(Second) Evas vs. Angels Design Contest! (Afterthoughts)

[oOoOoOo]

TheAyanamiOtaku, I just did a Google search to try and figure out what you're talking about, and apparently you're... comparing my mecha design to an... old man? What? But glad you enjoyed the prose, though. It was mostly masturbatory on my part, let's be honest.

[Chowwow]

Word just in: Vegeta20XX will not be able to present. As per the rules, he's gonna be pushed back to the end as a last push to complete his entries.

Aug. 26: Vegeta 20XX Angel (Rescheduled)
Aug. 27: Vegeta 20XX Eva (Rescheduled)
Aug. 28: chazthesilencer Angel
Aug. 29: Formless One Angel
Aug. 30: D. Tuck Eva
Aug. 31: Slammacow Eva
Sept. 1: Agentomega Eva
Sept. 2: Vegeta 20XX Angel
Sept. 3: Vegeta 20XX Eva

This makes chaz next in line. I hold a small hope that he's done early, so we can move things up a bit.

[TheAyanamiOtaku]

oOoOoOo: Walter C. Dornez uses gloves with wires on each finger that he flings around, slicing stuff up, similar to Unit-M's progressive ribbons. No matter. And I am not familiar with how you write, but I'm not quite sure how self-masturbatory writing appears in prose fiction, so I guess you're let off the hook! Unless you mean the eventual direction towards the story, and difference in the characters' sentence patterns, lol. I think that's acceptable, it's your...whasit called, artistic license? You maneuvered the characters towards your desired end believably enough for me.

NemZ: I had the same problem the last time, with Uriel. I thought i fixed that problem. The abilities do feel a little...disconnected from each other, don't they. Well, lesson learned, again. In the meantime I'll get to the bottom of this persistent inferiority complex.

Besides, the scientists had to have plenty more where that came from to understand what really happened, right?

Yes. Hopefully, Micah doesn't get captured for analysis ;\

Other reviews!

AyrYntake: I like the poses, and the bit with the floating Rei clones. It was fun watching the models. It was a bit disappointing to have Phanuel get put out so quickly, I would've liked a longer fight, and maybe more descriptions on Phanuel's abilities. But then again, I didn't write down a fight at all, heh.

Agentomega: You wrote this like an oldschool epic. I am a really bad judge of melodrama. Sometimes I eat that shit all up, so you might want to go with NemZ's warning with the boldface type. To me, it just made things feel that campy, but-I-could-take-this-seriously-and-enjoy-it quality. Amitiel's story fit nicely into storyline, and I really like the bit of symbolism. One of these days I'll wake up and start complaining and shooting people down for melodrama and storylines being "not real enough," but until then, good job.

I agree with UA, I really like this year's competition.

Holy Diver: This is cool. Really cool. I'm willing to overlook the strange lapse in security when dumping the failed body, to enjoy the rest of the story. Evil corporations appear across literature, but it's always fun to see them in novel contexts. I like it.

Hoshikawa-kun: I don't know what the hell a Majorana fermion is (or a strangelet, outside of wikipedia), but it's always fun to trudge through pseudoscience and bear it to the end. I really can't argue with you on the casualty numbers, or the exact powering and explanation of Mazael's existence, I lack the education. It still sounds cool, mind you.

Your Eva designs are very impressive. Eva-0X's face reminds me of Metal Gear REX, but I'll just leave it at a coincidence. Most of these submissions are well-detailed, (relative) believability, and balanced structure goddamn it, and only those two things I get nitpicky about. It's hard talking shit about you guys, goddamn it! Uh, what can I nit pick here...Eva-0X has a big, disproportionate head.

what are Super Evangelions? Why didn't you explain them? You're a terrible author, you know; cliffhangers are soo cheap.

tehprognoob: Somehow, I think four Longinus Lances, and several different weapon systems, for/on one Eva is a bit overpowered, despite its "weaknesses." Having weaknesses for the sake of having them for balancing purposes, or Kaji becoming a quadrouple agent just for some "mysterious reason" isn't acceptable anymore. I had no idea NERV had a Lunar Branch, maybe that was from Rebuild, but it'd be nice to explain such a far leap in technology, just a little bit, even if it was "watch Rebuild, baka." I'm also assuming NERV found Izanami's mother and stuffed her into HTCP's core, because that wasn't mentioned anywhere. And how did Kaji change Izanami from sexual abuse victim to Moon based, Evangelion-piloting killer? There's quite a lot going on regarding locations and story, and not enough explanation for my appetite.

