the population! They may bitch a little about
the move, but at least they _can_." He paused to let the words
sink in. "Don't you see?"
Fei blinked, absorbing the words. "But what about all the
people I didn't save?" he returned angrily. "I wasn't good
enough!"
"So get better," Bart said simply. "Train harder, give it a
little extra push, come back and kick the crap out of them."
"That's what I was trying to do," Fei replied somewhat
testily.
Bart snorted in disdain. "You call that training? Staying
up all night beating yourself bloody? I call that stupid. You're
exhausted, and," he said, leaning back across and poking Fei in
the head, "not thinking right. Knock the overemotional crap out
and give us a hand. We've got a city to move."
"Oh." Fei shut up.
"Right. Sleep, get over it, and report to your commanding
officer." Then he grinned. "After all, it ain't right to make me
do all the heavy lifting." He rose out of the water, wrapping a
towel around himself.
Fei sat in the hot, buoyant water for a few moments longer,
then got out as well. "Hey," he called.
Bart paused on his way to a shower stall. "Yeah?"
"Thanks. I needed that."
Bart snorted and kept walking. "Tell me about it. Next
thing you know you'll be getting all weepy and want a hug. If you
need another kick in the ass, though, let me know. That, I'll be
all too happy to provide."
Fei shook his head and smiled slightly, then started
preparing for his day. He had work to do.
****************
"Misato!" a much refreshed Fei called, yelling to attract
her attention from the rush of technicians and officers.
Misato looked up, spotting Fei. "Fei! I've been needing to
talk to you!" Hurriedly giving last minute instructions to her
gaggle of underlings, she rushed over to him. "Come on, I need to
go back to my office.
Nodding assent, Fei followed.
Misato's office turned out to be a hastily erected table
covered in papers and a small laptop computer perched atop them.
Once it had been in one of the more secure areas of Nerv, but one
of the key structural supports had been sheared in two, leaving it
unsafe for future use. Now it was in a recently emptied storage
room.
"Like the new place?" she asked, waving her hand mock
proudly. "I'd always wanted a larger office, and I finally got
one. Still needs decorating, but I just can't seem to find the
time," she mused, looking around.
"You could always say that you used a minimalist style and
that the bare grey shelves and naked fluorescent bulbs represent
the bleak starkness of the modern human condition?"
Fei and Misato both jerked their heads around to see Sigurd
and Bart standing in the doorway. Bart shrugged and stepped away
slightly, indicating that it wasn't _his_ opinion.
"Or you could just say that you prefer function over style,"
Sigurd continued, smiling slightly.
"Why Colonel Fatima, I didn't know you were an interior
decorator," Misato replied, smiling as well.
Bart snorted.
"Do you have a few free moments?" Sigurd asked Misato.
"Well, I was just about to have a talk with Fei..." she
replied hesitantly.
"Ah," Sigurd replied, "I see. Commander Uzuki wanted us to
discuss a defense plan for the move based on the units we brought
from Nerv-Italy."
Misato sighed. "Can it wait just a few minutes? This is
kind of important."
"No problem, we'll be outside." Dragging a somewhat
reluctant Bart, Sigurd went back into the hall.
"Yes, Fei? Was there something you needed to talk about?"
Misato asked, turning back to where Fei was standing unobtrusively
by her desk.
"Umm, yes, Ma'am. Bart Fatima said that Evas were needed to
help in the evacuation. I'd like to help, if it's possible."
Finished with his prepared speech, Fei lapsed into silence.
Misato sat back in her chair, somewhat stunned. "And here I
was going to... Never mind." She leaned back forward, clasping
her hands in front of her. "I'm sorry for your loss, Fei, but
you're right. We do need another Eva to help, especially in
salvaging goods from the severely damaged areas."
Fei nodded. "I'm ready."
She smiled, grabbing a folder off her desk and leafing
through it. "Well, I _will_ have to turn the rest of these
evacuation reports over to someone else while I supervise you,
can't have just any pilot running around grabbing stuff you know,
but mass salvage _is_ more important..."
