Steven laid loudly asleep in his bed. When he suddenly woke up by hushed voices coming from downstairs.
He sat up, rubbing the tiredness out of his eyes. He looked at the time on his phone. 01.36.
He threw away his quilt and tip-toed over to the end of his room so he could look downstairs.
The voices turned out to be coming from Greg, Pearl, Garnet and Amethyst.
Garnet was leaned against the kitchen-table, Amethyst sat in the couch and Pearl stood up like Greg.
"Look, I got family back in Ginger Crust, which is a five hour long trip from here. They won't talk to me, but if we explain the situation I'm sure there's room in one of their homes." Greg explained in a hushed tone. "Or you guys could rent a trailer and we'll just settle down on a camping for a while."
"There's not enough room." Garnet crossed her arms.
"We have nowhere to leave the bubbles! And we can't just leave them in the temple!" Pearl whispered in panic.
"Unless..." Garnet began, putting a hand to her chin.
Everyone looked at her, waiting for her to end her sentence.
"Unless what?" Amethyst asked.
"Unless we make sure nobody can get to them." Garnet finished her point.
"What are you saying?" Pearl asked.
"We have to destroy it." Garnet said.
Everyone gasped. Steven's eyes widened.
Garnet nodded. "Tomorrow at sunrise, I'll destroy both the temple door and the warp." She said.
Pearl wanted to protest.
But Garnet interrupted her. "We can't risk anyone getting hurt in there. It was never our intend."
Pearl looked down, letting a few tears run down her cheeks.
A tear ran down Steven's cheek as well.
It was early morning and the sky was bright with a few hints of clouds.
Steven sat in his room on the floor.
Pearl carried the last box down the stairs, leaving him alone.
He was busy packing the last few things into his cheeseburger backpack.
It was his MC-bearbear, and then there was a few photos.
A photo.
He stayed watching one of the pictures for a long while.
It was a picture of his seventh birthday, told by the huge 7 candle on his cake. The gems stood behind him with his dad, clapping and cheering as he blew out his candles.
Steven smiled softly and then packed it into his backpack.
He then stood up to look at his room.
It was so empty. The only thing that was left was his bed, only with the bedding being removed. Apart from that, there was nothing left.
There was a sob coming from downstairs. He tiptoed down the stairs, quietly so that nobody would hear him.
Pearl was packing the last few pieces of the cutlery, Amethyst had her elbows resting on the table and her hands digging into her frizzy hair, looking like she hadn't slept in weeks. And Garnet was resting her chin against her palm while her other hand was holding a still foaming cup of coffee.
"Steven-." Garnet stuttered in surprise when she saw him, drying away the tears with the lower part of her palm. The rest turned around to watch him as well in surprise.
"I'm ready." He told them, a bit shyly.
The gems gave him a soft smile. Not a happy one. But a smile.
In the next scene, the gems were carrying stuff out of the house, and Greg stood ready to push them into the van.
Meanwhile, Steven was watching them from the window.
He sighed and turned around.
The room was so empty. The couch and all the tables were still there, and the lamps as well. Still, it was still empty.
He looked up at his room.
Empty, not a single thing left. Not even dust.
And then there was the temple-door. He just stared at it for a long while, looking at the gems placed on the door. More or less staring at the Rose- Quartz gem at the bottom.
Some tears began forming in his eyes.
When suddenly, he heard footsteps and a hand rest against his shoulder.
"Everything's set Stu-ball." Greg told him. "You ready?" He asked. But he noticed his son's sadness. "Hey, Steven. If you want some time, I get it. We could wait outside and-."
"No! No. I- I'm ready!" Steven exclaimed, drying some tears away.
But Greg crouched down and hugged him anyway. "I know, son. We're all there." He told him and Steven hugged him back.
The next thing he did was closing the door behind him, looking at the house before him. And the temple holding it.
Greg was the driver, and Pearl and Amethyst sat beside Steven in the backseat, Amethyst being the middle.
They sat there, waiting.
It was quiet.
When suddenly-
There was a loud sound, sounding like something solid crushing through stone.
Pearl covered her mouth, shutting her eyes.
Amethyst looked down.
Steven looked out the window as Garnet walked out of the house and sat down in the front-seat.
She turned her head and nodded towards the gems.
The gems nodded back.
And so, they started driving.
And as they drove, they passed by the town they had grown to love.
Lars and Sadie was working outside the Big Donut. As they passed them, Sadie looked sad and Lars seemed as bored as ever. But still, Sadie waved.
It felt like everyone was watching them as they passed by.
The only ones who didn't ignore them were the cool kids, Vidalia and some others they knew, who looked either guilty, sad, or quite happy they were leaving.
Another one was Connie, who stood by and waved at the as they passed by.
