Chapter 8: Shattered
Tourmaline stared in utter disbelief. It was him. Topaz found him, staring at him with those twisted eyes and crooked smile. Steven stood close to Tourmaline, confused by his reaction to the new gem. A strong gust of wind blew past them, Tourmaline's hair flowing forwards and Topaz's hair flowing back. A low, diabolical giggle came from Topaz as his smile grew even wider.
"I have to hand it to you Tourmaline, you can be very hard to track down. But you and I both know that I never stop stalking my prey." Topaz said with a sinister chuckle.
"What's he talking about Tourmaline?" Steven asked.
"Let's just say that you can't leave everything in your past behind kid." Topaz said.
Tourmaline tightened his hands into two fists. His stunned expression turned into a serious scowl. He looked his old partner dead in the eyes.
"Go home Steven." Tourmaline demanded.
"What? Why do you want me to-?"
"I said GO!" Tourmaline shouted at the boy.
Steven looked at Tourmaline, shocked by his outburst. Tourmaline stared down at the boy like a parent seriously disciplining their child, anger in his eyes. Steven gave a slight nod and ran down the hill. Topaz just stood and stared at Tourmaline as Steven ran past. Steven looked back and caught a glimpse of a shining yellow jewel in Topaz's side.
"He's a gem too!?" He thought to himself, "I gotta tell Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl.".
Once Steven got to the bottom of the hill, Tourmaline turned his attention back to Topaz.
"What the hell do you want Topaz!?" He growled.
"Oh come on now, where's some respect for your old partner? Then again, you never respected me...did you?" Topaz said as his tone turned grim.
"You were always the psychopath." Tourmaline said.
"And you were always the misanthrope." Topaz shot back.
Tourmaline couldn't disagree with that, but things have changed now.
"That isn't who I am anymore. I know how people really are. There is no definite person, each one is unique. There are one's who are selfish like the one's I once vowed to exterminate, but there are far more good people than evil ones. I renounce my old views to adopt a new life." Tourmaline stated.
Topaz looked at him, astonished by his statement. Then he laughed quietly. Then it grew louder and louder until he threw his head back to the sky and howled with laughter.
"What the hell happened to you!? You were such a cold blooded killer when I found you in the streets. Now you're just a bleeding heart." Topaz shouted. "And what makes you think that you can just leave me behind like you did?".
"You're a showoff. Always swooping in to steal my kills, and take a few more while you're there. I think you would appreciate flying solo, killing anyone you want from now on.".
"Aww, you do care. But that isn't the reason why I'm here. You're a failure Tourmaline. You failed to complete your mission, you've failed to kill your target, and you failed to accept the consequences. And now I must deliver your punishment A THOUSANDFOLD!" Topaz screamed as he summoned his sai.
Tourmaline assumed his fighting stance and summoned his grieve's edge. Topaz spun his sai around and then stopped them at the handle, the three prongs pointing outwards.
"I'm going to enjoy watching you suffer you traitorous bastard." Topaz growled.
"I've been looking for a good reason to kick your ass anyway." Tourmaline shot back.
The two rushed towards each other, bloodlust in their eyes, malice in their hearts and the urge to kill rising. As they approached each other, the sky darkened and the sound of thunder could be heard.
"What did you say?" Pearl asked, horrified.
Ruby said nothing, only starring in pure terror. How could she? How could she say something like that? She wanted to runaway but she couldn't. She was frozen in that one place, trying desperately to say something, but only choking on her own words.
"He...he killed people? Humans?" Amethyst asked.
"He...he…" Ruby uttered.
"I can't...that monster!" Pearl exclaimed.
"He's not a monster!" Tanzanite shouted, "He's a good person!".
The crystal gems horrified expressions turned serious.
"A good person does not kill for any reason. What excuse does he have for his actions?" Garnet asked sternly.
"He grew up seeing the worst side of humanity. Centuries of neglect and hatred were all that he had. He grew up thinking that this world was ugly, that humans were terrible. He didn't know how they really are. He didn't know anything other than violence." Ruby explained, still crushed with guilt.
"So he thinks that genocide is the answer to his problems?" Pearl said morbidly, "I don't think that's a valid excuse. Maybe we should ask him ourselves.".
The crystal trio turned to exit the house but Ruby, Sapphire and Tanzanite blocked the way to the door.
"Move." Garnet demanded.
"No, not until you hear us out!" Ruby shouted.
"We've heard enough. We need to stop him." Pearl said.
"Stop him from what!? He's done nothing wrong ever since he met me!" Ruby yelled.
"Oh and how long would that be? A week, a month, a century? Come on, that amount of time can't measure up to how much time he spent being bad." Amethyst belted.
"He's changed! He wants to change! He wants to be good! If he were as bad as you think he is, I wouldn't be here arguing with you!" Ruby screamed.
"What are you talking about?" Garnet asked.
"A few months ago, he invaded my town's temple to steal an artifact. It protected my homeland from gem beasts. We fought but eventually I won. I showed him mercy and he returned it. During our fight I could tell he was starting to hold back. He was confused, he didn't know the side of humanity that I explained to him. He stopped some really bad people from ruining my home, risking his life for someone he just met. That's why I know he's a good guy at heart!" Ruby shouted.
"That may be admirable but one right doesn't justify a thousand wrongs." Pearl said.
"How about two?" Tanzanite stepped forward.
"Oh? And did he invade your temple and make up for his mistake too?" Pearl said mockingly.
"No. He saved my life. I was stranded in a weird forest, drugged by some pollen. The next thing I knew I was tied up in a cocoon. I don't know how long I was in there for, but the first thing I remember seeing when I was finally freed was him, Ruby and Sapphire. Then the beast came back. With our combined strength we defeated it. Then it happened. It shot one final attack at me, but Tourmaline pushed me out of the way in time. He was impaled, and then torn in half. He saved my life twice in one day. What kind of monster would risk his life for a person he just met?" Tanzanite said.
"Well that's pretty cool but still. Dude's a killer." Amethyst said nonchalantly, "And no sob story or two great acts are gonna change that.".
"How dare you! Tourmaline had a terrible life until he met us. He had nothing but anger, abuse, and hatred to deal with!" Ruby shouted.
"Oh boo hoo! I'm a monster filled with rage, why can't anything be right for me!?" Sapphire said mockingly.
"Sapphire!?" Tanzanite shouted, mortified.
"How could you even think that!?" Ruby shouted.
"At least one of you has some common sense. She understands that even though he's trying to bury his awful past, he's not going to be able to wash the blood of his hands." Pearl explained.
"No. That wasn't Tourmaline, that was me." Sapphire said as she walked up to Pearl.
Pearl stared in shock. What was she talking about? Soon she was standing right in front of her. Garnet looked down to the blue gem, and Amethyst looked up.
"Are you saying what I think you're saying?" Amethyst asked curiously.
"Yes. You know how I was. You know what environment I was in. I've been where Tourmaline has been. I could've been Tourmaline! It would have been easy. I wouldn't know I was doing the wrong thing. But then you guys and Rose came and showed me the true way. You showed me compassion, you let me know what the world truly was. Tourmaline didn't have that privilege. He couldn't know what was truly wrong as his view of the human world was so narrow minded due to how mankind has treated him." Sapphire elaborated.
