Zeon Genesis Bogosity [Draft]
Tokyo 3
Deep inside the Geofront, at the heart of the NERV command center Major
Misato Katsuragi sighed silently. Another day, another Angel. If it wasn't
for the fate of the world hanging in the balance she'd be finding all this a
little monotonous. Around her the room buzzed with reports.
"Failure of seventh block hydraulics, insufficent pressure in secondary
systems. Unable to submerge."
"Withdrawal of remaining Tokyo 3 structures will be completed in one
hundred ninety-six seconds."
"Unit Zero has reached the surface and disengaged lift."
Hearing this Misato spoke into her headset. "All right Rei, hang back
and act as reserve. Use seventh block as a shield, it's not going anywhere."
There was a soft acknowledgement on the pilots' shared comm. channel. "Asuka,
you take point ..." By contrast the other female EVA pilot was very vocal
about what she was going to do to the Angel and how she'd show wondergirl who
was the best pilot. There was an exasperated sigh from the last pilot and
Misato had to smile, how perfectly Shinji-like. "Shinji, keep two hundred
metres back and cover Asuka." Before Shinji could respond Asuka was filling
the channel with complaints about not needing backup and being able to handle
this alone. Misato didn't need to check Unit One's camera to know Shinji
would be looking defensive and apologetic but doing a slow burn under both.
Someday Asuka was going to push Shinji just a little too far and if he was in
an EVA at the time it would get ugly. She felt a familiar pang, all this
bickering was a reminder that they were just kids. Far too young to have to
bear the weight of the world on their shoulders. As she thought this she
glanced at the telemetry from Unit Zero. Rei looked as impassive as ever,
unlike Asuka and Shinji you couldn't see past the surface to the fear within.
It was impossible to tell what she felt, if she actually felt anything. The
only person who seemed to understand her was Commander Ikkari and he felt no
inclination to explain anything. Creepy bastard, with a father like him it
was no surprise Shinji was so screwed up. Dismissing the thought she got back
to directing the impending battle.
It was, in short, a perfectly ordinary day ... well not exactly as even
in Tokyo 3 Angel attacks were the exception rather than the rule but it was a
perfectly ordinary world-on-the-brink-of-Third-Impact-unless-the-EVAs-defeat-
the-Angel kind of day. While there was the usual tension no one was really
expecting Armageddon to start today. Except that unknown to everyone in NERV
and SEELE the beginning of the end had just arrived, in a form unanticipated
save in the most apocryphal of the Dead Sea scrolls.
It began with a whimper, a warning icon flickering on Maya Ibuki's
screen. The terminal speakers were turned off so they wouldn't add to the
blare of background noise or they would have been screaming their warning song
but the flickering caught Maya's eye. She clicked on the warning and stared
in horror at the words filling her screen. It wasn't possible! This had to
be some sort of mistake! Yet even as she thought that she knew the Magi
couldn't make errors, let alone one of this magnitude, unless the entire
Central Dogma system was crashing. There was only one person in the entire
world who could possibly know if the supercomputers were still functioning.
As soon as she thought that she called out to her mentor.
"Dr. Akagi, the Magi are reporting a second angel just appeared directly
above us!" There was an abrupt silence in the control room and Maya wondered
if she should have shouted quite so loud. The silence broke as everyone began
yelling at once, everyone except Commander Ikkari (though he looked
uncharacteristically concerned) and Ritsuko Akagi who crossed to Maya's
console and began querying her mother's creations.
"Dr Akagi ..." The silence returned as Commander Ikkari spoke, "... can
you confirm this report?" As always he sounded cool and remote despite the
seriousness of the situation. Ritsuko, who knew him a lot more intimately
than most people would have guessed (which would have broken Maya's heart had
she known), had once found that quality intriguing and enjoyed peeling away
the layers to find the man beneath. But it was becoming increasingly
frustrating, like opening those little dolls to discover a smaller but
identical one inside. She was beginning to suspect that there wasn't anything
beyond the surface she saw and within Ikkari's heart was nothing but a void.
A theory that seemed more credible when you consider how he treated his son.
None of her diquiet showed on her face nor did it slow her typing as she ran
system checks on the Magi. The results were both startling and puzzling.
"Sir, I can neither confirm nor deny it. The Magi are in conflict."
Ignoring the growing buzz of speculation she continued, "Initially Casper
detected an energy pattern initially identified as an AT field and with all
the Evangelions accounted for reported the presence of a second Angel.
However the other Magi rejected this report as under in-depth scanning the
energy field did not match Blue Pattern. But they cannot explain what this
new entity is and are producing and disgarding dozens of conflicting theories
every second. Hardwired security directives meant that by default they
reported a new Angel's presence but the Magi still have no idea of the
nature of this entity. Until there is some agreement they are designating
the unknown lifeform as 'Anomaly'."
Misato muttered, "Very imaginative" but Ritsuko ignored her. "I think we
have a visual?" Maya nodded and Ritsuko gestured to the main screen. After
a second of silence said, "Well if she is an angel she's the
cutest one yet." nodded, "She looks like an angel to me." On the
main monitor evidentally unaware she was under surveillance the green haired
woman in the designer jeans and blouse looked from the advancing Evas to the
giant spiderlike Angel.
Unaware she was about to start a panic Titanite had materialized a few
minutes earlier surrounded by her forceshield. The probe hadn't detected any
hazards or company on this side of the gate but it was best not to take
unnecessary chances. Everything looked clear, she was standing on a verdent
hillside on the outskirts of a city. No one around so she took a moment to
doublecheck her stabilizer was still functioning, last thing she needed was
dimensional assimilation getting to her. Fortunately despite the massive
firepower she had encountered on the Dirty Pair/Lovely Youma Alternate it
seemed undamaged. Titanite glanced back to the cityscape then did a
doubletake as she realized it was shrinking. Pulling binoculars out of
pocketspace she took a closer look and saw the buildings sinking into the
ground as they were obviously designed to do. Now why in this world would
people want submergible buildings? The answer arrived with the sound of
thundering footsteps and she turned to see three giant robots approaching.
Her first thought was that she had arrived on another Sentai world.
Then she noticed the ridiculously large guns they were toting. Scratch that
theory, Sentai robots went for swords with maybe bows and arrows but preferred
hand to hand. So where was she? Could be GUNDAM though they looked a little
skinny for mobile suits. Of course details didn't have to mesh exactly but a
bigger question was where was whatever they were gunning for? She turned just
as the answer swept into view.
It didn't look like a Zeon or Federation mobile suit, it was a lot closer
to the giant monster school of anime. It was also a lot closer to her than
the mecha and getting nearer very quickly. If it was actually heading her way
or that was just an illusion caused by the massive size of the thing she
didn't know but she was very glad she hadn't dropped her forceshield. She
realised she was instinctively forming a Polaris missile in each hand and
willed them away. She chided herself for making presumptions. She had no
idea who the good guys and the bad guys were here and from what she remembered
of GUNDAM that could be a very vague line with lots of gray areas. Assuming
this creature was evil and hostile based on its appearance was really leaping
to conclusions. By that logic ... Before she could could finish the thought
a ruby red eye opened in the center of the creature's forehead and glowed with
power. An instant later a column of ravening energy engulfed the ground
she stood on.
