"Talk to me baby," Peridot sang while strapped to her table, trying her very best to annoy the shit out of her captors. "I'm going blind from this sweet-sweet craving, whoa-oh." A K.U.N.T. soldier glared at her. "Let's lose our minds and go crazy-crazy. Ah ya ya ya ya ah, keep on hopin' we'll eat cake by the-"

"Shut the fuck up!" the soldier yelled.

Peridot stuck her tongue out. "Make me. Do you want me to do another one? I use Steven's Spotify account, I have a whole bunch memorized. Two to the one from the one to the three, I like good-"

"Seriously, if you don't shut up, I'm going to smash your gem with a hammer."

"Do it. It's better than the fate Mr. Syphilis Face has planned for me. Vrei sa pleci dar nu ma nu ma iei-"

"Enjoying yourself?" Steve Bannon asked as he returned.

"I should ask you. This is for YOUR entertainment, after all," Peridot responded, her snarky tone earning a glare from Bannon. "I think there's a rodent crawling around under your skin," she said, chuckling. "Perhaps you should get that checked out?"

"Laugh while you can," Bannon snarled back. "Soon, you won't even be able to remember what fun feels like."

"This is false," Peridot retorted, raising her head to try and meet Bannon's eyes. "Monsters are still capable of feeling… a basic instinctual drive similar to 'fun'. Once the corruption is done, I can toss my tongues up in the air for fun." She let her head fall back onto the table. "And I'll be big enough to kick your butt afterwards anyhow," she muttered. "That sounds pretty fun."

Bannon lowered himself to Peridot's level, a sneer on his face. "Humor is an escape. I can see it in your eyes. You're fucking terrified."

"Gee, you think?" Peridot said, feigning cluelessness. "Hmm. What about this situation would POSSIBLY be frightening to an Era 2—AKA, completely defenseless—Peridot such as myself?" She glared at Bannon once again. "Yes, I'm terrified. I'll also keep trying to halt your plans until my dying breath."

"I know you will." He rose again and walked over to the window. "You know, Peridot, you're already a villain, here. I don't see what the point is in pretending you didn't fuck your friends over."

"Oh, and like you're any better, Mr. Galactic Genocide?"

Cartman groaned. "Weak burn, bro. Super weak."

Bannon turned around and glared at Peridot. "At least I don't pretend. Okay? I know I'm the bad guy. I don't care that I'm the bad guy. Darkness is good. Dick Cheney. Darth Vader. Satan. That's power. It only helps us when they get it wrong. When they're blind to who we are and what we're doing." He paused and marched back over to the table, chuckling. "This whole fucking country has turned to the dark side, and you know why that is, Peridot? Because the bad guy. Always. Wins. Sorry life isn't some Disney fairy tale or some fuckin' Star Wars movie or some shit, but that's just how things are. Let me reiterate. I am the bad guy. I am the villain. I am evil as shit. So. Are. You."

"Alright. Fine," Peridot conceded. "Sure. I screwed up. I was the bad guy for a really, really long time, even before all this stuff with the Member Berries, but you know what? I tried to fix it. That's what separates me from you, Steve. So whatever happens after that, I can die knowing I tried to stop you."

Bannon just glared at Peridot in silence, before shaking his head and walking away. "I'll be back," he muttered to Mr. Garrison as he walked past. Mr. Garrison sighed and began to wipe off his spray tan. What was the point anymore? He looked over at Peridot and lowered his eyebrows.

"All I wanted was to feel important," he lamented. "Half of the country hates me. That's not important. I'm a nobody."

Peridot glanced up at the President. "It's not too late to turn things around," she said.

Garrison sighed. "He told me you'd try and… get in my head. Eric, you watch over Peridot for a bit, I'm gonna go send some tweets."

Cartman grinned evilly and looked at Peridot. "Gladly."

Peridot groaned. "Greeaaaat."

