Misato remained still, her eyes fixed firmly on Q, and her finger hovering just over the trigger of her phaser. She was ready to fire at a moment’s notice, despite knowing how little good it would do her.

“Oh, come on now, do put that silly thing down.” Q rolled his eyes. “I swear, you humans! Claim you’re so advanced but you’re always the first to reach for a weapon when you see something you don’t understand.”

Misato didn’t move, “What the hell are you doing in my quarters?”

“I’m bestowing upon you an honour my dear Katsuragi!” He said gleefully, “You have the unique privilege of having something very few captains in your puny little Starfleet have had! The privilege of a visit from I! Q! In the flesh!”

Misato was tempted to fire at him, she was not in the mood for any games right now. Yet, she knew it’d be pointless. The least that would happen is the phaser fire would just not affect him, at worst he’d turn her into an amoeba or threaten the safety of her crew. Misato knew about Q, his antics and the race he belonged to, the Q Continuum. It had been some time since he had been sighted, leading her to wonder why here and why now.

She lowered the phaser, still keeping her eyes fixed on him, “Why are you here?”

“No greeting? Just a blunt, ‘Why are you here?’” He sighed, “You Starfleet types haven’t gained any manners have you, so impolite, it just breaks my heart. Sometimes, I wonder why I even bother watching over you.”

“Forgive my impoliteness.” Misato replied through gritted teeth, “Hello Q, how are you today? What are you here to do, throw my ship in front of the Borg? Bring us into a civil war between your race? Dress us up like folk characters?”

“Ah, Robin Hood… Worf truly wasn’t a merry man.” Q smiled, “Look katsuragi, that was all in the past, just some… misunderstandings and me and Picard… it’s all, what is it you humans say, all water under the bridge now! Me and Janeway? We’re good friends! Go ahead and ask her! She’s the godmother to my only child! As for Sisko.”

There was a pause as Misato placed her hands on her hips impatiently, “Go on…”

“That one never quite got off the ground. Tough one ol’ Sisko and besides, I never like to mess in the affairs of other omnipotent beings and those prophets… they already had plans.” He shrugged, “Look the fact is this my dear Katsuragi, exaggerations and misunderstandings have been made and, you don’t have to apologize but I am more than a little bit hurt by your suspicions.”

It was Misatos turn to roll her eyes as she listened to him go on, her desire to deal with Q and his games waning by the second, “Fine, welcome aboard the USS Tokyo, would you like the grand tour or would you rather just tell me what the hell it is you want?”

“Want? Me? What do I want? What does the Q who has everything… want?” He grinned and took a few steps towards her. Her hand instinctively reaching for her phaser as she backed away, “No, I was merely in the area… chatting to some of the local space fauna! Oh, you have to try it sometime captain! It’s fascinating, who’d have thought a space mushroom could have such deep views, it’s much more engaging than talking to a Klingon.”

“What... Do... You... Want...” Misato asked again, feeling her patience starting to wear very thin.

“Oh, do be patient!” Q threw his hands up into the air, “Where is your sense of drama and adventure? Fine, I was in the area and I saw your ship, I thought ‘That’s odd, Starfleet don’t normally have ships out this far, what with the whole scary Dominion thing. That’s when it hit me, the USS Tokyo, NERV, SEELE, it all just… came back to me. The past, the present…”

He paused for a moment, losing the impish smile and instead frowning. For some reason the image of a serious looking Q chilled Misato to the bone, “And the future…”

“The future?” She raised an eyebrow, feeling the hairs on her neck stand up. A moment ago, she found his presence irritating, but now she was starting to feel just a touch of fear. Q was a menace, and irritant to those that has encountered him but he was also very dangerous.

“Surely you can feel it?” He asked, “Come on Katusragi! Use some of that human intuition I’ve always championed.”

“Intuition?”

Q rolled his eyes, “Yes… God, why are you being so slow. Look those other races in your quadrant, the likes of the Betazoids and Vulcans, it’s all so very impressive seeing their empathic and telepathic skills but there has always been something about human intuition that just goes that little bit beyond. Like a veil is about to be pierced. Picard… he understood eventually, Janeway got it as well, you… I know you’re capable.”

“What the hell are you talking about Q?”

