Epilogue
A few days later, a small crowd gathered on the front lawn of the Hinobi Base. With the battle won, Vilgax defeated, and the Cluster's earthquakes subdued, the Glitch Techs had set to work cleaning up the battlefield. Now, one could barely tell that a battle with space aliens and murder drones had taken place there.
The crowd was standing near the warp pad, and there was a melancholy air to them all. Lao Shi, Wakeman, Max, and the Crystal Gems were standing on the outside of the gathering. On the inside, the teens stood together. Everyone was saying goodbye.
"We'll keep in touch," Wakeman said to the Gems and Lao Shi.
"Contact me if you need anything," Max added on his own.
Lao Shi nodded graciously, and the gems, under Garnet's guidance, were starting to begrudgingly let their guard down about these humans.
"So," Steven said, "this is it, huh?"
Jenny gave him a sad smile. Each of the teens had their own way of showing the fact that they would miss each other. In their short stay at the Hinobi Base, they had grown quite close to each other. After living with each other, escaping to the moon together, fighting each other, and saving all of humanity together, it felt a bit strange to just walk away. Ben was quiet and closed off, his arms crossed, though it was obvious in his eyes. Jenny was trying to make everyone feel better. Gwen was frantically barraging Jake with last minute questions, and Jake was doing his best to answer. Steven's emotions were the most obvious: tears welled up in his eyes, despite his obvious effort to hold them back.
"Are you crying again?" Ben asked.
"No," Steven sniffed. "... yes."
Ben sighed, and gave Steven a pat on the back.
"It's gonna be alright, dude."
Steven burst into tears, and gave Ben a tight hug.
"Jake," Lao Shi said, giving his protege a nod to signify it was time to leave. Jake nodded in return before turning back to his friends.
"Alright guys… I guess I'll catch ya later."
"Bye, Jake!" Steven sobbed.
"Stay cool, dragonbreath," Gwen said.
"Keep your eyes peeled. We're on weirdness patrol, got it?" Jenny said.
Jake snorted.
"Is that our team name? Weirdness Patrol?" Ben remarked snarkily.
"No way," Gwen said. "It's gotta be something cooler."
"Who cares what you think? You're not even on the team."
"Am too!"
"By technicality!"
"Not Weirdness Patrol," Jake said, a bit of fire glinting behind his eyes, as the perfect name jumped to his mind.
"Danger Watch."
When they arrived back in New York, Jake was happy to hear the familiar sounds of the city. As loud and stinky and busy as it sometimes was, he missed the grimey alleyways and glittering skylines that he called home. The young boy couldn't help the toothy grin that split his draconic maw as Chinatown grew closer.
As they landed on the roof of their apartment building, Fu Dog was there waiting for them.
"Master! Yo, Master!" The Sharpei said, running in urgent circles as the two dragons changed back to human form.
"What is it, Fu Dog?" Lao Shi asked.
"First of all, welcome back, hope your trip was nice," Fu said. "Secondly, OH CRIPES YOU'RE NOT GONNA BELIEVE THIS!"
"Spit it out, Fu!" Jake snapped.
"We got a Cyclops rampagin' on 14th and Bleaker! A big one! Smelly too, I bet."
Lao Shi stroked his wisps of cloudy beard, and then turned to Jake. The boy already knew what he was going to say, and groaned.
"Aw man, Gramps! We just got back!"
Lao Shi raised his eyebrows, and Jake sighed. It was his duty after all. Besides, after going toe to toe with alien warlords and world-ending superweapons, one Cyclops (no matter how smelly) sounded like a walk in the park. So, Jake grinned, pumped his fists, and erupted into heat and flame.
"Dragon Up!"
End of Book 6
Post-Credits Scene 1
Garnet scooted the recliner a little to the right. A few feet away, Pearl watched critically. She had reformed in a rather modern looking outfit, with tails like Wakeman's jacket and an elegant flow like Lao Shi. She formed a square with her fingers.
"A little to the left," she said. Beneath her sunglasses, Garnet rolled all three of her eyes.
"But Steven, she knows!"
Steven stopped where he was, carrying a cardboard box of old knick-nacks and VHS tapes that should have been too heavy for him. The two of them had just gotten off of Greg's van.
"It's OK," Steven said. Peridot turned dark green in the face.
"How is that oh-kay?!" The little green alien sputtered. "She knows there are still rogue gems here! They'll come for us!"
Steven tried to give her a reassuring smile.
"And if they do, we'll be ready," he said. "We've got some great new friends, and I feel like I'm getting stronger. It'll be alright."
