An Evangelion Fanfic written by:
Phionex of the Fallen
All characters are owned by (insert owners name here) and not by (insert fanfic authors Psuedonym here). All original storylines for the series are not owned by said author and he has made up this story you are about to read himself. Don't sue me, were not worthy. (Note: Creators of Waynes World please do not sue me either.)
Spy vs. Spy
"All rise, Bow, take your seats."
The day was hot, well; every day in Tokyo-3 was hot, but this one was causing the rubber soles of tennis shoes to stick to the asphalt. The endless ritual of Hikari Horaki ended mercifully quick for Kensuke Aida and his two cohorts: Toji Susahara and Shinji Ikari. They all settled in quitely to their desks as the teacher thanked Hikari and then began his timeless, droning speech about Second Impact and its endless causes of suffering to humanity. As Kensuke flipped open his school provided laptop he took note of the glazed eye look of nearly all of the students around him.
"This is ridiculous, doesn't the man see that we aren't paying attention to his stupid speech at all? Not that any of its true anyway..." He thought darkly to himself.
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Higher up, in the Senior classes a similar ritual was beginning to give its students a slight twist. Class representative Normi Huyamaka, a medium sized girl of plain features and straight black hair that was normally pulled up in a bun at the back of her head, of class 4-D had taken her seat and prepared for her teachers lesson when he abruptly stood and walked over near the door.
"Class, today we have a new transfer student from the United States. I hope you will all help him adjust to life here in Japan and in this class. Mr. Williams, you may come in now."
The door slid aside and a tall, brown-haired kid with small glasses that hung near the tip of his nose came in. He walked beside the teacher back near his desk and presented himself before the class. He gave a slight bow and pulled himself upright and squared his broad shoulders as the class appraised him. He wasn't much to look at, besides his very plain and square- jawed figure he had on a black sleeveless vest, brown and baggy khaki pants, as well as a plain white t-shirt.
"Now as you may notice class, he does not have a uniform on today. Because of his rather tall size, we've had to order in a custom uniform which will take a few days to finish," the teacher commented, bringing a slight blush to the boys cheeks. "But this does not mean that you can
wear non-sanctioned dress too. Anyone besids Mr. Williams here wearing anything besides the uniform on the grounds will be punished accordingly. Understood?"
"Yes, Sensei." The class chorused.
"Good. Now welcome Mr. Harold Williams to the class and try to keep the jokes to a minimum." The teacher turned to the embarresed exchange student and directed him to an empty seat near the back of the room. He gratefully accepted it and beat a hasty retreat over to the desk, ignoring all of the strange looks he was getting from the other students. As he sunk down into the seat he cupped his head into his hands and shook them back and forth.
"Why do they always have to call me Harold?"
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Later at lunch, Kensuke observed the merciless verbal beating that was being dished out at Toji and Shinji intermitantly and was immediatly thankful that, although he did love to engage in egging the firery demon to the point of violence, he knew when exactly he should bow out and seek shelter from her physical attacks. He continued to watch and then take notes as the argument heated up with Hikari joining in on the side of Asuka as Toji really cut loose with his vocabulary.
"He may act stupid, but he certianly knows several...inventive words." Kensuke said quietly as he observed Asuka smacking Toji and then Shinji over the head and stomping off with Hikari trailing behind her. Kensuke shut his laptop and waited for Toji to come out of the stupor he was in from the force of the hit.
"That...hurrt....alllloooot..."
"I would have thought you had learned that lesson a long time ago Toji. You see Shinji here get the same treatment every day." Kensuke brightly chirped up, causing Shinji to blush a bit before yelling at him to shut up.
"Yeah, but Shinji lives with the bi-...hey Kensuke?"
"What?" Kensuke looked down at Toji's still prone form.
"Who's the new kid?"
Kensuke followed the point of Toji's finger to a large, definitly non-asian kid sitting up against a large cherry tree near the corner of the school yard. The kid easily reached above 1.8 meters tall and looked like he could ram Toji through a wall with his mass. He wasn't wearing a uniform, understandibly so, but he had a school laptop open and was rapidly typing keys as he sat in the shade. He wasn't eating, and he also had no one sitting or talking around him.
"Very unusual...I'm gonna hack into the school system and try to find out."
"Well, don't get caught like you did last time." Toji warned.
"Why? What happened last time?" A curious Shinji asked as he helped Toji find his seat.
"Well, I...uh..."
"Nearly got expelled and had his computer taken away from him until he was in eighth grade." Toji said looking directly at Kensuke.
"Hey look man, that was nearly four years ago. I'm definitly better than back then."
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Hal Williams eyes darted back in forth in tune with the slashes of his fingers against the keys set into the board of his assigned computer. Data rapidly scrolled across the black background as a line of coded binary ran down the left side of his screen. To nearly everyone it would have been incomprehensible. But to one trained in encryption by the finest code hackers in the world it was as if he had read an edited copy of The Hobbit. Hitting a few more keys followed by a seven digit number started to unravled the coding and destroy any electronic paper trails he might have left behind. He quickly opened up a hacking algorithm and used it to access the schools mainframe computer. From there he searched out a name from the student directory and accessed their bio's for an address. Soon he had it, and shortly after the bell to return to class rang. The rest of Hal's day passed slowly and he managed to keep himself entertained by sheer willpower alone. After the class was dismissed he quickly left the school and headed for his apartment complex. He trudged up the four flights of stairs, not trusting the elevators enough to take them up but instead preferring to walk up. And as he neared his apartment door, 332, he reached into his vest and pulled out a smallish flat ovid who's only feature was a slightly depressed button on one side. He gripped it tightly in his left hand as he used his right to slip in his keycard to enter the room. The door slid aside with a whoosh and Hal entered the darkened apartment quickly, making sure to keep his left hand pointing further within the small hallway as he allowed his eyes to adjust to the dim interior. He removed his shoes and set his bookbag near the door as he moved further into his hallway. He stopped momentarily at the hallcloset and ran his hands over the crack in the door. He felt nothing there and nodded his head, as if he was expecting to. Hal then walked quietly into his living room and finding nothing there into the remaining rooms in his apartment. There seemed to be nothing wrong or missing from them so he slowly lowered his hand and placed the ovid into his pocket.
"NIA sure is good at remebering where all my stuff goes." He commented to himself, more for the hidden bugs he felt sure were present in the room than for his own benefit. He gave the room a last look around before heading off to his bathroom, stripping the shirt off of his back as he went.
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"So?"
"So, what?" Kensuke replied. It was nearing nightfall, the sun giving of its last dying rays of a brilliant orange, red, and purple as it slowly sank below the city's skyline.
"So what didja find out about the new kid?" Toji asked as he lay upside down on Kensuke's well-kept but rarely used bed. The two were alone in Kensuke's house. His father having to stay late and work on something for NERV at the last moment. Kensuke looked up briefly from the moniter of his home-made computer and looked at his friend in a decidedly mysterious way.
"Absolutely nothing."
Toji remained silent for a moment as his opposite returned to his computer and began typing in seemingly random keystrokes. He let him continue for a moment before speaking up again.
"Nothing?"
"Not at all. Apparently his records were infected with a virus at the last school he was at and it totally destroyed the mainframe right as he was being processed through our computers. I remember being called in that day to help sort out the mess, last I heard: they are trying to re-input all the exchange students by hand."
"Apparently the school has a long memory about you and your skills." Toji quipped smartly as he flipped himself over on his stomach and smiled wryly at the nerd frowning at him.
"But I didn't ask why or how the virus infected our computers. Barely managed to save our own records before the virus spent itself out."
"Spent itself out? Kensuke, make some sense please? For the little people."
Kensuke sighed and put a hand up under his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose as he explained.
"The virus destroyed only a certian section of our mainframe before it basicly stopped itself. The entire virus consumed the exchange student section of our computers before it sorta retracted in on itself and shut down. As if someone had programmed it to only destroy the records of a few students before it did what it was supposed to do and shut down."
"You think NERV had something to do about this?" Toji asked softly, looking around as if agents of the organization that currently had the run of the city would appear and take them away.
"No, NERV would be more subtle about the virus. They wouldn't let it go through like that. They would probably just have certian people in the staff pressured into destroying the records themselves."
"So who did it?"
Kensuke leaned back from his computer and stared at the ceiling. A plain and unadorned ceiling.
The silence was heavy.
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Hal strolled out of his bathroom, toweling his wet hair dry as he slowly put his glasses on the tip of his nose. As he walked he took note of the faint clinking sound that eminatted from his dogtags rubbing against their chains. He ran a hand over the two silver pieces of aluminum before sighing and turning into his livingroom. He was still looking at his tags when a faint click echoed slightly in the bare room, causing him to stop suddenly and slowly lift his head up. To his chargin, standing in the shadows of the room was a suited, masked person, definity female and well off at that, with a pistol: a nine millimiter 1942 Luger to be precise; aimed at his head.
"Sit down." Came a melodus voice in slightly accented English.
"I don't suppose you'd let me dress first?" A motion with the pistol was his answer. Hal seated himself, making sure to cover himself with the towel appropriatly before looking back up at his guest. If she noticed the attempt at modesty her eyes, stormy gray, didn't reveal it. "So, may I ask why you are here in my apartment with a Luger pointed at me? Or do I get twenty questions first?"
"That will be enough sarcasm from you Harold Williams." She said curtly, moving forward from the shadows and taking the seat furthest away from him. "I will ask and you will answer. Understood?"
Hal smiled.
"Who are you working for?"
"Who are you working for?"
"Be silent and answer or I will shoot." She tipped the barrel of the weapon down, aiming carefully between Hal's legs.
"Oh, how cruel you are to a man." Hal countered, crossing his right leg over his knee.
"Who?"
"Why does it matter?"
"It does matter to my superiors."
"And who would they be? Seele? NERV? Do you even know what your left hand is doing as you act out the part as the right?"
"What were you doing looking up the school directories this afternoon?"
"Seeking out someone nearby so as to get aquainted." Hal smoothly answered, a small trickle of sweat running down the back of his neck.
"And who did you find?"
"Oh, so many to choose from. There was at least six that I can recall." He shifted his legs, letting his right down and his left up. The towel was becoming uncomfortable to sit in.
"Be warned Williams. If we dislike your assosciation with the people you live near. You will suffer consequences."
"And what would those be my dear?" He asked, dropping his left leg and leaning forward.