The crystal trio looked at each other. She had a point, but it's still too hard to just forget what he did. They didn't know how many people he killed, how many people he hurt, everything was too ambiguous. Pearl grabbed her arm and Amethyst bit her lip thinking about this. Just then, the door swung open and Steven came running in.
"Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl! Come quick, something terrible is gonna happen!" Steven shouted.
Steven ran into Sapphire and bounded off her leg. He looked up to see her and around the room to see all the gems. There was a tall one consoling a smaller one in the corner. The little one seemed extremely upset.
"What's going on? Who are you people?" Steven asked.
"We'll explain later. What terrible thing is going to happen?" Pearl asked.
"Well, I met this nice guy named Tourmaline. He told me this story and that he was a gem. We talked at the docks for a while and then we ran up the hill and now there's this guy named Topaz and he's Tourmaline's old partner or something and then Tourmaline yelled at me to go home and I know something bad is gonna happen you gotta come help him!" Steven rattled on.
"Wait, Topaz is here!?" Ruby yelled in disbelief.
"Oh so he has an accomplice. This is just getting better and better." Pearl said.
"He is nothing like Tourmaline! He's probably the reason he started killing people in the first place!" Ruby shouted.
"Oh really?" Pearl questioned.
"Yeah! When Tourmaline was torn in half, he reverted back into his gems. We went to leave the forest and then he showed up to take him away. He attacked us, he tried to kill us just to steal him away to punish or even kill him. He's a monster, not Tourmaline." Tanzanite explained.
"Any proof of this attack?" Amethyst asked.
Sapphire lifted her shirt and revealed a scar on her side. Tanzanite's scar was still there on her face. Lastly, Ruby unzipped her shirt and partially revealed her breast, scar still intact. Pearl covered Steven's eyes as she and the others looked at the scars.
"These are from his attack." Sapphire explained.
"They look pretty convincing to me." Amethyst shrugged.
"Well...how do we know that they aren't shape shifted?" Pearl asked.
"Cause we would've seen the light Pearl. They check out, so relax." Amethyst continued.
"I will not relax! Tourmaline has committed some serious crimes and he is on the loose in Beach City!" Pearl yelled.
"Pearl...why are you talking about Tourmaline like that?" Steven asked shyly.
Pearl looked down at Steven. His concerned expression made Pearl's anger dissipate. She was calm, for now.
"Steven. Tourmaline isn't nice. He's done some mean things to some people and he needs to answer for it." Pearl calmly explained.
"You mean about killing all those bad people?" Steven said curiously.
"Steven! How could you say that!? You don't know that! He could be lying to you! He has to be lying!" Pearl yelled.
"He said that the guys he went after were bad people who did bad stuff to other people. He was hired to take care of them because they didn't want other guys to risk getting hurt. I don't think the way he did it was right, but it was the only way he knew." Steven explained.
"That doesn't excuse anything. So what if he was alone? He could see that isn't the way a gem should use his powers on humans. He can't excuse his irrational way of acting." Pearl coldly explained.
Steven looked at her stunned, and then his expression turned angry. He couldn't believe what he was about to do, but he did it.
"And how did you feel when my mom died!?" Steven yelled at her.
Pearl was mortified by what Steven just said, and the other's were just as shocked by it.
"Steven?" Pearl sheepishly asked.
"How'd you feel huh? Scared, angry, lost? Well I bet that's what he felt all the time! I felt the same way a few times, but I have you guys. You're my family, you help me, you care about me. Tourmaline didn't have anyone like that in his life until now, and no one has the right to ruin that for him, not even you guys!" Steven stated.
"So you think that because he felt that way, he can get away with doing those things?" Garnet asked.
"People do bad things when they're angry or scared. That doesn't mean that they are bad people, they're just good people that did some bad things." Steven explained, "Tourmaline's like that. But now I think he might do something he's gonna regret, so you gotta help him!".
The crystal trio looked at each other again. As Pearl locked eyes with Amethyst, Garnet began to move towards the door.
"Where are you going?" Ruby asked.
"To stop whatever thing Tourmaline is in. Then I'm bringing him here for a talk." Garnet answered.
"Wh-what do you mean by that?" Tanzanite asked.
"Just a talk. I've heard enough from all of you. Maybe we were quick to judge, but now all that matters is what he says." Garnet again answered, "Unless you have some sort of objection?".
"I..no. No I don't." Pearl answered, "I guess we need to talk to sort this out.".
"I'm good with this. He seems like a nice guy, so I'll let him speak his piece." Amethyst said lazily.
"Thank you!" Ruby exclaimed, "He's gone through so much, he doesn't need anymore damage!".
"You all stay here. I'll be right back with him." Garnet said as she walked out the door.
The gems all relaxed, save Taz, who was still upset by this whole revelation. Tanza did her best to calm her down, but even she was shocked by this. She knew Tourmaline had done some bad things, but murder? Taz had tears streaming down her face. She couldn't believe Tourmaline did those things, she didn't want to believe it. Just then the two felt Tanzanite touch their shoulders. She brought them both in, embracing both of them. She knew they needed it.
"Tanzanite...is Tourmaline a bad person?" Taz asked.
"No he's not." Tanzanite responded calmly.
"Why would he do something like that?" Taz asked.
"He didn't know any better. He was an angry kid who didn't know the bright side of life. He was...he was misguided." Tanzanite tried to explain, "That's why he needs us. He wants to be a good guy but he doesn't know how. We have to show him the good side of everything.".
Taz was silent. She just held Tanza and Tanzanite as tightly as she could. Tanza did the same. She had to be strong. For Taz, and for Tourmaline.
Across the room, Steven clung to Pearl's legs. She looked down and saw his face buried deep between them.
"I'm sorry I yelled at you. I'm sorry I talked about mom like that. I didn't mean to be so mean, I just didn't want you to think he was a bad guy." Steven sobbed.
Pearl lightly pushed Steven off of her legs. She knelt down and looked him in the eyes and then hugged him tightly.
"It's okay Steven. I needed that to see his perspective. I don't know what I would've done when Rose disappeared without Garnet, Amethyst or you to give me hope. Tourmaline needs that kind of hope now, and I don't have the heart to take that away from him." Pearl said softly.
Steven hugged her back. Amethyst walked up to the two of them and gave them both a hug. Steven and Pearl extended an arm to invite her in. They could have stayed like that forever, but then Garnet rushed back into the house.
"Huh? Where's Tourmaline? Ruby asked.
"He has to wait. Something big has come up." Garnet stated.
"What are you talking about?" Pearl asked.
"Come outside and see." Garnet invited.
Garnet left the door opened and turned to the railing. Rain hammered down outside, and lightning struck just yards in front of the house. The gems and Steven ran outside to see a giant black shape swimming towards the coastline.
"The mystery beast is here already!?" Pearl panicked.
"Oh no...we wasted so much time with the whole Tourmaline thing...this is our fault." Tanzanite said mortified.
"Don't worry about that. We should have focused more ourselves but we got sidetracked. Now all that doesn't matter. We have to take this thing on now!" Garnet exclaimed.
