CHAPTER XI
DANBURITE
We warped into the middle of a jungle. The warp pad we were standing on was used recently. It looked like there used to be vines, weeds, and other stuff growing on the pad, but were cut off the the warp pad's beams. We stepped off and looked around. Steven jumped on the terrain and looked around with fascination. We forged ahead, Pearl cutting through the overgrown leaves and vines that got in the way. After a while, the seemingly endless trees opened up to show a small patch of plain land littered with these space ships. Pearl's face lit up with glee.
"Ha! She's desperate. Look at this! She's cornered herself in there!"
Garnet didn't look as happy. In fact she looked suspicious "Mmm."
Pearl didn't seem to notice "We've got her just where we want her."
Steven looked confused as he stared to the ship "What is—?"
Pearl didn't even let Steven finish "Excellent question, Steven! What we see before us is an interplanetary space vessel"
She projected a depiction of the ships approaching and landing on Earth from her gem. This was the first time I saw Pearl this optimistic, I should've been happy, but something about it made me nervous. Pearl continued to explain what the space vessel was "Homeworld Gems used these ships to travel across the cosmos and land here on Earth before the Warp Pads were built. But these ships landed here so long ago that there's no way they can be functional. Peridot must be running out of ideas! And it's about time! After weeks. I hated to kill Pearl's optimism, but even though Peridot was "cornered" I didn't want to hesitate to capture her.
"Pearl, Calm down. We need to focus at-"
Pearl jumped forward. "Ah yes! The task at hand, let's go catch Peridot!"
She ran to the ship. I looked at Garnet who was not as nearly as enthusiastic. Neither was Amethyst, who instead looked guilty. Steven was the only one who looked excited. He ran after Pearl to the ship and they both disappeared into the giant ship. The rest of us walked to the thing.
When we stepped in the hole in the ship the entire noise emanating from the jungle at once dissipated. The noise of the cicadas and birds of the jungles silenced and all I heard in the ship was a deep echo and metal groaning to hold up what remained of the space vessel. The walls and floor were covered in vines and other algae, clearly showing how old the thing was. There was the ship's control panel in front of us.
Steven shivered "It's more like a greenhouse than a spaceship."
Amethyst had a faint, yet hopeful smile "Looks like Earth won this battle."
"Gee, you think?" I muttered quietly to her.
Suddenly, the Gem projector on the control panel activated. Everyone stopped in their tracks, as the projector glowed. It blazes to life, a square screen sprouting from the panel. Who activated the panel, you ask? Why, the same gem that activated it. Peridot, the little green snob herself, was laughing at us. What did she have to laugh about? She was the one cornered in this dump.
"You Gems really are as dull as dirt!" Peridot spat.
Pearl, looking furious as well as confident, huffed her chest. "You're the dull one if you think you can fly this wreck!"
Peridot did not respond, everything silent for a moment. In the silence, I heard Pearl's voice vaguely echo in throughout the ship. Peridot looked at us, waiting for a response, I guess. The silence started to get awkward.
"What? Can you speak louder? Some of these communicators are gunked up."
At the base of the panel, there were two microphones, though they had gems on the tip instead of the pop filter. They were covered in greenery and vines. Steven grabbed one of the microphones, brushed the plants off of it.
He cleared his throat and said "Pearl says, 'You're the dull one if you think you can fly this wreck!'"
For an awkward 10 seconds, nothing happened. Silence gripped the room. I vaguely heard Steven's voice quietly echo in the background from the projection.
Peridot laughed arrogantly "Fly!? I'm not using this vessel to fly! I'm using it to trap you!"
Suddenly, the entryway to the ship, which seemed like it was blasted away, slammed shut behind us. I turned back to see Peridot with an really obnoxious smug look on her face.
"Isn't this nice?... No more Crystal Gems running around, messing with my plans, destroying my things... looks like I've got you just where I want you. How does it feel to be so easily outsmarted, you clods!?"
Pearl looked devastated and furious at the same time "No!"
Amethyst didn't look fazed at all, she calmly walked up to the panel an snatched the microphone right from Steven's hand.
"Hey, uh, this is Amethyst," she said "I don't appreciate being called a clod, you clo–"
"Enough talk!" Peridot said, interrupting Amethyst. "Prepare yourselves for annihilation!"
Grinning, Peridot pressed something like a button off-screen, "HIYA!"
The ship started groaning slightly. Some dust fell from the ceiling.