“You realize it, don’t you? You can see just how big this little thing you’ve stumbled into really is! Your girlfriend… Akagi was it? When she told you what she was doing here that was when you felt it. This is beyond your Federation, beyond the Dominion and beyond… even beyond the Borg.”

Misato felt a chill run up her spine. She had already been made well aware of the threat to the galaxy but hearing a being such as Q speak of it gave it even more weight. Even so, she stood firmly, “I’m already aware of the threat the Angels pose to the galaxy Q.”

“And that is where you’re so very wrong.” Q countered her, “You have some of the puzzle pieces but you’re a long way from completing it and that… that my dear Katsuragi is where I step in.”

“No offence Q, but I’m not sure I want, nor do I need your help.” Misato fired back.

“Oh, how I love hearing those words! Human arrogance really is up there with the best of them. Picard said those words once you know, declined my help, said the Federation was more than ready for what was out there. Do you know what I did?”

Misato nodded, “I’m more than aware.”

“I threw his little ship halfway across the galaxy, right into the path of the Borg. It wasn’t long before he begged me for my help.”

Misato glared at him, but stood her ground, “Is that your plan this time? We know bigger and badder things are out there than us Q but my point stands. I don’t need nor do I want your help.”

“And look at you, standing your ground as if you have a choice, like I said Katsuragi this goes beyond your Federation and anything else you know but don’t worry… I won’t be harming your ship nor your crew. All I want to do is give a little nudge in the right direction, something you are incapable of doing.”

“If it’s that important we do what you want then why don’t you just do it yourself?”

“Because what would be the fun in that?” He quipped, “Besides, I am… shall we say, restricted in what I can and can’t do.”

“I thought you were a god!” Misato shot back, “Who restricts a god?”

“The Q weren’t the first race to evolve like we have and we won’t be the last. Everyone has to answer to someone, to some rules and laws.”

Once more Misato felt a chill running down her spine. She took a brief moment to reflect on his words. The idea of a being like Q existing was terrifying enough but the thought that there was some force out there equal to or more powerful than Q frightened her even more. Such a thing was hard to comprehend, she was more than aware of the vast spectrum of beings and entities that existed that displayed immense power and unique abilities. Entities ranging from the mysterious Traveller, the space faring entity known as Nagilum, the Guardian of Forever, Gary Mitchell and the Organians to name but a few. Few if any, compared to the Q Continuum.

“I would advise you don’t spend too much time thinking about it.” He continues, “instead focus on your current mission and problem. A mission of utmost importance, after all, the fate of this galaxy and beyond rests on your shoulders my dear Katsuragi.”

“So, I’ve been told.” She snapped at him, “Get to the point!”

“The point is this, I want you… no, as much as it pains me to admit it, I need, the Continuum needs you to succeed.” He glared back at her, “Balance in this galaxy is important to us, and if this happens as some want it to then that balance is disrupted, all the order that has taken billions of years to build up and maintain, thrown into chaos… in an instant.”

“Then fix it!”

“Haven’t I mentioned already that there are rules in place? Besides what would be the point if I just sorted out all of your problems for you, what would you learn from that?” Q answered her, “No, it’s quite clear, we have to rely on you and your three… Evangelion class ships or whatever they’re called.”

“Three?” Misato looked on in confusion, “Don’t you mean two?”

“Oh yes, that hasn’t arrived yet.” He sighed, “Guess I ruined that surprise! Pretend I didn’t say anything, and try to act surprised when it arrives.”

Misato didn’t want to push him further on the issue, but she did put aside a mental note to speak to Ritsuko about any potential third ship when she could.

“Go on…”

“As I was saying, we have to rely on you and your crew of… well whatever it is you’d call this crew. It certainly wouldn’t be complimentary.” He answered, “And aside from being so primitive, it’s also woefully underprepared for what is to come and needs some work. So, this is where I come in. Consider this a nudge in the right direction. Farewell, my dear Katsuragi.”

Barely a second later, he snapped his fingers and vanished in a single flash of light. Where he was once stood there was now and empty space. Misato immediately tapped her combadge, “Katusragi to Ibuki, I’ve just had a visit… from Q.”

888

Shinji let out a sigh as he took the bowl of soup from the replicator. He took it over to a small table and took a seat, all the while wishing he was back on Earth. He had been thinking about that quite a lot lately, realizing just how much of that past life he took for granted, and berating himself for just drifting through it all.

