Hello, everyone! Now as you probably already guessed from the end of the last chapter, I'm introducing Peridot in this chapter. I hope I do her character justice. I found Peridot hard to write for, since everything about her unique character is so precise. Nevertheless, I think I did good.
Enjoy!
I do not own 'Steven Universe.'
Chapter 6
Into Unknown Territory
In Blue Diamond's Polonium Mine, at the main control room, a Rutile typed, tapped, and swiped at the large control panel in front of her with a determined and frustrated look on her face. The tall, skinny, red Gem had a body like a thick pencil, right down to her dark hair that was like a diagonally-cut eraser head. Her black and red Gem uniform sported the Blue Diamond emblem on her chest.
"What is going on?" The Rutile said to herself. No matter what she did, the screens kept telling her that there was an error. "Geez, this is more of a pain in the gem than having a conversation with a Sphene."
The door to the Control Room opened and a green, thin Gem stepped through. She was a little taller than the average Pearl, almost as tall as the Rutile. Her skin was the color of the inside of a lime and her triangle hair was the color of key lime pie. The green on her green and black Gem uniform was forest and the mechanical halves of her limbs were bright neon green. Her hands were just five bright green nubs that levitated at the ends of her arms, mimicking fingers. A light green, translucent visor covered her green eyes. Her face expressed the smug boredom of someone that had come to think quite highly of themselves and their capabilities. Her green, triangular gem was embedded within her forehead.
"Are you the one they sent to attend to the repairs?" Rutile asked. "I'm surprised they sent a Peridot. I thought they'd send a Sphene."
"A Peridot's abilities in this particular field is more than enough to attend to the matters at hand." the Peridot replied in a calm, slightly nasally voice.
Rutile looked for a Diamond emblem on Peridot's uniform, but couldn't find one. "Are you one of Blue Diamond's?"
"Affirmative," Peridot replied. "Now, move aside so that I may assess the data and confirm the detriment to the Mine."
Rutile stepped aside and Peridot walked up to the control panel. She tapped and swiped using her levitating finger nubs with mechanical accuracy.
"I'm not sure what has happened," said Rutile. "These error warnings just suddenly started appearing. No warning, no noticeable or explainable cause. I had most of the workers exit the mine, in case an explosion or something was about to happen."
After about a minute, Peridot stepped back from the control panel and turned to Rutile. "I may have a solution that will restore the Mine's operations to their initial satisfactory condition," said Peridot. "I will need to make a request for additional equipment and labor force."
"Whatever get's the job done," said Rutile. "You want me to make that request for you?"
"Actually, your services are no longer required nor desired," Peridot said. "You may leave and attempt to be useful somewhere else."
Rutile blinked. "Oh… Uh, okay. I guess I'll just…go see if someone needs a Rutile." The red Gem headed to the exit. "And they wonder why we needed Sphenes," she muttered before she left.
Once Rutile was gone, Peridot smiled. She turned back to the control panel and wiped the concealer off of her uniform, revealing the yellow diamond emblem on her chest.
Pink Diamond walked down the halls of her Palace with her hands folded behind her back. The look on her face was joyful and perky but looked a little forced. Pink Diamond came across a pair of Carnelian Quartz guards patrolling the halls.
"Hello, my guards," Pink greeted with a friendly smile. "How goes the patrol?"
"The patrol goes well, my Diamond. Thank you," they responded with a salute.
"Is there anything to report?" Pink asked. "Any complaints or recommendations?"
"Well, and this is just me, the ground floor could use a Topaz sentinel at the main entrance." one of the Carnelians said. "Or maybe just a Quartz duo. Then again, no one really uses that entrance."
"Sounds good. Pearl, make a note, please."
"Yes, my Diamond." Pearl tapped away at her screen to make the reminder.
"Well, back to it, Gems," Pink Diamond gave the Quartzes two thumbs up. "Keep up the good work."
"Yes, my Diamond." the Carnelians said.
Pink Diamond continued down the hall and Pearl followed behind her. Once their Diamond was out of earshot and a little further to be safe, the Carnelians looked at each other.
"How long has Pink Diamond been in the Palace?" One of them asked.
"I don't know." the other one said. "She's just been walking around and asking everybody how to make things better around here. Her Pearl must have jotted down a hundred notes. I mean, don't get me wrong, we've been long overdue for some improvements to the Palace and I've never felt more appreciated. Still, though, it's kind of weird. Pink Diamond doesn't normally stay in one place for very long. And if I'm gonna be honest…it's a little unsettling having her here all of the time."
"Eh, she probably got in another argument with the other Diamonds and just needed to get away from them for a while." the first Quartz said. "We really shouldn't be splitting stones with this. I think it's actually kind of nice to have Pink Diamond around more often."
"Is it?" the second Quartz asked. "I mean, I love our Diamond, I think she's awesome. But…" she looked around to make sure no one could hear her. "...She won't go away. No one likes to be constantly supervised."
"She's a Diamond. She'll do what she wants." the first Quartz said. "She'll leave when she's ready to leave."
"My Diamond?" Pearl asked. "How much longer are we going to walk around the Palace looking for things to improve upon?"
"Well, we managed to do some good with our 'secret project'," Pink said. "And now, I'm just looking around my Palace, making sure everything is as good as I can make it." Pink Diamond walked up to one of the decorative plants. "Do you think this one needs to be trimmed? I think this one needs to be trimmed. We have a group of Pearls who attend to that, yes? Maybe we should call one of them over here."
Pearl stared up at Pink Diamond in confusion. "My Diamond…is there something wrong?"
"Something wrong? No, not at all. What would make you think something is wrong?" Pink said as she stared absentmindedly at the plant and began poking at it with an uncomfortably happy smile.
Pearl blinked. "...My Diamond…what's wrong?"
Pink Diamond stopped poking at the plant and froze in place. After a while, she sighed and drooped her head in defeat. "Okay, yeah. You got me. Something's wrong."
"Would you like to talk about it?" Pearl asked kindly.
Pink Diamond remembered Garnet's warning not to talk to Pearl about it. "Well…I've been…avoiding…a particular problem."
"What problem would that be?" Pearl asked. "Is this about our 'secret project'? Because you know we can't spend too much time doing that."
"No, it's not that," Pink rubbed the back of her head and grimaced anxiously. "Look, long story short, I…learned something about myself. And, I'm just trying to keep myself busy so I don't have to confront it."
"Is that a good idea, my Diamond?" Pearl asked. "What did you learn about yourself?"
"Not important!" Pink replied almost immediately.
Pearl flinched back at Pink's sudden response.
"Sorry. Sorry," Pink apologized. "I'm so sorry. I shouldn't have shouted. I'm sorry."
"My Diamond," said Pearl. "Perhaps instead of trying to avoid the problem, it would be best to confront it."
"Well…I'm scared." Pink confessed.
"My Diamond, I know better than anyone of your bravery," Pearl said. "Whatever is causing you so much distress, I am positive you have the courage and strength to overcome it."
