Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 466: Hi mommy..

Sunshine’s little family was huddled together in their living room. Noise and excitement filled the air as they switched on more cellphones than they needed. The rest were doing that. Ariel was supervising the activity like a factory manager sweeping the floor for lazy workers.

And then his phone buzzed.

Ariel fumbled with it for a second as if he was looking at something alien before answering without hesitation.

A small voice came from the other end. "Hello, Ariel," said Ala.

The cellphones were abandoned on the floor and every adult eye focused on Ariel.

Sunshine stared at Hades, eyes wide in wonder. "How did she get his cell number?"

Hades stared right back at her. "How did she even know he had a phone?"

Ariel walked towards the dining room in search of privacy. Sunshine and Hades tiptoed, following him with determined zeal to eavesdrop. Like rats, they hid behind the closest couch to the dining area and poked their heads out.

"What are they saying?" Hades whispered to Sunshine.

She turned back a little and said, "Something about survival being the simplest equation. What three-year-old talks like that?"

Someone suddenly cleared their throat.

They looked back and saw their oldest son standing over them, eyebrows arched and disappointment marring his face.

Sunshine slapped the floor. "I got it." She said, too loudly.

Hades picked up what she was trying to do. Like her, he also slapped the floor. "I got another one."

Ariel rolled his eyes, turned and went off to the kitchen.

The two adults sunk onto the floor, exhaling pitifully. Hades patted his chest, "That was close."

Sunshine laughed. "That kid is very scary. Eleven going on one hundred."

"And Ala is no better." Hades pointed out. "What three year old talks about survival and equations in the same line? I would love to see the curriculum of the world you picked her from."

They could keep going on that subject but suddenly, Earl stomped over and stood in front of them. From the look on his face, he had come ready for a fight.

Sunshine put her hands on his waist and made him turn from side to side. "What is it baby?" she asked, with a simple smile. "Do you need a hug? Or do you have a medical question to ask me?"

He pointed at the cellphones which Tank was collecting and putting away carefully in a storage container. "I am old enough to have a phone. Tank won’t let me have one."

"You are seven." Hades replied, "Come back when you are as old as Ariel."

Earl stomped his foot. "It’s not fair! Ariel got his phone when he was my age. What makes us different? We are in an apocalypse, Mrs.Tuchi said every child should have a phone for emergency. And..." he raised a finger, "My birthday is next month. I will be very old."

Hades guffawed. "How old?"

"Eight." He blinked and paused. "Teen." he added.

Hades shook his head. "You just want one for games."

"And survival." Earl added. "You wouldn’t want your precious son to be out there, trapped in the belly of a crocodylus without a cellphone to call and ask for help."

Sunshine arched her brows. "If you are in the belly of a crocodylus, I am sure you would be dead. But you know what, we will discuss this on your birthday. It is late now, you should finish your homework and go to bed."

"Don’t hold your breath." Hades told him.

Earl crossed his arms. "I’m holding my breath anyway." He puffed his cheeks dramatically, turning red until Hades poked him in the ribs.

He stomped away, his little feet slapping the floor as hard as they could.

Hades looked at Sunshine and said, "I am beginning to think that restoration of cellphone networks was not the best idea. Imagine what parents with teenagers are going through now. It is worse than an apocalypse. Look at them..."

Ariel was smiling, still talking to Ala.

Earl was bribing Tank for a cellphone.

Castiel was playing with Hades’ phone giggling suspiciously.

"What is he up to?" Sunshine asked herself. Before she could go off to inspect, her phone buzzed. She answered, raising her brows at Hades because his phone was the one calling her. "Hello."

"Hi mommy!" Castiel squealed.

She stood up and looked at her youngest son. "Cass, sweetie, I am right here."

"I know." Castiel said cheerfully. "But now I can call and talk to you all the time."

He hung up, then immediately called again.

"Hi, Mommy!"

Sunshine groaned. "Hades, if we are being charged for calls, your son is going to bankrupt us."

Hades grinned. "When he is good, he is your son. When he misbehaves, he is my son."

Castiel giggled, calling again. "Hi Mommy!"

By the time the children were sent off to bed, all cellphones in the house had been confiscated temporarily.

While they prepared for bed Hades brought up something he had been wanting to talk to her about all day. "Honey, I asked Hunter to eavesdrop on our rich residents today and find out why Jon was holding a meeting to which we were not invited."

She replaced the heavy duvet with a light sheet that would keep them cool in the night. "We or you."

"One and the same." He replied. "Can you believe that they are already talking about monopolizing communication. They want to pay us money for the rights to the cables. In turn, they will charge people for every call, text and everything else. In Jin’s words, whoever owns the signal, owns the world."

Sunshine’s stomach tightened. "Of course they do. Even at the end of the world, greed survives."

Hades nodded grimly. "In a way, they are right because we cannot provide everything to the people for free. They will become entitled and make more demands. But on the other hand, the people are barely earning any income. If the billionaires are allowed to have their way, they will bleed them dry.

Do you know that they are already talking about sending agents into the rest of the city to buy up the land in all the places they suspect we will put poles for the cables."

Sunshine was shocked.

Hades’ eyes gleamed with dangerous excitement. "We need to act before they do. That is why I have been thinking...we could send people into Ferry Island. Maybe the small drones too. It will help us map out strategic areas and also learn the secrets of the town. Resources, vulnerabilities."

Sunshine stared at him.

He continued on with vigor, "Father Nicodemus has been providing aid at the wall in Westbrook town, trying to sniff out how people are crossing from Ferry Island to this side. He has already heard rumors...."

"Rumors?"

Hades nodded. "About a man named Vicente. He leads the survivors in Ferry Island. He leads a group of superhumans that call themselves mist walkers. He is immune to toxins.

There is a part of the town where mist never leaves. They go inside and find mutated edible plants, animals and supplies in buildings that are still standing over there.

They say he is dangerous. If you are not a part of his inner circle, it is advisable not to get within ten feet of him."

Sunshine yawned. A man named Vicente that could breathe poison and walk in the mist. Her head snapped up. Was he the same Vicente she knew? The father of mist walkers!

If he was the one, taking Ferry Island would be a big challenge. The man was not just a mist walker; he was the mist itself.