Fei found himself smiling slightly in return. "Yes?"
"Go and get suited up. Bart hasn't got all of it done yet,
I'm sure we can find the odd job or two for you."
"Yes, Ma'am," Fei replied sharply, running out of the
office.
Shortly thereafter Sigurd reentered her office, this time
without Bart. "What was his hurry?" he asked.
"Oh, nothing, I just promised him a hot date if he'd take
care of a few little problems for me. Works wonders, you should
try it." She flipped the folder back on her desk and rooted for
another, waving for him to sit down opposite her.
"Yes, ahem, well," Sigurd replied hesitantly, taking a seat.
"I don't think that would work quite as well for me. But I'm not
here to discuss management tips."
"Yes?" she replied, leaning forward once more. "I take it
this is in light of Dr. Akagi's study of 1-3?"
Sigurd nodded sharply. "I've seen her report and discussed
it with Commander Uzuki. He is concerned about the possibilities
of a repeat incident."
"He's not the only one. I am too, and everyone I know
lived. Poor Ritsuko, Dr. Akagi that is, she's going nuts trying
to figure out just what the Commander turned on," she replied
sadly.
"Whatever it is, it's certainly effective against angels.
But we have determined that next time Fei has to fight, it needs
to be away from any populated area."
"No arguments here," she replied. "In fact, that's
something of a relief."
"To this end, Bart is being assigned for local defense in
the event of an angel attack. Should we be able to plot an
intercept course for incoming angels, Fei will be sent with Bart
as backup if possible. Fei will be used locally _only_ as a last
resort."
Misato raised one eybrow. "What about the other units? We
don't have pilots for them, do we? I wasn't informed."
Sigurd sighed. "Security issues, issues which have now
become moot. Subcommander Black will pilot Unit Eight if
necessary, but is more valuable in his command role."
Misato's jaw dropped. "Subcommander Black? You are talking
about Jessie, the old guy that bosses everybody but Commander
Uzuki around? An Eva pilot?"
Sigurd nodded seriously. "Yes, he was actually the first
pilot Nerv has ever had. He invented the training himself, knows
it intimately. Unfortunately, his reflexes and physiological
condition aren't the best, but he still checks out in an Eva."
"What's this Unit Eight?"
"A later generation Eva, created by the crew at Nerv-Italy.
Not very powerful, but it's good at long range targeting." He
reached in his pocket and withdrew a computer disk, then handed it
to Misato. "Here are its specs, and the complete listing of the
military hardware we brought. You were supposed to have received
it earlier, but it was outweighed by other matters."
"I'd suspected as much," she replied, accepting it and
putting it into her own pocket. "Can we rely on Subcommander
Black in battle? If this Unit Eight is as weak as you say, maybe
we shouldn't use it at all."
Sigurd shook his head. "With the particle cannon in its
hands, I'm more than willing to trust Subcommander Black. He's
still a crack shot with both rifle and pistol."
Misato nodded appreciatively. "That old man's got more
spunk in him than most guys half his age."
Sigurd smiled wryly. "And he won't let you forget it
either."
"What else do we have to rely on?"
"Nineteen class one combat gears, thirty class three, and
various construction gears," Sigurd replied. "Most of the
military gears have been retrofitted for menial labor, however.
They're currently being used to assist in the evacuation."
Misato shrugged. It wasn't much for defense, but it could
speed the evacuation up.
"I realize that doesn't give us much chance if the angels
hit while we're still here," he continued, "but once we get to
Nerv-US we'll be in good shape. Most of what we salvaged from
Nerv-Italy was irreplaceable equipment and foodstuffs. By that
time we were low in military hardware."
"I understand," she replied. "It was in the report." She
leafed through another folder and handed him several papers.
"Unfortunately, all but five of our large lifts were rendered
inoperable in the battle and they're all being used to move
materials from the lower levels of Nerv. Our response time with
the Evas may be increased by as much as fifteen minutes, and it's
seriously slowing our evacuation. Still, I'd like request that at
least one lift be free at all times."