"Here we go!" I said, bracing myself for whatever came at us, but nothing happened. It still didn't make the scenario any less tense. Peridot looked annoyed and pressed another button,
"HIYA!" She shouted again.
This time, the ship shook and the groan grew louder and more intense. The ship's laser defense systems, which were covered in plants and moss, activated. Jeez, what doesn't have greenery on this piece of junk? The laser shooters slowly but surely, extended toward us.
"Aha! It works!" Peridot exclaimed. "Yes...!"
The laser shooters started humming, glowing with energy. Then, as they couldn't get any brighter, they opened fire at all of us from all directions.
"SCATTER!" I ordered, which felt new, but it came natural to me.
Everyone dove in different directions, looking for cover. Peridot started laughing, growing more insane and louder as it continued.
"DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE, DIE!" she screamed manically. Everyone was running like madmen, we would all be smears on the floor before we could find cover at this rate. We needed something strong and durable to shield us from the lasers.
Wait a minute…
Shield…
Steven!
I scanned the room for Steven. He was running around, his hands above his head in a would-be futile attempt to save his face from the lasers.
"Steven!" I called "Summon your shield if you can, umbrella the lasers!"
Steven looked at me, and nodded obediently. His gem and his arm glowed a with pink energy. Rose's shield sprung on his arm and he lifted it over it head, enlarging it as he lifted. Wow! I didn't know he was able to do that! His strength filled me with determination. I became self-conscious that I had taken it upon myself to order him and the others. This was Garnet's job, but it felt right and natural that I gave the command. Steven gestured for me to hurry forward, then he turned frantically to the others, hope shining in his eyes. I ran over to Steven, keeping my head low.
"Guys!," he called "Over here!"
"And hurry!" I added
The three Gems turned to us and gunned it in our directions. As soon as everyone was under Steven's shield, I started looking for an exit, a hallway, anywhere out of this room. I didn't doubt Steven's strength, but I knew he could keep this massive shield up for long. My sight was limited because of the lasers, how we were all squished together under the shield, and the panic that filled the room. Garnet pointed behind the panel, at a collection of vines. Behind it, normal, non-laser induced light peaked through the tiny gaps in the vines.
"That way!" Garnet ordered.
We headed toward the hallway, the shield protected us quite well from the lasers, which bounced off harmlessly. Like rain on an umbrella. Steven lowered his shield at an angle, high enough to protect us from the line of fire, but low enough so I could tear through the vines with my mitts. I heard Steven struggling to keep the shield up, which was flickering and wobbling on his arm. Steven himself was struggling to stand.
As fast as light, Garnet morphed her arms to an abnormally large size and yanked us and herself into the hallway, away from the danger. As soon as Garnet grabbed Steven, Steven's shield shimmered and disappeared. He collapsed on the floor from exhaustion. I heard him breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling at an alarming rate.
Amethyst, being the enthusiastic and optimistic one right now, helped him up and laughed.
"You're on fire, Steven!"
He exhaled in exhaustion "That's the biggest shield I ever made!"
Garnet ruffled his hair "Not to mention the longest you've held one"
Steven smiled wearily "Not too sha—"
Suddenly, the ground shook, making dust and plants fall from the walls and ceiling, the ship's groaning grew even louder than before. It sounded horrible, metal screeching against metal. Spikes appeared all around the hallway, one almost impaling Steven. I picked up Steven and carried him in my arms.
"Move!" Garnet and I ordered.
"Aye….aye….capt'n" Steven muttered deliriously, then he passed out in my arms.
Pearl and Garnet ran ahead while Amethyst stayed at my side, in case any baddies got the wrong idea. Peridot's ugly, obnoxious voice echoed in the hallway, her voice sounding omnipotent, yet equally annoying.
"SPIKES!" She screamed "How do you like my spikes!?"
"WHY, LOVE THEM, GOT ANYMORE!?" I shouted, my voice almost drowned out by the groaning ship. We kept running until the giant corridor thinned into a hallway at a dead end. A green figure was at the end of the hallway, its arms crossed. As we got closer, it was clear that it was Peridot, but something was off about her. A little lightning quick examination told me that this is not Peridot…..Well….it is, and it isn't. This was a decoy of sorts. So, what happens next, really frustrated me. Let me explain why.