Within the command center Maya somewhat unnecessarily announced,
"[Angel name] has engaged and destroyed the anomaly." Ritsuko frowned a
little, she would never know just what it was now and she hated mysteries.
"Pity, I would have liked to study it further."
Commander Ikkari breathed an almost inaudiable sigh of relief.
Excellent, no random factor remained to muddle his grand design. Misato was
resuming giving orders to the pilots when Maya's voice echoed through the
control room again. "Correction, anomoly was not destroyed. It has
repositioned itself five hundred metres south of its old position. Magi
report anomaly's relocation took place in ... in nanoseconds!" That couldn't
be right, nothing material was that fast! "It's behind the Angel." The
image on the screen shifted as Maya cut in another camera feed, taken from
long range but the picture was optimismed by the Magi. Perhaps it wasn't the
same anomoly, the features were the same but she was now wearing a yellow
miniskirted outfit vaguely resembling a sailor suit style school uniform.
The optimized audio cut in time for everyone to hear the anomaly yell
"Polaris Missile!" and heave an energy sphere into the Angel's back. After
that things started getting weird.
Titanite saw the missile splatter before it reached the creature without
much surprise. She'd thought she sensed a forceshield but wanted to make
sure. To herself she muttered, "Okay I'd say we can assume it's hostile." It
was definitely, "I will punish you time" but it looked like a kick butt first,
make speech second situation. She shifted through space, rematerializing at
another line of sight position before it could target her. Lucky she'd
listened to her instincts and teleported when that eye started glowing. That
beam looked strong and she didn't want to find out the hard way her shield
couldn't handle it. Staying on the move would be her primary defense, next
problem was how to strike back.
Whatever it was it was very big and very powerful. Best to treat it like
a Nemesian battlecruiser. Namely forget the small stuff, just go all out and
hit it with everything she had. Problem was that required time to gather her
energies. Well, no time like the present. She teleported again, the Angel
again shredding the space she had occupied a few heartbeats later, and began
the mantra she had devised to help focus her concentration.
Watching though a hundred video eyes the Magi observed her disappearance
and her reappearance to the Angel's west a few nanoseconds later. While they
continued to puzzle over this phenomena they did not neglect to send a
slow-time message to the humans as they continued to assess and re-evaluate
what this new entity was. Living on a human timescale it took Maya a few
instants (that were subjectively months to the Magi) to register the
supercomputer's signal and switch the main video display from the old camera
feed to the Magi controlled "real time" tracking program. The image changed
to a computer optimized close-up of the anomaly, just in time to for everyone
to hear the mystery woman (or whatever) begin to speak.
"Brightness beyond dawn."
"Turquoise beyond blood that flows."
The entity again vanished before the Angel's strike obliterated the place
she had stood. She reappeared on the opposit side of it still speaking
as a light formed between her outstretched hands.
"Servant of the Eternal City."
"In Serenity's name."
"I pledge myself to the light." Another shift, the Angel opened fire
directly behind itself but she reappeared on its left side. The glow was
blinding.
"All the evil that threatens earth will be punished."
"By the power of the Senshi."
She reappeared directly before it, no one could quite believe what
they were seeing. Between both hands she gripped the end of the handle of
an impossibly massive hammer. An EVA would have been hard pressed to
balance it yet she held it as though it was the lightest feather. Nobody
got a chance to make this observation as things happened very quickly. With
incredible speed the hammer arced round to slam into the Angel accompanied by
a cry of "MALLET SLAVE!"
The Angel's AT field ruptured and the core cracked as the mallet smashed
into it. Titanite had a sudden premonition of doom and teleported away, sans
hammer, as the Angel's power exploded outwards. Channeled by the collapsing
AT field the mushroom cloud roared into the stratosphere.
In disbelief Maya said, "It blew up?!"
Ritsuko nodded, "Blew up real good."
Misato was very glad she had followed her gut instinct and kept the EVAs
away from the battlezone. On screen the anomaly was making some sort of
speech. By chance or design she made a V for victory sign as she grinned at
the camera. Misato took a moment to ponder (and to enjoy the stunned look on
Ikkari's face) then gave her orders to the pilots.
"Okay, the Angel's destroyed but you don't get off the hook that easily.
I want you to fall back towards the elevators but don't enter them without
orders. Maintain combat readiness but don't fire without authorization. Is
that clear?" She ignored the babble of questions from Shinji and Asuka. "I
said is that clear?" This time all three acknowledged and the Evas began
withdrawing.
On the surface Ti mused aloud, "Looks like I've just picked sides." She
saw the giant robots safe their weapons and begin moving away. So much for
anyone saying, "Thank you". She shrugged, at least they hadn't attacked her
also. She waved at the retreating giants and was pleased to see one of them,
the purple one, wave back in a somewhat hesitant fashion. Weird looking
things, just where was she anyway? Nowhere recognisable but with giant
robots and monsters it was probably an anime alternate. Maybe one of those
old 1970's shows, they had matchups like that. Maybe not, if memory served
those mecha were broader, clunkier and pure machine. According to her aura
reading senses those things were alive ... partially organic anyway. Giant
sized boomers? No way to tell, she'd been a kid with undeveloped powers when
she snuck into MegaTokyo all those centuries ago. But while she might not
know what a Boomer pattern looked like and was nowhere near Pyrite's equal
when it came to aura reading her senses were sharp enough to distinguish the
human auras inside the masking of the giants' auras.
Still while it might be beyond her own abilities to identify this world
and the nature of those robots she was far from stymied. Hadn't Pyrite
chided her last time she reported back for depending too much on her own
resources while ignoring the myriad equipment he had provided? Having
recognised or at least quickly figured out the rules of the road on her recent
visits to alternates she'd been able to get by. But since she had no idea
what was going on and as CTU had gone to so much trouble to see she was
equipped it was a shame to keep stubbornly ignoring it. Perhaps the time had
come to see if the junk she had stashed in pocketspace was any practical use.
A consideration when it came to equipment designed by academics. Or at least
a rationalization as neither Ami not Pyrite qualified as true ivory tower
intellectuals. No two ways around it Pyrite was right. She was being
stubborn. Chuckling a little Titanite considered summoning the state of
the art computer/scanner she had been given but decided on reflection to wait
a little longer. The giants were quite some distance away but still visible
and she would be very surprised if they weren't watching her. No sense doing
anything that might needlessly alarm them and pulling things out of thin air
might do that. On the other hand it was a bit late to worry about that after
summoning her gigahammer. Still if they decided it was a prelude to a new
attack then ....
While Titanite mused things hadn't been standing still in the NERV
command center known as Central Dogma. [Lieutenant] was asking, "Shouldn't
we have had the EVA's move in for a closer look?"
Misato answered by saying, "Ritsuko, have the Magi determined what
she is yet?"
"Negative."
Misato shrugged, "There you have it. The Magi have access to all the
Tokyo 3 surveillance systems and the Eva's scanners and they still can't
figure her out. What makes you think the pilots will see anything they're
missing?"
"But we don't know what we're dealing with here. If she's hostile
..."
"Then that's another reason to pull back until we have more data.
