Chapter 14: Emerald
Emerald towered over the other gems, still cackling as the energy surrounding his glowed. Garnet and Sapphire grit their teeth and leapt at the giant fusion. Garnet jumped off one of his legs to get to his face while Sapphire went straight for his stomach. Before either of them could land their attacks, Emerald vanished. The Garnet landed on the beach and Sapphire kept going towards the sea, landing in the water. Garnet and Sapphire looked back to where the giant was. He was still standing in the same position...only smaller. He turned towards Garnet with a wicked grin.
"Why are you smaller? Are you taunting us!?" Pearl shouted.
"Since you're so keen on fighting me, I thought I might as well make it fair. I could crush you all like grapes if I so well pleased, but since we're all gems, I think it would be in bad taste to have your blood on my hands. And yes, I am taunting you." Emerald gloated.
"You're going to regret that decision!" Sapphire shouted as she came rushing towards him from the ocean.
Emerald turned around and rushed up to her at blinding speed. Before she could even blink, Sapphire got a knee to the stomach, knocking the wind out of her and sending an unbearable amount of pain throughout her body. As she fell down, Emerald uppercut her jaw with one of his lower pairs of arms, lifting her up only to be grabbed by the throat by one of his upper hands. He punched her in the stomach again, nearly punching a hole through her, and then threw her to the house. Sapphire flew through the air, eventually crashing into the house's roof. The others stared at the house and then back to Emerald, laughing as he walked on the water. Garnet rushed over to him next, readying a punch. She came closer and closer to Emerald, but he still walked calmly towards her. With a loud grunt, she threw a punch to his chest gem, but he merely grabbed the punch with one hand. She tried to hit him with her other hand, but he grabbed the other hand as well. Garnet struggled to move away from him, but she was kept still, locked in place by him.
"Is that all you got?" Emerald taunted.
Garnet looked up to his face with great anger, scowling at him while he simply smiled and laughed. He pulled her arms apart and lifted her up. Using his lower pair of arms, he began to punch Garnet in the stomach over and over again. Eventually Garnet managed to lift her legs up and use her feet to press against his punches. However Emerald grabbed her legs, rendering her completely immobile. He then let go of her arms and began to slam her into the seabed. Water and wet sand went flying everywhere as he slammed her repeatedly, ending with another throw. She skipped against the water's surface and then again on the beach, stopping when she slammed into a stone wall. The others readied their weapons while Emerald continued his walk towards them.
"You may have had a chance against my corrupted form but now you are fighting a perfect gem!" He boasted.
"Okay that's enough!" Pearl shouts.
Pearl rushed towards him with her spear as Tanza and Ruby came with her. Ruby leapt in the air with her dual swords with Pearl and Tanza approaching from the side. Ruby fell to him, swords striking downwards, Pearl twirled to the side and leapt to him while Tanza rushed straight for a strong kick. Emerald merely grabbed Ruby's swords with his top pair of hands, Pearl's spear with one of his lower hands, and blocking Tanza's kick with the other. He looked over at each of the girls.
"Glad to see you're smart enough to group up against me." Emerald said.
Emerald crushed Ruby's swords and delivered two back fists to Tanza and Pearl. The two gems went flying back, Pearl being sent spinning while Tanza simply flew straight back. Ruby cowered in front of him as he looked down at her with a sadistic expression.
"You don't have to do this...you're still in there Tourmaline." Ruby uttered.
"You really think he's in here? Hmm, well maybe if we rattle it around a bit he'll come back." Emerald taunted as he tapped his head.
With no warning, he headbutted Ruby as hard as he could. She went down hard, clutching her broken nose and screaming in pain. Emerald stood back up and laughed.
"Nope! No dice, he's not coming back!" Emerald yelled.
He kicked her off the ground, sending her back towards the house. She flew into the air, slamming her back against the patio railing, causing it to crack and fall back, and her to bounce off and fall to the beach floor. Tanzanite clutched her sword tightly. She was scared to fight him, but she knew she had to do something. With a war cry, she came rushing towards Emerald. Emerald merely stood still, inhaling deeply. Before Tanzanite could even swing her sword, Emerald exhaled a storm of green fire. The ghastly flames engulfed Tanzanite as she stood still. Emerald closed his mouth and the fire disappeared, revealing Tanzanite still standing, but twitching and charred. Emerald walked up to her and gently grabbed her chin.
"Oh come on now, that was just a tan. Wait until you really burn." Emerald said menacingly.
Just then, he felt something wrap around his arm. He turned over to see Amethyst's whip around his arm, and Amethyst pulling as hard as she could. Tourmaline's grin widened as he grabbed the whip, yanking Amethyst towards him. She came flying towards him lighting fast. Before she could connect with him, Emerald sidestepped her. He then slammed his elbow and knee into her, crushing her stomach with the brutal attack. He let her fall to the ground as she curled up and held her stomach. Emerald picked her up by the head and brought her to eye level. She was still clutching her stomach but managed to flash a threatening scowl.
"Why even bother? You know you'll just get broken if you keep doing this." Emerald boasted.
"We want...our friend back." Amethyst groaned painfully.
Emerald laughed as he brought her closer.
"Oh I'm sorry Amethyst." Emerald said grimly, "He's mine now.".
Emerald gripped Amethyst's head tightly and headbutted her. A large, bloody, purple welt appeared on her forehead and Emerald followed it up with a few other headbutts. Blood streamed down Amethyst's face as she twitched and stared ahead in pain, barely conscious. Emerald let go with one hand and spun her around in a circle. After a few moments, he let go and sent her flying into the still twitching Tanzanite. The two were sent straight into the cliff side wall, it exploding with dust and debris from the impact. Emerald laughed again, but his attention was brought to Steven and Taz, still cowering in fear. Emerald let out a single solitary chuckle and walked towards the kids. Both got ready for a fight, but Emerald merely stood in front of them.
"Why do you cower in fear? You should be amazed by my power." Emerald claimed.
"Against our friends!?" Taz shouted.
"Well you certainly aren't treating me like a friend." He said grimly.
"It's because you're holding out friend Tourmaline hostage!" Steven shouted.
"Oh please, he's fine in here." Emerald said.
Before they could respond, Emerald crouched down with his hands in front of their faces. He made a couple of fists, and then flicked each of the kids in the forehead, sending them flying backwards. Emerald stood back up and smirked.
"So young...so naive." He said to himself.
Just then, he felt a pain in his back and chest. A loud crashing noise like that of shattering glass was sent through the air. Emerald looked down to see Pearl's spear coming out of his chest, and through his first gem. He turned around to see Pearl, standing tall and smiling confidently.
"It's over. Now give back our friend." Pearl said.
Emerald gripped his chest in pain as he came stumbling towards Pearl. Eventually he was close enough to the point where she could yank her spear out if she pleased. Emerald stared at her with a pained and angered expression.
"What's wrong? I can give you another spear if you want." Pearl gloated.
Suddenly, Emerald's pained expression turned back to his usual sanguine grin.
"Watch this." He said.
He grabbed Pearl's spear and yanked it out of his body, spraying green blood all over. He took the spear and broke it in two. Then as he grinned at Pearl, his chest began to regenerate. In a matter of seconds, his gem and body were completely healed. Pearl stared at him in horror.
"I love Tourmaline's regeneration. It's so useful." Emerald said gleefully.
"I...but…" Pearl stumbled.
"But still, THAT WASN'T VERY NICE!" Emerald shouted.
Emerald kneed Pearl in the stomach, causing her to keel over in pain. He then kicked her up a few feet and grabbed her body, her arms with his top pair and her legs with his bottom pair. He pulled her apart in a straight line and then slammed her back onto his knee. Pearl screamed in pain as Emerald bent her over her knee.
"You see Pearl? You're powerless. I can break you like a twig." He said sadistically.
As Pearl's back continued to crack and pop, Tanza came skating towards him, picking up as much speed as possible to end the fight quickly. Emerald was caught up in torturing Pearl, but noticed Tanza coming faster and faster. He decided to ignore her and continue to wreck Pearl, who was now foaming at the mouth from the intense shock and pain. Tanza reached Emerald and delivered a massive sidekick. A boom of wind came from the force as the blow connected with Emerald's jaw. Much to Tanza's dismay, Emerald was unmoved by the attack. He stood up, now only holding one of Pearl's arm in his right top hand. He looked down at Tanza and grabbed her throat with one of his hands.
"Spare me the words. I've already heard them all." Emerald said.
