Osiris's gaze swept over everyone, finally landing on the massive eva-titan—it still loyally guarded the entrance above.
"My 'partner' and I will remain here for the time being," he said calmly. "On one hand, to ensure no more issues arise with Lilith's seal; on the other, we need to deal with any potential counterattacks from SEELE and... any new Angels that might appear. The real battle may have only just begun."
His words caused the atmosphere, which had just relaxed, to tense up once again.
Indeed, SEELE controlled such vast plans and resources; they would never give up just because of one failure.
The Human Instrumentality Project was merely one way for them to achieve their goals; no one knew if they had a backup plan.
Furthermore, the attacks from the Angels were not over.
"I understand." Misato Katsuragi took a deep breath, her gaze turning sharp again. "We will regroup as quickly as possible. NERV—no, it should be called the 'Human Survival Front' now—needs your strength, Dr. Osiris."
Osiris nodded slightly.
A temporary alliance was tentatively reached in the depths of this forbidden land. The old order had been broken, and a new landscape was being painfully born amidst the smoke and ruins. The future was full of uncertainty, but at least the spark of hope had been reignited.
Asuka looked at the figure standing on the edge of the platform below—a figure that seemed incredibly small compared to the massive machine and the remains of a god, yet felt as though it could support the entire sky. Her heart was filled with complex emotions.
Trust, reliance, awe, and a sense of having found a true sense of belonging.
The crisis in Central Dogma was temporarily resolved, but the aftermath was only just beginning.
Misato Katsuragi and Ryoji Kaji quickly returned to the upper levels to begin stabilizing the situation at NERV Headquarters—or as she put it, the "WILLE" command center.
Ritsuko Akagi led the technology team; their primary task was to repair the magi system, clear the low-level instructions buried by SEELE, and attempt to regain control of some external facilities and communications.
At the same time, they also needed to evaluate the status of each EVA, especially the heavily damaged evangelion unit-01 and evangelion unit-02, as well as that eva-titan of unknown allegiance.
Inside the medical center, Shinji Ikari stood guard outside a deep life-support capsule, looking through the glass at the blue-haired girl inside, her body covered in tubes and her face as pale as paper—Rei Ayanami.
The purification process had saved her core spark of life, but her body and mind had suffered unimaginable trauma. Whether she would wake up, and whether she would still be the same "Rei Ayanami" if she did, were unknowns.
Shinji clenched his fists, his eyes filled with pain, self-reproach, and a faint glimmer of hope.
Mari Makinami's condition stabilized after emergency treatment.
She was unusually calm about the loss of evangelion unit-02 and the sudden change in the situation, even showing great interest in asking the medical staff about what was happening outside, especially regarding that Gray Titan and its pilot.
On the surface, the eva-titan stood like a silent guardian atop the ruins of the NERV Headquarters entrance. Though the terrifying Volcano Cannon on its back was silent, its cold red cyclopean eye constantly scanned the surroundings, deterring any potential threats.
Osiris did not leave the underground platform. He needed to monitor Lilith's status up close to ensure the stability of the seal, while also maintaining contact with his Main Body in the Warhammer World through the dimensional communicator, aggregating and analyzing the technical data and situational developments of this world.
Asuka, meanwhile, piloted the white, assisting in clearing dangerous areas around the headquarters and performing sentry duties.
Having held the lance of longinus and personally sealed Lilith seemed to have caused her to undergo a transformation.
Although she still felt fatigue and pressure, the confidence of an ace now held a heavy sense of responsibility and resolve.
The few days of brief respite were precious for the heavily damaged Tokyo-3 and NERV Headquarters, yet far from enough.
Inside the command center, temporarily renamed "WILLE," although signs of repair and busy figures were everywhere, the main systems had resumed basic operations, maintaining a tense yet orderly function.
Misato Katsuragi stood before the main screen, weary shadows under her eyes, but her gaze remained sharp.
The screen displayed a global situation map. After SEELE's conspiracy was partially exposed, it triggered intense upheaval and polarization in the international community.
"We've lost control over most overseas branches, especially the European and North American branches where SEELE's influence is deeply rooted," Ritsuko Akagi reported calmly, her fingers sliding quickly across a virtual keyboard. "They've not only cut off all official contact with us but have also issued joint statements condemning us for 'illegal rebellion' and claiming we've been controlled by an 'unknown terrorist technical entity,' no longer representing the legitimate will of NERV."
"An expected counterattack," Misato Katsuragi said in a low voice. "We can only effectively control the Japanese headquarters and a limited surrounding area for now. We must use this time to establish an independent defense system and intelligence network as quickly as possible."
Over the past few days, while cleaning the interior of the headquarters and repairing key facilities, they also tried to establish secret contacts with countries and factions that were either waiting and seeing or suspicious of SEELE, but progress was slow and the resistance was immense.
On the surface, the eva-titan stood like an eternal mountain of steel, silently positioned at a key node on the headquarters' perimeter; its very presence was the most powerful deterrent.
Osiris spent most of his time on the underground platform monitoring Lilith's seal, while also handling optimization requests for EVA technology and the "Cherubim" weapon systems via remote connection, forwarded by the headquarters' Technology Department (now effectively led by Ritsuko Akagi).
The white took on the tasks of patrolling and assisting engineering units with clearing ruins and rebuilding parts of the defensive fortifications.
Asuka seemed to have channeled some complex emotion into a drive for work, tirelessly busy while piloting unit-03.
However, this fragile peace was suddenly shattered on the evening of the fourth day.
A piercing air-raid siren rang out across the entire base without warning, instantly pushing the tension of the past few days to a climax.
"Multiple high-energy targets detected breaking through low Earth orbit! Quantity—nine units! Identification signal—confirmed as EVA units! Model identification—unknown design, energy signature highly similar to eva unit-00!" the operator's voice carried unbelievable shock.
On the main screen, nine green light points were breaking through the atmosphere at high speed like falling green meteors, aimed clearly at Tokyo-3.
As their altitude decreased, their shapes gradually became clear—they were nine EVAs, entirely unnatural dark green in color, almost exact replicas of eva unit-00!
Their movements were perfectly synchronized, with wing-like folding structures on their backs and inorganic red lights flashing in their eyes. There was no life reaction; they were controlled entirely by internal Puppet Systems.
SEELE's Mass-produced EVAs have finally bared their fangs!