|
↓ Содержание ↓
↑ Свернуть ↑
|
"Misato, when are we going to get paid?" I asked when we were driving home in the evening.
"They have to transfer it to the account tomorrow, but what?"
"Just like that..." I smiled slyly.
"You don't mean I might not pay you back?" Katsuragi narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"Oh, no, really... I've just been thinking a little bit..."
"About what?"
"Have you seen what Ray's wearing?"
"Well, yes, but what's wrong?"
"That's it! She doesn't have anything but a school uniform, is that right? She's a girl after all, and she has to dress decently, and for that, one set won't be enough, in my opinion..."
"Look at the care!" The captain looked surprised. "What does that have to do with me?"
"And yet! You know what, Misato... Let's not repay the debt, but rather use the money to find something useful for Ayanami. Dresses, jeans, blouses, and other nonsense are all there to make her look like a normal person... You're a woman, too, after all, and it'll be easier for you to figure this out than for me."
"Hm... Okay, that's settled... Shinji, can I ask you a question?"
"Sure, go ahead. What is it?"
"And why do you need this? Okay, all these classes and the like — it can be explained by the fact that you are preparing a partner for yourself, a good idea, I want to say... But this..."
"Let's be honest, Misato," I gathered my thoughts a little. "I want to make Rey not only a partner, but also just a normal person. I'm not attracted to her as a girl, but I feel something akin to her... You know, I even think she might be my sister..."
"A sister?!" the captain was incredibly surprised. "But then why doesn't anyone know?"
"It's a dark business here, along the way... When I first saw her, I couldn't believe my eyes — she's just the spitting image of my mom, only the color of her eyes and hair is different."
"That's how? I'm sorry, I've just never seen your mother..."
"No wonder," I smiled bitterly. "She died in front of my eyes when I was four years old..."
"Sorry..." The girl said softly. "Information about your mother is closed to me..."
"You shouldn't have expected anything else", I drummed my fingers on my leg thoughtfully-I didn't understand a lot of things from fragments of my memories before, but now that I've become a pilot... As I now think, my mother also worked in the scientific department of NERV and took part in the first experiments on Evangelion piloting... My Evangelion. But something went wrong, and she just disappeared into the fucking LSL..."
"Shinji," Katsuragi interrupted me gently. "If it's hard for you to remember, it might be better..."
"No," I categorically shook my head. "I have to remember that. I... now I understand what she worked for, to protect others. She died for this, and now I have no right to let anyone down. For the safety of others, for... For the sake of Mom's memory, I'm going to be a better pilot. I will do everything for that. So that no one else has to die because of these fucking Objects A."
There was silence in the car.
Misato silently digested everything I had said to her. I was just thinking about my own words...
These are really my thoughts, but also the thoughts of a Younger one at the same time. Strange... Doesn't this mean that over time I will stop distinguishing the difference between myself and him, and we will become one single person? I don't know, I don't know, but I still don't like that outcome... But if there is no other way out... And it's not that scary, in principle — anyway, most likely, my personality will be dominant during the merger, so it really will be a merger, and not a takeover of one by another.
"I'm sorry, Shinji, but what were you saying about Rei?" Katsuragi was the first to break the silence.
It was as if I had woken up.
"What? Oh, Ray... uh... Well, when you told me that my father was her guardian, it seemed strange to me that he didn't actually take care of her. I got the impression that Ayanami is very important to him in some way, but at the same time, his father does not want to communicate with her closely..."
"And what do you think that means?"
"I have one theory..." I asked hesitantly. "Although she smacks a lot of soap opera..."
"Come on, tell me — I love soap operas", Katsuragi smiled at me encouragingly.
"Well, that's it... I think Rey is really my sister, but my stepsister. Our mother is probably the same, but our fathers are different..."
"Are you saying that your mother had an affair on the side, which resulted in Ayanami?" The captain was surprised. "I don't even know what to say to that..."
"I'm sorry, but there's no other way I can explain all these inconsistencies. Ray looks like my mother, all the data about her past has been destroyed or classified, she seems to have grown up somewhere with NERVES, communicating little with her peers and people in general... Further."
"My father is her guardian, but he takes too little care of her. Yes, he didn't take much care of me either, sending me to my uncle and aunt after my mother's death, who frankly didn't give a damn about me, but still... No, in short, I have other thoughts."
