Polished Gems #37: The Rogue Gems
The Crystal Gems were in disarray. Back at Steven's home, Buergerite was looking over as many scouting drone's recordings as possible. With luck, one of them might contain the information needed to track him down. Steven and Amethyst were out in town asking anyone around if they had seen the boy, while the rest of them were either in a state of worry, anger, or in the case of the homeworld gems, uninterest. Tanza, Jet and Taz seemed the most worried while Rubellite and Pegmatite did their best to keep them in high spirits. The Homeworld gems were resting on the stairs while Lapis was sitting next to Chrysoberyl in Steven's room. Garnet had a very stern expression on her face and seemed to ignore all outside stimuli. In an attempt to utilize her future vision, she analyzed dozens of possibilities of where Tourmaline might be. So far all were shots in the dark. Pearl and the rest of the gems assisted in Buergerite's frantic search.
"I'm failing to understand the point of this. What drones that returned weren't from the greatest range around the globe, but were far enough that they weren't anywhere near Beach City." She argued.
"We can't rule out that one of them found something. He may have warped near one for all we know." Pearl stated.
Buergerite observed the sped up footage of a deep-sea coral reef, and then deactivated the remaining drones.
"Considering that was the last one we have, that's not the case." She stated.
Obsidian held her's in her hand and then tightly clenched her fist around it so hard that she crushed it.
"Damn it all." She seethed.
Sardonyx put her hand on her distressed friend's shoulder and the black gem regained her senses. Obsidian placed the crushed drone by Buergerite.
"Sorry.".
A tendril from her gem wrapped around the crunched object and carefully picked it up.
"It's nothing to fret about. I can repair it in an hour." She stated.
Pearl scratched her head and walked over to Garnet. She looked up to her leader with a determined stare.
"Any idea where we should start?" Pearl asked.
Garnet shook her head.
"Too many places to look. Too many were unfamiliar." She answered.
Pearl frowned and brought a finger to her mouth and tried to think of her own theory of where Tourmaline might be. Sardonyx and Obsidian walked over to the others near the couch and took a few seats around it.
"This is so weird. He's acting like a completely different person." Tanza stated.
Taz was next to her friend. She looked away from her and to the others to add her own statement.
"Yeah. Back when we first me it was nearly impossible to get away from him. He'd always be around his friends. Now he's so...antisocial and angry." Taz added.
"At least he's still reckless. Not every aspect of him is gone." Sardonyx joked.
There was silence. The tan gem cleared her throat to break the awkwardness of the situation, but it didn't help. Dravite and Elbaite appeared via warp pad and walked towards the other gems.
"Didn't spot him anywhere near the other warp pads." Elbaite stated.
"He either didn't take one or is a ways away from one." Dravite added.
The mention of that sparked an idea in Garnet's mind. A ways away from one. The words resonated in her mind trying to connect what might link that to a lead to their friend. Then it struck her like a bat to the head. She straightened up and gained a determined look on her face.
"I know where he might be!" She declared.
All eyes were on her now.
"It was so obvious. He went back to that shine in the forest!" She stated.
The others looked at each other with uneasy stares.
"He went back? Why?" Jet asked.
"Probably to go after the gem that nearly killed him." Lapis stated.
The thought of that sent a chill down a few gems spines.
"But...if he were to do that.." Tanza thought.
A horrified expression grew on her face. She stood straight up and scanned over everyone.
"We have to get to him now!" She shouted.
The others raised up from their seats, save the homeworld gems and Lapis. Chyrsoberyl looked on from bedroom's ledge.
"That goose chase of his will only lead to him getting demolished." Obsidian stated.
"I'll lead the search!" Sardonyx offered, "I only need a few more gems to come with me.".
Tanza glared at Sardonyx with an adamant expression. She held Tanza's hand and nodded.
"We're coming.".
"I'll come too." Jet said.
"I'll come as well. You need me anyway." Garnet stated.
The five gems rushed to the warp pad, but stopped short when the door swung open. Steven and Amethyst rushed in.
"Guys! We got news!" Steven shouted.
"We know where he's at!" Amethyst stated.
Everyone stopped to look and see the two tiny gems, along with Topaz walking through the doorway.
"Topaz knows where he is!" Steven beamed.
"Yeah he know's what's up!" Amethyst added.
All the Crystal Gems rushed over to him, nearly crowding the pale gem. He had a stern, emotionless look on his face. Steven and Amethyst stood in between the others and him.
"Give the guy some space. We just caught him wandering back to the city and all he said when we asked him about Tourmaline was yes." Steven brought up.
"Dude looked insanely tired. Something crazy must have went down but after we asked the first question he just clammed up." Amethyst added.
"Okay. Topaz, tell us where Tourmaline is." Garnet requested.
Topaz closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and opened them up. His calm demeanor transformed into aggressive dominance.
"No." He refused.
All the others stood in shock.
"Wh...what did you say!?" Obsidian roared.
"I said I won't tell you where he might be." Topaz said.
Jet moved in next, her eyes almost grey.
"Wait. Might be!? You mean to tell me that you don't even know where he is!?" She shouted.
Amethyst and Steven were the next to glare at him.
"Why'd you lie to us!? It's important that we find him!" Steven argued.
"You're being a total jerk ya jerk!" Amethyst yelled.
Topaz was still silent. Sardonyx grabbed Topaz by the shirt and glared at him. She lifted the man of the ground and brought him to her eye level.
"Tell...us...the truth." She ordered.
Topaz remained calm and pried himself out of Sardonyx's iron grip. He landed steadily and looked on at everyone's angry expressions. He smirked to himself, adding more heat to their burning anger.
"You act as if you're all responsible for him. Like your all his mother or sister. No wonder he felt so smothered." He stated.
The other gems reached their boiling points, but Sardonyx, Obsidian, Jet and Garnet stepped in front of them with calm demeanors.
"Smothered?" Jet repeated.
Topaz's face reverted to it's default stern expression.
"Yes. He felt weak around you." He said, with Tourmaline's last words to him resonating in his head, "He grew tired of having to rely on you for solving his problems.".
The enraged gem's anger subsided, but was replaced with confusion.
"He felt...weak?" Tanza questioned.
"He never admitted that, but the latter came straight from his mouth. He's going after Tsavorite on his own. He gave me no reason because he didn't owe us one." Topaz continued, "This is his mission, and he chose to take it on his own.".
The others were silent and looked at each other. Steven looked back to Topaz with a sorry look.
"Did he say anything else?" He asked.
"He gave me an order. To make sure nothing bad happens while he's away.".