Outside of that, you've created a formidable opponent for Angels. If that's what you wanted, that's certainly what you have.

You're more than welcome to take more shots at my Angel, since I focused a lot of criticism towards your presentation.

[NemZ]

NemZ: I had the same problem the last time, with Uriel. I thought i fixed that problem. The abilities do feel a little...disconnected from each other, don't they. Well, lesson learned, again. In the meantime I'll get to the bottom of this persistent inferiority complex.

It's not a bad thing at all to 'dream big'... just try and crop your mental picture to focus on just the most interesting bits, eh? Put the rest in the back of your mind to ferment into something great for the next contest.

[tehprognoob]

tehprognoob: Somehow, I think four Longinus Lances, and several different weapon systems, for/on one Eva is a bit overpowered, despite its "weaknesses." Having weaknesses for the sake of having them for balancing purposes, or Kaji becoming a quadrouple agent just for some "mysterious reason" isn't acceptable anymore. I had no idea NERV had a Lunar Branch, maybe that was from Rebuild, but it'd be nice to explain such a far leap in technology, just a little bit, even if it was "watch Rebuild, baka." I'm also assuming NERV found Izanami's mother and stuffed her into HTCP's core, because that wasn't mentioned anywhere. And how did Kaji change Izanami from sexual abuse victim to Moon based, Evangelion-piloting killer? There's quite a lot going on regarding locations and story, and not enough explanation for my appetite.

Outside of that, you've created a formidable opponent for Angels. If that's what you wanted, that's certainly what you have.

You're more than welcome to take more shots at my Angel, since I focused a lot of criticism towards your presentation.

It's not four Lances; It's one Lance divided into four weak fragments that can still break down into nine each. (Familiar number?) That gives HTCP a total of 36...call it what you want. Flying Daggers? I don't know. Not strong enough to kill Angels or Evas but good for...fighters and stuff like that.

She's not Moon-based. She moves down to Earth, where she stays at an abandoned Siberian facility after attempting to raze Washington D.C. to the ground to mess up the US's functions. (Post 3I USA could be the only logical country that even remotely approaches powerful. If you want to take over the world, that's where you attack first.)

As for Kaji...well...I guess I made that up out of nowhere. I really should change it in my fanfic. Does Kaji's long-lost evil twin offer a possible explanation?;)

As for becoming a killer...my reasoning was that Seele fed her disinformation that Nerv was solely responsible for 3I and Seele was trying to stop them, and that if 3I happened, she'd never have been raped. Considering the delicate mental balance of a fresh sexual assault victim, years and years of that BS can really tip the balance. Drugs mingled with her meals might help, too. Just to offset the chemical balance in her brain so she's less stable.

As for stuffing her mother in HTCP...I don't really know. Anyway, Touji piloted Unit 03, and there was no confirmation that his mother became its snack. Perhaps the Soul was suppressed and forced to synchronize? NGE is really vague.

Yes, HTCP was overpowered. And Gundam-inspired.

Well, let's try out for a more practical design next year.

[Chowwow]

It's with great gratitude to the Designer that I present our latest entry a wee bit early! Don't forget to click on the main illustration for a YouTube clip!!

August 27
chazthesilencer

Entity spotted above (insert city/town); the MAGI’s blood pattern analysis confirms it an angel.

Target codename: Vitiseul, Angel of the harvest.

[URL=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xdbG7bAD6Aw][/URL]

Visuals:
See video footage: here

Target is levitating roughly 100m in the air (from the lowest point of its body) and approaching Tokyo 3 at an estimated speed of 20kph.

Known Defensive Capabilities:

The target’s core is protected by 14 spherical “orbs”, all of which are in a constant state of orbit and rotation…orbiting orbs…
Each orb generates its own AT field when threatened; an individual orb’s field is relatively weak, but several orbs working in tandem create a fused field of great strength.