She just took out an Angel, what makes you think she can't do the same to
an EVA?"
"But Major ..."
Misato ignored the protest. "She defended herself against the Angel
rather than initiating battle. Hopefully that means she won't attack unless
we start it so let's not open unnecessary hostilities. What we really need
is more information and passive scanning seems to have reached it's limits.
Someone needs to make contact with her, it, whatever." Misato smiled
slightly, "Anyone seen Kaji?"
A chorus of no's filled the control room. Misato sighed, "Looks like I
get all the dirty work again. Big surprise. Okay you're in
charge until I get back. Keep a camera on us at all times. I'll keep my
radio link on but don't contact me unless it's an emergency. I'd rather not
startle her. If the Magi decide she's an Angel bring all three EVAs in for
immediate attack and let's hope we catch her off-guard." Fat chance of that
as Evangelion units weren't exactly designed to sneak up on enemies but hope
springs eternal.
"But major, you'll be standing at ground zero!"
"That was an order." Without waiting for a reply Misato began heading
for the elevators.
"At least don't go alone. Take as security detail!"
Misato smiled ruefully. "She just took out an Angel. Do you think a
few guys with guns would even make her break sweat?"
Meanwhile Titanite was using the opportunity to study her surroundings.
There wasn't much left above ground where the city had stood. Beyond she
could see the blue waters of the Pacific but no ships in the harbour and no
clues where she was. There were ways of finding out, she thought, as she
came to a decision. Pyrite kept complaining she relied too much on her own
observations rather that using the equipment he'd supplied so why not make
his day? She was about to summon the scanner when a concealed metal column
arose from the turf. The doors in it opened and Titanite realized it was a
hidden elevator and relaxed out of her potential combat stance. The woman
inside stepped out and announced, "Major Misato Katsuragi, United Nations
Forces, attached to NERV directorate." She stood at attention await a
response. Hmmm, militaristic. Was it possible ...? Just in case Ti replied,
"Sieg Zeon?" wondering what kind of reaction that would provoke.
Misato blinked, that sounded germanic. She whispered into her headset,
"Patch Asuka into this the link. I'm going to need her to translate ..."
"Don't bother", the mystery woman interupted as she demonstated she had
excellent hearing. "Name, rank and serial number? Let's see ... "
Ti went into her introductory pose and declaimed, "Summoned by the
traveller's star; Senshi of Mallets and Cherry Blossom; Beautiful Warrior
Sailor Polaris is here!" Misato just gawked, wondering where all the cherry
blossom had come from, let alone the massive mallets that had appeared in
Sailor Polaris' hands.
The mallets and cherry blossom vanished as Titanite grinned and opined,
"You didn't watch much anime as a kid, did you?"
Misato blinked then dryly replied, "I didn't exactly have a normal
childhood."
Ti nodded, "My own was a little idiosyncratic but I imagine what you're
really wondering is, 'Who is this weirdo?' My card." She pushed the white
cardboard rectangle into Misato's hand. Misato was sure Sailor Polaris hadn't
been holding it when she raised her hand but after mega-mallets, plain old
business card were very minor legerdemain. For the benefit of the NERV
spectators Misato began to read aloud.
"Sailor Polaris / Lady Titanite. Crystal Palace Media and Public
Relations. Royally Authorized Sailor Senshi of Crystal Tokyo. Member
Interdimensional Sisterhood of Magical Girls since 1993. Want to join the
Sailor Polaris Fanclub? Email senshifan@palacemedia.gov.ct. 'Sailor
Polaris', 'Polaris Missile', related attack cries and indica are the
copyrighted property of Polaris Productions, not to be used or reproduced
without permission." Misato looked up from the card to see Titanite smiling
encouragingly at her and had the feeling it was going to be a very strange
day.
An odd feeling of unreality settled over Misato and she inquired, "So
you're claiming to be some sort of magical princess who's here to save us
from the Angels?"
Titanite frowned, "Save you from the angels? Aren't angels supposed to
be the good guys? You're not demon worshippers or necromancers, are you?"
Before Misato could answer that Ti continued, "As for the other part I'm
magical but not a princess. Far as I know I've never even been reincarnated."
Oblivious to Misato's growing confusion she kept going without pause.
"Actually since Cal's the undisputed leader of the survivors of the Kingdom
(except maybe to Chrys and definitely not to Maggie but who cares what he
thinks?) and it was a monarchy that might make him our King by default so as
his sister that would make me a princess. Princess Titanite ..." Her
expression changed as though the last phrase tasted unpleasant. "No, forget
that! Too much baggage. I'll settle for being plain old Lady Titanite of
Crystal Tokyo."
Misato tried to untangle the mystery woman's words and failed. No one
was offering any advice through her headset so it was still all down to her
own judgement. She took a deep breath and decided to go for broke. It was
Titanite's turn to be puzzled as the major blurted, "Are you an Angel?"
After a moment Titanite smiled and shrugged. "There are men who have
called me that but I'm more of a youma."
"A demon!" Underground the control room became filled with babbling as
the spectators began speculating that if the existence of angels implied
demons and if the enemy of their enemy was their friend. Behind his
controlled mask Gendo Ikkari's thoughts raced as he tried to make sense of
this. He grimanced and tried to clear his mind. Like the Magi he had
insufficent data to draw any conclusions. He needed more information but what
were the right questions to ask? He forced his attention back to the screen
where the anomoly was shaking her head over Major Katsuragi's outburst.
"That's not what I meant! Here, look at this." Just like that there
was an antique school slate in one hand and a piece of chalk in the other.
She scrawled two lines on the slate, one in Kanji, the other composed of
unknown glyphs and tapped both with the chalk.
"Here we have two words that sound the same in Japanese and Shazaarian
respectively. But when we romanize the top one you notice it reads 'Youma'
while the second translates as 'Jouma' but local pronounciation makes them
sound the same. Now this one ..." She tapped the scrawl reading "Jouma",
"... is our race's name for ourselves but due to the nonhuman appearance of
the ... uh first contacters upon arrival in Japan they were referred to as
"Youma" by the indigenous population. They heard this as "Jouma" and assumed
they had been correctly identified. Later on we figured it out but there
didn't seem much point in making an issue of it ..." Particularly, Titanite
thought, considering the demonic creation of our kind and the derivation of
Jouma from "child of darkness" in the original Arcadian. Aloud she continued,
"So youma, jouma, potato, potatoe, let's call the whole thing off. We'll
answer to either and only etymologists bother about the fine points. Besides
with us around youma has fallen out of usage as a derogatory term and
basically come to mean jouma."
Slowly Misato answered, "So you're a member of a race that calls itself
the Youma but you claim no connection with the Angels ..."
Titanite interrupted, "Just what is it with all these questions about
angels? If I was an angel it would be pretty obvious, wouldn't it?"
Misato shook her head. "Angels come in a variety of forms though they
do tend to be on the large side. No two are alike, the one you destroyed was
unlike any that came before ..."
"That was an angel?!" Misato nodded at the interuption and Ti mused
aloud, "I always thought angels were these androgynous blond guys with wings
and haloes."
