Evangelion 2.0 (Game Thread)

[EnigmaticSevens]

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Bright eyes watched the misshapen angel lash out at the fleas that pestered it. A small part of Iggy hoped that turret was machine operated, that no maintenance crews or simple passer byes had been sacrificed in that failed attack. That small part of Iggy's mind registered its complaint, a fraction of a percent of protest in a great vast sea of not giving a damn! Mourn for the dead later, shed those tears later, save the melancholy for the afterglow, and for now... make the bastard bleed!

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For a few seconds Iggy could no longer understand the commands coming from HQ, paying no heed to the words or the warnings. The only orders that mattered to the beast had been given long ago. Kushiel had made its first mistake, flinched at the vital moment and thus shown weakness. Let it happen just once more and Iggy would strike, the demon would move, and the Wendigo would feed at long last. Iggy noted beloved brothers and sisters moving into action, teasing out a response from the prey and Iggy thanked them for their efforts, though in the end, they wouldn't matter. None of it would matter, only the moment would matter, an instant of time when all the universe was right and the sheer, utter joy of it all flooded Iggy's veins.

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Unit-82 and another teased the Angel, firing of a hail of bullets at its head, pricking at its weakness. They pricked and pricked and pricked and there! There the great creature flinched once more, lashing out with that strange tentacle, that most obvious target. In all its anger, Kushiel bared what might as well have been a throat for all Iggy cared. The tension in a coiled spring loosed all at once, every muscle in Unit-77's body propelling it forward, launching it at a speed that sent London-2's detritus flying. The Eva's nature tended to noticeably focus its rather energetic pilot, channeling all that excess energy into the Hunt. But in this moment, both souls found perfectly common ground, in this one beautiful space, there could be perfect, joyous, wild abandon, "OH HELLS THE FUCK YES! MINE!"

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Three great bounds and the beast was upon the towering angel, scaling it, using the resistance of the angel's AT Field to climb the creature like a tree, oblivious to the gunfire of its allies. The lashing tentacle had yet to find it's mark when Iggy found his. One mighty swipe and the progressive blades on the claws of one hand whined as they tore through what remained of Kushiel's weaker upper AT Field like tissue paper. The Eva's teeth sank home, tearing into the body of the Angel where the tentacle originated. A sound like crumbling masonry and tearing flesh echoed through the fortress city as the Wendigo took its prize, a sizable hunk out of Kushiel's towering frame, tentacle dead and dangling from it, a gout of blood spraying out of the wound.

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Without a moment's hesitation, Unit-77 pulled back, pumping mighty legs and pushing off of the angel's form, twisting at it landed, crouched, back on solid concrete and dashing away, one goal complete. It circled back towards the umbilical cord it had abandoned without a second thought, ready to reattach and wait once more. The waiting didn't bother it, the reward was always sweet. It dropped the hunk of angel flesh and licked its chops, terrible jaws dripping, mouth caught in something almost like a grin as its tongue lolled out. Inside the plug, Iggy's face played the Eva's mirror, his breath coming in giddy pants as a frantic sort of chuckle bubbled up from inside his chest, "Tentacle neutralized."

 

[Pappytech]

"Strike team this is Jaeger."

The sudden burst of sound cut through the LCL, the entry plug's speakers doing a fantastic job of replicating the Colonel's voice. Shaking her head, Tammy tried to focus on the man's voice, to think about something other than the fear coursing through her veins.

"For those of you that need them, weapons are en route and should be coming up to you from the supply elevator not far from your position."

A loud clunking noise, coming from the platform behind her and a little to her left, caught the pilot's attention. Twisting her (and Unit-73's) head around, she noted the massive, building sized container that had just burst up from beneath the earth. More specifically, she noted its only contents.

The Rail Rifle (MKI, to be precise) was simply enormous; there was really no other way to describe it. Easily 75 meters long, it was the product of taking an ordinary sniper rifle and increasing its scale to an incredible degree. What semi-magical properties kept it from collapsing under its own weight, Tammy didn't know. She did, however, know one little detail about it:

It packed a hell of a punch.

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"Get armed and take this freak out and remember aim for its weak points the sooner this is over the better, good luck...Jaeger out."

