Chapter 33
As the days went by, there was still nothing about any upcoming attacks from Homeworld. Latin would try to watch Leon without him knowing, concerned about his well being.
Despite not seeing anything abnormal, he didn't give up.
Leon was walking to a secluded part of the beach with his fellow hybrids following him.
"Care to share what you have planned?" questioned Mal. Leon stopped and looked at him. Mal could see whatever Leon was going say was going to serious.
"We need to form Black Diamond." said Leon. He was the only one not surprised at that.
"Don't you remember the last two times we formed Black Diamond. We could barely hold it together long enough to stay in sync before seeing or experiencing something that made us lose control." said Ichigo.
"I will have to agree. Black Diamond is more of a way to stop something that close to one of the Diamonds. Not just because we can." said Emma.
"We have to get through that. What if one or all the Diamonds came here? What if we can't get together to fight then?
'Besides Black Diamond, the only other powerhouses that can fight the Diamonds toe to toe are Zincite and Alexandrite.
'Black Diamond is the only that has a higher chance to survive if the Diamonds use corruptions.
'If we want to be some help, we have to get over what is stopping us." explained Leon.
Mal was the first one to speak before anyone else could.
"Are you sure that is the only reason you want to fuse?" questioned Mal. "No. My only reason is not that at all." Leon was the only one wasn't upset by that.
"Leon." said Erin. "So what, you're obsessed with how strong we are that's it." said Mal.
"No. Listen-" started Leon. "No, you listen. We didn't fight in the war. You may be fine with it, but we're not. It's not easy having to relive something that never happened." said Ichigo.
"I know that, but this is the only way we can win." "So you're willing to throw everything away just to win a fight?" questioned Tal.
"In war, you do what you must in order to survive. I've seen both Homeworld and Crystal Gems shattered. Humans being slaughtered.
'To avoid that happening again, we need to see what path we need to take in order to assure we have little to no casualties." said Leon.
"How are we even going to do that? Garnet can't possibly see that far into the future. Even if she could, there are multiple unseen paths that lead to who knows what." said Ichigo.
"We're not going to ask Garnet. We're going to do it with Black Diamond." "Yeah. Care to explain how that will work?" said Mal.
"With me." said Erin. Mal looked him in surprise.
"I have future vision but it is nowhere near a Sapphire's level. However, they become slightly stronger and more focused when I fuse.
'I believe Leon wants all of us to combine our strength to make it strong enough to see the best path for victory." said Erin.
Mal let out a huff. "He could've just led with that."
"Would you have still agreed or would you not still refuse." said Leon. Everyone stayed quiet.
"Look, I can't force any of you to fuse. If you don't want to, fine. Just be prepared to do what is necessary when it's time to fight."
Leon turned to walk away when a hand on his shoulder stopped him. He looked back to see Mal.
"Look, I don't like this, but this may be our only shot at a clean victory. Just try to keep some things to yourself. I don't care what they said; it is possible to hide some things in a fusion." said Mal.
"I'll do my best, but it's not like a two or three gem fusion." said Leon. Mal let out a sigh as he looked around. He could see he wasn't only one hesitant but also willing to try.
Leon could see their hesitation and didn't want to rush nor force them.
"How about we take it slow by making Crystal and Akoya. Then we go from there." said Leon.
"I suppose that can work." said Emma. Tal, Mai, Bryx, and Claire gems glowed. Mai and Claire while Tal and Bryx leaped side to side.
The four of them held a hand out and piled it one over the other. They fused together. Akoya let out a breath.
"Quite the impressive display." said Crystal. "I guess it's time." said Emma. She held her hand in the air, twisting them as she tapped her feet.
Ichigo held her dress with one hand as she began to spin. Mal threw his hand up before bringing them down quickly in a cross. Akoya lifted one hand and leg in the air before spinning.
Crystal dropped low before coming up spinning. All of their gems glowed as they slowly came closer to one another. Crystal spurn Emma and Ichigo before lifting them high into the air. He and Mal then leaped into the air.
Akoya raised their arms and opened their hands. Mal landed in the left hand and Crystal in the right. The held the other's arm as one of their legs were out.
