2010-04-03 - Extremely Small Particles

SOME TIME AGO

A formal meeting request addressed to NERV Command arrives through direct channels to Rei, which might be interpreted as slightly odd.

Gendo Ikari, NERV Director -

In my capacity as the personal representative of Princess Shine Hausen, the Ruler of All Known Space, I have recently begun conducting a review of available data on alien races and threats in order to assist in the development of a comprehensive strategy for defence of the Earth Sphere.

I would like to request a meeting with you - or, should your duties not permit it, a designated representative of your staff - to discuss any pertinent information your organization may have on such alien threats for inclusion in this strategy. Should you wish more information on the scope of my inquiries, please feel free to have Miss Ayanami or any other member of your team contact me at their convenience.

Cordially,

Huang Qin Shi

SOME TIME AGO

Huang Qin Shi sent his message to Rei Ayanami. But the response he gets is from the man himself.

'Would be pleased to discuss these matters.

'Please proceed to the Tokyo-03 Geofront when schedule permits. Contact my office regarding reimbursement of travel expense.

'Gendo Ikari'

SOME TIME AGO

About five minutes after an absolutely hellish discussion with Louise Halevy, Leo Stenbuck receives a phone call from Maya Ibuki informing him that he's been scheduled to attend a joint strategy session between NERV and A-LAWS and that he's in breach of the fine print of NERV Order 3066 if he fails to attend.

SOME TIME AGO

"As I said," Gendo replies, with the patience and chastened annoyance of a schoolteacher, "you understand precious little about NERV, Leo. Precious little." The satchel closes with two loud clicks, and Gendo lets it rest on the table. He walks over to Leo, standing over him, and puts a hand on his shoulder. For just a moment, but still.

"You'll understand when it's time for you to understand. I know what you're thinking. And I know how it feels." Gendo pulls his hand away, and reaches into his pocket. He opens his wallet -- is he going to bribe Leo? -- and removes a battered, dinged ID card. He looks at it for a moment while speaking. "I lost my wife. I thought I would go mad from it. But I simply could not afford myself that option." Gendo turns the card over, to let Leo see. Yui Ikari is the name on it -- part of an organization called GEHIRN, apparently. She has black hair and a somewhat dazed smile, like someone who's not quite sure what to do in front of a camera. She also looks like if Rei Ayanami were thirty years old.

SOME TIME AGO

"I trust you, Leo," Rei says, in a tone so cold that it might as well have been intended as an insult. There's a long silence that hangs in the air after, before Rei admits, "I don't have anyone else."

Again, a long, dull silence, that would seem to attach meaning to Rei's statement where she herself did not. "It's important," she finally continues, "that no one knows we speak. I was never here. You'll understand later." Rei doesn't say this encouragingly or persuasively: it's just stated as fact. "Gendo Ikari has taken an interest in you, Leo. You must let this happen. Whatever he wants, you need to go along with it. You need to gain his trust."

NOW

Gendo Ikari and Leo Stenbuck are the only two people occupying an elevator that will take them directly to one of NERV's more resplendent conference rooms. This is the sort of room intended to host 50 people at a time -- but the view is spectacular and the architecture's geometry so perfect that every now and then it gets used for special little fireside chats. Gendo hasn't said much to Leo since the man-boy arrived. It's his way, though.

As the elevator approaches the conference room floor, though, Gendo suddenly speaks. "I'm glad you came down, Leo. We've all been very happy with the work you've been doing as a contractor." Gendo reaches up and removes his glasses, taking a cloth out of a pocket and giving them a little rub-down. He continues to speak: "I take it you saw the GN Evangelion during the last attack. Remarkable, isn't she?"

She. Not it. 'She.' Not 'it.'

Gendo puts his glasses back on, and as the elevator DINGs in arrival, he claps a hand on Leo's shoulder. Paternally. "Sometimes, it amazes even me what NERV's science can do, my boy." Then Gendo walks to take his seat.

It's fine by Leo Stenbuck that Gendo Ikari isn't a talkative man. He doesn't know why he's being involved in this meeting, and doesn't much want to be... and he doubts fixing the former would change the latter. The young man keeps his gaze fixed firmly on the elevator door during the ride down... even when Gendo starts talking.