Garnet's hands glowed and formed two giant gauntlets and jumped off of the railing to the beach below. Sapphire summoned her claws and Ruby summoned her swords, jumping down to meet Garnet. Amethyst summoned two whips from her chest and leapt down as well. Tanzanite summoned her sword and followed Amethyst. Pearl summoned her glaive and Tanza summoned her boots. The two looked at Steven and Taz.
"Steven, stay inside. It's too dangerous for you to be here right now." Pearl demanded.
"You too Taz." Tanza copied.
"But I have a weapon!" Taz stated as she summoned a wand from her hands, "I can help!".
"Me too!" Steven argued.
"We don't have time for this! We already explained the circumstances to you. Just stay inside and stay safe for us!" Pearl yelled.
With that Pearl and Tanza leapt into the air to meet their comrades, now rushing towards the open ocean to meet the monster. Steven and Taz looked at them and then at each other. Steven went up to the door, but couldn't open it. He didn't want to stay out of this fight. His friends could be in danger. He looked at Taz and she nodded in silent agreement. The two looked onwards from the patio deck. All the gems were about to battle a great beast that could destroy the city, but the thought of Tourmaline still crept in their heads.
Topaz lunged in, stabbing wildly towards Tourmaline. Tourmaline dodged each and every attack, moving the sharp prongs away from his body and countering with a knee to Topaz's jaw, sending his head flying backwards and lifting his entire body up. Tourmaline quickly spun around and delivered a back kick to the mid-air Topaz, his body flying back and rolling down the hill. He stopped himself by stabbing his sai into the ground, causing his body to go flat with a thud. He looked up to see Tourmaline leaping towards him. He rolled out of his landing zone as Tourmaline sent his heel crashing into the earth, splitting it apart and sending dirt and grass flying in his blast zone. Topaz jumped to his feet and rushed Tourmaline once more, aiming his blades toward Tourmaline's face. Tourmaline dodged, but the sai still cut part of his face. Tourmaline delivered a roundhouse to Topaz's ribs, the blade sinking between them and getting him away from Tourmaline. Blood trickled down Tourmaline's face and an orange splotch began to form where Tourmaline hit him.
"You've grown stronger." Topaz congratulated, "To think that you're little vacation would give you such power.".
"I've just upgraded to more powerful prey. Unlike you who still hunts the weak, I've decided to fight something of a much higher caliber." Tourmaline said.
"Oh really now? Since when have you called it hunting?"
"Since I realized that's just what I did. Hunt weak cowards that have to abuse their power to harm others. They aren't worth my time, human affairs are not any of my business. I know my true calling." Tourmaline explained.
"How noble of you. Let me give you a death worthy of a hero!" Topaz shouted as he rushed towards Tourmaline with sai in hand.
Topaz stabbed and swung his blades at Tourmaline, but Tourmaline dodged each attack once again. Tourmaline tried to kick Topaz away, but Topaz dodged out of the way and grabbed his leg. Panicking, Tourmaline fell back and threw Topaz backwards, unable to maintain his hold on the leg. Tourmaline fell to the ground and Topaz landed on his feet. As Tourmaline jumped up, Topaz stabbed one of his sai's into his shoulder. Tourmaline yelled in pain, and Topaz felt an ecstasy he has long since lost. Making others suffer just filled him with a wonderful sense of euphoria, and he had Tourmaline right where he wanted him. He twirled his other sai around and drove it straight into Tourmaline's lower back, over and over again. Tourmaline clenched his teeth in pain and mustered up all his strength to fight back. He flung his head back, smacking Topaz in the nose, making him let go of the two sai's now embedded in Tourmaline. Tourmaline turned to face his assailant and delivered a flurry of kicks and punches, each one landing. He spun and delivered a hard elbow to Topaz's head, knocking him over. Tourmaline grabbed his shirt as he fell and yanked him towards him, delivering another vicious headbutt. As Topaz staggered back, Tourmaline delivered a pair of roundhouse kicks, the blades tearing through Topaz's chest. A pair of orange cuts dripped blood and Topaz stared in shock.
"I take back what I said. I'm going to make you suffer!" Topaz shouted.
Topaz flipped over Tourmaline, ripping out the first sai from his shoulder. As he landed, he turned around quickly and tore out the other one from Tourmaline's lower abdomen and kicked Tourmaline away. Tourmaline stepped forward and turned towards Topaz, anger flowing from his eyes like the blood from their wounds. In that moment, Tourmaline forgot about Steven, his friends, everything left his mind except one little thought.
"I will kill him".
The sea shook and churned as the gems rushed into the water to confront the beast. Pearl ran across the water along with Tanzanite as their comrades were already battling the monster under the waves. Amethyst swung her whip above the water, causing the sea to part with each crack of her whip. Ruby and Tanzanite stabbed at the yellow lights in the black figure, failing to reach the monster through the deep water. Suddenly, a thin tentacle shot out through the water at Amethyst. She fell back, losing her footing and got engulfed in the sea. Pearl pulled her out of the churning deep and Amethyst regained her footing on the water's surface. Ten more tentacles rose out of the water.
"Where's Garnet and Sapphire!?" Pearl shouted over the crashing waves.
"Underwater trying to stop this thing from going any further!" Amethyst answered.
Underneath the waves, Sapphire clawed at the underbelly of the mystery beast, still unable to identify it in the black murky water. Garnet struck the creatures large head, dodging what appeared to be massive jaws. The tentacles lashed out at Ruby and Tanzanite, some stabbing downwards while others swung across the water's surface. One of the tentacles managed to wrap around Tanzanite. Before she could swing down, it lifted her into the air, whipping her around. Ruby saw her friend in trouble and threw one of her swords at the tentacle's base. The appendage was severed and Tanzanite went flying towards the shoreline. Pearl leapt into the air and sliced two tentacles in half. The remaining tentacles went after her, but she gracefully dodged them all and managed to sever another one. Tanza leapt into the air and cut the remaining tentacles in half. A monstrous groan was heard underneath the waves, as a large spasm of bubbles erupted a few feet away from the tentacles. The beast retracted it's tentacles and slowly rose to the surface, exposing large, scaly back and shiny yellow jewels. They stared up to the sky like cat eyes, and a mysterious noise came from beneath the waves as more bubbles came around the beast's hulking back.
"This thing is enormous!" Ruby exclaimed.
"But it has to be getting weaker." Pearl shouted back, "Come on! It's almost at the beach!"
Garnet was still underwater, now pressing against the giant monsters head, swimming against it to try to impede its progress, occasionally punching it in the head. Sapphire clawed at the underbelly, only managing to scrape away what appeared to be scales. She kept going, inky blood slowly seeping out of her small cuts, until she saw the shadow of a great, clawed hand coming towards her. She kicked off the creatures belly and swam a little farther out of it's reach. She looked up to the black sky above the waves. A lighting bolt illuminated the monster's figure. They thought it was big before, but this blew their idea out of the water. Garnet looked like a minnow trying to push against a shark. The beast's arms and legs were massive, each one at least twice as long as Garnet. It had a gargantuan tail, bigger than it's own body. And lastly, it had a massive, crocodile like head.
