FADING IN TO THE STOLEN LIGHT

Misato looked around the planning room which was for angel attacks seeing the faces of all the pilots accept Toji who was training and Mari who was late which just pissed her off. She eyed Shinji and Rei whose face were filled with worry as was Kaworu's as they sat in there chairs looking at her waiting for her to speak.

They were all dressed in there normal clothes, she hadn't seen or spoken to them all day as she'd spent part of the day with Shigeru going over everything that had gone wrong and watching footage as the both of them were trying to work out how it could be corrected in future.

What pained her was that she had ordered the kill switch on Mari's Evangelion but that shut down had not worked at all, it made no sense and neither of them were any closer to figuring out this error and the only conclusion they could both draw up was that the issue wasn't with their technology but possibly Mari's Evangelion itself.

Hence why she was going to punish her big time for this and she was going to have the specialists look over that pink painted eight eyed monster and its entry plug because she was convinced that Mari had hacked it somehow from the inside. She remained standing paying no attention to the hologram screen behind her on the wall which had images of all the six angels they had now defeated but there would be more she knew that and so did all of the pilots. "Asuka is going to make it but she is in really awful shape."

Rei picked up her can of drink taking a sip before speaking quietly. "Yeah but she's Asuka, she'll bounce right back from this, she always does." Misato shook her head sadly. "No…not this time, this time is very different." Shinji looked up the uncertainty in his eyes. "How…different?" Kaworu raised his hand. "Yes how different I've seen her walk away from much worse." Misato put her hands in her red jacket pockets. "The entry plug when it tumbled had very little LCL in it, it fractured and broke her bones."

Rei looked up sharply. "But I…I tried to stop it, I mean Mari was going to crush her like a tin can, if Shinji hadn't punched her Evangelion in the face I would never have been able to get the entry plug, I mean we both went inside to check that she's still alive." Shinji breathed in painfully as the image of Asuka's body came back to him. Her arm had been bent the wrong way and there had been blood all over her body, her plug suit had also been damaged there had been big gashes on her waist arms and legs and part of her insides were hanging out. "I thought we were doing the right thing."

Misato moved over to them both putting her hands on both of their shoulders. "No one is blaming either of you, you did the right thing, Mari meant to kill her you saved her and I'm very proud of you both for doing what you did." She stepped back removing her hands. "Every breath she takes now is because of your actions." She took in a deep breath before speaking. "But it doesn't change her prognosis she has many shattered bones and it's going to take her a long time to heal and she might have lost her sight in her left eye." She looked at the floor sadly. "Physiologically we don't know if the angel got into her head at all so she's going to be really edgy and probably really pissed off but we've all been through this before we all know what to expect."

Kaworu put his hands together. "Not to be rude but I wasn't here last time, what should I expect?" Rei raised her hands intimating claws. "Expect Asuka to be like an Itsumade Oni, lots of swearing, throwing things just generally not liking the hospital wing and don't even be surprised if they have to sedate her….again."

Shinji breathed in deeply. "Please don't remind me Rei it was so awful the last time." He turned to Kaworu who was if anything his closest and most dear friend. "Just don't bother her when she doesn't want to be bothered if she asks you to go away, go, do not push it." Rei pushed her light brown hair back her green eyes narrowing. "Oh yeah and don't bring flowers, bring her soft toys, German sweets, confectioneries, lager and video games, her brain hates boredom and the hospital just makes it worse. She goes stir crazy she's not like Shinji he can handle that white ceiling and nothing going on for long spaces of time."

Shinji raised his hand it had been years since that incident with Shamshel but he was going to mention this regardless even though Asuka didn't act openly violent anymore in that she didn't kick or punch anyone or make fun of them. He knew though that the hospital wing might change that as the two of them just didn't mix. "Oh yeah and don't use the words, passed out, failed or getting beaten…unless you really, really want to be hurt."

Kaworu nodded calmly. "I'll keep that in mind and pass it on to Toji." Misato looked up as she folded her arms. "Asuka's grandmother is coming down from the Nerv German division but it will take her a while to get here, she's going to be staying at Asuka's house and feeding her pet and she says she'll be visiting the hospital regularly." Shinji looked up sadly. "Her father's not coming?"

