Chapter Five: Storm Warning

"Toss me another one, Emerald!" called Lefty. Emerald chucked another metal plate to the Peridot, who began welding it onto the tower's side. She was standing on Yooperlite's shoulders to reach the cracks in the walls. The black clouds on the horizon had gotten much closer, to the point that they could hear the thunder. They had to be ready if they wanted to survive the storm.

Emerald looked at the tower, which was covered in mismatched metal panels. A few were new, while a few others looked old and rusted, likely having survived several of these storms. "Remind me again, what is the point of all this? I thought the force field generator was supposed to protect us."

"It is, in theory," answered Tanzanite. "This is merely a precaution in case the generator fails."

"But, if the generator fails, won't a category four storm rip this place up like a…sand-thingy with a whatever?"

Tanzanite decided not to answer, instead approaching Lefty. "How are preparations proceeding so far?"

Lefty responded by almost losing her footing, Yooperlite stepping back to re-balance her. "Eh, y-yeah, just fine up here. We should be done in a few minutes. Plus, the generator's up and running, so we shouldn't have any problems on that end."

It wasn't that Emerald didn't trust Lefty–it was more that she didn't trust the mass of clouds slowly crossing the sea towards them. While it was true she didn't have much experience with storms–or anything, really–she didn't need to be familiar with them to catch onto the foreboding atmosphere that had fallen over her new friends. "With storms like that, how have you three survived all this time?"

"It sure hasn't been easy, I'll tell ya that!" said Yooperlite. "This tower's hangin' on by a thread, and it gets looser and looser all the time! Sometimes it feels like we're one bad storm away from being dead in the water, you know?"

The welding tool stopped welding. "I do know," said Lefty, "and that's because we are. I don't really believe in luck, but there's no other way to describe just how we've lasted this long. By all accounts, we should–throw me another, would you?"

Emerald did so. Lefty missed the initial catch, using her magnetism to pull it back into her hand. She then resumed welding. "That doesn't exactly fill me with confidence."

"It shouldn't," the Peridot continued. "Like I was saying, we should all be debris at the bottom of the ocean by now. As for why we aren't…just lucky, I guess."

"I would not call this 'luck,'" observed Tanzanite. "Marooned on a dying world, inching closer and closer to destruction with every day, is not my idea of a fortunate existence. Perhaps this is not fortune, but a cruel punishment orchestrated by the stars."

Yooperlite eyed her curiously. "Huh. Didn't take you for the spiritual type."

Tanzanite turned to reenter the tower. "I am not. However, in a situation such as ours, one must consider all possibilities. Perhaps this can be resolved if we repent our sins…" Was it Emerald's imagination, or did she detect a hint of sarcasm?

The waters were becoming increasingly turbulent as the wind kicked up, some of the waves almost reaching up to Emerald's waist. "I get the feeling we should be heading inside soon," she said, tossing another plate.

Lefty absentmindedly brought it to her hand and began welding once again. "Almost done up here. We should be leak-free in just a bit. You can head inside, I'll take care of the rest." She tried to magnetically pull a plate from the ground, but it took a bit of effort to make it move even slowly.

"I… Hey, we're all in this together," Emerald said, tossing the plate up to her. "I'm not leaving until you do."

Grinning, Lefty finished sealing up any potential leaks in the tower's walls. "That should just about do it!" Yooperlite helped her to the ground. "Now, there should be just enough time to make sure things are running smoothly in there."

Her repeated insistence on double- and triple-checking every little detail further worried Emerald. "But, don't we have hours until the storm gets here?"

"Oh, that thing?" Yooperlite gestured to the clouds. "Yeah, it won't be here for a bit. But these wind and waves? Yeah, that's only the tip of the iceberg!" Only Yooperlite herself, being the largest of the three, wasn't being pushed around by the force of the waves.

The knowledge that this was only going to get worse before the storm even arrived was enough to have Emerald through the door almost immediately. "You know what? Quadruple-checking everything doesn't sound like such a bad idea. Let's get to it!"

The other two followed her inside. "I really hope this isn't a bad one," said Yooperlite.

"They're all bad ones, Yoop," Lefty replied.

"Well, yeah, but…not bad by this planet's standards, y'know? Not worse than anything we've seen before."

Lefty eyed the clouds in the distance. "What worries me is that we're seeing a cat-four this early in the season. It's not this storm we should be concerned about–it's what's coming later."

Their concern was warranted. Though the actual storm was still hours away from reaching them, it seemed like a hurricane had already arrived. Violent winds howled like rageful gods, casting waves several stories high against the tower's walls. The occasional peal of thunder rang through the screeching gale, illuminating the darkened skies.

But the worst was yet to come. When the storm itself hit, everything outside became pitch black, only periodically illuminated by the flashes of lightning, which were far from infrequent. The force of the wind and rain could be felt in the form of subtle vibrations in the tower's very foundation–the force field was indeed the only thing keeping them from oblivion, and even that seemed impermanent.