Ichigo and Emma landed the pair's joined arms and held the other. All of them glowed as they fused. Black Diamond slowly stood up before opening their eyes.
Their hands started shaking as they began to remember something. Black Diamond took a few steps back shaking.
"It's okay." said Black Diamond. "HOW IS THIS OKAY!"
Black Diamond started to glow as they form started to come apart. "Guys! We need to do this."
"We can't. We're not like you. It's too much." Black Diamond struggled to stay as a whole but was slowly becoming more and more undone.
"I can't do this alone. Please." Black Diamond's form slowly started to become stable.
"I'm not like any of you. This is at least my only chance to ensure non you have to go through what I've been through. I know it hurts but please bear with for a little."
Black Diamond's form finally stabilized as they took a breath. They looked at their hands as they slowly stopped shaking.
"Okay. Sowhatnow?" "I know it's not easy but I want us to at least work as one to see one vision. After that we can just unfuse and never form Black Diamond unless it's necessary or you guys want too."
Black Diamond sat down in a lotus position and breathed in and out. Their gems glowed as they closed their eyes to focus.
A path started to open up as they saw the future. Everything looked stable and no surprises. It wasn't until their vision began to end when it shocked them.
Black Diamond's eyes opened in complete terror. They held themselves as they began to unfuse.
None of the hybrids knew what to say after what they saw. Leon was the first one to gather his thoughts and approached Bryx and Mai.
"I know you two have one. I'm going to need it." said Leon. Both Bryx and Mai were confused for a bit before trying to think what he wanted.
It finally dawned on them as their gems glowed. They both pulled a gem destabilizer out of their gem.
"What exactly are you planning to do with them?" questioned Mal as everyone watched Leon.
"Assuring that the best possible future for all of us happens." said Leon taking both gem destabilizers.
"How does using a gem destabilizer ensure that?" questioned Ichigo. "Who all did you see in the path that led us with the least amount of casualties?"
"It us, Connie, Steven, and all of the Topazes. What are you-" Ichigo's eyes widened when she finally pieced everything together.
"You're not seriously thinking of destabilizing them?!" "Really think about it. In all the paths where there are more of us, nothing really goes in a favorable direction.
'We may end up facing two if not all three Diamonds at once. One path had us facing all of Homeworld at once. One path leads to only a handful of us surviving just to run away.
'One leads to the Diamonds' corrupting almost all of us. One path leads to the cluster emerging fully due to the Diamonds.
'Rose Quartz was only able to save Pearl, Garnet, and herself from being corrupted. Do you really want to put Steven through the strain of making a shield large to save everyone.
'Our best hope it to make sure everyone is safe by bubbling them away so that even if all the Diamonds use corruption again, only the Topazes will need to be protected." said Leon.
A long silence filled the area. Leon look at everyone and could see they knew he was right.
"But we're still going to basically stabbed them in the back." said Erin. "No, you, won't be doing anything."
Erin was confused until it finally dawned on him. "That's insane! All of this is!" said Mal.
"Look, all you have a shot at having a normal life after this is all over. I don't.
'If anyone is going to do this, it's going to be me and me alone." said Leon. Before anyone could say anything, Leon's wings formed before he took off.
No one knew what say. On one hand, this would make sure everyone is safe. On the other hand, it may permanently damage Leon's relationship with everyone.
As Leon flew he eventually reached the Sky Spire. Near the warp pad he saw Celeste, Galeun, and Thulite. He took a deep breath before heading for them.
Celeste saw him and waved at him. This brought both Galeun and Thulite to Leon as he landed near them.
"Leon, is everything okay?" asked Thulite. "Yes. I'm just checking up on you guys to see if there is anything new." said Leon.
"Everything is going decently to say the least. There is still no sign of Homeworld activity." said Celeste.
"Nothing really new on my side either. Any clue where the others are so I can check on them as well?"
"Onyx, Tiger, Edom, and Jasper are checking over the Kindergartens. The Serpentines are looking over the Strawberry Battlefield as well as other battle locations.
'Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl I think are looking over Mask Island and some other places. You know where the rest are. If you need us, we'll be looking over the Drop ship colony." explained Celeste.
"Okay. Guess I'll see you guys later." said Leon. "Just be careful out there." said Galeun.
