Chapter 1: Welcome to Earth

There was nothing but the pitch black darkness of space as Sol gazed outside, laying down on his flatbed. It wasn't the most comfortable bed he'd laid his back on but it was better than the flat hard ground he'd slept on. Gems weren't supposed to sleep so he had asked for the captain to give him a table for his 'research'. The holographic table gave him a fuzzy feeling akin to receiving a minor jolt of electricity.

Twelve years have passed since he had left Homeworld. Travelling between galaxies was very time-consuming, even while using faster-than-light engines. But for Gems, time doesn't really matter. A whole month could go by in space and they wouldn't even realize it. The H.M.S. Gemini was a fine oblong-shaped ship carrying soldiers and equipment for Earth with six tachyon boosters to drive it. He'd admit that he expected to spend five whole months of boredom trapped inside a flying metal container but he was proven wrong when he saw how well-accommodated the ship was.

There was a training room below the hangar that constantly bellowed of Quartzes training. Their brutish appearance were only matched by their raw strength and speed. Sol had a chance to test their mettle against his, promising 1000 credits if one of them managed to defeat him in single combat. It ended up being a refreshing warm-up for him and a gauntlet of pain and groans for the 50 Quartzes he'd faced.

He remembered that he gave Orthoclase an interplanetary phone for him to use before he had left. But seeing how his brother preferred the older ways of Homeworld, he didn't expect to receive a message from him.

But still, out of curiosity, Sol dialed in Orthoclase's number, hoping for him to pick up but it went straight to the voicemail. "Hey, this is Sunstone Facet 5F7G…"

Damn that brother of mine. He didn't even change the voicemail. Hopeless, he ended the call and proceeded to do push-ups on the floor. Frustration filled his head as he bobbed up and down. Perhaps this is all my fault. He thought. I shouldn't have gift him that Pearl. Wait no, I can't blame myself. I could help him get it off his chest if he would just talk to me.

"Attention all crew members and passengers," The ship's captain echoed his announcement through the speakers that lined the corridors and hangar. "We will be entering Earth's orbit in ETA 30 minutes. All military personnel, please assemble at the hangar."

That was his cue to pack up and finally get off the ship. The floor trembled as hundreds of soldiers, Quartzes and Rubies hurried down the stairs, carrying their luggage. They were all lined up in front of the dozens of dropships. Their commanding officers were busy checking if they had lost a soldier or two in the crowd. There was no space port on Earth. So the Gems had to be transported down to Earth via dropships. All thanks to Rose Quartz.

Sol entered his dropship which was packed full of Quartz soldiers. He took one survey of the cockpit and saw that they were all yellow with a badge with the image of a lightning bolt striking a planet stitched on their sleeves. The 3rd YD Quartz Division, Sol observed. They were better known as the Lightning Division and served as Yellow Diamond's elite soldiers. All of them were Citrines, hand-picked through a series of brutal and rigorous training.

Yellow Diamond believed in something called, 'Gem Singularity', an ideology which states that multiple Gems of the same variant and type could be more dominant than a group of different types of Gems. She'd proved her point by creating four divisions that solely consisted of yellow-colored Gems.

Sol felt like a small Gem standing below towering giants as he sat between two of the Citrines. The smell of gas, oil and silicon was heavy inside until it twisted his nose.

"What's a wimp like you doing here?" One of the Citrine's asked in a hostile tone. She looked more male than female with her beefy arms and thick muscles.

He tried to retaliate a stern warning but his mouth wouldn't open. Just let her talk crap at you, Sol. He told himself. Last thing you need is to piss off Yellow Diamond.

"Hey, did you hear me? Answer me, wimp!" The Citrine unbuckled her safety belt and rose up from her seat to beat the sense out of Sol. But before she could fully stand up, a hand on her shoulder shoved her back down into her seat.

"Are you thick, soldier!?" Another Citrine shouted. He appeared to be the commanding officer based on the rank on his sleeves. "That's White Diamond's representative you're insulting over there. Anything he hears, she will hear. So unless you want your gemstone to be crushed, sit down and shut your mouth!"

