Wandering Firebender

Ninety Nine: Calida's Blaze

Elio reached his hand into the bowl, swishing around a number of folded up little bits of paper before picking one at random to pinch between his thumb and middle finger. He pulled it out and set the bowl down on the table.

"Okay, everyone! Are you ready?" He asked his crew, who were all gathered around in the restaurant. They looked up at him expectantly, anticipation building.

"Now...before I read this out..." Elio stopped himself with a chuckle. This brought on a collective groan from the crew.

"Get on with it, captain!" Delun shouted playfully.

"Hold on," Elio rolled his eyes and smiled. "In a little bit, I'll read the drawing but before I do, I want to thank you all for an amazing year. We've had many difficult assignments thrown our way but everyone here has stayed the course from day one.

"I was brought on to be the captain without any prior experience and no idea how to lead a crew. I couldn't fly the ship if my life depended on it," Elio joked, getting some chuckles from his men.

"Without your experience, your patience, and your enthusiasm, I wouldn't be able to do any of this. I still have a lot to learn, but thanks to all of you, I've at least got the important stuff down...mostly," Elio joked again before concluding his impromptu speech.

"Seriously, it is always a privilege to be able to stand in front of the Fire Lord and give him nothing but good news and brag about how good of a job you all are doing. Keep it up. You're the ones keeping us going – every step we get closer to bringing out a new peace comes from the work you do,"

The members of his crew all clapped for his little speech, letting their approval be heard with some whistles and exclamations. As it died down, Elio cleared his throat and held up the paper again.

"With all that said, you've all cast your votes. The new official name of our airship from this day forward shall be..." Elio slowly unfolded the piece of paper, "Calida's Blaze!" He announced. The men all looked at each other and nodded in relative approval.

"Who picked that name? It's...poetic." Mila asked curiously.

"I did, actually," Alger spoke up. He cleared his throat and stood. "It's an old name...it means 'warm' and 'loving'. Considering our mission parameters and our end goal, it seemed like an appropriate way to describe our ship and its crew." He shared his reasoning.

"Really? Well, I'm inclined to agree. Everyone?" Elio looked to his crew. They all exchanged glances and nodded in approval and agreement. Elio smiled again and grabbed his drink, holding it up.

"Well then...to Calida's Blaze!"

"To Calida's Blaze!" The crew all cheered back to him.

The last time that Elio had gone out to eat with his crew, a fight broke out. This time, he wanted to avoid a similar occurrence at all cost, so he had booked the restaurant for a private event for the entire night. That way everyone could relax and enjoy themselves.

Before long, the place was filled with lively conversation and laughter. While some ate, others drank, and others still were playing tabletop games and Pai Sho in the next room. Elio sat with Cindra, Sri, and Alger while they all ate their food at one of the Pai Sho tables.

"Why are you targeting me, Sri? I'm feeling very targeted right now." Elio pointed out with a chuckle.

"Most experienced player means most dangerous. Sorry buddy." Sri giggled.

"Take that gray hair of yours over to the seniors' table, old man." Cindra teased.

"Wow! Wow, okay. I'll remember that. I see how it is." Elio snickered and took a sip of his drink.