The mask covering her face shifted slightly, as if she had smiled, with her eyes narrowing to slits as she adjusted the aim of the muzzle and pulled the trigger. There was a phufft of air and a dull thwack. Hal reached down and pulled out the feathered vial dart, his eyes suddenly gritty and straining to stay open.
"Perhaps I shouldn't have asked..."
Hal collapsed forward into the waiting arms of the female interrogator. The last memory he had of the meeting was lavender purfume permeating his nostrels.
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"Well Captian Katsuragi? Did you learn anything?" Came a quiet but powerful voice that shattered the usual silence that fell in the cavernous office of Gendo Ikari. The person under inquiry was rather disconcerted by the way her superior had her handle the job, and was even more nervous about the way she was under pressure like this.
"No sir. Apparently, the wire taps in the apartment were found and disabled by the occupant as well. We only have this recording of his voice." She pressed a blue button in its recessed hole sitting in her remote datapad. And the distinct voice of the new 'exchange student' came over the interoffice speakers.
"NIA sure is good at remembering where all my stuff goes..."
The speakers died off with a squeal of static that was ended abruptly by Misato hitting the button again.
"The static happened nearly ten minutes after he made that statement."
"And in between?"
"Indistinct noises, running water. That is all the data analysists could come up with."
"It appears that he knows we are watching him indirectly...no matter. If he becomes a nuscience we have ways of dealing with him. Dismissed."
"Yessir."
Misato executed a sharp about face and walked camly out of the room, closing the door behind her with a shudder. Gendo, on the other hand, leaned back in his chair and marveled at the wonderous engravings set into his office ceiling. He remained that way all night, contemplating the arrival of yet another mysterious person in the already complex intrigue world of Tokyo-3. He suddenly sat up and reached for his phone.
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It was another Tuesday morning for one bleary eyed and dog tired Shinji Ikari. He rolled out of bed and slammed his hand down on the insistent alarm clock, causing it to stop abruptly and instead groan from the force of the hit. Shinji smiled quickly as he rummaged through his closet to pull out his fresh uniform and undergarments for the upcoming day and headed off for the bath. He quickly and frugally went about the chore of cleaning himself and then dressing himself before heading out to find food that he could whip up into breakfast.
"Perhaps Asuka would like something western, who knows she might even....no, nonononononon....just forget about that now." Shinji shook his head violently at the unbidden thoughts rising to the fore in his consiousness and simply went about what constituted his normal morining routine for the day ahead.
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It was daytime, light filtered through streaked windows and gracefully landed across the whited carpet that covered the floors. Eventually running across the soft material and hitting something with more substance. Hal stirred from his position on the floor and slowly opened his eyes, then jerked his head away when the sunlight came through his unadjusted pupils. He groaned and used his elbows as leverage to lift himself off of the ground. His legs and back ached from lying in such an awkward position for most of a day and he shivered a bit from his still being unclothed.
"Damn woman...could've at least put me in my bed and covered me up." He mumbled incoherently to himself as he stood up on shakey legs and moved off to take another bath. Turning on the cold water, Hal stepped right into the showers stream and gasped a bit as his brain struggled to comprehend the sudden shock of lowered temputure. In a few moments he was finished and in his bedroom, dressing for his next day at school.
"Stupid secret agents and their goddamn secretive ways. Not likes it gonna stop what I am ordered to do."
Hal grabbed his bag from near the door and slipped on his shoes, giving his modest apartment one look around before opening his door and walking out.
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"BAKA! You're gonna make us late! HURRY UP!"
"Sorry, I'm sorry Asuka!"
"Have a nice day you guys." Misato called out to her wards as they left for school. One very peeved at the other, and the other fearing for his life.
"Bye Misato!" They chorused back to her as they ran out the door. One nearly fleeing out as the other glared menacingly at his retreating form.
"Come back here you coward!" Asuka yelled as he fled into an elevator with Asuka hot on his heels. She barely made it into the closing doors and promptly thwacked him over the head for pressing the door close button with her outside of it.
"Baka!"
Shinji merely sighed. He didn't know why she was being meaner than usual to him, but it hadn't been a good morning at all. First he had overcooked the sausages that he had managed to scrounge up and then he accidently tripped her on her way out of the bathroom. That wasn't a pretty sight, well...it was a pretty sight, but when she managed to cover herself back up she promptly went after Shinji. Misato came in shortly after and managed to stop her from choking him to death...after her beer of course.
"Now that I think about it, it probably is a good thing she can drink so fast." He thought to himself as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened up. And let the two Eva pilots run directly into their assembled friends.
"Hello Asuka, Shinji." Hikari quietly said.
"Hey Shinji! Whats up man, you look kinda pale." Toji said as the two girls started walking away.
"Ah, probably just Asuka a-," Kensuke yawned loudly and rubbed his eyes before finishing. "Again, y'know the newlyweds always like to fight in the morning."
"W-we do not!" Shinji blushed as he shouted loud enough for Asuka to hear.
"HEY BAKA! Come on or we'll really be late!" She said before turning around and engaging with a lively conversation.
Shinji sighed again and his shoulders visably slumped before his own group started moving for school. "So why are you so tired Kensuke?"
"I...kinda stayed up all night looking for information." He sheepishly answered, scratching the back of his neck.
"Whaja find?" Toji asked excitedly.
"Nothing! I couldn't find one single thing about...you know..."
"Didja check out the databases in America?"
"Yeah but those were nonexistant or wiped clean as well! The g-...the information simply does not exist."
"What are you two talking about?" Shinji asked during a break.
"Just looking in on something." Kensuke answered with a big false smile.
"Yeah, nothing for you to worry about man!" Toji grabbed Kensuke in a headlock and squeased, knocking his large glasses askew and turning Kensuke's face an interesting shade of purple.
"Can't-Breath-AIR!!!"
"Hun? OH! Sorry Kensuke!" Toji released the now blue faced nerd. Shinji winced at the raspy breaths his smaller friend was taking.
Ten meters in front of the three stooges, Hikari and Asuka were having their own private conversation about one of the favorite topics of every woman on Earth...or at least whats left of it.
"So tell me, have you seen the new guy?" Hikari asked excitedly, her eyes glinting in the morining sun.
"Who?"
"The new transfer student. Guy from America named...um, Harold Williams. I think."
"No. Whats he look like?" Asuka hunched over and glanced around them.
"Actually...like that."
Asuka followed the line of her friends pointing finger and spied a tall, brown haired man wearing khakis, a t-shirt, and a black vest turning down from a side street and running for the school. Much to their bewilderment, two black suited men with sunglasses and earpieces ran out of the same alleyway and ran down the street after him.
"What the..?" Was all Asuka or Hikari could say.
Up the street all three stooges had seen the running trio and Kensuke exchanged glances with Toji.
"Who was that?" Shinji asked.
"Toji, take my bag. I'll meet up with you later."
"Don't get caught man." Toji said quickly as he grabbed the relativly light satchel Kensuke handed him before both he and Shinji watched him run off.
"Wha, hun? Where's Kensuke going?"
Toji remained silent for a moment and continued to watch his longtime friend run past the two girls and continue his own pursuit, camera leading the way.
"Toji!"
"We're gonna be late for class if we stand around here much more. Let's go Shinji."
Shinji could only look questioningly at Toji as he shouldered Kensuke's bag and started walking again.
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"Kuso...Why the hell does NERV put TWO spooks on me!!" Hal thought as he continued his fast pace for the school. He wasn't breathing too hard, yet. Training had actually prepared him for a twenty mile city run with a tail on him. But training ended three years ago, three years is a lot of time to get out of shape. Which the agents behind him certianly weren't.
He had noticed the agents following him quite easily, two guys wearing suits and sunglasses walking after you for nearly a mile has a tendancy to alert you to their prescence after all. What was bothering Hal was the decididly un-subtle way NERV was approaching the matter.
"Maybe their not NERV," He thought. "But who? Who would be stupid enough to blatently put two guys on me and let me notice them?"
Then suddenly he tripped over someones foot. The fall throwing him to the sidewalk and scraping his hands and elbows as he landed.
"Setup, setup, setup! You bloody idiot you were ment to run this way and you did. You stupid bloody fool!" He cursed himself silently as the two tails grabbed him and pulled him to his feet.
"We would like to have a word with you." Said the left hand agent, a strapping brute of an agent.
"Be so kind as to lead the way then." Hal's acid voice apparently had no effect on either agent, not that it was ment to.
The agents escorted him to a nearby cafe' and one opened the door for him, the other shoving him through it. Inside sat a man camly smoking a cigarette, his hair pulled back into a ponytail with the front cropped short and left dangling over his eyes. The only other notable feature about him was the collection of stubble that played across his lower jaw. The two agents followed Hal inside and moved to cover the door.
"Hello, can I offer you anything to eat or drink?"
"Agent Ryoji Kaji. So nice to meet your acquaintence." Hal solemly intoned as he sat down in the seat opposite the rougish agent.
"Ah, well. Your masters must have made you study bios on everyone working here."
"Only a few."
Kaji leaned forward and put his cigarette down in an ashtray. "Look, I'll make this short...who are you working for?"
"I already told you guys at NERV, and I won't repeat myself."
Hal's small smile that sprouted up at his riposte suddenly turned down as he noticed a flash of confusion that rolled through his counterpart's features and eyes before it vanished.
"Ah, I see. Well then...perhaps it was a waste of my time to go through this then."
"Perhaps. Another time, agent?"
"Maybe...show him out please."
Kaji waited until the tall American was out the door with the two suits before picking his slowly burning cigarette from its ashtray and puffing on it slowly. He remained that way for some time before his cellphone rang.
"Kaji...yes I made contact...no he didn't tell me...no Ikari doesn't know yet...I think Seele already made their own attempt...yes, of course." Kaji broke the connection and dialed another number, the phone rang several times before it was answered.
"Kaji here, he didn't tell me...no I didn't apply any techniques...he has to make it out of here in one piece or we will look suspicious...yes, the next one will be in use now."
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Hal rubbed his elbows gently as the two spooks opened the door for him and usured him out.
"This meeting never happened." Said the hulking brute.
"If our agency learns that the public heard of a rundown by two agents dressed in black." The other intoned.
"I do know the game." Hal interrupted the monolouge. He turned away and picked up his bookbag as he started running again, heading for the school once more. The two agents waited until he had dissapeared from sight before turning and re-entering the cafe'. They failed to notice one small lanky nerd with his camera, hidden away behind several boxes and trashcans. Filming everything.
