TW: Slight Mention of Blood and Injury. Song featured in this chapter is "For The First Time In Forever (Reprise)" from Frozen. The corrupted Twoie that you see in this story is based on more of the dragon styled designs that many fans thought Steven would look like, compared to the corrupted!Steven we saw in the show. Also, let me know what you thought of this chapter! This was the chapter I was most excited for! :D
Steven sighed in relief when he finally reached the forest at the edge of Beach City. Lots of people were out and about, and he'd been stopped several times by his friends. They could see how exhausted the kid looked, and most just wanted to check on him. After reassuring them that he was fine, and he was just tired from going on a trip, they relented. It was nice of them, but he just wanted to be alone. Steven shivered as he slowly walked along the path to the grove. It was weird, the forest seemed darker than usual, and it seemed quieter too. No birds were chirping, and as he continued walking along, he noticed that there were no squirrels or other little critters around that he was used to seeing on his walks. He frowned and continued along. Twoie had told him once, in one of their biology lessons, that animals had a sort of sixth sense for danger. Walking through the quiet forest gave him a heavy sense of foreboding. He shook his head and continued forward. "You're just imagining it, Steven. Everything is fine. There's nothing scary about this forest." The kid continued walking through the woods, though he was unable to shake his uneasy feeling. Finally, Steven made it to the glade that housed the garden.
The sunlight that streamed into the garden was a stark contrast from the darkness of the forest. It shone so brightly that it illuminated the pink varsity jacket huddled at the very edge of the garden. Steven's eyes widened as he realized his brother was here. Twoie's knees were pulled up to his body, and his head was tucked in between his legs, arms, and chest, covering his face from view. "Twoie?" His older brother's body stiffened before he quickly stood up. Twoie smiled widely with his eyes closed while he waved at his younger brother. Steven walked a little closer. He could see what Bismuth meant when she said he looked different. The horns on his head really stuck out, as did the spines on his back and his clawed hands. "I know you didn't want me to see you like this, but I'm not scared of you. I'm really worried about you, though. Are you okay?"
Twoie opened his eyes, keeping the grin on his face. Steven couldn't hold back his gasp of shock. The young man's right eye was pitch black with a pink diamond pupil. Before Steven could apologize for his reaction, Twoie chuckled. "Oh, Steven! I'm fine! I didn't think anyone would be here. Can I help you with something?"
It was kinda freaky to the kid. He backed up a step. "Oh, no, I'm okay. I was worried about you because the gems told me about what happened. And then you didn't want me to see you or visit you. It really worried me." Steven nervously picked at the corner of his hoodie as he spoke. Twoie grinned widely at Steven.
"Ah, no need to worry about me. I'm fine here. If you don't need me to help you with anything, then I'm just gonna go." The young man started backing up into the forest. Steven panicked as his brother tried to run. He cried out for him to wait, lunging forward just in time to grab his wrist. "Let go!" Pink light flashed in the clearing, and pink fractals appeared in the air. Steven quickly let go of his brother's wrist in fear as the facets made a barrier between them. Twoie covered his mouth in horror. "I-I'm so sorry! I didn't mean for that-! It's just that-!" He didn't finish, turning and darting through the woods instead.
"Twoie! Wait! Don't go!" Although he wasn't as fast as his older brother, Twoie was wildly running through the trees, leaving broken branches and trampled dirt in his path. Steven was able to follow his trail to a new clearing he'd never seen before. It was a grassy clearing with a large boulder on the edge of a cliff. Twoie was standing in the middle of the clearing with his back to him. "Stop running, Starbright! Please!" The time traveler froze at the nickname. "I understand. You've been hurting for a long time, and now you're getting these new powers that you can't control, and it's scary. I know how you feel!" Steven walked closer until he was only a couple of feet away. "It's fine to not be fine, remember? You helped me understand that my feelings mattered when we had that talk after dealing with the mutant gems."
"You don't understand!" Twoie rounded on Steven. The young boy took a step back in surprise. "I've hurt you before with my powers, and I almost hurt you again! I wanted you to stick up for yourself, to know that you didn't have to wait for the gems' approval to be happy!" The elder Universe growled, revealing sharp fangs. "Because I don't want you to understand how I feel. If you understand me, then that means you'll end up just like me!" Steven's eyes widened in shock as Twoie gestured to himself. "I don't want you to be like me! Everyone I'm close to gets hurt because of me. It's not safe to be around me, Steven." Twoie took a breath as he looked away sadly. "I know I said I was going to return to the house when I felt better, but now I know I can't. It's best for everyone if I stay away. Especially now that I look like a- a monster." He clenched his claws in painfully tight, nails biting into his skin. The young man turned and started walking away.