"What the hell is this!? How are we supposed to take something like this down!?" she thought to herself.
Pearl leapt into the air, did a flip and brought her spear down towards the beast's back, aiming for one of the glowing jewels. Just then, the beast lowered it's head, dragging Garnet down with it. It curled it's back and between it's back plates, jaws opened up. Pearl's eye's widened as she saw the back of this giant reptilian beast morph into a legion of yellow-eyed demons opening their mouths for their meal like baby birds pleading for food. Pearl felt something wrap around her, snapping her out of her daze. Before she could look to see what it was, she was jerked out of the air. She gracefully flipped back and landed next to Amethyst, her whip wrapped around Pearl's stomach.
"Thanks for the save." Pearl said.
"Don't mention it." Amethyst said, "You think we should have brought the gem sloop?".
"In this weather, against this thing? It would have capsized it in an instant." Pearl argued.
Amethyst grumbled and whipped at the creatures jewels. The creature flinched in pain as she flayed the eyes. The creature's mouths were still wide open, so approaching was far too risky. Pearl aimed her spear and with one toss she managed to pierce one of the eyes. Black goop spurt from the shattered jewel and the creature roared in pain, the sound muffled by the water. Ruby and Tanzanite threw their swords at the other eye. Tanzanite's missed but Ruby's hit dead on. One pair out of eight were destroyed. Quickly the gems beamed their weapons back, readying their aim towards the other pair. Under the waves, Garnet still struggled to keep the monster from moving, now with Sapphire helping her. As she struggled, Garnet's third eye looked up from underneath the waves and saw something terrifying. The black clouds swirled around and in the center, a light slowly grew. She knew what was about to happen. She turned to Sapphire and tried to tell her to run, but her words were mere glubs under the water. Sapphire looked on confused, but then Garnet grabbed her and tossed her out of the water. The other gems turned to see Sapphire fly out of the water, and Garnet quickly surfaced, gasping for air.
"Everyone! Move away now!" She yelled.
"What, but the beast is about to-" Pearl yelled before getting cut off.
"I said NOW! No time to explain!" Garnet yelled as she swam towards the shoreline.
The gems turned to Garnet and against their better judgment, followed the tall gem all the way to the shoreline, leaving the creature behind. As they all ran onto the beach, they turned back to see the light in the sky grow brighter and brighter. And then, a massive bolt of lightning struck the creature.
"We would've been fried!" Ruby exclaimed.
"Yeah, but we didn't. And now that thing is gone! All we gotta do now is go diving for it's gem." Amethyst shouted excitedly.
"No." Garnet said sternly. "That bolt wasn't enough to kill it.".
"How can you be so sure?" Pearl asked.
"Why would a creature's own attack be able to kill it like that?" Garnet asked back.
"Wha- so it is the cause of this storm!" Pearl realized.
"Yes, and now we have to deal with it here." Garnet stated.
"At least it's more stable for us here." Tanza said.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Sapphire responded.
The gems turned to Sapphire.
"I saw it's outline during a lightning strike, and it looks like a-" Sapphire went on until she saw the water by she shore began to see something rising out of the shore's water.
The creature rose from the waves and revealed it's true form. It stood on two legs, towering at least 3 stories tall, and it's gangly, muscular arms reached to it's knees. It's body was thick and muscular, toned and covered with onyx scales, save for it's grey, scratched up underbelly. It's thick tail slammed against the water, causing a massive splash and showing the large rows of spikes acutely pointing downwards. It had ripples over it's arms, one at least a yard away from the other, as well as over it's legs. The largest ripples being on it's joints. Lastly, was the creature's head. A long, broad snout housed yards of sharp, jagged, crooked teeth and three pairs of soulless blue eyes, lacking proper irises, only housing black slits across. The monster stared at the gems, and the gems stared back at the creature.
"What are we going to do against this thing? It's huge!" Pearl whispered to Garnet.
"The answer is obvious. We need Opal." Garnet answered.
"What!?" Pearl and Amethyst exclaimed.
The two quickly shut their mouths, but it was too late. The beasts slit's narrowed even further and it let out a mighty roar as loud as thunder. As it reared back the ripples in it's skin separated to reveal sets of jaws spread across it's body, each roaring in unison with it's massive host. The gems assumed their battle positions. They were in for one hell of a fight. Garnet grabbed Pearl and Amethyst and threw them behind the rest of the group. The two fell with a thud as they looked at their leader in astonishment.
"We'll stall for time! Form Opal now!" Garnet ordered.
Topaz was punched in the face, his head flung back as teeth and blood escaped his maw. Tourmaline was now covered with stab wounds and Topaz was sliced everywhere. Each blow from them caused blood to spill from their open wounds. Tourmaline followed up his first punch with another to Topaz's stomach. He grabbed Topaz's head and slammed towards his rising knee. Topaz staggered back and Tourmaline delivered another roundhouse. This time, the blade was driven directly into one of the jewels on Topaz's side. The yellow gem cracked and shattered as the blade carved into the stone. Topaz let out a cry of agony as he was knocked to the ground. He gripped his shattered stone and seethed with pain.
"You...rotten...detestable...piece of...crap!" He managed to spit at Tourmaline.
Tourmaline looked over the wounded Topaz with disgust. He stomped on Topaz's shattered gem, making him wince in pain each and every time. Then he kicked Topaz square in the gut with his blade. His body was lifted up into the air and the blade tore an even bigger hole in his stomach as it torn his skin and sent him rolling. Topaz was in an immense amount of pain, and Tourmaline had no intention in stopping. Topaz grabbed for his belt but Tourmaline kicked him in the back, freezing him in place as the pain escalated even higher. Tourmaline reached down and ripped off Topaz's belt, throwing to the top of the hill. Tourmaline raised his leg high into the air, preparing to drop a massive axe kick onto Topaz's uninjured gem. He readied his strike but suddenly, a roar echoed from across the hill. He placed his foot down and looked backwards. The roaring continued and the sound of rocks being crushed and cries from the gems echoed throughout the air.
Ignoring Topaz on the ground, he turned and ran up the hill and looked down to see the source of the sound. A giant creature was battling the gems. Sapphire clung onto the creature's chest trying to stab into it, Ruby and Tanzanite tried desperately to find an opening, but only being caught by the creatures vicious slashes and punches. Garnet clung onto the creature's head, punching it's eyes as the creature tried to shake her off. Tanza was skating around to build enough momentum to deliver a huge attack. Pearl and Amethyst were doing some odd dance. The two got close and a light enveloped them but the light disappeared and the two were sent flying back. They seemed to be arguing and Taz and Steven were watching helplessly from the balcony. Steven grabbed Taz by the hand and brought her inside. He couldn't believe what was happening. Tanza rushed into to attack the creature, but the monster spun it's massive tail towards her, sending her flying back and smashing through a few large rocks on the beach. Tourmaline readied himself to jump from the hill.
"Where the hell do you think you're going?" Topaz said as he dragged himself towards Tourmaline.
Tourmaline turned back to his wounded adversary, looking down at him as he dragged his sliced up body.