Sigurd read briefly, examining the diagrams and noting the
lift that Misato requested be left free. "Request denied. As you
said, the evacuation is slow enough as it is. The removal of one
lift will slow it even more."
"Sir, if the angels attack while the Evas are inside they
will have nearly a half hour of unopposed access to the evacuation
lines to the ships!"
"Yes," Sigurd nodded. "But there will be one Eva on guard
at all times, even while carrying goods. Bart is familiar with
the process, and Fei will learn quickly. They will stand in eight
hour shifts starting tomorrow."
Misato's questing hand found an empty coffee mug amongst the
papers. Giving it a mournful look, she returned her attention to
her superior. "I hope they can handle the fatigue in combat. A
few weeks of that and both will be tired."
Sigurd shrugged. "They'll cope. So will we, as at least
one of us must supervise them in addition to our normal duties."
"So you will continue to command Bart in battle?"
"I have the most experience with his abilities and style, it
would be best if I continued to be his commander. As will you be
Fei's commander in the field."
Finally seeing a chance, she asked a question that had been
burning in her mind for nearly a day. "How many ships have left
yet?" she asked. "And when will I be given a chance to collect my
personal effects?"
Sigurd considered her question. "So far, only four of the
ships we brought from Italy have left for America, after leaving
some of the needed supplies they carried and reloading with the
most fragile and least needed equipment from here. We expect to
have four more ready by the end of the week, but we can't send
them out without a carrier escort. A large fleet of destroyers
and carriers have left the US, but they are not expected to arrive
for at least a week more." He paused. "As for Nerv personnel
evacuation time, none is scheduled for at least another two
weeks."
Misato cursed. "Um, I've got a pet in my apartment, and I'd
really like to get time to run by there and fill up his feeder.
Two weeks from now he'll either have starved to death or hold a
grudge against me for the rest of my life."
"I'm sorry, but we really cannot spare you the time. If
you're that worried about him, send someone to check. For now,
don't you have things to do? I want your complete defense
proposal on my desk by tonight."
"Yes, Sir. If you'll excuse me, I need to be in the
bridge."
Sigurd nodded and left.
****************
Late that night, when most of Nerv was asleep, a crew of
workers still labored to move materials and supplies to the
waiting ships.
Jessie sat alone in the Eva command bridge, studying
monitors and watching the main screen display.
Although both Fei and Bart were asleep, on the screen a huge
humanoid form struggled to drag a container bigger than it was out
of the deep hole the angels had bored towards the center of Nerv.
Metal and concrete rubble shrieked together as the Eva
dragged, occasionally holding on with only one hand and using the
other to help itself up the steep incline. It's massive strength
was easily enough to carry the container, but the treacherous
footing the interior of the tunnel gave made it a tricky operation
at best.
Jessie remained silent, watching the screens impassively.
Finally reaching the top, it turned around and grabbed the
Eva sized handles built onto the sides, pulling the container onto
its back. Although in a rather awkward, hunched over posture, it
was able to walk the distance to the ships, taking extra time to
avoid stepping through the lines of trucks and gears still hauling
materials.
Jessie switched cameras, following its progress.
Upon arriving at the docks, it strode to one of the massive
tankers and walked up a specially constructed ramp to the top.
Even though the deck had been braced in anticipation of the
weight, it still buckled slightly, steel alloys groaning in
protest.
Painstakingly working the load around, the Eva set it as
gently as possible through the opening in the center of the deck,
down into the empty hold. Then it returned to Nerv to repeat the
process.
This time the container was slightly smaller, making the
process of dragging it up the tunnel go much quicker.
Returning to the same ship, it once again lowered the box
into the hold. Instead of returning to Nerv, it lowered itself
into the hold as well. Crews immediately started covering it with
tarps and stacking materials over it, even before the monitors
shining in Jessie's eyes indicated a complete shut down.