The sun is bright, our shirts are clean. We're sitting up above the sea. Come on and share this jam with me.
Peach or plum or strawberry, any kind is fine, you see. Come on and share this jam with me!
I'll do my best, to give this jam the sweetness it deserves.
And I'll keep it fresh, I'm jamming on these tasty preserves!
Ingredients in harmony, we mix together perfectly, come on and share this jam with me!
"Woo-hoo! Jam buds!" Steven cheered, holding his ukulele up in one hand. Beside him, Connie held her violin and bowstring, the two of them having just finished playing their melody together. It was a beautiful day for Steven to invite Connie over for lunch. At his suggestion, they moved to sit outside on the outstretched hand of the Temple statue, where Steven would do his laundry, his trademark pink t-shirts fluttering on their clothesline.
"Nice jamming session" Connie said as she placed her violin back inside its case.
"You guys are really in sync with each other. "
Steven and Connie turned to see Abe, walking across the length of statues arm toward them. Both arms raised to either side as he moved slowly across the statue, like a tightrope walker trying to keep their balance.
"Hey Abe." Steven called back, having invited Abe as well to come and join them. "You're just in time for the real jam buds. I got the biscuit"
"And I have the strawberry"
"Um, actually, could I have some peanut butter on mine instead?" Abe asked, sheepishly, pulling a yellow-colored jar from his satchel. "If that's ok?"
"Of course it's ok." Steven said patiently; by now he was starting to grow accustomed to Abe's tendency to ask for permission. "I am a man of many jams."
Smiling, Abe accepted the biscuit from Steven. He was about to open the jar of peanut butter for his biscuit, but then paused when he observed a flock of seagulls perched on the stone fingers above them. The seagulls all turned their heads down in the direction of Steven as he opened his jar of strawberry jam.
"Uh, Steven maybe you shouldn't…" Abe said warily.
But it was already too late. In less than a second, Steven spread his jam over his biscuit, bring it only a few inches to his own mouth when the flock of seagulls descended upon him. Steven yelped in surprise as the birds had him surrounded, helpless as they hungrily trying to steal his biscuit.
"Yah!" Moving almost as fast as lighting, Connie rushed in, swinging her violin bow like a sword, a fierce and focused expression on her face as she swatted the seagulls away Steven. Her ferocious display was enough to drive the seagulls back as they flew up into the air.
"Hah! Run back to your masters!" she declared boldly, still thrusting her bow at the retreating birds. "Tell them we're not afraid of your kind!"
Seeing that he was now safe again, Steven quickly shook off his surprise at the unexpected encounter. Luckily for him though, a flock of hungry seagulls were definitely not the most terrifying enemy he had faced.
"Thanks for saving my jam snack, Connie." Steven said. "Unfortunately, it's not safe from me." Steven wasted no more time before hungrily shoving his snack into his mouth.
Abe, who had remained silent throughout the exchange, was still keeping a close eye on the seagulls that were now flying overhead a good distance away from them, though it seemed that had to lose all interest in the prospect of a meal.
Taking his eyes off the seagulls, Abe opened his jar of peanut butter and spread some onto his biscuit, before breaking it up into several pieces. He then stood up and walked closer to the edge of the hand and threw the pieces down to the ground below. The flock of seagulls soon congregated around the pieces, now preoccupied with the offering of food.
"Take that you filthy scavengers" Abe called down to them.
Steven gasped in shock as though Abe had just thrown away his own life's fortune. "Abe, you sacrificed your jam snack!"
"Don't worry, I brought emergency rations." Abe pulled out a bar of chocolate from his satchel. "This is the lesser evil since it saves those seagulls from the wraith of Connie."
"Yeah, Connie is such good sword fighter." Steven said happily, admiring her with bright eyes.
"Really?" Connie said, with a slight blush, as she then took a moment to examine her bow, with a more completive look. "I was just swinging this thing around. I don't really know what I'm doing, but I'd love to learn how to use a real sword!
Steven picked up another biscuit and took a bite. After a moment of chewing, he quickly swallowed it when a thought came to him. "Steven has an idea. We can ask Jasper if she can teach you."
"Teach me?" Connie said, surprised. "Wait, does Jasper know how to use a sword?"
"Well, Jasper knows just about everything when it comes to fighting." Steven said, with a shrug, knowing that it would be quite impossible to find a better expert on the subject. "Can't hurt to at least ask her."
The three of them were now inside the Beach House, standing in front of Jasper as she sat on the kitchen stool next to the countertop, her arms crossed and her face impassive as she listened to Steven's request.
"So, in conclusion, I think Connie would be a great sword fighter. She's already so good. "
"Steven!" Connie said, with another blush.
"But you are!" Steven insisted. He then turned to Jasper. "You should have seen her when she took down those seagulls just now."
"Hey, what about me?" Abe said, surprised. "I sacrificed my snack."
"Abe, shush!" Steven said in a hushed whisper, waving his hands slightly, while still eyeing Jasper. "I'm trying to close the deal here. What do you say Jasper? Will you, do it? Pretty please?"
Jasper remained silent. After a moment, she stood up from her seat and spoke at last. "So, what you're saying is….you got beaten by a bunch of birds" she said, looking at Steven with disapproval
"Um, I guess?" Steven said, feeling unsure how much of the story Jasper had actually listened to.
"Okay, looks it's time we take your training to the next stage." Jasper said. "You need to be ready to face whatever's out there."
Before Steven could voice any counterargument, Jasper unceremoniously picked him up off the ground by the collar of his shirt and began to carry him to over toward the Warp Pad.
"Wait, I'd like you to train me too, Jasper." Jasper stopped and turned around to Connie, who blushed slightly before speaking more firmly. "I mean, I don't know what'll happen in the future, but if something dangerous comes along, I don't wanna be a burden, I wanna help! I wanna be there for Steven, to fight by his side! The Earth is my home too. Can't I help protect it?
Jasper gave Connie a long, deadpan stare, not showing the least bit of emotion, before sighing deeply. "Fine, you can come".
"What about Abe?" Steven asked, while dangling from Jasper's arm.
"….who's Abe?" Jasper said, confused.
"Present" Abe raised his hand and gave Jasper a small wave.
"He's my other best human friend" Steven explained. He frowned as he looked up to Jasper. "You met him before remember?"
