Conversation Starters
Part 1: The Mission
Chapter 1: Assigned Escort
Ruby summoned and de-summoned her weighted forearm bracer a dozen times; a nervous habit she developed from anticipating sparring matches with bigger gems. Unfortunately, she was facing a bigger challenge then the typical minute in the ring. The automatic door to Jasper's office slid open and an irate-looking yellow gem stepped out, looking smugly above the little red gem.
"Ugh, Mental-class gems" Ruby thought, following the sharply-dressed gem with her eyes, "if she ribbed Jasper, that's only going to make things harder for me." She took a deep breath, and stepped in.
"Commander Jasp-"
"What do you want, squirt?" Commander Jasper was leaning back in a chair, reading through some sort of report, "Can't you see the big gems are busy?"
Ruby grimaced," Yes. I know you're busy. I know there's a war going on and I KNOW I'm still on the micro-reserve, even though I have applied to front line duty five times now. What is your deal?!"
The bigger orange gem stood, still facing away. She sighed, "Look tiny, if the earth rebellion smashed every other brute-class gem we have left, I still wouldn't recommend you for front line. You're tiny, you're weak, and you'll last a second down there, maybe. Why don't you just-"
"I don't care!" Ruby slammed her fist on Jasper's metal desk, denting it a bit, "It's what I was made to do, and I want to do it!" She glared holes into Jasper's head.
The commander turned around smirking, "you are NOT going to drop this, are you?!" the orange gem circled around the desk menacingly, "you're going to keep nagging me, and annoying me, and ticking me off until I throw you at that crumby wet planet myself."
Jasper closed in on Ruby, close enough to kick the little gem across the room. Ruby tensed but held her ground.
"Am I right, tiny?" The bigger gem smirked wickedly. Ruby nodded, meeting her gaze and refusing to back down.
Jasper's face fell, but only a bit, "well you're in luck. I'm being promoted to general tomorrow, but before then, I need to assign a gem to an escort mission on earth. If you complete this mission, I'll assign you right to the front lines." Jasper extended a hand smirking, "deal?"
Ruby considered this for a moment. She had proven again and again she was worthy, in and out of the sparring ring. She didn't want to babysit some weak mental gem, but on the other hand she'd get a good look at the planet she'd be fighting on. And she'd also get to show those uppity upper-caste gems whom the boss was, always a plus.
"Deal." She shook Jasper's hand with her non-gem hand, matching her vicious smirk.
/
Sapphire read the last report of the day and filled out her final evaluation: 75% success rate, 25% zero-sum rate, 0% failure rate. "This is terribly boring Bowenite. Must I really do this every day?"
The Larger gem beside her placed a yellow-green, slender hand on Sapphire's shoulder, "Dearest Sapphire, you have a gift. It is good that you can use it to help the empire." She tossed her blonde hair aside and turned, "please be patient with it."
The tiny blue gem sighed and stood up from her tiny desk, "I suppose I can look at it that way…" Sapphire approached a window gazing over the city, her poofy blue dress crinkling with every step. She watched the streets below fill with ranks of soldiers crossing town to a warp pad on the edge of the metropolis of gems.
"I just feel like I am calculating pointless deaths." A single tear rolled down Sapphire's face as she foresaw, in dark detail, the potential demise of every Brute-class gem in the ranks below.
"Oh Sapphire," Bowenite wiped away the tear, kneeling beside her, "please try not to pity them. Brute classes are slow, and stupid. What we know is senseless violence, they call glory in battle. Most of those gems want to die, and the rebels they fight deserve to die."
Sapphire looked down, her face darkening "I want to retire to my quarters now."
"I-very well then." Bowenite's green eyes filled with concern, but she closed them, "you may go now." She watched Sapphire climb the Alabaster spiral steps in the center of this work chamber, up and away from her guidance.
As she climbed higher, Sapphire's mind clung to Bowenite's words. "The thought that a gem could WANT to die." She scoffed. Sometimes she felt worldlier than the bigger mental gems she knew, even wiser. Perhaps she'd never left the Seer tower, and perhaps she never would; but she felt deep within her gem that brute-classes were not the dumb chattel Bowenite played them up to be.
"If I could just… talk to one…" Sapphire mused out loud, "If I could talk to anyone outside…."
She shook her head, willing the impossible thought away as she entered her private, perfumed chamber of soft, red pillows. She curled into one and squeezed another, smaller one close to her physical form, and then she sang soft, sweet songs so herself until she fell into a deep meditative state.
Sapphire heard the arguing some time later, in the dark of night.
"No, no, we need a true seer, not a dream reader like you!" a gruff, unknown voice growled from the floor under Sapphire's chamber.