"Yes, that explains a lot..." Katsuragi drawled. "This version can really explain a lot..."
"By the way, why didn't Ray come with us?"
"And she has some special tests, but don't worry — her car will bring her home later."
Interestingly, this has nothing to do with the development of a system of automatic pseudo-pilot systems for Ev?..
* * *
Rey's tests dragged on late today, and when she finally came to my place, I sent her to rest and sleep-studying in this state does more harm than good.
And I myself was puzzled by what I should have done a long time ago — I started making a list of future Targets, remembering their weapons and strengths, vulnerabilities and ways of destruction.
So, the first item on our list is Object A, numbered four.
I don't remember what they called him in the series anymore, but I don't know what they'll call him here yet, so I'll describe him as I remember. It looks like a gigantic pink beetle, with a large cephalothorax and a long belly, short legs folded under the body, and a core somewhere near the junction of the two parts of the body. I don't know what it will be like here yet, but it certainly won't be so ridiculous, especially with regard to color. It has the ability to fly, most likely using an AT-field cushion. The weapon is two long whip tendrils that can easily chop apart a medium-sized skyscraper. Shinji was destroyed by stabbing him in the core with a carving knife. Contrary to all expectations, the Fourth One did not explode, but remained intact and provided rich food for thought and research to Dr. Akagi and his colleagues.
And now let's return from the serial data to the current reality.
So, this nasty freak probably won't pose a serious threat — even if the original Shinji dealt with him without much trouble, then I probably won't make a mistake either. First, beat him up with the UN troops, then fire at him from the rear, and finish him off in close combat...
But there's something about it that I'm wildly interested in, namely the core, which is also known as the S2 engine or super-solenoid. In the series, Eva-01 fell into a "berserk" state and ate one of the last Objects, along with swallowing its engine, which is why she gained the ability to act without regard for the power cable. I can tell you, it's a very useful ability...
But...
This does not seem to threaten me — the "berserk" state is usually caused when the pilot falls into a state of complete helplessness or extreme stress, and I am not susceptible to this. My personal "berserk", which I fell into in my first and so far only battle, is precisely my rage and anger, and nothing more. So I need to think seriously about how to solve the power supply problem... As far as I understand, it is not possible to build something like an atomic engine into Eve, it is unlikely to increase the duration of the existing internal batteries — they are already made using the latest technology... There are still options for external wearable power, possibly in the form of a giant backpack. They probably won't put the reactor there — it will be too bulky and big anyway, and they won't give it to me — Japan doesn't need another Hiroshima or a second Chernobyl, if anything. So it's best to rely on something like a giant diesel or gas turbine engine... But the most excellent, but at the same time the most fantastic option would be to install the restored core of Object A on my Unit-01, or better yet, on the Aski, Rei, and maybe Toji Evangelions. But to do this, you need to get this very core (it would be good if not even one), and it is very desirable to be undamaged, and this can only be done in the case of relatively weak enemies... Such as, for example, the Fourth.
Carefully chop it without touching the core, or touching it, but also carefully.
Grab a carcass in a relatively undamaged state and start experimenting on it, conducting research, and you see, in half a year, a super saline will be put on my Eve. It seems that the experiments are already underway — the fourth Evangelion disappeared along with the entire laboratory during the testing of the S2 engine, in the version for Eve... It would be nice to just work out the technology again, so as not to get stuck in case of something. But at the same time, without really flaunting all this in front of ZIELE, otherwise they, such bitches, can also deliver a preemptive strike, in their best traditions. The Zielevites certainly won't want to lose their monopoly on super-solenoids for their serials...
So, as usual, I got distracted — I need to get back to our ridnyym Objects A...
So, Object A is number five.
It looks like a gigantic blue octahedron. An extremely dangerous opponent. It has a drill, a powerful AT-field and, most importantly, a super-ray cannon capable of roasting Eve at long range without the risk of being hit back. Shinji and Rei were destroyed with a positron cannon... By the way, I wonder what was meant by it? Is it a beam weapon?.. So, how do I kill him? Unclear... I hope that there will still be something adequate in the nerve cache for this fantasy positronka — a large electromagnetic cannon or a powerful laser... The latter, I think, would be the most likely — we would need to carefully probe the ground for the presence of such gizmos. In short, the only real way to destroy the Fifth is through remote combat using super-powerful weapons. Which I don't have at my disposal yet. It sucks. Something would have to be done about it, but what?