"Can do, sir," Tammy replied, her words finally carrying a bit of strength and confidence. "Thank you for the gun!" Striding forward, Unit-73 reached out and tore the gun from its casing. Its fingers wrapping tightly around the rifle's massive stock and barrel, the Eva began to move, taking a few cautious steps towards the city. The addition of a few thousand tons of steel, glass, and gunpowder did little to slow it down; Unit-73 hefted the weapon as easily as Tammy could have handled her little brother's BB gun.

"The Units that need their weapons, fetch them immediately and engage Kurhiel but keep your distance."

Standing roughly fifteen kilometers away from the Angel's impact site, Tammy sent Unit-73 into a half-kneeling position and brought the Rail Rifle up to the Eva's shoulder. With quick, practiced movements, she lined up with the cross-hairs and stared down the barrel of the gun, slowing her breathing until the scope was almost perfectly still.

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The girl could feel her, no, Unit-73's finger resting against the trigger. All it would take was a single motion, and she'd really be a part of this battle. She'd be doing her part to keep the world safe. But still... She hesitated. Squeezing that simple, relatively small lever was proving nearly impossible; some part of her was still afraid of actually engaging the Angel. Unbidden, images of what had happened to the turret flashed through her mind, and Tammy felt her hands trembling again.

She could hear the other pilots, all of them in their Evas and so sure of themselves, making plans and launching their own attacks. But the thought of that impossibly long, impossibly alien tendril lancing through the air and taking her head off...

"Come on, come on, come on," she muttered, trying to coax herself into pulling the trigger. "Come on, come on, come on, come on."

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"Come o-"

"OH HELLS THE FUCK YES! MINE!"

A part of Tammy registered the fact that Unit-77 was currently hurtling through the air like some kind of massive, humanoid missile, but most of her could only sit there in dumb shock. It was only after the other Eva had scaled to the top of the Angel, smashed through its defenses, and simply ripped its tentacle out with its teeth that she found herself able to properly move and think again.

Hell, it wasn't like she had anything to be afraid of anymore.

"Okay, screw it. Unit-73, firing!"

As Unit-77 jumped clear of the Angel, Tammy finally pulled the trigger. And with a report loud enough to shatter unprotected eardrums, Uni-73 sent a bullet the approximate size and at least ten times denser than a city bus hurtling towards Kurhiel's now undefended upper-segment.

Then it sent another four for good measure, each shot coming about one and a half seconds after the one before it.

 

[Asclepion]

Unit-82 targeted Kushiel from it's elevated position. The Angel didn't wait for her to fire, attacking as soon as she raised her weapon. The whip lashed out at her, but she raised her A.T. Field defenses swiftly enough to avoid being cut in two. Instead it wrapped around the Eva's waist, thrashing it through the air, beating it against the sides of buildings and the ground and inflicting surges until Kushiel held the Eva in an attempt to squeeze the life out of it. Positron Cannon shots flew everywhere.

Unit 41 was soaring through the air, leaping and firing downward through the lesser A.T. field at the Angels top. Though Kushiel's shell appears to be made of stone, it is really a chitinous material similar to that of an insect. It is incredibly durable and actually absorbs most of the blows by distributing the force of the impact and reducing the strain taken by direct hits. It's because of this strong, yet flexible surface that it did not crack under the incredible force of its impact with the earth. Most bullets will bounce off harmlessly.

The Battle Rifle damaged the Angel's wings and tentacle appendage. It flung Unit-82 away and struck toward Lillian' Eva. She twisted the Evangelion in midair and the tentacle went sailing past.

Gale in Unit-75 was rushing into the fray, while Waters in Unit-99 stayed back and opened fire.

Unit-77 had berserked and was swiping into its flesh in a rage. The Angel's shell still withstood them, but was cracking from the numerous attacks coming from every unit. The whip appendage was torn off, and finally a a trench was opened in the Kushiel's upper body from the firing and the Berserk Eva created a large hole in it's lower portion.

Unit-77 was now covered in Spawn. They begin to pour forth from the "wounds"; the Pillar-body could be compared to a container or incubator. The Eva roared as they swarmed over it and liquified it's armor and flesh. Others secrete a rich substance that helps to rebuild the lost pieces.

It was through the battle that he saw Kushiel's core in the lower region of it's pillar-body.

