As Ash completes his errand for Greg and shares his misadventure with Kevin during the previous chapter, the others meet a new friend, well in Steven's case an old friend. I do apologize for the longer delays in chapter updates, my work hours literally gave me almost no free time and i'm surprised i was able to even get this chapter done given that i've worked all day every day for the past week. Thank you so much for your patience *I DO NOT OWN POKEMON OR STEVEN UNIVERSE*
James crawled out of his tent on the side of the barn, shielding his eyes from the bright morning light. The reformed Team Rocket member entered the barn to the sight of Lapis tossing and turning in the mattress she shared with Ash with discomfort.
"Rough night Lapis?"
"Yeah, i guess i'm so used to sleeping with Ash that i just couldn't sleep without him with me." the homeworld gem said sleepily as she stood up to feed Pikachu and the rest of her beloved's pokemon.
"He should be home soon." he reassured her
"Yeah well this is Ash we're talking about" Brock shouted down from his makeshift couch bed "he's not necessarily the best at keeping time"
"You think he might be in trouble?" she then asked with worry
"Nah, he's probably just still sleeping in his motel room, or stuffing his face at that greasy dinner he told us about" Brock said "he'll be home before we know it"
After Lapis fed Ash's pokemon, she, James, Brock and Peridot sat around watching reruns of Camp Pinning Hearts in the truck for nearly three hours.
"Maybe he went back to the Temple after he returned" Peridot suggested to a clearly worried Lapis
"I should check to see" she suggested
"No dear, you have enough to worry about with his pokemon, i'll go see" James volunteered.
"Besides Lapis, you and i should stay here to welcome him home with Brock," Peridot stated
With that, James began to walk to the Temple on his own. Opening the front door, he was greeted to the sight of Steven, Amethyst and Bonnie drawing with crayons while Garnet and Pearl were doing dishes.
"No Ash hasn't been here all day" Pearl commented as he began to assist her with the remaining dishes
"He's in jail" Garnet informed them
"WHAT!?" they all shouted with concern, especially Pearl
"What happened!?" she screamed to the leader "what did Ash do!?"
"He didn't do anything, Pearl you did it"
"What!?"
"Pearl, you know you all can't hide anything from me. You ran from the police in Greg's car a few weeks ago, and Ash has taken the fall for you"
Pearl looked at the ground in shame as Steven stood up "we've got to help him!"
"Relax Steven, Ash will be fine and he'll be home at five o'clock" Garnet predicted
"I can't believe Ash is in jail" Bonnie sadly said trying to get back to her drawing "it scares me just thinking about it, him trapped in a small, dark room against his will. Just like Clemont probably is right now" she began to tear up and placed her hands over her eyes as she cried for her brother
Amethyst placed her hand on the younger girl in an attempt to calm her down "don't worry sweetie, we're gonna get him back, somehow"
James looked at the crying girl with a sympathy that he had no idea he had in him. He truly felt horrible, and even a little guilty as his former employer was helping the Diamonds torture her brother. He was so lost in thought that he didn't notice the plate he was holding slip out of his hands until it was on the floor and smashed.
"Oh my gosh i'm so sorry!" he exclaimed as the smash brought him back to reality
"It's alright James, i'll fix it" Steven said as he licked his hand and approached the pile of plate shards
"NO!" Pearl sternly said "i don't want you touching a broken plate, i'll find something to clean it up"
"And i'll find some other stuff to break!" Amethyst shouted
"Amethyst no!"
"Steven, what were you about to do?" Bonnie asked confused
"My saliva can restore anything to its normal form, from a broken plate to a missing limb" the boy explained to her. He suddenly began to look into space and repeated the words "normal form"
"No" Garnet suddenly told him
"What? But i didn't even ask for anything yet"
"With my future vision, I can see you're going to ask if you could use your power to heal one of the monsters in the bubble room" she explained
"Can you see if I can get you to change your mind?" he said putting on a set of pleading puppy dog eyes
James saw Garnet take a deep breath before getting Amethyst and Pearl "James, Bonnie, you two might want to leave. This could get dangerous"
"I wanna see you guys in action, Steven said he was gonna heal a monster, i wanna see it" the youngest person in the room protested
"Very well then, everyone follow me" she ordered as she lead the group into the back room.
James was taken aback to the sight of hundreds of gems floating in pink bubbles, he realized these were the corrupted gems that Ash and the Crystal Gems had defeated. He saw Steven stop temporarily at a bubble with an orange gem floating along as if it were watching them. James recognized it as Jasper.
