And now, the conclusion. Before you get started, I want to thank all of my loyal followers and readers, and anyone who has stuck with me and my fanfiction this far. It has been a joy to write, and I have loved seeing the positive reactions from reviews, favorites and even just view counts. Again, I thank you with all of my heart, and I hope you enjoy my finale. I will be adding a small epilogue in the coming weeks, and I will let you know then if I'll be continuing this story line in a sequel.
Pearl
Pearl's every sense was filled with pain. Light sparkled off every facet of Iolite's every shard, scattered among the sand in a sea of purple. Her throat burned as she screamed. Her weapon hung loosely in her shaking hands, her shoulders hunched and knees reaching the ground.
She looked around her sprawled legs at the remains of her only friend. She reached into the sand, sifting through it for pieces and willing them to fall back together and Iolite to reform with a laugh, saying it had all been a joke.
"No, no no," Pearl muttered between hiccups, "no, I wasn't ready, I take it back. Come back, Iolite, come back," she gasped, "you said you would come with me, outside. I don't know anyone else, I don't-" She choked and bit her lip, drawing a small bead of blood.
She looked up, into the light that was illuminating the gem shards. She could see the crowd jumping but could only hear the rush of feverish blood through her ears. A haze was wrapping itself around her body and she realized she was attempting to shut herself down. She refused.
Pearl gripped her spear tightly again, tight enough to whiten her knuckles. She raised her spear. "I don't think I can do this Iolite." She said gravely. "I said I would go but I don't think I can go, Iolite. Not without you," She exhaled with a resounding quake. "Not without you," she whispered. In one fluid motion, she flipped her weapon to face herself.
Pearl stared down the point of her spear as she aimed it to her forehead. Steely resolve clouded every judgment. "I'm sorry, Iolite, I'm-" she gasped and sobbed, "I'm sorry!" She tensed her trembling arms, every intent of shoving her spear into the center of her forehead, into her gem-
Hands snatched her arms and pried them apart. Her spear fell between her arms to the sand and evaporated almost immediately on contact. She screamed. "Unhand me!" She screeched, flailing with all her might as they pulled her to her feet. "Please, just let me go too!" She cried out with the pain of their incredibly tight grip on her upper arms, but she could hardly care.
The arms carried her forward, away from the center of the rings. Pearl gasped. "No, don't just leave her there! Don't leave her- Iolite!" She howled, pushing and pulling at her restraints. She looked back desperately, watching the purple sparkles fade from view one by one until they were too distant to see. "Iolite, Iolite-!" She coughed, reaching for air she couldn't reach. Her throat was so raw her voice was hardly breaking the surface anymore.
Only when the doors slid open did Pearl turn her head back around. They revealed Hematite, whose teeth were still dripping poison over her stained lips. "Bring her to the empty ring," she commanded coolly, and the arms obliged. Pearl drooped and allowed her tears to fall in silence, save for the occasional sniff or cough. Her eyes followed the lifeless ground, but she saw Iolite's smile.
Hematite opened up the doors to another ring, and she was led inside at her toes. Pearl marveled at how quiet the ring was without an audience. It was dark too, with only minimal lighting still on. It felt menacingly empty.
Pearl jumped as her arm turned a sparkling white. Her form had lost control, she realized, and she fought to rematerialize. After a few moments of intense concentration her arm returned and the light faded. A single drop of sweat dripped down her neck. The exertion had been high.
Hematite looked at her with disgust and disdain. "My pearl," she began, "you made me thousands over the past several months. Unfortunately, you've been injured, and while it seems miniscule, it also seems to affect you too much to yield reliable results in battle." Her eyes narrowed as she stared into the chip on Pearl's gem. "Disappointing, but inevitable."
Hematite looked away briefly. Pearl could have sworn she saw doubt flash across her face before she regained her heartless front. Imagining that Hematite had any sort of feelings of worth or care associated with her was disturbing at best, given all that she had done to her.
"Because of your injury I'm inclined to destroy you, and I've made the decision to do so." She said with her nose turned up. Pearl would have rolled her eyes at all the fanfare, but felt too exhausted to emote anymore. "I thought," she wavered for a moment, "that perhaps doing so in private would be more respectable."
