Chapter 30, Empire City Life
The main Crystal Gems could tell they were in a bad position. Red Pearl had an entire room of the world's most respected genetic scientists eating out of her hands. They were half-tempted to try and argue against her, but Aurum made it clear that one foot out of line for any of them and they would be thrown out. Not only would they not accomplish anything, but they also would just give Red Pearl another bit of evidence to prove how the forces of the insidious Rose Quartz was trying to undermine her revolution.
"This is not good," Garnet stated quietly to her two fellow Gems, "We need to do something."
"I could empty the buffet?" suggested Amethyst.
"How exactly would that help?" asked Pearl.
"Well, it means she hired a really cruddy catering company, right?"
Both of the others just rolled their eyes when Red Pearl seemed to be walking up to them. She had this sinister yet innocent-looking smile that would remind any human of a creepy character in a horror movie. "Well," she said to the three, "This has been quite the turnout for a simple event, hasn't it?"
All three Gems had scowls on their faces at this point. "Save it," said Pearl, "We're not in the mood for gloating."
"Now then, that's no way to behave. I was merely coming here to give you all a sporting chance."
"At what? Being mad scientists?" joked Amethyst, "Trust me, I'm good enough at making stuff explode without messing around with chemicals."
"I meant a chance to align yourselves with us now that your little ball and chain isn't here."
Garnet had to keep her arms planted at her sides lest she deck the smirking gem in the face. "You don't mean…"
"Yes, your little Steven. I'm sure you three care a great deal about him. You are more or less his immediate family and, perhaps if you observe the work My Diamond is doing, you'd be willing to convince him."
"You want us… To talk him into Red Diamond experimenting on him?"
"You are the supposed guardians of humanity. I wasn't exaggerating when I said all the benefits our research could give people and Steven's involvement will make our work so much more expansive! Think about a potential world with no diseases, where humans can live for hundreds of years, how they could even have powers like us and the things they could accomplish with it!"
"And what about people who misuse it?" retorted Pearl, "Some people should never have that kind of power or live forever."
"Oh, we have ways to correct behavior."
"Without a shock collar?" accused Amethyst.
"Please, we've long since stopped using those. Now we have mental suggestions and sedatives."
All three of them just gawked at the well-dressed pearl with the most disbelieving looks on their faces imaginable. Their expression held the answer to their question. "Not going to happen.
"Hm… pity. You ARE going to have to get used to the idea since-"
"Excuse me…" the three turned around and saw a man walk to them. He was slightly tall, had a reddish skin tone, and hazel eyes. He also had dark brown hair in a short crew cut.
"Ah! Doctor Chambers. It's lovely to see you in person," Red said to the man, "You three, this is Doctor Francisco Chambers. He personally funded this entire gala."
"Yes, and I must say you gave an intriguing proposal, but I must ask who are these three?" The doctor said looking at the Crystal Gems. Garnet was about to speak up but Red Pearl cut her off.
"Oh, these are actually three of the Crystal Gems, but they're not important. I am quite curious to hear your answer to my benefactor's offer."
"Yes, about that…" the doctor said, adjusting his coat slightly, "As thoroughly unique as the chance to work with extraterrestrials is, I'm sorely afraid to say this is out of my area of expertise."
"I'm… wait, what?"
"Well, I personally believe in getting the whole side of the story before making any major investment. However, I might reconsider that…"
"Yes? If you need some more extensive information on our research, I have some files on hand to-"
"Actually, I wanted to talk to these three."
"Really?" said all three of the Crystal Gems.
"Naturally. I mean, a gala is one thing, but to invest potential millions of my research company's funds into a completely unventured field? It would be horrifically irresponsible of me to not get as much information on the subject as possible! Now then, please do tell me about yourselves."
"Oh, well then," said Pearl, "It all started when Pink Dia-"
"Now now, there's no need for that!" interrupted Red Pearl, standing between the doctor and her white-colored twin, "Doctor Chambers, I don't mean to intrude, but these three are dangerous renegades."
"If they're that dangerous, why are they here? Did they sneak past security?"