"...You know what? Maybe you're right, Pearl," Pink said after giving it some thought.
"Of course I am, my Diamond," Pearl said a little smugly. "As usual."
"Run the list of complaints and recommendations with the Maintenance Crew, would you? I'm going to go talk to Greg." Pink said before taking off toward the nearest warp pad.
"Yes, my Dia-wait, what? Greg? Why Greg?" Pearl asked in confusion and sudden regret.
Pink was already gone.
Pearl just stood there for a little while before leaving to find the Maintenance Crew.
"...I am beginning to dislike that human a great deal," she said to herself.
Pink Diamond hummed to herself nervously as she headed to the warp pad. "Gonna go talk to Greg. Gonna go talk to Greg. What are we gonna talk about? I'm not sure yet. But one thing's for sure, I'm gonna go talk to Greg… Oh my stars, I sound insane."
Pink stopped at the warp pad and took a deep breath. "Okay, calm down. You're a Diamond. You're not about to crack under the pressure. No one said you have to go and tell Greg how you feel about him, you just have to stop avoiding your friend and go talk to him. Maybe we'll watch one of his movies or play games on his entertainment system. Just remember what Garnet told you." Pink tapped her chin. "I wonder what she meant when she said I was going to be jealous of one of Greg's friends…? Oh, what nonsense. I don't get jealous."
Pink Diamond stepped onto the warp pad and was beamed away.
In less than a minute, Pink Diamond appeared in the Garden. The Topaz guards bowed in respect before their Diamond.
"Hello, Greg. How are-what in the name of the cosmos is she doing here?"
Seated on the couch in the video viewing area, Greg and Blue Diamond's Pearl were sitting next to each other, laughing at the movie they were watching.
"So, this isn't an actual historical document?" the Blue Pearl asked.
"Nah, it's just a moving picture made for entertainment," Greg explained. "Robin Williams, the guy who plays as Alan Parrish, is an actor who's been in a few good movies."
"So humans do not normally have to deal with magical boards that send them to another world before summoning a bunch of animals and a crazy man with a gun?" Blue Pearl.
"Uh, no. That is not, in reality, typically something we humans have to deal with. A crazy man with a gun is something we occasionally have to deal with, but the rest of it, no." Greg said. He then noticed Pink Diamond looming over him and BP. "Oh, hey, Pink! You've been gone for a while, glad to have you back!"
"Greg. Hey. Hello. Greg. How are you? Hey." Pink said with a forced, toothy smile. "Question: Why is Blue Diamond's Pearl with you and how long has she been here and what have the two of you been doing?"
"Oh, her?" Greg asked. "Yeah, BP and I have been hanging out a lot ever since Blue Diamond gave me her on occasional loan."
"She what?" Pink asked. "Also…BP?"
"It stands for 'Blue Pearl'," said Greg. "And Blue Diamond has me doing jobs for her now. I just got back from loading energy crystals onto a transport ship, actually. Blue Diamond loans me her Pearl so she can alert me on new jobs. At first, I wasn't really crazy about the idea, since slavery is a really big 'no' on my planet, and that's essentially what Pearls are. But actually, she's really fun to hang out with."
"...Is she now?" Pink asked. "Well, that is just fantastic."
"We have been doing much together," BP said in her soft voice. "Greg has taught me how to play a few of his instruments. We have performed many songs together and even put together an album. I made the album cover myself." the Pearl reached over the side of the couch and showed Pink Diamond the album she and Greg had made. The cover was a depiction of outer space that looked like it belonged in an art gallery.
"Ooo, that's nice," Pink said. "Now, get out of my Garden."
Both BP and Greg were taken back by Pink's demand. "Woah, settle down, Pink," Greg said. "BP has to be here, it's her Diamond's command."
"Yes, Pink Diamond," BP said, her head hanging low. "Blue Diamond has commanded that I am Greg's when I am sent here."
"So, Greg commands you when you're here?" Pink asked.
"Yeah, but I'm trying to be cool about it," Greg said. "I'm not ordering her around or anything. We've just been hanging out. The other Gems are a…" Greg coughed into his fist. "a little anxious around her, so it's pretty much just been the two of us this whole time."
"I have been most delighted with Greg's company." Blue Pearl said. "This is perhaps the most fun I ever had in my existence. Actually, this might be the only fun I've ever had in my existence."
'That's my fun-having human.' Pink shook the dark, Gem-crushing thoughts out of her head. "Where are the others?"
"Up in my sleeping area," Greg said, pointing his thumb up at the dais.
Without another word, Pink Diamond headed towards Greg's area.
"Sorry about that," Greg said to BP once Pink was gone.
"Have I done something wrong?" BP asked.
"No, of course not," Greg said. "I'm not sure what got into her."
Pink Diamond reached the top of the dais and shrunk down to Quartz size. Amber, Spinel, Padparadscha, and Amethyst were sitting around Greg's area.
"How come you four are up here?" Pink asked.
"Not to say that Greg is a bad judge of character, but we find the company of Blue Diamond's Pearl to be…a tad unnerving," said Amber. "I'm trying to keep Amethyst and Padpardscha away from her. The last thing we need is Blue Diamond's Pearl reporting two off-colors within your Garden, one of whom has been posing as a proper Sapphire in your Court for thousands of years. No offense, Padparadscha."
"Oh, none taken," said Padparadscha. "But I am getting sick of this 'twenty feet apart' rule. I miss being able to move around freely in this garden."
"Look, I'm not entirely thrilled about her being here either." Pink Diamond said. "In fact, I need to lie down for a minute." she lied down on Greg's futon next to Amethyst. The two of them stared up into the stars with identical piqued looks.
"...Hey," said Amethyst.
"...Hey," said Pink Diamond.
"...When is the Pearl going to leave?" Amethyst asked.
"...Hopefully pretty soon," replied Pink Diamond.
"Can't you order her to leave?" Spinel asked. She was lounging in Greg's chest of stuff, playing with a yo-yo. "You're a Diamond, and she's a Pearl."
"Well, if Blue Diamond ordered her to be here to inform Greg about new jobs, then I really can't tell her to leave," Pink said reluctantly. "And besides…Greg seems to like her."
"Hmph," said Amethyst.
"Yeah, but how much longer is she going to be hanging around here?" Amber asked. "Whenever that Pearl shows up, it takes her forever to actually leave, and getting kind of tired of having to hide Amethyst and Padparadscha from her."
"Look, let's just try to bear through this, for Greg's sake," Pink sat up on the futon. "If Blue Diamond decides she likes Greg, she might take pity on him and send him back to Earth."
"Even if it means having a snitch in our midst?" Amethyst asked. "Come on, Pink Diamond, you know Blue Diamond's Pearl is just here to tattle on you, right?"
"Maybe she is, but we can't ruin this for Greg," said Pink. "If Greg does enough work for Blue Diamond, then maybe he'll actually have a chance to go back to Earth in less than ten years."
