The Trash Returned from Warhammer

[Fourth cooling cycle complete]

[Auxiliary voltage normal]

[Freeze plugs ejected]

The sound of broadcasts echoed back and forth. Starting an EVA was an incredibly scientific and meticulous process; Shinji was already quite familiar with these pre-battle preparations.

He had changed into a blue-and-white form-fitting combat suit, sat inside the unique cockpit, and leaned his back against the seat, observing the metallic circular walls with keen interest.

’So this is an EVA? It feels completely different from wearing Power Armor, but being protected by heavy armor makes me feel a bit more at ease.’

He opened his hand and closed it into a fist. Arriving at NERV ahead of schedule had been planned. Just as every Chapter has a Scout Company, forcing a soldier who has not undergone training to step onto a battlefield is a criminal act.

[Insertion plug startup]

[Activating spinal conduction system, preparing link]

Feeling a slight vibration, as if a needle had been injected into his body, Shinji frowned and tightened his grip on the control stick.

Beyond the physical discomfort caused by the lack of gravity, as a Chapter Librarian, the feedback on another level was far more sensitive.

’Soul... a soul link.’

The entire experience was like falling into an abyss. The resonance of his soul caused his pupils to constrict. At this moment, he finally understood why the files called the EVA a ”bio-weapon.”

’Does this thing have a Machine Spirit?’

In the 41st Millennium, it is an idealistic universe where ”all things have spirits.” Everything possesses a soul projection, and mechanical creations are no exception.

From something as small as a Chainsword or a Bolter, to something as large as a Knight suit, a Titan, or a starship—all can awaken and give birth to their own Machine Spirits. On a physical level, this is somewhat similar to an automated system.

Sometimes, when a pilot is missing, the Machine Spirit can even take over control and continue to fight, though most Machine Spirits are irritable and wild.

For this reason, humanity has developed complex rituals involving incense, holy oils, and binary prayers to appease them.

The behavior of a Machine Spirit is very direct: If a Bolter jams after firing a single shot, the Machine Spirit is displeased. If a magazine holds 12 rounds but fires 15, the Machine Spirit is greatly pleased.

’But this Machine Spirit is a bit different.’

Shinji fell into deep thought.

’What a strange machine. EVA... No, this world has even more secrets than I imagined.’

In the real world, his body had moved only a few meters, but his soul felt like it had entered an abyss. His remaining psychic power was poised and ready; as a Chapter Librarian and a Psyker, he was not without means of retaliation in this domain.

[Mental contamination value within standard range]

[Insertion plug maintained between +02 and -05]

Communications continued. Shinji still held his breath, his fingers tapping lightly on the control stick, preparing to handle any sudden situation. Several seconds passed, and nothing happened.

’Good news: this strange Machine Spirit has no malice toward me. In fact, it faintly feels like the Machine Spirit is ”greatly pleased.”’

He let out a sigh of relief, feeling a bit regretful that his psychic powers were too weak; otherwise, he might have been able to establish a direct connection with the Machine Spirit and satisfy his curiosity about the essence of this bio-weapon and why it possessed a soul.

[Core fixed, beginning first contact]

[Flooding the plug]

At that moment, a liquid resembling orange juice was pumped into the cockpit, spreading over his body.

”Shinji-kun, don’t be nervous. This is LCL liquid. Once your lungs are filled, you can breathe freely.”

Ritsuko Akagi’s voice came over the comms. Shinji remained focused, watching the ”orange juice” rise above his head. He opened his mouth, breathing in oxygen that carried a scent of blood.

’The technology of this world has its merits. The piloting conditions are much better than those of a Dreadnought.’

It was neither sweltering nor cold; instead, there was a warmth to it, like returning to a mother’s womb.

”Shinji-kun, how does it feel?” Ritsuko’s voice came again. She had not detected any abnormalities.

”It’s fine. Continue.” Shinji moved his shoulders, familiarizing himself with the controls.

The left stick controlled movement and direction. The right stick activated weapons or special abilities.

Both were auxiliary. Through the neural link, the pilot primarily relied on their willpower to control this massive body. This thing was somewhat like those Knight suits; Imperial Knights achieved mental synchronization through ”Thrones Mechanicum.”

’Noble lords of the Knight houses?’

Shinji smirked. Come to think of it, piloting an EVA was more their area of expertise—though, in terms of status, an Astartes was certainly higher. He had personally carried out purification missions against traitorous Knight houses.

But this was absolutely not the essence of the EVA. Just as he felt moments ago, its core was a domain humans could never normally touch—

The Soul.

Shinji’s expression became serious. This had never been mentioned in the classified documents; it was clearly being deliberately hidden.

