Before he could make any headway into that, he was rudely interrupted by a speeding car almost running him over. "Get in!" yelled Misato!
***
Cut to NERV headquarters:
"Shinji, you must pilot the EVA."
"Wha... what? That thing??? nooo, noooo, I can't!" Shinji was close to hysterical. Originally, he had been scared enough of the enormous purple monster, but now, something at the back of his subconscious told him that Very Bad Things were about to happen to him...
Gendo grimaced to himself. This was dissappointing. Not only was their new pilot refusing to work, evidently all this time away from him had let Shinji lose what little backbone he originally had! He wasn't manly at all, he was a snivelling pathetic... still, he WAS his son... (this Gendo being less of a cold hearted bastard?)... perhaps he could salvage both the situation, and his son, at the same time. hmmm...
"Fuyutsuki, reconfigure Unit 01 for Rei and sortie her. This pilot is unusable."
"But sir, Rei is..."
"It doesn’t matter. Get her out here." Fuyutsuki was aghast! Until he noticed Gendo winking at him from the eye not in Shinji's sight. Ah, now he got it! Looks like the old commander still had it after all.
Rei's semi-conscious body was wheeled in on a medical gurney, several doctors trailing along to monitor her still erratic vital signs. Shinji blanched. They were going to make HER pilot the EVA? And why did she look so familiar anyway?
"Gendo, are you insane??? Rei's already half dead, she'd never survive trying to pilot! Hell, I don't think she'll make it to the cockpit without collapsing!"
"Perhaps... but we have little choice. Unless, of course... someone decided to be MANLY enough to sacrifice himself, to save a young damsel in distress? Oh, by the way," he continued, as Shinji looked at him in disbelief, "this isn't just an idle threat or anything. We really DO have no choice other than putting her in action, if you choose not to do it, Shinji. Isn't that right, Misato?"
Misato blinked, then looked back and forth between Rei being tended to by the doctors, and at Shinji, who was now looking at her with an enquiring look, a half fearful, half resigned look on his face. Looks like he had already figured out that the commander was telling the complete truth. She nodded, confirming his fears.
"If that's the way it is, I will pilot the thing," Shinji growled as he realised that he had just been backed up against a wall here. Inside, something snapped, as he felt, not unreasonably, that there was going to be no escaping his fate. Perhaps it was a little voice inside him, telling him to do what he should have in another life. Perhaps it was this timeline itself, which had raised him stronger than before. Or perhaps it was just the collected stress driving him beserk. In any case, just as he was about to step into the pilot seat, he turned around and marched back in front of Gendo.
"What, lost your nerve?"
"Nope... just needed to do this NOW, in case I don't make it back to do it later!" With that, Shinji gave Gendo a punch in the nose, kicked him in the groin, and, as he hunched over, kicked him in the face. Mission accomplished, he marched briskly to the EVA and was in the entry hatch before anyone could say anything.
From his position on the floor, Gendo Ikari groaned in pain. Still, he managed to grin to himself, at least that showed there was still hope for the boy, despite his initial bad start there.
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See other episodes by Jasonred
(Posted Sat, 15 Mar 2003 15:38)
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