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The Quest for St. John

A CAPOW Thread

Hikaru Chisa loved the outdoors. When she was a child, when she was simply Irumi Noma and not the famous 80's seiyuu, she and her brother Irabu would often visit the local park by their house and frolic happily. Now she was older, and almost a different person, but having a little boy meant there would be time for parks once more.

And so Hikaru found herself and her son Kensuke playing ball in St. John's park in Capow. 'Catch' was usually the game a son played with his father, but in Kensuke's life, Hikaru had to be both father and mother. That is, until she found the right man.

For now, she was content to enjoy things as they were.

"Ready, Ken-chan?" she called out to the six year old.

"Throw it, oka-san!" Kensuke shouted.

The ball was passed playfully through the air that sunny afternoon. When they were tired out of running and catching, the young mother and her son sat down on the bench in front of the great fountain.

"Oka-san?" Kensuke started, "Who's that guy?" He was pointing to the bronzed monument of St. John, patron of the park they were in. The statue was standing erect, in a proud pose.

"I don't know, Kensuke," she admitted. They had only come to Capow a few months ago. It still felt like a new place to them.

"Why?"

"Because I don't," she said simply.

"Why?"

"Ken-chan," she spoke in a cute voice, "What does Irapyuki bunny say when there's something you don't know?"

"Oh! Oh! I remember!" Kensuke recalled a lot of her mother's anime characters. "She says, 'Go out and learn for yourself!'"

"Good!" she gave him a quick squeeze. "Oka-san doesn't know, so maybe we should go ask someone else. Hmm? What do you think?"

"Okay," he agreed.

Just then, a person happened to be walking by. The park didn't have any tourist information that could easily answer Kensuke's question. So, Hikaru waved and hoped maybe the passerby could shed some light on their search.


Jinx turned around. "Umm, yes?"

"Hi, sorry to bother you miss, but I was just wondering if you could help us a moment.." Hikaru gestured down to her son. Jinx blinked, and smiled.

"Well, sure, we've got time."

"I'm Hikaru and this is my son Kensuke."

Jinx held out her hand for Hikaru to shake. "I'm Jinx, and..." Jinx paused, brought her fingers to her lips and whistled. "And this is Silber.." Jinx motioned the the large brown hawk as it perched on her extended arm. Kensuke hid a bit behind Hikaru's legs. "Oh, no, it's okay, she won't hurt you.." Jinx set Silber on the ground, and Silber slowly and carefully hopped over to Kensuke, rested her wings, and let Kensuke touch her feathers. "See?"

Kesuke grinned, and Jinx giggled. "So, what did you need help with, Hikaru-san?"

"You see, we're rather new in Capow and we were curious -- would you happen to know why this place is called St. John's Park?"

Jinx opened her mouth to speak, but realized she didn't have an answer. "Hmmm..." She furrowed her brow and tapped her chin. "I.. really don't know.."

"Aww... how do we find out?" Kensuke asked, holding Silber in his arms. Jinx thought for a little bit and then a thought hit her. She bent over and looked down at Kensuke.

"I have an idea," Jinx began with a smile, "My onii-chan knows lots! I'm sure he'd know a few things about St. John." Kensuke returned Jinx's smile.

"Hmm..." Hikaru began, "where's your onii-chan?"

Jinx paused in thought again. "Wellll..... I think I _might_ know where he is... but if not, I'm sure we could get more information from someone else." Jinx gave an enthusiastic nod.

"Okay, so take us to him!" Hikaru replied, taking Kensuke's hand.


"One scotch, hard on the rocks, two cokes, two sprites, one Asahi beer and one sake kudasai!" Elyssa dumped the order on the bar at the Lurker's Retreat. The popular bar and all-around cool hangout was busier than usual. There were lurkers everywhere and Elyssa wasn't sure why they were gathering like they were. Ryan and Dachend sat in the corner, eyeing them all carefully. If there was any trouble...

The door swung open and in walked Jinx with Silber perched on her shoulder, in hawk form. Behind her trailed a young woman and a small boy, probably her son.

Elyssa looked around. Most of the tables were filled. She intercepted Jinx and bowed deeply. "Hi Jinx-chan!" She greeted Hikaru and Kensuke. "Irraishimase. Ogenki desu ka?"

"Genki desu, arigatou," Hikaru thanked Elyssa.

"Gomen ne, Jinx-chan!" Elyssa apologized, putting her notepad away. "As you can see, we're quite busy. I don't know what's going on here, but there isn't a table for you and your friends."

Jinx frowned. Hikaru placed a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay, Jinx-san. We don't need to stay, do we?"

The girl looked around. Joseph-onii-chan wasn't anywhere to be seen. Apparently he wasn't back yet. She asked Elyssa just to make sure but the girl could only shake her head before picking up a tray of drinks.

"Hmm.. is this a bad time?" Hikaru wondered.

Jinx approached Mads, who was busy mixing drinks behind the bar. "Can't talk now, Jinx," she apologized without looking up. "I'm really busy at the moment. Ryan and Dachend are in the corner, y'know."

"C'mon, let's go ask them!" Jinx said over her shoulder, about to bounce away.

Hikaru took a glance at the table she was walking to. There were two men seated there. One was blond with a ponytail, wearing dark sunglasses. The other was menacing. His hair was blond too and his face was sharp.

She tugged on Jinx's sleeve. "Maybe we should leave them alone, they look busy."

"Nonsense!" Jinx protested. "Ryan-san and Dachend-san are the coolest guys around here and I'm sure they might know about St. John's."

Hikaru reached for Kensuke, trying to keep him close. "Don't stray Kensuke-chan. Kensuke-chan? Kensuke!" It was too late. He had already ran ahead and presented himself before the stalwart duo. With his best smile, he said to Dachend, "Hi Mr. Scary-looking!"

Ryan broke into a grin. Dachend frowned. Hikaru jumped behind her little son and tried to pull him away, apologizing at the same time. Dachend bent over in his chair and studied Kensuke's face. "This yer kid?" he asked roughly.

"H-hai," Hikaru answered waveringly.

Kensuke had a confused look on his face, waiting to see what would happen.

Dachend mussed his hair. "Cute kid," he said without an expression before sitting back. Hikaru let out a sigh.

"Ryan-san, Dachend-san, this is Chisa Hikaru-san and her son Kensuke," Jinx introduced them. "They're sort of new to Capow and were wondering if you could help them out."

Ryan raised an eyebrow. "Help? What kind of help?"

"Well--" started Jinx.

Kensuke jumped in. "Mr. Dark-glasses! I wanna know who St. John's is and how come they name a park after him!"

Hikaru sweatdropped.


"This way!"

"Wait a minute! Slow down! I can't run this fast ..."