"Y.. ye.. yes, sir." The arrogant Citrine was soon shivering with fear as she clumsily buckled her safety belt, her eyes looking down in shame.

"I'm sorry for my soldier's incompetence, Sunstone. I hope you will not report this to White Diamond." The Citrine officer apologized.

"Don't worry, sir. I'll turn a blind eye on this one."

"Name's Citrine Facet 3T7G Cut 86K, but my men call me Thunderfist. Don't need to tell you where I got that from."

"So you're the one commanding the Lightning Division, Thunderfist?"

"Yup!" The Citrine proudly answered as he took his seat. "Been leading this group for nearly three decades and with a clean record to boot."

Before Thunderfist could continue, the cockpit doors closed and the dropship started its departure. The spacecraft transitioned from Gemini's hangar and into the vast frontier of space. Earth was visible on Sol's right side. It was so round, so blue, so… fat. I can see why the Diamonds wanted to hollow out this planet. He chuckled at his own joke to which the Citrines didn't pay attention to.

As the dropship descended into Earth's atmosphere, cutting through layers of clouds, Sol could see the vague outlines of Earth's landmass covered in a blanket of greenery with silent waves of the sea crashing its shores. There were a few struck of awes from the soldiers who looked out through the window. Clearly they had never seen a pre-hollowed planet before. How could they. They were created and trained for combat, not sightseeing.

The dropship banked right, revealing a giant circular structure above a body of water. Small figures were squirming around the platform, building and repairing the warp pads that dotted the platform.

"The Galaxy Warp," Thunderfist commented as they flew by it. "If it weren't for those traitors and their cowardly tactics, we would have had five divisions deployed on Earth in just a couple of days."

Sol finally arrived at his destination as the ship landed on the artificial island. He was the first to step foot on the foreign soil and the first to breathe in its air which was crisp but smelled of sodium chloride. His skin bathed in the planet's sunlight, giving him the much needed energy he had lost during his five month voyage.

"All non-military personnel, please report to the Customs Department." He heard the announcer said.

He bid farewell to Thunderfist before heading towards the Customs Department which was a highly secured facility built between the entryway. Two Quartzes were on guard while Rubies inspect the newly arrivals' contents and the Pearls registering their identification number. There was no shortage of workers here on Earth. Colonization activities meant open jobs for any Gems who met the requirements. This also meant that security had to be tightened as Rose Quartz's offer of freedom had attracted even the lowliest of scum.

"Please step into the geometric scanner, sir." A Pearl asked him as she registered his name and identification number. When the scan was complete, she gave him his luggage. "Welcome to Earth, Sunstone. Please remain in the Homeworld-controlled zones for your own safety."

Sol walked out of the Customs Department, only to see nothing but water and small islands. There were no towering spires to be seen, not even the foundations. Workers were everywhere, but they were doing maintenance work rather than building.

He decided to pull out a capsule-shaped device from his pocket and began his recording.

Sol's Battlelog: 1

I've arrived on Earth and was quite surprised on how far the colonization process had been set backed by the rebels. There's no sign of any spires being built and all the work is concentrated on building the Galaxy Wrap.

Yellow Diamond has deployed her Lightning Division to the area, further suggesting that the rebels are far from weakened. I will discuss with her on how to deal with them once I've reached the shore and meet my guide.

Sol, signing out.


Sol found his supposed guide resting inside an all-terrain buggy outside the docks. The buggy was a rugged, open chassis vehicle with large wheels and painted with an earthen tone.

A Ruby? Sol was disappointed when he saw the small red gem snoring away in the driver's seat. Yellow Diamond must be pulling a joke on me.

He poked at the Gem's bloating belly, causing her to wake up and accidentally pressed her feet on the car horn, creating much unneeded noise.

"Are you my guide?" He asked with an annoyed look.