"This isn't over. You have a fight to finish." He said as he picked himself off the ground.
"No. It isn't. But I have something I have to take care of first." Tourmaline stated.
"So you're just going to run away *cough*? Just go to your friend's rescue just because things are a little dicey?" Topaz mocked.
"Yes." Tourmaline stated.
"Why do you fight for them? Why do you care so much?" Topaz asked.
"...It's because if it wasn't for them, I would be empty. Life would just be a meaningless pursuit. Going across the world, killing for a need that I don't even have. Ruby showed me that there are humans that truly show compassion for each other, that care for one another. Sapphire showed me it was possible to meet new people and be friends with them. Tanzanite showed me what it's like to protect instead of kill. And Tanza and Taz showed me what it truly means to have someone you care about, despite your own intentions. I don't care what happens to me anymore. All that matters is that I protect them!" Tourmaline stated.
Topaz stared at him, flabbergasted. Before he could speak, a scream was heard. The monster had Ruby in it's grasp, crushing her with it's grip. Tourmaline looked down in horror, and turned to Topaz and kicked him to the ground. Topaz rolled for a bit before stopping himself. Tourmaline turned to run off the hill but stopped for a bit when he heard Topaz again.
"Tourmaline!" Topaz shouted.
Tourmaline turned to him.
"Don't die down there. I'm not accepting any other means of victory from an outside source.".
Tourmaline nodded. "Just take a breather, this won't take long.".
Tourmaline ran forward and jumped off the hill, diving into the battle as the beast hoisted Ruby over it's head. Topaz rolled onto his back and stared up at the sky, letting the raindrops wash away the blood from his wounds and face.
"He's still the same cocky brat. At least that much hasn't changed about him." He thought to himself.
The gem's were doing their best to keep the creature's attention as Pearl and Amethyst tried to do the fusion right. They were climbing all over the monster trying to do some damage to it, only being able to break off a few scales at a time. Garnet was doing the most damage, punching the monster's eyes as it tried to shake her off its head. Ruby and Tanzanite could only whack it's legs with their swords, bouncing off it's thick scales. Sapphire clung onto the creature's softer chest and underbelly. Clawing desperately to get to somewhere vital. The creature quickly grabbed Sapphire with one hand, and proceeded to squeeze her with both. She screamed in pain as her bone's began to crack. Garnet saw her ally in trouble and slammed her fist into one of the creature's eyes as hard as she could. The beast let out a cry of pain and let go of Sapphire to try and grab Garnet. Sapphire fell to the ground and writhed in pain. Tanzanite ran to her friend.
"Can you walk? Can you still fight?" Tanzanite asked, fearing for her friend.
"Yeah...I'm okay." Sapphire said as she rose to her feet.
Meanwhile, Pearl and Amethyst tried their best to get the fusion done. Pearl and Amethyst danced together to begin the ritual. The two moved gracefully closer together, a light enveloped the two of them, and then the were blown apart.
"Amethyst focus!" Pearl shouted.
"You focus! This isn't really an easy time for me!" Amethyst argued.
"I...I know. But Garnet and the other's need Opal now! So focus and lets get this over with!" Pearl shouted back.
Amethyst was quiet for a second, her mouth hanging open. After a second, she nodded and was ready to try again. Before they could start, their concentration was broken by the sound of Tanza being slammed through the beach's rocks.
"We need to hurry!" Pearl exclaimed.
"I'm trying!" Amethyst shot back.
Above at the house, Taz looked away. The sight of seeing her best friend pummeled like that was too much. Steven held her hands and she looked at the young boy.
"It's gonna be okay. They're the gems. They've handled worse." Steven reassured.
"I don't know...I just want to help and not be a burden. They're our friends! We have to do something!" Taz cried.
Steven scratched his head, and then he beamed. He took Taz by the hand and went into the house.
"I know what we can do! I just need a hand!" Steven exclaimed.
"Okay! What do you need me to do?" Taz asked.
Outside, the creature managed to grab a hold of Garnet with one of it's spare jaws. The jaws locked around Garnet's shoulder. She looked over to see the beast's black clawed hand and arm. She was caught on a jaw on the creature's wrist. Purple blood spurted from her wound. She tried to pry the jaws open with her free arm, but the creature flung her towards the hill's stone wall. She managed to save flip mid air and land on the wall, but the force was too great and she couldn't recover. She fell to the sandy floor and slowly got back up. Just then, she heard a scream. She looked over at the monster and saw that it had got a hold of Ruby. It's squeezed her hard, cracking bone and causing more pain. The beast punched her into a rock, shattering it as the other's tried desperately to get it to let go of her. Garnet ran towards the monster, intent on saving the young gem.
Ruby was practically unconscious. The entire world was blurry, she could barely keep her eyes open, and all the sound in the world was muffled. The beast raised her into the air high above it's head and opened it's wide main jaws. She felt the creature release her as she began to fall into the monster's jaws. She heard the barely audible screams of her friends. She was giving up hope. She was done for.
Suddenly, the beasts jaws slammed shut, inches away from her, and the monster fell back. She fell further but was caught by someone. Was it Garnet? Who else could knock the monster down. She tried her best to open her eyes and looked up to see Tourmaline, blood on his brow, fire in his eyes.
"Tour...Tourmaline?" She uttered.
Tourmaline ran back towards Pearl and Amethyst as the beast tried to recover from the blow. They saw what happened. Tourmaline fell from the sky and kicked the monster square in the chest, knocking it over. He leaped over to them and placed Ruby against one of the support beams for their house.
"Keep her safe!" Tourmaline shouted.
Before the two could respond, he was already running back towards the monster. The monster was slowly rising up and Tourmaline leapt straight onto the creature's face. Driving the blade's on his shoes into the creature's lower jaw, Tourmaline morphed his hand into a sharp blade and drove it straight into one of the monster's blacked, bruised eyes. The monster screamed in pain as Tourmaline stabbed each eye. Tourmaline just finished with the third eye when he was grabbed and thrown into the shallow water. A massive ripple formed as he went crashing into the water. The beast was about to stomp on him when a bolt of light struck it in the back. The beast staggered, tripping and nearly falling on Tourmaline. Tourmaline looked over to see a tall woman, easily twice the size of Garnet wielding a bow and arrow with two pairs of arms. Pearl and Amethyst were no where to be seen. Garnet picked up Tourmaline and dragged him away from the monster.
"What's going on? Who is that?" He asked Garnet.
"That's Opal. The fusion of Pearl and Amethyst." Garnet said as the other's joined them, "We've done all we could, it's up to her now.".
As they made it to the house, Opal began to walk towards the creature.
"Stay low. This won't take long." Opal said in a smooth voice.
The other's stayed put as the creature got up and roared at Opal, enraged by the attack wounding his back gems. Opal's walk turned into a sprint, firing arrow after arrow at the monster. The beast sloppily dodged the arrows, only receiving nicks and cuts from the flying energy bolts. The beast lunged at Opal, claws aimed forward, but Opal caught the monster with her bow, flipping it backwards. The beast flew through the air and landed with a huge thud, causing sand to fly everywhere. Opal aimed her bow once more and shot the beast's back multiple times. Large clusters of explosions dispersed all over the creatures back, destroying the yellow gems and causing the creature to scream in agony. After her assault was finished, the beast was still. It's eyes were closed, and it appeared dead. Opal took a deep breath and walked towards the other gems. The other's cheered for their saviour, but Tourmaline was still uncertain. While the other's were focused on Opal, he was eyeballing the monster. He looked at it's face, and saw an eye twitch. He ran in front of the others to warn Opal.
