Backstage Protection

A Steven Universe Fanfiction

Chapter 8

A/N: Sorry, I was planning to have this up a few hours ago, but I got a little caught up watching Parks and Rec... anyway, we get a little bit of Jasper in this chapter, because everyone could use a bit of big buff cheeto puff in their lives.

It had been three weeks since Jasper's run-in with the brat and the nerd, and it seemed like every moment that passed she got angrier and angrier. And when she was angry, the large gem was about as far from pleasant as any being of any species could be.

She currently stood over the half-repaired escape pod she had found Lapis and Peridot near, glaring at the wrecked technology. Her large hands clenched into fists, yellow eyes closing as she made herself take a deep and calming breath. She needed to keep her temper if she was going to get anything done.
She knelt by the wreckage and started shuffling through the scrap metal and various parts, trying to find something – anything – she could use as a communications device. She wasn't a technician by all means, but she knew the basic programming that would get her a decent signal to Homeworld. She just needed something originating from her planet with a screen.

Within some time, she lifted a small object into her hands with a smile. It somewhat resembled a human iPhone, with some green specks where she could press in the code. Yes, this would work nicely.

. . . If it would turn on.

Her face turned downwards into a snarl again as she shook the device lightly. "Come on, turn on! You can't be out of charge." She didn't have a power source at her expense, and she didn't have the gift of time on her side. If she arrived back much later than scheduled without an explanation, she would receive the single greatest punishment a warrior like herself could imagine. Not that she was entirely sure what it was, but countless threats from the Diamond Authority had left her afraid to find out.

And if this thing was broken . . . well, that was even more trouble, and there was no way she wanted to be stuck on this miserable planet the rest of her long life. Returning home wouldn't even be an option if she couldn't make contact. Being punished for circumstances out of her control was not something that the brute wanted to go through.

… Well, okay, maybe the outcome had been in control. She had lost her temper and started just hitting blindly. If she'd had a spare destabilizer on her, things would certainly have been much, much different.

And, of course, this realization fed into her also realizing that the punishment would be even harsher. So she restricted the urge to smash it into a tree, deciding instead to continue mashing on the power button while mentally pleading for it to work.

Finally, the screen lit up with a Triforce-esque symbol. It was turning on, thank the Diamonds. Jasper sighed in relief, waiting for it to load before pressing in the code that would bring her into contact with her boss.

After what felt like an eternity, a face that looked almost like that of a goddess appeared on the screen. As soon as Yellow Diamond realized who was on the other end, the look on her face went from flat to one of rage, as it tended to do frequently. She had a temper as firey and hot as the sun her hair was based on.

"Jasper! Where the hell have you been?" The leader snapped, her voice cutting like daggers. "You have been gone for so much longer than you had scheduled. The mission on Earth is not some simple little vacation through which you can dawdle and sight see."

"I know." Jasper responded, trying to sound professional and serious to hide her fear for the diamond. "There was an unexpected difficulty, ma'am."

"And what difficulty is that?" Yellow demanded through her teeth.

"The Crystal Gems. There are still four of them left. Well, three, if you count the fusion as one. And Rose Quartz – she – I don't know what she did, but there's a human boy with her power that managed to get past the force fields. He's immune to the destabilizer technology."

A stony look reappeared on Yellow Diamond's face. "... I see."

"So, ma'am, if I may request backup -"

She stopped talking, too nervous to continue further. There were few things Jasper feared, and the Diamond Authority was one of them.

Yellow Diamond seemed to think some time before speaking once more. "Very well. But only because I'm assuming that what you say is true, Jasper. If no threat exists, there will be serious repercussions for you."

"Yes, ma'am."