Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 419: The pet problem.

A voice in the back of Jon’s mind whispered that he should think twice, but he chose to ignore it. All that mattered was getting Sunshine and Hades to the party.

He pulled out a small white envelope with the seriousness of someone handing over top-secret documents. He extended it to her with both hands.

Sunshine blinked at it. "What’s this?"

Jon straightened his back. "A personal invitation. I’m hosting a base-warming party tonight. And I wanted to invite you personally."

Sunshine stared at him like he’d handed her a bill. She let out a dramatic, exhausted sigh_ the type that said she had already been through enough today and the idea of socializing was a horrible one she didn’t sign up for.

Jon’s eyebrows twitched. He had clearly expected excitement... or at least fake excitement. "It would be an honor," he added quickly, "to have the leaders of Fortress Four there."

Sunshine slowly opened her mouth to decline.

Jon could almost see the ’no’ forming on her lips. But then_ something clicked in her mind. Her expression shifted so fast that Jon nearly leaned back, weary of her. That voice returned again, warning him to think twice.

Sunshine suddenly brightened, eyes lighting up mischievously. "Actually... yes. My husband and I will be there."

Jon blinked. "Hades? He already declined."

Sunshine smiled sweetly like someone who had just solved a problem he didn’t know existed. "Nonsense. As his wife, it is my duty to drag him to parties he does not wish to attend. We’ll be there. We are friends so how can we miss our friends party?"

Jon nodded, confused but unable to question her, and Sunshine gave a polite wave before turning away. Her face instantly switched into an expression of pure calculation.

One that made Nimo shudder and feel sorry for Jon. She would have asked Sunshine what she was up to but Dwayne’s truck pulled into the parking. She turned and ran off to the decontamination area.

Meanwhile Jon walked off, clutching the envelope box like he had survived a negotiation he did not understand.

Sunshine looked back once, sly smile on her face and whispered to herself, "Perfect... this might actually work."

Whatever scheme she had just formed was clearly going to be entertaining or chaotic_ possibly both.

She was so drained she could feel the tiredness in her eyelashes, and all she wanted to do was to enter her house, collapse on the couch, and briefly pretend the apocalypse did not exist. She felt like someone who had worked two graveyard shifts back to back at a warehouse.

To avoid making small talk, she put earphones in her ears and made her way to the decontamination area. As soon as she left, Day drove her home. The kids weren’t back yet, the house was quiet, clean and peaceful.

But the moment she reached the living room, that dream packed its bags and flew out the window.

Drama was waiting for her on the couch, legs crossed, spoon in hand.

Lisha sat on the couch looking bereft like she had been personally betrayed by life itself. Three tins of ice cream lined the center table like soldiers_two dead, one dying. Next to them was a bottle of wine half of whose contents had already vanished into Lisha’s stomach.

"This can’t be good." Sunshine said.

Lisha stood immediately and looked at Sunshine, her glare sharp enough to slice metal.

For a second, Sunshine genuinely thought Lisha was going to pounce on her like a wounded lioness and rip her throat out. But instead she stayed put, arms folded, eyes blinking abnormally rapidly.

"How long are you planning to keep avoiding me Suni?" Lisha questioned, voice trembling with accusation.

Sunshine sighed sadly. "I am not avoiding you, I have simply been busy. You know this too Lisha,"

Lisha scoffed dramatically, the kind of scoff that belonged in a theater production. "You expect me to believe that especially after you chose Zulu over me to host the morning show."

Sunshine let out a heavy breath and tossed her bag onto the empty couch like she was surrendering to destiny. Sooner or later, this confrontation was bound to happen.

"I did not choose Zulu’s side, the damn parrot wouldn’t shut up and declared on its own that I was on its team." She smiled hopefully, "Come on Lisha, who believes a word Zulu says?"

Lisha’s brows rose. "You did about the fever wasps."

"Not the same thing." Sunshine quickly answered. "That was concerning the safety of the base. This drama on the other hand is different. I have bigger problems than whose voice makes the loudest, cheesiest jokes on the radio while I try to figure out how to keep all of us alive."

Lisha winced.

Sunshine continued, "It is undeniable that Zulu is a useful member of this base. Maybe even special."

Lisha snorted.

Sunshine brushed it off and added, "But we are family Lisha. Ten Zulus cannot change that fact. I will always be in your corner as long as you are always in mine. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

Now regarding the morning broadcast, If both of you want to host it, then fine_ keep the status quo. I recommend adding Father Nicodemus into the mix because he is the only human being alive capable of keeping that parrot from destroying everyone’s sanity."

Lisha made a "humph" sound.

"Another option is you let them do the morning show and you can take 9:00 am news or lunch time news. There are twenty four hours in a day, that 6:00 am show is not the only one we can have running." She turned Lisha’s shoulder. "Think big. Do not let Zulu lead you around by the nose. That parrot is a criminal. She keeps blackmailing me!" Sunshine finished, exasperated.

Lisha didn’t just laugh; she exploded, doubling over like someone had just told the funniest joke in history. "Of course she is!" she said between giggles. "It’s Zulu! She blackmails for sport! You are a victim like half of the people on this base."

Sunshine’s jaw dropped. "Half the base!"

Lisha shrugged. "Zulu can fly and she understands all the animals on the base. She knows the business of everyone on the base that owns a pet. She is running her own underground secret operation which mutated animals are taking advantage of to secure more treats and other benefits from their owners."

Sunshine stretched her hand out for ice cream because this was information she definitely needed to hear. Whether it was for gossip purposes or to keep the parrot alive.

"Haven’t you noticed that there are more cats prowling on rooftops and peeking into windows than usual?" Lisha asked her.

Sunshine frowned. She had not.

Lisha scoffed. "Well I am not surprised that you have not noticed. You are always busy. But it has been happening. Even Dash, Nimo’s dog, it is part of the animal spy network.

Owen told Dwayne that he saw Dash secretly following Mr. Fang to the Clementine house. It watched him go inside and peeked through the window. Five minutes later, it raced off to Zulu who paid a visit to Mrs. Fang. Not less than thirty minutes later, Mrs. Fang stormed into the Clementine house."

Sunshine’s eyes widened. Day had told her that Mr. Fang had been caught trying on women’s clothes and perfume. The Clementine’s were rich folks. Their housekeeper offered make up services for women on the base in her free time. For a fee of course.

Mr. Fang was a secret cross dresser and he had gone to her for those services.

"You should have seen it Suni." Lisha laughed. "Mrs. Fang was screaming and throwing things. The base police had to called. That girl...the housekeeper....Fran, she was fired by the Clementine’s.

Mr. Fang wants to divorce his wife because he thinks she was spying on him and humiliated him by revealing his secret."

Sunshine groaned.

"We have a real problem on our hands Suni." Lisha said between giggles.