Keep Calm and Carry On

Writers: Leigh M-F., Paula
Date Posted: 3rd December 2014

Characters: A'kua, Jessmyr, C'lua
Description: The Weyr never stops working.
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 9, day 10 of Turn 7

If he had ever been this cold before, Aluka couldn't remember it. His small
Hold had been so out in the boonies, electricity had never made it there.
They made do with having fireplaces in at least two rooms of their stone
huts, and if they had to go outside, chores would keep them warm until they
could go inside and defrost. Chill air had never seemed to penetrate as
deeply as it was now, and he could only imagine how dragonriders were doing
in their open weyrs. It made him worried for Ninaine, but shards if he
could get in touch at the moment. That really made him mad.

And if he was cold, then it was probably bothering Jessmyr even more. It
hadn't come up in conversation, but Aluka knew from observation that his
temporary student wasn't entirely well, which made him wonder why the folks
in charge were making him help distribute blankets and baskets of glows
instead of bundling him into a warm bed with a huge mug of something hot.
Aluka was tempted to tell Jess to hop onto the push-cart he was using and
keep the piles of blankets steady, but on the other hand, moving around was
keeping them both somewhat warm at the moment. Still, he worried for
Jessmyr as well.

The cart hit a small dip, and Aluka had to straighten it out for the
umpteenth time. "Hey, could ya hold those glows a li'l lower?" he requested
of Jess, hoping it would help illuminate the floor.

"Okay," Jess replied and lowered the glows. He was bundled up as warmly as
he could. Cold was not agreeing with him. It never did. But they were all
needed right now. Every pair of hands was needed to keep the Weyr going and
prevent people freezing to death. At least he had gotten paired with Aluka.
"Shards and shells, this must be what /between/ feels like," he shivered.

The redhead worked a hand under his mother's shawl, bundled around his
ears, and scratched an itch as he considered that statement. "Ya know,
actually, you're not far off," he concluded. "It really is a lot like
this." He resumed pushed the cart, noting that the new placement of the
glows was making the trip a little smoother. That was good; he was too cold
to curse in frustration.

"Have you had lot of dragonrides?" Jess asked, just chatting to fend off
the boredom.

"Not too many," Aluka said. "Mostly just trips outside the Weyr for chores,
and gettin' rides to clean weyrs. Standard, everyday stuff like that."

"Hah! Standard!", Jess snorted bitterly. "I've never ridden a dragon and
I've lived in this Weyr longer than you."

Wow, that was a harsh tone. Unhappy. Aluka wanted to ask what the problem
was, but maybe it wasn't the right time for that. "Who's next to deliver
to?" he asked instead.

Jess consulted his list. "C'lua. I know him. I hope you have a strong
stomach," he said to Aluka and knocked the door. "Do you need fresh glow
stones or more blankets?" he called. There was scuffling sound and after a
while the door creaked open.

"Jessmyr? Is that you?" the man who peered out didn't have a face. Or more
accurately, his face was just scars. Slit where the mouth was, another slit
where the nose had been. No eyes, just scar covered, empty sockets. Thread
had eaten away his features.

"Yes, C'lua, it's me, I'm doing delivery job. Do you need something?" Jess
replied. He had was used to the brown rider's look.

"I don't have any use for glows," man's voice was sarcastic, "but I could
use blanket or two."

Ancients. No wonder Jessmyr had warned him. Aluka's eyes widened, and he
felt a rush of horror and nausea. How could anyone survive such horrific
injuries? Was C'lua made of steel? That thought made the horror begin to
morph into admiration, and he swallowed hard, gathering two blankets off
their pile and carrying them toward the other man. "Here, sir," he said,
and wondered if he should touch the blankets to C'lua's chest to indicate
where they were. He didn't know what proper protocol was when dealing with
blind people.

C'lua hold out his hands, indicating that Aluka should place the blankets
there.

The redhead did so. "If that's not enough, send out word somehow and we'll
come right back," he promised.

"Thank you. And you would be?" C'lua asked.

"Aluka, sir," he said immediately. "I'm a friend of Jessmyr's." He hoped
Jess wouldn't object to that designation.

"It was nice to meet you, Aluka," C'lua said and withdrew back to his weyr.

"That went well.He liked you. You didn't ran off screaming," Jess chuckled
when the door was closed and they continued towards the next one.

"Were ya really expectin' me to?" Aluka snarked, wondering if he had just
gotten pranked somehow. "How the fardlin' shards did he ever survive?"

"I nearly lost my lunch when I saw his face for the first time," Jess said,
his eyes dark with some emotion. "And how he survived...I don't know. He's
tough, I suppose. From what I heard, he almost did die."

Aluka was quiet for a little while as they walked. "If I Impress," he
finally said, "I hope I'm lucky enough to be even half that tough."

"Sometimes I wonder if it would had been better to die than live like
that..." Jess said gloomily. "Shards, this is depressing!" He tried to pull
him out of the funk.

"Ya wanna know what's even more depressin'?" Aluka asked. "We're not done
yet. Let's hurry best we can and then go to the kitchen for the hottest cup
of stew we can handle." Hopefully that was encouraging.

"I'm all in for that stew," Jessmyr agreed.

Last updated on the December 23rd 2014

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Keep Calm and Carry On