Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ The Way Out is Through ❯ Just like you Imagined/ Please pt: 2 ( Chapter 3 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

I do not own Evangelion. If I did, I sure as hell wouldn’t be in the army.





The Way Out is Through
By Ovrboost

Watch the white, turn to red.
It fills up the hole, but it grows somewhere else instead.
All my life, yea, yea, yea, but it just left me dead.
The world is over, and I realize it was all in my head.
Now, everything is clear.
I erase the fear.
I can disappear.
Please, I don’t ever wanna make it stop.
You can never leave me.
Will you please complete me.
Never be enough to fill me up.
The fire crackled softly in the darkness, the only sound in the otherwise quiet surroundings of the abandoned building. Its warm glow illuminated the barren concrete walls, and debris scattered across the floor. Close to the warmth was a solitary figure, clothed in a ragged blue button-down, and obviously well worn denim jeans. Asuka.

The six years since third impact had not exactly been kind to her. The early sickness, and pain was a fitting precursor to her new life. No longer was she the semi-privileged, elite pilot of an evangelion. No, sitting here was only a shadow of what once was. A wanderer with seemingly no purpose, no reason to keep going, except for the ambiguous, and sometimes desperate hope that the next day would bring some kind of happiness… some reason to live.

She was still plagued by dreams, though of a different variety, they were no less frightening. She had finally found peace with her mother, but she has as yet to make peace with herself, and those of her past. Abandoned by everything, and everyone but the voices of hate, and condemnation of her own mind, she is ultimately, and quintessentially alone. Which had been the case ever since he had left her on the beach. Never again, she had vowed, and so far, so good.

“Well, what’s for dinner tonight?” she said, mostly just to hear herself speak, already knowing the answer, almost wishing for someone to talk to. After rummaging through her bag, she pulled out several cans, opened them and set them close to the fire’s coals for a warm up. The smells left a bit to be desired, but it was the smell of food, and she was definitely hungry. It had been a long day. Maybe, she thought; when I get to Germany, things will get better. Not much to live for, but at least it was something.


Her patience lasted about three minutes, before she hungrily snatched one of the cans from the fire, grabbing up her improvised eating utensil along the way. After a few bites, she sighed, and put the can down, for a drink of water. No sooner had she brought the canteen to her lips, it slipped from her right hand, and dropped unceremoniously to the floor. Scheiße! Without skipping a beat, she managed to cap the plastic canteen before it’s entire contents managed to spill out upon the dirty floor. Her arm was still shaking, an unpleasant, yet constant reminder of her battle with the eva series. The arm was serviceable, but the acute nerve, and muscle damage assured her that it would never fully heal. Nor would the scarring, or the faded gray iris of her left eye. She was damaged goods, and she new it.

Disgusted by her weakness, she lost most of her appetite. She played quietly with her food, eating little, before tossing it into a far corner. The hell with it, she thought bitterly; I’ll just go to sleep. After pulling out the old sleeping bag, and a couple pills from her sack, she bedded down close to the fading warmth of the fuel-starved fire. She cleared her mind, closed her eyes, and with an impatient sigh, waited to fade from one nightmare, to another. It took half an hour, instead of the usual two.

The fire had long since died, and the light of the new day lit the room dimly from the small broken windows. Asuka had awaked with a start, a light sheen of sweat coating her body, and curled into a tight ball atop her sleeping bag. She shivered slightly as a draft suddenly cooled the sweat still clinging to her skin. Thankfully the memories of the dream were fading quickly, but the overall feeling of loneliness, and isolation took center stage. Quietly taking in her surroundings, and comparing them to her memory of the previous night, Asuka felt the tear well up and slowly glide down her cheek. She knew no one could see it, but swiped it away quickly as if a mob of people might suddenly appear to laugh at her ill-concealed weakness, or worse, take pity.

Asuka ran. She didn’t really know why, but she had had the sudden urge to get as far away from that building as she could. She had packed quickly, frustrated at her inability to move faster, and without a second glace, sprinted from the shelter that, like so many others, had housed her for only a single night. The further she managed to get, the better she felt. Running away again? The thought hit her like a bag of bricks after a good half mile, and she quickly slowed to a slightly staggered walk. Emaciated, filthy, tired, and thoroughly disgusted with herself, Asuka slowly walked down the seemingly endless road. She could have cared less if she ever found it’s end.