Stan, Kyle, Butters, and President Obama sat in a makeshift Situation Room, just outside of Beach City, watching the 80s concert as it progressed. Obama's drone centered its attention on Lapis Lazuli, who was sitting backstage reading a comic book. "That's the one. She's about to betray the Crystal Gems."

Butters' eyes widened. "Lapis?! Why, she wouldn't hurt a fly!"

"She stole the world's oceans three years ago," Obama corrected.

"That was her?" Stan asked. "Dude, we thought that was, like, global warming or something."

"Lapis Lazuli has been compromised by the Member Berries. We have to take her out. SEAL Team Six, do you copy?"

"Copy, Mr. President. We've got four snipers trained on her gem ready to fire at your command, sir."

"Now hold on just a gosh dang minute!" Butters yelled. "You don't have to KILL her! Lapis is a really nice lady, and if you kill her… well, I'd be real sore! So would her friends! Besides, you aren't even the President anymore, this isn't your decision to make!"

"We don't have a whole lot of other options," Obama responded. "If we don't take her out right now, she's going to sabotage the concert and the Crystal Gems won't be able to stop the Member Berries. The only other option is a drone strike, which would only poof the gems, but kill everyone else, human or Member Berry."

"You can't do that either, my dad's down there!" Stan said. "Look, what if- what if we talked to her?"

Obama appeared to consider it. "You really think you'd be able to talk her down?"

Butters nodded. "I did it before! This isn't the first time the berries had a hold of her, I'm SURE we can snap her out of it again. Right fellas?"

"Yeah!" Stan and Kyle said in unison.

The former President thought for a moment. The sniper signaled through the earpiece. "Mr. President? We're ready to take the shot."

Obama looked back at the kids, then sighed. "You have one hour."

Butters laughed. "Alright, fellas! Let's get to that concert!" The boys all left the situation room and made their way into Beach City.

Once the boys were gone, the former President activated his earpiece again. "Keep your sights trained on Lazuli. If something goes wrong, we need to be ready."

"Yes, sir."

Kenny scanned the control panel for any buttons that might help him help Peridot. He glanced up briefly, then did a double take when he saw Peridot strapped down to a table on one of the monitors. "What the fuck?" he said to himself, still wholly unaware that he was not alone in the room.

"Impressive, is it not?" Scarlett Johansson said from behind Kenny, startling him. "The green one retains more human characteristics than her adversaries. Why is that, do you think?"

Kenny turned around quickly. "Who the hell are you?" he asked, his words muffled through his parka.

"My given name is Major Scarlett Johansson. I was assigned to kill you."

"Oh, shit, dude."

"But," Major Johansson continued, "I question if this is the morally just thing to do. I am not merely Scarlett Johansson. I am Scarlett Johansson with the brain of a human being."

"What?"

Major Johansson paced the room. "It is not beyond me that, perhaps, my creator himself is corrupt and created me for evil purposes. What do you think, Kenny? Is Steve Bannon evil?"

Kenny blinked. "Really?"

Cartman approached Peridot, grinning evilly. "So. It looks like the tables have turned, Peridot."

"I never kept you trapped," Peridot scoffed. "Is this because I called you fat? If it is, I apologize."

"Yes, well— ...what?"

"I'm sorry I made fun of your weight," Peridot repeated. "It was rude of me and is absolutely not what Steven would have done. I'm ashamed that I stooped to that level. I was emotional and acted irrationally, but that's no excuse for my behavior. So I'm sorry, Eric. You don't deserve to be shamed for your body mass. Nobody deserves that."

Cartman looked genuinely shocked. "Oh. Cool," he said, slowly. He looked around the room a bit, before slowly making his way over to Peridot's right side—where no soldiers were positioned. "That doesn't change the fact that you're a traitor to your kind. Peridot, did you know that Gems are becoming a minority in their own galaxy?"

"Excuse me?"

"You know, we're all doing you a favor." He unfastened the belt on Peridot's wrist. "Yellow Diamond would have just shattered you outright."

Peridot's eyes widened as she realized that her right arm was now free. "Cartman, what are you—?"

