• Graded • Maybe Next Time

[Bronik]

1 Ymiden 716

The Anari River cut Ne'haer off from a lot of its surrounding territories, carving a divide between places like Ironridge and Lysoria from the capital. Bronik had set up a deal with a small, local business on the outskirts of the city who had tasked him with catching as many fish as he could to supply their little shop which was best known for selling Biqaj inspired meals that were spicy and memorable. They couldn't pay him much, but to be fair, his ability to catch fish was rather lacking.
He took to the road with his hawk, Gav, and the young vixen Lacey had helped in raised. The man missed his adopted sister, even If she was a pain in his backside most of the time and thought a visit home probably wouldn't go astray. The fox played in the long grass beside the river, watching the man as he undressed, stripping down to nothing but a t-shirt and shorts before wading into the water with the fishing net he had brought along for the day. The vixen cocked her head as she watched Bronik edge through the water and decided to test her own luck, putting a paw in before springing backwards and bounding away, only to hurry back and dance giddily alone the riverbank.
Bronik waited in the warm water, and decided to peel off his shirt and ball it up to toss back to shore, basking in the hot Ymiden sun. He waited for the fish to brave the waters around him after having disturbed the sands, knowing they would be drawn to the area to suck up bits and pieces he had stirred up from the sandy riverbed. He noticed a long silver fish swimming nearby and saw Gav eying it up from the treetops he had decided to call home for the day.
"Don't even think about it!" He waved to the hawk, signalling for the animal to move off just as they had practiced on the boat, but the bird paid him no mind. "Thats my fish, if you're lucky I'll give you the guts."
Biding his time, and careful to hold his ground, Bronik let the fish get even closer before casting his net out. Not only did he manage to miss the fish, but must have scared every other fish off in the nearby vicinity. He scratched the back of his head and dragged the net in, quickly realising that he would need to attach some makeshift sinkers to the net if he wanted it to sink fast enough to wall off the fleeing fish, giving him time to capture them as he then dragged the net in. He fished around with his bare hands on the riverbed, working smooth, flat rocks from the sand with his feet so that he could scoop them up and tie them to the ends of his net, slowly working his way around the edge until it was complete.

[Bronik]

With the new and improved net, Bronik was looking forward to trying his luck once more. He left the water for a time to let the sand he had stirred up from the riverbed settle, and watched at the fish returned once more. The vixen stalked along the edge of the river, tempted to try her on luck and pounce on one of the big silver fish she had noticed swimming up and down. A tentative, black paw hovered above the water's surface, nose pointed at her target as keen eyes followed.
Not thinking, the fox put her paw down in the cool water and jumped backwards, startled by the sudden shock of water racing around her paw. It twitched and she licked the assaulted limb, and done with her attempt at fishing for the morning, went back to snapping at wild flowers and wrestling with sticks in the long grass.
Bronik chuckled, amused by the show and wandered off down river a bit until he found a spot where he could traverse the smooth, flat rocks carefully and move to the middle of the river without disturbing the water. He held his net up and surveyed the fishing prospects. There were quite a few fish down this end of the river, but the water was deeper which he assumed would make it harder to catch the fish with the net having to sink a lot further before it was to touch the riverbed. Chances significantly lower here, he returned to the shallow end of the lake and repeated his steps, carefully wading through the water to his original spot.
The trick, he had discovered, was to stay as still as possible while holding the net at the ready. When the fish started to return, Bronik couldn't help but smile, the prospect of catching something causing his empty belly to rumble. He was seconds away from going for a sizeable group of fish when Gav flew down from his perch and snatched a small silver fish from the edge of the river, driving the rest of the school towards the man. Bronik, not one to waste his luck, cast out the net and watched as it sank quickly. Dirt and sand turned up wildly from the riverbed as the man raced to pull in his catch, only to see the single fish he had caught wriggle out though one of the diamonds in the net.
Frustrated, the man kicked at the water and threw his net at the shore. There had to be an easier way to do this. Bronik stood with his arms folded and looked along the length of the far side of the river, roving over the different round rocks he saw there. Perhaps, he thought, if he arranged the rocks in the water and built up a wall, he could funnel the fish towards his waiting net and trap them that way, but moving the rocks would be a big task and take some time.

[Bronik]

One by one the rocks were lifted, carried, and rolled into place. Building the wall took Bronik the better part of an hour and when he was done, he stood back and marvelled at his accomplishment. Choosing the narrowest part of the river had been a wise idea and Bronik was now ready to set his plan in motion. He fixed the net to the neck of his trap, like a cap on a bottle. The rope was trapped between the stones securely and he tested the strength, giving the net a firm tug to make sure any thrashing fish he caught wouldn't be able to pull it loose. Then it was time to take up his position.
Having left the water to walk up alongside the river, Bronik watched as the fish started to gather again, swimming in slow circles towards the bottleneck of his wall. He then stepped into the water behind them and kicked and splashed, driving the fish towards the wall. He hadn't anticipated the fact that fish were able to jump, and most of them did just that, flying over the stone wall into the water on the other side. There was, however, some movement in the net and Bronik raced over, tripping on a rock hidden in the murky water to fall and look on helplessly as the fish he had caught turned about and raced out of the net.
Soaked from head to toe the man sat, questioning the profession and the likelihood of him bringing in money anytime soon unless he were to invest in some serious upgrades. A fishing rod for one would probably make things a lot easier as well as a bigger net, perhaps even one he could tow behind his boat like some of the bigger fishing companies did. Water ran down his face, his dirty blonde hair clinging to the top of his cheek like a long, wet slug. He shook his head so that his wet hair was slapped backwards out of his face and the cold water instead ran down the back of his neck and sun warmed back.
After collecting up his shirt and undoing all of the ties that held the makeshift sinkers in place, Bronik folded up his net and pulled it up over his shoulder to prepare for the long walk back to town. Gav held the remains of the fish he had plucked from the water earlier and the fox stood at the base of the tree, sharp senses having convinced her there was something delicious up there.
"Come on," Bronik called and whistled to Gav, holding his hand out for the hawk to swoop down and land on his outstretched fingers. He cupped the animal's feet, leaving room for the sharp little hooks of his talons to wrap about his fingers, protected by his shirt. Content, the hawk was no fuss to carry home, and as soon as he got back, Bronik hung the net out over the edge of the boat in the water, going back to fishing the old way, a way that had worked for the most part. With luck he would be able to eat tonight.

[Jade]

Well Earned Rewards

___________________________________________________________

Name: Bronik

Basic Knowledge
Fishing: Takes Time and Patience
Fishing: Fish Can Jump
Fish, Those Tricky Bastards
Fishing: Fishing Poles Are Better

Specialized Knowledge
Fishing: Using A Net To Catch Fish
Fishing: Setting A Rock Wall Trap
Fishing: Using Rocks as Sinkers

Loot: N/A
Injuries: N/A
Fame: N/A

Story: 4/5
Collaboration: 0/5
Structure: 4/5

Comment: Good story! In the beginning, there was some grammatical errors but that didn't detract from the overall story happening here. I like the detail you put in how Bronik was trying to get the fish and thought it was really funny when he didn't even catch one! Poor guy, hahah. Maybe with a lot more practice, he might catch one! As always, great writing!