His thoughts went to his aunt and uncle, wondering just how they were doing back at their little home. Having to use a replicator for something like soup made him think about all the time they had spent teaching him how to cook. They had, along with many others, said that he had a talent for it. Shinji didn’t quite see it that way. For Shinji, he cooked because he had been taught to and because he had been told to.

He didn’t think of himself as being good at it, nor did he question if he actually enjoyed it. It was similar to playing the cello. An activity he had been guided towards and taken part in because he was told to, and one he continued because no one ever told him to stop.

Being aboard the ship had made him realize that there was a part of him that enjoyed those activities and he missed them. It also helped him understand just what his aunt and uncle meant when they spoke about how replicator food just wasn’t the same as freshly prepared food. It was all good enough, but it lacked the ‘human’ touch that his uncle spoke about. It lacked the freshness or the little additions and deviations people make. It was all uniform and devoid of soul.

He knew the ship had a store and some facilities with fresh ingredients and wondered if maybe he could make use of them at some point. Then again, he didn’t want to be a bother to anyone.

He picked up the spoon, pausing as he glanced at his hands. Suzahara had done a good job of patching him up. There was no longer any pain nor was there any visible marks from where the console had blown up. It was a contrast to the other bits of scarring on his hands, all from the restaurant, little cuts and grazes that had built up over time. All of those treated in a more traditional fashion.

Another sigh escaped his lips. He found himself questioning whether or not he could really do this. It was hard enough to pilot the Evangelion and deal with the pain that it brought but now it seemed someone was out for him during training exercises. Someone was after him, wanted to hurt him for some reason.

He took a sip of the soup, trying to force out any of the negative thoughts and maybe salvage some sort of joy tonight. It was not to be, the soup was, just as he expected it to be, fine. It was ‘fine’, it would do, it was adequate. If he had produced this in the restaurant then he’d probably have been told it was ‘okay’ but it lacked ‘soul.’

Still, it would do, and so he sat alone in silence, sipping his soup and now letting his thoughts drift towards ensign Soryu. The last time he had seen her, she was still unconscious in the sickbay. That was a few days ago now, since then he hadn’t really left his quarters and when he had he hadn’t crossed paths with her.

Shinji wasn’t quite sure what to make of Soryu. On his first meeting with her, she had come across as abrasive but she had saved him from a beating and even helped patch him up. He thought she might have been quite nice but after spending more time with her his opinion had changed.

She had proven to be a harsh teacher to the point that he’d rather spend time with anyone else. It seemed that she was more interested in berating him than helping him and based on how she had changed her simulation for Misato, more interested in furthering herself. He had initially been excited to learn from her, but now dreaded being in the same room as her.

Yet, there was still some part of him that wanted to be around her. He found himself thinking about her a lot, wondering what she might be like if she wasn’t so hot headed. Asuka seemed to be everything he wasn’t, she was confident and knew how to carry herself. She was gorgeous, he couldn’t deny that and he was just drab and mundane. She seemed fearless, and he was afraid of everything.

He knew that last part wasn’t strictly true. He had seen fear on her face when they were on the holodeck that day. She had been stammering and frozen in place. It was no act, that was genuine fear.

“You’re just like the rest of us, aren’t you?” He muttered to himself, shaking his head and continuing to sip his soup. He remained silent as he finished it off, his thoughts rapidly moving between topics, his time on the ship, its crew, his father, the incident on the holodeck, Asuka, captain Katsuragi or his life on Earth.

He finished up the bowl and barely a moment later the alert to his door sounded. He contemplated ignoring it but knew there would be no point. He couldn’t exactly pretend to be out. All it took was one query to the ships computer to locate him. Besides, his conscious wouldn’t let him get away with a lie.

“Enter.” He called out. Shinji stood up straight, expecting his guest to be captain Katsuragi. He was more than a little bit surprised then, when it was not her but Rei who stepped through the door.

“A-Ayanami!” He exclaimed.

Rei didn’t say anything immediately, she stepped further into the room and Shinji was struck by how difference she seemed compared to the last few times he had seen her. The last time he could recall was when she had come to collect him due to the Angel attack. She had still been bandaged up then and seemed frail.

