Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again.-Chapter 699: Middle finger.

Sunshine hurried out, her mind racing. She went straight to the cold storage units, snapping photos of the massive piles of gorilla meat Hades had brought back. She sent them to Bjorn, and her other contacts in the intergalactic trade circles.

Within seconds, the system alerted her of an incoming call. It was Bjorn.

Sunshine ducked into a private room and swiped ’accept.’

"Sunlight!" Bjorn’s voice boomed before the video even cleared. "Forget the pleasantries! Can you get that meat to me immediately? I have clients who are willing to trade their firstborns for high-protein mutant steak and the skins too!"

"I’ve got a mountain of it." She replied.

"Thank the stars," Bjorn sighed. "I’ve been in a pickle, as you say. Mutant meat scarcity is driving prices through the roof. I’ll give you a premium rate, plus a bonus on the next batch of weapons that you purchase."

"Deal. Or better yet, instead of that bonus you could do something else," Sunshine said, her tone shifting. "I need repairmen. Not just anyone_ I need Grand Master level, the kind that do ’off-the-books’ work on the black market. I don’t care what it costs."

Bjorn paused, her digital avatar blinking. "Grand Masters? From the black market? Sunlight, that’s... that’s a strange request even for you. Why do you need people who can fix a star-destroyer in their sleep?"

"I have a job for them," Sunshine said simply. "A big one. Can you find them?"

"I’ll look around," Bjorn said, his curiosity clearly piqued. "But even if I do, a repairman at grandmaster level being on a black market is not a good thing, I will not advise you to use them. They will charge you a fee that will drain all your resources."

"Contact me if you find one.... or more than one." Sunshine answered, she had already thought through this. She was putting her eggs in every basket available, as long as it helped.

The call ended and she answered another one, then another, and another. Her trading circle was on fire, everyone was talking about the skins of the gorillas. Whatever they were used for, it had to be special.

Sunshine stood in the quiet room for a moment, then communicated to the system. "System, send sixty percent of the meat to Bjorn. 25% to the other traders, in equal parts and 15% to the Glacian King, add all the fruits that he likes. We’re going to need connections from everyone I know for what’s coming."

[Orders confirmed, Host. Meat transit in progress.]

As she left the cold storage units, the transition from the freezing lockers to the cool warm air felt good, she smiled at some kids that run past her, chasing another that was trying out a pair of anti-gravity boots from Ala. The kid was leaping further and higher than a frog.

She hadn’t even made it ten paces when a shadow loomed over her. It was Commander Grayson. He looked as stiff and formal as a man who had been ironed into his fortress four soldier uniform.

"Mrs. Quinn," he said, his voice dropping into that serious "mission mode" register. "The Drift lands mission is a go. We’re wheels up in about two hours."

Sunshine stopped, squinting against the glare of the sun. "What’s the plan, Grayson? Give me the strategy."

"Simple and precise," Grayson replied, crossing his arms. "We’re taking two aircrafts. Paula’s going to be in the main bird, acting as the primary transport. Then we’ve got the Dragonfly_ it’ll stay completely invisible, hovering high to provide oversight. I’m also deploying an invisible ground team as backup. If things get bad, the enemy won’t even see what hit them."

Sunshine leaned back, considering the plan. It was not bad and Grayson knew his business. "Invisible backup and a ghost in the sky. I like it. You have the green light. Just bring all our people back safely. Take Nimo and her acid grenades. Dropping them from the sky will stop any enemies from following you to the aircrafts."

Grayson gave a sharp nod and turned to head toward the hangars. He took about three steps before he stopped dead. He hesitated, then pivoted back toward her, looking a bit awkward.

"Something else?" Sunshine asked.

"The grain," Grayson said, scratching the side of his neck. "The silos in the Drift lands are packed. If this is a rescue mission... are we supposed to haul the grain back, too? It’s a lot of weight to add to the cargo."

Sunshine let out a long, dramatic sigh. She looked around at the massive walls of Fortress Four. Everywhere she turned, there were stacks of crates and bulging supply bags. "We have so much food here and we do not know what situation you are going to find." She gave a final, dismissive wave. "Leave it for the dust. Just get our people and get out. It’s not worth the fuel or the trouble."

The Commander looked visibly relieved. "Understood. Leaving it behind." He gave a quick salute and marched off.

Sunshine motioned at Day to bring the car, her eyes moved up towards the bubble. She saw the Pink Watcher. The giant bird was staring at her with wide, unblinking eyes, looking genuinely offended_ like Sunshine had personally insulted its ancestors.

"What are you looking at?" Sunshine muttered. The bird narrowed its eyes, looking even angrier.

On a whim, Sunshine raised her hand and flipped the bird the middle finger.

The Pink Watcher didn’t fly away. It didn’t squawk. Instead, the giant bird stood up a little taller. With slow, deliberate precision, it lifted a single long feather from the middle of its wing and held it straight up in the air. It looked like a giant middle finger!

Sunshine’s jaw hit her chest. "No way," she whispered. "You did not just do that."

The bird gave a sharp, mocking chirp, shook its feathers, and looked away with total indifference. 𝑓𝑟𝑒𝘦𝓌𝑒𝑏𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝘭.𝒸𝘰𝑚

Sunshine let out a sharp scoff of disbelief. "What a cunt," she muttered. A second later, the scoff bubbled over into a giggle, which turned into a full-blown, wheezing laugh. She entered the car, her shoulders shaking.

"Unbelievable," she gasped, wiping a tear from her eye. "Hades and Ariel would never believe me. I just got told off by a pink bird."

"I saw it ma’am." Day confirmed. "Never thought I would see an alien bird giving someone the middle finger. They are truly watchers and learners."

Still laughing, he put the vehicle in gear and pulled away, the image of the feathered insult burned into his brain.

"We should have taken a picture." Sunshine said regretfully.

Day egged her on. "We can always try again."

Sunshine tilted her head and looked up at the bubble. One day, she would hold that finger over Pink’s eyes and drive a sword right through the creature’s heart. If it had one!