Adam woke hungry.
There was nothing on the raft he could eat.
[Health 98% | Hunger 44% | Thirst 67% | Stamina 76%]
The fishing line recipe needed one Rope and one Scrap Metal.
Adam had three Scrap Metal and no Rope.
He had cut up his T-shirt and the lining of his jacket to make the rope for the hook pole.
The jacket shell still kept the sun off his back at midday, and he was not going to cut it for another length.
He filled the purifier’s intake, then looked through the materials he could gather.
Cloth scraps had been rare.
Kelp sometimes floated past, but the single leaves he had seen were too far away for the pole.
The crafting tab said four Plant Fibre could make a Rope.
It did not say whether kelp would give him fibre while it was wet.
A wide mat of kelp came into view an hour after the first unit of water was ready.
Brown leaves and thick stems floated together on the surface.
It was several metres across, and most of it would pass beyond the reach of his pole.
One edge came close enough that he could try.
The hook caught in the outer leaves.
Adam pulled until the mat pressed against the raft, then gathered what he could before the current carried the rest away.
Six lengths of Kelp went into his inventory.
The mat nearly pulled the hook off his pole.
He set the pole down rather than risk it for one more strand.
[Kelp: 1 Plant Fibre (fresh).
2 Plant Fibre (dried).
Requires: hands.]
He sorted the six lengths by the recipe.
Four fresh pieces would make the weak Rope he needed for a fishing line.
The other two would dry into enough fibre for a stronger length tomorrow.
He laid the four fresh lengths beside the scrap metal.
Drying the kelp would give him twice as much fibre, but it would take the day.
Adam set two lengths on the warm wooden side of the purifier for tomorrow.
He stripped the other four by hand.
The wet fibres came away easily enough.
Twisting them into rope was harder: each time he let go, the strands loosened.
He tried holding one end under his boot, but the slick fibres pulled free.
He started again with a shorter length, trapping the loose end against the rough edge of a board.
That gave him both hands for the twist.
He kept tension on the length while the System joined them.
[Rope (Poor).
60/100.
Fresh fibre.
Weak.]
The rope was thinner than the one he had made from cloth.
It stretched when he pulled it but did not break.
It might hold a small fish.
He would not trust it to secure the raft.
He had three pieces of metal from the old drum.
If he used one for the line, the Cook Stand would have to wait.
He had no fish to cook yet.
Adam laid the poor rope beside a drum plate and confirmed the fishing line recipe.
The metal bent into a small hook while the rope drew into a thinner cord.
The line carried the poor rope’s lower durability.
[Simple Fishing Line (Poor).
60/60.]
The hook was rusty.
He rubbed the point against the edge of the remaining metal until it shone, then tried it without bait.
He dropped it over the side, lifted it through the water and let it sink again.
For most of the first hour, he caught nothing.
The purifier produced another unit while he worked.
He drank it, refilled the intake and returned to the line.
The hook moved through clear water with no fish near it.
When he let it hang still, nothing came close.
He kept raising and lowering it, changing how far he let it sink.
Twice a dark shape passed too deep to make out.
Both times he let the line out and failed to find the same depth again.
Small bright shapes appeared below the raft in the early afternoon.
They moved together, then scattered when the hook passed too near.
Adam let the line sink below them before lifting it.
One fish followed the flash of metal for a moment and turned away.
He tried again at the same depth, using a shorter lift.
The school split around the hook.
He waited for them to circle back, then raised it past the group once more.
One fish darted after the bright point; the cord pulled sideways.
Adam closed his hand around it and brought up a fish about twenty centimetres long.
It fought hard enough that the poor line cut against the edge of the raft.
The weak cord might fray if another fish dragged it along the boards, so he lifted this one clear.
The fish landed between his feet, silver along its sides with a dark back.
It struck his boot and slid toward the water.
He put his other foot in its way.
The hook was still in its mouth, and he held the cord up while the fish thrashed against the planks.
[Silverfish.
Raw.
Edible.
Illness risk: 20% per meal.]
He worked the hook out of its mouth.
The barb held more firmly than he expected, and the fish thrashed whenever he loosened his grip.
Once free, it went into his inventory before it could slide off the raft.
The panel showed Fish ×1.
Adam lowered the hook again while the other fish were still nearby.
The next one took the hook forty minutes later.
It was smaller, but it pulled in the same direction as the first.
Adam kept the cord away from the rough edge this time.
He had almost lifted it out when it twisted and the hook came loose.
He reached for it, missed, and watched it disappear below the raft.
The line remained intact.
The small fish moved on, leaving only scattered flashes deeper in the water.
He tried the hook at different depths without another bite.
The sun still gave him a few hours, so he drank another unit and continued.
The second fish he actually landed came after a long empty stretch.
A third followed near the end of the good light.
Each time he lifted the line before the fish touched the raft’s edge.
The cord held.
He checked the three fish in his inventory and set the hook aside.
He had never cleaned a fish before.
The drum plate had a sharp corner, so he used it to open the largest one.
The metal slipped on the scales twice before he found a place to start.
He kept his fingers clear of the corner while he cut, then removed the insides and pushed them over the side.
The work was untidy but left enough flesh to eat.
He rinsed his hands and ate slowly, pulling the flesh from the small bones.
It tasted salty and was softer than he expected.
His stomach cramped once, then settled.
He checked the Conditions line; no sickness appeared.
Two fish remained.
Both were raw, and one of them might spoil overnight.
The other two kelp lengths were still drying on the purifier, enough for tomorrow’s stronger Rope.