Neo genezis evangelion 1-6

"That's it, that's it, that's it!" The girl hurriedly blurted out, jumping away from me, sitting on the edge of the table and swinging her legs merrily. "Go ahead and I'll take care of your business. And thanks again in advance!.."

"Come on, whatever..." Getting up, I muttered, straightening my wrinkled tunic. Fuck the money: it came easily, it went easily, I won't spend it anyway...

"Come on, see you tonight!" Katsuragi called after me as I walked out the door.

...Tek-S... So now we have a shopping trip planned? I put the card in the inside pocket of my uniform and grinned predatorily. Let's see which turns out to be stronger this time — the opportunity to realize fantasies or my pathological stinginess.

* * *

I swiped my ID card under the laser beam, a squeak, my NERV output is accounted for — I'm free.

"Goodbye, sir," A young guard sitting in a glass-enclosed booth reading a sports magazine politely said goodbye to me.

By the way, it's interesting — my uniform and the uniform of ordinary NERV employees were quite seriously different. The technicians wore identical beige and red jackets, the guards wore standard NATO-style camouflage, but the operatives (me and Misato) and the top command staff (dad and his deputy) wore black and gold uniforms with a distinctive triangular badge under the collar...

"Goodbye," I answered him just as politely, and was about to leave, but stopped and came back.

"Excuse me," I asked, leaning over to a small slot in the armored glass. "Can you tell me where the nearest supermarket is? And preferably more?"

"Yes, of course, sir," the guard put the magazine aside and leaned closer to me. "Once you get to the surface, walk two blocks, then turn left for about five minutes on foot, and you'll see a large black and yellow building with a glass roof. This is the Vostok hypermarket, there is everything there..."

"Thank you," I thanked the guy and went to the exit. I wish I was going shopping in an unknown direction...

And what exactly do I need? It seems like a lot of things, but what exactly is it? A watch, a normal player, a phone, boots, or something to buy for yourself... What else? Mmm... Damn it! In short, first of all, I need a notebook and a pen!..

* * *

Yes, this Vostok is really a hypermarket!.. A hefty six-story building with lots of elevators and escalators-and how am I going to find what I need here? People, help me!

Yeah, and here comes the help in the person of a manager in a uniform blouse and with a badge...

"Is there anything I can do to help... you?" The last word spoken by the young girl manager was uttered with a great deal of uncertainty. Well, that's understandable — on the one hand, the shape of a NERVE, and on the other, a fourteen-year-old kid...

"Yes, ma'am," I said, trying to dispel all her doubts about how I should be treated. "I've only recently been transferred to this city, and I haven't figured it all out yet... Could you or someone else help me get some things? Can this be arranged?"

"Of course," the manager was still looking at me skeptically enough, but not so much anymore. "Only consulting services will be included in the price..."

"It doesn't bother me, ma'am," I snapped. I've always dreamed of saying something like that!..

"... Young man, this is quite an expensive watch..."

So, these skeptical views have already begun to tire me at every step. First the guide-counselor, now this watchmaker... Or what is the name of the one who sells watches?

"Don't worry, I'm quite creditworthy." I muttered, admiring the chronometer I had chosen. Reliable mechanism, shockproof, waterproof, self-winding... A fairy tale!

Of course, I would have done with a simple "commander's" watch or an "Amphibian", but, alas, there were no such watches. It is not surprising, in general, given the dominance of all kinds of "Seiko" and German technology...

".. It'll do," I concluded, walking back and forth in my freshly bought berc. "The new ones are still simple and undistorted, but it will pass..."

It's a good store, though!.. Something like "For fishing, hunting and tourism", but everything is of the highest quality and of any size, even suitable for me. I got hold of a pair of normal (for me) high leather boots with thick soles — they will be useful when going outdoors, a camouflage windbreaker and trousers — for the same purposes, and all sorts of small things like a Swiss knife, binoculars, a small flat flask, a good lighter and a cigarette case. I motivated the last two purchases as a gift, although, in principle, I didn't lie much — I smoked very rarely, so maybe I'll give it to someone...

Oh, that's what they say, the boy snapped — I never would have thought that I had such a craving for acquiring all sorts of junk...

The problem only arose when buying a healthy hunting knife. They flatly refused to sell it to me, explaining that they needed a permit for weapons, which they said they wouldn't even give me in the next six years...

I had to reach into my pocket (I would also need to buy a normal wallet...) and take out a universal Nerv card...