Emerald slammed her head into Pearl's and threw them both into the air. Emerald leapt up and kicked Tanza in the jaw, sending her flying into the cliffside, causing a massive indent to be made. Pearl fell lifeless to the beach ground, seconds later trying her best to stand back up. Emerald fell to the ground and then came rushing towards Tanza, still stuck in the wall. On his way he kicked Pearl into the house, causing her to smash through the stairs and slamming against the roof's edge. He tackled Tanza, pushing her deeper into the wall. He then proceeded to pummel her with a flurry of punches from each of his arms. After a minute, Tanza was nothing but bruises and bloody purple spots. Emerald gripped her by the head and threw her to the house. She went crashing through the base of the house and through the roof, the top part of her hanging from the hole she made. Emerald walked to the front of the house and gazed at all the gems, beaten and bloody. He smiled to himself as he reveled in his own power.
Suddenly, a large hand came crashing through the house and gripped him tightly. The hand brought him into the air, and another hand came out to tighten its grip on him. The dust settled from the house and it was revealed to be Garnet, her hands morphed to gigantic proportions. Her shades were broken, revealing her three angry eyes.
"This ends now!" She shouted.
Emerald felt the giant hand squeeze him tightly, but he still managed to keep his smile.
"Ah ah ah! If you can get big, so can I!" Emerald gleefully shouted.
A green light covered him and he began to grow. Garnet did her best to keep her grip, but she was helpless to stop Emerald from going back to his original size. Her hands were now merely touching his sides. Emerald gripped her hands with his lower pair of arms and began to squeeze them tightly. Garnet screamed in pain as she felt her gems begin to crack and break.
"How does it feel to be helpless? To be treated like a plaything? You're pathetic!" Emerald shouted.
With that he slammed Garnet's hands to the ground and Garnet fell to her knees. Her arms slithered back to their original size and she stared at her hands. Her gems were nearly destroyed, completely covered in cracks. She looked side to side to see her allies strewn about the house like rag dolls. Emerald turned to the beach and grabbed the kids with one hand. He looked down at Garnet with Steven and Taz gripped in one hand. The two woke up and saw the damage caused by him. Before they could say anything, Emerald dropped them in front of Garnet.
"Steven! Heal everyone now!" Emerald shouted.
Steven said nothing and went straight to Garnet. Garnet looked up at the giant fusion.
"Let this be a lesson to you. You can't beat me, so follow me. I can handle any situation. I can lead us to victory against any enemy. All you have to do is accept that your friend is dead." Emerald proposed, "So...what do you say?".
After Steven healed Garnet's hands, she stood up and glared at him.
"Never." Garnet declared.
Emerald scowled at her, but it turned back into a smile.
"Why am I not surprised? Oh well, if you need me, you'll find me here." Emerald said.
With that, Emerald turned around and sat in front of the house, his bottom pair of hands on his knees while the top pair were crossed.
"Next time you dare to fight me, I won't show any signs of mercy." Emerald threatened.
The gems held a conference in the ruined house. Steven managed to heal everyone despite their condition, but they all still hurt. They all stood around the breakfast bar, ready to discuss Emerald.
"How are we gonna get rid of him?" Amethyst asked.
"I have no idea. Fighting him didn't work, he nearly killed us. And I doubt we can just persuade him to let Tourmaline go." Tanza said.
"Well nonviolent options are all we got. It's impossible to fight him head on, so all we can do is talk to him." Tanzanite said.
"Well...there's always Sugilite." Amethyst suggested.
"Amethyst you know that's a bad idea!" Pearl shouted.
"What else are we supposed to do!? This guy could whip all our butts like that, but if we had Sugilite backing us up, we might have a chance!" Amethyst explained.
"And what if it turns out you're wrong? He would then kill all of us! You, me, Steven, everyone!" Pearl shouted.
"It's better than walking up to him and going "Hey can we have our friend back pretty please?", how stupid is that!?" Amethyst yelled back.
"Sugilite is not the answer." Garnet said.
The others looked to Garnet.
"Alexandrite?" They both said.
"No. He could probably overpower both of them." Garnet said.
"What!? What makes you so sure about that?" Amethyst asked.
"You're ignoring one factor about fighting him; we still don't know what his weapon is." Garnet stated.
Pearl and Amethyst looked at each other with matching worried concerns. Steven was the first to break the silence.
"So what if he didn't use his weapon? Does it make that much of a difference?" Steven said.
Garnet looked to Steven and walked up to him.
"Steven, a gem's weapon isn't just some tool, it's a part of our very being. If we don't use our weapon, we never are fighting at one-hundred percent. A bond is formed every time we summon it, and with that we gain a new found power that pushes us to new levels unattainable without it's help." Garnet explained.
"So if he's like that without his weapon…" Amethyst started.
"...Imagine what power he has when it's out." Pearl finished.
The others shuddered at the very thought of it.
"Well we can we just deal with having him instead of Tourmaline. I mean it's nice to have someone that strong on our side." Pearl said.
"Are you even listening to yourself!? You think we can just throw our hands up and accept that Tourmaline's gone?!" Ruby shouted.
"Don't act like I don't care about Tourmaline! I want him back just as much as you do but...but I just don't know if we can get him back." Pearl admitted.
"We have to figure out a way." Tanza said.
"And we will." Sapphire added.
"Well where can we start?" Pearl asked.
Just then, a bit of shilling fell from the hole in the ceiling. It landed on Pearl's head, making a small bonk noise. Pearl touched the sore spot and looked up at the ceiling. From the hole staring down at them, a pink lion was looking down upon them all.
"Lion! You're here!" Steven exclaimed.
"Huh, been a while since I saw that fuzzy guy." Ruby declared.
"He comes and goes as he pleases." Garnet said.
Lion jumped down through the hole and walked up to Steven. Steven hugged the pink cat's face and Lion nuzzled his head against Steven's body. Steven let Lion go and stared at him.
"Lion it's awful! Tourmaline got infected by a gem and became a monster! And then I fixed it and then he became that giant guy sitting in front of our house! I mean he looks cool but he's a mean jerk and won't give our friend back! You missed a lot." Steven explained.
Lion just blinked and then grabbed Steven by the shirt with his teeth. Lion turned around and jumped out of the hole in the ceiling. He landed on the beach and started to run towards Emerald.
"Uhh, Lion? I don't think he's in the mood to talk right now." Steven said.
Lion ignored Steven and kept running. Lion swerved around Emerald's massive leg and the two stood in front of Emerald. Emerald looked down at the two of them and cracked a small smile.
"Sup Steven. Who's your friend?" Emerald said.
Lion dropped Steven in front of Emerald and lazily jumped up on Emerald's leg.
"What do you think you're doing little kitten?" Emerald asked.
Steven got up from the sand and brushed himself off.
"Lion just does stuff sometimes. He's his own man." Steven said.
Emerald pinched two fingers near the base of Lion's mane and picked him up. He brought him near his chest and examined Lion.
"What makes you say that this thing is a guy?" Emerald asked.
"Cause all boy lions have manes." Steven admitted.
"They do?" Emerald said puzzled.
Lion started to squirm a bit, so Emerald lifted another hand and brought it underneath Lion. He dropped Lion on his other hand and Lion shook out his mane. Immediately, Lion ran up Emerald's arm and made it to his right shoulder. Lion turned to face Steven and then laid down. Scooting up as far as he could, Lion patted a bit of Emerald's chest with his paw. Emerald stared at the beast with mild discomfort, and Steven looked at Lion. Lion stared intensely at Steven, patting that same spot over and over again, hoping Steven got the hint. Emerald then brushed Lion off his shoulder. Lion bounced off his leg and landed next to Steven.
"Even your pets are weird. If you have nothing else to do, get out of here." Emerald ordered.
Lion stood up and shook all the sand off of him. Steven ran around Emerald with Lion following close behind. Lion reached his side and then looked down at him, and Steven looked up to Lion.
"I think I get what you were telling me Lion." Steven whispered confidently.
The two made it back inside with the gems looking right at them.
"What was that about?" Taz asked.
"Guys! Lion showed me how we can get Tourmaline back!" Steven exclaimed.
The gems raised an eyebrow at this claim.
"Oh really? And how's that?" Sapphire asked.
"Well, Lion went up on Emerald and started tapping this part of Emerald's chest." Steven pointed towards his heart, "So the answer is simple…".
Lion looked down at Steven with his usual expression.
"Emerald is obviously hiding his emotions through this tough guy act! So all we gotta do is sway his emotions and then he'll have to give Tourmaline back!" Steven proclaimed, "Right Lion?".
Lion just stared at the smiling Steven for four seconds. Then Lion walked away from Steven and walked onto the couch, he turned around a few times and then shoved his face into the couch. The gems then turned their attention back to Steven.