"Opal! Stop! It's still alive!" He screamed.
As Opal heard Tourmaline's warning, the beast sprung back to life. It's remaining eyes were now a scarlet red, and it's other mouths were dripping black blood. Opal turned to face the monster but was quickly impaled by the spare mouth's tongues. Three went into her chest and the rest wrapped around her arms and legs. Before She could break free, the tongues generated a powerful electrical shock. Opal screamed in pain as the electricity coursed through her body. She glowed slightly and then separated into Pearl and Amethyst. The two fell to the ground, in immense pain. Pearl was able to stand, but just barely. The creature stood there, tongues whipping in every direction, confused by the disappearance of the giant woman. She went to pick up Amethyst, as she was in much worse condition than her.
"Come on Amethyst! Move please! At least say something! Let me know you're okay!" Pearl screamed as she desperately dragged Amethyst, only getting a few murmurs in response.
The other's ran to protect their friend. The beast lashed it's tongues out at the two, and the other's tried desperately to stop it. Tanzanite once again threw their swords, this time severing four out of the ten tongues. Garnet and Sapphire leapt at the tongues, Garnet being able to grab two and Sapphire managing to stop one. The three remaining tongues dashed past them towards Pearl and Amethyst. Pearl grabbed Amethyst and covered her, hoping to shield her from even more damage. She heard the sound of flesh being impaled and tensed up. She crouched there, holding Amethyst for a second. She slowly turned to see Tourmaline's back, and three tongues sticking out of him. His body was soaked with blood, the green streams flowing from the newly formed holes and old one's alike, being washed from the rain. All was silent for what felt like an eternity, and then the tongues began to charge, and then Tourmaline screamed. The pain was unimaginable, as Tourmaline felt the electricity flow through him, tearing him apart from the inside.
"Tourmaline!" Everyone shouted.
The creature stared down at his victim, ready to finish him off. Suddenly, the creature's remaining tongues were severed by something. The other's looked to see Ruby's swords, and turned to see a barely conscious Ruby standing. Tourmaline fell to the ground, foam at the corner of his mouth, his newly made wounds seared shut.
"Leave..him...alone." Ruby uttered as she passed out.
Tanza quickly skated to pick up Tourmaline and Garnet grabbed Pearl and Amethyst, with Sapphire and Tanzanite following close behind. The creature was screaming in agony as blood spilled from each and everyone of it's mouths. Tourmaline, Amethyst and Pearl were lied down next to Ruby.
"So what do we do now!?" Sapphire shouted.
"I don't know! I thought Opal would be enough, I didn't expect any of this!" Garnet shouted.
"Well what are we supposed to do now?" Tanzanite asked.
Before Garnet could speak, the sound of something dragging against the deck filled the air. Garnet leapt up the to the deck to see Steven and Taz dragging out the laser light canon.
"We can help!" Steven said.
"I'm glad you can!" Garnet shouted as she helped them bring the canon over. Sapphire, Tanza and Tanzanite came up to see the giant cannon. The cannon was in place, and Steven latched onto it. He concentrated and his gem began to glow, the top the the canon transformed into a rose in bloom. Garnet caught the cannon before it fell but struggled to keep it up. The other's quickly moved to help her. The group aimed the charging cannon at the writhing beast.
"Brace yourselves!" Garnet shouted.
The cannon shot a pink beam. It morphed into a rose and then a woman summoning more roses. The beast, turned towards the light did his best to resist the blast. It's legs tired, it's mouths sagging open dripping blood, it was a fruitless effort. The monster was consumed by the light and exploded into a shower of pink and black. The gems just stared in astonishment.
"We...we did it." Steven uttered.
Tanza looked down at Taz and she looked up to her friend. The beaten and battered Tanza smiled at her.
"Good job Topaz." She said cheerfully.
"Tha-Thank you!" Taz beamed.
Steven and the other's began to bring the cannon back into the house as Garnet went to grab the monster's gem. She walked slowly, still hurting, still exhausted from the fight. In the charred remains was a yellow gem with black splotches at the bases. She formed a bubble around it and sent it away. Then she fell back and let out a deep breath. She let the rain wash over her for a minute and then she got up and turned to her weakened friends. She got to the passed out crew, but her eyes widened when she got there.
"Everyone! Come quick!" She shouted.
Just then, all the remaining gems leapt from the deck to Garnet.
"What's wrong?" Taz asked.
"Tourmaline is gone!" She shouted.
Topaz remained still, listening in on the fight from his position. He was still in an obscene amount of pain, but could manage to stay awake. He turned his head to see Tourmaline, practically limping up the hill. He slowly sat up, and painfully got to his feet. He looked down at Tourmaline, charred and bleeding.
"You got the crap kicked out of you, huh?" Topaz joked.
"Think of it as a handicap." Tourmaline said as he assumed his stance, "Come on. Let's end this.".
"Yes...lets." Topaz said as he grabbed his sai.
Tourmaline rushed towards Topaz, and so did Topaz. The two exchanged blow after blow, slice after slice. As they fought the rain came down harder, the sight of green and yellow flying through the air became more and more apparent. Tourmaline was slipping. As they moved towards the edge of the hill, it became harder to see, his movements became sluggish. He knew it was over. It was finally his time to die, but that doesn't mean he wouldn't go out fighting. They made it to the top of the hill and Tourmaline managed to get Topaz off of him. The two gasped for air, staring each other down. Then the two ran towards each other, leaping into the air. Tourmaline extended his leg into a flying sidekick, and Topaz rose one of his sai mid air and was ready to send it stabbing downwards. They were only a foot away, about to collide, and Tourmaline missed the kick, only slicing into Topaz's abdomen. Topaz tackled him to the ground, holding one shoulder down, and having his sai aimed high. It was over.
"Go on...end it." Tourmaline said.
Topaz breathed heavily, and dropped the sai, landing next to him and Tourmaline.
"No...you've won. It's pointless to try anymore." Topaz admitted.
"What are you talking about?" Tourmaline asked.
Topaz stood up and showed the side where Tourmaline previously wounded him, the cracked and shattered gem still there. Then he showed his other side where he cut him midair. Tourmaline sliced through his other gem. Tourmaline stared in amazement as he rose to his feet.
"A gem whose gems are destroyed has no reason to fight. It's over...you've won." Topaz stated as he picked up his belt.
Tourmaline walked up to Topaz, with a new sense of empathy. The bloodthirsty Topaz he knew...just giving up like that? Topaz walked to the side of Tourmaline, looking down at the hill.
"I guess it isn't my purpose to go after people. Losing to you made me realize that. You've done so much for the people you care about, and in return they've given you a new life. I have to admit I'm envious. But I accept my fate." He said as he pulled something out of his belt, "It's also law that an assassin must die if he loses a fight.".