"That's mythology! Angels is just the name we've assigned to the alien
invaders ..."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why Angels? Calling them demons I could understand but angels are the
good guys. They're on the side of ... well the angels. Unless you worship
Satan on this world or your theology's reversed so Hell's good and Heaven's
evil except I notice you're wearing a cross ..." During this spiel Misato
had been doing a slow burn.
"NO, WE DO NOT WORSHIP SATAN!" With an effort she lowered her voice
and continued, "Traditionally angels were symbols of faith, hope and mercy
but we've applied it to the Angels ... to the invaders because ..." Misato
trailed off as she really thought about the question for the first time.
Just where had the name come from? She'd first heard it in her childhood
shortly before the Second Impact but the memory was cloudy. Titanite was
watching her expectantly so somewhat lamely she concluded, "... that's
classified." The intruder just shrugged.
"I suppose it makes sense if you're a local. So the badguys are called
Angels. What does that make the big guys over there?"
Misato considered the security issues than disgarded them. What
difference would knowing the name make to someone who was already a security
nightmare? Especially when any local schoolkid could answer that question?
"Evangelions, Units Zero through Two."
Titanite frowned, "That name sounds vaguely familiar. Maybe from some
old anime ..." She shrugged. "Well if it was it can't have been any good or
I'd remember it."
Misato blinked. "This isn't some stupid anime! This is real life."
Ti spread her hands disarmingly. "Come on, you have to admit this is
classic stuff. You've got giant robots fighting evil alien invaders. All
it needs to complete the setup is for the robots to be operated by plucky
kids and built by the mad scientist father or uncle of one of them. Or he's
got a cute daughter and all the pilots have a crush on her."
Misato blinked again and hesitantly muttered, "Uhm ... that's also
classified."
Inside EVA-02 Asuka snorted, "Who's she calling plucky?"
Shinji ventured, "She's got a point, you know. When you hear it like
that our lives are sort of like one of those old cartoons."
"Oh, really? And I suppose you think your father's mad too?"
Shinji considered the question. He also considered that Rei was
listening and that he didn't want to get slapped again for criticising his
father. "I don't really know him well enough to have an opinion."
"Now that's a safe, wimpy answer. What do you think, Wondergirl?"
Enigmatic as ever Rei answered, "Life imitates art, art imitates life.
Sometimes you cannot tell one from the other as both are reflections of the
same whole."
Asuka gaped at Rei's image then demanded, "What the hell is that supposed
to mean.
Rei didn't answer, she'd said her piece. Shinji turned his attention
back to the videofeed of Misato and the woman who called herself Sailor
Polaris. They'd continued talking during the pilots exchange. With obvious
disbelief Misato was asking, "How can you not have heard of the Second
Impact?!"
"Would you believe I just arrived from an alternate universe where
magical girls are both real and plentiful? A world where we make it our
business to take out monsters and we collectively call ourselves the Sailor
Senshi?"
"Not in a million years."
Titanite nodded. "In that case I'm an emissary from the planet Sailor
which orbits the star you call Polaris. Greetings earthling, I come in
peace."
Misato ignored the fact this being had just destroyed an Angel
singlehandedly and glared at her. "You're not taking this seriously!"
Ti chuckled, "Actually this is about as serious as I get. If any of my
friends or family were handy they could confirm that."
"Do you really expect me to believe you came from a world full of
magical girls?"
"Full is an exaggeration, most people are perfectly ordinary. As for
the rest of it I don't expect you to believe anything. What is, is. Unless
you've got your own Ginzuishou your belief or disbelief won't change a thing."
"Ginza-what?"
"Ginzuishou. It's this magic jewel that alters reality to the wielder's
wishes." She didn't bother listing the limitations.
Misato just rolled her eyes. "Right ... do you have any idea how
ridiculous that sounds. Not to mention how ridiculous you look." She was
startled when Titanite leaned in to scrutinize her own attire. She stepped
back involuntarily just as the other woman straightened up and thoughfully
announced, "Oh I don't know that we look so different. Your skirt's about
regulation length already. Lose the jacket, add some ribbons to your blouse
and some gloves and you'd fit right in. Got any special skills?"
"What?" Exasperated and confused Misato half snarled, "I can outdrink
anyone else in NERV!"
Titanite nodded and concentrated a moment. "Hmmm ... Sailor Sake. There
may be potential there. Worth keeping in mind."
Misato forced herself to count to ten and reminded herself once again
that this airhead had somehow destroyed an Angel. "Getting back to the Angel
what did you do to it?"
"I hit it and it went boom."
"Boom?!"
"Boom."
"What about its AT field?"
"You mean the forcefield around it? Tricky harmonics but far from
indestructible." Ti frowned at Misato's expression, "What's so surprising?
You must have known it was vulnerable. You mentioned previous Angel attacks
and you sent your EVAs to intercept. From the look of those guns you weren't
planning to negotiate a peaceful surrender. For that matter if the guns were
going to do any good you had to have some way to crack its shield."
"Yes, but ..." Misato stopped short of saying it was impossible for
anything other than an Evangelion to beat an AT field. That might have been
true once but it had been conclusively demonstrated that times had changed.
Somewhat giddly she mused that if the Angels were trying to destroy humanity
didn't it make sense that demons were on her side? Aloud she asked, "So
there's more like you where you came from?"
"Do you mean youma or Sailor Senshi? Actually in both cases the answer's
the same. Yes."
"Right ..." With no more intelligent questions presenting themselves
Misato asked, "So could these other ... uhh, Sailor Senshi destroy Angels the
same way can?"
"Well, no."
"That's what I thought ..."
"They'd have kicked its butt a lot quicker."
"WHAT!"
Oblivious to the consternation she had just caused in Central Dogma
Ti continued, "Truth is I'm the weakest of the Crystal Tokyo Senshi. I may
be the most experienced and powerful Lesser Senshi in the world but compared
to a True Senshi ... well there's no comparision. Think any of the others
would have needed that much buildup? Not a chance. With no civilians around
they'd just go straight to a Mainline attack and POW!"
Down below Maya asked Ritsuko, "She's kidding, right? She can't be
their weakest warrior!"
Ritsuko didn't answer immediately, just studied the Magi's readouts. The
supercomputers were still undecided and spewing out dozens of conflicting
scenarios. She sighed, "If she's telling the truth then things could get very
interesting." Gendo Ikkari overheard the comment but didn't respond even
though his thoughts ran along similar lines. The JSDF was still smarting over
the JET-1 fiasco and looking for a way to supersede the Evangelion progam.
Uselessly as long as EVAs remained the only weapon capable of combating the
Angels but if a new factor entered the picture ...
Gendo scowled. His mood wasn't improved when his deputy leaned down
to murmur, "If this Polaris is a scout for some sort of extraterrestiral
alien mercenary force ..."
"I am well aware of that Dr. Fuyuzuki. If she is then we will have to
take countermeasures before the JSDF can learn of her presence." Gendo's
almost inhuman self control reasserted itself and his thoughts turned icy
and analytical. It had been child's play to sabotage the JET test. How
much harder could it be to neutralize a woman barely out of her teens?
Back on the surface Misato interrupted Titanite's discourse on how her
fellow Senshi would freeze, incinerate, electrocute or blast holes through
any Angel that dared challenge them.
