A week passed since Asuka was taken out of quarantine. The recovery was slow, but now she showed signs of improvement. She began to wake up, and was able to stay awoken for roughly an hour every time. Her treatment proceeded. Every day the medics came by and injected her with some sacks of blood. Even if no injury was seen on her body, she probably lost a lot of blood in the 9th angel fight. Whatever cure she was put under during the quarantine, it seemed to have worked well.

"So, now that idiot is disappeared"

Seeing the girl feeling better, Misato aligned her on NERV and Shinji situation.

"Look what happens when I leave him be"

Asuka watched in Rei's bed direction. The bed was now empty, as the girl was released some days before.

"It didn't work out as you thought huh?"

Said Asuka sighing.

"Well, we're working on retrieving his body, it seems like it's still somewhere inside the Unit-01. But as of now you should focus on recovering."

Misato wrapped up the discourse before leaving the room, headed to Ristuko whereabouts.

"I'm happy you're ok, don't do anything stupid while you're recovering, I need you"

Asuka blushed a little hearing Misato's words, but it only took some seconds in solitude for her to start thinking.

With the situation being what it is, I need to return fast.

She tried right away to stand, but fell right after, her legs still feeling numb from the long sleep. Some moments after, a girl entered the room and burst out laughing at the sight of Asuka trying to walk only to fall repeatedly.

"You're ok little princess?"

"Yes, you don't have to worry, whoever you are"

Replied Asuka, still trying to walk, and still falling.

"You should be careful, you will only end up worsening your situation"

"That's none of your business"

The girl approached her lending an hand.

"Come on, don't be stubborn and let me help you reaching back to your bed"

With the help of the new girl, the second Children successfully returned on her bed and then proceeded with saying her name to the other Children.

"You know, I heard the Third was stubborn, but I didn't know you were a masochist. I'm Mari Illustrious Makinami, it's a pleasure"

"I'm no masochist"

"Says the girl that seemed to enjoy hitting the floor"

"That was not intentional"

"Not every enjoyable activity is"

Who's this gal? Is she an idiot?

"Are you new around here? What's your role?"

"I'm the Fourth Children, I'm came here as a substitute for you…well, now I'm more of a substitute for Shinji I suppose"

"So you're the one who broke my Unit-02."

"Hey,that was a really desperate situation you know? I had to do it"

"Not that you helped much from what I heard"

While the two were talking, an alarm rang through all the headquarters. An Angel appeared somewhere.

"Sorry princess, I wanted to talk to you more, but I need to go."

Asuka watched Mari while she ran out of the room, heading for the Launch platform. Asuka wanted to go pilot the Eva herself, but she couldn't. Not only her body was not in shape to piloting the Evangelion, but she couldn't risk a stupid death, not while Misato and Rei needed her. After a life feeling useless outside the EVA, suddendly Asuka worried about something outside of the battlefield.

"Mari"

Asuka screamed from her bed

"Don't destroy my Unit-02 again"

Mari turned around, winked while striking a pose, and then went running towards the launch pad.

—

Rei heard the alarm message while she was eating lunch. It was late to have lunch, but Ritsuko kept her occupied for some long tests in the morning, to make sure she could board the EVA again if needed. The tests were positive, Rei still had the potential to pilot, and because of it, upon hearing the alarm, the girl abandoned her lunch and run to the launch pad.

She was the first to reach the launch pad, ready to start with even her plug suit on. Her Unit-00 was no more, but she was to be ready to launch inside of one of the available Units if needed. She was a reserve that day, but still, she arrived first to the hangar. Being alone in front of the 01, she had the time to think.

I cheated death thanks to you, but I'll hold out until you return

. The guilt devoured her heart, together with some other feelings, that she couldn't recognize.

"Don't worry Lilin, he's still in there"

Kaworu, ready to board his Unit-06, approached Rei, causing the girl to return to reality.

" Are you afraid of riding that same Unit?"

"I…don't know"

"Will you ride it if they order you to?"

"Yes"

"Why? Because you have to obey their orders, or because you want to make contact with Shinji?"

Rei didn't reply, staring at the floor, while the grey haired boy reached for the cockpit of Unit-06. Kaworu looked towards the girl and sighed.

"His happiness also depends on you. You will make the right choice I'm sure"

She didn't really understand Kaworu word, but felt like he was somewhat of a strange person.

"Why are you always talking like you know everything?"

" I don't know everything, just what I do."

"That's not an answer"

"It's the truth. It's just that you learn a lot living as long as I have"

Kaworu launched with his EVA, and while Misato reached for Rei through the hangar speakers.

"We will only launch Kaworu for now, Unit-06 is the strongest Evangelion according to the chief. We will dispatch you only if necessary"

In that moment Mari arrived to the hangar, ready to launch with Unit-02.

