Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 559: Ala’s revelations.

Sunshine let out a long, heavy sigh. The tension in her shoulders dropped just an inch. As long as the girl kept talking, they would put the pieces together, one at a time. She nodded, keeping her eyes on the girl. "Okay. Maybe you don’t know everything, it is understandable. It would be unbelievable if adults confided in a child anyway. Tell me about the other weapons, the ones you’ve been keeping secret and sharing with your little friends." She gently flicked the girl on the forehead. "Which was illegal by the way."

Ala shuddered. She looked like she was about to cry again. "I didn’t want to keep them secret forever. But my grandfather told me to hide them... he told me not to tell anyone. Ever."

Sunshine’s eyebrows shot up. "You told the ’Kid Squad’ though. We all saw you guys use them in the forest. You could have told me about them, you know that I can be trusted."

Ala nodded sheepishly. "Those are my friends, they would never harm me. Adults... adults always want to take things away or use them for what they claim to be the greater good. But they always become too greedy, my grandfather did. He just kept making more and more even though my mother told him to stop. In the end, he destroyed our home."

Leah moved closer, gently brushing a stray hair out of Ala’s face. "Sweetheart, no one is going to harm you here. We aren’t those people from where you come from. I cannot promise you that your weapons will never be misused, but for now, those of us here, all we want to do is protect our home. You can tell us what you know. You do trust Aunt Suni, don’t you?" She rubbed her thumb against a dry tear. "Why didn’t you tell me?"

The girl whimpered, a small, pathetic sound. "I thought... I thought if you found out what I really had, you would stop loving me. That you would see me as a dangerous thing and send me away to be someone else’s problem."

The silence that followed was heavy, but different this time. It wasn’t the silence of a threat; it was the silence of a realization; this was just a frightened little girl.

"Ala," Leah said, her voice thick with emotion. "There is nothing that could make me stop loving you. You’re stuck with me and dad for life. From now on, all teleportation requests off the base have to be routed through me young lady. And all the weapons must pass through my hands before you distribute them. Its the only way I can keep you safe."

Ala nodded.

Sunshine looked at the orange device, then back at the girl. Her gaze softened, just a fraction. "And for the record? I’m the one who brought you here. I promised to keep you safe and as long as you are not a threat_ this is your home. Just do not give weapons to your friends or teleport them outside without at least giving me a phone call. If you cannot abide by that rule, I cannot allow you near my boys. Got it."

Ala nodded. "I am sorry."

Sunshine sighed. She had been waiting for that apology for a long while.

"I used the weapons before, they are not dangerous for a child to carry." Ala mumbled. "They are just level one weapons. On Boulder Creek, a child of above average intelligence can wield a weapon for personal security."

"This is not Boulder Creek, Ala." Hades muttered, reaching for a cookie.

Ala replied firmly, "But the times are dangerous. All intelligent children should have a weapon for protection. It makes sense. You don’t have to agree with me, but you should consider it."

The adults remained quiet, pondering on the words.

The air in the room felt lighter.

"You are a child, these matters should not be yours to worry about." Hades finally said. "Next time you have such thoughts, come to us. Don’t make decisions on your own."

Ala sat on the edge of the oversized armchair, her boots dangling inches from the floor, looking far too small for the weight of the secrets she was dropping. Everyone wondered how a child that age was so intelligent and calculative.

Ala took a shaky breath, her small chest heaving as she wiped the last of the salt-streaked tears from her cheeks. She looked at the Quinns_ the big, scary, powerful leaders of the base_ and realized they weren’t looking at her like a weapon. They were looking at her like a kid who had just dropped her ice cream.

"I like it here," Ala whispered, her voice cracking. "I want fortress four to stay. I don’t want to be the cause of it’s destruction or something like that."

Sunshine’s heart did a painful little somersault. She reached out, taking Ala’s tiny hand in hers and patting it gently. "We want that too, sweetie. But to keep it safe, we need every advantage we can get our hands on. You wouldn’t mind showing me those weapons, would you?"

Ala nodded solemnly. She stood up, reached into her pocket dimension and started pulling things out like a magician at a birthday party.

Clang!

Thud!

Whir!

First came the gloves, then sleek, terrifying guns, and a handful of jagged black devices that had stopped the humming of the mutants in the forest. Finally, she pulled out a long, purple, wand-like object. It pulsed with a faint, violet light that made the hair on Sunshine’s arms stand up.

"This doom wand is a bit unsettling at first sight," Ala said, holding the purple wand. "You just tap the top, and it tears down whole armies with a force that rips away blood and flesh. But the activator doesn’t survive the effect."

Leah leaned back, her eyes wide. "That’s... that would be a suicide mission for whoever activates it."

"But it works....we once defeated the Noxians with it." Ala said, with pride.

Sunshine’s brows almost flew off her face. "You know about the Noxians?"

Ala nodded. "They came for the prime core but grandfather would not give it up, so they declared war on us. Many people came for the core."

"Not surprised." Sunshine said, she took the doom ward. "Any other weapons?"

"The more dangerous ones," Ala added, her face clouding over. "When they are used... it hurts. I feel pain."

The room went deathly silent. Hades and Leah exchanged a glance that was thick with uncomfortable realization.

"What do you mean, you feel pain?" Leah asked, her voice dropping to a protective skin-crawl. "Like a sting? Or like you’ve been hit?"

Ala looked down at her shoes. "I can’t really explain it. But when the weapons with the ’Prime Core’ are used, I feel it inside. Like... like we’re plugged into the same outlet. We’re connected."

Sunshine felt a chill. "How is that even possible?"

"What’s a Prime Core?" Leah asked, looking at Sunshine for answers.

Sunshine let out a long, exhausted sigh, rubbing her temples. "It’s a long story, Leah." She looked back at Ala. "When did this start, honey? The feeling?"

"After the needles," Ala said simply. "After they started injecting the bluish liquid in me. Grandfather did it. He said it would make me the strongest ruler of Boulder Creek when my time came. No one else knew. Just him."