"Are they talking about Bowenite?" Sapphire wondered to herself, she stood up and quietly tip toed to the edge of the spiral stairs. She spotted Bowenite, white vestments on yellow gem near the edge of the stairs. Surrounding her were several brute-class gems, some as high in rank as Admirals; still far lower in rank then Bowenite, but currently backed by the Diamond Authority itself during this time of war.
Bowenite scoffed, "I told you I need another month before the kindergarten can guarantee a seer gem when I first made my proposal to your com-"
"And we told YOU that we're rushing the proposal timetable to a week! The Earthling rebels are on the move and we know you have a seer gem now!"
Bowenite scoffed, turning up her nose, "if you knew anything you'd know I can't send her. She is already-" the bullish green gem cut her off again
"We have papers transferring her from report forecasting to the front. Hand her over."
Sapphire was intrigued now. These strange brute class gems were trying to bully her mentor for no known reason; she stepped a ways down the stairs, curiosity piqued.
"Well, she's NOT here." Bowenite crossed her arms and glares, "and I do not give you consent to search. No go!" The brutes snarled and went to turn when Sapphire took another step and, for a brief moment slipped.
"eep!" the blue gem shrieked loudly, her voice echoing through the tower as she caught herself on the railing. The gems below her all turned and stared at her, Bowenite's face locked in pure horror.
"Sapphire, go back upstairs. Run, now!" the panic in her voice fell on deaf ears as the brute class gems raced over to the dazed seer gem and subdued her, restraining every limb roughly as she struggled and panicked.
"B-Bowenite," she yelped, tearing up in frustration, "help me!"
"Let go of her you savages!" Bowenite begged, she herself being subdued by soldier gems.
The green Admiral gem rolled her eyes "You'll be reviewed before the diamond authority for treason. And this one," she held up Sapphire's chin for emphasis," is going to the front, whether she likes it or not. Gems, move out!" the soldiers scaled down the tower and separated on the streets, Bowenite and Sapphire sobbing and begging not to be pulled apart.
"Please," sapphire whimpered, seeing no possibility of reuniting with Bowenite in the future, "not like this..."
/
"yeah-yeah-yeah-YEAH!" Ruby emphasized every punch she threw into the sandbag with a loud yeah, smirking wildly. Today was her day, and she was going to face it with sore knuckles.
"I'm gonna be a gem-force ranger, I'm gonna live a life of danger, I'm gonna-" the midday bell rang and Ruby stayed her punching bag throttling, "alright, time to go!" she tied on her favorite red headband and trotted up the cobblestone stairs of the barracks. Her life had reached a lull since Jasper left for earth, taking her rough treatment with her. And while Ruby appreciated not having her physical form slammed against walls anymore, she was ready for action. The warp pad to earth loomed on a hill from the main city street as Ruby trotted towards it grinning.
"Come on Earth, Give me your worst!"
Sapphire's cell door clicked open around midday, a pair of guards looming in front of the exit.
"Ready to go, tiny?" one of the guards bellowed, brow cocked.
"I…. suppose." Sapphire sighed, following them passively. She had been conditioned to her compulsory mission until she knew the details perfectly. She would be escorted from the Central warp hub on earth to the Sea Spire base in empire control. From there she would continue her current wartime forecasts but on current battle strategies and general decisions. There, at least, she had the chance to prevent more deaths from occurring in real time. That's what she told herself. She took a deep, worried breath as she approached the warp pad terminal, hoping her escort would at least be nice.
Ruby climbed eagerly on the pad, searching the crowds below her for her charge.
As Sapphire approached, she spotted a small red gem with a red headband on the warp pad.
"Is that really my escort? She's so…. Small." Sapphire couldn't help but giggle softly.
Ruby turned to the giggle, flashing an annoyed glare at the gem that dared to laugh at her. She caught sight of a tiny blue gem in a fluffy blue dress.
"Wow, she looks like…. Such a priss." Ruby snorted, "So, am I escorting this mental class Gem?"
The brute-class gem snorted with a sense of affinity,
"yep! Be gentle with her, she's a seer." The brute gem handed over Sapphire's wrist to Ruby. Sapphire stepped carefully onto the warp pad.
"The warp pad to the Spire is just south of the warp hub, and report to General Jasper when you get there!" the guard gem saluted Ruby before walking away, which Ruby returned with a grin. It was the first time she was ever directly saluted to.
"Hi, I'm Sapphire." Sapphire said quietly as the warp gem began to glow, looking at the strange brute gem. It seemed to confirm a lot of things Bowenite said of these lesser gems, but she resolved she would try her hardest to befriend this gem.
"I'm Ruby," the red gem responded, shaking her head and getting serious again as the Warp pad carried the two gems away to the foreign planet, "now can it until we get to the Spire!"