Coupled with the monitoring from before...

’Are these people hiding the truth? It seems I must also hold something back.’

He decided to be more cautious. This mindset was all too familiar; betrayal in the 41st Millennium was a daily occurrence. One moment you were with a loyal comrade, and the next, they could become a pawn of Tzeentch.

In that place, trust was an item far too luxurious.

[Starting second contact]

[A10 nerve link normal]

[Displaying link imagery]

The startup test continued. The metallic circular walls released psychedelic points of light. A seven-colored rainbow, brilliant starlight, and crimson hues appeared in succession. When the eyes of EVA Unit-01 lit up, Shinji sat up straight.

He felt as though he were suspended in mid-air, seeing the situation outside. It was much like a holographic cockpit, and this field of vision, completely different from that of Power Armor, made him quite curious.

[Language localization set to Japanese]

[Initial link all normal]

[Measuring synaptic link status, synchronization rate 55.37%]

”Even with the combat suit on, the data for a first startup is quite good.” Ritsuko Akagi raised an eyebrow. That was a normal level, she noted, glancing at the screen to the side.

That screen displayed the battle outside. A massive monster was landing. The Self-Defense Force’s fighter jets were throwing ammunition like flies, filling the sky with a dense barrage.

”Those people are wasting tax money. With an AT Field active, conventional weapons are impossible to cause damage.” Misato Katsuragi spoke as if she had expected this, pouting. ”So, when can the EVA deploy?”

”What’s the rush? Command is still in the hands of the Self-Defense Force. Let’s wait until they are at their wits’ end.” Ritsuko wasn’t in a hurry. She ordered, ”Activate simulation controls. While they haven’t given up hope yet, let Shinji-kun practice a bit more.”

This was exactly Shinji’s goal. As a combat expert, reckless abandon was not the style of the Blood Ravens. He had to familiarize himself with this unfamiliar machine.

Mental control. He thought about moving forward, and Unit-01 moved forward; it was an extension of his own body.

Shinji never considered himself a genius. As planned, he practiced from the basics. This was completely different from Power Armor.

”Why is there a lag in my controls?”

”That’s a synchronization issue. Shinji-kun, you’ve played games, right? It’s like latency in a game. A 55% sync rate is barely enough for you to fight.”

’Understood. Network lag.’

Shinji opened his palm and closed it into a fist. Unit-01 performed the same action. He could feel the obvious lag.

’Not enough. Far from enough.’

It seemed the synchronization rate was the core ability for controlling an EVA; he had to find a way to improve it.

Arriving early meant Shinji had ample time to think about problems and solve them. As he listened to Misato’s ”stuff-it-in-the-goose” style of teaching, he pondered.

”Angels possess an AT Field. If you want to defeat it, you have to neutralize the field and attack its core. Remember, you must attack the core, or the Angel will regenerate.”

”What is an AT Field?”

’Huh? We’re still nitpicking settings at a time like this?’

Misato hesitated. She looked at the battle; the Self-Defense Force could no longer stop the Angel’s advance and was preparing to use an N2 bomb.

”That’s a long story. You can think of it as a phase-shift space made of special matter. It requires a massive energy source to maintain.”

”How do I release an AT Field? And how do I neutralize one?” Shinji was like a precision machine, letting no doubt slide.

”Your brainwaves are already synchronized with the EVA’s bio-neural network. Use the right control stick to input the command for the EVA to deploy an AT Field.” Ritsuko took over the questioning; she actually quite liked this rigorous attitude.

”After touching the Angel’s AT Field, interfere with and neutralize it with a 180° phase difference. That will break it. But be aware, it is related to the quality of both sides’ fields.”

She spoke incredibly fast, explaining the concentration of the AT Field, the fact that higher sync rates led to more precise control, the need for huge energy supplies, and so on. Shinji listened quietly, building a knowledge model.

The strength of an AT Field is positively correlated with the synchronization rate, energy supply, the pilot’s emotions, and focus. And the scientific essence of the synchronization rate is neural oscillation and soul resonance.

’Neural oscillation and soul resonance?’

Shinji had a plan. He had brought a gift from the distant future, and now that things had come to this, he would not hesitate to use it.

He couldn’t exactly stake the outcome of the battle on the goodwill of this unknown Machine Spirit.

”We can talk about more questions when I return. First Lieutenant Katsuragi, can you transmit the battlefield footage?” Shinji said, continuing to familiarize himself with mental control in training mode.

”I need to formulate a combat plan based on the target’s characteristics.”

”Huh? But formulating combat plans is my job.” Misato opened her mouth.

’Is this kid trying to steal my job?’

”Frontline combat personnel can provide reasonable additions. Execute the order.”