It was a typical afternoon in the Mechanical Division of the Government agency known simply as "The Academy". A young purple-haired girl in a black velvet dress was bolting down one of the hallways at breakneck speed with a boy of the same age in tow. Without warning, the girl stopped and flung the boy through an open door on the right side of the hall, sending him face first down onto the concrete floor. "Oof!"

"Ooops," she said, removing her black military cap and crumpling it in her hands. "Gomen, Kii-kun."

"It's okay," smirked Kii, "The floor broke my fall." He stood up and brushed off a bit of the dirt off his oil-spotted shirt.

"Alrighty then." She uncrumpled the cap and set it back atop her head.

"So, what was it you wanted to show me so badly?"

The girl grinned and pointed eagerly at some point above and behind his head. "That."

Kii turned around and *piku*ed at the sight in the mecha cage beyond the glass plate window. -Geez,- he thought, -That is one *skinny* mecha ..-

"What is it?"

"That," the girl beamed with pride, "is the end product of Mama's recon project."

-The stolen technology ...-

"The thing she spent two decades on?"

"Hai. They call it ... an 'Evangelion'. Or 'EVA' for short."

Kii scratched his head. "Chatty ..."

"Hai?"

"What are they for?"

"Hmm?" Chatty shot him a confused glance.

"What are these ... these 'EVAs' ... for? Why do we need them? What does the government plan to do with them? What are they for?"

Chatty shrugged. "Defense, I suppose. Like everything here."

"Defense." Kii looked up at the grim face of the giant mecha, examining its expression. "Defense from what? What exactly are these designed to counteract?"

"I, uh ... wouldn't know that," said Chatty. A large sweatdrop began to migrate down the back of her head.

There was a long pause as Kii continued to stare up at the EVA. Finally, he shook his head and turned to Chatty. "The more of these new weapons I see, the more I feel that something very bad is going to happen."

"Like what, a war?"

The flippancy of her remark caught Kii slightly off-guard. "Well ... mayhaps ..."

"Well, don't you worry your little Philosopher Mechanic self about it," she stated, hands on her hips, "because under no circumstances are the members of the Repair Division going off into the ranks. That's for the Soldiers and the Mages!" With that final remark, she threw her head back and let out a forceful laugh. "Ha!"

He grinned and clumsily saluted. "Yes ma'am!"

"What kind of an excuse for a salute is that?" She crossed her arms and shook her head.

Kii shrugged.

"That's no salute ... *THIS* is a salute!" Chatty spun about face and snappily saluted with an artful flick of the wrist.

"Smart," he said with a grin, "but I doubt I could get away with it."

"Why? Too 'girly' a salute for your likes?"

"No, too difficult. I'd probably wind up slapping myself in the face or something."

She chuckled. "Yeah ..."

The two children fell silent, and then Chatty spoke again. "I hear you guys finally finished that new safety thingamabobber."

"Hm? Oh, you mean Prev-san's Safety Pod?"

"Yeah. Scotty's design. How is it?"

"Well," said Kii, scratching the back of his head, "I can show it to you now, if you want."

"Sure, why not?"

They left for the mechanical workshop on the floor below.


"This is it," said Kii, stopping in front of a large, white, egg-shaped pod. "It's a good thing Vicks and Jesse were working on it with me. I doubt I could've gotten it done all by myself."

Chatty walked up to it and placed her hand on the warm pod surface. "This is supposed to be a cockpit?"

"Well, it can be outfitted as a mecha cockpit, given enough time. But it could also be a great escape pod. I think that's what Prev-san intended it for."

"How many can it hold?"

"One person. Or two midgets."

Chatty grinned, but the grin faded as her hand moved to a different area of the pod. "What's this?"

"What's what?" He leaned in closer toward the pod.

"This. 'S. C. P.'"

"Oh," said Kii, turning away slightly, "me and Vicks put that there. It's Prev-san's initials. A memorial of a sort, I guess."

She nodded. "Y'know ... you're very lucky, Kii-kun."

"How so?"

"Well, I mean ... you went into Mechanical Repair and got such a great mentor as Scotty, while I went into Magic and got stuck with ..." She stopped, shaking her head.

Kii looked back to her. "Is there something wrong?"

Chatty hesitated. "No, I guess not. Miyu-sensei is the best archmage there ever was. It's just that sometimes ... she scares me ..."

Before she could say more, the warning sirens began to wail and a voice over the intercom began to recite a warning. "Designation 69 ... this is not a drill ... designation 69 ... this is not a drill ..."

-Designation 69?- thought Kii, -What did that mean again? 69, 69, 69 .. Oh, yeah. It was ...- He suddenly stopped and his eyes widened with shock.

"You okay, Kii-kun?"

Kii slammed the side of the pod, and a little door popped open in front.

"Kii, what are you d-- KII!"

Wordlessly, he shoved her into the pod and slammed the door shut with an echoing thud, mere seconds before the torrent of liquid energy rushed in through the doors.

Kii turned and lifted his arms up to shield his eyes from the blinding light ...

"Something wrong, kid?"

"Wha...?" Kii blinked and lowered his arms. He was in ... a park? Yes, a park with a great fountain and a bronze monument in the middle. "No, I'm fine. What park is this?"

"St. John's Park. In CAPOW. A refuge for the veterans of the Cold War. I mean, the park is ... not CAPOW."

"Oh," said Kii, turning, "and where is -- hm? Where'd you go?"

No response. And no sign of the mystery speaker. All the people in the park were too far away and busy talking with somebody else.

He paused, and then shrugged. "Well, at least I'm alive ... I think .." He pinched his arm -- just to be sure. "Hai, I'm alive."

So Kii went off to find something to eat.


Ryan drummed his fingers on the table. "St. John, St. John," he muttered, trying to remember. "I'm not much of a history buff or anything but the popular rumor has it that the park used to be a refuge for Cold War veterans."

"Cold war veterans?" Hikaru repeated, confused. "Why would they want to hide here?"

"Probably because they can, and it's secluded. I don't know if that will help you figure out who St. John is. Are you religious?"

"My parents were shinto's but I'm not really much of religion. Why do you ask?"

"Well, St. John is mentioned in the bible. He wrote several books, especially the Book of Revelations which talks about his dream where he sees the world coming to an end."

Jinx's eyebrows furrowed. "Sounds creepy, Ryan-san!"

The sun-glassed bounty-hunter smiled, "Oh, it's very fun, very fun indeed." He grinned, showing teeth.

Suddenly a glass bottle flew inches from Dachend's face. They saw two lurkers, shoving at eachother and yelling. One shouted, "Miaka's cuter by far!" The other said, "Nuku Nuku all the way you idiot!"