"You brought another one into the house?" she muttered, staring down Abe, looking as though he was some kind of strange animal that had followed Steven home. She sighed again, already looking weary. "Fine, whatever, you can all come."
Using the Warp Pad, the group teleported from the Beach House to a new location in seconds. Once they had landed, Connie wobbled on her feet slightly, trying to maintain her balance, never having warped before. Steven quickly gave her a hand to steady herself as they both laughed at her slight mishap.
Abe was far less fortunate however, looking quite nauseous from the trip. Steven was just about to ask if he was ok, before Abe placed his hands over his mouth, his cheeks expanding as he kneeled over the side of the Warp Pad and hurled the chocolate he had previously ate. Steven and Connie could do nothing but grimace and averted their gaze until the display was over.
After making sure Abe was alright, Steven and Connie took the moment to admire the scenery. They were standing in front of what appeared to be a large, square shaped colosseum, hovering several miles above a large chasm on a floating rock, situated somewhere between a series of mountains.
The three of them followed Jasper as she led them through a large archway leading into a large circular pit in the center of the colosseum, which was surrounded by a series of stone benches, likely for the use of a gathered crowd. There were a number of stone pillars rising out of the ground, some broken and some unbroken, as well a number of metal racks holding various weapons.
The floor of the colosseum was made of square stone tiles, but there were several patches of grayish sand and gravel scattered about. The sections of gravel had lines drawn in them, forming circular rings.
Jasper led them to one of the rings. Beside it was a stone basin on a raised platform, filled to the brim with blue colored stones.
"This is the Battle Arena." Jasper said. "It's where Gem warriors would come to hone their skills for combat."
Jasper picked up five of the blue rocks from the basin and placed them on the ground inside the ring. The five rocks lit up as a mass of dirt and gravel converged around them, rising up and forming into the shape of tall, featureless, humanoid statue, roughly the same size and build as Jasper. Its face was nothing more than two sets of blue colored holes.
"These Rubble-Bots are useful for sparing practice. " she explained. "They're mostly basic fighters but are good enough to keep your skills sharp."
Jasper stepped into the ring and stood in front of the Rubble-Bot. The Rubble-Bot's eyes lit up and raised its fists in the air, before taking a swing Jasper both left and right. She dodged each blow easily before delivering a swift and powerful uppercut, shattering the Rubble-Bot into a cloud of dust and pebbles. The three blue rocks dropped to the ground, appearing unscathed as the dust cleared around them. Jasper picked up one of the blue stones and set it on the ground. Just as before, a clump of loose sand and gravel swirled around the stone, forming another Rubble-Bot, only this time it was much smaller, now standing at the same height as the three children.
"Let's start you off with something small" Jasper said, walking out of the ring and standing next to Steven, evidently ignoring both Connie and Abe.
"But, Jasper, we were only asking if you could give Connie some sword lessons?" Steven said.
"I'm here to train you, Steven." she said bluntly. "My job is to make sure you are ready for the challenges ahead of us. You more than any of us need be stronger. Stronger than even me"
Steven stared up at Jasper and then to the small Rubble-Bot waiting for him in the ring. There was a time when he would have loved the idea of being just as strong as Jasper, and the fact that she wanted to help improve meant a great deal to him. But this whole idea had been about Connie first. He knew he couldn't steal this opportunity from her.
"Well, if I need to get stronger, then I want my friends to be as well." Steven said, looking up to Jasper defiantly "So, if you give me lessons, you have to promise to give some to Connie and Abe too"
Jasper's upper lip curled back slightly, looking as though Steven had somehow just insulted her. She groaned again, as Steven held her gaze firmly, before crossing her arms begrudgingly.
"Alright, I'll give your friends some lessons. " she said. "After we finish your training first. Now, get in there. Just put your fists up and take a swing. Show me what you can do."
Accepting the compromise, Steven walked into the sparring ring and stood in front of the small Rubble-Bot. Though a little unsure of himself, Steven slowly raised his fists up and put on a determined expression. He waited for the Rubble-Bot to make a move to defend itself, but it remained stationary. Steven took a deep breath, pulled his arm and then threw his fist forward. But Steven opened his eyes at the last second and once he took one look at the Rubble-Bot, he came to an abrupt halt.
"What are you doing?" Jasper snapped, angrily.
"Aww, he just looks so pure and innocent." Steven said, his eyes glistening with emotion at the featureless face of the Rubble-Bot. He turned around to Jasper clasping his hands together, with a pleading expression. "I can't bear to hurt that face."
Steven then noticed both Connie and Abe making a series of frantic gestures to him, as though beckoning him to move out of the way. He then turned his head back around just in time to see a solid stone fist stone smashing into his face and knocking him clear out of the ring, landing at Jasper's feet.
"If you don't throw the first punch, the enemy will." Jasper said, kneeling down beside Steven, picking him back to his feet again, patting some of the dust off his shirt. "Now, get back in there."
Connie then raised her hand up in the air, like a student in a classroom. Jasper stared at her for several moments.
"What?" she said finally, just as Connie was beginning to strain to keep her arm up.
"Can I take a turn?" Connie asked.
Jasper looked at Connie and then back at Steven, who was wobbling slightly on his feet, evidently still shaking off the impact of that last punch. Jasper sighed again and made a vague gesture with her hand, seemingly giving Connie permission to go next.
Connie smiled excitedly and rushed into the ring. She stood in front of the Rubble-Bot with a more focused expression as she raised her fists in the air. Unlike Steven, she didn't waver in her resolve, swinging hard at the Rubble-Bot, striking it across the face and knocking it back slightly.
"I did it!" Connie cheered, ignoring the slight pain in her hand as she did a brief jump in the air.
"Alright!" Steven cheered.
"Way to go Connie" Abe said, clapping for her.
Jasper remained silent, her expression neutral. "Hmph. You could have done better than that" she commented, finally.
"R-really?" Connie said, nervously. "How?"
Jasper walked into the ring and kneeled down beside Connie, placing her hands on her shoulders.
"Widen your stance and plant your feet firmly." she said, while pushing Connie's legs further apart. "Don't just throw your arm either. You need to put the full force of your body behind every strike." Jasper picked up Connie's arm and began to demonstrate how to move her body. "Turn your hips and lean in with your shoulder as you extended your full arm out."
