FORCING THE WHEELS IN TO MOTION

Kaworu looked up sharply. "Treason? That does not make any sense." Shinji eyed him. "It doesn't make any sense Asuka would never betray Nerv she's put her whole life into the program her family has always been a huge part of it." Toji breathed in painfully from his spot in the wreck room. "This chicken shit is fucked up! Where is Misato, where are Maya and Kaji why are they not stopping this?" Rei eyed them both from her position near by as she leaned against the bar counter. "They're just trying to use the feedback loop against her I know it, because it's increased her strength and stamina and changed her left eye but she is human she's still Asuka."

Toji breathed in deeply. "Did you see that jump though I mean how the hell did she even walk away from that? I thought she was dead I mean it's not like she nailed the landing well she broke the table and threw the chairs around before hitting the ground." Rei breathed in deeply. "It's because she's Asuka and she is brave there's no one else I know who would do that and they pushed her to it." Shinji folded his arms. "Yeah but what she said when Yuki was beating her was outright sad, why did she just give up? She could have taken him down I would have taken him down if those idiots hadn't been trying to stop us both."

Rei turned to him. "Shinji she's really depressed she just doesn't want to fight anymore, you know what that's like and you've been through it yourself we both have it hard." She looked down sadly. "Gods did you see her face when she looked up at the skyline its like she was so accepting of her fate like she knew this was going to happen." She looked up as something hit her. "Wait didn't you say this morning after the display that she was acting really out of sorts, like she wasn't making sense and being cryptic?"

Shinji eyed her. "Yes I did, wait do you have that disc the one I gave you?" Rei pulled it out eyeing it as she moved over to her half of the sofa pulling up the tablet panel as the others gathered around. She slowly opened the case then pushed the golden disc in which the tablet could read it as well as data cards. She breathed in deeply seeing an animated orange demon head icon come up with two sets of curved horns wolf ears and a wolf like snout and mouth filled with curved teeth. "Why the pause, these things normally start right away?" Toji leaned over. "I know why she's encrypted it, I mean its not coding as such she's just made it that it will only play in certain places and will shut down in others and won't play."

Shinji turned to his sister. "She probably learned that from her grandmother." The demons green eyes suddenly lit up bright red as it spoke. "Voice recognition required." Rei blinked in confusion as she pulled the tablet free of the sofa arm. "Specify voice needed to open?" The demons whole colour suddenly turned white as its eyes changed to blue. "Voice accepted please proceed Rei Ayanami." Toji leaned over. "She put in your voice?"

The image faded out as Asuka's face appeared she was looking solemnly downward and was sitting at her computer desk with her leather jacket on there was no patch on her eye so she could see its colours. The other woman looked up speaking quietly at the camera. "I hope this gets to you Rei I really hope it does wherever you are now." She leaned forward putting her hands through her red hair clearly struggling to compose herself. "You asked me once what was wrong and I just couldn't tell you, I want to tell you now because I owe you that as you've been really nice to me through out everything."

Her eyes looked down as she put her hands together. "I know the delegates display is happening tomorrow and I'm dreading it, I just know I'm going to get in 02 and screw it up and I'm terrified and I believe it's only because the failure might show them all the truth." She looked at the camera as the circles and patterns in her left eye started to spin. "You know the accident in UN Alpha test unit you know how I told Misato about the abyss and how when you stare into it long enough its stares back? Well that's what happened to me I saw the angel in there and when I got my guts ripped open he entered my body."

She moved her hand wiping away a stray tear. "He calls himself Bardiel and he avoided the decontamination tank because he hid directly inside my brain. He has fused himself with my cerebellum and he's been with me ever since the accident…I see him all the time he's like this weird lycanthrope creature that follows me around." She folded her arms. "He's such a verfickter asshole, half the time I can't think straight because he talks to me." She breathed in deeply. "He made me so verfickt ill, you know those days when I didn't eat it was because of him he just made me feel like scheisse he's like being with a younger version of myself."

She looked up as the glowing patterns dimmed in her left eye. "Those videos of my mother they weren't the only reason I got drunk that day I was trying to get rid of him. You know because I was stupid enough to think I could somehow kick him out of my mind if I got really drunk the panic attacks I had in both the sync test and when my unit transformed that was all him."