"Okay, I get the idea! So what's the difference between a True Senshi
and a Lesser Senshi anyway?"
"Simply put True Senshi draw their power from the planets they're named
for which gives them practically inexhaustible power reserves. All ten planets
in the solar system have a Senshi ..."
"There's only nine planets in the solar system!"
"That depends but never mind. Anyway that's the True Senshi." Ti
decided to skip Ancients, alien Senshi, the Skirt Effect and the lack of a
Sailor Earth. "So with them around the public was primed to accept girls
with superpowers if they called themselves Sailor something and dressed the
part. Now while the Senshi are the most powerful they aren't the only ones
with powers. These days there are plenty who draw power from the Earth's
ambient mana field or from an artifact imbued with power by magical,
scientific or magsci means. Power wielders were scarcer when I started out
but I started the Lesser Senshi phenomena. Quite simply it's accepted
practise for any girl or women with powers who feels like using them for the
public good to wear some variation of the Senshi fuku and call themselves
Sailor whatever after my example."
Titanite frowned for a moment, "Of course writing that dummy's guide to
being a Senshi helped things get going ... wonder if that's still in print?
Better check my royalty statements when I get home." Misato coughed and Ti
got back on track. "Anyway belief has power and the whole world believes in
the Senshi so the Lesser Senshi find their abilities upgrade when they take
up the fuku. Now while all the True Senshi are loyal to Neo-Queen Serenity
and King Endymion and sworn to protect them and Crystal Tokyo the Lesser
Senshi have varying loyalties. Some, like me, are also sworn to Serenity and
Endymion but many have other concerns. Some are vigilante crimefighters,
others serve their countries or a corporation. What we all have in common is
a desire to protect someone. You understand, right?"
"What do you mean?'
"Well you're obviously driven to protect the world against those Angel
things. In my world if you had powers or could acquire them you'd definitely
be wearing a fuku."
Misato shook her head, "I don't think so."
Ti shrugged, "If you say so but you've got the look and after all this
time I'd say I know a potential Lesser when I see her."
"Yeah well I wouldn't trust your experience to far until you get to be
my age. I've still got a few years on you and the cynicism that comes with
them."
Titanite considered telling Misato her true age but decided against it.
She would never believe it. Instead Ti just commented, "We'll just have to
agree to disagree. Anyway I've answered your questions so how about
answering mine? What's the deal with these Angels anyway?"
"What do you mean? I already explained ..."
"I know, invading aliens and you don't know much about them but what
I'm wondering is are Evangelion squads fighting off Angel attacks all over the
world or is it just here?"
Since it would be easy for anyone to find out EVAs were unknown outside
of the Tokyo 3 metropolitan area Misato answered, "NERV Headquarters has the
only operational Evangelions."
Titanite nodded, "I take it conventional weaponary is useless against
Angels?"
"Right, even tactical nukes don't do more than slow them down. They can
regenerate despite incredible damage. Theoretically we could destroy them
with continual nuclear bombardment until there was nothing left to regenerate
but the environmental side-effects would be unimaginable. Not to mention that
they don't just stand still and let you drop bombs on them."
"Got it. So this place ... Tokyo 3 you called it?" Misato nodded.
"Thought so, so Tokyo 3 is the only place the Angels attack?"
"Right."
Titanite nodded, "Very sporting of them."
"WHAT!"
"Well they could just go level the rest of the world but they come here
individually to face the only weapons on Earth capable of defeating them. How
much more honourable can you get?"
"..." Misato's mouth hung open as she considered the logic. From a
purely military standpoint the Angel's actions made no sense. A fact she
had always known but been avoiding thinking about by concentrating exclusively
on destroying them rather than why they attacked. Of course the Angels were
aliens so their actions might seem entirely reasonable to them while making
no sense by human standards. Indeed wasn't it possible than humans and Angels
were incapable of understanding on another?
Her composure returned and Misato felt a definite relief at her
rationalization. That had to be the answer! Yet she couldn't shake a nagging
voice at the back of her mind which insisted on reminding her that Ritsuko had
claimed biologically the Angels had undeniable similarities to humans.
Ignoring the annoying whisper she began, "It might not make sense to you
or me but ..."
Titanite interupted, "Actually it makes perfect sense to me. I was just
kidding. You should have seen your face ..." The chuckle died before the
new expression on Misato's face. Titanite coughed nervously, "Yes, well ...
it's the same as back home. The Forces of Darkness continually attacked the
only city on Earth with Sailor Senshi and got their heads handed to 'em."
Misato's tactical instincts kicked in.
[Ti scans area with computer (Majel Barret/Megumi Hashibari voice
options) surprised no synch zone. Why angels attacking Tokyo 3?
Scans]
"Working ..."
Ti sighed, "Why does he always give them Majel Barret's voice?"
As it was a purely retorical question she was startled when the computer
responded, "For your conveniance a number of voice output choices are
available. Please select one of the following; Megumi Hashibara, Shiina
Hekira, Mitsuishi Kotono, Han Keiko ..."
"Whoa!" Obligingly the computer shut up and Titanite chuckled. "Good
old Pyr, just when you think you have him pegged he goes and surprises you.
Okay, computer let's hear you using Megumi doing Linna Inverse."
"Please select Goofy Linna Inverse, Angry Linna Inverse, Serious Linna
Inverse ..."
"Hmmm ... let's go with "Angry". Might help keep me on my toes."
[Ti scans area with computer (Majel Barret/Megumi Hashibari voice
options) surprised no synch zone. Why angels attacking Tokyo 3?
Scans]
[Gendo and Ti - "So what's the thing in the basement?" Gendo lets
Lilith name slip. Dr. Kouzou Fuyutsuki present. Hammer time]
By this time the tower blocks of Tokyo-3 had arisen once again and the
all-clear had sounded so the streets were filled as the citizens poured out
of the shelters. In a throng like that it was easy for a smartly dressed
brunette to be overlooked. Drifting along with the crowd Titanite wondered
if just resurrecting her ancient Titania Hobbes glamour would be sufficent to
avoid notice. It had been a very long time since Sailor Polaris had worn a
mask so just changing her hair (and blood) colour and using her transmutter to
give her a new outfit might not be enough. Perhaps a more japanese appearance
would serve her better.
Then again the "ignorant gaijin" air that came with this glamour could be
useful and odds were if NERV went looking for Polaris they'd be looking for
the green haired maniac in the fuku who had malleted their commander. Still
just to be on the safe side she had established a bulletproof shield as she
could maintain one that weak almost indefinitely. She frowned a little at
the thought. On reflection while that was true under normal circumstances
taking out that Angel had been a big drain on her power reserves and restoring
her full strength would take weeks in this world. The ambient mana field was
weak, about the strength her Tokyo's had been back in the old days before the
mana wells were unsealed. If that meant that this worlds mana wells were
sealed or if they were simply intrinsically weaker she had no idea.