Now that she had fully recovered, she cut a very different, and perhaps even intimidating figure. She stood before him, clad in a NERV uniform, not dissimilar to the one his father or Fuyutsuki wore. Shinji was unable to let curiosity get the better of him as he stared her down from head to toe, paying special attention to the Borg implants that remained on her body.

There was a semi-circular implant around her left eye, a red light flashed, seemingly at random but Shinji assumed it had some purpose. On her left hand, he could see more of the former Borg technology wrapped around her, like some sort of metallic veins.

He tried to but was unable to supress a shudder. This was the closest he had been to anything Borg related, and even though she was no longer a drone, the fear remained.

“Crewman Ikari.” Her voice was soft, almost monotone but retaining just enough edge to command attention. It was a stark contrast to Asuka.

“Ayanami.” He repeated himself, “W-What are you doing here?”

“I was asked by Sub-Commander Fuyutsuki to bring you the following.” She placed the PADD down on the counter, “It is a new holodeck training regimen to aid you in piloting the Evangelion class ship, as well as a schedule of synchronisation tests.”

“Oh…” Shinji answered, unable to hide the disappointment in his voice. There was a part of him that had hoped that maybe this was some communication or message from his father but he should have known better. Why would his father break a habit he had taken up over a decade ago?

“It has been advised that you read through the information on the PADD and familiarise yourself with the regimen and timings.” Rei continued, “We will be asked to be familiar with the ships in non-combat situations and then perform basic combat drills.”

“W-We?”

“Yes. I have successfully completed my treatment and connection tests with my ship. I will therefore be brought back into active duty.” Rei explained.

“I… I see.” Shinji nodded, “Will… will this actually be like the Evangelion? Just… Ensign Soryu and the captain have me training in Starfleet ships on the holodeck.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“The simulations have been designed to mimic the experience of piloting the Evangelion as close as is possible, it will be using a specialized unit developed from the ship itself.”

“Ah…” Shinji nodded again, “T-Thanks, I… I’m sure it’ll be useful.”

“If there is nothing else, I will now leave. Goodbye Ikari.”

Shinji nodded for a third time and watched as Rei turned around to leave. She was close to the door when he suddenly called out to her, “Hey Ayanami… I… Well… You know my father… right?”

Rei stopped and turned around, her cold red eyes fixed on him, “That is correct.”

“What… is he like?”

Rei raised an eyebrow and Shinji wondered just what her answer might be. Was she about to say that he was a kind person? That he was nice to her? It took a moment but Rei finally answered, “I do not understand your question.”

Shinji shook his head, “I mean… I just wanted to know what he was like because… I don’t really know him but he’s my father and I suppose… I should know.”

“I see.” She paused, “He is… a good man.”

Shinji nodded, “How long have you known him?”

“I have known him for five years. He rescued me from my old life and brought me to this place and asked me to pilot.” Rei explained.

“So, that’s why you pilot? Because he saved you?”

Rei nodded, “Yes, and because the Evangelion is like me, it is like I once was, before the Commander saved me. I am bonded to my Evangelion, as you are to yours.”

Shinji didn’t quite understand what she meant by having a bond with the ship. The ship wasn’t what he was interested in right now though. He continued, “My father… I can’t believe he could rescue someone.”

“You find this fact hard to believe, why?”

Shinji frowned, “Because he… he abandoned me when mom died! He hasn’t been in contact with me for over ten years and has barely said anything to me since I arrived here only that I have to pilot that ship! He was ready to send you out to die if I didn’t pilot! That’s why it’s hard to believe! How could someone like that rescue someone?”

“You do not understand him nor the work he does.” Rei snapped back, Shinji detecting a trace of anger in her voice.

“How could I understand someone like that?”

Rei didn’t answer him at first, instead she looked towards the door for a moment and then back at him, “We are done here crewman. I have done what was asked of me. I would advise you inform Katsuragi and Soryu of the adjustments to your training regimen. Goodbye Ikari.”

Shinji had no opportunity to answer as she quickly turned and left his quarters, leaving him alone with only an empty bowl of soup and a feeling of guilt.

‘Did I… upset her?’

He had little time to dwell on it as barely a few seconds later another alert sounded, this time to informing of an incoming communication. He tapped the combadge on his shirt, “Ikari here…”

“Crewman Ikari, this is Lieutenant Commander Quinn, you have been asked to report to Shuttlebay 2 for a priority one assignment.”

