For the Sake of the Children
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Chapter 5: Not Without a Fight
Neon Genesis Evangelion is owned by Gainax
Ranma 1/2 is owned by Rumiko Takahashi
Okay, this is a REALLY rough draft, no proofreading or editors involved...
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Ranko's stomach growled as the smell of frying bacon wafted into her
bedroom. (I wonder what Otosan is doing up so early on a Sunday,) she
thought as she yawned. She considered staying in bed, wrapped up in her
warm blanket as her stomach rumbled once again. Her usual weekend
breakfast consisted of toast and cold cereal. (A nice hot breakfast would
be a treat,) she thought hungrily. Throwing off her blanket, she stumbled
out of bed and walked to the bathroom. After quickly brushing her teeth
and splashing cold water on her face, she felt slightly more awake.
Ranko eagerly walked into the kitchen, hoping that breakfast was just about
ready. She saw her father by the stove and stared at him, wide-eyed, her
hunger forgotten. "O-otosan! What are you wearing?" Ranko asked. Ranma
glanced at his daughter and smiled sheepishly.
"Good morning sleepyhead! Ready for breakfast?" he asked.
"Never mind breakfast! Tell me about the uniform!" Ranko demanded. Ranma
was wearing a blue shirt with a button-downed collar and matching blue
slacks. If not for the NERV emblem on the shoulder of the shirt, Ranko
would have taken it for a high school uniform.
Ranma grimaced as he deftly flipped the omelet he had been cooking.
"Misato brought it over last night. She said I need ta wear it around
Headquarters. Something to do with a security protocol. Besides, I'm
gonna meet the Boss today and Misato figured it would be best if I was in
uniform," Ranma replied.
"I don't believe it! Aunt Ukyo said that you -never- wore a uniform in
school. She said that you -hated- them," Ranko said, shaking her head in
disbelief.
"I -do- hate them! But I guess it's not a big deal. After all, it's only
while I'm at Headquarters and I don't plan on spending much time there!"
Ranma replied.
"Wow! You're actually willing to compromise! I guess you're growing up
Otosan," Ranko said with a smirk.
"Thanks," Ranma replied dryly, depositing the omelet onto a plate.
"Well, I think it looks cute on you," Ranko said, giggling as she kissed
Ranma on the cheek. Ranma shook his head in resignation as he placed two
strips of bacon on the plate.
"Are ya ready to eat?" he asked, handing her the plate of food.
"Yeah!" Ranko exclaimed, grabbing the plate. She sat down at the dining
table and quickly began to eat.
"Hey! Slow down! Ya don't need to inhale it," Ranma said, placing a glass
of milk on the table in front of Ranko.
"Thanks. So you're headin' over to NERV today?" Ranko asked between bites.
"Yeah. Actually, I'd better get going," Ranma replied, looking at his watch.
"Are you guys gonna be training again today?" Ranko asked.
"Later this evening. Misato is gonna bring the kids over. I think Kaji
will be dropping by too," Ranma said.
"Misato's nice, isn't she?" Ranko asked suddenly.
"Uh, I guess. . ," Ranma replied, unsure as to what had prompted the question.
"Ya know. . . you really should ask her out some time, go out to a movie or
an amusement park or something," Ranko commented.
Ranma groaned as he put his face in his hands. "I get enough of this from
your grandparents, I -don't- need you to start in on this too!" Ranma said.
"What's the big deal? She likes you and you like her, right?" Ranko asked.
"Where did you come up with -that- idea? Look, please. -Please- don't try
playin' matchmaker for me, okay?" Ranma asked.
"I just think the two of you would be good together. Besides, I don't want
you to get lonely in your old age," Ranko replied defensively.
"Old age?" Ranma asked in surprise.
"Well, you -are- getting up there," Ranko pointed out.
Ranma just shook his head. (I don't know whether to laugh or cry,) he
thought silently. "I'm gonna be late! We'll talk about this later, okay?
And whatever ya do, -don't- talk to Misato about this!" Ranma said, walking
to the front door.
"Okay Otosan. Just. . . keep an open mind on the subject," Ranko replied,
smiling sweetly.
*******************************
"Woah! He is -so- cool!" Asuka gushed.
"How do you suppose he did that?" Shinji asked.
"Don't you know anything? He's using an advance martial arts technique!"
Asuka replied haughtily. The two children were sitting in front of the
television set, their eyes glued to the screen. Misato had requisitioned a
copy of the video of Ranko's rescue and Asuka was eager to watch it.
"How was that martial arts?" Shinji asked, referring to the ki blast Ranma
had fired at the angel.
"He's using his ki; or is it chi? I haven't figured that part out yet,"
Asuka replied thoughtfully.
"When did you learn about all this stuff?" Shinji asked.
"Well, since we're learning martial arts, I went to the library yesterday
and did some research. Some of the books I read mentioned ki attacks like
that blast Ranma-san performed," Asuka replied.
"Do you think he could teach us how to do that?" Shinji asked excitedly.
"Baka! Of course not! It takes years to master a technique like that!"
Asuka replied scornfully.
"Oh, I see. Ranma-san must be very good then," Shinji said.
