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lecpenni · 10 months

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LEC RETROSPECTIVE: ASTRALIS

Man, this one's just sad.

So Astralis have had a very unfortunate history in LEC so far. Rebranding Origen, which wasn't the most successful after 2016, qualifying to worlds in 2015 and making it to semifinals with that early Niels/Mithy botlane, before losing it to G2 and floundering around the bottom of the table until being demoted in 2017, and then being accepted as a partner org for LEC franchising.

After 2019's "superteam" lost in spring finals to the G2 actual Superteam, 2020's "superteam" (also featuring Upset, natch) performed basically ok then went 10th in summer, and rebranded to Astralis heading into 2021. Signing an all new roster going into 2021, they floundered around the bottom of the table, going 9th, tied 7th, then 9th and 10th in 2022. But the rosters always had flashes of brilliance with endearing players like Zanzarah, WhiteKnight who had arguably a top 3 lee sin in the world during that cursed Lane Sin period, and Kobbe who was a reliable rock looking for a team to finally step out of the shadow of his prior glories on Misfits and Splyce and his 2020 on TSM which was a disaaaaster. Well going into 2023, Astralis actually kept a surprisingly consistent core of Dajor in Mid, Kobbe in Bot, and Korean support Jeonghoon, previously known as Execute, who made a strong impression early in 2022 on Pyke and Bard, despite being on bottom CL rosters beforehand. In addition, they retained the same coaching staff, which while not the top tier of LEC coaches, you could do a WHOLE lot worse. The new additions were Finn in top lane, who had a... odd history prior to this. Debuting in 2019 Summer as a sub for Rogue, who had a fairly weak roster at that point, before making Worlds with a similar roster in 2020, and utterly flopping as the EU 3rd seed, moving to NA and joining CLG during their worst years ever, then coming back to EU and joining Excel during their most successful year, and missing out on worlds by getting reverse swept by a Fnatic who had a fair amount of promise. And in the Jungle, 113. I think most people would say he's probably one of the worse jungle prospects in the ERLs, and he certainly didn't impress while on KCorp, often dragging his team down. But, with a good coach and team around him, he could maybe impress. Early on, not many hopes were had for Astralis, who were often placed bottom 2 or 3 alongside SK in tier lists and power rankings, due to the slightly underwhelming pickups of 113 and Finn, Dajor's mostly amateurish gameplay and Kobbe and Jeonghoon probably being elo helled again due to this topside.

But against all odds, Astralis managed to not completely shit the bed in Winter! Overall they went 3-6 in winter, which did qualify them for Groups, barely. Losses to a new G2 and Yike on a carry jungler, vs Heretics with a brave ass Fiora pick, Vitality who actually did well in Winter overall, and BDS left them very unoptimistic going into week 3, but grabbing a win over Excel meant they were at least guaranteed a chance for top 8, with an incredibly dominant Lucian/Nami, and on Week 3, a clutch Gangplank from Finn snatched victory from the jaws of defeat dropping absolute gorgeous barrels that completely annihilated an MVP level Exakick on Lucian, and then the game that would decide if Astralis could make it to groups, vs a slumped Fnatic that would end up missing playoffs for the first time in their history. Astralis, against almost all odds made it to groups. You could argue it was off the back of Excel looking completely lifeless and horrendous, and Fnatic having a ridiculously poor season in a meta that hated them, but nonetheless, Astralis overcame them and a rising SK to make it to groups. Let's Goooo!!!! And in groups they shit it goddamn it. A 2-1 loss to MAD Lions, who ended up being Astralis' bane this season, with a genuinely unique and surprisingly strong Cassio/Twitch botlane (it lost anyways), and a monster performance from Dajor and the Botlane in Game 2, followed by getting a win over BDS who hadn't come into their winning ways just yet, anchored by a Kled from Finn, his previous one-trick, and a really damn good Varus from Kobbe, carrying them through to one last try at Playoffs. Who's their opponent MAD fucking lions goddamn it all.

