Break Us

Steven watched in horror as Pearl relentlessly swung at Garnet, yelling incoherent responses to threats only she seemed to hear. The red gem, not wanting to hurt her comrade, struggled to evade and block the flurry of attacks in the crowded confines of the beach house. Much to Steven's dismay, Pearl became increasingly agitated as the fight drew on, and her attacks became increasingly vicious. In an attempt to end the hostilities, the frightened boy summoned his shield and took a step towards the skirmish. Seeing this, Garnet turned her attention away from the fight and ordered him to stay where he was.

"I don't understand!" Steven cried as he watched Pearl lunge once more at the crimson fusion. "Why is she attacking us? What's going on?" He turned to the pale gem. "Pearl, please stop! Tell me what's wrong!" She ignored his desperate pleas, her focus on the fusion before her.

"She can't hear you," a voice from behind him answered. Steven turned to find the Amethyst impersonator reclining on the couch, a smug grin plastered on its face.

"She can only hear what I want her to hear," the gem continued as she watched the fight with sadistic glee. "And see what I want her to see. Her perception is shaped entirely by my will. "She's my Pearl now." The gem let out a cruel laugh, causing Steven to shudder.

"Stop it!" he begged the malicious imposter. "Let her go!"

"Why would I do something like that?" the gem asked amusedly. "This is just so much fun to watch." A loud crash drew their attention back to the fight. Garnet was still dodging and blocking her comrade's relentless assault, though she was beginning to run out of room to maneuver. After another brief exchange between the two, the red leader landed a swift blow to Pearl's midsection, causing the pale warrior to tumble into the wall.

"I can't keep this up forever," she stated coolly. "I have to stop this." She watched her frenzied ally recover and lunge once more. Sidestepping the attack, Garnet landed another blow to the crazed gem's chest. Before the pale warrior could recover, the red unleashed a furious barrage of attacks. Pearl tried to evade the unexpected counterattack, but found herself unable to regain her balance. Seizing the opportunity, Garnet surged forward with as much strength as she could muster. Swinging her gauntlets forward, she managed to land a crushing blow to her comrade's head. The pale warrior slammed against the floor before retreating into her gem.

Steven stood motionlessly, shocked by the sight of Pearl's stone glimmering in the light. He looked up at Garnet, who was staring at him with a perturbed expression. Steven wondered why she looked so confused. Suddenly a voice came from behind him.

"Garnet?"

Steven turned to find the gem standing by the couch, posing as him. The gem had managed to impersonate him flawlessly; he felt as if he was looking in a mirror. The imposter stood and slowly walked towards Steven.

"Why are you doing this to us?" the gem asked, its voice quivering in mock fear. "Why are you hurting my family?"

"Wha…bu…I" he stuttered, struggling momentarily to regain his composure. "I'm not doing this. You are!" The young gem took a step forward, only to have the deceiver recoil in faux fright.

"Garnet," the impersonator pleaded. "I-I'm scared."

"Don't listen to him," Steven cried. "He's not real. I'm the real Steven!" The red leader stopped as both gems continued to beg her to believe them. She struggled to discern which of the two was genuine. Both of them looked, sounded, and acted exactly like Steven. The tall gem tried to utilize her future vision, but failed to identify the imposter. As she struggled to solve the conundrum, one of them ran up to her and clung to her leg. He looked up, tears swimming in his eyes.

"Garnet, you have to believe me!" he begged. "Don't let it hurt me!" The red gem looked down at the desperate boy, transfixed by the fear evident in his features. After a moment, she looked up at the other Steven and assumed a fighting stance.

"Garnet? What are you…?" Before he could finish his sentence, Garnet surged forward and swung at the young gem. The blow caught him directly in the chest, slamming him into the wall. He landed roughly on the floor of the beach house and let out a groan. Garnet waited for the prone Steven to change back into its original form or retreat into its gem. Much to her dismay, he merely curled up on the floor and let out another groan. Garnet turned towards the Steven behind her, who was glaring at her with an evil smile.

"Wrong guess," the imposter mocked. Without warning, it jumped and slammed into Garnet, knocking the red gem back. She attempted to counterattack, but the gem deftly evaded it. As the gem dodged, its form began to contort and shift. In mere seconds, it had transformed into a duplicate of Garnet. Seeing this, the tall gem dashed at the imposter once more, attacking mercilessly. Much to her surprise, the gem managed to quickly manifest its own pair of gauntlets and block her assault. Garnet carefully evaded the gem's counterattack, following it with a counter of her own. The two gems continued their violent dance, each matching one another in strength and speed.

