annexedlogs | and i won't keep what i can't catch (mini-mission, OTA)

Who: Boba Fett and YOU!
What: Clearing out the invasive monster fish introduced by the Sylphid to the lake near the Witch's Camp.
When: Mid-January
Where: The lake near the Witch's Camp
Content Warnings: Animal death

[ Since arriving on this world and taking part in his first mission, Boba has done his best to keep himself busy. He doesn’t like having too much downtime, doesn’t like letting his mind wander or his skills degrade. Restlessness comes easily to him. Thus, he is a frequent visitor to the missions’ board at Central Command, always looking to see what work there is to be done.

This month, there’s plenty. He scans through them, rapidly noticing a theme. The assortment of various animal control missions are something of a novelty to him—he may be a hunter, but his prey is usually of the more sapient variety. Still, it’s work and, in the case of the mutant predatory fish in the lake, work that he has some particular expertise in.

And so, later that week, he can be found at the lake on the edge of the Witch’s Camp, practicing with his newly purchased weapon-slash-fishing-implement. As a kid, he would’ve called something like this a “pocker.” Here, they just call such things atlatls or fishing spears. Yet, despite the difference in name, it functions almost identically to the one his father had taught him to use as a boy: aim, throw, and twist the handle to lock the line and reel the spear back in. It even features a similar missile accelerator system to generate extra forward momentum behind each throw, though this one is pneumatic rather than ion-powered. He refines his aim at the water’s edge, taking out floating clumps of algae as he waits for the engine of the borrowed watercraft to warm up a few meters away. His father had always demanded perfection on the hunt, even when their prey was fish. Yet, the last time they went fishing together had been an exception to the rule. That time, Jango Fett had said nothing at all and Boba had wasted the afternoon taking potshots at shadows. And a few days later...

Boba isn’t expecting company. When someone approaches, he’ll stop what he’s doing and watch them with narrowed eyes. ]

Didn’t know this was a group mission.

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The one that approaches, as it turns out, is a short young man with long sandy-blonde hair and pointy ears. He looks at Boba with a blank, unreadable expression.

Link hadn't exactly expected a group mission either. For some reason, people here seemed to really, really like big groups. It was taking some getting used to. Seems this man wasn't used to it either.

"I can fish on my own," Link says, before tapping at the Sheikah Slate. Into his hands suddenly appears a large, glowing blue sphere. Link holds it as he starts walking along the edge of the water, looking for any monster fish he can spot.

Fair enough. Boba doesn't argue, simply turning back to his own preparations. Still, habit makes him watch the young man out of the corner of his eye. The stranger doesn't seem to have brought any obvious fishing equipment, just an ornate stone tablet which Boba can only assume to have some kind of magical significance. If one can fight with magic, Boba supposes one must be able to fish with it as well.

His attention sharpens as a tap of the tablet summons a glowing blue orb into the stranger's hands. It doesn't look like any sort of tool he recognizes, nor any sort of weapon. He'll have to watch and wait to see exactly what the stranger intends to do with it.

It takes few minutes of intense searching from Link, before he finds what he's after. But sure enough, soon he spots a small school of the piranha-like monster fish, just near the water's edge.

At which point, Link simply tosses the sphere into the water, right in the middle of the fish - and then taps again at the Slate.

The sphere, ever since being summoned, has been making a soft humming noise. But now, that hum becomes a ring, and the ring becomes a boom - and the sphere explodes.

Several fish now begin to float to the top of the water, dead.

By the time the stranger has apparently found what he's looking for, the watercraft's engine has completed its activation cycle. Boba stands next to it, no longer hiding his attention as he watches the young man chuck the glowing blue orb into the water with a splash.

Some part of him already knows to brace when the sound shifts. Even so, the resulting explosion is more than he expected, a brilliant blue flash of sound and force that rattles his teeth and sets his ears ringing. He fights not to react visibly. The cluster of dead fish in the water testifies to the explosive's efficiency—if not it's precision.

He waits for the ringing in his ears to quiet some before he speaks, voice deadpan.

"You're aware we're only supposed to kill the invasive fish. Aren't you?"

Link looks back at the man, blank-faced. "This is how I fish." If he ever knew any other way to do it, he doesn't remember anymore.

And besides - if he catches a few non-monster fish, what's wrong with that? That just means more fish for Link.

Fish he starts collecting right now, as Link jumps straight into the water to start collecting the dead fish.

It seems Boba's sarcasm is wasted on the stranger. Given that blank-faced stare, he may as well be trying to embarrass a brick wall. All he can do is watch, annoyed, as the young man immediately splashes into the water to collect the floating fish carcasses.

Is this Boba's problem? His eyes stray to the now-ready and waiting boat, wondering if he should just leave the stranger to his lunacy. He then glances back at the kid, whose arms are now full of dead fish.

...He'll make one attempt. That's it. After that, it's out of his hands.

"We were assigned to clear the lake of the invasive species because it's killing the other fish," he says, speaking slowly like he's talking to an idiot. "Bombing the lake will also kill the other fish."

Stars, he feels stupid even having to explain it. He misses his own galaxy—there, he would've just shot the stranger and have been done with it by now.

The dead fish don't actually stay in Link's arms. Instead, he touches them to the rectangular device at his hip, and they just...disappear.

Then Link starts to swim back towards the shore, unconcerned by the fact that he is now dripping wet when he pulls himself out.

He looks at Boba. Still with that blank expression. Head now tilted to the side. He considers the statement, at least.

"I won't bomb the whole lake," he promises. Just the bits with more monster fish in it.

Another blank stare. If it weren't for the stranger's tilted head, Boba would be hard-pressed to recognize that thought was occurring in there.

Combined with that expression, the young man's promise doesn't feel particularly reassuring. Still, Boba figures it's the best he's going to get. At least, he thinks, if he himself takes the boat then the stranger will be limited to his explosive 'fishing' close to shore.

Boba says nothing in response, just fixes the kid with a disdainful stare for a moment more before turning away. The boat should be about ready now. He steps aboard and occupies himself with preparing to depart—alone, if he can at all help it.

Fortunately for Boba, Link makes no attempt to follow into the boat. Link's happy enough doing his own thing - and he doesn't see the need to impose on someone else, if they don't want it.

He will, however, continue to bomb the edges of the lake. The sound of explosions will be the background music to Boba's fishing adventure.

and i won't keep what i can't catch (mini-mission, OTA)

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