Star Wars Rebels - Lost

Chapter Twelve: Scavengers

It had taken many hours to safely get Ezra back to the Gauntlet, by which time the sun was beginning to rise. It hung in the emerald sky, creating a spectacle in the sky as red and green clashed in an explosion of colour. But Sabine, for once, was uninterested in colours, she was too busy worrying for her friend. As soon as they had arrived, they had placed Ezra onto a stretcher that they'd found in the ship's supply vault. The Mandalorian found herself knelt next to his unconscious form, holding her hand in his tightly with her eyes nearly closed. She knew it was stupid, but she felt as if keeping him close would keep him alive. Ahsoka and Skorn, meanwhile, were rummaging just behind her, searching desperately for medical supplies.
"We need bacta packs, now!" Ahsoka shouted, glancing back at Ezra with a panicked look. He did not look good. As sad as his situation was, it appeared that the plant had been the only thing keeping him alive. Now, he was fevering severely and his face had grown pale.
"I'm looking general, but I can't find any!" Skorn answered, kicking over an empty supply crate in frustration. They continued scouring the cargo deck, rummaging loudly and shouting at one another, in frustration and stress. But suddenly, as if she had remembered something important, Ahsoka looked up with a thoughtful face.
"Try over there" she ordered, gesturing to a white crate, hidden away at the very back of the chamber. She was sure that she had packed some medical supplies there, at least she hoped she had. The commander dramatically tore the lid off of the crate and smiled, tossing Ahsoka a clear plastic bag, filled with light blue liquid. Bacta, a thick jelly-like substance with remarkable healing qualities. It was used by operatives in the field and civilian hospitals alike to regrow tissues and nerves, and hopefully it would save Ezra's life. Ahsoka quickly joined Sabine at the boy's side, and connected a plastic tube from his body to the bacta pack. And then they waited. The trio stood over Ezra, each of them with bated breaths, hoping that they would see some small change in their friend. The minutes passed by, and nothing happened. Ahsoka began to lower her head, believing that perhaps this journey had been for nothing. She could feel his force signature growing weak, like a distant thought, blowing on a cold wind. But, as they all started to look away, unable to watch the boy die, they each heard a noise that shocked them. A low breath. They turned to see Ezra let out a long and slow breath, his chest rising and falling with the movement. The colour was beginning to return to his face, slowly but surely, and his breaths soon regulated to a normal rate. He remained unconscious, but he appeared to be stabilising. All three of the heroes let out a sigh of relief, collapsing onto the ground and just sitting there, enjoying a moment of peace.

