Heretical Fishing

Book 2: Chapter 7: Scaling

Corporal Claws, chosen of Fischer and warden of the forest surrounding her beloved pond, grinned mischievously.

Last night, something had eluded her. She knew not what it was, but the creature would be punished for its hubris.

She released her arms, and a pile of fish fell to the forest floor at the base of the light-blue tree's trunk. From behind her ear, she removed the stalk of sugarcane she had requisitioned from Barry's private stock.

Following her master's reprimanding of the farmer, Barry had built a giant wall around his crop. He'd dug a trench around the field's perimeter and filled it with rocks to stop any creatures from burrowing below. Above the stones, wooden palings extended a good two meters from the soil.

Such roadblocks were nothing to Claws, and she'd leapt over it with a single bound, not even needing her lightning powers.

With the fish and the sugarcane, she had bait to lure the creature back in. Whether it was a glorious fish eater like herself, or a lowly muncher of vegetation, it mattered not; she had prepared for both possibilities.

She made to dash back to her hideyhole beneath the fallen log, but paused. With a swift paw, she requisitioned one of the fish, then slunk off to her scouting position.

With a sparkle in her eye and anticipation in her heart, she crunched into the fish, chewing it quietly as she awaited her quarry’s arrival.

***

Bamboo Training Rod of the Fisher

Uncommon

A bamboo rod paired with a pine reel. This fishing rod provides boosts to both fishing and luck.

+5 fishing

+1 luck

The System tried to get my attention—as it so often did—but I ignored it, instead turning to Maria.

Her vision was clear; she was no longer looking at the item's description. Her eyes were wide and mouth was slightly open.

“Wow... it really worked.”

“It did,” I agreed, smiling at my work. “I wanted it to be an easy rod for anyone to use, and it looks like that intent was reflected in its name.”

“Can... can I hold it?”

“Of course!”

I held it out, and she took it timidly, running her hands along its different components.

“It's so... is smooth the right word? I can't find any flaws.” She held it up to her face and peered at it through squinted eyes. “Even the eyelets transformed...”

“Yeah, I know what you mean, and smooth is the word I'd use.”

Her fingers ran deftly along its length as she continued marveling at its quality. A strand of hair slipped from behind her ear, but focused as she was, she didn't sweep it back into place.

Just as the rod had consumed her, I was consumed by her beauty. My heart sang at the way her nose crinkled in concentration, shifting her freckled and suntanned skin.

“So,” I said, “how do you feel about trying to make one without my help?”

***

Maria's sun-bleached hair swayed back and forth as used a plane to shave down the chunk of wood.

She had already sawn off the corners, and one sliver at a time, she reduced the block down. I said nothing—I didn't need to. She was intently focused, and I was content letting her work it out for herself.

An hour went by, and with each passing second, the wooden block looked more like a reel. She lifted the plane but stopped, cocking her head to the side as she looked down at it—just in time for it to transform. As with every time the System intervened, the reel's lines blurred and grew vague. In the space of a single breath, it shrunk back down and tightened.

A wave of resonance shot from Maria, and my core hummed in response.

She gasped and held a hand to her abdomen.

“Wh-what was that?”

“Totally normal,” I said, laying a reassuring hand on her back. “It does that sometimes—I'm pretty sure it coincides with System advancements.”

“What does it mean...?”

“Honestly? No clue. That you learned woodworking? That you became a fishing artisan? With the System dysfunctional as it is, it's hard to tell. More importantly...” I pointed at the reel. “I think you should have a look at what you made.”

Her eyes went wide, and her head darted down to the reel.

I gazed at it too, letting it pull me in.

Pine Reel of the Apprentice

Uncommon

Crafted of pine, this reel provides a boost to fishing.

+2 fishing

My vision cleared to see Maria blinking up at me, her face anxious.

“What did it say? I can't read it!”

“It gives two fishing—nothing else, luck or otherwise.”

Her face remained shocked.

“Don't let it dishearten you,” I said. “I've been making them longer, which is probably why mine have more—”

“... dishearten?” her voice was soft, a little flat, and entirely incredulous.

“Dishearten?” she repeated, laughing. “Fischer, I just made a—”

She cut herself off and darted a look toward Brad; the woodworker was bent over, sanding a chair and paying us no mind.

She leaned toward me, whispering urgently.

“I just created a magic item! An actual real-life item created with the System! I... I can’t believe it!”

“I'm not surprised—I never doubted you for a moment.”

She chewed her lip in thought, her eyes staring at my chest vacantly as her thoughts roiled.

“If you're excited now,” I said, “wait until you make a fishing rod out of it.”

