Rise

Westwind had been casting games all night. He was currently on his sixth game in a row. His voice was hurting and he desperately needed a water break. But then he looked at the large screen above the stage. At the Olaf. What a player… He shook his head in disbelief. The Olaf made shoutcasting a high school tournament very interesting. “Hoh? It looks like the Olaf is going for a flank!” he said into his microphone. He heard his voice booming through the venue. It had taken some time to get used to hearing himself, but he was growing comfortable with it. “Shanghai International has placed a ton of wards around their mid lane. This is going to be very difficult. But this Olaf has been surprising us all game. Let’s see what he has in store for us now!”

Silent Reed sat next to Westwind. She’d been shoutcasting the games together with him since the start of the tournament. He usually took the lead and she would respond, preferably with some new insights or a different point of view. She also looked at the large screen above the stage. It showed the game from the spectator mode, meaning that there was no fog of war. They could see exactly where all 10 players were and where they were going. Right now, the Olaf was in the top side of his own Jungle and looking to cross the river to enter Shanghai International’s Jungle. Silent Reed smiled and said, “Yan Liang will probably notice that the Olaf is missing very soon. He’s a good team captain. I think they’ll retreat before the Olaf can surprise them. Plus. See that ward in the brush above the mid lane? They’ll spot the Olaf with that ward the moment he tries anything! This is looking good for Yan Liang’s team!”

Silent Reed’s analysis was correct to a certain extent. That ward would reveal Lin Feng’s Olaf, but only if he walked through that brush or got too close to it. Lin Feng was good enough at the game to know that there was most likely a ward in that brush. So, when he had his Olaf cross the river, he made sure to keep enough distance from that brush to not get spotted by the ward. Then he entered Shanghai International’s Jungle and stopped at the Raptor Camp, which was directly above Shanghai International’s outer tower in the mid lane. A wall of trees was the only thing separating the two.

Lin Feng panned his camera over to the mid lane and watched what was happening there. The Orianna had started to back. It was clear Shanghai International’s team knew something was wrong. What they didn’t know was that it was already far too late to retreat. Lin Feng grinned and pressed down on his D key–Ghost! A blue aura flowed out from underneath the Olaf’s feet, granting him a burst of movement speed. He ran through the narrow passage between the river and the wall of trees around the Raptor Camp. Then he used the active skill of one of his items, which gave him a second movement speed boost. He stormed into the mid lane!

Westwind tried to hype up the crowd for this play. But only a small section of the audience responded to him. The rest were sitting on the edge of their seats, enthralled. It all happened so quickly. One moment High School 13 and Shanghai International were throwing skillshots at each other in the mid lane, and the next the Olaf had flanked Shanghai International’s team and was charging at them. The audience didn’t want to miss a second of the action, not even to cheer!

Lin Feng’s Olaf was the embodiment of Odin. He was the Norse God of War and Frenzy! A blood red aura shrouded him. It was the visual effect of his ultimate skill–Ragnarok! He was immune to all crowd control effects. Nothing and no one could stop him now! He threw an axe at no one in particular, but still hit three Shanghai International Champions. Lin Feng screamed over the team’s voice chat, “GoGoGo! FIIIIGHT!”

FUUCK! Yan Liang gritted his teeth. They’d lost vision on the Olaf for only a couple of seconds. Just a few seconds! And then they were too late to stop it. The Olaf was so fast. He was already in the middle of their team, wreaking havoc. There was no time to think. There was no time to deal damage. There was no time to do anything else but retreat as quickly as possible. Yan Liang shouted over his team’s voice chat, “BACK! FLASH! JUMP! ANYTHING! JUST GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE!”

Shanghai International’s retreat was too late. Three seconds after Lin Feng’s Olaf received the speed boost from his item, a secondary effect took place. A turbid shockwave of energy pulsed out into the surroundings, sweeping over the Orianna, Rek’Sai, and Fiora. Their movement speed was cut in more than half. It looked as if their Champions were walking in slow motion, while the Olaf ran like the Flash! Olaf’s axe was flying through the air again, striking three Champions and slowing them. He stacked slow upon slow upon slow, until Shanghai International’s Champions had no movement speed left.

Lin Feng locked onto the Orianna and mumbled to himself, “Obliteration!” Then he pressed down on his E key–Reckless Swing! His Olaf charged at the slowed Orianna and jumped high in the air, raising his axes above his head. Then he hacked down with such force that it dealt true damage to the Orianna and himself. “Urge to kill, rising!”