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Pidge winces, pulling on the sleeveless t-shirt she usually wears under her hoodie. The cryo-replenisher did its job, of course - a couple hours in there, and her injuries were healed - but the problem with its Altean-focused design is that some things get by the reconstruction process. Alteans, for example, don't scar; their biology is so flexible, shape-shifters that they technically are, that their injuries heal perfectly. Humans aren't so lucky, as evidenced by the long, slightly tilted band of scar tissue running along her abdomen. It stings a little, the rebuilt muscle underneath still not quite used to flexing around, the scarring pulling a bit uncomfortably at the healthy skin around it.

Small price to pay, she figures, for getting out of the Gem colony alive. Good thing she's not much of a bikini gal - or someone who enjoys the beach in any way, shape, or form, really.

A quick glance at the Castle's live feed shows that Lance is still in his own pod, as expected. His injuries were, unfortunately, a lot more serious than hers - internal bleeding, three broken ribs, punctured right lung, and a fractured right elbow and shoulder - so he has to stay in overnight. It could've been worse, of course; if Bixbite hadn't fused into being at the eleventh hour, they would've been killed, plain and simple. Still, she can't help the pang of guilt she feels at Lance's injuries. Maybe if she'd been a bit more firm at the start of all this, she'd have come alone, and Lance wouldn't be re-enacting his unfortunate part in the Sendak debacle.

Of course, if she came alone, she definitely would've died, but guilt is no friend of logic.

There's a knock at the door, bringing her out of her spiral, if only for a moment. "Come in." -she says.

The door slides open, revealing Allura. She looks a bit frazzled - worried about her wayward Paladins, no doubt. "Hello, Pidge." -she greets, trying and failing to muster up a convincing smile. "I'm...glad to see you up and about."

"Still a little sore, but I'm good." -she reassures the Princess. "Thanks for the quick pick-up, by the way."

"Yes, about that…" -she says, nervously bringing her palms together. "I must apologize. We only got here on time because we were tracking you - well, the Lions, to be precise. When we realized they were parked in the middle of nowhere with you and Lance nowhere nearby, we got worried." -she sighs. "I know it's something of a breach of trust, and I know humans dearly value their privacy, but…" -she trails off.

"Shiro's gone." -Pidge sums up for her. "Can't afford to have another Paladin - or two - go missing. Don't worry, Allura. I get it."

"Still." -she insists. "You are a Paladin of Voltron. I should trust and respect your choices. Yours and Lance's. You've gone above and beyond in defense of the universe's innocents, accomplished monumental victories on your own merits. You've proven time and again that you're worthy of my trust, at the very least."

Pidge scoffs, humorless. "Maybe not this time, Princess."

"I disagree. Unfortunate consequences aside, what you've accomplished with Ruby is no small feat." -she gently chides. "I've wondered before, and much more often now that Zarkon is defeated, if it is at all possible for the Galra to turn away from their violent, imperialistic ways - to return to an era of peaceful coexistence and intergalactic cooperation." -she muses.

She then crosses her arms and holds her elbows, wincing uncomfortably. "From what I understand, a Gem's devotion to their Diamond Matriarchs is...programmed in, is it not?" -she asks, clearly disturbed by the notion. "And yet, you've helped one of their most zealous followers break through that lie and realize the horrible reality of Homeworld's system. If a Gem can be convinced to turn away from their goddesses' whims...then perhaps there is hope for the Galra as well."

"I have a feeling revolution's gonna take a bit more than a single converted Ruby." -Pidge says, sarcastic. "But...yeah. Let's hope."

Allura finally manages a hopeful smile. "Even the smallest of sparks has the potential to bloom into a blazing inferno." -she says.

Pidge snorts. "Sounds like something Princess Leia would say."

Allura tilts her head. "Oh? Is she royalty on your homeworld?"

"...something like that." -Pidge chuckles, some of the leftover tension in her shoulders easing off her. "Princess Leia's a fictional character from a very famous science fiction epic called Star Wars. We really need to give you and Coran a crash-course in human pop culture."

The princess hums. "Perhaps we should visit the Earth, then." -she suggests. "Coran and I would love to explore your beautiful world, taste your food, and, perhaps,.meet your families, if you'd allow it." -she tentatively suggests, gauging her reaction. Pidge thinks about the idea of popping in at her mother's all of a sudden, and pales.

