Part 16: Mission 8 - Conflict - Part 2
This is still about the first part of the mission, so we’re only supposed to go on fighting Altair.
: Here we go, Ginga, Unicorn!
: Ogre, Oger, or whatever he is, we’re gonna get that Data Weapon back right now!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BefMmK35Fi4
Here’s another move of the Viper Whip – stronger than the File Load he used before. Also, there’s the Unicorn Drill’s Firewall helping us out.
: Heheh! Yeah, we got this now!
: That’s right!
: You can’t rely so much on the Unicorn Drill’s power, you two! You, yourselves, aren’t any stronger than before just because you have it available!: Relax! We got the Final Attack to use in a pinch!: And if that fails, you’ll be finished!
: She’s right! With how much energy you’ve already spent, we’ll need to switch our last battery in for you to use the Final Attack!: We’ll be fine – we’ve got this bad boy, Unicorn Drill, on our side!
Enemy Phase!
Things aren’t going too well here!
: Alright, that does it! Let’s take him out with the Final Attack!: Alright, I’m ready!: Kirakuni, the Hyper Dendoh Battery please!
: I guess I have to…! This is the last one, so don’t waste it!
: Alright, we’re good to go now!
: … Fine. I can claim that after I’ve finished you off.
: The hack in the sub-computers has stopped!
: We’re detecting an electrical discharge in area B!
: Looks like it’s headed outside.: There it is!
: …: It’s the Leo Circle!: Whaaa! You heard that, Hokuto?!
: Still, we’ll be finished if we take our eyes off the Ogre!: Wait, both of you! If you fire your Final Attack now—!: No, we’ll go save the Leo Circle after we’ve beat down the Ogre!: Stop!!
: Aah?!
: H-He dodged it!
*Power doooooooown.
: The Unicorn Drill…!
: It disappeared?!: Oh, crap, the batteries are dead!!
: Not good – they need help!: There is so much more to battle than just one’s arms. : Did you honestly think having a Data Weapon assured your victory? Hmph… Ignorant amateurs.
: Urk!
: He- He got us?!
: Now, let me show you both the true power of the Viper Whip!!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bc3KRlDdFXk
See how Dendoh’s faceplate is down? If you let its EN run out, it really does turn off and won’t move AT ALL until the batteries are changed.
: The Dendoh’s—!: Hokuto! Ginga!: Uurgh!: Aargh…!: And this is the end for you… Dendoh!: UWAAAAAH!!: Hrm?! This signal is—!*NERV Alarm!*
: What is it?!
: We’ve an unidentified flying object on approach! Currently above Tonosawa! : What?!
: It’s here… later than predicted.
: Yes, the 5th Angel.
: !
: An Angel now?!: … All hands, shift to code red.: Roger! All hands, shift to code red!: …*The Leo Circle runs off.*
: Aah, the Leo Circle!: … I shouldn’t stay here any longer. Luck is on your side today, Dendoh pilots.*Altair leaves.*
: The Ogre…!: C-Commander! The radar’s picking up some massive object!: Is it the Gulfer?!: No, this one’s different!
: Target’s just reached Lake Ashi’s airspace!: The Unit #02 will stay on standby. Deploy the #01.: Yes, sir! Shinji, that means you!
: …
: Something wrong, Shinji?!: (Dad… You won’t even give me a ‘good luck’, will you?): Shinji, did you hear me?!
: Y-yes.: The target’s entering Neo-Tokyo 3’s airspace!
[Screams geometrically]
: What is that thing?!: Is that… an Angel?!: Hey, hold up, Misato! Why am I on standby?!: Those are Cmdr. Ikari’s orders. You must comply.
: (What the hell is that supposed to mean…?! That that idiot’s more reliable than me?!): EVA-01, in position to deploy!: Are you ready, Shinji?!: Hm… I’ll try. : I say this just as some food-for-thought but piloting the EVA with that middling attitude is—: It’s fine – I’m here of my own free will. Besides… there’s nothing else I can do right now. : … OK. : Final safety device, release! Evangelion #01, lift off!
: We’re detecting a high energy reading within the target!: What?!: It’s accelerating and focusing! : Oh, no…! It’s aiming at the #01’s emergence point!
: Crap! Dodge!!: Huh?!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVQ6T9TOSP0
: SHINJI!!: The Angel focused charged particles into a beam?!: Bring him back! Hurry!!*The EVA-01 retreats*
: The target’s gone silent!: What about Shinji?!
