Twenty minutes earlier
NO ENTRY. KEEP OUT.
A red-and-black cloth sign hung from the cordon as members of the NERV Logistics Troops began a sweeping search of the area where the Special Unit had self-destructed.
They were searching not only for the Special Unit's wreckage, but also for substances left behind by the Womb Angel.
Wearing a thick protective suit, Ritsuko Akagi approached the Special Unit's Entry Plug, which was still giving off steam.
"Dr. Akagi, look..."
One of the logistics personnel stepped aside so Ritsuko Akagi could examine the inside of the Special Unit's Entry Plug.
Sunlight fell on a charred hand inside a hole torn through the Entry Plug. Clearly, Huang Zhetian was as dead as anyone could be.
But Ritsuko Akagi had no time to mourn. The Special Unit's body was gone, and there obviously wasn't enough time to build another.
They still had three EVAs left, so their combat strength remained more than sufficient.
The problem was that they couldn't extract his genes, making it impossible to create another Huang Zhetian. Naturally, his memories couldn't be passed on the way Rei Ayanami's were, either.
One was a vessel for a soul; the other had been a clone to begin with.
They were fundamentally different. This Huang Zhetian was dead, and even if they made another copy, it wouldn't be the same person.
There was no telling whether a new clone would retain all the abilities the previous Huang Zhetian had possessed.
Ritsuko Akagi examined the Entry Plug's internal structure. After a moment's thought, she turned to the logistics personnel beside her. "This matter will be classified as top secret. Recover the Entry Plug and dispose of the relevant components!"
"Yes!"
"Move quickly!"
As Ritsuko Akagi left, she still offered Huang Zhetian a farewell in her thoughts.