Again, a bunch of ephemeral plans built solely on the fail-safe Russian "maybe"... Okay, let's move on.
Object number six is Gagiel, and I even managed to remember his name. Attacked the UN fleet carrying Eva-02 and the Second Object, Adam, brought to an embryonic state. What exactly was the target of his attack is not known for certain. It resembles a monstrous cross between a stingray and a shark (about half a kilometer), it has sunk many ships, it is ugly. He was destroyed in the course of a completely delusional and adventurous operation, invented by Captain Katsuragi.
Eva-02, which was piloted jointly by Shinji and Asuka, engaged in battle with Object A, but failed — Gagiel simply grabbed the Evangelion attached to the ship by a power cable with his mouth and decided to play a little fisherman and a fish. When the aircraft carrier "Overthe Rainbow" (aka "Rainbow Way", aka "Ronald Ragan") dragged Object A, which grabbed Eva-02 like bait, two battleships were sunk on its way by Misato's order. Asuka and Shinji opened Gagiel's mouth and the heavy artillery ships somehow fired their bow guns underwater at that moment. Bang, and Object A was eliminated, and Eva-02 was thrown to the surface, right on the deck of an aircraft carrier.
The piano is sitting on the piano, and driving the piano, damn it... Full of fantasy and unscientific fiction... What should I do? Climb into the E-2 cabin with Asuka, too? Well, yes, there are no options, otherwise the girl will still mess up — you never know that she was trained there, after all, the first fight, and the "berserker" was never available to her. I almost lost my way with Sakiel the first time, too, so... Stop. And how to kill Gagiel? Wait until he jumps onto the deck of an aircraft carrier, climb into his mouth and pierce the core in his throat? It looks like we'll have to do exactly that... Oh, is this the malign influence of Captain Katsuragi? I also get into outright adventures... Uh-huh-huh...
So, now Object A is number seven.
A humanoid figure with some kind of sharp, bladed hands. It vaguely resembles Sakiel, only the line of arms and shoulders forms an even crescent, and has a beam weapon. The main feature is that, being divided into two parts, like an amoeba, it turns into two Objects A, the nuclei of which must be destroyed simultaneously, otherwise everything will repeat itself. Shinji and Asuka successfully failed the first attack on him, and while the enemy was being heavily bombed with N2 bombs, the Third and Second Children were training hard to achieve complete synchronicity of their actions...
How are we going to bring down this freak? If everything goes as it is, then by this time we will already have a full-fledged combat troika, and this Object A, I think, can be destroyed without any problems, and at the same time get another core...
The eighth Object is A.
It was discovered as an embryo in the crater of a volcano. It was decided to take the demon alive, for which Eva-02 was lowered into the mouth in a special heat-resistant spacesuit. During the capture, Object A suddenly began to increase in size at a hurricane pace, turning into a combat form, after which it attacked Asuka.
The heavy-duty coating of Object A, which looked like a giant stingray, was difficult to resist even a quantum knife, and to win, the Second Child used coolant from Eva's life support system in a special suit. Temperature drop, thermal expansion — Object A's armor gave way a little, and Asuka successfully finished him off. However, before his death, the ramp managed to damage the lifting system, the cables broke and Langley began to fall deep into the crater, where she would inevitably have died if not for Shinji, who selflessly rushed after her and saved Asuka.
Hmm... here, most likely, Langley will also have to be sent into battle -the heat-resistant suit is probably designed specifically for production models, and it simply won't fit our Evangelions. What are we going to equip Soryu with? There are definitely more knives, otherwise she lost her only blade in the series, so Shinji had to throw his own into the volcano. Next, take the coolant cylinders with you, so as not to spoil the life support system... Yes! And strengthen the cables, but better, better!..
The ninth Object is A.
It looks like a huge haymaking spider with a small rounded belly and thin paws. He attacked when the electricity suddenly went out all over Tokyo 3, most likely due to deliberate sabotage. Because of this, the entire defense system was inexplicably disabled, and Eves had to be started manually...