"FURTHERMORE," Cartman said a little louder, interrupting her, "I personally would do a lot worse to you if I had the chance. Have you ever heard of Scott Tenorman?" he asked as he unstrapped Peridot's right ankle.

"Why are you—?"

"Shut UP, Peridot!" Cartman said through gritted teeth, before laughing nervously at the K.U.N.T. soldier that was staring at him. He backed up from the table and returned to where he previously stood. "Seriously, though, you're gonna get what you deserve."

Steve Bannon and President Garrison returned. Bannon looked at a monitor near the table. "Ah. It's ready. Good." He pressed a few buttons, and the machine above Peridot roared to life. She swallowed as the gun began to glow. "Alright. That's one problem that I'm about to get rid of. Any last words, Peridot?"

Peridot took a deep breath and readied herself. She would have to time this exactly right…

"No? Alright, then. Goodbye." Bannon turned a knob on the panel, and the device was finally at full power. He smashed a fist on the big red button in the center of the panel, and the machine fired off a large beam of energy.

Now! Peridot rolled her body over, using the side of her body that was still strapped in as a pivoting point, the light missing her by inches.

"What the hell?!" Bannon exclaimed. "How did she get free?!"

"Haha!" Peridot laughed, sticking her tongue out at Bannon—only to frown once she realized the metal table was conducting the energy. Eyes widening, Peridot quickly undid the strap holding her other hand down, causing her to fall off of the table. Wasting no time, she quickly curled up and loosened the strap on her ankle, allowing her foot to slide out with ease. She fell to the floor with a thud. "Ow."

"Oh, jeez, she's pretty flexible," Garrison commented. "That's gonna help you out a LOT later in life, believe me." Bannon shot Garrison a disgusted glare as Peridot stood up.

"Haha! Hahaha! Ha! In your face, Bannon!" A few soldiers tried to approach her, but she used her metal manipulation to butt them in the faces with their own guns, knocking them out cold. Now, it was just Peridot, Cartman, Bannon, and Garrison. "Ah… wow. Okay. Uh…" Peridot thought about what she should do next. "Huh. I guess I should go turn the big one off now."

"Not so fast, Peridot!" Bannon said, pulling out a pistol. "You're not going anywhere."

"Oh, great, a projectile weapon," Peridot said, rolling her eyes. "Go ahead and shoot me."

Bannon simply glared. "Garrison. Get me the cartridge." Garrison didn't move. "Move it, you idiot."

"Alright, alright, jeez." Garrison marched over to a nearby desk and grabbed a small cartridge, about the size of the pistol's magazine. Bannon emptied the actual magazine and, once Garrison returned, inserted the cartridge.

"Do you know what's in this cartridge, Peridot?" Bannon asked.

"I have a feeling you're about to tell me- AGH!" Peridot yelled in pain as she was knocked over by a small beam of energy.

"This cartridge, Peridot, contains a small amount of corruption energy." He was very clearly starting to lose it. "Because it's such a small gun, I'm going to need to shoot you repeatedly to fully corrupt your gem. It's going to be exactly as slow and painful as it sounds. You really should have just let the big one get you." He shot again. Peridot tried to dodge, but she was hit again and cried out. "Now hold still while I fucking kill you."

Peridot tried to stand up, her legs seeming to fail her. It had begun, and she was terrified.

"Holy shiiiit." Cartman said.

Stan, Kyle, and Butters made their way through Beach City, which was crawling with Member Berries, their voices overlapping as they fondly remembered the 80s. They could hear Hall & Oates playing through speakers that were positioned throughout the town.

"You're out of touch. I'm out of time, but I'm out of my head when you're not around," the boys listened as they made their way closer to the concert.

"Jesus, dude, how the hell are they gonna clean this place up afterwards?" Kyle asked. Stan shrugged. The song came to an end.

"Coming up next," a smarmy voice announced over the speaker, "We have Lorde performing a live rendition of Tennis Courts!" Applause erupted from a nearby audience.