"Wha-what are you talking about?" Tourmaline said concerned.
"Tourmaline!" The two heard some people shout. They looked down to see the gems running towards them.
"You have people that truly care about you Tourmaline." Topaz said as he turned towards Tourmaline, "If this is the life you choose, they're your clients now. You protect them, you do what you must for them. Never fail them.".
Tourmaline looked to see the object in his hand. Tourmaline's eyes widened when he saw that it was a grenade. Topaz pulled the pin, and bit the black explosive.
"WAIT! TOPAZ, NO!" Tourmaline screamed as he tried to swipe the explosive out of Topaz's mouth.
But it was too late. The grenade went off, blowing Topaz's upper half clean off. The force of the explosion blew off the arm Tourmaline extended towards him and sent him flying off the cliff. Time all but crept to a standstill. Yellow and green blood fell along with Tourmaline, he stared up to the dark sky, the rain falling down intertwined with the streams of blood.
"Forgive me Topaz...I never meant to shame you." Tourmaline thought to himself as he faded away into his gems. The two rectangular prisms of Tourmaline and the shattered Jade fell along with the rain and green and yellow blood. Before they hit the roof of Steven's house, Pearl and Amethyst leapt up and saved the gems. Pearl had Tourmaline and Amethyst had Jade. Pearl looked down at the slabs.
"I'm sorry for ever doubting who you really were." Pearl said as she held the gems close to her chest.
The others leapt down from the hill to see Tourmaline. Tanza grabbed him away from Pearl. Everyone was stunned by what happened. Garnet placed her hand on Tanza's shoulder.
"Lets go inside. We've had a long day, and we all need some rest." Garnet suggested.
Tanza looked at Tourmaline's gems, and back to Garnet, giving her a nod. The other's leapt off the roof and went inside,while Sapphire leapt down to the beach and picked up Ruby. They all went inside and all sat down. Tanza placed a pillow on her lap, and then put Tourmaline on the pillow. Taz sat next to her and put her head against Tanzas arm. Sapphire came in carrying Ruby. She sat next to Tanza and Ruby fell out of her arms, landing next to Tourmaline. Ruby opened her eyes slightly to see Tourmaline's gems. Slowly she moved her arm toward him, and brought the gems next to her chest, tears silently flowing down her face. Tanzanite came over and plopped next to Sapphire. Soon enough, all the gems had shut their eyes and fell asleep. The crystal trio looked at the sight.
"Do you still want to question Tourmaline after this?" Amethyst asked sheepishly.
"No. I can see that he truly is a good person. Plus I owe him for saving you anyway." Pearl said.
"Excuse me?" Amethyst said.
"Uh, I mean us!" Pearl said, slightly blushing.
"That's enough you two. We should all get some rest." Garnet ordered.
"Yeah, come on Steven….Steven?" Pearl said.
She turned to see Steven on the ground, snoring and slightly drooling. Pearl picked him up and brought him upstairs. Garnet and Amethyst followed her to his bed. Pearl tried to put Steven in bed, but just collapsed on the bed. Garnet came over and picked the two of them up while Amethyst pulled the covers back. Garnet placed the two under the covers and Amethyst joined them.
"Come on G. You know you want to get some rest as bad as us." Amethyst suggested.
Garnet shrugged slightly and got under the covers with her family. Amethyst pulled the covers over them all and immediately fell asleep. Pearl and Steven had already passed out. Garnet looked out the window at the rain. The harsh drops now simmering down to a mild drizzle.
"Looks like this rain isn't going to last the night." Garnet thought to herself as she was lulled sleep, "Lets hope that means tomorrow is going to be a better day.".
The morning sun shined upon the crystal gems. Steven rubbed his eyes as he woke up. His first sight of the day was Pearl and Amethyst cuddling in their sleep, while he was sandwiched between them and Garnet, who was holding them all. Steven didn't want to wake them up, so he shimmied his way out as carefully as he could. As he slowly crept towards the stairs, he heard the sheets rustle. He slowly turned to see Garnet move the others in closer. Steven smiled to himself and slowly walked down the stairs. He looked over to see the other gems sleeping on the couch, clustered around Tourmaline's gems. He didn't know any of their names yet, but they were Tourmaline's friends, so he had to get to know them when they woke up. For now, he walked over to Tourmlaine and looked at the gems. He reached out and touched one of them, still being held by Ruby.
"I knew you were a good guy." Steven said softly.
Just then, his gem began to glow. Steven looked down and lifted his shirt to see his gem glowing bright. He did his best to stay calm, trying not to wake up the others. But then suddenly, a pink orb of light popped out of his gem, and went straight into Tourmaline. Steven had no idea what just happened, it was a huge shock that he doubted no one could explain. Just then, he heard a yawn. He looked up to see the tan girl with purple hair slowly wake up. She looked down at Steven, half asleep still.
"Uh, good morning." Steven said nervously.
"Good morning." Tanza replied back.
"Um, what's your name again?" Steven modestly asked.
"Oh I'm sorry, we never introduced ourselves to you. I'm Tanzanite, but everyone calls me Tanza because of our friend here. She's also named Tanzanite. This is Topaz, but everyone calls her Taz, for reasons now obvious. And this is Ruby and Sapphire. They've known Tourmaline the longest." Tanza explained.
Just then, the other gems began to yawn and wake up. Ruby rose from Tanza's lap, still slightly holding Tourmaline's gems. The other's just sat up. From upstairs, they could hear the crystal trio waking up. Shortly after, they all came walking down the stairs and faced the other gems.
"Morning. How did you all sleep?" Pearl asked.
"Fine." Ruby spoke for them all.
"So...how long do you think Tourmaline's gonna be stuck like that?" Amethyst asked.
"I don't know. He could have came back now for all we know." Tanzanite said.
"Well you're more than welcome to stay here while he recuperates." Pearl offered.
"Thank you." Sapphire said.
Steven was in the kitchen grabbing some breakfast while the gems were talking.
"Would you like anything to eat? Do any of you actually like doing that?" Pearl asked.
"I'll take something." Taz stated.
"Come over here! We got lots of stuff, take your pick!" Steven said invitingly.
Taz walked towards the kitchen and all the other gems began to stand up.
"You know, I have to say we got a pretty bad first impression of Tourmaline. I mean that's changed now but still." Pearl stated, "So...while he's recovering...would you care to tell us about the Tourmaline you all know?".
The gems looked at each other and back to Pearl and smiled.
"We'd be happy to." Ruby beamed.
Inside Tourmaline's gem there was only blackness. Tourmaline was once again in the void. He was falling through an infinite space, recollecting his past events. The monster, Topaz, everything was still on his mind. He just wanted to see his mom again, hell maybe that weird doppelganger thing. Anything beats just falling and doing nothing. Just then, a voice echoed through the void. It was his own.
"So you've finally done it haven't you?" The copy's voice said.
"Done what?" Tourmaline responded.
"You've finally conquered your inner demons, realized your true purpose, and severed ties with your bloodstained past." The copy answered.
"I guess so." Tourmaline responded, "Where are you anyway?"
