Steven Universe and it's characters belong to Rebecca Sugar and the crewniverse.
They were cornered with Homeworld's army closing in on them. Garnet tried to find any way she and Pearl would survive this. She frowned when she couldn't. Their only possible means of escape was a narrow cave entrance that let out at a more remote section of the battlefield. Neither Gem could fit through it. They could fuse, but Pearl's manipulations to trick Garnet into fusing with her still hurt. Garnet saw a chance. If they fused, they could win.
Pearl glanced at the taller gem, and at the cave. Neither could fit…but Ruby and Sapphire could. The pale gem bit her lip. She doubted Garnet would want to fuse with her again, not after she'd staged so many false alerts just so they'd be Sardonyx again. Pearl was pulled from her thoughts when a pyrite lunged at her. She dodged just in time, and countered with a flurry of parries. It's no use, she thought as more soldiers rushed to box them in. She stole a glance at Garnet; the fusion was fighting hard, but she seemed as tired as Pearl felt. There were simply too many and they were outnumbered.
"Garnet, look out!" The smaller gem stabbed at the gem sneaking behind her teammate. She spun and deflected a blow from a Howlite. The towering gem was stronger than her. "Please unfuse. We'll die if we can't get away from here." She grunted as she parried multiple attacks. "Ruby and Sapphire can fit through the cave entrance. I'll stall them." Garnet shook her head, punching a Topaz. It retreated to its gem, and she glared at Pearl through her visor.
"No, Pearl! We can still fuse." They retreated closer to their only escape. "We can form Sardonyx. Don't give up on me. Not here." She held her hand out, her gems already glowing. Pearl looked at the oncoming army. It would be easy to do it again, especially while they're in danger and Garnet offering. She lowered her head. She really wanted to form Sardonyx. The pale gem looked away, stepping forward.
"I'm sorry, Garnet." Garnet's eyes widened. "I can't."
"Pearl, this isn't the time to apologize. We need to get out of here!"
"Please go. I can't protect you like this, but if Ruby and Sapphire escape, you can fuse again. I'll do everything I can to keep them back." Pearl smiled at Garnet, pushing her back with the hand not holding her weapon. In a flash of light, two smaller gems stood in front of her. Sapphire dragged Ruby to the entrance, though the red gem protested the whole way, screaming at Pearl to come with them. As soon as they were both in the cave, Pearl blocked the entrance. The last Ruby and Sapphire saw of her before Howlite collapsed the opening was Pearl fighting desperately against the Homeworld soldiers.
-After the Battle-
Rose and Garnet surveyed the battlefield. The Crystal Gems had won the battle at the cost of hundreds of gems on both sides. The ground was scarred and blackened in some areas, and littered with gem shards. Garnet clenched her fist. Any of those could be Pearl's gem; no one had seen Pearl since Ruby and Sapphire had emerged from the cave and instantly fused again. She tried to push those thoughts out of her mind, tried to tell herself Pearl was alright, that help had arrived and Pearl would show up any moment now. Still, she had to know for sure.
Garnet ran towards the area they'd been trapped in. It was further from the where the main battle had taken place. She ran, searching for Pearl in the wreckage as she passed. She kept searching for a future where Pearl's still alive. The more she looked the more concerned she got. Pearl didn't appear in any of them. The collapsed cliff wall loomed closer. Even from the distance she stood, Garnet couldn't see Pearl.
The area Pearl had defended now lay covered with gem shards and cracked gems. Each step the tall gem took was slow and careful. Any of them could be Pearl. The knot in her throat tightened. She pushed past the discomfort. She would find her mate and bring her back to base, even if she had to bubble her. No, she shoved that out of her mind. Garnet could feel Ruby and Sapphire's worry for the blonde gem. At the pile of rubble half-buried in the dirt she saw a glint of white surrounded by gems shattered into fragments. "Pearl." She picked Pearl's gem up, holding it as if it were the most fragile thing in the universe. To her it was. There was a large crack along the surface. It looked deep too. Garnet's eyes looked around noticing for the first time there weren't any other gems either.