Known Offensive Capabilities:

The orbs act as both a shield and weapon; they can be launched towards aggressors at great velocity, like colossal cannonballs; the resulting destruction potentially equal to that of a small meteorite.

Known Regenerative Capabilities:
Lost/launched/damaged orbs are quickly replaced by the smaller orbs “growing” around the core; likewise- if the skull is destroyed, a new one is quickly sprouted.

Strategic Strengths:
If all 14 orbs were to generate a combined AT field, our most powerful positron weapons will struggle to pierce it; and with the orbs in full rotation, the core cannot be attacked from close-quarters.

Strategic Weaknesses:
The target operates through vision and cannot attack something it cannot see; destroying the skull will leave the angel temporarily blinded and unable to counter-attack (accurately, at least).
The core is extremely fragile and wholly dependant on the protection of the orbs; if all the orbs are busy generating an AT field, the core will be vulnerable to a surprise attack.

End of analysis.

Extras:

Flavour:
Grape (white)

Class:
Home Economics.

Inspirations:
“I can’t think of anything and I’m hungry…let’s see what’s in the fridge…”

Sentence:
Whoops, I think I misspelled sentience.

Story for the sake of.  SPOILER: Show

Some time ago, (probably during an Isley Brothers concert) Vitiseul suddenly figured now was a ripe moment to pop into existence and mess shit up.
Nerv hears through the grapevine there’s a monster hovering over some random city, (let’s say Paradigm City, they don’t seem to mind casual, massive destruction) the Evangelions are dispatched and watch as the angel approaches.
Despite the mere 32.3333% chance of success, Asuka charges the angel and gets promptly squashed like a grape, her sacrifice revealing Vitiseul’s attack method.
Being the swell guy that he is, Shinji volunteers to draw the attention of Vitiseul’s grapes of wrath and runs around the city in full sight; by running away, Shinji does something useful, the irony*.
Rei hides in the shadows of a tall building, juices up her rifle’s power output and fires at Vitiseul’s core.
The strategy bares fruit. Vitiseul dies and everybody celebrates. Asuka’s pride is damaged, but at least she has Chicken.

Only 6 puns, I must be getting rusty.
*I actually used this idea last contest, but I’m sure you care about this fact like you do Pakistani flood victims.

End of comedy attempts.

Name of Designer: Ralph Lauren

Real end of comedy attempts.

Name of Angel Designer: Chazthesilencer

Once again, you never cease to amaze me with your prodigious talent and copious amounts of free time, chaz!

Looks like we only have a few more left to go! I wonder what else is out there?

Next time: Formless One

[AyrYntake]

LEEROY ASUKAAAAA!!!! =D
Awesome, chaz. I love the video.

[NemZ]

What, no grapes of wrath joke? I am disappoint.

But seriously, awesome presentation Chaz.

[AyrYntake]

The grapes of wrath joke you're looking for is in the spoiler'd storyboard bit.

[NemZ]

ahh... so it is. missed that, thanks.

[tehprognoob]

damn u got a lot of time to waste!

[AyrYntake]

HAHA I wouldn't have it any other way.

[Chowwow]

Need I say anything more on chaz? No? Then let's move on.

August 28
Formless One

Note: to those of you who are unfamiliar, the entry makes references to both of Formless One's previous entries from the Lilim Design Contest, Yae Satsuki Triton and Commander Spencer Lemel Draper. These are but little snippets of a much greater saga that Formless One has planned for the future.

The Fadeless Ones
Chapter ??? Prologue
Yofiel

“Its been three weeks since Yae led us down from the ruins of the geofront to the refugee camps in what was the Hokuriku region of Japan. The journey has left me exhausted. The world seems like such a blur when you can fly over it in a plane or a train, but walking is so different from that. Am I out of shape, or am I just weak?

“I need to apologize to that girl. Not for disbelieving her when she claimed to be the fifth child, but for calling her crazy. That was unfair of me. Trust is too hard to come by without me throwing out accusations to people I don’t even yet know.

“This place she took us to depresses me, though. The people seem dazed, like they just came back from the dead and are confused about what they are going to do next. I can’t necessarily blame them-- I’m not so optimistic myself, but at least I know how much worse we could be off. Some of these people... I wonder why they came back at all.

