They traveled through time at the same time, but the villainous scientist

Chapter 183 God, Man, Love

The red giant, with a resolute and almost self-destructive attitude, firmly suppressed the black machine, which was corrupted by darkness and ominousness, beneath him.

"Asuka! Answer me! Asuka!"

Shinji Ikari's voice echoed through the communication channel.

His eyes were fixed on Unit 3 below, trying to find even the slightest response from his comrade beneath the black armor that represented despair.

However, the only response he received was an invisible yet overwhelmingly powerful repulsive force.

Unit-03, having been transformed into an Angel, no longer possesses an AT field that serves as a simple defensive barrier.

The orange hexagonal light barrier suddenly contracted, then transformed into countless extremely sharp spikes that exploded violently from the surface of the machine!

"Ugh!"

Unit 2 was instantly thrown back by this force, its heavy body carving two deep furrows in the ground.

Before Shinji could stabilize his machine, the spikes formed by the force field stretched and twisted like living things, creating an impenetrable forest of death between the two EVAs, completely blocking any possibility of getting close.

……

The deathly silence in NERV's central command room was broken by Misato Katsuragi's urgent questioning.

"Ritsuko! What happened? Why did Asuka's vital signs disappear? She..."

"Calm down, Miri. The situation may be worse than we think."

This time, the apostle's method of corruption might not simply be parasitizing the machine, but rather... devouring the pilot's spirit and soul as well.

Ritsuko Akagi removed her glasses and rubbed the corners of her eyes, looking somewhat tired.

"Swallow?"

Misato Katsuragi felt a chill run down her spine.

"Simply put," Red
Ritsuko took a deep breath and uttered the cruelest conclusion.
"Soryu Asuka Langley probably no longer exists."

From body to spirit, she had already been "eaten up" by that apostle.

Now, what's driving Unit-03 is just a monster that has acquired an EVA body and human intelligence.

She paused, then turned her gaze to the black demon god surrounded by force field spikes on the main screen, and suggested in an icy tone:

"I suggest that we immediately destroy EVA Unit-03."

This is... the only option.

"Annihilate? What did you say?"

Misato Katsuragi grabbed her shoulders abruptly, almost shouting,

"How could you say such cruel things! Isn't our responsibility to protect those children? Asuka is still inside!"

"We must do this precisely to protect many other people!"

Ritsuko Akagi turned her head away, refusing to look into her eyes, which were filled with anger and pain.
"This is the only thing we can do for her..."

"enough."

A deep, authoritative voice brought the argument to a close. Gendo Ikari stood in the shadows of the top floor, his arms crossed over his chest, his expression as indifferent as ever.

"Unit Two, immediately destroy Unit Three."

This is an order."

The communication channel clearly transmitted this heartless order to Shinji Ikari's ears.

"No! Father!"

Shinji's voice, filled with unprecedented determination, resounded throughout the command room.

"I can't do it! Please let me try again!"

Gendo Ikari's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, his tone revealing obvious displeasure:
"Stop being so willful, Shinji Ikari."

The person before you is not your companion, but an apostle.

Your task is to eliminate the apostles, nothing more.

"No!"

"The Asuka I know is definitely not this weak! And... Unit-03 has only been preventing me from getting closer since just now; it hasn't tried to kill me! This proves that Asuka's consciousness hasn't completely disappeared!"

Shinji retorted again, speaking as he controlled Unit-02 to dodge the spikes.

His words startled Misato Katsuragi. She quickly pulled up the battle data replay, and just as Shinji had said, while Unit-03's attacks were terrifying, they were mostly non-lethal.

Even so, what can be done?

Gendo Ikari's voice was as cold as ice.

"How long can a human will endure under the spiritual erosion of the Apostles? One minute? Or ten minutes? You now bear the safety of the entire Third New Tokyo City, and even all of humanity."

Are you really going to gamble all of this on your baseless speculation?

"Ah……"

A soft laugh, tinged with self-mockery, came from the communicator.
"If it were Mr. Zhang Qi, he would never say such a thing."

Even if there's only a one percent chance, he absolutely cannot abandon his comrades!

Shinji Ikari gripped the control stick tightly with both hands.

"..."

Gendo Ikari stared at the bright red EVA on the screen, ignoring the scratches on its armor from the force field spikes, stubbornly trying to get closer to the black demon, falling into a long silence.

The constant alarms warning of Unit-02's ongoing damage, intertwined with Shinji's heavy breathing, pounded on the nerves of everyone in the command room.

After a long silence, Gendo Ikari took a deep breath, as if he had made up his mind.

"Activate... Puppet System".

"commander!"

Ritsuko Akagi was taken aback by what she heard, finding it hard to believe.

"If we lose even Unit 2, then humanity is truly doomed."

Gendo Ikari's voice, devoid of any emotion, interrupted her.

"We can't let him continue to act recklessly."

Ritsuko Akagi stared at Unit-02 on the screen, which was advancing almost in a self-destructive manner, and was torn with inner turmoil.

Ultimately, reason prevailed over emotion, and she gritted her teeth and reached for the control panel.

However, the next moment, a piercing alarm and a bright red error code filled the screen in front of her.

"No! Access to the puppet system has been denied!"

Unit 2... Unit 2 is rejecting the puppet system's intervention!

On the screen, the crimson giant seemed to feel insulted and let out a deafening wail.

Ignoring the force field spikes that pierced the armor and penetrated deep into the machine, it charged forward with an almost martyr-like posture!

It braved the deadly jungle, smashing through countless sharp spikes with its own body, and finally arrived in front of Unit 3 amidst a series of loud metallic tearing sounds.

No attack.

There was no destruction.

Those enormous arms, stained with his own "blood," slowly rose and, with an incredibly gentle gesture, embraced the black, ferocious demon god.

The movement was so gentle...like a mother embracing her lost child.

……

In a world of light and sound.

Curled up in the darkness, Asuka felt a long-lost warmth. A blurry figure in a white dress gently embraced her from behind.

That embrace felt so familiar and so comforting.

"Mother……?"

She murmured to herself unconsciously.

The next moment, the red necklace that always hung on her chest suddenly emitted a warm and bright light.

Consciousness returned.

When Asuka opened her eyes again, she was back in the pilot's seat of Unit-03.

What came into view was the ravaged red EVA, visible through the monitor screen.

Its chest, arms, and shoulders were pierced by countless force field spikes, and blue coolant dripped down like tears, staining the ground beneath its feet red.

For some reason, seeing this scene, Asuka's eyes welled up with a hot tear.

The next second, the No. 2 machine that was embracing her moved.

Its slightly intact right hand broke free from the last spike binding it and, with undeniable force, precisely grasped the insertion bolt at the back of Unit 3's neck, and then—pulled it outward with a sudden jerk!
"Om-!"

As the insertion plug was forcibly ejected, the black giant shuddered, the crimson light in its eyes quickly dimmed, and the ominous thorn crown on its head vanished.

The massive machine, like a statue that had lost its support, finally came to a complete stop in the arms of Unit-02...

(End of this chapter)