A Painite Empire

Annoyance

Rubellite arrived back at her station guilty of what she'd done. She was so focused on what happened at Ygrasia that she didn't check her notifications. This meant, in short, she had no idea she had been paired with Indicolite.

So, knowing this, imagine her surprise when the very gem who hated her (probably most) started walking up to her.

"Rubellite. Our next mission is on Manitari." Indicolite said frowning.

Rubellite cocked her head, confused. "What do you mean?"

Indicolite took a deep, irritated breath and pinched the bridge of her nonexistent nose. "My previous team and I have been split up. I was assigned to you.

The red gem seemed very pleasantly surprised by this. "Really? Alright! Let's go to Manitari! Why're we going there anyway?"

"Rebel. There's a Quartz."

"Just a Quartz? Usually, I get groups..."

"For me, getting a Quartz is rare. Welcome to not being a kiss-up."

Rubellite sighed, knowing she'd be In for a wild ride.

-

"Paragon! This foliage never ends! There're sticks and leaves everywh-"

"Indicolite! I know you're upset, but don't use the sacred one's name in vain!"

"What in the Hope Diamond are you talking about?"

Rubellite glared at Indicolite, not wanting to tackle her.

Definitely.

Anyway, the two gems were in a sticky situation.

See, Manitari is an abandoned planet, as terraformers complained that there were too many sticks, leaves, trees, etc. to manage efficiently.

This means it's basically a spawn point for rebels.

 This also means Indicolite and Rubellite were both constantly crouching under branches and tripping over vines.

Most commonly, however, there were a bunch of mushrooms.

These mushrooms could range from only a few centimeters to multiple yards tall, which was a huge inconvenience.

"What's that in the distance?" Rubellite asked, pausing to get a better look.

There was silence.

"So, you gonna tell me what it is or what?"

Rubellite glanced at Indicolite, who was crossing her arms and had her usual sarcastic tone.

"It's smoke. It actually doesn't look too far away!"

Indicolite raised her eyebrows, soon furrowing them again when her eyes met Rubellite's.

"So, we're gonna go to it, right?"

"Mhm. Get out your gun."

-

As they continued walking through the confusing mess of a forest, the smell of smoke got stronger.

Eventually, the vegetation subsided.

A blue gem was sitting at a small fire, smoke flowing from the top of the flames to the 'ceiling' of the cave the gem was sitting to the humid air.

The two tourmalines stared at the gem with awkward expressions.

The gem was crouching (so as to not hit its head) and was very focused on doodling in the wet soil with a stick.

After a few awkward seconds, Indicolite held up her gun and attempted to shoot the mystery gem.