Taz held Tanza a bit to make her feel at least a bit more comfort.
"If he's so worried, then why did he leave?" The purple gem asked.
Topaz placed his hand on her shoulder.
"He knows we have a big fight. A looming threat that we've had to think about and fear for a long time. But he also knows that the other gems can easily turn into another one. He wants to end something before it begins. Besides...he has faith that we can do this without him." He promised.
"Then we should stop worrying about him and get to work finding Feldspar's base and ending this." Jasper interjected.
They looked towards the giant orange gem. She and the other Homeworld gems were staring with menacing glares.
"Once we solve that problem, we can take care of this one." Heliodor stated.
"She will only complicate things for all of us. If we can at least distract her while Tourmaline is on his own quest, you can at least keep Pyrite away for a while." Fluorite added.
"Besides...that brat isn't the type to just roll over and die." Jasper stated sternly.
The others were silent, but Garnet couldn't help but chuckle.
"For once we agree on something." She laughed.
Jasper frowned.
"Don't expect this to be a common occurrence." She shot back.
Steven clapped his hands and had a confident smirk on his face.
"Alright! Let's take down Feldspar so we can take home Tourmaline!" He shouted.
/**/
Tourmaline quietly strolled through the ruins of the kindergarten. He silently walked through the destroyed breeding ground and to the warp pad. He leaped up to the ridge that held the pad, and then warped away from the desolate area.
He then arrived back at the floating islands. He ran to the edge of the island and looked down upon the world. He walked along the side of the ridge while scanning for the forest he found Tsavorite in. After a moment, he saw it. He leaped off the pad and morphed his arms to wings. He dove through the air like a falcon dive-bombing it's prey, piercing through clouds like a bullet as he descended to his destination. As he approached the forest, he noticed the destroyed canopy where he made his original entrance. He morphed his arms back to normal, broke through a few scraggly branches and landed with a loud thud. Mud and water flew in every which way from his point of impact. The green gem slowly raised to a full stance, scanned his surroundings and noticed the dry patch he had rushed through. With lightning speed, he dashed off of the island and went sprinting off through the forest. A minute had passed and he then skidded to a stop in front of Tsavorite's den.
He brushed the vines masking the entrance aside and rushed inside. He saw the hole he fell down and jumped into the darkness. He made it to the bottom and looked around to see if there was any sign of his target. It seemed empty. Tourmaline jogged over to the spot where Green Diamond's shard was kept, but the hole was empty.
"Seems that she wasn't interested in staying." He thought.
He turned away from the indent in the wall and rushed over to the opposite side of the chamber. The green gem rushed over to the dark lake and leaped into it. With a loud splash, he sank to the bottom like a stone. His gems illuminated the murky deep. A few cave fish could be seen swimming near him, curious of the odd new creature. Tourmaline looked around and discovered a tunnel. He smirked to himself and trudged through the water. As he moved forward, the tunnel became more narrow. The terrain slanted upwards and Tourmaline trudged up. Eventually he was stopped by a wall of solid stone. The boy looked up to see another tunnel and the faint shimmer of light. He began to swim up to the surface.
The speckled light of sunshine piercing through thick foliage graced his face. The area he appeared had a giant stone behind him, blocking the water from moving any further. He swam over to the shoreline, stepping onto the muddy bank and shaking off any excess water.
He walked along the shoreline but stopped when he saw footprints in the mud. He crouched down to observe them. The tracks were rushing ahead in a straight line towards what looked to be an exit out of the forest. It was a faulty one, but Tourmaline found his lead. The green gem rose to his feet and rushed in the direction of the footprints. As he rushed forward, he couldn't shake the feeling that he was being followed. Once he reached the edge of the forest, he stopped and looked back. All was still save for a few falling leaves.
"Tch! I shouldn't let my imagination get the best of me. Gotta find her!" He said to himself before rushing across the clear field.
From behind a tree, Chrome Tourmaline came out chuckling. He ran after Tourmaline as fast as he could.
"Whine, complain, monologue, what a tool!" He laughed.
He caught up to Tourmaline and was running next to him. Tourmaline looked to his side to see his doppelganger's mocking grin.
"Hey! How bout a race!?" He declared as he moved away.
Tourmaline growled in frustration, but followed him.
"Of all the possible distractions I had to get one of the worst ones!" He thought to himself.
The two gems sped across the field. From the forest, Pyrite stepped into the open.
"Heh heh, guess I can let the brat handle Tourmaline. Now then…" She began to rush where Tourmaline was originally going, "...what are you after little man?".
/**/
Tsavorite was in a deep crater. She looked up to the sky to see the floating islands overhead. She assumed that Yellow Diamond or some other faction had taken hold of the planet, so she was traveling with extreme caution. This along with her encounter the other day had her traveling very slowly, as to avoid potential discovery by some unknown force. All she knew was that she had to find Azurite and Bloodstone before someone found them first. It wasn't safe to hide anymore. As she walked across the bare earth, grasping Green Diamond's shard tightly, she thought of Tourmaline.
She couldn't shake it, but there was something familiar about him. Fighting him was similar to fighting someone else she used to be allies with. But she dismissed the idea, it was impossible. He was probably on another planet, if alive at all. As the black and green gem traversed the great pit, she heard the sound of stones tumbling down the dirt wall. She turned around to see a giant figure looking down at her. She slid the stone into her pocket and glared up at the figure with black eyes.
Suddenly, the stranger bounded off of the edge of the pit high up and came crashing down towards Tsavorite. She dashed back as the being landed with a great impact, sending dirt, rock and dust out in each direction in a giant cloud. The gem waved the dust away to see a giant, black and silver gem staring down at her. Tsavorite's eyes went a bit wide at the sight of such a hulking beast, but her facial expression remained steadfast. Pyrite had a massive grin on her face.
"Yo." The behemoth greeted.
Tsavorite silently glared at her, her hand placed between her gem and her lord's gem shard. Pyrite stared down at her with a cocky expression.
"So you're the one the boy was after? Can't say I'm too impressed." She mocked.
The ancient gem raised an eyebrow.
"The boy?" She repeated.
"Yeah, Tourmaline. You know him?".
She frowned.
"He should be dead." She growled.
"Yes, he should. But that's besides the point. He's looking for you for some reason." She commented, "So if anything, I can use you for bait.".
Tsavorite drew her blade and gripped the shard tightly. She had no idea who this gem was, but she knew she couldn't leave with her alive. Pyrite laughed and summoned her cestus.
