Io, Black Diamond's Facility:

Emerald:

Wires were strewn about from the floor all the way to the ceilings, which were only around about three or four meters off of the ground. Yeah, Black Diamond's height was only famous due to how short he was when compared to his sisters. He was without a doubt taller than any regular Gem, such as Jasper and I, of which we were both exactly two point seven meters tall, but it still wasn't by much.

Anyway, back to the facility. Wires, frayed from millennia without care and from something else, Obsidian took a guess and said it was probably the corrupted gems. But with the amount of damage done to the walls and the ceiling that these wires poured forth from I could tell that this wasn't done by some random corrupted gem. I've seen and done my fair share of sabotage to know intentional damage when I see it. Somebody, not something, had done this. "So, Obsidian, do you know where we are going?"

She nodded curtly, "Yes sir, dad… I mean Black Diamond's whole facility was dedicated to the study of corruption in order to find a cure."

"Fat lot of help that did." Fire Opal snorted derisively. Obsidian lowered her gaze.

I gave Fire Opal a glare, "Don't listen to him Obsidian, he shoots his mouth off more often than I do."

"Weren't you just angry at her?" Fire Opal recounted with an accusatory air to him.

I shook my head, "I was not angry at her per se, moreover I was angry that I was once again left in the dark about something."

"Oh big whoop," Fire Opal waved his arms in the air and let out a breath of aggravation, "Do you know how many times you had left us in the dark about your plans? Rose too, even Pearl has left you in the dark about things."

"Those were --" I noticed Obsidian tense, she seemed to be getting nervous about what we'd do. I pinched the bridge of my nose, "You're right, I had not a single right to do that to you or anyone else, nor do I have the right to be angry about others doing it to me when I myself am guilty of the same actions."

Fire Opal opened his mouth preemptively to argue but found himself at a loss of words when he realized I was apologizing. He crossed his arms again and began walking forward, "It's fine." We had been walking for another thirty minutes before we remembered Obsidian had never told us the location the energy core was in. She recounted her earlier explanation and said it would have been in his main office.

As she led us down the numerous corridors I began to feel ill at ease, Quartz and Flint had yet to return with Coral. Surely they would have been able to recover him from battle. I looked over to Fire Opal and I could see making a tiny flame dance across the tips of his fingers, it seemed he was nervous as well. The only Gem who was completely at ease was Obsidian, which made sense, this was basically her environment. I'm sure Black had taken her here all of the time before the rebellion had officially started. "Oh, I remember that room, Da… Black Diamond had three of the four walls covered from ceiling to to floor with actual paper-bound books. They're probably all gone or destroyed now…" She finished on a sad note.

"Hey purple," Fire Opal called, "Why do you stop yourself from calling Black Diamond your dad?"

She froze midstep. "Fire Opal, really?" I chastised loudly.

He looked at me, truly wondering what he did wrong, "What?"

Obsidian slowly turned down the corridor to her right. "His office should be directly down this hall."

The waver in her voice made me slug Fire Opal in the shoulder, "You can be just as clueless as I can, you know that?" I began making pace for Obsidian, hoping to both not lose her and to not lose my way in this maze of corridors. Fire Opal, who is following close behind me now, and I are almost to her when the building shakes and rumbles. All three of us take turns looking at each other, a single thought on each of our minds: what was that?

The answer comes to us rather quickly, in fact, it came through the wall in the form of a an average sized and lithe white figure. "Quartz!" I rush over to my old apprentice and help him to his feet, "Are you alright? Where's Flint and Coral?" Turns out there was no need for him to answer because both of the missing teammates rocket in through the same hole as Quartz had arrived through.

"Ser Emerald, did you manage to get the crystal?" Flint struggled as she attempted to remove Coral from atop her. I shook my head and asked what had caused all three of them to make such an explosive entrance. I regretted it almost immediately. Flint's eyes turned wild and she looked almost ready to break down into tears, "It's horrible, she is corrupted but… by the gods we need to leave!"

"She?" not the most important question, but it was the only one I knew that had an answer that I could wrap my head around.

From nowhere Obsidian stomped towards me, her demeanor had turned from the innocent little gem to an empowered and driven noble caste gemstone, "She means Howlite, she was an experiment that Black Diamond had been working on. Everything about her is modeled after an Obsidian named Draco Testa during the Clan Wars. He was corrupted yet retained some sort of sentience, an almost perfect corruption." Obsidian hesitated, I knew there was something she was hiding. She didn't keep the secret for long, "She is also the reason I was shattered, Black Diamond had just left for Earth to join the rebellion. My guardians and I were left to dispose of the facility and make it seem as if he were shattered along with Pink Diamond; however, there was a mole and before I could destroy Howlite I myself suffered the very fate that was designed for her."