888

Ritsuko fumed as the turbolift made its way to its destination. She could only assume Gendo or Fuyutsuki were behind her being summoned back so suddenly. Probably some concern on their part about her getting too close to Misato, or just wanting her to do more of their dirty work. She had not felt anger like this in a long time and was doing everything in her power to not lash out and hit the walls of the turbolift in frustration.

Over the course of her time at NERV she had certainly been angry, she had also been frustrated and fearful because of what she had been asked to do and the situation she had been put into but this felt new. Something had changed inside of her since she had gotten back with Misato. Her frustration with NERV and Gendo was threatening to boil over.

Thankfully the turbolift came to a stop before that anger could build up even more. She stepped out of the lift straight into her office and towards her desk. It was only when she got half way across the room that she realized things were wrong. Her office was not on the USS Tokyo, and there was no turbolift that went straight into her office.

She spun around to see the door to the turbolift fading leaving only the wall of her office behind before turning around again to see her desk. She almost jumped in fright to see that her seat was now occupied by a middle-aged man, with an impish grin, wearing the same uniform as Gendo Ikari.

“So… you’re Ritsuko Akagi. Allow me to introduce myself, I am…”

“Q.” Ritsuko stated bluntly.

“Oh, you already figured it out!” Q quipped, “Much quicker than your girlfriend was and you didn’t even point a phaser at me.”

Ritsuko took a moment to process what was happening. It didn’t take much to realize that the person before her was Q, Section 31 had already prepared her for such a visit given the nature of what they were all dealing with. Still, she couldn’t help but feel a little bit of awe and shock at actually seeing the being in front of her and this little demonstration of his power.

“Of course, unlike your girlfriend, you’re probably not that surprised to see me.” Q spoke again, “Because unlike her, you know what is at stake.”

“Correct, I’m not surprised to see you.” Ritsuko answered him, “But I am wondering why now and what it is you want.”

“Why now?” He chuckled, “Because I decided to time was right for me to step in and give a little of a push in the right direction. The Starfleet way wasn’t quite cutting it, so I decided to do things the Q way.”

“What have you done?” Ritsuko stepped forward angrily, “If you’ve hurt Misato, I’ll…

“Oh, do calm down.” He raised his hand up to stop her, “Your girlfriend is fine, I have no intention of harming anyone. I just felt things were moving a bit too slowly, you’re all meandering about when the fate of the universe is at stake, I mean points for thinking outside the box with Soryu training the lad but their team work… I’ve seen Klingons and Romulans work together better than they do.”

Ritsuko frowned, her thoughts turning to what Misato must be thinking right now. Had she already encountered Q? Had Q already put his plan into motion and what exactly was his plan?

“What are you planning?”

“Oh nothing complicated, just a simple team building exercise in a live fire scenario. No harm will come to them… well unless they can’t work together in which case, I’d….” Q gave a shrug, “Well I’d probably find yourselves some new pilots.”

A number of scenarios ran through Ritsuko’s head, none of them were good. Shinji was in no way ready for a live scenario, and Asuka had already shown herself to be incapable at the moment of working with him. This could only end in disaster. One other thought crossed her mind, “The holodeck… you…”

“Me? Oh no, no no no no no…” Q shook his head, “Your little saboteur, not me, not my style. I’m done provoking the Borg, real or simulated, I have to set an example to my child. Anyway, we are getting off topic, I’m not here in this room to talk about Katsuragi or your pilots. I’m here to talk about you.”

“Me?” Ritsuko felt a chill.

“Yes, you! See, I’m more than aware of your little dilemma, of your split loyalties to Section 31, to NERV and to your girlfriend. It’s quite the… pickle, I think you humans say.” Q answered her, “I’ve never quite understood that phrase, but I suppose that doesn’t matter.

“And what exactly is your point?” Ritsuko shot back, “Surely someone such as you can see, I don’t exactly have options. What, are you offering to solve my problems for me?”

Q laughed, “Solve them for you? Why would I do that? How do you humans expect to grow if you expect omnipotent beings such as myself to solve problems for you.”

“Then what exactly is your point? I don’t need reminding of the mess I’m in, thank you very much.”

“To give you a warning.” He smirked, “You’re going to have to make a decision very soon as to where your loyalty lies. Do you continue on one path, or do you take a leap of faith?”

