"I can hear water somewhere," Patani says, tilting her head to listen. "It's coming from over there, I think." She points toward a gap between two large oaks.
Now that she mentions it, yeah - there's definitely the sound of running water. Probably a creek we haven't mapped yet.
"Let's check it out," I say, tucking my notebook back into my pack. "We've got plenty of time before we need to head home."
We push through a thicket of younger trees and emerge onto the bank of a creek I've never seen before. It's maybe a metre wide at most, with clear water running over smooth stones and fallen branches. The sound is gentle but constant - not rushing, just peacefully flowing through the forest.
"Oh, this is perfect!" Patani immediately kicks off her shoes and socks, rolling up her pants. "Come on, the water's probably not even cold!"
Famous last words.
I watch as she steps carefully into the creek, then immediately jumps back with a yelp.
"Okay, it's definitely cold," she admits, laughing. "But not that cold. It's actually kind of nice!"
I can't help but grin at her enthusiasm. "Are you sure? Because that didn't look like the reaction of someone who thinks the water is 'kind of nice.'"
"Trust me!" She steps back in, more prepared this time, and wades out to the middle of the creek where the water comes up to just below her knees. "See? Perfectly fine. You're missing out!"
Might as well join her...
I pull off my own shoes and socks, setting them safely on a flat rock, and step into the creek. The water is shockingly cold against my feet, but after the initial surprise, it's actually refreshing.
"Alright, you win," I admit, wading out to join her. "This is pretty nice."
The creek bed is mostly smooth stones with patches of sand between them. Small fish dart away from our feet, disappearing under overhanging banks or beneath larger rocks. The water is clear enough that I can see all the way to the bottom, even in the deeper spots.
"Look at all these stones!" Patani bends down and picks up a handful of smooth, flat rocks. "Perfect for skipping. I bet I can get one to skip five times."
I start scanning the creek bed for my own collection of skipping stones. "Five times? That's pretty ambitious. I'll be impressed if you can get three."
"Oh, it's on!" She finds a spot where the creek widens into a small pool and takes aim with her first stone. It skips once, twice, then plunks into the water. "Okay, that was just practice."
Her second attempt does better - three clean skips before it sinks. I try my luck with a particularly flat stone and manage two skips.
"Not bad for someone who was skeptical about creek activities," Patani teases, already selecting her next stone.
We spend the next twenty minutes in an impromptu skipping stone competition. Patani eventually manages four skips, while my best is three, though I argue that one of mine should count as four because of the way it bounced off that partially submerged branch.
"That's not how stone skipping works!" she protests, splashing water in my direction.
"Says who? I think creative use of available obstacles should count for bonus points," I reply, splashing back.
This, predictably, escalates into a full water fight. We're both soaked within minutes, laughing too hard to aim properly anymore. The sound echoes through the forest - probably scaring away any wildlife for a hundred meters in every direction.
Mom's going to wonder why we're both dripping wet when we get home.
Eventually we call a truce and wade to the banks to catch our breath. I pull out my notebook, which fortunately stayed dry in my pack, and start sketching the creek and its surroundings.
"This is definitely going on the map," I say, trying to capture the way the creek curves around a large boulder and disappears into the trees. "It's probably connected to the stream that runs behind the Hendersons' property."
Patani wrings out her hair and peers over my shoulder at the sketch. "Can you draw the pool where we were skipping stones? That's the best part."
I add more detail to show the wider area where the creek forms a natural pool, along with some of the larger rocks and the overhanging willow branches.
"There," I say, showing her the finished sketch. "One creek, documented for posterity."
"Perfect! Now we can find it again easily." She starts putting her shoes back on, though her feet are still wet. "We should probably head back soon. Your mom will worry if we're too late."
Good point. The sun's definitely moved quite a bit since this morning.
We retrace our path through the forest, both of us still damp and probably looking like we've been through an adventure. The walk back gives us time to dry off a bit, though my hair is still sticking up at odd angles from the water fight.
"That was the best creek discovery ever," Patani declares as we emerge from the forest edge back into the more civilized outskirts of Oakhaven. "We have to go back there soon."
"Definitely. Maybe next time we'll bring a change of clothes," I suggest.
"Where's the fun in that?"
Fair point. I suppose nothing is stopping me from bringing my own change of clothes though.