From the very top of the tower, Emerald couldn't look away from the windows at the devastation mere feet away from them. The sheer force of nature shown by this weather phenomenon overwhelmed every sort of Gem weapon she knew, but as terrifying as it was both in concept and execution, she couldn't look away. Tanzanite, as always, remained calm, keeping a close eye on the tower's integrity, staying vigilant for any possible breach. By contrast, Yooperlite and Lefty were playing cards.

Yooperlite cast a glance up at Emerald. "Yeah, I remember my first cat-four. You're takin' it better than I did. I hid in the basement the whole time! Solar flares and meteor showers might be scary too, but at least I could fly around those. Not so much here."

At a particularly forceful thunderclap, Emerald instinctively reached for her weapon. She grabbed hold of the blade, wincing and pulling back her hand. "So, um, crazy what nature can do, isn't it?" she said, hoping nobody saw that. "And this is just cat-four, huh? How high up does it go?"

"The highest possible occurrence is category five," explained Tanzanite. "Only one has ever been recorded on Moridius: it occurred roughly seventy years ago, on the other side of the planet. At the time, it was a one-in-a-thousand occurrence, but as atmospheric pressures continue to shift, they become increasingly likely."

"It's a good thing none have happened up here," Lefty said. "That relic of a shield generator wouldn't be nearly enough to protect us from one of those."

Emerald sat down beside them. "So, what exactly is your plan if a cat-five hits?" she asked.

"Don't have one," Lefty shrugged. "It's such a monumental improbability that there's never really been a reason to worry about it. Not like there's anything we could do about it, anyway…"

"But doesn't that worry you?" she asked. "There could be a devastating storm at any second, with nothing in this tower to protect you…and that should speak for itself! I like to think you should at least come up with some possibilities of escape, or…something!"

This remark made Yooperlite smile. "Y'know, I used to be as optimistic as you!"

"What do you mean by 'used to?'" asked Tanzanite.

The larger Gem rolled her eyes, still grinning. "Har har. I useta have all these ideas on how we could escape: build a ship outta junk! Wade through the ocean! Dig a big hole to this place's core! But, well, if any of 'em had worked, we wouldn't still be here."

"Sounds to me like you've all given up." When Emerald said this, she was expecting to get a reaction out of her fellow maroonees. What she did get was not what she expected:

"Pretty much," said Lefty.

A pause. "You…you have?"

"We haven't given up on surviving," Lefty said, "but getting off this rock went out the window a long time ago. We're pretty much just…holed up here until we die. Which, in a way, isn't that just the case for all Gems?"

Tanzanite cast a brief look her way. "I question your conclusions, though not the logic behind them."

It was around this time that the darkened skies outside began to lighten. The storm was no quieter, but it was almost as if the sun was shining through the clouds. "Huh? Don't tell me it's over already," said Emerald.

"Nope, that'll be the eye," Yooperlite explained. "But hey, some good news–that means we're about halfway there! C'mon, come take a look!" Emerald followed her over to the window.

The pitch-black clouds had been replaced with a thick fog that, while still affecting visibility, allowed them to see a ways into the distance. Wind and thunder still buffeted the tower, only now the temperature had dropped dramatically. The sea itself had frozen over, the waves themselves having turned to ice. Every so often, a bolt of lightning would strike the icy waves, sending up a gushing blast of water and steam that would then itself freeze, creating a strange tree-like formation. "It's…actually kind of pretty," Emerald admitted.

"That's probably the one upside to being trapped here," said Lefty. "If we have to be marooned on a hostile world…at least it's a spectacle to look at."

For just a moment, Emerald was able to forget about her situation. For a fleeting, solitary moment, she was engrossed in the splendid display unfolding out there before her, her worries passing her by. Of course, it couldn't last, as she was suddenly jolted back to reality, quite literally, when a lightning bolt struck the tower.

The tower shook more violently than it had before, as the lights flickered. Everyone's heads shot upward to look at the ceiling where the noise had come from. "No damage detected–systems functioning as normal," Tanzanite reported when the computers had stopped glitching.

Emerald turned to Lefty. "I thought that shield was supposed to protect us from things like that happening!"

"It is," the Peridot replied calmly. "We're still alive, aren't we? The tower's still standing? You do trust my engineering prowess, don't you?"

"You don't hafta worry about a thing," said Yooperlite. "I've been here with these two for centuries, and let me tell you, I've never felt safer. Trust me, you can trust 'em!"

Tanzanite diligently monitored their surroundings. Lefty sat on the floor, eagerly waiting Emerald's response. After a moment, she grinned, sitting beside the two. "Alright, deal me in."

It was early morning by the time the storm passed. A fog still hung over the area, obscuring the dim orange light coming from the west. The tower door slid open, and all four Gems peered outside. Hesitantly, Lefty took the first step, the others following once she wasn't immediately swept away by wind or waves.

