Shinji and Asuka

Chapter 22: Survival

Author's Notes:

You may be curious why Kaji didn't help and this will be explained by reading the chapter. In any case, on to what happens next! I hope you enjoy this chapter.

A note to say this is the rewritten chapter 22 (First rewrite – though practically identical to the first version).

Important Note: If you're reading this, you're reading the up to date version of the story. If you didn't see this note last chapter, you were unlucky enough to have started reading this just before I updated all the chapters. It is recommended you re-read the previous chapters as some details of the story would have changed as well as the formatting, which will cause some confusion in further reading.

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Chapter 22: Survival

A man with a ponytail and unshaven beard entered the Commander's office. Despite the battle that had erupted, the head of NERV seemed extraordinarily calm. With almost nothing to counterattack with, the pilots not having been returned yet and the other alternative not even guaranteed to work, the younger man could not understand the Commander's lack of any emotion.

Approaching the desk, the spy was given the Commander's usual impassive stare. Kaji stood there apprehensively before addressing Commander Ikari.

"Commander" Kaji announced, saluting.

"For what purpose have you arrived here?" the Commander asked.

"The elevator has been repaired, I wish to go to the surface and help Major Misato Katsuragi in acquiring the pilots" the younger man explained.

"Permission granted, provided that the task I appointed you is finished" the Commander stated.

"Of course sir" Kaji replied, bowing.

The spy left the gloomy Commander's office in a hurry, wishing to help Misato as he had originally wanted to.

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In the rubble of the once proud Tokyo-3, the two eva pilots awaited their inevitable death. Both of them had tears flowing down their cheeks; their guardian had just sacrificed herself for them. Despite Asuka never giving up, she just couldn't find it within herself to leave the crying boy behind and instead chose to comfort him in their final moments.

"I'm coming mama" Asuka whispered quietly.

The soldiers stopped, aimed their guns and fired.

The two teens waited for the impact, but it never came. Surprised, they opened their eyes to see the shocked faces of the soldiers. On the floor lay several hundred bullets, all smashed as if having hit some solid wall. The two pilots were utterly confused; those bullets should have passed through their flesh and killed them, what in the world had happened? The order was soon given to fire again and the two pilots watched in amazement as the bullets hit a series of octagons, bouncing off the forcefield harmlessly; it was an AT-Field.

'It can't be...?' Shinji thought, looking around.

The boy soon spotted the albino blue-haired girl also known as Rei. It would seem she had erected her AT-Field to protect the two pilots.

"Rei!" Shinji called out.

Hearing his shout, the redhead looked over to see the blue-haired girl standing close to them. Both wondered why they hadn't seen her before, but it didn't matter. Suddenly, they realised that when they thought Misato had veered off from NERV, they were heading in the direction of Rei's apartment.