The atmosphere in the van was heavy.
Garnet was more quiet than ever, Pearl looked rather sad and Amethyst felt rather angry.
And soon, they passed the sign saying 'Leaving Beach City. Sea you again!'
"How about some tunes?" Greg asked, putting in a CD. "This was one of Rose's favorites!"
And so it played one of the worst sounds they've ever heard. It wasn't really a song, rather a buzzing sound.
"Oh, dang it! It's doing it again!" Greg whined, trying to find the right channels. "It's been doing this since this morning. Old, cheap radio!" He grunted.
Steven just looked at him before looking out the window.
Maybe twenty minutes into their driving, Pearl was starting to feel uncomfortable and sat up straighter.
"Hey! We don't have to have all those frowny faces! Why don't we play a 'car game?'" She suggested. "I spy with my little eye something... blue!"
"The flowers?" Steven asked.
"No."
"The color of this stupid game?" Amethyst muttered, bored.
"No."
"The sky?" Steven asked.
"Right! Well done, Steven!" Pearl clapped her hands. "Now it's your turn!"
"I spy with my little eye something..." Steven squinted his eyes. "White!"
"The markings on the road?" Pearl suggested.
"No."
"Pearl's enormous nose?" Amethyst teased.
"Amethyst!" Pearl scolded at her, and Amethyst laughed.
"Hey!" They both tensed by Garnet's sharp voice. "Let Steven do his thing." She told them.
They both sat back.
"Tell us what is was, Ste-man!" Amethyst told him.
"The clouds!" Steven grinned and everyone sighed. "Your turn Amethyst!"
"Nah, I'm bored. Do Pearl again." Amethyst said, closing her eyes.
"Me? Well alright then. " Pearl nodded and looked outside. "I spy with my little hand something... green!"
When suddenly, Steven's eyes widened. "A GIANT SPACE HAND?!"
"No. Steven, if you're not gonna take this seriously we better off- WHAAT?!" Pearl suddenly shrieked.
Greg lost control of the wheel for a second and they all made a complete turn around until he pressed the break and they stood still.
Immediately, everyone burst out of the car and looked up.
And just like he said, there was a big, green ship in the shape of a hand far, far up in the sky, slowly moving.
"What the heck is that?!" Greg shouted.
"It's Homeworld." Garnet confirmed.
"And it's heading for the city!" Pearl gasped.
"What?!" Steven exclaimed. "You guys! We need to help them!" He shouted.
"No way, dude! They were the ones who kicked us out!" Amethyst argued, crossing her arms.
"But-."
"Steven's right. We need to help the people." Garnet ordered. "It was our sworn duty to protect them from gems like us."
Amethyst looked away, feeling defeated.
"Garnet, what are we gonna do?!" Pearl asked in panic.
Garnet adjusted her visor. "Steven stays here."
"What?! But I wanna help too!" Steven exclaimed walking closer to her.
But Garnet just crouched down before him. And he could see his face in her visor.
"It's too dangerous."
Steven stepped back in fear.
Garnet stood up and turned to Greg. "Greg, you and Steven keep going. We'll find you when we get back."
"Roger that!" Greg saluted them and they ran off to the city.
Steven and Greg sat in the car, on their way not the road.
"I really hope they're okay." Steven muttered.
Greg tried to give him a supporting smile. "Hey, kiddo. It's the gems! They always find a way." He told him.
"But what if they don't? What if homeworld has something they can't protect themselves from? I can! I have mom's shield!" Steven pulled up his shirt to reveal his gem.
"How do you know?! How do you think your shield will hold?! Maybe it's not strong enough for a second hit!" Greg tried to argue back.
"Second hit?" Steven asked.
Greg tensed.
"Dad, when was the first hit?" Steven asked.
Greg had a hard time right now.
"Dad!"
Greg grimaced. "Okay! Okay." He calmed down. "The gems should really be telling you this, but... homeworld, as you know, did something terrible to the planet. And your mother, she couldn't stand it anymore. She had to turn on her own kind just to stop what they started and keep homeworld gems from invading earth. And the gems are just trying to make up for it, to pay for the damage that Homeworld did." He referred to the corrupted gems that the gems had fought during the years.
"They invaded earth?" Steven asked in chock. "B-but they won! That's good!"
"There's no such thing as a good war, kiddo." Greg mumbled. "Gems were destroyed. People too. And at the last hit towards earth, homeworld made an ugly move and... if it wasn't for your mom's shield... Pearl and Garnet wouldn't have been here today."
He looked down at his son. Steven looked destroyed, even guilty.
"Dad, we need to go back." He told him.
"No way! It's either no way or Norway!" Greg demanded.
"But they need me!" Steven shouted.
"I need you too!" Greg shouted.
"Dad, stop the VAN!" Steven slammed the dashboard.