Misato put a hand behind her head. She hated how difficult this was to explain and since Asuka very rarely talked about her family other than her grandmother no one else would know this. "You all know Asuka was a birthing chamber child, she was grown in out side the womb because her mother couldn't conceive right? The technology is not that different to how Pen Pen was created but you can use it to create people as much as animals but with humans unlike animals tampering is very restricted you can only change the child's gender and hair and eye colour, mental and physical tampering is strictly prohibited." She watched as they all nodded. "Well technically Asuka's father is not her real father, her real father was a sperm donor and though Asuka lived with her step father and her step mother for a time, once she became part of the Nerv program she went to live with her grandmother, her step father doesn't have any contact with her."

Rei looked up. "Yeah well we know what that's like our father barely takes any notice of ether of us, it's just such a shame she never told us about it I mean we both know how hard it is." Misato breathed in deeply. "It's just complicated and I don't blame her for keeping it from all of you, the man was a terrible home wrecker. I mean I don't know everything but I know he had another child elsewhere because her mother couldn't conceive though I don't know his or her gender, it a messy awful story."

Shinji put his hands together. "Has she ever searched for her donor father?" Misato shook her head. "No and I have brought this up with her once in private two years ago and she got really angry, I mean I could pull the files for her easy, normally donors are kept private but Nerv has access to all private records and we can ignore most country's laws."

"So sorry I'm late."

Misato turned watching as Mari walked in adjusting her glasses. "Do hope I didn't miss anything important." Misato's felt the rage boil up before she could stop it she grabbed the woman by her long sleeve shirt's collar forcing her back against the wall opposite.

Mari took in a deep breath as she met Misato's dark brown eyes which were filled with burning hated. "You know harassment is illegal at Nerv or did you not read the employees hand book?" Misato kept her hand in place. "Right now I'm ignoring that code just like you ignored my orders to stop destroying the UN Alpha test unit, Asuka may have lost sight in her left eye because of what you pulled and she won't be back on her feet that fast. She's going to have terrible trouble and might have to learn how to walk all over again not to mention the other awful damage you caused her body. They can't even salvage her plug suit, thanks to you she'll need to have a new one build and those suits take a lot of time to make."

Mari shrugged looking down at her as she was slightly taller than her "Well what can I say, shit happens?" Misato eyed her in disgust. "You are not above the rules Mari and you will be punished this time!" Mari smirked ignoring the cold looks she was getting from the others. "What you gonna do…I'm not fourteen I'm classed an adult and you can't do shit without pissing off my division."

Misato looked at her for a long moment before speaking. "I've already spoken to your Nerv division over in Britain and they are not on your side this time in fact they are angry that you would disregard the rules so badly as you are meant to representing their county and its bad publicity for them. The director over there said that you've always been a problem child but he's really disappointed in you this time and he didn't enjoy cleaning up your mess to the media over there who have been pasting this story all over the news so this isn't over for you by a long shot. One of the delegates from that branch is coming over to speak with you personally and better pray that they can get this ironed out with Gendo and you don't get kicked off the program." She felt a sneer form on her lips. "So as of now you are grounded from your unit as I'm going to have that thing combed over because I'm convinced that you hacked it internally hence why I couldn't shut you down." Mari smiled coldly. "You can't prove anything."

Misato leaned closer to her "I can and I will and you'll spend the next twenty four hours doing the hologram training simulation in Unit Beta. You know the one you really hate because it's tweaked to be purposely unresponsive for the pilot, plus you're always saying that you can ace Asuka's score of ninety percent so prove it."

Mari eyed her in disgust. "This is ludicrous and unfair!" Misato looked up slightly. "Yes well life isn't fair, the other pilots know this from vast and painful experience but you're really slow to pick it up." She raised her hand pointing to the door as she let go out her shirt. "Now get out off my sight you start right now and you will pull a twenty four shift out on that training field!" Mari folded her arms. "I had plans." Misato narrowed her gaze. "I really don't care about your plans are now get out, that is an order!" Mari gave her cold look as she left slamming the door behind her.

Rei finished her canned drink. "She's going to really hate that…." She could speak from experience twenty four hour training shifts were normally punishments for pilots and they were not fun at all you only got two hours rest and then you were out again mentality it was really hard. The only difference was that herself, Shinji and Asuka had at least been allowed in their Evangelion's Mari on the other hand was using Unit Beta.