 

[Mr.Ivebeenframed]

"Core spotted. I repeat the core has been spotted." Amira said to all of the pilots. Whatever the pilots were doing, it was working. The tentacle was removed but now the swarm was spilling from its open wounds both attacking Unit-77 and trying to repair the wound. She needed everyone attacking the exposed core at once.

"Ranged Units increase the fire. I want that core exposed so that one of you can plunge a Progressive knife into it." The action was frantic but Amira knew that it was best to remain composed and calm. Any slip of common judgement could mean deadly for everyone.

 

[DragonofDecay86]

Gale reacted instantly, putting away his knife and drawing forth his battle rifle again to duck aside as some of the stray positron shots slammed into the building beside him. Gale could now feel the familiar chill, not from the LCL, but from the evangelion itself. Gale watched as the evangelion beside him was plucked off of the building, being slammed about like a rag doll before tossed aside like some scrap metal. Both wings closed as Gale raised his rifle and aimed at the angel, lining up his sights with the hole that unit-77 had made in the shell.

"77, can you keep tearing away at the pillar?" Gale asked through the comm, jumping down from the building he was on to a slightly smaller one beside it so he could get a clear shot on the pillar's open hole.

Gale pulled the trigger, squeezing off a few rounds at the opening and making sure to take care in not hitting the other evangelion. Gale glanced down at the system for a brief second. 77%. Gale took his eyes away from the synchronization rate, and instead opened up his comm system again.

"82, are you alright?" Gale asked, just seconds before another voice on the comm spoke up.

"Core spotted. I repeat the core has been spotted. Ranged Units increase the fire. I want that core exposed so that one of you can plunge a Progressive knife into it."

"Yes ma'am." Gale said, this time centering his aim on the bottom of the hole and firing.

 

[Rogue Trooper]

?Shit? Karl spat as he watched the strike teams battle with the angel unfolding. Even with most of the strike team giving their all against the abomination it didn?t seem to make much of an impact. Unit-77 was the only one who appeared to be making any serious damage, however the young fool let his Eva get the better of him and now he was off the edge. The damage that Unit-77 had done, only served to act as a hole for more of those beetle like things to crawl out of so they could swarm unit-77 and try to repair the damage he had done.

"Core spotted. I repeat the core has been spotted. Ranged Units increase the fire. I want that core exposed so that one of you can plunge a Progressive knife into it."

The commander was right, the core was exposed and all effort should be put into delivering the final blow against the abomination. However Unit-77 was still berserked and that meant that he was a potential risk to himself and his comrades. Karl had unluckily seen the damage that a berserked Eva could unleash several years ago and the results weren?t pretty.

?Commander? Karl spoke addressing Amira over the noise of the Command centre ?Unit-77 has berserked, which means that he is a danger to the mission and should be avoided. The team should continue with your orders; however they need to maintain a safe distance from him. If they don?t?it may get bloody...I've seen what can happen?.

 

[EmperorZuma]

Mark hat sat back for the majority of the fight, studying the Angel's AT field and the surrounding variables that would effect the shots from his positron rifle. By the time the core was exposed, he had all the information required.

"Ranged Units increase the fire. I want that core exposed so that one of you can plunge a Progressive knife into it."

"Roger, Unit 13-B is commencing scatter barrage." Mark left his token warning echo through the comms as he raised his AT field in small-panel form several key spots ahead of him. Taking aim, Big Roger leveled the gun, not at the Angel or its Spawn, but at one of the panels.

Then, he fired, and the beam of light hit the panel was was suddenly redirected towards another panel, which redirected it again. The beam hit one panel after another and appeared to relatively slow down, until it hit the last panel. Instead of bouncing off, the beam passed through the panel, and was split into many small beams of light, as if splitting off from a prism.

The shots, while too weak to substantially harm the Angel, saturated the area around it, causing grievous harm to the Spawn that were serving as the Angel's defense.

 

[hiei82]

At first, the plan seemed to work. She didn't even need to fire to get the Angel's attention and when the whip hit, her A.T. Field held up blocking the Angel's cutting power. Then, in a split second, the plan was shattered. The Angel wrapped it's whip around her and - though her A.T. Field held - the Angel was able to life her and throw her around like a rag doll.