Pearl grunted, resisting the urge to laugh in her face. "As if you feel any respect towards me." Pearl said, surprised at the intensity of the rasp in her voice. "If you wanted to be respectable, you would never have gotten into this slave-driving business." She glared upward with the remains of her energy.
Hematite sighed. It was unsettling how personal she was acting. "I can't expect you to understand, as a Pearl." She wiped a hand across her chin to remove the last drops of venom still hovering there. "I paid an awful lot for you, darling."
"Ah yes, the money." Pearl whispered. She couldn't believe she'd thought it could be anything else. She refused to entertain the thought that Hematite had placed more than monetary worth on her person. Her hands glowed white and she gasped, forcing them back to normal as quickly as she could manage. Hematite sighed.
"You were a great asset, Pearl, take pride in that. An unlikely warrior." Hematite said quietly. With a flick of her wrist she summoned a single short blade that she palmed with ease. Pearl looked down.
"Make it quick." She said, closing her eyes. She heard the swish of Hematite's clothing as she stepped forward, and the crack of her wrist… and the distant sound of a scuffle.
Hematite paused. "There are no more scheduled fights this evening." She said, curious.
Pearl's eyes snapped open. 'The raid!' she thought, a surge of hope striking her chest. How had Iolite known? It was true! She allowed a massive grin to sweep her face. She felt the trails left by her tears crack. "You're right," Pearl said with an outlandish laugh barking from her raw throat.
Hematite's eyes narrowed. "Then what-"
Before she could continue to speak, a gem burst through the ring's doors, gasping and heaving. "Madam, we have been found!" The gem yelled, looking back and forth down the hallway almost too quickly to follow. "You must go, now!" The gem looked to the left for the fifth time, but had no time to look back again. She was so quickly poofed into nothingness that it took a moment before chaos took control.
Pearl felt the tight hands release her from their grip as the gems that were restraining her made a dash for the door. They were yelling to each other, but about what Pearl couldn't guess or distinguish. Hematite stood surprisingly steady. Pearl swayed a bit as she regained purchase with her feet, then summoned a spear in her hands in the same moment that she spread her legs in a defensive stance.
"Oh, please." Hematite said quietly, a spark of fear showing through her façade despite her efforts. "You are no match for me and you know it, dear."
"I know that," Pearl said, carefully inching forward bit by bit, "but they might be." A grin cracked her face.
Hematite whipped her head behind her to see a full line of at least ten gem soldiers standing with weapons at the ready, all pointed at her. She bit her lip and drew metallic black blood. Pearl watched her twist the already summoned knife in her hand.
"Oh thank goodness!" Hematite said, adding hysteria to her tone that confused Pearl. "Look, I have found this poor Pearl in this ring, by herself! We must rescue her at once."
Pearl realized what she was doing. She glared and opened her mouth to protest, but was frustratingly stopped by the intentional glinting of Hematite's knife directly into her eyes, as a warning. The soldiers stepped forward in unison. The sound of all of their heels stomping at once was jolting and powerful. Pearl felt fear restrike her heart.
"Identify yourself, woman." One soldier said, her clothing and armor seemingly more grandiose than the others. She must have been the commanding officer.
Hematite scoffed. "Oh come now, we haven't much time! Come darling, she needs attention! She has been injured!" She snagged Pearls forearm, but she yanked at her grip violently.
"Let go of me!" Pearl yelled, pulling her arm from Hematite's cold hand with all her might. "Let go of me," she repeated, looking into the eyes of the commander. "Please, she is one of the fighters! She illegally purchased me!"
Pearl's stomach dropped as she saw only a small twitch of the eyebrow afflict the officer's face. She was ignoring her. She realized it was because she was a pearl. The help wouldn't even listen to her.
Hysterical tears came with laugher as she sat squarely in the middle of the empty ring. She looked up into a small window where light was gently streaming in. She truly was alone without her.
"You won't listen to me," Pearl said between rabid chuckles, "no one will listen to me. How funny."
"Commander," A soldier piped up, looking down at a holographic screen, "this woman is coming up as an upper class Hematite. Her code matches the wanted list."