As the sounds of the heated battle echoed through the beach house, Steven began to stir. The young gem sat up, clutching his aching chest as it protested the movement. Looking around, he gasped at the sight of the two gems fighting in the middle of the house.

"Garnet!" he yelled, concern evident in his voice. The red gem turned towards him briefly.

"Steven!" she exclaimed, turning her attention back towards the fight at hand. "You need to get out of here!"

"No!" he protested as he shakily got to his feet. "I want to stay and help!"

"It isn't safe," the red gem responded, dodging one of the gem's attacks. "This gem is way too powerful for you to fight. Find Greg and stay with him."

"But what about you?" the worried boy asked.

"I'll be fine," Garnet answered calmly. "Go!" Without hesitation, Steven turned and started towards the door. Seeing this, the imposter frowned.

"Where do you think you're going," it hissed. Ducking under Garnet's attacks, the impersonator swiftly lunged at Steven. The young gem flinched and braced himself for the gem's attack. However, before it could reach him, Garnet surged forward and landed a blow to the imposter's, causing it to stumble. Taking advantage of the window of opportunity, Steven quickly exited the beach house and began to run towards the town in search of his father.

Garnet watched as her adversary got up and gave her a menacing glare.

"Huh," the deceiver commented. "And despite your comrade's fate, you still choose to get in my way. Gems like you never learn."

"I won't let you hurt anyone else," the red fusion stated defiantly.

"Oh, please," the imposter replied. "You really think you can stop me? I haven't lost a fight in thousands of years. And I've destroyed gems much more powerful than you."

"I'm stronger than you think," Garnet said

"Your persistence is beginning to prove to be excessively troublesome," the gem stated, assuming a fighting stance. "This battle has lost its luster. Prepare to die." Garnet lunged forward and swung at the impersonator's head. Much to her surprise, it dodged the attack with little effort. Recovering, the red gem continued her assault, but found it impossible to hit the imposter. As she continued her furious chain of attacks, she began to slow down. Swinging wildly, the red gem overshot one of her attacks and stumbled momentarily. Seeing this, the evil gem seized the opening in her defenses and delivered a single crushing blow to Garnet's back, slamming her into the ground. The red gem tried to get up, but the impersonator pinned her down. She struggled to break free of the evil gem's grip but to no avail. Seeing this, the cruel imposter smiled and shape-shifted its arm into a massive blade.

"For a fusion, you certainly aren't that impressive" it mocked, pressing the blade to Garnet's throat. "Oh well. Any last words?"

"If you lay a finger on Steven," the red gem threatened. "You'll regret it."

"I'm sure I won't," the deceiver retorted. Without warning, the gem thrust the blade downward, piercing the gem in Garnet's right hand and shattering the gemstone in her palm. Her body disappeared in a flash of light, leaving Ruby struggling in the gem's grip.

"Sapphire!" the small red gem yelled, looking over at the blue shards glimmering beside her. "Sapphire! I won't let you get away with…" Her rant was cut short as the gem planted the blade firmly between her eyes. Ruby's body disappeared, and her gem clattered to the ground. With one final stroke, the murderous imposter shattered the small red stone, putting an end to the brave gem warrior.

Many hours later:

The sound of Steven's footsteps rang through the silent night as he approached the entrance to his house. Though he had been told to go somewhere safe, the young gem felt that he should go back in case they needed help. After a very long conversation, he had managed to convince his dad to let him go back. Upon reaching the front door, he slowly opened it, being cautious not to make too much noise. Stepping inside, he scanned the dimly lit room for any sign of danger. Much to his surprise, he found Garnet sitting on the couch.

"Hello, Steven," the red gem said calmly.

"Oh, hey Garnet," he responded. He walked over and sat down beside her.

"What happened to the gem?" he asked. "Did you win?"

"Yes," the tall gem answered tersely, looking over at the entrance to the temple.

"That's good," Steven commented. "That gem kinda scared me,"

"Really?" Garnet asked. Without warning, she grabbed Steven's shoulders and turned to face him. Her glasses dissolved, revealing a terrifying, eyeless gaze. Seeing his fear, she smiled showing rows of razor-sharp teeth.

"Do I scare you?"