: He’s alive but his brainwaves are fluctuating and his pulse is weak!: The EVA-01 has been retrieved – it’s being sent to cage #7!: I’m going there! Have the medical team prepare for emergency surgery!: Wait, the target’s moving again!*The Angel heads into town.*
: Is it going for the Dendoh next?!: No, it’s not!: What’s it doing?!: It’s digging into the Geofront, headed towards us!: It means to attack NERV HQ directly…!
Back inside, Misato has a major headache with all their problems: the EVA-01 is totaled, there’s an Angel right on top of them and the blackout is still going. From data NERV’s analyzed, the Angel is able to detect any threat within a fixed radius and automatically snipes it down with pinpoint accuracy of its particle beam. In short, close-range engagements with mobile weapons are far too dangerous to consider.
Worse yet, its A.T. Field is so strong that it can be seen by the naked eye – the thing’s like a flying fortress, boasting perfect offensive and defensive capabilities. The thing is drilling at a rate which would bring it past all the armor plates protecting the GeoFront at 6 minutes, 54 seconds past midnight - less than ten hours away.
Ritsuko reports the damage on the EVA-01: most of its chest armor was melted after the attack but, luckily, the core systems are in one piece. Had we taken just a few more seconds to pull the unit back and it would’ve been a lot worse.
EVA-02 has been kept stashed away at Gendou's orders, though it's unclear to Ritsuko if he's just holding it in reserve or if it was the Committee's will. Regardless, it won’t be available for the next operation.
Misato isn’t happy but Ritsuko tells her that Earth has more enemies to deal with than the Angels, so they need to cover their bases. Misato doesn’t buy that PR excuse and figures something else is going on, but Ritsuko tells she’s barking up the wrong tree if she’s looking for answers.
What about the Unit #00? Not ready for combat yet due to problems in its feedback system. And Shinji? Still in the ICU. This is about the point where Misato would raise a white flag if their foe was an ordinary one. But it’s not, so: “If our enemy wields a long spear, then we’ll wield an even longer one.”
The plan that she presents to Gendou and Fuyutsuki is to snipe the Angel back, hitting from outside his range with a ultra-long range rifle capable of firing a ton of concentrated energy into a single spot – it’s the only way we’ll pop it’s A.T. Field.
The MAGI are 2-to-1 in favor of this, and there's an 8.7% chance of success, the highest of any plan so far devised. Gendou has no reason to object and tells her to get to it.
Ritsuko can see how this would be the spear in Misato’s analogy, though she’s still amazed that she thought up a strategy as crazy as this. Not like they’ve any choice, with only nine hours to get things rolling before the Angel gets here.
OK, so the first problem: where will they get the gun they need? Misato already has an appointment made that she hopes will give it to them. And the energy to actually power the dang thing? The blackout is still going and Ritsuko estimates we’d need about 180 million kilowatts to pierce the Angel’s A.T. Field.
Misato already has an idea about that too, just as Maya tells that her appointment has arrived – far sooner than she expected.
It’s Prospector (not his real name), liaison of Nergal Heavy Industries, and they’ve already reviewed her request. They do have a self-propelled positron rifle under development but… does she really have no other option?
Misato nods and Prospector says that while Nergal has no problem with helping with this, there are a few issues with the weapon itself…
Nergal’s secretive president chimes in right then, figuring they needn’t worry about those. He says NERV is tech-savvy enough that they can probably figure out how to fix the weapon’s problems by themselves… besides, he can’t say no to a pretty woman.
Plus, Nergal will get useful feedback from this field test so that sounds like a pretty good deal to him. As the president signs off, Prospector sighs that the boss has spoken… though Misato is a bit startled at how easygoing the guy sounded.
Regardless, Prospector says they’ll have the gun over within the hour and Misato says NERV will be ready to receive it. Next, she’s got to speak with GEAR.
She tells Shibuya that they’d like to use their Hyper Dendoh Batteries to provide the energy for Operation Yashima. Problem is, GEAR only has two batteries left in stock and they were saving those for when the Gulfer – or the Ogre – attack. He’s expecting them to try their hand again by riding the coattails of the Angel mess.
Misato understands his problem but raises the argument that, if they don’t stop the Angel before it gets to the GeoFront, it may well trigger a Third Impact. If that happens, the battle with the Gulfer will be the least of their problems.