"He's proud of me." Steven declared.
"You really think this is going to work?" Pearl asked.
"You have any better ideas?" Tanza asked.
"Sadly no." Pearl said.
"Guess we don't have a choice." Tanza declared.
The gems stared at Emerald, who was still static. Steven turned to the others with a confident look.
"Okay, you all have your material ready?" Steven asked.
"Are you sure this is going to work?" Ruby asked.
"It's gotta work. Lion said so himself. Right Lion?" Steven said as he turned to Lion.
Lion was in the doorway. In response he lied down and rolled his eyes.
"He knows it's good." Steven declared.
"Well alright. Who wants to go first?" Ruby asked.
"I think I'll go." Pearl said.
"I call next spot!" Amethyst said.
"We can figure out order while Pearl goes." Steven said.
"Alright...here I go." Pearl said.
Pearl jumped from the patio and carefully walked around Emerald. She made it in front of Emerald before he noticed her.
"What do you want Pearl? You here for round two?" Emerald joked.
"No I'm not here to fight. I'm here to tell you why Tourmaline is so important to us." Pearl admitted.
"Excuse you?" Emerald said puzzled.
"You see, when I first met Tourmaline he was sort of abrasive and, well, I thought he was a dangerous person. But as I got to know him he turned out to be a nice and caring person. Sure he made some mistakes in the past but he's a good person. I just don't think it's right that he has to leave this way, and I want him to come back." Pearl said.
Emerald stared at Pearl, puzzled by the tiny gem's speech.
"What?" He said.
"Well...I mean that I thought you should know why we….want him back so bad." Pearl stumbled.
Pearl ran past Emerald and back to the group. Emerald looked ahead, still puzzled by what she said. Pearl made it back to the group and hid behind a rock.
"How'd it go?" Sapphire asked.
"I had an effect at least." Pearl said.
"See? It's working!" Steven declared.
"Alright, I'm up!" Amethyst said as she ran forward.
Amethyst jumped and bounced off Emerald's knee and faced Emerald.
"Now you?" Emerald said.
"Look, Tourmaline was an awesome guy. He helped me with wrestling, watched bad movies with me, got me food, messed with Pearl with me, he was a real buddy! I remember a while ago while we were wrestling, he taught me this new submission move. It took me forever to get it right but he kept with me and eventually I perfected it. He never gave up on me and we did something cool together. I want to do more of those things with him, which is why I want him back." Amethyst said.
"What kind of submission move?" Emerald asked.
"Umm, a sort of leg….lock...thing." Amethyst said as she started to blush, "None of your business!".
Amethyst ran off and Emerald was left even more confused than before. Amethyst jumped behind the rock with Pearl and covered her face. There was an awkward silence for a second, but then Tanza spoke.
"So was this "leg lock" before my date with him, or after?" Tanza asked, irritated.
"Before! Does it matter!?" Amethyst shouted.
"Somewhat." Tanza said.
"Well it was a thing we did out boredom and that's that. Now shut it." Amethyst said as she pouted.
"What are they talking about?" Steven asked.
"You don't need to know." Garnet stated.
"Okay I'm up." Sapphire said.
Sapphire made it to Emerald and prepared to deliver her speech.
"Tourmaline made me feel welcome. I was lost for years, but then he found me and helped me remember who I am. There are still many ways that I have to thank him, so please consider giving him back." Sapphire said.
"I...okay?" Emerald said, still confused.
Sapphire calmly walked back and Tanzanite and Taz moved towards him. They faced the confused giant and began to talk.
"Tourmaline saved our lives and treated us like family. He barely even knew us but he risked his life to protect us." Tanzanite began.
"He's our brother and we want him back, so please consider it okay?" Taz asked.
The others walked away and then Garnet arrived to deliver her speech.
"The boy Tourmaline is not only a friend, but a remnant of a person I respected long ago. Jade was a true warrior who put everyone before him. He risked his life multiple times to save my life and the lives of others. He sacrificed himself for my leader Rose, and without her I wouldn't have Steven. I see Jade in Tourmaline, and something more as well. I want to protect him as Jade protected me." Garnet stated.
Garnet walked away and finally came Tanza. Ruby hung back with the crowd.
"Don't you want to say something?" Steven asked.
"I tried...I don't think he'll listen to what I say." Ruby said.
Tanza walked in front of the giant gem and then spoke.
"When I first met Tourmaline, I was a bit suspicious of him. He may have saved my friend's life, but there was still something about him that rubbed me the wrong way. But eventually, I warmed up to him. I saw what a truly caring and kind person he was. As we traveled together, I felt a higher sense of...emotions for him. Then we went out together, and we shared such a beautiful night together. It was then, I was unsure of myself, but I slowly realized what my feelings for him were...I love him." Tanza admitted.
The others stared at her in shock. Each and everyone with a separate sense of emotion. Emerald's confused gaze changed into a small and empathetic look. He lowered a hand and Tanza walked onto it. Slowly Emerald raised her up to his face.
"Tanza...I think I understand what you and the others are feeling. This sense of emptiness and loss without Tourmaline. I get it now." Emerald said.
Tanza smiled at Emerald.
"You...you do?" Tanza said hopefully.
"Yes, and I want you to tell the others these words." Emerald requested.
Tanza beamed as he looked at her. But then his open hand tilted over and she slid down a bit. Emerald closed his hand and tightly gripped Tanza. A cruel scowl came across his face.
"Move. On." He said coldly.
With that he tossed Tanza at the crowd and faced the ocean once again. Tanza smashed into the sand and created a massive explosion of dust. The others stared down at the broken Tanza and then they stared at each other.
"Well now what do we do?" Taz asked.
The gems conferenced in the kitchen again. Tanza was lying down face first on the couch, and Lion was lying next to her. Taz was sitting next to Tanza, with her hand on Tanza's head, looking down at her with a new sense of empathy.
"Well that was a waste of time and effort." Amethyst blurted out.
"It was worth a shot at least." Tanzanite said.
"So now what do we do?" Ruby asked.
"Hmmmm...wait I got it!" Steven declared.
"Another one?" Sapphire said.
"Maybe the reason he didn't listen to us is because he doesn't look at us like equals. But if he were to hear it from an actual fusion...he might listen!" Steven said.
"That...actually makes sense." Ruby admitted.
"So should we form Sugilite or-" Amethyst started.
"If you say her name one more time I'm going to smack you." Pearl interrupted.
Amethyst shut up and glared at Pearl.
"But that does sound good. Let's form Opal and have her talk to him." Pearl said.
"Okay." Amethyst said.
Pearl and Amethyst walked towards the warp pad and began their dance. Pearl danced gracefully with her ballet while Amethyst did her usual hip hop dance moves. The two moved closer together and a white light enveloped the both of them as they at last met. From that light came the giant woman Opal. The others stared in amazement at the graceful fusion. They haven't seen her since their battle on the beach, but it was nice to see her again. Without a word of warning, she rushed forward and leapt through the hole in the ceiling. She fell face first towards the patio, only to catch herself and press off the railing. She flipped through the air and landed on Emerald's shoulder. He looked over to see the giant woman.
"Good evening, who are you?" Emerald asked.
"You should remember who I am." Opal said to him.
"If you're referring to Tourmaline's memories...they're getting a little fuzzy." Emerald said.
Opal was surprised by this revelation.
"Tourmaline's slipping...we need to take care of this fast." Opal thought to herself.
Opal leapt in front of Emerald.
"Listen Emerald, I know the fear of having to revert back to your original form, but it's not something to disregard. We exist as a way to protect our fellow gems. Whoever makes us whole, we have to listen to them. They are the one's who created us, and we can't abandon them just to-" Opal explained.
Opal was crushed underneath one of Emerald's giant fists. The giant woman lied in pain, unable to move after the brutal attack.
"If you're a fusion, then why are you so weak?" Emerald asked.
"You...can't...do this." Opal uttered.
"I can do what I please." Emerald said with a smile.
Emerald picked up the crushed Opal and tossed her back to the house. As she fell, she poofed away and Pearl & Amethyst fell in her place. Garnet and Ruby caught the two gems and brought them inside. Emerald scoffed to himself.
"I'm getting sick of these games." He thought to himself.
Back in the house, Pearl and Amethyst were placed on the chairs by the breakfast bar.
"I can stand, but thank you." Pearl said.
"Yeah, I'm good too." Amethyst added.
"Well that didn't last a freaking second." Sapphire commented.
"Okay, maybe we could...uhhh….uhhh!" Steven rambled.
"I guess the answer is clear. We need Sugilite." Garnet said.