A quick 2-0 from MAD, focusing a Dajor who floundered all series, and a fairly disastrous performance from 113, despite Kobbe's best effort on Lucian left Astralis in a maybe not respectable, but certainly surprising 5th place. They scrapped and fought their way up and punched up for most of their victories, demonstrating a style that maybe wasn't unlike some Asian teams, with a toplaner transitioned around the map to generate pressure, a roaming mid-jungle and a strongside botlane who made sure they were the stars. But most of all, they showed 0 fear on engaging and taking every little fight they could, to generate any kind of advantage. That made Astralis genuinely exciting to watch, but there was an obvious weak link on the roster, and that was Mid lane. Going into Spring, Dajor was out, and the rumoured Mid was none other than LIDER, a player who was often considered a dark horse for most inflexible player ever. The narrative was always that the man would and could only ever play assassins, an unusual thing in high level play, as most midlaners since 2016ish stuck to control mages, with occasional assasin picks or poke mages as niche counterpicks. But honestly? That was never true. LIDER did play mages as and when needed, the man just preferred assassins in the game, and he was still capable of your Ryzes, (with the meta changes) your Annies, your Aurelion Sols, even an Azir from time to time. Yes, assassins were his specialty, and mostly what he played, but the narrative that his assassins were his only successful picks? Just untrue. Spring began with a rough first week. FOR ASTRALIS' OPPONENTS, THAT IS. Taking games over KOI, who made playoffs last season, and the Champions G2, with a LIDER Irelia, and dropping a game to SK, with a... unique botlane of Veigar/Pyke that did NOT pay off. Week 2 went rougher, losing to MAD (i told you) and BDS, who came in with a clear gameplan and a perfect plan on how to execute every comp, and then taking a game off of Vitality thanks to a strong LIDER Asol, and a fairly bad game from Bo on the inverse. Week 3 began with a new look again, as LIDER got his Zed, and used it to utterly dominate midlane and carry Astralis through, basically securing playoffs for the team. A win over Excel, thanks to a LIDER Irelia, and a win over Fnatic with another LIDER Zed, a JeongHoon Blitzcrank secured Astralis their first 3-0 week, and a shot at the top couple spots of the season, placing 2nd overall. A damn good finish, if i've ever seen one. LIDER brought so much to the team, and they looked incredibly strong going into the next round. Some things hadn't changed, like 113's ability to be exploited, but overall this roster look shockingly strong, and their playstyle had been solidified, and bright eyes looked forward to groups. We begin the group stage against the one and only Fnatic, a genuinely shockingly close series for what should've been 2nd place vs 8th place, but an odd choice with Illaoi from Finn lost game 2, alongside a misguided Zed pick from LIDER, and a game 3 that hinged on the success of another LIDER Irelia, which managed to finally pull out the win after a half hour slugfest. Astralis, to be frank, were bleeding. They didn't look anywhere as scrappy or exciting as in the regular season, and their next series vs Vitality, to qualify for playoffs, well... Remember yesterday when I said this series was the one that showed the Bo That Was Promised, an insane mechanical hypercarry player who could demolish a team and turn them into a chinese tiktok montage? Yeah, Astralis was on the recieving end of that. 113 and LIDER got absolutely FARMED by a wukong, followed by a Lee Sin, and that was a deathblow for Astralis' mental it felt like. They had beat Vitality already once, like, what was this? Their next series, since they had already won the one vs Fnatic, was vs... MAD FUCKING LIONS. I told you they were their kryptonite this season.

And despite a Cassio and Talon (?) from LIDER, 113 got hard exposed and dominated by the mid jungle of MAD, ending their season, once again, early. This was a sad moment. Astralis had finally begun to reach the heights of the roster that was promised to them, but other teams started reaching their heights much faster than they did, and simply outclassed them. Over the break for MSI, Astralis was one of few roster to make no changes. They had a winning formula, the 2nd place in spring proved that, and the formula and strategy was locked down, scrap everywhere, fight everything, get lane dominant picks and move Finn around to every sidelane to make sure you couldn't do anything without worrying about where he was.