After leaving the Hinobi Base, the gems had let Peridot stay in the bathroom for a while. Steven had objected to this; partly because he believed she should have her own place to live. Partly because he didn't want to go back to asking permission to brush his teeth. He'd asked his dad if he knew anywhere a friend could crash, and Greg had known just the place. The entire party had rode in Greg's van, a few hours out of Beach City, up to an old family barn. Greg said nobody would bother them there. The only other person who knew about it was his brother, and he was off flying airplanes somewhere.
Now, they were unloading boxes and extra furniture into Peridot's new home. As Steven set down his box next to an old television, he sighed with satisfaction, slapping his hands together. Something gnawed at the center of Peridot's chest. She grumbled and stamped her feet.
"You keep saying its OK," she said, "but why do I still feel bad! I already did the I'm sorry!"
Steven looked at Peridot with a sort of understanding look. That was an emotion he could sympathize with. He put a hand on her shoulder, and she calmed slightly, looking to her newfound friend for answers.
"Apologizing is just the start. After that, they gotta forgive you, which, luckily, I do. It's not always that easy," Steven said. "The next step, you gotta do even if they don't forgive you."
"What step?"
"Pay it forward," Steven said. Peridot blinked. "Grow. Do better. Put good into the world. Once you've messed up, all you can do is do good things and try hard not to mess up again."
"Pay it forward…" Peridot echoed.
Just then, there was a loud snap! Then, a low humming sound, and then, the old lights that were hanging in the barn flickered to life. Moments later, Greg and Amethyst came around the corner, Greg carrying a box of tools, and Amethyst patting sparks and fire out of her hair.
"Fuse box is fixed!" Greg called out. "We should head back, now. Its gettin' dark."
Steven gave Peridot a reassuring goodbye. As the rest of them left, Steven's words echoed in Peridot's mind. Over the next few days, Peridot became accustomed to her new environment. She was once again using her old recording device, as her limb enhancers had been broken during the final battle. She mostly laid around, occasionally putting together the knick-nacks into curious patterns that her idle mind dreamed up. Eventually, she made a breakthrough discovery: Camp Pining Hearts.
It was a collection of VHS tapes that Peridot had started to become obsessed with. She had learned to work the VCR with relative ease, and soon, she was absorbed into the show. It was an overdramatic, partially scripted, teen drama about romance at a summer camp. There was also some form of competition element, and all of that together made it a riveting watch for Peridot. However, between episodes, as the end credits rolled, the green gem would see her reflection in the tv screen, and remember Steven's words.
Pay it forward.
One night, a storm rolled in. Peridot was so absorbed in one of her episodes that she didn't notice until the first crack of thunder. It shook her from her binge, and she nearly squealed, jumping up and throwing her arms up defensively.
"Ahh!" She exclaimed. "Oh… wait. Right… Thun-der."
The rain started to come down hard, and Peridot scrambled towards the nearest window. The rain fell in sheets, leaving a rhythmic thrum as the drops pelted the barn roof. Every so often, a brilliant flash would shake the sky, and for a second, Peridot would seen an arc of light. Then, moments after, a thunderous crack would shake the sky. As Peridot watched in awe, one such lighting flash illuminated something she did not expect: a body flying down from the sky.
Peridot jumped as the humanoid figure came plummeting down from seemingly nowhere, before skidding across the wet, muddy trail outside of the barn. They tried limply to get up, but then fell back down. Peridot gulped. Where had they come from? Perhaps they had been a figment of her imagination. They seemed hurt. The green gem bolted to the door, a sinking feeling forming strangely in her gut. Another new emotion. She flung open the door, and peered out, making sure to avoid touching the rainfall.
Sure enough, the figure was real. Collapsed in the mud was a pastel blue humanoid, with bubbling, translucent wings that seemed to vanish into the rain. A gem. At first, Peridot recoiled. A gem? That could mean only one thing! Then, she saw how weakened this gem was; face first on the ground, light-dress tattered, drenched in the rain. That phrase rang in her mind again. Pay it forward.
Peridot rushed out, braving the rain, and, with some effort, carried the injured gem inside.
Post-Credits Scene 2
The man straightened his tie. He was in a dark room, lit only by a trio of tv screens, hanging above the far wall, their screensavers dull, blue 'H's. He was expecting a call. He kept glancing at the time on his hi-tech gauntlet.
When the faces appeared on the three tv screens, the man wasted no time standing at attention.
"At ease, Billings," one of the shrouded figures said. Like their faces, the voices of the three individuals were obscured.
"Good afternoon, gentlemen," Phil said, slightly loosening his tie. "I take it you skimmed my debrief of the Rushmore incident."
"We did," one of the other figures said. "I'm displeased that you didn't mind wipe the children."
"I thought Wakeman would be smart enough to do it on her own," Phil said.
"Wakeman is still… new to the corporation. She is unpredictable."