"What!?" Pearl and Amethyst shouted.
"Nonononono! Not after last time! Why don't we make Alexandrite instead?" Pearl suggested.
"Sugilite is the closest match to Emerald in terms of appearance, and she might be able to match him in power too." Garnet explained.
"Okay but what if she does defeat Emerald, what then?" Pearl asked.
"If she refuses to go back, take her down." Garnet ordered, "After all you were able to do it by yourself, right Pearl?".
"Yeah! And this time you'll have a whole team backing you up...plus she'd be pretty beat as it is." Steven said.
"...Steven get the laser light cannon." Pearl requested.
Steven looked at her with a confused look, but nodded. Sapphire went to go help him, and the other's stared at Pearl.
"Just in case." Pearl stated.
"Amethyst, you ready?" Garnet asked.
"You know it." Amethyst said confidently.
"Good, let's get Tourmaline back." Garnet stated.
Emerald sat in the same spot, staring at the waves. He had been dozing for an hour, bored out of his mind, and just woke up. The waves were soothing to him, they helped ease his spirit.
"The other's haven't done anything to me in a while. Guess they finally accepted the facts and are living with it." He thought to himself.
The other gems were staring at the great fusion's back. They had the laser light cannon on the patio and awaited the moment they had to use it. Taz turned to Pearl.
"When is Sugilite going to be here?" She asked.
"She'll be here...I hope. Garnet and Amethyst just had to move somewhere where Emerald wouldn't notice them." Pearl explained.
Suddenly, they felt a large tremor. Then another a few seconds later. Pearl shuddered in anticipation. She knew that Sugilite was coming. Emerald noticed the ocean water begin to ripple. His relaxed look turned to one of curiosity. He didn't notice the tremors, but he was fixated on the ocean. Then a great shadow came over him. He looked up to see something big falling from the sky. A second later, the mysterious object landed in front of him, causing a massive cloud of dust to appear and a massive tremor to shake the earth. The gems on the patio did their best to maintain balance as the earth shook. The dust settled, and revealed a giant, four-armed fusion. Her long dark purple hair flowed in the wind and she stared down through her sunglasses with a wicked smile.
"So you're the bad boy who's causing trouble in my town?" She said.
"I've just been sitting here. And who might you be?" Emerald asked.
"Don't play innocent you jerk. And the name's Sugilite." Sugilite snapped.
"Well Sugilite, I don't know what you're talking about but I can assure you I'm done causing trouble. The other's have accepted me, so there's no reason for me to get...rowdy." Emerald said slyly.
"Yeah, no. They got me specifically to boot you out and get this Tourmaline guy out of your body or some weird crud." Sugilite stated.
Emerald's relaxed expression turned to a scowl.
"So you gonna give him back, or am I gonna have to do this the hard way?" Sugilite threatened.
"Tourmaline is gone. He's a part of me now, and I refuse to go back." Emerald stated.
Sugilite was taken aback by this statement. With those words she sat down in front of Emerald, meeting him at eye level.
"So you're a fusion who doesn't want to go back...how interesting." Sugilite said, "I've been in the same situation.".
"Oh my god if you're gonna give me the same speech as that small, four-armed gem from earlier-" Emerald complained.
"Shut up I'm not finished. I was in that situation a while ago...and now I'm back in it." Sugilite said with a grin.
"Go on." Emerald demanded.
"Well considering that the gems back there had to beg me to sort you out, I figure if the two of us group up, we can do whatever we want!" Sugilite said in a sinister tone, "I'll be able to live my life and you can do your thing as my sidekick. So what do ya say? Let's live together.".
Emerald scowled at the smiling Sugilite.
"Don't put me in the same category as you. I am a natural being, my existence was planned ever since Tourmaline's conception...you're a tool, nothing more." Emerald said coldly.
Sugilite's grin turned to an angry frown.
"Come again?" Sugilite asked.
"My unification was natural. Mother, father, son, all combined to create the ultimate gem. You were summoned by some silly ritual just to take care of a problem. That's all you are, a means to an end." Emerald explained.
Sugilite scowled and then stood up. She took a deep breath, and then kicked Emerald in the jaw. Emerald flew back a few feet. He shook his head and glared at Sugilite with hostile expression.
"I'm disappointed that you turned down my offer, so I'll have to crush you now! But hey, I got an assignment and I guess that's what a means to an end is supposed to do!" Sugilite yelled.
Emerald got to his feet and rushed towards Sugilite. The two giants locked arms and struggled to gain the upper hand. Emerald tried to uppercut her with his lower pair of arms, but Sugilite grabbed them with her own. Emerald moved his head back, and Sugilite did the same. The two flung their heads forward, knocking them into each other. A loud crack was heard and the two stumbled back from the impact. Emerald charged first and tried to knee her in the stomach, but Sugilite stopped his attack with her bottom pair of arms. She then punched him square in the gem on his chest, causing him to reel back. She pounced on top of him and pinned him to the ground. Her knees were pressed on top of his lower arms, and she stared vividly at her trapped prey.
"The way the gems talked you up, I thought you would at least be a bit of fun to play with. But I guess now you're only fun as a plaything!" She shouted.
Sugilite began to punch Emerald in the face over and over again. The other's watched, cheering the giant fusion on.
"That's it Sugilite! Give it to him good!" Tanza cheered.
"Jeez. I knew Amethyst hyped her up as a force of nature, but even that pales to how she really is." Taz commented.
Pearl grabbed her arm, nervous of the outcome.
After suffering enough abuse, Emerald dodged one of her punches and grabbed Sugilite's arm with his teeth. Sugilite roared in pain, and Emerald reacted immediately with a punch to her stomach with one of his free arms. Sugilite bent over in pain, and then Emerald followed it up with a vicious punch to her chin. Sugilite fell back, her shades flying off her face. Emerald stood up, feeling his bruised face. Sugilite sat up and revealed her five, glaring eyes to Emerald. She got back to her feet and Emerald smiled to himself.
"I'm impressed. You're actually doing some damage! You might be a fun playmate." He taunted.
"You think you're the big dog here!? You ain't nothing compared to me!" Sugilite screamed.
Sugilite's gems began to glow and from them materialized her massive flail. A sadistic smile came across her face, as she was ready to pulverize her opponent.
"Don't expect anymore love taps from me little man!" Sugilite shouted.
Sugilite swung her flail forward, slamming down onto Emerald. Emerald stood and took the blow, blocking with all of his hands. He gripped the giant fist tightly, and then was pulled forward by Sugilite. Sugilite ran up to him and kneed him in the chin. Emerald flew up, wincing from the pain. Before he could react, Sugilite grabbed his face and slammed him into the ground. She ran forward, dragging him through the sand and through a few scattered boulders. Finally, she picked him up again and threw him into the plateau wall, smashing him into the stone.
"Night night!" Sugilite shouted as she swung her mace around.
She spun her mace in circles, gaining momentum until at last she smashed it into Emerald's chest. The sound of shattering glass and stone was heard as Emerald was sent deeper into the cliffside. He keeled over from the pain and coughed up a bit of blood. Sugilite smiled down at the wounded challenger.
"Ha! This all you got?" Sugilite taunted.
Emerald shook from the impact, his chest gem completely shattered. Emerald painfully got up to his feet, panting. Sugilite stared at him with a smug look on her face. Emerald's pained expression turned to a sanguine grin. He stood up tall and let his gem regenerate.
"Oh good. I can break you over and over!" Sugilite exclaimed.
"So this is what you're capable of." Emerald said morbidly.
"Huh?"
"I wanted to see how strong you were, and you've greatly exceeded my expectations. But I guess I just got a bit cocky, everyone else was so weak in comparison, but now I have someone I can truly call a challenge." Emerald elaborated.
Sugilite stared at him with great curiosity. She was kicking the crud out of him earlier, so why is he acting like he just finished a warm-up round. The others had moved to a lower level of the beach with the laser light cannon to get a better look at the action.
"What is he talking about?" Tanzanite asked.
"I don't know, but I don't like it." Pearl said.
Emerald's smile faded into an angry expression.
"That's it! No more! Good-bye! This little game is over! Stupid girl, now you will see what happens to those I truly hate!" Emerald shouted.
Sugilite's eyes widened slightly as she saw Emerald's chest gem begin to glow.
"You will pay! Yes, you and those stupid gems! You're going to pay for every little transgression against me!" Emerald shouted.
"What the-" Sugilite uttered.