Connie practiced this motion several more times until she was sure she had it down correctly. Jasper then backed away from Connie, just as the Rubble-Bot was now making its way toward her. Connie held her ground, keeping her stance wide and firm like Jasper said. The Rubble-Bot raised its arm, preparing to strike.
As soon as it was close enough, Connie swung her fist again, this time turning her whole body into the punch, which had enough extra force that it was able to knock Rubble-Bot off its feet and down to the ground. Steven and Abe cheered wildly at Connie's success.
"Woohoo!" Connie cheered, bounding up in the air. A second later, her face grimaced slightly, letting out a quiet 'ow' as she shook her throbbing hand.
"Hmph. Better" Jasper grunted, sounding only mildly pleased. After Connie walked out of the ring, Jasper then turned to Abe. "Alright, you. You're next"
"Uh, actually, I just really came here to watch. " Abe said shyly, "I'm not really sure yet if I'd want to take part and… and I am now fully committed to this" he finished very quickly, reading the unamused look on Jasper's face at once, rushing up into the ring without question.
Abe took up his position in front of the Rubble-Bot. Though looking somewhat nervous, he raised his arms in the air, watching the Rubble-Bot carefully. He then paused and titled his head to the side as he noticed the Rubble-Bot had yet to move.
The Rubble-Bot then abruptly threw its fist, causing Abe to jump back, avoiding the blow. The Rubble-Bot took a few more swings as Abe backed up to the edge of the ring and fell out onto the ground. The Rubble-Bot suddenly stopped right in front of him, standing at the edge of the ring.
"That was pathetic." Jasper said angrily. "Don't just dodge the punches. You can't win a fight if all you do is run."
"Well, I didn't get hit, did I?" Abe said, standing up and brushing off some of the dust off his shirt. "Do I at least get more points than Steven?"
"You don't get any points." Jasper said coldly.
"Wait, did I lose points for getting hit?" Steven asked, shocked. "How many points does Connie have?!"
"No one gets any points!" Jasper snapped impatiently. "In battle, you either win or lose. Alright, looks like all three of you have a lot to learn. Let's get started.
"But wait, does this mean you'll teach me how to use a sword?" Connie asked.
"Weapons come later." Jasper said. "If you don't know how to fight with your hands, you don't know how to fight at all. Show me what you can do and then I'll teach you what I know."
For the next week or so, Jasper continued to train the three of them together, each fighting one of them taking turns to spar against one of the Rubble-Bots. It was difficult to say the least, but they kept at it. On top of the sparring lessons, Jasper had them all do basic exercise training, such as running, pushups and pull ups. Though after some insistence from Steven, Jasper agreed to maybe lessen some of the more strenuous elements of her training regimen. Particularly, the part that required to try and carry some boulders up a mountain side.
Over time, Steven managed to improve during the lessons, becoming more apt at blocking and defending without his shield, which Jasper had instructed him not to use, wanting him to learn how to fight with his hands. However, Steven couldn't help but get the impression, Jasper was not pleased by his performance. She repeatedly tried to show him techniques that relied heavily on direct aggression or combat, which only made Steven feel uncomfortable. He felt at his best when Jasper taught him less violent forms of combat, such as blocks, counters or throws, though she could only do so very begrudgingly.
The one though excelling the fastest was Connie, who was already able to keep up with her Rubble-Bot's fighting style. And unlike Steven, Connie seemed to prefer more a direct approach to the combat, attacking the Rubble-Bot head on rather than block or dodge. Despite this, Jasper would still critique her movements as sloppy and insist on showing her the proper form for her attacks which Connie would diligently practice. As Connie continued to improve even further, Jasper soon began to tutor her in different fighting forms and techniques. Steven hoped that Jasper would finally start giving her sword lessons as well.
Abe's training on the other hand was a little bizarre. He took his turn to spar with the Rubble-Bots just as Steven and Connie did, and while he did manage to learn some basic combat moves, he seemed unable to keep his focus for most of their sessions, allowing himself to be get distracted by something in the middle of his sparing match and had to pause to examine whatever it was. And whenever it looked like he was in trouble, he would run out of the sparing ring, apparently just forfeiting the match to the Rubble-Bot as it remained where it was. And after a while, Steven thought that Jasper had forgotten about him entirely, letting him train at his own leisure.
Nevertheless, Steven still enjoyed spending time together with Connie and Abe. Even with Jasper. Steven was surprised at how insistent she was on him having to train as well, but he assumed it was just out of concern for his protection. And while he mainly was doing this so Jasper would eventually teach Connie how to use a sword, he soon felt compelled to do better as while.
Steven held his ground in the sparing ring as the Rubble-Bot came at him. Keeping himself focused, Steven waited until the Rubble-Bot was close enough and raised his arm up, forming his shield over his wrist to block the attack.
Smirking a little, Steven threw his shield at the Rubble-Bot like a frisbee disk. The Rubble-Bot ducked underneath the shield. Steven continued to smirk however, watching as the shield bounced off one of the stone pillars and came flying straight back towards the Rubble-Bot from behind, knocking it from underneath its legs.
"I did it!" he cheered. "Hey, Jasper, did you see? I did this cool thing my shield this time and-"
Steven fell silent when he realized that Jasper was not watching him fight. Surprised, he looked around the arena and saw that she was now standing over with Connie at another sparing ring.
It seemed like Jasper was in the middle of demonstrating a new technique to Connie, one that involved blocking an enemy's strike with her left arm, before turning around to hit them in the chest with her right elbow.
Steven watched as Connie practiced the new move on her own a few times. She then entered the sparring ring and performed the movie flawlessly against her Rubble-Bot opponent, knocking to ground with her elbow. Connie smiled at her success and turned to Jasper. After a moment, Jasper's stoic face broke into a slight grin, clearly happy with Connie's progress.
Steven stared at them both in silence, not feeling any emotion in particular, yet for some reason, he was trying very hard to recall a time when he had seen Jasper look so happy.
Steven pressed the button on the blender and let it mix until it made a grayish blend of fresh goo. Once completed, he poured the gooey liquid into three separate glasses. It was at Connie's suggestion that they started taking protein shakes to help keep them invigorated during training.
Steven checked the clock, expecting Connie or Abe to appear at any moment. The door opened, but only Abe entered.
"Hey ,Steven"
"Hi, Abe." Steven glanced around Abe at the door. "Have you seen Connie?"
