"Bixbite! Come on!" Garnet yelled into the temple again.
She slipped the last augment on to her finger after she had plucked it from a pile of clothes on Garnet's room floor.
~Crystal we probably should clean the room as soon as we get back...there's clothes everywhere...~

~...I...I'm sorry! Steven told his dad how much I like clothes...~ Bixbite shifted.

~So...he and Steven had taken me to a bunch of fancy shops and...I just couldn't resist...~

~Clearly...why did you have him buy it? You could have just modified your form.~

~It's just not the same as the feeling I get from owning them...~ Crystal whispered.

Bixbite shook her head as she exited the temple and stepped on the warp pad with Garnet and Pearl.

~Pearl, would have a fit if she saw our room...and...actually, I don't think Garnet cares very much, but still...usually I'm the messy one.~

"As you, both know, Steven and Connie had their first mission together the other day." Pearl started.
"Uh yea...you were in charge of that how did it go?" Bixbite voiced.
"Hmm..for the most part, it went well..." She started.
"You ran into Jasper..." Garnet threw out. "...and she took the corrupted gems."
Bixbite tensed.
"I said for the most part," Pearl cleared up again. "She got away but Steven and Connie did really well for their first time."
"...True." Garnet replied.

As they landed Bixbite frowned.
"Why did no one tell me that there would be snow everywhere?"
As if on cue her back gem began to light up.
She sighed.
"Back up,"
Garnet and Pearl hoped off the warp pad.
An electric current shimmered over her for a moment as she crossed her arms.
...

"...what is that about?" Pearl asked curiously.

"Crystal Quartz is sensitive to the extreme cold," She started, hopping off the pad. "Because I just went from the extreme heat of Garnet's room to here my healing attributes with be a little slower until I can even out again, so be careful." The surge stopped. " But other than that I'm fine." She reassured as they continued.

"...but gems aren't affected by temperature." Pearl continued.

"If you are comparing us to humans then you're right. Just going from one extreme temperature to the other too quickly could be a bother for some gems, nothing damaging for me but it is annoying."
Bixbite shrugged. "And it doesn't affect us like it would a human, as you also know."

"Garnet is lucky in that regard," She sighed dramatically as she glanced over at her silent teammate. "She can just hop into lava and switch to the cool sea like it's no one's business, as we all know."
Pearl looked slightly concerned at her words.
"Don't lose your head over it Pearl, I'm fine...you know, the opposite is true too." She grinned as she patted Pearl hard on her back. "Some gems benefit from the extreme change."

"Shush!" Garnet suddenly quieted their talk.
Listening carefully they heard a cry on the wind...

"...sounds like another corrupted gem," Pearl whispered.
Bixbite and Garnet nodded.

"Find it and we might find Jasper." Bixbite voiced.
They took off in the direction of the cry.
-

"...Beryl...what can you see?" Garnet voiced.
Bixbite placed her hand gently on the footprint.
Following the tracks would be the easier part but they needed to know in what state did the corrupted gem run this way.
It could give them a clue to if Jasper was chasing this one too.

"...hm...," Bixbite stared at the past image of the corrupted gem. "...this one is way smaller than the others...at one point it was running with them...all three split up..." Her eyes narrowed. "...wait a minute,"

"What is it?" Pearl called.

"...its gem...is damaged..." Bixbite frowned. "...I think the other two were protecting it...from Jasper."
That caught Pearl's and Garnet's attention.

"They...were acting as it's mother?" Pearl whispered. "Why?" She asked Garnet.
Garnet shifted as they both looked at her.

"..."

"...I don't know...sometimes it seems like corrupted gems do things randomly...but I think there's always some hidden goal behind everything they do...regardless if we can understand it or not, there's more than meets the eyes that's going on here." Bixbite stood as she finished.

"...Just because we don't see Jasper's footprints doesn't mean she isn't still here or after this gem." Garnet finally spoke.
They all agreed.

