Steven yawned and stretched as he awoke. Groggily, he made his way out of bed and down the stairs, where he encountered an unexpected guest sitting on the couch.
"Oh… hi, Jasper."
Jasper glared at him, though fortunately, it was more with simple irritation at the world in general than actual hatred at him in particular. "Hello… Steven." She said his name begrudgingly.
The presence of an offworld gem in the beach house was not in itself that odd. The Galaxy Warp had been repaired, allowing Homeworld gems to visit Earth once again- provided they received permission from the proper authorities, that is. Visits by diplomats, researchers, and others had become semi-regular occurrences, and between them and the previously-corrupted gems who had made new homes on Earth and also came by occasionally, Pearl was considering partitioning off Steven's room for privacy.
Steven hadn't expected Jasper to be one of those visitors, however. He wasn't exactly sure what her intentions were, but the fact that she hadn't killed him in his sleep was a good sign.
"So, is everything okay?" Steven asked. "No lingering effects from the corruption? Apart from the obvious, of course."
Jasper glanced down at a patch of green discoloration on her otherwise orange skin. "No, no, it's fine," she said. "No problems."
"Okay. Do you need to speak to Garnet or somebody? I think they're all in the Temple. Or if you're looking for Lapis or Peridot-"
"No, it's you. I want to talk to you."
"Oh, okay." He sat down beside her. "What's up?"
Jasper grumbled for bit, unable to get the words out. "Thanks… for healing me."
"Oh, you're welcome, but I can't take all the credit. I mean, it was-"
"But you also messed up everything!"
"What?" Steven said, mildly offended. "What did I do?"
"Well, not just you, but… Rose, and… Pink..." Jasper let out a long sigh. "You know that the Diamonds stopped any further colonization?"
"Well, yeah. That's a good thing."
"I guess?" She slumped down into the couch. "It's just that, from the time I emerged, I knew my purpose was to serve my Diamond, to fight against the rebels that were slowing the completion of the Earth colony. And I was good at it; I could take down dozens of enemy combatants every battle, all by myself. In doing so, I was certain I was making Pink Diamond proud. When she got shattered… it felt like I had been shattered myself. I felt rage like never before… I wanted to avenge her, to take down Rose personally. But the other Diamonds ordered everyone to evacuate, and then their superweapon supposedly destroyed the enemy. I spent the next four thousand years performing menial tasks for Yellow Diamond.
"But then I heard that there might be surviving Crystal Gems on Earth. I volunteered for the mission immediately. When I arrived, at first, I was disappointed because Rose wasn't there. Then I saw that shield… I was so excited. At last, a chance to once again fulfill what I was meant to do!
"But then I got trapped, forced to stay in that fusion. It made me realize how weak I truly was. So when I got out, I hunted down corrupted Gems to aid me; I even fused with one. But that just got me corrupted as well… and then you bubbled me. And when I finally free again, everything was different, and there's nothing left for me. Pink is gone, Rose is gone, Rose was Pink..." She groaned. "My only desire, my only purpose, the one thing in over four millennia I felt I was meant to do was to destroy Rose Quartz and avenge Pink Diamond. But with that gone, what am I supposed to do?"
"You can do whatever you want," Steven said.
Jasper frowned. "I want to destroy Rose Quartz and avenge Pink Diamond."
"Except that."
Jasper let out a cry of frustration and slammed her forehead down on the coffee table. Even without her helmet, the impact was enough to break it in two.
Steven looked at the distraught former gem soldier. "So, Jasper," he said, "I'm not really sure how I can-"
"It was the height of the Gem War," Jasper interrupted, picking herself up. "Pink Diamond had summoned me to give a debriefing on the latest battle..."
"My Diamond," Jasper said as she entered Pink's palanquin, reverently crossing her arms in the Homeworld salute.
"Jasper, good to see you," Pink Diamond said. "How did the encounter with Crystal Gems go?"
"The soldiers fought admirably," Jasper said, "but regrettably, the rebels captured the Moon Goddess Statue for the Lunar Sea Spire."
"That is unfortunate," Pink said. "If it isn't recovered, the spire will eventually fall into disrepair and collapse in a few millennia." She shrugged. "I suppose it isn't too terrible a loss. Though I am curious about the casualties we sustained."
Jasper nodded. "Of the numerous gems whose physical forms were destroyed, seven were put into bubbles by the rebellion before we could, and two were shattered."
Pink paused. "Shattered?"
"Yes, My Diamond."
"The Crystal Gems don't normally act so ruthlessly."