The sky was a deep blue; it reminded her of her eye… his eyes. I wonder how that idiot’s doing… If he’s even still alive, that is. She thought idly; I wish he was h…. “Stupid girl.” Her own voice interrupted her thoughts, sounding hoarse from disuse, but no less scathing. The retort derailed her thoughts momentarily, and she unconsciously slowed her pace. After a moment’s reflection, clearing her mind of all thoughts of the blue eyed boy, she resumed her previous pace, eyes fixed securely upon the pavement.

Just past midday, an unmistakable feeling slowly crept into Asuka’s mind. Something didn’t feel quite right. The past six years had taught her to trust her instincts, they had saved her life on countless occasions, and right now, red flags were going off. She couldn’t quite understand why, because there were no obvious signs of danger. It was a beautiful day, and as she was traversing a relatively flat area, she had a good view of all avenues of approach. So what the hell is going on… she thought; eh, maybe I’m just being paranoid.

Click. …Maybe not…. wundervoll.

“Turn around… Slowly.” The rough voice came from behind, in Japanese. A pleasant, though entirely unwanted surprise. Asuka froze in her tracks, raising her arms parallel to the ground, and turned about.

“Not from around here, are you?” She asked as she faced the man before her. His dirty, ragged clothes looked far worse than Asuka’s, and his filthy face was covered with a patchy, unkempt beard. In his hands he held a small caliber revolver. Six shots. her mind reported upon quick observation. Mine holds twelve… At the thought, the nine millimeter handgun at the small of her back suddenly seemed heavier.

“Shut up…. P-put your hands up!” He was shaking slightly, she almost smiled. He was new at this. She wasn’t.

“Sure thing, just… just don’t shoot me.” Idiot. she decided not to add, no reason for him to get all jumpy. Well actually there was, but she wanted to hold on to that card for a bit longer.

“Shut up! …Y-your bag… throw it to me! …now!” Asuka didn’t like the look in his eyes, he was too nervous. He kept gesturing, and jerking his gun towards her with his finger firmly planted on the trigger. That made her slightly nervous.

“Alright” she said quietly. Asuka brought her hands down from above her head, and reached behind her back as if taking the bag off her shoulders, which she, of course, did. Unfortunately for the idiot, she also grasped the grip of the glock. “Here it comes…” In one swift motion, she tossed the bag up in the air, his eyes following it as it twirled towards him, and she pulled the gun on him. He never saw it coming. Asuka’s face was set in a hard glare, and her jaw firmly set as she squeezed the trigger. It jumped slightly in her hand, and time seemed to stop.

The bag landed unceremoniously at the gunman’s feet with a heavy thump. His mouth hung open slightly, as his shocked mind slowly registered the fact that the girl before him was now holding a gun. His right leg stepped out to keep him from falling. He could feel the liquid heat spreading across his chest, running quickly towards his abdomen. Instinct kicked in. He knew he had been shot, but his mind refused to believe it was fatal, so he ran… forwards.

Asuka was also shocked, yet she kept pulling the trigger, while trying to dodge her attacker’s suicide run. His right shoulder, or what was left of it after a bullet had rampaged it’s way through it, slammed into Asuka, throwing her to the ground. Her handgun skittered away across the pavement. Her shirt was soaked through on her left side. Shot. Bleeding…. When did that happen? Her mind was moving a million miles a second, and still not keeping up with current events. Her eyes shot to where her attacker had fallen, he was face down upon the pavement pouring blood out onto the asphalt. Christ… what the hell just happened? She stayed, splayed out where she had fell, watching the man for any movement, any sign that he was still alive.

Everything was incredibly quiet, her breath sounded unnaturally loud in her ears. It took her a moment before stumbling back to her feet, the adrenalin rush fading quickly. The wound on her side began to hurt, and burn. She was still bleeding out. “Damn.” She said tiredly, holding her side, putting pressure on the wound. Maybe the pressure she was applying would stop the bleeding, but she doubted it… Picking up her backpack, she started back down the road. Pausing a second to give the corpse at her feet a swift, frustrated kick. A faint glimmer in the distance told her of the proximity of the nearest town. Wundervoll. She thought dismally, with a grimace as she began to walk.