“Forgive me, but I’m not exactly the religious type.” She shot back, “In case it slipped your mind, I’m not exactly doing this for myself.”

“Ah, Kyo! Of course, your little brother. You know, I swung by that planet Ikari sent him to the other day. Remarkable child, a lot of untapped potential there. He could be something someday. Reminds me a bit of a young ensign I once knew, before that traveller got his hands on him.” Q quipped, “Like I said Akagi, a leap of faith… it’s all it takes.”

888

Asuka felt the warmth of the water wash over her as she stood motionless for a moment, her head down in an attempt to easy some of the tension that had built up over the last few days. The conversation with the captain still playing on her mind. Even worse, it was making her question herself and her ability. She hated it.

At the academy it had been so easy for her to shrug off the comments from others. If it was another student then she could put it down to jealousy. If it was an instructor then she had an opportunity to prove herself by doing well on a test. This was different though, opportunities on a real starship didn’t come along often, and she might have blown her chance.

‘Damnit Asuka, you know all of this when you accepted this post! You knew things were doing to be different here, everyone warned you! No one likes you here apart from Hikari, you’ve fucked up in front of the captain and you messed up your one and only major assignment! Maybe they were right after all, maybe this isn’t where you belong.’

Asuka clenched her fist in frustration, her nails digging into her palms, she felt herself snarling as she drove back the urge to drive her fist into the wall of the shower. It took everything she had but she managed to fight back. That would be all she needed, a second trip to the sickbay, this time for punching the wall of her shower. If the captain doubted her before then she surely would after that.

‘No! I do belong here and I’ll prove it to all of them! I’m Asuka Langley Soryu damnit, I’m not that scared little girl they think I am!’

She took a deep breath and finally unclenched her fist, her palms stinging from where she had dug her nails in. She focused on shifting the negative thoughts out of her mind. She had experienced a setback; everyone suffered a setback no matter how good they were. All she had to do was figure out where she went wrong and work to fix it.

Her mind drifted almost immediately, much to her chagrin, to Shinji, the goddamn civilian. He was the problem she had to solve. His training was what she had to work on. The captain had issues Asuka a challenge, to prove herself and it all revolved around making sure that civilian could pilot his damn ship competently.

He irritated her so much. This guy, suddenly brought into her world, given such a special assignment and he didn’t even seem to care. He had no goddamn pride! He had no fight or spark in him. He just accepted what people said and what they told him to do. There had been the odd flash where she had been impressed by him. Those few moments where he took initiative or when he actually stood up for himself but he had mostly been passive, just accepting failure and mediocrity.

‘I’ve seen him pilot that ship of his so I know he isn’t completely useless.’ Asuka thought to herself, ‘I know he has some talent but all he seems to want to do is mope around and let everyone tell him what to do! It’s damn nepotism, handed the opportunity by his daddy and just going along with it.’

Asuka decided now was the time to end her shower. She would try to figure out her problem tomorrow after she had taken the time to rest. Stepping out of the shower and wrapping a towel around herself she had only just started to dry herself off when an alert of an incoming message sounded.

She cursed under her breath before tapping the combadge on her bedside table, “Soryu here.”

“Ensign Soryu, this is Lieutenant Commander Quinn. You’ve been ordered to report to Shuttlebay 2 immediately for a special assignment.”

The thought of telling the lieutenant commander that she was off duty did cross her mind, but he had mentioned a special assignment so she could only assume it was something that had come from the captain. Maybe this was the chance she was hoping for.

“I’ll be right there.” She answered before quickly drying herself off and slipping back into her uniform. She zipped up her jacket, placed her combadge back on her breast and left her quarters towards the nearest turbolift.

It took barely any time for her to reach the shuttlebay, she stepped through the door to be immediately greeted by the sight of a large shuttlecraft, Liutenant Commander Quinn and much to her surprise and disappointment, Shinji.

“You…”

“Asu…” Shinji started to speak but quickly caught himself, “Ensign Soryu.”

“Crewman.” She nodded towards him, “I should have known my special assignment involved you. So, what is it we have to do?”

“I err… I don’t know.” Shinji replied, “I only just got here.”

“Is the captain not here?” She turned to face Quinn.

“I’m afraid not.” He answered, “But rest assured that she is very keen to see how you both perform on your task.”