Well... Summer came. And this is where their story goes from hopeful rise of a plucky young adventurer, to a tragedy that ends with the adventurer getting beheaded by the mighty warlord at the end. Summer didn't go well. At all. Week 1 began with a game vs Fnatic, the team that they beat in Spring Groups, however now sporting a fashionable new Botlane of Noah and Trymbi, who proceeded to utterly shitstomp them. A game vs Heretics with a shiny new Vetheo and Flakked, who proceeded to utterly dismantle a LIDER Neeko, but ending the week on a positive note with one of the absolute worst earlygames i've ever had the pleasure of watching in pro league of legends, vs BDS. Nuc simply walks into LIDER for about 10 seconds letting him fully stack Lethal Tempo and nearly 1v2 Adam and Nuc. Please watch it, it's so absolutely pathetic and tragic for how the rest of the game now goes. Finn also helps by RPing Peak Shanji (the OMG toplaner known for his AP tops like Rumble) in the toplane vs Adam, and you know what. It's not the worst. It was a fun fucking game, but the fact that Astralis only won because BDS managed to completely annihilate their ENTIRE early game by doing that wasn't a good sign. Week 2 came by, Astralis were sitting tied with 5 other teams at 1-2, so not that well off, but they could be much worse. Right now they could be Excel still sitting at 0-3! First game, vs MAD lions oh for fuck sake why did they give Nisqy Gragas. That's like rule number 1 vs MAD since winter playoffs, don't give Nisqy Gragas. Well that's lost. Game 2, Vitality well this should be better, vitality look lost and helpless in almost every game now! And Astralis do it! Another Yasuo, with a Gragas for Finn in top handily sweeps the floundering Vitality, and Game 3 of the week pits them vs G2 aaaand yeah it goes about as well as you might think. The game's an absolute snoozer with 10 kills in almost 30 minutes, but demonstrates something amazing about G2 and something really bad about Astralis. Unless they're running the pace of the game, Astralis generally flounder. And G2 are professionals at running the game at the exact pace they desire. Week 3 comes by, and Astralis are a bit worse off. Now they're only tied with 3 other teams, and they could still make it to groups, but few people have high hopes for them. Some of the people they're tied against, they face this week, and BDS they've already beaten. This should be easy, right? Well they beat SK, thanks almost exclusively to a LIDER Azir, giving them one step up on the competition for 8th, now all they need is:

Beat KOI

SK Lose another game

Well, next game vs an Excel who got their first 3-0 week and look decently strong, they lose. No biggie. Would've been nice to win, but all they need now is SK lose (they didn't, they beat MAD) and to beat KOI. That KOI game was an absolute shitshow. Comp pulls out an off-meta Sivir and reminds the world why Sivir was the menace it was just after the rework, with a disasterclass from JeongHoon on Nautilus. Well, their season isn't over just yet! If SK lose to Fnatic, the First place team with a dominant insane botlane, an MVP jungler and one of the strongest toplaners right now, then Astralis qualify! Well they get a tiebreaker. But they've beaten SK before, it's doable again! That SK-Fnatic game was a nailbiter start to finish. From a surprisingly Humanoid Xerath, one of the most terrifying 4/4 Jaxes i've ever seen, and a ridiculous carry performance from Mr Sertussy, it was an end to Astralis' season. 9th place. Where most predicted they'd end in Winter and Spring. Afterwards, it's announced that due to Championship points, it's impossible to Astralis to qualify for Season finals, meaning for Finn, 113, LIDER, Kobbe and JeongHoon, that's it. Their season is completely over. Unlike Vitality who finished last, they're done for now. Following this was some truly heartbreaking posts, especially from Finn, which I'll show here in its entirety:

Finn spent most of the year playing at a high level, being massively underrated on Astralis' roster, and even arguably on Excel, and to lose like this is really heartbreaking. As he says, At the end of the day 2 teams have to miss out, this summer split it just ended up being us. Astralis' future is unknown. Even before the split, rumours were abound that the org was planning on collaborating with KCorp and making the LEC spot a joint-ownership between Astralis and KCorp, but that deal fell through. Most of these players deserve more shots, but most teams won't be shopping around for new players in the offseason until worlds in October/November. I do hope the best comes for this team and these players. APPENDED: I finished this post at around 3:30PM on Friday, and a report has just come out about an hour ago from blix.gg (read here on this link) that Astralis are considering selling their spot again, and negotiations got pretty far with Saudi Org, Falcons, who operate a french CSGO (now CS2 i guess) starring KennyS. Riot apparently blocked the sale, not wanting a Saudi investment firm to get in. Blix also says that some ERL teams are competing for the spot, and if it does end like this, man that's sad. Yeah Astralis weren't the best team but they had heart and their players were likeable as fuck, with genuinely cool plays and players across their history, even in the most dire days of their history.