Back at the Interdimensional Studies Department of CTU they had long ago
agreed that technological civilization only arose on worlds where the
planetary manafield was too weak to support a magical based civilization
(though individual magic users were another matter) as developing human
societies always tried magic as the first way to manipulate and control
their environment. But on many worlds while individuals who could use magic
existed in varying numbers the global mana supply was too weak for large
scale usage. Thus shamans were eventually superseded as technology developed
to varying degrees and at varying paces all over these worlds. However the
causes of these mana poor worlds was still a hotly debated topic. The
Sealists hypothesized events replicating the Great Sealing during the Fall of
the Silver Millennium sometimes even theorizing extraterrestrial or
extradimensional civilizations tapping other worlds mana through subspace
links to support themselves. How else, they asked, could so many worlds
have history's parallelling our Earth's up to the Unsealing and the return of
magic? A hard argument to answer but the main flaw in it was that no seals or
spacial energy links had been detected during cross dimensional investigations
to date. This was usually rebutted that there had been very limited
extradimensional exploration thanks to Crystal Tokyo's stranglehold on the
technology, Serenity's sealing of the main terrestrial interdimensional nexus
and the very limited number of extradimensional excursions CTU had allowed.
However thank to several unfortunate incidents when experiments of this nature
had been performed outside of Crystal Tokyo the Reunited Nations had pushed
through a blanket ban on all attempts at interdimensional exploration in
nations without True Senshi to deal with the associated hazards. In theory
that meant if Senshi migrated then their new home was free to begin supervised
dimensional experimentation. In practice it kept the limited experimentation
confined to Crystal Tokyo. While over the generations scientists had
protested many people slept a lot sounder knowing Serenity was keeping a
watchful eye on the few experiments that took place. The Hunters had added
keeping unauthorized experiments of this ilk to their constantly expanding
mandate and kept a close eye on politicians and corporations making noises
about the theoretical advantages of exploiting other dimensions for resources
and upon scientists preaching about the pure knowledge that would be gained
by a carefully supervised program of tearing holes in reality.
The other main faction in the origins of technology vs magical
civilization debate was more conservative. Popularly known as the Enigma
Variationists (a name coined by Pyrite) they held that the varying levels of
mana thoughout the multiverse were a result of natural variations in physical
laws between different cosmos. Why so many worlds had similar histories,
why the laws of nature were subtly different and why so many of those
explored resembled ancient anime and manga (or alternately how several writers
of ancient anime and manga had managed to copy nearby dimensions) remained as
mysteries. Mysteries the Enigmaists intended to solve if it took another
thousand years. But their basic view to why so many worlds lacked magic could
be summed up very simply as "Because!" Which while not the universal answer
to all philosophical questions it was frequently used as by undergraduates
was good enough for the time being.
Shaking her head and wondering why she was musing over academic trivia
instead of just going with the flow Ti decided she was feeling a bit tense.
She had just pulverised a giant monster and instead of getting any kind of
appreciation had nearly been shot. Okay so the bullets would have just
bounced off and she'd malleted the guy before he could pull the trigger but
maybe she'd over-reacted. He had been no threat to her, she could have just
squished his gun's barrel and the only one he could have hurt was himself.
Instead she'd nearly driven him into the floot like a tentpeg. Well there
was something about that guy that had irritated her, made it feel like he
needed a good whack on the head.
Titanite sighed, she was definitely reacting a bit too violently of late.
Maybe she should just forget Evas, Angels, NERV and all that nonsense and
see what this dimension offered in the way of diversion. Lina hadn't picked
up any trace of interdimensional exploration and without magic the local
technology was inadequete to breach dimensional barriers so her job here was
done. But it made sense to unwind a bit before returning to make her report
and check out the next world. She had plenty of time left before her
scheduled return time and could signal for an extension if she felt like it.
So the question was what could she do for fun around here?
Startling a few passersby by unconsciously muttering aloud, "Maybe what
I really need is to get laid real bad", she wandered on; oblivious to the
bickering couples in her wake with girls squabbling with their boyfriends for
looking far too interested when they'd overheard her. Deep in introspection
she continuted on in ignorance of her surroundings as she debated the issues
with herself.
The big one was why stay true to a husband who had left her behind, "for
her own good", when he returned to his homeworld? Especially considering he
hadn't just abandoned her but also their child. Hematite was growing up
without a father while her daddy tried to reform the pack of savages that had
tortued his wife both physically and mentally. If it hadn't been for Serenity
and Rei ... !
With an effort Titanite sidestepped the rage that came with those
memories. Rei had shown her there was no point in poisoning herself with
futile dreams of vengeance by cursing the dead and Garnet wouldn't be hurting
anyone ever again. Cal had never been specific about what he'd done to the
Grand Admiral but had been definite that there was no chance of him returning
to seek revenge. She sighed at the thought of her big brother. Still looking
out for her after all these centuries which was both a burden (as she liked to
think she could take care of herself) and a comfort when she occasionally ran
into things she couldn't handle. Oh there were strong bonds between her
and her two "elder sisters" (and to a lesser extent with her recently
discovered actual half-sister), her sister-in-law, her cousin, the other
Senshi and of course Serenity but the one with her brother had always been
strongest. Why not? He had practically raised her so Calcite wasn't only
her sibling but also the closest thing she had to a father figure. Nephrite
was just a name in the history books, she'd never met her biological father
and doubted she'd have liked him (though she had always been curious what he
was like before Beryl got her hooks into him but Ferrite was hardly about
to open up to a youma).
[Drifting? consider cutting "handle" to here]
Yet for all that she felt their closeness was forged by more than blood
and family it was also a matter of attitude. At the core she had always
suspected Cal was a lot more like her than people thought. Oh she was
impulsive and curious where he was conservative and cautious but she had grown
up not having to restrain her instincts thanks to him. If the Dark Kingdom
hadn't forced him to cultivate paranoia as a survival tactic Ti had always
thought they would have been twins in both biology and personality. One way
they were still alike was in matters of the heart. For all his supposed
hardheadedness Calcite was a hopeless romantic. Just like his sister and
,fortunately, just like Minako. Over the centuries Cal and Mina had spent
decades estranged from one another and while they had both talked to her about
ending it once and moving on neither had ever really given up hope. Ti
sighed with wry affection, they were both fools and she was no better. Who
was she kidding? She wasn't about to give up on Topass after just a couple of
years apart. He might be an idealistic, headstrong idiot but he was her
idealistic, headstrong idiot. She angrily wiped her eyes as she felt them
moistening. Dammit, she was brooding again. She was supposed to be having
adventures not wallowing in self-pity. If diversion didn't present itself
she'd just have to find it but where to begin? The memory of the insufferable
Commander Ikari flashed through her mind and she nodded. That was a good
place to start. She had a few clues but they didn't mean anything to her, not
yet anyway.
The first thing she needed was some privacy. She was looking for a
quiet cafe when she spotted the park. A smaller greenspace than she was used
to but being late afternoon on a weekday there wouldn't be many other patrons.
Her mind made up she sauntered in and searched for a secluded spot. The bench
she found fitted her requirements and from the surrounding evidence was a
popular spot with couples during darker hours. No matter, she would be long
gone by then. Still while she had the privacy she wanted would it last.
There was the possibility that this was a pickup spot and amorous males might
approach. Fortunately she hadn't had lunch yet so that threat would be easily
averted. Quickly checking that there weren't any witnesses she reached into
pocketspace and pulled out one of the special bento boxes she had stashed.