Stan glanced at the schedule. "We need to hurry," he said. "After this song, my dad and the Crystal Gems are performing a song from his new album about Obama. That's the song that's supposed to start killing the Member Berries, so if Lapis Lazuli's going to sabotage any part of the concert, it's that one."

Lapis stood in her dressing room, smiling. "Alright, are you guys ready?" she asked enthusiastically. Dozens of Member Berries responded affirmatively.

"'Member the Storm Troopers?"

"'Member the Mexico City Policy?"

"'Member driving American-made cars?"

Lapis chuckled to herself. "Yeah. You're ready."

There was a knock at her door. "Five minutes, Ms. Lazuli!"

"Okay, I'm almost ready," she called out to the stage manager. "You guys stay here, I'm gonna take care of 'bidness', as Amethyst would say." She turned around and was greeted by three boys climbing into her window. "Hey, hey, whoa, no backstage tours— Butters?"

"Lapis! What the heck is goin' on, here?!" Butters scolded. Stan raised his eyebrows at the numerous berries in the room.

"Dude, what the hell?" he muttered to himself.

"Butters, what are you doing here?" Lapis questioned. "It's not safe. There are too many monsters on the streets. Don't worry, we're going to Make Beach City Great Again, then you can come visit any time you want."

"THIS is making Beach City great again?!" Kyle questioned angrily. "The city's a fucking mess!"

Butters stepped forward. "Lapis, the government has bad, baaaaad things planned for the Crystal Gems, do you know what I am saying?"

"Yes, I know what you are saying," Lapis said. "I don't care about that. The Crystal Gems were never my FRIENDS, I just worked with them because I had to. Butters, you remember what I told you. The Crystal Gems did horrible, horrible things to me."

"I get that! I'd be real sore about it too, if I were you," Butters retorted, "but—"

"Trust me when I say that I'm doing what I'm doing for the greater good," Lapis said. "If the Member Berries are destroyed, then—"

"Then what?" Kyle interrupted. "You'll forget the past?" Lapis opened her mouth to speak, but Kyle kept going. "The Member Berries feed off of your fond remembrance of the past. Maybe you're trying to remember your home planet. Or a time before all that horrible stuff happened to you. But… When you think about it, wasn't there just as much bad in the past as there was good?

"Let's just go off of what you've told us about yourself, which isn't even that much," Kyle continued. "Whatever the Crystal Gems did to you, it was so painful that you still resent them for it, right?"

"I think we already established that, yes," Lapis said.

"But that happened IN THE PAST,"

Kyle explained. "Like, WAAAAAY the fuck in the past. A thousand years ago! Same with all of the other shitty things that have happened to you. We all like to think that our past is better than our present, but the reality is that they're equally shitty. We just look back on the past with fondness because we don't like remembering the bad stuff. So we just DON'T." Kyle smiled up at Lapis. "But the bad stuff that happens today is recent. It's still fresh in our minds. We CAN'T just forget it. But we will, eventually. Think about three bad things in your life right now, and then three good things."

Bad things: I'm a fugitive, I have no purpose, Pearl exists.

Good things: Steven, the barn…

Peridot.

Lapis' face faltered slightly. "What are you trying to prove?"

"Now do the same thing, but with the past. Three bad things and three good things, go."

Good things: I had purpose, I wasn't an enemy of the state, I maintained a low profile.

Bad things: The war, the mirror, Jasper.

Peridot. She kept you prisoner too, don't forget that, another, much darker voice that sounded much like her own said.

Lapis shook her head. "I know what you're trying to do, and it isn't working, Kyle." She turned around and started to leave. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have a future to secure."

"Look dumbass, do you think anybody's gonna let you get away with this?" Stan asked, annoyed. "There's a fucking highly trained Navy SEAL sniper team out there RIGHT NOW ready to take your stupid nostalgia-blinded ass out," he said. "If you go out there and sabotage that concert, they're going to shatter you."

"Don't care," Lapis responded casually. She really didn't. The boys fell silent, but Kyle stepped forward.

