NAE: Shock Value by Zero This is an Evangelion fanfic. I took the original story and threw in a new character, totally screwing up all the events leading to the last episode in the anime series. Neon Genesis Evangelion is copyright Gainax. Brace ourselves for god-boy mayhem! NEON GENESIS EVANGELION: SHOCK VALUE Chapter I "He should have been here by now," said Dr. Ritsuko Akagi, NERV's highest- ranking scientist. "Well, it seems there was a slight problem in locating him. They didn't find the kid until 7:00 AM today. He'll be here in about fifteen minutes," said Ritsuko's faithful assistant Maya Ibuki. "Shit. I hate delays," said Ritsuko. "Well, we'll just have to deal with it then. Where's his file?" "Here," said Maya as she handed Ritsuko a blue plastic folder. "Hmmm.... High IQ, synch rate OK for a beginner. Nothing really special about this kid. Cute. Not my type though. Maya, what do you think?" said Ritsuko. "Well, he looks OK. No violent tendencies, no history of mental instability, slight attitude problem.... I think he's fine," said Maya. "We'll soon find out," said Ritsuko, pointing at the UN transport heading towards NERV HQ. ***** Yukio Mori stepped out of the transport and stood on firm ground only for the second time in three days. Running his right hand through his short, black hair, he looked around at his new surroundings. Shit, he thought to himself, this place is huge! His observations of NERV were soon cut short when he saw the two ladies walking towards him. His eyes soon focused on the woman with brown hair. Damn, Yukio thought, she reminds me of Joy. Upon the thought of Joy, Yukio's mind once again conjured up the face of his long-time love, the love he left back home when he was summoned here. "I miss her already," Yukio mumbled. "Miss who?" asked Ritsuko. Yukio didn't notice that they were already right in front of him. "Oh, I'm sorry. I was just thinking out loud," said Yukio. "You must be Dr. Akagi. I'm Yukio Mori. They said you'd be meeting me here." Ritsuko offered Yukio her hand. Yukio took it and gently shook Ritsuko's hand. "This is my assistant Maya Ibuki," said Ritsuko, indicating her companion. "Hello," said Yukio, taking Maya's hand and shaking it. "Hello," said Maya with a smile. "Now that that's over with, we have to get inside. We will be running a harmonics test in a few minutes. You'll also get to meet your fellow Eva pilots. Welcome to NERV," said Ritsuko. The three of them started to walk towards the entrance to NERV HQ with Ritsuko leading the way and Maya just behind her. Yukio couldn't resist looking at Maya every now and then. God, Yukio thought, I think I'm in love! ***** Asuka was impatiently pacing back and forth in front of Shinji and Rei. All three were already in their plug suits and were waiting for the new pilot. "What is taking them so long? We should have started the harmonics test ages ago! I really hate to be kept waiting. Exactly who does this new pilot think he is anyway? He doesn't deserve my time!" said Asuka. "C'mon Asuka, calm down. I'm sure they'll be here soon," said Shinji, already getting tired of Asuka's complaints. Before Asuka could launch into another litany the doors opened and in walked Ritsuko and Maya, followed by a dark-haired kid in a black shirt and khaki pants. "About time you got here!" said Asuka. "Shut up, Asuka," said Ritsuko. "Yukio, change into your plug suit over there in that room. Hurry up." "That's the new kid?" asked Shinji as Yukio entered the changing room. "Yes," said Ritsuko. "His name is Yukio Mori and he'll be taking the test with you three today." After Yukio had put on his plug suit, he was introduced to Asuka Langley Sohryuu, Rei Ayanami, and Shinji Ikari, the other three Eva pilots. The four Eva pilots were then instructed to get ready for the harmonics tests. ***** "The tests show that Asuka still has the highest synch ratio among you, but Shinji's is showing an increase. Rei and Yukio's synch ratios are dead even," said Ritsuko. "Hahaha! Hear that? I'm the best! Nobody comes close to the greatness of Asuka Langley Sohryuu!" said Asuka. Shinji just bowed his head while Rei just stood there. Yukio was somewhat taken aback by Asuka's reaction but Maya just smiled and whispered in his ear. "She's like that. You better get used to it," said Maya. Yukio just smiled back. Oh man she talked to me, he thought. Yukio's mind was still picturing him and Maya together when another woman entered the room. "How's everything? Is this the new kid?" asked the newcomer. "Everything is alright Misato and yes, this is