Chapter Eighteen: Manifesto

November 7, 2015. BAINE Headquarters.

"...and there you have it, folks. This transmission was recently broadcast all around the world from a secure location," Gina explained. "This is the Children of Homeworld's endgame."

Dr. Rhodes had recently been trawling the airwaves for transmissions from any source. Once Director Mills had told him that St. Augustine has sided with Mr. Echo, he had been searching tirelessly for any trace of Polaris' underground activities. In the process, he had come across the Radiant One's message to his followers. He had immediately passed this info to Mills, who had ordered it distributed to the rest of the bureau. Gina herself had been the one to show the recording to Fireteam Victor.

"Welp...that about sums it up," said Ichigo. "I knew these people were bonkers, but this is on a whole new level."

"Trust me, this is tame stuff compared to what's usually going on," said Hester. "These people really seem to think that the Diamonds own the Earth. They really believe that they're the good guys."

"Which makes them all the harder to fight," said James. "When people think they're in the right, they fight even harder."

"Eh, none of that matters in the long run!" said Vargas. "These psychos are just a bunch of fanatics in colorful dresses. 'Righteous' or not, I doubt they can do much against us."

"I'm not so sure," said Daniel. The others turned to look at him. "There's too many factors here to make that decision yet. Not only is Mr. Echo pulling the Children's strings, but he's also working with Polaris, for who knows how long. Not only that, but this nonsense about the 'Sanctum Adamantum' rubs me the wrong way. Hester, you didn't happen to hear anything about that place while you were incognito, did you?"

"Not in any usable sense," she said. "I heard it mentioned a few times, but only in passing. I didn't even get to work out what it is."

"You know what? From the sound of things, it's probably their base," said Luke.

"No, you really think so?" said Vargas. "What an insightful comment!"

"Alright, just stating the facts!" said Luke annoyed.

"And the obvious," Vargas shot back.

"Can we please not get on each other's cases?" said James. "Especially not at a time like this! You heard the man: Mr. Echo gave them weapons, armed them to be powerful enough to take us on. And according to Hester, Echo means business. He wouldn't have allied with the Children unless he thought they were capable of threatening BAINE."

"So, what should we do, then?" asked Ichigo. "We know that Echo knows where our base is, so it's safe to assume the Children do too. Do we move, or do we prepare for an attack?"

"Yeah, Mills isn't sure either," said Gina. "He and Eddie were thinking about staying here, though. Say it's safer."

"Good point," said Daniel. "We don't know what to expect from these people, and they could attack at any time. I think we should prepare for attack."

"Works for me," said Vargas. He stood up, walking for the door. "The sooner these cult freaks are dealt with, the sooner we can get back to worrying about the end of the world."

"Ooh, right, I almost forgot about that," said Gina. "Gotta get back to Eddie on that one…"

James turned to Vargas before he left. "And where exactly do you have to be right now?"

"Target practice," he said.

Luke grinned slightly. "What, aren't you already enough of a marksman?"

"Could always be better," Vargas shot back, before closing the door behind him.

"So...about the Cluster…" said Hester.

James shrugged, shaking his head. "I'm not the man to ask there. I know about as much as anyone else at this point."

"You know what?" said Gina. "I think we could really do with a check-up with the CGs. I think I'm gonna ask management if we can arrange one."

"Sounds like a good idea," said Daniel. "We need all the information we can get nowadays. It's definitely in short supply…"

"Hey, Cap?" asked Luke. "You'd tell us if you knew something we didn't, right?"

"'Course I would, Svartign," said Daniel. "Unless it was classified."

"So...do you?" said Luke. "Know anything we don't, that is. About...well, anything going on, really."

Daniel sighed. "Trust me. There's so many things going on right now, and I wish I knew more about all of them."

November 19, 2015. Somewhere in Rural Carolina.

Gina impatiently tapped on her watch as she waited for one of the Gems to arrive. She wasn't aware of which one it would be, but she wished that they would show up already. The late afternoon sun hung over the plains, and the black sedan she was sitting against could only offer so much shade. Maybe asking for this meeting wasn't the best idea in hindsight. After a while, she could hear the warp pad activating from the other side of the car. Relieved, she stood up to greet her informant.

"What up!?" Gina was greeted by Amethyst, the purple Gem stepping down from the warp pad to greet her. "You wanted to talk?"

"Amethyst, I hadn't expected to see you today," Gina said.

"And is that a good thing, or a bad thing?" Amethyst asked before Gina could reply.

"Wha...Good! It's a good thing, of course, but I-"

Amethyst cracked a smile. "Don't worry, I'm just messin'! You guys are all business, seriously."

"Well, can't really blame us for that, can you?" replied Gina. "I mean, what with the Cluster and all."

"Hmm. That's what you wanted to talk about, huh?"

"Yup. How're you guys doing on that drill of yours? Peridot pulling her weight at all?"

"Y'know, I'm surprised," said Amethyst. "Once she lightened up, she's surprisingly alright. Steven seems to like her, anyway."

"Doesn't Steven like everybody, though?" said Gina.

"Yeah, but this is different," said Amethyst with a shrug. "I've spent some time with her. She's...well, she's good people. I think Homeworld just doesn't let Gems like her be themselves. Like, I wasn't around for the old war, but that's probably why Rose rebelled."

"I'll bet," Gina said. "How's progress on the drill so far?"

"We're gettin' there," Amethyst said. "Pearl and Peri make a good team, when they actually wanna. They didn't get along so great at first. Y'know, nobody got along with Peri at first, except Steven."

"I swear, that kid has a heart of gold," Gina said with a laugh. "Hey, maybe he could make friends with the Cluster!" Both she and Amethyst laughed at this little bit of humor. "Oh, if only it were so easy…"

"Somehow, I don't think that'll work," Amethyst said. "He'd probably try if he got the chance, though!"

"I don't doubt it," Gina said. "But anyways, it's good to know you've got a plan. Back home, we're stumbling around trying to deal with the Children of Homeworld and all that drama. Yeesh."

Amethyst looked at her, confused. "Uh, the children of who now?"

"Children of Homeworld," repeated Gina. "They're this cult that worships Gems, and wants the Diamonds to come back, and they declared war against BAINE. Don't worry about that, though, we're handling it."

"Uh...I hope so, 'cause I have no idea what any of that was about," Amethyst said. "Well, good luck on your children, or whatever that is."

"Thanks. Good luck on taking care of the Cluster."

"Will do." The two of them parted ways, both heading to take care of their respective problem. Not that either problem would be in any way easy...