Her gaze shifted. "I pushed you away because I knew the closer you got to me the more danger you would be in." She laughed but it was a sad laugh. "You know I even threatened him and told him that I'd break him if he ever touched you." Her face turned to sadness. "I'm telling you this now because it's just a matter of time, Nerv will find out and I just can't keep up the pretence it's just too hard and I'm so unhappy half the time and it's not just him. I've felt this way for six months and it's been awful I hate the loneliness I hate no one being around and I just find it so hard to be happy I know I'm depressed but I just don't know how to deal with it and you and Shinji you're the only ones I can talk to."

She put her face in her hands for a moment as she started to cry. "I got so low at one point during all this that I shoved my own gun between my teeth, it didn't have bullets in it but you know it was more for the sensation of hearing the barrel turn, the only thing that stopped me loading it was that I just couldn't stomach ending my life like my Mama did."

Her gaze shifted up as the tears ran down her face as her left eye dimmed even more. "I'm going to die Rei when they find out the truth they kill me they will hack me apart to get this angel out of my mind I'm on borrowed time and there's nothing I can do to stop it." She wiped away some of her tears. "Don't come looking for me don't get involved and don't let Shinji get involved either it's better for all of you if you stay away because they'll assume that I have no control and that I'm not even really Asuka."

There was a long drawn pause as her face turned melancholy. "If I die tomorrow please know one thing I really care about you, I always have and I always will it was pleasure being around you and Shinji all these years and I enjoyed it a lot though I didn't always show it when I should have."

Her gaze shifted sadly to the floor. "Also in the drawer in the bedroom you'll find a piece of paper, it's my last will and testament please take care of my cat Erika, I know she really likes you." Her eyes drifted upwards the left one going truly dark to the point that its colours barely spun. "Shinji can have my work bike I know he's always liked it, it's a thank you for putting up with all of my crap all those years ago which he didn't deserve." She turned looking directly in to the camera. "All my books, video games and computer are yours and you can have the Trident I finished it last night, see it as my parting gift to you, because you of all people should have the best of everything and I know your asshole father never gives you anything."

She eased up her hand. "One last request and the only thing I'll ever ask off you is that if any part of me survives please take my remains back to Germany and have them buried opposite my mothers grave and surround me with sunflowers, make it so many that they light my grave for centuries to come." Her face suddenly turned to a forced toothy grin. "I mean they say deaths only a passing right? You know and we might meet again in another time and place under better circumstances and if that's so I would love to meet you a second time and get everything right this time."

Rei watched as the video switched off going completely black she put a hand on her mouth feeling the pain wrench at her stomach as she lowered the tablet, everything made sense now. Shinji leaned over putting a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay Rei?" He could see the sadness in everyone faces, in all the time he'd known Asuka he'd never seen her cry and seeing it now was so heartbreaking.

That was why she hadn't fought back because she had already foreseen something that she couldn't change and she had given up hope and just let the inevitable happen. Kaworu looked up speaking softly. "She knew she couldn't change her fate so she gave into the inevitable." Toji shook his head sadly. "She put her gun in her mouth? Man that is so depressing she must have been so desperate." Rei stood up as she walked over to centre of the room. "I came over the day after that, I suspected she had tried it I just didn't know for sure and she was a real mess emotionally she cried in my arms and spoke a lot about her mother."

She felt the burning anger take over which was a very new feeling to her. "I'm not going to let my father and Ritsuko get their way, not this time and I won't see her die." Shinji stood up. "They will have taken her down to the quarantine level along with her unit but our cards won't get us past that barrier, you know that Rei." Rei turned slightly. "Don't we have a certain person among us who specializes in hacking?"

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

She turned just as Mari walked in sipping a fast food drink she walked right past them sitting herself down in Asuka's chair leaning back as she stretched. "Well it's been an interesting day with Asuka being arrested and all." Rei moved slowly towards her. "Get out of Asuka's chair!" Mari looked up sharply seeing Rei's anger which was a surprise. "Okay like your going to make me!" Rei moved forward not caring as she smashed the drink clean out of the taller woman's hand sending it flying against the bar where it spilled over the place. Mari turned sharply. "I was fucking drinking that!" Rei eyed her in disgust. "Not anymore your not you're going to help us Mari." Mari sat up slightly adjusting her glasses. "Help you do what?"

