An encounter, an escort, the arrival of the Mass Production Units, and a visitor from beyond

Huang Zhetian glanced at Shinji, who was curled up in the passenger seat, then asked Misato as she drove, "Misato, do you have any regrets left?"

Misato shifted her eyes toward the rearview mirror and sighed. "Regrets? Mine began the moment my father pushed me into the Escape Pod. Some regrets can be made up for, but others can never heal. Too late is too late..."

Huang Zhetian nodded at her answer. "I understand..."

Misato suddenly turned the conversation toward him. "Zhetian-kun, how did you escape back then? And what's the deal with those miraculous abilities of yours?"

At Misato's questions, the despondent Shinji lifted his head from his knees and looked at Huang Zhetian curiously.

Huang Zhetian offered them a half-truth. "All I did to escape back then was switch into this body. As for those miraculous abilities, I was born with them. Also... I'm not from this world. If you needed a name for what I am, it would be a visitor from beyond."

Misato and Shinji echoed the key phrase in unison. "A visitor from beyond?!"

Huang Zhetian patiently explained, "Yes, I'm an outsider, in a sense. Here's an example. Imagine the plot of an original work being adapted into a movie. Later, another director is brought in to revise the script and improve it. Except I'm a character placed inside it, either adapted from the original or newly created. Understand?"

Misato and Shinji found his explanation unbelievable.

Misato asked another question. "Then are you something like a prophet?"

This time, Huang Zhetian chose not to answer her question. He merely smiled at her in silence.

Slightly disappointed, Misato lowered her brows and continued steering toward the EVA hangar.

Outside the NERV Headquarters buildings

A massive opening had been torn through the Black Moon. Looking up from