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Hal walked slowly into his school, the bell already rung and the students all solemly sitting in their classes listining to the drone of teachers voices fill the air alonside the thrum of insects. He walked ponderously past a large tree and then stopped in its shade, head cocked to the side as though he might have heard a noise.
"Shit...does he know I'm here?" Kensuke asked himself as he took cover behind another tree. After a moment or two he thought he heard laughter softly coming from ahead of him, but whatever he heard slowly faded as its source moved further away.
"Time to go." He grunted, shutting off his video camera and glancing furitivly around the courtyard before sprinting into the school and up to his classroom. He slowed his breathing and slid aside the door, awaiting aprehensivly for his punishment from the overbearing teacher. And was met with quiet rustling and abruptly ended whispers. He opened his eyes slowly, not remembering having closed them, and stared open-mouthed at the empty desk of the teacher.
"Mr. Aida...where exactly have you been?" His brown headed representative began to intone. Kensuke decided that he would have rather held buckets of water than suffer this.
"I...uhh, I've been..."
"Augh...never mind, get in your desk. I'm pretty sure the teacher will show up soon."
Kensuke quickly made good on his narrow escape and found his way next to Toji and Shinji. He abstractly noticed Rei was also missing, though that wasn't exactly news for the class, but he noticed it anyway.
"Hey man, narrow. Eh?" Toji whispered, his head bobbing at the glaring Hikari.
"Yeah, verrry narrow. The guy was run down and captured by the suits."
"What?"
"The exchange student, moron!" Kensuke whispered harshly to his friend, he gave a quick glance around and found that Shinji was staring off at Asuka and everyone else was wrapped up in their own private talks. "They took him into a cafe' and then let him out a few minutes later...here, take a look."
Toji took the offered recorder and scrolled it back to the end of the chase.
Foot put out in front of running guy.
Guy falls down.
Suits catch guy.
Guy taken into cafe'.
Guy let out of cafe'.
Guy given ominus talking to by the suits, just like Kensuke said.
"Freaky stuff man. Who are the suits working for though?" Toji switched over to his laptop, best to keep this away from prying ears.
"Dunno...could be anyone really. NERV, some group I heard of from Europe: Seale, or Sayle." Kensuke typed in return. "Then again it could be someone else. Someone with connections but no loyalties...maybe a rouge spy or even a faction group!!"
"Man, you've watched too many movies lately. Get a grip man, NERV would never allow for something like that here." Toji amonished gently, even he had some idea as to who held the power in Tokyo-3 when it came to the spy game.
Suddenly the door swished open again, Hikari stood quickly and walked outside. Presumably to greet the teacher as usual. Instead she was handed a note and given some quick, unheard instructions. She soon walked back into the classroom and quickly got the students attention.
"Well it seems that our regular teacher suffered a heart attack early this morning and is at the hospital." Hikari waited patiently for the whispers to die down. "And the regular substitute for the school is running a bit late, so...um, we have one of our upperclassmen assigned to watch over us until the substitute shows up. A Mr. Williams...now all of you please stand and bow," The class complied and waited momentarily as a heated but quiet discussion was heard from outside the thin door of the classroom. Hikari started to sweat a bit at some of the language being used but quickly regained her composure as the door opened again and Hal stepped in.
"Take your seats." She finally said. Hal swept the room with his eyes and turned to head for the teachers desk, muttering angrily to himself.
"Be late for class one goddamn day and this is what they do to you. Just my damn luck." Hal cursed in English. A few of the students glanced around at each other, and Hal noticed one taller red-haired girl simply blink. "Well, at least they didn't fucking call me 'Harold'. Prick of a fucking principal and that dumbass teacher of mine doin' this to me." Hal continued in English as he walked up and sat down behind the teachers desk. He noticed the red-haired girl blink twice more as he continued his rantings. He gave a slight glance at the seating charts and at the roll book and shook his head. "Of all days. First I get shot, then run down, then interrogated, then late to school, now I'm a damn teacher!"
Asuka blinked once more, wondering if he knew that she could understand what he was saying. Well, most of what he was saying. She was getting lost on his repeated references to being shot while in a towel...but still.
"Um, Mr. Williams?" Hikari gently asked the still English-speaking teacher. That seemed to jolt him out of the semi-trance he was in and he turned to face her.
"Yes?"
"Um, what exactly are we going to do today?" She asked.
Hal looked at her for a moment and then shifted to look at the classroom. Chairs groaned and students shifted as they found their eyes met by his own.
"What do you normally do?" He asked, a bit flustered and nervous.
"Well...um, how should I put it?"
"Teach usually puts half the class to sleep and the rest into a zombie trance with an insanely boring talk on the Second Impact." Volunteered one boy near the middle. Some of the class laughed at that certian thought and fell silent as they noticed their sub not laughing with them.
"Well...this could be a great bloody disaster." He said, leaning deep into the chair with a sigh.
"What do you mean by, bloody?" Asked one girl near the front.
"Hun? Oh, um...its a figure of speech. Something the British do."
"Are you British?" Asked another girl, this time from the back.
"No, I wish. American."
"Where did you come from in America?" Asked the class representative as she sat back down.
"Georgia...born right before the Second Impact."
"Whats it like?" Asked another student.
"Well, it was kinda under water when I was around three or so."
And so the morning went. Hal being asked questions, the students getting a reply. Kensuke didn't ask any questions, but he had subtly set up his video recorder to tape everything. He listened intently as the class bombarded the exchange student with questions and was amazed at some of the answers that the seventeen year old boy gave in response. He continued to listen and tape until the door opened and an older man stepped in: the regular substitute teacher. Hal excused himself and left for his own classes, spending the time idly thinking until lunchtime rolled around and he was dismissed with the rest of his class. He stood quickly and left the classroom, heading randomly through the halls, his thoughts on the kids in the class the principal made him watch over.
"That wasn't so bad...could have been worse. Could have been raining." He quoted softly, stopping for a moment in the hall to chuckle at the old line from an old movie. "That was a real good one too."
Slowly he found his way out of the school and back underneath the same lonely tree off to the side, away from everyone. He sat down heavily and quickly glanced around with his eyes to see if anyone was watching or approaching him. Satisfied, he opened his laptop and accessed the internet quickly. After setting up a discrete encryption code and a powerful firewall to shield his activites he rapidly surfed through several sites until he reached a blank, black screen with a small blinking diode near the top.
Access identification: Engle22. Pasword: Peeka-boo.
(Processing...processing...identification accepted. Welcome Engle22. Requests?)
Latest mail files download.
(Processing. Downloading...finished. Do you wish to view?)
Yes.
The screen suddenly was filled with words and numbers, mixed together in a random fashion that baffled the eye to try and understand. Hal studied the lines for a moment before he entered a seven digit number. The screen blanked out for a moment and then reappeared, this time with the words being rearranged and numbers being substituted for letters. In a moment he had it.
To: Engle22
From: Omega00
You situation is tenuous. Proceede with contact at your discrecion. Package is being sent to you with items 21 and 213 inside it. Will arrive on the twelfth. Keep appraised of situation current. Do nothing to draw unnecessary attention to yourself or your mission.
End transmission.
Hal memorized the message and then entered another seven digit number that cleared the message from his screen and cut off his acces to the internet. Soon after he closed the laptop and looked up...right into the blue eyes of the red-haired girl he noticed before.
"GAAAHHH!" He cried out, jumping backwards against the rough bark of the tree. The girl simply blinked again. "Who are you?"
"Asuka Langely Sohryu. I'm in the class you were subbing." She answered in English, good English too.
Now it was Hal's turn to blink. "You...you heard what I was saying in the class didn't you."
"Yes. It wouldn't do to let little children like me hear stuff like that you know." She said haughtily as Hal regained control of himself and sat back down.
"So?"
"Hmphh...just like every other boy. Never accep-"
"BOY! Look here now. I ain't no damn boy! I am probably three or so years older than you little one so learn some respect for your elders!"
"Compared to a college graduate like me, you are nothing but a boy." She said, flipping a lock of her hair back across her shoulders as she leaned back into the sunlight.
"Then why the hell are you talking to me! Go away you annoying pest."
"I will not go away...how dare you talk to the esteemed and famous pilot of Evangelion Unit 02 like that!"
"Oh, so you're one of those pilots hun? Where's Ikari then? I know about him but I dare say I've never heard about you." Hal egged her on.
All he got in return was a low growl of anger before she turned on her heel and stomped away. Heading for the class representative, a nice, shy, and quiet girl if overly controlling at some points in his mind.
"Geez, looks like you got the welcome to Tokyo-3 treatment from Asuka." Came a voice from behind him.
Hal turned to see a freckled kid with light brown hair and glasses leaning against the tree with a small portable camcorder in his hands filming the girl finish her jaunt and sit down heavily.
"Do I..?"
"Know me? I'm also in her class. Kensuke Aida." The boy extended his hand for a firm handshake with Hal.
"Guess you know who I am then."
"Well, not really. See, I'm the local school nerd and when I tried to find out more about you from the school systems I drew up a blank. So I decided to try the direct aproach."
Hal almost smiled as he noticed Kensuke shift his feet almost imperceptivly. "I take it you don't do this very often."
"Well...yeah. In fact, you're the first that I had to try this with."
"Ah, don't worry about it. Sit down, ask me whatever you want." Hal gestured to the grass infront of him.
"So what do I call you? Harold?"
"NO! Anything but Harold. Just call me Hal, okay."
Kensuke was shocked by the sudden outburst but quickly covered his suprise by opening his laptop and starting up a WordPad application.
"Okay Hal. So...what do you like to do in your free time?"
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"Where's Kensuke?" Shinji asked a near sleeping Toji as he sat down with his bento.
"Talk'n to the exchange kid." Toji rolled over on his side.
"Oh."
Toji considered asking why Shinji wasn't interested with that idea when a new thought ran across his mind.
"Say Shinji?"
"Yeah?"
"The next school dance is in a few weeks. Planning to finally ask Asuka out?"
A flurry of coughing and forced breathing caused Toji to glance up and make sure his friend would still be alive to answer the question.
"W-why do you," A loud and forceful cough interrupted Shinji for a moment before he continued. "Ask that?"
"Ah, comon...I've seen the way you look at her. Can't understand why you like her, but I can see it." Silence was all the answer Shinji gave him. "So, are you going to ask her out? Or do I need to get Kensuke to use your I.D. to send a message through the school system?"
"Well, I...uhh..."
Toji smiled and waited, knowing that it would only be a matter of time before his friend broke down and ask.
