Chapter Text

Today was the day. He was finally going to do it. He was going to walk out of the temple, walk into the Big Donut, and buy the last Cookie Cat ice cream sandwich. His dad had given him the money three days ago, but he was constantly getting sidetracked.

Steven did his morning stretches before hopping out of bed, since he would always walk up sore head-to-toe. After getting his stretches out, he climbed out of bed and moved to his mile-high pile of clothes. He rustled through the disorganized mess, pulling out a black t-shirt with a yellow star on it and a nice pair of jeans. After throwing his PJs off, he took his clean clothes and slid them on, trying his damndest to avoid tearing anything on his rock chunks.

“Room!” He yelled out. “Can you turn all the lights on?”

The room began to shake; the walls of glass filling with lava, illuminating the room with a dim orange glow. The walls and floor were made of black stone, warmed by the lava all around. His bed stood high above the rest of the room, with a large stone staircase leading downward. He stepped down to the ground floor. The ground floor was a mess. Purple crystals lined the floor, surrounded by piles of junk. A thin layer of water had covered the room, only stopping at the door, but Steven didn’t mind. The water was nice and warm, almost calming and tranquil for him. He had a table, a kitchen with a refrigerator, a TV and game console by his bed, and a couch surrounded by a ring of fire. The ceiling was up high, so high that it was covered in ice. Small black bubbles floated around the ice crystals.

Steven moved to the bathroom door, stepping inside a very plain looking room. It looked like a standard human bathroom; with a shower, toilet, sink, and a very clear mirror.

He hopped up onto the sink, taking a look at himself. His skin was a charred black, his eyes a crimson red. Reddish-pink lines traveled like cracks across his body. His knees, shoulders, and elbows had jagged black rocks sticking out of them. His hair was large and poofy, with bits of red and blue crystals stuck in it. He took a moment to look at the gems stuck to him, making sure everyone was accounted for. There was one on his belly, one on his chest, two in each palm, and one on his forehead. Had them since birth.

“Okay, let’s do this!” He confidently said, moving back to the door. Before he could leave, he felt a falling sensation, as the cracks changed into a reddish-purple.

“No-no-no, I can’t go out into town looking this lame,” Smoky said to himself, staring in confusion at the jeans Steven had put on him. He began to gripped the fabric, tearing open holes on the knees; before ripping the sleeves off his shirt. “There, much better.”

Today was the day. Smoky was going out and buying the last Cookie Cat for Steven, then spending the rest of the day lying face down on the couch. Sure this was the third t-shirt he had ripped up and Stephen was tired of buying more clothes, but he was going to make it up to Steven; he always taked about how much he loved Cookie Cats.

Smoky kicked the bathroom door open, rushing past the piles of junk and to the stone temple door. The door opened itself, letting him step outside and run over the warp pad. He stopped in his tracks, turning back to grab his sandals, which he had left outside by the door.

Smokey took one look at the beautiful sun kissed beach and decided to spend at least a few minutes playing in the sand. So he did; running around and doing cartwheeling in the warm morning sand.

As he laughed and played, his eyes were slowly drawn back to the Temple. His feet became stuck in place, he felt paralyzed just by looking at it. He looked down, trying not to think about it, but to no avail. “Hi… Mom...” He whispered, as his cracks turned a reddish-white.

Stephen looked around, confused where he was, before recognizing some familiar landmarks; the Temple, Beach City, and the Sea Hands in the distance. Confusion faded, as anger grew, seeing that Smokey had ripped up another good pair of clothes. He took a deep breath, calming his momentary rage. The gem on his forehead started to glow, as Stephen pulled his notebook out. He rapidly flipped through each page, lined with detailed notes on gem culture and a day-by-day schedule for the next few months, until he found the schedule for today.

Today was the day. Stephen was going to help Steven summon his shield. The first time it appeared, Steven was eating a Cookie Cat, so Stephen wanted to repeat that event. After heading to the Big Donut and buying one, he would start working on the raft, and then spend the rest of the day at the library. After all that was said and done, he would take a shower and go to bed.

