Back in the Game (COMPLETE)

9.12.1

Despite the music blasting from the speakers, the workshop felt a little too quiet for Ahsoka one day. She had a feeling there was a reason for it, but she had no idea what yet, so she was forced to ignore her instincts and try not to go deaf from the racket in the rest of the shop.

In all honesty, she didn't mind the music anymore. Did she agree with their taste all the time? No, but she preferred it to grenade explosions and those were much louder. Besides, the mechanical whirring of the machinery was plenty distracting when she needed it. It was a repair shop, after all. 

For once, Ahsoka was no longer the rookie. Fuller had hired a brand new girl last week and dethroned Ahsoka as the newest hire. The good news was that they finally had all hands on deck. After her brief friend Granger had left and moved to Alderaan, all of the mechanics had been a bit pressed to get work done. Now their plate wasn't nearly as full.

The bad news? This new girl had taught herself how to repair appliances and ships, and while it worked, she was still a little rough around the edges. 

Ahsoka wasn't very concerned since she knew that the girl, Trace Martez, would pick it up pretty quickly, but Fuller had instructed for everyone else to help her out for a little bit. Ahsoka had shown her around on her first day, a lot like Wheeler and Leslie had, but the others had picked up the chain too and Ahsoka hadn't seen much of her since. Apparently, she had hit it off with Leslie and Rya, a lot like Ahsoka had, so she was spending a ton of time with them. 

She had a feeling it was because they were alike. Rya was about the same age as Trace, and Leslie was very soft like her too. A little innocent and kind of naive, so she and Leslie tended to have the same types of conversations. Ever since they became close, Ahsoka hadn't seen much of her, but she seemed nice. Apparently she had an older sister, Rafa, who she lived with. Other than that, Ahsoka didn't know much about her.

Finishing the last few touches on a speeder, Ahsoka replaced the cover for the engine and set her tools aside. It was time for her lunch break and the speeder needed to go back to the garage. She scanned the product into the system and returned it after making sure she clocked out for her break.

Coincidentally enough, Trace was in there too. Ahsoka saw her putting away a microwave back on the shelf, and she wiped her brow as she gave her arms a break. 

"Need a hand, Trace?" Ahsoka asked, walking over to help her lift it. 

"Thanks, but I got it," Trace said, stubbornly completing the task and stretching her arms. "Just needed a quick breather."

She shrugged, not taking it personally. "If you say so. I'm going to grab some lunch if you want to walk with me."

Trace ran to catch up with her, and they ascended the spiral staircase leading up to the staff room. As they went, Trace pointed up to the light fixture. "Hey, why is that light newer than all the others? They don't match."

Ahsoka looked up at the light she was referring to, then smiled when she remembered. "The old light got damaged in a firefight, several months ago. Fuller replaced it right after that, I think."

"A firefight?" Trace repeated, pausing for a moment to look at the light again. "Why were people shooting in the shop? Did a blaster accidentally go off?"

As she caught up, Ahsoka laughed and shook her head. "No, a band of thugs came in and tried to rob the place. Don't worry, though, that hasn't happened in almost half a year."

Trace didn't look too convinced, but she dropped the subject anyways. Just like I thought, not too keen on violence, Ahsoka realized. Can't say I blame her.