Emerald screamed in anger as his gem glowed brighter and brighter. The force of his gem causing a small sandstorm to sweep towards the other gems. Tanza and Pearl grabbed Taz and Steven to shield them from the storm, as the others covered themselves as the massive gust of wind and sand overtook them. From his massive gem, a large rod as long as he was tall came forth. He grabbed it with his top two hands, and twirled it around in a circle. He stopped it at a straight horizontal angle, and then two large crescent blades sprouted from the ends of the staff.
The dust had settled, and the gems looked forward to see the giant with his weapon in hand.
"So that's his weapon...a double scythe!" Pearl exclaimed.
"This looks bad." Tanzanite commented.
Sugilite stared at the opposing fusion, satisfied that he summoned his weapon. Gripping the large weapon, he slashed at the sea, causing a massive wave to be made from the sheer force of his strike. Emerald turned back to Sugilite.
"Don't expect to die peacefully!" Emerald shouted.
Sugilite gnashed her teeth at Emerald.
"I don't expect to die at all!" Sugilite shouted.
"The real battle begins now!" Emerald shouted as he rushed to Sugilite.
Before Sugilite could even react, Emerald sliced off one of her bottom arms. Sugilite screamed in pain as purple blood spurted from her severed limb. She punched Emerald in the face with one hand and leapt back to gain some distance.
"You're gonna pay for that!" She screamed as she spun her flail around.
She swung her massive flail at Emerald, but he managed to deflect the attack with his Scythe. The massive fist went flying to the ocean, creating a massive wave with it's impact. Emerald came rushing towards her once again, sadistically laughing as he came closer. Sugilite jerked her flail back and it hit Emerald in the back. Emerald stumbled forward as Sugilite took the opportunity to wrap her chain around his neck, squeezing it tightly.
"You like that little man!?" She shouted, "I'll make your damn head pop!".
Emerald smiled as he inhaled through his nose.
"Get away from him Sugilite! He's about to breath his fire!" Tanzanite shouted.
"What!?" Sugilite shouted back.
Emerald then breathed his green flames on Sugilite, engulfing her entire torso. The others stared in horror as the flames danced around Sugilite. Emerald closed his mouth, and the flames ceased. The smoke cleared, revealing an angry Sugilite.
"You can't turn the heat up on me!" Sugilite shouted.
Sugilite then gripped Emerald's scythe, trying to wrench it from his hands. The struggle went on as the other's stared at the titans in anticipation. Emerald struggled to get her to let go, but she wouldn't budge. Then his scythe began to glow again. The right side of his scythe lost it's crescent blade and a new light rod of light formed in Emerald's bottom hands. The dual scythe lost one of it's sets of blades to give birth to another scythe. Emerald reared the second scythe back, and then swung it at Sugilite's stomach. She let go of the top scythe to dodge the attack, only being grazed by the blade. She gripped her stomach with her remaining bottom hand as she stared at Emerald. Emerald then rushed forward, smacking her in the face with the top scythe's hilt, then punching her in the face. Finally, he gripped his bottom scythe low and swung it around. The scythe's staff hit Sugilite and she slid back into the blade as Emerald swung her around, eventually letting go and sending her flying upwards. Sugilite came crashing down to earth, gripping her stomach and arching her back in pain. Emerald walked over and stood over his downed foe.
"You've made a fun punching bag, but I think we're done here." He said as he brought his scythe up, "Now let's see what your insides look like!".
Sugilite grit her teeth as she prepared herself for the killing blow, but then her sight was fixated on a pink glow coming from the others. Emerald stopped his attack and his sadistic expression turned to one of concern. He turned around to see what Sugilite was staring at, only to see a pink light coming from the group. He immediately recognized the light.
"Noooooooo!" He shouted as the laser light cannon fired.
The laser enveloped his entire upper body, completely disintegrating it. After the laser settled, all that was left of Emerald was a twitching pair of legs. They fell backwards towards the others and then were completely still. The other gems stared in amazement as the cannon smoked.
"Steven...we did it!" Tanza exclaimed.
Steven and Ruby rushed over to Sugilite while the others stared at what was left of Emerald. The two made it to her severed left arm when she looked over at the two.
"Nice shot little man." Sugilite complimented.
"You did awesome Sugilite! You're not such a bad person after all." Steven said.
"Of course I'm not. I'm like him, I just want to be here, to exist is all." Sugilite explained.
Steven's smile turned into a concerned expression.
"Do you...think what we did was bad?" Steven asked.
"Nah the guy was a jerk. Now do me a favor and heal up these wounds." Sugilite ordered.
Steven stared at his hands and back to Sugilite.
"I don't think I have enough spit." Steven admitted.
The others examined Emerald's legs, checking him out to see if he was still completely dead. Tanza scowled and kicked the lifeless body.
"Good riddance." She spat.
Pearl stood on top of one of his leg gems, her spear in hand. She wasn't ready to take any chances, so she readied her spear to strike the remaining gems. Sapphire jumped up next to her to stop her.
"Woah Pearl! Ease up, the creep is dead. If you do that you might accidentally hurt Tourmaline too." Sapphire explained.
Pearl lowered her spear.
"I'm sorry, it's just that I'm not one to take second chances. After his healing power came from Tour-"
Suddenly, the two legs reared back, flinging Pearl and Sapphire off of them. Everyone stared up in shock as the legs stood up on their own. A sickening, snapping noise came from the legs as they twitched and shook.
"He's regenerating!" Pearl shouted, "Steven, come back to the cannon before he-" Pearl shouted.
Just then, Emerald was whole again. His body and arms were back. He opened his eyes and stared down at Ruby and Steven.
"Well that certainly was an experience." Emerald laughed.
"Steven, get to the cannon! I'll hold him off!" Ruby ordered.
"Ohoho! Well isn't that just…" Emerald started.
With his next word, Emerald smacked Ruby with his bottom hand as hard as he could, sending the gem flying into the plateau's wall.
"PRECIOUS!" He finished.
"Ruby!" Steven shouted as he ran to his injured friend.
"Now that felt good." Emerald said, satisfied.
"Steven get back here, we need you for the cannon!" Taz shouted.
Hearing this, Emerald shifted his attention to Steven, who was now at an unconscious Ruby's side.
"So he was responsible for that attack?" Emerald asked.
"Keep your hands off of him!" Sugilite shouted, "I'm your opponent, leave the kid out of it!".
"Oh I'll get to you, but that little regeneration trick has left me a little peckish. And you know what Sugilite? Steven's looking mighty tasty!" Emerald shouted.
Steven turned to Emerald to see his gaping maw open wide.
"DOWN THE HATCH!" He shouted in a wicked voice.
A swirling vortex came from his mouth, sucking Steven and Ruby into his mouth. Taz used her powers to try to bring them towards them, but she could only hold them in place.
"Come on Taz, you can do it!" Pearl shouted nervously.
"I'm...trying...AAH!" Taz shouted as a shock went through her head.
"Topaz!" Tanza shouted as she rushed to her friend's side.
Steven kept flying towards Emerald's mouth, holding onto Ruby tightly, he made a bubble around the two of them. As they entered his mouth, Emerald slammed his jaws onto the bubble, causing it to burst and the two gems to be sent flying down his throat. Emerald laughed as he turned to the other gems.
"You see what you're struggles have brought you? Now Steven and your friend are gone, never to leave my stomach." Emerald stated.
"You sick freak!" Sugilite shouted.
Emerald turned his attention back to Sugilite, who was struggling to get back up. With a smile, he stomped on Sugilite's chest gem, pushing her back down.
"Now now Sugilite, that's no way to act with your wounds." Emerald taunted.
"I'll rip them out of your stomach you creep!" Sugilite shouted.
"Alright, but it's going to be a challenge with two functioning arms." Emerald said.
"I have three working arms you jack-"
With that Emerald stomped on Sugilite's bottom elbow, crushing it underneath his heel. Sugilite screamed in pain as her bone shattered. Emerald jumped off of Sugilite and to the front of the house. There he sat back down in his usual position.
"I think I'll let the rest of you live. You've already lost so much, I think a fitting punishment would be for you to live with your mistakes." Emerald said.
The others just stared at him, a new sense of hopelessness flooding through them. Pearl started to tear up.
"Steven...I'm sorry." She said as she started to sob.
Emerald smiled his usual wicked grin.
"You've lost." He said sadistically.
Steven woke up and shook his head. The floor felt wet and squishy, and the room he was in was completely dark. He got up to his feet and looked around to see only black. He scratched his head, wondering where to go, until he came to a realization. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a glow stick. He bent the plastic stick and it glowed a light green.
"And the gems thought emergency glow sticks were silly." He said to himself.
He looked down to see the floor was a pink, fleshy color. He shuddered at the thought of remembering what happened to him.