#lol esports #lec #astralis #ast lider #ast finn #ast kobbe #esports #league of legends

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bugcatcherwill · 8 months

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Rage Against the Calamity - Chapter 58: Hylian and Rito Hospitality

Bokoblins, Moblins, Lizalfos, and Wizzrobe. One of each has managed to break free from the Malice that binds them. With their tie to Ganon gone, these monsters must fight to survive in a world where everything wants them dead. Yet, things are not always what they seem. For as unforgiving a land as Hyrule, it will continue to surprise even the most hopeless hearts. This is the story of those four monsters, and all their unlikely allies…

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It was a few hours into the afternoon and all of Akkala Stable was in a ruckus. Rudi's loose lips had keyed everyone in on the Lab's little secret before they planned on breaking the news, and the stable's reaction was exactly what Hoz had been trying to avoid. The residents and travelers alike yammered on and on about the situation, the implications, and most importantly, what to do. Hoz's pencil-thin mustache twitched in aggravation as the mini-crowd refused to settle down. Desperately he tried to gain control.

"My fellow Hylians, can we please simmer down?" he said, getting completely ignored. He removed the steel soldier's helmet on his head, a relic of the past that was still in pristine condition, and clanged against it with his fist several times.

"Again, can we please have some quiet to discuss this?"

A few members of the crowd softened up, but the loudest ones only raised their voice - too enraptured by their own conversation to notice.

"HEY!!!" Rudi, the stablehand next to him, shouted as loud as he possibly could. That inflection was only used when he really needed to get control of the horses, but it worked on Hylians well enough too. The entire stable turned white-eye, even those that had stopped talking long ago, and brought their attention to Hoz and Rudi standing atop chairs.

"Now then," Hoz said, pinching his dark brown goatee, "let's try our best to come to a consensus civilly and quietly. Of course, we wouldn't have to shout if Rudi kept his damn mouth shut until now, but I digress."

The grizzled dirty-blond Hylian twirled one of his hair tassels bashfully. He couldn't help but blab, with his whole job involving shooting the breeze with the entire stable. Still, looking at the panicked faces below him, he felt quite a bit of regret.

"Since no doubt everyone has a different account of what happened in their head, despite only us two even being there, I'm going to clear the air and tell you all exactly what I saw. Alright?"

Hoz was already preparing for the worst. When you have the job of the only "soldier" in that region, a lot of your dealings with the public involve wild goose chases and petty squabbles where nobody could get their story straight. Weakly, several faces in the crowd silently nodded, letting him finally speak his mind.

"Good. Okay, this all happened during my morning patrol. I heard a commotion at the Lab up the hill, and I found Robbie and a few Sheikah trying to wrangle an Eldin Ostrich around. You all know Robbie, right?"

Those that lived around the stable and the regular merchants all let out a round of staggered 'Yea…'s, having seen the man come down for food and supplies numerous times. Although most interestingly, his grocery list had amplified nearly tenfold in recent weeks.

"I also, however, saw an assortment of monsters run out of the Lab, too. But the shocking part was their demeanor. None of them acted like usual monsters, and they seemed to help the Sheikahs wrangle the bird, yelling words of their own, though I couldn't hear what they were saying. I saw a Lizalfos, a Blue Moblin, and two Wizzrobe amongst them. Once they managed to get ahold of the ostrich, they all grouped together and walked to the back. That was the last I saw of them today. Rudi can vouch for me because he saw most of it, too…"

Eyes turned to the stablehand and he nodded confidently, his bushy handlebar mustache covering his slight frown. Hoz continued.

"To tell you the truth, it was actually…pretty funny to witness. Never seen a Moblin panic like that before, heh," he said to a very tepid crowd, forcing him to awkwardly clear his throat, "But as you can see, there's been no monster attack on the stable, or anything of the sort. There were no burnt crops, poisoned wells, or mind-controlled Hylians. I'm sure we would have noticed some of the outlandish things I've heard this morning, and I'd like to remind you all that rumors are dangerous. They can very easily lead to unneeded panic and mass hysteria, which is why I try to do my job as best as I can - to prevent these misunderstandings."