It's first decision was to smash her through a large building - a parking garage by appearances - and into an old apartment building. When the Eva came to a halt at the end of the swing, the angel lifted her up and repeated; this time through a different apartment complex and a shopping center. Finally, it swung once more, slamming Unit-82 head first into the pavement.

All things told, it could have been worse. Her A.T. Field absorbed most of the strikes without significant damage. At most, it was a drain on her power supply. Perhaps realizing this, Kushiel changed tactics, trying to squeeze the life from her. This was far more effective, placing ab enormous burden on the A.T. Field as well as the Eva - and herself by extension. She could feel her Eva's rib cage begin to crack under the weight of the tentacle as it tried to choke her to death. In her struggle, her fingers pressed the trigger for her weapon, sending blasts of positrons in random directions.

Fortunately for her, the others managed to draw the ire of the beast, causing it to toss her aside. She flew nearly a mile before unceremoniously crashing into the entertainment district, demolishing six pubs, two nightclubs, and a house of ill repute.

A few seconds later, her commlink sprung to life "Core spotted. I repeat the core has been spotted." the commander said, urging them forward. She complied with the demand, rising to her feet ignoring the Eva's neural feedback. She was needed back on the front line; where she belonged.

"82, are you alright?" the voice of another pilot said through the same link. "Moderate damage sustained to the torso. All systems are still operational. Returning to operation zone now" she replied, making her way back to the front.

When she arrived at the front, she made a line toward the base of the Angel, following the channel Unit-13B had carved while surrounding herself with a nearly spherical A.T. Field to protect herself from further whip attacks. She then drew her Progressive Knife in case the enemy swarm closed in and broadcasted her move to all the other units and commanding officers. "Unit-82 will attempt to neutralize the target's A.T. Field. Suggest focused attention there."

 

[EnigmaticSevens]

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Iggy felt the buzzing in his ears fade somewhat, the light-headed giddiness grounding itself once more in the needs of the present. His blood still felt hot, but in some things he and 77 were in complete agreement, now was no time to give into ecstatic thrill, that could come later. For now, there was a still a Hunt to be had, the prey wounded, its soft spots exposed, but far from dead and farther from harmless.

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An odd sensation came with the calm, something like... itching. Iggy scanned his arms, his legs and noticed the Swarm for the first time. He tasted panic in the back of this throat, a bitter bile and hardly helpful now. He rode the flood, just as he'd done before, let the emotion wash over him, drown him, then bleed away, "Oh this will not do."

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The beast began systematically stripping its hide of the pests. The acid burned, ate into its armor, but all burns pass and armor is thick. With finger, tooth, and foot, it tore at its fleas, snapping at them as a few fled. Unit-77 let loose a low, lingering growl, its AT Field drawing up close about its person. With one vigorous shake of its body, the AT Field inverted, bristling outwards like drying fur and impaling the few members of the swarm that lingered.

"77, can you keep tearing away at the pillar?"

Iggy perked up at the request, but could only offer a shrug, "Buddy, I'd love to, but I gotta ***** of an itch on my left ass cheek with plenty of cousins thanks to those little, squishy things. Can anyone clear-"

A beautiful bit of strategy shut Iggy down mid-sentence as 13 served up a rather glorious laser carpet bomb, burning away the Spawn clustered about the Angel's lower section. Iggy offered the tactic a hearty gale of somewhat frantic laughter, "Lovely!"

77 detached the great sword that was horn, feeling it lengthen as it tasted more and more of the Eva's AT-Field. One beastial hand grasped the curved hilt as the Eva's position shifted, the next attack would not be a lunge, but a dash, "A concern. If we ding the core here... don't we take out a chunk of the city? Maybe cut the leech out before we burn it? A couple of us can get to cutting, and it'll take at least another three to hot potato this biggun into the hills...."

 

[Athol]

Lillian could almost feel the tentacle pass as they twisted to avoid it. "THAT was too fucking close!" Watching the bullets impact with little effect, she gave a snort of disgust. Landing in a cloud of dust and small debris (cars, trucks, and one unfortunate stray dog), she dumped the now empty mag from her rifle, and took the spare from Pat?s left wing. "Unit-41 requesting additional ammo to my location."