Nerv had two of these the other one was unit Omega they were the first type of Evangelion's created but they really didn't that work well, they had to be cabled and didn't have the S² Engines. You could put any pilot entry plug in to them, hence why they were used normally used for training pilots, where as the refined and updated models were for the advanced pilots and were very pilot pacific in that entry plugs could not be switched between units under any circumstances and the pilots couldn't be switched either.

Evangelion's were built around pilots not the other way around and building bay was always a hot media topic as no one in the media was allowed access down into the lower restricted levels where they built them. Toji's Evangelion was almost built and it would no doubt surface within the next three weeks or more and silence all the media talk which was currently in a huge frenzy. All of the pilot entry plugs from the main Units could be also be pulled out and tested this was normally done during training and if a pilot was injured, though Maya loved to bring everyone together for a weekly syncing test. She eyed the door. "You know Mari's going to be so angry when she finds out Shinji's test in the unit Beta was higher than Asuka's I mean he has ninety eight percent the highest score of any of us and even Asuka knows that and she really doesn't care about it anymore."

Shinji put a hand through his thick black hair. "Don't you dare tell her Rei, she will loose it if she ever finds out, she's like Asuka used to be in that she can't stand anyone being better than her score wise." Rei gave him a wide smile as she raised her hand. "Don't worry big brother I have no intention of doing so." She lay back in her chair. "Personally I think she'll be just as unhappy with idea of being inside the unit beta or Nurikabe as the people love to call it, I mean there no greater annoyance that being stuck in a machine named after a useless oni wall."

Kaworu leaned forward. "Yeah how did that come about again? I forget." Shinji slowly stood up. "They saw mine and Asuka's units go in to beast mode during angel battles and early testing, because they couldn't understand it or make sense off it they began to believe that all the machines are possessed by ancient Japanese Oni of folklore so they have named all of the Evangelion's after a certain Oni's even the lesser training units." Rei felt a smile form. "Yeah they've even created action figures, soft toys, posters and merchandise, Nerv hated it at first but then they realized that it helped with moral world wide and gives them great publicity so they just gave up and went with it."

Misato turned to them. "Yeah I might have had a hand in that, if you go up to head quarters we have a room near the visitors suite where all of the Evangelion things ever made are on display, people love it and it's a great ice breaker." She felt a smile form. "And of cause we are setting up a shelf for Toji that is for when his Evangelion is finished being built, though it shouldn't be much longer now."

She looked up realizing that she still hadn't told them everything as Mari had interrupted. "Since Asuka's grandmother won't be here for a while, I need someone to go to her house, just to house sit and look after her cat I'm assuming you've all been to her house right?" Shinji turned sharply. "Asuka has a cat?" Rei blinked in surprise. "Asuka has not let any of us go into her house since she moved there, she's always got some excuse, don't get me wrong she's nice about it and despite that we've invited her around to our homes but she doesn't come, though she did attend all off our house warming parties."

Misato looked at them in genuine shock. "So let me get this straight for the past three years you've not been to her house and she never told any of you she had a pet?" She watched as they all nodded, great so she clearly wasn't the only one who had no idea about who the second child was anymore.

She took in a deep breathe letting it out slowly as she eased out a bunch of keys that weren't her own throwing them at Rei watching as she caught them. "Okay these are Asuka's house keys you and Shinji both need to go up there tonight, I'll have the directions sent to your phones." She looked up slightly. "You both have motor bikes so it won't be hard for you to get up there." Rei looked down as she put Asuka's house keys in her pocket. "Yeah about that, mines in the garage, some one hit my front wheel two days ago it's being fixed though it'll be out by tomorrow." Shinji turned giving her a wide smile. "Its fine Rei we can both go up there together like we did this morning."

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Rei shivered inwardly, great another ride on her brother's bike, which was no sports bike to any lengths of the imagination it was a copy of some post war cruiser and it was really not comfortable in the side car because as he had yet to get the better padding and it felt like your backside was on fire after being in it for a few hours.