"Can't we just look for a planet that has a similar atmosphere to Earth's inhabited by a species similar to humans?" Amber asked. "Because I'm starting to think that might be easier. Also, I think that would be just awesome to find another planet like Earth. You know, until the other Diamond kill everything on the planet and colonize it… Oh, now I don't want to find another planet like Earth."
"I don't like it any more than you do, but the Pearl is staying," Pink said. "I hate having a possible Blue Diamond agent in our Garden as much as you guys do, but if it means getting Greg back to Earth, then we're just going to have to deal with it."
"Oh, by the way, Pink Diamond, I received a message for you from Sapphire earlier ago," said Padparadscha. "I didn't understand it, but she said you would get it."
Pink Diamond let out an aggravated groan. "Was it 'We told you so'?" she asked flatly.
"Well…yes. How'd you know?" Padparadscha asked.
"I guess I have future vision too," Pink said without a trace of emotion in her voice or face. "How's about that?"
"So on your planet, some humans find their place in life by drawing things the way I do?" BP asked.
"If they're good enough, yeah," Greg said. "I've met some pretty impressive painters and sketch artists while I was on the road. It's not always the most profit-making career, but it always seemed like a pretty fulfilling career to me."
"That sounds nice," said BP. "Homeworld has no need for Gems with those abilities."
"Well, what if Blue Diamond wants a painting of herself, or a statue or something?" Greg asked.
"If Blue Diamond wanted to see an image of herself, she would ask for a mural or a statue to be built for her," said BP. "A Bismuth or a Larimar would be called upon for such a task."
"She wouldn't ask you to make her a painting or something?" Greg asked. "Even if you showed her how good you are at drawing?"
"It is not my purpose," BP said matter-of-factly. "A Pearl has no business creating anything."
"That's not fair," Greg said. "What if a Pearl turns out to be really good at building stuff? Can't she be a builder?"
"No." BP simply replied. "All that a Gem can be is all that she was made to be."
"Aw, dang." Greg sympathized. "Don't you ever feel like you could be more?"
"I'm not supposed to," BP replied with a hint of nervousness in her tone, as if just having the discussion was giving her anxiety. "I was made to follow my commands and that is all."
"Well, I think you have it in you to be more than just a servant," said Greg. "You have a lot of potential as an artist."
The Blue Pearl turned her head away and shyly smiled, her dark blue bangs hiding most of her blush. "That's very kind of you. Thank you. You know…perhaps I do not have enough experience to understand the concept, but I do believe you are the first…friend…I've ever had."
"Really? You don't have Pearl-friends?" Greg chuckled. "I know you don't get it, but that was a fun play on words."
"My association with the other Diamonds' Pearls is mostly on the level of acquaintanceship." BP smiled at Greg. "But you…you care…most don't."
Greg shrugged. "Guess I'm just one of a kind. Well, technically I am, being the only human around for a couple of lightyears…I think. Not entirely sure on the cartography of outer space."
"Regardless…I am grateful."
BP leaned over and kissed Greg's cheek.
Greg blushed and brought his hand up to his face.
Then Greg's self-cleaning cubicle crashed down in front of the two of them.
Greg and BP let out a frightened yelp and clung to each other in fear. "What the hell?!" Greg cried.
"Oh my goodness," Pink said as she came down the dais. Her voice was oddly flat and her shocked face seemed a little forced. "Are you two okay?"
"What happened?!" Greg asked.
"Well…we were up in your area, minding our own business and definitely not eavesdropping, when suddenly…your self-cleaning cubicle crashed down in front of you and Pearl, thankfully without crushing either of you."
Greg blinked. "That doesn't really explain how the cubicle found its way from the top of the dais to down here-"
BP's gem started to glow. She reached into her gem and pulled out a blue, handheld device. The device projected a holoscreen, displaying something that Greg couldn't understand.
"Oh my," said BP. "Greg, you have another assignment."
"From Blue Diamond?" Greg asked.
"Not directly," said BP. "There is a malfunction in Blue Diamond's Polonium Mine. According to the request form, the problem is an electrical error. You are needed in order to fix the electrical grid, as your biology makes you immune to the energy which the mines run on. How odd. Normally a Peridot or a Sphene would be called upon to repair something like that. I am not sure why they would need you for a task so easily fixable."
"They're probably just taking advantage of my service while I'm still around," Greg suggested. "The whole 'get it while it lasts' deal."
"You have to leave now?" Pink asked in disappointment.
"Yeah, duty calls." Greg and BP stood up off the couch. "I'll be back in a bit."
"Make sure to grab Amber's backpack before you leave," Pink said. "And do you have the wrist destabilizer she made you?"
"Have it right here." Greg pulled his jacket sleeve back to show he was wearing it.
"Be careful," Pink warned with worry thick in her voice. "Be back as soon as you can. Don't try to start anything with any Gems you meet. Just go in, do your work, and come right back to the Garden."
"I'll be fine, Pink." Greg walked over and picked up his backpack. "I'm safe on Blue Diamond's turf, you know that."
"Just try to be safe, that's all I ask," Pink said.
"I will. I promise." Greg turned to BP. "Lead the way."
BP nodded and led Greg to the warp pad.
"If you change your mind, just have that Pearl send you right back here!" Pink called after him. "Like if the job looks too dangerous or if you just decide you'd rather be here with me-I mean us-then have her bring you right back!"
Blue Pearl and Greg beamed away on the warp pad. Pink Diamond stared up into space with an anxious look.
"Oh, stars, I'm losing it," she muttered as she ran a hand through her hair. "I bet I sounded like a total maniac."
Amber came downstairs and looked at the crashed insta-clean cubicle. "Oh, come on! I had to special order that thing! Geez, I don't go around breaking your stuff."
"I'm sorry, Amber, I'm just dealing with some things right now." Pink apologized.
Amber sighed. "It's fine, it's fine. I'll just order another one. Hopefully, I can get fast shipping. otherwise, we'll have to deal with a dirty Greg for a while."
Greg and Blue Pearl appeared on another warp. Greg looked around and took in his surroundings. They were in a football stadium-sized crater that went down several miles deep. Greg and BP were standing on a ledge halfway down the crater. The ledge was part of a spiraling walkway that led from the top of the crater to the bottom. On the walls of the crater, metal balconies and catwalks connected to the holes in the walls. At the bottom of the crater, several machines and other equipment stood at attention. What was shaped like a thick, metal frisbee was embedded halfway into the crater wall, possibly the control room, loomed over the machines and equipment on the crater floor.
"Working at the mines," Greg said. "The good news is I know a few miner songs. The bad news is they're all really depressing."
"Let us be on our way," said BP. "The overseers of this mine are probably waiting for us in the control room."
"Sounds good," Greg said. The two of them started down the walkway. The crater was deep, so it was a long walk down. The mine was really quiet. Greg kicked a rock and the echo sounded throughout the entire mine.