A few members of the crowd tugged at the collars of their shirts - embarrassed that they did exactly that.

"But that still leaves the unanswered question of why we saw non-hostile monsters seemingly living with Robbie and whatever other Sheikah were up there. I'm sure if I just paid him a visit, we could get an answer straight from the horse's mouth."

Like steam erupting from a kettle the entire crowd exploded with negative rebuttals - nearly screaming at Hoz to let him know their opinion on his idea. The soldier recoiled back holding his open palms out while fists were raised in objection.

"What are you, crazy?!"

"You got a death wish, Hoz?"

"No! Don't go up there!"

Hoz finally raised his voice loud enough to carry over the rest.

"Whoa, whoa, HEY!" he shouted, Rudi nodding with a stuck-out lower lip showing even he was impressed with that one, "Now I've known Robbie ever since I got stationed here! He's been nothing but kind to all of us and even solved a few of our problems. It's hard to believe he'd be up to anything malicious after all he's done to keep this stable safe…"

He deliberately left out the fact that Robbie had recently used the de-aging rune on himself, knowing it'd only seed more panic and crackpot theories. Rudi gave Hoz a side-eye, knowing the Sheikah man's secret too, but let it slide for now. That still did little to temper the growing mob. Many voiced objections, with one in particular patiently raising their hand to have the floor.

"Didn't you hear about what happened at Hateno? You used to live there didn't you, Hoz? It was all because of the Sheikah Lab there, and they were hiding monsters, too! The woman responsible and the monsters were never found in the wreckage, either! It must be the same group, and the same might happen to us!"

More jeers were hurled that made Hoz wince painfully. He just knew this would come up if he had this meeting.

"I've heard the stories, yes. It's nearly impossible to get anywhere in Hyrule without hearing it," he said, crossing his arms and desperately trying to maintain the voice of reason, "But remember what I just said about rumors? Or do you think they did exactly what we're doing now? Riling ourselves up over nothing but assumptions!"

He was met with immediate anger, an unknown patron going so far to hurl a crumpled up piece of paper at Hoz - bouncing harmlessly on his head.

"You're calling children almost getting eaten an assumption?!"

This was already spiraling out of control. Fists balled with exasperation, Hoz stomped his leather boot on the chair and nearly cracked it. Just enough silence broke for him to speak.

"Remember the Fang and Bone incident? The whole reason I came up to Akkala? Eeeeveryone was coming to me terrified of some evil dark-magic wizard that was selling severed monster heads and trying to kidnap children in the night! And because of all that I almost cut down some weird eccentric, but ultimately harmless, Hylian in cold blood! What an awkward apology that was, right?! And I feel like the only one still feeling guilty about it! Sound familiar to you?"

For the briefest of moments, the mob felt a modicum of shame. The near-trance they were snapped out of forced them to look at each other's panicked ghost-white faces and actually think about the logical next steps. Thankfully for them, a stray voice was not so easily swayed by reason and enabled them to throw the blinders on their brains once again.

"But this time it's an actual monster! Scratch that, monsters! More than one! We have to do something!"

The steaming kettle whistled again, the crowd now all yelling their various ideas - none of them particularly pleasant. Hoz threw his fists downwards and glared into each and every face he could see.

"Well I'm not giving any of you the key to the munitions shack until I see some proof that we should resort to that!" he shouted so forcefully his helmet went askew, squinting his eyes nearly shut and pointing his finger so fiercely it could poke an eye out, "And the key isn't even on me - it's hidden well. So good luck with…whatever you plan to do unless you convince me those monsters I saw are an actual threat! I was sent here to keep you all safe, and that includes stopping you from yourselves!"

The bloodlust in the Hylians' eyes finally relinquished, if only for a moment. While they were an angry mob, they were an angry mob confined by the superficial barrier of politeness. They could, for all intents and purposes, simply bust down the walls of the shack and grab whatever torches, swords, and bows were stocked there. But that would go against their idea of law - regardless of whatever they were going to do with them immediately afterwards that directly broke said law. Almost acting like a representative, a lone Hylian separated from the sea of the crowd. He was one of the permanent residents of the Akkala Stable that went by the name Khini.

"Well you can twiddle your thumbs and wait for something bad to happen! We will find the evidence ourselves to ensure our children can sleep safely each night!" he said with a huff, practically dismissing the crowd by himself.