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Later that evening, Hal was sitting in his apartment typing away on his computer. The flat ovid set near his rapidly fluttering hands in case it was needed for that evening. Quickly he set up an encryption and a firewall before he shifted his way to the required internet area. He stopped suddenly at some percived sound in the distance, his hand straying over the ovid before he shook his head and went back to typing.
Access identification: Engle22. Pasword: Peeka-boo.
(Processing...processing...identification accepted. Welcome Engle22. Requests?)
Send message to: Omega00. Request information on use of packages 21 and 213. Mission?
(Sending...sent...receving a return message...opening message board...securing chanel.
A seperate box appeared, the background a shimmering crimson laced with black trimming and a single piece of what appeared to be armored breastplate of a more modern type. In the middle of that armor blazed an emblem of an obsidion crystal surrounded by a ice blue flame.
*It is dangerous to talk while in your abode. Engle22.*
I have protection. What is the mission that should require a 21 and 213?
*Infiltration of primary target. We have a test devised for them.*
Test?
*Cut primary power sources. Then try to observe the reboot of their data systems.*
When?
*One week from tommorrow. Give yourself time to get acquainted with the 213. Omega00 out.*
The box dropped off of his screen, leaving Hal to shut down his systems and turn of his computer. It was raining outside now, the total darkness of his apartment softly backlit by an unseen lightsource near his windows. He sat for a moment listining to the rain pour down against his windows, thinking about his second mission for Omega. In order for it to succeed, though, his first mission would have to be completed.
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Knock, Knock, Knock.
Kensuke looked up from the latest source of information regarding the mysterious Angels and quickly glanced around. Nothing had changed of course, but he felt uneasy nonetheless.
Knock, Knock, Knock.
Again someone pounded lightly on the door. A quick glance at the clock told him it was roughly eleven at night.
"It might be father...no, he's never forgotton his house key before. Then who?"
Knock, Knock, Knock.
This time Kensuke stood up and located his illegal and highly guarded secret 45 automatic and loaded it. After he chambered a round Kensuke moved quietly to the house door and opened it slightly.
"'Bout time man, my ass is freezing." The unfamiliar language settled in his ears and Kensuke peeked out through the slit of the door, holding his pistol behind his hip.
"Who is it?"
"Hal. C'mon man let me in, I'm soaked."
The door opened up and let in the tall American, dripping wet and shivering now, into the house. Kensuke moved quickly after he had entered to close the door again and relock it. Hal sneezed violently twice and turned to see the flash of dull metal being put into a pocket.
"Kensuke, what the hell was that?" He asked, not realizing he was still speaking in English. Soon though Hal realized his mistake from the younger boy's arched eyebrow. "Sorry, look...I need to ask you for a favor. And perhaps offer you something in exchange." He hesitated for a moment before gesturing at the hand still in Kensuke's pocket. "Does your father know you have that antique?"
"What do you want? And what offer are you going to make?"
"Direct...well then. I'll be just as direct. Perhaps though you should let me dry off?"
Later, the two were sitting in Kensuke's room. One on the bed, rarely used and cluttered with miscellanous items; and the other sitting aside the computer, with his pistol drawn and leveled across his thigh.
"Kensuke, what do you know about the Obsidion Flames?"
"Old power group. Remmenant from anchient Euro power kingdoms. Rumored to be disbanded and reformed into several splinter groups...including one that went on to found the Nazi's."
"Well, you do know past history...and it was true that splinter groups formed. But the main group remained."
At this small sparks formed in the pupils of Kensuke's eyes and he sat upright. "They're still active?"
"Good, alert. Yes, they are."
"Why are you telling me this?" Kensuke shifted the muzzle of his weapon slightly over to cover Hal.
"I told you before, I need some help. I know that you have unprecedented amounts of information about the details and the layout of NERV Headquarters."
"I do have some info."
"I need to get that information, as well as info regarding security and the rotation of guards and such."
"For an insertion?"
Hal remained silent for a moment as he eyed the boy and the pistol. "That's for me to know. In exchange for the information I am willing to pay-"
"No."
"No?" Hal's eyebrows arched up.
"Induction into the group. You want help, make me a member." Kensuke worked hard to maintain his composure as the oportunity made him nearly smile with glee. Hal remained silent for a moment and then motioned to the computer. Kensuke nodded and stood off to the side as Hal sat himself down and began the process of contacting his superiors. Taking out a disk and inserting it into the computer let him set up his encryption code as well as a protective firewall to block any NERV inquiries as he moved rapidly through the internet. Soon he arrived at his contact site and typed in a request.
Engle22 has made a contact for information and he wishes to be made a section member for Japan.
They waited for several minutes before a reply came up.
*Who?*
Kensuke Aida.
*3663worthy?*
In my opinion...yes.
*Granted. Coding name is Engle311, training will begin under Engle22's hand. Understood?*
Absolutely.
Hal turned back to Kensuke, noticing that the pistol was hidden away.
"Happy, Engle311?"
"Very. Now, come back tommorrow and I will give you what you need."
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Hal walked back through the rain, a smile spred discreetly on his face as he tossed the same information disc that he used at Kensuke's house down a water logged rain gutter. He waited a moment as he watched the black piece of plastic bob and then sink down into the murky depths to be washed away to who know's where. Turning swiftly he resumed his pace, faster now, back to his own apartment and some dry clothes. Later, he entered his apartment and without removing his shoes walked through the darkened area to the phone. Hal waited a moment and held his hand over the reciver almost aprehensivly. The phone rang.
"Hal...yes, my first mission is complete. Out."
The small smile resumed its postion on his face as he set the phone down and then looked up at the ceiling. As if someone there shared his private joke.
Meanwhile: In the apartment directly above Harold Williams own several Section 2 men looked at each other in search of answers. And each in turn shrugged his shoulders in silent answer to the others.
"Play it back." Ordered one, stubbing out his cigarette and pulling another one from his carton. A whir and squeal of the recorded conversation lasted a few seconds and then clicked to a stop. Another click started the conversation and the agents silently waited to hear it again.
"Hal," The almost familiar voice of the man Gendo Ikari had personally ordered this survallience on sounded across the cramped room.
"Is it done?" A different voice, low and gravely asked the one question that had them all puzzled.
"Yes, my first mission is complete. Out."
The agent in charge of the tape pressed a button to stop it and looked back over at the leader. All he did was pull a long drag on the cigarette and slowly release its soft gray smoke into the stale air of the room. Without moving his head he glanced back up at the others before speaking.
"Take it to the commander."
Two hours later, Ikari listened to the conversation several times before turning to the Section 2 agent.
"Tell your division leader to keep trying to break the firewall. I want to know what he is doing. Dismissed." He waited several more antagonizing moments as the agent saluted and then walked the long distance, called by some men the Trip to and from Hell, out of the spartan office before he turned and pressed a recessed button set into his desk. Soon the door opened again and the familiar face of Ryoji Kaji waltzed his way into the office.
"Good eve-...well, morning now isn't it?" His ever chipper voice called out even as Gendo leveled an icy gaze at him.
"The operation is only proving slightly successful, so when does your agent act?"
"Soon, in fact: I think he's already in position to work for us."
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Early that morning, before the first rays of an unrelenting sun warmed the Earth surrounding Tokyo-2, several planes landed and took off. A consistent flow of traffic that never ceased, never slowed. It was on two of these flights, each nearly two hours apart, that four men stepped off and into the modern airport terminals. Each man made his way dutifully through customs, getting clearance and having their baggage x-rayed and their passports checked each. Two of these men were waiting in a small foreign cafe' at seperate tables when the other two made their way through and walked past. First one then the other stood and walked after the other, spaced generously apart but close enough to stay in eye contact with the one infront of them. If anyone looked at them they would have seemed unremarkable. One was tall and dark, with raven black hair drawn up in dreadlocks and then pulled back into a loose ponytail; another was short and slightly stocky, with broad shoulders and glasses underneath blonde highlights that hid deep brown eyes that would make any woman swoon in his arms; the third was the tallest of the four, thin and lanky but hidden beneath his large and voluminus trenchcoat of tan that constantly swished against the black leather briefcase held by his right hand; the last was most noticeably not a foreigner, passing by several places that he could remember passing so many times before, he was the shortest of the group and probably the most noticeable in the bustling airport that regularly delt with thousands if not hundreds of thousands of international people shuffling off to one place or another every hour. Soon three of the group was standing outside, waiting for a fourth to pull up a rented car. They had agreed that it would be dangerous to be seen together before they arrived at Tokyo-3, but the rates for car rental were to good to pass up for normal taxi fare.
"Figures Omega would be a stricktler for penny-pinching transport rates." Said the trenchcoat as he streched wildly in the air, trying to rid his back of the crinks a 22 hour flight in coach woud give you.
"Could be worse, y'know." Said the aisan. "Could be-"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Could be raining. Geez, you hang around the kid to often.
"Knock it off you two...Hicks is coming up." Said the dark man.
Soon a black, rather large car swung up and around to stop by the curb. Glistining drops of water rolling off and spraying the three men who waited testified to the fact that it had indeed been raining recently...or that the car was washed recently, not that it mattered. The trenchcoat took a moment to glare at the suddenly smiling aisan before he growled and reached down for his baggage. The trunk popped up and baggage quickly and efficiently moved to occupy the open space within its dark recesses. Soon after the car rolled out of the parking area and navigated its way into the growing brightness of the day.
Heading directly for Tokyo-3.
Phionex of the Fallen notes: This is the result of being forced by my father to watch to many James Bond flics. Thanks Dad! Well, I really had nothing to do one day so I decided to write up this fic about a transfer student who worked for some organization other than Seele, the UN, Japanese Intelligence, or NERV! I know, crazy stuff. I am trying to keep people guessing as to who is doing what behind which others backs...in other words, when I figure out how to tie in stuff from one part to stuff happening in another it will all make sense to everyone....I hope.....anyway, please review with all honest critisim in idea. And remember that your comments help define the type of works that are next published with the intent to be as pleasing and realistic to your mind...or if you're going to be snotty about it: what is going to irk you in the future. As to those who might wonder about the age of the kid think: a younger man poking his nose around in NERV affairs will attract less attention than someone like Ryoji Kaji's age. Plus: a possible way to have direct access to the Eva Pilots...or something else.
Thanks to my Pre-Readers: Simon Blaze and the wonderfully critical Dennisud: you both helped me alot during this last week of ironing out details so thank you very much.
