Stretched Too Thin (3): The Boss

Writers: Bree, Eimi
Date Posted: 2nd September 2005

Characters: Kenza, U'kaiah
Description: U'kaiah has a meeting when he should be resting with his wingthird about the loss of T'em
Location: Dragonsfall Weyr
Date: month 7, day 16 of Turn 3

}: You really should be resting. :{ Kalamath crooned softly in his mind.

**No,** U'kaiah responded. **I must talk to Kenza first. We have to decide what to do.**

T'em had been a good rider. An excellent rider, in fact. Young, smart, promising... What had gone so wrong? The Cyan Wingleader thought back to that morning. The Fall of Dolphin Cove was finished. It was time to come back to the Weyr. He had made sure they all left early that morning so that they would have a little leeway - time enough to be sure they didn't run into themselves leaving the Weyr, as well as time to relax and even sleep before drills began. He distinctly remembered that T'em, as his Wingsecond, had been beside him on his bronze. They had all assembled in the Dolphin Cover Weyr bowl, Kalamath assured him that they all knew where and _when_ they were going. And yet somewhere between the ground and /between/ something had gone wrong. There was no rest for U'kaiah when they returned to the Weyr.

His thoughts were interrupted by a knock on his door. "Come in, Kenza,"
he called.

Kenza dropped into a chair and looked U'kaiah over before raising an eyebrow. "You look like should be flat on your back, lad."

"I just put in a full day fighting Thread and now I'm here to put in a full day of drills." U'kaiah answered testily. "And on top of that, I have lost my wingsecond on the trip back. How should I look, Kenza?"

"Don't get defensive with me," Kenza replied easily enough. "It wasn't criticism... it was worry." "Who should I get defensive with if not my own _wingthird_?" U'kaiah growled as he brought his fist down on the desk. The move surprised even him. He was not one to lose his temper easily. He craddled his forehead in his hand. "I'm sorry Kenza. It's this sharding timing. I can _feel_ it."

Sighing, Kenza leaned forward. "When's the last time you ate something?" "Just a couple hours ago. When I woke up." He rubbed his head in confusion. No, that can't be right. "But then I was at Dolphin Cove. Correction - but now I _am_ at Dolphin Cove. So I guess it was several hours ago. Shards, I don't know anymore."

A brief conversation with her dragon took care of that problem. "One of the weyrlings will be up here as quick as they can run with a tray from the kitchens. I'm going to sit here and watch you eat it. You can't live twice as much time and still eat the same amount of food, U'kaiah.
You're going to make yourself collapse." "I don't have time to collapse." He leaned back in his chair and sighed. "He's alive, you know, Kenza. He's alive right _now_. T'em is there, at Dolphin Cove."

The thought made her head ache. "Stop thinking about it for now, U'kaiah. You don't have time to collapse, and you certainly don't have time to brood. You need to eat, you need to lead your drills... and you need to _sleep_ tonight." "I need a new wingsecond." U'kaiah felt terrible saying that thought aloud, especially since T'em was still alive. He was alive and soon he would die and U'kaiah could do nothing. It was a fact that he had to keep reminding himself of - T'em was lost and he could _not_ change that. It was much too risky, even for him to try.

Leaning back in her chair, Kenza sighed, rubbing at the side of her face. "There's the same candidates you had when you promoted T'em to begin with... except for D'ale. He's only been back a sevenday or so, but he's experienced enough, at least." "Yes," he nodded, "there is D'ale. And none better than him. He still needs some time to adjust to the wing. I would not put him as my second for the Fall tomorrow. It's still too soon. But maybe before the Fall next sevenday. He would be the best choice."

"No," Kenza replied, fairly confidently. "We've been friends from weyrlinghood... but I'm sure I can shake sense into him as well as I can you. Maybe better since I've been bossing him around for thirty turns or more." "Hmph," U'kaiah snorted. "I thought _I_ was supposed to be the boss of this wing."

A knock sounded on his office door. Kenza smiled at him fondly before standing and taking the tray from the weyrling on the other side. Once the door was safely closed she set the food in front of him. "You lead the wing, U'kaiah. I'll take care of being bossy. And right now that includes making sure you eat." The wingleader tried not to feel like a patronized little boy as he picked up a meat roll and popped it into his mouth. If felt dry and had no taste. He took a long drink of juice to wash it down. "After the Fall tomorrow I'll talk to D'ale."

Kenza smiled and settled back down into her chair, reading his expression all too easily. "Don't worry, wingleader. If there's anyone who can teach you how to get back at me for being a bossy, overbearing woman, it's D'ale. I'm sure he'll be more than willing to teach you." U'kaiah just look at her over the rim of his juice as he tried to choke down another meat roll that had all the flavor of flour and water. His day was just begining - _again_ - and he was already in a foul mood. This did not bode well for the riders he was about to lead in drills.

Last updated on the September 18th 2005

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Stretched Too Thin (3): The Boss