'Well then…' I thought to myself. I couldn't help but be amazed, she had explained this with so much causality that I almost believed that this was just a normal everyday occurrence for her. I cleared my throat, "Well, it looks like we're going to have to something about her then."

Obsidian nodded, "No, there is nothing we can do except complete the mission. We would require her to be trapped within her holding cell to properly shatter her, she may look like a normal gem but she is still corrupted. She is just as dangerous as any of the mongrels."

"Well," Fire Opal said while staring out of the destroyed wall and out to the billowing dust cloud, "Judging by that all of the dust, I'd say we have about three, maybe four, minutes until the horde and Crazy McBonkers gets here. Someone will still have to distract all of them from the main group in order for us to get away fast enough."

Everybody threw awkward glances at each other, not even Coral wanted to go back out there after his encounter with presumably Howlite. My heart dropped when I saw Obsidian tense, "I'll do-"

"No you won't!" I commanded.

She gave me a look that was somewhere between angry and sad, "But I'm the reason she still yet lives!"

"No you aren't! You said it yourself, there was an ambush already waiting for you." Jeez, what's with everyone and feeling responsible for things they can't control? Was I really like that? Am I still like that? I cracked my knuckles and concentrated on my gem. A few seconds pass before the vermillion light fills the room, "We'll do it."

Everyone except Quartz, who has been the only person to see this particular shade in person, stares with mouths agape, "Well son, I do believe it is perfectly ok to assume that I was not expected."

I resist the urge to pat my father on his shoulder, my hand would just phase through him, "We'll cover y'all. You guys just focus on getting the crystal and getting the K out of evade." everyone nodded, except Obsidian. She still looked unsure.

"What if you can't beat her?" she asked.

I squatted to her height, "Look Purple, I know you feel as if you have to do this, that you feel solely responsible for Howlite's current state of affairs, but just focus on the mission." I stood up and jabbed a thumb towards father, "Alone I'd have a hard time, with him I don't stand a chance at losing." she nodded. "Now, all of you get moving. You're wasting precious time."

"Right." they all echoed.

Father thankfully waits until they are well out of earshot to speak. "You don't actually believe that… do you?"

My thoughts turn to Pearl, to Ocasio, to my friends, to Lapis, and yes, even Jasper and Peridot. They were all expecting that crystal, this was our one and only contingency plan. "No, I don't."

"Then why all the false bravado?" he asked.

I laughed, he knew why, it was the same reason why he fought against the Diamonds so long ago. "Because, the greatest lies are the ones that have some truth embedded in them."

A dull thud, then another, the third strike upon the doors send them careening inwards. Howlite slinks through the doorway, her face still lit with the manic glow of insanity. She sniffed the air before throwing a glare at the corrupted gems behind her, they all toppled onto each other. She was what many humans would call a Alpha amongst the corrupted Gems. She acted as a leader of sorts, it was in this sense that she was a "perfect corruption."

She turned her face passive and let out a snarl, two rather feline corrupted gems, they were most like cat's eye quartz at one point, strutted in. She snapped her fingers and they became frenzied, running down the hallway to weed out Howlite's toys. It was obvious from this interaction that she acted as leader of sorts for the other corrupted Gems, if Amoura had a stomach it would have curled at the sight of such a thing.

Emerald noticed the expression of pain on his father's face and immediately shut off the surveillance system. Amoura had refused to look at any of the corrupted gems, such a travesty affected him more than it did his son, of that Emerald was certain. With two nods, the sages left their room and started their defensive.

Meanwhile, at the entrance of the facility, Howlite still stood. Two separate corrupted shrieks of death caused her to snap her fingers again, this time three beastial corruptions slinked in. Their forms, while deformed, still retained some sort of elegance; what with their long, flowing hair and the overall smoothness of their bodies. Though their ravenous looking maws, fatal looking claws, and lack of eyes gave them a rather frightening visage when viewed at the front. Howlite snapped again but added a small flurry of movement.

She stood solemnly as her next three "warriors" were sent to fetch her toys. How odd a sight this must be, for Howlite for intents and purposes, when viewed in any direction, was still very obviously corrupted. Though, her eyes had lost their bright wildness and instead shone with a small tinge of irritation. Her smile, while still dripping with obvious craze, had also a small mix of rationality.

