Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 690: Fear of consequences.

Sunshine and Nine nodded eagerly, leaning in so close they were practically bumping heads. The anger hadn’t fully vanished, but it was being replaced by a spark of hope.

"You can do what I did. Use a fake identity and invisibility to obscure your presence. Nobody needs to know that you are down here. Besides, it is not a council job, so they won’t track you."

Vortan nodded. But in his mind, he thought that was not nearly enough.

"We’re listening," Sunshine said, her heart hammering against her ribs. "How do we fix the sky?"

He assumed immediately that Nine would be involved. Vortan fished out a device from one of the pockets on his robes which he pressed, and it presented a holographic map of Earth. It wasn’t like the grainy, flickering projections Wilbert had shown them in Salom, which looked like they were being run off an ancient radiator.

This was crisp, glowing in a deep cerulean blue, and it showed the rifts more clearly than anything Sunshine had ever seen.

"Whoa," Sunshine breathed, leaning in so close her nose almost touched a holographic mountain range. "I can see the individual swirls. It looks like... like the sky is totally damaged, can this even be repaired? How were you able to get clearer images?" Her eyes wide with a mix of awe and jealousy. "The ones we saw were not this clear."

Vortan offered a small, proud smirk. "Our organization has some of the best technology_ better than the satellites on Earth or any other tech that does the same purpose of looking at images of different galaxies. Your human satellites are like looking through a muddy window with one eye closed," Vortan muttered, his fingers dancing across the air as he zoomed in on a jagged tear over the Crust mountain. "These give a clear view of what is happening in real time." He was right, because they could see the watchers move in and out of some of the rifts.

The number was greater than Sunshine had imagined. Something that looked like a hose was releasing mist downwards. Mutant beasts were being flung out as if something was spitting them out.

Small sized watchers were leading them away, taking them in different directions.

Sunshine sneered. "It is a whole operation up there."

Vortan then pointed at the smaller rifts, "I have actually been doing some research on these rifts after I learned of them. The smaller ones are just lesions for now."

Sunshine grew curious. "What does that mean? Does that mean that the watchers are not able to get through just yet?"

Vortan nodded, his expression darkening. "For now, but the Watchers are doing everything in their power to widen. "Think of it like a snag in a sweater," he explained, trying to use a human metaphor. "They’re pulling at the loose thread. They can’t fit their heads through yet, but they’re screaming through the gaps. And the mist can get through them." He paused, his hand moving toward the center of the map. "But they are not the biggest problem."

He then pointed at two dark swirling vortexes, "These are the biggest problems that earth has." He told Sunshine, "They are too wide and anything can get through." They looked like angry, ink-black eyes staring back at them from the vacuum of space. "By anything, I mean anything. Another species, space ice, space rocks, trash from another world. Basically, the longer they stay open, the more opportunities for your world to become fair game to anything."

Sunshine nodded to show that she understood what he said clearly. The weight of it hit her stomach like a lead weight. "And you are going to help us repair them, right?" she asked, her voice hopeful, almost pleading.

Vortan quickly said, "No." Then, seeing the color drain from her face, he quickly said, "Yes." Then he paused, staring at the ceiling because they were looking at him with absolute confusion.

"Which one is it, orange guy?" Nine asked, tossing a piece of beef-jerky into his mouth. "No, yes, or which one is it?"

Vortan let out a short, deep breath, a sound like a collapsing bellows. "I should explain. I cannot personally fix them, nor can I work with you because I would be in deep trouble. The consequences from the repairmen organization are scarier than world-ending rifts and I am unwilling to risk my neck for you because we are not that close. I have a family legacy to continue. But I can teach you."

Sunshine shook her head, a bitter smile touching her lips. She could only blame herself for over-expecting too much from Vortan. He, too, had a lot to lose and could not expose himself to the higher-ups. She understood that, but it was a bitter pill to swallow. Still, a teacher was better than nothing.

Nine looked at the hologram, then at Vortan. "With all due respect supervisor, I knew that you would chicken out because you are one of them. Do not worry Sister Suni, I have your back."

Vortan looked at Nine, his gaze lingering with a strange intensity. "You should take that back you moron. Or are ready to face the consequences, if you do this repair unauthorized, you would be expelled and your family will never have a repairman ever again. You will cut off resources for your children." He said with certainty like it had happened before.

Nine shuddered and made a sound that showed that he was scared. "I cannot just abandon Sunshine in her most trying moment!"

"Who said anything about abandoning her? We are helping Nine, we are cheering and offering her all the support that she could need in the background." Vortan said

Nine looked at Sunshine sadly. He looked like he was trapped between helping her and not, his legs twitching as if he wanted to reach out and grab a holographic tool right then and there.

"Hey," Sunshine said, punching Nine lightly on the shoulder. "It’s okay. You don’t have to actively help. You can be my... what do they call it? My emotional support alien. You can pray to your gods and tell me I’m doing great until all this is over."

Nine managed a weak grin. "I’m very good at cheering. I have a very loud voice."

She turned back to Vortan, squaring her shoulders. "Alright, supervisor. Give it to me straight. How do I repair the sky and sew it back together?"

Vortan sighed and pointed at the two small rifts. "I can teach you how to repair these lesions first. They are the easiest compared to the rest. The process of repairing rifts is called storm binding. You better brace yourself."