Chapter 1 - Bent, but not Broken
Jasper knew she was out of her league.
She had been outnumbered and outmatched. The gems that formed the Alexandrite, even if half or more were defective, were working together. Jasper did not have that luxury. It was no wonder that Malachite, even if Jasper was in control, was defeated. She almost got lucky, if it weren't for those small organic creatures which managed to subdue Malachite for just long enough.
What had she expected? Any gem would know that in that situation they would lose the battle and be poofed and worse yet, shattered. But Jasper knew the reason that she fought.
She didn't have anything to lose anymore.
And she was defeated. Poofed, likely. Shattered? Definitely. She had fought the Crystal Gems before, back in the first war. For all she had done, Jasper didn't expect any mercy.
So why was she self aware and seeing nothing but blackness, instead of the familiarity of her gem's interior?
Why could she feel the same ocean that had trapped her for months around her?
Why could she hear movement in the water of small, harmless organic creatures around her?
Why was she alive?
Jasper didn't know what to expect anymore. She wasn't poofed. She hadn't even been captured. She knew she was underwater and in physical, solid existence. Had the Crystal Gems brought her to this place?
There wasn't an explanation, and Jasper needed one, so she tried to move.
And she did. She felt tired, which to her was the one thing she could reliably expect at this point. She found she could stand, or at least crouch. Using her gem, she manage to light up the area to at least see where she was going. Her movements were slower due to the water, but it was something she could endure.
Jasper found that she was in a huge fissure in the crust of the planet, filled with seawater. She couldn't see the surface from the bottom of the fissure, but one end of it was nearby. She chose to go in that direction.
Other than as Malachite, Jasper hadn't seen much of the sea of the earth that she could remember. All of the battles she fought were on land, where she had an advantage. That was a cruel reminder of when she did not, of when a Lapis Lazuli decieved her. If the ocean hadn't provided enough of a bitter reminder, that thought did the trick. Jasper wanted to get out of her former prison, and thankfully was no longer restrained by any chains. She quickened her pace and began to swim upwards. She could see the small planetoid humans called the moon, the only light in the sky when she surfaced. It was night time.
Treading water, Jasper looked around for land. The only land nearby was the same island she was defeated at. She didn't want to return there, but figured she did not have much of a choice. She could tell there was another land mass, some distance west, but it was too far to reach at that point. Jasper knew she needed to rest. She'd figure out what to do next after that.