Phionex of the Fallen
All characters are owned by (insert owners name here) and not by (insert fanfic authors Psuedonym here). All original storylines for the series are not owned by said author and he has made up this story you are about to read himself. Don't sue me, were not worthy. (Note: Creators of Waynes World please do not sue me either.)
Spy vs. Spy
"All rise, Bow, take your seats."
The day was hot, well; every day in Tokyo-3 was hot, but this one was causing the rubber soles of tennis shoes to stick to the asphalt. The endless ritual of Hikari Horaki ended mercifully quick for Kensuke Aida and his two cohorts: Toji Susahara and Shinji Ikari. They all settled in quitely to their desks as the teacher thanked Hikari and then began his timeless, droning speech about Second Impact and its endless causes of suffering to humanity. As Kensuke flipped open his school provided laptop he took note of the glazed eye look of nearly all of the students around him.
"This is ridiculous, doesn't the man see that we aren't paying attention to his stupid speech at all? Not that any of its true anyway..." He thought darkly to himself.
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Higher up, in the Senior classes a similar ritual was beginning to give its students a slight twist. Class representative Normi Huyamaka, a medium sized girl of plain features and straight black hair that was normally pulled up in a bun at the back of her head, of class 4-D had taken her seat and prepared for her teachers lesson when he abruptly stood and walked over near the door.
"Class, today we have a new transfer student from the United States. I hope you will all help him adjust to life here in Japan and in this class. Mr. Williams, you may come in now."
The door slid aside and a tall, brown-haired kid with small glasses that hung near the tip of his nose came in. He walked beside the teacher back near his desk and presented himself before the class. He gave a slight bow and pulled himself upright and squared his broad shoulders as the class appraised him. He wasn't much to look at, besides his very plain and square- jawed figure he had on a black sleeveless vest, brown and baggy khaki pants, as well as a plain white t-shirt.
"Now as you may notice class, he does not have a uniform on today. Because of his rather tall size, we've had to order in a custom uniform which will take a few days to finish," the teacher commented, bringing a slight blush to the boys cheeks. "But this does not mean that you can
wear non-sanctioned dress too. Anyone besids Mr. Williams here wearing anything besides the uniform on the grounds will be punished accordingly. Understood?"
"Yes, Sensei." The class chorused.
"Good. Now welcome Mr. Harold Williams to the class and try to keep the jokes to a minimum." The teacher turned to the embarresed exchange student and directed him to an empty seat near the back of the room. He gratefully accepted it and beat a hasty retreat over to the desk, ignoring all of the strange looks he was getting from the other students. As he sunk down into the seat he cupped his head into his hands and shook them back and forth.
"Why do they always have to call me Harold?"
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Later at lunch, Kensuke observed the merciless verbal beating that was being dished out at Toji and Shinji intermitantly and was immediatly thankful that, although he did love to engage in egging the firery demon to the point of violence, he knew when exactly he should bow out and seek shelter from her physical attacks. He continued to watch and then take notes as the argument heated up with Hikari joining in on the side of Asuka as Toji really cut loose with his vocabulary.
"He may act stupid, but he certianly knows several...inventive words." Kensuke said quietly as he observed Asuka smacking Toji and then Shinji over the head and stomping off with Hikari trailing behind her. Kensuke shut his laptop and waited for Toji to come out of the stupor he was in from the force of the hit.
"That...hurrt....alllloooot..."
"I would have thought you had learned that lesson a long time ago Toji. You see Shinji here get the same treatment every day." Kensuke brightly chirped up, causing Shinji to blush a bit before yelling at him to shut up.
"Yeah, but Shinji lives with the bi-...hey Kensuke?"
"What?" Kensuke looked down at Toji's still prone form.
"Who's the new kid?"
Kensuke followed the point of Toji's finger to a large, definitly non-asian kid sitting up against a large cherry tree near the corner of the school yard. The kid easily reached above 1.8 meters tall and looked like he could ram Toji through a wall with his mass. He wasn't wearing a uniform, understandibly so, but he had a school laptop open and was rapidly typing keys as he sat in the shade. He wasn't eating, and he also had no one sitting or talking around him.
"Very unusual...I'm gonna hack into the school system and try to find out."
"Well, don't get caught like you did last time." Toji warned.
"Why? What happened last time?" A curious Shinji asked as he helped Toji find his seat.
"Well, I...uh..."
"Nearly got expelled and had his computer taken away from him until he was in eighth grade." Toji said looking directly at Kensuke.
"Hey look man, that was nearly four years ago. I'm definitly better than back then."
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Hal Williams eyes darted back in forth in tune with the slashes of his fingers against the keys set into the board of his assigned computer. Data rapidly scrolled across the black background as a line of coded binary ran down the left side of his screen. To nearly everyone it would have been incomprehensible. But to one trained in encryption by the finest code hackers in the world it was as if he had read an edited copy of The Hobbit. Hitting a few more keys followed by a seven digit number started to unravled the coding and destroy any electronic paper trails he might have left behind. He quickly opened up a hacking algorithm and used it to access the schools mainframe computer. From there he searched out a name from the student directory and accessed their bio's for an address. Soon he had it, and shortly after the bell to return to class rang. The rest of Hal's day passed slowly and he managed to keep himself entertained by sheer willpower alone. After the class was dismissed he quickly left the school and headed for his apartment complex. He trudged up the four flights of stairs, not trusting the elevators enough to take them up but instead preferring to walk up. And as he neared his apartment door, 332, he reached into his vest and pulled out a smallish flat ovid who's only feature was a slightly depressed button on one side. He gripped it tightly in his left hand as he used his right to slip in his keycard to enter the room. The door slid aside with a whoosh and Hal entered the darkened apartment quickly, making sure to keep his left hand pointing further within the small hallway as he allowed his eyes to adjust to the dim interior. He removed his shoes and set his bookbag near the door as he moved further into his hallway. He stopped momentarily at the hallcloset and ran his hands over the crack in the door. He felt nothing there and nodded his head, as if he was expecting to. Hal then walked quietly into his living room and finding nothing there into the remaining rooms in his apartment. There seemed to be nothing wrong or missing from them so he slowly lowered his hand and placed the ovid into his pocket.
"NIA sure is good at remebering where all my stuff goes." He commented to himself, more for the hidden bugs he felt sure were present in the room than for his own benefit. He gave the room a last look around before heading off to his bathroom, stripping the shirt off of his back as he went.
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"So?"
"So, what?" Kensuke replied. It was nearing nightfall, the sun giving of its last dying rays of a brilliant orange, red, and purple as it slowly sank below the city's skyline.
"So what didja find out about the new kid?" Toji asked as he lay upside down on Kensuke's well-kept but rarely used bed. The two were alone in Kensuke's house. His father having to stay late and work on something for NERV at the last moment. Kensuke looked up briefly from the moniter of his home-made computer and looked at his friend in a decidedly mysterious way.
"Absolutely nothing."
Toji remained silent for a moment as his opposite returned to his computer and began typing in seemingly random keystrokes. He let him continue for a moment before speaking up again.
"Nothing?"
"Not at all. Apparently his records were infected with a virus at the last school he was at and it totally destroyed the mainframe right as he was being processed through our computers. I remember being called in that day to help sort out the mess, last I heard: they are trying to re-input all the exchange students by hand."
"Apparently the school has a long memory about you and your skills." Toji quipped smartly as he flipped himself over on his stomach and smiled wryly at the nerd frowning at him.
"But I didn't ask why or how the virus infected our computers. Barely managed to save our own records before the virus spent itself out."
"Spent itself out? Kensuke, make some sense please? For the little people."
Kensuke sighed and put a hand up under his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose as he explained.
"The virus destroyed only a certian section of our mainframe before it basicly stopped itself. The entire virus consumed the exchange student section of our computers before it sorta retracted in on itself and shut down. As if someone had programmed it to only destroy the records of a few students before it did what it was supposed to do and shut down."
"You think NERV had something to do about this?" Toji asked softly, looking around as if agents of the organization that currently had the run of the city would appear and take them away.
"No, NERV would be more subtle about the virus. They wouldn't let it go through like that. They would probably just have certian people in the staff pressured into destroying the records themselves."
"So who did it?"
Kensuke leaned back from his computer and stared at the ceiling. A plain and unadorned ceiling.
The silence was heavy.
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Hal strolled out of his bathroom, toweling his wet hair dry as he slowly put his glasses on the tip of his nose. As he walked he took note of the faint clinking sound that eminatted from his dogtags rubbing against their chains. He ran a hand over the two silver pieces of aluminum before sighing and turning into his livingroom. He was still looking at his tags when a faint click echoed slightly in the bare room, causing him to stop suddenly and slowly lift his head up. To his chargin, standing in the shadows of the room was a suited, masked person, definity female and well off at that, with a pistol: a nine millimiter 1942 Luger to be precise; aimed at his head.
"Sit down." Came a melodus voice in slightly accented English.
"I don't suppose you'd let me dress first?" A motion with the pistol was his answer. Hal seated himself, making sure to cover himself with the towel appropriatly before looking back up at his guest. If she noticed the attempt at modesty her eyes, stormy gray, didn't reveal it. "So, may I ask why you are here in my apartment with a Luger pointed at me? Or do I get twenty questions first?"
"That will be enough sarcasm from you Harold Williams." She said curtly, moving forward from the shadows and taking the seat furthest away from him. "I will ask and you will answer. Understood?"
Hal smiled.
"Who are you working for?"
"Who are you working for?"
"Be silent and answer or I will shoot." She tipped the barrel of the weapon down, aiming carefully between Hal's legs.
"Oh, how cruel you are to a man." Hal countered, crossing his right leg over his knee.
"Who?"
"Why does it matter?"
"It does matter to my superiors."
"And who would they be? Seele? NERV? Do you even know what your left hand is doing as you act out the part as the right?"
"What were you doing looking up the school directories this afternoon?"
"Seeking out someone nearby so as to get aquainted." Hal smoothly answered, a small trickle of sweat running down the back of his neck.
"And who did you find?"
"Oh, so many to choose from. There was at least six that I can recall." He shifted his legs, letting his right down and his left up. The towel was becoming uncomfortable to sit in.
"Be warned Williams. If we dislike your assosciation with the people you live near. You will suffer consequences."
"And what would those be my dear?" He asked, dropping his left leg and leaning forward.