"Can't we take an escalator down or something?" Greg asked.
"They should have sent a transport to meet us." BP pointed out. "The Mine seems oddly deserted. I wonder how severe the damage to the mines is."
"Who runs things around here?" Greg asked.
"One of Blue Diamond's Morganites, but most likely one of her Rutiles sent the request for you." BP was silent for another minute before speaking again, sounding embarrassed. "I…I should apologize for…what I did…back in Pink Diamond's Garden," she whispered.
"Oh, that?" Greg asked. "It's fine, BP, it was just a peck on the cheek. Not the first time it's happened to me."
"It was incorrect of me," BP said automatically.
"All you did was kiss my cheek," Greg said. "I mean, yeah, your nose poked me and it kinda hurt, but it was no big deal."
"Yes, it was." BP stopped and faced Greg, to the human's surprise. "I am not supposed to do things like that. I am not supposed to feel the things you make me feel."
"How do I make you feel?" Greg asked.
"...Like I can be more." Blue Pearl said. "But that's wrong. I am Blue Diamond's personal Pearl. I cannot and should not be behaving and feeling like this."
"You mean like you're your own Gem?" Greg asked.
"Yes." BP hung her head. "The purpose of my existence is to be a personal servant to one of the four most important Gems on Homeworld. I am not supposed to be getting the idea that I can be a sketch artist or anything aside from my assigned purpose. I don't have friends, I have my Diamond and that is all. I shouldn't be developing…" the Pearl gulped. "An attachment, to a human."
Greg blinked. "Look, I'm sorry-"
"Please…stop that." Blue Pearl whispered. She actually began to shiver like she was cold. "Stop treating me like I'm anything more than a Pearl. I am an eccessarry, Blue Diamond's property, my feelings and my opinions are of no importance."
Greg stared at Blue Pearl for a long time. "Look, Pearl," Greg said sympathetically, not using his nickname for her. "I get that you think all that you can be is all that you're supposed to be. I know that's the way of the world of Gems, and I'll respect that. But let me ask you this: Don't you ever get the feeling that you have what it takes to be more than you are now?"
"...That feeling…scares me," BP confessed.
"Of course it's scary. Trying new things usually is. Especially in your case." Greg said. "But I know you have more in you than just servitude. I mean, I get it, that kind of thinking can get a Pearl shattered around these parts. All I'm saying is: you shouldn't think so little of yourself."
BP drooped like a withered flower. "...No one has been as kind to me as you have," she whispered. The Pearl looked up at Greg. "...All the praise you have given me…I don't feel like I deserve it, and I don't know how to process it."
Greg paused for a second, staring at the confused Pearl. Then he reached up and gently parted BP's hair, revealing her startled eyes. They were as blue as a lake and looked scared.
"You never have to be afraid when you're with me." Greg smiled. "And you deserve to be recognized for everything you're capable of. You don't deserve to be ignored because of what you are. You should embrace who you are and what you feel."
BP began to shake again.
Then she grabbed Greg's face and pulled him in for a kiss.
Greg's eyes lit up with complete shock from the kiss, right before BP's nose poked him in the eye.
"OW!" Greg reeled back and covered his eye with his hands. "Ow, ow, ow, ow, ow!" He then noticed that BP was staring at him with a both terrified and mortified look on her face. Greg brought his hands away from his poked eye, which, fortunately, hadn't suffered any serious damage. "...BP-"
BP moved her hair over her eyes and headed down the mine without a word.
Greg was about to call out for her but decided it was better not to. So he just sighed and followed after Blue Pearl, who moved down the walkway with her hands folded in front of her, seemingly unconcerned with whether or not Greg was following her. The rest of the walk was made without a sound from either of them. They reached the bottom of the mining crater and stood among the mining equipment, looking around for any Gems. But the place was a Gem ghost town.
Above in the Control Room, a tall, green Gem smiled down at the Human and Pearl down below. The Gem turned around and walked away from the control panel.
BP looked around once more and, without even looking in Greg's direction, said "Wait here, I am going to look for somebody." Then she walked away, leaving Greg alone.
Greg sighed and found a cube to sit on. He felt horrible. He felt like he had just traumatized BP. Greg didn't mean to mess up the poor Pearl, nor did he mean to lead her on. He just wanted to help her realize her own potential. But Greg realized that as a Gem, that wasn't really a choice for her. She was a Pearl. She had to be what Blue Diamond expected her to be.
"And now, because I don't know when to stop, I just lost a friend." Greg blew a raspberry. "Man, I could use a drink right about now. I know it's a long shot, but I wonder if these rock heads have some kind of drinkable alcohol. Hell, at this point, I'd chug down vodka...Maybe Amber can hook me up."
Greg heard footsteps.
He stood up off the cube he had been sitting on and looked around. "Hello?" he called out. "BP? Is that you?"
Only daunting silence hung in the air.
Greg began to grow nervous. He looked around, hoping to see somebody. "Is someone out there?" he asked. "I'm the human who was sent to help out in the repairs."
Again, Greg was met with only silence. The odd situation brought a couple of movie settings to mind. Namely, horror movie settings.
A terrible thought suddenly occurred to Greg. "Yuh-oh."
A blast of green energy struck the ground near Greg's feet, and he was sent flying back from the force of the blast. He landed on his back and stared fearfully at the cloud of dust the energy blast had kicked up. Dramatically emerging from the dust cloud was a tall, green Gem with a triangle haircut, whose cybernetic arm was currently charged with green energy, armed and ready. She stared coldly at the human through her visor.
"...Geez, if Mr. Freeze fucked Martian Man Hunter and had a daughter," Greg commented. "I think that's pretty good, I'd like to hear someone do better."
The green Gem aimed her arm cannon at Greg.
"Oh, crap!" Greg dove to the side and the blast missed him by a foot. He quickly got to his feet and ran away, weaving through and between the mining equipment to make it harder for the Gem to blast him.
"Heh, heh, heh." the green Gem chuckled before running after Greg, heading away from the control center.
Greg ran as fast as we could in an attempt to lose his pursuer. The green assassin was hot on his trail though, blasting at him and barely missing him. Each time a blast hit the ground or a machine near Greg, he would yelp and run away from where the blast had hit. The Gem just followed after him with a patient and smug smile.
Greg eventually came to a mining tunnel dug into the crater. With nowhere else to go and the Gem right behind him, Greg ran into the tunnel. The tunnel only went one way but winded like a dizzy python. The tunnel was illuminated by glowing, blue crystals embedded in the walls of the tunnel. Numerous pipes followed Greg down the tunnel, going in and out of the ground, leading to who knew where. Greg began to weigh his options as he ran through the tunnel. He had his wrist destabilizer, maybe he could sneak attack the crazy Gem while she wasn't looking. Greg wasn't sure if Amber had packed him any weapons in the backpack, but he didn't think he had the time to look.
