I mustn't run away

"We've lost track of the target because of the Angel's radio interference!" Ibuki said worriedly as she checked the figures on the main screen.

"Although we can't pinpoint its exact location, MAGI used the data from before it disappeared to calculate that it will land here..." Misato said casually. She was in charge now, so she had to stay calm and keep everyone steady.

A vast red area appeared on the enormous screen.

The possible impact zone was huge, which also meant their chances were slim.

"An area that big?!" Asuka was startled. They had no idea where the Angel would land.

"That'll be hard," Shinji said, looking troubled too.

"If the target deploys its A.T. Field, it will uproot headquarters no matter where it lands..." Akagi said coldly.

She still seemed angry with Misato.

"That's why we'll position the Evas at these four locations!" Misato began laying out the plan, with three circles forming a triangle.

The Eva in the middle should be able to support all sides.

"What's the basis for this deployment?" Rei Ayanami, who rarely spoke, asked from beside them.

"Intuition..." Misato gave an answer that was hard to believe.

For something this important, she was actually relying on intuition.

It was unbelievable, and absurd.

"Intuition?!" Asuka and Shinji both exclaimed.

At this rate, never mind a miracle-they would be lucky to have any hope at all.

"Yes! A woman's intuition!" Misato turned toward the four of them, her voice brimming with confidence.

"I feel like we're getting further and further away from a miracle..." Asuka sounded a little despairing. Although she now believed in miracles, her faith was wavering again.

"Misato has never won a prize drawing..." Shinji added, twisting the knife.

Great. As if it wasn't hard enough already.

"Seriously..." Asuka's expression grew even worse.

"No matter what, you have to believe now! Misato... can definitely do this!" Huang Zhetian said confidently from beside them.

"Why? Why are you so sure too, Zhetian-kun?" Shinji asked in confusion.

Rei Ayanami also turned her head and quietly looked at Huang Zhetian.

"Because..." Huang Zhetian deliberately kept them in suspense.

"Human will can overcome fate!"

Inside the elevator to the hangar, the huge red warning light alternately dimmed and brightened as the elevator moved.

"Hey..." Shinji suddenly spoke in the darkness.

"What is it?" Asuka was the first to answer.

Leaning against the elevator wall, Huang Zhetian also looked over curiously.

"Asuka, why do you pilot an Eva?" Shinji asked.

"Isn't it obvious?! To show the world what I can do." Asuka answered without a moment's thought.

"To prove you matter?" Shinji asked again.

"Something like that~ Aren't you going to ask her?" Asuka glanced sideways at Rei Ayanami.

Shinji and Huang Zhetian looked at Rei Ayanami, who stood quietly beside them.

"I asked Rei before..." After thinking for a moment, Shinji finally said it.

"You two are pretty close~" Asuka teased.

"No, we're not." Shinji sounded uncertain. He felt that something was always missing between him and Rei Ayanami. Although she had smiled at him... for some reason, there was always a sense of distance he couldn't quite put into words.

"What about you, Shinji?" Asuka turned the question back on him.

"I don't know..." Shinji's answer left Asuka deeply dissatisfied.

"You don't know?! You're as much of an idiot as Zhetian!" Asuka was indignant. She had told him her reason, only for Shinji to give her an answer like that. Somehow, she felt cheated...

"Maybe..." Shinji didn't mind and answered casually.

"What about you, stupid Zhetian? Why do you pilot an Eva?" Unable to get an answer out of Shinji, Asuka asked Huang Zhetian, who was leaning against the elevator's metal wall.

The other two looked over as well.

"Me..." Huang Zhetian scratched his head and thought it over.

In the end, he said it.

"It's because... I'm doing it for the ending." Huang Zhetian's answer was even vaguer than Shinji's.

None of them knew what he meant by the ending.

But Rei Ayanami's eyes flickered for a moment.

"What's with you guys? Why are all your answers so boring?" Asuka finally gave up asking.

"You two really are idiots..." Asuka was at a loss for words.

The elevator stopped.

Four Evas suddenly came into view, standing side by side.

Brilliant lights shone down on the four of them.

The four young pilots looked at the enormous Evas lined up before them.

No one knew what was going through their minds.

"Estimated time until impact: 120 minutes," a female voice announced over the base's speakers.