It was completely obvious the Peridecoy was fake. First off, she had both her feet. Second, SHE WAS GLOWING LIKE A FREAKING GLOWSTICK. SO. I was so annoyed and frustrated when both Pearl and Amethyst ran ahead in anger.
"PERIDOT!" Pearl snarled.
"GET HER!" Amethyst followed.
Pearl was to far ahead to stop, so I grabbed Amethyst's shoulder instead. She turned toward me in a rage, shouldering my grip on her.
"What are you-?"
"PEARL!" Garnet yelled angrily, "Don't just... !" She never finished,but her furious growl in frustration spoke for her.
Amethyst watched Pearl slash at the fake Peridot with her spear, only to find that it is merely a hologram. The hologram separated and reduced to green static as soon as the blade touched it, but it stabilized seconds later.
Peridot grinned and snickered smugly, "Heheheh, you idiot."
Pearl stared at the hologram in shock. Amethyst looked at me with gratitude, clearly grateful to avoid Garnet, more specifically Ruby's, fury. Pearl overcome with anger and frustration repeatedly swung and slashed viciously at the hologram. Garnet facepalmed in exasperation, while Amethyst still looking at me gratefully. Slowly, we started to approach Pearl. Eventually, she tired out. Pearl gave up her deadly assault on the hologram.
Garnet,rubbing her eyes under her visor, grunted angrily "Pearl, stop." She growled "That isn't helping."
"And I think the poor hologram has had enough Fruit Ninja from you" I added.
Garnet gave a three-eyed glare momentarily directing her anger on me. Her message was clear, Not now. I shrugged, my hands still occupied, before backing off.
Buzzkill, I thought.
Don't provoke her, the Voice said.
What the..? What did this little punk think he is? I'll do whatever the hell I want! Humor included! I spat
Your funeral.
Pearl let out a frustrated cry "I have to do something! I can't believe I walked us right into Peridot's trap. This is all my-"
The ground shook.
"...fault?"
The Holo-Peridot shimmered and disappeared and the ground started to shake once more, this time, it didn't stop and shook furiously.
"Oh come on!" I complained "This place is worse than Southern California!"
The floor rumbled even more. Then it collapsed into a funnel beneath our feet, causing all of us to fall into the pit. Steven fell past Amethyst, who forms two whips, one of them grabbed Steven while the other went taut around a loose twig on the roof of the ship. I summoned my battle gloves, spiked knuckles, whatever the hell they're called. I shoved them into the wall, slowing my fall into a gradual glide, sparks slapped my entire backside. I landed on the floor with minor discomfort.
"I got you Steven!" Amethyst grunted
"You can let go!" I called "I got you two!"
Amethyst looked at me with trust and, although hesitating, she let go. I tackled Steven and pulled Amethyst from her whip.
"Thanks you two" Steven said. Then he gasped in realization "Garnet and Pearl! Are you guys okay?"
CRAP! I forgot about them! All three of us looked down in another hole that had Pearl and Garnet at the bottom, looking up at us. The small chamber was the same size as the hole we fell through.
"You two hurt?" I shouted.
"We're fine!" Garnet replied.
Suddenly, the floor slammed shut above Garnet and Pearl, trapping them within the tiny chamber. Must've felt claustrophobic.
Amethyst gulped nervously "Crud"
She retracted her whip. Next to a gear system, a television-like screen showed Garnet and Pearl in the chamber. The two gems we hacking at the walls of the chamber but nothing was happening.
"We gotta get 'em out!" Steven said, turning to me and Amethyst "Amethyst, Danburite, what should we- !?
Pearl started to talk, cutting him off, the video's audio was like an old television. We didn't stop because Pearl talked, she does that all the time. In fact, she does that too much. It's what she said that stopped us.
"Garnet…" she cried "I'm sorry!"
Amethyst, not taking her eyes off the screen gestured for Steven to stop. "Wait a sec…." Pearl had stopped slashing at the wall, probably realizing how futile it was.
"Things weren't supposed to turn out this way."
NOPE. Of course not! She just can't shut her trap. I still stood there, frozen, hypnotized. Exactly like Steven and Amethyst.
Garnet punched the wall one more time, before stopping "We'll get out of here somehow." she said, much more calm than before
"That's not what I mean... I really wanted to catch Peridot for everything she's done to you and Steven and Amethyst. I wanted to make things go back to normal"
"Catching Peridot won't make things go back to normal." Garnet said "This isn't about Peridot."