As she was doing all this, she watched as Unit-77 tore the tentacle of with its teeth. "Jesus titty-fucking Christ...." Lillian wasn't a huge fan of Berserkers, they tended to be a little unstable even at the best of times, and generally their pilots weren?t much better.

"Ranged Units increase the fire. I want that core exposed so that one of you can plunge a Progressive knife into it."

"Understood." Moments later a weapon lift arrived near her, it rack loaded with spare mags for her rifle. Taking a knee beside it, she popped a new mag into her empty wing, and then sighted in on the wound. The rifle roared, pouring a stream of shells at the opening, chipping away slowly at the Angel. Simultaneously, she drove their AT field like a spike into the Angel?s own, forcing a gap through which the torrent of fire thundered.

 

[CJ1145]

"Ranged Units increase the fire. I want that core exposed so that one of you can plunge a Progressive knife into it."

"Roger roger."

Waters upped the pressure, pouring in shots at a slowly increasing rate. The bullets seemed to impact the AT Field helplessly, but it supposed that damage wasn't the point. Unit-99 was a support unit in this operation, and existed to put enough suppressing fire down that the others might be able to get an effective strike in. The idea behind such draconic squad tactics baffled Waters from the first day of training. "To save a hundred people, you must sacrifice ten. To save a thousand, you must sacrifice a hundred."

Even in battle, D. was distracted by its train of thought.

62%

The Neo-Spartan's synch rate began to dwindle as it pursued its thoughts. Why do humans believe that sacrifices must be made for victory? Why are others sacrificed to "save" those deemed more important? What's the point of a rescue, if everyone isn't saved?

Like Unit-77. Coated in those Spawn, acid melting away the Eva's flesh, and the pilot shielded in its core. Chosen to take the pain so others could kill this Angel. D. watched as another pilot came to "Iggy's" aid, burning away the creatures that tried to devour him. It was a crackerjack shot, it thought to itself. It could probably have sped the process, prevented pain.

Waters kept shooting. Saving its squadmates were not its orders. The Angel had to die. "A concern. If we ding the core here... don't we take out a chunk of the city? Maybe cut the leech out before we burn it? A couple of us can get to cutting, and it'll take at least another three to hot potato this biggun into the hills...."

But Iggy didn't seem to understand that. Over the comm D. quietly explained the reality of the situation.

"Our objective is the neutralization of the Angel, above all else. Pursuit of secondary objectives to preserve civilian lives only endangers both our pilots and the overall safety of London-2. Collateral damage is acceptable in warfare. Now, focus."

Waters kept on the pressure. Unit-82 was preparing for the next push, and Waters would ensure its squadmate completed their objective.

 

[Redryhno]

"Make a note of Unit-77 and the pilot's lack of control during this operation,"Jacoline said calmly, the first words she had uttered since the Angel attack had begun. These pilots were children, but soldiers all the same, and no Berserker could be allowed to lose control of their monster at the mere sight of an Angel. Bringing up the pilot's information, she found he was one of the Neo-Spartans, something that would not go over well with the Operations Director. But they could afford to have a single pilot grounded. For now.

She admitted she understood little about the Evas or their special connection to their pilots, but the one thing she did know was that as much as scientists would claim something to be impossible, there would always be the lone grunt that proved the impossible possible. And for the moment, she was unsure of if it was possible that the attitude of a pilot within their Eva could transfer that same behavior outside of the plug suit. The Evas were living creatures of a sort as far as she could understand, so why would they not pass on their behavior to the ones controlling them?

 

[Dogmatic99]

"Unit-67, I'm highlighting several condensed pockets of the swarm. Take them out. Squish them if you have to."

"yes ma'am!" Jamie squeaked as the container holding his positron rifle sprang up across the street from him. 67 perked up at that and even more once he was actually holding the rifle. The HUD even seemed brighter and not just because of the splashes of colour showing where the little angel things had gathered together. Jamie could have sworn that the hair on the back of his neck was standing on end and that there was a distant snickering moving through the EVA. He remembered 67 had been like this during their brief time in training together. Jamie still wasn't sure if it was just excited or if it was laughing at him in particular.

"Well let's get going, right?!" He puffed out his chest, trying to sound commanding.

67 picked up speed and rumbled through the city streets swooping around every corner like it was on a rollercoaster. Until they came across the enarest swarm. Were...were they melting the city.