Inside the command center.

Misato turned and said solemnly to everyone, "All of you should evacuate. I can handle things here alone."

Aoba Shigeru was unconcerned. "No need. This is my job."

"We can't leave the children to face the danger alone," Hyuga answered loyally from beside her.

"Those children will be all right!" Misato said with conviction in her eyes.

"Even if the Evas are damaged, their A.T. Fields will protect the children! Inside an Eva is the safest place to be."

The scene shifted to the four Evas' positions.

Rei Ayanami was in a mountain forest.

Asuka was in a field.

Shinji was in an open space beside some tall buildings.

Huang Zhetian was in a small town.

Inside their Evas' entry plugs, Shinji and Huang Zhetian both recalled how Misato had called them to a hillside road the previous afternoon.

It overlooked New Tokyo-3.

The twilight that day had been peaceful.

"Shinji, Zhetian. Didn't you ask me yesterday why I joined NERV? My father was someone who lived for his research."

"Someone who lived in his own dreams. I could never forgive a father like that. I even hated him!" Misato said coldly.

Huang Zhetian saw Shinji's pupils contract.

Misato continued, "He completely ignored my mother, me, and everything at home... Everyone around him said he was a considerate man."

"But he was actually weak. All he did was run away from reality and his family! Just like a child..."

Misato took a deep breath and continued, "When my mother wanted to divorce him, I agreed immediately. She had spent her life in tears. My father seemed shaken..."

"But he smiled and said he'd brought it on himself. In the end, though, he died saving me."

The evening light fell on the cross at Misato's chest.

The silvery-white cross looked at once radiant and utterly ordinary.

Misato's voice trembled slightly as she spoke that last sentence.

"When Second Impact happened, even I didn't understand. Did I hate him, or did I love him?"

"But there's one thing I do understand: I have to defeat the Angels that caused Second Impact! That's why I joined NERV. In the end, it seems I just wanted to avenge my father. To free myself from his hold over me..." Misato told Shinji and Huang Zhetian a great deal.

At that moment, Misato seemed to set down every burden and tell the two of them everything in her heart.

Inside his Eva's entry plug, Shinji kept repeating, "I mustn't run away. I mustn't run away. I mustn't run away!"

"That's right! I mustn't run away!" With his eyes tightly shut, Shinji lifted his head and slowly opened them.

For the first time, Shinji's eyes held such resolve and confidence.

"Target confirmed!"

"Approximately 25,000 kilometers above ground!"

In the command center, everyone hurried to report the Angel's descent trajectory data.

"It finally showed itself! All Evas, get ready!!" Misato's expression darkened. Her eyes were filled with hatred and anger, and her command came out harsh.

The four Evas bent forward, placed both hands on the ground, and dropped to one knee, ready to sprint.

"We can only track the target optically to calculate its trajectory, so MAGI can only guide you until it reaches ten thousand meters. After that, you'll have to act on your own judgment. Everything is in your hands!" Misato's voice rang in all four pilots' ears as she explained the situation.

In other words, once the Angel descended to ten thousand meters, tracking its trajectory would be entirely up to them.

"Angel approaching twenty thousand meters!" A red, fiery silhouette appeared on the enormous screen.

"All right! Begin the operation!" Misato stared coldly at the screen.

"Here we go!" Shinji called to the other three.

Rei Ayanami's gaze grew unusually serious, and she nodded slightly.

Although Asuka looked solemn, she still wore a smile.

Asuka loved challenges like this. The unknown was what interested and motivated her.

"Get ready... go!" Huang Zhetian looked excited. The running sequence was about to start, wasn't it?!

Then let's get right to it!!

Pshh-clank! The power cables were ejected.

Beep-

The red power figures on the entry plugs' displays began counting down.

4:59:56

External power switched to internal power.

"Move!" Shinji roared.

"Let's go!!" Huang Zhetian cried excitedly.

Thud, thud, thud-thud-

The four Evas broke into a sprint.

The earth shook.

Unit-02 stepped through a pool and strode straight across it.

Shadows of trees raced past Unit-02.

Thud, thud, thud-clack, clack!

Unit-01 planted a foot on the mountain road and launched itself into the air.

It leaped straight over the forest on the mountainside.