If the heat of the late afternoon was bad, the chill of the night was infinitely worse. Asuka’s teeth chattered noisily within her skull, her arms wrapped tightly around her, one still clasped on the gunshot wound to her side, which had, thankfully, stopped bleeding several hours earlier. She had finally made her way into town, now she just had to find someplace with medical supplies. A task whose completion she felt was next to impossible, considering the size of the town. It was definitely small, the former home to maybe a thousand people… maybe two.

Nevertheless she walked/limped her way to the center of the town, She passed a small general store to her left, but the what had caught her eye was the letters lit dimly by the moon on one of the doors of a long single story building which had previously held several businesses. Below the illegible Russian words, was a red cross. She felt a tired smile creep across her face. Everything was going to be ok.

Of course, who ever had last left the building had to lock the door, but a sizable chunk of the cracked concrete sidewalk took care of that. Asuka carefully used her elbow to knock out the rest of the offending glass door, and stepped through. She managed to stumble through the clinic in the dark, finding her way to one of the examination rooms, after having grabbed some supplies from a nearby closet, which was, mercifully, unlocked. Unbuttoning her shirt, she grimaced as she slid her arm out of the sleeve. She tried to be careful, but was unable to prevent the shirt from tearing away the sizable blood clot for which it had been the foundation for. Her pained gasp heralded in the renewed flow of blood.

Inspecting the wound, Asuka tentatively dabbed it with gauze in an attempt to clean it. Every touch with the alcohol soaked pad resulted in a pained, exasperated gasp. The intense burning sensation the alcohol caused, almost made her cry out loud with the pain. She stopped for a moment, I’ll never get this done at this rate… she thought with a sigh, before making up her mind. It would hurt. Oh god, she knew it would hurt. Picking up some fresh gauze, she soaked it in alcohol, but her hand paused over the wound. Steeling herself, Asuka took several deep breaths, and closed her eyes. After a moment, she began. Her hand came down roughly on the wound, and began scrubbing. Her muted scream pierced the night like a shot, and she blacked out from the pain.

She had no idea how long she had been out, but she sensed that it had been for awhile, as the gunshot wound had clotted back up. For what seemed like the longest time, she just sat there on the examination table, exhausted. She could feel the congealing pool of blood surrounding her on the table, serving to remind her of her still unfinished task. An infection is not something one should take lightly, as she unfortunately knew from personal experience. The mere thought of another one sent a cold chill down her spine, about the same time she heard the cracking of broken glass in the distance. She could feel the Goosebumps rise up on her neck. Did she imagine it? Who, or what…

Click-Clack! The unmistakable, and universally known sound of a shotgun racking a round sounded out through the darkness. Asuka froze, and she felt herself go cold. After a moment, she quickly set to finding her pistol in the darkness, the sound of booted footsteps adding urgency to her quest. It was ended abruptly however, as the footsteps came to a stop, and Asuka was bathed in a white blinding light from the doorway. Once again she froze, her hands held loosely above her head.

The person at the doorway, obviously an older man, spoke something in rough sounding Russian. Unfortunately for Asuka, Russian was not one of the languages she had ever studied. She took a wild guess at what is was he was saying, and turned slowly around. The intensity of the light blinded her, and she was forced to put a hand before her eyes to block out some of it.

“P-please don’t shoot me…” she pleaded tiredly in Japanese. “I just needed…” She took a deep, labored breath before she continued; “Needed … Scheiße…” her last word was barely a whisper, as her arms dropped to her sides, and she grew faint. She earnestly tried to refocus herself but it felt as if the room was spinning, and for the life of her, she couldn’t make it stop. She never felt herself hit the floor.

Warm… her mind was hazy, but the sudden damp warmth upon her forehead felt good. She vaguely registered the fact there were people talking somewhere close, but being that her eyes were closed, she could only hear the voices, not understanding anything that was said. Then she faded back out.

Someone was holding her hand. Wearily she opened her eyes, her vision burry, and unfocused. Turning her head slightly, she could make out a small figure sitting by her bedside. What’s going on? she asked herself, Where am I… Once again, she closed her eyes and faded from consciousness. The thought echoing within her head.