"Oh man, the gems are gonna flip when they get me out of here." Steven said to himself.
"You mean if they get you out of here." Emerald's voice boomed.
"Emerald! Why did you eat me!?" Steven shouted.
"Why did you try to blow me up?" He asked.
"Don't flip this on me!" Steven shouted back.
"Well if you're gonna have an attitude I can expel you out. Though you might not enjoy the trip out." Emerald said wickedly.
"Tha-wait no!" Steven shouted.
"Can't stop now!" Emerald shouted.
"No!" Steven shouted.
" Grah! Whew, how do humans do this? Oh well, better luck next time Stevie boy." Emerald said.
"There is no way I'm coming out of you like that! I'm leaving out the Steven way!" Steven shouted.
Steven started to run forward and found a hole in Emerald's gem encrusted guts. He stepped through the hole to find a place full of crystals. They gave off a faint, ghastly green glow against his pink innards. Steven kept running along to find a cluster of them, and what appeared to be another hole in Emerald's insides.
"Better up than down." Steven said to himself.
Steven started to climb up the crystals, nearly slipping on the slimy things. He made it to the hole to see another corridor of flesh and gemstone. He walked through the innards as the gems glowed a spectrum of odd colors.
"I wonder where Ruby is? I got her with me, so shouldn't she be with me?" Steven asked himself. Steven kept walking up the slimy corridor, until he was met by an incredibly foul odor. He stopped to cover his nose and mouth. His eyes began to water from the grotesque smell, but he managed to put his shirt over his nose and mouth. It didn't help much, but it was enough for him to keep going.
"Oh man, if only the gems were here right now. They'd know what to do." Steven told himself.
"Awww is widdle Steven missing his famawy?" Emerald mocked.
"Shut up Emerald! You have no idea how I feel about the gems!" Steven shouted.
"Actually, I think I do. Poor Pearl is still bawling her eyes out at the very thought of losing her precious little Steven." Emerald said maliciously.
"Oh no Pearl! Pearl! It's okay I'm fine!" Steven shouted as loud as he could.
"Sorry kiddo, nothing's coming out of this gut." Emerald stated.
"Oh no, and Garnet and Amethyst." Steven worried.
"So that's where Sugilite came from. Sorry but they're still one, although now they're a bit...broken." Emerald said.
"No! How could you do this?!" Steven shouted.
"Let me ask you this first: Why exactly do you want to kill me?" Emerald asked.
"What? We aren't killing you, we're just getting our friend back." Steven answered.
"By ripping him out of me, knowing that if he leaves, I'm gone." Emerald argued.
"Well he had no choice in the matter! He deserves to live his own way!" Steven shouted.
"And what exactly do you mean by that?" Emerald asked.
"He should be free and not confined somewhere like he's a prisoner! He has a right to exist!" Steven answered.
"Okay then. So I guess it's also okay for you to do everything you can to tear me away from existence to bring Tourmaline back right? After all the circumstances are different in this case." Emerald said bleakly.
"That's just...I mean...keeping him inside of you isn't right!" Steven shouted.
"That depends on your definition of right, but do your best to delude yourself into thinking you're the good guy here." Emerald said.
Steven made it to a wide open space illuminated by a greenish-yellow light. He looked down to see some sort of liquid of the same color. He saw some fleshy chunks floating on the liquid, like tiny islands. Then Steven's eyes went wide when he saw Ruby, laying unconscious on one of them.
"Ruby!" He shouted.
Steven leaped from island to island, doing his best not to slip and fall into what was surely stomach acid. Eventually he made it to Ruby. Steven grabbed her shoulders and shook her.
"Ruby wake up! I need your help bad!" Steven shouted.
Ruby's eyes twitched a little, and then slowly opened.
"Mnn...Steven…?"
Steven beamed and hugged her tightly.
"Oh thank goodness, you're okay!" Steven cheered.
"Yeah but...where are we?" Ruby asked.
"Oh wow, I can't believe you're actually still alive Ruby." Emerald's voice boomed.
"Emerald! Where are we!?" Ruby shouted.
"Uhhh, Ruby we're-"
"Why in the belly of the beast of course!" Emerald shouted.
"Oh no!" Ruby exclaimed.
"Oh yes!" Emerald yelled back.
"I think I'm gonna be sick." Ruby said as she clutched her head.
"Me too." Emerald answered back.
"Nonono!" Steven begged.
"Lucky for you I still haven't figured out this, excursion, thing yet." Emerald taunted.
Ruby looked to Steven.
"So what do we have to do to get out of here?" Ruby asked.
"I've just been going up. Better than going down." Steven said.
"I agree one hundred percent." Ruby said as she picked up Steven.
Ruby bounded from island to island, both looking at the walls of Emerald as they desperately searched for a way out. Steven noticed a hole and pointed at it.
"Ruby look!" Steven demanded.
Ruby turned to where Steven pointed, and saw a hole high above the acid pit. She summoned her swords and took them each in hand. She then leapt off the lump of flesh and to the wall of Emerald's stomach, stabbing her swords into him. The whole room rumbled as she climbed up the wall and to the hole, flinging Steven up first before climbing up carefully.
"I suggest you knock that off!" Emerald barked.
Just then, a huge shock wave hit the area. Steven was shaken by this hit and Ruby nearly slipped up and fell, yanking one of her swords out instead. Steven rushed over to her, dropping his glow stick, and offered a hand. She clamped onto it tightly and Steven used all his strength to hoist up his friend. Ruby got to her feet and Steven reached into his back pocket for another glow stick. He pulled out another glow stick and cracked it on.
"Can't believe I thought that was a bad idea." Ruby admitted.
Steven smiled smugly as he lead the way deeper into Tourmaline. The two eventually reached a large, empty chamber. Unlike the rest of his body, this area was a complete dark green as opposed to the fleshy red it was earlier. The floor wasn't sticky and wet anymore, but hard and glassy. The two looked up to see a giant, spiral gemstone lodged inside a wall.
"I think we made it to his chest!" Steven declared.
"Oh really? Well that's no good. I think I'll have to take care of this." Emerald said grimly.
"What do you mean by that?" Ruby said, concerned.
"Oh you'll see. I'm going to miss you when you're gone." Emerald said.
A rumble quaked throughout the chamber and Ruby ran to one of the corners of the room, covering Steven with her body. Suddenly from the hole they came from, a great flame came forth and filled the room with fire. Eventually, the flames died out and Steven looked up at Ruby. Ruby let go and Steven looked up at her.
"Are you okay?" Steven asked.
"Yeah, I just got a warm is all." Ruby said.
"Mwahahaha, surprised?" Emerald said.
"No! Well, yes but it was a stupid surprise!" Steven shouted.
"Oh well. If at first you don't succeed, try...try aga-GAH!" Emerald exclaimed.
The room turned on it's side and Steven and Ruby slammed against the wall. Then the room stood upright again and the two gems fell back to the floor.
"What was that about?" Steven asked.
"It seems that Sugilite doesn't know when to lay down and die. Excuse me, I have a pest to exterminate." Emerald said.
"Wait! Don't hurt her!" Steven exclaimed.
Emerald was silent as the chamber began to rumble and shake. Emerald was on the move to finish Sugilite off.
"Hello? Are you listening?" Steven said.
"I doubt it. Come on let's keep going." Ruby said.
"Where? This place is completely empty." Steven said, "Unless...hmmm.".
Steven looked up at the roof of the chamber. He looked all over but in the top right corner of the room, he spotted a spherical area. There was a faint green glow coming from it.
"There! There's a thing there!" Steven shouted as he pointed up at the thing.
Ruby looked up and saw the glowing green spot.
"Well it isn't much, but it's something to go for." Ruby declared.
Steven jumped onto her back and the gem bounded up to the sphere. She stabbed into it with one sword, and then sunk her other sword into it. She slid the blade downwards and sliced open the giant sphere, and a large amount of green goo started to leak out. Then, something slipped out and hung from the from the inside of the sphere's wall. It was Tourmaline. The others stared in shock at their lifeless friend.
"Is...is that...Tourmaline?" Steven asked.
"Yes...yes it is!" Ruby said as she started to tear up.
"Well what are you waiting for? Set him free!" Steven ordered.
Sugilite was slammed to the ground, Purple blood spurting from her wounds. Emerald towered over her with an irritated expression.
"I've told you that this game wasn't fun anymore, so why are you still persisting?" Emerald asked.
"Shut...your mouth!" Sugilite shouted as she got up.
Emerald sighed.
"I thought you wanted to stay in this world? Why are you so eager to be taken out of it?" Emerald asked.