"No sir, I'm just the driver. Your guide's inside there." She pointed at the Quartermaster's Warehouse.

The Quartermaster's Warehouse was located just near the docks. It was mostly a place where soldiers could get extra supplies or provisions. Metal crates were stacked as high as the ceiling could afford while an unmanned robot was moving around the perimeter of the 40 square-meter warehouse, carrying containers with its giant skeletal arms. Sol heard two Gems arguing as he went near the Quartermaster's counter.

"C'mon Bix, all I need is a new pair of boots. How hard is it just to ask?" A voice said.

"I'm sorry but I can't," The second voice replied. It was female but had that desk worker-like tone in it. "I can only give supplies to soldiers of the Homeworld."

"I'm a Homeworld soldier." The first voice exclaimed.

"Former," the second one corrected. "And shouldn't you be outside waiting for White Diamond's representative?"

Sol turned around and saw the two Gems who were talking. The female voice was from a Bixbite, or commonly known as a Red Beryl who was the warehouse's Quartermaster. Beside her was another Gem with light pink skin, short hair and a bandanna tied on his forehead.

"I guess that must be him." The Bixbite pointed out.

The other Gem turned around with a smile on his face. "Took you long enough, Sol."

"Morganite?" Sol stood there, frozen at the sight of his old friend. They were partners for a while during his expeditionary days. Even after fifteen years, he could tell Morganite from the other Morganites just by the look of him. "I expected a guide, but I didn't expect you to be my guide."

"Well work as a mercenary had been pretty dull these couple of weeks. So when I heard you were coming, I practically had to beg to Yellow Diamond to let me be your guide."

"You begged to Yellow Diamond?" He found it hard to believe that Morgan, a hardened Beryl soldier, actually begged to Yellow Diamond. He was more known for his cocky behavior and combat prowess rather than his courtesy.

"Yeah," Morgan laughed before he snapped into a more serious look. "But don't tell the others unless you want a few teeth knocked out."

"I'll try." Sol quipped before the two headed outside.

The caverns echoed with the sounds of Injectors drilling into the Earth's crust and the buggy's rumbling engine made it feel like he was in some kind of machine. From the backseat of the buggy, Sol could see Injectors being moved into placed on the ground and even on the walls. Quartzes lined up above the walls looking for any signs of rebel activity while the workers were busy assembling Injectors and monitoring their progress.

He had to reset his time indicator after Morgan told him how a year on Earth is one tenth of a year on Elysium.

"So, how's Earth been treating you, my old friend?" Sol began to pass their time.

"Well I have to say, this planet has more skirmishes than Sekrion-14." Morgan laughed. "You remember Sekrion-14, right?"

"How could I," Sol remembered the memorable adventures they had throughout their tour of duties across uncharted planets. He was his right-hand Gem despite being created for Pink Diamond. "I hope you're okay with killing your former comrades."

Morganite's laughter turned into a frown. "I can't blame them," he said sullenly. "If they want to follow that traitor, then that's their call. All I want from this rebellion is a chance to personally crush Rose Quartz's gemstone."

Almost everyone had a distaste for the rebel leader, but Morgan's was more personal. He was once one of Pink Diamond's loyal commanders and when she took the blame for what Rose Quartz had done, Morgan saw that she was the reason that his leader was executed and decided to live life as a mercenary.

"You'll get your revenge soon, Morgan." Sol assured him, placing a hand on the Beryl's broad shoulder. "That is after she has been captured and answered for her crimes."

Morgan shrugged, brushing off Sol's hand. "I don't know about you, but Yellow Diamond seems more intent on crushing her gemstone rather than capturing her."

They remained silent for the next hour only exchanging glances and asking how much longer the ride was. Sol realized that this rebellion meant a lot to him. He knew that he can't talk his friend down on killing Rose Quartz; he was not White Diamond. The least he could do is accompany him during battle, just like the old days.