That's nonsense.
Where, I ask you, are the backup power supplies? Nuclear reactors, underground hydroelectric power plants, or even basic diesel generators? No, well, it can't be that the most protected place in the world doesn't have such things! What if it's an ordinary war? They'll cover all your power plants with cruise missiles, and what will you do, eh?.. So, let's go back to the Ninth. The main weapon is a super-strong acid, with which this haymaker tried to burn his way into Terminal Dogma. He was destroyed by the combined efforts of all three Evs, and he is the only one of Object A who was killed by gunfire. So, preliminary conclusions about this Object A. Extremely rotten — if it weren't for the rolling blackout, he wouldn't have been able to see anything at all (pun intended, however). To break off his paws, turning him into a fig exuding acidic filth, and to dig out another core from him...
The tenth Object is A.
It looks like horseradish. Something like a giant eye with cilia, which intended to use its own body to force its way deep into Tokyo-3. Tek-S... It would be good to slow down the fall of this Object in every possible way — first with anti-satellite missiles, then with anti-aircraft missiles... You see, he will lose most of his killing power, and you can try to get another supersolenoid out of him...
The eleventh Object is A.
Well, well, well... Who was that there? Well, let me remember... Yeah, I remember! Computer super virus — attacked the NERV systems and almost took control of the trio of MAGI megacomputers. It is a conglomerate of microscopic particles. It was completely destroyed by Dr. Akagi, so this Object is not for us, not for the pilots — we can't handle it anyway, even with all our desire...
The twelfth Object is A.
It is an ultrathin (several nanometers thick) shadow with a huge radius that absorbs everything that falls into it. This thing operated on the basis of the so-called Dirac Sea, the features of which were explained by a very sophisticated theory that was incomprehensible to my brain, and above all this physical ugliness hung a huge black ball with white streaks.
An extremely murky Object, A. No weapon had much effect on him, and in the end, he even managed to absorb Shinji along with Eva-01, and, it seems, even tried to establish some kind of contact with him. This was expressed, however, as far as I remember, in various kinds of glitches and visions. After spending the prescribed sixteen hours in the Dirac Sea, Junior successfully waited for the moment when Eve's batteries ran out, after which he passed out. Unit-01 went into "berserk" mode and somehow tore apart Object A like an Ace in a hot water bottle. Brr... I don't want to dive into this very Sea — what if I fail and get stuck there successfully? It would be nice to throw Object A at this one with a couple of N2 bombs, right in the shadow, so that it doesn't seem too small, and if it doesn't work out already... If it doesn't work out, then, apparently, we'll have to dive.
The thirteenth Object is A.
During the air transportation of Eva-03, he penetrated her and subdued her. He gave Rei and Asuka a good beating, and knocked Shinji hard enough on the helmet, who, on top of everything, did not want to fight, arguing that their peer pilot was also sitting in the third Evangelion. Which was true-Toji was actually sitting there. But in the end, a pseudo-pilot system was connected, and Unit-01 spread a thin layer of Object A and at the same time Eva-03 over the territory of a couple of blocks. I can tell you, it was a very unappetizing and ugly sight, and that's not counting the fact that the pilot of the E-3 was seriously injured.
So, this outcome must be prevented in any case. It would be nice to try to avoid the capture of the third Eve altogether, but in this case, this disgusting Object will probably just take on one of the remaining three, and this will generally be unhealthy. The main thing is to dig Toji out of the E-3 as carefully as possible, without turning on the pseudo pilot and risking damage to the contact capsule...
The fourteenth Object is A.
Um, let me think about it... Oh, it's Zeruel! A very powerful type. It looks like something else, it's covered in armor, the head is in the form of some kind of grinning mask. He moves with the help of levitation, has a powerful ray cannon — with several blows he broke through all the defenses, and broke into the Geofront. Asuka and, it seems, Rei tried to detain him (Shinji had another mental crisis, and he tried to leave again), but Zeruel beat them both, Langley had it especially hard.
Object A had some thin, heavy-duty ribbons instead of hands, which he used to chop off Eva-02's arms and then her head in turn. At this time, Shinji finally came to his senses, climbed into Unit-01, and went to wave with Zeruel directly inside NERVE headquarters. My Evangelion promptly fell into a "berserk" state and bit Object A, simultaneously absorbing its core, and generally behaved extremely defiantly and brazenly...