Which eventually lead to the airbag activating, which activated Steven's bubble which send him out of the window of the car and out to the ground.
"Steven!" Greg gasped, stopping the van and ran over to his son as the bubble disappeared. "Steven! Are you okay?!" He asked, lifting him up.
"Yeah." Steven nodded as he sat up. "But I'm scared they won't be."
He looked at his father pleadingly. "Dad, please. I need to help them."
Greg could only look at him helplessly. Until... he sighed. "Okay. Just be careful, okay?" He dried a tear away from Steven's cheeks. "You're the only family I care about."
They leaned in for a hug.
And then, they jumped inside the van and Greg hit the gas.
The green had-shaped ship was getting closer by the minute.
As they entered the town, they could see the people panic of the presence of the ship.
Even Connie stood outside and stared up to the sky.
Greg stopped the van immediately as they passed her.
"Connie!" Steven shouted as he stuck his head out the window.
"Steven! What's happening?!" Connie asked, before looking up again.
"I don't have time to explain! But go to Mayor Dewey, tell him he needs to get the people out of Beach-City!" Steven told her.
Connie nodded. "Right." Greg continued on and Connie ran to warn the mayor.
Greg hit the gas and they dashed towards the beach.
Meanwhile, back at the beach.
The ship was approaching further and further, causing turbulent on the ground.
A tall gem, taller than Garnet with four arms and long, white hand summoned a bow and loaded it, aiming it towards the ship.
"FIRE!" Garnet roared and she shot the arrow.
The arrow was send off, but once it reached the ship, they were disabled.
Opal stared in distrust.
They both ended up watching the ship slowly getting closer.
"At least Steven's safe." Garnet said.
When suddenly, they heard a car drive up on the beach, getting their attention.
Greg stopped the car not far away and Steven rushed out the door.
"Guys!" He shouted.
"Steven!" Garnet and Opal gasped.
Opal grunted loudly and suddenly disappeared in a flash of light, leaving Pearl and Amethyst on the ground.
"Dude!" Amethyst called.
"What are you doing here? Get out of here!" Pearl shouted.
"B-but-" Steven stuttered.
"It's too late!" Garnet roared.
The hand- shaped ship landed and the fingers hit the sand, making everyone jump, almost fall.
A bubble appeared at the top.
The crystal gems summoned and raised their weapons.
The bubble traveled down along the ship, and stopped at the lowest finger.
The bubble disappeared and revealed two gems.
One was at least 8 feet tall and had long, blonde hair hanging down her back. She was practically orange with stripes along her body. Her gem was on her nose and her clothes was a red and black body-suit.
They both jumped down from the ship and landed on the sand. The big one landed with a big thud and made a large hole from her footprints.
The smaller, pink one stretched her leg impossibly far until her foot touched the ground before the person itself stood on the sand. She was barely half the size of the first one, with long, pink hair in a pigtail, pink clothes, gloves, black stripes running down her cheeks like tears and an upside-down turned gem on her chest.
The sand was damp, and she lifted her foot up, all drowned in wet sand. The big one grunted in annoyance. "Just my luck. Another stupid hunk of rock." She hissed, kicking the sand. "2000 years in the force and this is where I end up? Looking for ridiculous creatures for a low compensation..."
"You need to leave immediately!" Garnet demanded.
The two gems turned their heads, one of them frowning and one of them confused.
"Um, who are those dullards?" The pink one asked, cocking her head to the side.
Jasper frowned. "Spinel, get the informant." She ordered.
"Yes Jasper!" The pink one grinned and saluted her before jumping up on the ship like a spring.
During the three minutes they waited, Pearl and Amethyst shared a glance. Slowly, without anyone noticing, they walked closer until they stood beside Garnet, creating a better cover for Steven. Steven, though, leaned down so that he could watch the scene between gaps between the trio's legs.
At last, the pink gem jumped down again, one long leg after the other she stood on the sand with her arm wrapped around a familiar blue gem.
"Welcome to the party, Lazuli!" Spinel laughed as Lapis glared at her. Lapis struggled in the strong gem's grip, but when she saw Steven, she gasped.
"Lapis..." Steven gasped in a whisper.
"Are those who you were talking about?" Jasper asked her, pointing towards the group of gems. "Are those what's left of Rose Quartz's army?"
"Yes..." Lapis answered quietly, looking away.
Jasper sighed. "And 'this' is the big jackpot you were talking about?" She asked. "An overcooked runt, a confused pearl and a..."
She then noticed Steven behind the Crystal gems. She frowned. "What is that?" She asked, pointing her finger towards him.
With a swift motion, Spinel reached her free hand like a rope and tangled it and took a hold of Steven's leg.
None of them had time to react before Steven fell to the ground and was pulled along the ground.