Cold. God she felt cold. Absently, she weakly grasped the thick comforter, and pulled it to her neck. She felt like hell. How many days she had lain here was uncertain, who was taking care of her also unknown. She barely remembered the clinic. She felt the vibrations of someone’s footsteps nearing the bed. Asuka opened her eyes to meet her caretaker, smiling weakly as the washcloth was placed on her forehead. It was the man again. He looked kind enough, his gentle, smiling eyes made his otherwise imposing frame much more hospitable.

“Rest well young one.” He said in broken, and badly accented Japanese. She nodded in reply, mouthing the words ’thank you’ before closing her eyes. With a sigh, he gently pressed his fingers to her neck, mentally counting to himself while looking at his watch. Nodding once, he left the room, turning out the light on his way out. ‘Thank you’ … she thought; how long has it been since I said that? The thought drifted away, and she did likewise.

“Svetlana…” the man called out softly as he made his way down the hall, towards their modest kitchen. “She’s out again, but she should be up and around in no time.” The girl in question, a young brunette in her eighth year, turned from the window over the sink, and smiled slightly.

“Papa,” she said, sweetly; “Can she stay here, when she gets better?” Her eyes were bright, and pleading. She knew his weaknesses well. She did take after her mother, after all.

“I don’t know, Svetlana…” he said thoughtfully, remembering her mouthed words of thanks; “When she is up, and feeling better, it is up to her, but there are things I wish to ask her before I come to a decision.” Not to mention, the odd collection of scars… and the pills That had been the most unnerving discovery, not the innumerable scars that crisscrossed her lithe body, or the fact that her pupils were duel colors, it was the small innocent looking little plastic bottle that had fallen out of her bag on the trip over from the clinic. Yes… he thought; I must ask her about the pills…

“Papa?” she asked innocently, tugging lightly on his trousers. He had that far away look again, the one he had occasionally lapsed into for the last six years. It unnerved her, especially when she saw him cry when he thought she wasn‘t around. Snapped out of his reverie, he looked down at her, and smiled

“Yes, little one?”

“I’m hungry.”

Morning… Asuka thought to herself, after her eyes cracked open to see the morning light streaming in through the half-closed window blinds. She felt very awkward all of a sudden. Here she was in the house of people she did not know, who had been taking very good care of her for god knows how long. She didn’t know what to do, or what to say, so she stayed in bed. She felt well enough to get up, and walk around, but at the moment… To hell with it. She slowly got out of bed.

On a near-by chair, a set of clothes were waiting for her, her backpack resting safely beside it. Women’s clothes, she noticed curiously. Walking unsteadily, she made the eight foot journey to the high-backed chair to inspect them. She held up the scarlet colored blouse up to the light, noticing the slightly used denim underneath it.

“They were my wife’s” came the abrupt voice from behind, startling her. She dropped the offending article back to the chair quickly, as she turned to him.

“I-I’m sorry… I didn’t mea--” He cut her off with a raised palm.

“Put them on, I’ll be waiting in the kitchen… come out when you’re ready.” His Japanese was horrible, but she managed to catch the meaning of his words, and nodded silently. Now, she really felt awkward. She quickly changed out of the bed clothes she was currently dressed in, and into the new set. She paused briefly before putting the blouse on, to lightly finger the stitches on her side. The thought of how she had managed to get out of her old clothes caused a faint blush to rise to her cheeks. Pushing the thought aside however, she paused to retrieve something from her bag before she walked on weary legs out of the room, and down the hall.

The end of the hall opened up into the modest kitchen, it had a very earthy feel to the place, the countertop lining the far wall displaying well used sink, and gas stove, an old wooden table sitting in it’s center. At the table sat the man, and a small child. She watched the child’s eyes light up, as she walked into the room. They were eating a simple breakfast, with an extra plate set out… For one of the few times in her life, Asuka Langley Souryu was at a loss for words. The man looked up from his breakfast, and gestured to the seat before her.

“Please, sit.” She nodded, and took the offered seat. He noticed she seemed much more comfortable than earlier.

“Thanks” she said as she picked up the fork, and tried the eggs. Savoring the taste, she looked back up to him, smiled, and then dug back in. Coming up for a swig of orange juice, she noticed that he looked like he wanted to say something. She considered the fact that he had seemed to be struggling with Japanese, so she tried a different approach…

“Sprechen sie Deutsch?” As soon as she finished, he visibly relaxed, and replied in German.