Shinji folded his arms. "You're going to help us get into the quarantine level." Mari looked at him for a long moment. "I'm sorry but you can't actually be serious?" She sat up putting her hands together. "So you want me to hack the doors down there so you can get Asuka back?" Rei looked at her as she spoke evenly. "Yes." Mari eyed her in disgust. "No fucking way, am I going to do that for any off you." She felt a sneer form. "Plus I'm not helping Asuka she's an asshole."

Rei breathed in deeply as she stepped away from her grabbing her leather bag. "You know what that is just what I thought you'd say and it just so happens that today just happens to be your lucky day." She pulled out two data cards easing them up making sure that Mari could see the red one. "I was going to sell these because I have far too many." She eyed the red one. "These are both top of the range, the red ones very special it's the newly manufactured type you know more memory higher specs all the stuff I don't give a damn about." She felt a cold smile form. "But you do because you're shallow and you care more about things than people."

Mari stood up. "I am not shallow!" She eyed Toji who was standing close by. "Aren't you going to say anything in my defense to that?!" Toji breathed in deeply. "Asuka's going to die Mari, I know you hate her for whatever reason but can you really just stand there and let that happen in good conscience could you sleep at night knowing that you did nothing?" Mari folded her arms. "Why does everyone suddenly care about Asuka?" Shinji turned to face her. "Because she has an angel in side her brain and she got so damn desperate that she shoved her gun in her mouth and contemplated suicide!"

Mari blinked in surprise. "An angel, no wait that's not possible I destroyed the UN Alpha test unit I tore that unit to fucking ribbons I even saw a rainbow. They always send up a rainbow when they die." Rei breathed in deeply. "It tricked you and it got inside Asuka's head, that's why she's had so many problems, it's why her unit changed and it's why if you don't help us here and now she's going to die." Mari moved towards her. "I just have one question how do you even know it's the real Asuka? I mean if it's affected her mind that much isn't there a chance that it might not be her."

Rei lowered her gaze to the floor. "I know its Asuka because she still cares about me very deeply she's always had these feelings for me." Mari moved a step closer to her feeling a coy smile form on her lips. "You mean she loves you, lets not mince words now shall we Rei because I might be this so called shallow person to you but I've see her longing gaze from a mile off a lot of the time. I mean that day in the in the gym she wasn't even reading her comic she was looking over at you through the glass before we started the fight." Rei looked up sharply. "She was?"

Mari walked over to the bar pulling out a bottle of alcoholic cooler from behind the counter she pulled off the cap with a cat shaped bottle opener. "Oh yes kind of makes me sick personally I mean I don't get why she just doesn't come over and just say it to you." She took a long drink. "Maybe because you'd probably say no right? I mean she has far too much emotional baggage not to mention she's not the catch of the day anymore with that shitty eye patch and messed up left eye which looks like someone shoved a neon light in to it." Rei walked up to her. "Are you going to help us or not?" She raised the cards. "This offer expires in the next few minutes you help us and you get these top of the range data cards, you don't then this offer walks away for good and it won't ever come around again."

8

Misato folded her arms. "This is wrong, you can't do this you'll kill her!" Ritsuko turned eyeing Misato, Kaji and Maya who were all standing with her next to the massive glass room where the thick black plated de-contaminator Obrax was sitting. It was made from huge thick steal and looked more like a coffin it was the only thing in side the large room. A number of the medical staff could be seen checking it over. "You all wouldn't be here if you weren't so incompetent!"

Kaji felt a sneer form on his lips. "I don't care about your so called scans I mean has it even occurred to you that even if she is infected why has she not strolled down in to the void where Lilith is? She's had days to do it she could have ended the whole world by now!" He eyed her. "To me that says one thing that Asuka's been fighting this thing and has somehow been stopping it you even said yourself that she's talking to it. Has it even occurred to you that maybe she's been doing everything possible to keep it away from Lilith?"

Maya raised her hand. "Obrax doesn't work! You tried it on Shinji after the battle with Shamshel and you nearly scrambled his brain, he wasn't right for days. I had to give him medication because he started to have awful hallucinations and emotionally he was a real mess he couldn't even recognize Rei who is his own flesh and blood. I had them create Orion based on your failed design so that would never happen again, I asked you to decommission and destroy this awful machine year's ago and you ignored me and kept it."