"Hey!" Amethyst said. "Pearl is spillin' the beans!"
Steven smiled enthusiastically "Now she can finally let go!"
I hated to kill this amazing, heart-warming, sappy epiphany, but the gears had started to move. The walls on the chamber started to close in like a trash crusher.
"Not if they get crushed!" Amethyst exclaimed.
"So do something about it you nutburger!"
Amethyst turned toward me, "Any suggestions, Einstein?!"
I looked at the video screen, Garnet and Pearl were pushing against the force of the walls, unfortunately, it was completely useless. They were talking, but the wall's screech against the floor made it incoherent words. I thought furiously, accounting everything that had happened in the last 60 seconds.
Fell down. Spikes on hand broke fall, scratching the metal. Trapdoor. It was a few inches closes. Nothing happens. The gears start moving.
The gears!
"Amethyst! Whip! Now!" I ordered.
She instantly obliged, then she rushed to me.
"Wrap it around the gears!"
With a flick of the wrist, the whip became tangled in the gears stopping it. Amethyst held her ground until the gears started pulling her. Steven and I dove for the whip, helping her out. The gears groaned under the stress, but they stopped. If we let go, they would keep going. We could hear Garnet talking.
"-not easy being in charge." She said "I have weaknesses too. But I choose not to let them consume me. I struggle to stay strong because I know the impact I have on everyone. Please understand, Pearl. You have an impact too. There are times when I look up to you for strength. You are your own gem. You control your destiny. Not me, not Rose, not Peridot. But you must choose to be strong, so we can move forward. So you can be strong again."
Pearl nodded and steeled her expression "I understand. I can't give up anymore!"
Garnet smiled faintly "Good!"
I turned away from the screen to focus on pulling the whip, I saw a snippet of the whip snap off. It was starting to break!.
"Oh...Give me….a….break!" I said straining to keep the gears still, but the whip snapped and came in two.
The gears stopped groaning and kept chugging forward, causing the walls to continue to close in. DAMN IT! Think, Danburite! THINK! Your spikes damaged the walls, the trapdoor is only about a few inches thick. It was a total shot in the dark, but it was all I had. I could save them if I was strong enough to break the door if my spikes could damage it if it was made of the same stuff as the wall. Screw it! Calculating odds come after the action! Just try something and pray for deus ex machina.
Steven and Amethyst were panicking, running back and forth in the room "AAAH! What do we do, what do we do, what do we do!?"
"Here goes nothing!" I said leaping on top of the trapdoors, lifting my fist to slam it into the trap door. Suddenly the floor crumbled and opened up in chunks, Sardonyx leaped out of the hole, her war hammer spinning like a drill. It slowed down and stopped.
(DEUS EX MACHINA FOR THE WIN!)
Sardonyx immediately unfused into Garnet and Pearl without a word. The two looked at each other in the eyes for a moment. Enough of this sappy crap. We'll get all lovey-dovey later after we caught the green slimebucket.
"Ok! Are we all nice and made up? Can I go shove some spikes up Peridot's-?"
OOOOKAY! Time skip! The language after that wasn't profane at all. I said 'nose', I promise. Just wanted to add a laugh or two.
After a ton of twists in turns in empty, weathered hallways, we found our way to the control room. It was blocked by a huge door, the size of a small plane hangar door. I didn't need to say anything. Garnet and I looked at each other and smiled. There was no need to say anything it was like a sixth sense. We both shared a tendency toward violence. If Peridot was behind that door, I wanted to slam my fist into that door with all my might. We both armored our arms and charged the door. We slammed both our fists into the hangar door and the metal crumpled instantly. The door now had a nicely sized hole in it, like a giant bullet just penetrated it. Dust covered the area and we all hurried through the hole, Garnet went first and when the dust cleared enough, we could see Peridot at another control panel. She was leaning against the controls and looked startled and scared to see us. The entrance was quite theatrical, sure, but what are you going to do about it?
"Surrender, Peridot!" Garnet shouted "You have nowhere to run!"
"The Crystal Gems are gonna get yoooou!" Steven taunted
Peridot smiled arrogantly. Oh, come on. What now? What does she have planned?
"You really think this is the end!?" Peridot snickered, forming a blaster out of her fingers and pointed it at us, charging it. "Hahahaha... this, this is only the beginning…" She pointed the blaster away from us and held it straight up, "...of my escape!"
