Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 601: Howards consequences.

Sunshine did not have a firm response to that. They needed to see where the woman was mentally and then they could proceed from there.

Nimo’s playful demeanor vanished, replaced by a look of genuine worry. "And how is she? Is she... you know.... are the hallucinations gone?"

Hades shook his head, interrupting the thought. "She’s back to her normal self. The doctors say she doesn’t remember a thing about the incident. It’s like a blank spot in her memory. Dr. Zhu wants to scan her brain, but Kingsbridge does not have the right equipment. They want to transfer her to Westbrook, but I don’t want her here just yet."

"What are you not telling us." Sunshine asked, she could read the unease on his features. If he was keeping her away from Westbrook, he did not want her near the mountain.

Hades let out a small sigh. "You know me so well. I believe that the watchers made her do it."

"I am not surprised," Sunshine said. "We knew that there is a possibility of this happening more and more often. It allies with what Poncho narrated to us. I have been too busy with everything that is going on to find a solution to this problem."

Nimo clicked her tongue. "You might want to move it up on your priority list. We can’t have Watchers going around hypnotizing people to create havoc in the base."

Sunshine had already put the system on the task but so far, it had not yet found the best solution. She took a long sip of her soda, the ice rattling against the plastic. "And what about the Kingsbridge? How is it holding up after the attack?"

Hades’ lips curled into a slow, triumphant smile_ the look of a man who had just won a very high-stakes game of poker. "Vicente has accepted the terms. He’s joining Fortress Four officially as one of our commanders."

Sunshine’s eyes widened, and she let out a quiet cheer. "No way! You actually got him to fold? I thought we would have to fight it out for dominance. You have saved us a lot of plotting time!"

"Hell yes!" Nimo chimed in, punching the air with her non-clawed hand. Then she paused, her eyes narrowing. "Wait, does Vicente actually understand what that means? Does he get that he’s basically handed over his authority? He’s a shark, Hades. Sharks don’t usually enjoy being in a goldfish bowl, they will eat the goldfish."

Hades nodded firmly. "He understands perfectly. He didn’t have much of a choice because Sunshine’s ploy to make him the most hated man in Ferry Island worked. He even warned me about the rebels in the town and admitted that the heat was getting to be too much for him to handle alone. He did not have any kind words left to say about the residents of the town. He’s trading his crown for a safety net."

Sunshine chuckled, nearly choking on her drink. "Well, I certainly made sure the ’heat’ was high enough! I hope you emphasized to him that there is no more sharing of Kingsbridge. Even that toxic river belongs to us now."

"Not all of it though, remember that part of Babel city is still in the hands of the Walden’s. We have to take it from them in order to have all of the city in our hands. But as regards to Vicente I was quite clear." Hades said firmly. "I promised him a seat on the committee. It keeps his ego intact and he will walk the mist for us."

"Oh, you deserve a hug and a thousand kisses," Sunshine said, looking at him with pride. "You did good, babe. Real good." She settled back into her chair, her mind ticking through the checklist of problems they’d left behind. "And what about the smuggling? Is that mess finally cleaned up?"

Hades’ expression turned cold. "Yes, but my question is where was Howard selling these things? The buyers were not in the base. Some were in Ferry Island and others were in Kingsbridge but there are more we have not yet found. Nevertheless, Sheldon’s mountain of money cannot save him this time.

But he chose to leave the base rather than be confined to prison. Carson took it personal. He escorted Howard to the edge of the valley himself."

"He must have enjoyed pushing him into the wild." Nimo asked, impressed.

"Oh, I wanted to throw him to the Shardlings." Hades said, disappointment clear in his voice. "Any way, Howard left with whatever he could carry and the supplies he claimed were his. He went out screaming, cursing Sheldon and his mother. He officially declared he had cut them off as family. I don’t think he realized that, without them, he’s just another scavenger in the dirt. His mother probably resents us now." 𝒻𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘸ℯ𝒷𝘯𝘰𝑣ℯ𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝘮

Both women rolled their eyes simultaneously. They knew the rules and broke them. Whose fault was it now that they were being visited by the consequences of their actions? Moreover, Howard had volunteered to leave the fortress, nobody forced him to do so. If he died outside, it was on him.

"Well, this is good, people have been playing around with the rules because nobody has been thrown out of the base for a while," Nimo muttered, reaching for the last fry. "They will think twice before engaging in illegal acts."

The room settled into a comfortable, exhausted hum. For a while, nobody said anything. They ate the fruits that Sunshine had brought from Glacis.

Finally, Hades stood up, stretching his back until it popped. "One more thing, Suni. Arwin and his people specifically asked to see you before they head out back to the drift lands."

Sunshine leaned her head back and let out a long, dramatic groan of exhaustion. "Tomorrow, maybe. Right now, my brain is at 1% battery, and my soul is at zero. I just want to sleep for a thousand years without a single anything disturbing me."

"Fair enough," Hades said, offering his hand to her. "Let’s go home and put you in bed."

Sunshine stood up, her joints protesting the movement. She turned to the bed, leaning over to give Nimo a careful, sisterly peck on the cheek. "Take it easy with the claws, Miss Bunny. Don’t make me have to explain to Ariel why the bed is in pieces."

"No promises!" Nimo chirped, waving her metallic nails in the air. "Get some sleep, Suni. You look like a zombie on a bad day."

"Love you too, Neems," Sunshine laughed.

She stepped toward Hades, and he reflexively slid his arm around her waist, pulling her close. They walked out of the room hand-in-hand, their footsteps echoing softly in the quiet hall. Behind them, Nimo went back to scrolling through her phone. There was more gossip to catch on, like the identity of this Ice hood character Zulu had mentioned.

How was it possible that the information center had no idea who he was?

Nimo sent a text to a chat that had over a dozen nurses and thirty other service workers. ’It has to be a man. Robin hood was a man. I say we kidnap Zulu and make her talk.’