My name is Caden Caine, and for better or worse, this is my life now. I used to live in a nice house in Willow Creek, with my parents and twin sister, Dawn. My mother is a Potion Crafter, one of those with Magic in her blood. I guess that means I do, too, but it’s not dominant in me, like it was with my sister. All I’ve really ever wanted to do in my life is fish. I love fishing, but now… well, I was chosen to do something a little bit more.
What does that mean, you ask?
Well, you see, I still get to fish… now, thanks to a vision I had the night before I became a young adult, I have to do it while living in the town of Oasis Springs and helping to carry on my family’s great mission to rebuild it. One in every generation is chosen to continue the mission, through a Vision. We follow in my grandfather’s footsteps.
I didn’t want this life. I just wanted to fish. Go to Sulani and live by the beach. It all sounded so simple. Now… fishing is my only joy. I catch fish… and then collapse from exhaustion. I don’t even have a house yet. Just a plot of land and some nearby benches.
I can’t help but feel cheated, because my sister would have been better at this than me. I wanted so much more…
Mom came by to see me the other day. It made me feel better to see her. I hugged her and held on so tight. We discussed a lot of stuff, like Dad and Dawn, and how things were back home. She gave me tips on the work we had to do, and how to make money selling things I found around the neighborhood.
More importantly, she told me where the local fish market was. I was going to need to know that to get rid of the fish. Especially since, as a vegetarian, I don’t eat fish!
I just like catching them. I know. That’s weird.
Sometimes it’s really here in Oasis Springs. My only real friend is the lady who runs the food cart across the way from my empty lot. I am trying to get to know some of the people who come to the food cart, but it’s difficult to do sometimes without seeming like a creepy stalker in a fisherman’s waders. Well, I suppose I could always change clothes first, but I am always fishing, so what is the point?
One the plus side, Mom was right about the fish market. I’ve made a lot of money and even contracted out on a small boat — part-time, of course. But still, the money is good, and we get to sell everything we catch. I am also collecting samples of plants and herbs, and talk with Mom about her herbalism books. She said she may let me borrow a couple of them to get started.
And I finally got enough money to get a tent, a pop-up shower and an outdoor toilet. Mom says that this is how all our family has started out and that I shouldn’t be discouraged by how slow going it is.
Good things, they say, come to those who wait. I can only hope that I don’t have to wait too long.