One Step at a Time

One Step at a Time - Part 3

"Arni, can you hand me the wrench with the ten mil head on it?"

Chuckles felt the cool metal of a tool press into his palm from where it was extended outside of the maintenance access panel he was wedged in. Bringing the wrench up to his face, he sighed. "This is the five millimeter, kid. I need the ten."

"The ten is going to be too big."

Chuckles wiggled so that he could peer between his feet where the Twi'lek was crouched, eyes locked on a datapad that was displaying the ship's schematics.

"Ten mil is standard for these types of bolts," he huffed. "Now can I get the wrench I need please?"

"Ten mil would be standard if this was a Republic freighter. Corellian ships tend to have smaller bolts."

Chuckles narrowed his eyes at the Twi'lek, whose gaze was still diverted down to their datapad, clearly considering the matter resolved. Sighing, Chuck popped the penlight he was using back between his teeth to illuminate the small space, reaching up for the bolt he was trying to loosen. The head of the wrench slotted over it perfectly, and he gave it an experimental twist, feeling the bolt break its torque.

"Well I'll be damned," he muttered around the penlight clamped between his teeth. He didn't miss the small smile that pulled at the corner of Arni's mouth from where they were crouched. They still didn't look up at him though.

At least the kid's not gonna rub it in my face, I guess.

Sweat dribbled down his temple, and he wiped his forehead as the panel he was finally working on came loose, showering him in dust. He spluttered, wiping at his face more. "Alright kid, you got the hook-ups I need?" Arni pressed a cable into his hand as he repositioned the penlight between his teeth.

"You're looking for a port labeled 'FLT CPU DATA C'," Arni called out. "That should give me access to the board where the ship's identifying information is stored."

Chuckles easily found the port, plugging the cable's connector into place. "You're all set," he said, laying the penlight down next to his head and folding his hands on his chest as he waited for Arni to find what they were looking for. "They teach you all this at the temple?" he asked.

Arni looked up from the datapad finally, their brows furrowed. "No."

"Well, where'd you learn it?"

"The archives. Spent a lot of time reading in there. Then talked to the mechanics in the garage a lot or the pilots if I could find them. There was this one trooper that flew a modified Omicron-class attack shuttle, and he loved to talk to me about the ship, telling me all the mods he'd done. He originally showed me how to do this, and most ships are pretty similar when you get down to their guts, so we should be able to do the same for this freighter."

"You like all that tech stuff?"

"I like seeing how things work, and then making them work better if I can," Arni said quietly, punching away at the datapad. "Even invented a few things during the war."

"Like what?"

"A mega-popper. Could take out any clankers within a quarter-klick radius. Just had to make sure troopers were shielded when it went off."

Chuckles's eyes widened, and he let out a low whistle. "I'm almost sad I never saw you around my hangar. I would have let you go to work on my fighter."

"What did you fly?"

"A Z-95."

Arni wrinkled their nose, and Chuckles furrowed his brow. "What's that look about?"