"Urgh!" Jamie recoiled from the grim site. They were everywhere! Crawling all over each other and the noise, oh the noise. He couldn't work out what was shell or face or feet in the swarming mass of moving forms. He never had liked bugs.

57% and 67 was almost growling at the sight of it all, just waiting to be let off the leash. It gave Jamie a little bit of confidence at least. The EVA held it's rifle low as the positron weapon hummed and charged, 67's excitment growing with each second.

70% And they pulled the trigger, a blast of energy went screaming towards their target.

 

[Asclepion]

Iggy regained control of his berserking Evangelion to realize it was being liquified. Waves of spawn out of the aperture it had opened, the smaller creatures attacking the Eva with their molecular disassembler secretions. They melted armor, burrowed into Unit-77's body and were turning it into a slush.

Unit-77 frantically reacted, shaking vigorously, smacking the beings off, crushing them in it's hands. A weak rain of positrons flowed over him, Big Roger ingeniously scattering the positron beam through A.T. Field manipulation. The berserker Eva was barely touched, but the small beings were inundated. The ones shielded from the positrons were destroyed soon after by Unit-77 turning it's own A.T. Field against them.

Behind Waters, the Provisional Unit cruised the edge of the battle, using the mobility of its wheeled frame to stop any Spawn from escaping.

Lillian deployed her A.T. Field against the Angel, neutralizing it and giving a clear path for her weapon. Gale rushed into position. They both targeted the Core with their Battle Rifles, sending a hail of fire past Iggy, through the regenerating wound. Vast bullets impacted the Core, cracking it.

The Angel is defeated. In it's death knell, Kushiel's body fractured and exploded. The shining wings erupted in a storm of lightning, while all around London-2 the Spawn evaporate into vapor.

It was only hours later, back in Nerv HQ and after extensive debriefing, that the pilots were at last brought together.

 

[Pappytech]

Well, that went well.

Tammy was irritated, to say the least. Irritated that she'd just had to sit through hours of people dressed up in lab coats and jumpsuits poking at her, asking her bizarre questions, and talking to her in a mixture of English and technical jargon that just had to be made up. Irritated that, instead of getting a nice, long shower, she'd been tossed into a freezing cold sterilization chamber (was hot water really that hard to come by these days?) and had nearly half a dozen layers of skin flayed off. Irritated that she still didn't understand half of what was going on around here.

Irritated that her total contribution in the fight against the Angel amounted to jack shit in the grand scheme of things.

She was hungry, tired, and wanted nothing more than to crawl back to her quarters and collapse onto her cot. She didn't even care about that paper-thin thing Nerv had the gall to call a mattress anymore; she would have gladly slept on a pile of rocks and broken glass, on the off chance that one was available.

But no. Instead, here she was, in yet another of the Geofront's seemingly infinite supply of cold, sterile, and perfectly white rooms. Here she was, effectively trapped, with all of the other pilots. The ones that were actually competent, if their performance in today's battle was anything to go by.

Tammy didn't want to be here. She didn't want to have to deal with this sort of thing right now.

However, it was a bit too much to expect the universe to cater to her every whim and desire. Some part of the girl, the sane, rational part, recognized that. So, she might as well make the best of the situation, because whining about it sure as hell wasn't going to change anything.

"Pchooo..."

Sighing, Tammy leaned forward in her seat, her eyes circling around the room and studying the other pilots. She had of course heard from her handlers that the other pilots were kids as well, but she hadn't imagined that some of them would be so young. Some of them looked to be about her age, if not older, but most of them couldn't be old enough to get their driver's licence. Christ, one of them looked like he couldn't be much more than 11 or 12.

The situation was funny enough to bring a tired smile to Tammy's face. A group of kids from all over the world, most of them probably just hitting or still going through puberty. If they were anywhere else, they might've been mistaken as some high school class going on a field trip. It was only here that they were recognized as the only force capable of taking on an Angel.

...On second thought, maybe it wasn't so funny. And the icy silence sure as hell wasn't helping things.