But Steven wasn't going to stand by and let him. He knew how much it hurt to be alone. And he knew that his brother didn't actually want to be by himself. Twoie just thought it was the only way. "Twoie, please! We can fix this, but you have to stop running away!" His brother tensed at the words. "Please don't shut me out again! Please, don't slam the door. You don't have to keep your distance anymore." Steven took the opportunity to get closer to his brother. He held his hands to his chest as he walked forward until he was a foot behind Twoie. "Although I know you don't believe me, I truly understand. Though, I know you don't believe me, we can fix this hand in hand! We can work on your powers together. You don't have to live in fear! Although I know you don't believe me, I will be right here." Steven held his hand out in the hopes that Twoie would take it. But his older brother simply turned to face him.
Twoie looked exhausted. He backed away from the younger while gesturing to the path back to Beach City. "Steven. Please go back home. Your life awaits. I fixed things here so you won't share my fate." Steven tried to interrupt, but Twoie ignored him. "I know, you mean well, but don't you see?" Twoie gestured to the little clearing they were in. "Yes, I'm alone, but I am meant to be. So, stay away, and you'll be safe from me."
Steven stared at him in confusion. That wasn't true… That's why they needed to find Twoie in the first place. Realization dawned on Steven. Twoie didn't know he was corrupting. "Twoie… Do you know why you're changing?" His older brother looked at the ground in shame.
"Because I can't control my powers." Twoie didn't notice as Steven's eyes widened in horror. It pained the young man to admit that he was too weak to use his powers properly.
His little brother gulped before mustering the courage to speak. "Twoie... It's because you're corrupting."
The Time traveler's eyes widened. Corruption? He was corrupting? But that couldn't be! His gem didn't have corruption marks on it. That didn't even matter! Twoie had never fused with a corrupted gem, and the Diamonds' attack occurred long before he was born. There was no way he could be corrupted. "This isn't a funny joke, Steven!" Twoie glared at his younger brother. "I'm not corrupting! I can't be corrupting!" But Steven shook his head.
"Remember how Garnet said that corruption is like the fabric of your mind tearing apart? You have been really stressed and conflicted with everything that's been happening." Steven gently gripped his gem through his shirt. "Garnet thinks you're corrupting yourself because our powers are tied to our emotions. That's why you don't have the marks on your gem, but you still look like a partially corrupted gem." Twoie felt his heart start to pound in his chest. His ears were ringing, and he was just barely able to hear Steven over the noise.
His younger brother looked scared and reached out to him again, but Twoie stepped out of reach. "Don't come near me!" Steven looked hurt when Twoie shouted at him but continued to plead with him. The ringing died down a little as Twoie worked to keep his distance. "If I'm corrupting, then you need to run! Now!" Steven stared at him in shock. He could hear the horror and desperation in his older brother's voice. "Corruption can't be cured without the essences of all four diamonds! I can't be cured, and I'll probably be the strongest corrupted gem you'll ever encounter since I'm half diamond! You need to leave right now!"
Steven gasped at the info but shakily smiled at him in the hopes of calming him down. "That was for the corruption caused by the diamonds. I'm sure we can find another way to cure you! I know we can!" Steven held his hands close to his chest. He just needed to calm Twoie down, then they could go back home and fix everything. "Although I know you don't believe me, you don't have to be alone. We can work this out together! Change the doubts that have been sown."
But as Steven pushed Twoie to believe him, to change his mind, Twoie could feel himself worsening. He looked at his hands and saw that his corruption marks were beginning to crawl up and completely encompass his arm. "Oh, I'm such a fool, I can't be free!" Twoie placed a hand on his cheek when he felt his face heat up with his pink powers while clutching the other to his chest. "Can't escape the darkness inside of me." He continued backing up as Steven pressed forward. "I can't control my curse!" Twoie flinched when he backed into the boulder. He hadn't realized it was there in his panic to prevent Steven from getting to close. Twoie faced his younger brother, frightened at how close he had gotten. "Steven, please, you'll only make it worse!"
"Don't panic, cause starting with tonight!" Steven smiled softly at his brother as he inched forward. The glow on the elder Universe's face expanded until his whole body was a mix of pink and purple.
Twoie's panic grew when his pink power whipped up a strong wind around them. He could see the wind buffeting Steven, causing him to cover his face for a second with his hand. "There's so much fear! You're not safe here!" Stuck between his brother and the boulder, Twoie's heart raced as Steven tried to hug him.