As the weather got worst they continued forward with the help of Garnet's future and Bixbite's past version.
The footprints may have been covered but it wasn't like the wind could erase the fact that they had been there in the past or the fact that that gem still was alive so there for had a future.

When the three of them came across a cave they paused.

"...Is this it?" Pearl voice summoning her weapon.

"...It's somewhere here...be careful." Garnet said summoning her own weapon.

All three of them lit their gems as they walked into the cave.
They realized quickly it wasn't just a cave it was caverns.
The tunnels ran deep but they all decided it would be best if they didn't split up in here.
They had maybe been walking for twenty minutes when they heard it.
A loud roar echoed throughout the caverns.
They froze when they saw the damaged gem.
It was sniffing around for something.

"...What's it doing?" Bixbite pondered.
Garnet shook her head.

"I wouldn't worry about it...slowly spread out so we can surround it." She ordered.
They used the fact the corrupted gem hadn't noticed them yet to their advantage as Pearl flanked slowly right and Bixbite took on left summoning her weapon finally.
...

At the last moment, they tensed as the gem jerked and wildly turned to the lead of the group.
It growled as it coward nervously slowly backing away from the cautiously advancing Garnet.
She gave the others a signal as she drew its attention slowly on her, opening her weapon covered hands, trying to get it to lower its guard.
If she could get it to lower it's guard enough the other two could jump in, to poof it without causing any more damage to it's already cracked gem.
Usually, they would just take it out as quickly as they could, but their aim was never to actually harm the physical gem, No.
Roughhousing it could accidently shatter its gem and that was the last thing any of them wanted.
"...Remember you two, its gem is on its neck be careful." She reminded.
Suddenly, Garnet tensed and gritting her teeth as the gem grew antsy and threw backs its head and gave another call.
Bixbite lunged forward pinning it carefully to the ground before poofing it.
It was Pearl that caught it's gem.
It was the distraction they needed to poof and bubble it but...

"Pearl! Get out the way!" Bixbite shouted in horror.

"Pearl!" Garnet yelled.
The poof sound was heart-wrenching and was all they heard for a moment, despite the huge corrupt gem that had just steamrolled into the opening from out of a dark cavern tunnel with a bellow.
It rammed all its weight into her, which was a lot compared to the tiny Pearl that had just been poofed from its charge.

This corrupted gem wasn't just one gem.
It was a fusion of different types of its own kind...this had to be what Jasper was looking for.
When it lifted up on its hind legs above Pearl's gem both fusion paled.

"Bixbite!"
At Garnet's demanding voice she lunged for her.

Iris Agate POV

Swiftly I leaped forward summoning and combining my weapons. At the last possible second, my hammer side slammed into the corrupted fusion's chin sending her flying back.
I watched as it yelped and landed in a heap on the ground.

"...Ugh...that was way too close..." I started. "Stay focused! It's not done." I shifted with a pout.
"Ya ya I know."

I cracked my neck as my parts settled and smirked.

"It's always great being me," I crossed my lower arms. "...but I didn't know I had this much strength." I relished for a moment before spotting Pearl's gem still sitting on the ground.
I frowned, my upper arm swagging my weapon over my shoulder as I reached for the Pearl.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you," I said gently.

"Yeah, just sit back and relax." I grinned as I looked back up at the recovering gem fusion. "I think it's time that she learns some..." Bubbling Pearl I let her float up into the air. "Manners!" I swung my hammer side at the gem again as I lunged for her.
My lower arms uncrossed as I tossed my weapon down to my lower set to swipe at the gem again with axe side, going for a low blow.
The fusion shrieked at me jumping out the way.
I laughed and ripped my weapon out of the stone wall it impaled.
"Oh! So you're finally ready to fight back huh?!" I teased.
It prepared to charge me as I rolled my shoulders and cracked the other side of my neck with a deep frown suddenly.
"Good, because I won't forgive you." I scowl in a monotone.