Peridot fired the energy ball and blasted the ceiling, covering us in a new layer of dust and debris, all of us startled by the impact. By the time we could see again, there was a hole in the roof and Peridot was laughing as she started to fly away with her helicopter fingers, towards the hole.
Peridot sneered once more, "Well, I'd love to stick around and watch another one of your pathetic attempts to capture me, but I guess I'm just too smart for the likes of you lumpy, clumpy, clods!"
"Alright, I've had enough of this!" I said angrily. I picked up Steven over my head. I looked at him with trust, "Ready?"
He nodded, then looked at Peridot "Ready!"
"I'm sick and tired of being called a CLOD!" I yelled, throwing Steven at the last word. Peridot was midair laughing obnoxiously again, but Steven caught hold of her one and only foot, weighing her down.
"I caught a Peridot!" He said.
Oooh! I love this kid! He's done it! The other gems and I cheered him on.
"Hey! Get your touch-stumps off me, you Steven!" Peridot tried to shake Steven off, and in retaliation, Steven bit Peridot's foot. "Hey!"
Amethyst jumped up and grabbed Steven, who in is grabbed by Pearl, who is in turn grabbed by Garnet on the ground. I summoned my spiked knuckles to prepare for the killing blow.
"Yeah, Steven!" Amtheyst cheered.
"Don't let her go!" Pearl encouraged.
"Let 'er have it, Steven!" Garnet finished.
Peridot, obviously panicking, yelled in annoyance "Raagh!" She yelled, flicking Steven in the face. "Let go of me, you, you... persistent... little... whatever exactly you are! This planet has an expiration date and I don't want to stick around and found out when! This place is going to be shattered by the Clus-!"
"Peridot," Garnet interrupted. "Your flight's... been cancelled!"
"Wait! She was gonna-!"
Peridot cut me off with a stupid complain "Nooo…!" She clicked something on her last foot with one of her fingers, outlining it with a lime greenish glow. Suddenly it detached from the rest of her body, causing Steven, Amethyst, and Pearl to fall.
"You gems will pay for this!" She said.
"Not this time!" I yelled "You ain't gettin' away from me that easy even again!"
I leaped up as hard as I could, Peridot yelled and tried to maneuver away from me, but I came at her too fast. I stopped rising, conveniently slightly above Peridot, when I could slam her down.
"No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no!" She cried
I growled and raised my fist, "Lay off my friends, punk!"I shouted before slamming her downward.
Instantly, she exploded in green smoke, her gem hurdling to the floor. Huh. I guess that's why Steven calls it poofing. I fell to the ground and landed on my back, my fists still clenched. As soon as I hit the floor, I realized how tired I was, and I let everything go limp. Cracks appeared where I had landed.
"Ow" After a short, quiet pause.
Steven ran over as I sat upright. "That was awesome! It was like you spiked her down like a bolleyball!"
My chest heaved like an engine on a sugar rush. "Volleyball." I corrected, gasping for as much air as I could get.
Steven shrugged, "Tomato potato"
"Actually it's…" I paused "...y'know what? Nevermind"
I let myself flop back on the ground with a sigh. I looked up and saw a pile of green stuff. I turned on my belly and got to my feet.
"What are those?" I asked pointing at the pile, then I started walking over to the pile.
Pearl walked over curiously, "What on Earth….?"
I picked up a piece, it was Peridot's forearm. I turned and saw the foot she ejected on the floor, slightly smoking at the end that it was detached. I looked back down, one of the pieces was also smoking a bit at the end.
My mind put two and two together, "They're-?"
"They're not actually part of her body?" Pearl said.
"Prosthetic Limbs" I said.
Those are the Limb Enhancers I told you about earlier the Voice told me in my mind.
Note taken. Limb enhancers. I didn't say anything to avoid suspicion. Also, I didn't want to look like a maniac.
Both me and Pearl dropped the limbs in disgust. Garnet walked over, grouped the limbs together, and punched them with her gauntlet through the hole in the rough and into oblivion.
"Oops" she said stoically.
Steven brought over Peridot's foot, he was still smiling gleefully. Then he picked up a finger, examining it closely. "Looks like Peridot's going to be STICKing around, for a bit!" he said, lifting the finger.
Garnet smiled, "It's a good step forward."
I heard Amethyst groan and gasp, still sitting on the floor from taking the spill, "Finally" she said. I picked up Peridot's gem. Feeling a bit off, but I just shrugged it off as we headed home.