"Why I'm right next to you. I'm all around you. I'm just a voice after all." The copy laughed.
"What? But you always appeared as me before." Tourmaline said puzzled.
"That's because you had a much less stable mind back then. I could do whatever I wanted. But now...you're finally in control. The only reason I'm here is because you wanted me to be here." It explained.
"I asked for my mom first. Why isn't she here?" Tourmaline asked.
"You don't need her anymore." The voice said.
"What!?" Tourmaline shouted.
"She could only come to you once, and she did it because you had to hear what she was saying. She had one message to give you though. It was that you already have a family and you don't have to worry about her anymore. Live your life and be happy for her." The voice said.
Tourmaline was silent. He didn't know what to say.
"If it makes you feel any better, there is someone here to see you." The voice said.
"What? Who?" Tourmaline asked.
"Someone you've been meaning to see for a long time. I'll leave you two alone. Good bye Tourmaline." The voice said as it faded away.
Tourmaline felt like he was falling slower. Suddenly, he was placed standing up in a dark and empty chamber. He took a step and felt the floor ripple. The ring traveled far until another ring intercepted it. Tourmaline looked up from the floor and saw a small pink glowing orb. He moved towards the orb slowly, unsure of what it was. Suddenly, the orb burst and the room was filled with a bright light. Tourmaline looked back to see the room filled with beautiful bright colors. The liquid turned into a wondrous pink water. Tourmaline looked to where the orb was and saw the light shape shift into a woman with long hair. The light dispersed from the shape and revealed a tall woman wearing a white dress. Her long, curly hair well past her back, and her gorgeous eyes shut.
"You've been waiting a long time for this...haven't you?" The woman said in an angelic voice.
"Are you...Rose?" Tourmaline asked.
The woman nodded. Tourmaline still couldn't believe it.
"I've come to answer your questions." Rose stated, "So what do you want to know?"
"How...how was my dad?" Tourmaline asked without hesitation.
"Ah Jade. Such a brash, lighthearted man. To answer your question, he's just like you now." Rose answered.
"Okay...why couldn't you find me? Or did you even try to find me?" Tourmaline asked.
Rose sighed, "One of my deepest regrets is that I couldn't find you. I couldn't repay your father for saving my life. Our world was in shambles, so I had to put all my energy into restoring balance. We tried to find you, but things just kept coming up. We were distracted...we had no idea where you went." Rose explained, "I am truly sorry.".
Tourmaline averted his eyes. He thought about what else he wanted to ask, but nothing else came into his head. That's all he really wanted to know.
"Now if you don't mind, I'd like to ask you a question." Rose insisted.
"Okay, shoot." Tourmaline offered.
"If I could, would you let me take you away from that orphanage? Would you want to erase all those years of your life?" Rose asked.
Tourmaline didn't expect such a heavy question. He thought hard about it. All those years of torture, all those years of neglect, all gone. He could've known about the true meaning of life as a gem long before any of that. He wouldn't have needed someone like Ruby...Ruby.
"Well, do you have your answer?" Rose asked.
"...No." Tourmaline said.
"Oh, well take your time." Rose said.
"I mean no is my answer." Tourmaline said.
Rose looked down at Tourmaline, a little surprised by his answer.
"Interesting. Explain why." She insisted.
"If I were to have been taken away from that place...what chance would I have of meeting Ruby, or Sapphire, or Tanzanite, or Tanza and Taz?" Tourmaline asked, "I'd rather have suffered centuries of torment and have them now then have had a good life and never have met them.".
Rose giggled. "You think so? Well I'm glad to hear that, now go to them." She said as she pushed Tourmaline over.
The pink water slowly enveloped him and Rose looked down at him. She crouched down and touched his forehead, parting his hair away from his face.
"Treasure your family Tourmaline. And watch out for my son, okay?" Rose said as Tourmaline sunk in.
Tourmaline sunk further down, struggling to have his hand breach the surface. Struggling with all his strength, he managed to break a hand above the surface. Rose looked at his hand, and Tourmaline made an okay symbol. He let himself sink down and go back to his friends. Rose slowly began to fade away back into color.
"You're son has grown up to be a good kid Jade, Aqua. I'm really glad that he's with my son now." Rose said as she disappeared.
"Really!? He just smashed that thing's head in with it's own tail!?" Amethyst exclaimed.
"Yep, he leapt into the air and slammed it down on it's head!" Ruby said.
"That's awesome!" Amethyst beamed.
"Yeah, Tourmaline's a really cool guy." Steven said.
"He really is." Garnet said.
"Yeah, and there was this one time-" Tanzanite went on
Suddenly, Tourmaline's gems began to glow. The group turned to look at them. The gems flew high into the air and emitted a light. The light grew and formed into Tourmaline. He fell from his point and landed on a knee. He slowly got up and looked at his friends. Ruby was the first to move. She slowly walked up to Tourmaline, got as close as she could, and looked up to him.
"Hi Ruby." Tourmaline said with a smile.
Ruby said nothing. She just wrapped her arms around Tourmaline. Tourmaline did the same for her, then Tanza came and he had her move in, then Taz, then Tanzanite, and then Sapphire. He hugged all of his friends for as long as he could, and then when they loosened their grip, he moved towards the crystal gems. Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl and Steven all looked at him.
"Hey guys, about those questions...I don't need them answered anymore." He said modestly.
"Really? You sure?" Pearl asked.
"Yeah...I know what I need to know now." He said.
"Okay then." Pearl said.
"Are you gonna leave now Tourmaline?" Steven asked.
"I guess I have to. There's no reason for us to stay here anymore." Tourmaline answered.
"But, you're such a cool guy! And we're all gems! We should stay together because...because we're all family in a way, right?" Steven begged.
"Hmm. I could go with adding some more people to gang, how about you guys?" Tourmaline said as he turned to the others.
"I'm alright with it." Tanzanite said.
"I'd like that a lot." Sapphire said.
"Sure, let's have some more people come along for the fun." Tanza said.
"I'd love nothing more!" Taz exclaimed.
"Of course I'm okay with it. I'm gonna all the spare hands I can get to keep you under control." Ruby said.
"My friends are okay with it. How about you guys?" Tourmaline asked as he turned towards the crystal gems.
Steven looked up to his friends with the biggest puppy dog eyes he could muster. The gems looked at one another for a few seconds, and then turned back to Tourmaline.
"Sure, why not?" Garnet said.
"You're a cool dude, I see no problem with it." Amethyst said.
"...Well I guess I have to say you're welcome as family now. Thank you for everything you've done for us." Pearl said.
"I intend to do a lot more." Tourmaline said.
"So where are we going to stay?" Taz asked.
"We're gonna have to do some serious renovations in the temple, but it'll be doable." Garnet said.
"We'll help." Tourmaline said.
"Alright then. Lets get started." Garnet said as she walked towards the temple door.
Tourmaline followed behind her, along with the rest of the gems. It finally happened. After all the years of loneliness, all the years of suffering, a great weight was just lifted from his shoulders. Tourmaline didn't have to be a killer anymore, he didn't have to hurt anyone. He had a family now, and now all he wants is to protect his family and live a happy life.