"They're going to kill Peridot, Lapis," he said. Lapis stopped in her tracks.

"What?"

"Peridot's in danger," Kyle reiterated. "She's all alone against the U.S. Government, and if we don't help her… she's going to die."

Good, the voice said. She deserves it. Lapis looked conflicted. That… wasn't her voice. She wouldn't say that.

Butters spoke up again. "Come on, Lapis. D-Don't let the Member Berries make you their bottom bitch. You're better than that."

The boys all stared hopefully at Lapis. Without saying a word, she turned and left the room. The boys remained silent—as did the Member Berries. Neither of them were sure whose side she was on.

Randy, in his Lorde costume, played his guitar while the Crystal Gems were on backup. Steven stood next to Randy playing his ukulele, and they both sang the lyrics that Randy had written about Obama. "Yah yah yah," they sang. "Ohhhhbama, yah yah yah, Obamacare, you were great, yah yah, 'member Obaaaamaaaaaaa," the Member Berries looked annoyed, but none of them were dying, which concerned Randy.

Pearl frowned shot Garnet a half-lidded glance. "It's almost like Randy's music is completely void of substance." Garnet shrugged and continued playing her keyboard.

Steven decided to kick things up a notch. "When you're down on your luck, and you're looking for change, Obama's there, 'cause he doesn't suck." The Member Berries started looking more and more agitated. "The guy's not perfect, but who really is? He really cares, because our world is his." Randy decided to take a back seat to Steven's singing. "Obama's the guy, he and Bill Nye, they're working together for you and I! (Yah yah yah, Obama.) If he can't do it, then nobody can, (yah yah yah, Obamacare, Obama cares.) Obama's the guy, Obama's my man!"

Randy smiled. It was working. The berries looked ready to pop!

Lapis marched out. It was time for her to do what she was made to do. Concentrating as much energy as possible on the ocean, she lifted a large body of water above the stage. From here, she had two options. She could either dump the water on the stage, drenching the equipment and frying everything, saving the Member Berries in the process. Or she could do what Pearl told her to do and actually perform the grand finale. But her mind was already made up.

Sighing, Lapis manipulated the water above the stage and with it created an incredibly realistic image of Barack Hussein Obama, 44th President of the United States of America. Truthfully, this was the most South Park-y thing that any Crystal Gem has ever done.

But Lapis wasn't a Crystal Gem. She blew away a tuft of hair that was hanging over her face and returned the water to the ocean, a dramatic splash drenching the crowd. Several Member Berries had begun to pop, and Randy laughed with joy and relief.

"It's working! Holy shit, you guys, it's working!" Grabbing megaphones from a nearby table, he handed one to each Crystal Gem. The liberation of Beach City had begun.

Stan, Kyle, and Butters ran out onto the stage, all ecstatic. "Lapis! I knew you could do it!" Butters yelled.

Randy raised an eyebrow. "Stan? Stan?! What are you doing here?!"

Stan gestured to Lapis, who was standing onstage, watching Garnet and Amethyst take care of the Member Berries as Pearl approached Randy and the boys. "She was planning to sabotage the show," Stan explained. "The Member Berries got to her and we came out here to stop it."

Pearl's eyes widened. "Lapis was going to try and stop us?" She looked in the ocean Gem's direction and walked over to her.

Lapis watched as berry after berry was destroyed by nothing more than Garnet and Amethyst's words. She sighed. It really was a shame. The Member Berries were nice, but, at the end of the day, they weren't solving any problems. They were just making her ignore them. Pearl approached her.

"Hey," she said.

"Hey," Lapis responded without turning her head.

An awkward silence. Pearl cleared her throat. "So, the boys told me some… things. About how you were going to sabotage the concert."

"Yeah."

"Thank you for… not doing that."

Lapis turned and shot a slight glare at Pearl. "I didn't do it for you." She summoned her wings and prepared to take off.

"Where are you going?"