We part ways at the corner where our streets diverge, with Patani promising to meet up again tomorrow for more exploring. I wave goodbye and head home, already thinking about how to add today's discoveries to my growing map of the forest.
The house smells like Mom's cooking when I walk through the front door - something with onions and herbs that makes my stomach growl.
"Gatreh? Is that you?" Mom's voice calls from the kitchen.
"Yeah, I'm back!" I call back, trying to smooth down my hair.
"Good timing. Dinner will be ready in about twenty minutes. Why don't you go get cleaned up?" She appears in the kitchen doorway, takes one look at me, and raises an eyebrow. "And maybe explain why you look like you fell in a pond."
"We found a creek," I explain sheepishly. "One thing led to another."
She laughs. "I should have guessed. Well, go change into dry clothes and wash up. Your father will be home any minute."
I head upstairs to my room, grateful for the chance to get into clean, dry clothes. My notebook survived the adventure unscathed, and I set it on my desk next to the stack of papers where I've been working on my... other project.
Speaking of which, I should probably spend some time on that after dinner. The integration of Botania's mana system with Apotheosis's enchanting mechanics isn't going to figure itself out.
I can hear Dad's truck pulling into the driveway as I finish getting changed. Perfect timing.
Dinner is comfortable and familiar - Dad sharing stories about his carpentry work, Mom asking about our forest adventures, me trying to explain the geological significance of sedimentary rock layers while Dad nods along politely.
"And then we found this creek," I continue, cutting a piece of the roasted chicken Mom made. "It's got this perfect little pool area that's ideal for skipping stones."
"That explains the wet hair," Dad says with a knowing smile. "I wondered if we'd had a sudden rainstorm I missed."
"Did you get it added to your map?" Mom asks. She's always been encouraging about my cartography hobby, even if she doesn't quite understand the appeal.
"Yeah, sketched it out this afternoon. I think it connects to the stream system that runs through the Henderson property."
"You know, when I was your age, I used to explore every creek and stream for kilometres around," Dad says. "Never thought to map them out, though. That's clever thinking.
After dinner, I help Mom with the dishes, then head up to my room with the excuse of working on "school projects." Not entirely untrue - it's just not the kind of project my teachers would recognize.
I spread out my game design notes on my desk and pull out a fresh sheet of paper. Tonight's task: figuring out how to balance Botania's mana generation and consumption with Apotheosis's more traditional experience-based enchanting system.
The core issue is that while vanillas enchanting system works on it's own the loop of having to constantly combine books to increase levels that Apotheosis gives doesn't make much sense, Even if it's fine for a level or two. Maybe I should increase the options in the enchanting table and take advantage of the pylons from Botania to allow for higher level enchants directly.
I sketch out a rough diagram showing how this might work. The basic enchanting table would handle levels 1-3 as normal, but with Botania pylons placed around it, players could channel mana directly into the enchanting process to access higher levels without the tedious book combining. Since Botania only has one type of mana, the progression would be purely based on quantity - more mana available means access to higher enchantment levels.
Actually, that creates an interesting progression. Early game, you're stuck with vanilla enchanting limitations. Mid-game, you can build basic pylons for modest improvements. Late game, you're managing complex mana generation systems to power high-level enchants. The question is whether to make this a separate enchanting setup or integrate it directly with the vanilla table. Separate might be cleaner from a design perspective, but integrated feels more elegant.
I decide on integration. Players would place pylons around a normal enchanting table, and the UI would simply show additional enchantment options when sufficient mana is available. Clean, intuitive, and it doesn't require learning an entirely new enchanting system.
Outside my window, the sun has set and the familiar sounds of evening in Oakhaven drift up - distant conversations, the occasional car, someone's dog barking at something in their yard.
Another good day. Creek discovery, successful stone skipping, family dinner, and actual progress on the enchanting integration. Tomorrow should be interesting too.
I tidy up my notes and stack them neatly on my desk. The project is coming together nicely, and I'm starting to see how all these different mod systems might work as a cohesive whole.
Maybe by the end of next week, I'll be ready to start working on the visual design documents. It'll be nice to move from pure systems design to something more creative.
I get ready for bed, already looking forward to tomorrow's adventures with Patani and whatever new corners of our world we'll discover next.