The clap on the shoulder, however, does make him finally look sidelong at the man next to him. 'She'... and something tells him he doesn't mean Rei. Gendo's relationship with Rei always seemed so strange to him... half the time he seemed to care about her, and then the other half of the time he was volunteering her for suicide missions.

In hindsight, he supposes, it makes sense. He knew she was replacable.

Leo grits his teeth through a surge of fury brought about by Gendo's seemingly innocuous comments, and he unfolds hands from behind his back to set his right one reassuringly on the grip of the large, gold-plated revolver in a holster on his hip. Within a few seconds, he's squeezing the thing so tightly that his knuckles go white underneath the gloves of his uniform.

And then Gendo steps out of the elevator, and Leo follows him in grim silence, his hand still resting on his sidearm. He doesn't sit down; he simply waits until Gendo has, and then takes up a position standing behind and to the right of the Commander of NERV.

Huang Qin Shi's schedule is pretty full these days, all things considered. He's processing and portioning out data from Bian Zoldark's secret files. He's in contact with Zentradi scientists with questions on the technical specifications of known units. He's trying to come up with a battle plan that stands a ghost of a chance against no fewer than three alien races, all of which outnumber and outgun humanity and one of which uses stars to breed. He's designing ships that don't exist for plans that have yet to be approved. And in between it all, he's learning what he needs to know to use them. But when Gendo responds, Huang's return message with a suggested time is almost obscene in its haste.

Part of leadership is knowing how to prioritize. And there's nothing more important than knowing just how screwed you are.

The engineer's boots click against the floor as he makes his way down the corridor, flanked on each side by a stern-looking security agent. The screening was thorough but professional, and Huang Qin Shi was apparently concealing no surprises beneath his A-LAWS uniform, nor in the datapad he carries in his left hand. Gendo may be amused to learn later that the warrant officer walked unarmed and unarmored into NERV headquarters, ignorant of just how many secrets lie underneath his feet. But then again, that is rather the point.

The door hisses open about two minutes after Leo and Gendo reach their positions, and Huang walks in, eyes scanning the room as he lifts his right hand in a salute. "Dir--" he starts to say, then breaks off and gapes at Leo, his eyes wide and obviously surprised. A flicker of anger passes through his expression, and then Huang lifts a hand to his mouth, coughing to clear his throat. "My apologies," he says in a level tone. "Director Ikari, I am Huang Qin Shi. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance." His eyes turn to one side, and he offers a barely perceptible nod. "Captain," he says evenly, then returns his eyes to Gendo, a pleasant smile sliding on to his face.

Huang has a very bad poker face. But he's learning.

Gendo Ikari leans forward on the table somewhat when Huang Qin Shi enters. He's not particularly bothered by Leo's lack of response, but then, this is a man who used to dine regularly with Rei Ayanami. "Warrant Officer Huang," the Commander states, in the sort of curt tone that suggests that he's already tired of small talk. Nonetheless, he forces himself to engage in a bit as he gestures toward an open chair.

"Captain Stenbuck is one of the contractors we've begun using as assistance in the event of Angel attacks," Gendo says, not giving the soldier behind him even the barest glance -- his cold eyes focus entirely on the representative of the Ruler of All Known Space. "He personally destroyed the Sixth Angel, actually, some months ago. I thought it might be educational for him to sit in on this session."

Gendo Ikari pauses, and still does not look at Leo: "Emphasis -- 'sit.'" He manages to deliver it flatly, without any trace of annoyance. It's like -- well, it's like talking to Rei Ayanami, if Rei Ayanami were a middle-aged man.

"Now then, Warrant Officer. What is on your agenda?"

The two minutes in between Leo taking his position and Huang arriving give the young man plenty of time to stew over Gendo's words, and it's only by a great effort of will that he manages to avoid whipping himself into a frenzy by the time Huang finally enters the conference room.

An entrance that, of course, is immediately followed by yet another thing to make Leo's day increasingly awful. The Captain's expression of grim irritation falters at Huang's brief moment of anger, not into anger himself but into surprise and confusion.