"She's not here yet?" Abe replied, surprised.
"No, its not like her to be late." Steven said.
"Maybe she's already at the Battle Arena?" Abe suggested.
Steven pondered this for a second. He knew Connie would usually be right on time rather than early, but then again, Steven had not seen Jasper all morning either. Deciding there was only way to be certain, Steven gulped down his protein shake, while shuddering a little from the raw taste of it and walked onto the Warp Pad. Abe picked up one of the two remaining glasses, but did not drink it, as he kept his eyes cautiously on the Warp Pad, before he joined Steven on. A moment later they warped away from the Beach House, appearing at the Battle Arena.
Only once they had arrived, Abe then took a sip of his drink; despite the numerous jaunts on the Warp Pad these past two weeks, he still had not managed to overcome his motion sickness when warping.
As Steven and Abe walked through the archway into Battle Arena, they soon heard the sound of grunting coming from up ahead. Once they reached the main fighting pit interior, they could see Connie already in one of the sparring rings, her hair tied back in a ponytail and a sword in her hand as she dueled against one of the Rubble-Bots, wielding a sword of its own. Jasper was standing at the edge of the sparring ring, watching Connie's performance with an impassive gaze.
Connie grunted loudly she swung her sword at the Rubble-Bot, which parried her attack with its sword. She increased the ferocity of her strikes, attacking relentlessly from all angles, driving the Rubble-Bot back with each blow. Eventually, she struck hard enough to knock the sword out of the Rubble-Bot's hand.
Before the Rubble-Bot had time to react, Connie then followed up with another powerful horizontal slash, as she let out a mighty battle cry, her sword slicing straight through at the neck of the Rubble-Bot, its head coming clean off its shoulders and flying into the air, until it landed right in Steven's open palms. Steven stared at the decapitated head resting his hands for a brief moment, before letting out a scream of horror and instinctively tossing it to Abe who caught it. Abe stared at the head curiously before it suddenly disintegrated, turning into nothing but loose sand in his hands.
Connie took a few breaths to collect herself. She then turned to Jasper with an eager expression. "How was that?"
Jasper smirked, looking pleased. "Not bad. Good clean cut. Remember, aim for the middle of throat, just below the chin, to avoid hitting the shoulders." Jasper crossed her thumb over her throat with a smirk for extra emphasis. "That the way their head comes off with less resistance."
"Yes, ma'am" Connie said, giving Jasper a respectful bow.
Jasper then picked up a very large sword off a nearby weapon rack, one that was almost twice her length in size and half as wide. "You sure you don't want to use this one instead? Gotten a wider swing to it" she asked, offering it to Connie.
"Uh, think I'll stick with this for now" Connie said, with a nervous smile, holding up her modest training sword. It was then that Connie noticed Steven and Abe's presence beside the ring.
"Oh, hey guys" she greeted.
"Hey" Steven said, collecting himself. "You, uh, started without us."
"Jasper finally said it was time for me to learn how to use a sword, so she asked me to come over early" Connie said, excitedly. "We've been at it all morning."
"Wow, that's great" Steven said, with a half-hearted smile, trying his best to look positive, as another thought creeped into his mind. "Really great. So, um, when did you guys get to the lessons about chopping heads off?"
Connie opened her mouth to say something, but then winced slightly, gripping her sword hand. Concerned, Steven quickly stepped into the ring and examined Connie's hand, which was marked with blisters and cuts, no doubt from the rigorous training she had been doing.
"Hey, you're hurt." Steven said with worry. "We better get you something for your hand."
"I brought some bandages and disinfected, just in case" Abe said, reaching into his satchel bag and producing some a roll of bandage, offering it to Steven.
Steven was just about to unroll a sheet of bandage for Connie's hand when Jasper suddenly snatched it away from him.
"She doesn't need that." Jasper said, tossing the roll away. "Connie can handle a little pain."
"What? But Connie's hurt her hand." Steven said, surprised. "Let me just have a look and-
"She's not gonna let a little thing like that stop her. Connie's a real fighter." Jasper placed her hand on Connie's shoulder with a rather proud smile, one that Steven could hardly recall ever seeing on Jasper's face before.
"Besides, she'll be facing a lot worse than that in the future. She's gotta be ready to handle it if she wants to protect you."
"Yeah, that's right, I can handle it." Connie said, firmly, squeezing her injured hand tightly, her resolve outweighing any pain.
Satisfied, Jasper started to walk back toward the sparring ring. "Come on, we got some advanced techniques to get through today."
"Don't you want a break first?" Steven asked.
"It's ok, Steven, I can keep going" Connie said with confidence, picking up her sword once again.
"Well, ok" Steven said, still looking apprehensive. He then turned to Jasper "So, what do you want me and Abe to do today?"
Jasper stopped walking and turned her head over her shoulder to look at Steven. She then glanced over at Abe, who was busy lightly throwing pebbles at one of the Rubble-Bots that was standing inside one of the sparring rings.
"You can practice by yourself if you want." Jasper said. "I'm going to train Connie for today."
"Really?" Steven said, surprised. "Ok, so I guess we'll do some more training tomorrow then?"
Jasper stopped again. She then let out a noise that sounded like a mixture of a sigh and a groan.
"I'm going to be training Connie from now on, alright?" she said, turning around to face Steven face properly.
"You don't want to train me anymore?" Steven said, feeling more surprised than he thought he would.
"Isn't this you asked me to do in the first place?" Jasper said impatiently. "To teach Connie?"
"Well, yeah." Steven replied slowly. "But I thought you said I needed to get stronger?"
"You don't need to worry about that anymore. Do whatever you want. But Connie can't afford to let herself be weak. You need someone like her to watch your back. She'll be able to protect you from any threats."
"You mean…by herself?" Steven said, both sounding and looking very uncomfortable by the prospect.
Jasper raised an eyebrow at Steven. "Are you planning to fight by yourself then?"
"Um, well….no?" Steven said awkwardly.
Jasper scoffed, now sounding disappointed and perhaps a little scornful as she glared at Steven. "Yeah, that's what I thought." She turned her back to Steven and resumed her walk toward the next sparring ring. "Come on, Connie let's go."
Connie gave a sympathetic look to Steven, who appeared chest fallen at Jasper's harsh dismissal. She opened her mouth to say something but was then cut over by Jasper as she called for her again.
