Clang-bang! Clang-clang, clang!
The three Evas charged toward their destination, shaking the ground all along the way. Some wooden houses shook apart, and utility poles toppled to the ground.
Although the old TV anime rarely mentioned how many things the Evas trampled and destroyed while running,
the three of them had already destroyed quite a lot. The nearby residents had been evacuated to shelters beforehand.
They changed power cables twice along the way. Two minutes later, they spotted a massive figure moving slowly six thousand meters away.
But as they drew closer, they realized it was not moving slowly at all. The three Evas picked up speed again and charged after it.
"Shinji, we're switching to internal power this time. We have to take it down within five minutes! Otherwise, we retreat and leave the rest to the government's Military!" Huang Zhetian made sure Shinji understood the time limit. In the PSP storyline, Shinji had overlooked the time remaining on his battery and nearly been killed by an N² Missile. Fortunately, Asuka had brought him into Unit-02's entry plug, saving his life.
"All right... I'll try! Yah-hah!" Shinji's eyes reddened slightly as he accelerated again, whipping up a gale.
Countless cars and rooftops were swept into the air. Unit-01's eyes had also turned slightly red...
But none of the three noticed that detail.
Asuka drew a javelin from her shoulder and extended it to its full length. She aimed at the Giant Machine as it came within two thousand meters.
She pulled back in a textbook throwing stance, then hurled it!
Whoosh-crash!
The Giant Machine had already spotted them-or rather, its radar had detected them.
The Giant Machine raised its machine-gun arm and shot the incoming javelin apart. It fell halfway to its target, its broken pieces ricocheting away.
The deflected javelin plunged into the ground, piercing several wooden houses along the way.
"Mana!" Shinji saw the armored vehicle in the Giant Machine's hand and knew at once that Mana was inside!
Hearing Shinji call her name, Mana opened the armored vehicle's hatch. She poked her head out and saw a purple Eva.
"Shinji!"
"Mana!"
But the Giant Machine refused to let Unit-01 approach. Instead, it raised its machine gun and opened fire on Shinji.
"Musashi! Don't! They're here to save me!" Mana immediately explained to her teammate inside the Giant Machine.
"Mana, we can't trust anyone right now! Getting out of here is what matters! Three Evas showed up. If they aren't here to capture us, what else could they want? We pilots exist to fight these biomechanical weapons developed by NERV!" Inside the cockpit, Musashi gritted his teeth and fired wildly at the Eva before him, then spotted two more pursuing it.
He immediately switched to flight mode. Perhaps because he had already consumed so much energy, he did not climb high into the sky, instead gliding just above the ground.
"Oh no, don't let him fly over there! That's the market!" Asuka shouted anxiously as she checked the map and radar displayed on the Soul Seat.
If Musashi and Mana reached that place, the three of them would have to kill them immediately!
"No... he's turning! He's heading toward Rei Ayanami's ambush position!" Huang Zhetian noticed the red marker on the radar map slowly changing direction.
Shinji immediately contacted Unit-00.
"Rei Ayanami! The Giant Machine is heading your way. Get ready to intercept it. Even if you can't stop it, buy us some time!"
"Understood!" Rei Ayanami answered softly and slowly brought Unit-00 to its feet.
Unit-00 fixed its enormous single red eye on the approaching Giant Machine, raised its submachine gun, and unleashed a barrage.
The barrage slowed the Giant Machine's advance.
Tch! NERV found out. These humanoid weapons really are a pain! I hear you have a weakness: once your power runs out, you can't move! Musashi silently worked out a plan. Although his Giant Machine had consumed a considerable amount of energy, unlike them, he could still last half a day.
That intelligence had come from data supplied by the government's Military. They had even simulated several battles beforehand.
With that in mind, Musashi opened the throttle all the way! He rammed Unit-00 and swept his massive arm across, knocking it away before following up with a kick.
Rei Ayanami made Unit-00 roll across the ground, avoiding the enormous foot stamping down on it.
Clang-boom!!
A massive footprint instantly appeared in the forest floor, with countless cracks spreading around it. Shattered clods of earth shot into the air.
The scene was explosive.
Musashi did not want to get bogged down in a fight. He only wanted to reach the coast as quickly as possible and escape with Mana.
But his attack on Unit-00 had already bought the three pursuing Evas a considerable amount of time.
The distance between them had fallen to less than a thousand meters.
They were now only a single stride away.
Shinji and the others dared not make any major moves, because the enemy still held Mana in his hand.
"Shinji, eliminate the enemy!" Gendo Ikari's voice reached all four of them.
Shinji froze for a moment, then immediately explained to Gendo Ikari, "Dad, he still has a hostage in his hand! It's my classmate, Mana!"