Asuka nodded, keeping her eyes fixed on the man. There was a part of her that sensed something was off, and given what had happened in the holodeck earlier this week she could feel some nerves in the pit of her stomach. She glanced at the shuttle again, realizing that this wasn’t just a standard shuttle, this was the captains yacht. Some of the worry eased on recognizing that, if this was anything bad then surely, they wouldn’t be able to access this room. After all, you needed the captain’s authorisation to get in here.

“The captain has devised a little team building exercise for the two of you. With the holodeck out of commission for training at the moment she’s decided to try something a little bit more… engaging.” He explained.

“A… team building exercise?” Shinji asked, some confusion in his voice, “She didn’t mention she was planning anything.”

“Like she has to explain everything to us, she’s the captain!” Asuka fired back, “So what is this exercise?”

“Your first proper away mission.” Quinn answered as he worked at the console in front of him. Behind him the screen changed, showing the image of Class-M planet, “This is planet Q-13, located half a day's travel from here. Your task is simple, travel to the planet, perform a basic set of scans and return with a report on your findings. Consider it your first strange new world.”

“Is that it?” Asuka asked, “Go there and perform some scans?”

“Well, not every one of our missions is an exciting combat based one, after all our primary goal is seeking new life and new civilisations!” Quinn grinned, “Just think, there could be life there, you two could be the first to discover it!”

Asuka frowned, “I suppose…”

Asuka looked from the screen to Quinn and then to Shinji. Something really didn’t sit right with her but she supposed she had little choice in the matter. Quinn was in a way right too, Starfleets goal was to seek out new worlds, and this was an opportunity for them to do that. It was also something no one else on the ship was doing right now.

She kept an eye on Shinji, he looked nervous but then again, he always looked nervous. It annoyed her. Couldn’t he see just how simple this task was? A direct trip there, run some scans and write up a report.

“Alright then crewman, let’s get this done.” Asuka spoke up and immediately started to head towards the waiting shuttle. She got herself on board and had a quick look around. It was certainly different to any other shuttle she had been on. There was an abundance of space and it was divided into several rooms including a small cargo bay, basic quarters and a transporter room.

“A-Asuka…” She heard Shinji speak as she took her seat at navigation, “Is this… okay?”

“What are you talking about?” She retorted, “Can’t you see where we are right now?”

He shook his head, “A… big shuttle?”

She sighed, “it’s the captains yacht you idiot! The only way you can launch this thing is with her say so. Hell, the only way we can get on board is if she has given authorisation.”

“Oh… I see.” Shinji answered, “But then… why isn’t she here?”

“How the hell should I know? Why should she be here, she’s the captain, she can get other people to do things for her.” Asuka answered, “Look, you want to make up for what happened in the holodeck right?”

“I… I guess.” Shinji nodded.

“Then let’s go and get this done! You follow my lead, and do exactly as I say, and we’ll be fine! We’ll get there and back within the day.”

888

Misato stepped out of the turbolift onto her bridge and without hesitation called out, “Ibuki, call the rest of the senior staff to my ready room.”

“Captain, I would but we have a situation developing here.” Ibuki replied, motioning towards the view screen.

Misato stopped and took a look at the visual. It didn’t take her too long to spot the shuttlecraft moving slowly away from the ship. A second later she realized exactly what it was, the captain’s yacht.

“What the hell is my yacht doing out there?” Misato asked, “Who authorized its launch?”

“That’s a question I’d like answered myself captain.” Maya replied, “We picked up the launch a few moments before you arrived on the bridge.”

“Impossible, I’m the only one who can authorize its launch” Misato glared at the viewscreen. Two scenarios were running through her head and she wasn’t fond of either one of them. Either this had something to do with Q, or their saboteur had returned, “Try hailing them, and see if we can figure out who gave authorization to launch and who is onboard.”

“Hailing frequencies open captain.” Announced the on duty comm officer.

“USS Tokyo to the Nagano, this is captain Katsuragi. I do not know why you are on board the captain’s yacht nor what your destination is but you have boarded and left the Tokyo without authorisation, I am hereby ordering you to return to the ship immediately. Is that understood?”

Misato gave the mystery occupants of the ship fifteen seconds to respond but she and the rest of the bridge were met with silence, “Either they’re ignoring us or they can’t hear us. Aoba, do we know how they launched and who they are yet?”