"fucking hey!, it appears the shit is heading for the fan... this should be entertaining" Dachend smile. Jinx put her hand over his mouth and pointed to Kensuke, who just observed with childhood interest. "oh the kid...." he looked down at Kensuke "...repeat after me kiddo. fuck-ing Hey..." he said slowly. Jinx scowled, Dachned flash his sly smile "hey it's never to early to start" another bottle piped past his head with less than an inch, the moster-hunter turned to Hikaru. "Look, you might wanna get your kid outta here, things could get a little... heh messy. C'mon Ryan, time to break bones"

The two got up, took off their jackets and entered the fray.

Jinx sweatdropped. "that's Dachend, but _This_ is probably a good time to leave, ne?" Silber sqwuaked and she narrowly missed the chair leg that came flying at her.

The three kept low as they exited the bar, with all patrons in the thick of the fight. Hikaru picked up Kensuke as they ran out. She looked back to see if Ryan and Dachend were all right.

Suddenly, because she wasn't looking, she plowed right into someone.

Kii rubbed his head. "Oww..."


"Itai!" said Hikaru. She stepped back a little and rubbed her head too-- well, as best she could with Kensuke in her arms. "Gomen nasai. Are you alright?"

"A _little_ okay, I think." Kii sat up a little in the front door of the Retreat. The head-on collision had bounced him off the doorframe and onto his rear-end. Funny -- she hadn't thought she was leaving _that_ fast.

"A _little_ okay?"

Kii smiled. "Hai."

Kensuke giggled. Hikaru didn't quite get the joke, but she decided to leave it at that. "Um ... I'm sorry, but I --" She ducked as a plate zipped overhead and crashed into the wall.

"What's going on in there?" asked Kii, standing up with a jolt.

"They're fighting!" piped in Kensuke.

"Oh." In the midst of all the crashing, smashing, and noisy property damage going on in the crowd, battle cries of "Nuku Nuku no kawaii!!" and "Miaka forever!!" could be heard, kind of. "Is that why you're leaving?"

"Sort of. Kensuke and I are trying to find out why St. John's Park is called St. John's Park."

"St. John's Park? I just came from there."

"Really?" said Kensuke, "Do _you_ know why it's called St. John's Park?"

Kii shook his head. "No, I only just got here. Only thing I know about St. John's Park is that it's a ... um ... a refuge for Cold War veterans."

Hikaru nodded. "I knew that. But ... you're new? Then that means we haven't met. I'm Hikaru Chisa, and this is my son, Kensuke."

"Hi!" beamed Kensuke.

He nodded to them. "I'm Kii Tsutomeru. Very nice to mee--" A book flew up and out from the crowd and crashed into the side of his head, sending him into the doorframe again. "Ouch ..."

"Do you have a curse, Mr. Kii-san?" asked Kensuke.

Kii laughed and rubbed his head. "No, just a bad day today. Can we talk about this out of the line of fire?"

"Hai," said Hikaru, "that might be good. Are you going anywhere in particular?"

"No, not really. I was going to try to get something to eat, but ... um ..." Kii glanced over at the brawl still going on in the midst of the Retreat, as if expecting something else to come flying out at him again. Fortunately, nothing did.

Kensuke's face lit up. "Then you can help us find out about St. John's Park?"

"Well, I don't see why not ..."

"WAI!" The little boy squirmed with happiness, making it a little more difficult for Hikari to hold him up. Of course she didn't mind, being more concerned with the current matter ...

"Great!" she said, "Now all we have to do is find Jinx again. She shouldn't be too far ahead of us."

With that, the trio set forth from the Lurker's Retreat.


"Where now, Hikaru-san?" Jinx turned around to find no one following her. "Uh oh..." Jinx turned around a few times. Still no Hikaru or Kensuke. Silber hopped off her shoulder and floated to the ground. She squwaked a few times. "You think they might have gotten caught in that fight? I'm sure they were with me when I ran out.." Jinx was about to turn back to the Retreat when something caught her eye. "Ooo... he must be new..."

"....................where_am_i??!" Said Jay, trying to figure out where he was, and why. The last thing he remembered was being chased by his sensei for not showing up the other day. And being blasted into a wall, a normal day In Jay´s life... But now, he took a wrong turn when trying to hide from his sensei and ending up in this weird city.

Jay was getting restless, for the first time in his life, he was actually begining to worry. Then he noticed someone looking at him. The first thing Jay noticed was that it was a cute girl, he grinned. Then he saw her pet... A large brown hawk. "Girl, hawk, girl, hawk... Um... Either way, Ill get killed... Heheh, well might as well ask HER where I am..." He thought to himself. This was no time to be shy.

Jay walked towards the girl, a bit shyly, but he did. "Hey there..." said Jay, waving from a distance as he walked closer. Jinx wrinkled her nose into a grin, and met up with him. Silber hopped after her. "Hiya! I kinda.. umm.. noticed you looked a little lost. I figured you're new here, right?" Jinx asked, biting her lip. Silber fluttered up to her shoulder, and kept her red eyes dead on him.

Jay sweatdropped. "Hai, I guess I am... I was hiding from my sensei and..." Sudenlly he stoped talking. "But I guess you´re not interested on how I got here... Where ever "Here" is... So... Um.. Where am I? In Dijan?" Jay grinned warmly at her, and looked at the brown hawk. A shiver ran down his spine. "N, nice pet!....... Does it bite?" Jay sweatdropped again. "Oh, her?" Jinx looked at Silber out of the corner of her eye. "Naah. She just likes looking mean," Jinx giggled, her pink eyes sparkling.

Jay grinned back at her, looking deeply at her eyes. ".............." Jay suddenly remembered, he was LOST! "Anno..... Um... so, where did ya say I was? I mean we... I mean... Where is this?" He said, a bit nervous. "Damn, Im sounding stupid already," he thought, "ahg...."

Jinx couldn't help but giggle again. This guy's soooo cute! She thought. "It's okay, you're in Capow. Gets everyone confused." Silber squwaked loudly, making Jay jump a little. "Hey, Silber, quiet, huh?" Silber sat back and remained silent.

"Capow ne? Why does that sound familiar..." Jay mumbled. "Um.. So.... Whasup?" Jay grinned and looked around. "Why is such a cute girl like yourself so alone in this city?"

Jinx's face slightly reddened. "Well, umm.. actually, I was looking for someone.. I lost them and I was about to go back.." Silber yawned. "Oh, by the way, I haven't introduced myself.." Jinx tried changing the subject. "I'm Jinx." Jinx smiled brightly, and held out her hand for Jay to shake.

Jay shook her hand, but couldn´t help looking at Silber. Somehow, he felt the hawk could bite him any minute. "Heheh... Nice name, Jinx. pst pst... About Silber... Sure HE wont bite???"