“We’ve been hearing rumors ever since we got into this region of earthquakes that come and go as if something was passing through. We experienced a couple ourselves, though they weren't too bad. Some people are worried that we’ve angered some Kami spirit or something. I wouldn’t think so, but Shinji suggested... never mind. Its a stupid idea.

“What worries me more are the stories I’ve heard ever since we finally got to this camp. Stories of people waking up catatonic; and when they finally recover their faculties they always tell of having the same dream. But its not the usual alien abduction story, the details are all wrong. In it they are being interrogated, in some versions tortured, always by the same person. The face is of a girl with wavy hair, freckles, and European. MY face. And the questions are so specific: ‘do you now or have you ever worked for Nerv?’ ‘have you ever heard of Evangelion?’ ‘where is so-and-so, and how can I meet him or her?’ They say these people are normal, but even if they are Faded. Why. Why my face?”

From the diaries of Asuka Langley Soryu, dated April 1, 2016. (Translation from the original German provided by Katharina Ikari, historian)



A short haired woman was sitting on a log with a laptop perched precariously on her knees. She wore a blue jacket and a red scarf around her neck as protection against the cold, breezy air. All around her people hurried about their business, trampling snow in a forest of leafless trees. Behind her a massive human figure sat slumped against what was once a warehouse. Apparently made out of now tarnished metal with chrome plating still visible in many places, it looked like an under-appreciated statue dropped somewhere where it wasn’t wanted.

“How’s the diagnostic coming along, Maya?”

The woman, Maya, glanced up at a long haired man wearing a tan overcoat with a bag slung over his shoulder. “Fine, Aoba.” She slid the computer closer to herself. “Though it would be nice to have proper equipment and a full crew helping us.”

“We’re lucky to have found any Nerv employees at all around here. You should count your blessings.”

Maya shrugged. “I know. But its still frustrating.”

Aoba sat down next to her. “So. Do you think Yae can get Unit 04 active again?”

Maya looked away. Aoba followed her gaze, which landed on a girl huddled under a blanket. Although it was obscured by the blanket, a jumpsuit was visible around her neck and she wore a headset of some kind. She was surrounded by several other children her age: sitting across from her was a boy with a cross hanging from his neck who was busy chatting animately; to his right sat another girl with blazing red hair bound by barrets into twin ponytails, a bandage on her wrist visible under the sleeve of her sweater, and a cane-like walking stick in her lap listened quietly; standing tall above them on Yae’s left was a darkly dressed boy who seemed to be half listening, half keeping watch; to Yae’s right a girl with brown hair and eyes was pouring the steaming contents of a thermos into cups which she then handed out.

Maya looked back at her work. “She shouldn’t have any trouble. I’m honestly more surprised Unit 04 didn’t walk off on its own while Yae was off finding us. Its S^2 engine is working and active. Unit 04 seems to be... sleeping.”

“Hibernating, I’d say.”

“Maybe.” She continued working, showing little hint of emotion. Occasionally she would point out something on the screen to the man and explain or ask something about the diagnostic, getting his input wherever it was needed. This went on for several minutes.

Finally she let out a sigh. Closing her laptop, she turned to face Aoba. “So.” She gestured at the bag. “What did you steal this time?”

“Its not stolen. Its salvage.” he said defensively. “Also, its a set of radios so we can communicate with the plug.”

Maya shook her head, as if trying to file away an ugly memory for later. There was much about her colleague she wished she didn’t know. But now wasn’t the time for that.

She stood up. “Well, then, I guess we have no reason to waste any more time. We’ve got a sleeping giant to wake.”

Aoba got up and scooted around Maya, who walked away without a word. He looked off in her direction for a moment, then shrugged and headed towards the children.

“... a domed city? Wow. So does this mean you guys had climate control in Vegas?”

“Business at two o-clock, Shinji.” the tall boy interjected.

“Good eye as usual, Suzuhara. Coffee break is over.” Aoba called the kids to attention, then addressed the brown haired girl. “Hikari, you wouldn’t mind running a message over to Hyuga? Tell the lazy bum to get up and get over here.”