And /then/, of course, anger; anger that threatens briefly to spill forth, when Gendo gives his subtle command to sit. About twelve retorts run through Leo's mind in the second afterwards, ranging from 'What am I, your dog?' to 'Fuck you', but he bites them all back and does as he's bidden.

I have to stay on his good side, Leo reminds himself, as he pulls the chair next to Gendo out from the table and takes a seat, his anger leaking through into his movements. I have to stay on his good side. I have to stay on his good side.

... for now.

Huang nods as he takes a seat at the table, his mind noting certain pieces of information and filing them away for future analysis. Like point one: what the hell is Leo Stenbuck doing here? Or point two: what the /hell/ is Leo Stenbuck /doing here/? At the very least it answers a few open questions he hadn't had time to consider, such as how Leo came to know Miss Ayanami and the young Ikari. Later. "I was unaware of your contractual relationship, Director," he says as he line shis thoughts in order. "But I certainly have no objections to you bringing your personnel into these discussions." He looks at Leo, and nods again. "My compliments on your prowess, captain."

His eyes shift back to Gendo, meeting the stare and holding his pleasant expression. Gendo's better at it than Haman Karn was, to be sure. But he can't make Huang's head explode either. Probably.

"My note speaks for itself, sir," he says succinctly, since Gendo seems to prefer the direct approach. "I have already spoken with Commander Kridanik of the Zentradi for information on aliens he has encountered over the course of his career, and obtained a reasonable understanding of the more immediate galactic threats." The warrant officer activates his datapad, fingers moving across it in well-practiced motions. "Your agency has been involved in repelling attacks by a number of aliens - these Angels you speak of - and there is a certain absence of public information on those matters." Huang bares his teeth in a ghost of a smile. "In order to properly prepare the Earth Sphere against external threats, a...comprehensive understanding of the precise nature of those threats must be established."

He waits, looking attentive. "So, sir, I suppose we could begin with the simplest question. What are Angels?"

Gendo Ikari brings his hands together, steepling his fingers and resting them just under his nose, just shy of touching his lips. What /are/ Angels? he seems to be musing, although this thoughtful pause is likely some other line of thought entirely.

"Angels," Gendo begins, in his dour, joyless tone, "are extraterrestrial threats of unknown origin. Since the First and Second Impacts, they have sporadically appeared. Most of our knowledge of them is theoretical -- the current theory, one that I feel may have the most merit, being that the Angels since the Second Impact are somehow... offspring of the ones that collided with Earth, having survived the Impact and gestated. This is how we believe they are able to manifest from within Earth's atmosphere. Unfortunately, we have never been able to successfully capture a specimen to put these theories to the test. We attempted to some weeks ago, but it..."

Gendo Ikari's fingers stay pressed together, but spread, his wrists tilting downward as he muses on the best word to use: "...failed." Huh? (For PennMUSH code help, type help. For SRT MUSH code help, type +help.)

Huang Qin Shi takes a few quick notes; old proficiency in shorthand hat had languished since his university days has been returning in full force lately. He's been doing quite a bit of talking lately. And even more listening. "Perfectly understandable," he says absently. "From what accounts I have heard, these Angels are most formidable. It is not difficult to imagine that it would be impossible, or at least incredibly difficult, to capture one without detailed knowledge of their nature...which would be difficult to obtain without capturing one for study." He sighs. "A catch-22. Unfortunate."

He leans back a bit in his chair and thinks. "But you've obviously had some success in repelling their assaults, despite your lack of specialized knowledge," he says, incling his head politely. "A testament to the professionalism of your organization and your people. What sort of capaibilities have the observed creatures displayed? Have you noticed any similarities that can be exploited and countered?"

Gendo Ikari doesn't really... move, much. His head occasionally dips or lifts slightly, usually to emphasize a word or a tone. Sometimes his fingers move, shifting into various subtle mutations of their steepled shape. Still, it's not like speaking with a robot. Instead, the Commander of NERV is the sort of man who knows that he doesn't have to do much to exert his presence -- and, in fact, that doing less achieves more.

