Corrupted Heart - Steven Universe x Reader

Chapter 31

Sorry, this took so long! I've been really busy lately!

It was natural to feel fear in unusual situations. Though it was my first mission, there was a part of me that reprimanded me for being nervous. As soon as we warped to the new location, we stood in front of a giant stone in the middle of the wilderness. I clutched my flail tightly in my grasp on instinct. I shouldn't feel overwhelmed. After all, I've battled Gem Monsters and villains before. This shouldn't be any different. Feeling a chilled breeze brush past my face, I lifted the hood of my jacket over my head, concealing my face from the coolness. I had to admit, I preferred snow much more when I was indoors.

"Garnet sensed some corrupted Gem activity in these woods", Pearl explained, treading lightly on the snowy terrain. "It is our job to locate it, destabilize its form, and bubble it".

Dead frost-covered leaves crunched beneath us as we sauntered. Connie blew out puffs of cold air as she followed closely behind Pearl. "Now, your human bodies aren't designed to last in this cold, so we'll have to be extra careful".

Connie grinned a toothy smile, "That's okay, I've got this backpack filled with everything we need to survive in the wilderness", she said, rummaging through her backpack to double-check all her belongings.

"And I've got board games in case we get bored", Steven piped in with a grin.

Feeling obligated to contribute something, I reached into my pocket, hoping to find something useful other than lint and crumpled tissues. I shrugged after feeling air, "I didn't bring anything".

Steven sent me an amused smile.

"So, how will we know if this corrupted Gem is nearby?", Connie asked.

As if on cue, a large growl emerged from the snow and shook the foundation we stood on.

Pearl stood her ground, "That's how! Here it comes!".

I felt unsteady on my own feet. Every part of my body was trembling as I filled myself with half-fake confidence. Snow erupted into the air at the impact of a large footstep and plants buckled at the collision. It wasn't long before the face of a beast broke through the trees in front of us, letting out a clamour at the sight of us. I tried to keep my tough, exterior composer, but it was a lot bigger than Pearl gave it credit for. With my knees almost giving way, I covered my face with an air of arrogance and readied my stance.

"Remember, you work together!", Pearl reminded us.

Steven summoned his shield while Connie unsheathed her sword. I gripped the handle of my flail. Steven and Connie may know how to fight side by side, but I've never even seen Connie in combat before. For all I know, she could be all talk.

Steven turned to me with a determined grin, "Ready, (Y/N)?".

I took a deep breath in and tried to look like I knew what I was doing (I didn't). "Yeah, I guess so", I responded.

But before I we could go in to attack, another corrupted beast entered the forest. It had a similar appearance to the snow monster and, despite its mixture of brown-orange colours, looked just as terrifying. Pearl was taken aback with horror as she extended her arm and summoned her spear. She made her way in front of us to defend us from the beasts. "There's two of them?!", she exclaimed in utter shock.

Before we even had time to give an answer to her rhetorical question, the orange monster began charging right at us.

"Steven, bubble!", Pearl instructed him.

Steven summoned his bubble shield and encased all of us within it. I braced myself for a powerful impact, but to our surprise, the orange monster leapt over us while the snow monster runs past us. Not even acknowledging us, the two corrupted gems fleed into separate parts of the forest. In confusion, Steven dispels his bubble.