She turned to face her chief security officer who nodded, “Captain, initial reports indicate that the Nagano was launched via authorisation from yourself.”

Misato nodded, “As expected, we’ll have to see if that was a security breach or if our friend Q is to blame, and the occupants.”

“Two occupants.” He replied, “I’m getting some sort of interference when trying to scan the shuttle itself but I’ve ran an internal sweep of the ship, and we seem to be missing… we’re missing ensign Soryu and crewman Ikari.”

“It has to be Q then. This must be the help he mentioned.” Misato frowned, “Fine, time for something more drastic. Lock onto them with a tractor beam, pull them back to the ship.”

Misato held her breathe as she kept her eyes fixed on the shuttlecraft and watched as it got further away from them. A bright blue beam suddenly shot out from the Tokyo, enveloping and ensnaring the Nagano in its place.

“We have them.” Aoba reported.

“Good, bring them home.” Misato ordered.

“Captain.” Maya kept her voice low, “What does Q want?”

“To ‘help’ us.” Misato answered, “Seems our dealings with NERV have gotten the continuums attention and he wants to assist us.”

“Oh god.”

“My thoughts exactly.” Misato nodded, “Aoba, what’s going on with that tractor beam?”

“Captain… I’m… I’m having trouble bringing them back.” He reported, “There is some sort of energy build up near to their location that is interfering with our beam. It’s almost as if it’s pulling in the opposite direction.”

Misato bit her bottom lip as suddenly a large blue swirl appeared near to the shuttles position. A second later it sprang to life, a brilliant white light pulled from the centre. She watched helplessly as the Nagano lurched to the side, being pulled further away from them and towards the centre of this phenomenon.

Misato wasted no time in calling out, “Divert more power to the tractor beam, I don’t want us to lose that ship!”

“I’m trying captain!” Aoba replied.

“Well try harder!” Misato snapped back and tapped her combadge, “Katsuragi to Engineering, we have a situation here Makoto, we’re gonna need as much power diverted to our tractor beam as is possible, immediately.”

“On it, captain!”

No further words were said at that moment as the crew nervously worked to try to stop the Nagano from heading towards the epicentre of the rift. Navigation worked to move the Tokyo into a more favourable position, Aoba worked on manoeuvring the beam and deep in the aft of the ship, engineering worked to give them as much power as they could.

“Captain it seems to be working!” Aoba reported, “We seem to be pulling the shuttle back towards us.”

Misato nodded, “Thank god. Keep it up, do not let go under it is back in the shuttlebay. Comms, have we been able to open up a channel with the Nagano yet?”

“Not yet captain, we’re working on forcing a connection with their systems but no luck so far.”

“Keep on it.”

“Aye captain.”

“They’re a quarter of the way back.” Aoba called out.

“Good, stay focused.” Misato ordered.

“Captain.” The comm officer spoke up, “We’re being hailed… by the Nagano.”

“Get them on screen immediately.” Misato nodded, a second later they were greeted with the image of Asuka and Shinji. Shinji looked very confused and nervous, Asuka looking somewhat angry.

“Captain!” Asuka spoke first, “What’s going on? We were following your orders and then…”

“Misato cut her off, “No time to explain, get yourself back to the ship immediately. There has been an incident an…”

Misato had no opportunity to finish her sentence before the feed suddenly cut out. A moment later the Tokyo was shook by some sort of force. Misato and the rest of the bridge crew were thrown violently around, the captain doing everything she could to remain on her feet. She looked up and much to her horror the tractor beam had cut out.

“Aoba, what the hell just happened?”

“I… I don’t know captain!” He answered nervously, “Some sort of power surge went through the ship. Everything was fine a moment ago, we weren’t…”

“Doesn’t matter!” She cut him off, “Get the tractor beam back on immediately.”

As if detecting its opponents weakened state the anomaly suddenly doubled in size and the white light grew in intensity. Aoba worked frantically at getting the beam back on but it was to no avail, by the time the beam was sent forward again, all they could do was watch as the Nagano was pulled towards the gaping maw of the anomaly.

For Misato there was only one course of action left, “Take us forward, follow the damn shuttle.”

Her orders came too late though. Before the Tokyo could even begin to move forwards the anomaly closed itself immediately, leaving the crew in a stunned and horrified silence.