She forced a smile. "Great I'm so looking forward to that." Truth was she had bust up that wheel due to speeding but she wasn't going to tell anyone that because she knew Misato would chew her out over the fact she had broke the speed limit and how reckless that was. Shinji would also have a fit over the fact that she could have broken her neck since she had come off during the accident though her leathers had meant that she hadn't gotten a scratch.

Truth was she had no interest in her older brother's hobbies he liked to paint huge canvas's which took months and a lot of his works ended up in galleries. Everything about him was about slow speed and relaxing while Kaworu, liked to play the grand piano and go hiking and Toji liked weight lifting and exercising because he had so much energy to vent. Mari from what she'd seen liked designing code and putting it in robots, her little scuttle bots could be insanely annoying as they could scale walls. Though they were banned from the lower restricted levels and the central control room, it didn't stop them pestering the staff in the upper levels with there loud music and buzzing sounds.

They moved so fast it was hard to wreck them, like when you tried to step on them and they'd just dodge you or climb up so they were on the ceiling well out of your reach. Some days she wished the old Asuka was still around because she'd have gone at them with a hammer and destroyed them.

Mari's rule breaking today was no exception ever since she'd come on the Evangelion program over a year ago she had disregarded the rules and yet somehow despite all of Misato's shouting and telling off she just did the same things over and over.

The only reason she hadn't been thrown off the program so far was because finding Evangelion pilots was incredibly difficult every year hundreds of young people from all over the world tested for the program but failed because they couldn't sync in the simulation tester as you had to have a very high mental discipline. Toji and Mari were the first pilots in years to sync and even when you could sync it then meant you had to train for a year before joining the elite pilots such as herself and Shinji and Asuka who had been part of the program since the every start. Not to mention with every new pilot it meant building a new Evangelion which took up to ten months from start to finish.

Kaworu was the first pilot from Ukraine and Mari Britain while Toji was from China, only herself and Shinji were Japanese born. Having pilots from all over the world was very interesting but it got really complicated when either Mari, Toji or Kaworu spoke in there own native languages as it was very hard to tell what they were saying. Asuka had very much gotten over this habit but it didn't stop her swearing her own language at times.

She stood up putting her hand on her big brothers arm. "Let's go then as on your motor bike it will take us ages to get there because it's slow." Shinji got up following her. "My motorbike is not slow you just have an issue with speeding."

Misato watched as everyone got up. "Okay now just remember when you get time, buy Asuka a gift, you know for when she finally get up in to the hospital wing." She watched as they all nodded as they left, yeah she should run them through training shifts but after everything that had happened she felt it might be good of them to just let them relax and besides they weren't kids anymore they were all adults. They knew there duties and they could get back to full training tomorrow on the other simulator field as there were two and it kept training pilots separate from seasoned pilots.

8

I can hear waves somewhere off in the distance it's a slow pounding sound so close and yet so far, it's the only thing I can hear in the dark void. "Die with me." I tense in the blackness I know those words they were my Mama's before the end before…well it doesn't matter I don't want to think about it. Thinking about it just hurts I may not show my pain to the others but when I'm inside in my house which is far from anyone. I lie alone some nights and cry because it's the only way to get the pain out, I never feel whole I just feel empty these days.

I don't understand it I thought living out side away from everyone else and having my own home and things would make me happy but it hasn't I just feel even more miserable. Some times I just…I just get on my motorbike the one that could kill me and I ride it maybe hoping for it to hit my emotional cords but it does nothing, all it does is ease my internal anger which I try so hard to control some days that it hurts. I don't want to see it hurt Shinji or Rei they're the closest thing I have to friends and we grew up as a together they are all I have. "Die with me."

That voice again it's in my head speaking harder and louder. I turn in the darkness realizing for the first time that I'm standing alone in a darkness dressed in my red plug suit but all my injuries are gone which means only one thing this isn't real it is a dream. "So pathetic, so human, always missing Mama." Asuka turned seeing red eyes appear in the darkness followed by white teeth flashing in the light. "Since this is a dream I'm just going to ignore you…because you're not real."

The black figure moved in darkness. "Ungrateful child you think I'm a dream I'm part of your reality now, I'm part of you, we are one and the same." Asuka felt her teeth grind together as she spoke coldly. "You're dead you died when Mari cracked the entry plug!" The huge monster moved its long black fingers and claws scratching the floor making an awful sound as it got closer. "No that's just your perception because you're human, you think in human terms my outer shell was crushed but not my soul I'm now inside you and I will own your soul…its just a matter of time, I just used your false god abomination to get where I wanted to go!"