"I...don't think I can face my mom, Allura." -Pidge breathes out. "Not until I bring back Dad and Matt, at least."

Allura frowns. "Are you not on amicable terms with your mother, Pidge? You seemed so happy after you returned from your brief trip to Earth, after we found Ruby."

Pidge purses her lips. "Yeah, I...I never went to see my mom. I just joined everyone else on their own trips." -she admits. "My mother, she...may or may not be under the impression that I'm dead."

The princess blinks. "You...faked your own death?"

She nods. "I'm not exactly proud of it, but...I knew there was a high chance I wouldn't return when I decided to do whatever it took to find my brother and my father. And then I became a Paladin, and...well, that chance isn't any lower now, even with Zarkon gone. This is a really dangerous job, no matter how much I love it. I don't wanna give her false hope - not until I find the rest of our family, and bring them back."

"I see." -Allura says, though it doesn't really sound like she does. Given her own complicated feelings about her long dead family, Pidge expects something of a diatribe somewhere along the lines of 'appreciating the family she's got left' from the Altean ruler, but Allura instead wisely chooses to change the subject. "At any rate, a trip to Earth should still be in order. I am rather curious about this...secret history between humanity and Gemkind our new allies alluded to."

That, at least, Pidge can get behind. "Considering everything we've discovered about the way the Diamonds handle...well, everything, I'm honestly surprised Earth is still in one piece." -she agrees. "We should make sure Earth isn't in their sights anymore. And, y'know, maybe pay some tribute to our fellow rebels."

Pidge finds Moonstone in Green's hangar, looking up at the massive Lion.

The fusion nods at her, as she approaches. "It's been a long time since I last looked up to a being the size of a large building."

"I assume you're taller now." -she smirks.

Moonstone chuckles. "Size helps, for sure. But I think today's events fairly definitively proved that it's not all that matters. You and Lance, and Ruby, of course. You stood up to Homeworld in a way few can claim they have, myself and my components included." -she admits.

Pidge hums. "Well, it's never too late to stand up to tyranny."

Moonstone purses her lips. "I wish it were that simple. There's a reason there has only been a single successful rebellion against the Authority in a hundred thousand years." -she says, darkly. "It's not just the programming, or the propaganda. It's the horrible punishments, the Onyxes hunting down and shattering suspected traitors. It's the Diamonds themselves, so powerful they're functionally indistinguishable from the gods you organics sometimes believe in."

"I know the Galra and Gem empires are two different beasts, but still. I know what you mean." -Pidge says.

"From what little I know of the enemy you face, I imagine you do." -Moonstone says. "So, let me ask you something: how do you cope with it? How can you possibly look at an enemy the size of the universe itself, and carry on like the task is even feasible?"

Pidge ponders this for a second. "I think...I think taking on something like a mission this massively important and difficult has a way of teaching you that your limits are much, much more flexible than you assume they are." -she surmises. "You take things one day at a time - and sure, every obstacle is a bigger challenge than the last, but you managed to figure out your way past all the others, so why should the next be any different?"

The Green Paladin leans on a nearby worktable. "Even in my wildest dreams, I never imagined I'd be taking on a ten thousand year old alien empire when I set out to find my brother and father. I could've never predicted myself, a sixteen year-old nerd with zero love for the outdoors, to be chosen as the partner of an ancient, alchemically bound avatar of nature." -she says, looking up at the Green Lion. "And I certainly didn't see myself befriending a rogue, gunslinger Gem fusion. And yet…"

Moonstone smirks. "And yet, indeed." -she retorts.

Pidge shrugs. "This life has a way of surprising you, that way. It can be hard, and...heartbreaking, at times." -she says, thinking of her mounting failures at trying to find her missing family. Thinking of Shiro, missing in action - dead, in all likelihood. "But it's worth it." -she concludes softly. "We've helped so many people already. And I know we can still help so many more. So I'll keep at it, until we've either liberated the universe…"

"...or died trying." -Moonstone finishes for her, after she trails off. She shakes her head, but there's an appreciative smile on her oddly untextured lips. "I've never considered my own mortality, being an ageless light construct around practically indestructible gemstones, and all. But I suppose I ought to, if I'm going to try and take on the Diamonds."

The Paladin raises her eyebrow. "That's a hell of a task you've set for yourself."