"I'm sure he's the best there is! I can't wait till we train again today!"
***********************************************
"So, do I knock or what?" Ranma murmured as he stood in front of the door
leading to Gendou Ikari's office. A member of the security detail had
escorted him from the front gate all the way here. The guard had seemed
somewhat nervous as they reached Ikari's office and he had left Ranma
standing in front of the unopened door. (Guess the commander freaks some
of these guys out,) Ranma thought as he knocked on the door.
"Enter," a voice commanded quietly from the room.
Ranma, sighing at the thought of another authority figure entering his life
after so many years, opened the door. He entered a large spartan office.
There was a single desk placed in the room, with a man, who Ranma assumed
was the Commander, sitting behind it. The room didn't even have any chairs
for guests or visitors. (That's fine, I can stand,) Ranma thought as he
approached Commander Ikari.
"Mr. Saotome," Gendou said in greeting.
"Commander. It's nice ta meet ya," Ranma replied, nodding his head.
"How is the training going?" Gendou asked without any preamble.
"Well, we've only had one class, but it's going fine. The kids are in
pretty good shape, they just need to build up their stamina a bit," Ranma
replied.
"You are currently training the pilots at your home. Starting today, you
will start training them here."
"Why?" Ranma asked, confused by the requirement.
"We need to be able to monitor their progress," Gendou replied evenly.
"Monitor? Okay, I guess I understand that, but my daughter helps me with
the training, so I'd have to bring her along," Ranma replied.
"Your daughter is no longer a member of this organization. I can not allow
a potential security risk to be a part of this project," Gendou said coldly.
"Security risk? What the hell are you talkin' about? She's just a
fourteen year old girl!" Ranma protested angrily.
Gendou leaned forward in his chair and steepled his hands in front of his
face. "Mr. Saotome, if your daughter was one of our pilots, she would be
allowed to participate in the training," he offered.
"Wait a minute here! Misato said that you didn't need any more pilots,"
Ranma protested yet again.
"We might lose a pilot. A backup would be useful," Gendou replied bluntly.
"Listen up, Commander! You are not gonna-" Ranma started to reply as the
lights in the room suddenly died and the room shook. "What was that, an
earthquake?" Ranma asked as the dull red emergency lights activated.
Ignoring Ranma, Gendou quietly picked up his phone and dial a three-digit
extension.
"Report," he commanded into the phone. A few seconds later he hung up the
phone, stood up and exited his office, Ranma following close behind.
"What's going on?" Ranma asked.
"An Angel attack," Gendou replied.
"Oh just perfect," Ranma groaned. The two men walked into the control
room, which was already bustling with activity. Gendou sat in his usual
seat on the upper deck while Ranma stood between Misato and Ritsuko. "What
a freak," Ranma commented, looking at the image of the angel in the view
screen.
"This time, you get to see -us- in action," Misato whispered to him
confidently. "Units 01 and 02 have already been deployed," she continued
aloud, turning back towards Commander Ikari.
"I can't believe that it's already in the Geofront!" One of the techs
sitting to Ranma's right exclaimed.
"Seventeen layers of armor in one shot! Incredible!" Another tech agreed.
"It's coming here, to Central Dogma. Shinji, Asuka, are you in position?"
Misato asked.
"Central what?" Ranma asked, staring at the view screen in confusion.
"We're ready," Asuka and Shinji replied simultaneously.
"Eliminate the target!" Misato commanded.
Ranma clenched his hands tightly as he watched Unit 01 and Unit 02 attack
the Angel. The two Evas were each carrying a large semi-automatic
rifle-like cannon. Using a flanking maneuver, and keeping their distance,
they repeatedly fired shots at the Angel. "They're not neutralizing the AT
field," Ritsuko observed.
Unit 02's rifle ran out of ammunition and was forced to change weapons.
Fortunately, dozens of weapons had been strategically placed across the
battlefield. Unit 02 dropped the rifle it was holding and picked a pair of
rocket launchers. Asuka, frustrated and angry, fired away at the angel to
no effect. Eventually, Unit 01 dropped its rifle as well. "Asuka! Stop
firing, it's no good!" Shinji yelled.
Growling ferally, Asuka ignored Shinji and continued her attack.
Unconcerned, the Angel slowly elongated it's paper-thin arms and suddenly
shot them out at Unit 02 like a whip. The angel's arms amputated both of
Unit 02's arms at the shoulders. Feeling the pain of the neural feedback,
frustrated and humiliated beyond reason, Asuka charged headfirst towards
the Angel. "Asuka, no!" Misato screamed. "Cut her synch rate to zero!
Now!" She commanded.
"Asuka!" Ranma choked as he watched the Angel decapitate Unit 02.
"She's alive! We disconnected her in time," Maya exclaimed. Both Ranma
and Misato sagged in relief.
"Send Rei out in Unit 00," Gendou commanded.
"Rei, get ready. You're going out," Misato said.
"Okay," Rei replied over the loud speaker.
Ranma looked out at the hanger and watched as Rei's entry plug was being
injected into Unit 00. He frowned when he noticed the condition of the
Eva. "That thing only has one arm," Ranma commented to Misato.
