Sixteenth Blight - video; O captain, my captain

[bryces_pup]

Who: Riona and you
Broadcast: Yes
Action: On the Blue Fish, if wanted
When: Today

[Riona has had to make some difficult network posts in her time here. And it's not the first time she's announced a departure. But this one weighs the heaviest on her, in some ways even more so than when Leliana left, or when the Starks departed. Because this does not affect just her, but so many others. Not to mention the position it's now left her in.

She had her cry, curled up in the empty captain's room. Her room, now. It doesn't feel right. This shouldn't be hers, but such are the rules, and such is Atroma's whim. For all the blows they've delivered against her, this is one of the worst by far. But she keeps her face composed and her body still, even as her hands tremble in her lap, fingers wound tightly together as she stares at the camera.]

Good evening, fleet. This is Riona speaking. Perhaps some of you may have already noticed, but... Sokka has gone home. His quarters are empty, and his name has been struck from the communication list. My sudden promotion to captain this morning solidified it. [The title still feels funny on her tongue. It's like she's an imposter. But she'd give anything to give the title back, if she could.] I haven't made it a habit to announce every departure I know of, but he was here for so long and knew so many... it didn't seem right not to say anything. He was one of the, if not the longest standing captain. He'd been here since very early on in this "cycle". He's been a constant presence and a good friend to many, myself included, and the fleet is lesser without him. Though I am glad he was finally able to return home after so long.

[There's so much more she could say: how much she would miss him, the matter of the items and forge he left behind, the usual ranting about how awful Atroma is... but frankly she's exhausted, and she needs to address the Blue Fish's crew, so she ends the public broadcast with:] Thank you for listening.

[This isn't Riona's first rodeo with leadership, or even being thrust into it unexpectedly, so as painful as it is, she takes on the mantle with ease. She knows she needs to speak to the crew - her crew - and do her best to reassure them.]

Hi everyone. I know it's going to be strange to not have Sokka around. He's run this ship for so long, it almost seems wrong to not have him heading the helm. But I know he'd want us to keep carrying on, and to continue being the damned good crew we are. So that's what we're going to do. I'll have a look over his notes and our funds to make sure I'm up to speed. I plan on continuing running things similarly in his stead. We'll have to rearrange a few things, with us having lost our engineer and having a medic in a coma, but I know we'll make do.

[Alistair's coma comes at... not the best time, but she knows it isn't his fault. And that's her own problem to deal with. She won't unnecessarily burden the crew with it.]

If anyone has any questions or concerns, you can reach me on the communicator or in my quarters.