The moon, the boy, and the giant

He felt no pressure from the Angel at all. It was hard to imagine this was the same battle as before; it was even easier than a simulated battle.

Rei Ayanami maintained her unwavering efficiency, lightly squeezing the trigger of the lethal weapon in her hands once more without hesitation-

As a sharp gunshot split the sky, the Sixth Angel finally met its destined, inescapable fate...

The shot should have become more difficult after they were discovered, yet firing it proved far easier than the first attack. A slender stream of light, neither elaborate nor dazzling, flashed past.

Ramiel did everything possible to resist the piercing lightning, constantly changing the wondrous form it presented to humanity as its AT Field strained to wring every last drop of divine power from it.

But the Positron Cannon, drawing on all of Japan's electricity, unleashed the ultimate bolt of lightning from its barrel with the resolve to shatter that body, like a blade cleaving the world in two.

Its body retained the shape of a cannon muzzle. Then its indestructible absolute field was pierced, along with the fatal weakness exposed behind it.

"Direct hit on the core! The real core this time!" Ritsuko Akagi rose to her feet and shouted excitedly.

Only after hearing Ritsuko Akagi's confirmation did Misato Katsuragi breathe a sigh of relief. Then she, too, could no longer contain her excitement.

"We won!"

The first shot's failure to kill Ramiel had given them quite a scare, but at last this moment had come. She could finally declare victory.

At the firing position, Rei Ayanami listened to Misato Katsuragi's voice over the communicator and gazed at the purple giant standing in the city. Inside Unit-00, a smile crept onto her lips.

Rei Ayanami herself never noticed, but that smile needed no deliberate effort, just like the boy's decisiveness and resolve when he had stood in front of her.

Unit-01 was once again bathed in a rain of blood, as though heaven itself were weeping. Another Angel fell before it, and the familiar rainbow hung above the purple giant's head.

Moonlight parted the crimson. Everyone watched the sight, as though a savior had arrived bearing hope.

Beyond Earth, in the moon's Sea of Tranquility, stood the NERV Seventh Branch's Tabgha base.

There were never winds or waves in the moon's Sea of Tranquility, only eternal deathly silence enveloping the gray-white land. Beyond the dome of Tabgha base, darkness stretched to the ends of the universe. Stars glittered far in the distance like frozen fireflies.

Yet a red road ran across this gray-white land like a wound in the planet. A row of hibernation pods lay side by side like coffins, and one of them was slowly opening.

A silver-haired boy sat up in the coffin-like hibernation pod. His pale skin had a bloodless fairness to it, and when he opened his eyes, they revealed red irises.

An invisible filter seemed to surround him, stripping away every trace of worldly life and impurity until only an almost cold, abstract "perfection" remained.

That perfection carried no aggression, yet instinctively made others feel distant from him.

"I see. Has the time come?"

The boy sat in the hibernation pod, looking ahead as he spoke softly. Then the No. 1 Throne of Souls Stele, which had once appeared in NERV's Central Dogma, materialized before him.

"Indeed. The Dead Sea Scrolls Apocryphon has been elevated to the supreme code. The time of the covenant draws near," the No. 1 Stele said.

The white-haired boy rose from the hibernation pod. The first thing he saw was a white giant lying in a massive square pit, wearing a purple mask with seven eyes.

The boy merely gave the giant a silent glance, saying nothing. Then he raised his head, his red eyes turning toward the blue planet in the sky.

A smile curved his lips, and his eyes seemed full of tender affection. "I wish I could meet you soon, Shinji Ikari."

The boy and the giant

NERV Headquarters, Central Dogma.

Gendo Ikari and Kozo Fuyutsuki stood in an empty room, likewise gazing at a white giant. This giant, however, had no seven-eyed mask.

It was pinned to a cross by a red spear with a spiraling, forked tip. Its lower body consisted of countless white lower limbs, out of proportion to its enormous frame.

Lilith

"Lilith, the Second Angel, the progenitor of humanity. What we protect at any cost is this shell of a 'god.' It is both the key to Instrumentality and the only bargaining chip we hold."

Kozo Fuyutsuki gazed at the giant. Even speaking of such a great being, he showed no emotion, but after finishing, the corners of his mouth rose slightly.

"Second Lieutenant Katsuragi's tactics were very successful. The Positron Cannon pierced the Sixth Angel's core. The threat of humanity's extinction has been averted for now."

He and Gendo Ikari had taken a hands-off approach, leaving everything to Misato Katsuragi and Ritsuko Akagi. Had the operation failed, they would probably have been the first to go down with headquarters.

Such resolve did not stem from their duties as commander and deputy commander. It was simply that, if they failed now, staying alive-or anything else-would hold no meaning.

"That shows appointing her commander was the correct choice. It also proves that everything is proceeding according to the script... No matter how many unexpected developments arise, the outcome remains unchanged," Gendo Ikari said, still facing the white giant.

Kozo Fuyutsuki knew the other man was rebutting his earlier argument about the process and the outcome. That was precisely why this middle-aged man was the most difficult child in the entire base.

He chuckled. "Shinji's performance was outstanding as ever. Even without the Positron Cannon, I suspect he could have annihilated the Sixth Angel in those remaining thirty seconds."

"The moment the Three Sages located the true core, he had a chance to annihilate the Sixth Angel, at least until Unit-01's internal power ran out. As for after that..." Gendo Ikari adjusted his glasses.

In truth, even he could not be sure what would happen once Unit-01's power ran out. After all, he had never seen Shinji Ikari face danger inside a powerless Unit-01. It was all speculation.

But with Shinji Ikari piloting Unit-01, he did not believe that combination would lose. It was not merely his faith in Unit-01, but also Shinji Ikari's unexpectedly impressive performance.

Whenever he stepped onto the battlefield, Shinji Ikari seemed to inspire an inexplicable confidence in others, as though defeat were impossible.

Gendo Ikari continued, "As a blade, he is undoubtedly the sharpest we currently possess. Even the Elders above have grown increasingly fond of him... Though there are certain things about him they dislike."

"Because he has his eye on the 'divine throne'? Just tell them it's a child's game. At the age when imagination runs wildest, piloting a decisive weapon that represents humanity's last hope, it's perfectly normal to have such childish fantasies of being a savior." Kozo Fuyutsuki smiled.

"But matters involving 'gods' are precisely what they care about most."

"So they sent the Second Child?"

"Yes and no. The Second Child's Eligible testing is complete, so the timing is right to take the stage. And our failed first operation against Ramiel showed them headquarters' 'frailty.' They believe headquarters needs greater combat strength to reach the intended destination without unforeseen mishaps."