"Well, no but-"
"And if you're not intending to intrude, you're doing a poor job of it. It's plainly apparent you want to sell me on your utopic research project without a clear understanding of the subject matter."
"That's not it, but-"
"Really? Then again, you are an alien, so perhaps you aren't entirely familiar with human conversation. Let me give you some advice: We don't like being interrupted and we most certainly don't like having one side of an argument shoved down our throats! Now I suggest you head elsewhere or else I will take that stage myself, which is quite easy to do since I am the financial backing of this little event, and tell every single person here how Red Diamond's subordinates act in the most unprofessional manner imaginable! Do I make myself clear?"
Red Pearl just stood there, gobsmacked, while the Crystal Gems now shared the most smug look they could muster. Amethyst could not help but say what they were all thinking.
"Good thing there's a doctor in the house, cuz' you just got BURNED!"
Doctor Chambers just chuckled at that as Red Pearl huffed and stormed off, claiming she had other business to attend to. With her out of the way, Pearl offered a handshake and the well-dressed man cordially accepted. "Heh. I suppose you three are more civilized than she is?"
"Very much so," Garnet said with a simple smile.
"Good!" Chambers stated, "Now, if you don't mind, I thought I'd speak to someone on the ideas I had for some less controversial methods for advancing human progress…"
While the gems had their meeting with the good doctor at the gala, someone else was opening his eyes for the first time… The new figure looked down to see off-gold skin covering four incredibly muscled arms and a ten-pack of abs. His only clothes were a slightly torn black t-shirt that was clearly straining to keep his pecs contained, a pair of ragged jean shorts with torn legs at the knees and a pair of flip-flops that somehow fit him.
"Okay, this is new," the new figure said, noticing he had an incredibly deep voice much to his own surprise. He also reached his right hands back and felt a small part of the massive head of brown hair he had that reached down his back, almost touching the ground.
He eventually moved one foot in front of the other until his eye locked onto a store window and he stared back at his own chiseled face. "WHOA! That's me?!" Aside from some slight wrinkles near the eyes, he looked gruff and handsome, "This is unreal…" he then eyed the rest of his body, then blushed, "Okay, did not expect THAT either…"
"You're not the only one," said a familiar voice behind the new fusion. He whipped his head around and caused his hair to smack Curly Lapis Lazuli in the face.
"Thanks a lot for that…"
"What the, have you been following me… Us? Either way, not cool!"
"Yeah, I was supposed to keep an eye on you but I definitely did not expect… THAT."
"Okay, even I think it's a lot to take in, trust me, but that's no way to act! Can't we just let this night be over with and I just get some shut-eye? Ooh, I wonder if I can play that awesome double-necked guitar the emporium had!" He then started walking away, clearly forgetting about the gem much to her frustration.
"Hey! Don't just ignore me! Aren't we supposed to fight now or something?"
"Nah, don't feel like it. I'd rather crash back to the hotel… Ooh, that's gonna be a fun explanation for the front desk clerk."
Curly just stood there, ticked that she was being almost ignored like that, "HEY! Don't look down on me like that!" She then rushed at the new fusion, but when she tried to knock him, she could not even move him. She flapped her wings to try and build momentum, but instead she just fanned his back while he just stood there. She then simply had this grouchy look on her face.
"Okay, I get it, you've gotta bone to pick with me but could we do this tomorrow? It's getting pretty late…"
The rogue Lazuli growled at this before she took out a remote from her gem, "Fine, if you won't deal with me, then you can deal with something else." She then pressed the button on it. Then suddenly, a loud explosion rang out from nearby.
"What did you just do?!" the fusion demanded.
"Oh, you don't wanna fight me? Try defusing a bomb!"
"BOMB?!"
"A little backup plan Red Diamond had. Don't worry, that building was uninhabited but the others might not be!"
"You're completely nuts! Turn them off right now!"
"Make me!"
The fusion's expression changed instantly. He went from nervous to glaring right through her with a look of intense aggression, "Fine."
Before Curly could even blink let alone fight back, the fusion sent a double-left hook that nearly took off her head and made her soar halfway up the avenue they were on before colliding into a parked car.