Jinx Sweatdropped.

Ofcourse, Jay didn´t know Silber´s gender at that time, which got him a bite in the hand.

"AHG!" Jay jumped back.

Silber shrieked at him.

Jinx jumped back and snatched Silber away from him. "Silber, how could you do such a thing?!" Silber squwaked loudly, annoyed. "He didn't know!" Jinx replied. The hawk calmed, and jumped out of Jinx's arms, and nestled by her feet.

She brushed her hair back, her pink eyes slowly fading into a light red. "Geez, I'm sorry about that, ummm...."

Jay looked at her while trying to forget about the pain. "No no, it´s ok... My fault..." Once again, a sweatdrop covered his face. "Hey, im kinda lost... It would be a good thing if I finally lost my sensei," Jay snikered. "so.... Could you, show me around?" Jay grinned at her and at Silber.

"Oh, sure!" Jinx exclaimed, her big eyes green now. "I'd be happy too! And I'm sure Silber would be too!" Silber squwaked, but didn't move. "but.." She glanced up and looked intp his eyes. "I just need one thing from you.." She said softly. Jay nodded. "Sure, ask away!" Then grinned.

Jinx snickered, and put her hand on Jay's arm. She slowly leaned forward. She giggled softly and whispered in his ear.. "I need your name."

"AHG! IM SO STUPID! HOW COULD I FORGET! Kuso... Im so stupid..." He thought. "Jay... Jay Arisugawa..." He said. Jay blushed a little, he still could beleive he had forgoten to introduce himself.

"Nice to meet you, Jay." Jinx winked, and then picked up Silber, letting her perch on her arm. "I'd be glad to show you around, but if you don't mind, first, I've got to find my friends I lost!" Jinx sweatdropped.

"Oh" Jay beamed.

"Yeah! Maybe this place wont be so bad after all! I´ve met a cute girl already!" jay thought. "Then Ill help you look for them, ne? I´ve got nowhere to go, and you´re the only person I know in... Cameow???" Jay sweatdropped. "Capow right???" Jay sweatdropped, again. "Im a little confused here... sorry..."

"Capow has that affect on people." Jinx grinned, and then gestured for Jay to come. "I think they stopped a bit behind me. Let's go!"


About just a minute later, they met up with Jinx and Jay.

"There you are, Hikaru-san! This is Jay, by the way. He's new, and I thought I could take him around a bit while we continued our search." Jay smiled and waved at Hiakru.

"That's quite interesting, because I met Kii here, just a second ago. This is Jinx, Kii," Hikaru pointed to Jinx.

"Hi, Jinx," He greeted, smiling. Jinx wrinkled her nose into a grin and nodded.

He seems rather interesting.. she thought. But enough of this.

"So!" Jinx began. "No luck at the Retreat, now what do we do?"

"Maybe.. we can go ask someone else!" Kensuke interjected. Silber barked in agreement.

"That's what I'd think, but who else..?"


Hikaru pondered for a moment. "St. John's park was a refuge for cold war veterans," she repeated. "Hmmm... sounds so spy-ish. Oh!" Her eyes lightened. "I know someone who could help..."


Kimiko finished drying her hair and getting the water out of her ears when a knock came from her apartment door. She wondered who it could be as she checked the peer-hole.

She spotted Irumi with a whole group of people. She recognized Jinx but the two young men she didn't. She also figured Kensuke was with Irumi but she couldn't see. Sighing, she opened the door a crack.

"Kimiko-chan!" Irumi greeted. "Gomen kudasai!" she said the traditional guest greeting for entering someone's home. Kimiko frowned slightly. She hadn't even invited her and her friends. She did spot Kensuke and gave him a secret wink and smile. Kensuke waved.

"Kimiko-onee-chan!" he said. "We need your help!"

"Nani? You all need my help?"

Irumi pushed the door a little. "C'mon, Kimiko-chan, we'll explain inside. It's rude to make us all stand out here." They practically barged into her apartment.

"So what's this all about, Irumi?" Kimiko asked once they had all settled onto her couch.

"Irumi?" the younger boy asked.

Hikaru nodded with a smile. "That's my real name. Only Kimiko-chan calls me that. But please, call me Hikaru, ne?" Her face beamed.

"Ne, you haven't introduced me to them.." Kimiko muttered behind her hand.

Irumi looked between Kimiko and the two young men a few times. "Are! Gomen ne! This is Kii Tsutomeru," pointing the teen, "and that's Jay Arisugawa." She motioned to the taller, older boy who was admiring Kimiko's apartment.

Silber sqwaked. "Oh, and this is Silber, you remember, Kimiko-san?" Jinx said. Kimiko eyed the hawk carefully. She didn't know how to react to a hawk perched on the girl's shoulder. She was right. It was an odd bunch indeed.

"Okay, now can you tell me why you're all here in my apartment?" Kimiko repeated.

"We want to find St. John!" Kensuke interjected.

"Huh?"

Suddenly everyone started talking at once. "We're trying to find who St. John is," Irumi said. Jinx said, "Well I met Hikaru-san in the park and she asked me--" Meanwhile Jay was relating how he met Jinx in the Lurker's Retreat. Kensuke just babbled. Only Silber and Kii remained quiet.

"Agh!! one at a time!" Kimiko shouted with hands over her ears. "Irumi, you said St. John?"

"Hai, Kimiko-chan! You know St. John's park? We're trying to find out why it was named after St. John. Ryan-san at the Retreat told us the park used to be a refuge for Cold War veterans."

Kimiko blinked. "Why this sudden interest in the park?" She thought about her incident with the mysterious person who attacked her with the vines. It was strange and never explained. And she also thought about the final moments with Ahlen, her alternate-reality brother, who now resided in the Dream Realm with his beloved, Lyta Fireheart.

Irumi shrugged. "Ken-chan wanted to know. I think it's important for a child's questions to be answered as best they can."

Kimiko blinked again. "And you guys?" she asked the rest. The general reply was that they just were curious and wanted to tag along. She exhaled audibly. "Irumi, aren't you going a little extreme with this?"

"Doshite? You can't help us?"

As a Chobetsu operative and former CIA, she was trained to dish out information discretely and carefully. But for some strange reason, she felt compelled to reveal all she knew. Which wasn't that much to begin with.

"Well, I'll tell you what I know, okay? It was indeed rumored that Cold War veterans took refuge in the park. A few of them were rumored to have brought some nuclear weapons over from the former Soviet Republic and hid them here. You aren't religious, are you?" Irumi shook her head. "Well, St. John was one of the twelve apostles. As well as writing one of the Gospels, he also wrote the book of Revelations. It talks about visions he had proclaiming the end of the world."