’Ex-execute... the order?’

Misato’s eye twitched. Following the ”who is the father” problem, she had now arrived at the dilemma of ”who is the commanding officer.” Looking at the smirking Ritsuko, she said sharply:

”Give him the battlefield view.”

Beep.

The image in the cockpit flashed, and the outside battlefield appeared. Shinji meant no disrespect; it was simply that as an Astartes Brother, an Adjutant of the Blood Ravens’ 5th Company, he had his own habits.

’I see the traitor’s plot as if it were a cracked mirror; I calculate the Xenos’ movements as if I were reading an hourglass.’

The Blood Ravens’ Librarians far exceeded the Codex structure, specializing in intelligence gathering and tactical planning.

’Oh, so this is an Angel?’

Amidst the dense barrage, Shinji saw a monster with blue-black skin and long, thin limbs. Its head had something that could be called a face, featuring a beak-like mouth.

’What an ugly Xenos. The Emperor protects, its very existence is a profanity.’

Shinji frowned instinctively. In the past, his Bolter would have already been loaded. He watched the flying machines surrounding the Angel scatter as a strong light occupied the entire screen.

BOOM—RUMBLE—

The entire underground space trembled slightly. The light of the N2 bomb was dazzling; this was already humanity’s most powerful conventional weapon—a weapon whose power was not insignificant even within the Imperium.

’But this Xenos, ugly as it is, still has some skill.’

The footage cleared. The thin monster stood in the center of the molten lava. The earth had been blasted into a massive crater, changing the terrain itself. But the Angel remained still for a moment, then suddenly lifted its head.

A flash of light appeared on its beak-like face. The artillery position on the hillside transformed into a brilliant cross, and dozens of massive steel cannons were instantly vaporized.

”Even the N2 bomb is useless...” Misato was also shocked. Even though she had prepared for this day for a long time, the arrival of the Angel was still deeply rattling.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.

A second and third cross of light rose from the ground. Each one resulted in hundreds of deaths. Before the Angel, humans and their bunkers were equally pathetic.

Ring, ring, ring.

The phone on the console rang. Misato rushed to put it to her ear. A cold voice came from the other side.

”The Self-Defense Force has handed command over to us. Send out Unit-01.”

”Bu-but the simulation training isn’t finished yet.”

”It doesn’t matter. There is no time left. Deploy him immediately. We spent massive resources—isn’t it all for this very day?”

Gendo Ikari hung up without allowing for an argument.

Misato held the phone, hesitant. Ritsuko Akagi walked over and patted her shoulder gently:

”Commander Ikari is right. The EVA was born for this moment. Besides, we at least gave Shinji-kun a one-hour orientation.”

’Right. Ikari Shinji has already simulated for an hour; we aren’t just pushing a child onto the battlefield completely unprepared.’

Misato took a deep breath, and the guilt in her heart seemed to lessen. She put down the phone and whispered: ”Shinji-kun, are you ready?”

There was no answer from the cockpit. Just as she found it strange, the controller reported with surprise: ”Unknown interference detected. Insertion plug visual and acoustic signals lost. Pilot status cannot be monitored.”

”Huh? Resolve the fault immediately!” Ritsuko was shocked too. If the EVA ran into problems before the fight even started, it would be her responsibility.

”No need. I can hear you talking. These faults will not affect combat.”

Shinji’s voice came over the comms. This made everyone breathe a sigh of relief. The monitoring of the insertion plug was intended to ensure pilot safety; it certainly wouldn’t affect combat.

”Shinji-kun, I’m sorry. The situation is urgent, and there is no time for you to adapt. Don’t be nervous. Just listen to my instructions later.” Misato’s tone became a bit softer. Putting herself in his shoes, forcing a fourteen-year-old boy to pilot an EVA to fight a monster was simply too cruel.

”Understood.”

Shinji said nothing more. He gripped the control stick without a hint of nervousness. For an Astartes Brother, the scent of the battlefield only brought excitement.

’Confirmed: Psychic power can interfere with the cockpit’s monitoring.’

He raised his head, his eyes flickering with a deathly pale radiance. He watched as various restraints were disengaged and EVA Unit-01 was pushed toward the launch pad. He watched the Angel, which had crossed the mountains, attacking Tokyo-3.

’It is the Third Angel, Sachiel. Laughable—you dare call yourself an Angel?’

The entire underground was shaking. Facing an unfamiliar mecha and an unfamiliar Xenos, Shinji whispered a chant:

”Burn the Heretic with the Emperor’s wrath! Crush the Xenos with a body of steel! We are the avatars of death! We are the undying blade!

The Emperor’s Avenging Angels—

Deploy!”