Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 426: Zulu in hot soup.

Sunshine stepped back and grinned. "Nope. If you want Lisha back, you’re going to have to bring her back yourself. You need to stop aggravating people Zulu. You are an intelligent creature now, it is time you learn about morals, etiquette and what not."

Zulu gasped like she had been stabbed. "Learn!! I don’t want to learn anything Purple. I just want you to fulfill my demands in exchange for my services. This is what I demand."

"Demands?" Sunshine repeated. The shift in her aura was immediate. She snatched Zulu by the backside feathers, tugging really hard as if she was on a mission to rip them out.

Zulu shrieked so loudly a few trainees dropped their equipment.

"Abuse, animal abuse. Cruelty...." Zulu screeched and fought. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

"Now listen to me, you damn bird," Sunshine hissed. "I am the base commander. Not your errand girl. You cannot make anymore demands because I have satisfied enough of them. I have been patient with you...too patient. If you were human or any other senseless mutated beast, my hammer would have flattened you already. Now I have tried democratic means, and they seem to be failing. So, if you want terror_ trust me_ I can give you nightmares."

"Mrs. Quinn_ouch_my feathers!" Zulu cried out.

Sunshine yanked on one. Not hard enough to rip it or cause harm to the bird but enough to make Zulu tremble.

"I will chop your beak off so you cannot make demands anymore. Maybe roast you for lunch and Make a hat out of your feathers."

Zulu shrieked again, louder_ panicked, flapping uselessly.

Her cries became louder, escaping through the windows. One of the Watchers perched on the bubble near a high window saw everything. Its eyes glowed faintly. Then it flew off to inform Pink of what it had witnessed.

Sunshine released the trembling parrot. "No more games and stupidity. Nod if you understand."

Zulu nodded in panic and zipped away like a bullet, traumatized but alive.

Sunshine wondered for a moment whether she had been too harsh on Zulu, but the thought disappeared almost as quickly as it came because honestly, the parrot needed to be handled with an iron hand.

She had tried kindness, democracy, gentle talks, emotional appeals, bribery with snacks_ nothing had worked. Zulu pushed until she pushed back. So, no regrets.

Sunshine shook her head hard, clearing away the annoyance, and focused on the squads scattered across the field. There were new faces everywhere_ fresh recruits in the junior section from other bases, both ordinary humans and superhumans, all eager and slightly nervous.

The base had become slightly congested with all the new arrivals that wished to train with the seasoned squads. She planned to transfer some of the squads to Kalmoor in two weeks.

She blew into a whistle, the sound snapping through the arena like a whip. The squads stopped mid-chatter, mid-pushup, mid-stretch, and hurried closer, forming neat lines. Even the superhumans who thought they were too cool to hurry found themselves speed-walking when it came to Sunshine.

She welcomed the newcomers warmly, then asked the older squads to help them adjust_ "Don’t tease them and do not teach them any filthy habits." she added, staring directly at the two troublemakers in Squad Zero_ Siegfried and Phillip, who immediately straightened their backs like innocent schoolboys.

Then Major Elio stepped forward, stiff as a rod, voice booming through the field as he launched into his beloved ritual: rules, dos, don’ts, expectations, discipline, teamwork, and the very long lecture about not igniting anything indoors, directed at the pyrokinetics.

No dashing in and out of windows, to the aerokinetics. No smashing the floors, to the geokinetics. No freezing toes or colleagues for fun to cryokinetics. For every type of superpower, there was a warning. The warnings were based off of real events that had occurred.

Major Elio was enjoying himself as he bellowed the rules out, glaring at the trainees with piercing eyes as if he could see through their minds and anticipate their next moves.

Whoever met his eyes directly squirmed or grimaced.

When the assembly finally ended, Sunshine asked Squad Zero to remain behind. The elite squad stepped forward, exchanging quick glances_curious if they were going out on a mission.

Sunshine held out her hand. "Hand over your thermal bands. All of you."

There were no protests.

Squad Zero did not question her_ not when she used that tone. They unfastened their bands and handed them over.

Sunshine kept her expression neutral. "I’m doing a thermal band upgrade," she said casually. "Yours will be the first test subjects."

A few eyebrows twitched, but still, no one asked questions. Once she had all the bands, Sunshine dismissed them and pushed a stroller in which she had placed Castiel and White. All the while feeling their curious eyes on her back. She didn’t explain further.

She also did not expect Major Elio to follow her to the car. She climbed into the back seat but left the door open.

Major Elio filled the space, arching his brows. "I heard Earl Quinn had a black eye."

Sunshine laughed. "So?"

"So are you planning to pay the Lancaster’s a visit?" He asked her. "They crossed you once by taking money out of Castiel’s pocket. Now the son, Ramsey Lancaster fought with Earl. It is not like you to sit back and do nothing when your little chicks are hurt."

She pushed her hair back and continued to run her fingers through it. "Of course, it is not like me. But, I cannot pick a fight with a seven year old. Beating up his parents is a waste of my time. I ordered Hadrian to have the Lancasters moved to another town. He will decide where. Frankly I don’t care where they end up."

Elio exhaled. "I was really worried that you would punch the kid."

"I heard you are being blackmailed by your cat." She said to him. "What do you plan to do about that?"

He sneered. "That damn parrot is to blame. All my daughter wanted was a nice cute cat. We ended up with her royal highness the feline who only eats brand name tuna, mutated chicken and drinks box milk or boiled water, nothing straight from the tap. I am planning to throw it back into the animal shelter. I can’t afford it in the long run."

Sunshine laughed. "Just threaten to spank it. Anyway, it cannot talk so your secret is safe. And Zulu will not be telling anyone about you. If she does, I will send her somewhere far from here." She would put her in the living space. for a while.

Elio stepped back and Day climbed into the driver’s seat. Sunshine was driven straight home where she shut herself in her workshop and vanished into the space.

Her task was the prime core. She approached it with her hammer in hand. "Alright, let’s do this," she muttered, raising the hammer and striking the side of the stone with precise force.

The outer layer shattered nicely_ like breaking enchanted glass. Pieces scattered on the floor, she reached out and picked one fragment, small and shimmering, its surface swirling with strange inner light. She could feel energy tickling her fingertips.

"Perfect," she whispered.

The system’s voice chimed softly in her mind.

[Recommended size: 1.2 centimeters. Reshape required. Heat level: moderate.]

Sunshine nodded. "Okay, let me work."

The system had bought a sizing machine fit to adjust the prime core pieces.

Sunshine pressed on the machine, shaping it, flattening edges, bending energy lines until it formed a smooth, rounded insert no bigger than a small pearl.

"One down," she said. "Eleven to go." She picked another shard.

Piece by piece, she crafted small stones, cutting them like she was handling diamonds or precious gems. Unlike the royal family of Boulder Creek, she had no plans to use the stones in weapons.

It was enough to use the stone as it was.

For each band, she opened a small compartment with a soft click, slid the shimmering shard inside, and sealed it firmly that it could not be pried open without her special tools.

Once covered, one could not tell that there was a prime core inside.

The system hummed approvingly.

[Upgrade successful.]

Sunshine picked up the newly enhanced thermal bands and put them at one side of the table. These upgrades would push her squad forward, give them the edge they needed for the battles ahead.