“Yes of course,” He said gratefully; “thank you, the Japanese language is… difficult for me.”

“I noticed… the food is great by the way.” She said as she finished her plate. He nodded his agreement.

“I’m going into town soon, would you mind joining me?” he asked sitting bask in his chair.

“Papa?” Svetlana chimed in; “What are you saying to her?” the entire conversation had been lost to the eight year old, and she had spent it’s duration looking helplessly between the two, trying to grasp it’s meaning. He smiled as he turned to her.

“Nothing important, little one. We will be going into town shortly, we won’t be gone long. We can all talk then.” He knew he hadn’t satisfied the little girl, but he didn’t want her around for the upcoming conversation. “Do your chores. You should be finished by our return.”

Now it had been Asuka’s turn to look bewildered, she had no idea what was being said, making her uncomfortable, almost paranoid. When he had turned back to her, he was looking at her expectantly.
“Of course… When do we leave?”

“As soon as you’re ready. My name is Aleksandrov by the way, call me Yuriy.” he replied, extending a hand.

“Asuka” she said, taking his hand. His grip was strong, but not overbearing. He grinned.

The sky was shining a brilliant blue, with only a handful of clouds decorating the horizon. The land just on the outskirts of the town was relatively flat, obviously farmed. Along the road, Asuka walked slowly with Aleksandrov. Since their departure from the house, both had said little, content to stroll in silence. Asuka decided to change that.

“So where did you learn German?” She asked, keeping her voice light. Her sudden words had caught him slightly off guard, slightly lost in thought concerning his own questions.

“In college.” He stated simply; “I was in med school, and decided to learn it on a whim.”

“A whim?” she asked with an eyebrow raised, and a disbelieving look upon her face. He chuckled.

“Yes, Asuka, a whim.” he shook his head in amusement; “A friend was telling me about some theoretical work of a German doctor for Gerhin, I became interested, and decided to learn German to make it easier to look into.” After a moment of silence between the two; “Very interesting… and disturbing…” he added mostly for himself.

“Do… do you remember her name?” Asuka asked hesitantly, ignoring the attention it suddenly brought her from the six foot two man beside her.

“Heh, I don’t think I could ever forget…” he said quietly, barely loud enough for Asuka to hear. “Souryu… Dr. Kyoko Souryu.” He shook his head again, minus the amusement. “Crazy.” He walked in silence for a moment, before looking up and saying; “Why do you ask?” Only she wasn’t there. Confused, he glanced back to see her standing behind him by about ten feet, head angled towards the pavement. “Asuka?” He suddenly remembered Asuka distinctly saying ‘her’. Concerned, he strode carefully back to her. “Did you know her?” Asuka jerked her head up to meet his gaze, before fixing back upon the asphalt.

“She… she was my mother.” she muttered slowly, almost to low for him to hear. Silence reigned for almost a full minute, as each digested their words.

“Asuka… I’m… My apologies, Asuka. I had no idea.” She nodded absently at his apology, and slowly started walking past him. Yuriy gently stopped her with a hand to her shoulder. She looked back at him sharply, causing him to release her.

“Don’t worry about it, lets just…” she sighed. “get going.”

“Okay…” Damn, he thought; that was smart… After ten minutes of silence passing between them, he was determined to lighten the mood, if only slightly. “You know, Asuka… my daughter seems to have taken a liking to you.” Her smirk was encouraging.

“She’s a cute kid… How old?” she asked, her voice noticeably more easy going.

“Svetlana is eight, as of last month.” He replied proudly, with a huge smile. “And thank you, she is a wonderful little girl.”

“I’m sure…” she said, effectively closing down that topic of conversation. “So what are we going to get in town?”

“Oh… just a few supplies for tonight.”

“Fair enough…” Nothing else was said between them until they got into town.

The town looked much smaller during the day, than it had at night. The one main road only had a handful of others branching off towards the various modest houses that lined the streets. Asuka felt slightly guilty at seeing the broken glass still glittering on the sidewalk from her earlier exploits. His obvious frown didn’t help matters much either. Yuriy was the first to speak.

“Need to restock my supplies at home, we’re running a bit low on some things… Give me a hand?”

“Sure.” she replied, feeling slightly self-conscious. The glass cracked, and popped beneath their feet, as they made their way inside. Aleksandrov stopped at the supply closet, and started handing a few things to Asuka’s outstretched arms.