"Oh I love doing things the hard way." She joked.
Tsavorite lunged forward and slashed at Pyrite's arm. The monstrous gem took the blow and returned it with a backhand. The black gem flew across the pit and slammed against a rock. She landed on her feet, assuming a defensive stance while Pyrite observed her arm. The attack managed to cut a bit deep into her arm, causing it to bleed chrome. She smiled and looked back to Tsavorite.
"Guess I shouldn't hold back against you huh?" She taunted.
With that, her form was engulfed with silver. The light dispersed and she was now bigger, her silver speckles replaced with black, and the rest of her color was silver. Her eyes were black pools with silver rings dead center. Tsavorite's eyes went wide as a chill ran down her spine.
"I'll let you know that this is me at seventy percent. But don't let this discourage you I intend on having fun with this, so I won't go any higher." Pyrite stated, "But that doesn't mean this will be a wash for you!".
A silver ball formed in her hand and she tossed the explosive blast at Tsavorite. The defending gem responded by swinging her blade in front of her, releasing a wall of black and green flame before leaping away. It absorbed the blast but the resulting explosion of black, silver and green. Pyrite looked up to see her target swooping down towards her. She held her crossed arms upwards to block the oncoming slash. As Tsavorite rushed towards the giant, her sword geared to slash at her, she noticed the block. When she made it to her, she reached her hand out and flipped over the giant gem. Confused by the change in tactics, Pyrite turned to face Tsavorite, but was greeted with a slash to her face. The silver gem moved her face, narrowly avoiding her eyes being slashed, but instead having a shallow line form from her cheek across her upper lip to the other cheek. Tsavorite glared up at her, anticipating an attack, but Pyrite was still.
"Was the attack enough to frighten her?" She silently hoped.
Pyrite's serious expression formed into another smirk, chrome blood slowly dripping across her lips.
"Going for the eyes? That's not very nice. At least Tourmaline knows how to have a fair and fun fight." She claimed.
"Why do you keep talking about him like that? Is he an ally of yours?" Tsavorite asked.
Pyrite scowled.
"I want nothing more than to see that bastard tortured and killed in the worst possible way, but I can respect him enough as a fighter. He downed me once, and I will make sure that he suffers for that." Pyrite explained.
Tsavorite was confused. A foe this threatening was downed by that brat she nearly killed? How was that possible? But then she recollected the viciousness that he suppressed against her. This gem must have unleashed that in some way.
"Oh why am I boring you with this prattle? Let's get back to killing!" The silver giant shouted.
She thrust both of her fist down at the little gem, but Tsavorite's reflexes allowed her to dodge the blow. Pyrite moved her hand over her other arm and launched a quick ball of energy at the still floating gem. The black ball exploded and launched Tsavorite a few meters away. The black gem landed into an offensive stance and rushed back towards Pyrite. She couldn't afford to play it defensive, her power was too great. The green and black gem slashed wildly at her giant opponent, but the foe was able to block half of the attacks, with the other half only resulting in shallow cuts.
Pyrite grinned and grabbed her by the head. She lifted the smaller gem and swung her overhead, slamming her head into the ground. Tsavorite twitched in pain. She could feel the back of her head bleeding, but she could still move. Pyrite aimed her open palm at the helpless gem's body and a black ball began to form in her hand. Tsavorite rolled out of the way of the blast and got to her knees. She slashed at Pyrite's leg, cutting deeper than her other efforts, and the giant growled in anger. She reached to grab Tsavorite again, but the nimble gem dodged the massive hand with a jump. The black gem landed on her enemy's arm and slashed at it. A line of chrome spurted from Pyrite's bicep.
"Grah! Annoying little bitch!" The silver gem roared out as she reached for her target once again.
Tsavorite leaped away and scowled at her opponent. She could feel green blood leaking from the back of her head, down her hair and dripping onto her back, but she didn't care. Pyrite had an expression of pure, black rage on her face. Two silver orbs formed in her hands. She screamed out as she unleashed a flurry of energy bombs. Tsavorite did her best to dodge and deflect whatever attack she could, but it she couldn't keep up with the rate of fire Pyrite was producing. Eventually she was peppered with a few silver balls, knocking her down on her back.
Pyrite breathed heavily as the dust began to settle. She looked to see Tsavorite get back up to her feet, supporting herself with her sword. The cruel gem smiled, satisfied with the burns she inflicted on her opponent. Tsavorite was back on her feet, clutching her blade tightly and gritting her teeth. Pyrite was loosening her right arm up while walking towards Tsavorite.
"That was a cute start, but let's be serious now. Round two." She declared.
/**/
Tourmaline was chasing Chrome Tourmaline towards a deep gulch in the ground, gradually catching up to his distracting clone. As they approached the edge, Tourmaline leaped forward and tackled the dark green gem into the hole. They struggled in the air to get the other to slam into some form of rock, but the two merely bounded down the dirt slope. They reached the bottom with Chrome throwing his original off of him. Tourmaline landed on his feet as his sneering mirrored foe summoned his blades.
"Alright, you may have won the race but there's no way you'll win the fight. The way it was going last time is proof enough of that." He boasted.
"You're acting like a quick fight where I was distracted mattered." Tourmaline shot back as he formed his grieves.
The two long twin blades shot out from the psychopathic gem's bracelets.
"You can't be serious. Face it, you're completely outclassed! I'm only three weeks old and I've already exceeded you! I'm the best of you, and the best of Pyrite. Just imagine how strong I'll be when I'm your age." Chrome guffawed.
Tourmaline responded with a stoic look.
"You're just a muddled mixture formed by inferior craftsmanship. Now shut up and come at me, I'm tired of seeing my face on that repulsive body of yours.".
The clone charged forward with the intent to kill, and Tourmaline responded with a few kicks releasing a couple green balls of energy. Chrome Tourmaline slashed them in half, but was greeted by Tourmaline in his face. The boy punched his taller self in the stomach and then followed up with a kick to the head. Chrome Tourmaline blocked the kick with his brace and headbutted Tourmaline. The light green gem stumbled back but regained his composure to dodge the blade being thrust toward his stomach. The boy grabbed his clone's arm and threw him over his shoulder. Chrome Tourmaline flew some tens of feet before landing back on his feet.
"Not bad Tourmaline…" He said as he turned around, rushing back towards Tourmaline, "For an obsolete wretch!
Tourmaline kicked at him, but the crazed gem deflected the kick with both of his blades. Tourmaline's foot was thrown to the ground, and Chrome Tourmaline immediately slashed at his opponent's torso. A line of emerald green formed across Tourmaline's orange tank top. Tourmaline punched his enemy in the face, but the dark green gem took it in stride.