Shibuya doesn’t like it that Misato’s seemingly forcing him to choose between fighting one or the other but, actually, she says she might have a way around that.
The plan, as Eris tells them, is to gather up as much energy as they can and wire it into the Dendoh to get it charged up again. How are they gonna pull that off, Elle wonders?
Eris concedes that the blackout is still going but that doesn’t mean ALL energy has evaporated. We still have private-owned generators in factories, dynamos, car batteries, dry cell batteries, so they’re gathering as much of these as they can. Once that’s done, they’ll take the electricity and use it to get the Dendoh running.
And they really are doing it right now, as Hokuto’s dad appears on TV telling everyone watching that the Dendoh needs their electricity. “We must now pool our strength and send it to the Dendoh so that we can repel the enemies hurting us. Your dry cell batteries, car batteries, generators… If we all supply even a small amount of energy, together, that power will be what defeats our foe!
Elle’s surprised to see that Hokuto’s dad is a TV announcer but, yes, we’re asking all of the Japanese people to pitch in (I can totally see the campaign, asking kids to send their batteries in letters to TV Tokyo).
Eris adds that they even considered using the energy inside our Super Robots but that idea was nixed when they considered that said mechs are still needed to fight. Someone’ll need to play defense for the immobile Dendoh, so this is the only option they had left to handle both the Angel and the expected-to-attack Gulfer.
The final problem is Ginga, broken up after their major loss to Ogre. Hokuto is worried but Domon tells him not to, as he’s sure the kid will recover. On that matter, Vega’s taken him home in hopes that it’ll kick-start that recovery.
Slightly under six hours left on the timer and the positron rifle has already been fixed and is en route to its perch – once there, they’ll plug it to the batteries. The Nahel Argama crew are about in position too and with their preparations well underway.
The populace is really coming through, with GEAR even sending some bicycle-driven dynamos to be piloted by civilians wanting to help out. This sounds pretty ludicrous, but it increases the chances of booting the Dendoh by a good 5%. Shigeru figures this is all the more reason why the operation needs to succeed but there’s still the matter of Shinji.
The infirmary has reported that he’s regained consciousness and the exams haven’t shown any problems. Seems like everything is falling into place but… Misato and Ritsuko know that the big question now is whether Shinji will be willing to pilot the EVA again after what happened.
: …
: Ayanami…: I’m here to brief you on the timetable for tomorrow’s Operation Yashima. : The pilots Ikari and Ayanami are to assemble at the cage at 1730 hours. Units #01 and #00 are to be initialized at 1800. Takeoff will be at 1805. At 1830, we’re to arrive at the sniping perch and remain on standby until further notice. The start of the operation will coincide with the toll of midnight. : And… here’s a new plugsuit. : …: You’re to leave here in sixty minutes.
: Ayanami… You’re not scared?: Of what?: Of fighting that Angel… Can we really beat something like that…?: …: I… I don’t think I can.: Why don’t you quit, then?
: “Quit”…?: I’ll pilot the EVA-01. Prof. Akagi has already made preparations to rewrite the unit’s personal data. : Ms. Ritsuko did…?: I’m going. Cpt. Katsuragi and Prof. Akagi are waiting at the cage. : Goodbye.*Rei leaves.*
: …
Back in Hoshimi, Vega’s dropped off Ginga and tells him she’ll pick him up in an hour. Otome and Midori quickly spot him and wonder what happened to that sciency tour of his; he says he’s only here to rest for a bit.
Midori takes one look at his sullen face and sees what’s going on: “Who did you lose to?” How could any mother not see it?
She continues: “I told you time and again, didn’t I? There are loads of people stronger than you out there but you can never let yourself be truly defeated. And when your heart falters, that's when true defeat happens. While I don’t know who you fought, you've the look of someone whose heart has actually faltered. What do you have to say about that?”
Ginga snaps, saying that he did truly lose – there’s nothing he or anyone can do to win against that guy. So all he has left is to accept it, no?!
He runs off, leaving his sister to wonder if he’s also going to be pedaling the bike dynamos. For that matter, Otome is willing to give up the battery from her stuffed animal so that the Dendoh could move again. Yes, the toy is her friend but she figures she’ll be able to play with him again once the bad guys are beaten.
Midori is happy to hear that and promises to buy her lots of batteries after the Dendoh wins.
