Bad Wingleaders

Writers: Eimi, Estelle
Date Posted: 3rd January 2019

Characters: L'keri, J'nev
Description: L'keri gets the dirt from J'nev...
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 6, day 5 of Turn 9
Notes: Mentions: K'mai, U'kaiah, N'vanik, Aileyan (indirectly)

L'keri

When the Wing was finally dismissed after an afternoon's drills, and
Rhalith was settled back in their weyr, L'keri headed straight for the
dining cavern, shivering and stamping his numbed feet to try and get the
circulation going. He remembered guiltily that when he'd been at
Dragonsfall the first time, he had laughed heartily at the new transfers
who weren't used to the climate.

Right now, he didn't care if his wingmates thought he'd grown soft in
warmer Weyrs - he just wanted to get some hot klah inside him, and maybe
something stronger later. Spotting a full jug on a nearby table, he
collected a clean mug and headed over. There was a young rider there
already, but maybe he wouldn't mind sharing.

"Excuse me - " He held up the mug. "Mind if I get some of that klah?"

"Nah, go right ahead," J'nev said, waving his own mug in invitation.

"Thanks." L'keri sat down, filled his mug and wrapped both hands
around it, letting the warmth sink in to his fingers while he breathed
in the delicious aroma of hot klah, before taking a sip. "Ah, that's
better! That was a long drill...you were there, weren't you? I'm
L'keri, Rhalith's rider."

"I'm J'nev," the younger man said between bites of sweetroll, holding
out his hand. "I ride bronze Ankioth. You're new to Cyan," he said
more as an observation than a question.

L'keri nearly spilled his klah. J'nev was one of the wingriders K'mai
had warned him about! However, he had just sat down to share a drink
with the man; to leave now would be beyond even his capacity for
rudeness. Besides, he didn't seem unfriendly.

"Yes, I just transferred here. I was at Dragonsfall before, though -
seven or so Turns ago." He shook hands, wondering once more at how
the time had passed. Back then, this young rider would most likely
have been a weyrling, or perhaps had not even Impressed. "Seems like I
was lucky in my assignment. It's a fine Wing."

"It is now. We used to have a real ass of a Wingleader. But he's
long gone now. The Wing's running much smoother without him." J'nev
realized that seven turns ago, the man might have known him. "Was
U'kaiah Wingleader when you were here?"

L'keri frowned, casting his mind back. "Kalamath's rider, right? I think
he was Wingsecond then." He couldn't remember anything particularly
objectionable about the man, but then he hadn't been in the same Wing -
and being promoted could certainly go to a bronzerider's head. "Isn't he
a Weyrleader now?"

J'nev nodded over his mug rim. "Better there than here."

"What did he do?" the brownrider asked, curious. He had Turns of Weyr
gossip to catch up on, and stories to the detriment of a ranking
bronzerider seemed an excellent place to start.

"Well, before my time here, but I heard he threw N'vanik, the
Weyrleader of Dolphin Cove, over a table here in the dinning caverns
once. Was demoted to the Weyrling Wing for that, and yet they still
gave him his old job back." Obviously the Weyrleader at the time was
far too lenient with his ranking staff. "Of course N'vanik was just a
wingrider in his Wing at the time."

"Shards. I thought my old Wingleader was a mean bastard, but he never
went that far." L'keri wished he could have seen that, but at the same
time he was relieved that he wouldn't be serving under a leader who
didn't limit himself to assigning endless watch duty on cold nights.
"Must make meetings of the Weyrleaders interesting."

"I bet it must," J'nev said with a satisfied sneer at the thought.
"Of course, N'vanik wasn't the only one he had a problem with. He
punished me just for winning his lover's Flight once."

"He sounds like a right tunnel snake," L'keri said sympathetically.
"Everyone knows that when the dragons rise to mate, there's not much
anyone can do about the outcome. Still..." He grinned. "Look on the
bright side. You won his lover's flight!"

"Oh I did more than that," the young bronzerider said with a rather
proud grin. "I won the girl, too. She's _my_ lover now."

L'keri raised his klah mug in salute, suppressing a brief pang of envy.
J'nev was only a kid; no doubt he would find out how disappointing life
generally turned out to be, soon enough. Or maybe it was different for
bronzeriders. "Congratulations."

"So did you move here for a girl?" J'nev asked, curious why he might
have transferred to Dragonfalls.

L'keri shook his head. "Not exactly. That old Wingleader I mentioned?
He was the kind of tedious streak of wherry droppings who cares more
about how well a rider's boots are polished than how much Thread he
burns, and he had it in for me from the start. I'd had enough, so I
agreed to the transfer." He surveyed the dining cavern, his eyes
brightening. "No, I'll have to find myself a girl now I'm here. Or
two."

"They're not hard to find," the younger rider said, remembering how
easy he thought the girls had been when he had first come to the Weyr.
Of course, he had only a Hold to compare it to. "Hopefully now you
don't have to worry about a wherry ass Wingleader and can enjoy what
we have on offer."

"I'll drink to that." L'keri raised his mug again. "Speaking of
which...I think I'll get myself a beer, if it's not too early. Can I
get you anything?"

"Oh!" That sounded like a nice idea to J'nev, too! "If you get me a
beer, I'll rustled up some snacks from the kitchen to go with it."

"Beer and snacks after a hard day's drilling. Perfect." L'keri got to
his feet and stretched, feeling the ache in his arms from hours spent
tossing and catching firestone sacks. J'nev wasn't a bad sort, he
thought, even if he did ride bronze. At least he didn't look down on his
fellow riders, or revere the higher ranks as if they were the pure and
noble heroes of a harper's tale instead of ordinary mortals like himself.

Hopefully, with the aid of a few drinks, he could extract some more
gossip. And maybe he could find out which of the women in Cyan would be
interested in a night with their newest wingmate...

Last updated on the January 24th 2019

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Bad Wingleaders