"Hey Morga-"

Before he could say anything, artillery rained above their heads with the skies thundering of their arrival. Blasts of pink light exploded throughout the caverns as the Quartzes were shouting at the panicked workers to evacuate. One blast nearly hit their buggy but the Ruby expertly avoided it. Unfortunately, she failed to see the second blast that erupted in front of her.

The explosion sent the buggy flying along with its occupants. Sol landed on the hard dirt ground, face first with the Ruby several meters in front of him. An Amethyst landed between them, clad in robust armor and had no markings to indicate she was a Homeworld soldier.

She went to the Ruby who was struggling to get up and summoned her gem weapon; a purple battleaxe that gleamed through the fires and smokes around her.

"Die, Homeworlder!" She shouted before bringing her battleaxe down on the Ruby. She cried out a painless scream before poofing into a cloud of smoke.

The Amethyst turned her back, now looking at the Sunstone with a menacing grin. Sol tried to get up but he was kicked back down again. From where he was lying, he could see the sunlight ripple through the sharp edge of the Amethyst's battleaxe.

Day one of Earth and I'm already about to die, Sol coldly accepted his fate, but he wasn't about to die today. Suddenly, a hatchet out of nowhere flew right into the Amethyst's head, penetrating through her thin helmet. She screamed in pain as she tried to remove the hatchet but it was stuck deep.

Morganite appeared from behind the burning wreckage of the buggy and leaped towards the Quartz rebel. He grabbed the hatchet embedded on her head and yanked it down, splitting her hard light body and the gemstone on her throat into two.

"Now don't tell me you're gonna just lie down there until this whole mess is over." He quipped, offering Sol a hand. "C'mon, we got a disaster to avert here."

Sol accepted his friend's help and stood up. His clothes were stained with dirt and ash and his body ached and bruised. But there was one thing that wasn't stained. His battle-hardened spirit.


Smoke, fire and the smell of burning wreckage were everywhere as Morgan and Sol joined the soldiers on the defence. All the workers were safely evacuated except for the ones who could fight.

"I've already called in reinforcements," A Carnelian announced to them. "They'll be sending two Pyroxene gunships in 20 minutes."

"In 20 minutes, this whole place will be flattened if we don't take care of that artillery!" Morgan retorted. Then, the skies rumbled as the rebels began their second barrage. "Take cover!"

A hailstorm of pink light bombarded the ground, shaking it until it felt like the whole planet was affected by a massive earthquake. Once the barrage had receded, Morgan urged Carnelian to do something about the artillery.

"Carnelian, we need to take care-"

"I'm the one in charge here, Merc!" the Quartz rebutted. "And I say we stay here until air support comes."

That made him nearly lash out his anger if not for Sol who calmed him down.

"We can deal with the artillery battery on our own, Morgan." His friend assured to him.

Morgan nodded in agreement before they removed themselves from the soldiers.

The ground was littered with craters after the second barrage, forcing Morganite and Sol to jump across each one of them. There was also a benefit of having a field full of craters as it provided them much cover as they sneaked into the enemies' perimeter.

The day was growing dark once they finally breached the enemies' perimeter. About 40 rebel Gems were bundled up near three cannons. They were a mixed group of Quartzes, Rubies and even minor types of Gems.

"No sign of Rose Quartz." Sol observed.

"Figures," Morgan grunted. "She'd always preferred leading a great battle. Guess this wasn't too great for her."

"Either way, we need to take care of those cannons. Any suggestions?"

"The platform holding the cannons looks fairly weak. Perhaps we can blow the support pillars off."

"That's a great idea." Said a sarcastic Sol. "But how are we going to blow it up if we don't even have a detpack?"

"Well you have your pyrokinesis, right? You could create an improvised detpack. That is unless you've lost your touch."

Offended, Sol flicked his fingers and fire started to come out from his hand. "I never lose my touch." He said before sliding down the dirt slope and hiding behind a crate.

Morgan could see Sol stealthily manoeuvre through the rebel occupied battery. The Feldspar was always known for his gun-dagger fighting style and his mastery of pyrokinesis, being both deadly in the shadows and in open combat.