"Sooooo," the girl began, dragging out the word far longer than necessary. "I'm Tammy O'Neal. I'm 17, I'm from Limerick (the city, not the poem), and when I grow up I want to be a certified public accountant." Somehow, she managed to find the energy to raise one of her hands in a half-wave, and to keep that tired smile on her face. Being friendly never hurt anybody, and when you got down to it they were all in the same boat. A bit of camaraderie might end up going a long way.

 

[EnigmaticSevens]

"So does D get, like, its own sterilization chamber during scrub down? Cuz I gotta say that's just a little unfair. Though, truth be told, and not to sound weird or nothin' but I figure a group shower's the only way to settle the bet. I mean I got twenty-five dollars at stake here and my stipend keeps gettin' garnished as it is so I could-," Iggy chattered on, yapping up at the ear of whatever poor soul had been unfortunate enough to stumble across him in the halls on the way to debriefing. Iggy didn't quite know this one's name, though in truth, he hardly knew anyone's name, his transfer from Nerv's North American HQ only a few days old. Normally, Iggy would've done his best to be polite, give the fellow a proper introduction and whatnot, but at the moment he was preoccupied with scratching every portion of his body he could reach. The doctors weren't entirely sure why the nervous system desynchronization hadn't gone as smoothly as usual, but they assured him the sensations would fade in a few hours. For now it was chicken pox hell all over again, his body itching like a fiend wherever Kushiel's swarm had gone to town on Unit-77.

Iggy and his captive audience reached the debriefing room in a matter of moments, the icy silence washing over them like the tide of a cruel sort of ocean. Iggy chuckled nervously and shifted from foot to foot. He hoped he wasn't underdressed... he just thrown on an old, grey shirt, a pair of shorts, and some sandals. He fidgeted slightly in the rather oppressive silence, the storm of chatter building up in his lungs threatening to burst him at the seams. Right at the bleeding edge came sweet relief.

"I'm Tammy O'Neal. I'm 17, I'm from Limerick (the city, not the poem), and when I grow up I want to be a certified public accountant."

"Oh thank god! Someone else went first! Huzzah! I was worried it was gonna have to be me and I talk too much already. Hey Tammy person! I'm Iggy! We should be buddies! Limerick's in Ireland, right? That's pretty awesome. You're real pretty and it's great that you want to grow up and count things in public, I'm sure that's needed, who knows all the things that need counting and someone's got to do it," Iggy bounced on over a bit closer to Tammy, who he'd decided was currently his favorite person, though to be fair, she was also the first audition for the position of Iggy's favorite person, so nothing was conclusive just yet. Iggy promptly set about waggling is back at the other pilot and pointing furiously, "You know what would be really awesome, new buddy! Normally a hug, but hugs are gonna have to wait. If you could help Iggy out and scratch my back, I'd be really really grateful. No, no not metaphorically, actually scratch, I itch and itch and itch and I think I might explode...."

 

[DragonofDecay86]

Gale had taken his time changing out of his plug-suit, the black and grays of the suit blending in well to match the colors of his unit, along with the two red rib pieces on either side of his chest. Gale sighed, looking at the suit for a moment before hanging it up in his locker and taking a quick shower before redressing in his normal attire. The silence in the locker room was nice, it allowed him time to think that he knew he wouldn't be getting later. The debriefing had taken a little while, all about nothing as far as he was concerned. The angel was dead and that's what mattered. Gale shook his head, water dripping down from the still-wet hair, as he tried to clear his head. Goosebumps still ran down his body even after the shower from his time in Reaper.

"God, all the times I've been in that thing and I still get this same feeling..." Gale said to the empty locker room, closing his locker a bit more forcefully than he had originally intended.

It took Gale only a few minutes to return to the debriefing room where the other pilots were located. He barely walked in the door before one of the female pilots stood up and announced herself to the room:

"I'm Tammy O'Neal. I'm 17, I'm from Limerick (the city, not the poem), and when I grow up I want to be a certified public accountant."

Gale looked over to the girl, her sandy hair falling about her face as she spoke and her eyes shining brightly at the rest of the table. Gale decided to take a seat on one of the chairs near the back of the group so that he wouldn't have to contribute much to the conversation. It was then that another younger pilot entered the room and began to bounce back and forth, his voice almost frantic as he spoke with exhilaration. Gale shook his head, glancing around the table to examine the other pilots before he turned and looked back at the sandy-haired girl to see how she would react to the newcomer.