"I understand, but how bad is it in the grand scheme of things if a few kids-"
"Do you know how bad it would be if word gets out?"
Phil stopped, and bowed his head humbly.
"Yes, sir."
"... for now, so long as they stay quiet, they are only a nuisance. Your job will be to observe them, but keep your distance. Nothing like Rushmore."
"Understood, sir."
"Now, we have things to do. There are far more pressing matters to attend to than these children. The Diamond Authority, for instance."
With that, the conference call was over, and Phil breathed out a sigh of relief. That hadn't gone as poorly as he had thought it might. Rubbing his face, he turned around to face the pin board on the wall of the room. There were various pins on a map of the globe, each with little icons. A ghost in the American Midwest, a dragon on the east coast, a clipping from an old news paper, blurry photographs of creatures with bat wings, and more evidence of the supernatural and extraterrestrial.
The world was waking up.
Time to get to work.
A Word From Me... The Author
(tldr, ive been writing this fic series for a long time, its emotional, thank u for reading)
Hey! If you've made it this far, I want to say seriously, thank you so much. I am so happy that my story was engaging enough for you to read it to the end.
If you're here just to read all the post credit scenes to catch up, I don't blame you, and I and thankful to you.
Danger Watch has been a long road. I started writing just after the pandemic hit, it was an idea I had always had, but had never really had the time to sit down and write. The reception to Jake Long was huge! I was shocked by how many people liked my silly crossover story that I was starting to think was way too complicated. Turns out, people thought it was kinda cool, and that got me super inspired to keep writing.
Fast forward to now, finishing the sixth short story in the series. This is the longest work of fiction I've written, and I'm kinda proud of it. I also see where I can do better, and I am loving using the DWU as a place to get better at writing, and to celebrate a love for these cartoons.
There's more on the way. I promise, Phase 1 was just the tip of the iceberg. I hope you guys are excited for the series going forward! Thank you all, and huge shout outs in particular to OMAC001, who has been a huge supporter and an awesome inspiration, and to Doc Spacewizard, who I believe is now following on both A03 and Fanfiction, which is bananas. Much love to you both, and to all of you guys who are following along with the series.
Now... You don't think I would leave you like that, did you? This is me, we're talking about. So, first off:
Danger Watch...
Will Return.
And also:
Post-Credits Scene 3
New Jersey, 1995
Five teens were walking down the street late at night, joking and chattering. They had just gotten out of a movie, about aliens and space junk. Two of the boys, red-headed twins, were pointing finger guns at each other, and making laser noises with their hands.
"I mean, I guess it was ok," said one of the older boys, a beanpole with shaggy brown locks, "The CGI was gnarly. Very realistic."
At the head of the pack, the oldest boy scoffed. He was brawny, with dirty blong hair kept short, and a blue letterman jacket over his wide shoulders. As the rest of the teens joked around, he was mostly focused on walking, and making sure they all got to their destination.
"I liked the part with the laser hydra! Rawwwwr!" The older girl at the rear of the group said, emphasizing her opinion by throwing up her arms and growling. She played pretend that her hands were hydra heads, and she started to make laser noises at the twins, who laughed and aimed their imaginary phasers on the new threat. Eventually, their battle devolved into the two kids getting scooped up, and then put immediately back down. "Ok, ok. Heavy. Cute, but heavy."
The group veered off form the paved road, heading through the shortcut that they always used when coming home from the movies. They had stashed their bikes on the trail, and from there they would cycle home to their respective houses. However, only moments into their hike, the teens started to sense that something was off. The path ahead was darkened, hidden by smoke and flame. There was a circle of fire, and some kind of crater. A low, pulsing noise was lingering in the air.
"What is that?" The girl asked, as all of them inched to the edge of the crater. The twins tried to peer in, but were grabbed by the scruffs of their necks.
"Stay back!" The oldest boy said. "I think its gonna-!"
BWWWooooommmm!
There was a sudden implosion from the center of the crater, and a wave of multi-colored, prismatic energy came shooting out in all directions. All of the teens were knocked onto their backs, the air gone from their lungs.
Her ears ringing, and her vision blurred, the girl lifted a hand up to her face.
She squinted.
In her disoriented state, it was almost like… Her hand was glowing, giving off a dangerous, green light, as if it were coated in viridian flame.
Next Time…
Phase 2
Book 1: Shego
Final Subnote
That's right, Shego is gonna be kicking off our next phase. Not only that, but in addition to Shego, look out for a new fic I will be dropping soon called Danger Shots. It's going to be shorter form fiction like fluff and side stories, and its going to be set in the DWU. I'm also going to be doing some like Q and A type stuff there, it's gonna be really cool.
Ok, well, I think that's about enough from me. Thank you, again, for reading. I will see you next time.