"Eliminate him! Otherwise, the government's military officers will do it for you. Rei!"
"Here!"
"Eliminate the hostage in his hand! Then destroy the Giant Machine together with Unit-02. You have three minutes remaining."
Gendo Ikari coldly and mercilessly issued his orders to Rei Ayanami and the others.
"Yes!"
Upon hearing him, Rei Ayanami stood up and quickly backed away to create some distance.
She raised her submachine gun and aimed at the armored vehicle in the enemy's hand.
"No!! Rei Ayanami! Don't! Aaaaaah!!!"
Shinji screamed frantically. What he saw was
the Giant Machine's hand exploding into fragments! Thick smoke billowed, hiding his beloved girlfriend, Mana, from view.
Musashi had not expected them to attack so quickly either. By the time he reacted, the armored vehicle in his hand was already gone!
The mechanical hand had been blasted off along with it.
"Aaaaaah!!! Rei Ayanami! Dad!! You... aaaaaah!!" Shinji broke down completely. He drove Unit-01 toward the Giant Machine and punched it to the ground.
Straddling the Giant Machine, Unit-01 narrowed its eyes and gripped the enemy's arm. It squeezed!
Bang!! Boom!!
The Giant Machine's arm burst apart. Huang Zhetian immediately shouted to him, "Mana isn't dead!"
"Huh!?"
"What!?"
Asuka and Shinji immediately stopped what they were doing, and both Evas turned their heads toward Huang Zhetian.
"Here... she's in my hand!" Huang Zhetian gently opened his hand. Lying inside was none other than Mana!
"How did that happen, Zhetian-kun?"
Shinji was ecstatic. His girlfriend was alive!
"Enemy pilot, surrender immediately! You still have one last chance! The hostage is in our hands now! Even if we don't stop you, the Military's N² Missile will destroy you!" Huang Zhetian warned the Giant Machine pinned beneath Shinji.
"I surrender..." Musashi had fled for Mana's sake in the first place. Now that she was in their hands, he had no choice but to comply...
"Commander Ikari! The enemy has surrendered. Should we eliminate him?" Huang Zhetian asked Gendo Ikari back at NERV headquarters.
"Hmm... bring them back and hand them over to the government's Military. Destroying the machine would only create more work. Hold your position for now..." After a moment's consideration, Gendo Ikari decided it was better to leave them alive. That would let him demand more benefits from the government's Military.
Training a pilot required an enormous investment of money and resources.
Besides, there were two of them-no, three! Another was still lying in the hospital.
"Understood! Our Evas have run out of power. Please send someone over now," Asuka reported to Misato.
"Understood. The government's Military is already a step ahead of us. Don't hand anyone over to them yet. Bring them back to NERV." Misato caught Akagi's knowing look and immediately understood what was going on.
"All right..."
Clang!
The Greatsword plunged into the ground. Huang Zhetian bent down and gently set Mana down from his hand.
The entry plug protruded from the back of Unit-01's neck, and its hatch opened.
Shinji ran out and embraced Mana.
"Shinji, thank you for being so good to me all this time. But I only understand now that we can't be together. Forget me..." Mana bit her lip, tears spilling uncontrollably from the corners of her eyes.
Shinji felt as though a knife were cutting through his heart. His first relationship with a girl had ended so abruptly, yet there was nothing he could do, nothing he could change.
He knew. He understood.
Everything Mana was saying now was meant to draw a line between them.
Huang Zhetian and Asuka both understood. Although Mana and the others had survived for now, there was no telling what would happen once they returned to the government's Military...
Was there any humanity in what this country's government did?
"I... I know." Shinji smiled, but the tears in his eyes spilled down his face beyond his control.
"Shinji, I really do love you... but... sob..." Unable to control her emotions any longer, Mana held him tightly.
Huang Zhetian also emerged from the Special Unit and approached Musashi.
He began talking to him...
A moment earlier, Huang Zhetian had drawn the Tang Dao from the Special Unit's back and swiftly swung it at the Giant Machine's hand.
He had severed Musashi's mechanical hand, which then caught on a tree, while the armored vehicle tumbled down.
Mana had been sitting safely inside the armored vehicle, unharmed.
That was why Shinji and the others had thought Mana had been blown up.
"Is there anything you want to say? Tell me. Maybe I can help you," Huang Zhetian said.
"Mana and I both want to live."
"Will you die if they take you back?"
"We won't die, but it'll be worse than death!"
"Then let me end things for you now, so you won't fall into their hands and suffer."
"Thank you..."
Huang Zhetian drew his Tai Chi sword...
Before you continue