Greg ran until he came to some kind of cylindrical bridge. It was a complicated-looking piece of machinery and it hung over a chasm that went down for miles, the darkness below making it unclear just how deep it went. Many of the pipes seemed to lead to the bridge, attached to the outer rim of the cylinder. Greg ran through the cylinder bridge to the other side.
The circular door on the side of the bridge Greg was running to slid closed, blocking his escape.
Greg ran up and pounded his fist on the door, looking for a way to open it. "Oh, no,"
Greg turned around and there she was. The green Gem, a couple of feet away, aiming her arm cannon at Greg.
Greg slowly raised his arms in surrender. "Please…you don't have to do this."
Instead of replying, the Gem brought her other arm up and the floating nubs that acted as fingers formed a rectangle, with a nub at each corner. A holoscreen appeared in the rectangle and the fifth nub acted as a stylus, tapping and swiping at the holoscreen. The Gem angled the holoscreen so Greg could see it, and he gasped with fear.
Yellow Diamond's face was on the screen. When she saw Greg cornered at the end of the bridge, she smiled. "Ah, so the mission was a success, Peridot?"
"Yes, my Diamond." the one called Peridot replied with a smile like she just made her mom proud. "All was conducted by your specific instructions."
"Very good," said Yellow Diamond. "Finally, I can get rid of this beast."
"This whole thing was just a trick to whack me?!" Greg cried. "What did I ever do to you?!"
"This isn't about what you've done to me, primate," Yellow Diamond snapped. "This is about what your kind has done to Pink Diamond."
"What are you talking about?" Greg demanded. "We worshiped her like a goddess!"
"Of course you did." The Diamond replied hatefully. "But now, it's time to get rid of you before you do any damage."
"So greenie here is gonna kill me now?" Greg asked.
"Oh, no. That would be too obvious." Yellow Diamond explained. "It has to look like an accident, otherwise Blue and Pink Diamond will rain down on me."
"You're sick, you know that?!"
"And you're about to die." Yellow retorted. "Polonium is quite the toxic substance. And you, filthy ape, are standing in a part of the mine that acts as a processor for the mined polonium. Peridot, if you would."
"Yes, my Diamond." The stylus nub moved around and the image of Yellow Diamond shrunk into the corner of the holoscreen, then tapped and swiped away until the screen blinked. "You now have temporary control of this section of the mine, my Diamond,"
"Good," said Yellow Diamond. "In case you're curious, human, I am going to start up this processor while you are trapped in it. The tunnel will fill with processed polonium and you will be killed by the radioactive cloud. It will look like a dumb animal had just wandered into the wrong place at the wrong time. You'll be gone. Pink and Blue Diamond won't be mad at me. It's flawless."
"You're a monster and you don't deserve to have Pink Diamond in your life," Greg said boldly. "You're too dense to realize how lucky you and the rest of Homeworld are to have Pink Diamond."
Anger flooded Yellow Diamond's face and electricity danced in her eyes. Even though she was on a holoscreen, Peridot looked fearful.
"You are fortunate this is the last moment of your short, pathetic life." Yellow Diamond said coldly. "It's time to end this."
"Well said, my Diamond." with her arm cannon still aimed at Greg, Peridot backed up towards the other exit. "Do not attempt to follow me out, human. This is your designated location of termination."
"You have a really annoying voice, you know that?" Greg asked.
"I am glad you are going to expire," said Peridot. "Goodbye, human."
The door on the other side of the tunnel closed before Peridot could leave.
Peridot spun her head around and stared and the now-closed door in shock and confusion. "What the-" the green Gem looked at the holoscreen. "My Diamond, I apologize for the inconvenience, but my exit has closed. I humbly request you reopen the tunnel so that I may escape."
"Actually, Peridot, you will not be leaving either," said Yellow Diamond.
Peridot's eyes widened and she blinked. "...I-I-I'm sorry, my Diamond?"
"Blue Diamond's Pearl is occupied in the Control Center looking for the Gem who made the request. That just leaves you as the only Gem who knows about this whole function. As such, I need you gone so that this function remains entirely buried."
"Wha-" Peridot's body began to shake, just like BP's did. The arm cannon's ball of energy receded and she brought her hand down. "B-b-b-b-but…my Diamond, you chose me for this task due to the importance of my skillset."
"I chose you because you are an expendable, Era 2 Peridot who can be easily replaced." Yellow Diamond replied in an almost bored tone.
Peridot looked like she was about to cry. "But…but…my Diamond…I belong to you."
"And so you'll do as I say," said Yellow Diamond. "Once the human has been poisoned, the processor will be filled with Blue Diamond's dynamo energy, which powers much of the Mine, and you will be shattered."
"Wow, that is just evil," Greg commented.
"Shut up!" Peridot shouted. "My Diamond-"
"I thank you for your service to me. Your termination will be a waste of a Peridot, I will admit, but this needed to be done." Yellow Diamond said. "End of transmission."
The holoscreen went dark. Peridot attempted to contact Yellow Diamond again but got no response. Peridot began to hyperventilate as the processor tunnel began to activate.
"Oh, crap!" Greg cried. "Quick, how do we get out of here?!"
Peridot made no indication that she had heard him. She just stared down at the ground with a forlorn look on her face, shaking all over. "She…she left me here to die," she whispered. "But…she's my Diamond."
"Oh, goddammit." Greg walked up and slapped Peridot in the face. The green Gem shook her head and blinked at Greg in surprise.
"We are about to die!" Greg cried. "Look, I'm sorry, but we need to figure out how to get out of here! You're a Peridot, right? You guys know tech stuff from what I hear. Figure out a way to get us out of here before I'm poisoned and you're shattered!"
"The day I take orders from a human is the day-"
"We are about to die, you idiot!"
"GAH-AH!" she shouted out in irritation before moving around the tunnel, apparently looking for something. She must have found what she was looking for, because she ripped off a panel on the wall with her finger nubs.
An eerie, blue mist began to fill the tunnel. Greg started coughing and wheezing. "Hurry up!" he said in a now raspy voice. The polonium mist burned his skin and scorched his throat.
"I am more concerned about my survival than I am about yours, human!" Peridot shot back as she messed around with the wiring. She disconnected and rearranged wires as Greg coughed violently.
"Nyaaaaah!" Peridot cried out as she backed away from the open panel. "It's no use! Without a counter-electrical charge to administer to the wiring, I can't deactivate the process! Even a destabilizer would be adequate! None of my limb enhancers' capabilities are suitable for the-"
Greg rushed forward and thrust his wrist destabilizer into the wiring without a second thought.
"NO! Not like that!" Peridot screamed. "That's gonna bring the whole processing tunnel-"
The tunnel began to shake and spark.
"...Oh, no," Peridot said with a terrified look on her face. Her face filled with rage as well as she looked at Greg. "You useless, organic, slow-witted clod!"
The shaking became more violent. Greg felt the tunnel tilt.
"What…what's happening?" Greg wheezed, his voice barely understandable or audible.