Maya looked up sharply watching as Asuka's heart rate suddenly spiked causing her whole body to twitch inside the tank she looked at the hospital staff, who were keeping a close eye on the tank along with her. The tank had been moved into the hospital wing as there it would be much easier to get Asuka out once she woke up. "What's going on, did you two give her any medication?" The two men shook their heads. She eyed the heart rate which was beating faster now. "Okay I want you to administer a sedative just to calm her down, I don't know what's going on now but it's really strange but we can not have her moving around with broken bones."

She watched as the needle arm in side the tank rose up, right now she was thankful that Asuka was unconscious because every one knew that she was the worst person ever when it came to sedatives in the past she'd kicked out and violently fought against them in the hospital wing. Normally they were put in using a special medical gun and that was where the problem came.

Asuka was renowned for trying to grab the gun and fire it elsewhere like into the staff and she'd been successful more than once in her attempts and put out the male and female doctor attending to her. Years on the staff were still really weary of this and they'd been dreading her being here though a lot of that fear had gone when she'd come in, in the tank and she had so many shattered bones as she wouldn't be fighting them any time soon while she was here.

Misato had all of the pilots trained in hand to hand combat and all could fire guns and use weapons this was so that if Nerv was ever attacked they could disarm the people attaching them but it meant that they became nothing but a problem when they didn't want to play along in the hospital wing. She watched as the needle pierced skin and the liquid went in slowly followed by the needle coming slowly free as Asuka's heart rate started to go back to it normal rhythm. She closed her eyes leaning back she really hoped this would be the last disruption tonight.

Asuka felt the sharp in her neck which vanished as fast as it had come she put her hand on her neck rubbing as she met the two glowing red eyes. "Who are you?" The face moved closer allowing her to see the multilayered teeth. "I am Bardiel, I am your keeper from here on in!" Asuka raised her hands. "Oh what am I meant to be verfickte impressed by that on any level? A name is a name it doesn't mean anything." She folded her arms eyeing the dark creature. "Your nothing, you're…."

The clawed hand suddenly moved out of darkness grabbing her, the long fingers wrapping around her shoulders as the claws dug in painfully. "This feel real to you Asuka?" The mouth slowly appeared realizing it's self in the light with its hundreds of teeth. "Yes I know your name Asuka Langley Soryu, being inside you is very interesting and fascinating but also so pathetic." Asuka felt the blinding pain as she hit the floor hard on her back in the darkness as the light suddenly went out, she tried to get up only to feel a heavy weight on her back as a clawed foot came down digging in. "When did you become so weak, didn't you used to kick people around?"

The clawed foot moved off her back only to slam into her midsection with such force that it sent her skidding across the floor. "Like that." Asuka moaned in pain it was for this exact reason she'd stopped kicking and punching Shinji, because it hurt and she knew what it was like to be on the retrieving end, she tried to get up. "I'm better than that now!"

The red eyes moved in the shadows. "No your not your half as interesting as you used to be, all you do now is hide away pretending your someone else." Asuka felt the pain as she punched in the face and the voice came again. "You used to rule the school yard, you were a goddess among humanity. Boys would kneel at your feet wanting you to push them around and hit them and screw them and you did mercilessly and girls would want to be you they'd even sleep with you, you used to have so much sexual fun, in your later teens your sex life was legendary." Asuka breathed in feeling blood run down from chin. "Things change."

Maya sat up sharply hearing the buzzing sound once again she looked up seeing this time that it was not the heart monitor but Asuka's brain which had gone completely wild with activity, it was alive as if she was awake and she wasn't and on top of that the pain receptors were firing over and over in different sections of the brain. She stood up seeing the out right confusion on everyone's faces. "Bring me up a body scan!" She looked up as the holographic screen came up on her desk showing all the internal organs which were working normally they weren't damaged and even the internal bleeding in her stomach area which had been stopped seemed fine none of the internal stitches had come loose, herself and the surgeons had worked there and then on it because it was the worst area and might have caused her death if not treated and they'd put part of her intestine that was hanging out back in. She eyed her holographic screen setting off the recording she had expected the issues with heart rate but not this.