There was a guard standing between him and the support pillars. Luckily, he was standing near him so all Sol had to do was summon his dagger from his left hand and stab the guard. He managed to seal the guard's gemstone with a well-timed bubble just as it poofed, avoiding the risk of him being detected. He then shaped a fireball casted from his hands into an improvised detpack and placed it between the gaps before sinking back into the shadows to avoid the blast radius.

You cheeky Feldspar… Morgan grinned as the detpack detonated in a ball of flames. The platform came crashing down, taking all three cannons and five rebels with it. The whole area went on full alert as the soldiers scatter to search for the culprit.

He jumped down, summoning two hatchets and landing on two unsuspecting rebels. More came charging at him with their weapons. Morgan stepped back when two Rubies slammed their gauntlets onto the ground and proceeded to release a flurry of blows. Cries of pain, hard light shards and smoke filled the air as more attacked him.

Then, he heard a loud explosion followed by several rebels screaming as their bodies were caught in flames. Sol emerged from the fiery inferno with his dagger on his left hand and his revolver on his right. The smirk on his face suggests that the fire within him had reignited to the sparks of battle.

Half a dozen rebels surrounded Sol who glanced at them with his fiery eyes. One of them attacked him first, but Sol ducked under the cleaving slash that went pass his hair and stabbed the rebel right in the throat. As the rebel was left gurgling with the orange blade still stuck in his throat, the Feldspar fired three shots from his revolvers at the three other Gems before yanking his blade out and throwing it at another Gem. All five of them exploded in clouds of smoke, leaving the sole survivor, a small Hematite, shivering with fear as she tugged her weapon close to her with the Feldspar looking at her.

"Lay down your arms for your own sake," demanded Sol. It sounded more like an advice than an order from how Morganite heard it.

"Never!" the Hematite displayed her measly defiance towards the Homeworlder's order before blindly charging at him in futility. Sol fired a shot from his revolver, ending her as quickly as her show of defiance and sighed.

"It's not like she would just willingly give up, Sol." Morgan professed after Sol bubbled the Hematite's gemstone.

"I know. But it was worth the try."

Suddenly, they heard more rebels coming their way consisting of two giant Amethysts and a swarm of low-ranking Gems.

"Great," Morgan huffed. "More of those rebels."

"Well on the bright side, I got myself a nice welcoming present." Sol smiled to see the brighter side of things.

Before they could charge into the horde, two gunships flew pass them, raining down green projectiles on the rebels. They all perish under the intense fire. Their bodies were riddled with holes of various sizes. The fused Amethysts suffered the worst as they defused, unable to maintain their form, only to be annihilated by rocket fire.

"The gunships must've taken a sweet 20 minutes to get here and save our asses." Morgan quipped before the gunships turned around and aimed their guns towards the two.

"Identify yourselves or be fired upon!" The pilot ordered through his microphone. The gunship's spotlight made it hard for them to see who was in the cockpit but Morgan knew it had to be an Omphacite. They were the only ones who could skilfully pilot these heavily armed and armoured transverse rotor winged aircrafts.

"Morganite, Facet 7P9H Cut 9R5." Morgan revealed himself followed by Sol.

There was a moment of silence after that with only the sound of rotor blades slicing through the wind and dust blowing below their feet keeping them awake. Then, one of the gunships landed on the ground, still keeping its rotor blades spinning. The pilot exited her aircraft wearing her dark green flight suit and visor helmet.

She glanced at Sol with scrutiny before asking, "Are you Sunstone, White Diamond's representative?"

"Yes." He casually replied.

She then touched the microphone on her helmet and said, "Tell Yellow Diamond we have the White Sun secured," She looked at Morganite and silently curled her lips. "As well as the Pink Merc in tow."

Sol shot a look at Morgan. "White Sun?"

Morgan shrugged. "Atleast it's better than Pink Merc."

The two laughed before the pilot told them to board the gunship.