"You call that an attack!?" He shouted.
A blade penetrated Tourmaline's stomach. A bit of green leaked from the corners of his mouth, and more came out as Chrome Tourmaline thrust his other blade into Tourmaline's stomach. He lifted the gem upwards so that his own weight would cause him to slide down the blades. Chrome Tourmaline's crazed face was right in Tourmaline's pained one. Tourmaline coughed in his face, a splat of green covering the clone's nose and mouth.
"Shh, just let it go. You'll make for great testing material. Just die knowing that you helped create the ultimate being." The sadistic gem said as he felt Tourmaline's stomach sink onto his clenched fists.
Tourmaline lowered his head in frustration. It was just like last time with Tsavorite. Only this time, he knows what it means. He knows exactly what he is. He shouldn't deny it, just not let it consume him. Rather, it would consume his enemies.
"I...I…" Tourmaline whispered.
Chrome Tourmaline got a bit closer to Tourmaline's face.
"What? Speak up? I can't hear you beg.".
Tourmaline didn't miss his opportunity. He opened his jaws as wide as possible and bit his opponent's face. Chrome Tourmaline screamed out in pain as he started to thrash in Tourmaline's mouth. His teeth sunk into the skin of his face and embedded themselves in his skull. Chrome Tourmaline closed his eyes as he lowered Tourmaline down onto the ground. He didn't want to see the inside of his foe's mouth. Tourmaline grabbed onto Chrome Tourmaline's shoulders to stop him from thrashing too much. He bit down harder, in an attempt to crack his doppelganger's skull. Chrome Tourmaline let his weapons fade away so he could push Tourmaline off of him. Tourmaline skidded on the ground a few feet, with two green holes in his shirt. He stopped bleeding, but the holes were still there. His eyes were emerald green once again, and his mouth was stained silver.
Chrome Tourmaline was mortified. He touched his face to feel the wet sensation of blood. All around his eye and forehead, Tourmaline managed to scrape away a layer of skin from his clone's forehead , revealing a silver, bloody dome underneath. Chrome Tourmaline looked back at his monstrous opponent with a newly kindled rage.
"You freaking maniac! I'll kill you slowly for this!" He promised.
Tourmaline licked his lips and charged forward. To his opponent's terror, he realized that his weapons weren't out. Tourmaline was upon him, and kicked right into his stomach. The blades of his shoe raced down to the sole before the blow hit, allowing them to break through Chrome Tourmaline's hard hide and sink into his soft stomach. The dark green gem flew back and a stream of silver followed him to the ground. Tourmaline leaped up into the air and dived downwards towards his downed opponent. His bladed foot pierced through skin and bone, with the resulting blow breaking Chrome Tourmaline's leg. The clone screamed out in pain, but saw his leg begin to glow green. In the next second, it blew up like a balloon filled with silver paint. He continued to yell, only to be silenced by Tourmaline stomping on his mouth.
"What's the matter? You're everything I am but better right? Then unleash your true potential and fight me for real!" Tourmaline demanded.
He lifted his foot from Chrome Tourmaline's face, revealing that he stomped some teeth out of his mouth and then pinned him down by the chest with another stabbing stomp.
"What...the hell are you talking about!?" Chrome Tourmaline yelled.
"What I'm talking about is abandon the useless defense! Give it all up and unleash your power! I did, and look at me!" The blooddrunk boy shouted.
"I...what are you...what!?" Chrome Tourmaline was trying desperately to piece together what Tourmaline was talking about.
Tourmaline clawed at his face, leaving three large gashes from where his nails raked into his skin. He bled, but he still had a sadistic look on his face.
"I don't need to heal! I have the power to crush whatever I want! Who cares if it comes with a little pain when I can bring it back tenfold!?" He shouted in his prisoner's face.
"I...you...what the fuck!?" Chrome Tourmaline cried.
"Come on! Do it already! Do it! Do it! Do it!" Tourmaline ordered as he began to stomp and kick his helpless opponent. He kept going until Chrome Tourmaline was reduced to a bloody pulp, and eventually poofed away.
Tourmaline was surprised by this. His smile faded into an irritated frown. He looked down to see the defeated gem's stones. He fell to his hands & knees and started to breathe heavily.
"Come on now...bring it back. Keep it together. Fight's over." Tourmaline whispered to himself.
The boy felt like he was about to wretch something up, but the sensation slowly began to fade. His eyes returned to their normal state and he felt like himself once again. He rolled over onto his back and took a few deep breaths. As he regained his sanity and stamina, he saw an odd shape fly overhead. It was Ametrine's cruiser. Tourmaline got back up to his feet and looked to see that the ship was flying slowly over the landscape as if it were searching for something.
Amidst the silence, Tourmaline heard the faint sound of explosions in the distance. He was about to rush towards the source of the noise, but he stopped to look at Chrome Tourmaline's gems. He picked up the two stones in both of his hands and looked down at them. He frowned and squeezed them tightly. The two stones turned to dust in his iron grip.
"I am the only me in this or any other world." He said to himself.
He turned around and started to climb out of the deep crater to find the source of the noise and maybe what Ametrine might be after.
/**/
Tsavorite cried out in pain as she was batted away from Pyrite. She rolled across the ground and Pyrite leaped up. The black gem looked up to see the monster come crashing down on her. She scrambled to her feet and ran away from the meteor-like impact. The injured gem's vision was starting to get blurry. The giant gem rushed forward to attack, the first punch dodged by Tsavorite jumping back, but the next punch tore through the side of her leg. Tsavorite was spun around due to the attack, but was then knocked away by a spiked backhand. She rolled across the ground, losing her grip on her sword.
Pyrite grinned, but her confident expression faltered when the sparkle of an object caught her eye. She turned her attention to the shining light and noticed a green gem shard. Pyrite picked it up and observed it.
"Hm, now this is some high quality stuff." She commented, "What're you doing with this?".
Tsavorite panicked as she noticed that her master's shard was torn away from her. Pure adrenaline, rage and devotion flooded her body. She roared out in anger as she got up to her feet and ran towards Pyrite. She picked up her sword and black and green flames engulfed the blade. She leaped towards Pyrite, sword primed to strike downwards at Pyrite's skull. Pyrite slipped the stone into her pocket and smiled. As the dark gem swung her sword down, the giant swatted the blade away and then grabbed her head with both hands.
"Nevermind. I got all the info I want." She said as she lifted her opponent's body up to then slam her head against her knee in a violent motion.