"Now"
Connie hesitated for a moment, before her expression became determined once again and she soon followed behind Jasper, leaving Steven standing alone in the sparring ring, feeling certain that he had done or said something wrong, though he was not quite sure what it was.
Steven paced up and down the interior of his living room, his mind racing as tried to make sense of the thoughts buzzing away in his head. Abe was sitting on the kitchen stool, kicking his legs back and forth, casually reading one of Steven's books, titled, 'How to Talk to People.'
Steven finally ceased his pacing when Connie entered the house, carrying her duffel bag with her training gear over her shoulder.
"Hey Steven, hey Abe" she said greeted, without a break in her pace as she walked past Steven toward the Warp Pad.
"Connie, wait, a second" Steven said.
Connie turned to face but at the same time, the door of the Temple chimed and opened, Jasper stepping out of it.
"Good, you're on time." she said, looking at Connie. She stepped onto the Warp Pad. "Let's go"
"Yes, ma'am" Connie said, respectfully.
"Can I talk to you for a second?" Steven said quickly.
"Sure, Steven." Connie said. "What's up?"
"No distractions, Connie." Jasper said, curtly. "We have training to do."
Connie nodded firmly and joined Jasper on the Warp Pad without further question, the both of them teleporting away before Steven could say anything else. He sighed dejectedly and walked over to the kitchen counter, taking a seat next to Abe.
Abe lifted his head up from his book and stared quietly at Steven, who was looking severely depressed.
"Wanna have some jam?" he suggested, after a moment.
Steven moaned and nodded glumly. Abe hopped off the stool and walked to the fridge, pulling out two jars of jam, one strawberry and the other peanut butter. He offered the strawberry one to Steven.
Steven unenthusiastically picked up the strawberry jam and opened it, but face fell once he saw that the jar was completely empty.
"I'm a biscuit without my strawberry." Steven cried, his eyes starting to swell with tears, clutching the empty jar to his chest, pressing his head down on the kitchen counter.
Abe stared at Steven impassively, before he spoke again. "Well maybe we just need to add some chocolate to this peanut butter situation."
Steven lifted his hand up to Abe with a confused expression. "That makes no sense."
Abe opened the lid of the peanut butter jar. He then pulled out two bars of chocolate from his satchel and opened one of them. He dipped the bar of chocolate into the peanut butter and offered it to Steven.
Steven eyed the peanut butter coated chocolate for a moment with some trepidation before he took a bite. Steven took a sharp inhale, his cheeks swelling and his eyes now watering with tears of joy as he cherished the flavor.
"This is amazing!" he whispered. "Abe, you're my savior."
Abe smiled, pleased at the effect he had made as he dipped his own chocolate bar into the peanut butter and took a bite as well. For a short while, he and Steven sat in silence together, eating their respective chocolates, the atmosphere improving slightly, until Abe spoke again.
"So, if don't mind my asking, I'm a little confused about your relationship here. Is Jasper, like, your mom?"
"No, but she knew my mom and was her best friend." Steven replied, taking another bite of his chocolate. "They were both Quartz soldiers together who fought together."
"So, your mom knew how to fight too?" Abe asked.
"I suppose." Steven said, slowly. "I never got a chance to see her fight, but I do have the shield that she used. Maybe if she was here, she could have shown me how to use it."
"Do you think your mom would train you like Jasper, if she was here?"
Steven paused, fiddling with the chocolate bar in his hands as he answered. "I don't know. Maybe. I mean I know I wanted Jasper to teach Connie first, but I was kinda happy she wanted to train me too. Now I think maybe I disappointed her somehow"
"Well, on the bright side I don't think Jasper remembers that I'm here most of the time, so I guess I don't have to worry about feeling like a failure to her." Abe said, with a happy smile.
There was a long pause as Steven felt the weight of that statement sink in, unsure if it was intended to make him feel any better.
Abe frowned, eventually picking up that's something was not right. "That was the wrong to say, wasn't it?"
"You could have worded it a little better" Steven admitted, though he did not sound overly harsh. Wanting to change the subject, Steven addressed another thought. "So, you're not disappointed with how all our training has gone?"
"Not really." Abe said, with a shrug. "I do think the Rubble-Bots are pretty cool. But they have some glaring design flaws if you ask me." Abe added with a low whisper.
Despite himself, Steven chuckled and smiled a little at Abe's comment. Truth be told, he was a little bit happy that Abe was able to avoid any negativity that had come about due to their training together.
"Abe, I'm getting kinda worried about Connie."
"Why?" Abe asked, his mouth half full of chocolate as he took another bite. "She seems to be doing really well. And Jasper seems really happy when she's teaching her."
"I know and I am happy too that Connie is doing so great with her sword training." Steven said, sincerely, not wanting to give the wrong impression. "And it's like I don't want Jasper to be happy either, but I'm worried things are going a little too far now. "
"What do you mean?" Abe asked.
"Well…" Steven hesitated and now looked very uncomfortable. "Jasper can get a little bit…intense"
The Temple door chimed and opened once again, as both Peridot and Lapis came walking out of it this time.
"So, then, you know what I said to them?" Peridot asked earnestly.
"No idea" Lapis said coolly.
"I called them a clod!"
"Wow, I did not see that coming" Lapis said, with a wry grin.
Peridot then noticed Steven and Abe sitting in the kitchen. "Steven, wait until you hear my latest comedy anecdote!"
"What's wrong, Steven?" Lapis asked, with some concern. "You look a little sad."
Steven took a deep breath as started to explain the situation, as he realized he had not informed Peridot or Lapis anything about the events of the last few weeks.
"Well, I asked Jasper to give Connie some sword lessons. But then she said she only wanted to train me, so I said she has to train Connie and Abe too. But then Connie started doing really well on her own, so now Jasper is training her how to fight all the time. But now I think it's getting a little too serious, because she wants Connie to fight super hard and do all this dangerous stuff to protect me. But it also feels like maybe Jasper resents me a little for not doing that kind of stuff by myself."
"Well, the problem is quite obvious" Peridot said, after a short pause. "You asked Jasper to teach you something."
"Actually, what Steven said makes a lot of sense." Lapis said. "That sounds exactly what Jasper would do."
"What do you mean?" Steven asked.
