Neon Genesis Evangelion Fan Fiction ❯ Where Darkness Falls ❯ Interlude ( Chapter 9 )

Where Darkness Falls

Interlude

Aaron Fletcher groaned, rolling onto his side and clutching his chest as he coughed and blinked away tears of pain, carefully examining the damage that the Katsuragi bitch had inflicted on him. He had to admit that she had caught him with his pants down… but the joke was on her, since the two Kevlar vests he had been wearing had absorbed the brunt of the shot.

It still hurt like a son of a bitch, though.

"Fucking women," he gasped, probing the damaged skin under the vest with great care, "they're all the same…"

Satisfied that he had only sustained some heavy bruises - and possible a fractured rib, he could not quite be sure - the chief of police made his way to his feet, glancing up at the window he had been blasted through with a narrow, vengeful expression.

You'll get yours, he thought grimly, moving laboriously away from the hotel, next time we meet, you slant-eyed slut, your ass is MINE!

He thought back over everything that had led him to this point, wondering what he had ever done wrong to deserve such a screwed up life. "If it's not the wife, it's some fucking foreigner," he grumbled, wincing slightly as he ducked into a parked car, closing the door as one of the horn-billed creatures slouched past, "women suck."

Since Charlie was born, Aaron and Edith had gone through some very tough times. She had struggled with postpartum depression, but as Charlie got older she seemed to develop some other kind of disorder, getting worse rather than better, no matter what medication the doctors prescribed.

"You scream at Charlie for being lazy, but what about you?" he muttered, reclining for a moment on the car's front seat, "You don't do jackshit around the house, and you're always breaking things and blaming it on the fucking dog! And I'm the only one who really takes care of things! …fucking bitch."

Fletcher sighed. He really missed Charlie - a lot. He was a good boy and had a great sense of humour for his age, but for the life of him, his father could never figure out what he had ever done wrong to incur his mother's wrath. All he wanted was to make his family work, and he never understood how Edith could have changed…he had never mistreated her, never hit her or Charlie, and though he sometimes had trouble controlling his temper, he always took care of them like they were gold and he ran Fort Knox.

"I even bent some rules to get some money to help you - and look what it got me…" he said with a bitter laugh. He couldn't give a shit about Ikari or his project as long as he got the money - the ends DID justify the means, as far as he was concerned. So what if a few people got hurt - big deal! All he cared about was having his family whole once more. "And Dorothy," he lamented, "you never knew what was fucking going on! Well I hope you're enjoying your little taste of Hell with your lovely daughter. Reap what you sow, baby… reap what you sow."

It had been a dark, dark day when Fletcher was forced to acknowledge that there was nothing he could do for Edith.

"They're all the same," he sighed, deciding it was easier to lay the blame at the feet of all womankind, "I give and I give, and then I give some more! And it's never e-fucking-nough!"

Safe within the confines of the abandoned car Fletcher roared, taking his anger out on the dashboard and passenger seat, tearing and smashing them until his meaty hands ached. He hated them - hated them all! His wife, Katsuragi, Akagi, Amber - every last one of them was out to get him!

His anger finally spent, Fletcher sat panting and red-faced in the driver's seat, trying to collect himself. After a few minutes of thought, he peeled off the ruined Kevlar and threw it on the seat next to him, climbing out of the car and reaching around to the holster concealed on his back.

"Guess what, ladies?" he whispered, pulling his Colt Python out and checking the cylinder, "Aaron's done playing."

Satisfied that he was loaded for bear, he headed off down the foggy streets with only one thing on his mind: payback.

**

Gendou Ikari walked calmly through the streets of Silent Hill, his old-fashioned German Lugar hanging easily at his side. He wore a rueful expression, barely resisting the urge to rub his aching jaw. Katsuragi… he had not expected her to be so fast.

"Impressive, Major," he murmured, turning down Bachman Road and continuing on towards his destination, "I would congratulate you on your strength if I wasn't planning on eliminating you when next we meet."

It was truly unfortunate that the woman had to die, for she WAS an excellent director of operations… but she knew far too much to be allowed to go free. Gendou was already lamenting the fact that he had not shot her on sight.

"I must be getting sloppy."

"Indeed."

Gendou's pistol came up in an instant, nearly pulling the trigger without a second thought as he found a young woman gazing at him from a nearby bench. She was clearly American, appearing to be in her late twenties or so, with long dark hair, a clear complexion, and a long evening dress.

"Hello Gendou Rokubungi," the woman greeted him, pausing for a moment before smiling faintly and correcting, "Oh I'm sorry… it's Ikari now, right?"

"Who are you?" Gendou demanded flatly, keeping his gun pointed at her.

"I'm Alicia," the woman replied, rising from the bench and approaching Gendou without so much as a hint of concern on her lovely face. "How long has it been?"

"What?" Gendou asked

"Since you abandoned your son," the woman said serenely. "Has it really been 10 years since Yui died?"