 

[hiei82]

D-18 stepped out of the final sterilization chamber and tried to dressed without fuss. Emphasis on try. Though she knew she was fine, when the angel had squeezed her she'd felt her ribs crack. Consciously, she knew it was the Eva that had been damaged and she was just experiencing residual memories, but her unconscious mind wasn't so easy to convince. As such, she hesitated when it came to anything involving her torso.

None the less, she dressed (with some small delay) and made her way to the debriefing room. She was still among the first to arrive; sitting in silence until the others arrived. It was a long comfortable silence, but was inevitably broken by one of the other pilots. "I'm Tammy O'Neal. I'm 17, I'm from Limerick (the city, not the poem), and when I grow up I want to be a certified public accountant." the pilot said, introducing herself. She wasn't going to say anything until she remembered that there were Prodigies and Neo-Spartans in the room who were, in all likelihood, unaware of NERV cloning programs.

"Objective 3 Engaged" she thought to herself before speaking up. "Daria Al-Fayed. 16. Dubai. Evangelion pilot" she said, answering the same questions as briefly as possible. Most of what she said however was cut off by another of the pilots - something which benefited her greatly. She returned to silence, watching the others and listening to the conversation about itch induced explosions.

 

[Pappytech]

"Oh thank god! Someone else went first! Huzzah! I was worried it was gonna have to be me and I talk too much already. Hey Tammy person! I'm Iggy! We should be buddies! Limerick's in Ireland, right? That's pretty awesome. You're real pretty and it's great that you want to grow up and count things in public, I'm sure that's needed, who knows all the things that need counting and someone's got to do it."

The verbal deluge washed over Tammy with impressive force, washing away most of the exhaustion that had clung to her. Blinking in a mixture of shock, surprise, and confusion, the girl reflexively leaned back in her chair, trying to get as much distance between herself and this Iggy as she could without actually leaving her seat. Frantically, she looked for something, anything to say in reply to the other pilot, hopefully something that would convince him to back off a bit.

"I... What?"

Well. That wasn't exactly the most eloquent phrase she'd ever turned. Undaunted, she resolved to try again.

"...What?"

Today really wasn't her day, it would seem. Wait, she recognized that voice. Wasn't this the guy who had been in Unit-77? The one that had gone berserk and ripped the Angel's tentacle out all on his own? Should she really be so close to such an unstable-

"You know what would be really awesome, new buddy! Normally a hug, but hugs are gonna have to wait. If you could help Iggy out and scratch my back, I'd be really really grateful. No, no not metaphorically, actually scratch, I itch and itch and itch and I think I might explode..."

...And Tammy had thought her little brothers were weird.

The request, though certainly odd, was simple enough. While shaking hands, or even a hug, probably would've been less awkward, the girl supposed that scratching somebody's back was an alternative method of introducing oneself. And, honestly, she didn't want to know to know what would happen if she refused the request.

Tentatively, she reached out and began to drag her curled fingertips across her compatriot's back. She didn't worry too much about scratching the poor guy; her bad habit of biting her nails off kept her effectively declawed.

"I, uh... Nice to meet you? Iggy?"

Furtively, Tammy glanced around the room, her eyes falling across the other pilots at random. Spread wide with unease (and just a hint of unabashed terror), they carried an obvious, if silent, message: "Help. Please."

 

[Athol]

Stepping out of just a plain shower, she rubbed he still sore tattoo, before pulling on a pair of yoga pants, and a tank top. She'd already gone through decontamination earlier, but as was her habit, she'd immediately headed for the base's gym. She'd found that the best way to 'de-stress' was a little dance practice...which always worked up a sweat, hence the second shower.

Stepping into the debriefing room where the other pilots were, she looked about. They all seemed so damned young...though Lillian would freely admit, she wasn't that old herself. The thing that really caught her eye was a girl about her own age, scratching a young boy?s back while silently pleading for help. Sorry babe, you're on your own there. Gliding across the room with a dancers smoothness, she folded herself into a lotus position against the back wall, and closed her eyes. With deep slow breaths she attempted to calm her mind; even hours after the battle, seeing the sheer 'wrongness' of an Angel threatened to put her to panic. The adrenalin quashed that in the moment, but afterwards...it had always been a problem.