EVA: Shinji Ikari Returns from the Dragon Clan

Chapter 178 176. Parasitic Apostle, something I have never seen before

"Dr. Akagi, the chief person in charge of the EVA-3 manned launch experiment, has arrived and is heading to the command center."

"All ground personnel evacuated."

"The driver is already in the isolation room ready."

Such a voice came from the radio. Akagi Ritsuko looked up at the blue sky, without wind or cloud. In such weather, she should find a high-end cafe to drink coffee leisurely, listen to high-class piano music, and not think about the pressure of work, instead of coming to Matsushiro to continue working.

She was not wearing a white coat today. Instead, she was dressed beautifully, like a female office worker on the street in old Tokyo. She wore sunglasses and a sun hat, but her temperament as a scientific researcher was not diminished much.

"Dr. Akagi, please follow me."

A young woman in her twenties bowed sixty degrees to her, spoke softly, and then led the way.

Ritsuko Akagi strode towards the command center.

Unit 3...

As she walked, she thought about the question asked by Shinji Ikari.

She really didn't know who controlled Unit 3, and Akagi Ritsuko didn't lie about that. From all the information she had, it seemed that apart from her mother, there was no other relative of Unit 2 pilot Asuka who could be involved in the experiment. So the problem was here -

Without knowing who was controlling Unit 03, the Americans did not even arrange for a new pilot, but instead sent one directly over for testing...

Ritsuko Akagi was confused.

But since Commander Ikari did not question it, as a subordinate, she could only complete the task. After all, Matsushiro was just a small experimental site, and the journey to the command center was nothing compared to the underground city of the headquarters. There were very few Western faces on the road, and it stands to reason that the United States should send more people to collect data. She noticed the details in this regard, and the ominous premonition in her heart became more serious.

It's better to scare yourself. Akagi Ritsuko sighed.

"Hey Ritsuko, you're finally here."

When she arrived at the command center, Katsuragi Misato, who was doing nothing, smiled at her.

"Would you like to go with us to explore the local area after the experiment?"

"Let's talk about it then."

Akagi Ritsuko said ambiguously.

Although she listened to Katsuragi's advice a few days ago and wore clothes suitable for shopping today, it is normal for some accidents to occur during the startup experiment. During the startup experiment of Unit 0, Rei Ayanami was seriously injured. As the person in charge of this experiment, she is not as careless as Katsuragi.

"Ms. Ritsuko." This is Shinji Ikari greeting.

"...Shinji-kun, you're still worried about Asuka."

Shinji Ikari was visibly choked by her words.

He didn't look at Rei Ayanami next to him, as this would only make him look guilty. Should he say that it was normal to worry about a friend at this time? But before he could say anything, Asuka's dissatisfied voice, who had already entered the cockpit, emerged from the silent communication channel.

"——Don't say such things!"

"It seems that you are ready, Asuka, so let's start the synchronized contact."

Ritsuko Akagi acted as if she didn't hear Asuka's words. Her face straightened and she gave the order.

So the experiment began to proceed in an orderly manner.

The conveyor belt is working.

Asuka was a little annoyed in the cockpit. Why did Ritsuko Akagi announce the start of the experiment so soon? She should have explained what she just said clearly! However, after hearing Shinji Ikari's voice on the communication channel, Asuka felt that her slightly nervous mood calmed down for some reason. She understood the source of this sense of stability. Even if there was an accident in the experiment, with Shinji, the idiot, there should be no problem.

But she felt a strange sense of shame at the thought.

Asuka knew that Ikari Shinji came to Matsushiro because he cared about her, not because he was dating the top student... That should be the case, right? If it was for a date, she would probably explode like a pufferfish. But it was just a show of concern between friends. With the top student around, there was no possibility for her and Shinji to be together. How could it sound so ambiguous when Akagi Ritsuko said it?
What would the top students think of themselves when they hear something like this?
Haha, maybe this top student will say something hypocritical. Asuka won't be fooled. What's the matter with terminal illness? She has been so happy these days, not like the doll she was when they first met.

At this time, LCL liquid is injected.

Asuka quickly focused her attention.

When she was a child, she had also experienced the start-up experiment of Unit 2, but that was several years ago, and her mother was still alive at that time. Asuka could still vaguely remember some of the experimental process, but she couldn't remember the details very clearly. As a result, the start-up experiment of Unit 3 this time always gave her an inexplicable sense of déjà vu.

But this time it was not for my mother, but for myself - not to get my mother's praise, but to show my own excellence.