“So what happened? …To your arm, I mean” he said, digging through a box of bandages, sparing a moment to glance her way before handing her a roll of gauze.

“I’d… rather not talk about it.” she said softly, after a moment. Her voice prompting him to stop what he was doing to appraise her. She noticed a sad, almost understanding look in his eyes.

“Okay, but if you ever want to…” the words hung heavily in the air, and Yuriy suddenly turned back to the closet. He pulled out a few more things before closing the door, and leading them both back outside. On they way out, Asuka glanced into one of the open rooms, only to find it a wreck. Dried streaks of blood crisscrossed the floor, leaving little visible trace of the cream colored tile floor. The examination table looked worse. She caught herself staring at the scene, before a cold chill cascading down her spine prompted her to move on.

“Yuriy…” said Asuka, once they were back outside, he turned towards her. “Thanks… for everything, and…” she brought her eyes up to his; “…but please… There’s a lot of stuff I’m not… ready to talk about, but when I am…” she trailed off, her eyes drifting away.

“Whenever you are ready, child… I’ll be willing to listen.” he said softly, finishing the thought for her. He reached out with his hand, raising her head up, fingertips beneath her chin. “You are welcome to stay with us as long as you like.”

Dinner was a simple, yet somewhat festive affair. It had turned out that aside from the medical supplies, the ‘few supplies for tonight’ mostly consisted of high quality vodka. Asuka had made no complaint. The walk back was mostly silent, but had a noticeably more relaxed atmosphere. Asuka had accepted the open invitation to stay, which had pleased the youngest occupant of the household to no end. Though she had stated that it probably wouldn’t be permanent, the two Russians sensed otherwise.

“Ahhh…” was Yuriy’s contented remark after eating his fill, leaning back in his chair. “A fine meal, Svetlana. You‘re becoming a fine cook.” he said cupping his daughter’s face in the palm of his hand, a smile fixed upon his face. Asuka had finished just after Yuriy, sipping lightly on her drink, watching the two silently.

“Thank you papa…” Svetlana replied, a light blush creeping across her face.

“Asuka.” Yuriy started, in German, gaining her attention; “Shall we retire to the living room for a drink?”

“Sounds good…” she said, already rising to her feet, moving to follow her host. She followed him back down the hallway, past her room, into the much more spacious living room. The ceiling was held up by wide wooden beams, forming a cross in the center. The far wall sported an imposing fireplace made out of mortared rock, capped with a thick oak mantel. A comfortable looking couch lined the wall beneath a large windowsill. Asuka made her way to the couch, letting herself sink into the comfortable cushions, watching the Russian, as he poured vodka into two short glasses. He handed her one before sitting in the leather reclining chair which faced the couch at an angle.

“It’s good vodka,” he said, raising the glass in a kind of salute; “It was distilled not too far from here.”

She took a tentative sip, not exactly used to the taste of the Russian drink. The quick burning sensation in her throat made her cough slightly. “Heh, I guess so.” she said in appraisal. The soft padding of feet interrupted them, as Svetlana made her way into the room.

“Papa,” she asked hopefully; “can I stay up late tonight?”

“No little one, you must get your sleep. It is late. Come, I will read you a story.” He set his drink down beside him, as he stood, placing a hand on her shoulder. “I’ll be back shortly Asuka.”

“Sure.” she said lightly, watching the two leave. God… What am I doing here? Should… should I leave? She took another sip of her drink, feeling the warmth work it’s way down to her stomach. It’s… comfortable here, I… I think I could stay here for awhile…

On the other side of the house, Yuriy had just finished his story, and Svetlana was laying peacefully in her bed. He blew out the candle on her nightstand, and kissed her on the forehead, before leaving to rejoin Asuka. Svetlana, unable to really get to sleep, tossed and turned in her sheet for what felt like forever. She was too excited, and her thoughts would not stop long enough to allow her sleep. She had no idea how long she had been laying there, but she did know she had suddenly gotten thirsty. Jumping out of bed, she made her way towards the kitchen, the light from the living room visible from down the hallway. Quietly so as not to alert her father, she reached into a cupboard for a glass, when she heard Asuka’s voice.