Yukio Mori, the new Eva pilot," said Ritsuko. "Yukio, meet Captain Misato Katsuragi, NERV's head of Eva Operations." "Pleased to meet you," said Misato while shaking Yukio's hand. "Same here, Capt. Katsuragi," said Yukio. He couldn't help smelling the faint odor of beer as Misato spoke. "Just call me Misato. Everyone does." "OK, Misato," answered Yukio. "Well, now that the tests are over, let's get something to eat," said Misato. "Alright! You're buying, right, Misato?" asked Asuka. "Sure," said Misato with a hint of reluctance in her voice. ***** "So, Yukio, tell us about yourself," said Misato. They had just ordered their food and was still waiting for it to be served. The five of them, Misato, Shinji, Rei, Asuka, and Yukio, were sitting at a corner table. "Well, it's not much. I was born here in Japan, I was raised here in Japan, and, by the look of things, I'm gonna die here in Japan. I have no family left. My parents died during Second Impact. A building fell on them. Pretty standard stuff, I guess," said Yukio. He said this with a detachment that creeped everybody out. "Don't you miss your parents?" asked Shinji. "Of course I do, but there's nothing I can do about them, is there?" answered Yukio. Then, with a smile, Yukio said, "The food's here. Let's eat. I'm starving!" Shinji, Misato, and Asuka just looked at each other and started eating. After the meal, Asuka started bragging again about how her synch ratio was higher than everybody else's. Shinji just hung his head in embarassment while Misato tried to calm Asuka down. After a while, they all decided to go home. ***** "This is where you'll be staying," said Misato as they entered the apartment. "Our place is just a block over, so feel free to drop by anytime." "Gee, thanks Misato," said Yukio. He was already sleepy and the sight of the bed made keeping his eyes open a lot harder. Stifling a yawn, Yukio again thanked everybody. He was already asleep as soon as he lay on the bed. ***** The next day, Yukio woke up early as it was his first day of classes. Shinji, accompanied by his friends Toji Suzuhara and Kensuke Aida, came by to pick him up. After the usual introductions, they set off for school. When they reached the school, the teacher was already inside the classroom. "Class, we have a new student with us here today. His name is Yukio Mori. Mr. Mori, please stand up," said the teacher. Yukio stood up for a while and sat down again. The stares of his new classmates were starting to get to him and he started blushing. "Ooooohhh, he's blushing!" said Asuka. This caused the whole class to laugh. "Don't mind her," said Toji. "She's always a bitch. She does that to everybody." Only a few minutes into the class, everybody was startled by the blaring of alarms. Everybody started to get up and proceed to the shelter under the school, with the exception of the four Eva pilots. They immediately made their way to NERV HQ. When they got there, Misato filled them in on the situation. "We are currently under attack by an Angel of unknown power. It's still a few minutes from reaching NERV HQ but everybody is already on Red Alert. Shinji, you and Asuka will be the first to be deployed. Rei, you will act as backup. Yukio, you stay here," said Misato. "But, Misato," started Yukio. Misato immediately cut him off. "No buts," said Misato. "You don't have enough battle experience yet. C'mon everybody, let's get this over with!" ***** The three Eva Units were immediately deployed. All three were armed with sniper rifles since Misato wanted to gauge the Angel's attack capabilities first before the Evas engaged it in close combat. Asuka was the first to open fire at the crab-like Angel but her rifle didn't seem to be doing any damage. Shinji joined Asuka's attack promptly but the Angel just kept on coming. Suddenly, the Angel stopped and let loose an energy blast at Unit 02, sending Asuka's Eva staggering backwards from the force of the blast. Shinji just kept firing at the steadily advancing Angel as Rei moved into position beside Shinji, firing at the Angel as she did so. The Angel just kept on coming, seemingly oblivious to the huge amount of firepower being pumped into its body. "It's not stopping!" shouted Shinji in alarm. "Just keep firing, Shinji! Our sensors show that the Angel's armor is starting to give. Just hold him off a little longer!" said Misato. She then turned to Yukio. "Yukio, suit up. You're going out there, but only as backup. Only as *backup*, you hear? Don't engage the Angel unless you have absolutely *no* *other* *choice*," said Misato. "OK, I