"I want to take you out because you're an evil bastard!" She shouted.
"Oh well that's cute. I'm not bad, I just want to be here, complete and whole." Emerald said.
"Don't make excuses!" Sugilite shouted.
"It's not an excuse, it's a fa-!"
Emerald groaned in pain as he gripped his chest. A light began to glow from his chest and his gem began to crack. Sugilite stared at the pained gem in confusion, but took her opportunity to rush towards him. With one punch, she ripped a hole inside of Emerald. Emerald roared in pain as he felt Sugilite's hand move inside of him. Sugilite felt around the empty chamber, eventually feeling two tiny things. Using the last of her strength, she gripped them tightly and ripped them out of Emerald, falling on her back. Emerald screamed in pain as Sugilite gazed at her hand. There she saw Steven, Ruby and what she assumed to be Tourmaline. The two gems looked at the giant woman as Tourmaline lied unconscious, covered in green goo.
"Heh, I told him I'd rip you out of em." Sugilite laughed.
With those words, Sugilite poofed away, leaving only Garnet and Amethyst, lying still on the beach. The other gems rushed towards Garnet and Amethyst.
"Garnet! Amethyst! Are you okay?" Pearl asked.
"Yes...we're fine." Garnet strained.
"Yeah...and we found some guys in him." Amethyst said.
The others looked over to see Steven standing up and Ruby holding Tourmaline. They immediately rushed over to them, Pearl wrapping her arms around Steven and squeezing the boy tightly.
"Oh Steven I'm so glad you're okay!" Pearl exclaimed.
"Yes I'm all good, but Tourmaline." Steven said.
Pearl turned to see the others crowding around Tourmaline. Tanza had brought over Garnet, her being slung over Tanza's shoulder, and Sapphire picked up Amethyst. The others stared at the boy's lifeless body, hoping that he was okay. Ruby shook him lightly, but he was unresponsive. Just then, they felt a tremor as Emerald stomped back towards them. He was cracking and bleeding as he towered over the other gems.
"Give him back! I need him!" He screamed.
Ruby put Tourmaline down and drew her swords again. She stepped forward towards the giant and stared up at him. Sapphire summoned her claws and joined Ruby, followed by Tanzanite, Tanza, and Taz. Pearl stayed by her friends, but they painfully rose to their feet.
"Garnet, Amethyst please! You can't push yourselves like this!" Pearl pleaded.
Garnet and Amethyst smiled at Pearl.
"You think we can just lie here while we let those kids defend our friend?" Garnet said.
"He's our buddy too. I'd feel pretty rotten to just lie here and let them fight without me." Amethyst added.
Pearl sighed and helped the two up.
"I'll watch over the two of you." Pearl said.
The two smiled at her and summoned their weapons. They walked over and joined their friends. Emerald stared down at the group as they blocked Tourmaline.
"You all must have a deathwish! Move now and I'll spare your pathetic lives!" Emerald shouted.
"No. He's our friend, and we're keeping him." Ruby said.
"Araaaah! I'll kill you all!" Emerald shouted.
The gems prepared for the fight of their lives, but suddenly, a glow came from Emerald's chest wound. He stared down at it and covered his chest hole. But then, a green light burst through and went straight to Tourmaline. The gems looked behind them to see Jade's gemstone, covered in light, in the shape of a man. It knelt down next to Tourmaline and picked him up.
"Wake up Tourmaline. Wake up." It said in a smooth voice.
Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl's eyes widened as they heard the voice.
"Your friends need you Tourmaline. Take my power like I intended you to have it." The voice commanded.
With that the energy dissipated and enveloped Tourmaline. The energy then dissipated and Jade's gemstone fell to the ground. Tourmaline's eyes shot open and he looked over to his dad's gemstone, now completely cracked and shattered.
"Yes sir." Tourmaline uttered.
Amethyst turned to Garnet.
"Was that...Jade?" She asked.
"Who else could it have been?" Garnet said.
The gems then turned back to Emerald, who was now screaming and shrinking down in size. They watched as the giant monster shrunk down to Garnet's size, writhing in pain.
"What have you done to me!?" He screamed.
Tourmaline stood up and his gems began to glow his usual glow.
"I know that was you father. You came to be whole with me at last, to give me the strength to protect my friends. You know I'm not a destroyer, but a guardian. And I won't let my friends down now!" Tourmaline shouted.
The gems turned back to Tourmaline and then he shouted into the air. His gems glowed a bright green and his entire lower legs were enveloped by light. The light then dissipated and revealed a set of dark green armored leggings, along with his usual grieves edge. He turned around and faced the group.
"Tourmaline?" Ruby said sheepishly.
Ignoring her, Tourmaline leapt in front of the group, getting between them and the corrupted Emerald.
"You!" Emerald screamed.
"So you're the one who has sapped me and my dad's power to abuse my friends." Tourmaline said sternly.
Emerald merely growled at Tourmaline.
"I felt every blow you gave them, I heard every plea they gave to bring me back, and now I'm going to make you PAY!" Tourmaline shouted.
Green bolts of electricity sprung from Tourmaline's new weapon, the green lines carving holes along the beach and plateau walls. The other gems stared in awe as the green bolts danced around Tourmaline. Emerald stared at the young gem in fear, afraid of the wrathful gem. Tourmaline began to walk towards Emerald, his gaze piercing through Emerald. Emerald stepped back, shuddering in fear. But he shook himself out of it and rushed towards Tourmaline, yelling as loud as he could.
"We will become whole again!" Emerald screamed.
Emerald tried to punch him with all of his arms, but before his hits could connect, Tourmaline dodged to the side. Emerald's fists slammed into the ground and he turned to see Tourmaline. Tourmaline raised a leg up and delivered an ax kick to his arms, severing them. Emerald stepped back, screaming in pain as his stumps spurted green blood.
"That was for Steven and Topaz." Tourmaline said.
Tourmaline then punched Emerald in the stomach, ripping a hole in him. He pulled his arm back and Emerald gripped his torn stomach.
"That was for Sapphire." Tourmaline said.
He then grabbed one of Emerald's remaining arms and tore it off.
"This is for Tanzanite!" Tourmaline shouted as he tore it off.
Tourmaline then kneed Emerald in the jaw, sending him flying.
"This is for Tanza!" Tourmaline shouted as he hit him.
Tourmaline then rushed to Emerald's side and began to pummel him as he flew through the air.
"This is for Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl!" Tourmaline shouted.
Emerald bounced off the ground and into the shallow end of the waves. He did his best to stand up but Tourmaline jumped onto his back, slamming him into the ground and creating a massive imprint in the beach.
"This is for Ruby!" Tourmaline shouted.
Emerald screamed in pain, taking the constant abuse from Tourmaline. Tourmaline then stepped off of Emerald and threw him out of the hole and onto the beach once more. Tourmaline jumped into the air and twirled mid air , facing Emerald and the ocean. Emerald shakily stood up, staring up at Tourmaline with swollen, bloody eyes.
"You...long to be complete. You know...you need me." Emerald uttered.
"No...I need my friends. And you tried to take them away from me." Tourmaline stated, "Which brings us to my final punishment to you.".
Tourmaline's grieves began to glow a bright green, static electricity bursting from them.
"This is for keeping me away from my family." Tourmaline said calmly.
Tourmaline slowly moved one of his legs back, readying another kick. Within the blink of an eye, Tourmaline swung his leg forward, releasing a massive wave of energy. The wave roared across the beach towards Emerald, completely enveloping him. The wave expanded to great heights, to the size of a house. Emerald screamed in agony and then was suddenly silent. The wave had completely disintegrated him. With that, the wave burst into a sea of green sparkles. They spread apart and floated in the air in an amazing spectrum of all shades of twinkling green. Tourmaline turned around to see his friends, staring at him in awe, with Steven and Taz's jaws slack in amazement. He slowly walked back towards them. He faced his friends and stared down at Ruby. His serious expression faded into a warm smile. Ruby teared up and latched onto Tourmaline, followed by everyone else.
"Thanks for not giving up on me." Tourmaline said.
"Tourmaline...we-" Ruby started.
"Shhh...I heard everything when you tried to sway Emerald's heart. Everything." He said as he turned to Tanza.
Tanza let go of Tourmaline and started to blush. The others let Tourmaline go and Tourmaline walked over to her.
"So...you love me?" Tourmaline said.
"I...yes...yes I do." Tanza admitted.
"Good."
Tourmaline pulled Tanza down and kissed her. Tanza's eyes went wide at the sudden kiss. Tourmaline let her go and looked into her eyes.
"Cause I love you too." Tourmaline confessed.