You should have seen the sellers' faces when they read the information from her. Now they no longer looked at the butt of my Glock like it was a toy...

"... E-my!" I said, shocked, when I finally got to the bookstore.

These are my dear ones... weapons reference books... There are so many of you here... Tanks, aviation, navy, small arms and cold weapons, the history of wars... So, well, to properly match the legend, let's take this, and this, and, perhaps, this, and you can even without bread... I also need a proper briefcase, and not some school stuff, but something more serious that would match the jacket...

...In short, very soon the volume of my purchases increased so much that I became like an overloaded packhorse. And the box, it turns out, just opened! I just had to ask for all this to be delivered at home, and I was in agony... I didn't remember my address, though (what a shame!..), but it was quite expected to be listed on my card.

We live, brothers!..

Chapter 13. Returning home.

"...Shinji?"

Pum! The dart hit the target with a light thud. The eight? Not bad...

"Hi!" I mumbled cheerfully, trying in vain to chew the wound, which was stuffed into my mouth whole in a fit of greed. "How do you like the style update?"

"Of course, I suspected that you were a maniac, but not that much..." Katsuragi said slowly, looking around my transformed room.

A box of a system unit and a bulky TV monitor appeared on the desk, along with a pair of powerful speakers. There was actually a desk lamp on the floor next to my sleeping place (for lack of a bed, there was no better word), and two piles of hefty reference books and encyclopedias stood next to it. The empty walls were carefully covered with military-themed posters (the largest one with a tank I didn't know was hung directly above my head, but judging by the small flag on the antenna, it was definitely Russian), and in the corner, next to the closet, another one appeared, only long, tall and suspiciously similar to a gun safe. It was open now, and it was visible that on its top shelf lay a compact pile of powerful binoculars, a hunting knife in a sheath, a cigarette case and a flask. According to my plans, something large-caliber was going to start up there soon, just to calm my soul...

Right now, I was lying on the floor and openly spitting at the ceiling, enjoying life. There was a naval handbook open next to me, another apple in my left hand, and a dart in my right.

Clap! And the last shell plunged into a target bought for the mood, pinned to the wall with duct tape.

Bams! The target, unable to withstand the bullying, peeled off and crashed to the floor.

"Are you raging?" Misato chuckled. "Well, well... Meanwhile, I'm plowing like an ox."

"And I'm not raging at all..." I replied phlegmatically, biting into an apple. "Ah, by the way, I'm waiting for you. And you, Commander, seemed to want something from me..."

"Ah?"

"I threw it in your room and put it next to the mirror," I finished it. "A paper bag with your hundred thousand in it..."

"Shinji," Katsuragi folded her hands in prayer. "Great you, thank you so much!"

"You can't get away with just thanks here..." I declared pettily. "You'd better tell me, what's with my requests?"

"It's done in the best possible way," Misato bravely reported, walking into the room. "Your classmate's sister was transferred to our infirmary..."

"And Ray?"

"Why do you care so much about her? Did you really like it? Crack up, huh?" The captain started teasing me again.

"That's what you need, and you're cracking up." I snapped. "So anyway?.."

"You're really rude," the girl sighed heavily. "Soldier, one word..."

"You'd think I was the only one with buttonholes on my collar." I retorted.

"It doesn't mean anything yet. You're a man, so by definition you have to be courteous and polite!"

"Then don't bother trying to get to me! I was even a little indignant."

"But it's so funny", Katsuragi giggled. "And anyway, I'm just bored — Pen-Pen, out, back into hibernation, or something..."

"Er... who?" I feigned surprise.

"Pen-Pen is my pet penguin." Misato explained. "He lives in a big refrigerator in the kitchen. Haven't you seen him yet?"

"Nope," I shook my head. "I didn't even look into the big one — I thought it was empty. We don't even have enough food to score a small one... And why the penguin?"

"He was an experimental animal in some kind of NERVE laboratory. It seems that they were engaged in developments in the field of biotechnology... The project was shut down, and the animals were partly handed over to zoos, partly taken home by the staff, so Ritsko gave me Pen-Pen — she was working there at the time."

So a little more mystery disappeared, otherwise I was wondering how Katsuragi was able to get a potentially secret sample in her operational position. Now I would like to find out where this experimental penguin got such a high level of intelligence, and whether (according to one of the widespread fan theories) he is the true God of this continuum...