Location: Neo-Tokyo 3
Kensuke and Touji are also in position to help with the bikes, Kensuke blown away by the sight of the Nahel Argama. Maybe they can catch a glimpse of the Gundam Team? While Touji sighs at his fanboyism, Hikari also shows up to help.
She felt she couldn’t just sit by, what with their friends getting ready to fight – Touji approves and quips that he’s changed his view of her (she blushes).
Danbei and Hikaru are on hand as well, surprised at the amount of people who’ve gathered here to help. He chalks it up to this being a national crisis and, personally, he wants to see it overcome lest it hamper his UFO-hunting!
Hikaru sighs at him wanting to see UFOs when the Gulfer could be coming over to attack right now. With that in mind, should she be here? While they’ve the Federation providing cover, things could still get dicey.
Hikaru isn’t budging, though, wanting to do whatever she can to help Daisuke and the others.
The Gulfer Chips walk over, finding this gathering around the Dendoh to be very suspicious.
They figure this warrants a closer look and decide to infiltrate the group. Ginga’s mother and sister show up right then, with Otome very excited to see the Dendoh up close. They’ll need to pedal as hard as they can to help it move again.
: Cpt. Misato Katsuragi from NERV. A pleasure to be running this operation with you.
: The pleasure is all mine.
: (They really do sound alike…)
: …: Here, let me introduce you to the Dendoh’s pilots. He’s Ginga Izumo and…
: I’m Hokuto Kusanagi. Pleased to meet you.
: Huuh?! You’re the pilots?!: Y-Yes…
: (I knew they were younger but… they’re still grade schoolers.): (Those kids are the Dendoh’s…): In the event that Knight Ogre decides to show up while Operation Yashima is underway, they will engage him with the Dendoh… assuming we can get it running, that is.: Understood.: … Can you do that, Ginga?: … I don’t know.
: !: What’s going on, Ginga? Who’ll take care of the Data Weapon and the Ogre if we don’t—
: Shut it! Weren’t you the one who first said that this was too much for kids like us?!: This is really not the time or place to talk like—: But I can’t beat the Ogre – it’s impossible! I—
: Cut it out already!!: !: You don’t think I’m just as scared as you? I am!: …! : I’m not like you – I’ve been scared since day one.: You…: But didn’t we decide we were still gonna do our part? That we were gonna work hard?!: …: And everyone’s doing so much to help us now…!: So don’t we have to repay that?!: …: He’s right, Ginga… It’s not just the two of you who’ll be fighting today. All those who are taking part in this operation will be doing so to try and secure their future.: …OK, I’ll do it. I… I don’t know if I can beat the Ogre but I’ll give it my best shot.: Ginga…!
: Hm-hmm… He’s pretty eager, unlike someone.: … I’ll help too.: Ah?: Those kids are working so hard… I can’t just turn away from this by myself. : Honestly, I’m still not confident in the slightest… but I’ll do whatever I can regardless. : (Shinji…): Well, you did steal my chance to deploy so I’d be annoyed if you didn’t show at least a bit of attitude. You better do a bang-up job out there, alright?: Alright.: Um…
: My name’s Shinji Ikari… Let’s give this everything we’ve got, Hokuto.: Y-Yeah!: With that done, here are the respective assignments of the EVA pilots for Operation Yashima: Shinji, your EVA-01 will man the rifle.
: OK.: And, Rei, you and the EVA-00 will be in charge of defending him.
: Understood.: We’ve decided on this due to Shinji’s higher synchronization with the EVA-01. And you will only have two shots with the Position Sniper Rifle.: Because we’ve only two Hyper Dendoh Batteries?: Correct. Moreover, the rifle’s shot will not fly straight due to the influence of the Earth’s gravity, rotation and magnetic field. You’ll have to remember to account for those when you fire.: …And what if I miss the first shot?: Then it’ll take about twenty seconds for the weapon to cool down and recharge before you can do it again. : We expect the Angel to fire back in that window, with the same devastating effect as before if it connects. Ultimately, the only option available was to equip the EVA-00 with a large shield and have it cover you.: How long will that shield hold against the attack?: … We estimate about seventeen seconds.: …!: (Which means I need to focus on destroying it with the first shot…)
: These may be the last hours of our lives…: Why do you say that?: If the Gulfer… or the Angel attacks while the operation is underway...: You won’t die – I’ll keep you safe.Why is it that Operation Yashima always gets fuckhuge missions? The rest will be up in a few days.