The building shakes, dusty smoke billows down each and every curve, five roars, three of death and two of exertion. Howlite's non-existent blood boils, she snorts angrily. The dark lines that ran diagonally on her right cheek glowed darkly. Whimpers and small squawks escaped from the corruptions behind her.

"These toys wanna play?" she said quietly. In the smoke the corruptions watched as their tyrannical "master's" silhouette split into four separate silhouettes. "Then, play I shall."

Emerald and Amoura stood behind opposite walls, waiting for the footsteps of more creatures to clack against the floors of their guarded entry. Amoura's eyes were closed in concentration, Emeralds were wide open in anxious intensity. He knew he couldn't defeat Howlite alone, so he had summoned his father from within his gem. But even then, there was only a slim chance as Amoura was quite literally a shade of his former self.

Even then he could only remain on this plane of existence for only as long as Emerald's energy persisted. So, to solve those problems, Emerald resorted to Sagestate to both amplify his energy reserves and to enhance Amoura's attack ability. However, this would only work for so long as well seeing as how Emerald did have a set time for when he could no longer use his power without after effects. Howlite had to show quickly, or these Emeralds and their glass cannon plan would unravel rather quickly.

Amoura's eyes shot wide, Emerald tensed, three sets of soft pattering footsteps were approaching their spot rapidly. The eldest of the two jumped into the hall first, he gripped the first two enemies by their arms and slammed them into opposite walls. The youngest sunk his summoned blades into the final enemy's neck.

Seconds pass and all three Howlites crumble into dust. Before Amoura and Emerald had time to figure out what had just happened the real Howlite appears and slams her axe against the younger Sage's skull. Emerald smashed into the wall and before Amoura could react Howlite had once again split into four. The quartet of insanity, as Emerald would soon call it, began a flurry of slashes against Amoura, realizing he was the strongest "toy" out of the two.

Though he had the advantage of experience, Amoura was quickly dispatched by his foes. There was only so much he could do being a shade. Howlite then turned her attention to the still recovering Emerald, he was struggling to get back up. Howlite's attack combined with the almost sage-level strength being corrupted gave one was enough to jar Emerald pretty badly, to say nothing of how Sagestate increases the amount of damage one can receive.

Her smile curved darkly, her eyes had once again returned to pure insanity, though with how she walked and how she would speak to her enemy Emerald could feel an air of sad clarity to her actions, almost as if she knew she what she was doing and knew she was incapable of doing anything else but them. Howlite cupped Emerald's chin, he resisted the urge to yelp as her touch felt like acid. "C'mon, is that all you are good for toy?"

Emerald spat in her face, "I'm not your toy." Howlite wiped her face with a free hand and used said free hand to clock Emerald in his stomach.

"Well, you're not a fun toy." she said with a chuckle, that chuckle soon becoming a sinister cackle. "And I have no need for a not fun toy." she gripped Emerald by the throat and dragged him upwards through the wall, if he had been any other Gem than himself or a quartz soldier, he would have been poofed. "Maybe I should grab your fellow toys instead, that white one seemed like a fun kite." She meant quartz, Emerald knew that. "Maybe I should take Flint, or that chalk one."

Emerald's mind raced at those words, she was still able to understand that Coral was a chalk and she knew Flint by name. "H-how…"

Flint gripped his throat tighter and slammed him against the ground, shoving her foot against his throat, "You'll have to speak louder than that toy, I can barely hear you."

"How do you, k-know Flint?"

Howlite was momentarily stunned, but by the time Emerald had noticed it she was already back, "She was a toy just like me, our maker had experimented on us toys." Howlite narrowed her eyes and stomped Emerald's face into the ground, "Him and his harpy!"

'Harpy?'

Howlite gripped her head, "It's their fault, their fault we're all like this!" The sight of her thrashing was almost enough for Emerald to feel bad for her, almost; she still had her foot on his face after all. A few seconds pass and Howlite goes still, finally a small giggle, "But, if my fellow toy is here, then that means the harpy is here too. I can finally take that purple harpy as my own toy!"

Emerald gripped tightly against the corrupted Gem's boot, it was obvious she meant Obsidian. All Emerald could do was struggle against Howlite's strength.

"Emerald… sir?" two gems tensed, one in despair and one in glee. There stood Obsidian and Quartz, they had returned to collect the praetorian. It was Quartz who had spoken and it was Quartz who was the first to react. "Get away from him you tramp!" Quartz ran down the hall with sword extended, Howlite's smile deepened and it was Emerald could do to tell Quartz to run away. He didn't heed the warning and still charged, he didn't land a blow though. From out of Howlite's back erupted another double, though like Emerald's shades, it could still do damage. The double summoned it's own axe and slice, it took but a single swing to take down Quartz.

