Tears of Stone

Chapter one

"I think it went this way."

Connie beckoned, following the tracks left in the mud by the gem monster they were following. The forest was fairly quiet, the only noises being distant animal chirping and the light patter of rain. She drew her sword slowly, they were definitely getting close.

"Do you hear it?" Connie murmured, stepping forward cautiously.

"I don't know if that's.. **it** but I hear something.." Bismuth whispered.

This .. adventure, I guess you could call it, wasn't the most exciting thing ever, but Bismuth still decided to go.

Seeing corruption was . . the slightest bit uncomfortable for Biz, as the only times she saw them was when 1. Their best friend had been corrupted, and 2. Steven had been corrupted. So it wasn't her favourite sight to see.

Though, Connie was a close friend of theirs so , how could she decline the offer? I mean. . nothing could go wrong , right?

As they continued walking around, looking for the corrupted gem, it started to rain. At first it was just a few rain drops but soon after that it evolved into a huge storm. As the friends searched for shelter they saw a cave, big enough for them to stay for the time being

The rain started to grow at a rapid rate, as petrichor filled the air. They were definitely too deep into the forest to go back, unless they wanted to get soaked.

The foot print track began to smudge, the mud smearing and warping. It was impossible to tell where that gem must have gone, the rain covering up its trail.
Connie bit her lip. She was determined to catch that monster. "Err, maybe this way?" She pointed ahead, a very blind guess. "I know it's close. We can't be that far behind."

Steven had followed closely behind Connie, the mud being quite a bit of a challenge for him, having worn Sandals the mud had started to get on his feet which was a very uncomfortable feeling for him. Steven ended up slipping up in the mud almost falling back but he grabbed the back of Connie's shirt to help him so he didn't fall.
"woah- y-you know this mud is really slippery."

"Oh!-" Connie gasped, being tugged back slightly by Steven. She grabbed his hand, helping him keep from stumbling. "Jeez, maybe it's time you ditch those flip-flops. I'm surprised you haven't busted them yet." She snickered softly, sheathing her sword. "You okay?"

Steven smiled softly as he looked over at Connie, she didn't even have to do anything to make him smile.
"I'm fine... though maybe you're right... but they work everywhere else- hm. "
Steven stayed in thought for a moment about his shoes, did he really need to get new shoes? He didn't think about it like that.

The rain worsened, a loud clap of thunder coming from in the distance. It didn't seem like it was going to get much better. Of course, the first time they'd gone monster hunting in a while, and it had to pour. She wiped the rainwater from out of her eyes, scanning the area for a place they could take cover til the storm ended.

Connie spotted an open cave not too far ahead, masked by trees. It seemed relatively stable, probably wouldn't collapse in on them. Probably.
She glanced back at Steven and Bismuth, quickly motioning to them to follow her. She made her way up the muddy slope, stopping at the entrance.

as they were inside and safe from the rain the next problem started as they heard the roaring of an corrupt beast, aswell as four giant green eyes staring down at them from the dark

The ear-piercing roar made Connie jump, instinctively whipping out her sword. Four giant beady eyes stared her down, each glowing brightly in the dim cave. She felt her stomach drop. This wasn't the gem monster they were hunting down. Whatever it was, it was at least 5x the size. She stood frozen, locking eyes with the beast.