Her gaze rose to meet mine, and a beatific grin spread across her face.

“A-are you sure? What do I do? Am I ready? It's all so much—”

I cut her off with a side hug, laughing as I pulled her close.

“You're ready. Just do what I did, and the System will handle the rest.”

She leaned her head against my shoulder, then broke off with a skip and began gathering the components.

***

Excitement bubbled up within Leroy as he strode beneath the mid-morning sun. He'd slept fitfully last night, but despite his distinct lack of sleep, he was full of energy as he made his way to Barry and Helen's home.

He reached a hand out to brush sugarcane leaves in his passing, taking comfort in their touch and how content the crops seemed to be. When he focused on any plant life, he could tell what they needed to flourish and grow.

When it came to Barry's crops, he didn't need to extend his awareness; they sang their health and contentedness toward him.

With his senses engulfed by the sugarcane's joy, he lost all sense of time.

“Good morning, Leroy,” Barry said, yanking him back to reality some time later.

His brother-in-law leaned on a hoe and smiled over at him from a field of sandy soil he was tilling.

“O-oh. Morning, Barry.”

“Are you alright?”

“Yes, what makes you ask?”

“You have bags under your eyes bigger than a field mouse.”

“That obvious, is it?” Leroy asked, rubbing the back of his head. “I didn't sleep too well after spending the day fishing.”

“Really? I would have thought you'd have slept better than ever. Did something happen with Fischer?”

“Aye, it did, but not what you think.”

Leroy took a moment, inhaling and exhaling a deep breath before he dove headfirst into the conversation.

“Has the System spoken up to you at all?”

Barry raised an eyebrow.

“I mean, yeah, but nothing other than the usual 'insufficient power' message. Why?”

“Have you received any over the last twenty-four hours?”

“No...”

“Well, I have...”

Leroy willed the log to show, and a box appeared before his eyes.

You have learned fishing!

You have advanced to fishing 2!

You have advanced to fishing 3!

You have advanced to fishing 4!

“Oh?” Barry said, peering at Leroy intently. “What did it say?”

“After spending the day with Fischer, it said I learned 'fishing', and that I advanced to level four in it.”

Barry froze on the spot, his hoe falling from his hand and thumping to the ground.

“You're serious...?”

“Serious as the wet-season, Barry. I'm sorry I didn't come to you sooner. It brought up a lot of inner turmoil about my time in the capital, and I just needed to some time to—”

“Mate, you don't need to apologize. Does Fischer know?”

Relief flooded Leroy at Barry's easy acceptance, and a tension he wasn't aware of melted away as his shoulders dipped.

“No, he doesn't know. I thought it best not to include him if he wants nothing to do with your plans. Though I'm sure he’ll catch on soon enough.”

“Maybe not,” Barry said, rubbing his chin in thought. “It might just be happening to you, and even if it's everyone, Fischer told me he has his notifications turned off.”

“Wait, why would it just be me?”

Barry shrugged.

“Who knows when it comes to the System, but if there’s enough power for it to work...” he trailed off as the implications hit him.

Leroy nodded.

“Your thoughts right now are why I didn't sleep much last night.”

“Our plans may be working much sooner than we'd expected...”

Leaves rustled as something came barrelling through a field of cane to the west, and both men darted their heads toward it.

Helen appeared, shoving stalks aside. Her eyes were wide, and despite her cultivator's body, she was breathing heavily. As she saw them, she skidded to a stop.

“Helen?” Barry asked, stepping forward. “What's wrong?”

“M-my bread...”

“Your bread? What about your bread?”

“I made some bread... and when I finished...”

She swallowed, her face pale.

“The System told me I reached ‘baking seven’...”

***

I fought to keep down my excitement as Maria started putting the rod together.

The only sound in the woodworking shop was that of Brad sanding across the room, but I barely heard it.

Maria easily twisted the hooks into place along the rod's shaft. She attached the bracket next, the screwdriver in her hand easily winding the threads into place. She took her time, ensuring she didn't split the thin stick of bamboo. When the screw was held tight against the bracket, she set the rod down and grabbed the reel.

With a deft push of her thumb, the bearing slipped into the reel's center, making a soft thunk as it hit the wooden lip that stopped it going all the way through.

She set the reel down, then closed her eyes and took a deep breath. As she exhaled, she looked out at the world and collected the reel once more. She held it to the bracket and connected the two with a bolt, then started twisting the nut over its threading.

As she finished, I held my breath. Nothing happened for a long moment, and just as she turned to raise an eyebrow at me, the rod transformed.

It was over in a matter of seconds, and I let the new rod draw my eyes into it.