Tsavorite's skull was jelly at this point, as the poor gem twitched in pain as she laid on the ground, her face nearly smashed in as a flood of black blood leaked from her mouth, nose and eyes. Pyrite lifted the gem by her shirt, claiming the broken body as her trophy.
"You'll make perfect fodder for Feldspar's experiments." She stated.
"I'd...ra...rather...die than t-to be...a part of Yellow Diamond's faction...in any way!" The broken gem sputtered.
Pyrite grinned.
"That can be arranged. You're not a priority case anyway, not like Tourmaline." Pyrite said as she charged up another attack, "And I have that shard of yours, that should be good enough for her.".
She placed her charged palm on Tsavorite's side, let the blast charge up even more, but her arm was moved by an attack, letting the blast whiz behind her victim. Pyrite looked over her shoulder to see Jet and Topaz glaring at her. Pyrite frowned and tossed Tsavorite aside. She faced the two of them with a scowl.
"The rest of you maggots here?" She asked.
"M-maybe." Jet stuttered.
"You're a horrible liar." The monstrous gem retorted.
Topaz inched closer to Jet.
"Remember the plan. I'll put Tsavorite somewhere safe so Tourmaline can find her, we book it out of here and let the homeworld gems take care of Pyrite." He whispered.
"And Garnet?" Jet asked.
"She's going to speak with Tourmaline. If all goes well we'll just be able to run with our tails between our legs." Topaz stated as he twirled his sai.
Pyrite slowly advanced forward and the two gems stepped back.
"What were you two whispering about?" She asked.
"Just about how Tourmaline is gonna slaughter your ass when he gets the chance. He killed that cheap imitation of yours, and you'll be next." Topaz growled.
Pyrite's grin faded away.
"What? But he could handle me at fifty percent...the two of them could've only been fighting for three or five minutes...did he catch him off guard?" She thought.
"Heh, that shook you up didn't it?" Topaz said as he began to twirl his sai faster.
"Shut up! I'll kill the bastard before he can get me!" She retorted.
Jet grinned.
"So you're saying that he might get you?" She taunted.
Pyrite roared out as she charged at the two of them. Jet turned away as Topaz let his two spinning sai connect, creating a flashbang. Pyrite roared out in pain as she was blinded. Jet then let out a torrent of fog, as much as she could generate. While she puked her smog, Topaz rushed over to Tsavorite and rushed over to a hole in the crater. The pale gem placed the wounded gem inside of the hole and moved a giant rock over to block the hole.
"Tourmaline fill find you. Stay here until he does." He ordered.
Jet closed her mouth. The smokescreen was complete, and Pyrite was still recovering from the flashbang. She rushed over to the side of the crater to escape and Topaz ran to meet up with her.
"I won't let you scum escape!" Pyrite shouted as she released dozens of energy balls wildly in all directions.
Rocks were shattered, earth was tore asunder, and one lucky ball hit Jet in the back. She stumbled and started to slide back down the steep crater. Topaz turned around to see his ally fall back into the lion's pit, and rushed down to save her.
Pyrite's vision came back to her, and the force of the blasts dissipated the field of fog. She turned around to see the two gems and smiled. Jet got back to her feet using her blade as a crutch with Topaz helping her out. Their desperate expressions faded into horror as they saw Pyrite running towards them. Topaz got in between Jet and the charging beast, rushing forward towards Pyrite to buy his ally enough time to escape. However the mighty gem smacked him aside, hitting left gem hard enough to crack in the process. He bounded against the ground and rolled a bit. He painfully raised his head to see Pyrite grab Jet by the head and slam her into the ground.
"Stop!" He shouted as he tried to get to his feet.
Meanwhile, Jet felt true terror as the insane gaze of Pyrite was staring down at her. She reared her fist back and shot it straight down towards Jet. Jet raised her sword, bracing it with both hands to block the attack, but the might punch was enough to break through the tempered blade...and allow the spikes of her cestus pierce her gem. Jet didn't cry out in pain, she didn't roar out, she didn't make a sound. She just had a shocked and confused expression on her face. She knew this was supposed to hurt, but she didn't feel anything. She could still see, she could still hear the sound of Pyrite's spikes tearing themselves out of her flesh and stone, but all other senses were numbed.
"What…? That wasn't...supposed to…" She stammered, her following words went silent as her mouth moved.
Pyrite grinned and raised her foot up. Topaz tackled her other leg and tripped up the monster gem. A foolish act that only delayed the inevitable. Pyrite grabbed Topaz by the throat and glared at him. He could feel himself slipping away as she tightly squeezed his head and neck.
"You pathetic little wretches. Did you really think that stupid strategy could've fooled me? You clods deserve to die for that. I'll be doing your side a favor by getting rid of you." Pyrite stated.
"Tch...it doesn't matter. We've set you and your psychotic leader's destruction in place. Tsavorite is still alive...and that means she has the key to your destruction." He claimed.
Pyrite chuckled.
"Oh, you mean this?" Pyrite fished into her pocket and revealed Green Diamond's shard.
Topaz remained steadfast at the sight of the stone.
"That isn't it. That's just a chunk of stone from this stupid Earth you dumb bitch!" He yelled.
Pyrite frowned and placed the shard into her pocket.
"I know you're trying to trick me." she growled, "And I'm tired of your games. Die now!".
She stomped on Jet's chest, further fracturing her gem and causing her to spit up grey blood. The sadistic gem let Topaz fall from her grip only to immediately slam both of his side gems in a vicious clap. Topaz coughed up yellow blood as his left gemstone shattered and the other was badly fractured. He fell to his knees with a lifeless look on his face. Pyrite grinned she turned away from the two dying gems. Topaz used the last ounces of his strength to jump onto Pyrite's leg. The giant glared down at Topaz, but before she could remove him from her leg, she was distracted by the sound of a whirring engine.
Pyrite looked up at the sky to see a giant homeworld ship approaching the crater. She scowled at the ship, knowing it was the Homeworld scum after her and her mother. Topaz slumped of of her leg and the giant gem leaped out of the crater. She couldn't risk fighting a platoon and a warship at the same time, not with an important specimen on her. The ship slowly pursued the fleeing gem, leaving Jet and Topaz in their broken states. Topaz laid face first in the dirt, slowly rotating his head to look at his hand. His lips curled into a smile as he saw that he managed to nick the shard from Pyrite's pocket while she was distracted. He was lucky he got a second chance to steal it back.