"You overloaded the entire system!" Peridot. "Causing a chain reaction that will destabilize this tunnel's-"
The entire tunnel dropped about three feet.
Greg and Peridot froze. Then they slowly turned their heads to look at each other.
"For the record…I blame you for this," said Peridot.
"That's…fair."
The bridge broke apart from either end and fell down into the chasm.
Peridot screamed as they fell, but Greg didn't have the throat power anymore to scream. The Human and the Gem slammed into the top of the cylinder as they fell, rendering them both immobile. Peridot tried to activate something in her limb enhancers, but a spark of energy from the processor struck the Gem and she twitched and jerked, momentarily stunned. With much difficulty, Greg reached around and pulled his backpack off his back, hugging it against him. He opened it up and dug through its contents. He pulled out a pink, iron headband Amber had shown him.
'Put this on for extra protection.' Amber had instructed. 'It'll make you harder to break.'
Greg slipped the headpiece onto his head right before he blacked out.
BP came back to where she had left Greg. "I couldn't find anyone. Perhaps we should contact Blue Diamond about the situation. Also, Greg… I should apologize about my behavior earlier-"
BP looked around and noticed that Greg was gone.
"...Greg?"
Shrunk down to Quartz size, Pink Diamond stared up into space as she lied on the couch. Amber was in the hangout lounge tapping away at the holoscreens projected from her glasses and Spinel, Amethyst, and Padparadscha were up on Greg's dais, staying far from the warp pad for when Greg and Blue Pearl came back.
Pink took a deep breath. She felt embarrassed and ashamed about how she acted in front of Greg. All the Pearl did was kiss Greg's cheek, but even so, the very thought of it made Pink want to smash something. She had never felt this way before about someone. Yeah, she loved her Gems and the other Diamonds, but what she felt for Greg…it was an entirely different kind of love. It felt completely foreign to her, as if it had no place in her world. She hated herself for losing her mind in front of Greg the way she did, but this new kind of love that she was feeling; it almost felt like mind control.
"He must think I'm a psychopath." Pink whined to herself.
Amber walked up to Pink while she was lounging on the couch. "Well, I ordered Greg a new cleaning cubicle. Thankfully, it should arrive soon." Amber adjusted her square glasses. "You maybe wanna tell me why you chucked Greg's old cubicle down a flight of stairs? I haven't seen you act that crazy in a long time."
"I really don't want to talk about it," Pink said. "I'm just…not feeling normal."
"Look, Pink, if this is about Greg, then I understand," Amber said. "He's grown on all of us. There's just something about him that immediately makes you want to be his friend. It's like his power or something. We all care about him."
"I won't deny that, but you still don't understand," Pink said. "I feel like I'm going crazy with that human around."
"Why's that?" Amber asked.
"Not important!" Pink shouted. "Just know that…I care about Greg. But the thing is…I might be caring about him a little too much."
"Well, yeah. You care. That's basically what separates you from the other Diamonds." said Amber. "And there's nothing wrong with caring."
Pink sighed. "It's never been so difficult and frightening before."
"That's because Greg is something new to us," Amber explained. "Neither of us has ever had a friend who was so…human. My Diamond, it is my professional opinion as an observer of organic life that you should probably just talk to Greg about this."
Pink sat up on the couch and looked at her Amber, finally smiling a bit. "You are one of the best Gems I ever made. I want you to know that."
"Oh, I do," replied Amber.
The two of them shared a laugh.
"I'll talk to Greg once he gets back," Pink said. "It's time I get this thing off my chest."
"What is it about Greg that's got you so riled up, anyway?" Amber asked.
"Uhhhhhhhhhhh…" Pink Diamond blushed. "...I think he might be telekinetic and it's messing with my whole…you know, mind thing."
"Really?" Amber asked in astonishment. "This calls for experimentation. We can heal him if I cut him open, right?"
Before Pink Diamond could answer, the warp pad lip up. The Pink Topazes aimed their halberds at Blue Pearl.
"Hold!" Pink Diamond commanded. She grew to her full height and walked over to meet the Pearl. "What are you doing here? Where is Greg?"
Blue Pearl wrung her hands nervously. "...There was an accident at the Polonium Mine." The Pearl sounded both saddened by the news and scared to tell it to Pink Diamond. "Your human, Greg…is missing." Blue Pearl hung her head. "...I am sorry…the Human Greg is most likely…gone."
Amber gasped and brought her hands to her mouth. Pink's eyes widened and her whole body began to glow.
"What?"
"Slow down, Pink. Just tell me what happened." Blue Diamond said.
"A section of your Polonium Mine collapsed, and Greg was sent down into the underground!" Pink shouted from her side of the transmission.
"What?" Blue Diamond leaned forward in her throne. "Oh, dear."
"I'm sending a search party into the underground to find him. I was hoping you would send one as well." On the holoscreen, Pink Diamond stared desperately at Blue Diamond. "Please."
"Well, Pink," Blue started carefully. "If he fell all the way into the Underground from the mines, there's no guarantee the Human even survived the fall. In fact, it's far more likely that Greg is dead. He is only human, Pink."
"My Padparadscha predicted his survival!" Pink Diamond argued. "Well, actually, the details on her prediction are a little fuzzy. But I'm pretty sure the gist of it was that he's still alive!"
"Pink-"
"Just send a group of Rubies or something down there to find him!" Pink begged. "He works for you! That's gotta count for something! Please, help me find him!"
Bue Diamond sighed. "Look, Pink. I understand your fondness of the human. I even find myself growing fond of him. Why I was considering having him play music for me on occasion, perhaps assisted by my Pearl in a duet. However…he's just a human. I'm sorry, Pink, but there's no point in sending Gems to look for a doomed creature."
Pink looked genuinely hurt. "So…I can expect no help from you?"
"I can give you a schematic of the Mine's foundations. That may help," Blue said. "But the tunnels and trenches of the underground in that area are incredibly chaotic and disorderly. It will be difficult to pinpoint a possible location if you decide to look for where Greg fell to."
"Gee, thanks," Pink said sarcastically. "Give me a call when you decide to give me some real help. I'm going to go find Greg."
"And if he's already dead?" Blue Diamond.
Pink shut her eyes and sighed. "Then…there goes the best friend I've ever had. You may think nothing of him, but I do. I'll send you your Pearl after she fills me in on the details of the Mine accident. End of transmission."
Pink Diamond disappeared off the holoscreen. Blue Diamond stared at the offline holoscreen with a thoughtful look.
"She really cares about that human." Blue marveled. She leaned into her throne and sighed. "...Perhaps I could send a small group of Rubies to find the human. A group of five should do. After all, once Yellow finds out about this, she'll probably do the same, eager to ensure that Pink's human is deceased."
Greg opened his eyes and tried to refocus his vision. He tried to breathe, but it felt like broken glass was clogging his esophagus. Tears poured from his eyes as he forced breath in and out of his lungs. Greg tried to figure where he was. He was lying on his back on what felt like rough ground. It was hard to see anything, Greg's eyes were puffy and they stung. He turned his head and saw his Amber Backpack a few feet away. Greg struggled to turn onto his side.