As she picked herself up while groaning in pain, the four-armed quarter-gem was not done. Running at what could only be described at superhuman speed, he ran up to her and kicked her under her chin. She passed clean over all of the buildings around her and when she opened her eyes again, he was right above her. As they were in the air, Curly desperately tried to use her wings and fly away. Now she knew there was no way to win against this guy shy of having a planet full of water to use but she was not getting off that easily. As he floated in midair, the fusion clasped both sets of hands together before thrusting them both forward with a yell. Lapis wondered what he was doing until a wall of sheer force slammed into her back along with the sound of his yell ringing in her ears. And with that hit, coupled with the deafening noise still throwing off her focus, she ended up plummeting down to Earth and crash landed onto the roof of another building. Slowly, she got up even as her body screamed to lie still from all the injuries, to retreat back into her gem to recover. She then looked and saw a water tank next to her, much to her convenience, causing her to flash a sinister grin…
"Had enough?" the fusion asked, slowly walking right between her and the tank.
"Nope!" she answered as, with one clean pull of her arm, a giant fist made of water. For the first time, Steg was actually pushed back and soon the hand wrapped around him.
"Ha! Now you'll never stop me!" she exclaimed, as the fusion desperately tried to struggle against the watery grip. He could not move his arms or legs and wondered if he should try tapping into his gem for more power when something else came to mind.
He summoned a bubble around his body and forced the water away in a few seconds.
"Oh…" Curly said, "I forgot Steven could do that…"
"You know," the fusion said, his voice low, "You're not nearly as smart as you think you are."
Curly once again looked ticked, taking the water and firing it at him as a series of barrages. He barely batted an eye blocking each shot with his bare hands, almost like all of his arms were on autopilot as he walked towards her. Her attack got fast, but he simply picked up speed to match. It only stopped when he got a few paces from her and socked her in the gut with one of his right arms, just hard enough to nearly put his hand through her.
"Now where's that other bomb?" he asked with an edge to his voice.
"In… the emporium…" she gasped, "It's the only one…"
"Thanks," he then punched her with his other left arm, causing her to poof. Given that the emporium was closed for the night, he hoped Curly had the only detonator as he went back to street level. Now with the immediate crisis dealt with, the fusion simply exhaled and separated back into Steven and Greg.
"Well… THAT happened…" sighed Greg.
Steven, however, looked a bit more worried, "Okay… Hopefully that was the only detonator. We still gotta find the bomb and get rid of it though…"
This brought some equal worry to Greg as well, more so than Steven, considering what was sold at the emporium. "Well we'd be breaking and entering into a locked shop filled with millions of dollars of memorabilia if we try to get it now."
"I mean, at least there's only the one…"
Greg paled as something else came to mind. "Unless she was lying about that."
"There's only one way to find out," Steven stated, "Wait here." He then leaped high in the air and used his power to stay afloat. He then saw through the skylight of the emporium and saw the bomb placed near the balcony, located near one of the air ducts. But it didn't seem active. In fact, the wires on the bomb didn't seem to be plugged in, or connected at all; it was a dud!
"Guess she didn't finish setting it up," he said to himself before returning to ground level and reporting the good news to his dad.
"Phew! Guess that's one less thing to worry about," Greg stated, relief painting his face.
"Yeah…" Steven said, "Dad, we should get back to the hotel for now."
"Hm… I guess you have a point, Schtu-ball, I really don't want to go through any more surprises, I mean, what with Red Diamond's Gems in town, us fusing, and that attack from-" he suddenly cuts off. His eyes widened in realization, "Oh my gosh… We-! We fused!" He then grabbed his son in a cheerful hug, catching the young hybrid off-guard for a second.
Steven merely smiled at his dad's sudden joy and said, "Heh. Pretty wild huh?"
"Yeah!" Greg stated, "We gotta show the others!"
"Oh man, they're all gonna lose it!"
"Well, come on! We gotta stay separated until we get back to the room!"
Later that night, the Crystal Gems returned to their suite. As terrible as it started thanks to Red Pearl's little demonstration, they were pleased that Doctor Chambers would be someone definitively on their side.