/**/
Five Minutes Earlier…
As Tourmaline ran to the crater Ametrine's ship was racing off towards, he tripped over himself and fell to the ground. He gasped and groaned as he got back up to his feet. He still wasn't completely recovered from his battle with Chrome Tourmaline, but he couldn't let that stop him. He slowly stumbled to his feet, but began to wan and weave. He took a deep breath and looked forward, convincing himself that he had regained his composure.
"Tourmaline!" A smooth, familiar voice called out.
Tourmaline turned around to see Garnet staring him down. He heaved a heavy sigh as he faced his mentor.
"Why are you here? Did Topaz squeal?" He asked.
"He told us that you left, and not to interfere...but I saw something that would've completely derailed your quest. I had to come and help you out with that...but nothing more." She explained to him.
"Derailed? And what do you mean by that?".
She walked over to him until she was a mere foot in front of him. She looked down at him and he looked up to her concerned expression.
"You're right to think that you should do this alone. These gems are your people, they are technically bonded to your father for life, and thus now to you. Any of us intruding or following you would be selfish and could jeopardize everything for you. But I saw a vision...a vision of Tsavorite dying." Garnet took her shades off to show Tourmaline the concern in her eyes, "And I saw you...enraged and different. Like...you know. I couldn't let that happen. So we helped you out for only this.".
Tourmaline continued looking up at her with a determined stare. He was antsy to make it to the crater the ship was going, but if anything, this moment helped him recover his strength. Garnet leaned in closer to Tourmaline's face.
"The rest is up to you Tourmaline. We have our fight, but it's also yours. So finish your quest as soon as possible so we can finish this together.".
She leaned in and kissed him on the forehead. Tourmaline looked at her with a confused stare.
"Why did you do that?" He asked.
"For your protection." She answered.
She backed away from him and phased her shades back onto her face.
"We all believe in you. Good luck." She said.
With that, Garnet leaped away from Tourmaline. The boy was still bewildered by the conversation, but he felt happy that he got to talk to Garnet one last time before he was truly alone again. He turned around to see the ship flying across the crater he wanted to investigate with a shadowy figure running away from the area. He regained his serious composure and rushed over to find Tsavorite and continue his quest.
/**/
Tourmaline arrived at the edge of the crater and looked down to see the horrific aftermath. Any sense of confidence and courage crumbled away when he noticed his friend's lifeless bodies down in the dirt. He rushed down the side of the pit so quickly he almost tripped and rolled the rest of the way. He stumbled at the bottom and fell to his hands and knees. He looked to the side with a panicked expression and quickly crawled over to her and cradled the bloody gem in his arms. He looked down to see what little of her gem remained. She coughed up a bit more blood on herself and looked over at Tourmaline's face.
"Stay calm Jet! I can bring you to Steven! I can let this wait just a few more hours. Just hang in there!" He shouted.
Jet's eyes had tears streaming lazily down her cheeks as she used the last of her strength to reach out to Tourmaline's face. She caressed his cheek, attempted to say something to no avail, and then disappeared, leaving only a pile of black dust. He scraped the dust up to see if there was anything left of her, anything that could be used to revive her, but that pile was all that was left of one of his best friends. He gripped the black powder in his hands, but was brought back to horrific reality when he remembered there being two bodies.
"Tour...maline.." Topaz groaned.
Tourmaline rushed over to his friend's side and flipped him over, cradling him in his arms in the same manner he did with Jet. Topaz smiled at his former student as he felt his life fade away with each second.
"Topaz...don't tell me Ametrine and her crew did this to you." Tourmaline said.
Topaz chuckled.
"What? Of course not man…" He responded.
"It was her...wasn't it?" The green gem seethed.
Topaz winced in pain.
"Yeah...we distracted her long enough to save Tsavorite...she's over there…" Topaz pointed over to the hole in the crater masked by the rock he moved, "We tried to escape...but she caught us out of our plan...we aren't stupid enough to fight her head on.".
"I...I should've been here...Garnet should have been here!" Tourmaline growled.
"Tch...don't be dumb. What would've happened if you or her would've gotten here before us, or...even with us? We all would...be dead." He stated.
"Don't say that! You have a chance to survive." Tourmaline argued.
"Heh...fraid not buddy." Topaz motioned his head to have Tourmaline look down to see both of Topaz's gems shattered. Tourmaline looked back at his face with tears welling up in his eyes. Helplessness sinking into his soul as his oldest friend was dying and there was nothing he could do.
"Listen Tourmaline...I stole this back...from her." Topaz moved his arm to hand Tourmaline Green Diamond's shard.
Tourmaline took it in his hands and looked back at Topaz to see his pained expression.
"Topaz!" Tourmaline cried out.
"This is it...but listen Tourmaline...it's Pyrite. She may act like...a godlike badass, but the truth is she's scared." He admitted.
"What? Of Green Diamond?" The green gem wondered.
Topaz coughed.
"No...of you Tourmaline! Don't you see? Pyrite is getting desperate and making sure...our side has as few possible allies because you're there too...you're getting stronger than she imagined. Any of us imagined." Topaz answered.
Tourmaline looked at Topaz with a stern, stone faced look on his face. Topaz knew that his last few seconds were winding down, so he had to make his last words matter to Tourmaline. He smiled at Tourmaline.
"You've...exceeded...all expectations I've...ever had for you. I'm sorry...that...I can't...s...see…" He strained, and then was no more.
Tourmaline remained kneeling down. A part of him died with Topaz and Jet. The dust of the former gem's gemstones blew away with a breeze. Tourmaline closed his eyes as tears graced his cheeks.
"Good-bye Topaz...you were my best friend." He admitted.
Tourmaline got up to his feet, clutching his diamond's shard so tightly that the jagged edges dug into his hand. His hand was bleeding, but he didn't care. He wiped the tears from his eyes and walked over to Tsavorite's apparent hiding spot. He trudged with each step as thoughts of regret, hate and remorse flooded his mind.
"This can't go on anymore...my friends...my family. Jet...Topaz...Sapphire...Tanzanite… Ruby...that monster! This is the last time... no one else will die. I promise you...I promise all of you, I'll crush that bitch and end this all! We won't grieve anymore!" He shouted in his head.
Tourmaline stopped in front of the rock and placed his hand on the giant stone. Before he could move it, he saw a flash of white, and then he saw a vision of himself arching his back in pain in this exact area with a gem destabilizer in his back. He was brought back to reality and then dodged to the side. He saw the destabilizer from his vision bounce against the stone. He grabbed it and snapped the sparking thing in half.