She broke the stasis seal and sniffed appreciatively at the fragrance that
rolled from the hot contents. Good as when she had packed it weeks ago. An
opinion any wolves in the area were unlikely to share.
While she had never lost her love of her native cuisine Ti had long ago
lost her illusions of making many human converts. For most of the patrons
eating at Crystal Tokyo's (and the world's) only Shaizarrian restaurant was a
test of bravado or done with a sense of culinary completeness rather than an
interest in becoming regulars. Sad really but she had learned to live with
it. Besides it was their loss. With that thought she took a bite of her
heedra and rotweed quiche. Delicious! It more than lived up to its heady
aroma.
Leaving her meal half unfinished (and making a note to pick up some
extra strong mints later) to deter company Titanite reached back into
pocketspace and recovered her laptop. She flipped it open to find an angry
Lina Inverse glaring at her from the monitor.
"Well I like that! Bunging me into subspace without a word of warning
and now I suppose you want me to help you?!"
"Sorry about that but needs must when the devil drives ... a saying
which might be a bit more literally true here than on most worlds."
"Yeah, Yeah. Well I suppose that's the closest thing to an apology I'm
going to get. So what do you want?"
The computer sounded both longsuffeing and put-upon. Titanite took a
moment to marvel at the simulation before querying it.
"That creepy guy with the glasses let slip the name 'Lilith' when I told
him I knew about the thing in the basement. He clammed up fast when he
realised I was bluffing about how much I knew but it's a starting point.
Besides I'd swear I've heard if before somewhere. So I need you to check
your files for any references to that name associated with magic or
paranormal events."
"Fine ... okay I've got four references, three historical, one mythical."
"That was fast!"
"I'm a computer, remember?"
"True, funny it's been 1000 years and I still can't get used to how
fast you guys think."
"I'll refrain from comment. So you want them newest to oldest or vice
versa?"
"Start with the most recent."
"Okay then that's the one you were involved with."
"Really?"
"Yes, here goes. Lillith, name assumed by the possessed Dr. Sharon
Hogan as a member of the self proclaimed Inferno Sisters during the Australian
Circles of Hell incident of 2673."
Titanite's eyes unfocused as her gaze turn inward to a time over
three hundred years earlier. "That's right, I remember her now. Rei-chan
beat her, I fought that other one, uhm ... Jessie Bell!"
"Jezebel!"
"Whoever ... I'm doing pretty goot to get that close! All those bad
girl types in their kinky outfits start blurring together after awhile.
Let's see they trying to steal people's Soul Donuts ..."
"Silver Haloes"
"Whatever ... let's see they were under the control of whatshername ...
that wannabe demon queen with that really goofy hat ..." Before Linna could
correct her Ti shook her head. "No, she was back in the 24s,
[Internal - Andy always stipulated that the Senshi hadn't just been sitting
around for a thousand years. Would be world conquerers have
shown up during this period though nowhere as frequently as back
in the 1990s and against Senshi with centuries of experience and
massive power behind them things wrapped up a lot quicker. With
one or two exceptions things haven't teetered on the edge of the
Abyss since they beat the Acolytes of Silence. Ti is about to
remember one of those exceptions.]
the Inferno
Sisters worked for Czar Dante." Titanite shivered involuntarily at the memory
of the biomechanical horror. Oh yes, she remembered it. "Refresh my memory."
As Linna complied with a bare bones synopsis Titanite felt the echoes in her
mind as the memories resurfaced. Oh yes, she remembered him or it far too
well.
"Pharoah 90 all over again!", that was how Makoto had described it
afterwards. That had made Ti feel a bit better as she had missed almost all
the action while the originals deathbustrs were causing trouble in Tokyo.
Th
[The 4 SME Liliths (Pawn, Villain, Queen (Lilith of House Tyco), Biblical)]
[Ti and Misato again. Comparison Topass, Kaji. Why the renewed Bogosity?]
[Several days later - Gendo accelerate's Eva-03 program. Has S2 Engine
brought to Japan and prepares to test both]
[Toji enters 03. Meanwhile in Terminal Dogma]
Despite the magical girl who had malleted Commander Ikari a few days
earlier security around NERV headquarters was lighter than usual. Personnel
shortages meant that with the accelerated development of the testing
for the fourth Evangelion at the [facility name] testing ground for EVA-03
and the Fourth Child the additional security requirements had meant nearly
half of NERV's guardforce had temporary transfers to [facility] until the
tests were complete and the new Evangelion was transferred to NERV Central.
What was so special about this new EVA that it couldn't be debugged at the
main facility no one outside of Central Dogma knew. But the uneasy
speculation was that the top brass were afraid things might go very wrong
and preferred to lose a remote installation rather than NERV headquarters.
So the guards seconded to the test installation anxiously awaited the day
the tests would be concluded while those remaining at headquarters thanked
whatever they believed it that they had dodged the bullet. Unless Polaris
came back in which case sitting on top of an explosive EVA might seem the
better option.
While the security forces had been halved those in charge didin't expect
any trouble as all security feeds had always been routed through the Magi and
they would spot anyone or anything acting outside of the security parameters.
The current personnel shortage just meant fewer bodies to react if
unauthorized persons intruded. This was of some concern to those remaining
as there was one potential intruder they had no desire to meet. The
remainding guards had recieved orders directly from Commander Ikkari to shoot
Sailor Polaris on sight. Since she had taken out an Angel singlehanded the
guards were hoping and praying that if she was spotted they'd be ordered to
withdraw and EVAs deployed against her. The man who had given those orders,
Commander Gendo Ikkari was currently sitting behind his desk in Central Dogma
and swallowing another asprin. As he waited for the pain to subside Gendo
wondering if his recently developed recurring migraine was a side-effect of
traum from his recent malleting or stress induced from his worries about what
a random factor like Polaris meant. He was cautiously optomistic that NERV's
MIBs hadn't found any trace of her since the day she whacked him over the head
with a concealed giant hammer before vanishing into thin air. Hopefully she
had vanished as mysteriously as she had first appeared and if she did return
it would be after the Ascension. A slim reed to grasp with so much at stake
but without knowledge of what she was and her weaknesses all he could do was
hope she had gone back to wherever she came from or at least didn't interfere.
Problem was from their brief interview he had got the distinct impression that
she was one of those dogooder types who always stuck their noses in where they
were least wanted. He had dealt with their ilk before but this one would be a
lot harder to dissuade or dispose of. He tried to banish the thoughts from
his mind, today he should be concentrating on how EVA-03 and the S2 engine
performed. Without much success he willed himself to forget Sailor Polaris
and concentrate on Unit-O3's activation test. If she returned to cause
trouble he would know about it soon enough. She was far from inconspicuous.
The shortage of personnel meant there was nobody on duty to see the woman
approaching entrance B-57. Not that they would likely have found anything
suspicious about her. She wore the standard light brown NERV uniform and
carried a NERV issue laptop. There was nothing overtly unusual about her,
she certainly looked as though she belonged. But had a hypothetical guard
been present and been a fan of pre-impact anime he might have noted one thing
the near omniscent Magi would never have noticed. Her resemblence to the
original character design of Sylia Stingray
Under the watchful eyes of the cameras "Sylia" reached for the security
scanner. As she did a blank card materialized in her hand and she swiped it
through the card-reader. No alarms sounded, no alerts were transmitted. All
that happened was the door unlocked and she stepped inside. She continued on
through the complex walking as though she was obviously familiar with both it
and her destination. Other workers scurried by on their own errands ignoring
her as they ignored people they saw everyday. Like them and everyone in NERV
Central security cameras tracked her but paid her no more attention than
anyone else. In fact they were giving her a lot less attention though no one
human or otherwise was aware of this.