True people who went in to comas did have brain activity but it wasn't like this at all this was just out right odd. Some days she wondered how she'd gone from her role of bridge lieutenant to this medical role which was centered around looking after all of the pilots closely and monitoring the Magi but then Ritsuko just didn't care about the pilots anymore. She only cared about social ladders and being Gendo's right hand she thought people were throw away and she hated her for that. She'd been so in love with her once and had tried to pursue her but it had ended so painfully due to the method Ritsuko had used to bring her down.

It had been so brutal and it still hurt her even after all these years despite that a part of her had moved on. She let go of her thoughts as her gaze drifted back to Asuka and the present. Whatever this was she couldn't explain it Asuka was clean of contamination maybe it was some anomaly from being broken free of the LCL in such a violent way Rei had, had unusual brains waves during Unit 00's early testing when it had gone wrong. Maybe Asuka's mind being what it was just wanted to remain awake despite injury, maybe this was how it fought with injury.

Bardiel's red eyes narrowed. "Clearly not for the better, you're not half as interesting as you used to be." Asuka got to her knees breathing in deeply trying to ignore the pain. "I like my life and I'm a better person, I don't hit people break there hearts and the anger I have is channelled." The huge mouth formed a cold smile. "Oh you mean your pathetic life were you hide away from everything and cry your self to sleep at night because deep down your just desperately sad and lonely? As for the channelled anger you speak off that's a lie and we both know it, your anger is now repressed its half the reason your so miserable because anger is your strength and it always has been, with out it being burning in flames of your soul, your not happy."

Asuka looked up. "It's better that way! People don't get hurt and I don't hurt them like I used to." Bardiel's mouth formed a sneer. "But you had such power your insults gave you strength." Asuka felt the pain as she was hit again in the face causing her to hit the floor hard on her side. "Hurting people weaker or more emotional that your self, does not make you powerful…it makes you a coward and a bully."

She was struck again on her back as the dark voice hit the air again. "Spoken like a true hero…for some one so smart you're so disappointing." Asuka felt her body get turned over and clawed hand came down hard on her chest despite that she couldn't get up she spat the blood in her mouth in Bardiel's direction. "You call me disappointing yet in battle I've won so many times against you and the rest of your race?" The huge jaws opened as a long tongue came out and a deep roar hit the air as the mouth came towards her face. "Time for you to wake up second child because I really don't want your body stuck where it is right now it does nothing to further ether of our personal desires."

Asuka's good eye snapped open as her hand came up hitting what felt like glass as she spoke through the breathing mask not caring that it was loud enough to hear. "Fick dich!" She blinked realizing that she was no longer dreaming and awake. She felt her eyes dart where was she? Nothing felt right she looked around realizing that she floating around in blue liquid seeing that her hand had hit what looked like solid glass.

She was suspended upwards and it was making her feel sick not to mention the incredible pain that was running through her body as everything started to hurt. She couldn't move her right arm or her legs which she couldn't even feel and her chest was on fire. She could see through the liquid which wasn't LCL that no one was around and the room she in was empty. The only thing she could make out was three empty desks and the symbol of a snake wrapped around a staff which meant that she was in the hospital wing.

The heavy breathing apparatus on her face was making it hard to move her neck. Worst of all, all of her clothes were gone she was naked in this tank apart from underwear and thick bandages of some kind around her chest and stomach. She made a fist with her good hand despite that it hurt to do so then banging it on the glass which took so much effort. She hated the sensation of being under water it felt like she was drowning. LCL was different it felt protective this sensation on the other hand was awful she banged again harder hoping that someone was listening as she heard the beeper go off.

Maya slammed her coffee down on the table as she ran back in to the decontamination room with the two other men seeing that all of the holographic monitors were up and Asuka's fist was up against the glass, she was awake wide awake as a matter of a fact. Granted her brain activity had been going off for the last five hours but she had not twitched at all. She ran up to the glass seeing the Asuka's only good blue eye fall on her as she banged on the glass again the panic showing.

She raised her hand knowing that Asuka could hear her through the glass. "Hold still Asuka we are going to get you out okay, you need to calm down!"

End of part 2

Silvermoonlight