Ritsuko eyed her in disgust. "It's called preparing for every eventuality Maya." She leaned against the control panel. "Plus Orion didn't work if it had we wouldn't all be standing here now would we?" Maya breathed in sharply. "Please you're putting that on my design? We have never once known of an angel effecting a persons mind let alone one entering the human brain and making a cozy home there, we didn't think they had any interest in people's minds! Because in your words you believe that they see themselves as superior to us as they are different forms of humanity and we are the mistake that they don't like hence why they want us all dead."

Ritsuko turned pressing the holographic panel. "Do you idiots have Asuka yet? Because my husband will be here soon and I don't want him entering this room when she's not here!" Yuki's voice hit the air. "We handed her over your medical staff five minutes ago they've redressed her in hospital clothes and as I speak they've just given her a really large dose of anti psychotic. She took out three units and it was a pain in the ass to take her out and she was even able to jump one of the Arcade levels and not break her legs." Ritsuko breathed in deeply. "How did you take her out?"

Yuki's voice came again filled with annoyance. "I didn't, she gave up and she let me beat the shit out of her, it was my brother Kyo who ended it he fired a sedative dart at her. I just don't get it I mean she was in the Delphi gardens she could have escaped, she's clearly really strong now it just makes no sense the bisexual bitch doesn't normally just give up." Ritsuko breathed in deeply. "Thank you Yuki I'll see you well rewarded for your troubles."

Misato watched in disgust as Ritsuko turned back to them. "You've given her an anti psychotic?" Ritsuko looked up. "It's to suppress the angel!" Kaji narrowed his gaze. "No that has nothing to do with the angel, your giving her that to spite her and make this hell she's already in even worse. We know that Kyoko never responded well to anti psychotics in fact in the German divisions records it clearly shows that she became even more violent and unpredictable when she was on them." Ritsuko folded her arms. "None of this matters because she is going in Obrax regardless!"

A voice came over the speaker causing her to look up. "Asuka is prepped and ready we are bringing her in now." Misato stepped forward. "And to think I once called you friend you're cold heartless and fucking petty you're not even asking Asuka about what's been going on, you're not even trying to find reason in all this. This it is just about you getting your revenge on her because you hated Kyoko."

Ritsuko stepped away from her. "You know nothing of Kyoko you don't know what she's even like!" Misato breathed in deeply. "No I don't know I just read reports and everyone always try to make out that she put more into her work than loving her daughter and I know it's a lie. I've seen the videos from the archives she brought Asuka into work all the time just like Yui did with Shinji and Rei. She used to keep cuddly toys on her desk for her to play with and there are lots of photos of them together."

She looked up slightly. "I think Asuka meant more to her in the end than 02's creation maybe that's why she went crazy because when that thing tried to suck her in she fought it maybe refusing to accept death like both Yui and Kiko did and in doing so it took the part that loved away out of spite because it couldn't take the lot." Ritsuko turned watching as Asuka was dragged in she was wearing a hospital shirt and trousers she was conscious but staring out blankly in to space as the huge black up right coffin was opened and she was pushed violently in side and strapped down. The medical staff slowly closed Obrax's door turning the handle so the huge locks came across as one of them looked up. "Patient secured the high drug dose should keep her from fighting."

Ritsuko pressed the panel turning on Obrax watching as Asuka's face appeared in hologram screen still staring forward her left eye was completely dark its neon bright blue colour was barely spinning and the white light in the central pupil was now completely dim and grey. Kaji felt his hand form a fist. "See reason and stop this if you piss off this angel and Asuka has no control anymore because of your machine it will kill us all, she's clearly repressed it all this time and tried to keep us safe!"

Maya stepped forward. "Please I'm begging you don't do this, she's been through so much she doesn't deserve this she's really hurting on the inside right now. Its what makes her sad and angry but believe me under those barrier's she puts up there's so much good in her, she's noble and kindhearted and she loves Rei very deeply. Don't cut her life short over this don't take away her one chance to become happy and learn what it is to love because for the first time in her whole life she's so close to being in that place the accident in the UN Alpha test unit though it has horrible has brought out the best in her recently and people are seeing it for the first time."

Ritsuko ignored her as pressed the panel buttons. "All employees leave the room." She turned as Gendo entered the room he put a hand on his beard as he looked at her. "Is it ready?" Ritsuko turned to him feeling a smile form. "Why yes dear, it's all set up, shall we begin?"

End of part 25

Silvermoonlight