Well, I think Zeruel is a difficult opponent, but not excessively so. Nevertheless, his weapon is quite simple, without any tricks and big meannesses, so with the joint efforts of all Eves, I think it is quite possible to destroy him. To beat Object A according to already developed tactics — processing by conventional troops, firing from a long range and finishing in close combat. After all, by definition, he cannot be stronger than the team, and we MUST become such a team, at any cost and by any means, even if we have to drug the pilots and brainwash them — it will be justified.
The fifteenth Object is A.
It looks like a gigantic glowing bird. He hovered in orbit and hit Asuka with a psychic attack, very efficiently, I must say. Attempts to shoot down the enemy with a positron rifle were unsuccessful, and NERV decided to use his last trump card, the Spear of Longinus. This thing was as powerful as it could be, and it easily penetrated an AT-field of any power, guaranteed to send any Object A to the next world. So I just didn't understand why it wasn't used before, because there were a lot of extremely shitty situations before that?
Hm... Well, let's assume that they just didn't want to shine the Spear ahead of time, because it was necessary for the Third Blow and could lead someone to bad suspicions... Well, I personally think so, because this moment in the series was again extremely murky and incomprehensible from the point of view of logic and common sense. As, however, a lot of things — in life, everything turned out to be completely different...
Yeah...
I thought hard about my feelings. Three days ago, I would have certainly laughed in this place — in my life, of course! But now I don't feel like laughing — I perceive the surrounding reality less and less as something, um, unreal. Did you get involved? Maybe, maybe...
So, Object A is number sixteen.
In standby mode, it looks like a double spiral ring. In combat mode, it resembles some kind of worm. It has the ability to penetrate through the AT-field of Ev and invade them, obviously doing something bad. Firearms didn't have much effect on him, and neither did quantum weapons.
Rei was destroyed, who pulled Object A into her Eve and activated the self-destruction system, after which Ayanami number three appeared in the world, a clone into which Rei's soul was planted, who had forgotten a lot of recent events...
So, but this should not be allowed CATEGORICALLY. Will the current Rey be killed, will she forget everything that I started to teach her with such great difficulty, and what if I start all over again? Well, no way, figushki! And it's not even my own efforts, nerves, and time that I'll feel sorry for, but the fact that Ayanami, into whom I'll actually put a piece of myself, will die, and a completely different person will take her place...
So, Object A, Object A... how to destroy it? Damn, I don't know!!! But it will have to be destroyed anyway, but certainly not at such a terrible cost... Here is the same arschmitohren (approx. (German) Arsh mitoren. An ass with ears), and it would be necessary to avoid it, and I don't see any other way out yet...
No, I won't allow that-not for anything and never. There is also a limit to the price of victory... Yes, I myself have repeatedly said and thought that "we need one victory, one for everyone — we can't stand the price," but that was before I met the same Ray. She's really like a little child, that sometimes she doesn't understand the most basic things, and she's forced to play by the rules for adults — to fight, to fight, to kill... It's wrong, as it is wrong. "It doesn't have to be this way," as one song says. Children should not fight...
Yeah, and people shouldn't kill each other.
We don't have any other choice right now, so we'll have to accept the fate of the vanguard of humanity taking the brunt of it.
But the fate of such detachments does not please me, it is enough to recall the same Battle of Kulikovo...
Okay, I guess I just can't come up with anything yet — not my level, either in terms of information security or the level of impact on the surrounding reality. In short, you need to accumulate experience, upgrade your skills and develop your abilities, just like in some awesome computer game...
I even slapped myself, I was so suddenly filled with anger and self-loathing.
Fool! This is not a computer game, but another chance given to me by the exceptional grace of some higher powers, so it should not be treated so lightly! There are no reboots, saves, or replays here — it's life, in one take and with one choice. If I die now, I'll probably die forever, without any possibility of another life...
Stop.
And where did I get this from? I don't know... It was as if someone had whispered... However, okay — it doesn't matter — that's not what we're talking about right now.
There are more and more inconsistencies with the series, and it is likely that soon my after-memories will finally run out, and I will be left with only what I have now. So what does that mean? So you need to manage the handicap wisely. And without the extraordinary lightness of thought, to live like this, to fight like this...