"We didn't have time to finish repairs. The Angels don't attack on a
schedule," Ritsuko replied dryly.
"You're gonna send her out in a damaged Unit?" Ranma demanded, glaring at
Ritsuko.
"We don't have a choice Ranma. The Angel -must- be destroyed at all cost,"
Misato explained.
"But you can't just-" Ranma started to protest when Ritsuko interrupted.
"Look, we know how to do our job. Now stand back and let us get to work!"
she snapped impatiently.
Ranma continued to glare at Ritsuko then slowly turned back towards Unit
00. With a decisive nod of his head, he left the control room and ran to
the hanger.
"Ranma! Don't-" Misato called out before Gendou interrupted her.
"Let him go," he said quietly.
Misato nodded reluctantly as she watched Ranma approach Unit 00. He easily
jumped off the catwalk adjacent to the Eva and landed on its left right
shoulder. The Eva's head turned slightly towards him and he could almost
feel Rei's questioning look. "Just thought that you could use an extra
hand," Ranma said nonchalantly. The Eva's head nodded slightly then turned
back to the front.
"Evangelion Unit 00, prepared to launch?" Misato asked over the loudspeaker.
"Ready," Rei replied as Ranma simply nodded.
"Hang on tight Ranma, this is going to be a rough ride. Unit 00, launch!"
Misato commanded.
Ranma gripped the side of Unit 00'a head as the launch catapult propelled
them upward. Within a few seconds they reached the battleground and
stopped. They had been placed behind the Angel and Unit 00 quickly picked
up one of the rifles that littered the ground.
During the time it took to launch Unit 00, Unit 01 had attacked the Angel
by hand. Rei and Ranma had arrived in time to see Unit 01 straddle the
Angel and beat on its torso with both fists. The Angel, lying on the
ground, quickly sliced off Unit 01's right arm with one of its paper-thin
arms. Ranma stared in horror as blood exploded from the Eva's wound. "What
the hell is that thing?" he wondered aloud.
Disoriented from the pain in his own right arm, Shinji jerked Unit 01 back
off the Angel's chest. Unit 00 just stood there, watching helplessly,
unable to get a clear shot. The Angel elongated its arm and wrapped it
around Unit 01's torso. Recovered from the pain, Shinji pulled back Unit
01's left arm and slammed its fist into the Angels face. Seemingly
unharmed, the Angel wrapped its other arm around Unit 01 and slowly lifted
the Eva into the air. Unit 01 struggled in the Angel's grasp, but was
unable to free itself. Elongating its arms further, the Angel lifted Unit
01 higher into the air, and finally threw the Eva several hundred yards.
Unit 01 landed in a heap in a small forest nearby.
Unit 00 immediately started firing its rifle as Unit 01 was thrown clear
from the area. The Angel slowly stood up and stared impassively at Unit
00. Although the attack was having no effect, Rei stood her ground and
continued to fire. (The girl has a backbone,) Ranma thought approvingly as
the Angel moved forward. Ranma's eyes narrowed as he watched the Angel's
arms start to move is subtle wave-like motion.
Suddenly, the Angel's arms snapped forward towards Unit 00, but Ranma was
ready for it. He quickly crossed his arms in front of his chest, then
snapped them forward and to the side, letting out a loud 'kiya' as he
finished the movement. Within the blink of an eye, the Angel's arms fell
lifelessly to the ground, cut cleanly from the Angel's body by Ranma's
vacuum-slash attack. "Not this time, freak," Ranma gloated as the Angel
screamed in pain. "Rei! Do it now!" Ranma yelled
Unit 00 raised its rifle and fired several rounds into the Angel's torso.
The Angel staggered back with each hit, blood spurting from its wounds.
Unit 00 steadily walked forward as it continued its attack on the Angel.
Suddenly, the rifle jammed, and Unit 00 was forced to discard it. Unit 00
quickly bent down to pick up and other weapon. Ranma was forced to hold on
to the Eva's head again to keep from falling off. As Unit 00 raised it's
new rifle, one of the Angel's eyes started to glow with a bright white
light.
"This is gonna hurt," Ranma observed as a white burst of light and heat
shot from the Angel's eye. The force of the blast knocked Ranma off of his
perch on Unit 00's shoulder. The searing heat on his arms and face was the
last thing he remembered before he blacked out.
***********************
End of Chapter 5
***********************
Several people have been bugging me to write in an Angel fight and here it
is. (At least 3/4 of it) At any rate, things will be changing rather
drastically from the Eva story line. What was, in my opinion, the climax
to the series, just doesn't happen here. Those of you familiar with the
entire series will understand what I mean when chapter 6 is released. So,
if you're a die-hard Eva fan, and just 'kinda' like Ranma, you might get
annoyed with the next chapter. Just a polite warning. ^_^
Thanks to TJ for role playing Gendou for me. Writing a dialogue for him and
Ranma is going to be hell! But I assure you, the two of them will be
meeting again. ^_^
Namaste,
Anand
Anandr@earthlink.net
http://www.deranged-otaku.com/