"Mari, you too are in stand-by here"

"Uh? Why? Are you only sending the moon boy on the mission? Are you serious?"

"Those are the chief orders"

"Bullshit"

Mari kicked the first thing she found near her. Unfortunately this thing being the steel box of the Medikit, that hurt her feet. Rei watched the girl arguing with no avail, she was behaving in a similiar way as Asuka, the first times she piloted at NERV. Being there with Mari, Rei felt a lot better than being with Kaworu. She cracked a smile toward Mari, that replied, smiling back.

"Well, it seems like we're here boring the sit out of ourselves today. You wanna talk of something?"

"Talk?"

"Yes, we can like, talk shit behind everyone's back. We're here alone in this hangar after all"

"I…I'm not really good at talking."

"It seems like something of a trend here. I will be surprised if I'll find someone who's outgoing here. But that's not an issue"

"How's not?"

"Well, it's not like being good at talking is really important in situation like this. We only have to waste some time"

Saying that, Mari started talking nonsense to Rei, that never answered. But Mari just didn't seem to stop. She kept going, forcing Rei to listen, and before she knew, Rei actually found herself listening to Mari's nonsense. The two girls were sitting there, in the middle of the hangar, alone. Not a good place to be in, but they seemed to be enjoying themselves.

—

"Blue diagram, that's an Angel confirmed."

"So the eleventh arrived"

In the battle room Misato started giving direction to the only pilot on the battlefield.

"Kaworu, how the situation?"

"The target didn't attack yet. He's standing near the mountains on the outskirts."

"That's strange. They usually are pretty aggressive, and they attack right here on the QG"

The angel was tall like an Eva, he had the core well exposed, but Kaworu's instruction were to be cautious and not open fire immediately. Unit-06 was near one of the power charging station in Neo-Tokyo, but he had a sniper rifle to reach the core of the Angel which was some kilometers away from him.

"Keep an eye on him, we have to figure out what's his trump card. It seems like he's inviting us to shoot him right away."

Kaworu watched through the sniper's sight and noticed something on the back of the Angel.

"It seems like…he's carrying something"

"Can you understand what is it that its carrying?"

"It seems like…like a flower?"

"A flower?"

In that moment the angel let out a screeching noise The flower he carried on it's back grew up of his shoulder and bloomed. It was a red rose, that grew directly on the angel body. The taint of the red was that of the blood. After that "flower" bloomed, a yellow light hit Unit-06. The Unit didn't register any physical damage, but the EVA fell to the ground.

"Kaworu? Kaworu did you hear us?"

Misato tried to reach for the pilot, with no avail.

"Connection with Unit-06 lost"

Shouted Maya

"What do you mean lost? Wasn't that supposed to be the best EVA Unit?"

"It seems like the light emitted by the angel it's infecting the pilot thoughts"

"Recover the Unit, fast"

"The Evangelion fell outside the recovery platform, we cannot recover it"

Misato turned and glanced in Gendo's direction.

"We need to send another pilot. I ask you to give us the permission to send Mari"

Gendo answered firmly

"Send Rei"

"What? Chief, Rei is not in the best condition to be sent"

"I said to send Rei. It will be alright, we cannot afford to have the Fourth making a mess of the city like last time."

"But, Rei cannot pilot Unit-02. She didn't met the right parameters to pilot that Unit"

"Use 01"

Misato had to restrain herself. Sending 01 could endanger Shinji's life. Gendo was not thinking about his own son at all, not only he didn't think of any way to focus research on saving him before the attack, he was now ordering to use the Unit which is keeping him prisoner.

"Don't you think of your own son?"

"That's an order general Katsuragi. Don't let the emotions carry you, we cannot risk to have a crazy pilot destroy everything in a rampage only to save another pilot"

First he sacrificed Asuka, now he was willing to risk Shinji. Misato couldn't bear to look at Gendo's face. But still, she had to accept those orders. Biting her lip she opened the communication with the hangar speakers and gave the order.

"Rei, board on Unit-01"

Misato bet her lips until they bled. She knew how cruel that order was. To have Rei pilot 01. To have Rei risking to kill Shinji. Risking to undo Shinji's sacrifice.

Rei got up, ignoring Mari's swearing against that order.

In her mind the thoughts that tormented her raised again. She feared that boearding the 01 could kill Shinji, but at the same time, she wanted to board on the Evangelion. She wanted to return in that cockpit, to synchronize with Unit-01, to synchronize with Shinji, hid inside that mecha.

Rei entered the cockpit, sunk into the LCL and activated Unit-01.

She could feel it.

Shinji was answering her.

She could pilot.

She could fight the eleventh.