"What was that...what was any of that!?" He thought.
Tourmaline snapped out of his delusion to look over and see Ametrine, Chalcedony, Carnelian and Morganite staring him down. Ametrine had a twisted grin on her face.
"Heh heh, I knew there was something special to back to the ship here." Ametrine said to the others.
Tourmaline silently placed the green shard in front of the rock and looked back at the other gems.
"I'm not in the mood to play games with you right now." He said calmly, "Leave now, and I won't shatter you.".
Ametrine and Morganite chuckled.
"Don't be a dumbass. You barely won your fight against my lovely leader one on one, but now she's got the best of the best here to back her up. We're prepared to take down Pyrite, so a little clod like you doesn't got a chance." The pink gem taunted.
Tourmaline took of his jacket and cracked his neck.
"Pity, and I was prepared to kick all of your asses." He retorted.
Morganite scowled in response as Carnelian stepped forward.
"Surrender now and we'll treat you a little more pleasantly. If Topaz sees something in you than maybe we can use you to coax him back to the right side." She suggested.
Tourmaline felt a twinge in his eye, but he didn't let loose just yet.
"That angle isn't going to work. Topaz is dead." He said bluntly. The words echoed in his mind, and it continued to fuel his rage.
Carnelian's professional demeanor was shattered as Tourmaline dropped that bomb. She looked around in a frantic motion but managed to see what little remained of Topaz's gemstones in the distance. She continued looking in that direction, but collapsed to her knees. She closed her eyes and resisted the urge to cry. Not in front of her allies. Not in front of the enemy. She grit her teeth, balled up her fists and opened her eyes.
"What did you do to him?" She asked before getting back to her feet and facing Tourmaline, "WHAT DID YOU DO!?".
"I did nothing, Pyrite killed him. We have a mutual interest in killing her, but she's mine and mine alone. So let me say this one last time, turn the hell around and escape this pit with your lives!" He threatened.
"You don't give orders, I do! Kill him!" The red gem screamed.
Tourmaline made the first move and charged forward, grieves forming on his legs as he ran forward. The four gems leaped away forming, with three of them forming a triangle around Tourmaline while Chalcedony was above him. She fished out several small blue orbs and dropped them to the ground, and then formed two shocking blue boomerangs from her gem. She threw them towards the bombs causing a massive explosion of blue light to come forth. Dust and light contorted and enveloped each other while the others grinned at the success of their trap.
"Tch, stupid brat." Chalcedony commented.
Her confident smirk disappeared when she saw Tourmaline leap up from the smoke. His leg was raised up at a near ninety degree angle, and his bladed heel came crashing down on the blue gem's skull like a guillotine. The Homeworld gem's head burst into a sea blue geyser as Tourmaline's kick tore it asunder. The other gems looked on in terror as he and their ally's gem came falling back down to the ground. The three of them charged forward, Ametrine and Morganite armed with destabilizers. Tourmaline's leg began to glow and he released another ball of energy towards the ground. The resulting blast created another smokescreen of dust. The three gems stopped in front of where Tourmaline would've landed, but the nimble gem managed to stealthily move before they could make it to him. A trick that his mentor taught him was still helping him. The other gems began to fan out to find him.
"Grrr, where the hell did he go?" Carnelian seethed.
"You can't hide forever scum!" Morganite called out.
As Tourmaline glided across the ground to pick out his potential prey, visions flashed in his head once more. One of him attacking Ametrine but being countered. Another of him striking Carnelian but being attacked shortly after. Then one of Morganite, and only her being surprised. The odd sixth sense he gained pointed out his perfect target. He rushed forward towards Morganite and the pink gem spun around to see him in grabbing distance from her. He batted away her destabilizer, covered her mouth with one hand and started squeezing her throat with the other. The pink gem could barely move, the force he was exerting on her face and neck was unbearable, and she fell to her knees.
Ametrine walked in a circle, constantly looking all directions to spot any sign of her target.
"Grrr… Tourmaline!" She roared out.
She turned to see the outline of his body in the cloud and her frustrated expression shifted into a devilish grin.
"There you are." She whispered to herself.
She took her destabilizer and threw it towards the figure. However the outline leaped away from the attack. Her irritation quickly shifted to a shocked feeling as a burst of light came from her tossed destabilizer.
The dust settled and she was Morganite falling to pieces before poofing into her gem.
"Damn it all! He'll pay for making me hurt one of my lovelies!" She growled.
Carnelian moved to her side as the dust continued to settle. Once it was finally gone, they saw Tourmaline staring them down from a distance with a grin on his face.
"He's taken two of us down so easily with such simple methods...I can see why Topaz saw so much in him. Better be careful now." Carnelian stated.
"Be careful!? We don't need caution, we need action!" The purple gem summoned her two tonfas, "Now let's crush him!".
The two rushed forward and Tourmaline ran forward as well. As Ametrine punched and slammed and Carnelian stabbed and kicked, Tourmaline dodged each attack while visions of him being impaled, pulverized or destabilized flashed in front of him like a horrid fever dream. He still managed to keep his wits about him and dodge and block each attack his opponents were throwing at him. However he made a misstep and Ametrine slugged him across the jaw. He slowly began to fall and Carnelian was moving in for the kill. Tourmaline thought quickly and grabbed Ametrine's tonfa and yanked her forward. As he regained his footing, the red gem's stab hit the wrong target. Her foil's needle piercing through Ametrine's upper thigh. She let out a cry of pain as Tourmaline then spun around, his leg once again glowing as he kicked Ametrine's side. The blade of his shoe pierced through her skin like a hot knife through butter, and the force behind his kick coupled with the tearing in her side allowed Tourmaline to tear her in half. Carnelian looked to the side to see Tourmaline's glowing shin coming closer to her face, and her ally being turned into a golden fountain. The last thing she saw was a flash of green.
"Topaz…" She thought.
The energy blast from Tourmaline's leg blew her head off, and her gem fell to the ground.
"That was great way for me to work out this rage. Thanks for that." He said.
Tourmaline clutched his chest and started to breathe heavily again. Two major fights in one day were taking their toll on him. He was glad that it was all over at this point.
"So these guys were packing enough firepower to incapacitate Pyrite? No wonder she's so scared of me." He thought.
He turned around, but to his surprise he saw Tsavorite staring him down, sword in both hands with the shard at her feet.
"You won't...take her away." She called out.
Tourmaline could tell that she was badly injured, so he started to walk over to her calmly, his weapons disappearing as he approached her.