Unit-01 cleared the summit, revealing the little houses and fields below.

Unit-01 spread its arms and legs and landed steadily.

Thud, thud, thud-clack.

Unit-02 trampled through the forest. The towering trees looked like stalks of broccoli beneath its feet.

Asuka piloted Unit-02 over the power lines in a hurdling leap.

Unit-00 cleared them as well.

The shock of its landing sent the power lines behind it swaying in waves.

Special Unit dared not activate flight mode.

That would only drain the Eva's power faster.

Huang Zhetian piloted Special Unit from one high-rise to the next in a series of jumps.

It finally landed steadily. The damage to the high-rises was none of his concern.

His only responsibility was to reach the destination.

Whenever a high-rise blocked his path, he knocked it down and charged straight through.

Shards of glass, steel, and concrete bounced off Special Unit.

It trampled houses underfoot without a care.

"Distance: twelve thousand meters!" The alert sounded in their ears again.

Shinji drove Unit-01 faster, and it gradually began exceeding its speed limit.

It tore through the dirt and air around it.

Cars and other light objects were swept away by the wind of Unit-01's rapid passage.

The Space Angel descended from the sky!

Unit-01 and Special Unit arrived together.

Both pilots brought their Evas skidding to a halt.

"Shinji! Field at full strength! Hurry!" Huang Zhetian shouted over the comms.

"Right! Hah!" Shinji deployed Unit-01's A.T. Field.

Boom! Boom-crash, crash, crash-bang, bang!

The two of them deployed their fields, merging them.

The ground beneath the Evas immediately collapsed and heaved upward.

The surrounding air gradually grew scorching.

Both Evas raised their hands to block the descending Space Angel.

A multicolored, glasslike barrier formed where the two Evas' hands met it.

"Ah... tsk! Why aren't Asuka and Rei here yet?!" Huang Zhetian was startled. Why was the Space Angel so strong?!

Shinji was also beginning to struggle.

Seriously? You could hold out in both the original movies and Rebuild of Evangelion, but now that I'm here, you can't? You've got to be kidding me, officer!

Huang Zhetian began to panic.

He saw Unit-01's head and torso bend slightly.

"Push up and hold it! Shinji!" Huang Zhetian hauled hard on the controls with both hands.

He drove the Special Unit upward with all its strength.

Unit-01 recovered its strength and began pushing upward too.

The ground beneath both Evas sank until their feet were buried ankle-deep.

Whoosh!

The Space Angel pressed down harder!

"Aaaargh!" Huang Zhetian gritted his teeth, but he still couldn't hold back a cry.

The pressure was too much.

It felt as though his internal organs were being crushed flat.

Shinji wasn't faring much better.

The two Evas slowly began to buckle.

Clang, clang, clang-click!

It was Unit-00! Rei Ayanami had arrived!

"Unit-02, deploy your field at full power!" Rei Ayanami called to Asuka.

For once, Rei Ayanami's shout sounded urgent.

"I'm doing it!" Asuka's Unit-02 was racing toward the summit.

"Hurry up! We can't hold on! This fucking Angel is too hard to hold back! Fuck this thing! Aaaargh!" Huang Zhetian had bitten the corner of his mouth bloody.

He really couldn't hold on! The LCL inside the entry plug began heating up rapidly.

"Coming, coming! Quit yammering!" Asuka was anxious too.

"I'm here!" Rei Ayanami answered softly.

The arrival of the two Evas relieved much of the pressure.

"Now! Hurry! Aah!" Shinji shouted with what little strength he could muster.

"Understood!" Rei Ayanami seized the opportunity, drew her Progressive Knife, and slashed at the Space Angel's A.T. Field.

Bzzzt-ting!

Before long, Unit-00 cut an opening in it.

"Asuka, fucking hurry!!!" Blood flowed from the corner of Huang Zhetian's mouth and drifted through the LCL.

"Bastard!!" It wasn't clear whom Asuka was cursing. She gripped the Progressive Knife in Unit-02's hands and thrust it into the Angel's S² Engine with all her might.

Sparks flew amid a piercing sizzle.

Clang! Boom!

The Angel immediately went limp.

Its enormous body collapsed over the four Evas.

Billowing clouds of smoke rose at once.

BOOM!!

A blinding flash swept across the sky.