Some Hylians dispersed entirely, realizing they still had their daily work and schedules to keep track of. A decently sized portion stayed, however, following Khini almost like how ducklings follow their mother. Exhausted bags under his eyes, looking as though he missed several nights of sleep, Hoz turned to Rudi who just morbidly chuckled in response.

"Now do you see what I put up with on a daily basis before you got here?" the stablehand said.

The soldier rolled his eyes, getting a sudden desire to reach for his flask normally reserved for nightly fun and take a long swig.

"I don't know why you didn't side with them considering how you reacted this morning," he said disdainfully. Rudi scoffed and readjusted Hoz's helmet with a petty flick of the finger.

"Tch. I'd sooner try to keep a Lynel in the stables. Besides, now that I've had time to think, all of this seems…off. I've seen monsters. Too many monsters. Those monsters I saw…they were monsters, all right, but they weren't monsters. I would like to know what really went down at Hateno."

Hoz wearily sat down in his chair and pouted, his thin mustache shifting to the left and to the right.

"You could come up with me and ask them, like my original suggestion."

"Do you think they will let us get further than ten steps?" Rudi said, motioning to the rowdy circle of Hylians plotting around a nearby table.

"Grrgh…fair point."

…

While Teba properly led Kobb up and down the village, the Bokoblin nearly gave itself whiplash from spinning its head around. It hadn't gotten the chance to admire the scenery when it was led around bound by rope, but now that Kobb could go as it pleased its hands spent a good amount of time gripping the wooden railings as it gazed across the lake and every which way between. Its large snout vibrated in content with every breath, desperate to keep that fresh breezy pine smell. Many of the other Rito denizens found Kobb pleasantly endearing, often laughing or smiling at its reactions. It'd been quite some time since there was a new visitor to the Village, let alone a special case like Kobb - and it was always entertaining to see someone's first experience.

Before long the sweet and savory smells of cooking all around it started to get to Kobb, its mouth subconsciously watering. It had missed lunch due to this whole debacle and Teba could hear the angry complaints of its stomach. Stifling a grin, he led Link and the Bokoblin all the way down the spiral boardwalk to the floating fish farms that encompassed the rock archipelago of Rito Village. Kobb was in awe at how well everything was seemingly built into nature. For a while it forgot about the hunger pangs and just watched the Rito fishers walk all around the bobbing wooden platforms, peering into the square holes that led to the netted tanks, occasionally pulling a fish out to measure and weigh it, before taking notes and tossing it back in.

When it was ready, all Kobb had to do was pick out a fish from the tanks deemed "ready to eat", and the Ritos there would gut and prepare it on the spot. Link was there to help it choose a nice healthy one. From there all they had to do was walk back up and either cook it themselves, or pay someone at the inn to cook it for them. With a hearty wave Teba took off to meet them at the top - using the updrafts from the lake to soar all the way up. Kobb and Link had to take the grueling stairs.

But the effort it took made the first bite of seared Hylian Trout all the more divine.

Kobb softly squealed in delight the moment the flaky buttery fish passed its lips. The tips of its ears twitched in delight, leaning its head back with eyes closed, ready to dive in for more. It had to hold back its ravenous appetite just to savor every bite. Zayl's cooking was objectively better, but the fish being as fresh as can possibly be was hard to beat. Although it made sure to take notes watching the dish get prepared - ready to ask Zayl to replicate it as soon as it'd return. Both Kobb and Link ate at the table in Teba's house, sharing their meal with him and his wife Saki. She had been brought up to speed long ago, but there was a difference between that and actually sitting this close to a Bokoblin. Regardless, she welcomed Kobb with a smile and gave it a wide hug with her bright purple wings, telling it that every guest always gets a "mom hug". Link tried to tiptoe away, not exactly the most touchy-feely with most people, but was grabbed by the shirt collar and hugged all the same.

"You know, I never expected Bokoblins to look so adorable up close…" she whispered to Teba, who playfully rolled his eyes and pushed her on the shoulder. There was still an empty seat, one higher up and smaller than the rest, and Saki's impatience soon showed.