"Back during the war, Jasper admired Rose's strength because she was the only Gem who could ever fight Jasper to a standstill." Lapis said. "But Jasper would also get frustrated at Rose for holding back her full power in battle. She felt that Rose was acting weak when she should have been strong. So, Jasper tried to make up for it by throwing herself into battle with all her might when Rose wouldn't. She wasn't afraid to take on any threat, even at the cost of her own life."
It took Steven a few moments to absorb everything Lapis had just said as it now finally dawned onto him why Jasper wanted to train Connie so hard. She wanted Connie to be strong enough to fight off any dangers that could threaten him. In his mind, Steven could vividly remember the day they faced off against Black Onyx, how Jasper was the one to charge head long into battle without fear. And then Steven remembered exactly how that particular battle had ended for Jasper.
As soon as he imagined Connie in that same scenario, Steven became filled with absolute terror.
"Ahh! I have to do something!" Steven ran past Lapis and Peridot, hopping into the Warp Pad. "Thanks for telling me. Come on, Abe"
"Wait, right now?" Abe said, sounding fearful. He cast a nervous glance at the half-eaten bar of chocolate in his hands and gulped deeply. "Oh, boy"
Steven waited restlessly on the Warp Pad, practically bouncing on his heels, as Abe apprehensively stepped on to the Warp Pad beside him.
Seconds later, Steven and Abe arrived at the Battle Arena. Steven immediately took off, running straight to the entrance, while Abe struggled to keep up, holding his hands over his stomach.
"I'll, uh, be right there Steven…" he moaned, his face turning a deeper shade of green, his cheeks beginning to expand.
Steven didn't even notice that Abe had fallen behind, as he did not stop running until he was through and entered the fighting pit of the Battle Arena. He scanned the arena and saw Connie and Jasper standing in one of the sparring rings furthest from the entrance.
Neither of them had noticed Steven's presence just yet. Connie was standing in the sparring ring, alone, looking up to Jasper who towered over her like a great and powerful general.
"Remember, you need to be strong to protect him" Jasper said, stern. "In the heat of battle, strength is all that matters. If you don't have that, then you're nothing."
"I am nothing" Connie repeatedly, bowing her head solemnly.
Steven sped across the arena and was just about to call out to Connie, when Jasper slammed her foot against the ground. A huge stream of dust shot out from along the edges of the sparring ring, momentarily blinding Steven as he lost sight of Connie and Jasper. He then felt the ground begin to shake, coughing as he tried to brush away the dust in his eye.
Despite the cloud of dust blinding him, Steven moved toward the direction of the sparring ring but then suddenly felt the ground disappear under his foot as took his next step, nearly sending falling downward. As more of the dust began to clear, Steven could now see the sparring ring that Connie was standing in had sunken down several feet below the ground, forming a small pit.
Arching his neck forward, Steven could make out Connie down below him in the pit, her sword raised in defense as she was surrounded on all sides of a group of four Rubble-Bots
Steven watched in horror as Connie was fighting alone, now with no means of escape. Steven couldn't let this happen. He had to stop this no matter what.
With a slight grunt, Steven jumped off the edge of the ring and landed down in the pit. "Connie!"
"Steven?!" Connie exclaimed in surprise at the sight of him, just as she countered an attack from one of the Rubble-Bot's. "What are you doing here?"
Steven ran straight to Connie and grabbed her by the arm. "Connie, I don't want you to do this anymore! Not alone!"
"Steven, you need to let me do this for you." Connie said, pushing him away from her as another Rubble-Bot wielding a stone mace swung at where Steven's head was.
"You're not strong enough, so I need to be as strong as possible to protect you." Connie said, her back to Steven as she faced off against the four Rubble-Bots that encroached around her. "You're the one with a legacy, a destiny. I'm just a human. I have to give you all my strength and service, or else I'm worthless. "
"No!" Steven said. "I don't want you to!"
It seemed Connie was no longer listening, as she swung her sword in all directions, blocking and hitting each Rubble-Bot as they came at her one at a time, though no matter how many times she swatted them away, they kept coming. Her face soon was soaked in sweat, her hair beginning to come undone.
"Steven... I'm doing this... FOR YOU!" she punctuated with each of her sword swings. She slashed her sword at the nearest Rubble-Bot, cutting it clean in half.
Now finally out of breath, Connie dropped to her knees, the exhaustion finally catching up to her.
"I…I need to be able to protect you" she said, struggling to catch her breath again.
"But if you're the one protecting me, then who's the one protecting you?!" Steven said, almost on the verge of tears at the sight of Connie.
He saw another Rubble-Bot come charging at Connie who was still on her knees. She tried to lift her sword up to defend herself but was too late as the Rubble-Bot lunged at her. Before it landed, however, Steven stepped in front of Connie and formed his shield, allowing the Rubble-Bot to smash head long into it and shattering itself upon impact.
Steven turned to Connie again, who looked up at him with a sense of awe.
"Someday soon, we may be fighting some really bad guys, and when that day comes, I want to fight with you, together!" Steven said. "So please!"
Steven offered Connie his hand, smiling at her. "Won't you share this jam with me?"
Connie paused briefly, before she smiled back and happily accepted Steven's hand as he helped her back to her feet. It seems she finally managed to catch her breath.
They didn't have long to appreciate the moment as the two remaining Rubble-Bots came at them from opposite directions. Steven and Connie quickly stood back-to-back, each facing one of the Rubble-Bots.
The one closest to Connie charged at her, its mace raised above its head while the sword wielding Rubble-Bot ran at Steven from the other side. Before either one of them struck, Steven shuffled his feet and switched positions with Connie, blocking the oncoming mace with his shield, while Connie parried the second Rubble-Bot's sword swing.
Moving together in perfect sync, Steven and Connie disengaged from respective opponents and rotated positions again before either Rubble-Bot had time to react.
Now back in their original position, Connie leapt forward and thrust her sword into the mace wielding Rubble-Bot, its body shattering from the point of impact. Behind her, Steven jumped, his shield face forward as it smashed right through the remaining Rubble-Bot like a small wrecking ball.
"This is much easier!" Connie said, sounding quite relieved, seeing they were now out of enemies.
"That's the idea!" Steven said, happily. "No matter what comes, we do this together!"
The ground beneath rumbled again as the sparring ring was brought back to the surface, where Steven and Connie came face to face with a scowling Jasper, looking none too pleased.