"Well, I'd say that was actually a productive evening!" said Pearl, "And now I actually have someone I can discuss advanced sciences with!"
"Yeah, now you won't have to be a total nerd around us," kidded Amethyst, "But it was totally awesome to see that red stooge nearly blow a gasket!"
"Agreed," said Garnet, "Now we have an ample opportunity to actually stop Red Diamond's following without just looking like the bad guy."
As they started discussing a few plans on how to go from here when Greg and Steven walked in.
"Hey guys!" Steven said with a wide grin on his face, "What's up?"
"Well," Pearl said, "You seem pretty happy."
"Yeah, well," Greg, "Something cool DID just happen to us!"
"Really?" Pearl asked curiously, "What?"
"Yeah man!" Amethyst said, "Don't hold out on us!"
Both Steven and Greg exchanged knowing smirks at each other before embracing each other again. After a brief flash of light, all three of the Crystal Gems were staring at the ripped four-armed fusion.
"The name's Steg… Cool, right?"
The groups' reaction varied with Garnet just rubbing her chin as if in thought, Pearl just gawking with her eyes completely open and Amethyst broadly smiling. Steg himself however, just sported a cool grin. "Heh, I get it," he said, "This was a surprise to me too."
Pearl then stepped forward and began to examine Steg, almost in a similar manner to how she examined Stevonnie. "Okay… This is… A lot to take in…"
"It is pretty unexpected," agreed Garnet, "But whatever floats your boat, Steg."
"AWESOME!" hollered Amethyst, "Dude, we have to try wrestling with you sometime! I never got Nekoite into it but you would be PERFECT!"
"Amethyst," Pearl quickly scolded the shorter gem.
"What? I mean, look at him Pearl!"
"Meh," Steg said, "I'm usually not much of a fighter though."
"Eh, wrestling's only half-about fighting. What really matters is showmanship!"
As Amethyst went on about all the amazing appearances they could make, even if that meant Steg tagging out immediately and just letting Purple Puma actually handle the opponents, the conversation soon turned on the fusion's first day and how he ran into Curly again.
"Yikes!" Amethyst said, "Talk about brutal."
"Agreed," stated Garnet, "What concerns me, however, was the fact that they lured you with a fake second bomb."
"Guess Red Diamond wanted to keep us all guessing…"
"One of us better go look around tomorrow just in case," said Pearl, "We don't need the progress we made undone tonight by some building getting blown up."
"I'll go," Garnet stated. Then she immediately walked out to the balcony then instantly started to leap from building to building.
"Uh… okay…?" Amethyst said; it was evident that such random actions from Garnet they would never get used to.
"So what did you two do tonight?" asked Steg, curious about this "progress" he heard. Pearl then explained the soiree they ended up attending and while Red Pearl did seem to sway some scientists, she was all too happy to recount how Doctor Chambers did not fall for it and would instead give the Crystal Gems a connection to start turning Red Diamond's fan base around.
"Wow," Steg said in a simple tone, "That's pretty impressive."
"Looks like it's been a productive day for everyone involved," summed up Pearl, "Well, it looks like we don't have too much to worry about but we should still keep our eyes peeled."
The group immediately nodded in response to this. Garnet, coming in from the window, then stated, "In the meantime, let's enjoy the rest of our well-earned vacation time. We have a whole city to explore for the next few days after all."
"Sweet!" said Steg, "I guess that means there's nothing left to do but hit the hay…"
"You're sleeping fused?" asked Pearl.
"Eh, I don't judge either way," said Amethyst. This did not change the bewildered look on Pearl's face…"
"Steg, you seem like an upstanding guy," said Garnet, "Even if someone's going to have a very interesting conversation about their car insurance. Have a nice night."
As the group left him in the bedroom, Steg began to walk up to the mirror and took a proper look at his reflection. He smirked at the sight of his naturally gruff face, "Heh. Not bad."
Although there was a twinge at the back of his mind that this might go overboard, the new fusion soon fell asleep and woke up refreshed finding the other gems spent the night playing tourist in Empire City. Garnet, once she was assured there would not be any more explosions, found herself wandering around with no one batting an eye at her. Pearl simply stayed indoors taking the rare opportunity to unwind and was even perusing pamphlets about the hotel's spa. Amethyst was nowhere in sight but according to Pearl she also left to mingle with the locals and will be back eventually.