“Why me? Don’t think I haven’t noticed how you all keep trying to push me out of every conversation about the Evas or Nerv.” She pointed at the tall boy. “You don’t exclude Toji, and he was a pilot for all of a day!”

“No one is keeping secrets from you, Hikari. He’s just going to prep Yae on some technical stuff.” Toji said in a dismissive tone. He put his arm over her shoulder and directed her away from the group. “In fact, just thinking about it makes me so bored I think I’ll come with you.”

The two of them walked away, talking back and forth to each other. Aoba grinned as Toji gave him a thumbs up behind Hikari’s back. Once beyond earshot, Aoba turned back to the group.

“You could just be honest with her, you know.” Shinji remarked.

“And feed her curiosity? If you want to be the one to tell her she was a candidate for Eva, be my guest. Just make sure I’m not around, because I’ll be damned if I have to listen to yet another sob story by some kid having a-- erk.” He stopped himself right as three glares came his way. “Besides, she’s a liability.” he backtracked. “I don’t want any loose lips starting a panic in this camp, and neither do you.”

“Tell me again why you think all those quakes were caused by an Angel?” the redhead murmured. “This is Japan. Its about as geographically stable as a one legged man.”

“We aren’t, Asuka.” Yae answered. “I thought that was why we aren’t telling anyone about the plan?”

“It is.” Aoba confirmed.

”Hyuga’s ready with the equipment.” Maya had snuck up from behind Aoba. “Do you know the plan?” She asked Yae.

“Get in the plug. Attempt to synchronize and activate Unit 04. Turn on sensors and set AT field to maximum. Simple enough.”

“If you do see an Angel, don’t try to engage it.” Maya added. “Just make sure its a safe distance from any human settlement. We have nothing to protect but people now. Lets not burden them any further.”

Yae nodded.

“You aren’t going to see anything.” Asuka stated quietly. She looked around at everyone one by one. For not the first time a blue-white cataract in her left eye drew attention to itself. “Right?”

There was a moment of silence. Finally, Aoba broke it.

“We’ll keep in contact with you by radio.” He said to Yae, holding out his bag to her. Maya gave him a dirty look, but said nothing.

Thirty minutes later a ten meter perimeter was set up around the slumbering giant. A single yellow form climbed its arm and vanished behind its back.

“I’m in... oh god, it smells like the dead in here!” Yae’s voice cracked over a small handset.

“The purifier isn't working. The filter probably needs to be replaced.” Maya sat among a haphazard assemblage of electronic equipment with Aoba and another man who wore large glasses. “You will be fine. It won’t be any worse than the last time you were in there, at least.”

Asuka, Shinji, and the other children stood a few meters farther back with the small crowd of technicians that now watched the proceedings. Asuka leaned on Shinji for support, idly toying with the cross hanging from his neck as if lost in thought. Their eyes met for a second, and upon seeeing the stern expression on Shinji's face she promptly stopped.

“I’m lowering the plug now.” the radio announced.

“Power coming on.” Aoba noted. “Hyuga, what’s the status of the S^2 engine?”

“Its stable. You should see the power output! Makes me wish we could hook this thing up to the grid.”

The normal sounds of the forest went mute. A small flock of birds took flight from the warehouse roof.

“She isn’t going to see anything.” Asuka repeated.

“Her synch ratio is too low.” Maya thought aloud. “Yae,” she asked the radio, “could you-- woah!”

The air between them and the giant shimmered as if heated. A finger twitched, followed by the whole hand moving under the giant’s center of weight.

“AT field is active.” Hyuga announced.

Off in the distance a shrill sound like high wires vibrating in the wind could be heard. Clouds blew in from the east, obscuring the orange tinted sky from view. A few people came out of their makeshift homes to watch the proceedings. Most of the residents of the refugee camp made a habit of avoiding the warehouse, fearing the statuesque thing that rested against it. Talk spread like wildfire. It wasn't everyday something from a fable came to life.

“How did she-- how did you do that?” Maya exclaimed.

“Do what?” Yae returned.

The wind picked up. The giant slowly pushed itself to its feet, its arms flopping at its sides like a drunkard. A low rumble could be heard off in the distance, growing louder.

