Control & Chaos
Chapter 8: To Be Given Incentive
It had been two week since the confrontation with the Gems. Two weeks since she made her escape, two weeks since she impaled Steven. And of course, it has been two weeks since the gems had first started their hunt for her. They were scouring the world for her whereabouts. Not only were they driven by their duty, but they were driven by revenge.
What they didn't know, was that she was right under their noses. Just seven miles south of the Crystal Gem's temple, there was a small cave. It was the perfect base. It was easy enough to get to, but just out of the way enough that nobody knew of it's existence. Best of all, the gems would never expect her to hide so close. It was the perfect place to lay low.
That being said, she was growing restless. She wanted to go out, and do something. She wanted to show the world her power. So much chaos, so little time. But, all good things came with good time. As hard as it was, she needed to resist those urges. Acting on instinct would only attracted the gems, and she didn't need that...at least, not now.
She had spent the last two weeks letting the power inside her grow. It was brimming at her body, begging to be let out and explosive bursts. Chaos was a finicky little thing like that.
A smile crossed her face. It had been long enough. She was ready.
She pushed herself up, and walked out of the cave. Today would be a good day.
To say that the days since his recovery had been stressful would be an understatement. Every day, the gems would go out searching for their wayward comrade. He would wait at home, hoping that they would find her. The only company he had was Lion, and the pink beast had not been in the best of moods. He was recovering from his battle well enough. Unfortunately, Lion was forced to wear a cone over his neck. The pink cat absolutely despised it. Grumpy lions did not make good companions.
All Steven wanted was for this nightmare to be over. He didn't want to think about Pearl causing any more harm. He wanted to be a family again. But as each day came and passed, the gems return. Each time, the answer was the same.
"We didn't find her."
He didn't think anything would distract him from this.
And then, he heard a knock at the door. That was odd, he thought. They didn't get visitors that often. He went to answer, and he couldn't hide his smile when he saw who it was.
"Connie!"
The girl was back in town for the next few days, and wanted to know if Steven could hang out. It was just the distraction he needed.
Connie took him to Beach City Comics. The girl was hoping to buy another issue of the series she'd gotten into: Manhunter.
"It's really awesome," Connie explained, picking up a comic out of the bin. She showed him the pages. "It's about this prosecutor who's tired of watching supervillians go free...and so she became manhunter, bringing them the justice they deserve!"
"That does sound awesome!" Steven replied, looking through some of the comics himself. Steven never really read comics. He thought they were cool, but why read about super heroes when you lived with the real things? He picked a comic out of the bin. Maybe he would start getting into them, though. It'd give him something to read while he waited for the gems.
"So, Steven? What magical adventures have you had lately?"
Steven froze, being taken off guard by the question.
"Oh...nothing exciting," he shook it off, giving her a smile. He didn't want to tell her about what happened with Pearl. He wanted to keep her out of this situation. As much as he loved including her on gem adventures, this was one adventure she didn't need to experience.
"Are you alright, Steven?" she asked. He smiled.
"Yeah, of course!" He said, a little too quickly, "Hey...let's get ice cream. Ice cream sound delicious right now!"
She laughed, picking up her comics, "Yeah, that sounds great...mind if I go to the bathroom first?"
From the moment she came over, Connie could tell there was something bothering Steven. He just seemed a bit...off. Distracted. There was something he wasn't telling her, but she didn't push him for it. If he didn't want her to know, then he probably had good reason. Besides, it still seemed like he was having a good time.
She smiled, as the water from the sink fell onto her hands, trickling down between her fingers. It sounded weird, but Connie thought it was one of the most peaceful sensations in the world. It was like she was rinsing the negativity from her body, letting it be replaced by a sense of calm.
And that feeling was about to get ruined.
She felt a cold hand grip onto her shoulder. She gasped, looking up. The hand belonged to Pearl.
"Hello, Connie," she smiled. There was something about her tone of voice that gave her chills.
"Oh, Pearl," she said, forcing a smile, "I thought...Steven said you were on a mission?" Pearl gave out another laugh.
"Oh, Steven hasn't told you then?" She chuckled, "Garnet and Amethyst are out searching for me. You see, Connie, the Gems and I have had a bit of a...disagreement."
Connie could feel her heart beating faster. Pearl was scaring her, but she did her best not to let it show.
"What...what disagreement?" Pearl's grip on her shoulder tightened. She could feel the gem's nails digging into her shoulder.
"You see, Connie, I no longer sympathize with the Gem's cause...in fact, you could say I've become the very thing they seek to destroy."
"You're evil?!"
Pearl let out another cold, menacing laugh, "Oh Connie, evil is just a matter of perspective. I'm sure to them, I seem like the bad guy. But what about my side of the story? When it comes to me and my interests, they would technically be the evil ones."
Connie could feel herself start to shiver. She couldn't remember another time where she was this terrified. Pearl spun her around, causing the two to be face to face.
"What...what do you want with me?" Connie finally stutter out. Pearl's smile grew.
"It's simple, dear," she stated. She almost seemed cat, playing with a mouse before devoured it, "I want you to be my ally."
Connie clenched her fists. A sudden bursts of adrenaline pumped through her veins. She grabbed Pearl's hand, throwing it off her shoulder, "Why would I possibly be your ally?!"
Pearl stood up, not expecting the sudden burst of bravery. She gave a small chuckled, clapping her hands together.
"Well, aren't you a dauntless little mouse," she taunted.
"I'm not joining you! There's nothing you can do to make be betray the Gem!" she yelled again, taking a step back from the gem, but she just walked closer. She needed to make a break for it. If she could just get out of the bathroom, and quickly get to Steven...she glanced at the door. She was only a few feet away.
"No need to be hostile," Pearl said, another step towards her, "You just need a little incentive."
"You...you can't bribe me." Connie stated. She took another step towards the door. She was mentally preparing herself to start running.
"You know, for being a family of a private security guard, you house isn't hard to break into."
Connie felt a chill go through her spine. Pearl knew where she lived?
"You have such a lovely family, Connie. Loving parents...an adorable baby brother. What is he, two?"
"...One and a half."
"Do you know how fragile babies are?"
Connie felt tears coming to her eyes. She couldn't believe that this was happening. She wiped the water from her eyes, looking this monster straight in the face. If she ran, she'd put her family in danger. She...she couldn't do that.
She was defeated.
Thank you SpaceWonder368, ilikehats2, and JohnnyBravo500 for reviewing. As always, it means a lot. Sorry the delay was so bad. It was busier then I though this week. But, the good news is I have a glorious nine days until my next job starts, so I can get a lot done in the writing-realm in the mean time.
As always, thanks for reading!
