Chapter 254: Embryo.
When Sunshine entered the VIP ward, she tried to be stealthy, thinking that those inside were sleeping. And she was right.
A smile appeared on her face when she saw the bundle of happiness named Castiel napping in the middle of the bed. Rori in the chair next to it, humming softly while adjusting the blanket.
"Heyyyyy....." Sunshine said softly.
Rori lifted her eyes to meet those of Sunshine. "Shhhh...I just got him down. He was not in the greatest mood after getting his last shot. You should have seen the icy glare he gave the doctor. I was not spared from it either. I think he is learning that look from you. All that is missing is a hammer in his hands."
Sunshine giggled.
"Shhhhhh." Rori hissed at her.
Sunshine nodded. "Got it, keep it down. Don’t worry, I will not wake him. I was just passing by to see how he is doing before rushing away to work." She leaned forward and pressed a kiss on Castiel’s head, then tiptoed her way out of there.
Rori waved her hand. "I have got this; you have enough on your plate. White, Cass and all the kiddos are my and Lisha’s responsibility today."
Sunshine’s ears picked up the sound coming from the base speakers. Lisha’s voice could clearly be heard, and it was not passing on information. She was making jokes!
"I don’t think Lisha can be counted on." Sunshine sniggered.
"She will be back after finishing her special program on Radio apocalypse." Rori replied.
They both frowned when they heard what Lisha said next to her co-host who they had no idea even existed.
"What pet would you rather see mutate. A cat or a dog? I say cat because it can only get cuter. And in this weather, we need more mutated animal fur. Think of a mutated cat as a blanket."
Rori sighed.
Sunshine sniggered again as she left the room and the hospital altogether. Her ears remained keen on listening to Lisha’s nonsense and it brought a bigger smile to her face to see more people around the base laughing as they listened.
"She has a talent for comedy." Corporal Day commented.
Sunshine nodded. "We need the laughter around here."
The car stopped outside of the industrial section of the base. It was as busy as the hospital. Her specific destination was the repair building which was less crowded.
It was guarded by four soldiers and residents only came by to bring over things that they wanted repaired. It was not free service, they paid in cash, gold or points.
Sunshine did not work beside other repairmen on the base. She did her work alone in an office that was reserved for her. And she did not work every day like others. She came by once or twice a week.
She paired a bicycle, replaced the leg of a chair, some light bulbs that were having issues and a fan. The fan should not have been a priority for fixing during winter, but the owner had paid cash for it.
When she was finished, she marked off the things she had repaired on the list of registered items and put them in the pick-up section. Then, she went back home, immediately moving into the space to continue working.
"Let’s see what we have here." She said as she scrolled through the pending jobs.
Before she could look through them, the system distracted her.
[Host I highlighted the jobs that I thought you may have a lot of interest in.]
The highlighted jobs appeared, and the others faded away from the screen.
"I see....." The very first job caught her eyes, and this was because of the extraordinary pay out. "A million gold coins!" She could hardly believe it, "Yes please, I am taking it."
[Host always know what the job is about before making a choice. Some repairs offer a lot in income but come with danger.]
She put aside the premature jubilation. "Right, let’s see; Fossilized Noxian egg. Extremely fragile and high in value."
That was the only explanation. She did not quite understand but she knew this was not an ordinary job. It also seemed like something beyond her level of capability.
"System explain this job in detail, use a lay man’s language please."
[The job is from Noxian, a world with a dying species. They have been unable to reproduce for generations. Finally, a female was able to get pregnant but unfortunately birthed the egg prematurely. This egg is extremely valuable because of what it represents If you take on this job and make a mistake of any kind, the Noxian’s will hunt you down and kill you along with everyone you know. They are a vengeful species; their kind was not targeted without cause.]
Sunshine shuddered. "They sound like dangerous people. So, what is wrong with the egg?"
[The egg’s topmost glass shell cracked slightly. The embryo inside is alive but in extremely fragile state. The glass shell must be repaired for it to survive.]
"Hmm." Sunshine said. "The solutions?"
[There are four possible solutions that you could try. If you choose the wrong one and the shell breaks and the embryo dies, you will be in trouble.]
"I heard you the first-time system." She answered. Curiosity was still driving her.
[I will start with the solution that the Host would go for. You could use crypto-stitching lattice. Buy a machine that will weave frost threads. Tank1 can do the weaving much faster than you. After they have been woven, attach and fill the cracks to stabilize the shell.
The only con is that it will leave faint patterns that may or may not be transferred to the child after birth.]
"Perfect but let me hear the rest of the solutions if you have any."
[1. Reinforce with balm resin, this is from planet Noxian. I am assuming that they tried it and failed. There is always the possibility that they do not have someone with enough precision and skills to do it and that is why it has not been done.
2. Encapsulate it with stasis gel. This is safe but it could freeze the development of the embryo entirely.
3. Using magnetic molecular riders. It is beyond your skill level and could destabilize the embryo.]
"I like the original solution best." She pressed the accept button. "Let us get to work."
[Are you certain that you want this job? Higher skilled repairmen have turned it down.]
"I believe in myself, and it is my wish to grow as a repairman. If I cannot do the job, I will leave. As long as I have not taken payment, I don’t owe them anything."
She was curious about the egg, the Noxian’s and how a repair like that was possible. If she pulled it off, she would have enough points to upgrade the space, all her tools and take Nimo with her on her next trip to another world.
"I have made my choice." She said firmly.
[Very well.]
A hole appeared in the floor of the space below her, waiting to send her into the unknown.
She left the space and picked up Tank. Sunshine disguised them both first to avoid her face being marked or Tank being remembered.
"Call me Rocky." She told Tank. She was disguised as a man.
The robot nodded.
Then, they stepped into the hole.