Chapter 24: Black Intention
Chapter 24:
Black Intention
Black Intention
“C
AGE TWO
will be out of commission for a while,” Aoba said.
“What a mess.” Toji scratched the back of his head.
“What?” said Ayanami Six from behind him.
He turned to little Six, who had been sticking by his side, even coming to the command center. She was trembling and staring off into the distance.
“Shinji-kun, try to stay inside the caldera,” Toji said. “If you leave our territory, it’ll cause me all sorts of trouble.”
Keeping one eye on Super Eva’s wild flight, which continued on the main display, Toji hooked his foot around the leg of a nearby chair and pulled it over to Six, who plopped herself down on the seat.
“What’s up?” he asked. “Not feeling good?”
Then Toji noticed something curious. Near Six was a round, roughly fifty-centimeter tall Type-N robot. Each Ayanami had been assigned one to monitor their physical condition. This one was receiving such a massive deluge of data that it began to emit
an error tone, followed by a puff of smoke, and then the machine toppled over sideways.
The nearby personnel noticed something was wrong. They rushed over to Six, but Toji held them back.
“Wait!” the acting deputy commander said. He suspected he knew what was going on. “This is that thing again, isn’t it? Someone start recording!”
Before anyone could ask what Toji meant, Six began to speak.
“That…must not be… I will not permit the living…to gain wings.”
Those who had been present the previous time recognized with a shudder that another proclamation had arrived.
The black giant, Armaros, once again spoke its words through an Ayanami’s lips.
“Humankind is to be fettered to the Earth’s surface…to squirm on the ground. To wander, constantly… That is the condition I permit for humanity… Its fate.”
Toji made a snap judgment.
“Issue a Level One alert to all relevant departments of the UN and the Japanese government,” he ordered.
With a look of confusion, Hyuga said, “But nothing’s actually happened yet.”
“Doesn’t matter,” Toji replied. “If I’m premature, we’ll just consider ourselves lucky to have time to prepare before something comes. And let’s request Commander Katsuragi’s presence one more time.” He looked around and then added, “Activate all municipal combat sectors for defensive operations!”
When the high schooler’s command was met with hesitation, Hyuga spoke firmly, making his voice heard on all decks. “In Commander Katsuragi’s absence, Acting Deputy Commander Suzuhara has the command! Execute his orders immediately!”