“Sie sollen mir gerade helfen zu schlafen, Ich bin nicht ein Süchtiger.” she sounded agitated, which had gained Svetlana’s curiosity, and she eased closer to the living room. “Ich brauche nicht Ihre Hilfe!” The tone of Asuka’s last statement made her jump slightly. She panicked, when she heard heavy footsteps coming towards her, and she froze. Suddenly Asuka appeared before her, with an angry scowl upon her face. She stopped when she saw Svetlana, and knelt before her, a soft, reassuring smile upon her face.

“Asuka, Ich… Svetlana…” Yuriy said when he caught up with the angry redhead, and saw her hugging his daughter. He couldn’t help the smile that swept across his face at the scene before him. When Asuka released her, Svetlana caught sight of her father.

“Papa, I… I was just getting some water, when…”

“Shhh, child… Just go on back to bed, there is nothing to worry about.” His reassuring smile, comforted her. Before walking off she gave him a hug of her own. Once she was gone, Asuka stood, and faced the Russian.

“Yuriy…”

“Asuka, I’m sorry for being rude, lets just try to get some sleep.” She nodded solemnly.

As he walked off, Asuka paused at the doorway to her room. “Yuriy.” she said, getting his attention; “Danke” His answer was a slight smile, before disappearing behind his door. In his room, Yuriy took the small pill bottle in his hands, and shut it away within a dresser drawer.


It was another early morning, as per the usual in the Aleksandrov household. Asuka was yet again prompted to join breakfast by the unwelcome wake-up call administered by , according to Asuka‘s standards, an unnaturally energetic eight year old at the particularly ungodly hour of six in the morning. Groggy, and half asleep, Asuka had managed to make it to the kitchen, where a fresh cup of coffee, and an excellent breakfast awaited. After a week, she was slowly getting used to it.

“Good morning, Asuka.” was Yuriy’s greeting made from behind his coffee mug.

“Morning.” said Asuka with a half hearted wave, as her one track mind led her towards the coffee pot.

“Svetlana, and I are going into town this morning, care to join?”

Coffee… yes… yes… my precious, come to my mug… mmmm yes…“Huh?” was Asuka’s belated reply. He couldn’t help but grin, as he asked her again.

“Yea sure, It’s kinda rainy, but I wanna poke around that store some, anyways.” she said as she brought the mug to her lips.

“Good morning Asuka!”

“Good morning, Svetlana, sleep well?” It took a moment for the little girl to try and translate, finally giving in, and just nodding enthusiastically, prompting a smile from the elder female. Looking up, Asuka addressed her father; “She’s learning quickly isn’t she?”

He gave a short laugh. “I told you she was smart.”

After breakfast was finished, and the table cleared, the three headed towards town, Svetlana alternating between several paces ahead of the group, or several paces behind, as she went about examining the plants, and flowers of the early spring. The rain was light, and the near absence of wind made it easier to deal with as they all walked leisurely down the road beneath their umbrellas.

“This rain won’t last much longer.” said Yuriy, as they neared the clinic that had once housed his private practice.

“Why do you say that?” asked Asuka, with a look of curiosity on her face.

“Look,” he said pointing; “There’s a patch of blue sky.” Asuka’s eyes followed where he was pointing, and sure enough there was the patch of baby blue, surrounded by the light gray of the rain clouds. It was then that they heard the shot. The sharp report caused Asuka to jump a bit. The looked at each other each mentally asking the same question; What was that? That was when they heard the second, and third shots.

“Svetlana!” Yuriy half yelled, half whispered towards his daughter.

“Yes papa?”

“Go into my clinic, and retrieve my field pack. Do you know where it is?” she nodded. “Good, now go hurry.” After she trotted off, he looked back at Asuka. “Did you bring your handgun?”

“Yea” she replied, producing said weapon.

“Good, give it to me. Run back to the house, and grab my shotgun, meet me in the clinic. I’m afraid I don’t run as well as I used to.”

“ Got ‘ya, I’ll be back in a flash.”

“Yes, hurry!” Yuriy yelled after her quickly retreating form.

It took fifteen minutes for Asuka to run back from the house with the shotgun, sweating, and slightly out of breath, she met Svetlana’s fear-filled gaze as she busted into the clinic. Yuriy was nowhere to be found, Svetlana simply pointing out the door when asked his whereabouts. Frustrated by the language barrier that existed between herself and the little girl, Asuka found herself huddled in the clinic waiting for Yuriy for what seemed like an eternity. It was ten minutes, before the bearded Russian peaked through the doorway.