Kii, who had been listening carefully realized something. "I think I see what you mean! Nuclear weapons have very large destructive capabilities. It is ironic that they would be hidden in a park named after someone who saw such devestating visions."

Kimiko nodded. "Right. St. John forsaw Armageddon. What more fitting if St. John's park was really the world's largest depository of nuclear weapons?"

"But wouldn't the radiation from the weapons have been detected?" Kii asked.

She nodded again. "They should have been but they haven't been picked up. Which suggests the whole story is just a hoax. But it's still uncertain--HEY! Put that down!"

Jay had gotten up while Kimiko related her information and picked up a plainly wrapped blade lying on a dresser. "This sword is very interesting. I sense a great deal of energy here."

Kimiko grabbed the sword and scabbard quickly. "Don't touch that!" she hissed.

Jay put up his hands. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to--"

Irumi put an arm around Kimiko. "Are you okay Kimiko-chan? He didn't mean anything, see?"

"I'm sorry for snapping," Kimiko apologized. "It's just, this sword has a lot of sentimental value. It's as much my fault for leaving it out like this."

The room was silent for a moment.

"Well, I think we overstayed our welcome," Irumi declared. "I think we better get going."

Kimiko nodded slightly. "I'm sorry I didnt' have any information for you."

"On the contrary! Now we know a possible reason why the park was named after St. John. But I wonder, could those weapons be hidden in there? It would be very dangerous, ne?"

"Irumi, I think maybe you and Kensuke and your friends should just leave it at that," the agent said with finality.


As the group left the apartment, Kii wondered silently. Nuclear weapons. What if they weren't nuclear weapons, but highly complex energy that couldn't be picked up with current technology. Just before the Designation 69, he saw a brilliant flash of light and ended up in the park. Could it be the Evangelion's energy signature had drawn him to that park? He wondered if Chatty were around anywhere or if she was still back in the pod. Evangelion, he repeated in his mind. The stolen technology. He wondered if there was a link between that and the park.


Deep beneath the surface of St. Johns Park, silent screams of torment and pain hurtled up toward the surface...

A dark mass bored its way upwards, blind to sunlight but drawn to its target with vision beyond comprehension. The earth seemed to fear this intruder and parted before the east. It made nary a sound as it bored away.


In another time and another place...

"The residual energy signature is very faint. Otherwise the sample of this new find is intriguing. There seems to be some sort of latent self repairing mechanism incorporated into the matter. We still can't identify the substance structures of most of the sample, but I can almost swear that it has biological features," A young woman in a lab coat with dark hair was walking briskly down a corridor beside an older (also labcoated) woman with short spiky-green hair, "It would be a great help if my team was actually told what this thing _was_, Dr. Sencha-san ..."

She smirked. "Ah ... that's a secret, Mara-san."

"It's _Dr. Carver_," she replied, frowning, "and furthermore, when am *I* going to be allowed to see this ... this whatchamacallit, whatever-the-hell-it-is from Gehirn ..."

"Dr. Carver, you will get to see the artifact in due time. This operation has been classified at a high level. It takes time for us to clear non-military personnel," Dr. Mayuri Sencha stopped and turned slightly, producing a card and swiping it through a console on the side of the corridor. The elevator doors beside the console hissed open with an quiet click as the door opened fully, "I thank you for your analysis. I am sure that it will be quite informative." The door slid shut and made a dull boom as it sealed itself.

"Information without knowledge is quite dangerous. What have you found, my dear senpai? Is it a miracle for our war efforts? Or have you brought damnation upon us all?," whispered Carver to the now closed doors. She turned and walked back to her office, quiet footsteps thundering throughout the empty corridor.


The alarm clock rang at 6:00 a.m. Samui stretched and contemplated sleeping for another five minutes, but quickly changed her mind, reminding herself that she had work to do. After getting up and making her bed, she changed into a jogging suit and put on a cap that almost completely covered her hair. Then, picking out a CD from her classical music collection, she popped it into her CD player, hooked it to her belt, and plugged in the earphones. She then began jogging towards St. John's park, Beethoven's 6th Symphony accompanying her.

Few of the St. John regulars bothered to look up Samui did a few laps around the park. To them, she was simply another morning jogger.

'No wonder I was notified about the Evangelion,' Samui thought as she jogged. 'This is a perfect place to hide one.'

The various weapons which had been hidden there had been removed a long time ago, but the residual radiation was enough to interfere with any kind of instrument, even more advanced ones. Additionally, the magical energy that the entire CAPOW area was bathed in garbled the channels with noise. And then there were cellular phone signals, radio waves, and other whatnot.

Samui took a look at her watch. 'There's just enough time to report at the office...' she smiled slightly. 'For once.' She changed directions and sped up a bit.

"Oh, my God!" One of Samui's colleagues exclaimed as she came in. "It's the end of the world as we know it!"

"But I feel fine," Samui returned calmly.

Several chuckles were heard. Another colleague offered Samui a steaming pot. "Coffee?"

Samui picked up a mug. "Please."

"So, what brings miss 'the early worm gets eaten' in this morning?"

"First, I wanted to see if the papers have been cleared yet."

A snort. "The world is _really_ gonna end before they ever officially transfer you back into our department. Whose brilliant idea was it anyway to put you on _their_ payroll?"

Someone coughed nervously.

Samui took a sip of her coffee. "Second, is there any new developments in the possible dimension barrier breach?"

A third colleague handed her a manila folder. "We've got some leads, but nothing concrete."

Samui flipped through the notes quickly. "I see what you mean."

"Don't worry about it right now," someone else advised. "That Eva won't be going anywhere soon."

Samui set the folder back down. "Don't be so sure. Evangelions have been known to get up and walk away on their own accord."

Soft chuckles sounded, but this time they were not out of humor.

Hikaru sat down on the grass and let the afternoon sun warm her body. The previous day's search for information on St. John had turned up nearly nothing, but Hikaru didn't consider it a failure as she got to meet quite a few interesting people. Kensuke had been rather disappointed, but he got over it quickly, and was now frolicking happily beside her.

Kensuke's face lit up as he recognized the old gentleman they had met at _The Brighter Side of Insomnia_. "Hello, Mr. Thou!"

"Greetings, Sir Kensuke." Jonathan tipped his hat towards Hikaru. "Greetings, Madam Chisa."

Kensuke giggled. "You're funny, Mr. Thou." His eyes lit up. "Say, do _you_ know who St. John is?"

Jonathan nodded. "The Beloved Disciple of Christ was he. His hame meaneth 'The LORD God hath been gracious'."

Kensuke blinked. "Huh?"

His mother explained it to him in plain English.


"Sir. We have a call coming in from the CAPOW geological office. It's urgent," The controller at the communications switchboard spoke into the intercom.

"I understand. Transfer the call to my office."

