Star Wars The Clone Wars: Cuy'Val Dar#Wattys2016

Three

Lwhekka, several miles south

Null wasted not time returning to his ship. Despite the answer he had given the clone sergeant, he had every intention of finding this ship, the Vengeance and getting his fuel refilled, because he wasn't going to make it another parsec if he didn't. Still, there was a residue of guilt for lying to the man. However, it had faded once Null reached his landing site. There, all guilt was twisted to anger when he saw his ship. Lemani darted in and out of the engine compartment, having apparently chewed a hole into it. Raising his blaster, Null fired a few warning shots into the air, scaring off a few of the leathery-skinned creatures. Breaking into a run, Null managed to scare off a few more, shooting the rest. Quickly he inspected the hole they had chewed. It was only large enough for about two of the creatures to enter at a time. Null slammed his fist up against the metal, half fearing what he'd find inside. Straightening up, he checked for anymore then holstered his blaster, entering the ship. Immediately, Null headed for the engine room. Opening the door, he stiffened, preparing for whatever horrors might be inside. Slowly, the door slid open.

"Chakkar!"

A loud noise followed the shout as Null discovered even more Lemani inside of the engines. He ripped his blaster out of its holster and opened fire on the small creatures. Several screeched and ran off while others tried to hide deeper inside of the engine compartment.

"Ne shab'rud'niÖ!" Null could feel his hands gripping the blaster even tighter as he blasted a few more that showed so much as a single hair. Yelling at the creatures, Null chased the rest out of the engine room, then returned. Wires, half chewed or cut completely were strewn everywhere. Metal sheets and screws had been removed. Half of the engines was disassembled. Null shoved his blaster back into it's holster with a jerky motion, then turned around and gave the nearest console a good kick, denting the metal sheet.

"The little chakkar!" he shouted. There was too much damage for him to even get off the ground. He'd have to fix it before he could get fuel. "Hope they didn't tear through my fuel tanks," he grumbled. Turning, Null checked them, and to his relief, found the tanks still intact. It didn't undo the rest of the damage, though, and Null sighed, pulling off his helmet. He leaned on the console, resting his head in one hand. He could shout all he wanted, but it wasn't going to get him off the planet. There was nothing to do now but work until it was fixed.

////

Late that night, Null finally finished fixing the cooling system. He was back in his fatigues, which were now covered with grease and coolant. Getting up and moving out of the engine compartment, he dusted off what he could, smearing more grease onto his clothing. Sighing, the ARC did his best to clean off his hands before slipping his gloves back on and standing back to inspect hi work. The cooling system was only the first of about fifteen systems that needed repairs, but it was a start. Null glanced at the chrono, finding it to be about 2330.

"I just need some coolant, then I can call it a night."

There was only one problem with Null's simple plan: no coolant existed on board the ship. That left him only one option, to return to the clone trooper's base and ask for some. That was something they should have, no matter the age of the base. A small part of Null didn't want to return, for he felt like a beggar constantly going to them for help. Yet an overwhelming part of him said that if he didn't get this coolant, he wasn't getting off this rock. Kicking his tools into a slightly neater pile, Null turned off half the lights in the room, then his eyes caught on the hole the Lemari had chewed. Frowning, he grabbed a small sheet of metal and some top grade rivets. In less than fifteen minutes he had the metal fixed over the hole. It wasn't airtight or anything special, but it should keep the animals out until he got back. With that small chore finished, Null then finished cleaning up and grabbed his blaster, exiting the ship. He didn't bother putting on armor for the small trek because by the time he would have gotten the whole kit on, he would have wasted more time than he wanted too. The absence of the extra weight made little difference on the journey, though, for Null was already feeling a bit tired. Even so, he made good time on getting to the base, yet upon his arrival, he saw no sign of the other troopers. Either they had to be inside, or they had been leaving for some other mission when he met them earlier. Finding an entrance, Null found it was locked by a military pass code.