Moonstone tilts her head. "No bigger than yours, Paladin of Voltron." -she says. "It'll be strange, leaving Tivan's service after all these centuries. Leaving Knowhere, once I settle my affairs there and figure out a game plan."

"Oh, I'm sure we can help with that." -Pidge says, innocently.

The fusion frowns, confused. "What do you mean?"

"Something else I've learned about this life? Having friends and allies along for the ride is only gonna improve your chances." -she smiles. "You don't have to help us fight the Galra, but I think I speak for both Lance and myself - and all the Paladins, really - when I say we couldn't let Homeworld's system continue on as we witnessed, in that colony. Our duties as Paladins aren't limited to stopping the Galra Empire's crimes, y'know. We're supposed to be Defenders of the Universe - and I'd think that assumes the Gems oppressed under the Diamond Authority, and everyone their expansion threatens."

Moonstone shakes her head. "I can't ask you to do that. This is our fight."

"You don't have to ask. The Diamonds made it ours, too, the moment we met Ruby." -Pidge says, determined. "You don't even have to travel with us, if you don't want to - but we will help you liberate Gemkind."

The Gem fusion clearly doesn't like it, but she gets it. She really does. "Well...if it's really like that, I won't turn down a place aboard this fancy flying palace of yours." -she smiles. "You won't even have an extra mouth to feed." -she jokes.

Moonstone reaches for the gemstone on the back of her hand, pulling out a data pad of some kind. "I know the Collector promised you a certainty, but he's not as omniscient as he presents himself to be." -she warns, handing it over. She winces. "Well, he is, but he finds it rather boring to actually use his enormous power. So he built a vast information network throughout the Milky Way, instead."

Pidge purses her lips. Somehow, she knew this was coming. "He doesn't actually know where Matt is, does he?"

"No, he doesn't." -she confirms. Moonstone nods at the pad. "But there was a sighting, only a few weeks ago. A band of freedom fighters, doing everything they could to hamper the Galra presence in the Milky Way - and Matt was one them."

Pidge's eyes widen, staring at the datapad between her hands. Moonstone crosses her arms. "I know it's not the confirmation you wanted, but…"

"Don't apologize, Moonstone." -she says, rubbing out a tear that threatens to fall down her cheek. "This is the best news you could've given me."

Moonstone nods, relieved. "We'll find him, Pidge." -she promises. "I'll help in any way I can. And I know you said I didn't need to fight the Galra, but...well, I'd be honored if the Voltron Coalition would have me."

Pidge's smile is as wide as it was, back when she looked up at the Green Lion and knew that her destiny was to be a Paladin of Voltron. She puts her hand out - and dwarfed as it is by Moonstone's, the human gesture still feels all too right. "Welcome aboard the Castle of Lions, Moonstone."

Hello everyone! Sorry it took me four months for what should've been a fairly quick update. If you're still here, please let me thank you for your patience and continued support, especially with these last couple updates. And they *are* the last!

Longtime readers will recall that Close Encounters started as a one-shot, but it grew pretty immensely as people responded to it and I decided to integrate it into the There Was Once an Avenger From Krypton series. However, I think it's fairly clear that I was grasping for an engaging plot through the whole thing, as much as I enjoyed writing about the mechanics of the Gem Empire. Ruby and Moonstone certainly breathed a lot of life into it, but it was still a difficult story to develop, especially compared to most of the other fics in this series - for which I typically have a fairly comprehensive outline. I don't regret including this story in the series or anything, but I think this is a good place to end it.

However, that doesn't mean I'm abandoning these characters at all! I have at least a couple of one-shots planned picking up on some dangling plot threads, and they'll of course be around for further crossovers and other such stories set in this universe. They have to meet the Crystal Gems themselves at some point, after all, and I still wanna delve into some of the things I think VLD could've done better. I suggest bookmarking the series if you'd like to keep an eye out for that, but I also understand if you're only here for this story.

If that's the case, I hope you enjoyed Close Encounters of the Gem Kind! There's a small epilogue left I'm still putting the finishing touches on, but this, my friends, is the end of this particular adventure!

As always, thank you for your attention! Make sure to comment or message me if you have any questions about this story. Look me up on Twitter as Darthkvzn or Tumblr as darthkvznblogs if you'd like - and on Ko-fi, as Darthkvzn, if you like what I do and have a buck to spare.

Until next time!