Leon turned to walk away as the others headed for the warp pad. He stopped and took a deep breath and his gem glowed. Leon pulled out a gem destabilizer and turned around.
He quickly charged at Celeste. Galeun saw Leon from the corner of his eye. Before Galeun say anything, Leon hit Celeste with the gem destabilizer.
Celeste's form fizzled before it started to break apart as she poofed. Thulite and Galeun was shocked at what just happened. Leon kept going as knocked Thulite off her feet with a low sweep.
He then hit her with the destabilizer. Thulite's form fizzled out as well before instantly poofing. Leon had to duck when Galeun threw a kama at him.
"Just what do you think you're doing?!" said Galeun.
Leon's gem glowed as he spun. He put the destabilizer in his gem and summoned a pair of tessens.
"I'm doing what is best for everyone's survival." said Leon. "By poofing us?! If something bad is going to happen then we'll need everyone!"
"It's either all you are out of way or this entire planet will suffer." "Then you know I can't let you do that." said Galeun.
"I would like to see you try. I will do whatever it takes to ensure the plan succeeds." said Leon.
Galeun would've been shocked at that if he didn't know just how Leon was back in the war. The pair sized each other up before charging.
Leon blocked each of Galeun's blades with his tessen. He pushed Galeun back and threw his tessens. Galeun dodge them only having to duck to avoid another set
He was prepared for another set and didn't expect Leon to over him already. Time seemed to have slowed down as Leon hit Galeun with a destabilizer.
As it came closer, Galeun could tears running down Leon's cheeks before he was poofed. Leon rubbed the tears away before approaching Galeun, Celeste, and Thulite's gems.
He bubbled all three of them in the same bubble. Leon concentrated hard before tapping the top of the bubble. It went down for a moment before going high up and vanishing.
~At the temple~
Erin was staring at the ceiling while his fellow hybrids either stood or sat around. All of them were still thinking about what they saw in the vision and what Leon may be doing.
A noise drew their attention near the warp pad. Above was a light blue bubble with three gems.
"H-he actually did it." said Emma. No one really knew what to say to that as they just stared at it.
~Three days later~
Leon was walking around the Beta Kindergarten looking for Onyx, Tiger, Jasper, and Edom. Despite being tired he kept going.
Leon knew from his experience with searching for Erin and in the war, allowed him to be able to keep pushing forward for a good four more days.
A roar brought him out of his thoughts. He turned to see a corrupted Ocean Jasper. Not even thinking Leon quickly poofed it with a gem destabilizer.
"It came from over here!" Leon barely had time to hide the destabilizer before Onyx, Jasper, Tiger, and Edom came from around a corner with their weapons drawn.
In his haste, Leon failed to notice that the corrupted gem affected the gem destabilizer.
"Oh, it's just you." said Tiger. "It's nice to see you as well." said Leon.
"What happened to you?" asked Edom. This drew everyone's attention to Leon's appearance.
His hair was slightly out of place, and his clothes had cuts and tears in them. Leon didn't know what to say as he hadn't been paying attention to his appearance.
"The temple isn't under attack is it?" asked Onyx. "No. I just didn't really pay attention to my appearance. Been flying around looking for any Homeworld gem for quite some time." said Leon.
Edom was the only one that was suspicious about that.
"Have you seen any signs of them?" asked Edom. "No."
"Have you been taking a break or searching nonstop again, like with Erin?"
"Everything is okay. I know my limits." said Leon. Before Edom could say anymore, Tiger spoke first.
"Lighten up, will ya. Every gem has to be able to stand on their own two feet." said Tiger.
"I know that, but you don't know him as I do. His appearance is not something he would easily overlook unless he's focused on something vital.
'Be it fighting in battle after battle during the war or exhausting himself searching for something." said Edom.
"If you say so. We still need to keep an eye out for Homeworld and any corrupted gem. Not our fashion choice."
Tiger turned to walk away with Onyx close behind him. Edom gave Leon one last look before turning away as well with Jasper. Leon followed after them.
He carefully pulled out the gem destabilizer and a tessen he hid up his long sleeves. Leon calmed himself as he knew he only had one shot at catching one of them off guard.
