At the battle site, the Angel was still eating away at the bodies of Unit-00 and Pedanium Unit-03.
Kaworu Nagisa tried to counter the Angel's encroachment with his own AT Field. Despite the searing pain in his hands, he kept pulling at the Angel's body.
Pedanium Unit-03 even brought its foot into play, bracing it against Unit-00 and tearing with all its strength.
"Get out of Rei's body..."
But it made no difference. External force could not pull it free. Unit-00's body was still being consumed, countless vein-like lines bulging across its armor until they covered its entire body.
Inside the Entry Plug, Rei Ayanami's body looked almost exactly like Unit-00's...
The veins had already spread to Rei Ayanami's face, bringing her not only pain but also an extremely strange sensation.
Tormented by that strange sensation and the pain, Rei Ayanami grew increasingly faint. Her consciousness began to blur, and she closed her eyes.
"Rei, hang on! Mr. Mirror will be here soon!" Shinji's desperate shout briefly brought her attention back.
But when she opened her eyes again, she found herself in an entirely different space.
She also sensed another, inexplicable presence.
The space around her changed into an endless sea filled with orange LCL, against a blood-red backdrop.
She floated above the LCL.
In that sea of LCL, another "Rei Ayanami" slowly raised its body. It looked exactly like the real Rei Ayanami.
"Me... the me inside the EVA..."
"No! This isn't me!"
"You're... one of the beings we call Angels, aren't you..."
"Rei Ayanami" lifted its head, revealing an eerie smile.
It spoke:
"Would you like to become one with me?"
"No. We aren't the same..." Rei Ayanami refused outright.
"Rei Ayanami" laughed. "Is that so? Then it's already too late."
"I'm willing to share my heart with