As for Steg himself, he got up and began to explore the city walking down the streets and enjoying the sights. Some people looked at him, considering he had four arms, but most didn't seem to give him a second glance. He was thankful for the lack of attention since he would rather spend his time touring the sights rather than being a living attraction. "Heh." he said to himself, "This place is pretty awesome… Steven and Greg never really got to explore this place last time..."
Unlike the sleepy streets of Beach City, this was a metropolis in the truest sense with something vibrant, unique, and intriguing around every corner. World-famous boutiques selling thousand-dollar sandals were only a few blocks from street-vendors haggling for pocket change over cheap t-shirts. Restaurants advertised every cuisine on the planet on the same street. Young hopefuls performed on the sidewalks just trying to show off their talents while other people wandered around looking for their huge break into music or drama. That last one brought a nostalgic smile to Steg's face as he took in it all.
While he still felt he only explored a tiny fraction of this marvelous place, Steg still felt satisfied and eventually made his way back to the hotel though with the more expedient method of hopping across roofs. No one so much as batted an eye to his sight and soon he entered the penthouse from the balcony to find Pearl receiving a massage in the middle of the room.
"Oh yes, right there," she said dreamily, clearly loving the experience, "Oh, Steg. Connie called about Steven and I told her you could talk with her later. Is that okay?"
"No problem!" Steg stated as he then proceeded to get Steven's Laptop and open up the video-chat app…
It was a calm day over at Beach City... Connie was currently practicing her violin some more after just finishing her lesson for the day. However, just as she was about to head off, her phone rang. It was a video-chat request from Steven. This made her smile, "He must be having a lot of fun over at Empire City."
She then hit answer…
And was quite stunned to see a chiseled face staring back at her. Her first reaction was to panic, but then the new face on the other hand spoke up.
"Whoa there, it's okay," he said, "I know I'm not the world's prettiest face, but I won't bite. The name's Steg."
Connie was still very cautious, "That does it answer the obvious question. Who are you and why do you have my friend's phone!?"
The gruff man simply smiled before he suddenly glowed in a familiar pink light. Then there sat Steven and Greg arms over on the other's shoulders, grinning broadly.
"S-Steven!?" Connie exclaimed before the two fused right back into Steg.
"Pretty cool, huh?""
"Okay, I know I shouldn't be surprised but… How?"
Steg then briefly recounted his accidental creation and the run-ins he had in Empire City. While the girl got some flashbacks to Steven's unsavory work-out phase, she was quickly put at ease by how down-to-Earth and easygoing the new fusion was despite apparently kicking around a Lapis Lazuli like it was nothing.
"Man, even on vacation you can't catch a break," Connie chuckled.
"Heh-Heh, I know right?" Steg said, "So how's stuff back home?"
"Eh, nothing much. There are one or two weirdos handing out Red Diamond pamphlets but Ronaldo's been keeping an eye on them."
"Wait, him? Really? How's that going?"
"I dunno, but he's really pushing for you guys. Other than that, Dad's been working, Mom's been telling kids to stop running with scissors and I'm still trying to decide on being in an orchestra or an astronaut." That last statement made Steg give her a bewildered look. "What?" Connie added, "I've been to space before. I see myself as a space colonist!"
Steg thought it over, "Hm… Makes sense I guess."
"Oh, and there is something else new! The other gems have been making something else in town!"
"They are? That sounds great!"
"Yeah! You wanna see it? It's not that far from my house."
"Absolutely!"
From his perspective, Steg's view grew much shakier as Connie picked up her phone and walked out of her house. He could make out a few of the gems simply walking about town but real attraction came as she soon reached the outskirts of Beach City where a small plaza was being set up. It was still being constructed now, but he could make out a large gazebo being surrounded by a cobbled circle with smaller buildings made closer to the sleek style of Homeworld.