"Please tell me she's not the one you're gonna heal" he pleaded
He looked at their corrupted adversary's gem with a look of sadness before turning to James "no, after what she did to Ash and Lapis, and after she rejected my help to the very end, i honestly think she's beyond helping. Though one day i hope to help her, that day isn't today. Today we're helping this one" he said jumping into the air and grabbing a green gem that oddly resembled a pokeball
"Is that?" Pearl began to ask
"It's Centipeetle, if i can help any of them, i want to help her first"
"What's a Centipeetle?" James asked
"A corrupted gem that i befriended a few weeks before Ash first came to our world, she poofed herself to save me, now i wanna return the favor."
Amethyst used her whip to bring down a second bubble, with oddly enough a bag of potato chips in it "you're gonna need these"
"Chaaaaps! They're her favorite! Okay. You guys ready?"
The Gems got into a battle formation as James pushed Bonnie behind him for her safety. Steven then popped the bubble and the gem began to glow. The bright green light began to take the form of a massive centipede and began to screech
"Come on dude, do your thing!" Amethyst demanded
"BE CAREFUL!" Pearl shouted as Steven got closer
Steven looked fearlessly at the ever growing monster as it's final form began to form. He then spat into his hand and slapped his open palm into the creature's gem.
The creature let out a cry of discomfort before it began to shrink until it was Pearl and James's height. The light faded to reveal a humanoid like creature with it's gem located on her head acting as it's eye, it had a razor sharp beak and white, long flowing hair.
"IT WORKED!" Steven shouted excitedly
"RAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH" the abomination screeched angrily at them
"What's the matter Centi? Don't you want some chaps?" he asked it presenting the bag of chips
The creature once again hissed at him
"Dude i don't think she remembers them" Amethyst said with a sigh
"I have a bad feeling this didn't work how I wanted it to work." Steven said disappointed, "maybe she just needs a little extra love!" he suddenly said as he kissed the creature's gem.
Centipeetle let out a scream is discomfort, backing up and rubbing her eye. Once she had reached the edge of the room, she gave an annoyed screech to him.
Garnet finally spoke her opinion "this is the best i've ever seen this work"
"But it didn't work!" Pearl spoke up "it looks like it's gonna need more than a kiss to heal damage from the Diamonds"
"This doesn't make sense, i-i should be able to heal her"
"Steven, she's not cracked she's corrupted. It's not something as simple as that, it's something almost impossible to describe" Pearl said laying on her knee to be at Steven's height
"Think about Lapis," Garnet explained "it's not like her gem was cracked when you and Ash freed her, but her mind was cracked instead"
"Sounds pretty explained to me!" Amethyst exclaimed
"Steven, I'm impressed with your ability to bring the Centipeetle this far, but it's time to let her rest again." Pearl softly told him "Amethyst…" she said looking in her direction implying that she wanted her to poof her.
"But. She's not a monster anymore!" Steven protested
Garnet pulled him closer and turned him around "You and Bonnie shouldn't have to watch this"
But Steven and Bonnie both broke from Garnet and James's grip and ran in front of the creature, who was distracted by her own reflection of the crystal pillar on the wall.
"NO!" they both screamed
"She can walk, and talk! Just like you guys!" he protested "I helped her this much; maybe I can help her more. I have to try. I made a promise!" he then put his pleading face back on.
Everyone sighed as they gave into his plea.
"What are we going to do with her? Let her move in?" Pearl asked
"Aw yeah! Corrupted roommate!" Amethyst shouted with a mischievous smile on her face
"Oh Amethyst, be sensitive."
"She can even stay in Ash's old room!"
"You mean the couch?" Amethyst corrected him
"She can stay un-bubbled. But you have to understand. Some Gems are beyond our help." Garnet answered him
Garnet told James that Ash would come to the Temple as soon as he got home, so he wanted to stay behind not only to see where the situation with Centipeetle would go, but also to be able to make good on his promise to bring Ash home to Lapis. After the Gems left on a mission, Steven, Bonnie and James sat on the couch with Centipeetle in an attempt to get her socialized.
"Okay, Centi. Oh, I guess that's not really your name. What is your name?" Steven asked
Centipeetle just squawked at them.
"I don't think she can talk Steven" James said
"You really don't remember me? You don't remember saving me from that seagull or our adventures in the ice caves, or when I electrocuted you with... Uh, actually, do forget that one"
Before anyone else could respond, the door suddenly kicked open. Everyone saw Ash enter the house with a furious look on his face
"Pearl i'm gonna!" he began to say before he saw Centipeetle and began to scream in fear. Centipeetle jumped on top of the table and screeched right back at him defensively.