As his the white stone clattered next to his head Emerald's tears became present. He had to something, but what could he do? The surrounding area was made of solely metal and it appeared that Obsidian and Quartz had come alone. Howlite looked down at her handiwork and it moved to her current prey, "Oh, it seems I have nothing but boring toys! But, it's not like I won't be nice. I'll get rid of you so you won't see me hurt your fellow toys."

"W-what?" Emerald asked. His answer, an axe down the middle of his face.

Obsidian watched in horror as both Quartz and Emerald were poofed. Her tears welled and her fear topped over as Howlite turned her attention towards her. She was paralyzed, immobile from fear and from sadness. But, from this sadness and from this horror rose something, something deep inside her core: anger.

Howlite leveled her axe above Obsidian's head, "Any final words, harpy?" the purple gem raised her fury filled gaze at Howlite, "So no." down went the guillotine of insanity. Obsidian heard a shrill whistle, was that normal?

It was not, Howlite clutched her ears as well, giving a exclamation of pain that honored her name. Obsidian turned to her savior and almost broke into tears when she saw the pale green skin, the well kept hair, and the eyes that shone with eons of experience. "Flint, grab the Praetor and Quartz."

The dark stone nodded enthusiastically, "Yes Ser Jade."

"Miss Jade?" Obsidian's voice was but a whisper, though, that didn't stop Jade from hearing her.

She smiled and patted the gemling's head, "It's ok, just follow Flint out." she paused before adding, "And do not come back, I will find you." Obsidian nodded her head and ran to grab hold of Flint's robe; Jade was one of the original Crystal Gems, though, that was not what gave Obsidian confidence in the old Gem's words. Jade herself was a walking legend. "So," Jade cracked her knuckles, allowing the blood in her veins to flow more easily. Howlite by now had recovered and stared angrily at the healer, she noticed something as well, the air smelt of burnt ozone there was an almost nerve-wracking tension in the air. "You like to play, right?" Jade was soon swallowed with a cloak of energy, though the colors swirled not with green, but with orange and with powder blue.

Howlite split into five of herself, "You stole my toys!"

"Your toys?" Jade asked sinisterly; her face soured. "YOUR TOYS?" she barked angrily. The Howlites flinched. Jade rotated her head to release the tension that always rested there whenever she transitioned into sagestate, "Those were my charges, my children, and you attacked them!"

"I don't care!" Howlite sent her clones at Jade, she also had the privilege of seeing how very little they could do against Jade. Jade snapped her fingers and the first two were sliced in half by seemingly nothing (though, it would later come to be known that Jade had used aerokinesis on them). The next two luckily caught Jade unawares and landed their blades on either side of her neck. Howlite was all smiles, at least until they too were destroyed. Jade gripped both of them by their arms, wasting no time in throwing them in opposite directions before giving a shrill whistle. Howlite roared in pain, the attack disorientated her enough to make the last two clones disperse into nothingness.

A jade light filled the room and Howlite soon found the barrel of a projectile weapon aimed at her forehead, "Surrender and I won't destroy your form."

Howlite did not give in, she moved with agility that she had not yet displayed and swept a leg under Jade before resummoning her axe. She cleaved downwards but only struck the darkly colored cal-steel. Jade stood back up, Howlite lunged forwards. Jade gave a whistle, though it did not hamper Howlite like the previous ones. This whistle was one to be used defensively. Howlite hit the wall of air and struggled to continue walking.

Jade stopped whistling and Howlite flew forward, though she did not fall clumsily like Jade had expected her to. She used the momentum to her advantage and swiped her axe at the experienced healer. Jade hit the floor, narrowly avoiding the blade and just barely missing her opponent's body as it sailed above her. Jade stood up immediately and aimed her gun, Howlite was mere inches from her. It was scary how fast Dark's experiment could be, that much Jade admitted. 'Though' she thought to herself, 'she hurt my charges.' Jade squeezed the trigger with the same speed that Howlite moved. Seventeen thundering bangs within four seconds. An eighteenth sounded, though, it was not the same as Jade's weapon. Howlite had been poofed, though not shattered like Jade had promised she would have been if she resisted.

Jade sighed in relief and her cloak dispersed; she reached for the gemstone but something told her not to. So instead she bubbled it and began walking to the rendezvous point. "Emerald is in trouble, isn't he."

Jade nodded to the voice in her head's question, "You have no idea."