Phew...
So. We return to the Objects of A. The seventeenth, aka Kaoru Nagisa, aka Tabris. He looks like a guy about fourteen years old. Reddish eyes, medium-length ash-gray hair, pale skin — gives the impression of Rey's brother. the pilot, imposed on the Office personally by ZIELE. He has the ability to levitate, can set up an AT field, and most importantly, he can remotely control Eves. At least, Eva-02 was controlled in such a way that there was only noise. He was showing some kind of homosexual tendencies towards Shinji... Brr! If he does something like that to me, I'll knock his brains out of the Glock, and if he doesn't help, I'll get into Evangelion and smear him all over the Troika. The younger one, I remember, just crushed him with his hand...
In my opinion, this Object is kind of moronic, and very incomprehensible. I broke through to the very Terminal Dogma and Lilith, who was crucified there on a giant cross, but for some reason I didn't do anything, but carried a philosophical blizzard, powdering Shinji's already unstable mind. It all ended with a completely paradoxical "kill me!", which the Younger, after some hesitation, did. So, killing him, as I think, is not so difficult — in which case we will make do with a pistol and a knife, if we really want to participate in the destruction of the last Object A.
Or you can set NERVE commandos, snipers with half-inch knives, a squadron of helicopters, a tank battalion, or, to be sure, seal it with an N2 firecracker. And so that ZIELE doesn't arise, it's better to make it look like an accident — he fell on the stairs, cleaned the gun incorrectly, accidentally got under a tank, tried to unscrew an atomic bomb... In short, there should be no problems with it, and if there are, we will solve the issue radically: there is no person, that is, Object A — there is no problem.
So, now let's look at what many called the attack of the Eighteenth Object A — an attack by the Japanese Strategic Self-Defense Forces.
After all, people, as someone said in the series, are the Eighteenth Object A... The penetration of infantry and armored vehicles into the Geofront, the storming of the NERV headquarters. The destruction of Tokyo-3 by a super-powerful N2 bomb, the bombing of the interior of the Geofront, the attack of nine serial Evs... Well, in short. Especially considering that of the three office workers, only Askina worked, who, in fact, tried to repel the attack alone. Rei was hanging out somewhere in Terminal Dogma, starting the Third Strike with Gendo. Shinji sat quietly in the deepest depression, next to Eva-01, flooded with superbakelite, and safely missed the entire epic carnage.
So, possible counteraction measures for the regular army. First, make the main bet on our Eves — they alone are worth an entire army, and if we also solve the problem with energy supply, then it will be wonderful! Secondly, to prepare the personnel and security of the NERVE not only to repel attacks by terrorists or saboteurs, but also regular troops — otherwise the guys have neither heavy weapons nor attached equipment. It would be nice to stuff all approaches to the headquarters with minefields, automatic pillboxes, place artillery and rocket weapons everywhere, drive tanks and helicopters into underground hangars, and, of course, distribute grenade launchers and machine guns to the guards. Although, in general, it would be better to somehow get one of the representatives of the UN troops as an ally — I think ZIELE will not be able to order all countries. Personally, I have high hopes for the Russian contingent of troops — and the metropolis, if anything, is nearby, and the army is strong, and they should be relatively independent, as far as I know my compatriots. That's just not my level to solve such cases... And what should I do? Again, I don't know... A hundred answers, a thousand new questions...
Okay, I hope it doesn't come to that, and even if it does, the situation will be better than in the series.
Wearily, I leaned back in my chair and rubbed my eyes. It's complicated, Donnerwetter. (German) Donnerwetter. An old German swear word. It translates as "Thunder and lightning!")!.. How difficult it is to solve and invent everything alone! Oh, why can't I trust anyone completely? Damn, you don't want to, but someone will have to open up in order to get allies, and the first in line is Misato. She is a reasonable, high-ranking person and at the same time wants to know more (curiosity is a sin, my daughter!..) — the candidate is almost perfect. But it's better to let her (and I at the same time) "grow up" a little more — she will accumulate more suspicions and questions, as the person closest to me right now, and then she can come out to her, but carefully, laying out her second legend...
|
↓ Содержание ↓
↑ Свернуть ↑
|
