Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 578: Nothing a good fight won’t fix.

Blue sparks danced across Nine’s shell. His legs kicked out wildly, his entire body jerking as the current fried his nerves. Even then, Nine was desperate. He swung all six of his limbs, punching at Sunshine, but she held on like a leper, refusing to let him go.

They slid across the floor, crashing against walls of ice from side to side. And yet, none cared about the pain.

In a final, panicked move, Nine’s hand found a heavy industrial wrench on the floor. He swung it with everything he had, aiming for Sunshine’s head. She ducked just in time_ the metal tool whistled over her hair and smashed into the side of the massive glass tank they were supposed to be fixing.

TING!

The sound was small, but it felt louder than a bomb. What it did was bring them back to the senses and both of them froze.

Sunshine let go of his stomach. Nine fell back_ twisting as he got further away from Sunshine. She rushed to the damaged box to inspect the extent of the damage, while hoping it was not irreparable or else, they were both screwed. The friendship she had wiggled her way onto with the princess would end if the music box was ruined.

A tiny, spider-web crack had formed on the music box glass. Then, with a slow, terrifying creak, the crack began to grow, spreading like cracks in ice just before it pulled an unlucky victim under.

"Oh, no," Nine muffled through his ice-gag, his eyes going wide. "We are dead meat! The Princess is going to kill us. Do you know what Glacians do to people that cross them? They string you up and those little mermaids and mermen bite you for practice! We will be practicing dummies for years--till death." His mandibles clicked furiously, "this is bad, very bad. We are so screwed, double screwed, triple."

Sunshine’s fury evaporated, replaced by worry. "Well don’t just sit there and panic, hurry up and fix this with me you stupid bug."

Nine hurried to stand beside her as assess the damage. Tiny spiderwebs of fractures had crawled across the glass, at any moment, it was going to shatter.

"Fuck!" Sunshine cursed.

Panic hit Nine like a physical blow. He looked at the crack, then at Sunshine, his bug-like eyes wide and watery. He was picturing the rest of his short life under the sea. The council would not save them this time. Even if they negotiated their release, they would be fired as repairmen.

If the council failed, they were doomed. Maybe Sunshine would be luckier because the Princess had taken a liking to her but not him. She viewed him as just another creature, one in the millions of insectoids in the universe. "Sunshine," he whispered, his voice trembling. His usual arrogance was completely gone. "What do I do? If this breaks, I’m dead. They’ll blame me. Even if you started the fight, they will pin this on me. I will apologize right now, if you can save me. I should not have mocked your dead relatives, that was a low blow. Save me, please."

Sunshine looked at him. She saw the way his bent antennas twitched in genuine terror. Her anger died out, replaced by a strange prickle of guilt. She had been the one that started the fight. "Calm down," she said, her voice steady as she reached into the space. she pulled out a specialized injection tube. "Look at me. This is silica resin. I’m going to stitch the glass with ice to hold the pressure. As soon as I finish a section, you apply the resin over it. It’ll bond instantly."

Nine stared at the small tube, his chest heaving. "The glass... it’ll be, okay?"

"It will be as good as new," Sunshine promised. She saw him hesitate and added firmly, "Trust me, Nine. We can do this. We are both going home after this job is done, I have a husband and kids waiting for me. I have to go back. We have just one chance so don’t screw it up."

Nine swallowed hard and nodded. For the first time, he didn’t have a witty comeback. He just grabbed the resin and waited for her signal.

They moved like a single machine. Sunshine’s fingers glowed with a soft blue light as she traced the cracks, freezing the glass fractures to stop them from spreading. Right behind her, Nine followed with the resin, his many legs working with surprising precision to seal the wound. There was no talking, no insults, and no senseless questions.

Within minutes, the crack was gone. The glass was smooth and clear again.

Both of them collapsed onto the floor, their backs against the cool floor. They were covered in sweat and dust, breathing hard.

"It actually worked," Nine panted, staring at the tank. "I thought we were going to be fed to baby Glacians"

"It worked because I’m a good repairman and I think out of the box." Sunshine answered, wiping her forehead. She gave him a small, tired smirk. "Maybe if you tried that sometimes instead of following old manuals, you would learn something new."

Nine didn’t argue this time. He just let out a pained groan and leaned his head back. One of his antennas was hanging at a weird, painful-looking angle. "Ow... Sunshine? My body aches all over. Could you... please fix my antenna? It feels like it’s in my eye."

Sunshine sighed, but it was a kind sigh. She scooted over. "Fine. Hold still. I was the one who dislocated it, anyway." She reached out and gently popped the joint back into place.

Nine shivered as the pain eased. "Thanks," he muttered. He looked at her and shook his head. "Remind me to never, ever pick a war with you again. You’re terrifying when you’re moody."

Sunshine laughed lightly_ a real, genuine sound. "Deal. Just keep your mouth shut about my personal life, and we’ll get along fine."

"My stomach is making more noise than that tank did," Nine said, rubbing his abdomen where she had shocked him. "I’m starving."

"So am I," Sunshine agreed, pushing herself up. "We need to eat and decide on who is fixing what part in order to finish this job quickly."

She waved her hand toward the massive ice wall she had built. Instead of letting it melt and make a mess, she moved it to the living section of the space where it could melt and provide extra water in the garden.

As they walked toward the cafeteria together, Nine was already starting to talk again_ but this time, it was just about which sandwich had the best flavor under the sea. "I may not like the underwater world, but they have come far with their food menu. Come to think of it, it changed in the last century or so. Did your grandfather have something to do with that?

It could explain the king’s physique. I have never seen a Glacis king so out of shape just like I have never seen a fat insectoid. If you find one, just kill it to save the rest of my race from embarrassment.

Speaking of family, have I ever told you that I too happen to be married? The lady recently laid one hundred nine eggs. We are so excited. Do you want to see pictures?"

Sunshine sighed. Nine talked a lot. Maybe he needed another punch to the mouth.