"I'm not here to fight Tsavorite. I know who you are, I know what that is...I know all about Green Diamond!" He called out.
She raised her blade high up, and slashed it forward, producing a wave of green and black energy. Tourmaline was caught off guard by the sudden burst of energy and the blast nearly tore him asunder. It blew up and he fell backwards, a large burn line left on his torso. Tsavorite dropped her sword and fell to her feet.
"Slowed him down...now to move." She thought as she moved to pick up the shard.
To her horror, Tourmaline was already back on his feet and running towards her. She scrambled to grab the shard and brought it close to her chest and curled up around it. It was the best she could do, there was no way that she could escape him in her condition. The sound of him running towards her stopped and she expected more punishment to come, but it didn't. All was silent for seconds as Tourmaline stared down at her.
"You probably won't believe what I have to say, but we need to get out of here so I can talk to you about everything. As I said, I know about Green Diamond, and I want to help." He explained.
"I don't believe you!" She shouted, "Green Diamond is dead! Yellow Diamond and the other diamonds destroyed her! Every gem should know that!" She screamed.
"Not every gem. Outside of you, Bloodstone and Azurite, there's another gem that knows the truth.".
The black and green gem stopped tensing up and slowly slipped out of the fetal position. She struggled to sit up, but managed to turn and look at Tourmaline with a curious stare thanks to his assistance.
"How do you know about them?" She asked, "Have you captured them?".
"No, but I know I need your help to find two of them. As for the fourth…".
Tourmaline's body was engulfed in green energy. Defusing was a very odd experience for him, but it was the best way to get Tsavorite on his side. His gemstones contorted and shifted into their original forms, and he divided into two separate gems. To Tsavorite's surprise, her long lost companion Jade and his lover Aquamarine appeared before him.
"It's good that you got acquainted with my son." Jade said.
All of the fear and pain Tsavorite felt was immediately numbed. She felt tears of joy well in her eyes as she looked up at Jade.
"You're...you're…" She repeated.
Jade crouched down and picked her up.
"We have a lot to tell you." Jade said, "But here is not the place.".
"We'll go back to the cave and hide there." Aquamarine stated.
/**/
Day faded to night as Garnet sat on the warp pad home. A tear fell down from beneath her visor as she realized that her allies were not coming home. She got to her feet and walked onto the warp pad. As the light of the warp pad carried her back home, she felt the sense of powerlessness and grief well up in her stomach. She wanted to blame herself, she wanted to say that she wanted to say to hell with Tourmaline' s pride and bring everyone, but she knew that either way something awful was going to happen whether or not she interfered or stopped it all together. This was the best option where there was the lowest chance that someone would die, and Tourmaline's quest could still continue, but it still ended in tragedy. She just prayed that Tsavorite at least survived, or their sacrifice was all for nothing.
When she made it home, Steven rushed in front of Garnet with a glowing smile on his face.
"Garnet! Garnet! You won't believe it! We know where Feldspar is now!" He declared.
Buergerite stepped forward with the key to her drones in her hand.
"Your tip about the Homeworld ship and Pyrite was dead on. One of them has tracked Pyrite all the way to an underground chasm and to what no doubt has to be Feldspar's base. We can charge in at anytime and take them down." The grey gem stated.
Garnet just stared at her allies. She wanted to be happy, she wanted to be a leader and get everyone ready to go off, but she couldn't feel it in the midst of the tragedy. Steven's smile faded as the other gems started to gather around her. Even Jasper moved towards the group, but still kept her distance. Taz was the first to step forward.
"Garnet...where's Topaz?" The little gem asked.
Pearl and Amethyst could tell something happened. Garnet never acted like this. Obsidian was the next to move forward.
"And where's Jet?" The large gem asked.
The tall fusion was still silent. Steven inched a bit closer to her and looked straight up at her face.
"Garnet?".
/**/
Feldspar was staring at a large crystal tank with various wires and terminals linked up to the metallic base. In the center of it, Charoite was prowling about and growling. The beast was restless, but not aggressive. As she stared at the beast, Liddicoatite rushed into the dark room.
"Master! Is it true!? You're going to cure her now?" She asked.
The cybernetic gem turned around and looked at her with a warm smile.
"Yes my dear. You and your friend will be united again." She promised.
Liddicoatite dropped to her knees and bowed before her master.
"Oh thank you Feldspar thank you!" She cried out.
Feldspar placed her hands on her shoulders and continued looking at her.
"There's just one thing I need for the process to be complete." She said.
The multicolored gem looked up at her with a concerned stare.
"Yes, anything!".
Feldspar's smile jerked into a serious scowl.
"You.".
A green light formed near the the base of the crystal casing and a large opening appeared. Feldspar gripped her subordinate's shoulder's tightly and threw her into the tank. Liddicoatite was thrown into Charoite and the beast hissed in response. The hole disappeared and Feldspar walked over to one of the terminals. She started typing away at the terminal and Liddicoatite rushed over to the transparent wall where Feldspar was working.
"What...what are you doing master? I shouldn't be in here, should I? I'm not corrupted, so why do I-".
"This process might form a conscious gem like you and I, so you definitely need to be in the tank.".
"Might form...what are you saying?" A sense of terror crawled up Liddicoatite's spine.
"This machine has the power to permanently fuse gems together. I want to see what will happen between a normal, functioning gem and a corrupted one." Feldspar explained.
Liddicoatite began to slam her fist against the wall.
"You're using us as test subjects!? This can't work! You're insane!" She shouted.
"Oh but it can work. I've already used it on a couple of our prisoners, and it was a success. So there is a chance that this can work." She said.
The machine began to whirr and various panels around it began to light the room up. The terrified gem brought her tomahawks out and started slashing at the wall, but they did nothing to damage it.
"This is insane! I wanted her to be normal again not...this!" She shouted.
Feldspar still typed away at her panel, but then smirked.
"Oh but you two will be better than normal. You have the potential to become something incredible. And poor Charoite's suffering will finally be over." The grey gem said.
"Not like this you fucking freak!" Liddicoatite screamed out.
The machine was as loud as it could be, and all lights were on. Feldspar chuckled a little.
"Oh come on now. I'm not a freak…" she placed her finger on the activation button, "...but you might be.".
She pressed it, and a second later the tank was filled with bright white light. Charoite roared out in pain while Liddicoatite screeched as loud as possible. Their gems were torn apart by the molecule and started to meld together in Feldspar's twisted generator. As Feldspar smiled at her handy work, Pyrite walked in on her. Feldspar turned around and flashed a terrifying smile.
"Hello dear." She greeted.