The chief of the CAPOW Special Advanced Defense and Police Force (SADPOL) grimaced.

/* I hope that it's not aftershocks from Megatokyo again. We had enough problems coping with THAT incident.*/

*Beep*

*Click*

"Am I speaking to the Chief?" A worried voice sounded from the speakerphone.

"Yes, ma'am. What is the nature of the problem?"

"We are picking up momentary seismic anomalies coming from below CAPOW proper. The nature of the disturbances suggest that this is not a fault shift or a magma displacement."

"You mean that it doesn't seem 'natural'. How can we assist you? Honestly, I don't even know what we could do about it?"

"Well... We can keep you informed if the situation changes radically. In this town, you can never be too sure what's going to turn out."

"Heh. I suppose you are right. Thank you for calling. You did the right thing."

*Click*

/* Sigh*/


The comm officer put a hand over her earpiece, trying hard to listen to the multiple reports that were coming in and at the same time, deliver her own summary to the SADPOL chief. "Sir, we're taking heavy casualties! Advance groups A, C and D are nearly wiped out. Groups B and E are operating at 60% but dropping fast!"

The chief frowned. "How long before groups F thru H arrive?"

"They report ETA of 5 minutes, sir."

"Tell backup groups to stand by." The comm officer nodded and went back to her relays.

The chief pounded a fist into his hand. How the hell was he going to beat this thing? It had taken out nearly five advance tactical groups without a single hit. They were literally being chewed up. And it didn't help that the thing appeared out of nowhere. Slight tremors, followed by one massive seismic burst and suddenly there was the largest blip on the scope he'd ever seen. Its energy signature was unreadable yet the sensors said it was big.

A figure drifted into the command center, someone that didn't belong. He had a way of reading people. During a crisis you were either rushing off somewhere fast or busy doing something important. He was a kid and he didn't look like he had a clue where he was or what he was supposed to be doing. Yep, someone out of place. "You!" he snapped quickly. "Clear the command area NOW!"

"Umm..." the boy mumbled. "I think I can help." That was enough for the chief to hesitate calling security. Kii knew that and rushed to the console. He punched several buttons, taking note of the readings. "Energy output unknown," he read off the screen, paging to the next sensor view, "extremely high tachyon output, low level of radioactive energy. I think it's safe bet. It's pattern blue."

"What?" the chief asked. "How do you know this?"

"Let's say I've seen something similar to that thing out there," Kii responded. Energy readings and scientific theories weren't really his field of study. He'd rather be fixing mecha than proving how they worked but sometimes he came across useful information. Such was the case with the "Evangelion" Chatty had shown him earlier. He had never seen it before that day but he did have some info on it. Vague and sketchy at best but it was enough to make one certain conclusion: that Evangelion and that thing out there had the same energy patterns. They were the same thing. The only difference was that thing was on a destructive rampage.

An idea began to form in his mind. "Excuse me sir, do you have access to some cross-dimensional generator machine or something?"

The chief did a double-take. "What?"

"Nevermind." Somehow, he had to get that Evangelion to here and stop that thing. But how?

The comm officer spoke up. "Sir, advance tactical groups F through H have made contact with the target. They are firing all salvos but it's no use. Group F is already starting to take major casualties. We've also lost contact with groups A to D. Group E confirms they've been decimated."

The chief massaged his temples. Things weren't going well. That was an understatement actually. Things were going horribly wrong. He turned back to the skinny boy that seemed to have all the answers. It was better than nothing. "Alright kid," he said. "I don't know who you are or what you know, but if you can help, fine. I'm going to send you to sub-level 7. There's some people there who might be able to help you." He turned to one of the guards posted at the door. "You! Escort him to SL-7!" The soldier saluted.

"What's at sub-level 7?" Kii asked.

"Our prototype dimensional reactor."


CALL ME SHELUMIEL.

Two generic technicians at the SADPOL control center exchanged glances.

"Does that screen say what I think it says?"

"Um ... well, do you think it says 'Call me Shelumiel'?"

"I think so."

"Then I guess it does."

The two sat back in their swivel-wheel chairs and blinked a few more times. Not that it did much good ... but, then again, you can never blink too much ...

"Hey!" shouted a third technician, poking his head in-between the two. "I'm back!"

"Err, hi Lenny," said one of the techs, wincing.

"Anything interesting happen while I was up?"

"Well, um ... this message thing cropped up on your screen, Len-kun."

"'Call me Shelumiel'," read the other tech, just in case Lenny'd forgotten how to read while he'd been in the bathroom.

"Oh, I can see that. Who's it from?"

"Well, lesse ..." One of the techs swiveled in his chair toward his own terminal and started typing ...

And stopped typing.

"It's from the Shito!" he exclaimed in a highly dramatic and clichéd manner.

The other tech gasped. "The one that's demolishing downtown?!"

"Hai!" "Well I'll be," said Lenny, smirking, "I thought it was from the Shito uptown that's having trouble with his instant ramen ..."

The two techs glared at Lenny.

He shrugged and grinned. "Maybe it got bored with being called X1897-ab3 ..."

"Enough of that," said one tech, "What are we going to do?!"

"Call it Shelumiel," said Lenny.

The techs blinked. "You've got to be crazy ..."

"Maybe so, but it can't hurt." He pulled a swivel chair up to the terminal and started typing. "A little here and a little ... there. X1897-ab3 now designated Schlemiel." Lenny sat back smugly and put his hands behind his head.

The other two techs exchanged glances again.

"Uh, Lenny," said one, "That was supposed to be 'Shelumiel'."

"Was it?"

"Err, yeah. 'Call me Shelumiel'."

"Oopsy," said Lenny, not sounding the least bit sorry. "Well, it's close enough." He sat back in his chair, swiveled it around a bit, and jumped back up.

"Gee, I have to go to the bathroom again! 'Scuse me." He quickly ran off.

There was a long pause.

"Len-kun's been going to the bathroom a lot, hasn't he?"

"..." said the other tech intelligently.


Kii and the Soldier marched down a hallway that was supposedly on the way that supposedly led to SL-7, which supposedly had a prototype dimensional reactor, which Kii was supposedly going to be able to activate and use properly in order to do _something_ to defeat the Shito.

Fact was, he was completely lost. For all he knew, the Soldier might've been leading Kii to Lalaland or the Place That Bad Sheep Go To.

Fortunately, Kii is about as trusting as he is cautious, but sometimes even that wears a little thin ...

"This _is_ the way to Sub-Level 7, right?" asked Kii for the twentieth time.

"Hai," said the Soldier monotonously. "We'll get there eventually."

"Oh, okay. Gomen nasai." He looked up at the ceiling and started mentally counting the air vent ducts as they went overhead.

Around number seventeen or so, he stopped and looked around.