He stashed his notebook back inside his gem, before slowly walking to the Big Donut. The boardwalk was rather empty, so there weren’t going to be any annoying tourists. Every time he went into town, he was followed by the sounds of fearful whispers and flash photography. As soon as he opened the store door and stepped inside, the cracks turned a deep red.

Sara’s eyes dash about, trying to figure out where she was. It was light out and she was standing in a store. There was a woman behind the counter, who had a concerned look on her face. She held her head, trying to remember her name. I think it was Sadie? Yeah, Lars and Sadie, they run the… Then it all clicked.

Today was the day. Sara was supposed to go to the Big Donut and buy something for Steven, though she couldn’t remember what that something was.

“Hey Steven,” Sadie interjected, spooking Sara a little. “Or was it Stephen?” She asked under her breath, but was still audible to Sara.

“No-no, It’s Sara,” She nervously said, as she slowly walked up to the counter. “Steven asked me to buy him something.” She gripped her head tighter, feeling a massive headache hit her. “I-I can’t. Remember...”

Her knees hit the floor hard, as Sadie rushed to her side. “Are you okay?”

The cracks turned a deep purple, as she stood up like nothing happened. She looked Sadie in the eyes, her face cold and emotionless, her red eyes causing a shiver down her spine.

“Fine,” Sophie exclaimed, before pointing at an empty food display. “Today was the day that I was supposed to buy the last Cookie Cat for Steven, but it looks like they're already gone.”

“Yeah. Sorry, I know you-I mean-he said he wanted to grab the last shipment, but they kinda melted during the power outage,” Sadie explained, visibly shaken by her.

Sophie shook her head. “Such is fate.” Before she could turn to leave, an unholy screech echoed through the store, as a large centipede-like being crashed through a window. It was a sickly green, with acid dripping from its oversized mandibles. It thrashed about, destroying the display.

Luckily, Sadie had already fled into the back room, so Sophie had a chance to let loose. The gem in the palm of her hand started to glow, as she summoned a torch, topped with a blue flame. She took a deep breath in, then exhaled, sending a large burst of freezing flame over the monster. It became frozen in a chunk of ice, only able to make small twitching motions.

Sadie and Lars peaked their heads out, trying to see if it was over. The torch disappeared, as the cracks turned back to reddish-pink.

Steven looked around, only to let out a small scream when he saw the monster trapped in ice. A nervous sweat began to flow, as panic filled him. Should I run? Should I poof it? I don’t have a weapon yet so…

A loud hiss was heard, as the monster began to pump acid out, quickly melting the ice trapping it. It spayed a hose of green acid at the defenseless humans. Without hesitation, Steven jumped in front of the attack. Mere seconds before it hit him, his shield materialized on his arm. He managed to block all the acid with it, landing on his feet as the attack stopped. The shield was transparent, with a beautiful reddish-pink hue and with a spiral pattern of flames.

Before Steven could react to finally summoning it, a spray of pink flame shot from his shield, poofing the monster in seconds. His shield disappeared, as he ran into the fire and pulled the monster’s gem out. The fire didn’t hurt him, he just didn’t want the monster to reform. He put it inside a black bubble, then sent it back to the Temple.

He let out a sigh of exhaustion. With a wave of his hand, all fire vanished from the store, not even leaving any scorch marks behind. He ran out the door and rushed back home, without even checking if Sadie and Lars were okay.

Today was the day. Steven had finally summoned his shield. After that, he just wanted to go back to sleep. He sat on the couch, staring up at the ceiling, watching the bubbles float about. I must be a disaster magnet. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a tape recorder and hitting the record button.

“Was mom as unlucky as I am?” He said into the recorder, before ending the recording early. “What happened? Why was I born like this?!” He cried out, throwing the recorder at the wall. It broke in half, before floating in the thin water layer. “Why was I born at all?!” He screamed out, expecting some miracle to come and answer his questions.

But nothing happened.

He laid on the couch, his tears evaporating as they left his eyes. He was half-human, but everyone was scared of him. He was half-gem, but he didn’t know anything about the gems. He was just one of five monsters.

Tomorrow was the day. He was going to build that raft, travel to the Sea Hands, and find something close to an answer.