'I'm sorry, son, but your mother is going to go to sleep.' Greg heard a voice in his head say.
Greg flipped onto his stomach and started to belly crawl to the backpack, rasping for breath and turning blue and green. The polonium poisoning was acting fast through his system.
'Gregory Anthony Demayo, you put down that damn guitar and come out here right this minute!'
Sweat began to pour from Greg's brow like a half-open faucet.
'You wanna know why I love music, Greg? Because it's the voice of art, and art has the most beautiful voice of all.'
Greg was halfway to the backpack.
'Your father was a soldier and a patriot. Why do you have to be bum like your hippie mother?!'
Greg reached the backpack and struggled to dig through its contents.
'Forget this idiotic dream, boy! Stay in school and get a real job!'
'Greg, I am sick and tired and having to bail you out of trouble!'
'You'd better shape up, or we're sending you to military school."
'Mr. Demayo, your grades must improve if you wish to avoid expulsion.'
Greg pulled a silver flask out of the backpack and unscrewed the top with shaky hands.
'Wake up! Mommy, please! Please wake up!"
Greg poured all of the crystal-clear liquid in the flask down his throat.
Greg gasped for breath and his eyes stopped stinging, turning back from red and puffy to their normal, healthy color, as did his face. For a while he just laid there on his side, breathing heavily as the contents of the flask healed him.
Greg held the flask up and stared at it. "Pink Diamond's tears," he said. "Surprisingly enough, it tastes like Sprite."
Greg struggled to his feet and surveyed his surrounding. He was in a dark, grim trench that stretched on for miles and went of in several different directions. He looked behind him and there was the bridge that had crashed down with him and Peridot in it. It was lying in the trench, looking like a crushed soda can.
Greg looked down at his arms. They glowed with a faint, pink light, as did the rest of his body. Greg reached up and took the iron circlet off of his head, and the glowing stopped. Although he was still alive and suffering no serious damage, Greg still felt like he had been beaten by a bouncer at a nightclub.
Thank you, Amber." he said before putting the circlet and flask back into the backpack. He looked back at the fallen processor-bridge and gasped at what he saw. Peridot's arms and legs were pinned under the bridge, crushed and destroyed. The rest of the Gem was nowhere to be seen, other than her gem. It was lying on the ground, about a foot away from the bridge and her destroyed limbs.
"Oh, boy, you and I got lucky, huh, greenie?" Greg said. "It's a miracle we didn't get crushed."
The gem, currently being an inanimate stone, didn't reply.
"...Right…well, see ya." Greg hung his backpack over his shoulder and started off away from the wreckage.
'You're really gonna just leave her here all alone?' Greg's conscience asked.
"She tried to kill me," Greg argued.
'She was ordered by her god to kill you, then her god ordered her to lie down beside you and die.' his conscience reminded him. 'Did you see the look on her face? She was heartbroken and lost. You've been heartbroken and lost before.'
Greg stopped in his tracks and groaned. "I'm not bringing her with me."
'If Yellow Diamond finds her, she'll have her killed.' said his conscience. 'And besides, it wouldn't hurt to have a guide to help you through the underbelly of this crazy town.'
Greg sighed in defeat. "Yeah, you're right," he said. "I can't leave her here for Yellow Diamond to find, and I need her to help find my way around."
'That's right.'
"Wait, are you really my conscience, or am I just going crazy?"
'Well, actually, I'm a side effect from the radioactive polonium you inhaled. Don't worry, you're healed now. In fact, I'll be gone after the end of this sentence.'
"For real?"
"..."
"...Huh." Greg walked over to Peridot's gem and picked it up. "Please don't make me regret this," he said before pocketing the gem in his pocket. "Time to hit the road."
(Several hours later)
"Holy hell, my feet are killing me," Greg complained. He had been walking through the trenches for what felt like an eternity. Greg had no idea where he was going, everywhere looked the same. Looking up, all Greg could see and hear was the chaos of Homeworld's overworld.
"Christ, and I thought Jersey was bad," Greg said. "Boy, what I wouldn't give for golf cart or something."
Something in Greg's pocket began to glow green. Curious, he reached into his jacket and pulled out Peridot's gem. "Or a guide."
The green gem floated up into the air and began to glow even brighter, much to Greg's amazement. After a few seconds, Peridot's body reformed from the gem and she landed on the ground, darting her head around in a state of panic.
Greg just stared at Peridot for a second, then he burst into laughter. "Oh my God! That's what you really look like?!" He asked. "You're so cute!"
Turns out, Peridot was only about as tall as Spinel. The short, green Gem stared at her hands and feet in shock. "My limb enhancers!" she cried. "Where are my limb enhancers?!"
"They got destroyed in the wreckage," said Greg. "You adorable, angry slice of pie."
"Silence!" Peridot shouted. "I demand to know where you have brought me!"
"I was hoping you could tell me," said Greg. "The bridge went down and nearly killed us both. I've been walking through this place for hours waiting for you to wake up from your Gem nap."
"WHAT?!" Peridot shouted angrily. "You dense, half-wit, mega-clod! You sent me falling down a trench in a polonium processor and now you've stranded me Diamond's know where in the Homeworld underground?!"
"Hey, take it easy, greenie." Greg protested.
"MY NAME'S NOT GREENIE!" Peridot let out a roar and jumped on Greg. She clung to Greg's arm and sank her teeth into it.
Greg screamed in pain and tried to shake Peridot off of him. "AAAAAAH! Get it off! Get it off!" Greg began running around as he tried to shake the biting Peridot off of him. She was biting the arm with the wrist destabilizer, so he couldn't use it. Greg ran up to the trench wall and began slamming Peridot into it repeatedly. After a series of blows to the head, Peridot let go of Greg's arm and fell to the ground on her back, her eyes rolling around dizzily.
Greg rubbed his sore arm. "You little, green crap! What's the matter with you!"
Peridot shoot her head and glared up at Greg. "You're the reason I have been abandoned by my Diamond and left to wonder this underground for eternity! If it wasn't for your existence and your presence, I wouldn't be in this unfortunate and wretched predicament!"
"Don't blame this scrap on me!" Greg said. "You're down here with me because your Diamond, surprise, surprise, doesn't care about you!"
"Shut up!" Peridot shouted.
"She left you to die because you're nothing but another tool on the shelf to her!"
"NYAAAAH!" Peridot launched herself upwards and grabbed ahold of Greg's face.
"AAAAAH!" Greg shouted as he stumbled around. "Get off of me, you freak!"
Greg reached up to pull the angry Gem off of him and threw her against the wall. While Peridot was down, Greg reached into his backpack and pulled out a roll of duct tape.
Peridot stood up and stared at the roll of tape in Greg's hand. "What is that?"