"Bismuth started the idea," explained Connie as she walked around, "Some of the Gems were getting homesick for their old planet so she got them all onboard with making their own little place outside of town. She went to Mayor Nanefua to get permits and everything!"
"Whoa… the place looks pretty cool!"
"I know right? They're even talking about building a few shops and a gas station in between this place and the rest of town so it easily connects to Beach City. They're planning to call this place 'Little Homeworld.' You can easily see why."
"Man, they are really moving!" Steg said seeing a cavalcade of gems paving the walkways, building foundations and even gathering paint for the nearly-finished centerpiece of the district.
"Yeah, Bismuth's usually here organizing them but they told her to take the day off. Biggs took over for her instead."
"I can't wait to see it when it's finished!" the father-son fusion stated, stars in his eyes.
"You'll like it. Um… both of you," Connie stated in a somewhat odd tone, addressing the fusion's two selves.
Suddenly Connie saw an alert on her phone, "Oh! That's mom! I better get back home! I'll see you later!" Steg waved back in a simple tone, then the line ended… Steg turned around to head off only to find Amethyst napping on the floor behind him. She seemed out like a light and had a lampshade around her feet, a doggie bag in one hand and one of those classic "I Heart Empire City" shirts on over her outfit.
"Whoa… she must have partied hard…" Steg said to himself about the sight before him.
"She came back about fifteen minutes ago," said Pearl from the couch, "But I didn't want to disturb you. Things going well at home?"
"Heh, yeah, apparently there making a 'Little Homeworld' district at Beach City."
"Really? That's interesting…"
"Quite," said Garnet, coming in from the door, "Bismuth mentioned that project of hers right before she left. I was half-hoping to make it a surprise."
"You think she'll be done with it? We're only supposed to be here a few more days."
"Give her enough hands and she'd have it done by tonight," said Pearl, "That gem's been a workhorse that makes even me look lazy."
"Heh, well Bismuth's ARE natural builders and architects," Steg stated.
"Would you all keep it down?!" grumbled Amethyst, "I'm trying to sleep!" She didn't really look that great with the bags underneath her eyes. She then promptly fell asleep on the floor again with a thud.
"... Ouch," Steg stated, giving a simple look of concern in her general direction.
"I'll take care of it," whispered Garnet as she gently scooped the snoozing gem up and took her to a proper bedroom.
Pearl and Steg simply looked on at the scene they just witnessed… And Pearl was just grateful for how much better Amethyst behaved compared to a few hundred years ago.
After a few days, the group had a great time! Steven and Greg managed to buy some merchandise from the rock music emporium. Too MUCH stuff actually. In fact Steven AND Garnet had to work together to pry Greg away from the store before he blew practically his WHOLE fortune.
Garnet managed to speak more with the research doctor they met at the science gala. Pearl managed to actually relax. Amethyst had to recover from her all-night partying but soon she was as chipper as ever.
Needless to say, the group had an amazing time. Now, they were currently checking out of the hotel. Greg signed off for everything while Steven and the others gathered their luggage to the van. "Okay, do we have everything?" Steven asked the gems, noting that they now had MUCH more stuff with them than when they first arrived mostly thanks to his father.
"Yup, got my stuff right here!" Amethyst proudly stated as she held up what was essentially a stuffed mess inside a suitcase. Pearl had to clamp her hands together to stop herself from repacking it in the middle of the lobby while Garnet just chuckled to herself.
"Alright, we're officially checked out," reported Greg, "Let's get back home!"
"Are you certain you don't want to splurge on anything else?" asked Pearl as they all piled into the van.
"Nah, I think it's for the best we leave before I end up just buying that whole store."
Soon he started up his trusty ride and soon the gems were on their way out of the city. As the passengers took one last look of the crowded streets and towering buildings, Steven spotted someone on a street corner wearing Red Diamond's apparel and trying to hand out fliers only to be mostly ignored by the people walking by.
"Looks like that doctor is paying off already," said Steven, making the three gems smile. They could practically see the smug pearl from the ball frothing at the mouth that her diamond's following seemed to be nothing more than a fad. It gave them a very reassuring feeling as they drove onto the highway leading back to Delmarva and the quieter life of Beach City.