Right as they turned a corner, he lunged at Jasper. Jasper barely saw him coming and dogged the swing of his tessen. Little did she know, Leon planned for that.
He kept up his assault and managed to hit her with the destabilizer. Jasper's form fizzled for a moment but didn't break apart.
In fact, the gem destabilizer short circuited causing Leon to drop it in pain. The noise caused the others to turn around. They saw Leon wincing as he shook his right hand, the gem destabilizer on the ground shorting out, and Jasper on her knees clutching her stomach.
"WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON!" yelled Tiger as he summoned a bagh naka on each hand.
Before Leon could respond, Jasper started to grow green spots, spikes, and her hand became claw like.
Everyone could only stare on in shock.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO ME!" yelled Jasper. Everyone looked at Leon for an explanation.
"I-I didn't want whatever this is to happen. It, it wasn't supposed to happen this way." said Leon.
"Then how was this supposed to happen. You poof us and then what? What is going on Leon." said Edom.
"I should've known! How could I be so blind! What should I have expected from her lackeys!
'Especially after what SHE did to my colony! After what SHE did to my Diamond!" said Jasper as the grew spots started to grow.
"J-Jasper I'm sure it wasn't supposed to happen that way. I'm sure that there's an explanation." said Leon.
"Who she and what did she do to one of the three Diamonds?" asked Onyx. Jasper was speechless and stumbling over her word.
"IT WAS ROSE! SHE TOOK AWAY MY DIAMOND! YOUR DIAMOND. PINK DIAMOND!" screamed Jasper.
Jasper gave a strained grunt before the corruption took over completely. Onyx, Tiger, and Edom watched in horror as they summoned their weapons.
A multitude of tessens went at Jasper and proofed her. Before anyone could say anything, Leon used the distraction to hit Onyx with the other gem destabilizer he had.
Tiger gritted his teeth, more than ready to fight. Edom took up a stance and Leon. He could see something was off.
Edom was sure of it when put the destabilizer away and summoned a set of tessens. As he watched, he could see tears running down Leon's face.
~At the temple~
The warp pad activated as Leon appeared with two bubbles, one in each hand. He looked around and saw no one was there. Leon also didn't see any of the bubbles he made.
He slowly made his way to the front door before going out. Leon heard talking from below and went down the stairs. Under the house, he saw his fellow hybrids and all the gems he bubbled except for the two he was carrying.
"I see you finally-" started Mal before he stopped when he saw Leon's appearance. Everyone looked at him in a state of shock.
Leon looked slightly worse as a dried patch of blood was on the side of his head and left arm. His eyes were also completely bloodshot red.
"Leon! What happened!?" asked Erin as he and Emma rushed to him.
A green aura covered Emma's hands as she came close to Leon.
"NO!" said Leon. This startled Emma as she stopped approaching him.
"This wasn't how things were supposed to be. It wasn't supposed to go down like that."
Ichigo noticed Jasper's gem in one of the bubbles Leon was holding and a gem she didn't recognize at first.
"Leon, what exactly happened? Who is that other gem?" asked Ichigo.
"It's a corrupted gem." "I get that but why didn't you send Jasper off like the others?" asked Mal.
Leon didn't say anything as tears began to fall. Everyone's eyes widened as they started to piece things together. Emma held a hand over mouth, avoiding to look at the gems Leon held.
Mal brushed back his hair as he began to pace. Erin just shook his head trying to not think of the possible answer they all had. Ichigo crossed her arms and just looked at the ground.
Claire slowly fell to her knees trying not to cry nor think about her initial Diamond. Mai and Bryx refused to look at the gem, feeling partly to blame for Jasper's corruption.
Tal just looked at the bubbled gems. No knew what to say or how even to approach the topic.
It wasn't until they heard footsteps from behind them did they start to gain their composure.
"Hey guys, have any of you-" started Steven. He stopped mid sentence when he saw all the bubbled gems.
"Steven, we need to talk." said Leon as tears still fell.
A/N: The blue italicized letters represent Leon speaking. The red underlined letters represent Tal, Ichigo, and Mal speaking. The violet bold letters represent Erin, Emma, Mai, Claire, and Bryx speaking.