"We can face this thing together. We can change this thing together! And everything will be alright." But Twoie knew Steven's words weren't true. They couldn't fix corruption. Not now. Not yet. And so Twoie would just become even worse than the other rampaging corrupted gems. He'd be out of control, unpoofable, stronger than any corrupted gem they have ever faced.
Twoie felt like everything was caving in around him. The ringing in his ears was violent, and all he could see was the increasing corruption on his arms. Steven couldn't fix this. Twoie couldn't fix this. And the insistence that he could was aggravating. "I CAN'T!" His scream reverberated through the whole forest. It smashed the ground beneath his feet, broke apart the cave behind him, and blew down all of the trees on the edge of the clearing. The young man panted heavily from expelling so much power at once. He looked up and froze.
Steven had been standing in front of him when he lost control. And the kid was now lying limply against one of the downed trees, yards across from him. Stars, how strong was that attack? "Steven?!" He ran towards his younger brother, hopping over broken branches until he was kneeling beside the unconscious kid. The back of Steven's head was bleeding sluggishly, most likely from colliding at full speed against the tree. "Steven! Steven, wake up!" Tears welled in Twoie's eyes as he pressed his fingers to the kid's wrist, checking his pulse. He shakily sighed in relief when he found it. As Twoie's tears dripped onto him, Steven sparkled. In seconds, he was healed from the damage caused by Twoie's outburst. "I'm so sorry! I could've killed you…" He began backing away from his younger brother. Clawed hands covered his mouth in horror. "Stars, I almost killed you…"
"I'm a monster."
Steven woke up to the sound of screaming. His eyes snapped open as he pushed himself into a sitting position. The last thing he remembered was Twoie losing control. The kid's eyes widened in horror as he looked up and saw his brother. Twoie was kneeling in the middle of the clearing, glowing pink while hugging himself, as his body grew larger and larger. Pained screaming shifted into animalistic shrieks. Limbs became claws, skin morphed into pink scales, and every horn and spine enlarged until it was impossible to tell that the creature before him had ever been human. "Twoie!" Steven cried out for his brother, but he couldn't approach due to the forceful winds created by the gem's roars. Finally, the glowing stopped, and the corrupted gem was fully formed.
The monster swung his massive head around, analyzing the environment that he towered over. Steven couldn't speak. He collapsed to the ground as the gem's eyes alighted onto his tiny form. After a moment, Steven was able to catch his breath. "Twoie, it's me! It's Steven! You've gotta recognize me!" The gem stared at him intensely. Steven shakily smiled, hoping that the momentary pause meant Twoie wasn't all gone. That moment was lost when the beast glared at him. Steven scrambled backward as the monster's head dipped close. His hot breath rolled over him, causing the kid to cringe in fear. Eyes closed, he waited with bated breath. Steven was sure his brother was so close that he could reach out and touch his snout. Everything was still around them. A moment later, the creature pulled back. He turned around and started lumbering away on all fours. The creature jumped off the cliff, causing several cracks to form where he landed.
The earth shook with each step, causing Steven to open his eyes in shock. From his vantage point on the cliff, Steven could see that the gem monster was heading towards Beach City. "This is so bad! I gotta call the gems!" The kid reached into his pocket for his phone. His fingers touched cloth. "Oh, no! Where's my phone!" Steven whirled around to face the debris of the destroyed trees. "I have to find it!" He shoved branches and leaves out of his path, desperate to find his phone, so he could alert his family of the danger heading towards them.
Pearl paced as Greg's phone reached Steven's voicemail for the third time in a row. "Steven should've answered his phone by now! I'm telling you, we need to head over to the garden right now!" Greg turned his phone off and tucked it into his pocket.
"I agree. This isn't like Steven. I think something happened." The concerned father stood up and started walking towards the door. Bismuth nodded at Greg from where she was leaning against the kitchen counter. Amethyst turned to face Garnet, who was strangely quiet the whole time.
"Yo, Garnet? Are you coming with?" Garnet didn't respond, too engrossed in whatever had her attention. Suddenly, a powerful force caused the house to shake. Everyone looked around in surprise. "Since when does Beach City get earthquakes?" Amethyst brushed her hands through her hair in frustration.
Greg covered his head with his hands as he pushed himself against the wall. "It doesn't! The occasional flooding, sure, but not earthquakes!" Garnet gasped and darted out of the house. The others blinked in surprise and quickly followed suit. Everyone gathered on the porch, and they all cried out in terror at the sight of the huge pink beast that was on the outskirts of the town.