"Oh where in Hyrule is that boy, he disappears like a falcon in an updraft, I swear…" she grumbled, getting up and sticking her head out of their open-wall house. Link gave Teba a smarmy little eyebrow raise, who rolled his eyes again. He never liked to raise his voice, personally.

"Tulin! I told you already, dinner's done! Don't let it get cold!" she shouted, her voice echoing through the whole village and giving Kobb some secondhand embarrassment.

Less than a minute later it saw the spitting image of Teba, only much smaller, bobbing up and down as the Rito child ran as fast as his tiny legs could carry him. Unlike Teba, the little one's eyes sparkled like his mother's. His wings were mostly developed, but Kobb doubted he'd be able to fly like the grown Rito for at least another few years. That didn't stop him from trying - taking a big leap every few steps and flapping his wings frantically to slow his descent ever so slightly.

"Aw, c'mon, mom!" Tulin whined before getting promptly scooped up in her wings, "I was on a mission!"

Saki giggled and nuzzled her beak into her child's feathers, tickling him as he kicked his talons playfully.

"Ohhhh is that so? Well your new mission is to finish that plate in front of you, so my little fledgling can grow big and strong like your father!" she said, plopping him down in his seat and tying a handkerchief around his neck. Tulin immediately began scarfing his meal down, needing a little correction on manners, before finally looking up and nearly jumping out of his seat when he saw the familiar Hylian at the table - somehow completely glossing over the Bokoblin also across from him.

"Link!" he cried, the Hylian giving him a little wave, "You're here again! I've done so much since last time!"

Link leaned forward with an elbow on the table and the hand on his chin, giving Tulin his undivided attention.

"Oh, you have?" he said with a warm smile, playing the role of a visiting uncle, "What have you been up to since I've been gone?"

Tulin's eyes lit up again and immediately began talking a mile a minute.

"So first I flew all around Hyrule three times! And then I beat up a Stone Talus with my friend Molli all by ourselves! And then I used my bow to hit an apple from a THOUSAND steps away! And then…"

The Rito child chirped on and on but Link stayed attentive the whole time, egging on Tulin to go into the thrilling details, which he did with great embellishment. Teba and Saki couldn't help but smile when they looked at each other, seeing Tulin's beaming face. Eventually he was running out of his 'missions' to talk about and his attention strayed, finally noticing Kobb that had been sitting at the table the entire time.

"Whoa! You're a Bokoblin!" he said, pointing his wing towards Kobb's large snout. Teba and Saki tensed up a little, wondering what either of their reactions would be. Kobb simply straightened its back and puffed out its chest slightly.

"Yes I am!" it said matter-of-factly, having at least some experience with the boundlessly energetic youth thanks to Ashen. Tulin's eyes sparkled with intrigue as he had never actually seen a Bokoblin in real life before - only in picture books and stories.

"That's so cool! …Can I fight you?"

"Tulin!" Teba and Saki shouted in unison, their feathers ruffling from embarrassment as they tried to quell his loose beak. Meanwhile Link and Kobb nearly choked trying not to laugh from the sheer brazenness of the child.

"What? I could see what it's like to fight a real Boko-mmph mmpph!" he tried to say before Saki covered his beak.

"Heh, kids can be pretty blunt sometimes, huh?" she said, blushing through her purple and white feathers, trying to deflect from the faux pas.

Kobb just laughed it off, much to their relief.

"Heh. It is fine. I am used to bluntness - though mostly from ones much older than this one…" it said with a morbid chuckle before turning to the Rito child, "Tulin, you hopefully will not need to fight any Bokoblins, but when you are old enough to hold a sword on your own we can have a friendly spar."

A muffled "Woo-Hoo!" could be heard behind Saki's wing, causing both the mother and the father to sigh. Thankfully that day seemed far enough away that they wouldn't have to worry about it for a while.

Once dinner was finished, Teba took Kobb and Link over to Revali's Landing - which offered a beautiful view of the sunset. The whole time Kobb sat itself next to Link on one of the benches, it was approached by several of the Rito children. Before one even walked up, Kobb spotted the whole gaggle of them watching from a distance - arguing amongst each other over who should go up to it first. One-by-one they took their turn running up to Kobb and either saying some childish quip, or making a playfully rude gesture and running away frantically giggling. Sometimes Kobb would return the gesture or stick out its tongue and make a raspberry sound, causing the small Rito to laugh even harder and sprint back to the group. With every visit it'd look back at Link and exchange a knowing glance.