"Each Angel is different, possibly down to the circumstances of gestation, if the 'gestation theory' is correct," Gendo replies, speaking quickly but not in any kind of rush -- rather, it's the pace of a man who expects the room to be able to keep up. "In the past four, one was essentially a floating fractal shapeshifter, one split itself into two bodies when cloven, one had apparently adapted to swim within molten rock, and the most recent one was, if you can believe it, a spider the size of a city block. Their weapons, too, vary. The one constant is how to destroy them."

Gendo finally separates his hands. "Each Angel, somewhere on their body, possesses a weak point of some sort, represented by a crimson orb-shaped... we're not sure what it is, honestly, beyond that it seems to be the one thing an Angel cannot regenerate. It could be its heart, or its brain, but once that point is penetrated, the Angel cannot maintain corporeal form."

Gendo Ikari adjusts his glasses on the bridge of its nose. "We just call it the 'core,' but we could use any other word just as easily -- if we were feeling a bit melodramatic, we could even call it the 'soul.'"

The commander of NERV is a man who knows how to fill the room with his presence, and Huang finds himself nodding along with his statements. He is smooth, calm. In control. It's a bearing that reminds Huang of Bian Zoldark, the way he simply commanded the attention of everyone in a room with the sheer force of his own self-image. It's a bearing Huang wishes he had or could imitate.

Pity he can't grow a beard.

Huang adjusts his glasses, thinking. "We've been seeing some signs that incursions previously believed to have been unrelated and unique may have originated from the same sources," he says. "But that core you speak of...that doesn't sound like anything else I've encountered thus far. Except perhaps the Zondarians," he says. "But from what you've said these don't appear to share more than passing similarities." Damn. Another race of aliens out to kill them all. Huang frowns and stares into the datapad, looking lost in thought. "Do you have any idea why they seem to keep attacking this city?" he asks.

He really has no idea how big a question this is.

Gendo Ikari pauses, hands resting on the tabletop, fingers curled inward -- not fists, but something akin to how a lion rests its paws, the bend loose enough to show that claws could come out any time they wanted. But the Commander of NERV couldn't be that threatening a presence, could he? He's just one man.

One man sitting with a sullen, armed, possibly psychotic soldier to his right. "We've constructed the Absolute Terror Field technology of our anti-Angel weaponry -- the Decisive All-Purpose Humanoid Weapon Evangelions -- to mimic the frequencies used by the Angels themselves. It is my suspicion that this is what attracts them to Tokyo-03."

Gendo Ikari takes another thoughtful pause, albeit a brief one. "Perhaps next time we'll just try asking them," he says, in such a morbid tone that it's not clear whether he's actually joking. "Are you up to that challenge, Captain Stenbuck, carrying on a conversation with an Angel?"

Eventually, Leo calms himself down enough to take his hand off his gun... at which point he immediately progresses into a behavior he learned from Graham Aker; he crosses his arms across his chest, lowers his head slightly, and closes his eyes. If he's listening, there's certainly no indication of it. He might as well be asleep.

But he is, in fact, listening. He's listening very, very carefully, because every piece of information Huang wrings out of Gendo Ikari is another piece of the puzzle he doesn't need to scrabble together on his own.

It's almost funny, really, all the little things that Gendo says, the off-handed comments and analogies, whose meanings run so, so much deeper than he's sure Huang can possibly realize. An angel's 'soul', huh, Gendo?

Imagine that.

Keeping the small smile off of his face when Huang asks what the Angels want, and Gendo gives his answer. It's bullshit; Leo can smell it from a mile away. But he has to play along... especially when Gendo asks /him/ a question.

"I can try if you'd like, sir," Leo says, without opening his eyes. His voice is carefully neutral. "But Angels aren't the Zentradi. We won't make them go away by singing them a song."

Huang nods in response to this suggestion - it seems plausible enough, on the surface, and Huang's knowledge of Evangelions is not sufficiently greater now than it was the first time he saw them almost two years ago, when he described Unit 01 as 'that giant-ass creepy purple biological unit.' He'll try to verify the claim, of course, but it's impossible to do without access to the Evangelions (which he isn't going to ask for on a first meeting) or the Angels themselves (who are likely to say no).