There was a slight clicking sound coming from outside.

The cockpit is going deeper into Unit 03's body.

From this point of view, it was not much different from driving Unit 2 on a daily basis. But it was not done yet? It took so long to take the first step. It was the first time that she felt that the process was so long, so long that even her spirit became a little drowsy. At this moment, Asuka seemed to hear something. A subtle roar sounded like millions of wind chimes trembling at the same time in the vast sky.

She saw the fallen leaves lightly tapping on the center of the blue lake, and the spreading ripples spread out in all directions. In the empty field, some woven fabric made a slight rustling sound in the wind... and then the countless thin threads broke.

"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah--"

Something was roaring in my ears.

Asuka suddenly opened her eyes, and thin beads of cold sweat appeared on her white forehead, mixing with the LCL liquid around her. She seemed to have just woken up from a dream, and what just happened was just an illusion.

"Asuka?"

"It's okay, I just got distracted for a moment."

After confirming that the driver was just distracted, the experiment continued.

But Asuka always had a strange feeling, a sense of danger swept over her. The cockpit was about to reach the predetermined position. What could go wrong? Could it go out of control like Shinji's Unit-01? Could she be lucky enough to experience this once? Could Unit-03 protect itself?
But at this moment.

All lights in the cockpit went out in an instant.

Asuka was surprised by this change, and even her beautiful eyebrows twisted up. Was there such a scene when the Unit 2 was started? She had never seen it before. Anyway, there must be something wrong with this experiment, right? Suddenly, she felt a sense of stalling. The cockpit was usually fixed at the back of the EVA body, at the junction of the cervical vertebrae and the spine, but at this moment, the cockpit was still falling, as if falling into an unknown abyss.

"What happened?" she asked into the comms channel.

But there was no response, and Asuka realized that the communication channel seemed to be blocked and the descent of the cockpit was unstoppable.

And outside.

"The cockpit insertion depth exceeds 100 and the pilot has exceeded the safe depth," someone reported.

"Stop the experiment immediately! Cut off the connection between the pilot and the machine!"

Akagi Ritsuko shouted anxiously,
"Asuka, how are you?!"

But Asuka's voice could no longer be heard on the communication channel, and she had no idea what her current condition was. Could this be a repeat of the last experimental accident? Akagi Ritsuko would never allow such an absurd thing to happen again, but things never change according to human will.

A warning red flashed on the screen at the command center, dyeing the entire command room red.

The experiment can no longer be stopped.

As expected, something went wrong... It seemed like every time there was a large-scale experiment like this, something would go wrong. Was it cursed? Or did someone set too many flags? Shinji Ikari looked at the screen worriedly. At this moment, he could only hope that nothing serious would happen. Everything was left to fate.

"No, we can't cut it off. A high-energy reaction is occurring inside Unit 3!" said the staff.

...high energy reaction.

“——It’s an apostle.”

This thought came to everyone's mind.

Did the 13th Angel parasitize Unit 03? How did he do it? Shinji Ikari thought of another way. The EVA units were originally copies of the Angels. It must be very easy for them to parasitize them.

The most important question at the moment is -

How did it get in?

Every time an apostle attacks, the headquarters can detect it quickly from a distance. This is the first time we discovered it right away... Maybe it has something to do with the fact that we are in Matsushiro instead of Tokyo?
And the next moment after this thought came to mind, a huge explosion resounded through the sky, smoke and dust filled the air, and the entire Matsushiro experimental field was shaking. The people in the command center immediately fell to the ground. Shinji Ikari grabbed Rei Ayanami beside him, and the two of them managed to stand firm with the help of the instruments beside them.

Did Unit 3 explode?
How's Asuka in there?

Shinji Ikari was the first to regain consciousness during the shock. Fortunately, the surveillance footage at the command center was not interrupted by the shock. He saw Unit 03 walking out of the smoke and dust, and its black armor was not much damaged. He breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that Asuka inside should not be seriously injured.

All ground personnel were evacuated before the experiment began, otherwise the explosion alone would have caused heavy losses.

But even so.

The entire temporary hangar was also severely damaged.

Fortunately, the black Unit 3 did not look towards the command center where all the personnel were gathered, otherwise all the people would have been killed here. Unit 3... no, the thirteenth apostle looked around, as if trying to determine the direction, and then took two steps in one direction, crossing a distance of several hundred meters in a few seconds.

"The direction it's heading towards... is the Third New Tokyo City."

Misato Katsuragi said.

(End of this chapter)