(several minutes later)
Greg sat against the wall of the trench, utterly exhausted. He panted for breath and rubbed the parts of his body that Peridot either punched, kicked, or bit. "Okay…maybe we should just try to talk this out now."
Trapped in her duct tape cocoon, Peridot wiggled around madly like a downed caterpillar. "I will incinerate you in the nearest star! You hear me, primate?! You will suffer my wrath!"
"Shut up before I duct tape your mouth shut," Greg warned.
Peridot quieted down and stopped squirming, instead just glaring at Greg.
"Thank you," Greg said. "Alright, look. You don't like me, and I don't like you. But here's the hard truth: We're both currently on Yellow Diamond's hit list. Me, because she doesn't want me around Pink Diamond. And you, because she doesn't want it to get out that my death wasn't an accident."
Peridot narrowed her eyes and looked away.
"If we don't work together, we're both going to die. So here's what I propose: We can't go to Yellow Diamond, because that's obviously a bad idea. We can't go to Blue Diamond, because she might blame me for the damage to the Mines. So, that just leaves Pink Diamond. We get to her, and I'll explain the situation and reveal Yellow's treachery. The secret will be out, and Yellow Diamond won't have to shatter you."
"...Agreed," Peridot said reluctantly. "Do you happen to have a means of contacting Pink Diamond?"
"Let me check." Greg reached into his backpack and pulled out a pink communicator. "Hey, we're in luck!"
The communicator sparked and fell apart in Greg's hand.
"Ooo, maybe not. Must have gotten damaged in the crash."
Peridot groaned miserably. "Now how are we supposed to contact Pink Diamond?"
"Well," Greg tapped his chin and gave it some thought. He snapped his fingers when he got an idea. "Aha! Pink Diamond's Factory! If we sneak our way to the Factory like the off-colors do, we'll be safe in Pink Diamond's territory."
"The Factory?!" Peridot cried. "No self-respecting, proper Gem would willingly go to that off-color dump!"
"Got any better ideas?"
Peridot just stared at Greg for a while, then she narrowed her eyes at Greg. "Given that we began in Blue Diamond's Polonium Mine and that we fell into one of the mine's trenches, I'd estimate that we have much distance to travel before we make it to our destination."
"Can you get us to the Factory?" Greg asked.
"Affirmative, but with great difficulty," said Peridot. "Also, if I am going to be leading the way, I insist you release me from these polythene restraints."
"Yeah, I have a better idea." Greg picked up his roll of duct tape and walked over to Peridot, who tried to wiggle away at the sight of Greg with his tape. A minute later, Greg had fastened a duct tape harness to Peridot's cocoon. He picked Peridot up and slipped into the harness, hanging Peridot in front of his chest like a baby in a carrier.
"You diabolical, egregious, wretched clod!" Peridot cursed. "This is horrendously degrading!"
"It's not that I don't trust ya. It's just that…I don't trust ya. And besides," Greg slipped the backpack onto his back. "You make good counterweight."
Peridot growled like an angry poodle. "I swear, if anyone sees me like this, I will welcome death with open arms and do all I can to see you go down WITH ME!"
"Yeah, that's great, kid," Greg said as he tried to push Peridot's hair out of his face. She was low enough so the hair didn't block Greg's sight, but the tip of the hair triangle brushed against Greg's nose. "You mind if comb your hair down?"
"Don't touch my hair, you organic clod!"
Greg sighed. "Fine. how about we just get going?"
"Affirmative. Until we reach Pink Diamond's Factory, we are, reluctantly, temporary traveling companions." Peridot groaned miserably. "As inglorious as my current restrainment and lack of mobility is, it is nowhere as demeaning as relying on a human for transportation and general movement. Nevertheless, I am willing to guide you through the Homeworld Underground so that we may reach Pink Diamond's Off-Color Factory and avoid termination."
"Fantastic. Time to get my cardio in." With Amber's pack on his back and Peridot hanging on his front, Greg took off into Underground.
"You're not going to expire on me before we manage to arrive at the Factory, are you?" Peridot asked.
Greg chuckled nervously. "I sure hope not, greenie. I…sure hope not."
Seated in her giant, marvelous throne, Yellow Diamond drummed her fingers on her armrest and recollected the past. "It has been so many years since we found that planet. So many millennia ago that we brought another Diamond into the order. So much has happened. So much has gone wrong. What Sapphire could have predicted that the humans would be capable of doing the damage that they did?"
Yellow Diamond looked down at the Gem before her. "You are one of the most flawless Gems ever made. A joint effort of White Diamond, Blue Diamond, and myself. You were made to be a gift for the new Diamond. Crafted to be the iron fist of her Court. But, due to the fact that the new Diamond was far too gentle to know what to do with a Gem like you, I took you instead, so that your talents would not be put to waste as her Jasper's are."
Fire Agate bowed in respect. "I thank you, my Diamond, for bringing me into your court. I am both honored and overjoyed to carry out your will."
"However, the task I have for you will indeed be a waste of your talents." Yellow Diamond said. "I consider assigning you this mission a similar scenery to using a Topaz to dispose of a Pebble. Regardless, your reputation of never failing to terminate should put my worry to rest."
"Whatever you ask of me, my Diamond, I will obey." Fire Agate replied. "What is your command?"
"An operation of mine requires attention." Yellow Diamond explained. "Pink Diamond's human was meant to die in Blue Diamond's Polonium Mine. It was supposed to look like an accident, orchestrated by one of my Peridots."
Fire Agate was oddly still and quiet for a few seconds. "...Pink Diamond's human, you say?" she asked.
"Never let it be said that humans are easy to kill, despite contrary belief." Yellow Diamond said bitterly. "The plan was to poison it in one of the polonium processors. But instead, it brought the whole processor down into a trench, along with the Peridot I assigned to orchestrate the scheme."
"Really?" Fire Agate asked in disbelief. "I almost forgot how destructive humans could get. Are you sure the human is not dead? It fell down a trench inside of a big, metal bridge."
"It's not dead." Yellow firmly stated. "I know it's still alive down there, groveling around in the dirt like the animal it is. I need you to track it down and kill it where it stands. Incinerate its body and reduce it to ash."
Fire Agate's mouth twitched. "Certainly." she purred.
"You are free to use any means necessary, but try to be discreet. I can't have it known that the human's death was my doing. Also, if you find her, shatter the Peridot I assigned to orchestrate the faked accident."
"Yes, yes, absolutely." Fire Agate said. "I will begin at once with your leave, my Diamond."
Yellow Diamond raised an eyebrow. "Very well. You may go now. Do not fail me."
"Oh, I won't, my Diamond." Fire Agate bowed. "This mission will be my utmost pleasure to complete." With a swish of her cape, the red Gem turned around and left to start her mission.
Fire Agate smiled wickedly as she left the throne room. 'I'm coming for you.'
And now, Greg and Peridot are stuck together (with tape) and now must travel to Pink Diamond's Factory in order to make it out alive. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Stay tuned and remember to like and follow.
Until next time!