Ash clenched his fists and got ready to charge at the unfamiliar creature, especially as it was extremely close to Steven and Bonnie. But to his surprise, Steven and James got between himself and the monster, with James even holding him back.
"ASH STOP SHE'S OUR FRIEND!" Bonnie shouted
"She's what!?" he asked extremely confused
"She's a corrupted gem that i used my healing spit on" Steven explained "i befriended her a few weeks before you came here, but it seems like she can't remember anything, not even her absolute favorite snack" he said opening a bag of chips.
As he opened the bag, Ash noticed Centipeetle began eyeing the snacks with hunger.
"I love chips" Steven sadly sang the song from the brand's commercial
"YAA YAK YAPS" Centi attempted to sing
Everyone looked at her with surprise "do you remember me singing the chaaps jingle?" Steven asked handing her a chip.
Centi took the chip and stuffed it into her beak, she then squawked at him as if to agree, she then greedily snatched the bag out of Steven's hands and scarfed the snacks down
"Your memories are still in there! I just have to draw them out! Oh, I know how we can talk, even if your voice is messed up!" he then took out a crayon from the nearby box and wrote his name down "Look, Ste...ven. That's me! Can you do that?"
She nodded as she scribbled something down
"Steven, you're a genius! Almost as smart as my brother!" Bonnie declared, however she contradicted herself once she presented her drawing, a scribbled mess.
"Okay, maybe not. That's alright. I have another plan! We'll just talk through the language of art!" Steven said drawing a picture of himself.
Centipeetle grabbed a crayon and added herself to the picture holding his hand.
"You remember we were buds!" he happily exclaimed
"YEAHHHHHH!" she squeaked out
"Do you remember anything from before y-, I - I mean from long ago?" Ash calmly asked her trying her best to be sensitive
She began to think before she drew something else on a blank piece of paper
"It's you in - some kind of spaceship? Is that how you came to Earth?" Steven asked, but Centi ignored him and continued to draw other figures similar to her on the ship she drew.
"Huh. They look kind of like you. Was that your crew? HUH! You were a captain? That's so cool! I'm sorry, that's so cool, sir!" he stated with a salute, much to her confusion. "Oh, yeah, you guys don't salute like that. You go like," he said as he attempted to recreate the Diamond's salute he saw Peridot do countless times. He let out a small cry as he stretched his muscles a little too far "man, Peridot made this look so easy"
Centipeetle perfectly saluted as she mimicked him, she then looked like she remembered something else and continued to draw.
"It's you, saluting, You're saluting someone," Steven narrated her story "Your commander? She gave you an order... You and your crew... and your ship. Woah, lots of ships. You flew through space. Towards landed. And started building stuff. But then… the gem war. You joined the fight…"
Ash saw Centi cross out several gems on her depiction of the Gem War, Ash instantly knew what she meant by that.
"You and your crew kept going" Steven continued "You got separated, but you were still fighting. Then, new orders from your commander... to retreat. Everyone's running, but from what? You don't know. Where's your crew? Where's your ship?! You stopped. You heard something. From the sky, a sound. A song? And then…"
She had stopped drawing, looking down at the blank paper, Centi began to sob at her painful memories. Ash placed his hand on her back in an attempt to calm her, similar to how he does with Lapis as she continued to cry, completely pulling the pokemon trainer into a hug for comfort.
"Centi? That light. Where did it come from?" he asked
With a look of anger and betrayal, she drew four diamonds on the paper.
"Damage from the diamonds" Steven said aloud
As Bonnie wiped tears from her eyes after hearing the story, Centi began to gag and hacked out a green liquid onto the floor, the group watched as the liquid begin to eat away at the wood floorboards before Centi broke from Ash's supportive grip and let out a cry of agony as her hand glitched away.
"You're reverting. Here, I'll heal you again!" Steven shouted as he spat onto her gem, her hand returned, but as quickly as it returned, it turned back into whatever she was becoming.
"Why isn't it working?! How can I help you!?"
She grabbed her drawing of the Diamond's symbol and shoved it into his face, all the while still screaming. Ash was not there to witness Jasper's corruption, however seeing the process right in front of him, the absolute fear and agony that Centipeetle was going through, what Jasper must've gone through, he found himself oddly feeling sorry for the gem he despised.
Centi ran from Steven over to the warp pad, bashing her hand down in a desperate attempt to make it work.
"It's not working 'cause your corrupted. Where do you want to go?" he asked taking her drawings, "The battlefield? Your ship?"