"So that only one black-and-white Ruler rules!.."

I giggled at my delusional thoughts, but then I gathered myself again and became serious.

"Misato, you're evading the question again. I ask again, what's going on with Ray's move. WHEN is it? And mind you, not if, but when."

"Shinji, have you been told that you look like a tick?" Katsuragi sighed.

"Nope," I replied serenely, crunching an apple. "So what about Ray's move?"

The girl moaned, clutching her head in her hands.

"Pilot Ikari, are you doing this on purpose?" The captain asked me bitterly.

"Oh, no, really!" I said gently, finishing another apple. "So what about Ray's move?"

Misato frowned at me, then at the rapidly shrinking apple in my hand. Then he looked at me again, then at the apple again, but this time much more thoughtfully...

"How can you eat them like that?" Katsuragi asked me in surprise.

"How's that?" I asked, picking a piece of tough peel out of my teeth.

"And that's it!" The captain pointed an indignant finger. "With a peel, seeds, a core and... and an ass!"

"So where do you think the apple's ass is?" I philosophically remarked, taking out another fruit from a bulky paper bag. "And anyway, it's a waste-free production! No stubs, no trash..."

"And the ponytail?" the captain objected to me.

"That's not a problem," I said, unscrewing the wooden stick from the apple and chewing it diligently.

Misato looked at me with pity.

"I see you've been fed very poorly before..."

You would live in a normal Russian dorm, comrade Commander, and not in your refined college...

"Yes, I was fed normally," I disagreed, lying a lot. "So what about Ray's move?"

Misato laughed and gave me a thumbs up.

"One-nil in favor of Second Lieutenant Ikari. I praise you for your perseverance!"

"Thanks, so what's up with Ray's move?"

Katsuragi snorted.

"Don't worry about it... Romeo... I've already arranged the transfer, so Ayanami will be living next door to us soon. Are you going to visit her," The captain smiled white-toothed.

"Well, that's how I would have said it right away, otherwise I kept pulling the cat by the tail..." I noticed, ignoring another tease from Misato. It seems that the topic of "Me plus Ray" has already become a routine for her... Strange... I didn't seem to give any reason for such thoughts...

Or did he give it anyway?..

* * *

"Uark!"

"Fuck!" I said with feeling, almost hitting the ground in surprise. The fact that we were on the -entieth floor didn't bother me much — where you fell, you'll find the firmament of the earth.

I'm going to the bathroom, you know, and here you are! I open the door, and there's a penguin! No, of course I remember everything, but, damn, it's unexpected!

"Pen-Pen, you're awake!" Katsuragi's joyful shout rang out from behind me. Wow, how quickly she identified the reason for my expressive expression...

"Is this Pen Pen?" I asked skeptically, eyeing the victim of scientific research.

He looked, Pen-Pen, I must say, colorful. He was quite healthy, about a meter tall, with a funny tuft of golden feathers on top of his head. Is it New Zealand? A rare species, however... Hmm, that's why he has five very mobile claws on his wings, which he quite sensibly used to hold a small towel slung over his shoulder. But I was most interested in a completely different subject, namely a strange-looking metal-plastic satchel, as if rooted to the body of a Pen.

An interesting little thing, I'd say... A not very large, silver-gray device with a streamlined shape, mounted on the back of a penguin, but instead of straps or straps, thin metal (sort of) stripes closed on the chest, and the proud inscription "Pen2" is emblazoned on the front.

Well, what kind of nonsense is this? A life support system, a gun case, a rocket pack? The penguin tilted his head to the side and also carefully looked me up and down.

"Yes, this is Pen Pen," Misato came over and patted her pet on the head. "Pen, meet Shinji."

"Hi," I said, feeling a bit idiotic. It's not every day, you know, that you're introduced to a pet. No, of course, I already knew him in absentia, but memories from the cartoon are one thing, but real impressions are still veeery different...

"Uark!" the penguin nodded his head sedately and unexpectedly for me added. "Sin!"

"Er-er..." I blinked, stunned. Did he call me by my first name? Or am I already having glitches from overexertion? I don't even know... No, I actually thought that his intelligence was purely a cartoon thing (it's impossible in real life), so maybe he was just smart enough, well, at the level of a very smart dog, or maybe even a dolphin. After all, in movies such things are usually exaggerated on purpose, sometimes even to the point of grotesqueness — everything to amuse the viewer...