He does crack a bit of a smile at Leo's remark - it was a bit funny, after all - and nods. "I'm forced to agree with the captain's assessment," he says with a shrug. "The reason Commander Kridanik joined us is not because we could communicate...it's because through those communications we managed to convince him we were worth fighting for." The engineer shrugs. "Let me know if you end up trying more classical music, though," he drawls. "I've still got the collection of Barry White I used against the Meltrandi." it was super effective, too.

Huang clears his throat following the brief foray into something resembling humour. "At any rate, I suppose that covers the big questions," Huang says. "I would appreciate any technical information you would be able to give me on either the Angels or your Evangelions. I understand such information would be considered secret," he adds quickly, "And I'm prepared to wait while your team determines what you are willing to share. This is a fact-finding exercise, not an inquisition," he says with a smile a little too easygoing to be natural. He's still a little bad at poker faces.

"Of course," Huang adds carefully, "Without proper intelligence, Her Highness would be unable to make an informed decision...should you require any further assistance in the event of an attack you and your..." he glances at Leo again. "...contractors...are unable to repel."

Doctor Gendo Ikari doesn't smile at Leo's joke, but he doesn't seem to take the comment seriously, either. He simply gives the Captain a sideways glance without turning his head, and nods -- barely. His eyes roll back toward Huang, and he regards the Princess' liaison with a certain...

...it's not unlike the way an engineer might look at a pile of parts. He's looking for something particular, maybe. Whether or not he's finding it is anyone's guess, but anyone who's been on the receiving end of a stare from Rei Ayanami could well take a guess where she learned it from after some time in the company of Gendo Ikari.

"Mm, yes. We'll forward the appropriate data as it becomes available." That is, Huang can probably expect a mountain of documents with every single word redacted. Welcome to NERV.

That last bit doesn't seem to sit well with Gendo, though -- or maybe that's just the impression given off by the way he brings his hands together again, folding them, one set of fingers curling over the other while index digits rise and steeple together. "So noted, Warrant Officer," the Commander says, gravely. "I have faith in my people." His 'people.' "NERV has everything under control."

He says it with such /certainty/.

Apparently, having been invited into the conversation, Leo has little intention on letting himself be pushed back out of it... even if he still never opens his eyes or looks up. "Many of NERV's contractors - myself included - do so with the understanding of A-LAWS, and other branches of the Federation military. It isn't inconceivable that should they be required, other military assets could be diverted to assist."

"Not that it would do much good," he continues, with a weak shrug. "An Angel isn't something you can throw GMs at until it dies. There's... a certain level of firepower required to make something even be worth putting on the field against one. Their AT Field is an extremely powerful defense."

Leo opens his eyes and fixes Huang with a look. "Which is why the Evangelions - and their AT Fields - are so important." It's the best he can do in terms of nudging Huang in the right direction... he has to step lightly around Gendo. He supposes it'll have to do.

Huang smiles and nods at Gendo, his thoughts - for once - fading out of open view. Huang remembers all too well a time when he thought he had everything under control, when three straight weeks of careful planning, positioning and dissembling came together. When he was stepping away from the lectern there in the conference hall, the applause of Princess Mineva Zabi filling his ears as he carefully bowed to her, slowly rising to look past Haman Karn, refusing to acknowledge her as she watched her support bleed away. He had everything under control. It was a perfect moment. Until suddenly it wasn't.

That's the thing about having everything under control, Huang has found. Eventually, you don't.

"And well you should," he says. "You're the experts on these creatures, and you've been successful in repelling their advances. But Her Highness is a proponent of centralization of intelligence," he says, spreading his hands to his sides as if to ask what he, a lowly warrant officer, is supposed to do against her childish whims. "And particularly given our current situation, we can ill afford to waste resources on the duplication of efforts."

Huang slowly pushes back from his chair. "I believe I've taken enough of your time for the moment, director; as I said, this is largely a fact-finding exercise. Once Her Highness has had a chance to review my preliminary findings and come to decisions, I will be in contact with those I have spoken to again." He tilts his head. "If I have a brief follow-up question or two, to whom should I direct them? I would not wish to distract you unnecessarily from your command."

