Doctor Who: The Evangelion Error (Book One)

E6 Part 9: Isn't this where--

NERV Headquarters. Pilot Ready Room.

All things considered, Shinji felt fairly content. Sure, he was still in his plug suit -- the back of which was covered in Angel blood -- and they wouldn't let him take a shower until the doctors had examined him further. But at least he'd made it back to the book he'd stashed in his locker before the mission.

After a chapter or two -- give or take a paragraph -- it dawned on him that he was being watched.

Slowly, he raised his eyes from the book. Asuka stood by the opposite wall, her arms crossed. She stared at him, her eyes narrowed, a deep scowl on her face.

This... this probably wasn't good. It felt like she was... studying him, maybe. Sizing him up. She didn't want to beat on him again, did she? Mentally, he started to plan possible escape routes. "Um," he said. "Is... is something wrong?"

She snorted and shook her head. "Fluke," she muttered.

"Uh... sorry?..."

She walked towards him. Shinji tensed. But she didn't lift a finger. She just shoved past him, checking him aside with her shoulder, and stomped out the door at the other end of the room.

Shinji stared after her. Maybe... maybe the Doctor had a point about that psychology textbook...

***

New Atami

The recovery helicopter had long since come and gone. The decontamination teams had yet to deploy here. For the moment, the town remained a vivid color of red, the blood slowly drying to a muddy brown under the midday sun.

In a crimson pool behind the counter in the coffee shop, something moved.

***

Misato's apartment. Several days later.

"So that's it, then?" The Doctor watched as a black sphere floated over the Earth on the laptop's screen. Occasionally, a missile or two would streak in and explode harmlessly on contact.

"Looks like." Misato stood leaning against the kitchen wall. The captain seemed much calmer than when the Doctor had last seen her, thank whatever powers might be. "One of our satellites recorded this footage last night. Thing just appeared in orbit over the Indian Ocean. Strolled through a volley or two of N2 mines, then vanished."

"Mmh. Told you." The Doctor leaned closer towards the screen.

She shook her head. "Here's what I don't get -- it must've seen that the city was still there. It knew that it was going to fail. So why didn't it abort the attack?"

"Because it couldn't." The Doctor absentmindedly pushed the specs further up his nose. "That's the downside with this sort of tactic. Once you've committed to it, your fate is set. No backing out. Otherwise, you're going against the physical laws of the universe. And that's never gonna end well."

"... Huh."

"Annnddd... yep, see. There it goes." On the screen, the black sphere suddenly dove towards the Earth. It faded into nothingness just as it hit the atmosphere. The Doctor leaned back in his chair and rubbed his eyes.

"So," Misato said, her eyes narrowing slightly. "How'd you know my original plan wasn't going to work? Did you do something to sabotage Unit One before it got sent back?"

"Nah." The Doctor waved his hand dismissively. "Didn't have to. Figured something like that was gonna happen."

"How?"

"Experience. That's the thing about changing time." The Doctor stared out into the distance. "If you're not careful how you do it, it fights back..."