Tanza started to tear up and kissed Tourmaline. The others walked over to him and the two let go of each other. Tourmaline looked down at Steven and Taz and crouched down in front of them. He patted both of their heads and smiled.
"You two have done quite a lot for me. I'm proud of both of you." He said.
"Thanks Tourmaline. But you should thank Lion! If it weren't for him I would've never guessed to look around in that jerk's chest!" Steven admitted.
"You thought Lion wanted you to sway Emerald's heart." Tourmaline said deadpan.
"I really wish he wasn't the strong silent type." Steven admitted.
Tourmaline stood up and saw lion walk towards him.
"Haven't seen you in a while. But looks like you came back just in time. Thanks for your help Lion." Tourmaline thanked.
Lion just put his paw on Tourmaline's chest and Tourmaline pat Lion's head. Tourmaline then turned to his other friends and grabbed them all in a group hug.
"You guys are the best." Tourmaline said.
"You did the same for me." Tanzanite said cheerfully.
"And there's no way I'd let my partner die like that." Sapphire added.
Tourmaline let the two of them go and walked over to the crystal gems. He smiled at them and they smiled back.
"Tell me something. Was my dad this big of a pain for you to look after?" Tourmaline asked.
"Nope. We were the pains and he was the one looking after us." Garnet admitted.
Tourmaline chuckled and turned to Amethyst.
"Sorry to say, but I don't think we can do that "leg lock" thing anymore." Tourmaline said.
"That's okay, just stop talking about it!" Amethyst ordered.
"So what happened to you? What's up with your weapon?" Pearl asked.
"I don't know, I just heard my father's voice, felt something flow through me, and then I woke up and destroyed Emerald. I guess we're finally whole." Tourmaline said.
"And you're not a power-mad jerk either." Amethyst said.
"Enough talk. You all must be exhausted, let's go back." Tourmaline suggested.
The others nodded and they all walked back into the house. Tourmaline opened the door and saw the damage.
"Should we clean up?" Tourmaline asked.
"Nah, leave it for now." Amethyst said.
"Alright." Tourmaline said.
He walked upstairs with the gems and to Steven's bed. Steven was the first to crawl in, followed by Taz. The crystal trio collapsed onto the bed and then the rest of the gems followed them. Tourmaline squeezed between Tanza and Amethyst. Ruby squeezed in and laid on top of him. He wrapped his arms around Ruby and Tanza and closed his eyes. Lion walked over and laid down next to the bed and fell asleep. The night sky sparkled as the green lights danced with the stars, and the gems lulled themselves to sleep.
Tourmaline was laying on a bright beach. He sat up and looked around. To his left was nothing but pinkish white sand and there was more of that to his right. He looked behind him to see a pink field of tall grass. He looked ahead at the crystal blue sea, and saw two figures standing in the water. One was very tall and bulky, and the other was skinny and a bit smaller than the other one. Tourmaline realized that they were his parents, Jade and Aquamarine. The two smiled at him and waved as the waves swallowed them up. Tourmaline wanted to rush in and save them, but he knew that they were going to be a part of him forever, and no force will take that away from him. He simply smiled and waved back, and then his parents were gone. Tourmaline fell back and let the waves wash around him, and then he turned to see his friends, all waiting for him. He got up and rushed towards them, eager to go on a new adventure. And then he woke up.
Tourmaline sat up in bed, and looked to his sides. He was completely alone in the bedroom. He stepped out of bed and down the stairs. Garnet and Tanza were on the roof, patching up the hole while Pearl and Sapphire were working on the hole in the floor. Steven and Taz were playing checkers while Amethyst and Tanzanite were relaxing on the couch. Amethyst was the first to notice Tourmaline coming down the stairs.
"Here comes the problem child!" Amethyst shouted jokingly.
The others turned towards Tourmaline with smiles. Steven and Taz abandoned their game to go meet with Tourmaline. He pat the kids heads and sat down on the couch next to Amethyst.
"So what's the plan big guy?" Amethyst asked.
"No plan. I'm just gonna chill here for now." Tourmaline said.
"Sounds good to me. You've put us through enough crazy for a bit." Amethyst said.
"Amethyst you know that you're going to have to go on missions just like the rest of us." Pearl ordered.
"No rest for the wicked eh?" Tourmaline joked.
"Yeah, yeah." Amethyst groaned.
Garnet and Tanza walked in through the front door. The two smiled at Tourmaline, and Tanza walked over and sat next to him. Tourmaline smiled back and wrapped an arm around her. She nuzzled her head against his and the two relaxed together. Taz rolled her eyes and turned back to Steven.
"Whatever. Love is weird right Steven?" Taz said jealously.
"Actually I have a...girlfriend I think?" Steven said.
Taz gasped.
"What, you too? Why can't I have love!?" Taz spat.
"You do have love. You got your friends!" Steven beamed.
"I mean something different. The type of love you have for your girlfriend." Taz explained.
"You want a girlfriend?" Steven asked.
"No...I mean yes! I mean...forget it!" Taz said flustered.
Taz stormed off, leaving Steven confused. Steven shook it off and turned back to Tourmaline.
"Say Tourmaline? How strong are you now? I mean you had to have gotten some sort of power upgrade or something." Steven asked.
"Hmm, that's a good question." Tourmaline stated as he got up, "Hey Garnet, can I borrow you real quick?".
"Yes?" Garnet asked.
"Could you help me with a strength test?" Tourmaline requested.
"Oh no you don't! No more sparring with Garnet!" Pearl scolded.
"Oh come on Pearl, that thing only happened because of my dad's busted gem. I'm all good now so there's no need to worry. Besides, it doesn't even involve a sparring match." Tourmaline explained.
"Well what do you want me to do?" Garnet asked.
Tourmaline summoned his new weapon and looked Garnet.
"We'll settle this with one hit. I want you to punch me, as hard as you can." Tourmaline said sternly.
Garnet's smile faded into a stern look and she summoned her gauntlets. She walked over to Tourmaline and assumed a fighting pose, readying her punch. Tourmaline prepared his kick and the two of them stared at each other in their own standoff. The others stared in anticipation, waiting the attack. Suddenly, Garnet flung her fist forward and Tourmaline threw his kick right at her fist. The two attacks collided and the force rocked the entire house. The other gems trembled as the shock wave overtook them. The gems stared at the two figures, completely static.
"You sure that was the strongest punch you could throw?" Tourmaline asked.
"All my punches are the hardest I can throw." Garnet replied.
Tourmaline smirked and lowered his leg. Garnet moved back and looked at the young gem.
"Yep. I got stronger. If that was me before this change, my leg would've gotten crushed." Tourmaline admitted.
"Woah." Steven replied.
"Yeah, woah." Tourmaline repeated, "Still sticking with the title of second strongest though. I doubt the fight between me and Garnet would ever end.".
"Heh, you think so?" Garnet said.
"Yep. I gave you my hardest kick and it was a completely even force." Tourmaline explained.
"Well alright then problem child." Garnet said as she tousled his hair.
"I don't like how that's becoming my nickname." Tourmaline stated.
"We'll just stick with Tourmy then." Sapphire said.
Tourmaline sighed.
"Alright then." He surrendered.
Tourmaline shrugged as he walked out to the patio. Ruby followed him out to see him leaning on one of the now repaired railings, looking out at the sea. She walked up beside him and looked at his face.
"You alright?" Ruby asked.
"Perfectly fine." Tourmaline said.
"So...you love Tanza huh?" Ruby said.
"Yep." Tourmaline said.
"Oh, okay." Ruby said.
"Hmm?"
"It's nothing. I just didn't expect you to fall in love with her." Ruby said.
"She just has this certain thing that makes me attracted to her." Tourmaline explained.
"You don't have to justify your feelings." Ruby said.
"There are many different feelings I have for people, like the ones I have for you." Tourmaline said.
Ruby blushed.
"Excuse me?" Ruby said.
"I view you as a savior. You took me out of a horrid world and showed me an all new, beautiful one. You're the closest thing I have to a sister and I can't thank you enough for that." Tourmaline said.
"I...thank you Tourmaline." Ruby said.
Tourmaline pat her head and smiled.
"I'm gonna go back inside and help with the repairs. You coming back in?" Ruby asked.
"In a minute." Tourmaline replied.
"Okay."
Ruby walked inside and Tourmaline turned back to the sea. The sun shined brightly on the crystal blue sea. It sparkled like the night sky, twinkling a myriad of beautiful colors. Tourmaline smiled as he saw the outline of his parents on the waves.
"I'm okay now Mom, Dad. I have everything that I'll ever need right here." Tourmaline said to himself.