"Steven, you can't be here." she said angrily. "This is Connie's fight. Stay out of it"
"Why?!" Steven cried. "We're a team. She's the strawberry!
"And he's the biscuit!" Connie added.
"And that makes us, Jam…
"Buds!"
Jasper blinked once, her face still frozen as an angry scowl. "I have no idea what any of that means. " she said in a low, humorless voice. "But you can't be here Steven. Connie is the one who is supposed to protect you. That's her purpose. Let her do it!"
"I won't let her do it by herself." Steven said, defiantly.
"Why? Because you can't do it by yourself?" Jasper snapped.
Steven froze up, feeling that same sense of disappointment emanating from Jasper, which momentarily caught him off guard.
"You have no idea how strong you could be if you stopped holding back." Jasper continued, the intensity of emotions started to rise further. "You pull your punches. You block rather than strike. You stand at the back, hoping everyone else is safe, while someone else has to take the fight right to the enemy. Connie doesn't just wait. She strikes first, she gives it her all. She is willing to do what you won't do. She's exactly what you need to win!"
"I don't care what I need!" Steven said, shaking his head stubbornly. "What Connie needs is my help, so I'll help her."
"That's right. We'll fight together" Connie said.
"She doesn't need your help!" Jasper snarled, ignoring Connie, her eyes only on Steven. "She's the strong one and you're not!"
"Yes, she does." Steven said, refusing to relent. "Just because she's strong doesn't mean she doesn't need my help."
Jasper growled deeply before she threw her hands up in the air and let out a furious shout up to the heavens above.
"Why don't you ever listen to me, Rose!?"
In a bout of pure frustration, Jasper threw her fist into a nearby pillar, shattering at its base. The pillar toppled downwards and collapsed at the edge of the sparring ring, smashing into the basin filled up with the blue stones with a loud crash, kicking a strong gust of wind which whipped past Jasper's hair.
There was a long silence as Jasper stared hard at Steven, who could return her gaze with the same innocent and curious expression as always.
"You are just like her, Steven." she said, her voice soft and quiet. "You have so much power and potential that you don't even realize it because you hold it all back. If you would just use your true power, then you wouldn't need anyone to protect you. Don't you see? You shouldn't need anyone."
There was another long moment of silence, before finally Connie spoke.
"Jasper, did Rose make you feel like you weren't needed?" she asked, gently.
Jasper frowned deepened as she stared down into the ground. She then turned away from Steven and Connie, arching her head up to the sky, her shoulders slumping in defeat. "She only needed me because she allowed herself to be weak. So, I had to be the strong one instead of her. That…drove me nuts."
Steven suddenly felt a terrible sense of sympathy for Jasper and regretted having brought up such unpleasant feelings for her. He could never make Connie feel unneeded. But he also could no longer stand by and do nothing either.
"Jasper, I know you think I'm weak and I can't handle things on my own." Steven said, stepping forward. "But if it means I can fight alongside Connie, I promise I'll get as strong as I possibly can be, so I can stand by her side and support her through anything! We'll fight together, side by side, as equals!"
Steven took Connie's hand with his and held her with a tight grip which Connie returned. There was a pause as they both stared at Jasper's back, waiting for a response. Then after a tense moment, Jasper turned to look at them with what appeared to be a very genuine smile of pleasant surprise and excitement.
"Really?" she said, sounding uncharacteristically optimistic.
"Uh…yeah!" Steven cheered after a brief pause, lifting up his shield.
"Bring it on!" Connie added, brandishing her sword at Jasper.
Jasper turned around and now regarded them both with a competitive smirk.
"Okay then, show me what you can do" she said, giving them both a challenging gesture with her hands, beckoning them to attack her.
Steven and Connie both raised their respective weapons, ready for battle, but then stopped and started to gape at something looming over Jasper's head.
Jasper dropped her smile when she noticed a large shadow passing over. She turned around and was greeted by a massive stone pillar slamming into her body, sending her flying upward, clear over the stone wall and right out of the Battle Arena.
Steven and Connie looked up in shock at what had swatted Jasper. It appeared that some of the blue stones from the shattered basin had been activated and formed another Rubble-Bot. Not only was it much bigger than normal, but it was clearly some kind of aberration, its body heavily distorted and misshapen. It's legs with like stumps, one slightly bigger than the other. Its right side was covered in a number of appendages, ranging in various sizes, protruding from different positions along its torse and shoulder. In place of it's left arm however was a massive club, made of the pillar that Jasper had knocked over. The Rubble-Bot's face was like a beehive of glowing blue eyes which were locked on Steven and Connie.
The colossal Rubble-Bot raised its clubbed arm and brought it down on the two of them. Steven quickly formed as big of a shield as possible over both his and Connie's head, blocking the blow, though he could still feel his legs nearly buckle from the impact. With some strain, Steven managed to push the shield upward, forcing the Rubble-Bot back.
The colossal Rubble-Bot then reached for Steven with several of its elongated arms. However, Connie rushed forward and began slicing through the attacking arms, cutting them apart like bramble. This was only a minor inconvenience however, as the colossal Rubble-Bot still had many more many limbs left to spare.
Steven and Connie slowly began to back up, keeping their weapons raised and staying by each other's side no matter what, the colossal Rubble-Bot bearing down on them.
Just as the Rubble-Bot raised its club to strike again, a single rock flew through the air and hit it in the head. The Rubble-Bot paused and slowly turned its head as another rock bounced off it.
Steven and Connie likewise turned to see Abe, now standing at the edge of the sparring ring, a small pile of rocks at his feet, as he hurled a barrage of them at the Rubble-Bot's head, which had absolutely no effect on it. Despite this Abe continued to throw them with an impressive swing, his face completely focused as he aimed with consistently accurate precision at the Rubble-Bot's head.
As soon as the Rubble-Bot set its eyes on Abe, he quickly stepped hopped inside the sparring ring and began jumping up and down, waving his arms in the air, making himself as obvious as target as possible.
"Hey, over here!" he cried without a hint of fear. "Come and get me!"
"Abe, no!" Steven yelled, now absolutely terrified for his safety. "Get back!"
Connie raised her sword and was about to run in to attack the Rubble-Bot now that its back was turned, but stopped when Abe raised his hand up and called out to them.