“Hyuga, look at this. Her synch ratio is too low to generate an AT field.”

The wind calmed for a second, then whipped up again stronger than before. Snow was lifted from the ground, creating a momentary blizzard.

“She isn’t going to see anything.” Asuka repeated.

“Unbelievable." Hyuga muttered. "Is Eva doing all of this on its own?”

The giant cocked its head as if drowsy. It looked around, gauging its surroundings. A sneeze blasted from its nostrils under the mask it wore, making the people jump in surprise. One hand came up to where its ear should have been, cupping it to better hear the forest and crowd.

“She isn’t going to see anything.” Asuka repeated a third time.

The rumble had turned into a shaking that could be felt through the ground.

“I hope so.” Shinji finally responded.

The giant’s eyes were glowing crimson.

“The sensors just went haywire.” Aoba shouted. “Either we’ve got a major malfunction on our hands, or nows the time to run.”

Hyuga‘s expression changed to one of fear. “You mean--?!”

Ten kilometers away a feminine figure with long white hair stood atop a building on top of a hill looking down upon the valley below. From here the giant seemed as if normal sized. The girl shaded her eyes against glare coming off from the bits of chrome that still stuck to the giant’s armor.

Then a brown shaft erupted from the ground behind the warehouse. The clouds parted in a circle above as if blown away by a bomb. Even here the shaking could be felt.

“Enjoy your new playmate, young Yofiel.”



There was a cacophony of terrified screams and yells as the gathering scattered. Above this noise rose an orchestra of alien trembles, trills, and blasts. High in the sky the shaft began to unfurl, peeling apart like a long brown fruit revealing a green underskin with blue tentacles flayed in all directions. The green underskin too split apart into five sections, which glowed a florescent yellow as the sun reached the innermost skin of the titanic kaleidoscopic tree.

Gravel came clattering to the earth as the great blue tentacles shook themselves clean, turning the snow beneath brown. A strike of lightning hit one of the buildings, causing a small explosion. The sharp smell of ionized air stung Shinji’s nose as he helped Asuka to her feet. Rather than try and escape, she had run against the crowd towards the pile of equipment to retrieve the small radio which she now clung to and shouted frantic instructions at.

“Forget what Maya said! Grab a weapon! A rock, a tree, anything!”

There was a splintering crack as the giant broke one of the few green trees in the forest at the base with one hand. It stumbled on its feet as it turned to face its attacker.

Inside the plug, Yae looked up to see a massive red maw descend upon her on the view screen. On instinct she raised her right arm to shield her face. As she did so, the giant imitated her to place its own in front of its head. A metallic toungue slithered out from the maw. Electricity coursed through it in great bolts and sparks, making it wave and curl, holding together the disparate geometric solids that made it one whole appendage.

Three more such toungues emerged and converged on the giant, colliding with and attempting to penetrate the invisible wall held between the two monsters. The giant held aloft the old tree in anticipation of its new master’s will. Yae shifted her attention back to the radio feed.

“Now what?”

“Now you hit. Don’t let it grab you.” it spoke in english.

The club swung freely, smashing into one of the closer metal toungues. Branches snapped and broke off of the tree en mass in a rain of wood that added to the painting on the forest floor. A surge of electricity flowed back through the weapon, emitting a high pitched zap as it went, and went into the giant’s forearm. Yae gasped as her own arm seized up automatically as if it too had been shocked.

“That’s no good.” she managed to say through clenched teeth.

The giant stumbled back. Another toungue followed, bolts of lighting flashing between it and the simple club. A blue tentacle whipped the ground next to the Giant’s feet. The giant flailed the tree at it wildly, then at another one that came from above. A third came from one side, then a fourth from the other, prodding the giant’s defenses.

“Don’t let down your AT field! Its going to--”

Too late the giant noticed a tentacle wrap around its leg and a toungue around its chest. An howl of surprise and pain added itself to the strange symphony as an aria of visceral fear.

In the shelter of a dugout, Maya clamped her hands around her ears and fell to her knees. Though neither Aoba nor Hyuga could hear her over all the noise, they could see her lips form the words “we’re doomed” all the same.