The mask covering her face shifted slightly, as if she had smiled, with her eyes narrowing to slits as she adjusted the aim of the muzzle and pulled the trigger. There was a phufft of air and a dull thwack. Hal reached down and pulled out the feathered vial dart, his eyes suddenly gritty and straining to stay open.
"Perhaps I shouldn't have asked..."
Hal collapsed forward into the waiting arms of the female interrogator. The last memory he had of the meeting was lavender purfume permeating his nostrels.
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"Well Captian Katsuragi? Did you learn anything?" Came a quiet but powerful voice that shattered the usual silence that fell in the cavernous office of Gendo Ikari. The person under inquiry was rather disconcerted by the way her superior had her handle the job, and was even more nervous about the way she was under pressure like this.
"No sir. Apparently, the wire taps in the apartment were found and disabled by the occupant as well. We only have this recording of his voice." She pressed a blue button in its recessed hole sitting in her remote datapad. And the distinct voice of the new 'exchange student' came over the interoffice speakers.
"NIA sure is good at remembering where all my stuff goes..."
The speakers died off with a squeal of static that was ended abruptly by Misato hitting the button again.
"The static happened nearly ten minutes after he made that statement."
"And in between?"
"Indistinct noises, running water. That is all the data analysists could come up with."
"It appears that he knows we are watching him indirectly...no matter. If he becomes a nuscience we have ways of dealing with him. Dismissed."
"Yessir."
Misato executed a sharp about face and walked camly out of the room, closing the door behind her with a shudder. Gendo, on the other hand, leaned back in his chair and marveled at the wonderous engravings set into his office ceiling. He remained that way all night, contemplating the arrival of yet another mysterious person in the already complex intrigue world of Tokyo-3. He suddenly sat up and reached for his phone.
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It was another Tuesday morning for one bleary eyed and dog tired Shinji Ikari. He rolled out of bed and slammed his hand down on the insistent alarm clock, causing it to stop abruptly and instead groan from the force of the hit. Shinji smiled quickly as he rummaged through his closet to pull out his fresh uniform and undergarments for the upcoming day and headed off for the bath. He quickly and frugally went about the chore of cleaning himself and then dressing himself before heading out to find food that he could whip up into breakfast.
"Perhaps Asuka would like something western, who knows she might even....no, nonononononon....just forget about that now." Shinji shook his head violently at the unbidden thoughts rising to the fore in his consiousness and simply went about what constituted his normal morining routine for the day ahead.
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It was daytime, light filtered through streaked windows and gracefully landed across the whited carpet that covered the floors. Eventually running across the soft material and hitting something with more substance. Hal stirred from his position on the floor and slowly opened his eyes, then jerked his head away when the sunlight came through his unadjusted pupils. He groaned and used his elbows as leverage to lift himself off of the ground. His legs and back ached from lying in such an awkward position for most of a day and he shivered a bit from his still being unclothed.
"Damn woman...could've at least put me in my bed and covered me up." He mumbled incoherently to himself as he stood up on shakey legs and moved off to take another bath. Turning on the cold water, Hal stepped right into the showers stream and gasped a bit as his brain struggled to comprehend the sudden shock of lowered temputure. In a few moments he was finished and in his bedroom, dressing for his next day at school.
"Stupid secret agents and their goddamn secretive ways. Not likes it gonna stop what I am ordered to do."
Hal grabbed his bag from near the door and slipped on his shoes, giving his modest apartment one look around before opening his door and walking out.
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"BAKA! You're gonna make us late! HURRY UP!"
"Sorry, I'm sorry Asuka!"
"Have a nice day you guys." Misato called out to her wards as they left for school. One very peeved at the other, and the other fearing for his life.
"Bye Misato!" They chorused back to her as they ran out the door. One nearly fleeing out as the other glared menacingly at his retreating form.
"Come back here you coward!" Asuka yelled as he fled into an elevator with Asuka hot on his heels. She barely made it into the closing doors and promptly thwacked him over the head for pressing the door close button with her outside of it.
"Baka!"
Shinji merely sighed. He didn't know why she was being meaner than usual to him, but it hadn't been a good morning at all. First he had overcooked the sausages that he had managed to scrounge up and then he accidently tripped her on her way out of the bathroom. That wasn't a pretty sight, well...it was a pretty sight, but when she managed to cover herself back up she promptly went after Shinji. Misato came in shortly after and managed to stop her from choking him to death...after her beer of course.
"Now that I think about it, it probably is a good thing she can drink so fast." He thought to himself as the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened up. And let the two Eva pilots run directly into their assembled friends.
"Hello Asuka, Shinji." Hikari quietly said.
"Hey Shinji! Whats up man, you look kinda pale." Toji said as the two girls started walking away.
"Ah, probably just Asuka a-," Kensuke yawned loudly and rubbed his eyes before finishing. "Again, y'know the newlyweds always like to fight in the morning."
"W-we do not!" Shinji blushed as he shouted loud enough for Asuka to hear.
"HEY BAKA! Come on or we'll really be late!" She said before turning around and engaging with a lively conversation.
Shinji sighed again and his shoulders visably slumped before his own group started moving for school. "So why are you so tired Kensuke?"
"I...kinda stayed up all night looking for information." He sheepishly answered, scratching the back of his neck.
"Whaja find?" Toji asked excitedly.
"Nothing! I couldn't find one single thing about...you know..."
"Didja check out the databases in America?"
"Yeah but those were nonexistant or wiped clean as well! The g-...the information simply does not exist."
"What are you two talking about?" Shinji asked during a break.
"Just looking in on something." Kensuke answered with a big false smile.
"Yeah, nothing for you to worry about man!" Toji grabbed Kensuke in a headlock and squeased, knocking his large glasses askew and turning Kensuke's face an interesting shade of purple.
"Can't-Breath-AIR!!!"
"Hun? OH! Sorry Kensuke!" Toji released the now blue faced nerd. Shinji winced at the raspy breaths his smaller friend was taking.
Ten meters in front of the three stooges, Hikari and Asuka were having their own private conversation about one of the favorite topics of every woman on Earth...or at least whats left of it.
"So tell me, have you seen the new guy?" Hikari asked excitedly, her eyes glinting in the morining sun.
"Who?"
"The new transfer student. Guy from America named...um, Harold Williams. I think."
"No. Whats he look like?" Asuka hunched over and glanced around them.
"Actually...like that."
Asuka followed the line of her friends pointing finger and spied a tall, brown haired man wearing khakis, a t-shirt, and a black vest turning down from a side street and running for the school. Much to their bewilderment, two black suited men with sunglasses and earpieces ran out of the same alleyway and ran down the street after him.
"What the..?" Was all Asuka or Hikari could say.
Up the street all three stooges had seen the running trio and Kensuke exchanged glances with Toji.
"Who was that?" Shinji asked.
"Toji, take my bag. I'll meet up with you later."
"Don't get caught man." Toji said quickly as he grabbed the relativly light satchel Kensuke handed him before both he and Shinji watched him run off.
"Wha, hun? Where's Kensuke going?"
Toji remained silent for a moment and continued to watch his longtime friend run past the two girls and continue his own pursuit, camera leading the way.
"Toji!"
"We're gonna be late for class if we stand around here much more. Let's go Shinji."
Shinji could only look questioningly at Toji as he shouldered Kensuke's bag and started walking again.
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"Kuso...Why the hell does NERV put TWO spooks on me!!" Hal thought as he continued his fast pace for the school. He wasn't breathing too hard, yet. Training had actually prepared him for a twenty mile city run with a tail on him. But training ended three years ago, three years is a lot of time to get out of shape. Which the agents behind him certianly weren't.
He had noticed the agents following him quite easily, two guys wearing suits and sunglasses walking after you for nearly a mile has a tendancy to alert you to their prescence after all. What was bothering Hal was the decididly un-subtle way NERV was approaching the matter.
"Maybe their not NERV," He thought. "But who? Who would be stupid enough to blatently put two guys on me and let me notice them?"
Then suddenly he tripped over someones foot. The fall throwing him to the sidewalk and scraping his hands and elbows as he landed.
"Setup, setup, setup! You bloody idiot you were ment to run this way and you did. You stupid bloody fool!" He cursed himself silently as the two tails grabbed him and pulled him to his feet.
"We would like to have a word with you." Said the left hand agent, a strapping brute of an agent.
"Be so kind as to lead the way then." Hal's acid voice apparently had no effect on either agent, not that it was ment to.
The agents escorted him to a nearby cafe' and one opened the door for him, the other shoving him through it. Inside sat a man camly smoking a cigarette, his hair pulled back into a ponytail with the front cropped short and left dangling over his eyes. The only other notable feature about him was the collection of stubble that played across his lower jaw. The two agents followed Hal inside and moved to cover the door.
"Hello, can I offer you anything to eat or drink?"
"Agent Ryoji Kaji. So nice to meet your acquaintence." Hal solemly intoned as he sat down in the seat opposite the rougish agent.
"Ah, well. Your masters must have made you study bios on everyone working here."
"Only a few."
Kaji leaned forward and put his cigarette down in an ashtray. "Look, I'll make this short...who are you working for?"
"I already told you guys at NERV, and I won't repeat myself."
Hal's small smile that sprouted up at his riposte suddenly turned down as he noticed a flash of confusion that rolled through his counterpart's features and eyes before it vanished.
"Ah, I see. Well then...perhaps it was a waste of my time to go through this then."
"Perhaps. Another time, agent?"
"Maybe...show him out please."
Kaji waited until the tall American was out the door with the two suits before picking his slowly burning cigarette from its ashtray and puffing on it slowly. He remained that way for some time before his cellphone rang.
"Kaji...yes I made contact...no he didn't tell me...no Ikari doesn't know yet...I think Seele already made their own attempt...yes, of course." Kaji broke the connection and dialed another number, the phone rang several times before it was answered.
"Kaji here, he didn't tell me...no I didn't apply any techniques...he has to make it out of here in one piece or we will look suspicious...yes, the next one will be in use now."
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Hal rubbed his elbows gently as the two spooks opened the door for him and usured him out.
"This meeting never happened." Said the hulking brute.
"If our agency learns that the public heard of a rundown by two agents dressed in black." The other intoned.
"I do know the game." Hal interrupted the monolouge. He turned away and picked up his bookbag as he started running again, heading for the school once more. The two agents waited until he had dissapeared from sight before turning and re-entering the cafe'. They failed to notice one small lanky nerd with his camera, hidden away behind several boxes and trashcans. Filming everything.