"You'll get used to it, they don't see non-Rito that often - especially in times like these." Link said, having dealt with this exact bombardment of nosy fledglings, himself. Just as he said that, another one ran up to Kobb.

"If…if you're a Bokobwin, where's your cwub?" she said, leaning forward and back on her talons with wings politely held behind her back.

"I do not have one!" it said with a shrug, "I prefer a sword, like how some Ritos do not use a bow."

"Oooooo…pwefer…that's neat! Mother warned me not to talk to the Bokobwin, but you're pwetty nice!"

That last comment especially broke Kobb's heart and it had to restrain itself from showing too much emotion as the child bounded back to the group, the rest of the fledglings cheering her on and patting her on the back before finally running off somewhere else. With a deep breath Kobb stood up and looked out from the landing across Hebra. But it didn't have a chance to dwell for long as it was interrupted by stomping footsteps and a loud AH-HEM.

It turned to see exactly what it hoped wouldn't be there: a very pissed-off Thrush standing before it with his wings crossed in a withheld rage. Kobb's attention turned to a spot on the Rito's leather tunic. It was pristine and unblemished unlike the rest of the uniform - with holes around the outline where stitching once was. The shape was that of the crest Kobb has spotted throughout the village and on the other Rito guards. The two stared each other down - Kobb matching Thrush's scowl as it had yet to hear a genuine apology from him. And it didn't think that was why he came. Once again several other nosy Rito perched around the landing, waiting to see the conclusion of this altercation.

Without a word Thrust reached his wing up and behind his head, prompting Kobb to instinctively grasp at its sheathed sword. However the disgraced Rito Captain didn't reach for his bow. With a near silent poink he yanked a good-sized feather out of his plumage. It was a beautiful deep sea green, perfectly uniform in hue. The feather was then whipped towards the Bokoblin with a sharp fwish. The pointy end stuck perfectly between the wooden planks of the landing right at Kobb's feet. The crowd gasped and murmurs filled the surrounding pine air. Kobb looked down then back up at Thrush, feeling more out of loop than ever, its scowl replaced with a surprised confusion.

"Well?! What is your answer, monster?" he shouted, beak quivering in rage, "I cannot sink lower than I already have so I might as well take you down with me!"

The Bokoblin's perplexed stare continued.

"You're being challenged to a duel of Rito combat…" Teba muttered, leaning over into Kobb's ear.

"...to the death?" Kobb asked back, shocked at the assumption that Thrush would risk his life to prove a point like this. Teba burst in a deep laugh, not expecting that question.

"No, but close! To establish the pecking order. To claim yourself as the superior fighter. Although for non-Ritos, I wouldn't-"

"I accept." Kobb said, snapping its head towards the challenger without even hearing the rest. While it wasn't the vengeful type, the prospect of knocking Thrush down a peg or two was too tantalizing to ignore especially when the memories of that morning were still fresh and bitter in its mind.

"Wait, Kobb…don't-" Link tried to say, knowing the Bokoblin was being hustled and it knew none of the details involving Rito duels. But it was too late now that the growing crowd had heard it say yes. Another gasp followed, along with Thrush beginning a quiet chuckle that grew to a roaring cackle.

"Hah! Haha! Ahahaha! I can't believe it! You actually accepted! No backing down now! See you at the range in two days, hope you can grow wings before then! You probably should have listened to your Hylian friend!"

Thrush leapt up into the air triumphantly and circled around the main spire several more times before flying off out of sight - his maniacal laughter carrying throughout the air. Feeling more sheepish than ever, Kobb turned with purple-flushed cheeks towards Link and Teba, who both looked at the Bokoblin with unamused frowns.

"I…what should I do now?" it asked, knowing better than to make excuses for the situation it sprinted head-first into.

"Now," Link said, pinching the bridge of his nose with an all-too-familiar migraine, "we get your archery up to snuff and somehow teach you to fly because your mouth talked faster than your brain…"

#botw #totk #botw fanfic #totk fanfic #ratc #rage against the calamity #loz #loz fanfic #legend of zelda #link #teba #tulin #I'm giving Kobb its own Revali ehehe #Tulin is baby and also my son

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