Shinji and Asuka were inside another, as far away as they could sprint. Asuka caught her breath as quickly as she could. Outside she could see the angel lift the struggling giant off its feet, overpowering it with its sheer number of tentacles and toungues. She looked down at the radio in her hands. She closed her eyes, whispered something to herself, and opened them again.

Asuka looked out at the scene, focusing on the giant with her left and then right eye as if comparing what she saw between them. Then she flicked on the radio once more.

“Yae,” she spoke in a calm voice, “I know you are in pain. Withdraw from Eva for a moment and think.”

The pitcher plant-thing raised the giant towards the sun and orange sky.

“You cannot win this force on force. Your enemy is simply too big.”

The fantastic flower began to close itself.

“Find its weakness. Get out if you can. It looks like its going to swallow you whole. Once its done that, no one will be able to help you.”

The arms began to retract, pulling the no longer struggling giant in with them.

“I wish I could... I wish I could..." Asuka shook her head. "This isn't the right time for that.”

The starfish worm slowly folded back up into a bulb.

“When you are ready, Eva will do whatever you ask of it.”

The wails and screeches grew softer; then stopped as the transformation was complete. It stood there for a moment, one more tree among the dead forest. Then the shaft shot up, then came back down and slammed into the ground, effortlessly burrowing a hole into it. The great ground-serpent began to undulate as it dug deeper. A small bulge appeared, traveling in the opposite direction of the serpent’s now invisible head, until it appeared to stop at the highest point of the great arch.

Onlookers came out of their homes and fortifications to gawk. There seemed to be no end to the creature’s body. Time itself was invited to stop and have a look.

Asuka puts the radio down. An eternity of silence, save for the rumbling of the angel’s movement, takes hold. She looks to see Shinji next to her staring pointedly at the bulge. Something is in his hand. The cross that was around his neck. Maya, Aoba and Hyuga crawl out of their dugout. Maya looks at the radio in Asuka’s hand, a conflicted expression on her face. Toji and Hikari come out of a building near them. The unmoving bulge begins to stretch and deform. The undulations stop, and an angry roar sounds from beneath the ground. The wormlike body begins to twitch and shake as if stung by some kind of insect. “Is that a good sign or a bad sign?” Hikari asks Toji, and the spell was broken.

A sharpened wooden stake shot out of the bulge, followed by a great gauntleted hand. The arm drew back, as more fingers appeared sticking out of the hole to pry it open. A head poked its way out, as the hole was further ripped open. Red clay poured out of the hole, spilling on the ground into an ugly mess. The giant dropped the stake and reached back into the fleshy would-be coffin, pulling out a black sphere bigger than its own head. The giant then jumped feet first from the raised arch of the defeated angel’s body, the sphere held high above its head. Upon landing it brought the sphere down and smashed it upon the concrete ground, completing the canvas.

Ten kilometers away, the feminine figure with white hair took it in slowly. Her hands rested on the handrail in front of her. She looked down between them at her reflection in a puddle of melted snow. A face identical to the red head's ten kilometers away stared back up. The only difference was that instead of a cateract in her eye, there were two large oval scars below it.

A door closed behind her.

“I must say, that was quite an enforcer you brought with you Arael. Divine Beauty indeed.”

“Not my enforcer, Matarael.” Arael acknowledged, but didn’t turn, to see the tall gaunt young man with unnaturally wide eyes. Her voice carried with the same quality as the red head's too. “Just a pawn that happened to be in a convenient place at a convenient time.”

He leaned his back against the handrail, facing the oppposite direction from her. “Oh? And what was it doing here if it was just a pawn?”

“Remaking the world in its image. Having fun experimenting with its abilities. It didn’t yet know its calling, so I made a... mental suggestion that it might follow me here. Gauging the power of the abberation is just as important to father as destroying it. My real enforcer wasn't needed."

“I see. Ever the manipulator, aren't you."

“I'm confused. Was that a compliment, or are you being condiscending as usual?"

Doing this is a really nice way to give people previews on your work, Formless One! And I hope that these Contests have allowed you to push along your efforts and helped you with your ideas for this fic.