Centipeetle pointed at her drawing of her old ship
"Steven i think she wants to go to her ship!" James shouted
"Is there something on the ship that can help you?"
Centi once again screamed and slammed her fist down
"Just hold on. We'll get you there." Ash said putting his hand on her shoulder. James stayed behind to keep Bonnie safe as Ash and Steven took Centipeetle to the warp pad. They warpped to a crashed spaceship that looked like it hadn't been used in centuries.
"Hey wait for us!" Steven shouted as she took off ahead of them, tearing vines away from what appeared to be a door, she began to grow in size until she towered over both boys, Steven finally opened the door and the three ran inside, just in time for Centipeetle to completely corrupt into her monster centipede form. Ash looked up to see two more monsters hanging on the ceiling who came down and greeted the now fully corrupted gem.
"Hey now! This is my style!" shouted Amethyst who appeared out of nowhere, startling Ash as she shapeshifted into a similar form "Can I hang with you, dudes?"
"Amethyst, don't make fun!" Pearl scolded her as she entered the crashed ship with Garnet
"You guys were right after all. I couldn't help Centipeetle" Steven sadly admitted
"You brought the Centipeetle back to her ship. You brought her back to her crew. They've been waiting here for her. They didn't want to leave her behind." Garnet told him supportively
"Wait... how did you know any of that?" Ash asked
"She told us" Garnet explained showing him Centipeetle's drawings
"Her drawings?"
"Her writing"
"It's actually decently legible for a form of Gem language that hasn't been used for millennia" Pearl elaborated with a cheeky smile
Centipeetle returned to Steven and Ash's side, playfully nudging them in a sigh of gratitude, trust and affection.
"You look so happy here. Can we let the Centipeetles stay?" Steven asked Garnet putting on his puppy dog eyes
"You can put those puppy dog eyes away, Steven. This ship, it's their bubble now" Garnet reassured them as the group exited the ship
"Pearl! Pearl! Pearl! Will you teach me to write in Gem?" Steven asked as they walked back to the warp pad.
"Oh, Steven, it's very complicated. And you won't have much use for it."
"Oh, just a few things, like, "Hi. How are you? Where's the bathroom? And... "I'm sorry."
Ash looked sadly down at his buddy and placed his hand on his shoulder "i think the Centipeetle's will be just fine Steven, you did your best to help her bud"
After the two shared a hug, Steven looked down at Ash's pocket with slight confusion, "Ash, why is there a box of condoms in your pocket?" He asked catching everyone off guard, Ash had no choice but to explain his adventure with Kevin, and they're newfound respect for one another, much to Steven's dismay.
Once they returned to the Temple, as Pearl walked Bonnie back to Jamie's home, Ash requested a few minutes in the bubble room alone before he and James could return to the barn. Garnet obliged his request and opened the bubble room door and allowed him inside. Searching around the hundreds of gems, he finally found the one he needed to find.
"Hey Jasper," he addressed the bubbled, orange gem that caused him so much trouble in the past "i don't know if you can hear me in there, but i know you definitely remember me, Centipeetle proved that you remember everything, you remember what you did to Lapis, you remember Malachite, you remember manipulating James, you remember beating the shit out of me. Just as i remember wanting you dead,and when Steven told me of your corruption and Peridot delivering the finishing blow, i thought that you got exactly what you deserved. And you know what? Even after everything that you did to me, to Steven, to Lapis, to my friends, do you know what i think of you after today? I saw corruption first hand, and i now realize that nobody deserves that, not even you. I'm sorry that we couldn't help you Jasper. I'm sorry this happened to you Jasper"
The bubbled gem simply floated above him, almost as if it were looking down at him. Realizing just how stupid he looked essentially talking to himself, he got up and began his walk home with James.
"So the Diamonds are responsible for all these monsters running around?" James asked him as they walked
"If what Centi told us is true, then i'd assume so"
"If the boss, i mean Giovanni, really is supplying Homeworld with information on our world Ash, and they have the power to turn gems like Centipeetle and Jasper into monsters like that. Ash, do you think Homeworld could make pokemon into those kinds of things?"
Ash stopped dead in his tracks, he was already having nightmares about what they were doing to Clemont on Homeworld, he never entertained the thought of Homeworld getting pokemon, let alone turning them into monsters for a full scale invasion.
"Let's just focus on one thing at a time James" he began to say before he was suddenly ambushed, and tackled to the ground by Lapis.
"I missed you so much!" she exclaimed helping onto his feet
"Wow, i was only gone for a day, i never felt so loved" he said with a smile and a solid kiss on the blue gem "you'd not believe the day i've had"