On the day of the test, the Matsushiro Proving Ground was shrouded in a routine, solemn atmosphere.
Asuka arrived alone, piloting the transport plane, and completed the various preparations according to procedure. Wearing her familiar plugsuit and walking with her usual confidence, she settled into the entry plug of EVA Unit-03.
As the hatch closed and the LCL liquid slowly filled the cockpit, she adjusted her breathing, preparing to execute what seemed like a simple weapon test mission. Thinking about how she had done a "small favor" for Rei Ayanami and that idiot Shinji, a faint, almost imperceptible smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.
However, fate's dramatic shifts often occur during the most ordinary moments.
The command to activate Unit-03 was issued, and the various systems of the machine came online in sequence. But the moment the power core reached the predetermined output threshold, an anomaly suddenly erupted!
Before Asuka could react inside the cockpit, a violent and alien flood of consciousness surged like a broken dam, instantaneously crushing Unit-03's original control systems and violently battering her psyche.
"Ugh—!" Asuka let out a muffled groan of pain, attempting to regain control, but her commands were like stones sinking into a vast ocean.
On the external observation screens, Unit-03's posture became erratic. Its joints emitted unnatural twisting sounds, and beneath the originally smooth armor, something foreign seemed to be writhing and expanding.
Immediately after, Unit-03's head jerked upward, letting out a sharp, blasphemous shriek that was neither human nor EVA!
The Ninth Angel had successfully seized control of EVA Unit-03.
"Unit-03 is out of control! Signal identified as—Angel Mode!" The proving ground's sirens wailed piercingly. Observation data instantly turned into gibberish, and the peaceful testing site transformed into a whirlpool of chaos in an instant.
Inside the NERV headquarters command center, the relaxed atmosphere from moments ago froze instantly.
Misato Katsuragi slammed her fist onto the console, her face ashen. "Terminate the test immediately! Force-eject the entry plug!"
"It's no use! The ejection system has failed! Unit-03—no, the Angel—it has cut off all external commands!" the operator's voice carried a note of despair.
"Deploy Unit-00!" Misato ordered immediately.
"Unit-00 is still under repair and cannot be activated!" the technician's reply shattered the last shred of hope.
The only remaining option was Unit-01.
At that moment, Shinji Ikari, who had been looking forward to a long-awaited meeting with his father, was intercepted by an emergency communication. He was ordered to head to the nearest underground entrance immediately and prepare to sortie in Unit-01.
"Another Angel—of all days—" Shinji grit his teeth, an indescribable rage burning in his heart. This monster had ruined the opportunity he had finally gathered the courage to seek—a chance to communicate with his father.
Carrying this redirected anger, he quickly entered Unit-01 and was launched to the surface.
However, when he arrived at the Matsushiro Proving Ground and saw the enemy's appearance, and received the combat orders through the communication channel, all his anger and resentment were replaced by a bone-chilling cold.
"The... the target is... Unit-03?" He repeated the command in disbelief. "But—Asuka is inside!"
Misato Katsuragi's heavy and urgent voice came through: "Shinji! Unit-03 has been completely parasitized and controlled by the Ninth Angel! Asuka cannot escape! Your mission is—to destroy Unit-03 and eliminate the Angel!"
Destroy Unit-03—eliminate the An—
This meant he would have to personally attack, and perhaps even... kill Asuka?
Shinji's mind went blank.
The Asuka who always shouted at him, but would silently push a footstool toward him in the repair bay; the Asuka who awkwardly apologized to him after they cleaned the water tank together; the Asuka who seemed tough but was actually as lonely as he was—
Right now, she was trapped inside that machine that was rampaging and letting out inhuman roars.
"No... I can't do it..." Shinji's voice trembled, and Unit-01 involuntarily took a step back under his control. "I can't—against Asuka—attack Asuka—"
Unit-01 stood frozen on the battlefield. Facing the approaching Unit-03 (the Ninth Angel), which was beginning to undergo an even more terrifying biological mutation, it took no combat stance, looking like a giant, silent target.
Shinji Ikari's inner self was being torn apart by fear, confusion, and a massive emotional impact, teetering on the edge of collapse.
Inside the command center, Misato Katsuragi's anxious shouts and Ritsuko Akagi's calm but cold situational analysis could not penetrate the despair-shrouded cockpit.
At this moment, within the NERV command center—now tense and noisy due to the emergency—Osiris stood at his technical consultant observation post, calmly watching the chaos on the main screen.
He saw Shinji's resistance and Unit-01's stagnation; he saw the rising abnormal bio-signals and destructive behavior of the Angelized Unit-03; and he felt the brief decision-making lag and confusion as the command hierarchy was completely consumed by the battlefield.
"Target confirmed active, bio-signal fusion mode matches expectations. Pilot (Asuka) vital signs are weak but persistent; survival confirmed. Pilot of Unit-01 exhibiting expected mental resistance; combat effectiveness zero." He spoke into a small portable recording device, using almost coldly precise language to record his preliminary observations, as if he were watching a data stream anomaly rather than a life-or-death crisis.
However, when Misato's anxious cries and Ritsuko's technical workarounds failed to awaken Shinji's will to fight, Osiris' eyes narrowed slightly.
He knew he could no longer wait for standard procedures.
Just as Shinji's despair was about to completely drown the communication channel and Unit-01 was clumsily dodging the Angelized Unit-03's attacks in a series of narrow escapes, Osiris stepped forward. He bypassed the operator in front of him and cut directly into the frontline combat communication channel.
His voice was clear and steady, carrying an unquestionable authority that instantly silenced the noise in the command center: "Shinji! Listen! Use the 'Cherubim-I' grenade!"
His words were like a sword, cutting through the chaos in Shinji's consciousness. "Remember its principle! It is a weapon specifically formulated for Angel biological tissue. Its effect is to specifically decompose the Angel without causing fatal damage to the EVA's mechanical structure! Use it to peel away the Angel and save Asuka!"
This sudden, direct command that bypassed the command hierarchy made the command center fall silent for a heartbeat.
Several officials responsible for communication coordination instinctively looked at Misato and Ritsuko, but the two core leaders were staring intently at the screen and did not immediately speak to stop him.
As the chief designer of the weapon system, Osiris providing a key technical explanation at this time, though against protocol, possessed an undeniable logic and urgency.
On the battlefield, inside the entry plug, Shinji—who was nearly swallowed by guilt and fear—felt as if he had grabbed the only life-saving straw in an endless darkness.
He heard Dr. Osiris' words clearly.
"—Can save Asuka?" That keyword was like a bright light, instantly piercing the gloom of his heart.
"Doctor—is what you're saying true? Can I really—save Asuka?" Shinji's voice trembled, but a faint light of hope was rekindled.
"Trust your weapon, Shinji! And trust that Asuka is still holding on!" Osiris' voice remained steady but carried an encouraging strength.
"I... I understand!" Shinji jerked his head up, his eyes refocusing.
Unit-01 seemed to sense the change in its pilot's will; its previously sluggish movements suddenly became sharp. It no longer just dodged; it parried a heavy blow from the Angelized Unit-03, and its other hand reached quickly for the "Cherubim-I" grenade hanging on its waist pylon.
Though the hope was slim and based on a theory not yet proven in actual combat, it allowed the boy on the verge of collapse to grip the control levers tightly once more.
The battle entered a new phase.
And Osiris, after issuing that critical command, took a step back. His gaze became deep once more as he continued his calm observation and recording, as if that unconventional intervention had never happened.
But he knew he had already nudged the course of events onto the track of another possibility.