They could not say how long they sat on the metal floor of the cargo deck, resting to the symphony of Ezra's casual breathing. None of them could coax their muscles into moving, after so many hours of treacherous work, they were relishing the quiet. Sabine leant herself against the wall of the Gauntlet, just a metre away from Ezra's stretcher, even now she did not want to be too far away from him. She worried that he could suddenly stop breathing at any moment, and she had no idea what she would do if she lost him now. It was a miracle that they'd even found him, following clue after clue on a vague trail across the galaxy. She'd lost count of how many times she doubted the success of their mission, but she'd refused to give in. She couldn't give up. Not on Ezra. Her thoughts were interrupted when Ahsoka approached her, another bacta pack in her hand and a warm smile on her face.
"You could use one of these yourself" the togruta said quietly, kneeling down next to her.
"N-no...just save it for Ezra...he needs it more" Sabine answered weakly, she didn't want to waste supplies.
"Oh no" Ahsoka exclaimed with a laugh "there are over twenty of these in that one crate, we can spare one for you, you need it". Sabine tried to argue, but she was too weak to do even that, perhaps she needed the pack more than she realised after all. The Mandalorian sat still as Ahsoka rolled up the leg of her bodysuit and strapped the bacta tank to it, positioning it so that it would not hinder her movement too much. She sighed in relaxation as the gelatinous substance oozed into her wound, it felt like some sort of drug, entering her bloodstream, but it was good. Sabine closed her eyes and took a deep breath, almost falling asleep there and then. She would have done, had it not been for the interruption of Commander Skorn.
"Sorry to interfere general, but I think it might be a good idea to start thinking of our way off of this planet...since you've found your friend now" the clone stated. Sabine could see the hope in his eyes, he had been trapped here for almost thirty years, she didn't blame him for wanting to be rid of it.
"Yes, right, okay, what's our situation?" Ahsoka asked, standing up to face Skorn. Sabine could not bring herself to stand yet.
"I've examined the hyperdrive and it's intact, which is a miracle in itself...but that's the good news..." Skorn began, growing quiet.
"What's the bad?" Sabine asked drowsily from the ground.
"The bad is that this ship has taken major damage. As well as the obvious hull damage, the engines have also been crippled, nearly beyond repair. We're going to have to scavenge some major resources if we're going to get this junk pile safely into space" the commander explained, causing Ahsoka to grimace. Sabine simply smiled, closing her eyes.
"Well...good luck with that...I'll...stay here...guard Ezra" she stated slowly. There was a pause, before Ahsoka suddenly spoke out.
"You can't" the togruta said simply. At once, Sabine gained her fighting spirit again.
"What do you mean I can't?! I'm not leaving him!" she exclaimed, sitting up.
"Nobody here knows mechanics like you do, even me, if we're assembling a salvage team, then you'll have to be among them, nobody else would know exactly what to look for" Ahsoka explained quietly. Sabine sighed loudly, she wanted to protest, she wanted to fold her arms like a moaning teenager and outright refuse, but she knew that her friend was right. Why did she have to be the clever one?

Ahsoka and Sabine walked through the vast and strange forests, heading towards a familiar destination. Skorn had loyally volunteered to remain behind and keep a watchful eye on Bridger, at this point, Ahsoka knew she could trust him like she did Rex. This scavenging team, however, had elected to return to the wreck of the Chimaera, hoping that they could acquire the parts that they needed there. As they ascended over a small hill, they saw the looming star destroyer ahead of them. It still sent a shiver down Sabine's spine, even more so after the injury she sustained there which, despite the bacta, was still hurting more than she cared to admit. Still, this time they would not have to enter the shipwreck, the parts that they needed to make the Gauntlet space-worthy again could all be obtained from the exterior of the ship. That fact comforted Sabine.

When they finally began stripping away at the Chimaera, the pair themselves worked like a well-oiled machine. Every twenty seconds, they would communicate with one another about what they had found, and whether they needed it to repair the Gauntlet or not. If they did, then it would go in Sabine's backpack, if they didn't, well then it was thrown aside carelessly.
"I've got some power capitulators here, do we need them?" Ahsoka asked, hanging twenty feet in the air from a rope attached to the ship's exterior hull.
"Nah, have you found any shield capacitators yet?" Sabine answered through her welding mask, she was laid down on her back beneath the ship, cutting away at its key components.
"Hang on" the togruta said, tugging at a module that was reluctant to come free "yes! I've got two over here".
"That'll be enough" Sabine answered, crawling out from beneath the ship and jogging beneath Ahsoka. The togruta swung on her rope and dropped the capacitators down, allowing Sabine to catch them and place them in the worn and oil-covered backpack. Ahsoka then activated a button in her harness, quickly rappelling down onto the ground beside Sabine. She took a deep breath before turning to her friend.
"What else do we need?" she asked, wiping the sweat from her orange and white brow.
"That" Sabine started, staring down at a data-pad "should be it, we're good to go". The pair shared a grin, finally able to leave this hellhole. But as they turned back in the direction of the Gauntlet, they heard a morale crushing sound from behind them, the rolling of metal. A dozen droidekas suddenly surrounded them, outfitted with advanced shield generators and heavy laser blasters. The pair each grimaced in turn. At that moment, a B1 officer stepped out, accompanied by a pair of magna-guards.
"The admiral demands your presence".