Pearl's attention snapped to Hematite, whose eyes widened with fear and realization. "What? That's impossible! Your machinery must be broken dear, that simply isn't true!" She laughed quietly, nervously, stepping back and away from the soldiers approaching her.
Pearl was awestruck as the soldiers reached to seize her, but not before she screamed and threw her knife in Pearl's general direction. The knife missed by a mile, she hadn't properly aimed in her panic. The soldiers grabbed her arms and held her down to the ground, pushing her into the sand with her jet-black hair fanned in a tangled mess. She wiggled and fought, crying out, "I'm innocent! Your insolent pests, I outclass you! You cannot handle me like this!"
The commander gem pulled from behind her a tool not unlike the one Hematite had used on Pearl a number of times to force her to recede into her gem. Pearl and Hematite nearly gasped in unison.
"Hematite 9374H18, I hereby arrest you and take you into custody for illegally purchasing defective gems, illegal ownership of damaged property, and a litany of other charges to be discussed after you've been properly restrained and jailed." Hematite shook her head.
"No, this is immoral! You cannot do this, you-!" She was cut off as the commander stuck the prongs of the instrument into her forearm, and her form rippled a blinding white before disappearing in a cloud of hazy black smoke.
Pearl covered her mouth in shock. Her owner had been arrested before her eyes. She would answer for her crimes. It seemed too good to be true. Before she could breathe easily, however, the commander turned back on her with a look that froze over her growing elation.
"You are a designated defective pearl." The commander stated. She stopped a few feet in front of Pearl, looking down with bemused eyes. "Because of this, you are to be destroyed immediately as illegal property."
Pearl gasped. "Wait, no! How is that right?" Her thoughts blended together. She still wasn't worth anything, even when her owner was gone. She was going to be thrown away, as was originally intended those many months ago.
She crawled backwards from the commander's smooth steps. The commander put a hand up behind her to stop her soldiers from following, taking it upon herself to remove Pearl. Pearl cried out as her leg faltered, glowing white as it destabilized. "I-I can fix it!" Pearl said, focusing intensely to regain opacity, and she did so within a few seconds. She smiled up at the commander, but she was not amused.
"Besides being defective, you are also injured. It is my duty as a law-abiding gem to dispose of you." The commander held out her destabilizing weapon. She stepped on Pearl's ankle, which stopped her from inching backward any farther. Pearl squeaked and pulled on her ankle, but it was of no use. She was trapped.
Pearl held up an arm to shield her, crying out. "Wait!" She yelled, fighting back more tears. "P-please, I am still useful! I can still perform duties of servitude! I can show you! Please don't kill me!" She hated how desperate she sounded. Just minutes earlier she had been intent on killing herself. She remembered Iolite for a brief moment and a bit of her calmed down.
The commander reached down. "Hold still." She said. Pearl struggled anyway. The weapon came closer and closer to her chest, just inches away, when suddenly the doors to the ring were slammed open, ripped from their hinges.
"Wait!" A voice called. The commander halted immediately. She straightened herself and went at attention in response.
Pearl looked around the commander, curious. In the doorway stood an incredibly tall gem, shrouded in darkness beneath the lip of the ring. She stepped quickly into the light, and Pearl gasped.
The woman had beautiful fair skin and heavily decorated military clothing. Behind her spilled mountains of bright pink curls, out of control and managing to sparkle even in the dim lights. At her stomach sat a glimmering pink circular gem, that was surrounded by a decorative star. Pearl looked up and made direct eye contact with her. Her eyes were full of unbridled concern and care.
"Are you alright?" She asked, making light steps toward Pearl as she spoke. Pearl was mesmerized. She had lost track of her thoughts as she watched the woman's curls bounce. Only her increasingly worried expression reminded her to respond, and Pearl nodded slowly.
Pearl cried out in surprise as the arm that was supporting her fell apart. She had lost her focus, and she cursed herself for the embarrassment. She shut her eyes and willed her arm back, and when it obeyed, she opened them to find the gem towering over her. Despite her military status and the likely dress code requirements, she was wearing a white skirt with many layers that floated over one another.