The schedule for now is:

Aug. 30: D. Tuck Eva
Aug. 31: Slammacow Eva
Sept. 1: Agentomega Eva
Sept. 2: Vegeta 20XX Angel
Sept. 3: Vegeta 20XX Eva

Though for the life of me, I cannot reach D. Tuck or Slammacow. Anyway, we might be seeing another bout of the waiting game.

[NemZ]

Electrified Dune-esque sandworm with dayglow flower petals for a mouth? Yeah, I can dig it. I'm also rather interested in figuring out why it has a black core and seems to be made of clay.

The old angels in human form, however, are decidedly less interesting. You might as well make angels out of the missing cast members, like telling me Yophiel was actually Ritsuko.

[Formless One]

I'm going to spoilerize my response to encourage people to read the entry and to think for themselves before consulting my intentions for interpretations.

SPOILER: Show

Electrified Dune-esque sandworm with dayglow flower petals for a mouth? Yeah, I can dig it. I'm also rather interested in figuring out why it has a black core and seems to be made of clay.

It should be noted that cores go black when dead. Unit 04 is just being... thorough.

As for the clay, what do you think Yofiel does with all that displaced dirt?

The old angels in human form, however, are decidedly less interesting. You might as well make angels out of the missing cast members, like telling me Yophiel was actually Ritsuko.

They aren't supposed to be. At least, not yet; the story will elaborate, but lets just say I need some decent antagonists besides Seele (who can only do so much as far as the narrative is concerned). I used them in this scene for a few reasons, but most notably so that I wouldn't have to get out of character to explain the meaning of the name "Yofiel" or talk about the angel's (deliberately simple) psyche. Plus, everyone else was doing very mental and/or small angels this year so I thought I would screw with you guys by throwing a good old red herring into the mix. :)

Oh, and by the way? Ritsuko, Misato, Gendo, et al are NOT appearing in this story alive. Not as humans, not as angels/posthumans, not even as ghosts. Period. I made that decision early on for three reasons:

1) those characters are too familiar; as opposed to the bridge bunnies, who we know only a little about. This gives me some room to work with them and create new character dynamics to supplement the central cast (Shinji, Asuka, Yae (who serves a similar purpose), etc.).

2) everyone is expecting it. I don't think I can remember a post 3I story that didn't revive Misato or go back in time. Well, except that one that only had Shinji and Asuka, but the person couldn't finish it. And for good reason; there was no story to tell. The setup was just too limiting.

3) all three of them actually died meaningful deaths, that actually brought their respective character arcs to an end. I like stories that depict real change for the characters and/or setting, and Eva was one of those stories. Having Misato come back to cheer on the children or having Gendo come back to plot and scheme ways to rebuild/conquer the world would be a betrayal of the growth those characters went through. I could do it, but it would be inexcusable from the standpoint of the story.

Thanks for the input!

[Siege]

i suppose there's no time for a fashionably late trifecta of entrants?

not sure exactly where to put ourselves out there.

[Formless One]

I'd PM Chowwow. He might allow it since we're apparently in waiting game mode and might need something to keep the contest active. No promises though: considering that the contest(s) are almost over I'd say you're a little bit too late to be considered fashionable IMHO.

[Siege]

looks like it's PMing time then!

much obliged.

[Chowwow]

i suppose there's no time for a fashionably late trifecta of entrants?

not sure exactly where to put ourselves out there.

Unfortunately, it is long past due for entering the Contest. You'll have to wait for next year.

More updates: I'm gonna have to drop D. Tuck and Slammacow from the Contest. Though I should be putting them at the end of the list, there is no indication that they are still even on the forums. Also, Agentomega has dropped his Eva entry from the Contest due to personal reasons. This all leaves Vegeta 20XX as the final entrant for the Contest.

The schedule for now is:

Aug. 30: D. Tuck Eva (Withdrawn)
Aug. 31: Slammacow Eva (Withdrawn)
Sept. 1: Agentomega Eva (Withdrawn)
Sept. 2: Vegeta 20XX Angel
Sept. 3: Vegeta 20XX Eva

Finally, design of the Awards has gone behind schedule, though they won't be needed for a while.

Still, the Contest has been going very well, and I'm glad most people have got their game in top form

[Vegeta 20XX]

I have submitted my entry, and I hope it is to your liking.