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Hal walked slowly into his school, the bell already rung and the students all solemly sitting in their classes listining to the drone of teachers voices fill the air alonside the thrum of insects. He walked ponderously past a large tree and then stopped in its shade, head cocked to the side as though he might have heard a noise.
"Shit...does he know I'm here?" Kensuke asked himself as he took cover behind another tree. After a moment or two he thought he heard laughter softly coming from ahead of him, but whatever he heard slowly faded as its source moved further away.
"Time to go." He grunted, shutting off his video camera and glancing furitivly around the courtyard before sprinting into the school and up to his classroom. He slowed his breathing and slid aside the door, awaiting aprehensivly for his punishment from the overbearing teacher. And was met with quiet rustling and abruptly ended whispers. He opened his eyes slowly, not remembering having closed them, and stared open-mouthed at the empty desk of the teacher.
"Mr. Aida...where exactly have you been?" His brown headed representative began to intone. Kensuke decided that he would have rather held buckets of water than suffer this.
"I...uhh, I've been..."
"Augh...never mind, get in your desk. I'm pretty sure the teacher will show up soon."
Kensuke quickly made good on his narrow escape and found his way next to Toji and Shinji. He abstractly noticed Rei was also missing, though that wasn't exactly news for the class, but he noticed it anyway.
"Hey man, narrow. Eh?" Toji whispered, his head bobbing at the glaring Hikari.
"Yeah, verrry narrow. The guy was run down and captured by the suits."
"What?"
"The exchange student, moron!" Kensuke whispered harshly to his friend, he gave a quick glance around and found that Shinji was staring off at Asuka and everyone else was wrapped up in their own private talks. "They took him into a cafe' and then let him out a few minutes later...here, take a look."
Toji took the offered recorder and scrolled it back to the end of the chase.
Foot put out in front of running guy.
Guy falls down.
Suits catch guy.
Guy taken into cafe'.
Guy let out of cafe'.
Guy given ominus talking to by the suits, just like Kensuke said.
"Freaky stuff man. Who are the suits working for though?" Toji switched over to his laptop, best to keep this away from prying ears.
"Dunno...could be anyone really. NERV, some group I heard of from Europe: Seale, or Sayle." Kensuke typed in return. "Then again it could be someone else. Someone with connections but no loyalties...maybe a rouge spy or even a faction group!!"
"Man, you've watched too many movies lately. Get a grip man, NERV would never allow for something like that here." Toji amonished gently, even he had some idea as to who held the power in Tokyo-3 when it came to the spy game.
Suddenly the door swished open again, Hikari stood quickly and walked outside. Presumably to greet the teacher as usual. Instead she was handed a note and given some quick, unheard instructions. She soon walked back into the classroom and quickly got the students attention.
"Well it seems that our regular teacher suffered a heart attack early this morning and is at the hospital." Hikari waited patiently for the whispers to die down. "And the regular substitute for the school is running a bit late, so...um, we have one of our upperclassmen assigned to watch over us until the substitute shows up. A Mr. Williams...now all of you please stand and bow," The class complied and waited momentarily as a heated but quiet discussion was heard from outside the thin door of the classroom. Hikari started to sweat a bit at some of the language being used but quickly regained her composure as the door opened again and Hal stepped in.
"Take your seats." She finally said. Hal swept the room with his eyes and turned to head for the teachers desk, muttering angrily to himself.
"Be late for class one goddamn day and this is what they do to you. Just my damn luck." Hal cursed in English. A few of the students glanced around at each other, and Hal noticed one taller red-haired girl simply blink. "Well, at least they didn't fucking call me 'Harold'. Prick of a fucking principal and that dumbass teacher of mine doin' this to me." Hal continued in English as he walked up and sat down behind the teachers desk. He noticed the red-haired girl blink twice more as he continued his rantings. He gave a slight glance at the seating charts and at the roll book and shook his head. "Of all days. First I get shot, then run down, then interrogated, then late to school, now I'm a damn teacher!"
Asuka blinked once more, wondering if he knew that she could understand what he was saying. Well, most of what he was saying. She was getting lost on his repeated references to being shot while in a towel...but still.
"Um, Mr. Williams?" Hikari gently asked the still English-speaking teacher. That seemed to jolt him out of the semi-trance he was in and he turned to face her.
"Yes?"
"Um, what exactly are we going to do today?" She asked.
Hal looked at her for a moment and then shifted to look at the classroom. Chairs groaned and students shifted as they found their eyes met by his own.
"What do you normally do?" He asked, a bit flustered and nervous.
"Well...um, how should I put it?"
"Teach usually puts half the class to sleep and the rest into a zombie trance with an insanely boring talk on the Second Impact." Volunteered one boy near the middle. Some of the class laughed at that certian thought and fell silent as they noticed their sub not laughing with them.
"Well...this could be a great bloody disaster." He said, leaning deep into the chair with a sigh.
"What do you mean by, bloody?" Asked one girl near the front.
"Hun? Oh, um...its a figure of speech. Something the British do."
"Are you British?" Asked another girl, this time from the back.
"No, I wish. American."
"Where did you come from in America?" Asked the class representative as she sat back down.
"Georgia...born right before the Second Impact."
"Whats it like?" Asked another student.
"Well, it was kinda under water when I was around three or so."
And so the morning went. Hal being asked questions, the students getting a reply. Kensuke didn't ask any questions, but he had subtly set up his video recorder to tape everything. He listened intently as the class bombarded the exchange student with questions and was amazed at some of the answers that the seventeen year old boy gave in response. He continued to listen and tape until the door opened and an older man stepped in: the regular substitute teacher. Hal excused himself and left for his own classes, spending the time idly thinking until lunchtime rolled around and he was dismissed with the rest of his class. He stood quickly and left the classroom, heading randomly through the halls, his thoughts on the kids in the class the principal made him watch over.
"That wasn't so bad...could have been worse. Could have been raining." He quoted softly, stopping for a moment in the hall to chuckle at the old line from an old movie. "That was a real good one too."
Slowly he found his way out of the school and back underneath the same lonely tree off to the side, away from everyone. He sat down heavily and quickly glanced around with his eyes to see if anyone was watching or approaching him. Satisfied, he opened his laptop and accessed the internet quickly. After setting up a discrete encryption code and a powerful firewall to shield his activites he rapidly surfed through several sites until he reached a blank, black screen with a small blinking diode near the top.
Access identification: Engle22. Pasword: Peeka-boo.
(Processing...processing...identification accepted. Welcome Engle22. Requests?)
Latest mail files download.
(Processing. Downloading...finished. Do you wish to view?)
Yes.
The screen suddenly was filled with words and numbers, mixed together in a random fashion that baffled the eye to try and understand. Hal studied the lines for a moment before he entered a seven digit number. The screen blanked out for a moment and then reappeared, this time with the words being rearranged and numbers being substituted for letters. In a moment he had it.
To: Engle22
From: Omega00
You situation is tenuous. Proceede with contact at your discrecion. Package is being sent to you with items 21 and 213 inside it. Will arrive on the twelfth. Keep appraised of situation current. Do nothing to draw unnecessary attention to yourself or your mission.
End transmission.
Hal memorized the message and then entered another seven digit number that cleared the message from his screen and cut off his acces to the internet. Soon after he closed the laptop and looked up...right into the blue eyes of the red-haired girl he noticed before.
"GAAAHHH!" He cried out, jumping backwards against the rough bark of the tree. The girl simply blinked again. "Who are you?"
"Asuka Langely Sohryu. I'm in the class you were subbing." She answered in English, good English too.
Now it was Hal's turn to blink. "You...you heard what I was saying in the class didn't you."
"Yes. It wouldn't do to let little children like me hear stuff like that you know." She said haughtily as Hal regained control of himself and sat back down.
"So?"
"Hmphh...just like every other boy. Never accep-"
"BOY! Look here now. I ain't no damn boy! I am probably three or so years older than you little one so learn some respect for your elders!"
"Compared to a college graduate like me, you are nothing but a boy." She said, flipping a lock of her hair back across her shoulders as she leaned back into the sunlight.
"Then why the hell are you talking to me! Go away you annoying pest."
"I will not go away...how dare you talk to the esteemed and famous pilot of Evangelion Unit 02 like that!"
"Oh, so you're one of those pilots hun? Where's Ikari then? I know about him but I dare say I've never heard about you." Hal egged her on.
All he got in return was a low growl of anger before she turned on her heel and stomped away. Heading for the class representative, a nice, shy, and quiet girl if overly controlling at some points in his mind.
"Geez, looks like you got the welcome to Tokyo-3 treatment from Asuka." Came a voice from behind him.
Hal turned to see a freckled kid with light brown hair and glasses leaning against the tree with a small portable camcorder in his hands filming the girl finish her jaunt and sit down heavily.
"Do I..?"
"Know me? I'm also in her class. Kensuke Aida." The boy extended his hand for a firm handshake with Hal.
"Guess you know who I am then."
"Well, not really. See, I'm the local school nerd and when I tried to find out more about you from the school systems I drew up a blank. So I decided to try the direct aproach."
Hal almost smiled as he noticed Kensuke shift his feet almost imperceptivly. "I take it you don't do this very often."
"Well...yeah. In fact, you're the first that I had to try this with."
"Ah, don't worry about it. Sit down, ask me whatever you want." Hal gestured to the grass infront of him.
"So what do I call you? Harold?"
"NO! Anything but Harold. Just call me Hal, okay."
Kensuke was shocked by the sudden outburst but quickly covered his suprise by opening his laptop and starting up a WordPad application.
"Okay Hal. So...what do you like to do in your free time?"
---------------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------
"Where's Kensuke?" Shinji asked a near sleeping Toji as he sat down with his bento.
"Talk'n to the exchange kid." Toji rolled over on his side.
"Oh."
Toji considered asking why Shinji wasn't interested with that idea when a new thought ran across his mind.
"Say Shinji?"
"Yeah?"
"The next school dance is in a few weeks. Planning to finally ask Asuka out?"
A flurry of coughing and forced breathing caused Toji to glance up and make sure his friend would still be alive to answer the question.
"W-why do you," A loud and forceful cough interrupted Shinji for a moment before he continued. "Ask that?"
"Ah, comon...I've seen the way you look at her. Can't understand why you like her, but I can see it." Silence was all the answer Shinji gave him. "So, are you going to ask her out? Or do I need to get Kensuke to use your I.D. to send a message through the school system?"
"Well, I...uhh..."
Toji smiled and waited, knowing that it would only be a matter of time before his friend broke down and ask.