“Come quickly, I found them.” Asuka moved immediately, handing the shotgun to Yuriy, in return for her trusty nine-millimeter as they met at the door. “Its just down this street here,” he said pointing; “at the end. It looks like a robbery.” Looking back, he addressed his daughter; “Svetlana, follow me with the pack, but stay back, and out of the way.”

“Yes papa.”

“Alright, Yuriy… Lets do this.” With that, they made their way down the street, leaving their umbrellas behind. As they neared the house that Yuriy had scouted earlier, they began to crouch as they moved.

“There was one on the porch earlier… okay, yea you see him?” Yuriy whispered to Asuka. They were crouched behind a tree on the opposite side of the road, about a hundred meters away. The screams of a woman reached their ears, dispite the distance. This was no simple robbery.

“Got ’em. What’s the plan?” she said, her voice serious, and deadly.

“We need to get in close, neither of us have a good long range weapon… besides we’ll need to get into the house.” she nodded her agreement. “You go around to the back, try and find a back door… If you do, wait until you heard me shoot first, before going in. If not… well go back around to the porch.” She nodded again, and looked him in the eye.

“Good luck Yuriy, see you inside.” she extended her hand, which he took. They gazed at each other for a second, before Asuka slinked off into the distance, immediately lost within the dense foliage beside the neighboring houses.

“Svetlana.” He said quickly, once Asuka was gone. “I need you to stay here, okay?” She nodded. God she looks scared… “It’ll be alright, little one… I love you.” Am I doing the right thing? He pushed the thoughts firmly out of his mind, as he pushed his immense frame away from the tree, and made his approach. The man on the porch was lazy, that much he could tell. He was not taking any stock in his surroundings, just sitting there, obviously trying to block out the screams emanating from within.

Yuriy had crept up to within ten meters of the man, which is practically spitting distance. He was sure Asuka had made it by now, probably waiting on his signal. It’s odd how the stalking of human prey can be so exhilarating, it is a sensation that Yuriy had largely forgotten after his brief tour in the military. Five meters… quiet Yuriy… Blam!

The man, obviously Chinese, jumped up and looked towards the house at the noise of the gunshot. Blam! He was gazing at the front door, looking ready to go back inside, hand on pistol. The female screaming which had been the mainstay of the last ten or so minutes was silenced, only to be replaced by the screaming of a man. He jumped up at the sound, moving towards the door, but Yuriy was faster. The chinaman stopped at the sensation of a relatively large muzzle coming in contact with his skull. Blam! Another shot from inside the house. The screaming was silenced.

“Oof!” the chinaman had elbowed Yuriy in the ribs, knocking him back a bit. Unfortunatly for him however, the jolt caused his finger to reflexively pull the trigger. The old Mossberg shotgun sounded like a cannon, as it bucked back in Yuriy’s hands. The porch got a new paint job.

On the other side of the house, Asuka had given up searching for a back door, and after hearing Yuriy’s shot, was sprinting around towards the front. Somewhat short of breath, she rounded the corner, and found the half-beheaded body slumped up against the siding of the house, next to the door.

“Svetlana! Bring my pack! Now!” Yuriy. His voice was slightly muffled from within the house, but out of the corner of her eye, she saw the little girl sprint out from behind the tree she was hiding behind, towards the house. Asuka jumped through the open doorway, and into the slaughterhouse.

“Yuriy?” she called out.

“In here Asuka, Quick, I need a hand!” he yelled back. She trotted past the oak table, which still showed signs of last night’s meal, and up to the doorway. What she found forced her to stop dead in her tracks.

“Mien Gott…”





A/N: Well how bout that, I’m getting it out before I go on mid-tour. Of course I leave tomorrow, so it is kinda borderline.

It was a hard chapter to write, for the most part… The German I used was thanks to an online translator, so if it’s messed up, please let me know. On another note.. Am I being too predictable or something? …just curious. Anyways, for those of you nice enough to review, thank you. For the rest of you wonderful people, thanks for reading… I just wish you’d give some feedback. Feel free to shoot me a line at rob_travis@hotmail.com I’d love to hear from ya. ~Rob