"Something the matter, kid?" asked the Soldier.

"I thought I just saw someone run across the hall."

The Soldier raised an eyebrow and turned to look.

"Ikuzo!" shouted a voice, and suddenly there was a blinding flash from behind ...

... Kii opened his eyes to a sight that was definitely not a hallway.

He was sitting in something like a chair with armrests that had a grip at their ends and shock-pads to the left and right of his head. Coming up between his knees and stopping a few inches in front of his chest was a padded something-or-other wossname for absorbing the shock from a frontal impact. And all around him was a panoramic view of Tokyo from about 40 feet up.

It was the most minimalist mecha cockpit he'd ever seen.

"Hmm," said a voice behind his head. "Well, you ought to be wearing one of those plug suit things, but I guess this'll have to do."

"Where am I?"

"You're inside Evangelion, ah ... Unit A, or something like that. You're going to fight the Angel."

"Dame da ... I don't know how to pilot an Evangelion. This is the first time I've ever even seen an Eva cockpit ..."

"Same here, and it's called an 'entry plug'. Rather low budget, ne? Wait a minute, here comes the flood ..."

Right on cue, the entry plug filled up with a semi-clear, yellow liquid. Kii sputtered, gurgled, and coughed until it filled his lungs.

"Sorry, about that. It's this connector wossname stuff, I forget what it's called, supposed to help with synchronization and such, like that thing on your head ..."

"Synchronization?" gasped Kii. It wasn't a particularly surprised reaction; this yellow liquid stuff just wasn't sitting well in his lungs. It made his eyes itch, too.

"Hai, I guess it's piloted via telepathic link. I think you'll figure it out. Ah, and here comes Schlemiel-kun ... shikkari suru!"

There was a less blinding flash of light, and Kii was alone.


"I'm back," announced Lenny, strutting back into control.

"What took you so long?!" shouted a tech. "We've got a new energy pattern, and it's almost the same as the Shito's!"

Lenny grinned. "Has it said 'Call me Eva A' yet?"


Kii blinked. That voice had sounded familar ... was it the same as the one at the park?

-I'll find out later,- he thought. -Right now, I have to find the Shito and stop it. Now, where is -- -

He stopped and blinked. There, tearing apart a not-so-important part of downtown Tokyo, was a Gigantic Squirrel with Really Big Ears.

-That can't be it.- He looked around, the Eva instinctively mimicking his movements.

Outside of the Gigantic Squirrel with Really Big Ears, there wasn't anything else causing widespread property damage in Tokyo.

-Okay, I guess that *is* it.-

There was a long pause.

Slowly, the Evangelion sidled up to the rampaging Shito-Squirrel Shelumiel and tried as best as it could to look confident.

"Uh, hi," said Kii.

The Angel stopped tearing apart Tokyo and turned to blink a few times at the Eva.

There was another long pause.

YOU ARE ONE OF THEM? asked a voice inside Kii's head. It was different from the one he had heard before in that it was extremely deep, resonant, and ... well, inside his head ...

"Anno ... no, I'm not from around here."

NOT THAT THEM, THE OTHER THEM.

"Oh," said Kii. He coughed and sputtered a little. This liquid stuff was _really_ not sitting well in his lungs ...

Shelumiel cocked its head to one side, and then the other. Then it turned and started ripping apart Tokyo again.

"Uh," said Kii, "Could you not do that?"

NOT DO WHAT?

"Err ... not rip apart the city? Ne, there's people down there, and --"

I AM TO DESTROY TOKYO. THAT IS MY PURPOSE.

"Well, could you get a new one? Massive slaughter of --" Kii stopped and coughed. And wheezed.

Something was not right here. His lungs felt funny. In fact, they felt like they were ... shrinking? But that couldn't be right ...

HAVING TROUBLE?

"Uh," said Kii, beginning to pale.

-What's happening?- he thought.

ANAPHYLATIC REACTION, said Shelumiel.

-What?-

THE PUPPET IS KILLING YOU.

Kii's heart started beating considerably faster.

-No, it's ... not. I mean, I can pilot it, I'm piloting it now ...-

THE WAY IT WORKS IS KILLING YOU. YOU ARE GOING TO DIE IN THAT THING.

-No, I won't!-

IT WILL KILL YOU IF I DO NOT.

-No!-

I WILL TRY TO MAKE IT FAST.

-NO.-

NO?

-Leave me alone, I want to live ...-

There was an uncomfortable pause before Shelumiel replied to that.

WHAT YOU WANT IS IRRELEVANT. TOKYO MUST BE DESTROYED AT ANY COST. AND YOU, SINCE YOU ARE PROTECTING IT, MUST DIE.

With that, the Angel jumped Unit A and clamped two massive paws on its neck.


-It must be true...-

Jay ran throuhg Tokyo, avoiding the flying debris that came flying into him. He had to see it.

-I saw it! I really did! A...Furry thing! I think... AHG! IT MUST BE TRUE!!!! WHY ELSE WOULD HALF OF TOKYO BE IN RUINS!??-

Dressed in his black kimono, With his ceremonial sword in hand, dashing, and jumping, trying to find where the furry thing he saw was now. He wasnt intending to fight it, he just wanted to see it.

-Must be close! I hear...erm...Squirrel shrieks?-

He was just running out of the alley he was in, when a giant mecha foot stteped in front of him. If he hadnt stopped sooner, he'd had been killed.

With his eyes opened wide, Jay stepped back, dropping his sword in the ground. It fell out of its scabbard, and the kanji for light, Hikari, was carved into the cold steel. Jay didnt pay attention to his sword though, he just stared blankly at the giant foot. He slowly looked up. "WHAT THE--??" Jay screamed at the top of his lungs as he saw the entire mecha, and the furry thing grabbing its head. -What is _that_?- He thought. -Where did it come from?-

Jay looked at his sword, gasped, and quickly grabbed it, just before the furry monster's foot steeped on it. He saved his sword, but he was still too close for confort. He quickly turned around and ran the opposite way of the 2 giant 'beings' he had just faced. Since he was in an alley, he used the walls to climb up to the top of the building where he could see the fight without getting squished.

So he did, jumping from wall to wall, careful enough not to ruin his kimono, it was brand new, and he surely didnt want to mess it up. -Why am I wearing this anyway??!- He thought as he reached the top of the building. The wind blew his hair gently as he stared at the robot's eye. Not mivng a muscle.

-DAMN!!!! ITS LOOKING AT ME!!! IM GONNA DIIIEE--

A loud crash was heard. The robot had pushed the 'furry' big thing at the building where Jay was standing on. The building began then to collapse. Jay crouched, trying not to loose his balance, but he knew he was going to be squished soon, and nothing could save him now.