"No, guys just wait." he said, sounding firm and serious. "Stay out its line of sight. Don't make a move until I tell you. Don't worry. It's not going to be able to hit me."
For a moment Steven thought Abe had completely gone insane. He knew that he and Connie had to do something before Abe got hurt, yet as he heard Abe speak with such conviction and authority, he felt briefly inclined to trust him. Connie seemed to share this feeling as she also paused, though still kept her sword raised.
They watched with bated breath as the Rubble-Bot marched over to Abe at the who held his ground. Then, when once the Rubble-Bot was only a few feet away from Abe, its clubbed arm raised, seconds away from smashing him into a pulp, Abe hopped back over to the other side of the sparring ring, now standing outside of it.
In that instant, the Rubble-Bot suddenly froze on the spot, standing stock still with its arm still raised in the air and poised to strike, keeping its eyes on Abe.
Steven could hardly believe what he was seeing. The Rubble-Bot simply continued to stare right at Abe, yet for some reason it wasn't any move to hit him despite him being perfectly within reach.
"Ok, now's your chance. " Abe called out to Steven and Connie, still standing under the Rubble-Bots gaze. "You need to knock it outside the ring."
Sharing a quick glance with Connie, Steven knew instinctively that they both had the same idea. Forming his shield again, Steven pulled his arm back and held that pose as Connie charged forward.
Connie swung her sword at the base of the Rubble-Bot's stumpy leg, cutting ring through it. As the Rubble-Bot started to wobble on its remaining leg, Steven threw his shield with all his might, hitting the Rubble-Bot in the back, causing it to fall forward.
Abe quickly side-stepped the Rubble-Bot as it tumbled outside of the ring with a loud crash, its body disintegrating into a cloud of dust, sweeping across the Battle Arena, pieces of the broken pillar scattering on the ground.
Once the dust had cleared, Abe blinked once, his entire body covered in at least an inch of dust.
"Are you guys, ok?" he asked, coughing slightly as he started to brush some of the dust off. "Sorry for being so late. Apparently, chocolate does not love me back."
"We're fine" Connie said, as both she and Steven joined Abe at the edge of the sparring ring. "It's great that you showed up when you did."
"How'd you know that would work?" Steven asked, still amazed by Abe's plan.
"Well, the Rubble-Bots can't move or fight outside of the arena's perimeter or else they'll break apart." Abe explained. "And they can only attack whichever opponent is within their direct line of sight. That's how I knew it wouldn't attack me once I stepped out of the ring and it wouldn't attack any new targets so long as I remained the only thing in its view. Like I said, design flaws."
Steven and Connie both stared at Abe with their mouths hanging open in a state utter disbelief after his summation. It took Abe a couple of seconds to notice the surprised looks on their faces.
"Wait, did you guys, not know that stuff already?" he asked, sounding genuinely curious.
"Abe….you're like a total genius!" Steven exclaimed.
Abe blushed at the sudden compliment, twisting his hands around, looking embarrassed. "Well, I just….I picked up on some bits and pieces, you know when we were practicing. I didn't think it was a big deal or anything"
"Looks like you were paying more attention to the hidden details than me or Steven" Connie said, sounding just as impressed.
"That's your jam, bud!" Steven said, offering Abe a high-five, which he happily returned.
"Still, I can't believe I didn't figure out the Rubble-Bots weaknesses. How could I be so clueless?" Connie said, sounding disappointed with herself. She raised her sword to her chest. "Abe, from this day forth, I hereby declare you, my rival!"
"If I must meet my end, I'm glad it will by your hand Connie." Abe said, matching her regal tone.
"No, no. I covered this once today." Steven said, wagging a stern finger at Abe. "We're a team now. That means you too Abe. You're the chocolate and I'm the peanut butter. Except when I'm the biscuit and Connie's the strawberry. And maybe you two can be a chocolate strawberry? Or is it peanut biscuit?"
Abe stared in confusion as Steven continued to try and reconcile his metaphors, while Connie merely chuckled at the situation.
Moments later, the three looked back to the entrance of the Battle Arena as they saw Jasper rushing back through the archway, with Peridot following closely at her heels.
"What happened?" Peridot asked, once she had caught up to everyone and taken the moment to survey the arena. "Are you all ok?"
"You two were able to beat that thing?" Jasper said, looking at Steven and Connie with a mixture of surprise and satisfaction.
"It was all thanks to Abe. He was incredible!" Steven said.
Abe blushed again as Steven praised him. "Well, you guys did all the cool looking stuff."
"He came up a whole plan to lure the Rubble-Bot out of the ring so that it would fall apart" Steven explained.
"Well of course" Peridot said, unimpressed. "These training constructs are designed to disintegrate once they step outside of their designated sparing area. It's a safety feature. Wasn't this all explained to you when you first came here?"
There was a long pause as none of the three kids elected to speak. Peridot turned to Jasper said nothing, merely scowled, which enough of an answer for Peridot.
"In any case, it's good at least one of you was paying attention. Well done, Third Human" Peridot said, inclining her head toward Abe.
"Guess you're not completely useless after all." Jasper said, flatly.
Abe smiled at Jasper's compliment, but then frowned as he seemed to be re-evaluating that statement.
"Looks I'll be teaching both of you from now" Jasper said, turning to Steven and Connie, with a slight smile.
"You gotta keep teaching Abe too." Steven said in earnest.F
"Yeah, he's our strategist." Connie added, putting her arm around Abe's shoulder.
"Well in that case, perhaps I could provide you with some instruction." Peridot said, stepping forward. "Combat is one thing, strategy is another. Clearly, though, it seems I should help to supervise any training going forward. Someone has to teach you the fundamental concepts as well"
"Do whatever you want." Jasper said, gruffly, while shrugging. "Just don't get in my way."
Accepting that as a reasonable response, Peridot cleared her throat and addressed Steven, Connie and Abe directly. "Okay, we'll have to start by organizing a training plan for each you and one for as group and-"
Peridot paused as Abe raised his hand in the air. "Yes, Third Human?"
"Can we have a point system?" he asked, quickly.
"My thoughts exactly." Peridot said, with a pleasant smile. "Extra points to you for the suggestion, Third Human."
"Yes!" Abe cheered, pumping his fist. "I'm in the lead"
"Aww/Come on!" Steven and Connie both moaned in unison, realizing, in spite of everything, they had now fallen behind.