In Command (#1 Post-Order 66 Series)

In Command - Part 7

He listened silently as she picked at her food some more, slowly meeting his eyes with a small smile. "Sorry, really bringing the mood down huh?"

"I asked. Not your fault it's a sad story."

"Yeah alright." She popped the last bite of food into her mouth. "I'm gonna go tinker in the shed for a bit. Want to make a few more adjustments to the speeder bike."

"Just make sure you put it all back together, alright?"

"Yes, Lon," she said sarcastically as she stepped out the back door.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The night was cool and clear as she made her way to the back door of the shed. It helped take the edge off the memories she'd dredged up at dinner. A weight had settled into the pit of her stomach while she recalled her aimless drifting after the war. It had been the most lost she'd ever felt in her life, and she'd wandered blindly from planet to planet, barely acknowledging anything going on around her. All of that had changed when she met Saw Gerrera. He'd been escaping from stormtroopers and nearly run her over in an alleyway she'd been begging in. She still couldn't pinpoint exactly what had made her trip the stormtroopers by knocking over several crates with the Force, but in that moment, everything had changed. Gerrera had taken her under his wing immediately. She'd never asked if he had seen her reach out her hand, and he'd never asked if she was Force sensitive, but he'd been very grateful to have help in that moment, and had given her a reason for living again. It was a debt she felt she'd never be able to repay, but she would expend her last breath for the rebellion if it was called for.

She punched the unlock code into the door panel and slipped into the shed. The speeder bike was still on the lift where she left it, and she turned on the lights and crawled underneath it, inhaling the smell of engine grease. She let her fingers drift up to the power coupler wiring she'd been fiddling with earlier, and it was as if everything else slipped away. This was where she felt the most peace, with machinery and her tools. She worked carefully, soldering wires together and tightening bolts as grease smeared down her forearms. After several hours, she smiled, satisfied at her upgrades. "That should do it," she muttered to herself. "Now where did I put that wrench?"

Twisting underneath the bike, she finally spotted it on the workbench across the shed. Of course it's all the way over there. Sighing and laying back, she got a sudden idea. Lifting her head to look at the bench again, she stretched out her fingers and closed her eyes, reaching out with the Force. She was out of practice, but she eventually heard the sound of metal scraping across the workbench surface as the wrench slid towards her. She could feel the tool drawing near. It was about halfway across the shed, hovering in the air when the shed door slid open with a hiss. Her eyes snapped open and the wrench clattered to the ground as Rex stood in the doorway.

"Oh...sorry. Didn't mean to disturb you," he said sheepishly. He walked across the shed, stooping down to slide the wrench over to her. "You seem out of practice."

"Yeah, well that happens when you don't use that muscle memory," she sighed. "Like I said, I severed my connection to the Force. Being connected and being able to use it again will take time."

"Didn't seem to be an issue on Empire Day, and I had the bruises to prove it," he teased.

She looked at him very seriously from under the bike. "Strong emotions like that make it easier to channel the Force, but that was not the Jedi way. I reacted out of anger and grief, and those emotions are not what I should be using when I reach out through the Force." She furrowed her brow, the memory clearly upsetting her as she tightened the last bolts. Sliding out from under the bike, she lowered the lift and wiped the sweat from her brow with the back of her hand, smearing some grease across her cheek and forehead. "There. That should do the trick."

Rex smirked at the black smudge on her face. Taking a rag off the workbench, he closed the space between them, taking her chin in one hand while he wiped at the grease mark with the rag. "I uh...might be smearing it more," he said softly, a smile playing across his lips.

Senna felt her face burning under his touch, her eyes meeting his and holding for half a beat too long. They stayed like that for what felt like an eternity and not long enough, his thumb gently grazing her jawline as her eyes drifted to his lips. The sound of someone laughing loudly in the street outside the shed door broke the spell, and they almost leapt apart, Rex clearing his throat and rubbing the back of his neck while Senna's cheeks flushed. "Umm...the speeder bike shouldn't be making that weird noise anymore. Wanna fire it up?" she asked, turning her back to him to hide the color of her face.

"Yeah um...sure," he said, walking to the bike and pressing the ignition switch. The speeder hummed to life, whirring gently. "Wow. That's the quietest it's ever been," he said.

"Yeah, well it should run a little bit more efficiently as well," she said.

"Efficiency is always good."

"Yep." The awkward silence hung in the air for a few beats before Senna edged towards the door. "Alright, well I still have some...er...work to do upstairs. I'll see you in the morning then."

"Yeah. G'night," he muttered as she slipped out the door.

Senna tried to keep her pace unrushed as she walked back across the yard, her heart thudding in her chest. She marched up the stairs as quickly as she could, shutting the door to the office behind her and leaning against the wall, trying to calm her pulse. Unconsciously, her fingers traced the place on her jaw where Rex had held her face. The skin was still on fire.

She shook her head. Absolutely not. You can't do this. Closing her eyes, she took a few deep breaths. She heard the sound of Rex coming in the back door and walking by the base of the stairs, where he paused. Her breath quickened again until she heard his footfalls move towards his room.

Sighing, she walked to her desk, scanning the various parts scattered everywhere. She was getting closer to completing the comm node, but still needed several components. Her eyes lingered on the carved wooden box she had shoved to the corner of her desk. Maybe some day.

Sitting down, she pulled the board she'd been soldering components to before dinner. She worked for a few more hours, soldering the components and doing continuity checks as she progressed. She was just starting to clean her work area when she heard shouting coming from Rex's room downstairs.