The ground was littered with debris tossed up from the storm. Not just pieces of discarded Gem tech, there were also organics scattered about amidst the water. It was mostly plants, bits of scattered leaves and branches, but several bodies were also present. Animals who had been caught up in the storm and ripped from their land, carried miles across the sea only to end up here. Very few of them were still in one piece.

"Well, the tower held up pretty good," said Yooperlite, examining the tower which was covered in the aforementioned debris. "Just gotta spend a day or two cleanin' it up…"

Emerald grimaced as she traversed the minefield of corpses. "Does this happen with every storm? Eugh…I hope none of these things are poisonous…"

Lefty picked up a small fishlike creature. "Some storms have had some things get picked up here or there, but they usually aren't this bad. That's a cat-four for you." She did a double-take towards Emerald. "Wait, why would poison affect us?"

As Tanzanite continued to assess the damages, Yooperlite also traversed the scattered remains. "I don't see any thalassaraptors, so that's a good sign. Hmm? …Hey guys, come check this out! I don't think I've seen one of these before!" She drew Lefty and Emerald over to the remains of a whole organic.

The creature had blood-red skin, and was built much like the Gems, with two arms and two legs, the former of which were longer and tipped with three dull claws. It was lanky, about the same size as Tanzanite, with a face that was mostly mouth, a gaping hole filled with teeth. Two small, beady eyes were located on either side of its mouth, wide open and inexpressive.

Something about the creature unnerved Emerald more than she could describe. "What…exactly is this thing?" she asked, clearly disgusted.

"I'm not sure–I've never seen one of these before." Lefty picked up a stick to prod the body with. "It must've come from the complete opposite side of the globe, then. It can't be a cracetor, so maybe a–"

Without warning, water gushed from the creature's mouth as its body jerked to life. Lefty stumbled back as it coughed and screeched, its arms flailing everywhere. Within moments it was back on its feet, when it leapt at the first thing it saw, which happened to be Yooperlite. "Gyaaah! Diamonds above, get this thing off me!" It dug its teeth and claws into her shoulders as she tried to shake it loose.

"Yoop! Hold still, I've got it!" Lefty began hurling discarded bits of metal at the animal, but this only seemed to enrage it further, and those were the ones that actually hit it. As a cacophony of noises filled the air, Emerald struggled to draw her halberd.

In her panic, Yooperlite's body began to light up. Her gray skin began to glow with specks of orange, resembling her gemstone. Steam rose from the water as she heated up, causing the beast to detach from her. She staggered back, falling over into the water. And although the animal was disoriented, it had a new target within moments.

Its eyes locked onto Lefty, and it rushed her. She instinctively used her powers to shield herself with nearby metal, but there was nothing close enough after she had thrown it all away. The thing leapt, its claws preparing to shred her physical form. Just then, Emerald made her move, intercepting the creature by piercing its side with her weapon. As it fell to the ground, it let out one last breath before falling still once again.

Everyone was panting after the ordeal. Lefty fell to her knees in relief. Yooperlite stood up and hurried over to her. Emerald stepped back, her weapon disappearing. "Is…is everyone alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, I'm just fine," Lefty said as Yooperlite helped her up. "After everything it had been through, I didn't expect it to still be alive. Snatched up from its home by the storm, thrown through the air for miles only to end up here…" If Emerald was reading her right, she seemed to regard the beast with pity. "But there's no sense dwelling now. We survived another storm, so let's pack it in and get cleaned up."

"Actually, I think we have bigger things to worry about than cleaning up." Tanzanite emerged from the tower again, and even under her stoic demeanor, they could tell she was dreading something.

"Hmm? What's wrong?" asked Yooperlite.

She beckoned for them to follow her. "See for yourself." She led the others back inside to the basement, where Lefty was the first to realize what was happening. Worry turned to panic, reaching its peak when she saw what she had been dreading.

"No, no, no, NO!" She pushed her way past the others to what Tanzanite had been speaking of: the shield generator was almost completely fried. Water up to Lefty's knees was not helping matters, but even if it hadn't been drenched, it would likely still look as bad. "This can't…I don't…" She hung her head.

The same question was on everyone's mind, but only Emerald was brave enough to ask it. "H-how does it look? You can fix it, right?"

"I… Maybe," replied Lefty. "With the resources and Gempower we have left, I'm not sure if I can. But even if I can, it's only going to get worse. Look at it–we only barely survived this one! If this storm had been any longer, we probably wouldn't be standing here."

Yooperlite looked around at the others. "So, is that a yes, or…?"

"Don't you get it?" said Lefty, glaring at her angrily. "It doesn't matter if I can fix it or not! As the storms get worse, so will it, until there's nothing more we can do!"

"And with a category four this early in the season…" Tanzanite repeated.

"W-well…what do we do, then?" asked Emerald.

After giving one last look at the generator, Lefty shook her head. "I don't know."