"To save the one I DID do it for." Lapis then took off, leaving Pearl stunned.

"I—what?!" she frowned. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say she was still sympathetic to those stupid berries."

"She might be," Kyle said as he approached. "But you know what? That might not be such a bad thing."

"Excuse me?"

Kyle waved her off. "I'll explain later. Right now, we need to go help Peridot. What's the quickest way to Rockville?"

Peridot knelt in front of Steve Bannon, her energy truly well and gone. This was it. She could feel it happening. Primal instincts were beginning to take over, her thoughts were becoming clouded, and her entire body ached, like something was about to change. It would only take a few more shots from the gun, and…

Mustering up as much energy as possible, she stood up and hopped backwards as Bannon fired another shot at her. "Dance, monkey! Dance!" Bannon laughed as he fired more shots at Peridot's feet. Peridot tripped and fell on her butt, gritting her teeth.

"What's wrong with you?!" she complained. "You're psycho. You're actually psycho."

Garrison glared at Bannon. "Alright, Steve, I think that's enough. Don't you think this is a LITTLE cruel and unusual?"

"Did I ask for your opinion, you fucking ape?"

"Well jeez, that wasn't very nice."

"But I suppose you're right," Bannon chuckled. "Let's finish this. Peridot. Any last— where the shit did she go?" Peridot was gone, as was Cartman.

Cartman dragged Peridot, who was bordering on unconsciousness, behind a railing. "Wake up. AY! Wake up, bitch, I'm not messing around!"

Peridot leaned against the railing, breathing heavily. "We have to stop him…"

"Look, if we can get you out of here, you'll be fine, alright? The corruption will probably wear off and you won't turn as long as you don't get hit anymore. Got it?"

Peridot peered around the corner. "First, we need to destroy the main reactor."

Cartman looked pissed off. "Dude! Fuck that! Let's just fucking bail, if we get you back to South Park before the Corrupting Light goes off, you'll be able to escape the main blast in a cave or some shit."

"But my friends…"

"Fuck them! You gotta think about self-preservation, dawg!"

Peridot glared at Cartman. "Seriously, there's something very wrong with you—"

"Shh! Shh!" Cartman hushed her, covering her mouth with his hand. Bannon was nearby.

"Peridot? Come out, come out, wherever you are." He laughed again. "I'm not playing games with you, Peridot, you're making this much harder than it needs to be." Bannon grinned. "You could still join me, you know. I'm going to need someone with inside knowledge on Homeworld's inner workings, and you've already been SUCH a great help. What, with all those Member Berries you grew? You're a natural."

Bannon chuckled. "But, I suppose I can't let you take all of the credit. After all…" he paused, looking behind a railing. She wasn't here. "...I set things in motion. Who do you think was the one to hide that first batch of berries in your barn for you to conveniently 'find'?"

Peridot gasped. It… Was all his fault. Steve Bannon was the one who provided her with the materials to ruin her life.

"They showed me pictures of Lapis Lazuli. Boy, is she a cutie. Maybe if you work with me, I'll spare her. After all… I'm going to need a queen when I take over the galaxy.

Now Peridot was pissed off. "You piece of shi-" she yelled, coming out of her hiding spot to confront Bannon. Unfortunately, this was exactly the reaction he was looking for, and before she could finish her last word, he shot her again, knocking her down.

"Jesus Christ!" Cartman yelled.

That might have done it. Peridot's vision was fading. She would awaken as a monster, having forgotten her friends. Her family. Her entire life, gone in an instant.

It was a fate worse than death.

Bannon stood over her, laughing. "I lied. I was never going to let you work with me." He cocked the gun one last time. "Goodbye, Peridot."

Peridot glared defiantly at Bannon, ready for the worst.

Think about your friends, she told herself. Think about everything you've done, good or bad. Think about how far you've come. How you're a better Peridot now than you were in your Kindergarten days. Think about how your friends, right at this moment, are undermining everything Bannon's doing. How, even though you failed, Kenny's going to stop the broadcast and save the Crystal Gems.