"Well, I don't think they were intentional. One lost her footing and fell off a cliff while grappling with one of the rebels, and the other… er… got stepped on."
Pink raised an eyebrow. "By one the rebels?"
"No, I believe it was one of ours."
Pink rolled her eyes. "Well, tell them to be more careful in the future. How about on their side? Any casualties there?"
"We managed to bubble four of the enemy's troops, who were subsequently shattered."
"What!" Pink rose from her seat.
"I'm sorry, My Diamond," Jasper said hurriedly. "I know you said to give them all to you so you could deal with them personally, but-"
"No excuses!" Pink bellowed. "When I give an order, I expect it to be followed!"
Jasper fell to the floor, prostrate. "Forgive me, My Diamond. I tried to enforce your will, but the generals were in the employ of the other Diamonds, and-"
Pink sighed. "Of course," she said, sitting back down. "Perhaps I should make Blue and Yellow take them back. It's not as if they've been the key to numerous victories in the field. I think my own gems, such as yourself, will perform just as well all by themselves."
"Thank you, My Diamond," Jasper said even though she wasn't sure how much of a compliment Pink's remark actually was. "However, despite their uneven win record and noncompliance with your orders, their leadership has proven a worthy asset to our side."
Pink regarded this. "How about the generals on the other side?" she asked. "What do you think of Rose Quartz?"
"Rose?"
Pink nodded.
"She's a devious traitor who doesn't deserve the honor of her quartz status and-"
"No, Jasper. Your honest opinion. That's an order."
Jasper hesitated. "She's a competent fighter and a brilliant tactician," she said at last. "It's clear she studied our strategies well before her defection; it's almost as if she knows which ones we'll use and alters her own to counter them. Unless..." Her eyes widened. "My Diamond… you don't think there might be a mole within our ranks, do you?"
"Oh, no," Pink Diamond said with a small laugh. "I assure you, I know the constant whereabouts of every Gem at our battle meetings. There's no way any of them could communicate that information to the rebellion without my knowledge."
"I see. Then my initial description of her stands. It's a shame she isn't still on our side."
"Right, our side." She frowned as if in contemplation. "Jasper, you're loyal to me, right?"
"My Diamond," Jasper said, a slight hint of panic in her voice. "You don't suspect me of being a mole, do you?"
"No, no. Like I said, there is no mole. I just want to know, would you stay by my side no matter what? Would you follow my commands, even if it they are contrary to those of the other Diamonds?"
Jasper stood up straight and saluted. "I am completely loyal," she said. "I would single-handedly hunt down every last one of the traitorous Crystal Gems and deliver them to you, or shatter them myself if so ordered. I would work restlessly to ensure that this planet is terraformed into a proper colony for your glory. I..." She glanced at the Pearl who stood at Pink's side, whom she paid no attention to up until this moment. "I would even debase myself and fulfill the functions of a lowly Pearl if you desired me to do so."
"No, that… won't be necessary," said Pink, a little rattled by the soldier's fanaticism. "Thank you, Jasper. You may go."
Jasper wore a smile as she exited the palanquin.
"That was the last time I ever saw her," Jasper said. "Looking back, if I had said something different, then… then maybe things would have been different. She might not have decided to fake her shattering, to instead recruit from her ranks one by one. Maybe she would have recruited me, her most loyal subject, let me onto her secret: that she was the very gem who was rebelling against her. I would have been conflicted at first, of course, but I think I would come around eventually. I would become an actual mole, subtly converting soldiers to the other side, without fear of punishment because, well, the one who would be doling out the punishments would be the one I was in the service of. We would fight staged battles against ourselves, annoying the other Diamonds until they'd eventually give up and tell Pink to deal with it by herself. Skirmishes would become less and less frequent, projects would be started and then immediately halted by rebel sabotage; the entire colony would be all but abandoned. Gems on both sides would believe the continued presence of Pink to simply be the actions of a stubborn tyrant, and none would know the truth except her, her pearl… and me."
She sighed. "That would probably be too much to ask for. Still, if I hadn't been so anxious to tell her what I thought she wanted to hear, maybe she would still be here." She looked over at Steven. Her eyes had begun to water. "Or at least, I would have had a chance to say goodbye."
She hung her head and started to weep silently. An uncertain Steven inched closer and reached out to give her a comforting embrace.
"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Jasper roared.
Steven quickly scooted back. He stared at the floor and twiddled his thumbs as he waited for her to recompose herself. Suddenly, he felt two strong arms wrap around him; Jasper was giving him a hug. Steven gave a tender smile and hugged her back.