Unfortunately, they were quite obviously not average workers, as tattoos and piercings showed on more than one of them. There was a hunger in their eyes, like rangy wolves waiting for the next bite of food to come into the reach of their jaws. Yet, none of them were looking to go and charge after prey at that moment, no matter how violent they seemed to be.
And that was how those looking from the control room liked it. The small chamber was nothing more than a simple place to work machinery, but it was perfect for overlooking the scene unfolding below them. It was kept in shadows so that did not distract from the work being done, but then those in there didn't need much light to see what was going on below them.
"They really are doing an excellent job," drawled the man near the window. "At this rate, we'll meet our deadlines long before the time comes."
"Yes, but that only says that we should have been more ambitious with our initial moves," said the man next to the door.
"We couldn't risk failure now."
"And we can do so later."
The individual in the middle of them raised a hand, garnering immediate silence from the two underlings. "That is neither here, nor there at the moment. We have a job to fulfill, and if we're going to do it, we'd better keep on an even course."
"But Boss...."
"'But' nothing. This is my show, and we're running it how I say."
'Of course."
"Exactly, and just remember that this only the first step. We have plenty of more work to do. Fortunately for us, those aliens made certain to fully exclude any real competition that we might have had," the boss murmured.
"Which leaves the field wide open for us."
"And so we can go in and create our own little underworld paradise. Under the shining lights of all those new worlds meeting for the first time, we'll be running the shadow side of it. The light always needs its darkness, and we're it."
There was a point when even Rei Ayanami found that a lack of stimulus was dull. Having been a student in a Japanese junior high, she had been able to see a constant change of venue, with many things changing from one day to the next. She might not have been interested in what was going on around her, but at least it was there. All that she had to do was to look around, and she could have seen something going on that would have been never quite the same again.
On top of that, she always had some sort of task for her to complete as a pilot. There were missions to go on, tests to take, and training to work on. Such things gave her a direction in her life, and she rather liked having some clarity in what her purpose was. However, with the removal of that focus, she was a bit lost as to where she was supposed to go in her life.
Of course, she didn't blame those who were watching over her, as she was a being with immense potential for power. It was only natural that they would want to keep her confined until they could understand and be aware of what she would do. Still, that left her stuck in this gilded cage, and even if she wasn't all that put out about it, she was still a little bothered over her stay.
Having something to do would have been nice, but other than her books, there wasn't much for her to really get in to. A glance at one corner reminded her that her watchers were well meaning, as she could see the easel and the violin that some of them had brought in. But seeing as she was neither musically inclined, nor artistic, that was a bit of a silly purchase in her opinion. They had at least tried though, and some of what they had offered her wasn't so bad. Luckily, she wasn't so disturbed by a lack of activity to be crazed by it, and she was able to entertain herself sufficiently for her own desires.
However, there were some things that still surprised her, and she was jolted out of her reading by the sound of footsteps. It was not time for any tests, and she felt confident that it wasn't one of the staff coming to check up on her. After all, the steps were too light, yet too forceful, for any of them. In fact, the sound of the shoes didn't sound at all like something that a professional would use at any time on duty. That made her curious as to who it was, and she turned to look at the doorway where the unknown visitor would show up. Perhaps it would be the Major on a visit, or some woman official coming on an inspection, as the sound was of feminine footwear.
Upon seeing just who it was that entered into her chamber actually made Rei raise a brow in surprise.
Asuka Langley Soryu stood there with an imperious look on her face as she came to a full stop just inside the door. "Hello, wonder girl."
"Pi... Soryu. I did not expect you to arrive today," Rei admitted, sending a bland look towards the other girl.
"Yeah, well, I didn't plan on coming here like this. Not that I wouldn't visit. God knows that you need someone to look in on you. But...."
"Yes?"
"I need your help."
Hearing that set the genetically engineered girl aback. "For what could you need my assistance in?"
"Not 'what'. 'Who'."
"A person?"
"You could call him that. I need you help in dealing with that idiot Shinji," the redhead revealed, crossing her arms over her chest as she drilled the pale girl with her gaze, while:
Read the comments on this episode
(Posted Mon, 11 May 2009 04:27)
Questions? Problems? Suggestions?
Send a mail to addventure@bast-enterprises.de
or use the contact form.
らんま1/2 © Rumiko Takahashi
All other series and their characters are © by their respective creators or owners. No claims of ownership of these characters are implied by the authors of this Addventure, or should be inferred.
The Anime Addventure is a non-profit site.