Everything's going to be okay. Steven, Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, Lapis—they'll all live to see the next sunrise. They'll try to fix you, and even if they don't succeed, they'll take care of you. They'll be okay.

You'll be okay.

Peridot smiled. She was okay with this. "Do your worst," she said, still staring Bannon directly in the eyes.

Bannon pulled the trigger, but his shot missed. The beam of light hit near Peridot's foot, as President Garrison had grabbed Bannon and was now holding him overhead.

"What the FUCK are you doing?!" Bannon yelled, panicked.

"Fucking turn me into a puppet," Garrison grumbled. "Telling me to sign executive orders and shit, making deals with fucking Russians and aliens behind my back, telling me to invade fucking Syria. Fuck you! You're not the President, I am! I'll fuck you to death!" Garrison tossed Bannon over the railing and into the pit leading to the reactor below. Bannon yelled as he fell further into the abyss. Soon, his screams were nothing, and he could no longer be seen.

Garrison drew heavy breaths as he sat down on the edge, staring at the abyss below. He stared at Peridot, who was looking back at him in shock.

"Corrupting Light launch in three minutes," a computerized voice said.

Garrison's eyes widened. "Oh, shit," he muttered. He stood up and grabbed Peridot's hand, helping her stand up as well. She groaned in pain, the over exertion taking most of her remaining energy. "Come on, we gotta go. There's a bunker nearby we can hide you in."

"We… we can't… we have to disable it…" Peridot said between pants. "We can't let… can't let it…"

Garrison sighed. "I'm sorry Peridot, but the controls are linked to Bannon's fingerprints. We can't deactivate it."

"Do we know anyone who can hack it?" Cartman asked.

Suddenly, a muffled voice spoke up. Kenny had arrived, and following close behind him was Scarlett Johansson.

"Kenny!" Peridot said, trying to smile through the pained expression on her face. "Agh… what are you doing? You have to go back to the control room and—"

Kenny cut her off, explaining through his parka that Major Scarlett Johansson could hack the terminal. She went to go do just that. Just then, Lapis arrived, followed by Kyle, Stan, Butters, Randy, and the Crystal Gems.

"Peridot!" Steven yelled, running to hug his friend. "Are you alright?!"

"Steven! You… did you do it?"

Randy nodded. "Beach City is not under Member Berry control anymore. Where's Steve Bannon?"

Garrison laughed. "Oh, he's gone."

"Oh." Randy was silent for a moment. "Do you know when he'll be back?"

"Corrupting Light launch: deactivated."

Everyone cheered as Scarlett Johansson hacked the computer. "Yaaaay…" Peridot said weakly. Suddenly, she felt a lot weaker, and fell onto her hands and knees. "I really don't feel good."

Pearl shot Peridot a worried glance. "What did they do to you?"

Garrison shook his head. "Steve Bannon managed to create a smaller, localized version of the Corrupting Light. Peridot was his first test subject."

Randy looked at Peridot, who looked ready to collapse. "So, is she…?"

Peridot waved off everyone's concerns. "Psssh. I'll be fine. Really. I just… need to… rest my eyes…" Peridot fully collapsed onto the floor, unconscious, amid everyone's gasps.

To the gems' relief, however, she didn't turn. She poofed, leaving only her gemstone behind.

"Oh my god!" Stan yelled. "They… condensed Peridot?"

"You… Bastards?" Kyle said, confused.

Garnet nodded. "She must have used up all of her energy fighting the corruption. She had to retreat into her gem to heal. But she's tough. She'll be alright."

Lapis sighed with relief, as did Steven. Steven, although he hadn't noticed, had started crying. Lapis picked up Peridot's gemstone and examined it. "You've been through a lot," she said. "Rest up."

Garnet gestured for her friends to follow her. "Come on. Let's get out of here. These kids need to get home. We can discuss everything that's happened at Randy's house."

The group left, making their way back to South Park.

A/N: One more final epilogue chapter will be coming soon.