"What do you know about that?" Gendou asked, his tone brittle, "I didn't have -"

"Lame excuses are truly an art form for you, aren't they Gendou?" Alicia cut in quietly. "You conveniently found time to raise Miss Ayanami… yet when it came to your own son, there was always some reason why you could be bothered, wasn't there? All he ever wanted was for you to acknowledge him, and you never even graced him with so much as a phone call." Alicia shook her head sadly. "You always ignored him. You were his father - the one person left on this Earth who was supposed to care for him, yet you never even gave him the simple things a father should have given his own son. You can give smiles and say meaningful things to Rei… but for Shinji, you only have time for commands and orders."

"I…don't have…time…to be…coddling…that mewling brat," Gendou bit out, his mind attacking every possible explanation for HOW this woman knew what she knew… but repeatedly coming up blank.

"You just don't get it do you?" Alicia sighed. "There is a fine line between coddling and giving at least a little love and support. The fact of the matter is that you DID have time for Shinji… but you never gave it - you just hid behind your job."

Normally Gendou would change the subject… but to his chagrin, he found that he had nothing to fall back on in the face of this odd woman's verbal onslaught.

"You were never even a good commander to begin with," Alicia continued, her voice taking on a matter-of-fact tone. "You ran NERV in a dictatorial manner and you never hesitated to meddle in your own subordinates affairs - no matter the department - getting involved to the point of hobbling them and preventing them from doing their jobs to the best of their abilities for fear of making a mistake in your presence. To you, everyone is replaceable…" she shook her head once more, "you couldn't be more wrong, Mister ikari. Were you able to replace Dr. Akagi after she tried to take her revenge for using her in the way you did? And don't you think that how you handled the 13th Angel is another example of your mediocre abilities as a commander?"

"The pilot's life is irrelevant," Gendou said levelly, refusing to be browbeaten by a WOMAN, of all people, "the angels' defeat goes above all else - even superseding Pilot safety and the safety of civilians. Survival of the species takes precedence over one individual's wellbeing."

Alicia narrowed her eyes. "When the foundation is neglected the house eventually collapses," she said coolly. "You claim you're defending humanity? That has to be one of the sickest jokes I have ever heard. You even activated an unstable system that your own head of Project E had not certified to operate, resulting in the loss of one of the keystones of your supposed `great plan' for human survival."

"It was-"

"Didn't you know there were other ways? Or couldn't you be bothered to use them?"

Gendou smirked. "What other ways would you recommend?" he asked dryly.

Alicia returned the smirk. "Oh let me think… you could have reminded Shinji of what was at stake and reminded him that while the pilots feel pain, it doesn't actually HARM them. You could have given at least a word of encouragement, and let him know you trusted in his ability to safely retrieve the entry plug without harming the pilot. But throughout the debacle you never encouraged any kind of teamwork between the pilots - you simply scattered them to wind and hoped for the best. And when Shinji refused to hurt another person, all you said was `destroy it or it will destroy you.' A pathetic command if I do say so myself…"

Though Gendou's face was calm and collected, inside he was seething. Who was this woman to tell HIM what was best for the world - for his SON! He had read the scrolls, he knew the scenarios, and he would continue doing what was best until he could stand at Yui's side once more.

Alicia continued. "As a result of your incompetence the pilot of Unit 03 was maimed, and Shinji…well, you can't tell me you were really SURPRISED that he threatened to tear the base apart. What did you think would happen if you kept treating people the way you do?" Abruptly, she gave a small laugh. "Well don't be surprised when the dog bites back at the master who constantly kicks him - because that's all he, Rei and everyone else are you… just lowly dogs to be abused. Even in the face of the 15th Angel we see yet another example of your `good leadership.' Instead of sending Shinji out to help the Second Child you kept him back for fear of harming your precious Unit 01 - and by the time Rei got the Lance of Longinus it was too late…" her voice grew very cold. "And as a result , Asuka was no longer able to pilot. These, my friend, are the results of your incompetence, your bad judgement, and your cowardice."

Abruptly, ignoring Gendou's clenched jaw and flashing eyes, Alicia added, "Have you ever wondered what Yui would think of all this? You do all this in her name, and yet you've desecrated everything she ever stood for. You never even bothered to take care of your son…the son she gave her very life to protect. So tell me, Mister Ikari… do you think Yui is going to welcome you with open arms when you meet her in the ne-"

"Shut up!!" Gendou roared, finally reaching the limits of his patience. He thrust his arm forward and pulled the trigger on his gun, anticipating the obliteration of the woman's calm, smug face…

…but found his hand was facing upwards, Alicia's hand gripping it so firmly that Gendou winced in pain, a slight trickle of fear running through him as he realised that her strength far outweighed his own.

"Who… are you…?" he gasped, wincing again as the bones in his hand ground together.

"Listen well Mister Ikari," the woman said icily, the complete lack of emotion and soft menace in her voice silencing the NERV Commander immediately. "You may always have thought you were right and the things you did were necessary but let me tell you this - there are powers here that disagree with you… and all the sins you've committed in the name of turning humanity into something it was never meant to be WILL be addressed."

So saying, Alicia planted her hand on Gendou's chest, easily heaving the man off of his feet and sending him crashing to the ground several metres away.

By the time Gendou regained his breath and struggled to his feet, she was gone.

TBC