Amethyst tried to grab him but failed.
It all happened so fast, and the gems had barely no time to do anything before Spinel both held a struggling Steven and Lapis in both arms.
"Leave him alone!" Garnet shouted, holding Pearl and Amethyst back as they tried to attack. Amethyst even sounded like a barking dog.
"Oh! What a cutie!" Spinel cooed, stretching her neck impossible lengths to see him better. "Too bad Morganite didn't request any humans. You would fit in just fine." She giggled.
"You know, Lazuli." Jasper began as she looked at the blue gem.
Lapis glared up at her. "I thought I was a brute. But you're sick." Jasper scoffed. "Turning your back at the ones who saved you after over 5.000 years. I guess, you fit with them really well. Another traitor for the traitors."
"Please! Just let Steven go!" Lapis begged. "He has nothing to do with this!"
Jasper ignored her. Until she made a gesture with her hands.
Spinel let Steven go and Steven quickly ran and hid behind Garnet, grabbing her thigh.
Garnet raised her gauntlets.
Jasper could see her reflection through her visor. "Capture the fusion." She told Spinel angrily.
The pink gem looked at her, puzzled.
"Morganite will for sure give a big compensation for another addition to her collection." Jasper told her as she started walking back to the ship.
"And the others?" Spinel asked her.
Jasper stopped and glared down at the rest of the gems and Steven, laid on his stomach before them. "An overcooked runt is only a waste of space. And the Pearl wouldn't fit the request. Just blast them with the ship." She told her as she walked away.
"Oh how fun!" Spinel grinned as she summoned a screen from her gem and pressed it.
The ship flew up and moved it's fingers so it looked like a finger-gun, aimed towards the beach.
And the tip of the finger started glowing.
But that's when Jasper noticed her mistake and stomped back. "Spinel! You idiot! The fusion!" She yelled.
"Whoops." Spinel put a finger on her chin and grimaced.
"Steven! You have to leave!" Garnet roared and turned around, her hair and clothes waving in the wind from the ship.
"No!" Steven shouted back.
"I won't let you risk your life!" Garnet shouted.
"But this is my home! And you're all my family!" Steven shouted, tears running down his cheeks.
The gems stared at him for a long moment.
And the canon from the ship was getting ready to blow.
"I'm-." Steven began. "I'M A CRYSTAL GEM TOO!" He ran in front of them and summoned his shield.
And the ship fired with an explosion.
The gems flew to the sides, landing on their sides and back.
His shield disappeared before anyone had any chance of seeing it after the blast hit.
Steven flew back and hit his head hard on a rock. And then he landed on his stomach.
Everything turned black.
All Steven could see was darkness. And the only thing he could hear was a long, loud beeping sound.
He started to open his eyes, but quickly shut them again. Then he tried again, and this time he could only see chaos.
He could hear the panic of the people and Mayor Dewey yelling in his megaphone for everyone to retreat. Pearl shot lasers with her spear and Amethyst swung with her whips at the homeworld gems.
He shut his eyes again, and after a few moments he could only hear Pearl screaming and Amethyst yelling.
The third time he opened his eyes, the huge ship was starting to lift and clouds of smoke clouded the scene. Pearl and Amethyst were gone, instead faded away into a bright light and was replaced by Opal. She shot with her bow and arrow. But after that the ship had shot another blast they had to duck not to get hit.
He shut his eyes again.
The fourth time he opened his eyes, he saw Opal running towards the ship and disappeared up in the air with a single jump.
"Pearl... Amethyst..." Steven tried to say in a low, hoarse voice. He tried to reach his hand out but it only fell.
Once again, he shut his eyes and the next time he opened them, Opal crashed down onto the sand on her side with a huge force and disappeared in a glow of light, leaving Pearl and Amethyst knocked out on the ground
This time, he shut his eyes for a long time. And slowly, the beeping sound disappeared.
"Steven... Steven..." This time when he opened his eyes, his dad was in front of him, holding him up. Beside him stood Pearl and Amethyst, worriedly gazing down at him with tears in their eyes.
"STEVEN!" Greg grinned from ear to ear in a mix of terrified relief.
"Dad..." Steven tried to say in a hoarse voice. "Amethyst... Pearl... you're okay!"
"We're fine Steven." Pearl told him, taking a grip around his arm. "How are you feeling?"
"I... I don't know..." Steven muttered hoarsely. "Fine I guess..."
The trio smiled softly in relief.
"Let's go home Stu-Ball." Greg told him, smiling.
"Right... but wait..." Steven gazed around for a moment.
"Where is Garnet?" He asked.
Immediately, their smiles disappeared. Pearl covered her mouth and disappeared from sight, Amethyst turned around and Greg kept looking at him.
"...guys?"