Gendo's hands remain folded when Leo speaks. He clearly wasn't expecting it, although this man is serious and a professional, and he hides that surprise well -- just a sharp tick up of one eyebrow, and a sideways cant to his head as he watches the A-LAWS Captain say his piece. He considers this for a moment, then turns back toward Huang and nods in confirmation. No further comment on Leo's comments seems necessary.

"Her Highness, yes," Gendo says, unfolding his hands, letting them spread apart once more. "I understand the current situation, Warrant Officer. Rest assured, you will get as much information as the continued integrity of our program will allow."

When Huang pushes back, Gendo stands, offering a simple, strong handshake. "Our liaison to A-LAWS remains Miss Ayanami," Gendo says, not /trying/ to provoke Leo, but, you know, it bears stating. "Among our outside personnel that we've been using, I'm sure Captain Stenbuck would be happy to assist you as well."

Leo keeps his eyes fixed on Huang as he stands up and begins extracting himself from the meeting, his expression shifting into a frown. Unfortunate. "I'd be happy to offer whatever help I can, Warrant Officer," he confirms, finally rising to his feet himself, and pushing his chair back in towards the conference table.

He copes with the mention of 'Miss Ayanami' by doing his best to simply ignore it. It helps that he doesn't call her Rei. Especially because, as he's made perfectly clear to himself so many times, she isn't.

Leo doesn't bother saying anything else; Huang knows how to contact him, and he doesn't exactly need to be reminded of that. So the young man simply folds his hands behind his back and waits to leave.

Because he has so much waiting for him back on the Shirogane, right?

Huang Qin Shi returns the handshake in a similar fashion. Grip, single pump, release. No tests of strength, just a handclasp. "I've spoken with Miss Ayanami briefly, but never in person," he says as he picks up his datapad. "She seems most helpful, however."

He glances at Leo again, looking for a reaction and not finding one. Leo had threatened to kill him - twice - because he suspected Huang was behind a plot to fool him into thinking his girlfriend survived the attack. He had expected some improvement after the young man took those two weeks off, but no reaction? No reaction is...disconcerting. "And I'm certain Captain Stenbuck will be able to answer some of the strictly military questions I suspect Her Highness will wish clarified."

He looks back to Gendo. "Thank you again for your time, Director Ikari. And best of luck in your mission." He nods at Leo before turning. "Captain," he says as he makes his way toward the door. Yes, he will /definitely/ be taking Leo up on that offer sometime soon.

"Indeed. Rei is quite a special girl." Gendo Ikari's lips curl into the faintest smile, like a father speaking proudly of his daughter. There's a human warmth in his voice that might make it touching to one set of ears -- and maddeningly perverse to another.

"Of course, Warrant Officer -- and to you in yours," Gendo replies when Huang says his last bit, and when the liaison exits, Gendo begins walking back toward that special elevator. Along the way, he claps his hand onto Leo's shoulder again -- and keeps it there for a few moments. "You did well, my boy," Gendo says, his voice back to its usual grave, weary tone, although this is the second time the good Doctor has called Leo that today. "You're going to have a lot of opportunities opening up for you soon. Be ready for them, and don't let us down."

And then the hand is off the shoulder, and Gendo Ikari keeps moving for the elevator.

Leo gives Huang a curt nod, and turns towards the elevator; this has the beneficial side effect of making it so that when Gendo says 'Rei', and Leo's expression twists into a sneer of anger, he is facing away from the only other people in the room.

He gets himself back under control, reverting to a simple grim neutrality, his jaw set and his teeth gritted, an instant before Gendo claps him on the shoulder again.

When Gendo finishes his short stint of praise, Leo responds tersely, "Thank you, sir." And then he walks stiffly after Gendo, back towards the elevator.

He's right, of course, far more right than he knows. Leo /is/ going to have a lot of opportunities opening up for him soon... opportunities above and beyond what Gendo could possibly expect, given how tight he thinks his grip on all NERV-related intelligence is.

And Leo will be ready, alright.