Then everything slowly fell quiet.

Suddenly, a mushroom cloud appeared.

Heaven and earth turned fiery red.

When the view cleared again, an enormous crater lay before them.

Had Fuyutsuki been there, he would have said it again-"We'll have to redraw the map."

A long time passed.

NERV Headquarters Base.

Misato looked at the four teenagers with mixed emotions.

Asuka wore an expression that practically begged for praise.

Rei Ayanami remained as calm and expressionless as ever.

Shinji was smiling too.

Huang Zhetian... stood off to one side, drinking orange juice from a vending machine...

Rei Ayanami watched Huang Zhetian drink his orange juice, her expression briefly turning startled.

"Communications restored! Incoming call from Commander Ikari in Antarctica!" Aoba Shigeru reported to Misato.

"Put him through, please." Misato paused, then immediately gave the order.

A projection screen appeared.

The words "SOUND ONLY" appeared on it.

"I'm very sorry. My reckless judgment resulted in damage to Unit-01 and the Special Unit. I'll take full responsibility," Misato apologized immediately.

"It's all right. Destroying the Angels is the Evas' duty! With so little damage, we could even consider ourselves fortunate." Fuyutsuki's voice came through.

"Well done, Major Katsuragi." Gendo Ikari's voice followed.

"Thank you for the praise!" Misato replied.

"By the way, where is Unit-01's pilot?" Gendo Ikari asked Misato.

"Yes!" Shinji immediately answered, unable to wait.

"I've heard what happened. You did well, Shinji!" Gendo Ikari praised him.

"Yes..." Shinji froze for a moment before answering with unusual calm.

He probably hadn't expected his father to praise him.

The last time his father had praised him seemed to have been when Huang Zhetian and Asuka first arrived.

"Then, Major Katsuragi, I'll leave the cleanup to you." Gendo Ikari finished by giving Misato her instructions.

"Yes!"

Honk, honk! Honk, honk!

The cars left on the roads sat scattered about, their horns blaring incessantly, while the areas affected by the Evas slowly began to recover.

Dusk came once more.

The setting sun cast its light over the city.

It looked so desolate.

Then night fell.

The subway rolled on.

Inside the subway car.

Misato sat with the four of them, chatting happily.

Of course, she was only chatting with Asuka.

The other three sat quietly.

"The next stop is Shingu! Shingu! The doors will open on the left."

The announcement came over the speakers.

"By the way, you'd better keep your promise! No backing out this time," Asuka reminded Misato.

"Yes, yes. Some money just came through, so I could even afford an imperial banquet!" Misato hurriedly waved her hand.

But a second later, her expression froze.

Actually, I haven't been paid yet... Misato thought.

Red lanterns.

A ramen cart came into view.

"I know exactly how much money you have in your wallet! Don't try to show off! The Honor Student said she wanted ramen too." Asuka planted her hands on her slender waist, having anticipated Misato's embarrassing predicament.

Misato stared blankly at the sight before her, standing completely still.

"I'll have garlic ramen, without the chashu," Rei Ayanami said softly.

"I'll have chashu ramen, a large bowl!" Asuka added.

"Anything's fine for me." Huang Zhetian and Shinji each ordered something at random.

A little while later.

"Here you go! Chashu ramen. Sorry for the wait!" The owner brought the noodles over to them.

"Hearing my father praise me earlier really made me happy. It was the first time I understood that feeling. And I realized that maybe I pilot Eva because I want to hear him praise me..." Shinji said happily as he ate his noodles.

It was as though the noodles in his mouth were the finest delicacy.

The five of them sat side by side.

"You do it just for that!?" Asuka turned toward Shinji, still chewing.

"You're an idiot, just like Huang Zhetian." Seeing Shinji's happy face left Asuka rather irritated.

"He's happy he found his answer, and we're happy about what we did today too. After all, we got through it easily, just like last time. My lungs still hurt a little, but that's all right. Come on, let's celebrate! Cheers!" Huang Zhetian stepped in with a cheerful smile to smooth things over, raising his orange juice in celebration.

"Okay!"

"Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

"Mm..."

The stars twinkled in the night sky.

Despite the lights below, they seemed even more dazzling.

A shooting star streaked past, as though silently hinting...

That something would be lost...