Bamboo Training Rod of the Apprentice

Uncommon

A bamboo rod paired with a pine reel. This fishing rod provides boosts to both fishing and luck.

+3 fishing

+1 luck

I noted the wording and stats, and before my vision could clear, Maria made an excited noise. I dismissed the inspection to see her bouncing side to side on her toes, the rod in hand and held up before her.

“I did it!”

“You did—congratulations!”

“It's amazing!” She squealed quietly and hugged it to her chest, still dancing on the spot. “My very first rod! What are the stats?”

“Three fishing, one luck.”

Part of me expected her to be disappointed, but her foot-to-foot dance only increased. I held a hand up and she high-fived it with entirely too much vigor.

“Hey!” I said, laughing. “If I wasn't so strong, you might have dislocated my shoulder with that.”

“Oh! Sorry!” She grinned up at me. “I'm just. So. Excited!”

She held the rod up and looked it over, peering at the seamless qualities of its new form.

She spun on me with a fervent gaze.

“Can I make another?”

***

The day passed by like a calm breeze as Maria and I made four more rods.

Brad helped me clear a space for her to work from before he left to get some lunch, and I matched her pace, content to take my time and let her get more experience. Each subsequent rod she made took less time, and as she finished her third rod of the day, she let out a soft gasp.

“Fischer! Look!”

She held it up before me, and it immediately drew my eyes in. It was the same as before, but gave four instead of three to fishing.

“Hey! You're getting better.”

She nodded chaotically, hair bouncing around her face in her excitement.

“I am!”

“Well, with those six rods finished, it just leaves one more to make.”

Her body language sobered in an instant.

“You should make it—it will come out better.”

“You know, I thought about that, but I have another idea.”

Her eyebrows furrowed and her head tilted to the side.

“What?”

“I was thinking we could do it together.”

***

We took turns shaving down the reel for Maria’s very own rod. The ironbark was much more difficult to work with, but given our enhanced bodies, it never stood a chance.

When it was almost finished, she turned a curious gaze on me.

“Who should do the last bit?”

“I've been thinking about that too...”

I unwound the vice and removed the reel, holding it out to her.

“You hold it for me and focus your will on what you want it to become, and I'll do the last bit of sanding.”

She held it firm and rotated it as I took fine sandpaper to the reel's surface. Bit by bit, the hardwood smoothed, and with a final scrape along its surface, it transformed.

Ironbark Reel of the Fisher’s Apprentice

Rare

Crafted of ironbark, this reel provides an unknown benefit. Combine it with a rod to learn more.

As both our visions cleared, we blinked at each other, then grinned at the same time. Without a word, we started constructing the rod.

Maria attached the hooks as I screwed in the bracket, and as with the reel, she held the rod firm as I attached the last piece of the puzzle. Her eyes were closed and her brow was wrinkled in concentration as I wound the nut into place. It pressed against the bearing, and I was just about to rotate my hand again when the transformation began.

The rod seemed to vibrate, and my fingers tingled where they touched it. The lines blurred more than normal, and it seemed to drink light from the room as it shifted and expanded. My eyes went wide as confusion hit me, but quick as the change had started, the lines snapped back into place sharply.

A wave of elation rolled out from my abdomen, but it was completely drowned out by Maria—a tidal wave of force billowed from her and collided with my core, causing my whole body to buzz with its resonance.

“W-what…?” we both said, reeling back.

Before I could speak another word, the rod's description consumed my vision.

Bamboo Rod of the Fisher’s Apprentice

Rare

A bamboo rod paired with an ironbark reel. This fishing rod provides boosts to both fishing and luck. The stats provided will grow with the skill of the user.

+? fishing

+? luck

“W-what?” we both said again, darting looks from the rod to each other.

“Holy shit, Maria… you got a scaling item.”

She rested back against the bench, leaning on it for support.

“Fischer... that's insane, right?”

I took a seat beside her, lifting myself up onto the bench.

“Yeah, it really is. Pretty sure it will out-scale my rod, given time.”

“What was the wave that rushed out of me? I felt a smaller one from you, but mine...” She shook her head, trying to clear it. “I've never felt anything like it.”

“Also normal. It usually coincides with a message from the System reminding you how out-of-power and useless it is.”

Her gaze went distant, and I guessed she was checking said message.

She took a sharp intake of breath as she whirled on me.

“Fischer... it said something.”

“Yeah, you'll get used to those messages. They're always the same, unfortunately.”

“No, Fischer—you don't get it. It said something—a lot of things, actually. I learned woodworking and advanced to level ten in fishing.”

“Wait, what?”

I almost yelled the last word, and I quickly willed my System notifications to show.

Lines printed out before me, and my mouth went dry.