got it," said Yukio as he ran for the door. Before he reached the door, he heard Maya tell Misato that Shinji just ran out of ammo. Oh shit, Yukio thought. ***** The black-and-red Eva known as Unit 03 immediately surveyed the scene as soon as it was out of the Eva bay. Unit 02 was still down and Asuka wasn't answering. Yukio concluded that Asuka was out cold and started to run forward just as Unit 01 was hit by another blast from the Angel, pushing the Eva Unit backwards. Rei just kept on pumping her gun's ammo into the advancing Angel's body. "Shinji, are you OK?" asked Yukio. "Yukio? Yeah, I guess I'm alright," answered Shinji as he started to get up. "Where's Asuka?" "She's over there. I think she's out cold." "Shinji, Yukio! Stop blabbing and help Rei!" shouted Misato over the commlink. Yukio immediately commenced firing on the Angel. It was only a few hundred meters away from Rei when Unit 00's gun went silent. "My gun ran out of ammunition," said Rei. "I can see that, Rei! Now stand aside so I can get a clear shot at that thing!" said Yukio. He started firing at the Angel but after a few moments, his gun just stopped firing. "Dammit, my gun's jammed!" Yukio threw the sniper rifle at the Angel and started to run towards it. "Misato, release my umbilical cable!" he said. "If we cut it you'll only have five minutes of power," said Misato. "If you don't we'll all have only five minutes to live! Release the cable now!" answered Yukio. Misato wasn't used to being shouted at and ordered around by a kid but she knew Yukio was right. She turned to one of the support crew personnel and gave the order to release Unit 03's cable. When Misato told him that the cable was off, Unit 03 made a jump for the Angel, its progressive knife already in its hands. Although hopelessly outclassed by the Angel, Unit 03 made a valiant effort to penetrate the Angel's weakening armor. Yukio made repeated attempts to penetrate the Angel's armor with the progressive knife to no avail. The Angel opened fire on Unit 03 but Yukio was able to dodge the beam. Another blast sent Unit 03 reeling back, causing the Eva Unit to lose the progressive knife. "Shit!" shouted Yukio as he started to resume his attack. Rei and Shinji had also joined in the melee, attacking the Angel with their own progressive knives. Unit 01 began pounding the Angel's hard, chitinous exoskeleton and after the third or fourth punch, Unit 01's arm went into the Angel's body all the way to the shoulder. "What the...? Misato, we've penetrated the Angel's armor!" said Yukio. From the corner of his eye he saw that Asuka's Eva Unit was starting to get back up. "Asuka!" "What?" "Shoot this thing!" "Why do I always have to do everything myself?" said Asuka as Units 00, 01, and 03 got out of her line of sight. Unit 02 started shooting at the hole in the Angel's armor as soon as the other three Evas were clear. After a while, the Angel just stopped in its tracks and fell to the ground, the gaping hole in its mottled orange exoskeleton leaking blood. "Shit! We did it!" shouted Yukio as his Eva slowly lost power. ***** "Job well done," said Misato. "Although I would appreciate it if you don't shout at me in the future, Yukio." "I'm sorry Misato," stammerred a blushing Yukio. "I was just, you know..." "It's OK," answered Misato. "So Ritsuko, how are the Eva Units?" "Well, none of them sustained heavy damaged. I'll be running a diagnostics check on them to be sure, though," said Ritsuko. Ritsuko was accompanied by Maya, as usual, and Yukio couldn't help but keep glancing at Maya. "Yukio, why are you always looking at Maya like that?" "What?" Yukio blurted out, his face reddening again. He thought he was being discreet, but it turned out that somebody noticed his stolen glances. "Why are you looking at Maya like that?" repeated Asuka. "You like her, don't you?" Asuka was enjoying the way she was making Yukio uncomfortable. Everybody's attention was now on Yukio, including Maya. Yukio couldn't stand it any longer so he just made up a lame excuse. "I was looking at the clock," he said. "Yeah, right," said Asuka with a smirk. Everybody was now smiling, and Maya was starting to blush a little. "Asuka, quit teasing Yukio. It's not his fault if he likes Maya," said Misato, obviously enjoying the whole scene too. "Oh, c'mon guys, stop that," said Maya. "We still have a lot of things to do." Maya was now blushing just as heavily as Yukio. With a smile, Ritsuko said to Maya as they were leaving the room, "He really does like you, you know." ***** TBC Send C&C to reg_01@yahoo.com.