Bismuth picked up Greg and hopped the porch fence. The others landed on the sand beside her, and she sat Greg down beside his van. "What in the world is that thing!" Bismuth shouted as she turned to face the Crystal Gems.
"I don't know, but we have to evacuate the city! Greg, I want you and Pearl to alert everyone of what's happening and help them leave. The rest of us will distract the corrupted gem and try to lead it away from the city." Pearl nodded and hopped into the van with Greg. While the car took off towards the boardwalk, the gems ran towards the forest to confront the monster, hoping to buy them time. As they got closer, they could see how the gem towered over them.
"Dude, how do we even fight her?" Amethyst doubted her whip would do enough damage to hurt the corrupted gem, let alone poof her. Bismuth shaped her hands into hammers, while Garnet summoned her gauntlets.
"I don't know, but we have to try." Garnet took a deep breath then charged at the corrupted gem. She slammed her fists against the creature's leg. The beast swiveled its long neck around to see who was attacking him. Bismuth let out a mighty battle roar and swung her hammers against his claws. He shrieked in pain and swiped his claws at her. Bismuth barely managed to dodge the attack in time, but she was buffeted back by the air pressure of the attack. The beast glared at his attackers before slamming one of his front paws into the ground. The earth cracked around the Crystal Gems, spiderwebbing fissures for miles. Bismuth struggled to keep her footing and cried out as a fissure opened up beneath her.
"I got you!" Amethyst screamed as she summoned her whip and twirled it around Bismuth's waist. She pulled the multi-colored gem out of the crack.
"Thanks, Amethyst!" Bismuth called out as she switched her hammers to blades. "Alright, let's see how you like it when I get serious." She charged forward with Garnet and Amethyst beside her, each gem attacking with all their strength. A high-pitched shriek tore through the air, causing the gems to cover their ears in pain. Distracted, they didn't see the tail swinging towards them until it was too late. It slammed heavily into them, and they were flung away at high speed. Garnet clenched her eyes shut. She knew the moment she landed, she would be poofed, and Beach City would be doomed.
Water swirled in the air and formed a cushion around the three gems. Garnet opened her eyes with a smile as the water lowered her to the ground safely alongside Amethyst and Bismuth. "Thank you for your help, Lapis." The blue gem flew into view. Lapis was carrying Peridot in her arms and set the green gem down.
"We were alerted to the danger when that abomination roared. Any idea what it is?" Peridot peered up at the corrupted gem. She had never seen anything like it before. It was nothing like the Cluster or the gem mutation experiments. Whatever it was, it was horrifying.
Garnet shook her head. "All we know is that it's a corrupted gem. We need to poof her so we can bubble her for safekeeping, but she's stronger than any gem we've ever faced." The bushes rustled, and everyone turned to see Pearl and Greg running towards them.
"The whole town has been evacuated. No one saw Steven in town, and we didn't see him either. He must still be in the woods!" Pearl shouted in a panic. Lapis and Peridot gasped.
"Steven's in here somewhere? What if the corrupted gem hurt him?" Peridot frantically started spewing off probabilities of what could've happened and where he could be in the forest.
Lapis placed a hand on her shoulder. "Not the time. You're just gonna freak us out more. I'm sure he's fine. He probably got lost trying to avoid this thing. For now, let's focus on defeating her." Bismuth nodded in agreement. Lapis and Peridot looked curiously at her. "And who are you? A new friend of Steven's?" The blacksmith smiled kindly as she gave them a slight wave.
"The name's Bismuth. We'll have to save the proper introductions for later, though." She noticed the beast was advancing again. It had disregarded them entirely in favor of continuing its route towards the town. "We've got a corrupted gem to poof." The gems quickly got into formation, ready to attack the monster with everything they had.
"WAIT!" They all turned as Steven burst out of the bushes.
"Steven!" Everyone shouted in relief. Pearl and Greg immediately scooped the kid into a hug.
The prim gem backed up a bit so she could look at him. "We were so worried! Why didn't you answer your phone?" Steven wiggled out of their hold and pulled out his phone. The screen was severely cracked.
"I found Twoie out in the garden, and tried to calm him down." The kid shook slightly as he looked at the corrupted gem. He sniffled as he tried to hold back his tears. "Instead, I accidentally made everything worse."
The Crystal Gems and Greg shared a worried look. "Wait, do you mean…?" Pearl whispered in horror.
Steven nodded. "That's Twoie."