Inside her head a voice only she could hear whispered, "Turn right here".
She obeyed without question marching through corridors, down escalators and
ever onward until at last she was hearing her objective. Following
instructions to dawdle she waited until the corridor ahead was empty and
stood before the massive double doors. This one needed both retina scanning
and a top security card. She looked into the scanning goggles and slid the
blank card through the reader. A light on the door glowed green and the doors
slid open with a pneumatic hiss. She stepped inside and the doors resealed
as the ultra controlled access elevator began its descent towards Terminal
Dogma. The Magi knew this was happening but they had been told it was
perfectly proper and not to bother Dr. Ritsuko with the standard notification.
Having no cause to doubt this input they accepted it without question.
Humans would have been very suspicious but in cyberspace all was right with
the world.
As the car descended Titanite subvocalised, "Can I talk normally yet?"
In answer a voice emerged from her laptop's speakers
"Yes, there's no humans around to ask awkward questions and the big boys
are ignoring this."
Titanite sighed with relief, "Thank Serenity. I've never liked sub-voc
mode."
"Probably because you enjoy the sound of your voice too much."
"Ha ha." Titanite shook her head in disbelief, "Even if anyone else
was in here I doubt they'd hear either of us anyway."
"It is a bit loud, isn't it?"
"Yeah. Not to mention "Ode to Joy" is a funny choice for muzak anyway."
"What can I say? They seem to be found of biblical references around
here."
"I'll say, Angels, Lilith, Adam ... wish I'd got around to reading The
Bible."
"Another one on your list of books to read someday?"
"Hey! I'm only 1000 years old. I haven't had time to read lots of
thing yet. Hazards of an active life."
"And spending all your free time watching anime."
"Yeah ... I mean no! Don't be such a wisemech, Lina."
"Just following my programming boss."
There was a lull in the conversation, the silence broken only by the
blare of classical music. Then Ti asked, "Lina, do I need to maintain our
glamours?"
"Your choice. There's no one stationed down below to question us and
I've got NERV's computers running jumping through hoops for me so no one'll
notice if our appearance shifts."
"Good." With that Ti dropped her glamour and her appearance and Lina's
returned to normal. The power the glamour had used was miniscule but she had
expended a lot of energy against the Angel and the low ambient mana field
meant she still had a way to go to rebuild her power reserves. No sense
wasting power unnecessarily though something did occur to her. "Lina, I know
you're well built but this place must have some sort of supercomputer ..."
"Three actually, collectively known as the Magi."
"Figures. Anyway my point is how can a portable machine like you beat
them? I know we're chronologically more advanced but we both know technology
has stagnated since the Great Darkness."
"A common misconception. While technical development slowed considerably
it never stopped so even with our slower pace we're still one up on this
world's state of the art. Additionally we use technomagic and these guys
haven't a clue magic exists. Take me, miniaturization only goes so far but
most of what you consider my portable self is a shell taken up by subspace
relays and power generators. As Pyrite explained when he gave me to you,
though you probably tuned him out, most of my hardware is in pocketspace. So
there's a lot more to me than you think. Plus my magsci hardware and software
means I have methods for penetrating the Magi's systems that the people of
this world have never considered. So once again appearances deceive and I am
actually the superior machine." The smug voice of the Lina Inverse/Megumi
Hashibara simulation gave way to a more reasoned tone. "However while I can
fool the Magi by manipulating their electronic reality sooner or later someone
is going to notice their readings don't match and realize something's up.
When that happens alarms sound, guys with big guns start running around
looking for something to shoot and they'll start checking the video screens.
Then if someone spots this elevator moving while the Magi report it's still
at its station ...
"I get the message. We'll just have to hope it happens later rather
than sooner. Fortunately I've always been lucky ..." She remembered her
talk with Misato comparing Kaji and Topass. "Most of the time anyway."
Could Lina sense her mood shift? The computer shifted topics swiftly.
"Have you thought about what you're going to do once we're in there?"
"Confirm my suspicions and do what seems best. Just as we
discussed."
"What about the prime directive?"
"Uphold love and justice? That's the whole point."
"Right, must be a bit of leftover programming from when Pyrite had me
running in Trek mode."
Titanite remembered, when Pyrite had given her this computer it had
possessed a very different personality, sounding and acting like Pyrite's
beloved Enterprise's computer. A worrying thought returned. "Lina ... are
you like SALLY. I mean, well, are you a person?"
Cheerfully Lina replied, "Nope, not even a little. I've got a great
personality simulation and extensive data on your interactions with SALLY to
base my responses on but I have no more self-awareness than a toaster. My
current personality was custom designed for you so you'd be comfortable using
me but it's no more me that the Majel Barrett routine was. There is no me, in
the final analysis I'm just a machine who can simulate sentience. Push me too
far and the illusion would break down." After a moment it continued, "So you
need have no fears if the worst case scenario we discussed is true as you
won't be sending me on a suicide mission as I was never alive. So you can do
what you have tooo without any twinges of conscience."
"You knew me well enough to tell me that?"
"As I said I do a great simulation and I projected probable reasons you
were asking me if I could pass the revised Turing-Voight-Kampf test. 95%
possibility you might be deterred from necessary action if you didn't consider
me an expendable tool. As my function is to assist rather than hinder you my
response had to correct that error. I can return to Trek mode or assume
another less interactive personality if it will make things easier.
Titanite considered the offer then shook her head. "No, I've got used to
you as Lina but I won't let it affect my judgement."
At cyberspeeds the computer analysed that statement and ran various
scenarios. The results were ambiguous but insufficent to warrant initiating
personality crash and returning to machine mode. Parameters called for
trusting the Senshi's judgement in the event of uncertainty. A response was
formed, tested against probable reactions and approved all in a space of time
Titanite so miniscule couldn't even percieve it.
"I'll hold you too that, Ti. Ah ... speak of the devil. We're here!"
The elevator's motion ceased and the doors hissed open again. Before
her Titanite saw another set of security doors, the final barrier between
herself and Terminal Dogma. Involuntarily she tightened her grip on Lina's
case. "So we are ... okay let's see what's what and after that ... it's
Showtime!"
[The revised Eva-03 fight - Ti detected in Terminal Dogma]
[Ti removes Lillith, Angel senses Lilith disappear
"Oh my God! They killed Adam"
"You bastards!"]
[Rei freaks, Toji Suzuhara ejects, Shinji destroys 03]
[Rei damaged but reborn. Rejects Gendo, more human upon awakening/rebirth]
[Rhi arrives to take Ti home, Ti speculating on nature of evil.]
[The X world - New beginning? Let's go home]
[end]
Afterword
[Youma/Jouma confusion first articulated by Aponar]
[Based on an Evangelion/Hades Project Zeorymer idea]
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