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Later that evening, Hal was sitting in his apartment typing away on his computer. The flat ovid set near his rapidly fluttering hands in case it was needed for that evening. Quickly he set up an encryption and a firewall before he shifted his way to the required internet area. He stopped suddenly at some percived sound in the distance, his hand straying over the ovid before he shook his head and went back to typing.
Access identification: Engle22. Pasword: Peeka-boo.
(Processing...processing...identification accepted. Welcome Engle22. Requests?)
Send message to: Omega00. Request information on use of packages 21 and 213. Mission?
(Sending...sent...receving a return message...opening message board...securing chanel.
A seperate box appeared, the background a shimmering crimson laced with black trimming and a single piece of what appeared to be armored breastplate of a more modern type. In the middle of that armor blazed an emblem of an obsidion crystal surrounded by a ice blue flame.
*It is dangerous to talk while in your abode. Engle22.*
I have protection. What is the mission that should require a 21 and 213?
*Infiltration of primary target. We have a test devised for them.*
Test?
*Cut primary power sources. Then try to observe the reboot of their data systems.*
When?
*One week from tommorrow. Give yourself time to get acquainted with the 213. Omega00 out.*
The box dropped off of his screen, leaving Hal to shut down his systems and turn of his computer. It was raining outside now, the total darkness of his apartment softly backlit by an unseen lightsource near his windows. He sat for a moment listining to the rain pour down against his windows, thinking about his second mission for Omega. In order for it to succeed, though, his first mission would have to be completed.
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Knock, Knock, Knock.
Kensuke looked up from the latest source of information regarding the mysterious Angels and quickly glanced around. Nothing had changed of course, but he felt uneasy nonetheless.
Knock, Knock, Knock.
Again someone pounded lightly on the door. A quick glance at the clock told him it was roughly eleven at night.
"It might be father...no, he's never forgotton his house key before. Then who?"
Knock, Knock, Knock.
This time Kensuke stood up and located his illegal and highly guarded secret 45 automatic and loaded it. After he chambered a round Kensuke moved quietly to the house door and opened it slightly.
"'Bout time man, my ass is freezing." The unfamiliar language settled in his ears and Kensuke peeked out through the slit of the door, holding his pistol behind his hip.
"Who is it?"
"Hal. C'mon man let me in, I'm soaked."
The door opened up and let in the tall American, dripping wet and shivering now, into the house. Kensuke moved quickly after he had entered to close the door again and relock it. Hal sneezed violently twice and turned to see the flash of dull metal being put into a pocket.
"Kensuke, what the hell was that?" He asked, not realizing he was still speaking in English. Soon though Hal realized his mistake from the younger boy's arched eyebrow. "Sorry, look...I need to ask you for a favor. And perhaps offer you something in exchange." He hesitated for a moment before gesturing at the hand still in Kensuke's pocket. "Does your father know you have that antique?"
"What do you want? And what offer are you going to make?"
"Direct...well then. I'll be just as direct. Perhaps though you should let me dry off?"
Later, the two were sitting in Kensuke's room. One on the bed, rarely used and cluttered with miscellanous items; and the other sitting aside the computer, with his pistol drawn and leveled across his thigh.
"Kensuke, what do you know about the Obsidion Flames?"
"Old power group. Remmenant from anchient Euro power kingdoms. Rumored to be disbanded and reformed into several splinter groups...including one that went on to found the Nazi's."
"Well, you do know past history...and it was true that splinter groups formed. But the main group remained."
At this small sparks formed in the pupils of Kensuke's eyes and he sat upright. "They're still active?"
"Good, alert. Yes, they are."
"Why are you telling me this?" Kensuke shifted the muzzle of his weapon slightly over to cover Hal.
"I told you before, I need some help. I know that you have unprecedented amounts of information about the details and the layout of NERV Headquarters."
"I do have some info."
"I need to get that information, as well as info regarding security and the rotation of guards and such."
"For an insertion?"
Hal remained silent for a moment as he eyed the boy and the pistol. "That's for me to know. In exchange for the information I am willing to pay-"
"No."
"No?" Hal's eyebrows arched up.
"Induction into the group. You want help, make me a member." Kensuke worked hard to maintain his composure as the oportunity made him nearly smile with glee. Hal remained silent for a moment and then motioned to the computer. Kensuke nodded and stood off to the side as Hal sat himself down and began the process of contacting his superiors. Taking out a disk and inserting it into the computer let him set up his encryption code as well as a protective firewall to block any NERV inquiries as he moved rapidly through the internet. Soon he arrived at his contact site and typed in a request.
Engle22 has made a contact for information and he wishes to be made a section member for Japan.
They waited for several minutes before a reply came up.
*Who?*
Kensuke Aida.
*3663worthy?*
In my opinion...yes.
*Granted. Coding name is Engle311, training will begin under Engle22's hand. Understood?*
Absolutely.
Hal turned back to Kensuke, noticing that the pistol was hidden away.
"Happy, Engle311?"
"Very. Now, come back tommorrow and I will give you what you need."
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Hal walked back through the rain, a smile spred discreetly on his face as he tossed the same information disc that he used at Kensuke's house down a water logged rain gutter. He waited a moment as he watched the black piece of plastic bob and then sink down into the murky depths to be washed away to who know's where. Turning swiftly he resumed his pace, faster now, back to his own apartment and some dry clothes. Later, he entered his apartment and without removing his shoes walked through the darkened area to the phone. Hal waited a moment and held his hand over the reciver almost aprehensivly. The phone rang.
"Hal...yes, my first mission is complete. Out."
The small smile resumed its postion on his face as he set the phone down and then looked up at the ceiling. As if someone there shared his private joke.
Meanwhile: In the apartment directly above Harold Williams own several Section 2 men looked at each other in search of answers. And each in turn shrugged his shoulders in silent answer to the others.
"Play it back." Ordered one, stubbing out his cigarette and pulling another one from his carton. A whir and squeal of the recorded conversation lasted a few seconds and then clicked to a stop. Another click started the conversation and the agents silently waited to hear it again.
"Hal," The almost familiar voice of the man Gendo Ikari had personally ordered this survallience on sounded across the cramped room.
"Is it done?" A different voice, low and gravely asked the one question that had them all puzzled.
"Yes, my first mission is complete. Out."
The agent in charge of the tape pressed a button to stop it and looked back over at the leader. All he did was pull a long drag on the cigarette and slowly release its soft gray smoke into the stale air of the room. Without moving his head he glanced back up at the others before speaking.
"Take it to the commander."
Two hours later, Ikari listened to the conversation several times before turning to the Section 2 agent.
"Tell your division leader to keep trying to break the firewall. I want to know what he is doing. Dismissed." He waited several more antagonizing moments as the agent saluted and then walked the long distance, called by some men the Trip to and from Hell, out of the spartan office before he turned and pressed a recessed button set into his desk. Soon the door opened again and the familiar face of Ryoji Kaji waltzed his way into the office.
"Good eve-...well, morning now isn't it?" His ever chipper voice called out even as Gendo leveled an icy gaze at him.
"The operation is only proving slightly successful, so when does your agent act?"
"Soon, in fact: I think he's already in position to work for us."
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Early that morning, before the first rays of an unrelenting sun warmed the Earth surrounding Tokyo-2, several planes landed and took off. A consistent flow of traffic that never ceased, never slowed. It was on two of these flights, each nearly two hours apart, that four men stepped off and into the modern airport terminals. Each man made his way dutifully through customs, getting clearance and having their baggage x-rayed and their passports checked each. Two of these men were waiting in a small foreign cafe' at seperate tables when the other two made their way through and walked past. First one then the other stood and walked after the other, spaced generously apart but close enough to stay in eye contact with the one infront of them. If anyone looked at them they would have seemed unremarkable. One was tall and dark, with raven black hair drawn up in dreadlocks and then pulled back into a loose ponytail; another was short and slightly stocky, with broad shoulders and glasses underneath blonde highlights that hid deep brown eyes that would make any woman swoon in his arms; the third was the tallest of the four, thin and lanky but hidden beneath his large and voluminus trenchcoat of tan that constantly swished against the black leather briefcase held by his right hand; the last was most noticeably not a foreigner, passing by several places that he could remember passing so many times before, he was the shortest of the group and probably the most noticeable in the bustling airport that regularly delt with thousands if not hundreds of thousands of international people shuffling off to one place or another every hour. Soon three of the group was standing outside, waiting for a fourth to pull up a rented car. They had agreed that it would be dangerous to be seen together before they arrived at Tokyo-3, but the rates for car rental were to good to pass up for normal taxi fare.
"Figures Omega would be a stricktler for penny-pinching transport rates." Said the trenchcoat as he streched wildly in the air, trying to rid his back of the crinks a 22 hour flight in coach woud give you.
"Could be worse, y'know." Said the aisan. "Could be-"
"Yeah, yeah, I know. Could be raining. Geez, you hang around the kid to often.
"Knock it off you two...Hicks is coming up." Said the dark man.
Soon a black, rather large car swung up and around to stop by the curb. Glistining drops of water rolling off and spraying the three men who waited testified to the fact that it had indeed been raining recently...or that the car was washed recently, not that it mattered. The trenchcoat took a moment to glare at the suddenly smiling aisan before he growled and reached down for his baggage. The trunk popped up and baggage quickly and efficiently moved to occupy the open space within its dark recesses. Soon after the car rolled out of the parking area and navigated its way into the growing brightness of the day.
Heading directly for Tokyo-3.
Phionex of the Fallen notes: This is the result of being forced by my father to watch to many James Bond flics. Thanks Dad! Well, I really had nothing to do one day so I decided to write up this fic about a transfer student who worked for some organization other than Seele, the UN, Japanese Intelligence, or NERV! I know, crazy stuff. I am trying to keep people guessing as to who is doing what behind which others backs...in other words, when I figure out how to tie in stuff from one part to stuff happening in another it will all make sense to everyone....I hope.....anyway, please review with all honest critisim in idea. And remember that your comments help define the type of works that are next published with the intent to be as pleasing and realistic to your mind...or if you're going to be snotty about it: what is going to irk you in the future. As to those who might wonder about the age of the kid think: a younger man poking his nose around in NERV affairs will attract less attention than someone like Ryoji Kaji's age. Plus: a possible way to have direct access to the Eva Pilots...or something else.
Thanks to my Pre-Readers: Simon Blaze and the wonderfully critical Dennisud: you both helped me alot during this last week of ironing out details so thank you very much.