Parasite's Shot In The Dark Could Be London's Biggest Threat
The Call of Duty League was recently stunned with the news that Christopher "Parasite" Duarte had been given a shot in the dark by joining a desperate London Royal Ravens roster who was hindered by their greatest selling point: Europe.
The British CDL side had opted to stay true to their core this year, immediately resigning the flying Scottsman Seany "Seany" O'Connor to construct a team around, befitting of his performances on the building site of Ramazza during the Modern Warfare era. Seany was soon accompanied by some familiar faces in Irish-born Thomas "Dylan" Henderson and Englishman Trei "Zer0" Morris who reignited their love flame with London, whilst Seany's closest friend Alex "Alexx" Carpenter was drafted in from a Minnesota ROKKR side undergoing a complete restructure.
However, with Seany, Alexx, and Dylan all safely over in the USA, Zer0 had returned home to Europe for the off-season, leaving the side in turmoil when he faced struggles to get a visa back out to the states. Hindered with internet connection issues, evident in their display at the Kickoff Classic weekend performance, Zer0 was a weak link in the roster, until he's able to get back to Texas.
Up steps Parasite
Duarte, also known as "Haggy" due to an old picture depicting him as Hagrid, is one of the scene's most divisive players. The former World Champion won his ring in the Black Ops 2 era, at Call of Duty's first-ever official world championship, but has never reached similar heights since. Boasting the captain's armband in a 2013 Fariko Impact team that also included the three-time champ Damon "Karma" Barlow, Parasite has since found himself floating to over 30 different teams in eight years, earning him a reputation that he's eager to get rid of.
With many off-the-field issues that riddled his career since sporting the ring on his finger, Parasite's resurgence in performances in the Challengers scene during the early stages of the Black Ops Cold War era has been met with a new positive outlook vocalised on his social media pages. Hungry for success and looking to overcome some of the demons in his closet, Parasite was awaiting that one team that would take a gamble.
Unfortunately, with the cuts to squad sizes, the league was stacked in quality, with many outstanding players not finding themselves on rosters.
Until London Royal Ravens was transfused with their Zer0 problem. Having reportedly reached out to Paul "PaulEhx" Avila, and outstanding member of the top Challengers side WestR, London needed a quick fix. Further reports suggested that PaulEhx turned down the "14-day" contract amid fears WestR will replace him in the meantime, leaving him teamless in half a months time.
Parasite, on the other hand, sees this as his shot back into the league.
Click to enlargeThrowing caution to the wind and deploying the help of an undeniable wizard on the sticks, and an American one at that, London Royal Ravens may have just found the firepower that many people thought they were lacking.
Fans, pundits, and players alike were all flabbergasted when the Ravens chose to leave out the Marshall twins, ("Skrapz" and "Wuskin"), especially the latter who had proved himself to be one of London's biggest weapons last year. Both Zer0 and Alexx had endured decent seasons at their respective sides, although when lined up next to the competition such as Seth "Scump" Abner, and the tiny terrors of Atlanta FaZe, there was certainly some combined flair that looked to be missing.
The Win-Win Double Entendre
Parasite will inject this inordinate ability to pull off the impossible into the Ravens roster. Hungry to prove haters and even himself wrong, he has just two weeks to prove his worth to the roster, which will see him be a part of the fixtures versus Seattle Surge, New York Subliners, and Dallas Empire at the very least.
For London, it is a win-win situation. They employ a hungry killing machine that is working harder than ever to right the wrongs and fit into the team off the pitch, leading to results on it. Or, they get a problematic, prehistoric, stooge who can be wiped off the roster when Zer0 arrives.
Wagering on the first theory, London really doesn't have much to lose in this situation, considering the league is so young. Haggy looks set to be purring if scrim matches are anything to go off, and the solid duo of Dylan and Seany are amongst the best AR combinations in the league.
Should Parasite step up and make himself indispensable to the team then London look in pole position to kick forward from their fourth-place finish last season, rivalling the likes of Dallas Empire, who come as their biggest threat in fixture three.
The freedom of knowing that they can start from scratch with Zer0 chomping at the bit to get over to the US may just play in the favour of London Royal Ravens.
All eyes on your Parasite, the virtual stage is officially yours.
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Image via MLG