A pudgy hand reached out to Pearl, soft brown eyes never leaving Pearl's face. "You're hurt," she said quietly in her low soothing voice. "Did my women do this to you?" She asked, a faint look of anger dusting her expression. Pearl shook her head wildly and gulped. She didn't think she could speak without embarrassing herself.
This gem was truthfully the most beautiful Pearl had ever seen, even compared to the gems that showed off eccentric styles on advertisements. She'd seen them on her occasional walks to and from the rings with Hematite. Her eyes brimmed with emotion that spilled forth with her rumbling words. Her hair never seemed to stop moving.
"Close your eyes," the woman said with a reassuring smile. Pearl trusted her without hesitation and obeyed. After a moment, she felt a distinct tingling feeling in her gem. Every inch of her felt overcome with vibrating warmth that left her heart dancing for joy. She opened her eyes to see the gem leaning over her with tears in her eyes. She frowned.
"Why are you crying?" She asked, and she winced at the weakness in her voice.
The gem shook her head and smiled widely. "I'm fine. Do you feel better?" She asked, taking Pearl's hands in her own. Pearl gasped. Her hands felt so small inside of hers. They felt soft and kind, like her face. It felt like a great privilege to be touching them.
"Yes," she nearly whispered, smiling uncomfortably at the improper tone of her voice, "though may I ask, what did you do?"
"I am able to heal gems with my tears. I saw that you had a chip in yours and how it destabilized you. I healed your gem when I asked you to close your eyes." Pearl nodded, fascinated.
She turned away, and Pearl felt saddened that she could no longer look into her eyes. She spoke with authority over the soldiers. "Whom do you have in custody?"
The commander spoke up from beside her, and Pearl, in her captivation, had forgotten she was still there. "We have taken the owner of this pearl into custody, Ma'am."
She nodded. "Have her taken away to the jails and questioned when she comes to. I will join you all shortly."
"But Ma'am, what of this defective pearl? Shouldn't she be disposed of?" The commander asked. Pearl glared at her.
"Does she look defective to you, Rhodolite?" The commander shook her head violently. "Then I don't believe she needs to be disposed of. You are dismissed." The commander saluted her along with the line of soldiers, and they marched out, leaving Pearl alone with her mysterious savior.
"I'm sorry," she said with a hint of embarrassment, "she can be a bit stuffy. She means well." Pearl doubted it, but nodded anyway. The woman put her hands out, and Pearl willingly placed her hands in them this time. She smiled.
"I'm sorry for not introducing myself." She said with a laugh. Pearl bit back a gasp; her laugh sounded like harmonic chimes. "My name is Rose Quartz. You're Pearl, right?" She held Pearl's hands gently, but firmly. "I'm pleased to meet you, even if it had to be under these circumstances."
"…I am honored, Rose Quartz." Pearl said slowly. Rose helped her to her feet and she immediately bowed lowly. "You've saved my life. I am in your debt."
The wind chime laugh rang again through the still air. "You don't owe me anything, Pearl. This was my pleasure." Pearl shivered at how familiar and comforting it was to hear her say her name. She felt more like an individual than she had before.
"Iolite!" Pearl gasped. She looked up at Rose Quartz in desperation. "Can you heal broken gems if I find all the pieces?"
Rose Quartz frowned. "I'm sorry, but I can't do that. Once they're broken they're beyond my help."
Pearl felt a weight in her chest. "Oh," she said, fighting tears again. "Thank you anyway."
"Was Iolite your friend?" Rose asked, her eyes demanding to be met.
"Yes." Pearl said, looking down despite Rose Quartz's beautiful eyes beckoning. The shock of the situation was starting to wear down, and with it raised the feeling of intense sadness. Even though she had been saved, she'd still killed her only friend. That would never go away.
"It wasn't your fault, Pearl," Rose said, and Pearl couldn't help but see the parallels between her and Iolite as they had tried to comfort her in her times of mourning and guilt. She took a long moment to remember her friend in her brightest memories.
"You still need to be freed, don't you?" Rose Quartz said, breaking Pearl's concentration.
"What?"
"Your programming. You are still registered to that Hematite, aren't you?" Pearl realized it was true, and nodded yes. "I am going to override that, is that alright?"