"Shit... Whats wrong with me?"

Jay dashed towards the edge of the now collapsing building, and as soon as he was mere inches from falling down several feet, he kicked the ground, gaining altitude. He coldly stared at the robot as he flew pass it. He turned his body around to take a look at the monster who had just ruined a perfectly good building.

-. . . . . . .-

Jay burst out laughing in the air, never had he seen such a funny thing. He looked at it again, making eye contact..or so he thought.

The squirrel stood up and jumped towards the robot, clinging into its head, slamming it whenever the squirrel had the chance. Jay frowned and landed on another building's ceiling.

The giant mecha finally got a grip on the squirrels head and slammed it onto the ground. Then the robot fell to its knees.

-Whats wrong with it? Why did it fall down?!-

The squirrel bashed the robots side with its head, making it loose balace, falling down on some cars, making a loud crash, the ground trembling.

"WHOOOOAAA!" Jay grabbed the first thing he could reach... Which was thin air. Jay fell on his face, the sword sliding off to the edge of the building. Stopping near the edge.

"DAMMIT!" Jay jumped back onto his feet. "WHAT ARE THOSE TWO DOING??!" Jay walked slowly to his sword. He didnt make it though. Another slam made the ground shake, making the building shake, thus making the sword fall down.

"KUSO!!! I CANT LOOSE THAT ONE _TOO_!!!!" Jay jumped after it. He never thought this would happen to him today of all days. He was planning on attending a kendo tournament that was being help outside Tokyo, and then he saw a giant _thing_ fly by. He decided to follow it. Then he almost got squished by the robot, then by the squirrel, then he almost got trapped in a collapsing building, now he was falling at amazing speed, trying to save his sword.

He reached out to it, until he grabbed it. "YATTA!" He shouted as he beamed. Then he noticed he was still falling down.

"....etto ne..." Jay froze.

"WWWAAAAAIIIIII!!! SOMEONE HEEEEELP MEEEEEE!" He started shaking his arms and legs, as if trying to fly, in a very much SD form. Suddenly, something stopped his fall.

It was the robots hand, it had grabbed him in mid-air. Jay stood up and waved at the robot's face, as if thanking him. Beaming, Jay stared at the face of the robot, amazed. Then he noticed the big furry thing dashing towards them.


"Well, it certainly has been an interesting day," the techie said.

"Yep, sure has," Lenny replied. "I mean, when's the last time a shito ravaged downtown Tokyo?"

"Ten months, thirteen days ago," the other techie answered without skipping a beat.

"What, has it really been that long?" Lenny asked. That techie nodded. Lenny unrolled a map and placed it on the table. It was a map of downtown Tokyo. "Guess we'll have to redraw the map again."

"Yep."

The three nodded in agreeance, letting the whole situation sort of settle in with eachother. After a moment of awkward silence, Lenny asked, "So, let's see the damage?"

The first techie punched a button and the computer screen depicted red spots where the shito Shelumiel had attacked. "Gee, it almost looks like concentrated areas than general mass destruction."

"I wonder," the other techie said, "I mean, it's a giant squirrel. Do you think it was looking for something?"


As Shelumiel floated away into space, towards the unknown place that it originally hailed from, it poised its paws in a very squirrel-like manner, twitched its head and looked back and forth. Jammed in its mouth, with cheeks puffed outwards, was something so massive, it stuck out and had to be clenched between Shelumiel's teeth.

Shelumiel carried away its prized nut, the one it had buried so long ago. It was good to know it was still in the same place. Too bad it had forgotten where it was at first. Pity, the humans and the city.


Amidst the chaos and debris, the EVA Unit A crouched on one knee, unmoving. Residents and passerbys were now emerging from their shelters and wondered about all the destruction that had been caused. Half curious and still frightened, they gathered around the towering mecha, perhaps in praise for scaring away the squirrel menace. In the distance, the faint echo of sirens wailed as emergency crews raced to the various locations the shito had struck.

The EVA unit was holding one of its hands clenched. It had no more power left and the emergency battery pack had also been drained. There was no way to get the unit to move even an inch unless external power could be supplied to it.

This worried Jay a lot. For he was still clenched firmly in the EVA's large hand.

"Tasukete," he shouted hoarsely. He had long given up yelling for help.


"Any news yet?" the chief asked the comm officer. The SADPOL command centre had been put back on low level alert ever since the shito had exited from its radar. Sources say it floated away in the sky, heading towards an unknown location. There weren't anymore sightings of the shito anywhere in the world, and they only hoped it had gone back into space.

"Mobile crisis team 3 has reached the EVA unit's location, sir," she answered, one hand against her earpiece so she could listen more effectively. "They're removing the entry plug right now, sir."

"I hope that kid's okay," the Chief muttered. He didn't like tricking the boy into piloting the EVA Unit. But he seemed young enough for the task.

"Sir," the comm officer called out, voice trailing. She took of the earpiece and turned to him. "The entry plug is empty! There's no trace of the kid!"

"Dear lord, is he dead? Was he absorbed into the EVA?"

"Unknown sir. We'd need the logistics data of the battle to know for sure." She sighed regrettably. "Also, there's some kid stuck in the unit's hand."

"Kii?"

"No, some other kid. Wearing a kimono. And a sword."

"Huh?" The Chief wiped his face. "Oh nevermind, get him the hell outta there. And tell the mobile unit to contain the situation and quarantine the sector off."

The comm officer saluted. "Hai!" She returned to her microphone and headpiece.


And so ended the reign of terror that was known as Shelumiel, or the Giant Squirrel with Really Big Ears. Downtown Tokyo was ravaged, but it would survive and rebuild. After all, it had survived numerous attacks from giant repitles, moths, turtles and other gigantic animal-like creatures. How much harm could a squirrel really do?

However, there was still an unanswered question that nagged the mind of a small six year old boy.

"Oka-san!" Kensuke whined. "No one told me who St. John was!"

"Shh.." his mother, Hikaru Chisa shushed him, "we're going to the park to see the statue. Okay?"

"Hai," Kensuke mumbled like any child after being scolded.

After several minutes of walking along the park's well-kept sidewalks, they came to the statue of St. John that started off the entire mess.

Underneath was a faded plaque that Hikaru did not notice before. "What's this?" she asked and crept closer for a better look. It was mostly covered with moss but there were scribblings and then the word St. John written underneath. Kensuke walked close and looked.

"What does it say, oka-san?" he asked.

Hikaru wiped away the moss and growth. "HERE LIES SHELUMIEL, SHITO. DO NOT DISTURB." Underneath it said, "ST_____JOHN." and some other unreadable text.

Hikaru rubbed the bottom part. The words became much clearer now.

"STAN JOHN
_________NERV Public Affairs and Personnel."

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