Pearl valued her asking permission first. She valued everything about Rose Quartz so far, to be honest with herself. She made everything feel like it had melted away. She captivated any audience, and any environment. She could unintentionally command a room with her presence. Even the air thought she was beautiful by the way it allowed her curls to roll sweetly over her shoulders. Pearl could never imagine what it must feel like to be so powerful as to command the air.
"Yes." She said, unconditionally.
"One moment, please." Rose reached into the breast pocket of her jacket and pulled a small holographic clipboard from it, turning it on and quickly scanning over Pearl's gem. "Alright, Pearl B27A20, serial number 4918853285-P, allegiance report." She sounded uncomfortable with the script.
"Allegiance registered to: Hematite 9374H18. Is this correct?"
"Negative. Override allegiance to unaffiliated."
"Unaffiliated allegiance requires override from a commanding officer. Please input the code of the commanding officer."
"Rose Quartz A01."
"Commanding officer registered as Rose Quartz A01. Is this correct?"
"Yes."
"Allegiance update complete. New allegiance registered to: unaffiliated. Is this correct?"
"Yes, thank you."
"Allegiance override confirmed." Pearl blinked herself out of the trance that overtook her during commands. "So whom do I belong to then?"
"Pearl." Rose said as she placed a hand gently on Pearl's shoulder; it covered her shoulder completely. "You belong to no one. Do you understand?"
Pearl blinked. "I mean, I suppose in theory, but how do I know what to do now?" She felt lost and momentarily afraid. Rose Quartz sighed.
"Obviously you wouldn't know." She berated herself. "Since you're unsure, you can tag along with me for now, okay?" Rose Quartz said, smiling comfortingly.
Pearl stared, open-mouthed. The gem who hypnotized her, hypnotized everyone, had asked her to accompany her. It was hardly believable. How a defective pearl like her had earned the right, she had no idea. She thought briefly that maybe Rose Quartz had simply taken pity on her. Regardless, she was dumbstruck. She looked into her soft brown eyes once more and felt her own melt at the coziness within them.
"Okay," Pearl said quietly, never daring to look away except for when she bowed on one knee before her new liege. "I will serve you until the ends of the world, Rose Quartz."
A finger pulled Pearl's chin up to face Rose again, and Pearl faltered. It looked like she had done something wrong, because Rose looked upset. "Well, at least it's a start." She said, beckoning for Pearl to stand again. "We are equals Pearl, no matter what others may believe or what you may have been led to believe."
"But Ma'am," Pearl started, "I'm just a pearl. I'm not able to do anything." She looked downcast and thought of Iolite. She was certainly able to murder her. She fought off the thought.
"Pearl, you are your own gem," Rose Quartz said with authority. "You'll learn what that means in time." Pearl hesitated, but nodded. It seemed she had a lot to learn still.
"Now," Rose said with a loud clap of her hands, "let's leave this dreadful place! I'll have it destroyed before tomorrow, don't worry."
"You will?" Pearl asked, disbelieving.
"I will. I won't allow others to feel or act the way you have been forced to. It's wrong. Don't you agree?" Rose asked. Pearl found it interesting how much Rose asked for her opinion or asked her to speak in general. It was very different.
"Yes I do." Pearl said quietly. While Rose motioned for Pearl to follow her out of the door, Pearl thought of Iolite. She thought of how she had predicted that Pearl would save them all. She smiled in spite of the pain.
'I may not have been able to save you, Iolite,' Pearl thought, 'but I shut it all down. I wonder if you would be proud of me.'
A stream of light hit her eye and she shielded her sight from it with a wince. Her smile grew wider. 'I'll take that as a yes.'
Like a two-gem parade she followed Rose through the corridors of the rings, bound only by her will to follow the gem who saved her life who walked before her. She was free. It was hard to swallow, but it seemed Rose Quartz would help her understand. She watched Rose's curly hair dance, lively and glittering in found light. She found herself thinking again about how beautiful she was.
'I did make it, Iolite, you were right.' Pearl allowed her tears to fall, but a smile accompanied them. 'You were the reason why though, and I'll always be thankful for that.'
'Thank you, Iolite, for freeing me.' Rose Quartz turned back with a hand held out, and Pearl reached for it strongly this time. They stepped out of the rings, and into the beginning of her life.
